#i really like lottie even if i call her out often to chill

[palettepainter]

Can I have some headcannons for Lottie, she’s adorable!!

Of course you can! And thanks, I'm glad you like her!!

-Lottie tried to be-friend a possum that was living out of the Shack's bin which she called Sprinkles. Lottie loved Sprinkles a lot more then Sprinkles loved her, what Lottie saw as a cute critter was really a hissing, spitting possum that probably had rabies. Lottie left food out on the window sills for Sprinkles, and one time Sprinkles managed to climb inside, the band where not amused at the goose chase that followed trying to get Sprinkles back outside. One day the band accidentally hit Sprinkles with the bus, and they all agreed to never tell Lottie.

They told Lottie that Sprinkles went to "live with her extended family in Portugal", which she was very sad about. To make her feel better Floyd and Janice brought her a toy possum, to which Lottie creatively named them Sprinkles 2

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-Lottie is scared of thunder storms, she tries to put on a brave face but is the type to scream when lightning strikes and dive behind the nearest person or piece of furniture

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-Since Lottie is kid aged if the band ever go on tour, most of the time she has to stay home. Since the band would be preforming they wouldn't be able to watch her, and if Caleb goes with them on tour he's often helping out backstage or tune instruments. Lottie is endlessly grumpy at being left behind while her brother gets to go on cool road trips with their parents and uncles. When she can't go with the band she stays with Rowlf and Nephew, she's become very close with Nephew over the years and considers him her best friend/partner in crime

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-She likes to play dress up with Teeth's rings and his big, sparkly coat with purple fuzz. She'll make Sprinkles 2 wear his fluffy top hat

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-Lowkey thinks Piggy is kinda cool. Floyd was devastated when he found out because "Are you even my flesh and blood?-"

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-Sassy sassy sassy. She's got the confidence of a fully finically stable adult concentrated into her teenie kiddo body. One of Floyd's proudest moments was when itty bitty, oblivious Lottie, pointed to Piggy and called her "Hamhock", he was so proud (and then Piggy karate chopped him across the room-)

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-Likes to put bows in Animal's and Caleb's hair. Lottie isn't all that good with hair styling aside from braiding, but Caleb is chill to sit and let her do what she wants (so long as there are no scissors). She also likes to do makeup, which she is also, not very good at yet. Most of her attempts end up with Caleb having messy but passionate smudges on his face, but he doesn't mind. In turn he draws little makeup flowers on Lottie's face

[edelgay]

Let me get this straight. The only way to get any points with Marisol is to lick her ass and to cheer her on as she falls in love with every single guy she meets in a blink of an eye? She isn't making any effort to spend time with the MC. "BuT wE DoN't KnOw EaCh OtHeR YeT" smh. Why would anyone want to date a girl who only talks to you about the guys she likes and snubs you every time you try to talk to her about your "relationship"? Why can't we have a loyal sassy top?

My feelings on Marisol have been flipflopping just like her ass, which is why i don't appreciate her being so haughty to Lottie. Is Lottie hypocritical and agressive? Yeah. Does Lottie knows ? Yes ! She apologizes often when you manage to go through her thick skull and she tries to control her bad temper but she means well and is still protective of the girls. I'm willing to work with that. That hair dyeing scene showed how vulnerable Lottie can be with you. Marisol ? Completely out for herself and her way of acting like she can read everyone because she took a psych 101 class was hard but in the end she always choose the worse guy, get burn and re-strategize. Love is not back up plans. She wants a good vibe but is all business no friendship and then her and bobby makes it your responsability to make everyone happy. She has shown very little qualities and i don't know what fusebox is doing this year.

This time around , everyone seems to be struggling with finding a real connection and Marisol making sure we're the plan B she can falls on stings. BUT it us also on Fusebox to give us scenes and options to talk to her. We're the most demanded girl of the villa and casa de amor and she still gets to string us along ? Worse she admits overtly to wanting to make you jealous, don't want to spend time with you and dismiss you so carelessly on purpose in front of her ugly fisherman.

We left the flirty joke zone. We're in the manipulative zone. Marisol holds all the cards and is hell bent on messing with our head and that's why i love Lottie far more. She always gets her due when she fucks up but Marisol gets no flake outsidebof her rocco bit. Hope was all friendship and happiness because she had what she wanted from the start and wqs nice as long as you played along her game wether you were happy or not. Priya is honest to god a disaster but she has a sweet side and a bit clumsy and she tries. I have a bit of a soft spot for her. I trust Chelsea as far as i can throw her. That cheeriness can get her a lot of leeway and opportunities to act up.

So honestly ? If Lottie is not a tricky LI like Noah since shes always coming to our defense, asking for helps and pushes us towards Marisol ( tho im sure if we were to tell her how marisol acted she would stomp her ass) priya or a new girl from casa de amor, Marisol will feel that connection.... when i dump her ass in front of everyone and take the money.

[mrsgaryrennell]

attic for dicky and gary?? 👀👀

First of all, I'm sorry for the late af response as always 💀I know I'm terrible but 👀👀let's dive into our Chatham boys shall we?

Attic:

What is the character afraid of?

Gary: I feel like he is afraid of rejection and abandonment. I'm going real deep into this real quick lol Because of his daddy issues at such a young age, Gary knew that he had to better himself to remain as the man of the house (example: his devotion to his nan and mother). As he began to physically become more appealing and stronger, he started noticing that people were giving him a lot of attention, majorly from girls. And with this, he's extremely consumed by the attention he never got from his father. That's why he loves to be the initiator/alpha in the Villa because he's the center of the spotlight and that helps him subconsciously cope. Gary is fearful of rejection which can shift to the fear of abandonment from his family/friends or his love life.

Dicky: Our mechanic boy is actually fearful of failing to protect his loved ones. Jason is known of not being the friendliest guy but when it comes to the people he really cares about, he grows very obsessed on the idea of being loyal to them. He'll make sure that he does all he can to be there for them when needed. He's not skillful with his words but making them company and allowing them to vent is his way to show that he cares deeply for them. If he notices that they need more than just his company, Dicky pushes himself out of his comfort zone to provide advice and affirmations. However, if Jason notices that something's gotten out of control and has no way of doing something about it, this is what he fears. He would feel like he neglected his protectiveness and drowns himself in self-blame for not being there more often.

How do they deal with bad memories?

Gary: He's not one to really open up about his bad memories and because he's too caught up on being the entertainer, the optimist of his friend group, he prefers excusing himself and releasing all of the stress in the gym or inviting his friends for drinks. Distraction is key in this situation ☹️ He's extremely good at hiding how he feels so people wouldn't even know that he's just trying to deal with negative emotions when he just shrugs things off . I know Gary does open up to MC at the end of the game but again, it's all the way towards the end. By that time, Gary develops trust in her completely with his vulnerability and becomes more comfortable talking about triggering things, such as his bad memories 💛

Dicky: So Jason is kinda the same as Gary. He doesn't show his discomfort towards bad memories at all (especially when he's got an impressive poker face lol) but instead, he becomes extremely quiet and even crankier/moodier. He'll just sit there for a moment while he remembers and he'll isolate himself elsewhere for alone time. He'll use the excuse of taking a smoke break and just be lost in thought. Gary is probably the only one that knows when Dicky is going through some bad memories but gives him space since it's a tick he's had since he was younger. Usually after he finishes his cigarette, Dicky feels better. Smoking is a terrible tool for comfort and even he knows it but it's the only thing that helps Jason 😭

What is this character’s role in a horror movie?

Gary: lmao yah this guy would be that aloof but extremely hot jock. Later on, everyone will realize that he's actually really handy and pretty resourceful. He's probably one of the main love interests until he ends up as one of the first victims and gets murdered 💀

Dicky: Now this guy would be the extremely hot bad boy of the group. Everyone hates him because he's brutal and mean but he keeps saving everyone's asses from the brink of death lol He's either one of the last ones to get killed or survives 😌

How do they hide their secrets?

Gary: I feel like he doesn't necessarily hide secrets and makes sure he never brings anything up that could potentially reveal a secret of his. And let's say he's under the situation in which he's confronted about a secret, Gary would provide very brief/general details that won't expose much. Now if he's in a position where a secret is completely revealed *ahem Lottie's kiss* this dude does not like confrontation and will either shrug it off until people give up on insisting or literally walks away

Dicky: I'll be honest, I seriously doubt this guy hides anything lol He's too straightforward with people and with himself. If he ever finds the need to hide a secret, he'd actually lie about something to make sure it's never revealed. He knows that lying is terrible and it's in fact a pet peeve of his but if Dicky needs to keep a crucial secret, he will not hesitate to lie. What's scarier is that Dicky can seem very credible and make anyone believe whatever he says 😶

Which of the Seven Deadly Sins does the character relate to most?

Gary: I'd say Gary would relate the most with pride. According to a website called inspirationfeed.com, "pride is defined as an excessive love for oneself, belief in one’s abilities, the desire to excel everyone else. Pride is such a vile sin that it has often been considered as the root cause of the other six of the seven deadly sins."

I've always mentioned that Gary always comes off as a cocky and overly-confident man, especially when he wants to establish dominance when theres's new guys around the Villa. When he does this, he can seem rather pompous about himself and when he notices that someone else, for example - Graham, comes to challenge him, the feeling is threatening and will do anything in his power to "win", even if he doesn't realize that he could potentially hurt someone's feelings. I've actually done a short analysis about Gary's pride on this post. You guys are more than welcome to read it because I definitely think this is one of Gary's negative traits and it really shows in the game lol

Dicky: Now with Jason, he'd definitely relate the most with wrath. According to Wikipedia,"Wrath (Latin: ira) can be defined as uncontrolled feelings of anger, rage, and even hatred. Wrath often reveals itself in the wish to seek vengeance."

There's no denying that Dicky is the kind of man that is impatient and can get his buttons pushed easily. It's always a plus that he has self-control or at least tries to if it's someone trying to poke at him however; if anyone dares to mess his family or close friends, this is when he carries no control of his anger. It can become rather freighting when there's no stopping him. He's certainly not one with short-temper/anger issues whatsoever. Dicky is actually a pretty calm/chill guy but know the exact things that will trigger him and you will wish to have never seen his ugly side.

Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed this because I totally did writing it and thank you sm much sis for asking about the boys 🥺🙈💛I got pretty soft for them lol

Send me a character name + a room, and I'll tell you my headcanons

[buck-buck-boose]

I’ll Love You ‘Til I Die

Summary: A Brooklyn schoolgirl fell in love with James Buchanan Barnes at the tender age of nine. With this love she made a vow, promising to love him until her very last breath.

Pairing: Bucky x OFC

Warnings: Language

Word Count: 1.9k

Author’s Note: Just some info: I’ve changed the summary a lil bit! Same vibe, different wording. Also I’ve created a banner for this fic! Yeehaw!

Chapter Six: The Fire Escape

November 5, 1934

It was 11 o’clock when Lottie crept onto the fire escape of her apartment. She shivered slightly at the chill even though she wore her oversized pajama set that she seemed to swim in. She brought one of her journals with her as well as a charcoal pencil. By the light of the moon, she sketched yet another outline of a masculine face; the sketch took up half a page, the other half bore scribbled thoughts about Bucky, work, and school.

Lottie had recovered from the little emotional outburst she’d endured last month; Bucky had stopped inviting her and Steve to tag along on his dates with Dot. But that just hurt her more— between school and work, she barely got to see him. Add a going steady into that, and it was practically radio silence from him. But they weren’t even going steady, as Bucky phrased it, they were “just messin’ around.” Whatever that meant.

Steve, ever the sweetheart, visited her at her job at the corner store, but the autumn chill left him bedridden more often than not. She decided to visit him at his apartment the next day. She could bring a gift— a piece of art —to cheer him up; she turned to a new page and began an outline. Lottie figured Steve was getting tired of the view from his window, so she decided to draw him the view from her fire escape.

Lottie nearly dropped her charcoal pencil when she heard the ping of a stone against the iron of her fire escape. She looked down in confusion, catching a glimpse of Bucky Barnes grinning up at her. Her breath caught in her throat at the sight of him; how handsome he looked, bathed in the soft glow of the moon. He looked disheveled, like he’d been working late into the night; his suspenders hung loosely around his hips and the top few buttons of his shirt were undone. She knew she’d already been staring too long, so she hissed, “Bucky Barnes, what the hell are you doing here this late at night?”

Bucky chuckled softly at her reaction, “Just wanted to stop by and say hello. May I?” He gestured to the ladder leading up to her fire escape, asking permission to join her. Lottie’s features relaxed and she nodded, “Be quiet or else my Ma’ll throw a fit.”

As Bucky climbed the ladder, she shifted her position on the fire escape, allowing him some room to sit once he’d finished his climb. “Hey Lottie,” he greeted softly, setting in beside her. Lottie could feel the warmth of his thigh touching hers even through the layers of fabric.

Lottie frowned, “Oh so it’s just Lottie again, huh?”

“Whaddya mean?” Bucky asked, nudging her shoulder. Lottie turned her head, their eyes meeting, “Well a few weeks ago you just started calling me plain old Lottie for the first time in…” she tried to remember a time from their childhood where he didn’t call her by the nickname, “…ever, really. It just confused me. I’ve always been Little Lottie to you.”

At that, he slung an arm over her shoulders and ruffled her hair, something he hadn’t done in a while, “Oh Lottie… I guess it’s because you really aren’t so little anymore. Gosh, you’re already taller’n Steve, and I remember how itsy-bitsy you were just a few years ago. Plus you’re in high school now! Old enough to work at that corner store, step out with whatever fella you choose—“ Lottie snorted at that and he glanced down at her in surprise, “What?”

Lottie rolled her eyes, “I’d hardly say that I could step out with ‘whatever fella I choose.’ I don’t exactly have gentleman callers lining the block.”

Bucky countered, “Guys your age get real nervous ‘round the girls they like. Maybe they haven’t gotten the cojones to ask you out yet.”

Lottie hummed, “Bucky Barnes, you’ve been shmoozing Dolores Grant since what, eighth grade? Doesn’t exactly hold up with the statement you just made.”

“Alright, alright, you got me. But what can I say? Not every guy’s a as smooth a talker or as charming as yours truly.” She snorted at that, bumping his shoulder with hers.

“Well regardless, there isn’t a fella I’m looking to step out with at this point. Maybe I am doomed to be a crotchety old spinster,” the joking tone started to leave her voice, revealing her true feelings.

“Aw c’mon,” he squeezed her, causing her heart to stutter.

“I know there are a lotta greaseballs out there, but soon enough there’ll be a guy for you. A guy’d have to be 100 percent certifiable to let a pretty girl like you slip under his nose,” Bucky continued in earnest, though Lottie giggled at the phrase 100 percent certifiable. He probably used that expression at least ten times a day— he had this habit of pulling a certain face whenever he said it, it was a sort of exaggerated eye-roll paired with a ridiculously lopsided grin.

Her mind wandered to focus on another detail. He called her a pretty girl. Though she realized it was from a totally objective perspective; just because he thought she was pretty didn’t mean he was necessarily attracted to her. In fact, he shouldn’t really be attracted to her; there were dozens of girls his age that were much prettier than her. They were all soft curves and effortless femininity while Lottie was still trying to figure out her developing body. Despite this rational thinking, her heart still fluttered; any girl would get starry-eyed over a charming boy calling them pretty.

Lottie eventually responded, “We’ll see what happens.” Changing the subject from her love life— or lack thereof —she inquired about his, “How’s Dolores?”

He sighed at the question, “‘M not sure it’s gonna work out. I took her to Coney Island the other day; blew three bucks just tryin’ to get her some stuffed bear. We got into this fight about goin’ steady; she wanted the commitment and that sorta stuff, but I’m not really interested in that right now. I think I’ll just stick to the dance hall dames for now.”

Lottie studied his face for any signs of emotion. His brow furrowed ever so slightly but he didn’t seem very dejected. He might’ve taken a shot to his ego but overall it seemed as though he’d be right as rain come morning. She turned her gaze to the horizon and began to wonder about what it must feel like to dance with Bucky Barnes. She’d gotten hints of it, when his arms were on hers as he helped her position herself during the baseball game, even now when he had his arm around her shoulders. She had watched him dancing with girls at the dance hall before— he showed his partners the purest form of intimacy as he held them in his arms or spun them out for a twirl, his hand still gripping theirs.

Lottie glanced up at him, suddenly feeling quite shy, “D’you think you could show me how to swing dance— really swing dance —one of these days?” She wanted to be one of those dance hall girls, cradled in his arms and floating to the tune of some big band jazz song.

Bucky nodded, “One of these days. Then you’ll be learnin’ from the best. But I can’t teach you too well, or else all the guys who wanna take a turn with you won’t be able to lead you like a real gentleman.” Lottie laughed at that, “Oh Bucky, that won’t be happening for quite some time.”

“Yeah, yeah,” he waved dismissively, “How ‘bout those freshman boys?”

She shook her head, “I’m a little too preoccupied in my studies and they’re a little immature for me.”

“Preoccupied in your studies, huh? What’s this then?” Bucky asked, gesturing to her journal, discarded next to her. Lottie grabbed it and clutched it close to her chest, “A lady may have a diary if she pleases,” she feigned a sense of pretentiousness, sticking her nose in the air.

Bucky hummed, “Alright, well what studies really are preoccupying you?” He looked down at her expectantly while she smiled demurely. Whenever he showed genuine interest in different aspects of her life, she was reduced to some timid schoolgirl.

“Well I know I haven’t been very good at science in the past, but I’ve been studying my biology really well recently and I’ve decided that really want to go to nursing school. I dunno where yet, but I know I’m gonna be a nurse someday,” Lottie lifted her chin, sending him a proud grin as she revealed her future plans to him. What he didn’t know was that he was the first person to find out about her career plans.

Bucky let out a low whistle, “Now Miss Lottie, I guess all the patching up you’ve done for me and Steve has really paid off, huh? Gosh, Lottie Green the nurse, won’t that be a sight to see? I’ll make sure to be awful clumsy at the docks so I have an excuse to see you at the hospital.” He winked at her and she laughed, “Bucky Barnes, I’m not gonna go to nursing school just so I can fix you up for the rest of your life!”

“Well how else am I gonna make sure you never leave me? I gotta keep you here in Brooklyn somehow so I can pester you the rest of your life.”

“Oh Bucky, it’d take an act of God to get me outta Brooklyn. I’m sure you’ll be happy to hear that you’ll be stuck with me for the rest of your sorry life,” Lottie beamed up at him.

“Ah, my life won’t be too sorry with you in it,” he responded, adding a jab to her sensitive side, eliciting bubbled laughter from her lips.

Her laughter subsided, as did the conversation. Lottie savored this moment, just her and Bucky watching the horizon from her fire escape. She committed this moment to memory, the feel of his arm around her and drank in his scent. He smelled strongly of cigarettes— he must’ve smoked a lucky on his way over —but underneath the smoke, he smelled woody with a touch of sweetness to it. She couldn’t quite place the scent, but it reminded her of something like balsam. Caught up in her thoughts, Lottie failed to stifle a yawn with the oversized arm of her pajamas.

“Alright Lottie, I think you need to get some shut-eye,” Bucky said softly, retracting his arm. Lottie nodded her head sleepily, feeling a heaviness in her eyelids. She hadn’t realized how late they’d stayed up together.

“Sweet dreams,” he whispered fondly, ruffling her hair.

Bucky was a bout three rungs down the ladder when Lottie stuck her head over the edge of the fire escape to look down at him, her curls tumbling around her face. “Bucky,” she whispered, “you can keep calling me Little Lottie if you want. I may be grown now, but I’m still your Little Lottie. Just like when we were kids.”

Something lay unspoken between them, but Bucky understood it clearly; she wanted to be called by the nickname. He wasn’t quite sure why, but it had some sort of importance to her, so he nodded his head solemnly, “Good night Little Lottie, until tomorrow.”

“Good night Bucky,” she whispered before retreating into her apartment. She leaned out the window to watch him walk towards his own tenement and smiled fondly,

“James Buchanan Barnes, I’ll love you ‘til I die.”

[bobbyboops]

Broken Pieces

Hello to this beautiful community! I hope you are all having a great Wednesday! I have written my first ever fanfic. It is an angsty piece about Bobby x MC. Give it a read if you are so inclined! I am also including a link to the playlist I made to go along with it. I hope you all enjoy! https://music.apple.com/us/playlist/broken-pieces/pl.u-r2yBDkqsAV9rDA

Bobby walked into his Hotel room, fresh tears still streaming down his delicate freckles. He had just been voted off of Love Island, and subsequently lost the only girl who had meant something to him in a long time. He closed the door behind him, and was met by complete silence. Something that he hadn’t really experienced in the last 29 days, and something that scared him more than anything because there was absolutely nothing to distract him from the waves of grief that he had been able to hold mostly at bay over the last 2 weeks, but that were crashing down unrelentingly now. He took off his shoes and sat down on the king sized bed cradling his head in his hands.  He closed his eyes and once again replayed the last 4 weeks in his mind. Trying to piece together for the millionth time just what had gone so terribly wrong. How he had let his soulmate slip so easily from his hands.

POV: Bobby

I knew early on she was so much more than just a crush. She was my dream girl. Of course she was beautiful to look at, but I was all too familiar with the fact that beauty was only skin deep, and often (though not always) the most beautiful girls on the outside are the ugliest on the inside. The most beautiful thing about MC was her personality, she had banter for days, she treated everyone in the house with love and respect, and when tensions were high she was there putting out all of the little fires around the villa. Best of all she never made me feel like I was a nuisance, she was always up for a chat, or one of my stupid pranks. She never made me feel like I was inferior to the rest of the guys (which I could see I clearly was.) How was it possible that a girl as perfect as her could see parts of me that I had kept so perfectly hidden? She made it so easy to bring down my walls, but at the same time made me want to build them up higher because there was just no way it could be real. I was preparing myself mentally for her to walk away at any time.

I could tell she was feeling a little bit skittish after what Rocco had done to Lottie, she had told me on our date in the vineyard that she was worried it was going to happen to her. She confessed to me that she had been burned in the past, and I could tell there was more to the story, but I didn’t want to push her to tell me before she was ready. Getting called out as the biggest player of the season hadn’t been the best way to instill faith in my character, and I had only made everything worse by playing up to it. I thought everyone would find it as absurd as I had, and therefore joking about it would solve the problem, but I could see MC was clearly feeling anxious about it all. I was almost certain I had blown it, and honestly I wouldn't have blamed her, as someone who had been blindsided and hurt so many times in the past I probably would have understood better than anyone. But for some reason she had still chosen to continue getting to know me, much to my relief.

That relief was short lived though as I could see Lucas wasn’t ready to give up on the chase. I could see him staring at MC all the time, his eyes following her like a predator tracking its prey everywhere she went. MC had never shown much interest in him… at least not in front of me.  But at the next re-coupling he stood up and called her name. She wandered over to me first, offering me some reassurance, but I was slowly starting to unravel.

Waking up the next morning to her angelic face letting me know that the girls were going away had only made everything worse. I hadn’t had the chance to have a talk with her and get an idea about where her head was at. Obviously she still fancied me at least a little if she was willing to wake me up and say a private goodbye… right? But what if her head was at least starting to be turned? As she made her way out to the jeeps waiting below it dawned on me that they were most likely headed to Casa Amor. A chill ran down my spine, and I ran down the stairs trying to catch them before they left. I wanted to make sure she would know that I was going to be waiting patiently by the door until their return. That I would be waiting for her, but as I opened my mouth, Lottie slammed the door and the jeeps pulled away, and my cracks were beginning to show.

I couldn’t control my anxiety after she came back from Casa Amor. Though she had shown up single, and she had been so reassuring that first night back even suggesting we couple back up, I was immediately on self destruct mode. I had asked Lottie to share a bed that first night, and I still can’t work out what possessed me to utter that invitation. Seeing the immediate hurt spread across MC’s perfect face kept me up the entire night. Even though Lottie had ultimately turned me down, I knew I had just sewn another seed of doubt in MC’s already cautious mind. I could feel her slipping away, and my anxiety was the driving wedge pulling us farther apart. I just couldn’t pull myself out of it. I had avoided her for most of the next day, I didn’t know what to say, and I was worried I would say something to further damage our relationship.

Later that evening instead of being able to couple up with her, we were forced to save other islanders. She chose to save Lucas, which had only made me spiral further, and wonder if there was more than meets the eye. Maybe Lucas hadn’t been lying when he said that MC had shown interest in him. I had lunged at him at the time, only to be grabbed by Noah and Lucas by Rahim. My head had been such a mess between the guilt I felt over operation NOPE, knowing that had been the catalyst to the disaster recoupling. Also knowing that Lucas was going full force for my girl. I’m not an idiot, I know how dangerous he is in this game. He is the epitome of everything most girls are looking for. Well mannered, successful, good looking with that slight bad boy vibe that seems to bring girls to their knees. I knew I paled in comparison. I am a goofball, poor, and average looking at best. MC had never seemed interested, but maybe she had just been trying to spare my feelings.  Maybe I was really just her “pity case and safe choice” as Lucas had so generously pointed out.

The next morning I woke up and asked for a volunteer to help with breakfast, hoping against hope that MC would volunteer, but Lottie’s hand shot up so fast that MC didn’t even get the chance. I tried to not show the disappointment that was exploding out of my chest. MC looked slightly annoyed, but Lottie was always so hot tempered, and didn’t take well to not getting her way. I just didn’t want to get into it this early in the morning, so I wasn’t going to tell her no.

Lottie announced MC entering the kitchen, and I turned around just in time to see MC saunter into the kitchen wearing a leopard print bikini. My heart was hammering out of my chest, and I could barely think straight. “I’m bound to be hit with a sugar rush soon, because that look is so sweet.” Damn that was a lame compliment, but MC took it gratefully. I offered her some pancakes, and Lottie covered them with maple syrup in the shape of a pentagram. MC quickly stuffed a giant bite into her mouth and hummed her approval.

“Bobby, this is delicious. What has inspired all this then?” She said with that dazzling smile of hers.

“I think we all deserve it, and I’m feeling really optimistic.” I replied.

She went on to compliment me by saying the thought what Lottie and I did for Noah and Hope the night before was sweet.  I rattled something off about them being the real deal, which I didn’t believe fully. Noah had been insufferable the whole time the girls were at Casa Amor, and Lottie had already saved him. I honestly couldn’t fathom having to spend the rest of the summer with a dark cloud of a pouting Noah around. If my pal enjoyed life on a leash who was I to say otherwise? I had already tried and failed to save him once.

“It will be totally worth it if Noah and Hope get to re-couple, and everyone else is perfectly matched up.”

I wanted to retract the words as soon as they had escaped my lips. Why did I say something so stupid? I saw the confusion and hurt spread across MC and Lottie’s faces.

“Really? What makes you say that?” MC asked with a shaky voice.

“It’s obvious Gary picked Chelsea because he fancies the pants off her.”

Dammit this word vomit that comes when I am  feeling anxious and insecure is just digging my grave. I was silently hoping MC would say something, anything just to show me that maybe I still had a fighting chance, but I knew I had just planted the final seed of doubt in MC’s mind. She would never let her guard down at this point. I just had to open my big mouth.

I thought about just swallowing what little pride I had left and try to fix what I had just broken. Let MC know that she was the only girl I had fancied at all this whole time. Tell her that I was falling in love with her but I was terrified I was never going to be enough to keep her. But just as soon as I went to open my mouth Lottie all but tackled me to the ground trying to get to the sink. She was clearly pissed off by my comments about Gary, and when I looked up MC was gone.

I knew then that I had just screwed myself over, I had lost my chance. But if she could be happy with Lucas I couldn’t stand in her way… right? My anxiety was crashing down hard, and my heart couldn’t bear a rejection at this point, not from her. I had successfully friend zoned myself again, resigned myself to live in my own personal Hell and watch the girl that I had fallen head over heels in love with slip from my grasp and into the arms of a man who was never going to love and appreciate her the way I did. And I knew I had no one to blame but myself.

The last week had been utter torture, watching Lucas and MC get closer. Looking through the window of the villa I could see  his hands massage her shoulders in the kitchen as she made dinner, I couldn’t peel my eyes away as he kissed her gorgeous full lips. I was drinking shot after shot, just trying to ease my pain.

I couldn’t help myself during my toast, I had already downed too many drinks and my judgment went out the window. I let it slip that Lucas was a lucky man, and MC deserved better. MC had given me a quizzical look, but I was too much of a coward to just admit that being apart was killing me.

Next a new batch of hyenas entered the villa and caused so much unnecessary drama. I knew MC was stuck in the middle of it, because none of the other girls cared enough about anyone other than themselves and it killed me. When I offered to help the girls all yelled at me to get out. I was barely holding it together, and all this fighting was just making everything so much worse. I was desperately trying to hold off the panic attack that I could feel creeping it’s way in. Eventually I found myself by the pool, looking blankly off into the distance and trying to focus on my breathing as the girls screeched at each other in the background.

Finally by some miracle silence fell across the villa, and my ragged breathing began to even out. At least until I heard her soft voice ask if she could join me. She kicked her shoes off, and dipped her feet into the pool. A few strands of her hair tickled against my cheek as a gust of wind made its way through the villa bringing her familiar scent to my nostrils. She was so close to me, and I was struggling to think straight.

I was so grateful for her company, and she had such a calming presence as she reassured me that nothing was my fault, encouraged me to just have some fun. She reached her delicate hand into the pool and splashed me, shaking my head like a puppy I reached down to splash her back. My heart swelled to think she still at least cared about me enough to come try and fix my problems. I told her that she meant a lot to me, which almost made her look sad, but only for a moment. A warm smile quickly etched across her face, and the closeness and familiarity of having her near was putting all sorts of bad thoughts into my mind. Dangerous thoughts. I quickly excused myself, and left her sitting by the pool. She seemed off, but I figured it was probably just all of the fighting getting to her, and as much as I wanted to be the one to fix it for her I just didn’t trust myself to be around her for an extended period of time. I had already ruined our relationship, I didn’t want to jeopardize our friendship as well. I couldn’t lose her, not completely.

Lucas chose her at the next re-coupling, Hannah and Henrik re-entered the Villa. Days were starting to blur together. Everyday moving incredibly slow and painful. Finally the final nail in my coffin, watching MC call out Lucas’ name in the final re-coupling. I felt numb inside, I had always been Good at hiding my emotions, tamping them down until I just felt empty inside. That and humor had been my defense mechanisms pretty much my whole life, but no matter how hard I tried my feelings refused to be numbed. It felt like I was bleeding out, but incredibly slowly like death by 1000 cuts.

Hannah chose me, and I tried my best to seem enthusiastic, but this new version of Hannah was even worse than the original. She was clearly here with a game plan, and that was to stir up more drama, get her petty revenge on Lottie, and then play savior when she “was a good friend” and picked her consolation prize in me. I was hoping and praying we would be the next couple out. I wanted so bad to just go home and lick my wounds in peace, but unfortunately Marisol and Graham were first followed by Jo and Ibrahim. How long was I going to have to endure this?

Finally this morning we had found out we were going to be having a Prom. Hannah had volunteered MC to help me write my speech for her, and to my complete surprise MC accepted. This was the closest contact we had had in days and my whole body felt like it was on fire. I was struggling to keep myself in check, she looked so gorgeous, and I just wanted to grab her and kiss her with everything I had. Everything felt awkward, I didn’t know how to behave, and clearly she didn’t either. When I finally made eye contact, her eyes looked so tired, and hollow. All of her playfulness was gone, I couldn’t for the life of me figure out what was wrong. Didn’t she get exactly what she wanted?

I was so busy trying to figure out what was wrong with MC that my speech was utter rubbish. Every suggestion I made was wrong, and I just couldn’t bring myself to care. All I cared about was MC and trying to figure out what had taken away that signature sparkle out of her eyes. She and Lucas seemed to be getting along well, Lucas sure liked to lay it on thick, and MC seemed grateful for the attention. Maybe there was more girl drama? I couldn’t put my finger on what could have made that beautiful smile leave her face. I longed to see her eyes crinkle as she smiled, hear that beautiful laugh escape her perfect lips, and more than anything I wanted to be the guy that made her do it, but I knew I had to let her go. Let her be happy. Even if it wasn’t with me.

Later that evening she came out wearing a beautiful white gown with glittery cutouts all over her torso, and beautifully deep cut to see her perfect chest on display. I could barely breathe. I met her eyes for a moment and smiled before we both looked away. Hannah had given me a death glare so many times because she always caught me staring but I honestly didn’t care.I spent the entire evening downing drink after drink, anything that I thought could numb the pain of watching Lucas’ hands hold so tight to the love of my life. But nothing helped.

Finally we gathered around the fire pit, I was praying they would vote us out. Please God let them send us home. I can’t fathom another night of sharing a bed with Hannah, watching Lucas curl around MC, and pretending that I wasn’t dying inside. The votes came back and by some miracle we were on the chopping block. After 20 minutes of painful deliberation the text came in and it was announced that Hannah and I had been voted out. Relief flooded through me like a tsunami. Finally I was being set free. MC made a b-line directly for me. Throwing her arms around me “I’m going to miss you so much!” “Me too” was all I could mutter. Hannah had asked MC to help her pack. I was desperately hoping she would come help me, so I could say my final goodbye in private, keep some form of dignity, but MC followed Hannah into the dressing room.

We finally made our way outside, and Hannah chided me about only having 10 pairs of boxers to pack after I joked about her taking so long packing. I couldn’t imagine she had that much to pack either… She hadn’t been here that long… Just saying.  I couldn’t focus on her speech at all, and honestly I didn’t really care to hear what she had to say. I was desperate for MC to know the truth, and I just knew I had to rip the bandaid off. I knew it was selfish, that I should just let her go, let her be happy. But all rational thought went out the window, and I prepared to let the word vomit ensue.

Tears had already began stinging my eyes as I started my speech. MC was avoiding my gaze, but I had to get this off my chest if I was ever going to recover from this.

“I didn’t find love here, or at least couldn’t hold on to it.” Her eyes shot up to mine in complete shock, and I maintained that eye contact.

“If it could have been anyone, it would have been you.” I leaned in close, resting my hand on her shoulder. “Do me a favor… Win.” Her eyes searched mine for answers I didn’t have the strength to give her, but before she could open her mouth to respond I grabbed the handle of my suitcase and I walked away. I was too much of a coward to let her reject me to my face.

The entire car ride over to the Hotel had been painful, Hannah was furiously raging at me for outing my feelings. She dumped me right on the spot, which was honestly a relief. I didn’t have it in me to let her down gently.

Which brings us back to where we began. I had to stop thinking about this. I was driving myself crazy trying to figure out why I could never be enough. I had clearly been sitting here for a while. I looked at the clock beside the bed. 3:30 AM I got up stretching. I walked over to the window, looking down at the mostly empty streets below me. Wondering what MC was doing, was she awake like me? Did she even care anymore?

I decided to take a hot shower, trying but failing to clear my head of this whole mess. A mess I had created because I was too afraid to be honest with the girl I loved. I had let my insecurities and anxiety drive away the one thing I wanted to hold on to more than anything. I put on my favorite pair of doughnut boxers and flopped down on the bed flipping through the channels until I found the food network. Cupcake wars was on, it had always been one of my favorite shows but I just laid there. Heartbroken, and alone. I must have fell into an uneasy sleep sometime after 5, but I was awoken by a faint knock on my door around 6:30 AM.

POV: MC

The last 2 weeks had been torture. I came back from Casa Amor and hoped against hope that my perfect baker boy was still single. When he walked out of the Villa I let out a breath that I didn’t know I had been holding. My heart burst out of my chest, and we both just sat there beaming at each other. I honestly didn’t care at all when Lucas walked out with that bitch Blake. I couldn’t have cared less, they honestly probably better suited each other.

Lucas was attractive, and definitely the kind of guy that every girl dreams of taking home to her parents. A successful doctor, smart, polished. But I just didn’t have much of a spark with the guy, and he honestly kind of rubbed me the wrong way sometimes. He was selfish and calculating. Even if there was a physical attraction there, I knew it would never work out with him long term. He would grow tired of my peacemaking, and careful heart. My sense of humor would annoy him no doubt, and he was just so… posh. I didn’t feel like I could be 100% myself with the guy.

I had dated boys like that before, but I didn’t like the way they made me feel about myself, like somehow what I brought to the table was just never enough. Boys had always gravitated towards me because of my looks, but usually never stuck around for long. I had been cheated on so many times, and the ones that didn’t cheat always made me feel like they were doing me a favor by sticking around, or tried to change me. I had such a hard time letting down my walls, but with Bobby it was so easy. He would smile at me and suddenly it was like I had never been hurt before. I just wanted a partner that would laugh through life with me, and appreciate me for what I am. Someone who cares deeply about the well being of those around me, who doesn’t take life too seriously, has a silly sense of humor, and just wants everyone to get along. Just once I want to love someone, and have them love me back wholeheartedly and I thought I had finally found that in him.

When I finally got Bobby alone that night I was so excited and thought we were on the same page! He seemed so genuinely happy when I suggested we couple back up, but then that night he asked Lottie to share a bed. I was taken aback, and honestly a little hurt. I thought we were both feeling what I was feeling. Fear and doubt started to trickle into my mind… He had been called out for being the biggest player of the season. Was he just using me? Did he just want to string me along, while still exploring his other options? I couldn’t make sense of anything. He had avoided me pretty much the whole next day, barely speaking to me.

Then that night we were forced to couple up with someone to save them. Lottie immediately took Noah leaving me with the choice of Jakub, who honestly I would rather die than couple up with that laundry sack full of meat. Elijah, who was so insufferable. He talked about himself nonstop and refused to accept the fact that he was a hairstylist, not America’s next top model. If I thought Chelsea actually fancied him I would have saved him on her behalf, but I knew her bringing him back was purely because of the comments Gary had made on the video package we received. Finally Lucas, he certainly seemed like the least terrible option, but I wasn’t really thrilled to be honest. I explained to Lucas that we were partnering up purely on a friendship basis, which he seemed bummed about, but I wasn’t ready to shut the door on Bobby.

The next morning Bobby said he was going to make pancakes and was looking for someone to accompany him. I was ready to volunteer when Lottie’s hand shot out of the duvet, I know she didn’t mean to get in the way, but I was annoyed to say the least. He was already borrowing lip balm from her… am I missing something there? Maybe they are each others back up plan? Lottie had been so stuck on Gary, but maybe she wanted some form of security. She had always seemed more into Gary than he was in to her, and now Gary was partnered up with Chelsea. I tried to shake off the fear, but I just needed some form of reassurance. Bobby could be really hard to read sometimes, between him constantly pushing me to go on dates with the other guys, to barely batting his eyelashes at guys blatantly hitting on me in front of him. I thought we had moved passed all of that, and that we were in a really good place, at least until Lucas came out of nowhere and picked me in the disaster re-coupling…  But there was always that nagging feeling in the back of my mind that maybe he just saw me as a summer romance at best, and at worst a place holder until someone he actually fancied walked in.

As I entered the kitchen he spun around to greet me, and immediately complimented me, as he always did. He was so good about that. It felt like we were maybe getting back to normal. But then I complimented him and Lottie on saving Hope and Noah, and he responded by saying he thought everyone was perfectly matched up. When I asked why he felt that way he just said something about Gary fancying the pants off Chelsea.  My heart sank, I knew it, I knew he had been trying to politely tell me that he was not interested in continuing whatever relationship we were building. How could I be so blind? The signs had been there all along. He was just too nice to tell me to my face that he just didn’t feel the same way. Lottie was furious and on the war path, but I couldn’t be the one to fix it not this time. My heart was breaking, the boy I was in love with didn’t feel the same way, I had come up short yet again. I gathered what little pride I had left, and exited the kitchen as fast as I could.

I had learned long ago to never let them see you cry, so I sulked away to go cry in the bathroom. The hard thing about being such a tenderhearted person is that you care about everyone around you and you will do everything in your power to fix something for somebody else, but often times people just don't reciprocate the sentiment, and you are often left to lick your wounds alone.

I decided to try and make a go of things with Lucas, he seemed eager to make things work, and I was eager to forget about Bobby. I didn’t want to hurt anymore, but the harder I tried to make things work with Lucas, the more Bobby was on my mind. I wanted to hate him, I wanted to feel anything other than longing. I threw myself into the mercy of all the drama in the house, these new girls were closer to feral cats than women. I had zero interest in being friends with them, but the constant fighting was really getting to me. I was suffering enough, I just couldn’t bear the dumpster fire that the villa had become with all the fighting.

Eventually I found myself by the pool with a downcast Bobby. He was sitting there looking like an abandoned puppy. Like me he gets stressed out by all of the contention. He was blaming himself for everything which just made no sense. The girls had practically hissed at him when he was just trying to help. I tried to pull him out of his head by splashing him with water. A surprised smile crossed his face, and his smile could light up the whole villa. He splashed me back, and told me he was grateful that I came to check on him, that our chat meant a lot to him, and that I meant a lot to him too. I knew better than to get my hopes up, that he just meant as a friend. I tried to keep my composure, giving him a small smile, but whatever bandaid I had managed put over my heart had been ripped off all over again, and all that remained was the fresh raw wound. He looked me in the eyes one last time, and I desperately wanted to throw myself in his arms. Kiss every square inch of his beautiful face, but he got up and excused himself quickly. Once again I found myself crying alone under the cloak of night but this time Chelsea found me. She didn’t ask any questions. I think she already knew the answer anyway. She just held me, and let me cry.

Henrik and Hannah re-entered the villa. Henrik had been such a nice boy, granted I had never shown any interest in him before because I was set on Bobby. But he did bring a certain puppy like energy to the Villa, and it was nice to feel sincerely pursued by someone, but I could never cheat on Lucas. I have always been a loyal person, and my heart honestly just wasn’t in it anymore.

At the final re-coupling I stood up at the fire pit, and announced Lucas as my choice. Hannah announced that Bobby was hers. I tried not to wince as she announced that she was just “being a good friend.” Like somehow Bobby was just some consolation prize. He deserved more than that How dare she make him feel like he wasn’t a worthy companion. Lucas pulled me in for a cuddle and told me he was so happy I picked him. I smiled but didn’t even bother to respond. We only had to get through the next few days, and then time and distance would eventually pull us apart, and I would be able to properly grieve without the constant fear of being caught, and without having to see the ghost of once was strolling through the villa on a daily basis. I was going through the motions at best, but luckily I learned to hide my emotions pretty well. Lucas honestly didn’t seem to care, I think he saw me as a ticket to 50,000k more so than a real prospect.

The baby challenge was such a mess. I have always loved children, and always pictured being a mother. Lucas however turned out to be the biggest diva about it. He whined and complained the entire day, which it’s fine if you don’t see yourself with children. I wasn’t asking him to knock me up, but it was a challenge. I saw Bobby playing with Dale across the pool having so much fun as he tossed him in the air. I stifled a laugh as Bobby attempted a trick shot with the poor doll and ended up on the ground with Dale crashing down after him. My mind betrayed me thinking about how much fun we could have together during this challenge. Thinking about having children of our own. Remembering the time when we ended up on the floor after a make out session and he told me it was something to “embarrass the grand kids with.” It took everything inside of me to push those thoughts out of my mind. He wasn’t mine to fantasize about, not anymore.

Then this morning we were woken up with a text announcing that tonight would be prom. The girls were all excited about the thought of picking out new gowns, and dancing around with their partners. I tried my best to be excited too, but my mind was always halfway out the door these days. When we got the text announcing that we would be writing speeches about our partners, I honestly didn’t even know what to say. I liked Lucas as a person. I could see myself being friends with him after this maybe, but it felt so hollow to say that now.

I wrote my speech as quickly as possible just wanting to escape when Bobby entered the room looking for help. Hannah quickly volunteered me to help him, and I couldn’t help myself. I hadn’t been close to him in days, and I longed for his calm and comfort so I agreed. As we entered the roof terrace I could tell he was so uncomfortable, neither of us knew what to say. He rambled off his ideas for his speech and nothing made sense. It was like he had never met Hannah before. He had seemed excited when she picked him, but looking at him now he just seemed like a caged animal. The happy go lucky boy I had known was no where in sight, his signature smirk was gone, his bright eyes seemed dull, and it seemed like he couldn’t wait to get away from me, but at the same time longed to stay. I didn’t understand why he was so determined to keep me at arms length.

When I came down in my dress I saw Bobby’s eyes on me, but he quickly looked away, and so did I. He looked strait out of a Miami Vice episode, his outfit was so fitting for him. I chuckled to myself thinking about all of the banter we could have been bouncing off of each other, and I couldn’t help but notice how handsome he looked. Lucas had gotten a bit snippy though when he caught me staring. Then when we were by the fire pit it was announced that Bobby and Hannah, and Lottie and Gary were up to be eliminated, Lucas knew exactly who he wanted gone. Bobby and Hannah. He rattled off his reasons, and as much as I hated it, I knew the next day would be easier for me if Bobby wasn’t here. When the text came through Bobby looked so relieved. I once again couldn’t control myself and I ran into his arms. Hannah asked me to come help her pack, I was genuinely surprised by that because I had never really considered the girl as a friend, and even though I wanted to go with Bobby I felt like I couldn’t say no and trudged into the dressing room behind Hannah.

Once we got out front Hannah spat her annoyance at Bobby because he made a joke about her taking too long. I was instantly annoyed. She didn’t have that much to pack either… she had only been here for like 4 days. She was just busy playing the victim with her whoa is me act. Hannah would never appreciate him for who he was, and he deserved to have someone who saw the real him, and love every inch of him.

When it came time for his farewell speech I couldn’t even look at him. Tears were already starting to stream out of my eyes, and I was fighting a losing battle trying to keep it to a trickle and not a full blown flood. But then he said “I didn’t find love here, or at least I couldn’t hold on to it.” and my eyes shot up to find his eyes fixed on mine. “If it could have been anyone, it would have been you.” He leaned in close and whispered. “Do me a favor… win.” I thought I must have imagined it, that I had finally gone completely crazy. I stood there with my mouth agape like a fish but there was no mistaking it, he had looked me right in the eyes and laid it all out. My mind was reeling, but I didn’t even have time to respond at all before he grabbed his suitcase and made his way to the SUV waiting.

Nothing made sense, what did he mean?! He had all but told me he didn’t want me… right? He always seemed so chill and easy going about everything. Nothing ever seemed to phase him. Had it been possible that he was feeling every bit as insecure as I had? That we were both too hurt and scared from our pasts to give each other the reassurance that we both needed? Everyone made their way back into the house like Bobby hadn’t just dropped a whole ass bomb on his way out. Chelsea and Gary both gave me sympathetic looks as Lucas led me back into the villa.

I got ready for bed, but I just couldn’t make sense of anything. Lucas had tried to start something with me, but I told him I was exhausted, which was true, but I knew I wouldn’t be falling asleep anytime soon. I laid there awake for hours the ceiling turning into a projector in my mind as I watched our entire relationship play out like it was an old re-run of a tv show. Analyzing every little detail.

Around 3:30 AM I got up and quietly made my way to the producers room to wake them. I knew what I had to do. I explained to them that I wished to leave, that I had to go after Bobby. They tried for an hour to talk me out of it, “its the last day MC!” “He will be here tonight. Confront him then.” But I just couldn’t wait that long. I demanded they let me go and finally they begrudgingly relented. Next I had to break the news to Lucas. I silently wandered over to his side of the bed and woke him up asking if we could talk out on the couches. I knew he would not take it well, and I was right. He was furious, his face turned beet red, and he hurled all of his anger at me.

“Are you serious MC? How could you do this to me, to us? You are going to abandon everything that we have built together to chase after that.. that. Loser!?” He was waving his arms like a madman. “I mean it makes no sense! I can offer you the world MC, and you know that! What does he have to offer? Cupcakes and jokes?” The insults left his mouth like snake venom.

“How dare you!” I snarled back at him. Feeling brave for possibly the first time in my life. “Bobby is kind, funny, loving, loyal, and he cares about the people around him! There is so much of Bobby that no one in this house has seen, because they never put in the effort to see it.“ I was in his face at this point.  “I don’t think you are honestly even mad about losing me, if you are mad about anything its about losing to him… why? Because you are so much better than him right? Or are you just upset about the fact that you definitely won’t be winning the 50,000 now?”

Lucas looked taken aback by my sudden outburst, I think he had expected me to recoil. But I was honestly so tired of listening to everyone in this damn villa talk about Bobby like he was some joke.

Retreating Lucas coldly responded with “How could you be so selfish?”

I knew I was being selfish, but for the first time in my life I was absolutely OK with it. I knew in my heart I was making the right decision for me.  “I’m so sorry Lucas, truly. I never wanted to hurt you. I just know if I don’t follow him now I will regret it for the rest of my life.”

“So you have made up your mind then? You are just going to walk away?” He looked at me exasperated. “Well I can’t wait to see this blow up in your face MC.” There was an animalistic spark in his eyes. He had me right where he wanted me, and he was ready to go in for the kill. “Because he doesn’t really want you, you know that right? He’s just looking for the next best opportunity for himself. Leaving as the heartbroken goofball makes for great television doesn’t it?” He practically spat at me. A self satisfied smirk spreading across his face. “If he wanted you he would have said so any time in the last 2 weeks, not as he was leaving like some coward. You are just making a fool of yourself.”

My word that man knew how to pack an emotional punch. I felt all of the air leave my lungs. I knew he was hurting, lashing out with words he didn’t really mean, or maybe he did. But I knew I didn’t deserve what had just been thrown at me. Tears were streaming down my face, there was no stopping the flood gates once they had opened. I did the only thing I knew how to do. Run.

I ran up the stairs into the dressing room dumping all of my possessions in to my suitcase as quickly as I could. With all of the fuss Lucas was causing everyone else was awoken as well I could hear them all questioning Lucas about what was going on. Chelsea, and Gary were the only people who weren’t shocked, they quickly made their way upstairs helping me pack, which was unsurprising since they were the only people I considered true friends at this point. Everyone else was either siding with Lucas, or just staring at me like I had 5 heads sprouting out of my body. I could feel the joy oozing out of Hope as she realized that her only real competition had just self eliminated. But I didn’t care, I had made up my mind, and there was no turning back now. I gave Chelsea and Gary meaningful hugs and made my way to the SUV waiting to take me to the hotel.

The ride there was excruciating. What if I was too late? What if he didn’t really mean it? What if Lucas was right? Could he have just been using his exit for his own gain? What if I just made a total fool of myself on television for the whole world to see? So many disaster scenarios playing through my head. I felt like I was drowning, but I was fighting like hell to push those thoughts out of my head. There was just no way that the Bobby I knew would ever purposely hurt me and use me like that. I timidly entered the hotel and approached the front desk. I got his room number and made my way there. It was 6AM. It’s too early, he was most likely still asleep I told myself. I knew that was probably a lie, Bobby was always an early riser, but I just didn’t have the balls to knock. I paced in the hallway outside of his room for a half an hour, trying to get the courage, and practicing what I wanted to say. Finally I rapped my knuckles halfheartedly against his door. I heard movement on the other side and fought against the thoughts in my mind telling me to just run away. He opened the door and had clearly been asleep. His caramel eyes staring at me blearily, but instantly snapped to full attention.

POV Bobby

I woke up to the sound of light knocking. I wanted to ignore it, I just wasn’t in the mood or head space to be messed with by production, I was so mentally and physically exhausted, but I knew they wouldn’t go away. The knocking would just continue. I opened my eyes enough to get a good look at the clock. 6:30 I rolled my eyes throwing the covers off of my body and trudged my way over to open the door. Would these hounds ever just let me rest? Had they not seen that I have suffered enough?

Nothing could have possibly prepared me for the sight before me when I opened the door. I stood there in disbelief, surely this was a dream and MC was not standing outside of my hotel room right now. She looked like she hadn’t slept at all, I could see dried up tear trails cascading down her flawless skin.  She was in her cherrygate pajamas with a grey sweatshirt loosely hanging over her shoulders. I couldn’t find words, I just stood there eyes wide and mouth agape. “MC?!”

“Hi.” she practically whispered.  Failing to maintain eye contact.

“Hi.” I returned confused. “MC what are you doing here?” I was fighting the urge to grab her and just hold her close, she looked like a puppy that had been kicked.

“I left the show.... I left Lucas.” she replied blankly.

“You what?” I stammered out in shock.

“You left me no choice… Bobby…  did you mean what you said last night?”

I look at her in disbelief. “MC you left the show? I don’t understand. You know walked away from the chance to win 50,000k? You walked away from Lucas?” My brain couldn’t process the scene in front of me, between the lack of sleep and the fact that I was still trying to wake up.

“Don’t change the subject! She snapped. “Did you mean what you said last night? Do you want to be with me?”

She was almost yelling which was surprising. She looked desperate, manic almost, and like she was ready to burst back into tears at any moment. She awkwardly shifted her weight from foot to foot  and took a few deep breaths before gaining the courage to continue. 

“Because I want to be with you, Bobby… More than anything.” Her voice was back to a whisper.

All of the air was instantly knocked out of my lungs. My mind was racing a million miles and hour, how is it possible that this angel is standing in front of me asking if I meant what I said? Asking if I want to be with her? Surely I am just imagining this, but even so I can’t contain myself any longer. A genuine smile forms on my lips for the first time in what feels like years, it feels almost foreign at this point. But I finally blurt out

“I meant every word... and I have been an absolute wreck without you... I have never needed someone in my life as much as I need you, and it scares the hell out of me because I know I’m not good enough.”

Tears begin to fall down her soft cheeks, and I notice that they are streaming down mine as well. She throws herself into my arms

“You are more than good enough Bobby, how can you not see that you are perfect?” She pulls back to look me in the eyes. “You are everything that I have been looking for my whole life, and you appreciate me for me… imperfect as I am.”

My heart is beating out of my chest, please let this be real. Please don’t let this be some cruel dream. I pull her back and cup her face to look into her beautiful eyes stroking her cheeks with my thumbs. The signature crinkle and sparkle of her eyes has returned.  “I love you MC. More than I ever knew was possible.”

“I love you too!” she sobs into my neck. “So much. “Please never leave me again. I honestly don't think I would survive it.”

“I don’t think I would survive leaving you again either.” I smile at her “I just don’t understand how you could possibly love an idiot like me.”

She smirks at me and answers by crashing her lips onto mine. I hoist her legs up and around my waist and carry her into my room. Shutting the door behind me, and for the first time in my life everything makes sense, and everything is perfect. Maybe two broken pieces have finally found their perfect match, the match that will make them whole, the one who won’t look at them like a broken piece at all.

[snesdudes]

Im sending this to everyone because im so including :) S2 was so focused on the drama, and MC was put aside way to often, in certain situations, it just made no sense for the Islanders to be so inconsiderate of her feelings, and they all ended up acting like some generic robot at the end. I feel like if the S2 focused more on relationships, we’d get a different outcome. So what I’m leading to is: how would you change the way they acted about certain things on certain routes and whatnot

Wow… I love season 2 but I would change SO MANY THINGS. You are absolutely right, in season 1 MC was the focus on ALL the drama, and season 2 MC is just kinda… there? Solving everybody’s problems, and if not you are considered selfish and snakey. 

Gary’s is the route I’ve played the most, and I’d love for him to be more supportive of MC. Like all the boys, when the drama happens he just vanishes and you see him when you go back to bed if you’re lucky enough to be paired with him. And Lottie keeps acting like he belongs to her even if they were never coupled up, but nobody gives a damn? Not even Gary?

The Gary-Lottie kiss… That’s a whole lot of bullshit. Gary’s been crushing on MC since day 1 but Chelsea arrives and he’s eager to talk to her, and when she drops the bomb he flees, and Lottie gets all the crap. We never get to hear Gary’s side of the story. We can’t talk to him about it, even though, if you kiss him in the gym, that’s just the morning after he kissed Lottie, which could make MC feel really bad. I was so disappointed. MC’s no fool, in the mean tweets challenge she realizes Gary and Lottie kissed and she thinks that had to be around the same time Gary kissed her too. 

It’s out of character for Gary to never come clean with MC about it. Even if you defend him in the challenge, even if you have to spend your ministry of sound party fixing his fucking mistake, comforting the girl who wants to steal him from you… Really??

Lurik’s route… Let me tell you, they’re lucky they are such good characters because their route can SUCK at some points. Lucas, being the jealous, protective man he is, would NOT allow people to mistreat MC like he does, or just go away when she’s overwhelmed trying to keep the peace. Henrik maaaaay stay away from the drama, but he would make sure to check on MC every now and then to see if she needs him. 

Now… Blake. What was that about? That girl can humiliate MC and nobody says a damn thing?? And that lame apology is all we get?? THAT had the potential for good drama around MC, but everybody lets it be, and if you save Lurik from the dumping they get reset as if you were never together before the Disaster Recoupling. Dude, you should be working your ass off to gain MC’s forgiveness after she saved your ass, not swooning about Jo and Elisa the moment they go through the door. 

So, actually, the only good drama we get is RoccoSol if you were coupled up with Rocco. And even then, Lottie steals the show, acting as if it was HER problem instead of MC’s? And the moment Lucas calls Rocco out at the mean tweets challenge (if you write that you deserve someone better than Rocco) is one of the VERY VERY FEW moments were someone has our back and we don’t get called out for defending ourselves. And even then, the tweet is not even about MC. We only get insulted in that fucking challenge, even if you’re playing with a chill MC.

Feel free to add stuff because I’m surely missing things and would probably add more in the future lmao

[abundanceofsoph]

SkyFire 2: Chapter 15

The Bachelor(ette) Weekend in the Cotswolds: Nov 2016

Word count: 3.2k

SkyFire 2 MASTERLIST

This wasn’t meant to be such a big chapter, but I was just having so much fun with all of them together having fun so here you go, enjoy 3k+ Also I feel like I neglect Aurora’s friendship with Liam too much and while she’s definitely closest to Louis with Niall being a close second, I think she’s still really great friends with Liam as well so it’s time to give them a little time together in this chapter.

>Instagram posts

Aurora connected her own phone to the Bluetooth and queued up their go to road trip playlist. Her fingers started to warm up and she finally slipped out her jacket as Harry merged onto the North Circular, heading west and leaving London behind them. They’d flown out of Nashville a few days after the CMAs and spent the last 4 days lounging around Harry’s north London house. Louis had text a few hours earlier to let them know that he, Niall and Lottie had picked up the keys for the cottage they were renting and were heading back into town to pick up some groceries to get them through the long weekend. Liam, Gemma and Ella were already on their way and would probably arrive an hour ahead of Harry and Aurora given that Harry’s phone estimated that they should arrive in Cirencester just before dinner time.  

It was getting dark by the time they turned off the small country lane into the driveway that led to a cute two story, thatched roof cottage on the banks of Somerset lagoon. Light spilled from every window and Harry pulled the car up next to the 2 other vehicles parked around the side of the house. Aurora had barely made it halfway to the front door before it was thrown wide open and Louis came rushing out into the yard. He wrapped his arms around her, and she squeezed him tightly in return.  

“Oh yeah, no that’s fine,” Harry huffed jokingly as he walked to the back of the car. “I’ll get the bags; you guys just continuing making out.”

“If you insist,” Rori laughed at him. “Missed you Lou.”

“Missed you too love,” he replied, stepping back from the hug with a broad smile still on his face. “Head inside where it’s warm and I’ll give Harold a hand before he gets in a strop.”

As Rori headed inside the cottage to where Ella, Gemma, Lottie, Liam and Niall were all gathered around the wood fire in the sitting room, Louis walked over to where Harry was pulling bags out of the car. “Good to see you lad,” he said, quickly hugging Harry before picking up one of the bags and leading the way inside.

“Good to see you too, mate,” Harry replied.

Louis led him upstairs to where the master bedroom had been left for him and Rori and after dumping their bags, the pair wandered back downstairs to join the rest of the group.

They were all scattered around on the sofas and on cushions on the floor, drinks in hand as they chatted. Harry collapsed onto the ground in front of Aurora, her fingers immediately going to his hair.

They stayed there, chatting in front of the fire and at some point, Gemma went into the kitchen to throw a few frozen pizzas in the oven and get everyone another round of drinks.

“Can I just thank all of you?” Aurora said after the pizza was finished and the fire was burning low. “Lou and Gem this was such a great idea. A chill long weekend in the country was exactly what I think we all needed. I know I needed it.”

“Don’t mention it,” Gemma shrugged. “It’s just great to all be able to get together.”

“Besides,” Niall added, “we had to do something celebrate the first of the group getting married. We must be getting old now with Lou being a dad and Liam having one on the way.”

“Look at us, being all grown up,” Liam joked. “It’s kind of terrifying.”

“Speak for yourselves,” Lottie said. “Just because you lot are middle aged.”

“Middle aged?” Louis gasped. “You better watch yourself little one.”

Harry rolled his head back against Aurora’s knees, looking up at her through his curls, a wide smile pulling at his dimples. Everyone was laughing around them and Lottie threw a cushion at Louis’ head, but neither Harry nor Rori noticed as she lent forward to kiss him, chuckling at the awkward angle.

“Looks like it’s time to call it a night,” Ella announced. “The bride and groom are starting to get disgusting.”

“Heyyyy,” Harry drawled out, still looking at his wife to be with a goofy grin. “We’re not disgusting, we’re adorable.”

“El’s right,” Niall agreed, “it’s a bit disgusting how in love you two are.”

Everyone laughed as Rori muttered something about them being jealous, but a little while later they all headed off towards the bedrooms. Louis and Lottie took one of the rooms downstairs, and Niall and Liam took the other, while Ella and Gemma shared the other room upstairs across the landing from Rori and Harry’s room.

“I better not hear you two,” Gemma threatened as they reached the bedroom doors.

“Wear headphones then,” Harry replied, earning him a slap on the chest from Rori.

Gemma and Ella rolled their eyes at each other, but their smiles belayed their amusement as they closed the door behind them and left the couple alone.

“You’re such a shit stirrer Styles,” Rori chuckled as she started getting ready for bed.

“Just fulfilling my duties as a little brother,” he said. “Wouldn’t mind fulfilling my duties as a loving fiancé either,” he added, his hands landing low on Rori’s hips as he stepped closer to her.

“No, you don’t,” she replied. “You’re drunk and we are going to go to sleep.”

Harry pouted, widening his eyes as his hands trailed under the hem of her shirt, tracing the smooth skin of her back.

“If you behave yourself tonight, we can fool around in the morning before the girls wake up,” she conceded, unconsciously leaning into his hold.

“Fine,” Harry agreed, dropping his hands and stripping out of his clothes before climbing into the bed.

xXx

The sky was bright blue, without a hint of clouds when the group all made their way into the small kitchen downstairs on their first morning. The late autumn chill of the previous day had been chased away and the pleasant weather raised everyone’s spirits as they chatted over coffee, toast and cereal.

Given the beautiful day they decided to make the most of it and go for a walk to explore the area. They headed off around mid-morning, Aurora walking ahead with her arm looped through Ella’s as the two laughed and caught up after months apart.

Harry hung back a few metres, smiling softly every time Aurora threw her head back in laughter; after such a painful year, he was so thankful to see her having far more good days than bad as of late. He was startled out of his thoughts when Gemma threw an arm around his shoulder.

“What’s going on in that head of yours, baby brother?” she asked.

“Just thinking about what a great idea this trip was,” he replied, smiling softly at his sister. “Thanks for pulling it all together.”

“It’s what a Best Woman is for,” she said with a cheeky grin, “and you both deserve to get away from it all for a bit. You’ve both had to deal with so much and you’re both too young to be as stressed as you are.”

“You’re starting to sound like mum,” he replied, rolling his eyes behind his sunglasses but secretly touched by his sister’s words.

“Well good,” Gemma chuckled. “She’s a bloody smart woman, our mother.”

“That she is,” Harry agreed, laughing as they watched Liam chase Louis ahead of them, brandishing his drink bottle as a weapon. “You might have a point about us being young.”

“And to think they’re dads,” Gemma laughed. “Lord help us.”

They group continued wandering the countryside for the better part of 2 hours, finally returning to the cottage for a late lunch as the wind picked up, ensuring that the rest of the day was reserved for indoor activities. They spread out around the sitting room playing rounds of cards that slowly turned into drinking games. Aurora sat on the ground in between Harry’s legs where he sat on the sofa, her head tilting back as he combed his fingers through her hair and braided it back from her face. He had been styling her hair most days over the past few months after watching her struggle to pull it back one handed and frustratingly leaving it down most days. After he snapped the hair tie into place at the end of the braid, he kissed the crown of her head and she tipped her head back, her lips puckered in silent request, smiling softly when he obliged with a soft peck.

xXx

On the second day of the trip, the four girls piled into Harry’s Land Rover and headed into the nearby town to the day spa there. Louis and Gemma had organized for them to spend most of the day there, being pampered with mani-pedis, massages and facials. Given that it was the offseason for tourists, the small little town was quiet, and they were able to move around unrecognized, but even so Louis had made sure to book out the spa for the day so that they were the only ones inside. Without realizing it herself, the day was exactly what Aurora had needed and she closed her eyes, leaning her head back as her feet soaked in the warm, rose scented water. One of the staff had just finished applying a mud mask to Rori’s face and had now turned her attention to buffing the nails on her right hand in preparation for applying the pastel tone gel colours she’d picked out before sitting down. The other girls were similarly being pampered on either side of her and once their nails were dry and their faces were cleaned, they were each handed glasses of champagne as focus was turned to their feet. Aurora had picked out a simple peach tone for her toes, while Ella, sitting to her left, had opted for a bright red colour on both her fingers and toes.

After there pedicures were finished the girls headed out to the enclosed patio where a light lunch was spread out for them. The large floor to ceiling windows allowed the bright sunlight to stream into the room without the inconvenience of the biting wind. The girls ate and drank, laughing often and just enjoying the day. Lottie made sure to take plenty of photos, catching Rori and Gemma sipping tea near the window in their robes looking very pampered.

“What do you think the boys are up to right now?” Ella asked as they headed back inside for their full body oil massages.

“I don’t think I want to know,” Lottie snickered, causing all of them to break out into giggles as they imagined what the boys could be getting up to on their own.

Back at the cottage the 4 men were lounging around on the two sofas, empty beer bottles scattered on the coffee table in front of them, their attention trained on the tv on the wall and the controllers in their hands.

“Does anyone feel like Paul’s about to walk in the door any minute and yell at us for being late for rehearsals or something?” Liam asked.

“Oh, thank god,” Niall laughed. “I thought it was just me. How are we still not used to the concept of free time after almost a year?”

“It’s so bloody weird,” Harry agreed. “I’ll catch myself every so often just thinking I’m late for something. Like there’s somewhere I need to be and then I remember that there isn’t. It’s the weirdest feeling.”

They all nodded, smiling at the knowledge that they were all struggling to adjust after years spent on such tight schedules that would have made relaxing trips like this one impossible.

“Miss being on stage some days though,” Louis mumbled.

“Can’t wait to get back out there,” Niall said. “After dropping the single in September I’m itching to get out there.”

“Agreed,” Louis replied. “Can’t wait to get back into it next month.”

“You’re dropping the single on X Factor, yeah?” Liam asked to which Louis nodded with an excited grin.

“Think I’m gonna release the album after the wedding,” Harry added. “Gonna be too hectic if I do it before and Rors and I are looking to buy a new place together in London.”

“Really?” Liam asked. “What about Erskine?”

“I was gonna sell it, but Rori thinks we should just rent it out.”

“She doesn’t wanna live there?” Niall questioned. “Thought she liked the place.”

“Nah it’s me,” Harry answered. “I want to get a place that isn’t hers or mine but it’s just ours and we can decorate it together and just make a home for us.”

“You’re disgustingly romantic, Harold,” Louis laughed. “Please tell me you’re not writing your own vows because I think I might vomit at the ceremony if you do.”

All of the boys broke into howls of laughter and Harry threw a cushion at Louis’ head, only succeeding in making him laugh louder when it bounced off his shoulder.

Aurora felt so relaxed that she was almost melting into the passenger seat of the car when Gemma pulled up in front of the cottage. The girls all tumbled out of the car and into the house, finding the boys in the kitchen attempting to throw together dinner for them all. Aurora collapsed into Harry’s arms the moment she reached him, her arms wrapping around his waist as her head found its way to the familiar cushion of his pecks.

“Did you have a nice time?” he murmured, his hands lifting automatically to rub along her spine. She hummed in response; her eyes closed as she smiled softly at him. “How about a nap before dinner?” he asked, chuckling when she nodded, still not opening her eyes or moving away from his comforting warmth. He let go of her, catching the adorable frown that pinched between her eyebrows for a brief moment before he scooped her up in his arms and carried her upstairs to their room, ignoring the wolf whistles and hollering that filled the kitchen behind them.

Harry placed her gently on the bed, letting her pull him down beside her when she refused to let go of his shirt. She curled against his chest as he settled, her lips following the curve of his jaw until she reached his mouth, smiling into the kiss as her hand trailed under the hem of his shirt and splayed across the smooth expanse of skin.

“Thought we were gonna nap,” Harry mumbled against her lips.

“Not really interested in sleeping,” Rori replied before she trailed her lips down the length of her fiancés neck, pausing at the hollow at the base of his throat as her hand travelled down to the waistband of his joggers. “That ok with you?” she teased.

“Think I like your plan better,” Harry sighed, his own hands wandering across her body.

xXx

On their last day in the cottage Aurora made her way outside after lunch. “Mind if I join you?” she asked, stepping out onto the patio at the back of the cottage.

“Pull up a seat,” Liam replied, smiling softly from where he sat, staring out across the lagoon. The sound of a rowdy game of Charades floated out to them from the sitting room at the front of the house. “Didn’t feel like playing?” he asked.

“Turns out it’s a lot harder to mime one handed then you’d think,” she chuckled, pulling her chunky knit cardigan tighter around her. The sun was shining brightly but the light breeze chased its warmth away before it reached them. “Besides, with you out here there’s an uneven number.”

“Yeah was just on the phone with Cheryl,” Liam explained.

“How is she?”

“She’s good. Just wanted to check in with her, you know.”

“How are you Liam? It’s been too long since you and I got to hang out.”

“I’m really good, Rors,” Liam answered, a soft smile crinkling the skin around his eyes. “Really glad we took the break.”

“It’s nice seeing you all be able to take a breathe,” Rori agreed. “Don’t think any of us realised how insane the schedule was while we were inside it.”

“Yeah it was easy to get caught up in it and just keep looking ahead to the next thing. Feels good to be able to get away like this if we want to.”

“And it’ll be good to be able to stay home with the baby,” Aurora pointed out. “Can’t believe you’re gonna be a dad.”

“I’m so bloody excited Rori. Can’t wait to meet him. You and Haz talked about kids?”

“We have and we both want them, but I’m not ready to rush into it even though I think Harry would have them tomorrow if I agreed. I mean I can’t wait to be a mum and see him be a dad, but I’m just not ready for that. Not with Harry about to drop a solo album and then tour it. I just can’t imagine doing any of that with a baby.”

“That makes sense,” Liam said. “There’s no rush. Maybe we can just try to get you guys down the aisle first. Just because Louis and I are having kids’ young doesn’t mean you guys have too.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Rori agreed.

“H said he asked you to join his band for the tour.”

“He did. Still not sure if I’ll take him up on it.”

“Why not? Thought you’d jump at the chance.”

“The old me wouldn’t have hesitated to say yes,” she admitted. “Everything’s different now.”

“Because of your hand?”

“Yeah. I mean just look at what happened last week. I slipped in the rain and now I can’t wear my prosthetic for weeks. What if something like that happened on a world tour?”

“You know injuries are a worry for anyone on tour,” Liam pointed out. “How many times did one of us fall on stage and hurt ourselves? Or get sick and have to be on vocal rest for days? Things happen that you can’t control, but you can’t let that stop you.”

“I’ve missed your advice Liam,” Aurora sighed. “You’ve always been able to see things so practically when I’m too in my head about something. You’ve got a way of cutting through all the crap and getting straight to the point.”

“So, you’ll do it?”

“I’ll talk to Harry about it, but yeah, I think I will.”

“Good. You two will have a blast on the road. The Styles family travelling show.”

Aurora cracked up laughing. “I will be a Styles by then, won’t I?” she said after she stopped laughing. “Seems crazy we’ll be married in a few months.”

“I’m so happy for you two, you know?” Liam said, reaching out his hand to squeeze hers.

“Thanks Liam.”

NEXT CHAPTER

OR CONTINUE READING ON AO3

[thedipster]

bellebeauton:

Belle let out a little breath when Dipper just–continued without saying anything. She never knew what she wanted from people when she told that story. And she’d only told it to a few people, two really–Lottie and Berlioz. Berlioz had understood, more or less. He’d gone through it all with her, right up until those last few moments, her second death. Belle remembered very little of that, anyways.

She remembered the Fates, vaguely, as if from a dream. She remembered the tapestry room. She didn’t remember, really, what had been said–the nature of the exact deal being struck. Whenever she thought back on it, her hands got sweaty and her heart started pounding and she felt sick. 

But, Berlioz had been–apologetic. He’d looked at her with those warm eyes, the same ones she remembered from the darkness, the only alive thing to cling to. It had been comforting in a way, to see him back above and know he was alright, and that he understood–and that it had…happened. Because there were times when it didn’t feel real to Belle at all.

And Lottie–she had just–called it romantic. It hadn’t felt romantic. Belle was still pissed at Hades, really. And she missed him too much to consider it romantic. 

Whatever the case, she think she preferred “so, uh, usually” because that felt normal. That felt–like what she had gone through wasn’t traumatic or otherworldly. It had just–happened. Dipper going on about it made it all feel more–real.

“I don’t think anyone knows much about them,” Belle said with a little smile. “They like deals. They speak in rhyming couplets–though Hades theorizes that they don’t have to do that, they’ve just been doing it to annoy him. I’m not so sure. I know that they appear as three mortal women–girls, really, about my age, maybe even younger. All that we’ve been able to find is vague things like “powerful entities from the Underworld”. Most people don’t even believe they exist. Scholars say that the evidence is lacking.”

Another thing that made this all feel so, so surreal.

“So, we’re not sure if they’re demons or not. All we have to go on is that they gave Hades’ life to mine, at least enough of it as to where I’m still alive. But–” she paused and pursed her lips “–he visits. In the evenings. Using a gift from the Fates. Which means–the deal doesn’t explicitly hinge on him staying in the Underworld.” 

She paused as a thought occurred to her and she screwed up her face a bit.

“Does that–are they just toying with us?” she blinked a little and turned to Dipper with a sheepish smile. “I’m sorry, I probably sound insane.”

Toying with us...

That didn’t sound insane. That didn’t sound far off at all. If the Morai were demons, then that sounded completely 100% on base. Well, sure most demons--probably around 80% was the rough estimate, just based on social hierachy and patterns found in nature and other magical beings--preferred a straightforward and direct approach, but there were some...

Dipper remembered a chilling laugh that sent a shiver down his spine. He remembered seeing his arms jerk around, moving though he was not moving them, remembered seeing Bill play with him like a doll just to make Uncle Ford upset--

“I wouldn’t be suprirsed,” said Dipper, staring at the book. “If they are  demons, then they know more than their letting on, of course. There’s some sorta contract so they can’t say more to humans. And, well, lots of them like to abuse that.”

Dipper furrowed his brow a little bit, looking at the page he was on, which dealt with a certain type of demon that could only tell the truth. Not all demons fell in that category, of course, but the ones that did made up a population that had escaped in a Great Rip back in the Middle Ages. Legend said that they bred with Fairies, which was how you got the Seelie and Unseelie branch of Fairies--more removed from the typical forest fairies, they were also bound to tell the truth, but ended up dealing in half-truths and semi-lies more often than not. 

“Do they tell the truth?” he asked, then shifted his eyes down. “As far as you know...sorry, I know that sounds weird, I, uh, well, some types of demons are bound to do so if you ask them a direct question.” He shrugged. “Not all, of course, but...sorry that’s a cop-out, I’m sure you thought about having Hades ask them.”

The Pursuit of Knowledge || Beautiful Pine Tree