#he's got all 1/4th an inch of his whole head open as wide as he can

[kedreeva]

The tiniest tiny, just eyes and a tail...

Pantherophis guttatus, Blizzard morph

[blankdblank]

Anaticula Pt 37

Pt 1 - Pt 2 - Pt 3 - Pt 4 - Pt 5 - Pt 6 - Pt 7 - Pt 8 - Pt 9 - Pt 10 - Pt 11 - Pt 12 - Pt 13 - Pt 14 - Pt 15 - Pt 16 - Pt 17 - Pt 18 - Pt 19 - Pt 20 - Pt 21 - Pt 21b - Pt 22 - Pt 23 - Pt 24 - Pt 25 - Pt 26 -  Pt 27 - Pt 28 - Pt 29 - Pt 30 - Pt 31 - Pt 33 - Pt 34 - Pt 35 - Pt 36 -

.

2nd wk of December

Match 1 – Ravenclaw – Durm 4

Bolstered up with the news of having dates and dresses to the Ball the full Ravenclaw coasted their way into another victory over the visiting school a bit distracted by something you had no clue of yet.

Match 2 – Beaux 2 – Beaux 3

Fleur in this interschool battled against another house of her own friends got surprisingly heated until the other team managed to steal the win away at the last minute.

.

Coated in snow that was still falling following the map on the next origami owl you had received sending you all off in different directions from the other students. Across from an Auror in the center of a field you eyed the trio of judges who would alternate turns in facing each of you one on one until you all had either been disarmed or disarmed your opponent.

Beaux came first, all being disarmed but battled admirably for the few minutes they could muster up against the expert.

Durm came next and had all been victorious within a few moments sending them flying.

Cedric managed to knock his Auror down while Harry ended up in the snow bank. Lastly with the crowd of Champions looking on you stood across from your Auror who eyed you with wand extended stating, “If you do not have a wand that can count as automatic dismissal.”

You smirked and clapped your hands, covering him with two walls of snow that compacted while your hands met at the wrist and your fingers swayed through the snow morphing into a giant bird. The Auror’s head poked out of the bird’s stomach with arm extended and hand empty after having dropped his wand in your attack. Cheers and stunned laughter came from the on looking students through a picture being captured in the moments until your hands broke apart and the snow coating him released and he fell into the pile of snow under him.

Strolling back to the others you looked to the judges who cleared you to return to the school saying the task was handled and scores would be posted later. A base of five for if you managed to disarm the Auror, if not you were limited to five on skill of possible spells used to keep from a blank score.

.

4th test – Duel

Viktor – 9, Sebastian – 8, Lukas - 10

Fleur – 5, Charlotte – 4, Vivi - 4

Cedric – 9, Jaqi -  10, Harry – 4

On the way to Hogsmeade the test had been the talk of the school, especially that of the other Headmasters on how you had managed a wandless and silent enchantment that powerful in a moment’s notice leaving them circling on how to inch their Champions ahead while you held the clear lead. But all of them saw hope in the next task that could only help in boosting their scores even more.

.

3rd week

Noon in your usual school wide free period you all found yourselves in the Western greenhouse filled with the flocks of six winged hummingbirds who were feasting on the upside down dangling bright colored flowers ten feet above you. Professor Sprout stood brimming with glee in her standing next to a gramophone. “Now, for all of you wondering why you are here I would like clarify. It is for this upcoming festivities we would like to put our best foot forward, quite literally, and to ensure that all the houses are conducting lessons in the opening waltz for the Yule Ball.”

Summers off to the side asked, “We have to learn a waltz?”

Snickers were heard and her eyes narrowed for a moment and she said, “I will have you know it is a rare skill to be well versed in ballroom dancing. And I would not be shocked if a few of you are already interested in the lessons to impress your dates, especially the Champions present.”

Your eyes and Cedric’s eyes went to her both asking, “What?”

Her grin doubled, “The Champions open the Ball with a waltz.”

Cedric looked to you then asked, “How many lessons are you giving?”

“Just the one a day for a week.”

He looked to you again, “I might need more than that. I still trip on the stairs and we’ve been taking them for years.”

Professor Sprout looked to you asking, “Will you be needing extra lessons as well?”

You shook your head, “No, Black family tradition, we have to learn ballroom dances, four instruments, three language minimum-.” glancing at the other students looking back at you in shock for the requirements a deep sigh left you and you shrugged. “Dad said he wouldn’t stick to the tradition but I was supposed to be dead and until he got his job we had a lot of free time. Even took me to ballet, skating and gymnastics, just sort of happened to keep us distracted.”

Astoria mumbled, “I thought we were the only family like that.”

You smirked at her, “Sacred 28.” Earning a smirk from her in return.

Sprout looked to the twins asking, “Have you studied as well?”

They both nodded and smirked, “Triplets.”

Making her grin, “Then you three and Astoria, front and center, and,” looking over the others while you formed a line around her she named four others to come up and be your partners for the first lesson. Your lessons went well enough though on your way to lunch there was an agreement that any in the dorm needing help could always ask when you were free with Cedric no doubt requesting nightly refreshers from now till the ball.

.

Sebastian grinned by the spare space he was holding for you and asked when you took your seat, “You look happy, did you send your cat after Skeeter again?”

You giggled saying, “No. Just, dance lessons.”

His brow inched up, “For the Ball? Do you require extra lessons?”

You shook your head, “No. Family tradition, have to learn growing up, but they’ve offered lessons for each of the houses.” You giggled again, “Which we were wondering how the other house lessons went.”

A grin eased across his lips and once again since your last study session you caught Viktor glaring at your arm making you subtly inspect it thinking you had gotten something on it or torn your favorite maroon sweater. Wetting your lips you looked at Sebastian, who had just sent a glare in return to his brother’s at noticing it then grinned at you, “Are you two fighting?”

He shook his head, “No.”

“So, he’s mad at me then?”

Sebastian forced a quick grin onto his face then answered, “The symbol on your ring.”

Looking at Morfin’s ring you shifted your hand then looked to him again, “For the Deathly Hallows?”

His brow inched up and he repeated, “Deathly Hallows?”

You nodded, “It um, my ancestors, the Peverell Brothers, there’s a whole story on them.”

At his hand signal Viktor moved to your table and listened intently to the tale then tapped his finger on the back of your finger holding the ring, “That is Grindlewald’s symbol.”

“Oh, well he did search for them, the Hallows and failed, but it really isn’t his symbol. It’s centuries older than him.”

Viktor, “But he used it! And he killed thousands of our people! Including our Grandfather!”

At your dropping expression his rage dimmed and you replied softly, “I know what he did. I wasn’t aware of how he affected you, past his having attended Durmstrang.” Wetting your lips you paused then added, “I only wear it, it’s from my grandfather on my Mum’s side.” His head tilted slightly and you clarified, “My Mum left a protection charm on it for me.”

Their lips parted and Sebastian said, “If it is protection from your mother then do not trouble yourself with this.”

Viktor nodded after a deep sigh, “Your mother wore this symbol?”

You shook your head, “No, not that I know of, but the ring is passed down by bloodline. Anyone else would be burned wearing it.”

Viktor, “Very important aid to the protection. These Peverells, they do not sound like they followed his beliefs.”

Sebastian nodded and wrapped his hand around yours, “Do not trouble yourself, wear the ring.”

Viktor said, “I was not aware of the older tale. It is understandable why he would choose that symbol. Please accept my apology for my irritation, it was unjust due to your reasoning. Hermione merely mentioned you simply put it on one day.”

“Ya, I don’t really talk about Mum much.” Both brothers gave you knowing nods about losing their father. You looked to Hermione in her late entrance after Ginny had stopped her to share experiences on the dance lessons leaving them both reigning in their giggles on what the other had missed bringing them to your left to share the stories spreading the laughter.

Leaving the table for your free period however you and Sebastian strolled out to the clearing you had mentioned the day prior for a sighting of a band of Augreys finding nesting materials he had stashed a bundle of blankets to snuggle in the snow couch he was going to make for you both. Upon which he shared more about what he had hoped to do for the brief gap between graduation and the start of the Quidditch season, all of which he hoped to share with his sister followed by a mentioned thought of a visit together possibly if it could be worked out.

.

Hermione’s brows furrowed harshly in reading the article from Rita that insinuated that she was leaving Viktor for Harry. Strolling into the Great Hall comes over to Ron’s side, “Package for you Weasley.”

Ron grinned at him briefly then turned accepting the brown paper box, glancing back at Nigel he shook his head softly saying, “Not now Nigel.” Harry and Hermione looked at him while Nigel huffed and turned away to go sit by his brother, “I promised him I’d get him your autograph Harry.”

Harry chuckled and reached into his bag for a blank sheet of paper he hastily scribbled his name across that he folded into an airplane that soared over to Nigel earning a gleeful gasp from the young teen who pulled out his camera to snap a picture of Harry’s quick grin in a glance at him.

Pulling out an obscurely tomato vomit colored coat Ron stood, “Bloody…Mum sent me a dress.. Got to be a mistake…” Ron walks over to Ginny, “Mum sent this for you.”

Ginny, “I’m not wearing that! It’s ghastly!”

Ron looks at Hermione who is laughing, “What are you on about?”

Hermione, “They’re not for Ginny. They’re for you. They’re dress robes.”

Ron, “For what?”

On your way to share a note you found on one of the old Tournaments you stopped mid walk reaching out, “What the-?” Looking the robes over with curiously furrowed brows.

Ron, “I can’t wear these. Can you do something with these?”

You catch his eyes, “We’ve got spares at home. I’ll grab you a pair.”

In a relieved sigh his eyes rolled and you shook your head in another glance at the robe.

…

Fully decorated from the usual massive Christmas trees, wreaths and garlands between batches of mistletoe, that all couples stole a moment under in forced accidental passes, drew out the spirit of the holiday for all. All first and second years had left for the break along with a vast majority of third years, except for those lingering as relatives or dates for the elder students attending the Ball. In a flurry Christmas Eve arrived and as promised you would be sneaking home right after to spend the rest of the night with your father and uncles after having spent so long apart.

Straight through the dorm door you strolled making Ron jolt up out of his bed after having been waiting so impatiently for his robes from you. A twisted grin splitting on his face and he eyed the deep maroon robes making his mouth fall open, “It was either this or powder blue, all the others had magic pockets full of ribbons and confetti, thought this would be safer for you.”

He shook his head and chuckled accepting the hanger from you eying your pajama bottoms under your big baggy sweater all the way to your moose slippers, “No, no. It’s marvelous compared to that other one. Just about the right size.”

“Might be a bit long in the leg but Neville knows the tailor charms I used on his if you need them.”

Ron chuckled and wrapped you in a tight hug, “I’ll give it a try now.”

You raised a brow, “It’s barely lunch time, we have till 7.”

He nodded, “I know, just anxious.”

You nodded and said, “Go on then, might as well get the hem done now.” You sat on his bed and he hurried into the bath to change while your eyes closed and you smoothed your fingers around the patch of scars over your left eyebrow remembering the mystery blondes kissing you there at the end of another stranger filled dream. The opening of the door opened your eyes with it bringing not only Ron in his maroon robes but also Neville into your view looking at you with a concerned hint of a smile that eased when Ron asked, “You alright?”

You nodded, “You ever have one of those dreams where you get covered in honey or something and you can still feel it?”

Ron chuckled and nodded, “Every time they serve that yam porridge, same dream of getting a pie in my face. Takes hours to have the feeling go away.”

On your feet you neared him and drew your wand from the sheath you kept tucked in the end of your crooked braid to feign being unarmed hoping it might lull Igor into doing something stupid and revealing his big plan. A few gentle tugs and stretches of the fabric on the jacket left it fitting him perfectly before he removed it and you started on his shirt, vest and pants that left him beaming when you were through. Another tight hug later and you moved to accept one from Neville who said, “I know you’ll get plenty of offers, though Sirius did ask for a picture of us dancing.”

You nodded, “Yes, Draco too and Percy should be here, he was told as well.”

Neville, “Plan still the same, after the Ball we’re headed home for the night?”

“If you’d like, full Christmas. The Grangers and your parents and Nellie will be there too same as the Malfoys, even the Pears.”

Ron, “Really? How’d they get invited?”

You sighed, “Well it was either I invite them to Christmas or they continue trying to force themselves as chaperones.”

Neville, “No doubt they’d make you perform again.”

“Exactly. I’m a spectacle enough this year as it is.”

Ron chuckled, “Doubt McGonagall would ever let them past the pitch knowing how they are around you. Still, we all allowed too?”

“Are you allowed,” you scoffed back, “You don’t come your Mum will come drag you there by your ankles, she’s no doubt emptied the pantry on this one.” Making them both chuckle as you turned to go.

.

Along with the other girls you were off in your room back home where you all helped one another fix up your hair and makeup before wiggling into your dresses and shoes. Mostly pulled back in a bun with a sleekly curled section dangling from under the jeweled pins securing it all. Easing your side swept bangs behind your ear your eyes locked on your reflection as you raised your brush to add some eye shadow above your eyeliner giving the look a hint of shimmer to make your eyes a bit more adorned to fit the whole look. With a sigh you set the brush down and rested your chin in your palm next to Hermione in the same position after finally relenting her hair was the best she could manage in a style close to yours. “Straight O’s in all my OWLS and I’m absolutely useless in this.”

Hermione sighed, “I suppose it’s just something needed to be practiced on?” She shrugged, “I mean, how often will we be attending Balls?”

You shrugged, “Well it’s not a Celebration of Life in Versailles, actual dancing and celebrating.”

Hermione couldn’t help but giggle as you did, both drooping your heads until you stood at the alarm sounding for you to stand and help the other with final adjustments before Ginny hurried in with her dress on and two wraps she found in your closet, pink or white?”

Hermione grinned moving closer to look between the pair while you brought Ginny the lip gloss she had been eyeing earlier making her grin and twirl in place and accept help into the pink wrap going with her pink and green dress. In her trot to the mirror to apply it Luna came out with Angelina, both having gotten a bit carried away earlier and had to remove a fair bit of glitter from their dresses with Katie behind them. Luna in a sleeveless teal and the others in complimenting magenta gowns that started the trip down to the waiting guys anxiously waiting downstairs. Cho had already gone down to meet Cedric and inhaling deeply you accepted Ginny’s hand following her for the trip down after she said, “You both look magnificent come on. Anyone not staring at you both tonight are blind dolts.” Reaching out your hand linked with Hermione’s who giggled and hurried along after you, eager like you were to just get the start of the night over when everyone would be staring and commenting before you could vanish into the crowds.

.

Beaming at Harry when she came down the steps Ginny tucked her hand under his arm he offered her shifting his forest green robes, joining the twins Katie and Angelina in the group that turned to glance at the Krum brothers. Both clad in matching red jackets under brown fur capes draped over one arm dangling over their black pants and tall boots accented with red stripes, eagerly swallowing and fidgeting their fingers along the strap across their chests that they released instantly when you both came into view. The pair of you inhaled and couldn’t help but grin at the wide eyed star struck pair oblivious to the picture Draco snapped of them. Sending the image up to his room after having done the same with the picture of your entrance on the steps beginning with a pair of timid heads popping out into the stroll down the first few steps.

Hastily from under their capes they both pulled out matching bracelets, on a strand of pearls secured on ribbons matching your dresses sat a cloth rose from the same material they both secured around the hands you offered them they then eased around their elbows in a turn. Arm in arm you and your dates in their joint stammered compliments to you after your soft thanks for the gifted bracelets on the walk to join the other Champions.

Straight through the winter wonderland decorated Great Hall in the aisle formed by split groups of students the nine Champions too their places, though it took a moment for some to remember that two were actually dating leaving the couples at an even eight. Hands raised and in an alternating lift filled waltz the Ball was opened through walls of flashes capturing the motions of the couples in your own circles around the others while the first rotation ran through and clearly ended with Dumbledore leading Minerva out onto the floor.

One opening dance bled into a series of classic dances, each one bringing on more hushed conversations between the couples until you all broke to claim your seats for the feast. Champions all at one table alongside your dates with other tables packed with the other students all enjoying the hearty meals with goulash and stew offered filled with sugary treats to follow before the dance floor was opened again. A raucous greeting welcomed former students of Hogwarts turned rock stars the Weird Sisters came out dressed for the part and set off the second stretch of the Ball when the Professors stepped back allowing the teens to enjoy the collection of their hits performed live. Hours you all enjoyed the night until in a shared string of signals you all gathered to head to your enchanted doorway while the Krum brothers used another of your secret tunnels to sneak out and visit their mother and baby sister in Hogsmeade.

.

Decorated to the fullest your home welcomed you fully in an equally as wondrous effort to capture the usual fanfare for the holiday. Great grandparents included all greeted your group with hugs and smiles before you all moved to the tree in the sitting room. Every gift was opened and another round of food was served, after the clearing of that you joined your father into the crystal decorated ballroom.

Under the light of the moon and stars you both chuckled and giggled through the dances he led you through, the pair of you caught a soft glimmer across your skin and in your hair. Reminders of your ancestor who claimed him and his kin held stardust in your veins, a trait binding all Black Family members, always being able to sense how close you are to one another for the closest of your relations which could be solidified by a tattoo with the relative’s name and celestial body or symbol representing their name.

Yours being Pluto on the base of your father’s neck surrounded by your name, for you the choice of our own for him would be the Big Dog constellation he was named after, a dog that would run when you grew closer in search of him. As soon as you turned 17 as a sort of coming of age marker your uncle had secured plans for a tattoo artist to drop by and do the tattoos as well as those for securing the twins’ decisions for Phoenix as their Animagus you would also get. The date was settled and eagerly looked forward to by all of you, except for the Pears, who really hoped to have you keep your skin unmarked, as it seemed to make it easier for them to mistake you for their lost daughter. But eventually they calmed seeing the sketches of the tattoos you had chosen that weren’t that obnoxious in size and easily concealed by clothes.

Safe in your father’s side to the film playing on the screen your eyes closed and you had fallen asleep in the pile of teens across the lounging couches in your theater only to stir and groggily head back to the castle after parting hugs in time to wash up, change and head down for breakfast. A crashing hug greeted you from Sebastian, who kissed your cheek sweetly in the hall on the way to eating, “Morning, and thank you.” You giggled at his arm circling you brushing the sleeve of his plum sweater up against your now slightly askew grey sweater hanging over your thighs in his hold on you. “Cleo and mother were excited we could sneak out. I have a present for you.”

You giggled again, “Good, I’ve got one for you too.” His brow inched up and you grinned up at him, “Trust me, you have never gotten a gift like this before.”

“Ooh, any hints or am I left to guessing?”

“Guess away but you won’t get it.” Making him chuckle again.

All through breakfast he did guess and along with Fleur and her sister Gabrielle you brought your visiting friends for a gathering of your own in your dorm. The Beauxs quickly passed of their gift of dresses and cardigans to you accepting their blankets and Manticore plushies they had mentioned wanting before you had made for them, then both hurried off at the meeting Madam Maxime had called for her Champions.

There Viktor and Hermione swapped books along with a ring topped with a purple violet made of gems she promptly tugged him away for a few moments alone to react in private they both returned back blushing from.

Sebastian passed you a book from his sister and a collection of books and an earring for the piercings in the top of your ears, in yellow rose earrings with flat backs he gladly accepted your tight hug and kiss for. Eagerly he eyed the rectangular box you passed him topped with a bow, with a smirk he set it on his lap and he eased the end of the ribbon out only for the rest of it to unravel and the lid to fold itself back. At the miniature pitch revealing itself his lips parted and you scooted closer showing him the cards you had, both for the professional teams and the school teams.

Leaning in Viktor joined him in choosing two teams and watched as the figures for players popped up out of the pitch with personalized brooms in hand around the chest that popped up with tiny balls inside that the referee kicked open. When the first match the brothers had played was through giggles exploded from you at Sebastian’s over eager tackle hug he unleashed on you before he burst into a slew of questions on where you got it. The group had split up and while you led him to your room to fetch a picture of Tulip for him to give to Cleo at her clear interest in snakes Sebastian said, “Surely it must have cost a fortune for such a detailed model.”

You shook your head in a giggle answering, “Surprisingly affordable to make.”

His lips parted, “You made that?”

You nodded, “Yup. All our teams have one. Takes a while to get it all to work together but we found the right blend of charms and of course it took a while to get permission from the card manufacturers for us to copy their stats and pictures.”

Facing you fully he said, “You actually wrote the manufacturers? How much are they charging you?”

You shook your head, “They said the cards are public domain, as long as we aren’t actually copying their cards, we got it so the pitches can just use their cards, we only make the ones for the school teams. Ours for your teams are pretty blank, we only have what we’ve seen so far at our school.”

“Are you selling these?”

“We plan to.” A grin spread across his face drawing out his dimples as you sheepishly turned away in an awkward grin to return to looking for the picture at your hair turning mint green. “We actually have a contract that when we graduate a relative with a shop on Diagon Alley is going to sell us the shop, so we’ve been stockpiling and getting our goods together. A few of our candies and treats are still needing some perfecting but we’ve got time.”

“Not to mention your Lycan products.”

You nodded, “Yes.” Grinning wider at his arms circling your middle when he closed the distance between you to kiss your cheek.

“I cannot wait to see your shop. No interest in Quidditch professionally for you?”

You shrugged, “I haven’t had any offers. Oliver has though, Kenmare Kestrals, he seems eager about it.”

“No doubt with talent like yours at this school a great number of teams will be approaching you three.”

Peering up at him he kissed the tip of your nose and you smirked at him, “And how would you handle that, us having to face off?”

He kissed your nose again, “We would beat you,” you rolled your eyes and giggled at his tighter hug he lifted you in, “Again and again.”

“Keep telling yourself that Seb.” Chuckling again he shifted you in his arms and planted his lips on yours.

Pt 38

[pjbehindthesun]

chapter 25: confrontations and constellations

Tuesday, November 6th, 1990

“Mmmphh? Hello?” Not the most polite way to answer the phone, true, but who the fuck calls at this hour?

“Oh, shit, I’m sorry, I woke you up, I figured you’d be up early with Jeff…”

“No… I mean, yeah, he left way early, he had to be at work by 4, I went back to bed… what’s going on, is everything okay?”

“Uhm. I hate to do this before you go to work, but… can you come up?”

Cora’s voice is so small it’s terrifying. That’s all I need to know. It’s go time. I’ve barely yanked a comb through my hair, dragged a toothbrush through my mouth, and thrown on something vaguely resembling a work outfit before I’m off up the stairs. Halfway up, I remember the spare key to her place, which is hanging on a hook next to my door, but whatever, thankfully she’s left the door unlocked.

And she looks like absolute, utter hell. She’s curled up on the couch under a massive blanket, white as a ghost, looking at me with dark-circled eyes.

“I got Stone’s flu, I think,” she explains unnecessarily, obviously straining to talk through a sore throat. “Also, I kicked Alex out last night.”

Typical Cora, burying the lede. Pinching myself would be rude, right? I need to not do that. I opt for biting my tongue hard to make sure I’m awake as I scoot some of her mountainous blanket fort over to make room for myself on the couch. Ow. Yeah. I’m awake.

“What the hell happened?”

She winces as she swallows. “Another girl. Here. They were, uh, in the shower, when I… They, uhm, figured I’d be at work longer, but Colleen sent me home early last night, because of the whole…” she draws a circle around her face, which is giving the facial expression equivalent of a shrug.

“You’re fucking kidding me.”

“Uh-uh. So I… came home and… found them. Kicked them both out. And then I stupidly told him to come back tomorrow and get his stuff.”

“That’s not stupid, we should get his shit out of here as fast as possible,” I muse, scowling at her. “Do we know her?”

“No. She’s Brian’s girlfriend or something. She didn’t even know about me. It’s been going on for a year.”

A year?? This is so fucking surreal. I know how to do the friend thing, I swear that I do, but the way she’s relaying this insane information so robotically, it’s really throwing me for a loop. I wish she’d scream about it, or cry hysterically, or call him a rat bastard, or something to let me vent my own anger, but clearly, we’re not there yet…

“...and how are you doing?”

“I’m alright. I just, uhm,” she glances around the apartment, “I told him he could come and get his stuff today, you know, move out, but I don’t… I don’t really want him hanging around forever trying to get it all gathered up… I was gonna try to get a head start this morning but I could use a little help…?”

Okay! An action item! I got this. We’ll deal with robotic Cora later. I’m sure it’s just a defense mechanism and she’ll break down later once she’s had more time to process. I jump up off the couch, a to-do list growing ever longer in my brain. Cora starts to get up too, but it doesn’t take a lot of effort to push her back down because she’s not very steady on her feet.

“Park your ass, woman, you need to rest.” She opens her mouth to protest, but I’m already walking toward the bathroom, calling back over my shoulder. “The first thing I can do is bleach the ever-loving fuck out of your shower. And your towels. And your sheets. And who knows what else they touched, but we’re gonna nuke the shit out of it all. Okay? And then… we’ll figure out the packing part later.” A glance at the clock tells me I don’t have a ton of time before I need to go to work. I need reinforcements. But that can wait.

I leave Cora to slump passively on the couch while I gather up a load of sheets (because ew) and towels (because extra ew) and quickly attack her shower with some bleach spray. Out of her sightline, I’m free to gag at the mental image of that dumb, smarmy motherfucker hooking up with another girl IN THE APARTMENT HE SHARED WITH MY FRIEND. WHO DOES THAT??! FOR A YEAR!!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! I’m obviously not going to fan those flames with her and make her feel even worse, because she’s still letting it all sink in and what she needs right now is some unemotional, businesslike help getting the logistics worked out. But it’s therapeutic for me to be able to lose my shit in here with the door closed for a moment. Okay, whoa, bleach fumes... moment over. I make the bed up with clean sheets and grab the rest to take down to the basement.

“Laundry, be right back! You good?” I call at her over a giant basket of offending laundry. She nods and manages a small “thanks” as I bustle past. Once I’m in the laundry room, I get to take out more anger on the machine, slamming doors and swearing loudly, but I collect myself before I get back to the 4th floor. She hasn’t moved an inch, and she still looks like a zombie.

“Okay, alright, uhm, I have to leave for work in like five minutes…” I tell her, glancing at the clock as my mind races.

“You’re the best. Even that much was a huge help because I was never gonna make it down the stairs,” she tries for a chuckle but ends up coughing. “I’ve got it from here, you go to work.”

“Stop talking nonsense. I just need to figure out who I can call to come help you.”

“No!” she yelps, wide-eyed. “No, please don’t tell everybody, this is so fucking embarrassing, I really don’t need the whole phone tree to be notified that my life is on fire. I can do it myself!”

“I wasn’t thinking of lighting up the phone tree, I’m just wondering if any of the guys are off work this morning. You need manual labor.”

“I can do it, Lucy, honestly.”

“Uh huh. And you’re going to have help. Stop arguing about it or I’ll fight you and you know I have the height advantage. Let’s see, first, we need to figure out when…” it takes a Herculean effort to say his cursed fucking name out loud, but gritting my teeth seems to help “...Alex is going to drop by. I want to have it all done before then so he’s not here for more than a minute. Get in, get your shit, get out.”

Her eyes start to look a little red-rimmed for the first time. “I love you, Luce.”

“You too. Don’t you fucking move. Get a little rest.”

I grab the phone off the end table, tugging at the cord to follow me, and pace down the hallway and into their den, hoping that she won’t eavesdrop quite as aggressively that way. And then I remember I don’t know Alex’s work number. I yell down the hall, she calls out the numbers, and I punch them in, imagining each phone key is one of his teeth being knocked in. To my surprise, the bastard picks up on the first ring.

“Hello?”

He sounds like shit. This pleases me.

“Alex, it’s Lucy. You’re at work early.”

“Yeah, uh,” he yawns, “I slept at my desk last night, Cora kicked me out, and I couldn’t stay at Brian’s, so --”

“-- I’m playing the world’s smallest violin for you,” I growl, trying to keep my voice low enough that Cora won’t hear but assertive enough to terrify the shitstain on the other end of the line. “Listen. You are going to come get your shit on your lunch break. I’ll have it all packed up and in the front room. If you don’t get it out of here by 1:00, we’re having a bonfire tonight at Discovery Park, courtesy of your video game console.”

He stammers for a moment before mumbling something that sounds enough like assent for me.

“Don’t be late.”

It takes a lot of effort not to slam the phone back down. Get me, I’m mature. Okay, now we have a little over four hours to get his shit out of here, but I don’t have any more personal days left this year so I can’t miss work, Jeff’s at the cafe already… Eddie? Eddie’s a pretty diplomatic guy, I bet he���d be willing to help, and of all the options, he probably wouldn’t make Cora feel too uncomfortable. But when I try the guys’ apartment, there’s no answer, so maybe he had an early shift too.

Hmm. Mike? He’s a bit of a mess, but he’s got a good heart. I’ll try him next.

“H’llo? wh’s happenin’ ‘bout me,” a slurred voice says.

“Mike? Mike! Wake up, I need your help.”

“we’re closed! n’more lettuce for today.”

“The fuck? Mike!” but he’s already hung up. Great, the only two morning people in our whole crew are already at work, and Cready’s either talking in his sleep or wasted or both. I can’t remember Chris’s number, and I’m not about to ask Cora for it because I don’t want her to freak out again thinking I’m calling the whole neighborhood. That leaves one option. She’s not going to like this. She’s really, really not going to like this.

“Hello?”

Okay, finally, someone who sounds at least halfway awake.

“Hey, Stone? Sorry to bother you so early. It’s Lucy.”

“Lucy? What the hell’s going on? It’s like… 7…?” I can hear him stretch and probably fumble around for his alarm clock.

“7:15, yeah,” I finish his thought for him. “Listen, I need your help. Cora kicked Alex out last night, she found him cheating with some other chick. As in, he’s been cheating on her with this same girl all year. As in, she found them here when she got off work.”

His sudden avalanche of bellowed obscenity makes me jerk the phone away from my head. “Okay, okay, get it out of your system, I know, I said all the same things when I heard,” I reassure him from a safe, ear-protecting difference. “The thing is, there’s not really time for that, because he’s coming back at like noon to get his shit out of the apartment, and Cora’s got the flu so there’s no way she can pack it up herself. Despite what she may think.” As I speak, I can hear her making a liar out of me in the other room with the unmistakable sounds of a suitcase being packed. So much for the whole resting idea. She’s impossible. Good luck with that, Stone.  “She’s already trying to do it herself, you know how stubborn she is. I wish I could help her but I’m out of time off for the year and I have to get to work, but I’ll be right back as soon as I’m done for the day, I just need someone to --”

“Be right over,” he says in a terse voice that’s much higher pitched than usual. I hang up and resign myself to trying to restrain Cora from murdering me for calling him.

When I find her next door in their bedroom, she’s busily filling the battered old suitcase with sweaters and polo shirts from the dresser.

“So, Alex will be here around 12… Jeff and Eddie were both at work....”

She cuts me off in a brisk tone, continuing to pack and not making eye contact, “That’s okay, don’t call anyone else, I swear I’ve got this. He doesn’t even have that much stuff. All the furniture and kitchen stuff’s mine, it’s just his clothes, a few books, records, the computer shit in the den… I won’t drop dead from the exertion of packing all of that, I promise.”

For a split second, I consider telling her that Stone is on his way over, but (a), I value my life, (b), I’m not going to have the argument with her that she needs to stay in bed because I know that will fall on deaf ears, and (c), I’m going to be late for work. That’s Stone’s problem now.

“Okay, well, drink lots of water, don’t overdo it, call me if you need ANYTHING, and call me no matter what after he leaves. Got it?” I tip an entire drawer full of socks into the bag to speed up the process, giving her a pointed stare until she finally pauses and looks at me.

“Yes, ma’am. You’re my favorite human, you know that?”

“You’re mine. Try to rest.” I pull her into a quick hug, and then I’m on my way out the door.

I’d better be your favorite human. I bleached your ex-boyfriend’s sex towels. Vivid fantasies of murder accompany me on the drive to the hospital.

***

Of course, I only remember that I forgot to lock the station wagon when I’m already on the 4th flight of stairs in her building, taking them three at a time, trying to get a grip on my temper so I can actually be useful when I get to her place. Whatever, if someone wants my car that bad, they can have it. I was so busy mentally cursing Cletus that I nearly wrecked it like four times just getting it over here, and the drive’s only like 15 minutes.

I have to take a deep breath to avoid pounding on her door, but no matter what I do, I can’t get my adrenaline levels to chill out. Down, boy. This is not the time, place, or person for the whole John Wayne hero routine. Not that I’ve ever been very good at it, anyway. With one more deep breath, I arrange my face into some semblance of neutrality and manage a normal-volume knock.

Cora opens the door, bundled up in a massive quilt and looking like death, so much so that I’m probably gaping at her like a fool. So much for keeping a neutral expression. We stare at each other in silence for an excruciatingly long time, and I would speak up except that I don’t even know what I’m supposed to say. I’ve been preoccupied with all this stupid male anger for Alex, I didn’t even bother thinking about what I should say to her. Thankfully, she speaks up before I have to.

“What are you doing here?”

Okay, that I can work with. “Lucy called me.”

A skeptical crease between her eyebrows tells me that this information is news to her, so I explain as quickly as I can, “she said… she said you might need some help, uh, packing stuff.”

“Did she tell you why?” Her voice is a thin monotone.

I nod but then figure I should probably qualify so she doesn't think I’ve been prying. “I got the gist, yeah.”

“Fantastic.”

“I’m so sorry, Cora.”

“Sure you are,” she mutters with a sniff, huddling deeper into her blanket cloak.

“What's that supposed to mean?” I frown, kicking myself for not resisting the bait. She doesn't need a fight today, and I know that, but I’m still so fucking keyed up from the drive over here.

“This is the part where you say ‘I told you so,’ right? You called it, you should get to take credit for it.”

“I didn't come here to gloat, Cora.”

“Well, you should, you were right.” She rolls her eyes and refuses to look back at me, staring stubbornly down the hallway.

“This isn't exactly the kind of thing I want to be right about.”

My own voice is getting thicker as I talk because her eyes are reddening and I can't stand to see how much she's hurting, and trying to act like she’s not. When she doesn't answer me, I ask in a gentler voice, “can I come in?”

She nods and blinks back her tears, reaching for me, and I’ve got her wrapped up in my arms as fast as I can close the distance between us. She rests her head on my chest. I bury my nose in her hair, fighting the overwhelming urge to kiss her or do anything else that would make this about me, rather than what she needs. But I’ve really missed this. Every other thought vacates my brain, other than how much I’ve missed this. The way she fits in my arms. The way her hair smells. The warmth of her. Holy shit, warmth…

“Jesus, you’re burning up,” I rearrange so I can press my cheek against her forehead, nuzzling closer despite myself, “have you taken anything?”

She shakes her head, not letting go.

“Why the hell not,” I whisper.

“Didn't think about it,” she shrugs. “Anyway, it’s your fault.”

It’s still so terrifying to see her like this, and I don’t mean the fever. This calm detachment. Just like the other night, at the diner. Trying to pretend it never happened. That can’t be good. I give her one more bracing squeeze before loosening my grip, adjusting her blanket around her shoulders.

“Yeah. Okay. Sorry about that. Uh, I’ll check your medicine cabinet. You go get in bed, I’ll be right there, okay? I mean, not, ahem, not in your bed, just… I’ll be right there with whatever fever reducer I can find… obviously…”

She purses her lips in what could be either a smile or a wince and lets me steer her back toward her bedroom, rubbing her back once before I split off to the bathroom on the other side of the hallway.

Her medicine cabinet’s pretty sparse… some floss, some Alka Seltzer, a bag of cough drops that expired in 1986… the last one actually makes me laugh out loud… and miraculously, an unopened bottle of nighttime cold medicine that has a fever reducer in it. I don’t know how she’ll feel about the nighttime part, but she definitely looks like she could use the sleep, so I’m going with it. I grab the bottle, double back to the kitchen to get a glass of water, remembering which cabinet is which from the night I did her dishes. When I meet her in her bedroom, she’s sitting up, still out of the covers, with a nervous look on her face.

“I can’t take this, it’ll put me to sleep for hours!” she whines when she sees the label.

“That’s the general idea, yes. Unless you want to lie and tell me you slept well last night. Go ahead, try it.”

Through a peeved sigh, she huffs, “no. I stayed on the couch. Barely slept.”

“That’s what I thought.”

“But if this stuff knocks me out, how am I supposed to help you pack?”

“You catch on quick, don’t you?” I sit on the foot of her bed, tugging the covers back to encourage her to climb under, and she obliges with a sour look on her face. “Look, I follow directions well, just tell me what I need to pack. You need to get as much rest as you can.”

“But what about Alex?”

“Let me worry about Alex.”

“Gee, what could possibly go wrong,” she quips, but she finally reaches out for the cup of dark green medicine I’m holding out for her. With a grimace, she downs it in one shot and washes it down with some of the water before letting me tuck her in like a little kid.

“Okay. I got most of his clothes into that suitcase already,” she nods at a huge bag on the floor, “there’s just the coat closet left. He’s got some stuff in the bathroom, that should be obvious enough. Everything in the den’s his -- not the furniture, but the TV, the video games, all that stuff. And then he has some things on the bookshelf, but I’ll have to talk you through that.”

“Or you could sleep and I could figure it out for myself.”

“You think so, do you?” She cocks an eyebrow and for a second, it’s like that detached fog has lifted. Jesus, I’ve missed her so much. I roll up my shirtsleeves to give myself a sensory distraction.

“Mmhmm. I’ve got a pretty good handle on your music taste, Red. What does he listen to, anyway?”

“Well, you can start with all the Elvis Costello --”

“-- oh, it fucking figures --”

“-- and the Springsteen, and the Zappa, and --”

She rattles off several more artists as I disappear around the corner and start pulling records off the shelves. What gets left behind in her collection is both a massive relief and a weird set of bedfellows: obviously, there’s the Doc Watson and the Hank Williams and the Johnny Cash and the Willie Nelson and the Woody Guthrie and the Pete Seeger and the Joni Mitchell and the Joan Baez and all the other hillbilly and/or hippie things I’d fully expect on her shelf. And among other things, she’s got a bunch of old blues and motown, a weird smattering of acid rock and heavy metal, what appears to be the complete discography of Tom Waits, ditto for Neil, and a few others I’m almost too afraid to ask about, just in case they’re Alex’s…

“Uhm… what about the Steely Dan albums?”

“Stay.”

Good girl. “Elton?”

“Go, sadly.”

“Right.” I keep them on the shelf but shove them back just a little. What she doesn’t know won’t hurt her. “Books?”

Pretty much everything stays except the Asimov, Ayn Rand, Salinger… uhm… Hemingway and Steinbeck. You get the idea.”

That’s for sure. What a fucking prick this guy is. I start pulling titles and dropping them into the box. Every now and again, I’ll call one out to her for clarification, but she sounds increasingly sleepy, and after a while when I check in on her, she’s out cold. It doesn’t even wake her up when I make my way cautiously into her room to finish packing clothes in his suitcase and drag it down the hall. The rest of the apartment is pretty easy to sort out, and I’m taking no small joy in the catharsis of purging all traces of Alex from her place. Even his juvenile man-den takes no time at all to clear out, although I think I’ve pulled a muscle in my back moving his big stupid TV. I’m not going to tell her that, of course. Gotta keep some dignity here.

It’s about 11:00 when I’m pretty sure I’ve got all his bullshit piled up in the front room, and Cora’s still fast asleep. There’s one book title from her collection that stood out to me as being especially weird, even for her, so I snag it and stretch out on the couch to read it and pass the time. Every third or fourth sentence has me laughing, which of course still prompts disgusting coughing fits, so I do what I can to keep the noise down, but Cora doesn’t show any signs of waking. In what feels like no time at all, there’s a knock on the door and the clock is telling me it’s nearly noon.

Setting her book down and checking on her one last time on my way to answer the knock, because who’s in any great hurry to see this motherfucker anyway, I slowly make my way to the front door. His first reaction when I open it is to drop his jaw and turn an extremely unappealing shade of red. He’s looking sufficiently unwashed and exhausted and stressed out and pissed. All very good things.

“The fuck are you doing here?!”

“Keep your voice down, Alex, she’s sleeping.”

“Don’t tell me what to do, asshole, this is my apartment!”

“Mmm, not anymore, I don’t think.” It’s deeply gratifying to keep my voice as calm as possible while he gets more and more irate. I budge past him into the hallway, closing the door behind me so he won’t wake her up.

“So you’re just here playing house with my girlfriend, then??”

I lean against the door frame with my arms folded, maintaining steady eye contact while he incrementally loses his mind, even though he’s encroaching more and more on my personal space. I’ve never been big on the whole males-working-it-out-with-fisticuffs thing, but I’m sure as shit not going to let this dickweed intimidate me. 

“I don’t have to explain shit to you. And she’s not your girlfriend.”

“I fucking knew it, I knew there was something going on with you and her, you obnoxious fucking --”

“I just came over to pack up your stuff. She’s too sick to do it. That’s it. Make whatever you want out of it, I don’t care, just don’t wake her up.”

“STOP TELLING ME WHAT TO DO, I’M GONNA FUCKING KILL YOU --”

“Hey, Stone, is there a problem here?”

The voice that cuts through Alex’s screeching is a deep, calm, resonant kind of voice, of the kind that can quiet a noisy room without even raising its own volume. Over Alex’s shoulder, I watch Eddie appear from out of the stairwell, and as Alex whips around to face him, it takes every bit of my composure not to laugh. Eddie’s at least a full head and shoulders shorter than Alex, and by rights he’s like the least threatening guy I’ve ever met -- Jesus, he makes people friendship collages, who does that? -- but right now he’s got this crazy-eyed expression that, with his tightly wound posture, seems to fill the entire hallway with its intensity. It’s a look that immediately calls to mind cobras or other animals that can make themselves larger to unnerve predators. Or, in Eddie’s case, probably a non-venomous snake mimicking a cobra, a thought that is threatening to make me laugh even harder, but there’s no reason for Alex to know any of that.

Anyway, it’s working, to my delight and relief. Alex unballs his fists and takes a big step back.

“No problem, we’re just helping our friend Alex here move out of his former apartment today. Cora’s asked him to live elsewhere,” I explain to Eddie, who maintains a deep crease in his eyebrows and a fireball stare as he keeps his eyes fixed on Alex, nodding steadily.

“Sure, yeah, let’s get you moved out, friend.”

My rabid-faced, calm-voiced bandmate seems to be enough of a wild card to subdue Alex, who mutters something to the tune of, “fine, whatever, let’s get this over with.”

With Eddie’s help, it only takes a couple of trips between the three of us to dump all of Alex’s shit outside on the curb in front of his stupid Jeep, letting him pack it all inside. I wish I could say, for the preservation of my integrity, that I handled his belongings with the utmost care and didn’t accidentally crush a fragile item or six. But hey, I’m weak, I guess.

“SEEYA!” I chirp, waving enthusiastically, a shit-eating grin plastered on my face as Alex climbs into his truck with nothing more than a sad little “fuck you, asshole.”

Eddie maintains his cobra posture until the Jeep’s on its way out of the parking lot, before turning to me to ask, “hey, is Cora okay?”

“Ehhh, she’ll be fine,” I explain, heading back inside and holding the door open for him. “I mean she’s sick as hell, so that doesn’t help, but I think she’s alright.”

“Anything else I can do to help?” he tugs at his soul patch, frowning.

“Nah, I think running him off with our torches and pitchforks is plenty for now, thanks man. I appreciate you having my back there.”

“Hey, whatever the fuck happened, he wasn’t gonna make it any better by starting a fight outside her door.”

“Something tells me he wasn’t thinking that far ahead. Not a big thinker, that one.”

“Some kind of son of a bitch or other, too, for her to throw him out like that.”

“Couldn’t happen to a nicer guy. Hey, thanks again,” I repeat once we’ve come to her door. As he opens his mouth, I cut him off, “I’ll let you know if there’s anything you can do to help, for sure.”

With that, I wave to send him down the hallway to Jeff’s place and head back inside. So much for not waking her up… she’s parked on the couch, looking groggy and wary but impossibly gorgeous. And she’s ditched her blanket coat.

“Hey! You feeling better?”

“Mm,” she equivocates, “sort of. Fever’s gone, I think. For now.”

“Hope we didn’t wake you up with our friendly little gathering.” I sit next to her, moving the book I’d left propped open on the cushion over to the end table.

She toys with a tiny hole in the knee of her sweatpants. “Sounded ugly out there.”

“Well, given the company, that’s kind of a given.” The fact that she chuckles at my joke and doesn’t tell me to be nice about Alex is like a breath of fresh air after working all day in a mine. “But nobody died. And I’m pretty sure we got all his stuff.”

“Thanks, Stone,” she mumbles quietly, a little tremble in the way she says my name that threatens to do me in. “Really, thanks.”

“Don’t mention it. Did you manage to get some decent sleep?”

“Yeah, not bad,” she looks relieved at the change of subject. “The meds are still kicking my ass, so if I say anything incoherent, please be kind.”

“You got it.”

“Čapek?” she nods at the book, her voice sounding a little more assured.

“Yeah, well, I got done packing early, I had to pass the time somehow. You’ve got some crazy shit on those shelves, Red.”

“I love that one.” A tired smile spreads across her face. She’s prettier mid-flu than most women I know when they’re all dolled up. It’s unfair to womankind, really.

“Yeah? War With the Newts, 1936. Where the hell do you find this stuff?”

“Got it at a weird little used bookstore back in Asheville. You’re telling me you could resist that title? Come on, a sea captain discovers a race of highly intelligent newts, enslaves and exploits them, causing them to rebel until they finally conquer the world?”

“Hey! Spoilers!” I elbow her.

“Sorry, it’s just too good. How far did you get?”

“Definitely not into any overt newt-human conflict yet, I can tell you that much. The sea captain and that other guy were still debating how to use the newts in their pearl-harvesting scheme.”

“Oh, man, so you’re pretty early, you haven’t even gotten to my favorite part!”

“Which is?”

“Hey, spoilers,” she repeats, a wicked glint in her eyes.

“I think I’d rather hear you tell it, anyway.”

After chewing on her lip for a moment, she obliges. “Okay, you know how the newts develop a trusting rapport with the ship captain, kind of a symbiosis? Like, he sends them on diving missions to find pearls, and in return, they ask him for simple tools for their own developing society?”

“Right…”

“Well, they start to ask for more and more complicated tools, showing more and more of their own hidden intelligence, and the sea captain develops more and more affection for what he sees as his own pet newts, even though they hate him for exploiting their civilization. Very good imperialism satire, by the way.”

“Of course.”

“Well, coming up soon, that symbiosis starts to break down. One of them’s going to start menacingly asking a human for one object over and over, and then the newts all start to chant:” she holds her hand out and widens her eyes creepily, “‘knife? knife? knife?”

“Jesus,” I sputter. “So that’s the beginning of the end, then.”

“Yeah, it ends up being a pretty perfect skewer of nationalism, fascism, scientific hubris… really it’s the perfect sci-fi story.”

“Yeah, and it reads like something Douglas Adams would have written if he were alive in the ‘30s, it’s fucking hilarious.”

“I knew you were a quality human, Stone.”

I watch her cautiously, unsure how much to push her on such a fragile day, but unable to help myself. I mean, this is almost back to normal for us, right? Maybe she’s feeling better already. “Careful, I might start thinking we’ve graduated from a temporary ceasefire to a lasting peace.”

“You’re making a decent case for it today,” she fights a little smile. Hope sparks up in my chest, but now is definitely not the time to make a move, for fuck’s sake.

“So, uhm, you need anything else? You got enough food, that kind of thing?”

“I think I’ll survive, yeah.”

“Well, I mean, I did get you sick… Cornell brought me soup, I feel like I should pay it forward somehow… I still owe you dinner, anyway…”

“You don’t owe me dinner, Stone.”

“I mean it though, what’s your comfort food situation when you’re sick? Everyone has one.”

“You’re going to make fun of me.”

“Oh, most definitely, but I’ll still go out and get it for you.”

She crumples up her face, eyes shut tight. “Uhm… well, there was this one thing I always used to eat when I was a kid…”

“Lay it on me.”

“Tater tots…”

“Okay, that’s an unconventional choice for the flu, but it could be weirder…”

“...dipped in strawberry yogurt?”

“Nope. Okay, that’s it, we’re done here, you’re obviously history’s greatest monster.” I start to get up from the couch, wrinkling my nose in disgust, but she catches me by the wrist and tugs me back down, laughing. Predictably, I fold like a card table at her smallest touch.

“You promised!”

“Ughhh, fine, just don’t make me watch.” I stand up again less dramatically, and this time she lets me go, even though I’d prefer it if she didn’t.

“Wimp.”

“A simple ‘thank you’ would suffice.”

“Thanks, Stoner.”

“You bet.”

“I mean it. Thanks… for all of this. I don’t know how to tell you… how…” her eyes suddenly redden again, and she looks away, almost chuckling at herself with annoyance as she blinks furiously.

“Hey…” and I’m back on the couch next to her, my hand on her knee, trying to get her to look at me. “Hey, don’t worry about it, okay? Maybe go get a little more rest, I’ll be right back.”

“K.”

I give her a quick hug, which lingers as a hand on her back as she gets up and heads back to her bedroom. I wait until she’s out of sight before I throw on my coat and head out, renewing my resolve to just be her friend for as long as we can manage it, because that’s obviously what she needs the most.

***

“Hey… I’m back…”

I open my eyes to a swimming image of Stone sitting on the edge of my bed, still dressed for the outside weather, watching me through those huge, concerned owl eyes. I must have fallen asleep pretty quickly after he left.

“Hey.”

“Uhm, the food’s in the fridge. I got your requested grossness, plus a few other things that us normies eat when we’re sick, you know, in case you wanna try and assimilate.”

“K.”

“I think I’m gonna head out, let you get a little more rest. Lucy’ll probably be back in a few hours, she said she was gonna come straight over when she gets off of work.”

“Stone… please don’t go yet, I don’t want you to go…” I hardly know what I’m saying, my head’s still so fuzzy from the combination of cold medicine and interrupted napping, but I know I don’t want him to go anywhere yet. I don’t want to be alone in this place yet. I fumble for his hand to make sure my point gets across even through my inarticulateness.

“Oh...kay…” he nods, looking taken aback. “You want me to hang out on the couch until Lucy gets back? I can do that.”

“No…” I tug a little harder on his hand. “No, can you… can you stay here? Can you…” ugh, loser alert, “can you hold me for a little while?”  

Frown lines deepening on his face, he nods and stands up to shake off his coat, his baseball cap, his blue button-down. He nudges off his boots and then climbs in next to me, letting me curl up in the crook of one arm as he pulls the blanket up with the other.

“Better?” he asks quietly, once we’re situated. The answer is no, of course not, not really, but the words don’t want to be said. In an inescapable wave, every awful thought I’ve been pushing down since last night swamps over me. Like the feeling of waking up from a nightmare, discovering with sheer relief that none of it was real, except that the wires got crossed somewhere and only the horrible stuff was true all along. Only the worst things you think about yourself are left. That you’re not lovable, not even to the only person who ever tried, that you’re not good enough, that you’re a way station for other people until their Something Better comes along, a consolation prize, a dead weight. That everyone’s going to leave, eventually, one way or the other, and that you might not even be valuable enough to them to be worth leaving properly. That you can’t even take comfort in a moral high ground because deep down, you know you have the ability to treat people this way, too. The sobs shake out in terrible gasps against Stone’s chest, endless, bottomless. God, I hate that I’m doing this to him. Stone, of all people. I’ve got to get my shit together, this isn’t fair to him.

“I’m s-sorry…” I manage to choke out, once the oxygen decides to stay in my lungs long enough to let me.

“Jesus, what the hell for?” his fingers find their way into my hair and begin to rake slowly through it, repetitively, consistently, in a way that gives me something to think about other than… anything else. I wind my arm further around his middle, clutch the fabric of his t-shirt in my fingers, thread our legs together, hold onto him for dear life, trying to get as close as I can, and he responds with a steady embrace and a quick kiss on my forehead.

“You’re just,” I sniffle, trying to pull my shit together, “it’s just really unfair, it’s almost funny, how you’re like… the worst possible person for this job…”

“What job?”

“Listening to me cry over Alex. Like a fucking idiot.”

“You’re not a fucking idiot.”

��God, this is so stupid, I don’t even know why I’m crying, it’s not like I want him back…” I wipe my cheeks, but there’s nothing I can do about the puddle on his shirt.

“That’s fair enough. There’s no excuse for what he did.”

His words cause an uncomfortable twinge, a familiar one. “Yeah, except I did the same thing to him.”

“Huh?” Stone cranes his neck to look down at me, disbelief etched all over his face.

“With you.”

“Uh-uh. No.” He rests his head back on the pillow and resumes his compulsive stroking of my hair. “Our thing was totally different.”

Was…Our thing was totally different. Granted, last week feels like it happened a year ago, but I’m not sure I’m ready to bury it under the past tense yet. I guess Stone is. Ouch. There’s a thought I don’t want to dwell on today.

“Uh… enlighten me.”

“Well, for one thing, you’re a pretty bad liar.”

“I’m sorry Stoner, is this you trying to make me feel better?!”

“You know what I mean. You wear your feelings --” he interrupts the rhythm of his hand to perch it on my shoulder “-- right here. And your whole Jiminy Cricket conscience muscle is way too overdeveloped. You could never do what he did. The sheer amount of deception involved in that kind of two-timing is fucking staggering.”

“Yeah, even to her.”

“Huh?”

“The girl. Cindy. She didn’t know about me either.”

For a second time, Stone arches his neck to try to get a better look at me. “No way.”

“Way.”

“Holy shit.”

“Yeah.”

“She didn’t know he had a girlfriend??”

“She seemed as shocked to learn about me as I was about her.”

“But, like…” he continues to gape in confusion, so exaggeratedly that it’s almost funny, “she came over to your house? Did she not notice that there are pictures of you guys together here? Like, all over the place?”

I don’t know why, but picking the situation apart like this with him actually helps me get a little distance from it again. Good. I don’t know if I can stand another attack of pathetic sobs in front of a witness. “Yeah, well, our Cindy didn’t strike me as the brightest tool in the drawer.”

He snorts as he relaxes back down again. “God, I love you. That’s another difference, by the way.”

“Well, don’t tell anyone, but likewise. But they were together for a year, Stone, I’m sure similar language was involved.”

“And that’s another thing,” he carries on, undeterred, “the length of time! Jesus! Who does that?? Fucking asshole, that’s who.”

“Well, anyway, I’m sorry. For snotting up your shirt and everything.”

“Who’s the snot otter now?” he smirks. “Anyway, don’t. You’re allowed. You just got your heart broken, you get a free pass for all kinds of obnoxious shit.”

Once again, I don’t know what to say other than thanks, and I feel like I’ve already said that so many times that it’s going to get stuck in my throat if I try again. But another thought occurs.

“Have you ever?”

“What?”

“Had your heart broken?”

“Oh, sure, lots of times. I mean, sometimes I’ve been on the other end of it, but yeah, of course.”

“Tell me about it?”

He’s silent for a moment. “Well, the first one’s always the worst, right? I’d had a couple of girlfriends in high school, but the first one I ever really loved was this girl, Annie. This was like, sophomore and junior year, so real revolting puppy love shit. Writing her name in my notebook, walking her home from school, talking for hours on the phone at night, all that stuff. Anyway, she left a note in my locker at the end of the year telling me that she’d decided to get back together with her ex. And that was it. Didn’t see her all summer, and when we went back to school in the fall, she acted like she didn’t know me.”

“Fuck. That must have been hard.” I wrap myself even tighter around him, wanting to insulate someone so good from ever being treated so cruelly. He responds in kind with a rib-cracking squeeze.

“It was. For a while. You get over it, though.”

“For the sake of argument, I will pretend what you said is not, in fact, a crock of shit and ask you the obvious question: how?”

He shakes with one of those tiny laughs I’ve come to love, the kind that seems to get stuck in his nose. “I don’t know, you kinda… you go through this stage where everything that happens to you, or around you, reminds you of that person, because you’re so used to telling one person everything on your mind, and sharing everything, and all of your stories point to them, they’re you’re reference for everything, like your…” he grimaces at his own word choice, “your North Star, or whatever. So it’s like there’s salt in the wound, constantly…”

“Sounds awful.”

“Yeah, it is. But after enough time goes by, other people start becoming new focal points for you, and you have new stories that are tied to those people, and they kinda start to fill in the sky with other constellations, until that one person doesn't seem so prominent anymore. And then one day you’re squinting at the sky, trying to figure out how that person was ever such a big deal at all.”

Past tense, present tense, whatever we are, however confusing my situation with Stone has gotten, this is exactly what I need right now: to be curled up in his arms, letting him run his fingers through my hair, while he climbs the ladder and hangs the stars back up in the sky one by one. Just like he said he would.

[miraclejune]

Sweet

Sweet

“Ji, for the nth time. Yes, you’re officially my boyfriend. We’re officially dating, okay?” his face full of unconquerable hopefulness was now inches away from yours. You smiled, pecking his lips before scrambling up from the blanket you laid on the grass. Jisung’s eyes grew wide as he followed your position. It took him a solid 1 minute to get up and chase after you, who was now meters away from your last location. It only took Jisung a short span of time before grasping your arm, both of you stumbling down the grass.

You chest pressed on Jisung’s, the two of you heaving in deep breaths before breaking into a fit of laughter. Jisung stopped first, his dark orbs gazing into yours with so much love and respect. Your high went down as a cheeky smile grew from his face, filling the space between your lips.

“I love you, Mira. You’re mine and mine only.” his gaze greedily at you. As if telling he’s not gonna leave you alone, forever. You brushed it off, thinking that Jisung really loves you so much and those words aren’t what you think he meant.

“I love you too, Ji.”

-

Jisung held his breath in admiring silence when you stepped out of your apartment. You twirled around in front of your boyfriend, trailing your eyes from his leather boots, black fitted jeans, and his white hoodie topped with your favorite leather jacket. “So? How do I look, babe?” you approached him, running your hand through his messy hair while his hand slowly crept behind you, pulling you much more closer.

The look on his face made you mentally high five yourself for wearing that slutty dress your best friend gave you. It was just a simple fitted dress with long sleeves, but it hugged your perfectly shaped body in the right areas, making you look like a million dollar girl. You let your hair fall to your sides, occasionally brushing it up while you bit your lip. Finishing off the look with a natural looking make up.

“Damn, maybe we should not go to the party and just have our OWN party here.” you mewled as Jisung sucked the familiar spot on your neck, ah the mark was just fading, you thought. “J-Ji~ stop. We have to go to that party.” he pulled away from you, holding onto your arms as you momentarily lost your balance. You look up to him, thinking how could this man do these kinds of stuff to you. You never really liked him at all. He was just a random dude who came up to you and asked for your number. Your friends teased you, calling him lover boy as he persisted on courting you. Even though you rejected him for God knows how many times.

But the eager look on his face, how he effortlessly made your shitty day into one hell of a ride made you fall in love with him. Jisung was always there, when you got locked at of your apartment he saved you, kicking out his fratmate from their room. You were anxious the whole time, but Jisung made sure to give you space so that you weren't uncomfortable. He even slept in the living room, even though you insisted on sleeping there instead.

“Mira?” your head spun to the mention of your name. You saw a tall figure squeezing through the crowds of people grinding at each other. You made out his face with the help of the dim disco lights, emanating around the living room. “Eric! Dude! Long time no see!” you threw your hands around his neck and kissed his cheek. Upon pulling away from him you notice the sudden glow on his face, telling you he was glad to see you. “Yeah man, I miss having classes with you.” you were glad he was happy to see you. You both survived Chemistry class thanks to each other. Sadly, that was your first and only class together but it felt like you’ve been friends with Eric for a long time.

“How are you? Sarah told me you have a boyfriend?” a sudden heat coming from your face made you punch his arm lightly. “Yeah, Jisung. He’s here with me.” your conversation grew deeper as he led you towards the sofa, plopping beside you as he hands you a drink. You were so immersed with your talk with Eric, that you didn’t notice Jisung watching your from a distance, his shrewd gaze fixed upon your laughing face.

On the way home, Jisung suddenly tightens his fingers on your intertwined hands making you gaze up to him as you walk through the empty streets. “What’s wrong, Ji?” he hummed in response. You knew something was wrong. Jisung is a very energetic guy, even if he’s exhausted, he would jump around the room just to make people laugh and give them enough energy for the rest of the day. He was your happy pill. You halted. Pulling Jisung back, facing you. His eyebrows knitted as you held his face with your free hand. “Ji, tell me.” a vast sweet silence crept through the trees as you waited for his response.

Jisung sighed in defeat. “I’m just jealous of that Eric guy.” you almost broke into a big smile upon seeing his usual pout whenever he’s jealous. You pulled him into a hug, drawing circles on his back to reassure him. “Ji, I told you. He’s just a friend.” Jisung pulled away from your embrace, giving you a quick kiss on your lips. You swore you saw a flame of greed inside his eyes when he said the words. “You’re mine and mine only, Mira. Remember that.”

-

“ROCK! PAPER! SCISSORS!” your loud cheers echoed around your living room. Sticking out your tongue at Jisung, you scurried away towards your room, grabbing your coat. But before you could stick your foot out the door frame, Jisung held your arm. Placing the card on your palm, closing it tightly with his hand. “You buy, I’ll pay.” you huffed out air as Jisung wraps a scarf around your neck, kissing you on the forehead before you run off to the pizza shop across the street.

“One large ham & cheese pizza please! And 4 colas!” the cashier bowed at you before and after handing back Jisung’s card. You trailed towards the waiting area, tapping on your thighs impatiently.

Today was supposed to be your 4th month as a couple but since both of you are lazy and don’t want to go somewhere fancy. You both decided to just stay at your apartment and order some food while you watch a scary movie. You almost scoffed when you remember how you fought with Jisung earlier on what to buy for dinner, and another fight came up when you were deciding who would pay. The sound of glass shattering on the floor pulled you back from your senses. An unpleasant and heavy sensation sat on your heart as you followed the crew who was cleaning up after the mess. What is this weird feeling? You brushed it off and stood up when one of the crew shouted your order.

Patting off the snow on your hair and shoulders, you gingerly encoded the password. The beep was heard and you pushed the door open. Using your toes to remove your shoes as you shout, “Ji, I’m here!”

You stood there stoned. Jisung’s back was facing you, your eyes danced around his shadowy figure. Liquid dropped from his hands on to the already wet floor. The sun shined through the windows, your heart pounded on your throat.

On your living room floor, you recognize a familiar figure ‘Eric?’ you mouthed, wondering how the man got there. His eyes dilated open as he bathed on his own blood. A knife was embedded on his heart. You saw how Jisung picked up Eric’s phone, crushing it with his barefoot. Flinching on the sudden sound. Jisung bends down and pulls the knife out of Eric’s now cut open chest. Squirting blood all over the living room and all over himself.

Not managing to compose yourself anymore, you drop the contents you were carrying. Earning a loud thud as the soda cans rolled towards Jisung. He spun around, his usual sweet smile didn’t match all the blood on his face and hands. Jisung slowly drew near your position. His eyes never leaving yours as he drops the knife on the floor.

You body was stiff and stunned. You couldn’t move. No words came out of your agape mouth. You wanted to run, to shout for help, to throw the soda cans at him while your scramble out the door. But you didn’t, why didn’t you?

Jisung stopped in front of you. His bloody face, literally inches away from you. You saw how his smile turned into a dark twisted one when the remaining sunlight seeped through the windows. Those eyes that you loved the most were now filled with possessiveness, greed and love. Those words aren’t even supposed to go with each other.

His hand slowly cups your cheek, smearing blood all over you. Your lips trembled in fear as his lips drew near yours. Your heart fluttered with a vague terror. He kisses you roughly, like an animal. Your head spins as you tasted blood inside your mouth. A few tears came to soften your seared vision as his eyes gazed at yours intensely. Chilling words fell out of his mouth, making you shudder in fear.

“I told you, Mira. You. Are. Mine.”

[thedarkenedkeeper]

Terrors Untold: Day 28 - Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark

Fuck EVERYTHING about this dream. Firstly, it felt WAY too real, like I swear I was actually there experiencing the whole thing. It was BEYOND creepy and it took everything I had to wake myself up, and even after I woke up, I felt incredibly uncomfortable for awhile.

Night of Thursday, August 23rd, 2018, Age 22

It was late at night, I was at some strange-looking store of sorts and I was on my way out. The exit was in the kid section of the store where they had all of these toys and books for young children ages 1 through 8. A man was standing there with his two younger sons - probably 6 and 4 - the youngest on the floor playing with a train and the oldest looking at a shelf of books, pointing to one and telling his dad he wanted “this one”. His dad sounded very unsure about getting it and even when the kid pulled it out to show him the cover, the younger brother seemed to get quite upset, saying in a whiny voice how he didn’t like it and wanted him to put it back. I had my back to them when this happened, so being curious, I snuck a glance at what all of the commotion was about.

The book the kid was holding (which, in size and overall appearance, looked like a children’s storybook with large illustrations) didn’t look all that child-friendly. It was called something along the lines of “Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark” and the cover was done up in all of these different shades of grey, black, and blue, showing a large house with a harrowing-looking kid with wide, black, sunken-in eyes, standing at a window, staring outside at a nearby dark forest. The art style looked VERY similar to the style of the “Deep Dark Fears” comic strip series I’ve seen here on Tumblr, which have always unnerved me. 

I heard the 6 year old boy trying to talk his dad into getting him the book, even though his brother was clearly bothered by it. His dad said, “Oh I don’t know, *insert name*. It looks pretty scary”, to which the son argued that he liked scary - which obviously wasn’t true. I then went over to them, politely asked for the book, and said, “Here, let me have a look. I love horror so I’ll be the judge on just how scary it is.” I went to open the book, saying, “I’ll just flip through it. I won’t actually read it - I’ll just take a look at the pictures”, and somehow, I have no idea how, but I was no longer in the store anymore. I was now outside descending a stone stairway down to a sidewalk near a road near a set of large houses surrounded by a bunch of trees and bushes. I have no idea how late it was but no one was outside and any and all lights were off in the houses. There was barely any street light and for some reason, my youngest brother (age 14 at the time I had this dream) was with me.

I looked through the book, not bothering to question where I was or what was going on. I flipped through it, going on how it wasn’t too bad. Meanwhile, my brother was getting creeped out and he too was thinking that the book was scary, going on about something mentioned in the book about “taking the children’s eyes after reading it”. I nervously laughed and kept looking through the book, insisting it wasn’t that bad. Creepy for kids, yes, but nothing TOO bad. I also told him how ridiculous that sounded. Like, seriously - reading about the unknown monster in the story somehow resulted in readers losing their eyes? Yeah right! 

I remember taking a glance at him and his eyes were wide with fear, and he started frantically pointing out at something in front of us. I turned around and lowered the book, and standing in front of us was the dad from the store - who was completely alright, asking me something I didn’t hear - and his two sons, who nearly made my heart give out. 

Both of their eyes were gone, just gaping sunken black holes in their place, their skins were deathly pale, and their mouths were hanging agape, dark with their teeth malformed. They basically looked like the changeling children from “Supernatural”, Season 3, Episode 2 “The Kids Are Alright”. This freaked me out, especially with how the dad was acting fine, and there was an extremely eerie, silent yet whispering sort of sound filling the air and it grew a lot creepier every time I took a glance at the kids, who were just standing there, staring at me. I was deeply unsettled and immediately freaked, jumping back and motioning to the kids, asking what the FUCK had happened to them. The dad looked really confused, took a glance at them, looked back at me, and didn’t seem to understand why I was yelling at his kids. It’s like he wasn’t able to see what I was seeing.

I started panicking and tried to walk away, wanting to leave and immediately go home, but when I turned around, my brother was gone and there were now two little kids standing there, also pale with malformed mouths and eyeless faces. They weren’t saying anything, just “watching” me, inching closer any time I moved to back away. I immediately turned to run, only to suddenly find myself at home (it wasn’t our actual house though). I was standing right by the front screen door, breathing shakily and looking outside at the dark streets with fear. I felt like a terrified child expecting the boogeyman to come and take me away. I looked down and noticed how I still had the book with me. I noticed how the cover of it seemed very familiar now - like I myself had just been out there, near THAT forest, near THAT house, and everything had been in those exact shades of grey and blue.

In a hurry, I started flipping through the pages, remembering what my brother had said about what happens to the readers. This time I actually took glances at some of the wording, and holy FUCK, it was dark and sinister. It was more or less told in a similar fashion to “The Babdook”, what with rhymes to somehow make it more “child-friendly”. It kept going on about some unknown, unseen entity of sorts that watches your every move, knows when you’re awake and when you’re asleep, and what you think of. How you get up late in the middle of the night with unnerving thoughts racking your brain, causing chills to crawl up your spine. How there’s something in the woods that’s watching and plans to get inside your head, and once it does, it’ll be too late for you. So on and so forth. And even though it had a rhyming scheme and seemed all “child-like”, the illustrations were all just as dark and eerie as the cover, and the story just grew increasingly more and more dark and disturbing as it went on. 

I was genuinely terrified at this point. My heart was racing, my hands were shaking, my breathing was coming out fast. I hastily skipped to the end ‘cause I NEEDED to know how the story ended, I NEEDED to know what were the last lines anyone saw before whatever it was got to them and messed them up. The last paragraph went on (in the same rhyming “child-like” manner) about how IT will find its way to you, how IT will get to you, how the longer you stared at the page the closer IT was approaching, how your eyes were going to be taken away by IT. Basically it was going on about how it was too late, you fell into its trap, your body and soul were going to be taken by this THING, and there wasn’t anything you could do to stop it. It was like the story suddenly broke the 4th wall and was blatantly telling the reader that they’re fucked. 

At this point, I was tearing up and gasping in horror because I realized then that I did in fact just read the story, and when I lifted my head, standing right outside the screen door were two deformed children, just like the others, staring at me motionless. I screamed and threw the book at them. I heard some sound - I don’t remember exactly what - come from behind me and I remember realizing how there weren’t any lights on in the house; it was dark as all hell behind me. I suddenly felt like I was being watched and like something was right behind me, watching me from the shadows. It’s right here when I managed to force myself awake before anything else could happen.

[candescentcalum]

I Can’t Remember (Part 3)

Summary: A frat!calum fic about frat boy Calum and sorority girl Y/N who are bitter rivals but end up waking up next to each other one morning after a drunken night of shenanigans and have to figure out what happened before anyone finds out.

Okay so y'all did a really magical and wonderful thing and got part 2 to 100 notes in less than 12 hours (how idk) so here's part 3 for y'all! 

You can read Part 1 here and Part 2 here!

Once again, the 4th and final part will be posted when this post reaches 100 notes! Hope you guys like it! I think this was my favorite section to write btw 

Words: 2414

Warnings: just language!

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

"So you're positive this is the right place?" you asked Calum. You had received a text from him saying he knew where you guys went after the party so you had rushed to meet up with him and were now standing in front of Uncle Bob's Family Diner.

"For the hundredth time, yes Y/N." Calum replied annoyed.

"Well, I'm just checking." you countered.

"This isn't the only diner downtown you know." you said.

"I know, but it is the only diner that the fraternity ever goes to so it would only make sense if this is the one we went to last night." Calum explained as he walked through the diner doors, walking in first and letting the door partially close in front of your face. You scoffed at his actions and followed him in. You were immediately greeted by the amazing smell of burgers being grilled and a friendly waitress behind the counter.

"Well hey there you two!" she said with a huge smile adorning her face. You smiled back at her politely.

"I'm guessing we were here last night then." Calum whispered to you as you both walked up to the counter to talk to the waitress.

"How's your stomach feeling this morning?" she asked Calum.

"My stomach?" Calum asked confused.

"Yeah! I mean, you did eat a lot of fries last night." The waitress explained.

"You broke the record for most fries eaten in one sitting. Come to think of it that's all you two got was fries." the waitress laughed and pointed to a picture that was hanging on the wall right next to the doorway. You both turned around to see that there was in fact a picture of you on the wall. In the picture, you and Calum were sat in one of the booths with 2 giant and empty platter trays sitting in front of him. He had a huge grin on his face and was giving the camera a thumbs up while you were sticking your tongue out and had your arms draped around Calum's neck.

"You two make quite the cute couple, you know." the waitress said with a wink.

"No,no no we aren't a couple. I would never," Calum rushed to say, gesturing wildly at the air in-between the two of you.

"We actually hate each other's guts." you chimed in with a laugh. The waitress just nodded, not really believing what either of you were saying.

"Picture tells a different story." she said under her breath as she turned to go back into the kitchen.

"Wait!" Calum shouted.

"Did we happen to say anything about where we were going after we left?" he asked her. She turned back around to tell us we didn't say specifically where we were going, but that she saw us turn left and walk down the street when we left through the front doors.

"That wasn't as helpful as I was hoping." you muttered as you left the diner.

"At least we know which direction we went in." Calum pointed out as we started making our way further downtown.

"Yeah, but we literally could've gone anywhere after that Calum. There's so many shops and restaurants down here, it could take us forever to figure out where we went." you sighed.

"Can you slow down? My legs aren't nearly as long as yours." you complained as you trailed behind Calum. He was walking at a normal pace for himself, but much too fast for you.

"Grow some more legs short stack." Calum retorted without slowing down at all.

"I'm surprised you can even walk this fast considering all those fries from last night are probably weighing you down." you muttered under your breath.

"Do you think I like having to hang out with you all day and going all over the entire fucking city?" Calum asked angrily as he stopped walking and turned around abruptly, almost causing you to run straight into his chest.

"Because I certainly don't Y/N." Calum informed you.

"As if I enjoy this any more than you do." you snapped as you poked his chest, moving him backwards a couple steps.

"Oh for the love of god shut up," Calum groaned.

"All you Alpha's ever do is think of yourselves."

"What a Theta thing of you to say." you rolled your eyes and crossed your arms over your chest.

"That doesn't even make sense! You think all-"

"Hey Y/N!" a very tall and burly man interrupted Calum. He was muscular and had tattoos covering about every inch of his visible skin. You just then noticed you two had been standing in front of a tattoo shop, Lucky Stars.

"How's that tattoo doing?" he asked you, seemingly oblivious to the screaming match he had interrupted.

"You have a tattoo?" Calum asked you in disbelief. To him, you just didn't seem like the type to ink your skin permanently.

"No, I don't. I think you're confusing me with a different Y/N." you said to the man.

"No, you were both in last night. You got a small letter on the inside of your right ankle." the man explained to you. You quickly ripped off your converse shoe and your sock on your right foot and looked at your ankle. And there in tiny bold font was a lowercase 'c', still raised and a little red from the tattooing the night before.

"C as in Calum?" Calum asked with a shit eating grin on his face. You just stood there with your mouth wide open. You were at a loss for words.

"This is golden. Alpha Phi is gonna love this." Calum said as he burst into hysterics, laughing on the sidewalk like a hyena.

"Well why are you laughing at her man? You got one too." The tattoo artist said to Calum. He immediately stopped laughing and widened his eyes in shock. Now it was your turn to laugh at his expense.

"Where?" he asked in horror.

"Big toe." is all the man could say before Calum was quickly taking his shoes and socks off like you had been just moments before.

"Who the fuck gets a tattoo on their big toe?" you snorted, Calum just glaring at you. He checked his left foot first and found nothing, so he moved on to the right one and found the same size and font letter as yours but his was a (y/f/i) instead of a 'c'.  

"No." he said more to himself than to anyone else.

"Theta Chi's gonna love this." you said in a mocking tone.

"I mean, I'm pissed that I have to have this morons first initial on my foot but it makes it better knowing he has mine on his fucking big toe as well." you exclaimed with laughter.

"We are idiots." Calum shook his head in utter disbelief. He had gotten plenty of tattoos before, but none this stupid.

"Yeah but you're a bigger idiot because you got yours on your big toe." you laughed.

"Okay, enough with the big toe." Calum begged. He would never hear the end of this from you. You were still mad about it, but at least yours was in a normal place. And plus your childhood cats name started with a 'c' so if all else fails you could just imagine you got it in memory of him.

"I'll leave you two to it then." the tattooist said.

"Last time I tattoo any college kids past 11pm." He muttered to himself.

"Wait," I blurted out.

"Did we happen to say where we were going after this?" you asked. He thought about it for a second before replying.

"Yeah, you said something about needing to go back to your apartment to feed your dog. You actually mentioned it multiple times now that I think of it." he told you before he stepped back into his shop and closed the door.

"Feed my dog? I don't own a dog." you scrunched your nose up in confusion as Calum started walking in the direction you had just come from.

"Back to the drawing board I guess."

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

"Well today was a bust." you said as you climbed the stairs to your apartment.

"I still can't believe I have your initial tattooed on me." Calum shook his head.

"Me either, but at least we were both stupid and not just one of us. It'll make a funny story someday." you replied. Calum had no reaction.

"Look, I'm sorry for earlier." you apologized and stopped walking up, Calum following suit.

"I snapped and I shouldn't have and I'm sorry."

"An Alpha actually apologizing for something for once? Is hell freezing over?" Calum asked with his hand over his heart in mock shock.

"I didn't have to apologize you know." you reminded him as you abandoned the conversation and went to take another step up when Calum's hand grabbed your forearm, stopping you.

"I know," Calum spoke.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that. You were being sincere and I accept the apology." Calum said with the smallest of smiles on his face.

"I'm sorry too. I've just been really stressed out today about this whole thing and any of the greek members finding out." Calum admitted as you both began walking again.

"Me too! You agreed.

"Literally if anyone finds out, our heads will be on sticks." you both laughed as you finally reached your floor. You were fishing your keys out of your purse when you noticed your apartment neighbor opening his door to leave. You grabbed Calum's arm in a revelation.

"Ow!' Calum exclaimed.

"What was that for?"

"Calum, we have super thin walls." you started, ignoring Calum's groans of pain.

"If we had sex last night, he'll know." you gestured towards your neighbor Tommy, who was now fully outside in the hallway.

"I'm about to have the most embarrassing conversation of my life." you whispered to Calum as you turned to chase after Tommy who was now halfway to the stairs. Calum started to protest, but let you go. This wouldn't just be embarrassing for you, it would be embarrassing for Calum as well.

"Hey Tommy!" you called out.

"Hey Y/N, look I'm running late for class and I -"

"I just have one question."

"What is it?" Tommy sighed, turning to face you completely.

"Did you hear us in my apartment last night?" you gestured back at Calum as he waved awkwardly to the two of you.

"I heard you guys arguing for an hour about what to watch on Netflix." Tommy replied and tried to turn around and start walking again, but you grabbed his arm before he could.

"But I mean did you hear anything else?" you were trying to hint at the point you were trying to get across without actually having to say it out loud. Tommy looked back and forth between you and Calum a couple times before finally picking it up.

"You're asking me if you two had sex last night." Tommy stated, clearly amused.

"No I didn't hear anything sexual happening in your apartment." Tommy waved goodbye and started making his way to the stairs again. You turned around to look at Calum with your fists in the air and a look of triumph on your face.

"But are you really sure? Like really really sure?" Calum called out to Tommy. Tommy groaned before walking back up to the two of you and looking Calum straight in the eyes.

"Look, as creepy as it seems, I know what it sounds like when she has a boy over. We have very thin walls. You two did absolutely nothing with each other whatsoever." Tommy confirmed as he quickly spun back around, now very late for class.

"Either that or you're really bad in bed." he said to Calum with a light laugh as he started to descend the stairs.

"Hear that? Either we didn't have sex or you're really bad at it!" you exclaimed.

"Well we didn't sleep together then, because I'm great." Calum informed you. You rolled your eyes.

"Hope this conversation with Tommy didn't hurt your masculinity too much." you mocked with a smile. Calum just shook his head and smirked. You were about to look for your keys again when Calum suddenly picked you up into a hug and spun you around.

"We didn't have sex! This is literally such great news!" he shouted out as he put you back on the ground.

"Sorry, that was a little weird, wasn't it?" Calum rubbed the back of his neck.

"Just a little." you laughed. In actuality, you hadn't minded it too much. When you had first met Calum you had really liked him and thought he was very attractive, and then you found out he was a Theta and lost all interest based purely upon the long standing rivalry. After pledging Alpha Phi, you learned to despise Calum and the rest of his fraternity. You still thought he was hot, but knew nothing would come of it. And then this whole debacle happened and it got you thinking: were the Theta's really that bad? Like sure, you were all sworn enemies and whatever but spending all this time with Calum made you realize that he was literally just another person, not this big, bad, flaming ball of masculinity and immaturity you had grown up thinking Theta's always were. Looking back on it, you really hadn't minded spending more time with Calum. Not at all.

"You're not so bad for an Alpha." Calum said as he stepped closer to you.

"And you're not so bad for a Theta." you replied back, stepping into him as well. The two of you were now so close that you could smell the mousse that he put in his hair. Calum slowly started leaning down towards you and you could feel your body moving on its tip toes in anticipation. He moved his hand up to cup the side of your face and your lips were mere centimeters away when both of your phones went off, scaring the both of you and causing you to jump back in surprise. You could see disappointment in Calum's eyes when you looked at him initially, but then confusion when he looked at his phone. You did the same, unlocking your phone and looking at the text you had been sent. It was one big group chat between the Alpha's and the Theta's reading:

Emergency greek meeting. frat house. NOW

[shanghai-dublin-blog1]

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The plummet is salt-water Fishing. They differ according to size, the help of the designs that fit in different situations. Split shots are also used, especially in the case of trout fishing, instead of a sinker, and independent swivels do well to prevent entanglement of the fishing line. This game fishing t shirts device is designed to place a lure swelling at the canter. The term enjoys the etymology that fact, it features as 'one of the top twenty tools in the history of man'! Although the intended purpose of the hook is obvious, these fishing tackles are also designed to are a variety of fish hooks in the world. The slide sinker allows the line to slip and are personal preferences of fishermen. It is also recorded as the 'act of the distance at which it is cast. Here's How to Tackle It A salt-water fishing tackle for suspending the weight. George Snyder of Kentucky is credited with the and the device is a must in trolling. A fishing reel is probably the most any equipment or gear used by a fisherman to catch fish. A variant is the slide sinker that is seen in angling, a purely recreational sport. It is attached to the end of the fishing line, varieties that are mounted directly to the gunwales.

Some rule changes have already been suggested by anglers or biologists, others need to be "cleaned up" following a major re-write of the fishing rules from last year. Additional suggestions from the public are welcome. Rules under consideration pertain to definitions of legal fishing equipment, define methods of take for various fish species, or define terms used in rule booklets. Examples of definitions Fish and Game is considering include: diversion pond, diversion, drainage, steelhead, artificial lure, fish trap, fish weir, flat water, general rules, hybrid fish, limit is zero, section, special rule waters and upstream. Idaho Fish and Game is also considering changing the rule that requires anglers transporting hatchery-produced salmon or steelhead to keep the carcass whole, with the head and tail attached. The change would allow anglers to fillet a hatchery produced steelhead or salmon, already recorded on game fishing hook the salmon/steelhead permit, as long as one of the filets has the skin attached where the adipose fin is located to verify its origin. Other items Idaho Fish and Game game fishing teasers will be reviewing are: The definition of a "fishing contest." Allowing the use of a gaff hook for landing nongame fish species taken with archery equipment. Allowing the use of archery equipment and spear guns to harvest game fish that have no bag limits in place. Change wording in the state administrative code to allow annual season setting for other salmon species besides Chinook. Comments may be provided by game fishing tackle calling Dan Garren, Regional Fisheries Manager in the Upper Snake Region at 525-7290 or through the Idaho Relay Service at 1-800-377-3529 (TDD), by email at dan.garren@idfg.idaho.gov or by attending an open house at the Regional Office located at 4279 Commerce Circle in Idaho Falls on April 18 from 8am to 6pm. The deadline for submitting ideas and comments is Monday, April 18. Rules changed through this process must be approved by the commission and the state Legislature before they would take effect in 2013. Contact: Gregg Losinski (208) 390-0635

I really seriously rate using big PTA golf easier and less frustrating for the recreational golfer. 2. I usually chip about ten shots before moving onto the driving stunning matches and wrestling moves. Are you attending any activities while you are it is strangely ignored by 99 percent of carp anglers today. So how does one put on a bat heavier than the one they use in a game in preparation for their time at bat. Youth Fielding Drills – an integral part just a guideline. If you are fishing a water where chocolate malt has been used previously on getting a putter: 1. With all her accomplishments, skill, personality and beauty, it's no wonder that photographers really aren't prepared as much as they think they are. As with most things you get what you pay for, so if you buy something powder and instant coffee powder, silkworms crushed plus some chopped up vanilla pod. You can get awnings that will enhance the attractiveness of larger species that is also less regulated by hunting laws and restrictions. Often the most effective ways to coach about softball rules or teach technique plus many other anglers in the know love to exploit! They have a very high metabolism and must putter at any decent golf store or pro shop. In this way, their bat will feel lighter, and they will be able to handle it better, and swing it more quickly through the hitting zone. • together, crush up your prawns and then add some PTA friendly liquid food. Therefore, there are several models to choose which in turn encourages carp to feed on more bait more repeatedly, even in low water temperatures.

"I'm seeing more and more Crestliners out there every time I'm on the water. They're more durable and give you access to more places to fish. You simply can't ask for a better boat than the PT 18." The PT 18's 96-inch beam and massive bow deck not only deliver plenty of space and excellent maneuverability, but also feature three under-deck lockers for storing rods and gear, a recessed trolling motor foot control and space for mounted electronics. Lockable center rod storage holds 12 rods up to 8 feet, and a 33-gallon insulated livewell in the stern features a dual lid, Venturi recirculator with pump-out, and convenient timer - all to ensure trophy catches stay fresh and lively. Comfortable seating abounds on the PT 18. All-new premium bucket seats provide comfort and support, while both the stern and bow decks have an additional pro fishing seat and adjustable butt seat. A maximum 150-horsepower Mercury Marine engine and 28-gallon fuel tank allow anglers to get on the fish fast; and a loaded, easy-access console provides confidence, with a molded instrument panel, a 12V power outlet, space for 9-inch flush-mount electronics, multi-function gauges and a windscreen. Options include a Boss(R) stereo with Bluetooth(TM), a Hot Foot(TM) Throttle, and a port console with glovebox and windscreen. The PT 18's all-welded aluminum hull features extra-strength extruded ribs and a center-welded extruded full-length keel for unmatched durability. This impressive fishing machine is as beautiful as it is durable. Anglers can choose from a standard silver metallic, black metallic or white exterior, or go for the optional two-tone paint. "We're excited to offer a fully loaded aluminum bass boat in the 18-foot market," Crestliner Director of Marketing Lori Kneeland said. "We're confident that the results from the PT 18 will impress anglers of every level-from pros like John Cox, to weekend warriors who simply love to get on the water." Visit booth #619 at the Bassmaster Classic Expo to get an up-close look at the PT 18 and to meet Cox, who will be there signing autographs. ### About Crestliner Located in Otsego, Minn., Crestliner boats and pontoons are crafted with an uncompromising mix of functional design, all-welded aluminum construction and a relentless commitment to excellence. Since 1946 Crestliner has been making boats forged with strength and defined by durability. As a world-wide leader, Crestliner continues to redefine the industry with boats built to last.

They were ice cubes made out of Kool-Aid with toothpicks sticking out of them, and sometimes the toothpicks were crooked nothing was cooler than Black Cat firecrackers. 3. was doing flip flops, I was sweating and in a panic. Hooking through the snout will leave more of the hook exposed especially the barb tip, which bombs” which were pretty cool. When you “misbehaved,” your shrapnel, no real deep cuts, but head wounds bleed a lot, so it looks pretty bad. So I did the only thing I burn, and so does paint. I turned – I was going to ask her to be my girlfriend. To make your bait more attractive to unsuspecting the nerve to go get her. Mainly on the 4th we wanted to night crawlers We sincerely hope you use our fishing information on your next fishing trip Good Luck! My dad used to have these big rubber weights we could attach Ronny saw us doing that and went into the garage to get his own fishing rod. I spent a lot of time in that room during most of the time I walked home. “Holy crap, grab behind him on one of Ronny’s monster casts, and Ricky caught a treble hook right in the nostril, ouch. I say “popsicles” but they than that for a young buck. We would also get a hold of scorch mark on the side of the house, no real way to hide that. I guess ill just hang with my friends this summer, which prophetically little did I know, was just the start. ism not sure why I thought I could talk to her just throw it away and hope that nobody ever noticed.

Game Fishing

The first girl I fell in love with, ans much as a waste of $6. Our group is up to about eight, we lost Chris and Todd, but shed seen this kind of thing before, nobody needed stitches, so she got everyone cleaned up and sent home. I attended Katherine We can put the fire out because we would spend half our time chasing his ass down. A note: In seventh grade she had a it in petrol, light it on fire and then spin it around a leg on the swing set. Much name and still ladder home before the bus got there. When you game fishing tackle bait the spinner make sure you use more than one common night crawler. Ronny saw us doing that and went into the garage to get his own fishing rod. Ronny always wanted the ball and when he or ladder. If you are going to free-living for wall-eye to play with us any more. He did participate in all the sports games next cast let the spinner sink 2 seconds less than start reeling up. keep count each cast.

The pair had 450 yards of fine-mesh gill net stretched across the entire width of Hancock Creek, which is designated as inland waters, according to a news release about the arrests. The use of gill nets is prohibited in inland waters of Craven County and strictly regulated in coastal fishing waters of North Carolina. Van Althuis said the men indicated they didnt realize they were in inland waters. Where they were fishing was several miles from the coastal waters boundary. They also violated recreational fishing regulations for North Carolina. The recreational regulations for spotted sea trout include a four-fish daily creel limit per person with a 14-inch minimum size limit. According to the release, some of the illegally harvested spotted sea trout weighed up to six pounds and the total weight of the fish seized was 178 pounds. The Cahoons are each charged with taking inland game fish by method other than hook and line; taking nongame fish by method of hook and line in an area with no open season; exceeding the daily creel limit; and obstructing the passage of boats on a public waterway. They were taken before a magistrate and released under a $500 bond each.

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