#i went and read the death scene for this ask and FUCKING HELL

[thatone-highlighter]

who do YOU think killed grime? I just reread dearest friends and was spinning this question around in my mind the whole time, so I wanna see what you think

okay so im gonna be 100% honest with you. i have only actually read Dearest Friends the one time when it originally came out. ive started reading it since but i dont think i even made it half way.

but either way, i have no idea who i think it is, of the two options both of them have Great support for why it could be them and any time i try to decide on one i think it is i immediately become extra sure its the other one instead and end up back at square one

Beatrix has a few good pointers, the main one for me being the fact shes so laid back about being out of the sleep contest which makes me think she was up to something. its only one main thing but it feels Very Big to me

but then you have for Bufo a few, mostly consentrated right at the end. the fact that Grime laughs at who it is, the fact that when they ask if they'll be blamed Barrel says they have a scapegoat, which could be Beatrix based on the fight they have earlier on that would make a Great excuse. and-

wait. ive been using the scapegoat thing as justification in my head for Months but writing it out now that doesnt make any sense, for that to work shed have to have made a public show of having an issue with Grime, not Barrel, uh disregard that point for me. thanks

the hesitation also i think could go either way, either bufo being just a little bit of a coward or Beatrix not actually wanting Grime dead. kind of leaning more towards that being a point to Bufo tho.

okay now after writing it all out i think i am leaning a little more towards Beatrix, but theres this nagging little voice in my head also saying it cant be her

[celiastjamesoscar]

Wildest Dreams

Pairings: Sam Carpenter x fem!reader

Summary: you are helplessly head over heels for Sam, even though she despises you. But your relationship with her changes when you get in a lightly physical altercation with her.

Warnings: light sweating, reader accidentally walks in on Sam changing, small violence

My Masterlist

AN: if you have the time, I highly recommend reading ‘The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo’ and watching ‘Carol’ <3

Word count: 6.3K

For the first time in what seemed a millennium, you finally had the house to yourself. Anika was out with Mindy for a date, and your other roommate, Luke, was doing god knows what, probably out fornicating with one of his many boyfriends, but you didn’t care. You only cared about relaxing on the couch and rewatching your comfort show, Game of Thrones.

You grabbed your phone and a bowl of popcorn and went to the couch. You curled up with the blanket hanging over the back of the sofa as you turned on your show.

Tarantula: you up? ;)

The ‘ding’ from the text pulled you away from the tv, and you smiled when you read the text from your best friend, Tara. The two of you had met on campus in the library and instantly became friends. You two bonded over your love for books and shared a passion for horror movies, even though your opinions drastically differ.

Sam lover: maybe, it depends on who’s asking

Tarantula: you’re best friend in the entire world?? Who else?

Sam lover: mhmmm, okay. What are we doing?

Tarantula: movie night, obviously

Sam lover: sure, I’ll be over in ten

Tarantula: just a heads up, you’ll have to come in through my window

You raised your eyebrows at Tara’s message, ‘Why would I have to do that? I’ve been over before,’ you thought to yourself.

Sam lover: why?

Tarantula: because Sam is watching a movie in the living room, and we are hanging out in my room

Sam lover: fuck, okay. why does she still hate me?

Tarantula: I don’t know, but don’t make any noise when you come over. Sam can’t know and don’t try and hit on her if you see her

To say that you and Sam were acquaintances would be an understatement; Sam despised you, while the woman completely enchanted you. Sam was so tall and handsome as hell. She’s bad for you, but she does it so well; you could see the end as it begins. You admired her strength, both physically and mentally, and you loved the way she cared so much about her sister. And that was also your downfall; Sam believed that you were no good for Tara, as every time Tara did something stupid, you were always at the scene of the crime. Of course, Sam didn’t know that you were always there because you tried your best to stop Tara out of respect for Sam (and a shitty attempt at winning her heart), but she never listened when you tried to explain yourself.

You scoffed at your best friend’s words. She knew of your infatuation with Sam and loved to tease you about it. At first, however, she thought it was a bit weird as you were her best friend and thought you were using her to get close to Sam, but after she saw you turn down an invite to go with Sam and Mindy to the movies just to stay at home and play Mario Kart with her, she knew that you were the real deal.

Tara found it a bit sad, though, because every time you would talk to Sam, you would either get silence, a death stare, or a one-word reply, but she would rather die than tell you that she felt pity for your shitty attempts to talk to her sister.

Sam lover: I will not be held responsible for my actions when I am around a beautiful woman with big brown eyes

Tarantula: yeah, yeah, whatever. just get over here soon and climb in through my window; I’ll leave it open

Sam lover: sounds good. I’m omw

With that, you shut your phone off, grabbed your backpack and put a spare change of clothes along with a cable to charge your phone in it, and went towards Tara’s apartment. You enjoyed walking by yourself as it allowed you to be with your thoughts, and you couldn’t help it when you started to think of Sam. The gravitational pull you felt towards the older woman was something you couldn’t explain even if you had to; you just knew that you couldn’t deny the attraction you felt. You longed to get lost in those dark eyes and don’t even get started on those muscular arms; to you, Sam was perfect, and you would count all the stars in the sky if you could call her yours for a moment.

When you reached the street Tara lived on, you sent Tara a quick message asking her which side her window would be on, and she responded with ‘the one that’s close to creepy ass alley,’ which was all of New York in your eyes.

Sam lover: that’s all of NY, Tarantula

Tarantula: It’s across from the McDonald’s, five stories up. And stop calling me ‘Tarantula.’ It’s offensive.

You laughed at your friend’s reply before sending back a quick ‘huh uh.’ You walked around the apartment until you saw the McDonald’s and then the creepy ass alleyway and looked up five stories. And true to her word, Tara had her window open for you. You climbed onto the fire escape and slowly made your way to Tara’s window before sending her a quick text telling her you were here, only you didn’t see the message she sent back telling you you weren’t at her window.

When you pushed Tara’s window the rest of the way and climbed halfway in, you nearly died; Sam was standing in a towel with her back facing you as she grabbed some clothes from her dresser. When she dropped her towel, your heart exploded, and it felt like you were in your wildest dream. You admired her perfect curves, and then the leg that you had in Sam’s room gave out, causing you to fall into Sam’s room with a loud thud.

Sam turned around with a shocked expression before she quickly turned back to her dresser and grabbed a knife. You could not seem to pry your eyes away from Sam’s chest, and you swore you could feel drool fall down your chin. You were too busy trying to engrave Sam’s naked figure into your brain that you didn’t feel the blade fly into your left thigh.

“Sam, I am so sorry,” you said as you tried to stand up on your legs, but one gave out and screamed in pain. The only thing on your mind was Sam’s breasts that you swore looked like the softest pillows ever.

“What the fuck is going-Oh my god! What happened to your leg?” Tara exclaimed after bursting into the room, disregarding her sister, who finally covered herself with a towel. At the mention of something wrong with your leg, you finally felt the sharp pain shoot through your entire leg as you stared at the blade in your thigh.

“You’re weird friend just broke into my room and stared at me while I was changing!” Sam stated as she grabbed her clothes and stormed off to the bathroom, clearly not caring about your wound. Tara quickly ran to your side and knelt beside you, “I am so sorry about this, Y/N. I didn’t know that she also had her window open.”

You shrugged off Tara’s comment as you tried to move, but the pain was too much. You watched as your crimson-red blood steeped onto the room’s flooring and stained your clothing. “Come on, we have to get you to a hospital,” Tara stated, pulling you up to the floor and leaning your weight onto her. By the time Tara had entered the living room and to the door, Sam was dressed and had her phone and keys in hand. “I’ll take you to the hospital; let’s go,” Sam stated as she moved Tara off you and took her place. It was pitiful how your face heated up when you felt Sam pull your left arm over her shoulders and hold it while her right arm was wrapped around your waist, allowing you to lean your weight onto her.

When you reached Sam’s car, Tara opened up the back row door and helped Sam lay you down on the seats before she got into the passenger door. “Do not die in my car, Y/N. I don’t need you to haunt my car,” Sam dryly stated as she closed the door and got in the driver’s side. You don’t remember much of the car ride to the hospital; the only thing on your mind was seeing Sam naked, and no matter how hard you tried, you would never be about to erase that beautiful image from your mind.

One moment you were daydreaming about the beautiful goddess that had just stabbed you, and then the next, you were in a hospital bed with stitches in your thigh. For the life of you, you couldn’t recall what had happened, just that you saw Sam naked, and then she stabbed you. You saw yourself, in hindsight, tangled up with her all night in your wildest dreams. Someday when your mind leaves you, you bet that the memory of Sam will follow you around.

“Oh, thank god, I thought I was going to have to murder Sam,” Tara said as she moved from the chair in the corner of the room and approached your bed. She sat on the edge of the bed and gently grabbed your hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. “What happened? The last thing I remember was being in the back of Sam’s car,” you recalled as you looked around the room and saw Sam, who was standing creepily in the doorway with her arms crossed.

“You passed out on the drive here. You should have seen Sam, though; she was terrified you had actually died,” Tara said with a small laugh as she remembered her sister’s frantic attempts to make sure you were still alive, and she also wanted to let you know that Sam slightly cared about you.

Sam scoffed at her sister’s words as she uncrossed her arms and walked toward you. “I was worried you were going to ruin my seats and then haunt my car,” Sam stated coldly, but her eyes betrayed her icy stature. You could see the way her eyes darted across your body, subtly checking to see if you were actually okay, and how she had her hands shoved into the pockets on her bomber jacket, slightly ashamed that she had hurt you.

Within the first encounters you had with Sam, you noticed how she always hid her hands when she was ashamed of something, and right now, all you wanted to do was reach out and comfort the woman. “Eh, I’m fine,” you shrugged briefly.

You talked to Tara while Sam stood around the room, looking out of place as she watched you with her sister. When the doctor came in, she gave you painkillers and told you could leave in the morning. “Could one of us stay here with her?” Sam asked the doctor worriedly when she was close to the door. “The hospital rules say we can’t allow non-family members to stay overnight, but I’ll let you stay with your girlfriend,” the doctor replied with a smile as she looked between you and Sam, clearly reading into some tension in the air.

Sam didn’t even have time to deny the doctor’s words before she left the room and shut the door, so Sam turned around with a scoff and was met with your drugged-out smile and Tara’s knowing one. “Well, Sammy, I will leave you here with your ‘girlfriend,’” Tara joked as she stood from the bed and grabbed her things.

“No. Tara, there is no way you are leaving here this late at night,” Sam replied as she followed her sister to the doorway. “Well, I’m certainly not staying here; I hate hospitals. And besides, Mindy is here to pick me up,” Tara replied with a smile.

She hated to admit it, but Sam was at a crossroads. She didn’t want Tara to stay here after the last time her sister was left alone in a hospital, and she also didn’t want you to stay here alone. She worried about you for Tara’s sake and definitely not because she felt terrible for being the reason you were here.

With a defeated sigh, Sam nodded and spoke, “Alright. Just let me walk you out.”

You watched the two sisters open the door and smiled when Sam stopped and looked back at you, “Don’t do anything stupid until I get back.”

“Okay, girlfriend,” you replied with a dopey smile, clearly enjoying the effects of the painkillers.

When Sam returned, she said nothing as she brought two chairs together and made herself an awkward bed. “You know, you can join me,” you suggested as you scooted over to the side, allowing Sam some room if she chose to sleep with you.

“Yeah, that’s not happening,” Sam replied as she got out a blanket and a pillow from the wardrobe and got comfortable on the chairs.

“Why not? I’ve already seen you naked.”

Sam rolled her eyes and laid her head on the pillow, and covered up with the blanket, “Do not mention that ever again.”

“Okay. I want to let you know you have a beautiful body, Sam. Your boobs are perfect! I mean, my god, the things I would do-”

“Please stop talking,” Sam interrupted you as she tried her best to fight off the fluttering feeling in her stomach at your words. She knew the painkillers were talking, but she couldn’t help but believe there was some truth to your comments. “Goodnight, Y/N,” Sam said after a few awkward moments of silence.

“Goodnight, girlfriend,” you teased as you got as comfortable as you could you a hospital bed before sleep consumed you.

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

In the morning, you were discharged from the hospital but had to walk around with crutches for a while. And to put it short, you hated it. Yes, having to walk around with them constantly clanking every time you walked got annoying, and how your armpits ached at the end of each day. But the worst part was that you couldn’t impress Sam with them.

Naturally, you were angry at Sam for throwing a knife in your leg, but you also shouldn’t have been staring at her while she was changing.

“Who even changes with their window open anyways?” Mindy asked one night while over at Tara’s apartment for dinner. You and Mindy had been invited over for a girl dinner with the Carpenters as you four sat around the dining table. The table had a dish of lasagna along with a salad bowl prepared, and you could not wait to eat the delicious food Sam had prepared.

“My room was hot, and I was letting in fresh air; I didn’t think someone would try and break in,” Sam stated as she made herself a bowl of salad with her lasagna.

“I did not break in. Tara invited me over and told me to go through her open window,” you said once you finished a bite of your food, “so technically, it’s her fault.”

Tara scoffed at your words while throwing a crouton at you, earning herself a scolding look from Sam. “Do not try and blame this on me; I texted you and told you that wasn’t my room, but you didn’t see it,” Tara replied.

“Why did you even tell her to climb through your window?” Sam asked with a puzzled look.

“Because, Sam, you would have told her to leave or probably stabbed her, but you already did that,” Tara dryly said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Sam rolled her eyes at her sister's statement before focusing on her food.

“I was lightly stabbed, so it’s not that big of a deal,” you said.

“You were still stabbed, Y/N,” Tara replied annoyedly. She knew that you were weirdly happy about Sam stabbing you, but she tried her best to ignore it.

“Lightly stabbed.”

Mindy chuckled while looking at you, “Whatever. I still can’t believe she threw a knife at you; me personally, I would not let that slide.”

“It’s whatever; I didn’t even notice it until Tara came barging into the room,” you said while looking at Sam, who picked her food with her fork and refused to meet your gaze.

Mindy just laughed at your response before returning her attention to her food. The rest of dinner was filled with laughs and idle conversations, but you couldn’t help but notice how Sam didn’t participate in any of the conversations. You had tried to get her engaged, but she would either respond with a nod, a laugh, or a single word.

Sam felt bad for reacting the way she did, and she wanted to apologize to you, but she didn’t know how without bringing up the fact you slightly deserved it. So, when dinner was finished, and the rest of the group moved into the living room to watch a movie, Sam pulled you aside.

“What’s up?” You asked with a smile as you leaned on a crutch. It had been a couple of weeks since you were discharged from the hospital, so now you only walked around with one crutch.

That smile you gave her, Sam couldn’t find the correct words to describe it. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen, and she wanted to kiss it off your lips. “Just so you know, you’re insufferable and intolerable. And I hate you.”

“Oh, okay,” you said with that same smile, fully knowing Sam was lying. Sam, on the other hand, desperately needed to get away from you, or she might do something she would regret. “Is there anything else you need?” You asked.

With a sigh, Sam asked, “Yes, actually. What are some books I could read? I’ve been trying to get into reading because of Tara, and I wanted to discuss them with her, and I need to have a few books under my belt before I do that.”

Your smile grew ten times bigger at Sam’s question, and the older woman wanted to murder you for it. “I have been waiting for ages for you to ask me that. I actually have a copy of my favorite book with me if you want to give it a try?” You asked as you made your way over to your backpack.

Sam followed behind you and watched as you moved around your sleeping clothes and pulled out a weathered book. It had different colored sticky notes hanging from the pages, and the edges around the book looked like they had their share of bumps and drops.

Sam grabbed the book and read the cover with a scoff. “Look, Y/N; I’m not reading a book about a woman who had seven different husbands. That’s just absurd,” the Latina said with a dry tone.

“No,” you replied as you placed your hand on Sam’s wrist, holding the book, “trust me, Sam. Just try it; it’s not what you think it is.”

“Alright, fine. If this book is better than it sounds,” Sam said as she looked around the room with a huff, “I guess I’ll treat you with respect or something.”

Sam didn’t even have time to react before she felt the hand on her wrist pull away and pinch her cheek. “I know you’ll love it,” you said with a cheeky grin as Sam slapped your hand away from her face. “Do not ever do that again,” she warned as she pointed a finger in your face.

“Yes, ma’am,” you responded with a salute before walking back toward the living room, “is there anything else you need?”

‘I want to take you on a date and then put your head on a stick,’ Sam wanted to say but said, “I’ll let you know what I think of it.”

You gave Sam a soft smile as you returned to the living room. Sam didn’t know what she was feeling toward you, but she eventually sauntered off to her room after realizing she cared about you more than friends do.

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

“Come on, Tara; The Babadook is easily one of the worst horror movies ever made!” You exclaimed with your hands as you stared down at the more petite girl. You had finally gotten your stitches out and were no longer walking around with a crutch, so that meant a celebration night over at the Carpenter’s apartment.

“No, it’s not! You just hate it so much because it scares you!” Tara retorted as she hit the leg closest to her, which happened to be the one Sam lightly stabbed.

You moved your legs up onto the loveseat you were sitting on after she hit you, “Yeah, and also because it scares me so much! And don’t hit me, you little shit.” Tara scoffed at your words and stood up and grabbed one of her shoes, and was getting ready to launch it at you when the door to the apartment opened. She quickly dropped the shoe and stood facing the door with her hands clasped behind her back and an innocent smile, as if she wasn’t just getting ready to throw a shoe as hard as she could at your face. “What’s going on?” Sam asked when she saw Tara standing with a creepy smile and your shocked expression.

“Tara was-”

“I was getting up to order some pizza!” Tara interrupted you and sent you a death glare when Sam turned her back to hang up her purse. Sam turned around and looked between you two and ignored the shoe she saw by Tara’s feet; whatever her sister was getting ready to do to you, you probably deserved it.

“Okay,” Sam replied as she exaggerated the word before walking to her room, but not before sending you a glare. “Nice to see you, Sam!” you said with a smile while Sam huffed before slamming her door. “You are such a charmer,” Tara joked as she shoved your legs off the couch so she could sit next to you.

You scoffed at Tara’s words while you reached for the remote and pushed Tara off you when she tried to take it from you. “No! Down girl, down!” You said when you finally pushed Tara off of you. She scoffed as you turned on the tv before leaning back on the couch and putting her feet in your lap. You pulled her feet more into your lap and let your hand rest on her leg while you looked for something to watch. Naturally, Tara made it hard for you to pick something out because she refused to watch anything you wanted to spite you, but eventually, you settled on watching ‘Carol.’ You loved this movie more than anything, even though you cried every time you watched it.

For some unknown reason, Tara pulled her feet from your lap and left the couch roughly ten minutes into the movie. “I’ll be right back,” she said as she walked toward her room with her phone in hand. “Do you want me to pause it for you?” You asked as you reached for the remote but stopped when Tara told you not to wait up on her. You missed the devilish smirk she wore on her lips as she disappeared into her room.

You continued to watch the movie by yourself when you heard a door open up. “Finally! I was starting to think that you were leaving me here to hang out with Sam,” you said with a smile as you paused the movie and finally turned around to face Tara, but your smile faded once you saw Sam. “Oh, I’m sorry; I thought you were Tara,” you said with an embarrassed tone as your eyes refused to meet Sam’s piercing gaze.

The older woman huffed at your words before she went to the couch and sat at the opposite end while unlocking her phone, trying to keep as much space as possible between you two. “Tara texted me and told me that she felt sick and she didn’t want you to leave because it’s late at night and doesn’t want anything to happen to you, so she wants me to keep you company,” Sam read aloud her text messages between her and Tara before she closed her phone and set it on the coffee table in front of you guys.

“You don’t have to; I’m fine staying in here by myself,” you said with a polite smile while looking at Sam. The woman turned her head and looked at you before giving you the fakest smile you have ever seen while she lied through her teeth, “That’s alright, I’m good to stay in here with you.” The tension was so thick you could practically taste it on your tongue, but you held your breath and muttered a quiet ‘okay’ as you restarted the movie.

It’s not that she hated being around you after the incident; the only thing she wanted to do was kiss you and call you hers, but she was afraid you wouldn’t feel the same. Especially after she lightly stabbed you.

“Wait, why are you restarting it?” Sam questioned as she looked between you and the tv.

“Because you missed the opening scene, which is arguably one of the best scenes in the movie, and you also need to watch it to understand the ending better,” you reasoned with an honest smile while your gentle eyes danced across Sam’s face.

She didn’t know why, but after listening to your explanation of why the opening scene was essential and listening to your voice that was full of only love and admiration for this movie, Sam decided that she would actually pay attention to it, rather than send you hateful glances every once in a while.

So when the tv finally stopped the introduction, and it was Carol and Therese sitting together at a dinner table in a fancy restaurant, Sam picked up on the tension-riddled scene and couldn’t help but glance over at you. She noticed how your eyebrows furrowed, and your eyes danced between Carol and Therese as if you were getting ready to jump through the tv and become a part of the movie. Her eyes finally drifted down to your lips, and she noticed how your tongue was barely sticking out between your lips as you studied the screen, as if there was going to be something small in the background, and if you blinked, you would miss it.

“Are you even watching?” You questioned when you felt eyes burning into the side of your skull, but your own eyes never left the screen.

Sam awkwardly cleared her throat before speaking, “Sorry; you just seem really invested in this movie, and I thought it was funny.” You felt heat creep up the back of your neck at Sam’s words but shook it off as her being cautious of you. “It’s a great film, Sam. I think you’ll like it,” you replied with a gentle smile as you pried your eyes away from the screen to look at Sam before returning your attention to the tv.

When you said that she might like it, Sam took her eyes away from you and actually paid attention to the movie. When the sex scene came up, the air in the room became tense, as if both of you were holding your breath and holding back from one another. Sam tried her best to fight back the blush she felt, and she looked to you for help. You had your mouth agape, no matter how often you watched this scene, you were always enchanted by it, and you whispered, “I wish that were me.” Even though she tried to, Sam couldn’t come up with a retort for your comment; she also wishes she could do that with Cate Blanchett, but she also wishes that was her with you.

Sam then turned her attention back to the screen and had to fight any urges that she might have been feeling toward you. Her eyes never left the screen until the very end; only when she had to blink back the eyes that threatened to escape as she looked up at the ceiling. When the end credits rolled, you cleared your throat, tension still left over from the sex scene, “So, what did you think of it?”

“It was certainly something. It was a lot better than I expected, just based on your taste in things,” Sam joked as she subtly wiped the tears away in her eyes. You chuckled at her words, ‘if you only you knew,’ you thought as she stared at her with hearty eyes.

You quickly snapped out of your daze when you noticed Sam shuffling uncomfortably on the couch, “Well, I’m glad you enjoyed it. And just so you know,” you said as you stood up from the couch, “I have an exceptional taste in things.”

Sam laughed at your words before standing up, “I highly doubt that.” You smiled at the older woman before making your way to Tara’s room; you had plans to murder the little shit for leaving you alone with Sam. “Goodnight, Sam,” you said with a smile as you opened Tara’s door slightly. Sam gave you a genuine smile as she went to her room, “Goodnight, Y/N.”

This was the first time you had had a direct conversation with Sam since she pulled you aside and asked for a book recommendation, and you wished you could have more conversations with the woman. She was smarter than she gave herself credit for, and the way she expressed herself through body language while talking was something you found attractive, to put it lightly.

When you entered Tara’s room, you saw the girl lying toward the foot of her bed with her laptop open, and you could faintly hear Toni Collette giving her ‘I am your mother’ speech. “So, how did it go with Samantha?” Tara questioned with a smug grin as you sat on the bed with your back propped against the headboard. You threw your legs up onto the bed and dug the heel of your right foot into Tara’s back, causing the girl to let out a small yelp before shoving your leg off of her and scolding you.

“Whatever, you deserved it,” you said as you crossed your ankles and left them next to Tara, who was still facing the foot of the bed. “And for your information, it was fine. She didn’t try and kill me again,” you joked.

“A win is a win,” Tara replied as she moved to sit next to you and put the laptop on your lap while she cuddled up next to you. You put your arm around her waist and placed a platonic kiss on her head right when Sam walked in.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I can come back later,” Sam said as she looked down at the floor and turned her back to you two, embarrassed that she had just walked in on an intimate moment between you and her sister and ignored the pain she felt in her heart. “No, it’s okay, Sam,” Tara said while pulling away from you and silently encouraging you to go after Sam even though she was still in the doorway.

“I thought you were sick?” Sam asked with her back still facing you two. “Yeah, I can’t explain that one without unveiling my grand scheme of things plan,” Tara said while getting up from her bed and turning Sam to face her, “I’m serious, Sam. Nothing is going on between me and Y/N.”

Sam looked away from her sister and saw you sitting on Tara’s bed, smiling as you sent her a small wave. The woman scoffed at your actions before returning to her room.

Once Sam was gone, Tara closed the door, walked over to you, and hit you in the stomach. “The fuck was that, Y/N?” She whisper-shouted at you, “I basically admitted to having a plan of forcing you and Sam together, and you fucking wave at her?”

“I didn’t know what you wanted me to do!” You defended.

Tara sighed at your statement; she had laid the groundwork, and then just like clockwork, the dominos were supposed to cascade in a line because she’s a mastermind, but your dumbass messed it up. “Go talk to Sam. Right. Now. Or so help me God, I will violently murder you to death,” Tara commanded as she pulled you from her bed and pushed you toward the door. “And do not come back until you have talked to her,” and with that, Tara shut the door in your face and locked it.

You sighed before walking toward the living room. You thought about sleeping on the couch, but you knew Tara would probably draw a penis on your face while you slept, so you sucked in a deep breath before walking toward Sam’s door.

Sam heard a gentle knock of three intervals at her door, pulling her away from her note. “Just a minute,” she said as she finished her writing and slipped it into a preselected page in the book.

“What’s up?” She asked once when she opened her door and saw you.

“I just wanted to ask you about the book,” you replied with a smile that Sam wanted to kiss off your lips.

Instead of doing what she desired, she left her door open while grabbing the book and handed it back to you. “This is the saddest book I have ever read. Who would come up with such a thing?”

You chuckled at her words and accepted the book, “I know. I take it; you finished it?”

“Barely. But I finished it in one sitting,” Sam said while staring into your love-struck eyes. Sam swore she could feel herself getting lost in them, and she never wanted to leave your eyes.

“So, what did you think of it?” You asked.

“It was alright. Some pages were hard to read because of the tear-stained pages.”

You lightly laughed at Sam’s words, and the older woman felt her heart might explode if she heard that soft laugh again. “Yeah, I’m sorry about that. This book really gets to me, you know?” You said while your eyes quickly glanced down at Sam’s lips, wondering if they tasted as good as they looked.

Sam cleared her throat, and you knew you had been busted. “So, I guess I’ll have to treat you with respect now,” she admitted through a tightened jaw.

“Or whatever,” you said with a smile, hoping Sam picked up the double meaning, and she did.

“Yeah, or whatever.”

“Just so you know, nothing is going on between me and Tara,” you clarified after a few seconds, and you set the book down on the couch behind you.

Sam knew that there wasn’t anything between you and her sister, but hearing those words leave your lips gave Sam a feeling of comfort she didn’t know she needed. “I know, Y/N.”

“Okay. I just wanted to clarify that before I did this,” Sam didn’t even have time to react before she felt your hands grip her neck and pull her into a passionate kiss. The way your lips felt like they had been made for her lips amazed Sam, and she finally felt her heart explode when she matched your intensity.

Your lips danced together as Sam deepened the kiss and pulled you by your waist closer to her. You felt her tongue push past your lips, and an involuntary moan slipped out, causing Sam to laugh against your lips. When you felt Sam’s hands drift toward the bottom of your shirt, you lifted your arms, and Sam got halfway into taking it off before you two heard a voice behind you, “Goddamnit, Y/N! I told you to apologize, not swap spit with her!”

You pulled away from Sam and turned to face Tara, who smiled knowingly. “Sorry,” you mumbled while fixing your shirt.

An awkward beat of silence passed while Tara looked between you and her sister with a sly smirk on her lips before she finally said, “I’ll leave you two to it,” and walked away.

“I’m sorry about that,” Sam said once Tara was gone. You turned to look at Sam, and you smiled at her swollen lips and blown pupils. You said nothing as you placed a final kiss on Sam’s lips that the older woman happily reciprocated.

“I should probably leave,” you mumbled against Sam’s lips, and she kissed you once more before pulling away. “Don’t forget your book,” Sam said while grabbing it for you.

“Thank you,” you replied with a tint of blush on your cheeks. Sam walked you to the door with her hand on the lower of your back, and you only wanted to run back into her room and throw Sam on her bed, but you doubted Tara would appreciate that.

When you reached the door, you placed a chaste kiss on Sam’s lips before opening up the door. “I’ll see you around?” You asked, afraid that this was a one-time thing.

Sam leaned against the doorframe, and she couldn’t contain the smile that pulled at her cheeks. “Of course, Y/N.”

You smiled at her and began walking down the hallway when Sam called out, “It's me and you, true blue.”

You placed a kiss on your pointer and middle finger before holding them toward Sam with a smile on your face. The woman laughed at your action and pretended to catch the fake kiss and her fist to her heart.

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

At home, you fall onto your couch and struggled to get your shoes off. Once they were off, you relaxed and pulled out the book and started reading it. When you ran your fingers over the pages, a small note fell out from the middle of the book and you moved to that page.

In the center of the page was a headline from Sub Rosa titled, ‘Evelyn Hugo and Celia St. James Slumber Parties,’ and you couldn’t help but laugh at the page.

When you opened up the note, written in the most beautiful penmanship said,

‘Want to go grab a milkshake with me sometime? I doubt we’ll find a place as good as Schwab’s, but we can try. We can also have ‘slumber parties’ of our own when Tara is away. ;)

All my love,

Samantha

Sam’

[loving-barnes]

LOGAN HOWLETT - BEGIN AGAIN

A/N: Look what I have for you. Is it Christmas or what? So, this one is a bit shorter, but I wanted to give you something. I am still a sucker for Logan. I just want him so bad, oh my god!

Pairing: Logan Howlett x mutant female reader

Warning: angst, but fluff, implied sex?

Please, do not read if you are under 18. This story has sexual scenes.

Words: 2500+

Important note: HughJackman!Wolverine - always!

FULL MASTERLIST | LOGAN HOWLETT MASTERLIST

LOGAN HOWLETT - BEGIN AGAIN

My body winced and I opened my eyes. The nightmare was gone. I was back in the real world. Was it better than the dream? No. But I was back, on a motel bed that smelled like bleach and mould. At least I had a bed to rest on tonight. Maybe tomorrow wouldn’t be as promising as today. Hell, I could be dead now. 

I felt a warm touch on my belly. Fingers traced patterns on my skin. My eyes lifted, meeting the green ones. “Are you okay, baby?” Logan whispered into the darkness. 

It was a ridiculous question to ask. I was not okay. Shit, he wasn’t either. We went through literal hell. So I snuggled closer to him, sniffing his scent as I tried to suppress my tears. “No,” I mumbled into the white top he wore. “I see them in my dreams, haunting me. They are calling my name, pleading for my help.” 

We lost everything, everyone. 

It started when the mutant hunters killed the strongest of us - Jean. We didn’t know how the fuck they managed to do it. She was the fucking Phoenix. We quickly learnt they created a weapon to strip us of our powers. Afterwards, it was too easy. With Jean gone, we knew the rest of us was next. 

Scott died a week later. He wanted revenge. He tried to kill those who killed his love, his woman. Unfortunately, he was captured, stripped of his powers and murdered. 

Charles felt it all. He felt it when Jean died. He felt when Scott’s heart started to beat. We knew this was the end of the line when he told us. 

The whole school prepared for war. The youngest students were sent home or away with those who didn’t want to fight. The rest of them we trained. They wanted to stay, fight with us, and protect the school and this family we built. 

And we lost. 

They all died. Charles, Storm, Hank, Peter… They were all gone. Logan and I fled the moment we realised there wasn’t much we could do. We saw the dead bodies around the school—our friends, and students, lifeless on the bloody wooden floors in a place we once called home.

I hated we left them there. I hated we couldn’t say goodbye. I would have died too if Logan hadn’t pulled me out of the bloodshed. The thought of leaving Logan alone in this unfair cruel world pained me. At least, we survived together. At least I had him.

It’s been two days since we lost our friends - the family we loved and cherished. Two days since we lost our lives and were on the run. This was the first night we were able to lay low and rest. It was because we escaped the States and entered Canada before being caught. It helped that Logan was Canadian.

Logan kissed my forehead. “I see them, too. Their faces haunt me. That’s why I can’t sleep.” 

A tear escaped my eye. I quickly wiped it away. “There was so much blood, Logan. They let them bleed out.” 

“I know,” he whispered. 

I started to cry. My body was shivering. I felt his arms wrap around my shoulder and middle, pulling me as close to him as possible. “Shhh,” he kissed the top of my head. I couldn’t help myself. My emotions were all over the place. I wasn’t able to mourn the loss properly. We had to hide from the world. There was no time to think about our next steps. 

His touch became soothing. I felt the love radiating towards me. I loved him deeply, madly. For this man, I would sell my soul to the devil. And in this twisted world full of death, I was happy that we survived the biggest nightmare of our lives. 

I don’t know how I managed to fall asleep, but when I opened my eyes again, I saw the sun coming through the crack of the curtains. The big, strong arms never left my body. When I glanced at Logan’s face, his eyes were closed. His breathing was even. He was asleep. Good. 

I remained in his embrace, snuggled to his side. I used this opportunity to think about our next steps. I needed to occupy my mind with something, anything. 

We left the States. Now what? Was it wise to stay in Canada? It was so close to the States. What if they decide to hunt mutants in here, too? Even if we moved north, they’d find us there. And maybe… nowhere was safe. Our destiny was already written. We were doomed. 

My eyes were locked on the beige ceiling, and I imagined a plan as my thoughts ran through my mind. I was going back and forth. When I didn’t like the plan, I erased it to a certain point and then moved forward again. 

Out of nowhere, I gasped. There was an important detail I forgot. How could I be so stupid? 

“What?” Logan’s eyes snapped open. He sat up and pushed me away in the process. His fists were clenched, adamantium claws on full display, ready to fight. His breathing was hard. I scared him. Shit. 

Gently, I put my hand on his chest. “It’s just me, I’m so sorry. Everything’s fine.” 

“You okay, baby?” he asked when his eyes found mine. Once I nodded, the claws retracted and he exhaled. “You scared me, Y/N. I thought someone found us. Don’t fucking ever do that again.” 

I shook my head, pressing him back on the bed. “I’m so sorry. I was just thinking about our future. I had been contemplating our next steps, thinking back and forth. And…” I sighed. “We can’t stay in Canada.” 

He frowned, then raised a brow. “Why?” It was a genuine question. 

“You are Canadian, Logan. This will be the first country they’d start to look for you - for us,” I explained. “I get that Canada is one of the biggest states in the world. But, as I said, the main focus would be here, once they have permission to strike here.” 

Logan frowned, not pleased with what I said. It took him a good twenty seconds before he nodded. “Well, you aren’t wrong. So, where should we go?” 

“Scotland.” 

He opened his mouth, closed it, and did it a few times before he said, “Why Scotland?” 

My fingers traced his beard-covered jawline. “I’m half Scottish,” I said. “Scottish-American. I have two passports. I have them here. I took them before we left. I have your IDs and all.” 

“H-how?”

“Always prepared for the worst,” I admitted sadly. “Kept them in a bag with some money and all,” I explained. “When Jean died, I made sure we were ready. I prepared an emergency bag that I kept in a hidden spot. That’s why I ran to the first escape door. The bag was under the floor.”

“My sweet angel,” he exhaled and leaned to me to press his lips on mine. “Always ready. But, no offence, you don’t sound Scottish. You don’t look Scottish,” he chuckled, and I rolled my eyes. “You never told me.” 

My eyes moved around the room, stopping at the creek of the sun coming in. “My father was Scottish. Mother was American. When they died, my mother’s sisters wanted to take me in. They were super religious. They thought they’d be able to cure my mutation with God’s mighty power,” I rolled my eyes. “Luckily, my grandma took me in. I lived with her until I was twenty. Then I decided to move back to the States.” 

Logan’s fingers brushed my hair. “Thank fucking god you did.” When I looked at him, he was smiling. “Otherwise I wouldn’t met you.” 

I climbed over him, putting all my weight on his body. He didn’t mind. Logan’s arms immediately wrapped around me. “We should head to Scotland,” I whispered. “It’s not Canada but my grandmother lives in a village, near the woods. It was magical then. It should be magical now, too.”

He raised a brow, watching me like a hawk. “How do you know she’s still alive?” 

My fingers brushed his nose. “Because I can feel her,” I said. “She’s a mutant too.”

“She is? What’s her mutation?” 

“Nature control,” I explained. “I’m not saying she’s the strongest, but she’s powerful enough to communicate with me through nature, all those miles away.” 

His lips found mine in a gentle kiss. “So we head to Scotland,” he whispered.

“Will you be able to get through the flight?”

His nose scrunched. “For you, I’ll do anything, baby. I’ll get on the fucking plane and suffer through it if it means to be with you.” 

Those words brought tears to my eyes. “I love you. Thank you.” 

. . .

Where are the mutants? It’s been ten years since Charles Xavier’s school for gifted youngsters was destroyed. Since then, no one has seen a mutant. Are they hiding? Are they extinct? More on that this afternoon, at four PM. 

I sighed. Another radio show about mutants. Great. Will they ever leave us at peace? I put my coffee mug down, my eyes locked on the kitchen window as I watched the rain heavily fall from the sky. I loved this dark, cold weather. Autumn in Scotland was magical. Yes, some hated the weather, but not me. I enjoyed it. 

Big hands wrapped around my midsection, pressing me as close to a firm stomach and chest as possible. I hummed, smiling. His scent made my knees weak even after all this time. His lips pressed a kiss to the top of my head. 

“How is my wife today?” Logan’s voice was low but soft. He smelled like rain, mud and oil. He just came back from work. At least he took off the wet clothes before he got all over me. 

Logan and I got married two years after we moved to Scotland. My grandmother died a year before that. I was lucky enough to spend some time with her before she passed. Oh, but she loved Logan. She always called him: my sweet boy. 

I put my hands over his, sighing. “I’m better now that you are here. There was another radio show about mutants,” I said. “How was work?” 

“Alan got stuck under a tree and broke his leg,” he said. “I helped him out and we got him to the nearest hospital. So, he’ll be out for about six to eight weights. Which means a bit more work but more money.” 

I turned around in his arms, eyes meeting his. “How much work? Will you be coming late to us?” 

Logan leaned closer and pressed his lips against mine. “Don’t worry, baby. Nothing drastic, maybe staying at work for an hour longer. And it’s not gonna happen every day. I wouldn’t want to be without you all longer than I need to.” 

Again, our lips met in a sweet kiss, then another until he pressed me against the kitchen counter. His big hand gripped my hips. He was hungry, I could feel it. Even his erection was evident. I wanted him. “Wait, where are the kids?” he pulled from the kiss. 

“In the barn,” I moaned when his lips left mine. I needed him. I put my hands on his chest. This was the perfect opportunity fuck in the kitchen while the kids were nowhere near the house. And hell, it’s been some time since we were intimate. I unbuttoned his flannel shirt. 

We had two kids. Charles, whom we called Charlie, was almost ten. My grandmother was able to see him as an infant before she passed away. She wasn’t happy that we had a child before marriage. But she was all giddy and happy for us once she saw the baby.

And then there was Emma Maria, after my grandmother and Rogue, our friend. She was eight. As far as we knew, Charlie’s mutation didn’t show up. It was only a matter of time before they blossomed. At least both of our children could enjoy childhood without being a threat to the world. 

Logan pulled on my lower lip. “Pretty baby is needy?” He hoisted me up on the kitchen counter, stepping between my legs. “I know, it’s been a while since I was inside you.” His hands stroke my thighs. One of them crawled crawled up my body and the other cupped my clothed sex. 

I closed my eyes, enjoying his touch until he kissed me gently and stepped away. “They are coming inside,” he sighed. Immediately, I whined. 

As I hopped off the kitchen counter, the back door opened, and our children entered the tiny hallway. We heard them undressing and talking to each other. Emma coughed. I frowned. I hoped she wasn’t getting sick. 

Logan leaned against the kitchen aisle, waiting for the kids as I jumped off the counter. Once Emma’s eyes noticed him, she smiled at him. “Hi, dad!” 

“Hey, princess,” he greeted her. He took her into his big arms once she was close, pressing a kiss on top of her head. “What you were doing in the barn?” 

“We have kittens!” she said excitedly. 

I raised a brow. “Oh? Since when?” I saw a stray cat a few times here. I didn’t know she was expecting babies. Well, at least we’ll have someone to catch mice around here. Also, it was beautiful news. I loved cats.

Charlie hugged his father. “They are a couple of days old,” he explained. “She had five of them.” 

“Five?” Logan sighed. I knew he wasn’t happy about it. Before he opened his mouth, I gave him a warning glare. 

“They are so cute and tiny,” Emma smiled. “We’ll keep them, right?” She glared at her father and then at me.

I nodded. “Of course, Em. They can stay in the barn. We have some old towels and clothes. I think I have a spare plastic container for water. We’ll give them a safe home and they’ll be with us.” 

���Baby,” Logan sighed. 

I raised a hand. I didn’t want to hear a word about it. When I found the container, I gave it to Emma. “You’ll bring them water. Charlie, find an old carton box in the garage. I’ll fetch you the towels. And listen,” I turned to him. “Put it into the box nicely and leave the box in a secure, warm space. Don’t put the kittens there. She’ll do it herself,” I explained. 

The moment both kids disappeared, Logan shook his head. “I don’t like this, baby.” 

“Let them have this,” I said. “We don’t have a dog. The cats will stay in the barn and outside. No one is taking them into the house, okay?” 

“Uh-huh,” he rolled his eyes. “Give it a day or two. Emma will sneak them in.” 

I grabbed him by the shirt, pulling him closer to me. “I have my ways of convincing you,” I purred. I pressed my lips to his in a searing kiss. “Just be a good daddy and let the kittens stay.” 

He shook his head, chuckling. Logan leaned closer, his lips to my ear. “I might need a little more convincing to keep the kittens. So, be prepared.” 

I pressed my lips to his cheek. “I love you, Logan.” 

He smiled at me. “Love you too, baby. And the kids, and this life.” 

[hollowed-theory-hall]

what's the one harry potter pairing u like that u mentioned in the tags of your hinny post?

Anonymous: Can I ask who that minor character you ship with Harry is? For some absurd reason my mind jumped to Stan Shunpike lol but it's probably not him.... Or is it?

Okay, so this is kind of a funny story. Like, my pipeline through hp pairings was a weird one. Like, I used to read a lot of Harry pairings, still do on occasion (some make more sense than others). None of them were ones I would point at and say: "that should've happened in the books"

One day, I was innocently writing a fic (canon divergence of GoF), and it was just for me, for funnsies, never posted it anywhere and not planning to. And I planned to pair Harry with someone there (honestly, I don't remember who because I didn't write the plan down) but when writing, Harry ended up with a different character. And it was so strange to me because that never happened.

Like, how do you write a ship accidentally?

But I did. I wrote Harry into a ship by accident. So I went back to the books to try and figure out why the hell would my subconscious decide that's the way to go.

I'll also preface it by all this being my subjective opinion and I do read other Harry ships in fics, this one just quickly became my favorite to write (and the only one I write). Also, I don't actually think this is a pairing that should've happened in the books, it's place is in fic and that's where I like it.

So, the character I accidentally shipped with Harry is... *drumroll*

Stan Shunpike!

Not really, it's:

Theodore Nott

Now, you might look at the name and go: "Who the fuck is that?"

And you'll be correct. Theo has 0 speaking lines in the entire book series. His name appears twice. He, himself, as a person, only appeared on page, like, 3 times in the background. The scene that gives the most information about him is other characters talking about him. He isn't even present.

That being said, I'm very good at extrapolating a lot of information from very little evidence. So allow me, to walk you through who is Theodore Nott and why I ship him with Harry.

Basic Information

So, let's start with the most basic overview before I pull out the quotes and go any deeper.

We know Theo is a Slytherin student in Harry's year. So he likely shares a dorm with Draco, Blaise, Crabbe, and Goyle.

Theo's father is both at the graveyard at the end of GoF and in the Department of Mysteries at the end of OotP, so we know he is a Death Eater. We also know Thoe's father was one of the first and closest Death Eaters to Voldemort, who waited for him during his interview with Dumbledore in 1967:

“Then if I were to go to the Hog’s Head tonight, I would not find a group of them — Nott, Rosier, Mulciber, Dolohov — awaiting your return? Devoted friends indeed...”

(HBP, page 444)

We also know the Nott family is "as pure-blooded as the Malfoys" according to JKR in an interview. We also know Theo's great-grandfather (maybe? the family relation isn't clear), Cantankerus Nott, is suspected to be the one who wrote the Pure-Blood Dictionary, the book that coined the term "Sacred 28" and made that list (which the Nott family are on).

The name Nott is potentially to be derived from the name Nótt, which is the personification of the night in Norse Mythology. So it has been theorized the Nott family have a Nordic origin. Possible, but it doesn't really matter for this post.

What does, is that he comes from a dark, Death Eater, blood-purist family similar to the Malfoys. Even so, Theo never took the Dark Mark and never joined Voldemort in the books.

Now, that we have the basic information out of the way, let's look at Theodore as a person.

All the details I could gather from the books

Alright, now we get to the fun part. That is, me going through all the relevant scenes that mention Theodore Nott and actually creating a character psychoanalysis out of basically nothing.

So, the quotes aren't organized in a particular order. I'm just going to explain Theo and then explain why all this makes me ship him with Harry.

“Well, I pity Slughorn’s taste. Maybe he’s going a bit senile. Shame, my father always said he was a good wizard in his day. My father used to be a bit of a favorite of his. Slughorn probably hasn’t heard I’m on the train, or —” “I wouldn’t bank on an invitation,” said Zabini. “He asked me about Nott’s father when I first arrived. They used to be old friends, apparently, but when he heard he’d been caught at the Ministry he didn’t look happy, and Nott didn’t get an invitation, did he? I don’t think Slughorn’s interested in Death Eaters.” Malfoy looked angry, but forced out a singularly humorless laugh.

(HBP, page 150)

This is a part of the conversation between Draco, Pansy, and Blaise, Harry overhears when he is hiding in their compartment at the beginning of HBP. I have a few things to note regarding this scene.

Firstly, throughout this conversation, Pansy, Blaise, and Draco all call each other by their first name. This shows closeness, they are all friendly and familiar enough to use their first names with each other. Theo, though, is referred to as "Nott" by all three in the compartment.

He doesn't actually sit in their compartment which is in itself a sign about how he isn't really friendly with Draco's group. Considering the group is most of his year from his house, Theo is likely very lonely, and it will be apparent from other scenes I bring up later.

Secondly, Theo's father is in Azkaban. We know Draco is bothered about his own father's predicament. He mentions it to Harry and bothers him over it, Theo doesn't though. Theo doesn't seem to be bothered by Harry or his father's incarceration.

The only conclusion I can draw from this is that the relationship between Theo and his father is not a good one.

(I know some fics like to have Lucius be abusive towards Draco, for some reason. But the books really don't back this up. Lucius loves Draco and Draco adores his father)

Theo, though, Theo seems to be the one with a very strained relationship with his father. Strained enough that he isn't bothered the man is in Azkaban. What I'm saying is that Theo's father likely abuses or mistreats him in some capacity.

If anything more was needed to complete Harry’s happiness, it was Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle’s reactions. He saw them with their heads together later that afternoon in the library, together with a weedy-looking boy Hermione whispered was called Theodore Nott. They looked around at Harry as he browsed the shelves for the book he needed on Partial Vanishment, and Goyle cracked his knuckles threateningly and Malfoy whispered something undoubtedly malevolent to Crabbe. Harry knew perfectly well why they were acting like this: He had named all of their fathers as Death Eaters

(OotP, page 583)

This is a scene at the end of OotP after Draco, Crabbe, Goyle and Theo's fathers were caught at the ministry and sent to Azkaban because they are Death Eaters. There are a few important notes about this scene.

The first, Hermione knows Theo, while Harry and Ron don't really. This means she likely knows him from the classes she takes and Harry and Ron don't — Arithmancy and/or Ancient Runes.

The second, he is sitting with other Death Eater children, but I don't think it's by choice. I mentioned in the previous quote how he isn't close to Draco and his crew. He sits with them here mostly because he doesn't have another choice. Theo doesn't seem to really have any friends, so he sits with the closest people he has to friends — kids he has known since he was young because their fathers were in the same circle.

The other note about this is that Crabbe, Goyle, and Draco are all mentioned as being threatening and malicious towards Harry because they don't like that their fathers are in Azkaban. Theo, though, Theo doesn't threaten Harry, he isn't part of their whisperings. As I mentioned above, he's likely happy his father is in Azkaban.

A pair of blank, white, shining eyes were growing larger through the gloom and a moment later the dragonish face, neck, and then skeletal body of a great, black, winged horse emerged from the darkness. It looked around at the class for a few seconds, swishing its long black tail, then bowed its head and began to tear flesh from the dead cow with its pointed fangs. A great wave of relief broke over Harry. Here at last was proof that he had not imagined these creatures, that they were real: Hagrid knew about them too. He looked eagerly at Ron, but Ron was still staring around into the trees and after a few seconds he whispered, “Why doesn’t Hagrid call again?” Most of the rest of the class were wearing expressions as confused and nervously expectant as Ron’s and were still gazing everywhere but at the horse standing feet from them. There were only two other people who seemed to be able to see them: a stringy Slytherin boy standing just behind Goyle was watching the horse eating with an expression of great distaste on his face, and Neville, whose eyes were following the swishing progress of the long black tail.

(OotP, page 445)

“The only people who can see thestrals,” she said, “are people who have seen death.”

(OotP, page 446)

The stringy Slytherin boy mentioned here is Theo. This scene proves that:

He takes Care of Magical Creatures

He saw someone die

Let's explore the second one for a moment. The fact Theo can see Thestrals means he watched someone die and was old enough to comprehend what he was seeing. We also know Theo's mother is dead. So it's likely the person he watched die was his mother.

I also want to draw attention to Theo's distaste towards Thestrals. He could likely see them carrying the carriages every year since 2nd year, it's not his first time seeing them. But it doesn't stop his displeasure with their sight from showing. Which says something about him. It means he likely recalls his mother and her death whenever he looks at the Thestrals. and these are memories Theo rather not experience.

We don't know how his mother died, but I'd hazard a guess it wasn't natural. After all, wizards have long life spans, they are more durable to illness and injury, and don't usually die from accidents unless very extreme or magical. And there was no epidemic of dragonpox (a disease that does tend to kill wizards) in the time since 1980 and the books. So, she was more likely killed at some point between 1985(ish) and 1991.

“No, I don’t think so, sir. I’m Muggle-born, you see.” Harry saw Malfoy lean close to Nott and whisper something; both of them sniggered, but Slughorn showed no dismay; on the contrary, he beamed and looked from Hermione to Harry, who was sitting next to her.

(HBP, pages 185-186)

First, Theo is an O student in potions since he is in the potions NEWT class, and was probably meant to be there even if Snape was the teacher.

Second, again, Theo doesn't really have friends. He sits next to Draco as the only other Slytherin in the class. Also, they share the circumstances of being sons of Death Eaters currently in Azkaban. Although both of them seem to deal with it quite differently.

Third, Theo joins Draco in making fun of Hermione's blood status, but he does not initiate it. Considering the environment he was raised in and is in, it makes sense he would make fun of it. Whether he's a blood-purist or not, he would want to keep his image considering he doesn't have many allies. Hanging out with Draco is survival, not friendship. They aren't even on a first-name basis with each other.

“Amortentia doesn’t really create love, of course. It is impossible to manufacture or imitate love. No, this will simply cause a powerful infatuation or obsession. It is probably the most dangerous and powerful potion in this room — oh yes,” he said, nodding gravely at Malfoy and Nott, both of whom were smirking skeptically. “When you have seen as much of life as I have, you will not underestimate the power of obsessive love. . . .

(HBP, page 186)

The final quote I have about Theo is from the same potions class as above. Both he and Draco are portrayed here as underestimating amortentia and its potential damage. It makes sense for their upbringing in the Wizarding World, which has no real laws or regulations regarding love potions that are seen as harmless fun more often than not.

I'll add Theo likely didn't witness a healthy romantic relationship. Considering his father is a Death Eater who is likely abusive and may or may not have killed his mother. With this as his reference to a marriage, it's clear why he'd look down on love and love potions.

Why I think Theo and Harry have potential

Okay, so now that we know who Theodore Nott is, let's talk about why I ship him with Harry.

I think Harry, in general, would get along best with a clever partner with the ability to be ruthless (Slytherins or Ron fall into this category). Because Harry isn't some golden savior; he casts unforgivables, and is very willing to poison Umbridge or Crocio Snape if he could get away with it. He needs a partner that won't be horrified by these thoughts.

Also, Theo literally never speaks on page. Even when spoken to, his reactions are silent. I think this quiet and no need to talk, the ability to be comfortable in silence, is something that would be comfortable for Harry. Harry in the books finds himself annoyed with Ron and Hermione's constant banter on occasion, so I think it fits well.

Theo would also be comfortable around Harry without a need to play a certain part. Because Harry wouldn't care about that. He would honestly rather Theo forgo the pure-blood Slytherin act.

I feel like Harry and Theo, have a good potential to understand each other. Theo lost his mother and likely experiences abuse from his father. It makes them very likely to trauma bond over their crap life and shared experience. Two out of three only ones who could see the Thestrals in the entire class.

The other thing I feel they could connect over is being lonely. Harry spent all his childhood until Hogwarts basically being on his own. Theo stayed on his own. Draco at least has his parents, he has other students he's closer to, not that he shares everything with them, but he has some support network. Theo has none. And this is something Harry knows well.

Theo, I think, wouldn't expect anything specific from Harry. He doesn't even interact with him, not to mock him, and not to idolize him, he doesn't care at all. And we know how much Harry appreciates being thought of as Harry and not as the Boy-Who-Lived. Theo would allow Harry to be himself without some mold he wants him to fit in.

The fact Theo never becomes a Death Eater, even though he was in Draco's year and his father was a Death Eater before Lucius (and in better standing than Lucius with Voldemort) is so interesting. It's somewhat surprising Theo wasn't marked. It means he didn't want to be. It means that Theo Nott didn't want to torture and kill muggleborns or blood traitors, or anyone really. And he didn't want to swear his allegiance to Voldemort. This is just a fascinating fact to me and something I enjoy considering. What life experience made him come to that conclusion? Was it just his dislike of his father that pushed him away? Could he have been another Sirius Black (Gryffindor in a Slytherin family) under slightly different circumstances? I mean, Voldemort likely wouldn't force him to become a Death Eater, but would his father? I don't know what at all went down there, but I like that potential story.

We also know he wasn't part of Umbridge's Inquisitorial Squad, even though some minor Slytherins were mentioned to be part of it. He just seems to be an actually decent guy (I don't care what Cursed Child says about him, I know he's there but I avoided almost anything to do with Cursed Child so I barely know the plot).

Finally, this is a character Harry doesn't have as much drama to get over with. Yes, sometimes I want to read overcoming drama between characters before it becomes a romance, but sometimes I want something chiller than that. And Theo is a really chill, safe, Slytherin option for Harry.

[somehow-a-human]

Whose POV is it anyway?

An Introduction

DO NOT ASK NEIL ABOUT FAN THEORY

Cracking down on the storytelling of Good Omens season 2 through the lens of a changing narrator.

If you haven't read this interview with Good Omens cinematographer Gavin Finney, and you're interested in the fantastic dedication and detail that went into this TV show, definitely give it a read. Not only is it lovely, but Neil also posted the article with a caption mentioning that it's got so many secrets in it. Obviously that made me take a closer look.

I have already gone into a fair bit of detail about the different Lens Filters that Finney mentions in the article in a separate post and I will be referring to them quite a bit so if you aren't familiar with them I would suggest reading that first!

This first post is going to cover the basics of changing narrator/POV's and I'll be writing additional posts for separate episodes/minisodes/scenes since there's obviously way too much to cover in a single go. So shall we take our first look?

It's no secret that something's a *bit weird* with season two, and there are SO many theories about it. I love to read speculation, metas, theories, and opinions, it's definitely fun but my personal ideas align more with the idea that we're simply being shown the events of season 2 through the memories of multiple narrators, different POV's, and it slightly skews the story, sometimes within one continuous scene.

I am also a sucker for a good multiple timeline theory but that isn't this post.

Lens Filters

As I stated above, I wrote a post about each of these individual filters earlier. What I didn't go into in that post was speculation about the filters. While I think they're pretty straightforward, especially the filter for hell (Black Pro-Mist ((BPM)), I think the other two have a bit more room for speculation.

Bronze Glimmer Glass

BGG was described by Finney as being used for 'bookshop scenes', but after S2 back numerous times and paying as much attention as I could to the lighting and colouring of the scenes, I think this is generally true but not always true. There are times when bookshop scenes seem to use a different filter, and other locations also seem to be shot with the BGG filter as well. I think BGG aligns with Aziraphale's POV. Or if Not Aziraphale, an outside-of-Crowley narrator? Based on the scenes (which we'll specifically get into in other posts) which BGG seems to be used, context clues, character behavior, etc, I think BGG clues us in that we're seeing, if you will, through Aziraphale's eyes.

Black Diffusion FX

BDFX was described as being used for 'Crowley's present day storyline' and fuck me, that's not ominous or weirdly phrased at all Mr. Finney! This filter definitely aligns with Crowley. Most of the time he's separate from Aziraphale it seems that this is the filter being used, and certain scenes switch filters mid-scene when he begins to go off on snarky Crowley-centric commentary.

Catch-22 & Herzog

The books on Gabriels bookshelf, great books obviously, but I think books that are also meant to give us context about the story. Pride and Prejudice is a love story about making snap judgements on someone's character, and coming to recognize somebody might be good despite their title or appearance. The Crow Road is a story about life, death, love, morality, mystery, and God. 1984 details the tragedy of Julia and Winston's attempt at falling in love while living under in a police state. You see my point?

That's why I wanted to touch a bit more on Catch-22 and Herzog specifically when talking about the possibility of changing narrators/POV's in Good Omens 2.

Catch-22 frequently switches narrator and the events described are often not necessarily sequential. This way you're getting information about previous scenes as the story continues, so while you're reading the book you're forming a more complete image of the events as the story continues from different characters POV's and iterations of the story. Sound relevant?

Herzog is the other book I wanted to talk about. To be fair I haven't read Herzog in full like I have Catch-22 but I pulled out my copy to reference and flip through a bit to remind myself. Herzog unlike Catch-22 doesn't switch narrators but the narration by the main character, Herzog himself, switches between first and third person throughout. When he is narrating through his letters, you get a deeper look at his thought processes and emotions. It also relies on flashbacks to bring context to the life of Herzog.

While these books touch on other elements that are relevant to the Good Omens story, namely Yossarian's relationship and views of God in Catch-22, the way these stories are told intrigued me for this context.

Crowley's Hair

Yeah I'm gonna mention the hair, because I think the hair is linked. Crowley's shorter sideburns, trimmed mutton chops in the 1827 flashback, and shorter Job wig seem to be clearly aligned with the BDFX filter/Crowley's POV as far as I can tell. I don't know if this means it's just another way to denote POV, but it seems way too consistent not to mention it. The longer sideburns, fuller mutton chops, and longer Job wig all match up with Aziraphale's POV or the BGG filter. My thoughts here are that his hair is another hint of who may be relaying the information to us, AKA is it internal or external. I am making my best guesses though and there are still some situations that I feel less sure about. For example, when Aziraphale takes the Bentley to Edinburgh and Crowley is in the Bookshop with Jim his sideburns are long, is it because he's remembering these scenes unreliably? Is Aziraphale imagining the events? Is it because Jim is present? A brief fluttering thought I toy with from time to time is the fact that in the before-the-beginning scene they are long, and what that means in context of the rest of the season.

S2 Promo Posters

Finally this set of season 2 promo posters showing the characters thoughtfully considering scenes in their heads just gives me a lot of these POV vibes.

I'm planning on doing individual posts for specific scenes, episodes, and minisodes that require detailed breakdowns. I'll update this list with links as the posts are finished!

POV "Your 'Something's Wrong' Voice"

POV a Trip to Hell and a 25 Lazarii Miracle

POV a Companion to Owls

POV The Dirty Donkey & I think I Found a *Clue*!

POV Bodysnatchers & Cosplaying a bookseller

POV 1941

POV The Ball

POV The End?

Whose POV is it Anyway - a Conclusion

[viajandopelomar]

I believe the death pact wasn’t to keep Feysand off battle, it was there to keep only Feyre off the plots.

And I‘m 100% Feyre will be the one to take care of Nyx while Rhys continues ruling the court. You can tell by how involved Rhys was in hofas while Feyre was completely absent. Hell, he even played a role in one of the bonus chapters.

Sjm does not consider Feyre and Rhys as equals, no amount of saying that they are will never change that fact. Ever since we got out of her pov completely she‘s just there. Hell, even in acomaf it felt like Rhys is the model and Feyre the cameraman. Sjm used the pregnancy plot and the death pact to keep Feyre in the background.

That’s why I fucking hate her pregnancy and death pact. They can label me a misogynist all they want, but considering how they don’t mention Feyre‘s absent or lack of involvement in the latest books, they‘re the true misogynists here.

Tbh I think she doesn’t like the archeron sisters at all, but she certainly loves the bat boys.

If you pay attention, you'll notice that nothing has changed. In Feyre's POV we have her being briefed on the situations by Rhsyand, and then her opinion is the same as his, her actions are what he advised her, what he said "is the only way". She never knew everything, she only received information after everyone else knew, and Rhysand always said along with what the others were already doing about it, so she had nothing to do except train with him 🤷🏻‍♀️. She didn't know about many things even in ACOWAR, as a high lady. She even asks Rhysand if HE will make Velaris a sanctuary for those who need it after the war, she ASKED him, despite supposedly being equal and possessing the same power.

Rhysand and Feyre can claim that she gives orders and is respected all they want, but in the entire third book we see Rhsyand dictating everything (and still walking around naked in the excavated city, as every queen with power does, right?), she just went and did what he said. Except that because it's her POV, and she thinks she has authority, she really does. I'm with the people who only saw it in ACOSF, out of her eyes. Because it's so much clearer.

We get scenes of Cassian asking Rhsyand if Feyre knows, and then Rhsyand says no, she doesn't know. And this happened more than once. Then Rhysand will probably inform Feyre as in the scenes in ACOWAR and ACOMAF, with Feyre asking what they would do next, and he will tell her what the others are already doing about it. Absolutely NOTHING has changed! Title or no title, she only knows things after everyone else.

Everyone knows that Feyre only has the title because she received it, so it makes no difference. I haven't read HOFAS, but as far as I know, Feyre appears and is presented as nothing more than "Rhsyand's wife", and the information isn't wrong. She's the consort who gave him his heir (and it's her responsibility to raise him, to make sure he's a good prince, which is why she's going to disappear even more), but she's the silly little girl brought up from the rabble who THINKS she has some power because she married a nobleman.

Usually characters like her are a pain in the ass for manhwa protagonists 🫠 (I really don't like them, they just cry 😭😭 in the kings' lap, and they always do what they want). Acotar is all buggy because the narrative tries so hard to make it seem like Feyre actually has something that wasn't gained through marriage. In any other work or narrative she would be annoying, but SJM must fantasize about being Feyre and crying in Rhsyand's lap whenever the opportunity arises 🙂.

Sorry for the delay, anonymous. After I saw the notification it disappeared, so I forgot there was something in my inbox 🤡

[starcrossedreaders]

HI! This is my very first time asking for a request, am so nervous! I was wondering if you could write a short story with Re4r Leon were he and his fem! reader are both married and have meet each other in raccoon city and are separated from Ashley and run into Ada in the room were you solve that tile puzzle in the game and she flirts with Leon and says the line “I might give you that greeting you were looking for. And it makes the reader feel like she is not good enough for Leon and remembering the shared kiss both him and Ada had back at raccoon city. You can add more too it if you would like.

This is so cute, nothing beats a jealous lover to comfort. Hopefully, you love reading this as much as I loved writing it, Enjoy!

Author's Note: This is so cute, nothing beats a jealous lover to comfort. Hopefully, you love reading this as much as I loved writing it, I could not find this scene for the life of me so hopefully you will Enjoy it!

Warnings: jealous reader, mentions of death, guns, injuries, some fighting, little bit of angst

"Ashley wait!" Your hand reached out for the girl before a door slammed down causing the ground to shake.

"Fuck," Your hand slaps down to your side as you turn around to look at your partner, Leon.

"It's okay, we'll find a way to get to her." He unholsters his gun as he roams around the room to find a way out.

You and Leon had been attached at the hips since the police academy. Have being the first ones in the room you two naturally sat next to each other striking up a conversation. The moment Leon had stuck his hand out to greet you the connection was instant. From there on you guys did everything together, from hand-to-hand combat training to study partners you guys naturally gravitated towards each other. Like the sun and moon, Bonnie and Clyde, or Adam and Eve. So when it came time to choose a department to work at naturally you both went for Raccoon Police Department. This is when your troubles began, and your relationship furthered. After almost losing you Leon knew he had to make you his. Life is too short to not take risks. His messy confession and rosy cheeks had quickly led you guys into your 5th year of dating.

Government training was punishing and pushed you guys to the brink of extinction. That never stopped you guys from going onward, always moving, never stopping to enjoy the beauties of life. Which is what led you guys here. Trying to save the president's daughter was no easy task, not when bio-weapons and the past came to haunt you guys.

"Over here!" Leon called out to you from afar. His voice led you through a small tunnel into a bigger room than the last. In the middle of the room stood a podium with various tiles. Further past that was a door with a huge empty piece where you assumed the tiles went.

"Another fucking puzzle seriously?" Walking towards the podium you gathered the tiles and walked to the door.

"I'm tired of this weird village's antics, these puzzles are annoying." Leon only snorted in agreement as he stood at your side focusing on the task at hand.

"That one goes there," His gloved hand pointed to space in the puzzle.

Lifting the rather heavy tile it clicked into place causing the door to groan a bit.

"That's something I guess," You guys continued on with the puzzle before you heard a loud clank above you.

Whipping your head up to the noise you examined the ceiling.

"Did you hear that?"

"I'll go check it out." Leon pulls out his gun to look around the room while you continue the puzzle.

A few moments later you heard a few muffled words and a groan before the clicking of heels filled the room.

Those god-forsaken heels. The heels belonged to someone who has been the point of many arguments between you and Leon. The heels were filled by a beautiful federal agent who had ruined your self-esteem. How could she be so beautiful at a time like this? You looked like you have been through hell and back, dried blood coated your hands as your tank top was ripped. When the one and only Ada Wong looked like a model.

Turning around you watched as your own husband walked into the room with his hands up on either side of his head and Ada right behind him with a gun pointed at his head.

"Ada what a pleasant surprise," You turned back around to put another tile in the slot. The door shook the ground as dust fell around you.

"And who's this Leon?"

"I don't do greetings Ada," You sang your words as you placed another tile in.

This door started to move up a little bit. The crack was big enough to fit your hand through.

"Well, I might give you the greeting you were looking for," Ada's voice dripped with sexual tension as she utters those words towards your OWN husband.

Leon was getting impatient, the gun pointed at his head made him antsy. His hand moved slightly before he grabbed her wrist to make her drop the gun. Ada's foot flew through the air aiming for Leon's neck before he twisted and grabbed it just in time. This fight went on like this for a few heartbeats before Leon pulled his knife out on her.

Pressing it against her neck his voice grew deeper as he spoke, "A bit of advice, use knifes next time, it's better for close encounters,"

Ada could only smile as he slowly pulled the knife away strapping it back in its rightful place.

"I'm surprised, you're better than the rookie I last saw," She paced the room as she spoke to Leon.

"Yea, well, people change Ada,"

"Do they now?"

Your back faced the pair as you tried to focus on the puzzle at hand, the last few pieces were tripping you up, or maybe it was the small voice eating away at you. 'He still loves Ada.' 'You're just a filler for what he can't have.' 'You are the second choice, don't think otherwise.' Sighing heavily you tried to not focus on the past, but the present. You have a daughter to save, you can't be wallowing in your own self-pity.

"Well, why don't we test that out," The clicking of her heels stopped as she stood in front of Leon.

All your mind could do was race and think back to the events of Raccoon City. That horrid train ride was the worst ride you have ever been on. Watching Ada press her lips onto Leon's made you want to scream but watching Leon kiss her back made you want to cry. Nothing was as painful as that. Trying to steady your breathing you thought back to the kiss that you and Leon shared at the altar. That is the kiss that matters the most. Not the lousy kiss that he and Ada shared on the train. It had to, you are his wife for crying out loud, not some sleazy federal agent that teases men and almost gets them killed whenever she's around.

"Can you shut up Ada, I'm trying to figure this damn puzzle out, not listen to you ramble nonsense," She could only click her tongue.

"You should really teach your partner some manners Leon," He could snort out a small laugh.

Whipping your body around you walked over to the pair, "No Ada, I think you should really learn how to not be a liability. Every time you show up on these missions you almost get Leon killed. So why don't you go back to your little agency and stick your nose in someone else's mission. AND MIND YOUR OWN GOD DAMN BUSINESS!"

You didn't really need to yell during the last part but there's something about her stupid beautiful face that made you even more upset.

Turning around you placed the last tile in place. The door groaned as the ground shook. A few heartbeats later the door was fully open. You pulled your gun out with your flashlight underneath as you walked toward the dark and dusty room ahead.

"Y/N Wait," Leon called out for you as he jogged to catch up to you. Ada only shook her head as she shot her grappling hook up into the ceiling. The line zipped her up till she was gone.

Twisting your body from either side to side checking for anything that could harm you guys. You were very content with finishing this mission in silence. Leon on the other head was dead set and determined on figuring out what was wrong.

"Y/N stop, please," His hand landed on your elbow in hopes to stop you. Yanking it out of his grasp you tried to move forward once again.

Leon soon stopped right in front of you and grabbed your shoulders. "Y/N talk to me... what's wrong,"

Leon was always so attentive, "What was that back there?" His soft voice filled the dark room. Your arms slacked to either side of your body as your head dropped.

Small sniffles filled the room as your feelings hit you dead on. Leon's eyebrows furrowed as he heard your sniffles. "Hey, talk to me," His right hand reached up to cup your face and swipe your tears away.

You felt awful right now, you guys were on a mission to save the president's daughter, you should not be involving your own personal matters in your work life. Your shoulders moved up and down as a shiver ran down your body. Ada is not the woman he wants and loves but for some reason, it just doesn't feel that way when you see them together. The kiss during Raccoon City haunts you from the late hours of the night to the early hours of the morning. The rubber band he got you for your one-year anniversary sat heavily on your ring finger.

"I-it's just ugh- y'know what, forget it. We have more important matters at hand,"

"No. We're going to talk about it now, I can't help if you don't tell me what's wrong," His voice was stern as his grip tighten slightly.

"Fine! Everything about Ada makes my gut turn. I feel as if I'm not enough for you. Ada has everything I don't. I know we're married and that should mean something but- The kiss- it's just..." You ran out of breath as you revealed your hidden feelings to your husband.

Leon's grip lightened as he slowly dragged his hands down your arms to your wrists.

"Baby... You know she means nothing to me You are the one I want. You have everything she doesn't love. I married you because you have been there through everything, thick and thin. There is nothing and I mean nothing anyone can do or say that would tear me away from you. We're going to build the brightest future together, two kids, a white picket fence, maybe even a dog," Your slight laugh made Leon smile, a rare occurrence these's days, too bad you could barely see it.

Leon leaned his forehead against yours. "I love you, forever and always okay?" Leon pressed a chaste kiss against your chapped lips.

Leon could barely hear you as you whispered back to him, "Forever and always."

[ravenna-reid]

Admirer from the past... (Pt. 3)

TW: blood and extreme stalking/obsessive behaviour

Part Two here

You stood amongst the chaos; arms crossed and an expression that read complete and utter disbelief on your face. The stench of roses blood was imbedded into your nose, and the sickly feeling stirring in your stomach wasn't leaving any time soon.

"Fuck sake." Harry had been murmuring curses for the past 15 minutes as he continued looking around your once clean and untouched apartment. But now it looked like a snapshot of hell.

Red Robin had moved from beside you to collect evidence and clues, and Harry continued analysing the scene. But you were still stuck in the entry way of your apartment.

Your name was everywhere. Inky explosions all over your white walls, the style and size of handwriting changing as you went along. Most of the ink was black, but some of it was red and dripping...you didn't even want to know.

More black roses that were halfway to death were scattered across the floor, along with all of your paperwork. The worst thing by far though were the photos he'd left behind.

Photos of you at your usual cafe. In your office. On the pavement waiting for a cab. It made your stomach churn. And it made Tim blind with rage.

Tim, after placing a withered black rose and one of the pictures of you into an envelope, glanced in your direction. You had finally moved, gingerly making your way through the mess. Your gaze was trained on all of your hard work torn up and disregarded on the floor. You ran a finger along your couch before moving it to the walls were your name sat. Eventually, you lowered your head before shaking it.

"I can't fucking believe this." Your unease and disgust was soon replaced with resentment. You turned on your heel; your glare vicious and demanding. "This can't keep going any longer. I can't move again-"

"You won't have to." Tim was across the room and before you in seconds, his words spoken like an oath. "I'll make sure of it., I promise"

"But how? What do I do with this now?"

You gestured to your poor apartment, looking around at the countless strangers that were now in your home running their own tests and theories. Tim's white casing gaze remained on you, reading the frustration and fear on your face.

"I'll just have to clean it up. Organise it myself." You murmured.

It was all you could think to do. It was what you always did. When things went south, you would plan, re-organise, think and clean. Or drive yourself insane with so much work that you'd end up earning yet another certificate.

"No can do y/n." Harry stepped over a plethora of folders before reaching you and Red Robin. "This is a crime scene now. You're going to have to leave it to us for the time being."

You drew in a sharp breath as you turned to look back at it all.

Helpless. Tim felt completely helpless and he hated it.

"Do you have anywhere else to stay?" Tim asked.

You shrugged. "My friends are out of town, so I guess a hotel will do."

"You need money?" Harry asked.

You shot a deadened glare at Harry, forcing Tim to suppress a smirk.

"Sorry, right, I know." Harry quickly backtracked. "Just don't know what else to say."

"Yeah," You sighed, "Me either."

Tim immediately thought about his apartment. Immediately wanted to offer it to you. But he feared that he'd be coming across as too eager. Overbearing even, especially since you were dealing with this maniac.

You interrupted his thoughts. "I'm gonna go pack some things then. Can I go into my bedroom and bathroom Harry?"

"Yeah, he didn't do anything back there so it's all clear."

"Nothing in my bedroom...odd, but I'm grateful."

You moved past them both to go to your bedroom. The curtains were drawn and the once serene feel to it gone. And obviously, Harry wasn't as switched on as he used to be, because the photo of you and your friends that was stuck to your mirror was gone, along with your favourite silk dress and one of your pillows.

Rage simmered in your bones, but you kept yourself contained, only cursing under your breath as you moved around your room.

Your head snapped up once you heard the soft footsteps.

There Red Robin stood at the foot of your bed. He leant against the post, imitating someone who was confident and sure, but his body language said otherwise.

"You ok?" His voice was soft, and suddenly you were abundantly glad he was here.

"No. I can't believe how this has escalated. He disappeared for months and now this." You threw a pair of pajamas into your suitcase.

Tim battled with his nerves as he neared you. "Listen, I know you might not want to be around anyone right now, but...I have somewhere you can go."

You stopped what you were doing to settle your gaze onto him.

"Somewhere to go?"

He forced himself not to scratch the back of his neck, remembering that you would pick up on it instantly. "Yeah, an apartment. Don't worry, it'd be just you. But you could stay there as long as you like, and I could keep an eye on you."

He realised how it had sounded as the words left his mouth. Tim shook his head. "Not like that, obviously. I wouldn't be stalking you, but we don't know what this guy is gonna do next, and it's best I know where you-, you'll be safe."

The faintest of smiles tugged at your lips.

And holy shit, if only you could always look at him like that. Just you, forever.

Shit, what was he thinking?

"The elusive Red Robin isn't taking me back to his own apartment is he?"

Tim fumbled for a second too long. "It's safer than a hotel." He reasoned. "And like I said, I wouldn't be staying there...just you."

"But where will you go?" You came closer, folding a shirt in your hands as you waited for his response. "I don't want to put you out."

He had his little nook back at Wayne Enterprises and his bedroom at the Wayne Manor. He'd be fine.

Tim shook his head again. "I'll be fine. Trust me."

And you did. As crazy as it was, especially given the circumstances, you did trust Red Robin. More than you trusted the police even.

"Ok, let me finish packing first. I just need to get my make-up and-"

Tim had you by your arms in the blink of an eye. Pulling you with him, he swiftly pushed you against the wall, his body shielding your own before placing his gloved index finger on your lips. You were seconds away from back handing him with all of the rings on your fingers, but the simple notion of his finger to your lips kept you quiet.

You both stilled, his hold on you gentle yet firm. His breath was warm against your skin and your heart began hammering in your chest. But not as fast as Tim's. He thought he'd pass out being so close to you. But he knew what he heard. Was sure that it was your stalker. And he was eager to get rid of him.

Tim turned his head towards the door to your bathroom.

That was where the noise came from.

Your eyes followed his gaze before snapping back to him. Tim looked back at you, expression a mixed mess of determination and concern, to which you responded with a raised brow. Then you gestured towards your bathroom.

Go.

Tim nodded in agreement. Slowly moving his hands from your arms, he quietly motioned for you to stay put. And you nodded, even if you knew you were lying.

Tim didn't know whether he should kick the door down or try to sneak into the darkened room, but he went with the latter, gently opening the door before slipping into the bathroom. And that's when he saw it. The figure outside your bathroom window on the fire escape.

Tim sprinted through the bathroom towards the hunched silhouette and ripped the window open.

It was him. Just as Tim expected.

Anger coursed through Red Robin's veins as he launched at the man. Tim got a good hit to his face, a stream of crimson flowing from the corner of your stalkers mouth, but he used Tim's momentum to throw him off balance. Tim fell on his back hard, and the man took his chance to run down the fire escape.

"Y/n, one of my guys were just looking through your CCTV. Your crazy stalker only just found out where you live last night-" You hastily yanked at the sleeve of Harry's coat, dragging him out of your apartment.

"What the fuck are you doing!?" Regardless of your lack of a response, Harry broke out into a sprint right behind you without hesitating.

"He's here!" You yelled out. "Come on Harry!"

Red Robin slammed into him, the pair falling down the last flight of iron stairs onto the cement. Tim got back on his feet again, but so did your stalker, and Tim soon realised he was a lot stronger and swifter then either of you had realised.

As the man went to escape, he brought down stacks of crates to block Tim's path. A rookie move, because Tim easily evaded it with his grapple before he was on foot again, chasing the man down the alleyway.

"Fuck you! You can't have her!" His voice was hoarse and his demand haunting, making Tim all the more motivated. Tim threw small metal balls towards him, thick smoke releasing on impact.

You and Harry were out of the apartment building and scouring the streets of Gotham in no time. The club music next door pounded in your head, along with the rush of your blood as you tried to make out where your stalker could have possibly gone. Where Red Robin could have gone.

"I think they're back here y/n!" Harry shouted from behind.

You whipped your head around and followed Harry down the alley way, your heels trudging through puddles and grime when suddenly, smoke appeared. Thick, grey smoke.

You and Harry slowed down and approach with caution before you watched as he ran out of it.

Him.

Your psychotic stalker. The man who has been giving you hell for so long. Your eyes met and instantly a chill ran down your spine.

He looked animalistic. Insane. A sickening smirk on his face as he looked back at you. But it fell short once Red Robin emerged from the smoke. Just as he did, two oblivious and intoxicated girls came into view, presumably from the club next door.

They were giggling and swaying, and your stalker wasted no time; slipping behind one of them, causing both girls to scream before he had a blade against oen of their throats.

Your hand launched for the gun hidden in Harry's holster, but his hand quickly grabbed yours to stop you. "No y/n!"

Everyone stilled, the sound of music, cars and stifled cries wandering through the night.

Your stalker leered at you, and you could read that terrifying face. That unnerving expression. Eyes darting between you and the gun, he almost dared you to do it. But then his eyes glanced over your form before he tilted his head, subtly gesturing to the weeping girl in his arms.

It'd be your fault. That's what he was saying. Her death would be on your hands.

You clenched your jaw, watching on in anticipation.

Red Robin's chest heaved with anger, his hand secured around his bō. "Let her go!"

"Let me go then..." He dragged out, his eyes flickering down to the handcuffs in Red Robin's free hand. "If anyone's gonna shackle me up, it's you pretty girl."

You grimaced, your hand tightening on the gun as Harry's tightened around yours.

"Ok, just let her go." Harry quickly reasoned, justifying his action with the fact that he was sure your stalker wasn't going to hurt you anytime soon. But the girl in his arms? The one that had a machete to her throat? Harry couldn't let her get hurt. He couldn't fail another person. The girl continued crying, her weeps ringing through the air. "Just let the girl go."

Tim looked over to you. Took in the hate in your eyes. And so did your stalker as he slowly backed away, the young girl still in his hold. "Tell boy wonder to stand down." He snapped.

Harry didn't say anything, he didn't have to. Tim was one of Gotham's protectors, it was his job to protect all of the civilians. So he stood down. And just like that, the man of your nightmares disappeared amongst the crowd behind the club, his victim now sobbing in her friends arms.

Tim wanted to go after him, no matter how frivolous it would be now that he was mixed amongst a mass of people, but his attention turned to you.

You let go of Harry's gun and placed your hands atop of your head, breathing heavily from the rush and anxiety of it all.

Red Robin made his way over to you. "What were you thinking?"

You assumed he was referring to you grabbing Harry's gun and went to respond until he cut you off again.

"I told you to stay inside y/n. He could have grabbed you!"

"Red Robin, he didn't-"

"But he could have. He was armed!"

You fell quiet, slightly taken aback with how much he truly cared. Tim was just mad he couldn't grab you and hold you so this freak couldn't go near you again.

Harry checked if the girls were ok, calling some of his men to come out and meet them at the club, just to make sure everything was ok. But his attention wavered to where you and Tim stood, tension simmering in the air as you both looked back at each other.

Harry let out a long sigh before placing a hand on your shoulder. "It's been a long night. You should go rest." Harry directed his tired gaze to Red Robin. "I can get someone from the station to escort her to your apartment."

Tim wanted to scoff. "Not likely. I can take her myself."

The drive back on the back of his motorbike was morbidly quiet. Your arms remained wrapped around him, your head resting on his muscled back. You could feel Red Robin's heart thumping, but kept it to yourself.

Tim's muscles grew rigid as he continuously thought back to what had just unfolded. He knew he was just angry at that guy. He knew he couldn't remain angry with you. Not even if he tried. All he could do from here on out was keep you safe and keep his promise. He let out a tired sigh before the tires on his motorbike came to a screeching halt outside a building. As you looked at the place you'd be staying at for the next couple of days, your jaw dropped.

Red Robin seemed to have forgotten to mention that his place wasn't some ordinary apartment. No, he owned a suite in one of the most prestigious hotels in Gotham.

"This is where you live?" You asked, slipping off his motorbike before he could offer his hand.

"Yeah," he pulled up his seat and grabbed your suitcase from the inside. "Come on, let's head in."

Before you entered the glass double doors and stepped upon the marble floors, you came to a halt, turning your head over your shoulder to look back at the street. To look at the alleyways looming before you, waiting to see his sickly face staring back at you.

"Hey," Tim grabbed your elbow, softly gesturing for you to relax. "It's ok, you're safe here."

"What if he comes?" You asked, and you couldn't hide the fear in your eyes anymore.

It made Tim's heart snap in half, but it also did something else. Some fervent need to protect you. To bring this stalker to justice. Deadly determination weighed down on him as he looked at you.

"He can sure try."

Part 4 soon ya'll, lmk what you think :)

[fendixlexii]

A Thin Line Between Fame & A Genius: Chapter One.

(I DONT OWN THIS GIF, FOUNDED ON PINTEREST)

Faizah Alston. Better yet known as the Amorous Runway model. She's gorgeous, exquisite, magnificent, and much more. What happens when Faizah suddenly gets a stalker so viciously to the point that the FBI has to be involved in this case and someone catches her eye?

T/W: THIS STORY ALSO INVOLVES: Mature Themes, Smut (eventually), Mental Health, Stalking, Obsession, Violence, Abuse, Sensitive Content, Sexual Harassment/ Assualt, death, and drugs.

I'D LIKE YOU TO BE WARNED, READ AT YOUR OWN RISK AND PROCEED WITH CAUTION.

"Good Morning, world. My name is Scarlet Cree, and this is FNews reporting to you live today to let you guys know the behind-the-scenes of the model runway. Faizah Alston, better known as the Amorous Runway model. She is often known as the most graceful model that mankind ever has to offer! So just imagine my surprise when I discovered she has a stalker!"

The crowd gasps and starts to murmur.

"I know, I know! It has happened to our famous stars Taylor Swift, Drew Berrymore, Britney Spears, and all others, but for Faizah Alston, it has seemingly gotten worse. At one of her showcases, it was reported that when the show was over, the models went backstage to their dressing rooms, and a black box with a red Ribbon around it was in front of Faizah's door. When she opened the box, she found TWO dead cats inside the box with their hearts out along with a letter stating, 'Don't worry my beloved, we will be together soon but take this as a sign that I won't let anything in the path to get to you.' Let's keep our lovely Amorous Runway model in our prayers and send her our blessing-

What was once a beautiful pair of my Christian Louboutin So Kate Patent Leather Pumps on my feet, one of my pumps was now into television, causing a big hole right in the middle.

"WHAT THE ENTIRE FUCK FAIZAH!" my agent, Alex Blake, says as he was startled by the sudden noise when I threw one of my Christian Louboutin leather pumps at the television, causing it to break.

"HOW-" I cut myself off by rubbing my hand on my chest and trying to calm myself down. I take a deep breath. "Alex, how did she get this information?" I ask more calmly

"I don't know, Im honestly on the move right now trying to find out, Hold on, im getting a call, but until then, please try not to wear any shoes to not throw at anything," he says, answering his phone and walking away.

Honestly, I don't know how the hell she knows, my team and I wanted this to be as quiet as possible, this can cause bad publicity, and not only that, I just don't want people in my business. I think I deserve privacy, but unfortunately, that's the price you pay when you are famous. But I have to keep a cool head, never get out of character, and most importantly, never show your heart that's in your chest.  At least, that's what my auntie always told me.

Thank Lord, she's dead, but that's for another time.

I walked into the room that Alex was in as he finished his phone call so I could talk to him about my next show in a few hours.

"yes, yes! Okay, we'll see you there, thank you so much." Alex said as he got off the phone

"What makes you so happy all of a sudden?"

"We can go to your next show, but you are going to have to go to Quantico and stay there for a while until this 'stalker' is gone for good." He turns to me with a smile on his face.

"One, Why are you using air quotes, and two, No, My life is in New York, I can't just move away," I said sternly.

"My dear Amorous," he says while cupping my face.

"I have to keep you safe from this sicko stalker here; I can't risk anything happening to you, especially you. Your safety matters at this point, and not only that, what if you are doing a show and this 'stalker' goes up on the runway and does something to you? If they can go backstage to your dressing room to leave not one, but two damn dead cats? That should be telling you something, Faizah. You're going to Quantico, and that's final." he kisses my forehead.

"Okay, Sir, so let's say if I go to Quantico, am I going to get the protection there, and when I say protection, I mean full-blown police, army, homeland security type protection there," I said in a serious tone.

"It's funny that you said that. I just got off the phone with one of my friends in the FBI over there, and you are going to have all the security over there, so you will be safe.

I take a moment to take in on what Alex just told me.

"Okay, fine. Is the rest of my team on notice, and did you have them sign NDAs? cause as much as I love them; I can't risk anybody knowing where I am." I asked

"I already did, Amorous." I smiled

"Thank you, Alexander, now, when should I start to prepare for the show?" I asked with a more glorious tone

"You can start getting ready now because I know how long you take."

"Don't sweat the technique, Alex, and besides, like Beyonce said: "It should cost a billion to look this good," I said while walking to my walk-in closet. "Be safe leaving Alex!" I yell

"I will; I'll see you in four hours I'll also send a car to get you for the show!" Alex yells back while leaving and locking the door.

Now that I'm finally alone, I lay down on the fluffy carpet filled with anger and shame. I've never been the one to show my feelings in front of people; I never want anyone to know my emotions because they'll use them against me. So, to not let anyone use, lose, and abuse me, I never let them show. I'm so afraid as well because of this damn stalker. What if they do something much worse, what if they kill-

Wait, I'm spiraling; you need to get ready for the show.

As I began to get up and walk towards my vanity, I heard my phone ring.

"My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard, And they're like, it's better than yours, damn right it's better than yours, I can teach you, but I have to charge~"

One of the members of the stylist's team calls me.

"Good afternoon, Ms. Alston, im downstairs so I can get you ready for the show."

"Yes, good afternoon, I'll send security to bring you up," I said, hanging up.

I'll never get used to getting ready twice. See, the reason why im getting ready now is to always look beautiful in front of the paparazzi, when one of the peasants says that you look a little off, they'll drag your name beyond the firey pits of hell. And I REFUSE to let that happen to me. It becomes a drag when I have to get ready again when I’m doing a show. That's the price to pay to become a model.

When I heard three knocks on the door, I walked towards to answer it.

"Good afternoon, Ms. Alston, are you ready?"

"yes, I am, you can set it up in my walk-in closet; thank you for coming."

I may sometimes be a bitch, but I’m a bitch with manners.

A/N: Thank you guys so much for reading my first ever chapter on tumblr/wattpad! If you guys have any notes or suggestions on how I can improve my writing, please feel free to let me know! Follow, like, and please reblog, Happy reading!

* I DON’T GIVE ANYONE PERMISSION FOR ANYONE TO TRANSLATE/ REPOST MY WORK!

[thenightshadowqueen]

Livestream thoughts

This is largely just stream-of-consciousness (and it’s very long) and was written mostly for me, but I figured I’d share it because I always love reading these from other people

Sam’s London Eye bit during the intro is amazing

“One hit, it’s in the hole” I heard your fucking double meaning, Tom

“I’m really French. And because of that, I’m going to surrender immediately.” Who else thought of, “We are French. We are very good at surrendering.”?

“You clutched my foot and stood on my nipple” Sam immediately trying to make that position???

“Now look at me” and then Sam moaning is just so on brand for him

Tom and AJ just almost kissing between scenes for no reason came out of nowhere

Is Angel Station always closed? Because they’ve brought that up in multiple shows now

“I’m still wet—and not in the good way” Sam

Sam fucking with the way Letters works killed me—honestly, I think they should play that way again, because it was great; it was kind of a combination Letters and Timewarp

Also the overstimulated public transport user? Very relatable.

“Oh, it’s one of those letters” got me so badly

The weird incestuous direction of the letter was concerningly not surprising

The immortal economy brothers??? are amazing

“I don’t think you want to say it, do you? But I think I might have to insist at this point. And once I’ve insisted, I might regret it.” I adore it when they break character to fuck with each other

“We get a shovel and a high-quality camera, and we dig up the Queen” Sam is on fire today oh my god

“We’ll do a sepia filter” why????

“Well, I don’t see any problem with that” brilliant, Tom

Nonbinary parrot!

“I’ve never been able to walk ever since” oh my god, AJ, way to raise the fucking stakes

“Next Christmas” TOM

Sam getting to correct Tom’s English? What reversed alternate universe do we live in?

Watching this the same day I finished the second season of Interview with the Vampire, and when Sam is raising Tom from the dead in Puppets, all I can think about is that line about how no one ever asks Lazarus if he wants to be resurrected (I don’t know why this is what went through my mind, but it is)

“I kind of want to see how karaoke goes” Sam’s fucking face oh my god

The sapphic exes in Book Game????

Also Tom third-wheeling the sapphic exes in Book Game (“this is really hot”)

AJ’s character smashing a glass and Sam moaning is, again, so not surprising at this point

Also what British Prime Minister was nicknamed “pretty fanny”????? I feel like I’m missing some context as an American

“…Daddy” SAM fucking hell

“~Funky~” the way he said that????

“I will miss your nipples pressing into my nipples” what the fuck

“You wanted to join the Nazis” Sam “edgy joke” Russell, everyone

Sam standing there with his hand on AJ’s head and laughing before he could get his joke out was phenomenal, but AJ going, “don’t—shut up” killed me

AJ making the bald joke for them never gets old

“There’s a new handhold here” good god, Tom

AJ just jumping on Sam… I’m honestly not surprised at this point

“Listen, Luke—” honestly I really want to know what AJ was going for

“It’s salty” TOM oh my god

“I will give you Sexy Mates” I mean, I’d watch that (I’m so sorry; the joke has to be made)

I so seriously thought they were going to reveal they’d met before in the first scene of the longform

“I’m not good at social interactions” me neither babe

“I’m a mortician” that was so out of pocket

“I’m embarrassed to say this, but what is that?” I feel like that was a genuine question

Sam, I’m pretty sure morticians do not determine cause of death

I feel like Sam was going for his character being a killer at the beginning, which is interesting in the context of the full play

“You’ve not said anything funny yet” damn, Sam

“You remembered my name!” “Yeah.” “I didn’t!” AJ remembered a name that Sam didn’t???

“Why does this always happen?” Tom elaborate????

Tom just having to lie there behind the curtain sends me

“I go inside a lot of dead people” ah, there’s the necrophilia joke we were all expecting

“You make my life better” babe you just met

Sam killing AJ with his horrible French pronunciations took me out

Monsieur Pamplemousse, the Swiss waiter

“I’m just a rat” I love Tom

I love Sam just refusing to help Tom by playing the second driver

Gay train driver husbands!!!!!

Sam pushing the Scottish accent down reminded me so vividly of Caravan

I love AJ not knowing what to name himself

I love Sam forcing Tom to continue talking and then immediately regretting it

“Two sides of the same coin” AJ AJ AJ AJ YOU CAN’T DO THIS TO MY MERTHUR HEART do you have any idea the way I choked when I heard that

The power of Scotland! (Moist and Magical flashbacks, anyone?)

There’s been a lot of audience singing in recent livestreams, hasn’t there?

“Title of the play I don’t remember” SAM

Also okay so this play was amazing but it had absolutely nothing to do with the title

I had an amazing time as always

[ennoshitas-princess]

My Sweet Pumpkin

Atsumu Miya x chubby fem! reader Warning: will have bullying and some of the scenes will be abusive, some cursing, please read with caution. If you are sensitive with these topics, please don't read. Fluff at the end Synopsis: the Miya twins’ fan girls (specifically Tsumu’s) bully you because you have to work together for a project. The girls found out about your crush on the setter and started to threaten you. Word Count: 1,067 This is held pre time skip. There will be no manga spoilers in any way. If you are not comfortable reading this, again, please do not read!!

Another note fell out of your locker for your shoes once again.

You couldn't take anymore of these horrible messages that they kept on placing on your desk, your locker, the spatting to your face of the thing you were already aware of. You knew it, they didn't have to say it over and over again:

You were fat.

All the girls in your school had fair pale skin, slender arms, small chests and waists, and nice petite bodies.You kept on comparing yourself, not able to stop those thoughts that ran in your head day and night. You just couldn't bear to see that your efforts of losing your soft belly were not working.How could a hot guy like him like me?

“Hey, l/n. Why the long face?” The faux blond peaked his head from behind the locker section.

You suddenly got startled with the sudden question from Atsumu. Just like you got startled, your voice showed the fright.

“Umm- I- well nothing!” You struggled to speak.

The teen boy bent down to pick up a piece of paper on the cold tile, puzzled at the sight of scribbles.Reading the letter to himself, you started to sweat cold. You found it hard to breathe, waiting for one of those girls to come out and beat you in front of the setter.

“L/n! I can't believe ya hid this from me. Why’d ya didn't say shit about this. Look, I’ll go an’ tell the-”

He suddenly was interrupted by a scream of yours.

“No! I mean, no. I will be fine. Please don't do anything about it. To this point I am-”

The faux blond interrupted you too.

“L/n-san, ya’re a sweet person. C’mon, ya deserve more than better, more than to be okay. Ya’re a star compared to everyone else.” He held your shoulders, shaking you.

Your eyes started to tear up, wanting to tell him that you were just a plain girl without an interesting life. You snatched the letter from his hands from where he stood.

A silence set place in the atmosphere between your soft figure and his strong lean body.

He burst the bubble of silence with a question.

“L-n, who the hell gave ya that letter?”

The tears of your eyes started to flow down like a waterfall in the rainforest. Without thinking straight, you hug the faux blond twin. While you sobbed in his chest, he started to ruffle your hair, enjoying the smell of your soft strands.

“Look, don't cry. I’ll fight whoever the fuck hurt ya. Trust me, please?”

You stare into his lovely honey brown eyes, still in tears. Sighing you go to tell him how his fan girl club did things to you.

“Miya and l/n, you will be partners for the project.” The teacher read off the names.You received death glares from some girls in the class. Comments came from their lips like it was the monsoon season.

“That fat bitch is gonna work with Atsumu-kun.” One of them said.

“I hope when she or he visits each other it doesn't turn him into a pig like her.” Went another.

Tears started to form. Without hesitation you asked the teacher if you could switch partners, but he told you that there was no way to switch.

“What? Just ‘cause that? L/n-san, that is so stupid of them! I can't let this keep happening. We are gonna go to the office an’ tell ‘em about the situation.” He pulled you by the hand.

“Wait! That isn't the only reason.” The words slipped out of your lips.

He turned around to look at your trembling plump figure. How on earth can they be mean with such a sweet and beautiful girl like you?

“What else did they say to ya?”

“Nevermind it's not really important.” You shake your hands frantically.

“No, l/n-san, please tell me. I care about ya. Y’know I do.” He grabbed your soft hands.

You couldn't keep the feelings anymore, or you felt too numb to realize what came out of your mouth and told him.

“They found out that I had a crush on you, and they thought I was a threat to them to have you as their boyfriend.” You stuttered your words, finding it hard to speak because of your sobbing.

Atsumu Miya’s eyes open wide in shock. The girl he had liked since junior high, liked him back. He would always be scared to approach you because of the way girls would stare. On how they would bully you because of your soft, plump figure. He couldn't bring himself to confess.

“L/n-san, I- well… to be honest with ya- I know it is possibly the wrong moment but…”

He leaned in closer to you, with every little millimeter causing your face to turn a bright crimson. The two of you smashed into each other's lips, tasting the strawberry from yours, and you tasted the sweet woody smell of his cologne.

Both of you ran out of air.

“Miya-kun-”

“No l/n-san. Call me Tsumu please. I mean I really like you.” He pulled your plump body in.

You take in everything that was happening in the moment and smile.

“Tsumu, I really want to be with you. I do, but what about-”

“Y/n, fuck ‘em all. You matter to me, and that is all I care about, if you love me.” He rubbed your chubby cheeks.You think more and smile at him.

“Fine Tsumu, I will be yours.” Hugging him tighter as if he would disintegrate if you let go.

“That's more like it, pumpkin.” He kissed the top of your head.

○◐❀❀❀❀❀❀◑○

The next day, the two of you headed to class and received a bunch of comments on you two holding hands.

“Atsumu-kun, why are you with this hog?” On girl asked.

“Well, I am glad ya asked! First off, she is not a hog, she is a beautiful jewel I wanna show off to the whole world. And to answer yer question, I love her with all my heart.” His toothy grin made you giggle. “Now, I reported all of ya to the office, and if ya say mean shit to my beloved princess one more time, ya will face consequences.”

With that both of you sat down at your desks, smiling at each other.

A/n: hi guys!! Another one shot done and finished to be posted! Hope you love it!

Thank you for stopping by my bakery!!

______________________________________________

All rights reserved copyright ©

ennoshitas-princess

Please DO NOT repost on any other platform!!

Reblogs are acceptable

[scekrex]

＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚ ˚*•̩̩͙✩

＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚ ˚*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚＊＊*•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙*˚ ˚*•̩̩͙

Request 💕💕💕💕💕💕💕

Pearl from Steven Universe like male reader x Adam, when Adam first joined the exorcis Adam had y/n on his side loyal to Adam did anything and everything for Adam just like pearl and so ever since y/n stuck with Adam until he died womp womp but y/n trust to help Adam fight with Lucifer but Adam won't lesson ( you can pick one or both I can't decide 🙃 ) so he cut of his wings to stay with Adam, Charlie asked y/n if he can stay in the hazbin hotel with no place to go he accepts the request then after a few days y/n finds Adam or he goes back to heaven and griefs and has to be the next leader of the exorcist. 🙂👍

"WHY WON'T YOU LET ME DO THIS FOR YOU ADAM!?"

"I need someone to tell me what to do."

"He made me feel like I was everything."

"Everything I ever did, I did for him but now he's gone and I am still here."

"YOU CAN UNDERSTAND HOW I FEEL! NONE OF YOU HAD WHAT WE HAD!"

If you can thank you pookie 💕💕💕

So I went with the 'reader tears of his own wings and stays in hell' situation. If you want me to write reader as the next exorcist leader and the struggles that come w that position, lemme know!

With broken wings we're fallin'

pairing: Adam x male!reader

warnings: language, self harm, low-key canon typical violence

note: not beta read bc fuck you I don't have beta readers

Your soul felt empty, just a big void that consumed you from the inside, that swallowed all your feelings and emotions until all that was left was cold, lonely emptiness.

Adam has died.

The person that you had sworn to protect, that you had loved - fuck that, you still love him - more than anyone. He was dead, stabbed brutally by that little demon bitch. There had been blood everywhere, for Christ's sake, his blood had been on your hands too as you had held him. Everything had been coated in golden liquid, it had made you feel dizzy.

You remembered it so clearly, the day you two had first met. He had just been announced leader of the exorcists and Sera had assigned you and Lute to assist him. You quickly bonded with Adam, he was a pretty chill guy once you got to know him and despite him claiming otherwise, he had a soft side for those he cared about. That mainly included you and Lute.

And then the flirting had started, the ‘babes’, the touching, the ‘shit you look hot today’. It had been wonderful, to love and be loved. Now that was gone, brutally torn from your hands by the sinners you had sworn to kill.

After Adam's death, you had stayed in hell, not because they weren't letting you go back to heaven, but because you chose to. You had failed Adam, you had failed yourself. You didn't deserve heaven. You deserved damnation for the rest of your existence.

The exorcists had already left heaven as you kneeled next to Adam's corpse and prayed, prayed to the all nightly lord above that Adam would find peace. Your wings were spread, shielded you and your dead boyfriend from whatever was going on behind you. The devil's daughter, her father and her friends stood there in silence, their eyes on you, confused by your reaction. They didn't know Adam had someone special, someone who actually cared about him. Lucifer wanted to interrupt the scene but Charlie held him back, “Dad. Let him have this moment. His boyfriend passed.” So the devil relaxed, not pleased with the order his daughter had placed, but he accepted it. At least for now.

You looked down at the first man's face, it was as white as a ghost, his eyes stared up at you lifelessly and it killed you inside. Your hands reached for your wings, nails dug into them and you started to pull. It hurt but the physical pain was bearable, it was survivable compared to the emotional pain you went through. “What is he doing?” Charlie asked and Lucifer just watched in silence. He knew, Vaggie knew too. And then the sound of tearing echoed through the air and a shocked gasp followed the painful scream that escaped your lips.

The wings fell out of your hand and onto the ground, blood tickled down your back but you couldn't bring yourself to care, not when the physical pain numbed your emotions so well. The blood felt warm against your skin and for a moment it reminded you of Adam's warmth, of the warmth you felt whenever he had wrapped his arms around you, the warmth that had filled you with every kiss he had gifted to you.

But numbness was temporary and your emotions caught up quicker than you liked them to. So the next thing that provided warmth were the tears that started to stream down your reddened cheeks. You were alone again. All alone in hell, the only person you ever cared about was gone.

-

The weeks had passed and nothing had changed. Well, that wasn't true. A lot had changed, actually, life in hell was different from life in heaven, but you've known that before you had lived here. Charlie had offered you a room at the hotel. You weren't truly a sinner, your fate wasn't forced onto you, yet she saw the good. And you had accepted because where the fuck were you supposed to go anyways? The only thing left was the ring Adam had given to you a couple thousands years ago. That was it. His body had disappeared, Lucifer had said something along the lines of 'Ashes to ashes, dust to dust.' Whatever that had to do with Adam.

You sat on the floor of the lobby as the others were chatting. It was some kind of board game evening but you weren't feeling like it, just sat there and stared against the blank wall. “I need someone to tell me what to do,” you whispered and Charlie immediately shifted her attention from the game to you. With questioning eyes and a soft voice she asked, “What do you mean?” Without looking at her you sighed as you pulled your knees against your chest and slowly rocked back and forth. It gave you some sort of comfort. “Everything I ever did, I did for him but now he's gone,” your nails dug into your shins, leaving angry red marks as tears welled up in your eyes, “And I'm still here.”

Angel rolled his eyes at that, “He just wants fucking attention, why's he here anyway? It's not like he's forced to be here, he chose that shit.” You only heard him say these words and angry replied, “You can't fucking understand how I feel. None of you fuck-ups had what Adam and I had.” Husk huffed at that, “Yeah and we're fucking greatful for that.”

But Charlie shook her head, clearly disagreeing with the porn demon, “This hotel is not only about redemption Angel, it's about changing in general. Y/N is lost in the dark, we can guide him back to the light.” You huffed but didn't comment on it, why was she so fucking damn right?

The princess of hell got up to sit down next to you, pausing the game officially. “Do you wanna talk about it? About him?” you wouldn't have imagined that Charlie would ever offer you such a thing, she hated Adam, fuck, she probably hated you too. Yet she tried her best to comfort you. “He made me feel like I was everything,” you started and the others turned towards you at that.

Adam? Making someone else feel special? Not in their universe.

“He always acted all rough and badass in public but when we were alone he was… soft. He cared, more than he would've admitted but he cared. And he loved, he always made sure I feel loved because-” you were interrupted by the front door swinging open. And there he stood. “Sup bitches, what did-” he stopped as soon as his eyes landed on you. The golden eyes widened in shock. “What the fuck are you doing here?” the both of you spoke at the same time. You got up from the floor quickly, pushing Charlie out of the way in order to get to Adam.

“How?” you whispered once you had reached him, your hands roamed over his face. The feeling of his familiar features on your skin was unbelievable, it made a new will to live spark up in you. “No fucking idea, but why are you still here?” he hummed, his eyes were looking straight into yours, oh how he had missed your pretty eyes. They were just as golden as his own, yet so different, so unique. “I-” you wanted to explain as Adam interrupted you yet again, “And where the fuck are your wings?” His hands traced over the wounds, the wounds were still healing, touching them made you flinch away. The first man's eyes darkened as he looked at the other hotel residents, “Who did that?” You were quick to force his attention back onto you, “I did that, they have nothing to do with that.”

“But why? Your wings were so perfect so-” he stopped himself this time. You continued for him, “They had been holy Adam. I'm not holy, not after failing you.” His big hands softly cupped your cheeks as a tiny smile appeared on his lips, how you had missed this smile, so subtle yet it meant everything. “You fucking idiot.” You knew it meant ‘You didn't fail me’ and ‘Stop that fucking bullshit right now’. But you couldn't help but feel like you did. He had died, he had been reborn a sinner.

All because of you, all because you hadn't been quick enough to stop Niffty.

[sleepingdeath-light]

when she’s moved on from chucky hcs ; tiffany valentine

requested by ; anonymous (posted on 14/07/23)

fandom(s) ; slashers / child’s play

fandom masterlist(s) ; here

character(s) ; tiffany valentine

outline ; “Ooh so could you do a Tiffany x gender neutral reader where at the scene when tiff had chucky in his cage, she mentions how she got over him and is now dating reader who Tiff just rabbles about them?

And please take your time on this I don’t wanna seem like one of the impatient readers so do your best!”

note ; this is a repost from a now deleted blog, so apologies if you’ve already read this lol

warning(s) ; allusions to sex, suggestive content

minors and ageless blogs will be blocked

she hadn’t thought about her ex in a long time — mourning him for more than long enough when he’d initially passed away before making a point of trying to move on

she’d had plenty of flings over the years — tiffany was incredibly attractive so there was no shortage of men and women ready to hop in bed with her — but nobody ever stayed for long

not until you, that is

you, who was able to make her laugh without any effort

you, who didn’t judge her for her past and helped her take the steps she needed to fully detach herself from chucky

you, who kept a photo of her in your wallet/purse and who would proudly introduce her as your girlfriend to anyone you met

you, who watched all her favourite films with her and who would get wrapped up in the plot without complaining about them being ‘unrealistic’ or ‘silly’

you, who loved her for her mind and her humour and not just her body

you

just you

and yet despite all of that she still couldn’t seem to get away from charles for long because here he was, miraculously not dead and a hell of a lot shorter and more plastic-looking than she remembered

she’d seen his death reported on in the paper

she’d been going to therapy to talk about their relationship and how she was dealing with his loss

she’d moved on and was happy with you — even looking at wedding venues (even if you hadn’t been together very long, but when you know you know)

she’d done everything right and still he’d managed to come back into her life like nothing had happened

it made her angry

it made her sick

so she trapped him in a baby cage and went out for a smoke, ranting with the front door of her trailer open as she made some very pointed gestures and remarks to her ex

how dare he do this to her! how fucking dare he!

who the fuck did he think he was?

why couldn’t he just let her live her life in peace?

couldn’t he see that she was finally — fucking finally — happy after all of the shit he’d put her through?

the sheer audacity had her tonguing the inside of her cheek and reaching for her lighter — she didn’t have enough cigarettes to deal with his shit right now

frankly there weren’t enough cigarettes in the world at all to help her deal with his bullshit, but that was besides the point

she takes a drag from her second cig and now she’s stopped pacing — leaning on the doorframe and facing him head on with more disappointment and sadness that outright animosity

and somehow that scares him more than when she was ranting and raving and screaming at him

she asks why he can’t just let her have one good thing — but it’s not really a question and he knows it and he doesn’t even get to contemplate answering and manipulating her before she continues

she talks about you, about how she’s finally happy for the first time in forever and of course he has to come in and turn it all to shit (she spits the last word like it burns her tongue and continues in a dreamier voice, the ghost of a smile worming its way onto her lips)

‘they’re real sweet, ya know?’ (he doesn’t and she knows it but she continues), ‘they make me happy. we have fun together’

he says that they did too, jumping at the opportunity to reel her back in, but she chokes out a laugh and kicks his baby gate, causing his plastic body to stumble back

she scoffs at him and reaffirms that ‘fun’ doesn’t just mean being an adrenaline junkie — but even then that you don’t put her down or discourage her from doing what she enjoys

you let her have real hobbies, not just ones that benefit you — you even watch cheesy chick flicks with her and, pray tell, when did he ever bother to do the same?

never, that’s when

chucky tries to reel her back in again, recalling the fun they used to have — but he’s already lost

he lost before he even turned up at her front door because tiffany valentine has moved on

she doesn’t just want kinky sex and excitement — she dreams of domesticity and marriage and love

her days of bloodshed and murder are (mostly) over and have been since she settled down

since she fell in love with you

you with your smiles and your gentle touches and your humour that makes her laugh so hard her cheeks and sides ache

you who reaches out first and who doesn’t leave her high and dry and wanting like charles did

you who she loves, really truly loves, and who she’d never even dream of leaving

so she grabs a bottle of wine and tells chucky to keep on talking — because he may not have a snowball’s chance in hell of winning her over, but by god is it cathartic to watch him beg

… maybe she’d even call you up and give him a live show of every single reason, position and sound why you’re a far sight better than he ever was

[unreliablesnake]

Animals - part 4 (Simon “Ghost” Riley x reader)

Summary: You turn to the Military Police to get help against Simon, but this move only enrages him. Things take a tragic turn after his visit.

Note: I didn’t like writing this at all. / If you want to know when I post new stuff, follow @unreliablesnakefics and hit the get notifications button. I don't have a taglist.

part 1 / part 2 / part 3

Warnings: afab!reader, toxic!Simon, dark!Simon, r*pe, character death. If you’re triggered by any of this or you’re a minor, DON’T READ IT!!!

“What the fuck were you thinking, Simon?” Price yelled when the lieutenant closed the front door behind him. “Attempted rape? Harassment? Stalking? Were you even using your brain when you did these things?”

Ghost let out a groan as he pinched the bridge of his nose and leaned against the back of the couch. “She told you, I guess.” The captain nodded. “That’s her side of the story, I hope you don’t believe everything she came up with.”

“I talked to the staff of the inn where she and Soap hid from you, and the receptionist confirmed that you were there, making a scene by insisting on them still being in the building. This also means you really did track her phone.”

“I just… I didn’t want her to do anything stupid, like jumping into a relationship with Soap because she’s a little confused about her feelings for me.”

“She doesn’t love you,” Price pointed out as he watched the other man. “She’s terrified of you.”

The lieutenant tilted his head to the side and gave him a disappointed look. “Come on, John, don’t buy that crap. We aren’t on the best of terms at work, I admit that, but she wouldn’t have slept with me if she didn’t feel anything about me.”

“She did what?”

“See? I thought she would miss that little part out,” he noted dryly. “She didn’t complain about that to me.” And he was right, he knew that, mostly because you were such a good little girl for him, doing everything he said. When he left, you were sleeping peacefully in your bed, looking everything but upset.

“It only happened once?” Ghost nodded. “Look, okay, you had her consent one time, but what about the last mission? I heard what you did, and she definitely didn’t consent at that time.”

He rolled his eyes at this. “Nothing happened.”

“Because Soap arrived to tell you that I wanted to see you,” Price pointed out.

“You think I’m lying?” he asked, offended by even the idea of it. “We were just talking. Okay, maybe I kissed her, but she returned it,” he added.

“That’s not what she said.”

Ghost let out a frustrated huff as he stood straight and gave his superior an expectant look. “Fucking hell, John, this conversation is going nowhere. Do they have any evidence against me?” he asked, genuinely interested.

But Price only shook his head at this with arms folded over his chest defensively. “It’s not my job to know what they do or don’t have against you. And even if I knew, I wouldn’t tell you,” he added with a pointed look.

“Then what are you doing here?”

“I wanted to hear what you had to say about this issue.”

“I didn’t do anything wrong, she’s just making shit up because she hates to admit that she wants me as well,” Ghost explained. “Are you happy? Are we done?”

“We’re done.”

Once Price left, his mind immediately turned to the possible evidence that could be in his home, starting with the drive with those precious photos and videos of you. He hated the idea of getting rid of it, but there was no other choice. He also had to reset his phone, deleting every sign of the tracking app he used to keep an eye on you.

••••••••

You looked at Soap when you let Price into the building, tense from all of the possibilities of how his conversation with Ghost went. You knew he was good at convincing people, what if he could make Price take his side in this?

The moment he entered the apartment, Soap folded his arms over his chest and asked, “So? How did it go?”

Price let out a sigh as he took off his jacket and placed it on the back of a chair. He looked tired and at least ten years older now. Whatever had happened, it certainly took its toll on him. “He denied everything. For some reason he’s convinced that you’re only confused about your feelings, but deep down you know you should be together,” he explained.

When he saw your reaction out of the corner of his eye, Soap put a hand around your shoulder and pulled you against his chest. “He’s delusional,” he noted.

Nodding, Price sat on the couch and rested his fists on his thighs as he watched you. “This is definitely not the Simon Riley I used to know.”

“Maybe he just needs professional help,” you suggested, surprising even yourself with your sudden wave of kindness and understanding. “Maybe I shouldn’t go through with the plan.”

“Hey, don’t say that. After everything you went through, he has to be punished,” Soap told you.

“You’re right, Soap, but don’t forget that she will have to testify against him,” Price pointed out. “She has to be ready for that. She has to be ready to face him.”

You didn’t want to see him ever again. He was mad at you, why wouldn’t he be, and if he knew your new number, and if you hadn’t deleted all of your social media accounts, he would definitely keep harassing you. You were surprised he hadn’t shown up at your door yet, ready to get revenge for you turning to the Military Police with this.

It wasn’t hard to tell that Soap was tense, probably already disappointed that you were hesitating. He had been by your side from the moment you had asked for his help, and you knew he would stay until the very end. He would support you while the trial lasted, giving you the strength to face Ghost.

“I hope if we go on our next mission, he won’t be there,” you said quietly, glancing over at Price from under your eyelashes.

The captain shook his head. “Of course I won’t let him near the team. But you’re staying here as well.”

“What? No, that’s the only place where I would feel safe,” you told him on the verge of a panic attack. “You can’t do this to me, you can’t expect me to stay here alone when he’s in the same city as me.”

“But you’re under way too much stress, you couldn’t focus on your job properly. The last thing I need is you or anyone else getting hurt because of a mistake,” came the reply.

He was right. You didn’t want to admit it, but Price had every right to feel this way about your return. But you couldn’t get yourself to say it out loud, and instead it was Soap who spoke up. “He’s right,” he said quietly, giving you a sympathetic look. “And I don’t think Ghost would sabotage himself by coming here when he’s under investigation.”

Price nodded and you let out a sigh. “All right.”

In the next week or so Soap remained by your side, but then he had to leave and you were left alone. It was hard to be in the apartment on your own, constantly terrified of the idea of Ghost showing up. Because he was insane, it was quite clear, and who knew how far he was willing to go to get what he wanted.

You barely left your apartment, grocery shopping was usually done online so you could stay at home, and when your neighbors knocked on your door to ask you about that man who had had so many questions about your whereabouts, you simply ignored them.

Soap regularly sent you messages to find out how you were, and even Price and Gaz sent you supportive texts every now and then. Knowing there were people out there who cared about your wellbeing made you feel better, and days passed faster thanks to them.

But before they could return from deployment, you were awakened by a loud banging on your door. You got up from the couch and took a few hesitant steps in that direction, carefully listening as if you couldn’t already guess it was him.

“Open the fucking door,” he growled, his angry tone making you gulp.

This was exactly what you had been afraid of, him showing up to get revenge for everything that had been happening lately. Shaking your head to snap out of it, you ran to the coffee table for your phone and immediately dialed Soap’s number. He didn’t answer, and your call went to voicemail in the end.

“Soap, it’s me. Ghost is here. I–I don’t think he knows I’m at home so he might go away, but if I don’t send you a message that I’m okay, call the police please.”

You weren’t lying, he didn’t know you were there. The television was off, you weren’t listening to music, there was absolutely nothing that could have given away that you were at home. As far as you knew, even your neighbors were at work, so it wasn’t possible that he had begun this visit by asking around.

Then you heard a clicking sound and the door began to open up, revealing the lieutenant’s giant frame. “H–How do you have a key?” you asked weakly.

Ghost closed the door with a grin as he pulled down the mask he wore over the bottom half of his face. “I found it when I was last inside this place.”

It must have been your spare key from the drawer of your desk. He had been alone in your apartment after the one and only time you had sex, after all he sneaked out while you were asleep. Fuck. “Leave or I’ll call the police,” you hissed.

“You can’t really think I’ll just leave you here. After all the shit you’ve put me through lately.”

“The shit I put you through? Ghost, you’ve been harassing me for a long time now, you have to face the consequences!”

Ghost bit on his lower lip as he watched you, his eyes darker all of a sudden. Every single cell in your body was screaming at you to make you run, but when you wanted to obey your instincts, your body gave in. You were frozen by fear and there was nothing you could do about it.

It should be easy, you could do it. You just had to run past him and you would be at the door in a second or two. After taking a few deep breaths to calm yourself, you began to run, hoping this would take him off guard.

But he was expecting this because he simply held out his arm and caught you by your waist. “Where are you running, sweetheart? I’m not done yet,” he whispered menacingly as he reached into his back pocket and pulled out a zip tie.

Whispering weak pleads to get him to stop, to let you go, you soon realized that Ghost was not about to give up. He tied your wrists behind your back, and when you began to cry louder, begging him to think it through before doing anything, he pulled out a ball gag and put it on you.

He was prepared. What was happening now was all part of his plan. He didn’t come here to talk, he didn’t want to set things straight. No. He wanted to punish you, it was that simple. For a while he was only watching you, probably enjoying the sight of you being tied up and gagged.

After he was done admiring you, Ghost put a hand on your waist and began to push you towards the bedroom. Panic quickly filled your mind, knowing full well from the look in his eyes what was about to come. How could he be this crazy? Whatever had happened to him that made him snap like that?

Ghost suddenly pulled out a knife and began to cut up the front of your shirt with it. You didn’t feel safe at all. What could’ve been exciting and even sexy in the company of someone you trusted felt like a nightmare you couldn’t wake up from. Tears were running down your cheeks but it didn’t seem to bother him, in fact, he looked rather proud of himself for turning you into this whimpering mess.

“Come on, sweetheart, don’t look this sad. You’re gonna enjoy it, trust me,” he cooed before placing a soft kiss on your forehead.

Once he removed your sweatpants and panties with one confident move, he turned you around and pushed you face-first into the mattress. He then began to move your body as if you were some doll he could fold however he wanted, making sure your ass was up in the air for him. You could feel his warm breath on your cunt, and it sent shivers down your spine.

You didn’t want this, you wished the police would arrive and help you, but something told you help wasn’t coming. You were on your own, tied, and gagged, and at the mercy of this man. When he let his tongue disappear between your folds, you began to cry even harder, your body squirming to get him to stop.

But he didn’t care, he just slapped your ass so hard you knew it would leave a red mark behind. “Stay still, love, it would be better for the both of us if you just calmed down. Try to relax. You’ll enjoy this, trust me,” he said, repeating his previous words.

Without a warning he pushed two fingers inside of you, furiously pumping as he tried to chase you to an orgasm, his other hand rubbing your clit to make the process even faster. Then another finger joined the first two, stretching you even further, and you could feel the heat pooling in your belly despite your brain trying to stop your body from reacting like this.

“That’s it baby, I can feel that you’re close,” he growled before placing a kiss on your thigh. “Come on, cum on my fingers, let me taste you again.”

And you did, you came on his hand like an obedient slut, your body going limp as he kept fucking you with his fingers. It felt good, and this thought made you feel disgusted. How could you like it when he was literally raping you? You didn’t consent, you didn’t even let him inside your apartment, yet here you were, naked and helpless.

You were snapped back to reality when you felt the head of his massive cock tease your entrance, dipping in a little for a moment before pulling out. “I wish I didn’t have to gag you,” he said as he put his palm on your back and pushed you down. “It was nice to listen to you while I fucked you the last time. But you’re a bad little girl, you can’t keep your mouth shut when you should.”

Suddenly you felt him slam his entire length into you, the move making your eyes roll back into your head from the pain. With a groan he tightened his grip on your hips and fucked you as if you were nothing more but a fleshlight. He was enjoying this way too much, and the guttural sounds and raspy moans leaving his throat made you feel nauseous.

He kept calling you a good little whore as one of his hands moved to your stomach and he pulled you up against his chest. “I wish I could put your hand on your belly so you could feel me move inside of you,” he whispered in your ear before biting on your shoulder.

You tried to turn off your brain, tried to ignore the way he abused you, but it was impossible to get him out of your mind. Your body had once again betrayed you, causing your cunt to tighten around his member as you were close to another orgasm. He kept talking to you, but you didn’t listen, you had no idea what he was saying. All you could focus on was the familiar feeling in your core, pushing you close to the edge.

You came four times in total before he finally stopped, although he didn’t pull out, instead he slowly fucked his cum back into your cunt. He told you how proud he was, what a good little slut you were for him, but he didn’t say anything about letting you go. Even as he was wiping your tears away, he kept talking about the next day, about how you’ll beg him to fuck you eventually, and how it was just the two of you from now on.

“If I take this off,” he began, pointing at the ball gag, “will you be a good girl and stay quiet?” You nodded. At this point you would have promised anything to get rid of it. “All right, let’s see if you can keep your word.”

The plan was simple. You play by his rules, stay quiet, then the moment he goes to the bathroom–because at one point he has to go out–you make a run for it.

Once your mouth was free again, Ghost leaned in to kiss you, tongue soon gliding over your lower lip to get you to open up for him. You had no choice but to return the kiss, feeling like throwing up the whole time. This was disgusting and sick and twisted, but for some reason he thought it was perfectly normal.

After some time the silence of the apartment was broken by your phone’s ringtone. You told Ghost to ignore it, hoping if the caller didn’t get a response they would send help, but he was quick to go out to the living room and check who it was. It didn’t take long to find out Soap was the one calling. The lieutenant was angry, really angry, and he almost smashed your phone against the wall.

“Tell him to stop calling,” he ordered after it began to ring for the third time. “Tell him everything’s okay and that he can stop calling you. But if you dare to say anything more… I guess you already know.”

Nodding, you waited for him to accept the call, put it on speaker, and hold the device closer to you. “Soap?” you asked hoarsely.

“Finally! Is he gone?” came his eager question.

You took a deep breath then gulped. “Everything’s fine, no need to worry.”

“Is he gone? Yes or no?”

It was hard to answer this. Every cell in your body was protesting against lying to him, you wanted to tell him the truth, that Ghost was still there with you. What’s the worst that could happen if you were honest with Soap? He fucks you again? If it meant help would come, at least you would know it would end soon.

So you took a deep breath and said, “He’s still here. I need help. Call the police, please!”

“Fuck,” said both men at the same time.

While Soap was yelling at his higher up over the phone to make him come to his senses, telling him he was calling the police as you’d asked, Ghost threw the phone on the bed and wrapped his hands tightly around your neck to strangle you.

He pushed you into the bed as he choked you, hell-bent on killing you apparently. You tried to tell Soap that he should hurry up, tried to ask Ghost to stop, but no voice left your throat. You were soon losing consciousness, falling in and out of the darkness.

••••••••

He checked several times but you had no pulse. Ghost put his hands on the back of his neck and kept telling himself this wasn’t happening. He didn’t want to hurt you, this wasn’t a part of his plan.

But when you had told Soap that you needed help, he lost it. There was nothing he could have done, his emotions got the best of him.

If the sergeant called the police, they could be there any second. He picked up your phone and unlocked it to check how long it had been since that conversation. Four minutes. He still had time to get out of your apartment. Yes, that’s what he was supposed to do now.

“I’m so sorry, love,” he whispered as he placed a soft kiss on your lips. How could he be this stupid? How could he be this irresponsible? He should have expected you to misbehave, he shouldn’t have taken the ball gag off. “Fuck!” he cursed loudly.

“Hands in the air!” he suddenly heard a voice say behind him.

It was too late. How could he not hear the sirens? With a sigh, he raised his hands and slowly stood up. There was nowhere to run. But where would he go anyway? He killed you, he killed the only good thing in his life.

He was truly the monster you’d been so afraid of all along.

[alwayssassydreamer]

Where Do I Go From Here Part 3

"Stay With Me"

Day 30 of Kikitober

A/N: here you have the final installment aka my personal hell of Where Do I Go From Here once again SPOILER chap. 1079 and ep. 1112 (kinda)

Part 1 / Part 2 (i recommend to read both parts though only the 2nd is needed for this one)

Plot: Kid is trying to deal with the images and voices of his fallen crew members.

Warnings: giref, death

Characters: Kid, Killer, cameo by Heat and Wire

Days have passed maybe even weeks he doesn't know - time seemed to stay still on this abandoned island.

Loss, grief and guilt still clouding his mind.

He's never been hungry nor thirsty all he felt was loneliness and despair.

Everytime he went to the beach trying to find a way from this island he lost all his strength the memories of the fallen haunting him.

Their voices saying his name. Pleading for his life. The scenes that happened before he got washed ashore kept replaying in his head.

At some point the voices turned into images in the far distance.

He tried to reach out his hand to pull them closer to him but he couldn't they were too far gone. At one point he could've sworn that Killer had reached out his hand to him telling him to come closer but again his mind was playing dirty tricks on him. Killer.

Every memory of the first mate caused him pain. Not physically but emotionally. His partner appearing in front of him with his bloody face. The low and gentle voice that keeps telling him to leave, to not give up. "Promise me" he repeated

And the mask, the broken mask Kid never left behind since the day it washed ashore. The only real thing left. They only thing that made him feel like he could hold on to Killer.

"I know i promised you Killer, but i can't keep it." He would shout back at the blondes shadow.

Kid was sure that he started to loose his mind. The grief getting the better of him.

Then one day the voices of his crew became louder and clearer then they ever had before. "Don't worry captain, we're fine but now you need to get your shit together and keep fighting"

"I'm sorry i let you down. I'm sorry that I caused you all to suffer. I'm sorry you had to die because of me" he replied voice cracking with every word said.

He sat down at the beach, one hand covering his face the other holding tightly onto Killer's mask. The pieces that once belonged to the victoria punk still laying in the sand, surrounding him.

"I'm done with this shit, i can't move on without you." He yelled as anger overtook him.

That's when Killer appeared next to him.

"Come on Kid, don't do this to me. You can't give up, not now" Killer pleaded, placing his hand on the captains shoulder.

"Yes i can" Kid simply muttered as his mind drifted away.

"Fucking asshole, do you think I covered that fucking attack so you could just give up now" Killer's voice grew louder as his crew's voices were shouting their captains' name

But Kid felt like he was too far gone to say something, the grief too overwhelming.

~~~~~~

"Kid!" Killer yelled as he began to panic when he realized that his captain was about to die.

"Guys we're loosing him" he shouted voice shaking looking at his crew mates who were panicking as well.

Some biting back their tears others looking at their captain unable to move praying for him to come back.

~~~~~~

Meanwhile Kid knew that this would be his end.

The voices of his crew barely audible only Killer's remained.

"Kid look at me" Killer yelled but Kid kept his gaze out into the open sea.

"Kid" he screamed as he grabbed his face to make him look at him.

"This is NOT real. I need you to leave this place and come back to me. We need you here captain."

After hearing these words Kid snapped back.

"What do you mean" he asked confused.

"Kid, we're still here all of us" Killer said his voice slowly beginning to become more distant, his image starting to disappear. "

Wait Killer, I don't understand" he stuttered trying to reach for him but the first mate disappeared. His voice no longer heard. Suddenly Kid started to feel a sharp pain in his chest, barely able to breath, his sight blurring, the mask dropping into the sand.

~~~~~~

"His heart stopped beating" Heat yelled.

The crew was shocked not able to do or say anything.

"The fuck are you saying" Killer shouted desperately, placing his hand over Kid's heart. Nothing.

"This is not gonna happen" he said fighting the tears that threatened to escape his eyes - involuntarily laughs bubbling out of him.

The crew lowered their heads - slowly starting to accept what was happening.

"Killer it's to no avail" Heat said in a sad voice a tear rolling down his cheek.

"No!" The first mate couldn't and wouldn't accept that, he frantically pressed down on Kid’s chest Kid.

No he wouldn't die, no he promised him to keep fighting.

"Come on… come on!” Killer muttered through gritted teeth, his voice raw, almost pleading as he rhythmically pushed, then checked Kid’s face for any sign of breath.

Nothing. Only silence.

Watching Kid die was painful enough but seeing the desperate attempts of the first mate trying to save the captain made it even harder for everyone.

Killer didnt no he couldn't let up pressing down like a maniac. The crew exchanged somber looks. They knew it was over and Killer was fighting a loosing battle."

Killer stop" Wire said placing a hand on Killer's shoulder but the latter wouldn't give up.

"I can't" Killer mumbled voice cracking as more laughs escaped his lips.

"You need to let go" Wire continued trying his best to calm Killer down and not to start crying - like the rest of the crew already did.

"KID YOU FUCKING BASTARD GET YOUR SHIT TOGETHER AND COME BACK" Killer screamed as he hit Kid's chest.

His voice a mix of pure rage and agony, a raw emotion none of the crew had ever heard from him before.

But Kid didn't move and Killer started to feel hot tears run down his face along with his involuntarily laugh. His hands continued but with every failed attempt his hope to bring his friend back faltered.

He lowered his head resting it on Kid's chest, hands gripping Kid's vest mumbling "Stay with me".

[absurdthirst]

Meet Me At Bill's Town {Joel Miller x F!Reader}

Rating: Explicit

Word Count: 14.5k

Warnings: Post apocalyptic life, mentions of cancer, mentions of dying, open relationships, sex toys, fingering, vaginal sex, unprotected sex, unspoken feelings, death, suicide, loss, grief, oral sex (male receiving), shower sex. No physical description of reader but there is a hair washing scene.

Includes Spoilers for Episode 1x03

Comments: When Bill & Frank take you in to help care for Frank in his declining health, you meet Joel. Making you wish you had what the two men have together with him.

Co-written with @storiesofthefandomlovers

**Follow @absurdthirst-writes and turn on notifications to stay up to date on all new fics.

|| MasterList || Joel Miller MasterList ||

Click Keep Reading only if you have read the Rating and Warnings and understand the warnings may not be complete to avoid listing spoilers. As AO3 says 'creator chooses not to use warnings'. You also agree that you're the right age to be consuming anything here.

“Shit!” You’re in a fucking pit. Panic wells up in your throat as you pause to do a mental check on your body. Nothing seems broken, although your wrist is sprained from falling. Why the fuck would FEDRA dig a goddamn pit? And wasn’t the QZ farther into Boston? You could swear that’s what you had heard. Yet you had seen barbed wire fencing and obvious traps for the infected and hurried towards salvation. Now, now you think you’re fucked. Climbing gingerly to your feet, you stare up at the top of the hole warily. “He-hello?” You don’t yell, you don’t know who you might encounter but you don’t want them immediately shooting thinking you’re one of them. “Is anyone up there?”

Bill tentatively approaches the pit, rifle aimed and ready, and he asks who the fuck you are. “I’m just looking for the Boston QZ.” You hold your hands up towards him. 

He narrows his eyes, “you’re a long ways from there. It’s miles away. At least a day of walking. You FEDRA?” He narrows his eyes at your badge. 

“No. No. I’m a nurse.” You announce, “I was told they needed nurses at the Boston QZ. I- I just wanted a new start.” 

Hearing that you’re a nurse has Bill grabbing the ladder. “One move and you’re dead.” He warns, watching you walk up a few steps and he presses the tester he has on his belt against your neck. You barely flinch, used to the device and Bill is relieved when he sees its green. “What’s your name?” He asks and you tell him. “You hungry?” He asks and you snort, “fucking starving.” Bill nods, “good. Frank is just making lunch.” He helps you out and your eyes widen as you make your way through the gates into a town. 

“Holy shit.” You whisper. “It’s a fucking town.” You frown when you don’t see others walking around, but you just assume they are inside the other buildings. “I- What’s your name?” You ask, making him swing around towards you suspiciously but you just hold up your hands. This man is obviously someone who doesn’t trust easily and you understand it given the circumstances. Another couple of steps go by before he finally speaks. 

“Bill.” He tells you, turning back around as he leads you towards one of the larger, more stately homes in the blocked off zone. It’s gorgeous, something you would have dreamed of buying before the world went to hell.

 “Wow.” You murmur, wondering if he had lived here before or just taken over. “You have a beautiful home.” 

“Thanks.” Bill replies, a little awkward as he guides you into his home. 

“Bill?” Frank calls out from the kitchen. 

“We got a guest.” Bill shouts back. “Drop your stuff there.” Bill orders, pointing to the hallway and you drop your pack and follow him into the kitchen, his rifle still in his hand. The food smells delicious and Frank smiles at you when you walk in. 

“You got a live one?” Frank teases and you are instantly at ease with his friendly smile. 

“She’s a nurse.” Bill says, offering Frank a pointed look. 

You frown, noticing the slightly gaunt look in Frank, the tremble in his hand. “He’s sick.” You declare and Bill nods, making Frank sigh. 

“Yeah. I’m - It’s getting worse.” He confesses and you nod, “cancer?” You guess and you hear Bill swallow harshly, a distant look in his eyes. 

“There’s no cure but I’m happy to be here.” Frank says, still moving around and able to live a relatively good life with the pain pills they get in. 

“Right.” You nod, knowing that he’s trying to keep his head high for Bill, there’s clearly something between them. 

“Lunch is ready. Go wash up. Bill, show her the downstairs bathroom.” Frank orders, wanting to change the subject and you let Bill guide you down the hall, his rifle lowered but still in his hand. 

“You have running water?” You ask in awe and Bill nods, “hot too.” You practically choke on your surprise.

“Fuck, a hot shower.” You practically moan it and look back towards Bill searchingly. “I- I can be done in five minutes?” You offer, knowing that you won’t have clean clothes to put on, but you would love the opportunity to get clean for the first time in forever. 

Bill sighs but nods. “Yeah.” He agrees, rolling his eyes because he knows Frank will chastise him if he isn’t a ‘gracious host’. As if you were here for a scheduled visit. “I can find you some clothes to wear.” The bedroom is now Bill and Franks, since it’s easier to get him into bed here rather than carrying him up the stairs on his bad days. “I’ll put them on the bed.” Once he’s said that, he’s turning and fleeing down the hall to talk to Frank, leaving you in the room to strip down and get in the shower. 

“Hey sweetheart.” Frank greets Bill when he comes into the kitchen, that damn rifle still in hand. 

“She’s a nurse, Frank. She can help you.” Bill says to Frank, “unless she’s lying but you could have a chance.” 

Frank sighs, turning towards Bill to place his hands on his chest. “I’m dying, Bill. We gotta accept that. There was no cure for this shit before and now…I can’t even get an MRI. She can help monitor me but what else can she do? I- I like her. Might be nice to have a woman around the house, someone else to talk to. I love you but it’s been twenty years…we have run out of topics.” Frank teases Bill who rolls his eyes.

You try to keep to your word. Moaning under the hot spray of the water, you close your eyes while dirt and filth swirls down the drain. Wondering how the hell they got so lucky, how they’ve kept this place safe. You scrub every inch of your skin and even your hair, though it will be a mess to dry. Being clean is more important right now. When you come out, there are clean clothes on the bed, folded neatly. An oversized pair of sweats and a t-shirt, obviously men’s but they are clean and you quickly dress before wrapping your head in the towel and opening the door to find them. 

Frank has the best china on the table and Bill is rolling his eyes as he waits for you to appear. When you do, looking a bit cleaner, he keeps his gun in hand as he gestures for you to sit down. “You did this with Joel and look how that turned out. Put the gun away.” Frank rolls his eyes as he brings in the lunch. 

Your eyes widen when you see chicken. You don’t remember the last time you had chicken. “What the hell is this place?” You ask, eyes wide and it’s like heaven.

“Our home.” Bill grumbles, watching you as you bite your lip and barely resist the urge to tear into the plate the moment it’s set in front of you. “I could have served it.” He huffs to Frank but the other man just turns and tuts at him. 

“I am still doing things as I am able.” He tells his partner before he smiles at you. “I’m afraid we don’t have any chardonnay but I do have a good Pinot Noir that will be delicious with it.” He turns to Bill. “Go get the bottle of Pinot.” He orders, making Bill sigh and pick up his gun to bring with him into the kitchen to get the bottle of wine. 

“I can’t believe you have wine at all.” You murmur in amazement. 

Frank smiles at you, remembering the first time he came here and Bill served him rabbit and Beaujolais. Man has always known how to serve wine. “We have been extremely lucky. Bill was a prepper and knew what to do when shit hit the fan. He took me in twenty years ago and I’ve been here ever since.” You sense there’s a relationship there but you don’t know to what extent. 

“That’s amazing.” You say with sincerity. Frank was lucky to have found Bill and you know it’s going to be hard to leave here about a glass of wine. Bill comes back in with the bottle, eyes still wary of you and he expertly pours you a glass. 

“To new friends.” Frank toasts when you all have a glass. Bill meets you gaze as you hold your glass up towards him and take a sip.

“So Frank,” you turn to the obviously younger man and smile softly. “When did you feel the change in your appetite or your health?” You want to give him as much care as you possibly can since they have let you clean up and are feeding you such a wonderful meal. 

“It was about a year ago.” Frank admits, glancing over at where Bill squirms in his seat. “He doesn’t like to talk about it, but I have days where it’s hard to stand, to walk. But today is a good day.”

Bill sighs, “we talked. We, uh, we want you to stay here. I need help with Frank, I need your knowledge to help care for him.” Bill says and you can tell that it’s hard for him to admit. Frank shakes his head, reaching for Bill’s hand. 

“You want me to stay…” You process the incredible news until your cynicism catches up. “What else do you want? You want me to fuck you both?” You have had plenty of offers to be taken care of in exchange for your body. You haven’t allowed anyone to take advantage of you like that and you’ll be damned if you let them just because they live in a Mecca. 

“Oh honey, no. We only fuck each other.” Frank smirks and Bill blushes, ducking his head and you chuckle. 

“Okay. Well, I want to stay. I do. I want to help you.” You tell them, knowing that you’d be a fool to leave this place.

****

Staying with Bill and Frankie was how you met them. Joel and Tess. They were a unit, maybe a couple. You couldn’t tell. Coming at arranged times to meet and trade goods, pass information. They had been shocked to see you there, but you had understood. It was unusual to see someone else with the couple, but your job of helping to take care of Frank was important. They had brought you some medications that you wanted to help ease his pain, offer some relief and hopefully extend his quality of life for a few years. 

You can’t deny the attraction to Joel, even though you know it wouldn’t happen. He’s hot though and it’s been a long time since you’ve seen a man who isn’t in a long term relationship with the only other man around. Their commitment to each other was sweet and complete. It didn’t help that you often found Joel staring at you while they were here, trying to figure out where you fit.

One day, Joel arrives alone, and you immediately ask where Tess is. "She had shit to deal with." He declares without further explanation. You know Joel isn't one for lengthy conversations. He is a man of few words but those words are concrete. He is similar to Bill, focused on surviving and he will kill anyone who dares to take what belongs to him. You help Frank prepare the lunch, his hands shaking a little more nowadays, and Bill shows Joel the new stuff he managed to find. Joel has more pain pills and information to exchange. 

"Joel came alone." Frank says softly and you focus on peeling the potato. 

"And?" You retort, making Frank snort. 

"We both know how you feel about him." You sigh, setting the peeler down, "and we both know he doesn't feel the same way." Frank doesn't respond to that, deciding to offer a hum as a reply that has your heart sinking. Joel is with Tess, he loves Tess. He lives in the QZ with Tess. It would never happen, no matter how many times you imagine it late at night. "Lunch is ready!" You call out eventually, the salad is washed and plated up along with the dressing you made with the oil Bill pressed a few months ago.

Joel shakes his head when he sits down at the table. “You constantly surprise me.” He tells Frank and sends you a small smirk. “You too.” He adds before nodding at Bill. 

The two men understood one another but the lightness of the relationship came from Tess and Frank. You were a new addition and interesting to him. Tess’s words echo in his head. ‘I don’t care if you fuck her, Joel. Do what you want. Just don’t get her pregnant. That’s the last thing we need.’ He picks up his fork and spears a potato. “What do you guys need?” He asks, looking around the table. There are always things that he can get in the QZ for you or he would scout it out if he had to, it was worth the items that he could get from Bill or just the fact that he has a person he could count on if shit hit the fan again. 

"Well, she needs a sex toy so see if you can find a dildo or vibrator around the QZ. Still in packaging, of course." Frank says and you choke on the Chardonnay. 

"Jesus, Frank. Gonna kill the poor girl." Bill shakes his head and Frank shrugs, "what? She hasn't been laid since before she got here. It's been months for her and she ain't gonna get it from us." Frank argues with Bill and your jaw drops, unable to even look at Joel.

“Oh my God.” Your cheeks feel like the surface of the sun but you hear a raspy, rough chuckle. Unable to even see if it was Joel, although you think it was. “I’m fine.” You insist but Frank tuts. 

“By hand is never fun.” He insists, well aware that he is poking you, and Joel, if he would admit it. You need to get laid and he feels like Joel would fuck you right. 

Joel smirks at your mortified expression and how you refuse to look at him. “I’ll see what I can find. Any preference?” He asks, cock twitching in his jeans. “Size, hole?”

Frank decides to push it even further, looking at Joel while you stare at the table cloth. "Whatever you think is closest to yours." 

You want the earth to open up and swallow your whole. "I, uh, I forgot the, um, salt and pepper." You lie and sprint into the kitchen to get away from the men around the table. 

"Jesus Christ, Frank." Bill shakes his head at his partner, unable to believe he had come out and said that.

“What? I’m sure he’s got a nice sized dick. Tess seems impressed.” Joel’s brows are up and he is watching the doorway that you disappeared through. It’s obvious Frank knows something that he doesn’t, but it’s easy enough to guess. He grunts and looks back down at his own plate. 

“Sure thing.” He answers, before he takes another bite of his food. He won’t seek you out now, knowing you will be too embarrassed to talk to him. He’ll wait until later and then have the conversation that is apparently due. 

You finally gather the nerve to head back into the dining room. “It, uh, salt and pepper was already on the table.” You mumble, unable to meet Joel’s eyes as the three men watch you sit down. Your cheeks burn still and your stomach twists, hating how your crush has been revealed like that. Still, Frank was just trying to help you out in his own way. 

“I was thinking we could try some watercolors later.” Frank says, taking pity on you. 

“Oh, uh, yeah. We can do that. Sick of the oils?” You tease, knowing you’ve nearly run out but you have been painting with Frank in the afternoons to help his tremors. 

“Absolutely.” Frank playfully rolls his eyes and Joel frowns, confused until Bill explains. 

“Frank wanted to learn how to paint and this one here used to be an artist while juggling nursing school so she knows her shit. I get the supplies and we are nearly out of oils.” Bill explains to Joel who is nearly finished with his food.

“Nice.” Joel makes note of that, thinking he can see about finding some more oil paints when he is scavenging. It’s not like art supplies are an in demand item. He finishes up his food and wipes his mouth, leaning back. “Frank, Bill, it was delicious like always.” He compliments, wondering if you will ever look at him again as you stare down at your plate. 

“Thank you, Joel.” Frankie smiles and tilts his head at him. “Why couldn’t Tess come?” He asks, sure that she would come this time again. “You never said what she was busy with.” 

Joel shrugs, “she met some guy who came from the Baltimore QZ. Been traveling for years to find somewhere and she, uh, hit it off with him. Decided to stay behind and I didn’t wanna third wheel.” He admits, looking at you but you avoid his gaze. Tess was with another man? That makes you frown but you don’t say anything, wondering how Joel feels about that. 

Thankfully, Frank never beats around the bush. “And he’s her friend? Or is it…?” He trails off, wanting Joel to explain.

“As in, I wasn’t going to watch them fuck, or get into bed with them.” Joel shrugs and reaches for his wine glass. “We don’t own each other.” He takes a sip and sets the glass down. “We’re together when we are, we do what we want when we aren’t.” It wouldn’t make sense in the pre-Outbreak world, but that time no longer exists and it doesn’t matter anymore. He wasn’t going to stop Tess from grasping what little happiness she could because Joel couldn’t fully commit. Not completely. Both of them knew it and she understood better than anyone else. His eyes meet yours briefly before he looks back at Frank. “Any other questions?” 

Frank shakes his head, smirking at the directness of Joel, so similar to Bill. Gruff and deadly but the right person could mellow them. “No. That’s all.” Frank replies demurely and you try to not act like your ears pricked up. Tess and Joel were lovers but not committed. Pre-Outbreak you would’ve avoided getting in the middle of that like the plague, but a fucking plague has happened and Joel is your only current option to feel something other than your own touch. 

“I’ll clean up the dishes.” You offer, standing up to grab your plate, taking Bill and Frank’s and Joel hands his to you, fingers brushing yours and you hate how good it felt, just that simple touch.

“You should help, Joel.” Frank hums, making Bill sigh softly at his lover’s meddling. “Bill.” Frank hisses and nods towards the door. 

“What- oh, uh, yeah.” Bill chimes in reluctantly. “You ate a free meal. Clean up, you mooch.” He grumbles at Joel, socially awkward as usual but it’s enough to make Joel smirk and shake his head. 

“Alright.” He huffs, getting to his feet and grabbing the wine glasses to bring into the kitchen.

You turn to see Joel carrying the wine glasses into the kitchen and you focus on washing off the plates. “I, uh, I’m sorry about Frank. He worries about me. Thinks I need someone like Bill to look after me but I’m a big girl, I can take care of myself. Survived before I arrived here.” You justify yourself and Joel leans over you to place the wine glass in the sink. His body nearly pressed against you but you can feel the heat of his form, his breath ghosting along your neck as he exhales.

“So you don’t want me to find you a toy that’s the size of my dick?” He asks, amused and completely aware that you’ve frozen with a plate in your hand. “Or that I shouldn’t think about making you scream loud enough to annoy Bill and make Frank clap when I come downstairs tomorrow?” He was spending the night, taking his time to go back to the QZ so that he didn’t travel at night. “Because that would be….disappointing.” 

You inhale sharply, his words making your cunt clench and your entire body nearly vibrates with the need for him to follow through on his words. He’s made his desires clear, now it’s time for you to do the same. You spin around, pressing yourself against him and he instinctively pushes you back against the sink. “What if I want both? The toy for when you’re not here and tonight so I can remember how you felt inside me while I screamed your name?” You challenge him with your head tilted towards his, daring him to do what you’ve dreamed of for so damn long.

Joel smirks, his hands finding your waist as he leans in. Pressing his lips to yours in a rough combination of need and frustration boiling over. He’s wanted you, of fucking course he has. He’s just never acted on it since Tess was with him and even if it was okay, he hadn’t felt right about it. Guilty. Right now he’s not thinking about feeling guilty or Tess as his tongue slides into your mouth as soon as you open up for him with a small moan. Tasting the chicken along with the spices it had been cooked in and the wine it was served with from your tongue. Hands squeezing your hips before he slides them around to cup your ass and pull you against him and his hardening cock. 

You gasp into his mouth, reaching up to tangle your fingers in his hair like you’ve imagined so many times. You tug on the salt and pepper locks and he groans into your mouth, tongue exploring while his fingers knead your ass. “Upstairs.” You manage to mumble into his mouth, not wanting Bill and Frank to walk in on you fucking Joel in the kitchen. You’re on the precipice of it and if you don’t move now, you’ll let him have you anywhere he wants.

“I need-” He breaks off to kiss you again. “Fuck, I need to clean up.” He’s grimy, sweaty. The shower he had been planning on lingering in is a necessity but he will run through it as fast as possible. Pulling away, he pants slightly. “I’m gonna get in the shower.” He tells you roughly, eyes dark. “I want you naked when I get out.” 

You nod, knowing he will want to clean up and you wouldn’t mind a moment to prepare yourself either. “Go shower. I’ll be waiting on my bed for you.” You kiss his jaw, dishes abandoned as you spin out of his arms, offering him a wink before you sprint upstairs to get ready for him. You’ve waited months for this. You strip down and clean up in your bathroom, grabbing the bottle of perfume Frank had gifted you for your birthday and you spritz it on, checking your hair and grabbing some lip balm Bill had made from the beeswax for you. You exhale shakily once you’re ready, struggling to find the right position to lay on the bed while you wait for Joel to shower.

In the shower, Joel exhales slowly. The thing with Tess is comfortable, easy, because she knows the darkest parts of him, she’s participated in some of them. There’s no need to talk about it, about the past. You’re different. You still have a sense of hope that hasn’t been beaten down. He focuses on washing himself, his cock hardening as he wraps his soapy fist around it and makes sure that he's clean. Wanting to make sure you don’t regret this. 

When the door to your room opens, you inhale shakily, crossing your ankles as you lean back against your pillows, naked and wet with anticipation waiting for Joel. He walks in, hair wet and slicked back, and a towel wrapped around his waist, tented with his arousal and you swear you’ve died and gone to heaven then and there. Scars are scattered on his skin from near misses, the one on his hand hidden as he clenches his fist when his dark eyes settle on you after he shuts the door behind him.

His eyes drink in the sight of your naked body and he exhales roughly. “Bill and Frank don’t have any condoms, do they?” Joel jokes, knowing that they don’t but it’s going to be hard to keep from busting too soon once he slides inside you. 

“I don’t think so.” You frown slightly and he nod.. 

“Spread your legs.” He orders. “I want to see you cunt.” 

You obey, unable to deny this man anything he wants. Your heart pounds in your chest and you grip the sheets beneath you as you spread your legs to display your already wet cunt to his dark gaze. The towel is barely hanging around his waist when his cock hardens even more and you desperately want to rip it off of him.

“Shit.” He hisses, shaking his head as he steps closer. “Fucking pretty cunt.” His fingers reach out to stroke your ankle. “When was the last time you were fucked?” He wants to know so he doesn’t hurt you if it’s been awhile. He’s rough but he wants to make it good for you. “Really fucked and not just your fingers buried in your pretty cunt?”

“About six months before I arrived here. I- I had a friend I was traveling with and we would - it had benefits but he got infected. I had to kill him.” You explain, lost in the memory for a moment but you know Joel understands. “It’s been a long time.” You confess breathily, enjoying his fingers caressing your calf and back down to your ankle.

Joel hums, nodding his understanding and he moves to kneel on the bed. His towel opens, breaking the tuck at the waist and falls off of him. Leaving his body exposed and his cock bobs as he climbs on the bed with you. “Then I need to make sure you cum on my fingers first.” He decides, sliding his hand higher and squeezing your thigh. “You want that? My fingers curled up in your cunt while I suck on your tits?” 

You nod, a little speechless from how fucking big his cock is. He’s long and you know enough that it’s going to punch you in the guts with each thrust. You whimper when his fingers explore higher, “please Joel. I need you. Anyway you want. I’m yours.” You promise him, knowing that might scare him away but you hope he understands that you mean in body, not necessarily heart and soul.

It’s been a long time since he’s touched someone who wasn’t Tess. Thought about it, but never actually pulled the trigger. Too used to the familiarity he supposes. But right now, he wants to touch you. Groaning quietly as he slides his hand between your thighs and flips his wrist around, coming to hover over you and kisses your lips while he pushes one, then two fingers inside your cunt.  

His fingers are already better than yours, thicker and stretching you out, he curls them within a couple of pumps and you moan into his mouth when his thumb presses against your clit. “Fuck baby. That - keep doing that.” You sigh, closing your eyes and you reach up to caress his shoulders, strong and wide from carrying the world on them. You want him to relax, caressing his upper arms and kissing his jaw while he works his fingers inside of you.

It’s probably the laziest he’s been in bed for a long time. Or at least, the most sober. He groans, ducking his head down and wrapping his lips around one of your nipples to bite down on the tip before sucking on it. He loves you moans, your whimpers and the little gasp you gave when he bit you, making him do it again. 

He’s everywhere and nowhere, it’s enough and yet you want more. His fingers scissor inside of you whine he bites on your nipple and you are whining his name, loud enough that Bill and Frank would hear if they were directly downstairs. “Fuck Joel.” You want to touch him so you slide your hands down his chest, wrapping your fingers around his cock.

Joel hisses against your tit, hips rocking forward at the sensation of your hand around him. “Fuck.” His fingers curl up, pumping into your cunt harder. Determined to open you up so he can fuck you and he needs to be inside you now. “Oh fuck, baby, you want my cock inside you, don’t you?” He groans when he feels your walls fluttering around his fingers like you are going to cum. “Want me to fuck you?” 

You whine, words escaping you for a moment until they come back and you are squeezing his cock in your grip. “Yes. Yes. Wanted it for so long. Imagined it so many times. Please Joel. Fuck me. I- oh shit. Shit.” You choke on your own breath as you cum, clamping down around his fingers and you soak his digits with the first orgasm you’ve had by someone else in forever.

He groans as he works you through it, cock throbbing and leaking against your thigh as he pumps fingers in and out of you furiously. Pulling off your breast to crush his lips to yours when you cry out his name one last time before you slump back to the bed, panting. “Good girl.” He moans, pulling his fingers out and shuffling to his knees so he can wrap his hand around his cock and smear your cum on it. “Are you ready?” 

“I’ve been ready since the moment I met you.” You confess, looking up at him in awe and your heart pounds in your chest while you admire his face. “Fuck me, Joel.” You demand.

That is all he needs to hear. Edging closer, Joel takes a second to swipe the head of his cock through your folds and nudges it with your clit. Smirking when you while and roll your hips down. “Gotta wait.” He teases, sliding down to your entrance and positioning himself before he rocks forward and pushes inside just a bare inch. Enough that the head slides inside you before he is covering your body with his and rolling his hips to slowly fill you. 

“Oh God.” You pant, head tilted back into the pillow as his cock pushes deep and stretches you out. “Oh God. Joel. Fuck.” You pant, wrapping your arms around his neck to pull him closer, your tits pressed against his chest and you kiss his neck and jaw.

Joel moans out your name, closing his eyes at the hot, tight glove of your cunt around him. “Shit, just - just give me a second.” He pants out, dropping down to his elbow and clenching his fist as he tries to keep from wrecking you right now. You need a second and if he moves too quickly, it’s going to be over.

“Take your time.” You hum, enjoying how he feels inside of you and you stroke his back, feeling how tense he is while he allows you time to adjust to his cock. “You feel so damn good.” You sigh, the sting of the stretch subsiding.

Joel groans, unable to keep still any longer. “Hold onto me.” He grunts out, pulling his hips back as he watches you, smirking slightly before he slams back into your tight cunt to start a breathtaking pace. 

“Oh fuck!” You yelp, unable to believe how fucking deep he hits when his hips slam against your ass after you wrap your legs around his hips. “Oh my God.” You choke when he begins to fuck you, hard and fast, stealing your breath away with every punch into your guts.

“Fuck.” He hisses, the muscles in his arms straining and bulging as he holds himself up so that he can fuck you. Immediately the bed starts hitting the wall at the same pace that his hips drive down, filling you up. “Fuck- fuck, you- you’re so t-tight.” He groans, loving how you’re taking him and clawing at his back for more.

The headboard is hitting the wall and you would be mortified to know that Frank is waggling his eyebrows at Bill while Bill shakes his head, but you feel too good to care. Joel keeps the pace steady and you gasp in response every time he pushes deep. “So- so good. You’re so big. Feels like - fuck- like you’re in my goddamn stomach.” You pant, struggling to keep your eyes open so you can see the way his jaw clenches and his muscles tense and flex under the strain.

Joel growls, ramping up his pace to fuck you even faster. The praise just makes him want to go harder. Especially because every time he punches deep your nails bite into his shoulder and he likes the pain. This pain is acceptable, he loves it. Joel leans down and bites your bottom lip sharply before he slides his tongue into your mouth, grunting into you with every thrust.

You cling to him, rocking your hips up to meet his thrusts and when he grabs your leg and pushes it back into your stomach, you’re sent over the edge. “Oh fuck. Oh fuckkkkk.” You squeal, clamping down on his cock and you soak him with your cum while your fingers dig into his shoulders, your head pressing back into the pillow as he pushes you into the best orgasm you’ve had in years.

Joel slows his pace down, rocking his hips slowly as he works you through it, amazed how you just soaked him. “Shit.” He pulls out of you and grabs your hips to flip you over onto your stomach. “Gonna fuck you even harder now.” He promises, pushing back inside you again with a groan. “Fuck you’re so fucking wet right now.” 

“Oh fuck, Joel. Baby. Oh my fucking God.” You rock back onto his cock, head dropping between your shoulders as he continues the same pace. His cock pushes even deeper in this position and his hips slam against your ass. Pushing you up the bed, you have to reach out and wrap your fingers around the slates in the headboard to steady yourself.

“That’s it.” Joel hisses, gritting his teeth and digging his fingers into your hips to hold onto you as tight as he can as he drives into you again and again. “Fuck, want- rub- rub your-” He cuts himself off with a groan, wanting you to cum again before he does. “Fuuuuuuuck.” 

You follow his orders, letting go of the headboard to push your hand under you, the angle is awkward but you manage to rub your clit. "Shit. Keep going. Right there. Right there!" You shriek when Joel hits the right spot inside of you. Your hand aches a little but you push yourself over the edge, clamping down on his cock for the second time.

“Shit.” Joel barely rocks into you once more before he’s losing control. Pulling his hips back and ripping free of your spasming cunt. Barely wrapping his hand around his cock before he’s cumming. Shooting ropes of cum onto your ass and up your back as he groans out your name, pouring himself out in shuddering spasms of pleasure. 

You pant, trying to catch your breath, and you rest your head on the pillow beneath you. “That was - that was better than I imagined it and I have imagined it a lot.” You admit breathlessly, smiling into the sheets as Joel’s cum starts to cool on your skin.

Joel grunts, barely able to catch his breath as he shuffles off the bed to grab his towel to wipe up his cum off your back. “Glad that I didn’t disappoint.” He chuckles as he cleans off your skin and rolls up the towel to throw it on the floor. His shit needed to get washed and he would throw it in there with it. He comes back over and nudges you over to get into the bed beside you. 

You shift, letting him lay down on the bed beside you and you shift to snuggle into his side. You feel him tense so you kiss his chest and move slowly to get away from him but he wraps his arm around you and pulls you into his side. “I’d kill for a smoke right now.” You confess and he chuckles, “can get you some.” You shake your head at the offer, “cancer sticks. Not worth it when I’ve made it this far in this shitty existence. Thank God I found Bill and Frank. Mind you, I was heading to the Boston QZ. Reckon we would’ve met if I had gotten there?”

“Probably not.” Joel answers honestly. “You would be…put in a different zone.” His fingers start to trail up and down your arm and he frowns up at the ceiling. “You’re pretty, gorgeous. You wouldn’t be put to work in the broken down sections of the city. You would be up in the better kept areas. One of the leaders ‘nurses’ or some shit.” He scoffs. “You’d only treat their stuffy noses and hangovers.” 

“Maybe I would’ve treated you after you came back hurt. You never know. They might’ve assigned me to a different zone.” You trace one of the scars on his chest. “Mind you…you’ve had Tess to nurse you back to health.” You murmur, remembering the woman he shares the majority of his life with. You can’t be jealous, you can’t compete with her so you don’t try to. You know what this is between you and Joel.

“Tess nurses herself.” Joel snorts. “Poorly.” He finds a scar on the back of your shoulder blade and he traces it lightly with a finger. “I’m the one patching shit up, so it would be nice to be nursed for once.” He smirks and looks down at you with a raised brow. “You kiss boo boos to make them feel better too?” 

"Only when my patient is sexy." You retort with your own smirk and his chuckle makes your stomach twist. 

"Sexy." Joel scoffs, "I'm old now." He shakes his head, not knowing when that happened. 

He sighs and you frown, sitting up slightly so you can look at him, "don't be ridiculous. You're sexy now." You can't believe he doesn't think he's hot.

He rolls his eyes at you, pulling you close. “And your eyesight is going.” He huffs, unable to resist kissing you one more time. 

“You are.” You insist. 

“Okay, okay, I’m old sexy, how about that?” He jokes, enjoying the way you sputter at him. It is lighthearted and he likes that. 

You hum in contentment, "I'll take it." He chuckles and you kiss his chest, "you want something to drink? Bill has a bottle of Jack he hides that he doesn't think I know about. I'll go get it." You peck him lips and shift to get out of bed. 

"Stay here. Tell me where it is and I'll get it." He insists and you nod, telling him where the bottle is hidden. He grabs the robe off of the back of your door and you giggle when it hits him on the upper thigh. He grumps at you, shaking his head, and you smirk, watching him sneak out of your room. He makes his way downstairs, cautious of Bill and Frank hanging around, and he opens the linen closet to find the bottle when he hears a throat clear. 

He turns to see Frank standing there, a cheeky grin on his face, "you fuck her good?"

Joel straightens up, knowing he looks ridiculous in the robe with nothing else underneath. “What do you think?” He asks. “You heard it.” 

Frankie hums, nodding at that obvious statement. “Sure did. Lot of “oh fucks” scattered through the banging of the headboard.” His grin drops for a moment and he levels a serious look at Joel. “Don’t hurt her, she’s a good girl.” He warns Joel and nods towards the closet. “It’s in the shoebox on the right.” He tells him before he turns around to slowly walk away and leaves Joel to stare after him for a moment, pondering his words.

When Joel returns with the whiskey, you are still naked and looking out of the window to the greenhouse you've been working on with Bill to grow some oranges. Boston isn't known for its hot weather during the winter months so you've been nurturing them. "Oh good, you found it." You smile, walking over to him and you take the bottle from his hand, taking a swig. "It's the good stuff." You tell him, handing it back to him.

“The good stuff huh?” Joel shakes his head and takes a swig of the liquor. “It seems like that’s all Bill and Frank have.” It’s always amazed him that the two men’s lives had improved through all of this in a major way. Finding love; real, deep love. He could see it in the way they treated each other. “They are lucky.”

"They are. They found something that seems to be destroyed in this new world: love. It's beautiful to watch, even if Bill is a miserable bastard, he shows Frank his love in so many ways." You sigh, sitting down on the bed, "it's why I'm here. Bill kept me here to look after Frank, otherwise he probably would've killed me."

“He would kill me too.” Joel huffs. “Although the first time we came here, I thought he was going to kill Frank.” He jokes. “He invited us without telling Bill until it was too late.”

"Shit. Frank was testing the limits there." You giggle, shifting to lay down against the pillows. "You've exhausted me, Miller. Come take a nap. Bill said about cooking rabbit tonight so he will help with dinner." You sigh, shifting to grab the blanket from the foot of the bed.

Joel sets down the bottle after taking another swing of it, knowing that he should put his clothes back on, but he can’t resist the lure of laying next to you for a bit. Climbing into bed with you and pulling you into his arms, Joel closes his eyes and tries not to react when you snuggle against him again. He’s not good at this. 

****

Joel leaves the next morning after spending the night in your bed. Another round of sex and an awkward dinner where Bill refused to meet anyone’s eyes and Frank couldn’t stop smirking and waggling his eyebrows. Joel just winked at you and carried on eating the rabbit. After dinner, he fucked you again and left you passed out in your bed this morning. When you wake up, you expect him to be there but the spot he fell asleep in is empty and so is the feeling in your stomach. He didn’t even say goodbye. You can’t be mad, you’re lucky you got to have him for a day, but you want more. Now you’ve experienced him, you want more of him and you know that’s not fair to ask. With a sigh, you shift out of bed and get ready for the day, the ache between your legs the only reminder of Joel Miller.

“Why the fuck are you doing this, Miller?” Joel gripes to himself, eyes swiveling around as he cautiously approaches the building. He had thought about this place when Frank’s request had been mentioned and figured he could scope it out before he went back to the QZ. “A fucking toy.” He slowly approaches the building and opens the shattered glass door, listening for anything moving inside. The neon lights of the adult store are long since dead and the dusty racks aren’t pillaged, his theory of no one needing a fucking dildo at the end of the world was accurate. Although he could probably sell them in the QZ. The light from his bag shines on the displays and he shakes his head, grunting to himself as he looks at shape and size with a more critical eye than he looks at his own dick. Finally finding one that would meet the criteria and pulling it off the hanging rack and shoving it in his bag. You better appreciate this, even though Joel’s cock twitches at the idea of using it on you himself.

****

When Joel arrives back at Bill and Frank’s you’re surprised. Hearing the gate open and close, you hear Bill call out that Joel is back and you try to control yourself, inhaling deeply. Frank, who just happens to be beside you, chuckles and lowers his paint brush. “Go say hello.” He orders and you nod, knowing you have paint on your jeans but you don’t care as you open the front door to see Joel standing there. 

“Back so soon?” You greet him with a teasing smile.

Joel snorts and tilts his head. “Bill didn’t tell you I would be back?” He asks, not surprised that the old bastard didn’t. He swings his back around and taps the zipper. “I’ve got something here that you - well Frank - wanted.” He chuckles, smirking at you. “I think it’s the size of my dick, but I’ll let you be the judge.”

Your eyes widen, “you got it?” You don’t know why you doubted him, he can source nearly everything, but you didn’t think sex toys would be a common commodity. You glance behind you, “Bill and Frank are both busy. Come upstairs. I wanna see it and compare.” You reach for his hand to practically drag him into the house and up the stairs to your bedroom.

Joel chuckles and follows you. “Packaging is dirty, and I’d clean it first, but yeah.” He hears Bill and Frank murmuring downstairs but ignores it to follow you into your room. “Strip down.” He tells you. “I’ll go wash it.” His cock is already hardening in his jeans and he wants to see how you look with your cunt lips stretched around it, carrying that image with him when he goes back to Boston.

You moan softly to yourself as he walks into the bathroom, “scissors are in the drawer.” You tell him and you eagerly strip off, paint stained jeans pushed into the corner, and you lay down on the bed just like you did the first time he touched you. When he comes back into the room, the toy in hand, you shift onto your knees. “Strip down. I wanna compare.” You tease, reaching for the buttons on his shirt while he holds the toy.

Joel snorts but he does as you ask. Setting the toy down and quickly shedding his clothes. He’s not fully hard so he spits in his hand and stands in front of you, pumping himself until he is straining, aching with need as he stares at you. “Compare, sweetheart.” He smirks at you and his cock twitches when he lets go of it, bobbing heavily in the air.

You grab the dildo, holding it beside his cock and you hum, admiring the closeness in girth and length. He had done a good job. “Hmmm, you have more veins and ridges but it’s close enough to keep me satisfied while I remember how good your cock felt inside of me.” You decide, leaning in to wrap your lips around the head of his cock, wanting to hear him moan your name.

Joel groans, fingers grabbing the back of your head and your name comes out in a breathless pant. Blow jobs are not expected or received very often and the feel of your mouth has him making a low sound in the depths of his chest as he tries to keep from rocking his hips. “Fuck, you- it’s so- fuck.” He pants, closing his eyes as your tongue swipes over the head. “Oh fuck. You- the toy.” He grunts out. “Want it inside you while you- fuck, put it in.”

You were wet as soon as you saw Joel standing on the porch. He has this ability to get you going with a look in his eye and you moan around his cock. Blindly reaching for the toy, you position it between your legs and push it in, eyes closing in bliss at the way it stretches you. “Fuck baby.” You pant, the head of his cock brushing your lips.

There’s something filthy about the way that he has his cock in your mouth while you are working a toy into your cunt. Making him groan as he watches it push deeper. “Fuck, you’re gonna use it everyday, aren’t you?” He grunts. “Remembering how I fucked you? Wishing I was fucking you again?”

You pull off of his cock for a second, pumping him and using your other hand to push the toy inside of you fully, stretched out and loving how deep it is inside of you. “Every day.” You promise, “gonna use it every day and think of you inside of me.” You take him back into your mouth, sliding your hand down to roll his balls in your fingers.

Joel chokes out your name, his hips rucking forward hard enough to make you gag but you don’t pull off of him. Making him groan again as he starts to fuck your throat, watching as you bounce on the dildo where it is pressed up inside you on the bed. “Fuck- fuck, gonna think about this.” He admits breathlessly. “Gonna jerk off thinking about you fucking yourself with it.”

The thought of him using this to get off has you moaning his name, muffled around his cock as you let him fuck your throat. You rock your hips as much as you can to try and make yourself cum on the toy. Every moan that escapes Joel’s lips sends you closer to your orgasm.

Groaning, he loves the way your moans vibrate up his shaft. Making him shudder slightly and rock his hips a little faster. “So good.” He pants, watching you take his cock down your throat, “so fucking good. Want you to think about this too.”

You hum in agreement around his cock, knowing you will think about this. How he tastes, how he smells, how he feels. It’s almost overwhelming. Especially when he pushes deeper down your throat and you breathe harshly through your nose. You want Joel to leave here satisfied, you want him to want to come back to you.

It only takes another minute with your talented mouth around him. Gripping the back of your head, Joel moans your name, cock spurting down your throat as he cums. Cursing as he rides out his high and watches you swallow his cum, drops of it escaping down the sides of your mouth when you can’t take it all. 

You try to swallow as much as you can, loving the feel of his cock in your throat when it’s been so long since you’ve had this kind of intimacy. You work him through it, pulling off of him to lick the head, cleaning him up, and you lick your lips to gather up the drops that escaped, your cunt clenching around the toy inside of you and you need to cum. “Fuck.” You whine, shifting to lay on your back, grabbing the toy to push it back inside of you.

Joel pushes you back into the bed, making you lay down and he’s stretching out beside. Pulling your leg up on his hip before he bats your hand away. Taking the toy himself as he starts to work it in and out of your cunt. “Grab your tits, baby.” He grunts. “Want to see you cum.”

“Oh shit.” You whine when he pushes the toy deep inside of you. You follow his order, cupping your tits, and you cry out when he twists it. “I’m gonna - Joel. Fuck. Gonna make me - oh fuck. Oh fuck. Yes. Yes. Yesssss.” You hiss, pinching your nipples as you fall apart on the toy, soaking it and clamping down around the silicone.

Joel watches you, loving the gasps and sobs of pleasure as you work through your orgasm. Slowly pump the toy into your soaked cunt until you are relaxing against the bed and moaning softly. “Good girl.” He hums, smirking down at your blissed out face before he leans down to kiss you softly. “Now you can have a toy to keep you satisfied.” He tells you playfully.

You giggle, nodding and caressing his chest. “Thank you. For everything.” You murmur, leaning in to kiss along his neck. “When are you heading back to the QZ?” You ask, caressing his chest as you curl around him after he pulls the toy out of you and tosses it onto your nightstand.

“I have to leave in the next hour or so.” Joel admits, sighing slightly as he lays with you. It’s a long hike and he needs to get back. Even delaying the return to get your toy was something out of character for him. “But I’ll be back as soon as I can. There’s enough medicine for Frank to last for months.” He squeezes you close to him again. “Maybe I’ll find another toy before I come back.” He jokes.

You smirk, “I wouldn’t complain about that. Although I’d rather have you than any toy.” You confess and you sigh, kissing his jaw before you sit up. “We should clean up and get you something to eat before you get going. You’ll need to have your strength.” You know he’s going back to Tess and you try to not think about that as you clean yourself up. 

You feel him shift in beside you to clean up and you meet his dark gaze in the mirror. So much is left unsaid. In true Joel style, he grunts and shifts into your bedroom to get redressed. You wash the toy, hiding it in your drawer, and redress before heading downstairs to get him some food. 

“He get you a good one?” Frank asks and you fluster, liking the way Joel chuckles behind you, his hands on your hips. 

“Of course. She ain’t gonna miss me with that around.” 

Frank clicks his tongue, “I beg to differ there, Joel.” You offer the older man a warning look and he smirks, hobbling into the living room to continue with his reading.

Joel eats quickly, efficiently and when he’s done he moves over to the sink to clean the dishes. “I’ll get them.” You insist, making him sigh and turn to pull you close to him. 

“Send a message if you need something.” He orders gruffly, reaching up and holding your chin in his hand, thumb rubbing over your cheek. “Or if - if things get bad with Frank.” He hasn’t missed the way the older man is moving, obviously in more pain than before. “I think I can get some morphine, real morphine, not that fake shit.” He tells you. “Make it easy for him.”

You nod, turning your head to kiss his thumb. “That would be good. He’s getting worse. Bill won’t accept it but he is.” You sigh and step away from Joel, knowing that he’s leaving, you try to create a bit of distance. “Hopefully I won’t be sending any 80s to you. Even if it is my favorite era of music.” You smile and wink at him, “you best be off. Take some fruit with you. We picked apples the other day.” You walk over to the bowl to grab the apples and you put them in a sack, “plus I made you a sandwich for the road.” You walk over to the fridge to take out the box of sandwiches to give to him.

Joel takes the sandwiches and stares at you for a moment, wanting to say something but not knowing what. In the end, he nods at you and turns to walk to the front of the house, to bid Frank and Bill a goodbye before he treks back to Boston, wondering when he will see you again. 

You watch him go and sigh, sitting down at the kitchen table and you aren’t sure how long you sit there until Frank walks in, eyebrows raised. “Don’t say a word.” You warn him, looking out the window to see that night has fallen. 

“I didn’t say a thing.” He shakes his head, a wry smile on his face. 

****

Joel doesn’t return for a few months. Frank gets worse, no longer able to walk so you use the wheelchair Bill had found in the back of one of the stores within the compound. You try to medicate him as much as possible but his tremors create a lot of obstacles for him. “I’m getting worse.” Frank says one day while Bill waters the flowers around the house. 

“You are.” You tell Frank, knowing he won’t want you to beat around the bush. 

Frank sighs, glancing at the open door, “he’s not gonna take the news well.” 

You reach for Frank’s hand, squeezing it, “we will tell him together. I am here for you both. You’ve been so kind to me. I am forever in your debt. I’ll be here until the end.” You vow and Frank hums, his plan forming in his mind. Neither you nor Bill will like it but it’s necessary. He won’t be a burden on you and Bill in this new world. He’s had a good life.

Joel thinks about you randomly during the days. While he’s helping burn bodies or shovel shit, he’s wondering what you are doing. Wondering how Frank is doing. There hasn’t been a message but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t worried. When he gets the fucking battery, he’s going to check on them, on you, before he goes to find Tommy. Tess has already made noises about asking you to go and he thinks that she wants to stay behind.

When Frank and Bill tell you Frank’s plan, you cry. You have loved them like uncles and you know that Frank wants to go before he gets too bad. No amount of morphine or drugs will save him from his fate. Frank declares that him and Bill are getting married and you go with them to the boutique. Picking out a pretty dress, you change and help Bill dress Frank in the suit. The way they look at each other has tears forming in your eyes. When they exchange rings and vows, you take a Polaroid photo, wanting to remember their wedding day, and you help Bill cook Frank’s final meal. 

“I want to go too.” Bill declares softly and your eyes widen, “what?” Bill sighs, “I want to go with him. I don’t want to live without him. I know…I know it’s selfish and I know we will be leaving you but I’ve already set the radio to 80s, Joel will be here soon. Maybe he can move here and help you, keep the house going. Maybe Tess will come here too. I want…I want to go. It’s time. We are both old and he…he was my purpose. I’ve dug our grave to save you the time. Please make sure we are holding hands.” Bill requests and you nod, pulling him into your arms as you choke on a sob. “No tears. Let’s make this last dinner our best one yet.” Bill says, kissing your cheek and he walks off to find the bottle of Beaujolais. 

You wipe your eyes and carry the wine into the dining room, beautifully put together for their last dinner. You let them take their time, in no rush to finish this meal and when Bill nods, you stand up and grab the bottle of wine he’s had airing in the kitchen. Tears fall down your cheeks as you put the pills into the bottle and carry it in, waiting for Bill to tell Frank his plan, which he doesn’t, until after he’s already drunk down the glass. 

You cry, sniffing to stop your sobs, and Frank reaches for your hand. “I’ve had a good life. I want to go out my way, you’ve been a Godsend. Caring for me, you’re like…you’re like the daughter I never had and I want you to know that I love you. Thank you for everything.” Frank says and you sob, leaning in to kiss his cheek. 

“When you arrived, I wanted to kill you.” Bill says frankly and you offer him a watery chuckle, “oh I know.” Bill continues, “but I didn’t and I’m glad I didn’t. You brought life back to this house and I hope you continue to do so. With Joel.” Bill adds, “you both deserve a happy ending. Together.” Bill knows how Joel feels about you and you him, he hopes Joel comes when he hears the radio. 

“Thank you both…for everything. I love you so much.” You stand up and kiss Bill’s cheek and then Frank’s again, silently saying goodbye. 

“Take me to bed, Bill.” Frank orders and you stand to help. When you get Frank situated in the bed, Bill shifts to lay beside him, pulling him into his arms. The window is open and you lean against the doorframe, tearing streaming down your cheeks as you watch them embrace. 

“Goodnight.” You murmur, knowing this is the last time you’ll see them alive. 

“Goodnight. Don’t make too much noise when you go upstairs.” Bill says like he always does, making you smile. 

“I won’t.” You promise and shift to shut the door behind you, biting your lip to stop your sobs. You focus on cleaning up the dinner, putting the dishes away just as Bill always liked them. They’re gone by the time you go to bed, sobbing into your pillow that you could be all alone unless Joel arrives soon. You pray he does.

****

Joel clenches his jaw as he soaks his hand in the cold water. It feels good, relieving the pressure of the fractured bones. Staring into the water as he picks out a large, flat rock. Tess always liked the water, claiming that it was soothing. It seems fitting to build her a small memorial by the river. He piles the rocks up, every one symbolizing their relationship over the years. It had transitioned and her words haunt him slightly. He had known that he loved her, of course he loved her. He had spent years with her, but it had never been that all consuming love. Grief had kept him from getting too close, or opening himself up all the way, then it had shifted when he had met you. She had seen it. 

He sighs as he stands, starts making his way back to the trees where Ellie is waiting, they had stopped for the night after putting ten miles between them and Boston and there was still plenty of traveling to go until they get to Bill and Frank….and you. 

“Look, I’ve been thinking about-“ Ellie starts, the last two attempts to make conversation failing. 

Joel lurches to his feet as he starts to sling his pack onto his back. “I don’t want your sorries.” He spits out, still raw from the loss of the woman he had been with in one way or another for years. 

“I wasn’t gonna say I’m sorry.” Ellie shoots back, leaning forward and looking at him. “I was gonna say that I’ve been thinking about what happened. Nobody made you or Tess take me. Nobody made you go along with this plan.” Joel stares at the girl, aware of that fact. “You needed a truck battery or whatever, and you made a choice. So don’t blame me for something that isn’t my fault.” 

Joel wants to tell her that he doesn’t blame her, he wouldn’t blame a child for this shit. Instead he just nods, making her relax and gather her things. She brings his jacket back over to him and asks, “how much longer?” 

Joel thinks about you. “Five hour hike.” Five hours to get to you. Five hours before he can wrap his arms around you and forget everything for a few hours. 

Ellie contemplates it for a moment. “We can manage that.” Joel doesn’t answer, just turns around and starts on the path that will take him to you.

You are hanging up your laundry when you hear the gate beep. You grab the rifle you’ve kept close, aiming it as you sneak through the backyard to the hide out spot that allows you to look through the front of the house. You inhale sharply when you see Joel, followed by a teenage girl. You want to sob, relieved to see him, and you set the rifle down, rushing through the house and flinging the door open to rush into Joel’s arms.

The moment he sees you rushing out the door, he knows. Closing his eyes for a second to let another wave of grief wash over him before you are there. Throwing yourself into his arms while he catches you and pulls you close. 

“What the fuck is going on?” Ellie mutters, bewildered by the appearance of another woman who obviously cares for this asshole. Joel ignores her, hugging you tight and listening to you sob into his chest. 

“When?” He whispers, aware that he’s been away from his radio but he hopes you’ve not been alone with Bill for too long. 

“A few days ago.” You choke, breathing him in. He smells like sweat and dirt but it’s all Joel and you are in his arms again. “Both of them.” You reveal, pulling back to cup his cheeks, frowning when you see the grief in his eyes and you look at the teenager and then back at him. “Where’s Tess?” You ask, wondering if he left her with that new man you heard about last time he was here.

“Yesterday.” Joel exhales roughly, his heart aching for you, having to go through losing both of them at the same time. “Got bit.” He closes his eyes again and shakes off the emotions, tamping them down right now before he turns to Ellie. “This is Ellie.” He introduces you. “Tess- we were - she’s immune.” He tells you, knowing you will understand what he means. “I need to get her to my brother and the Fireflies.” 

“Immune?” Your eyes widen and Ellie awkwardly waves at you, “yeah. Been bit twice. Haven’t turned into a monster yet.” You can’t believe what you’re hearing, knowing this girl could be the key to something. 

“Come in. Bill left you a note. I’m sure you’re starving. Let me make you something to eat.” You say, taking Joel’s hand to guide him inside. You’re still processing, knowing Joel must be grieving Tess as much as you are grieving Bill and Frank.

Joel doesn’t want to read the note, knowing that the man never particularly cared for him but he owes it to the old bastard. “Shit, you live here?” Ellie asks, walking in and immediately starting to poke around. 

“Don’t go gettin’ in trouble, Ellie.” Joel calls out as the girl disappears down the hall. He sighs when she just waves one arm over her head. “Fuckin’ teenagers.” He huffs, rolling his eyes before he looks at you. “How are you doing?” He asks softly, frowning because you were all alone here. 

You shrug, “I’m fine. I- I miss them so much.” You choke and he pulls you back into his arms, “I didn’t know if you were going to come. Bill changed the radio before he - they went together. Took a shit ton of painkillers. I helped. They - Frank wanted to go and then Bill wanted to go with him. I’m here alone…well, until now.” You wrap your arms around his neck, pulling him closer. “I was worried you would never come.”

“You should have known I would come.” Joel chides you gently, wrapping his arms around you. “I told you I would be back but I’m sorry it wasn’t soon enough.” He closes his eyes and leans his forehead against yours.

“HOLY SHIT!” He jumps when he hears Ellie screech but he knows she’s safe. “They have hot water! I’m definitely taking a shower!” 

He huffs and rolls his eyes before he looks at you again. “She’s a little excitable.” 

You smile, knowing she probably hasn’t seen most of the things in this house preserved from a time long before she was born. “You need to take a shower too.” You wrinkle your nose jokingly, pulling back to look at him.

Joel frowns, pouting at you slightly because you are saying that he stinks. “Fine.” He huffs, not upset with you. He knows he stinks. He hadn’t exactly had time to stop and clean up. “Do you- uh…” He shuffles slightly and rubs the back of his neck, looking towards where Ellie had disappeared to. “Do you want to shower with me?”

You nod, knowing you both need this time to reassure each other that you are safe and alive. “Come on.” You take his hand, guiding him to your bedroom and adjoining bathroom. You work on unbuttoning his shirt, pushing it off of his shoulders, after you turn on the water to let it heat up.

Joel sighs, closing his eyes and letting the weight of the world roll off his shoulders. You are alone now. He can’t leave you here and yet he doesn’t know if you would want to go with him. It’s going to be a rough journey. “I- I have to take the girl west.” He tells you quietly. “I- if you want to stay here, I get it. It’s safe. It’s comfortable.” 

You caress his chest after you let his dirty shirt fall to the floor, “you could stay? It’s safe here. We have enough supplies to last a lifetime. Fresh food. Animals. It’s a good life. Bill made sure it would outlast time. Stay here. You and the girl.” You offer, reaching down to unbuckle his belt.

“I can’t.” Joel shakes his head, remembering Tess’s last words. ‘Save who you can save. Set it right.’ “What if- what if the girl could end all this?” He asks quietly, “she’s immune. Maybe, maybe there’s a fucking antibiotic they could create from her blood.” He looks up at you, begging you to tell him that it was possible. “Maybe people don’t have to keep dyin’.” 

You know he’s done a lot of bad shit, killed, stolen, but you know he’s done it to survive. Maybe him and Tess enjoyed some of it, you wouldn’t be surprised, but you know, deep down, he has hope. “Then we will get her where she needs to go. I survived out there before, I can do it again. If…if you want me to come along.” You add, knowing he might not necessarily want you to come along, he could leave you here alone. You imagine you’d go mad like Bill nearly did. He’d told you the stories of his life before Frank came along, how lonely he was.

“I don’t want to leave you here alone.” Joel murmurs quietly, admitting what he might not have said before losing so many so quickly. “It’s gonna be rough, dangerous.” He reminds you. “But I’d rather you be with me than wonderin’ what’s happenin’ here and worryin’ about you.”

You smile, “you’re a big softy inside. Just like Bill. You two were more alike than either of you would ever admit.” You stop undressing him and look into his eyes, “I’ll come with you. I know it’s dangerous but I’d rather die fighting beside you than be safe and alone in this house.” You cup his cheeks, wanting to know how to feel, “I’ll stand by you every day until the day I die.”

Joel wants to roll his eyes, to expel the heaviness of the situation but it would make a mockery of it. He nods and reaches up to cover your hands with his. “I’ll keep you safe.” He vows, aware that he’s let so many people down, but he can’t let you down. “I- I want you to know that I thought of you. While I was gone.”

Your heart flutters at his confession, “I thought of you too. Toy got a lot of use thinking about you, Miller.” You tease, kneeling down to take his boots off and pull his pants off of him. Once he’s naked, you work on your own clothes, eager to be naked and in the shower with him. You kick your clothes aside and walk into the bathroom, knowing he will follow you, and you check the water in hot. “Come on baby. Let’s clean up.” You say and pull him in behind you.

Joel groans at the hot water, closing his eyes like he always does. He needs to clean up, check on Ellie and start packing up the truck but for right now, he just needs this shower. “Fuck.” He murmurs softly, leaning against the wall and reaching for you. “I- they are all gone.” He sighs heavily.

“They’re all gone…but we aren’t.” You remind him, letting him pull you into his arms. The water hits just right to flow over you both and you kiss along his neck, absorbing the fact that he’s here and he’s alive, you’re alive. “I love you.” You whisper against his skin, knowing he’s heard it. He could reject you. Push you away, at least you would have gotten this off of your chest.

Joel sighs heavily, closing his eyes. He hadn’t been able to say anything to Tess in those final moments, even though he had cared for her greatly. Loved her in his own way. It’s something he regrets now. “I- care about you.” He murmurs softly. “I think about you, worry about you.” He swallows, thinking about Bill and how alike they were. “I love you.” He whispers.

You barely hear it but you do, knowing how hard it is for him to admit. You tilt your head up to press your lips against his. Emotions are a weakness in this world but you can’t stop yourself from loving him, even if you tried. You don’t say anything else, just tilt your head so you can press your lips to his, wanting to feel connected to him. Once you leave this house, every day is a blessing and who knows when you’ll have the chance to be connected like this. You want to savor this time.

He lets you draw him into the kiss, slowly deepening it as you pull him closer. Letting him forget everything but the way you taste and your warmth against him. You’re alive, he’s alive. You have each other. Joel groans and spins you around, pressing you up against the cool shower tiles and starts to ravage your mouth.

You moan, clinging to him as he pushes you against the wall, and he steals your breath from you, sliding his tongue into your mouth and his hands grab your thigh, lifting it up onto the edge of the bathtub. His cock hardens against your stomach and you reach between you to wrap your finger around him, slowly pumping him and loving the way he hardens in your hand.

He shouldn’t be doing this right now. There’s so many reasons why, but he needs to. Needs to feel you. Moaning into your mouth, his hand slides to your cunt, rubbing your clit and sighing in relief when he feels the wetness already gathering. “Let me fuck you.” Joel begs, kissing down your jaw. It’s selfish, but he needs the comfort you can give him. The thought of nothing but the pleasure between you.

"Do it. I need you Joel, fuck me." You beg, rocking your cunt down into his hand and whining when he withdraws his fingers. He bats your hand away from his cock and shifts closer to position the head at your entrance. You moan softly when he slowly splits you open, a little rough since you aren't soaking wet to take his length, but you don't care. You just want to feel connected to him.

“Shiiiiiiit.” Joel hisses, rolling his hips up and his hands flatten against the wall. The heat, the pulsing heat of your cunt tells him that you are still here. Letting him feel it. Turning his head, his lips press against yours for a long moment before he ever starts moving.

His tongue slides into your mouth and you finally feel safe. Since Bill and Frank died, you’ve been on edge, unable to sleep properly, but now he’s here, you know you’re in good hands. He’s capable, secure. You tilt your head back against the tile, letting the water run between you as he pushes into you, setting a slow but deep pace that has your cunt getting wetter and wetter around him.

It’s not as harsh as the first time, this is deeper. A reassurance that both of you need and he could never ask for. Making him feel every flutter of your cunt, heat every gasp. Rocking into your like it’s the last thing he will do. It might be, who knows what could happen? Life wasn’t guaranteed, like he’s been shown so brutally over the last few days.

Your hands are everywhere, caressing him, running through his now damp hair, down his chest, loving the steady thump of his heart under your palm. “I love you. I love you.” You whisper, trying to tilt your hips until he hits the right angle that has you moaning his name. You know he’s not an emotional man. He’s not verbally or physically affectionate but no one is in this new world. You’ll take what he gives you, eagerly and readily. You wrap your arms around his neck, keeping yourself upright while he fucks into you.

His lips trail along your skin, desperate for the tenderness that you show him. It’s greedy, but he’s never claimed to not be a greedy man. His hands grip your hips tightly, as if he’s afraid you would get away from him. “Fuck.” He moans out your name. “So good, I would stay here with you. Right here. Never leave.” He groans quietly.

You wish that was possible but you know he has to find Tommy, get the girl to where she needs to go. You don’t reply, just lean in to press your lips to his. His cock is pushing deep inside of you, your cunt dripping wet now, and you know you’re going to ache when he’s done.

Joel knows he’s not going to last for long, letting one bruising hand go from your hip to slide between you. Turning his wrist so he can rub your clit. It might be a long time before he gets a chance to fuck you and he wants to make it good for you. You whine into his mouth and he groans, flicking his tongue against yours as his fingers work your little bundle of nerves.

When his calloused digits rub your clit, you whine into his mouth, so close to cumming. “Fuck. Oh fuck baby. I’m - Joel.” You pant, tilting your head back as he hits just right inside of you and you are pushed over the edge. You bite down on his neck, smothering your cry as you cum, clamping down on his cock as the water continues running over his back.

Joel grunts, pushing into you harder and faster. The slap of his hips echoing the bathroom. Growling as he gets closer with every unhinged thrust. Pumping his cock into you a half dozen more times before he is pulling out, not even needing to stroke himself as he spurts against the shower wall.

You pant, watching him as he closes his eyes, trying to process how he feels and you give him several moments until you’re reaching for the shampoo. “Come here.” You murmur, pulling him back towards you. You reach up to lather up his hair, washing it and massaging his scalp.

Joel closes his eyes and sighs softly. “That feels good.” He murmurs, enjoying the feeling of your nails on his scalp. Cumming and getting clean are doing wonders right now, letting the tension fade as the water swirls down the drain.

You work your fingers through his salt and pepper locks, until he is practically slumped against you and you wash the shampoo out of his hair. Grabbing the body wash, you lather up his chest and shoulders, turning him around so you can lather up his back and massage his shoulders. No words are spoken as you take care of him. You want to take care of him.

You don’t stop touching him until the water runs clean. Completed scrubbed from head to toe and Joel feels like he could cry. Unable to remember the last time someone cared for him like that. He turns to you, taking the sponge from your hand. Wanting to do the same for you, since this might be the last shower for a while. “We need to pack supplies.” He tells you, kneeling down at your feet. “You any good with a gun?”

“Bill made sure I could hit a target from across the fence. Wanted backup in case things went to shit. Before I arrived here, I learned how to use one. Needed it to survive.” You sigh when his hands scrub your skin, tender and opposite of Joel’s gruff nature. “I’m good with a knife too. Can take out infected.” You confess, knowing you might need a little practice on that one since Bill’s traps always worked so well with the infected. “I left the radio off. Just in case and maybe we can come back here one day.”

Joel nods but he doesn’t want to tell you that it probably won’t happen. “Pack what you need.” He tells you. “We’re gonna be cramped in that piece of shit truck of his.” Joel had ragged on Bill for the little S-10, but damned if he still didn’t have a running car.

You know it’s a pipe dream but it will keep you going through the dark times. You finish washing up, stepping out of the shower after turning off the water. “I’ll go get enough food for us. Non perishable and - and Bill has ammo in the basement. More weapons.” You tell Joel, leaning in to kiss him softly, “I’ll go get you some more clothes.” You wrap the towel around you and Joel grabs onto your waist, pulling you back towards him, pressing his lips to yours. His hands cup your cheeks and you smile against his lips. “Clothes.” You remind him, pulling away so you can dress.

Joel dries off, aware that he will face some shit from the kid, but he doesn’t care. He isn’t going to just pretend like you don’t matter to him. Opening the medicine cabinet, he pulls out the deodorant and swipes some under his arms before he picks up your comb and slicks his hair back. Humming to himself at the tired image in the mirror. You seem to like him, so that was favorable, but he sighs, looking down at his hand where the scabbed skin is starting to heal. Soon you will have to leave this little heaven and there’s going to be a lot of trouble ahead. But he won’t leave you behind again. He’s taking you with him.

You come back with a set of clothes - Frank’s old clothes - and you get dressed while he goes downstairs. “Don’t you look pretty?” Ellie teases Joel who stares at her, resisting the urge to roll his eyes, and he tosses the deodorant stick towards her. 

You come downstairs after packing your bag and you see Ellie holding a box of tampons. “Do you know how to use those?” You know, she likely doesn’t but you want to help her if she needs it.

“Nosebleeds?” Ellie asks sarcastically, rolling her eyes. “I’ve had a period since I was ten.” She informs you, making Joel wince since that’s information he does not need to know. 

“Hey, be nice, she’s a nurse.” He informs Ellie meaningfully. He knows you are just trying to open a line of communication with the girl. 

You sigh, sending that she’s going to be your typical teenager. “Well, if you want any advice on that, I’m here for you.” You tell her, making your way into the kitchen to find your emergency first aid kid. You shove that into your backpack and grab the spare to start getting the tinned and dry food. You put the bottle of whiskey in there and decide to take the last bottle of Beaujolais, knowing that Bill would want you to enjoy it. 

“You ready?” You ask Joel when he comes back in.

He nods, “battery is charged. You ready?” He asks you, knowing this is a huge step. 

You nod, “yes, I’m ready.” You are ready to leave, you’ll follow Joel to the end of the world if you have to. He playfully smacks your ass when you walk into the garage and when you’re in the car, you sit in the backseat since Ellie has never been in a car before. 

“It’s like a spaceship.” She says in awe and you giggle at the amused look on Joel’s face. 

“Seatbelt.” He tells you, his eyes meeting yours in the rear view mirror and you follow his order. Ellie has to be helped and finally, Joel starts the car to drive away from the house. You turn to look at your home, silently saying goodbye to Bill and Frank, when Ellie grabs the tape and Joel puts it in. 

The sweet voice of Linda Ronstadt fills your ears and Ellie wants to change it but Joel stops her. He knows the song but he doesn’t know what it meant to Bill and Frank…you do. You wipe your eyes, mourning your good friends and the life they provided you as you follow the man you love on his mission to find his brother and deliver Ellie to the fireflies. Let’s just hope she is the key to the end of this nightmare. Looking back at the house one last time, you wonder if you’ll ever make it back here. Maybe one day, you’ll be living here with Joel…enjoying your happily ever after.