#i have a wig for cherry already
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snoopkat14 · 2 years ago
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To cosplay cherry or langa
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amphibifish · 1 year ago
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i love my little puppet project...... sometimes i get huge bursts of motivation and work on it 4 hours and then i leave it for a bit and then come back 2 it :3
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avocado-writing · 4 months ago
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i neeeed smth silly with wade and his s/o having a stereotypical teenage girls' sleepover- painting their nails, gossiping about boys (logan) and trying to style wade's wack ass wig.
sigh unfortunately i am in love with The Idiot
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Honestly? You’re pretty fucking happy.
Wade is incredibly attentive. A goofball, sure, and the kinda guy to take things a little too far sometimes - but he can always tell when there’s something wrong. You’ve been far too stressed. Work has been getting you down, too much pressure with not enough appreciation, and it just feels like you’re being ground into the dirt by someone’s heel. Your usual enthusiasm when you come home has been ablated and you’ve barely been able to give Wade a smile recently. 
So tonight, when you walk in with gloom heavy around you, you’re pleasantly surprised when the apartment is lit with candles and your favourite album is playing quietly on the stereo. Wade looks up from where he’s judging between two facemasks. 
“Okay, we can go with ‘jasmine tranquillity’ or ‘rose seduction’. I’m feeling ‘rose seduction’, but maybe that’s because sensuality is my middle name. Well, one of my middle names. Wade Winston Sensuality Wilson.”
You put your work bag down and fix him with the smile which can’t help rising over your face. 
“What’s all this?”
“I couldn’t have my pookie ending their week on a bum note. I co-opted the place for ourselves tonight.”
“And Logan doesn’t care? Al?”
“Out drinking and at bridge, respectively. I’ll let you guess which one���s where.”
The image of your gruffest housemate sitting across from three retirees while playing cards makes you snort, and Wade knows he’s got you. 
Now? Now the facemask is smelling the room with soft perfume and you’re swilling your Merlot around in its glass, watching as Wade holds one of your bare feet in his lap and carefully applies red to your nails. There are curlers in your hair but none in his wig, because god knows you refuse to touch that thing any more than you absolutely have to. 
“This wine is nice,” you hum, slightly buzzed from the two glasses you’ve already had.
“It’s not, it was ten dollars, but once you’ve had enough you stop noticing that it tastes like ass,” he replies. Yeah, okay, he’s right. You down the rest of it and lean back against the sofa, watching him work as your vision swims a little. 
“You’re really good at this,” you hum. Wade doesn’t tear his eyes away from where he’s applying varnish in neat, diligent strokes. 
“I can sever a guy’s spine through his first and second lumbar vertebrae from thirty feet away. I’ve got steady hands, babe.” As easily as if he was commenting on the weather he holds up a small tray of press-on decals. “Now, do you want the little apples or the little cherries?”
You snort, gleeful. “Oh my god Wade, did you get those from Claire’s?”
“Yes I did. I went into Claire’s today because I’m confident in my masculinity and it’s a wonderful, joyous place to be.”
“… did Laura go in with you so you wouldn’t feel weird?”
“Yukio. I’m picking the cherries,” he decides with an air of finality. You cradle your woozy head in your arms and sigh, happily. 
“I love you, Wade.”
Finally he looks up, his face melting into a smile. 
“Yeah, I love you too. Now do you wanna watch Definitely, Maybe or Bridget Jones tonight?”
“Bridget Jones. You get weird when we watch the other one.”
“Heh, yeah,” he agrees. 
Taglist: @falsewordz @malfoys-demigod @belilwen @mildly-salted @tvwebs @childeslegstrap @getmeoutofhell @s1eep-o @just-a-beatlemaniac69 @yrthr @momopad @sugarplumz100 @captainjinkx @madspads @acrosstheunivcrse @yeethaw13
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dckweed · 8 months ago
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THE DEATH OF PEACE OF MIND, bob floyd
summary: In which bob floyd gets himself into a bit of a pickle and calls on his hot, recently single neighbor to help him out, the situation is mutually beneficial..in more ways than one.
warnings: fake dating, violence, domestic violence mentioned, nicknames, slowburn, eventual smut, reader has anxiety!
this is an x reader fic where reader is referred to as sunshine or sunny as a nickname, also i know the moodboard is a lil wonky no one say anything im gonna fix it! i made it on my phone half asleep lmao.
this took quite a bit to get out huh? lol anyway send in requests for bob and sunny if you have any my loves!
series masterlist here, series playlist here, comment on part one for the taglist!
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PART THREE: bagman. 
Purple and pink lights covered the dark stage, following your movements as you strode across it dressed in nothing but some white strappy heels with cute little cherries on them and a lacey red lingerie set. You had opted for a short wig that night, a blunt bob and in all honesty it made you feel like a whole new person as you stared out at the slightly crowded seating area next to the stage. Rowdy men were hollering already, slapping bills down onto the black top of the stage before you had even touched the pole yet, they were loving it. 
Music starts and you block out the crowd, moving your body to the beat as you do a routine you’ve been practicing in the couple of weeks you’ve been off, wanting to change up your dances for your regulars a little bit. You dance for nearly five songs, your new routine a big hit amongst the crowd and as you stride off of it, stopping to shake your ass here and there in front of who you deemed as deserving gentlemen, picking up handfuls of bills every time you did. The stage was absolutely covered in them, and you couldn’t have been more thrilled. You were fairly certain that there was enough her for you to be able to call it a night if you wanted to, you knew your boss wouldn’t mind if you went home early, he was still iffy about you coming in with a bruise still showing anyway (even though you perfectly covered it with makeup). A stage hand passes you with a big bag as you make your way off stage, the lights off as they go to clear up the money that you couldn’t grab. 
You were headed to the dressing room, needing a break after 5 songs but you’re stopped by your boss, Edwin. “You looked good out there Sunny,” He says an arm popping around your shoulder as the older gentlemen lead you away from the direction you were trying to go. You lean into him head on his shoulder. “Always a crowd pleaser, you are, you were missed during you time off.” 
You smile at his words, despite his hard appearance Edwin was actually a really kind man and he had taken you under his wing when you first came to town, had given you your job illegally even though you had just barely turned 21 and because of it you had grown close. If Bob hadn’t come to your aid the night that your pice of shit ex boyfriend had gone to town on you, you know that Edwin would have (even though he was in the middle of running the club) and he almost did when you called him the next day to tell him what happened. 
“I know it’s your first night back, and you wanted to take it easy,” He says, stopping you in the doorway just before the main floor of the club, where patrons were milling about as the stage hands finished clearing your set. “But you seemed to have caught the attention of one of those ship boys over there by the bar,” He points towards a group of them and you purse your lips, thanking god that none of them looked like Bobby from this angle. “Requested Ivy Wild for a private dance, told him you’re the boss when it comes to that..”
You sigh at the mention of being requested by name, looking back towards the dressing room. You weren’t sure how much you made from your stage appearance yet, not until you counted it, but you knew that if you did a half hour private dance that you’d walk away with three hundred at the least..you couldn’t say no to that kind of money. 
“I’ll take him, put him in room four.” You say, before turning on your heel to head towards the dressing room. “I’m gonna go freshen up real quick before I head in there.” 
The room is dark when you enter, nothing but a dim blue light around the ceiling to light up the room, casting shadows across the firm leather couches and the man lounging across them. You slink your way into the room, coy smile splaying across your lips. 
“Aren’t you a pretty little thing..” The man says, leaning back against the couch. He spreads his legs slightly as he does. He’s clad in dark jeans and a crisp white button up that is so tight you can practically see the outline of his abs through the fabric. You can’t see his face in the shadows but you can tell from his voice and the way he manspreads that he’s handsome, and you would be lying if you said it didn’t make you a little excited. “You gonna dance f’me?” 
If you listened close enough he even sounded a little bit like Bobby and for some reason, that made your face flush. “You gonna follow the rules pretty boy?” You flirt, moving your hips to the music that was playing softly in the room, standing just barely in front of him. “You can look but you can’t touch, got it?”
“Whatever you say, hot stuff..” He seems to sigh almost dreamily as you start putting on a show for him. 
You touch your body, letting your hands travel down it as you swing your hips to the beat, putting on a routine for him. Just as you’re about to give him a lap dance, ready to straddle your lean legs one either side of his thick thighs he reaches out for you, fingertips brushing the bare skin of your midriff. “Aht, Aht-” You say, pushing him back with your foot on his chest, your heel digging into the muscular expanse. “No touching, pretty boy..” 
“You’re fuckin’ killin’ me here..” 
When you leave the room fifteen minutes later, it’s with a self righteous smirk across your lips. You had made the man cum in his pants with your lap dance and you hadn’t even let him touch you, it was a rarity but you loved when it happened, it was quite the ego boost if you were being honest with yourself. You could have done without the three hundred and fifty that he had left for you and just rode the high of a stroked ego for the rest of the night, but you took it anyway and shoved it in the bag that the stage hands had left by your locker. You would count it out when you got home, you were ready to leave and you were positive you already made over a grand tonight, there was no need to stay other than to see to the other girls but they all seemed okay with themselves tonight. 
You poke your head into Edwin’s office and bid him goodbye on your way out, making your way to the employee parking lot afterwards where you parked your car, It’s a surprisingly short drive home given the time, and when you park your car on the side of the street outside of the building, you’re surprised to see Bob out, Cosie’s leash in hand. 
“Hey, Bobby!” You say cheerfully, hopping out of the car with your duffle bag and bag of cash in hand. He turns at hearing your voice, as though he was startled. 
“Sunny, you getting home early or late?” Yeah, the man earlier sounded almost exactly like him, you think and can’t help but smile. He holds the door open for you and lets you walk in ahead of him after you stop and stoop down to pet Cosie. 
“Early, told Edwin I wanted to take it easy..” You say, walking through the lobby of the building to the elevator with him. He hits the button for you too. You notice the way he looks at you when you mention Edwin and you remember that you never told him much about the club. “Edwin is the owner of the club, my boss..and he’s kind of like my dad in a way though thats a little weird to say because he sees me in lingerie all night..” You weren’t sure where the sudden rambling came from, perhaps it was a reaction to him putting his hand against your lower back to usher you into the elevator before him, or maybe it was the smell of his cologne that lingered in your nostrils but damn it made you feel nervous and giddy all at the same time. 
He hums as he punches the button for your guys’ floor, adjusting the leash to his other hand as Cosie rubs against your legs. You were still clad in your strappy heels, feeling too impatient to stop and take them off. He does the thing with his hand again to user you off of the elevator before him and you just about die on the spot, what is it with you? Was gentlemanly behavior really that big of a thing for you?
Within a few moments you’re at your door, his just a few steps farther than yours and he stops, holding your bag without a word as you shove your key into the lock and bully the door open. You open your mouth to say goodnight but find yourself saying something else entirely. “Do you wanna come in? Help me count all this maybe?” You hold up the bag of cash, and he glances down at it, soft smile on his handsome face. 
“Sure.” He finds himself saying, even though he has work in a few hours. You’re just so sweet with your damn eyes and flushed little cheeks that he can’t say no. 
The next few hours are filled with him sitting with you on your living room floor, sprawled out in front of the couch, piles of money in front of the both of you. You had gone and changed into a small pair of pajama shorts with little red hearts on them and a white tank top, but not before having him take photos of your heeled feet for you so you could post it on your instagram. 
“It’s almost four..” You whisper, your head leaned against his shoulder. You guys had stayed on the floor and you found yourself leaning against him as our eyes drooped, tired from you first day back at work but not wanting to fall asleep just yet. You listened to him tell you stories about his job, and you fell in love with how much he loved his job, how happy it made him. 
“You sleepy, Sunny?” He murmurs, that Montana accent thick. He turns his head to look down at you, almost wishing that he hadn’t because from this angle and in this lighting he could pretty much see through your shirt and it was all he could do not to pop a boner right here next to you at the sight of your pert nipples and supple tits. 
You hum in response, already on the cusp of unconsciousness. The last thing you remember is him shifting, his warm arm coming to wrap against your shoulder as if pulling him farther against him. 
By the time you wake the next morning, he’s long gone, though he’s left you in his hoodie that you don’t remember putting on and with Cosie. You can’t help but pout at his absence, having found yourself more comfortable with someone you were fake dating than anyone you had ever actually dated. You were surprised that you had fallen asleep, that you hadn’t woken when he left and when you check your phone, you’re even more surprised to find a text message with a photo of a sleeping you attached, your head against his chest, eyes closed and peaceful..
Navy Dude: thought i would take something for my own instagram..see you tonight..
You couldn’t help but giggle, breathing in his scent as you read the message and immediately going to check his instagram account before making yourself busy for the rest of the day by taking Cosie on a long walk and doing your pilates work out in the living room, practically counting down the hours until he would arrive to take you to meet his friends. Your first official date as a fake couple. 
You’re just struggling into a cute little yellow dress sun dress when you hear your door open and Cosie give a happy yip, with your arms cocked behind you, you glance towards your bedroom door, hearing his footsteps fall down the hallway. “Bobby?” You call out, almost a whine. “I can’t get my dress zipped..” 
He’s in your room in a matter of seconds, his long and lithe body taking up your doorway. He’s in his service uniform, the tan khaki’s littered with different colors of pins that you would have to ask him about later. You thought he looked handsome in his uniform, but he looked downright drool worthy when he wore his flight suit home, though you assumed they hadn’t done any flying today. 
“Let me help,” He murmurs as you stand in front of him. He bats your hands away before gently moving your loose hair over one shoulder, out of the way of the zip. “Dress looks real pretty..” His fingertips trail down the exposed skin of your back and you suck in a breath, chills going down your spine as they go up, up, up, stopping just between your shoulder blades. 
“Do I look okay?” You ask softly, smoothing out the flowy skirt that just barely went past your mid-thigh as you turned to face him, looking up at the taller man. You had put on enough makeup to cover up what was left of your bruises, but not nearly as much as you had worn at work last night. You were meeting friends, there was no need to paint your face like you would at work. You weren’t sure if you should put on more though, you wanted to look okay for him, you wanted him to have his friends’ approval. 
“You look gorgeous,” He murmurs, corners of his lips turning up as he looks down at you. You were practically chest to chest by that point, you would call it an almost intimate moment. His hand comes up from his side, fingertips grazing against the skin of your cheek before brushing your hair behind your ear, you blush as you notice yourself leaning into his touch slightly. “Think you look real pretty in yellow, Sunnygirl..” 
“Thank you..” You breathe, not realizing that you had somehow moved close enough to him that your noses were practically touching, him stopped down towards you. It wouldn’t take much for your lips to brush together now, just lean into him a little farther, and you would have too if Cosie hadn’t barked from your feet, scaring you so badly that you jump about a foot in the air, cheeks flushing as you realize that you had been about to kiss him and he hadn’t even tried to stop you. 
“Right, so,” You clear your throat, turning to go back to your closet for a pair of matching sandals. “Why don’t I go walk Cosie while you change and then I’ll meet you by your truck?”
“Oh, um, yeah, yeah,” He says, rubbing a hand against the back of his neck as he turns, his own cheeks flushing red. “You do that, i’ll be right down..” 
Nearly forty-five minutes later, he’s pulling his silverado into a parking spot near an old Bronco, throwing the shifter into park. You take in a deep breath, looking over at him. “This is it.” You say, the whole scheme that you two had cooked up finally feeling real to you. The man next to you nods, taking his keys from the ignition and shoving them down into his pocket. “Alright Bobby, let’s do this.” 
The parking lot isn’t overly crowded, but the patrons inside the bar are loud as you walk up to it. Your nerves get the better of you the closer you get to the front doors, your hands shaking with anxiety and you try to channel it into smoothing down your dress skirt but it does no good. Bob notices though, and suddenly he’s sliding his much larger hand over yours, giving it a gentle squeeze. “It’s gonna be okay, Sunny.” He says, and you smile up at him feeling like a fool. You hadn’t realized that your anxiety was so noticeable, you thought you had been better at hiding it. 
Before you cn respond to him, he’s pushed open the doors of the bar, stepping in first to hold it open for you, his hand not leaving yours once. Almost immediately there’s a call of his name traveling throught he air and the sounds of chairs scraping and before you know it you’re surrounded by a few big, buff dudes and a bubbly girl who looks the most excited to meet you. 
You do your rounds of introductions, Phoenix gives you a big hug, ripping your hand from Bob’s in the process and practically lifting you off of the ground, and though you’re meeting her under the guise of being his girlfriend, you know that you’re going to be good friends.
Rooster gives you a firm handshake, his ginormous hand enveloping yours as he smiles down at you. You take in his features, he’s quite handsome despite the scarring on his face (that you desperately want to ask questions about, though you keep it to yourself) and you notice the lack of a ring on his hand or on the dog tags looped around his neck, peaking out of the top of the white undershirt he had put on under his loose hawaiian shirt. You think he’d be a good match for one of your friends and you make a mental note to ask Bob about it later. 
Coyote is gentle, and quite sweet but he’s a bit of a flirt and you feel yourself leaning more into Bob while you’re talking with him briefly, wanting it to look like you weren’t available (because technically to them, you weren’t). He introduces you to who you realize is one of his best friends next, Hangman, or as you had heard Bob call him, Bagman. He’s still wearing his uniform, and when he shakes your hand he gives you a charmingly sweet smile that you just know makes the girls weak in the knees, but when he talks to you? Your stomach drops to your knees.”Hey there, pretty thing..” He must know it too, because he smirks at you, that accent heavy. 
You swallow thickly, turning to Bob. “I’m gonna go get myself a drink, I’ll be right back, baby..” You say, giving him a kiss on the cheek for show before heading over to the bar. “Shot of tequila, please..” You say to the woman tending bar, leaning against it as you let out a breath. 
Bob’s friend was the man you had given a private dance to last night..the man who you had made cum in his own pants. How fucking bad could this get, you wondered? You hadn’t exactly lied when you told Bob’s friends that you were a dancer, you just hadn’t exactly specified what kind of dancing you did for a living, not expecting that one of his friends would be one of your customers. 
She sets the shot glass down in front of you just as you feel a presence behind you, directly behind you. His body was solid and warm as he put his arms on either side of yours, boxing you in. 
“Does he know?” His voice his quiet in your ear, making your body go stiff. You were uncomfortable, but you knew that he wasn’t going to hurt you or touch you in anyway. 
“That I made you cum in your pants?” You ask, quirking an eyebrow as you turn to face him. His head was right next to yours, eyes narrowed as he looked at you. “No, Bagman, I don’t think he does, and I don’t think he needs to either.” You knock back your shot, the liquid sliding down your throat with ease. “Just like I don’t think your group of friends needs to know that you spent your sunday night getting a lap dance from a stripper, now do they?”
You must win whatever stand off this is because after a moment his moves his arms, letting you brush past him. You hear him ask for a round of beers from the woman, and to put your shot on his tab as you make your way back to Bob who gives you a questioning look, you realize he must have seen the whole encounter. You lean up to kiss his cheek as you come back, his arm going around your waist firmly as you whisper to him that you needed to tell him something when you guys got home. You honestly thought it was funny, but you were sure that he was going to be freaked out. 
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taglist:
@mamachasesmayhem @hangmandruigandmav @shotgunhallelujah @shiara04 @3tabbiesandalab @tgmreader @flrboyd @goosterroose @mrspedropascal5683 @sugajar
@dory-98 @justherebecausesafarisucks @eloquentdreamer @sweetwhispersofchaos @pet1t3 @teacupsandtopgun @milkbummm @purplevortexx @silenterosion
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ouaw-facts-i-just-made-up · 10 days ago
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Gricko isn't particularly a fan of dressing up and only does it rarely. He only ever wears the same clothes basically every day. Kremy LOVES to dress up and for YEARS he's wanted to give Gricko a little makeover for fun but Gricko never wanted to.
So on guys night when they were all asked to do a drag show. While Gricko was getting ready he looked at Kremy. And he was like "okay okay you can do my make up but ONLY THIS TIME." And Kremy was smiling so big like FINALLY!!
So Kremy had fun with his makeup and helped him put on a wig and his big fucking tits 😅.
This is a true fact!
TRUEEEE TRUE TRUE
Gricko is a guy that must be forced at knife point to dress up. He doesn't *like* shoes, he doesn't *like* tight pants and button ups. He is a druid damn it. Dirt is part of the job, no time for fancy, only comfy and free movement.
But okay, JUST THIS ONCE...
Kremy seems like a guy who enjoys dressing up people like dolls. It is unfortunate that he is surrounded by people who would rather do anything else than dress up. He convinces Gid sometimes (usually for special occasions or heists), Frost once or twice (he was uncomfortable the whole time), and he hasn't gotten the chance to ask torbek to change out of those rags yet (who let him keep a straight jacket on THIS long?), but Gricko was a gods damn immovable force. Even on special occasions, even when he tried to bribe him, hells one time when he was drunk he fucking *BEGGED* him, it'll be fun I promise! But no, never has he gotten the chance.
Until the drag show that is!
Kremy was already having the time of his life and this was just another cherry on top of it. Fuck. Yes. FINALLY. And maybe he'll be more receptive to another time? Who knows!
(Gricko will never allow this again, unless the situation is funny enough)
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fyrewalkwithmee · 9 months ago
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Cherries and Wine Pt.1
Dale Cooper x Reader
This is a NSFW fic 18+ only.
Synopsis: You are undercover as a bartender at One Eyed Jacks and are waiting for your partner, Agent Cooper, to come and get you out of there. You and Dale ingest a mysterious liquid that heightens arousal. Shenanigans ensue ;)
Warnings: tension, descriptions of arousal, reader is working in a brothel, alcohol, poisoning, making out, SPOILERS if you haven't seen twin peaks.
Word count: 3.4k (I'm so sorry)
AN: I'm sorry this is so long idk what happened. If you find all this detail boring maybe skip to the next chapter which will be smut. As always if you like the story please like, comment or message me to let me know! Enjoy.
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It was your third and final night working as a "bartender" at one-eyed jacks. It had been your idea to go undercover and had you gained valuable intel on Laura Palmer's involvement with the brothel. So after 3 long days, your partner would be coming to get you the hell out of there. He would be posing as a wealthy businessman travelling across the states on his way to a meeting. At the club, he would start chatting you up and take you into a private room where you would escape through the window. Part of you couldn't wait to see him and finally leave that godforsaken place.
Another part of you was secretly dreading it.
You and Agent Cooper hadn't left on the best of terms. Let's just say he wasn't overly excited by the idea of you being all alone, surrounded by unpredictable characters in a place that a murdered girl frequented. You understood his concerns, you really did. Cooper was a highly skilled agent, extremely intuitive and charming. You assumed he felt some level of responsibility for you being a few years your senior and far more experienced working in the field. But sometimes you felt like your partner forgot that you too were a trained professional. You needed to feel capable in your position, encouraged, not held back. He seemed to be that way with everyone else, so why not you?
You found yourself reliving the conversation the two of you had 3 days prior when your partner had dropped you off a couple blocks away from the club. Coopers eyes were filled with dread, he would have done anything for you not to get out of that car.
"I don't like this agent, I really don't. All of these men and the nature of the business, not to mention the club is out of our jurisdiction I-"
"It's going to be fine, alright." you interrupted his anxious ramble "Our plan is airtight, I just need a couple of days and if I don't find anything, come get me."
"If things go south you call us straight away okay?"
"Do you really have such little faith in me?"
"Of course, I have faith in you. It's just your first time undercover alone and it's a very delicate case."
"What you don't trust me? don't think I can pull it off?
"That's not what I meant. i don't want anything happening to you... for the sake of the case"
"Right well, for 'the sake of the case' I better go."
You exited the car slamming the door a little hard. Cooper looked regretful and like he was trying to find the right words to say. One last quip of encouragement that might ease the tension between the two of you, but nothing came to mind. His eyes met yours as you slipped off your trench coat revealing a slinky, long black dress that clung tightly to your figure. You were happy with the way you looked. The dress paired with some makeup and the long blonde wig you chose made you look exactly like one of the club girls. You handed Dale the trench through the window as he oggled at you wide-eyed.
"Having fun?" you snapped him out of his trance. "Sorry you look um... do you have your gun?" was he serious?
"No Dale I left my gun at the hotel" you said to yourself in your head mockingly.
You leaned over giving Dale even more of an eyeful than he already had and lifted up one side of your dress exposing your leg wrapped in sheer black stockings with suspenders that trailed up to reveal a lacy garter that held in place a tiny pistol. You decided to go all out with the undercover allowance given to you by the bureau. "I always bring protection. See you in 3 days." And with that, you dropped your dress and started swiftly towards the club leaving Agent Cooper in the dust.
You met with the club mother, an older woman who smelt of whiskey and cigarettes. You gave her big doll eyes as you told her a lengthy tale of all the clubs you've worked at and how all the men loved to get a drink from you, the girl who could use her tongue to tie cherry stems. Cherry was also your decided name and you had prepared a whole backstory so that you could seem as genuine as possible. You demonstrated your cherry-tying skills and managed to secure a role on the bar. She called a young-looking girl into the room and told her to help you pick out your uniform. As you went to leave the dimly lit room the woman called out, "Oh Cherry dear, don't think just because you're working behind the bar you won't have to also serve our clients in other ways. We all do our part around here." your stomach dropped, you assumed that the bar girls remained at the bar. You felt a wave of panic wash over you. What were you to do if some slimey man asked to take you into one of the other rooms? You would have to find a way out, but how without breaking your cover? You calmed yourself internally and turned to the woman, "Of course, not a problem" You said it so sweetly you could almost taste it.
Your first night had been quite uneventful. You served drinks, got chatted up and watched as the club girls worked their magic as the customers spent their money. You had no luck finding anything about Laura Palmer until the second night when a grey-haired man came and sat down at the bar. He had a down look about him which was strange seeing as most of the men who came to the club couldn't wipe the smiles off their faces.
"Tough day sugar?" you sauntered your way over to him as he gazed up at you. He straightened his posture and gave you a weak smile, in a thick southern accent he spoke, "Just found out one of my favourite girls was... well is no longer with us."
You lit up inside but tried your best to put on your best puppy dog eyes and gently grabbed his hand, "Oh no you poor thing. I'll tell you what. Imma make you a drink and you can tell me all about it. How's that sound?"
His eyes scaled your body hungrily and he smiled crookedly, "Sounds like a dream baby."
One hour and half a bottle of Jack Daniels later you had found out all you had to know about Laura Palmer's involvement with the club and you had pumped the older man with so much whiskey he didn't have the wits about him to ask you into a private room. He held your hands tightly as he slurred, "You're an angel baby." you giggled at him with a hint of disgust that you knew he wouldn't pick up on in his state, "No sweetheart, I'm Cherry." He laughed a boisterous laugh, "You are my new favourite! I'll see you tomorrow, I can't wait to get to know all of you." He finished his sentence eyes gaping right at your chest. "Oh God help me" you said to yourself, saying goodbye to the man.
Your last night couldn't have come quicker, you had gotten ready early to help pass the time and were in the bar polishing glasses when one of the other girls fittingly named 'Candy' entered. "You look especially pretty tonight. Someone special coming in?" You chuckled, "No one in particular." She continued, "Watch out for that man you were talking to last night, I hear he's racked up quite a debt with the club." she winked at you and went to serve a customer. Laura sure knew how to pick em you thought taking a deep breath.
A couple hours had passed and you found yourself constantly scanning the room eager to find Agent Cooper and get this over with. Your eyes met another familiar pair but to your dismay, it wasn't Cooper, it was Mr. Jack Daniels.
He made his way over with a confident stride and sat down in front of you. He grabbed your hand and placed a wet kiss on the top of it. "I saw you looking for me baby, this is gonna be a night to remember." You tried your best not to punch the smile right off his face, instead, you grabbed the bottle of Jack and went to make his usual when he stopped you, "Oh no my little Cherry, tonight we're having the good stuff." He called over Candy and asked her to get his 'special' bottle, he then began to tell you about how this spirit would make you feel things you've never felt before.
You pretended to listen but felt all the noise around you wash away when you spotted a tall man enter the area. He was talking to one of the clubgoers and nodded towards your area of the bar. They had a chuckle about something and he slowly made his way towards you. You couldn't help but check him out, starting with the shiny black shoes he wore. They were paired with a tuxedo that fit him perfectly, emphasizing his broad shoulders and long frame. As he walked closer and further from the dim lights you could see black hair slicked back revealing a strong jaw and cheekbones. He wore a pair of spectacles that circled a pair of deep dark eyes that locked with yours and you suddenly realised that the handsome stranger was in fact, Agent Cooper.
Your eyes widened for a moment and the old man went to look at what had caused such a reaction but you stopped him quickly, pulling his face towards yours. "wanna see a trick?" he nodded with anticipation and you grabbed a candied cherry putting it in your mouth and seductively moved it around using your tongue to tie the stem. You caught Dales's gaze in the process and to your surprise, neither of you looked away. He had a look in his eyes you'd never seen before. You finished tying the stem and held it between your teeth to show off your work. The old man applauded and went to speak but was interrupted by Cooper who had reached the bar. He leaned towards your red lips and grabbed the stem. He inspected the knot and leaned an elbow on top of the bar. He looked at you through his lashes, "that's very impressive."
His voice was low and smooth and it sent a jolt of arousal coursing through your body.
Is he flirting with me?
You then reminded yourself of the plan. Of course not he's just really committing to this alias. Not that you minded, Dale always kept your relationship strictly professional which was disappointing but you respected his boundaries. But at this moment, for the sake of the case, of course, you had a rare opportunity. You leaned towards him, exposing the cleavage your tight corset created, "Thank you handsome, you know this mouth can do a lot more too." he moved closer and leant both arms on the bar, trapping you with his size, "Is that so?" you bit your lip and looked up at him, fire in your eyes, you nodded.
He wore a mischievous grin that old you knew he was enjoying this as much as you were. "Well, how about you come and show me just how good that little mouth can be." His words shocked and turned you on. You had never heard Agent Cooper talk in such a dirty and suggestive manner, but you were loving it. You felt a delicious tension build in your stomach and your arousal started to form a wet spot in your panties.
The electricity swirling between the two of you was extinguished by the gruff sound of someone clearing their throat. you looked to your right and were reminded that your admirer was still seated at the bar, now with two glasses filled with a dark crimson liquid in front of him.
You had forgotten all about him, just now it was like you and Cooper were the only people in the whole world.
The older man turned to Cooper, placing one of the cups in front of you, "Sorry friend, but I've got Miss Cherry reserved for the night." Cooper lowered his head, "I see. Well, we won't be long." he reached into his coat and pulled out a big wad of cash, "How about you go and hit the casino and I'll have Miss Cherry back to you in no time." The old man stared hungrily at the cash. "Well that seems fair enough, you can warm her up for me ay?" The old man laughed obnoxiously and took the money. Dale clenched his jaw, hating the way he talked about you but forced a chuckle out anyway. And just like that, the man walked away not even uttering a goodbye. You turned to Cooper and whispered, "How did you know he needed money?"
"i did my research" he smirked
"well, should we get out of here then?" you gave him a wink
"Not so soon, we don't want to seem suspicious, let's talk longer." he grabbed the drinks from the table and led you to a quieter end of the bar. he moved in closer to you and raised a glass, he gave you a sincere look and spoke, "Here's to you. A great agent and an even better partner."
You blushed under the low lights finally receiving the approval you always wanted from him. "Thank you, Dale" You clinked your glass with his and you both took a sip of the mysterious liquid, eyes remaining locked. It had a strange, sweet taste and sent a tingling sensation down your throat. You weren't sure why, but something about it made you crave more...you took another sip.
"You never call me that." he furrowed his brows suspiciously, "well, now's a better time to start than any", you replied, happy that he wasn't still upset about the mission. "Hmm, I don't know. I think I prefer handsome." he teased. You scoffed at him and pushed his shoulder playfully. To anyone watching, it probably did seem like the two of you were flirting like any of the other people in the club.
You and Cooper talked for almost an hour, getting lost in conversation regarding the intel you had uncovered and news from the station. It would almost feel like a date if it weren't for the setting and talk about work. You went to take another sip from your cup to find that it was already empty.
A familiar buzz was starting to take effect, you assumed this was from the alcohol but it was mixed with another sensation. A faint burning pulsed through your body, forming an electric heat around your throat and neck, stomach, your breasts... you could feel that the wetness in your panties had grown rapidly into a puddle of arousal.
You hadn't realised it but all this time while talking with Dale you had become more and more turned on. Watching the way his lips moved, how his long fingers danced over the glass and combed through his hair... god that hair! You desperately wanted your hands to replace his. to grip and pull and guide his head lower and lower, to do terrible, sinful things. You had known for a while how much you wanted the older agent, wanted to feel his strong hands grip you, his mouth latched onto yours and on other places too. But this newfound feeling wasn't like anything you'd ever felt, it was a burning desperation that seemed to have a will of its own.
You suddenly felt flushed flipping your wig off your shoulders to help cool yourself. You caught Dale's eyes sneak a glance at your chest, but he quickly looked away adjusting the top of his collar and bowtie. You wondered if he was feeling it too?
Your question was answered when he spoke, "I think it's time to go" he sounded out of breath even though he was sitting down. You agreed with him, taking his hand as you led him out of the bar and into a softly lit hallway. You tried not to react but you could feel the heat from his body transfer to yours and fuel the lustful desire coursing through you. Your crotch throbbed from the slight contact and you moved quickly in search of an empty room. You finally located one and shut the door behind you, immediately looking for a window that would aid your escape.
This room was different from the others but you paid no mind to that heading straight for the windows. The temperature in the room was getting hotter as you both frantically pushed and pulled on the latches but to no avail. the windows were sealed shut.
"Did you not examine the rooms to prepare for the escape?" Dale looked wrecked, his cheeks were flushed and hair dishevelled, two strands hung teasingly over his glasses. "I did but this one was shut off during the daytime!" you replied in a panic trying again to push open the glass. "We're going to have to break it." Dale stated and began taking off his suit jacket to protect his hand.
Suddenly there were footsteps outside of the room and a faint knock on the door, "everything okay in there?". The door started to creep open and you did the first thing that came to mind. You shoved Dale up against the wall and thrust your mouth onto his. His body stiffened from the sudden contact but quickly relaxed into the kiss, he wrapped his arms around your waist pushing your bodies closer to one another.
A large man entered the room, security you assumed, "Everything okay?" your lips left Dale's and you peered at each other with wide eyes. You turned to the man and quickly spoke "All okay." He nodded and closed the door behind him.
You stepped out of Dale's grasp and started stammering, "Cooper, I'm so sorry! I wasn't thin-" but were interrupted by your partner grabbing and turning you so now you were against the wall. His mouth was on yours and he kissed you aggressively, slipping his tongue into your mouth, gripping the back of your head with one hand. you wrapped your own around his neck, pushing yourself into him, needing him closer.
Every move he made felt heavenly, heat and sweat building as you desperately clutched onto each other's bodies. Your arousal was at an all-time high and you instinctively ground your crotch against his quickly discovering that a hard bulge had formed in his pants. A delicious moan escaped Dale's throat before he broke away from your embrace, a slight look of embarrassment on his face. "We really have to go" he spoke desperately and out of breath. You nodded not really knowing what to say.
Cooper told you to step back as he wrapped his hand in his blazer and smashed the window. he got rid of any shards of glass and lifted you up so you could exit the room. You hit the grass outside with a thump and waited for Cooper who followed close behind. The two of you quickly made your way into the night towards the sheriff's truck which was waiting for you a block away.
You walked in silence, panic washing over you as your mind raced with a thousand thoughts about how you and Dale were ever going to recover from the moment you just shared. The cool air was a welcomed relief from the overwhelming heat of the club but nonetheless, you wrapped your arms around yourself. Dale noticed and shook his jacket making sure there were no pieces of glass and gently placed it around your shoulders. The familiar musk of his cologne overcame your senses and you were immediately taken back to your steamy exchange. His hands, his lips, his hair, the feeling of his arousal pressed against your own. You quickly felt the effects of the mysterious liquor begin to work its magic again as the fire in your veins returned, somehow even stronger than before. You were getting wound up and started overheating as your sex clenched around nothing in the cool night air. You looked to Dale. He was in the process of rolling up his white sleeves and had already removed his bowtie, popping open the top buttons of his shirt.
He was feeling it too.
You were so fucked.
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rainedragon · 10 months ago
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how do you get over the social anxiety of wearing something "unusual"? i've wanted to wear lolita fashion for years but just can't muster the courage
So, for me, wearing lolita actually helps with my anxiety because yeah, it's absolutely weird. And there is something very freeing about not trying to fit in. Yes, people may think it's weird. But I know it's weird. I'm purposely being weird. So I don't have to care if people think I'm weird, because I'm trying to be weird. People generally don't say mean things, or give me dirty looks when I'm out by myself, honestly more often I'll get random compliments? And people smile more genuinely? I try just to be extra nice when I dress up too, so like, I'll make sure I smile if a kid stares, or if someone comes up to talk to me, or if I'm in a checkout line I try to be more friendly/nice than average. So like, being extra nice kind of becomes a shield I put up to make it harder for anyone not to be nice back to me. That said, I do tone it down more for like, going to the mall, than I would for going to a convention. I don't typically wear wigs and 3 headbows when I'm going shopping like I might for a meetup or a convention. That's another thing, going to meetups with other lolita or spaces like anime conventions where lots of people are cosplaying can help with getting used to being in public in lolita without being the only person dressed "weird". Like, when there is a whole flock of lolita, people do stare more, but there are a bunch of other people who can deflect questions. Gothic and classic also can be easier to wear in public alone than sweet. And then with sweet, fruit prints also are a lot more "normal" to non lolita than like, carousel or toy prints. So, if I don't want to be bothered, I'll wear brown or black classic / old school, or I'll just pick like a gingham and cherry dress and style it somewhat casually. It also helps me to have a task. So, like, I used to bring my camera to cons as a new lolita and I would take photos of other people's outfits or cosplay. Going up to someone and telling them you love their outfit and asking for a photo in a setting where that is encouraged like a convention center, or asking them where they got something, can be a great way to meet people with a positive first impression. When I'm shopping, I'm actively shopping , so I focus on the task at hand. I also tend to catastrophize, so, I think for me as well thinking "ok what's the worst that could happen and what would the solution be?" can help? Like, what is the worst that could happen? Someone looks at me funny or yells "where are your sheep" and then... what happens next logically? I don't care about that person. I don't know them. I'm probably not going to see them again. Who cares if they like my coord or not. They don't even know what lolita is. So why should I let them dictate how good I feel about myself today? Their opinion doesn't matter, they are being a jerk, and if they make me feel uncomfortable I can leave. And I just sort of find solutions or ways I would handle and resolve those situations I'm nervous might happen. Now, if you don't already imagine bad things happening, I'm not suggesting you intentionally do that, but more like, if you already have those sorts of thoughts, interrupting them with logical arguments is something I find helps me. If you are going to like school or something where you will see the same people again often, I'd suggest slowly easing into a style change. So maybe you start doing your hair with braids, and then wear more dresses in general and just of kind of slowly change your style to be more lolita-like until it is just lolita. Finally, I'm not a mental health professional, I'm just a lolita with generalized anxiety / panic disorder. What works for me may not work for others and this isn't medical advice.
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alj4890 · 6 months ago
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Processing and Developing
(Ethan x F!MC) (Tobias Carrick x F!MC) in a Choices Open Heart one shot.
Taken from Book 3, Ines's wedding reception.
This one's for you, @jerzwriter 😉 I haven't forgotten our need for more Tobias. It's not good, but I finally broke the writer's block, LOL!
Masterlist
A/N I finally wrote something! 🤣 This idea came about last night when replaying Book 3. I always opt to have my MC, Chris, take a photo of just her and Tobias at Ines's wedding reception. Originally, I hoped this scene would open up a romance option with Tobias. Sadly, PB didn't give it to me, LOL, so this is how I wish things had gone down canon wise.
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"You look like you could use this."
Chris turned around at the familiar voice. Her eyes darted over how handsome the man before her looked dressed to the nines in his blue suit. Humor lurked in the hazel depths of his eyes as he in turn noticed her taking every inch of him in.
Tobias exaggerated clearing his throat. He held up the two fruity cocktails in his hands and playfully shook one.
Chris smiled in response while reaching for the glass that had cherries and a pineapple spear sitting on the rim.
Tobias lifted it out of her reach.
He clucked his tongue in mock disapproval. "Hold on. You know what you have to do to earn this."
Chris's smile dimmed. She wasn't certain if it was the fact they were guests at Ines's romantic Hawaiian wedding or that her hopeful imagination was getting the better of her again. Something though was different between Tobias and herself. The pair had always bantered back and forth and enjoyed the sharp wit of the other. Somehow along the way, the teasing took on a slight sexual edge.
She couldn't help but think he was attractive. Even when she first deemed him the enemy the year before, she found him incredibly sexy. Now that she was coming to know the type of man he truly was, she knew she was falling hard for Tobias.
She wasn't the only one feeling this way.
Tobias had been playing the long game with Chris. He'd thought her cute the first time he'd seen her at Leland Bloom's home. Going head to head with her and Ethan had been one of more enjoyable aspects of his job. Each time he saw her after that, though she glared at him, made him want to know her even more.
After the attack, her attitude changed towards him. He found himself the recipient of her warm smiles and good natured teasing. Even while fighting for her life, she never lost her sense of humor.
He admired her spirit, her mind, and to no one who knew him's surprise, her body.
The moment he joined Edenbrook's diagnostic team, he was finally able to see if his brief impressions of Chris were accurate. The more time he spent with her, the more he saw why there were a few at Edenbrook with feelings for her. She made it easy to fall head over heels.
Normally, he'd have already made his move. Given their close work relationship and the fact he suspected Ethan and Chris had an interesting past, he held back. When it came to Chris, he didn't want any competition, whether it be a literal person or one of secret pining for said person.
If things were to work out like he thought, he'd want Chris's heart and mind for himself. There would be no other way he could be with her.
It's odd, he thought to himself. Normally I'd be all for having her without any expectations or even caring if she wanted someone else.
But now...
"What do I have to do?" Chris interrupted his thoughts.
A slight blush graced her cheeks from the way he was looking at her.
Tobias pointed towards the photo booth.
One look at his suspicious smile made Chris double over with laughter.
"You found the box of props, didn't you?" She asked between giggles.
"You bet I did." He chuckled. "What do you say we drag Ethan and Harper in there and get a team photo."
"You really think you can get Ethan to don a wig and clown nose?" She asked.
"Nope." He grinned at her. "Even I'm not that persuasive."
"I don't know," she teased. "From my experience, you have quite a way about you."
Her smile grew the longer she looked at him.
"You've already got me agreeing to not only get in that photo booth, but also help you convince our more serious team members to join us."
"Then my charm is finally being used for good." He handed her a cocktail with a wink. "Let's take a dose of liquid courage and make our attack."
*************
"No." Ethan told them. "I prefer to keep my dignity intact."
"Dignity is overrated." Tobias teased.
Harper shook her head over that statement. "I'm all for a team photo, but I would like it to represent us in a more positive, respectful light."
Chris rolled her eyes. "Honestly, I think having such a picture would show our patients we're people too, ones with an excellent sense of humor."
"Our patients don't care about whether or not we have a sense of humor." Ethan argued. "They only want us to make them feel better. Nothing more, nothing less."
"Spoil sports." Tobias muttered. "Well Chris, it's up to me and you to show these two how to have fun."
Harper snorted in amusement. "I'll take my fun with getting another drink."
She waved goodbye on her way to the open bar.
Before he could engage the pair in a conversation, Ethan watched as Tobias grabbed Chris's hand and dragged her into the booth. His brow furrowed when he noticed they'd forgotten to grab props for their fun photo.
Curious about what they were doing behind the closed curtain, he went to watch the line of photos start to appear.
The first photo was of the two of them laughing. The second one had a more normal smile. The third one made him pause. The pair were looking at each other in a way he didn't want to contemplate. In fact, the image showed that Tobias was looking at the young lady beside him as if seeing her for the very first time.
Ethan's feelings for Chris had never died. If anything, they'd gotten stronger over time. He worked hard to keep things professional and continued to keep her at arm's length. It was difficult given how often they were together at work, but he knew it was for the best.
The fourth picture made his heart sink. The two in the booth were closer than before with heads tilted as if they were about to--
"Ethan?"
He spun away from his worst fears developing in the fifth picture. Harper eyed him for a few seconds before moving to see what held his attention.
Her eyes widened over the photograph of Tobias and Chris sharing a passionate kiss.
"Oh!" She exclaimed. "I had no idea they were together."
A muscle spasmed in Ethan's jaw.
"Excuse me." He bit out.
He left the reception with quick strides. The sound of the waves hitting the shore nor the warm breeze blowing did little to calm the emotions roiling within. He wished his curiosity had not gotten the better of him. Tonight could have ended with him simply dreaming about all the things he would have liked to have done with Chris if they'd been a couple.
Ethan briefly closed his eyes. He knew exactly how their night would have gone.
He would have been her date to the wedding. There would have been hints that one day they might like to have a destination wedding like Ines and Angie. They'd have spent the reception basking in the romantic atmosphere. Slow dances would have been shared. Flirting would have led to them slipping away shortly before the cake was cut.
Chris would have teased him that he better make it up to her for missing out on wedding cake. Ethan would have done so with a moon lit walk on the beach followed by retiring to their shared suite. He'd then have spent the entire night making love to her, proving that his heart was fully hers.
Ethan shook himself out of his pointless thoughts. He'd made his choice two years earlier. He could have had everything he wanted if he'd only considered that Chris was different from any other woman he'd known. Now he was left with longing for what might have been.
He eased into the shadows when he heard footsteps combined with Chris's laughter approaching.
"And just where are you taking me, Dr. Carrick?" Chris asked with a flirty lilt to her voice.
"Someplace where we can't be interrupted." Tobias paused to pull her back into his arms.
The two shared a deep kiss.
A moan, Ethan recalled all too well having once in his life caused, slipped out of Chris. That sound was embedded in his mind. He never imagined hearing another man cause it. It hurt worse than he could have imagined, knowing it wasn't because of his own lips touching hers.
"I think I know what's going to happen when we get behind a locked door." She said softly, all teasing gone. "But what happens when the sun rises?"
Ethan winced at the memory of Chris asking him that very question years ago. After a night proving how perfectly they fit together in every single fashion, he responded that they would go back to their lives as if nothing had happened between them.
He couldn't see his former best friend and roommate wanting anything more than a one night stand. Perhaps, Ethan could still hold on to what he longed for most in this world.
Tobias shocked him with his response.
"I will take you out for breakfast." He pressed a tender kiss to her lips. "That way we can talk about our new relationship."
Chris stilled.
"Relationship?" She asked hesitantly.
"I want more than tonight with you." Tobias held her close. "I want you to be mine, no one else's."
Ethan watched Chris's face fill with joy. With a slight gasp, she kissed Tobias with all the love she'd kept for the one who could give her what she wanted.
The new couple hurried into the hotel.
Ethan moved out of the shadows. He couldn't quite wrap his head around all that had occurred within the last hour.
Why didn't I ask Chris to dance earlier? Why didn't I agree to do the asinine picture? Would it have stopped her getting with Tobias?
He knew that Bryce had gone after Chris. Seeing them together hadn't hurt. Bryce was completely different from Ethan. Though they were both doctors, their studies didn't line up. He knew he'd never have Bryce's fun loving swagger. In his eyes, he knew it wasn't a competition between them for Chris's affection.
With Tobias, it was a huge blow to Ethan's ego. The two were too similar. Both were highly intelligent, loved the mystery diagnostics allowed them to pursue, and they had similar temperaments.
"Not anymore." Ethan muttered to himself.
Tobias had changed these last ten years. He still was driven with his love of a good mystery, but he no longer lost his temper as quickly as he once had. There was no need to one-up Ethan over every single thing.
Ethan realized that Tobias had become a man he would actually enjoy being close to again.
How could he now? The man was with the woman he desperately loved.
"There you are!" Harper jogged up the path.
"Looking for me?" Ethan asked.
"I was worried about you." She admitted.
"I'm fine." He replied.
"Ethan." She gently touched his cheek. "It's me. You know you can talk to me. I can see you're upset."
He blinked, stepping away from her.
"I'm not upset." He snapped.
Her eyes narrowed. "I saw you and I saw what happened in that photo booth."
Ethan stiffened after shoving his hands in his pockets. He tried to walk away from someone else confirming his heartache. Harper was having none of it.
She placed a hand on his chest and stepped directly into his path.
"I saw, Ethan." She repeated. "I've seen how you look at Chris. Does she know you're in love with her?"
Ethan averted his eyes. Shaking his head, he heaved a deep sigh.
Harper softened her tone. "Why didn't you tell her?"
"There were many reasons." He muttered. "Though, none of them seem important now."
"You could still tell her." Harper argued. "What we saw was probably nothing more than just two people giving in to the romance of the evening. Tomorrow you can--"
He shook his head, silencing her halfhearted attempt to cheer him up.
"It's too late." He swallowed. "I've uh, I've burned a lot of bridges between me and Chris."
He glanced up at the hotel, wondering which room she was in.
"Someone else came along and gave her what she wanted."
Harper wrapped her arms around him in a comforting hug.
He didn't return it. After a few seconds, he untangled himself from her embrace.
"Ethan? It will get easier."
"Perhaps." He conceded. "For right now, I need to be alone."
He began to walk inside of the hotel. He knew it would be a torturous night in his lonely suite. He anticipated having many miserable nights the next few months since he now possessed front row seats for Chris and Tobias's new relationship. He knew deep down that no matter how much time passed, his heart would never fully heal.
When it came to Chris, it would always hurt.
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ofbluesandyellows · 1 year ago
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Black Cat's Curse - TASM! Fem! Reader
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Summary: Peter Parker has been cursed, crossing paths with the oh so feared black cat isn't exactly in his itinerary, and no, we are not talking about or favorite lady, Felicia. On Halloween night his bad luck has prodded him to the solution he didn't know he was looking for.
Word count: 6,537
Warnings: cursing, witchcraft (lol idk)
a/n: Hi! I'm back with a lil Halloween story for you, this one fully came to me last week. It isn't anything crazy but I do hope you enjoy it. Happy Halloween y'all. I adopted a black cat recently so maybe that's where the inspo came from. Bye :)
“What do you mean you can’t do anything?” Spider-Man was about to drop to his knees, to beg. And he never begged for anything in his life, other than bringing Ben back to life.
“Ow Spider.” Her finger with a long perfectly manicured nail traced his spandex covered clavicle. “Yes, they call me Black Cat but it doesn’t mean I know how to undo your bad luck. That’s on you and the poor black kitty you crossed paths with.”
“But whenever I get unlucky it’s always because of you, how come this is different?”
“Hey, don’t come to me with that bullshit, that’s just how things are, you should’ve known better. You’re on your own Spider.”
Peter closed his eyes, not that Cat could see him but he needed a second not to throw a punch at her, he knew she’d dodged with ease but he didn’t want to risk it. Exhaling he was about to humiliate himself once more, turning around Cat was long gone.
“Mother fuck-“ a splash of what he knew was bird poo painted the red spandex of his forearm with sickly yellowy-white. “Seriously?” Arms up in the air, no one to reply back.
Peter Parker wasn’t a big fan of Halloween growing up, he always went for the uncool type of costumes, he clearly remembered asking aunt May to buy him a white wig so he could dress up as Albert Einstein when he was about eleven. Uncle Ben ended up buying him white color spray and a fake mustache so they could DIY the look. Knitted burgundy vest, faux wrinkles on his face and the already perfect bushy brows made Peter the happiest kid in the block.
He was beyond ecstatic with the way his costume turned out, adults praised him and aunt May for the effort when he went trick or treating but the real menace were kids’ nasty words and funny remarks about him. After that he either went with a boring costume, he preferred to fit in, or at least try rather than be laughed at. 
It was obvious that the teasing continued up until college, but college was bearable compared to what he had gone through since he became Spider-Man.
Peter hadn’t been in need of a costume for years now, that was the main reason why he liked Halloween now, he could walk around as a civilian in his actual suit, no one batted an eye in his direction during this day.
Flash Halloween party was crazy loud, Peter didn’t know these many people were friends with Flash.
“Hey Spider-Man!” His heart skipped a beat, but Flash was smiling at him. “Peter, you made it!” 
Peter took the mask off, he thought this would be funny, wearing his actual suit was comfortable but now he was regretting it, he had several mini heart attacks whenever called him by his alias. He felt sweat dripping from his back. Yeah he would need to wash the suit.
“Of course man! I promised, right?” he laughed trying to disguise the panic.
Flash was wearing a Beetle juice costume, a pretty epic one if Peter could have an opinion on it. 
“I see you went all in with the costume huh?” He snatched the mask off Peter’s hand. “Nah this isn’t as good as the original.” Flash laughed.
With cherry colored cheeks Peter chuckled. “Yeah, I bought it at Walmart. Everyone seems to love the guy so I just thought why not?” 
“I’ve seen worse Parker, like the guy dressed as Alex Turner? Pfff lazy.”
“Really? I haven’t seen him. Don’t tell me it’s Harry the one dressed like that.” Peter said amused.
“Almost, but no. Harry hasn’t shown up yet, bet he found some expensive costume made suit and will pull off a ‘I’m Leonardo DiCaprio in Wolf of Wall Street.””
Both boys rolled their eyes. “Wouldn’t be surprised.” 
Suddenly Peter felt cold dripping from his back. 
“Hey dickhead, watch where you are going.” Flash was the first to talk, pushing a drunk David Bowie out the way.
Peter was in shock, how come he didn’t notice, why were his senses not alerting him of the guy at his back.
The smell of sweet fruity punch and vodka lingered on his nose. 
“Shit Pete, do you want to change?” 
Peter shook his head, lipped smile on. “No, don’t worry I’m good. Just going to grab a beer.”
“Ok, if you need something just look for me, okay?” 
“Sure, thanks Flash. Cool party by the way.”
Flash grinned. “Thanks Parker! See ya around.”
The lights were kaleidoscopic, New Wave music playing, it was a lot and now his suit was wet and cold and there were pretty girls around, and he couldn’t concentrate in one thing. 
Fuck me.
Tuning around as he dodged a group of girls dressed as fairies he clocked eyes with a witch. She was sitting on the couch with other people, Peter wasn’t sure if she was with them or not but the staring sent shivers down his spine. 
She gave him a lipped smile, one he tried to emulate, not succeeding because she dropped her expression. The next thing he knew it was that she disappeared. 
He shook his body to try and get rid of the odd feeling. Finding a beer was easy, what wasn’t easy was held in the need to puke when the warm and obviously outdated beer’s taste hit his tongue. 
Peter sighed, he was tired of this, it hadn’t even been a week with this black cat curse and he was already done, no fight with Electro nor Vulture had done him this wrong. Sloped shoulders and a bitter taste he was ready to go home. 
Exiting the loud house in Brooklyn, Peter’s eyes found the sparkly ones of a witch. 
A new wave of shivers appeared as Season of the Witch played at his back. Spooky as shit.
“Okay, this is worrying me.” He mumbled.
The girl approached him in two long steps. 
“Hello,” you smiled, showing him your pearly white teeth. 
“Um hi?” 
“Sorry to bother you, I saw you in there and if you don’t mind me saying this… you look like shit.” The apple of your cheeks tinted pink. 
Peter scoffed. “Yeah? Well, I didn’t need to hear it because I do indeed feel like shit, so if you excuse me,”
He took a step to the right to make his escape, but you took the exact same side as he did.
Peter scowled.
“I—I don’t want to sound crazy but you do have like a bad aura around you, you know? Like a dark cloud following you, and… okay yeah I’m going to say this with the risk of sounding like an insane person but I promise you I am not—“
Taking a cautious step closer, you were too close for Peter’s liking. On your tiptoes you angled yourself to reach his ear.
“You are cursed.” 
Peter felt his body freeze, his eyes went wide just as goosebumps formed on his skin.
“You… how did you know?” Peter stumbled back a little. 
“As I said, I can see it.” You took a jump back. Your face went back to a soft smirk. “Need help with it?”
Peter looked around, the streets were busy still, it wasn’t even midnight yet.
“You know how to revert it?” 
“Sure thing. It’s a simple spell.” 
“Can you do it now, like chant it or whatever.” 
You scoffed. “Hell no! It’s a bit more complicated than that,” balancing on the balls of your heels you stared at him. Peter was mulling with the possibilities. You were weird as fuck. But he didn’t feel the Peter tingle as it was. He only felt wary. 
You had this cute smile and very bright eyes. If Black Cat couldn’t do anything to help him, why not take his chances and accept the help of an actual witch.
“Are you like a real witch?” He squinted. 
“Yeah.” 
“Fine. What do we need to do?” 
You grinned, joyous. 
“Follow me Peter Parker.” 
Shrugging, you said: “Flash told me.”
“You know Flash?” Well, that was news to him. He never expected him of all people to be close with a witch.
You seemed offended. “Um yes? We take bioengineering together.” 
Peter almost choked on his own saliva. “You go to Empire?”
“Yes, I’ve seen you around, you’re friends with that rich kid that always looks at the rest of us as if we were dirt under his shoe.” 
You couldn’t help but laugh when Peter scrunched his nose. “That sounds like Harry.” 
“Osborn is not always nice to everyone.” 
Peter knew that but Harry wasn’t a bad person he just hadn’t been given the attention he deserved.
“So bioengineering, huh? You’re pretty smart I assume.”
“It helps with the witchcraft thing, believe it or not.” 
Peter could see why. He grabbed his mask a little tighter.
“Oh.” 
Peter heard you say, a second later a car passed by full gas, the puddle of dirty water splashed wetting his legs. 
“You could’ve warned me, you know?” shaking his legs only made the water go down into his converses, wetting his socks. He needed to come up with a water repellent suit.
“Right, sorry. Never seen such a curse before. The grayish hue around you goes purple whenever something is about to happen. It’s kinda awesome.” You grinned.
Why was this woman always so cheery? Peter sighed and continued walking.
“Do you have a name or should I just call you Witch?” 
You chuckled. “I do have a name but Witch is way more fun. And it’s Halloween, it fits.” 
Peter grimaced. What a time to be cursed.
Both hopped on a bus after walking three blocks.
“Are you hungry Peter Parker?” 
His stomach felt like growling. “I could eat.”
“Nice, I’ll order some pizza. It should be there when we arrive.” 
Peter saw you texting. He noticed for once your whole attire. Pointy hat with purple ribbons and tulle decorating it. You had glitter smeared on your cheeks and eyelids. The dress was black tulle as well with a sparkling touch, he wasn’t sure what it was. The tights had black and purple stripes with a nice pair of black Dr Martens. It was like a modern version of the classic Witch costume he’d seen in movies. 
It suited you, what it didn’t match was your always happy features. Peter wondered if you were in fact a witch or just pretended to be one for the sake of the holiday.
“Do you like mushrooms?” You found him staring. Your cheeks went a tone deeper in red.
Peter panicked and looked out the window, far away from you. “They’re fine.”
“Good, I ordered half pepperoni and half mushrooms.” 
Humming, you, witchy girl unlocked, your phone and started to play…
“Sudoku? Really Witch?” Peter grinned, this was so odd to him.
“I like it, it keeps me on my toes.” you giggled.
Unintendedly, Peter kept an eye on the game, finger pointing to one square and mumbled “there has to be a nine.”
The grid sheet sparkled after you pressed the 9 in. “Nice one, Peter Parker.” 
“Just call me Peter.” 
Your eyes locked on his. “But Peter Parker sounds more interesting.” You nudged him, making him laugh. 
“You’re so weird.”
“Thanks.”
•••
Peter sat in the living room. The apartment was simple, it didn’t even feel witchy at all. It smelled fresh and there was some kind of lavender sent around.
“What? Disappointed?” You laughed at his face.
“A little, yes.”
“It’s 2023 Peter Parker. I don’t have cauldrons and a crystal ball.” Your witch hat rested comically on the kitchen counter.
“So what kind of witch are you, then?” Peter spoke with a mouthful, the pizza was incredibly tasty.
“I’m not one kind, I just do what I want to do.” 
Peter nodded. 
“Careful with the—“ 
Peter’s slice of pizza fell on his converses. He thought he’d been clever by not using his spandex lined boots.
“Shit.”
“I tried to tell you.”
He peeled the slice from his black chucks. “Can I get another slice?” 
You pushed the box his way. 
“How did you get cursed?” You asked, nibbling on your lip, the pizza resting on a plate on your lap, untouched.
“Crossed the path of a black cat.” He grunted. “Sounds stupid but it’s what happened.”
“Been there. I’ll fix it, it shouldn’t be hard” 
Peter straightened. “How long is it going to take?” 
You stared at him. Peter could almost see the nuts turning in your brain.
“A few hours, I suppose.” 
“Is it going to hurt?”
“Maybe?”
Peter had multidimensional war flashbacks from Doctor Strange, and the other Peters. Yeah he wasn’t in. “Well, now that I’ve had time to think about it I remember why I don’t do witchcraft. You need to find another way. I’ve had my fair share of that and it was quite the hustle so no Miss Witch I think I’m good.” He gave you a lipped smile.
“Okay… um why don’t you tell me about it, I assure you this is completely different and safe.”
“I’m not legally allowed to talk about it, so…” He shrugged. “Also you said it can hurt. I’m not down for that."
“Ugh fine, Peter Parker, but if you go, the curse won’t go away, you’ll have to live with it.”
Peter looked down, considering all that had happened maybe you were right, it’s not like he hadn’t suffered enough to handle a little magic.
“Fine.”
You got up in a jump, disappearing inside a room. Peter heard rattling and the closing of drawers. He wasn’t sure what to expect so he tried to not think about it. 
After another two slices of what he considered a perfect pizza, Peter put the plate down on the coffee table. The table cracked in two as if some almighty froze had cut it in two with a really sharp invisible blade.
“How the fuck?” He squealed, holding both sides of his face with his hands. This was nonsense. He didn’t even put force. 
“What happened?” You appeared behind him. “Oh… well I needed a new coffee table anyway.” 
You went away humming again. 
“Insane… she is insane.” Mumbling Peter crossed his arms, trying to not touch or breathe too hard, anything could create a domino effect and make the building collapse or something worse. He could die if he forgot how to breathe!
He guessed that wasn’t possible but he was not going to risk it.
The skin on his back felt sticky but he didn’t dare to move. After a moment you cleared your throat to announce yourself.
“So Peter Parker, I’m going to ask you a few questions…. It's protocol only.” 
Sitting down at his feet, you flipped a few pages, grabbed a pink sparkly gel pen and wrote down in pretty cursive calligraphy. 
Peter Parker. 
Cursed by crossing paths with a black cat :(
“You do this often or-“ he asked.
“Nah, but it’s nice to document these things, who knows when I will need the information.” You beamed, clearly excited by the whole situation.
“Sure,”
“So, have you been cursed before?” blinking, you waited for a response.
Peter wasn’t sure if his Spider-Man issues were a curse, sometimes it felt like that to be honest.
“Not that I’ve been aware of.” He leaned back on the couch. 
“Have you killed people in the past?”
His face contorted, now that was a hard question.
“It’s… um not voluntarily… I mean no, of course no” he let out a pretty fake laugh. “But I saw my uncle die and my… my girlfriend too.” 
Your face dropped. “Sorry about that.”
He half shrugged, looking the other way, he was not going to cry in front of a witch, this was humiliation enough.
“Er, next question. Do you have allergies?” 
“No.”
“Experienced dizziness, or a rush of adrenaline in the past forty-eight hours?” 
Peter squinted, these were very specific questions. “ Yeah, but what does that have to do with the curse?”
You shrugged. “See if there are side effects.” 
“The adrenaline thing isn’t for the curse… I have a stressful job.”
“That responds the next question… so how long has it been since you got cursed?” your head rested on your palm, you reminded him of that one therapist aunt May forced him to go see a few years ago.
“Three days, maybe four.” 
“Hmmm, interesting.” 
“Why?”
“Hmm? Oh well, cats don’t just go out crossing people’s paths like that. Most times they have a reason. Have you wronged a cat in your life?” your knee going up and down nonstop, Peter noticed the nervous thick. He had several.
Felicia could count as a cat but she had wronged him more than he had her.
“No.” He scoffed. 
“Ok, didn’t want to offend you.”
Peter let out a breathy laugh, this was the craziest shit that he had experienced and he had gone through a lot of fucked up shit in his life.
“Please come with me.” 
You stood up with a graceful jump. Dress puffing with air. Peter stared at your hand extended to him. The moment he took it there was this tingly feeling that crossed his whole body. 
You grinned. He glared.
The room you got in was pitch black, a breeze came from somewhere, it smelled like incense. With the snap of your fingers a yellow hue covered the room which was not more than 80 square feet, seemed to be a closet.
Three candles were floating, Harry Potter style. His hand went over the flame no wire attached to them.
“Am I hallucinating already?” He said. Hand now going under the candle he was in awe.
“Nope, we haven’t started yet.” You chuckled. “And those are totally real. It’s a very easy spell.” You said proudly.
“Cool,”
“Sit on the floor.” You demanded, Peter obeyed.
With a bright pink dust, you painted a circle and a bunch of indecipherable symbols that Peter preferred not to know what they meant. Instead he focused on you; your smooth hands tracing patterns as if it was second nature. Your lips were tuned slightly upwards, it was obvious how this made you feel. Peter felt his own lips curving. 
Hmm… he frowned, that was not right. But his mind was taking over, your long lashes with specs of glitter resting on them. Hair, shiny and soft looking. Peter kind of wanted to brush it to the side with his fingers. Shaking his head he couldn’t be thinking such things, he didn’t even know your name. And you were a witch!
And you are a fucking Spider-Man, chill the fuck out Parker.
Great! He was going insane now.
Snapping your fingers, music started to sound. 
“Is that Fiona Apple?” Peter asked, throwing her a quick glance,
“Yes! She gives off the right vibe for this.” Your sly smirk made Peter’s stomach flip.
Oh no.
Squaring down, to be on eye level with him, he caught the very faint scent of cherry. 
“I’m going to give you tea, It’s going to make you a little dizzy and jittery.” Extending your palm, you showed him two little rocks. 
“What’s that for?” Peter took them either way. 
Your index finger pointed to a clear looking crystal. “That’s clear quartz, it clears the mind, attracts positivity and repels negativity. The orange one it’s citrine for positive mood, clarity and focus.” 
His chocolate eyes never left yours, for the first time the whole night your smile quivered. You needed to gain some distance. You stood up quickly.
“Whatever happens, don’t let them go. And you have to have them around until the next new moon. Understood?”
Peter sighed, whatever helps him get over this. “Got it.”
You opened a book with a crimson hard cover. A sage green cup rested on the wooden table in front of you. Your back facing Peter, he let the little crystals roll on his palm as he heard Fiona Apple’s voice mixing with the cooing spell you were casting. Words he had never heard got whispered inside the cup, the energy in the room changed in a second, the yellow hue became brighter. 
Peter’s body shivered when you went back kneeling before him.
“Drink this, you have to close your eyes and don’t open them until I say so, okay Peter Parker?”
Peter nodded, gulping as he took the cup. It was warm to the touch. The liquid inside looked like any other tea aunt May had made him before, a little cloudy but it had a nice smell.
“I added a little honey and it’s spearmint flavored.” You chirped. 
“How many times have you said you have done this?” Peter was really curious, it came pretty natural to you. 
“Oh this is the first time, but I’m sure it’ll go almost perfect.” 
“Jesus, that’s just what one would like to hear in these situations.”
“Come on Peter Parker, this is fun!” 
“Cheers, I guess.” 
Peter drank the whole thing in one go and the taste was surprisingly good.
He sat there waiting for something to feel different but nothing changed. 
“How you feeling?” You asked, looking him in the eye.
“Should I be feeling weird?” he replied, trying to pay attention to his body. Everything was the same. He opened his eyes.
“Shit, you are supposed to be experiencing something by now. And you drank the whole thing,” you stomped your foot on the floor. “I did everything the book said.” 
Quickly, you went back to the book to check the spell as if it was a recipe. 
“Sorry to disappoint.” Peter sighed. “Hey um, this is going to sound weird, but, would you like to… I don’t know, like go for coffee one of these days?” your eyes went wide, big as saucers hearing him ask. “Or not… I mean I was just suggesting.”
“Don’t move Peter Parker.” You squinted, Peter felt something on his arm. 
“You opened your eyes!” She squealed. 
A spider, the same spider that bit him years ago was walking up his arm, then there was another and another, all of them crawling upwards.
“Holy fucking shit.” Horror stained his voice. But Peter couldn’t move. He didn’t know if he was able to feel his body.
“You are Spider-Man for fucks sake keep it together” you cried. “Told you to keep them closed."
In a swift move you grabbed a few vials filled with dust in different colors. Peter was wide eyed, gawking, unmoving about to have a heart attack.
“I can’t move, help!” his voice high pitched. 
“Shut up Peter Parker, I’m trying to think!” 
A marble mortar plopped on the table, a mix of colors and sparks flashed across your face. 
“Sorry for what’s next but you can’t move and I’m not in position to kill our city’s hero.”
Grabbing the dust on the mortar, you put the bright blue dust on your lips as you fell on your knees in front of Peter. Careful not to ruin the pentagram.
Leaning forward you said,
“The spider you see is just in your mind, you are hallucinating for real this time, that’s why i told you to not open your eyes. Wish things were different but this is it, Peter Parker.”
“What?” 
“Good luck.”
You clashed your lips with his. In a second Peter felt his whole body tingle, like he was having a serious case of pins and needles. Involuntarily his palm went up to rest on your cheek. Warm and soft. Cherry scent, and blueberry taste. His eyes fluttered shut as he kissed you, the crazy girl he met a few hours ago at the halloween party.
A sharp turn. Just like when you twirl in one spot until you feel the whole room shake and you are in that state of happy dizziness. Peter felt like that and he kind of enjoyed it. 
When the motion stopped fully he opened his eyes. Blinking he reincorporated, he didn’t know he had been lying down this whole time. 
Spider-Man’s spandex suit still plastered on his torso just that the room was not the tiny room he had been in. 
“Peter?” 
“Aunt May?” 
“Breakfast is ready!” 
Peter rested on his elbows, he was in his room in Queens. He was in Brooklyn just a second ago. And, why was he even here? His apartment was in Manhattan. 
Shaking his head he peeled the tight suit off, his body complained, a common thing by now. Taking a quick shower he saw the water run down the drain, little hints of bright blue in them. He shook his head, migraine settling behind his eyes.
“I had no idea you were staying the weekend Peter, you always let me know.” May dried her hands in the kitchen cloth as she looked at him with fond eyes. “You scared the hell living out of me last night when I heard you in your room.”
Peter frowned, he didn’t remember how he got in, he wasn’t even sure what happened after he saw Flash at the party. Late that night he found two shiny bits of crystal on his bed. His mind screamed at him to keep them near.
Until the new moon, right?
Glimpses of what felt like dreams were trying to tell him something, most days Peter woke up with the feeling that he had forgotten something but he pushed it aside, there wasn’t much time to think of Peter problems when there were Spider-Man real problems. 
It took him six days to notice his bad luck had disappeared, he felt lighter than ever, he even got a rise at his job which was hard to believe. Cat hadn’t been involved in trouble and Peter didn’t need patching or stitches for the week, he was doing amazing.
One night during patrol. He was sitting on a building in Brooklyn, there had been a fire two blocks down, no one had been injured so Peter left the scene before the police arrived. Now his legs hung on the edge of the six story building. Phone in hand. Flash posted the party’s photos, he laughed at one where a group of guys dressed as the one and only Pitbull were carrying Flash as he threw pumpkins shaped confetti in the air. Flash knew how to have a good time, Pete gave him that. 
The next photo was one where he could see himself at the back, he barely noticed it was him, the spandex gave him away. But what caught his attention was the pointy hat, purple ribbons floating. His heart increased its pace. 
•••
Flash was doing some drills at Empire’s gym. Sweaty and all, he greeted Peter with a hug and a laugh.
“Pete, you left too early the other day!” 
Peter’s cheek went warm. “Sorry, yeah I wasn’t feeling well.”
“No problem. You want to play? For the good ol’ days.” Flash chuckled.
Peter remembered high school as if it was yesterday.
“I have class in like twenty minutes, but next time. I was just wondering if you knew the name of this girl I met at your party.”
Flash smirked, nudging Peter on the ribs. “I see why you weren’t feeling well huh? Parker.” 
Peter scratched his neck, this was so awkward, he didn’t even know the girl.
“What she looked like?” 
Peter’s image of you was very vague, he remembered the costume, but nothing else really.
“You have an idea how many girls dressed like that were at the party? I need more intel Parker.” 
Peter closed his eyes for a second. “She- um she said you were taking bioengineering together,” 
Flash huffed, making the basketball bounce. “I’m not taking bioengineering, Peter. Don’t think girls take that class anyway… trust me I’d remember.” He winked.
“Really? Because she was very sure of it.” He laughed, out of pure agony.
Have you been like a dream or something?
“I think someone made you look like a fool Pete. But there’s always more girls.”
“Right, no, you’re right. Um, I’m going to get going. See you later man.”
“Take care Parker!” 
Making his way back home, Peter kicked a can with all the force he managed, it landed inside a trash can. He blinked, shit that was quite lucky. He felt not so lucky when there was no space in the subway to even move your legs, at least it was warm in there, the November wind was getting tougher by the day. Headphones on, he put the music in shuffle. 
In starlit night I saw you
So cruel you kissed me
your lips a magic world
Leaning on the cold metallic tube in front of the doors, he sighed looking at his converse. He needed to give them a wash, those ketchup stains were not making it look any better. His fingers went to his eyes, scratching the corners of them, he could sleep right there if he was sure no one would steal his phone but instead he concentrated on his surroundings. Phone screens shining, Instagram posts passing rapidly, text messages getting deleted and retyped, sudoku grid…
Sudoku grid?
His stomach churned. He had these images like photos archived in his brain. He remembered the sudoku grid, the number 9 for some reason, mushrooms, pink dust, floating candles, a green mug, and a smile. That smile had haunted his dreams for days now.
The owner of the phone had a bright yellow coat. Peter froze just creepily staring at the person.
Next stop was a commotion, people going out, some more coming in. Peter lost yellow coat for a moment only to see it going out with the sea of people.
“Hey!" he shouted. Desperation in his voice. “Yellow coat!” 
Only feet away now, he saw the person go up the stairs. His heart hammering against his ribcage, what was this, why was he so anxious for the person to turn?
Crossing a busy street, he took his earphones off, seeing for one last time yellow coat get into a taxi, mixing in the traffic. 
Peter sometimes really thought he was the most intelligent person in the world. He decided to follow the taxi, this time in Spider-Man clothes. Web shooters full and ready, cold wind wasn’t even a bother, he had perfected the suit to be warmer on winter days. 
Swinging up to Brooklyn’s bridge had been easy, the problem being on which of all the taxis he saw was yellow coat in. 
Running and shooting webs caused lots of honking and almost made a man crash his car thanks to the little kid trying to come off the window to say hello to him.
“Sorry!” He apologized, as he flew by. 
Last taxi entering Brooklyn was his only chance, this better be it. As he plopped as softly as he could on the roof of the car, he bent over to take a peek on the backseat windows. 
He grinned under the mask. Knocking on the window he saw shiny hair flick, and sparkly eyes connected with his white buggy ones. Waving a hand at you, your eyes went wide. In a flash everything came back to him.
The curse, how you feed him and basically cured his bad luck with a blueberry flavored kiss.
Stealing his heart with that, it was absurd yet magical, Peter wasn’t surprised no more with what happened in his daily life.
“Roll the window down?” He made the motion for you to do so.
For a brief second Peter thought you were not doing it, but you did, wind made your hair dance and oh Peter’s heart shivered with joy.
“Witch!” He greeted, still looking at you upside down.
“Peter Pa- Spider-Man!” you smiled, in awe.
The taxi driver rolled his window down too. “Dickhead, get the fuck down of my car!” 
“Just drop me in the next block.” You said, throwing the man some money.
Peter jumped off the car just as the taxi slowed down. 
“Freaks!” The man shouted at them, his middle finger sticking out the window as his goodbye.
“Thank you kind sir!” Peter saluted him.
You snorted by his side. Pivoting on his heels, it took him a second to take it all in. 
“You disappeared,”
“I didn’t disappear, I helped you get home Peter Parker.” You grinned. Oh that smile, Peter wanted to squeeze your cheeks.
“Um, no, that’s not what happened. I was lying in your room, and then you kissed me and then I woke up at my aunt’s? For a moment I thought I was losing my mind.”
You were staring at him amused. “It was fun, right? I know I had a lot of fun that night.” 
“Don't be mean.” Peter’s hand flew to his chest, as if he had been hurt for real. “I even asked Flash about you, and you lied, you never went to Empire.” Hands flying in the air, as he spoke.
“First of all. I do go to Empire, Flash is just not a very observant person.”
“Right, so tell me why you did all this?”
"I had to fix it okay!” Your eyes locked on your shoes. 
“Spider-Man hi!!” A group of teenagers waved their hands at them on the other side of the street.
“Hello, guys!” He had to be kind to the fans, being the beloved neighborhood hero wasn’t an easy task after all. “Have a good day.”
“You are the shit bro!” One of them shouted back.
“Do you mind if we talk somewhere more private?” Peter said through gritted teeth.
You bit the inside of your cheek to not laugh. “Ok.”
Peter took the opportunity to grab you by the waist, in a fast and smooth motion he was flying through Brooklyn.
“This is not what I had in mind.” You squealed against his spandex covered neck, he felt your breath hot on his skin. 
“Oh you owe me, this is the least you can do for me Witch.” 
Peter wowed as they moved between buildings. Landing on the roof of an old cinema. The neon lights casting pretty shadows against your face and the suit’s texture became alive. He took the mask off to reveal the sweetest of smiles. Cheeks rosy.
“What can we do about this?” He asked, arms spread wide, he was falling for someone who he barely knew.
You hid your hands inside your coat, wind biting on your skin harshly. 
“It wasn’t supposed to be like this.”
Peter sighed. “How was it supposed to go? You said you had to fix it, what do you mean by that?”
Why were Peter’s eyes so pretty, his face was a mix of pain and hope, your stomach felt funny again. It had been like that since you first saw him. A month ago.
A blue moon was something you always enjoyed. Making moon water, charging crystals, manifesting and writing spells. 
But Orion, your black cat had been angsty for days now, he always was like that during full moons. He destroyed your quilt, the one to knit together with so much effort. So you let him out.
“Get out! If you could, I’d make you fix this to make me happy!” The window closed with a thud and poor Orion blended in with the night.
After trying to fix it but failing with the quilt you felt guilty. Orion was simply trying to let that energy out, and you took it against the poor thing. After much thinking you decided to go out looking for him. Orion’s name got pronounced several times until you saw him crossing the street a little ahead of you, it was three in the morning. Cars weren’t even passing, the world was still, sirens and honks chimed far away. 
Orion locked eyes with you for a moment. And you knew this was a bit of a dare to him, squatting down you tried to prod the cat to go to you, but Orion only sat in the middle of the sidewalk, liking his paw almost making fun of you. One step closer was what set him off running again. Just in time for Spider-Man to pass walking; half mask up munching on what seemed to be a burrito, mustard on the corner of his mouth, he came to a halt when the cat crossed his path. You saw Spider-Man gulp. 
A moment later his burrito fell flat on the pavement. You knew what this was about, you shut your eyes, cursing Orion under your breath, when you opened them Spider-Man was gone. 
“So you knew I was Spider-Man all along?” Peter scoffed. “You are full of secrets witch.”
“I knew I even said it to you when you were freaking out. Half of the spell had to do with me doing the ritual and half of it was you believing it would work, you still opened those damn pretty eyes.”
Peter kicked a tiny rock off the roof. “So you think I have pretty eyes?” he heard you laugh. 
“You do Peter Parker.”
He blushed deeper. “ So what I felt when you… kissed me was just part of the spell?” 
The disappointment in his voice made your heart jump. “It wasn’t about feelings, Peter Parker, it was just a spell to fix your bad luck. Whatever you felt, that’s on you.”
“Hmm,” he took a step closer, scratching his neck. “I was being serious when I asked you out for coffee.”
“I know.”
Peter smirked. “You like making me suffer, I see how it is.” He laughed, making a full twirl.
The grin on your lips couldn’t be held. “It’s funny to see you all embarrassed.” 
“Jesus… okay so, coffee this Saturday?” His ears were bright red.
“Sounds good to me.” 
“Great.” Another step closer. “Don’t bring your cat, I beg.” 
“I won’t.” 
“Good, because I’m feeling pretty lucky as it is.” His lips ghosted over yours.
On your tiptoes you connected your lips with his cold but soft ones. Both smiling and chuckling. 
“This is even better than the last one.”
“Yeah because you were freaking out about spiders, Spider-Man.” you mumbled, Peter brushed the hairs that floated in your face, he needed a clear path.
“I think I prefer it when you call me Peter Parker.”
Peter kissed the tip of your nose, and you finally let him know your name. He beamed as he repeated it.
“That sounds about right.”
A meow was heard and Peter groaned, forehead connection to yours.
“He won’t do it again. I promise, it was just a blue moon thing.”
You saw his eyes traveling all over your face. “I think I can get used to getting cursed.”
Orion meowed again, rubbing its little black fur against Peter’s leg. 
“Hey pal.” Peter said, patting the cat sweetly.
You snorted. “You’re weird Peter Parker.”
“Thank you.” 
Maybe after all Orion did something that made you happier than a badly knitted quilt.  
Peter found the whole term of black cat curse drastically different, they weren’t about bad luck after all. 
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n7punk · 7 months ago
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"Our Love Is God" Fic Notes
OLIG finished off yesterday! For once I almost nailed the length, I was expecting 12 chapters but didn’t want to commit early on. HI I TRIED TO POST THIS SO MANY TIMES but apparently it was TOO MUCH TEXT in a single block and it wouldn't give me that error, I just had to GUESS because I knew that's been a problem before. Anyway. Here it is finally.
Playlist:
Obviously the West End and Off-Broadway cast recordings, but also I did still primarily use a separate curated playlist:
Good For You — Dear Evan Hansen (original Broadway cast)
The Worst Person Alive — G Flip
Ego Talking — Fletcher
Take Your Time — Chloe Moriondo
You Don’t Want Me Like That — Rachel Bochner & XANA
leave me for dead — GAYLE
pity — Charlotte Sands
Bodybag — Chloe Moriondo
spite — Charlotte Sands
butterflies — GAYLE
Tantrum — Charlotte Sands
Killbot! — Chloe Moriondo
LOVE IS A… — PVRIS
I Don’t Like The Quiet — The Haunt
Celebrity (Blood Bunny Version) — Chloe Moriondo
Doing Better — FLETCHER
Bad Girl — Daya
Not To Be Dramatic — Zoe Clark
My Perfect — Gen and the Degenerates
Often — Lauren Sanderson
Pretending — FLETCHER
Epilogue Life:
The original cast of Heathers played on stage for just over a year before most of them move on to other projects with the major cast change. Heathers (gay version) runs for about two years, going through two more cast changes, before closing. The original cast does go to see the new cast and cheer them on, but it is kind of weird to see someone else acting out a role that became like breathing to them. Overall the remake is taken very well but has just run its course by the time it ends. There will be another revival in a few years and it actually uses both the straight and gay versions of the musical between cast changes.
Catra carries Shot in the Dark for its entire two year run before it dwindles into a temporary retirement and gets revived with a new cast a few years later (same sets and such). She’s the defining lead for the show and obviously on the cast album. She’s really, really proud to have originated a magicat-led show and makes her new origination goal a sapphic role.
After Shot in the Dark, she takes a supporting role in another musical for eight months before leaving early to join Adora and Netossa on a new project. They don’t actually interact a lot in the show and aren’t love interests or anything, and they’ve long since learned to balance their careers while in different shows, but it does allow Adora to propose to her during final bow (with approval from Netossa). Adora tipped their parents off and they’re both in the audience to watch her say yes.
(Adora knew she was going to accept, hence the public proposal, and Catra’s relationship with her mom has gotten better now she’s a successful, independent adult. Also Felina would have been So Sad to miss it so Adora told them both). Oh also they moved in together as soon as their leases came up lmao.
Adora led one show in the mean time between Chicago and their show together, but it was smaller, not as demanding as Veronica, and she was really excited to hop on a project with Netossa and Catra again. She decides to make originating a gay role and collecting cast albums her career goal, in addition to getting in a few specific shows she and her mom looked up to when she was growing up. She already feels pretty fulfilled with her early career though and considers everything else the cherry on top.
Rest of the cast quick hits: Mermista plays Velma center stage in Chicago along with Adora. Fitting her braid in that wig cap is definitely a challenge lol. Sea Hawk starred in a Hello, Again short revival run which Catra and Adora were dying sitting through, but they support all their fellow cast members when they move on to new shows. Perfuma finally got up the nerve to ask Scorpia out on their very last night performing in Heathers together, getting her flowers and then revealing after the show — when everybody was already crying about it ending — they were from her. It was a very confusing confession until Perfuma was finally able to spell it out for her that she wanted to go on a date with her. Scorpia enthusiastically agreed (still crying before the whole “last show” thing), and then gushed to Catra later about how she couldn’t believe Perfuma liked her while Catra nearly tore her hair out listening to the obliviousness. Glimmer and Bow got to play a couple that were already-together side characters in a musical and that’s what finally gets them together because Bow realizes oh, I can’t risk losing this, and Glimmer is done trying to play the jealousy game because it clearly didn’t work and she doesn’t really have a flirty relationship with any of her new cast so they can finally just be honest with each other.
Chapter 1: Auditions
⦁ Things like homophobia and Christianity are usually world aspects I avoid in my fics, but they’re both present in the musical so they had to at least be mentioned in this.
⦁ Oh I should say this will have mentions of all the triggers warned for in the fic.
⦁ Adora and Catra both gave good but not necessarily the best auditions of the day separately. Catra’s was really good when she got permission to do it in her natural register and threw in a growl (she wasn’t actually audibly straining yet, but Netossa scouted her specifically for her voice and knew she was pushing it up near the top of her range), but her Candy Store was a little more uneven thanks to the lack of practice and register change. Adora did just fine in her regular song and really good in her Beautiful reprise, but there were people that did sing a little better technically. That doesn’t mean they would have been better over the course of the show itself, though, and what Catra and Adora had going for them was it looked like they were considering involving fists (the sexy or the fighting kind, take your pick) the moment they were on stage together. They eyefucked their way through both songs with such insane chemistry Netossa was like oh we can sell Fight For Me with these two EASY.
⦁ (Fight For Me is the second song in the musical where Veronica basically see JD in a fistfight and thinks it’s so fucking hot she immediately falls for him, and then they actually spend time together and it seems like they have similar views of the high school around them. And they do! But they definitely have very different solutions. Anyway, it’s a quick romance plot setup that doesn’t pretend not to be based solely on sexual attraction at first but that works and is realistic! The actors just need to have chemistry to make it read right, and damn do Catra and Adora have that).
⦁ Okay, every Veronica has been pretty, but there was some metric that made them not perfect conventional. For the first two Veronicas this was pretty much being brunette with messy hair lmao. For the West End, Veronica was played by Carrie Hope Fletcher, who I think is gorgeous and has blonde curly hair, but she faced a lot of backlash for being “too fat” to play Veronica. Adora is close to the Hollywood ideal, which is the point Netossa is trying to make: someone who could play Heather Chandler in one version of this show ends up the Veronica because she commits the sin of not meeting society’s hetereonormative expectations. Bigots will throw you out for any association with queerness. However, still meeting all those other metrics is what allows her to slip in with the Heathers as long as she helps them out and dresses femme — that’s part of her transformation, going from jeans in the opening number to skirts for the rest of the musical until the final sequence. When show starts, she’s wearing jeans and a ratty flannel with her hair in a ponytail. It’s a quick change outfit, so she runs behind the set to pull it off to reveal her main outfit beneath, brushes her skirt into place, and lets Netossa fix a scrunchy with a big bow on it on top of her existing ponytail to complete her transformation into a feminine popular girl.
⦁ “Janis Dean” is a reference to Mean Girls, and yes, that’s in-universe.
⦁ Catra got the casting call specifically because Netossa needed someone to match JD’s register — plus the growls in the right places added a lot of emotions to his songs. Including the sex ones.
⦁ Changes in Netossa’s version: - The aforementioned “Pretty Veronica” thing. When the Heathers give her the makeover she puts on the iconic skirt and has to wear skirts for the rest of the show, performing femininity in every extra way she can, to make up for her “deviance” of being bi (also, she’s bi. It’s another thing where any degree of deviation is grounds for rejection). - The line delivery (and some content) has been tweaked for the fatphobic stuff to match the changed metanarrative that comes from Scorpia, someone who isn’t actually overweight, playing Martha. The commentary then becomes that nothing is good enough and society’s fatphobia is thrown into light as completely unreasonable. The whole point of that aspect of the show is that it illustrates how awful the characters are, but genuine fatphobia and using it as a plot device to show a character is morally corrupt looks awful similar, so by having someone who is basically just tall and strong play Martha it makes it extremely obvious that the demands are unreasonable. This ties in well with Heather M’s story, where she does have that model body type and is pretty and popular but develops an eating disorder because she’s afraid of losing that. - Obviously a lot is different with JD. She “chooses” to be a lone wolf/outcast because of her personality and views on society, but there’s obvious undertones in their dialogue in the 7/11 that even if she did want to choose differently, she couldn’t because she would be rejected for being a dyke, so is she really making a choice at all then? She goes by JD specifically because it’s more gender neutral than Janis. She couldn’t ever be a Heather and she couldn’t even be a Veronica either, because Veronica could at least be comfortable putting on a matching skirt with her friends while this JD is butch, so she hangs out in her trench coat at the fringes of society. There’s also undertones to her being the only magicat in school due to her father moving around and not caring if he brought her into a hostile — conservative, racist, homophobic, etc — area. - Heather M. is only in with the popular girls for safety and there’s some dialogue around this in the bathroom scene with Veronica. It’s kind of public information (not officially stated but implied in her social media) that her actress, Perfuma, is trans. This wasn’t planned at the time of the casting call, but Netossa worked on it during workshops and the backstory became that Heather M started transitioning how she could before high school and is continuing to “in secret” now. Some people have clocked her though and she sticks so close to the other Heathers to keep herself from being the target of terrible bullying. As long as the Heathers tolerate her (Heather C is on a bit of an ego trip about having blackmail material on her and essentially owning someone in the palm of her hand), she’s given a pass and “has the best (cishood) assumed” about her. - Veronica and JD’s relationship is a little more secretive in this version, but the Heathers do know and Duke later tell her to just be careful not to “dyke it up” at school or they would out her (currently she’s just kind of clocked by some, not confirmed to the whole school). After Heather C’s death, Duke basically threatens Veronica to stay at her heel like Heather M or she’ll out them both.
Chapter 2: Workshop
⦁ You would have to be fucking blind to not realize Adora and Catra have history even in the glances of them Netossa and Spinnerella saw, and Netossa spent the first part of workshop trying to unpack whatever was going on with them. She had to put together the clues to figure out what it was. Once she decided exes was a likely story, she confronted Catra about it because she figured talking about it was the only way to handle the resentment. She was partially using reverse psychology and partially being honest about not resolving all of it being good for the show.
⦁ I made Freeze Your Brain more homoerotic. In the musical, JD does his entire song facing Veronica or walking around the stage and then offers the drink to her at the very end. He does not get in close and offer her the drink and then sip from it after her in an indirect kiss with her lipstick prints on the straw, but mine’s better.
⦁ In the actual show, Heather Chandler doesn’t put on any death makeup. The Off-Broadway would shine a blue light on her after she died to give her an other-worldly appearance and the West End didn’t seem to do anything at all, which was a mistake imho. In this one, when she “rises from the dead”, she does it a bit more dramatically and zombie-like under a blue light, and then she on-stage reaches over for her vanity and starts powdering her face, looks back at Veronica and says “What? I want to look good for eternity” and finishes as Veronica and JD write the rest of the suicide note before collapsing so the cops can find her.
Chapter 3: Previews
⦁ Once again changing the staging for my version (jokes on you, this isn’t just a Catradora fic, it’s me writing my ideal version of Heathers). Usually Heathers has some kind of bi-level stage. This one has catwalks hidden along the backs of the lockers, but they also have more sets. They have house facades they slide in front of the high school set/lockers for the croquet scene (Freeze Your Brain is the closest song) through to Heather’s murder, sliding them away again for The Me Inside of Me. They come back for Our Love Is God, although the second level with JD’s window isn’t brought back until the very end of the show. Kurt tries to climb the same trellis Adora used to get into JD’s window to escape JD as he chases him down. The full facade doesn’t come back until it’s time for Meant To Be Yours so JD can climb through Veronica’s window (that was once his). It is wheeled out as the entire stage narrows in on the center stage for the pep rally and finale.
⦁ Veronica doesn’t rebutton her shirt until after the nightmare scene in the West End version (I honestly can’t remember for off-Broadway), but for this show Adora just isn’t super comfortable hanging out shirtless in front of crowds every night, especially knowing some people are perverted about the lesbian version of Dead Girl Walking, so Netossa said buttoning her shirt and putting her clothes back on before they fall asleep was fine back when they were deciding what Catra was going to do since JD rips his shirt off undoes his buckle during this scene. Adora could have done it (she wears the bodysuit for Mona, after all), but Netossa didn’t mind making that small tweak for her. Catra cared less, but also because she’s not in the kind of underwear that straight guys like. They decided she would have a high-coverage sports bra, the kind that can pass for a binder, on (for this scene and for the entirety of the show since Janis Dean is supposed to be firmly butch). Catra does most of JD’s usual choreo here, minus the belt thing, because they do the version of the choreo where they never stand up and Catra isn’t wearing a belt at all.
Chapter 4: Candy Store
⦁ No wonder she was what way indeed, huh, Catra? Well, multiple. No wonder she was so frustrated, because Catra is infuriating when she wants to be. No wonder she was so hung up on her, because Glimmer also wants to fuck her inexplicably. No wonder she lived and breathed the word homoerotic, because Catra made sure they lived on the razer edge of it at all times. No wonder she was down bad, because again — see the last two point. This line is less of an insult and more of Catra being too magnetic for anybody’s good, honestly, but that annoys Glimmer because she doesn’t want to like her (like that, or at all) so it definitely comes out like an insult and Glimmer is good with that.
⦁ I need you to picture Catra’s “What?” after the brat comment in the same tone of voice as Elle Woods saying “What, like it’s hard?” because Catra definitely wants it hard.
Chapter 5: We Can Start and Finish Wars
⦁ I was nervous about doing this scene just from a trigger perspective, but I figured it would be okay if I kept it all contained to this one chapter, and it was something I really wanted to cover. It was my first thought when I heard You’re Welcome (since it was a new song). I also wanted to explore the support a cast really gives. You don’t have to improvise every night or anything, but there’s always something that pops up over a show and you have to adapt for when you’re doing shows night after night. This is why casts really have to have each others’ backs and are often close. Every person on that stage would have done what they could to help Adora get through the show, but Catra, Bow, and Sea Hawk were the only ones who could have helped in that specific scenario due to their roles, and Adora was good enough at covering it up that only her best friends noticed.
⦁ This chapter was a turning point for them between the lines with the show and reality blurring and Catra realizing (though trying to repress it) how important Adora is to her.
⦁ They do workshop a version of the scenes where Kurt and Ram just don’t come as close in contact to Adora and end up being even more slapstick with each other in place of the more aggressive choreography moments, and during Never Shut Up Again they don’t even come close to Veronica, instead running around the stage to tell the audience/school. They only use it once on Adora’s signal, and Bow voluntarily opts for it once based on vibes and Sea Hawk immediately adapts, but Netossa is right: it’s a good thing to have, and she’s really glad Adora agreed to collaborate on something.
⦁ This last scene wraps up the rest of the show to verify it goes well, but it’s mostly here just to showcase Good Director™️ Netossa. She really cares about her people a lot even when she’s a hard ass.
⦁ Adora doesn’t keep up too much with comments due to what she mentions about knowing there will be homophobia in them, but she’s not totally tuned out on them and a long flood of notifications still draws attention. After this time she becomes more committed to not reading them much, though.
⦁ Yes they’re going to the same dinner place featured later.
⦁ While out at dinner, Glimmer and Bow try to ask her how she’s doing and she gives them an even more abridged version of what she told Netossa and Catra because she just doesn’t want to think about it anymore, but of course Glimmer and Bow are super supportive, and Bow is really enthusiastic about them choreographing an alternate version of the scene because he just wants Adora to be okay and is proud of her for taking that step.
Chapter 6: No Time to Knock (I’m a Dead Girl Walking)
⦁ Chapter title from DGW
⦁ Dead Girl Walking honestly didn’t look that different that night, and Netossa did miss them making out after the lights went down because she was scrambling looking for a scrunchy, but she could tell Catra was going further with the choreo than she was supposed to, especially with the kiss during the kitchen scene when Netossa had given up looking for it until the show was over, and in a situation like that Adora couldn’t say no or stop her without changing the intent of the scene, hence Netossa threatening Catra about the consent issue despite how Adora didn’t seem upset. It’s just something she has to do as director. I ended up reducing it to a one-sentence mention later in the fic, but I thought about having a scene where, after a few nights of them kissing on stage, Netossa goes to Catra’s dressing room and asks her if Adora ever gave her permission for that, to which Catra says yes she’s fine with that, and Netossa corrects her and says did Adora ever give you verbal, explicit permission for that at which point Catra goes quiet and Netossa then demands she go to Adora’s dressing room and secure it before she’s allowed to leave for the night. Cure Catra awkwardly standing in Adora’s doorway asking Adora if it’s okay for them to kiss during the show as Netossa stands down the hall and waits for her. Adora was very bewildered but could tell Catra was being put up to it from the way she kept glancing to the side so she just agreed because she didn’t want them to get in trouble and Catra quickly fled. It just didn’t even up fitting in the flow of the story because it meant verbally acknowleding what they were doing earlier than they were supposed to so that’s why I changed it to Netossa privately asking Adora instead of forcing a confrontation, which is the better thing for Netossa to do anyway rather than force Adora to deal with it if she really were uncomfortable (the reason she did it in this version of the scene was because she was 100% certain it didn’t bother Adora but was doing her duty as director).
Chapter 7: Happiness Comes / When Everything Numbs
⦁ Chapter title from Freeze Your Brain.
⦁ Forever thinking about ND’s “and it was” comic.
⦁ Real shoutout to the person who informed me about the official stage recording of the later version of the West End Heathers because I definitely did not remember any of the dialogue outside of songs and it let me take notes to write scenes like the croquet scene, which is like 50% similar to the one that actually takes place in the musical. A lot of the dialogue not overtly related to Veronica’s queerness is the same, but a little bit of the action was changed around to extend the scene for the extra dialogue and include using an actual ball, because Glimmer being frighteningly accurate at hitting things with a giant mallet felt right.
Chapter 8: Fight For Me
⦁ Heather tries to get Veronica to admit she’s into girls so much so that she can have blackmail over her to keep her in line, although she doesn’t actually need her to admit it, she just knows Veronica would be more afraid of the threat whenever she makes it if Veronica is aware it’s something Heather has 100% confirmed to be true.
⦁ I didn’t include it because I didn’t want to have to cover every scene with differences in here, but in the 7/11 Heather bothers Veronica more about clearly being into girls and is mildly homophobic to JD. Then, in the scene after Dead Girl Walking and Veronica’s nightmare, as Veronica is freaking out about getting to Heather and making amends before Monday, she tells JD in clear terms “She’s going to out me and tell the school I’m bi” which is what Adora was referring to in chapter three when she mentions this version of the musical having the word bisexual in the opening act.
⦁ I know what y’all are going to think this was inspired by, but it’s actually inspired by a fucking Try Guys Korean bbq video where they went karaokeing afterwards. I’ve never been to a karaoke place like that and it got me thinking.
Chapter 9: Big Fun!
⦁ When the show started, Bow and Sea Hawk were both given like packs of the exact same underwear (one in blue variants, one in red variants, and one in black variants) so they could match throughout the show. It’d be easier to coordinate if it was all the same pair, but they wanted the variety for people who came to multiple shows. They actually have a lot of fun coordinating and then, on their own, decided to get a pair of those classical heart-print boxers that they throw in occasionally. Sometimes that’s just based on a day when they don’t want to wear something as revealing as the tighty-whities they usually wear, but usually it’s as a gag.
⦁ It was too awkward to shoe-in here, but part of reworking the choreography around You’re Welcome included the decision to have robes backstage for Bow and Sea Hawk, which they don’t often use, but if it’s a night where Adora is getting overwhelmed intermission is a lot more comfortable if Bow and Sea Hawk aren’t wandering around naked. Sea Hawk’s has feathers along the collar and cuffs.
⦁ Glimmer’s best friends all have abs and she has no idea how sharp her elbows can be.
⦁ Glimmer did realize she was flying a little too close to the sun with Adora if she responded to Catra’s flirting.
⦁ Yeah Catra brought her strap.
⦁ Catra was just a little tired during that show, so she asked Entrapta for some of the drain cleaner as a pickup since it has a lot of sugar, and she was taking a few seconds to rest before she had to go be feral on stage again.
⦁ When I first told my friend Meta I was doing a Heathers fic, Catra downing the fake drain cleaner like shots was one of the first jokes they made and I had to include it.
⦁ Adora thinks there is — a chance — that Catra wants to be dating after this exchange where she says it’s not “a problem”, but she’s definitely worried about saying anything too soon or too presumptive and scaring her off, so she’s just going to lowkey keep acting like they’re seeing each other and hope Catra will open up enough for them to have a conversation about it eventually.
⦁ The people at stage door the night they got “dinner”, and the night they actually got dinner, and the night they went home together, all definitely thought they were dating but only the ones from the first night even thought that might be news. The girl who was a big fan of Catra kept it to herself and her friends, but one half of the couple publicly tweeted the picture they got with Catra and Adora that night mentioning they got to take photos before they went off on a date, but that picture didn’t make its way back to Catra because she wasn’t tagged in it and not that many people “noticed” per se. Final bow was when everyone was like ah so there is something fruity going on there, but even then a lot of people weren’t sure, and it’s something that just got solidified over the coming months as they were seen together more, kissed in public, got a little sappy on Instagram, etc and everyone retroactively realized they were right.
Chapter 10: Beautiful
⦁ Usually the chapter titles are either lyrics that match the chapter or a song that features in a chapter, but in the case of “Beautiful”, it was a thematic match. Beautiful features Veronica picturing her future and the next phase in her life. For this chapter Catra is also exploring her future and her next steps. And also she’s gay for Adora.
⦁ The First Contact scene started as a Mass Effect joke (iykyk) and then I ended up including it. I honestly thought I was going to cut it because it’s kind of random but the point was to show how long they’ve known each other and they have their own world of games and jokes that they lost when they lost each other, so I ended up keeping it.
⦁ Cheekbone > Clavicle > Cupid’s bow (aka Achimenes longiflora) > Gums (aka Alveolar process).
⦁ Catra freezes up after Adora asks what she gets for a good show because she can’t bring herself to say “Me.”
⦁ Shot in the Dark is one of the episodes of the show I’ve rewatched the most, when they find Melog and Catra learns about the power of friendship. The musical was either going to be called that or White Out tbh (real ones know my relationship with that episode) but Catra is playing a magicat specifically in this role so going with the Melog episode felt right.
Chapter 11:
⦁ The blanket came from Lance, actually.
⦁ What’s my ideal choreography for Meant To Be Yours? So glad you definitely asked. This scene is usually presented so abstractly I don’t think someone unfamiliar with the musical/movie would even know Veronica is hiding in her closet. My ideal version (with the staging already set up in this play) is the house facade with the window being rolled in on one side of set (only one just cuz there isn’t time) and JD appearing on the other side of the window (with the light off so it’s more like he’s creepy in the dark) and doing his knock knock thing. Veronica in the middle of the stage panics and runs to the back of center stage, where it’s carefully choreographed for the ghosts (Kurt and Ram) to be rolling in an open doorframe that she runs through and Heather slams behind her. Then Kurt and Ram would lean against each side of the doorframe making fed up and “can you believe this dude?” faces at each other as JD has his whole villain speech in center stage before going to pound on the door and finally wrenching it open to reveal Veronica hanging on the other side with Heather kind of “in the corner” making a comedic fake shock face looking between JD and Veronica as JD breaks down. When he leaves and Veronica struggles to get down for a second, Heather would roll her eyes and help as Kurt and Ram wheel off the door and then quickly move the house facade off stage as it transitions to Dead Girl Walking (Reprise).
Chapter 12:
⦁ My idea for this AU was that Catra would have a “stage mom” and then their acting coach would have been Shadow Weaver to get that Trauma Backstory™️, which means Catra needed actual parents. I already had the pair from Trade Today For Tomorrow, so I wasn’t going come up with a new set of names, but it does feel kind of wrong to have changed Leona to be a “bad” mom. In general, if/when I do use them again, I’ll be using their TTFT personalities. Also, in this AU Leona isn’t awful or anything, but she really wanted to be an actress and it didn’t work out so she has been pushing her child in that direction even when it was painful, which gave them a tense relationship. Most of my other Catras would be thrilled to have parents like this, but Catra doesn’t have that context for None or Very Bad parents, so she’s just another person with an awkward relationship with her parents and doesn’t think about it too much.
⦁ Catra used to spend Christmas ever at Adora’s house and then Christmas at her own/moms’ when they were kids.
Chapter 13:
⦁ My original idea for a childhood dream musical was to stick Adora in Wicked because you know Mara is a sucker for that show, but for mezzo-soprano it’s mainly Elphaba, and the whole point was giving her a role that wasn’t lead. I settled on Chicago because something LGBT is happening in that prison and I think Mara and Hope would both like the show. Adora is going to play Mona in Chicago, a fairly minor character who gets a solo verse in Cell Block Tango when describing why she killed her lover for cheating on her. She appears (namelessly) in more songs but also gets off-stage time, and that song is absolutely ICONIC, so Adora is really excited to get to take part in it, even if it’s pushing the absolute limits of her dancing ability. She does a lot of practicing leading up to the show, so Catra is worried for a bit about her getting too busy and their relationship faltering about, but it balances out after the initial push. Adora’s moms are super psyched when they hear she’s going to be in the show and the marketing team ends up releasing the Broadway cast’s version of Cell Block Tango online at the open of the show to drum up hype for it, so Adora really hits one of her big career dreams — though still with room to grow, if she can get it with a larger role and a full album. This role shows her that headlining isn’t all there is to musical theater, though, and having smaller parts can really by worth it for the off-time.
⦁ Uh so. Mona’s outfit. The outfits for the inmates in Cell Block Tango are usually pretty close to lingerie. Adora has a bodysuit, because it works for the song and she’s more comfortable being covered in something skintight than just wearing two pieces, but it’s still quite a Lot for her parents to see it. They know what they’re in for though and everybody just neglects to address it after the show when they praise her voice. Catra loves Adora in the outfit though.
⦁ Based on my previous formatting Shot in the Dark, Chicago, and Hello, Again should actually just be written out without italics, but because the nature of the titles (length and formatting) make it confusing without italics and clunky with quotes, so I ended up just being inconsistent between them and Heathers.
Original Outline:
I outlined this one pretty heavily going into it, in the way I used to for my fics where I’d write like a one-sentence summary of every scene planned in a chapter going in. Of course, I knew I would add and change scenes as I went, but I was pretty faithful to the outline outside of additions. I was outlined out to chapter 8 but thought it would expand to about 12 chapters between the ending I hadn’t outlined (I needed to be closer to it to know what the right conclusion was) and scenes adding themselves in along the way to up the count, and I finally put that count on the fic when I was writing chapter 10 or so, but then I realized I fucking forgot about the cast album and I got the idea for the bar scene so all of Chapter 12 ended up getting added and expanding it to 12 chapters.
The only “big” thing that didn’t happen was the catnip thing, which was mostly a joke I outlined anyway, but it was just too much from several angles so I cut it before I finished it. The idea was someone pulling a prank on Catra by putting catnip on her vanity and getting her lowkey high. Non-destructively pulling something on a castmate’s dressing room is pretty common antics, but this felt… very targeted and tense even though the castmate was doing it fairly innocently and just ignorant of that angle to it, so I didn’t want to go through with it. Catra was going to corner Adora though and demand if she fucked with her dressing room, and when Adora was obviously confused by the confrontation, fall into her arms and aggressively scentmark her even as she growled explaining the vandalism, which Adora offered to clean up for her and let her use her dressing room to change so she didn’t get more exposure to it. Again, the “getting a castmate a little high” thing, even accidentally (they didn’t realize it had much of an effect) was just not a line I — or the cast — wanted to cross, though.
Upcoming:
The 4th anniversary SPOP Big Bang is going to run May 12th-18th and I’ll be posting daily for the first few days with my magical realism AU Lightbeam along with my amazing artist partner who made an illustration for every chapter! Keep an eye out for it :)
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asukaskerian · 3 months ago
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monthly word count - august
TOTAL: 7 143 some progress!
POSTED: nothin'
IN PROGRESS -bleach - suburban ot4, two attempts at the start of chapter 20, both failed (349 words) -svsss - cosplay binggeyuan fic (6 691 words) (where did it come from???) -cherry wine (32 words) (something is wrong in what's already written and i can't figure out what) -mdzs - attempt at fic that immediately died on me idk (71 words)
yeah so the winner of this month is the cosplay fic, wow. :X
Also posted: -Swimming With the Fishes - bleach Daemon AU outside yakuza POV, harribel -You Know Better Babe - bleach ABO sequel ficlet to Howling Outside Your Door, ichigo nesting feels.
-- teasers :
-- suburban ot4 -- "H-hi... I was in the area, and I thought, maybe--"
Nelliel stands on her doorstep, staring dumbly. She thought it was Grimmjow having forgotten his keys. He's been dragging Ichigo out after school recently. 
But it's not, it's Orihime. Flustered and her smile twisted down, her big shining eyes sad.
She didn't expect it. It isn't like they haven't been talking at all since she found out the Kurosakis had up and left their old house without a single word...  It's just been very surface-level, is all.
For a long moment she thinks of stepping back into her apartment without inviting her, letting Orihime be sorry at the door, make Orihime marinate in uncertainty and rejection and guilt, but that's passive-aggressive. If Nelliel misread their degree of closeness, that's on her.
... That's on her.
-- svsss cosplay fic -- Say what you will about Airplane Shooting Toward The Sky, he was meticulous about making the outfits look cool. Absolutely unrealistic, but this was high fantasy, not pure martial arts. Weird ribbons and young human ladies showing positively indecent bare calves were par for the course.
Therefore, Shen Yuan spent a couple of weeks speed-rereading to update his excel files with every single reference to the style of everybody's clothes when and why (alas, torn-during-a-fit-of-passion alterations included), downloaded the commissioned official art, downloaded the fanart Airplane had thumbed up (even if some of it seemed thumbed up for cleavage or ridiculousness instead of correctness)--
And then he *learned new things*. Like drawing detailed character reference sheets, making a pattern, sourcing cloth (so many wasted bolts of inferior taffeta in his cupboards); he had learned to use his mother's sewing machine (bonding time! Unexpected and pleasant!) and then he had learned how to make fake armor and how to make belt charms and how to style a wig, and then, at the end, he had gone to his sister, hat in hand, to ask to be taught how to apply makeup.
Never mind that (he'd checked) cosplay was judged on the costume, not the body of the person inhabiting it. He was not going to do Great Master Liu the dishonor of a pimply face. 
"You ready?" Shen Jiaying asked, uselessly, before he went out on stage.
"No but it's too late for that, holy fucking shit why did you let me do this."
She laughed in his face, and thwapped his chest with the back of her hand. "You look fine. You're not gonna win though."
"Yeah, no." Considering that even just amongst the PIDW crowd there was an Abyss Binghe complete with red-light-lined Xin Mo and ultra-fine gauze floating all around as demon qi thanks to a very clever little fan sewn into the back of his belt, he was not expecting to. The Yue Qingyuan was good too, and the triplet nuns, and-- ahh, he really was in the infancy stage of this hobby, wasn't he. 
The other Liu Qingge was here, though. Fuck that guy and his half-assed sleeves.
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six-costume-refs · 1 year ago
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Costume Updates: 2023 West End Cast Change
A few notes before I start: - Kayleigh McKnight (Seymour) is currently injured. Gabriella Stylianou (alt A/S) is temporarily performing in her place, including in the preview footage. - As a general rule of thumb, Six has slowly been standardizing the costumes for both US and UK. Most of that has been changes to the UK system/style to make them more in line with the US changes initially made for Broadway (a few changes have made their way to the US from the UK though). There's been a steady rollout of updates over the period post-lockdowns, but with this cast change most of the major holdouts have been changed at once. I'll get to that in a moment. - Obviously it's very early in the run and we haven't seen all the costumes yet, particularly for alts. I'll continue to update as we do.
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Costumes (credits below) - Nikki Bentley's Aragon costume has had a few construction changes to be more in line with the US costumes. No major design differences, though. Not sure on maker yet. - Thảo Therése Nguyễn has the darker green which has been standardized for the last few UK casts. Not sure on maker yet. - Gabriella was previously with Norwegian Cruise Lines as part of Bliss 2.0, but as expected she did get a new costume. Her corset is in the US style/design rather than the UK style (info here, here). I'm not sure who made it and very much wondering if the corset only could be a US-make, but don't have enough information yet to know if that could be the case. I'm also waiting to see what Kayleigh's looks like. - Reca Oakley (Cleves) is another former NCL queen, but as expected she also did get a new costume. It was made by Paul Aspinall. - Inez Budd's Howard skirt has been changed to the US-style construction. This has smaller panels (rather than the old NCL/UK style; post here). However, unlike the US skirts, the vertical stud lines still go all the way to the bottom hem. Per usual, it was made by Ella Dancewear. - Janiq Charles is a standard Parr style, made by Ashleigh Cherry Costumes per usual. - Otherwise, the costumes seem to be in line with all recent UK standardization. - The alts' costumes should match the changes made for these principals.
Wigs/HMU - Nikki Bentley has an auburn tone with a side part and doesn't seem to have bleached/ombre highlights. Curled bob, a little longer than some we've seen in the past. It's a full wig. - Thảo has dark roots with a silvery-toned bleached wig. It's a long wig rather than some of the recent bobs. It's a full wig. - Gabriella has a side part and darker, honey blonde tone. It's pretty mid-range for Seymour wigs but is shorter than some of the recent UK. It's a full wig. - Janiq Charles has the curls pulled over to the side. It's a full wig. - Otherwise, the principal wigs are pretty standard. - No pictures of Naomi Alade in costume yet, but I am expecting her to have braids for all or most of her roles. - We've also seen quite a bit of the makeup so far, which I'll make a post about in the coming days.
Boots @lightleckrereins already made posts about a lot of this (here, here) but for easy access: - The cast seems to be standardized to a shorter heel than prior casts, like the shorter heel Chlöe Hart and Natalie Pilkington both got later in the 22-23 UK Tour run. - They've introduced the double height boots that the US productions have had for a few years now (explanation of the difference here). However, they're still sticking to the regular UK-style boot body with crystals rather than switching to the US-style lattice and studs. Right now it looks like Nikki Bentley (Aragon) and Janiq Charles (Parr) have the double height, while Reca Oakley (Cleves) has the regular Cleves thigh highs and everyone else seems to have regular single height. Of course, that post includes Gabriella Stylianou rather than Kayleigh McKnight so no good look at Kayleigh or other alts yet. - All the boots seem to have interchangeable straps. We first saw these with the US and then UK alts - it allows them to have one pair of boots with a monochrome silver heel and then just trade out their straps depending on which costume they're wearing. This is the first time we've seen that for principals; Sofia talked more about why this change might be happening in the post I linked at the start of this section.
Alt costumes - We've seen a silver alt costume in progress that should be for Meg Dixon-Brasil. (Made by Paul Aspinall per usual) - We've also seen part of a pink alt costume. It could feasibly be either Natalie Pilkington's or it could be one for Hannah Lowther. Judging from Hannah's makeup, she does seem to have their standard makeup pieces for pink alt. - Naomi Alade has orange palette and glitter, so she presumably has the orange alt costume. - We still don't know what costume Natalie Pilkington will have. She has her old principal Seymour/Parr and pink alt system from the 2022-23 UK Tour, and during the 2021-22 UK Tour she had a black alt costume that was a mishmash of old and new pieces. I'm expecting that she'll wear a black alt costume (either entirely or mostly new), but it's possible that she reuses her old pink alt instead (it has been a while since she's worn black alt and most of it was already old). I talked in more depth about some of those possibilities here.
-------------------------- First row for each queen: junka_0.0 Second row for each queen: elliexboleyn (Nikki and Reca), cassie.zhao_ (Thảo), mattstacel (Gabriella, Janiq), Georgia.ccooper (Inez), Boots: crystalledbyjane
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darklydeliciousdesires · 1 year ago
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Lost & Found - Chapter Nineteen.
Another chapter and wishes of a very happy Friday to my beautiful audience! :D
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Previous chapters - One Two Three Four Five Six Seven Eight Nine Ten Eleven Twelve Thirteen Fourteen Fifteen Sixteen Seventeen Eighteen
Words - 3,763
Warnings - 18+ content throughout, Minors DNI. Recounts of kidnap, child trafficking, physical/verbal/sexual abuse.
4am. It was not a time Emma was used to seeing, unless she was up late being railed into a new shape by Guero, or enjoying the pleasures of partying. She knew Lee would be even less impressed, with how much she thrived upon a good night’s sleep. 
The very lady was waiting outside as they came out, Gilly yawning in the passenger seat. With their bags dumped in the back of her Escalade and Axl dropped next door for a stay with his uncle Tyrone (who proclaimed ‘imma spoil the dude to death, man!’) they climbed in, still half asleep. Since Emma had no passport or ID yet, Lee, Gilly and Guero were sharing the driving, just over three hours each to make the ten-and-a-half-hour journey rather than flying. 
“I feel bad, that we can’t fly and it’s because of me,” she huffed, Lee hitting the freeway, the engine roaring as the six hundred and eighty-two horses beneath the hood all charged to gallop. 
“How come you ain’t got that sorted yet?” Gilly asked, Emma sipping from her bottle of cherry Coke, burping quietly.  
“Because of a point Guero made,” she began, tightening the lid and placing it in her lap. “Since I’ve been a missing person, there’s obviously still a file open on me, one which will be closed when I show up. I’d likely have to be interviewed by the police over where I’ve been and who with for so long as well, too many questions would be asked.  
“If I ratted on Rocco, my worry about being snatched would turn into a worry about being shot in the head. I was going to go down the new identity route and buy fake documents, but depending on how all of this goes, I may not need to.” 
Lee looked at her in the rearview mirror, winking with a smile. “Here’s hoping, sugar.” She then paused before noting something glaring in similarity about the way all four had chosen to dress. “I can’t help but fuckin’ notice, I love the way all four of us try to look a little less like the tattooed reprobates that we are and instead, end up looking like the goddamned Addam’s Family.” 
Every single person within the car was donned in black, all of them beginning to laugh when they noticed that their attempt at semi-smartness had them appearing as if they were attending a funeral. 
“Goths R Us, man,” Gilly snorted with amusement, beginning to whistle the theme tune to the aforementioned family movie, Emma giving the double finger click at the required point, too.   
“Well, I gotta say it, sunshine. You suit being a redhead,” Lee then spoke, turning to look at her, thinking how pretty her bestie looked in the long, red wig with tumbling waves.  
“Doesn’t she, though?” Guero chimed, winking at Emma. “Maybe a little too much. Goddamn women, pulling some Jessica fucking Rabbit magic on a man." 
"What is it about you guys and that woman?" Lee cried, moving her car to the middle lane to overtake a slow-moving vehicle ahead. "She's a fuckin’ drawing!" 
"Yeah, and I'd nail her until I erased her, I swear to god," he chirped, Gilly busting into hysterics. 
"Same, bro. I'd fuck her until her colours ran!" Everyone fell apart in fits of laughter, Lee thinking that already it was more than worth her 3am start and missing her precious sleep for the sheer entertainment value alone. She wasn’t the only one glad of it, the comic relief provided by her boyfriend and Gilly just the thing Emma needed to take her mind off the fact that with every mile that passed, she was nearing the man she feared most.  
By the seven-hour point, Guero returned to her side in the back while Gilly took his turn behind the wheel, her nerves were palpable. Looking out of the window while gnawing on the side of her thumb, she saw a hand reach for hers in her peripherals, turning to watch Guero softly shake his head with a faint smile.  
“You’re stressing.” Pulling her hand away from her mouth, he grasped it in his, shifting over a little closer and wrapping his arm around her. “You gotta stop. Nothing bad is gonna happen.”  
“Easy to say that,” she muttered, leaning into him. 
“Yeah, it fucking is,” he snorted, kissing her head. “Cuz’ I’ll fucking finish him if he lays a finger on you, and you know this.” His hand tightened its grip on hers, his nostrils flaring a little. The rage towards Rocco still swirled just as tempestuously as ever, along with his already short fuse.  
He softened a little then, realising she likely didn’t need to hear it, or worry about him being able to hang onto his fiery temper. “I get it, you feeling nervous. It’ll be alright, though.”  
Nervous was somewhat of an understatement, Emma feeling like she wanted to throw up as Gilly parked outside the hotel just over three hours later.  
“So, what I’m thinking is that after talking to Obispo, these guys seemed to be enjoying everything the resort had to offer. Squash, golfing, casino, etc,” Lee began, after the guys had gone to check in. “Which means that I can hang around in the bar, keep an eye on the comings and goings of ‘em. Except, fuck. I don’t know what he fuckin’ looks like.”  
Emma pulled out her phone, calling up Google. As with a lot of notable members of the mafia, Vincent’s face was very easily accessible. Clicking on his mugshot from an arrest after a large shoot out he’d been arrested for his part in around a decade ago, she turned the screen. “Like that, but a little aged. He’s very distinctive.”  
Lee had already taken a good look at the hotel layout, scanning the pictures and seeing that from the large bar and restaurant area, the front desk and entrance was visible. She was entirely happy to play barfly with Gilly while Emma hid in her room. “Alright, and there’s my visual. He looks... intense.” 
That was one way to describe a man who had once chopped off someone’s feet and fed them to Diavolo, his Akita. “He is, he’s very formidable.” Her voice was small, the quietness of her tone reminding Lee of her demeanour back when they’d first met, minus the shaking and the stuttered words.  
Reaching for Emma’s hand, she cocked her head. “It’s fuckin’ gonna be fine. You forget I’m ex-military. I know how to run a fuckin’ smooth operation, sunshine.” She winked, Emma feeling at ease, squeezing her hand back before the arrival of Gilly and Guero parted them, hopping out of the car.  
“Lobby is all clear from anyone of the Italian American persuasion,” Gilly spoke, swinging his rucksack over his shoulder. “Let’s go.” Taking Guero’s hand, she gripped it tightly, adjusting her sunglasses before beginning to walk. She felt as if she had a serpent writhing around in her guts, some cold, spiny creature that thrashed angrily, her heartbeat escalating, expecting him to pop up at any moment and snatch her again. 
Heading in through the glass doors that slid open with a silky glide, her eyes were everywhere beneath her oversized aviators, Guero pulling her to the right, past the front desk and through to the safety of the ground floor hallway. Immediately, she felt herself unravel a little.  
“Okay, we’ll see you guys at some point, I guess. I will call with details from my little stakeout,” Lee spoke, she and Gilly continuing down the hall as Guero opened the door to their room. 
As soon as she was inside, she felt the creeping sensation at her back abate, yet she was a nervous mess, riddled with anxiety, wanting to go straight into her medication bottle and swallow back a couple of doses to calm herself. Taking more than her standard dose tended to have the opposite effect, though.  
Reaching for Guero, she wrapped herself around him, burying her face against the side of his neck. Safe person. Safe person scent. It transported her back to a time where he was the only person she’d trusted while in the thick of her anxious duress, but for that moment her body refused to comply with the logic her brain was desperately trying to convey.  
“Breathe, baby. It’s okay.” he told her, hands stroking her back, feeling her chest rising and falling rapidly against his, her heart pounding hard. He closed his eyes, arms tightening around her, a tide of anger rising within him. She’d worked so hard in the last near eleven months to recover, and now there she was again, trembling and frightened.  
The urge to go and wait outside of Rocco’s room and bypass the plan completely, to shoot him in the head as soon as he laid eyes on the vile, abusive, child trafficking, raping sack of shit who’d once again reduced his sweetheart to a nervous wreck was almost all encompassing. He knew though that would land them in the kind of trouble none of them would survive, taking out a mafia boss without the agreement of those who served under him.  
He couldn’t even imagine an alternative to Calabrese condoning the hit, or being told that the Romano family would handle it internally, should he be in complete agreement with the proposal they were bringing to him. None of them could live unless he died, and Emma? She’d be returned to Staten Island, with nobody to save her.  
The thought of being dead and her alone in the world had been on his mind so much, he’d even considered fleeing with her to Mexico, should things not go in the favour of the Mayans. He loved his club, but he wouldn’t be a sitting duck, waiting for the weight of the mafia to crush them.  
He believed in standing to fight, and his loyalty to the club tugged strongly at him, but he was smart enough not to remain on a sinking ship if he saw water beginning to pour in. He had not come to such a conclusion easily, either. His simple desire to survive outweighed anything else, now that it potentially could come down to that.   
Realising he was spiralling into his own thoughts, he shook himself from it all, being present for her, as he needed to be before anything else. Holding her close had begun to calm her, Emma finally straightening to kiss him, resting her forehead to his.  
“And I’m calmer now.” Her thumbs stroked over the flecks of stubble dotting his cheeks. “Thanks for always been so steadying when I need you to be.” 
Smiling, he kissed her again. “You’re welcome, and good. I fucking hate seeing you like that, all cuz’ of him.”  
Sucking in a breath over her teeth, she drew her shoulders up, the weight of her sigh tugging them down again. She hated feeling like that, too, everything rushing to the surface once more. “Let’s pray he isn’t going to be around much longer to do it, huh?”  
It went without saying, he thought. 
They hung around in the room for a few hours, Lee calling at just before seven, informing Emma that the mob guys had all just arrived in the bar for a drink, before being told by one of the staff that their cars were ready. With it looking like they were heading out elsewhere for the night, she was safe to go and eat dinner in the restaurant, a prospect that made her feel nervous, but that she participated in all the same. She changed into a long, tight grey dress, having to fend off Guero before they left. 
“What’s the matter with you?” she laughed upon sitting at the table, Lee virtually vibrating in her seat opposite. “You look a little jazzed, buddy.” 
“Been on the fuckin’ coffee all afternoon! Changed to sparkly water about halfway through, but I didn’t wanna get loaded propping up the bar and I think choosing to be caffeinated might’ve been a little bit of a fuckin’ mistake!” 
Gilly snorted with laughter, shaking his head. “Dude, I told you to get decaf.” 
“Can’t ever do that, fuckin’ decaf is bullshit! I’ll be fine, they gotta pool here and I brought my swimsuit. I’ll go swim it off, do some lengths, get all the energy out, y’know?”  
Her very wide-eyed demeanour had them in soft fits, Lee’s hand shaking upon her beer glass, making her food order at a hundred miles an hour to the entertained looking waiter.  
“And I gotta deal with this all night.” Gilly laughed, receiving an elbow from the hopped-up lady herself. She seemed to calm a little for eating, a firm but polite no given when the waiter asked them if they wanted coffee once they’d finished, calling it an evening at 10pm. Well, Lee and Gilly stayed up to see if Vincent returned back at a decent hour, but Emma and Guero headed straight back to their room. 
Opening the door for her, he gestured that she should enter first. “There, you get me being a gentleman just once, before I turn straight animal.” He smacked her ass, kicking the door shut, Emma removing her boots and socks. 
“Love, you’re always straight animal,” she purred, winking at him. He snaked his arms around her, moving her hair, softly biting the side of her neck with a playful growl. Those nibbles turned to kisses, hands pawing at her. Grasping his hoodie, she pulled it over his head, her nails gently raking down his chest as his mouth met hers, manoeuvring to the bed, pushing him onto it.  
“I have to take this off, my head is like a furnace.” Pulling off the wig, she unclipped her hair and let it tumble loose, messy waves framing her face, Guero sitting up to watch keenly as she began to lower her dress. The way his eyebrows rose significantly at the reveal of her black, diamond mesh underwear tugged at the corners of her mouth. 
“Wow. Get the fuck on me, right now.”  
Ahh, the desired effect.  
“Is that what you want, hmm?” 
His eyes swept her with desire, his cock beginning to harden at just the sight of her, nodding in response to her words. 
“Yeah, I know what you want,” she spoke, coming to sit astride him, pushing her fingers into his mouth, her nipples hard against his chest through the thin mesh of her bra. “You want to pin me down and fuck my tight little pussy until I gush all over your cock, don’t you? Mmm, I love it when you get me so wet that it starts running over my thighs, when you hold me down and pound me so hard, I get dizzy. Yeah, I love it like that.” She ran her tongue up the side of his neck, her hips beginning to gyrate, grinding herself against the big erection she felt tenting his jeans.  
He groaned barbarously around the suck upon her fingers, his teeth clamping in a hard bite, Emma pulling them from between his gorgeous lips before her mouth locked to his. Their kisses rained sensuality and steamy heat, Guero lying back on the bed, the feel of pristine hotel linens sumptuous against his bare back, hands travelling all over her as he moaned against her tongue.  
If there was a sweeter way to kill time, he was yet to experience it.  
Moving beneath her, his body topped hers, pressing her into the bed as his hands slid to make short work of her underwear, sitting up only to shed the remainder of his clothes before his mouth was on hers once more. He kissed her with all the love and heated desire he felt for her, hand trailing down her thigh as he shifted his weight a little, fingers skimming over the sumptuously dewy petals of her cunt. 
That first touch had her arching off the bed, her back bending like a crescent moon, her moan rich and full bodied, his thick, clever fingers spreading her wetness around, settling upon her clit and beginning to circle. His touch was so perfect, Emma mewling softly as she felt her core ache, his breaths heavy against her neck as he moved to kiss her elegant throat, a soft groan rumbling his as he pushed two fingers into her.   
“Oh god, you’re so fucking wet for me already.” He rumbled, his mouth finding hers, kissing her with all the heat of a furnace, those keen fingers seeking out her sweet spots. Focused rotations forced soft little exclamations from her, Guero drinking them down like wine as his lips locked with hers. “Yeah, that feel good, baby?” 
She couldn’t even form words, delight tumbling through her, merely uttering a soft little moan as her head fell back on the bed, his fingers entering, rotating, dragging back, moving his thumb to her clit to stroke it in perfect rhythm. It always boosted his ego a little, seeing how easily he could make her sail into bliss with just two fingers. 
It didn’t take long for him to kiss a sizzling path down her body, his mouth craving to be quenched with what drenched his fingers, removing them, sucking her wetness from them with a hungry grunt. He pushed her legs wider so she splayed for him, delving his tongue right into her folds, the syrupy wet of her pussy drenching his mouth.   
His tongue dragged her eagerly, long licks from her glossy opening to her clit making her very bones shudder in ecstasy, Guero groaning, watching her body undulate before him. The rolling heat of his tongue pressed flat as it circled her clit, sending waves of bliss through her, her little whimpers filling the air, his hands gripped at her waist as he felt her puddling against his tongue.  
She looked down, watching him do it, gasping, her fingers raking through his hair. “You look so fucking hot with a mouthful of my pussy.” 
He grinned against her, sucking on her clit. “And you look the same while you’re getting it ate, mamas.” He winked, closing his eyes, groaning as he took a mouthful of her, loving the feeling of her thighs skimming against his face as she writhed. 
He sucked upon her like ripe fruit, his groans deep, like boulders rolling over one another, the heat radiating up her spine as she panted, watching him tipping her further into mindlessness before her eyes closed and her head fell back. The flickers of the very tip of his tongue working in speed over her clit were too much, but not enough, her body shaking in response of being so lit up. It felt like an ice storm meeting magma, her body gleaming for him, Guero pushing his fingers back within her heat, burrowing deep. 
Placing a suck upon her clit, his cheeks hollowed, the pressure gentle at first, fingers circling her walls, entering her then with rapidity, that suck intensifying until he had her crying out softly. His hunger to devour had him tearing his fingers from her, covering her entire slit in the thirsty suck of his mouth, grunting against her folds as his tongue laved her incessantly.   
Reaching for his jeans, he undid them, sliding them and his boxers down, kicking himself out of them with impatience, the need to be within her rocketing through him. His heart thundered in his chest as anticipation skittered over him, kissing his way back to her mouth, lips meeting hers in a hot mesh of filthy indulgence, his words matching.   
“Wanna spread those gorgeous legs and let me fuck you, huh? Is that what you want, for me to bury my big dick right up deep in this pretty little pussy, huh blue eyes?” Those words fuelled the epicentre of her bonfire, Emma nodding, their kisses scorching as he moved between her legs and glided into her, her walls tensing on his shaft, dragging a groan from the depths of him. He sat back on his heels, taking root in her, his eyes watching the sight of it, his cock sinking in and out, her wetness bathing him thickly. 
He fell to her then, the blinding need to chase the fire roaring through his veins consuming him, his flames catching at her edges as she wrapped her legs around him, their mouths meeting messily.   
“Oh god,” she gasped, clasping his face, seduced further by the look of dark lust pooling his near black eyes. “Fuck me, yeah, that’s it. Oh, fuck me!”   
And he did, pounding into her relentlessly, hitting her so deep, shocks skittered through her. He slowed then, wanting to make it last longer than the rampant charge his arousal was dictating, pulling himself back, thrusting a little shallower, almost retreating, slipping back deeply. His head dipped, sucking her nipples in turn, tongue circling them with a hungry grunt, his hands stroking paths of blissful heat up and down her thighs as his cock hit her deep, deep, deep.   
“Mmmm, fuck. You look so goddamn pretty, spread all around my dick. Got me so fucking drenched, beautiful.” he groaned, sitting back up again, the sight so steeped in erotic heat, he had to close his eyes for a moment, those tingles pulsing too rapidly, the desire to chase his release held fast, slowing, long lashes parting again as he stared down at her. “That feel good, huh?” 
“Oh, you’re fucking amazing!” she cried out, her body jolting when he brought his thumb to her clit, tight circles spreading glimmers through her, pleasure melting down her spine and puddling at her cunt, covering him further in her dew. She raised herself up on her elbows, her hips shunting against each of his thrusts, fucking him back with purpose as she let her gaze fall to watch it.  
He reached beneath her chin, making her focus on him, his forehead resting to hers as he stared at her with so much love, her heart felt full to burst. Stroking his face, she felt like she could see her entire future in the dark sparkle of his lust blown pupils, nuzzling him, whispering her love, sharing kisses steeped in sweet, yet burning heat.  
Her heart jolted suddenly with the weight of it, the realisation of exactly what she would lose if Vincent didn’t agree. He had to, because there was no way she would willingly or easily part from Guero now she’d finally found him. 
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ukrfeminism · 11 months ago
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Rape complainants should be told pre-recording evidence could harm their chances of securing a conviction at trial, researchers say.
"Special measures" allow them to be interviewed and cross-examined before the trial and away from the defendant.
But a University College London study, the first of its kind, found 20% fewer rape convictions in such cases.
Special measures, under Section 28 of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999, were introduced in 2016.
In 2021, they were expanded to cover adult rape complainants, in a flagship government policy aimed at increasing the number of cases coming to trial.
The study looked at conviction rates in comparable trials, with both adult and child complainants, from 2016 onwards.
And when all offences were considered, it found 10% fewer convictions in trials employing special measures. For rape, convictions were 20% lower.
Using screens and barristers changing from gowns and wigs into suits are other ways to accommodate vulnerable and intimidated complainants.
Prof Cheryl Thomas KC, at UCL Faculty of Laws, said Section 28 "may need reform".
"It would be prudent for police and the Crown Prosecution Service to routinely advise witnesses of lower conviction rates," she said, because of "such a strong and consistent correlation between the use of Section 28 evidence and lower jury conviction rates".
In 2022, Rain, not her real name, was kidnapped off the streets of Plymouth on a night out and raped.
And she jumped at the chance to pre-record her evidence and be cross-examined by video link, as she felt so shocked by the assault.
'Security blanket'
"It was so horrific and damaging," Rain told BBC News.
"It stripped everything away.
"I couldn't leave the house alone for nearly a year.
"Doing the cross-examination before meant I could take breaks and recover myself.
"It felt like a security blanket.
"I also got a better understanding of what had happened that night, as I had memory loss."
Rain's attacker was jailed for 18 years on the basis of her interviews, corroborating CCTV and DNA evidence.
But in many cases, the study suggests, pre-recording evidence leads to an "inequality of arms" between the defendant and complainant.
The authors refer to psychological research showing in-person interaction can create higher levels of empathy than interactions on screen.
Other reasons could be special-measures cases are inherently weaker or recording equipment is poor.
'Negative impact'
John Riley, from the Criminal Bar Association, who both prosecutes and defends rape cases, said: "The complainant's police interview serves as an investigative tool and their evidence in chief.
"The quality of this interview can be very varied.
"Sometimes, the complainant is some distance from cameras.
"The defendant is always in person before the jury.
"The absence of a witness in person in both parts of the complainant's evidence can have a negative impact on the jury."
'Vulnerable victims'
Complainants who had already opted for pre-recorded cross-examination could in theory change their minds but the defence could object.
"They may argue the complainant is unfairly getting two bites of the cherry, being cross-examined twice with a better knowledge of the line of questioning by that point," Mr Riley said.
"Special measures cannot be a panacea for all the deficiencies in the system, namely the backlog.
"There needs to be a review."
The government said it would consider the study but "pre-recorded evidence supports those extremely vulnerable victims who may otherwise feel unable to have their voices heard to see justice done".
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innytoes · 9 months ago
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59. Do you need a hug? You just seem very upset over the shape of these potatoes.
I was telling my family about this the other day! It's so funny!
The driver didn't comment when Carrie all but threw her bag into the car before getting in. He didn't have to. Her mood said it all. She'd managed to keep a smile on her face as she saw the other girls off, their parents picking them up, or carpooling in Heather and Kayla's case because Heather's mom's car was in the garage.
The driver also didn't comment when she told him to take her to the diner, instead of straight home. Even though her dad always told him to take her straight home.
Well, it's not like her dad showed up, so he didn't get a say. He probably wasn't even home to scold her about being home late. And Julian knew that Carrie would buy him whatever he wanted from Starbucks Monday morning if he complied.
So off to the diner they went.
It wasn't fair, they worked so hard on their routine, and then all of a sudden stupid Double Trouble had to show up and blow everyone out of the water, and Andi Parker from Destiny Management had given her the brush off, and it wasn't fair. Julie hadn't sang a note in a year and then all of a sudden Flynn moved back to LA and she was fine again? Carrie hadn't been enough for her, but Double Trouble came out of nowhere and stole her spotlight at the spirit rally and now Eats and Beats and Julie's dad had been there when Carrie's dad hadn't even read the text message reminding him of her performance tonight.
All she wanted was a chocolate milkshake and some curly fries. Sure, she should probably order strawberry, since she was still in her Pink Candi wig, and what if someone took a picture of her? But she needed chocolate, and curly fries, and she needed them now.
"What do you mean there aren't any curly fries left?" she all but shouted at the stupid guy behind the counter with the flicky hair.
"We only have crinkle cut left," the guy shrugged. He wasn't even wearing the uniform correctly, with his stupid biceps and his lack of sleeves. Curly's diner always had long sleeved shirts with pretty shiny red buttons at the cuffs and the collar. They had ever since her dad took her here as a kid.
"This is Curly's Diner. It's known for its curly fries!" She resisted the urge to stomp her foot, but it was a close call.
"Do you need a hug?" The guy behind the counter asked, and Carrie knew he was being sarcastic, she invented the fake-sweet insult. But the question made her lip wobble all the same. Because yes, maybe she could. "You just seem very upset over the shape of these potatoes."
"Shut up and get me my damn milkshake," she choked out, except as she did, the tears she was holding back started to spill from her eyes.
"Oh no," the guy behind the counter said. "Oh no, don't cry. I'm sorry about the fries. I can try and put them in a circle or something, please don't cry."
"Fuck," Carrie said, dabbing angrily at her tears, trying to keep her mascara from running. "Never mind, I can't - I can't be seen like this." She threw twenty bucks at him, because someone had probably started on the milkshake already, and went to leave, when she noticed some girls near the exit whispering and pointing. One of them took out her phone.
Diner Guy seemed to notice too, because he ducked under the counter and grabbed her arm leading her into the back.
"What the hell Patterson?" a blonde guy with the manager's badge said.
"Come on, Alex, she's crying," Diner Guy said, and he threw some epic puppy eyes. "You know I panic when girls cry! Reggie! We need that chocolate milkshake stat!"
"I'm not crying," Carrie sniffled. A milkshake was pressed into her hand, with the signature curly straw and not one but two cherries on top.
"You looked like you could use a second one," the guy, Reggie, said, giving her a wink. She sullenly grabbed one of the bright red maraschino cherries and chewed it. They were her favourite, even though they were so bad for you. "Whatever happened, he's not worth it."
"I'm not crying over a guy," Carrie glared, even though maybe part of her was. It was just not a boyfriend kind of guy. "Not that I'm crying."
"Of course not," Patterson soothed. "But if you wanna talk about it, we can listen. And make you some fries. Even if they're not curly."
She sniffled, ready to tell him to buzz off, but somehow, the whole story spilled out. About her best friend who pushed her away even though she was hurting too. About how she tried to form her own group, but the other girls just treated it like a hobby, something they did on the side, when music and proving herself was all Carrie could think about. About how she wasn't sure her dad would even care if she made it big or not.
"I get it," Patterson said. She glared at him. As if some diner dude would understand the pressures of the music industry. "My parents never supported our band either. And getting your name out there is hard, let alone being noticed!"
"You're in a band?" she asked.
"Sunset Curve," came a shout from across the kitchen where the other guy was flipping burgers. "Tell your friends!"
Their conversation turned to music after that. Luke showed Carrie a recording of their last performance, which was good. Very 90s rock, but not in a bad way. She was a bit hesitant to show her own recording, but Patterson just gasped and called: "Yo Alex you gotta see this!"
The manager popped his head back into the kitchen. "I would but SOMEONE left the counter unattended," he scolded.
"Yeah, yeah," Patterson got up, moving back to the front so Alex could come to the back. He was super interested in her dance moves, and they had a great talk about choreography and dance. By the end of her milkshake, she was laughing at his story about the three of them trying to perfect the Dirty Dance lift.
Eventually, Luke popped back in to tell her the coast was clear and 'some dude in a tie is very worried we kidnapped you and are holding you hostage in the walk in freezer.' She checked her make-up in a stainless steel baking sheet Reggie helpfully held up for her, and then walked back out with her head held high.
"Keep the change," she said.
Maybe she should come to the diner more often. You know, just to see if they had curly fries.
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golbrocklovely · 6 months ago
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why did colby unlike amber's picture with the red wig if it has nothing to do with anything?
i have to ask… why are we holding that with such significance? i’m just genuinely curious bc colby likes and unlikes things all the time. one time he followed an account on his secret insta for two full days and then unfollowed it. and it wasn’t for some interesting reason… he just accidentally followed them.
one time he tweeted out something that was meant for the ppl that had snc’s number back when that was a thing. he does things unintentionally with no rhyme or reason, just like all of us do. i don’t get why we have to see this as anything different than that.
also… what does malia gain by copying amber, a woman colby never dated?? sure they were flirty with one another and *maybe* something happened between them but he already showed that anyone he was into or had a thing with got unfollowed when he hard launched malia. so why would she copy her?
not only that, amber isn’t the originator of that hair. literally cherry coke red hair is a trending style right now. amber uses a wig to get that color and while she has plans to maybe dye it, she hasn’t.
i can’t explain why he unliked the picture but i doubt it’s bc of malia. maybe he didn’t mean to unlike it, maybe he did. idk, but it’s just weird to hyper fixate on it when less than a week ago ppl didn’t even want to believe that red head was malia in the video lol
idk to me it just feels like scrapping the bottom of the barrel to find, yet again, something to hate malia for.
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