#i really wanna get a laptop which is gonna leave me almost entirely broke

[drakonovisny]

i can almost hear my bank balance crying every time i try to figure out my plans for the nearest future

[kyber-kisses]

Hymn (Part 2)

Winchester brothers x Sister!reader (Platonic)

wanna start from the beginning? Here is the Masterlist!

Warnings: cursing, its mostly fluff my dudes.

Summary: Y/N Winchester has wrestled with demons ever since her mother died, but when her younger brothers lives are in danger it’s their souls she fights to save, because isn’t that what a big sister should do?

A/n:OK so i may or may not be in love with writing this series, but whatever. This fic is based on the lyrics from joel porters Hymn. Hope you guys enjoy and feedback is greatly appreciated!

Dean woke up in a cold sweat, his eyes straining in the utter darkness of his room while his breathing rate slowly began to steady from where it had been seconds ago. Shifting on the mattress he flicked on the bedside lamp and slowly sat up, his black sleep shirt clinging to his skin.

“Fuck.”

Dragging a shaky hand down his face, he took a deep breath. It had been a long time since he had that nightmare. He had hoped it had gone away completely but apparently his mind wouldn’t let it go. . . Then again it was a memory. Just a memory. A terrible, horrible memory. and some memories just don't go away.

Glancing over at the clock on his nightstand he found that he had slept in, which was unlike him. The neon red numbers telling him that it was a quarter past ten. Sliding on his robe, he made his way for the door, the only thing on his mind being a cup of coffee

. . . Until he halted in his tracks and looked back.

It was still there. Then again where else would it be? Even though the back wall of his room was covered in an arrange of weapons, your hunting rifle stood out among the rest like some sort of sad centerpiece. How he had kept hold of it all these years was beyond him.

He paused for another second before backtracking and slowly taking it off the wall. Your rifle had been your prized possession, and your aim unparalleled. His dad used to say he had never seen someone so young shoot so well. Shifting the gun in his hand, Dean let his thumb trace over your name. You had carved it into the stock when you first got it, using Deans favorite pocket knife for the job.

Miss you.

Almost two and a half decades. That how long you had been gone. He thought losing his mom had been hard, but then you thrust your rifle into his arms and disappeared out that damn motel room door and he never saw you again. That was when he really broke.

Quickly wiping the stray tears from his eyes, he put the rifle back in its place, turned off the lights and headed for the kitchen. Coffee. He needed coffee.

His body went into autopilot and before he knew it he was walking through the threshold of the bunkers kitchen, making a beeline for the coffee pot.

“Well look who finally decided to roll out of bed.”

“Shut up.” Dean grumbled, rubbing at his eyes with the heel of his hand.

“You okay?”

Dean hummed a response as he poured himself a cup before sinking down into the seat across from his brother. “Yeah, yeah- I uh, just had some really weird dreams.”

“I don’t wanna know-“

“They were about Y/N.”

That was all it took to fully gain the youngest Winchesters attention, his eyes peering over the edge of his coffee cup mid sip. There was a pause as he swallowed. “Y/N?”

“Yeah- it uh-“ Dean pinched the bridge of his nose like it physically pained him to think about it. “It was the night she disappeared. Everything was the same, down to you doing your fucking homework to her teaching me how to shoot her damn rifle.”

“You remember all that?”

“You don’t?” Dean dropped his hand from his face to send his brother a bewildered look.

“I mean, I remember bits and pieces but not every little detail.” Sam shrugged, going back to his coffee.

“That was one of the worst nights of my life.”

Sliding his laptop away from him, Sam folded his arms across the top of the table. “What else do you remember?”

This time it was Deans turn to shrug, eyes fixating on the black liquid in his cup. “Her running out the door and leaving us in the motel room, Her screaming, Dad coming back and going into a full blown panic- I don’t think I had ever seen him so afraid.” Dean swallowed thickly, swirling the contents in his mug. “I remember him just leaving us there so he could look for her. And then he was gone for hours and when he came back all he had was her flannel. The thing was in tatters and covered in blood.”

“I kinda remember that.” Sam nodded, his eyes going to the matching bracelets on his and Deans wrists. Bracelets being a loose term. In reality they were just bits of fabric Dean had salvaged from your flannel later that night. It was one of the few things left of you that they had. “I just mostly remember dad crying after he thought we had gone to bed. It happened every night for weeks.”

“Yeah.” Dean could feel his emotions bubbling up inside him again. His dad had spent months tearing apart the state and the surrounding ones looking for you. But they always came up with nothing.

You were just gone. Like you had been snatched out of thin air.

Dean remembered the months and even years that followed after that so well. They were hard. His big sister was gone and everything felt so much scarier. . . And then dad came to the conclusion that you were dead and that was that. Except Dean refused to believe it. You were so tough and brave, there was no way you could be dead. You couldn’t be dead, he would say constantly. You just needed finding. He kept saying that because he had to believe it. Because being the boy who’d lost his mother was one thing, being the boy who’d lost his mother and sister something else entirely. But as the years went on, he slowly began to lose hope and then one day he just woke up and believed it.

You were dead. If you were alive you would have been home by now. You would have fought every monster in the country if you had to to get back home to them. And if you weren’t back by now, you weren’t coming back ever.

Dean sniffed, feeling the familiar burn in his nostrils telling him tears were coming. Trying to mask it he rubbed his eye with the heel of his hand again. “I miss her.”

“I know. I do to.” Sam sighed, watching his brother try not to break down in front of him. Sam had loved you as much as Dean had but to Dean you were his hero. You always had been. While Sam looked up to Dean, Dean had always looked up to you.

“I’m starting to forget her voice.” Dean suddenly admitted, his voice cracking ever so slightly. “I don’t mean to. . . But it’s fading away.” Slowly rising from his seat, Dean headed for the door. “I hope you can still hear her.”

As Sam watched his brother disappear back down the hallway, he let his mind wander before pushing out of his own seat to go in search of something long forgotten.

*. *. *. *. *. *.

A few hours later Sam found himself wandering towards his brothers room, laptop folded underneath his arm.

“Hey, Dean?” Rapping his knuckles on the door, he leaned against the wall waiting for a response.

“What?”

Taking it as a sign he twisted the handle and nudged open the door, peering into the brightness of Deans room. His brother was seated at his desk, cleaning one of the many guns that usually sat silently on his wall.

“Wait, is that Y/Ns-“

“Rifle. Yeah.” Dean sighed, leaning back in his seat to admire his work.

“I don’t know why you still clean that thing. Neither of us use it. The last person to shoot it was her.” Stepping through the doorway, he walked towards the desk, smiling faintly at the sight of your carved name in the stock.

“Gives me something to do. It’s kinda relaxing actually.” Wiping his hands on his jeans, Dena turned his gaze towards Sam. “What’s up?”

“Oh, uh I found something. C’mon I wanna show you.” Nodding towards the door Sam beckoned his brother to follow, which thankfully he did.

“This better be fuckin worth it.” Dean sighed, his footsteps echoing down the bunker hallway as he followed Sam towards the library.

“Oh trust me, I think it will be.” Adjusting his laptop underneath his arm, Sam stepped up into the well lit room. “Do you remember that old camcorder Y/N used to carry around? The one that we thought broke forever ago?”

“. . . Yeah, why?”

“Well, I dug it out of storage. Turns out, not broken at all.” Sam chuckled, opening up his laptop as he plugged the camcorder into the computer with a usb cable, the screen suddenly lighting up.

“You know, I don’t even remember what’s on here.” Sinking down in the seat besides his brother, Dean leaned forward to watch as Sam worked on pulling up the footage.

“If you break a limb doing this your gonna be the one to tell dad how it happened.” Your voice suddenly echoing through the speakers of the laptop, catching Dean off guard as he sat up straighter.

“I’m gonna be fine! Please Y/N!”

“This is a terrible idea.”

A small smile spread over Deans lips as you suddenly set down the camera walking into view. Dean couldn’t have been more than ten in the footage. An even younger Sam momentary running past as you helped Dean get situated in Bobby’s old hammock.

“Promise you won’t break any bones?”

“Yes.”

“Pinkie promise?” You held up your hand, pinkie extended so Dean could wrap his own around yours.

“Pinkie promise.”

Deans smile steadily grew as the memory came back. Dad has dropped the three of you off at Bobby’s for the weekend and when Dean found out he had a hammock his little boy brain went into overdrive.

“Can you spin it all the way around?”

“All the way around? Bub, your gonna fall out if I do that.” You shook your head before giving into defeat and pulling the hammock back to get it going.

“I won’t! I got this!”

It was proven the exact opposite a minute later when the hammock on the screen arched into a full circle swing, proceeding to send the middle Winchester child flying backwards into the bushes. A six year old Sam screeched with laughter somewhere off camera.

A full bellied laugh escaped Dean as he threw his head back, Sam chuckling besides him.

“I can’t believe I forgot about that! Y/N spent like ten minutes trying to clean all those cuts I got from the friggin bush.” Dean wheezed wiping at the tears still in his eyes. “Was I always that dumb?”

“Bold of you to assume you still aren’t.”

“Hey-“

As the footage quickly switched both brothers lit up again, this time watching as you balanced a seven year old Sam on your shoulders on the end of a weather worn dock.

“Wait- was this the summer we stayed in lake county?” Dean leaned forward on his elbows, eyes bright.

“I think so. Dad worked several cases in that area that year.”

“Y/N, please don’t jump-“ little Sam let out a whine, arms wrapping around your head in fear that he might fall.

“Don’t jump? Don’t jump?! Well now I feel like I should just for the heck of it!” You mused, dangling one foot over the water, hands still wrapped around Sam’s ankles.

“No!”

“Uh-oh, I’m loosing my balance-“ you laughed, feeling Sams grip tighten.

Your playful antics were quickly cut short as Dean blurred into view, his little feet thundering across the dock as he rocketed towards you, laughing. Your head quickly spun around in unison with Sams, both sets of eyes widening as he charged at you.

“Dean, No!”

But it was too late. The blonde rascal came barreling into you and the three of you went over the edge with a series of shrieks and laughs, a spray of water hitting the dock as you went down.

That was all it took to get both brothers laughing again, Dean leaning back in his seat as he gripped his side.

“God, I can’t remember the last time- the last time I laughed this much-“ he panted through chuckles.

“Well there’s several hours of footage on here, so don’t pass out from laughing too much.”

Deans eyes widened as the last of the laughter faded on his lips. “Wait, are you serious?”

“Yeah. Guess Y/N wanted to make sure we had some sort of home videos to watch.”

Letting out a content sigh, the older Winchester nodded. He hadn’t realized until now how much of a childhood you had actually given him and Sam before running out the door. He was grateful.

“Well uh, what else is on here?” Turning back to the screen, Dean leaned foreword on his elbows watching as the footage continued to play.

It didn’t take long for them to realize how much of their childhood you had actually captured. From the time you took them skiing while dad had worked a case in Estes Park to when the three of you dressed up as the three musketeers for Halloween. It was all there. Almost every second of footage filled with full belly laughter and embarrassing moments. That’s how your old camcorder quickly became Deans favorite item in the world.It was a pocket of good memories. A pocket of childhood innocence.

They were closing in on hour two of of the footage while watching you and Dean completely wipe out while tubing that the jade eyed Winchester felt something suddenly shift in him. His laughter slowly petering out along with his smile. The sudden silence catching Sams attention as he looked way from the screen, his own chuckle slowly stopping.

“Dean? You okay?”

He drew in a breath before nodding slightly. “Sam, I think we should go back.”

There was a pause as the youngest of the Winchesters processed what his brother had said. “Seriously, are you sure? We haven’t-“

“Been back there in almost two decades? I know. I just— she deserved better.”

“She totally did.” Sam nodded in agreement. “ I can go pack a bag if you want and we can be out of here in thirty?”

Yeah, that sounds good.” Dean sighed, sucking in another breath. He shouldn’t have gotten all sad about the videos, but the sudden thought that you weren’t around to help make more new memories tore him up inside.

Before leaving, Sam paused in the doorway to turn around one last time. “You know, we should show those to mom at some point. I have a feeling she would really get a hoot out of them.”

“yeah, she totally would.”

SPN Taglist:

@familybusinesswritingbro​​​​​​@a–1–1–3 @awesome-badass-cafeteria-sauce​​​​​​​ @music-is-all-i-need @agusdoti​​​​​ @callmekda​​​​​​ @jordangdelacruz​​​​​ @orphiceseum​​​​​ @andthatsmyworld​​​​​ @marvelfangirllll​​​​​​ @fandomnerdespressourself​​​​​​ @gladiosamicitias​​​​​ @castielsangelsx​​​​​ @lxstgxrl-ck​​​​​ @tis-i-the-wayward-idgit @amendoise @phoenixuprisingsstuff​​​​​ @ericalynne007 @kaitlaitlaitl​​​​​​  @totallyluciferr​​​​​​ @supernaturalenchanted​​​​​​ @dolanfivsosxox​​​​​@supernatural-ocs @emptycanvasposts​​​​​ @akshi8278​ @defenderrosetyler​​​​​​ @heyyy-hey-babyyy​​​​​ @idksupernatural​​​​​​ @vicmc624 @all-will-be-well-love@busy-bee-angel-misska @starsandmidnightblue​​​​​​ @lilulo-12fanfiction​ @beanie-beebo​​​​​​ @xoxoaudreymarie​​​​​​ @greenarrowhead​​​​​​ @mrsjenniferwinchester​​​​​​  @mysticalfuncollectorus​​​​​ @brebolin​​​​​ @biahblue​​​​​ @noahandthegiraffe​​

HYMN Taglist:

@biahblue​ @brebolin​ @noahandthegiraffe​ @psych0crybaby​ @beetears​ @supernaturalenchanted​ @skyelikestowrite @leej2468​ @vicmc624​

[openheart12]

Safe and Sound

Summary: Michelle does make it to NHS and Tony meets her there.

Word Count: 2,058

When Sonny Macer handed her the envelope with her test results, she froze, expecting the worse. She took a deep breath, trying to get the courage to open it.

It was just a plain white envelope with the words “test results” written across it with the number 101 in the corner.

She wished Tony was here with her right now, but she had to be strong and with that, she tore open the envelope and read the results. The first time she read them didn’t feel real so she reread them a second, third, fourth, and fifth time. She double checked that these were actual results and saw that her name was printed at the top.

“Michelle Dessler Almeida. Results: Negative for Cordilla Virus Type B.”

The tension and uncertainty left her body and she relaxed for the first time in hours. She picked up her phone to call him, not knowing what to say but that didn’t matter. It was him, it was Tony.

“Almeida,” he answered.

“Hey, it’s me.”

“What’s going on?” he asked, his stomach churning at the thought of her test results.

She knew that he knew she would have her results by now and was anxiously waiting for them and all she could say was, “I’m okay, I’m not infected.” she said softly.

“Are you sure?” he asked in disbelief, the mortality rate was so high and he wasn’t ready to get his hopes up unless they were absolutely sure.

“Yeah, they did a swab and a blood test and I’m gonna be fine,” she let out a shaky sigh, repeating the words again, “I’m gonna be fine.” It was surreal.

Relief flooded through his body, he felt like he could breathe again. “Oh, sweetheart, that’s fantastic! Look, I want you to get out of there right now and get away from anyone who’s infected-”

Her heart swelled at how protective he was. “Oh, no, no sweetheart, they said that those of us who didn’t come down with the infection that we have an immunity to the virus.” she explained.

“Well, where are they taking you?” he just wanted to be wherever she was, they had been apart for long enough already.

“Downtown,” he heard her sniff before continuing, “to NHS, they want to keep us under watch for eighteen hours… but it’s just a formality.” she said before he could worry.

“Okay, I’ll get there as soon as I can.”

“No, no, uh, stay where you are. They need you at CTU. I can work from downtown.” she would do anything to see him but they still had to find the remaining virals of the virus.

“Honey, you don’t have to work,” he said softly. “We can handle it from here.”

“I wanna help, Tony,” she answered and he could tell from her voice that she needed a distraction until they could be together.

“Okay,” he relented. His emotions started to consume him, after realizing just how close he was to losing her. “Michelle?” he said, he wasn’t ready to hang up yet.

“Yeah?” she answered softly.

“I can’t believe I almost lost you,” he whispered, his voice breaking.

“I almost lost you too, but we’re still here.”

“Yeah.”

“I have to go,” she told him after seeing people from NHS coming down the hall. “I’ll call you from NHS.”

“Hey, I love you,” he told her.

“I love you so much.” She stayed on the call for a few more seconds until hanging up. She was one of the lucky ones, she got to go home after this awful day and she was reminded how unlucky others were when the agent in the room with her had undoubtedly gotten positive test results and her heart broke for him.

Just like her heart had broken for the rest of the people in the hotel: the innocent guests and her colleagues, Gael.

She just wanted to go home and be with her husband. ‘Eighteen hours,’ she thought with a small smile.

Less than an hour later, she and two others were being loaded up into a van that would be taking them downtown. As the van started leaving, she glanced back up the hotel where hundreds were dead or dying. Being there and witnessing it firsthand, it was traumatic and now she regretted telling Tony to stay at work because she wasn’t sure how much longer she could hold herself together.

After arriving at NHS, she had to undress and put a gown on. Her and the other two survivors were being isolated completely alone. Survivor. That’s what she was now. Both her and Tony were survivors today. She thought about how scared and helpless she felt when she found out he had been shot and could only imagine how he felt after finding out she was inside the hotel when the virus was released.

She pulled out a laptop Sonny had gotten for her and got straight to work, welcoming the distraction it brought. Nine hours later and the virus had been contained, all eleven virals were secured and the day had finally come to an end.

She picked up her ringing phone and put it to her ear, “Dessler.”

“Hey, it’s me,” she heard his voice answer. “I’m gonna be here probably another two hours and after that, I’ll go home and get you some clothes and meet you downtown.”

“You don’t have to do that, sweetheart,” she said, knowing that the day had taken a toll on him too and she was still worried about his neck.

“I want… I need to see you, Michelle.” he said, his voice heavy with emotion.

“Okay, okay.” she wasn’t going to argue about it because she was the same way when he got shot. She had to see him for herself to believe that he was okay and safe.

He saw Hammond walking up the stairs to his office and rolled his eyes. He just wanted more than a minute to talk to his wife. “I gotta go, baby, Hammond’s here.”

“Have fun with that,” she said, smiling.

“See you soon,” he promised before adding, “I love you.”

“I love you,” she said before hanging up.

She looked up at the clock and there was only nine hours to go. She closed her eyes for a few minutes to try to get some sleep.

About two and a half hours later, Tony pulled into the parking lot of the NHS. The reality that he was going to see his wife, alive and well, was setting in. He grabbed the bag he packed for her from their house and headed inside where he was greeted by Sonny with a wide grin.

“Hey, Tony. It’s so good to see you.”

“You too,” he smiled, giving her a quick hug. Sonny had become a close friend of theirs since she started to work for the NHS. “How is she?”

“She’s good, really good. She fell asleep after you guys hung up, I think the exhaustion finally caught up to her.”

“And there’s no chance that the results could be wrong?”

“No, she’s 100% healthy.”

“Can I see her?” he asked.

“Of course,” she smiled. “Follow me.” She led him down a series of hallways and they passed the two other people who were up and pacing around their rooms. Sonny stopped in front of a door and put in a code. “You can go in, this is the most private room we had and I figured you guys would like it.”

“Thank you, Sonny.”

“No problem… I’m really glad she’s okay,” she added softly.

“Me too.” he smiled and she left it at that. He turned his attention to the figure in the room, curled up on the bed and his heart swelled with overwhelming joy. She was beautiful, breath-taking, alive. He watched as her chest rose and fell rhythmically, peacefully. It was enough for tears to well up in his eyes. This was the first time he’d seen her in hours and she never looked more beautiful than she did right now.

The memories of the day came flooding back from when he got shot, to their arguing when he got back from the hospital, when she found out he lied to her for a month, when she went inside the hotel and the mere thought of losing her was too much, to now.

He watched her sleep for a couple more hours until she began to stir. He looked at the clock and only five hours remained. He got it and went to the glass that was separating them, placing his hand against it.

When she opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was him. “Hey,” she smiled, getting up and padding over to the glass.

“Hey, sweetheart. How ya doing?”

“Good, I can’t wait to get out of here.” she replied.

“Me neither, I miss you.”

“I’m right here,” she said, placing her hand over his on the glass. “By the way, what did Hammond want?”

He rolled his eyes at the thought of him and a laugh escaped past her lips. “Nothing, he just wanted to congratulate CTU on their work today, especially you, and told me we could have a couple weeks off after you debrief but I told him that could wait for a few days.”

“Thanks,” she gave him a half smile and he knew something was bothering her.

“What is it?”

“It’s just… I didn’t really do anything today except watching people die in agony. And I like the time off, but I like the distraction work brings. I’ve been replaying everything that happened in the hotel since I left it. I see the children who died and their parents had to watch, I see the elderly couple who were the first to take the suicide pills, I see Gael on that stretcher, I see the husbands and wives who died alone and then I think why me? Why am I immune and they’re not?”

“You helped every single one of those people today, Michelle. You gave them an option to end their pain and suffering which wasn’t an easy decision to make.”

“I shot a man, Tony. I killed him. I have a duty to protect the citizens of this country and I killed him.”

“You did what you had to do to protect other lives. You can’t blame yourself for this, Michelle. It’s not going to bring him back… or anyone else.”

“I know. It’s just… it’s just not fair. They couldn’t even say bye to their families and yet, I talked to you the entire time. Sometimes I called just to hear your voice and these people died all alone, surrounded by complete strangers.”

“Sweetheart, you can’t do this to yourself. You can’t question all the decisions you made or wonder what you could’ve done to prevent this. It was out of your hands and you did your job and I am so, so proud of you.”

“I just wanna go home, Tony. I’m so tired.” she said and he knew she didn’t just mean physically tired.

“Four hours,” he said softly. Only four hours to go until he could have her in his arms. “Why don’t you try to get some more rest?”

“You’re staying, right?” She didn’t want to be alone anymore.

“Of course, I’m not going anywhere,” he promised. He wasn’t leaving her again.

“Okay, love you,” she said, getting back into the bed and closing her eyes.

“I love you,” he whispered back.

He spent the next four hours just watching her, waiting for the time to pass until finally Sonny walked in with a huge grin.

“You ready?” She asked and he eagerly said yes.

She opened the door and let him pass through. He walked straight over to her and pushed a strand of hair out of her face. “Sweetheart, wake up,” he said gently.

“Tony?” She asked sleepily.

“The eighteen hours is over with.” At this she perked up.

Once she realized that he was right in front of her, nothing separating them anymore, she threw her arms around him. The force made him almost lose his balance.

“God, I love you.”

“I love you so much,” he said, tears in his eyes. “Let’s go home.”

“Let’s go home,” she repeated, her smile lighting up her face.

[tehyunqs]

𝐋𝐀𝐓𝐄 𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐅𝐄𝐒𝐒𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒

LATE NIGHT CONFESSIONS  a lonely teenage girl, who’s in search of comfort and closure, confesses her troubles to the guy who just broke into her house.

a min yoongi oneshot.

"oh my god, yes!" you cheered at your television, jumping up slightly from your comfortable position on your bed. "olivia benson, you've done it again! i love you!" you couldn't help the huge grin that plastered itself onto your face when the detective uncovered the 20-year-old unsolved murder case, and rushed to arrest the culprit before he could escape to jamaica.

this was how you usually spent your summer vacation. you sleep at the time you usually wake up for school, which is around 6 am, watching and re-watching episodes of law and order: svu, and wake up at the time you arrive home from school.

you followed the same routine everyday. wake up at 2 p.m., clean the house, eat, and go to sleep at 6 a.m.

you would be lying if you said you weren't desperate to run out into the woods behind tour house in search of an adventure. anything that didn't force you to clean this darn house everyday, putting up with your mother's constant screams and insults.

you picked up your remote control and clicked a few buttons to select a new episode, reaching into your bag of chips only to find it empty.

realizing you'd have to abandon the comforts of your bed to get more food from downstairs, you groaned in frustration, and put on your slippers before heading towards the kitchen.

you rummaged through the cabinets in search of something that would satisfy your needs, finally deciding on a pack of cookies and the box of your favorite cap'n crunch cereal.

when you finally settled on the kitchen table, you held up the spoonful of cereal up to your mouth, but before you could take a bite, a strange shuffling that came from the living room caught your attention. you froze in your spot, blood running cold at the noises, afraid you were just moments away from encountering the dead woman your mother and relatives had warned you about.

your mind began to look for other possibilities in order to keep your composure, but when it couldn't, you thought about what you had done recently to deserve her haunting.

of course you had talked back to your parents, insulted your siblings, and lied about who had eaten the last forbidden brownie that was supposed to be for your father, blaming it in your little sister when it had actually been you, but you kept telling yourself you were innocent. as if the freaky woman could read your mind or better yet; believe you.

the sudden noise of heavy footsteps then filled your ears, and you were about to make a run for the backyard door to receive your dog's protection when whoever or whatever it was giving you goosebumps suddenly came into your view. and it was definitely not a creepy woman dressed in white with long black hair covering half of her face.

with the spoonful of cereal still near you mouth, you stared wide eyed at the stranger, who looked no older than 20, before you, mouth hanging open at the surprising reveal. he appeared to be just as shocked as you when he stopped dead in his tracks obviously not expecting anybody to be awake at three-in-the-morning, and certainly not eating in the kitchen.

you both stared at each other for a good two minutes before you decided to break the uneasy tension. "uh. . . . what are you doing in my house?" your arm was beginning to sting from prolonged period of time it was spending in the air, but you could barely feel the forming pain.

he stayed silent for a couple of minutes, trying to think of any other reason than for the one he was actually here for, but obviously came up with nothing convincing. "um. . . . robbing your house. . . ?"

his awkward and nervous tone gave away the fact that this was definitely his first rodeo. his stance and innocent face wasn't threatening to you, so instead of running for help, you kept your curious gaze on him while slowly inching the spoon closer to your mouth, chewing on the soggy cereal that had been patiently waiting to be devoured for a good ten minutes.

your mind was blank of any sarcastic responses, so you did what you did best; stood silent while making your opponent uncomfortable under your burning stare. this was a superpower your mother kindly passed on to you, but you had to admit hers was much more deadlier than yours.

when he nervously reached into his waistband and pulled out a gun, you instantly knew your superpower had once again succeeded. your hands immediately flew into the air in surrender, eyes wide when you realized someone was literally pointing a gun at you.

"woah, dude, hold on." you began. "i'm sixteen-years-old, literally half your size! what am i gonna do? jump on your leg and bite it?"

yoongi, the unknown man to you, realized you were right. but instead of surrendering, he ordered you to shut up and sit on the kitchen floor right by the sink. "alright, do whatever you want with me, just don't hurt my family."

"i'm not gonna do anything to you or hurt your family." he grimaced, feeling slightly offended you suggested he'd be capable of harming a teenage girl and her family.

you raised your brows at him and nodded slightly, watching as he placed his only weapon on the kitchen island, at your arms reach by the way, and began to rudely rummage through your living room. you guessed he was looking for valuable things to resell or pawn. your eyes would glance at the gun every so often and you contemplated on whether or not to pull it on hum, but he was honestly too cute, so you didn't.

"hey, what's your name?"

you expected him to completely ignore you, but was proven wrong when you heard his deep voice. "yoongi."

"cool, i'm (y/n)."

"don't care."

"nice."

a few minutes that consisted of you drumming your fingers against the floor tiles, your occasional humming or whistling, and yoongi shushing you went by, and you honestly had never been so bored in your entire sixteen years of existence. and you once had to sit through mrs. smith's 3-hour-long algebra two lecture.

"you're not a professional robber, are you?" you questioned the man, who was currently occupied with your father's macbook.

"of course i am." he spat back, which made you tilt your head in confusion.

"really?" you pursed your plump lips. "because you're not even wearing a mask or gloves. which would be at the top of my list if i were to plan out a robbery."

he ripped his gaze from the laptop to glare at you. "shut up."

"i'm just sayin'." you raised your arms up in defense. you almost laughed when you saw his reaction, but managed to keep your composure. "i'd probably be a better robber than you."

fed up with your constant talking, he slammed the laptop shut and picked it up before walking over to you. "oh, yeah? how?" he challenged.

"well, for starters, i'd wear a mask and gloves, so if you were to get caught, they wouldn't be able to identify you. and you wouldn't leave any evidence at the crime scene." you held up your hands so that your palms were facing him. "like your fingerprints."

when he didn't respond, you glanced at his naked hand resting against your kitchen counter and nodded towards it. he followed your gaze and quickly removed it, feeling slightly embarrassed.

"i also wouldn't leave your only weapon right next to your hostage, who's, by the way, untied!" your hands formed two fists as you held them up sarcastically in the air, his eyes slowly narrowing at your annoying. but good explanation.

"oh, and last but not least, i wouldn't stand in full view of a security camera." you couldn't help but burst out laughing when his eyes widened and he quickly ducked as if he would no longer be recorded.

"pfft, i'm kidding. there is no security camera." you chuckled when he glared at you.

"no, wait, i'm not kidding, it's right there." you pointed towards the top of your fridge as his eyes followed your finger. "i don't think it works though. it's been like two years since i saw the alarm guys come up here."

yoongi sighed and stood up from his hiding spot. "you're a real piece of work, kid, you know that?" you hummed in response while shrugging your shoulders.

"i try." you weakly responded back.

you slightly tensed when he sat down next to you, but quickly relaxed.

"truth is," he began with a sigh. "this is my first time doing something like this. i've never even stolen as much as a candy bar from the store."

"and what made you take this drastic step?"

"desperation, i guess." he raised a hand in the air to run it through his mint colored hair before letting it fall down to his lap. "my sister is sick and i can't afford half her medications. i've looked endlessly for jobs, but it's always a dead end."

your eyes widened at his words, wondering if he actually meant to share this with you.

"well, i know that it's hard, but you need to keep trying." you glanced over at the vulnerable boy. "get out there and keep looking for a job so that you earn your money honorably. because although i don't know you at all, i do know that you'll regret it if you go through with this, and earn your money this way."

yoongi turned to look over at you and was about to ope his mouth when the sound of someone coming down the stairs interrupted him. you shot up and grabbed him by the air, quickly shoving him inside of the downstairs bathroom despite his protests. "shut up! do you wanna go to jail?" you angrily whispered, slamming the door close before he could respond.

you walked towards the table and sat down, acting as if you hadn't just formed a weird bond with the guy who had just broken into your house, and shoved him into the downstairs bathroom. you stared at your melted cereal, anxiously waiting for your mom to appear. you had learned to distinct your mother's footsteps from your father's. they sounded the same to everyone else, but you were the only one who could tell the slight difference.

"(y/n), what are you doing?" you looked up at the sound of your mother's voice and smiled slightly at her.

"eating."

"of course." she shook her head, reaching into the fridge for a water bottle. "keep sneaking into the kitchen at four a.m, and you'll end up rolling across the street like your cousin johanna. you're almost there." normally you would be unaffected by her words, but the fact that yoongi could hear her made you cringe.

"love you too, mom." you responded sarcastically. you wanted to let her know you could give a rat's ass about the way she talked to you, but it completely slipped through her mind.

she ignored you, choosing to take a sip from her bottle before placing it on the kitchen counter. the same spot that yoongi had left his fingerprints on.

"i have to go to the bathroom." she announced.

"no!" you immediately shot up from your seat, causing her to stop and turn to look at you. "um, it's clogged. sorry, i went in there."

your mother sighed and placed her middle and pointer fingers on either side of her temples. "god, (y/n), you can't even go to the bathroom without messing something up."

you pursed your lips at her, slightly raising your arms up in defense. "couldn't help myself."

"just go to sleep, okay? i have to leave earlier than expected tomorrow--today, and i want this house clean before i come back."

you slowly nodded at her. you could feel your palms begin to sweat anxiously, afraid yoongi might make a noise, and force your mother to investigate, which would then result in him sitting in the back of a flashing car, and you grounded for the rest of your life.

"your father is not going to be happy about that clogged toilet."

you tilted your head to the side, smiling at her. "i'll send him my regards."

your mother rolled her eyes at you before finally leaving. you waited until you heard her door slam shut to shove yoongi out of the bathroom.

"does she always talk to you like that?"

you waved a hand in front of him dismissively. "yeah, but it's whatever. i'm used to it."

"it's not whatever." yoongi pushed, much to your dismay. "you might be her kid, but she needs to respect you."

you both walked back to the kitchen, sitting down near the kitchen seat where you once were. you sighed, turning so that your whole body was facing him.

"there's no way that's gonna get through her thick skull. her's or my dad's! it's just—" you sighed, taking a break before continuing. "i don't understand! you have no idea how hard i tried my best to please them. i—i tried doing everything like they wanted. but no matter how hard i tried, it was never enough."

"so you just gave up." yoongi finished for you. you nodded your head, looking down at the ground when you felt tears beginning to build up in your eyes, but you did your best to contain them.

"yeah, 'cause what's the point? they tell me that i'm never gonna go anything or anyone in life, and i—" you quickly stopped yourself once you processed the words that were about to come out of your mouth, finally realizing what's been holding you back these past couple of years.

"you what?"

"i guess i believed them."

you and yoongi talked for hours in the comforts of each other's presence. it wasn't until you saw the daylight beginning to peak in through the blinds that you knew this comforting conversation would need to come to a stop.

"my mom's about to get up. you need to go."

yoongi nodded, heading towards the front door, but you stopped him, alerting him about the alarm system that goes off every time someone opens the door. you pointed towards the window he had originally broken into, causing him to blush a crimson red in apology.

"wait, aren't you gonna take anything?" you questioned in confusion.

he shook his head, smiling down at you. "nah, you're too nice."

before he could finally climb out through the window, he turned back to look at you. "are you gonna call the cops on me?"

you tilted your head to the side and placed a finger against yourself chin, pretending to think before dropping the act. "nah, you're too nice."

"but, hey! if i see your face on the news, i won't hesitate to visit you in prison, and beat you up!"

yoongi chuckled and shook his head. "don't worry about it, kid. this is the last time i pull something like this."

with that, he sent you one last smile before finally heading down the road, in search of a new more honorable path.

for years, you hadn't heard from yoongi again, and you'd be lying if you said you never thought of him again, wondering if he had managed to keep his promise.

but one night as you relaxed on your day off from constantly saving lives at your local hospital, you bumped into a familiar man, who just couldn't wait to tell you about the successful business he started one week after he broke into your house all those years ago.

masterlist

[lostincalum]

Uni! Ben Hardy- pt 2

AN: Hey big shout out to @burncrashbromance​ for proofreading and also requesting part 2! Ah lav u, it turned out longer than expected but I hope at least one person likes it 

Word count: 4,3k(???)

TW: A flaky father and insomnia mentions 

Part 1

When you woke up the next day, you were a little confused. You didn’t quite recognize the room at once, with the light shining through the window, no stars in sight. When you started to twist you were immediately aware of something slightly hard poking your thigh. The heat that rushed to your cheeks didn’t get any better when you felt an arm around your waist, tightening slightly each time you moved. Slowly you turned around to find Ben with his eyes closed, asleep. You carefully peeled his right arm away from your waist. 

The white comforter had slipped down to his waist, leaving his entire abdomen exposed. To put it frankly, he looked unreal, with the sun casting tiny shadows over the small ridges in his muscles. God, it wasn’t like you had slept with him, but something about this moment made you wish you had, maybe just a little. Even if you wouldn’t have admitted it to anyone.

You got out of bed as quietly as you could, and started looking for all your stuff. Your jeans were in the bathroom, along with your phone, which had died. Curse the damn battery life. You realised you had slept in your long sleeve from yesterday, neither of you had thought about it then, but you regretted it now. After scanning your reflection in the mirror you exited the bathroom with a sigh, while wrangling your messy hair up into a bun. 

The flat looked almost as good in daylight as it did at night. You almost couldn’t believe a boy lived there with how nice things looked and how the interior seemed well fitted together. A leather couch and some blankets, a big TV and a playstation as well as the bookshelf that was almost filled to the brim with books. It felt like a home. Nothing like the dormroom you had. However much you dreaded going back, you had to. So you walked into the little hallway and found you jacket and shoes. You started looking for your backpack, before you realised that it was still in Ben’s truck. 

Not feeling like waking him up, you left a note on his kitchen counter with your number and a message in regards to your backpack. Then you opened the door and head out, making sure the door closed and locked behind you. 

----

The last lesson you had before your finals were on dark matter. It had been twisting your brain for a while but when you walked out of the lecture hall you felt like you finally understood a bit more. You had never been one to rush out of your lectures, but since you only had a notebook, you were quick out. When you step out of the door you’re immediately pulled off to the side by your waist, making you let out a little yelp. You could tell by the cologne that it’s Ben, but he didn’t stand still until your back was pressed against the wall and he was leaning with one arm by the left side of your head. Quickly you pulled your notebook up to your chest, you felt warm all over. Some people kept looking over at you, and you wished they would stop. 

“Eyes on me, angel.”

Ben told you with a deep, almost gravelly voice. You gave him an eye roll, but looked up at him nevertheless. You were met with intense green eyes and a little smirk. 

“Hi Y/N, how are you?” 

You said sarcastically as you stared at him. He gave a short but genuine laugh. 

“Hey angel, how are you?” 

He repeated after you, albeit he still used that nickname. His goal was seemingly to make you go crazy, but he’d have to work a little harder than that though. 

“I’m good Ben, although, I do miss my laptop and books. They both cost me half a fortune. How are you?” 

You looked at him, scanning his teal college sweater and over all soft look. It contrasted deeply with his domineering demeanour. You tried to be swift when attempting to get out of his hold; turns out he saw it coming. Caging you in with his other arm. Luckily most other students had dispersed by then. 

“I’m actually quite hurt by you, love.”

He didn’t look hurt though, he looked like he was out on a mission. 

“Well, I do apologize.. actually, what am I apologizing for?” He looked a little surprised by your cheeky comment.

“I’d hoped you’d apologize for leaving me high and dry this morning, or for running out on me, as if I was just some poor one nighter, for cuddles.”

Ben responded cheekily, thinking he had the upper hand. 

“Well, maybe you were, anywho I still wanna pass this class, and I’m assuming you have some classes to pass as well.”

He removed one hand from the wall, causing him to lean in a little closer. You could feel his breath on your face and it really hit you how close he was.

“I was just a one night cuddle to you?” 

Ben feigned hurt as you looked at him with a deadpan expression. 

“Like the concept’s new to you.” 

Finally you managed to escape from underneath his gaze and break free from his cage-like posture. 

“Look, I just need my stuff back, please.”

You didn’t miss the face he made, the one that looked like genuine hurt. It made your heart regret the words for just a second, before it was gone as fast as it appeared. 

“Sure, I’ll drop by your dorm room in an hour.”

Ben said a little distantly before disappearing into the lecture hall. You started the trek to your dorm as it was your last class, feeling both relief, butalso some kind of unwelcome feeling gnawing at the back of your chest.  

-----

When you entered your dorm room, Alice was there, obviously back from her classes as well. 

“Hey Alice, how’s it going?” 

You asked the brunette, who was slaving away at an essay. Manicured nails making an odd tapping sound as she touched each key. 

“I’ll tell you, if I survive this paper.”

She grumbled as she aggressively typed away at her keyboard. 

“Copy that.” 

You replied as you hung your jacket on the hooks by the door, before you sat down at your own desk. Trying to make out your own handwriting wasn't always the easiest thing, so you got stuck there for an hour or so. Until you heard a knock on the door. You were about to get up, but Alice had been faster. 

“It’s probably just..”

You didn’t get to finish your sentence before Alice had opened the door. 

“Ben, hi how are you?” 

She said to the man at the door. A little flirtatiously, but that might, might, just be her personality. Truth be told you had asked Alice about Ben when you got home that morning. Before class. She told you all about his endeavours and antics, which she had been a part of. After all, she had a reputation for herself. You didn’t judge her by it though, she had every right to do whatever she pleased. 

“Oh, hi, Lisa, I’m alright, here for Y/N though.”

Your mouth dropped as you heard him say the wrong name. Rightfully so, she smacks the door in his face. You just sighed as she went to the bathroom leaving you to open the door again. 

“Nice work there, Benjamin.” 

You smiled at him, rather unimpressed. 

“My name’s Ben, angel.” 

He said, the mischievous glint was back in his eyes.

“And her name is Alice, remember that.” 

Ben put a finger in the air and tapped it to his head.

“Will remember that.”

He then held out an arm with your backpack dangling from his hand. You went to grab it, but he pulled it back, so it was just out of your reach. 

“Okay, I’ll bite, what’s the catch?” 

You asked with a quirked brow. 

“A date, with yours truly.”

He announced cockily, whilst he looked at you with these intense green eyes. You could have sworn he looked hopeful, maybe even a little vulnerable. That feeling was back in your chest. The one that gnawed somewhere behind your heart. The one that told you to dive in head first, without looking. However you head decided if you were gonna dive, it was going to be on your terms.

“Sure, but I decide when.”

You said, determined. And to your surprise he nodded and got out his phone from his pocket, scrolling through his calendar. You gestured for him to come in, and went to get your phone on your desk. 

“What about after I’ve had my exam in physics 1B? At say 5pm on thursday?” 

“Works for me angel.”

Ben smiled, before taking a step closer to you. Therefore you took a step back, immediately your thighs met the back of your desk. Ben took yet another step and you couldn’t take your eyes off him, constantly gauging his actions. He took the final step up to you, and stood so close that you could feel his breath on your face. He smelled like red bull and cigarettes, and a little hint of cologne hit you as well. Yet you kept your eyes glued to his. Without moving his gaze, he dropped your backpack to the floor. His then free hand went to your chin, tilting it up as he closed in on you even more. 

“See you then.” 

He said as he left a quick peck on your left cheek, which made your cheeks heat up. With a wink he was out the door, leaving you a little speechless. Thursday was only two days away. 

------

When thursday rolled around, you had seen Ben around campus and he had seen you. You knew as much ‘cause he winked at you every time. 

You had also talked more with Alice about him, who had told you about his history with people, which made you feel a little hesitant, but you decided that at least, you could get a good fuck out of it. If the rumors were true, if not, who knows, you might get something more. 

Mostly though, you had been practicing for the physics exam. You got up that morning and got ready, putting on a pair of ripped jeans and a hoodie.Your hair was its usual mess, in your eyes, even though it had just been washed. In the dorm kitchen you got out your thermo- cup and made yourself some tea before you headed out the building.

You reached the lecture halls faster than you had thought, and decided to check your phone. Just one message from a number you didn’t know flashed up at you. You unlocked the phone and read the message. 

Good luck today, angel;)

You didn’t stop the smile that broke out on your lips. However you didn’t get the chance to reply as professor Atkins unlocked the door with a smile in your direction. You and a couple of other students wandered into the lecture hall and before you knew it, the exam was in front of your eyes. 

It was a hard one, with so many questions that you thought you were gonna miss some, flipping all the pages and double checking all of your calculations. But when you finished you were only the fourth to leave. 

Quickly you walked across campus and over to your dorm, trying to figure out what to do. Then you remembered the message that still sat unanswered in your inbox. 

- Ben? This you?

You sent as you unlocked the door and flung your backpack to the floor. There was no expectation for him to answer soon, since you expected him to have his own exam. But almost immediately a response ticked in. You sat down by your desk to answer.

- Sure is;)

-  Finished your exam?

The second message ticked in, and you couldn’t help but think that maybe he was a little excited too. You were about to reply when he called you up instead. Instantly you felt more anxious and let it ring two times before you answered.

“Hey?” 

You answered lamely. 

“Hey yourself, I figured you were out since you answered my message now.”

He said and you could hear him rummaging around somewhere as he talked to you.

“Yeah, apparently I knew more than I thought I did.” 

You laughed as you thought back to how the exam went. 

“So, since we’re both done, wanna start the date a little early?” 

Ben asked as a door shut in the background. 

“Sounds like you’re already on your way over here, but sure, why not? Where are we going by the way?”

You asked as you got up from your desk and headed for your closet. Wondering what to put on. 

“That’s a surprise, but put on something warm.” 

He answered as if he knew what you were thinking. 

“Okay, see you soon.” 

You said as you opened the door to the closet. 

“See you in a minute angel.” 

Ben said and then you hung up. 

You decided to put on a different hoodie, a plain white one, and a leather jacket over it, hoping it might be enough. White, almost new sneakers went on your feet. Then you went into the bathroom to put on a little bit of perfume and some make up. Just sorting out your brows and some mascara, as well as a little concealer for the dark circles under your eyes. You hated not being able to sleep properly. You frowned at your reflection when there was a knock at your door. 

When you opened the door Ben was stood there looking as handsome and cosy as ever. With a sweater and a coat hanging from his arm, he looked like he came straight out of a fashion magazine. You could see his eyes scanning your body and face, before he licked his lips. It almost looked predatory, but you noticed the little nervous shifting from foot to foot he did. 

“Hey, ready to go?” 

Ben smiled at you, with the most genuine smile you had seen in a while. You just nodded as a reply, trying to hide your embarrassment by putting on your backpack and shutting the door, locking it behind you. You didn’t think he would act like a sap, but there he was, brushing his knuckles against the back of your hand. He didn’t take your hand until you were out of the dorm building though. You turned to look at him and were met with a smirk.

“You don’t think I’m gonna call it a date just to say I’ve been on a date with you right?” 

You just shrugged, as Ben lead you to the parking lot. 

“‘C’mon love, gonna need you to use your words and smart mouth today.” 

Again, there was something overly sexual about the way he just was, but you wouldn’t complain. He looked hot. Until he suddenly looked nervous.

“Unless you don’t want this, then that’s totally cool, I’ll just head back-” 

He started to ramble and you suddenly saw him in a brand new light. You squeezed his hand.

“I want this Ben, ‘m just nervous.”

You smiled at him shyly. Finally you felt a little comfortable in your own nervousness, because it seemed like he was the same. 

“Good, okay, yeah.” 

Ben said with a relieved smile on his lips. 

“So, wanna tell me where we’re going?”

You asked as you playfully pushed against his side. However, it seemed that he had foreseen your action, because before you even knew it, you were tucked into his side with an arm hanging lazily around your shoulder. 

“Nope, you’ll figure it out soon anyways.” 

He whispered cheekily against your ear, before opening the passenger door to his truck that you had just arrived at. You nodded at him and got in. Taking in the vehicle’s inside in the daylight. It was clean enough and the radio had an aux cord hanging out of the plugin. A pair of sunglasses were laying on the dashboard and you noticed it was stickshift. With how smooth the previous drive with him had been, you were a little surprised, most people chose automatic nowadays. 

“Ready?” 

Ben asked after plugging in his phone and putting on a playlist. You nodded both in answer and admiration for his song choice. Jimi Hendrix was always good. 

“Words, angel.”

You couldn’t help but roll your eyes at him, but you answered none the less.

“Yes, I’m ready.”

So Ben started up the car, and you rolled out of the parking lot, to the tune of ‘All Along the Watchtower.’ You both sat in silence, occasionally looking at each other and smiling. You eventually pulled out your phone and sent a message to Alice that she shouldn’t wait up for you. Then you remembered that you hadn’t saved Ben’s number, so you went to his number and saved it, not bothering with his surname. You took a look over at him, and when you saw the sun hitting him at just the right angle, you had to take a contact picture. He knew what you were doing to some degree, because he smiled a little crooked smile. It wasn’t a smirk, just a regular crooked smile. 

“What’s that for?” 

He asked as you smiled down at the photo. Alice just answered with a winky face. 

“Contact photo.”

“Ugh, you’re one of them?” 

He groaned, while you laughed a little.

“What’s wrong with contact photos?” 

You asked curiously.

“I mean, you already know who’s calling, why would you need a picture to remind you?” 

He said incredulously as he took a turn to the left away from the city. 

“I don’t know, I just think it’s a cute feature, makes me remember good times I’ve had with people.” 

You said as Ben nodded a little in understanding, as you stared out the windshield when realisation dawned on you. 

“Ben, are we going to the observatory?” 

He chuckled and nodded, before looking at you for a second. 

“Way too smart.” 

----

You arrived at the Observatory 45 minutes later, when the sun had started to set. You were both heading out of the car and while you started walking, you stopped after a few strides to see that Ben had gone to the side of the plane on the back of the truck. He grabbed a backpack that seemed a little oversized, but you went along with it. 

He grabbed your hand and lead you the rest of the way up to the building. He could see how you were admiring it and how the sunset shone against your hair, making it look like a halo. Before you turned he snapped a picture of you. 

“I haven’t really been here in ages, jesus.” 

You said more to yourself, but Ben overheard you.  

“You haven’t?” 

He took a hold of your hand gently, rubbing the back of your hand softly upon seeing the distant look in your eyes. 

“Nah, but that’s not a story for a first date though.” 

Ben just hummed at your answer, but you could tell he wouldn’t let it go.

“So, how was your day Ben?” 

You changed the topic, genuinely interested in what he had to say. He seemed a little surprised at your question. With a furrowed brow you looked up at him as you neared the entrance. 

“You know, not a lot of people ask me that, and if they do they hardly care about the answer.”

And your heart ached for him. You watched him as he paid for entrance tickets, nodding to the guy and saying a thank you. This was completely different to the guy you’d seen around campus, who seemed so unaffected by the world. Yet he studied astrophysics and asked you out on a proper date. 

“Well, I do care about your answer Ben.” 

You said as you followed him into the observatory. While usually your mouth would be slightly agape at the sight of the big telescope and all the technical instruments surrounding you, Ben was the one holding your attention. 

“Well, woke up early, had a little jog and then a shower, then this exam that went mehh. When I got home I got ready for this date I have tonight. Don’t know if I should tell you, but I’m a little nervous.”

You smiled as you looked at him, still your fingers were intertwined, and you gave him a little squeeze. He pulled you closer by the hand and left a little kiss at your temple. It felt like you’d known him for a long time, like it had been like this forever. It was both scary and comfortable at the same time. 

The two of you walked outside to watch the sunset over the city along with a handful of other people. You were still looking at the orange and pink hues that painted the sky when Ben carefully let go of your hand. He slung his backpack down and opened it, pulling out a blanket, along with a few containers.

“Ben, are we gonna have a picnic here?” 

You asked a little shocked, still there was a coy smile on your lips. It wasn’t that you put it past him, but to be honest, you thought it was going to be a pretty low key date. He always seemed to surprise you. Ben laid out all the containers on the blanket carefully. 

“Yes we are, now will you sit down?”

He smiled at you from his position on the grass, and you complied, sitting down at the other side of the blanket, you felt like you needed just a little space to catch your breath. 

“Now, I’ve made a couple of different dishes that I hope you like, if not I’m also serving looks.” 

Ben winked at you. 

“Well good thing you cooked, I don’t want to starve.” 

You said a little exaggerated, as you started opening one of the heavenly smelling containers. 

“You wound me, angel.” 

But you could tell by the smile on his lips that he wasn’t serious. Yet again the nickname made you blush. 

“Why do you call me angel by the way?” 

You asked a little embarrassed, yet you still met his gaze. Ben mused at your question, with a little smile on his lips. 

“You remind me of an angel, and to be a little frank, seeing you blush every time I say it, well it’s a welcome bonus.”

As if on cue, you blushed, which made him chuckle with you. You sat in comfortable silence for a while, just eating all of the good food he had cooked up. 

 “Didn’t know you cooked either, you don’t really seem like the type.” 

You said after a few minutes of silence, with a hope to create some conversation, you wanted to get to know more than the person the entire uni seemed to know.

“Yeah, well, mum always cooked when she couldn’t sleep, I guess it’s something I’ve picked up from her, that cooking is a really nice thing to do when you want to think of something else.” 

Ben admitted a little quietly, and you remembered how she had insomnia, the same as you. You nodded and started pondering. Maybe you should tell him about why you didn’t really come here anymore. 

“That's really nice Ben, it tastes really incredible.”

The sun had finished setting and the stars started to come out, one by one. The temperature had dropped a bit too, and you regretted not bringing any gloves. That’s why you started to rub your hands together to generate some heat. It didn’t take more than a few seconds for Ben to notice. Quickly yet smoothly, he scooted closer to you and grabbed your hands, and warmed them in his own. 

“You know, my dad used to bring me here to look at the stars.”

You decided to speak up, but still keeping your eyes on your hands, engulfed in Ben. He hummed in reply.

“Back then it was okay for me to have silly dreams and stupid theories, it was okay. But as the years passed and I still wouldn’t let the dreams die away, he stopped bringing me here. One night when I was around fourteen, I asked him why. He said he didn’t want to nurture silly little dreams, that I should start focusing on a real, efficient and good work opportunities for girls.”

Ben had stopped looking at the sky. He looked at you, with those big green eyes of his. 

“Anyway, I’m gonna be a professor or engineer. In spite of him.”

You said decidedly.

“You know, you’re not doing it just to spite him-” 

Ben started, but before he could finish you interrupted.

“Don’t tell me how I live my life.” 

You protested. A little hurt by his comment. 

“I’m not, I was going to say that you don’t do it just to spite him, but also because you’re insanely good at what you do.” 

“Oh.” 

Was the only word you managed to squeeze out. You felt really embarrassed. He laughed, and put an arm around your shoulders. 

“And I mean that, professor Atkins hasn’t shut up about you in class for the last two months.”

Ben was an ego boost and a half, even though you felt abashed most of the time. 

“Shut up.”

You smile at him, and he leaned down and placed a quick kiss on your lips, leaving you stunned and wanting more of his soft lips. 

“Now, wanna go look at some planets through a big ass telescope, genius?”

You smiled at his question. 

“Fuck yes.” 

[nautiscarader]

Zalissa, Melissa distracting Zack with a blowjob while he's playing video games - vickyships

And one fic is done only after one day. @vickyships

(Ao3)

Melissa usually wasn't impatient. But when good ten minutes have passed without Zack noticing that she left the bathroom and headed towards their bed, she knew she have to take matters into her own hands, and quite possible, something more.

She walked towards "the study", which really was just an extension of the kitchen in their small flat, and, unsurprisingly, found Zack with his headset on, and his eyes glued to the screen of his PC.

Melissa crouched, and approached her boyfriend, and when she was just inches from him, she realised he cannot see her reflection. And then she remembered how proud he was that his gaming screen had an anti-glare layer, as opposed to her laptop. Now he will pay dearly for that...

Zack felt her hot breath on his shoulder, but it was already too late. Her hands closed around his neck and kissed his exposed skin, making him yelp in horror and nearly jump in his seat.

- If I was an assassin, you'd be dead already.

Melissa smirked, watching as his petrified face returns to life, and reddens slightly as he eyed her nightgown.

- Well, no wonder why. - he smiled - You get a bonus to sneak if you don't wear armor. - Oh, really? Nice.

She closed her arms around his neck and kissed him again, before a small beeping noise alerted them and prompted Zack to wriggle out of her restraints.

- Wait, wait, babe, another match is gonna start soon. - Oh, is that so?

Melissa asked, somewhat irked by how hastily he ended their romantic embrace. She lay her head on his shoulder, and watched as the lobby slowly fills with other players.

- So, are playing on hardocre mode? - Are you kidding? I'm playing Immersive Hardcore Survival Survival Mode. - Zack replied without flinching. - You said "survival" twice. - Yeah. Cos if your character plays mini-games in the game, they are also set to "survival". - Ah, suddenly that makes so much more sense. - Melissa commented, wondering if her sarcasm can get through his wireless headphones. - You can laugh, but I'm on a 50 win streak.

Melissa smiled and gave him another kiss.

- Wanna make it even more challenging?

She was pleasantly surprised that this has finally gotten his attention.

- What do you have in mind?

With the same salacious smirk on her face, Melissa stood up and walked between his chair and the desk, and sat in his laps, and watched as his mouth opens slightly, almost feeling words stuck in his throat, when she got comfortable in his laps.

- Ba-be, people have played without looking at the screen, you know... - Zack stuttered, though he somehow knew what kind of wrath he has brought upon himself by saying that. - Oh, don't worry, Zack, I'm not gonna block your view.

Melissa arched her back, and as if she was made from a fluid, she glided to the ground, never taking eyes from her boyfriend, even when she had to fiddle with his zipper. Zack swallowed loudly, looking rapidly back and forth between the screen and his girlfriend getting comfortable between his legs.

- Me-Melissa, come on, it's gonna start soon... - Well, then you better start playing. - Babe, please, I'm one match from record... - he spoke in desperation she rarely heard from him.

Sudden wave of cold air, combined with the warmth of her palm made him twitch, when Melissa fished out his length from his pants, and with the same smirk on her face she opened her mouth.

- Well, then... You better get good.

At that time, Zack's nerves were set on fire and his blood froze. The countdown in his headphones reached zero, and he was thrown onto the map, at the same time when Melissa's lips closed around his cock. His eyes widened, trying to comprehend where he was and who was he fighting against. Suddenly, he realised he knew nothing about his teammates too, and just as he thought that, Melissa rolled her tongue around his swollen head, making his yelp and misfire an entire round.

From her position, Melissa had perfect view of Zack's face, torn with a storm of grimaces from the complete and constant disorientation brought by Melissa's tactics. The red head deliberately slowed her moves, taking breaks between kissing and licking his cock, just so she can take him off guard, and though she couldn't see the screen, from his pitiful looks she knew he was losing hard.

It was a fitting punishment for leaving her for so long, she thought, and dived, taking him deeper into her mouth, letting his aggressive, musky scent fill her nostrils. Zack's legs twitched, but it wasn't until she started bobbing her head back and forth that he realised the worst - or best - was only ahead of him. With each slide, Melissa was taking a fraction of an inch more of him, her excruciatingly slow actions never giving his nerve endings a millisecond to rest.

the feeling of her welcoming, moist, warm mouth filled him with the most blissful of states, and when around half-way through the match, his cock reached her throat, Zack thought he was going to throw all the pretences and admit defeat. But driven by his competitive nature, a skill honed both by playing games and having the hottest girlfriend in the world, he went on, shooting opponent after opponent, while Melissa brought him closer and closer to his climax.

Her hands moved from resting on his thighs to his balls, caressing them ever so slightly, and giving her chance to feel the volume of her reward, even before she chance to sample it. When her lips reached his base, she let out a moan, her voice vibrated through his length and Zack jerked in place, making his character fall.

In the briefest of moment when he was respawning, Zack knew what was gonna happen. As the match was coming to a close, so was her blowjob. The sexy psychology student was working him overtime, slobbering around his cock, knowing well how far she can push him. He was wriggling in place, silently begging for her to finish him, and just when he was about to destroy his last opponent, she stopped, just when he was about to blow. He still felt her around his delicate head, and he knew he will have to decide. His body was being taken hostage and he would have to make a decision, knowing that if he looked away from the screen for even a fraction of a second, he would lose.

But then again, when he looked at his score, he knew he was in a lost position already.

When he looked down, he saw her eager, open mouth, and her tongue stuck out in the most welcoming of position, and when he met her mesmerising, green eyes, he lost it. Zack roared, and threw his head back, at the same time as his hands moved from the keyboard and mouse to the back of her head, making sure that not a drop of his cum would escape her lips.

Melissa's eyes bulged out when her mouth was filled once more, but not just by his length, but also a flood of thick streams of his seed, pulsing together with his muscles. With very little air in her lungs, Melissa had to work twice as hard swallowing his creamy, salty load, and with each portion that landed in her stomach, Zack's jerky moves became less erratic, until he finally stopped supplying her with his orgasm, just as she had to take a breath.

Zack looked down at the victorious face of his girlfriend, adorned with a few globs of his cum that did make it past the tight seal of her mouth, now curled into devilish smile. As effortlessly as before, Melissa climbed back into his laps, glad to feel his hands gravitated towards her bum instead of the gaming peripherals.

- So, maybe that will teach you not to neglect your girlfriend. - she smiled, before she pressed her lips against his, giving him just a taste of what she had to cope with. - I won. - Yeah... - Zack wheezed - But I kinda did too. - Well, yeah, you got a free blowjob, and... - No, I mean the match. - Say what?

Melissa sat upright, grabbed the edge of the desk and unceremoniously rotated herself and Zack in his swivelling chair, just so she can see the screen, declaring him a winner.

- Holy smokes, how? - Melissa looked sharply at him, genuinely unsure how impressed she should be. - Well, the thing is... - he cleared his throat - See, this game sometimes acts weird... and if you play too well, the game thinks you cheat... - Oh you're not saying- - Yep, they've all been banned. - Zack nodded - And I was the last man standing. Well, lying, but still.

It took Melissa a moment to comprehend the situation, before she fell into a fit of giggles, and when Zack followed, his arms brought her suddenly towards him into a passionate, tight kiss. And when they broke it, it was Melissa, who proposed how the evening should go.

- So, are you going for the 100 matches streak?   - Nah, I'm fine.

He reached his hand and close the application, before his hand returned to her bottom.

- I've got another title to revisit. - Well, duh, you've been obsessing this game for the past week.

She cupped his face, and looked directly in his eyes.

- Think you can get a streak of fifty wins here? - Only one way to find out...

[marlacrane]

『COURTNEY EATON ❙ CIS FEMALE』 ⟿ looks like MARLA CRANE is here for HER JUNIOR year as a JOURNALISM student. she is 22 years old & known to be inventive, dogged, heedless & blunt. They’re living in GORHAM, so if you’re there, watch out for them. ⬳ mia. 23. pt. she/her.

[without me by eminem plays muffled from the next room as marla wanders thru the door w a mickey of vodka in her left hand and the communist manifesto in her right]

tws for drug use, mental illness

history

she has a happy childhood in a seattle suburb. she’s the youngest of two girls, and even though her mom works all the time, and her dad’s overseas, everything’s fine. until marla gets to second grade, which she hates, gets into a fight with a boy, and nearly bites his finger off. this time she gets off with a warning. then, later that week, said boy and her are working on this paper maché duck together, and the teacher's keeping an eye on them at first but has now dismissed them as totally getting along, and then the teacher glances at them again to find that they have vanished, and so have the art supplies. the two of them are found six hours later hiding in a park. they’ve been hanging out there all day, asking for a quarter from each unsuspecting parent or guardian they’ve seen. they’ve used this to buy as much food from the community centre vending machine as they can carry. their goal: wait until their parents are sleeping, steal the tent from marla’s backyard, and go live in the treehouse in his backyard. upon discovery, they’re both grounded for a month. marla is no longer allowed to read calvin and hobbes  ––  her mom is pretty sure it’s what inspired the escape attempt.

she and this boy, whose name is jasper, regroup once they’ve been ungrounded. jasper and her are both the sort of kids who bite their nails at the sign of a group project. their fight had been over who got to read the classroom’s only calvin and hobbes anthology. their initial truce had been based entirely around a mutual desire for treehouse living. now, they just want insurance. so they agree to partner up, always.

they’re bad influences on each other. apart, they’re both a little feral, sure, but they understand that certain things are not possible, and they avoid danger if they can help it. when they hang out, though, they egg each other on. jasper breaks his arm because marla dares him to climb the school; marla’s suspended after jasper dares her to pull the fire alarm; jasper and marla accidentally burn down a garden shed; jasper and marla scam five people out of their lunch money so they can go see a movie after school. (they pay them back a week later. they’re not total monsters. also, they were getting scared one of the kids was gonna tell on them).

jasper’s parents are moving. jasper’s moving with them, out to the country. marla hates it, but she steels herself. she can be independent. she’s nearly sixteen now, and it’s about time she started. but she’s going to miss him. he tells her that nothing’s going to change, which she tells him is bullshit. he takes this the wrong way, and they stop speaking to each other. this goes on for five months. marla’s lonely at first  ––  she doesn’t know how to talk to people who aren’t him. she starts dating this guy, and that opens things up a little bit. he introduces her to his friends, and suddenly she doesn’t feel as wild. she’s no longer a product of the outskirts.

one night she thinks fuck it, that’s enough silence. she sneaks out at one am, texting jasper to meet her halfway. she borrows her sister’s car. marla figures she practically knows how to drive. she’s done it a few times. and, to her credit, she makes it to where she and jasper are meeting. she also wraps the car around a pole. she emerges relatively unharmed, and she panics. jasper doesn’t show up. he texts to tell her he got caught trying to leave. she calls him an idiot. then she waits there, arms crossed, incapable of doing anything but dreading consequences, until it’s nearly morning. that’s when a cop drives by and the process of being in trouble begins. it’s a clusterfuck. this is when her sister stops speaking to her  ––  marla’s been on thin ice with her for a long time, but now it’s over. it isn’t so much that her sister wants to hold a grudge. it’s just finally too much. and marla gets it. for once, she doesn’t try and change things, or slip out of trouble. that doesn’t mean she doesn’t get into a number of shouting matches with her mom. her phone is taken away, as is all of her money, which goes toward buying her sister a new car. her laptop is sold in the name of the new car too. she can use the family computer if schoolwork absolutely demands internet access.

she hasn’t heard from jasper in a long time. her now ex boyfriend is still sort of a friend, but not the kind she can hang out with. there was one girl she really got along with at their school, but they made out at a party and the next day the girl wouldn’t really look her in the eyes. she turns seventeen, the birthday celebrated more or less alone, and does a little stint in juvie for keying a teacher’s car. she then spends a year at a community college, followed by radcliffe. she picks radcliffe because she’s accepted, and because it’s far from home. being at home fills her with this sick feeling now  ––  something went bad somewhere along the way, and she’s pretty sure it was her that made the wrong turn at the crossroads. not her mom, not jasper, not anyone else that had power over her life. and she won’t reach out to her friend, or to her sister, because that would mean admitting she cares more than they do.

she sort of wishes she could go back to being a careful person. she wants to understand boundaries. she also wants her life to have a purpose, and she likes writing, and she’s always loved nancy drew, but being a detective would’ve meant being a cop and she'd genuinely rather die, so she’s gone for journalism. she’s not loving the university experience, but it’s better than before, and it’s provided a lot of distractions that she’s grateful for.

headcanons / personality :

she can be a little abrasive.

she smokes weed whenever she can afford it, because if she doesn’t she tends toward feeling depressed and highly uninspired. she carries this apathy with her, and then every once in a while she’ll snap, and either get a lot better or a lot worse. klonopin is her best friend now.

she’s 100% a leftist and the way to her heart at this point is through communism memes. she’s slowly but surely making her way through the works of karl marx. she’d probably be done by now, but she keeps reading romance novels instead. (this is also a secret. she reads them on her phone and deletes them the moment she’s done so that nobody can know).

she lives to pirate movies, but claims that the only movie she’s ever seen is showgirls. this is because she dated a film major during her first year of college and found him so insufferable that she’s decided nobody can ever know she watches movies. she gets that he was just a jackass, and she shouldn’t judge anyone by their major, and yet................ that said, she has a secret letterboxd account (when she made it, she found her ex’s account and blocked him, just in case) and on it there’s a list of films in which richard nixon gets punched in the face.

deep down she’s actually very sentimental and sensitive, which is why she worked so hard to Not Be That growing up. she does her very best to never show that side of herself  ––  if someone sees her crying she’s just gotta kill them ! those are the rules. and after a while it got more and more difficult to actually access that side of herself. when she cries, it’s an Event.

she’s always broke. she’s also somehow always capable of scraping together exactly enough money to go out.

she knows that if jasper contacted her now, even after the years of radio silence, she’d do anything for him. they’re still friends, even if that friendship only exists in her memories. she realizes she could text him, but that would violate her strict double texting rules. and she’s afraid to.

she definitely makes bad decisions while drunk. like, all the time. speaking of which, she’s up for anything ! wanna attempt to summon a demon at 3 am? she’s ur girl ! wanna break into someone’s house and move all of the furniture over by about an inch before stealing away into the night? she’s already there !

she’s actually a good listener, which is one of the only positive traits she credits herself with. that, and creativity.

she’s a taurus but like . there is almost definitely some pisces / scorpio / sagittarius on her chart

she can play piano. she’s actually pretty good at it. or she was, back when she had access to pianos.

she really really really really really really wants a dog but there is no way in hell she can afford one

she’s bisexual

wanted connections :

(i mean. i will love anything, but....)

exes  –  whether they dated for a while or just hooked up once or twice tbh

enemies  –  these are easy because marla often does not consider consequences, so she could easily have done smth :/ to ur muse

friends  –  pls ! she needs them

unrequited crush  –  on her part, probably ? maybe they’re friends and she doesn’t wanna fuck that up but she’s starting to care about them in a different way. I Love Repression. what a good trope.

if anyone’s down for spontaneous tattoos............ she loves those (@chase hi, hello, come here)

a good influence would be fantastic

anyone else from seattle / the seattle area who maybe knew her in passing

um i really want this

[jjmaybankx]

WHY DO I STILL » STILES STILINSKI » THREE

MASTERLIST

TRAILER

< ONE

< TWO

✧☾✧

She looked down at the book in her hands, squinting so that she could see the words over the glare of the sun hitting it. She sighed, deciding that it would be more annoying to try to get some reading in during Stiles and Scott's lacrosse practice than it would be to listen to Coach yell at the boys. When she looked up, however, she immediately packed her book into her back and broke down into a sprint.

She ran after Scott and Stiles, somehow missing the commotion. The entire team was swarmed around Jackson as Stiles helped Scott get off the field and towards the locker room.

"Stiles?" she called out, panting, seeing her short-haired friend standing outside the locker room with a fire hydrant, breathing heavily.

"Stay," Stiles said to her, so she stopped abruptly. He peeked into the locker room.

"What happened?" she heard Scott asked, and Stiles ventured into the locker room.

Haven took that as a sign that it was safe, and she followed after him. Stiles put the fire hydrant and his lacrosse stick down, and Haven peered in to see Scott on the floor, sweaty and out of breath. Stiles angrily took off his gloves.

"You tried to kill me," he told his best friend, throwing his glove. "It's like I told you before, it's the anger."

Haven leaned against one of the blue lockers as Stiles sat down in front of Scott, crossing her arms as she looked at them.

"Scott, I love you, but you're getting dangerous," she sighed. "It's your pulse rising."

"Exactly," Stiles said. "It's a trigger."

"But that's lacrosse. It's a pretty violent game—"

"Yanno, Kaeden used to say that lacrosse wasn't a real sport—" Haven pitched in, but she stopped when she noticed the glares on the boys' faces.

She murmured as she bobbed her head side to side mockingly.

"Maybe don't mention your asshole ex while I'm talking about how angry Scott turns him into a murderous Scott?" Stiles quipped. "He played baseball. He has no say in saying what is and isn't a real sport. All he did was stand on the outfield for like seven innings not catching a single ball."

"Who's the angry one? Me or you?" Scott asked.

"Anyways," Stiles ignored that comment, shaking his head. "Things are gonna be more violent if you end up killing someone on the field. You can't play Saturday. You're gonna have to get out of the game."

"I'm first line," Scott complained.

Stiles sighed. "Not anymore."

✧☾✧

Haven sat down on her bed, her mom knocking on the door.

"Hey, sweetie," Mrs. Salazar said, coming inside. "This one is a good one."

Her mom laughed, showing her daughter the picture on her phone. Haven groaned, shaking her head as her mom snickered.

"That boy knows how to take the best embarrassing photos," her mom said, letting out a happy sigh as she sat down next to her daughter.

On her phone was another photo from Stiles, documenting Haven getting out of his car to show he had indeed gotten her home safely. She was in the middle of saying something, and somehow looked a bit constipated with the frame Stiles ended up capturing.

"God, I hate him," Haven said.

She looked down at her mom's outfit and she sighed.

"Heading to work?" she asked her.

"Night shift, sweetie," she said.

She had met Scott McCall when they were younger through a mutual friendship their mothers had. They both worked at the Beacon Hills Hospital, which lead to play dates for their kids on the women's days off. Sometimes, only one of the two mothers were able to race to the school to pick up both of the children. With Scott came Stiles.

"Don't stay up all night on the phone with your idiots, and try to get some sleep," Mrs. Salazar said, mocking what her daughter tended to call Stiles and Scott.

As her mother walked to the door, as if on queue, her laptop starting ringing. Her mom let out a chuckle before closing the door and leaving her daughter to her own devices.

She opened her laptop, accepting the incoming group video call from Stiles to her and Scott.

As they talked, Haven and Stiles's eyes zeroed in on Scott's screen. Haven's heart beat quickened at the silhouette of someone standing behind Scott, and Stiles typed out what he and Haven both saw, before Scott got pulled from his seat and pushed into a wall.

✧☾✧

"What do you mean you don't think Derek is a complete psychopath?" Stiles asked Haven as they sat in his car eating Taco Bell during lunch.

Scott had to talk to Coach, so the two snuck off campus because Haven was craving.

She shrugged, stuffing her mouth with a slice of Mexican Pizza.

"I mean that I don't think he's a psychopath," she said, mouth full.

Stiles rolled his eyes at her.

"And how do you not think that?"

"Okay," she said, moving in her seat so she was facing Stiles better. "Scott becomes a werewolf, almost wolves out in front of people on several occasions, and there's hunters that moved back to Beacon Hills, right? So, logically, of course, if the Argents realize the Scott is a werewolf, they'll also realize another wolf is here since they, as you said before, travel in packs. And who else to be back than one of the original werewolves they tried killing a long time ago? The Hales?"

"So... you're saying that Derek is violent with a reason?"

"Yes," she nodded, smiling as it seemed like she was finally getting to him.

Stiles sat back straight in his seat, shaking his head as he took a sip of his drink.

"Yeah, no, he's totally still a psychopath. You just think he's hot."

She nodded at his response, crumpling up a napkin and tossing it at him.

He threw it back, and they went back and forth like that for a few minutes, just laughing like that together.

"This is nice," she stated, earning a concerned look from Stiles. "With everything going on with Scott and being a werewolf, it's nice to feel normal for once. Not like we're living some double lives as the werewolf protection squad."

"Do you ever just wanna leave?" Stiles asked. "Just cut us off and go back to being a normal girl without whatever the hell is going on with Scott?"

"It can't be that bad," she shrugged. "And no. I don't think I'd ever be able to just cut you guys off. You're Stiles, you're my best friend, and Scott, he's—"

"The guy you've had a crush on since the seventh grade?" he finished for her.

She threw the napkin at him again.

"Dork."

"You guys are invited to another outing," Scott said, hopping into Stiles's Jeep with not that much time to scarf down his food.

"I'm sorry, what?" Stiles asked, glancing into the backseat at his best friend while Haven tossed him the bag.

"Tomorrow, after the game. Me, Allison, Lydia, Jackson, and Allison told me to invite you two," he said quickly, opening his food and chewing.

Stiles and Haven shared a look, Haven hiding the look of disgust on her face over hanging out with Allison and Scott at the same time. She hated the fact that he disliked being friends with Allison considering the fact that the girl was surprisingly really nice to her. She was just jealous.

"So... you didn't tell Coach you weren't playing tomorrow?" Stiles asked.

When Scott just looked up at them, Haven shook her head. "You're hopeless, and about to die at the hands of Wolfy McHottie."

"I'm sorry, what?"

"She has the hots for Derek," Stiles sighed, shaking his head as Scott looked ready to puke.

✧☾✧

Haven laughed from the Jeep, watching as Stiles sprinted from the driver's seat into the McCall house, not even knocking. She was surprised with how they just left their front door unlocked all the time, but she shook her head, unbuckling her seatbelt and walking inside nonchalantly.

"What did you find? Where did you find it?" Stiles asked, out of breath as he stormed into Scott's room.

Haven walked in a few minutes later, bouncing on Scott's bed, laying down on his pillows as she watched the boys talk, Scott sitting on the edge of the bed.

"And yes, he's had a lot of Adderall," Haven stated.

"I found something of Derek Hale's," responded Scott.

"Are you kidding? What?"

"There's something buried there there, I could smell."

"That's awesome–I mean, that's terrible, who's blood?" Stiles asked.

"I don't know, but when we do, your dad nails Derek for the murder," Scott said, standing up and pointing to Stiles. "And then you guys both help me figure out how to play lacrosse without changing. Because there's no way I'm not playing that game."

Stiles looked at Haven with a proud smile, and she shook her head with a small smirk at the confidence Scott was having.

"Where are we going?" Haven asked, standing up.

"To the hospital," replied Scott, and she groaned. "What?"

"It's gonna get cold," she said.

She had left her jacket in her locker when it got warm, and had assumed she was going home after Scott's house.

"You can borrow one of mine," the boys said in unison, then looking between one another as Haven looked at them all weird.

"I, uh, have one in the car if you wanna borrow that," Stiles said to her.

"Or you can borrow something in my closet," Scott suggested, shrugging. "Up to you."

Scott walked out of the room before the other two, Stiles looking at her expectantly.

"So, you're gonna wear one of his so you can smell like him, right?" Stiles asked her teasingly.

"Shut up," she said, her cheeks going red as she walked towards him. "I'll wear yours if you're gonna tease me like that."

Stiles was shocked as she walked out of the room without one of Scott's hoodies. Before Allison, she would always jump at the chance to put on an article of Scott's clothing, and Stiles would watch her lovesick eyes as she smiled to herself in the backseat of his Jeep. He wondered how the hell Scott never caught on.

When he got to the car, he saw her standing outside of the backseat with the door open, slipping on his gray and red zip-up hoodie. She got inside at the same time as Stiles did, sticking her tongue out at him as she put on her seat belt.

✧☾✧

The three friends arrived at Beacon Hills hospital. Stiles pointed Scott in the direction of the morgue while Stiles and Haven went to the waiting room. Haven, who was looking down at her phone, bumped into Stiles's back. She looked up to see he was looking at Lydia, who was sitting in one of the blue waiting room chairs.

She watched from behind, where she stood against the nurse's desk, which she found herself doing often, as Stiles leaned a hand against the wall, trying to sound cool as he said, "Hey, Lydia. You probably don't remember me. Um, I sit behind you in Biology."

Lydia twirled her hair in her finger.

"Uh, anyways, I always thought that we just had this kind of conne—" he started, but Lydia looked past him.

She smiled, clapping her hands together, cutting Stiles off. "Haven!"

Stiles frowned, looking behind him at his best friend. She shrugged, but walked forward as Lydia beckoned to her. The strawberry blonde took headphones out of her ear, revealing she actually hadn't heard a word that Stiles was saying.

Then, Lydia looked at Stiles and said, "I do remember you. Buzzcut boy with the Jeep."

She grabbed Haven's hands, saying, "Hey! I haven't been at practice since the party, how have you been? Thinking about it, I didn't really see you guys at the party...?"

Haven looked to Stiles for help, but he just shrugged, not knowing what to say either.

"We went for a bit," Haven said to her. "But then there was a problem with Scott, so..."

"Yeah, Allison said he just left her out of nowhere," Lydia said. "Weird."

"...Yeah," Haven faked smiled.

She sat with Lydia for a bit while Stiles sat in a seat on the other corner of the wall. Lydia stood up when Jackson walked towards them.

"Did he do it?" she asked her boyfriend.

"He said not to make a habit of it, but one cortisone shot won't kill me."

"You should get one right before the game, too," Lydia said. "The pros do it all the time. You want to be a little high school amateur... or do you want to go pro?"

She got close to her boyfriend, kissing him while Haven's eyes widened, averting her eyes awkwardly.

"Bye, Haven," Lydia waved at her as she walked away with her boyfriend.

"Since when did we know her?" Jackson asked her.

"Shut up. I like her," Lydia whispered, but Haven was able to hear her.

Haven got up, going to sit down next to Stiles, who was eyeing Jackson like a hawk.

Scott ripped the newspaper from Stiles, scaring him.

"Oh my God!"

"The scent was the same," stated Scott.

"You sure?" Haven and Stiles asked together.

"Yes."

Stiles sighed. "So he did  bury the other half of the body on his property?"

"Which means we have proof that he killed the girl," Scott concluded.

"I say we use it," Stiles said, looking at Haven who was frowning. "Don't give us that look. Wolfy McHottie is a killer, okay?"

"How are we gonna use it?" Scott asked as Stiles walked away.

He turned back around and said, "Tell me something first. Are you doing this because you want to stop Derek, or because you want to play in the game, and he said you couldn't?"

"There are bite marks on the legs, guys. Bite marks," Scott said softly.

"Okay," Stiles nodded. "Okay. Then we're gonna need to drop off Haven at home, and then we're gonna need a shovel."

"Drop me off at home?" Haven exclaimed at the same time Scott said, "Drop her off at home?"

"I love you, and we are not dragging you to a murderer's house to dig up the grave of one of his victims," Stiles stated, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and tugging her along. "Because if something bad happens to you, your mom will be throwing me into the morgue."

✧☾✧

She rounded the car, standing next to the driver's side. She put her elbows against the open window, looking at Stiles.

"This isn't fair," she said. "I wanna go with you guys."

"No," he shook his head. "I am keeping you safe."

"Stiles, I can keep her safe. If she wants to come, she should be able to come," Scott intervened.

Stiles rolled his eyes, looking at him and asking, "You comfortable with us bringing Allison?"

"No, of course not."

"There you have it," Stiles said to him, turning back to Haven. "Go inside, Hav. We'll be fine."

She groaned, "Fine."

Stiles waited until she was inside of her house to drive off. Scott was looking at him with a proud smile, and Stiles gave him an irritated, "What?" as a response.

"You have a thing for our best friend, don't you?" Scott smirked.

"What?" Stiles asked, swerving before he got the car back in the right lane.

"You just compared you not wanting her to be in danger to me not wanting Allison, the girl I like, to be in danger," Scott reasoned with him.

"No," Stiles said, shaking his head.

"C'mon, I know you and Haven better than anyone," Scott said, earning a scoff from Stiles.

You obviously know nothing, because if you did, you'd know she's been in love with you since the seventh grade, Stiles thought in his head.

"I like Lydia," Stiles said to him. "As I've had since the third grade."

"If you say so," Scott said, but it was evident that he didn't actually believe Stiles. He then smacked Stiles's shoulder in a friendly matter, adding, "She looks cute in your clothes."

"I will purposely crash this Jeep right now."

✧☾✧

Haven broke down laughing, listening to Stiles replay his conversation with his dad.

"You are the most sarcastic little shit I've ever met," she said, still laughing about his "depends on how you define lying" joke.

"Thanks, that's totally the point of the conversation," he replied to her, shaking his head. "I lost Scott!"

"I'm sure he's fine," she shrugged.

"Oh, so you're not worried that I can't find the love of your life?" Stiles asked her.

She threw one of her pillows at him. "I've gotten over that crush."

"Yeah? When?"

"When Allison started existing in our lives."

"Hav—" he started.

"C'mon," she said, getting off of her bed and grabbing Stiles's duffel bag that was on the floor. "We got a game to get you to."

✧☾✧

Haven sat in the stands next to Mrs. McCall and her own mom, her mother sitting in the middle. Haven laughed when Lydia grabbed Scott and pulled him close, whispering something while Stiles looked at them ridiculously.

"What's wrong with Stiles's face?" Mrs. Salazar asked her daughter, earning a stifled laugh.

"It's permanently stuck like that, I suppose," replied Haven.

Stiles was on the bench when Sheriff Stilinski went to stand behind his son, talking to him. Haven told the two mothers that she'd be right back and jogged over in time to hear the conversation.

"So, you think you'll see any action tonight?"

"Action?" Stiles asked nervously. "Maybe."

Sheriff stood up and looked at the girl approaching, smiling down at her.

"Hi, sweetie," he said.

"Hey, Dad," she smiled back. "My mom and Mrs. McCall are over there."

He nodded and made his way towards the parents of his son's friends. In the time the three had been friends, there was one thing that was a common factor for all of them: they were being raised by one parent. Haven and Scott had mothers while Stiles had his dad. Noah Stilinski had gotten used to the girl nonchalantly calling him dad years ago, understanding that he was the closest she had since her dad passed away when she was a baby.

"Hey," Haven said to Stiles, wrapping her arms around his shoulders from behind, placing her head on his shoulders to look at the game in front of them. She winced when Scott collided with someone. "Ouch."

"H-hey," Stiles breathed out to her.

"Salazar!" Coach Finstock yelled her name out, both herself and Stiles turning their heads in his direction quickly. "Why in the heck are you on my field?"

"Moral support?" she said with a question mark at the end of her statement.

"Get off!" he said, pointing to the bleachers. "You can canoodle with your bench warmer boyfriend later."

"I'm not her—" Stiles stuttered.

"He's not my—"

"Off my field, Salazar!"

On her way back she saw Allison and Lydia hold up a "We love you Jackson" sign. She glanced over her shoulder at Stiles, both of them mumbling, "Brutal."

The jealousy seemed to make Scott play the best game of his lacrosse career. Everyone in the home bleachers ran onto the field to congratulate the win. Haven ran on looking for Scott, ending up just like Allison as they stood on the field watching him take off in the other direction, towards the woods. When Allison went towards Scott, Haven decided it was best for herself not to go after the rising couple. She frowned, letting out a sigh of disappointment and turning around to find Stiles.

She sat on the bench with him as his dad made a call, her mom sitting on the front row of the bleachers waiting patiently.

"Dad, what's wrong?" Stiles asked him.

Noah just put a finger up, telling his son to wait.

"Let's go find Scott," Stiles whispered to her.

"Allison went after him," Haven whispered back.

"What if he's about to wolf out?" he asked her.

"And what if they're making out?"

"I thought you said you weren't into him anymore."

She glared at him, and he put a hand out for her to take. She huffed, placing her hand in his as they stood up.

"We're uh, gonna go look for Scott," Stiles said to his dad and Mrs. Salazar.

The two parents nodded, and Haven let go of Stiles's hand as they ran towards the locker room.

Stiles went in first, but he dipped back behind the locker, grabbing Haven to block her from going.

"I was correct wasn't I?" she whispered in his ear, listening to the sounds of two people making out.

"Sorry, Hav."

"I gotta get back to my dad," Allison whispered.

She walked near them, waving. "Stiles, Haven."

"Hey, yeah," they chorused hellos to the brunette.

When she left, the two friends ventured back towards Scott, who looked like a lovesick puppy.

"I kissed her," he said, dazed.

"I saw."

"She kissed me."

"Saw that, too," Haven said, and she looked up at Stiles with a smile when he intertwined his hands with hers behind their backs.

"That's pretty good, huh?" Stiles asked Scott, rubbing his thumb on Haven's hand comfortingly.

"I-I-I don't know how, but I controlled it," Scott said happily. "I pulled it back. Maybe I can do this. Maybe it's not that bad."

"Yeah," Stiles said, glancing down at Haven. "We'll talk later, then? Hav and I's parents are outside."

As they turned around to walk away, Scott placed a hand on Stiles's shoulder. "What?"

Stiles sighed. "The, uh, medical examiner looked at the other half of the body we found."

"And?" asked Stiles.

"Well, I'll keep it simple. Medical examiner determines killer of girl to be animal, not human. Derek's human, not animal—"

"And hot," Haven piped in.

"Derek's an ugly human, not animal," Stiles said, "Derek not killer. Derek let out of jail."

"I love the lack of grammar," Haven sassed.

"Are you kidding?"

"No, and here's a bigger kick in the ass. My dad I.D's the dead girl. Both halves. Her name was Laura Hale."

"Hale?"

"Wolfy McHottty's sister," Haven said.

FOUR >

[shawnshoooodies]

First choice

Waking up in your boyfriends arms is the best feeling in the world… so you’ve heard. While waking up from the sun shining on your face through the curtains, your arm reached over the the other side off the bed, which was completely empty. you just took a t-shirt of him and put it on. He didn’t own any hoodies. He always said how sloppy they look. You walked to the kitchen to make yourself some breakfast and to get ready for the day other people already started. You checked your phone and saw it already was 11 AM. As a writer you never really had to check time. You could make your own plans, you were your own boss. You never liked the power someone could have over you with making a deadline for something. You were a control freak and being in charge of yourself made you feel more save.

After you finished your yoghurt,  you looked for your laptop, a pen and some paper. You threw it in your handbag, grabbed your keys and walked out of your small apartment. You were really craving for your favorite coffee at moonlight’s the coffeeshop just around the corner. It was your lucky day, cause as soon as you walked in you saw two people leaving your favourite table. You walked over to the table and took a seat. The moment you wanted to unpack your back you heard a familiar voice.

“hey stranger” You looked up and saw Shawn. one of your best friends from High school. “Shawn, hey! i missed you so much!” you stood up from your seat and hugged him. He smiled and hugged you back with a tight grip. “it's been so long, i wasn’t thinking you’d live here anymore.” he said.

You walked back to your seat and winked him to sit down. He took his seat and a guy came to take our orders. After a while and a lot of talking he came with your coffees. Shawn told you about his sudden success and his career he was currently working on. He was just visiting Pickering to spend some time with his family. “And how are you now?” he asked you while sipping his coffee. “I’m great! Currently working on my new book and me and Tom are still doing good.” And the moment you spoke the word Tom his breathing stopped. “Tom?” he looked scared to ask. You nodded. “as in our High school friend Tom?” You kept nodding. “but… how?” he asked shocked. Tom and Shawn have always known each other. They used to be best friends but lost contact. “We both stayed in pickering after high school, and we only really knew each other, so we became closer and yeah…” Shawn looked shocked, the idea of you and Tom almost made him sick. “Is your relation like.. anything serious..?” You nodded again with a little smile on your face. You put your hand on the table and wiggled the finger with the promise ring Tom got you a few years ago. It’s not entirely your taste, but it’s the idea. Shawns eyes got even bigger than before, if that even was possible. “Is that a..?” He couldn’t even finish his sentence properly. “it’s a promise ring. Tom got it for me a few years ago.”

You liked the idea of the promise ring, but you have been hoping it could be replaced with an engagement ring. You guys were already 25, it was about time.

“Cute..” he managed to get out of his mouth. He was acting strange and he knew it, something was up. You knew everything about this guy. You had the biggest crush on him when you guys were in 9th grade, and you still had a lil weakness for him, but when Tom asked you out, you got over him. You couldn’t spend your whole life waiting for him. He doesn’t even like you like that..

“Are you ok?” You asked concerned when you saw Shawn getting paler by the second. “Yeah, i’m just... i don’t feel so well. I think i should go home.” Shawn, who was as white as snow by now, grabbed the table and pulled himself up. “It was great seeing you again.” you said, disappointed he already had to leave.

“see you soon?” You nodded, and he left.

-

Shawn Mendes, 25 years old, lives in Pickering, singer. And there it is, the friend request button. You were laying on your couch with your laptop on your lap. It was almost 8pm and you survived the day with only one bowl of yoghurt and some coffee. Tom could come home any moment but you couldn't care less. Your whole day, you only could think about one thing. Shawn Mendes, hotter than ever, cuter than ever, and the most caring and loveable person in the world. It was almost impossible to believe he still had facebook, but he did, and you were grateful for it. Are you gonna push that button? Your eyes got caught by his profile picture. Him holding a puppy. You chuckled. Shawn was really allergic to dogs, but every chance he had to cuddle one, he took.

Why are you even making a big deal about it, i mean you don’t feel anything for him anymore, right? And with that thought, you clicked the button.

Your endless thoughts got interrupted by the front door that got slammed open. In a reflex you closed your laptop and put it in the seat next to you. “hey honey” you attempt to start a conversation with the man that just walked into the apartment. You walked over to the kitchen counter. He already took a milk bottle out of the fridge,And poured the milk straight into his mouth.”You ok?” you asked when you didn’t got a response. “mh, just tired” he mumbled. He put the milk back in the fridge, and walked to your shared bedroom. You followed him in there and jumped on the bed, landing with your legs crossed. He sight. “don’t jump on the bed please.” he demanded angrily while looking for his pj’s. “Have you seen my- “ And he stopped his sentence immediately when he saw his white shirt coming under your cardigan. “What?” you asked when you saw his eyes getting bigger while looking at your chest. “y/n, how many times haven’t i asked you to stay the fuck away from my stuff?” He screamed at you while pointing at his shirt. “i’m sorry, didn’t knew you would get this mad.” He tried calming his breath but didn’t succeed. His anger was growing. “I just- i can’t deal with this right now.” He sprinted out of the room and walked quick to the front door. You followed him. “what are you doing?” you yelled at him. He ignored your question and took his keys and bag, opened the door, walked out of the apartment, and slammed it. “Fuck”

Just when the tears started floating over your cheeks, you heard a sound comming from your laptop.

Shawn mendes accepted your friend request

He did?

You have 2 new messages

Shawn: Hey Y/n! I see you found me again

Shawn: Listen, something is kind of bothering me, can i stop by for a second?

Ok fuck, you walk here with big swollen red eyes, and you’re supposed to meet your old crush. Not gonna happen.

But before you could even respond to him you got another message.

Shawn: You live with Tom right? we hang one time after college so i know his address. be there in 2!

“Fuck, fuck fuck fuck.” You whisper curse. More tears start filling up your eyes and you don’t know how to control them. Ok y/n, calm down, you’ll just send him a quick message and explain now is . But as soon as you calmed yourself down, panic started to kick in again when you heard the doorbell ring. You have to know. You walked to the door, and opened it. No time to check your make up, to wipe your tears away. You just have to open the door. And as soon as you do, Shawn is standing there, perfectly dressed. Just a black pair of jeans and a white shirt where his abs were perfectly showing in.

“Holy shit y/n are you alright?” Shawn says with shock in his eyes as soon as he sees you. “i'll-” and as soon as you even say one word, you break. You start sobbing and are not able to stop. Shawn responses immediately and pushes you through the hallway to close the door, and hugs you. “shh, it's alright. It's ok, i'm here.” he says, trying to calm you down. Your face is hiding in his chest, by now your tears are probably all over his shirt. Everything is coming out now. Shawns arms are holding you with a tight grip, while stroking you over your back. He slowly pulls back and looks you in the eyes. “let's get you some water.”

After Shawn grabbed you a water bottle and you took a sip of it. You two ended up at the couch, it was quiet, but now awkward quiet. It was a calm quiet. After you calmed down a little, and but your water bottle on the table, Shawn broke the silence. “Can i ask you what's going on.”

“Just a little fight with Tom, that's all.” Shawn looked up at you. “Well where is Tom now?”

You slicked. “i don't know.”

Shawn straightened his back, and bites his lips. It looked like he was in a dilemma.

“Ok Y/n, i'm gonna be real with you. This wasn't just a little fight. You wouldn't be this upset if it was just a little fight. Listen, i know where Tom is, and i also know what he is doing. If i ask you this, please be honest with me, this happened before right?” He looked you deep in your eyes. And you slowly nodded.

“y/n i'm so sorry, but i’m almost completely sure Tom is cheating on you.”  

And those words hit you hard. “No but, no, that's not possible.”

“A few weeks ago, i was hanging with Tom in that Irish pub here around the corner. He didn't mention a girlfriend to me, or to the other girls he was making out with…” You felt new tears burning in your eyes. This can't be happening. This can't be real. You thought Tom loved you. That he cared about you.  

“Y/n listen to me,” Shawn shove closer to you and cupped your face with his tattooed hand. “Tom doesn’t deserve you, you know it, and i know it more than anyone. You deserve so much better than this.” You looked at him with your big eyes, puffed from the tears. Where was he going with this? He slicked. “I like you y/n.As in like like, a lot.” He said, eyes looking vulnerable. You were shocked. Shawn? saying he loved you. This was like a complete deja vu in your dreams.But when he saw you keeping quiet, he regretted saying it. “Shit sorry, i really don’t wanna pressure you into anything, i just-” But he couldn’t finish his sentence, cause you smashed your lips against his. And that kiss, was the most passionate and lovable kiss you ever had received. You felt so many butterflies in your tummy. Tom never made you feel this way. He slowly pulled away, and looked at you with a confused face. “I like you too, as in like like.” You cleared up to him. “Always had, always will.” He couldn’t hide his happiness and started smiling. “But, Shawn, what about Tom?” He noticed the stress that instantly shoot into your eyes. “We’ll figure it out honey, come here.” he leaned back on the couch, and reached out for you. You took his offer, and laid your head on his chest, to cuddle up in his arms. He wrapped them around you, and played a bit with your hair. The sound of his heartbeat instantly calmed you down. You felt your eyelids getting heavy and you closed them.  

[whatyourfathersays]

goodbye → brad simpson

"I think we should break up."

The six words felt like daggers in your heart as you stare at your boyfriend of three years. It wasn't a surprise to you, not really; you'd been expecting it. Nonetheless, it still hurt a lot for it to become a reality that you're losing one of the most important people in your life.

The first sign that you'd noticed Brad Simpson was falling out of love with you was when he had planned a trip to Harry Potter World in London as a fun surprise for everyone who had worked on the new EP with them. It was celebratory, a way to finally relax after months of hard work since the EP finally came out the day after.

There were loads of you, Brad and the boys, their manager, photographer, producers. But someone who stuck out to you was a girl with long dark hair, red lips and a kind smile.

"Some people are coming over for us to take them there," Brad says as he grabs his car keys from the kitchen side. "Couldn't get their own ride there so I offered."

"Okay," you smile, pushing yourself off of the kitchen counter you were leaning against before kissing his cheek three times like you always do. It was a tradition, one that neither of you ever broke.

Until today, when Brad grabbed his phone and walked off without returning the three kisses.

You tried not to be upset by it and sighed, turning to grab your drink from the side before walking into your bedroom and beginning to get ready for the day ahead.

Brad was sat on his sofa the entire time, messaging the group chat he'd made for the day. He forgot to add you, so the inside jokes would fly over your head later that day when they all met up for the trip.

Brad huffs as he looks at the time on his phone before standing up, walking to the room you both shared and standing at the doorway with his arms folded.

"You almost done, Y/N?"

"Yeah, just finishing up my makeup," You smile back. "Wanna sit down and talk for a bit?"

"No, I'll be okay. Gonna go grab some food," Brad decides despite not being hungry. You frown as he walks away, digging for his phone that he left in his pocket.

You tried not to be affected by the distance he'd created with you already today, even though it was barely reaching ten in the morning.

Finishing off your makeup, you go down to the lounge where Tristan and a girl with long dark hair sat with Brad, all laughing.

You smile at Tristan who notices you first, causing Brad to look over his shoulder at you as he sat next to the girl, his wide smile slowly falling as he looks over at you.

"Ready to go?" Brad asks you and you nod, grabbing your handbag as Brad grabs his car keys again, everyone getting on their shows and coat.

The girl with dark hair saunters over to you and smiles kindly. "Don't think we've ever met, but Brad's told me a lot about you. Just thought I'd introduce myself; I'm Bella."

"Hi," you smile politely back. "I'm Y/N."

The girl didn't seem awful, in fact she was quite nice as she complimented your outfit and make up and you couldn't fault the fact that the boys worked with her as she had probably had undeniable talent with production and songwriting.

"Let's go, ladies!" Tristan cheers, slinging his arm over Brad's shoulder. You quickly put your coat on and follow everyone else out of your house, waiting for Brad to lock the door before walking to the car with him.

He seemed distance physically from you, a meter between you both as you reach the Ranger Rover that he'd saved up and bought.

You grab the door handle to the front passenger seat, pausing when you see Bella say in the front seat.

Brad notices, too, looking at you over the car roof. "Just get in the back, Y/N."

"But I always sit in the front," you pout.

It's true, you always have sat in the front. No matter who you were with, Brad would always make sure his girl was at the front with him where he could put his hand on her knee. If it meant getting Connor (he usually forgot the unspoken rule) to move into the back seats, then Brad would refuse to leave until his friend moved away so you could sit next to him. He was always one hundred percent adamant that you sat next to him, always.

"Don't be mardy; get in the back."

Tristan noticed how odd Brad was acting towards you and rolls his window down, offering you a smile.

"Come on, Y/N, join me," he grins and you nod, a sad smile on your face as you got into the car, sat behind Brad.

The ride was awkward, to say the least. Tristan tried to make you feel comfortable but Brad spent the entire time making jokes with Bella that you didn't understand.

"Remember on the group chat when Connor accidentally sent his ballsack to us?" Bella laughs, causing you to frown and turn to Tristan.

"There's a groupchat?"

"Yeah, Brad made it," Tris replies, eyebrows furrowing in confusion. "Did he not add you?"

"No, he didn't."

You look off out at the landscape, hoping it was just a mistake but everything was piling on. From not returning the three kisses, not wanting to sit with you while you got ready, not letting you sit where you usually do in the car, and now a group chat without you in it? It was starting to make you a little suspicious that something was going on with Brad.

Once you arrive, your excited mood had already been dampened as Brad got out and dug his hands in his pockets, sauntering off to find the rest of the crew that were coming.

Bella and Tristan struggled to keep up with Brad themselves, and it didn't help that you were too sad to walk at a normal pace so you simply just walk slowly.

When you join the entire group, everyone was there. Connor, James, their girlfriends, Joe and Laura, Dean who was filming Brad who was talking, Tristan and Bella talking to each other, some producers you'd never met. All in all, you felt very excluded by no fault of your own as they spoke about topics that were discussed in the group chat that you weren't added to.

You begin the tour around Harry Potter World, trying to stay close to the group but Brad ended up walking ahead with Bella and Tristan. Joe noticed you looked upset and offered to walk with you, which was great because you got along well with his wife, Laura.

Once the tour had finished and you'd bought some goods, everyone made their way outside. While most people left, the main four boys, Bella, Joe and Laura, Dean and yourself all stayed to go and get some food at some local shops.

"Brad," You call out his name and he looks over his shoulder. He doesn't offer you a smile, his eyebrows furrow.

"What's up?"

"Just thought I'd walk with you because I haven't seen you much since we left," you smile, hoping that he was in a bit of a better mood now. You assumed he was stressed about today since he'd planned it and wanted it to go perfect so, for now, you let him off for upsetting you.

"Oh, yeah, sorry about that."

"It's fine; where do you wanna eat?" You try to engage conversation with your boyfriend. "Nando's? Frankie and Bennies? Wagamamas?"

"Don't know."

Ignoring his bluntness, you nod slowly and let out a small sigh.

It was a week later of Brad doing interviews and life shows before tour started and to celebrate, Dean had released a video diary of the trip to Harry Potter World to the fans.

You watched it while you were in bed and Brad was showering. You noticed how sad you looked in the background without even realising it, and the fans had picked up on it too.

Have Brad and Y/N broken up? I didn't see them talking once.

Bella and Brad would be such a cute couple wtf.

Y/N never deserved Brad anyway.

You shut your laptop lid as Brad walked into the room, fully dressed as he climbs into the bed.

He rolls over, his back facing you as you put your laptop on the side, flicking off your lamp so that darkness surrounded you.

"Brad," You whispered through the darkness as your throat constricted with conflicted emotions.

He glances over his shoulder at you. "What?"

"Can we talk?"

"About?"

"Us," you reply and that catches his attention, causing him to turn over. "I think we should break up."

The six words felt like daggers in your heart as you stare at your boyfriend of three years. Never in a million years would you think you'd be laying there breaking up with him, after everything you've been through.

"Okay."

But that single word hurt more, like it was a twist to the heart, making your skin crawl with unwanted emotions.

"That's it?" You reply, surprised.

"If that's what you want, then yes."

You didn't expect for him to not at least try and fight for your relationship. You expected him to want to talk about it, convince you to give him a second chance; not just. . . let you go. That hurt the most.

"Yeah, that's what I want," you say just above a whisper, your voice cracking as silent tears escape your eyes. You didn't realise it'd be this easy for him to let you go.

[thepropertylovers]

A Definitive (And Totally Biased) Ranking of Every Song on 'Lover'

Have you listened to Taylor Swift’s new album yet? It’s already 2019 biggest selling record and we can see why. When T. Swift releases an album, it’s pretty much all you hear about for the next few months (and the few months beforehand, to be honest). So why don’t we count down the best songs on ‘Lover’?

Thomas is a huge Taylor Swift fan, and now that her new album ‘Lover’ has been out for over a week (and he’s listened to it approximately 113 times), he thought it would be fun to rank the songs in order from worst to best. You may agree with some of the choices and you may not, but we can probably all agree that the first half of the album is infinitely better than the second half, which is typically what you get with Swift.

Red may be her best album lyrically, but this album is probably her most fun. Even PJ (who isn’t a huge TS fan by any means) turned to me the other day and said he thinks this is his favorite album she’s ever put out, and is particularly loving ‘Afterglow’. On this album, she’s giving us HAIM, she’s giving us Lana Del Rey, she’s giving us Postal Service, she’s giving us country (?!). Are there too many songs on this album? Probably. Are some of them skippable? Most definitely. But when Taylor Swift blesses us with a new album every few years, it’s an event, and like any event, we need to make a big deal of it. So without further ado, here are the best and worst songs from ‘Lover’:

18. False God

Taylor doing R&B? I knew from the first listen of this song that it would be my least favorite on the album. I appreciate the lyrics, and she’s the sexiest she’s ever been, even more so than ‘Dress’, but it still feels off for her to be doing R&B. It’s not a bad song (does Taylor make bad songs?) but it’s not my favorite.

Best lyric: Staring out the window like I’m not your favorite town, I’m New York City, I still do it for you, babe.

17. Daylight

This is a beautiful closer, and not a bad song in the least (the words are gorgeous), but this is no ‘New Year’s Day’ or ‘Clean’ for me. It took me a couple of listens to find the melody, but overall it’s a solid closing song that wraps up everything she’s feeling very nicely. I think I just prefer the songs on the first half of the album so much more that this song never really stood a chance for me.

Best lyric: I wanna be defined by the things that I love, not the things I hate, not the things I’m afraid of…I just think that you are what you love.

16. You Need To Calm Down

What could I say about this song that hasn’t already been said? It was supposed to be the LGBTQ+ anthem (maybe it still is?) of the summer, but I think it missed a few of the points of what it means to be an ally. Still, Swift is the only big, heterosexual superstar actively coming out and supporting LGBTQ+ rights in her songs, and the fact that she’s trying so hard to pass the Equality Act is amazing. Plus, it’s catchy as hell.

Best lyric: And I ain’t trying to mess with your self-expression but I’ve learned the lesson that stressing and obsessing about somebody else is no fun. And snakes and stones never broke my bones, so.

15. ME!

Where do we even begin with this song? As the first single from ‘Lover’, it was polarizing to a lot of people. PJ and I stayed up until midnight when it was released and we were in bed watching the music video on our laptop and just kept going what? what….? WHAT?! Over and over again with each verse and chorus, and then when the “Hey kids! Spelling is FUN!” line happened, we almost shut our computer down. Thankfully they removed that line from the album version and it instantly made the song better. I think at the end of the day this is a fun, positive, and uplifting song that I actually enjoy, it just surprised me that a person of Swift’s talents was the one who wrote it. But I guess not every song has to be at an ‘All Too Well’ level, and this song is so damn catchy, does it really matter that it’s mot as good as the others?

Best lyric: I know that I went psycho on the phone, I never leave well enough alone, and trouble’s gonna follow where I go.

14. Soon You’ll Get Better

This song, y’all. It’s so beautifully heartbreaking. It’s similar to ‘The Best Day’ in the fact that it’s about her mom, but it couldn’t be more different in tone and feel. The lyrics are so beautiful and honest and raw and real, and the addition of The Dixie Chicks in the background (who I’m pretty sure were put on this earth to harmonize melodies to perfection) absolutely complete the song for me.

Best lyric: And I hate to make this all about me, but then who am I supposed to talk to? What am I supposed to do, if there’s no you?

13. Death By A Thousand Cuts

I don’t know what it is about this song, but this is one that I always skip whenever it comes on, even though I technically don’t have a problem with it. I guess it’s just I would rather listen to the other songs more than this one, which is why it’s lower on the list. It’s not a bad song, though, and I sing along to it whenever it’s on, but it’s not one of my favorites.

Best lyric: I look through the windows of this love even though we boarded them up. 

12. It’s Nice To Have A Friend

This is probably the weirdest song on the album, but I absolutely love it. It gives me major Postal Service vibes, but it’s quirky and fun and playful. I love the innocence of it and the feel it evokes, even if I don’t entirely know what it’s about or what she’s trying to say/the point of the song is. But she is right, it is nice to have a friend. Mr. Rogers would be proud.

Best lyric: Lost my gloves, you give me one, wanna hang out? Yeah, sounds like fun.

11. The Archer

I really like this song, and the only reason it’s on the lower half of this list is because I love her fun, more up-beat songs on the album so much. But I love the words and the angle she’s coming from on this one. And I will casually find myself singing, “All the kinds horses and all the kings men, couldn’t put me together again.” over and over randomly throughout the day. Even when she doesn’t write the words, Swift has an ear for catchy rhymes.

Best lyric: Easy they come, easy they go, I jump from the train, I ride off alone, I never grew up, it’s getting so old.

10. I Forgot That You Existed

I think as an opener it’s a pretty solid song. The title is a little trite, but the words are clever and I like the point of view/outlook she’s coming from when she matter-of-factly states that she doesn’t love the person or hate them, she just doesn’t really think about them at all. Which, to me, is the definition of moving on and is a lot easier said than done, but is so worth it when you finally get to that state of mind.

Best lyric: I forgot that you existed. It isn’t love, it isn’t hate, it’s just indifference.

9. London Boy

Sure this song is silly and has a very questionable opening line, but it’s also one of the most fun on the album. Having never been to London before, I really got a sense of what it’s like by Swift listing all of the things she loves so much about her boyfriend’s hometown. Plus listening to her list everything she loves about Joe is adorable, even if she doesn’t do the best British accent. Bonus points for mentioning Tennessee AND for an intro by Idris Elba. Swoon.

Best lyric: But something happened, I heard him laughing, I saw the dimples first and then I heard the accent. They say home is where the heart is, but that’s not where mine is.

8. Miss Americana & The Heartbreak Prince

Taylor at her most Lana-like, almost even more so than ‘Wildest Dreams’. The melody and the beat and the lyrics and the way she enunciates (and the fact that it has the word Americana in it, which is LDR’s favorite topic to sing about) reminds me so much of Lana Del Rey that I almost wonder if this should have been a duet between the two queens. I like this song because it’s interesting and the metaphors are killer. The lyrics are creative, clever, and put to good use, too.

Best lyric: Boys will be boys then, where are the wise men?

7. Paper Rings

Another fun one! I told my sister that I kind of wish she would have put this type of song out about 10 years ago because it seems a little juvenile for a 30 year old to be singing, but it’s a cute love song that is almost impossible not to dance to. It also reminds me of one of my favorite movies of all time, Clueless. Can’t you just picture Cher riding around in her Jeep with her friends listening to this song and living her best life?

Best lyric: I like shiny things but I’d marry you with paper rings uh-huh, that’s right, darling, you’re the one I want.

6. Afterglow

This is a song that grew on me, mostly because this is PJ’s favorite song on the album and I somehow always end up loving whatever song PJ likes in the end. I love how she frames a very common topic in relationships, though: that your head can make up some messed up shit sometimes and you will say or do things you don’t mean in the moment because you’re so upset. But acknowledging that you’ve made a mistake, that it’s all your fault and they didn’t do anything wrong, is the best thing you can do to correct the situation. And it really shows Swift’s maturity as a person and as a songwriter to include a song like this on her album. Also, this is PJ’s favorite song on the album, so I feel like I should have included it a little higher on the list. Sorry, baby!

Best lyric: Fighting with a true love is boxing with no gloves.

5. Lover

The most atmospheric song on the album. I wanted to not like this song because it’s so heavy and schmalzy, but I really do love it. Y’all know I’m sappy lovey-dovey, and this song is one big love letter to love, which is what she said her album is all about, so naturally I’m placing it high on the list. Me and PJ listened to this song the other night while we were in bed talking and it was the perfect background song to just be with him.

Best lyric: Can I go where you go? Can we always be this close? Forever and ever.

4. I Think He Knows

This song is SO MUCH FUN. It’s cute and poppy and boppy and I love the confidence she’s giving us. This album has a lot of 80’s sounding songs, almost more so than ‘1989’, and this is one of the best examples of it. The part right before the last chorus when the music really picks up and she belts, “I think he knooooooows!” gives me major Mariah Carey vibes and I am so here for it. Chills, every time.

Best lyric: I got that uhh, I mean, want to see what’s under that attitude. I want you, bless my soul.

3. Cornelia Street

I always think she’s at her best when it’s just her penning the songs, and this is a prime example. It’s sweet and a little melancholy, but the lyrics are so strong and you can’t help but sing along to the chorus when she sings, “And I hope I never lose you, hope this never ends.” And to be honest, I didn’t want the song to end, either.

Best lyric: Years ago we were just inside, barefoot in the kitchen, sacred new beginnings that became my religion, listen.

 2. The Man

This. Song. Is. So. Good. She’s been extremely vocal the last few years about feminism, and this song wraps everything up in a big bow and delivers it with all of the Haim-inspired gusto it can muster. The beat and music is full on Haim, but the smart and sharp lyrics are all Swift. So many good points made and I love the Leo reference in Saint Tropez. Also, I didn’t know how to pronounce Saint Tropez until this song, so I really owe her a lot for this one.

Best lyrics: If I was out flashing my dollars I’d be a bitch, not a baller, they paint me out to be bad, so it’s okay that I’m mad.

1. Cruel Summer

For me, this song rivals Blank Space in how good of a song it is, which is a big claim to make, and the reason it comes in at number 1. The tempo, the picture it paints, how you feel when you listen to the song. The lyrics and the melody, it all just fits and makes me feel like I’m driving in a convertible with the top down, cruising down the California highway as the sun is setting. Not that I’ve ever done that, but that’s how powerful this song is! It paints such a vivid picture and is easily one of her best songs to date.

Best lyric: He looks up grinning like a devil!

There you have it! Have you listened to the whole thing yet? What are your favorite songs on the album?

[defleurtradingco]

The Merry Month of Mirth- Despicable

(Previous: Homework , Next: Joint)

“Are you sure you will be all right?” Fortunato shot Solaina a look of disgust as she spun around in her chair to face the back wall of her office instead.

“I’m fine.” Came Lucien’s voice from the other end of the line. “I just...don’t remember much of it. Did something happen?”

“Aside from you being thrown across the room, no, nothing extraordinary.” There was a hiss. Solaina couldn’t help but hold in a laugh.

“Anyway...This doesn’t make us allies in any capacity, now that they’re out of the way. I hope you remember that.” “I will. Thank you for helping us.” “...You’re welcome.” At that, Lucien hung up, as did Solaina.

“Why even spend a MOMENT talking to that imbecile. He could have done something to our phone lines or-” “Somehow,” Solaina leaned forward on her desk, “I think we will be fine.”

Fortunato shook his head, sighing with disapproval.

“It is strange though,” She continued, “Back at the warehouse… He was speaking...not like himself.”

“What do you mean?”

“He spoke in the same way Mr. Lowrey typically does. Which I found to be unusual. But I did not realize it at the time. Did anything happen on the surface?”

“No,” Fortunato shrugged. “Not that I recall. If you are asking if he changed into a bat, no, he did not. We stayed together.”

“Hm...” “Perhaps he bit one or two of the Jesters during that time. I do not remember. Why?” “Nothing.” Solaina stood up, taking her laptop with her. “I am going to go check on Adrian. Are you coming along?” “No. I have better things to do.” Fortunato rolled his eyes. He’d given Adrian another tongue lashing, but that was about all.

Solaina expected no less. “If you change your mind-” “Do not worry, I won’t.” With a dismissive wave, Fortunato saw himself out of her office, departing to the complete opposite end of the facility.

“Of course not...”

As she made her way downstairs and across the lobby, she had to give pause.

“TELL HER THE MASTER’S CONSORT DEMANDS AN AUDIENCE WITH THE DESPICABLE VIPER THAT RUNS THIS SHAM OF A COMPANY-” Fabio was on a rampage with the front desk person (who looked rather deadpan about it in trying to calm him down.)

Hedous stood, or floated, behind him without a care in the world. He was far too occupied with looking around at the interior design for whatever reason.

Solaina almost hesitated before finally coming over, letting out a sharp whistle to get Fabio’s attention. “I am here.” “THERE you are-” The consort marched right up to her, waving and pointing a finger towards her accusingly and menacingly. “We come ALL THIS WAY just to be- to be SIDELINED LIKE THAT- HOW DARE YOU!!”

“You’ve both helped us an enormous amount- if it is compensation you are wanting then I can arrange-”

“NO IT’S NOT THAT IT’S THE PRINCIPLE OF IT!! YOU CAN’T JUST- CAN’T JUST WASTE THE MASTER’S TIME LIKE THAT!! EVEN IF HE HAS NO REAL CONCEPT OF IT-”

Hedous placed a hand onto Fabio’s shoulder gently, “There’s no need, we were glad to be of assistance Solaina DeFleur.” “B-BUT MASTER-” The angel shook his head. “We will return home now...If there is anything you require, you need only ask, any time.” Solaina stared up at Hedous for a long moment before nodded. “I will...And I will try to put as much time into completing the island as you requested when I am able to.”

Hedous smiled, content. “Thank you. Come along Fabio.” Fabio grumbled and glanced back over his shoulder a few times as the two made their way out of the lobby and towards the front exit. “But- Master we didn’t even really DO anything- this was such a waste-” “We were where we needed to be.”

The answer wasn’t satisfactory, but Fabio didn’t question it any more.

Once they were gone, Solaina continued to the infirmary without further interruption.

Adrian had been there since they’d returned. For the most part he was fine. A little traumatized and scuffed up, but overall, whole and healthy.

There was a knock on the door as he buttoned up his shirt after one last physical exam. “If you’ve come to poke me with more things I can ASSURE you I’ve had quite enough of that.” Solaina opened the door, “No, I did not bring a pen with me.” “Oh, it’s you. What is it?” He was stuffing down all the emotion. She could tell. “Nothing. I came to check on you was all.”

Adrian frowned and broke eye contact briefly as he straightened his shirt out. “Oh. Well, I’m fine. Nothing is wrong, no fingers or toes or eyes missing.”

“That’s good. I’ll need you to file a report as soon as you’re able considering you were eaten, albeit briefly-” Adrian spun around slowly, exasperated. “I have just gone through SEVERE trauma and already you are demanding things from me. Why am I not surprised. I knew you would have come down here for more than just a wellness check.”

Solaina smirked. “Good, you pick up on things. I am impressed that you are increasingly becoming more aware as the months go by. In some things.” He scowled. “That isn’t- Ugh.” Then he gave up. “Fine...but I am going to be slow about it.”

“Excellent. See? Not so difficult. Now, shall I treat you to lunch while we are at it?” “Tempting but no, thank you. I have other business I need to see to that I’m already late for.” Adrian let his shoulders drop as he sighed. “Mainly this,” He motioned to his entire head as his tongue flitted out.

Solaina put a finger to her chin, “Hm. I don’t know, you look fine like this, you know.” “I do not.” He hissed back. “I’m leaving now.”

“Have a safe trip back.”

Adrian shook his head slightly as he rolled his eyes and left the recovery room.

Solaina sucked her teeth for a moment before following him out and heading in the opposite direction, towards the dorms and common room nearby.

Before she entered however, she paused. “I am coming in,” She announced.

There was the brief sound of people moving, or moving apart, before a timid voice answered. “S-Solaina!”

She stepped into the room. “Ah, there you are Dr. McPhearson. Mr. Lowrey.”

Lowrey had an arm draped over the back of the couch while Liam sat next to him nervously with his hands firmly resting on his own lap. “Hey Solaina, how’s Adrian? Got a lil’ caught up in other stuff. Was gonna check up on him eventually.” Not that the vampire was to hasty to do so. Besides, he could smell his cologne on her (from her simply being in Adrian’s presence.)

“He had to return home to tend to business. But he is doing well.” “Shoulda figured.”

Liam cleared his throat. “That’s...good? Well I mean- it’s a miracle he was returned at all!”

“Yes,” She had the Rainbow Serpent to thank for that. “I think things will be a bit quiet on his end for a while.”

“Oh! Speaking of which, I meant to tell you I’ve been looking into this whole thing with Tahrek. Er- that is to say we’ve been trying to figure out just what these Jesters or even Mirth could possibly be- yes they’re faeries for certain but they still need to be classified. We hardly have any information on them aside from whatever the agents manage to tell us in the reports they’ll be filing, hopefully soon.”

“Yes, they are due by the end of next week at the latest. Unfortunately I must ask that you return to your normal duties as soon as you can, as they are equally important.”

Liam’s expression fell slightly, but he kept a smile on his face. “O-of course, Solaina. I just...thought perhaps you needed the extra hands at the time- ahah-” He wrung his hands nervously.

Lowrey gave him a reassuring few pats on the back. “Don’t worry about it, we got things covered here just fine.” “And will you be returning to Nevada as well, Mr. Lowrey?” Solaina eyed the vampire now. Like she was searching for something.

“Probably a good idea if I’m close by ta Adrian after his little run in with those clowns if ya ask me. Who’s gonna come to his rescue in case anything ELSE decides ta jump out at him from his windows?”

Solaina chuckled. “That is true. I will leave that up to you then.” She turned to walk away then, but paused. “Oh- by the way- I was wondering something.” “And that would be...” Lowrey raised a brow.

“Lucien was acting rather strangely when we descended down into the warehouse. In the way he spoke, that is. Do you know anything about that?”

The vampire glanced towards the ceiling briefly. “Hmmm...” Then shrugged dramatically. “Nope. Don’t know anything about that, considerin’ ya had me up top. Maybe he’s finally losin’ a few screws. Happens ta the best of us.”

“...Right… Well then. Carry on.”

Liam held still until she’d gone entirely, sighing loudly. “Well… at least she bothered to announce her arrival...”

Lowrey grinned, “Ya think I woulda been bothered by someone watching? Hardly,” He scooted closer towards the engineer. “So where were we?”

“Oh- well-”

As they leaned closer towards one another, a pair of feet came shuffling from around a corner, accompanied by plastic rattling. “Hey guys! Anyone wanna play Chinese checkers?” Ben called out suddenly.

Liam practically jumped out of his skin, but was rather fortunate to have a vampire to catch him at all.

[snuggietuan]

BAMBAM GIRLFRIEND SERIES // HOW YOU MEET

Word Count: 1817

Your life was actually so boring. Going through the same routine as always. Wake up, go to school, go to work, sleep. You were getting tired of your boring ass life and you needed something new. Your parents pressured you into going to this specific college and you were so broke. You were barely getting by after paying for rent and taking care of yourself. It was hard to find time for yourself since you were so caught up in school and working for money.

Your alarm went off, stealing you away from the dream world you were in. You had always dreamed to get a stable job, a nice boyfriend, and maybe get married and having kids. But life was looking the complete opposite of that. You found your phone buried under your pillow and hurry and tapped snooze. It wouldn’t hurt to sleep in for at least another 10 minutes right?

10 minutes later, the annoying ringtone went off again and you set yourself up in bed, wiping your eyes and turning the alarm off. You headed to the bathroom and did the normal routine. Brushed them pearly whites, and got in the shower. This was your only time to mentally prepare yourself for the day.

You wrapped a towel around your body and rushed back to your room to get dressed. You just threw on some leggings and a sweater since the weather was starting to cool down a bit. You rarely ever did your makeup in the morning since you could come home and make yourself look presentable for work.

You grabbed your bags and books and headed out the door, walking to the campus that was near your apartment. It was rainy today which meant you had to carry an umbrella and avoid puddles. This was one of the disadvantages of your roommate having earlier classes than you. She took the car and left you to walk.

You arrived at your class, your socks almost completely soaked from accidentally stepping in puddles. Your day was already starting out terrible. You paid close attention to your professor's lectures but you somehow always drifted off into a daydream. 

You got your phone out from your bag and texted your roommate, you know, the one with the car?

You: Hey. I hate to be a bother but it’s raining and my feet are already soaked. Would it be too much to ask for a ride home?

You drew your attention back to the monitor your professor was teaching on. A few minutes later your phone vibrated

Cassidy: Sure it’s no problem. I would drive you to work but I have a date to catch. I’ll leave you a bus card.

You hated riding the bus, but it was better than no ride at all.

You: Sounds good. I’ll see you then!

You tucked your phone into your pocket and looked at the time on your laptop. You had barely 10 minutes left and you had to make it through it.

You put your laptop in the case and grabbed all your things and made your way to the entrance. You stood under a shelter for 5 minutes until you saw Cassidy’s car pull up. You hurried to open the door since it was pouring down.

She dropped you off at the apartment and you sprinted to your room to get ready for work. You worked at quite an expensive jewelry store so the employers did not have any time for trashy looking employees. You dried your hair and straightened it and put on some heavy makeup. You threw on some jewelry that your mother let you have from her collection and put on a form-fitting dress.

You snatched the bus card that Cassidy left you from the kitchen table and grabbed your purse and umbrella. You made your way to the bus stop that was near your place in 4-inch heels, and it was an understatement that your feet were already starting to hurt. They were not ready for this 4-hour shift you were about to work.

All was going well at work. You assisted a lovely couple looking for wedding bands. They looked absolutely cute and how you dreamed of having a man be so good to you. But then there was also your co-worker who could not go an entire shift without flirting with you. He probably thought you would never catch on to him, but you saw right through him. And your legs felt like they could give out at any moment.

The doorbell on the entrance rang and you whipped your head around to get a view of the customer. You were destined to assist the guy and beat your co-worker to it. You tried to keep a good posture with your aching feet as you made your way to the man.

“Good evening sir, are you interested in any engagement rings? We have a sale goi-” You began to start the staged introduction until the man cut you off.

“Actually I’m just looking for watches, you know, for myself.” He smiled awkwardly.

God damn it Y/N. Always fucking assuming that every guy that walks into the damn jewelry store is looking for a ring.

“My apologies. Here, I’ll show you our finest watches.”

He smiled and you led him to the other side of the store to show him what he was looking for. You showed him the silver watches and some that were on sale. There was absolutely nothing wrong with treating yourself. Damn you should probably take notes.

“What do you think would look good?” He asked you, pointing to one of the more expensive watches, and then pointing at a silver watch on sale.

You smiled and grabbed for the key attached to your wrist to unlock the glass display. “Why don’t we find out?”

You grabbed for the watches he pointed out to you and he tried them on and you could tell he was very pleased. He put one on his right wrist and one on his left to really tell the difference.

“Which one do you think looks better?” He asked you as he flexed his left arm, and then the right.

You put your index finger up to your lips and thought about it.

“Well, I think the expensive one makes you glow a ton. But if you’re on a budget then I would suggest you buy that one.”

“Would you buy this one for your boyfriend?” He questioned you on the spot. It made you a bit flustered, but it would be pretty rude of you to ignore a customer.

“Definitely, if I had one.” You smiled awkwardly at him, but it was just the truth.

“I’ll get this one then” Damn it must be nice to have money in your wallet to treat yourself.

“Excellent! Will that be all you’re looking for today” You asked him as you put the watches back into the display and locked it up.

“Yup that’s all”

“Okay well meet me at the first register and I’ll be back with your watch” You smiled brightly. You ran to the back of the store to fish for the watch he picked out. You came back and helped him pay for everything.

“I think I’ll just look a while longer, thank you though!” He smiled and carried his shopping bag around the store, admiring all the pieces. You heard the doorbell again and your co-worker was making his way out, pulling out a cigarette box. You sighed and followed him outside where he was leaned up against the building, lighting his cigar.

“Do you mind sharing?” You asked him. It had been a while since you smoked, but it wasn’t like you were gonna get addicted or anything, you just needed a chill pill.

He smirked and pulled out a stick for you, you stuck it in your mouth and lit the end for you. You inhaled and immediately started coughing.

“This is exactly why I don’t smoke” You sneered.

“Lame”

“Don’t be an ass” You punched his shoulder and continued smoking the cigar.

“So Y/N, you still single?” He questioned you.

“Don’t you ask me this every shift we have together?” You rolled your eyes at him.

“Cmon Y/N, why won’t you go out with me? Just one date!”

“That’s not how you get a date, Daniel, you have to be way nicer than that”

“Fine. Will you go out on a date with me please?” He asked again, softening his voice as he popped the question.

“No.”

Suddenly he was all up in your face. You could practically smell the pack of cigars he smoked throughout the day.

“Why are you being so stubborn? I have the looks, the potential to be your boyfriend, you just don’t wanna commit to a rel-”

“Hey, why don’t you get out of her face?” A man yelled from the distance, cutting Daniel off. You turned your head to the side to see the man you assisted earlier. That’s when he backed away and walked over to the guy.

“I was actually just returning to my duty.” He inhaled his cigar and blew it right into the man's face, but he did not move a muscle. Daniel took his cigarette out of his mouth and threw it on the ground, smashing it with his shoe, and walking back into the store.

The man walked to you and his expression told you that he was sincerely worried for you.

“Are you okay? That guy seemed like a dick.” He comforted you.

“I’ll be fine” You brushed your fingers through your hair and pulled the end of your dress down, throwing your nasty cigar onto the ground and stomping on it.

“I apologize. You didn’t need to see that.”

“It’s not your fault, who knows what he would have done if I hadn’t come out.”

You seriously didn’t know what else to say. You knew Daniel was a cocky bastard that would constantly flirt with you on shifts, no matter how many times you rejected him, but you never expected him to get up in your bubble.

“I should probably head back to my job. I hope you enjoy your watch.” You started making your way to the front door until the boy stopped you.

He took a random piece of paper out of his wallet and started writing something down.

“Here take this. You can text me when you get home if you want. It’ll make me feel better if I know you made it home.” He smiled softly and perhaps your heart skipped a beat. A man, actually sincerely showing concern for you. Fuck.

You hesitantly took the paper and nodded.

“What’s your name?” You asked him, needing to know the name of the man that basically saved your ass.

“Kunpimook. But really though, call me BamBam”

[musicprincess655]

Aya pushed away her laptop. She’d just finished typing up a report on the Joker’s death, based on what the Titans had told her and what she already knew. She almost hadn’t wanted to, but the rest of the Justice League deserved to know that one of the most dangerous criminals out there was dead, and they deserved proof.

She heard someone quietly enter her study, and based on the footfalls, she knew it was Haruichi.

“Okaasan?” Haruichi was already at her side before Aya could finish turning to greet him. He was bigger than she remembered, at that age where he’d grow quickly until he reached his adult height just like Ryou had, but still too small for all the pain in his world. “How do you do it?”

“Do what?”

“You and Aniki, you’re both so strong.” Haruichi twisted his hands together. “How can I be strong like you?”

Aya’s heart broke for him.

“I’m not strong, Haru-chan, and neither is your brother,” she told him. “Not crying isn’t a sign of strength.”

“But Aniki avenged Shun-chan, and I-”

“What your brother is doing isn’t a sign of strength either,” Aya said. “He just thinks it’s a better option than letting himself grieve.”

“Isn’t it?”

Aya sighed. She’d really hoped she would have longer before she had to tell her youngest son her story.

“I know you don’t have Ryou-chan’s experience, but I’ve taught you to be a detective too,” she said gently. “Haven’t you ever wondered why we’ve only met your father’s parents?”

She couldn’t see Haruichi’s eyes, couldn’t see the way they must have gone wide when he figured it out.

“They died?” he asked. “When?”

“When I was a little younger than you,” Aya said. It might have felt like a lot younger to Haruichi if he knew her actual age at the time, but it was so hard for her to stop seeing how small her son was. “And for a long time, I didn’t cry over it. I thought I was being strong, but in the end, I was just so scared that if I let myself break I’d never be able to put myself back together again.”

“So you just never cried?” Haruichi asked.

“I didn’t say that,” Aya said. “Grief’s a funny thing. You can’t ever really get away from it. You just have to let it take its course.”

“So what did you do?”

“For a long time, I thought I was okay,” Aya said. “And I even thought I was getting better. But really, I was just getting better at acting. It wasn’t until Alfred started dragging me to therapy that anything changed.”

“Then what happened?”

“Almost exactly what I was afraid of. I broke. I broke into so many pieces I didn’t think there was a chance of putting them all back together again. I didn’t even know where to start.”

“But you’re okay now.”

“Yes, I am.” Aya sighed. “Your father pointed out to me that I didn’t have to pick up all the pieces on my own. I could let everyone I loved help, and they could put me together when I couldn’t do it for myself.”

Haruichi didn’t look convinced, but Aya also knew he was at his limit for pretending he was okay.

“Alfred was the one who really for me through it, though,” Aya admitted. “I’ve realized now that he was the father I desperately needed when I lost my parents.”

“What did he do?” Haruichi asked. His hands were shaking.

“Reminded me that even if it felt like everything was collapsing around me, the world wasn’t ending. And he was right. My parents’ death wasn’t the end of the world,” Aya said, feeling her face fall into a sad smile. “But for a long time, it was the end of mine.”

“How long?”

“Too long.” Aya took his trembling hands in her own. They were already bigger than hers. “Let yourself mourn Shunpei. It’s not a sign of weakness. And until you’re ready to hold your own pieces together, let me hold them for you.”

It started off as a trickle; a sniff, a wet eye. And then the floodgates burst.

Haruichi flung himself into her arms, tears streaming down his face, tiny body shaking. His sobs almost became screams in his grief and pain and rage.

Maybe the rage should have surprised Aya, but as much as Haruichi was mellower than her and Ryou put together, as much as he took after his father in temperament, he was still her son.

Aya let her own tears fall into Haruichi’s hair, finally letting herself mourn as well for the son she’d lost.

Eventually, Haruichi calmed down to sniffles and hiccups, but he didn’t leave Aya’s arms.

“Do you still want to be my Robin?” she asked quietly. He turned to look up at her. “Now you know the dangers of this life. Do you still want it?”

A change came over Haruichi’s face. Even with half of it hidden, Aya could see the way his jaw set, stubborn and defiant. It reminded her of Ryou at that age.

It reminded her of herself at that age.

“Yes.”

“Then we’ll start training,” Aya promised. “We’ll start with self-defense.”

***

“So,” Jun said, leaning into Tetsu’s side Tetsu lifted an arm to accommodate him. “Do you wanna start, or should I?”

“Start what?”

“You think we’re not gonna talk about completely missing the ‘kill Joker’ mission?” Jun asked. “The only thing anyone in our team has worked on for four months? That thing we totally missed because we were off the grid for five days?”

“That’s not our fault,” Tetsu said. “It was nothing for months. We had no reason to believe it wouldn’t be nothing for months.”

“Still.”

“You always visit your parents around this time,” Tetsu continued. He squeezed Jun’s shoulders. It almost felt like Jun was blaming himself for...what exactly? No one was dead, no one was even hurt. Except for the Joker, but that had been the point.

“So you’re completely fine that we missed it?”

Of course he wasn’t. Tetsu had been just as angry, just as hurt when he’d learned what Ryou and Kuramochi were keeping from them. He’d thrown himself into helping track down the Joker, determined to prove to Ryou how wrong he’d been. He’d been looking forward to paying back the loss of one of their own. He hadn’t known the new Robin that well, but he had been a good kid. Maybe a little violent, but Tetsu considered that one of his virtues.

“What is there to talk about?” Tetsu asked instead. “We missed it. There’s nothing we can do about it.”

“It sucks!” Jun complained, knocking a fist backwards that more or less bounced off Tetsu’s chest. “Ryou still doesn’t look okay, Kuramochi looks like he’s trying to pick up the pieces, Miyuki looks like he’s trying not to puke his guts up, and Sawamura’s just trying to hold everyone together through sheer force of will or something. And that’s just our team.”

“Young Justice isn’t getting back together, is it?” Tetsu asked, to cover up the fact that he thought Ryou was doing okay. He probably wasn’t an objective observer, though. He’d been told he ‘used violence and danger to compensate for lack of emotional stability’, which was completely fair after his entire planet was wiped out, in his opinion.

“Doesn’t look like it,” Jun said. “That sucks too. I know they were our rivals, but they were our friends too.”

Tetsu nodded. The teams had made it almost a game to steal missions from each other. None of the Titans had expected to like the new kids, and they’d all been surprised. To have everyone leave…

Well, Jun had already said it. Twice. It sucked.

“I say we give it a week before we start trying to put everyone back together,” Jun said. “That should give Ryou enough time to get it out of his system.”

“Get what out of his system?”

“Someday, we’re gonna have to get you back in touch with your emotions,” Jun said, but he accompanied it with a friendly shove, so Tetsu figured he was safe for now. “Getting his ‘pretending this is what he wanted’ shit out of his system.”

***

Kazuya dropped his bow as he pulled his equipment off after a patrol with his dad. That was odd. He hadn’t done that in years. The one thing he’d always had going for him was steady hands.

Then as he leaned over to pick it up, his glasses started sliding down his nose, and somehow he fumbled that catch entirely, and only succeeded in dumping his entire quiver. Kazuya whined in frustration, because did the entire world have to be against him now? Couldn’t he do something right?

“Miyuki Kazuya.” Sawamura knelt into his line of vision, picking up stray arrows. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Kazuya said. He could see just fine with his contacts in, but he felt weirdly naked without anything in front of his eyes.

“Your hands are shaking.”

Kazuya looked down. So they were. That was probably how he’d managed to fumble everything he was holding.

Sawamura had finished gathering up all the equipment, but he didn’t move to hand it back to Kazuya. Instead, he reached out, cupping Kazuya’s hands between his own. It only made the shaking more obvious, even as it stabilized them.

And Kazuya couldn’t take it anymore. He pulled his hands free and threw his arms around Sawamura, desperate for any measure of comfort. Sawamura startled back, but before Kazuya could start regretting his impulse, warm arms circled around his back.

Kazuya leaned his cheek against Sawamura’s neck, feeling more than hearing the beat pulsing there.

All through his patrol, he hadn’t been able to shake the image of shooting down the Joker’s henchmen. Hadn’t been able to forget clearing a path for Ryou to run. Couldn’t forget what he’d been allowing Ryou to do.

He’d barely been able to keep his eyes open when he and Sawamura had walked in and seen what Ryou had done. What kind of hero was he? He’d seen a dead body before. This wasn’t supposed to be anything new.

“It’s okay,” Sawamura said, holding him closer. Kazuya just buried his face in Sawamura’s shoulder, because it wasn’t. “It’ll be okay.”

Kazuya wanted to ask how he could be so sure. But he wasn’t sure he would believe the answer, and he needed to believe it. He needed to believe everything would be okay.

Even if it didn’t feel like it could be.

***

Takako wasn’t good at following people unseen. In fact, if she didn’t have Wakana helping, she didn’t think she’d have been able to follow Katsuko at all. Not when Katsuko so clearly didn’t want to be followed.

But Katsuko hadn’t answered her phone in days, and they were all that was left of Young Justice, and Takako had to know why. She knew Wakana wanted to know, as well. If they were supposed to be all each other had left, why was Katsuko avoiding them?

Why was she going out alone at night, in a plain black costume that no one would ever connect to Artemis?

Maybe it shouldn’t have surprised Takako when Katsuko dropped onto a roof and Nightwing stepped out of the shadows, but it did.

“Is there a particular reason we’re meeting in costume?” Katsuko asked.

“I’m confirming a suspicion,” Ryou said. “Do you even still have your Artemis gear?”

Takako almost scoffed at the question. Of course Katsuko still had it, what else would she patrol in?

“Toku-san is holding onto it for me,” Katsuko said. “He said I might want it back someday, but I don’t think I will.”

“Why not?”

“Artemis was Robin’s partner. Artemis was Young Justice’s archer.” Katsuko sighed, her shoulders slumping. “I’m not either of those things anymore.”

“Young Justice needs a leader,” Ryou said. “You were Robin’s partner. You should be next in line.”

“I can’t,” Katsuko said. “You know I can’t.”

“So you’re just leaving?” Ryou asked.

“I’m going back to America,” Katsuko said. “I can’t...be here, anymore.”

“And you’re not saying goodbye, are you.”

“They won’t understand,” Katsuko sighed. “Batgirl has your family, and Zatanna wasn’t on the team that long. She’ll be fine. They’ll both be fine. They don’t need me.”

“Sounds like an excuse.”

“Takes one to know one.”

Katsuko and Ryou stared each other down.

“Are you ever coming back?” Ryou asked.

“Maybe,” Katsuko said. “I took exams at school early, so I can go back if I want. But I need to get away.”

Takako was done listening. She could already barely contain her sobs. And then Wakana was there, and Takako muffled herself against Wakana’s shoulder.

That was it. Their team was gone. Takako had nothing to return to but an empty house and a father that wasn’t coming home, stuck as the host to the world’s greatest magician.

Though silent, Takako could feel Wakana’s shoulders shaking. It really had to be over, then.

***

Ryou tried to go back to business as usual, he really did. There was double the work to take care of now that Young Justice was permanently dissolved, and Ryou should’ve already planned out how to take care of it.

But instead, he was holed up in his room, choking on his own emotions.

Joker was dead. Joker was dead, he wasn’t supposed to feel this way anymore, but instead, Ryou only felt the pieces of his chest flying apart faster.

“Ryou-san?”

Ryou was turning before he could think, desperate to just feel anything that wasn’t pain and guilt. He grabbed fists full of shirt, hauling Kuramochi in and slamming him against the wall. Kuramochi made a sound of surprise against his lips as Ryou shoved his tongue in.

This could’ve been anyone and Ryou wouldn’t have cared, but a distant part of his mind was glad it was Kuramochi.

Kuramochi kissed him back, moaning into his mouth, gripping his hair with splayed fingers. Ryou’s jaw almost ached with how wide it had dropped to get his tongue as far down Kuramochi’s throat as possible.

Ryou shoved his knee between Kuramochi’s legs, grinding up, felt the strong runner’s thighs clamp down on him, just for a second, before Kuramochi’s lips went still. He pushed against Ryou’s chest and mumbled against the lips Ryou still had smashed against his mouth.

“No,” Kuramochi repeated, trying to escape back into the wall and push Ryou away at the same time.

“Why…?” Ryou asked, unable to ask anything else. He couldn’t be wrong. He knew he wasn’t wrong. Kuramochi had feelings for him, that was a known fact, and Kuramochi had kissed him back.

“Not while you’re grieving,” Kuramochi said. “I can’t be just a one night stand, or a fling, I...this can’t be just because you want to feel something that doesn’t hurt.”

“But I…”

“I thought we didn’t lie to each other.” And Ryou fell silent, because they didn’t. “You haven’t exactly been the poster child for healthy grieving, you know. And I bet you thought if you could just kill Joker, this would all go away. And it hasn’t. And you want it to.”

“Wouldn’t you?” Ryou asked. “Don’t you?”

Kuramochi had cared about Sanada. How could he not be hurting just as bad?

“Not like this,” Kuramochi repeated. All the awful feeling in Ryou’s chest coalesced back into rage, and he drew his fist back before he knew what he was doing.

The hit never landed, though. Kuramochi was too fast.

“Ryou-san,” he said again, holding Ryou’s wrist against his heart, fluttering oh so fast.

“No!” Ryou snapped, screeched, choked out. “No, fuck you, fuck you!”

Kuramochi just pulled him in closer, ignoring how hard he struggled to get away. Didn’t comment when he finally stopped.

Ryou’s sobs were cut off, shoved down, as quiet as they could be against the storm inside him. He was supposed to be okay, he was supposed to be okay, why wasn’t he okay?

Kuramochi’s chest trembled against Ryou’s cheek with his own sobs, his own pain, cut into his heart as deep as Ryou’s. They slid down the wall, Ryou protected between Kuramochi’s knees, face buried to hide his grief and guilt and shame.

Kuramochi just held him close, grip tight on his wrist, although there was no risk of Ryou throwing another punch now. And slowly, Ryou didn’t have any sobs left to give.

He sat up then, pulling his wrist away from Kuramochi and wiping his face.

“Sorry,” he said hoarsely.

“‘S fine,” Kuramochi told him gruffly. “Just...you know what you’re feeling is normal, right?”

“He thought I hated him,” Ryou said, instead of a real answer. “I never told him I didn’t. He died thinking I hated him, and I can’t take it back.”

Kuramochi didn’t say anything to that. There was no answer to a problem it was too late to solve.

“You know you can always talk to me, right? I’m always here.”

“I know,” Ryou said, despite the fact that he had no intention of talking about this anymore. He’d deal with it.

He had to.

“And when you’re done figuring this out...then we’ll talk,” Kuramochi said. “I want to talk about us. And I want to do it when you’re not still angry and sad.”

“When will that be?” Ryou asked. “When will you decide I’m ready to have this conversation?”

“You’ll know, and if you want to, you’ll come to me,” Kuramochi said. “I...hope you’ll come to me.”

Then he stood up, as if he could sense that Ryou needed to be left alone now, and edged out of the room, closing the door behind him.

And Ryou was left with the broken pieces of his soul.

[snapshotadeline]

Adeline on Hiatus 2020

This is how Adeline spent 2020, copy and pasted directly from discord with Darcy’s player and not edited because fuck it I’m lazy.

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

I think Adeline takes the time to work on personal projects, because it’s something she hasn’t had the time for and she misses it

cassandra july’s abs02/27/2020

She’s gonna be hanging out at Bold doing all her projects omg

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

a significant amount of time is probably spent in the blanket nest that is sure to become a semi-permanent fixture in Darcy’s office, yes

[1:46 PM]

the first couple weeks at least 4 people ask, on any given day, if Adeline would like a chair or something that isn’t the floor and 9 times out of 10 she answers that, that’s what Darcy’s lap is for

cassandra july’s abs02/27/2020

Omfg Darcy snorts

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

but I do think she limits that time to after therapy and on really bad days, because she doesn’t wanna be in the way and as much as she knows Darcy doesn’t mind working around her, she does know it’s not as conducive to work as they perhaps wish it was. And she honestly likes her blanket nest that she always makes sure to fold neatly and out of the way when she leaves (cos she starts just leaving them there to make it easier). She probably bakes more, tries new recipes, brings them in for Darcy’s employees. Makes them both dinner and brings it to the office when she knows Darcy is really caught up in work and probably won’t leave til late. And she has to explain to her therapist (who is high key worried about dependency issues) that she could work anywhere and she does work at the studio, but she enjoys the environment Bold offers and yes, that means being around her girlfriend, but she’d just as easily spend time in Darcy’s office WITHOUT Darcy there because, ultimately, she’s been working alone since she broke into the business, and while she has a handful of people who work at either studio, 90% of all work is done so separately, there’s rarely anyone there. But at Bold, if she gets particularly bored of working in Darcy’s office she can probably go find someone else willing to let her camp out in a corner. She probably does this at some point too, like finds herself in various offices and work spaces and people actually ask her opinion on like article layouts or some shit cos they realize that she might be able to help, probably cos she walks by someone who seems frustrated, back pedals and takes a look and just given an offhand suggestion to try this thing and it works. And like, she’s not even necessarily doing it on purpose but I think in a lot of ways, Bold thrives in a way it hasn’t before while Adeline is just hanging out.

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

OMG, so when Darcy hires whoever, to replace Ben, they’re just like “who is the woman in the beanie?” cos confusion as to why she’s always around and dressed like that to a group of people and there are a handful of distinct answers:

Boss’ girlfriend

Adeline Finley-Jackson (some include the word Fucking between her first and last names apparently)

Don’t you know your photographers?

Office mom - this sparks an argument over whether or not she’s best labelled mom or aunt, they do ultimately agree on mom

cassandra july’s abs02/27/2020

I LOVE HELPFUL ADELINE OMG

[2:17 PM]

LMFAO OMG YES

[2:18 PM]

The replacement ofc doesn’t ask Darcy

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

I mean, to be fair, in a work environment asking coworkers before asking the boss is usually how one goes about gaining information. but it is possible the strange array of answers prompts them to be like “So… I’ve kinda gathered who she is, but why is she here?” Adeline, walking in to flop down into her nest “Cos I can be.”

cassandra july’s abs02/27/2020

This is very true

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

Cos I think they try to crowdsource that answer to but no one has an actual answer and some people are just like “She’s been hanging around longer than I’ve been here.”

[2:25 PM]

The person just looking at Adeline, who is sat in her nest with a lollipop and her laptop, so confused and turning to Darcy like “Does she work here?”

“When I want to.”

cassandra july’s abs02/27/2020

LMAO

[2:29 PM]

Darcy is “Don’t worry about it.”

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

“You look like you could use a muffin. They’re in a box in the breakroom. Go. Get the muffin. Eat the muffin. Don’t stress.”

The person just kinda does what they’re told because a) muffins and b) it seems like the less confusing option

OMG some executive or something in the industry is on a visit and asks how Darcy got Adeline on her staff/ if it’s weird given they’re dating and Darcy is just like “She’s not my employee.”

“But we walked by that office, she was working.”

“She does that for fun. She wasn’t hired to do it, she wasn’t asked to do it, she just started doing it. And I’ve learned not to question what my girlfriend chooses to do in her spare time.”

[2:41 PM]

And it probably comes up as a concern with some people that maybe they’re taking advantage of it, when they ask Adeline’s help with stuff but what none of them pick up on, until she goes back to working, and is thus only in the office a couple days a week for more than like an hour, is that all they’re doing is learning from a resource that is freely offered to them.

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

Please imagine Adeline (after having the IT people make sure EVERY computer in the office is set to sleep when the power button is pressed) walking up on someone completely stressing themself out over a thing, hitting the power button and in response to the following freak out going “You need to stop. Five minutes. Take five minutes. Go for a walk, get a drink, eat a snack. Just sit here and do anything but that and then go back to it. You’ll thank me later.” And then not only does she ultimately train them to do it to each other, she trains them to do it to themselves. To take those 5 minutes when things just AREN’T working and step away and reset cos like 9 times out of 10 they figure out what the hell was wrong way faster than if they didn’t. And they even manage to apply it to non-computer related work.

Though I feel like the first time she does it to Darcy she sits in Darcy’s lap and physically forces her to give her attention for those 5 minutes.

[2:57 PM]

And cos the employees learn from Adeline they start to turn things in that need less revisions, which makes Darcy’s work a hell of a lot easier

cassandra july’s abs02/27/2020

THIS IS DELIGHTFUL

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

And like, her logic is simple: better a 5 minute break to reset than spending all this time doing nothing but frustrating yourself.

It’s something she taught herself with editing photos. If the thing doesn’t look right STOP LOOKING AT IT and try again later when everything has stopped blurring together. And all it takes is 5 minutes for that little reset.

cassandra july’s abs02/27/2020

She gets kisses and “thank you for looking after them”

Aka Adeline goes on hiatus and accidentally revolutionizes the way Bold works

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

“They just seemed so stressed.”

[3:23 PM]

But OMG they come back from Disney (in which Adeline was very serious about there being no business outside of absolute emergencies) and Darcy expects things to be a bit of a mess, cos that’s how it’s been other times, but it’s not, cos her little family has figured out how to get things done without constantly needing her approval on every little thing cos they’re actually confident in what they’ve come up with

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

Which, of course, people take notice of because Bold was amazing before but now it’s even better and that’s HARD to do so there’s an interview with Darcy about it, and like you don’t give away your secrets so the answer is that Adeline made the entire office her personal project and the interviewer is just ??? Because what does that even mean? She’s a photographer. But like Darcy’s just like “You’d have to ask her.” Because let’s be real, even Darcy isn’t 100% sure what happened, she just knows Adeline did.

[3:33 PM]

“The best thing that ever happened to me, happened to Bold. Adeline.”

cassandra july’s abs02/27/2020

Omfg “She was the missing piece of the Bold puzzle.”

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

Omg imagine Adeline forgetting Darcy had an interview and like realizes as she’s walking in, cos she hears her name and is just like, “Didn’t mean to interrupt. I’ll come back.” And even the interviewer is like “Can you stay though?”

cassandra july’s abs02/27/2020

DARCY PATS HER LAP

I feel like, by next year when Adeline proposes people are almost more scared of Adeline than they are Darcy because in being with Darcy and working on her mental health, Adeline grows as a person. She gains stability and in that stability she gains confidence. Sure, she still rocks skinny jeans and a band tee with a beanie more times than she doesn’t, but she walks like the punk she is. Head held high, shoulders back, and smile soft. The first person to tell you off for being a dick but also the first person to react to a child crying. She finally finds the balance she’s been looking for since becoming a professional photographer. The balance between the person she is and the work she does.

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

Adeline just happily doing so, settling herself in Darcy’s lap like the fucking throne it is. And like, what was supposed to be an interview with Darcy turns into an interview with what is, essentially, the fashion industry’s power couple. And like Adeline is very open about what she did because yes, she holds a loyalty to Darcy and in turn to Bold, she’s the kind of person who wants to see the world thrive and if no one out there is pushing as hard as Bold is, then the industry stagnates. Nothing gets better. To be on top without challenge is to become complacent and prone to falling.

[darkmasterkattsvault-arc]

Sober Adeline on Hiatus 2020

this is just a bunch of info I sent to @clamoringvoices at the beginning of the year about how Adeline ultimately spent 2020. copy and pasted directly from discord and not edited because fuck it I’m lazy.

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

I think Adeline takes the time to work on personal projects, because it's something she hasn't had the time for and she misses it

cassandra july’s abs02/27/2020

She’s gonna be hanging out at Bold doing all her projects omg

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

a significant amount of time is probably spent in the blanket nest that is sure to become a semi-permanent fixture in Darcy's office, yes

[1:46 PM]

the first couple weeks at least 4 people ask, on any given day, if Adeline would like a chair or something that isn't the floor and 9 times out of 10 she answers that, that's what Darcy's lap is for

cassandra july’s abs02/27/2020

Omfg Darcy snorts

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

but I do think she limits that time to after therapy and on really bad days, because she doesn't wanna be in the way and as much as she knows Darcy doesn't mind working around her, she does know it's not as conducive to work as they perhaps wish it was. And she honestly likes her blanket nest that she always makes sure to fold neatly and out of the way when she leaves (cos she starts just leaving them there to make it easier). She probably bakes more, tries new recipes, brings them in for Darcy's employees. Makes them both dinner and brings it to the office when she knows Darcy is really caught up in work and probably won't leave til late. And she has to explain to her therapist (who is high key worried about dependency issues) that she could work anywhere and she does work at the studio, but she enjoys the environment Bold offers and yes, that means being around her girlfriend, but she'd just as easily spend time in Darcy's office WITHOUT Darcy there because, ultimately, she's been working alone since she broke into the business, and while she has a handful of people who work at either studio, 90% of all work is done so separately, there's rarely anyone there. But at Bold, if she gets particularly bored of working in Darcy's office she can probably go find someone else willing to let her camp out in a corner. She probably does this at some point too, like finds herself in various offices and work spaces and people actually ask her opinion on like article layouts or some shit cos they realize that she might be able to help, probably cos she walks by someone who seems frustrated, back pedals and takes a look and just given an offhand suggestion to try this thing and it works. And like, she's not even necessarily doing it on purpose but I think in a lot of ways, Bold thrives in a way it hasn't before while Adeline is just hanging out.

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

OMG, so when Darcy hires whoever, to replace Ben, they're just like "who is the woman in the beanie?" cos confusion as to why she's always around and dressed like that to a group of people and there are a handful of distinct answers:

Boss' girlfriend

Adeline Finley-Jackson (some include the word Fucking between her first and last names apparently)

Don't you know your photographers?

Office mom - this sparks an argument over whether or not she's best labelled mom or aunt, they do ultimately agree on mom

cassandra july’s abs02/27/2020

I LOVE HELPFUL ADELINE OMG

[2:17 PM]

LMFAO OMG YES

[2:18 PM]

The replacement ofc doesn't ask Darcy

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

I mean, to be fair, in a work environment asking coworkers before asking the boss is usually how one goes about gaining information. but it is possible the strange array of answers prompts them to be like "So... I've kinda gathered who she is, but why is she here?" Adeline, walking in to flop down into her nest "Cos I can be."

cassandra july’s abs02/27/2020

This is very true

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

Cos I think they try to crowdsource that answer to but no one has an actual answer and some people are just like "She's been hanging around longer than I've been here."

[2:25 PM]

The person just looking at Adeline, who is sat in her nest with a lollipop and her laptop, so confused and turning to Darcy like "Does she work here?"

"When I want to."

cassandra july’s abs02/27/2020

LMAO

[2:29 PM]

Darcy is "Don't worry about it."

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

"You look like you could use a muffin. They're in a box in the breakroom. Go. Get the muffin. Eat the muffin. Don't stress."

The person just kinda does what they're told because a) muffins and b) it seems like the less confusing option

OMG some executive or something in the industry is on a visit and asks how Darcy got Adeline on her staff/ if it's weird given they're dating and Darcy is just like "She's not my employee."

"But we walked by that office, she was working."

"She does that for fun. She wasn't hired to do it, she wasn't asked to do it, she just started doing it. And I've learned not to question what my girlfriend chooses to do in her spare time."

[2:41 PM]

And it probably comes up as a concern with some people that maybe they're taking advantage of it, when they ask Adeline's help with stuff but what none of them pick up on, until she goes back to working, and is thus only in the office a couple days a week for more than like an hour, is that all they're doing is learning from a resource that is freely offered to them.

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

Please imagine Adeline (after having the IT people make sure EVERY computer in the office is set to sleep when the power button is pressed) walking up on someone completely stressing themself out over a thing, hitting the power button and in response to the following freak out going "You need to stop. Five minutes. Take five minutes. Go for a walk, get a drink, eat a snack. Just sit here and do anything but that and then go back to it. You'll thank me later." And then not only does she ultimately train them to do it to each other, she trains them to do it to themselves. To take those 5 minutes when things just AREN'T working and step away and reset cos like 9 times out of 10 they figure out what the hell was wrong way faster than if they didn't. And they even manage to apply it to non-computer related work.

Though I feel like the first time she does it to Darcy she sits in Darcy's lap and physically forces her to give her attention for those 5 minutes.

[2:57 PM]

And cos the employees learn from Adeline they start to turn things in that need less revisions, which makes Darcy's work a hell of a lot easier

cassandra july’s abs02/27/2020

THIS IS DELIGHTFUL

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

And like, her logic is simple: better a 5 minute break to reset than spending all this time doing nothing but frustrating yourself.

It's something she taught herself with editing photos. If the thing doesn't look right STOP LOOKING AT IT and try again later when everything has stopped blurring together. And all it takes is 5 minutes for that little reset.

cassandra july’s abs02/27/2020

She gets kisses and “thank you for looking after them”

Aka Adeline goes on hiatus and accidentally revolutionizes the way Bold works

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

"They just seemed so stressed."

[3:23 PM]

But OMG they come back from Disney (in which Adeline was very serious about there being no business outside of absolute emergencies) and Darcy expects things to be a bit of a mess, cos that's how it's been other times, but it's not, cos her little family has figured out how to get things done without constantly needing her approval on every little thing cos they're actually confident in what they've come up with

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

Which, of course, people take notice of because Bold was amazing before but now it's even better and that's HARD to do so there's an interview with Darcy about it, and like you don't give away your secrets so the answer is that Adeline made the entire office her personal project and the interviewer is just ??? Because what does that even mean? She's a photographer. But like Darcy's just like "You'd have to ask her." Because let's be real, even Darcy isn't 100% sure what happened, she just knows Adeline did.

[3:33 PM]

"The best thing that ever happened to me, happened to Bold. Adeline."

cassandra july’s abs02/27/2020

Omfg “She was the missing piece of the Bold puzzle.”

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

Omg imagine Adeline forgetting Darcy had an interview and like realizes as she's walking in, cos she hears her name and is just like, "Didn't mean to interrupt. I'll come back." And even the interviewer is like "Can you stay though?"

cassandra july’s abs02/27/2020

DARCY PATS HER LAP

I feel like, by next year when Adeline proposes people are almost more scared of Adeline than they are Darcy because in being with Darcy and working on her mental health, Adeline grows as a person. She gains stability and in that stability she gains confidence. Sure, she still rocks skinny jeans and a band tee with a beanie more times than she doesn't, but she walks like the punk she is. Head held high, shoulders back, and smile soft. The first person to tell you off for being a dick but also the first person to react to a child crying. She finally finds the balance she's been looking for since becoming a professional photographer. The balance between the person she is and the work she does.

darkmasterkatt02/27/2020

Adeline just happily doing so, settling herself in Darcy's lap like the fucking throne it is. And like, what was supposed to be an interview with Darcy turns into an interview with what is, essentially, the fashion industry's power couple. And like Adeline is very open about what she did because yes, she holds a loyalty to Darcy and in turn to Bold, she's the kind of person who wants to see the world thrive and if no one out there is pushing as hard as Bold is, then the industry stagnates. Nothing gets better. To be on top without challenge is to become complacent and prone to falling.