#he just woke me up on my day off so I gotta dunk on him

[cowboykakashi]

Low quality Huberts

[teddy06writes]

sum angst for sapnap x quackity x karl x reader if requests are open, i dont remember if they are, and if u feel up to it

sapnap x karl x quackity x reader + sleepy bois x sibling!reader

trigger warnings: yelling, swearing, character death

this is an in game au so be aware of that

premise: you’ve been on the inside, spying on Shlatt for pogtopia, you thought you had had him convinced that the spy was Tubbo (Who knew just about nothing about pogtopia) but during the festival Shlatt asks you to make a speech... after the festival, things begin to fall apart

(y/n/n)- your nickname

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

“And you’re sure about this? You’re positive that it’s him and not Quackity?” Shlatt asked.

The festival was in two days, Wilbur’s plan to blow Manburg was in place, and suddenly huge evidence of things you had berried was piling up. Your entire position as Pogopia’s spy was at risk.

“I’m positive Mr. President. I caught Tuboo poking around in some tunnels, trying to talk to TommyInnt just yesterday,” You lied straight through your teeth, “The log I found behind the files proves it.”

You held up the book, truly a work of your own notes, signed in you co workers hand.

Shlatt took it, quickly skimming through the pages, “Hmmm, this is significant evidence to condemn the kid. We’ll have to do something about.”

“Maybe we should exile him, like Wilbur and Tommy.” You suggested carefully.

He considered it for a moment, a wide jagged grin spreading across his face, “Or... we could execute him,” He seemed to take pleasure in your shock, “Publicly. We have been needing a slam finish for that festival.”

“Shlatt Tubbo is just a child!”

Shlatt glared down at you, “Sorry, what was that? It almost sounded like you were trying to go against the word of the president.”

The threat chilled you to the core, and you strained to stay calm, “With all due respect Mr. President, Tubbo is only 16, and there are other ways to deal with insurgents.”

“Insurgents? As in there's multiple now?” Alex strode into the room, wrapping an arm around your shoulders as you breathed a slight sigh of relief.

“Yes, your partner here has just informed me that our dear Tubbo is a traitor,” Shlatt slammed the journal onto the desk, ignoring the glare Alex gave him when you jumped, “He’s been spying on Manburg for Pogtopia.”

Alex reached for the book, flipping to the last page and reading allowed, “If there is ever a time to strike, it would be during the Manburg festival, though it is worth noting Wilbur’s plan of destroying L’Manburg should be put off as long as possible.”

“When I caught them in the tunnels under the city, they were talking about tnt,” You said, the shake in your voice all too real, as forced tears began to prick in your eyes, “Wilbur’s going to blow it up.”

Shlatt looked at you clearly searching for something, but giving up once you fully began to cry, turning to burry your face in your boyfriends shoulder.

The president sighed, annoyed, “Get them outta here Quackity, I can’t work when there's fucking crying in my office.”

“It’s probably just the stress, sir. I’ll get them home.” Alex carefully led you out of the white house, and you were grateful, unknowing how much of the emotion was real or not.

“Oh god! Is (y/n) okay?” Karl asked as soon as Alex had gotten you to where he was decorating party island.

“Yeah, they’ll uh- they’ll be alright. Shlatt, Manburg, stress, you know?” He eased you down to sit on one of the benches, and quickly Karl moved to sit and wrap his arms around you.

“Hey, I’ve gotta get back to work. I’ll see you guys tonight.” Alex quickly pecked at your cheek, and then Karl’s lips before heading back in the direction of the white house.

“What happened?” Karl asked softly once he had gone.

You sniffled, leaning into his embrace, “Work’s stuff. The festival’s getting stressful.”

“Yeah, well I’m helping Tubbo with the last of the decorating tomorrow,” He paused, “You’re missing Wilbur and Tommy aren’t you?”

You nodded, “I miss them and Techno and Phil. I miss home.”

Your duties as a spy didn’t entail much seeing your brothers, just taking down notes of what was going on in Manburg and leaving them in a remote chest for Wilbur to collect later.

“We all miss home. But think about it this way, if you hadn’t come here, you wouldn’t’ve found me, or Alex, or Nick,” Karl said, looking out at the rest of Manburg, “We wouldn’t have this place without you or your brothers, and even Shlatt can’t change that.”

You smiled a bit at that, “Thanks Karl.”

“And! You don’t have to worry about decorations for the festival cause I’m helping Tubbo with it tomorrow!”

Though it was meant to cheer you up you felt your heart sink lower, he and Nick still didn’t know, and wouldn’t about what would be planned for the festival, but hopefully Alex would understand the burden.

~~

“So why is there a festival?”

Nick had just arrived back in Manburg from a while’s stay in the SMP, and was very confused by the posters lining the streets.

“Shlatt wants to celebrate democracy, so he’s had Tubbo and I organize a festival.” You explained.

He cocked an eyebrow, “And what does Wilbur think of this?”

Nick was still the only one who’d found out about your allegiances to Pogtopia, only by mistake, when he’d caught you making the journey back from the cavern.

“Wilbur thinks it’s an opportunity,” You sighed, quickly scribbling down a new messege to the boys, “Techno think’s it’s a waste of time and energy, the anarchist energy’s been shining through more and more lately.”

“So who do you agree with?” He asked carefully.

“Neither, Wilbur’s gone manic, Techno is- well he’s Technoblade, and Tommy just goes along with what Wil says.” You tucked each note into an envelope, folding them between the pages of the newest set of notes.

You looked up to meet Nick’s eyes, “I’m worried about what Friday will bring. I’ve tried to throw Shlatt off my trail and it seems like it’s working I just-”

You broke off as Nick wrapped his arms around you, “Hey, it’ll be okay. And if he tries anything, I’ll be there to protect you,” He chuckled, “Hell, maybe it’ll be the only time your brothers and I agree.”

“Maybe.” You mumbled.

“Woah! Are you guys cuddling without us?” Karl feigned shock as he came into the living room with Alex.

“I would never!” You forced a laugh.

~~

“(y/n), come on, we’ve gotta go get ready to meet Shlatt.” Alex nudged you.

You sighed, starting to snuggle back into Nick’s grip, wishing the small amount of morning calm would last, “Do we have too?”

“Yeah, you know he won’t be happy if we’re late.”

You looked at Karl and Nick, still mostly asleep, and then back at him, quietly admitting, “I’m scared today could change everything.”

He sighed, immediately shifting back down into be, “I suppose we could stay a bit longer.”

Slowly, the other boys woke up, but the room remained in silence, as if everyone could feel the coming tension, as if even moving would shatter the peace of the day.

Carefully, Karl broke the silence, “We’re gonna be okay guys. The festival is gonna be awesome. Wilbur wouldn’t do anything to ruin it for (y/n).”

“If what they found out is true, you guys could all be at risk.” Alex murmured.

Nick sighed, “I don’t care who’s bad side I get on, it’s gonna be anything to keep you all safe.”

Each of you heard a different meaning behind his words, but still none of you spoke.

“Whatever happens today, we’ll make it through, the country, may not.” You said, voice wavering, but still with a note of finality.

~~

By midday the festival was in full swing, and surprising your older brother had actually shown up for the festivities.

“Strange seeing you here,” You laughed, nudging him, “A celebration of a government.”

“It’d be rude to turn down an invitation ta one a these,” He sighed, glancing around, “Where’s your boyfriends hanging around at, I haven’t threatened them yet today.”

You chuckled, “Q’s helping Shlatt with the last of the prep for the speeches. Sapnap’s supposedly trying to figure a way to cheat Fundy’s dunk tank and Karl’s over there.” You gestured to where he, Tubbo, Sam and Bad were running around at Party Island.

“mmm, hey, uh, your note the other day, you weren’t serious about framing the kid right?”

You sucked in a breath, tightening the grip on the sword at your side, “It was him or Al- Quackity, I couldn’t do that to him. Whatever they’re planning I’m going to stop them.”

Techno look back at the stage warily, “I’ll back you up if I can.”

Soon everyone was being called to take there seats in the audience as you, Tubbo, Alex, and Shlatt took to the stage.

“Well everyone!” Shlatt addressed the crowd, “Thank you for coming to this wonderful celebration of democracy! Things sure have gotten bet around here, I’m gonna give the mic to Tubbo, the main organizer of this event, for his speech.”

Tubbo grinned, shuffling his notecards as he took Shlatt’s spot in front of the microphone, “Hello everyone! I’m honestly so excited to be here right now!”

As Tubbo rambled on about Wilbur and Tommy’s banishment, you stood back, wishing you could’ve stood on the same side of the stage as Alex.

Looking out over the crowd gathered you tried not to let your gaze wander to Tommy and Wilbur, who you knew were perched on the top of a near by building.

“And uh yeah! To democracy!��� Tubbo concluded.

You could almost here Alex chuckle as he started to turn to the chest on the side of the stage, ready to grab the materials to box the boy in.

“That was nice, hey, uh, (y/n), dear (y/n), my secretary of state, I uh, I hate to put you on the spot here, but uh, why don’t you come up and make a speech?” You blood ran cold at Shlatts words.

On the other side of the stage Alex froze as well, out in the crowd no one suspect anything, so you clasped your hands behind your back to hide the tremors and moved in front of the microphone.

“Well, uh hi guys! I honestly didn’t except to be up here making a speech today, so I’m not quite sure if this will even turn out coherent,” You laughed, out of the corner of your eye you noticed Tommy tensing, “I remember, soon after I followed my brothers to this land, we fought in a war. L’manburg’s war for independence was long and hard, and I often thought we would never see a better time, but standing here, it is very clear to me that this country has changed since the election.

“This country, since gaining it’s independence has changed my life, and it weighs on my heart that My L’manburg has a ruler such as Mr. JShlatt. We fought for this land, my brothers and I, and here we are today, with so much progress made! So, my friends, my colleges, here's to Our L’manburg!”

Everyone began to cheer, only to be cut off my Shlatt’s harsh laugh, “Oh, (y/n), it’s Manburg now remember? or did you forget while you were off conspiring with your brothers in Pogtopia?”

Tubbo pushed a still frozen Alex out of the way to grab the materials, beginning to box you in.

“S- shlatt?” You quickly turned on the emotion, turning frantically as they caged you in, “Shlatt what are you talking about?”

“Shlatt what the hell are you doing?” Alex asked.

“Oh, you didn't know? Your partners a traitor!” Shlatt laughed again.

Alex turned to you, now trapped between the throne and the mic stand, looking betrayed.

“I didn’t do anything! Shlatt! Please!” Though a few days before most of the emotion had been real, but now you were thankful for your acting skills, blubbering, “Alex! Alex look at me it wasn’t me! I didn’t do anything!”

Down in the stands Nick was halfway to standing, pushing Karl back down into his own seat.

“Or really? So that book wasn’t forged? That chest you used to pass messages? You tried to turn them against me!” Tubbo exclaimed.

“I didn’t- I- I would never betray my country!” You sobbed, forcing tears to leak from your eyes.

“Oh shut up,” Shlatt turned to the crowd, “Technoblade, front and center, get up here.”

Shakily Techno stood, quietly moving up to stand on the stage as Alex backed off the stage, looking between you and Shlatt with mixes of betrayal and shock.

“What uh, what you need me up here for Shlatt?”

“I want you to take care of them, make a public example.”

Techno coughed awkwardly, “You- you want me ta kill m’ sibling?”

“No!” You exclaimed, “Techno please...”

Shlatt glared at you, “Cut the crap (y/n)! We all know you aren’t actually this god damn emotional!”

Sapnap was fully in the isle now, sword drawn, and up on the roof You saw Wilbur clamping a hand over Tommy’s mouth to keep him to keep him from giving them away.

Sighing you wiped away the fake tears, “You have to admit, Shlatt, you believed me, you trusted me!”

Shlatt just rolled his eyes, “Techno get on it, snap too! I’ve got places to be.”

Techno slung his crossbow off his shoulder uncertainly, “(y/n)?”

All the fear from the morning came flooding back, but you shoved it down, leaning forward, to make eye contact with Shlatt, “You kill me now and nothing will change! This place will still go down hill and my brothers will still plot against you! All my secrets go down with me!”

“Shut your mouth and die already!”

Your nails dug into your palms, “Don’t make them watch Shlatt, have some mercy, if you want to kill me kill me, but don’t make my boys watch, don’t make Techno do it.”

“Get it over with!”

You leaned forward, gritting your teeth, “You heard the man, kill me.”

“(y/n), I can’t- you- yo- I-”

“Do it.” You hissed.

Time slowed, and Techno slowly raised the crossbow.

You looked out, past him, over the rolling fields of L’manburg, your home.

Niki out in the crowd wore a look of horror, hiding her face in Eret’s shoulder, who wore a simillar look for fear. Fundy wore a steely expression clearly close to breaking, Sam looked down right terrified, as Bad hid his eyes in his hands.

To your left Tubbo looked scared even though he’d put you in the cage, you were glad it was you and not him.

Shlatt wore his usual evil grin, pupil’s dilated.

Up on the roof, Tommy, your little brother looked horrified, Wilbur still holding him back with a neutral expression, Techno, now directly in front of you, was nearly in tears, your big brother, who swore to protect you, now being your end, it seemed almost poetic.

Behind him Nick was running up the isle, sword drawn, though you knew he’d be to late, Karl, lip quivering sat frozen, and Alex, his face still was filled with betrayal.

You looked up, took a deep breath and then time resumed, Techno pulled the trigger and everything went black.

{(y/n) went off with a bang}

~~

It was cold.

Dark.

You didn’t now where you were as you drifted through a world you barley recognized.

Where was this?

How did you get there?

Vaguely you remembered a festival, your brothers, plus your boyfriends, oh how you loved them.

Your friends had been there too.

You looked back down to see L’manburg, ‘home!’ you thought happily.

You drifted towards your house, a voice in the back of your brain wondering, ‘why am I not walking?’

“What the fuck was that?” A loud voice cut through the air.

‘Nicky!’ you thought happily, following the sound.

“What the hell do you mean?”

‘Alex!’

You entered the room, finding them standing on opposite side, Karl, huddled in the corner.

“You are so fucking stupid! You know that? You let them die! They’re fucking dead because of you!”

“They were a fucking traitor! They got what was coming to them!”

“They loved you!” Nick screamed back, “They loved you and me and Karl, and their brothers! And now there gone! Because of You and Fucking Shlatt!”

What were they talking about?

“They fucking betrayed us! They betrayed Manburg! You saw the fucking acting they did! How do you know they ever loved us!”

From the corner Karl sobbed, and instinctively you moved to comfort him, but instead you passed right through.

‘what the hell?’

You had no time to dwell however because Nick shouted, “Etheir way you let them die! They’d be here if you’d interfered!”

“But I didn’t wooupdy do! They were a traitor!”

“They were trying to save their home!”

“WELL MAYBE THEY SHOULD’VE CONSIDERED THAT I WAS TRYING TO BUILD IT UP!”

“You and Shlatt never did anything but tare this place to the ground.” It was only a whisper, but Nick’s words sent Alex spinning on his heel and heading out the door.

“Fuck you! Fuck you! I am aware that my best isn’t good enough! So fuck you!”

The door slammed, and Nick only blinked a moment before Karl quietly asked, “Why did you do that?”

“What?”

“Now he’s gone too!”

Karl’s voice made your heart shatter.

“You think that’s my fault?! Clearly he didn’t give a shit about us, or them, other wise he would’ve stopped Shlatt.”

“They said we’d be okay! But we’re not!” Karl sobbed.

“I can fucking see that! God damn Karl! What did you except?”

“I-”

Before he could finish the door was slamming again.

Karl leaned back against the wall, staring straight through you whispering, “Why did you have to go (y/n/n)? You only just brought us together! We only just figured it out.”

[sincerelyasomebody]

Two Became Three || Johnny "Coco" Cruz & Leticia "Letty" Cruz

(GIF: @angels-reyes)

A/N: With the awesome response for Mama, I decided to write up a "pre-Mama" setting. I hope you all enjoy it! If I'm being honest this Cruz family dynamic is likely to become a series of sorts👀. Because these two deserve so much more😭😫. Coco and Johnny are used interchangeably. If the Spanish translations are incorrect, please let me know. 

Characters/Pairings: Coco x Reader (romantic partnership) ▪︎ Letty x Gabby (friendship) ▪︎ Gabby x EZ (mentioned) ☆ Bishop (mentioned) ▪︎ Chucky (mentioned) ▪︎ Mayans MC (mentioned)

Summary: The start to a wonderful, dysfunctional yet endearing family. 

Warnings: angst, fluff, language 

Word Count: 1829

- ♤ - ♡ - ◇ - ♧ -

The living room was becoming (Y/N)'s personal race track as she continuously walked around the coffee table in the centre. Her eyes would dart between the landline and her phone. She tried to calm herself down, but the 'what ifs' going off in her mind wouldn't allow her to do so. The familiar rumble of Cocos truck stopped her pacing as she jumped onto the couch. Pulling the edge of the curtain up, she was momentarily blinded by the headlights flashing at her. 

Once she spotted the teenager in the passenger side, she let out a sigh of relief. (Y/N) readjusted her body on the couch and waited for the pair to walk inside. She braced herself for the argument. 

The front door and screen door opened up with Coco leaning against them, "what the fuck were you thinking, Leticia?" 

"You're overreacting," she replied and headed straight for the kitchen. 

"You were at a college party!" Coco yelled as he slammed both doors, "how the fuck did you even get there?" 

She opened up a cabinet and grabbed a muesli bar, "I… just got there," shrugging her shoulders she tore the bar open, "nothing was gonna happen." 

Coco walked over and stood at the entrance of the kitchen, "carajo! The only reason nothing fucking happened was because I showed up!"

Letty turned her attention to (Y/N), "anything you'd like to add?" When she wasn't given a response, she scoffed, "as if I give a fuck what you think."

She brushed past Coco and walked down the hallway. The slamming of a door let the adults know she was in her bedroom. (Y/N) took a deep breath as she got to her feet and stood in front of her man.

"Don't do it." 

He arched his eyebrow, "you think I'm gonna let her disrespect you like that?" he shook his head and pecked her forehead, "ain't fucking happening." 

Letty had moved in with the pair about two months ago and during that time she took full advantage of being away from the clutches of her grandmother. With her newfound freedom she had been disappearing (or "exploring" as she called it) different parts of Santo Padre whenever she felt like it. Sometimes she'd go off on her own and other times she'd take Gabby. 

Unfortunately, this particular night was different. Gabby was out on a date with her boyfriend Ez (the newest patch member of the Mayans) which meant she didn't join Letty on her excursion. Thankfully she was able to provide the details of where to find her when (Y/N) called her in a panic about the teenager not being home. Once she received the details, she thanked her and immediately rang up Coco to inform him of his daughter's whereabouts. 

Before he could make his way to the hallway Coco's burner buzzed. (Y/N) didn't need to read the message to know that he was most likely being told about some club business. Despite it nearing the early hours of the morning, she knew that sometimes Bishop would call an impromptu meeting. 

"At least you're already awake?" (Y/N) offered as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, her hands played with his hair.

"I guess," his eyes darted towards the hallway and back at her, "if she ends up running off while I'm at the clubhouse–"

"I'll call you." 

He kissed her and savoured the moment before pulling away from her. Walking over to the front door, he glanced back at her and blew a kiss. (Y/N) chuckled, grabbing it and holding it to her chest, completing their goodbye routine. 

She turned around as he shut both doors and locked them. The moment she heard his bike start up she decided it was time to get to bed. She was due to go back to work in a few hours and wanted to sleep before having to do so. 

-- ♡ -- ◇ --

After Letty's eventful Friday night, Johnny decided he was done giving her chances. Her phone was taken away and the only times she could leave the house was for school and if Chucky needed an extra set of hands. At first the teenager continued to rebel until she realised another day would be added to her punishment. (Y/N) was proud of the way her man was stepping into the role of a parent. Letty was working into her third week of punishment (she had another week left) and (Y/N) could see the change in her. 

Whenever (Y/N) entered the house, she was greeted with a 'hello'. It may seem little, but Letty acknowledging her presence (in a positive manner) definitely kept a smile on her face. Letty was helping around the house more and started joining Coco and (Y/N) for dinner instead of eating in her room. Coco was also seeing changes in his daughter and hoped she would continue to make positive changes. He had left for a run a couple of days ago and would hopefully return soon.

The sound of drawers opening and closing was the reason (Y/N) woke up. Her eyebrows furrowed at realising she wasn't in her bed and then remembered she had fallen asleep while watching (television show). Looking to her left, she noticed the outline of the teen moving about. She smiled when she felt the softness of a blanket, realising Letty must've thrown it over her. Slowly getting to her feet, she stretched and reached for her phone. The numbers 04:22 blared on her screen.

(Y/N) got up and switched on the light, causing the teenager to jump, "are you looking for the chocolate chip cookies I baked?" Just like her dad, Letty had a sweet tooth. (Y/N) chuckled and pointed towards the top cabinet on her right, "it's in the tin at the back." 

Letty waited for (Y/N) to walk out of the kitchen, but instead the woman opened up the fridge and pulled out the carton of milk. She watched as she grabbed two glasses and poured the milk inside. The teenager grabbed the chair and climbed on top of it to reach the cabinet. She opened it up and pushed some items out of the way to grab the tin. Closing the cabinet, she stepped off the chair and dragged it back to the table.

(Y/N) was already sitting at the table and pushed a glass of milk across it for her. Letty took a seat and opened up the container and pushed it between them. She waited for (Y/N) to help herself to a cookie, before grabbing one of her own. 

"I'm sorry for waking you up," the teenager gave a sheepish grin, "I was trying my hardest not to be loud." 

(Y/N) smiled, "it's alright," she bit into her slightly soaked cookie, "now you know where to go… but, you've gotta make sure to put it back in the same cabinet you brought the container out of." 

"Why?" 

"Because then your dad'll know where all the extra cookies are." 

Letty laughed, "you hide the extra cookies because of my dad?" 

"Yes and that cabinet," (Y/N) pointed to it, "is the only one where I can cover the container without anything looking out of place." She dunked her cookie into her glass, "remember that for next time, okay?" 

"Okay." 

The pair continued to munch on their cookies (with the occasional dunking) and sip their milk. (Y/N) enjoyed the comfortable silence that fell among them. Her eyes drifted towards the living room and remembered the blanket. 

"Thank you." 

"For what?" Letty asked.

"Covering me with the blanket." 

"Oh… I… uh, didn't want you to get cold." 

(Y/N) smiled and was about to talk about something else when she heard the rumbling of Coco's motorcycle. Her eyes widened and she scrambled to drink what was left of her milk, closed the container and passed it to Letty. 

"Quick before he comes." 

Letty picked up the tin and dragged the chair to where it was moments ago. She jumped up onto it and pushed the container towards the back of the cabinet. Making sure it stayed hidden behind the assortment of items inside of it. She jumped off the chair and pushed it underneath the table just as Coco entered the living. His eyebrows rose when he took in his Old Lady and daughter standing in the kitchen. 

"What's going on here?" He asked as he walked towards the duo.

(Y/N) chuckled and brought him into a hug, she kissed him on the lips and cheek before stepping back, "just chatting, everyone okay?" 

He nodded, "we all made it back. Don't worry," his attention switched to Letty, "mija, everything okay?" 

Letty nodded, "yeah…" 

Coco slowly approached her and kissed the top of her head, "that's good to hear." 

Before he could move back, the teenager wrapped her arms around him and squeezed. (Y/N) smiled as she watched Coco gently rub her back and kiss her forehead. She loved seeing the father-daughter pair show affection to each other. Letty released her hold and took a step back.

With a blink of an eye, Letty pulled (Y/N) into a hug. (Y/N)'s eyes grew wide at the contact (so did Cocos) and before she could return the gesture, the teenager had let go. Letty smiled at the pair and then turned on her heel to leave the room. (Y/N) watched the teenager disappear around the corner, before she glanced at Coco with a bright smile. She did a little shimmy moving towards him and held onto his arms as she jumped up and down. 

"Coco… she – did you see that? She hugged me! And she smiled! Oh, she's got a beautiful smile," (Y/N) stopped jumping, "wow… I-I can't believe it. I got a hug and a smile, Coco!" 

He laughed as she danced around him, reaching out he pulled her into his chest and wrapped his arms around her. (Y/N) squealed when his fingers trailed up and down her hip. She wrapped her arms around his neck and tilted her head up. Her eyes sparkled with joy. 

Unbeknownst to the pair, Letty had done a U-turn at the end of the hallway. She decided at the last second to ask (Y/N) about something. However, at the sound of excitement she paused and peered around the doorframe. A smile stretched across her face, when she spotted Coco and (Y/N) embracing. She looked away when Coco reached down to grab (Y/N) by the ass and slip his tongue into her mouth.  

"Gross," she shook her head and made her way back down the hallway, "I didn't need to fucking see that." 

Despite the recent image in her mind that she was trying her best to get rid of, the teenager couldn't help but feel as though she finally belonged. 

This was home.

-♤ - ♡ - ◇ - ♧ -

Spanish Translations: 

Carajo - fuck

Mija - girl

[countrymusiclover]

20 - Chloe's In Trouble

Everything Changed At 21

Part 21

Tags @abaker74 @bvbwestfall

Luke has only a few weeks left before another tour starts up again. His mother is watching the boys so we can have a day out on the lake with the boat. Climbing up onto the back of the boat Luke was in the driver's seat. Pulling my shirt over my head I was wearing a red bathing suit underneath. Carter had brought a cooler filled with drinks and so the day was pretty much set. The wind blows my hair around until we found the perfect spot to drop the anker in. Pulling my ball cap off my head I see Chloe sitting where Carter was looking a little sick which isn't like her. "Chlo, you alright?" I asked sitting in Luke's seat. She holds her hands over her stomach looking a little green. "I've been throwing up in the morning. But now I think.."

"Oh my God. Do you think your pregnant!" I blurted out where she shoved her hand over my mouth whipping her head around to see the boys jumping off the back of the boat and into the water. "Keep your voice down. I don't know I haven't taken a test yet." Pulling her hands away from my mouth I squeezed her hands in mine. "Well you've gotta take one. Wait, when did this happen between you two?" Knitting my brows together it obviously had to be Carter. She's not been dating anyone else since we've met Luke. But I don't remember her ever mentioning that they'd slept together. She throws her head back in a huff. "I don't entirely remember. I just know it was after the concert in Kentucky or maybe somewhere else. I just know we had some drinks and then we woke up in bed together." She puts her face in her hands weakly feeling the boat get moved a little when another drove past us.

Gently grabbing her shoulder I lay my head on her shoulder making her look me in the eye. She sniffled wiping tears away with her hand. "Lisen to me I'm gonna be here for you. Especially when you tell Carter." She runs her hands through her hair groaning. "I don't know if I can-" Foosteps approached for me to see Luke coming over to us. His hair is a mess but he smiled our direction. "Everything alright here?" Chloe quickly nodded before I gave him a thumbs up. "I'll come in the water in a minute Lukey." He waved getting pulled off the back of the boat by Carter. "You have to tell him. You know that right." I replied intertwining her hand in mine. She lays her head on my shoulder before pushing me to go have fun. "I will later this week. Now go have fun."

Sitting at the end of the boat with my feet in the water. Leaning on my hands the wind blows through my loose hair. Someone appeared up out of the water grabbing my ankles. "Luther, don't you dare!" I warned using his full name when he smirked up at me. Before I can hold myself up he pulled me into the water. Swimming up quickly I gasped throwing water in his face once he popped up. He wrapped his arms around my waist kissing me. Raising my brows at him I kissed him before dunking his head under the water swimming away as fast as I could. Luke put his head up swimming after me until it started to get dark. Sitting on his lap with a blanket wrapped around myself until we got off the dock. Carter and Luke loaded up the truck until I saw Luke coming around carrying his guitar in his hands. "After tonight I just figured out a new song. That would be perfect for the tour. So give it a listen." He messed with the guitar with me sitting on the dock with our friends.

"Your daddy had a lakehouse. He had me paint it that summer sophomore year. Said I could stay for free. A couple buddies, a couple weeks. You rode in in a little red Honda. And headed straight for the pier. Tank top and cutoff jeans. A little PacSun underneath. Who knew it was 'bout to be." He started playing the song with me hugging my knees to my chest. "Sunrise, sunburn, sunset, repeat. Moonlight, all night, crashin' into me. Nothin' will ever be easy as you and me. Tangled up with nowhere to be. Just sunrise, sunburn, sunset, repeat. Sunrise, sunburn, sunset, repeat, ayy." Carter and Chloe started clapping along to his singing until she glanced my direction. Luke didn't pay too much attention when she grabbed Carter's arm leading him a way from us to talk alone.

My eyes drifted from my country singer fiance over to my best friend to see her almost in tears but then she flings her arms around Carter's neck smiling. "I turned those shutters the color of your eyes. 'Til the day turned into night. And took turns with a jar. Turned that boat dock into a bar. And then we passed the guitar around the fire to each other. And watched all of our friends pair off with one another. But we felt like the stars we were under. And everybody knew that, that was our summer." Luke cleared his throat noticing the pair away from us. He sits the guitar down helping me to sit on the back of the boat with him. "What's going on with those two. Chloe didn't look too good earlier?" Laying my head on his shoulder he draped his arm over my shoulder. Carter picked up my best friend grinning then sitting her back on the ground. "Chloe's pregnant and he's the father. She was afraid to tell him." Luke glanced down to me until I tilted my head up asking. "Would you ever want another child. You know after we're married in a year or so?" Playing with some loose hair I was worried what he would say. "Absolutely I would. But since you're the one carrying it I would make it be your choice. I would also be cool if we didn't and just had Thomas and Tate." Wrapping my arms around his neck I grinned kissing him slowly. He rests a hand to my cheek smiling into the kiss.

Comments really appreciated ❤️

[boxofbadaddiction]

Just Call Me Cupid

Fred Weasley x Reader

George Weasley x Reader(Platonic)

This story is inspired from a request of my F.R.I.E.N.D.S Themed Prompt List:

Prompts: 15, 24 & 25

"Could you be anymore annoying?"/"Maybe I can make it up to you by...taking you roughly in the barn."/"[Y/N or Character] DOESN'T SHARE FOOD!"

Warnings: Swearing (always)

-Part One-

You know how the story goes. Three mischievous Gryffindors bonding over pranks and countless detentions. Becoming inseparable during their first year, and sticking together through thick and thin. That was the relationship between Y/n y/l/n and Fred and George Weasley. She fit into their lives perfectly. Her humour was exactly like theirs. She liked the same sports. Had the same classes. The same friends. Although one would wager that y/n held all the common sense of the three, always sure to rein the Twins in if they were edging too close to a line they shouldn't cross.

They used to joke she were the "Missing Triplet". Unknowingly separated from them at birth. They'd even gone as far one year to dye her hair fire orange, referring to her as Y/n Weasley for months.

With every passing holiday the Twins would bring y/n home with them. Her home life wasn't particularly grand, it was adequate in a way but had nothing on life at the Burrow. Molly welcomed her everytime with open arms. It wasn't uncommon for her to stay the entire holiday, start to finish, as she got along so well with the family, all of whom loved her like their own sister and, in Mr and Mrs Weasleys case, own daughter. So of course this Summer would be no different.

As the second week of their holiday came around; Fred, George, Ron, Ginny, Harry, Y/n and even Hermione found themselves left to their own accord for the day as Percy and Mr Weasley had work and Mrs Weasley had errands to run.

The group woke to a fully prepared breakfast waiting for them and a completely chore-free schedule, a rarity in this home.

"Morning all" y/n greeted cheerily as she entered the kitchen. "Someone's happy this morning" "I'm happy every morning, Georgie." She replied as she made her way around the table with a spring in her step. "Oo, toast!" She exclaimed reaching for a single piece balancing on the edge of Ronald's plate, which earned her a stern slap across the wrist from the boy. "Damn. Relax! It's not like I went for a piece of bacon..." "Careful, y/n/n" began Harry from beside her, "that's a sure fire way to lose a hand." He joked. "Oh, right! I'm so sorry I forgot!-"

"RONALD, DOESN'T SHARE FOOD!" everyone, aside from Ron, shouted amusedly before falling into loud laughter. This had been a long running joke amongst the friends and family after Ron had yelled the line at dinner one night years ago. Y/n had to grip the back of Rons chair to stop from falling as he scowled at the groups mockery. "Oh sod off. HEY!" Y/n stole a piece of bacon from Rons otherside while he had been distracted. "Payment for one viscous assault on your favourite sister." She goaded taking a bite from the crispy piece of meat. "You're not even related." "Not yet." Smiling across the table she shot George a wink. George grinned, tongue pressed to cheek as his brow raised amused by her insinuation, in response he pursed his lips blowing her a kiss.

Y/n finally made her way around the table to a vacant seat by Freds side, chuckling lightly at Rons uncomfortable expression.

"Wow y/n, can't believe you'd really settle for the less-attractive Twin." Fred feigned insult as George threw a piece of crust at him. "I didn't. Otherwise I would have chosen you, wouldn't I?" She smiled innocently.

Fred's jaw dropped open in shock at her words. Though he fought hard to contain the smile and laugh forming on his lips, Fred was unsuccessful, cheeks grinning as a chuckle made it's way from his throat.

"WOW!" he placed a hand to his chest, "wound me why don't you?" He looked back to his gathered friends and family, all of whom were laughing at his dramatic reaction. "That's my girl", George spoke fondly, leaning back in his chair, hand hung behind Fred to y/n as they low-fived.

"Some 'best friend' you are." Fred continued, "and GINNY! I can't believe you would laugh at such a heinous lie! I thought we were closer than that!" Ginnys face were so red it near rivalled her hair at this point. Fred turned his attention back to y/n to find her face a similar shade, light joyful tears brimming in her eyes. He stuck his bottom lip out in a fake pout. "Awwe...Freddie..." she tried to speak, "come on, you know you're my favourite" she leant into his side - hugging his arm - placing a quick kiss to the corner of his mouth.

"OI!" her 'future husband' protested, "I'm right here!" "Sorry Georgie, gotta keep my options open. You know how it is."

The remainder of the meal was spent discussing how to fill in their first day home alone for the holidays. Everyone was excited at the prospect of a potential Quidditch match, except Hermione - the only one who doesn't play the sport, and the sloppy ground outside from the past days rain didn't appear very inviting in her opinion. Their plan was thwarted regardless as Ginny reminded the Boys of their current grounding.

Fred, Ron and George had all been forbidden access to their brooms and Quidditch equipment for two weeks, after accidentally breaking a kitchen window with a bludger - released too soon near the house. In the end everyone simply parted into their own groups.

Ginny and Hermione disappeared to her room, Ron and Harry to his, while the remaining three spent the day outside.

Fred, George and y/n were partaking in some 'friendly' bits of competition to occupy their time. It started innocently enough; "let's see who can throw a Garden Gnome the farthest". But naturally, as all three individuals were highly competitive, it escalated. It was all out War by the afternoon.

Basically, they were now running around, breathless and sweaty, chucking mud cakes in their "opponents" direction. A total free for all.

As a cramp set in y/ns ribs she sought shelter behind a shrub by side of the Burrow, trying desperately to spot either Twin and failing. She was thankful however for the opportunity to catch her breath. That was untill...

"Tired are we?" Startled by the sudden voice y/n jumped eye's locking with those of George who stood far too confidently before her, hands tucked behind his back, as he smirked. Y/ns eyes widened, this couldn't be good. Her eyes quickly scanned the surrounding area. No sign of Fred. That definitely isn't good. She began stepping away slowly from the redhead infront of her who cocked his head at her movements slowly following. Smile only growing as he lowered an arm revealing a metal pail filled with sludge.

"Oh God. George, please no!" Her arms came out in defence, "I'm begging you...Georgie, please don't!" Though worried and pleading she couldn't help the nervous smile and giggle that came to the surface. Eyes staring into his "I'll do anything! Mate, please just...put. down. The bucket."

George let out a long sigh, contemplating, as he swung the pail loosely in his hand staring to it's contents. With a dramatic roll of his head and a groan he dropped the bucket by his feet. "Oh thank you! Thank you thank you thank you!" Y/n repeated, relieved. "Had you done that I'd never get my chance..." Georges brows furrowed, "chance for what?" "THIS!" Y/n scooped up a large mud patty from her feet, hurtling it directly across the side of his face, laughing maniacally. Though as George slowly scooped away the gathered muck on his eye, flicking it off his fingers, she couldn't help but feel bad. A little anyway. Offering a half-hearted apology as he wiped away the dirt by his mouth.

"Oh you're sorry, are you?" He began advancing on her again, "to think I took it easy on you, my 'loving' wife-to-be." He added sarcastically. Y/n gulped as she noticed the new found determination held in his gaze. Laughter turning nervous as she backed away. "I'm sorry. Maybe I can make it up to you by...taking you roughly in the barn?" "Mmm tempting. But I have a better idea" he smirked wickedly. Y/ns face dropped as she made to run, but she wasn't fast enough, George wrapped his arms around her body holding her tight in place. "Not so fast, love." He lifted her from her feet walking blindly back towards the house. "No! Please no!" She whined through giggles, "Geoooorge" "It's not me you should be worried about, sweetheart." He whispered to her ear. Huh?

"Oooooh FREDDIE!" he called over his shoulder. FUCK! Where was Fred!?

George turned sharply on the spot and y/n suddenly found herself face to face with one Fred Weasley, complete with bucket. Only this one wasn't the same from earlier, it was bigger. And filled with...what was that? Oh god. Ice.

"Woah y/n/n, you look really flustered. Reckon you might need to cool off." He grinned. "Freddie, I was thinking exactly the same thing." Georges grip on y/n tightened as she began to squirm furiously. Pleading them not to. Fred raised the bucket in his arms as she slipped to the ground, George pinning her down and tugging back the side of her shirts collar.

Fred leaped into action, pouring the buckets contents over her exposed shoulder so the ice would fall down her back as well as down her chest. Y/n squealed at the brisk temperature change. Breath hitching and shuddering in response. The boys jumped back as she scrambled to her feet, shaking the material of her shirt to lose the ice still clinging beneath it. Various curses and insults being shot to the twins whilst doing so.

"Prats." She shivered, "the both of you. Prats." All three couldn't contain their laughter at this. George excused himself for a moment to rid his eye of a few pesky grains of dirt under his eyelid.

He dunked his head under the tap of the kitchen sink in order to rinse his eye, and face while he was at it, clean before filling himself a glass of water having become quite hot from all the running he'd done this afternoon. A sudden yell pulled his attention out the window.

Chuckling as he watched Fred frantically running from y/n who held the bucket of mud George had threatened her with earlier.

Fred was running backwards with his arms raised trying desperately to bargain his way out of his punishment. George could only just make out the conversation carrying on in the moment.

"Come on, said I was sorry didn't I?" "Why don't you put the bucket down and I'll run you a bath" "I have a stash of chocolate frogs upstairs you can help yourself to!" George was amused by that line in particular as he knew for certain that stash was well and truly gone, days ago, as he and y/n had helped themselves to it whilst he showered.

Fred were a fairly safe distance away as he out manoeuvred his friend easily with such long legs and lack of bucket. He probably could have kept up their little dance for some time, enough for her to admit defeat, if he had not tripped back over his own feet. George snorted at the sight, water nearly shooting from his nose, as his brother fell flat on his back. Y/n seized her moment. Standing above him with bucket raised smiling.

Many 'please's, and 'y/n's and of course countless 'no's falling from Fred mouth, all in vain as the bucket tipped above him. Contents hitting directly to his chest and covering him in filth. George really wished he had a camera right about now.

"What are you laughing at?" Ginny had appeared, grabbing a glass of water for herself. "Y/n getting revenge." "Why aren't you out there?" "To avoid exactly that happening to me." The two watched as Fred stood, wrapping himself around y/n to smear mud over her body as well, swaying them side-to-side dramatically as he did so. Muffled shrieks came from her mouth which was pressed tight against his chest.

"Mum's going to have a field day with you three." Ginny commented, placing down her cup as she ascended the staircase. George inhaled sharply as his jaw clenched at the thought. His eyes scanned the yard...they had made quite the mess. He wondered if they'd ever be allowed to play Quidditch again. Or even be allowed out of the house for that matter. His thoughts were cut short as his attention fell back to his brother and best friend.

They'd stopped rough-housing. Y/n pushing back from him with a huff. She stood before him with a pout, covered completely in muck. Fred was laughing haughtily at the sight as he took a step forward, sweeping a dirty piece of hair behind her ear. His fingers delicately traced her cheek bone and down toward her lips which had parted slightly as she stared at him. His head was hung towards her as he gazed back, hand now resting just below her jaw. Both slowly leaning closer...

The moment was over as quickly as it'd began, by Fred clearing his throat and dropping his arm, both hands finding his pockets and standing back a pace. He had said something about needing a shower to which y/n laughed awkwardly, avoiding any further eye contact.

"Ho-ly FUCK!" George exclaimed to himself as realisation hit him like a bag of bricks. "They fancy one another" his eyes were wide. How hadn't he noticed before?

The way their eyes seemed to linger on one anothers a tad longer than two friends would. The shameless flirting. The "innocent" light touches. How Fred always had his arm over her shoulder if he could. The quick kisses to their cheeks. The blushing. The way Fred tensed, white knuckled, when boys were 'too friendly' with y/n. The way y/ns teeth would grind as girls would fall over Fred. It all seemed so obvious now.

Without a second moments thought George bolted up the stairs.

Hermione and Ginny sat cross-legged on her bed, chatting casually about the upcoming school year and what excitement it may hold, when the bedroom door violently swung open. Slamming into the wall, one hot, sweaty and very much out of breath George clung to its handle.

The girls stared wide-eyed at the sight. "...yes?" Ginny asked curiously. Her brother was a sputtering mess, attempting to speak through deep burning breaths. "F-Fre-and y/...Fred and y/n!" He gasped, arms waved and flailing dramatically trying to make them understand him in his frantic state. "They-they're...they fancy one another!" He finally exclaimed before clutching his side painfully, "Oh, cramp".

Ginny and Hermione looked at one another with identical blank stares before shrugging simply, "We know" they spoke. "You KNOW!?" "It's pretty obvious." Said Hermione. A deep, frustrated, sigh left Georges throat, his head rolled and he flopped heavily into the small space between both girls, the action causing them to bounce.

"Could you be anymore annoying?" Ginny groaned but George ignored her, "This is unbelievable." "Is it though?" His sister questioned. "They're always all over one another. Always staring when they think the other's not looking." "Not to mention they're perfect for one another." Hermione giggled " "He stops her from stressing too much over school work, keeps her out of her shell when she's struggling. And she very well may be the only person on the planet capable of settling him down when he gets worked up."

"Do you think they know?" George asked, eyes fixed to the ceiling. "Not a chance" "Absolutely not." The girls answered. "Look how long it took you to realise, and you're their best friend." Added Hermione causing Georges brows to furrow. She had a point. They'd spent nearly every day together since they met in their first year. Practically attached at the hip and yet it only clicked now.

He couldn't quite wrap his head around how he was feeling at the moment as too many thoughts flooded his mind.

Was he worried? Excited? What if they dated? Would they hang out with him less, as a result? Would it work out? What if they broke up!?

"My best friend and my brother..." he wondered aloud, tone sceptical. The girls remained silent as George thought, chewing his cheek. The atmosphere was tense as they worried over his reaction. That was until a wide smile crept its way across his face. "My best friend and my brother." He spoke louder, more assured, with a curt approving nod. "I'm gonna make it happen." He stated matter-of-factly as he lifted himself from the bed, making his way to the door.

"And how, pray tell, are you going to manage that?" "Easily, my dear sister." George looked over his shoulder as he grabbed the doors handle, "Just call me Cupid." He winked, quickly shutting the door as he left with a smirk.

[rebelwrites]

Date Disaster

Jax Teller x Reader

A/N so I think everyone that’s read Dating Advice asked for a part two, so here we go

“Now remember I’m only a text away okay” Jax said as you fastened your helmet up.

“Nothing is gonna go wrong Jackie boy” you laughed looking over at him.

“Just saying” he shrugged “all you gotta do is text and I will be there”

“Riiigggght” you rolled your eyes “can I go now or you just gonna keep assuming it’s gonna go wrong”

“Nah you can go” he shrugged “don’t do anything I wouldn’t do”

“Pfft that gives me plenty of things to do then” you giggled starting your engine “I will be back later”

Jax watched as you rode out of the lot, he did some digging on this Trent dude and he didn’t know what you saw in him, like he was on the straight and narrow, never even got a ticket and was a rich fucker which was all daddy’s money.

“Please tell me ye haven’t done anything Jackie boy” Chibs said offering Jax a smoke.

“Why would you think I’ve done anything?” Jax asked, raising his brow.

“A know you’ve done a background check on him and A know ye like her so” Chibs smirked.

“I’ve honestly done nothing but I have a feeling I will end up saving the night” Jax shrugged.

Pulling into the parking lot of the restaurant, caused you to get some funny looks, along with the reaper emblem on the back of your leather jacket. Parking your bike you took your helmet off shaking your hair out.

Out of the corner of your eye you saw Trent walking over to you.

“If I would have known you’d come on your bike I would have picked you up” he said putting you on edge a bit as you climbed off your bike adjusting your dress.

Thank god you remembered to wear your gym shorts underneath.

“It’s fine don’t worry about it” you smiled hoping that he wasn’t judgemental.

As soon as you sat down you ordered a whisky where he ordered a bottle of red wine.

“You not having wine, sweetheart?” He asked.

“I don’t actually like it” you laughed “more whiskey, beer and hard liquor”

“Right” he said, glancing up from the menu. “So tell me a bit more about yourself?”

“I mean you know the basics from texting but I’m very family oriented, like I’d do anything for them even if they aren’t blood” you smiled as you scanned the menu for what you wanted.

Where were the chicken nuggets? The burgers? The kebabs?

Before he could answer the waitress arrived.

“I will take the sea bass and my good lady will take the chicken salad” Trent said flashing the waitress a smile.

You didn’t even want a pissing salad.

“So what do you do for work?” He asked sipping his wine.

“I’m a mechanic” you said proudly “I do a lot around the garage”

“Don’t you want to achieve more?” He asked.

“I enjoy what I do” you shrugged “i love my cars and bikes and quite often we will head to the track for the day and race”

As you were talking you felt his eyes burning into your arm, obviously trying to get a better look at the tattoo on the inside of your arm.

“I actually got this when I was 17” you smiled moving your arm so he could see the ink “my uncle did it for my birthday”

“And it’s a reaper” he sighed

“Is that a problem?” You asked sipping your whiskey.

“I just didn’t expect you to have it tattooed, or arrive on a bike and I saw the reaper on the back of your leather jacket” Trent said with a disapproving look. “Like I’ve heard stories about the sons of anarchy and non are which are good”

“Okay” you said resting your hand on your fist, just hoping he hadn’t ran a background check on you, because he would know you did a stretch in Stockton when you covered for the club.

“I also know you have a criminal record” he said.

“Honestly I don’t see why that is an issue with it” you shrugged.

“Hmmm” he nodded.

“Excuse me” you said “I’m just going to the bathroom”

Walking away from the table, you couldn’t believe it, like you had never met anyone so judgemental as him.

Leaning against the counter in the bathroom, you felt so out of place in this restaurant, pulling your phone out you stared at Jax’s name in your phone contemplating texting him.

📲 to Jackieboy🖤😈

- 🆘

📱 from Jackieboy🖤😈

- say no more on my way be with you in 15, will call you when I’m outside, just play along x

Sliding your phone back into your purse you went to join Trent again, who was on the phone, as you got closer he was talking business, not even realising you were back.

Your salad had been placed in front of you making you scoff, it was half a chicken breast, some carrot, shredded beetroot and a few leaves of lettuce. Taking a picture of it as proof of what he ordered for you. Picking at the chicken you were just waiting on your phone ringing.

After another 10 minutes you felt it going off in your purse.

“Sorry I’m gonna have to take this” you nodded, placing your fork down.

“You know I’m on a date right?” You laughed.

“Told you, you’d end up calling me” Jax said a smirk evident in this voice.

“Wait what please tell me you are joking right?”

“I’m outside now”

“Shit, I’m on my way” you sighed ending the call.

“I am so sorry, I am going to have to go, my grandpa has been rushed into hospital” you whispered, making your bottom lip quiver.

“Oh I hope he’s okay” Trent said looking up from his phone.

“Urm thanks, it’s been nice” you nodded slipping your jacket on.

“Maybe another time?” He asked making you want to laugh.

“Maybe, sorry I really need to go” you said pretty much running out of the restaurant.

Glancing around you saw Jax sat on his bike at the start of the drive, climbing on your bike you slowly rode up to him, placing a smoke between your lips you smiled at him.

“How did you know I’d text you?” You asked as you rested your head on his shoulder as you picked at the nuggets you brought before heading to the hills.

“Just had a feeling I guess, I know his type” Jax whispered.

“Yeah the prick ordered for me” you laughed “and he ordered a fucking salad”

“God no” Jax laughed as he watched you dunk the chicken nugget in the sauce before taking the whole thing in your mouth.

“Uh huh the bastard fed me rabbit food” you said with a mouthful of nugget “like do I look like a fucking rabbit”

“So no second date then?” Jax laughed kissing the top of your head.

“I’d rather do a stint in Stockton again or get shot than go out with that prick again” you laughed looking up at Jax.

“Good to hear darlin’” Jax smirked “like I said maybe the person you are destined to be with is sat right with you”

It was at that point you choked on your drink.

“What” you said slightly out of breath as Jax just smiled at you.

“Why do you think I didn’t add anything when you asked for advice, it’s because I didn’t want you going on the date” He said resting his hand on your cheek.

“Jax” you breathed

“Darlin’ I’ve been dropping hints for the last six months that I really like you” he smirked.

“I just thought you were messing with me” you whispered as you looked into his eyes.

“Nah not messing with you babe” he smiled leaning closer to you “I know you have had a crush on me since school, I mean you told me so the night we got blackout drunk and you woke up with no memories of the night before”

“Well I feel like an idiot now” you said feeling rather embarrassed.

“So can I kiss you now or what?” He grinned resting his forehead against yours, his breath tickling your skin.

“Yeah” you whispered as you wrapped your arms around his neck as he pulled you onto his lap before pressing his lips against yours.

Your lips moved in sync, the feeling you got was something you had never felt before, it was like you were flying as your tongue explored each other’s mouths.

Pulling away, you rested your forehead against his, your grin was so wide, and you felt like a teenager again.

“This date is so much better” you whispered against his lips whilst playing with his hair.

“It better be or I’m not kissing you again” he smirked “I know I’m not a rich kid but I can offer you so much more than that prick can babygirl”

SOA TAGLIST

@chibsytelford @talicat713 @corebore123 @nothingeverdies @teapartydreams @mrspeacem1nusone @khyharah @itmejado @woahitslucyylu @beth-winchester21 @minnicelli @everyhowlmarksthedead @trulysuccubus @haynsey @witching-hour @destynelseclipsa @edonaspanca @abbiesthings @angelreyesgirl @enamouravecleslivresetlechocolat @jadesamhart @lady-pswrld @ly--canthrope @hennessyauntie @gemini0410 @i-love-scott-mccall @est11 @mystic-shadows42 @sugary-x-sweet @starrynite7114 @skyofficialxx @terminallygenius @sadeyesgf @lauraashley93 @leaalfred @angelreyesgirl89 @sheeshgivemeabreak @marquelapage @meteora-fc @penny4yourthot @justahopelessssromantic @ilikechocolatemilkh @mayans-sauce @xbreezymeadowsx @ben-c-group-therapy @-im-fantastic- @bigcreatorwombatdreamer @milaxmariex @fvckthisbxtchup

[thatmultifandomhoe]

Knitting You a Home - 8

Pairing: Wolf Hybrid Namjoon and Human Reader

Word Count: 2,731

Genre/Rating: Hybrid AU - Established Relationship - Angst - Fluff - Smut - Rated PG-13

Overview: Things have changed for you and Namjoon. It’s been a year since the two of you got together, and despite a rocky start, it was impossible to deny the bond and love you shared for each other. But ever since Hoseok had been separated from his Mate, Namjoon has been withdrawing himself from you and doesn’t come home until late at night.

With questions far larger than either of you imagined, you can’t help but wonder if he’s let his past and old fears come back to haunt him. You had shown him that it was possible to have a home and be loved once before, but will you be able to do it again?

Warning: Talk of nightmares - discussion of Hybrid abuse - implied mentions of drinking, drugs, hybrid mills - abandonment - Underground fights.

Music Playlist:

Main Master List:

Knitting You a Home Master List:

Mated Love is Never Easy Series Master List:

Sneak Peak - Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5 - Part 6 - Part 7 - Part 8 - Part 9 - Part 10 - Part 11 - Part 12 - Part 13 - Part 14 - Part 15 - ?

©thatmultifandomhoe 2021. Do not repost, translate, or use my stories without permission.

You weren’t expecting Namjoon to come home at a normal hour. To keep yourself busy after Luna headed out, you plated all the goodies you made and cleaned up the kitchen, softly humming the entire time as you refrained from baking any further.

When dinner came and went, you had curled yourself up on the couch. The blanket you were knitting was long enough to cover your knees, but it still had a long way to go. In the living room there were two large windows looking out the front yard, a picture-perfect view of the tall oak and evergreen trees that surrounded your neighborhood.

The sky overhead turned pink as the sun began its descent, washed out burnt orange lights streaked the sky until it reminded you of peaches. If Namjoon had been here, he’d find a spot outside on the grass and watch until the sky was overflowing with stars. By then the fireflies would be out and he’d want to stay, mesmerized as they sparkled on and off until you went out with a shawl wrapped around your shoulders and a teasing grin to try and coax him back inside.

The knitting needles had stopped clicking a while ago. You were so lost in thought that you set the project back in its basket and stood up, tugging your sweater around your body as you made your way over to the window.

In the summer the sun didn’t set until eight at night, dragging out the painted skies for as long as nature allowed for it. Glancing around the room, an old book sat on top of an end table, the cover flipped open to reveal thinly aged paper. It made you smile softly as you picked it up, flipping through it to find the small black typed letters of poetry written long ago.

He was such a lover of words, always amazing you with how wide his reading interests ranged from, to how he even viewed life and the world. After everything that he went through, he still spoke about the world like it was a gift.

Screaming echoed in the house as you shot up in bed, chest heaving as you threw back the blankets to hurry to Namjoon’s room. Under normal circumstances you wouldn’t have entered without knocking, but this wasn’t the first time he’s had the nightmares during his stay with you.

It had been over a month since the storm, and while Luna had said many times that they weren’t as over-packed at the Homeless Center, you didn’t have the heart to tell Namjoon that he could go back. At least here he had a bed – a real bed and not a cot – his own room, new and clean clothe,s and home cooked meals. Even if the Center wasn’t over crowded since the storm had long since passed, it would still be loud and crowded, the very things that Namjoon didn’t need right now.

Turning on the lamp on his night stand, you crouched over Namjoon to gently shake his shoulder. He was breathing heavily as he gripped the blankets underneath him, beads of sweat dotting his forehead and tears formed under his eyelashes, dripping down his cheeks.

"Wake up Namjoon,” you called out, briefly scratching his ear as it twitched. “It’s just a bad dream hun, it’ll be all over when you wake up. I promise.”

He painfully cried in his sleep, body flinching when you touched him, but you didn’t stop trying to wake him up. It hurt to see him suffering like this and you knew, had he gone back to the Center, no one would have attempted to wake him once they realized this wasn’t a one-time occurrence.

“It’s gonna be okay Namjoon, you just gotta wake up.”

It took a little more coaxing on your part, but with one final shake Namjoon gasped as his eyes opened wide, searching around the room until they landed on you. He didn’t look away and he didn’t rip his arm away, a positive sign in your book since he had been doing that the previous times you woke him from a nightmare.

He never told you about the nightmares. Instead, he simply apologized and said to not worry about them. There was just one problem, you did worry. You worried because you knew that whatever was haunting him had been happening for years and every morning afterwards, there were dark circles under his eyes.

You worried because over the course of the last month, you’ve grown to care about Namjoon.

The clock on the nightstand said it was three a.m. Knowing that you weren’t going to be falling asleep anytime soon, you straightened so you were no longer leaning over Namjoon and let go of his shoulder.

“Want some tea?” You gently asked, realizing that the two of you had been staring at each other without speaking, long enough to make your cheeks blush.

Namjoon glanced at the clock too, momentarily coughing into his hand as he tried to catch his breath. You weren’t expecting him to say yes, he declined each time you previously offered after his nightmares. Knowing that, you still asked because a part of you hoped that one day, he’d trust you enough to open up to you.

“Sure,” he spoke, his voice hoarse from crying.

Your eyebrows lifted in shock, surprised that he had agreed. You didn’t let that deter you though, instead you gave him a small smile. “Okay. Come on out when you’re ready.”

Namjoon nodded once and you left shortly afterwards, closing the door behind you to give him privacy. Internally, your heart was leaping around, happy that he was appearing to come out of his shell, even if it wasn’t in the greatest circumstances.

Once you reached the kitchen, you moved out of habit, used to making late night drinks for Luna, but when you reached for the tea, you hesitated. You didn’t know what type Namjoon liked to drink. He only ever had coffee in front of you.

Leaving the orange mug empty for now, you prepared yours with instant coffee, knowing that it wouldn’t impact your sleep. As the hot water poured into the mug, you rifled through the tea bags you had, fingers pausing on one labelled Chamomile. Luna tended to favor this one when it was an especially stressful night, claiming that it helped calm her down.

Namjoon’s cries echoed in your mind and the next thing you knew you were plopping the tea bag into his mug and pressing brew for the hot water to dispense. If he didn’t like it, there were plenty other teas for him to choose. Leaning back against the counter, you softly smiled as he walked into the kitchen, his footsteps silent against the hardwood floor.

He glanced at the Keurig behind you, eyebrows scrunching up as he tilted his head at the smell. You didn’t recall making this one since he’s moved in.

“It’s Chamomile,” you softly explained, watching as his feet shuffled closer to the table. “It’ll help you relax. I thought you might like that after your nightmare.”

The corner of his lip twitched and a faint smile became visible. “Yeah, that sounds pretty good right about now.”

Hearing the Keurig finish, you turned back around to retrieve his mug, grabbing him a spoon and the honey bottle as well. “You’re gonna wanna dunk the bag a couple times,” you suggested, placing it in front of him. He raised an eyebrow at the honey and you shrugged as you retrieved your coffee before sitting across from him. “I wasn’t sure if you liked it sweet or not.”

“Thank you,” taking the honey, he poured a small amount in and stirred, carefully avoiding hitting the sides of the mug. “I…I really appreciate all that you’re doing for me.”

“It’s not a problem. I know things haven’t been easy for you.”

“But you didn’t have to help me.” He spoke, holding his mug in both hands. “You didn’t have to offer up your guest room, or be patient with me and share your meals, but you did.” Licking his lips, he raised an eyebrow at you. “And you didn’t have to let me stay this long. The storm ended weeks ago and the Homeless Center isn’t as chaotic, but you haven’t even mentioned that.”

Your eyes widened, feeling caught in the act when he softly smiled before taking a sip out of his drink. “How?”

“Luna called while you were away at work on day. She was wondering why you hadn’t told me that I could go back.”

Damn technology, you thought, shrugging as you tried to hide your embarrassment by pulling your knees up on to the chair and to your chest.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” he softly asked. Lowering his mug, the spot between his eyebrows furrowed as he patiently waited. “Why didn’t you tell me to leave?”

A part of you wished you were able to play dumb and pull it off, to coyly act like you had no idea what he was talking about. Namjoon would know immediately though. His ability to pick up on your emotions hadn’t gone unnoticed in the time he’s lived with you.

The words escaped you for a moment, so you shrugged once as you tried to form the right thing to say. It only lasted a few seconds, because when you met his gaze, it flowed naturally. “I didn’t want you to leave,” you found yourself telling him, unable to say anything but the truth.

He blinked in surprise, leaning back in his seat as the silence took hold again. It wasn’t uncomfortable though. You didn’t mind it, figuring he was assessing your emotions to find the truth in what you said.

As he gathered his thoughts, you rubbed a hand across your eyes in an attempt to ease the headache from lack of caffeine.

“I told Luna it was better for that little Hybrid to be abandoned now because it’s true. It’s a shitty thing to experience when you can remember it.”

Tonight, was perhaps the most that you’ve heard Namjoon speak, and you were surprised with where he was directing his attention towards. Ideas swirled around with what he was talking about, about where this was going to lead, but you remained quiet as you focused on him, allowing him to speak at the pace he wanted to go at.

Namjoon ran his thumb around the rim of his mug, taking a deep breath. “I’ve lost track of all the owners I’ve had. There hadn’t been as many when I was younger, but as I grew up, grew bigger and taller, I got sent back to the Adoption Centers until one day, one of them got lazy and dropped me off at the Homeless Center. I was maybe, fifteen then.”

“Even with all the constant changes, I always knew I was a Hybrid. None of my owners ever let me forget that. They put me in small rooms, sometimes I didn’t even have a room but a closet or a mattress on the floor.” Lifting his gaze, he gestured around the kitchen with a bittersweet smile. “Everything in this room alone, to be able to have a cup of tea and not be afraid of the consequences, was once a dream for me. Still is sometimes.”

Shifting in your seat, you set your cup down on the table, having lost interest in the coffee that you usually loved. Because you were watching him, you were able to see his fingers tighten briefly.

“It was bad,” he simply said, not meeting your gaze this time. “There’d be days where I wasn’t allowed to eat, where I was expected to clean up after everyone and keep the house spotless and if I didn’t, well…sometimes not eat eating was better than their punishments. Almost forgot my own name with one owner. She only ever called me Hybrid.”

A rock settled inside your heart at what he was implying, and suddenly it made sense. The way he flinched at your touch, how you always had to encourage and reassure him that it was okay to eat and have more. Your eyes watered up and you bit down on your lower lip, unable to control the way your emotions seemed to fly around.

His ears flickered in your direction, finally looking at you again. He gave you a sad smile, leaning forward and shakily raised his hand, hesitating only once before running his thumb across your cheek. His touch was gentle but it only reinforced what you were thinking. How could anyone hurt someone as gentle as Namjoon?

“Don’t cry for me,” he whispered, doing it again to the other cheek. “It’s in the past, we can’t change what happened back then.”

Your bottom lip wobbled, leaning into his palm when he cupped your cheek, both drinks long forgotten as you closed your eyes, absorbing his touch. He wasn’t done with his story and for some reason, you knew that it wasn’t going to get any better.

“My last owner wasn’t any different. Like the rest of them, he felt like he was entitled because he had money to waste, and thought he was better because he was human and I was a Hybrid. But unlike them, he participated in the Underground.”

Frowning, you almost leaned back to get a better look at Namjoon, but when your cheek stated to slide out of his hand you stopped, choosing to stay in his touch. “The Underground?”

He gently tapped your cheek with his thumb, slowly nodding. “There’s the good part of it, and then there’s bad side. The good is mostly known for the music and art scene, but that’s not what most people think of. The Underground is mostly known for its bad side; the drugs, gambling, the Hybrid Mills and such, but everyone just calls it by one name since the lines blur together.” Namjoon shrugged, still rubbing your cheek as if to keep you calm. “One of the popular events are the fights, and as long as I was able to stand on my own two feet, he had me in them every night.”

You may not have known or understood what the Underground was, but with a little thinking it didn’t take long to understand what Namjoon meant.

“I was big and as a Wolf Hybrid, I had an advantage over some of the others. We…none of us wanted to fight, but if we didn’t, the consequences were worse than had we just lost.” Sighing, Namjoon lowered his hand from your face, his gaze falling to the floor once again as his shoulders slouched.

“My last fight had been against a kid, barely even eighteen and shaking. The crowd was screaming and whoever his owner was was threatening him…all I could do was stare at him, wondering who the hell I had become. For a split second I had considered it, it would have only taken one punch, and immediately I was disgusted with myself. The fact that I had even thought about it made me realize that I was no better than the human who owned me.”

You blinked as your mind resurfaced from the memory, pulling your fingers from the book cover as you stumbled backwards. Even now, there was still an ache when you thought about the life that Namjoon had been forced to live, the things he had to do to survive until he was able to escape. It had been a damn miracle that he ended up at the shelter that Luna worked at and she had called you when that storm came in.

Sighing, you plopped back down on the couch and turned the TV on, hoping to ind on a show that could manage to keep you awake for the next several hours.

Please Joonie, you thought, gently laying a hand on the Mate Mark that you treasured and wore with immense pride. A life with Namjoon was what you wanted, what you still wanted, but it was starting to feel like the two of you were heading in two different directions and all you wished for was to find the spot where things began to change. But you could only go so far, do so much, by yourself.

Please come home. Please.

[pines-troz]

Weekend With The Warners: Chapter Eight

Summary: When the CEO assigns Pinky and The Brain with the important task of watching over the Warners for the weekend, Brain is prepared for any antics that the children have in store. What he didn’t take into account was forming a familial bond with the kids.

Warning: The last third of this chapter includes animal testing (albeit not a graphic depiction) as well as PTSD and trauma.

Word Count: 11,403

AO3 Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27849962/chapters/75446471

Before the break of dawn, Brain awoke from his slumber to find his left arm trapped underneath his slumbering partner. The mouse prided himself on being the big spoon, there were moments where he preferred to be the little spoon. He loved feeling the warmth from Pinky's soft fur while contentedly nestling in the taller mouse's affectionate embrace. Try as he might, Brain could never fully achieve success as the big spoon. While he tried his hardest to assert his protective nature when he wrapped his arms around his tall partner, he always felt like a little backpack.

Brain snaked his left arm, which fell numb from supporting Pinky's weight. Feeling an itch underneath his chin, he took his right hand to ameliorate the situation only to feel the scruffy grey hairs growing from his ivory fur. The mouse groaned in irritation. He was going to take Pinky and the Warners out for an exquisite brunch at an upscale restaurant and he needed to clean up if he wanted to blend in with the other patrons. Well, about as much as a small laboratory mouse escorting three toon children of indeterminate species could.

Not wanting to wake Pinky up, Brain carefully snuck out of bed and trotted over to the bathroom to shave. However, the mouse didn't take into account that only two of the Warners were still snoozing in the other bed.

When Brain opened up the bathroom door, he was shocked to find a most horrifying sight.

"Oh, dear God!" The small mouse shouted as he stared at Yakko, still dressed in his pajamas, setting up a guillotine while happily humming the tune to 'Yakko's World'.

"What, in the name of Socrates's tainted tongs, are you doing with that guillotine?" Brain demanded.

"Oh, this old thing" Yakko mentioned, pointing a thumb at the execution device. "Well, I'm in a little bit of a dilemma. This morning I woke up to find little hairs growing around my face." The teen explained. Taking out a magnifying glass from his hammerspace, he leaned towards Brain to show him the few, practically microscopic black hairs that sprouted around his face. "So naturally, I figured that I shave off those pesky facial hairs before going out for brunch."

Brain smacked his paw against his giant head. "Yakko, I admire your eagerness, but a guillotine is not considered to be a proper tool for shaving." The mouse headed over towards the execution device, which was supported by small black wheels, and pushed it as hard as his little mouse body would allow. "Perhaps we should set aside this device for more serious matters, like dealing with corrupt politicians or heartless billionaires." He explained as he pushed the guillotine out of the bathroom, which then disappeared upon crashing into the wall.

"Well, then how else am I gonna shave." Yakko inquired impatiently.

"With a razor, Robespierre," Brain sarcastically answered.

"Oh, I gotcha!" Yakko acknowledged with a grin. The teen reached into his hammerspace once more and retrieved an old Motorola Razr model flip phone.

Brain frowned indignantly with furrowed brows. "Now you're just teasing me." Yakko flashed a playful smile in response.

"Allow me to assist you in the proper etiquette of shaving." The pudgy mouse remarked as he took the tape measure elevator up to the counter. "There should be some shaving cream, exfoliator scrub, after-shave cream, and a couple of disposable razors in the drawer."

"Since when do mice grow facial hair anyway?" Yakko asked.

"A strange inquiry coming from the boy who summoned a guillotine out of thin air." Brain responded in a sardonic tone. "No, it's impossible for the average mouse to grow facial hair. I believe that this is yet another side effect of having gone through the gene splicer, in addition to having an increased life span and the ability to take in a comical amount of pain."

"Now go fetch me the necessary tools from the drawer." Brain firmly commanded. "There should be some shaving cream, exfoliator scrub, a couple of disposable razors, and a bottle of after-shave."

Yakko opened up the drawer and saw two navy blue razors covered with a plastic shield and a blue bottle of shaving cream. "You mean these things?" The teen inquired as he held them up.

"Yes, Yakko," Brain answered as he headed towards the sink faucet. With tiny paws, he lifted the rod and turned on the handles. He looked over at Yakko, who began to shake the bottle of shaving cream. Just as he started to dispense some of the creams, Brain approached the teen.

"Now let's not get too excited with the shaving cream. You must first wash your face." The mouse explained. Once the sink was filled with an appropriate amount of water, he turned it off. Cupping his hands, Brain dipped them into the warm water and spread them across his face. "The warm water will relax your skin and make it more receptive to the razor and less prone to razor bumps."

Yakko copied Brain's instructions. But then his playful side kicked in when he dunked his gloved hands into the sink and flicked a few droplets of water onto Brain. The mouse flinched the moment he was assaulted by the sink water.

"Yakko," Brain grumbled.

"Sorry, teach!" Yakko playfully apologized.

For the next five minutes, Brain continued to teach Yakko the proper shaving etiquette. While the teen got a little overboard with applying too much shaving cream, he managed to do a decent job with his first go at shaving. Brain was thankful that Yakko didn't do anything remotely crazy while using the disposable razor. After they rinsed off with cold water, Brain taught the teen how to apply the after-shave.

Once the little impromptu shaving lesson was complete, Yakko admired his clean-shaven face, feeling like a million bucks. Brain smiled at his eager pupil. "Well, I commend you for your quick learning." The big-headed mouse complimented.

"Thanks, Brain," Yakko replied. "Though, I gotta ask you something, who taught you how to shave anyway?"

"I taught myself," Brain answered. "I learned most, if not all, of the important life skills all on my own and without any assistance."

The room grew silent. Yakko stared at the mouse with a concerned expression. Brain seldom brought up his life as a laboratory mouse. "So no one taught you anything?"

Brain only shook his head. "I was only a young child when scientists separated me from my family and home in the wilderness to be incarcerated at Acme Labs."

Yakko instinctively rubbed the back of his head, feeling a pang of empathy for the mouse. He knew what it was like to be self-reliant at a young age, but he never had any loving paternal figures before he was locked away at the tower alongside his younger siblings. Even still, the teen was curious about Brain's youth and carefully crafted his question before speaking up.

"Do you remember anything about your parents?"

Brain's eyes widened at the eldest Warner's inquiry. It was an innocent question born from genuine interest and curiosity. So the mouse decided to provide a satisfactory answer. "My memories of my early childhood are fairly hazy, but there are aspects of it I distinctly remember. The warmth of my parents' fur whenever they embraced me, their ruby red eyes that glimmered in the sun, the richness of my mother's milk, and the nights spent snuggling close to them as we slumbered in our tin-can home."

Yakko noticed the sad smile on Brain's face as he reminisced of his early youth. The teen couldn't imagine how horrifying it must be to be permanently separated from his family. "And you never saw them again?"

Brain looked at the eldest Warner. "Well I did encounter my parents years later, but the reunion was not as joyful as it could have been."

"What happened?" Yakko asked.

"Let's just say that they don't necessarily approve of my life choices, save for having Pinky as my roommate." Brain answered flatly.

"Ah," Yakko noted. The teen felt sorry for the mouse and tried his best to provide some consolation. "Well, at least you got to see your parents again,"

"Yes," Brain muttered, casting his eyes down on the countertop.

Yakko sadly frowned, noting that his words of comfort didn't do the trick. He drummed his fingers on the countertop. There was something else that Yakko needed to get off his chest, but he didn't know how well to articulate it. "Well, you're not the only one who had to learn everything on their own."

Brain looked up at the eldest Warner. The mouse thought back to the early days of his acting gig on Animaniacs, and the various stories he heard about the three troublesome toon siblings who were locked up by the studio for over sixty years because they were too much to handle. When he first heard of these tales, the mouse was initially intimidated by the toon children due to the sheer chaos they possessed. But as he and Pinky got to know their co-stars, Brain's fears melted away, and as he pondered over their backstory, he became sympathetic to their plight. He couldn't begin to imagine the difficulties the children faced of being isolated in a water tower for so long. This hardship must have been harrowing for poor Yakko, who had to learn everything on his own on top of having to care for his two younger siblings.

Brain rubbed his left arm up and down. "I guess so," he said softly. As much as the mouse wanted to ask questions about the teen's upbringing, he couldn't bring himself to do so. Instead, he wanted to reassure the boy.

Brain looked up at Yakko and carefully approached his hand, which was leaning on the countertop. "I am well aware of the unfair circumstances that forced you to become the sole caregiver of your dear siblings," he gingerly addressed. "And while you have done a tremendous job, you should not have to be the only one providing for your family."

Yakko was stunned by what he was hearing. He gave an astonished look at the mouse, who placed his firm, yet gentle paws over his hand.

Brain stared up at the eldest Warner with a steadfast expression on his face. "I don't know what it's like to be an older sibling, but I recognize the responsibility that comes with taking care of the ones you love."

Yakko didn't have to be a rocket scientist to realize that Brain was referring to his dearest Pinky. Ever since he first met them in the early nineties, the mice were as close as can be and were always seen together whenever they went about in the studio lot. Much like how he was always with his siblings whenever they caused playful pandemonium.

"And if you need any help, you can always call upon myself and Pinky." Brain solemnly offered. "We're more than happy to assist you in any way if you so choose."

Yakko was surprised to hear such a suggestion coming from Brain. Wakko and Dot were already enamored with the idea of having mouse parents, and the mice were willing to step up to the plate. Perhaps he no longer had to bear the solitary responsibility of taking proper care of his siblings. What's more, the constant attention he would receive from two guardians was another enticing aspect of the deal.

"Well Brain, I just might take your offer into consideration!" He responded with an eager smile. The teen carefully scooped the big-headed mouse into his hands.

Brain allowed a small smile to cross his lips. He was finally getting through to the boy!

"And Brain," Yakko spoke up. "I forgot to tell you this earlier, but I wanna thank you for helping Wakko find his drawing from the library."

The mouse's ears perked upwards at the grateful tone.

"It made my sib's day and I'm grateful that you went the extra mile for them," Yakko explained with a smile.

At that moment, Brain was speechless. What he once saw as another wacky situation was seen as a genuine act of kindness. "You're welcome." He quietly replied.

The sudden noise of bouncing bed springs followed by jovial laughter reached their ears. Brain and Yakko emerged from the bathroom to find Wakko and Dot playfully wrestling on the bed while Pinky cheered on, thrusting his purple pom-poms into the air.

"Alright, that's enough roughhousing children!" Brain alerted the two Warners in a slightly strict tone before turning his attention towards his partner. "And quit enabling their shenanigans, Pinky!"

"Oops, sorry Brain," Pinky quickly apologized with a hint of regret in his tone.

Brain leaped off of Yakko's hands and landed on top of the mattress. "Now, I'm taking you all out for breakfast and I want you all to dress to impress!"

-                     -                        -                             -                            -

The group was seated at the round table at the nearest upscale restaurant, happily enjoying their brunch. Everyone dressed their best for the special meal. Pinky wore a flowy strawberry-printed dress, Brain wore a purple blazer and matching skater skirt, a black turtleneck sweater, and a gold chain necklace. Yakko wore a billowy puffy white shirt with rainbow suspenders attached to his brown slacks, Wakko wore a red-and-black plaid kilt in addition to their blue sweater, and Dot wore a red T-shirt and blue overalls with a small rainbow across the front.

Everything was running smoothly during their brunch. Brain indulged himself and Pinky in the finest dishes on the menu. The Warners even made the effort to be zany to a moderate degree. They all engaged in playful conversation. Brain looked over to see how happy Yakko was, laughing with his siblings. Some of the other patrons looked at the toon children with a mix of fear or disgust, but Brain didn't care. As long as they were happy, then he was happy.

While they waited for the check to come in, Brain took a spoon and gently tapped it on the side of his glass of water. "Attention!" He called out.

The Warners and Pinky turned their attention towards the big-headed mouse. Wakko was especially excited. "Are we gonna bust into an elaborate musical number?" He asked, taking out a pair of drumsticks from their hammerspace.

"That won't be necessary, Wakko." Brain addressed. "Now, since our day is winding down, I have one more important activity for us to engage in after we check out of the hotel and bring your luggage back to the studio lot."

"Are we gonna help you take over the world?!" Dot asked excitedly.

"A valid guess, but no." Brain answered though he was pleased to hear the Warner sister's suggestion come off as genuine. "Instead, we shall spend the afternoon at the park!"

"Poit! We'll play all sorts of games, like frisbee, and flying kites, and pet any doggies that walk by!" Pinky joyfully added.

The Warners exchanged eager glances at each other. "And if we're lucky, we can drop by the Wheel of Morality!" Yakko suggested.

"Egad, that sounds fun-fun, silly-willy!" Pinky cheered.

The waitress approached the table and handed Brain the black flipbook that contained the check. The mouse thanked the waitress and proceeded to inspect the check. The expensive brunch totaled two-hundred and fifty dollars and twenty-four cents. He was grateful that the studio would be paying for this extravagant expense. Without a word, Brain retrieved the golden credit card and placed it in the folder, slapped the flipbook shut, and returned it to the waitress.

Despite the wacky antics, he endured all weekend long, he was thankful to have his fine-dining experience.

-                     -                        -                             -                            -

A blue Uber van pulled up at the front of the Warner Bros. Studio lot. Once the side door opened, the Warners and the mice quickly emerged from the vehicle with their luggage in tow. Brain piloted his mechanical human suit once again, grabbing some of the suitcases. He was thankful that the process of checking out of the hotel and commuting back to Burbank went off without a hitch. Once the van sped off, the group looked up at the studio lot.

"Home again, home again," Yakko blissfully sighed.

"Unfortunately, the CEO doesn't want any of us to set foot in the lot until sunset." Brain advised the Warners. "Why don't I fly over to the water tower and drop off your belongings there before we head to the park."

The Warners happily agreed, giving the mouse the rest of their luggage. "Pinky and I will be back in a minute, so don't do anything rash while we're gone."

"We weren't planning on it, since neither of us has any ointment," Wakko replied.

"And remember, the door's a pull, not a push!" Yakko quickly added.

"Duly noted," Brain acknowledged as he started his engines. The jet boosters in his shoes ignited and the suit was launched into the air.

Dot's eyes widened with excitement as she felt her hair and skirt blow through from the suit's jet engines. She remembered the excitement on Wakko's face when he gushed over how fun it was to ride on Brain's suit. Not wanting to be left out, the Warner sister wanted a piece of the action.

The girl reached into her hammerspace and took out a megaphone. "Hey Brain, I just remembered that I forgot something in the water tower and I need to go get it."

The mice heard her request. Brain yanked the controls, turning the suit around to retrieve the Warner sister.

Dot bounced in excitement when she saw the suit fly down.

But Yakko grew suspicious of his sister. "Do you even need to go back to the water tower?"

"No," Dot casually admitted with a confident smile.

But before any of her siblings could react, Dot was swept off of her feet and carefully secured in Brain's mechanical arms. The task of balancing the Warner sister and the various suitcases proved to be a challenge, but not an impossible feat. After shifting his position, he found a satisfactory position and maintained his steadiness over the controls.

The first thing she felt was the wind flowing through her fur. She then glanced down at the various buildings in the studio, admiring the aerial perspective of her beloved abode.

Dot's eyes widened as she observed the movie lot from above. "Woah,"

"Isn't it so much fun!" Pinky exclaimed from the comfort of the coat pocket.

"The greatest!" She eagerly replied.

Brain allowed a small smirk as he listened to their conversation.

But the fun didn't last long when Brain shifted the controls of his suit just before they arrived at the water tower. With a hard tug, he managed to stop the suit before it could collide with the water tower door. He carefully placed Dot down on the steps first before proceeding to drop the luggage.

Dot opened up the Warner Bros. logo door open, gesturing the mice to enter. She swiftly turned on the light switch, illuminating her humble home. The interior of the water tower was in a somewhat pristine state, ignoring the crumpled up bags of potato chips and napkins scattered across the floor.

Pinky hopped out from the pocket and landed on the floor with a thud. Laughing off the pain, he got up and explored the interior of the water tower. "Poit! A lot has changed since the last time we were up in the water tower." He observed.

"Yup," Dot agreed. "My siblings and I made some adjustments to keep up with the times."

The mice looked at the three bunk beds stacked on top of each other. But Brain wore a frown when he noticed Yakko's bed was merely a ball pit.

"Is that supposed to be Yakko's bed?" Brain addressed, pointing the suit's hand over to the ball pit.

Dot hummed and nodded in response. The smaller mouse rolled his eyes. "I bet his chiropractor is having a field day."

His eyes then darted over to a few books scattered near the bunk beds. There were a few amoral paperback romance novels that must have belonged to Yakko. But among the myriad of inappropriate literature laid the cover of a particular picture book that featured a colorful red and green caterpillar. The innocent-looking bug caught Brain's attention and he gingerly picked up the book. As he inspected the book cover, his mind began to flashback to the early years of his acting career.

Warner Movie Lot, 1992

Pinky skipped gaily, tugging Brain by his wrist as he led his roommate over to the iconic yellow and red water tower that lay in the heart of the movie studio. Brain stared up at the tower, trying his best to conceal his fear of the Warner siblings.

The mice just started their work as actors after a plan to take over the world gone wrong had serendipitously landed them starring roles in an upcoming variety show called Animaniacs, which was set to air the following year. Brain intended to use this opportunity of acting in a prestigious television program to gain the admiration of the masses who would pledge their unyielding loyalty to him as Earth's leader. However, the megalomaniacal mouse rarely interacted with the other co-stars and crew members. His years in the lab instilled a distrust towards humans that was hard to shake off, and he mostly kept to himself. But Pinky seemed to be living his best life on the set. Always chatting with the cast and crew members and charming them with his cheerful disposition.

While on the set, Brain heard numerous horror stories from various crew members about the three toon children who recently escaped from the water tower and caused all sorts of chaos all over the movie lot. And it just so happened that one of Pinky's newfound friends was the Warner sister, Dot.

She initially invited Pinky over to the water tower to play dress-up, but the obtuse mouse insisted that he bring along Brain as well, and the girl was not opposed to having an extra guest in her home.

The mice arrived at the bottom of the water tower. Brain stared up at the yellow and red water tank, calculating how he and Pinky could reach the top. He regretted not bringing his human suit along for the playdate. But before he could come up with a plan, the water tank began to descend as if it was an elevator. Once the tank hit the ground, the Warner Bros. shield opened to reveal Wakko and Dot wearing admittedly adorable bellboy uniforms. Pinky clapped his hands and hopped on each foot upon seeing two of the Warners siblings.

"Going up?" Wakko inquired.

"What other option do I have?" Brain dryly remarked as he followed Pinky through the door. Once the mice entered the water tower, Dot slammed the door shut and Wakko pulled the lever, causing the water tank to ascend back to its original place.

Wakko and Dot swiftly took off their uniforms to reveal their regular attire; Wakko dressed in their signature oversized blue sweater and backward red cap while Dot wore her pink skirt and yellow flower hair tie.

The Warner sister approached Pinky and scooped him up into her hands. "Oh, it's so good to see you again!" She chirped as she twirled around, causing the lanky mouse to laugh heartily.

"Thank you for inviting Brain and me over to your house. Narf!" Pinky exclaimed. "Oh, I know we're going to all have a fun-fun, silly-willy time together!"

"I should show you my new playhouse and all the doll clothes I recently bought!" Dot suggested.

"Oh, that sounds like tons of fun!" Pinky merrily replied.

Brain looked over at the two with a raised brow. While he was secretly glad that Pinky was occupied in his own inane activities, he was at a loss of what to do. He was stuck in the infamous water tower and had to endure the chaos of the Warners for who knows how long.

But his ponderings ceased the moment he was scooped up in the hands of the middle Warner sibling. He looked over at Wakko, who must have sensed his loneliness from being excluded from Pinky and Dot's antics.

"Can we hang out together?" Wakko asked with twinkling eyes.

Brain glanced at Wakko and didn't know what to make of the young toon. After listening to the various stories about him, he was the most chaotic and violent of the trio, always quick to whack people with a mallet or any other cartoonish weapons at their disposal. The mouse decided that it would be best to appease the middle child in the hopes of forging a solid acquaintance so that he would not face their wrath.

"I would be delighted to accompany you in whatever activities you have in store." Brain answered with a nervous smile.

"Great!" Wakko cheered, leaping from the floor while holding Brain in their grasp. He bounced over to the couch.

"We could share my snacks and read my favorite story of all time!" Wakko said as he placed the mouse on the sofa before bounding over to the refrigerator. Only seconds have passed when he returned to the couch with a whole platter of different snacks: bags of chips, bananas, different types of cheeses, pudding, and cookies.

Brain stared at the small buffet laid out on the coffee table before looking back at Wakko, who reached into their red cap and took out The Hungry Caterpillar and gave it to him.

The small mouse inspected the cover of the book before glancing back at the snacks and over to Wakko. "Well, I can understand your enthusiasm over this particular book."

"I have never related to any character as much as that caterpillar." Wakko declared with a nod.

"I see," Brain muttered. "Well, to make this activity more interesting, why don't we take turns reading."

"Sounds fun!" Wakko agreed.

For the next five minutes, Brain and Wakko read aloud the story about a caterpillar with an enormous appetite who then turned into a beautiful butterfly. As they took turns reading, Brain noticed the glimmer of joy in Wakko's eyes as he observed the colorful illustrations. Perhaps the young toon was not as bad as he thought and was unfairly mischaracterized by the other studio workers. Once they were finished with the story, they heard the door open. The two glanced over to see Yakko Warner entering the water tower.

Once the eldest Warner shut the door behind him, he glanced around his abode to see his siblings interacting with their co-stars and, presumably, friends. WIth Wakko sitting with Brain and Dot dressing Pinky up in a pink flower hat and purple sunglasses.

"Oh, I didn't know we had company over!" He exclaimed as he gazed at the mice.

Wakko bounced off from the couch and landed in their brother's arms. "Big brother, you've come home!"

Yakko laughed as he carefully placed Wakko back on the ground. "I was busy filming an important song segment about the countries of the world."

"A song about countries? That'll never catch on." Wakko disagreed, giving their older brother a shove.

"Oh, we'll see about that, baby sib." Yakko playfully ruffled Wakko's cap.

"Yakko!" Dot exclaimed, tackling her older brother in a surprise hug.

"Hey, sis!" Yakko replied as he hugged her back. He then glanced over at the two mice: The lanky mouse that wore a purple scarf and the big-headed mouse that was on the couch. "And who else do we have here?"

"Our new co-stars and our new friends," Wakko answered confidently.

Yakko's eyes lit up when he figured out who they were. "Oh yeah, Binky and the Pain, is it?"

"Actually, we're Pinky and The Brain!" Brain corrected as he hopped off the couch and trotted over to the siblings. "But rest assured, Sakko, we're not only your co-stars and acquaintances, but we're the future world leaders-"

"Actually, it's Yakko." The eldest Warner corrected with a pointed hand.

"Right, and now you know how it feels to have your name mispronounced." Brain curtly acknowledged.

"Eh, fair enough." Yakko shrugged in agreement.

"So, now that we're all here, what should we do next?" Dot asked excitedly.

Wakko looked over at the mice and smiled. "Could you guys take us to McDonald's?" He asked.

"What?" Brain sputtered. "Pinky and I don't have enough money to pay for such frivolities, and our next paycheck won't come in until Friday!"

"Oh, there's no need to worry about that, I've got ya covered!" Yakko assured as he took out a brown sack full of money from his hammerspace. "Scratchy is already busy with his patients and we need someone to take us out for some fast food!"

Dot approached the mouse, batting her glowing black eyes and wearing the most adorable pout. "Oh, pretty please Brain!" She pleaded in a cutesy voice.

Brain crossed his arms and frowned, refusing to cave into Dot's powerful cuteness. "Pinky and I have important work to do soon back at the lab!"

"Like watching the latest episode of Seinfeld?" Pinky asked.

"No, Pinky. Our plans for global conquest!" Brain curtly replied.

"But you can't take over the world on an empty stomach!" Wakko argued.

"Ugh, I'd rather consume my hat than McDonald's," Brain sourly remarked.

Yakko carefully inspected Brain with the intention of breaking down the mouse's barriers until he gave in. He tapped his siblings' shoulders and grinned mischievously and began to chant. "McDonald's! McDonald's!"

Soon Wakko and Dot joined their brother in the chanting. "McDonald's! McDonald's! McDonald's!

Brain's eye twitched at the incessant shouts. The Warners began to circle around the mouse. The moment Pinky joined the toon siblings in their parade, that was the final straw. Brain raised his fists and the air and shouted. "Oh, all right! Pinky and I will take you out for some cheap fast food!"

The Warners bounced around the mice in jubilation. While Pinky eagerly clapped, Brain pouted as he bitterly crossed his arms once more.

"Don't be so glum, Brain!" Wakko said in earnest as he picked the grumpy mouse up. "Maybe some happy meals will cheer you up!" He explained while placing the mouse on top of their head.

"Ready to go, sibs and mouse friends!" Yakko asked excitedly.

"Ready!" Dot chirped as she scooped Pinky up in her hands and placed him on top of her head.

"Ready!" Wakko added with a thumbs up.

"Affirmative." Brain tiredly sighed, gripping his paws on the red hat.

"Narf!" Pinky called out.

"I'll take that as a yes," Yakko mentioned. "Now let's roll!"

Yakko opened up the door, hopped on the railing, and leaped off. Wakko and Dot followed suit as they jumped off the water tower to catch up with their big brother. Pinky cheered while Brain let out an anxious "nyaaaah" as they made their descent. Fortunately, the Warners bounced upon the concrete ground with great nimbleness.

"Boingy! Boingy! Boingy!" The Warners chorused as they bounced around the movie lot. Both mice grabbed onto their respective toon siblings as they moseyed about.

On their trail, they passed by Slappy Squirrel, who walked in the opposite direction whilst carrying her green purse. The veteran toon star smirked as she waved at the three children and the two lab mice. "Have fun, you crazy kids." She called out.

As the Warners continued on their merry way, the loud shriek of the officer's whistle shattered their merriment. They looked over to see Ralph the security guard, running up to them as fast as he could with a comically large net.

"Yikes!" The Warners shouted. Revving up their legs, they made a mad dash out of the studio, carrying the mice along with them.

"Alright children, we better make this trip to McDonald's a quick one. For Pinky and I must return to the lab by seven."

"Why Brain?" Wakko asked. "What are you and Pinky doing at seven?"

"The same thing we do every night, Wakko," the mouse grimly replied. "Try to take over the world!"

"Hey, Brain!" The Warner sister sang while snapping her fingers. "Earth to Brain, you come in?"

The mouse shook his head as he looked over at Dot, who cradled Pinky in her hands. His perception of her and her siblings has drastically changed over the years. His fear of the toon children's playful and unpredictable nature was replaced with endearment. Brain regained his focus and returned to the present. "My apologies dear, I was just reminiscing."

"Totally understandable," Dot replied with a warm smile.

The mouse placed the picture book back on top of the pile and approached the Warner sister.

"So did you find all the things you were looking for?" Brain inquired.

"Actually, I lied to you. I only said that just so I could get a ride on your mechanical human suit." Dot confessed without a twinge of regret. "Are you ready to head over to the park?"

"Yes, always." Brain replied flatly as he exited the water tower. After Dot closed the door, he picked her back up, with Pinky in tow, and they flew off.

Back at the studio entrance, Yakko and Wakko were in a heated game of checkers when they heard the loud jet engines purring up above. Brain descended from the air, landing on the sidewalk on the suit's two feet.

"Thanks for the lift, Brain!" Dot chirped as she hopped off from the suit and passed Pinky back to the big-headed mouse, who securely tucked him in the front pocket.

"So, how about we head over to the park for some wholesome fun and merriment?" Brain asked with a wave of his mechanical arm.

Yakko, Wakko, and Dot cheered as they bounced around the suit. With a resounding yes from the siblings, they started to make their way over to the park.

Dot approached Yakko. "Can you give me a piggy-back ride? I wanna save all of my energy for when we arrive at the park."

"Your wish is my command, princess," Yakko answered as he propped his sister onto his back. Dot giggled contentedly as she adjusted herself on top of her brother's shoulders.

Wakko sadly looked on. He couldn't help but feel left out by the sibling bonding. "Can I get a turn soon?"

Yakko looked over at Wakko with sympathetic eyes. "Of course sib, but you have to wait a little while."

While Wakko was relieved that Yakko had not forgotten about them, their shoulders sagged with impatience.

Brain noted the middle child's forlorn frown. The mouse knew exactly how to cheer Wakko up. "You don't need to wait any longer, sport." Using the man-suit, Brain lifted Wakko up and placed the middle child on his shoulders.

"This is awesome!" Wakko cheered, raising their hands in the air.

Pinky looked up from the pocket. "Aww, can I have a turn soon?"

"Don't worry, Dad," Wakko assured. He tried to reach for Pinky, but Brain recognized what he was doing and grabbed Pinky for them, placing the taller mouse into Wakko's hands. Wakko then placed Pinky on top of their hat.

Yakko looked up at Wakko and the mice and smiled. As he carried Dot, he thought of a wonderful idea.

"Hey Brain, I betcha Dot and I will get to the park first." He declared with a mischievous grin. The teen revved up his feet and began to race down the sidewalk. Dot giggled as she held onto her older brother.

"Last one there is a rotten egg!" Dot shouted gleefully.

Wakko looked at their siblings, who were already many paces ahead, and frowned. "Brain, we have to beat them!"

"Don't worry, Wakko," Brain assured. "For I have an ace up my sleeve."

The mouse pressed the buttons on the control panel, causing the jet engines to fire up. A few seconds later, the mechanical human suit rose a few feet above the sidewalk.

"Now that's what I'm talking about!" Wakko exclaimed.

"Hold on, you two!" Brain ordered as he took off.

Wakko gripped one hand on the suit's shoulder and the other hand on top of Pinky, securing him onto the red cap. The lanky mouse and the middle Warner cheered as they flew above the sidewalk. The trio managed to catch up with Yakko and Dot within seconds. Gripping the control lever, Brain maneuvered the suit's arm and swiftly caught the other two Warners in his hold. The pudgy mouse steered the controls and lifted up the suit to a higher elevation.

Yakko and Dot laughed as they were reunited with Wakko. Pinky felt his eyes watering at the sight of the siblings enjoying themselves while Brain drove the suit. Once Brain located the park, he made a swift descent towards the destination. Pinky and the Warners cheered as they approached the park. Brain slowly turned off the jet engines as he landed near an empty picnic bench. He was able to land the suit on both feet while carrying his passengers.

Yakko, Wakko, and Dot leaped off of the suit and landed on the ground. "We won! We won! We won!" They chanted as they bounced around the picnic table.

Pinky and Brain smiled at the children. They took in the beautiful scenery of the green trees and bushes among the luscious green grass. The mice were eager to have a grand old time at the park with the Warners.

Yakko and Dot reached into their hammerspaces and took out their kites. Yakko's kite had rainbow colors, while Dot's kite had purple and gold stripes. At that moment, Pinky had an idea. "Hey kids, can I fly with you?" He asked.

"Of course!" Yakko answered. "But I don't know if I have a mouse-sized kite anywhere."

"No, no, no," Pinky gently dismissed. "I mean, I want to fly on the kite!"

Yakko and Dot looked at each other before turning their gaze back at the lanky mouse. "Well, in that case, I don't see why not!" Yakko said as he took out some tape from his hammerspace.

"Fly on my kite, Pinky!" Dot cheered as she laid out her kite.

Pinky happily hopped onto the kite and spread himself out. He always had fun when Brain taped him up tight to a chair or the television screen during past plans for global conquest, but the thought of being taped to a kite exhilarated him. "Now don't hesitate to use extra tape! Zort!"

Meanwhile, Wakko took out a blue frisbee and approached Brain. "Hey Dadoo, wanna play frisbee with me?"

"Certainly," Brain answered with a small smile.

Wakko handed the frisbee over to Brain. The mouse gently held the plastic disc in his grip and looked out to Wakko, who ran about twenty feet away.

"Ready!" The toon child shouted.

Brain gripped the disc as he maneuvered the mechanical arms back. Thrusting the lever, he launched the frisbee. The blue disc glided across the air until Wakko leaped up and caught it in their mouth.

Wakko landed on all fours and sprinted down the grass like an eager dog. He then skidded to a stop when he was close to Brain, but managed to dig their heels into the grass and stop before he could collide with the mouse. Wakko contentedly dropped the frisbee in front of the suit's feet, wagged their tail a mile a minute, and panted eagerly with their tongue lolling out.

Brain snorted at Wakko's silliness. While the mouse wasn't sure what animal the Warners were supposed to be modeled after, but he was certain that the middle child inherited many traits found in the average canine. "Do you even know how to throw?"

"No throw!" Wakko replied with an ounce of ferocity in their tone. "Only give!"

The mouse rolled his eyes. "Alright, I think it's high time someone taught you the art of throwing."

With a wave of the mechanical hand, Brain commanded Wakko to stand up, to which the middle child eagerly obeyed.

"Now, the most important element of frisbee is about using the flick of your wrist to impart gyroscopic stability and to accelerate the mass of the disc to a certain velocity."

Wakko tilted his head in confusion.

Brain dejectedly sighed. He thought that his scientific jargon sounded rather groovy. But if he was to properly bond with Wakko, he needed to meet them halfway. "To put it in terms that you can understand, you must be able to use your arm and wrist to throw the frisbee so that it can glide in the air at a decent speed."

Wakko's eyes glistened. "Oh, now I get it!"

To demonstrate, Wakko whipped his arm and released the frisbee, which wobbled in the air and landed straight into a tree with an unceremonious thud.

Brain looked at the disc, which laid limp by the tree trunk, and back at Wakko. "We have a lot of work to do…"

Yakko and Dot were flying their kites, with Pinky strapped to Dot's purple and gold kite. The lanky mouse laughed heartily as he flew up in the air and admired the city from a bird's eye view.

But the fun came to a halt when Pinky and the kite crashed into the tree branch.

Yakko and Dot looked up at the tree with concern for the lanky mouse. "Are you okay, Pinky?" Dot called out, using her gloved hands to amplify her voice.

Spitting out the leaves from his mouth, Pinky responded to the girl's inquiry. "I'm right as rain, sweetie!" But Pinky spoke too soon as he struggled to liberate his limbs from the adhesive of the cheap tape.

"Uh Brain," Pinky called out from above. The big-headed mouse turned to see his partner stuck at the top of the tree.

Brain retrieved the kite (and his partner) from the tree branch and descended back to the ground. He carefully took the tape off of Pinky's limbs, placing the adhesives in his pocket to be disposed of later. Pinky hopped off of the kite and landed in the palm of Brain's robotic hand. Brain carefully picked Pinky up by the fur on his back and gently placed him in his front coat pocket.

"That oughta hold you." Brain told his partner.

Pinky chuckled. "That's funny. You always say that to me before our role-playing sessions."

Upon hearing the innuendo, Yakko looked over at the mice and stared at the fourth wall. He pressed his right hand to his lips, gave it a smooch, and flung it to the side. "Goodnight, everybody!" He exclaimed.

Brain felt the heat rise up in his cheeks at Yakko's iconic catchphrase. "Pinky, the park is a family establishment! There will be no mention of our licentious activities in front of the children!" he berated, pointing over to the Warners, who only giggled in response.

Yakko let out a contented sigh as he fished out his pen and notepad from his hammerspace. Clicking the top of the pen, he placed a checkmark on the box next to 'Making a witty response to a suggestive remark', marking off another goal on his To-Do List. The teen noted the second most important thing he needed to do next. Revisiting a certain segment that was sadly absent from the reboot.

Yakko then turned over to his younger siblings. "So, who wants to help me find the Wheel of Morality?"

"I do!" Dot exclaimed.

"Maybe later," Wakko replied as he fiddled the frisbee. "I wanna play with Dadoo some more, and I think I'm getting the hang of frisbee!" To test out their theory, Wakko threw the frisbee, which landed square in the middle of Brain's mechanical suit and ricocheted back to Wakko, hitting them square in the face. Despite the injury, Wakko eagerly grinned at their siblings and gave them a thumbs up.

Yakko noticed how happy Wakko was with the mice and shrugged. "Suit yourself, middle sib."

"Now let's go!" Dot exclaimed as she tugged at her older brother's wrist. Yakko smiled at his sister as they raced down the walkway in search of the coveted Wheel of Morality.

Wakko waved at their siblings as they bounced off into the distance before turning back towards the mice. He threw the frisbee once more at Brain, who was caught off guard by when the frisbee smacked him on his forehead.

"Ow!" Brain remarked as he took his own hand to soothe his head.

"Sorry!" Wakko replied with a sheepish smile.

"It's fine," Brain dismissed as he approached the middle child. "You have a lot of energy in your throws, but now it's time I taught you how to aim properly."

With Pinky now secure in his suit pocket, Brain returned his game of frisbee with Wakko. The pudgy mouse piloted the suit as he approached Wakko, and guided his mechanical arm to properly show them how to hold a frisbee.

"Now you want to grip the disc like this," He explained, as he moved Wako's hand to make a backhand grip on the frisbee. Wakko watched carefully with their tongue sticking out as he listened to Brain.

"With the disc secure, you want to position your arm backward." Brain continued as he carefully guided Wakko's arm towards their left side. "And then you flick your arm back towards your right and release the disc."

Wakko moved his arm and flicked the disc, which smoothly glided in the air for about ten feet before making a gentle landing onto the grass. The middle child flashed a proud smile at the frisbee and then back at the mice, who gave encouraging smiles in return.

For the next ten minutes, Brain and Pinky enjoyed themselves as Wakko's throwing greatly improved. They started out with five-foot throws and eventually managed to find a steady rhythm as they made more long-distance throws.

Brain tossed the frisbee twenty feet over to Wakko, who caught it in the grip of their gloved hand with ease.

Wakko grinned as he looked back at the mice. "Go long!" Wakko shouted as he made a particularly long throw.

Brain maneuvered the man-suit fast enough to where the frisbee would fall. Taking a big leap into the air, he caught the frisbee but lost his footing. As the suit tripped over to the grass, Brain fell out from his controller's chair, with Pinky following suit.

The two mice tumbled about thirty feet away from the suit and landed near the base of a tree, causing the bluebirds to scatter. Colorful stars swirled around their heads when a blue feather gracefully fell on top of Brain.

Brain pondered for a moment, recalling his childhood days in the meadow when he spent his free time playing 'keep-it-up' with any feather or leaf he stumbled across. As much a The big-headed mouse took a deep breath and blew the feather off of his head. The feather rose up a good measure above the air before descending again. Suddenly, Brain felt his playfulness reemerging after laying dormant for Lord knows how long and decided to keep the feather up in the air.

Pinky's vision eventually cleared and the first thing he saw was his partner merrily blowing at a blue feather while wearing the most endearing smile.

"What are you doin', Brain?" Pinky inquired.

"Playing a little game," Brain answered, his eyes still focused on the blue feather. "The objective is to keep the feather up in the air for as long as possible."

"Zounds, Brain, that looks like fun!" Pinky cheered. The mouse bounced back on his feet and trotted over towards Brain.

The big-headed mouse stared up at the feather, calculating where it would land. He was determined to keep it up for as long as possible. Before he could make his move, Pinky stood beside him and puffed out enough air to launch the feather up to an additional six inches.

Pinky gave a goofy grin at Brain, who chuckled in response.

They took turns blowing enough air to prevent the feather from falling onto the grass. The two mice quickly became so invested in the game that they lost track of their responsibility watching over the Warners.

When the feather was close to landing on a nearby bush, Pinky and Brain collided with each other and fell backward. The mice groaned as the feather swiftly landed next to them. Rubbing their heads, the mice looked at each other and laughed joyously. Brain got up first and eagerly helped Pinky get back up.

Just as the mice stood up, a giant net stealthily emerged from the bushes and swooped them up. Fear and alarm overtook the couple as they struggled in the chafing ropes of the net. Thrown into a fit of confusion, they were unaware of the men in white lab coats until they spoke up.

"Looks like we found the perfect specimens for the separation experiment," A red-headed scientist said.

"You know, it's a good thing it was delayed to this evening. These little mice would make excellent candidates!." The scientist with square glasses remarked.

Pinky and the Brain exchanged terrified glances. The experiment they thought they had evaded was put on hold. A weekend filled with light-hearted antics and bonding was to end with the close mice being separated for an entire month.

Brain looked outside the picturesque park through his roped prison, recalling the tragic day when he was stolen from his family in the meadows as a young field mouse and was unceremoniously hauled away to Acme Labs. Where his innocence vanished and was resigned to the fate of a mistreated laboratory rodent.

Raw determination grappled his fear. Brain refused to allow history to repeat itself again. He refused to be separated from his family once more.

"Hurry Pinky," Brain called out. "Use every ounce of strength you have to tear a hole through this net so we could still escape while we have the chance!"

But the red-headed scientist swiftly picked them up by their tails and carelessly placed them into an iron cage.

Pinky and Brain ran over to the bars. Out from the horizon, they saw Wakko skipping along, carrying the frisbee in their hands. The mice reached out their arms through the bars, using every ounce of energy in their voices to alert the middle child.

"Wakko!" Pinky cried out as tears poured from his eyes. "Please help us!"

"Please, my child! You must do something!" Brain shouted, his voice laced with desperation. "You're our only hope!"

Wakko's ear stood up the moment he heard their frightened pleas. He scanned over the horizon to see the two mice he dearly loved imprisoned in the iron cage carried by the adults in white lab coats. The scientists walked over to the back of the windowless van and placed Pinky and Brain into the back along with the other recently captured field mice.

Wakko felt their heart breaking. Pinky and Brain gave them and their siblings a wonderful and memorable weekend. He recalled Brain standing up to them and taking a last-minute trip to the library so he could get the drawing back. Even Pinky showed his true colors of being a loving and reliable guardian. The mice helped Wakko out and now it was time to return the favor.

"Hey! You let those mice free!" The middle child shouted, running as fast as he could to reach the scientists. "They're my dads!"

But the scientists ignored his pleas as they entered the front seat van. Wakko picked up their pace the moment he saw the van doors shut. But the Acme Labs van started up its engines. Before Wakko could approach the vehicle, it quickly drove from its parking spot and departed from the park.

Wakko tried to pick up his pace, but the van turned a corner and disappeared out of sight. The toon felt their heart thumping in their ribcage. He was the mice's only hope for salvation, and he failed.

Wakko fell down to their knees in defeat. their face crumpling as tears began to fall. He pulled his ears, berating himself for not saving his dads when he had the chance. Tears began to pool from the middle child's eyes. Blinking away their blurry vision, the tears streamed down their face as a sob broke.

"Hey Wakko, we found the Wheel of Morality!" He heard Yakko cheer from a distance. Wakko's stomach dropped. How was he supposed to tell Yakko and Dot that Pinky and Brain were captured?

Yakko and Dot skipped merrily with the intention of showing Wakko the coveted Wheel of Morality. But the siblings stopped in their tracks when the middle Warner didn't budge from their spot and their frame shaking.

Yakko carefully approached Wakko in an earnest effort to alleviate their woes. "Hey Wakko, what's wrong?" He comforted his sibling.

"The Acme Labs scientists took Pinky and Brain away!" Wakko tearfully explained. Yakko and Dot gasped in shock.

Wakko sniffled. "I-I tried to keep up, but the van was too quick…"

Yakko and Dot sympathetically looked on, not wanting the middle child to feel too hard on themselves.

"Dad and Dadoo are in trouble and we need to do something!" Wakko cried. Yakko instinctively knelt down and rubbed his siblings back in a soothing manner.

Dot's face scrunched up as she pondered. "Acme Labs…" She muttered to herself as she retrieved her smartphone from her pocket. She opened up the internet and searched in the lab. She managed to find the establishment's address.

"The lab is only a few miles from here!" Dot informed her older siblings. "If we can hail a cab, then we'd be able to break them out before sunset!"

Yakko grinned at his sister, feeling proud of her initiative. "Sibs, if we want to save our family, then we gotta act quickly!" Yakko announced as he bounced up on his feet.

Wakko beamed at their brother, elated that eldest Warner finally recognized the mice as family. "You mean it, Yakko?"

Yakko placed a gentle hand on his sibling's shoulder. "Of course. They looked out for us, so it's only fair that we look out for them!"

The eldest Warner offered a helping hand, and Wakko immediately clapped it and rose on their feet. With the aid of their siblings, the middle child was determined to save their two dads.

Dot approached the sidewalk and turned over to the oncoming white taxi van. She stuck her hand out in the air and gave a loud whistle. "Taxi!" She hollered.

Right on command, the white taxi pulled up to the sidewalk. The doors to the minivan opened and the Warners clamored into the backseat.

"Where to?" The driver asked.

"Acme Labs," Dot gravely commanded. "And put the pedal to the metal!"

-                     -                        -                             -                            -

The mice were surrounded in darkness. Pinky and Brian were locked in a protective embrace throughout the duration of the car ride over to Acme Labs.

Brain listened to the frightened cries of the other field mice. He couldn't help but remember the day he was locked away in the Acme Labs vehicle to be separated from his family and home. He never thought that he would relive that painful day.

Pinky held Brain close as his mind raced with all sorts of worrying things. The weekend wasn't supposed to end like this! He and Brain should be back at the park and watching the Wheel of Morality. Brain should be bringing up the proposal to officially adopt the sweet Warner children and start a big happy family together. They should have successfully avoided the separation experiment.

Pinky felt his stomach drop. He didn't like the idea of being separated from his dearest Brain. He remembered the different times he and Brain were apart. Snowball was almost successful when he offered him the amusement park. Then there was the time Brain had a mid-life crisis and insisted that he was better off with his career as a ski instructor. Or the time his hit musical caused Brain to run off. But worst of all was when Mr. Itch planned on separating him and Brain for the rest of eternity.

He detested the thought of not being by Brain's side for an entire month.

"Brain…" Pinky wobbled. "Poit! I haven't been this scared since Mr. Itch tried to separate us for good!"

Brain tightened his grip around Pinky at that painful memory. "The feeling is understandable, dear Pinky," He sullenly replied as he cast his eyes downward.

"And we were just going to start our new lives as parents," Pinky sadly added. As the words escaped his lips, he felt a small ray of hope. "Troz! Maybe the Warners will bust us out of here before the experiment starts!"

Brain's ears twitched at Pinky's relentless optimism, even in the face of hopelessness. The mouse loved to think that he and his partner further strengthened their relationship with the three toons, perhaps to the point of something familial.

The pudgy mouse looked back at Pinky with a small smile. "Perhaps you're right."

But the van screeched to a grinding halt.

Pinky looked through the bars, his long tail wagging excitedly. "Maybe they'll bust through the doors right now and take us back to the studio!"

The backdoors flew open to reveal the same scientists who stole their freedom.

Pinky retreated from the iron bars and launched himself onto Brain with open arms. The smaller mouse instinctively wrapped his arms around his partner's lanky figure, holding on as tight as he could. Their hopes of escape were snuffed out.

"Well, the thought was nice while it lasted." Brain commented in a dejected tone.

One of the scientists picked up their cage and swiftly placed it on a metal cart. Pinky and Brain held each other in a protective hug as they watched the scientists place the other cages onto the cart. Brain couldn't help but notice the terrified squeaks of the various field mice who were robbed of their freedom and to be incarcerated in Acme Labs. The mouse shut his eyes. The memories of his arrival at Acme Labs to the horrific experiments he underwent returned to him.

The first night spent in the cold steel cage. The learned helplessness experiment. Being strapped to a chair and watching painfully bad political advertisements. Receiving painful shocks from the stunning plate in an earnest attempt to obtain some cheese. He and Snowball riding a red toy car that launched straight into a brick wall, rendering them horrifically injured. Undergoing the gene splicer while wrapped in bandages. Losing his first friend after a terrible falling out. Being force-fed cigarettes against his will. Having to pilot a faulty toy plane that ended up becoming a major fire hazard.

Brain's breathing hitched. Thankfully, he felt Pinky's paw lovingly stroke his back in a soothing motion. The pudgy mouse rested his head in his partner's chest. He had to savor the physical comfort while he still could.

Pinky, too, thought about his arrival at the lab. When the scientist first purchased him from the pet store, he thought nothing of it and assumed that he was going on vacation. But as the nights passed, the reality of the situation dawned on him that he might never see his family again. Pinky was thankful that Brain helped him reunite with his folks years later, but for the longest time, he thought that would not be the case. He whimpered at the thought that he might be separated from Brain and the Warner siblings for good.

Once the cages were transferred from the vehicle and onto the cart, the scientist wheeled them away into the research facility.

Pinky started to sob when the fluorescent lights of the lab hit. Brain looked over at Pinky with worried eyes. Although emotions were not his strong suit, he was determined to provide his roommate with some level of comfort.

"Have courage, Pinky," Brain consoled his partner, gingerly caressing his paw. "It'll only be for a month, and we'll soon be reunited."

Pinky gave Brain's paw a tight squeeze in return. "I-I'll try, Brain." He stammered as tears poured from his eyes.

The cart stopped in the middle of the hallway and one of the scientists opened up their cage.

Brain squeezed his eyes tight as he clung to Pinky. While he was aware that being placed in a separate cage that included all of the basic necessities for an entire month was bearable in comparison, being separated from Pinky proved to be its own type of torture in and of itself.

"I love you, Brain." Pinky warbled.

Brain's stomach dropped when he heard those words. Gathering up enough courage, Brain made his feelings known before he was to be separated from the most important thing in this world.

"I love you too, Pinky." Brain solemnly whispered.

The small door to the iron cage opened and a gloved hand dipped down to retrieve one of his victims. The hand tried to pull the mice apart but was having difficulty. Brain instinctively sank his teeth into the gloved hand to retaliate.

The scientist yelped as swiftly yanked his hand out of the cage. "Looks like we've got a biter." He told his associate.

The other scientist snaked his hand through the opening and swiftly grabbed Brain. Pinky's eyes widened when he saw Brain in the clutches of one of his captors. When the other scientist reached his hand into the cage, Pinky was determined to fight back. But the scientist proved to have quick reflexes as he secured his grasp around the lanky mouse and plucked him from the cage.

Brain struggled to release his arms from the scientist's grasp but found it difficult to squirm his way out. He looked over to see Pinky squirming in the other scientist's hold whilst looking at him with pleading eyes.

"Brain!" Pinky cried out.

Brain stared at his partner as they were forcibly separated by the callous scientists.

"Pinky…" He exhaled, tears dampening his ivory cheeks. Brain watched helplessly as he was carried away into a testing room.

A scientist with blonde braided hair shut the door right away. Brain inspected the room and the many white coats. Two of the head scientists he recognized. The older gentleman with silver-grey hair and a middle-aged woman with brown hair that was held together in a ponytail. There were six other scientists, all of them in their early twenties and straight out of college.

The red-headed scientist placed Brain on when the middle-aged scientist with red hair cleaned the tip of his right ear with a disinfectant wipe. Just as he twitched at the moist sensation, he felt a hard sting when the scientist pierced his ear with a silver metal tag.

The mouse was overcome with shame. While the piercing was far less painful than the time he was branded with the black A tattoo on his leg during his youth, it wounded his pride just as much. The silver ear tag was another cruel reminder that he was not a mouse with autonomy and ambition, but a mere piece of property to a corporate laboratory.

"Subject A-93," The woman muttered as she scribbled his notes onto the clipboard. Brain grimaced at his slave name.

The older scientist grabbed Brain from the table. He walked over towards a glass cage that was placed in the middle of the room, opened up the top cover, and lowered the mouse inside.

Brain inspected the prison he was to reside in for the next month. The ground was covered in straw, there was an exercise wheel, a bowl of food pellets, and a full water bottle. Not much different from his old cage. The only thing that was missing was Pinky.

The mouse stared at his reflection in each of the four sides of his glass cage. "Drat!" He muttered to himself. If he were placed in a cage similar to his green one, then he would easily have picked the lock with his tail and made a daring mission to rescue Pinky.

Brain ran to the side of the cage and angrily pounded on the glass wall, desperate to make an escape.

He saw two of the scientists talking to each other as they scribbled down in their notes. Brain peered at the older man's lips as he spoke.

"Over the course of the month, we will be studying the emotional intelligence and cognitive thinking of the common laboratory mouse and how it will cope with a month of being separated from its closest partner."

"No need to remind me," Brain bitterly remarked, knowing full well his sarcasm would go unnoticed by the scientists.

The mouse paced around the straw floor, pondering the different means of escape. There was the matter of telekinesis. Brain hoped that Pinky would use his special abilities to break free and rescue him. But the more he thought about it, the more doubtful he became. While Pinky had no issue with controlling his telekinetic powers, the only problem is that his partner's powers tend to come and go.

He then thought of the Warners. Perhaps Pinky was right, and that the Warners could liberate them from the lab. Brain was certain that he and Pinky made a great impression on them so that they would be willing to rescue them from the lab, right?

But Brain shook his head. He didn't want to get his hopes up only to be let down if they didn't show up.

The mouse looked over at the scientists, one of which was by the refrigerator. Perhaps if one of the scientists opened up the cage and lowered their arm, Brian could climb up and make a run for it. He would somehow rescue Pinky and they would make their escape from the lab.

The lid of the cage opened and placed a small plate of cheese in the center.

Brain set his sights on the slice of swiss cheese just as the scientist quickly shut the lid on top of the cage.

The mouse felt his heart slam against his chest as he stared at the large piece of swiss cheese.

Brain knew that there was no stunning plate underneath the cheese. There were no clamps or electrical wires that connected the plate to the shock device. But the familiar image was a painful reminder of the trauma he endured as a child.

He glanced over at the scientists, who were not the same ones who performed the experiment during his youth, as managed to read the head scientist's lips. "The objective of this first test is to see how the subject will react to new stimuli without the aid of his partner. During the first week of testing, we'll examine how the mouse would react to different types of food before moving on to common household items."

Brain looked back at the cheese and took a few steps back. He clutched his jagged tail, noting each zig-zag mark was the result of being electrocuted by the stunning plate. He shook his head in disbelief. This had to be some cruel trick. To be separated from his beloved Pinky only be stuck with a painful reminder of his childhood trauma.

Closing his eyes, the mouse turned away and ran towards the wall, slamming into it. Brain curled his paws into fists and began to pound at the wall in a desperate attempt to escape. With each punch, he was reminded of how utterly helpless he had become. No longer was he an ambitious intellectual with dreams of world conquest. As the punches slowed down, he stared into his reflection, reminded that he was a sad and pitiful rodent only to be used as fodder in the name of science and human curiosity.

Tears flooded his eyes and blurred his vision. Brain shook his head once more. He hated feeling vulnerable. The mouse blinked away the hot tears as he continued to pound at the glass wall. The scientists stared at the mouse with indifference as they scribbled into their notepads.

Brain fell to his knees, feeling a great sense of despair from the unfeeling researchers. Bowing his head down in defeat, the mouse continued to sob, feeling totally helpless.

AN: This is the beginning of the end of this story.

I apologize for the long hiatus. I had a lot going on with my personal life, as well as experiencing writer’s block. Fortunately, I managed to overcome that hurdle as of late, and I’m already polishing up the last two chapters, so I'm hoping to finish them as soon as possible.

This chapter was a little challenging (especially the tone change in the last third), but everything is gearing up towards the climax. I had a lot of fun putting in several references to past episodes from the original Animaniacs, the Pinky and The Brain spin-off, and the Animaniacs reboot. I also decided to place a flashback to when the mice first met the Warners because I wanted to establish how these two groups initially crossed paths and how their relationship was founded (as well as having a callback to the McDonald’s joke from Chapter Three).

To the folks who are still reading this story, thank you for your patience and I’ll do my best to wrap up the last chapters on a shorter schedule.

Thanks for reading!

[brelione]

Road Trip (Rafe,Kelce,Topper X Reader)

Takes Place before The Best Boys

Arguing over who gets to play music

Merging all your playlists together and putting it on shuffle.That means going from the Moana soundtrack to Good Girls Bad Guys real quick

The ending location is Kelce’s lake house in Maine

Swapping spots in the car at every stop (Mostly stops demanded by Topper who just wants a slushie from every state)

Rafe driving when you guys first take off,letting you hold his hand

After the third snack stop you sawp to sit in the back with Topper,Kelce going into the passengers seat.You and Topper would watch Finding Nemo together and you werent wearing your seatbelt,leaning against him.

You used your polaroid camera so often,snapping pictures of Kelce whenever you could,even getting some of Rafe driving.

“OOH!MCDONALDS!PLEASE!”Kelce shouted over the music,Rafe glancing at you through the mirror,asking you silently. “Dont look at me!Get the poor boy some McDonalds!”You exclaimed,Kelce fistbumping you as Rafe pulled up to the McDonalds,not quite at the microphone. “Okay,we’re about to go throught the drive thru.Does everyone know what they want?”He asked,sick of Topper never knowing what he was doing.The three of you nodded,the boys ordering cheeseburgers,large fries,McFlurries and a yogurt parfait to “stay fit”.Rafe looked over to you,asking what you wanted. “Just a caramel iced coffee and a happy meal please.”You smiled,still having food from the gas stations.

Kelce was only allowed to drive during daytime because he has terrible eyesight

“Fuck-they forgot my happy meal toy!”You exclaimed,disappointed.The second Rafe saw another McDonalds he pulled up to the drive thu,asking for a cheeseburger happy meal,checking it for a toy after the worker handed it to him,letting out a relieved sigh. “Thats a good one,too.It looks like a Marvel person.”He handed it back to you.

At four in the morning the four of you were looking for a hotel to stay the night in,Topper driving this time around.Rafe noticed you go pretty much limp in his arms,your phone slowly falling from your hands and onto your stomach.He grinned,whispering to Topper and Kelce to turn down the music.

When they finally did find a hotel you guys were somewhere in Pennsylvania,getting a room with two beds and a pull out couch.

You were pretty tired,falling asleep on one of the beds immediately while the boys went to the vending machines,Kelce looking for something other than an energy drink for you to take your vitamins with.He had come back with an apple juice,grabbing your pills from the backpack you chose to bring inside,waking you up. “Hey,princess.You gotta take your vitamins then you can go to sleep.”He grinned,placing your pills into your palm,opening the bottle of apple juice.

Rafe was too tall for the beds,ending up on the pull out couch while old Mickey Mouse cartoons played on the tv.

You were clinging to Kelce when you woke up.He was scrolling through his phone,his arm at a strange angle so he wouldnt accidentally hit you. “Morning.”He grinned,setting his phone down,moving his other arm so you could sit up. You rubbed your eyes,yawning.The shower was running and Kelce had told you that Topper went to go get coffee.At some point you had fallen back asleep,face pressed into the cold pillow when an iced coffee was placed on the table next to you.You heard the shower turn off,Rafe emerging with a towel around his waist,hunting for his backpack.You blinked a few times,thinking that he was naked for a second. “Can we stay here for the day?Im tired of being in the truck.”You grumbled,reaching for the coffee and stirring the sugar and caramel syrup that was stuck at the bottom.Topper nodded in agreement,glad to finally stretch out his legs. “Yeah,yeah okay.”Rafe nodded,sitting on the pull out,watching the tv,glancing to you and Kelce every once in a while.He heard his phone ring,heart dropping when he saw that it was Ward. “I’ll be right back.”He told you guys,accepting the call.He paced up and down the hall as Ward demanded to know where he was. “I told you for the past three weeks I was going on a trip with (Y/N) and the boys.”He answered,biting his lip. “I dont remember that.”Ward grumbled. “Its cause you dont listen to me.”Rafe answered,hanging up and turning off his ringer,huffing as he leaned his head against the wall.You came out shortly after,sweatpants and Kelce’s baggy shirt on your body. “Hey,you okay?”You asked.He nodded,sniffling.You didnt say anything else,hugging him.His arms were tight around you,kissing your forehead,eyes closing as he calmed down. “He’s so bitchy.”Rafe whispered,voice shaky.You nodded,pressing a kiss to his collarbone. “I know,I know he is.But this is a fun little trip we’re having,right?”You asked,looking up at him.He nodded,his smile slowly coming back. “Right,so lets enjoy it.Lets go eat shit and watch stupid movies,i’ll even let you pick the movie.Even though its my turn-dont forget its my turn next time.”You grinned,tapping the tip of his nose.He chuckled,letting you drag him into the hotel room,sitting next to him on the bed.Topper had taken your polaroid camera from your bag,waiting for a good time to take a photo.Your arms were around Rafe,his head under your chin as he scrolled through the movies. “Isnt it (Y/N)’s turn to pick the movie?”Topper asked.You shrugged,not wanting to go into details.Rafe eventually picked a movie called ‘Shark Night’,a grin on his face knowing it would probably disturb you.You were on your phone most of the movie,a smile on your face as Rafe moved his face up so he could take a photo with you on snapchat,blue butterflies on his cheeks.You were oblivious to the fact of Topper taking a polaroid photo.It didnt matter how much it hurt him to see you and Rafe cuddling like a cute couple,you looked happy.He wanted to capture your genuine happiness in a photo,keeping the polaroid for himself.

Rafe had managed to stay clean for a bit of the trip,eventually doing a line in the hotel bathroom,pinching his nostrils so he wouldnt get a nose bleed.

Topper had went to go get you some fruit at a nearby grocery store,figuring that you’d be more comfortable eating something healthy.

He was right,watfching your happiness increase,loosening up as you ate a bowl of cherries and grapes.The second night at the hotel you slept next to-on top-of Topper,your arms around his shoulders and legs around his waist.

The morning of the third day you guys got back in the truck,enjoying The Descendants soundtrack,stopping at a beach to watch the sunset and have a small fire.

New york was a crazy experience,the place too crowded for you to really enjoy yourself.The four of you stayed at an apartment that Topper’s mother owned because of course she had to own a random apartment in the middle of New York.You showered at the apartment,the place so cold that you had to take Topper’s long sleeve shirt from him,shivering against him.

Thats when you chose to watch Z Nation,accidentally catching feelings for 10k.You had also gotten some of the best polaroids of Topper and Kelce,including two of Kelce eating a cookie the size of his head.In the first he was biting into it,the second he was glaring at the camera,realizing you had caught him.You also got a polaroid of Topper doing meditation,headphones on and sitting on the floor.The polaroids from that trip stayed in your mini backpack and away from the others just incase the boys ever wanted to look through your polaroid stacks.

The boys also got plenty of photos of you on their snapchat and around one hundred in their camerarolls if they were all put together.

Once you guys finally got to the lake house it was nothing but laughs,camp fires,kayaking and dancing around

You and Topper decided to bake a ton of sugar cookies and frost flowers and waves on them,most of it just looking like melted blobs of color but it was still fun to do.

Sitting on the large couch and binge watching disney princess films as you all ate the sugar cookies

“We love a bisexual bitch.”Kelce grinned at the television.You guys were currently watching Mulan,one of Kelce’s favorites. “He really puts the bi in bitch.”You agreed.

Campfires were fun,roasting marshmallows.Rafe being the dumb bitch he is burnt all of his,eating one that had ashes on it,gagging.

You and Rafe went kayaking in the lake but you were paranoid as hell from the movie you guys had watched,wanting to turn around when you guys got to the deeper part of the lake.He had laughed at you,agreeing.You guys decided to just sit on the sand,his hand on your thigh as you sighed,looking out at the clouds.

You guys stayed at the lake house for around ten days,not wanting to leave the cozy place. “We should move here.Like,can you imagine all of us living together?That would all be fucking chaos.”You laughed,eyes closed as you laid on your back with a pillow under your head.Topper blushed,glancing outside one of the windows. “I feel like it’d be fun.”Kelce shrugged,flipping through the channels. 

You and the boys had driven into town to the tourist shops,laughing about how you probably looked the same as the tourons in obx.You got a sweatshirt with the location on it along with a t shirt and a mug,a grin on your face when you saw Kelce looking at t shirts,figuring it would most likely end up on you more than it was on him.

The mornings were really fun,the air was cold and you could see your breath,the four of you drinking hot coffee outside and enjoying the sight of the water and the beautiful green trees.

Kelce had taken photos of plenty of leaves,claiming that they were ‘the chosen ones’

You guys found a farm stand,going and trying a ton of new things including a bottle of home made strawberry milk and dunking the leftover sugar cookies in it.

You guys even went to see a huge waterfall,Rafe doing a secret photo shoot of both the trees,the waterfall and you.

You found a really cool rock that was both shiny and green,giving it to Topper for his rock collection that only you knew about.

The drive back to North Carolina was kind of sad,missing the vibes of the house in the woods.You all decided to go back to your house and have a sleepover,not wanting to drive anymore than necessary.

“Can we get taco bell?”Kelce asked,half asleep against the window. “Bruh,I cant even think about food right now ill throw the fuck up.”You mumbled,reaching for his hand.It felt cold which was nice because you felt really warm for some reason,dragging him across the leather seat,enjoying how cold he was. “What are you doing?”He asked,not fighting it. “You feel cold.”You mumbled,clinging onto him.Rafe frowned,asking if you wanted him to turn the AC on higher.You nodded,enjoying the blasts of cool air.Luckily Kelce got his taco bell,eating only half of it before falling asleep.You felt the car pull into a gas station,Topper and Rafe swapping spots so Topper would be the one driving and pumping gas into the truck. “We’re almost there guys.”Topper told you and Kelce,the radio playing Billie Eilish quietly.When the truck stopped again you guys were at a motel,not far from the docks where you’d have to catch a ferry in the morning.Topper just carried you in,letting you sleep against him on the bed,only waking up to the alarm that had been set.

The ferry ride was a blur.Kelce’s silver car had been parked in his cousins garage,the four of you getting inside and driving right to your house,all of you going back to sleep in your living room.Poor Rafe didnt even make it onto the couch,falling asleep on your floor.You were all asleep until mid afternoon,Rafe having a slight sunburn on his nose,cheeks and forehead but not so bad that he needed aloe.Kelce was walking like a zombie,making coffees and hot pockets,serving them to you guys. “Shitting hell-you didnt take you vitamins last night.”He cursed,handing you the small fist full and grabbing you a water bottle. 

“dammit-we have to redo the whole trip!I forgot to get a slushie in every state.”Topper huffed. “Fuck dammit,bottom!” “Well who’s fault is that?Who’s is it?Not mine” “Maybe you shouldve driven the whole time!” Topper pouted,all of you attacking him at once.

“I made a cool edit though,you wanna see?”Kelce asked you guys,excited as he went into his cameraroll,not waiting for an answer.There were clips of you guys in the car,screaming the lyrics to the Ever After High theme song,the next clip of you and Rafe cuddling on the pull out mattress,weird filters on your faces.The next was Topper trying to get chips out of the vending machine,nearly getting his arm stuck. 

“Shut the hell up!Its almost my favorite part!”You shouted,shushing the boys as your favorite part of Rewrite The Stars came up.

 “Im going to catch this frog-im gonna do it.”You were determined,squatting over the long grass,staring down. “Shit-I lost it!”You laughed.

Topper tried to balance a sugar cookie on his nose,failing and losing it to the couch. “NO!THAT ONE HAD A SUNFLOWER ON IT!”He cried,searching desperately for it.The camera then moved to you and Rafe laughing then to Kelce,a smile on his face as he glanced down at the phone screen.

It was all funnier than it shoulve been since the theme song to little einsteins was playing the background,the video ending with a video of you and Rafe battling eachother with pool noodles,Topper shouting about fowl hits and how it was ‘illegal in the land of narnia’

“Wow,freaking photographer ass.”Topper chuckled,making Kelce shrugged. “I mean,I learn from the best.”He smiled at you.

@sweetlittlegingy​    @nicolefarley603 @ilikealotofpeople-younotsomuch @newsies-yeet​ @butgilinsky​ @jjjmaybank​ @gracelovesbroadway​  @one-stella​ @outerbongs​  @copper-boom​  @httpstarkey​ @teenwaywardasgardian @drewswannabegirl​  @simonsbluee   @jiaraendgame  @khiaraaa-in-spacee​  @on-socks-off​ @spn-marvel-nerd​ @lovelyelinor​ @chinamolina602  @sexytholland​ @28cnn​  @popcrone818​ @fttayla​ @cherryobx​ @n1ghtsh4d3-67​ @drewstarkeyobx​ @poguestyleskye​ @judayyyw​ @jjtheangel​ @jj-iz-bae​@sunwardsss @meaganjm​  @sarcasticsagittarius1998​ @natalie-kate-98​ @nxsmss​ @broken-jj​​ @joshy-obx​

[timexistsnow]

my baby (oh my pup)

Chapter 6: blood (we share)

Tasha has an accident. Techno acts accordingly.

They settled into a routine of farming and sewing and knitting. Techno had decided that walks were a little dangerous. At least, enough that Tasha should never be left alone or out of his sight. He wasn’t afraid. Tasha just needed protecting.

Techno woke one day, the sun shining. Tasha was asleep on his chest, grumbling when he pulled back the curtains to observe the weather. The snow wasn’t exactly melting, but it wasn’t any worse than the day before.

Out they went to the cold. The farm was growing well, if not a little too well.

“Here’s the first rule of potato farming, Tasha: fighting is the best way to keep a farm.” Tasha blinked a few times in disbelief, she reached a hand for Techno’s sheathed axe. “No! I meant… metaphorically! The weeds need to be pulled out. It’s like a battle between the crops and the weeds and we’re fighting on the potatoes’ side.”

“Just. Weed,” Tasha rolled her eyes. Fine, Techno rolled his eyes back, he’d keep his massive intellect to himself. One day she would come to appreciate his brains.

She tiptoed through the sprouts and to a weed. Both of her hands wrapped around the middle of the plant and tugged. Techno, having done that mistake before, caught her when she launched backward. The weed snapped in two, the roots staying firmly embedded in the dirt.

“You have to pull from the roots down at the base. Here,” he guided her hands down, “grab firmly but make sure to stand steady.” Together, they pulled and out came the root. One weed down, two fields left.

Techno chose to fill the silence: “The first time I farmed a potato, it was… a year and a half ago? It didn’t feel that long ago, wow,” Techno scratched the back of his head, “I got a little carried away, I guess you could say.”

“War?” Tasha asked after huffing a few breathes.

He helped her with a stubborn weed and ruffled her fluff up, “Yeah! Just like that. I needed these books and well… potatoes and I have always had a special

“Hey, man, don’t mess with the poor thing too much, it might keel over on us!” A half-rotten potato was plonked in reach. The lead dug into his snout, but the feeling of anything in his stomach was enough for him to ignore the rope burns.

relationship, so it felt fitting to go a little wild.”

A hand was placed over his and Techno paused his weeding. “Special?” the owner of the hand whispered. Her voice gargled and cracked halfway through. Was she sick-

Techno had spoken with the voices again.

Tasha repeated the word with the gargles and cracks, “Hey, kiddo, don’t do that to your voice,” Techno scolded softly. He took her hand in his and let her form her next sentence.

After chewing on her lip, she whined, “You. Do. Voice.”

Techno sighed internally, she had a point, but: “So? I’m responsible for you, I’ve gotta keep you safe.”

“Me. Keep. Techno. Safe,” Tasha declared. Techno only chuckled in response.

Back to the dirt, they resumed. The snow was kept at bay with the lantern sitting above the water on a fence, but that didn’t stop the process from being frigid. Techno had weighed the pros and cons of farming in a tundra, but underground was never his forte. L’Manburg potatoes never tasted right, more bitter and small than the bounties from his first farm.

Of course, the potatoes in Hypixel were almost perfect. Sleep had been a secondary need behind farming and getting more materials to farm faster. That was a time of… not fun, but of purpose. At the time, all Techno needed was purpose.

Watching Tasha out of the corner of his eye, Techno shrugged. She was a purpose Techno could live for, could fight for, could die- Techno coughed at the force of the voices.

Enough monologuing.

Techno went back to watching Tasha and for a moment, his heart leaped into his throat. Tasha wasn’t there.

He leaped up and brandished his sword, spun around, and there she was. Sitting by the fire, fingers unfurled at the flames, Tasha was staring at Techno, unblinking.

Trying to play it off and calm his racing heart, Techno needed to think of a solution. A plan of attack. Not against Tasha. Against her running off or getting hurt when he wasn’t paying attention.

He surveyed the two farms and the land that surrounded them. With the fire tucked by the cabin, it was a nice setup. Everything was close together… and perfect for a fence. Or a wall, but that would be rather ugly and Techno was not a skilled enough builder to make it otherwise.

The pile of wood under the spruce tree out front was finally getting put to use. All of the logs made a little over a stack of dark oak fences. He figured that since there wasn’t enough wood for a gate, Carl’s pen would be good enough of a gate. It was almost completely made of gates either way.

“Help?” Tasha asked while peering over his shoulder. Techno was in the middle of the assembly. She did have a point, Techno supposed as he fumbled around with the nails, wood, and hammer.

He handed over the pile of nails, “I’ll tell you when I need one, just follow along with me.”

She toddled along with him and gave him a nail when he asked. Soon the fence was almost done. They were only a few blocks away from the wall that would finish it off.

Techno leaned back to see if he was making a straight line- he was- and Tasha squealed. Twisting around, Techno watched in slow motion as the nails slipped from her grasp and into the snow. He stared as she scrambled to stop them from falling, tumbling to the ground herself. She stared into the snow, on her hands and knees.

Another squeal, this one panicked.

“Hey, kiddo, don’t worry about it,” he soothed and helped her up. Or he tried to, but she squealed harder at the touch. “Okay! No touching!” Techno yanked his hand back to his chest.

He breathed deep, trying to get the hyperventilating Tasha to copy.

There was a smell. Of blood.

Tasha sobbed when Techno’s eyes grew wide in understanding. “Tash, talk to me, show me, please,” Techno tried. She trembled in the snow and looked down at her left hand. Techno leaned in, not touching.

A nail, point up, had slid its way through the meat of her hand in between her thumb and rightmost hoof-ish finger.

Techno held in a hiss, he didn’t want to panic Tasha any more. Instead, he instructed, “Try to keep your hand still but don’t tense up,” Tasha whined, “I know it hurts, kiddo, I promise you’ll be good as new soon.”

Moving slowly, Techno telegraphed his movements and cradled her hand in his. Ooh, this was going to hurt real bad. He wished he could scoop her up into his arms, but chose not to incase the scoop hurt her more.

He led her by the hand back into the cabin. The whole way, Tasha sobbed, growing more hysterical as each step crunched in the bloodied snow. By the time they had made it to the first floor, Techno was having to hold her hand still from the tremors racking her body.

He left her on the carpet and scrambled for potions and wrappings… would she need stitches? Techno hoped that for her sake Tasha didn’t.

Finally, he had gathered his first aid and dumped it next to Tasha.

“I need to touch you again, Tasha. Is that alright?” She didn’t respond. Techno gnawed at his lip, this was bad. Was she in shock?

Either way, the nail needed to be treated.

He tried the breathing again, huffing loudly to a rhythm as he grasped her hand. “Three, two, one,” he yanked out the nail quickly and pressed gauze into the hole left behind.

Tasha quieted… immediately. Huh. She leaned into Techno’s side and he used his free arm to pull her closer. He pressed his snout to the top of her head and continued the rhythmic breathing. The metallic odor of blood was still there, but Tasha smelled like his rose soap, only a little of her ash Nether scent lingering.

With Tasha collapsed into his side, Techno kept her propped up and worked on her hand.

Techno had made those nails today, including the now bloody nail, so she wouldn’t have to worry about tetanus. Still, there was a hole punched through Tasha’s hand… so some worry was reasonable.

The wound was wrapped and the bleeding was mostly stanched.

“Tasha, I need you to wake up.” Techno gave her a light shove. She whined, opened her eyes, and whimpered. “You’ll feel fine, kiddo, just drink this, okay?” A potion of healing was passed over to her. She held it with one hand- she only had one hand. Techno coughed and took it back, unscrewing the cap, “Here you go.”

Her uninjured hand dunked in and got sucked into her mouth. The taste must have been hideous, as Tasha gagged around her hoofed fingers. The sound of flapping ears filled Techno’s stunned silence, “No! Bad!”

Techno frowned, “Tasha, it’ll fix you right up.” He didn’t get it, it was gold. Tasha was just being a picky eater. The texture or something was probably off. He could have sworn he had done the recipe right.

When Tasha made no moves to continue, Techno rolled his eyes: there was always this trick, “Fine, I guess I’ll drink this delicious potion myself.” He raised it to his snout and just as he expected, Tasha squealed. “Oh, you want it now?”

“Give,” a pause, “Meanie.” Techno gasped, the hand not holding the potion coming up to shield his eyes from this atrocity. From under the hand, Techno listened to Tasha slurping and… gagging. Hmm, yeah. He’d need to work on that, whatever that was.

The potion bottle was eventually licked clean: ew. Techno shoved it into a stray chest, he’d either clean or throw it out later.

Tasha’s face was still tear-stained.

Techno chewed at his lip and tugged an ear, “Tasha… you wanna tell me what the freak out was? Cause I know it hurt but that was… horrible.”

“Sorry.” Tasha whispered, “Not. Meant. To.” She shuffled from hoof to hoof, eyes to the Pig Throne. “Not. Mean…. Think. Past. So. Hard.”

“You remembered something?”

Tasha tried out the word, “Remembered…” her voice trailed off, “Not. Matter.” A hesitant smile appeared on her face, and she turned back to Techno. “Back. To. Fun,” was her declaration.

Techno sighed in relief and smiled back, “That’s good.” But with a quick glance at her bandaged hand, “Fun is going to have to wait, though.” Tasha’s face dropped into something crushed, “You didn’t do anything wrong!” he hurried out, leaning in to cup her face in his hands, “We need to let that hand of yours rest for a little while.”

She leaned into his palms, eyes closing. Techno cooed at the sight. Little baby.

The moment broke apart when Tasha’s stomach grumbled. Techno’s joined in. “It’s food time, can you get up on your chair, or do you need help?” It was practically a high chair. Tasha attempted to clamber onto it but did a grabby hand at Techno when she slid back to the floor. “Okay, I gotcha.”

Up she went and into her Pig Throne.

Mid munch of a potato, she paused, her cheeks full. A finger raised up in a gimme a second motion, and she paled. The sheet white melded into slime green. Techno swallowed his carrot and scrambled for a bucket, getting it under her mouth just in time. Out came her lunch and breakfast.

As Tasha retched, Techno held her forehead up, stopping her from tipping into her own sick. “Let it all out, it’s okay,” Techno murmured. This was bad, to say the least.

One more retch and all of her bile was spat out. The smell was horrendous, but Techno still tried to get a good look at her, “Do you feel any better, kiddo?” Tasha whined and brought up a hand to wipe at her mouth. Techno grabbed her a napkin instead.

“Bad. Potion.” Her eyes were even more wrecked, bloodshot and teary. She was sweating, her fur plastered to her forehead. Techno pushed the bucket over to the other side of the table, waving the smell away.

“I hear you now, Tasha,” at least enough to know that they needed a solution if she hated the taste that bad. Her hand would need regular maintenance, especially as Healing was no longer an option.

When he reached out to scoop her, her bones turned to jelly, collapsing into his arms. Techno worried his lip and planted a soft kiss onto her forehead, murmuring, “You can sleep now, pup, I’ll take care of you.”

He undressed her and helped her into a downy blue shirt, one of his. It was oversized, but that would just add to the comfortableness, Techno mused. She didn’t snuggle into the sheets like she normally did, but Techno tucked the comforter around her nonetheless.

Techno grabbed a rag and soaked it in the water from the bath, laying it over Tasha’s forehead. He stood above her sleeping form, not quite waiting, but rather hoping.

A single tear slipped from his eye, down his cheek, and splashed onto the rag. Techno choked on a ragged gasp and stumbled back far enough to hit the door to the bathroom. His hand grasped wildly for the handle and when it opened, he collapsed into the room. The thud was mute to his ears.

His vision tunneled, the voices crescendoing back to life.

He should have listened to her when she first gagged. Forcing her to drink it was cruel, no matter his intentions. And even then, she should have never been holding the nails to begin with. Tasha’s a baby, a little pup, they never have coordination, not enough to catch- Techno forgot to tell her to not grab for falling sharps. It was basic safety, basic information that Techno should have shared. Unless he wanted her to get hurt, but he did not because he cared for Tasha, but his reckless actions pointed to otherwise, and Techno has always been a pig of fact, yet when something presents itself as simple as being a teacher to a child- and he had acted like a teacher for a bit- he can’t even do that. He promised to keep her safe.

And he failed.

Techno dug the heels of his palms into his eyes, stars bursting into his vision. But the blood that spilled from her hand still sloshed around in his brain, the scent of iron filled his snout, making him gag and yack onto the floor in between his knees.

The smell of his own vomit brought him back. Back to the bathroom, back to the door open to show their bed, back to a grabby hand reaching out to him, back to…

Tasha.

He shouldn’t- no, he could not drag himself back into the pit he had been fighting off for an hour, for a week, for a lifetime- he could not.

So picked himself off of the floor, stepped around the puddle of bile, and shut the door behind him.

“Sorry, Tasha,” he held her hand in his, sitting on the edge of the bed, “I had to wash my hands. You’re a little stinky right now,” he chuckled dryly.

A weak giggle murmured its way through the wool. Techno pulled the blanket back, revealing a bleary-eyed Tasha. He squeezed her hand and she pulled out of his. Techno mourned the loss, but when she gave his face a few pats, he gave a real smile. When she yawned Techno pulled the covers back up and slid off the bed and onto the floor. Tasha would get the bed tonight.

He sat onto the floor and rested his head on the mattress. His right arm became his pillow and his left hand was clasped around Tasha’s uncovered hand.

Techno would figure this all out later. For now, Tasha would get her well deserved rest, and Techno, there was nothing in the world that would take him away from her. So he watched the blankets rise and fall with each breath she took and drifted.

[picturetoburnnn]

From Kisses to Hospital Visits | l.h. x reader

word count - approx. 2k

warning - the f-word is used like twice?? some severe angst here with some fluff interludes

a/n - I wrote this in one sitting because the idea came to me and i have nothing better to do on a wednesday night lol. hope y’all like it! if you ask nice enough there may be a part 2

taglist - @songforhema @asht0ns-world @lukesflaredpants @sunflowerxcal @star-gazing-calum @cxddlyash @emomack @merryblueberry02 @kinglyhood @caswinchester2000 @babe-babylon @irwinkitten @1delicate-fangirl dm me to be added!!! 

Y/N wiped her eyes with one hand as the other clutched her lover’s limp fingers.

“You gotta wake up, baby,” she whimpered, covering her mouth to try to muffle her cries. The metal of her engagement ring was bitingly cold against her skin, but she paid no attention. “You have to wake up for me, Luke.”

The beautiful blue eyes remained shut. He looked dead, even though the vital monitors showed his body worked just fine. Every part of him was functioning perfectly, except his conscious mind.

Luke lifted Y/N in the air, hands on her hips as she squealed.

“Luke! Put me down!” She laughed as he spun her in the air.

Luke’s eyes twinkled, his grin brighter than the Christmas lights that hung all over their home. 

Softly, he placed her feet back on the ground. His forehead pressed against hers as his grin softened to a sincere smile. Y/N’s arms curved around his neck, fingers tangling in his ever-messy curls.

“I love you,” he whispered. “I say it a lot, but it never feels like enough. I’ll never be able to tell you just how much I love you.”

She gently placed a hand on his cheek. “I know.”

Luke’s eyes met Y/N’s. His hand found her free one, intertwining their fingers between them. They were swaying now, dancing to a song only they could hear - their heartbeats made the bassline, their thoughts the lyrics. “A thousand love songs couldn’t do you justice.”

She felt her eyes water slightly as she told him “I love you more.”

He let out a breath of amusement. He said, as he did every time she said those words, “Impossible.”

“How is he?”

The new voice shook Y/N out of her thoughts, looking up from her place by his hospital bedside to see Luke’s bandmates in the doorway. Ashton’s hands were stuffed in his pockets, despair clear in his face. Calum and Michael didn’t look much better off. But how could they? Their best friend was in a coma, after all. 

Y/N quickly wiped her eyes again before sniffling. “No changes. Doctor said all we can do now is wait.” She averted her eyes back to Luke, scared she would miss the moment he opened his eyes. 

Ashton nodded, stepping into the room. He crossed the room with one despairing look at the boy that had been his brother for so many years. “And what about you? How are you holding up?”

“I’m okay,” she mumbled, another tear falling. She didn’t bother wiping it away. She just kept staring at the motionless body of the love of her life.

“No you’re not.” He crooked a finger under her chin, forcing her to look at him. In the past four years, Y/N had become like a little sister to Ashton. He wanted her to be safe from pain like this her whole life. He never thought she’d have to experience this.“When did you last eat?”

“I said I’m fine, Ash,” she protested, removing her face from his touch. “I need to be here.” Her gaze fell back to Luke. All the cords and wires on his body broke her heart. How broken inside really was he? When would her Luke come back? With smiles and gentle kisses and everything this Luke was missing. 

“Y/N,” Calum said quietly from across the room. He and Michael had taken post standing on the opposite side of the hospital bed, near the blonde’s head. “You need to eat. You need to sleep. He wouldn’t want you to do this.”

“You don’t know what he wants,” she blurted before she could stop herself. “He’s in a fucking coma, he can’t tell any of us what he wants.” Ashton’s hand was suddenly on her shoulder. 

“Y/N…” 

She exhaled as easily as she could. “I’m sorry. That was rude of me, I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay, y’know,” Michael spoke for the first time since they’d arrived. All eyes turned to him. “It’s okay to be worried, it’s okay to snap. But you have to take care of yourself. Luke would kick our asses if he woke up to find out you were in a hospital bed too. If you won’t, would you please let us help?”

At first, she said nothing. When all of the boys simultaneously gave her a pleading look, she sighed. Without a word, she nodded. 

“C’mere,” Ashton mumbled, gently tugging at her shoulders until she stood from the uncomfortable swivel chair she’d been in for the last twenty-something hours. He led her to the couch, sitting down and tugging her down too. He gently pulled her to lay down, head in his lap. “Get some sleep, angel,” he mumbled. She vaguely heard him ask someone to go get food, attention focused primarily on her fiance’s form.

“It’s so hot,” Y/N whined as they walked down the street. 

“Not as hot as me,” Luke sassed teasingly, clearly amused with himself. 

“Luke, I love you, but I think this one-hundred degree heat has got you beat.” Y/N fanned herself. 

The vacation to Florida had sounded good in theory, but the couple quickly realized it was an awful idea to come in the middle of the summer. 

“Oh come on,” Luke half whined, half laughed.

“I tell you what.” Y/N’s eyes shifted up to her then-boyfriend as he spoke. “Once we get back to the hotel, we go hop in the pool to cool off.”

She almost moaned at the idea. “Oh my god please yes.”

When they returned later that evening, true to his word, Luke threw the bikini at Y/N as he changed into his swim trunks. The couple raced like toddlers to the outdoor pool. Haphazardly throwing their stuff onto the nearest chair, both Luke and Y/N cannon balled into the water. 

“I won,” Luke boasted smugly once they broke the surface again.

“Nu-uh! I totally beat you in!” Y/N laughed as she splashed the singer. 

“No you didn’t,” Luke scoffed.

“Yeah.”

“No.”

“Yeah!”

“You’re a sore loser.”

“Since when did you talk to yourself?”

Luke didn’t have a snappy comeback, so he maturely stuck his tongue out. Y/N rolled her eyes as he waded closer to her. 

“Admit defeat.” He pulled her to straddle his thighs as he leaned against the pool wall in the five-and-a-half-foot deep water. 

“Never.”

“Then you leave me no choice,” he said dramatically. 

Before Y/N could even lift a confused eyebrow, Luke dunked her underwater. 

She resurfaced, spluttering. “What was that?!” 

Luke had lost himself to laughter, practically clutching his sides as he cackled. 

“Meanie!” Y/N splashed water at him, pretending to be mad as she turned her back on him. 

“No, baby,” he mumbled, voice still tinged with laughter. “I’m sorry.”

“No you’re not,” she challenged. 

“I love you.” His arms wrapped around her middle. She felt his front against her back as he pressed a kiss to her shoulder. 

Y/N spun to face him. “Prove it, Mister Meanie Pants.”

His lips met hers immediately, fiercely. It was innocent but seductive all at once, passionate but light. 

After what felt like an eternity in the best way, he pulled away. “Did I prove it?”

“I don’t know,” she smirked. “I think I might still need to be convinced.”

Luke rolled his eyes, but leaned back in with a wide smile. 

Y/N didn’t remember falling asleep on Ashton’s lap, but when she woke, there was a bag of french fries sitting in front of her, still warm. Ashton’s hand was gently smoothing her hair, his other scrolling through his phone. She shifted in the smallest way, and Ashton immediately knew she was up. 

“Hey,” he whispered, careful not to wake the other boys who had fallen asleep almost as soon as they got back. “How’re you feeling?”

“Better,” she mumbled whilst stretching sleepily. “How long did I sleep?”

“Just a couple hours.” At her widening eyes, he added, “There’s no news on Luke.”

Y/N nodded. 

Ashton and Y/N spoke softly about small things, about what they would do after Luke woke up. 

When there was a flash of movement in her peripheral vision, Y/N stopped talking mid-sentence, head whipping to the side.

“Y/N?” Ash questioned, concerned.

“Shh!” She held up one finger at Ashton, signalling him to be quiet.

Y/N swore her heart stopped the moment he moved again.

Then, like a spell had been lifted, Luke’s eyes fluttered open. 

“Y/N, you know I love you.” Luke started one evening as they sat cuddled together on the couch, watching whatever comedy special happened to catch their attention that night. 

Y/N looked up at him from where she was resting on his chest, clearly confused. “...Yeah?”

“I love you and only want the best for you--”

“Luke, what’s going on?” He could see the panic starting to build up in her mind and he had half a mind to forget what he was about to say and kiss away the anxiety instead. 

“I… I don’t think I can call you my girlfriend anymore.” 

Y/N bolted upright, now straddling him. “What?”

“I think that you and I… we aren’t fit to just date anymore. I’m sorry, angel.”

Y/N’s eyes were watering. “But I love you,” she stammered.

“I love you too.”

“But I can’t be your girlfriend anymore? What the fuck Luke?” At this point, she actually was crying, and Luke wanted to forget everything he had planned. He wanted to scoop her up into his arms and kiss her face until the pain disappeared. 

“I can’t call you my girlfriend,” he said as he reached into his pocket, “because I really, really want to call you my wife.”

Confusion was written across her face until he brought out a little velvet box. 

“I can’t live being your boyfriend. I want to be your husband, your rock through the long and hard times. I want to be your home, like you’re mine. I want to be able to love you every day for the rest of my life. I want to fall asleep next to you and wake up with you in my arms until the day I die. I want to marry you.”

Tears fell from her face, though now for an entirely different reason. Both hands covered her mouth as she looked back and forth from Luke, to the ring, and back again. She nodded slowly at first, until she couldn’t help repeat the motion incredibly fast. 

“Is that a yes?” Luke laughed. 

“Yes!” She blurt out. “Oh my god, yes. I love you so much, yes yes yes a million yesses.”

The curly blond grinned as he brought his lips back to hers in a sweet kiss. 

“You’re an ass,” she mumbled with a smile brighter than the stars, lips against his.

“Why’s that?” He beamed.

“Making me think you’re breaking up with me instead of spending the rest of your life with me.”

He laughed, placing his forehead on her shoulder as he fiddled with getting the ring out of the box. 

Luke slid the ring onto her finger, pressing another kiss to her lips. “Gotta keep you on your toes.”

“I love you,” she breathed. 

“I love you more.”

“Impossible.”

He grinned.

Y/N nearly ran the whole three steps over to the bedside. “Luke? Oh my god, you’re okay.”

Tears sprang to her eyes as she enveloped him in a hug. Hesitantly, he returned the gesture.

Y/N pulled away, a wide smile on her lips. It faded fast with the blond’s three words. 

“Who are you?”

[lovelyparkers]

the lifeguard (2)

summary: peter continues to visit the beach and you finally confront him.

warnings: fluff and spice (especially towards the end) peter thirsting over the color red again, peter being a bOtToM

two weeks since your first shift as a lifeguard had passed and peter had practically been on the beach every day since. he managed to pick up quite the tan which was quite distracting. he constantly walked around shirtless and you almost though he was trying to flaunt it, but then of course you remembered it was the beach. girls would occasionally come up to them but he would always politely turn down their advances. who wouldn't want to go up to him looking like that, all tanned and toned. you couldn't help but feel jealous, biting your lip in agony watching girls approach him, then sighing in relief when he shooed them away. the only girl he paid any ounce of attention to, was you. everyday you were sporting the signature lifeguard red bathing suit, which you had several different styles of. peter loved the view of you from the water almost as much as he did up close. but gosh, did his blood boil when he caught your coworker staring you down.

on a saturday, you watched peter arrive at the beach solo. usually he'd be there with the group or sometimes just ned, so it shocked you to see him with just his handsome self. but hey, you weren't complaining. he set up his chair closer and closer to the lifeguard stand each day, but not to where he was blocking its pathway. you two would spark up conversation a lot of the time, talking while you watched the water. peter also started bringing you snacks from home, whether it be fresh fruit or chips, and it always made your day.

once he was settled, he said a quick "hi" to you and grabbed something out of his back pack. "how's it going peter?"

he pulled a ziploc bag filled with freshly cut strawberries out of his bag and walked to the stand to give them to you. "oh i'm doing great," he smiled.

"awe, thank you! you're seriously the best, strawberries are my favorite!"

"i know! i remembered you telling me last week."

you smiled down at him. "so hey, i only have a five hour shift today, which means i have two and a half hours left...so if you want, we could hang out and swim for a bit?"

peter was taken aback by your offer. sure you guys would swim every now and then but usually it was always with the others, except that one time. his cheeks flushed as he nodded, "yeah definitely. i'll see ya! well, i'll be right here," he pointed to his chair, "but i'll see you see you when we swim. i mean! like when your done working."

you laughed, listening to him tumble over his words. you got what he meant though, it was cute. "sure parker. see ya." he smiled and waved and sat back down in his chair, laying back to enjoy the sun. you gladly ate peter's strawberries.

after dozing off for like five minutes, he woke up to the blow of your loud whistle, directing some kids to not swim so far out. he watched you, pointing your arms back to shore, stretching in your bright red suit, whistle still in your mouth, as you stood tall on the lifeguard stand. the summer sun hit your skin in a way that made you look absolutely flawless to him. you were just such a sight to stare at and he couldn't take his eyes off you. you dropped the whistle from your lips and turned around to sit back down. peter watched you sit back and cross your legs. you pulled out a bottle of sunscreen from your bag and squirted some into your hands and began to massage it onto your arms and your chest. peter watched, completely and utterly enthralled by you. who knew watching his crush put on sunscreen would turn him on?

after that he decided he needed to swim so he headed down into the water and swam out, just floating and enjoying himself. he saw you looking at him and waved. you shook your head laughing and waved back. so darn cute. you sat back and watched him jump over waves while scanning the rest of your assigned area. when he came out of the water you gulped, seeing him shake the water out of his hair and grin at you as he passed. it was gonna be a long shift.

peter fell asleep on the beach after stealing many glances over at you. you tried to keep your eyes trained on the water and not on peter and you succeeded. after all you were about to spend time with him, and you thought he was super into you which was a bonus. as the minutes ticked down to the end of your shift you found yourself thinking about asking peter out. what would be the harm? nothing. so you promised yourself you were gonna do it.

at the end of your shift down to the second, you hopped off the stand with your things and walked over to peter's chair where he was still sleeping. you stood over him so his legs were underneath and between yours.

"peter!"

he jumped at the yell of his name, sunglasses falling off of his face with a yelp. "oh y/n! hey."

"hey," you replied, setting your bag down in the sand and sitting beside peter. you put your whistle in a pocket and zippered it up. "sorry to wake you, i just was excited."

"oh it's no problem! i was hoping you would anyways." you smiled at each other, sitting side by side on the crowded beach. "wanna go in the water?"

peter nodded his head and got up out of his beach chair, extending his arm to pull you up. he pulled you up a little too quick though, causing you to almost press up against him.

"oop."

"sorry." you started off toward the water, dark and blue, still holding onto peter's hand and tugging him after you. he let you take his hand, entranced by you and how good the color red looked on you. gosh, he would let you take total control over him if-

you splashed water on peter causing him to drop his nasty thoughts. "hey!"

"sorry," you laughed, "you zoned out."

"oh sorry i was just thinking."

"about what," you asked, walking into the water and avoiding waves from taking you out. peter was following right behind.

"oh nothing, just...that we finished high school?" it came out more so a question. he wanted to say about you but that was a little straightforward. the two of you swam out far enough where you could peacefully float over the waves. it was really noisy and windy and crazy hot out, but the water felt great, as did being in the company of peter. you dunked your head under quickly and peter's jaw slacked down watching you come back up and push your wet hair back. his senses were going crazy, he could see every water droplet falling down your face and practically feel your body heat. and it didn't help that he was still turned on more than ever. peter just slowly sunk his head under and came back up, trying to refresh his mind.

"what are you doing tonight?" you asked out of the blue, shocking peter. "what?"

you giggled, "i asked what are you doing tonight."

"oh," he laughed softly, "um...nothing just dinner with my aunt." he shrugged his shoulders under the water and pressed his lips together tightly.

"would you wanna like, i don't know, come back to the beach with me tonight? we can just hang out, get some food and sit on the beach...it's really nice at night."

peter's eyes widened, this was completely unexpected. "only if you want to," you assured him.

"no yeah! i mean..." he stumbled loudly, "yes, i would like to hang out tonight."

you smiled which made him smile, "great. i can pick you up if you want? at 7?"

"yeah, perfect." the two of you continued to just swim and talk and splash each other for another 45 minutes before you felt too wrinkly. it was lovely and so was he. he was super cool and hot and you really liked him and couldn't wait to spend time with him tonight. and after socializing on the sand for awhile, he walked you to your car and waved as you drove away. the whole entire drive home you had such a giddy smile on your face. peter took the subway and twiddled his thumbs thinking about you.

when peter arrived home, he ran through his front door and stumbled on his way to his room causing may to walk out of the kitchen, confused.

"peter, what on earth are you doing?"

he slid back down the hallway to the kitchen and yelled, "i have a date tonight!"

"lower your voice c'mon. but with who?"

"y/n! you know, y/n."

"oh!" may's eyes lit up, "the lifeguard?"

peter nodded quickly, "she's picking me up at 7 i gotta get ready." may shooed him off with a kitchen towel and went back to cooking dinner. peter texted you his address when you asked and he continued running through the apartment.

peter quickly threw off his flips flops and shirt, grabbing a towel and sprinting to the bathroom. he had over an hour to get ready, but he wanted to clean up and look nice and be on time. he turned on the cool water in the shower and stripped himself of his swimming trunks and hung them on a hook to dry. he winced at the too cold water and washed his long chocolate brown curls as well as himself with a great smelling soap, though he couldn't seem to get the scent of sunscreen off of himself. but hey it was a beach date...it was a date right? peter froze in the shower realizing you never explicitly said it was a date, but you did ask him out. kind of. whatever, he hoped it was a date.

he hopped out of the shower and viciously dried his hair with a towel then wrapped it around his waist and ran back to his room. he grabbed a fresh white tee shirt and pulled that on as well as dry and clean swimming trunks...just in case. he combed his hair out then ran his hand through it to mess it up again because he knew girls liked that. he put on some expensive cologne that tony stark gave him that he barely ever used then slipped his flip flops back on. he packed some stuff in his back pack that he might need and set it by the door to grab and go at 7.

"peter! dinner!"

peter ran out to the kitchen to join may who had made homemade mac and cheese, one thing she knew how to make perfectly. "wow, you smell nice," she complimented peter, "is that the one tony gave you?"

"yeah...is it too much?"

"no not at all. trust me girls love a little cologne," may replied, patting his shoulder. they sat down and at while peter nervously tapped his foot under the table. "what're you so nervous about? i thought y/n was such a nice girl."

"she is, i just don't wanna mess this up."

"oh wow, so it's pretty serious huh?"

"yeah...yeah i guess it is," he nodded his head to the side.

"well she's gonna like you. just please be smart."

"may, i am smart. it's the first date."

"yeah but you've been seeing the girl practically everyday at the beach."

"we're both adults, we can handle ourselves."

but peter couldn't handle himself. he practically threw his phone when he got a text from you that you were outside his apartment. he was frantically running to the door then back to his room because he forgot his back pack, then back out the door. you honked your horn at him when he exited the front door of the apartment, to which he smiled and waved in return. he got in the passenger seat and sat down.

"hi."

"hey...thanks for picking me up by the way."

"no problem," you smiled and began to drive to the beach. it was about a 30 minute drive with no traffic, and after you found a spot to park it was almost 8. but the drive was really nice. you and peter talked a lot, he found out you were single, thank god, and you found out red is his favorite color. you've known each other for four years, but the small things were nice to know.

you both got your back packs and walked onto the crowded and oh so loud boardwalk that smelled like funnel cake, the ocean, and a little bit of piss. (ive been there only once and it smelled like piss on the boardwalk lmao anyways so) you and peter decided to get some signature boardwalk lemonade when first arriving. peter insisted on paying for you and after much debate you gave in.

the two of you started off down the boardwalk, drinking your lemonade and laughing at crazy stuff happening. you pointed out the large plush spider-men at a boardwalk game and peter shyly laughed. the nighttime crowd started to get busier causing you and peter to push through people and he kept a hand on the back of shoulder so he didn't lose you. but instead you just turned to him and grabbed his hand, a little cold from holding the icy lemonade before switching hands. you interlocked you're fingers with his, smiling up at him. he was hesitant before giving you a reassuring squeeze that this was perfectly fine with him. it felt nice to be holding his hand. you could feel the veins on the back of his hand and his rough skin, and what looked like bruised knuckles. your hand felt small in his, yet you seemed to have all the power in making him melt with you.

"you wanna go on the beach?" you turned suddenly to ask him. peter just nodded his head quickly. the boardwalk was becoming overwhelming for him and there was barely anyone on the beach. so you guided him through the crowd and hopped off the boards walking towards the ocean to settle down in the sand. the sun was just about set, leaving the beach quite dark in front of you whereas behind you was filled with bright lights and noise.

you dropped peter's hand to grab a large sheet out of your bag to share. he helped you stretch it out and place it on the sand then held your hand for support as you kicked off your flip flops and sat down on the sheet. peter gladly joined you, sitting down shoulder to shoulder and listening to the waves.

"i love it here at night."

"me too," peter agreed.

"it's just, so different and...intimate feeling."

peter gulped. he understood. being on the beach at night was different. everything felt closer and free, almost like reality was altered. he felt especially closer to you, just being alone with you, away from crowds or friends.

"yeah."

peter faced you now, instead of the ocean, watching the wind blow slowly around you and the small smile on your face. it made him smile. and then you reached down and slowly pulled off your shirt which made peter start internally panicking. like wow you're moving fast? you had on a different bright red bikini than earlier today, as he noticed, eyes dropping to your chest. and his heart almost stopped when you unbuttoned your shorts and stood up, shimmying them down your legs. peter's line of sight looked up at you, towering over him in a very exposing bathing suit.

"c'mon! night swim?"

peter didn't say a word but instead just stood up facing you, pulling off his tee shirt and dropping it on the sheet next to your pile of clothes. "i'll race ya," you whispered causing him to sprint to the water and dive right in, you following behind. the water was much colder than normal, and it was hard to see. but the waves were also bigger, lifting you up and down. peter decided to be playful and wrapped his arms around your bare waist, dunking the two of you under water. you screamed playfully when he touched you, knowing that he was going to dunk you under. but he brought you right back up and the two of you laughed. you stuck your head in the crook of his neck, still laughing against his skin. the feeling made peter's body flush and feel hotter.

"ok it's getting way to cold, i hope you brought a towel!"

you freed yourself from his arms and swam to shore, retrieving a towel from your backpack and sitting back down on the sheet. peter followed seconds later, again joining you. he leaned back on his one elbow so he could face you, and you eventually did the same, smiling and facing him.

"thanks for uh, you know, inviting me tonight."

"of course pete. i've been dying to do this."

you continued to stare at each other in silence, peter looked at your lips then back at your eyes, "is this a date?"

your eyes widened, "um, yeah, i meant to say that but i just...it was in the moment ya know. but if you don't want it to be a date i completely understand."

"no no! no i do want it to be a date! i really like you y/n."

you smiled even bigger now, "i like you too." he smiled back, dimples showing and all.

you reached out your free hand and placed it on his cold damp cheek, running your thumb slowly across his skin. his breath hitched in his throat...were you about to kiss him? he flushed red yet again and hoped that the darkness of the beach was shading it from you. and when you leaned in closer, he opened his mouth in shock. he wanted this so bad but was freaking out because what was he supposed to do. but as your lips were a centimeter apart, he relaxed and was going to let it happen and kiss you back. after you closed your eyes he closed his and your lips met. you pecked his lips for a quick three seconds before pulling away curiously, wondering what was going on in his brain. it was salty to both of you, swimming in the ocean and all. yet he grinned at you brightly which made it clear that kissing him was okay.

you leaned into him yet again, catching his lips and kissing him. you started off slow, carefully moving your lips as to not freak either of you out too quickly. when you broke apart and caught your breath you stared into his eyes as if asking him a question to which he replied with a nod. you kissed him again, running your free hand through his wet hair and pulling him closer to you. your chests were practically touching at the rate and pace you were breathing. peter was the first to sigh into the kiss when you started to kiss him rougher. you had complete control over it, moving your lips against his as he followed. he reached his free hand up and stroked your cheek and landed on your upper side, right below your chest where your towel began. he rubbed up and down making you sigh. you continued to kiss peter vehemently, throwing your tongue in the mix after he seemed to be ready. that feeling and that kiss sent butterflies to both of you, sighing into each other's lips.

you pulled back needing some air, but peter whispered, "y/n, please."

smirking at him, you pushed his shoulders back so he was laying on the sheet. his hands pulled the towel from your body and placed it in the pile of clothes before finding your bare waist again, making you shiver. you leaned down to peter's lips again, he was breathless and his mouth was open and ready to be kissed again. you were practically on top of him now, hand flying through his hair as you made out with him. his hands continued to run up and down your waist, trying to feel you. he was so flustered underneath you and you loved the sight. and you on top of him? he loved that sight. he just couldn't get over your bright red bathing suit and how you were pressed against him.

you decided to explore a little more however, biting his bottom lip making him let out a low moan which was possibly the hottest thing you've ever heard. you kissed him more, biting his lip every so often and slowly moving your body against his making him squirm. you pulled back, making a few seconds of intense and heated eye contact with him before moving your lips to his neck. you kissed just below his jaw line which seemed to be his weakness as he let out another moan and closed his eyes, dropping his mouth open in an 'o' shape. you kept kissing along that spot, definitely leaving hickies.

"y/n."

he would breathe out your name a lot. and it just tempted you to go further. his hands found their way to your ass slowly and sensually grasping it. now it was your turn to moan into him while against his neck. he was pulling you toward him, you now straddling his abdomen. you leaned back down chest to chest to keep kissing him. but then you stopped, sitting up on him.

"wait."

"what?" peter asked, gripping your hips in both hands.

"we shouldn't do it on the beach...it's messy."

"yeah you're right."

you smiled at each other, breathless and blushing.

"wanna go finish this at my place? no one else is home."

"hell yeah," peter sighed. the two of you jumped up, putting your clothes back on and packing up the sheet and towels and practically ran back to your car, laughing and hand in hand. when you were settled in the car, peter grabbed your cheek and kissed you, smiling. you drove off to your apartment. the 30 minute drive felt like hours and you were just begging to have each other. it took a lot of strength of both of you not to just do it in the car. but come on, you both wanted it to be nice in an actual bed. and so it was.

i hope u guys enjoyed the lifeguard mini series! i sure did!! mwah <3

[pbandjesse]

My allergies just got really bad all of a sudden and my sun burn hurts to much to put a shirt on? Why?? I was fine all day! What is up.

Today was a pretty excellent day though! I slept pretty well. James got home last night (after I did not go to bed early) and we stayed up to late. It has been really hard not having any time together because the resturant just keeps scheduling him only for dinner shifts. It sucks. I dont understand why they wont give him some lunch shifts so we can at least have the couple hours before bed but no. Only dinner. So we get nothing. At least were going to have saturday off together. 

I felt pretty good when I woke up. I stretched and got dressed. My skin hurt but it was much less red. So I wore this dress and I was like this will be fine. And it mostly was but the straps started to hurt me and people were asking me if I was okay so it must have looked bad. 

And honestly once I got to work after a weirdly traffic filled drive, Ellen (one of the life guards) pointed out the sunburn because we all dunk on whoever gets burnt. And then she poked fun because she said she thought to herself yesterday when me and CJ were sitting in the grass that having the two PALEST GIRLS at camp in the sun was a recipe for disaster. That made me laugh. Its totally true though. Bad plan. 

It was a nice morning. I helped clean up some dead birds. I was a hero. And then I found a moth. And while I was up at the art shack setting up I get a call from Heather asking if I could go on a hike with one of the groups. I was a little nervous but I said yes and it was great. 

It was with Jenna and one of the older groups. And it was fun! I got to experience some camp lore. We went on a pretty easy hike to this funny growing tree. At camp there are mythical creatures called the little people and this is there tree. And so all around the tree are tiny forts the kids have built and there are letters that the kids write to the little people. You have to speak softly and be kind or they will come and steal your left shoe in your sleep. And these kids were telling me this story and it was just so cute. I love new american folk lore and specifically camp and kid culture so this was such a fun moment. 

Me and Jenna sat and talked while the kids built the forts and fixed older ones. I helped make this little shrine for one of the younger kids to find. And then one of the boys, who was like 11 or 12, came over to ask me in earnest if the little people were real. "You can tell me." And so I told him about how since lots of cultures have stories of little people, over time and geography, I would say its most likely that there is something there. He seemed satisfied with that answer. 

I had some time after that to set up. To chill. To have lunch. I went to the office to heat something up and honestly had to bounce ASAP because someone was on the porch just being obnoxiously loud about a group chat on their phone. It was. To much. 

So I went back to the art building and got ready for my classes. And they were just excellent. I was teaching embroidery all day and out of almost 30 kids I only had one who acted really shitty. Everyone else was sweet and cool and excited to learn a new thing. We did the sampler sheet I had the teens do the other day. It was so exciting when the kids would like. Freak out when something simple happened like the knots or the chain stitches. It was great. 

They were also just really silly. Like one of my rules is Positive Language Only.  And when they are even a little negative I make a big silly show about it. But these kids beat me to my joke. And were overly positive and it was hilarious. What good eggs. 

After my second group I had a break in my schedule. And two girls asked to stay behind to keep working on their embroidery. They couldnt go in the pool because of a foot injury. So they stayed with me. It was fun! Once they finished the embroidery they tried my circle looms and they really seemed to like that! They sat in the hammock together and worked on their bracelets. It was just a lot of fun. 

They headed back to their group and I chilled for a little. Played with my thumb piano. Joe the grounds keeper came and asked me what it was. I had a nice conversation with him about trying new things and wanting to be good at music but just not being very good at the followthrough. He is a nice guys. 

Some of the campers going past told me the music was pretty though so that was nice. 

My last group was a little harder. They let themselves get defeated a little faster. And it didnt help that the adults that came with them were to quick to do things for them. So I had to keep yelling at them. In like a jokey you gotta let them learn kind of way. But they still did good and I was very happy. 

But also very tired! My skin was starting to hurt and I was hungry. So I actually left a little early today. I finished cleaning and hung out on the porch for a little but I asked Heather if it was okay if I went home. So off I went.

I finally got my bugerking burger. I went to the other one and was surprised that they had someone outside taking orders? I was very concerned for him being in all black in the sun. But he said he was alright. I got my sandwich and headed home. 

I rested in the living room. Ate. Played a little animal crossing. I am still shocked how much money you can make on the new ocean stuff. I made like 80,000 bells in the half hour I played. Crazy. Soon though I went and took a shower and now  I am laying in bed. Very tired. But feeling a little better now that the allergy pills have kicked in and I could put my sweatshirt on. Things looking up. Skin still hurts. 

I hope you all have a great day tomorrow. I have much to do still for next week. So wish me luck. I hope you all sleep great and take care of yourselves. Goodnight!

[bastardnev]

Cheat Day

in which i inexplicably decided to write a fic about mustafa’s cereal-nutella-oreos breakfast combination

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: World Wrestling Entertainment, Professional Wrestling, All Elite Wrestling Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Mustafa Ali/Pac | Adrian Neville Characters: Mustafa Ali, Pac | Adrian Neville Additional Tags: damn i guess i gotta start tagging aew in my nevstafa fics huh, Fluff, Silly, mischief involving nutella and oreos Series: Part 1 of Jess Has Too Many Fics In Her Notes Summary: Neville wasn’t entirely sure what to make of the scene in his kitchen that morning.

(ao3 link)

i ended up making a new tag list bc its been so long since i last posted a nevstafa fic + i didnt wanna tag ppl who might not be interested anymore -- im going off the likes/replies to the post i made abt this yesterday so if you’re not on the list and you wanna be added lemme know !! i’ll add you 🥰

tag list: @sailor-slam-dunk @residentjoth @riveliciousx @lambchopviking @storyranger

Neville wasn’t entirely sure what to make of the scene in his kitchen that morning.

He had heard Mustafa get out of bed earlier, but he figured he was just going to get breakfast started — it was his turn, after all. Technically, he still was, but not at all in the way that Neville anticipated. Rather than finding him cooking the pancakes they’d agreed upon the night before, Neville instead walked in on him preparing a bowl of cereal in a large serving dish he’d placed on the island. This in itself wouldn’t have been so odd (other than his choice of bowl) if he didn’t follow up his milk pouring with a big search around the kitchen. He was rummaging through the cabinets that lined the walls for... for something. Something that Neville couldn't quite figure out, especially since the only thing he could plausibly be looking for was a spoon. What a can of olives had to do with anything, Neville had absolutely no idea.

And so, he choose to ask him about it. “What the hell are you doing?”

Mustafa glanced over at Neville quickly before putting the can back and going right back to his hunt. “Oh, good morning. Where’s your snack stash?”

Neville blinked, confused. “My what?”

“Your snack stash. Y’know, where you keep the snacks?”

“I— I know what a snack stash is, Mustafa.”

“Then where’s yours? I know you have one — everyone does. Fess up.”

What was he trying to do? The fact that he still hadn't given Neville a clear answer was a bit concerning. “What does it matter where my snacks are? Wait, forget about that, aren’t you supposed to be cooking pancakes?”

"Who said anything about me making pancakes?"

"You did. Just last night."

"Ehh, that was just pillow talk."

"You told me about how badly you were craving them when we were eating dinner." Why would they be discussing pancakes during pillow talk, of all things?!

Mustafa scoffed, and he offered no further response other than continuing to push aside the items stacked up on the shelf. "Are you planning on answering my question at all?" Neville crossed his arms. "What are you doing?"

“You'll see!" Mustafa responded when he finally decided to speak again. "I’ve got something even better than pancakes in mind."

Mustafa placing a breakfast food above pancakes was almost enough for Neville to consider the idea that he'd been replaced with an imposter. Almost. “And, that is...?”

“A secret — until you tell me where your snack stash is, of course.”

Neville sighed, rolling his eyes. He knew there was no getting out of this no matter how hard he tried. “Oh for the love of God, it’s the one under the microwave,” he at last confessed.

“The only one I didn’t check!” Mustafa grinned, and he darted over to the appropriate cabinet, digging around excitedly. “Ooh, you’ve got a lot of good stuff in here!”

“No need for the commentary, just take what you need.”

“You’re pretty defensive over your candy, huh?”

“You’ve got the biggest sweet tooth out of anyone I know — how can I not?” Now that he thought about it, seeing as Mustafa now knew where he hid all of his sweets, Neville would probably have to find a new hiding spot once this visit was over...

“Hmm.” Mustafa pouted as he moved a variety pack of mini candy bars aside. “You bought the Oreos I asked for, right?”

“Of course.” Like Neville honestly wasn’t going to do so after Mustafa practically begged him to pick some up when he went on his most recent grocery run.

“You do love me!” The package of cookies in his hands, Mustafa triumphantly brought it over to the island, pulling back the seal.

“Can you tell me what you’re doing now?”

“Patience, Nev! Geez. You can’t rush these things, you know?”

Neville wanted to retort, but the distinctive crunch of Mustafa crushing a fistful of Oreos over the serving dish interrupted him, and all he could do was watch in silent awe (and confusion). Mustafa repeated this process over and over again, unblinking, until he’d gone through one of the sleeves. “There...” He muttered, sealing the pack back up and putting it aside. “Now for the last part...”

Last part? Neville found himself a little afraid to say this out loud. His question received an answer anyway, however, as Mustafa then returned to the cabinet, pulling out the large jar of Nutella that Neville was secretly hoping he wouldn’t notice. (Man goes through jars quicker than I can count.) "Not really much I can work with here..." Mustafa mumbled as he put the lid aside, looking at the jar's contents. "You ate it all on me. Naughty boy."

"I'm... sorry?"

"Better be." Mustafa then went to the silverware drawer and pulled out a big spoon, and before Neville could wrap his mind around what was happening he'd scooped out a healthy amount. "This'll work, though."

"What—"

Neville wasn't able to finish this sentence, as just as he was going to Mustafa let the Nutella drop right on top of his cereal. Neville looked back and forth between the bowl and Mustafa, who appeared to be debating what to do next with his messy spoon. Rather than put it in the sink like Neville assumed he would, however, he shrugged, dipping it into the bowl.

It was right as he was about to put a spoonful of cereal into his mouth that Neville decided to go through with asking his question. "Okay, what the hell?!"

Mustafa paused, spoon hanging in the air. "What?"

"What is this..." Neville gestured towards the bowl, trying to find the right words to describe what he was seeing. "This... concoction?"

"It's... my cheat day breakfast?" Mustafa said this as if it were the most obvious thing ever, like he couldn't understand why Neville so was baffled. "Duh?"

"How did you even come up with this?"

"Easy — I woke up one morning, couldn't decide what I wanted for breakfast, so I just mixed everything I wanted together. It's better than you think it is, really."

Neville pointed to the package of Oreos. "You wanted to eat those for breakfast?"

"You haven't thought about eating cookies for breakfast before? What are you, an amateur?"

"And— And the Nutella, what were you planning on doing with that if you hadn't thought to throw everything together?"

Mustafa didn't respond, instead choosing to avert his gaze. Suspicious, Neville followed up with, "You weren't seriously considering eating it straight from the jar, were you?"

Mustafa made eye contact with Neville again, and neither of them said anything for a solid few seconds. Eventually, though, Mustafa shot Neville a sheepish grin, and the latter brought his hand to his forehead, slowly shaking his head. "Oh, God..." He let out a breath. "All this, yet you still have those abs..."

"I sure do." Mustafa brought the spoon back to the cereal and mixed it up a bit. "Now, maybe instead of pickin' on me you can come give this a try. You might like it."

"I have no use for any of that."

"False — everyone needs this in their lives."

"Not everyone needs something loaded with sugar so early in the morning."

"What are you gonna have instead, then? Egg whites?" Mustafa shuddered at his own suggestion, and he held a spoonful out towards Neville, who leaned away. "You know you want toooo..."

Neville looked at the spoon with a narrowed gaze. He knew damn well that he gave in to Mustafa way too often (something about the look in his eyes, he figured). He'd told himself that he would stop being such a pushover when it came to him, and this seemed like the perfect opportunity for him to stick to his word for once. Mustafa wanted him to try some food combo that he swore was amazing, something that Neville thought was completely ridiculous. He would be lying if he said he found it to be anything but.

...But he would also be lying if he said that he wasn't at least a little curious as to what Mustafa saw in it. Not to mention that he was giving him the dreaded eyes...

Neville said nothing. Instead, he took a few steps closer to Mustafa, allowing him to put the spoon into his mouth. "There we go..." Mustafa took it out a moment later, giving Neville a second to chew and swallow before asking, "It's good, isn't it?"

It was. "It's fucking disgusting."

"Liar, liar..." Mustafa singsonged, and Neville huffed. There was no point in denying it.

"Maybe you're right..."

"Ha! I knew it."

"Why do I always agree to go along with your nonsense..." Neville lamented, and Mustafa chuckled, leaning over to give him a kiss.

"Because you love me," he replied as he pulled away, and Neville struggled to hide the little fond smile that forced its way onto his face.

"...Yes, I do."

[ohwhatamessiam]

Give  -Epilogue

Summary: Bucky and (Y/N) had an amazing yet brief relationship in Bucharest before all hell broke loose. Two years later they reconnect in a bar in Brooklyn, but things have changed and neither are the same people they were before. Will their relationship survive or is a break up inevitable? 

Pairing: Bucky Barnes X Reader

Word Count: 2.4k

Warnings: Language, brief fighting, lots of painful heartbreak, nothing but torturing my precious readers. POV switching for Bestie!SamWilson and the other Avengers that make an appearance.

Author’s Note: The actual finale to Give, my submission to @bladebarnes‘s #bladehits2kchallenge. It’s been quite a run, and there is a sequel in the works (which I have to write now that my dumbass already made a playlist). The sequel will feature the reader in a relationship with a woman I’m not straight, my characters rarely are too so if you’re not cool with that and want to be untagged (if you were part of the previous list) tell me. If you’re cool with that, send me an ask to get added to the tag list. As always, a huge thanks to @lostboyinneverland for keeping me going when it comes to writing and also for letting me make you feel things for the sake of fiction. Here’s the playlist for all of Give. Send me feedback, and I’ll hopefully have the sneak peek of the sequel up in a day or two. Thanks for all the love and support everyone! I’ll see y’all soon.

Give | Masterlist

The door down the hall slammed so hard it shook the walls, interrupting Sam Wilson from his binge-session of watching The Get Down. He moved to his own door, checking to see who it came from. The shadows moving under the crack of Bucky’s door, accompanied by smothered sobs, told Sam all he needed to know. He thought of going to him, telling him everything would be okay, eventually, but he thought it wiser to leave him alone for now.

Closing his own door, he fished his phone off his night stand. Scrolling through his recent messages until he found her contact name, Plum Girl, as he’d so affectionately taken to calling her after she’d ranted to him about how much seeing plums at the grocery store made her want to cry tears of happiness and longing. They were Bucky’s favorite fruit, they both knew that by now, and although they’d become good friends over the last couple years he’d always viewed her through the lense that she was Bucky’s heart. That she was a piece of his redemption.

Sam couldn’t trust Bucky before cryostasis, but hearing how she talked about him for those years softened his feelings towards Bucky. He still only trusted him when he had to, being kicked off a helicarrier and nearly killed by the guy multiple times didn’t make for an easy friendship, but (Y/N) had helped Sam see him in a different light.

Typing slowly and then erasing it, he tried to figure out what to say to the girl who just left the love of her life. He settled for all that would come to his mind.

Sam: You did it.

Plum Girl: It needed to be done.

Sam: Guess I gotta change your name in my phone now.

A couple hours later there was a series of loud knocks on Sam’s door. He rolled out of bed with an angry groan and yanked his door open, “What?”

The overwhelming scent of alcohol wafted from Bucky, forcing Sam to pull back from the doorway. “I want her number,” he demanded, pushing himself into Sam’s room. “I know you have it, so just make this easy and give it to me.”

“Make this easy? You’re drunk Bucky, leave her alone.”

Cool metal snaked around Sam’s throat, slamming his entire body against the wall of his room. “I just need to talk to her. I don’t-, don’t understand why s-she did that, and I need her to explain.”

Sam braced himself against the wall before kicking Bucky away from him. Bucky stumbled, trying to regain his balance before swinging at Sam. Sam dunked before grabbing Bucky around the waist and shoving him hard against the hallway wall across from his door.

“She broke up with you, don’t bother her.”

“She had no right to s-Sam, I love her and she loves me,” Bucky slurred, moving toward Sam. Steve and Wanda’s doors opened as they investigated what was happening.

“Man, where do you get off thinking that?” Sam snapped, pushing Bucky against the wall again as his anger took over. “(Y/N) waited for you, for two years! Every night was hell for her. Scott said she’d wake up in the middle of the night crying, and that was just when she was able to get any sleep. She tried to act like nothing was wrong, but these were the worst years of her life. Two years might not seem like anything to you super soldiers, but to us normal humans she was in agony for a long time.”

“Sam-,” Steve warned, appearing at their side and trying to separate the men.

“How would Scott know?” Bucky growled at them.

This time Sam turned to Steve, forcing him to answer. They exchanged head tilts and looks before Steve scoffed and gave in. “After she was assaulted last year, we had him keep an eye on her. He ended up staying on her couch for a few weeks and she knew about it. Nothing happened, he was just an additional safety precaution.”

“You g-guys didn’t bother to tell me about her getting attacked, or that s-she was training with Natasha,” Bucky spat out as he turned his anger on Steve. He shoved him hard, causing Steve to hit the opposite wall. “And you didn’t t-tell me you were monitoring her, having someone stay with her. I should have known about all this.”

“You were frozen, asshole,” Sam jabbed as he clenched his fists. “What were we supposed to do? Thaw you out so you could go be with her and risk all of us being found? We were fugitives! Scott only got to stay with her because he could dodge security getting into the US. Wanda met her because she was the only one who could get there fast enough to protect her. Steve and I spent months trying to figure out ways to get into the country, just so we could check on her a few times a year to then have to figure out how to get back out.”

Bucky was at a loss for words, trying to think of something to say back, but when he failed to find anything, he started swinging.

Wanda reached a hand out, freezing him where he stood, his fist just mere inches from Steve’s face. “I won’t let you move until you stop fighting us,” she warned, allowing Steve to move away from Bucky’s stilled assault.

They let him stay like that for a moment, watching his breathing calm. “Are you done being angry?” Steve asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

Bucky nodded, and Wanda dropped her hand. Catching himself against the wall, Bucky let out a deep breath. “I just want her fucking number.”

“Well, you’re not getting it,” Sam smirked as he tilted his head.

“Fine,” Bucky growled, pushing himself away from the wall. He moved down the hallway quickly, getting away from his friends and closer to more alcohol. He bumped into Steve, pushing past him and Wanda to get through. “I’ll find her myself.”

I’d gotten the text from Sam at 2 am, warning, He left the compound, said he’d try to find you. We didn’t tell him where you’re staying but you know he’s resourceful. A minute later he added, and drunk. I hadn’t gotten any sleep, but the thought of hearing a heartbroken Bucky speak forced me even more awake.

It took him almost two hours to find me, and as he reached my door he knocked once softly and whispered my name. I stayed still, hoping he wouldn’t even hear me breathing. He knocked and called my name three more times, each time getting louder than the last. When he gave up on me answering, he slid his back down my door and I heard him unscrew the lid on a bottle. There was the swish of liquid moving as the bottle was turned upside down. He was still drinking.

“I hope this is actually your room,” he mused, speaking in his normal, low voice. “I had to do a lot of flirting with the girl at the front desk to get this number, but I don’t think she lied to me.”

I shifted upward in my bed, pulling my knees into my chest. That girl was a goner. I knew how Bucky flirted and I was sure drunk him had pulled out all the stops.

“Natasha told me where you were staying this afternoon, before…everything.” He took another drink. “She thought I’d be ending my night with you, here, in a different way.”

Nat didn’t have the same context to our relationship that Steve or Sam did. And Sam full and well knew what Bucky was walking into, even warning me that it might be a little harsh to do it so quickly. I hadn’t brought it up to Steve, but I was sure he had his suspicions.

“I just, I don’t get it. Was it really that bad without me for two years?” He paused, “Sam said you woke up crying when you did sleep, and then you didn’t sleep the rest of the time.” I nodded to myself, knowing he couldn’t see me. “I guess that’s the bad part of being frozen all the time, I never have a concept of time.”

The bottle swished again and I heard a small “ahhh” come from him as he gulped. I willed myself to stay where I was, knotting my hands together and rocking myself gently.

“I’m sorry about it all. About not being there, about not talking to you, about leaving you alone. I didn’t think about how you-, you’d feel about it. I just did what I thought was best for everyone.” His head thudded against my door as he rested his body against it. “I just, I don’t understand why you don’t want to make this work. I’m back. I’m here. We can be together now.”

I bit my lip to stop myself from answering.

“I-, I spent the last two months getting de-programmed and, and they kept telling me to focus on something positive that would come from all this. It was you. I was thinking about you, and us, being together. Being happy without fear of the asset showing up. Not worrying about hurting you.”

The bottle’s contents sloshed again.

“I guess, I shouldn’t have worried so much about the asset. I hurt you without that shit being involved.”

I laid down on my side, keeping myself tucked in the fetal position. Urging myself not to cry, I squeezed my eyes shut and tried not to picture how sad he must look outside my door.

“I’m sorry I hurt you. I didn’t mean to. I-, I just guess I still have a lot to work on. Having relationships and being a person is kinda new all over again. I’m not that monster anymore, so I guess I need to learn how to be a human again.”

Rocking back and forth, I fought every instinct to go to him.

“I miss you though, I mean, fuck, you’re 20 feet from me and it feels like you’re on the other side of the planet. I miss your laugh, and your smile, and your lips. You teasing me about plums,” he chuckled, the swish of liquor distracting him for only a moment before he continued in a softer tone, “and your smell, how soft you are.”

The glass bottle clanked against his teeth and I felt tears running down my cheeks. Raising a hand to my mouth, I made sure no sounds came from me.

“I miss your faith in me the most I think. You believed in me at a time when I didn’t think anyone would again. You trusted me when I wasn’t even sure I could trust myself.”

A yawn left his mouth and I tried to quit the hot tears from pouring from my eyes, but they wouldn’t stop.

“I guess this is how you felt for the last two years. I get it now, it’s really shitty. But we can be together, even if it’s not how you want it to be. We could still be happy, (Y/N).”

He threw the remains of the bottle back and the empty bottle thumped against the hallway carpet.

“I love you so much, I really do. More than anyone in my entire long, screwed up life. And I know you still love me. We could be so in love, together, finally.”

I heard his body slide down the wall and him roll onto his back. His fingers stroked the door as I heard him choke back a sob.

“I want you in my life so bad. You’re all I want from this fucked up life. I deserve you after all this. I deserve to be happy with you.”

Another yawn came through my door as his knuckles traced the design of the wood.

“But I can’t forget about all I did. I know it wasn’t me, but I still did all those things. I-, I can’t just pretend like that’s okay. I have to work to fix that. I have to help people now. It’s the right thing to do. It’s what I need to do in order to heal.”

He rolled onto his side, his jeans scratching the carpet.

“But I’m not okay with all or nothing. I can’t do that. I need something else, something more. I don’t know who I’ll be without you now.” He paused, breathing becoming more shallow. “I may be heartless and cold again. I may not care anymore.”

I pulled a pillow between my legs and buried my face into it, smothering every feeling and word I wanted to say in it.

“That’s a lie. I’m always gonna care. Maybe not about other things, but always about you. I’m not okay with any of this, (Y/N). I’m not. But it won’t stop me from loving you with every part of me.”

His breathing became louder as he relaxed, letting sleep take over. Just as he drifted off to unconsciousness he whispered, “I love you. I’m never gonna stop loving you, (Y/N). But I guess that’s all I can do.”

I stayed locked in my position, waiting for any other words to leave his mouth, but nothing came out but soft snores. I wished I could go to the door and peek at him sleeping peacefully, but I knew I’d fold. And if I wanted to be able to live my life without the fear and loneliness that depended on Bucky, I needed to leave him. This emotional hell wasn’t good for me. He was a handsome super soldier, with a good heart and kind soul. He’d find someone else to be happy with. And it hurt that it wouldn’t be me, but the pain softened knowing that he would be happy again, eventually. Whether that was through being a hero or falling in love. Bucky being happy was all I really wanted for him.

After another couple minutes I texted Sam that he’d fallen asleep and that other hotel goers would be waking up soon. 

He answered, Wanda and I will get him. I’m sorry about all of this.

I put my phone down and rolled onto my back, wiping the leftover tears from my face. I sighed, willing sleep to take over as I relaxed my muscles. A few minutes later I whispered to myself, and to Bucky, “I’m sorry about all this too.”

Tags: @irishdancr24 @fangirlisms-22 @suz-123 @plan3tmadison @tequilavet @yo-yo-bro-bro

[zfiledh]

Return to Rothezar 2

AO3 | LJ | FF.net

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 |

Stan and Ford returns to Oregon with tales to tell. 

First and foremost, I want to give a shout-out to the wonderful @eregyrn-falls​ for drawing Maegella and Ford! Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! <3

--

Port of Brookings, Oregon – two days later, Monday

Soos stood at the waiting area, holding up a sign saying “STAN BROS”. He’d been holding up the sign since he arrived at the Port over thirty minutes ago. His arms were aching something fierce, but he didn’t mind. He had to be visible so that the two Mr. Pineses could see him. The large man was practically bouncing with excitement.

The Pines family is returning to Gravity Falls. The summer of 2013 will be AWESOME.

At the moment, only ten people in Gravity Falls know that the two pairs of Pines twins will be spending the summer here. From the Mystery Shack were Soos, Melody and Abuelita. Abuelita had been cleaning the Mystery Shack with the help of Candy Chiu and Grenda Grendinator (Grenda had been a big help in lifting the furniture high enough for the floor under it to be vacuumed) and Melody and Pacifica set to work making banners and blowing up balloons. At the former Northwest Manor, Fiddleford and Tate had prepared the guest rooms for the family. Meanwhile, Wendy went trekking into the forest to prepare its citizens of the family’s arrival.

The tenth person arrived two days ago. This person was another reason why Soos was so excited.

And then he starts bouncing again with more rigor, because he spotted two familiar faces making their way toward him.

“Welcome back, Mister Pineses!” Soos called out as he drops his sign to engulf the two men into a spine-cracking hug.

“Thanks for taking the crick out of my back Soos,” Stan said appreciatively after being placed back on the ground. The younger man just grins at him and picks up their duffel bags. “Haven’t been able to get rid of it since we last made port.”

“How’s things going on, dudes?” Soos asks amiably as he leads the way to the pick-up truck. “Did you find more mysteries out in the ocean?”

Soos didn’t see his former employer-slash-father figure elbow his brother in the ribs.

“Oof! Oh! Yes, we came across some interesting places after we dropped you off here last time,” Ford shared while he rubbed the area where Stan elbowed him. “Let’s see: we went to Easter Island for some time off…”

“Turns out all those big-headed statues were kinda alive, and we decided to drop by on the ONE day of the year where they decide to pop outta the ground for a swim,” Stan cut in. They had reached the pick-up truck, where Soos placed their duffel bags in the cab of the truck. Stan immediately calls shotgun while Ford rolls his eyes and takes the seat at the back. Ford waited until Soos hopped into the driver’s seat and fired up the truck before continuing the story.

“First of all, they’re called Moai, Stanley. Secondly…well, you’re right about the swimming. I don’t understand how the locals slept through all that racket. But I figured the Moai didn’t mind when they saw us camping in their meeting spot.”

“I’m just glad they didn’t trample us on the way to the beach,” Stan snorted. “But their beach party sent the Stan O’War out into the middle of the ocean…”

“Now, now: Paro apologized to us about it and pulled the boat back for us,” Ford added.

“Like a dude from Egypt?” Soos asked.

“Paro, not Pharoah, Soos. He’s the biggest of the Moai statues—er—giants,” Ford explained. “And he unmoored the Stan O’War when he cannonballed into the ocean.”

“I still can’t believe no one woke up from that but us!” Stan muttered. “The best one was where we became twenty years old again for a day.”

“Stan, it was a trap,” Ford said in exasperation.

“No way!” Soos breathed out, taking his eyes off the road to look agog at Stan.

“Soos, keep your eyes on the road!” Ford yelped.

“Whoops! Hehehe, got distracted there for a moment,” Soos said nervously as he looked back on the road. “Where’d you two go to get de-oldified?”

“Well, after the Easter Island incident, we decided to head south to check something out in Mexico,” Ford began to share. “Before we passed Ecuador, we came upon this island that wasn’t on any map and decided to investigate. We docked and explored the beach for a while until we found a trail that led to this cove. In the middle was this small, rocky fountain with writing carved into a slab beside it that said, ‘Drink this elixir of life and regain the years passed by.’ Next thing I knew, Stan dunked his head into the water and started drinking from it.”

“Hey, that’s what you do when you find something interesting and get science-crazy,” Stan defended himself. “And the sign was right! Soos, ya should’ve seen Ford’s face when he saw me de-oldifying before his eyes!”

“Like watching a raisin turn back into a grape,” Ford snorted. “After deciding that Stan wasn’t suffering from any ill effects, I took a drink myself and de-aged just like Stan.”

“And then there was a party on the beach!” Stan yelled happily. “Babes and barbeque!”

“Surprisingly, a lot of young people right after we drank that water,” Ford said quietly.

“Hey, don’t you deny you were enjoying yourself out there that night!”

“Probably would have stayed longer if we hadn’t woken up back to our normal age with a raging hangover,” Ford reminded him. “And have you forgotten what we found when we went back to the fountain?”

Stan made a face. “Older people!”

“There were other people on the island?” Soos asked, perplexed.

Ford snorted. “They were the same partygoers we met the previous night. Turns out they’ve been living on the island for decades. The elixir only lasts for twelve hours, and they return to the fountain to rejuvenate the following day. They invited us to stay forever, but…”

“That meant we couldn’t see the kids again,” Stan muttered. “Yeah, it was a trap. They went nuts when we said no and formed an angry mob.”

“Fortunately, only two of them had managed to drink the elixir. Stan knocked those two guys out, and we reached the boat before the rest of them could hobble out of the cove,” Ford finished, trying to repress a grin.

Soos shook his head. “I gotta admit, this is very different from my fanfic of you two. I gotta do some rewrites…”

“I feel a li’l conflicted knocking out two guys who may be a hundred each,” Stan chuckled. “But not too much! And let’s not forget the humongous owl who thought you were her baby!”

“Stan, please don’t…” Ford begged.

“Hey, rescuing you from her perch was the reason I nearly threw my back!” Stan shot back before he started his tale.

Ford just shook his head as he let Stan tell this story. He leaned back on the seat and pulled the neck of his sweater to extract a polished, dark blue stone attached to a necklace. The blue stone was etched with gold symbol that looked like an X fused with a rectangle, with a sort of key-shape protruding from the middle of the X. Ford recently discovered that this was the old Behenian symbol for Deneb Algedi, or “the tail of the goat”, referring to the fish-tail of the celestial sea-goat Capricorn. And just like its fellow sigil, this symbol is shown differently from its Earth counterpart on another dimension, standing on its “tail” with the X raised to the sky.

He rubs the stone with his thumb and tucks it back under his sweater.

--

(Former) Northwest Manor

Inside a bathroom, Maegella looks at herself in the large oval mirror as she combs her hair. The bags under her eyes were darker since she arrived in this plane of existence. She was unable to recall when she last had a good night’s sleep.

She was delighted when she was reunited with Soos and Wendy the day after she arrived. It seems that her new acquaintance knew the people she was looking for. Between the McGuckets and these young people, it was decided to keep her presence a secret, to surprise the Pines family when they arrive at the mansion.

Maegella agreed.

On the sink in front of her are a pair of scissors she managed to find somewhere. There is also a tattered picture of a blonde girl with a supremely confident look about her that she found in her bedroom. Maegella looks at the girl’s hair before facing the mirror and using the comb to part the hair she is planning to cut.

Author’s note: Oh my goodness, what a dry spell for writing! I got stuck after writing a few paragraphs, but thanks to the abovementioned fanart and a little bit of brainstorming and I manage to churn this out!

The adventures that Ford and Stan shared here was inspired from a post from @fordblogs​, a great RP Tumblr account, a post from the famous @moringmark, and a headcanon from @thesnadger.

Here's to hoping I don't wait months before churning out Chapter 3!