#he says he met this guy Jerry in prison????

[borderlineomniverse]

IS NO ONE GONNA ACKNOWLEDGE THAT SCOTT AND JERRY (MAYBE) CANONICALLY MET IN PRISON???

[wdwmarveldisney]

Rollercoasters and Ice Cream

Derek Hale x reader

Singles Paired!AU

Summary: Being forced to take your sisters to an amusement park kinda paid off.

Masterlist

A/N: Posting this from school feels illegal. Nevermind. Has not been proofread so read at your own risk honestly.

GIF isn’t mine

This was the worst day ever.

Standing in line, you fixed your top as you rolled your eyes at your sister's words. The twins' favourite activity today wasn't rollercoasters or having excessive amounts of ice cream but instead was to make fun of you since you had to go on all the rides alone. Every time they opened their mouths to say it a new way, you were reminded why you never took them anywhere as they had complained. But every time you did, the twins found some way to tease and pick fun at you which you always found ridiculous because you were older so surely it should be the other way round.

Right now their teases were mainly fixated on the 'singles will be paired' sign next to them. They were having a field day with it, joking about who you might end up with and taking photos. You, meanwhile, were desperately trying to find the will to live and settling on the idea of ice cream from the Ben & Jerry's parlour next to the ride. You had been tempted to have some before but thinking the ride through, you had decided after was best. After all, the sign above the ride entry had read in weird writing:

This hydraulic launched rollercoaster will propel you from 0-80 miles per hour in less than 2 seconds!

You eyed the tall tracks of the rollercoaster, nothing being used to pull the actual thing up and drop it down. You watched the group go, screams filling the air as they flew past. The line began to move then so you decided to look over the singles in the line ahead. Some of them didn't look too mean, others had resting bitch faces. It made you pray to be able to pick.

Still scanning the people in front, you were cut off by the loud shouts behind you. It wasn't like anyone else was quiet but there was something too loud about the people behind you and when you turned to see a big group of teens, you realised why. They looked a couple years older than your sisters, well most of them anyway. There were a few younger ones who looked your sisters' age and there was one guy who was most definitely your age. He was probably the only responsible adult, an older sibling like yourself. His eyes met yours and your cheeks grew hot as you gave a pathetic wave to try and cover you staring.

Yeah, you really hope you got to choose.

"Yeah, no, he's way too hot for you," Your head whipped round to your giggling sisters. They were high fiving and you had to lean down to whisper your next words to them, "I'm not against slapping you little shits," they knew you were partially joking, smirking as arms crossed over their chests and you mimicked them. The other one spoke up, "You can't, it's child abuse," Yeah, like you didn't know that. So you simply nodded as the other one dropped in, "You'd go to prison. You want to go to prison?" They seriously thought they had you there and it made you grin as you answered, "Gladly, if it meant that I got a break from these absolutely pleasant trips I have to do," Their faces fell before one of them shoved your shoulder and they moved forward with the rest of the line.

You'd made it to the very front of the line when the gate closed on you and they prepared to send the full ride off. The guy said you'd be sat behind your sisters and then the next person by themselves would be sat next to you to which you said was fine. Like you had a choice. Glancing at the still insanely loud crowd behind you, you realised they'd already formed their pairs (7 to be exact). And then you realised that the ridiculously attractive guy your age was by himself and that made you turn back with a giddy smile as you wrapped your arms around your sisters' shoulders.

It didn't take long for them to start seating you, the two idiots celebrating they were at the front and you were shoved behind them. The group of teens filled the rest of the ride and you fiddled as someone approached the seat next to you. The nervous smile you sent him felt almost drowned out by the cheers from behind you. Most were wolf whistles, a few, "Go Derek," and "Get some," that made you about ten times worse. It felt like it couldn't get too much worse until he smiled back and your sisters took the opportunity to turn and embarrass you. They both had those signature smirks that made you often contemplating ditching them on the side of the road. "I'll try my hardest not to throw up on you but no promises,"

"Yeah, like she's not going to throw up on everyone behind her,"

Leaning forward, you grab their heads to turn them and push them in their seats as you mutter, "I think I'll do great in prison," they both paled slightly with nervous chuckles and strapped themselves in as you fell into your seat to do the same. The guy, Derek you guessed, laughed as he followed. You didn't dare to talk until the worker had pushed the harness down. You felt like you might as well introduce yourself since you knew his name. Doing your best to hold out your hand, you leaned forward to talk, "I'm Y/N, by the way. It's nice to meet you,"

"Derek," was all he said as he shook your hand and then he was looking away and you gave yourself a small nod as you got the message. Not a talker, huh? You still felt like you should warn him so, nervously, you leant forward again and said, "Sorry if I scream your ear off," He laughed this time with a small nod that let you know it was okay and that made you feel about ten times better. It was then that you felt the roller coaster moved back, getting ready to slingshot to the speed said on the sign and with a shake of your head, you regretted every single choice in your life that meant you were here. About to embarrass yourself in front of a ridiculously hot stranger. Screw God and higher power, Satan clearly took the wheel for your life and was obviously not very good at balancing duties 'cause even for him, this was a shit show.

A scream tore through your lips the second the wind started whooshing in your ear but all you could hear was a heart melting, gorgeous laugh from next to you which honestly made you just want to die. How was he perfect and how did that perfectness inject adrenaline in your veins so much quicker than this death coaster? How was this much of a high possible? You hated attractive people.

When you reached the top and it slowed for a view of the park, all you could fixate on was the very vertical drop you were about to face. Sure, you loved rollercoasters, they were great fun but a massive fear of heights always restrained some of that excitement. And maybe that fear and the shear height you were at managed to give the worst brain damage in the world or maybe you were just that dumb but you grabbed his hand. You grabbed the hot, mysterious, future-husband-material guy's hand and he held on just as tight. He held it with a small squeeze and laugh at the curses that spilled from your lips and you fell in love as you felt your stomach flip not only from the descent of the coaster but from the no doubt twinkle in his eyes. Yeah, kill you now.

The coaster slowed over the small bumps but you didn't drop his hand, still in a state of shock over your simple stupid self. It wasn't until the harnesses lifted and your sisters were poking fun at you that you dropped his hand like it burned you and started apologising profusely. He'd waved it off with probably half hearted reassurances that made your inside do cartwheels and was kind enough to hold his hand out again to help you out of the coaster when the attendants were getting very quickly pissed. The kids he was with were chattering away about how awesome it was or how 'No Stiles, I'd rather jump into an active volcano than do that again' which honestly felt like a mood. You went a few paces before you swung your hand and realised your fingers were still intertwined with Derek's

Lord have mercy.

"I'm so sorry. First on the coaster and now, um," you dropped his hand to wrap your arms around yourself, "I promise I don't go around just holding people's hands," He smirked, he had the audacity to smirk your way, all flirty as he commented, "So, what you're saying is that I'm special," That wasn't even a question, he was so confident. You hated his very beautiful face for that. "No?" You were such an idiot, such an idiot. What was that one word shit? Why were you doing that? It didn't hide the heat in your cheeks or clear embarrassment or the dead look in your eyes that became more oh so obvious every time you opened your mouth.

At the gate to the exit, he paused to hold it open for you and just casually asked, "Where are you going now?" Off a cliff sounded nice in all honesty, before you could mess this up any further. But instead of that, you gave the honest truth with a small point to the parlour, "My sisters want ice cream and I'm not complaining," he nodded, all the kids he was with being sent a quick glare to shut them up that low-key made him hotter, before he grinned brightly at you and shrugged, "Ice cream sounds great. Just give me a second," You nodded dumbly all but collapsing into your sisters' arms as he left. Their teasing was distant and a faint echo as you calmed your heart and tried your hardest to stop your head from planning an entire future with him. Easier said than done.

When he waved you over with a bright grin, your sisters all but dragged you as your body gave out and next thing you know, your in a queue for ice cream with him laughing at some no doubt ridiculous joke you made. He was prettier up close, eyes all scrunched and lips bright with a face splitting smile. Once all orders were made and the group was spread across three tables in the corner with your sisters making quick friends, you were a blushing mess in the silence that settled over the two of you. He was just smiling as he had his ice cream and you were scrambling for some sort of conversation to come to mind.

"What do you think of Queen?"

"What?" It came out as a laugh, a confused look being sent your way and you could hardly disagree. Who asks that out of nowhere? Still, you'd done it now, time to push through. "The band Queen, I'm just asking about, you know, music taste. It's a very deciding factor," That smirk was back for seemingly no reason and you racked what you had said and done but were easily cut off when he asked, "What's it you're deciding?" Oh, that. That comment; of course it was that comment. Trying to play it cool (and clearly miserably failing based off his laugh), you shrugged and continued eating your ice cream. He shuffled, bright smile as he answered, "They're good. Prefer Bowie,"

You paused, twisting your small wooden spoon before finally nodding, "I can get behind that answer," He grinned and you felt yourself relax just a tad. He quickly moved in before much more could be said, "So that decision then, got it yet?" A heat made its way to your cheeks and a helpless and rather pathetic shrug was all you could give. He seemed to still have more to say on the matter anyway, "'Cause, you know, I think I've come to one,"

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," You resisted the very strong urge to giggle as you simply leaned forward and he mirrored it. Ice cream had long since left your mind as you asked with a small, held-back smile, "What's that then?" He reached to hold one of your hands, watching your focus move to where he played with your fingers, "That I should ask for your number and how you would feel about a date?" You couldn't stop the face splitting grin fro surfacing no matter how hard you fought and quickly nodded. "I think I'd feel pretty great,"

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," When you looked back to him, he was solely focused on you in a way that made you want to scream into a pillow later when remembering. How were you supposed to live long enough to go on a date when he was looking at you like that?

"Damn, Derek's got game," Safe to say moment ruined. You watched him hold back a look of murderous rage before his eyes settled on the boy who spoke, your gaze following. The boy didn't recoil like others, a sarcastic smile lighting up his face that only brightened when Derek muttered rather bitterly, "Stiles," It had you poorly stifling giggles and that was enough for Derek to turn and face you again with a bright smile.

Yeah, maybe taking your sisters out today wasn't the worst day ever.

[fatfables]

Farmhouse Five, or The Gainer Crusade: Vore Wars 9

A science fiction force feeding and vore-infused anti-gaining gaining story heavily inspired by Kurt VonneGUT's classic post-modern novel. (Why? Because it's the internet).

A sixth generation Swedish-American now living in easy circumstances in Minnesota [and still eating too much] who as a fat man's son, as a prisoner of the farmer, witnessed the fire-bombing of his own physique, a long time ago, and survived to grow and tell the tale.  This is a story somewhat in the obesogenic manner of the tales of the moon of the Surplus, where the galaxy’s biggest bellies come from. Eat.

All this happened, more or less. But mostly more. The gaining parts, anyway, are true. One guy I knew really was tube fed to death for refusing to breed with the Lord of the Pigs. So it grows. I returned to the farmhouse with an old gainer buddy of mine, to where we were kept for weeks. There we met a farm boy who was grown fat by the Surplus. We asked him how it was to live under Gainerism. He said that at first it was hard as it took time to get used to the strain of constant weight gain but now that he was used to it it wasn’t so bad. He was impressed with his belly and the way that it bounced over his belt when he walked. He liked how round it looked and how soft it felt. He was looking forward to seeing it be further accentuated by his dungarees. His brother was fattened till his heart exploded. So it grows.

I look neither forwards nor backwards, only waistwords. My Name is Billy Bondgaard. I’m writing this from my home in Minnesota, in this year. For thirty years I have worked, non-consecutively, as a gastric bypass salesman despite my own size. This has provided for me well and I have continued to gain all my life. I am now comfortable, fat and old, but I will not remain so. I have two chunky sons who follow in my footsteps. Soon they will be unborn again. My husband is dead from a car crash. So it grows. I look waistwords to seeing him again.

I am in the farmhouse with Jerry. My nerves are shot to hell. We are hog tied by our britches waiting for him to return. I am only 246 lbs. Jerry is hungry and delirious for action. He salivates whenever he hears footsteps. He appears to take joy from his captivity. He yearns to increase his capacity. My boxers are tight and stained, unsuitable for the task. I know that I will soon be forced to feed again and I am ill-prepared. I know that I will rely on Jerry to bear some of my burden and that he will resent me for it. He will get cross with me and will blame me for his situation. I will do my best but it won’t be good enough. I am out of my depth and I know it.

He enters, the farmer. He is six foot six and broad in the shoulders. Kind of Dutch looking. His wet black hair sticks to his head from the pouring rain outside. He speaks gruffly, “Hello, Piggies.” Jerry says hello. I remain silent, in trepidation. He weighs us. As is normal. Jerry weighs 387 lbs, he has the right mindset. I was never meant to be a pig, yet at the same time I always was. He starts with soup and bread, a gentleman farmer. Eighty fluid ounces of potato soup and half a loaf of farmhouse white. Jerry embraces the challenge but my stomach already aches and I begin to lack strength and struggle only half way through. “What the hell is wrong with you, Billy?” He shouts at me, “I hope you don’t expect me to pick up the slack again?” “No,” I say, one hundred percent aware that he will.

Roast beef and gravy follows. The gentleman farmer is treating his pigs well. This will not always be the case, there is plenty of swill to come.

My stomach bag is pounding harder and faster than my heart. I count the rhythmic convulsions that play a solid beat while I am forced to eat. Jerry has already finished his main course but I am no where near finished. A slab of half chewed beef falls from my mouth. “What a bad piggy!” The farmer states; “You know the rules, everything has to be eaten!” He picks it up from the ground and places it in between Jerry’s lips. Jerry looks like he wants to kill me, because he does. He swallows the beef and the rest of my main, and my dessert, along with his own. His belly is so swollen that it looks like it might burst open. It’s super distended and hanging low like the globular ball of fat that it is. I look down at my own overweight gut, it’s round and bloated and howling in pain. I really don’t know how Jerry does it? He is the one with the constitution for this. We will both grow fatter at the Farmers bequest but I will never be a real pig like him.

The farmer calmly states that it is time for my punishment. Jerry once more looks at me with daggers. I know that he wants to be punished but my pathetic performance never allows for it. The farmer approaches me from behind. I brace. And I am gone.

My sons, Edgar and Albert are returning from camp today. It has been their first summer away and my husband is excitedly cleaning the kitchen in anticipation of their return. He has prepared five large cakes for them. They will be very pleased but will fight over the odd number. They will feel bad about it when he is dead. My sons don’t believe me about the farmhouse. They think it is just a myth. That I am insane. They don’t believe that the Surplus would ever do that. They are true believers. I know better. I know not only where they have been but where they are going. I have been there. So it grows. I try to stop Edgar from punching Albert over the final cake. I am back there.

The Surplus moon is a strange place. Bland and hectic at the same time. The beings here don’t experience weight yet they are obsessed by it. They are in love with it but don’t feel it. Nothing is linear here. Only expanding. They say that it is the beginning and the end of everything. Everything is circular and after a while I say that I agree. “I agree.” They say that the universe is theirs to consume and that nothing that any of us does matters. I fear they are correct. I am circular. I am a zoo exhibit. They look at me with wonder. I am prehistoric, an artifact. They have never seen one so small. The first seven years I fell into a depression. Then he appeared. Kyle California. The boy from my dreams. The boy from my computer screen youth. At first he wouldn’t look at me. Or them. He was petrified. Snatched from his last moment. Another car crash. Chased by a representation of his own ego. So it grows. He always returns. Returns to me. After the first six months he accepts me and the crowd roar in appreciation when we perform the beast with two fat backs.

In the farmhouse he is here. The one. Like an apparition. I have only met him once but so many times. I know he is real. As real as the minced cow that engorges me. I am fifteen again. I will soon be 600. He comments on how well my belly is pushing against the floor. I knew he was going to say that. I also know what he is going to do next. He always does that. And Danni laughs. Through the pain I see the other. At least I think I do. I always think I do. Half man, half lizard. The warrior. I like him. One day he will save me.

Edgar has knocked one of Albert’s teeth out. The fifth cake is in pieces on the floor. As is Albert. At least he can reach it from down there. “At least you can reach it from down there,” I hear myself say. Albert starts to eat the cake despite the blood in his mouth. He is a good boy. I look at Edgar. He is pretending to be pleased with his victory. He goads his brother. He is my son. I see in his eyes that he knows he really lost. He will never admit it. No matter how many times it happens. Always the same. Always the fattest son who gets the cake. 

They tell me how much they enjoyed the camp. How they are both over 200 up. I am so proud of them. They look magnificent. They will return next year. I ask Edgar if he saw where the farmhouse used to be. “Edgar, did you see where the farmhouse used to be?” He gets angry with me. He says there never was any damn farmhouse and that I should give it up. “There never was any damn farmhouse. Give it up.” I give it up. Though I know that he is wrong. Jerry died there. So it grows.

Kyle is about to have his last ever conversation with me before his date with an intersection on the outskirts of Monterey. He seems unaware. He is always unaware. Why do I remember? “Are you satisfied with our life here on the Surplus moon?” He asks me. Next he will ask me how I possibly can be when we are trapped like overfed lions in a cage. “How can you possibly be when we are trapped like overfed lions in a cage?” I tell him because I know that I won’t always be there. “Because I know that I won’t always be here.” He asks me if I love him. “Do you love me?” I tell him a hundred times over. “I love you a hundred times over.” He seems satisfied. Then he is gone. So it grows.

I am totally alone. The giant lizard man is back. I ask him why I remember. “Why do I remember?” He smiles at me as his giant jaw begins to dislocate. His belly swells. Everything goes black. Danni screams. I am unstuck.

The oversized coffin is pushed down the church aisle on a trolley. It’s far too heavy for anyone to carry. I am back at my husband's funeral. So it grows. I look waistwards to seeing him again.

www.fatfables.com

[tabloidtoc]

Star, January 11

You can buy a copy of this issue for your very own at my eBay store: https://www.ebay.com/str/bradentonbooks

Cover Story: Hollywood’s Best and Worst Bosses 

Page 1: Shia LaBeouf currently accused of relentless abuse and sexual battery by his ex FKA Twigs was snapped making out with Margaret Qualley after she arrived at LAX for a solid 10 minutes and holding up traffic -- the PDA session was the first time Shia and Margaret who is the daughter of Andie MacDowell were spotted out in public together but the two got well-acquainted a few months ago rolling around naked for a NSFW music video for a song by the actress’ sister Rainey Qualley a.k.a. Rainsford -- Shia went out of his way to charm Margaret as soon as they met and he wooed her with compliments and gifts and flowers and texts and spur-of-the-moment dates where he’d just show up at her house but her friends are concerned because Twigs’ lawsuit against Shia alleges multiple incidents of abuse including choking her in her sleep and knowingly giving her a sexually transmitted disease -- Shia said many of those allegations are not true and he is in a 12-step program and therapy for PTSD and alcoholism

Page 2: Contents, Prince William and Duchess Kate with kids Prince George and Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis for a Christmas card 

Page 3: Candice Swanepoel in a bathing suit in Miami, Jennifer Garner stepped out to run errands in a mask and an expressive sweater in L.A., Ryan Reynolds cuddled up with a puppy to encourage his Instagram followers to donate to the SickKids Foundation 

Page 4: Friends of Johnny Depp are keeping their distance as he gears up for another ugly defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard -- after losing the case against a U.K. newspaper that called him a wife beater and a scathing feature in The Hollywood Reporter that dubbed the star radioactive and his career all but dead, former pals want nothing to do with him -- the likes of Jude Law, Leonardo DiCaprio and Channing Tatum have been backpeddling on Johnny and it’s making him furious but to be fair Johnny had already alienated Leo and Channing by calling them Pumpkin Head and Potato Head and accusing them of having affairs with Amber -- Jude’s indifference cuts the deepest because for a time he and Johnny were brothers-in-arms as they filmed the second Fantastic Beasts movie and from Johnny’s perspective Jude hasn’t lifted a finger to defend him 

Page 5: Mossimo Giannulli’s son is speaking out claiming the fashion designer is being treated harshly at California’s Federal Correctional Institution in Lompoc and Gianni Giannulli took to social media to complain that because of the pandemic his dad has been locked in solitary confinement for one full month and is only let out every three days for a few moments to shower and Gianni, Mossimo’s son from an earlier relationship, is irate that his father is being mistreated and he feels sorry for his dad and doesn’t want to see him languishing in prison however his half sisters Bela and Olivia Jade don’t seem too bothered by it

* At age 74 Susan Sarandon has had it with men -- she said she hasn’t really had a large dating career and in fact hasn’t had a guy in five years and it’s not that she can’t get a man, it’s just that the men she attracts are losers or sub-par in some way -- she is happy hanging out in her NYC apartment but still friends can’t help trying to fix her up because she’s attractive and in phenomenal shape but the problem is she scares guys away; she’s a force they can’t handle 

* Two years after sharing her shock diagnosis with multiple sclerosis Selma Blair is struggling with pain and fear -- she was recently spotted getting emotional outside a West Hollywood cannabis shop and she has turned to medical marijuana to soothe symptoms of the chronic immune-system disorder which can include fatigue, spasticity, walking issues, numbness, weakness, vision issues and pain -- on some days she can’t even get out of bed but she’s trying to stay strong for her son Arthur and smile more for him but it’s been hard 

Page 6: Julianne Hough appears to be sweetness and light but she’s a heartbreaker according to her ex Chuck Wicks who split from Julianne in 2009 -- in a revealing podcast Chuck blasted Julianne saying they were both loving life then out of nowhere you find out that they are not the person you thought they were and you break up -- Chuck admitted that he and Julianne agreed to say their split was amicable but it wasn’t fine and it wasn’t his fault

* After holing up at his Oklahoma spread Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani are having a blast decorating their 13,000-square-foot $13.2 million new home in the Encino area of California’s San Fernando Valley -- the home sits on 1.6 ultra-private acres behind double gates and extensive walls and features a pool and fabulous views -- inside the engaged pair give each other space: Gwen wants a dance studio and Blake gets his own man-cave with a big screen and high-tech surround sound 

* Star Spots the Stars -- Nicky Hilton, Katharine McPhee Foster, Katherine Schwarzenegger Pratt making dairy-free and plant-based holiday appetizers, Jenna Dewan, Natalia Dyer

Page 8: Big Losers -- these stars shed pounds and got healthy in 2020 -- Jessica Simpson, Rebel Wilson, Kelly Osbourne 

Page 10: Star Shots -- Gwen Stefani on the way to the recording studio in Santa Monica, Jerry O’Connell started his morning off with a fresh mimosa and a kiss from one of his dogs, Jodie Turner-Smith is the first Black actress to play Henry VIII’s ill-fated queen Anne Boleyn in a major U.K. TV series in Emley, UK 

Page 11: Nick Cannon pitched in to help distribute 2000 free meal boxes to the Hollywood Food Coalition

Page 12: Demi Moore in a yellow bow for a selfie thanking readers for checking out her memoir, Paris Hilton kicked back for a Coach campaign reintroducing the early-2000s ubiquitous Swinger bag

Page 13: Derek Hough and his dogs Romie and Luna, Irina Shayk striking a pose 

Page 14: Sofia Vergara during a photoshoot, Real Housewives of New York City alum Kristen Taekman is taking advantage of the California winter weather in a bikini in Malibu, Wells Adams takes out the trash in L.A. 

Page 16: Carrie Underwood showed off her comfy at-home style, Vanessa Hudgens and her favorite condiment, Katherine Schwarzenegger celebrates her dog’s birthday 

Page 17: Vanderpump Rules star Tom Sandoval picked up a holiday-themed centerpiece ahead of Christmas in L.A., Katie Holmes slung a guitar over her shoulder in NYC, Dame Joan Collins dropped by The Jonathan Ross Show in London 

Page 18: Normal or Not? Hailey Baldwin shares a glimpse into her beauty routine -- normal, Tiger Woods’ son Charlie showed off his skills ahead of the PNC Championship -- normal 

Page 19: Pete Wentz playing tennis in L.A. -- normal, Pete Davidson hurt himself a few times while making a scarf -- not normal 

Page 20: Fashion -- stars charm in romantic ruffles -- Keke Palmer, Gwyneth Paltrow, Lupita Nyong’o 

Page 21: Kirsten Dunst, Halsey 

Page 24: Ariana Grande announced her engagement to realtor Dalton Gomez with some celebratory shots and she’s telling everyone how she never thought it was possible to be this happy -- the couple began dating in early 2020 when Dalton helped Ariana find a home in L.A. and things hit the fast track amid the health pandemic which saw the two enjoying quality time together in lockdown and realizing they were a perfect fit because they never fight and are totally in sync about how they look at life -- Ariana went straight into wedding mode already deciding on an intimate outdoor setting in mid-2021

Page 25: Jon Hamm stepped out in L.A. recently with girlfriend Anna Osceola and she was showing off a noticeably rounder midsection and there’s a good chance the two are pregnant because they’ve been actively trying to get into the family way -- though Jon admitted in 2016 that having children isn’t necessarily an imperative Jon may have changed his tune after his year-long relationship with Anna and hitting the big 5-0 in March has him reassessing his life and now having a child has become important to him 

* Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher will be camping in style now that they’ve purchased a $140K Mercedes Benz Sprinter and they’re preparing to embark on an adventure  -- with sleeping accommodations for four and a kitchen the spacious luxury vehicle is perfect for the couple and their two kids -- other stars can spend their vacations in five-star resorts but Mila and Ashton prefer to keep things alfresco and it’s a tradition they’ve kept all these years; this is their idea of a perfectly fun vacation

Page 26: Cover Story -- Hollywood’s Best and Worst Bosses -- who’s great to work for and who makes employees’ lives a misery -- Jennifer Hudson -- best

Page 27: Jennifer Lopez -- worst, Rihanna -- best, Kenny Chesney -- best, Mariah Carey -- worst, Gwyneth Paltrow -- worst 

Page 28: Keanu Reeves -- best, Sandra Bullock -- best, Emma Watson -- worst 

Page 29: George Clooney -- best, Ellen DeGeneres -- worst, Guess the Bad Boss 

Page 30: Tom Cruise and Hayley Atwell: Man on a Mission -- amid all the tension on the set of Mission: Impossible 7 Tom has been pursuing his costar Hayley to be his next girlfriend and it seems to be working -- Tom has become very active with the U.K. Scientology Branch and is very taken with English women like Hayley and he’d like to make the U.K. his home base -- handcuffed to each other for several scenes in M:I7 Hayley and Tom were also spotted holding hands when the cameras weren’t rolling 

Page 32: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s very L.A. Christmas -- the prince spends the holidays 5000 miles away from the royal family but Meghan’s mom Doria Ragland was on hand for the festivities -- the couple were intending to call Queen Elizabeth on Christmas morning otherwise they were happy to celebrate a low-key holiday 

Page 38: Entertainment 

Page 48: Parting Shot -- Sophie Turner and Joe Jonas suited up to hit the slopes stopping by a local store to pick up goodies before changing into warmer gear in Mammoth Lakes in California -- the couple are familiar faces in the ski town and looking forward they will be able to plan even more snowy getaways now that they’ve listed their NYC apartment for $5.9 million and moved full-time to Encino 

[violett-writes]

Posion

This was a beautiful collab with my friend Charli over at colonelcalgary on Wattpad. Their stories are beautifully written and their original post of this is in their Imagination Station so please go give them some love and tell them I sent you!

Enjoy part 2 of For Granted!

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"I promise I won't take you for granted anymore. I'll show you how much I love you, baby. I love you so fucking much."

Things had been better for awhile. George had kept his word for a few, really good weeks. You guys had eaten every meal together, gone on fun dates, and fallen asleep in each other's arms just like you used to. You spent time together in some other ways, but we don't need to go into detail about those.

George had obviously kept screaming, limiting it to around two hours a day he spent on his computer with an audience, though he did spent time editing and calling with Dream, but you often joined him then.

What is it that they say about good things?

Slowly, invasively, those cancerous habits creeped back in.

"I'll be right there, baby." How many times you had heard those words. How many times those words had been nothing but lies. How many times you'd fallen asleep without him, replacing him with a pillow as you slept, arms wrapped around the silk case, getting about as much love back from the plush substitute as George gave you.

It was like his romantic nature, one that planned sweet dates and bought you perfect presents, had simply fallen out of him. Like he was empty George shell, overtaken by the need to gain followers to match his more successful friend. He was willing to do whatever it took to get him there, whether that be streaming for 16 hours or forfeiting his place at your side.

"I promise I won't take you for granted anymore."

Promises. What a joke. Empty bonds made with empty words creating empty voids when they are inevitably broken.

It left a bitter taste in your mouth when you realized, no matter what, George would always break that promise.

If you have him a chance after this one, how long would it be before he crept back into his office after you fell asleep?

How long until he did things out of fear rather than love? Was he already acting that way?

People have told you time and time again that there is no love without a little pain, a little risk, and a little fear. However, you had all those components, yet could still feel the embers of a love that once burned brightly as they fizzled out.

You willed yourself to stay awake that night, a few bags you had packed sitting in the chair opposite of your bed.

George wandered in some time around 3:30, his hair sticking up in every direction. He smiled at you, eyes crinkling at the corners, and for a moment you couldn't help but be reminded of why it had been so easy to fall in love with him.

His smile dropped when he saw your bags, your tired expression, the unshed tears brimming on your lower lids.

You stood up, taking his hands in yours. "I'm moving out, George. I have to. We can't... I can't do this anymore. I'm sor-" You began to apologize.

"Don't. Don't you dare apologize. T-this is all my fault, that you feel the need to leave. Do you have some place to go? I can leave, if you wish." He sniffled back a sob.

"A friend is putting me up for a few nights. I've been looking some apartments, should have signed off on one by the day after next." You avoided his gaze.

"So this is something you've been planning for a while, huh? God, I'm blind." He scratched his arm.

"I... yes. You have your priorities, I have mine. Maybe I'll go back to school." You smiled sadly, gathering your bags.

"Well, good luck, Y/N." That's all he could say as he watched you walk toward the door.

"Good luck, George." You replied, closing the door to the apartment for the last time.

Turns out, going back to school had been exactly what you ended up doing. Three years of you life passed within the bustling campus walls of the same university you began your studies at. The day you stepped out, equipped with your degree and a smile bright enough to power a continent for at least a decade, you suddenly had the craving for a latte from your favorite cafè just a twenty minutes' drive from your apartment.

In the beginning, it hadn't been all smooth sailing. You'd cried in the arms of your best friend, doing all the normal post breakup things like screaming in the shower to sad songs and being 90% of Ben and Jerry's income.

However, after a few weeks of submersing yourself in Taylor Swift and the Tonight Dough, you'd come to your senses. All in a week, you'd applied back to uni, adopted a dog, dyed your hair, given yourself some sort of purpose.

Now, with your new pup trotting at your side, you walked to the outdoor cafè that you'd spent so many late night cram sessions at.

You were elbow deep in a peppermint latte when a soft, posh voice snapped you out of your people watching.

"Y/N, hey!"

Your eyes met with brown ones, sparkling as they took you in. He still had that same mess of brown hair, the same crow's feet when he smiled, his top row of teeth just slightly covering the bottom.

"George! Hi! Wow, fancy meeting you here." You smiled, standing up to hug him and pushing down whatever emotion bubbled up.

He took in your attire, graduation gown overflowing from it's cramped prison inside your bag.

"You went back to school?" He grinned, pointing to your bag.

"Oh, yeah! I just graduated like... half an hour ago." You shrugged.

"Y/N! That's... wow, that's phenomenal. We should celebrate! The orchard, if you have time?"

He meant the apple orchard you guys always went to in the fall, where you had your first date.

You pretended to check your watch, taking his outstretched hand and downing the rest of your latte.

"Why the hell not." You laughed.

At the orchard, you quickly excused yourself to the restroom, staring yourself down in the mirror and splashing cold water on your face. When you returned, your dog was curled on George's lap as they sat on a bench swing, your favorite apple cider drink in his hand.

"I hope you still liked these. I went over to get your dog some water and bought myself something so then I didn't want to be that guy who-" He rambled.

"George, stop. It's perfect, thank you." And you did still like it, even after all this time.

The drink. Just the drink.

... Right?

[takeiteasypeasybaby]

Save Me: Chapter 52 - Family

~Hey guys! Chapter 52 is out today :) This is an emotional chapter that builds to the climax in the next. As Save Me falls in line with the timeline of the tv series and some parts of the comics, the fair is a crucial part leading up to the pikes which will feature in the following chapter...I hope everyone can wait until Wednesday to find out whose fate is met!~

The Trade Fair is finally here. Everyone Molly loves comes together as one large community that protects and cares for each other. But what happens when an outside threat appears?

Smiles and giggles erupted all around me as I loaded the last few gifts to the Kingdom into the truck.

Everyone was filled with joy and positivity to be travelling to the Kingdom, of course some would stay behind to guard our home but it was the first time the residents had ever been there.

As I was talking to Luke, telling him our protocol if anything went wrong and how he could reach me, Tara came running over and asked breathlessly 'I wanna come with'.

I shook my head and said sadly 'I know you wanna go but I need you here'.

She held my hand, smiling and in a high pitched voice she whined 'please'.

I sighed heavily and turned to Luke.

'Would you be okay with that?' I asked softly.

'Sure thing boss, we can manage' he replied happily.

I nodded as Tara squealed, 'yes!' and hopped into the truck and sat next to Lydia.

I rolled my eyes, knowing that I would regret that decision.

I said bye to everyone staying behind and drove out in front of the other vehicles as they followed me to the Kingdom.

The road was pretty clear, Tara used her silenced pistol to clear a couple in the middle of the road but other than that there was no hassle.

Being the leader, I remained as calm and collected as I could be while everyone else was overwhelmed with excitement.

Though I wouldn't admit it, even I was jumping with joy on the inside.

After everything with the whisperers, we needed a distraction to calm everyone or as Negan liked to tell me, give them a couple 'white lies' to ease them and if that protects them then what's the harm?

Even though he was no longer a leader, he was still smart as hell and he knew it.

I think that's what first attracted me to him.

I broke out of my thoughts and turned briefly to Lydia and then back onto the road.

'Are you excited?' I asked her happily.

'Yeah, it would be nice to see-' Lydia started until Tara interrupted her.

'Henry! God, I knew it! You two are so cute together' she said excitedly.

'I meant the Kingdom' Lydia said softly, embarrassed by Tara's comment.

'Tara' I said faux warningly as I raised and eyebrow which made her laugh.

'I'm sorry, but you have to admit, you two are cute as hell' she continued.

I just sighed and shook my head while Lydia remained silent and just snacked on an apple.

When we rolled up to the gates, we could hear the happy bustle and commotion from within the walls.

We pulled up by the abandoned school buses and all stepped out.

We walked to the gates which swung open immediately when I waved up to Jerry and Diane.

'Hey Molly!' Jerry said happily as I replied, 'Hey Jer! It's good to see you!'.

The gates opened to reveal a magnificent splendour of colour, multicoloured stalls, paintings, a statue of Shiva, a band and of course the King himself, Ezekiel.

'Molly, people of the Hilltop colony, we welcome you to our fair! Please, come in and rejoice in our splendour!' he announced enthusiastically before us.

I smiled and hugged him.

'Ezekiel, how've you been?' I asked smiling at him.

'Very well, my Queen and I have been busy but Hilltop has made a great contribution' he said happily as Carol walked over to us.

'Hi Carol' I said as she came over and stood beside him.

'Is that Judith?' she asked tearfully as Judith came running over to us.

Michonne walked over hesitantly, knowing the relationship would be somewhat strained.

'You're Carol and you're the King' she said happily which made them both smile.

Michonne stood beside us and greeted them with a nod and smile, not sure about how she would be received.

But, she was pleasantly surprised when Ezekiel and Carol pulled her in for a hug.

'We've missed you' Ezekiel spoke sadly.

'I'm sorry for my behaviour, I had to realise that family comes first, always' Michonne said smiling down at Judith.

It was so heartwarming to see us all together again like a team, like a family.

With Tara by my side, it reminded me of the prison where we first met Rick and Michonne and how we could instantly feel that bond that they all had with each other and eventually with us.

'Hey Lydia!' Jerry said excitedly as she hopped out of the truck.

She seemed nervous but was instantly relieved when people welcomed her to the Kingdom with waves and smiles.

'Hi' she said quietly back to Jerry.

Ezekiel must have told him about her and the way he looked at Henry, he must have mentioned that too.

Henry walked with Lydia towards us and whispered something to her which she smiled at.

She came bounding over, less nervous than before and asked, 'uh Molly, can I go with Henry to explore?'.

I smiled down at her and said 'of course, but stay close and don't go outside the compound okay?'.

She nodded in response and hand in hand, they ran off towards the stalls.

Ezekiel ushered me to walk with him through the fair as we talked about Lydia.

'She's a good kid, Henry speaks of her often, often meaning all the time' he said softly.

We laughed together at that.

'Yeah, she is. I know what it's like to be presumed to be someone that you're not. Tara and I both do, we weren't always on the right side of things, me even less so because of...well, you know' I said seriously.

'Yes, I do and yet I smile. We have all done things to survive but that is the past. We have so much to be grateful for now and Lydia coming into our lives is one of them. I just know it' he said smiling.

I nodded, not wanting to mention that Negan wasn't just my past, but my present and my future.

I knew that would be too much for him for right now.

After all, he lost most of his people because of them when the ambushed them at an outpost.

Ezekiel excused himself as he had parade business to attend to, so I just walked around admiring all the wares on display.

Judith was happily playing with Jerry at the dunking game, Michonne was chatting to Carol, Tara was chatting to Diane and out of the corner of my eye I saw Lydia and Henry holding hands as they strolled down the path.

I sat at a bench and smiled as I saw how happy she looked, like she was finally becoming one of us, not because we wanted her to but because she wanted it.

Daryl came to join me at the bench with Connie and Kelly as we all sat to watch the band play.

I could tell that Daryl thought this whole thing was ridiculous, but because Carol believed in it, he gave it a shot.

He hacked at pieces of wood with his knife, making them into a point for arrows rather than watch the parade.

Connie smiled as they marched through, Kelly signing to her the song they were playing and that she wanted to go to the ring toss.

I looked around to see Enid and Alden practicing their singing on the outdoor stage when Daryl grumbled 'this is a damn distraction, we should be out there looking for the problem'.

I shot him an annoyed look.

'We will, but right now, we're gonna act like everything is fine because that's what people need right now. It's what Carol needs right now' I said warningly as I jumped up and walked off.

'Molly!' Tara shouted as she came over to me.

'Come look at this shit, they have a freaking cinema in this place!' she said as she dragged me towards the auditorium.

I giggled, saying 'of course Ezekiel has a cinema' as we walked inside.

Jerry was setting up a movie which they'd found while out on a supply run as people flooded in and took their seats.

The sun was going down now, so it was best the everyone was inside anyway.

Even though the Kingdom was very secure, Ezekiel didn't want to take any chances, this fair had to be perfect.

Lydia and Henry were sitting in the back row, holding hands and smiling sweetly to each other.

I felt like my heart could burst, I was so happy for them.

Seeing Henry grow into a young man and seeing Lydia be truly happy was such a blessing to me.

'Come, sit with me' Tara said as she patted the chair next to her in the front row.

I sat next to her and got comfortable until Tara remembered the snacks in the truck.

'Ah shit, I left the snacks in the truck' she said as she started to get up.

'No, It's cool. I'll get them' I replied as she got up and walked out of the darkening room.

I saw Ezekiel enter the auditorium, followed by Jerry as they talked about some woman from Alexandria who was in awe of the Kingdom.

I smiled at them both as I made my way to the truck.

I frowned confusedly when I saw Carol arming up.

'Whatcha doin? Are you not gonna go and enjoy the movie?' I asked as I also saw Daryl come round with his bike.

'What's going on?' I added suspiciously.

'We're going after them, you comin?' Daryl asked as he got on his bike.

I sighed when I knew I couldn't stop or persuade either of them to stay.

I knew them well enough to know that if I didn't come, they would go anyway.

I thought about it and just as I did so, Michonne and Yumiko came out of the auditorium and grabbed their weapons.

'We're coming too' they said as they stood next to Daryl and Carol.

'Judith is with Jerry and Nabila' Michonne said confidently as they all suited up.

'Siddiq is already out there, he scoped out the area a couple weeks back and found their camp. That's where we're headed' Michonne continued.

I nodded.

'Alright fine, we go, but only a couple hours' I said as I grabbed a rucksack and we walked out of the gate.

I looked back once at the auditorium, knowing that Tara would be waiting for me to come back.

But, I knew she would understand and Ezekiel would tell her where we had gone.

Lydia's POV//

Ezekiel came over to ask Henry if he could help a woman with some boxes outside and he hesitantly left.

'I'll be back in two minutes' he said as he kissed me.

I nodded and smiled, getting comfortable in my chair as I watched the movie.

I started to giggle until I saw a shadow sit in the chair next to me and a hand crossed over my own.

I gasped and turned to see my mother, she put a finger over her lips and said 'shh'.

She was dressed with a blonde wig and a green floral dress, she looked almost unrecognisable to anyone but me.

I scowled and shook in fright as she pulled me out of my seat and out into the courtyard.

She shoved me harshly against the old school bus and said 'you betrayed our values, you're coming with me!' as she tried to drag me with her.

I just managed to pull myself out of her grasp.

'No! I believe in these people! They care about each other here! They care about me, to keep me safe they'd kill you, all I'd have to do is scream' I said nervously.

'I risked everything for you, you're my bug' she said sadly as she tried to stroke my face.

'I was just doing what mothers do to protect their young' she said tearfully.

I raised up my arm and showed her the scars, saying 'I know what you've done, that's not love'.

'I just want you to go and I'm giving you a choice which is more than you ever gave me' I said angrily.

She scowled and got real close, whispering 'you're not one of us, you never were'.

'You'll be sorry' she said angrily as she let go of me and walked away as I gasped for breath, tears rolling down my face as I crouched down.

Molly's POV//

We walked through the woods for about an hour until we came across what Siddiq had told us.

It wasn't the spot where we had rescued Lydia and Henry but it looked extremely similar.

We all crouched in the bushes, silence all around us as we saw smoke from fires extinguished not too long ago and skins strewn across branches of trees.

Daryl signalled for us to move closer and when we did so, whisperers emerged all around us.

They encircled us and moved in closer silently.

We pointed our weapons at them and were ready to fire when more whisperers came up behind us and bagged our heads.

They took our weapons off us and tied our hands as we struggled frantically.

'She only wants her' one whispered as I felt someone move me forward and only took the bag off my head when I was out of the camp.

I looked around frantically to see none of my family, only a group of whisperers circling me as we moved.

I remained silent, knowing that if I spoke one of them would just kill me.

We walked for hours until we came closer to what looked to be a rocky ledge between the trees.

They let go of me as Lydia's mother came through the trees and whispered 'follow me' as she untied my hands.

I looked at her in confusion as she walked ahead, none of the whisperers following us.

She had my gun and aimed it at me as we walked.

'Where are you taking me?' I asked softly.

She stayed silent until we reached the ledge.

The sound was overwhelming, like a large crowd of screeching and snarling.

She pushed me forwards to the edge of the ledge until I saw it.

The largest hoard I'd ever seen, walkers coating the ground for miles.

My heart raced and it felt like it beat out of my chest as all I could see was death.

'My people are among them, steering them' she whispered.

'The only reason you and your friends are alive is because I let you live' she said quietly.

I inhaled and turned to her, she was now unmasked and I said angrily 'what do you want?.

'Nothin'. You haven't got a single thing to offer me. I've seen how you live, I've walked your streets, its a joke. Your communities are a shrine to a long dead world. My people, the whisperers, we live as nature intended' she whispered.

I scoffed and smiled sinisterly.

She was at the Kingdom, she was at the Fair.

My mind flickered to Tara and to Lydia. I was panicking but I would never show her that.

'That's just the bullshit you feed your sheep so they'll follow you' I said mockingly.

'They follow me because I am the Alpha and if the Alpha doesn't assert herself then there's chaos' she said with annoyance at my comment.

I knew I was getting to her now.

'So that is what I've done' she sniffed as she said it nonchalantly.

'What did you do?' I asked angrily.

'Your friends back at the camp are fine. Tell them, the next time they cross into my land, my hoard will cross into theirs' she said sternly.

I felt my heart beat slow as she said my family were okay.

'I'll mark the border to the North, you'll see it as you leave' she said looking away from my eyes.

'The hell's that supposed to mean, if this is about Lydia-' I said sternly.

'You'll see it as you leave' she interrupted.

'Go, your friends are waiting for you in the field due North' she said quietly.

I got closer and asked sternly, 'did you kill Lydia?' as tears rose to my eyes.

'I don't think you can protect my daughter, but I hope I'm wrong' she said as her eyes reddened.

I grit my teeth angrily and said 'you are' as I left towards the field where my family would be waiting.

[muselixer]

ask meme - things my friends said ! ( volume four )

from October 2019 - December 2019 warnings: language, ns/fw themes, alcohol mentions, drug mentions change pronouns as needed! under the cut for your dashboard convenience

“That man took geometry.” “Have a blast, Freddy Krueger.” “Face God and walk backwards into the saltiest circle of Hell.” “Jerrypicking: You only pick guys named Jerry.” “I dab. Would you like to see?” “WE HAVE TO WAIT FOR THE GRAPES TO COOL.” “It’s hard to find scholarly sources on memes.” “Oh, prison!” “I retract my blep for twenty dollars.” “Nebraska’s not real.” “Don’t lick me, you criminal.” “My relationships are like Jeeps: unstable and changing with the slightest wind current.” “Listen, I’m a dumb bitch, you have to understand.” “It’s too late to leave at 10:30, so you HAVE to leave at 11 now.” “Damn, Japanese medicine is hardcore.” “Yeah, you do tend to piss a lot.” “Every wall seems fine, and then a fuckin’ Kyle shows up.” “Man, you put a microwave beat behind this, it’ll be sick.” “I was gonna say you look like Hagrid but a midget with a drinking problem, then I remember he already has a drinking problem.” “My sister? Kidnapped. Now I’m an edgy bitch.” “I’m not gonna take away your virgin roll.” “I wanna steal all the grapes and put ‘em in my room.” “Right, cabbage is poor people lettuce.” “Cabbage is like... non-trendy kale.” “You are like seven grapes.” “A melanin-American called me the gamer word in a Cabela’s.” “Bold new taste: RAM truck.” “Don’t wanna pay your bill? Just submerge it in ranch!” “Oh, Facebook. You diseased mother fucker.” “Hot take, Hitler was a brainlet.” “The Hobbit was a war crime.” “I just let fate decide and let the cream hit the back of my throat. It’s a strange experience.” “Look at me like I’m gay, not like I’m crazy.” “That’s a hot take, thank you.” “He’s not a homie.” “It’s like playing Marco Polo but the person you’re playing with has been dead for four years.” “It’s time to clock out of life.” “It’s illegal language Pokemon cards.” “Don’t fucking ask me questions, I’m stupid.” “If my name isn’t changed to ‘cheese boy’ in your phone, I’m gonna fucking riot.” “I didn’t expect the pen to go in so easy.” “Who needs heroin when you can dab?” “I’d say opioids are stronger than dabbing.” “Did you bring enough tiddy for everyone?” “So you’ll get his extra skin.” “You can’t kick me out! I’m already banned from Mattress Firm!” “Okay, but if I wasn’t ace, I’d be a total ho.” “Now, the urinal is a much harder concept.” “IF THE HUMANS DON’T LEAVE, THEY’LL RELEASE THE VAMPIRES TO THE PUBLIC.” “We are NOT about to lose a goliath to a fucking toilet.” “Stalin will steal your girlfriend.” “I was gonna say, my life is like a lamp, but you know, it never attracts anything good.” “I’m really good at SITTING and REACHING.” “It feels like a rabbit.” “We are CRACKHEADS, not dumbasses.” “I feel like Bruce Wayne, if Bruce Wayne was a twat.” “YOU MOTHERFUCKERS, YOU’RE SHITBAGGING ME.” “Tight. What’s a million dollars feel like?” “I’m not gonna pay reparations for your fucking potatoes.” “I don’t know what it is but it’s not marinara sauce.” “Do I look like a fucking panini to you?” “Oh, sorry, I’ve never played the mined crafts.” “I feel like a dried up red gel pen. Don’t ask me what that means.” “No real giraffes were harmed in the making of this painting.” “So violent, and over a triangle.” “You either die a monster or live long enough to become the monster fucker.” “YOU CAN PUT A RACCOON IN YOUR ASS!” “We had a fight club in the bathroom.” “Goals. Oh, I’m talking about something else. I also want my kneecaps shot out.” “HE GAVE HER A FREE PREGNANCY, AND HER PUSSY DIDN’T EVEN STRETCH!” “I can’t stop not breathing.” “Well then he’s not a school shooter, is he?” “If we’re both fuckin’ manic, who’s gonna keep track of what time it is?!” “I’m gonna go eat a pinecone.” “The lights said sit the fuck down.” “Oh, I just dabbed really hard.” “I have jaundice!” “I have your corn.” “Self care is yelling about your spiral, man. That’s it, that’s self care.” “I’M the offensive boy! I’M the one who doesn’t get invited to Christmas!” “I like my coffee crunchy.” “If my jokes don’t land, my hands sure fuckin’ will.” “There’s a vibe up in this bitch and I don’t know what it is but I feel it.” “Are you a pretzel? ARE YOU A FUCKING PRETZEL?” “THERE WAS A HUMAN IN THE SENTIENT TRASH CAN?!” “Okay, time to learn about this multiverse strip club.” “On behalf of cool people, LEARN THE DIFFERENCE.” “I like having feet.” “I’m gonna boycott life.” “I’m in the ‘it’s complicated’ phase with sleeping.” “And what happened to that? Now you can’t count.” “They’re called helmets because you’re met with hell when you put one on.” “Hold the fuck up, I’m putting everyone in buckets. Go the fuck to sleep.” “Oh, I’m gonna commit. ...A FELONY.” “I am but a fucking shit lawyer.” “Damn, people be posting.” “You are not fish! You are boy!” “I feel like... the tacos I ate earlier... are singing opera in my stomach.” “I’m gonna go bankrupt and it’ll be my own fault.” “Piss like a normal bitch.” “I might have a death wish, but I don’t have a blood kink.” “Go pee your pants before your mother does it for you.” “Please don’t fuck the slime. Please. Do not. Fuck. The slime. Thank you.” “I’ll seek therapy for my cursed furby images.” “Oh my god, tequila tastes like THAT? Shit.” “Papa John’s a single daddy now.” “Being a person supersedes being a skeleton.” “Y’know, y’know, it’s fine, because being a part of a cult is better than being a part of this family.” “No, no, okay, listen. You go to Red Lobster, ALONE. You turn to the waitress. And you say, ‘I will have the macaroni and cheese’.” “You’ve heard of elf on a shelf, now get ready for bitch in a ditch. It’s a picture of me, in a ditch.” “Oh dear god, when cockatiels are next to printers.” “OH MY GOD... I’M NEW BOOT GOOFIN’.” “I’m going out the way I went in: STRAPPED.”

[h50europe]

Hawaii Five-0 9.25  and a shocking season finale

Category: Gen

Sometimes you have ideas and you just can’t get rid of them….

Azra dropped her phone in shock. She’d just received the news that her husband Hassan had been killed in prison by a fellow inmate. That was at least the story that the police wanted her to believe. Her whole world shattered into pieces in the blink of an eye. She was glad that her son was with her sister Sabara. Nothing was there that held her back from falling to her knees and cry out loud in unspeakable pain. She couldn’t remember how much time she’d spent on her knees on the floor with her arms wrapped around her upper body. After a while, all the yelling and crying subsided into a sobbing hack until numbness was taking over and she was staring with empty eyes into one corner of the room. Again and again, shivers racked her frail body. How could they do that to him? How was something like that even possible? Azra started slowly rocking back and forth. From the back of her mind, dark, gloomy thoughts crept into her conscience. Slowly but surely, one single thought was dominating her whole existence. She knew exactly who was responsible for the death of her beloved husband. And these people would have to pay for it. But first Azra had to make sure that her sister was taking care of Khalid. Her innocent little son shouldn’t be involved in all this. Sabara’s husband was a wealthy man. Kahlid would grow up as a happy kid.

A few days later

Steve, Danny, Tani, Junior, Lou, Adam and Jerry sat in a new diner near Kalakaua Avenue and celebrated the closure of their latest case. It’s been a tough one. It involved a kidnapping and child pornography. The task-force had been able to locate the head of a pedophile and drug smuggling ring.

Danny didn’t know where it came from when he said, “Do you guys also have this eerie feeling that if you are too happy about something that there might be some sort of backlash?”

Tani was already a few Tequilas ahead of Danny as she ogled him like a ravenous harpy must have ogled men, marked by fate.

“Do me a favor, Danny,” she slurred, “stop playing Mr. Cranky Pants tonight. Overthinking isn’t what we are here for. We’ve kicked this bastard’s ass into oblivion. Get yourself another drink and start farting rainbows.” She giggled about her own joke. Junior immediately excused himself for her behavior, “Sir, I’m sorry. She’s been through some rough…”

Danny raised his hand, “Don’t worry. I’m not mad at her. And maybe she is right.”

“Beg my pardon,” Steve chimed in, “did you just say ‘maybe she is right?’ Where the hell is Danny Williams, and what have you done to him?” They broke out in laughter.

None of them saw the woman in a black hoodie who’d just entered the diner. Nothing concerning her appearance stood out. Later eyewitnesses couldn’t say anything awkward about her behavior. She was just an average woman wearing average clothes. It would’ve been too easy if the meanies had a stamp on their forehead that would’ve identified them as THE villain.

The woman watched the whole team from the corner of her eye for some time. She rehearsed her next steps in her mind to make sure to exclude any mistakes.

And while the laughter at the table grew louder, She became jealous, felt humiliated, and emotionally at the end of her tether. How could these people go on with their lives so easily? None of them seemed guilt-ridden in any way. Of course, they’d long forgotten anything about Omar Hassan and his family.

Azra had enough. She glided down from the barstool and went over to the table where the task force sat. She’d hidden the detonator of the bomb vest she wore in her right hand. She’d almost reached the table when a big guy stood in her way and didn’t move. When she looked up, there was a faint glimmer of recognition in her eyes. The man in front of her bore some resemblance with someone she’d met long ago.

The man shook his head, “I don’t think this is a good idea, Azra. Stop it here and now.” He spoke in a calm, low voice with a threatening undertone.

She just gave him a bitter smile in return before she said, “Tarek, you might be my brother in law, but you’ve no right to tell me what to do. You weren’t there when they took Omar away from, and you haven’t been there when Omar was killed in prison. You weren’t even at his funeral. Now you show up here and think I would give a fuck about you?”

Tarek made another attempt, “Azra, leave it be. We are already gaining attention. And I am sure you don’t want that. Let’s get out of here and talk.”

She shook her head, and her eyes went blank. Before any of the guests knew what was going on, she pushed the button of the detonator. None of them heard the blast that took out the double doors and half the room beyond her and showered the people with rubble and shattered glass. The exploding bomb vest had spread lethally detonated shrapnel everywhere, like omnidirectional shotgun fire comparable to the blasting of a mine.

Later survivors would describe the blast as a yellow flash followed by silver traveling through the air, which was glass. Chaos reigned. Bodies, as well as body parts, lots of blood mingled with debris littered the floor. Some people were screaming at the top of their lungs, others sat there, trying to understand what just happened.

The table where the team sat was turned over. Tani forced her eyes open. A cloud of dust billowed above her. Desperately she made a quick self-check. Junior who had been sitting next to her was also stirring. Later, he remembered tasting dust and blood in his mouth and that he didn’t feel his left leg.

He startled when a hand was grabbing his. It was Tani. Somehow she’d managed to get on all fours. Her face was partly covered in blood and dust caked. Tears streamed down her cheeks when she found out that Junior was still alive. She pushed his hand to reassure him she was okay.

Sirens were wailing from afar when she took a look around and found the rest of the team motionless on the ground. She could only guess who was who as the men’s bodies were buried under debris and settling dust. As she tried to move, she felt a sharp sting in her side. She looked down and discovered a chunk of wood embedded in her flesh. It was the last thing she remembered before the world around her went dark.

[uswntpoet]

Love on the brain (Part 9)

Hey guys, sorry I was really busy :) I hope you enjoy the chapter. As always, sorry for any mistakes. Let me know what you think!

The chapter is also up on Ao3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17576201/chapters/42483425

The next day Kelley and Alex’s parents decide to visit a museum together and since the younger members of both families feel more like doing some kind of physical activity, they decide to go to a Laser Tag arena. After an instructor helped them into the gear and told them how to shoot properly, they start splitting into two teams, intentionally splitting all the couples. The first team, ‘Team Black’, consists of Kelley, her brother Jerry, Allie and Alex’s sisters Jeri and Jen. They face ‘Team White’ consisting of Alex, Bati, Kelley’s sister Erin, the husband of Alex’s sister Jen and Kristy, the wife of Kelley’s brother.

“Okay guys, I will bring Team Black to the other end of the arena. Team White you wait here. I will start a countdown, when you hear that countdown the game is about to start and you can position yourself wherever you want. When the air horn goes off the battle begins and you keep on playing until all members of one team are eliminated. The people, who get hit, come back to the instruction room. Understood?” the instructor asks. They all nod their heads.

“Good! May the best team win. Follow me Team Black.” he says.

“You stand no chance.” Erin yells at them.

“Pride goes before a fall, loser.” Kelley counters. She walks over to Alex and kisses her.

“Good luck, you’ll need it.” Alex whispers.

“Hit me with your best shot, princess.” Kelley winks at her.

“Worms, stop befriending the enemy and move your ass to the other end of the arena.” Allie remarks.

“Strictly speaking, I’m sleeping with the enemy.” Kelley jokes, while Alex looks at her piercingly.

“Babe.”

“What? The whole team is, except for Erin and Jeri.” Kelley justifies, which makes everyone laugh.

“Good one, Worms.” Allie says, high-fiving Kelley.

“Move your pretty ass, before I shoot you right now.” Alex chuckles.

“Guys, I think we should go.” Kelley says hurried.

“Whipped as fuck.” Allie hollers, while Team Black leaves with loud cheers.

“Okay guys, Jerry will be a tough nut. He knows his stuff from the air force.” Jerry’s wife says as Team White huddles.

“As I know Jerry and Kelley, they will use every opportunity to play dirty.” Erin comments.

“Then we are going to play even dirtier.” Alex says determined.

“Right! I’ll shut down Allie that will be easy, after that I try to catch Jerry off guard, but I’ll need some backing.” Bati says looking at Jen’s husband, who nods.

“Girls, we try to tag Jen and Jeri and after that we’ll handle Kelley.” Alex instructs, Erin and Jerry’s wife nod.

Meanwhile, at the other end of the arena Team Black is forming a huddle as well.

“Aight Team Black we have to get down and dirty. Don’t take any prisoners!” Kelley orders.

“I can try to draw the attention of some on me, but you’ll have to be ready and back me up.” Jerry says to Jen and Jeri.

“They will try to take down Jerry first, that’s when we have to attack from behind.” Kelley directs looking at Allie.

“Guys be filthy and messy. No compromising!” Allie encourages.

“Kay, let’s get em’” Kelley says belligerent.

The deafening loud countdown by a robot voice starts booming throughout the arena.

“Ten. Nine. Eight.”

Kelley and Allie start charging towards the staircase, which leads to the second floor, while Jerry, Jen and Jeri start making their way through the maze of walls that is providing hideouts and cover.

“Seven. Six.”

Meanwhile, Bati and Jen’s husband enter the maze as well, while Alex, Erin and Kristy enter the other side of the maze.

“Five. Four. Three.”

The adrenalin is sky high.

“Two.”

“One.” when Kelley and Allie ran halfway through the second floor, the air horn goes off. Downstairs they hear loud yelling. They run down the stairs on the other end of the arena and head into the maze as well. It is pretty dark in the hall, but not as dark as upstairs, where you can barely see anything and you have to go by hearing. Kelley and Allie are sneaking through the maze quietly, but they can hear that the battle is at full blast.  

“Take cover!!!” Jerry yells loudly.

“Take that, sucker!” Erin yells.

“Darn it!” Jen calls, getting hit by her husband.

“I got shot!” Jen’s husband screams.

They hear fast approaching steps and look at each other wide eyed.

“Okay let’s split up!” Kelley whisper yells.

“Roger that.” Allie says, heading left, while Kelley heads right. A shadow is causing her to come to a halt. Kelley aims the Laser Tag gun towards the shadow and pulls the trigger just in the moment Erin runs around the corner, hitting the sensor perfectly.

“Who the fuck was that?!” Erin exclaims annoyed, looking around hastily. Kelley charges in a different direction, not wanting to be seen, so she can sneak around undiscovered. She heads for the staircase again, seeking cover behind a box. She hears light steps coming towards her. She aims and hits Kristy as well, quickly running to the other side and ducking behind a wall. Jerry’s wife walks past her, cursing, but Kelley is not discovered yet again. Downstairs Jerry and Bati are having a fierce battle, which Bati ultimately wins, due to Jerry taking a risk by giving up his cover. Bati’s loud cheers are interrupted by the sound of Allie’s gun hitting him. She laughs loudly, while running away quickly. Meanwhile, Alex tip toes behind Jeri, waiting for the perfect moment to aim for her sensor.

“You bitch.” Jeri says, when she turns around and sees who shot her. Alex laughs at her and runs towards the other end of the arena. Upstairs, Kelley hears steps and heavy breathing, she turns around and runs to the left, crashing into someone hard.

“Ow! Who are you?”

“Damn, shut up Allie! You nearly gave me a heart attack.” Kelley hisses.

“Thank god, Wormy! How many are left?”

“I don’t know. I shot Erin and Kristy and by what I heard Jen and her husband are out as well. What about you?”

“Jerry was shot by Bati and I shot Bati, so Jeri and Alex must be left.”

“Perfect, if it’s the three of us, we should get her easily.”

“How about I go down that staircase and you go down the one on the other side? That way we can pen her in.”

“Yeah, let’s do that. If you see her whistle.” Kelley says, making her way to the other side slowly. Allie reaches the stairs, but is surprised by a hand covering her mouth and her sensor signaling that she has been shot. Allie looks to her right, to see Alex putting her finger to her mouth, signaling for her to be quiet. Allie walks down the stairs and towards the instruction room, but whistles on the way. Kelley turns around abruptly.

“Shit. Allie.” she says to herself. She leans against a wall and peeks around the edge. She hears a loud bang in the staircase she was supposed to walk down. Her heart starts beating faster and her breathing is getting heavier. She turns around again and walks towards the sound of the bang. About 20 meters before the staircase she hides behind a wall again, when suddenly someone pushes her into a corner. Kelley’s breath hitches and she immediately smells and feels that it is Alex. Alex moves closer to her, pressing her against the brick wall and starts kissing her sensually, but also possessively. Kelley is completely blindsided by the ambush and all she does is kiss her back. Kelley’s pulse is skyrocketing through the roof and she has to admit that this is turning her on massively. Alex is totally dominating the kiss and enjoys Kelley being taken-aback for once. Their mouths clash lustfully and they make out in the corner for a good minute. At one point, Alex starts to slow down and pulls away. She then moves in again to breathe against Kelley’s ear sexily. The hot stream of air and her proximity makes Kelley shudder and she closes her eyes. Alex whispers into her ear seductively.

“Gotcha.”

She pulls away quickly and Kelley needs a second to process what Alex just said. She opens her eyes in a flash and all she sees is Alex walking away. She looks down her body and sighs when her sensor flashes brightly.

“You dumb, needy moron.” Kelley curses at herself, throwing her head back, annoyed with how she gave in. Kelley slowly walks to the instruction room, where everybody is already waiting expectantly. When Kelley walks in right after Alex ,Team White cheers loudly, celebrating Alex, while Team Black looks frustrated.

“Damn it, what happened Kel?” Jerry asks.

“Yes, Worms, didn’t you hear my whistling?” Allie says throwing her hands up displeased. The whole room goes quite, waiting for Kelley to answer the question. She switches her gaze to look at Alex in panic, who is smirking at her.

“Yeah, Kel that’s indeed a really good question.” Alex teases, trying to hide her laughter. Kelley gives her a look that screams ‘Why are you doing this to me?’.

“It was an ambush. She just knows me too well. It was the most efficient trick, when it comes to annihilating me. I stood no chance, sorry guys.” she declares, saving herself from embarrassment. Team Black sighs, while Team White high fives with loud cheers.

“Rematch?” Jen asks, to which they all respond with eager nodding.

“Hell yeah.” Allie grins. They all start swarming out to the designated starting points, leaving the instruction room. When Alex tries to exit the room an arm slams into the doorframe, blocking her way. She is pushed up against the wall and met with a bruising kiss. Kelley pulls away slightly, just so their lips aren’t touching anymore. She lingers there for a second.

“We’ll talk about this at home.” she says assertively. The sexual tension could be cut with a knife right now. It lays heavy above them, altering every touch, every move, every beating of their hearts. Alex senses the dominance Kelley radiates and it turns her on even more.

“No talking required.” Alex breathes. The vanity of her tone drives Kelley insane and she knows it.

“Can’t wait for it, Captain Morgan.”

“Me neither, Officer O’Hara.”

“Kel, are you coming?” Jerry yells. Kelley salutes and races out of the room, causing Alex to laugh.

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

After everyone got the chance to freshen up at their hotel rooms and homes, they all meet up for dinner. When they arrive at the restaurant their parents are already waiting outside and slowly but surely all the couples and family members arrive. The waitress leads them to a huge booth and Kelley and Alex squeeze into the corner of it with Allie and Bati right next to them and Alex’s parents just across the table. Kelley’s parents get seated next to Alex’s parents and the siblings plus partners at the other end of the table. The dinner is very nice and everybody is chatting about the day happily. With every glass of wine Alex consumes she is getting clingier. While Kelley is the one with the dumb ideas when she is drunk and owns the title of a reckless drunk, Alex is definitely a touchy-feely drunk or sometimes a horny drunk. Right now Alex is holding onto Kelley’s arm and strokes her bicep up and down, leaning into her, not leaving an inch of space. However, Kelley doesn’t mind one bit. She finds it really cute when Alex gets affectionate with her and mindlessly rests her hand on Alex’s thigh, drawing circles with her fingertips.

“Honey, show me that watch again.” Alex’s mom urges. Alex holds out her wrist so that her mom can have a closer look.

“Just gorgeous.” Pam gushes. Alex eyes the watch proudly, her eyes lighting up.

“Isn’t it?? I love it so much. It’s just perfect.” Alex raves, looking up at Kelley, her eyes shimmering even more intensely now.

“Yes, I really have to say, excellent choice Kelley.” Michael smiles at her.

“I tend to have great taste.” Kelley smiles, leaning down to plant a kiss on the top of Alex’s head, who smiles brightly. Alex place her hand back on Kelley’s bicep, where it proceeds to stroke, as she leans up to peck Kelley’s lips. Michael and Pam smile at the interaction and Kelley wraps her arm around Alex’s shoulder. Therefore, Alex reaches up for Kelley’s hand to intertwine them and her other hand now rests on Kelley’s thigh instead.

“So how was Laser Tag?” Michael asks interested.

“Pretty awesome, we had quiet the time.” Kelley answers.

“Actually, Kelley absolutely smashed it.” Alex says proudly, moving her hand to the inside of Kelley’s thigh, moving up slowly. Kelley, who has been leaning back relaxed the whole time, instantly sits up straight, tensing at the touch. She clears her throat and looks at Alex questioningly.  

“Yeah? It must run in the family then.” Michael counters. Kelley shoots daggers at Alex, who acts as if nothing is happening and squeezes the inside of Kelley’s thigh firmly. Kelley’s head shoots towards Pam and Michael, as she clears her throat again.

“Eh yah…” she says absentmindedly.

“But as a matter of fact, Alex beat me in the first round.” Kelley adds, as she tries to regain her composure.

“Oh, did you honey?” Pam asks.

“Yes, but after that round Kelley just screwed us. We stood no chance.” Alex argues, moving her hand to Kelley’s center, applying pressure to it. Kelley starts shifting nervously, having enough of Alex’s innuendos and therefore reaching for Alex’s hand to stop her.  

“Impressive Kelley, so apparently you are good at many sports.”

“Well…a few.”

“Babe, don’t underplay your talent. Kelley nails it in every sport.” Alex says, escaping Kelley’s death grip.    

“So far of what I have seen Alex seems to be right, considering your performances at our annual thanksgiving football matches.”

“Yeah, your performances are just excellent. I’m impressed every time, baby.” Alex responds, slipping her hand inside Kelley’s pants. Kelley jumps in surprise, hitting her knee on the table in the process, which catches the attention of the others. However, right in that moment Kelley must have a guardian angel, because a waitress is passing by the table, who she lifts her hand at to order another drink. Luckily, this catches the attention of the rest of the group and everybody starts ordering as well. After that they continue with their conversations and to Kelley’s luck Pam and Michael also start a conversation with her parents, disregarding Alex and Kelley. Alex tries to hide her laughter, burying her face in Kelley’s neck.  

“That’s not funny.” Kelley rolls her eyes. Alex leans in to whisper in Kelley’s ear.

“I thought it was hilarious.”

“I can see that.”

“If they only knew you smashed, screwed and nailed their daughter.” Alex laughs.

“Trust me, one more innuendo and they would have known.”

“I don’t care.” Alex breathes, kissing Kelley’s ear.

“I think tomorrow you would.” Kelley laughs.

“I can’t believe you, out of all people, are talking me out of this right now.” Alex leans back, laughing.

“Yeah, cause I can’t believe you actually just tried something in front of your parents, screw that, our entire families in a restaurant of all places.” Kelley shakes her head, grinning at Alex.

“You’re welcome.” Alex smirks, winking at Kelley and turning around to start a conversation with Allie. Kelley laughs and watches Alex intently, like usual not quiet able to take her eyes off of the most interesting and stunning girl she has ever met. It feels surreal that this beautiful human being has decided to say yes to her, not anybody else, but her, even though there are billions of people on this planet. Kelley’s thoughts are interrupted by Alex’s hand blindly reaching back to intertwine their hands. Without searching around or looking Alex finds her hand, meanwhile still being engrossed in her conversation with Allie. Kelley puts her arm back around Alex, pressing a kiss to her temple. Alex briefly turns around, squeezes her hand and smiles at her before turning back to Allie. Kelley ends up thinking ‘There can’t be anything more perfect than this love.’, before engaging in the conversation as well.

[miserablesoldier]

Texas Hold ‘Em

Pairings: Bucky Barnes x Reader, Steve Rogers x Reader and (Platonic) Natasha Romanoff x Reader

Summary: Previously, on Go Fish, on a mission to capture an enhanced individual, Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes unassumingly come across them in an elevator in a run down hotel in which gets pretty awkward when it gets stuck in the middle of the night. Now, in the hands of the Avengers in their compound, the team find out and realise there are more sides to the story than just the good guys fighting the bad guys. You’re in their grey area. 

Warnings: Swearing 

Word Count: 3.4k+

Author’s Note: This is part two or a sequel to Go Fish, so if you haven’t read it I suggest that you do so you’re not all confused on what’s going on. 

You didn’t put up much of a fight. Hell, you didn’t fight at all. All you said was: “which way to your car then?” No commotion, not harsh words just a slow walk to the Jeep. 

You thought it was best if you didn’t make it more awkward with Steve and Bucky. You had a good idea of what they were probably thinking about you. Words of betrayal, lies, and a ‘why’ with lots of question marks circling their heads. 

Kind of like in Tom and Jerry. 

You preferred Ben and Jerry though. 

Steve put fancy electronic cuffs on you, the look on his face was just disappointment in you and probably himself for trusting you. “Is this really necessary?” You asked him in a low and soft voice, your eyes refusing to leave his alone. 

“Protocol, Ma’am.” Back to the Ma’am, great. Bucky pulled you gently from Steve, helping you into the back of the vehicle with the two super soldiers sat in front of you in case if you were planning of getting away or attacking them in any way shape or form. 

Not that you were planning to. Realistically, being with them was the safest place you could be in right now. Protected and guarded by not one, not two but three Avengers. What’s the point in making a getaway if you’re innocent? 

Well, depends which crime. 

The engine roared to life and pulled out of the car park of the motel. Tony was driving but was insistent with his questions of what happened. 

“So, (Y/N), is it? It is, right? No mistake from Scotland Yard?” Stark called from the behind the wheel and through the caged hatch from where you were uncomfortably sat in. 

You nodded. “Yeah, they got it right.” 

You were sure he smirked or was it a smile? It was hard to tell through the wired window. “You had a hell of a bad day.” He laughed through it. 

You frowned and narrowed your eyes at the back of his head. “Do elaborate, Mister Stark.” 

Tony ‘ooo’d. “Mister Stark? That sounds kinky.”

“If you think titles are kinky, no judgement from me.” You smiled and shook your head mid-laugh. 

You glanced at Steve and Bucky for a split moment and they had the same expressions as they had when they found out you were who they were chasing after. They looked like wounded pups, the ones with soft floppy ears as well. 

Tony made a quick right turns and jerked the Jeep which made yourself, Steve and Bucky unbalanced and move involuntarily. You closed your eyes, wincing as you banged the back of your head against the metal back on the car. “Sorry about that.”

“No, you’re not – you were saying?” You pushed him to continue his mantra, anything but this silence with the lads would be more preferable. 

“Ah, your bad day. You were living in a crappy, dirty motel, got trapped in an elevator with those two and now you’re chained up. Like some kind of Simon Pegg and Nick Frost movie.” 

You cocked an eyebrow. “Wouldn’t that make me the unsung hero? Or one of the friends that gets killed off?” 

“Depends, are you innocent?” Ah, a test. That wasn’t really subtle but you had the eyes of Steve and Bucky on you. 

They were intrigued and listening to your answer. “Are any of us really innocent?” Bucky hardened his jaw and looked away as Steve looked down at his shoes. 

“Touché.” Tony muttered as the car picked up speed on the dirt road they turned off on. 

You leant your head back to the metallic, corrugated wall and closed your eyes. You knew the soldiers were watching you, as they had to, but they was something more behind it than just duty. Closing your eyes, you allowed your mind to wander to a place where there wasn’t any threat to you and there was genuine happiness and a family that loved you. 

It’s the same place you go when you need to sleep but sadly, you didn’t have the ability to manipulate dreams at all so they quickly turned to nightmares. Variations upon variations of what happened almost seventeen years before you boarded everything up and high tailed it out of there. At first, it made you sad and in tears but that faded. Year by year. Those tears down fall down the curve of your cheek anymore and the feeling of sadness is now nostalgia. 

Now, you have it as a goal. A future to look forward to and not run away from. Those boards will be torn down one day and will be filled with light, warmth and the smell of old books. 

A home was your dream and a hope to be a reality. 

You were forced out of that façade by a forceful and sudden stop. Opening your eyes, you met Bucky and Steve. Still sat across from you – still visibly upset no matter how much they tried to hide it. 

You knew.  

“End of the ride, folks.” Tony pulled the hand-break and killed the engine, pulling out the keys. There were no actual windows from in the Jeep so you had no idea where you actual was. 

You gathered that was the idea – you were pretty sure that they have a massive Avenger’s sign on the building like they did the tower so the objective of being hidden and discreet was thrown out the window. 

Tony opened up the door from the outside and Steve climbed out. Bucky got you up and in front of him, helping you out with ease. You were pretty sure that he could lift and throw you up in the air if he wanted. 

You followed Steve and Tony as they led you out of whatever basement this was and into an elevator. Stark smirked. “Hopefully this one won’t stall.” A glare from both super soldiers was earned. 

Tough crowd. 

You were guided into a cell or four star hotel suite by the look of it. A definite upgrade from the shitty hotel. If this is how Tony treats his prisoners than how does he treat the Avengers? You wanted to ask if you could be a prisoner for a while. 

“So, there’s the bed, shower, toilet and a desk as you can see.” They were going to leave you alone for awhile to stew and for them to come up with a game plan with what to do with you. 

You nodded, walking over to the bed and parking your butt on it. “Comfy.” 

“Glad you think so.” Tony left the room, leaving you with Steve and Bucky. 

They just stared at you and you haven’t decided whether you were uncomfortable or welcome to it just yet. The men were waiting on you to explain yourself but after a good, long sullen silence of five minutes – which was pretty awkward – Bucky groaned and left. 

Steve stayed for just one moment to say something that you thought could be at least something, anything. “There are set times for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Six am, twelve pm and seven pm.” You nodded. 

“Thank you, Steve.” That was genuine and the look he gave you made you actually feel worse for deceiving them even though that you literally met them eight hours ago. 

This confused the hell out of you. 

Steve left. As the door officially locked, your restraints were unlocked and dropped on the floor. 

“Nice.” You dragged out, looking around the room. 

Definitely better than the motel. 

Hours and hours went by, you figured it was best to sleep until someone either came in with food or came to interrogate you. Someone had come in while you were asleep, it was for dinner and they didn’t wake you up. The food was placed on the desk and, of course, you devoured it when you woke up. You were hungry and the last thing you ate was half a sandwich in an elevator and you knew they didn’t poison the food as they needed you. More like they needed whatever was in your brain to pin the crimes on you because that looked like the way it was heading. 

You sat up slowly from the bed as the door unlocked. A woman with dark red hair that stopped at her shoulders came in with nothing in her hands. You recognised her from whatever show or news caster was reporting on the Avengers that day. The Russian assassin or spy, whatever. 

She smiled, which you assumed was fake and to lure you in. “Hi there.”

“Hey.” 

She motioned to the unused half of the bed. “Mind if I sit?”

You shook your head. “Go right ahead.” 

“You’re (Y/N), right?” She asked. 

Your eyes scanned her. “Would you be here if I wasn’t?” You smirked. 

She exhaled a laugh. “Valid point.”

A silence and then she continued. “Natasha Romanoff.” 

“I’m aware.” You crossed your legs and you were also aware of the fact that she was observing and reading your actions to determine what you are like and what your next actions would be. 

Which would be nothing at all, to her displeasure. 

Natasha found your eyes interesting, you noticed as she kept coming back to them. “Do you know why you’re here?”

You nearly deadpanned at the question. “I reckon I’m here because you have the idea in your heads that I’ve done something bad worthy enough for the Avengers involvement.”

She smiled and raised an eyebrow. “You think we are wrong to suspect you?” 

“Wrong to suspect me? No. Wrong to in-prison me for it? Yes.” You enjoyed being vague especially with a highly trained assassin. 

Natasha straightened her back, she wasn’t expecting this. “You believe someone is framing you?” 

“I wouldn’t say framing me, just murdering innocent people in my name to prove a point. I imagine he wasn’t expecting for you guys to get involved.” You added a tidbit to entice her. 

Natasha was watching every little muscle you make, watching to see if you were lying at all but what you were saying was and is the truth. “He? Scorned lover?” She smirked. 

You laughed. “No, no, more like a guy thinking daddy could fix everything and get away with it.” 

“Could I get a name?” 

You raised an eyebrow and she informed you of why. “So, you’re not the person in prison for a crime you didn’t commit.

“Check my story, alibi, that sort of thing? He has a few names that I’m aware of.” Natasha got up and pulled out a blank note book from the desk as well as a pen. She handed them to you as you sat down. 

Overall, you wrote down seventeen names. One for each year. He would reform himself at the start of every year and get into all sorts of trouble and not the good kind. Natasha was surprised at how many you wrote down, you were sure that she was beginning to believe in your story. 

You were being framed. 

“Rogers and Barnes will be glad to hear of this.” Natasha dropped that on you as she got up to leave. 

You didn’t really believe that. “That so?” You had imagined that they would resent you for a little while, at least. 

“Very so.” And Natasha left, the door locking behind her. 

Getting back to sleep had proven difficult for a couple hours, so you let your mind wonder to a safe place. You thought you would be back in that house but no, you were in an elevator. You were sat down, with cards in your hands. Steve was there, smiling and laughing. Bucky was beside you, looking at you with those eyes you could actually lose yourself in. This was a safe place and you missed it. You missed being their friend or whatever you were in there for six or so hours. 

You were playing this by ear. You weren’t manipulative, you didn’t have a play in mind. You just wanted to live, survive, and play a card game or two. You wanted to get away. You wanted to go home but here you are. In the Avengers compound, laying on the comfiest bed you’ve had the pleasure of sleeping on I’m seventeen years. You had forgot how nice it is to sleep in a nice bed. 

Sleep came slow and naturally but you were nudged awake by a different woman with flowing long brown hair. “Can I help you?” You mumbles and groaned, wiping the sleep out of your eyes with the sleeves of your shirt. You didn’t have the strength to figure out her name yet. 

The woman had rolled her eyes. “I’m Wanda, and we know you’re innocent.” 

“Well, Wanda, I literally just woke up so give me a minute.” You were going slow and she just wanted you up and ready, wanting to shock Steve and Bucky in the morning with you at the table – they weren’t informed of what Natasha got from you last night yet. 

A red hue covered your body and forced you up to your feet. You frowned at the woman. “That was rude.”

“Get dressed, Tony cleaned the clothes that you had.” How kind of him. 

You got undressed with no warning whatsoever for Wanda, she quickly turned around and you chuckled. Stepping into clean clothes was a nice feeling that you’ve missed. You shoved your feet into your boots and tied your hair back. “You can look now, and we can go.”

Wanda opened the door and you followed, with no restraints this time. In the elevator up, you looked over at her.

“So, where are we going?” You weren’t exactly told. 

Wanda glanced at you and the shifted her body to face you. “The kitchen and dining room. It’s breakfast in five minutes.” 

“What’s on the menu?” Food sounded good right now. 

“It’s a free for all so there’s all kind of cereal, toast and sandwiches and any drinks really. Tony keeps everything fully stocked.” Wanda told you, which she didn’t really have to. You were under the impression that as soon as some kind of briefing went down and they went after the guy you would skedaddle out of there.

And finally back home. 

But that wasn’t the case at all, was it?

Everyone was already at the table, beginning to eat as you two left the elevator and walked into the dining room. Bucky looked up first and saw you, and then Steve. Those blue eyes were so wide and full of shock, it was quite comical. 

“Wanda, what are you doing? She’s in containment.” Steve rose up from his chair, his mood declined. 

You took a step forward towards them. “Didn’t you hear, lads? I’m innocent.” You smiled happily. 

“What do you mean innocent?” Bucky was the second to rise up from his chair. 

Natasha quickly diffused them. “Sit down, soldiers. She gave me her story and it checks out. (Y/N) is being framed by a guy with a crappy temper.” 

Steve and Bucky’s darkened moods seem to fade as they lowered themselves down into their seats. Wanda sat you down beside her and Clint. The two soldiers looked at each other and then you. You felt their eyes on you and you didn’t know what to say to them or think at all – and you weren’t about to say anything at all with nearly every Avenger at the table. 

Tony took a bite out of a piece of toast. “So, what’d you do to piss him off so bad?” 

“Tony.” Pepper hit his arm as a warning. 

He looked at her like he had no idea why she hit him. “What?”

You shrugged. “It’s okay, Miss Potts.” They might as well know. 

“I humiliated him at this massively and overtly expensive gala he was hosting for the very first time. I basically ended his social life on the spot and basically his future.” You began as your poured milk on top of your cereal. 

They were all quite content on listening to your story, especially Steve and Bucky. “Why were you at the gala?” Clint asked her, taking a sip on his coffee. 

“My family were invited.” 

Natasha twirled the stirring spoon in her coffee. “Wealthy?”

You shook your head. “I knew what he was and I found out what he was going to continue to do to girls, guys and anyone who got in his way. Whether if it was sport or pleasure. My great great something or other was in business with his great great grandfather so his parents were friendly with mine – that’s how we got in.”

You met Steve and Bucky’s gaze at the other end of the table. Steve spoke to her gently for the first time since the elevator. “What did you do to him?” 

“Nothing that he didn’t deserve. He hurt someone I care about and karma hit him. It hit him hard and now he wants my head for what I did.” You finished your cereal and downed a glass of fresh orange juice. 

Natasha softly spoke to her. “Hey.” She got your attention. 

“That cycle ends now.” 

You nodded. “Good because I’ve waited seventeen years and I want to go home.” 

After breakfast, Natasha and Wanda guided you to the wreck room where a pool table, fuse ball table, air hockey, plenty of video games and books were held. They left you to entertain yourself as they debriefed the mission to the team a couple floors up in the conference room. 

You sat on the ‘L’ shaped sofa and watched Hot Fuzz, it was a favourite. For the next three to four days, you had free reign of the facility all by yourself and Vision – who you found a bit weird but so were you. 

Steve came back a day early. He wanted to talk to you, alone. You greeted him with a soft ‘Hello’ and he just hugged you. You thought you would be crushed but it was actually nice. 

“Is everything okay?” You asked as you pulled away. 

Steve nodded. “Yeah, everything is being taken care of. They found him, and it’s happening tonight. Tomorrow you can go home.” 

You were shocked, you didn’t think this day would come and it has. That dream would become a reality. “Really?”

He smiled. “Really.”

“Wow.” 

“Seventeen years is a long time to be waiting, you know?” Steve sat down with you on the sofa. 

You gave him a small smile and nodded. “I had to. To protect the ones I love, I’m sure you could understand, Cap.” That felt wrong but sort of right to say. He was always Steve Rogers to you. You never saw the Captain America side of him – only heard of it. 

“Yeah, I thought we should talk finally after what happened.” 

“No time like the present.” You felt like you should go first but Steve happens to be a gentlemen. 

He looked shy. “I’m sorry.”

“Shouldn’t I be the one saying that to you and Bucky?” You relaxed your shoulders, removing tenseness from yourself for what’s to come. 

He had a few questions to ask. “When you met us, before the elevator, did you know who we were?”

You shook your head. “No, I didn’t. I only realised when I overheard you talking to Bucky when you thought I was listening to loud music then the elevator stalled.”

“That makes sense and makes me feel a lot better actually.” He chuckled, very relieved. He should have talked to you sooner. 

You raised an eyebrow. “I still deceived you a little bit.” 

Steve shook his head. “No, you didn’t. You made the best of a bad situation. You thought the worst when you realised who we were and wanted to survive.” 

“Self preservation and all that.” You looked at your hands, trying to focus on your next words to him. 

You came back to his eyes. Very nice eyes. “I don’t regret any friendship made in the elevator with you two. That was me. Those photos are real. Everything was real.” 

Another voice made you turn both of your heads. “I’m glad to hear that.” 

“Bucky.” You slowly stood and he walked over to you. He pulled you into a nice, deep hug which you thoroughly enjoyed. 

He took your hands in his. “When you’re ready to finally go home, take our phone numbers. Stay in touch.” 

“Maybe, come visit us here.” You smiled, how did you get so attached to these guys? 

Steve came up and stood by his best friend. “Perhaps, we could visit you. If you wanted.” 

Bucky smiled at you. “Play a game of cards?”

You laughed. “Game night at my place? You’re on.”

[thirstygirlclub]

Duchess - 10

Chapter 10 – He’s Not Dead

Happy/ 3rd Person POV

“We can’t just let her go!” Juice exclaimed at Jax and Chibs, “That guy’s gonna kill her! You didn’t see what he was doing to the kid and he’s like… at least 3 times her size!”

“We’re not her babysitters,” Jax said with a reluctant sigh.

Chibs huffed angrily. He knew that Jax was right but that didn’t stop any of them from getting over protective of her. It was because she was tiny, barely coming up to Happy’s shoulder, that they felt that way. Juice was right. Jerry had damn near killed Jack who was taller than all of them and built like a pro-football player so what he would do to little Catherine didn’t bare thinking about. She was a kind and innocent girl that probably had no chance of defending herself.

“If he doesn’t kill her, the cold’s gonna,” Juice argued, “she’s practically naked!”

“Stop! Her brother’s still here you idiot!”

No one said anything for a while. They just sat there thinking, wondering what she was planning to do. Her face had been so serious and dark that it was almost frightening. The angry atmosphere was unsettling but Happy had still found himself smiling when she had crossed her arms and threw her hair around because it reminded him so much of when he had first met her. Happy remembered when he didn’t know who she was at the motel all those months ago and he sat with his brothers watching her tottering around the dusty parking lot in stupidly high shoes and short shorts and a tiny crop top. He remembered how turned on he was watching her bend over the trunk of the car to put her suitcases in. When her brother went to talk to them and she was so funny and bratty and he loved it.

He remembered when she looked at him with big, innocent eyes and called him sir.

There was nothing that could stop him now, with those thoughts in his mind, and he stormed through the door after her and chased her through the rain; leaving his friends confused. He grunted when the rain hit him but didn’t let it stop him from going after his girl. She had gotten far, Jax had told him she walks fast, but he managed to catch up with her. She had stopped and waited for him.

He didn’t know what to do when he had caught up though. He wasn’t sure what he had planned on doing but he decided he would try and get her to go back to the garage where she would be safe and warm and where he knew he could look after her but one look at her face and he knew there would be no convincing her so he would just stay by her side while she did what she needed to do. Whatever that was.

When she told him that she loved him, his stomach fell down to his knees and he didn’t know what to do. Nothing made him feel quite so uncertain like Catherine did. He was glad that she wasn’t looking at him and that she was tucked into his kutte because he looked dumb as shit. His mouth was opening and closing and all he could do was nod and hug her and hope that she understood that he loved her too. There was something about the way she seemed to seek refuge in him that made his heart beat slightly quicker and he wanted to tell her that she could always come to him for comfort because he would always keep her safe but words were never his strong point and, even if he tried, he would always say something wrong and upset her so he said nothing. He just let her cry and wrapped her up in his kutte out of the rain; trying desperately to let her know that he was there for her, for whatever she needed him for.

“Sorry, Mr Lowman,” she mumbled, voice quiet in the rain and muffled under the leather, “I don’t mean to cry so much. I’m just sad and angry.”

“I know. It’s ok.”

Her arms squeezed him tighter once more before she slipped her hands around to rest on his stomach so that she could push herself away slightly and she peered up at him through a gap in his kutte.

She reminded him of a kitten Mama once rescued when he was a child, big scared eyes blinking up at him and all wet and bedraggled but still cute as hell. It had been by a river with its dead brothers and sisters just crying and shouting for help when she was on her morning walk. He remembered how she had come through the door, with it tucked into her shawl and showed it to him. Happy didn’t really know what to do with is when she had put it in his hands. The kitten was climbing over him and making him laugh when she played with his tattered t-shirt and chewed on his hair.

“Name her Mijo!” Mama had told him, “She is yours!”

“El Gato,” A young Happy had said with a giggle as she hung off his head and tried to chew his ear.

“You can’t just call her that! She needs a proper name!”

“I wanna call her El Gato!”

Happy spent a long time in juvie as a teenager, getting out when he was just about Catherine’s age and after that he never saw El Gato again. He didn’t ask Mama about it and she didn’t mention it either. It was just one of those things that he was bitter about but that he would have to live with. He had suspected that she had died or gone missing and Mama didn’t have the heart to tell him because, even though he was put in prison for numerous terrible things, she still saw him as an innocent little boy.

A kitten. It fit her so well and it made him smile.

Catherine was looking up at him curiously, blinking in the rain and then he realised that she was touching his face; wiping the rain away from his eyes and off his cheeks. She was gentler than anyone had ever been with him and sweeter than a man like him deserved but regardless, he shut his eyes and leaned in to her touch; finally happy that the knot of jealousy seemed to be loosening with every gentle swipe.

“I appreciate you coming after me, Mr Lowman,” Catherine whispered as she shyly looked over his features from beneath wet eyelashes, “but I’m not going back. I need to do this, for Jack.”

“I know. I’m with you.”

Catherine stayed looking up at him for a moment before she nodded and moved away; leaving him feeling empty and cold. The grey t-shirt she was wearing was now soaked and dark grey with the damp material clinging to her body. He tried not to look, to even think about it, but as she was walking away he couldn’t help it.

There was something about the house that set him on edge. It was too quiet and too dark. He wasn’t sure if Catherine realised that she had had reached out to take his hand and he didn’t flinch away this time. Instead, he linked his fingers with hers; holding onto her hand tightly and let her take him upstairs to find Jerry. There was a sense of dread radiating from Catherine, all of her earlier confidence and anger dissipating into fear. Her hand, like the rest of her, was small in comparison to him. This just made him desperate to keep her safe even though he knew she had to do this on her own; he was just there to make sure she was safe. There was no telling what Jerry was capable of. Like Juice said, she was 3 times smaller than her brother and he got beaten pretty badly.

In his mind, he had always wanted to know what kind of underwear she wore. He had listened to Tig discuss it with Juice often as to whether she wore lace or cotton or something else and it had made his imagination run wild but he didn’t want to see it like this. It littered the floor in delicate scraps of beige and pink and, surprisingly, black. He wasn’t going to report back to the others though. That knowledge was just for him.

With his back to the wall, just outside of her bedroom, he could only hear what was going on. His hand was on the gun at his hip because he knew he would kill for her if he needed too. He would kill Jerry for fun.

Her tentative footsteps and the sound of scissors cutting through material were the only things he could hear for a while. Happy was willing for her to be brave and confident and angry, like she was back at the clubhouse.

Catherine POV

I folded my arms over my wet clothes. Uncle Jerry looked at my t-shirt in confusion while he read the word across the front of it.

“Where have you been?” He asked with a frown.

“With friends.”

“With Clay Morrow?”

I shook my head. He wasn’t there the entire time, like, he brought Jack in then left so I wasn’t technically lying. I thought maybe I shouldn’t let him know that Mr Lowman was with me if he was angry about me maybe hanging out with Mr Morrow.

“Why did you do it? Uncle Jerry, Jack is a kid. You can’t just hurt him like that.”

Uncle Jerry scattered the pieces of my underwear on the floor in front of him and said literally nothing. I watched as it all fluttered to the floor and tried really hard not to want to go and beg for him to stop. I wanted to shout and scream at him but then I remembered that Mr Lowman was here and I didn’t want to look like a total wuss in front of him. I needed to be a grown up now.

“Where is your disgusting brother? Hm? With Clay?” Uncle Jerry said.

He was so weird and literally nothing like he was when I was a kid. Uncle Jerry used to be like, my best friend and I used to always go to his house for dinner and to sleepover when Daddy was working late. I used to trust him but there was something about him now that I hated. I didn’t want him in my bedroom, touching my clothes and all of my things. Uncle Jerry never hurt me before that day.

“Why did you hurt him?” I demanded to know, stamping my foot loudly to get his attention back on me instead of my clothes on the floor.

He stood up, smiling at me like he used too when I was a kid. I used to think it was a kind smile but now it was mean and scary and made me want to cry. My feet squeaked on the wooden floor as I stumbled backwards while he walked towards me with his arms out. As if I was gonna hug him now.

“Come on Catherine, don’t be scared. I’m sorry for hurting you but you can’t just scream and get what you want anymore. It was cute when you were a baby but you’re… all grown up now.”

His voice made me shudder. I was almost back at the door where I hoped Mr Lowman would still be waiting for me. I really hoped he would be there; Mr Lowman feels safe.

I literally had no idea what I was thinking coming back here. I should have listened to Mr Chibs and stayed at the garage with them. I wasn’t brave enough to argue with Uncle Jerry.

While I was thinking, I stopped paying attention to Uncle Jerry. I’m so stupid, why? Why did I stop watching him? Because he came forwards and slammed the door shut behind me before I could even try to run back out. I screamed in surprise until he grabbed my neck and pushed me back against the door. He was so close to me and I hated it. I hated it so much that I started crying.

“Don’t think I didn’t know your friend was with you,” Uncle Jerry hissed as I thumped weekly on the wooded door to try and get Mr Lowman’s attention, “I’m not stupid. They don’t walk very quietly.”

“Hey!” I heard Mr Lowman shout from the other side of the door, “Catherine!”

The door shook behind me as Mr Lowman banged on it but Uncle Jerry turned the key and reached up to shut the locks that Mr Chibs helped me put on there. I tried to claw at his hand and kick at his legs but he didn’t look like he was bothered by it. I was so weak though. I should have just stayed at the garage with Jack and Romeo.

“Stop crying!” Uncle Jerry shouted at me.

It was so loud and in my face and I just couldn’t stop crying because I was so scared. He smelled like alcohol. Mr Lowman was still banging on the door and rattling the handle.

“Please,” I begged Uncle Jerry, “please don’t hurt me.”

He just laughed again and pulled me back from the door to throw me onto my bed. I kind of got caught up on the canopy and landed heavily on the open scissors which were digging into my hip bone. It was so loud. Everything was so loud. I was screaming and crying, Mr Lowman was still banging on the door and he was now shouting in a kind of panicked voice but I couldn’t understand what he was saying and Uncle Jerry was shouting at me to be quiet.

“Catherine!” Mr Lowman shouted harshly.

I was too scared to answer him. The look in Uncle Jerry’s eyes was terrifying and his grin was so big that I could see all of his teeth as he bent over me with his arms on either side of my head. I kicked him in the stomach and started to move back towards my headboard, fighting off his hand where it was pulling at the t-shirt to stop me. It was big though, and stretchy so I could just about get there. If only I could get to my bedside table. I just needed to get in the drawer there.

I rolled onto my stomach as he pulled me by my leg back down the bed. I could hear his heavy breathing and feel his hands on the waistband of my shorts, then pushing my t-shirt and tank top over my back before he pushed down with one hand and fought with my shorts with the other. I knew what he was planning, I wasn’t that stupid and it just made me want to get to the drawer even more. I was still crying silently and breathless from fear and from struggling away from him. Suddenly, I hated that my sheets were made of silk; it hurt when my skin got dragged against them and made me slip when I wanted to fight him away. Somehow, I managed to kick him in the face which made him stop holding me down for just enough time to scramble up to my bedside table.

“Stop,” Uncle Jerry growled, “misbehaving Catherine! You’re supposed to be a good girl for me!”

Just as I grabbed hold of the handle of the drawer he pulled me back to him by my damp hair. It hurt so much but I didn’t let go of the handle so the contents scattered over my floor. I heard what I wanted thud down but I don’t think he noticed.

I need to fight back, I thought, I need to fight back. Mr Lowman wasn’t going to be able to get in on time.

My eyes were flicking over my floor and among the tattered pieces of underwear and clothes I saw the shiny silver of the handgun Daddy had given me for my last birthday. It wasn’t far away from the bed. I just needed to get away.

“You don’t belong to anyone but me, Catherine,” Uncle Jerry was saying to me as his hand was moving up my stomach towards my bra, “you’ve always been my little girl. Did Daddy never tell you where he got the money to build these houses from?”

My head was hurting from where he held my hair and from thinking. I never asked where he got the money from; I literally didn’t care. All I knew was that he was taking me away from my friends and my home to come here. As soon as he pulled my bra down to touch me I realised I still had the drawer in my hand and it was heavy. It was really heavy.

Without really thinking, I swung the wood blindly and managed to get him in the shoulder or the head. I don’t know but he let go of my hair to fight me off. I took the chance. I didn’t know if I was going to get another one. Lunging off the bed, not even caring if I hurt myself anymore, I escaped from him and landed on the floor. I couldn’t see my gun anywhere. I didn’t know where it had gone.

Frantically, I searched through the stuff that had fallen out of the drawer and through the clothes. I was running out of time before he stopped being confused. Mr Lowman had gone, I think. He had left me alone.

Happy/ 3rd Person POV

The sound of Catherine crying and struggling was unbearable. It didn’t matter how much he kicked at the door or shouted for her. He couldn’t get in and he didn’t want to shoot the door down just in case she was there. He didn’t want to hurt her.

“Get here!” he shouted down the phone at Jax, “Now! GET HERE NOW!”

He knew he sounded panicked and scared but he also knew the guys wouldn’t judge him for it. Catherine was going to be hurt and he was powerless to help her from the other side of the door.

It felt like hours before he heard the sound of motorcycles outside. He ran downstairs, not wanting to leave Catherine but needing to show them where to go. It looked like Jax had called all of the guys to come to her aid. He would thank him later. Without saying a word he beckoned them into the house and up the stairs. The sound of heavy boots on glass and screaming were the only things they could hear for a while.

“Stop!” Happy shouted at Tig when he went to shoot the door.

“Either she gets shot or she gets raped,” Tig said without looking at him before shooting the handle of the door and a few times in the middle of the wood to weaken it.

The thought of either outcome made Happy feel sick.

Tig and Chibs kicked through the door and it crashed open at the same time as more gun shots rang out; silencing everybody and making them look around at each other. Nobody had their gun out and it had come from inside the room.

“Oh Sweetheart,” Chibs breathed before he pushed passed everybody to go into the room, “it’s alright. We’re here now. We’re here.”

Happy looked in to see Jerry collapsed on the ground with blood from the wound on his shoulder staining the white shirt. Catherine looked up at Chibs, reaching up to him with both arms; like a child to their parent and he knelt beside her. He cradled her to him with his lips pressed to the top of her head and stroking her hair gently.

He hated that he couldn’t go to her, that he wasn’t the first person in the room to make sure she was ok but the truth was that he was scared. He was terrified of what she would look like; what state she would be in. Would Jerry have succeeded? Did he get what he wanted? He couldn’t do anything as his friends went in, looking everything over and checking to see if Jerry was alive. He was, just knocked out.

“It’s ok,” Chibs whispered kindly as Catherine wound her hands into his t-shirt and pulled herself closer to him, crying and burying her face into the material.

“Did- did I kill him?” She asked quietly.

“No Lass, no he’s not dead. You’re alright. No morals hurt there.”

Catherine nodded.

There was a clump of blonde hair in Jerry’s relaxed hand that made Happy hot with anger. Her beautiful hair had been ripped out roughly and it would have been painful but then again, probably not the worst thing that had happened to her that morning.

“She ok?” Jax asked Chibs once he had finished inspecting the broken piano.

“Yeah, she’s gonna be fine. Won’t you sweetheart? You’ll be ok. Come on now, let’s get up and I’ll take you home. Ok?”

He stood up slowly, bringing the girl up with him. She stood on trembling legs and looked over at Jerry who was starting to come around.

“Please don’t let me be arrested Mr Chibs,” Catherine whispered, “it was- I was protecting myself.”

“We know. He’s not gonna get the police involved.”

Bobby laughed as Jax, Opie and Tig dragged Jerry onto the balcony of her bedroom and locked the door; leaving him locked out in the rain with no way of getting back in unless he punched through the thick glass or jumping down to the garden below. Happy would have done more than that but not with Catherine there and not without Clay’s go ahead.

“Come on Hap,” Chibs said kindly, “look after your girl.”

Happy looked at him with shock. There was no reason for him to say that but the amused look on his face said everything. Even though it was a serious issue, Chibs was poking fun at Happy.

Happy looked down at Catherine and pulled his eyebrows together when he saw her expression. She was upset, obviously, but there was something else. She was worried or concerned about something. She shook her head slightly, mumbling something that sounded like his name, before crossing the small distance to clasp her arms around his waist. With a relieved sigh, Happy held her tightly with his hand on the back of her head. Her hair was still damp from the rain.

“I got you,” he murmured to her, “I’ve got you now.”

She sobbed lightly into his chest.

Catherine POV

Mr Morrow had told me that Jack and I could stay for one more night at their house but then I would have to find somewhere else for us to go. I accepted, wondering where we would be going after that but just happy I wouldn’t have to stay with Uncle Jerry. I wanted to know where Daddy and Mom had gone, I needed Greta to come back to look after us. I just wanted to go home.

Jack had gone crazy when he saw me. Shouting at Mr Lowman and yelling at me. I just turned into Mr Lowman again and hid from him. Mr Lowman put his arm up over my head and covered open ear with his hand. I didn’t want to be shouted at anymore.

“I shot him,” I mumbled to Jack, “I shot Jerry.”

That made him go quiet.

“He’s not dead.”

“Cat…”

I shook my head. I wanted it to stop. Everything hurt. My knees, my arms and my neck. My head was really painful too and I was scared. I was nearly- Uncle Jerry nearly- I didn’t even want to think about it. I never wanted to think about it again.

“Let her rest, ok?” Mr Lowman said firmly, “Come on.”

I nodded and let him take me back to that room that smelt like old beer and cigarettes but made me feel so safe and warm that I didn’t care at all. I didn’t want him to go. I didn’t want Mr Lowman to leave because I wanted to feel safe. He told me that Mr Chibs was gonna come in and have a look at me to make sure I was ok and not too badly injured. I knew I wasn’t but I thought maybe they wouldn’t let me argue with them. I just nodded at him and sat down with my head in my hands and my elbows on my knees. I didn’t feel like crying anymore.

I felt my wet laces brushing against my ankles and when I peeped through my fingers I saw Mr Lowman sat on the floor trying to undo them. It was funny watching him fiddle with my triple knotted laces. He was frowning in concentration and I could have helped him but it was way too funny watching him struggle.

“Why’d you tie them so much?” He asked, scratching his head.

I shrugged.

With a huff, he started to try again. I smiled behind my hands, I wondered why he was helping me to take my shoes off but then Mr Chibs walked in carrying the medical box that probably hadn’t been put away since I helped Jack this morning. He smiled at me and raised his eyebrow at Mr Lowman who had finally been able to get the first knot undone.

“Come on then,” Mr Chibs said, “let’s have a look at you.”

“I’m ok. I don’t need anything.”

“You’re bleeding,” Mr Lowman said, not looking up from my sneakers, “on your side.”

I looked around my body and saw blood on my clothes and my arm. I hadn’t even noticed.

“You mind lifting your shirt up?” Mr Chibs asked gently.

I shook my head and stiffly pulled the t-shirt over my head so that I was just in my tank top which was even more covered in blood. Gross. I let Mr Chibs tug it up slightly but whined when I finally felt what hurt. I couldn’t see anything because it was too far around but Mr Chibs swore so it must be bad. I also had two broken nails and that was literally the worst.

When I looked down at my hands I still couldn’t believe that I actually shot someone. Not just someone though, Uncle Jerry. I tried so hard like my entire life not to ever hurt anyone but I didn’t have a choice, right? I couldn’t just let him hurt me like that.

“Looks like it’s gonna heal fine,” Mr Chibs said, “you’re not gonna need any stitches. More blood than anything.”

“Do you guys hate me?” I asked.

“Why would we hate you?”

“Because I shot a guy? You’re like, really nice and stuff and I just… shot someone.”

Mr Lowman and Mr Chibs looked at each other for a second and I looked between them.

“We don’t hate you,” Mr Lowman assured me with a small nod at Mr Chibs, “we get it.”

“You promise?”

Mr Lowman looked up at me seriously and nodded. He shuffled forwards so that his crossed legs were against my feet on the floor and, kind of shyly, and rested his forehead on my knees and put his hands on the back of my legs; kind of wrapping them around my calves gently. I smiled. I kind of felt a bit brave and touched his head. I don’t know what I expected it to feel like but it literally felt so smooth. I had never noticed that he had a tattoo on his head as well. I was too short I guess and I never ever saw the top of his head. It was a snake, like the one on his chest I remembered, and curled around itself. It must have hurt to get but I think Mr Lowman is like a tough-guy so he was probably ok with it. I followed it around with my finger to try and distract myself from Mr Chibs wiping the blood off of my side and cleaning the wound with the alcohol wipes.

When he was done, Mr Chibs packed the stuff away and stood up. He put his hand on the back of my head and leaned down to kiss my forehead nicely.

“Rest well, ok? You’ve had a rough couple of days. Hap’s gonna stay with you, apparently.”

“Can you be my new dad?” I asked Mr Chibs.

He smiled. Mr Chibs had dimples and it was literally so adorable that it made me smile too. He patted my head gently. He wasn’t saying no.

“Sleep. We’re gonna look after your brother and pup. Just look after yourself for now.”

I nodded but then looked back down to Mr Lowman who was breathing deeply and I wondered if maybe he was asleep.

I heard the door to the room close and Mr Lowman jumped slightly before looking up at me with wide eyes. I laughed quietly and put my hand on his cheek and he closed his eyes with a sigh.

“Thanks Mr Lowman, for helping me and stuff. I- if you weren’t there-”

“Stop.”

He didn’t wanna think about it either. I think maybe I was gonna have to think about it at some point but right now, I decided I was just gonna sit here with Mr Lowman and we could try and not think about it together.

  FUCKING BOOM BITCHES- look whom has uploaded again!! it’s me. I did and I’m very proud of myself. Kind of a Happy-centric chapter but I don’t think that’s too bad every now and again, right? next is gonna be more of Cat.

How do we feel about this chapter? Did we cry? How is Happy feeling that he couldn’t be there to comfort her as soon as he could and had to let Chibs do it?

I gave you angsty chapter with a cute as fuck ending. That kind of makes up for it.

See you in the next one lovelies!

Love, Doe xxxxx

[twdmusicboxmystery]

9x03: Details

Okay, let's talk details. This may be a little bit lengthy.

***As always, spoilers abound for 9x03. You’ve been warned!***

Anne/Jadis and Father Gabriel. 

I probably should've talked about this yesterday in my post about plot points, but I didn't want to make that too long.

What we learned in this episode about Ann is a huge deal, at least where Rick is concerned, and possibly where Beth is concerned. We finally got answers to some questions we've had since S7. Remember that in 7x16, when Negan had everybody in the lineup and was going to kill Carl, and right after Jadis betrayed Rick's group, she wanted 10 of something from Negan. He said eight. She pushed for 10, but Negan glared at her and she conceded.

We didn’t know what she wanted, or why. People made the most sense, but we couldn’t be certain. Then of course there was the helicopter. Jadis was getting supplies from someone, but we didn't understand all the logistics behind it. Then, she captures Negan and tries to offer him to the people in the helicopter. It's interesting because he was freaking out at that point. We assumed he didn't know what was going and just wanted to get away. I don't know if anybody linked the helicopter to their conversation about Jadis wanting something from him.

But in last night’s episode, Anne admitted to FG that she was trading people for supplies. Whoever is in the helicopter is engaged in human trafficking. So, confirmation Anne wanted people from Negan to trade for supplies for the Scavengers. And that means that when she tried to get him to the helicopter people, he probably knew exactly what was going on and that's what he was freaking out. Negan has never mentioned any of this to Rick, I'm sure, and neither has Anne.

This is a very interesting development. First of all, the closest we’ve come to human trafficking on the show in the past is Terminus. So it feels like an adjacent callback to that.

This picture has been circulating on social media. 

The camper Tara and Heath took is at Jadis’s junkyard. This is pretty much confirmation that Jadis’s people took Heath, but they don't have them anymore. They didn't have him by the time Rick met Jadis. They'd obviously traded him already to the helicopter people. Of course, this hasn't been officially confirmed or anything, but given all the clues, this makes the most sense.

Why is this a big deal for Beth? Well, we’re not sure that it is. It's another possibility for where Beth might be. If she's there, she very well could return with Heath.

The reason this is a big deal for Rick is that this might explain how we could return to the show. Think of it this way. I stand by what I said before about him disappearing into a walker horde and, as was foreshadowed in 7x12, Michonne thinking he was eaten by walkers and is dead. But, as in 7x12, he’ll find a random escape and get out from under the walkers. TF wouldn't know unless he showed up at the gates of Alexandria again.

So maybe he escapes the walker horde, but then these human traffickers get a hold of him. Hell, it might even be Jadis that gives him to the traffickers. She pretty much admitted to FG that that's what she was doing when she kidnapped Rick and held him hostage in S7. Remember, she also put in A on the outside of his cell. It might've been a foreshadow that she would eventually give him to the traffickers.

Depending on where these people are and how hard it is to escape, it really could take years for Rick to make his way back. So again, none of this confirmed, but it’s super exciting.

Side note: I thought it was interesting how deeply hurt Anne was by Rick's suspicion. She mentioned it more than once to Father Gabriel, and it was that, more than anything else, that drove her to leave the group. She felt like she wasn't trusted, and anytime anything went wrong, she would be blamed for it. Given her past, you can hardly blame people for that. I'm not sure where this is heading, but I'm sure it will be a big part of her arc moving forward. Mostly, I just thought it was interesting how much value she places on Rick's opinion of her.

A/B symbolism.

@thegloriouscollectorlady made the comment that maybe A and B stand for alpha and beta. I think there's something to that, or at least to the general idea of it. 

Anne asked FG to follow her somewhere. She said that there was another place they could go and they would have lives he couldn't imagine. I kinda don't think she was talking about where the traffickers are. Maybe she was going to take him there, but it sounds like maybe there's yet another community somewhere she knows about. Or she could just be talking about where the traffickers are. Either way, we’re dealing with another place, which presents another possibility for how Beth could emerge.

Anyway, she asked him to follow her somewhere and he refused. She then replied, "and all this time I thought you were a B." I think A represents alpha, or more specifically, a leader. A very strong person. Beta could represent a follower or someone who's not quite as strong. Anne thought Gabriel was a follower and would do as she asked. As it turns out, he does have a mind of his own and is loyal to Rick, so she realizes now that he's not a follower. She's going to trade him to these human traffickers as an A or an alpha/leader.

So, I started thinking about this in terms of all the A's we've seen since season for the prison. Remember that we didn't see any Bs at the prison. Guys, this is actually confirmation of @thegloriouscollectorlady’s 4 Arcs for 4 Communities theory.

Perhaps we saw the A's at the prison to show that all the people at the prison would end up being leaders. All those still alive are. Even the A on the back of Daryl’s shirt at the Sanctuary may have been to show that what he learned while in prison would eventually lead to his leadership. After all, we saw him actually the Sanctuary in 9x01.

On TTD, Pollyanna McIntosh revealed that she does know what the A and B stand for, but couldn't tell anyone yet. She did say she’s excited for everyone to find out. So, they mean something specific in the whole human trafficking dynamic, but this is really interesting symbolically and a great way to help us understand all the A's.

Onto some other details.

We start school that we’ll eventually end at with Cindy executing Arat. Even them showing this first is interesting to me. The beginning mirrors the end, but it's also a clue about where were going to end up. A foreshadowing even though we couldn’t understand what it meant at the time.

We see Justin reanimate as a walker. The camera really focuses on his legs here. At first, I thought these were a random pair of walker legs without a torso attached. That's not the case as it’s Justin, they focused heavily on the legs. It reminded me of 4x01, where Bob saw legs outside the Big Spot. Then, when he's almost bitten, the walker with only one foot crawls toward him. That walker obviously has a torso, but it focused on the walker's legs, too.

We learn that Judith has a cough. We knew from 9x02 there’s a bug going around Alexandria. Another call back to 4a and the virus at the prison.

Also like in 4x01, Rick wakes up and walks through his garden. Specifically, Rick wakes up before everyone else (Michonne is still asleep) and works in the garden. I even think in the 4x01 sequence, we saw him glancing at the graves of the prison. Here, we see him visit Carl's grave with the tomato.

I said yesterday that this is a major turning point. I think that's the reason for all the 4x01 callbacks. This will be the final sequence leading up to Rick's departure. So, they’re putting all these callbacks in.

Michonne is leading! That made me so happy to hear. Rick tells Michonne that she's been leading at Alexandria by herself because he's been working on the bridge. The reason that made me happy is because I've been saying for a long time, since I figured out the 4 Poker Queens theme, that these four ladies that Beth mentions (Michonne, Carol, Maggie, and herself) will have to be leaders in the Apocalypse. We’ve finally reached that point.

Maggie is obviously leading at Hilltop and has been for a while. Michonne is leading Alexandria jointly with Rick, but she's been specifically overseeing Alexandria while he works on other things. And obviously when he leaves, she will be the sole leader there. Carol is definitely leading with Ezekiel. I mean, obviously, we figured that. But Jerry calls Carol “Boss Lady.” It shows that she is an equal leader with Ezekiel. So, we have Carol, Michonne, and Maggie all leading here in the Apocalypse. The only thing missing to fulfill that symbolism from Still is Beth.

They talk about a Richonne baby. I know it's upsetting some people because if Michonne does get pregnant, Rick won't be around for it. But it actually makes me super happy. You all know I’m positive Rick will be back eventually, even if it's not for a few seasons. So, I think it would be awesome if he came back to another child, which is biologically his. But, in a lot of ways, I also hope Michonne doesn't get pregnant before Rick leaves. The reason being that it would be another way to confirm that Rick will be back.

They wouldn’t put this in the show for no reason. It's a definite foreshadow of a Richonne baby. So, if Rick leaves, and they do have years-long time jump, and there's no baby, we can point to this and say, “Hey they specifically foreshadowed a Richonne baby. It's going to happen at some point.”

Everybody notice the anti-Glenn next to Maggie? I saw jokes about this in the fandom, even before the episode aired, and it made me laugh. This guy is super-angry and calling people assholes, so he really is an anti-Glenn, LOL.

We had Richonne family fun day, which was super cute. It's also parallel to Carl spending the day with Judith once he realized he'd been bitten. You could say this is a foreshadow of Rick's imminent departure. Like Carl, he's getting some family time in before he departs. The only difference is that Rick doesn’t know he'll be going, where Carl did.

Rick read Judith The Wizard of Oz! Oh, that made me so happy! I talked about the Dorothy/Wizard of Oz template at Grady HERE. The fact that we now actually have them reading it shows to me that they’ll be returning to Grady and/or Beth soon. Also, the specific part he read was interesting. If listen to the words he read (keep in mind they didn't have to tell us what part of the book he was at; they could have just showed the cover or something) it's when the twister is happening at the beginning and Dorothy is laying on the bed in fear, not sure what to do. 

Rick reads, “As the hours passed and nothing terrible happened, she stopped worrying and resolved to wait calmly and see what the future would bring. At last she crawled over the swaying floor to her bed and lay down upon it. Todo laid down beside her. In spite of the swaying of the house and wailing of the wind, Dorothy soon closed her eyes and fell fast asleep.”

So, we have the dog lying beside her (Sirius/Dog Star symbolism) and when she goes into the dream, she wakes up in a totally new place. In terms of template, Beth went to sleep (when she was taken from Daryl at the funeral home) and woke up in a new land (Oz/Grady). It’s a great thing for TD because Dorothy doesn't die at the end of the Wizard of Oz. She has a long journey, a lot of adventures and a lot of obstacles to overcome, but she eventually makes her way back to her family. (Oh, and her shoes are red. At least in the film version.)

I think it's interesting Rick read the part of the story where Dorothy is on the cusp of leaving her home and waking up in a new land, away from her family. On the one hand, this really could represent Rick’s arc. This is why I waited to talk about this until after I talked about Heath. In terms of Rick's arc mirroring Beth’s, if he's going to do a kidnapping arc, then that suggests he's about to go somewhere—as in, be kidnapped—wake up in a new community, like Beth did. That's super important. But, by extension, when he leaves, that's when the new sheriff in town should finally make her way home.

This episode featured the Richonne handhold that we saw in the trailer and in promo pics. It struck me as immensely important, though. Think of it this way. They held hands just like Bethyl in Alone, and we’re only two episode out from Michonne losing Rick in much the same way Daryl lost Beth.

We noted that they had lots of shots of axes in the show. The camera focused on them and we’re wondering if that's some sort of Red Machete reference. (Like Legs, the gal who picked up Red Machete, is about to appear, perhaps?)

Rick mentions leaving Merle behind in S1. Because we think he’s the one who ultimately left Beth behind, that’s important.

Daryl mentioned Glenn, Abraham, and Sasha. I could go a lot of different directions with this. Daryl wants them to be avenged, just as he avenged Beth by shooting Dawn. But then there’s the fact that he mentions them, but still not Beth. We’re getting callbacks to the deaths caused by Negan, which is also just part of this revenge arc. See what I mean? I could say a lot about this, but I don’t think I need to. You get the gist. (Sorry. Trying to breeze through some of the more obvious stuff because this post is already long.)

We had Maggie and Cindy at the cabin in the woods. More of the cabin in the woods theme. They also said on TTD that having the walker fingers coming out between the boards was a direct call back to 1x01. Once again, we could argue that going back to the beginning, new sheriff is about to wake up and find his (or her) family.

I thought Cindy falling through the porch was kind of interesting. It reminded me a little bit of the Hole in the Roof theory, or maybe falling through a bridge? I guess I'm not sure exactly how interpreter it, but it strikes me as symbolically important. I suppose it could also foreshadow Cindy's death in some way.

While fighting the walker, Cindy’s wound reopened. 

I talked after 9x02 about how they might be foreshadowing Aaron's death because all the emphasis on the possibility of infection setting in, right? @wdway suggested that perhaps, because they talked about this first with Cindy, it actually might be her death they’re foreshadowing.

T-Nonny in my group also pointed out that, even if they are foreshadowing Aaron’s death, they usually do those kind of foreshadows at least one season in advance, if not more. So, we may lose Aaron at some point, but probably not until at least S10.

So back to Cindy. When Daryl asked if she was all right, she said the wound had simply opened up again when fighting the walker. It reminded me of Rick's hand being bandaged in 4a and how he kept hurting again and having to re-bandage it. We also saw something similar with Abraham in S5. So, this really could foreshadow Cindy's death. If her wound was open while she touching walker guts, there's a very huge potential for infection there.

The other thing I thought about is the possibility that this is merely symbolic. Abraham's wound kept reopening because there was something emotional that he simply couldn't get past. It just wouldn't heal, because he hadn't faced his emotions and dealt with his past. You could say the same of Cindy here. Her wound is reopening because even after all this time, she still decided to get revenge on the people who killed her family. She hasn't healed or faced her wounds.

That led me to think that this could be a show-wide theme. Will all the members of TF heal? Yeah, if they can keep infection from setting in. Unfortunately, we’re seeing infection take hold in a big way in this episode. We’ve got fighting, revenge, the saviors walking off the bridge project, people not working together, and Daryl Maggie taking things into their own hands with Negan. And this will probably lead directly to Rick's “demise.” The infection is definitely setting in, and chances are the repercussions will be tragic.

Beatrice did a small fake out. I don’t know that it’s super significant except that it was a fake out. She pretended to have been hit in the head, but really it was elaborate scheme to keep the Oceansiders’ plan from being discovered.

I noticed when Daryl and Maggie were talking the woods, they found this walker.

It's one of those things that was a little bit random because it wasn't a big deal on the show. They heard something, Daryl lifted his is crossbow, sees the walker, and Maggie shrugs and goes to kill it. They focused on it quite a bit, and it was missing a foot. So more of the missing foot symbolism.

I don't have a whole lot more to say about the end than what I said yesterday. The school community that the Oceansiders used to live in was a parallel for the prison. You could also argue it was a lot like the school we saw with Father Gabriel in Coda. It reminded me of both those things.

It was mentioned in my group that this school the Oceansiders stayed at could also parallel the school scene we saw with Rick and Shane in S2. Perhaps something of foreshadow of Jon Bernthal’s return?

There were also a lot of street signs on the gates when Daryl and Maggie got there. I mentioned this before, when we saw this in trailer, a lot of them say things like no U-turn, Road Closed, Pass With Care, etc. I think they symbolize that, now that the Oceansiders have decided to do this and get their revenge, there's no turning back. This is probably going to divide the communities in a way that cannot be easily healed. And that includes Daryl and Maggie refusing to stop it, and the fact that they're going after Negan. Obviously, they’re making decisions that they won’t be able to backpedal from.

 I know a lot of people didn’t appreciate Carol saying every life counts, because she's obviously not had that philosophy in the past. But honestly, I think it shows her growth. It's very true that it's a little hypocritical coming from her, given what she's done in the past. But now that she's happy, with Ezekiel, and mothering Henry, her philosophy has changed. She and Morgan would be BFFs now. ;D

There is also a big X behind Daryl and Maggie here.

At the end, Daryl is carrying the ethanol. Interesting, given that it could be used as fuel for a fire. Daryl’s carrying it on his way to conspire with Maggie to kill Negan. Kinda reminiscent of The Arsonists Lullaby from S6.

Okay, I think that's all my details. Anyone see anything I missed?

[tabloidtoc]

National Examiner, January 11

You can now buy a copy of this issue for your very own at my eBay store: https://www.ebay.com/str/bradentonbooks

Cover: Why JFK destroyed the Rat Pack 

Page 2: The Sky Was Their Limit -- beloved celebs who lost their lives in air crashes -- Patsy Cline, Otis Redding, Rocky Marciano, Kobe Bryant, John Denver, Carole Lombard 

Page 3: Ricky Nelson, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Glenn Miller, Will Rogers, Audie Murphy, Buddy Holly, Lt. Thomas E. Selfride 

Page 4: Cher and her fashion in her movies 

Page 6: Albert Bouria the CEO of COVID-19 vaccine manufacturer Pfizer says he hasn’t taken his company’s shot yet because he doesn’t want people to think he can jump the line 

Page 7: The kids of The Waltons are all grown up and share some fond memories -- Michael Learned (Olivia), Richard Thomas (John-Boy), Kami Cotler (Elizabeth), David W. Harper (Jim-Bob), Mary Elizabeth McDonough (Erin), Judy Norton (Mary Ellen), Eric Scott (Ben) 

Page 8: Avoid these common laundry mistakes 

Page 9: Michael J. Fox: How I survived the darkest days -- Parkinson’s has not destroyed his hope and faith 

Page 10: For the second year in a row Florida businessman Michael Esmond has paid the utility bills of families at risk of having them turned off 

Page 11: Your Health -- watch for unhealthy buildup of anxiety 

* Pantry/Fridge/Countertop -- where to store your food 

Page 12: What do you get for a monarch like Queen Elizabeth who has everything including the crown jewels? Why, gag gifts, of course 

Page 14: Dear Tony -- past lives you’ve both led have led to the Blame Game, Tony predicts many women worldwide will wear white this winter and he predicts there will be a lot more road rage 

Page 15: For more than 15 years Carrie Fisher and her mom Debbie Reynolds lived next door to each other in Beverly Hills -- now Carrie’s only child Billie Lourd is combining the two homes into an estate where she’ll live with fiance Austen Rydell and their newborn son Kingston 

Page 16: John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John grew close while co-starring in the hit 1978 musical Grease and that bond has supported them through thick and thin for four decades 

Page 18: An Ohio man who lost his high school ring while washing his car in 1967 was reunited with it thanks to a good-hearted guy with a metal detector 

Page 19: A whole community in upstate New York had been looking for a lost dog for ten days when a man with a drone stepped in and saved the day 

Page 20: Cover Story -- John F. Kennedy and Frank Sinatra, along with the legendary Rat Pack, were the best of friends until JFK was elected president and then he and his powerful clan crushed them -- in early 1960 then-Sen. Kennedy was running for president and associating with the Rat Pack which consisted of Sinatra, Dean Martin, Joey Bishop, Peter Lawford and Sammy Davis Jr. made him look cool and it also helped fund his campaign -- JFK won the presidency and a thrilled Sinatra built an elaborate communications system and a helipad at his Palm Springs home in expectation of a visit but after the election Sinatra found himself outside the inner circle because Jackie Kennedy despised the singer and didn’t want him anywhere near the White House and Sinatra flaunted his friendships with crime bosses and JFK’s brother Robert Kennedy was the attorney general

Page 22: It’s been a little over a year since Felicity Huffman was released from prison after serving time for her role in the college admissions scandal but she’s starting to get her life and career back on track -- initially Felicity was nervous about working again given the controversy and everything that went down but she shouldn’t have worried so much -- she has landed a part in an upcoming pilot in which she’ll play a widowed owner of a Triple-A baseball team -- Hollywood has a short memory and people have been very forgiving towards her 

Page 24: A church in Iowa bought and forgave a staggering $5 million in medical debt for people across the state 

Page 25: Myths about digestion revealed 

Page 26: 100 ways to 100 years -- you can live longer by following these simple suggestions 

Page 32: Star Dreams -- what celebs wanted to be when they grew up -- Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Jennifer Lawrence, Reese Witherspoon, James Earl Jones, Matthew McConaughey, George Clooney, Julia Roberts, Tony Danza, Goldie Hawn 

Page 35: Winter Beauty Tips -- stay soft and smooth during the cold months 

Page 40: Happy birthday to legendary singer Dionne Warwick who turned 80 years old on December 12 and couldn’t be happier 

Page 42: Tony’s Mystic World -- the power of people 

Page 44: Eyes on the Stars -- Jerry O’Connell with his dog outside his home in L.A. (picture), Gordon Ramsay (picture), when model Lauren Hutton was first starting out she was told to fix her teeth so instead she used a type of wax called mortician’s wax and stuck it between her two front teeth, Dakota Johnson and Chris Martin engaged, two days after the birth of his son Luca Patrick singer Robin Thicke paid tribute to his late dad Alan Thicke, production on Ted Danson’s latest Tinseltown project Mr. Mayor has been disrupted by COVID-19

Page 45: Chrissy Metz singing on the Hallmark Channel (picture), Christopher Walken says he’s never owned a computer or a mobile phone, country icons sing praises of Charley Pride 

Page 46: A man in Maine met his biological dad for the first time at 43 years old and decided to recreate the scene from Elf 

Page 47: Collect Them All -- weird wonderful passions of the stars -- Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz, Janet Jackson, Shaquille O’Neal, Tom Hanks, Claudia Schiffer, Demi Moore

[nfl2sevensummits]

Tom Arnold is an American actor with over 100+ movies and TV shows in addition to working with the USO whom Bob Hope exposed him to years ago plus a host of the Best Damn Sports Show years ago. He keeps reinventing himself and was a super interesting and

172: Tom Arnold: Actor and Comedian talks about how his humble beginnings in rural Iowa transformed into a celebrity life in Hollywood and overcoming family issues along the way.

  Tom Arnold  

  What was it like for actor Tom Arnold growing? “I did grow up in a small farming town and the oldest of seven kids. When you are a kid from Ottumwa, Iowa, you have dreams. You watch the TV. You go to the movies. But you work in the field. You mail hay. You detach the cord. You rope beets. It is impossible to get to Hollywood. You dream about it. You talk about it. You daydream about it. The biggest thing about Hollywood that may come to your town is Andre the Giant. Wrestling occasionally comes to town”

On this episode of Finding Your Summit Podcast, we talk with Tom Arnold, actor and comedian, about his family life early on. “I wanted to be on television because I grew up with a single father. When my dad was 22, I was 4, my sister was 3, and my brother was 1. We would always tell dad that he was boring because he would go to work. He would come home. He would play with us some. But we didn’t think he was very exciting. But as a single 61-year-old father with a 7-year-old and a 4-year-old, I’ve gained a ton more respect. Every day I think about him.” 

  What You Will Learn:

What was Tom Arnold’s first acting job in Hollywood? “One of the first jobs I did in Hollywood was a Bob Hope special. Bob Hope was so nice. He called my dad. The dream I had was that my dad would watch me with Bob Hope on that same TV in that same living room (that Tom Arnold grew up in), and that happened. It was exactly as I dreamed.”

Tom Arnold shares how what he is doing in his life are things that he always dreamed of doing. “I’ve been in over 100 movies. Every dream that I have ever had has come true. From my children, to every movie, TV shows, my sports dreams. I wanted to be on a sports show. I have met most of my heroes, childhood heroes. I’ve sat right next to them. These people would come on my sports show. People that my grandpa and on would just sit and watch.”

Was actor and comedian Andy Kaufman different in person than his professional persona? “He was a very sweet guy. He is very brave. Obviously, Jerry Lawler was in on it. Those were characters. The wrestling people do it… Wrestlers, getting involved there you can get hurt. Wrestling women you can get hurt. Everybody was aware. It was a good thing for wrestling.  But it was a character. He wanted to play a heel. I grew up with that type of wrestling. I worship all of those guys.”

Tom Arnold talks about his passion for sports. “What a gift to go and talk about sports, which I love. Sports, I have always considered my drug of choice. Sports are more fair than life I always say. Because there is a beginning, a middle, and an end. There is no fake news. I mean, you just go out and you watch it and miracles happen. I tell my son, it is never over until it is over 

Out of all of the interviews Tom Arnold said the one that stands out the most is visiting his sister when she was in prison serving 10 years. “I had become friends with the DEA, the agents that had originally had arrested her. She was the queen of meth. They are making a movie about her. I said (to his sister) you got the job there, you don’t don’t do this and that. I helped raise her son who was 7 when his parents went to prison. His dad ended up dying. The guy from the DEA said she is dealing again. He said if she stops right away we will let her off.” 

  True Lies with Arnold Squartzenneger 

 How did the movie True Lies change Tom Arnold’s life? “Of the maybe 120 movies that I have done, True Lies was really the first. I am so lucky because I failed during the last year of my marriage to Roseanne, I was doing the show, going back and forth, and when we got divorced it was a big deal. She is a big star, and I lost my job on the show, weirdly the same day she filed for divorce. They weren’t going, ‘we like both of these guys, we will work with both of them. ‘She was like, ‘if you were to work with him again, you will never see me again.’ So I didn’t think my prospects for jobs were too good. But James Cameron and Arnold were like, ‘forget those, people. When True Lies comes out in two months, everyone is going to be blown away.” 

  Being a Celebrity 

During this episode of Finding Your Summit Podcast, Tom Arnold also talks about the worst thing about being a celebrity. “Bad casting. Tom Arnold doesn’t do...people think they know what you do. Well he does this kind of role because they’ve seen you in a bunch of movies. Or, when you read they are casting a Tom Arnold type but younger.”

  Links to Additional Resources:

Mark Pattison: markpattisonnfl.com

Emilia’s Everest - The Lhotse Challenge: https://www.markpattisonnfl.com/philanthropy/

Tom Arnold: Instagram

Mark Pattison: Instagram

Check out this episode!

[inthehillswithamission]

I Miss Citadel (A feeble attempt at a love letter for an old friend.)

It is still hard for me to comprehend that it has now been over 40 years since I first arrived at Citadel. I had only known the Lord for just a few months and only after two weeks after I was born from above, the Lord had called me to the ministry. I was planning on going into a career that would involve drama but then and even now, I am so glad He called me into the ministry.

 I was so young in my faith, that I will never forget my old buddies did not know what to do with me. I made it clear to them that the old mike had died, and that God was doing a work on my heart.  They, in turn, took me down to the local grocery store, at 11:00 that night, unplugged a coke machine, plugged in my stereo and in the parking lot ,only 16-17 hours before I went to Citadel, we had a dance for Mikey, because he was going to be a preacher and go to a bible college. I know this is not your typical testimony, but I was just a baby in Christ. Excited about Him and surrounded by a lot of unsaved friends, who meant well, on my behalf. We danced until 2 that morning.

 I can only imagine what some of the staff must have thought of me, as my father was driving me up the mountain and I was listening to Elton John’s, “Love lies bleeding in my hands.” I had not really looked over the dress code as I jumped out of the station wagon, with my pair of overalls and Ringo Starr T-shirt , along with matching sandals and a crucifix so big, it was a good 10-11 inches long. All I knew was, I loved Jesus and I wanted to know Him better. I ran up, dressed like this, to one of the faculty members, hugged him for all I could and he must have been in shock, as all he could say was, “Son, you need to put a tie on.” Within an hour, my family and I were back at the school, with my one black tie, which was all that I wore for the first six weeks of school.

 The following morning, I felt out of place and awkward in this new place that God had called me to. I even questioned, is this really where You want me, Lord?  I felt like a spiritual midget, as one of the first things that the school wanted me to do, was take a test over my biblical knowledge. Yeah, right, let me see, John 3:16, John 14:1-3, which I had not really memorized. There was, of course, Genesis and Exodus, in the Old Testament and Matthew-John and, of course, Revelation. That was about it.  Okay, I thought, I am doomed. I was so broken-hearted, because I thought this was like an entrance exam and I had just failed it. Better get ready to call dad and tell him, “Your son is a moron, come and get me.” The disappointment must have shown, as one of the couples at Citadel was a young man, named Tim Willoughby, and his future wife, Joellen Holsinger. I could see their compassion and concern for me, as they asked me if I was okay. Of course, I lied, and they must have known it because Tim said, “Mike, this is not an entrance exam. All the school is trying to do is find out how much you know about the Bible.” I looked up at them and remember saying, “Well, they are going to find out, not much.’ Knowing just the right words to say, Tim replied, “You know, we all got to start someplace and Mike, you will be okay.” Joellen just smiled, and for the rest of the day we played some field games, as a way for us to get to know each other. Tim and Joellen picked me early to be on their team. All these years later, I never forgot their act of kindness to such a messed-up infant in the faith. I would read about their kind of Christianity, when I read about the Son of Consolation, Barnabas, and discover what a true gift that is, for some believers.

Like many of you, my favorite place was Kline Hall, the main and beautiful building which was the center of our campus and life. It became my very favorite place in the world, as it overlooked the valley and the Arkansas River. I remember doing something stupid, which led to one of the longest times of being sent to your room, in the school’s history, as I was told later by one of the faculty members. My room had now felt like a prison, but it was for something that I had truly deserved punishment for. I longed to be around people and still do, to this day. I am one of those guys who hates to admit, that he has separation anxiety. As soon as my punishment was over, I grabbed my books and sat on the wrap around porch, for the next three years, as much as I could. I loved the view, and, at night, I would look down and see the lights of houses and they became reminders to me, of how we were to be lights in the midst of darkness. As many of you know, it was stunning.

 Oh, for the hours of studying. The hearing of God’s Word, the privilege of sitting under the teaching of people who not only taught us His Word, but who lived it before us. The missionary challenges and how missions were so emphasized. Just to hear Daryl Champlin say the word “Glory” and how we trembled in the presence of a holy God.

I came at the best of times, Dr. Brownback taught me how to think and see God in a true world view, by dealing with philosophical issues of the Word, rather than through the world’s wisdom. Mr. Glasser introduced me to this God, who I am to pursue but would never fully know till we see Him face to face. Jerry Smith was the preacher and mentor, who made ministry practical. Mr. Ruchti was a giant. Think about it, we had a man of God who was a missionary, during World War II, to Brazil. How we loved getting him off subject and the joy of his tales of being a missionary, during that time. Mrs. Brownback gave me a love for the hymns of our faith. I found out why I did so bad, the first time I took Greek, by realizing my main issue was English Grammar, not Greek. Mrs. Ruchti would have us diagram sentences for hours. Mr. Willoughby, who gave me more practical tools for how to study the Bible, more than any man has ever done. I tell you brothers, what joy it was to sit under their feet, watch them grow and live it before us. We were among giants and did not even know it.

The friends that were made and those who I keep in touch with, still influence my life to this day.  My times with Dave Drake and Tracy Wilson, as we went into Oklahoma for our Christian Workers assignments. Then, having Tracy with me, as we would teach the youngest of children for the next two years. I learned more about preaching there than anywhere else.

Saturdays became special to me, as Scott Ingvaldsen, Doug Tucker and Sonya would sit down for about 2 hours together and talk about our spiritual journeys and the ministry. We never said it, but I thought we believed we had all the answers to reach the world and what sweet times of prayer.

These were friendships forged in steel and through the years, have been a source of refreshment and encouragement. I cannot list all the bonds that have been, and always will be, precious to me. Even now, I am still so grateful for so many who impacted my life and ministry.

Now, with the joy of working with Rock Haven, I have many of those old classmates working alongside of me, for the glory of His kingdom. The Barlow’s, The Boyd’s, Kermit Lowery and The Allen’s from OBI.

I will never forget when I first heard of how the school had closed, I was with Angela Morgan (Stone), at camp, for Moody Bible Church. I remember feeling devastated and became teary eyed. It was like I had just buried my friend. We were in shock for days.

Now, fast forward about a little over a year. Julie Hunter, who I had met during my Citadel days, and I were dating. Mr. and Mrs. Brownback invited us up to their house to celebrate New Years Day, they also had as their guest, Mr. Newell. Julie and I went on up to visit and would walk around the old campus. It felt a little odd as we strolled hand in hand around the campus, feeling like I would get written up for P.C violations and especially, that night before we left, as I kissed Julie and we held each other tight. Crying, praying, and being flooded with memories of our lives there, as we walked around the wrap around porch one last time. Little did I know, I was with my wife to- be, for over the next thirty years plus. It would also be the last time we would see the building, as it burned down shortly thereafter.

You know, I have been on the campus a few times since, through the years at a reunion, but in all honesty, its like the old saying, that you never really get to go back to the home you once knew. Just below, the old rock wall that Glen had built, it has been overtaken by the woods and shrubbery, so the view to me is not the same. The buildings are largely gone, over the decades of time, and it is not the same.

Yet, here is the beautiful thing. Citadel was not just Kline Hall or the other buildings that were on the grounds. It is now, forever seared, upon our memories. The teachings of Jesus, the wise words of our instructors and their lives. The friendships, but also for me, it will always be how all these things helped to disciple us, in being soldiers and becoming lovers of Jesus, who gave us His all. God bless and use you as you serve Him.

[theresnosafeharbor4myships]

Fandom wank is loud, and Daryl has shit to say about it.

Silver and Foxy (also on 9L)

“You sure you’re okay?”

The unwritten rule between them usually forbade Daryl from pressing Carol when she didn’t want to talk about whatever ate at her heart, but this seemed different.

He’d seen the way her smile shriveled in the presence of the other women. He’d watched her retreat inside herself except when she played with Judy. Walls he hadn’t seen in months kept appearing like flashes of lightening, leaving emotional devastation in their wake.

And he wanted to know why.

She’d flourished in Alexandria after the war ended. The walls stayed up, the walkers stayed out, and the runs remained more or less successful. Their gardens grew, and the goats and cows they’d acquired reproduced, providing them with milk and meat they’d missed out on the road.

Living out there seemed like a distant nightmare, though one they actively chose to remember. It frightened them to think they could lose the compound, but it’d happened before, and they knew history repeated itself; they just prayed it would hold off indefinitely.

He felt sure no one else had noticed her retreat of self-preservation, but he knew her more intimately than any of the others. After years of tiptoeing around the inevitable and too many close calls to number—and after the smoke from the blasts of the war that had nearly claimed them both died away—they’d fallen into each others’ arms, full of gratitude and relief and love. Handsy but shy, willing but anxious, they grew into a steady rhythm of love and affection they’d been starved of until that most precious of unions.

He held her close every night he slept inside the walls, watched her bloom around their family like he hadn’t seen since their days at the prison, and teased her mercilessly with secret touches and subtle, smouldering stares when others weren’t paying attention.

For the first time in his life, he loved his life. Their life. The life they’d built together.

And he’d be damned if he watched something cause her to lose herself again.

“I am.”

Her chipper tone didn’t fool him, but he merely stared at her, waiting to see if she’d relent or if she really wanted to keep her secrets for the moment.

Carol, turning down the bed on her side, met his eyes once but dropped her gaze quickly. She heaved a sigh before wearily admitting, “I want to be,” and plopping on the bed.

Daryl moved to sit next to her, curious but attuned to her temperament. He thought her antsy and uncomfortable, and when she started absentmindedly tapping her foot, he knew the battle she fought was emotional, not life- or wall-threatening but worrisome to her.

He waited, her tapping clocking the seconds of silence that passed.

“I…” She started fiddling with her fingers and let out another sigh. “It’s nothing really. A woman thing. Maybe I should just…talk to Michonne about it.”

He noted her taping increased as she spoke. Whatever gnawed at her made her more antsy than he’d ever seen her. He nodded in acquiescence though. “If you think it’ll help,” he offered.

Her face, which any outsider would read as confident, fell to reveal the dis-ease within her. “I just…haven’t liked myself much the past few days.”

He mentally reared back. He hadn’t known what to expect, but it certainly hadn’t been that.

The community, their family, loved her. Rick saw her as a sister and formidable strategist whose advice he sought when danger threatened. Michonne loved her as a best friend, and Carl and Judy believed her their second mom. She was Tara’s confidant. Maggie adored her more than any of the rest of them who’d known her entire family before they’d all been lost. Rosita respected and looked up to her as a fellow female weapons instructor. Jerry still brought her cobbler, even though they had plenty of their own food, just to hear her snark and see her smile. And Ezekiel thought her radiant enough to be a queen. The man wasn’t wrong, but Daryl was the lucky one who got to treat her like one.

Everyone had their flaws, but…he didn’t find many in her.

“What…what is it you don’t like?” he asked softly.

She shrugged one shoulder, and he felt her hesitancy. “I’m not good with this stuff,” she mumbled forlornly. “I…always had to swallow these emotions down. I couldn’t tell…him.”

His heart hollowed at the mention of the bastard from her past. It seemed utterly unfair that someone as caring, someone as good and selfless and loving as Carol had once had a sack of shit for a husband. He’d tried to make up for all the shortcomings in her life, but the old habits and memories of self-preservation were cruel and unrelenting.

He knew that as well as she did.

“You can tell me,” he affirmed. “But only if you want. I’ll listen.”

She met his gaze and gave him a sad smile. “I know you will.” She looked at her hands, one picking at a worn band on the opposite wrist. “I overheard some of the teenage girls talking the other day. They were mooning over the new guy, Brad, and Aaron. Carl, Jesus, Rick—”

“Rick?” Daryl blurted out.

Mirth crossed her face. “Rick. And you.”

His eyes widened, and he swallowed hard. “Me?”

She gave him a soft smile. “Yes. You.” His disbelief made her heart ache at how little he still thought of himself at times.

“And then they started assessing the women,” she continued. “About how hot they are, how they want to grow up just like them: Maggie, Michonne, Rosita. But not me,” she whispered, the words dripping with heartache.

“Why the hell not?” he ground out, stung by the ridiculous exclusion of her.

She shook her head. “They think I’m smart and brave. They know I care about them. They even think…”

He saw her cheeks tinge red. “What?” he encouraged softly, though his blood boiled at the thought of what venomous girls might’ve said to hurt her.

“They think I have a nice figure, but…they said I’m old. ‘Dried up,’ is how they put it. Because my hair is short and gray. They said…” She swallowed hard before continuing. “They think we’re hot together, but that I’m too old for you.”

Her voice cracked with the last few words, and he struggled to reign in his anger.

“They’re right: you do have a nice figure. And we are hot together. Hot enough we could teach ‘em how to stand on the sun. But those girls don’t know a damn thing!”

“It’s okay, Daryl,” she cajoled, miserable at having admitted what she’d overheard.

“It ain’t okay,” he retorted. “It ain’t! Bad enough the world was like that before—devaluin’ people because’a the way they look, or who their parents were, how much money they had or what kinda car they drove. Pssh, over things outside’a their control.” He shook his head in disgust. “But now? The hell… And dried up?!”

Furious at the asinine opinions of girls who’d barely survived high school, he tried to calm his rant and focus on Carol.

“You ain’t dried up: you’re the softest thing I ever held. Full’a life and fire and smarter than any ten people put together!”

“To them I am old.” She chuffed deprecatingly. “Ancient even.”

“We’re the same damn age. And I ain’t old.”

They’d never discussed age. It didn’t matter anymore, and other than Judith, birthdays had become a thing of Before. They calculated the passing of time now by the seasons and how many places they’d called home.

“I was 45 when it all happened,” Carol remembered dejectedly. “Guess it’s been about two years now. So I know why they think I’m old.”

“I was 42, so see? We’re about the same. And they’ll be damn lucky if they live to see 25 nowadays, so they best start lookin’ at us with wonder and respect, instead’a being ageist pricks.”

“They’re right though—my hair is short and gray.”

Though he burned with indignation, the fight went out of him at her despondent tone, at how badly the careless chits had hurt her.

“Carol.” He imbued her name with all the love blooming in his chest for the things he saw in her that she couldn’t see in herself.

He dropped to his knees next to her and took her hands in his, waiting until her tear-filled eyes met his before speaking.

“Thank you. For tellin’ me, for sharin’ how you feel. I know it ain’t our way, but thank you for trustin’ me that much.

“You know what I see when I look at you? The woman I love?”

She stared at him forlornly and shook her head, the tears she’d kept at bay finally spilling down her cheeks.

He squeezed her hand with one of his, dropping the other to her sock-covered feet. “I see feet that’ve traveled thousands’a miles to get here. To where you are. Safe and with a family who loves you so much they’d kill for you. And have.” He slid his hand up the back of one calf. “Legs—shapely legs,” he interrupted himself with a quick gleam in his eye, and his hand moved to the front of her leg, up over her knee, and rested on her thigh. “…that’ve carried you out of danger and into war. Down highways and through states and out’a danger and straight to my arms, and I couldn’t have asked for more.”

His hand moved to her hip. “A nice tush,” he said cheekily, and she exhaled a laugh, though tears still eked from her eyes. “A flat belly that carried and nurtured your baby….your body’s a miracle worker.”

Sliding his hand up to rest next to her breast, he continued. “A great figure,” he repeated from earlier. “You nourished your baby. Gave her life and kept her safe. Pillowed her there.” He flicked his eyes up to hers, placing his hand flat against the valley between her breasts. “Pillow me there sometimes too,” he teased with a hint of fire in his gaze. “A heart that overflows for every person you care about. A mother’s love. A lover’s passion. All cushioned in a supple wrapping any man would die for. I would,” he admitted guilelessly.

Her tears had stopped, and she watched him intently as he lifted his hand to her shoulder. “Shoulders strong enough to keep goin’ under the weight of this broken-down hell of a world. To help me stand when I wanna give up. You’ve carried supplies and Judy and more than your fair share of shed tears on ‘em.

“And these arms.” He slid his hand slowly down her bicep and rested it on her forearm. “Toned and strong, but soft enough to offer support anyone who needs it. And they give the best damn hugs I ever got. And these hands…” He turned one of her hands over, palm up, and ran his fingers repeatedly across her palm and down the length of her fingers. “Made to nuture and trained to protect. Gentle enough to cradle Judy and deadly enough to save us all. Perfect for wipin’ tears away and to fit in my hand,” he breathed, lacing their fingers together.

He stared at their clasped hands for a few moments, overcome with the devotion he felt for this woman, and he swallowed hard before looking up at her and continuing.

“A mouth that…hell, whispers the hottest things I ever heard sometimes.” Her cheeks flared pink, and he cupped one with his hand, his thumb lightly brushing over her lips. “And encourages and teases and tells us all how much she cares with every word. Kisses like fire, too,” he added.

“And those eyes. Like the depth of the ocean and just as wild. Fiery when you’re mad and soulful when you’re sad. Windows of your heart, and I could drown in ‘em.”

He slid his hand up into her hair. “Hair so soft. Like silk. Perfect to run my fingers through,” he told her as he did so.

“But gray,” she murmured, recalling the words she’d overheard.

“Mmm,” he mumbled, shaking his head. “Silver. My silver fox.”

She chuffed a laugh at him despite herself.

“What?” he asked, indignant.

“I think…I think that’s a term for a man.”

He looked at her, confused. “Like hell it is. Silver silk,” he murmured, still feathering his fingers through her hair. “All messy and sexy in the mornin’ and after some good lovin’. Curly and cute when it ain’t too hot. Makes you look like a pixie.

“And foxy as hell. D’you know a female fox is called a vixen?”

“Is that my hunter talking?” she teased, trying to shake away the heat of his gaze with humor.

He gauged her discomfort as unease with herself, not with him, and so he continued. “I only ever hunted one vixen, and she’s cunning, loyal, lithe, witty, subtle. No need for flamboyance or struttin’ around.” He looked pointedly at her. “Even though she damn well could.” He waited a beat, then one side of his mouth upturned in a teasing half-smile. “Walk down the street wearing that red bra and panty set you wore last week when you had your way with me and every mouth in this compound’d drool like a damn walker. They’d be beggin’ you to put ‘em outta their misery.”

She closed her eyes and shook her head, but instead of crying she had a small smile on her face.

“Hey.”

She sniffled once, then opened her eyes at his gentle entreaty.

“You’re amazin’, inside and out. I know it’s hard to believe it with the…past and what you been through, but…” He stared up at her in awe. “I only see starlight when I look at you. A canopy of brilliance shinin’ out through all the darkness around us.” He trailed a finger down her check, following a tear track. “I hate that you don’t see it.”

He laced their fingers back together. “I’mma be here to remind you, any time you doubt, okay?”

She nodded, and though the ache of self-loathing hadn’t dissipated, it had lessened with his words of affection.

He kissed her hand, then got up from his kneeling position to sit next to her again. “You’re my vixen. My silver fox.”

She chuckled, nudging him with her shoulder. “I told you…that’s a man.”

“Silver,” he whispered just before placing a kiss in her hair. “And foxy, then.” With a hand on her cheek, he turned her face towards him and barely touched his lips to hers, his words serious, his kiss teasing.

“And yours,” she murmured on a heady sigh, then leaned in to kiss him fully.