#in summer i gotta grab the only property i owe and go live in a tent on the streets

[motorcycleboy9]

you have no clue what kind of horrifying crime ideas I have in my mind after spending my afternoon in a house with 4 children

[jj-bxby]

take a chance ~ jj maybank imagine

prompt request ~ angst ~ 1) you can’t do this, you owe me 2) how much did you drink? 3) i don’t need your pity

summary - you meet the boy of your dreams at a party, but your parents disapprove of your relationship. what happens when a phone call from them sends you into self destruct mode?

word count - 1.9k

trigger warnings ~ swearing, drinking/smoking, verbal ab*se from family member, happy ending

Kooks loved parties. Or, at least you were supposed to. 

For whatever reason, the thoughts of the crowded house and cheap booze never was appealing to you, no matter how many times you pushed yourself into the scene. Eventually, you resigned from the parties at frats and packed mansions within Figure Eight, opting instead for the ones thrown on The Cut. The Boneyard made the perfect spot for summer parties, logs acting as benches, fires to keep warm, and no police caring enough to show up to kill the vibe. And of course, that was how you ended up meeting him. The boy with the sea glass-blue eyes, wavy blonde locks, and salty lips. He was the one who had found you resting in the sand with music playing softly from your little speaker as your eyes closed. You were a good distance away from your Kook friends and the rest of the party. He’d tapped your leg with the toe of his sneaker, giggling as you glared at him.

“Not much of a partier, aye?”

You sat up, annoyed. “No, I’m not. I’m not one much for having my quiet time interrupted, either.” 

He sank to your level, sitting in the sand with his arm thrown over one knee with a joint in his hand. He twirled it for a few seconds before looking up to see you staring at him, a scowl having settled across your mouth. He laughed to himself as he looked in your eyes. “Well, I’m sorry about that. But do you mind if I lay here for a bit too? I’m I bit too faded to deal with anyone else right now.”

You thought for a second, before nodding slowly. “Alright, you can stay. On one condition, though. You share the weed.” JJ raised his brow at you. “I don’t like the taste of booze and I’m too jittery to calm myself down right now.”

“Alright. Say, your name is Y/N, right?” He asked as you took a drag of the blunt he’d just handed over. You nodded. “I’m JJ.”

You laughed a little bit. “You think I don’t know who you are? Really?” 

He grinned, the dimple on one of his cheeks showing. “Ah, I figured. I just thought it would be a better story to tell people when they ask how we got together if I introduced myself first.” You rolled your eyes, taking another puff from the joint before laying back down against the sand. You tilted your head to look at him, watching as he turned up the volume on the speaker before following your actions, his head turned to meet your eyes. 

“So I didn’t hear you disagree with me. About getting together eventually?” he smirked. 

You sighed at him. “Maybe because I’d be dumb not to take a chance.”

JJ arched his eyebrows and let out a heavy breath, clearly thrown by your candor. “I don’t know that I’d be a good boyfriend to you. At least not the kind of good you’d deserve.”

You shrugged, “Me neither.” You were smiling as you turned your face back to the sky and closed your eyes. Your fingertips eventually finding their way to each other, twining your fingers with JJ’s as you were wrapped in the starlight and music.

After that night, the two of you had hardly been seen apart for the coming months. The relationship had blossomed quickly. Both of you had eventually moved into John B’s house to get away from your families, as your parents were none too happy that you were dating a Pogue. To your family, JJ was nothing but a throwaway delinquent. 

“Why couldn’t you have stayed together with Kelce? Or go out with one of Sarah’s friends? Why did you have to pick the addict’s klepto kid?”

After that screaming match, you had shown up at John B’s in tears. He took you in without hesitation; since meeting him you two had formed something of a sibling bond. You had only gone back to your house once to grab your belongings with the Pogues escorting you. JJ never went back to his dad’s house. He always kept clothes in his knapsack, and he practically had an entire closet already set up at the chateau. There was no need to keep in touch with your families when you had each other.

Tonight was another one of the usual Pogue parties, them having taken hours to grab all of the kegs, cups, and matches they’d need for the night. Even though your boyfriend had invited you to come, you decided to stay in for the night. After he promised not to stay too late, you settled in with your Switch and some extra cozy blankets. 

After hours of doing side quests and avoiding the Greybeards, you heard your phone ring. Grabbing it, you see the Caller ID. It was the one you hadn’t been able to bring yourself to block yet.

Dad.

Your hands shook as you swiped on the green circle, and you raised the phone to your ear. “Hello?”

“Hi, Y/N.”

You took a deep breath. “Why are you calling me? I thought you didn’t want a daughter who chose a Pogue?”

“I’m calling to tell you that you need to come home. You’re fucking up your entire life for some boy that won’t even care about you once the lust fades. I’m saying this because I love you, Y/N. You’re my daughter, and I want what’s best for you.” You felt a small boil of rage in the pit of your stomach as you listened to his words. His tone was the same one he’d used back when you were living at home. It was the tone of honey-sweet words that dripped with threatening undertones, the one he’d use to get you to do whatever he wanted. What he wanted was to make himself look good to outsiders; Nothing he asked of you was for your happiness. 

“You don’t care about what’s right for me, dad, and you never did. If you did, you would accept me being with JJ, but you don’t. You don’t want me to be with him because you’re so goddamned worried about what the other families will think of you. I can’t believe you had the audacity to say you love me.” You felt hot tears slip from your eyes as you spoke and choked back the sobs trying to escape your throat.

“Listen, bitch. You’re lucky you’re eighteen, otherwise, I would have had you dragged back to the house the moment you left. You are the one who wrecked our family. You ruined my life, too, and I wish I would have left as soon as you were born, Y/N. This is all your fault. The locks are being changed tomorrow, got it? So don’t step a foot on my property, because you will be treated as a trespasser and you will be arrested. If you don’t come back tonight, you won’t have anyone who loves you anymore.” 

“Fine. Don’t fucking call me again, bastard,” you spat as you hung up. You ran a hand through your hair while you let the sobs shake your body, letting all of your previously trapped emotions out. After a good forty-five minutes of nothing but crying, you had finally worn yourself out and slipped into sleep. 

JJ walked into the Chateau as quietly as he could, only to find you asleep on the couch. He grinned as he walked over to where you were lying, moved your Switch and phone so they wouldn’t fall when you got up, and gently woke you. “Hey, baby.”

You groaned as you woke up, looking at the clock that read 3 am. “JJ, I thought you said you weren’t going to stay out late? And why do you smell like a distillery? How fucking much did you drink?” You were angry, and you were standing up now, face to face with your boyfriend. You felt the simmer in your stomach again, left over from earlier. 

You’re not gonna have anyone who loves you.

“I’m sorry, Y/N, I just lost track of time. I tried to text you to tell you I was going to be late, but it wouldn’t send. And I only had one beer, I’m not even buzzed.” He looked at you with a grimace on his face. “What is going on with you?” He could just see the exhaustion rimming your eyes and the tear stains on your cheeks. “Are you okay, love? You look like you do when you’ve been crying.”

You shook your head, still furious from your conversation earlier. “No, I’m not okay. My dad called tonight to tell me I ruined his life and the family, and that no one will love me, including you,” you said bitterly. JJ reached to grab your hand as he opened his mouth to speak. 

You pushed him away. “No. I don’t need your pity, JJ.” You turned on your heel to walk to your bedroom. “I needed you, and you weren’t here. You can’t do this, you fucking owed me that, JJ.” You knew you were being irrational, but you couldn’t help it. You were so hurt that you just wanted to hurt everyone around you.

He caught hold of your arm to turn you around with ease. You crossed your arms and glared daggers at the boy standing in front of you. “Y/N,” JJ sighed, “you’ve gotta meet me halfway here so I can help you. Stop fighting with me when I’m not the one you’re angry with. I know this sucks, and it hurts like hell, but you can’t just push me away. It doesn’t work like that when I’m here to stay. So tell me what’s actually going on.”

JJ watched you as the harsh expression decorating your face softened and tears welled in your eyes. “He said–he said that you would get bored of me. That you would only want me for a little while before the fascination faded,” you croaked. You let him wrap his arms around you, and rested your head against his chest. The hug was so warm and comforting, something you had never received from your family. After a minute of him holding you and murmuring comforting things, he pulled back so he could look you in the eyes.

“Baby, I hope you realize that I’m not going anywhere. I’m with you for the rest of time. And as long as I’m here with you, I’m not going to back down when you try to build those walls, okay? You’re the love of my life that I never thought I would find. It’s not something as little as lust, Y/N,” JJ promised you. “I’d be dumb not to take a chance on you, remember?”

JJ tilted his head to rest your foreheads together. “I’m sorry I was being so horrible to you, J. You’re more than I could have ever asked for, and I love you so incredibly much,” you whispered. JJ pressed a soft kiss to your lips, as he wiped a tear from your cheek with his thumb.

“Apology accepted, baby. No more trying to hurt each other just because we’re hurting, though, okay?” You nodded to him, a small smile taking its place on your lips. “Good. Let’s go get some rest now, huh?”

tags and moots ~ @jjsredhat @jjsbxtch @jjmayybank @pink-meringues @midnightmagicmusingsmain @maybanksbaby @kookkyra @aesthetic-lyss @soemthingsparkly @softstarkey @shawnssongs @drewswannabegirl @starlightstarkey @starksweasleymain @joshy-obx @jjmaybnks @obxjj @hmspxgue @uwubonebabie @jiaraendgame @poguestyle17 @topperthornton @obx-direction-sos

[amerrierworld]

Three Times Over (pt 3)

Ocean’s 8 - fan fiction

Pt 1 | 2

Summary: You, Lou, Debbie. A road trip. 

Characters: Lou x fem!reader x Debbie

Word Count: 2,461

Warnings: the end to a trilogy folks. Super Fluff and NSFW. Hope you enjoy!

“You’re lost, aren’t you?”

“I’m not lost, Ocean. Shut up.”

“Lou. Admit it. You’re fucking lost.”

Lou huffed, looking up from the map to glare at Debbie as you wandered by the road edge, overlooking hills and a far-away shoreline. You kicked some stones from the gravel on the ground, turning your head to bask in the setting sun heat.

The three of you decided to take an impromptu road trip on Lou’s new motor cycle, loaded with money from the last heist. You’d been squished between the blonde and brunette on the bike, holding on for dear life for the whole trip so far. Somewhere along the way, Lou had pulled over -something about watching the view or enjoying the outdoors?- to glare at the map.

She was so lost.

“Look, I might have taken a wrong turn somewhere, fine. But that doesn’t mean we’re lost.”

“Lou, that is literally the definition of lost,” you giggled, hands shoved deep in your pockets. She shot you a look but you blew her a kiss and her eyes softened a bit.

You hurried over to her, wrapping your arms around her waist from behind. “It’s okay we’re lost, baby,” you said. “Cause look at this view we got to catch because of it.”

“We’re not lost,” Lou mumbled defensively. You and Debbie shared a look.

“How about I just look up where we are?” she said, waving her phone in Lou’s face, who groaned. 

“But that ruins the adventure,” she whined, and you hugged her tighter. “Ugh, fine. I’m trying to find the same motel from the last time I went down these roads.”

Within minutes, you figured out where you were and you were back on the road after Lou had analyzed and remembered the directions. Cool summer air whipped past your face and you felt an occasional kiss against the back of your head from Debbie. 

The sky was darkening by the time you arrived at the motel, at the centre of a small rural town with a gas station and a shop or two. A motorcycle trip with three people didn’t leave room for too much luggage but you and Debbie had managed to sufficiently pack small backpacks to bring along. Food you could buy easily, that wasn’t an issue. 

Lou checked the three of you in, greeting the motel owners with a familiar hug and sliding them extra tips for letting the three of you share one room meant for two. They didn’t question it with the sight of more green bills being passed their  way. 

“It’s surprisingly cozy,” you said as you walked in. Dim yellow lights lit up the room with a nice view of the forest behind the motel.

“Oh, the owners owed me a favour from the last time I was here. Helped them out of a scam. I might have conned them in the process but they’re none the wiser,” Lou shrugged as she flopped down on the bed. “The one reason why I always come back here is cause they actually clean their rooms.”

“Hey!” Debbie scolded. “Boots, missy. We all have to share that bed.”

Lou grumbled again and tugged her black boots off her feet, tossing them on the floor before shuffling up further on the bed, falling asleep almost instantly. Debbie grabbed your hand and the two of you wandered the town, buying some food and drinks from the convenience shops and chatting with the locals. It was quiet and peaceful; streetlights brightening the roads and the weather cozy enough for you to wander around without any burdening layers. 

Lastly you bought ice creams from the gas station and a pack of cigarettes for Lou before heading back to the room, where you found said blonde snoring into the pillows. You gently shook her awake to ask if she wanted food and soon the three of you were sitting on the bed in a pile, eating junk food as the rickety ceiling fan spun above you.

“Where are we going after this?” you asked as you popped open a bag of chips.

“It’s a surprise,” Debbie said.

“Ugh, no fair,” you said, puffing your cheeks indignantly. “Why do I always get left out of the planning?”

“We just want to spoil you baby,” Lou said, nuzzling your cheek. “You’re the only one who hasn’t seen the place yet, so we wanted to make it special.”

You pouted at Debbie insistently, who sighed in response. “Fine, you brat. It’s a cottage.”

“What! No way, how on earth do you own a cottage?”

“It’s a family property; well, technically it was Dannie’s, and now it’s mine, since he’s dead,” she said.

“If he’s dead,” Lou chuckled. “But,” she continued, holding you tighter, “it does mean we gotta get up early tomorrow to get there. It’s a few hours away. I don’t want to drive over those bumpy roads in the dark.”

“Mkay,” you agreed. “Thanks for telling me.”

“Of course,” Debbie said, a loving look in her eyes as she watched the two of you. “Now pass me the gummies before Lou eats them all.”

You turned on the tv where the only channel that worked was a crappy crime show. Lou and Debbie kept pointing out rookie mistakes by the criminals and cons of the show and you found yourself falling asleep with your head in Lou’s lap and your legs on top of Debbie’s.

-

The next morning you awoke at the crack of dawn, three sets of limbs tangled with each other as the rickety fan kept spinning. After a meagre and quick breakfast you were back on the bike and speeding along the countryside while the sun came up. 

The cottage was close to the edge of a beautiful forest with dirt roads leading to it. Debbie led you inside while Lou put her bike away.

It was basically just a regular house plopped in the middle of the forest. The Ocean siblings clearly spared no expense for this place. Debbie gave you a quick tour and you marvelled at the beautiful home.

“..and this is the guest room, though we most likely won’t be using that,” Debbie said with a wink. You giggled and pinched her side, leading her to gasp in mock offence and chase you through the hallways.

After digging through the kitchen with Lou to look for preservatives, cans and frozen food that were still good to use and eat, Debbie walked by the two of you, her hair up in a knot and a large towel wrapped around her body. 

“I dunno about you two, but I’m knackered. I’m gonna go take a bath,” she announced. Both you and Lou stopped and couldn’t help but watch as she hurried up the stairs. Just before she disappeared around the corner to the master bathroom she gave a flick of her hair and tugged the towel off with one hand to sling it over her shoulder, leaving her stark naked.

“Care to join me?” she chuckled at the top of the stairs. Neither of you needed to be asked twice.

Clothes lay strewn about the floor leading into the bathroom. The tub, thank God, was enormous. 

“Jesus, it’s like a fucking pool,” you exclaimed, dipping one foot in. Debbie sat at the other end, submerged in the water to her shoulders with a glass of champagne, looking every bit a luxurious home-owner who definitely didn’t do anything illegal for a living.

The warm, floral scented water enveloped your body and all the aches in your body from riding calmed down. You sighed contently and twisted your body to watch Lou undressing.

“Down, girl,” she scolded you after catching your hungry gaze while she unbuttoned her shirt. 

“Hm. Make me,” you grinned back. She nearly lunged at you, barely able to finish undressing as you scurried back before she could grab you. You were met with Debbie’s arms around your middle pulling you flush against her, her lips nibbling at the shell of your ear.

One of her hands trailed down to rub teasingly along the inside of your thighs and you shuddered at the feeling. Lou stepped into the bath opposite you, dipping low into the water and coming closer. Her own hands pulled your ankles apart and she moved in between them, kissing you softly as Debbie began circling your clit. 

“Hm, this is a much better surprise than the cottage itself,” you commented as Lou moved down your neck, hands fondling your breasts and Debbie starting to rub your clit diligently.

“Yeah? You like it here?” she asked with a smirk against your hair. You nodded, limbs trembling as Lou sucked a bruise into your damp skin. “We can stay as long as you want, baby.”

“Well, uh, until the food runs out,” Lou remarked. Your chest began heaving as Debbie worked up your arousal under the water. Lou moved away to give you more space but you grabbed her waist and pulled her closer. She let out a groan of surprise as her own centre came in touch with yours and Debbie’s persistent fingers. You pulled her even closer, legs entwining so that you could feel her against her and you bit and sucked at her jawline as she rubbed herself against the two of you.

“Fuck, that’s hot,” Debbie whispered in your ear as she felt the two of you against her fingers under the water. 

Lou’s fingertips dug into your thighs and she shuddered as her orgasm took over, the sight of your face and Debbie looking just as aroused sending her over the edge. She growled into your shoulder as she came, hips jerking. Debbie kept moving her hand, making Lou tremble with aftershocks from her persistent fingers.

“F-fuck,” you stammered, your breath ragged as Debbie kept pushing you further and further. “W-wait, I wanna.. do something else..”

Debbie halted her movements and Lou watched you patiently. You turned around, pulling Debbie to sit up on the sturdy edge of the tub right by the wall and moving in between her legs. She got the hint and smirked deviously as she opened her legs for you and you wasted no time in licking a long stripe up one leg to her cunt. She tasted salty- no doubt from the bath salts she used in the water, but her skin was warm, wet and glowing, and you dug in hungrily. 

As you worked on sucking on Debbie’s clit and teasing her entrance with your tongue, Lou’s slick body moved up against you and a hand wormed its way back under the water to press against your clit, spiking your arousal tenfold again. There was a yank that lifted Lou’s body slightly off of you and looking up, you saw Debbie focusing on Lou behind you, no doubt with a hand pulling at her hair. 

You moaned as Lou’s fingers twisted and pressed your clit and folds, sending waves of pleasure through Debbie who slumped against the wall, eyes shutting. 

“Curl your fingers inside her, Y/N,” Lou whispered in your ear. “She likes that.”

You made a noise of understanding just as Lou lifted your ass out of the water for a better angle. “Just like this, baby girl, I’ll show you.”

You gasped as Lou pressed two fingers inside you from behind, the other hand holding you up to show you exactly what she meant. Despite your trembling body, you mimicked Lou’s movements on Debbie, fucking her with your fingers. She was right, Debbie was soon writhing and begging to cum. 

Focusing extra hard and pushing your own arousal down for just a little longer, you curled your fingers inside her just as your lips sucked hard on her clit. Debbie’s hips stiffened and she bit down on her own hand as she came. You were looking up at her lovely, flushed face and nearly came undone by the sight alone, but Lou stopped her motions just there, leaving you teetering on the edge.

“Wha- n-no, I was so close,” you whined at the loss. Lou turned you around, gazing at you with a playful look in her eyes. Her hands guided you to sit against the edge of the tub, between Debbie’s legs, and moved you up with ease in the water until you found yourself straddling Lou’s thighs. Your mouth opened wide in shock. 

Debbie’s hands ran through the wet locks of your hair first, cooing at you as you began rocking back and forth, your earlier denial making you extra horny for release. Lou held you tightly as you moved up and down against her thigh, helping you out with motions of both her leg and arms, making sure that you were grinding deep against her.

Hands reached down to pinch your nipples and Debbie licked a hot stripe up your neck from behind. As Lou’s nails dug into your ass and Debbie’s hands gripped your breasts, you came with a desperate cry. 

“Good girl,” Debbie murmured in your ear, kneading your breasts softly as you rocked against Lou, shaking uncontrollably. “God, you’re so perfect. You both are.”

“N-no, you guys are more perfect,” you breathed out, your head falling back against Debbie’s middle. Lou took the opportunity to lean down and suck your aching nipples.

“We can do this all day, Y/N. You’re perfect for us,” she said as she eased your body down from her thigh, letting you submerge a little further into the water.

“I don’t ever wanna leave,” you murmured as Debbie’s hands raked through your hair again.

“Good,” the brunette responded. “Cause we don’t want to either.”

Lou grabbed a bar of soap and began rubbing your sore legs with it. “Good thing about bath sex is that you can get as dirty as you want while still being clean,” she commented. You giggled as Lou ran the bar up your thighs, working it deep in the sore muscles and you almost dozed off again. 

“Alright gals, move over, let me back in, it’s getting cold up here,” Debbie said. You pushed yourself up off of her and she came off the edge to settle into the warm water. You turned around to kiss her on the mouth, arms wrapping tightly around her neck and she returned the kiss eagerly. 

You took the bar of soap from Lou and moved behind Debbie to rub and wash her back, admiring the smooth skin with your hands. As you did, Debbie and Lou shared a heated, passionate kiss that made you beam. Not an ounce of jealously filled you and you hugged Debbie tightly from behind, moving the soap from her back to her abdomen and pressing a soft kiss against her hair. 

A/N: Aaahh! Here u go! We can never have too much smut and fluff with these ladies honestly. Though I’m gonna say this is officially the final instalment of Three Times Over, it doesn’t mean it’s the last piece I’ll write for Debbie x Lou x you ;) You never know what can happen! Love u all

[shewillreadyou]

Becoming: Chapter 3 - Gotta find my way back....to you.

As always. I hope that you enjoy reading as much as I enjoyed writing.

A/N: This is my third part to this TRR love story. Liam and Karis reconnect in Paris. Will she hear him out? Her thoughts are in BOLD 

Get caught up: Chapter 1  Chapter 2

Disclaimers: All characters are property of Pixelberry

Warnings: Sexual content, and fluff. 

Word Count: 1845

Pairings: Liam Rhys x MC (Karis Vasquez)

Song inspiration: Finding my way back to you-Jaheim

Be Kind: Hit the heart button, leave a comment or reblog. It makes a writer so so happy. 

“Hello Karis, I’ve missed you,” his eyes darkened. 

“Liam,” she refused to look at him. 

“Matt this is Liam, Liam, Matt,” she introduces the two. 

“My pleasure Matt. Please, excuse us for a moment. Karis, I have to believe that it’s fate that we are here in Paris, almost 4000 miles away from New York, at the same place at the same time,” he smiled. 

“Perhaps,” she finally met his eyes. 

How is it possible that he looks even better than before?  Her heart skipped a beat and butterflies filled her stomach.  

“I apologize for interrupting your date,” he glared at Matt. 

OMG, he’s jealous, she thought to herself trying to keep a neutral expression. 

“Please tell me that you will have a drink with me so we can talk,” he pleaded. 

She considered it. Then the anonymous texts crossed her mind, “We don’t have anything to talk about. Aren’t you married?” 

Liam looked deeply into her brown eyes and said, “No. I’m not. I’m so sorry that you were given that impression. I owe you an explanation. Please just talk to me.” 

“No, Liam. It’s been over a year. You don’t owe me anything,” she quipped. “Matt let’s go.” She leaves money on the table and they turned to walk away.   

-----

Once she returns to her apartment, she thanked Matt for dinner and gets settled for the night. She takes a shower, makes some tea, and lights the fireplace. The tea kettle whistles and she moves to the stove to pour the hot water into the cup to steep. There is a knock at the door. When she looks through the peephole it’s Liam. She quickly put on some lip gloss, props her breast up so they look appetizing, and unlocks the door, opening the door partially. 

“Liam.” 

His mouth falls agape when he drinks in the sight of her in her plum-colored lacy pajamas.

  He cleared his throat. “You look, beautiful. May I come in?” 

She stepped aside and allowed him to come inside. He smelled just as tasty as she remembered. 

“How did you know–” 

He interrupted her, “I followed you.” 

She giggled, “stalker much?” 

He held a bouquet of red roses behind his back. 

“These are for you, and no. Not a stalker, a man in love. I let you get away once..” 

She smiled and smelled the roses before placing them on the counter. “Thank you, Liam, they are beautiful. You didn’t have to–” 

He interrupted. “Of course I did. I have been calling your phone and sending correspondence to your apartment and it’s all been returned. I was sure that I’d never see you again,” he said as he peeked into the bedroom. 

“Are you looking for something?” she asks confused. 

“Where’s your date?” he asked looking into the dining area. 

“Liam, not that it’s any business of yours but Matt was not a date. He is my neighbor and he is at his place. I haven’t been on a date in years.” He looked relieved. 

“May I offer you a cup of tea or wine? Sorry, it’s all I have. I just moved in today. Have a seat.” 

He just stared at her. 

“No, thank you. So, living in Paris, huh?” 

She catches him staring and her knees get a little weak. 

“Yes. Well, at least for the summer. I’m not one for small talk, you have waited all this time to talk, I’m listening,” she says sharply. 

“Right to the point. Right, so uh, Karis, I don’t know where to start.” 

She cocks her head to the side. “How about you start with telling me who texted me and how they got my number.” 

His eyes sadden. “I am so sorry about that. It was Madeline, one of the suitors vying for my hand.”

“She’s a who? Vying for you what?”

“A suitor. The noble houses in Cordonia each had a representative during the social season. She can be relentless. She must have gotten my phone when I was in the shower. It’s the only time it’s not with me. When I discovered her transgressions she was disqualified from the running. I told myself that she interfered with the one true shot I had at happiness.”

Karis looked confused.

“Listen, I don’t know how to say this and it’s the only way to honestly explain, so I will just come out with it. Remember when I told you that my life is complicated? Well, what that really meant was, I am the crown prince of Cordonia,” he says giving her time to respond. 

“Say what? The crown who of what?” She spits her tea back into her cup as reality washes over her. She slowly lowers the teacup and saucer to the coffee table considering his words. “Liam, that doesn’t change anything. I don’t care about titles.”

“I have to choose a wife by the end of the year. There are several suitors competing for my hand, they are all brilliant beautiful women in their own rights, but there is one thing missing,” he explained. 

“What’s that?” she asked in a quiet voice. 

“They’re not you,” he said in a low husky voice. 

“Wow, Liam, I uh, I don’t know what to say,” she settled next to him on the couch. She absentmindedly crossed her legs. His eyes trained on her curves. 

“Karis, I have wondered what I would say to you if I ever had the chance.” 

She looks at him and raises her eyebrow, “and?” 

He grabs her hands and gazes into her eyes, “I don’t know if you felt it too but, I have never felt a connection with anyone like the one I feel with you. I didn’t believe in love at first sight until I met you. I know we have never even been on a proper date, but Karis. I need you. I always thought that I would be destined to marry for the good of my country with no regard for my feelings. Love would have nothing to do with it, until I met you. You literally stole my heart in those few hours at your apartment. You have arrested my every waking thought since. My heart aches for you. My body longs for you. Give me a chance to prove my love. I’m here in Paris for a few more days. Let me take you on a proper date. Let me compete for your heart.” 

She is completely flabbergasted.  “Liam, I absolutely felt the connection. I was hurt to the tune of a 15-pound weight gain crying over you. Then when I stopped crying I missed you and I couldn’t eat. You have no competition my heart belongs to you alone. I am just now figuring out how to navigate life without you. I threw myself into school took extra hours so that my mind would be occupied and that didn’t even work.” 

He gently wiped the tears from her cheeks as he listened. “Liam, I’m a simple city girl with tons of baggage that I can’t ask you to help me carry.” she whimpers. 

“So don’t. Let me help you unpack it,” he whispers against her lips. His lips lightly brush against hers. Their kiss is light and gentle. It ignited a fire inside of her that she had never felt. 

“I don’t know anything about being a royal,” she whispers. 

“Karis, you are the queen of my heart,” he deepens their kiss, pulling her closer. Their tongues danced as his hands roamed her body. She pushed him back laying on top of him. Karis felt Liam harden underneath her. 

“Liam, I’m ready. Take me.” He broke their kiss leaning back to look into her eyes pensively. 

“Karis, will it be your first time?” he panted. 

“Yes, I want it to be with you. I’m ready this time. I’m sure,” she says as her small hand stroke him through his trousers. 

“As much as I want to, you are so special to me. This night should be special for you. Let me do this the right way. I want to make love to you. Not just fuck on the couch. If you’ll have me, we’ll have the rest of our lives to do that.” 

Her eyes widen. “I guess you have a point,” she said with clear disappointment in her voice. 

“Are you going to stay with me tonight?” she asked so quietly. 

He kisses her again, “Of course,” he whispered. “I can’t mess your hair up if I leave. Take this thing out.” he chuckles. 

She lets her hair down. 

“Much better.” He sits up and guides her head to his lap as she lays across the couch. 

“What is happening right now?” 

He bends over pulling her into a lingering kiss. “It’s just. I missed you. I want to play in your hair. Smell the pears, look into your big brown eyes, study your face, run my hands down your body, you know basically torture myself.” 

They spent the night talking, about Cordonia, about school, about why she is in Paris and her internship, they talked until she dosed off from exhaustion. When the sun rose and peaked through the french windows, she was disappointed to find Liam gone. She moved from the couch to the bed easily falling back into her slumber. 

She woke a short while later to a knock at the door. It was Liam. He was holding a tray with breakfast overflowing. 

“Good morning Angel,” he smiled. 

“Hey you. Where’d you sneak off to?” He smirked motioning for her to get back in bed. 

“Well, I wanted to cook you breakfast. But you didn’t have groceries and I needed to make some arrangements for our day. I didn’t want to wake you.” 

She rolled her eyes taking in all the food on the tray. 

“Your highness cooks?” she smirked. 

“I do what I do, and I do it well.” 

They both situated themselves on the bed. Liam raised a strawberry to her lips. She bit her bottom lip before the sides of her mouth curl into a smile. 

“What do you think you’re doing?” she inquired. 

“Spoiling you. I intend to spoil you as long as you allow it.” he said in a low husky voice. 

Her center throbbed. 

“Well, you better enjoy yourself because tomorrow, I have to study and I start work on Monday. When do you fly out?” 

He looks her directly in the eye. “Karis. I have no intention of leaving here without you. We leave on Monday,” he said with fire in his eyes. 

“I guess you are going to have to be disappointed. I can’t blow this internship off to follow you,” she said matter of factly. 

He smirked. 

“We’ll see. We have a big day planned. We need to eat, then you might need a nap. I plan on keeping you up all night.” he chuckled. “I may or may not be kidding.  You should get dressed. Wear something nice but pack an overnight bag too. After we finish breakfast, I’m going back to my hotel to get ready. I’ll send a car for you when it’s time,” he instructed. 

“You’re kinda cocky aren’t you?” she smiled. 

“I got a big ego.” He winked at her. 

“Umm, who told you and your ego I would spend my whole day with you? What do you have planned anyway?” she smirked seductively. 

“Wouldn’t you like to know…” he said as he fed her another grape.

Tagging: @txemrn @pixie88 @khoicesbyk @blackkingliamstan @mom2000aggie @shannonwrote @hopelessromanticmonie @fanjessfic @dcbbw @lucy-268 @choiceslady @twinkleallnight @blackkingliamstan  @bebepac @mainstreetreader @romereadingshop @romewritingshop @lem-20 @texaskitten30 @maurine07 @queenjilian​ @secretaryunpaid 

**I only tag those who ask for it. Let me know if you want added or removed 💖

[movienotesbyzawmer]

October 21: Friday the 13th Part 3

(previous notes: Friday the 13th Part 2)

We're on a journey, you and I; a journey through the first eight Friday the 13th movies. And now we're at the only one that I actually saw in the theater! I was 11 when this came out, and I asked my dad to take me and a friend to see it in 3D. I remember mostly being excited about all the cool older kids that were in the crowd, plus also not being at all disappointed in the overall experience of cinematic violence.

And now I'm going to see it for the first time since then… and sure enough, I have it in 3D! I wonder if on my deathbed when I'm doing a mental inventory of my lifetime of experiences, if I will realize that I saw Friday the 13th Part 3 twice, both times in 3D. Will I wish I had the 2D experience at least once? Will I wonder if my life might have been different it… okay I'll shut up and watch it now, here goes…

Oh yeah, it does kind of suck to try taking notes while wearing the 3D glasses. Good thing this is just a Friday the 13th movie.

There is a card at the very start saying that the ladies and gentlemen of the audience must wear the glasses even though it won't be 3D right away!

Same director as the second one. He went on to do pretty successful non-horror movies, as I recall. The writer and director of the first movie weren't involved in any of the sequels at all, right?

Oh, the reason the beginning isn't in 3D is because it's a rehash of the end of the last movie. I wonder if they'll make it so that that ending sucks less. That's what I would do.

It's not even edited down, it's just the whole entire end of the last movie…

…oh, except, no, there is a new shot of Jason skulking away! And now the credits have started and there is a rockin' new theme, and I actually remember kind of thinking the rockin' theme was cool.

OMG the 3D here is going to be a huge problem. It is 3D, but it's broken. You know how when you look at a 3D thing without the glasses and there's the double vision thing? It's like I'm seeing the 3D effect AND the double vision. Am I supposed to have 50s-style red/blue glasses? I don’t have those. This is terrible to look at and despite everything I've noted above I am not going to watch it in 3D after all. (I tested another 3D Blu-ray and it looked fine so this is clearly just a shitty Blu-ray product. Oh well.)

The first scene after the credits is playfully doing 3D effects at us which I now cannot experience. Woe. Woe is me.

Woman in curlers is watching the story of the last movie as a news story on TV while worrying about a lurker outside. She's a little worried but she also realizes it's time to take the laundry in from the clotheslines.

Not even sure what the setting is here. The news reporter called the murders from the last one "the worst crime in local history".

The exposition has taught us about this couple who lives on this property that is a rabbit farm and a grocery store where the husband just grazes on the food. We know there's also a lurker! But there's also a snake in a rabbit cage that has mutilated a rabbit, and that snake jumps at the camera in some sort of Three Dimensional Effect! Plus also, lurker. Ch ch ch ch ch ha ha ha ha.

Husband checks a room and is butcher-knifed shockingly! These are not camp counselors. What did they do wrong. The wife gets killed quickly afterward, but with a different weapon, an arrow or something! Variety!

Now we're on some new characters. Fun lovin' young adults! One of them is a silly prankster who is insecure about his appearance. Will that play into the story later? Oh I hope so.

They all just arrived at a friend's house to pick them up for something. But uh oh… the van is on fire, look at the smoke! They are alarmed! But ha ha ha, no, it turns out there are hippies in the back of the van smoking grass ha ha! It’s their friends that had been deliberately a secret from us until this moment.

A merry Cheech/Chong scene ensues where they think the police are on their tail so they all have to swallow the drugs! But the police just pass them and it was all for nothing ha ha.

Unlike the first two movies, this Blu-ray transfer is riddled with marks and flaws.

The next tale in this saga, this veritable Odyssey, involves an old man lying on the road, obstructing their van trip. What is wrong with him! It turns out he's crazy; he is the sequel to the crazy old man from the first two movies. He is holding an eyeball maybe, and he tells them that his handheld eyeball means he has to warn them about doom or whatever. It doesn’t look like an eyeball. I am watching this movie.

The place they are at is some kind of ranch, not even a summer camp I don't think, but Chris, who it seems like might be the main girl, is reacquainting herself with a house on the premises that is adorned with many paintings. Maybe I missed where they explained who they are and what this place is, but it seems like they're just a bunch of young people who are spending a weekend at this ranch place where Chris used to hang out or live.

Insecure Guy played a trick which resulted in the 48th fakeout of the movie so far, he makes it look like he's been hatcheted, but it was just some clownin' with gore makeup. The dialogue is very, very unnatural.

Um, an incident just occurred at the grocery store! A different grocery store from where the opening murders happened. Insecure Guy was there with a friend, and some TUFFS show up to make trouble! They bully our protagonists and make them feel bad! That ends with Insecure Guy running over their motorcycles in a heroic moment for him. His character has a complex arc!

The TUFFS broke the windshield of the car, and all the characters are oddly tolerant of that.

The TUFFS apparently tracked our heroes to the ranch and are there to get some revenge. They gotta even the score! They're going to do that by siphoning gas from that stoner van apparently. But the TUFF that is a girl decides to go exploring. And someone we can't see is watching her! Hey, what kind of movie is this anyway? She is unnaturally amused by the various props on display in the barn she's exploring. She is so pleased with her decision to go exploring.

But she hears a noise! In the barn she has trespassed into! She decides to vigilantly investigate! But a moment later we see that she noticed the rope that hangs from the side of the barn and she swings on it. She is delighted! "This feels good", she actually exclaims while just swinging a little bit on a rope. I'm not sure the writers of this movie have ever met a person.

One of the TUFFS goes after her and finds her pitchforked! Then he gets pitchforked! Then the last remaining TUFF goes in there to investigate, having executed the masterful chess move of stealing gas out of the van, and gets in a fight with an assailant whose face we can't see, but who appears to have clean, pressed slacks. The last TUFF gets clubbed real good.

Insecure Guy tries to tell a pretty girl that he likes her. She responds by saying "no. I’m going to go outside for a little while, and when I come back inside, we'll talk." That's really how that exchange went. Have you ever been in an exchange like that.

We're on Chris now, and she's finally spilling the tea about her past. It turns out she was attacked by a grotesque man with a knife in the woods near her house. Just some mysterious man with a bad face. It ended with her losing consciousness and waking up with just that story which was apparently unbelievable to her parents. Glad we got to the bottom of that. Do you think this is a true story.

The way they're showing the killer makes him less scary than in the other movies. You see it's a male adult that has clean clothes and a casual, confident gait. We can't see his head at all but what we can see is well lit. Sometimes it's a fakeout because it isn't really the killer. But sometimes it is. Like just now the stoners went to investigate a mysterious noise in the barn. They don't find anything, but we see the killer, from the chest down, seeing them. Ch ch ch ch! Ha ha ha ha!

I think we just saw the first appearance of the hockey mask! Insecure Guy played another devious jape upon the pretty girl he was hoping to woo - she's sitting on a dock and he grabs at her ankle from underwater! Wearing a hockey mask. For some reason. He had a mask earlier, but it was a different one. Maybe his identity is "mask guy". Because in a way are not we all Mask Guy.

Jason, I guess, just killed that girl with a spear gun while wearing the hockey mask! It was a 3D gimmick death. Shot her right in the eye. I think when they had their first meeting about making this movie they just said "okay, let's just make a list of some different murder weapons and send it over to Fred, he'll write it up as a screenplay."

One of the guys just got macheted! I think I do remember that from before because he was a handstand walker-arounder and he was walking on his hands when Jason came upon him and swung the machete down between his legs! It didn't actually show it, but you know how he got sliced and ow.

That guy's girlfriend was in the shower when that happened, and when she comes out, she is distracted when she comes upon a very enticing issue of Fangoria magazine. They're in a bubble, the makers of this movie.

But that scene ends with her seeing her dead boyfriend in pieces above her in the rafters, and they are very gory pieces, and then she gets bowie-knifed from under the hammock as she's laying in it! Many deaths. Oh, the many deaths.

We didn't see Insecure Guy get killed; we only assume he's dead because Jason has the hockey mask now.

Oh, I had just typed that when Insecure Guy arrives at the stoner girl's door with a slashed throat. She doesn't believe it's real because he is such a fooler. Plus also maybe because it's not a very good gore effect by any standards. Suddenly her boyfriend is getting killed somewhere else in a manner that has to do with an electrical box, it all happened so fast! Then she herself gets run through with a hot poker! Jason is being very diligent about killing each victim in a different way.

Pretty sure all that's left now is Chris and her boyfriend, who were off somewhere talking about her terrible experience with a grotesque man. They are returning now, and we will soon see them realize that they are in a world of murder! murder! murder!

The boyfriend has a very square jaw. One of the squarest, really.

The most Hitchcock-y shot so far - Chris is looking out the front door and calling out for Square Jaw… she can't see him but we can, around the corner, being muzzled by Jason just out of her view! Then she goes back inside and Jason just squishes his head with his hands! Eyeball pops out and it is 3D. Unless it isn't, which in this case is what it is(n't).

Chris is exploring the campus trying to get some answers, and the body of one of the TUFFS is suddenly dangled in front of her from like a tree branch or something. Then she goes inside and wonders what oh what will become of her, and Square Jaw's body is hurled through the window. Each movie has multiple instances of bodies getting inexplicably thrown through windows and suddenly dangling out of the sky at just the right time for it to be scary.

She comes upon Jason in the house and they tussle! She stabs him in the leg with a knife that she extracted from a body that was conveniently nearby! He pulls it out and throws it at her with Olympic-caliber precision, but she still gets away.

She runs to the van and has the keys and starts it up even! Drives away and everything! But it runs out of gas so she literally just runs back to the ranch. Like, "back to the drawing board" I guess.

I can't stress enough how odd and disappointing it is that Jason just walks and dresses like a normal man, other than the fact that above the neck he is disguised by the mask. He doesn't limp or lurch or hunch, and again, he has clothes that, while plain, are oddly presentable for someone who is some kind of supernatural homicidal forest hermit.

Here now is another thing I remember from seeing this in Actual Nineteen Eighty Two; Jason's hanging from this pulley thing where she thinks she has him killed or immobilized or something, and he be-s alive at her, and even lifts up the mask to show his grotesque face! It's so that she can realize that he's the same guy that attacked her in the woods in the story she told from several years earlier.

He's about to get her… but one of the TUFFS is not dead, and emerges to fight Jason. That ends badly for the TUFF, he gets de-handed and just beaten down badly, but meanwhile Chris axes Jason in the head.

And here is what happens the next morning to blow our minds at the end of this movie. She has gotten in a canoe to get a good night's sleep. All tuckered out, time to hit the canoe, right? Then in the morning she wakes up in the canoe and spots Jason with a big head wound from her axe, he's just looking at her through a window of the house. He's totally going to come get her. But instead of him getting her, a lady emerges from the lake and pulls her in! It's maybe Jason's mother? But she's all ghoulish so we don't really know. Seems like that's the same sweater though. But also, her head is attached to her body, whereas the movie began by very clearly reminding us that Mom's severed head is a cabin somewhere else. But anyway, just like in the first movie, the consequence of that surprise waterborne attack is that she is being cared for by paramedics a little later, all confused.

This is a bad movie! So bad! From this team I expected so much this exact thing.

(next: Friday the 13th - The Final Chapter)

[gosecretscribbles]

Stanuary Week 1: Burn

AN: Takes place in canon when the Stans are young, maybe 9 years old.   TW: Bullying, 2nd degree burns  @stanuary

Stan and Ford were sitting under a tree in a park, trying not to sweat.  The park was right across the street from Aunt Sheila’s house.  Ma had taken them there for “family bonding time,” but let them run out after Stan got bored and started shooting rubber bands at her doll collection.  It was so hot that Ford had left his aviator jacket inside, and the two of them wore shorts instead of their usual pants.  It was so hot their clothes felt like flannel. Ford sorely wished he could jump straight into the ocean and not come out till sunset.

Unfortunately, the park was too far from the beach to walk there, although it was close enough that it still got decent tourist traffic.  The ice cream truck had essentially parked at the curb for the day. Normally Stan would’ve been over there conning tourists out of their frozen confections, but today it was almost too hot to move.  The only reason they had the tree shade to themselves was that Ford intentionally left his hands out of his pockets – most of the kids who came close ran away screaming. It was nice to use his freak powers to his advantage for a change.

In the meantime, Stan had taken to describing the park and all its features as if they were his mortal enemies.  

“There it is, Sixer,” Stan whispered.  “The greatest weapon of destruction this park has ever known.”

Ford rolled his eyes.  “It’s a metal slide, Stanley.”

“It’s a metal slide in winter.  In the summer it’s a torture device invented by someone with a deep and fathomless hatred of children.”

“Stan.”

“And that see saw,” Stan said dramatically, pointing to the plastic alligator.  “Is a kid catapult waiting to happen.  Seriously. I want to know who designed playground equipment to be a torture device.”

“Stanleeeeey, it’s too hot to hate inanimate objects,” Ford groaned.  “What did the park ever do to you.”

“You haven’t seen the things I’ve seen, brother dear.”

Ford huffed and closed his eyes.  It was too hot to exist.  At what temperature did humans spontaneously combust?  

“Bet we could fry an egg on that slide,” Stan mumbled.  “What do you think?  Gotta be hot enough.”

“Maybe.”

“Bet we could.”

“Mmm.”

“C’mon, it’s a science experiment that involves vandalizing public property. Plus we’ll get a snack out of it.”

“You want to eat cooked food?  In this weather?”

The grass beside him rustled.  Ford cracked an eye open to see Stanley stumble to his feet, then stagger dramatically across the grass towards the street toward their aunt’s house.  Ford thought about calling after him, but the heat utterly sapped his energy.  He closed his eyes and pretended not to exist. He heard someone step closer, then give a choked gasp and hurry away.  He clenched his fists and pretended even harder.

A few minutes later he heard more footsteps and this time felt a tap on one foot. He looked up to see Stanley bending over him, grinning, an egg in each hand.

“I got the goods,” he said in a corny Chicago accent.

“Great. Now keep standing there, you’re giving me extra shade.”

“Nu-uh, Mr. Scientist.  You’re gonna come do science things with me.  I’ll let you use fancy words like ‘experiment’ and ‘hypotenuse’ and everything.”

“I think you mean ‘hypothesis,’” Ford grumbled, but he let Stan pull him to his feet and the two of them wandered to the slide.  Ford couldn’t even look directly at the metal; it gleamed too brightly in the sun, and he could actually feel the heat radiate off of it like a physical force.  “Geez, maybe this thing really is hot enough.  That would have to be, what, at least 144 degrees Fahrenheit, so 62.6 degrees Celsius?”

“Heck if I know.  Ready?”

“Yeah, why not?”

Stan handed him an egg.  The two of them tapped the shells against the slide, then cracked it.  The eggs actually hissed quietly as they slid over the metal, and immediately the albumins, mucoproteins, and globulin began to coagulate.  Ford said as much.

“So, the egg white is turning white?” Stan asked.

“That’s what I said.  You said I could use fancy words,” he pointed out.

“I regret so much of my life.”

“Whoa,” said a voice from behind them.  “Check it out, there really are six fingers!”

They whipped around.  A kid slightly older and taller looked down at them, a toddler clutching her leg, staring wide-eyed at Ford’s hands.  He hid them behind his back.

“Whoa, you can count to six!” Stan said, equally wide-eyed.  “That’s so impressive!  You should get a medal!”

The girl scowled.  “Shut up, Ioser, I wasn’t talking to you.  Hey,” she addressed Ford.  “are you cursed or something?  Six is like, a devil number, you know.”

“I’m not cursed.”

“Are you sick or something?”

Stan stepped up, toe to toe with her.  “The only thing sick around here is you.  Get lost.”

“Let’s just go,” Ford mumbled, reaching for Stan’s shoulder.  The toddler saw his hand and gave a shriek.

“Don’t scare her!” the older kid said sharply, shoving Stan aside to scowl at Ford.

Stan shoved her back.  “She’s only scared ‘cuz you’re teaching her stupid superstitions!”

“I told you to shut up!”

“And I told you –”

“Stop, stop!”

Ford moved forward, reaching to pull Stan away from the shoving match. The older kid whirled on him and shoved, hard.  The metal slide was directly behind him.  He fell backwards and braced himself.  

But instead of hot metal, he landed on Stan’s lap with Stan underneath him, screaming as the hot metal slide seared his legs.

“Stanley!”

Ford leaped to his feet and pulled his brother off.  Stan stumbled forward, one hand held out behind him, not touching his thighs.  Ford leaned over to look and sucked in his breath.  Stan somehow hadn’t hit the cooked eggs, but the backs of his thighs were now two angry red burns already beginning to blister.

“Ow,” Stan whimpered.

“Get him ice!” Ford shouted at the kid, but she just squeaked and darted away, the toddler right behind her.  None of the other kids were close and every adult was conveniently looking in the opposite direction.  Ford gritted his teeth.  “Fine, c’mon, we gotta get to Sheila’s house.  She’ll have a freezer and we can cover your burns in egg whites, too.”

“You gonna cook an egg on me now?” Stan asked weakly.

“No, if you combine egg whites with silver sulfadiazine cream and apply it to second-degree burns –”

“Sixer, I’m too injured for science right now.”

“Lean on me, just walk slow.”

Stan obeyed, still bent over like an old man.  The day was still boiling hot, but by the time they were halfway across the grass, Stan’s hand was cold and clammy in Ford’s.  His breathing came in trembly gasps and Ford was sweating from stress as much as heat.  He’d never seen his brother in so much pain before.  Why did this always happen?  It was just like last summer with the pitchforks, only this time his brother got hurt!

“Mom!” Ford shouted as soon as they made the front door.  “Mom!  Aunt Sheila!  MOM! STAN’S HURT!”

Sheila’s house was old and reeked of cats.  The front door opened into the living room, with a hallway on the left that led to the kitchen and staircase.  There came an abrupt clatter of teacups and Ma appeared in the hallway, curls of hair plastered to her face in the heat.  Aunt Sheila appeared behind her, a near-copy of their mom but with blond hair and thinner lips.

“What happened this time?” Aunt Sheila sniffed.  “Throw a rock at a cat?”

“Someone pushed him onto the slide and his legs are blistering, look!”  He pulled Stan gently forward, turning him so they could see his legs.

Ma paled.  “Stan!”

“Am I poached or scrambled?” he asked weakly.

“Sheila, I’ll take some of your ice in a towel,” Ma ordered.  “Stanford, I want ten egg yolks and a baster to spread them with.  We’ll start with the ice, let me know when the eggs are ready.”

“Hey,” Stan protested, when Ford immediately moved for the kitchen.

“I’ll be right back.”

“And you’ll be on the couch,” Ma said, taking Ford’s place in front of Stan. “Go on, couch time.  You’ll lie on your stomach.”

“I’ll be back with the ice,” Sheila promised, then disappeared into the kitchen. Ford followed her.  “Stanford, eggs will be in the refrigerator, top shelf on the left.  Baster is in the drawer under the sink.”

“Thank you.”

They worked quickly, and his aunt hurried to the next room with the ice pack. It really worried Ford that he couldn’t hear his brother’s voice.  Normally he’d be taking full advantage of the special treatment.  And those blisters – he’d never seen a burn that bad.  

He had to crack extra eggs because his hands kept shaking and the shell would puncture the yoke, but eventually he finished the bowl with just a little curl of yellow in it and brought it to the living room with the baster.  Stan was lying on his stomach on the couch, both hands tightly gripping the couch cushions, the ice pack resting on his thighs.

“I have the egg whites,” Ford said, hurrying forward.

Ma nodded.  “Good. Alright, Stan, time to make like a Thanksgiving turkey.”

Stan grunted but stayed still.

Ma motioned Ford over and took the bowl while Sheila removed the ice pack. They were almost worse than before, huge clear bubbles stretched over Stan’s skin.  

“It’s not so bad,” Sheila said, catching sight of his face.  “Egg whites are an old trick and a good one.  Since we’re treating him right away, he shouldn’t even scar.”

Ma dipped the basting brush in the egg whites, then swept it gently over Stan’s left thigh.

Immediately Stan screamed, left leg kicking out.  Ford jumped forward and grabbed his ankle, holding Stan’s leg down as his scream turned into a moan.  Ma quickly brushed him again, moving fast to slather the area before moving to the next leg.  Ford stared at the back of his brother’s head, the way his shoulders bunched with pain. Ford was hot.  Way too hot.  He was flooded with heat.  He saw Stan’s head pressed deep into the cushions to muffle his yells and he felt like his very blood was boiling and his gut roiled with lava.  

He didn’t even notice when he’d switched legs, but Ma rapped his knuckles sharply with the handle of the baster and he let go.

“We’re done,” she was saying, or something like it, and then Ford was next to his brother, squeezing Stan’s hand in both of his.

“You don’t – have to apologize,” Stan gasped into the pillows.

Ford hadn’t even realized he was talking.  “You shouldn’t have been hurt,” he said, and his voice sounded far away. “Don’t scream like that again.”

“Like – I’m being burned?  Gee, okay.”

“It’s not funny.  It’s not funny.”

“Hey.”  Stan turned his head so their eyes could meet.  His face was white and drawn with pain.  Ford realized with a shock that there were tears in his eyes.  “Don’t – guh – don’t cry.  Could – you squeeze harder?  It helps – I don’t know why –”

Ford squeezed until Stan’s fingertips turned purple.

“Better,” Stan said, blinking hard.  “That – metal slide – really has it – out for me.”

Ford choked out a laugh.  “You’re practically mortal enemies.”

A hint of a smile curved Stan’s mouth.  “Yeah. Stan Man – versus – Slide Slayer. That’s – comic book origin, right there. Bet I could – make a comic –”

“Not today you won’t,” Ma said, coming back into the room.  She had a pill in one hand and a glass of water in the other.  “Here.  Nothing like an allergy pill to knock you out cold.”

“Cold would be good,” Stan managed.

Ford helped him tilt his head at an angle so he could drink the water, and Stan choked down the pill.  Ma took the cup back with a sigh.

“Nothing else to do but wait.  Ah, well. Your Pa’ll be by around 5 to pick us up. Ford, you come get me and Sheila if he wakes up or needs a fresh batch of egg whites; we’ll reapply those every time the old layer dries.”

“Yes, Ma,” Ford said.

“You’ll stay?” Stan asked Ford, after she’d left.

“I’ll stay,” Ford promised.

“Those kids,” he said suddenly.  “You’re not – cursed.  Okay?”

“I know I’m not.”

“Good.”  Stan squeezed his eyes shut.  A tear leaked out and ran across the bridge of his nose.  

“Please don’t cry!”

“Hurts.”

“You’ll go to sleep soon,” Ford said, somewhat desperately.  “And!  And! This totally gives you bragging rights. Right now you are absolutely hotter than anyone else in that whole park.  You’re literally Hot Stuff!”

Stan sputtered, a grin tugging his lips.  “Ha.  I was already – hot stuff.  This just – makes me – Hotter Stuff.”

His grip on Ford’s hands was already going slack.  It took a few long minutes, but eventually Stan fell asleep. Ford didn’t let go of Stan’s hand, though.  

“I’m not cursed,” he said quietly.  “I know I’m not, because I have a brother like you.”