#i’m gonna make a tag for his sister cause i think i’ll draw/talk more about her in the future

[honeycollie]

warrrrrr and sisterrrrrr

[fandomsonrequests]

unexpected friend

fandom: ATEEZ

characters: choi san

reader: fem

word count: 5.4k

summary:  fate decided to test this decade long feud between you and choi san

notes: enemies to lovers AU, toxic themes, character death, substance abuse (it’s not explicit) such as alcohol and cigarettes, heavy themes, language, violence 

You had no idea where it started— you just knew that you hated Choi San with every fiber of your being. And unsurprisingly, the feeling is mutual with you.

Maybe it started in kindergarten when he accidentally pushed you to the ground in the game of tag. You got so mad at him, saying that he meant it when he obviously didn’t, calling him stupid because “all boys are stupid.”. Or maybe it started when you knocked over his tower of building blocks as revenge. Or was it when he dipped your pigtails in paint to get back at you? Or maybe the time he spread rumors that you had cooties causing everyone to avoid you like the plague.

Whatever the reason, it spiraled into a childhood rivalry that continued as you grew older. The endless cycle of cat versus dog, taking revenge on one another, followed into grade school, where you reached your horse phase and he reached his gun dam phase. It was inevitable you’d see him again— you both lived in a fairly small town after all.

Petty actions like drawing on the other’s homework turned into stealing each other’s lunches or setting some sort of prank at each other’s seats— whatever your ten-year-old brains could think of. Your screaming matches grew even worse and at one point, you both started throwing punches. The teachers always had to watch you during breaks because eventually, you’d be on top of each other and pulling at each other’s hair.

San had an advantage of course since he took taekwondo, you always ended up as the loser. But in retaliation, you managed to convince your mother to enroll you in some other martial art to protect yourself. And when you won your first little fistfight— you always made sure to lord it over him.

“Hah, you got beat by a little girl! Not so tough now huh potato-head?”

“Shut up horse-face!”

San saw your kindness and charisma towards others as an act. It was your own way of reeling others in to be on your side, gathering some sort of army to help you gang up against him. You on the other hand managed to convince yourself that his cute little dimples and selflessness for others was a facade, You couldn’t believe how many people he’s managed to fool or turn against you. And you’ve always hated him for that. You let it fester as you go through grade school and towards middle school. That hatred you harbored for him was always lit inside you.

Your parents and his were always apologizing to each other during parent-teacher meetings or school events, having to hold you back from jumping on one another. Your dad had given up on the whole thing so he was totally useless; that left you to run to your mother for comfort. Whatever the situation was, at the end of the day, she was always on your side.

“Things will blow over soon. But please, honey, try to stay out of trouble for me?”

So when she died in your junior year of high school, you couldn’t help but feel alone. Your dad had taken to smoking to cope with the loss, marrying a woman who was in love with alcohol while bringing her two hellish twin daughters with her into your home. Things grew miserable for you at home; your dad became a pathetic pushover, letting his new wife run the household. That made you angry— how could he get over your mother so easily? How could he let himself get walked over like that? How could he ignore the way your older step-sisters trampled all over you?

How could he let all this happen?

San’s endless taunting at school didn’t help either. His harmless pranks grew worse as time passed: spray-painting some nasty words on your locker, or setting a bucket of paint on top of the gym doors since you’re always the last one to head out. You’d heed your mother’s words, always doing your best to ignore him. For a while, it had worked and he pestered you less than usual but your mom’s death and the situation at home had triggered something in you, making you snap back. You’d shove his face down into his food during lunch or knock his books down the stairwell whenever you pass by each other. You had even managed to sneak some of the insects from the lab into his gym clothes, causing him to end up with nasty rashes all over his body for a week.

Your physical fights weren’t frequent but they became more violent, with one or both of you having to go to the nurses, holding an ice pack to your busted lips while a piece of gauze was stuck up his bloodied nose. It took several students or even teachers to pull you apart because most of the time no one wanted to jump in and separate you two; it was always so messy with fists and kicks flying everywhere. There was even one point where you both had to go to the hospital for fractured bones. You were both suspended for a week.

Fortunately, things had toned down now that you both were in your final year of high school with the pressure of college and meeting requirements looming over you. Although, neither of you managed to make up. You’d still exchange some foul words but the stupid pranks and fights had simmered down. That never meant you were on good terms though.

But then fate decided to be a little shit and put you in a situation you never thought you’d find yourself in.

Your new biology teacher didn’t seem to be informed about the decade-long feud between you and San. So when she assigned the both of you as partners, you felt your heart drop to your stomach as a sick feeling crawled over you. You wanted to cry and throw up at the same time- that’s just how much you despised him. You both tried to plead with her to change partners but she was as stubborn as a mule, insisting that you two can “sort out your differences” and finish this project as a team.

And now here you were, avoiding each other’s stares despite being sat next to each other. The proximity between you two was suffocating, it made it hard to focus on the project being explained to you by your cruel teacher. Your skin tingles unpleasantly whenever either of you shifted in your seat, your arms just several centimeters away from touching each other. Many thoughts ran through your head on how you can get out of this. But you knew that you had to find some time to work on the damn thing together or else you’d flunk high school— and being stuck in community college, never being able to leave this town, was not worth hitting San at the back of the head and gloating at him.

“You have the rest of the period to plan with each other. Make sure to have your presentation set and ready for next week.” Your teacher says and sits at her desk.

The room was filled with chatter as the students started conversing with each other. Many pairs threw knowing stares at you, worried that you’d be at each other’s throats. Surprisingly you weren’t… at least not yet anyway.

For a while, neither of you said anything to each other. San simply scrolled through his phone hidden under his desk while you organized your final notes. Minutes tick by and the class slowly comes to an end. With a heavy sigh, you decided to swallow your pride and talk to the guy.

You turn to the boy, roughly shoving his knee with yours and he sends you an irritated glare. “C’mon we need to plan for this.” You deadpan, ignoring the look he gave you.

San returned the sigh and pocketed his phone, shifting to face you. “Alright then. So what’s the plan?”

“That’s what we’re supposed to be talking about, dumbass.” You mutter, growing irritated. You clench your fists together in an attempt to keep your calm before continuing. “Anyway, we’re supposed to make some model of the nerve cells then present it.”

San stays quiet for a moment before speaking up. “My sister has some spare clay and wires from her sculpting hobby. I could ask for some.”

“Great. You work on that while I work on the script.” You conclude before going back to your notes.

“Hold on- you’re gonna leave me with all of the hard work?”

“We have the same workload?? I’m making the script.”

“That’s easy- scripts can be finished within a day or something.” San shot back, finding the arrangement you had set, without his consultation by the way, as unfair.

“Then I’ll help you when I’m done. Quit whining like a bitch.” You sigh, having no energy to continue the argument with him.

“Asshat…” He mumbles under his breath, pulling out his phone to text his sister. He expected some sort of retaliation from you but you simply remained quiet. That was odd- considering that you never missed the chance to have the last word in. Maybe you just weren’t feeling it today.

Nevertheless, he ignored you, deciding that it wasn’t worth pestering you at the moment. The bell rings, signaling the end of the class, and you’re immediately up and out of your seat, stuffing your notebook into your bag and swinging it over your shoulder. It almost hits San’s cheek in the process but you were already walking out the door before he could call you out on it.

“Geez…” He huffs and keeps his own things, glaring after you while hoping that time would fly by fast so that the project was done and over with.

~~

A few days have passed by since the biology class. True enough, you’ve finished writing and even printing the script within the day the project was assigned to you. So now you were stuck helping out San with sculpting the whole model. You two would work together at the back of the library after school. Initially the librarian was hesitant about letting the two of you inside given your reputation and all. But when she saw that neither of you were at each other’s throats, surprisingly, she allowed for you to work on it in the library.

Of course you and San still had some disputes— how it’s supposed to be positioned, what shape it’s supposed to take, yadda yadda. But it had never escalated into a full blown argument because it always ended up with you taking the blow of his harsh words. That alone started to concern the boy, you’d always get back at him. But your resigned silence after every quip he threw at you started to worry him. Sure he hated your guts but San wasn’t a nasty person. He knew something was bothering you. But, he never took the initiative to ask what was bothering you; it wasn’t his problem anyway.

~~

A weekend away from Monday aka the day of your presentation. The model was almost done— it just needed a paint job. Since it was a Saturday afternoon, meaning the school was closed, neither of you were able to work at your usual spot. So San decided to just take the whole thing to your home to finish it. Of course he could finish the whole thing himself but he had a party to attend later in the evening, and he didn’t want to miss out on it.

He arrives at your home, model in one hand and a crate of paints in the other. He takes note of the absence of your dad’s and step-sister’s cars in the driveway and assumed that you were all out. He sighs in frustration, hoping that that wasn’t the case. Jogging up to the porch, the boy sets down the crate and rings the doorbell a couple of times, foot tapping against the wooden floorboards as he waits.

When there was no response after a few minutes he tried again, this time ringing the doorbell a bit more frantically. Before he could turn around and head back home after getting no response, he hears frantic footsteps scurrying inside and steps back as the door swings open. There you were, hair looking like a bird’s nest while your week-old cardigan hung off your shoulders. There were dark circles under your eyes and you looked like a hobo who had the opportunity to clean after themselves. In other words: you were a mess.

“The fuck are you doing here?” You snap the minute your hazy mind registers that San was standing at your door.

The said boy snaps out of his own trance and shoves the model in your face. “We need to finish this.”

You stare at the figure in his hand then to the crate by his foot and then to his face that displayed an expectant expression. You sigh and rub your face. “Couldn’t you have finished it yourself?”

“I’m busy later.”

Another sigh leaves you and you step back to let him in. He enters the house, leaving his shoes by the door as he looks around the place. It was a bit messier than he had expected. There were rumpled coats hanging off of the arm of the couch, a small pack of cigarettes and a few bottles of cheap beer on the coffee table. The wallpaper was starting to fade with a few faint stains here and there.

San stays quiet as he follows you through the house, seeing the small stack of dishes waiting to be washed in the sink. He turns back to look at you, finding your silence as unnerving. You only trudged up the stairs, motioning for you to follow him. He expected to see you turn down the hallway and enter one of the rooms but was quite surprised to see you stop by a frayed rope hanging from the ceiling of the hall. You reach up and tug down on it, revealing the ladder towards the attic.

“Don’t tell me you live up there,” San jabs.

“Yeah and what of it?” You grumble, sending him a tired glare over your shoulder before climbing up the ladder.

He was stunned into silence when he realized that you were serious. He bites his tongue and refrains from jeering at you, handing the box of paints to you before climbing up. Several thoughts ran through his mind— why was your room in an attic? And since when did you start smoking and drinking? Was it even yours?

His head pokes into the surprisingly clean but small room. Your bed was pressed up near the slanted wall of the roof, several polaroids of you, your few friends, and your mother plastered along it. On the opposite side was your desk and your wardrobe whose paint was starting to chip off. Several boxes, labeled and not labeled, were pushed to the corner of the room, stacked in a way for them to take up less space.

San looks to you rummaging through your desk, probably finding a brush or something. He wordlessly steps into the room and pulls the rope, closing the trapdoor beneath him. He turns to you again and before he could stop himself, he found himself blurting the question that was plaguing his mind: “What the hell happened to you?”

You turn on your heel, almost knocking over the picture frame of you and your mom. Your hand reached out to steady it before answering San. “You’re going to have to be a little more specific than that.”

“Why do you live up here?” He motioned to the whole attic space with his arm. “Don’t you have a room downstairs?”

“I do.” You simply say and take the crate of paints, pulling out the needed colors and some paper cups for you to place them in.

When you don’t elaborate, San squats down to your level on the ground and tugs the purple paint tube out your hand. “What happened to it?”

“Why do you care?” You snatch the tube back with a hiss, preparing all the things needed. “It’s none of your business…”

The boy sighs, running a hand through his dark locks. He nibbles at his cheeks, carefully going over what he wanted to say. “...look, _____,” he starts, voice surprisingly gentle. “You don’t have to tell me everything but you don’t have to keep everything in.”

You don’t answer him or make any move to acknowledge what he had said. But you were listening; part of you decided to take down your walls for just a moment and hear what he has to say. And San seemed to sense this because he continues.

“I’m not gonna say that ‘I’m here for you’ and all that crap but, there are people who're willing to listen to you. Whatever you’re going through right now, no matter how big or small it is, you don’t have to go through it alone.”

Again, you don’t respond. A moment of silence full of high strung tension passed by. It was only a few seconds but it felt longer than that— especially since you both stopped in what you were doing and stared at the ground or at each other’s hands.

You always hated San but you couldn’t help but sense the sincerity in his words. It’s kind of pathetic but at the moment, his genuinity, the softness of the way he spoke was what you were craving for. At that moment, you just wanted assurance that things will be okay and that whatever you were doing in life wasn’t useless. And the guy you seemed to hate most was offering you that.

Tears prick at your eyes and you hastily brush it away with the sleeve of your cardigan, refusing to show any weakness to your nemesis. But it was hard; once the tears started flowing it was difficult for you to stop. You play it off by finishing up in preparing the paints, suppressing any hiccups or sobs that would escape before eventually giving up and bringing your legs up to your chin, crying into your sweats. Fuck it if San sees.

You curled up into yourself, crying into your pants when you felt a gentle but hesitant hand on your shoulder. You jolt at the touch, seeing San back away quickly. His brows were furrowed in concern and his lips were pursed, almost as if he were thinking about what he was going to say.

“G-go on, gloat,” You hiccup, choking on your tears. “I look like a m-mess anyway…”

You were surprised, and a little bit embarrassed, that he didn’t follow with what you said. Instead, he reached into his pocket, pulling out a small packet of tissues and handing it over to you. He looked up to your desk, seeing your water container on your desk. He stands up to take it, shaking it to check if there was still some water in it, before placing it by your foot.

“I’m not going to lie, you are a mess,” San says before returning to his previous spot on the floor. “But I guess that’s normal when you’re having a shitty day.”

“More like a shitty life…” You mumble. You chug down the rest of your water, managing to stop your tears as you wipe them away with the tissues. You look up at the boy across you and sigh heavily. “It’s my step-mom,” you say.

“I’m sorry?”

“My step-mom. She made me move up here so that her daughters could take my room.” You explain. “My dad didn’t say anything because he’s a pushover, wasting his life away on cigarettes and the alcohol his wife buys…”

San nods slowly in understanding, finally making sense of what he saw in the living room and kitchen. That explained a lot of things: why you would always faintly smell of alcohol or nicotine a few months after your mother had died. It had honestly shocked him to hear that— your dad and step-mom always looked presentable in public. Your step-sisters were a bit more extravagant but neat nonetheless. The way they talked and carried themselves didn’t seem to indicate that they had any substance addiction.

Thinking back on it, it had also explained why you were so irate and moody almost all the time, leading to you losing some friends in high school as you fell back into yourself or into violence. It was a defense mechanism— you didn’t want to seem vulnerable because at home, you were vulnerable enough.

An idea pops into his head and he promptly stands up, momentarily making you jump from his sudden movement. You look up at him, puzzled. “What?”

“Come with me.”

“What???”

“I said get up and come with me.” San says and actually held his hand out to you.

You look at it skeptically before looking up at him, contemplating about any consequences in following him— if there were any. He wiggles his fingers, impatiently coaxing you to join him and you finally make up your mind. Might as well follow him; you had nothing to lose anyway.

You swat his hand away to get up on your own, mumbling something along the lines that you could get up yourself before straightening yourself out and placing your hands on your hips. He gives a satisfied nod and grabs his shoes to put them on. He then kicks open the trapdoor before heading back down for you to follow.

He returns to the living room with you trailing behind, still wondering where exactly he wanted you to go. When you glance at the clock you see that it’s already 5:30 in the afternoon. Your thoughts were interrupted when you felt something land by your feet. You whipped your head around to see San pointing at your shoes which he probably threw at you from the door.

“We’re heading out for a while.” He says as he exits your house. You take a moment to process what was happening when he pops his head in. “Come on slowpoke.” He ushers you.

You hastily throw on your shoes, grabbing the house keys hanging by the coat rack, and hop out of the house. You lock the door behind you and approach San who was sitting upon his notoriously loud motorbike. “Where are we going?” You ask, settling down behind him.

Your arms awkwardly flutter beside you, opting to hold onto whatever space was left on your seat. You jump in surprise when you hear and feel the engine roar to life, eliciting an amused chuckle from the boy in front of you. You glare at the back of his head, smacking his shoulder and settling yourself once more.

“Hold on tight,” San tells you as he revs up the motorbike.

“I am.” You argue and strengthen your grip on the seat, shaking the bike a little to emphasize your point.

“No you aren’t.” You feel heat rise to your face when he tutted in annoyance, taking your arms and placing them around his waist. “There you go. See? No harm done.”

You only grumble something in response, making him chuckle to himself. It was a bit strange to see you tame like this. Sure it kind of boosted his ego considering that he managed to make you flustered with just a few words and a simple action but he actually kind of liked it when you weren’t at each other’s throats. He revved up the engine again before taking off and speeding down the road.

The evening breeze is cool as it whips through your hair and brushes against you, sending small goosebumps running down your skin. A small yelp escapes you when San picks up speed, causing your grip on him to tighten. He glanced back at you for a moment before taking the turn that exits the town and towards the road uphill. It led to the small forest that overlooked the city; it was a popular place in town for hiking or camping. You remember going there to play as a kid.

The air gets chillier as you both reach a higher altitude. You unconsciously nuzzle closer to the boy in front of you in an attempt to seek some body heat. The sky grows darker, turning into a deeper blue shade as the night slowly creeps upon the town. Some stars start to peek and settle themselves in the dark blanket of the sky by the time San slows down to a stop. He had stopped by the edge of the forest, a metal railing along the opposite end to keep people or vehicles from falling off the edge.

“We’re here.” San says and looks back at you. “You can let go if you want now.”

At that, you peel yourself away from him and hop off his bike mumbling something about how cocky he was while walking over to the railings. He joins you soon after, keeping a respectable distance from you. None of you say anything at first, simply taking in the view of the city in front of you. Now know why San took you out here: to breathe and clear your mind of things; something that you didn’t know you needed at the moment.

The spot you were in allowed you to overlook the town, seeing the lights from the roads and houses down below. You could spot the water tower in the distance along with the radio tower next to it. As you survey the scene before you, you make out one house in the distance with a multitude of colored lights flashing around it.

“Looks like someone’s having a party.” You muse, finally breaking the silence.

San hums in acknowledgement. “I hope they aren’t missing me.”

It takes a moment for you to understand what he said, perking up when it made sense to you. “So that’s what you meant when you were ‘busy.’” You say as you lightly punch his arm. “You’re such an ass.”

“What? I wasn’t lying; I would’ve been busy.” He defends himself, holding his hands up in surrender.

“Yeah,” You huff. “Busy shoving your tongue down people’s throats.”

A mischievous hum. “Wouldn’t you like to know.”

“Ew no, gross- I’ll pass.”

You share a small laugh together before settling into silence again. It was… kind of cathartic, being able to actually laugh for a long while-even if it was with your longtime nemesis. It was better than crying yourself to sleep almost every night.

You turn to lean your back against the railing, using your arms to support you as you mull over the forest.

“I used to come here a lot as a kid.” You say, managing to capture San’s attention. “Pretended to gallop along the trees like some sort of princess when I was in my horse phase… I would always come home with scraped knees. I was a clumsy kid.”

“Except when you’d throw punches at me,” San interjected, ghosting a hand over his jaw. “You sure knew how to pack a punch.”

You smile apologetically, a sheepish flush on your cheeks, and look over to him. “Well you did deliver some pretty good kicks- I needed to learn how to defend myself.”

San shrugged in agreement. “I guess,” He muses and offers you a small smile, lapsing into silence again. “You know… it’s actually kind of surprising but you aren’t so bad to talk to.”

You nibble at your lower lip at his confession, unsure of what to make of it. When you look up at him, you see that he had inched a little closer to you. He still kept a reasonable amount of space between you two but it was apparent that he wanted to get closer. He drums his fingers against the cool metal of the railing, brows furrowed as he thinks over his next words carefully.

“I’m sorry.” He blurts out. “I’m sorry for all the times I’ve been an asshole to you. I know that I’ve hurt you, not just physically, but emotionally too. And I want to apologize for that… I know, words are just words. It won’t do anything to reverse or take back what I’ve done to you then, but please, take it as a first step to making it up to you.”

San decided to meet your watery gaze, his chest clenching at the tears you were trying so hard to hold back. He holds his hand out instinctively, wanting to offer some sort of physical comfort. He stops himself midway, opting to just settle it on the rail halfway from you. “You don’t have to make a decision right here and now. You can still hate me all you want, but I promise to leave you alone from now on.”

You whimper pathetically, finally letting the tears flow down your cheeks. You felt guilt consume you at his apology. Why was he taking the blame for everything? It should be you who was saying sorry. After all,you were just as cruel as him. And thinking back on it, this feud had most likely started with you. You raise a sweater paw to wipe at your tears, sobbing into your hand.

God you were a mess.

“Don’t, don’t blame yourself… I should be apologizing too. It takes two to tango right?” You hiccup, managing to give him a shaky smile. “I could’ve chosen to ignore you or direct my anger elsewhere but I still ended up targeting you at the end of the day…”

“_______, it’s okay—“

“No it’s not.” You hiss. “I’m not just talking about what I did in high school. I’m talking about every instance I was cruel to you. It was petty, extremely childish, and just horrible overall. I don’t expect you to forgive me but I want to apologize too. I’ve made part of your life a living hell.”

You glance at his hand on the railing before holding your own out towards him. “Truce?” You offer. “We don’t have to be all buddy-buddy after this but at least we can just end this whole thing.”

San gripped your hand in a gentle but firm handshake. “Truce.” His touch lingered for

just a second before he gave a gentle squeeze and pulled away. He returned it to the previous spot on the railing.

The both of you remain for a while, just overlooking the town and reflecting on what had happened. The quiet atmosphere that you both shared suddenly didn’t seem so awkward anymore. Instead, it was filled with some tension but with a bit of comfort at the same time. It was similar to the feeling of a thorn being plucked out of your side: painful but relief that it was finally out.

You don’t expect that things would go right at once— this wasn’t like the movies or the books where everything was magically solved. You both had left some scars on each other, some that are too hard to forget or too deep to heal easily. But you two were working on it: healing and forgiving each other. It was still a long journey but it was something you were both willing to go on together.

You glance to San, seeing how relaxed he was right now. He didn’t look so annoying or so terrifying anymore. A tiny grin makes its way to your lips; never in a million years did you think you’d find solace in someone you despised so much.

“Hey San,” You call out to him, resting your hand beside his, your pinkies brushing against each other. “...thanks for this. I really needed it.”

He smiles at you, flashing his cute dimples at you. It sends a warm, tingly feeling down your spine and you couldn’t help but feel calm at that. “Glad I could help.” He momentarily pat the back of your hand, engulfing it with his larger one when you didn’t pull away.

It was late when he drove you home to finish the project. Unsurprisingly, your family was still out, probably at an event they forgot to tell you about. But you didn’t mind, you had an unexpected friend with you right now.

You smile to yourself as you wave goodbye to San from the doorway, seeing him speed down the road and into the night. He may have been the bad guy in your life but it turns out, he wasn’t such a bad guy. And you were thankful that you were able to see that because at least you knew you had someone in your corner.

[whumpmatsus]

So. Todomatsu always ACTS like he hates that Karamatsu is so eccentric, but we all know he actually doesn't mind that much. If anyone else made fun of him for that stuff, I can't help but think he wouldn't let it fly. So what about a situation where Karamatsu gets made fun of/bullied/put down by someone OUTSIDE the family for being the way he be and Todomatsu gets an opportunity to go into full protective mode over him??

OH SHIT the youngest of them goes feral

dare I say... RELEASE THE BABY!!!!!

God I love Zaimoku, it’s so good <3

-

If Totty is being completely, utterly, unfailingly honest with himself, his brothers need his help if one of them is going to be going on a date.

Really, he’s the only one who has any clue about how to act on a date! He could hit his big brothers over the head with a Clue-by-four with that shit and they still wouldn’t really get it.

Even so… part of him thinks he shouldn’t really be following Karamatsu to a date. Karamatsu is the one Totty knows is never going to come running to him for advice or assistance, especially with girls; he’s got the undeserved ego of an avocado toast sandwich. Totty isn’t sure he’d be pleased to know his baby brother tagged along not because he has to sort out a schedule thing at work, but because he wants to keep an eye on Karamatsu.

What else is he supposed to do, though? Just let Karamatsu go alone and totally blow it? His usual behavior aside, Totty really wants his big brothers to be happy and have fulfilling relationships. He thinks if he can be there to keep an eye on things, well, maybe it won’t go so bad. Maybe Karamatsu will have a shot with this woman. Maybe he’ll get a girlfriend!

The very idea was enough to make him feel a little better about lying so that his brother will take him along. It eases his conscience, imagining that if he manages to help Karamatsu out to the point that the second eldest ends up in a loving, joyful relationship, (obviously as opposed to the past few horrible ones he’s had), then a little fib isn’t so bad, is it?

After all, if he were the one in need of something like this, he’d be grateful for his brothers’ help however they did it.

Of course, when he sees the look this girl gives Karamatsu, a look like the kind a baby gives after licking a lemon for the first time, Totty can’t help but wince. This isn’t off to a great start. He lingers by the counter, greeting Sacchi and Aida, trying not to look as if he’s watching his big brother’s date.

“Aren’t you off today, Totty?” Sacchi hums as she turns to start making a drink.

He nods. “Yeah, well, I can’t stay away, I guess, haha.”

Aida jerks her head toward the table where Karamatsu and his date are. “That’s one of your brothers, right? Still as painful as ever,” she teases. “Is he… oh, my God, he’s on a date??”

“Shhhh, shh!” Totty waves his hands a little, hoping to get his friends to quiet down a little. The last thing Karamatsu needs is to be drawing attention. “He thinks I tagged along to talk to you guys about my schedule. But, yes, he’s here on a date.”

Sacchi finishes serving her customer, one of the few in the shop at the moment, and then leans against the counter to look over. “Aw, good for him. He’s not either of our types, but he deserves a shot with someone who’s interested.”

He lets out a soft sigh. “Agreed there. I kind of just wanna keep an eye on him, you know? To make sure he doesn’t mess it up too much. He should have let me pick his outfit, ugh… that aside, he’s doing okay so far, though, I think.”

Aida frowns as she slides a cup of coffee toward her coworker. “Um, I hate to burst your bubble, but he’s got his work cut out for him. I’ve been to some mixers with that girl, and she always finds something wrong with every guy she hangs out with.”

“She’s right,” Sacchi adds. “Good thing you came along so you can carry him home, ‘cause that girl’s gonna tear him to pieces. I mean, she went out with Atsushi and the next day he was in here crying and telling me she made him feel two inches tall. Nobody’s good enough for her.”

Aida clicks her tongue. “Your big brother’s in big trouble, Totty.”

It’s Totty’s turn to frown as he looks toward Karamatsu. Unfortunately, Sutabaa is so small and he’s close enough that he doesn’t have to strain too much to hear what’s being said.

The woman is laughing. However… Karamatsu hasn’t even really opened his mouth yet. “Oh, my God! You’re my date, huh? Last time I let my sister set me up. That bitch, haha. Ah, well… wow, your jacket is hurting my eyes. Could you take it off?”

Karamatsu seems to be trying his best to smile. “O-oh, yes, of course.” He moves to tug it off, folding it over the back of his chair. “Please forgive me. Anyway, my name is Karamatsu. And you, my angel?”

“Ahaha, WHAT?” The woman raises an eyebrow at him. “C’mon, dude. Don’t call me that. I’m nobody’s angel.”

Totty feels himself starting to steam. You’ve got that right.

“A-ah… right, my apologies.” Karamatsu just keeps smiling. The expression on his face reads almost like he’s in pain. “Well, should we order?”

She gives a cursory glance toward the menu, then suddenly her eyes are drawn to Karamatsu again. “Oh, my God, hold on… is… is that your face on your shirt?! Holy shit! Are you really that full of yourself?”

Totty’s heart sinks as his brother’s cheeks flush bright red. This is not going well. And while, yes, Karamatsu probably should have picked a different shirt, what’s really wrong with what he’s wearing? Even though he’s a little over-the-top and dramatic, this woman can’t know whether or not he’s ‘full of himself’ when she’s barely letting him get a word in.

Totty is the most socially intelligent of his brothers, and even he doesn’t think Karamatsu’s actually doing anything wrong. He hasn’t drawn anyone else’s attention like he usually does, he hasn’t gone overboard with any poses, and he’s… kind of just being himself, slightly toned down. It’s not like he’s bragging or being a jerk. Hell, it’s just a strange fashion choice; how the hell does she think it has any bearing on what he’s like as a person?

“Damn,” Sacchi cringes. “She’s not wasting any time, is she?”

Aida gives a pout toward her friends. “He didn’t even do anything wrong yet. He’s been a perfect gentleman.”

“Yeah, he’s just a little odd and, like, a tiny bit painful. But he’s acting really nice and polite.” Sacchi sighs as she props her head up on her hand. “There’s no pleasing some people. Aida, why don’t you go take their order? Maybe you can accidentally spill it on that pretentious top of hers when you bring it to them.”

“Pfff, if only. I’m on it, though.”

Totty continues to fume as he watches his poor brother try to impress this girl, pretty much in vain. He gets the feeling that nothing Karamatsu says or does is going to be good enough. For some reason, that really pisses him off. Despite the fact that Karamatsu can be a bit much, that he’s overcompensating for being insecure on the inside, that everyone rolls their eyes at him… Karamatsu isn’t a bad guy. He tries hard to make other people happy and treats them with respect. Even his brothers who don’t always return the favor.

By the point Sacchi and Aida are finished making their order, the youngest is ready to explode at this woman. She never even told Karamatsu her name, but she’s spent the whole time talking him down. When she asked what he did ‘besides be super excruciating��, and he told her he didn’t really have a job, she laughed at him. He tried to save it by saying he occasionally played guitar at coffee shops, and she responded something along the lines of, “What kind of hipster loser does that these days??”

Listening to it just makes him so angry. She doesn’t think Karamatsu is attractive, she’s called him embarrassing more than once, and no matter what he does or says, she’s not happy with it. Why the fuck did she even bother going out with him, then?

Totty was worried that Karamatsu was going to screw this up; so far he’s actually managed to be a decent date. He wasn’t prepared for his brother’s date to be the shitty one.

Sacchi brings him a simple iced coffee while Aida returns with the serving tray, a fake smile on her face from laughing uncomfortably at one of the woman’s comments. “God, she’s exhausting.”

“I don’t even know her and I can’t stand her,” Totty mutterrs before taking a sip of his drink. “Why the hell is she treating him like that? He’s just… being himself!”

Being himself. Karamatsu’s really not doing anything wrong. He’s trying to talk himself up when this woman gives him a chance to, but who doesn’t talk themself up on a first date? He just wants to impress her.

It makes Totty feel a little guilty to realize that, honestly, all Karamatsu really wants is to impress everyone because he wants people to like him… including his brothers. If Karamatsu feels the need to seek love and acceptance from strangers like this girl, to the point that he’s willing to put up with the horrible way she’s treating him, what does that say about his brothers? It’s not the first time he’s sucked it up and dealt with something he shouldn’t have from someone just because he wants that person to love him.

His attention is drawn by the woman giggling a little too loudly. “Fuck, you wanna go out with me again? I mean, how do you think this is going? I’m two seconds away from sneaking out the bathroom window. You’re so obnoxious, you dress like an edgy middle schooler, and who wears sunglasses inside, especially when it’s raining outside? You’re, like, cringe incarnate.”

Completely contradicting every statement she made, she slid her hand across the table to take his, if only for a brief moment. The wicked look in her eyes, more sadistic than even Ichimatsu, made Totty’s stomach twist in anger. “I might keep you around, though. You seem like a guy who’d keep me laughing for a while. Maybe next time I’ll take you out with my friends so everyone can laugh at you.”

Oh, that’s it.

He doesn’t know if Karamatsu is oblivious to what she means because he’s blinded and deafened by the promise of another date, or if he knows exactly what she means but perhaps thinks it’s worth it. His eyes light up… and behind that hopeful spark is the pain she’s already put him through.

Baby of the bunch though he is, Totty isn’t going to sit around and twiddle his thumbs while some bitch takes advantage of his big brother.

“Oh, that is sooooo not happening!” he calls as he approaches the table. Although he feels a little bad about just stepping in like this, he’s not gonna let her get away with treating Karamatsu like that. Laughing at him herself was bad enough; parading him in front of her friends for all of them to laugh at him when there’s nothing wrong with Karamatsu isn’t gonna happen if Totty has something to say about it.

The woman gives him an unimpressed look. “Who the fuck are you?”

“T-Totty!!” Karamatsu,  on the other hand, looks immediately panicked. “I can handle this… please, go back and fix your schedule, and I’ll meet you at home.”

“Wait, you work here?” She tilts her head at him. “Oh, shit, hold up. You’re the asshole who messed up my drink last time I was here.” Her gaze flits between the two of them, and she laughs again.

“― Oh, my God! You had to bring your twin brother along to come on a date? You’re pathetic!” Her hand pulls away from Karamatsu’s. “Oh, you’re definitely coming out with me and my friends.”

Totty hisses and pushes her hand away from Karamatsu’s. He steps in front of his big brother to physically block this woman from him. “Keep your hands off him! You’re not taking him anywhere. He’s never seeing you again, because you treated him like… like, fuck, I wouldn’t treat a rock the way you treated him!”

He hears Karamatsu make a noise of almost-protest behind him; he can just imagine the other man sinking down in his seat and trying to hide his face. “Totty, please…”

“No! No, she doesn’t get to just treat you like dirt, Karamatsu-nii-san! You think my brother’s just some kind of dumbass you can show off to your friends and laugh at and treat him like crap?!” he snarls. “Well, guess what? He may be sort of a dumbass sometimes, and maybe he’s a little painful, and maybe he’s not the perfect guy you’re looking for! But he’s a whole hell of a better person than you are!”

Although Totty could kick himself for not saying anything to Karamatsu before, it might be best it’s coming out now. He doesn’t have a lot of time to really think about it or pretend or rehearse. What he’s saying isn’t practiced, it’s real. “Karamatsu is the kindest person I know, and you wish you had at least half the passion he does for the things he likes! Who cares that he wears a shirt with his own face on it? He was bending over backwards to make you happy, even though everything out of your mouth was word barf about how embarrassing he is! And, by the way, you’re wrong!”

It only takes half a step for him to reach over to grab his coffee from the counter, assisted by Aida who’s smirking as she holds it out for him. “If my choice was between you or him, I’d be way less embarrassed to be seen in public with him than with you! He’s not perfect, but he cares about people, and he’s always there when you need him, and ― and all this stuff you think is embarrassing, who the hell gives a shit?! It’s what he wants to do and it’s not hurting anyone! I’d break my phone before I let my big brother go out with someone like you again! Maybe he keeps striking out with dates, but he’s never going to be that desperate!”

He feels a little bad about what he’s about to do. That feeling is mitigated by the fact that at least his coffee isn’t hot.

“And, you know, I actually am sorry about messing up your drink last time. So here, you can have mine!” Almost before he’s finished speaking, he’s dumped his entire cup over her head.

He doesn’t stick around to deal with the aftermath aside from seeing the look of abject horror on the woman’s face as the coffee makes her bad mascara drip. And even though there’s a little bit of guilt over the fact that he’s leaving his coworkers to deal with her, the fact that Sacchi and Aida are cackling while they gather up napkins eases his mind.

He grabs Karamatsu by the hand and leads him out, tossing his coffee cup on the way. There’s not much choice on Karamatsu’s part, except he doesn’t particularly look as if he minds that.

“You didn’t… have to do that, Totty,” Karamatsu mumbles. When Totty glances over, the second eldest looks more tired than anything. He knows that look; the exhaustion of something not working out, of thinking you had a chance only for it to all go up in smoke.

Totty huffs, marching the two of them in the direction that leads back home. “Of course I did! You weren’t going to do it, so someone had to. God… you’ve gotta stop letting people walk all over you, Karamatsu-nii-chan.”

The shift to the more affectionate honorific suggests to Karamatsu that this is really, truly something Totty cares about. He squeezes his baby brother’s hand with a thoughtful hum. “… If that’s the case, perhaps a romance for me just isn’t in the cards. I… really thought it was going to go somewhere this time.”

At last Totty slows slightly, from an aggressive pace to something a little calmer. He’s still pissed off that someone treated Karamatsu like that, and although he’s a bit upset that Karamatsu sit there and let it happen, he knows what it’s like to want people to like you so much that you’ll put up with nearly anything.

However, that’s also the reason he doesn’t want Karamatsu just putting up with it. He deserves so much better than to have people treat him like dirt. It’s not right to do that to anybody, but… especially not to Totty’s big brother.

“I’m sorry I kind of… tapped into Murder Totty in there,” he sighs. “Did I go overboard?”

Karamatsu shrugs. “Maybe a little. But I wasn’t truly enjoying myself and I didn’t want to go on another date with her. I just… didn’t know how to tell her no. I suppose I really am lucky you were there, too.”

Silence falls between them while they walk, then after a moment, Karamatsu clears his throat. “Totty… did you… mean all those things?”

“Huh? All what things?”

“Those things, you know… you said I was… kind and passionate and reliable.” He lets out a soft laugh. “You… you said you’d rather break your phone than let me go out with her again.”

… Oh. He. Did say that, didn’t he?

He pouts a bit, then squeezes Karamatsu’s hand. “Yeah, I meant it. Of course I meant it.”

Beat.

“But as much as I love you, I’m just glad I don’t have to do that.”

[ordinaryschmuck]

What I Thought About "Through The Looking Glass Ruins" from The Owl House

Salutations, random people on the internet who most certainly won’t read this! I am an Ordinary Schmuck! I write stories and reviews and draw comics and cartoons!

When Disney announced episode titles/synopsis for the new season (On a day that left my head SPINNING!), there was one episode that I knew deep down that would cause controversy and discourse amongst the fandom. And that episode was "Through the Looking Glass Ruins." Not because it would be bad, far from it. Instead, because the episode was a Gus episode with a Lumity subplot, that meant that discourse would start as fans decide which story they prefer more. A situation that, might I add, would result in no winners.

Do you prefer the Lumity plotline? Well, guess what! You're a racist who chose to talk about an overrated ship rather than a heavily underrated character who just so happens to be a person of color.

Do you prefer Gus' plotline? Well, guess what! You're a homophobe who decided to shine a light on a character who's underrated for a reason instead of praising a ship that just so happens to involve two girls.

Either side you pick is going to result in making people mad. The only way to avoid that is by explaining in heavy detail that you still enjoyed one side despite preferring the other. Even if you loved both, you'll most certainly have to explain to everyone that you mean it and that you're neither racist nor homophobic. And all I have to say is this: F that.

F that S in the A right now.

Because I, or anybody else for that matter, shouldn't have to explain myself when it comes to saying why I prefer one plot line or the other. I shouldn't have to prevent getting ripped apart by some bulls**t, black and white mentality of people who can't accept that others like a show for different reasons than they do.

You wanna know what I think about "Through the Looking Glass Ruins?" Well, continue reading to find out. You'll have to make your way through spoilers, but it's the only way for you to learn why I consider this episode not worth any discourse that I'm already certain is cropping up.

Now, let's review, shall we?

WHAT I LIKED

The Opening Scene: I'm kind of digging how snappy and to the point these opening scenes are getting. In the span of what has to be less than a minute, we're given all the information we need to know: Gus is insecure about his illusion magic because he accidentally got Willow injured. It's a great way of setting up why Gus wants to prove himself to the Glandus students and a great way of showing how much Willow's friendship means to him. Look at how he's reacting a few days after the incident. He's still mopey and guilty about it, and I feel bad for the little guy.

Gus in General: And while we're already talking about him, let's give this episode a round of applause for giving Gus the spotlight without having him screw over his friends...except for Willow.

"Through the Looking Glass Ruins" really fleshes Gus out much more so than past episodes. As I said, it plays heavily into his own insecurities while proving how he's capable as an illusionist. He's also the best possible outlet to explore more about what illusionist magic can really do. It can't hurt anybody or work well in a fight. Instead, its strengths lie in the act of convincingly tricking others into thinking that something that should be fake is actually real. And Gus got to prove he really is a super witch because of his illusions through a jaw-dropping scene that's as dark as it was enthralling. The fact that he did it all by himself, without the help of an illusion elder who was right there, is honestly even more impressive. A lot of people aren't that interested in Gus as a character, but I feel like, after this episode, he certainly won a few more fans over.

Willow Getting Injured and Missing the Episode: This is a smart move, in my opinion. Willow acts as the voice of reason in the friend group, so if she tagged along with Luz and Gus right away, she would have easily talked Gus out of joining the Glandus kids on a dangerous quest. I love Willow, she's a solid character, but writing her out is really the only way the plot could have progressed.

(I also love that she wasn't mad in the slightest over Gus getting her hurt. She has every right to be, but she also understands that it was an accident, and Gus wouldn't do anything to purposefully hurt her. And that's sweet!)

King’s Prerecorded Message for Gus: That's just adorable. We need more cute friendship moments between these two, DAMN IT!

Gus Being Sick of Luz’s S**t: Of all the characters I expected to get sick of the whole Lumity situation, Gus wasn't really one of them. I'd always thought it'd be Willow, primarily because the rest of the fandom latched onto that idea, but for Gus, I'd figured he'd be more supportive rather than annoyed. That being said, seeing him call Luz out for borrowing his library card to see Amity (Not ask her out. Just to see her) is not only a hilarious moment for Gus but also an adorable moment for Luz. It's something I would never have seen coming, but now that I have it, I want more. GIVE ME MORE!

(Sorry if I'm being a little intense)

Luz Trying to Cheer Up Gus: It's moments like this that prove why Luz is my favorite character.

Willow might have the most common sense out of the group, but it's Luz who still has the biggest heart. She knows her friend is down in the dumps, so Luz pulls out all the stops in cheering him up. Whether it's researching the first-ever human (really surprised he wasn't the tiniest bit excited about that, by the way) and lending him glyphs for his mission to help show up Mattholomule. She may be slow in the romantic relationship department, but episodes like this prove that she excels with a platonic friendship.

Bria: I consider Amar adorably optimistic, and I have no strong feelings for Gavin, one or the other. But with Bria? Holy hell, did the writers do everything they should with her!

At first, it seems like she'll be a generic nice girl for Gus to have a crush on. Only for that writing to be a perfect twist into how she's kind of the worst. You see hints of her true personality in the overly sweet way she threatens to force Amar to eat a bug he gets distracted by. A viewer's initial reaction to that would be to think that while she's sweet, she still means business. But no, it's actually a perfect way to reveal her true intentions while hiding them at the same time. Bria may be rotten to the core, but with how perfectly executed this twist was, I can't help but adore her contribution.

Mattholomule: ...I would sooner expect to have gone insane before believing that this little s**t weasel would make his way onto my good side. Despite that, here we are in episode five of the new season, and I like Mattholomule now.

The reveal that Glandus High forces students to believe that the strong survive and the weak are inferior explains so much for Mattholomule's thirst for power in "Something Ventured, Someone Framed." It doesn't excuse his actions, not by a long shot, but it definitely paints a clearer picture. It also explains his treatment of Gus, as well as Mattholomule's reasoning to help him. Because of Glandus High inserting a "the strong survive" mentality into Mattholomule, he belittles Gus due to thinking that illusion magic makes Gus weak. But after seeing how they're both stooges to Bria's mistreatment, he's quick to apologize and willingly helps Gus out. In the process, the two of them create a believable and cute friendship...a friendship that is absolutely going to be interpreted as something else by the fandom...which is something that I'm more than supportive of--HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?! I WENT FROM ONE OF THE BIGGEST GUSTOLOMULE DENIERS TO ONE OF ITS SUPPORTERS IN LESS THAN A DAY! HOW DO THESE WRITERS MANAGE TO TAKE ELEMENTS THAT WERE ONCE ON MY S**T LIST TO THEN MAKING ME MORE THAN OK WITH THEM!

IT'S INSANE!

Mostly impressive.

BUT ALSO INSANE!

Edric and Emira: More so than ever, I am so happy that the writers took their course correction with Edric and Emira. These two work so much better as supporting characters rather than minor antagonists like several fans thought they would be after their treatment of Amity in "Lost in Language." They're quick to pick up on Luz and Amity's mutual affections for one another and do their part to help their friend and baby sister out. It's wholesome to watch, and, you know what, I'm gonna go ahead and say it: Edric and Emira Blight are much better mischievous twin characters than Fred and George Weasley. As much as I adore Fred and George, there is an issue how they're always referred to as Fred and George, not Fred or George. It's because their personalities are as identical as they are, so separating them is pointless. With Edric and Emira, they have enough individuality that you could enjoy them separately as much as you could seeing them together. Emira is more emotionally supportive in how she listens to Amity vent her frustrations about her feelings, while Edric is more of a doofus who can't take a hint to save his life. It creates a great set of characters who can potentially work well on their own. I hope they get explored more at some point, but for now, I'm happy with the cute moments these two offered already.

Lumity Moments: BUUUUUUUUUUUUT, nothing compares to the cuteness of these two.

I don't care if I'll be called a racist for it because these! Moments! These moments are the highlights of "Through the Looking Glass Ruins" for me! Seeing these two interact in this episode, now that the pining is mutual, was everything I could have ever hoped for, and so much more. Seriously, how can you complain about anything about all of this when you get cute bits like:

Luz getting flustered of seeing Amity with her hair down

Amity risking her job to help Luz

Amity being motivated to find the diary due to the possibility of a date with Luz in the human realm

Luz going through hell and back to get Amity her job back

All of the blushing

And that F**KING KISS AT THE END HOLY SH--Don't you dare think I'm not going to further discuss that. DON'T YOU DARE!

Gus' story was entertaining with how it surprised me in all the right ways, don't get me wrong. But seeing Luz and Amity's relationship develop more and more always fills my heart with glee that, believe it or not, I'm always going to remember it more. I love you, Gus, but I love Lumity more.

Philip Whittabeen: So we finally have a name to the alleged human who was here years ago, and we get properly introduced to him through a really visually appealing animation change. I'm personally curious to see where the writers go with him, but it's too early to say if his inclusion will be worth something. But I will say one thing, though. One thing, and then I'm going to move on.

Here it is:

Philip sounds eerily similar to Emperor Belos to me.

That is all I'm going to say about that.

Luz’s Sentences in Spanish: I want to give a personal shout-out to mi buen amigo @l-egionaire for pointing this out because there are some things to analyze in what Luz says in Spanish in this episode. Knowing what she means, it's clear that they are ideals that Camila instilled into Luz. Ideals that possibly show a lot about Camila's personality on top of revealing where Luz got her hopeful optimism and sense of determination. It's the second sentence that Luz says later on that I really want to delve deep into:

"Nada funcionará a menos que lo haga funcionar."

Translated, that means "Nothing will work unless you make it work." Again, this proves the dedication that Luz has filled into her soul, but to me, it says a lot about Luz's dedication to Amity. She wants to make this relationship work but fully understands that it won't unless she puts in the effort. It's a sweet sentiment that says so much about how Luz feels about Amity that some fans might not be able to pick up on if they don't speak Spanish. Or, in my case, have a good friend who finds the translation for you (thanks again @l-egionaire).

The Galderstones: Pretty interesting concept, I'm not going to lie. It's also interesting that of all the types of witches in the Boiling Isles, it was illusionists who were the ones that guard over the Galderstones. Because illusion magic can't really harm anyone, it makes a weird type of sense that they would be the ones to keep the Galderstones out of the wrong hands. And, even better, it showcases Gus' strength as an illusionist when he was able to take down Bria, who was hopped up on Galderstone power, through that same "harmless" magic. It just goes to show that if you have a big enough brain, you don't need to overpower somebody. You need to outthink them.

Malphus Being a Surprisingly Cool Dude: What can I say? I'm a sucker for expectation subversion.

Luz and Amity Crying: First of all, a HUGE round of applause to VAs Sarah-Nicole Robles and Mae Whitman through their vocal performances in this scene! They really sold how upset and broken apart Luz and Amity were due to their feelings for each other messing things up. More so with Sarah-Nicole.

Second, this might be the closest these two have gotten to a confession so far ("so far" being the keyword). I specifically latch onto Amity's expression after hearing Luz agree that she's always weird around Amity. In one way, it looks like Amity is surprised to see she made Luz cry, but in another, it could be that she realizes that perhaps that Luz has feelings for her as well. Or, at least, that's how I interpreted things. The thing about art is that there's no one interpretation to agree on. And that's what this scene is: Art. It's performed, written, and animated well, that no matter how you look at it, it's a masterpiece.

“I’ll call the hounds”: One line. One line was all it took for me to love the Keeper of the Looking Glass Graveyard.

Amity Dyes her Hair: I always assumed that Amity would let her original hair color grow out as defiance to Odalia. But dying it lavender? Thus crafting her own identity without having her be compared to either Odalia or Alador?

...yeah, that's brilliant. Whoever thought of that, you are a genius and deserve all of the credit that comes from it.

ALL of the credit.

Amity Kisses Luz on the Cheek!: I'll save my "Wha-hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo" for an actual kiss, but for now, THIS IS AWESOME!

This moment, much like other Lumity moments, was everything I could have ever expected and so much more:

Amity's instant panic after realizing she seriously just did that

Ed and Em looking fondly at their sister taking such a big step

The look on Luz's face, which may or may not hint that she realizes that the feelings are more than mutual

And the fact that Luz's legs give out soon after Amity leaves

It was adorable as all forms of hell, and it was a perfect way to end such a perfect episode...or, at least, an almost perfect episode. I do have some issues.

WHAT I DISLIKED

Mattholomule Helping Gus too Easily: The Glandus kids were right there, in-ear and eye-shot, yet did nothing as Mattholomule effortlessly helped Gus and the Keeper escape...how?

Gavin falling for Gus’ Illusion: I want to laugh at how stupidly easy that was...but it's too stupidly easy for me to forgive.

And that’s about it. Just two nitpicks that don’t really take away that much enjoyment from the episode

IN CONCLUSION

"Through the Looking Glass Ruins" keeps Season Two's winning streak going by being another solid A. It fleshes out characters, develops cute relationships, and keeps the story going despite being so character-driven. It's easily more than worth the time...but it's not worth any discourse that comes from some fans preferring one plot over the other.

I highly doubt that some people are racist for loving the Lumity plotline or homophobic for loving Gus'. Maybe some people are, but also consider that maybe, just maybe, a person loves a ship because it's their favorite, or a person likes a character cause he's their favorite.

Which.

Is.

Fine.

There's no definitive way to like a series, and demanding that people like it for the same reasons you do is not worth anything. Because, believe it or not, even Dana Terrace doesn't care how people love her show. In the AMA she did, when a fan asked if she's upset about fans obsessing over Amity's crush on Luz, this is her word for word reaction:

"Not at all! No, the main focus of the series will never be on any romantic thread but that doesn't mean those threads aren't important. And I'm thrilled that people connect to our characters!"

THERE YOU HAVE IT! The creator herself fully admits that she doesn't care what fans latch onto. She's just glad to have people who like the show in the first place! So don't create discourse just because some people enjoy a part of an episode more than others. The second you get that through your heads, the sooner we can all move on with our lives.

(Also, that's five episodes in a row that are hits. And, man, is that stinker going to hit harder because of it.)

[silvia7272]

ML Salt ~ The Cardigan Story

This is based on a true story.

Honestly, I always remembered this story because it constantly made my Sister and Mum laugh when I told them I outed a liar at school by wearing a cardigan, they were so proud of me because what I did wasn’t mean and I wasn’t even doing it out maliciousness so I thought, hey why not put it in the ML universe?

This isn’t canon to my main series so no Rosina since there isn’t any need for her, sorry sweetie.

And since I doubt Mlle Bustier would never out Lila, I’m changing the teacher to someone who actually has a backbone.

Word Count: 2303

Tags: @queenmj10, @fangirl39, @animegirlweeb, @northernbluetongue, @maribat-is-lifeblood, @raisuke06, @indecisive-mess-named-me, @luleck, @themotherofhogwarts, @more-or-less-human-i-guess, if you wish to be tagged all you have to do is say. Also, if you change your name please tell me, I don’t want to leave you out since you’ve asked to be tagged.

I know you may not wish to be tagged for one-shots, but I thought you might enjoy some salt I was able to come up with.

Also, I wrote this in one day so I’m extremely proud of myself.

***

If you told Marinette that Lila’s reign over the school would end over a cardigan, she would tell you you’re as crazy as she was about Adrien.

A lot.

But, she did just that.

She had to thank Adrien really, the ‘advice’ he gave her was what really pushed her.

She wouldn’t outright expose her, no, she had tried that before and look where that got her, near expulsion that’s what. And not one of her friends tried to stick up for her. She always remembered that glare Alix gave her, and since then she had been ignored, turned away by them.

Even after Lila came out with ‘the truth’ she was still seen as an overly jealous girl.

“Lila’s promised she hasn’t lied about anything else she’s said to us, it only acts up around people she doesn’t know as well, maybe next time, instead of being jealous you should give her a chance and stop being a baby. Girl this all could’ve easily been avoided if you weren’t so Adrien crazy”

Really? They actually believed that load of crap?

Whatever, Marinette was done, done with everyone.

If they wanted to show her how wrong she was then she’d let them wait until hell would frost over, because fat chance that would ever happen.

If Marinette was proud of one thing about her then it would have to be her stubbornness to get to the truth.

And she could be extremely patient.

***

It was just an average day at Collège Françoise Dupont. There weren’t any Akuma’s caused by anyone the previous day so Marinette was finally able to have a good night’s rest, something the exhausted teenager really missed.

She felt so re-energised she danced in the kitchen as she made breakfast without a care in the world.

.

Before she fell over that was.

“…Owww”

“Careful dear, you wouldn’t want to be hurt before school hours, now just sit tight and I’ll get you something to eat,” Her Maman said. Marinette felt grateful. After breakfast, she gave her Parents a kiss before leaving.

She had loving parents that supported her every beck and call.

…Well most of the time, but that didn’t matter, she would never let Lila manipulate them ever, her Parents were off-limits.

By the time she arrived at school she was one of the first ones there, Nathaniel in the back drawing his comics, texting Marc as well, it seemed like he was in his own ‘do not disturb’ bubble. Max was talking to Markov about some new type of game, and Rose and Juleka were just cuddling.

She made her way to the back feeling a positive emotion before exhaling.

Because it was about to be ruined.

Lila walked in with Alya, Nino and Adrien by her side.

She was telling a story about her ‘one of a kind cardigan-

Wait-

“My Grandmother made this cardigan especially for me carving her signature on as well, it’s the only one in existence because shortly after she made this, she ended up being in a terrible accident that left her bedridden.” They pandered to her of course. But for once she wasn’t focusing on the lie but the cardigan.

Oh, Lila’s only gone and done it now.

“I’ve always wanted to wear it, but I didn’t want it to end up ruined by someone” Her gaze casually went up to a lone bluenette, but she really wasn’t bothered.

“Don’t worry girl, I’ll keep a watchful eye on your cardigan for you. Ain't nothing gonna come between me and my besties property” They hugged before sitting down in their spaces.

‘Oh my god, I have a plan’ Marinette had that thought circled around her head until break. It was all she thought of.

Mind you, she wasn’t trying to expose everything she’d done, just that one lie. And that would be enough.

As soon as the bell rang, she was ready, she gathered her stuff and rushed home.

And thank god as well, Lila would not shut up about that cardigan, through Literature, Science and PE, it was constantly my Grandmother made it for me this, it’s the only one of its kind that.

Ugh, she wanted to rip her ears out at some point but had to endure it. No one else was bothered since they all believed her, even the teachers!

Yeah, you don’t really need any proof if it was handmade, some of Marinette’s earlier stuff didn’t have her signature on, but still, it was the principle of the matter!

And she could right that wrong.

In her room she was frantically searching for that item as Tikki dodged different articles of clothing, one hit her as she wasn’t looking, and she was down for the count.

“Marinette what are you looking for?” Marinette paused to look back at Tikki before continuing a bit calmer.

“Lila’s been lying about that cardigan and this time I can prove it.” Her eyes lit up as she lifted a cardigan up from her cupboard.

“One of Maman’s friends gave this to me a few years back, it was one of the reasons I got into fashion because of how soft it is and I wanted to replicate that. Don’t you think it looks familiar?” As Tikki looked over it her eyes widened, she knew Lila was lying anyway but she had no idea Marinette had definitive proof of it.

“That’s the same cardigan Lila has!” Marinette nodded before wearing it.

At least it still fit.

“But Marinette I thought we were gonna take the high ground?”

“Tikki it's tiring having to listen to them being lied too. I may not want them to be my friends anymore, but I just want the lying to stop. If I go and tell them that she’s lying with this as evidence they’ll clearly see she’s lying”

“But outing her like that won’t make it better!” Marinette wished she could respond with ‘are you sure’ but didn’t want to piss the mini-god off.

“Fine, what if I just wear it until someone notices, that way I’m not actively looking to publicly shame her? Better?” Tikki gave a reluctant nod, she knew her chosen wouldn’t let up about the situation, besides this whole thing was really just pettiness, nothing too serious. If no one noticed nothing bad would happen.

“Bye Maman, bye Papa” As she began walking back, she grew a bit nervous with her plan.

What if Lila made a whole other lie about her cardigan? What if she lied that Marinette had stolen it out of jealousy and everyone would try to take hers? She’d have to run away and live with a secret identity, all before getting caught and going to prison, and she’d never have her three kids and her hamster named-

“Ahem Marinette, is thou there?” A hand brought her out of her trance

“Ahhh!” She waved her arms before composing herself and seeing D’Argencourt in front of her.

“Ah, yes Monsieur?” How long had he been standing there? How long had she been rambling in her head?

“As I was saying, these new garments of yours, where did they originate from?” It took her a while before realising he was talking about her cardigan, she was so used to wearing her jacket it felt strange she had changed.

“Ohh this, well it was a present from Maman’s friend. They were on sale a few years back, so I thought I’d wear it again” He furrowed his brow before telling her to carry on with whatever she was doing.

“Well, that was weird. Do you think he liked the jacket?” Tikki ponded as her head ever so slightly popped out the small handbag.

“He’s always been weird Tikki. But whatever, let's just get back to the classroom.” All she had to do was wait.

***

‘How the hell hasn’t anyone noticed yet?’ Marinette was secretly fuming in her mind right now. None of her classmates noticed the change in her outfit.

Not one.

Bustier did however, the bluenette was sure because she’d see her teacher quickly glance from Marinette to Lila but never said a word. Probably thinking of that whole, ‘be the bigger person’ crap.

And not even the excuse of maybe Bustier didn’t know, bs. By the time break happened everyone in the school knew about that damn cardigan so don’t get her started.

‘Oh well, looks like that’s it. My petty revenge came flat… At least Lila didn’t pull a Marinette ruined my belongings stunt’ That would’ve been the last thing she needed.

Knock Knock Knock

The door opened before Bustier could reply, a teacher would reprimand a student for this type of rudeness, but it wasn’t a student.

It was a teacher.

And it was Monsieur D’Argencourt.

‘What the-’ Marinette didn’t remember this part of the plan.

“Excuse me Caline, but I need to interrupt the class for an announcement.” Bustier was about to deny but D’Argencourt the stubborn teacher as he was, walked straight on through ignoring whatever Bustier would’ve said.

“Lila Rossi, may you please step in front of the classroom?” Lila looking completely confused let go off Adrien, much to the relief of the boy, and walked in front of her desk.

“Marinette Dupain-Cheng?” He didn’t need to repeat the command.

Yes, command not a request.

“Can I ask you where you got your cardigans from?”

“Armand, I don’t think this is appropriate-” He shot a glare back at the teacher.

“I can assure you this won’t take long if I’m not interrupted”

Lila looked over to Marinette and realised with a sinking feeling what was happening. But she would win this time. Just like all the others.

“My Grandmother made this specifically, you see-”

He held a hand up to silence her.

“Yes, that’s quite alright, and Marinette would you like to repeat what you said before?” As Marinette did just that Lila was seething, he cut her off. How dare that simpleton cut off Lila Rossi!

He would pay.

“Well, it appears one of you is lying, and I expect that person to own up to it now” The class gasped as they all looked expectedly at Marinette, they knew she was petty but to do this was so low.

Lila looked at her smugly, she had tried to play with fire but got burned in the process. How could she even think she’d get away with this?

“I was talking about you, Lila Rossi”

“Eh, what?” The class gasped as they tried to say of course Lila was innocent, Marinette was the one lying. Or that Marinette must’ve tricked him.

He shot a glare towards all the class members as they instantly shut up.

“I don’t remember this being a class discussion, if I want your opinion, I will ask for it. Understood?” They nodded before giving sympathetic glances towards the brunette, D’Argencourt almost had the urge to shout at their incompetence but alas they were kids.

“I can tell you why you are lying Lila, with a photo. But as I’m feeling generous, I will give you one more chance to reveal yourself.” The class was silent as they all looked on in anticipation.

But Lila stood her ground defiantly, as if he actually had proof-

Oh…

Oh no she’s doomed…

“Then I don’t suppose this looks familiar? Hmm?” On his phone was a picture. Lila immediately lowered her head, too ashamed to look him in the eye.

3 guesses of what it is?

No.

.

.

No one?

.

.

Too easy?

.

.

Ok, it was the cardigan.

And at a fairly cheap price. No wonder she had it in brand new condition.

“I first knew you were lying once I saw Marinette wear the exact same one, however, hers was clearly worn out, evidently she has worn it for several amount of years. You had already messed up when you said it was the only one made. So please…” Lila looked up to see D’Argencourt giving one of the most frightening glares of the century.

“Don’t ever lie about anything to my face or anyone ever again, you will be court out and I will be keeping an eye on you. Is that final?” She meekly nodded her head, trying to give a frightened appearance to make him have sympathy but he was immune.

“That will be all. I hope your class has learned a valuable lesson of not taking things at face value” And with that, he left. Leaving Marinette with a different impression of her PE teacher, it seemed he didn’t like liars all that much.

Marinette smiled, her plan worked, and she didn’t even out her herself. Tikki surely can’t be mad at her now.

Bustier tried to get the class to go back to normal but she couldn’t. The class erupted into a screaming fit, asking how Lila could lie about that sort of thing?

It wasn’t until someone unexpected said the next few words she wondered if this was a dream.

“Hey if Lila lied about this what else did she lie about? She even said herself she doesn’t lie to her friends but that was a lie” That made the class tick as they soon realised and soon torn into her about it.

Leaving Lila, a ‘sobbing mess’ on the floor. All before she stopped that fake display and arguing back.

But the one who said that…

Was Adrien.

He was able to slip by the crowd and stand next to Marinette.

No words were said, she knew what he would’ve said even without the noise.

‘I’m sorry’

It was a start, and maybe through time, she could start trusting again.

But for now, she just wanted to enjoy this chaos…

.

.

Before there was an Akuma alert.

***

I want more D’Argencourt I want more D’Argencourt I want more D’Argencourt. I probably screwed his speech but oh well this is salt, doesn’t have to be accurate.

Phew, hope you enjoyed it, sorry its shorter than the others but this happened when I was in Year 5 and I was 9/10 years old. Woo 10 years ago, god that makes me feel old. Also, not everything was exactly this way, the teacher did out the person in front of the whole class, but she admitted it and went back to her class, we had two classes for maths. Anyway, I actually have to give Lila credit compared to the liar we had at our school, this person actually knew I had that cardigan and actually complimented me on it like months earlier and still had the audacity to say that. I think that’s the reason why I think if I was in their world I wouldn’t believe Lila because I already had a Lila at my school who would always say they’ve done the exact same thing as we had (They even said they had the same Aunt as me living on the same street, crazy right). Mind you they never said anything to me, I think they were too embarrassed plus, I was a goody little two-shoes there.

Anyway I really hope you enjoy it and if you like real-life stories so much I can always try to ask my friends for more ideas, I did have like some slightly toxic friends there that I may be able to tell you about but I’ll try to think how later.

Cya next time.

[razorblade180]

Twin Snowflakes part 25: Date Night pt2

Atlas, city of dreams. It was a name post people overlooked and even more scoffed at. Still, it was a little hard not to believe the title from the way it looked; especially with the hundreds of lights illuminating the snow covered city. Veronica was no stranger to Atlas at night but she still couldn’t help but marvel at the sights passing by her window. They were almost as charming as the boy sitting next to her in the backseat, almost. Her mind still couldn’t believe this was happening. Veronica was going on a dinner date with Nick. How did that happen!? Well...she knew how it happened but it was still crazy! The situation wasn’t ideal but Veronica wasn’t exactly upset about it. Not in the way she had shown earlier. Veronica simply wished this event happened as a result of her efforts more than Valerie’s mistakes. Then again, all’s fair in love and war. If Valerie was going to be childish enough to hurt Nick, then that was all the more reason for Veronica not to pull her punches in winning him over. Not that she ever did, for the most part.

She looked over at Nick to see him sinking into his seat, eyes closed and body relaxed. “He must be more exhausted than he let on. She thought, listening to his breathing. He must’ve sensed Veronica’s gaze on him because his eyes opened seconds later. He caught the girl off guard by turning to her and smiling gently.

“Something on my face?” He asked.

His voice was a little deeper than before because of his short rest. The change made Veronica a little timid. “Uhh no. Hehe, your face is fine!” She uttered terribly. A snicker from Winter upfront made Veronica turn a little red. Her ears fell down as she realized how dumb that sounded. “I mean there’s nothing on it. That’s what I…yeah.” She really wanted to stop talking.

Nick sat up straight and rubbed his eyes. “Sorry I drifted a bit. I took a nap when I got home but I guess I was a little more spent than I realized.”

“No worries. A smooth ride puts me to sleep all the time. If you don’t mind me asking, where did you go? Back at the manor your mom said you went to go talk to someone?”

“Oh, that…” he looked in the rear view mirror to look at Winter, who looked back at with a smile.

“The lady asked you a question. Don’t mind me. It honestly isn’t as big of a deal as you think Nicholas. No need to tiptoe around it with your mother, uncle, and I. We’re adults after all.”

“I know. I just...I don’t know, feel a little guilty if I wasn’t careful about it.”

“You are just fine.” Winter reassured him. “To answer your question Veronica, Nicholas likes to visit his grandparents' graves to pay respects and ponder.”

Her ears perked up. This was news to her. Well, not entirely. She had known Nick liked to pray. He’s done it for as long as she could remember. Anytime things were rough or really important, Nicholas could be found giving a small payer. It was only later did she put together that the habit must’ve been formed during his sister’s time in the hospital. Though not religious in the slightest, Veronica could understand praying in a situation like that, but for his grandparents…?

“That’s a little strange, considering you never met either and one of them wasn’t exactly…” She wanted to pick her words carefully but it was hard not to call Jacques a piece of shit. “Let’s just call your grandfather a not so good influence.”

“Heh, that’s certainly putting it lightly.” Nick chuckled, “I guess I do it because...I’m a hit afraid. For me, I can’t imagine anything worse than passing away and the people left behind, the world, it just forgets about you; as if you had no impact on life. I wouldn’t wish that fate on even my enemies. Also, my grandfather’s wrongdoings in a weird way made my mom the person she’d be to have me and Summer.” He smiled at his own weird logic. “Gotta at least be thankful for that, right?”

His reasonings were flawed in some manner but completely understandable to Veronica. “Same rules apply to your grandmother?”

“More or less. I know it’s a little odd.”

“Yeah but it’s also very much a thing you’d do. Always trying to bring someone peace, it’s like your day job at this point.”

Nick shrugged. “Can’t argue with that.”

Winter began pulling over to the curbside, finally reaching their destination. A well known set down restaurant called Blended, known for its many different cuisines that specialized in ingredients that involved purée styled cooking; hence the name. Winter watched Nick get out of the car to escort Veronica, only for the girl to playfully roll her eyes as she got out of the car by herself.

“Well at least she’s consistent with her spunky attitude.” Winter thought, actually approving of the act. “You two be safe. Nick, don’t give your mother a heart attack.”

“How would I? This is just dinner, not a battlefield.”

“Knowing you, anything could happen.” She gave a little smirk before leaving them to ponder that diss.

Nick was both flattered and insulted. “Anyways…” he held his arm out which Veronica happily grabbed. The two went off to make their reservation. Tonight was going to be nice. Like Nick said, it’s just dinner. What could happen? The inside of the restaurant blew Veronica away. Elegant marble tile, pearl white cloths over the table, mood lighting,crystal chandeliers scattered about like if they were as cheap as lightbulbs, and the most divine scents imaginable. They had only entered the front door and yet her nose could pick out an array of ingredients in the kitchen. Veronica hadn’t seen the menu but she already knew there was gonna be a steak in front of her before this night was over.

“You know my opinion of Atlas might actually go up depending on this food?”

Nick chuckled at her comment and went towards the counter where a blonde woman in a waitress outfit stood at the ready. “Hello. Schnee, reservation for two. The usual spot please.”

“Why of course Mr. Sch-” the waitresses eyes quickly caught attention to Nicholas’s plus one. “Umm, Mr.Schnee? You know we actually may have a table on the private upper level if you like?” She said with a smile, maintaining eye contact with him.

“No thank you. Too close to the smoking area. I’ll take my normal table, the one by the window.” He said calmly. Nick took a moment to look at her name tag. He hadn’t seen this one before. “Sophia, that’s a nice name.”

Worry crept up on the corners of the waitress’s smile. “If smoke is the issue then may I recommend-”

“Sophia.” He said again. “Is there a reason in particular that I can’t have my window seat?”

“Well...it’s...just….” she fidgeted her hands, doing her best to not look at Veronica and cause a scene. “.....Right this way sir.” Sophia grabbed two menus and quickly went to lead them before Veronica put a hand on the menus. “M-Ma’am?” She stuttered.

Veronica wanted a good look at her but the waitress would barely meet her eyes. All Veronica could get was a side glance and a worked up heartbeat. “Nick, what do you usually drink?”

“Uhhh apple cider?”

Veronica took the menus out of Sophia’s hands. “Cool. Sophia, he’ll have that and I’d like water. Seeing how it’s a usual spot we’re going, Nick could just lead me himself. Thank you. Nick, if you would?” Veronica said, grabbing his arm.

“Okaaaay?” Nick didn’t question her orders. He grabbed the menus from her and walked through the restaurant. It was past the time most ate, but several clanging plates nearby told him there were a few late customers; about three people every five tables or so. Seeing them was easy even with dim lighting, but that also meant they saw him. A few looked up before continuing their meals while others stared for a couple seconds, forcing him to awkwardly wave as he went by.

“Sorry, usually it’s emptier by now. I come at this time to avoid drawing attention of people who always got a thing or too to say about the Schnees”

“Or the company they keep…” Veronica added. Their table was on the right side a little more than half way towards the back, right next to a window that showed the snowy streets and dazzling lights. A real winter wonderland sight. No wonder Nick liked this spot. She finally sat down. “By any chance do you know the owner of the restaurant?”

“Dyle, what about him?” He opened his menu and began reading.

“That waitress felt like she was on the verge of a panic attack. She really didn’t want us sitting here too. Care to guess why?” Veronica reached over and pressed the menu down with a finger, making sure that Nick saw her ears wiggle. “This is why I wanted a bow.”

“Point taken, but I remember saying screw anyway that has a problem with you. I’ve never known Dyle to have a problem with faunus by the way.”

“Was that because he showed that he didn’t or because you just weren’t paying attention?” Vee noticed the waitress walk over. Sophia once again avoided her gaze, in favor of Nick’s. She also made sure to place Veronica’s water on the table but handed the cider to Nick directly.

“Ready to order?” She asked.

Nick had noticed the treatment of the drinks and had been aware of the eye contact. He only wanted a little time to think about everything as a whole. He didn’t have Veronica’s hearing but he did notice the paleness of her skin. “Are you well?”

“H-Huh?”

“You’re pale. Sick, or spooked by anything?”

“Oh, I’m fine…” The woman fidgeted. “Excuse me, I’ll be right back.” Sophia quickly left the table.

At the same time, Veronica took a sip of Nick’s cider. “Well at least this place has good drinks. Be sure to ask for a second. I’d ask myself but you know, playing things safe around our jumpy friend.”

“Yeah….” Nick flipped through another page. “So there’s either one of two things happening right now. One, our waitress is scared of you, or-”

“A certain somebody wouldn’t want her serving us. Me, is what I should actually say. Gee, I wonder who?”

Nick couldn’t deny this was odd. “Again, point taken. However, it would be weird how many times Dyle has served my family, who actively promotes faunus rights. We’ve held meetings with your mother here before and other faunus.”

Vee always loved Nick’s simple logic, but boy was it not doing him any favors tonight. “Lesson time, my dear knight. I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt of you not thinking critically with how tired you are at the moment.” Vee propped her arm on the table and rested her head in her palm. “We aren’t our parents. We’re just their brats. Adults know better than to pick on the pups when they’re around their source of income. Also, how many of those meetings were in perfect view from the street?”

Nick paused for a moment, then looked at the view. “.....None.” He closed his eyes, mentally kicking himself. “They’re up top and away from prying eyes.

“Out of sight, out of mind. Out of the way of any potential customers who may think twice of entering. Translation, private seating is a sweet way of saying it’s embarrassing to have you front and center.”

“Veronica, I didn’t-”

“Mr. Schnee!” A jolly voice called.

The teens looked to the side to see a husky redheaded man in a chef’s uniform and a hat as big as his handlebar mustache.

“Dyle.” Nick said, noticing Sophia turning ghost white a few feet behind him.

“How is the young heir on this fine night!? Craving our pastries again I bet! Oh ho ho ho!” The man patted his stomach at his one witty remark. His olive colored eyes shifted to Veronica. “My, my, where are my manners!? I’m Head Chef Dyle! Clearly Nicholas forgot his manners too for not introducing his partner in crime this lovely night. Though I guess there’s little need whenever you have credibility among the higher class? That and those lilac eyes, I’ve served a few times in the form of one fiery huntress who loves my steak! I assume your-”

“Yes, I’m her kid. To what do we owe the pleasure of the head chef himself coming to greet us?” Veronica said, hiding her attitude with fake jolliness.

“One of my little worker bees had told me one of my favorite customers was here yet again. Imagine my surprise to see him without his typical plus one. I tell you, that Valerie sure can eat until I feel a hole in my wallet! Ho! Ho! Ha! I crack myself up. Have you met her.”

“Occasionally. Sports art my thing. More of a cooking contest watcher myself. When I realized I get to try your steak I nearly jumped for joy!”

“Why thank you! Nicholas my boy, you sure bring a surprise each and every time, but you should know better. A table in the back near this drafty window at this time of year, and at night! Up your game. I’d be more than happy to let you two enjoy the comfiest seat in the building. Nothing sets the tone like the second floor. I can get you a private table right this second!”

If that wasn’t a slap in the face, then Nick didn’t know what was. Has this really gone over his head? Nick wanted to believe this was a classic case of misunderstanding, yet that felt inn accurate the longer Veronica looked at him. There was no anger, only a reserved look that poorly hid the fact she was uncomfortable. Nick stopped feeling sorry for himself, choosing to do what his family did best; put on the face that commanded respect. The face of Atlas’s most powerful family.

“Dyle?” Nick spoke, dragging out the chef’s name like a sigh of boredom. Nick focused one the menu in his hands while giving the man an occasional glance with only his eyes. “Do you know why I come here? I’ll give you a hint.” He tapped on the window.

“The...view-”

“Nope.” Nick said firmly, closing his menu. “It’s the view and the respect I believed this place had for its customers. All of its customers, but tonight is making me think I believed wrong. You’ve never been this insistent whenever Valerie and I ate here. I gotta say I’m a bit concerned. Between your behavior and our waitress, I can’t help but feel like this has everything to do with my lovely date and her perfect features.”

“Perfect.” Veronica thought, bashfully folding her ears.

“Dyle, am I correct to reevaluate my beliefs in this restaurant. No lying now. I want your honest answer.”

The jolly man wasn’t feeling so jolly anymore. Dyle’s smile turned into grimace teeth and panicked eyes. “N-No! it’s just...just!” He looked around and through the window for any watchful eyes. “It’s business. Your family should understand th-”

“My family is no longer in the business of just caring about good business. Fail to understand that and you won’t have to worry about yours.” Nick stood up and finally looked at the giant of a man as best he could. He could see it, the resentment and frustration building within the chef. By all means who wouldn’t be upset when against a member of the most dangerous family name, blatantly throwing power around like if it actually earned. Nick understood the look. If Whitley taught him anything, it was that look does nothing but keep the hate alive. Flex power, but wield it generously.

“Dyle, I will choose to believe you are in fact a good man.”

“W-What?” He said, caught off guard by the tone shift.

“If this is strictly business then we’ll treat it like so. Now there isn’t any scenario where I don’t get what I want, but I’m more than happy to get what we all want. The first thing is you apologizing to Veronica. After that you will tell all your staff to refrain from enforcing whatever faunus rules you have given them; followed by creating the best steaks you can ever create for this table. Your work won’t be done though. I do expect a dessert that will blow our mind. It is only after creating such a grand meal with your hands that you can rest easy knowing that it will have a fairly generous contribution to its stability. Indefinitely.”

“You’re...going to invest here?”

Nick sat back down. “That depends on you. A pretty decent offer I’d say. Equality and a good meal in an exchange for financial stability. Is that good with you Veronica?”

“Hmmmm, I say we should sweeten our pot. An easy fix with an official change in this place's mission statement as a public service. One that states on paper that this restaurant is for all. This isn’t a compromise.”

Nick smiled. “You heard the lady. Is it a deal?”

Dyle stood, confused by the offer. By all means it was not expected or heard of. “So this is how a Schnee conducts business now?”

“This is how I do business.”

“Hmph! Then I guess it’s fortunate you have deep enough pockets to back it up.” The man removed his chef’s hat and bowed. “Please excuse my blatant disrespect, Mrs. Belladonna.”

“Apology not accepted, but a deal is a deal and who am I to not capitalize on it for my people? Just keep your end of the bargain and I’m satisfied.”

“Ma’am.” Dyle rose from his bow, swiftly exiting to the kitchen. Veronica took a sigh of relief. Finally the man was gone. Any longer and she would’ve said something worth being glared at.

“Sorry about all of this.” Nick said with a guilty look. “Didn’t expect this level of confrontation tonight. Here I was thinking I was taking you to a stress free spot in Atlas.”

“I don’t see why you’re apologizing. After all, you are the one who told me not to hide my ears. Screw what others think, remember?” Veronica gave him a comforting smile before getting another sip of his cider. “The occasional loudmouth or prejudiced jerk is nothing new. Still… thanks for sticking up for me. It’s usually me being the mouthpiece for others or myself. It’s nice not taking the lead.”

Nick propped his head up on his right hand “Glad to be of service.”

“I can see that. How’d you know the waitress was being forced and not racist herself?”

“I’ve never met my grandfather, but his handy work I’m too familiar with.” Nick said, staring out the window.

Veronica could tell she had walked onto a sensitive subject. Between him trying to avoid talking about the grave in front of his family, it was easy to understand what he meant. She wouldn’t press the issue any further. Now wasn’t the time to get heavy. “You know if you keep looking out the window like that, I might just faint from your handsomeness.”

Nick’s face turned red. He whipped his head around to see his date smirking at him. “Oh why you gotta tease me like that!? It’s embarrassing.”

Veronica could only giggle as the flustered boy did his best to hide his face. “That’s more like it. Just keep smiling for me. That’s all I need.”

xxxxx

While a dinner date had begun in the city, a house breakout had started half an hour later. Schnee Manor had gone quiet. Dinner had ended long ago and all adults had retired to their room. Summer couldn’t ask for more. The young huntress in training double checked her supplies before making the great escape. Black wig? check. Favorite pair of ripped jeans with a nice leather jacket; check and check. She put her guitar case on her back and looked in the mirror.

“And mom said no good would come from mentioning Bleiss? Well...I am sneaking out, so I guess she had a point.” Summer left her room and began carefully walking through the halls with her boots in hand. Can’t be too careful. Even the finest houses can creak. Thanks to Nick being out, the alarm wasn’t on. Escaping would be cake walk. All she had to do was pick an exit that wouldn’t be seen or heard. Pesky cameras and windows made that a bit more of a challenge.

“Mom and dad and probably still catching up with Blake and Yang, so I should probably leave through the-”

“Beautiful night for an escape.”

Summer whipped her head around to see Blake looking at her, arms folded and smiling. Summer’s face went pale. “Es-Escape!? Me!? No...I was just….”

Blake raised her eyebrow. “Just…?”

“Esssscaping- yeah I was escaping.” Summer held her head down in defeat. She really needed to get better under pressure. “How did you know?”

“I heard the sound of glyphs earlier when you said you were eating. Multiple glyphs, launching something outside and around the house. You know it might’ve been less suspicious if you decided to grab whatever you needed, and haul it back to your room normally? No way Yang or I would know if it’s out of the ordinary.”

“Hindsight isn’t always 20/20. Plus I like plans. This one appears to be a bust though.”

“Not exactly. I won’t tell if you won’t.” Blake winked.

Summer’s eyes went wide. “Wait, what? You’re okay with me sneaking out.”

“It won’t earn me any warm feelings with Weiss but it’s clear to everyone in and out of this house that you need an outlet. I do have some conditions however.”

Summer squinted. Now she knew where Veronica got her deal making skills from. “I’m listening.”

“First, cut your parents some slack and go to school every day until after the tournament. I heard you’ll fail otherwise.”

“Ugh, why does everyone want me to- okay, fine. I was planning on it anyway. Next one?”

“Please try and be Veronica’s friend.”

“I’m sorry, did you ask me the impossible?” Summer said, making Blake frown. “What!? It’s the truth. Friendship is a two way street and both lanes are closed.

“Listen, I know my daughter hasn’t been the nicest to you, and I know what I’m asking is completely selfish. However, I’m asking anyway. Maybe if she had actual friends to open up to, then things wouldn’t be so bad for her.” Blake sighed.

“Are you trying to tell me Mrs. Fashion designer with perfect skin doesn’t have a line of people trying to rub elbows with her?”

“Hehe, you’d be surprised… Besides, I figured you would know first hand people like that aren’t exactly friend material, Mrs. Teen Idol.”

Summer bit her lip. “Fair point, got me there.” She folded her arms and began tapping her foot. Blake meant well, but it really felt like she was asking Summer to move a mountain. Especially after the forest incident. “Really twisting my arm here.”

“Could you at least make a strong attempt? You both will be spending more time together after all.”

“Hmmm, fine.”

Blake squinted, “Strong attempt, Summer.”

“I heard you.” Summer turned her head away like the snooty rich girl regular folk saw her as. “Is that all?”

“One more thing.” Blake walked up to the young girl and placed her hands on Summer’s shoulders. “Never forget you’re not alone.”

“.....Yes ma’am. Thanks, I mean it.”

Blake rubbed Summer’s head. She’s grown since the last time they met, yet still oh so small. Not to mention a bit frail. Summer may have looked like her mother but Blake could see how much more gentle she was in comparison. Not that Weiss wasn’t a softie in her own right, but she also had an uncompromising defiance. Blake didn’t see that in Summer. Her defiance by all means could be compromised. With any luck and help, it wouldn’t be. “Okay, I’ve held you hostage long enough. Have fun and be safe. I’ll feel guilty otherwise.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll be at my home away from home. If I don’t get lost in the music then I’ll definitely be back before midnight.”

“And if you do get lost in the music?”

“Make sure the bathroom window in the third hall downstairs is unlocked. Sneaking is easier at ground level. Bye now.”

Summer gave Blake a hug then rushed off out of sight. Blake couldn’t help but sigh. “Oh boy, maybe I’m the softie?”

xxxx

“Nick?”

“H-huh!?” The boy shook himself out of his daze. Veronica chewed another slice of steak while giving Nick a look of concern. Nick quickly tried to snap back to reality. “Something wrong with steak?”

“Oh something is definitely wrong, but not with the steak.” Veronica took a sip of her third cup of cider. “Maybe you can tell me what’s wrong? Nick you’ve been spacing out more and more ever since we got our entrees. Is a twin thing happening that I’m not aware of?”

“What? Oh, no, no it’s nothing like that. Sorry I’m just more out of it than I thought tonight.

Veronica nodded. “I see. Well… I guess that’s what happens when your crush hurts your feelings.” She watched Nick’s face turn from shock to guilt in no time at all. “You know it’s fine to talk about it right?”

“No it’s not. This is supposed to be a date and what kind of jerk complains about relationship stuff in front of somebody who has feelings for them? It’s not exactly dating etiquette.”

“Oh absolutely. Just thinking about another woman while there’s one in front of you is a real low blow. Frankly I am a bit bruised by it.”

“That’s why-” his words were silenced by the sweet taste of steak Veronica placed in his mouth.

“Let me finish while you chew on that, kay? Yeah my poor little pride is a bit bruised, but it’s not like I don’t already know where I stand when it comes to Valerie; much like how I know you’ve been doing well to try and set that aside. However, I’m here to tell you that’s flawed thinking. At least when you’re dealing with me. I’d much rather you talk about it with me than mentally check out whenever we’re together. So seeing how this dinner date is already far from conventional, let’s not beat around the bush a talk about the girl on your mind.”

Even though she was clearly being nice, Nick couldn’t help but feel like even more of a jerk! “It’s- it’s okay, really. We don’t have to make a big deal out of-”

“Ten minutes.”

“Huh?”

Veronica pulled out her scroll and set a timer. “It was your bright idea to have a ten minute unfiltered grace period between us. I’m calling in your ten minutes sucker. Deny it and I’ll never agree to doing it like you want.” She hit the timer. “Now spill your guts.”

His own system, used against him. Nick wasn’t sure if he should be happy Veronica remembered it, or upset. “Well played. Fine I’ll talk. Yes, Valerie has me lost in thought.”

“About what?”

“About a lot of things.”

“Nah uh, it’s something specific that has you upset. Might as well come clean now.”

“You’re really not gonna make this easy huh?”

“Nope! Tough love is tough, now speak.” Veronica smiled.

“Sigh, Val...made it seem like I was embarrassing to be around. That I stick my nose into everything. It’s not just her too. Summer said something similar to me butting in as well. The entire thing has been bugging me. Am I really that annoying to them?” Nick slouched in his chair. “Have been pushing them away?”

Veronica clicked her tongue. He opened up faster than she expected. “While I can’t speak much about you being embarrassing since I don’t think you are by any means; I can totally say you do make it your mission to be a helping hand in every situation. So yeah, you do butt in.”

The waitress came back and Veronica quickly gathered their dirty dishes to give to the actually nice woman. “All that being said, that’s nothing new Nick. You’ve always been like that. I’d say it’s actually one of your better qualities.”

“It is?” He said confused.

“Mmmhmm. I’ve never minded it at the very least. There’s a comfort in knowing there’s a helping hand in your corner. Plus it’s not like you blatantly ignore any request telling you to stop. You did give Valerie space when she asked for it after all. As for your sister, she’s all talk. I can tell just from reviewing footage and our short trip to the forest that Summer is quick to depend on you. If you ask me, she’s more annoyed at herself for that than she is at you.”

“I doubt it. They both gave me that same look of frustration. Especially Valerie. One minute she wants to be included whenever I’m in trouble but the next she’s telling me to take a hike. It’s pissing me off.” Nick rubbed his hand through his hair and let out a sigh. This entire thing felt like a complex math equation he didn’t know how to solve.

Veronica could tell by the look on his face how conflicted this made him. How conflicted Valerie made him. Needless to say, she was a bit envious. “Why do you love her so much?” She asked bluntly.

Nick’s face turned red. “Uhhh what?”

“I’m just trying to understand what makes her special. After all, Nicholas Schnee could have a girlfriend everyday of the week, yet he fawns over one. The same one since kindergarten. It can’t only because you’ve known each other for so long. What makes her special in your eyes?” Veronica knew she was practically asking to get hurt but she had to know. What was it that made Valerie different from her?

“D...Do I really have to answer that? It’s kinda sudden.”

“The clock has five more minutes on it and you have a girl willing to listen to gush over another girl. Money can’t buy you a scenario this sweet. Fess up.”

Nick took a long sip of his cider before taking an even longer breath. It would’ve been nice if he could do this for five minutes straight but that would be asking for too much. The only way out was through.

“It’s not the most complicated reason if you’re wondering. Growing up the way I have has had numerous blessings I won’t begin to look down on. Family, money, influence; all of that has been a joy. That being said, I didn’t really revel in being who I am as a Schnee until maybe four or five years ago. Everything I did or everywhere I went, a person would always watch what I would do. Nick is gonna go far. Oh he’s great at that, perhaps he’ll go pro? That sort of thing. Ice skating was just a hobby at first. I did it because it was relaxing and mom liked skating with me. I never paid attention if I was actually good at the moves I tried.”

“But...the people did?” Veronica asked, receiving a nod.

“I didn’t think much of it. I was only around seven perhaps? It actually made me happy. So what if a few people liked my routine? I was on the ice for fun and happened to win a medal. But then, as I kept on skating, a pressure started to form. More eyes started watching me. Waiting for the next medal, talking my skill up, muttering rumors about the contests I didn’t participate in, shaking their heads at my failures…they weren’t looking at me. Only my achievements and shortcomings. Ice skating stopped being fun, again. Mom was always quick to tell me to never pay them mind and eventually convinced me to take a break from it altogether. I could never skate again and she’d be perfectly fine with that.”

“Of course. She shared that with you as an outlet, not a sport. I think she knows better than anyone how cruel it is to make a child participate in performances just because they’re good at it.”

“Yeah, hehe, she really has the perfect playbook of what not to do with a child. It would be cool if it wasn't also sad. Anyways, the break was well needed. People eventually stopped talking and I skated in private. By then I’ve taken up some early combat stuff. Nothing serious. Fencing, a few things a bit more in the huntsman category but for more of sparring and building blocks of it all. Valerie had taken notice one day and got the biggest smile. Finally we can do some real horse playing! She shouted and cheered. Next thing I knew I was being driven to the gym with a hyperactive twelve year old who may have been a little too eager to hit her best friend.” He chuckled.

“And they say I’m feisty. So what? Did she hit you so hard you thought it was cool?” Veronica teased.

“N-Well it was cool, but that wasn’t the linchpin! We were having fun sparring. I was having fun. Learning how she did and showing me the ropes everyday was a blast, until one day I did something really cool I guess. Cool enough that people noticed; and kept noticing. People started talking again about what this might possibly mean for me and began watching my practices. I remember starting to feel the overwhelming stress build up again. It was frustrating thinking that this thing I do for me was about to be taken for the people again. I wanted to cry on the spot. Next thing I knew, Valerie had gotten on this platform to make herself taller and kindly told everyone that they were interrupting our training. To my surprise, they left. It only hit then that I’ve been so caught up in trying to avoid them or please, that I never once tried telling everyone to leave me alone. I asked Valerie how she could easily tell people that also expect so much from her to leave because they were in way. Why would I ever care about their input? I do what I want for me. They’re just along for the ride. S-”

BZZZ! BZZZ! BZZZ! Ten minutes had finally gone by. Veronica clicked her tongue. She reached to shut her alarm off when Nick reached for her scroll.

“It’s only right to finish a story this far in. Not much left anyways.” Nick shut the alarm off to continue. “As I was saying, Soon after that is when I began getting back into ice skating and really started participating for myself; figuring out my agenda in all things I did. Especially tournaments. That’s the gist of it. Like I said, silly.”

“No, I get. Valerie gave you back your enjoyment of your hobbies. Helped make a new lease on life. How could that not be a big deal? If anything it makes me irritated that you have such nice reasoning.” Veronica poked her lips out in a dramatically pouty way before turning head to the window. “Guess I should’ve figured as much. She did to you what you did for me. No wonder you like her. Still, I’m not phoning things in yet. Especially if those are the words she told you.” Veronica stopped herself from clenching the table cloth. “That hypocrite. Not caring about their input my ass…” Veronica let out a little chuckle. That was certainly informative. “Thank you for your honesty.”

“Yeah don’t thank me yet.” Nick put thirteen minutes on the timer and smiled. “I believe it’s your turn?”

Veronica’s pleased expression quickly turned to panic. “Wait, what!?”

“Why do you like me?” He asked without mercy. The flush on Vee’s cheeks was redder than wine. “Y-You can’t just ask a girl why they like you!”

“Oh but you can ask me about my romantic feelings without question.” Vee nodded shameless.

“Yep that pretty much sums it up. Besides it’s not like I asked about your feelings towards me. That’s embarrassing as hell.” Veronica watched Nick purse his lips and gave her a look that screamed “seriously?” It was enough to make her start combing her fingers through her hair and look at the coconut cream pie slice that the waitress somehow managed to put under her nose without detection. “I...specifics are bothersome to explain. Just understand that...Nick, you’ve…” she could feel her heart pound in her own ears. “You’ve given me a lot of strength, hope actually. In ways I can’t begin to explain. I’m grateful; dare I say blessed.”

Those words truly shocked him. It wasn’t everyday a term like that came from Vee’s lips. “Blessed huh? That’s a big deal coming from a nonbeliever like yourself.”

“And despite knowing that you still tell me how you pray for me. Not that I particularly mind that I’m in your thoughts regularly. Also it’s rude to just straight up say nonbeliever. I have beliefs. Now the feelings associated and to what the beliefs are is a different story. Thank you for the prayers nonetheless though.”

“Maybe one day you’ll pray for me, hehe.”

Veronica smirked. “I doubt any deity would heed the words. I’ll keep the praying business to the faithful.”

“Fair enough.” Nick took a scoop of ice cream off his fudge brownie and looked at the timer. “Seeing how you’re a bit resistant to tell me why you feel the way you do towards me, can you at least be frank with me by telling me why you’re so adamant about not getting along with Valerie or Summer?”

Very slumped over. “Of all the questions, you’re set on detective work?”

“This timer thing isn’t even meant for interrogation. I offered this as a way to vent without consequences but you’re the one who wanted to play twenty questions.” He finally took a bite of dessert. “Tough it out” He said, a warm smile on his face from the flavor.

“Sigh, guess I have no right to complain. I wouldn’t say I have any real personal grievances towards them, even though I have a few unpleasant memories of your sister harassing me when we were little.”

“We were five.”

“Well I was six and a hurt tail is still a hurt tail, but I digress. Those two, they’re not the kind of people I find myself liking very much. Summer always wraps individuals into her pity party by acting like she’s making a genuine effort, and then Valerie, sigh, there’s not a thing about her that doesn’t make me want to hit her. I know you like her and wouldn’t say she’s a bad natured person, but…” Veronica held her tongue before she overstepped. These were still Nick’s loved ones.

Nick on the other hand wasn’t satisfied. “Say it, what’s on your mind. Zero consequences remember?”

“You say that but it’s not like we’ll magically forget what we’ve said in this last twenty six minutes.”

“No, but I trust you won’t hold my words and secrets against me. Do you trust me? Good or bad, this is meant to clear the air. I’d be a hypocrite to not let you speak your mind after asking you to.” It was a bit brash but Nick reached for Vee’s hand and held it.

Veronica felt her own breathing slow down at the sight of Nick’s reassuring smile. Her eyes went to her pie to avoid his gaze. He was too disarming for his own good. It made her feel guilty for doubting, as well as relying on him the way she did.

“Valerie isn’t a good friend, not you and I, not your sister for that matter. Yeah she might help out because she’s a good person but she’s far too self centered in my opinion. I mean just take tonight for example. You’ve made plans with her that fell apart because everything you two do are on her own terms. What friend gets upset that another saved them in a training exercise, or uses a pet name that the other person doesn’t like!?”

Nick raised his eyebrow. “Pet name?”

“Summer hates to be called Princess, right? That could be a thing with me personally but with the way she gets so pissed about it I would think Valerie using it would be annoying. Yet she does it anyway. Like how she’s quick to try to act like she’s above something when she clearly isn’t. I-”

“Vee? My hand…” Nick winced, his hand being squeezed like a stress ball.”

“Crap…” Veronica immediately loosened up to look at it. Thankfully her nails didn’t dig into him but she did make his hand red. Veronica gently begins rubbing it in some pointless attempt to relieve the pain. “Sorry I… I shouldn’t lose my temper like that. Ugh I know better too. Maybe steak was a bad idea after all?”

Nick watched as Veronica became fixated on the light injury. Her ears had fallen down and the anger she had while speaking had vanished entirely. All she could do was rub his hand. “It’s fine, honest. I don’t even feel pain anymore.”

“You shouldn’t have felt pain at all. This is the second time I’ve hurt you.”

“Well...I did actively walk into a fight the first time. Faunus reasons or not, a person should expect to get whaled on a bit when breaking a fight up.”

Veronica knew Nick was trying to be nice and there was truth to his words. That still didn’t make her feel much better. “I guess there’s one thing Valerie and I have in common. We get you hurt for needless reasons that could be avoided.”

“Vee…”

“Hey, I know she makes you happy and I shouldn’t really try to persuade you to feel otherwise, but… I can’t help but feel like… if you were to ever allow it one day if you’ll look my way, because…Nick, I think I can make you even happier.” She gently held his hand with her trembling ones.

Nick couldn’t see her eyes but could see how the blush took over her. She wasn’t the only one. How could he not feel embarrassed when Veronica Belladonna, the most brazen girl he knew, was now currently holding his hand sheepishly while her tail swayed side to side. Thank goodness he had set a timer beforehand. The buzzer finally went off and Veronica snapped out of her trance, letting go. Rather than speak further, her pie became the scapegoat, getting devoured without interruption. Nick wanted to say something but even the work up to speaking made her face redder by the second. Besides, the timer hit zero. He had to respect the rules he made. A lot was learned within a short time.

“It’s been some time since we had a talk like that. Thanks, Veronica. I feel like I know you even better than before.”

“Just...eat your dessert, please?” She said, embarrassed beyond belief. How could she say something so compromising like that!? Claiming to make him happier than Valerie was bolder than she meant to be.

xxxx

The rest of dinner was pretty quiet. Both of them couldn’t think of any light topics to discuss after prying into feelings. It wasn’t awkward to speak but felt more, inappropriate, so to speak. Both desserts were finished and the chef had passed his taste test. Nick would keep his end of the bargain. However, the generous tip he usually left for all workers involved was purposely missing. The chef had lost the privilege entirely. The waitress would be in for a shock the next time she checked her savings. No need to punish those in the crossfire after all. Veronica and Nick left without saying a word to anybody.

The two of them walked down the sidewalk in the season's chill embrace. Veronica felt the chill winds creep down her thin dress. It felt colder than in the forest. Not even a single person or car was on the street! Nothing but an ever forming winter wonderland!

“Eugh! I know walking home was my idea but maybe I should’ve thought ahead?”

Nick chuckled. “Maybe so?” He took his dress coat off and draped it over her shoulders. “Better?”

“Yeah but you just got over being sick. You can’t afford to catch another cold.”

“Relax, I got sick because of stress. Temperatures like this are nothing to anybody who lives here. The cold is nothing in the face of a real Atlesian. It’s in our blood!”

“And central heating is in your budget. Speaking of which, shouldn’t that be on full blast in the winter!? I mean my goosebumps have goosebumps.” Veronica shivered.

Nick smiled. “I’m glad you asked!” He took Veronica’s hand and quickly rushed over to a building with an awning for them to be under. “There’s a reason I picked a reservation for today. It’s the night manual resets happen.”

“Manual resets?”

Nick nodded. “Yep! You’re right about it being super cold. The lack of people is a dead giveaway.”

“What’s up with that? I thought Atlas was a city that never slept? It’s like a ghost town now. Nothing but….actually…” Veronica looked around the streets, lamps, and every building. There were noticeable less lights. A far cry from the dazzling show she saw earlier through the window. “The heating system, it’s off.”

“Not entirely. A majority of buildings still have them on but yes, external heating vents get temporarily shut off and rebooted. It’s common in the winter since they have to run constantly. You didn’t think it was weird that it was snowing so steadily?”

“Now that you mention it, I guess it is. Everything was already covered in snow so I didn’t notice.”

“Most snow melts on contact but there’s no getting past it during the cold season. Heater or not heater, you’re gonna see snow fall.”

Veronica breathed on her hands to warm them up. “So why come out when the heaters are off if you can see snow whenever?”

“Because I’m not here for the snow. There’s only one thing Atlas gets to really witness whenever the heaters come back on, because the reboot forces the heaters to come back on at full blast.”

“What would-” Before she could finish, Veronica witnessed it first hand; the sudden burst of heat that washed over her body as the orange glow of heaters returned to pale white city. The previous atmospheric silence had been broken. Pit pat pit pat pit pat pit. The familiar brought Veronica’s attention to the streets. Right before eyes like magic, suddenly and seamless, the winter wonderland turned into rain. Lots of rain.

Any and all snowflakes melted before pitter pattering on the pavement. Rain was nothing new to her and neither was Atlas at night for that matter, but a rainy night lights in the city of Atlas? That was a different story entirely. It was if she was in a new kingdom altogether, the way the lights shimmered on the water in the air and on the ground. Atlas somehow went from looking like a snow globe, to a chandelier.

“Woah~” Veronica was floored. She extended her hand out. The feeling of frigid rain contrasted against the warm so much it made her jolt. “Ah! Man that has a bite to it!” She laughed.Veronica stepped out from the awning.

Nick, shocked by her actions, quickly grabbed her hand. “Hey, your dress!” He shouted with agency. Veronica did not bother with his words. Instead she pulled Nick into the rain with her as she laughed.

“Hahaha! What’s a little water!? I love the rain!! Between the heaters and a pour like this, I’d say this is more refreshing than the showers back home.” Veronica’s grin widened. She took hold of Nick’s hands and began swaying. “Come on, dance with me!”

Nick let himself get strung along into Vee’s antics. He caught her guard by pulling the two of them into a ballroom stance and began to waltz.

Veronica’s ears wiggled. “Oooo look at you Mr. Casanova, taking the lead like that.”

“You’re pretty upbeat for a cat in the rain.” He teased.

“Jokes on you, panthers love water, and people from Menagerie love the ocean. I do have a surfboard after all.” She leaned back to que Nick to support her back. Veronica dramatically stuck her leg out to do an over the top dip before Nick brought her back up, pulling her close.

“Nice moves.”

“You’re not the only one who has to learn etiquette. Gotta stay on my toes for the public too. Pretty easy with a tail for balance.”

Nick chuckled. He waltzed his cheeky date back over to the awning near a heater as she continued to laugh. “I could’ve sworn minutes ago you didn’t want me getting sick?”

“Well someone bragged about being one with the cold.”

“I didn’t say all that now. I’m surprised someone complaining about the cold gets excited to dance in the rain.”

“Yeah well…” Veronica moves even closer to Nick, until there’s virtually no space between them. “I feel pretty warm right now.” She said, looking up into his eyes. Maybe it was the heater, the cold rain, or the warmth from his arms now wrapping around her, but it made Veronica warm to the point of feeling dazed. It couldn’t just be her. Not when Nick’s face was its own shade of red. The two let the sound of rain surround them yet again. The smile Veronica had slowly shifted into an expression of longing. She was so close to him right now. Closer than she’s ever felt. His warmth, his cologne, his lips…; Veronica’s body couldn’t help but lean forward. Right...until…

Beep! beep! The sound of a car horn made both jump out of their skin. They looked to the street to see their waitress waving joyfully.

“Thanks for the tip!” She said emotionally as she drove off.

The surprise brought Veronica back to her senses to see Nick’s face flushed and embarrassed. As well as conflicted. Like how he was back at Penny’s lab. Veronica felt the weight of her actions hit her like a tank and quickly took a step back.

“Sorry! Silly me, hehe. Here I was telling you that I wouldn’t be too forward or force anything, then I pull this! Talk about embarrassing huh?!” There wasn’t a bone in her body that didn’t want to find a hole to hide in. How could she get lost in emotion again!?

Nick frowned. “Ver-”

“It’s fine! Totally my bad.” She could feel her own heart start to race from her recklessness. “Tonight has been nice. We should probably start heading back before-”

Nick took Veronica’s arm and shut her up by kissing her cheek before wrapping his arms around her tightly. Her body went a little stiff before eventually hugging him back.

“No date is complete without a little intimacy, right.” Nick said, doing his best to kill the tension. “Sorry things got weird. I should’ve spoken up. It’s not like I would’ve been upset.” He admitted. “I just...you know. But I hope this is okay at least?”

Rejection is nothing new. Veronica was ready for the sting. However, Nick’s words didn’t sting at all. In fact, Veronica could only find herself hiding her face in his shirt, enjoying this comfort. Her heart stopped racing and she felt calmer than she had all night. This wasn’t rejection. Not by a long shot. A to be continued perhaps?

“This is perfect.” She said, holding her crush closer. “Stay just like this for your date. At least for a few more moments.”

Nick smiled. “As you wish.”

Veronica may not have Nick’s attention like how Valerie does, but at this moment, Veronica had Nick focused on her and her alone. He was hers right now. Veronica couldn’t ask for more. This definitely was an unconventional date, clumsy and hardly what anyone would call romantic. Veronica would cherish it all the same.

xxxx

While the sweet sound of rain soothed one duo, another couldn’t hear it all, it being completely drowned out by applause with bubbling excitement. Tonight may be one of the coldest nights for Atlas, but for a warehouse in Mantle filled with young adults, passion burned in the form of a young woman in black about to conquer the stage with her guitar and vocals. Summer was ready to vent. While Eliza carefully observed from afar.

If she wasn’t here then she might not have believed it. With those clothes and confidence, Eliza was sure she was watching a stranger.“Summer Schnee, you and your brother are one surprise after another.”

The singer grabbed a microphone and looked out to the many eyes ready to cut loose. “ALRIGHT EVERYBODY LET’S MAKE SOME NOISE!”

Summer screamed, receiving nothing less than twice the excitement back. No time was wasted in playing how she played less. Tonight was her night. Problems could wait until tomorrow.

[starrynite7114]

Misconstrued: Part 1

A/N: HELLO EVERYONE! First of all, I would like to thank you for the response you gave the preview I posted last night. Hopefully this will do it justice. Thank you so much again for all the support you have given me! Kind of went overboard and it was much longer than I expected. Enjoy this new multi-part series!

Anon:  I don't know if this is too specific but could you do something about Angel ruining a date and later admits it because he loves them and then they have some angry smut and late night fluff

Word Count: 6708

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Your Tio Obispo was so lucky you love him. There was no bone in your body that wanted to go to a clubhouse party. All you wanted to do was stay home and sleep. He was lucky you decided to come even after going home to shower and change. You parked just outside of EZ’s trailer, not wanting to draw attention if you had gone all the way in. 

It was a good night to host a party. The weather was quite good, not cold and not scorching hot. You didn’t wear anything special, just jeans and a shirt. It was a Barbeque, you didn’t need to wear anything crazy.

Walking in with a few other people, you made your way towards the clubhouse, but before you did, you spotted Angel sitting by the bonfire with a club hang around on his lap. For some reason, you’ve never seen him with any of them before and it definitely hit the point home that Angel would never be interested in you. He seemed like the type of guy who couldn't hide his feelings and was straight forward. Only thing he did with you was keep you company while you’re at the clubhouse and text you every now and then. You were certain that the only reason he hung around you was due to your tio’s request.

Pushing your glasses up the bridge of your nose, you entered the clubhouse in search of your tio. If you showed your face once, you could hide at EZ’s trailer for an hour or two and then head home. You’re pretty sure he’ll be wasted soon enough. 

“Sweetheart,” you heard your tio call you. He just came out of Templo with Taza following after him.

“Tio, hey.” You wrapped your arms around Bishop once he was close enough to you. 

“Glad you came, I thought you were just going to stay home, knowing how lazy you get.”

“Haha,” you rolled your eyes. Your relationship with your tio always seemed to be more brother-sister like than anything else. Your mother was much older than your tio, when he used to take care of you, he would teach you how to fix cars, change your oil, etc. He was the cool tio, but you still had that boundary and never overstepped it. “I wasn’t going to, but I didn’t want you to send your security after me.”

“It would most likely be Angel.” Bishop knew of Angel’s crush on you, it was hard not to notice. He always volunteered to do things when it came to you. At first he thought Angel took a liking towards you since you were new in town and he felt naive that he even thought that, but it became very apparent why he was always nearby.

“Yes, my own personal bodyguard.” You nodded your head. “Who is enjoying the women today, which works out for me so I don’t have to worry how much I bore him.”

“I don’t think you’re boring.” Bishop frowned. He knew it was difficult for you being an only child and with how overprotective your mother was, he was surprised that you didn’t want to choke her out at times. You yearn for freedom and he was certain it was the primary reason you chose to stay put in Santo Padre.

“Tio, it’s a joke, I know I’m not. But maybe you could rotate some? Angel doesn’t always have to be the one attached to me.” You two walked over to the bar, EZ manning it as always. “Give Angel a break.” EZ placed one of those ciders you liked drinking, mouthing a thank you. 

Bishop was perplexed at your suggestion. He knew why Angel was always around you and he thought you knew as well. Angel was always around you, surely you had to take the hint that he had felt something towards you. 

“What? Angel goes to you on his own accord. Contrary to popular belief, I didn’t actually sic any of them on you.” 

“Oh,” you gnawed at your lip, a habit you developed when you were unsure of what to say or do. “I, I just thought you had Angel attached to me.”

“So that I can get an earful from you? No fucking way.” Bishop chuckled. Maybe at the beginning he did have Coco keep an eye on you, but otherwise, it was Angel’s own doing that led him to you.

You smiled as you took a sip of your cider. You didn’t want to drink much since you had to drive home. The cider didn’t have much alcohol content so you weren’t worried.

“Don’t cause trouble, I’ll grab you some meat.” Bishop left you to your own vices. He was very overprotective, but he tried not to be as overbearing as your mother. The last thing he wanted was for you to push him away. 

“Where’s Angel?” EZ questioned you once Bishop walked away.

You shrugged. “Outside? He’s not on babysitting duty for once so he’s with one of the girls.”

EZ knew that Angel most likely didn’t know you were coming. Angel was definitely interested in you, but getting one in every once in a while wouldn’t hurt either. Angel was no angel after all. He had needs, they all did and it’s not like you two were official and from what he could see, it was one-sided, on Angel’s side.

“Aw, you know you’re not so bad either, besides the fact you can be an annoying smart ass.”

“Right back at ya Boy Scout,” you lifted your drink toward him, making EZ laugh.

“Y/N, hey,” you heard someone greet you.

Looking back, you saw Damien, who worked with the club from time to time. You weren’t exactly aware of what the affiliation was, but all you knew was that he was not a member of the club and was running some business.

“Hey, how are you?” You greeted him, turning so you could face him. “I rarely see you at these parties.” 

“I come all the time, you’re always preoccupied by someone else.” Damien teased. “Glad you’re all alone so that I can have some of your attention.”

EZ wanted to gag at that. This guy was a quintessential douchebag. He lured girls in with his charm and usually disposed of them once he had them. The club worked with him before, but as far as EZ knew, they were no longer in business together.

“Attention? You can always come up to me, not like I bite.” You joked. You tried to recall if you ever saw Damien at any of these parties, but you were always with Angel. Hard to look elsewhere when you were with him. “Don’t worry about these guys,” you pointed at EZ. “Completely harmless.”

“Not my brother though,” EZ mumbled under his breath.

“What was that?” You turned to EZ, not quite heating his words.

“Nothing.”

You turned back to Damien. He was a good looking guy. Six foot two, muscular built, with slicked back brunette hair and hazel eyes. He was a definite eye candy. 

“Are you busy next week?” Damien had to leave since he had promised his mother that he would drive down to Chino for some quality time. 

“Um, depends when, I mostly just have work.” You tried to think of your schedule at the top of your head. You worked at the auto repair shop four days a week and the other days, you were at home doing orders for cakes, brownies and other baked goods.

“Saturday?” 

“Should be fine, I get off work at 7, what’s up?”

“Would you like to go to the fair?” 

“What?” You and EZ said in unison. 

You and Damien both looked to EZ confused by his reaction.

EZ wished that Angel was here to stop it, if he even tried to stop it, people would misconstrued things and maybe this would be the fire under his brother’s ass to push him to do something.

“Sorry, Coco was mouthing something to me.” EZ looked across the room at Coco who was thankfully looking at him. He made some gesture at Coco who gave him a confused look. “I’m just gonna go see what he wants.”

You two watched him walk over to Coco, still confused by his reaction. 

Damien knew why he reacted in that way and he should get an answer from you immediately before they reported to Angel. “Anyway, so, you down?”

“Are you asking me out on a date?” You haven’t been on a date with anyone at Santo Padre. Maybe it was a lack of trying on your part, but regardless, the dating scene in Santo Padre was nonexistent. You didn’t want to assume either, but it seemed like he was.

“Yes. If you want to go?” Damien knew if he fucked up, he would be six feet under. Despite the rumors, he was trying to be a decent guy and truly wanted to show you a good time. Just a plus if he scores afterwards. 

“Sure, I’d love to go on a date with you.” You were kind of excited. This was your first date in years, but you kind of wished it was Angel who was asking you. Then again, you weren’t his type, so, why not explore the field?

“Everything good here?”

You thought you were hallucinating his voice, but you weren’t. Right behind Damien was Angel, holding a plate of food that you assumed was yours.

Damien turned around and backed away to the side. He was slightly afraid of Angel after seeing him fight a few times in the ring. He knew Angel was some sort of watchdog for you however, seeing the last few times you two were together, he was almost certain Angel was interested in you.

“I was just talking to Y/N. But I got to go, so I’ll see you both later.” He placed his empty beer on the bar. “See you next week?”

“Yes, see you next week.” You nodded your head, offering him a small smile.

Damien quickly made his exit. Angel’s eyes were trained on you, not paying any mind to Damien. He wasn’t sure why Damien was speaking to you, but it didn’t matter, he was leaving. 

“Querida, why didn’t you tell me you would be coming? I could have picked you up.” As far as Angel knew, you weren’t coming to the party. You texted him that you were swamped at work and all you wanted to do was sleep.

You really hated it when Angel spoke in Spanish, it made the butterflies in your stomach run wild and it was just annoyingly sexy. “I wasn’t, but tio wouldn’t let me say no. Something about not wanting me to be alone.”

‘I could keep you company.’ Angel thought.

“Here, I brought you food.” He placed the plate in front of you. “I marinated the ribs.” He proudly informed you.

“You are pretty good with your meat.” You paused. You two looked at one another and smirked. “That’s what she said.” You and Angel said in unison, laughter erupting from the both of you. “You don’t have to keep me company, I’m going to take my food to EZ’s trailer, kill two hours and then go. At least I showed myself and tio doesn’t have to give me flack for not coming.”

“I’ll stay with you.” Angel was entertaining someone earlier, but as soon as Bishop informed him that you were here, he made his way over to you.

“Don’t be silly, I saw you talking to a girl earlier, just go back to her.” You tried your best to not sound bitter or jealous. You really hated that you weren’t Angel’s type, but it was the story of your life. Bad boys don’t go for the good girls as they believe in movies and television. They befriend them sure, but nothing else. “Get your dick wet.” You wanted to cringe at that one, but you always spoke to Angel with no filters, yet you couldn’t tell him you like him.

“I’m good, I’ll stay here.” He grabbed some fries that were on your plate. “I may have gotten the food for both of us.”

You laughed. “I was hoping so because I don’t think I eat this much.”

“What did pretty boy want?” Angel took the seat beside you. 

“Damien? He asked me out on a date.” You took some fries and ate some as well. You mentioned it so casually that Angel took some time to reply to you. 

“He did what now?” Now he was on his shit list. He had no claim on you, he knew that, but that didn’t mean he was happy about this. To top it off, now it made sense why Damien was always watching you, but he stayed away since Angel was always around. The one time he left you alone, Damien was able to slide in. Where the fuck was EZ? He knew his little brother manned the bar, he should have prevented it. 

“Right? It’s kind of unbelievable, but yeah, I guess we’re going out next Saturday.” You shrugged and ate some of the carne asada on your plate. “It’d be nice since I haven’t been on a date for a while.”

“Wait, why is it unbelievable?” You haven’t been on a date in a while 

“I don’t know, no one has asked me out around here, figured it was cause I was so unattractive.” Self esteem issues were a bitch. It was hard not to think that something was wrong with you when men didn’t ask you out. 

“Mi dulce, you’re the most beautiful girl I know, don’t ever think that.” Angel placed his hand on top of yours.

You felt your cheeks hit up and the butterflies in your stomach just went berserk. 

“You’re such a sweet talker.” You moved your hand and turned to the food so you could start eating. 

Angel loved seeing the blush on your cheek. He liked knowing he had some sort of affect on you, especially since he was fucking in love with you. 

Yep.

Angel Reyes was fucking in love with the president’s niece.

It wasn’t his fault. It really wasn’t.

You barged into his life and there was really nothing he could do. 

He was powerless against you and he honestly didn’t care.

=====================

“This is fucking stupid.” Angel heard EZ complaining at the backseat of the van. He was driving with Gilly at the front passenger seat and Coco behind him.

“No one asked you to come Ezekiel.” 

“Asked me to come? You fucking forced me in the car.” EZ scoffed. “No choice Boy Scout, you do as your sponsor says.” EZ rolled his eyes, mimicking Angel’s words. “What does this have to do with club business?”

“Feel like we wouldn’t be doing this if Angel grew a pair and spoke with his dick like he always did.” Coco shook his head. 

But that’s the thing, Angel couldn’t listen to his dick with you. 

This was different. 

You were Bishop’s niece, he couldn’t exactly go guns ablazing. He stayed away from you cause you were related to Bishop, keeping you at arm's length. But it was so difficult to keep you at arm's length when you were so damn charming. You didn’t even do much. You hooked him with one smile and he was fucking done. He felt like an idiot, like a teenager boy with a crush, but all you had to do was fucking introduce yourself. Bishop brought you by when you first moved two years ago. His sister, your mother, wanted to be close to her baby brother, so she decided to move to Santo Padre. But your mother was only able to stand the heat for so long before she went back to Oakland. You stayed behind, liking the work you found at one of the auto shops down the street from the scrapyard. It was owned by one of Bishop’s friends. Due to the closeness of the shop and scrapyard, you were always around and it was difficult to ignore you. 

“Why haven’t you told her you like her?” Gilly questioned. “It’s not like Bishop doesn’t know.”

“He doesn’t think he’s good enough for her.” EZ answered for him.

“Fuck you Ezekiel.”

“Angel, what makes you so incompatible with her?” EZ hasn’t been around long, but even he could see his brother hung onto every word you said. It was actually quite fun to see. Whenever you were at the clubhouse, Angel stuck to you. No girls, no shooting his shit with his brothers, nothing else caught his attention. Whenever you would talk about the new cookies or cake you baked, Angel listened. Whenever you animatedly talked to him about the new car you fixed the last few days, he listened. He didn’t give a fuck about the baked goods or the cars, all he cared about was listening to you. It was cute. You were the good girl that the bad boy wanted, EZ had to say you weren’t Angel’s type, but you had his older brother hooked. “She isn’t your usual type, but I figured you dabbled in every pool.” He knew his brother felt more for you than any other women around. But he could never pass up a chance to tease Angel. 

“My type, the fuck is that supposed to mean?” Angel looked at his brother through the rearview mirror.

“She technically is his type, she has a pussy.” Gilly joined in with teasing Angel. 

“Don’t talk about our hermana like that.” Coco scowled at Gilly. “Y/N is special, she’s a good girl, untainted. Angel doesn’t do good girls cause they want commitments, something he can’t offer.” 

“I’m fully capable of holding a relationship assholes. I was with Gabriella for like,” he paused, knowing his argument was not going to hold. “Fuck, how long was I with her?”

Gilly and Coco laughed loudly while EZ chuckled, shaking his head. 

“You see? Come on Angel, if you’re not serious about her, let’s just turn around.” EZ was trying to use reverse psychology on his brother. He knew Angel hated it when people doubted him, counted him out. Maybe if they pushed his buttons a bit, he would get with the damn program. 

“We’re not going for her, I don’t even know where she is.” Angel scoffed. He was lying, but these fuckers didn’t need to know that. “You fuckers don’t want a night of fun at the fair?”

“At the same fucking fair that Y/N is going to?” Gilly was amused. It was fun to see Angel head over heels over a woman. 

“Oh, that’s the one she’s going to?” Angel smirked. He was a bastard, he knew, but he got the details of your date from EZ. He should have pulled his head out of his ass long ago, but Damien was a punk. He portrayed himself to be a good guy, but he was a perverted douchebag.

“I feel like you could have saved us the trouble.” EZ scoffed. “Angel, what’s your game plan? What are you going to do? Just listen to her like you always do and not say you like her?”

“When we get out of this car, I’m beating your ass.” Angel threatened. 

Coco, Gilly and EZ laughed. If they were being honest, they tagged along to see what the fuck their brother was going to do. It was like uncharted territory for Angel. He went for easy girls who fell at his feet, they were easy, noncommittal, easy to leave. But you, that’s not how it worked, which made him out of his element. He’s had relationships before, but this was different. You two weren’t even together but he saw your future together. It was the reason he avoided you. Seeing a future with someone was daunting on anyone but for Angel? The guy who didn’t think he would ever find someone? It was something else.

When EZ came home, he thought you would drift to EZ, you like books as much as he did, fuck you two had a hell of a lot more in common than you and Angel. But instead you two bantered like siblings and it was an actual amusing site to see.

“I don’t even know why you like her, she’s obnoxious.” EZ didn’t actually mean that, but you were the sister he never fucking wanted. He couldn’t even imagine how Angel fell for you, you definitely were not his fucking type. But his brother could have changed in the last eight years, like becoming an actual mature adult, he has still yet to see that. 

“Watch what you say about Angel’s girlfriend.” Gilly looked back at EZ. “Oh wait, she’s on a date.” The three men laughed with the exception of Angel.

“Funny shit, fuck you three.” Angel grumbled. 

Angel was relieved that they got to the fair and parked the car just so he didn’t have to be in the car with these assholes. 

Getting out of the car, Angel smoothed out his kute and made his way towards the entrance of the fair with his usual three partners right behind him.

He wasn’t going to ruin your date, but he had to make sure that Damien kept his hands to himself. 

=====================

You giggled as your date, Damien finished telling you a story about his silly dog. You were so happy this date was going well, especially since you haven’t been to one in years. You decided to wear your contacts today in case you and Damien decided to ride some of the rides. 

“You should meet him some time.” Damien commented as you two walked side by side.

Your hands were in your jean pockets and Damien has been trying to hold your hands, but you just kept it in there or if it was in there, your arms were crossed. He also wanted to make sure you were comfortable before he did anything. He knew that if even a hair on you was harmed, the MC would come looking for him. 

“Your dog? Yeah, that would be great. I love dogs.” You always wanted a dog, but your mother was not the biggest fan. You’ve been thinking about getting a dog, but you just haven’t found the right one as of yet. 

“German shepherds are very intuitive and they’re great dogs.”

“They definitely are.” You nodded your head. “So, can I ask you a question?”

“Sure.” You two were waiting in line to get some funnel cake, thankful that not that many people were here so you can get to the sweet treat faster. 

“Why did you ask me out on a date? Don’t get me wrong, we’ve met, but you haven’t exactly spoken to me.” It was always a short pleasant conversation between you and Damien. A quick hello, goodbye, how are you’s and he was on his way. It’s not like you thought you were some horrendous looking person, but it just made you wonder why it took him so long to ask you out.

“I’ve always wanted to, but your uncle can be quite intimidating and Angel basically put out word that you’re untouchable.” It was true. He was warned off by Creeper that you were off-limits. At first he thought it was Bishop, but it became more apparent it was Angel. Any man who approached you during club parties was immediately turned away by Angel. At first he wasn’t certain if Angel was acting on Bishop’s orders, but when he noticed that Angel, who usually was surrounded by women, didn’t pay attention to any other woman but you, he knew then that it was Angel’s own doing. He asked himself why he asked you out knowing Angel would hunt for his blood, but as he saw it, you were single and were free to do as you please. 

“Angel?” Your heart quickened a bit and for some strange reason, you heard his voice as well.

“Querida,” it was Angel’s favorite term of endearment for you. At first you thought he called everyone that, but it seemed that it was reserved for you as of late. You knew it was his way of being charming, but you couldn’t help it when your heartbeat quickened cause of it.

You turned around and found Angel and his usual suspects with him. His eyes roamed over your body and you couldn’t help, but blush. Angel’s eyes were always so intense, yet warm. He noticed your glasses weren’t on and he thought how much better he liked the glasses on you. 

“Angel,” you said in some sort of disbelief. “What are you guys doing here?”

“We came to enjoy the fair, surprised to see you here.” He looked over you and at Damien, narrowing his eyes. It was his warning to him. He may have passed by him once, but it wasn’t going to happen tonight. “Damien.”

“Angel.” 

The greetings were curt and you could feel the tension rise. You were still confused at Angel’s presence, but it showed you one thing, the butterflies didn’t come till Angel came. Your mother always told you that when the butterflies in your stomach fluttered, whoever did it for you was someone you would be someone special. Your mom was a die hard romantic person. You weren’t exactly all that romantic, but you definitely didn’t believe in fairy tales. 

“Y/N, you wanna go get some ribs? I just realized we haven’t eaten.” Damien had to get you away before Angel could sink his claws and interrupt your date. 

“Sure.” You looked at the three troublemakers behind Angel, giving them a questioning look and the three stooges fucking shrugged at you.

Damien attempted to lead you away, but Angel grabbed your arm.

“We’re all here together, we might as well stay together. Right querida?”  

You opened your mouth, but nothing was coming out. You were enjoying your date, but seeing Angel changed the atmosphere. You couldn’t play this game. Damien was genuinely interested in you and you wanted to give him a chance. You weren’t even sure where you stood with Angel, it doesn’t matter anyway.

“No, it’s okay, Damien and I are going to get ribs. Enjoy your night guys.” You gave each of the Mayans members a hug and when you got to Angel, you tried to make it brief. You hated hugging Angel, he was always so intoxicating. If you lost yourself in that hug it was a done deal.

Grabbing Damien’s hand, you dragged him away from the group. You were going to continue and have fun, fuck Angel Reyes.

“Wow, that went well.” EZ commented. He couldn’t help it, it was rare he could pull Angel’s leg like this.

“Ezekiel, not fucking right now.” Angel watched you walk away, with Damien turning back to throw him a grin. “Motherfucker has me fucked up.” He took out a cigarette and lit it up. 

“So what’s the game plan?” Gilly questioned.

“We enjoy the fair.”

Somehow, they knew that wasn’t exactly what was going to happen. 

You were starting to get irritated. At every corner you turned, the Mayans were there. You were certain that your tio didn’t send them since he already threatened Damien at your apartment. But you never know, he may have had a sudden change of heart. You just wished it wasn’t four fucking members. That was like half of their charter.  

“Is it me or are Angel and the other members following us?” Damien turned back and sure enough, there they were just hanging around. 

Angel was leaning against one of the poles that was holding a game together, smoking his cigarette just looking at you. He winked at you and you scowled at him. You would like to think Angel was a friend, why was he here?

“Don’t pay them any attention.” You brushed them off.

“Why won’t I win you a prize, get you a memorabilia of this fun night we had?” Damien offered.

You laughed, nodding your head. “That sounds like a plan to me.”

Damien led you to a knock the bottle game. He knew he had this, he was a star baseball player back in the day, if it wasn’t for an injury, he would have been big time now. He had this. After four tries, Damien won you a small bear, which was very sweet. You appreciated the effort.

“Here you go beautiful.” Damien handed your bear to your

“Such a small prize for such a beautiful girl.” Angel whistled, sitting beside where you stood, shaking his head. “I can win you a bigger one preciosa.”

“I’m good Angel, you know it’s not always about the size.” You smirked at him, even throwing a wink.

“Perhaps, but for the record, mine is pretty thick and long.” He licked his lips and you swear to god, you wanted to smack that annoying smirk off his face. “Come on, let me win you one. I always told you that if we go to the fair, I would try to win you a prize.” Angel was talking to you as if Damien wasn’t a few feet away. And your attention was on Angel, as much as you hated to admit it. But this was a conversation you had before, he told you that if you two ever went to the fair, he would win you a prize. You two had spoken about how you thought it was sweet when guys won girls prizes, it was very sweet. 

“Fine, you get one shot.” You don’t know why you gave Angel the okay, but you figured if Angel didn’t get any hits, it would bruise his ego and he would leave you alone so you could enjoy whatever was left of your date. 

Angel took some money out of his pocket and gave it to the worker. Angel got three balls to get the bottles that were stacked together. 

“Which one do you like, baby girl?” Angel questioned. 

“Surprise me.” You looked over at EZ, Coco and Gilly who were far too amused by this whole situation. “Are you three going to try too?”

“No, this is all Angel hermana.” Coco took a bite out of his churro, enjoying this whole situation. He always advised Angel to just bite the bullet, but as always, Angel was as stubborn as they come. “Just watch your man win you something.”

You bit your tongue, not correcting Coco. You pretended you didn’t hear him.

“Wanna give me a kiss so I can have some good luck?” Angel playfully teased you, offering his cheek to you.

“Just throw the ball Reyes.” Damien finally spoke up. 

You turned to him and gave him a sheepish smile. “This will be done soon, he won’t hit anything.” 

Angel smirked at your words. He threw the ball and all the bottles were knocked out. Damien’s mouth slightly dropped along with yours. Coco, Gilly and EZ all cheered him on, yelling out their congratulations.

“I know them down two more times and she gets the big one?” Angel questioned the teenager that was working the booth.

He nodded his head. 

And Angel did it. One throw for all of them. He smugly looked over at you and held his arm out towards the booth.

“Whatever you want mi dulce.”

You didn’t want to give him the satisfaction, but you were quite impressed. “I told you, surprise me.”

Angel chuckled and nodded his head. He wasn’t sure what you were trying to play at, but he knew you, after taking a random trip to the San Diego Zoo, he knew every fucking animal you liked. “Let me get the giraffe.” He handed it over to you, the giraffe had a long neck and was surprisingly soft. You couldn’t help but blush and look down at your feet. It was a habit you had, it was hard for you to look at the person you like in the eye. “You want more?”

“No, she’s good.” Damien had enough of Angel showing him up. This was his date, he wasn’t going to let Angel ruin it. “You want to go to the ferris wheel before we leave?” 

“Sure,” you nodded your head. “Thanks Angel, have fun with whatever else you guys do.” You couldn’t exactly tell Angel that you really appreciated the gesture, especially since he remembered your favorite animal was a giraffe.

As you walked away, you tried your hardest to not turn around and look at Angel. You would have just ran back, besides, Angel was just being nice. He was always nice to you, very sweet as well. But you didn’t want to assume that he had feelings for you. A similar situation occurred to you a few years back and the guy was just being nice to you due to your connection to the Mayans charter in Oakland. It stung, but you promised yourself then that you would not assume things and always wait for confirmation from the person’s mouth. No telephone game, people misconstrued things and that’s what led you to believe that the guy had feelings for you. 

“I’m really sorry, I don’t know why Tio Bishop sent them here.” You apologized to Damien as you two made your way to the Ferris wheel. 

“It’s okay, they’re like the older brothers you’ve never had.” It was true. You had mentioned it to him that the Mayans felt like and extended family to you. A bunch of misfits that you never would have thought would become your family but they did. The charters up north always took care of you and your mother, checking on you weekly to make sure you ladies were taken care of. Damien was trying to be understanding of the situation, but he knew what Angel was trying to do. And he couldn’t let him win. 

“Yeah, they are.” With the exception of Angel, cause that would be odd.

They were close to the Ferris wheel, Damien figured he could make his move on you then, no Angel to distract you. There was no line so you and Damien were slated to go next, but you weren’t exactly sure how it happened. The next thing you knew, you and Angel were in one of the capsules making its way up. 

“What the fuck are you doing?” Damien growled out at the Mayan members. 

“You know she’s Angel’s girl, you knew this was going to happen.” Gilly wasn’t exactly sure what Damien expected out of this whole situation, but everyone who hung out at the club knew that you were off-limits. If being Bishop’s niece didn’t drive them away, it was Angel’s closeness to you that should have. 

“They’re not together. He doesn’t even know if she feels anything for him.” Damien didn’t want to push his luck, but he was also getting annoyed. He wasn’t going to let them push him around.

“Doesn’t matter, you fucked up.” Coco scoffed.

“It’s interesting how much shit you’re spewing out when Angel isn’t around.” EZ smugly pointed out. 

“Angel can go fuck himself. I’m sorry he didn’t have the balls to ask her out on a date, but tough shit. He’s not the only one interested in her.” 

“What are you trying to gain from this? You think you're gonna bed her like your other girls?” Coco was curious as to why Damien decided to ask you out. He’s seen him lurking around, but he never tried to make a move since again, you were always with Angel, Gilly or himself. It was hard to penetrate that wall. 

“That’s none of your business.” Damien venomously spat out at them, looking at the ferris wheel. 

“Don’t make it our business, be smart about this then.” EZ warned. 

You looked at Damien who was being held by Coco and Gilly while EZ waved to you and Angel.

“This is absolutely ridiculous.” You scolded Angel. “I’m on a date! I don’t know what my lovely tio told you, but please leave so I can enjoy what’s left of it.”

“Come on amor, you know you’re not enjoying yourself.” Angel scoffed. 

“I was, till you and your three stooges came.” You slightly turned your body away from Angel, crossing your arms and looking out the windows in the Ferris wheel capsule.

“You were really having fun with Damien?” Angel knew you weren’t very happy with him, but he didn’t give a fuck. He was saving you from this asshole.

“Yes, I mean he’s a decent guy Angel, it’s a date not a marriage.” You refused to look at him. You kept getting mixed signals from Angel and you weren’t exactly brave enough to ask him questions about it. 

“Look, I think I should be honest with you here.” Here it was. Angel was going to tell you that he was just messing around and that he was just following orders. No biggie. You weren’t going to be affected at all since you expected it. “I like you.”

“And I like you too when you’re not being a prick.”

“No, I like you, as in I have feelings for you. Seeing you with Damien is driving me crazy so I followed you here to make sure nothing happens between you two.”

It was silent for a few moments between you two which made Angel nervous. This wasn’t the first time he confessed to a woman, but this felt different. The air was heavier if that made any sense. 

“Angel, this is going above and beyond my tio’s orders.” You spoke up, happy that the ride was making its descent. 

He gave you an incredulous look, eyes wide and confused. “Orders? You fucking think I developed feelings for you through an order? The fuck do you think this is? Is it so unbelievable for me to have feelings for you?”

“No, it’s just, why would you like me? I’m not your type.” That was such a weak excuse but from what you gathered you weren’t his type.

“My type? How would you even know my type?”

“Observations? I don’t know.” Your knee began to shake, an indication that you were becoming anxious, something Angel picked up with all the time he spent with you.

“You have nothing to be nervous about.”

You felt the walls closing in around you. Escaping this option was not an option right now since you were still at least six feet above ground. 

“I’m not nervous, I,” you sighed. “This shouldn’t be hard, but I always thought you hung around me cause tio requested for you to do so.”

“Believe me, your tio requested for Coco and Gilly to do it, I was drawn to you because of you.”

“Did Coco tell you about my crush on you? Because I feel like there’s a way to let me down without leading me on.”

Crush? You had a crush on him?

“Querida, what are you talking about?”

“Stop, don’t call me that. The pet names make this all that much more confusing.” 

“What? Y/N, I’m not leading you on.”

The door opened and you immediately got out with Angel hot on your trail. “Damien can you take me home?”

“No, she’s good, I’ll take her home.” Angel stepped in between you two.

You glared at the back of Angel’s head which was seen by EZ, Coco and Gilly.

“I would really like to end my date at my house Angel, thank you for the offer.” You stepped away from Angel and walked over to Damien, grabbing his hand and making your way towards the exit. 

Angel watched your disappearing form and let out a yell of frustration.

“She’s fucking insane!” He yelled out.

The three tried to keep their laughter in, but it was just so difficult for them. 

“I’m glad you are all having fun at my expense.” Angel walked away from the three, grumbling under his breath.

“How was the ride?” Coco questioned.

“I told her I had feelings for her and she told me that I was going above and beyond my orders. The fuck is that supposed to mean?” Angel took out his sixth cigarette in the span of two hours. 

“You’re smart bro, you know what she’s insinuating.” Gilly patted his brother on the back. “Maybe it’s time to take a different approach.”

“Again, if you just ask her out on a fucking date, this wouldn’t be so difficult.” EZ really didn’t know why his brother has been playing this game for years. It was like he was so afraid to be rejected. If he didn’t play confidant and immediately asked you out, then you two would be together and they wouldn’t be playing this game for Angel. 

“Like what?” Angel questioned Gilly, ignoring EZ. 

“You should play hard to get.”

[xserpentlife]

7 Months

Requested: Yes: Could you possibly do a reader x Sweet Pea? Where the reader is Reggie little sister and she's dating Sweet pea and he finds out? Maybe a little angsty and fluffy?

A/N:  Thankyou to my favorite human and beta @wayward-river​ she helped me so much with this fic, so much so we actually co-wrote it. At first I had no inspiration and she helped me so much and gave me inspiration

Warning: a few fight scenes, guns scene from riverdale w/ archie.

You laid back against Sweet Pea as he mindlessly drew shapes on your arms while the TV played, you didn’t even remember what movie you had put in as your mind was in overdrive lately. Sweet Pea had won you over seven months ago. Seven months of pure happiness yet no one knew.

“Pea?”

“Hmm pretty girl?”

“Do you care that no one knows?” You picked at your nails as you stared at the wall in front of you. His hands stopped moving.

“No.” he paused as his hands started to draw circles again. “Do I wish I could take you out and show you off? Yeah, I hate that I have to pretend that I don’t know you at school-” His words were cut off as the trailer door began opening, you jumped forward as you tried to scramble to run to the bathroom but it was too late, neither of you had any warning as Fangs and Toni waltzed into the small living room.

Fangs and Toni stood as they stared at the both of you mouths agape. “What, how, when?” It seems like Fangs couldn’t even form a full sentence.

You ducked your head as you gave a small wave.

“Guys do you uh know…”

“Y/N Mantle… yeah we do.”

“Cool everyone knows everyone.” Sweet Pea tried his best to play everything off.

“Nu-uh, how long have you two lovebirds been cuddled up.”

“First off Fogarty, how weird are you? Second uh, well...”

“Seven months.” You finished for him as you glanced a look up.

“You kept a secret from me for seven months?”

“Fangs I had to.”

“I asked him too, you uh both know who my older brother is… and we’d appreciate it if he doesn’t find out… yet.”

Toni folded her arms across her chest “How do we know this isn’t some ploy you and your southside hating brother has come up with?”

“She would never do that Toni, and I love you like a sister but don’t ever talk to her like that, she is nothing like her idiot brother”

“Pea!”

“Sorry babe, but it’s true…”

“I know, but you don’t have to say it out loud” you pushed him slightly, a chuckle coming out of him, and the smile that made you fall so quick. “Do you guys wanna watch the movie with us?”

“Yes!”

“Fangs chill you’re like a lost puppy”

“Pea be nice!”

“Sorry they interrupted our cuddle sesh and I don’t appreciate it, but you guys can stay cause y/n offered” You drug him to the couch sitting down throwing your legs over his lap and cuddled into his side as Toni took the chair and Fangs leaned up against the side while sitting on the floor.

After a few hours of you mainly sleeping on the side of the couch, Sweet Pea had decided to take you home, you had tried to protest, telling him you’d just stay over but he wouldn’t risk it without a good cover, normally he’d want to piss off the older Mantle but looking at you he just wanted to protect your happiness.

Sweet Pea pulled his truck to the side of the road a block away from your house, he never chanced taking the bike when he wanted to take you home. You shivered as you slid across the seat to kiss him goodnight.

Goosebumps erupted on your arms as his hands rubbed up and down them. “Babe you’re freezing.” Sweet Pea reached into the back pulling out one of his flannels.

You took the flannel not even thinking about where you were headed. It was warm and smelled like him. Woodsy smoke and vanilla, almost like how your clothes smell after a bonfire. You leaned forward placing a quick peck to his cheek. “I’ll text you when I’m behind the enemy lines.”

Sweet Pea rolled his eyes as he gently pushed you out of the truck, watching you until you turned the corner, he never told you but he’d always inch the truck up slowly, making sure he made as little noise as possible to make sure you made it into your house safely.

You let out a content sigh as you walked into your house. Both of your parents' cars were gone, you thought you were pretty safe until you looked up into the questioning eyes of your older brothers.

“Hey Reg, what up bro?”

“What are you wearing?”

You looked down at yourself, your mind trying to calm you down. “Uhm a flannel?”

“You don’t wear flannels, I don’t wear flannels, and it looks a little big on you so I’d say that flannel belongs to a boy.”

You threw your hands up in mock surrender. “Oh you got me, it’s Jake’s we went for Pops and then went to the park and it’s chilly, he was a perfect gentleman. You should be proud at least one of your bulldogs has class.

Reggie watched you as you hurried up the stairs. He wasn’t quite sure if he believed you. You had been acting shady lately and he was going to get to the bottom of it.

You had texted Sweet Pea after school and had been around him and Fangs all afternoon. It was getting pretty late but you hadn’t wanted to go home so you decided to walk with them to the small convenience store for some popcorn and candy for the movie night you had planned, your parents and Reggie thinking you were in Greendale at a friends house.

You walked beside them for a while until you focused on what looked like Archie tagging the side of a building. “What the fuck is he doing?”

At this point both boys had seen what had captured your attention. Sweet Pea and Fangs headed over.

“Hey what the hell are you doing?”

Archie glanced over, “Back off I’m not here for you.”

“Oh yeah? Then whose this message for huh?” Sweet Pea got closer as he shoved Archie.

Archie tried to move forward both Fangs and Sweet Pea stopped him. “This is Serpent Territory you can’t just come here and tag our turf, so why don’t you get your ass back to the Northside, before somebody gets hurt.”

Your eyes flickered back and forth between the two boys wildly. Why couldn’t both sides just get along?

“Get out of my way, or someone will get hurt.”

You had never heard Archie talk like that before. Why was he being like this?

At his words Sweet Pea pushed you back behind him farther as Fangs stepped over blocking your view entirely.

“You just made a big mistake.”

You could hear the click of Sweet Peas switchblade, you looked to the ground as your heart raced.

At this point everything was eerily silent. Until Sweet Pea and Fangs started backing up, Sweet Peas hands behind him making sure he wouldn’t run into you and you were still behind him protected and out of view.  

“WHO MADE A MISTAKE!”

What was Archie on?

“C’mon let's go!” Sweet Pea turned making sure he was still blocking you as he mouthed the word run.

You never took Sweet Pea lightly so when he mouthed that with the worried look in his eyes you gave a slight nod as you tried to run away with them as silently as you could.

You stopped a few blocks away.

“What-did oh my goodness.” You put your hands on your knees as you bent down. Sweet Pea laid his hand on your back.

“Hey breathe, we’re okay. Everyone is okay.”

You listened to the sound of his voice as you took a few breaths, standing back up you assessed Sweet Pea. “Are..are you okay?”

“Me? Baby I’m good. I promise.” He paused as he looked to Fangs. “That redhead on the other hand, he’s in for it.”

You spent the rest of the night wrapped in Sweet Peas arms, he seemed to hold onto you just a little tighter.

Ever since the other night you didn’t like being away from Sweet Pea for very long and it had been a few days, you paced back and forth in your room trying to decide what to do. Your decision was made for you when you pulled out your found and hit his name. Instantly calming when you heard him answer.

“Hey babe can I come over?”

“Yeah, of course, I need to run out with Toni and Fangs though...Serpent stuff is happening”

“Be safe okay?”

“Of course princess, always gotta come home to you plus you’re waiting there for me, even more reason, I love you and I’ll see you in a bit”

You waited for a while, the last time you checked your watch an hour had gone by, an hour turned into two and two into two and a half, it drew the line for you. You were about to leave to go to the Wyrm terrified beyond belief of what could have happened to him. Pea was your world constantly making you smile when no one else could. You grabbed one of his hoodies and your keys about to walk out the door when it slammed open, you jumped back and grabbed the bat next to the counter, you shut your eyes ready to swing until you heard his voice.

“Baby it’s me!”

“Sorry I thought…” You looked up to a bloody and bruised Sweet Pea standing in front of you “What the fuck happened to you”

“There was a fight” You ran up to him placing a hand on his cheek as he leaned into you

“Go sit on the couch baby and I’ll get the washcloth and med box”

“Just come sit with me, just wanna have you close” You looked at him wanting so bad to help him clean up but you knew more than ever that right now all he wanted was you, so you helped him sit and then laid our head across his lap as he leaned down into your touch as your fingers raked through his hair and his moved up and down your leg.

“Tell me what happened, I wanna know Pea, Who did it to you Pea”

“Baby it’s not important…”

“Pea tell me…”

“I can’t”

“Pea. You promised me no secrets. We’re in this together.”

“Fine, it was your brother”

“My brother!” you sat straight up the news shocking you more than anything

“Did you just say my brother did this to you! I’m gonna kill him” You got up grabbing your keys, running out of the house. Pea tried to stop you before you could leave but he barely made it to the last step when you peeled out of the driveway.

You barged into your house slamming the door behind you, silently thankful that your parents were away on a business trip. You ran to the stairs yelling up, imaging Reggie was up there cleaning up his face. “Reginald!”

“Y/N what the fuck are you yelling about” you watched him come down the stairs, dabbing at his eyebrow with a washcloth. You walked up shoving him back

“What the fuck is wrong with you!  I can’t fucking believe you”

“What…”

“Like fuck Reggie, I just don’t understand what goes through your fucking... “ Before you could get another word out the door behind you opened, and you felt a hand on your shoulder.

“Y/N leave it, it’s fine”

“No Pea it’s not fucking fine”

“What the fuck are you doing here snake, get the fuck out of my house”

“He doesn’t have to leave Reggie, you don’t have the fucking authority to make him, so stop while your fucking ahead or I won’t hesitate to make you bleed form your other eyebrow got it”

“y/n why the fuck are you defending him!”

“Because he’s my fucking boyfriend”

“I’m sorry what!”

“As in I am dating him”

“Yeah, I got that part, what the fuck do you mean you’re dating him!”

“Y/N just drop it, you’re never gonna change his opinion”

“Don’t fucking talk for her snake!” You watched Reggie barrel towards Sweet Pea, you stepped in front of him, quickly being knocked down by Reggie in the process.

“y/n I’m sorry!” Reggie stared at you as Pea reached down checking you out and helping you up, he whispered asking if you were all right before kissing the side of your head

“This is what happens Reggie! You care more about where someone comes from and how they are seen than who they are. Sweet Pea is a good guy, he takes care of me”

“There is no fuckin way he could do that Y/N, I’m sorry I pushed you, but he is a fucking snake, he’s in a fucking gang, I mean he fights people! He does bad shit, ask anyone! The Sheriff, Archie, anyone will tell you they are bad people”

“The ‘they’ you talk about…” Pea grabbed your hand speaking up.

“Listen we don’t have to agree on much, but I won’t let you drag her away from me. I love your sister, I protected her when we got a fucking gun pulled on us because of your dumbass of a best friend, , and I will prot…”

“Wait You were there when Archie went!”

“You knew Archie went to the Southside to pull a fucking gun!’

“No I didn’t know he pulled the gun til after the fact, but why didn’t you fucking tell me”

“Guess we both have that question for each other”

“How did he not know you were there, did he see you!”

“He didn’t see me… I was hanging out with Pea and some of our friends when they caught him tagging the wall, none of us expected him to pull a gun, Pea pushed me behind him to protect me”

Reggie looked between the both of you and then down to your hands that were intertwined. “You, uh.” You watched him take a breath, almost like he was preparing himself for something.

“You uh protected her? Before yourself?”

“Yeah?”

Reggie looked skeptical, “Why?”

“I love her, I’d protect her from anything. I hate seeing her upset and hurt and it’s been hard for her keeping this from you,”

“Did you decide that?” Reggie crossed his arms cutting Sweet Pea off.

“No, I didn’t.”

Reggie looked at you then. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I love you Reg, but you don’t see what I see and I know you take the brunt of mom and dad so maybe that’s why you have this built up hatred but I love Sweet Pea, I was scared to tell you because I didn’t want this to happen.” You motioned in between the both of them.

“Well he showed up looking for a fight.”

You scoffed. “Andrews pulled a gun. He had it coming.”

Reggie sighed. “Look, I can’t tell you I like this...I don’t but if you are happy... I can try. Don’t expect us to be friends though.”

You nodded your head as you wrapped your brother in a hug.

“That's all I ask. Thank you.”

“Yeah, yeah. Get out of here before mom and dad get home, there’s been enough excitement for one night.”

You grabbed Sweet Pea as you headed back out the door.

“I know that’s not how you pictured him finding out, but I’m glad it’s out now.”

You smiled as you stood on your tiptoes placing a kiss onto his cheek. “Yeah, me too.”

Sweet Pea gave a soft smile. “You staying with me tonight baby girl?”

“Yeah let’s go home.”

[profoundnet]

PROFOUND MEMBER MASTERPOST FOR NOVEMBER 2020!

Featuring Destiel/Gen works by jscribbles, Jeanne_de_Valois, tiamatv, LeafZelindor, prosopopeya, DragonSgotenks, sketching-fox, kittimau, castielslostwings, FriendofCarlotta, universalsatan, Idjit_01, Destielshipper4Cas, purple_charlie, Maleyah, noeizumispn, kitmistry, TheSongSmith, one_more_offbeat_anthem, interstitial, JusithAndronicus, ArielAquarial, queer-things-do-happen-dean, goldenraeofsun, andimeantittosting, and starprincecas.

Join us on Discord!

Masterpost below the cut.

jscribbles - jscribbles

I’ll Go With You (G, 4.7k)

A coda to 15x18 "Despair".

He hadn't said anything. He hadn't said anything when he'd been given the chance.

Tags: 15.20, reunion, grief, love confession

We Are Real (M, 2.4k)

Smutty sequel to I'll Go With You.

Dean hadn't kissed him yet.

But they were alone now, and free.

Tags: 15.18, smut

404 Error (G, 500 words)

How hablo espaniol?!!

I DON'T KNOW. Neither does Dean.

Tags: spoilers for 15.18, based on spanish dub, crack fic

The Weight of Silence (E, 26k)

The weight of silence is heavy on Dean's shoulders as he learns to live a new kind of life in Heaven. In classic Winchester-style, despite being in a place that isn't supposed to have pain and suffering, Dean rebels against it by being straight-up fucking miserable.

Tags: depression, mentions of john winchesters garbage parenting, canon compliant, 15.20 fix it coda, happy ending, smut, romance, love confessions

~

Jeanne_de_Valois - Jeanne_de_Valois

Free Bird (G, 1.7k)

Heaven is an open road and not having to pay for gas.

Heaven is a greasy sandwich and a novelty-sized candy bar.

Heaven is awkward, shuffling, confusing.

Heaven is getting to say what you wished you said, a lifetime ago.

(A Coda to Supernatural 15.20- Carry On)

Tags: Post-Episode: s15e20 Carry On, Castiel/Dean Winchester, Requited Love

~

tiamatv - tiamatv

Stone and Flesh (E, 6k)

Dean didn’t think, even in his filthiest imaginings, that Cas would sound like this in bed—loud, eager, easy with it. He doesn’t give a fuck who hears him enjoying himself. Though maybe Dean should have known. It’s not like Cas has ever once held back on anything he ever wanted to say or do—

Didn’t he?

(Not quite an episode coda for S15e18 per se, but more a "what comes after.")

Tags: AU - canon divergence; Post-Episode S15e18: Despair; Canonical Character Death; Selectively Mute Dean Winchester; Hopeful Ending

Domestic (T, 5.6k)

A little less than a year after the world doesn’t end, he and Cas get married.

Tags: AU - Canon Divergence; Future Fic; Tooth-Rotting Fluff; Domesticity in the Men of Letters Bunker; Kid Fic

Bight (E, 2.5k)

“Do you want more?” Cas asked, against Dean’s thigh. His thumb strummed gently at the soft, folded-up pocket behind Dean’s bound knee.

It tickled, but… didn’t.

Dean didn’t know what the answer to that was.

Tags: AU - Canon Divergence; Rope Bondage; Gentle Dom Castiel; Sub Dean Winchester; Praise Kink

~

LeafZealindor - @leafzelindor

Artwork for “break to let the light in” DCBB2020 (SFW)

Artwork draw for the DCBB2020 fic "break to let the light in"

Tags: fluff, touching, intimacy. Accompanied by fic by PeppermiintsPlease.

~

prosopopeya - prosopopeya

Like Real People Do (G, 4.9k)

Castiel experienced a moment of pure happiness, expecting it to be his last. 

It wasn't.

Tags: Post-15x18, canon divergence, first kiss, angst with a happy ending, first kiss

Under the Same Sun (E, 14k)

In which time is infinite, and so is the list of people willing to help Dean figure out what to do about Cas. 

A fix-it for a lot of things: Dean's repressed bisexuality, Dean's utterly inexplicable failure to realize what Cas meant, the Charlie & Dean brother/sister content I crave, among others.

Tags: Internalized biphobia, Charlie Bradbury & Dean Winchester, angst with a happy ending, post-series, Heaven fic

~

DragonSgotenks - DragonSgotenks

Say Cheese (E, 50k)

Dean Winchester is thirty, flirty, and thriving, or at least that's how his best friend Charlie describes him. Either way Dean feels pretty good about his life. He has a decent job, a nice house, and a great group of friends and family. Sure his brother's been living hundreds of miles away to attend law school and an internship, and yeah maybe he wasn't working his dream job, and so, okay, he spent most nights zoning out in front of the tv alone but that was fine. Dean was fine. Until he gets a call about a daughter he didn't know existed and suddenly Dean's quiet (boring) life is turned upside down.

Castiel Novak is a photographer whose passion lies in capturing the beauty of nature. However to pay the bills he works part time at the mall doing portrait photography. Sure it might not be as artistic as he'd like and his odd hours make for a dull social life but he's still doing what he loves. He especially enjoys doing the kids photos and over the last couple of years he's built a bit of a reputation for always getting the shot no matter how unruly or stubborn a child might be. So when a handsome father brings in his grumpy little girl for pictures Castiel thinks it will be just another photo shoot.

He's wrong.

Tags: Destiel, Single parent Dean, kidfic, bottom Dean/top Castiel, mentions of childhood trauma, eventual smut, past Lydia/Dean

~

sketching-fox - @sketching-fox

Dean Winchester Monster Fucker (NSFW)

Arts done for Dean Cas Big Bang in my partnership with LoversAntiquities.

Tags: alleyway, impala, mature content. Accompanied by fic by LoversAntiquities.

~

kittimau - @kmauspn - kittimau

Beg Pretty For Me (E, 5k)

“Cas…” His eyes flutter closed, mind slipping into the warm, pleasant haze of that special place, the one that allows him release, relief. Peace. Heart pounding in his chest, he fights the temptation to touch himself through the delicate material because Cas hasn’t told him to yet and he wants to be good.

“I want to hear you say it, Dean.”

“Fuck…” He swallows thickly. “Yeah. I- I feel beautiful.”

Tags: Castiel/Dean Winchester, Established Relationship, Explicit Sexual Content, Phone Sex, Light Dom/Sub, Dean Winchester Wears Panties, Top Castiel/Bottom Dean Winchester, Masturbation, Dom Castiel/Sub Dean Winchester

~

castielslostwings - @castielslostwings - Castielslostwings

Loud (G, 4.3k)

Minutes, hours, days, years might have already passed—time is different here, and Castiel has no way of tracking it, and still the Shadow doesn’t come. 

Castiel sits, he stands, he walks and walks and walks and walks. All he ever discovers is more darkness, more nothing.

Tags: 15.19 coda, alternate 15.20, canon fix-it, carry on fix-it, canon-compliant, love confessions, the empty, coda fic, the profound bond

Carry On (E, 8k)

“I think I’ll go for a drive.”

This is what happened between that moment, and Dean meeting Sam on that bridge.

(A 15x20 missing scene/fix-it fic).

Tags: 15x20 fix-it, Carry On coda, love confessions, castiel and dean are in love, first kiss, first time, reunions, Heaven improved, dean gets the funeral he deserves, missing scene

~

FriendofCarlotta - @friendofcarlotta - FriendofCarlotta

The Novel (E, 4.5k)

Dean, Cas, Sam and Eileen are happily retired and living their best lives. There's just one problem: Sam has decided to commemorate the Winchester brothers' adventures by writing a novel, and it's not very good at all.

AKA the episode coda where 15x20 was nothing more than Dean reading a draft of his brother's first novel and becoming increasingly appalled.

Tags: Coda, Episode Fix-It: s15e20 Carry On, Technically Canon-Compliant, First Kiss, Top Cas/Bottom Dean

~

universalsatan - @universalsatan - UniversalSatan

Mortal One, With The Sun in His Hands (E, 135k)

Cowhand Dean Winchester is notorious for risky gambles, rightfully proud of his horse Impala (who has the prettiest speckle in the West), and is stubbornly certain that his life is in apple-pie order. His comfortable existence crumbles apart when he's saved from a fire-and-brimstone death by a mysterious wanderer he discovers to be the infamous White Bandit, mythical Angel of the Desert. While his savior is as fearsome as the legends say, Dean can't help but draw closer to the quiet and endearing man the real Bandit turns out to be... even if he doesn't yet realize they're the same person. This time, Dean may have to reach out to the flame instead of recoil.

Tags: Western, Historical Fantasy, Slow Burn, Mutual Pining, Cowboys, Plot-Heavy, Hurt/Comfort, Dean Winchester is Bad at Feelings Graphic Depictions of Violence, Explicit Sexual Content (Censored Version Available). Accompanied by art by Artmetica.

~

Idjit_01 - Idjit_01

I’m not gonna say that I’d change it cause you and I know that we can’t (T, 1.3k)

After Lisa's goodbye speech to Dean in 6x14, Dean gets drunk and calls Cas.

Tags: Episode: s06e14 Mannequin 3: The Reckoning, Alcohol abuse/Alcoholism, Canon Divergence, Lisa Braeden/Dean Winchester, Castiel/Dean Winchester, Hurt/Comfort, Hurt No comfort, yes both

game over (try again, please) (G, 887 words)

After Case and everyone else's departure in 15x18 Sam and Dean sit and talk. (And yes they discuss Cas's confession)

Tags: Post-Episode: s15e18 Despair, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Suicidal Thoughts, Canonical Character Death, Good Sibling Sam Winchester

There’s blood on your face. (Beer and Nightmares) (G, 1.4k)

Dean wakes up pretty badly shaken from a nightmare. He struggles with it. He goes to the kitchen for a beer, but Cas and Sam are there. In the end, thanks to Cas's shenanigans, he doesn't even remember the nightmare.

Tags: Castiel/Dean Winchester, Hurt/Comfort, Teasing, Touch-Starved Dean Winchester, BAMF Castiel (Supernatural), Sam Winchester Is So Done

Help(less) (T, 1.9k)

Everyone Chuck took away is back and are doing normal life again. As there are no monsters and everyone around him has someone else, Dean's on his own and feels awful. So he drives away and makes several questionable choices. Featuring: Dean, a missing angel, a moose, Baby and a frankly abused forest

Tags: Post-Episode: s15e18 Despair, Castiel/Dean Winchester, Eileen Leahy/Sam Winchester, Grief/Mourning, Vomiting, Eating Disorders, Suicidal Attempt, Canon Compliant, Canonical Character Death

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Destielshipper4Cas - @destielshipper4cas - Destielshipper4Cas

The Alpha Next Door (E, 36k)

When Cas is placed in WitSec, he gets a fake secondary gender designation to go along with his new name, ‘Jimmy.’ All he has to do until the boss of the omega trafficking ring he escaped is behind bars is keep a low profile, always apply his alpha scent, and not fall in love with an alpha. Well—two out of three ain’t too bad…

Dean has never had a crush on an alpha before. Along comes his new neighbor, Jimmy, an alpha who is alphasexual. There’s just something about him, and to his utter confusion, he finds himself falling for an alpha for the first time in his life.

Tags: Past Rape/Non-con, Strangers to Lovers, Mutual Pining, Slow Burn, Hurt/Comfort, Omega Verse

~

purple_charlie - purple_charlie

Walk Through Fire for You (T, 2.3k)

Boyfriend.

The word still feels foreign in Dean’s mouth, still brings back echoes of John Winchester’s thinly-veiled (if even that) homophobia. "Man up, don’t be a sissy, I didn’t raise a fairy". It’s a swollen blister in the back of Dean’s mind, throbbing with pain whenever a stranger’s eyes linger too long on Cas’ hand in his, whenever a waitress double-takes at how close they sit in diner booths.

But here, dirty dancing with Cas in a warehouse full of other queer folks, Dean wants to shout from the rooftops- I’m Dean Winchester, I drive the baddest car in town, I lift heavy things for a living, and this is my boyfriend.

Tags: Homophobic parents, homophobic siblings, bisexual Dean, Gay Cas, Pride, marijuana use

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Maleyah - @maleyah-givemetomorrow - Katherine_Kat

Art for In A State of Perpetual Disrepair (SFW)

Art for my fic, In A State of Perpetual Disrepair, a hurt/comfort A/B/O Destiel fic.

Tags: fanart, A/B/O, hurt/comfort, Alpha!Cas, Omega!Dean

Start of Time (G, 754 words)

Except he never expected to be awake for the aftermath.

You see, he can hear Dean's prayers.

Tags: Castiel POV, Despair, Hope, Coda 15x18, post episode 15x18, Fix-It, Fix-It of Sorts

We’re Not Gonna Take It (T, 1.4k)

Amara gestures at Dean calmly. “Have you been praying lately by any chance?”

Dean flusters and stammers, hands at his hips to give himself an attitude, while his eyes flick from her to Sam and Jack insecurely. “N… No.”

Tags: Coda 15x19, Post episode 15x19, Fix It, Dean's dirty prayers, Dean Prays to Castiel, Angel Wings, Wings, First Kiss

Drive (M, 1.5k)

Dean's prayers take a turn for the sensual, which drives The Empty to the brink.

Tags: Coda 15x18; post episode 15x18,, Dean Prays to Castiel, Dean's dirty prayers, Angel Wings, Wings, First Kiss, Fix-It, Slight Crack

Now That We’re Dead (M, 2.5k)

“You got everything you could ever want or need or dream. So I guess the question is… What’re you gonna do now, Dean?”

Looking around, he doesn’t know how to answer that question. The obvious is suggested when she turns out to have made it to Heaven too. Dust dances in the air around Baby, shining in the sunlight, tempting him to go for a ride. The endless stretched out road and horizon.

He blinks a few times, slow and owlish.

And right there, his shadow falling long and dark, almost touching Dean’s feet, is Cas.

OR: the one where Cas gets the love he deserves

Tags: 15x20 coda, Fix It, First Kiss, human!Cas, Heaven, Heaven happy ending, Canon divergent from the moment Bobby says "Cas helped", Fix-It

I Wanna Live, Not Just Survive (M, 3.9k)

“Dean Winchester,” Cas drawls. “I did not go to The Empty, so you could get yourself impaled.”

Or: the other one, where Cas and Dean get to be what they deserve.

Tags: coda 15x20, Fix-It, Human Castiel (Supernatural), Earth happy ending, Because let's not bury our gays, First Kiss, Cuddles, Hurt/Comfort

~

noeizumispn - @noeizumispn

Colors (SFW)

Art inspired by Misha's words on Cas' wings

Tags: Rainbow, colors, destiel, wings

~

kitmistry - @kitmistry - Kitmistry

Don’t You Cry No More (T, 4.8k)

There has to be something, he told himself the first night he pulled an all nighter, only to wake up with his cheek smashed against a book, dark circles under his eyes, a throbbing headache, and nowhere closer to the answer than when he started. The light was still on above his head. He didn’t bother turning it off.

Or the one where Dean doesn't die, but he searches for Cas instead. 

Tags: Fix-It, Coda, Episode: s15e20 Carry On, Post-Canon, Angst with a Happy Ending

~

TheSongSmith - TheSongSmith

Four Seasons (G, 754 words)

Cas is the owner of Four Seasons Total Landscaping, and he received a very curious call on a quiet Saturday morning. Dean owns the adult shop next door, and is very confused by what's going on. Good times are had by all, except Donald Trump because fuck that morally-bankrupt tangerine.

Tags: Four Seasons Total Landscaping, Destiel is Canon, 2020 is a dumpster fire so have this fic, twitter made me do it

~

one_more_offbeat_anthem - one_more_offbeat_anthem

So Comes Snow After Fire (G, 11k)

Cas was old, like old-old, like ancient, like here for the beginning of the goddamn cosmos old, like remembers rain being invented old, and he could be anywhere, but instead he was in Dean’s kitchen (well, the bunker’s, but no one else cooked--Jack and Cas were kind of clueless when it came to that stuff, and all Sam made was health food), reading The Hobbit aloud to Dean while Dean himself made them all spaghetti.

(or, they got their win--the biggest win of all--and now autumn is settling in. a nearly-human Cas plants a garden, and Dean helps him along.)

Tags: Post-Canon/Canon-Divergent, Domesticity, Getting together, Fluff and comfort, Gardening Castiel

~

interstitial - interstitial

Thirst Was Made For Water (T, 5.9k)

Cas is hit by a truth spell. The results are unexpected.

And maybe just a tiny bit funny. Unless you're Dean. 

Tags: Dubiously Consensual Courting Behavior, Mildly NSFW Art Included, Profanity, Crack & Fluff, Truth Spells, Animal Transformations, Canon Divergent After s7e17 The Born-Again Identity, Light-Hearted and (Relatively) Wholesome For These Trying Times

~

JudithAndronicus - @judithandronicus - judithandronicus

Up We Go (E, 4.9k)

A coda fic series for 15.18.

Tags: Grieving, Canonical MCD (temporary), Alcoholic Dean, Angst with a Happy Ending

The Kindness of Ravens (E, 7.5k)

Crackfic wherein ravens pooping on Dean lead to feelings realization and eventual smut.

Tags: Fluff, Crack, Feelings Realization, Diners

The Ampersand Chronicles (G, 1.3k)

This is unrepentant canon-adjacent Bunker fluff, set in a universe where everything is kind of the same, except fluffier. Cas lives in the Bunker with Sam and Dean; things like Gadreel and Lucifer aren't a problem; and oh yeah, there's a cat.

Tags: Fluff, Bunker Fic, Kittens

~

ArielAquarial - ArielAquarial

Boyfriend Blues (G, 1k)

“I have a boyfriend!”

It came out of nowhere. One second Dean was shoveling a truly amazing pork roast into his mouth, already planning the meat to mashed potato ratio of his next bite, when Claire opened her mouth and his fork was clattering to the plate. Cas stopped mid-bite to stare at her while Jack, completely oblivious, continued making a Jackson Pollock out of his potatoes and gravy.

Tags: Parenthood, Domestic Fluff, Married Life, Alternate Universe, Established Relationship, Kid Claire Novak, Kid Jack Kline

Extra Credit (E, 4.2k)

“Hey, babe. Who has the kids?”

“Mr. Winchester…” Cas rumbled, leaning back in his chair and folding his arms across his chest. “You’re cutting it close. My office hours are almost over.”

Dean frowned at him, confused. That didn’t even remotely answer his question. What did he—

Oh…

Oh!

Or, the moment Dean has been waiting for has finally arrived.

Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Husbands, Professor Castiel (Supernatural), Mechanic Dean Winchester, Sexual Roleplay, Teacher/Student Roleplay, Anniversary

Never in a Million Years (G, 2.5k)

If someone had told Cas six years ago that he was going to be a happily married man with two kids, he would have laughed. Now, with Dean by his side, he couldn't imagine things being different, even if the path to get there had been a little rocky.

Tags: Domestic Fluff, Holiday Traditions, Alternate Universe, Established Relationship, Backstory, Bickering, Married Life

~

queer-things-do-happen-dean - @queer-things-do-happen-dean - Latter_alice

Tangerine, tangerine (E, 1k)

“So it’s – It’s really nothin’, huh?” Dean swallows and tries to blink away the wetness in his eyes. His gaze don’t weaver from the road. “No, uh, key words ring a bell? Chuck? Angel tablet?” He pauses, flicks his eyes over to Castiel and back. “... Leviathans?"

When Dean pulls Cas out of the Empty, not everything comes back.

Tags: Canon divergent, post series, memory loss

~

goldenraeofsun - @goldenraeofsun - goldenraeofsun

Symmetria (T, 4k)

When all’s said and done with Chuck, Dean takes his time getting used to his new gig as capital D Death. Billie, of course, did not see fit to leave him a training manual. But with his brother-turned-God on his side, and Jack as the new Darkness, they all muddle through.

Finally, all that's left is to rescue Cas from the Empty.

Tags: 15x18 fix-it, alternate post-series AU, Death!Dean, God!Sam, Darkness!Jack, love confessions, first kiss, minor Sam/Eileen

~

andimeantittosting - @andimeantittosting - andimeantittosting

We Are (M, 699)

15x18 coda. When they get Cas back, because they do, because somehow, someway, sometimes good things do happen, Dean... 

Tags: Reunion, Resurrected Castiel, Requited Love, Happy Ending

Carrying On (G, 794 words)

15x20 coda. Dean dies and goes to heaven. But then he wakes up.

Tags: Fix-it Fic, Djinn, Happy Ending on Earth

Two Inches to the Left (T, 2.5k)

15x20 coda. Something tells Dean to stop by that bridge, so he does. The last thing he's expecting is for a pair of Vespas to pull up and Becky Rosen to tell him that he's still in Chuck's story. Finally, it's time to write his own.

Tags: Fix-it Fic, Temporary Character Death, Happy Ending on Earth, Fangirls Save the Day

~

starprincecas - @starprincecas - cuddlesandcas

so it goes (T, 1.4k)

The Empty comes to collect.

Tags: Major Character Death, Episode Tag: s15e18 Despair, Angst

no more waiting on tomorrow (T, 739 words)

For all that they’ve finally won once and for all, the victory feels hollow.

Tags: Episode Tag: s15e19 Inherit the Earth, Fix-It Fic

[booksandseventeen]

School Project with Tsuki

☾ ☽Tsuki X Reader! ☾ ☽

The teacher stood with her hands on her hips, looking every student in the eye, “This next project is worth 50% of your grade.”

The classroom groaned. 

“You will be partnered up and during these last 6 weeks of school, you must go to 6 places neither of you have ever been before. Search the wonders of Miyagi and write a paragraph for each place you visit.” The teacher claps her hands together, “Consider this a great experience you can enjoy outside of school, as long as the places you visit was informational, I dont care where you go.” 

Tsuki sighed, his fingers twitching to put on his headphones and drone out the rest of this dreadful project. Partnered project were his least favorite part about school, but at least he could just tag along while Tadashi did the work, he could practically feel his friend vibrating with excitement behind him.

“Oh and before I forget, your partner will be the person that sits to the left of you~!” 

Tsuki blinked before glancing to the left. 

Empty. Of course his partner wasn’t even at school today. He raked his brain to try and think who sat to the left of him but he kept drawing a blank.

“Tsukishima, your partner isn’t here today but I trust that you can bring her the needed materials and tell her about the project, hm?” The teacher walked to his desk and set down a binder filled with information.

He pushed his glasses up, “Tch, what a burden.”

☾ ☽

“tell your partner I said hi!” Tadashi waved goodbye as they went their own ways, Tadashi to go home and Tsuki to visit your house, a torn out piece of paper with your address written on it. The paper fluttered in the wind and he sighed before continuing on.

The gate creaked when he opened it, weeds sprouted from the ground and a gnome broken in half welcomed him as he stepped on the overgrown stepping stones that led to your home. 

He knocked on the door and took a wary step back, unsure of who would answer the door. 

“COME IN!” The scream made him jump and he looked behind him almost as if the yell was meant for someone else.

He narrowed his eyes, felt his fingers tighten on the binder. All he wanted to do was drop off the stupid papers and hope his partner was fine with doing the project by themselves. 

Slowly, he turned the doorknob and stepped inside. The lights blinded him, a tv was playing on a random channel, a radio station played some sort of upbeat tune and he heard the thumping of feet above his head.

“up here!” the voice came from above. 

He took one more glance around before taking the steps two at a time, the hallway was just as lit as the living room, every door he passed had the lights on and he finally stopped behind the only closed door, music playing from a speaker somewhere inside.

The door opened, “Mom, did you-” she stopped suddenly. 

Tsuki stared down at the girl in front of him, she wore an oversized sweatshirt and joggers. Her hair was piled up on top of her hair. She leaned against the door frame, “You’re not mom.”

“Do I look like your mom?” he deadpanned

“Well, you got the condescending look down.” she smirked, “You’re in my class, what are you doing here?” she crossed her arms and looked him up and down. 

“Here.” He pushed the binder into her hands, “We’re partners for a project in school. It’s all in there, due in 6 weeks.” He turned to leave. 

He got as far as halfway down the stairs when the shock wore off and she thundered down after him.

“wait wait wait! You come to my house, tell me that we are partners for a project, and you expect me to do it all my myself?” She slides down the banister until she stops in front of him, making him come up short. 

“what else needs to be explained, shorty?” he looked down his nose at her. 

“You’re gonna pull your weight with this project, jolley green giant.” 

his frown deepened. “I don’t do partner projects.” 

She smiled up at him, “let me get my jacket.”

“what for?” he called after her.

“Because we might as well start now! You can borrow my sisters bike!”

☾ ☽ Week 1

It was on the tip of the tongue. Questions upon questions, but he bit his tongue, he refused to talk first. Instead the words just tumbled over and over again in his head. 

She biked beside him, a green jacket thrown over her hoodie and her bag thrown across her body. The full moon was the only light they had and the summer wind threw back her hair and he glanced at her to find that her eyes were closed. She was the most peaceful when her eyes were closed. 

He couldn’t take it anymore, the silence.

“Where are we going? You know we have school tomorrow.” his voice seemed unnaturally loud.

she looked over at him, the moon causing her eyes to seem brighter than usual “you’ll see.” 

Finally, they came to an overlook and parked their bike under a sakura tree. 

The ground crunched beneath their feet as they came to a railing. Tsuki stopped short and she reached up to close his mouth with her fingertip. 

It was a 360º view of Sanriku, the rhododendrons flowers blanketed the side of the mountain for as far as the eye could see, the sweet smell of flowers overwhelmed him.

she leaned with her elbows on the railing. “You know whats cool? These flowers are actually a blushing pink color. But at night, under the moon, they almost look violet.” she looked up at him. 

“some things look different in the dark.”

☾ ☽ Week 2

He woke up to the sound of his phone ringing, without thinking he blindly searched for it and answered, before he even brought it to his ear he could hear the notes of music.

“hey! you’re awake, skyscraper?”

“What the hell do you want, hobbit?” he grumbled and blinked blearily at his alarm clock, “it’s almost 2 am.” 

“Well I have another idea for our next location! But we gotta do it now, we can get in for free under the cover of night.” 

he could just imagine her. Walking up and down her room, lights on and music playing, twirling her hair around her finger, probably looking for a hoodie.

“I’ll take your silence as a yes! I’ll come pick you up after I find a hoodie.....”

☾ ☽

“Are you kidding?” he deadpanned.

“What? it’s perfect! Now help me push this thing.” she bent down and grabbed the end of the kayak, moving it only a couple of inches before she gave him a pointed look.

Sighing, he bent down and helped her move the kayak until it was even with the dock and she could jump in. 

“Come on! This is a two person thing.” 

“Why did I let you talk me into this?”

the moon reflected her profile into the still water, a fish flicked the surface and her face rippled. He took a step into the kayak.

She smiled at him and tossed him a paddle.

They glided through the water, him paddling on the right and she on the left. He sat behind her, his legs splayed on either side of her so he could fit. 

Again, the silence bothered him.

“Do you ever sleep?” he asked suddenly.

If he wasn’t paying so much attention to her he would have noticed her back stiffen. 

“why do you think I dont?” 

He shrugged but realized she probably couldn’t see that. “Oh I don’t know, maybe because you always seem to be up in the middle of the night, I’ve never seen your house without any lights on.”

She stops paddling but he keeps going. He can’t see her face, and for once, he wishes she would turn around.

“I...just don’t like to sleep.”

“who doesn’t like to sleep?”

she picks up the paddle again, disrupting the surface one stroke at a time. “someone who has too many dreams.” 

☾ ☽ Week 3

It was a Saturday night and he hadn’t heard from her all week. He turned off his computer and looked at his phone. This was peak time that she should be calling him, but what if she didn’t call? Then they would be a week behind the project. He paced his room, his phone clenched in his hand. He clicked on the buttons angrily.

No answer. He tossed his phone on the bed and laid down. Ten minutes later he was pacing again. He cursed and grabbed his phone and jacket. Silently making his way out of his house.

☾ ☽

*tap, tap tap*

She awoke with a start, her lights momentarily blinding her before he realized where she was at. She leaned out of her window and stared down at Tsuki, his arm cocked back to throw another rock.

“what are you doing?” she half whispered half yelled.

“Tch, idiot, I don’t want to be behind on the project so grab your hoodie and come on.” he walked away, leaving her to stare at him open mouthed. 

“where are we going?” she asked him as they grabbed their bikes and walked down the road. 

“you didn’t answer your phone.” he said, ignoring her question. 

“I had it on mute, hoping to catch a few Z’s.”

Immediately he felt bad, he had woken her up. But then he remembered that she had also woken him up before as well. “i’m sorry.” he heard himself say anyway.

She shook her head, her hair piled on top of her head, “don’t be. I’m thankful you woke me up, I was just starting to dream.” 

the rest of the ride was in silence until he finally brought them to their next location.

“a park.” she said with a smile, getting off her bike the rest of the way.

Before them lay a green field, a playground that was surrounded by strange, different styles of twisting metals and granite rocks chiseled to reveal a figure.

“A statue park.” he corrected, “artists all over Miyagi enter their statues and art in hopes of getting picks to have it displayed here.” 

Together they walked through the swaying grass, the silver of moon casting the statues faces into grimaces and sneers. She shook her head in wonder as they walked among the stones and metal.

“I like this one!” she said, pointing at a woman with a ring of drums around her that acted like a skirt. Tsuki watched as she played an offbeat tune on the statue. He laughed.

“look over there!” she suddenly pointed and grabbed his hand, running towards an exhibit. He looked down at their joined fingers, his large palm easily overwhelming her small one. He tightened his fingers. 

A large, plush cushion lay suspended in the air by a steel tractor type, a gossamer fabric hung over the top. The two of them climbed into it. “I think i’m supposed to unlatch something.” he heard her say, but he was too busy looking at the fabric laid over top. 

faint, dark lines were carefully drawn through the fabric, making it so that he could see the constellations in the sky. There was a loud click and he was suddenly thrown on his back as the large cushion suddenly swung in the air.

“WOOHOO!” he looked over to see her wobbling on her legs, the air rushing to meet her face.

“this is so cool!” she gasped, and slowly made her way over to him as the cushion swayed like a pendulum. She laid down beside him, her head on the his shoulder and his arm immediately went around her. 

“Im afraid to fall asleep.” she whispered after they had been laying down together for while, he had honestly thought she had fallen asleep.

“go ahead.” he grunted, he felt her shake his head.

“I can’t...I might dream.”

“what do you dream about?”

“...someone.”

he tightened his hold on her. “It’s just a dream, if it looks like your dreaming, i’ll wake you up.” he promised. his lips brushed against her hair, not hard enough for her to feel it, but close enough for him to close his eyes and inhale her scent.

And that’s how the workers of the park found them the next day, curled into one another, the cushion still swinging, the morning light not bothering either of them.

☾ ☽ 1 day later

He stood in front of her house, the flowers he had picked up on the way there dropped from his hand. 

A red, ugly foreclosure sign was the only thing he could see. 

She was gone. 

☾ ☽

Part 2

[queen-fenestra]

okay so, i wrote some solangelo fanfiction and here it is. also, @wundersimp you said you would be interested and also tagging @simping-for-solangelo and @bookingfangirl

“It isn’t the 1900’s anymore, Nico. Nobody except stuck-up, homophobic drew is gonna hate on you. Just please, come outside. Please. Just come to the dining pavilion with me. You have to eat,” Will said, pacing the Hades cabin. Drew Tanaka had seen Nico and Will holding hands. It had been the first time, after Will had spent weeks trying to convince Nico that hardly anyone at camp would at him. As Will had just said, it wasn’t the 1900’s anymore. Drew had been put on kitchen duty for the next month, and had to do all her activities supervised by the Stoll brothers. They could hand out as many even remotely fair punishments, as long as Katie approved. Katie was the only one who could make Travis do something, and, more impressively, make him not do something. Though Drew was getting a very fair punishment, her words didn’t stop hurting Nico. now he wouldn’t leave his cabin, or talk to anyone. Will had iris messaged Jason, Reyna, and Hazel, and they came immediately, but Nico wouldn’t let them into his cabin. Will came to Nico’s door today and knocked. He had heard no sound and went in, seeing Nico pointedly ignoring him.

“Yeah, alright. Sure,” said Nico dryly, “I have sooo much proof of that, considering what happened.” Nico sounded like he was heavily rolling his eyes. His voice was filled with so much sarcasm that it hurt Will to hear it.

“Nico, Drew is an asshole, but others aren’t like her. Just come outside. Doctors orders?” Will finished, sounding uncertain as to whether saying doctors orders would help.

“Why should I come outside. I have KD stocked up, and I don’t want to. And nobody wants to see me.” 

“Nico, KD isn’t good for you. And you need water.” Will pleaded. Nico pointed to the tap.

“One good reason, Will.” Nico said. 

“Because I love you Nico. That's why.” Will said. He was done with Nico’s shit. He was playing the ace up his sleeve. He looked at Nico. Nico started shaking, and Will rushed over to him. Will carried Nico to the couch.

“Did you not believe that I loved you? That I cared? I came to your cabin every goddamn day, hoping to see you. Your pretty face, your chocolaty brown eyes. I wanted to hear your voice, even if it was just you telling me to scram. I missed you.”

“Nobody likes me, I’m the loner. Everyone thinks I’m creepy. Son of Hades, raiser of the dead, now the weird gay kid. They all wish I would leave. I don’t know why I haven’t yet. No one can like me. It’s not natural,” Nico said, struggling to escape Will’s iron grasp.

“Nico, please,” Will begged, reaching out to brush a tear out of Nico’s eye, “Please. Not everyone will always like you. If you’re holding out for universal popularity, you’re going to be in here a long time.” Nico looked down into Will’s begging face.

“That sounds like it’s from something you made me read or watch,” said Nico, glaring accusingly into Will’s eyes. Will hid a grin.

“Maybe. I’ll tell you if you come outside with me,” cajoled Will, gazing hopefully up at Nico.

“No. You may like me, but everyone else wants me gone. I don’t want to go outside, just to have other people wishing I was gone.” Nico said, looking away from Will. 

“Nico, I know eight people other than me who care. Three of whom came earlier this week to get you out of this cabin. Reyna, Jason, Hazel, Frank, Percy, Annabeth, Leo, and Piper would hate a world without you. They were so concerned, Reyna, Hazel, and Jason came and sat outside your cabin for three days. Travis and Connor brought them food because they thought their cause was worthy. Travis and Connor cared. Other campers came and sat with them as you blatantly ignored all the people who cared about you because you didn’t believe people could care about you since Bianca died. But people do care. And you thinking that they don’t hurts them as much as it hurts you, because they think they aren’t being good enough to you. They think they hurt you in some way. But they didn’t and they deserve better than what you’re giving them. I understand that you’re hurting, and that Drew is a little shit and you have full permission to hate her, but we just want you back. Tell me Nico, when you say ‘other people’ hate you, do they have a face. Who are they?” Will asked. He let out all his emotions to try to get through to Nico. 

“You wanna know who other peoples faces are?” yelled Nico, “You wanna know? It’s Drew, yes, but also the kids at camp Jupiter sneering at Hazel and I as we walked past. It’s my dad as he told me I wasn’t as good as my sister and never would be, as he took Percy and locked him up, even after I asked my dad for a favour, saying it was for my crush. It’s the aphrodite kids shoving Percy and Annabeth into the lake. It’s Travis and Connor teasing me about HAVING A CRUSH ON ANNABETH when I saved them all from destruction at the battle of manhattan. It’s cupid- it’s cupid outing me in front of Jason in croatia.” Nico’s voice broke as he started sobbing. Will pulled him back onto the couch as he crumpled into tears. 

“Nico, people hurt you. I recognize that. But Hazel and Jason and Reyna and I sitting outside your cabin trying to help you aren’t those people. Your dad tried to make it up to you, he gave you a french zombie chauffeur. Travis and Connor tried to help us, bringing us meals in support of you. Cupid doesn’t matter. He’s an ocean away. All these people who mentioned aren’t going to attack you the moment you step outside your door. Come outside.”

“No.”

“Fine then,” said Will, “I’ve tried everything. Bye I guess.” He stood up and left. He wasn’t always calm and cool. He most often felt like an elastic band stretched almost to breaking point. And sometimes he snapped. He wasn’t the carefree, relaxed guy they always saw. He had his fair share of hurt. He had seen his siblings die, sometimes in his hands, as he tried desperately to save them. All the fallen campers, an inch away from death, lying around him at the end of the battle, knowing he couldn’t save them all. All the hours he worked in the infirmary after the warriors of the battle who got all the credit relaxed. All the times he needed a shoulder to cry on and having to be someone else’s shoulder. All that. 

____________________________________________________________________________

Nico left his cabin as soon as Will was out of sight. Not to go eat food or be with other people, but to be with Bianca. He shadow traveled to Zeus’s fist, where he had said goodbye to Bianca. Now he was saying goodbye to times with Will. He still shouldn’t have been shadow traveling and was almost incorporeal when he arrived. He sat there, sobbing silently into his knees. He wanted to disintegrate into the earth. He ran his dagger along his arms and legs, drawing trickles of blood. He didn’t want to leave, so he didn’t. 

____________________________________________________________________________

“Nico?” Will called tentatively, “Are you here?” the door to the Hades cabin creaked slightly as he opened it. There was not a living thing in it. Nico wasn’t there. Where was Nico. Nico. If Nico was gone… Nico. No. Where was Nico. 

Okay Will, Will thought to himself, don’t panic. Where would Nico go? I have no fucken clue. Who knew Nico the longest? Percy. Who knows Nico the best? Jason or Reyna or Hazel. Problem, they are all the way on the west coast. Guess I gotta go see Percy.

____________________________________________________________________________

Percy set his homework down and walked towards the door of his apartment. Why did people come right when he was starting his schoolwork? He got distracted and never got back on track. Percy opened the door and was met by Will. Will looked very anxious, so Percy let him in.

“Please say there isn’t another war and you’re here to recruit me for it,” sighed Percy, already resigned to his fate.

“No,” Will assured him, “It’s not that. It’s Nico. He left. I don’t know where he is. Do you have any idea where he could be hiding?”

“Yeah,” said Percy, “I’ll take you there. Follow me.” They walked down to the street, where Paul’s prius was parked, and drove to camp.

____________________________________________________________________________

Nico felt like an asshole. He had driven Will away from him, just like everybody else he cared about. He had been so annoying his sister had joined the hunt. Percy had mistrusted him so much after his father had tricked Nico, and now he always felt that Percy didn’t fully trust him. The members of the argoⅡ had been glad to get rid of him when he left with Reyna. Why did this always happen to him? He couldn’t have other people in his life. It didn’t work for him. As soon as he got attached to someone they always left. He didn’t deserve them.

____________________________________________________________________________

When Percy and Will got to camp, Percy set off at a fast pace towards the forest. They walked through the woods in a straight line, never varying in their direction. Will soon realized where they headed. They were a couple of meters away from the clearing around zeus’ fist, when Percy stopped. 

“This is my best guess,” said Percy, “He said goodbye to Bianca here. This is where he’d go if he lost someone. You might want to go alone. I’ll wait back at the big house. Annabeth told me something I should tell Chiron.” Percy turned around and walked back the way they had come. Will stepped into the clearing.

“Nico?” he called tentatively, “Are you there?” He looked and saw a crumpled from leaning against the rocks. “Nico!” Will rushed to Nico. Nico was sobbing and had blood running over his arms. He had scratched his werewolf cuts open.

“I’m sorry Will,” Nico sobbed into Will’s shirt, “You don’t deserve me. I’m sorry.”

“Shhh,” Will whispered, “Don’t be sorry. I know this is hard for you. We don’t have to go back right now. We can stay here, but we have to go back eventually. We can stay here for a while though.” He comforted Nico, letting Nico sob into his shirt. It was too much for Nico. He had just made up his mind to run away to the yukon, where he wouldn’t bother anyone again. He had no idea how long he sat there, sobbing into Will’s shirt. 

“I’m sorry that I’m difficult, Will. I’m sorry I made you snap.”

“Nico, it’s okay. It’s okay.”

“Let’s go back to camp. I’m hungry.” Hearing Nico say he wanted to go back to camp made Will smile. They headed out of the woods to the dining pavilion, where Nico ate healthy food, doctor’s orders. And Nico sat at the Apollo table, doctor's orders.

[goalcaufield]

things i didn’t tell you - alex turcotte request: alex finds out you had it BAD for jack before yall started dating word count: 1985

_____________________

you walk down the steps of the hughes household, something you’ve done dozens upon dozens of times before having grown up with all three of the hughes brothers, to see five of your best friends: jack, cole, trevor, spencer, and of course your boyfriend, alex.

“nice of you to show up, isn’t it?” jack chirps from the couch, craning his neck so he can look up at the stairs where you were. 

you roll your eyes, “sorry, blame lex. he didn’t feel like waiting for me to get out of the shower and he bailed.” you narrow your eyes at alex who offers you a boyish smile. once you get close enough he pulls you down onto his lap. he goes to kiss your cheek but you push him away causing some of the boys to chuckle.

“babe,” alex whines and you shake your head, arms crossing over your chest. “you take like, thirty minute showers! i didn’t wanna miss this game.”

“no, i get it, i see where i stand, the leafs game is more important than i am. it’s cool.” you grumble. obviously you’re playing, it wasn’t that big of a deal that you had to drive to jack’s alone, but spending the extra fifteen minutes with alex would’ve been nice. both of you knew your limited time together was coming to an end.

“i can’t believe this is one of our last times we all get to hang out,” cole says, breaking the silence that had fallen over your group. 

“i know, it’s like just yesterday we were all juniors playing our first game together, going to russia, hanging out for the first time. it’s crazy how times fly,” spencer adds on. you get comfortable in alex’s lap, leaning your head back to kiss underneath his jaw. he smiles down at you and you can’t help but to smile right back at him. “so many crazy things have happened over the years.”

thinking of all the stupid shenanigans you’d managed to pull with the boys makes you start to laugh, along with the rest of the boys in the room with you. sure, you and jack had managed to pull many more, and you had a special connection that was like a tag team duo when it came to pranking or messing around with the boys.

“god, remember when jack and y/n/n almost became a thing?” cole asks, and immediately you feel your cheeks burn and your gaze is fixated on jack’s. you’re both staring at each other like deer stuck in the headlights, and neither of you know what to do.

alex’s hands that found their way around your waist slowly pull away from you. “what?” he asks, and then all of the attention is on you and alex. 

of course you hadn’t told alex - you didn’t have to. you and jack were barely even sixteen years old. you had been smitten for that boy since you were eight years old, so when the two of you almost dated? that was something new, and possibly not in a good way.

“yeah, y/n/n had it bad for j and j had it just as bad for y/n/n,” trevor speaks up from the other end of the couch, and if looks could kill you knew he would be six feet under by now.

“oh really?” alex scoffs. “well, this is news to me.”

“trevor, shut up,” you say, and trevor holds his hands up in defense.

“no, no. keep going, tz. i wanna hear about this.”

“alex,” jack says warningly. “we were sixteen. it meant absolutely nothing, and plus, she’s with you now. you can’t be too upset about that, can you?”

alex’s eyes narrow, looking between you and jack. “i can’t be too upset about it? knowing my girlfriend and best friend almost dated? i’m sorry, i feel like that’s something i should’ve known.”

alex’s hands meet your waist again, but this time they aren’t there for long. he moves you off his lap and he stands up. you try and grab his wrist but he waves you off. “lex, why are you so upset?”

“forget it. i’ll just text you later. i’m going up to my room.” alex grumbles, silently moving past everyone and going back upstairs.

you huff and sink back into the couch, eyes moving towards cole who’s trying to sit innocently. you and jack both glare at him and he frowns. “guys, i’m sorry! i didn’t know he’d react like that.”

“well we weren’t sure how he would react, so we didn’t tell him in the first place,” jack says and you agree with him. 

“and it isn’t like it’s important information, cole. and now he’s upset. we were sixteen. alex was already butthurt enough when he found out jack and i were technically each other’s first kisses when we were nine.” you turn to trevor, who immediately his eyes widen like saucers. “and you.”

“me?” trevor asks, voice raising at least five octaves. “is it my cue to run?”

“i’d say so, yeah,” spencer says. you make a sudden movement and trevor flinches back. “tz, chill out.”

“yeah tz, chill out.” you roll your eyes and stand up. “and now, if you guys don’t mind me, i have to go make my boy feel better.”

even though you’ve barely been in the basement for three minutes, you’re headed up the stairs of the basement and then up toward where alex’s room is. his door is closed and you don’t even bother knocking, you walk right in and see him laying on his side, phone in hand facing the fall.

“go away, jack. i really don’t want to talk to you right now.” alex grumbles, not even bothering to look up. you sigh and carefully walk into his room, sitting down on his mattress and lightly placing your hand on his arm, he turns his head. “y/n, i don’t really wanna ta-”

“lex, will you let me talk? let me get things straight?” you ask softly. alex lets out a sigh and he slowly sits up. “thank you, love.” his silence lets you know he’s listening even though he’s looking down in his lap. you cross your legs and sit as close as possible as you can. “j and i have been friends for a really long time, you know that?” alex nods. “good. i’m gonna be honest with you, i had the biggest crush on him when we were growing up. he was my older brother figure, and i had two more out of quinn and luke, the hughes were my second family.

“jack saw me as just an annoying little sister up until we were like, fifteen. but i didn’t know that. i didn’t know that until you came to live with him here, and i guess when he noticed we started becoming friends he wanted to actually tell me he liked me. but we couldn’t do that to our friendship, we had been friends for way too long to risk throwing away all of it. we almost happened, but we didn’t. and i’m happy we didn’t, you wanna know why?”

“why?” alex manages to croak out, his eyes slowly raising to meet your gaze.

“because then i started dating you, bubby. and the past year and a half have been the best months of my life, you know that? i’m so, so happy that jack and i didn’t try anything, because honestly him and i wouldn’t last this long, i’m sure. but you and me did, and i can see us together for a while longer.” 

you grab one of alex’s hands and hold them in both of yours as he sighs. “i just, y/n, you don’t realize how hard this is. jack told me he’s never seen you as more than just a friend, because yeah, i’ve always been jealous of how close you two are. the bond you two have. because we could never have anything quite like you and jack have and it kills me to think about it. he’s everything i’m not.”

“alex turcotte, you did not just say that.” you say, throwing a leg over alex’s lap and situating yourself on his lap. you place both of your hands lightly on his cheeks forcing him to look at you. “lex, you are everything. you’re my amazing, handsome, crazy talented at hockey best friend and boyfriend all in one. and that’s pretty amazing.”

“jack is your best friend, y/n. you don’t have to try and tell me otherwise,” alex grumbles, pushing both of your hands away from his face. “i see how excited you get talking about jack, your best friend, and how he’s supposed to be mr. first overall. because it’s jack. your best friend.”

“is that what this is about, alex? are you just jealous?” you whisper, letting your shoulders drop defeated. because you knew there was no way you’d be able to help him with this - this was his own doing. you can only make yourself feel the way that you do. that’s no one else’s influence, and you sure as hell knew if you tried to help it wouldn’t work.

“i’m incredibly jealous, y/n,” alex chuckles, eyes rolling ever so slightly. he shakes his head. “he’s gotten everything. the amazing life. amazing coaching growing up. amazing opportunities. had personal trainers. he got to know you for so much longer. he almost got you too. he’s got it good and sometimes he takes it for granted and he gets so, so cocky about it. and now what does he get? first overall. when we know anyone in the first round has the potential to do better than him their rookie year.”

alex can’t quite meet your eyes and you can’t quite meet his. you figured he must’ve been holding it in for a while - a long time - and now that he finally cracked you weren’t sure what to say.

“lex,” you mumble. “i didn’t know you felt that way.”

alex finally meets your gaze, and when he does you nearly crumble. there are tears forming in his eyes and he looks absolutely defeated. “no one did,” he manages to croak out, and all you can do is lean into his chest and wrap your arms around his neck.

“alex, i love you more than anything.” you mumble into his chest.

“i know you do, and i trust you do, but it’s so hard to make myself believe that when jack’s your best friend. and now that i know you guys almost dated? it’s even harder. because he’s gotten everything i’ve ever wanted. and the fact he almost got the girl of my dreams? the girl i want to spend forever with, you? well love, it’s even worse.”

you draw away from alex’s chest slowly, “lex, what did you say?” you asked quietly. 

sure, you and alex had been dating for quite some time. but you didn’t necessarily talk too much about the future like you probably should have. of course you wanted to spend the rest of your life with him, but hearing him say it out loud? while you were too scared to mention it to him, afraid he didn’t feel the same way?  that was a whole nother story. a weight lifted off your shoulders.

“i wanna spend the rest of my life with you, love. i thought that was pretty obvious to you by now.” alex tucks a loose strand of hair behind your ear and you smile, a blush dusting across your cheeks.

“good, because you’re the only boy i want to spend the rest of my life with, alex turcotte.”

[soldierallen]

Married. 16

A/N; well this is the end! Last chapter for a story that started in September of 2018 is ending in September 2020, it’s been a long ride thank you to everyone who supported the chapters the story and everything the characters we developed and the storylines that were told we had a lot of downs a few ups I wish there was more of this story to be told thank you for believing in a story that I thought nobody would care about Enjoy the finale.

Chapter 15; here

“You’re joking right?” She was a nervous wreck and this wasn’t the time for people with shitty attitudes “LUCY WHERES CHASE AND ELENA” she was freaking out her maid of honor was late and she had just been told her bouquet hasn’t arrived yet they were real flowers and needed proper care “I’m not in my dress yet and I haven’t seen him in two days I’m a wreck please let me see him” she was losing her patience with everyone “let her go” Jenny said, y/n rushes out knocking on the door to sebastians room “who is it” he yells out “it’s me” “I can’t see you it’s bad luck” he laughs “I’m gonna start crying” he heard her being serious and quickly opened the door “doll” he said in a whisper he had a dress shirt on and his suit pants with black socks “baby what’s wrong??” He pulled her in closely her head on his chest his arms wrapped around her lovingly with comfort “Elena isn’t here, my bouquet isn’t here my Parents aren’t here I’m gonna lose my fucking mind?” she questioned as she tried not to cry on her wedding day or ruin his shirt “hey listen” he lifted her head with both of his hands his hands curving to the shape of her head his thumbs on her cheeks with the comforting movement of them, he smiled empatheticly at her “it doesn’t matter, me and you matter we aren’t alone.” He let go of her face holding her hand walking towards the entrance to show her “Henry’s here, Chris, Anthony. All of their families...and to me that’s all that matters them, us.” He smiled at her she felt comfort holding onto him “I’m sorry I’m such a baby” she laughed trying to stop “never apologize for feeling overwhelmed, I’m with you till the end doll” his smile crept up as he looked into her eyes “I wanna kiss you” she said with frowny puppy dog eyes “now that is where I draw the line” he kissed her cheek “I thought you were the adventurous rebel what happened to that?” She asked “I guess sometimes in life you have to give up your childish ways in order to live a good life with the women you love” he leaned on the door frame “you love me? Take me to dinner first??” She said “how about we get married” he laughs and plays along “woah there buddy we haven’t even kissed yet? But alright I’ll be the one in white” she playfully hits his chest “I missed you calling and texting isn’t the same as having you in my eyesight and arms reach” Sebastian says, he knew in his heart this is the way things were suppose to be, if he never pushed his feelings down maybe he would’ve been with her sooner. She was finally ready everyone was in the right places are parents were here her bouquet in hand “you do look beautiful y/n” rose says “I never had a little sister till I met you thank you for softing him up for me” she bumped her elbow to her side playfully making the teen girl laugh, she smiled at Elena and the rest of the girls and it was time for them to be taken down the aisle she didn’t want any of the boys to see her.

“You look gorgeous baby” she heard her father’s voice “thank you” she kissed his cheek as they walked hand and hand everyone stood up she wasn’t able to see Sebastian yet, feeling the nerves circulate throughout her whole body she smiled at everyone there seb’s family and finally she got close enough to see him. God was he a breath of fresh of air she looked at him with love in her eyes and he was a bit teary which made her fall in love with him even more, she looked to his side and the three men were crying she laughed at them letting a few tears spill, she made it... crying for hours on end wanting him so badly it felt like she couldn’t breathe endless arguments and a check with money was able to ruin their whole friendship if it wasn’t for them to pick her back up I think she would’ve ended in a worse place. Y/n would always have a strong bond with each of them and yes including Henry, she let go from her father and took arms with Sebastian, and then came the vows..she looked out to all the people and said “he’s gonna make me cry” almost everyone laughed “so here we are” Sebastian said starting off “you’ve been a light in the darkness since I’ve met you, through our ups and downs I’ve always known you were the one for me” he was getting choked up “I made a lot of mistakes in our relationship, as best friends, as enemies, and as partners. You’ve always been the bigger person always knew the right way thing to do... one night in your apartment it was raining really bad the lights flickered and we had to light candles and we sat in the dark talking about literally everything that was the second night I knew I loved you. I’ve got our top five best moments on record but this one it’s number one” everyone clapped she was crying so much already he slipped the ring on her finger Elena handed her a tissue “you know what” y/n said while wiping her tears making everyone laugh & now it was her turn she smiled at him and slightly to the three men on his side “when I met you, you were the most gorgeous man I’d ever seen... even tho you were 13” everyone laughed she swallowed trying to get rid of the lump that was forming, “I dreamt of the day you’d love me back, that sounds sad but I’m getting there! When I was stuck in a situation I thought I’d never get out of you were there and when I felt like giving up you were there yeah we’ve said a lot of horrible things to each other but we’ve never hated each other..I couldn’t I was never able to you hate you this force about you that make people feel loved I don’t know what it is but your grandfather said something to me that I’ll never forget it “he’s a good boy he just needs someone to bring it out of him and maybe sweetheart maybe it’s you” he would’ve been so proud of you today” tears fell from his eyes he wasn’t this emotional guy but today he let loose he kissed her forehead “thank you for making me so happy I promise to try my best to do the same for you” everyone clapped “by the power invested in me and the state of New York I now pronounce you husband & wife you may now kiss the bride” Sebastian moved the hair out of her face kissing her with so much passion and love she felt unstoppable at this moment like time stood still. She hugged Chris Anthony and Henry she grabbed sebastian’s hand and they ran out into the limo “so that’s it we’re finally?” Sebastian said “Married” she said. Finally married it’s been a long journey but here we are, Together. Something Broken Could Always Be Fixed with a little love and time.

They made it to the reception they were introduced as mr and mrs stan finally! Chris gave his best man speech while Elena gave her maid of honor speech they had their first dance to their la vie en rose,

“Thank you for never giving up on us”

“I’ll never give up on you seb” her hand on his shoulder moving slightly with her words “never?” “Never.” She kissed him while they danced magic felt through the room as they danced,

Chris whispers to Henry “you okay?” he nods at Chris’s question “she’s happy and that’s all I ever wanted for her, I’m glad it’s with him cause I would’ve never satisfied her because it’s always been him.” He sipped his drink and smiled at the two friends in front of him who twirled spun around “you’re gonna be okay” he patted his shoulder as they watched the two dance hand and hand. “I don’t want this night to end” she whispers as they dance “me either” he kissed her neck making her laugh it tickled everyone watched as they talked kissed laughed this is all they both ever wanted someone to love care and cherish them however it was right in front of them all this time. as they danced soon everyone joined in dancing Henry danced with Rose seb’s sister, Chris & Jenny, Anthony & Sherri, Chase & Elena it felt like a dream “let’s all be together tonight, that’s what I want” she whispered to seb as the song played loudly over them “the honeymoon isn’t until two days from now because I knew that’s what you wanted” he kissed her neck as he spinned her around “you bumped it” she asked surprised he nodded with a smirk “you jerk!” She said playfully “oh come on you don’t wanna go on a trip with our best friends??” He said “you know I do” she kissed him sweetly she looked over at her parents and her brother, I know family is important but you choose your family. And these people on this dance floor is our family first. And they always will be. she let go of sebastian tapping on anthony’s shoulder “can I cut in?” Sherri smiled at y/n hugging her She grabbed seb and they danced whilst she danced with Anthony “you did it... I mean if you would’ve told me the girl who laid on the floor in her apartment crying would’ve been married to him I wouldn’t of believed you” she laughed “you always believed in me... all four of you I couldn’t ask for a better set of friends”

Tagged @hiddlestonstansworld @lovely-geek @imcalledflorence @misz-adrii @escapistdreamer-wishfulthinker @someplxce @cuddlesforlashton @coffeebooksandfandomsohmy @weasley16 @ilovethewayyourheartbeats @vogueworthy-barnes @xeniarocks @thisismysecrethappyplace @racheo91 @gravedollie666 @inlovewith3 @supernaturaldean67 // thank u for everything!

[buckysforeverprincess]

Can Our Love Survive Ch. 13

Bucky x Reader, Clint Barton, Steve Rogers

Words: 2236

Warnings: Being outed

A/N: So we got through the slow burn but things are still going. This chapter is told from Bucky’s POV and is kind of a filler but has a point and you’ll see why. Enjoy and happy Easter if you celebrate it!

**TAG LIST OPEN UNTIL CHAPTER 15. PLEASE SEND AN ASK**

Waking up the next morning, Bucky was groggy, and his head hurt. It wasn’t exactly his head, more so his eye from the epic right hook you had given him yesterday afternoon. He was almost certain you could kick his ass and wouldn’t need Natasha or Steve to hand him ass if he ever hurt her and hurting her was non-existent on his things he’d like to do before he dies.

 The fact anyone would want to hurt her was beyond him and something he was still having a hard time processing. She was the sweetest, softest, most beautiful person with the most perfect soul he had ever met, and Rumlow and his cronies had taken and broken her, and Bucky wanted nothing more than to help put her back together and watch her shine bright for the world to see.

 First things first, he needed to get his ass up and ready for school. The sooner he made this happen the sooner he could see her and hopefully establish if they were going to be an actual couple. They didn’t have time to talk about it yesterday even though they did text a bit back and forth, the topic just never came up. However, he kinda wanted to have that discussion face to face and not via text message.

 It didn’t take him long to get himself together and out the door with a pep in his step and a smile on his face. Bucky felt good, better than good. He can’t remember the last time he felt this happy and carefree. Maybe that’s because it was an entirely new feeling for him, and he owed that all to her and if everyday felt like this when it was new, he can’t imagine what the future held and how his feelings would grow and blossom into the foundations for their lives.

 Bucky approached his locker and looked around at the people milling about. He was hoping to see her before classes started but he didn’t see you or Natasha anywhere. No worries. He was sure at some point your paths would cross, at least he hoped they would and when that happened maybe he could press his lips to yours in a soft kiss. Yeah, he was already in deep and at the point of no return.

 The device in his pants buzzes, alerting him to a new text and he pulls it out and smiles when he sees who the message is from.

 My Heart: Morning! I just want to say hello before I went into class.

 Bucky grins and quickly types back, trying to make the most of the conversation in the short time they have.

 Bucky: Morning beautiful! Hope you have a wonderful day and I can’t wait to see you. I do have a question.

 My Heart: Sure, what’s up?

 Bucky inhales a deep breath and lets it out, his nerves building quickly, and he can feel his heart pounding in his chest.

 Bucky: So, am I your boyfriend?

 He hits send and puts the phone back in his pocket, scared to see the reply when it comes through. He gathers the things he’ll need and slams the door, walking away and heading in the direction of his class. He makes it to his desk when he feels the phone vibrate, and he quickly pulls it out and stares at the response.

 My Heart: Do you want to be?

 Of course, he wants to be, was that really even a question.

 My Heart: But, yes. Wait, you are my boyfriend?! I didn’t read this right?!

 Bucky: YES!!! Please don’t panic! I just wanted to be sure.

 He could sense the impending worry in her message and quickly followed it up with some reassurance.

 My Heart: Thank god. Class is about to start, ttyl!

 Bucky: Bye!

Bucky smiled at the conversation. She was his officially his girlfriend. No, they couldn't go public yet, and everything would have to be done in secret, but it wouldn't be forever. Just until Steve and the rest of the gang forgave him for his past mistake. He'd have to start working on that right away.

It was lunchtime when he laid eyes on her, spotting her sitting with Steve and their friends. She glances over at him when he walked into the lunch room and gave a soft smile meant for his eyes only. Bucky blushes and smiles back but quickly turns away, trying not to gain any attention from the group of friends keeping a close watch on her.

 Bucky found an empty table that still had a view of his girlfriend and sat down with his lunch. He hated sitting alone and he wished he could be by her side; laughing and joking with everyone, holding her hand and maybe placing gentle kisses to her cheek, but it wasn’t meant to be. Man, he’d give anything to be over there right now.

“Hey man! What happened to your face? You mess with someone's sister?” Clint laughed, pointing to Bucky’s eye, pulling out a chair and sitting down across from him.

All Bucky could do was stare in shock, not expecting anyone from the friends circle to break rank and come keep him company. “Wait, what?” he finally responds once the shock and awe wore off.

 “Your eye. Did you mess with the wrong sister? Ya got a nice shiner,” Clint says a little slower for Bucky to understand.

“Unstoppable force, immovable object?” Bucky questions trying to change the topic and takes a bite of his sandwich.

 “Didn't take you for a Superman kinda guy.”

 Bucky does a little happy dance in his head. Sweet diversion, I love thee. “I'm not. D.C. doesn't hold my attention. I just remember the quote. Now Marvel… I could watch that all day,” Bucky says, and Clint nods his head in agreement.

 “A man after my own heart.”

 Bucky blushes at the remark. “Aww Clint, does that mean I'm forgiven, and we can date now?” He jokes with a grin.

 Clint smiles and bats his eyes. “Hell yeah, it does...and I was never mad. You're a good guy. Shit happens.”

Thank god. One less person to win over. First Nat, then Y/N, now Clint. He thinks things are starting to look up for him.

“So how long?” Clint asks, grabbing one of Bucky’s fries and shoving into his mouth.

 Bucky doesn't understand the question and stares back at the blond confused. “How long what?”

 Clint chuckles. “That's cute if you're gonna go with that.”

 Bucky still looks lost. He truly doesn't understand the context and Clint doesn’t want to elaborate. Bucky knows he’s not a carnival mind reader, but it’s clear he’s gonna have to be if this line of questioning keeps up.

 Clint appears frustrated and rolls his eyes. “How long have you two been dating?”  

Bucky’s eyes go wide in shock and his mouth goes agape. This was not what he expected and was totally caught off guard. They’ve only been together for a couple of hours and hasn't been a discussion about who can know of their change in relationship status, so how the fuck did Clint already know?

“Dating who? I'm not dating anyone!” Bucky lies as convincingly as possible. He hates to but it's his only way out.

 “Really? You're not dating Steve's sister? Because you two can’t keep your eyes off each other and look all madly in love. It’s obvious, really. Surprised I’m the only one that’s caught on, actually.” Clint smirks and steals another fry.

  “What?” Bucky’s eyes gravitate on instinct to her and he sees her look up at him and smile back with a blush, quickly looking away. “I can't look at her? You already know I think she's beautiful.” His attention is back on Clint, hoping to dispel Clint’s hypothesis.  

A lightbulb appears to go off and Clint perks up and stands from his chair. “Well... if you won't confirm it, maybe I'll go over and ask her in front of everyone, hmmm?” Clint grins and he knows he's won.

 “Fucking hell, Clint!!” Bucky raises his voice in a pleading manner. “Please, I’m begging you… don't.”

 Smirking, Clint sits back down and takes more fries from Bucky’s plate. “See how much better it is when you tell the truth?”

 Bucky sighs and pushes his plate of food over to Clint, his appetite gone now that his relationship has already been blown out of the water. “What gave it away?” He asks, needing to know what they’d done to make it obvious, so they don’t repeat the same mistakes again.

Clint leans in and looks him dead in the eye, eyes piercing deep into his soul. “That girl disappeared three days ago after slapping you and locked herself in her room. She reappears today after a secret mission to the Rogers house was carried out and she's happy and laughing and bubbly. I haven't seen her like this since before that pig fucker came into her life. Not a single one of us has been able to bring that out of her, so it has to be you. Besides you two can't stop eye fucking each other! You're begging for Steve to catch you.”

All he wanted was to see you smile, and now you are. Maybe everyone seeing you happy is the start of mending friendships. If Clint can see just how happy she is now, maybe the others will see it and when they find out Bucky is the cause of her happiness, they’ll be open to welcoming him back and they won’t have to hide their couple status. He just wants them to accept their relationship so she can be happy.

“I don't want to hide,” Bucky begins. “I want everyone to know we're together, but everyone is still pretty upset with me. And then there’s Steve. I know he’s still mad at me and won't be happy when he finds out and I’m almost positive he’ll use his big beefy body to kick the shit out of me when he finds out about us. I’m just a dead man walking, right now.”  

 “I might be able to help with that,” Clint says with a grin.

 “Oh?”

 “I may be able to persuade him to keep an open mind and maybe even forgive you,” Clint smirks and Bucky knows he’s hiding something.

 “I'm listening.”

 Clint shrugs and pops another fry into his mouth, slowly eating it, keeping Bucky in suspense. “Steve would never deny his boyfriend anything,” he says stone faced and matter of fact.

“You shut your whore mouth!!” Bucky exclaims from the bombshell that was just blatantly dropped drawing the attention of people around them.

 “Shhh Bucky!!! No one knows! Steve's still stuck deep in the closet.”

 “No fucking way! I spent all my time with Steve, there's no way!” Bucky says in disbelief.

 “Yeah, well we know how not to look obvious and are really good at hiding it. Just keep it quiet please. Steve’s not ready to come out yet.” Clint pleads, worry written on his face.

 Bucky nods in silent understanding and agreement. He'd keep his mouth shut. It wasn't his secret to tell and it’s hard telling how people would react to the Captain of the lacrosse team coming out as gay. Bucky would never out anyone and would happily keep this secret and be supportive when the time comes Steve is ready to let it be known.

And as if he knew someone was talking about him, Bucky sees Steve makes his way over to them and comes to a halt at the table, nervously shifting on his feet. “Hey Clint… Bucky,” Steve says, digging his hands in his pockets.

 Eyes shift around awkwardly between the three of them, no one making conversation, tension high from this unexpected turn of events.

 “Well, this is uncomfortable… Steve? Ready to go to class?” Clint asks standing up from the table.

 “Yeah, sure. Be right there?” Steve eyes meet Clint in a silent understanding. Clint nods and waves to Bucky before taking off, disappearing into a crowd of kids.

 Steve stands in front of Bucky and he can see the uncertainty of whatever brought him over. He's sure Steve's gonna yell at him or threaten him with a ‘stay away from my sister’ talk and is the reason he appears out of sorts right now.

 “I think we should talk.” Steve finally says after a long silence. “Not now… we gotta get to class. After school, maybe?”

 Bucky swallows hard, relieved to have the impending death talk delayed until later. “Yeah, I'd like that. After school’s good.”  

 “Ok. I'll-I’ll see ya later.” Steve quickly turns and leaves without wasting another awkward second.

 “Later,” Bucky replies already too late for Steve to hear, the taller boy making his way through the crowd and out the door.

Wow, Bucky thinks as he grabs his plate and heads over to the trash. This was not how he thought today was going to go. Today started out happy, finally gaining the attention and relationship he wanted, now he’s gotta worry about Steve and the ‘talk’ after school. Throw in a side bomb of Clint and Steve and this has got to be the most epically fucked up day of his young life. Oh, well. At least in this world full of crazy he blends right in.

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[emily-strange]

Growing Pains...

Sooo I kicked off something that I’ve never written before haha I hope it’s okay!

Summary: Emmy has been with the gang since she was a little girl. Her mother moved on, leaving her to be raised by Dutch, Hosea and Susan. Arthur and John are her brothers (argue and she will fight you). Becoming a woman is hard when everyone still sees you as a child. Since the Blackwater mess she’s trying to find her feet while dealing with her new feelings for the gangs resident douchebag.

Tagging @strwxberrymilk @porkchop-ao3 @arthursgirl @angelsjudge and @scy77a but if you’d like to stop being tagged just let me know! :) Also if anyone else would like to be tagged just say the word xx

Pairing: Slow burn Micah x female OC.

Warnings: Swearing, comments alluding to abuse, sexual themes and a racial slur.

Chapter 15

“So as far as first shootout’s go, I’d say it went pretty well.” I declare to Arthur through gritted teeth.

“Yeaah went real well. Despite the fact yer now have’a new hole in yer leg.” Arthur replies without a modicum of humour.

“I can NOT believe you let this young lady run into a firefight, Mr Morgan. I expected this from the likes of Mr Bell but not you!” Miss Grimshaw chimes in while she wraps up my left thigh. The bullet was a through and through so I managed to avoid any sort of “surgery” and the slug was of a small caliber, so really, all in all, it could’ve been so much worse.

“I’m fine Sus-AN”I yelp after one very firm tug of the bandage, “Was that necessary!?”

Miss Grimshaw doesn’t answer me but gathers her supplies and with one last stern look, storms from the tent shaking her head and muttering under her breath.

Arthur laughs and shakes his head.

I maneuver my leg so it’s a bit more comfortable on my cot and Arthur sits on a crate next to me.

“You’re covered in blood by the way.” I state as I start to feel the effects of the whiskey coursing through my veins.

He huffs at me and replies, “Yea, well that happn’s when yer lugging people about with blood comin’ outta them.”

And then in my hazy state I remember.

“Lenny’ll be okay right?” I ask in a whisper.

“Ooh yeaa I was only jokin’ sweetheart. His wounds’a no worse than yers, just happens ta be in his shootin’ arm. He’ll live.” Arthur reassures with a hand on my cheek, “Now you sleep.”

“Tell everyone I owe them a drink okay?” I say back, feeling my eyes start to drop closed, “I did good dn’t I Art?” I slur.

All I register before I fall asleep is Arthur quietly chuckling and kissing my forehead.

We storm the ranch, guns blazing.

The rush running through me is unreal.

I’ve never been in a shootout and you know what, it’s not something I fancy doing again.

“Stay behind me.” Arthur growls as we push forward. There aren’t a lot of men but they appear to be well stocked with weapons, so we’re all planted in one spot pretty quickly. I’m with Arthur and Charles while the others are spread out alone.

From not too far away, as I duck down after firing a shot, I can see Micah smirking at me from behind a wagon. He winks at me and I find his ability to remain jovial at a time like this almost impressive.

The sound of a soft voice saying “Knock knock” jerks me awake.

“Hey, can I come in?” Sadie asks from tent entrance.

I struggle to sit up and rub at my eyes while saying “sure”. She comes in and takes Arthur’s spot on the crate next to my cot. It takes me a second to register where I am. Drinking half a bottle of whiskey in one go will do that to you. Even if it’s starting to wear off.

“You ‘kay?” she asks me quietly and it’s then I register the dull ache in my leg. Not too painful yet, but a horrible promise of what’s to come.

“Not bad….you alright?” I can see that she’s changed from her previous clothes and her hairs wet. She must’ve gotten blood on her as well. Either from me or Lenny.

“Oh, you know me.” Sadie replies but she seems a bit distant.

“Sadie. What’s wrong?” I ask quietly. Sadie looks at me but avoids direct eye-contact until I reach out for her arm asking a silent, “What’s wrong?”

“You know I ain’t good with feelin’s since Jakey….I….I’ve tried ta shut ‘em off as it were.” Sadie starts and I can see unshed tears in her eyes, “But I wan’ed ta say that….I wan’ed to tell ya….that I’m proud. Of you. Very proud.”

Suddenly the emotions of the night, along with the ache in my thigh, come crashing down upon me and my own unshed tears start to fall.

There’s a break in the gunfire and everyone takes the opportunity to rush forward towards the house. I see Micah bashing some guy in the face while Sadie uses her knife to slit another guys throat.

I’ve not sure I’ve ever seen something so brutal. But really what did I expect? I just need to remind myself that these “men” deserve everything they get.

“I want at least one Arthur” I say loudly to him as Charles breaks off from the two of us. We’re crouching and shuffling forward quickly, trying to stay out of anyone’s line of sight.

Then all of a sudden, we hear it. A scream and John’s shout.

“LENNY’S HIT!” he yells over to us.

“GET’IM OUTTA HERE MARSTON!” Arthur shouts back and as I look forward, I see the smoke and barrel of a gun pointing out of an upstairs window.

A barrel that now points at my brother.

“ARTHUR” I scream to gain his attention and then aim my gun. I pull the trigger and after a few seconds, a man comes tumbling down to splat onto the ground in front of us.

Arthur clears his throat and looks back at me smirking, “Well….I’d say ya got one.”

“Well if that weren’t just the sexiest thing.” Micah shouts over to us, causing every other man around to snarl. However, they have no time to dwell on him because soon guns start firing again.

“Sadie” I murmur while holding her hand with my spare one, “I didn’t even really do anything. I got one guy.” I laugh, trying to ease the tension, but Sadie shakes her head.

“That’s not….you got us there….imagine if you hadn’t….” She says quietly squeezing my hand. All I can manage is a nod.

After what feels like forever the guns stop and the sick bastards are dead.

My gang start looting bodies and rifling through draws and cupboards while I look around….and maybe kick the odd body now and then. The place is disgusting. Absolutely vile.

I walk through the open plan kitchen/livingroom but trip after I stand on a particularly springy floorboard (that my feet weren’t expecting) that’s covered by an old faded rug. Annoyingly I trip straight into Micah’s arms who revels in my clumsiness. As usual.

“Woah now Miss. This ain’t the time ta be gettin’ frisky…..I mean we can but big brother over there might take some offence.” He drawls into my ear playfully and I push him back, knowing he’s just trying to get a rise out of Arthur.

I start to move the rug and mumble under my breath so he can hear, “Why couldn’t it have been Charles.”, causing Micah to fake his hurt in an over reacted clench of his heart.

“You wound me.” He gasps and despite myself, I laugh.

“Help me with this will you?” I ask and he makes a snide remark about “getting Charles to help” but ultimately relents when seeing my unamused face.

We pull back the rug to reveal a trap door.

“Looky looky” Micah whistles to himself and tugs up the heavy wood, which opens to a basement.

“Okay you wait here.” I say while I take a step forward but Micah puts his hand out in front of me.

“I don’t think so Missy. You won’t see a damn thing down there.” He scoffs and I motion to a lamp that’s been, luckily, undisturbed by the gunfire.

“Hand me that then.” I ask and he rolls his eyes, but does as I ask.

“Just don’t break a nail or nuthin’” he scoffs to himself and I just flip him off.

I slowly make my way down into the basemen and when I touch the floor I yell,

“Micah!! Get my brothers!”

Sadie squeezes my hand before kissing it.

“You did good. Be proud. We are.” She says quietly to me and I smile. I really smile.

“Thank you, Sadie.” I whisper through my emotional haze and she gets up slowly, making her way to the entrance of the tent. She stops before she exits and looks at me for a moment.

“Look. When you’re ready. Come see me okay? We’ll talk.”

I nod, knowing exactly what she means. Arthur did want me to talk to someone.

After Sadie leaves, I settle back down onto the cot and close my eyes. Willing myself to sleep away the increasing pain in my thigh.

When I descend the final step, I shine the lantern around as the smell from the basement makes me gag. What I see makes me cry out for Micah.

“Micah!! Get my brothers!” I yell and watch as the three young girls in front of me cower away on the furthest wall, “Fucking hell.” I whisper to myself and move to approach them.

“You’re okay. You’re safe now.” I try telling them but they huddle impossibly closer together and push themselves further back onto the wall. I think for a second that I should yell for Sadie. My gut reaction was my brothers but that’s just out of habit. I think this will need a woman’s help.

However, before I can yell for anyone else, I feel the cold, hard barrel of a gun pressed behind my head.

“You killed my men” comes a revolting voice behind me.

“Technically, I only killed one…” I reply but completely shut up once the barrel pushes painfully into my temple, “….okay so not the time for being a smartass, got it.”

“Emmy?” Arthur yells down into the basement but stops his movement at the hatch once he catches sight of the gun against my head.

“Yeah, I’m here….and um, I’ve made a friend.” I joke humourlessly as the man guides me up the basement stairs. Once we’re at the top I see that Arthur and John have brought Lenny inside as the others look around. He’s sat on a shot up sofa while my brother’s stand with their hands up and away from their guns.

“Just shoot him!” I shout at them. I’ll be damned if one of these assholes get away.

“Emmy, shut the fuck up.” John growls quietly and the little sister in me wants to hit him so bad. But the gun to my head keeps me firmly in place.

“Now this’s how it’s gonna go down. Imma get to one’ve ma horses with ya little lady here. We’re gonna ride off and once I know ya ain’t followin’, I’ll letta go. ‘kay?” the man snarls and from his breath alone I can tell he’s vermin.

Everyone takes a breath and you just know they’re waiting for Arthur.

“Now, that ain’t gonna happen friend.” He says sternly while keeping his hands away from his holster.

Suddenly the door blasts open and Micah, along with Sadie and Charles come barging in asking what’s taking so long. They instantly freeze and for once I see pure confusion on his face. He also looks at Arthur for the solution. Even if he’d never admit it.

“Who’s dumb idea was this anyway?” I hiss rhetorically but Micah just has to answers.

“Yours” he replies and even though I have a gun to my head, I roll my eyes, “Yes thank you Micah.”

Micah shrugs and Arthur gives everyone in the room a death glare.

“Everyone shut the hell up! And hands where I cn see em’! You too darky.” The man shouts and motions to Lenny.

“Do I look like I can fire a gun right now!?” Lenny snaps back holding his bloody upper arm.

Knowing what this man is and hearing how he speaks to Lenny makes me feel physically sick. But not just that, it makes me stupid with rage. I see red.

I decide there and then that if I’m going to die, I’ll be taking this fucker with me.

I move the hand that’s still holding the lantern back a bit, positioning it over this guys foot. And then I simply…..let go.

As soon as I do, I duck as much as I can in his grip and watch as the lantern hits his foot.

His gun fires. But so does everyone else’s.

It was all a big blur. One moment I’m ducking and elbowing this pervert in the dick as flames quickly engulf his leg and then the next, I’m on the floor with a hole in my thigh.

Everyone fires so the man is quickly riddled with bullets and lies burning on the floor. Charles grabs the rug and smothers the flames before they can spread further. Everyone else just remains in place, stunned.

The shock wears off quickly and the pain in my leg starts.

“WHO. THE FUCK. SHOT ME!?” I shout as Arthur throws himself to the ground to wrap his bandana around the wound. It’s quiet for a few seconds (other than my pathetic “ow ow ow’s”) and then a small voice pipes up from the corner.

“Um…I think that was me….” Lenny says timidly from his position on the sofa, a smoking gun still hanging from his pained hand.

“Why the fuck did you shoot!?” Micah shouts at Lenny and Charles jumps to his defense, “Everyone shot! Could have been anyone….”

Unfortunately, Micah wasn’t having any of it and argues back. Then Arthur joins in…..and then John who was annoyed at Arthurs handling of the situation…..then Lenny sticks up for Arthur….who turns his anger onto Micah for bringing this whole thing upon us.

It was ridiculous.

The only people not making any noise are me and Sadie who catches my eye from across the room, causing us both to burst into laughter. Making all the men stop.

“My first gunshot and it was given to me…..by Lenny!?” I say wheezing through my laughter as Arthur helps me up. I stumble as I struggle not to put too much weight on my left leg.

“Could’ve been worse!” Arthur says sternly to me and I just pat his face like you would a child who’s too riled up.

“Yeah, yeah” I whisper looking away and remembering what caused all of this.

“They’re holding girls down there.” I say grimly looking from the basement to the others around me.

“Girls?” Sadie says taking a large step forward to me and I nod.

“Three of them….they look around 12/13 years old.” I whisper to her.

Sadie nods and orders the men out before turning to me softly, “Let’s go get them.”

“Hey…..hey!” Micah barks as he shakes me awake.

“God damn Micah!” I growl after I’ve gathered my bearings, “You could’ve woken me up nicely!”

“Oh yeah…how would you want me to wake you up then?” Micah drawls while wiggling his eyebrows at me.

“Try not at all” I say sickly sweet back to him. He’s taken residence on the very popular crate by my bed.

Micah scoffs and turns away from me scratching the back of his neck. He’s not wearing his hat and he’s changed into his black shirt, the one I borrowed. He shakes his head while turning his gaze to the ground.

“You okay?” I ask quietly when he fails to look back at me, “Micah?”

I reach out and touch his arm, but doing so pulls at my leg, causing me to hiss. Micah snaps his attention back to me.

“Hey don’t go movin’ around! You gotta be more careful.” He barks again and moves further towards me, placing my hand on his arm where I was reaching for him. I smile.

“You sound like Arthur” I chuckle despite the pain in my thigh.

“Pfft. Guess he can’t always be wrong then.” Micah scoffs and looks at the bandage on my thigh. “I still can’t believe that idiot shot you!”

“It’s not like he meant to and anyways I’m lucky he wasn’t using his own gun. Just one he found on the ground. Might’ve been a lot worse otherwise.” I sigh looking down at where my skirt is ridden up. I no longer have my cut off union trousers under it so one thigh is completely bare while the other one is covered in bandages. I catch Micah looking.

“Hey”, I snap my fingers at him, “My eyes are up here buddy.”

I expect some witty retort but instead he picks up the hand that lies on his arm….and kisses it. His mustache tickles my knuckles and the feeling makes me sigh happily. For a short moment I close my eyes and forget about the hole under the bandages.

“You did good out there.” He eventually says in a whisper. If he wasn’t so close I’d of never heard him.

“Thank you” I reply giving him a sleepy smile. I shift a bit and wince at the pull in my thigh.

“You want some more whiskey?” Micah asks me and I shake my head.

“Nah, it’s making me feel a bit sick. I just need to sleep….which I was doing very well I’ll have you know.” I say narrowing my eyes are him. Micah laughs and shifts even closer.

“You know…I could make you feel a whole lot better without whiskey.” Micah whispers into my ear and I shiver at the sensation of his breath on my neck. Micah puts his large calloused palm on my good thigh and lets his thumb graze over my knee.

“Micah” I whisper, instantly feeling my underwear become wet, “I was shot like, three hours ago.”

Micah kisses from my ear down to the side of my neck and back up again. He delicately licks at my ear and nibbles on my lob before saying “Mmhm and I think that means you deserve somethin’ don’t you? For doin’ so good….savin’ those girls….you did real good.”

As much as I’d go to my grave denying it, Micah’s praise is doing something to me. I lie my head back and close my eyes, giving into the sensation of his large fingers skimming my inner thigh. The only problem is he’s said the word that I’ve heard one too many times to feel good.

“Thing is Micah,” I whisper opening my eyes. I run my hand up into his hair and pull his head back to look me in the eyes. I lick my lips and plunge forward connecting my lips to his in a brief, heated, dominating kiss. One that, if it had a winner, would be me. I nip his bottom lip as we detach, “I don’t like being told what I ‘deserve’.” I finish by licking along the seams of his lips and let go of his hair.

I settle back into my cot and gently take his hand from my inner thigh and press it to my soaked underwear.

“Fuck” Micah sighs under his breath and I can see the tell-tale signs of him growing hard in his trousers. His eyes snap to mine as I start to gently rut against his fingers which I’ve maneuvered to press against my aching clit.

“You see….” I whisper to Micah as I pick up the pace as much as I can with my injured leg, “…..telling me what I ‘deserve’ makes it feel like I’m being gifted something…..” I continue to rub his fingers against me and I can see Micah rub his erection through the fabric of his trousers. His eyes haven’t moved from where his hand has disappeared up my skirt.

“……when the reality is…..” I pause a moment while I slip my underwear to the side and allow one of Micah’s thick fingers to enter me, “…..I take what I want. Not what men think I ‘deserve’”

My tent is filled with the sounds of Micah quietly grunting as he palms himself and the wet, slick noise of his finger being moved in and out of my tight heat. When I feel that I’m ready, I move another of his fingers to push into me and once I feel adjusted, I snap my fingers at Micah to grab his attention.

Micah watches with his mouth hanging open as I lick my own essence from my fingers. I then lie back and hold the top of my cot before asking huskily, “You know what to do right?”

It takes a moment for Micah to come to his senses but when he does, he snaps his mouth closed and lunges for my lips. While he kisses me, a kiss that I allow him to control, his fingers begin to move inside me.

“Yer so fucking wet,” he growls in my ear and the sensation sends shockwaves all the way down to my core, “and tight. Jesus, so tight.” Micah’s other hand moves to his belt and I grab the wrist of his hand currently fucking me. He stops and looks at me.

“No….this is mine remember.” I say to him cockily, “I’m happy to finish alone. But I will admit I’d rather ride your fingers than mine.”

Micah removes the hand from his belt and moves to tower over me on the cot. His right-hand resumes fingering me while his left moves to clutch at the top of the cot near my head. He very, very carefully places his knee on the cot, making sure to avoid my injured thigh.

“You like being in charge?” he hisses at me while his fingers move faster and faster, “That’s fine…..for now.” Micah moves his thumb to my clit and starts applying just the right amount of pressure. I grab the sides of his face and pull his lips to mine to quieten my moans and then grab at his shirt to keep him in place.

“Faster” I gasp between kisses and Micah obliges, “Fuck, you feel so good.” I praise and I’m sure I see his eyes light up, “Don’t stop.” Micah shakes his head and kisses at my neck again while my free hand finds purchase in his long hair.

I feel myself climb higher and higher towards my peak as Micah kisses and nibbles along my neck. I know he wants to sink his teeth in but he also knows that wouldn’t end well. Micah wants more than his fingers inside me one day and if he pushes too far, he knows he’ll lose that opportunity. Micah’s an idiot, but he’s not stupid.

“You like my fingers darlin’?” Micah drawls as he pulls back to look at me. I nod eagerly and whimper the closer I get. Micah moves his free hand to my face and brushes his thumb down to my lips which I eagerly take into my mouth and suck. “Fuckin’ hell baby….keep doin’ that….” When I stop sucking, Micah adds a quick “please.”

Micah’s fingers, along with his hot breath on my face as he pants and his thumb moving in and out of my mouth, causes me to hit my high and I cum. Hard. I grab the wrist under my skirt and still his hand which I grind against to ride out the final waves of pleasure.

I bite down hard on Micah’s thumb to contain my cries and for a moment I worry that I’ve hurt him but when I open my eyes, I’m met with his signature smirk. I also notice he’s breathing very, very hard.

As he removes his fingers from me, I glance down to his lap and see a dark stain spreading around his crotch. I bite my lip as he brings his fingers to his lips and licks my wetness off of them.

“Well” he huffs once he’s finished, “That was somethin’.”

I can’t help but laugh and can only get out a quiet, “Yep.”

Micah smiles and leans down to capture my lips with his, giving me a taste of myself on his tongue. When he pulls back, he takes a moment to grasp my face and growl. I wink at him and giggle as he pulls his face away from me; the euphoria, whiskey and exhaustion from the day making me giddy.

“Goodnight darlin’” he drawls quietly and honestly the only thing I can manage is a nod. My body is tingling and I feel weightless. As Micah straightens up, fully ready to face anyone outside my tent with his wet crotch, I feel my body giving into sleep.

Before I doze off, I’m almost 100% sure I feel blankets being pulled up over me as the lantern is dimmed.

[xserpentlife]

Intrigue

Requested: Anon - If I could make a Malachi x reader request if you write Ghoulies? Reader constantly getting into trouble at Riverdale high so she's sent to Southside High after being expelled. When moving to Southside she starts up her mischief again and catches the eyes of the Ghoulies. She gets taken to Malachai for spray painting Ghoulie terf at school and the reader and Malachai instantly click?

A/N: hope you like this!. I also decided to stop doing mood boards unless I have inspiration, forcing myself to make them for every story is pointless. Also, be sure to send in requests because mine are open. 

Word Count: about 1890

*Flashback*

“Look principle Honey, I didn't mean to…”

“Didn’t mean to what Y/N? Dye Briane’s hair blue with her shampoo?”

“Hey, not my fault she stole it out of my shower bag” In reality, it was your fault you hated Briane, a girl constantly causing trouble for anyone she came into contact with. You wanted payback. Payback for the way she talked about your friends, and family. So you played a helpless prank on her, and you got in trouble.

“You still did it on purpose Ms. Y/N”

“And you are proving that how…”

“Ms. Y/N some respect please”

“Mr. Honey, you are talking about respect here when you have none for me. I did nothing wrong to Briane. You are siding with her because of our past. Because she is from the rich side of the North. Years I have been bullied by her and not once did I punch or cause blood, because I am way more of a decent human being then she is, I did nothing wrong Mr. Honey”

“Fine Ms.Y/N I will call it at a draw and you will both have 2 nights of detention” You smiled to yourself. “However, you are on very, very thin ice considering you were just here a week ago for allegedly replacing the dead frogs with live ones in last weeks biology classes.”

“Mr. Honey…”

“No Ms. Y/N like I said thin ice do you understand”

“Yes sir I do”

“Good now get out of my office”

*Flashback Ended*

“For weeks now you had been warned daily of the thin ice you were on with Mr. Honey, but you kept your distance and your cool. You needed school, needed it to get out of riverdale and not have to deal with the treacherous town. You may have done all those things, but they were innocent pranks to only get back at the ones that wronged you. You needed to defend your turf, it was what you were always taught before your parents passed. Your grandmother engraving into your brain that you needed to protect yourself before protecting others.

School had been a hassle, every teacher constantly watching every move you made. Every student trying to get you out. No one at riverdale ever liked you, they always saw you as the problem child. The one who dressed in dark clothes, and caused trouble, but none of them knew you at all, or had been through or known the things that you have. You went by your day to day after the incident with Mr. Honey, trying to stay out of trouble as possible. You got a detention for not doing homework, but you never got in real trouble. That was until science lab 3rd period two weeks into your thin ice warning. You were paired up with Briane, for an experiment where a cloud of white would rise when the chemicals were combined. You were in charge of the base and she was in charge of the reactant. However, as soon as you looked away to wipe your hands off for safety she poured the entire bottle of reactant in before screaming at the top of her lungs.

“Briane! You are interrupting the other students what is the meaning of this”

“Y/N, Ms. Murphy Y/N put the entire bottle into the mixture” You turned around stunned, you hadn’t even been looking when she did it, and then you saw the bubbles arise and begin to pour over the smoke filling the air”

“Everyone out of the classroom this instant, we will have to have it cleared for safety. Ms. Y/Nand Ms. Briane come to the principal's office with me at once!”

“Mr. Honey before you say anything I didn’t do it, I swear on my life, I was washing my hands when it happened, I wasn't even paying attention”

“Ms. Briane would you like to say your side”

“Oh yes Mr. Honey thank you so much. Well I was minding my business writing down our lab results of the temperature because I had poured the base, and when I looked up Y/N was pouring the whole jar in, I tried to stop her but she just kept pouring and then I screamed because I was scared and Ms. Murphy came over. Oh gosh, I don’t know why she would ever think to do that if we had more harmful chemicals we all could have died!”

“Everything will be fine Ms. Briane, you can leave my office now”

“Thank you, sir”

“Now Ms. Y/N”

“Mr. Honey, I promise I didn’t do it”

“Well it seems there are other stories at play here, and in our previous meeting, I told you, thin ice. I have decided to transfer you to Southside High”

“No Mr. honey please!”

“It is out of my hands Ms. Y/N”

“No it is literally in your hands, you incompetent piece of shit, You know what. I am fucking glad that I am not going to be a part of this pretentious north siders can do no wrong school. Good riddens, asshole!”

“Ms...”

“Shut up, I’m grabbing my stuff and you’ll never see me again, and you know what I am sooo glad I don’t have to look at your stupid face ever again”

You left the school on a bad note but did it really matter when you were going to a school that barely had programs let alone taught the kids what they needed to know. It was as if your entire world crashed down. Your grades would decrease, your barely existent social life would now diminish completely, and most of all your mindset. You gave up on being the girl that was good at school, but bad on the outside.

You started not caring, picked up art. Learned how to tag and make it so your print was known enough to be you but not to be identified in your other works. You praised your art teacher and got very close with her very quickly. You confided in her, she herself was a student at Riverdale high at one point, kicked out because she lived on the southside and they found out. You related with her in a way you hadn’t with anyone else, but that didn’t stop you from doing way worse things than shit Riverdale high could ever fathom.

When you first got to southside high you completely painted your locker, not crazy but definitely not allowed. You took money from people, yeah you never spent any of it, actually put it in for charity collections, not that anyone knew that. Everyone knew you as the new kid, that just did bad shit. No one knew why no one knew your background or history and no one cared to know one bit. You liked it that way, you enjoyed the animosity. You then moved from the school to walk around the town after ditching for the day. You luckily still live in the house your parents had once owned on the northside, now it looked like a rundown abandoned building on the outside, guess that matched the way your life was turning. You tagged the entire gas station, then the park moving up the hills and down the valleys tagging everything in your sight. Art was your outlet and the southside, your canvas. You had no idea you caught the eyes of a gang called the ghoulies. You didn’t know the turfs, or the sides, you were just a visitor in a town with many rules and regulations you had no idea about. You made a mistake tagging the run-down building on the corner, officially in ghoulie territory. But no one had caused you trouble before, so you were not expecting to turn around and find 5 men and women around in black studded jackets.

“Hello…”

“NO bitch tagging our turf who the fuck are you”

“Wait… your turf?”

‘Yes, this is Ghoulie territory and we are taking you to the king” You had no idea what they were talking about, you felt a bang against the back of your head before you were out cold. You woke up slowly words being heard around you your vision slowly clearing from the blurriness

“Spraying our turf huh doll?” You have seen this guy, seen him around the school more often than you like to admit. He always seemed to be where you were, lurking around corners, and tagging his own spots how he would like, but you never said a word to him, your rule of keeping to yourself always in the back of your mind. You knew of the ghoulies enough to know people on the northside were afraid, but in reality, them all standing in front of you, they were no scarier than a group of 3-year-old children.

“What...? Just figured I'd have a little fun, turns out your ghoulies are a lot less scary than people think. Oh, y/n by the way and you are ...”

“Malachai... a lot scarier than people think, nice to meet you doll, boys let her go, and leave the room, I’ll deal with her”

“Deal with me, I like the sound of that” You were let go, dropped to the ground, as Malachai ushered the men out of the room. You got up finding a chair and putting your feet up and onto his desk that resided in the back of the room.

“Off”

“What? The big bad ghoulie is a germaphobe”

“Nah I just like shiny things, and you doll are currently on my radar” He swiped your feet off the desk before plotting on top.

“So what are you gonna do to me dear king?”

“Talk”

“Talk…”

“You are an enigma Y/N, I want to get to know you”

“No one ever does… what do you want from me?”

“Like I said you intrigue me, I just want to get to know who you are. We are… similar”

“I’m not sure we are…”

“Stay here…”

“Alright” Malachai came back with a photobook, a photo book that once we started flipping through you realized it was him, a boy living on the northside. A boy in a big house on cherry street, with a mother and father, and sister. Grandparents, Christmas parties and… then it was taken from you.

“You’re from the northside?

“Like I said we are similar”

“How did you know I am from the northside”

“Lucky guess I’d say”

“And you… lived there?” “There are a lot of things people don’t know about me, like I said we are similar Y/N”

“I wanna know how”

“Guess you’ll have to stay to find out”

“Apparently so”