#i am very grateful for friends chatting at the breakfast table and friends willing to climb a lot of stairs to help me move

[tempestclerics]

maybe i actually have learned some resilience across the past year because it truly has been a Day but. feeling more even keeled about it than i was expecting and that's a win

[itsmeevie01]

Bio!dad Bruce Day 7-Fashion Show

Marinette laughed as she linked arms with Alix and hurried out of school. Today, the girls had arranged to go out for the evening, and they were insistent that nothing would ruin their fun, even an akuma. As the shorter girls hurried away, Alya watched from where she stood on the steps. When she had transferred, she had hoped that the girl she had made a connection with would become her best friend. Now, as they neared the end of April, she had resigned herself to the fact that she wasn’t part of the other’s inner circle.

Although she was friendly with the entire class, Marinette had quickly proven to be hard to get close to. She had her life out of school, and she had her life in school. They didn’t mix.

Unknown to the rest of the school, Marinette’s birthday was coming up. Every year, she would do something small with Tom and Sabine. Sometimes she would invite a friend over. Mostly, she kept her birthday quiet. The teen knew that if she offered, her class would love to celebrate with her, but she didn’t see it as a big deal. three years earlier, Bruce had asked her if she wanted to do anything for her birthday. When she had mentioned that she didn’t really celebrate it that much, he had nodded in acceptance. Each year, he flew into Paris and took her out for a day of shopping, an amusement park, or a fancy dinner. This year, he had invited her to join him in Gotham so that her brothers could come along. Since the event earlier in the month, Bruce had been more at ease when talking about many of the things going on in his home city. Now that he knew that Marinette was already entrenched in the hero life that he had been working so hard to keep her out of, he had opened up about the times that the family had vanished during her visits.

When Marinette had eagerly agreed to join him in Gotham, Bruce had asked his daughter of she had any preferences on what they did. The girl, as expected, shook her head and told him to surprise her. As long as they were together, it didn’t really matter. Imagine her surprise, when she got home from her late-night movie with Alix, to find her parents waiting for her, both buzzing in excitement.

“Mariette! Oh good, we were afraid that you would be out later. Bruce got in contact with us, he is going to fly you our for the entire weekend, instead of just one day!” While the bakers continued to gush about how wonderful it was for Bruce to fly Marinette out for her birthday, the girl paused. Usually, as much as she enjoyed her brothers, they were very upfront with her. When she had asked if they knew what Bruce was planning, they had been cagey. Now, he was flying her out on a Thursday, and bringing her back on a Tuesday? That was a long time considering she still had school.

Later that week as she packed her carry on, the noirette crinkled her nose in concentration. She had been doing the best she could to figure out what it could be, but she still had found nothing on their plans for the next few days. Once she had finished, she plopped the bag next to her suitcase. Whatever her family had planned, she could only hope that she was ready for it.

The next day at school, Marinette rolled her eyes as Alya started to chatter at her. The girl was nice, yes, but Marinette had seen what had happened when she had started to zero in on information. Alya was not likely to let anything go, which sadly, meant that for the sake of her secret identity, Marinette had t keep her distance. When Nino plopped into his seat in front of her, he turned to flash Marinette a grin. “you ready for your trip, dudette?” Marinette smiled in return,

“So ready! I finished packing last night, so Maman is going to pick me up at noon. That makes sure I have a little under four hours to get on my plane.” Nino nodded in understanding.

“International travel is nothing to mess with. You may be joined by Chloe; she is flying out to visit her mother. Where are you flying into?”

“New York! They said that they would meet me there, and that we would head back after whatever surprise they’ve been planning.” Nino snickered at his friend’s frustration. It was well known within their friend group that the girl liked to know what was going on so that she could plan accordingly. The last time they had tried to surprise her, Kim had ended up with a broken arm, and Alix had gotten enough blackmail to last a lifetime. It was also pretty common for the girl to refer to her family in vague terms. As much as she trusted her friends, her class was more than willing to dig into her personal life in an attempt to force friendship. Because of this, Marinette tried to keep her personal life a vague as possible. In situations like this, she was grateful that Nino understood what she meant, because Alya had caught onto their conversation and started to ask as many questions as she could. Thankfully, Chloe must have gotten the notice from Nino to rescue her, because the blonde swaggered into the room and made a beeline for the duo’s desk.

“So, Mari trash, what this I hear about you leaving the country?” while Alya bristled at the name that the heiress had thrown out, Marinette sent her friend a secret smile. Chloe sent her a nod before returning to riling up Alya until Madame Bustier made her way in, effectively shutting down all conversations.

The girls giggled as they hurried through the airport. When they had realized that they were on the same flight, they had agreed to meet up at the airport and wait out the extra time together. As the duo sat there, they chatted and traded pictures, and discussed fashion. When Chloe mentioned that her mother was taking her to meet a ‘rich client who she wont name. Ridiculous!’ Marinette paused. “Chloe, that’s not the only reason that your flying out, right?” the blond gave an undignified snot.

“Honestly Mari, I wish! She’s dragging me to her ‘secret fashion show for the ages’ as she calls it.” Soon the girls were giggling and discussing the latest trends. When the flight attendants called for first class, the two girls gather their bags and made their way over to the line that was forming. When they had gotten settled (conveniently next to each other, which spoke of manipulation to Marinette, although she refrained from mentioning it to the diva next to her), they each pulled out a book and got ready for their flight. Thankfully, they both made the transatlantic flights enough to know what to expect.

 That evening, when they arrived, the girls hurried to get through security and collect their bags. As they exited the baggage claim, both girls started to scan for their rides. On one side of the airport, was Audrey Bourgeois’ personal assistant. Next to her stood the stately figure of Alfred Pennyworth. While Marinette threw herself at Alfred in a hug, Chloe nodded to the frazzled looking brunette who had greeted them. The girls hugged and parted ways, promising to meet up on Monday if they didn’t see each other before hand.

While Chloe settled in her mother’s penthouse, Marinette was buried in a pile of hugs from her brothers. When they had finally given her room to breathe, her father introduced her to a girl who had been standing nearby. Cassandra (her sister!!) smiled at her and waved shyly. Marinette had sent her a smile worthy of the sun and given the girl a hug in return.

The next morning, the two girls were the first to join Alfred in the kitchen. Was Marinette caught Alfred up on the last few months, she started to help him with breakfast. Cassandra (Cass, Marinette scolded herself) settled on a stool to watch her move through the kitchen with a fluidity that spoke of many, many hours of experience. Once Bruce and they boys had joined them, the group settled at the dining table.

When the food had been cleared up, Marinette turned to her father, “you know, you made it really hard to pack for this trip, when I had no idea what we are going to do!” Bruce smiled at her ire and easily brushed aside her worries.

“it’s a good thing that we’re going shopping then, isn’t it, Marinette?” the way the girls face lit up made Tim snort.

“B, you really shouldn’t have said that, now she’s not going to sit still for the rest of the day.” The teen made a face at the look sent his way and Marinette huffed at her older brother.

“At least I know how to dress myself nicely without having someone pick my clothes out for me!” Dick sniggered at her response before wincing as she directed her fury his way. “don’t think I’m ignoring you, Richard.” The man froze, because his sister had used his first name only once and that occasion was not to be brought up unless the world was ending. “your fashion choices are even worse than Dad’s!” As the family started to argue about the validity of her statements, Marinette slipped away, beckoning for Cassandra (Cass!) to follow her.

Once they were in Marinette’s temporary room, the girl handed her sister (!!) a small wrapped package. “Tim gave me a heads up that there was a new addition to the family, and I wanted to make something for you.” The other girl studied her for a moment before hesitantly ripping the paper. Inside was a small journal that was leather bound and had the name Cass written in an elegant script (A/N Cass is probably the character that I am the least familiar with the origin of. That said, I’m going to run off the assumption that she is learning to read when she is brought to join n the Wayne family. If I am wrong, lmk, for now, this is what we are vibing with). The quiet girl gave Marinette a tentative hug as a thank you before Tim knocked on the doorframe.

“Time to go, ladies. Your chariot awaits.” Marinate rolled her eyes at their brother while throwing a pair of balled up socks at him.

“We’re coming, boy genius. Be fearful though, this is the start of an alliance. Soon, maybe ill be able to finally compete against you boys on game night without rigging the games!” Tim spluttered at her declaration as she strode past him. He huffed and hurried after the girls, bemoaning Bruce for making this trip a ‘family affair’.

Three hours later, Tim and Dick were each carrying handfuls of shopping bags, as the family of five re-entered their temporary living space. The girls were walking together, Marinette explaining some of her ideas for different designs. Alfred smiled at them as they all stood talking together, until an unfamiliar ringtone broke the low ambiance. The brothers looked at each other in confusion, while Bruce raised an eye at his youngest daughter. The girl flushed in embarrassment and dug into her purse for a long moment before pulling out a phone that was very obviously not her own. “hey! Is everything ok?” her immediate switch to French made the others pause and zero in on her conversation. “Oh, you caught it. How much damage was there?” A pause and then, “do I need to- I know I’m supposed to be on vacation but- oh fine! Leave it on my balcony in the jar, ill take care of as soon as I can.” A beat, and the girl made a face at whatever the person on the other end of the phone said. “stay safe, and call me if you need me, yeah?” once she had hung up, the girl turned back to them with a raised eyebrow. “what? Are you saying you don’t have a second phone for emergencies?”

The next day, Saturday, was a whirlwind, as Alfred got everyone up and moving by7 am. When asked what was going on by Marinette, the butler simply smiled and moved to lure Dick out of bed. When the family was once again gathered around the breakfast table, Marinette turned to her father and demanded an explanation at the reason for a wakeup call before what she considered ‘reasonable hours’. The man smiled in return, “Today, Marinette, we are going to celebrate your birthday. As promised, this year, the entire fairly will be able to join in.” the girl protested at his declaration.

“what was yesterday? I thought that was us celebrating my birthday without going overboard!” Dick laughed at her shock before jumping into the conversation.

“well, Net, yesterday was part one. Today is part two…and the part that we think you’ll like the most.” At her confusion, Tim leaned over from his spot across the dining table, pushing a stack of six tickets towards her,

“were going to Audrey Bourgeois’ secret fashion show.” The screech that came from the youngest in the family was well worth the suspense.

As the family approached the hidden venue, Marinette felt excitement bubble up once again. She had spent the day making sure that the entire family was dressed appropriately for the event. Somehow, Bruce had managed to buy a dress on the sly for her, after catching her gazing longingly at it for the duration of their time in the shop. As for the others, for the most part, they had the necessary pieces to put together a look that would be presentable at the secret show. The door was opened once they had handed over their tickets, and the Wayne family were handed a stack of passes that they hurriedly settled around their necks as they were show their way to their seats.

When the catwalk lit up, Marinette sat there, frozen, anticipating the beginning of the show. The lights blacked out, and a spotlight followed the first model on her way towards the middle of the room. Marinette’s breath caught in shock at the beauty of the coat that was trailing down the runway. As the next model made his way out, Marinette lost herself in the world of fashion.

 After, Bruce turned to the girl and raised an eyebrow, “so…was this too over the top for your birthday?” the 14-year-old smiled at her father.

“no,” she breathed, “it was perfect”

whew! that was a long one! obviously, this one is not compleate, but it’s other half is going to be coming soon! any feedback is more than welcome, im going to try to keep these a little longer if i can...

also, what did y’all think of Alya? i’m not her biggest fan, but didnt want to make her a villian? 

[artificialqueens]

Galactica, Chapter 2 (Group Fic) - TheDane/Veronica

A/N: Okay so, to be honest, we really thought that we were doing this for ourselves and that maybe a few people would read it. The fact that so many of you guys have been SO kind and supportive is just lovely and we are infinitely grateful for you all!! Here is Chapter 1. Here’s a link to AO3 if you’d prefer to read there. 💫

Last Chapter: Violet received the thrilling news that Fame intends to promote her to design as soon as she finds and trains a new assistant.

This Chapter: We meet the other department heads.

***

Violet looked out on the conference table one final time, consulting the list in her notebook to make sure that nothing was forgotten. It was Wednesday morning, the 9am monthly creative meeting starting in less than 15 minutes.

The table was set with a light breakfast spread, no one but Trixie and Alyssa ever actually eating at these things, but she had made sure there was a selection of fruits, and that everyone had their favorite beverages besides the ginormous coffee order. Keeping track of the department heads and their various likes and dislikes was almost a job in itself, but Violet had gotten it down to a science.

There were frosted Pellegrinos for Fame, Raja preferring grapefruit juice. Alyssa liked Redbull, Alaska preferred diet Doctor Pepper, Trixie was a regular coke kind of guy while Pearl was a wildcard, but Violet had a good feeling about the chocolate milkshake, since she had heard the rumor that Pearl had been out partying.

Violet had spent most of last night writing the job description for the new assistant, falling asleep with her notebook in hand, only to wake up in a panic at 3 am to realize that the electricity was out yet again. She had slept restlessly for the rest of the night, then missed her first alarm, barely making it to her gym for a shower before coming in to work at 7.30 sharp, and while Violet knew she looked flawless, it felt fundamentally wrong to take a stop at her gym without working out.

The only bright spot so far had been how HR had accepted her initial proposal right away, giddiness bubbling in her chest at the thought that the process of finding her replacement was actually happening.

“- and don’t forget to bring the swatches.”

Raja Amrull was standing by the window, her phone to her ear, a cup of coffee already at her lips as she spoke to her assistant.

Raja Amrull was the chief creative officer, co-founder of Galactica and one of Fame’s very best friends. Violet took a moment to watch her as she gave order after order, her voice filled with a natural authority that always made Violet’s stomach do a flip.

Raja was wearing a mustard fitted pantsuit, the black hair that almost reached her waist put in intricate braids, and Violet knew it was the work of her girlfriend. Raja’s tan skin was practically glowing in the morning sun, the dark brown tattoos on her left hand standing out.

Even though she was in her 40s, 41 if Violet remembered correctly, she still looked every bit the supermodel she had been in the 00’s.

Raja wasn’t a naturally sweet person, but in Violet’s opinion that didn’t matter. She was competent and got her business done, which was something Violet admired in a leader.

“Violet?”

Violet blushed, the sound Raja’s voice cutting through her daydream. She had been so caught up in watching her that she hadn’t actually paid attention, but Raja had never been known for her patience, so she simply snapped, pointing at the room's thermostat, and Violet quickly made her way over, turning it down four degrees to the temperature she knew Raja preferred.

She felt like an idiot for forgetting, and she promised herself that it wouldn’t happen again.

Alaska, head of makeup and fragrances, was the first to arrive. The blonde wasn’t particularly talkative before her third cup of coffee, her every word drawn out in long lazy vowels. Alyssa came second, Violet counting her blessings that the marketing director had shown up on time. Alyssa always got the job done, but getting her anywhere on schedule was always an experience, the woman forever off in her very own world where she was the star of everything.

Fame was third, her first words as she stepped through the door, “Why is no one ready?” and Violet felt her stomach clench.

The meeting wasn’t scheduled to start for another 10 minutes, but that was one of the most terrifying things about Fame. She was never early, she was never late, everyone else was simply supposed to be there the exact moment she wanted them.

Violet was just about to open her mouth to apologize for Pearl, when the woman in question came in through the door.

“Morning everyone.” Pearl smiled, her voice a slow drawl. She was wearing a black turtleneck crop top, a black miniskirt and Violet was pretty sure she could see pieces of golden glitter in her unwashed blonde locks.

Alaska waved, but Fame gave her one single slow judgemental once-over, the kind that Violet had witnessed cause several interns to burst into tears.

“What are you wearing?” Fame’s voice was icy cold, but Pearl only smirked.

“You don’t like it?��

“Did you sleep in your makeup?” Fame reached out, touching Pearl’s chin with a single finger and tilting her head up, turning her face from side to side. “You know how I feel about this mistreatment of your skin.”

Fame dropped her hand, and Violet immediately handed her a tissue. Fame wiped her fingers, giving the now crumpled paperback to Violet, the whole exchange taking less than 10 seconds.

“You smell like an illegal teen party.”

“It’s because I’ve been to one.” Pearl smiled brightly, Fame’s disapproval and rudeness clearly not touching her at all. “Wait until you see the photos. Half the partygoers were wearing our newest print. Trixie was absolutely right-”

Just as Fame said those words, Trixie pushed through the door, the senior creative team of Galactica now all present, to Violet’s relief.

“You rang?” he said with a cheeky grin, earning a fist bump from Pearl.

It had taken Violet months to realize how much of a genius Trixie actually was--his close-shaven brown hair, obvious bald spot, a fondness for colorful t-shirts and love handles all doing everything they could to hide that he was one of the main forces behind Galactica’s success. But Trixie (who’s real name was Brian, though Violet had never heard anyone call him that) was wildly creative, known for his effective management style and outside the box thinking.

While Raja handled the broad creative direction and was the face of the company to customers and consumers, Trixie was in charge of the day to day operations of the design departments. He ruled the design atelier and the tailoring department with a gentle touch, though no one dared cross him, Trixie just as willing as anyone else in the boardroom to do what it took to get the job done.

“I’m sorry I’m late-” Trixie yawned, barely hiding it behind his hand.

“I take it the collection is going well?” Raja smirked, her knife cutting through an apple.

“Don’t even ask.” Trixie groaned, sitting down in a chair, grabbing the coffee - two-pump caramel, whole fat milk - Violet delivered to his hand and drinking it down greedily. “My machine broke and ate most of my prototype.”

“So it’s not here?” Fame raised a brow, but Trixie shook his head, reaching into the paper bag he had brought along.

“I’ve been remaking it all night on Katya’s shitty theater machine.”

“Oh, my poor darling.” Fame leaned against the edge of the table, gently running a hand through Trixie’s buzzed hair. “We’ll get you a new one.” “Thank you.” Trixie smiled, and Violet grabbed her notebook, knowing that Fame without a doubt expected her to find the exact same machine Trixie had broken and get it delivered to his apartment before the workday was over.

***

A knock caught Violet’s attention. She was back in the office, writing out her to-do list from the meeting, her nails clacking away on the keyboard.

“Violet?” Max Malaphany was standing in the door, a smile on his lips. “Is she in?”

Max was an impossibly tall British man, his soft short hair grey, his eyes blue.

“Sorry,” Violet quickly pressed save, turning her chair. “Fame is in a meeting, but I can pencil you in for later?”

Max was Galactica’s main photographer, and one of Fame’s treasured darlings. He had a studio on the top floor, his sure hands and endless patience capturing all in house media, Galactica producing every single shot for their website themself, and while Violet wouldn’t have believed it made that much of a difference, their online portfolio had thousands and thousands of visitors every single day.  

“I’ll just wait here.” Max was carrying a portable light table under his arm, and Violet could only guess what would be in his backpack. “I’ll only be a moment.”

If it had been anyone else, she would have protested, ushered them out of her little front office one way or the other, but Max was different. He was one of the few calming presences at Galactica, he never probed, rarely gossiped, and Violet truly enjoyed that about him.

“Do you want some water?” Violet had a mini-fridge under her desk stocked with the most important supplies, since she never knew when Fame’s cravings or the mood of her guests would strike.

“I’d love that.”

She quickly grabbed him a water, and Max settled down in one of the plush armchairs normally reserved for visitors. He didn’t start talking, wasn’t trying to make chit chat that would inevitably turn awkward, which was why Violet had allowed him to stay.

She went back to her memo, working for a little while but her eyes were stinging, and she only barely managed to hide a yawn behind her hand.

“Are you feeling alright, Violet?” Max asked gently.

“What?” In spite of her exhaustion, Violet was in a fairly good mood, and while she didn’t have the sunniest disposition, she wasn’t actively annoyed at the moment. She quickly checked her face in the glass door to the office, smoothing down her hair.

“You look lovely as always, Violet.” Max smiled. “I was only asking because, well, I’ve never seen you slouch before. Are you feeling unwell?”

“Oh…” Violet straightened her back, her fingers in her thick black locks. “I’m fine. Thanks.”

“Okay.” Max nodded. His expression was so understanding, his manner so patient, that Violet did something she rarely ever did. She offered more information.

“I’m just tired, I-” Violet swallowed down a nervous chuckle, her tongue feeling like it was growing in size in her mouth. “I don’t sleep well these days. The electricity in my building, isn’t, it isn’t very stable, and I keep having these nightmares where my phone runs out of charge so I miss an important call and-”

“Oh dear.”

Violet realized how stupid she had to sound, but she had woken up covered in sweat thinking she had missed calls from Fame, any rest she got broken up by the worry that she wasn’t doing her job.

“I’m sorry. It’s nothing to worry about really,” Violet assured him. “The landlord said they’ll rewire the building-” Max didn’t need to know that her landlord had been promising that exact thing the entire time Violet had been living there, but she didn’t really have any other options, her student debt way too much for her to even consider spending another penny on rent. “I’m sure it’ll work itself out.”

“Well, I wish you the best of luck with that,” he said sincerely. Just then, the door opened and Jaida, the company's CFO, came out.

“Max!” Fame appeared in the doorway, a delighted smile on her face.

Violet’s stomach turned to ice, everything in her begging that Fame hadn’t heard her complain.

“Hello Miss. I know you’re terribly busy, but I wondered if you could spare a few minutes to discuss the test shoot for the new brochures yesterday?”

“Of course, anything for you!” Fame said. She truly was a different person in Max’s presence, Violet noted. Softer and calmer--as most people were.

“Wonderful.”

***

“Oh I don’t know about this light for orange, it’s so ghastly-” Fame was chewing her lip, a lens in her hand as she went over the pictures Max had brought in for her.

“Fame?”

“Yes dearest?” Fame looked up. She loved Max. When Pearl had told her of a British wildlife photographer she had met in LA and bullied into taking her picture, Fame hadn’t been interested. As always, Pearl had proven to have an eye for talent that few could compete with, her social media director not only able to sniff out trends like a bloodhound, no, she knew people, and she knew them instantly.

Max had a rare talent for capturing the natural beauty of an unnatural world, so much of fashion made up of things that didn’t matter, but when he shot, when he turned his lens on someone, he captured all the best they could offer each and every time.

“I heard Ivy moved in with her boyfriend.”

“Mmh?” It was indeed true. Raja’s assistant, Ivy, had been living in the building Fame and Patrick owned for a few years. Fame and Raja had almost gotten in a fight, something that never happened, when Ivy’s house in Queens had been torn down, but in the end Raja had gotten her will, Ivy moving into the studio apartment on the top floor. “She left two weeks ago.”

Fame had meant to find someone else to take the apartment, but that building was special. It wasn’t just an apartment complex, it was a place where she kept her chosen ones, a safe haven she offered to talent that she trusted.

“You know, Violet doesn’t have reliable electricity. In her building. I mean.”

“Oh Max.” Fame smiled, touching Max’s knee. “You have always had such a tender heart.”

[believingispowerfulmagic]

“The Christmas Cottage” Chapter 4: The Christmas Cottage

           Regina was relieved when she boarded the elevator the next morning and did not see Robin. She knew she would have to face him soon but she was grateful for the few more minutes to steel herself for that moment. Her hand went to her phone, once again in her back pocket, as she wished Daniel had returned her calls or texts. She really needed to hear his voice at that moment and she felt a little let down that he wasn’t answering.

           To her relief, Robin did not show up for breakfast and most of those there were too hungover to really engage in conversation. She was able to eat in peace and quiet, though she still was unable to look at Mary Margaret for most of her meal.

           Her luck continued to hold when Anna announced that the groomsmen and the bridesmaids would once again be separated for the day. All were going to enjoy the hotel’s spa services but would be in different rooms. Regina spent the day being pampered with a massage, facial, manicure, pedicure and time in the sauna. She decided to stay by Mary Margaret’s side and enjoyed catching up with her friend. It was as if the tension from the night before had just been a nightmare.

           She felt much better heading into dinner. They had had some free time after their spa treatments and everyone else wanted to take a nap, leaving Regina to work guilt-free. Gold had sent her an email praising the work she had done the night before and asking for a few more briefs to be done this time. Pleased with her progress, she tackled the bigger one before changing for dinner. It would give her time to spend some time with the smaller ones afterwards and complete them before midnight.

           Striding off the elevator, she felt better than she had almost twenty-four hours earlier. However, as she approached the restaurant, she slowed her pace when she saw Robin outside. His head was bent down to check something on his phone and she wondered if she could pass him without him noticing. Taking a deep breath, she resumed her pace as she prepared to enter the restaurant.

           “Here, I’ll get the door for you,” he said, opening the door as he tucked his phone into his pocket.

           Cursing her luck, she asked: “Why? You going to hold that against me too?”

           “Not everyone has an ulterior motive when they do something, Regina. Sometimes people are just being nice,” he said, the hardness back in his voice.

           “Yeah, well excuse me if I don’t believe that when it comes to you,” she replied, brushing past him.

           “A simple thank you would’ve sufficed!” he called after her. Her cheeks burned as she kept moving forward, pointedly ignoring him.

           Granny frowned as she approached the bar. “Are you and Robin arguing again?”

           “He started it,” Regina replied, not caring how petulant she sounded. She ordered an apple martini from the bartender and turned to Granny. “He really twisted the knife after I left last night.”

           Her grandaunt nodded. “He did look really upset both before he followed you and when he got back. I was concerned.”

           “He let me have it,” Regina said, thanking the bartender as he handed her drink to her. She took a sip and let the alcohol slide down her throat, warming her stomach.

           Recalling what Robin had said the day before, she frowned as she asked: “Granny…did you have a heart attack recently?”

           Granny scowled. “He told you about that?”

           The way she worded it and said that statement told Regina that it was true. Her heart sank as she asked: “Why didn’t you tell me about it?”

           “I didn’t want you to feel bad. I knew you wouldn’t have been able to get away and you would’ve felt so guilty about it,” Granny replied.

           Sadness tinged with anger coursed through Regina. “You’re my family, Granny. I would’ve liked to know. And I would’ve liked to have been given the chance to try to come to see you. I could’ve taken family leave or something.”

           “It was okay, Regina,” Granny insisted though her tone reminded kind and soothing. “Ruby was with me and almost everyone in Storybrooke checked in with me. Robin also stopped by for about a week too.”

           She knew her grandaunt was trying to comfort her but it only made Regina feel worse. “He came from God’s know where and I was down in New York clueless. I could’ve been here so much faster.”

           “We didn’t want to bother you,” she replied.

           “You mean you knew I would ultimately choose work over you,” Regina said, taking a gulp of her martini this time. The alcohol, though, did little to dull the pain filling her heart.

           Granny gently took her arm. “Come on. I think we need to have a little chat.”

           She led Regina over to some chairs in a rather private corner of the room. They sat down and she took Regina’s drink, setting it on a nearby table that was still within their sight. Granny took both of Regina’s hands in her own. “I know you feel crucified for being focused on work and I want you to know that there’s nothing wrong with that. Everyone has their own lives to live, Regina, and no one should be made to feel guilty about how they live it.”

           “I can sense there’s a but in there though,” Regina said, feeling even worse than after her argument with Robin.

           Granny sighed. “I’m not going to lie and say you haven’t broken a lot of promises and hearts because of your work.”

           “So Robin was right,” she replied soberly. “I am my mother.”

           “He said that?” Granny asked. When Regina nodded, she shook her head and muttered under her breath: “I’m going to give that boy the lecture to end all lectures.”

           Louder, she told Regina “You are not your mother but you have inherited certain aspects of your personality from her, especially your ambition. Cora was a very ambitious woman.”

           “Who didn’t care how her ambitions affected her family,” Regina replied bitterly, remembering broken promises and a childhood full of disappointments until Cora just left for good. Would she do that to her loved ones?

           Would they be better off without her in their lives?

           “That’s where you differ,” Granny insisted. “You clearly care.”

           “I still broke my promise to Mary Margaret,” Regina pointed out.

           Granny nodded. “But you’re here. You’re supporting her and doing your best to juggle your time in order to make her a priority. And that definitely counts toward something.”

           “Thank you, Granny,” Regina said.

           “You’re welcome.” Granny patted her hand. “I have a few more pieces of advice to dispense, if you’re willing to listen.”

           Swallowing, Regina nodded. “I’m always willing to listen to you.”

           “Good.” Granny cleared her throat. “First, there is nothing wrong with getting fulfillment from work and Robin is the last person who should criticize anyone for doing that.”

           Regina frowned. “He has a job?”

           “Yes, he does.”

           “I thought he just traveled the world,” Regina said. “Certainly that can’t be a job.”

           Granny frowned. “You didn’t know? He works with an organization that provides aid to places that need it the most.”

           “Oh,” she replied, feeling like a heel. She had thought he was just goofing off in different countries and in reality, he had been working with people who needed help. Regina started to believe she was a monster after all.

           “He found his calling,” Granny continued, “and you found yours. Or at least you found something that allows you to have the life you want.”

           Regina thought of her apartment and though there were many things she still wanted, she knew she would have the means to achieve them. “Yeah…”

           “So don’t let anyone shame you for that. There’s only one thing that matters—that you’re happy,” Granny advised. She patted Regina’s knee. “Now, I’m going to get some food. You coming?”

           “Yes,” Regina said, picking up her drink. She paused before turning back to her grandaunt. “Can you promise me something?”

           “Of course,” Granny said.

           Regina took her hand. “Next time something big happens to you, please call me to at least tell me. I’d like to know, even if I can’t come.”

           Granny nodded, patting her hand. “You’re right. I promise to make sure someone calls you.”

           “Thank you.” Regina hugged her grandaunt. “I love you, Granny.”

           “I love you too, Regina,” Granny replied. She then released Regina and stood, heading over to the buffet. After taking a deep breath, Regina picked up her drink and followed her.

Continue reading on FFN, AO3 or Wattpad

[thewritewolf]

Rekindle Chapter 25: Puss in Boots

Adrien and Marinette discuss the Mayor’s celebration over breakfast.

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@marichatmay

Enjoy!

Read on Ao3

“A party, huh? About time we got some recognition.” Plagg swallowed the cheese wedge he had been working on whole, then floated towards the refrigerator.

“For once, I’m with Plagg on this,” Adrien said as he sat at the kitchen table. They hadn’t been awake for very long, but Marinette had already brought up Mayor Andre’s upcoming banquet at the city hall. “It’s nice to be rewarded for our good deeds, even if it is just an event in our honor.”

Marinette finished the eggs and toast she had made them for breakfast, sitting across from Adrien as they dug in. She gestured at him with a fork. “You make it sound like we’ve gone unappreciated all this time. We were barely a year into this when we got the first statue built for us, remember?” He conceded the point with a nod and they ate in silence for a few moments. “So… do you want to go?”

Adrien smirked. “Why, my lady, are you asking me to be your partner at the ball?”

“Not if you’re going to be weird about it,” she said with a teasing lilt to her voice. “Besides, it won’t be like a super fancy ball… right?” She’d done some sketches last night while waiting to become tired and none of them would work for a high class function.

Unfortunately, Adrien shook his head. “No, Andre has really gone all out for bigger, fancier parties in the last few years. I guess his businesses are doing pretty good or something? At least he has more money to flaunt. Anyway, he tends to prefer more high class gatherings these days. My…” He cleared his throat. “Gabriel and I were always invited.”

“But… everyone is invited to this one!” Even as she said that, her mind was thinking of new designs, the old ones effectively dead to her now.

“I’m sure he said that, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he turned away anyone not in a decent suit.” He took another bite and added without looking up. “It used to be that you had to have an Agreste wardrobe to enter, but something tells me that particular restriction isn’t going to be present this time around.”

Marinette absently stirred her coffee with a frown as she considered what Adrien had said. “So Gabriel and Andre were… friends then?”

To her surprise, he scoffed. “I don’t think he had friends, exactly. But they certainly had connections with each other.” He stared into his coffee, both hands wrapped around his cup as he set it on the table. “Maybe that’s why Andre is making this such a public event. Trying to distance himself from Gabriel as much as possible.”

“Maybe.” She smiled brightly, prying one of his hands off the cup and to hold it. “But that doesn’t mean we can’t have a good time. Assuming you still want to go?”

In an instant, the gloom that had started to surround him vanished. He returned her smile. “If you’re there, I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

“There’s my sweet kitty,” she whispered while gently running a hand along his cheek. More loudly, she asked, “Do you need me to design your outfit? I’ll be making mine, so it might be nice to be matching.”

He shook his head. “You’re amazing, but I don’t think there is enough time for you to make us both something. Besides, I think I’ve already got an idea.” He leaned back in his chair and looked towards the refrigerator. “Right, Plagg?”

Annoyed, the black kwami floated out of the appliance. “What are you on about, kid?”

“We can make modifications to our suits, right?”

“Yeah, I guess…” Plagg replied grudgingly.

“Then it shouldn’t be a problem for me to look like a musketeer?”

“Ughhh, that sounds like a lot of work.” Not for the first time, Marinette wondered how diligent, efficient Tikki had managed to put up with Plagg for this long. Or how Adrien had, for that matter.

“There’s camembert in it for you.”

“What do you think I’m eating now?” Plagg waved a wedge of cheese about as large as he was in front of Adrien.

“About as much camembert as you’ll be getting for the next month if you don’t help me.”

With a dramatic gasp, Plagg replied, “You wouldn’t.”

“You’d be surprised how far I’d be willing to go for love.”

As Plagg floated away, grumbling, Marinette asked, “Musketeer?”

“Yeah! That way I can be my lady’s dashing knight.”

She put her dishes away and returned to kiss Adrien’s cheek. “Aw, kitty. You’ll always be my dashing knight, no matter what you’re wearing.” As he beamed under her compliment she grinned and added, “My own little puss in boots. You’ll be so cute!”

“...I think I’ll stick with dashing knight, if it’s all the same to you.”

He stood up to take his own dishes to the sink, only to have Marinette hug him around the waist and obnoxiously yell into his chest, “PUSS. IN. BOOTS.”

Chuckling, he tried to shove her off, but failed to shift her. She assumed because he didn’t want to hurt her. “You're a ridiculous woman!”

Chin on his chest and looking up into his eyes, she murmured, “I am your ridiculous woman.”

He returned the hug after setting down his plate. “And I’m grateful for you always.”

“There’s my dashing knight.” Leaning forward on her toes, she caught his lips with hers. The day had officially begun.

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

The two weeks passed uneventfully as the two of them made their preparations for the party. It had taken some negotiating and fine tuning, but he had managed to get the suit done in just the way he had been envisioning it. His wide brimmed hat had a light green feather tucked inside it, to match his full black musketeer uniform. The only part of his suit he’d been unable to alter were his ears, mask, and baton. At least Marinette hadn’t seemed to mind.

Now it was the night of the party and Adrien found himself pacing nervously in their living room. It was the first time in months that he’d be out in public and expected to be social. While it would be as Chat Noir rather than Adrien, he was still worried. Even if he knew he had no reason to be afraid. For now, he stuffed those thoughts aside as he waited for Marinette to emerge in her dress. Despite his curiosity, he’d deliberately avoided watching Marinette work on her gown specifically to give this reveal all the more impact. And as she stepped out of their shared bedroom, he was glad that he did.

She’d really outdone herself this time, the pinnacle of class with her strapless, sweetheart neckline dress. The bodice of her dress was black, but with red Swarovski Crystals scattered across it. As his eyes floated downward, he noted the many layered chiffon ball gown and saw her genius unfold. While the first layer was black, it was semi-transparent, showing off the red with black polka dots of the lower layers. It was subtle and refined, but gorgeous. His eyes snapped to hers as she giggled. He caught a glimpse of a familiar ruby necklace that had caught his attention during a patrol a few days ago, and a less familiar bejeweled ladybug clip in her hair.

“See something you like, minou?” She gave him a smirk and she stopped in front of him, her red strappy pumps clicking against the wood floor.

“Only everything,” he said as he kissed her hand. He held out his arm for her. Once she had taken it, they made their way out of the apartment. “Are you ready to arrive at this party in style?”

“If by ‘style’ you mean, ‘the arms of a superhero,’ then yes. Though you might have to give me a couple minutes after we land to fix anything.”

He chuckled as they stepped onto the streets and he scooped her into his arms and pulled out his baton. “As you wish, my lady.”

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

To Marinette’s immense relief, they managed to get in without any trouble and were having a good time in the middle of their fifth song of the night. And despite her fears of being overdressed, they weren’t too out of place. Honestly, the only thing that set them apart from the crowd was-

“Gaudy stuff here tonight, isn’t it?” Chat whispered into her ear as they slow danced on the open floor, his hands on her hips and her arms around his neck. She had her head against his chest, quietly enjoying the fact that despite the modifications, his suit still smelled like leather and Adrien. “Not at all like what you made.”

“That’s… Well...” She bit her lip, trying to be tactful. But he was right, most of the outfits were a spectacle, sure, but they weren’t good quality. Already the floor was starting to get a fine layer of red and black dust from what was flaking off the worst outfits present. She shook her head, lips curling slightly in disgust at the poor craftsmanship. “I get the feeling some shops made a killing these last couple weeks.”

Chat snorted. “No wonder. The mayor kinda threw that theme out at the last minute, didn’t he? And not everyone has a master seamstress on hand to custom make dresses at the drop of a hat.”

“I’m not a master yet, but… thanks. And you’ve got a fair point. It all seems kinda last minute, doesn’t it?”

She was about to comment on a lack of Mayor Andre, but then the lights cut out except for a spotlight on the stage. The slow dance music was swapped out for something generic yet vaguely patriotic. Stepping into the light was the mayor himself. She didn’t feel like it had been that long since she had seen him in person last - as Ladybug, she often bumped shoulders with the man, whether she wanted to or not. Something about him always felt a little sleazy, even if he covered it up with his wealth and prestige.

The man now on the stage, however, felt like someone else entirely. He seemed to have aged twenty years in the span of a couple months and despite his wide smile, she could see the panic in his eyes, and the fear that he was barely able to conceal under a layer of false confidence, proved by the sweat dripping down his face.

Mayor Andre began his speech - something about rallying together and putting the past behind them. It quickly became clear that Marinette wasn’t alone in her observations. She picked up the words, ‘scandal’ and ‘corruption’ in the whispering around her. Maybe Adrien wasn’t too far off in his guess about why the festivities were being held in the first place.

A slight murmur washed across the room and Marinette pulled away from Chat, suddenly on alert as her eyes snapped back to the stage. Her eyes widened as she saw the mayor clutch at his chest and fall to his knees. Before anyone could do anything, the doors to the outside burst open, letting in five men covered head to toe in jagged, black plate armor, brandishing two handed swords. The crowd panicked as four of them began charging towards them, leaving the fifth to approach the mayor.

She glanced over at Chat Noir, who was watching her in turn. She nodded to him and a spark passed between them, a moment of perfect understanding.

They were still heroes, and these people needed their help.

[kylieinwashington]

Monuments & Memorials

OK - I was toooooo tired to finish this last night - so here it is a day late.

Sunday, Nov. 25, 2018

It is almost 11:00 PM and we have been home less than 30 minutes.  We topped 20,000 steps in our quest to see and understand most of the Monuments and Memorials that ring the Mall and/or live close by.

During breakfast this morning the girls - who knows who started it - began singing songs from Hamilton.  It was so cute and went on and on.  Finally we had to began our day so we headed out about 8:45.  We had talked about the amazing gift James Smithson gave to the United States so of course our first outing this AM was to the Smithsonian Castle and James Smithson’s tomb - which looks a lot like a bathtub...

There are currently 17 Smithsonian Museums dedicated to science, history, art and culture and each one more fabulous than the next and free to everyone.  The weather today was glorious.  Sunshine and temps in the high 50 -maybe even the in 60! - had us shedding our coats and enjoying the two meals we shared outdoors today.  (More on our rather crazy outside dinner later!)

From the Smithsonian Castle we walked to the Washington Monument when Charlotte was our teacher.  Prior to our trip, I assigned all the kids the job of learning about a specific monument and being our teacher.  They were all very excited to take the teacher role - and today was the day.  Charlotte was well prepared and excited to present and she carefully positioned us to view the beautiful monument and hear her lecture.

The 555 foot Washington Monument is closed currently -  and indefinitely, according to the sign -  while they try to repair or replace the elevator that has not worked with enough regularity to open it to the public since the 2011 earthquake. It was open 3 years ago when I was here with Colin but closed again shortly after our visit.  Charlotte was a font of information and had our deepest attention.  She was very proud of her “speech” and so were we.

From there we walked to the World War II Memorial.  We prepped the kids with lots of talk of World War II and sent them to speak to one of the many volunteers about several subjects.

They had much work to do in their notebooks and moved around the monuments identifying one feature after another and understanding the symbolism it possessed.

From there we went to Signer’s island, a sweet little island that has the signature of all the 58 signers of the Declaration of Independence.  We talked about the risks these men were taking by signing the document as the action truly was high treason punishable by death.  I asked the kids to make rubbings of several of the signatures and as we did that we talked about who among us would have had the bravery to sign that document.  

The answer was simple - NONE of us.  Yes, if it had been left to the 6 of us, we would still be subjects of England.  Hmmmmm...

A picnic lunch was next and we sat in the magnificent sunshine and ate our lunch we had packed earlier in the day.  Perhaps the most interesting part of lunch were the very friendly Washington DC squirrels.  

Those little suckers KNEW we had food and they saw no reason why we couldn’t just share.  (But we didn’t.)

After lunch and squirrel shooing we headed to the Viet Nam War Memorial.  I CANNOT get through this without tears - no matter how many times I have been there.  We started at the Nurses Memorial statue (which was strewn with long stem roses) and the kids did not disappoint to look, think, reflect and try to understand.  I assured them that however they interpret any sculpture is correct but we pushed them to look deeper and think harder.  They saw the dedication, fear and exhaustion in the eyes of the nurses.  They identified the sandbags but didn’t know why they were there and when we told them they were horrified.  I KNOW these kids got more out of the statue than 99% of all adults who view it.

Next we looked up the names of soldiers on The Wall, one from Ann Arbor, Saline and Boulder, CO and then went to find them.  Moving.  

We talked about the design of the monument and the designer.  But nothing is more impactful that walking that wall and getting deeper and deeper into the list of dead and then actually seeing the name you are searching for - right before your eyes.

We finished this Memorial by visiting the Soldier’s Statues.  Again the kids were very insightful and willing to be pushed pass what you see on the first pass.  I love it.

Next up was The Korean War Memorial.  Here we talked about the United Nations Coalition and the very clever way in which the designer of the monument used the 19 soldiers and the reflective black marble to tell us about the 38th parallel that still divides the Korean Peninsula.  I was born during this hot mess and I am always struck with how long this has continued.  Sadly hate has a long shelf life.  :(

We walked right through the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial because we have big plans for that tonight but I could not miss taking this amazing pic!

Next we walked to the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial.  I love the way the designer uses water to represent the mood/health of the nation.  I will forever be grateful for all the benefits of the CCC and the WPA.  Brilliant.  We talked about the soup kitchens and the “fireside chats” but mostly we focused on the quotes.  Every single quote holds true today and I wish the leaders of our country would embrace his caring empathic thoughts. 

 I truly enjoyed discussing these quotes with these brilliant young minds and I have hope that maybe their generation can clean up the mess we are are making.  Sigh....

Eleanor Roosevelt was next and we talked about “walking the walk.”  She was the perfect example of this.

Next up was the beautiful Thomas Jefferson Memorial with teacher Kylie.  

She was so excited and did a wonderful job - although she did have us move from the top to the bottom and right back up (our legs were sooooo tired) . The climbing, however was completely relevant and necessary because how else could we see the beautiful and significant frieze on the portico?  Well done!

This ended our major walking tour and all we had to do was jump on the Circulator bus and head to Union Station for dinner and our tour to see the remaining significant monuments.  But we missed the bus by about 3 minutes and had to wait for 27 minutes for the next one.  Then it was the slow roll to Union Station.  Gwynn read that restaurants in Union Station close at 6:00 on Sunday and our tour was a 6:30 and as the bus creeped down the roads the time ticked away.  To make things more stressful the inside lights of the bus stayed on which meant NO ONE could see outside and IF the driver was announcing the stop he was doing it in a tiny whisper - so we had no idea where we were and when we needed to get off.  I kept looking out of the window only to see myself which was NOT helpful.  I  had a map but I needed just ONE POINT OF REFERENCE - (just like the astronauts in Apollo 13!) - and finally Dylan said - Hey there is the Washington Monument!”  Bingo!!!!

We FINALLY arrived at Union Station at 6:01.  The kids are hungry - but not quite HANGRY - but it couldn’t be too far behind.  BUT the food places were open although people were already lining up for our tour we grabbed some food and went outside to wait.  We got food ASAP and headed outside where we ate on something that worked as a table but was NOT a table.

We boarded the bus to this view:

We spent 30 minutes at the MLK Jr Memorial and the kids used every second filling in their books and talking about the amazing quote on the walls surrounding the Memorial.  This makes my heart sing!

We spent an additional 30 minutes at the Lincoln Memorial and believe me that it was NOT enough time.  But what a wonderful time.

Finally, teacher Dylan was up for the Marine Corps Memorial - Iwo Jima.  He was prepared and fabulous.  I was very proud of all of our teachers today - and so were they.

Finally we boarded the Metro and headed “home.”  To say we were tired would be an understatement.

But I can say we had a day filled with education, thoughtful discussion and discovery - and THAT my friends is a day well done.

Stay tuned.

[maevefiction]

Your Light in the Mist - Chapter 11

More than a week had elapsed since my last yoga session, and I was pleasantly surprised at my lack of stiffness. My iPod sat silent in the grass next to my mat…the sound of the waves crashing against the rocks proved to be the only music I required. Especially at six in the morning. The sun had just begun to rise behind us, its warmth exacerbating the flush my workout normally provided.

Simon’s skill level was far, far above mine, and some of the poses he worked through made me stop dead in my tracks as I admired the way his body seemed to defy the very laws of physics. He volunteered to work with me whenever we had the time, and I gratefully accepted, though I fully understood that a grace such as his was something that couldn’t be taught.

We chatted while cooling down, learning that our birthdays were only a day apart, his on October 30th, mine on October 31st. He found my being a Halloween baby hilarious, and I was tickled that we shared the same astrological sign. Fellow Scorpios - no wonder he’d liked my tank top. I tried to get him to reveal his birth year, but he adamantly refused until I offered mine up first. The look of delight on his face as he screeched out ‘me too!’ was adorable, and when he high-fived me and christened me his sister from another mister I embraced him and kissed his cheek, grinning at the lovely blush it caused.

I took a seat at the patio table and opened my laptop with the intention of starting work on Tom’s website design. Simon sat next to me, both of us facing the ocean, and he began typing away on his phone. He harrumphed and gave me some wicked side eye.

My brow furrowed. “For fuck’s sake, what NOW?”

He showed me his screen, scrolling through his inbox. “Seven more since last night. You’ve made an awful lot of extra work for me, woman.” I rolled my eyes. He turned on his chair to face me. “I’m curious, though…I thought you just lectured to and consulted with PR firms, which would mean their actual clients wouldn’t know much about you at all. So, it’s kinda surprising that an artist would be willing to jump ship and leave their current rep in the dust to wind up where you are, wouldn’t you say?”

I sighed and finished editing my open layer in Photoshop before replying. “I started out working directly with clients. My first was Anne Rice. She’s is a family friend and was willing to give me a cha…”

He put a hand on my shoulder and shoved. “GET. OUT. I’m assuming this means you’re from or lived in New Orleans at some point? But it mustn’t have been for long, because you have zero accent.”

“Your assumption is correct. Born there, raised there, relocated to New York City in 1998.”

He nodded emphatically. “So you dumped the accent. Understandable.”

It was my turn for side eye. “I didn’t dump it. It just…faded.”

He snorted. “Whatever you say, Maude.”

I pinched his arm, reveling in the resulting squeal he emitted. “Faded. I’m like a chameleon with accents. Soon I’ll be picking up your dialect and sounding like a pretentious asshat, too. In which case, you have my permission to kill me.”

“You can call me anything you like as long as you solemnly swear to take me to Mardi Gras next year.”

I rolled my eyes and held up my hand, palm towards him. “Simon. Please. I don’t think you’re ready for that sort of thing. But, if you start training now, we might be able to pull it off.”

He tilted his head like an oversized puppy. “Training for what? Drinking heavily? I’ve been training for that for years.”

“No. Throwing beads into the crowd. And doing the princess wave.” I demonstrated both. “Because if we go, you must ride on a parade float. It can be arranged. I know people.” I frowned. “At least, I used to know people. Anyway, what I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted was that she was my first client, and it gave me a lot of clout. For which I am eternally grateful. I moved on after three years or so with her and began working directly with clients, most of whom were too small to have a decent PR firm behind them. I did everything, created websites, set up Facebook accounts, provided instructions on how to post, when to post, what to post, yada yada. Lots of hand holding and cajoling. Word spread, and bigger names took notice, which led to PR firms hiring me to work one-on-one with their clients for a specified duration. Most of them already had websites in place, so my focus shifted entirely to social media. In early 2010, I was invited to speak for two hours at a PR conference in San Diego…they wanted me to lecture on enhancing client reputation through social media. It was winter in New York, and they were willing to pay for my travel expenses so I thought, California? Fuck it, why not?”

Simon’s legs were crossed, his upper body leaning in towards me as he listened attentively. I had paused, and he motioned for me to continue.

“So, I spoke for two hours and they handed me a check for three thousand dollars. That was more than I normally made in an entire week and it blew my tiny little mind.  It seemed to be vastly less stressful than dealing with super huge egos and non-tech savvy artists and damn, the money. I adjusted my entire business model, and within a month I was turning down engagements because my calendar was full. PR firms were still asking me for assistance, so I set up a consulting procedure wherein I’d outline a plan for them to implement, collected my fee and was on my way. It was all so…easy.”

He laughed loudly. “And you decided to work for Prosper why?”

“Because my ‘easy’ job and the cash it generated had taken over my entire life. I was the job and the job was me. Much to my surprise, lecturing and consulting long term turned out to be a soul sucking bore…and it transformed me into a miserable drudge. I am, at heart, a creative individual and I missed doing graphic and website design, photography, and learning new things. Terribly. Working for Prosper allows me to do all that again, and then some. That’s why.”

He leaned back in his chair and rubbed his chin with one hand. “And I’m sure it has nothing to do with the exquisite creature sleeping soundly in your bed right now.”

“No, it doesn’t. He was actually the reason why I seriously considered declining Luke’s offer.” Simon looked puzzled, but I didn’t elaborate. “So. Why did you leave such a prestigious position at the Dorchester to become a PA? Just for Luke? Or is there more to the story?”

He grinned. “Damn, turned it right around on me, didn’t you? Touché, my friend. I went to university for business management and administrative assistance, and worked in the field until 2005. Cooking had always been my passion, and I had some sort of spiritual awakening wherein I decided I absolutely needed to become a professional chef or else I would shrivel up and die. So I did. I moved from place to place, learning, working, partying my ass off, and finally landed the sous chef spot at the Dorchester in 2009. It was dandy at first, but as the years passed I felt like I’d grown stagnant, doing the same thing night after night, having little input on menu changes and so on. Like you, I was bored. I was averaging 70 hours a week in that kitchen, cut off from the world, and it hit me that all I had gotten out of it was a nicely padded bank account…and that there was no one to share it with. I’d always loved being around lots of people, and there I was seeing nothing but the same damn faces day in and day out. In 2013 I happened across Luke’s ad, reworked my resume, and the rest is history. Unlike you, though, I don’t think I would have taken the job if it wasn’t for him, because the salary was abysmal. As soon as I saw him, I knew. He was it. The one. Love at first sight. I thank my lucky stars every single day that he felt the same way.”

After wiping the tears from his eyes, he took hold of my hand. “Maude, I don’t know if he’s mentioned it or not, but Tom’s had a rough time of it lately, and I’m so, so happy that you’ve found each other.”

“Me too, Simon.” I smiled, letting go of his hand. “Now, please, for the love of all things holy, shut your cake hole so I can get some work done, okay?”

“God, you are such a bitch.”

“I am. And you’re still talking. Cease.”

We worked quietly, side by side, until Luke poked his head out the doors to inquire as to when Simon planned on getting his butt in the kitchen and making some breakfast. As he got up from his chair, he peered over my shoulder at my laptop screen. I had a basic layout set and was in the process of choosing a color combination that would contrast perfectly.

“Wow, that’s a right brilliant color palette you have there, Maude. Is that for Tom’s site?”  

I nodded. “Does it look…familiar?”

He stared. “Yes…maybe…should it?”

I opened the tab that contained the HD photo of Tom’s eye that I’d drawn all my color options from. “Tada.”

Simon poked my shoulder and called for Luke to come see. He padded out onto the lanai, looked over my shoulder, nodded, then put his hands on his hips.

“So, when are you going to use your magic to revamp the Prosper site?”

I closed my laptop and put my head in my hands, then pushed my chair back and went to wait in the kitchen, muttering to myself about peace and solitude and how I couldn’t find any even though I was in paradise.

Tom bounded our of our bedroom just as Simon was plating our pancakes and bacon, freshly showered, wearing a pair of faded, loose fitting jeans and a tight, light blue V-neck tee. I leaned back on my bar stool and around the counter to look at his feet. Scuffed, well-worn boots. When my eyes finally made their way up to his face I was greeted with a dazzling, toothy smile. I groaned.

Simon pinched his cheeks. “Lovely of you to join us, Thomas.”

Tom lowered himself elegantly onto the stool to my right, resting his hand on my spandex-clad thigh as he leaned in to kiss me.

“Good morning, Maude. How was yoga?”

“Spectacular, actually. Simon and I had a lovely chat and I even managed to get some work done in spite of it.” He laughed and began slowly sliding his hand up my leg, edging ever closer to the apex of my thighs. Simon set our plates in front of us, raising a brow as he spied what Tom was up to.

“Um, excuse me. This is a fine dining establishment, people. No foreplay is permitted.” I glanced up from my plate and saw Luke directly behind him, hand cupping Simon’s ass.

“Whatever, asshole.” I pointed at my short stack. “Do you have syrup for these?”

He pulled a pot off the stove and spooned some of its contents onto them. “Made with fresh pineapples. Especially for you.”

All eyes were on me as they waited for a reaction. I broke off a hunk of pancake with my fork and shoved it in my mouth. “Mmm, yummy. Thank you.” Luke looked at Tom, who shrugged. I took another bite of breakfast. “Yeah, nice try, losers. I happen to like pineapples. Just not on pizza.”

Tom put his arm around my waist, pulled me to him and kissed the top of my head. “I had nothing to do with this. I swear it.”

I said nothing, ripping off a piece of bacon with my teeth instead. He tapped his fork on his plate.

“So, Maude, I was thinking…maybe we could take a ride out to Talk Story today? I called to see if Alani would be in, and she is.” I spun the stool around in his direction, dumbfounded. He smiled. “I did say I’d go back to meet her, did I not?”

“Yes. Yes you did.” I grabbed his hand and squeezed it. “What an amazingly generous thing to do. Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me just yet. You’re going to be the one in charge of crowd control.” He stole a strip of bacon from my plate and swallowed it down before I could even muster a protest.

“I’d rather corral a group of a hundred people than have to sit next to you while I’m trying to eat a fucking meal, bacon stealer. And everything else stealer.”

He snickered, and I wolfed down the rest of my food, rinsed my dishes, put them in the dishwasher and headed for the bedroom, finally noticing that Luke and Simon had disappeared. I wrote a giant ‘thanks for breakfast’ on the chalkboard in the kitchen and drew a smiley face to go with it, figuring we wouldn’t be seeing them again before we left.

*************************************** After my much needed shower, I wound up standing in my underwear, staring into yet another wardrobe wondering what the hell to wear. Tom looked too damn good for me to get away with shorts and a T-shirt, and my black tank dress just didn’t scream ‘please behave and listen to the nice lady’. Tom was waiting patiently for me, sitting at the desk answering emails and returning calls. I looked at his boots, then back and my limited selection of dresses. The brown chiffon galaxy print sleeveless wasn’t an exact match, but pretty damn close. I pulled it off its hanger and laid it on the bed so I could unzip the back without it winding up on the floor, chastising myself for giving in to my everything-must-coordinate OCD once again. I slipped it over my head, put my arms through the proper holes and managed to zip it up on my own, then went into the bathroom to figure out a hair strategy.

I’d just wrestled it into a braid when I overheard Tom talking in the bedroom.

“How’s Los Angeles? Elsa? Kids? Good to hear. Oh, she’s unbelievable, Chris. Here, I’ll take you in and you can meet her.” He came around the corner carrying his open laptop.

“Chris Hemsworth, Maude Gallagher.” He turned the screen toward me, and there he was, Thor, God of Thunder. In my bathroom. He held up a hand in greeting.

“Hello, Maude. Nice to meet you. See you? Skype you?” He face palmed. “I have no idea what the correct terminology is.” I heard a woman yell in the background that meet was fine and for him to bring the tablet over to her so she could see me. He got up and walked into another room, and a beautiful blonde woman came into view alongside Chris. She waved madly.

“Look at you, you’re gorgeous. A natural beauty. And that dress…I am in love with it. You must tell me where you found it.” Her accent was a delight. She grinned. “I’m Elsa, by the way. Tom has told us so much about you I feel like I know you already.”

I waved at them. “Hi there. Lovely to meet you both. I’d like to say Tom has told me so much about you, but that would be a big fat lie, so suffice to say I’m sure he will tell me so much about you when we aren’t quite so…so…shit, what’s the word I’m looking for here?”

Tom moved to stand next to me, shifting the laptop so we were both visible, smirking. “Preoccupied. The word you’re looking for is preoccupied.”

They laughed, and Chris grabbed at Elsa. “Remember when we were always preoccupied?”

She slapped his hand. “Oh yes. I do.  And that’s why now we’re preoccupied with three little ones, my darling Christopher.” I heard children crying in the background. Elsa said a quick goodbye and ran off, and Chris followed suit so he could assist.

Tom put the laptop on the counter and pulled me to him, hands on my ass as he pressed me up against his crotch and rammed his tongue in my mouth, then backed away quickly, leaving me panting. “Well, I guess we should get going.”

I shot him a scathing look. “We should. But I have to pee first.” He walked out into the bedroom. As I sat on the toilet, I weighed my options for getting even. I mentally high fived myself as I pulled my underwear off over my feet and left them on the bathroom floor.

*************************************** We parked a block down from Talk Story, and I scouted ahead and left Tom in the Jeep. My gladiator sandals clicked on the sidewalk as I half-jogged to my destination, anxious to see if Alani was at the desk. She was, and I texted him to come on down. He ran to meet me, and I stopped him from holding the door for me and letting me go in first.

“Nope, you should be the first thing she sees.” I had my phone all ready to go in order to capture the moment, planning on sending her a copy as a keepsake. He walked through, and she looked up as the bell dinged to announce that someone had entered the store and the look on her face was one I knew I’d remember forever. He approached her, hand extended, and I was right behind him.

“Hello, Alani. I’m Tom.” She remained motionless. He turned to me. “This is Maude. We were here on Monday, and she told me that you’re a fan of my work and would perhaps enjoy meeting me.” She nodded, gingerly lifting her arm up but unable to make herself grab his hand. He took the initiative, holding it to his lips and kissing it demurely. She squealed, so high pitched I thought my ears might bleed. Four other girls came running out of the stacks, took one look at him, and began jumping up and down, screaming, phones in hand. I stopped filming so I could set the boundaries before any issues arose, stepping between them and Tom.

“Hi, ladies. I’m Maude, Tom’s social media manager. Let’s go over some ground rules, okay?” They lowered their phones and nodded. “Tom wants to be able to take pictures, sign for and chat with all of you, but in order for him to be able to do so you need to make sure you don’t post anything to social media until after we leave the premises. No texting or calling, either. If a crowd turns up, we’ll have to cut things short, and where’s the fun in that?”  

A husky, bearded, bespectacled man came out from the stacks, wearing a white and green palm leaf print Hawaiian shirt and khaki hiking shorts. “Girls, what the heck is going on up here? Why all the screaming? You know people prefer quiet when they…” He stopped short when he saw Tom, his mouth dropping open, then quickly closing as he grew closer, hand proffered. I figured he was the owner, so I let him pass.

“Aloha, Mr. Hiddleston. I’m Roger Marshal, and Talk Story is my baby. I can’t begin to tell you how much I appreciate your stopping by again…the girls were so bummed when they learned they’d missed you on Monday.”

Tom shook his hand vigorously. “Thank you for having me. Your establishment is outstanding…I’m a bit of a bibliophile, and if I had my druthers I’d be perusing the shelves here for days on end. My apologies for dashing off so quickly when I was in last, but I had a prior obligation and thought it better to come back when I had more time to spend.” He turned to me. “This is Maude Gallagher, my social media manager.”

I offered my hand and he clasped it gently with one of his, then placed the other on top. “Maude, nice to meet you. Is there anything I can do to make this easier for you both?”

“Actually, would you happen to have a room available that’s a bit more private?”

He nodded, then turned his attention to the desk. “Sure thing. Alani, why don’t you show our guests to the staff lunch room?” Her eyes lit up, and the faces of the rest of the staff fell. “Girls, you go too. I’ll cover the desk.” They thanked him in unison between excited giggles.

I tried to hang back behind Tom, but he slowed and fell into step with me and slipped his arm around me, hand on my lower back, whispering in my ear. “The way you jumped in and took charge did…things…to me, Maude.” His let his hand glide lower and lower, halting when he reached the spot where the waistband of my underwear should be. He felt around with his fingers, over my hip, diving quickly down into the crease of my left buttock then back up to my waist, gripping me just a smidge too hard.

I met his gaze, noting his narrowed eyes and the way his tongue darted out over and over to lick his lips. I smirked and whispered back. “Gosh, I’m sorry. I forgot to mention that I’m not wearing any panties. They sorta fell off back at the house and are lying on the bathroom floor, all alone and unloved.” The hand on my waist began to shake as we reached the staff room and he began breathing deeply as he attempted to keep his shit together. And round two of Friday’s Titillation Tease goes to…me.

Tom spent nearly two hours taking selfies, videos, signing anything the girls could get their hands on, and answering their seemingly unlimited supply of questions. The giant cup of tea I’d had on the ride over had finally hit my bladder, and I excused myself and went off in search of the bathrooms. There was only a one, unisex, located all the way on the other side of the store, tucked into an alcove deep in the stacks. Nice and roomy, too. I envisioned Tom fucking me up against the wall, then scolded myself for my blatant lack of restraint as I texted him precisely what I’d been thinking while I walked back to the staff room.

Roger had come back to check on them, which Tom took as an indicator that it was time to wrap things up. He was hugging each of the girls goodbye in turn as they left the room, saving Alaini for last. She rested her head on his chest, facing me, and mouthed ‘he smells like a FOREST’ while hugging him tightly. Up until that moment, I hadn’t been sure whether she recognized me or not. She stepped back and looked at both of us.

“This has been, like, the best day of my life. I can never thank you enough.” Her eyes shone with tears. “Would it be okay if I took a picture of you guys together?”

I smiled. “Of course. But I think it would be better if you were in it, too.” We posed, and Tom held out her phone to get the shot. I was entering my Prosper email address into her phone so she could send me a copy and she was putting hers in mine so I could send her the video from earlier when she cleared her throat.

She looked up shyly. “Um, I don’t mean to be rude or get in your business or anything, but I was just, you know, wondering…” She swallowed. “Are you guys, like, a couple?”

Tom grinned. “Is it that obvious?”

Her brow furrowed. “Well, you know, I saw what you posted on Twitter yesterday and I was like, hmm, and I know you guys work together and now seeing you in person…yeah. It’s pretty obvious, I guess.”

Tom took my hand. “Yes, Alani. Maude isn’t just my social media manager…she’s my girlfriend as well. And can I let you in on a little secret?” She nodded, awestruck. “When you saw us here on Monday, that was the very first time we met. So you played a rather important role in what turned out to be the best day of my life so far.”

I kissed his cheek. “Mine too, Alani.”

Alani flopped onto the nearest chair, clutching her hands to her chest. “That. Is. So. Romantic.” She leapt back up and hugged me. “We all want him for ourselves, but if he has to be with someone else, I’m really glad it’s you.”  

I patted her on the back. “Thank you. Hearing you say that means so much…honestly, I don’t have the words to express properly how it made me feel.” We let go of each other, and she made her way back to the desk.

I turned to Tom. “I need to hit the bathroom again before we head out.” He nodded and followed my lead. He didn’t mention my text, and I assumed he hadn’t read it yet. We didn’t see another soul on the way there, and the stacks outside the alcove were deserted as well. I recalled my vision of Tom fucking me against the bathroom wall and decided this was going to be my shining moment of public indecency. I opened the door, stepped in, then turned around to face him, left eyebrow raised.

“Want to join me?” I licked my lips. He barged past me into the bathroom, fingers already working to unbuckle his belt.

“I thought you’d never ask.” I locked the door, then did a 180. He held his fully engorged cock in his right hand, stroking it, catching any drips with his left. “I do believe I need to put this somewhere immediately so I don’t make a terrible mess on the floor.”

I bit my bottom lip as I tilted my head to the side. “I think I’ve got just the place for it.”

He ceased his stroking in order to back me up against the wall, growling in my ear. “Oh yes. You most certainly do.” He bent his knees as he lifted the front of my dress up to my waist, and I wrapped my leg around his, grinding my dripping pussy against him while I rubbed my clit. He groaned, and I slipped my glistening finger into his mouth. He sucked on it, and I felt the head of his cock at my entrance and his hands cupping my ass, his full weight on me, pressing me firmly against the cool tile.

He was panting. “Put your other leg around me and your arms around my neck.” I did the latter, but scoffed at the former.

“Um, there is no way in hell you’re going to be able to hold me up.”

He leaned forward to stare into my eyes, and his expression made me whimper. “Leg. Up. Now. Please.” As I complied he sheathed himself fully. I tried to bite back a ridiculously loud moan but was only partially successful. His mouth met mine, tongues dancing around each other. He pulled back.

“Maude, my apologies, but once I start moving I fear I’m going to last all of thirty seconds. If I’m fortunate.”

I clamped down on him. He began thrusting wildly, and I focused all my energy on not coming before he did. I was doing well until he started whispering in my ear using his Loki voice.

“Give in, mortal. Come for me. I know you’ve dreamed of this, me fucking into you for all I’m worth, you pinned against the wall, unable to sway those mesmerizing hips and have your way with me as you ride my cock to find your own selfish pleasure.”

He pounded into me, almost savagely, and as he felt my walls begin to flutter he put his hand over my mouth.

“Not. A. Sound.” I came, my scream trapped beneath his hand, the wet sounds of him moving in and out of me echoing eerily off the bathroom walls. “That’s it. Look at you, coming and coming all over my cock. So, so beautiful.”

He let his hand drop, and I could feel his thrusts becoming more erratic as I stared at him, his face red, jaw clenched, the veins on his neck standing out with his exertion. His head tipped back, fingers digging into the underside of my thighs, and his entire body shuddered as he orgasmed, come spurting hot inside me. I let my legs slide down one at a time, planting my feet as firmly as I possibly could despite the fact that they felt like they were made of Jell-O.  

He rested his head on my shoulder, and I rubbed his back. “I guess this means you got my text after all.” I felt him nod. “Well, if this is what not wearing underwear gets me, I’m never putting on another fucking pair ever again.”

We both laughed, quickly cleaned ourselves up, and I peeked out the door to make sure the coast was clear. Still not a soul around, and we said a final goodbye to Alani on our way out and proceeded to walk back to the Jeep. We sat for a while, neither of us feeling quite capable of driving.

He leaned over to kiss me, hand on the back of my neck, grinning as he pulled away. “I’m famished. Want to grab something to eat before we head back?”

“You already know the answer to that.” I noticed the street getting a bit congested, a small pack of women heading in our direction and what appeared to be a local news crew up the road a bit…I pulled out my phone and checked Alani’s Twitter feed. She’d posted the photo of all of us.

Here’s me just a little while ago with Tom Hiddleston and his girlfriend, Maude. He smells like a pine forest, and she’s super nice. #bestdayever, #thankyoutomandmaude

I showed it to him. “I’m thinking maybe we should stop somewhere a little further down the road. You?”

He started the Jeep, put it in first and stalled it as he tried to pull away from the curb, and then again on his second try. He smiled at me sheepishly. “Perhaps you’d better drive.”

“Gee, ya think?” We got out and switched places. I shook my head. “What a newb.”

He crossed his arms. “I am not a newb. I’m just out of practice is all.”

I patted his thigh as we got to the highway. “Right. Rusty stick skills. I remember.”

He chortled. “Yours remain top notch though, my love.”

I smiled smugly. “They do, don’t they?”

He raised his index finger. “Although, technically, you didn’t actually make use of them this go round, did you?”

“I’ll make up for it next time.”

“I’m going to hold you to that.”

“Well I’d fucking hope you’d hold me to it. That’s the whole point.” I saw a McDonald’s sign in the distance. “Dude, I want some French fries in the WORST way. And a chocolate milkshake. You game?’

“I most certainly am.”

“If you behave I’ll let you have my cherry.”

“Bit late for that, isn’t it?”

“How rude.”

“Perhaps. But true.”

“Not entirely true.”

“What do you mean, not entirely true?”

I turned off the highway and into the parking lot. The drive through line was mobbed, but the lot itself was relatively empty. “I mean that the fact that it’s a bit late for you to have my cherry is only partially correct.”

He stared at me as I engaged the parking brake, puzzled, then shook his head. “I’m not following.”

The left corner of my mouth scrunched up in mock irritation. “Really? Are you sure?” He shrugged, palms up. “Think about all we’ve…done.”

“Maude.”

“Good. Now think about what we haven’t done.” I gave him a few moments to review, watching his face closely so I’d see it dawn on him. 3…2…1…aaaannndd there it was. His jaw slackened, hips lifting almost imperceptibly. “That’s right. I’ve played around, sure, but as far as actually having a cock in my ass…nope. Which means, technically, my anal cherry is still intact.”

He covered his face with his hands, groaning, but said nothing.

I went in for the kill. “So, Thomas…tell me. Would you like my cherry?”

Shaking his head, face still hidden, he spoke in a low voice. “Maude.” He paused, remaining silent for quite some time, seemingly avoiding my question. I wondered if I’d overstepped some sort of boundary, pushing him too far.

My mind was racing, and I frowned. “Wow.  I’m really sorry, Tom.”

He uncovered his face to take my hand, gazing at me with eyes full of concern. “Whatever for?”

“Because I put you on the spot there and just assumed it’s something you’d want to participate in. I didn’t stop to think that it’s something that might not be up everyone’s alley.” I rolled my eyes. “That didn’t come out…shit…DAMN. Anyway, that was incredibly presumptuous and I apologize for letting myself get so carried away. Please don’t feel like it’s something you have to…”

He leaned in to kiss me forcefully, covering my entire mouth with his, tongue darting over my lips, then pulled away before I could fully engage. “May I answer your question now?”

I shook my head. “Tom, you don’t need…”

“I know I don’t need to, but I WANT to. My answer is, with undeniable certainty, yes. Please accept my apology for not answering straight away. I’m afraid I was too busy thinking about how deliciously tight you’re going to feel around me and then I remembered that you aren’t wearing panties and it was all I could do to stop myself from dragging you onto my lap and fucking you right here in the McDonald’s parking lot.”

His eyes met mine, nostrils flaring, pupils blown wide open. Never before had I been able to do this to a man, make him want me so desperately using nothing but words. He squeezed my hand.

“That you’d trust me with something so intimate, bequeathing me such a precious gift, wishing to share something that you’ve not yet experienced with another, is…I’m honored, humbled, awestruck…so very many things.” He smiled timidly. “I’ve never been someone’s first anything before.”

My brows shot up, but I managed to keep my mouth shut.

“Maude, there’s something I’d like to ask you, but…”

“Shoot.”

“All right. This may be terribly intrusive, and feel free to not answer it if you don’t feel comfortable doing so, but…knowing what I do about you, sexually, I’m…surprised…that you…erm, never…anyway, I suppose I’m just wondering why.”

I sighed. Good job, Maude. This is what you get for trying to be a seductress.

“Long story short, you’re only the fourth person I’ve been intimate with. The first two were before I was twenty and not even remotely interested in such a thing. By the third I was very interested, but things fell apart before it happened.” I put my arms on the steering wheel and rested my forehead on them for a moment, then raised my head and turned to him. I couldn’t quite read the expression on his face.

“Okay, I’m not sure if that look means ‘I didn’t need to hear that’ or ‘wow, only three, what a loser’.”

He shook his head. “It’s neither. Well, maybe a bit of the first one, because the idea of you being with someone else is much more unpleasant than I would have imagined, but…it was mostly surprise that such an incredibly beautiful, intelligent, hilarious woman wouldn’t have men lining up to be with her.”

“Thomas. Stop being so fucking wonderful, won’t you? Christ. There was no line, believe me. I’ve always been at least a little chubby, but after I moved to New York I put on a huge amount of weight. There are reasons for that, but that’s another story for another time. By 2003 I was tipping the scales at two hundred and forty-seven pounds. I’ve always been a confident person, and I honestly never cared what anyone else thought about the way I looked, but…you know what I’m getting at here, I think. In late 2008 I started feeling like shit, and Anne, who’d nearly died due to undiagnosed diabetes in 2003, pushed me to see a doctor. Sure enough, that was the problem. It was early, and resolvable with lifestyle modifications. So, I kicked myself in the ass, and over the next year I lost more than eighty pounds, and that was when I…a woman in her sexual prime, in the best shape of her life…met number three. God bless him…I was on a mission, making up for lost time and he could barely keep up with me. One time I actually thought he was going to need an ambulance…sheese, why I am telling you this? Yikes. Sorry. Lord knows I don’t want to hear anything like it from you.” I unbuckled my seat belt. “Let’s pretend this never happened and go get those milkshakes, m’kay?”

He grabbed my arm as I opened the door, and I turned to meet his gaze. “I…Maude…I just…you are…everything about you…” He shook his head. “I fall deeper in love with you with every passing moment.”

“Right back atcha, baby.” He laughed. “Yeah. No way I was going to try and out-eloquent you there. Waste of time and energy.”

We went inside, his arm around my shoulders, and ordered two Happy Meals when we saw the new toys were Minions. Neither of us could resist playing with them as we ate. Tom went back for a Big Mac and chicken nuggets, which I shared. He stuck his fingers in through the lid of my milkshake, deftly picking up the cherry and popping it in his mouth, a huge smile on his face.

We both used the bathroom, separately, and as we were walking back to the Jeep I heard the voice of a young boy.

“Mom, Mom! That man over there! That’s the man you’re always looking at on your computer!”

A woman replied to him. “Mason, what are you talking ab…?” And with that, I knew she’d seen Tom. I pulled at his shirt, and he looked down at me and nodded. We turned around and waved. The woman was about my age, maybe a little older, and she looked like she might die of embarrassment when she realized we’d overheard their conversation. Tom strode over, hand extended.

“Hi there. Tom Hiddleston. And you are?” She moved as if in a trance, hand out, and he grasped it gently and shook.

“I…uh…um…Sarah. I’m Sarah. And this is my son, Mason.”

Tom beamed and shook Mason’s hand as well. “Lovely to meet you both.”

Sarah reached into her purse, dug around and pulled out a Coriolanus program. She cleared her throat. “I heard that you’d be on the island and I’ve been carrying this with me, you know, just in case.”

He took it from her. “Were you in attendance?”

Mason piped up. “We flew all the way across two oceans so she could go see your show. I saw Big Ben. It was really cool.”

Sarah was bright red. “I saw it twice, actually, but didn’t have time to stay after.”

Tom pulled a sharpie out of his back pocket. “May I?”

She grinned. “Please do.” He signed his name, as well as a message. ‘Sorry to have missed you there, but better late than never. Glad to finally have met you. XO’”

As he handed it back to her he asked if she’d like a picture with him. He introduced us, and I volunteered to do the honors so Mason could squeeze in as well. I gave him my Minion to keep him occupied while I took some shots of just Sarah and Tom. He held it up to give it back to me when I handed Sarah back her phone.

“Nope, buddy, that’s yours now.” I held out my hand to Tom and he put his toy in it. “In fact, you can have Tom’s too. This way he gets to stay with his friend and won’t be lonely.” He thanked me so quietly I could barely hear him, eyes full of wonder at what to an adult was such a small gesture.

Tom hugged them both goodbye, and Sarah embraced me as well. She smiled at my surprise. “Thank you, both of you, so much.”

Tom put his arm around my waist as we walked the rest of the way back to the Jeep, placing a quick kiss on the top of my head.

“It is my personal opinion that you’re a much kinder, gentler person than you’d like everyone to believe.”

I sighed. “Yeah, yeah. And it’s all your fucking fault, too.”

[fatrainbowmermaidunicorn]

3AM Drive - Thru (JJK x You x The8/Minghao) //Chapter 8

MASTERLIST

(Feat. The ‘97 liner of the male squad idol)

“Hey Y/N, my idol friends wants to meet you. Would you like to?”

“Oh, you mean your group members?”

“Nope. My 97 liner friends. Hey, you are a 97 liner too! You can join the squad!”

“You have a 'squad’ now?” Y/N giggled. “Sure. I would love to meet them. But who’s them again?”

“My own group members, DK and Mingyu, Got 7’s Bam Bam and Yugyeom, NCT’s Jaehyun and the most popular idol of course… Jungkook from BTS,”

———————————————————–

“Jung…Jungkook?” She stuttered.

“Yes. From BTS,” Minghao looks up from his food and turned to Y/N. “Why do you sound so shocked? Are you a fan? Omg, are you secretly an ARMY?” He fake gasps. Y/N smacked his shoulders.

“Yah! No…no! You know I’m not into these k-pop things,” Y/N gave a nervous laugh. “The only group I know is yours, and that’s only because you make me listen to it almost everyday!”

“Hey, you should be thankful I’m blessing your ears AND eyes with our songs and performances,” Minghao defended himself. It is true that he had made Y/N watch every single Seventeen’s performance video out there. The only thing left is to actually get her to the concert. Which he will, soon.

“You are right. My eyes are blessed,” Minghao quirked an eyebrow to that. Is Y/N talking about him? “That Wonwoo guy is ridiculously hot. He’s really a sight of sore eyes. Especially with you around in the videos!”

Minghao eyes turned sad but starts to sparkle again when he realized that Y/N is only teasing because she laughs so hard looking at his reaction until she teared up. Minghao smiles and shoved her shoulders playfully, his heart calming down. “Yah, you should be grateful this most wanted star is actually willing to wake up just to eat some ridiculously early breakfast with you!”

Y/N, who is still laughing just nodded, “Yeah, yeah,”

“So, will you meet them?”

Y/N, finally able to compose herself nodded. “Yeah, why not. You know I will do anything for you, especially if its important to you Minghao,” she smiles and continue digging into her waffles. Just one simple smile and one simple statement, and Minghao’s heart is pounding so loudly that he’s sure people from across the world can hear him.

God, Minghao. You really have to do something about these feelings. Minghao reminds himself while patting his chest.

                        —————–

“They are still not here yet?” Bambam kept on glancing at the door of the cafe. After a lot of planning, they finally manage to set a date where everyone is available to meet Y/N.

“Why the hell are you so excited?” DK raised his eyebrows at Bambam’s giddyness.

“I’m just excited to meet the girl who is currently the talk of the town. And also, for your information, its getting kind of boring when its always just us guys hanging out,” he pokes DK’s chest while explaining.

Jungkook just sits quietly and sipped his coffee, looking calm, but in the inside he is no way near being calm. He’s definitely nervous. He wonders if Y/N knows that she’s meeting him tonight? And if she does, is she looking forward to it? Is she still angry at him? Did she really moved on? Does Minghao knows about them? So many questions lingered on his mind.

“They are here!” Jungkook turn to look at the door. His heart starts to beat even faster, out of excitement or nervousness, he himself is not sure.

He saw Minghao entered first, one hand holding the door for Y/N and the other clasping hers tightly. He was smiling widely and she was laughing at something he said. To anyone who is watching the scene, they sure look like a couple. A very much in love and happy couple. Jungkook huffed at his own thoughts and turned back to his seat, waiting for their arrival.

“Gosh she is even hotter in real life,”

“Now I really wants her to join our squad,”

“I cant wait to mock the hell out of Minghao later. Look at his stupid grinning face! That boy is in love for sure!”

“Yikes, you are right. She looks more like a celebrity than we do!”

Jungkook can hear the chatter of his friends but all he can focus on is Y/N. She caught his stare and after more than two years, they finally made eye contact. And she smiles.

                           ——————

Laughter and cackles can be heard around the table. It has been hours since they were introduced to Y/N and apparently the boys not only thinks she’s hot, but funny, witty and interesting. They enjoyed her company very much.

Jungkook did join the conversation here and there but most of the time he just keeps on staring at her. Thank God he is known for being akward to new people, so the other boys thought he is just quiet because he is meeting her for the first time. Y/N, who is too busy chatting with boys didnt notice the staring.

They bumped into each other when Jungkook came back from taking a breather outside and Y/N from the ladies’ room. They stand there akward with each other.

“Hello, Jungkook,” Y/N smiles at him. That beautiful smile that he miss so much.

“Hello Y/N,” Jungkook managed to stutter out. It feels so weird to hear her calls him Jungkook and not Kookie like she usually does. Y/N nod at him and start to make her way back to the table. “Hey, why dont we go out and talk for a bit? Its been so long since we last seen each other,” Jungkook caught her wrist before she could get away.

“Sure, why not,”

“So how are you?” Jungkook starts. He is grateful that the cafe have an outdoor section that is cozy and filled with sparkling fairy lights. It makes the environment more warm and… romantic?

“I’m so much better now. I feel better,” Y/N replied, full of sincerity.

“I saw on the news that you had chosen to reveal your identity. I’m glad you finally decide to do it,”

“Yeah. I think I’m ready now. Its about time anyway. I cant hide who I am for so long. I feel like I’m in a better place now. Happier and stronger,” with that, an akward silence seems to come between them. Jungkook spoke up after a while.

“Y/N… are we… are we okay now?” Y/N looks at him, her eyes staring holes into his soul.

“Yeah. I think we are Jungkook. I think I have finally overcome my weakness,” Jungkook dont know how to feel about that. He should be happy. He should be glad that Y/N has overcome her weakness. Her weakness of loving him too much. But his heart cant seem to be happy for her. “I never thought I can do it. But Minghao came into my life like a blessing. I dont think I can be as happy as I am today without him,”

Jungkook felt a little ached in his heart but decides to smile anyway. “That’s…. good. Are you two…?” He put two of his fingers close together, implying that he is asking if they are together.

“Oh no, no,” Y/N shakes her head. Then she smiles. “Not right now at least,” she laughs at that. “I dont think Minghao feels that way about me. But he is the best bestfriend I could ever ask for. And he is such an amazing man,”

Jungkook can hear the adoration and awe in Y/N’s words that makes him wonder if she herself didnt know that she is indeed already fallen in love with Minghao.  The word best friend felt like a slapped to Jungkook’s face. That title use to be his.

“And how about you? How do you feel about him?” too curious, he decides to ask. Jungkook knows for sure that Minghao definitely has feelings for Y/N and he will say yes in the blink of an eye if she ever asks him to be with her.

“I dont know, to be honest. During the two years we have been together, I dont think I have ever felt happier. He takes care of me and he’s always there for me. I might not know exactly how I feel but all I know is I want to see him happy all the time. I cant imagibe anything bad to happen to him. I think I will die if that ever happens,”

Jungkook ponders on her words. He can feel his heart clenching. He asks the only thing he can think of. The only way that can ensure that she will atleast be in his life again. “Hey Y/N? Can we be friends again?”

“Yes. I dont see what’s wrong with it,”

                          ————– Inside the cafe, Minghao is curious. He saw Y/N and Jungkook went out and talk at the outdoor portion of the cafe.  He finds it weird that they took so long as he knows that Jungkook is usually uncomfortable with new people. Especially girls. Minghao finally decides to just let it go and trust Y/N. Afterall they are not together for him to be jealous or angry. For all he knows, Y/N might really be an ARMY and she’s fangirling on Jungkook like crazy right now. He chuckle to that thought.

“Hey, why are laughing?” Y/N whisper to his ear while she slipped back into the seat beside him

“Oh, you are back,” out from the corner of his eyes he can see Jungkook taking his seat too. He has some kind of glow on him. Like he’s happy. Too happy. He wonders what did they talk about.

“Yeah, sorry. Jungkook and I talked,” she smiles. A smile that is enough to not make Minghao asks about their conversation. “Hey, its almost 2am,” she glanced at her watch. Minghao laughed loudly, understanding what she meant.

“Hey guys, its running late. I think Y/N and I will make a move first,” Minghao told his loud friends who are still busy chattering.

“Awhhh come on. Its the weekend. Y/N doesnt have work tomorrow! We thought about catching the last wave at that new bar nearby. Join us!” Yugyeom excitedly exclaimed.

“Nah, maybe next time. Besides, Y/N doesnt drink anyway,” Minghao explain.

“What? Really?!”

“Amazing! I’ve never met anyone our age who doesnt drink,”

“Ahh, no wonder Minghao drinks less now. Y/N, you are seriously a good influence on him. Please take care of our Minghao better,” DK winks.

Jungkook just kept his mouth shut. Y/N not drinking is one of her qualities that he love best, unlike Minji who gets insanely drunk any chance that she can.  His feelings are like a tornado today. His been feeling a lot of things tonight; happy, giddy, butterflies in his stomach, heart clenching, anger, proud and the two most confusing ones are jealousy and the feeling of being in love…

“Shut up,” Minghao smacked DK. “We have another place to be anyway. Its almost 2am,”

“Ahhhhh okay we get it. Go ahead then,” Bambam smirked, suggestively and wiggling his eyebrow. “We didnt know you guys have that kind of relationship,”

Y/N turned red in the face at what Bambam is suggesting and Jungkook feels like he’s dying. He knows he has Minji now and he did way more with her, but the thoughts of Y/N and Minghao… he just feels like punching everyone.

“Yah! Its not like that you ass!” Minghao exclaimed. “See, now you are embarassing Y/N!” The boys laugh. “We are going to the drive thru to get some chicken nuggets,”

The boys laughs even harder. “Whatttt? At almost 3 am?”

“Its Y/N’s habit okay! And apparently I am always the sacrificial lamb that has to do it with her,” Minghao grabbed Y/N’s hand and rubbed its back, an act that didnt go unnoticed by Jungkook.

“Yah! Shut up! If its not because of this habit we might never have met!”

Jungkook clenched his hands into fists under the table without realizing. He really really dont understand why he is feeling this way. It should be him that's supposed to take her to the drive thru. Him and only him.

So I guess you did find someone else who is willing to do it with you. I really wish its still me though…

———————————————————- Chapter 9 Preview

Jungkook grab her hand.

“Y/N I need to talk to you. Please,” he then turned to Minghao who starts to stand up. “And it would be wise if you do not interfere. This is between me and her,”

                            ////////

“Yah Y/N. Why are you talking to MY Kookie and his oppas like that, you psychotic fan!? Dont you know who he is? Who they are? Who I am?”

“Minji, stop it. Just-”

“Its okay Jungkook-ssi. Minji-ssi, I apologize.  I will asks someone else to assist all of you for the broadcast,”

“Y/N, you dont have to-”

“Let go of my hand Jungkook-ssi. Please respect Minji-ssi’s feelings. Afterall, I am not of importance to you,”

[trbl-will-find-me]

Every Exit, An Entrance 5/?

There are two (and only two) possibilities: either she led XCOM to victory and they are now engaged in a clean up operation of alien forces, or XCOM was overrun, clearing the way for an alien-controlled puppet government to seize control of the planet.

She’d really like to figure out which it is, but asking hardly seems the prudent option. Chapter CW: Explicit mention of suicide, no character death

She’s on her way to Mission Control when Royston flags her down with a piece of paper reading “HELP.” With the operative on the phone, she can only manage to shrug and mouth “What’s wrong?”

Royston rests the phone on her shoulder, jots down a note on the reverse of the page, and holds it up again: Parents.

The Commander motions for the paper and pencil, scribbling down her own response: Not happy w/ news?

Again, a transference of supplies.

Understatement, written in thick letters and underlined.

Why?

B/c “can’t marry someone you’ve only known since March.”

The Commander grimaces. She can appreciate Royston’s parents’ concern, but they have no idea what their daughter’s relationship has already endured. Oh brother, she writes back.

End me. Please.

Think Martin might be upset.

What makes you think his parents took it any better?

The Commander’s eyebrows shoot up and the other woman nods. There was shouting, she writes. A lot of it.

??

Nine months. Not French. Where live. Etc. You could mercy kill us both.

And then Central would kill me. Very bloody.

Royston shrugs, then nods.

Tell her you have to go, your CO needs you.

“Mom, mom, mom,” Royston says. “Mom, I love you, but we gotta table this. Mom, yes, I hear you. Mom, I gotta … Mom, duty … Mom, I love --- Mom, I’ll call you back. We’ve got a meeting. Yeah, the Commander is right here. She’s literally standing right here. Tapping her foot. You want me to put her on? No? Okay, good. Love you.” She sets down the phone and shakes her head. “Eloping is starting to look like a viable option,” she says, turning her attention to the Commander. “Skip all the bullshit.”

“You’d really want to cut them out?”

Royston shrugs. “I want to get married to the person I want to get married to where and how I want. We want,” she corrects herself. “If that means cutting them out, then, well. We’ll have a nice reception breakfast or something to make it up to them.”

“You’re resourceful people,” the Commander offers. “You’ll figure it out.”

“Part of me just wants to say fuck it and just do it here.”

“The base? It’s not exactly a scenic venue, Royston.”

“Yeah, but it’s one where we can’t invite anyone. Besides, everyone’s already here.“

“No friends on the outside?”

“I mean, yeah, but … “ She’s quiet for a minute. “These are the people we went through hell with. They’re the ones who watched this all happen, who,” she laughs. “Facilitated when we couldn’t get it together. They’re the ones who matter.”

The Commander considers this for a moment. “Well, think about it. If that’s really what you want, you’ve got my support.”

“Really?”

She shrugs. “I don’t totally endorse giant metal bunker as a wedding venue, but it’s not my wedding. If this is really where you want to have it, we’ll find a way.”

A crazy grin breaks out across Royston’s face. “Can I get back to you?”

“Yeah. It’s an open offer.”

“Thanks, Commander,” the sniper says, standing, “Let’s go see if I can sell him on this.”

“Good luck,” she grins. “I’ll be upstairs.”

Watching the operative head towards quarters, it finally dawns on her that she’ll need to explain this to Central. She laughs, and buries her face in her hands. It’s not the worst problem to have.

-- Kelly aims her shotgun at the Sectoid and pulls the trigger, splattering its blood across the ground.

“Good job, Menace. Looks like you’re clear on hostiles for the moment. Finish tagging those crates and let’s get you home,” the Commander says.

“Yes, ma’am!” Gunda calls cheerfully.

On the whole, it’s been a clean op. They’ve netted badly needed medical and construction supplies as well as, she hopes, additional intel from two datapads lifted from corpses. She doesn’t necessarily bear any confidence in her skills, but she’s at least comforted by the slow improvement in her men’s aim.

The air lifts in from Firebrand continue through the afternoon, and the unboxing well into the evening. Lily’s workshop slowly wills with new components and datapads to be reformatted, scrubbed clean of ADVENT programming. Tygan seems pleased to have his cabinets restocked, and everyone is grateful for new clothing, the abundance of toiletries, and the not insignificant ammo cache. The Armory looks more like a warehouse than Christmas morning, but the sentiment remains the same.

--

They’re eating dinner in the Situation Room, data on the energy spikes from the past week spread out in front of them. Each spike is pinpointed on the screen, along with a time, date, and amplitude. Save for the common link of alien incursions, there is no commonality. No consistent interval. While she has no doubt that there is a pattern, the more she stares, the more random it appears.

“Ugh,” she groans, burying her head in her hands. “What am I missing?”

“Commander,” Central says, voice gentle.

“There has to be something.”

“Commander.”

“We can’t get caught off guard again.”

“Commander.”

“We can’t afford a repeat of that site recon incident.”

“Elizabeth.”

“I hate to use the phrase ‘we got lucky’ when we lost an entire town, a Coast Guard team, and half of our squad –because that feels gauche– but ---“

“Lizzie.”

It’s enough to jar her from her train of thought. ”John?”

“You couldn’t have seen it coming. None of us could have. Chryssalids in a whale carcass on a fishing vessel? Come on. It ran counter to all the data we had.”

“There had to have been something I missed. We knew they could incubate in human hosts; it wasn’t a stretch to think they could take root in other mammals.”

“But we didn’t have evidence for it. You’re a good strategist, but even you’re not omniscient.”

She pinches the bridge of her nose. “We’ve had too many close calls. I’d like to get out in front before we have another.”

“If there’s a pattern, you’ll figure it out. And that’s a big if.”

“And what if I can’t?” She asks, voice tinged with worry. “What if I can’t put it together and they come barging down our door again?”

“It’s not gonna happen.”

“You seem awfully certain of that.”

“Molchetti knocked the ship out of existence. The clean up ops we’ve run have been a few stray craft, or a cell that’s broken cover. They’ve been small.”

“What if they’re just biding their time, trying to lull us into a sense of security?”

“We’ll push them back again. We always find a way.”

“I wish I had your faith.”

“Not faith. Evidence. You’ve got a track record now.”

She tips her head against his shoulder. “Well, you may start doubting that track record pretty soon.”

“Doubtful.”

She takes a deep breath, as if she were preparing to rip off a bandaid. “I volunteered the base as a wedding venue.”

He looks down at her with the same face he’d made when she’d jumped in the pool outside of Rome, that same mix of profound amusement and utter bewilderment. “We’re not exactly a chapel. And we can’t allow non-XCOM personnel on the premises.”

“That was a large part of the appeal, I think.”

“Royston and Martin?”

She nods. “Between them, they’ve got four very angry parents.”

“Expected that from Martin’s family, not Royston’s.”

“Royston’s mother went to town on her on the phone this afternoon. Martin apparently got a tongue lashing via video chat. “

Central rolls his eyes. “It’s not like they’re kids.”

“The nine months thing seems to be a sticking point. Along with the whole where will you live, where will you raise our grandchildren, and Royston’s not French debacles.”

“In short, everything.”

She shrugs. “Just about. Royston joked about having the wedding here as a solution, but the more she talked, the more she seemed to sell herself on the idea. I couldn’t tell her no. We’ll see how well it goes over with Martin.”

“And if he says yes?”

“Guess we’ll have to requisition an awful lot of crepe paper.” She settles her head back against his shoulder. “We’re not gonna make any progress on this tonight, are we?”

He shakes his head. “No, but it’s okay. It’ll look better when you stop chewing on it.”

They stay like that a few minutes, comfortable in the silence.

“Hey,” he finally says. “When all of this is over, you wanna get dinner sometime?”

She grins. “There’s a laundry list of things I’d like to do, but yeah, dinner sounds like a good start.”

“Good. It’s a date.”

She leans into him. “Yeah, it’s a date.”

--

If her time in the tank dulled anything, it is her ability to estimate the risk of interpersonal disaster. They had both been in the bar, fine. They’d had buffers, people who’d kept them engaged and occupied and otherwise uninterested in one another. She should have followed them out, should have gone up to her quarters, and taken a hot shower and gone to bed. She should not have sat across the bar from Central, nursing a beer while she reviewed the contents of the day’s grab. It was asking for trouble; this, of all things, she knows.

She doesn’t know what she expected. More silence? An attempt at conversation, maybe?

It’s not like her to miss the mark this badly.

“How could you do it, Lizzie? How could you help those things?” He asks, cracking open another bottle.

The accusation cuts deeper than she’s willing to let show. “You really think I said ‘sure, stick some chip in my head, throw me in a suit, and then stick the suit in a tank’? You think I didn’t try fighting?”

“Sure as hell doesn’t seem like it.”

She can feel tears welling behind her eyes, and she rubs at one, hoping to pass it off as an itch. “I didn’t have a whole lot of chances, Central. Any time I was awake and had any control over my own body, it was pretty well restrained. No one was exactly dumb enough to leave a scalpel in my reach. If I could have ended it or them, I would have. In a heartbeat.”

“You wouldn’t have,” he takes a sip. “You didn’t.”

“You can’t will yourself to death, not without some kind of help.”

“Even if you had the means, you wouldn’t have done it.”

“You think, if I knew what was coming, you honestly think I wouldn’t have turned the gun on myself when they went for me?

“Twenty years, you never made a go of it.”

“What, you want me to go slit my wrists in the shower to atone for it? Or, hell, you’ve got at least two pistols on you. Put your money where your mouth is.”

“No, that’s what they want. You’re a traitor, but you’re a useful traitor.”

“They used my own memories against me!”

“Twenty years! You know how much blood you have on your hands?”

“You’re not the only one who lost everybody!”

“Yeah, but I’m the one who had to watch as you helped kill them!”

It’s only then that she realizes it’s escalated into shouting. Loud voices. Metal ship. It’s really no surprise that most of the crew is crowded near the entrance to the bar. She can make out Shen and Herlihy, Kelly and Wallace, Royston and Krieger. She can almost see Thomas’s ridiculous braid over Wallace’s head, and she’s almost certain that’s Gunda next to him, with Tygan to his other side.

“Alright,” she says, turning her attention to the gathered crowd. “Everybody in. We’re gonna get this all out on the table. I’d rather it not feed the gossip mill.” She can feel Central’s eyes on her, but she won’t meet his gaze. She needs to keep her composure.

The assembled mass files in, taking positions along the wall and on the floor. It’s more than she realized, nearly the whole crew by her count. She wants nothing more than to disappear into the ether, crawl into bed and ignore the storm that’s broken over the ship.

“Everybody here? Good. Let’s get the record straight. When the XCOM base was overrun, I was taken. I had a Muton with a plasma rifle surprise me with a blow to the head that, yes, probably should have killed me and, yes, I do ask myself how and why it didn’t. I don’t have a coherent set of memories from the time I was captive. What I’ve got is fragmented and messy and … not pleasant to think about. “ She heaves a sigh.

“That being said, if you have questions about it, I’d rather you just asked me. What’s important to know is that, over the course of my time with the aliens, they implanted me with a chip, and passed tactical data through me. I was, quite literally, wetware. You can ask Doctor Tygan for the specifics --- he’ll be able to give you a more coherent explanation.” She pauses, pinching at the bridge of her nose.

“For me, once I was sedated, I had no idea what I was experiencing wasn’t real. They were able to pull from my own memories of the invasion and first iteration of XCOM. The closest thing I can compare it to is a dream where everything makes sense, where there aren’t weird loopholes.” She swallows.

“Yes, the data they passed through me was used in their military ops against earth and later resistance forces.  Yes, I am profoundly disturbed by that fact. No, I didn’t have a conscious say in the matter. The chip has since been removed, there is no additional ADVENT hardware in me, and I will put a bullet in my own head before I let them recapture me.” She runs a hand through her hair.

“I welcome any comments, questions, concerns, what have you. This is standing policy You have a question you want answered, I’d rather you come to me. If I can’t answer it, I’ll direct you to whoever can. Anything immediate?”

“How’d they get it out?” Gunda asks.

“Same way it went in: incision in the soft palette and then cranial intrusion and extraction.”

“That sounds awful.”

“I don’t really recommend it.”

“Are you sure everything’s out?” Krieger chimes in. “You said you don’t remember it all.”

“Our contact in the Resistance was able to secure a technical schematic, and ensure its accuracy. It shows only one chip.”

“ADVENT tech gives off a recognizable signal,” Lily adds. “There’s nothing coming from the Commander.”

“Is there anything else that’s pressing?”

Silence.

“Fine. As I’ve said, if you have questions, it’s an open door policy. Dismissed.”

She watches the men and women under her command stand, and file out, grateful that the looks they offer her are more sympathetic than suspicious. ROV-R bobs nearby, offering a sad chirp as she joins the procession.

“Shen, Tygan, a minute?” She asks, gesturing them off to the side of the small corridor.

“First,” she begins, quietly. “I’d like to apologize for dragging you both into this mess. This was something Central and I should have kept between ourselves and we didn’t. In doing so, we flagged the whole damn crew, and the damage control has ballooned appropriately.”

“Second, I’d like to reassure you both that Central and I will … get our shit together, for want of a better term, and learn to behave like professionals. This won’t happen again.”

Over Tygan’s shoulder, she watches Royston turn, as if to go back into the bar, but be stopped by a shake of Kelly’s head, and thanks whatever powers that be. No one needs an encore of shouting.

“It’s not a problem, Commander,” Tygan says. “I anticipated there would be questions when the news broke outside of the senior staff.”

“It’s fine,” Lily says. “Just … if you two are gonna shout each other down, maybe not at 1:30 in the morning?”

The Commander nods. “You have my word.”

She mounts the ladder and climbs, then crosses through the bridge, and up to her quarters. She wants to scream, or throw something, or down too much liquor. She wants to do something stupid and reckless. Idly, the idea of just venturing back to the bar and settling things the old fashioned way, with blood and skin and broken bones, floats through her mind. She chases it away, knowing full well it won’t help – and it’s hardly the sort of professional coexistence she’s promised.

Besides, she doesn’t relish the idea of a broken nose.

[joshuahyslop]

HOUSE SHOW TOUR - JUNE, 2019
 I’m home again from yet another wonderful house show tour. This time I drove from Cumberland, BC to Cape Breton, NS and back in my 1989 Volvo wagon, which doubled as my accommodations. Inside I had some curtains, a bed, a little table, a chair and some cooking equipment. I slept in parking lots, campgrounds, driveways, and on the side of the road using lakes and rivers to wash up. Sometimes it was colder than I’d expected June to be, but overall I loved the adventure. Some of the hosts on this tour offered to let me stay in their homes, for which I was very thankful. Living in the car was fun, but nothing really compares to a good bed, a hot shower and coffee that isn’t instant.
I’m so very grateful to everyone who was willing to have me play in their homes. It’s a wonderful experience - sharing music and time together, and I hope I get to do it for many years to come. 
 A very special thank you to:

The Purdy’s. The first stop on this tour was on Vancouver Island. Cumberland is a very beautiful place, and my hosts and their guests only made the visit more enjoyable. The show went well and everyone was very kind. We hung out a little beforehand and sat around a fire afterwards. I spent the night and woke up to some delicious coffee and breakfast. They were fun and funny and I loved getting to play for them. It was a great start to the tour. The LeSage’s. The next show was in Abbotsford. The hosts were friends of my parents and so my folks were there too. It was a great night and I loved getting to play for everyone, including two little guys under 10 who were full of wonderful questions. I hung around for a little while afterwards and chatted about music and bands with an awesome young man named Evan. It was great. Field House Brewing. The next show was also in Abbotsford at one of the local breweries. We had a good turn out (over max capacity!) and everyone was very kind. I loved getting to see so many familiar faces as well as some new ones in the crowd. My pal Kim sang on a song with me and did a fantastic job. We ended the night singing a cover song (which shall remain nameless) together, unplugged. A good time. The Crewe’s. After driving to and sleeping in my car in Golden, I drove to Sundre, AB for the next show. They had two kids who were very sweet and we had a lot of fun hanging out before the show as well as after. Their guests were awesome and there was a lot of good conversation. We wrapped things up by going over to their neighbours house and looking at his gun collection, which was intense. In the morning we had bacon and eggs and coffee before I hit the road. The best. The Aviary. The next show was in Edmonton at my pal Phil’s venue. Liam Faucher and Dylan Ella opened and they both did a great job. I got to see some family and old friends at the show and meet a lot of new people as well. It was yet another fantastic evening at The Aviary - one of my favourite places to play! After the show I drove to my cousins place for the night. There was a big jam session and some whisky before bed. In the morning we had coffee in the hot tub before a lovely breakfast and then I was back on the road. The McKenzie’s. Next up I was in Calgary. This was the second time I’d played at this hosts home and it was lovely getting to see them again. We had a great night! I played and we chatted and it was very relaxed and enjoyable. I hung around for a while after the show before driving to a beautiful spot in the valley for the night. The Brandon’s. This was maybe the 5th time I’d played this hosts home, and the 7th time I’d stayed over. This host has been a huge support for me since the beginnings of my house show tours. She runs her house like a hostel for travelling musicians and it is always a joy getting to stop by. We had an afternoon show and then we hung out and talked until I had to get some sleep. It was great. The Townsend’s. I’d never met these guys before but they were wonderful. The show was in their neighbours backyard and everyone who came was very kind. We gambled a little with the weather. It kept almost raining and it was pretty windy, but everyone was great. We joked and chatted and then I went back to my hosts for the night. They were wonderful. The Good Earth Cafe. Next I drove back to Canmore to play at my friend Dianne’s coffee shop. I’d played their before years ago but it was so nice being back. I met a bunch of new people we hung out after the show in the shop for a while. Dianne is another person who has been a huge source of support to me over the years. I hope to be back again soon. Stir Studio. I drove to Medicine Hat for the next show. My friend, Kyle Church, had set up this show with support from the local folk fest. We played in a beautiful studio with incredible sound and the crowd was fantastic. If you haven’t yet, you should listen to Kyle’s music. He’s great. After the show I found a little cul-de-sac for the night and set up camp. Xander & Daniel. Next I drove to Winnipeg. I managed to get my exhaust pipe and muffler repaired after I’d backed into a stone and crushed them while I was in Canmore. I got to their house just in time and was feeling a bit stressed from the car repairs and driving but all of that went away as soon as I walked into their home. They are a band called A Rebel Named Riel, and they were playing a cover of my song, “Living & Dying”. They handed me a banjo and we played it together. It was amazing. The show that night was fantastic. Everyone was into it and we had such a great time. We ended the night playing “Living & Dying” together. It was one to remember for sure. Keenan & Chelsea. I drove from Winnipeg to Thunder Bay and stayed with two very dear friends. We walked around town, went to dinner and then out for some drinks before getting some sleep. They were so kind to host me and it was such a delight to see them again. Good folks. The Rappolt’s. The next show was in Kitchener. The hosts had just moved into their beautiful home and we had it nice and packed full of people for the show. They’d been fans for a while and had seen me play a show years earlier that had been a rough one. They’d approached me after that show and their support had encouraged me to keep going. It was such a treat to get to come back years later and play for them and their friends in their home. They’re also in a band called I, The Mountain so they (as well as my old friend Spencer Blake) started things off. After everyone left we took turns playing new songs before calling it a night. The Boyle’s. I’d played at this hosts house a few times already so it was great getting to see him as well as some familiar faces in the crowd. The show was such a joy to play, as usual. I’m already excited to do it again soon! After most folks left a few of us stayed up chatting and playing a game of dice. It was the best. The McPherson’s. I drove to Burlington for this show. I’d also been to this hosts house several times. It’s been so nice getting to form friendships with hosts who have had me more than once and these guys have quickly become old friends. We had the show on the back porch with a perfect sound system. There was a good turn out and a great opener as well named Jessie Alexandra. We stayed up late drinking some wine and playing more songs. Another great night. The Keon/MacFarlane’s. Inkerman. There are many stories I’ve collected over the years from playing at this house and this trip was no exception! The hosts are family and it’s always such a joy to see them. They’d recently acquired a new ATV so, after the show we took it out for a ride. At one point the host did a 35 ft wheelie in the dark with me on the back, holding a beer. I immediately began to fall and thought “well, here I go”, but he grabbed me by my ankle and kept the wheelie going, laughing all the while. It was amazing, although I dropped the beer.. We sat by the bonfire afterwards and jammed. Another good one. Equator Coffee. I drove to Ottawa for the next show in my cousin’s coffee shop, which was sold out! It was so nice getting to see family again, and I had such a wonderful time getting to play for everyone. They were very kind. After the show I drove with some friends from Montreal to their families cabin. We stayed up late talking and playing songs. In the morning we hung out by the lake and had breakfast before I had to head off. The Young’s. I drove to Cape Breton for the next show a few days later. The last time I’d played on Cape Breton I’d been sick so I was very happy to come back and play healthy this time. I had so much fun getting to talk with my host and play for his guests. After the show we stayed up late talking and it was one of those “this is why I do this” moments. I hope to do it again soon! The Sutton’s. I have some very dear friends who live in Saint Stephen, NB. This was the last show of the tour and I couldn’t wait to see everyone. I got there late the night before the show and found out the next morning that there would be no show - instead we were going to the lake and enjoying a day off. I get very nervous before shows so getting to rest and just spend time with my friends, carefree, was a real treat. I had two days there before heading out on my four day journey home. *** It’s such a privilege to get to write, record and play music for a living and I am SO thankful to everyone involved in these tours (hosts, their guests, family, friends, and fans) who support me in this endeavour. Each of you play such an important role in my life. Without your support I wouldn’t get to do this so, from the bottom of my heart, THANK YOU. I’m hoping to do another house show tour in 2020. If you would like to host one, simply send me an email at: joshuahysloptour@gmail.com more soon, -joshua

photo by John Anderson

[veosullivan406]

Big Sky to Bozeman to Big Timber and back.

May 9th – Another eight hour work day for the books. The routine of a 5/8 schedule had begun to take root in my brain, and it was nice. No extra workdays I had to scramble to cover, and several shifts had been delightfully dull. I relished the quiet times knowing the countdown of the 4/10’s had begun and the tsunami of summertime chaos lay just on the cusp of June. After work, Lauren and I decided we wanted a drink and to go a few rounds of pool. The restaurant here has a pool table on the saloon side, but as the restaurant was closed for the off-season at that time, we went to Choppers. Trevor said he’d like to tag along and so the three of us piled in my truck and headed up to Big Sky.

I don’t remember how many games we played, but I do remember losing most of the time, and maybe winning one game – only by the graciousness of Lauren and her agreement to play our games as Gentle(wo)men. But regardless of the scores and playful jeers, we had a grand time.

May 10th – When I left my grandparent’s on Monday, I knew our friends Amy and Faith McGehee had left Georgia for Faith’s summer job in Glacier. They were tentatively planning to be in Big Timber at some point that week and I wanted to get up and see them if it worked with my schedule.

I checked IG at some point that morning and saw that they had been rained out of Mount Rushmore. I jokingly asked if that would mean they’d be rushing to Big Timber. Amy responded that that would be the case and I quickly decided I’d hurry down there after work. Amy and Faith were on board to surprise Gramma and Grampa, and I planned to be at their house around 6pm.

All went according to “plan”, until I got to the ranch gate. Of course, Gramma would be going upstairs right when I was coming up. Only from there, right at the window, or outside would I have been seen. Oh well, it wasn’t a grand surprise, as intended, but they were surprised nonetheless. We had dinner and saw Amy and Faith off to bed early. They had made it to their quiet retreat before the next leg of their journey, and they were eager to rest.

I had originally planned to eat dinner there and hurry back to the ranch the same night, but as dinner and conversation went on, I made the call to stay and leave dark and early the next morning. If I left at 5 a.m., I could make it to the ranch in time to change and grab a little breakfast before my shift.

I laid in bed that night thinking a few things over. I am always amazed and grateful for the clarity being here in Montana affords me. My heart experienced a shift, and it was scary and it was liberating.

May 11th – I made it to the ranch as planned and was surprisingly alert for my entire shift. I knew I had to run back into Bozeman to find a few Mother’s Day gifts and that took up my evening. A little stroll through Heyday on mainstreet and a quick run through Walmart.

I was very eager to climb into bed that night.

May 12th – I literally don’t remember what I did this day. I most likely worked, ran up to the Post Office to send Mother’s Day presents, and then came back to hang out at the bunkhouse.

May 13th – Left work for Big Timber. Stopped in Bozeman for a Walmart run. (I can’t seem to stay away from that darn store even here. Ha.) It was sunny when I left the ranch, overcast when I arrived at the Big Sky red light (about 12 miles away), snowing on Lone Peak, raining through the canyon, and then snowing in Bozeman. I left Bozeman in a snowy mix, crested the Bozeman Pass in what this Georgia girl classifies as a blizzard, and came out of that massive and crazy storm system once I hit the White Sulphur Springs exit (about 20 miles east of Bozo on I90).

No surprise to arrive on the hill and be met with ferocious winds. With no desire to be out and about in that torrent, we nestled inside in our comfy clothes and sat on the sofa watching Hallmark movies.

May 14th – Gramma and I were up and at it early to ensure we accomplished all the chores we had to do before church. She rushed out the door around 7:30 a.m. for worship team practice, and I followed shortly to make it to the 9 a.m. service. We left service to return the ranch and a restful Mother’s Day. It was cold and still breezy and her Mother’s Day request was to work on her jewelry.

I reached the house before her and settled myself into the recliner and planned to write. But I ended up catnapping to a Hallmark movie. No judgement. You really can’t beat a good recliner and a soft blanket and a cheesy romance movie after a long workweek.

I wrote a little after that, but I mostly spent it willing my imagination to move beyond the grammatical errors jumping out at me and to forgive myself on the ridiculous dialogue I had forced on two of my characters. Then it was time for wine.

The Montana skyline was a brilliant red that night at sunset which made the Crazies almost look as if they were on fire. It was gorgeous ending to the day.

May 15th – The wind had subsided and the clouds weren’t as many as before. We brought the horses in and had our coffee. I started writing again and was soon interrupted by a video call via Snapchat from my sister. My mom’s Mother’s Day present had arrived and Laura was thoughtful and made sure I could see the joy and tears on Momma’s face. Which was perfect since I could see her falling apart and, due to her many birthdays, she couldn’t see me doing very nearly the same thing. We chatted for a while and then said our goodbyes, but not before I discovered you could video chat and change the filters on your video. We definitely had a good laugh at all the ridiculously amusing affects Snapchat lent to our appearances.

After lunch, we made use of the break in the weather and headed out for a ride out back. With a storm on its way, we decided to do a short loop in the direction of the microwave tower. When we headed out, the sun had danced in and out of the clouds keeping us warm against the wind. As we made our way home, however, the statement that “if you don’t like the weather [in Montana], wait five minutes; it will change” rang oh-so-true. It sprinkled on us the whole way back, steadily increasing in size and frequency. We had just reined up in the barn when the bottom fell out of the rain clouds and we were forced to wait for a reprieve, which luckily wasn’t too long.

Once inside, Gramma started preparing dinner and I loaded my things into my truck for the drive home. We ate and shortly after I was finished, I said my reluctant goodbyes.

I was on the highway around 7:15 p.m. and somewhere around the De Hart / Springdale exits, I hit another storm system. It was a light rain, but with the sun still shining there was just enough moisture in the air to produce a rainbow off to the south. I snapped a few pictures (carefully) and then noticed a second, much fainter, rainbow next to the first one. I’m not sure if my phone was able to catch it or not, but I did try to snap proof of it.

I continued driving along I90 and out of that rain shower, through Bozeman, and as I’m coming up on Gallatin Gateway, I glance to my left and there I see another rainbow. And yes, I (carefully) snapped another picture of the third rainbow. They certainly made up for my having to turn away from the bright and wondrous sunset in the west to the dark and ominous storm system above the canyon that would lead me home. It almost looked as if I was headed away from the grandeur and safety of the White City of Gondor and towards the cold, dark, tormented lands of Mordor with the smoke from Mount Doom rising above the mountains.

    Yes, I am a geek.

I made it home safely, (obviously), and into bed at a decent time which I was most grateful for. The next day would start another work week and another set of days to make the most of.

05.28.2017

V

4

[imaginethatsj]

Daniel Andre Tande imagine - I already am

Second part to the “I will be” imagine.

It was hard to watch him leave the apartment but I can imagine if was even harden for him. He was the one who was leaving. He was the one leaving behind our conversation that had million words unspoken and unexchanged.  Since I was visiting Celina I pushed him out of my thoughts as much as I could when we were hanging out.  The day of my departure came so quickly that I couldn’t believe. I was only visiting her for a couple of nights. We kept in touch as much as we could. Every weekend I watched competition after competition like I used to just with much more regret than I used to. After everything that happened he was still my favourite number one. I was so grateful to my family that they didn’t became protective and started saying for example; he didn’t deserve you, you will find someone better etc. They knew he was a great guy, excellent even. The only problem there was, teared us apart. We weren’t together for a really long time like Celina and Johann, but that didn’t mean we didn’t fit together. We made so many memories in the time that we had so even though I always said I will introduce my boyfriend to my family after quite some time, but with Daniel I brought him home after 4 months. I was scared but they accepted him with open arms, and a lot of nervousness since they were constantly seeing him on the television but then he was really seated behind their kitchen table.

The season went on and the finale of the world cup was not far away. Two weeks and the season will come to an end. I didn’t know if I was making a mistake or not by sending him a message if he wanted to meet when he was in Planica. The only competition in your country. I went to see the competition for a few years in a row and I didn’t want to stop this year. So I sent the message and just hoped he would say yes. I didn’t have any expectation from the possible meet up. What could I lose? Nothing, but I could gain a lot. I waited an hour by the phone, looking every five minutes if he answered but there wasn’t anything. So I went to do some work around my family house distraction myself, tidying up but still keeping my phone in the pocket of my jumper. It’s been hours since I sent the text but I was still left without a reply. Before going to sleep I checked one last time and then just went to sleep because I had to get up early in the morning.

It was 6:35 in the morning when the alarm went off. I quickly turned it off because it was too early for this annoying sound. Slowly getting out of bed since I didn’t want to fall back to sleep. I put on some warm sports clothes since I were going to the local highest hiking point with my mum and our neighbour. We decided to go pretty early so I woke up a bit earlier because I had to eat something as we all know how much breakfast is important (!). In the mean time I woke up our cat who has been sleeping on the couch and gave him something to eat. When I was walking to the peak I heard my phone go off meaning I got a message but didn’t want to take my phone out of my backpack and take my gloves off. Just too much work. I’ll check when we get to the top. It was a lovely morning, the sun was rising, sky was clear. Perfect start of the day. When we got to the peak we were greeted by such a cute dog so I just couldn’t resist petting him. We ordered some worm drinks and I reached for my phone. I checked what I got before and it was just a snapchat from my brother but while I had my phone in my hands I got THE message. My heart started beating faster and I suddenly became cold. I read it once, read it for the second time. I started shaking. What was happening to me? It’s just Daniel, calm down (Y/N). I tried to reply as cool as I could. He sent me a text saying “Yes, what suits you?”. Simple as that. I thought about it and came to the conclusion that it would be better after the competitions he would be more relaxed. During the day we set the date and time for our meeting. I could sense that we were both very careful with what our answers were since we both took quite some time to respond, which was logical.

Following days went by so fast that the weekend in Planica was only one day away. I was getting more nervous with every minute and somehow I just wanted it to be done. I was slowly getting my things together since I am leaving tonight to sleep over at my friend’s house since she lives very near Planica and with the kind of traffic that always is in the morning I went to her place. I was staying at her house for 4 nights so there were quite a few things I had to pack. Another hour went by and I was all ready for the drive that would take me at least 2 hours. I said my goodbyes to my family like I always do before going anywhere for at least a night. I set everything in my car, connected my phone to the car, set the right music and made myself comfortable. The traffic was very good, I sang during driving so I was relaxed and in a good mood as everyone behind the steering wheel should be. When I arrived at my friend’s house after emptying the car we had a nice chat about everything we missed out and did an enormous “update” on each other’s life. She knew about Daniel and that we are meeting since I am staying with her. She didn’t ask many questions which made me quite happy since I was already too nervous. The competitions were so good that they went by in a heartbeat. He showed very good jumps or I better say flights. Slovenian jumpers were also rewarding the crowd with some really impressive lengths alongside with some other athletes. Just perfect weekend. After the ceremony you could sense and also see how much more relaxed everyone was. Everyone could feel that through the whole weekend. The sun was also very generous so the feeling was so like it’s really spring already. But then the glorious monday came. I was so nervous that I couldn’t eat anything for my breakfast which I knew I was wrong but hey, it’s just one day. I headed to his hotel to pick him up and then we were going to the lake Jasna which is nearby. It took me about 15 minutes to arrive to the hotel and he was already waiting for me to which I looked at the time and I was a few minutes early. “Hello” he awkwardly greeted to which I smiled a bit and returned the awkward hello. The ride was awfully quiet and I was so relieved when I parked the car along the lake. While we were walking we met quite a few people but I hoped we could find a nice and private corner where we could talk without needing to worry if someone could hear us.

“There is a bench so we can talk there” I said and he agreed. I could tell he was pretty nervous. Unlike the night in Norway where his words just flooded out of his mouth. The moment we sat down my brain froze. I had practised a speech which has just disappeared. Great. I took a deep breath and just started to talk. “First off, thank you for meeting me.” – “You don’t need to thank me, I wanted to see you myself.” – “Look I am nervous until I have enough courage please just let me get everything out. I miss you. I missed you since the breakup. I needed you. I don’t think I ever needed you so much. When my grandad died, I just didn’t know what to do with myself. And when I used to get like that you were always there to distract me and make me smile to forget about the mess that is going in my life. But then you just weren’t there. I couldn’t just call you. And everyone was telling me to be strong because of my grandmother who was just lost, but I had no strength I knew of. “At this point I got tears in my eyes and for the first time in a long time I let them fall on my cheek. Wiping them off I continued since it’s now or never. “Till this day I don’t know how I managed to keep myself together until the funeral. But then somehow we all got used to the pain and loss but we all managed. Then I went to Norway to visit Celina and you suddenly turned up and I just can’t tell you how much you turned my whole getting-over system upside down. The night that you carried me to my room and just started talking I didn’t know that to say to you. I didn’t want to make myself even more vulnerable than I already was. I wanted to talk to you in the morning but you just left without looking at me or saying goodbye. And that really hit me. I realized I can manage to live without you, but I don’t want to. And I know we didn’t split for no reason but I am willing to try harder, to fight harder for what I want. And that is you. I want to be the one hugging you before you go, the one you miss when you’re away, the one you kiss when you come home and also the one you fight with over something stupid because that’s just so much better that having none of the above. Please, just give me another chance. You don’t have to tell me this exact second but please at least give it some thought.” While saying this last sentence I didn’t take my eyes off of his. Showing him how much I really want this, want us to work, to try one more time. With all this talking I almost forgot to breath. My voice was shaking and now that I managed to say everything I felt the burden being lifted from my shoulders. I took a deep breath to get some air and to calm myself down. I looked over at Daniel and he had put on his thinking face. Then suddenly started talking. “(Y/N) I can’t really describe how sad I am to hear what you’ve been going through because of your grandad. I wish I could have been there for you but I didn’t even know. Otherwise I would have called you the minute I found out. But I didn’t and we can’t change that. But there is something we can change. Like I said to you then, I miss you and I didn’t think it would be that hard but I got distracted by ski jumping and it made everything easier. When Johann and I were leaving for Wisla I knew if I would look up to you I just wouldn’t be able to leave without hugging and kissing you. But I wanted to make thing easier for me so I left. And I can’t tell you how much I regret doing that. When I got your message I just kept staring at my phone because I was afraid that if I looked away for a split second the message would disappear. But it didn’t. I took my time to answer because I was nervous anyway for the finale in Planica and then meeting you there I was a bit angry and afraid the feelings with get to me and I will ruin everything I worked for this whole season. I calmed myself down and then I just wasn’t so much anxious for Planica as I was for meeting you. I just wanted the weekend to be over as fast as it can so we can meet. I want to be there for you when you’re down and when you’re hyped. I want to kiss and hug you and only you when I go, when I come home, when we just lay in my bed. I want to be the one saying to you that I believe in you when you are doubting yourself over some university stuff. Let me just say I also want to try harder, fight harder and for what I want. And I have known what I want for a year now. And that’s you, I just had to remind myself.”

In the middle of his turn in talking he reached for my hand and squeezed nicely like he wanted to tell me in advance everything is going to be alright. After finishing he leaned closer to me and put his arms around me and pulled me closer to him which was all I needed to start crying and this time I didn’t hold back. I instantly put my arms around his torso and we were just hugging each other for a minute or two. I missed his hugs so much. He whispered to me “We will make it work, but for now I just want to hold you and not to think about the future.” – “I want that too.” I said to him half crying. “That’s nice to hear. Shhh don’t need to cry anymore, everything will work out. We will be okay. You will be okay.” I squeezed him one last time and said to him smiling to myself: “I already am.”

[artificialqueens]

Can I Order A 'Sex On The Beach'? (Rajilaskam) - Albatross

AN: Here’s my final entry for the rare pair fic challenge; 11K+ of the lovely foursome known as Rajilaskam! A special thanks to @VeronicaSanders, @KitschyPixel, and @MissChimKi for inspiring the idea and of course, @PinkGrapefruit for supplying the title because I suck at them.

Tropes used are:

Coffee shop AU

A and B are best friends who are secretly in love with each other AU

Lesbian AU

It was a little before 7 AM when Alaska and Willam pulled into the single non-chain restaurant that was open in the vaguely suburban area. It was a cute little cafe that opens its doors promptly at 6 AM on weekdays and Saturdays and then 7 on Sundays. There wasn’t much in the area to begin with so finding something aside from fast food that was already open by the time they arrived was like a god-send. In truth, they would have made due with either a Dunkin Donuts or even McDonald’s but something about a home-styled cafe seemed much more appealing so early in the morning, especially for Alaska as she stifled yet another yawn while she exited the car.

This whole mini trip had been Willam’s idea and after almost two weeks of goading, she managed to convince Alaska to join her for a full day at the beach. The younger blonde had been agreeable to the proposition of relaxing in the warm weather but where she had her reservations was of course with the time Willam had suggested they leave…a lovely 6 AM before the sun was even truly up and shining in the sky.

“Why does it have to be so early?” Alaska had whined repeatedly at every thought of her losing precious sleeping time, especially on the weekend.

“The beach gets packed sometimes,” the dirty blonde argued in a very limited sense. She knew Alaska would give in before long and just wanted to be annoyed about the situation to save face without seeming too passive. “And besides, it’s going to be a nice day, I wanna stay out and enjoy it as long as possible.”

“But 6 AM?” Alaska stressed once more.

This discussion had gone back and forth, almost always with the same dialogue before Alaska finally agreed once Willam pulled out the rare and incredibly unfair advantage of using that special cooing tone she saved just for the younger woman. It was completely a low blow; Willam knew she’d do just about anything that was asked of her so long as she used that voice. It was as though once the first syllable passed from the dirty blonde’s lips, Alaska suddenly became willing to anything and everything to make Willam happy…even sacrificing something very near and dear to her heart; her lazy weekend mornings.

But here she was, struggling to stay fully awake as they made the 40 minute trek to a cute little beach Willam had discovered late last year. The dirty blonde had already made a few trips out by herself, usually whenever she took a day off work to fix her tan lines, but this would be the first time that Alaska would join her. And Willam certainly had her routine down to a science; leave her house by 6, stop at the cafe for a quick pick-me-up and bathroom break, then onto the beach until at least mid-afternoon. She even brought a packed lunch with her so as not to give up any valuable time in the sun…or her premium parking spot. Alaska had to admit, she was dedicated though she wished her friend would be more negotiable with the departure time.

Nevertheless, they made it to the cafe for some much needed coffee and as Alaska browsed over the house brews available for selection, Willam quickly rushed off to the bathroom. Alaska took her time pondering over the selection of no less than seven different flavors that had already been set out in their own self-contained dispensers. She had almost been tempted to order a specialty drink but that would have been a little bit pricier. Instead, she just order two bagels and two cups of the cheaper pre-made coffee. But now the time came to decide on what flavor…

Her choice was a bit more obvious; the red-eye mix would be far too strong for her and she already had a preference for the sweeter blends…French Vanilla seemed to be the obvious match…But for Willam? That was a little more difficult. ‘Jamaican Me Crazy’ was probably a ‘no’, as would be the ‘Sugar Cookie’…The ‘Breakfast Blend’ smelled a bit too weak for what the dirty blonde liked to drink early in the morning, so that was out as well…

Finally, Alaska’s eyes drifted to the second-to-last pot that had been placed out so far; ‘Irish Hazelnut’. Perfect!

Just to Willam’s taste.

With a slight victorious grin, Alaska quickly filled her cups and moved onto the cream and sugar. Willam’s coffee, no matter the blend, was always predictable; two creamers, or glugs of it, and three packs of sugar, preferably the raw kind if available. She hated the chemical taste of most artificial sweeteners, often finding it left an unpleasant after-taste; an opinion Alaska shared wholeheartedly. As for her own coffee, Alaska tailored her add-ins to each flavor. French Vanilla was already sweet, so two sugars and one creamer ought to be just fine.

She had just begun to reach for the bottle of creamer when her hand met with another woman’s quite unexpectedly. Alaska had hardly been aware that other customers were in the shop, much less that one was right next to her. The grazing of their fingers as they both made to grab the bottle quickly served to startle her into a much more conscious state. Before she even had a chance to properly think about the situation she found that she was already apologizing and retracting her hand, a gesture that was immediately reciprocated by the other person.

Alaska’s gaze drifted to the woman that was now beside her and for just a second she felt her breath hitch in her throat. The stranger had obviously just been out jogging; her long jet black hair was pulled up into a high ponytail while the bangs stuck just slightly to her damp forehead. Her outfit was undeniably fashionable but still sporty, even including a few strips of reflective fabric down the sides of the jacket and shorts, and then finally her shoes had remained mostly clean but a light sheen from the early morning dew could still be found pooling on the plastic tips. Despite all of this, she still looked absolutely stunning in an entirely effortless way that Alaska was inclined to feel jealous of. And then when you threw in the friendly, apologetic smile that the woman was currently throwing Alaska’s way?

It was the perfect combination to inspire a small, fleeting crush towards the stranger.

“Sorry,” Alaska repeated once she was finally able to take control of her thoughts, “Go ahead.”

The woman shook her head, smile still in place as she replied in a gentle tone, “No, you were here first. You should.”

Alaska faltered, they seemed to be at an impasse and quite honestly, she was inclined to let the woman go first just as an excuse to keep her nearby for a few seconds longer. Seeing her hesitation, the woman’s eyes soften considerably, as she encouraged once more, “Go on. I’ll wait my turn, I’m not in a rush.”

Her voice had dipped just short of cooing and immediately Alaska felt her stomach beginning to twist…she really was a sucker when beautiful women used that tone with her it seems.

To keep herself from acting like any more of an idiot than she probably already looked like, she mumbled an appreciative word of gratitude and began filling her cups with the appropriate amount of creamer. She could feel the woman’s eyes on her even as she slid down the counter towards the sugar and tore open the packets so roughly that they almost spilled out. Finally replacing the lids on the cups, she grabbed the To-Go bag with the bagels, shot the woman a small grateful smile, and scurried on towards an empty table near the doors to wait for Willam.

Her heart felt like it was racing in her chest as she took a few cautious sips of her coffee in an effort to calm herself down. She knew Willam would be out shortly and that’d be the end of this ordeal but when she saw the woman sitting down in a booth almost parallel to her, it felt like a spot-light the strength of the sun was shining down on her. Alaska tried to keep her sight from falling back to the woman but every so often when it felt safe to do so, she stole a few glances at the unknown jogger. At the times when she didn’t quite dare to look over, she could have sworn she felt a set of eyes on her as well.

A few minutes later after Willam still had not emerged from whatever the hell she was doing in the bathroom, a sudden burst of movement from the stranger’s table caught her eye. Glancing up in as discreet a manner as she could muster, she saw the woman’s smile growing ever brighter as she seemed to be waving to someone just passing through the entrance.

“Raja!” she called out just loud enough to be heard across the room, “Over here!”

Footsteps were heard to be shuffling but Alaska was unable to sneak a peek at the other person without seeming too obvious. But as it turned out all she had to do was wait just a few more seconds and swiftly she felt her heart hammering in her chest once more. Almost as soon as the two women were in a close enough distance to one another, they shared a brief kiss before both repositioned themselves in the booth. There was a look of pure admiration in the jogger’s eyes as she welcomed her companion and began chatting away with evident enthusiasm.

Alaska knew she was now being utterly obvious as she stared at the pair but it seemed like a helpless cause to try and tear her eyes away. They were both gorgeous in their own unique ways. The jogger, whose name Alaska still had yet to hear, was like a casual beauty; fun and approachable, one you felt yourself drawn to just by her energy alone. As for the other woman, Raja; she radiated an aura that seemed to draw your eyes to her but still kept you at a safe, respectable distance. She seemed like someone you couldn’t just approach without a valid reason for calling on her; you had to be worthy of taking up her time even if you just wanted to give up every minute in your day if only to look at her.

Unlike her partner, she was the only one of them to be wearing any trace of makeup at this time and though it was very light, it looked expertly applied…like she had years of perfecting her skill and matching it to suit her face. Her lips especially were the most striking feature, having been painted just a few shades darker than her already honey colored skin. Out of self-consciousness for her own mostly bare face, Alaska began biting her gloss covered lip, the one feature aside from a bit of mascara that had any trace of additional product.

As her eyes fell back to her cup, Alaska could have sworn that once more she was being watched. Before she dared to look up to confirm those suspicions, Willam came bouncing up next to her with a slight grin that seemed rather out of place for her so early in the morning.

Motioning towards the coffee on the table, she asked, “Which one’s mine?”

Even before Alaska had opened her mouth to reply, Willam was already reaching for one and somehow missing the smudged traces of lip gloss around lid, selected Alaska’s French Vanilla and took a shallow sip of it.

Rolling her eyes with a patient smile, Alaska pulled the cup out of Willam’s hands and mockingly informed her, “This is mine…Yours is sitting next to the bag.”

For her part, Willam gave her a vaguely apologetic smile and made to grab the correct cup. Unlike when she had tasted Alaska’s coffee, which earned a slight grimace at the overly sweet flavor, Willam’s proper drink drew forth a pleased grin and content sigh as she drained almost a third of the contents in one gulp. She gave Alaska a truly sincere word of thanks and asked if she was ready to leave.

Nodding her head, Alaska agreed, almost tempted as she followed her friend past the door to look back one final time at the stunning couple she was leaving behind. Though she ultimately denied herself of that opportunity, she still felt like if she had, her line of sight would have connected with one or both of the women. She pondered over what that could have possibly meant or resulted in ('nothing’ being the answer she was inclined to give for both questions) and by the time she and Willam arrived at the empty beach, she forced herself to push any further thought of it out of her mind.

Instead she was determined to focus her attention on Willam, who now wasted little time in stripping down to her bathing suit. Even before Alaska had laid out the blanket and towels she brought for both of them, Willam had already slathered herself in sunscreen and was ready to dive into the ocean. She asked if Alaska would be joining her but the blonde politely refused, citing it was still a bit too cold for her but perhaps in the afternoon she would take her up on the offer.

In truth, the temperature was only about half of the answer. Alaska would be taking advantage of the separation to just watch Willam without any worry of getting caught. Even when they were together, she was always nervous that focusing her sight too long on her friends would tip her off to the less than PG thoughts Alaska sometimes harbored towards her long-time companion. She always kept their interactions respectful but she could never find the courage to confess to Willam how she felt…its not as though it would amount to anything and Willam certainly wouldn’t abandon her if she discovered the truth but even thought of the dirty blonde finally knowing about Alaska’s hidden crush was absolutely mortifying. So she just consoled herself with stealing glances here and there and reveling in the time they spent together. It was something she wouldn’t change for anything in the world.

For most of the morning, Alaska spent her time divided between reading a book she had brought and discreetly watching over her friend as she swam up and down the beach. Over the course of three hours, the foot traffic had picked up quite a bit and in every direction Alaska looked, there seemed to be a newcomer setting their belongings down onto the sand. The background noise had risen just slightly but thankfully not enough to be too distracting whenever she tried to focus herself on reading the words on the page and not on Willam’s skimpy but flattering bikini.

Alaska managed to make it through two chapters before she heard a friendly voice just a few feet beside her, “Excuse me. Mind if we set up next to you?”

Alaska’s head turned up to see one half of that beautiful couple from the coffee shop glancing down at her with a bright smile as she patiently waited for an answer. Try as she might, Alaska’s mind seemed to have been wiped completely blank as she stared almost helpless at the one woman whose name she had inadvertently learned; Raja. Despite her gawking, the older woman didn’t seem inclined to acknowledge it other than a slight tilt of her head as her lips curled ever so slightly into a teasing grin.

Finally after what felt like hours had escaped, Alaska managed to plaster a smile on her slightly burning face and replied back, “Not at all. Go ahead.”

The older woman gave her a quick word of thanks and proceeded to drop her belongings just a few feet away from Alaska and Willam’s own outstretched blanket. While the blonde tried to divert her sight back to her book in an attempt to save what little dignity she still possessed, she found she had to curse the universe just slightly as the jogger from earlier came sprinting up to join her companion with yet another bundle of items.

Alaska was watching the scene in a helpless, 'why me?’ state of mind when suddenly the stranger’s eyes fell to hers and shining grin stretched across her face. She had immediately recognized and remembered Alaska from their brief encounter in the shop and commented cheerfully, “Seems we’re meant to spend the day together.”

“Guess so,” Alaska agreed as a shy undertone worked its way into her voice. She could hear the blood pounding in her ears at the thought of spending at least a few more hours with this gorgeous couple so close by. It seemed as though the universe loved to both reward and torture her.

As the couple continued to unpack their bags, Alaska’s gaze drifted to Raja as she careless striped away her loose shirt. The art covering most of the skin on her arms caught Alaska’s attention until her gaze was raking down every inch of exposed ink that she could see. It didn’t take long for the other woman to become aware of the blatant staring and trying her best to immediately cover for herself, Alaska apologized sheepishly, “Sorry. Was just admiring your tattoos.”

A cocky but proud grin grew across Raja’s lips as she put forth an enticing offer of, “Want a closer look?”

The final syllable had barely slipped out before the blonde was nodding her head eagerly. Dropping to her knees next to Alaska’s blanket, Raja extended her arm in order for the younger woman to take in the details more clearly. As her eyes followed each of the lines, Alaska felt like she was slowly slipping into a trance and without even thinking, her hand had slowly begun to reach out to run her fingers over the frilly edges. Coming to her senses and stopping herself just inches short of actually making contact, Alaska tore her gaze back to meet Raja’s and apologized for what she had almost done.

“Don’t worry about it,” Raja assured her as her voice dipped towards a low, consoling level, “You can touch them.”

If Alaska had been standing she was sure she would have gone weak in the knees but to her relief, she kept her voice steady as she accepted the offer and carefully traced her fingertips across some of the patterns.

Her mind had gone into an almost fully distracted state as she mentioned in a daze, “The lines are so smooth…”

“Had them for a few years now,” Raja informed her politely, “They’re only really raised while they’re still healing.”

Pulling her hand away and reconnecting their gazes, Alaska admitted in a somewhat embarrassed fashion, “Oh, I didn’t know that.”

“I take it you don’t have any yourself?” Raja asked after having already guessed the answer, if one had to judge by the playful look in her eyes.

Shaking her head modestly, Alaska had to confess that she didn’t, only Willam had any permanent ink added to her body.

Almost as if on cue, the dirty blonde in question had come strolling up to the pair. A tense smile was to be seen on her face as she asked who Alaska’s new friend was.

At once the older woman flashed her a charming smile, and as she held out her hand, stated that her name was, “Raja.”

“Willam,” the dirty blonde replied with a polite but stony smile as she reciprocated the gesture.

From a few feet away, Alaska could hear the jogger finally introducing herself as “Manila” with a cheerful grin and soon Alaska was mirroring it as she provided her own name to the pair. Upon hearing the blonde speaking, Manila turned her attention to the youngest of them and if anything Alaska would swear the smile grew even wider. As if to confirm those suspicions, Willam’s eyes were darting between the two with a silent question, or rather a near demand, to know what was going on with the pair’s shared knowing gaze.

“We kinda met at the coffee shop for like five seconds,” Alaska informed the older woman with an air of sheepishness.

Despite the blonde’s attempt to stay vague, Manila couldn’t seem to keep a flirtatious undertone from penetrating her voice as she added in, “I’d say it was at least ten.”

Raja only seemed to be amused by the comment but Willam’s sentiments sharply contradicted that feeling. Though to everyone’s relief, instead of raising a scene, she gave a quiet musing of, “Mm.”

Alaska was more than ready to change the subject, if only just to keep the beautiful couple engaged with her, but the dirty blonde seemed to have other plans for the time being. Setting herself down on the blanket, putting a barrier between Raja and her friend in the process, Willam proceeded to dig around in the bag they had brought containing their beach accessories and asked innocently, “'Lask, could you put some more sunscreen on my back? Wanna lay out here for a little bit.”

Like a pet eager to please, Alaska was nodding her head with an immediate agreement of, “Sure.”

After Willam handed her the almost new bottle of lotion, Alaska wasted little time in assisting her friend. Though her heart had a tendency to race any time she made physical contact with the dirty blonde, today of course being no exception, she remained respectful of Willam’s person and made quick work of applying the latest layer of sunscreen.

Once finished she promptly handed the bottle back to Willam but instead of moving on to add the lotion anywhere else on her body, the dirty blonde instead offered, “Let me get you, too.”

If Alaska had any desire not to accept, that notion was largely missed by Willam. She was already squeezing the sunscreen out before the final word had passed from her lips. Not that Alaska would have refused anyway. Even tossing aside her affection for the older woman, it was still a good idea in the growing heat of the day to keep up with reapplying the sunscreen. The last thing she wanted was to end up burnt for a week.

Turning around so that her back was to her friend, Alaska piled up her long hair into a makeshift bun as she awaited to feel the touch of Willam’s bare skin on hers. What she hadn’t expected was for the lotion to feel so cool still. A small gasp at the contact escaped her which to her mortification almost turned into a whine as the dirty blonde’s voice dipped with a soft apology of, “Sorry, baby.”

Alaska could have swore her heart skipped a beat in her chest at the barely used pet name and mumbled that it was fine. However, despite her words, she was decidedly feeling anything less than fine as Willam’s hands slipped beneath the strings of her bikini. Despite herself, she could feel her cheeks growing hot as the nimble fingers traced everywhere across her back under the pretext of wanting to thoroughly rub in the lotion. Alaska honestly just chalked it up to Willam probably pouring out too much into her hand as was now trying to use it as much as possible. But that thought did little to calm her twisting stomach as Willam’s hands traveled ever lower. It was just when she was beginning to bite her lower lip that Willam retreated and moved to lay down on the blanket.

Alaska didn’t know whether to feel relieved…or cheated.

So instead she just turned her attention back to the couple and began to inquire with some innocent and polite questions. Willam would pipe up every now and then as the conversation quickly consumed the other three but in large part she stayed unusually quiet. It was thanks to the generic small talk that Alaska was able to learn just a little bit more about her new friends. They actually lived pretty close by and even came to the beach nearly every weekend as the weather allowed. The amount of time they spent here varied, whether it was a full day or just a walk up and down the tide line but it was clear this spot had a special place in their heart. The three eventually turned to more probing questions such as one’s occupation, what they did for fun and various stories of miscellaneous adventures with one another.

It seemed at first that Willam was well on her way to becoming annoyed with the three but after catching a glimpse of the couple exchanging a kiss, her disposition had softened considerably. Though she was far from the usually outgoing and boisterous life of the party that Alaska knew her as, it was clear that slowly but surely she was warming up to the pair and soon would be back to her normal self. However one trait that Alaska did make a note of was how Willam utterly refused to move from her spot by the blonde’s side. She wasn’t sure if Willam was simply done swimming for the day or if she just wanted to stay in the company of their new friends but in a strange way she was glad.

Watching the pair, who clearly held an enormous amount of affection towards one another, left her feeling a bit lonely somewhere deep in her heart. She longed to have a relationship like that; one where she was so comfortable with the other person it was almost second nature to remain at each other’s side even if the only thing they engaged in was small talk. Manila’s gaze was one of absolute adoration for the older woman while Raja’s was one of utter devotion. A very different set of emotions yet so complementary towards one another.

Alaska found that she was actually…jealous.

As for Willam, those shared looks of mutual appreciation seemed to quell her discontent with the attention they seemed to be lavishing on Alaska when she first spotted them. Though she still didn’t care for the mildly flirty comments or wandering eye that each of the other women spared for the blonde, they at least seemed to respect the distance that Willam wanted them to keep.

The rest of the day up to late afternoon was filled with light chatter. Eventually they slipped off for a walk down the beach while Willam and Alaska decided to take their leave in order to keep their dinner plans for that night. Before they parted ways, Manila had asked if the pair would be returning the following week. Alaska felt her stomach tying itself into knots as she glanced over to Willam for confirmation. They hadn’t made any plans beyond today to come back together but if it meant seeing Raja and Manila again, Alaska would have gladly woken up every day in the wee hours of the morning for the rest of her life.

Though usually Willam was always eager to return to the beach, this time there was a strong hint of hesitation before she muttered an agreement. Alaska could have sworn that her smile would have rivaled the strength of the sun…at least until she heard Raja murmur, “See you then,” to the dirty blonde, along with a very light grazing of her fingertips across Willam’s upper arm as she and Manila set off on their walk towards the shoreline.

Even such a tiny, perhaps innocent, perhaps not, gesture had given Willam reason to pause and Alaska would have bet anything the dirty blonde’s breath caught in her throat. A flash of envy gripped her heart as she longed to be able to elicit the same kind of reaction from her friend on her own. It seems that even with her initial reluctance to welcome the couple, Willam was not immune to the charms of at least one of them. And there was no denying that after they left, there was a trace of a vaguely impressed smile resting on Willam’s lips that lasted almost the whole duration of their ride home.

*****

As promised, the pair returned again the following Saturday and set up their blanket in almost the same spot as they had the previous week. Willam spent a majority of their time alone swimming in the ocean once more while Alaska waited anxiously on shore keeping a close eye on both her friend and their belongings. Though this week Alaska had actually joined her in walking along the shoreline, she utterly refused to go into the water any further than ankle deep. In her opinion it was still far too cold to be going in, even if the sun was promised to shine exceptionally bright later that day.

Eventually Willam gave in after swimming alone for an hour and opted to walk beside Alaska as she explored the beach in a way she hadn’t been able to last Saturday. The entrance onto the sand from the parking lot was very close to one end of the beach that brushed against the edges of the wooded cliffs. Due to the nature of the cliffs suddenly collapsing, particularly after heavy rainfall, the county had posted a notice forbidding people from wandering too close. Not that it stopped anyone anyhow…

But since Alaska wasn’t looking to risk her neck at this point in time, she instead walked in the opposite direction towards the boardwalk she saw extending off into the distance. Though the beach was admittedly a bit small, especially when compared to more commercial locations, it still held a certain charm. It felt more natural and welcoming to be surrounded by nature, even if the bugs associated with it were a bit annoying at times.

By the time the two had doubled back, they spotted Manila and Raja making their way onto the beach with their towels and bags in hand. Immediately Alaska perked up with a wide smile and began calling out a warm welcome to the women. Willam was less ecstatic but Alaska hardly noticed as she grabbed the dirty blonde’s hand and forced her to speed walk in order to meet the pair halfway. She felt almost like a kid in high school after spotting their crush the moment she laid eyes on the couple once more.

For their part, they greeted Willam and Alaska with matching grins and asked where they ought to drop their belongings. Alaska had begun to withdraw her hand from Willam’s in order to point out the direction but to her surprise the older woman seemed reluctant to let go. Or perhaps she hadn’t noticed, Alaska thought. Willam’s expression hardly seemed to change as the blonde’s hand left hers so mostly likely she hadn’t realized right away that Alaska was trying to disentangle them.

Disregarding that thought for now, Alaska opted instead to direct the pair over to where she had laid out her and Willam’s blanket. As they began to unpack, their conversation from last week picked up again in earnest. It was almost as if no time had passed at all since they last saw one another. Even Willam was joining in as an equal participant. Though she was still a bit more reserved than how Alaska typically knew her, she had taken a liking to the couple and seemed to be genuinely intrigued by the two.

Again, by the time the pair began to depart for a walk down the beach, towards the cliffs Alaska noticed, the four exchanged another promise to meet up again the following week. Slowly but surely this mutual agreement turned into a predictable routine as the weeks slipped into months with only rain or bad weather keeping the two pairs apart. Alaska and Willam would always arrive at the beach early, sometimes spotting Manila, Raja or both at the coffee shop beforehand, but always spending at least one hour together before the couple made their way over to join them. They’d all spend the majority of the day together, sometimes sunbathing, sometimes swimming or other times just walking up and down the shoreline but by late afternoon, the couple would always excuse themselves in direction of the cliffs.

There were times when Willam and Alaska would not always leave right away but once the pair had slipped off, they would not be seen again for at least for another half hour. Willam used the time to catch up on missed texts or even eating a quick snack but Alaska’s curiosity continued to grow with each passing week. She’d never really seen that part of the beach due in large part to the fallen trees that hid most of the landscape but she couldn’t help but wonder just what was so interesting over there that Raja and Manila would want to disappear to find every week.

Finally on one exceedingly warm day, Alaska dared to follow after them. The couple had gotten a head start a few minutes prior and Willam was off swimming in the ocean once more. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to trail behind and see just why Manila and Raja wandered off so habitually every week. The terrain past the lonely warning sign had grown much more dense and leaf-littered as she darted between the fallen trees and rocks. It was a bit inconvenient for anyone wishing to take a relaxing stroll so there must have been some additional motivating factor for why the couple would want to come out here together.

Past the first major blockade of overturned foliage, the area did open up, but not very much Alaska had to admit. Upon inspecting the walls of the cliff at a much closer distance, Alaska could see where several parts had collapsed in recent months though exactly how recent was difficult to say. Yet still no matter how thoroughly she searched the area, she could not see nor hear any trace of Raja and Manila. She wandered on much closer to the cliffs until she came up on a curved corner that had jutted into the water and still there was no sign of the couple even with the new vantage point…Unless perhaps they had gone into the woods itself but that option seemed unlikely…they had no shoes on after all.

She was at a loss and considering going back to wait for their return and simply ask them…but another idea struck her.

The water near the cliff didn’t seem too deep, perhaps only thigh high for most people of average height. Maybe they had pushed onward into another area. It was worth a shot to investigate at least.

Braving the lukewarm water, Alaska steadied herself on the slightly rocky, sand-filled bottom, and carefully made her way around the cliff. Whatever she was expecting, it certainly was not what she found.

After rounding the corner of the cliff, the landscape quickly opened up into a small miniature bay. It looked surprisingly clean yet still rather wild when compared to the area she had just passed though. But as she was taking in the natural beauty something else quickly caught her attention.

Off a good 20 yards away at the very edge of the shoreline, Alaska spotted the couple in a more intimate moment than she ever thought she’d witness. There was little doubt as to what the pair was doing, what with Raja’s hand tucked between Manila’s legs and the latter’s head thrown back just slightly. She was biting her bottom lip in effort to keep from becoming too loud but every so often Alaska could hear a soft call of Raja’s name mixed in with the sound of the surf. Her breathing looked labored and heavy if the heaving of her chest was anything to go by as she clawed at Raja’s back desperate for something to hold on to. If Raja was bothered by the light scratches, she showed no outward sign of it. Instead she seemed to be solely focus on her task of giving Manila as much pleasure as the younger woman could handle.

Even from her limited angle Alaska would bet anything that Raja’s fingers were skillfully working their way in and out in a manner Raja would have come to perfect during their time together. Aside from all of that, she was dusting several kisses up and down the side of Manila’s neck as the grip on her backside tightened even further. There was no doubt that younger woman was getting dangerously close.

Raja was just starting to work her way down to a spot between Manila’s collarbone when Alaska felt a pair of warm hands gripping her bare waist and soft chest pressed against her backside. She barely even registered the presence of another person before she heard a teasing whisper in her ear, “Whatcha watching?”

Completely startled, Alaska jumped in place and quickly spun around to find her friend standing just a little too close for comfort. Trying her best to keep them from being caught, she scolded her friend in hushed, firm tone, “Fuck, Willam!”

Not even daring to look back at the pair, Alaska quickly began trying to push Willam back around the other side of the cliff but the dirty blonde was having none of it. Firmly standing her ground, Willam dug her feet in and refused to move. As she had suspected when she first spotted Alaska on her own, she knew the blonde was up to something sneaky and definitely wanted in on it. She darted her way around the younger woman in an effort to see what she was spying on as her voice rose in pitch with a taunting question of, “Ooh, what’s going on-”

However she intended to finish that sentence quickly died on her lips as Willam took in the sight that laid before her. Very much amused, she continued to tease the nervous young woman, “'Laska, I didn’t know you were such a perv!”

“Shut up!” Alaska all but yelled as her voice cracked in embarrassment. Before either of them could truly be caught by their new friends, Alaska grabbed Willam’s arm and swiftly pulled her away from the scene, all the while she kept up her adamant statement of, “I didn’t know that’s what they were doing-”

“Uh-huh, right,” Willam interrupted with eye roll of disbelief. This little incident would definitely be material to tease Alaska with for years to come.

“I didn’t!” the blonde insisted as she kept up a brisk pace back to a safe distance away from the edge of the cliff, “Not at first.”

“Oh, but after?” the dirty blonde challenged with an arched brow.

Feeling her cheeks continuing to grow hot in embarrassment, the blonde squeaked out, “Shut up! I only realized like a second before you showed up!”

Stopping the younger woman in her tracks, Willam stepped closer until there were almost touching and dared her answer, “And how long would you have stayed if I hadn’t?”

As she thought, Alaska remained silent while her cheeks burned a bright red. It almost could have been mistaken for the early stages of sunburn if someone hadn’t known better. But Willam certainly did and felt a smug smirk stretching across her lips as she affirmed, “Mh-mm. Perv.”

“We’re done talking about this,” Alaska declared as she set off once more towards their blanket.

There was no way she could face the couple after they returned and with a lightning quick speed, she hastily packed up all the belongings she and Willam had brought and ushered the protesting dirty blonde towards the car. Even long after the beach and town were out of sight, Alaska could still feel the humiliated heat emanating from her face…one that seemed to double every time she met Willam’s knowing gaze.

That night after retiring to her own apartment she finally allowed herself to replay the scene after having faithfully pushed it from her mind for the better part of the afternoon. Whether it had been real or imagined, Alaska did her best to focus on all the little micro-expressions she believed Manila would have held. From the biting of her lower lip, the heavy panting, soft mewls for more, eyes clenched tight as she tried to hold on for just a little longer…

Startled, Alaska quickly shook those thoughts from her mind. It just felt…dirty to be thinking of her new friends in that manner. As far as she knew, they hadn’t even realized they’d been caught, much less actively watched for well over a minute. And then for her to be playing out the scene again as a very familiar burning built up in the pit of her stomach?

It was too much.

No matter how enticing that mental image had been, Alaska refused to dwell on it. The guilt just wasn’t worth it.

Even when she and Willam set off again the following Saturday morning, Alaska still had reservations about seeing the couple again so soon. She knew her heart would be fluttering even more than it usually did but Willam was insistent on returning to the beach. Their stop at the coffee shop was unusually quick as Willam rushed them in and out after a quick restroom and breakfast break. Seems she just couldn’t wait to spend another day in the sun.

Once on the sand, Alaska barely had time to lay out their blanket and towels before the dirty blonde was grabbing her hand and leading her off towards the shoreline. Somewhat impatiently, she urged, “C'mon!”

“Where are we going?” Alaska asked reluctantly as she struggled to fully wake herself up and mentally prepare for the cold water that was soon to be hitting her feet.

A devilish smirk soon found its way to Willam’s lips as she turned back to Alaska and asked rhetorically, “Where do you think?”

The realization of Willam’s intended destination startled Alaska into full consciousness and her heels began to dig in as she sputtered out, “Wha-Why-”

“I want to check it out,” the dirty blonde reasoned as she continued to pull Alaska towards the wooded end of the beach. Despite her being a good few inches shorter than younger woman, Willam could be surprisingly persistent and strong once motivated…and right now, she certainly had the necessary motivation.

Alaska only struggled for another few seconds before ultimately giving in and allowing Willam to guide her ever closer to the cliffs. Though she wouldn’t quite dare to say it out loud, the phrase 'This is a bad idea’ looped in her mind during their entire journey.

As expected, the water they had to traverse through was far too cold for Alaska to find enjoyable but it would have been pointless for her to try to resist. She honestly didn’t put it past Willam to splash her if she showed any sign of discomfort for the cool waves pooling around them. By some bit of luck it was closer to low tide than high so there wasn’t as much water to wade through as the previous week but with the sun so low in the sky, the majority of the area was still left in the shade.

A shiver ran up her spine as Willam forced her to brave the depths and follow the knee deep water until they reached the opposite shoreline. The nearer they got, it became increasingly obvious that this part of the beach had a much more rocky bottom than where they usually occupied. The clay made the footing a bit slippery if they neared the edge of the cliff too much but thankfully there was just enough sand to ensure that they maintained a steady grip.

With a single-minded determinedness that Alaska was usually one to admire, Willam marched right up to almost the exact spot she and the blonde had seen Raja and Manila in the midst of their liaison. Alaska was initially intending to avoid the area but at Willam’s insistence, or rather pulling, she soon found herself sitting quite near the same area Manila had been laying the previous Saturday.

The pair sat side by side in silence for almost a full minute as they watched the waves lapping at tide line in front of them, but Willam soon took to contemplating out loud, “Mm, so this is it…it’s kinda cold in the shade.”

Another shiver ran through Alaska’s body as she distractedly agreed, “Yeah.”

More than anything she was hoping they’d leave soon as it was becoming increasingly difficult not to begin replaying the events of their last visit to the beach. Already a desperate ache was starting to burn in the pit of her stomach but with every ounce of willpower she had, she tried her best to steer her thoughts away from that accidental case of voyeurism. Willam however, apparently felt no such shame as she further commented, “Not exactly comfortable here but…”

The blonde was silently praying that would be the end of it but those prayers went unanswered as the older woman scooted closer until she was very nearly brushing against Alaska. There was hardly an inch of space between their bodies as Willam cocked her head to the side and asked, “Don'tcha wonder what it’d be like?”

Alaska was fighting with every last bit of strength she had not to let herself do something stupid in response to Willam’s innocent question. Even trying to keep her eyes from drifting to the dirty blonde’s lips or down the curves of her body required a conscious effort to resist. Nothing however could be done to stop the faint pink she felt rising to her cheeks.

Certainly not trusting herself to say anything that wouldn’t be self-incriminating or embarrassing, Alaska opted to simply shrug her shoulders as though the thought had never crossed her mind…much less that it involved the person right next to her.

Despite her attempt to appear neutral and unaffected by the question, Willam seemed to be utterly let down by her answer, or rather, lack of one. Her eyes flashed between frustration and hopelessness as if she weren’t sure which she ought to be feeling more strongly at that moment. Alaska was nearly about to question the odd expression until Willam shook her head in disbelief. She sounded quite beaten as she let out a helpless laugh of, “'Lask…I really don’t get you.”

“What do you mean?” she inquired at once as her head tilted in confusion.

Brushing it off, Willam simply stood up and replied, “Never mind. Let’s head back.”

*******

Their return journey was again quiet but this time it felt more like an awkward tension rather than a comfortable, friendly silence. Almost the moment they had rounded the corner of the cliff and began walking towards the wooded section, Willam decided to instead run off and swim alone. Alaska was left to watch helplessly as her friend stormed away and promptly disappeared between the waves as she seemed to try her best to put as much distance between them as possible.

Her hands were shaking as she stood shuddering in the cool shade and somewhere in the back of her mind, she had the sense that somehow she had fucked up big time. She racked her brain trying to figure out what it could have been but every possibility she came up with seemed too far-fetched. There was no way that Willam could return her affections so perhaps, Alaska reasoned, she had finally discovered the secret that she had tried so hard to keep hidden. Either way, Alaska remained sure of two things; one, that Willam does not feel the same as she does and two, Alaska had no desire to be around anyone else at this particular moment. Instead she decided to sequester herself to this isolated area and suffer in solitude as she came to terms with the likely fact Willam now knew about her long-kept crush.

Setting herself down on one of the larger overturned trees, Alaska sat in dejection and watched the waves as they washed over the shoreline and slowly began to recede back into a proper low tide. She was unsure of how long she had been there but by the time she heard a break in the normal background noise, the sun had risen much higher in the sky and the shadows that had shielded her had begun to retreat further down the beach. She almost disregarded the noise as being too far off in the distance to warrant any special attention but as she began to slip back into her misery again, she was jolted from her thoughts by a very familiar voice.

“Hey, 'Laska! Where’s Willam?” Manila called out cheerfully as she and Raja made their way closer to Alaska’s spot of self-imposed isolation.

“Oh, um, she’s around…somewhere,” Alaska replied with a slightly pained smile as she tried her best to appear friendly. There was a slight shrug of her shoulders as she admitted, “Not sure where exactly.”

“Hm,” Raja murmured as she made her way round Alaska’s side to sit down next to her.

While the older woman made herself comfortable looking out onto the beach, Manila opted to remain on the blonde’s opposite side while straddling the width of the tree as she scooted a bit closer than what most friends would dare to call 'casual’. Raja kept up her air of a polite yet respectful nature but Manila was much more brazen and to the point as she took the opportunity to finally ask the burning question that she and her partner both had, “We always see you two together, are you two dating?”

Startled, Alaska’s eyes darted to the ground as an all too noticeable blush rose to her face. Trying to find her voice and keep it level at the unexpected inquiry, Alaska replied uncomfortable, “Uh, um…no, just…no.”

Her fingers were toying with a lock of hair as she tried to distract herself from the queasy feeling growing in her stomach. It made quite a difference to admit that sad fact out loud instead of just in her head. Perhaps noticing the blonde’s discomfort or maybe just musing the topic on her own, Raja chimed in, “Shame. You two would make a cute couple.”

“How’s that?” Alaska asked with a helpless laugh in her voice, “I’m like…a head taller than her and we’re total opposites.”

“Opposites but still complementary, at least from what I’ve seen,” the older woman mentioned as she turned her gaze away from the ocean to focus solely on the pair beside her.

Immediately agreeing, Manila made a further comment of, “And you always look so happy together. Like when you make each other laugh…it looks like your smiles were meant just for the other.”

“Oh, um, thank you,” the blonde muttered as her cheeks grew even hotter with the mention of the couple’s observation.

Taking a more pointed tone, Raja questioned the younger woman, “Isn’t that something you’ve thought about before?”

Although Alaska was inclined to deny it, she felt unable to follow through with the notion, at least in the presence of these particular two. There was a hint of reluctance in the undertone of her voice as she quietly admitted, “Maybe.”

“But you’ve never made a move?” Raja inquired with an arched brow. Though her demeanor wasn’t meant to be judging she still seemed to disapprove, even if only slightly, of the lack of initiate on either woman’s part.

Picking up on the reproach in the older woman’s voice, Alaska continued to fiddle nervously with the lock of hair tangled in her fingers as she tried to defend herself with, “No, I…I can’t. She’s…we really are opposites. It couldn’t really last.”

“Never know,” Raja disagreed, “Manila and I are pretty different but we make it work.”

Piping up, the younger woman placed a comforting hand on Alaska’s thigh and added in consolingly, “There’s always a way when you find some common ground.”

Alaska politely nodded her head, understanding the meaning behind the words yet still skeptical at how likely they were to be true in real life. Over and over throughout her friendship with Willam, she had reinforced to herself that things hardly ever worked out the way they do Hollywood movies. Personality differences come into play very quickly and could drive a couple apart no matter how attracted they were to one another. Though in this instance, it was clearly a case of one-sided attraction.

Trying to take the focus off of herself, Alaska chose to ask, “How’d you two end up together?”

Each looked at each other to ask who ought to tell the story and with a few seconds of silent conversation, Raja chose to answer for the both of them, “Well, it was right around here actually…rather, a little bit up a ways, but just one day we were out here swimming, having a good time together and somehow we ended up against the rocks just finally…showing each other how we really felt.”

“Yeah, somehow,” Manila muttered with an eye-roll thrown in to boot.

A smirk made its way to Raja’s lips as she replied innocently (and sounded as though she had used the excuse multiple times before), “I slipped.”

“Uh huh,” the younger woman noted sarcastically, “Slipped your tongue right into my mouth.”

“I didn’t hear you complaining…” Raja shot back with a taunting grin, “Then or now.”

Another eye-roll was provided as Manila gave in and brought the commentary back to its original purpose with a gentle declaration of, “Point is, we just kind of took a chance and saw where it led us and I’d say we’re doing pretty well.”

Nodding her head in complete agreement, the brunette added, “No matter how busy we get, we always find our way back here.”

“Our special spot,” Manila affirmed with a nostalgic tone as she gazed at her partner in mutual adoration.

Now more than ever, Alaska felt mortifyingly embarrassed that she had seen them in such an intimate moment, accidental or otherwise. Her voice was starting to shake as she hurriedly apologized, “I’m sorry, I didn’t know it meant-”

“It’s okay,” Raja cut in with an understanding looking in her eyes, “I’m sure it’s not just ours.”

“And we don’t mind sharing…” Manila noted thoughtfully as her hand inched its way up in a lazy manner to meet the outer hem of Alaska’s bikini bottom. “Not if you don’t.”

The brushing of Manila’s fingertips against Alaska’s skin left her head feeling dizzy and her heart pounding in her chest. Unlike most times when the blonde usually remained unaware of someone’s flirting until she was smacked in the face with it, this time it was hard to call the risque behavior as anything but. Just barely she noticed that Manila was drawing thoughtless patterns against her thigh as she waited to see if the younger woman was having any objects to her open invitation. Finding nothing other than a growing shade of pink in Alaska’s face, Manila moved closer one final time until she had almost trapped the blonde between herself and her partner.

Alaska was trying to search the depths of her mind for anything to say or do but the addition of another firmer hand resting on her opposite hip made it almost impossible to come up with any coherent thought. Her eyes dropped to the ground in an attempt to keep them from drifting down Manila’s chest but a gentle hand lifting her chin up quickly brought her gaze back to the jet haired girl in front of her. In a sharp contrast to Alaska’s timid nature, Manila made no effort to hide the growing lust in her eyes. She focused her attention almost solely on Alaska’s lips but to the surprise of the younger woman, the first place she actually felt them was as they grazed against her cheek.

Her breath hitched in her throat as Manila placed a light trail of kisses from the edge of Alaska’s cheekbone, down to the corner of her mouth and then continued on to trace the curve of her jawline. There was slight whine at the denial but Manila remained unconcerned as she placed several kisses down the front and sides of the young woman’s neck. Alaska had been so focused on the woman directly in front of her that she had almost forgotten about Raja…at least until she felt the older woman’s free hand pushing back the long loose locks to leave her own series of kisses across Alaska’s back and shoulder.

The blonde’s mind felt like it was slowly falling into an endless abyss as the women of either side of her seemed determined to leave no area untouched by their lips. A yearning ache was being to build in her chest and stomach as Manila proceed to the leave the beginnings of a love bite above Alaska’s clavicle and Raja slowly made her way up to the shell of Alaska’s ear. She felt the hand formerly woven into her hair drop to brush against her lower back before steadily curling around the contour of her waist.

She barely felt able to breath normally as she heard a husky whisper of, “She’s watching, you know.”

Alaska was almost about to question what Raja had meant but suddenly her mind flashed with a realization of the obvious answer. Even if she had tried, Alaska couldn’t push away the mental image of Willam watching them nor the desperate desire to let the other women do as they pleased even as the dirty blonde engaged in her own voyeurism.

Raja’s fingers started to toy with the top hem of Alaska’s swim bottoms as she continued to drive the point home with, “She’s waiting to see what you do.”

A nod was all the acknowledgement Alaska felt confident to give. There was very little coherent thought left in her head as Manila’s tongue dragged itself across her skin and a few fingers pulled aside the straps of her top so that her lips could continue dusting the entirety of Alaska’s exposed skin.

The blonde felt her hand clenching and nails digging into the bark beneath her as she tried to resist the temptation to pull one of the other women in even closer. Her mind almost went completely blank as she heard Raja suggest, “Why don’t you invite her over?”

Hardly a second passed after Alaska heard the question before she was calling out softly, “Willam.”

Her voice was low and broken, barely able to get it above her normal volume as she tried to fight back another whine while Manila’s hand began to explore the curves of her lower body. Raja still remained the most level headed of the three as she encouraged the blonde in a gentle, cooing tone, “A little louder baby, so she can hear you.”

Immediately reacting to the seductive dip in the older woman’s voice, Alaska called out even louder for her friend, “Willam.”

This time it seems she had been heard and soon there was a soft scrapping of feet as Willam emerged from near a cluster of tangled trees, branches and weeds to walk purposefully towards the three. It was hard to say anything definitive about the expression Willam wore. At first glance it would appear that she were stone-faced, almost pissed off by what she saw but just beneath that there was a definitive look of possessiveness and jealousy and it was then Alaska finally seemed to grasp why Raja called out the fact that the dirty blonde had been watching them.

As Willam drew nearer, Alaska shakily stood up to meet her. Her body felt like it was buzzing wildly from electricity running through every synapse as she tried to maintain her balance on increasingly unsteady legs. Every step made it feel like her knees would give out beneath her but finally she was face to face with the dirty blonde. Alaska’s eyes roamed over every inch of her face as she desperately searched for some kind of answer or indication of how to proceed. Though Willam still had yet to say a word one way or another, Alaska knew what she wanted to do even if it might only be just this once. Her breathing was labored as her hands trembled in anticipation but it was when Willam finally opened her mouth to say something that Alaska’s willpower broke.

Even before the first syllable had slipped out, Alaska’s hands found their way to cup the dirty blonde’s face and pull her close as she pressed their lips together for the kiss she had been waiting years to give to Willam. Almost the second their lips had touched, Willam’s hands were clutching at her waist as though she were daring the world to try and pull Alaska away even for a second as she succumbed to the unspoken passion she and her friend shared for one another.

It was hard to say how long the kiss had actually lasted but each agreed on two points; one, that it was long overdue and two, that it still wasn’t enough. When they actually managed to pull away Alaska felt sure that every ounce of air in her lungs had been depleted during the duration of their lip-lock yet still Alaska wanted it to continue for as long as possible. Willam looked no better off but she was at least able to hide her panting. Her eyes however gave everything away as her pupils grew dark with the desire to pull Alaska back in for another round.

They would have begun again almost immediately had not the other couple stepped up beside them. Willam’s head turned just in time to see Raja’s hint of a smirk as she replaced Alaska’s hands with her own and turned Willam’s face up to capture her lips for their own kiss. Alaska’s jaw dropped at the sight in front of her but soon she found herself having to bite her lip to keep a soft moan from escaping.

Manila’s chest was pressed to Alaska’s back as her hands traveled over the contours and curves of Alaska’s body. Unlike before when she kept her wandering fingers strictly below the belt, this time they ran everywhere they could reach, seemingly intent on teasing the younger woman with as little effort as possible.

“'Nila,” Alaska murmured softly as a pair of lips placed a series of kisses from one shoulder blade to the next.

She wasn’t sure what she was asking for but Manila seemed to know well enough for her. Descending at a snail’s pace, Manila’s fingers worked their way down Alaska’s chest, past her rib cage and stomach until they met the hem of Alaska’s bikini bottoms. She was toying with the skin just above that area as Alaska’s attention fell back to the pair in front of her.

Willam and Raja’s lip-lock looked almost like a sparring battle for dominance as each refused to back down and play a more passive role. Raja maintained her usual calm and collected style throughout their make-out session while Willam poured every bit of her fiery personality into each passing of their lips. Even with the sharp contrast in styles, it was still one of the hottest things Alaska could ever recall seeing. She wanted to see just how far the two would go in their efforts to one-up each other but neither had anything on Manila’s forwardness.

A single hand snuck its way past the elastic of the swim bottoms and moved further down until she was just about to meet Alaska’s outer lips. Her breath was coming out sporadically as she awaited the first contact and for the life of her nothing could be done to stop the needy whine from escaping from deep within her throat. The sound quickly caught Willam’s ear and breaking the kiss with Raja she found an equally enticing sight waiting for her.

Her expression seemed to fluctuate between encouraging them to continue or wanting to rip Manila’s hands away and replace them with her own. Raja picked up on the conflicting desires and wrapped her arms around Willam’s waist as she placed a brief collection of kisses up the side of her neck. A final peck was pressed to Willam’s cheek, as the older woman called out in vaguely reproachful manner, “'Nila…”

Understanding immediately what Raja was hinting at, Manila withdrew her traveling fingers and relented, “Fine…I’ll wait my turn.”

Alaska’s stomach flipped at the statement and her eyes immediately darted to meet Willam’s and then onto Raja’s. Even the dirty blonde had turned around slightly in order to look at the older woman in confusion. With a patient, welcoming tone, Raja offered, “We are still on a public beach after all but if you want…we could move this back to our house.”

“Its only about 15 minutes away,” Manila added in persuasively.

Willam’s gaze immediately shot over to connect with Alaska’s and with little more than a few seconds of consideration the pair were nodding their heads in mutual agreement. In a lightning quick frenzy, each of the couples packed up their belongings and hightailed it back to the parking lot. Though the sun wasn’t even midway in the sky at this point, no one found the energy to care about a day not spent at the beach for once.

To Raja and Manila’s credit the estimated travel time proved to be just about accurate and within the 30 minutes of leaving the beach behind, the four had arrived back at the house and found their way to the bedroom. Admittedly it was too easy for them to pair off for the first round, particularly since Willam had no intention of sharing Alaska during their first time together. As eagerly as Willam crowded Alaska onto the mattress, Raja had done the same with Manila. She knew just how to work her partner up until she squirming with impatience beneath the older woman.

As for Willam, her interest lie solely with exploring the body she could finally claim for her own. She reveled in the drawn out moans and gasps as she drug her fingertips and tongue over every inch of newly exposed skin. Alaska’s cheeks were soon flushed from both the actions of the dirty blonde and the knowledge that she was being watched by the other couple. A few times she had tried to switch their positions, to return the favor and finally touch her friend in manner that she’d only dream of before…but Willam was having none of that.

As if to prove a point, she maintained her place above Alaska and reaffirmed that at least for this session, the blonde would have to be content with being a pillow princess. Though she certainly wouldn’t admit it out loud, Alaska’s heart and stomach fluttered at the statement and all too easily she gave in to Willam’s demand. She didn’t bother to hide the growing volume in her voice but more than anything she still wanted to see or hear the other couple next to her. After catching a glimpse at the beach and now having the opportunity to fully indulge in their offer; it was too much to pass up even for a minute. Through her broken pants she begged them to continue, to just doing something so she could watch.

The pair shared a knowing looked and promised with a small smirk that they knew just how to accommodate her. Placing a delicate kiss to Manila’s cheek, Raja asked softly, “Do you want to tonight?”

Manila nodded in the affirmative but it still gave neither of the other women any clue what to expect. Willam hardly seemed to care any way and promptly returned all of her attention back to recapturing the blonde’s lips. They ignored the couple slipping off the side of the bed and pushed away the curiosity growing in the back of their minds as they heard one of them rifling around in one of the nightstand drawers. However, at the sound of clothing being shed and thrown about, Alaska’s interest was piqued and she opened her eyes steal a quick peak.

Her jaw actually dropped as she took notice of Manila casually slipping into the harness containing a strap on while Raja stood at the ready removing the very last articles of clothing still clinging to her body. The blonde’s eyes grew wide as she raked her gaze over both of the other women’s exposed bodies while they disrobed or prepared themselves. There was such an air of routine that even Willam had to wonder just how often they had done this, either by themselves or in front of other people.

Both of the women lying on the bed were blatantly staring by the time Raja and Manila were ready to move forward. It hardly seemed to surprise the pair to turn around and discover that they were being watched, they almost seemed to enjoy it in fact.

Jokingly Manila asked if the other two would be stripping as well and all too quickly Willam realized that she and Alaska were still wearing too many clothes for her taste. Deciding to remedy the situation herself, Willam took charge of relieving the younger woman of any clothing that had not already been tossed over the edge to bed.

Finally gazing upon each other for the first time in such an intimate moment, the two took their time letting their eyes roam over the other’s body. Alaska was starting to reach a hand out towards Willam and trace along the curves she’d been denied before, but the dirty blonde swiftly caught her hand and forced her back to hit the mattress once again.

“Not yet,” she warned with a sly grin.

Unhappy, Alaska simply pouted and nodded in understanding as Raja slid onto the bed beside her. Balancing herself on her hands and knees, she promised, “Don’t worry, this’ll make up for it.”

There was barely time for the younger woman to swallow before she found Raja’s face beginning to contort in pleasure as Manila carefully guided in the shaft of the prosthetic penis. Alaska looked beyond the clouding gaze of Raja to find Manila biting her lip in anticipation as she waited for a signal to begin moving. Not once did she seem tempted to proceed any further until her partner was entirely comfortable with the new feeling.

The blonde again allowed her eyes to slowly travel down the bodies of both women as an all too familiar ache began to pool in her core. With every passing second she seemed to discover a detail, something that made her want to touch and be touched by them. She’d almost forgotten about her own partner as she studied the pair in fascination until a finger began tracing along her outer folds. The ease at which Willam was able slide against her was almost embarrassing but considering what she was watching? Who could blame her?

Just for a bit fun, Willam leant close to the shell of her ear and teased, “You’re so wet 'Laska…does watching them really turn you on that much?”

It was hard for Alaska to even breathe between the question, the tone, the finger gliding along her entrance and of course, the couple waiting for her answer. Her mouth tripped over her words as she tried to come up with a response but with lazy brushing of Willam’s index against her clit, her mind felt like it had been put through a blender.

Still the dirty blonde tried to encourage her, even after she became partially distracted by the growing movement beside her as Raja gave the approval for her partner to set up slow pace.

“C'mon, baby, I know you can answer me,” Willam taunted as she slipped in the first digit. “You like watching them, don’t you?”

Try as she might, it still took Alaska well over a minute to muster enough thought power to answer shakily, “Y-yes.”

As a reward, another finger was carefully guided in as Willam claimed her lips for a searing lip-lock that left the blonde breathless and panting. There was so little being done to her but she felt close to losing it. She very nearly did once she felt Raja turning her face for their own long overdue kiss. There was passion in everything that Raja did as Alaska soon discovered. Despite the calm exterior she knew how to express her emotions effectively even through just kiss. Between her heated make out session, Willam expertly working her fingers and kissing her way down her body, it was no wonder that Alaska already felt on edge. Even the moments when she had to pull away to breathe offered little relief. Always waiting for her was Manila’s hungry gaze. It was as if she were saying, 'I’m next.’

Perhaps catching on to that thought or simply from just knowing how to read Alaska better than anyone else, Willam asked, “You want her inside you, huh?”

Alaska could only whine in response as the thought alone had her nearly begging for a turn and willing to promise anything just to get it. The dirty blonde above her let out a little laugh as she confirmed, “She’ll get her chance…only after I’m done with you.”

It was with that possessive statement that Alaska finally lost it and pulled Willam close as she rode out her orgasm. She wished she could have held out a bit longer but there was plenty of opportunity for that later in the day. For now she would simply enjoy the fact that she was here with Willam after so many years of silent pining, with another cute couple to boot. True to her word, Willam was not one to share, not so quickly but by the end of their session all of their bodies had been pressed so close together it was difficult to tell just where one person ended and another began. Each took their turn having attention lavished upon them and returned it in equal measure throughout the day. Before any of them had realized, the natural daylight in the room was starting to dwindle and bodies were threatening to give out completely for the night.

They had all but collapsed into a sweaty, panting mess huddled together as they decided to call it quits for the time being. Willam and Alaska ended up staying the night and well into the next day at the insistence of Raja and Manila. Much as they had done in previous weeks, there was a promise exchanged between the four to meet again the following Saturday. Eventually spending Saturdays together turned into entire weekends up until there came a point in time where Alaska and Willam would simply leave directly from work on Friday and return home the following Monday in order to squeeze in every last minute they could with Raja and Manila. Each wanted to make their situation a bit more permanent but still it felt too soon to broach such a heavy topic. For now they were content to share as much time together as they could before deciding on any other major steps. But despite the increase in time spent in their more or less shared house, they never forgot to return to the beach where it had all started for them.