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sariahsue · 3 years ago

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The Night of Endless Chances

A fluffy one-shot, 2,500 words, comes with art! (Check for the link at the bottom.) Pre “Gang of Secrets.”

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Of all the stupid things Marinette had said in her life, she was sure that telling Alya that Chat Noir would be her date to the New Year's party had to be one of the worst. Marinette could only hope Adrien would agree to go with her. (Who was she kidding? Of course he would. Her stomach flipped. Of course he would. Right?)

Ladybug somersaulted through the crisp air, the wind pulling at her pigtails as it whistled by her. Patches of bright blue sky reflected off skyscraper windows. A flash of black caught her eye. Chat Noir. Adrien. Exactly who she was looking for. She landed beside him almost without a sound, but he heard her anyway.

"Hey," he said, turning toward her with a smile and a casual lean on his baton. "What's up? I thought I was doing a solo patrol today."

Don't ruin this, Ladybug told herself. Don't say anything dumb! It's just Chat Noir!

"Um." She tucked a stray bit of hair behind her ear. "Yeah, so. I messed up, and I need some help."

"You okay?" He stood up straight, mouth pinched with worry.

"It's nothing bad! Honest. Just…" The sun slipped behind a cloud as she looked for the best way to explain. "I was talking with Alya about that party that she's having this weekend, and she asked who I was going with." The words tumbled out faster and faster. "And it sounded like she was going to try to set me up with someone since I didn't have a date yet, and so I panicked and said I was going with you."

"Oh," Chat Noir said. "There's no way Father would ever let me-"

"No." Ladybug carefully put her hands to her sides so she wouldn't wring them. "Not Adrien you."

It was almost comical, the way his eyes slowly widened. "Oh. Yeah, I could probably sneak out."

She should have felt relieved, as she thanked him for his help, as they made plans and settled on times, as she said goodbye and turned to go home. But she felt like a coward. It had been two weeks since they'd shared their identities, and she hadn't been able to tell him her true feelings. She'd been hoping to ask him to the party. Really ask him. But now, the only reason he was going with her was as a favor. Because she'd panicked.

---

Marinette was still panicking three nights later as she soared through the evening air in Chat Noir's arms and landed in front of Alya's open front door.

He set them down so gently their feet barely crunched on the thin cover of snow.

Alya stood in the doorway, mouth open in shock, warm light spilling out of her house and into the street. "I didn't- Marinette, you really- Fine." She waved them in. "I don't know how you did it, but you did. Come in."

The warmth of the room was a welcome relief from the bite of winter outside, but any comfort she gained from it evaporated when they stepped inside. All eyes found them immediately. All conversations stopped dead, until Nino broke in with, "Dude, do you know everyone in this city? Why didn't you invite Ladybug, too?"

Marinette felt more than heard Chat Noir's laughter as the hum of noise picked up again. "Yeah, princess," he said. "Why didn't you?"

Marinette picked at the buttons on her coat. "I did, but she was busy. She had a party to go to."

It looked like most of their grade was here, certainly almost everyone in their class. Fairy lights lined the doorways, as well as sprigs of green. Marinette's heart fell to her feet. Mistletoe. Why hadn't she thought of that before? Everyone kissed at midnight on New Year's Eve. And Adrien was here. They were just cheek kisses, but Adrien was part of everyone, and he'd be expecting her to-

"Can I help you with your coat?"

Marinette blinked. Chat Noir was holding out a clawed hand to her.

"Oh, uh, sure?"

As he slipped away to hang it up, Alya pounced.

"He's staring at you the way Adrien's been doing when you're not looking."

Marinette stood her ground. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Her best friend smiled knowingly. "Too bad you've only got eyes for someone else, right?"

She tried her hardest not to, but a flush crept up her cheeks.

"Hm. Interesting." Alya's eyes flicked back to Chat Noir, who was cautiously walking over, eyes darting between the two girls.

"What's interesting?" he asked.

"The resolutions everyone's been making," Alya said smoothly. "We've got some magazines on the table over there if you want to make a collage." She waved a hand. "And there's some snacks in the kitchen."

"Resolutions. Let's go," Marinette said, grabbing Chat Noir by the arm and towing him away in the direction Alya had indicated.

The table was covered with magazines, scissors, glue, and leftover scraps of glossy paper. Marinette got to work, ignoring both Alya (who was studying them from across the room) and the boy next to her (who was trying very hard to hide his collage from her because he "wasn't finished yet"). Triangles of paper fluttered to the tabletop as she snipped hopes for her future from the magazines and arranged them just so. A dress for time to design. A microphone because it would be nice to go to a concert without it being interrupted by an Akuma for once. A butterfly for the defeat of Hawk Moth and for her city to be safe.

"Ooooh!"

Marinette and Chat Noir both jumped at the interruption. Alya leaned in between them, peeking over his shoulder.

"Is that a wedding ring I see?" Alya asked, an evil smile evident on her face and in her voice. "Aren't you and Ladybug a little young to get engaged?"

The tips of his human ears were just visible through his hair, and they started turning red. The rest of his blush was covered by his mask. "N-no. It's just a ring. It represents my Miraculous, obviously." He caught Marinette's eye and quickly looked away. "I want to do a good job protecting Paris this year."

Marinette put a palm over her collage to hide the cat she'd tucked into the corner. Pushed her hand down like that would hide it better. Tried not to blush. She was hoping for something more from him, too. So why couldn't she just ask him for it?

Alya was still leaning into him, hoping for a scoop, and he added, "You know, we could catch him this year."

Alya straightened up, distracted. "You think you have a new lead?"

They did not. Marinette didn't listen as Chat Noir speculated on the radius of Akuma attacks and the directions witness reports claimed butterflies came from. Instead, she peeked at his vision board. A bouquet of flowers sat in one corner and a smiling couple in the other. And of course, a ring in the middle, white gold with a single ruby in the center. Maybe not engagement, but a relationship was on his mind.

Marinette excused herself and made her way to the snack table, attacking the food as a means of escape. What was her problem? Just point at the ring and whisper "yes" when no one was looking. Smile at him the next time he flirts. Ask him to the movies. It wasn't that hard.

And yet, she'd somehow messed it up every single time.

---

At three hours to midnight, Alya announced party games. "Pin the hands on the clock" and then a doughnut-eating contest. At least three girls complimented Chat Noir after his turn. What skill! How talented he was!

Marinette wrinkled her nose. They were praising his eating? Were they that desperate for his attention? Did he really need to smile at them so much when they said it? Marinette wandered over to talk to Kim while he wiped powdered sugar off his face, feeling Chat Noir's eyes on her the whole time, wondering if she should have complimented him, too.

At two hours to midnight, Nino started DJing. Six girls mobbed Chat Noir at the beginning of the final song, a slow dance, but he politely turned them down. As soon as they weren't looking, he turned to her, eyebrows raised in question.

This is it. Smile. Say yes. Take his hand. Tell him I'd love to!

Marinette took a deep breath and opened her mouth. Instead of words, she choked. Actually choked because she'd breathed in too quickly and started coughing, and Chat Noir awkwardly asked if she wanted some water and ran off to fetch it for her. Marinette rubbed her hands over her face, wishing she were at home so she could scream into her pillow.

At one hour to midnight, Marinette was glaring at a piece of paper. Alya had called everyone together to her living room and squished them onto the sofas and every spare chair in her house, and handed them questionnaires. What were their best memories from this year? What were their predictions and goals for next year?

Marinette stood with Chat Noir by the window. He tapped the paper with the eraser, trying to think of the perfect answers. Marinette was skeptical, mostly because of the way Alya had glanced over at them and smiled four times in the last minute and a half.

People scribbled furiously, one of Nino's mixes playing gently in the background, until Alya told them their time was up and started asking people to share. One by one, goals were declared and memories laughed over. And then it was Chat Noir's turn.

"And you can't say defeat Hawk Moth," Alya said, smile growing. "We already know that one."

"B-but that's-"

Alya shook her head, and her eyes flicked to Marinette. What was her game?

"If you can't think of anything, I could always ask you a different question." Alya leaned forward. Everyone's eyes were on Chat Noir, and he pushed himself farther into the wall.

"Sure. What else did you want to ask?"

Marinette flicked her eyes between her partner and her best friend. He'd taken the bait. The trap was set. She could feel the noose tightening.

"So, what intentions do you have for our dear Marinette here?"

Several of the kids echoed the question. "Are you two gonna start dating?" "Have you kissed her yet?" "I thought you were with Ladybug. Why are you partying with other girls behind her back?"

Chat Noir looked at Marinette pleadingly, with the same lost expression he would wear when they were fighting an Akuma, and she'd announced that yes, they did need to jump in its mouth again.

She could only shrug and smile in apology. Would this have happened if they'd come as Marinette and Adrien instead of Marinette and Chat Noir? Well, knowing Alya, probably.

He caught her eye again, this time adding a mouthed, "Save me!"

The music changed from hip hop to a slow ballad and gave Marinette an idea for their escape. "Dance with me?" She didn't wait for an answer and dragged him away by a wrist amid whistles and laughter. This had been a mistake, she realized as she led him out. She was only feeding their rumors now. And his face looked about as hot as hers felt.

As soon as she found the cooler air of the kitchen, she released his hand. Laughter still echoed from the other room.

"The music's even quieter in here," he said.

"Oh, I wasn't really planning on dancing."

His ears and shoulders drooped in unison, and Marinette's heart was quick to follow. She'd messed up a perfect opportunity again. Couldn't she have thrown out a flirty, "We don't need music"? Or even a cheesy, "We can dance to the music in our hearts"? He would have loved something silly like that. Instead, he crossed his hands over his chest and gave his practiced smile.

Maybe it wasn't too late. Maybe she could still say something romantic and over-the-top and salvage the moment. There was plenty of room to dance, and no one was watching.

Marinette opened her mouth.

Alya peeked her head through the door. "It's safe to come back in."

"Really?" Chat Noir asked. "Safe even from you?"

"Even from me. Promise!"

Chat Noir followed her back into the noise of the living room without a backward glance at Marinette, alone and unmoving in the middle of the kitchen.

---

Midnight snuck up on her. Probably because she spent 10% of it avoiding Alya's suggestive eyebrow wiggles and 90% worrying about kissing Adrien at midnight and how she should bring it up to him. Start with explaining her feelings? Ask to kiss him? Would he ask her first? What if she accidentally said no and hurt his feelings, and he decided then and there that he didn't like her anymore? What if he left the party because he was so upset and she didn't have a way home?

She spun, searching the room for him to make sure he hadn't left without her… only to find it completely Chat Noir-less. "Where is he?" she asked no one in particular. A couple people looked around them and shrugged, then returned to watching the host on the screen announce one minute left until midnight.

Marinette found him in the front hallway, sitting on the floor among a few dozen discarded shoes and looking up at the squares of glass above the door. Lights from outside lit up the few snowflakes that fluttered past.

"Hey, Chaton. You okay?"

"I know cheek kisses are traditional at midnight, but I don't feel like getting mobbed by everyone just because they want to kiss a celebrity." He got up and dusted himself off, even though it didn't look like he needed it.

Another opportunity, and so close to midnight, and maybe the last one of the night. "Good thing there's at least one person here who doesn't like you because you're a celebrity."

"So you don't like me, huh?" he teased.

"No!" Marinette spluttered. "I mean, wait, yes. I don't like like you. No, uh, let me start over." Panic started to rise in her chest. She wasn't making any sense at all. She'd messed up yet again. To make matters worse, people were cheering in the next room, wishing each other happy New Year, and she was standing in a cold hallway not kissing the love of her life.

He put a hand on her shoulder and used it to pull her a step toward him. "It's fine, Marinette. Really."

Except it wasn't fine. Another perfect chance gone, wasted, squandered because she couldn't seem to do the right thing or find the perfect thing to say to him.

Chat Noir still had his hand on her shoulder as he turned to face the end of the hallway. Cheers and laughter from the party floated toward them. "It looks like we aren't being missed. Do you want to stay out here with me for a little longer?" His gaze flicked to her mouth and then to her eyes and then away with a blush.

Oh.

She'd messed up. Their relationship had been a string of her mistakes and blunders for the past two weeks, but maybe it didn't matter. Maybe she could still make the most of it. "Hey, Adrien?" she whispered.

He turned back to her. "Yeah?"

The kiss was almost perfect. Hands on cheeks and fingers through hair and eyes closed in wonder and breaths mingled together. And if her first try had missed his mouth, then that was okay with both of them.

---

Author's note: I wrote this story for the @newbeginningszine several months ago and now have permission to post it. And it comes with fantastic art by @walcraftart. Check it out!

#ml #ladynoir #marichat #miraculous ladybug #mlb

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kaypeace21 · 4 years ago

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Analyzing the 5 plays in this drama club poster .From the bts pics of stranger things 4.

So... some of ya’ll know I'm going through the st s4 films given to us by the official st twitter + the films reffed in the show itself or mentioned by the Duffers in interviews .

So I decided to look at the plays mentioned here. Because even if we don't see the monologues in the show directly - the Duffers wouldn't name drop anything unless it inspired them in some way. Similar to films name dropped in the show. Tw : for some dark themes .

This is just a quick little analysis I decided to do since we probably won't get any new st content today (3/22). Nothing too deep. Just mentioning things that caught my interest especially cause these plays have a lot of narrative connections to the st s4 movies I've been watching.

Invitation to a march (Authur laurents)

Reminds me of the stancy/jancy love triangle. "A young woman is having second thoughts about doing the right thing and marrying a respectable , rich, kind, young man with good prospects.By way of a prewedding diversion, this woman becomes interested in the passionate but poor and entirely unsuitable son of a local landlord.Basically, the plot concerns the efforts of Norma Brown to choose between a conventional fiance who "puts her to sleep" but is wealthy (like what her own mother did) or go for this new-poor guy. The play is principally interested in how this youthful love triangle affects the three mothers involved (whether the kids like it or not)

12th night (Shakespeare)

- viola (el) wrongly assumes a family member (hopper) is dead. She dresses up as a man named 'cesario'. A girl named Olivia falls for 'cesario' (violet dressed as a man). "Finally, when 'Cesario' and Sebastian (violet's twin brother: assumed to have drowned - Will) appear in the presence of Olivia there is more wonder and confusion at their physical similarity. Taking Sebastian for 'Cesario', Olivia asks him to marry her, and they are secretly married in a church. Cough if Olivia is 'straight' cause she fell for Viola (as a doppleganger dressed like her twin brother).Mike being into el who multiple characters in s1 said looked like a boy and specifically like Will is...suspish and a hint he's not straight lol. just like Olivia they're both into guys . plus, this play just has a butt load of love triangles (ugh i hated that aspect). There was also romantically coded letters (which was in the s4 films) . One character is also thrown into an insane asylum and framed as 'insane'.'Pretending that Malvolio is insane, they lock him up in a dark chamber. Feste visits him to mock his insanity'. We all know the psych hospital will be narratively important- talked about it more here.

The seagull (Anton Chekhov-russian)

similar to how I believed s4 will show m*#even already broken up since the months between s3-4 : act 3 (s3) ends with Nina begging for one last chance to be with Trigorin before he leaves/moves away. They kiss and make plans to meet again in Moscow.And in act 4 there's a timeskip where it shows they've been broken up for a long time between acts- and its established they never actually loved eachother. Do i even have to spell out why this parallels the m*#even ending in s3? There is also a play within the play (this is common in a lot of the st films- they have plays- or a story within a story- which illustrate certain themes or emotions of the characters within said film : blackswan, children of paradise, highschool musical, Rushmore, book of Henry, welcome to marwen, never ending story, romancing the stone, wet hot American summer, etc).The play is Konstantin's latest attempt at creating a dense symbolist work. There is also alot of love triangles in the seagull. TW!: for se#ual ab*se/su*cidal thoughts/ inc*st (here and in other play segments). The seagull motif reminds me a lot of Jonathan's rabbit story.Konstantin romantically into Nina shows up to give her a gull that he has shot. Nina is confused and horrified . Trigorin sees the gull that Konstantin has shot and muses to Nina on how he could use it as a subject for a short story: "The plot for the short story: a young girl lives all her life on the shore of a lake. She loves the lake, like a gull, and she's happy and free, like a gull. But a man arrives by chance, and when he sees her, he destroys her, out of sheer boredom. Like this gull." This immediately reminded me of jon's rabbit story and some of the movies on the s4 list . Like in forrest gump- Jenny (who is poor) was se*ually ab*sed as a very young girl by her father. As a child she runs away into a field-away from her alcoholic father yelling at her -there she prays that she can "be a bird so I can fly far far away" .

Jenny as an adult struggles with this unresolved trauma- being with ab*sive partners, doing dr*gs, and having su*cidal thoughts . She as an adult when contemplating su*icide, jokes 'you think i can fly like a bird ?' while looking down at a bridge.God-i'm worried about jonathan (Jenny was also a musician sort of like jon). In another s4 movie example ' mystic river ' :(in the 80s) a preteen baseball playing boy is r*ped by men in the woods. He later says he wishes he could become an undead monster to not feel the pain of that experience - cause quote " if I'm not human anymore maybe the pain will stop" (Will) . slightly off topic but he also has another personality, imagines a alternate word that dissappears when he turns his head. And as a less direct animal parallel to the play - the boy from the film also imagined his perpetrators as monsters and wolves to cope.In 'getout' the photographer character sees a dead deer in the woods and it represents a parent/his own childhood tra*ma relating to his past. similarly in 'prince of tides' the 2 siblings as kids were ra*ed by men. The older brother remembered it and the younger sibling developed DID (so didn't remember but she would draw wolves- as the perpetrators/villains in her picture stories she created . In the film they also had an ab*sive dad and were very poor. She also tried k*ling herself multiple times-but started to get better after remembering the source of her pain and trauma. There is also the theme of multiple attempted su*cides in the play- and the play ends with yet another attempt- and the audience is left unaware of the artist's fate at the end of the play.

The tempest (Shakespeare)

Prospereo - (the perceived antagonist) is a wizard with monstrous looks, storm powers , and ability to create monster-dogs

He wants revenge on a man who tried ra*ing his family member & revenge on his other family member who wronged him years ago. I mean... pretty much my did theory.But in the end.Prospero decides to show his enemies the mercy that they did not show him twelve years earlier. He tells Ariel to bring the men to him, he will restore their sanity and then renounce magic forever.Prospero breaks the spell that the men are under .

Diary of a scoundrel (Alexander Ostrovsky-Russian)

- I suppose this could loosely relate to Jonathan? Glumov, is a young man from an impoverished family lacking status seeking entrance into society's pampered class. A 19th-century Russian scoundrel must scheme his way out of his meager life in a small apartment -whatever it takes.He has a quick mind and some talent for seeing through the hypocrisies of people around him ( Jonathan does make a lot of social critiques about society). That gives him some advantages. A tale of one man's mission to finagle his way into upper-class society and find a cushy job. Set in 1874, this social comedy follows Glumov, a Russian youth who begins his ambitious ascent to social esteem. He progresses by wit, guile and rhetoric. Pitting one stupid person against another, he soon gains his ends. To reach these goals, Glumov will lie, flatter, and cater to the vanities of the wealthy. Unable to contain his disgust with his victims, Glumov decides to relieve his unvoiced satirical comments by recording his schemes in a diary. But he is tripped up by his uncle's wife, to whom he has made passionate love on his way to success. At the end of the play, his diary is stolen and his duplicity exposed, but he can nevertheless suceeds. The author is much more critical about the high society itself than about the main character, so the play keeps attracting generations of directors by opening possibilities for political criticism while also avoiding naming names of the current rulers.The play's aim was to overthrow bourgeois tradition and establish a class-conscious art called eccentricism giving a deliberately comic portrayal of reality.

I suppose I notice some possible commonalities- besides s3 critiquing the wealthy/capitalism in comedic ways . jonathan since s1 has worried about his family's finances / had some resentment toward the rich . In some of the s4 movies ‘orphan’ & ‘ girl interrupted’ someone reads their diary out loud to get at them (in girl interrupted the winona character’s diary even had critiques of her new friends). Alot of movies also have someone (usually a teen/young adult) making a documentary about their life -which could narratively replace said diary? A few movies have a poor guy adjusting to snobby rich social circles (or being poor and then getting money)- titanic, kingsmen, karate kid, the craft , godfather, wardogs,into the spiderverse,flashdance, and many others . And movies like wardogs has a poor-young-character do shady things to finacially support his family . There’s also that whole uncle’s wife thing- which makes me uncomfortable for obvious reasons (but I’m just thinking of Lonnie’s creepy gf who was into him). A few movies had the guy’s step mom innappropriately hit on him- orange county & you got mail. And him trying to avoid her advances. Or...not to mention ... it may be a problematic coincidence /trope. But in enter the void -the guy who needs to finacially support his sibling/ does dr*gs -hooks up with his dr*g dealing friend’s married mom (who would give him money). Or in gilbert grape- the poor teen-who has to finacially support his siblings/single mom-has his endgame relationship be a girl his own age. But before that he h*oked up with a married woman -who would give him money. Don’s plum -young film guy-propositioned by older female film director (for dream job). Not even mentioning the other films that have the guy hooking up with toxic older women (like ‘the graduate’). Or analyze this-where the therapist accuses him of having an Oedipus complex (not touching that one... but the guy in ‘enter the void’ a 100% had one). It’s possible those movies were just- inspo for s3? A coincidence? Or s3 was foreshadowing for this in s4- but unlike s3 it will accurately be played as wrong and a sign of Jonathan recreating past tra*ma caused by Lonnie (cough like the photos) /being desperate for money. And not played ‘comedically’ like how it mostly was in s3. But shown as self destructive (for Jon) and immoral on the Woman’s end. Like... Billy and Jon are character foils. Both are older siblings into rock music, with ab*sive dads who shoved them into walls. Both lose it (and beat steve to a pulp when Steve accidentally triggers their daddy issues). In s3 it’s established womanizer Billy has mommy issues, than he tries ho*king up with someone his mom’s age, and the characters ref ‘back to the future ‘ and Steve incorrectly says it’s about “alex p keaton trying to bang his mom.” This could illustrate his subconscious issues with parental figures/adults cause of Lonnie’s possible past se*ual ab*se . One film the friend even says to the guy “you don’t have friends!” guy b: i have friends! him: no you have acquaintances! ADMIT IT! YOU’RE AFRAID OF MEN!I mean-Jonathan liked Nancy- but he initially hooked up with her cause he wanted to prove he didn’t have ‘trust issues’ from his dad. Also it’s prob a bit of a reach (and maybe a coincidence)- but the fact Murray in the same breath compares Steve (Nancy’s then bf) and Lonnie ... uh... if you think too long about it ... it’s very sinister . Especially because in s3: muray tells Joyce that despite her wanting to be with a nice guy, she’s curious about “the brute” Hopper despite him reminding her of a past “bad relationship”(aka Lonnie). Like- yeah connect some dots. Quite a few films (other than forrest gump) also have the character who (as a kid) was r*ped by their dad/parent- begin to do dr*gs/be pr*miscuous as adults since they never learned to properly cope with their trauma (’girl with the dragon tattoo’, ‘black swan’, and ‘magnolia’). Unfortunately the whole relative doing such things to kid-relatives is in at least 30+ movies.

Personally, i would be MUCH happier if Jon had a age appropriate romance- and had not a single creepy adult near him. A few movies actually imply Lonnie gets yet another ‘new model’ replacing his gf in her 20s with a new gf- who is ‘barely l*gal” and just turned 18. so there’s that possibility as well- that she’s jonathan’s age.I just want Jonathan-happy &safe. GOD. IS THAT TOO MUCH TO ASK?

#byler #byeler #will byers #mike wheeler #Jonathan byers #nancy wheeler #joyce byers #jim hopper #murray bauman #stranger things #el hopper #s4 theory #stranger things theory

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downwiththemutantnjnjaturtles · 4 years ago

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We Met Within This Screen [chapt. 7]

[Donnie x reader]

chapter 6 here

"Nothing gets past me, especially not you and your nervous habits, Donatello," Splinter's voice bounced around Donnie's head.

The brothers all looked at each other incredulously, Donnie's anxiousness replaced by complete bafflement. Everyone was wondering the same thing: How did he know?

"You wonder how I knew," Splinter said pointedly, "as if you four are any good at keeping a secret."

They waited for him to go on, but instead there was another uncomfortable pause, Splinter assumedly expecting them to say something. It was Mikey who finally broke the silence. "Are you gonna, like...tell us what we did wrong? How you knew? So next you can't—"

Splinter scoffed and brought his staff down on the youngest's foot. Mikey yelped, bouncing away on one leg. "Teach you how to lie? I have taught you many skills, but one that will always elude you is how to keep something from me. Parents have a sixth sense, you know." He turned to Donnie, regarding the rest of them with a dismissive wave of his hand, "You three, to your rooms. Come to the dojo with me, Donatello."

The three were quick to scatter, Mikey whining into Raph's ear about being sent to their rooms so early, and Raph huffing that he'd been dragged in too.

Swallowing, Donnie followed behind him a few paces, not sure what to expect but nervous all the same. He was lead in and instructed to sit down on the floor, Splinter settling down in front of him. Donnie's fingers brushed along the ridges of the knuckles of his other hand again and again as he tried to find something to occupy them with.

Resting his palms in his hands, Splinter began to talk, voice less harsh than Donnie had anticipated. "I know that we lead a very isolated life, my son. But you must keep your priorities in perspective. You four need each other, and betraying one another's trust does not help that case."

"I'm sorry, Master Splinter," Donnie apologized and hung his head.

"Perhaps you should apologize to your brothers, just as they should to you."

I did put them on the spot, especially Leo, thought Donnie, considering now that he had put him and Raph in a weird position. They had to choose between ratting on him to Splinter and keeping it under wraps for the sake of not stirring up the pot needlessly. As much as Leo was a stickler for the rules, he didn't want to create dissension between him and Donnie. So, they chose the latter option, and now all four were in trouble with their father.

"Okay. I guess...but, Master Splinter, how did you know?"

"About your secret antics?"

Donnie let out a humorless chortle, feeling a twinge of embarrassment that he had actually thought at some point, he was getting away with anything. "Yeah, it...it wasn't very much of a secret."

Stroking his chin, Splinter plainly said, "It was only a suspicion, until you confirmed it."

That night a few weeks ago when Splinter came to him in his lab. The way he squeaked when he was confronted just prior to them going to talk alone. Why didn't I think of that? It was a classic trick, one their father had deployed quite a few times on them. He'd been baited into giving himself away. None of them could tell when he was bluffing or if he actually knew. Save for Leo, who managed only twice in their time to make heads or tails of it.

"I really walked right into that one," Donnie whimpered under his breath, palms pressing down on his knees.

"You did. But," his tone turned more serious, looking him dead in the eye, "you must fix your mistakes, son."

"How?" asked Donnie softly, searching for his father's guidance, but it would find no purchase. He was hard pressed to find a solution immediately.

Splinter shut his eyes and thought. It was a tricky situation, indeed. He gathered that if anything, this was an excellent lesson for Donnie, as well as the others. Under his own supervision, of course; there wasn't room for any more blundering.

Standing up, he placed his staff under his hand. "I trust that you will find a way. You have a brilliant mind, Donatello. Use it well," he told him, and went to leave the training room.

Donnie was still sat on the floor contemplating Splinter's words, honored yet uneasy at the same time that he was being entrusted to fix things. How, he didn't know. Truly. He was at war with himself trying to balance his logic with his emotions, trying to make the two meet gracefully, but it felt impossible. Whichever road he chose, it was a betrayal to the other. One left behind while the other took the wheel. And thoughtlessly, he blurted out, "What if your heart is telling you something completely different, Sensei? What if everything feels contradictory, and—and like there's no right answer, even though you do have this mind, you just can't seem to…"

Donnie's voice tapered. Slightly surprised, Splinter stopped in his tracks, brows high as he looked back at him, who was so clearly riddled with a deeper kind of conflict. Critically discouraged, but still the sliver of will in those eyes of his. His heart went out to him.

Splinter had known that Donnie was interacting with a human. What he hadn't known was that he was in love with the human.

There was a moment of understanding, and Splinter realized that Donnie could not do this on his own. It reminded him of the times the turtles had all been children, the way Donnie looked to him for wisdom as he grappled with himself. Sighing, Splinter sat back down, this time close to him. Donnie was despondent, reverting to staring at the edge of the mat he sat on. "I know your struggles, my son. It seems like there's a sacrifice no matter what you choose, does it not?"

"I don't want to let you guys down. But, I...you know, I'm sorry, Master Splinter, but you don't understand."

He didn't want to say bluntly that he wanted to think of himself and his needs, unlike usual. He knew Splinter would probably not approve of that. None of them had much of a chance to make a selfish decision, aside from everyday things such tucking into the pizza before it even made it back to the Lair. So far, the number of times he could recall making a consequential choice for the sole purpose of indulging himself, was an astounding zero.

"What makes you think I would not understand?" questioned Splinter, and Donnie regretted that he'd said it. He didn't miss how Donnie looked to be becoming mildly sour (among other things), though not at him specifically.

It was then Donnie clammed up, shut down the conversation, he was not going to say it. "It" being what he assumed Splinter wasn't privy to, that he had undoubtedly fallen hard for his friend. But knowing his father, he could totally have had a clue. Splinter didn't always need the details to make an assessment when it came to his sons, whom he knew all too well.

Letting out a crestfallen huff, Donnie rested his chin on his knee, arm obstructing the better half of his face. "It doesn't matter," he mumbled.

Splinter stayed quiet. He didn't want to drive Donnie off—not when he was in such a turmoil. The atmosphere changed to a cold one. Donnie didn't acknowledge him until he put his hand on his forearm, giving it a gentle squeeze and saying, "I will tell you again: I trust that you will figure it out."

What if I make the wrong decision?

"For all of our sakes, I hope you're right, Sensei," Donnie responded. Splinter smiled and got up, prepared to leave the matter at that until any further updates. Until the phone in Donnie's back pocket began to vibrate out of the blue. He wanted to answer, but what, at that point? What should he say?

A minute went by of more persistent vibrating, and Splinter's ear twitched, certain he knew who it was. He was disappointed with the carelessness that had brought them to that moment, but what was done was done. None knew if the girl had any suspicions. "Are you going to answer it?" he asked, sort of prompting him to pick the phone up.

"May I?" Donnie thought he might have sounded a little eager.

Splinter let out a calm hum and motioned for him to do it. Donnie lifted his finger to press accept, but Splinter interrupted firmly, "Speaker, Donatello."

Eyes flitting to Splinter, he accepted the call and reluctantly turned on the speaker.

"Bo, what was all of that earlier, dude? You had me worried sick!" spoke [y/n], more concerned than angry (which Donnie was somewhat relieved about), but he sunk down sheepishly upon seeing the look on his father's face. He gave Donnie a questionable glance at the word "Bo", as he wasn't aware of the details. Donnie wasn't about to correct her right now.

"I–...hey, [y/n]," he said, forcing himself to turn to the side so he wouldn't have to look at Splinter. The eyes on him made him feel put off to the point he couldn't focus on her voice, but the fact that Splinter was right there, listening in, and both were fixing to find out just what kind of mess they had on their hands. "Believe me when I tell you, you don't want to get caught up in this," he told her, "I can't—"

"Listen," she started, exasperated, "I've heard it before. 'I can't tell you this', and 'I can't tell you that'," she went on, "Be honest with me, Bo; is it that you can't or you just won't?"

Splinter's thoughts were undetermined. Donnie couldn't read anything from his stoic expression.

"It's not that I won't," he rebutted, pitch going up involuntarily, "Why won't you listen to me when I say I can't?"

"Because there's something going on, with you, and I know my eyes weren't just playing tricks on me. I saw something crazy—I heard it, too, when I called you the other day!"

I am so dead. Donnie's stomach did a flip. He couldn't face his father, but behind him, Splinter placed his hand on his face, covering his eyes. He shot Donnie an intimidating glance, and Donnie waved his hands nervously, listening to her go on as he backed up. Pivoting around from the jabs sent to his side by Splinter's staff, he jumped away with his comically long stride, trying to avoid the onslaught while juggling the phone. He muffled a grunf of pain when the cane managed to whack his head.

"Hold on!" he said, and Splinter stopped and narrowed his eyes, the voice on the other end of the phone also going silent. Donnie couldn't regain his composure while being chased around the dojo, so he finally was able to sputter out, "W-what did you see?"

"I was on the balcony, 'Don'. I heard your voice on the phone and saying the same thing from the roof, and saw two giant...turtles! With weapons, fighting what looked like ninjas?! What even is this?" she yelled.

She'd put two and two together. There was no fixing.

Only acceptance.

Blinking, Donnie nearly dropped the phone. Splinter shut his eyes, slowly shook his head, and turned around. The sound of his cane tapping the floor as he walked was the only thing he could hear after he tuned out the speaker.

He was now alone in the dojo, under the light that streamed through the grate above him, standing in the hush.

He turned the speaker off. She, on the other end, was quiet, too, in disbelief. And probably rightfully feeling betrayed, in a way, Donnie thought. The friend she'd come to care for so much turned out to be someone she couldn't have even imagined.

Licking his lips, he put on the most level tone he could and said in a struggle, "You can't tell anyone. I-if you say something, I'll... we'll…"

I could never threaten you, [y/n].

"You'll what?" she asked, voice low.

Then, all the could hear was her breathing. The dojo was completely quiet, the room was large, and there he was, in the middle. Donnie liked smaller spaces. Darker spaces, like his lab. He felt exposed in that moment, even when no one could see him.

"Be in danger," he said in earnest.

There was some rustling, then the sound of wind on her end. He barely heard a sliding door shut.

"Come here," she told him firmly.

His eyes went wide. "What?" he questioned, stupefied.

She sighed, "No more lying, Bo—Don—I don't know. If what we have really matters to you…"

A mix of emotions swirled in him as he waited for her words. She hesitated.

"I'll come," he whispered, finishing her sentence.

"You'll come."

Blowing a breath out from between his lips, and nodded. Sorry, Master Splinter.

He snuck through the Lair to the exit of the sewers.

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silverwhittlingknife · 2 years ago

Note

Yeah!!! Yeah. I like how messy it is.

I think one of the big fun tensions of Tim's story is that in a lot of his Robin career he kinda secretly wants to be part of the Wayne family - it's textual in "To the father I never knew," and subtext in other comics - and often Bruce and Dick and Alfred kinda wish he was part of their family.

But he's not! He can't be! Because Tim has a dad, and he's loyal to his dad, and his dad would be terribly hurt. His dad is jealous of Bruce, and jealous of Tim's attachment to Bruce, and rightly so - I mean, this isn't a very mature response, but this isn't all in Jack's head. Tell him I don't love Bruce more than him, Tim says in Contagion, the thing that he wants Jack to be reassured about if he dies, but of course he doesn't actually want Jack to be there when he's sick. When Jack finds out about Robin he accuses Bruce of stealing his son.

And I mean. Jack's wrong-ish, but also... he's not, entirely. Because Tim is close to Bruce and family in a way he's not to his own dad. Because Bruce and Dick and Alfred have monopolized Tim's life for the past couple years. And that's not their fault, because it's not like they made Tim do it! Tim chose it! Tim sought them out; they didn't seek him out! But it isn't untrue that Tim's secret life is a huge wedge between him and his dad, and it isn't untrue that they've functioned as a kind of surrogate family, and it isn't untrue that the story of Tim's Robin career is often a story of Tim choosing Bruce and Dick over his dad. Sometimes very directly - in No Man's Land, Tim sneaks into Gotham with Dick and because of Bruce, leaving Jack behind. Time and truths.

And then Jack dies.

And Tim's... so mixed-up about it? He's miserable. He's grieving. He's mad at Bruce about Steph. He's overwhelmingly touched by the adoption offer. He's too much of a coward to simply say no. He's scared Dick wouldn't like it if he said yes. He's not even sure if he wants to say yes or not. He does not feel comfortable talking about any of this with Bruce. He comes up with a ridiculous lie to avoid it. Bruce figures out the ridiculous lie and is impressed with it and maybe secretly a little relieved himself. Neither of them know "what's best" for Tim. Tim moves to Blüdhaven.

Bruce's life falls apart in new ways and the city that Dick and Tim were living in blows up and now Bruce is thinking maybe he'd like them a bit closer than they've been. He decides to invite both boys on a trip "as a family." They both say yes. Bruce ends up ditching them for a full month to meditate in a cave and do a ritual that Tim will later wonder if it drove him mad, because Bruce is Batman and of course this is what he does.

Bruce and Tim go back to Gotham and Tim moves into the converted stables, not the house. Tim keeping his distance? Tim anxious about presuming? Probably both; it's complicated. Bruce lets him - ditto. Then Bruce decides maybe he should offer adoption again, and have Tim move into the Manor. You get the strong impression he's gotten some coaching from Dick and Alfred and he's still stumbling on his words. But it doesn't matter! He manages to spit it out! And then he's still not sure if it's a good idea, but maybe it is, because Tim tackle-hugs him... and then starts crying.

It's all right, Bruce says, awkwardly trying to comfort him. They're both still in costume: Batman and Robin, not Bruce and Tim. It's still meaningful. It's still tragic. It's a name for something they've always avoided naming. It's only happening because Tim's parents were murdered. Your parents are dead. You have no one. It's always gonna be unfair.

(Batman 654)

why do you think tim agreed to be adopted if he doesn’t really see bruce as his father? is there anything parental happening in there??

He does! And he doesn't! And it is and isn't. It's a wonderfully messy thing!

To answer the first question first, there are a lot of reasons for Tim to be adopted no matter what. On the milder side, it's logistically convenient to have a guardian, and specifically to have one that is aware of and endorses his vigilantism.

But more than that, in the time after his dad died, Tim was in a very dark place. One of the things Tim does when in a dark place is self-isolate. He made up this whole fake uncle thing to stop Bruce from adopting him after the first offer, so that he could live completely on his own without being beholden to anyone. And that was bad for him! Self-isolating is bad for Tim!

So in that sense, accepting Bruce's second offer of adoption is a huge symbol that Tim is doing better. He (and Bruce and Dick) had the whole One Year Later cruise around the world to heal and improve, and Tim is less locked in grief now and willing to connect. And he shows this by accepting an offer of adoption from someone who loves him and choosing to live in a house with people he loves too. Hooray!

Because, no matter what, he does care about Bruce. And he cares about Alfred, who he independently had a close relationship with, and about Dick, who'd been calling Tim his little brother for years. (Dick and Alfred being the other members of the family at this point.)

So I don't think it really has to be father/son at all between Bruce and Tim for Tim to agree to be adopted, nor for it to be a good thing.

That said, I also don't think it's entirely not parental. I was being a little silly and flippant in that post, because I do think Bruce and Tim are weird about their vaguely defined relationship.

It is an absolutely key part of that relationship that, for ~4 years, Bruce and Tim were Batman and Robin, and worked closely together, and cared about each other, and were not father and son at all. Because Tim still had his own dad! Of course Bruce wasn't his dad! That would be just weird.

That doesn't mean there's nothing paternal to their relationship in the Robin years. Adult mentor/kid protege, sure there are absolutely angles here.

And it also doesn't mean they never became father and son after the adoption. A lot of this is based on vibes and personal interpretation! There's this story shortly after Tim's adoption where he puts a lot of effort into getting Bruce a perfect father's day gift. They do refer to each other as father/son periodically when talking to others.

My personal read on it is that Tim was very consciously trying to Be A Proper Family after the adoption, and adjust super fast. And I do think that by the point Bruce "dies" (or maybe at that point?), Tim sees him as more of a father.

(Also I think probably Tim is Bruce's son much more than Bruce is Tim's dad. Or at least sooner. Again, vibes.)

But I also don't think they necessarily need to be defined so sharply. They're never going to be like Jason and Bruce, who were father and son right away, or even Dick and Bruce, who were family and ward/guardian right away. They are always going to have known each other as non-family first. Which doesn't mean they aren't going to care about each other.

But I think it should mean they get to be little weirdos about how they do define their relationship when forced to.

#many good thoughts!! also many good tags!!#tim drake #jack drake #bruce wayne

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oscar-lettjohanssonloveme · 4 years ago

Text

Stop Running (Cordelia x Wilhemina x fem!reader x Ally)

idk what we got here, but its reeeeeeally long and made with google translate..so excuse me

summary: you have to meet the son of your girlfriends and he reminds you of ur dead brother and all the memories of ur childhood come back

warnings: suicide, depression, scars, child abuse..

Being in a relationship with 3 women at the same time was probably something like the jackpot. Before, you didn't even think you'd get one and now you had 3.

You still remembered the night these three women came into the club where you worked as a waitress. In the beginning it was just little things like saying 'please' and 'thank you' when you brought them something. Most of the people who came to this club got drunk too quickly to be polite.

Then they started asking you questions.

“What's your name?”

“How is it possible that a pretty girl like you works in a club like this?” (a question that made you blush)

“How can we get your attention?”

And at one point you gave a shit about your work and sat with them for the rest of the night. And at dawn they took you to their bed with them. You were the only sober person that evening, but the next morning none of the 3 were surprised or angry about your presence.

It had developed into a frequency, every Friday night they'd come to the club only to leave with you at the end of the night. And at some point it became more.

The trio had piqued your interest since the first night, which was probably because there were three of them and later you wanted to know everything about them. You found out that Ally was widowed with a son, that Wilhemina had her cane with scoliosis and that she had a secret fetish for the Victorian era, and that Cordelia was the headmistress of a witch's school, they all lived in.

And at some point you had to find out that you were in love with all three at once.

You loved Mina's severity and how proud she walked despite her scoliosis. No one had ever walked so gracefully with a cane, you were sure of that.

You loved seeing how gentle and balanced Delia was with everyone.

And you loved Ally when she explained the world to you and was the smartest person in the room.

The problem was that you were too scared. These women had known each other for a number of years and you had only known them for a few weeks. How many times have you wondered if you were just a distraction for her bedroom?

You were ashamed of this question and started avoiding contact with them. But when they confronted you, you finally revealed your feelings to them.

They weren't angry, on the contrary, they started laughing.

———————————

"We thought you knew that we love you too and were now afraid that you would avoid us because of that .." said Delia.

"Oh .." you mumbled confused.

"We're sorry we never made it official .." Ally said, putting a hand on your knee. "We thought it was obvious .."

-----------------------

And now you've finally been living with them for a week. You almost lived with them anyway. You knew the big building of the academy almost by heart, Delia's girls knew and liked you, and most of the time you spent in the trio's rooms instead of your own little apartment.

There was a little problem though: Oz, Ally's son.

Ally had decided it would be better if you didn't meet him until you officially lived with them. It wasn't up to you, but the circumstances were very complicated. If one mother died and you had two new ones, you didn't need a third.

The night you found out about Oz's existence, Ally had also told you the story of the Cult and how she killed Ivy.

—

"I want there to be no secrets between us. And I'm not proud of what I did, but it's part of me now .." she had said.

"We have all done things that we are not proud of .." was your reply.

—

The three of them tried to prepare Oz for you as best they could, which wasn't difficult because Oz wasn't a complicated kid. And you had been confident, because actually you got on well with children.

"Oz is in his room .." Ally said as she walked into your living room. She grabbed your hands to pull you up from the sofa before kissing you on the cheek.

Both of you were at home alone at the moment, as Delia and Mina were working afterwards.

You gave her a warm smile and together you went to the boy's room. Ally knocked on the door briefly before opening it. Her hand never left yours. A blond boy was sitting on the bed reading a comic. "Oz, this is Y / N .. I told you about her .." Ally said. The boy, Oz, raised his head and looked straight at you. Your breath caught at the sight of him.

He looks like Leo, was your first thought.

This little boy looked just like your little brother had looked that age. You got dizzy. All that you repressed in the last few years suddenly all shot back into your memory. Your abusive father, who hobbled on a stick because of his broken leg and didn't fail to punish Leo or you for anything senseless. Your alcoholic mother who drowned her frustration in alcohol and was never there when you needed her. And Leo, your Leo that you loved so much. How many times did you want to run away and stay because of him? Then this picture shot in your head, you were 17 at the time and he was 15. One day you came home and his dead body had tumbled from the ceiling by his belt. He couldn't take it anymore and you hated yourself so much that you didn't notice.

"Honey?" Ally's voice brought you back to the present. You looked away from Oz, who was now looking at you in confusion, and fixed your gaze on Ally. "I thought it would be better if I gave you some time alone .." she whispered.

"Sure ..", you nodded slowly.

She smiled and squeezed your hand. "Good .." was the last thing she said before leaving the room.

You stood lost in the boy's room, who by now was fixated on his comic again, and didn't know what to do. You wanted to run after Ally, bury you in her arms and start crying. But you knew that it probably wouldn't go down too well with Oz, so you just paused.

"She's happy again .." Oz suddenly said without looking up from his comic.

"Excuse me, what?"

"I mean mom .. she laughs a lot more .."

"Didn't she do that before?", You were confused.

"Yea .. but it always seemed so forced .. When Delia and Mina started to meet her, she felt like shit and she had to get back to normal, she was somehow sick or something like that .. I think she is happy to have someone who didn't see her as this wreck and that's why she's happy .. "

You didn't answer what he said because you couldn't judge it.

So it takes three women to replace one .. you thought and immediately hated yourself for it.

"What are you reading?" You walked slowly to the bed and sat down next to Oz.

"Avengers .." he muttered.

Inside you were relieved, at least something you knew.

"And do you like it?", You looked into the book and began to read along. "It's cool .." he said curtly and read on.

"That's Civil War .." you stated after two minutes. Confused, he looked at you sideways. "You know it?" "Of course.." He nodded shortly before looking back into the book. "Are you Team Cap or Team Iron Man?" You asked. "Although I like Iron Man more, Team Cap .. The way Shield is fighting him here sucks," Oz said and you nodded. You noticed the Iron Man movie poster hanging on his closet. "Have you seen the films?" "Nope .." he shook his head. "Mom won't let me .." "How old are you?" "11 .." "Okay well .. maybe I can talk your mom and we can watch her together .." you said.

"Are you serious? ..", he looked at you skeptically. "Yes .." you nodded. "I mean it's her choice, but I don't think the films are that dangerous you can't watch them .." "That would be cool .." he muttered, staring at the Iron Man poster.

--------------------------

"How about Oz, Y / N?" Asked Mina, who was sitting across from you. You looked up from your meal.

"Good .." you mumbled briefly

"Good ..?" She repeated before taking another sip of her red wine. Her eyes were still attached to yours.

"Yes ... I think I'll be able to make friends with him .." you added when you noticed that your answer was a bit short.

It was 10 p.m. and the four of you hadn't eaten with the other girls and Oz as usual, but only did it now because Mina had come home so late. And you had been noticeably quiet, still thinking about your Leo.

Ally put a hand on your knee under the table as she always did to calm you down. "You seemed very ..", she searched for words. "impressed? I don't know .."

"Uhm yes .. I was a little bit overstrained ..", you tried to smile at her, but you could still feel Mina's penetrating look. Like she's trying to look inside your head.

Cordelia, realizing the tense mood, let out a laugh.

"Overstrained would also fit our attitude when we met him for the first time ..", she said and threw a loving look at Mina.

"yeah?" You asked confused, because Cordelia always got on well with everyone.

"Oh yes .." she continued. "Ally had also left us alone with him and we didn't even know what to do .. I think it is already difficult for a child to accept one new person in the mother's life and then two ... it was all a little bit complicated.."

"And what did you do then?"

"We ended up playing Monopoly .." she said with a grin. You started to laugh. "Monopoly?" "Yes and in the end Mina was angry because she had lost .." You looked at Mina, who blushed. "Those were the wrong rules we were playing with .." she muttered. "You're just a bad loser, honey .." Cordelia said, still grinning.

Smiling you looked back and forth between the women. "So are you all right?" Ally asked again, drawing your attention back to herself. You nodded quickly. "yes, it's all good. Oz is great .. so he told me that you wouldn't let him watch the Marvel films .. they really aren't that bad, I think it's okay .."

"You think so?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Jesus Ally, don't feel criticized right away..I just mean that I could imagine watching them with him..you know, then this thing with befriending him might work better ..", you said and started playing with your fingers

Her eyes relaxed at your words. "I think that's no problem .."

------------------------------------

The next day you lay on the sofa, tired, trying to get some sleep. At night it was impossible: every time you closed your eyes, you saw the picture of the dead Leo in front of your eyes.

Ally was sitting at the end of the sofa with your legs in her lap, her fingers running over them, while she was reading an article on her cell phone.

An approaching knock made you flinch and your body stiffened, which Ally didn't go unnoticed. This is your father, you startled for a moment.

"Don't worry, Princess .. outside of the bedroom, Mina's walking stick is no danger for you .." Ally said to you and laughed.

She might found it funny, but her words made you scared, not that you wouldn't be interested in this type of sex ... But the thought of Mina hitting you with her stick made you feel uncomfortable.

"Oz is looking for you Y / N ..", Mina said as she entered the room and saw Ally and you on the sofa. You nodded briefly and jumped up to go to the boy. "Thanks Mina .." was the last thing you muttered before you left the room.

Oz was in his room, as expected. You knocked just before you entered. He was sitting at his desk doing homework.

"Mina said you'd look for me .." you said and stepped up to him. "Are we watching Iron Man today?" He asked without looking up from his duties. "Today?", You were surprised. Ally had given Oz permission to watch the movies with you at breakfast, but you didn't expect to start today. "Yup.." "uhm...Sure" "Cool ..", he raised his head and grinned crookedly. Leo shot through your head. "See you later Y / N .." "See you then," you mumbled and left his room.

A few hours later you were sitting next to Ally's son on the sofa and tried to concentrate on the film. Oz sat next to you, focused on the film and just made a few comments.

The whole evening was relatively relaxed until Oz put his head on your shoulder and immediately you were a 13 year old girl again and next to you was not your lover's son, but your 10 year old brother Leo. You weren't in the living room either. You sat crouched at the end of your bed, Leo next to you, his head on your shoulder. The TV had turned into a door that you and Leo are now staring at, concentrating on the voices behind it. It was your father fighting with your mother. Your heartbeat quickened immediately. You could hear his footsteps as he hobbled his stick down the hall. It became harder to breathe when you saw the doorknob move down and-

"It works better than I expected.." Ally's voice whispered and you were immediately back in the living room.

"Is everything okay?" She asked confused when she saw your distraught look. You nodded slowly. "Yes-", you stuttered. "I'm just a little surprised, I thought it would be more complicated to make friends with Leo .." "Leo?", Ally sat down on the sofa and pulled her sleeping son into her lap. "Oz ..." you corrected yourself quickly. "I have no idea how I come up with Leo .. in the film someone was called that .." "You're shaking Y / N .." Ally remarked and saw you concerned at. "I'm sorry," you looked down at your trembling hands. "I'm just very nervous about Oz I think .."

Ally smiled. "You don't have to .. you're doing great .."

------------------- -----------

The next morning the 4 of you, Oz and the other girls were having breakfast together.

"That was cool last night, Y / N .." Oz said suddenly and your attention was on him.

"I think so too ..", you smiled gently at him.

"What I can think of .." Ally remarked. "I have a meeting tonight and Mina has to work late ... so you'll be alone with Oz ..." She looked back and forth between you and Cordelia. "I'm out .." Delia said and sipped her coffee. "Misty and I are going to the greenhouse tonight .." "Oz and I can come with you..I am sure that Oz-" "Misty and I want to be there alone, Y / N .." Cordelia shot you an apologetic look.

"Oh okay ..", you looked carefully at Oz, who was too busy with his food to catch anything in your conversation. "That's not a problem for you, is it?" Ally asked. You shook your head quickly. "No.."

So the subject was off the table and Mina's eyes stabbed your skin again. Although she hadn't said anything, she was probably the one who felt your discomfort the most.

In the evening you and Oz had dinner alone and at first everything went well, you talked about the movie from the previous evening over dinner and you didn't have to think about Leo at all.

"okay .." you started and stood up. "I'll tidy up the kitchen and that's when you finish your homework .." Oz grinned. "Whoever finishes first .." he said and ran out of the room. You had to smile when you started washing the dishes. 10 minutes later Oz walked slowly into the room and you immediately noticed that something was wrong.

"What's up?" You frowned. Oz without a word took out his soccer ball and a few broken pieces from behind his back. "What's that?" You asked calmly.

"I finished my homework and was playing with the ball in the living room. The ball hit Delia's vase and it fell from the cupboard .." he whispered and looked at the broken pieces in his hand.

You stared at him and saw Leo again and wondered what your dad would have done to him now. Tears stung your eyes. "I can't do this anymore .." you sobbed and buried your face in your hands.

Oz looked up at you with wide eyes. "I'm really sorry, Y / N! It wasn't on purpose ... I-"

"Oz no-" you said quickly and crouched down to look at him directly. "I'm not mad at you .. You know, I'm even glad that the thing is broken .. To be honest, I found the vase totally hideous .." "Really?" He asked skeptically. You nodded and tried to smile. "Are you hurt?" "No .." he shook his head.

"Well ... let's clean up the mess now and please don't play with the ball in the house anymore."

---------------------------

"Something is wrong with Y / N .." you heard Ally say to Cordelia the next evening.

You actually wanted to go to them in the living room, but when you heard your name, you couldn't help but stop to hear what they said about you.

"What do you mean?" You heard Delia ask. Ally seemed to think twice about what to say. "Oz told me last night that she started crying when he told her, the vase was broken .." she finally said.

Fuck. You closed your eyes

"I would probably have cried too, I liked the vase .." joked Cordelia. Ally groaned. "That's not funny Delia .. When I walked into the living room the day before, when Oz and Y / N were watching this movie, she also looked totally scared. She was shaking and looked like she was going to cry any moment .." she said.

Delia hummed thoughtfully. "Did you ask her about it?" "She said she was so nervous about Oz, but I don't believe her .. I guess-"

"What are you doing here in the dark, princess?" Mina's lips to your ear made you jump.

"Jesus, Mina .." you cursed and turned to your girlfriend. You could see her grinning in the moonlight that shone in through the hall window. "I didn't hear you coming .."

"If you can't even hear me coming, then you must have been really distracted .." she said, sounding somehow sad. "Let's go in. Unless you want to keep staring at the door here ..", she reached past you to open the door. You gave way and pointed into the room. "Age before beauty .." you just said and made her laugh before she entered the room in front of you.

The previous conversation between Ally and Delia never seemed to have taken place because they both just sat there, Delia read a book and Ally scrolled through her cell phone.

--------------------------

"Happy Birthday, Princess ..", Cordelia whispered in your ear in the morning and let you wake up. "How do you know that?", You grumbled tired and slowly opened your eyes. Delia sat next to you in the Scross-legged in bed. "I am the supreme, i know everything ..", she said smugly and let you snort in annoyance. "Of course you do .." you mumbled and sat up. "Where are Mina and Ally?"

"At work? Honey, it's 11 am .." Cordelia laughed. "And what are you still doing here?" You asked confused. "Can't I spend time with my girlfriend when it's her birthday?" She smiled sweetly at you.

"Do the others know ..?"

"Nope ..", she bit her lip. "I kind of felt like you wouldn't like it if we knew ..." "I don't either," you confirmed. "Still, you'll be sad when you find out .." she muttered.

For a moment it was quiet between the two of you and you just stared at each other. And just as you were wondering how Cordelia could look so good, even though she had just woken up too, she leaned over and kissed you.

"mh delia-" you protested against her lips.

"What?", She withdrew disappointed. "I actually wanted to give you your present now ..", she grinned and enjoyed how you blushed at her statement.

"At least let me brush my teeth beforehand .." you mumbled embarrassed and jumped off the bed.

"Hurry up, princess .."

---------------

In the late afternoon you sat across from Mina at the table. Ally was still working and Cordelia had arranged to meet Misty in the greenhouse. Mina was reading the paper in thought, a habit that you found incredibly cute. You yourself were playing some random game on your cell phone when the message tone on your cell phone beeped.

Message from Joanne: "Hello Y / N, I just wanted to wish you a happy birthday. I'm going to your city next week because I have to go to the doctor and wanted to ask if you would like to meet me?

~ Joanne. "

Your heart quickened on the last sentence. Joanne was your mother and wrote you every year for your birthday, you had never even answered one of her messages and now she wanted to see you again after so many years. She would come here and there was nothing you could do against it.

"Y / N ..?"

You raised your eyes to Mina, who was frowning at you.

"You're hyperventilating .." she remarked emotionless.

"I'm just dizzy ...", you gasped and stood up to run into the bathroom, or rather to stumble into the bathroom. You could feel your stomach turn as you leaned over the toilet and vomited into the toilet bowl.

The world around you seemed to be spinning. The closed bathroom door became the door of your nursery, you could even hear the knock on your father's stick. And how he got closer and closer. You tried to scream, but your mouth was only a soft gasp. Tears stung your eyes. "Please .." you tried silently to get air. A hand put on your back and you instantly jumped away from the toilet. "Please don't hurt me ..", you whimpered and looked fearfully into the face of the person in front of you.

Mina stood in front of you in shock, she had never seen you like this before. And the look you gave her broke her heart. "Honey you need to calm down .." She sat carefully on the floor and grimaced as pain ran through her back. Slowly she reached out her hand to touch yours, which was a mistake. Your hand jerked back, you reached out and let your hand fall against her left cheek. "Don't touch me .." you growled. "What the hell Y / N .." Mina hissed, grabbing your cheeks and forcing you to look at her. "It's me, princess, Mina ..", she whispered and felt her own eyes fill with tears. Your eyes widened when you recognized your girlfriend. And with that you finally broke, but Mina was there to pull you into her lap while you cried into her blouse. She held you as tightly as she could while trying to process the things that had just happened. The cheek your hand had marked on it burned like fire and yet it was impossible for her to realize that you had just hit her. It had never been you, she thought. And yet it was you who was lying in her arms right now.

"I'm so sorry .." you sniffed into her blouse when you had slowly calmed down. Mina gently put her hands around your cheeks and searched your face as if it contained any answers for what had just happened. She swallowed just before speaking. "Are you scared of me, Y / N?"

When her words reached your ear, you wrapped your arms around her torso and did your best not to hurt her. You felt so damn guilty.

"I would never hurt you .." she said softly against your ear, her voice thick with tears.

"I know Mina .." you whispered. "And I could never be afraid of you .."

You drew her back before your fingers slided down her right cheek where your hand marked it. "I'm so sorry .." you repeated your words from a few seconds ago.

"I'm fine Y / N", Mina assured us and took your hand. "I'm just worried about you .. I've been watching you for the last few days, you're acting totally strange .."

"I'm okay .." you mumbled and stood up with shaky legs.

"Don't damn me lie to Y / N! ...", she hissed and there she was again, the strict Mina you loved so much.

"Mina .. I'm really fine, you just shouldn't worry .. That's why I would prefer if Ally and Delia didn't find out about what just happened ... "you said as you leaned towards the mirror to fix your hair.

Mina shook her head blankly and propped herself up. "You are unbelievably Y / N .. two minutes ago you were lying here on the floor and now you're pretending nothing happened ... You won't be able to run away forever .. "she said, took her walking stick and walked past you to leave the bathroom.

You had never spoken to anyone about it, nobody knew about what had happened in your family and actually you had sworn to yourself that you would never tell anyone about it. Simply because you felt terrible about it, somewhere Leo's suicide was also your fault because you weren't strong enough to defend him.

You ran into the hallway and saw Mina sitting at the table again. Lost in thought, she looked out the window. "I think I'll go to sleep, I'm relatively tired ..." you said. Mina didn't move an inch. "You probably won't see me again today .." you muttered and went into your bedroom to actually get some sleep.

---------------

A few hours later you woke up from a bad dream.

It was dark and the first thing you noticed was Minas lavender perfume that surrounded you. Then you realized that, despite the events of the previous day, you 4 had taken your usual sleeping position: You and Ally were in the middle. Cordelia on the right edge, next to Ally and Mina on the left edge, next to you. Mina had her arms wrapped tightly around you and your head was on her chest. Like a few hours ago in the bathroom, you noticed.

Are you scared of me, Y/N?

Mina's words echoed in your head. The sad look she gave you made you feel infinite guilt.

"Mina?" You whispered softly against her neck.

"mhm ..". Mina hummed in her sleep.

"Are you awake..?" You knew how stupid and unnecessary that question was, but you couldn't help it.

She didn't answer at first, before moving after a few seconds.

"Now yeah .." she muttered as she pressed her nose against your hair.

"I just wanted to say, I love you .." you whispered and played with the purple fabric of Mina's pajamas.

"I love you too, princess ..". Was her answer and she kissed you on the forehead. Then it became quiet again and after a few minutes you could tell from her breath that she had fallen asleep again. Unfortunately, in contrast to her, you were wide awake and therefore decided to get up. Carefully you free yourself from her arms and sat up in bed. Confused, you noticed that the place next to Ally, who was sleeping sweetly, was empty. Where was Cordelia? You carefully climbed out of bed and went to look for the blonde, only to find her in the bathroom. You crept and stopped suddenly when you saw Cordelia lying in the bathtub.

Cordelia gave you a warm smile when she saw you and you couldn't help but laugh out loud. "What's so funny?" Cordelia grinned. "You .." you uttered, still laughing. "I?"

"Yes. You .. It's two o'clock in the morning and you sit here in the dark and bathe ...". You trotted to the sink. "It's not completely dark, I lit candles ..", Cordelia defended herself. You shook your head in amusement and washed your face.

"You're sweating .." Cordelia remarked, referring to the sweat stains on your shirt. "Didn't sleep so well .." you replied curtly. "I guess you don't want to sleep again either ..?" "Nope .." You turned back to her.

"Well ... then I would love it if you kept me company here," Delia said and smiled again. You shook your head again, just grinning, before you pulled your shirt over your head and went to the tub to get into the water. Cordelia sat down so that you were sitting in front of her and your body was leaning against her bare torso. She carefully put her arms around your torso and rested her chin on your head. You lay down for a few minutes Just there and you would probably have fallen asleep had she not spoken.

"Mina told us about your dropout this afternoon .."

Of course she did..

You closed your eyes "Why don't you just tell us what's going on Y / N?" She began softly. "We're really really worried." "I can't Delia .. I've never talked about it .." you whispered. "So do you admit something is wrong?" You snorted. "Of course something is wrong .. I hit Mina."

"You know that she's not angry with you, she's just worried as I said .. You know, no matter what is on your mind, we all suffer with you, no matter whether you tell us what's going on or not .. ", Delia said and ran her wet fingers through your hair. You just nodded at her words. "You could only tell one of us if that helps you.", She offered, although she knew that this would also bring new problems. "No, I trust you all .. It's just that, as I said, I've never told anyone about it. I am just afraid of your reaction .. "you said.

"Oh y / n ..", she sighed and turned your head so that she could look you in the eye. "No matter what happened, we love you so much and nothing could change that ..". Again you nodded.

Then suddenly she got up and grabbed a towel. "What are you doing?" You asked confused when you watched her get out of the tub and dry off. "You pull the plug and get dressed ... Meanwhile, I'll wake Ally and Mina, we'll finally talk to each other .." she said and put her nightgown back on before she ran out of the bathroom.

"You won't do that, it's the middle of the night .." you shouted after her.

"I know."

You climbed out of the bathtub, trembling, and drained the water. You dried yourself off quickly and got dressed. Before you left the room, you took a quick look in the mirror. You looked like you were going to cry any minute.

"We're in the living room, Y / N .." Cordelia suddenly called. For a moment you closed your eyes, then you slowly walked into your common living room. Your 3 friends sat on the sofa and stared at you expectantly. Cordelia sat with her legs crossed, her hair wet and her short nightgown on the right end. Ally was sitting cross-legged to her left. Clad in a T-shirt and shorts, she narrowed her eyes against the light. And at the other end sat Mina, in her purple pajamas, her long red hair curling on the fabric. Her left hand held her walking stick and, as always, her gaze seemed to shine through you.

You sat in the chair in front of them when Ally held out her hand to you. "This is not a fucking interrogation Y / N ..". You carefully took her hand and she pulled you between Delia and herself. You stared nervously into your lap and played with your fingers. You could still feel their expectant looks.

"Oz looks like my little brother ..." you suddenly let out. "Is that all?" Ally asked confused. "No .." you shook your head and waited a few seconds. "..my childhood wasn't that great ... my mom had a big drinking problem I guess..". "And your father?" Cordelia asked. "Uhm, well ... he hit us when we didn't do things the way he wanted ..."

Briefly there was silence in the room. "That's awful Y / N, but what does this have to do with my son ..?" Ally finally asked.

"My brother committed suicide when he was 15 because of my parents .." you said and heard Ally take a shaky breath. "And actually I had repressed all of that over the years and when I saw Oz ... I only saw Leo ...".

You got up and walked to an unpacked box with your things. You came back with a picture, which you put into Delia's hand. It was a family photo. Delia stared hard at the photo. "Your father had a walking stick .." she said suddenly and you instinctively looked at Mina, who was staring lost at the floor. Her grip on her own walking stick had tightened so much that you could be afraid it would be squeezed by her fingers. "His left leg wasn't healthy ... that's why he hobbled ...". Delia passed the photo on to Ally, who only had eyes for the blond boy next to you. "Well .. he actually looks a bit like Oz ..", Ally only mumbled and wanted to pass the picture on to Mina, but she just shook her head. "I do not want to see this..".

Again there was brief silence and again Ally was the one breaking it. "When I told you about Ivy and said I don't want any secrets between us, I actually assumed you'd think that way too..That's why I'm kind of angry Y / N..I mean, Do you don't trust us?"

You just wanted to speak, when Cordelia came before you. "She wasn't ready yet, Ally..She-" "Cordelia, I asked Y / N and not you .." Ally hissed.

"I've never told anyone about it ..." was all you said. "But we're not just anyone .." Ally sounded disappointed. "I didn't want you guys to think wrong of me .." you said softly. Cordelia leaned forward and grabbed your hand. "What happened is not your fault .. it was your brother's decision and your parents' fault .." "But maybe I could have done more .." you whispered, tears gathering in your eyes. Cordelia just sighed and pulled you into her lap. You leaned your back against her chest and listened for her heartbeat.

"And what was yesterday?" Asked Ally. "Something must have triggered your strange behavior .." "My mother texted me .. she does that every year on my birthday .." you said.

"It was your birthday?" Ally looked at you with raised eyebrows.

You nodded briefly and made Ally moan in frustration. "If you don't even tell us that anymore, then-" "She said she would come here next week because she has to see a doctor .. She wants to meet with me .." you interrupted her. "But I don't want to see her ..", you felt tears running down your face.

Ally just shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest.

"You should have talked to us much earlier Y / N ..", Mina finally said. "Even if this is all new now, we are a family and it is our job to make sure that you are okay. We would never have left you alone with Oz, had we known about your brother .. Not just about you to protect, but also because of Oz's safety. It's important that we trust each other, we've all been through complicated things .. " You nodded guiltily again.

Cordelia cleared her throat. "The scars on your back, you told us they were from a car accident, is that true?" "No .." you said. Suddenly you felt Delia's cool fingers pulling up your shirt and exposing your scars. "Delia what-" "Shut up, Y / N .." They'd all seen your scars before, but knowing that those scars were someone's craft, made them look a lot more brutal when Delia gently ran her fingers over them. "Did he? ..- asked Mina. You nodded and tears fell into your lap as you let out a sob. "I'm sorry," you said, holding a hand over your mouth to stifle your sobs.

"Damn Y / N, stop apologizing ..". Ally jumped up, stood in front of Delia and you, pressed your head against her flat stomach and rubbed your upper back with her hand. Delia's fingers continued to slide to the scars on your side. "Was that him too?" She asked softly. "No .." you answered. "Then who was it? Your moth-" "It was her, Delia .." Mina interrupted her with closed eyes. How could they have been so blind? Such scars did not appear in car accidents.

"Is that true Y / N?", Cordelia's voice trembled when she asked. "I'm so sorry .." you sniffed at Ally's shirt. "Back then I didn't know how to deal with everything .." "Shhh princess .." Ally cooed. "Please finally stop apologizing for something you can't do anything about .."

"Honey, do you still hurt yourself sometimes?" Asked Mina, who had slipped up to you and put her hand on yours.

"I've stopped doing that since Leo's death .. I think he saw me with a knife sometimes ..". The thought of it brought new tears to your eyes and made you sob one more time.

Cordelia pulled the fabric of your shirt back down before leaning her head on your back and wrapping your arms around your waist. Mina, who was sitting next to Delia, was the only one who could see her tears as she reached out her hand to gently run through Delia's hair. "Some things are going to change now, Y / N .." she said firmly. "We'll be more careful about some things and we'll also have to see how we deal with Oz without it being uncomfortable for him or you. I'll contact your mother and make it clear to her that you don't want any more contact. We can't stop Oz looking the way he looks, but we'll help you deal with it because that's what we're here for .. ". Her thumb brushed the back of your hand, which was in her lap. That was the last thing that was said that night, but you stayed in that position for a long time. You in the midst of your worried lover

#cordelia goode x reader #wilhemina venable x reader #ally mayfair richards x reader #sarah paulson x reader #cordelia goode #wilhemina venable #ally mayfair richards #american horror story #cordelia goode x reader x wilhemina venable #cordelia goode x wilhemina venable x reader x ally mayfair richards

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cakesunflower · 3 years ago

Text

Outer Banks Series Rewrite/JJ Maybank Fic Series [5. Midsummers]

Disclaimer: None of the characters (except for Stella) or their dialogues (for the most part) are my own, and belong to the writers & creators of Outer Banks!

Previous Parts: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

Read on AO3!

Here’s episode 5 “Midsummers”!

“Dude—Mom catches you out here, and you’re dead.” Stella peeked one eye open, catching sight of her sister standing over her, arms crossed over her chest and eyebrows raised. “You’re literally out in the open.”

Kie’s concern came from the pen Stella was currently twirling between her fingers as she lay on the ground in their backyard. Stella didn’t say anything, instead took another pull from the pen, letting the familiar smoke invade her lungs before blowing it out slowly. The act did its job in calming her down, and Kiara let out a sigh before shifting to sit down next to Stella, before going down on her back, too.

Stella could feel her sister’s gaze on her as Kie turned her head to look at her, but Stella kept her gaze up at the sky. It was sort of cloudy, but there wasn’t a threat for rain. If there had been, the celebration later tonight would’ve been rescheduled ages ago.

“Look, I know you’re worried about JJ—” Kie began, but Stella cut her off.

“He willingly let himself get arrested for something he didn’t do, and he has a drug-addict, abusive dad to go back home to. We haven’t heard from him yet.” Stella looked at Kie, then, jaw hard. “Of course I’m worried.”

Kie’s gaze was soft with sympathy, but Stella could see her own concern swimming, too. After all, Kie cared about JJ as well. Maybe not in the way Stella did, but just as good. “He’ll turn up,” Kie assured. “He always does.”

Despite Kie’s efforts, Stella wasn’t all that comforted. And maybe Kie saw the deep worry that had etched itself into Stella’s features, because Kie’s face softened even more, looking at her sister gently as she asked, “What’s going on?”

Stella’s throat worked as her heart drummed in her chest, forcing herself into a sitting position while Kie kept on her back, looking up at her. For a moment, Stella hesitantly chewed on her lower lip, wondering if now was the right time to indulge, but it was Kie. It was her sister, and if Stella couldn’t tell her, she couldn’t tell anyone.

“JJ and I kissed.” There. She said it. Now it was out in the open.

Kie blinked once before her eyes widened almost comically, shooting up in a sitting position opposite of Stella as she demanded, “What? When?”

“Yesterday,” Stella admitted, stomach flipping as memories of her and JJ’s actions played through her mind like her favorite movie. She couldn’t stop the small smile from playing on her lips. “We were at John B’s, before coming to the summer series.” She fiddled with the pen between her fingers. “It just—it kind of just happened.”

Kie scoffed with a shake of her head. “It didn’t kind of just happen,” she mocked. “This has been waiting to happen for so Goddamn long.” Stella tried not to laugh at the happiness shining in Kie’s eyes, which did a lot to relax Stella. She’d been worried Kie would ram on her for breaking one of their friend group rules, but Kie seemed anything but disappointed. Her eyes widened then, shoulders lifting. “Oh, shit, John B and Pope owe me twenty bucks!”

Stella blinked. “I’m sorry—what?”

Kie snickered, looking all too delighted. “We kind of had a bet going on over how long it’d take for you and JJ to get together.” Stella’s eyes widened, jaw dropping in disbelief. “I bet it’d happen before Midsummers and would you look at that! You just made me forty bucks richer, sis.”

“Wha—” Stella cut herself off with a scoff, ripping up some grass before tossing it at Kie. She shrieked through a laugh, jerking back before brushing away the pieces of grass. “Are you kidding me?! You guys bet on us?”

“Of course we did,” Kie responded with a smirk, not at all looking apologetic. At Stella’s gaping expression, she rolled her eyes. “Oh, come on, Stel. You two have been dancing around each other for so fucking long. We were getting tired of waiting, so we thought we’d have some fun with it,” she finished with a shrug.

Stella couldn’t believe what she was hearing, cheeks heating up at the information. She wasn’t mad or upset that her sister and friends bet on when she and JJ would get together—she was just surprised, and a little bit amused. She wondered how long the bet had been going on for. But instead of asking that, she instead inquired, “So I’m guessing JJ and I are in the clear for breaking the no Pogue-on-Pogue macking rule?”

Kie waved her off, smile still in place. “You two are the exception to the rule,” she said confidently before crossing her legs and shooting Stella an expectant look. “So? Tell me how it was.” She quickly held a hand up. “But not too many details because it’s JJ and he’s like my brother and, ew, gross. But I still wanna know! How’d it happen?”

At that, the heat in Stella’s cheeks intensified into a fire as she recalled every single detail from yesterday—as if she could ever forget. “I was, uh, persuading him to come to the summer series with us.”

Kie’s eyebrows shot up. “Persuading, huh?” she repeated with an impish grin, prompting Stella to let out a giggle. “Well, looks like it worked. Not that I’m surprised. That boy is stupid for you.”

Stella pressed her lips together to keep her giddy smile from widening. “Stop.”

Kie snickered. “Man, you two are gonna be unbearable now, aren’t you? All over each other all of the time.”

“Dude, I don’t even know what we’re doing,” Stella instantly responded with a shake of her head. “All we did was kiss. We’re not suddenly together, Kie.”

She didn’t look convinced. “Only a matter of time.”

Stella’s heart fluttered in her chest. Of course she wanted to be with JJ—it was all she could think about for so long. After that kiss, it was closer to being a reality than she could ever imagine, but they needed to talk about it, first. “Maybe. But first he needs to let us know he’s okay and that his dad didn’t fucking kill him.”

Her words were tight in her throat as she said them, sending a new jolt of worry through her. JJ never really talked about it, but she knew the kind of man his dad was, knew what he was capable of. JJ getting arrested wasn’t going to go over well; it wouldn’t with any parent, but God only knew how Luke Maybank would react to it. So, yeah, Stella was sick with worry over JJ, and she just fucking wished he’d call or text her back.

Kie sighed. “Listen, maybe—”

Whatever Kie was about to say was interrupted by their mother’s voice shouting at them from the back porch. “Girls! Get in here! You need to start getting ready.” Simultaneously, both Stella and Kie threw their heads back and groaned, loudly—loud enough for Mrs. Carrera to hear them. “I don’t wanna hear it! Get your butts in here now!”

They stood up, and as Stella shoved her pen in the pocket of her shorts, Kie grumbled, “I hate everything.”

While every other soul on Figure Eight either was overjoyed to be attending Midsummers or envious that they couldn’t, Stella and Kiara were probably the only ones who hated the party. For Kie, it was more of a socialist thing that Stella respected her for, but she also knew that her sister’s disgust with Midsummers, ultimately, existed for the same reason as Stella’s: they hated the people they were surrounded by.

All of the Kooks would be gathered tonight for the party—this year a celebration for Ward Cameron, A.K.A the father of Sarah Cameron, Kie’s worst enemy. Stella didn’t care what the party was for—she despised it. The most Stella liked to dress up was in clothes of her choice, and sure that could sometimes include make-up and dresses, but not full on evening gowns with flowers in her hair. It often felt like she was getting dressed up as a lamb for a slaughter, being pushed into a crowd of Kooks who thought they were better than everyone else because of their overflowing pockets. The adults were bad enough—Stella did not want to even see the people her age.

Namely Rafe, Topper, Kelce, and anyone who was associated with them. Especially after what they did to JJ and Pope yesterday. Dicks.

But Midsummers, much to both Stella and Kie’s chagrin, was important to their parents, especially their mother. So as soon as the two girls returned inside the house, Mrs. Carrera was ushering them towards the bathrooms, like they were toddlers who needed supervised bath times.

“Hold on a second—” Mr. Carrera paused, and Stella and Kie exchanged looks when their mom sniffed the air around them. Her eyes then zeroed in on Stella, hands on her hips and eyes blazing as she demanded, “Did you just smoke, Stella?”

Knowing there was no point in lying, Stella huffed. “I needed something to take the edge off if I have to go to this stupid party.”

This wasn’t the first time their mom caught them smoking or smelling of weed, but it pissed her off just the same. While Kie tried to stifle a smile, Mrs. Carrera glared daggers at her Stella. “You’re not getting out of this, Stella. You better drown yourself in body wash and perfume when you get ready.”

Stella rolled her eyes behind her mom’s back, but listened all the same, albeit reluctantly. Kie was the first to hop into the shower in their shared bathroom, so Stella took the time to lay in her bed and unlock her phone, hoping to see a text or missed call from JJ. Her heart jumped when she saw just one text from him, chest tight as she read it quickly.

JJ: Don’t worry about me. I’m good. I’ll see u later.

That was it. Just ten words of reassurance and then nothing. Part of Stella was relieved to have received anything from him at all, but another part still felt worried and a little annoyed. She—all of them—had been worried sick over him after yesterday, and this was all he could say? Stella figured she shouldn’t be too surprised. It was typical JJ behavior. He got in a bind and somehow got himself out of it, and never really let his friends in on if anything was wrong. But the tough guy persona could only get him so far.

Chewing on her lower lip, Stella drafted a text, but not to JJ. Instead, she sent a message to John B.

Stella: You heard from JJ? Do you think he’s okay?

John B responded within moments.

John B: Yeah, it’s all good. I’m with him right now. We’ll see you guys tonight, alright? Keep an eye out.

Stella blinked at the cryptic message, wondering what the hell he was talking about. But if recent circumstances were any indicator, something was probably going down tonight. Stella’s stomach flipped in both apprehension and excitement. These boys might be the death of her.

Soon enough, Kie was out of the bathroom and it was Stella’s turn. She showered and brushed her teeth, stepping back into her room to catch sight of a satin slip dress with a halter neck waiting for her on her bed. It was a pretty golden color with a V-neck trimmed with lace, and a pair of white and gold sandals were waiting by the bed, too. Stella huffed, the towel wrapped tightly around her. She knew for a fact that her mother thought she needed to have everything out for her otherwise Stella would be useless in getting dressed for Midsummers. It was kind of insulting.

Stella expertly dried her hair, letting the natural curls come into place, before doing her makeup. She kept it light, as always, because not even Midsummers was going to make her slap on a face full of makeup, especially in the middle of summer. Some foundation, mascara, highlighter, and lipstick was as far as she went, with her jewelry consisting of a dainty diamond star necklace and the rings on her fingers.

“Oh, good, you’re dressed,” Mrs. Carrera said upon entering her room. “Come on, let me do your hair.”

Stella frowned but listened, sitting down in front of her dresser while her mom stood behind her. She worked quickly and efficiently, braiding back the two front locks of her hair and intertwining small yellow flowers in them that Stella tried not to wrinkle her nose at.

As her mom worked, Kie wandered into Stella’s room. Her slip dress was spaghetti strapped and a lavender color, a couple of layered necklaces around her neck, and her hair down in an updo with a crown of pink and purple flowers and locks of curly hair framing her face. She looked stunning, even with that scowl she wore as she stormed into the room.

“This is disgusting,” she announced without preamble.

Mrs. Carrera wove another flower into Stella’s braid, her voice dry above her as she responded, “I know. It’s just horrible. I’m asking you two to relax and go to a fun party.”

Kie scoffed, towering over their mom. They may be twins, but Kie somehow got the tall gene from their dad, standing at the elegant 5’8”, while Stella hadn’t grown past 5’5”. “We look like bourgeoisie pigs.”

Stella tried to keep the snort from escaping, covering it up with a cough as their mom finally patted down Stella’s hair, letting out a satisfied hum before stepping back. She shot Kie an exasperated look and said, “Will you please not worry about socioeconomic injustice for one night?”

Kie scowled and Stella’s face scrunched up. This was so much more than that. She twisted around in the seat and stood up, crossing her arms and siding with Kie, “Mom, people not three miles from here have no power, no running water—and we’re going to Midsummers.”

Kie nodded vigorously, gesturing to Stella. “That’s so tone deaf.”

Mrs. Carrera huffed, picking up the little pouch she’d dropped on the dressing table and pulling out the diamond earrings. As she put one in, she said, “Do you know how hard we had to work to get into the Island Club?”

Both Stella and Kie rolled their eyes, having heard this a hundred times before. “Yeah, Mom, how could we forget?” Stella sighed. “You had to grovel for, like, ten years—”

“Twelve,” Mrs. Carrera corrected, “and we also had to cough up a huge chunk of dough, and do you know why we did that?”

Kie wasn’t impressed. “To keep up with the Joneses?”

Mrs. Carrera’s hands were on her hips, looking at her daughter pointedly. “No. So you two could have the experiences that I had as a child. Sweethearts, do you know what the Island Club is?”

“A factory farm for debutantes,” Kie flatly said at the same time Stella said, “Where brain cells go to die.”

Kie gave her a subtle fist bump as their mother glared at them before smiling exasperatedly. She placed one hand on each of their cheeks, looking at both of them as she said, “It is a nice place, with nice people, where you can do fun stuff.”

Neither of them bought the company line. “With out of touch rich people,” Stella added.

Kie rightfully finished, “While the island sinks slowly into the ocean.”

Their mom dropped her hands from their cheeks, stepping back and shooting them a look. Clearly, she was done trying with her stubborn daughters. “Okay, I want you two to put on your party faces if you wanna live,” she said before walking out of the room.

Both Stella and Kie sighed, looking at each other in resigned defeat. Stella picked up her pen, offering a half hearted smile. “Wanna take a hit before we go?”

Kie scoffed, taking it from her. “Or maybe ten.”

Less than fifteen minutes later, the girls were at the Island Club with their parents, and instead of doing the polite thing and greeting the other party goers, Stella spotted a familiar face and grabbed Kie’s hand, jerking her chin to where Pope was working out on the lawn at the grill. She’d almost forgotten that he was working the party with his dad. Thank God for small miracles.

As they approached him, his back to the girls, Kie startled Stella by speaking in a terrible British accent, “Excuse me, sir. Do we have to shuck these ourselves?” Pope swiveled around as Kie grinned and Stella shook her head in bemusement. “’Cause it might mess up my costume.”

Pope chuckled. “We wouldn’t want that now, would we?” he asked and Stella stepped forward with a laugh, slapping her hand against his, front and back, before ending with a snap of her fingers. Their handshake. As he repeated the act with Kie, Pope added, “That accent was bad.”

Kie nodded. “It was. I was gonna let it go.”

Stella scoffed. “I wish you had,” she said as they came to stand next to Pope, arms folded across her chest. The three of them observed the scene before them, of all the guests gathered around in their fancy dresses and suits, drinking from flutes of champagne or drinks from the bar. “You ever seen this many Kooks in one place?”

“Yeah. Last year,” Pope answered.

Kie was squinting against the sun, but just like Stella’s, her brown skin glowed a pretty golden color against it. “We’re in the lion’s den.”

“Exactly.”

Pope glanced at the two of them, gaze lingering on Stella longer as he asked, “Have you heard from JJ?”

Kie shook her head. “No.”

“Just a text,” Stella answered, prompting Kie to look towards her, raising an eyebrow. Stella’s lips pursed. “He said he was okay and not to worry about him. But I won’t really believe it until I see him.”

“He’ll be all right,” Kie said, frowning to herself. “He’s got the survival instincts of a cockroach.”

Stella swallowed inaudibly. Kie wasn’t really wrong.

“It’s all my fault,” Pope said, the guilt thick in his tone as he frowned at nothing. He looked like he might be sick over everything that’s happened.

Stella frowned as Kie said, “Uh, you didn’t do this, Pope.”

“Yeah,” Stella chimed in firmly. “Topper almost killed you. Remember?”

He shot her a dry look. “Not something I can forget.”

Stella shot him a small smile. “JJ was just trying to do right by you. He—he knew what he was doing.” She stumbled over her words briefly because, well, she wasn’t entirely sure if she believed them. She believed that JJ thought he was doing the right thing, but getting arrested was no small thing. He was just adding onto his record, and this time for something he didn’t even do. JJ put loyalty above anything else, and it was one of her favorite things about him—until it landed him in trouble he might not be able to get out of.

Midsummers, as expected, was boring as usual. The adults drank and the teens snuck in their own alcohol in hidden flasks, dancing to the music from the live band while almost everyone kissed Ward Cameron’s ass. Stella stuck by Kie’s side, mostly because she didn’t care for anyone else there and because Kie kept glaring at Sarah Cameron, who looked like the perfect Kook princess. She was missing her not-so-Prince Charming, Topper, who seemed to be sticking by Rafe and Kelce’s sides than with Sarah. Hmm. Interesting.

At one point, Stella excused herself to go to the bathroom, walking inside the country club and down the hall. She did her business, ignoring the giggles of the few other girls inside as she washed her hands. Just as she stepped out of the bathroom, however, she let out a gasp and stumbled into the doorframe as a figure rushed off in front of her, her gaze instantly following.

She’d recognize those blonde locks anywhere.

Stella’s heart thundered, gripping the doorframe tightly as she called out, “JJ?”

*****

Despite the severity of needing to find a hiding spot or escape, the sound of Stella’s voice had JJ stopping in his tracks. He turned, catching sight of her down the hall, too far down the hall, looking every bit as breathtaking as he expected her to in a golden dress that hugged her so perfectly. And the way she was looking at him—the surprise and relief and tenderness he was sure she reserved just for him—had JJ’s heart pounding right out of his chest, and not just because he was trying to save himself at the moment.

“Stella—” JJ stopped, looking through the glass of the doors, seeing Rafe, Kelce, and three of their suited up buddies purposefully making their way over. “Shit.” His blue eyes met her concerned brown ones. “Sweetheart, I’ll explain everything later, but I gotta run right now. Just—I’ll see you in a little, okay?”

“Wait, JJ—”

But he didn’t stick around, as much as he wanted to, and instead turned and ran off just as he heard Rafe and his buddies walk in. They’d spotted him talking to Sarah because he’d needed to give her a letter from John B, after he’d spoken to and received a surprising hug from Pope, and now they were hot on his ass looking to throw more punches. JJ’d already received a beating from his dad—he didn’t need anymore, thank you very much.

Except he made his way into the men’s room, and Rafe and his buddies were pretty fast and managed to corner him no problem. Five against one—this was totally fair. Assholes.

Rafe pushed him and JJ grunted, struggling as Kelce came up behind him and locked an arm around the front of his neck, the other keeping his head in place as JJ grabbed at Kelce’s arm to loosen the grip. He struggled, heart pounding, as Rafe looked at his friends. “Hold him still. What—what do you think? A four iron, right?” He mimicked holding a golf club. “Keep his head still. I’m gonna line this up.”

JJ didn’t make it easy for Kelce to keep him still. “Very Rafe of you,” JJ said through gritted teeth. “Five on one?”

Rafe looked pristine in his stupid blue suit and bowtie. JJ hoped he’d choke on it. “If you could please stop talking? It’s very disrespectful. I’m trying to hit a ball.” Oh, fuck no. “Learn your etiquette, my friend.”

JJ kept grunting, struggling against Kelce, using his hands as much as he could to try and get away. JJ’s voice was hoarse against Kelce’s grip as he spat back, “I’m gonna kick your teeth in.” As much fire as there was in his voice, JJ wasn’t entirely sure he’d be able to deliver on his promise. Not when the odds were stacked against him.

Rafe smirked sardonically, crouching to look up at JJ with a mocking sort of sympathy. “Your face looks really bad. Starting to look like your dad a lot more.”

The insult was grating, especially given that the bruises and cuts on his face were courtesy of his father. JJ couldn’t do much more than spit in Rafe’s face. He jerked back, wiping the saliva off his face as he grinned. “Oh, shit. Alright. It was—”

The lights began flickering. “Gentlemen!” Kelce roughly let go of JJ and pushed him off, prompting the blonde to struggle before he righted himself. The security guard approached them. “Is there a problem?”

“Oh! Pardon me, officer. No, there’s not an issue. I just—” JJ cut himself off, his breathing labored as he panted to catch his breath. He looked at the others and JJ ran his fingers through his hair before deciding on a different course of action. One he knew would likely get him out of this. “Actually, yes. No, there is an issue. Uh, we got a criminal trespass in progress here. Beep!” He waved a finger around. “Call it in, right?” The others looked at him, trying to appear casual and like they weren’t doing anything wrong. “Blatant disrespect for private property.”

Rafe clicked his tongue, scratching his ear. “Yeah.”

JJ turned to the guard. “I’m in violation of all kinds of shit, sir, but these young gentlemen—” He made a show of righting Kelce’s bowtie before he jerked him away.

“Don’t touch my shit,” Kelce said lowly.

JJ continued, “Uh, caught me, sir, and they’re about to take me away. And that’s what you should do.” He held his fists up like he was ready to be handcuffed. Again. “Escort me out of here. You got me.”

The guard grabbed his arm. JJ was relieved. “Come on.”

“All right.” JJ looked over his shoulder as the guard pulled him out, looking at the Kooks. “Fix that tie, son,” he said to Kelce before looking at Rafe. “You’re lookin’ spiffy, too. You Powerpuff Girls have fun,” he turned back around.

Rafe took a step forward, his voice smug. “Tell Stella she looks pretty hot for a scarred Pogue.”

Fire erupted in JJ’s veins at Rafe’s comment, a newfound anger rushing through him at the blatant insult from the son of a bitch. JJ didn’t care who they were—nobody talked about Stella like that. Not at all, not in front of him. JJ’s body moved at his own accord, a low growl escaping him as he jerked away from the guard and tried to launch himself at Rafe, consequences be damned of a five against one. The asshole insulted Stella. JJ couldn’t just let him get away with that.

He rushed towards Rafe, only for Kelce to jump in and push him away as the guard came to his back and pulled him away. “Hey! Stop it. Come here! Let’s go! Let’s go!”

But JJ struggled, the urge to bury his fist in Rafe’s face overwhelming after his words. “You think I’m afraid of you, bro?”

The guard pulled him back. “Come on.”

JJ turned and was guided out as Rafe’s voice followed him out of the locker room. “Hey, safe travels back to the cut!”

JJ shouted back, “This ain’t over!”

The guard didn’t let his grip on JJ go as he guided him down the halls and towards the doors, his grip tight as they burst through the doors out onto the patio. “Look, man, I can walk myself!” JJ exclaimed, earning gasps and looks from the guests at him being escorted out. “I got legs. Can you see that, brother?”

The guard didn’t seem to care. “Come on.”

“I really appreciate what you did back there. Let me just walk out by myself.” He struggled against the guard’s grip before spotting the older gentleman from earlier who had asked JJ for a drink. At this point, JJ didn’t care for the attention he was drawing on himself, stumbling over to where the man stood. “Mr. Dunleavy, I see you got your drink. Good, that’s really nice of you. I’m actually gonna down that,” he said quickly before grabbing the drink and downing the whiskey in one gulp.

The man gaped at him, the guard apologized before pulling JJ away. Everyone was watching, murmuring, and JJ never had mastered the art of subtlety, so he made a commotion as he was so kindly escorted out. Might as fucking well go out with a bang.

“Let go of him!” JJ turned at the sound of Stella’s voice, standing up on the patio with Kie by her side. Their parents were behind them, quietly telling Stella to stay quiet while her gaze met JJ’s. He stopped, kind of fucking mesmerized by the sight of her. “You can’t just boot him!”

The guard stopped, still holding onto JJ, who was still watching her. “Excuse me, ma’am?” the guard asked.

“I invited him here,” Stella continued, her voice loud and carrying over the newfound silence amongst the crowd. Everyone was looking at her, but she didn’t seem to give a shit, and JJ kind of fell in love with her all over again.

Next to her, JJ could hear her mom say, “Stella, stop it.”

“No, she’s right,” Kie spoke up, glaring at her parents and then at the guard. “We’re members of this club.”

“Girls, stop it,” Mr. Carrera seemed to be saying to them.

JJ took the opportunity of the guard being distracted to jerk out of his grip and push him, wincing as the man went stumbling into a waiter carrying a tray full of glasses that went shattering on the ground. “Sorry about that!” JJ said over the commotion before looking towards the girls. He pointed at them, blonde hair falling over his shoulders. “Hey, mandatory power hour at Rixon’s, ladies.” His gaze found Pope’s amidst the crowd’s. “Pope, you as well, all right? Rixon’s cove. Let’s roll.” He was walking backwards, people making their way for him as they all gaped at him in disbelief and annoyance. JJ looked back at the girls, holding his arm up. “All right, girls, come on.” He gripped his wrist. “Workers of the world unite. Throw off your chains!”

His gaze met Stella’s, who was watching him in, what he realized with relief, was amusement. He saw the looks she and Kie exchanged, a silent communication going on between the twins while their parents most definitely murmured warnings at them. And then, much to JJ’s relief, Stella and Kie broke away before running down the stairs.

JJ grinned widely, finally facing John B, who had been watching the whole thing with a grin. “Colonel.”

John B returned the salute JJ offered him. “Captain.”

JJ grinned. “Mission accomplished, sir.”

John B laughed as JJ shouted for the girls, watching as Pope pulled off his apron and handed it to his dad before running towards John B and JJ, all the while Mr. Heyward yelled, “Don’t do this! Where the hell do you think you’re going?”

But Pope didn’t listen, instead high fived John B and JJ, before John B ran off ahead and the two of them faced the girls running over, as well. Kie and Pope ran side by side, laughing, and JJ opened his arms so Stella could run into his embrace, and he laughed into her neck as he lifted her off the ground with a spin before setting her down, grasping her hand in his, and following the others as they ran.

“Later, losers!” John B shouted over his shoulder towards the partygoers.

Stella was laughing, the sound brilliant and wonderful in JJ’s ears as Kie cheered while they ran. JJ couldn’t help but laugh as well. It may have been a shitty couple of days, but at least he had his friends.

*****

The fire crackled between them as Stella sat on a log next to JJ. The cicadas were chirping against the otherwise quiet of the night, and JJ had changed out of the waiter get up and was back in his signature hat, shirt, and shorts combo. The sight of the shark tooth necklace Stella had gifted him around his neck always made her chest tighten in the best way. She and Kie were still in their Midsummers dresses, but mosquitos and bugs never bothered Stella, so she sat comfortably as the fire warmed them.

She kept looking towards JJ, though—at the cuts and bruises on his face. The sight of him injured tightened her chest uncomfortably, made her stomach twist nauseatingly. No doubt his dad had done this to him, and it enraged her. She wished, with every fiber of her being, that she could get him as far away from his dad as possible. It hurt, so badly, to see JJ injured at the hands of his abusive father. JJ, despite what others may see as faults and flaws, was probably the best person she knew. He had such a big heart, a soul that deserved to be loved and protected instead of stepped on and beaten. She desperately wished she could protect him from the cruelty of others. He deserved someone to do that for him.

“Hey, guys. So, like, my dad’s already gonna kill me,” Pope said as he and John B dropped some sticks to feed the fire before sitting down. “So what’s this mandatory meeting about?”

Stella watched as John B looked at JJ, pointing at him as if he needed permission. JJ nodded. “Might as well tell him, man, before we’re gaffed.”

John B smiled like he held some kind of secret. “You ready for this?” he asked, looking at Kie and Stella.

The two girls nodded impatiently. “Yeah.”

The fire glowed against John B’s skin as he looked at all of them. “So, the gold never went down with the Royal Merchant.”

Stella blinked as Pope groaned. “Oh, my God. Here we go again with this.”

Next to her, JJ sat up, holding out a calming hand to Pope. “No, all right, wait. Hear him out, all right?” he asked, raising his eyebrows at Pope and the girls.

John B had a finger to his lips before continuing, “It’s been here this whole time.” He looked to Kie. “It’s on the island.”

Her expression was one of shocked disbelief. “Are you serious?” She looked at John B before laughing in astonishment. “Oh, my God.”

Pope held up a hand. “I’d like to voice my skepticism.”

Stella was still trying to wrap her head around what John B said as he stood up. “I’m sure you would, Pope, but can I please present you with my evidence, sir?”

Pope rolled his eyes. “Proceed.”

John B held up a piece of paper he pulled out from his bag, proceeding to tell them about a letter he had from Denmark Tanny, a slave who had survived the wreck of the Royal Merchant. He showed it to Pope and the girls, telling them that the slaves weren’t mentioned as crew members on the ship, but that his dad found the complete manifest—his big discovery. Stella listened attentively, mouth agape, looking towards JJ who nodded with a smile on his face. He knew all of this already, it seemed. It was probably why he and John B had been together earlier.

“So Tanny used the gold from the Merchant to buy his freedom,” John B was saying. “After that, he bought his farm. Drumroll, please, because that farm is,” he paused dramatically as the group of them slapped their knees with their hands. “Tannyhill Plantation.”

Kie stopped. “Tannyhill?”

John B nodded, standing like a professor giving a lecture. “Yeah. So, after that, he used his money to free even more slaves, and then he sold a shit-ton of rice, which pisses off all the white planters, and then they decide to lynch him. So on the day they were coming to get him, he writes a letter to his son as a farewell, and in the last line of that letter, he leaves a coded message about where to find the gold.”

John B had Stella’s attention as she hung onto his every word, shaking her head as she asked, “Where?”

John B grinned. “Harvest the wheat in parcel nine, near the water.” He held up a hand. “Except, there is no wheat. You see, wheat is code for gold. Check this out.” He walked over to Pope, pointing at something in the paper Pope was holding. Stella leaned over to look as well. “The gold is in parcel nine, near the water.”

Kie laughed in disbelief as Pope murmured, “Holy shit.”

John B slapped his arm. “All we need is an original survey map of the property and we’ve found the gold.”

He was grinning widely as JJ stood up. Pope slowly started, “Okay, so this might have a small chance of being actually true.”

Kie bounced excitedly where she sat. “Dude, it’s like King Tut!” she exclaimed, earning a laugh from Stella.

“I am a genius,” John B announced, just as JJ tackled him into a hug. “Hey, whoa!” They teetered slightly where they stood before JJ lifted John B up. “Hello! Fire! You’re near the fire. You’re gonna burn.”

JJ pulled away and Stella snickered as he said, “I’m so proud of you right now.”

John B nodded somberly. “Thank you. That’s really sweet of you.”

With a shake of her head, Stella interrupted the moment by asking, “Okay, so, guys.” They all looked towards her. “What’s the plan?”

John B pointed at her as JJ made his way back. “Good question. Sarah Cameron’s coming tonight. She’ll bring the original survey map—”

JJ sat down next to Stella just as her eyes widened, gaping at John B before her gaze instantly shot to Kie, who was frowning. “Hold on,” she interrupted. “Sarah? Wh-why Sarah?”

Stella tensed, looking between a bewildered Kie and a hesitant John B. She and Pope exchanged glances, both of them suddenly aware of the tension building in the open space. “Um—” John B trailed off.

JJ took off his head, muttering, “This is gonna be good.”

Stella looked at him, catching the wince he shot her way. Silently, she frowned at him, but JJ shook his head before nodding towards John B, who stood with his fists on his hips. “Sarah, um, she. . . She got me into the archives in Chapel Hill yesterday, and there’s where I got the letter.”

Kie’s face scrunched up even more, looking a mix of pissed off and confused, while Stella gaped up at John B. “You were in Chapel Hill with Sarah Cameron?”

John B’s throat worked. “Yeah, um. . .”

Next to her, JJ announced, “He was mackin’ on her.”

Stella gasped as she stared at him, wide eyed, and JJ nodded somberly while Pope coughed uncomfortably into his fist. Across the fire, Kie was glaring up at John B, and Stella hated the betrayal she could already see melting into Kie’s eyes. John B shot JJ a glare. “I wasn’t macking.”

JJ lifted his chin, unrelenting. “You were totally macking Sarah Cameron.”

He wasn’t helping the situation, so Stella lightly flicked his arm, prompting JJ to immediately look at her, pressing his cut lips together to keep himself from smirking. She narrowed her eyes in warning, and all JJ did was link their arms together and pull her to his side.

“I wasn’t macking on her, okay?” John B spoke up, exasperated. “I was using her for access.”

JJ scoffed lightly. “There was access, alright.”

Stella pinched his side at that, despite the inappropriate laugh threatening to burst. Kie wouldn’t appreciate it, and Stella could tell her twin was seconds away from pushing John B into the fire. “Did you tell her about the treasure?” Kie demanded.

John B’s eyes widened. “I was trying to get into the archives.”

Kie’s voice grew loud with disbelief. “Is that a yes?”

“I. . . I left out key details,” John B said, looking to the others for help. Stella pressed her lips together, pressed up against JJ. If anyone noticed, they didn’t say anything, not with the current situation going on. Poor John B wasn’t going to get help on this.

“Yo, what?” Kie scoffed with a shake of her head. “You let a Kook in on our secret? What about Pogue Lyfe? What about the T-shirt company, bro?”

Suddenly, it was a battle between Kie and John B, and all Stella, JJ, and Pope could do was sit on the sidelines silently and watch. “I was just using her for information,” John B tried.

Kie shot him a wry look. “Why don’t I believe you?”

John B was growing exasperated already, shaking his head at the unhelpfulness of the others before looking back at Kie. “I’m trying to make us filthy rich here, okay, so that we can pay off a boat, or. . . or, uh. . .” He looked towards Pope, “send you to autopsy school to study bed bodies.” Stella’s face scrunched up as JJ suppressed a snort and Pope blinked owlishly. “Look, you guys know me. Do I look like the type of person to fall for Sarah Cameron?”

JJ blinked. “Uh—”

Stella tilted her head at John B. “Do you want us to answer that?” She could guarantee neither he nor Kie would appreciate the answer.

John B held up a hand at Stella. “Just—just stop.”

Kie shook her head, her jaw tight as she frowned deeply. “Look, you don’t know her yet. I do! You can’t trust her.”

Pope chimed in, “Her brother did hit me in the back with a golf club.”

John B looked to Pope. “Rafe and Sara are different human beings.”

JJ’s cheek was resting on top of Stella’s head as he asked Kie, “What did she do to you, exactly?”

Stella sighed. Oh, boy.

Kie held up two fingers and jabbed them forward. “She’s like a. . . a spitting cobra.” Everyone blinked, bewildered. “First she—she blinds you, and then—”

Stella was already shaking her head, sitting up straight as she said to her struggling sister, “This is a bad analogy.”

“Listen to me!” Kie exclaimed, clearly fed up with the situation. “Whatever we get, she’s gonna try to take.”

Her words were met by silence, other than the crackling fire and chirping cicadas. John B stood quietly, throat working, clearly unsure of what to say as JJ and Pope stayed in their own awkward silence, too. Stella suppressed a sigh. It seemed as though it was up to her to smooth things over, even if she did slightly side with Kie in all of this. She didn’t have a begrudging hate towards Sarah like Kie did, but they were sisters, and Stella needed to show solidarity. But she could also, in some way, see John B’s side of things. God, this was gonna be tense.

“Kie,” Stella spoke up carefully, prompting Kie’s gaze to connect with hers. “Whatever John B promised Sarah, that’s his issue. But if she’s the only way we can get the map, then we need to let it happen.”

Kie’s jaw was hard. “I don’t want her involved. I don’t want to deal with her.”

“We won’t,” Stella said, glancing quickly at John B before looking at Kie again. “Let John B deal with her.” When Kie didn’t look entirely convinced, Stella let out a huff. “This is bigger than your beef with Sarah. I know you know that.”

Silence fell upon them for a few moments as they all waited for Kie to respond. She sat quietly, hands gripping the log she sat on, mulling over Stella’s words. Stella, in turn, hoped she got through to her sister. They needed Kie to be on board with this, no matter her issues with Sarah. They’d already gotten this far in their treasure hunt—an old beef shouldn’t hinder them now.

Stella remained quiet, waiting for Kie to make a decision, although she silently enjoyed the sensation of JJ’s fingers ghosting up and down her arm, their arms still linked together. It was calming when others would argue JJ was anything but.

“Fine,” Kie finally gave in and everyone instantly sat up. She glared at John B. “As long as I don’t have to speak to her.” John B pressed his hands together and brought them to his mouth, his grin already forming. “I just hope you know what you’re getting us into.”

After John B profusely thanked Kie for agreeing, they killed the fire and got up before heading back to the van, since they had to drive to meet Sarah. The twigs and leaves crunched under their shoes as they went, but as Pope, Kie, and John B chatted while walking ahead, Stella lingered back and grasped JJ’s hand to slow his pace down.

He looked at her, eyebrows raising. “What’s up?”

Stella looked up at him, her fingers ghosting on his chin. Finally, she let the worry come out in full force as she asked, “Are you okay? Did—” she stopped, throat working to get rid of the lump that formed. “Did your dad do this?”

JJ’s jaw worked, blue eyes glimmering under the moonlight as he looked down at her. “Got a good chunk of money to pay in restitution,” he told her. “The old man’s not too happy about it.”

Despite herself, Stella felt the hot tears sting in her eyes. She preferred the pink in JJ’s cheeks when they were flushed when he was happy or even drunk—not the pink and harsh reds that surrounded the cuts and marked the bruises. Stella wasn’t sure she ever hated anyone as much as she hated JJ’s dad. Her throat was tight, unable to say anything except to croak out his name, “JJ—”

“Hey, hey,” he shushed her, hands coming up to cup Stella’s that had been ghosting along his sharp jaw. He held her hand in both of his before pressing a kiss to it, blue eyes locked in her brown. “I’m okay, Stel. They’ll heal. It’s no big deal.”

Stella scoffed, though her concern remained clear. “You can’t actually expect me to believe that.” The flutters in her stomach returned when JJ kissed her hand, when he looked at her with those baby blue eyes she loved so much. She let out a breath. “You’re sleeping over at John B’s, right?”

JJ offered her a small dimpled grin. “When am I not?”

Stella pinned him with a stare. They’d stopped walking and she knew they had to move soon, but she took a breath. “Whenever you can, either sleep at John’s or you sleep at mine. Okay?”

JJ raised his eyebrows, though she could see his gaze soften at her offer. But he kept the mood light as he teased, “You inviting me to your room, shark bait?”

Her heart jumped. “Wouldn’t be the first time we shared a bed,” Stella pointed out. It was the truth. They shared hammocks, chairs, couches, and beds countless times before.

“Yeah, but it’s different now, isn’t it?” JJ questioned.

She looked at their hands before meeting his gaze again. “Is it?” she returned, throat working in anticipation. This was it. This was Stella asking JJ if whatever was happening between them was real, if something more was going to come out of it than a few kisses shared.

JJ’s gaze was intense, deep in a way she wasn’t used to as it stole her breath. “It is.” Steady, resolute, firm. No room for arguments. Thank fuckinf God.

Stella felt her grin appear before she could help it, relief warming her, and JJ mirrored her smile before ducking his head and pressing his lips to hers. She returned the kiss slowly, gently, not wanting to hurt his cut lips. Her heart jumped excitedly as he kissed her, but it was cut short, unfortunately, when John B’s voice cut through the air.

“Oi! What happened to no macking?”

The two of them pulled apart, but John B was grinning, as were Pope and Kie as they looked at the two of them. Stella’s face flushed as JJ slung his arm around her shoulders before they began walking towards their friends. “I’m sure we can make an exception,” JJ said smoothly, cockily.

John B’s grin was wicked. “If it means you’ll finally stop whining about how much you looooove Stel, then yes we will.”

Stella laughed, cheeks flushing, while JJ spluttered. “I never whined!” he protested as they joined their friends.

Pope rolled his eyes. “That’s true. You just bottled it all up inside because you’re emotionally constipated.”

“Sounds about right. I’m the one who made the first move,” Stella said, grinning widely at JJ’s betrayed expression, laughing as he used his arm around her to push her away. Stella continued laughing, along with the others, as she stumbled away, but didn’t lose her balance because JJ instantly caught her hand and pulled her back to his side.

“Whatever. I like an assertive woman,” JJ said with a charming grin, pressing a kiss to Stella’s temple as they neared the van.

Pointing at Pope and John B as they climbed inside, Kie said, “You two owe me twenty bucks, by the way.”

“No, we don’t!” John B argued as he started the van. “It’s after Midsummers.”

Pope nodded in agreement as Kie grinned wickedly before meeting Stella’s gaze as she sat on the back bench. With a giggle, Stella confessed, “It was actually yesterday. Before the summer movie series.”

John B and Pope’s gazes swung to JJ, who leaned back with his arms propped on top of the back bench casually as he said, “It’s true, boys.” John B shook his head and began driving, and JJ added, “Can’t believe you three bet on us.”

Sitting on the floor opposite of them, Pope scoffed. “Can’t believe it took you two this long to get together.”

“Okay!” Stella spoke up loudly, clapping her hands together once and shooting all of her friends a look. “We’re done talking about this.”

They reached their destination soon after that, a spot off in the middle of the woods where a tower stood, the apparent meeting spot John B had set up at Kildare Hawk’s Nest. As soon as he parked the car, Pope slid open the back van door as JJ slapped his knees. “Hit it, boys! We’re goin’. Recon mission.”

But before any of them could even get up, John B turned to face them. “Yo, uh. . . So, uh, I think I’m gonna do this one by myself. . . Tonight.”

Thunder rumbled overhead as Kie rolled her eyes and Stella and JJ fell back in their seats. She raised her eyebrows as JJ drawled a knowing, “Really?”

John B frowned. “What?”

JJ took off his head. “Nothin’.”

John B sighed, fixing his own hat atop his head. “I don’t want to spook Sarah with the peanut gallery.”

Kie shrugged, voice sharp and annoyed as she looked at John B. “I just don’t understand why we’re involving her at all.”

Stella let out a sigh as she leaned back, JJ now sitting on the ground next to her, his head resting against her leg as she crossed her arms over her chest. “Kie, we’re not involving her, okay?” John B said, exasperated. “It’s—it’s just, uh, like a—a business meeting. . . Thing.” On the ground, JJ made a crude motion with the joint he held and made a gulping sound, prompting Pope to grin in amusement while Stella rolled her eyes at John B. He was not selling this well. “Look, once we get what we need, we cut her loose, all right? Plus, we need the map.”

Yeah, okay. Stella wasn’t quite sure how much she believed that.

Kie pursed her lips, leaning forward as she stared John B dead in the eye. “Promise me nothing’s happening between you two.”

John B widened his eyes, answering breathily, “Nothing is happening, Kie.”

“I’m being serious.”

“Okay!”

Kie was still frowning, as if she was trying to get John B to get the message through her glare. “This isn’t about you. This isn’t about us. This is about her.” Stella pressed her lips together as she watched them. Kie’s beef with Sarah was so damn deep, she wondered if they would be able to do with if she wasn’t on board with Sarah helping out just this once. Personally, Stella didn’t give a shit about Sarah Cameron; she just didn’t like her out of principle for the way the end of that friendship hurt Kie. Everything else was between Kie and Sarah. “Dude, she’s gonna get inside your head. Just promise me nothing’s happening between you guys.”

John B looked at her as lightning flashed outside and thunder rolled. “I promise.”

“That was really believable,” JJ piped up.

Pope nodded. “A hundred percent believable.”

Stella lightly knocked JJ with her knee while glaring at Pope, effectively shutting both of them up. John B didn’t dignify them with a response, instead saying, “Anyways, um, I’m gonna take care of business.”

JJ shook his head, playing with the joint. “You’re gonna take care of it so well.”

Stella waved John B off dismissively. “We’ll just sit here,” she said dryly. “In the hot-ass car.”

Pope added, “While it’s lightning.”

They left the back door of the van open as John B got out, backpack on as he walked off towards the tower. The wind rustled outside, thunder rumbling every now and then to accompany the flashes of lightning that warned of a storm rolling in. “Kiara, holding onto your grudge is like drinking poison and thinking Sarah will die,” Pope said once John B was gone.

“Exactly,” JJ nodded.

Kie shot the two of them a withering stare before looking at Stella. Her twin merely shrugged. “You know I’m on your side,” Stella said. “But you can’t really tell John B what he can or can’t do.”

“I’m not trying to tell him what to do,” Kie shot back. “I’m just warning him against the kind of person I know Sarah is. She’s gonna fuck us over.”

“Look, we just—we just gotta trust that John B knows what he’s doing,” Pope tried to placate, looking between Stella and Kie. “That he’s using his head.”

Kie scoffed, not really convinced. “I know what head he’s using, and it isn’t the one on his shoulders.”

“That’s a good one,” JJ mumbled quietly where he sat.

They were quiet for a few minutes, just listening to the rumble of thunder, before conversation started up again. Pope had asked about what happened at Midsummers, and JJ launched into the story that led up to the Kooks cornering him in the men’s room while they waited for John B to return with the map.

JJ was saying, “Rafe and Kelce followed me—”

Kie cut him off. “Wait, do you guys hear that?” Her eyebrows furrowed together. “Sh.”

Stella frowned. “What?”

And then, in the distance, over the sound of the wind howling and thunder rumbling, came a girl’s voice yelling, “Please, somebody, help!”

All of their eyes widened, instantly on their feet as JJ grunted, “Oh, wait, no, I hear that.”

“Shit,” Pope cursed as they all stumbled out.

“What the fuck?” Stella muttered, gripping the skirt of her dress so it didn’t get tangled in her feet as she ran.

The voice, Stella realized, belonged to Sarah, and her heart started pounding as they ran towards the Hawk’s Nest, throat already drying in worry. The first thought in her head was that something went terribly wrong, that John B was hurt, and when they all cleared a group of trees towards the base of the Nest, Stella’s fear came true as a gasp ripped through her at the sight of John B lying on the ground, Sarah crying as she cradled his head and begged for him to wake up and open his eyes.

“Sarah! What happened?” Pope asked as they came running over, skidding to a stop, their breathing labored.

Sarah was crying, and Stella’s heart clenched at the sight of John B, unconscious, fear drenching her veins in ice as she instantly gripped Kie’s hand. “I don’t know what to do,” Sarah sobbed. “He needs help. Topper shoved him.”

Anger heated Stella’s skin, momentarily taking over the terror trembling her body as JJ demanded, “Where the hell is he?”

But Sarah just cried, “Oh, please, please, please get help. I don’t care who. Just call someone.”

Stella pushed Pope away as she panted, “Go! Call 911! Go!”

Pope took off and Kie shouted after him, “Pope, hurry!”

They all stood, breathing labored and hearts pounding, unsure of what to do as their friend lay unconscious. Worry weighed heavily on them all, to the point where Stella couldn’t even stop to question the way Sarah was holding John B to her, crying for him, kissing him and begging for him to wake up. No, nothing else mattered other than their injured friend, the tears stinging in Stella’s eyes as she prayed to anyone who was listening that he would wake up. Soon. Now. Please.

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mycouchpullsoutbutidont · 3 years ago

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Need to write all this down because I just stared into space for a solid 30 min just dreaming about this scenario / potential fanart comic that I could draw of Ben x Devi (I’ve been obsessing over them for the past couple of days and it’s probably due to me not having good dick since god knows forever)

(Draft)

So the comic will start off with Devi being sort of upset and horny, reminiscing about her interaction with Paxton - maybe a really hot makeout sesh and they’re about to have sex - except last minute, Devi gets cold feet and it’s sexually frustrating for Paxton. So Devi is hella embarrassed and mad at herself for pulling back. She tries to initiate again, but Paxton is just like, “forget it, you’re not ready,” and Devi is like “no, I want it.” And Paxton pauses, looks at her, and shakes his head like “no, you’re not. It’s okay. I don’t want you to feel pressured to do something you’re not ready for.” Which Devi feels insulted by and is terribly sorry. Paxton just smiles and kisses her on the forehead and is like, “I think I should drop you off. It’s getting late.”

End daydream. Devi reels in secondhand embarrassment and is mad at herself for stopping. She vows not to do that again and, of course, in typical Devi fashion, she thinks to herself, “well, if we end up having sex the next time we makeout, I better do my due diligence and research into how to properly have sex.”

And what other way to learn about something than to study up on it?

She begins thinking about how she could do her research. She’s studied anatomy before and knows the basics - the testicles, the glans, urethra, sperm, prostate, yadda yadda. And she’s taken health class and sexual education on how to put on condoms (on bananas- nonetheless - San Fernando valley had pretty liberal sex ed).

But she’s never seen what sex looked like. Never heard it. Never smelled it. Never experienced it from afar or visually.

That’s when she thought of it - porn.

She goes to her room, opens up her laptop, and googles “porn.” Search results pop up, and she catches glimpse of some of the keywords.

“Perky oiled brunette shoves two cocks in both holes”

“Slut sucks slobbers on big veiny dick”

“Curvy sexy ebony rides and squirts before getting facial”

The ache in her groin gnawed even more and—did she just twitch down there? With her blood rushing to her cheeks and between her legs with each horny, perverted word that her eyes came across, her fingers tremble and her body - her breasts - feels like it’s tingling, aching and needing to be roughly handled.

Nervous and horny, she clicks on the first one: porn hub.

She enters a site of orange and black - a pop up window asks if she’s 18 or older. She hesitates, feeling dirty and corrupt. She clicks on enter.

Squares of images lined in a grid populate, organized by category. She skims the words - “Anal”, “BBW,”“Cumshot,” “Compilations”—the list went on and on.

One of the categories catches her eye: “Desi.”

It was both laughable and eye-opening to see that category. A category just for Indian women? She was both amazed and flattered, and for just a brief moment, she wondered if her ancestors could see her.

Her father, she thinks.

Oh god, why is she thinking of him all of a sudden.

Ashamed, she shakes her head, exits out of the window, and closes her laptop. A cool chill runs down her spine, calming her excitement, chilling the pulsating heat that had pooled between her legs. She’s embarrassed for thinking of her dead father and for even thinking of looking up porn. She’s ashamed and pushes her laptop away, now doubly frustrated at herself and for still being sexually pent up. She gets up to grab water in the kitchen, hoping the ice cold water will help temper her aching need.

The doorbell rings.

Devi’s ears perk, and she furrows her brows. Who could this be, she thinks, as she ran down the stairs, walking to the door to peep through the hole.

She gasps, “oh crap.”

It’s Ben!

“Shoot, I forgot!”

Ben was supposed to come over to work on a history project with her - and have dinner, she remembers, since she told her mom and her mom insisted.

“Ah, yes Ben! I remember that boy with the massive pimple on his face who cried in my office!” Devi smirks at Nalini’s comment but then remembers, dammit, why did her mom also want him for dinner?

She opens the door, deepens her frown, a blush creeping on her face as she locks her brown eyes with light blue ones.

“Sup, loser,” Ben says, and Devi almost loses her blush except he smirks, a twinkle in his eye, and a slightly lifted brow. Devi’s eyes trail down over his shirt which clings to his pecs and biceps, and she feels the blush coming back.

And then she notices his strong arms and hair and veins—

“Fuck you,” she says, rolling her eyes, quickly turning her back against him so he doesn’t see her blush harder.

Jeez, what’s wrong with her today? Devi thought (as well as Ben). Why was she so god damn horny?

“What’s your problem, David?” Ben asks. He looks around Devi’s living room. “Where’s your mom?”

Devi shrugs. “Probably at work with her coworkers. Mom’s trying to bring more fun and benefits to motivate them, she claims.”

“Ah, that explains it.” Ben is a little relieved since Devi’s mom was a tough one to please. But, he knew that Nalini had a soft spot for him. (Or, at least he had a 95% confidence level in that thought).

“Actually, kanna, I’m just finish up cooking dinner here with Kamala,” Nalini chimed.

Ben and Devi snapped their heads towards the direction of the kitchen where Nalini and Kamala were cleaning up.

“And if you had helped me like you should have done, you’d know that I was busy cooking up aloo gobi dosas before leaving for my work event later tonight.”

Ben sniffed deeply, the aroma of ghee and asafetida and cumin wafting in the air. How did Devi not notice her mom was cooking with the delicious smells dancing in her home?

“S-sorry mom, I forgot. I just have been feeling a bit out of it today,” Devi replies sheepishly. “Kind of feel hot.” Which was true. Something was terribly wrong with her today for some reason. It felt like there was this growing ache down in her groin that needed to be filled, and with each step she took, every friction against her clit would send shivers of pleasure all over her body.

Before Ben could react, Nalini immediately runs to Devi’s side and places the back of her hand on Devi’s forehead.

“Hm,” Nalini scrunches her brows. “I don’t feel a fever, but you do have a slight blush. Devi, if you’re feeling sick, please don’t get us all sick and go to your room. You should’ve told us and Ben earl—“

“I’m not sick!” Devi blurts, shaking her head. Nalini is taken aback.

“I- I guess,” Devi lowers her voice, trying to come up with an excuse for why she was dickstracted—er, distracted.

“I feel burnt out from studying for AP physics and AP calculus this week,” Devi lies.

“Amateur,” Ben scoffs, smirking. He looks at Devi who snaps to look, looking both mad and flustered, her cheeks tinted slightly redder than normal. It was enough to wipe the smirk off his face. Was she okay?

“I’m not letting you show me up, you jerk!”

Yeah, she was okay, he thought.

“Devi!” Nalini’s jaw fell and she looked like she was about to chew Devi’s face off which terrified Ben.

“N-no, sorry Ms Vishwakumar, that was totally my fault and uncalled for,” Ben cuts in. He looks at Devi who still looks mad at him (but less so, maybe a bit of relief).

“Would it be all right if we study first and then eat dinner?” Ben asks, not sure whether to direct the question to Nalini or Devi first.

“Dinner will get cold,” Nalini warns. “But, I must leave now, so you two can do what you will and whatever regarding dinner.” As she runs towards the door and grabs the keys, Nalini whips her head back and stares daggers at Devi.

“Devi, behave please,” she says through gritted teeth before shutting the door.

Devi sighs in relief and turns to Ben.

“So,” she says, heading towards the stairs. “Let’s get moving. We don’t have much time before dinner gets cold and it’s bedtime.”

Ben nods, walking behind under her. He looks up - damn she has a nice ass - curvy and round. He notices she is wearing a pretty short skirt, and—was that…

Ben blinks twice in disbelief, looking away before looking again. It was no doubt what it was—sticky wet lubricant-like liquid. Running down her inner thigh. Or maybe that’s sweat, he told himself.

Ben blushes. Wow, he felt like such a pervert for staring up her skirt. That and they were going up to her room. To study. Yeah.

(But damn her butt, her curves)

As they enter her room, Ben immediately plops down on the floor, opens his bag quickly, pulls out his AP European history book and notebook, and opening them and flipping through pages (nervously?) and quietly.

“Dude, you’ve been eerily silent this entire time,” Devi torts, and she can’t blame him, can’t blame how nerve wracking it was to have your chiseled (wait shut up Devi) arch nemesis in her room - supposedly a safe haven - to study. Come to think of it, why did she let him in her room? She began to regret her decision, especially when she realized that her nervousness was also turning into heated excitement, her breasts were tingling with desire and even her clit—

“You said you wanted to hurry, so here I am, focused, David,” Ben snaps. He ignores the fact that she’s not wearing a bra and that her tank top isn’t enough to hide her hardened nipples.

(Her cleavage looked so inviting, he dare not stare too long at her tits)

“Actually, for once, you didn’t use your brain and suggest we work downstairs and eat dinner simultaneously instead,” Devi retorted. “Let me just grab my laptop and we can go back downstairs to study and eat dinner at the same time.”

“Don’t put the blame on me for your lack of brain usage,” Ben snapped back, rolling his eyes.

Devi throws a stuffed animal at his head, and he barely dodges it.

“Asshole,” she mutters as she gets on her knees and reaches over her mattress and duvet, grabbing her Macbook.

That’s when Ben saw her soaking wet panties.

Heat rushed from his head to his other head, his cock jumping.

Holy fuck, he thought, is she doing this on purpose? Why did she have to put her ass up like that? Was this intentional? This was a little too cliche, he thought, and porn-like. Girl wearing no bra and apparently soaking wet invites horny boy over to her room and puts her ass in the air while in bed?

“Uh, yeah, yep, sure, that’s probably a better idea,” Ben stammers, trying to ignore his growing boner and grabbing his books. “Lemme just stuff—“

(Those boobs)

“—these boo….ooks. Books. In my bag.” He pushes the last book in his backpack and zips it up.

Oh dear god, did she notice his almost Freudian slip?

He glances over at her, and she’s got a raised brow. “Uh, okay, weirdo, did you just almost say boobs?” Devi says.

“What, no?” Ben says. “You weird pervert.”

“Don’t lie! I saw you staring at my boobs! You’re the pervert!”

“What kind of crap are you projecting onto me for? I’m innocent!”

“You’re like the least innocent person I know!”

“That’s definitely not true,” Ben scoffs. “And even if it was, it’s better than being an Unfuckable Nerd.”

That did it. That was the straw on the camel’s back. Devi was enraged, insulted, and sexually frustrated. Ben had dug into a deep insecurity of hers, a wound that she desperately wanted to heal and prove herself out of. For all her life, she had never felt desirable, never had a boy flirt with her or ask her out or even given her attention. When Ben first called her an “Unfuckable Nerd,” she didn’t show how painful the sting of his insult was to her lonely heart. She did not want to be the forever nerdy virgin who was seen as sexually undesirable and —god forbid—ugly.

(Was that why Paxton pushed her away, she thought briefly?)

“Shut up!” she yells before chucking her laptop at him. She misses by a meter (thank god her eye hand coordination was god awful), but she’s not sure if she was even intending on hitting him with the laptop. Still, the moment the laptop flew out of her hands and onto her carpeted floor (with a nice thud), Ben knew he had made a huge mistake. And so did Devi (though she dare not be the first one to admit that she was wrong).

Except she was really wrong this time.

“Devi!” Ben exclaimed. “I’m—“

“Oh fuck Ben, I’m—“

“So sorry.”

Both Ben and Devi apologized simultaneously, with heavy regret and a tint of fear in their voices.

“N-no, I crossed the line, Devi,” Ben said. “It’s really…misogynistic and objectifying of me to call you Unfuckable.”

Because you’re quite the opposite, he thought.

Devi acknowledged internally the apology, but it still stung painfully in her heart. She wanted to let him know that it still hurt.

(Especially hearing that term from him).

Still, she knew she was also incredibly at fault for almost injurying Ben.

“I’m also sorry, I really…really should’ve not thrown my laptop at you. I could’ve injured you really badly.” Devi dropped down to her knees, getting down to Ben’s level since he was still on the floor, a bit shaken by her throwing her laptop at him.

“I guess I deserved it,” he said. He looked over at the laptop on the ground.

“But if you did break it, don’t expect me to pay for a new one,” he said with a smirk.

Devi rolled her eyes. “I’m not your sugar baby; I wasn’t expecting you to pay for a new one.” She crawls towards her MacBook (Ben consciously looking away since she’s on her knees again) and opens it, praying to herself that it was still functioning.

She tapped on her keyboard multiple times.

Blank screen.

“Oh fuck,” she whispered. She kept tapping on the keys of the keyboard.

No response.

“Crap!” Devi hissed. “Oh no, no no no!” She was sort of panicking. “I knew this would happen.”

“So why did you throw the laptop then?” Ben slyly asked.

“Not. Helpful. Ben.”

Ben scoots closer to Devi, wraps his arm around her—

Devi is shocked, his graze making her melt into his touch, sending the pent up frustration and heat back to her ache and pussy—

But, Ben was only merely reaching around to press down on her laptop’s button for a couple of seconds before the lock screen shone back on.

Oh, Devi thought, a feeling of defeat and disappointment settling in her chest. He wasn’t hugging her.

But, hey her laptop’s alive.

“Oh thank god,” she says, breathing a sigh of relief before turning to him - wow he’s somehow pretty close to her face and body and oof, his proximity sets a fire across her entire body —

“Consider yourself lucky. Looks like you don’t have to buy me a new laptop,” she says, smirking.

Ben scoffs.

“In your dreams, David.”

Oddly enough, Ben’s arm is still wrapped around her, his presence warm and enveloping. Devi is tempted to lean into it but knows better (especially not now when she has been hot and bothered all day).

She types her password in her Lock Screen, hits enter, and gasps in horror as she realized that she didn’t properly close out her browser full of porn -

(which is now blasting moans of cam girls fucking the selves with sex toys all thanks to livejasmin)

“Oh shit!” Devi immediately slams her screen shut again.

But it was too late.

Ben’s brows shoot up, eyes widening and jaw dropping in guffaw. A laugh of disbelief escapes from his throat.

“Holy crap! And you called ME the pervert?” Ben laughs. “Who’s the pervert now?”

But damn, wow, he’s turned on.

He tightens his arm around Devi in a proper hug now, pressing her closer to him, and leans in, an inch from her ear, whispering —

“You’re a dirty girl”—

Before pressing his lips on hers.

#ben gross #devi vishwakumar #ben x devi #never have i ever #fanfic #devi x ben #nhie #mycouchpullsoutbutidont

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milkypompon · 4 years ago

Text

ℂ𝕙𝕒𝕡𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝟙 | 𝔻𝕣𝕚𝕗𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕋𝕙𝕠𝕦𝕘𝕙𝕥𝕤 𝕠𝕗 𝕥𝕙𝕖 ℕ𝕚𝕘𝕙𝕥 Zuko x Reader

𝔼𝕩𝕥𝕣𝕒 ℍ𝕠𝕥 𝕊𝕚𝕗𝕦 ℍ𝕠𝕥𝕞𝕒𝕟

ℤ𝕦𝕜𝕠 𝕩 ℝ𝕖𝕒𝕕𝕖𝕣

< ℙℝ𝔼𝕍𝕀𝕆𝕌𝕊 || ℕ𝔼𝕏𝕋 >

𝕄𝔸𝕊𝕋𝔼ℝ𝕃𝕀𝕊𝕋 𝕆𝔽 𝕋ℍ𝕀𝕊 𝔹𝕆𝕆𝕂

𝕀𝕞𝕒𝕘𝕚𝕟𝕖 | Aang and Y/N are siblings who share powers, but Y/N was hidden from the Four Nation’s eyes to avoid the possibility of their separation. Then, Zuko meets the flamboyant and flirtatious Y/N for the first time at the Western Air Temple where he attempts to join the tight-knit Gaang.

𝔸𝕦𝕥𝕙𝕠𝕣'𝕤 ℕ𝕠𝕥𝕖 | Do I regret titling this fic “Extra Hot Sifu Hotman”? ABSOLUTELY… Not. Anyways, enjoy part 2 because some people requested for it! (Don’t tell anyone this, but I was gonna write it even if no one wanted it. That’s just the power of a writer.)

In this chapter, we encounter more interactions with Sokka and Y/N! As well as a small slice of Aang and Y/N’s life back in the Southern Air Temple a hundered years ago.

𝔼ℕ𝕁𝕆𝕐

The crescent moon dimly lit each of the rooms at the Western Air Temple. There was nothing special about the bedrooms, Y/N and Aang were used to the minimalistic architecture of their home, so this was nothing new. Only a musty bed pushed along the concrete wall with a blanket that frayed on the edges could be seen.

Despite the thick layer of dust that coated the room, Sokka slept soundly in bed. He faced the wall, arm bent and tucked underneath his head to act as a makeshift pillow. Every so often, a creak of the bed’s wooden frame could be heard from the hallways, as he shifted.

“Sokka… are you sleeping?” Y/N knelt onto their knees and breathed on Sokka’s neck. He was a heavy sleeper, only ever reacting if he was in real danger. His body knew, Y/N knew this too, so they licked their index finger and probed Sokka’s ear.

Sokka squealed like a runt, “Ahh-”

“Shut the fuck up! You’ll wake up the dead Air Nomads,” Y/N hissed and clasped Sokka’s mouth with their hand.

He licked their hand without hesitation.

“Okay, I’m not even gonna act disgusted for myself because you don’t even know where this hand has been,” Y/N quipped, wiping it on his cheek.

“What are you doing here at an UNGODLY HOUR, not to mention, violating and probing my virgin ear,” Sokka spat, but keeping his voice low.

“Oh sorry, that was your first time getting Wet-Willied? Well, I’m honored to be your first, babe,” Y/N rolled their eyes.

Sokka slowly sat up, planting his feet on the ground. He swiveled his neck in circles to relieve it from knots and aches. Patting the spot next to him, Y/N sat on the creaking bed.

“But, seriously, what’s going on?” There was a genuine look of concern in his eyes, one that never failed to cause Y/N to blush slightly. Since the siblings released Aang and Y/N from the iceberg, Sokka and Y/N developed an unusual bond that curated overtime thanks to cheap jokes and being the duo who was the comic-relief of the team.

“Thank goodness it’s nighttime,” Y/N thought to themself shyly.

Y/N craned their neck down, their hands on their lap with thumbs dwindling around. “I… uh, couldn’t sleep? Despite everything going on, shouldn’t I be thankful that we finally have the time to drop dead and shut our eyes?” There was obviously something more, but for now they just needed help to at least take a nap.

Sokka offered them a small smile, “I’ll bet you my boomerang that you’re not the only one who visited a friend in the middle of the night.” He took their hand and together, they walked down the hallway.

Just as Sokka implied, the flickering light of a warm fire danced near the snuggling bodies of Aang and Katara. Toph slept, mouth agape, with her head leaning back against the fluff of Appa. Her hand laid on Momo’s head that rested on her leg. Momo’s ear twitched as the pair neared the almost laughable sight. Even when there were decent bedrooms not too far away, they always managed to sleep like this. But there was one person who preferred to be secluded away from the rest of them…

Sokka released Y/N’s hand and walked towards two sleeping mattresses that sat a few feet apart (which the Gaang probably set up for them). He motioned for them to lay back and take as much shut eye as they could before the sun rose up to another dreadful, anxiety-filled day.

Y/N sauntered and plopped their back onto the mattress with an arm slung over their eyes to cover the bright orange and yellow flames. The fire vaguely reminded them of the new pair of eyes they met just this morning. They couldn’t quite put their finger on it, but there was a deep, hole that one couldn’t simply climb out of if you looked into it for too long.

Was it emptiness? Longing? Regret?

There wasn’t a single person in this fractured family that hadn’t felt those feelings at least once. Y/N sure as hell knew these emotions all too well, maybe even beyond them, but for once they were dumbfounded for what the supposed “evil Prince of the Fire Nation” felt.

Maybe Zuko felt all three?

“Zuko regrets his past doings because he knew he would feel emptiness if he succeeded in capturing the Avatar, well now Avatars… Now he longs for what we have…” Y/N came to a profound realization. They made a mental note to give themself a high five tomorrow morning for using all three words.

It was an unspoken truth that each of them felt empty without the presence of another friend, whether they were wide awake or fast asleep. Y/N too needed the assurance of someone being able to pull them back if they were about to do something heroic, bluntly said, downright stupid.

Decades ago, the monks repeated to Y/N and Aang more than to any of the other Air Nomads to detach oneself from worldly desires and relations, even the familial ones. At night, when Monk Gyatso would visit the siblings he’d dismiss the other monks’ lectures.

He’d whisper, “You two were created by bones of a warrior’s fire, the heart of mother nature, the clear eyes of the ocean.” Monk Gyatso paused and leaned into the faces of the children, “And most importantly… the mind of a reckless Air Nomad!” The three giggled quietly.

A small smile emerged from Y/N’s mouth as they reminisced on their last memory of the siblings’ father-like figure before the pair escaped out of anger as they were threatened to be taken away from him, due to Avatar duties.

𝔼𝕟𝕕𝕟𝕠𝕥𝕖 | Thank you for all the positive comments on the last chapter! Please take it easy one me bc this is my first time writing a series, or what I’d like to call, a book! Let me know how I’m doing and how to make the characters feel more lively!!

【ℝ𝔼ℚ𝕌𝔼𝕊𝕋 𝕋𝕆 𝔹𝔼 𝕆ℕ 𝔸 𝕋𝔸𝔾𝕃𝕀𝕊𝕋 𝕋ℍℝ𝕌 𝕄𝕐 𝕀ℕ𝔹𝕆𝕏】

(If you don’t see yourself, please message me again! I’m sorry, I’m new to the whole fanfic writing + Tumblr stuff hahaha!)

@haylaansmi @lizzyumi @ruinedlies @anime-simp @akariblue @uber-scooter @celamoon @rhodeisland101 @flloooooopppa @mackandcheese24 @samschaoticblogs @ilovespideyyy @kisskissshutmydoor @og-disaster-bi @emogril @vlovers-world @samsmultifandomblogs @plutaars @kinismanditory @shephard17895 @eridanuswave @iguessthefloorislava @a-hopeless-fan @mybnkjj @mahleeyuh @elammd

#zuko x reader #zuko #zuko imagines #sokka x reader #sokka #sokka imagines #atla #atla imagines #avatar #avatar imagines

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willddheartt · 4 years ago

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Just Another Shade Of Blue | JJ Maybank

Summary: You’re a kook, and somehow, you’ve become friends with the infamous Kook hater, JJ Maybank. For summer break your father is letting you take a trip anywhere, with whoever you’d like for a few days, as a “I’m sorry your mom and I are divorcing, but please love me” present. Who else would you take other than the one person who you think could use a little vacation from the outer banks?

Inspired By: If They Only Knew - Alfie Arcuri & Bittersweet - musicbyblanks

Warnings: angst(?)

Word Count: 3.3k

A/N: This was supposed to be a Rudy imagine/fic/one shot but I find it incredibly hard to write for real people so I changed it to JJ. I hope the ones who asked to be tagged in the Rudy one don’t mind the substitution but I was working on it for too long and nothing was working out how I would have liked so here we are with the same concept but inspired by a different song. This turned out way longer than I expected.

Masterlist

Tag List: @afterglowsb-tch13 @n1ghtsh4d3-67 @hucklebaefinn @milamaybank @marianas-studyblr

The last few months were not easy for you. Your parents had finally been filing for the divorce they threatened for many years, but that in now way made the fighting stop, if anything it made it far worse. Almost every night for the last month both your mother and father ended up in a screaming match downstairs over something small and insignificant. At first it was what college you were going to, then where you were going to live, and the cherry on top, how they weren't trying to control your life. Even though that was completely true.

Tonight was no different. Your mother was screaming at your father about how you should not be allowed to go off to a completely different country alone without a parent. You knew the trip was only even mentioned because your father wanted you to stay with him once the devorce was finalized, which you had no problem with but if you were getting a free trip, to wherever you wanted in the world, with all expenses paid and spending money, you weren't going to turn it down.

Although your father got lucky with investing into some real estate company and you now had more money than you knew what to do with, You had never been one for the Kook lifestyle. The thought of getting into places just because you had money was never appealing, and the thought of hanging around shallow rich people was something that sounded like the lowest ring of hell to you. You found comfort and friendship within the small family of Pogues. They didn’t seem to care about your social status, as long as you were there for them, they were there for you. Like tonight.

You’ve had enough of the screaming coming from downstairs, after climbing out of your second floor window you made your way to the lake house you have spent many nights at. The chateau was on the other side of the island but the walk was better than listening to your parents for god knows how long, they could go on for hours. The house was dark, no lights were on except for the one outside above the front door, it was light with a dim amber glow that helped guide you up the few stairs. You let yourself in, not bothering to knock seeing as the brunette who inhabited the home was probably well asleep by now. You weren’t surprised when you saw JJ sitting on the couch, he stayed with John B a lot, but you were surprised to see he still seemed wide awake.

“Hey,” You sighed, walking into the living room “What are you doing here, it's late?” The blonde asked, getting straight to the point. “Fighting again,” You shrugged, sitting on the couch next to the tired looking boy. “Divorce stuff or different shit?” “Kook stuff,” You shrugged, knowing he probably didn’t want to hear it seeing as how he couldn’t wrap his head around how people could have so much money and still have problems. “Shoot,” He said, surprising you.

With your eyebrows raised and eyes wide you turned to him, “Really?” The blonde shrugged, “Why not, got nothing better to do,” You nodded, “Dad said I could go anywhere I wanted for three days, all expenses paid and he’d give me however much money I wanted to spend on shit, as his way of saying ‘I love you please stay with me once the devorce is over’ and mom’s mad because she doesn’t think I should go to another country alone,” You sighed, crossing your arms once you had finished explaining. “Kook stuff,” You repeated. “Wow, you’re right. Kook Shit,” JJ chuckled You nodded, “I told you,” You thought the boy was just going to shrug it off, and move on because it was after all, kook shit, but he surprised you with what he said next. “You said she’s mad because she doesn't want you going alone, right?” the blonde asked “Yeah, pissed,” You nodded “Why don’t you take someone with you, I mean by the sounds of it your dad is going to give you whatever you want until the divorce is done,” The boy shrugged, “I’d take advantage if that if I were you,”

You thought about what he was saying for a second. In the first offer from your dad, he did mention you could take a friend, any friend, he didn’t say they had to be of the female gender. An idea popped into your head, one that was surely to piss off your mother further. “Do you want to come with me?” You asked, catching JJ off guard “What? I don’t have the money for that,” He said “All expenses paid,” You said, “Dad said I could take anyone I wanted, so i'm asking you,”

JJ continued to shake his head and give you the normal spew of excuses, you'd heard them a thousand times when you asked him to come over or stay the night, even if it was your dad asking him to stay for supper. But this time, you weren't taking no for an answer. “No, I'm not giving up until you say yes. Will you, JJ Maybank, accompany me in an all expenses paid trip to Paris, France?” You asked, flashing your best attempt at puppy dog eyes, the same ones that had worked on your parents so many times before, the same ones that had been used to get you and your friends out of heaps of trouble in the past. The blonde boy held eye contact with you for a few seconds before looking away and shaking his head at you, “Fine, fine, I’ll go with you,” He sighed in defeat, chuckling. You grinned, “Yay, we leave Thursday, 5:00am,” “Five am?” JJ said, shocked, “That's so early,” “So?” You shrugged, “Stay over Wednesday, it will save us time and will make sure you're there.” “Fine, alright. It looks like I’m going to Paris with you,” He smiled slightly. You grinned, “I cannot wait,”

JJ had never been on a plane before, flying and airports were a new thing for him. When the plane started to take off he looked terrified, but nothing compared to the way his eyes shot open when you hit your first patch of turbulence. It was comical for you, as much as you tried to calm him down you couldn’t hold back your laughter to do so. But the boy had no shortage of sarcastic comebacks. Your flight landed at 1:00 PM, giving you time to settle back onto the ground before dinner. JJ seemed relieved when the plane’s wheels finally touched down onto the cement of the runway.

The two of you were sharing a hotel room. The room only had one decent sized bed. At the time of booking the room your father assumed you’d be bringing along a female friend, so there would be no issue in sharing a bed. You and JJ stood in the doorway looking at the one bed, saying that it would be alright but in all honesty neither of you have shared a bed together before and this was going to be something new. Even in the Chateau, you never bunked together in the spare room, or even at your house, he always bunked on the pull out couch in the corner.

By the time you were fully settled into the surroundings you’d been starving from the journey, the hotel was surviving dinner but it didn’t look like something either of you wanted to try and so the search for something more american was in way. You walked down the busy Paris street, your arm linked with JJ’s to ensure you wouldn’t get lost, as you looked for any kind of burger joint restaurant. Your camera hung around your neck alerting everyone you were tourists, but that wasn’t the only dead give away. You were in no big rush to find a place to eat even though you were hungry, you both seemed to forget about that once you stepped foot out of the hotel. The old buildings and beautifully detailed architecture work caught your attention as the setting sun flashed golden rays upon the bricks that built up the city, leaving a golden hue hanging in the air to engulf you. It was summer in Paris and it had been everything you’d imagined it could be. It was beautiful and warm and it felt like the rest of the world didn’t exist as you walked down the street with the Pogue, you were finally in a place where nobody focused on your social titles such as Kook or Pogue, you could just be.

After dinner as the two of you were walking through the winding streets that were lit by amber glowing street lights, it felt like it was just the two of you in the world. Like whatever life back home didn’t matter. There were groups of teens scattering the streets, laughing and messing around with their friends. It felt like everything in the night was infinite, like you didn’t have to worry about tomorrow because everything was going to stay exactly how it was. You only had one full day in Paris, your flight to go back home leaves on Sunday, but you were going to make the most of it with the blonde boy who was accompanying you.

“So?” You asked as you walked down the cobblestone path holding JJ’s hand, “What do you think?” His eyes were glittered with yellow and orange reflections from the lights as you looked at him, he was in awe of the beautiful city, “Its- wow. I’ve never seen anything like it.” He sighed, with a small smile. “I’ve always wanted to come here since I was a kid. I thought I could have a romance like in the movies but I ended up falling in love with the city,” You sighed, a content smile came to rest upon your lips. “A romance like the movies?” JJ turned to you with a teasing smirk. “Hey,” You playfully hit his shoulder. “It's beautiful, alright.” “I never took you for that kind of person,” He shrugged You nodded, “I know, I don't mention or even pursue it. Somethings feel best left unsaid, because then they cant fall apart on you,” “If you never try to find it you’ll never know if it had the chance to fall apart,” he pointed out “Maybe that's for the best,” You shrugged, leaning out over the side of the bridge to get a photo from one of the canals. Although you felt like that conversation was far from over, JJ dropped it for the moment being.

The city was even more beautiful in the day but you did really prefer it at night. You dragged JJ out of bed bright and early to go sightseeing. You spent the day walking around the historic city, wandering through the winding streets, looking through small shops as well as paying a very thorough visit to the street lined with tourist vendors. The line for Notre-Dame was long but so worth it. Inside the beautiful gothic cathedral was huge stained glass windows that sent colourful patterns onto the floor. It was packed, you followed the direction of the crowd but clung onto JJ’s arm so you didn’t lose him, something that you have become accustomed to in the last 24 hours. It was dim inside but there was still enough light to see where you were going, and be able to make out the beautiful stone work on the inside of the cathedral. As you were coming back around to the exit, security began pushing people aside, clearing the way and holding you back with a red velvet rope. At first when you were grabbed by the shoulders and pulled away from JJ you thought you were being thrown out for something but quickly you came to realize what was happening and you were able to get back over to the other side of the cleared path to JJ’s side again. Your heartbeat in your throat as you took a breath. “Jesus christ, that scared the shit outta me” You sighed once you were able to continue walking The boy you clung to once again nodded. “Me too, I thought we were getting thrown out,” He chuckled

As the sun was setting you took one last tour around the tourist shops, making your last purchases before heading off to the eiffel tower. Thankfully you purchased your tickets earlier in the day and you didn’t have to wait in the winding line up. You and JJ walked through, flashing your tickets to the workers and to the elevator operator. Once everyone piled out one side you were allowed on. You were pressed up against the very back of the elevator. Inside the metal cart that was hauling you up the tower was small, it couldn't have been anymore than 4’x4’ but it felt like almost 50 people squeezed in, all eager to overlook the city and see all the twinkling lights from above. Once you came to the first stop JJ pulled you off with him. Slowly you made your way around, looking out over the city and snapping a few photos from 187 feet up. The streets and lights were still very much visible, you could still see the people walking on the sidewalks. Without wasting any more time you got inline for the elevator going to the very top. If you thought you were squashed before, you didn’t even know what to call it this time. It felt like the ride to the very top took far longer than the one to the first level. You were pressed into the corner, with JJ mostly in front of you. Both doors opened this time, you were able to slip out the back doors that you were pressed into on the way up, and finally you got to look out over the city. It looked almost magical, like you had entered another dimension from the slow moving elevator.

Everything on the ground, 906 feet below you, faded away into a small dot. The people weren’t even visible, only the lights from the moving cars alerted you there were still people down there. Quickly you snapped a few shots of the city scape below you that was lit with amber glowing lights, before turning your camera and pointing it was the blonde boy who was standing next to you. He was looking out over the city, he may have been in awe the first time seeing how the city came to life at night but right now, when he looked back to you, his eyes held an emotion you hadn’t seen from him before, it was something unreadable. Something intriguing. “Beautiful, isn't it?” You asked, putting your camera away in your bag, deciding you were going to live in the moment for the rest of the night. JJ nodded, “Gorgeous, I can’t believe I'm actually here.” He was impressed.

As you walked around the very top you witnessed multiple couples doing the very romantic kiss from the top of the Eiffel Tower, while a generous bystander took their phone or camera and snapped a couple of photos from them. You looked at JJ after witnessing yet another couple kiss, he looked back at you, it was like you both wanted to say something but were too afraid to speak until JJ cleared his throat. “Would you like to pursue a scene straight out of your movie romance dream?” JJ asked with his famous smirk, his blue eyes light up with the faint twinkling of the outside lights on the tower. Your words almost got stuck in your throat, out of all things that was something you had not expected him to ask, nevertheless, you nodded. “I would be honoured,” You smiled. You both handed your phones off to two different people, asking one to video and the other to snap photo bursts. You stood with you back to the railing of the tower and JJ held you by your hips, one hand quickly coming up to cup your jaw as he leant in, connecting your lips together in a soft yet deep kiss. Your hands instinctively linked at the back of his neck, and you pulled him back in for one more quick peck before letting him pull away completely.

There was no lie in the world that could hide how you felt right now. Your lips tingled, and your stomach filled with butterflies and you could swear you saw fireworks. It was like every movie romance ever. People around you clapped like they did for everyone, assuming you were together.

Getting down from the tower was not as easy as getting up, the demand to be taken back down from the tower was huge, the lines winded around almost too far and you could almost argue that as soon as you stepped off the elevator from coming up you would be joining the line to go down.

It took way too long to get down but even with the clock reading 12:30 AM, you weren't tired. Far from it actually. You didn’t know if it was from the kiss or if it was because you didn’t want the night to end. But you and JJ found yourselves running through the emptying streets as the early hours of the morning approached. The two of you laughing like you had no cares in the world, because as you were walking through the empty streets, it truly felt like it was just the two of you in the world. It was just the two of you and that city on earth.

You were pulled down onto the blondes lap when he sat down on a park bench. As you admired his flawless tan skin in the moonlight and amber glow from the streetlights, his eyes looked bluer than ever, like what you’d imagine the deepest part of the ocean would look like if you dug deeper. His hand grip around you waist tightened and your hands that sat on his shoulders came up to gently cup his cheeks as you slowly leaned in. Before you knew it he closed the rest of the distance between your lips and you were kissing him, hard. Like he was about to slip away and out of your grasp, like it was a dream and you were desperately trying to cling onto anything that could keep you asleep for longer.

The longer you kissed him the harder his hands gripped your hips, the closer he pulled you. One of your hands held onto his shoulder and the other found home in his hair as you pulled away out of need for oxygen. Your breathing was as heavy as if you two had just gone at it for 20 minutes, but the truth was the kiss didn’t even last a minute. You looked down into his dark blue eyes, in the yellow hue of the Paris lighting and it was like your heart knew this was your movie romance. And like waves on a beach shore, you were falling and crashing hard.

“I’m sorry,” You breathed out immediately, your hand feeling out of his hair. The blue-eyed blonde shook his head “don’t ever be sorry for that,” He pulled you in for another kiss and it was like the universe had exploded all over again. Every nerve ending in your body had been brought to life, you felt every inch of his lips on yours. Out of all the people you were bound to meet in this lifetime, you never expected JJ Maybank to be the one you’d fall for. But as he was kissing you as the two of you sat in a random park, in Paris, everything you thought you knew or ever might know became irrelevant and unimportant, the only thing you knew for sure was that you were in love with the boy you were kissing so hungrily at 3:00 AM. JJ was your tv romance, something that took you awhile to see it but once you did, you fell hard and fast.

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up-in-my-bunghole · 4 years ago

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Dear writers of BBC’s Merlin:

It would be such a pleasure if you would just grow the fuck up and deal with the romantic and sexual tension you’ve created between Merlin and Arthur and just let them be gay for each other, you cowards.

Here’s some ideas to spice up the show with some Merthur content:

Merlin loses control of his magic after losing a great deal (probably a loved one) and he makes an explosion of destructive magic around him in his distress and he can’t calm it back down again. People try to approach him but they only end up flung aside, and they have no idea how to handle him. Until Arthur comes in, and he starts to walk toward Merlin successfully. Everyone sits silent as they watch, Arthur only focused on his friend as he comes face to face with his golden eyes and blue sparks of heat (I imagine an electric blowout). Slowly, Arthur talks to him in a way that only he can do, actually being sincere and gentle with his words (although a few jabs slip, it doesn’t hurt Merlin’s feelings or make it worse, bc that’s just who Arthur is). He reaches out and takes his hand, feeling the prickle of sparks in his palm, but Merlin starts to settle with his presence, the glow in his eyes flickering ever so slightly. Eventually, Arthur comes in to hug him and bring him down all the way, and Merlin is back to normal.

Another magic one would be when Arthur is surrounded and has no hope for survival against his enemies, but Merlin stands in front of him just as they unleash their forces and deflects them all with a blast wave of pure power. He picks them off one by one, ruthlessly to save his king. After no one else is left standing or breathing in front of Merlin, he turns around to see Arthur completely blown away with a dismal “wow” and he gets up to kiss him as his reward.

A scene where Merlin and Arthur stand together at the final battle, gazing into the eye of the storm and knowing the chance that they will live to tell the tale is near impossible. With their last moments of solemnity, they link their hands, lean their foreheads together, and say their last goodbyes before they charge out into war.

For the past few days, Merlin has been getting these mystical pains (like a headache or some magical shit like that), and it’s been hindering him from completing his duties. Arthur notices it and bashes him for it, calling him a wimp and a girl. Merlin has a snarky remark to throw back in the beginning, but soon he doesn’t have the energy to respond. Over the days, he becomes more and more reclusive, and although Arthur notices, he doesn’t let up from his chores. Until one day, when he’s yelling at Merlin about the state of his bed chambers, Merlin yells out in delirious pain and then collapses with it, crying out in agony before passing out. Gaius is called to see him and he discovers that he has an inflammation of his meninges (the jello around the brain) ((or some other illness like that)) and Arthur finally realizes all the harm he’s done and how far he pushes Merlin. Once he recovers, Arthur apologizes and makes up for his shit behavior.

After all of Merlin’s rough battles and adventures and losses, Arthur is once again being a stick up his ass and walloping him about petty shit when Merlin has had enough. He snaps. Instead of taking all of Arthur’s insulting nagging, he fights back this time. Merlin is thrashing out at him, yelling and clawing with a fury in his eyes that almost flashes gold as he spills with rage. He lets go of all of it, all of the strife and pain and anger and loss. Hot, burning tears scald his cheeks, and he burns with them. Once it’s all out, once his tears can no longer pour and his voice has gone raw, he stuffs it back up, turns away from Arthur, and leaves him in his bedchamber with a stiff goodbye. All night, Arthur lays awake with Merlin’s voice in his head, haunted by his profound suffering that he was barely aware of. The next day, when Merlin silently serves his breakfast and starts to straighten up his linens, he whispers and ‘I’m sorry’ just behind him. Merlin only murmurs that it’s fine and an apology of his own for lashing out, but Arthur doesn’t take it. He turns Merlin around to face him, and he sees all the pain from yesterday still stowed away in his eyes. The only thing he can think to do is pull him to his chest and give him a hug with another ‘I’m sorry’ said next to Merlin’s ear. He can’t hold it all in anymore, and Merlin grips back with a choked, relieved sigh. Arthur says to never speak of this again. Merlin nods, but he can’t help but smile. Arthur smiles. too.

Or, Arthur comes storming into his chambers with his head about to explode with rage after a fight with his father, and a devastating loss. Merlin is in there polishing his armor or something when he sees stuff flying across the room and hears Arthur just about roaring in fury. When Merlin asks him what in the hell he’s on about, he gets a full face of a furious, unhinged Arthur. He’s throwing things, he’s tugging his hair, and he’s completely losing control.With every time that Merlin tries to talk some sense into him, he only burns up more until Merlin finally yells at him to please tell him what’s going on, and Arthur starts to yell again, but he can’t help it anymore. He starts to cry from everything his father has done, and everything he’s seen happen by his order and stood by. The things he’d done by his fathers side, even if it hurt his soul, and of course, his mother. He couldn’t take any more of it. Arthur can’t hide the tears welling in his eyes, Merlin stunned into worried silence at his outburst. After he lets Arthur have a moment, Merlin walks up to him and wraps his arms around his king, and just hugs him, letting Arthur let it all out. Once he’s settled enough and Merlin lets him go, Arthur whispers a thank you, to which he replies ‘of course, Sire’.

Just imagine that Merlin is secretly sparring with the other knights of the round table (probably Gwaine and Lancelot) to kick Arthur in the ass later. His time off is spent in the fields with a sword in hand, and Merlin has gotten pretty good. As Arthur is prowling the castle for his servant, he finds himself in the training yard to see Merlin with Gwaine, sparring. At first Arthur laughs, as he’s expecting Merlin’s rear end pummeled to the ground in the next few seconds. But Merlin has gotten quick, and although his clumsy demeanor is ever present, he’s actually very smooth. Arthur freezes right then and there as Merlin sweeps Gwaine off his feet and presses the sword to his chest, suddenly feeling flushed. When Merlin finds out that Arthur had been watching the whole time (with an awkward, witty little wave) Arthur can’t find the words, only nodding to him and turning tail. Merlin’s face soon turns red after, and Gwaine is a little shit about it and fucks around with Merlin and teases him endlessly.

Or, another fun one. Merlin got some shit or something spilled on him and he rushes into his room to get changed. Unbeknownst to Arthur, who speeds past Gaius and into Merlin’s room to behold.... Merlin, in nothing but his undergarments. And holy shit, Arthur was not prepared to see that. Merlin never takes off his tunic, much less his trousers. Never. Arthur hadn’t even seen his bare skin past his forearms. So to see his chest in plain sight, and his stomach and hips and shoulders and thighs is just... *poof*. Arthur has lost it. Merlin turns around and notices him there and yanks his sheet to his chest with a confused hello, trying to hide his red cheeks. Arthur is quick with a bullshit explanation and hightails it the fuck out, and both of them can’t stop blushing. Before a tournament, when Merlin is preparing Arthur in the tent after they had a little fight that Arthur suspects Merlin is still a little mad about (well, not really a fight, just an altercation that has Merlin debating about sharing his feelings), Arthur is prodding and poking at him and all but begging him to banter with him. But, Merlin stays mostly silent while securing his armor. No matter how many insults he throws at Merlin, his mouth stays shut. As a last attempt to wring out some of Merlin’s humor or at least a smile, Arthur asks, “a kiss for good luck?”. Merlin is actually stunned by his question at first, but he thinks about it for a moment. And after some awkward consideration and then a last thought of ‘fuck it’, Merlin tugs his chains and smacks his lips against Arthur’s, hot and wet and sudden and tight for the most shocking 6 seconds of Arthur’s life and then Merlin shoves him out of the tent and into the sparring match and Arthur is just O__o (I got this from a cool fanart comic, I can’t find it anymore tho, so the idea isn’t mine)

After Arthur finds out about Merlin’s magic and has returned from the lake (about a year later), he’s still a little weary of his sorcery, but he’s still curious. And once Merlin has had enough of his tip toeing, he finally sits him down in his chambers and shows him how amazing magic can really be. With a wave of his hand and some old, gentle words, Merlin conjures a ball of soft blue light that forms a dragon swirling around above Merlin’s fingers. Unlike the other times Arthur has seen dragons depicted, this one is graceful, and it seems docile as it floats over him. He’s enchanted with it, leaning in to look at it more closely. That’s when Merlin asked if he wanted to try something. He nodded, and Arthur’s hands were taken into Merlin’s with an incantation, and then he held a luminescent dragon in his hand as well. It dances around his head as he begins to smile.Ever since that faithful day Arthur keeps asking for Merlin to show him more magic, and every time he asks, Merlin smiles, too.

Can you tell I’m a fan of Merthur?

After Uther is dead, Arthur is shut off from the rest of the world, and not even the love of Camelot could bring him back. Merlin doesn’t say anything about it, silently supporting him with little acts, but not broaching him about it. One night, Merlin comes into Arthur’s bedchambers to see it completely tarnished. Clothes and trinkets thrown about askew, the sheets and curtains torn and discarded on the floor, and Arthur sitting on the floor with his arms resting on his knees, one of the most painful looks Merlin has ever seen trapped behind his eyes. Still, Merlin says nothing as he shuffles over to where Arthur is haphazardly collapsed on the floor, sliding down the wall to sit next to him. And he doesn’t say a word as he offers his hand, palm up, between them to where Arthur can see. Merlin doesn’t need to ask, and Arthur doesn’t need to answer as he tangles their fingers together. They speak without using their voices there, neither of them pushing, but both feeling a pull. Arthur’s tears start to fall, with Merlin squeezing his hand through them. Slowly, Merlin scoots closer until Arthur’s head is resting on his. They spend the entire night like that, the world outside a blur. No one bothers them, and no one comes to wake up the King, his head resting on Merlin’s shoulder.

Merlin is pushed into the lake. During an ambush from Morgana and her forces, Merlin is knocked into the freezing water, cracking the ice and slipping under. It’s Lancelot that sees his neckerchief on the water surface and a pale body sinking through, racing against the splitting ice to reach him. He almost doesn’t grab him in time, but by partly submerging himself, he’s able to grab a hold on one of Merlin’s stiff arms and haul him over the surface. After hearing the lake’s surface break, Arthur knows something bad had happened, but he couldn’t actually go over and investigate until Morgana’s soldiers are on the ground in front of him. Once he does, he sees the red fabric damp and frosted on the water, and his heart frosts over with it. Merlin’s lips are blue like his fingertips, all the life drained from his skin. He’s not breathing. Now Arthur’s hands are shaking as he feels over Merlin’s cold skin for a pulse. He can’t feel one, but he won’t give up. He can’t. So he tries to give Merlin some of his warmth, rubbing over his arms and sides and rolling him over. He rips off his cloak and wraps him in it, but the fabric is soaked through in seconds. He pleads to the gods, begs them not to take him, not him, please. His tears burn hot in anger and desperation as he finally shakes his limp body and yells at him, orders him to live. Just then, Merlin’s fingers twitch, and not soon after he’s coughing up lake water onto himself, body now fully wracked with shaking as a burst of his magic forces his heart to beat, and for him to take in a breath.

#merthur #merlin x arthur #bbc merlin #arthur pendragon x merlin emrys #merlin emrys #arthur pendragon #fanfiction #ish #yes #yes I am going to write all of these #they all need hugs

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notthatiwilleverwriteit · 4 years ago

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hi! I really love this blog,and your opinion about HT losing Mo was amazing as always! and it made me want to know how it would be if it's other boys?like,Mo losing HT?Jian losing Zhan?

Hello, dear anon!

Before anything else, I’m sorry to have kept your ask waiting for so long. It seems I needed a specific mood to answer this question, and it took a while. Thank you for your patience!

Secondly, I’m happy you have enjoyed the content and my mullings. Thank you! It’s always nice to hear my scribblings have reached someone.

Writing that answer about HT losing MGS was fun but challenging, and it seems like this “follow-up” was no different. Here are some previous posts that I think are worth checking out regarding this topic:

What if HT lost MGS? (the ask you referred to)

Long-distance relationship - Zhanyi vs. Tianshan

What if HT disappeared for 3 years?

19 Days - what if, feat. Picrew (bonus fun! I hope...)

Just like with HT losing MGS, there are some variables that make these kinds fo scenarios a bit tricky. For this, I will stick to two main ones:

A lost B without knowing what happened to them

A lost B knowing that they’re gone for good (dead).

Probably needless to say but...angst warning. Let’s get started!

If MGS lost HT

I think this scenario is probably the “easiest” one to begin with. Not to make MGS sound heartless but if he lost HT, I think his life would continue pretty much the same. Regardless of whether it’s the first or second possibility. I think how MGS could react to HT being gone has already been shown both in the current timeline and in the Christmas specials that took place in the future. MGS kept moving (school, work, daily routines), and his life didn’t really come to a screeching halt.

However, all that being said, that’s just what’s on the surface. MGS’s life didn’t perhaps get off balance, but we know he was...if not worried, then at least curiously concerned about HT’s whereabouts. Especially when he disappeared after the fight and went to see his father. In the Christmas specials, MGS seemed surprised when HT suddenly showed but also - dare I say - a bit relieved? In the same way than when HT showed up at his place, practically sleeping on his feet. To me, MGS’s “you came back” is a sign of relief and that he was worried and concerned.

Those cases I think come close to how I see MGS would react if HT disappeared or if MGS knew he was gone for good. I think his life would move on, as cold as that might sound. He would keep working long hours, earn whatever money he can, and continue to make his way in the world. I doubt he would actively go looking for HT or that his life would get off its rails in a way that would leave him completely lost.

But that is not to say HT not being there anymore wouldn’t affect MGS. I think he would feel that quiet, under-the-surface kind of worry or grief (depending on the situation). If he didn’t hear from HT for a long time, MGS would be worried and anxious. Somewhere deep down, he would be waiting for him to show up or contact him. Maybe even believe that he’s such a troublesome guy, there’s no way he’s just going to leave MGS alone after all this time. Maybe there would be little gestures that give away his worry: checking his phone, keeping his routine regular, leaving a little light on for nights, waking up to sounds at night. Maybe he could ask if JY or ZZX have heard anything about him.

If MGS knew that HT was dead, I think his grief would be somewhat similar. He would get through the day and keep moving, but when he was alone, thoughts about HT could creep into his mind. Maybe when he’s taking a smoke break by himself, when he’s cooking dinner for himself, or when he’s lying in bed and waiting for sleep to come...maybe that’s when the memories come. He might insist on trying to bury HT out of his mind but can’t fight it anymore when he’s alone and it’s quiet. His grief would probably be mixed with anger a lot. He would be angry with HT for getting himself killed and leaving him alone. He had no right to do that after getting through MGS’s defenses and making him actually care about the bastard. But the anger would always fade away after a while, and only grieve that slumped his shoulders would remain.

Then get back to work, fall asleep and wake up the next morning. Rinse and repeat.

It would be interesting to wonder if MGS’s mother would pick up on anything. Could she worry about him? Could MGS tell her about HT and what he had meant to MGS?

In a way, I could also see MGS being grateful for HT and not want to mess up what he had helped MGS achieve. He had given MGS a chance in life and kept him away from making stupid choices. Maybe he wouldn’t be thankful in so many words but perhaps he would work hard as a thank you for HT and his memory.

If ZZX lost JY

To be honest, I’m less confident in my thoughts when it comes to Zhanyi. They don’t quite “talk” to me in the same way as Tianshan. Overall, I think Zhanyi is the “soulmate” type of relationship that goes very deep into their characters. It’s difficult to tell where they themselves end and their relationship with the other one starts. They’re their own characters but struggle to exists without the other one there in their life. Where MGS’s life would at least seemingly continue without HT, I think it would be quite different for Zhanyi.

Zhanyi has always been heavy on the rhetoric of “promises”, and one of those promises was ZZX’s urge to protect JY. Be it a bully at school or fully trained mafia bodyguard, ZZX would step between them and JY. He wants to become a grownup and stronger, so he can keep JY safe.

If JY disappeared, ZZX would no doubt be devastated and anxious. However, what he could do about things would depend on his age. If he’s still in high school, I don’t imagine there’s that much he can do. The most he probably can is to rely on people like HT for help and resources. Of course, that is not to say he wouldn’t do whatever he could to find JY. He wouldn’t stop trying until he had gotten to him, and his promise would be his driving force.

If ZZX was an adult, I think OX’s official illustration of him in a police officer’s uniform opens up interesting possibilities.

That line of work would fit him very well, and it would give him proper tools and resources to try and track down JY. I could also see that road taking a darker tone. ZZX could become obsessed with finding JY and somewhat isolate himself from others. He does his job well and is a reliable coworker but he’s not exactly a social butterfly. He could be conducting his own investigations outside of work. He could even chase down JY’s ghost for the rest of his life, and it would consume him.

If ZZX knew JY was dead...Hmm. I think we can all agree that ZZX is one of the mentally strongest characters in the comic, but if he lost JY for good like that, something in him might just break. Imagine losing someone who’s always been in your life and has become irreplaceable to you. Not only would he be crushed by grief but I bet guilt and regret would be eating him up as well. He had promised to protect JY and keep him safe but he hadn’t been strong enough.

In short, I think ZZX would be left with this gaping hole in his heart for the rest of his life. It would shrink with time but probably never fully close up.

Would he eventually move on with his life, though? Would he get married and have kids? I could see both scenarios happen. I could picture him having a family at some point, but perhaps there was always something in him that even his wife can’t quite reach. He would care for her, be a good husband and a father, but sometimes...he’s not quite there with them. Then again, I think it could also go the other way. ZZX also strikes me as someone who wouldn’t want to commit another person in a relationship with him if he can’t be fully theirs in his heart. It wouldn’t fair to the other person.

If JY lost ZZX

JY is probably the biggest mystery to me in this regard. He would most definitely be devastated just like ZZX but I’m quite not sure what direction his character would take from there.

If ZZX disappeared, I think there’s very little question about what JY would do. He would be the first one out the door with a barely thought-out plan. Someone would have to keep him from doing anything stupid and getting himself in trouble. Being held back would make JY anxious and restless, and he could try something reckless on his own. The longer it takes to find ZZX, the more desperate JY would become. But it would also be mixed with his sense of “I am too weak to do anything about this”. And that feeling would get stronger and stronger.

Would JY ever give up on finding ZZX? To be honest, I don’t know. On one hand, I want to say that he would never stop looking for him. But on the other hand, I can also picture the fight leaving him at some point and he submits to the cold, hard facts of reality. Probably forced by someone else. It would be heartbreaking to see him lose his usual positive momentum.

If JY knew ZZX had died, I’m honestly not sure where his character would go from there. It could be something similar to ZZX’s reaction; he would never be quite the same anymore. With JY, it could even go further perhaps. Maybe he could lose most of his cheerful, sunny disposition to the shadow of never being with ZZX ever again. As much as JY had always loved life, the world around him could lose its interest to him and he could turn more towards himself. Inwards, in a way. I’m really not sure but overall, I think moving on from losing ZZX would be harder for JY than the other way around.

There are a lot of ifs and maybes in there, and many things I didn’t even try to take into account (trauma, more specific circumstance, etc.). Interesting possibilities to keep building on this!

Thank you for your question, dear anon!

#19 days #tianshan #zhanyi #answered ask

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fxckingfinan · 5 years ago

Text

So It Goes (Stilinski) - Chapter 2

Pairing: Stiles Stilinski x Reader

Summary: Everything seems normal to the naked eye when referencing Beacon Hills, almost boring if you were to ask the residents. However, it’s what lies beneath the surface. When Y/n and her two best friends Scott and Stiles are thrown into the adventure of a lifetime. Secrets come out, and changes are made. And to think it all started with half a body. (Season 1)

Word Count: 3,364

Warnings: A couple swear words, very very brief description of blood, angst if you squint

As Y/n stumbled through the woods trying to find her two idiots friends, she quickly realized how awful of an idea it was to go dead body hunting. She also realized it's a particularly awful idea to wear slippers whilst doing so. She rubbed her sweatshirt clad arms attempting to get rid of the rising goosebumps. Stupidly enough she never realized how cold it could get at night.

Y/n was never one to think the woods were creepy. Until now. It was eerily quiet, apart from the occasional sound of leaves shaking. The small breeze disturbing the (almost) peaceful forest. It was quiet. Far too quiet for comfort. This was the woods, an area usually bursting with life from the treetops to the dirt-covered floor. She waited for anything to cut the thick silence. Birds, squirrels, anything rustling through the leaves that had fallen. Yet nothing was doing so except her hard breathing and a heavy heart.

The girl furrowed her eyebrows, stopping in place when she heard more sticks breaking behind her. For a second she was almost relieved to hear movement. She was relieved until she realized she should be alone and the sound of heavy breathing reached her ears. The sharp panting sounding anything but human. Her eyes widened as she let out a ragged breath, unable to ignore the gut-wrenching fear she felt.

Slowly she turned around, her body stiff. Crimson red eyes met with her fear-stricken orbs, taking her breath away completely. Her feet stumbled backward when the creature let out a snarl. Body turning itself around before her mind had fully registered what was going on. Not even seconds later breaking into a full sprint through the dark woods.

"Shitshitshitshit" Y/n’s breathing was labored as she ran, wincing as a branch scraped her arm. Closing her eyes she prayed to any god out there, ’for the love of god please don’t let me die out here’. She closed her eyes for only a second before running smack dab into something, causing her to fall harshly onto her back. A whine emitting from her throat as any air she held in her lungs was stolen from her. For a second Y/n thought she was dead; whatever the hell that was had caught up to her and killed her before she even had the chance to scream.

"You sure do know how to make an entrance." Her eyes snapped up to meet the faces of Stiles and Scott. Letting out a heavy breath of relief, before shooting up off the ground and pulling her brother into a bone-crushing hug.

She was alive.

"Shut up. I've never been so happy to see you two in my life" She mumbled into his collar bone before he peeled her off of his body. He kept her an arm's length away to look her over. Clearly taking notice of the small scrapes on her arms. Familiar crimson dots of blood forming along the small lines.

"Why were you running-" Scott started, concern lacing his voice. She was a wreck. Her usually pink cheeks had turned into a bright red. As if someone whipped cherry juice onto them. A stark contrast to the rest of her face which was visibly paled from fear. If she hadn’t just been running for her life she might’ve been embarrassed about her disheveled state. Maybe.

“Guys c’mon!” Stiles broke away from the two, quickly running ahead.

“Stiles-“ Scott called out, dragging Y/n with him as he attempted to follow his spastic friend. Quickly forgetting that his sister had been so helpless just seconds before. He followed closely right up until a cop came into sight catching Stiles immediately. The police canine snapped at Stiles aggressively startling him enough to knock him onto his back. Scott quickly dipped behind a tree, shielding himself from the police officer.

“Hang on, hang on... This little delinquent belongs to me.” Officer Stilinski’s voice was gruff. Quite the opposite of his sons.

“Dad, how’re you doing?” Stiles asked nonchalantly.

Naturally, Y/n tried to scoot in next to Scott as the father and son conversed; it would’ve worked. If Scott hadn’t shoved her out immediately into the sights of Officer Stilinski.

Asshole.

“Y/n?” She froze like a deer in headlights as the sheriff addressed her. Awkwardly raising her hand in a small wave as she found her place next to Stiles. She would have to settle for yelling at Scott later. Though she couldn’t shake the thought of whatever terrifying monster she had encountered, Y/n tried to stay calm and engaged in her current situation. “So not only are you listening to my phone calls, but you’re dragging an innocent with you?”

“No!” Stiles wheezed before hesitating, “Not the boring ones. And how do you know this wasn’t her idea and I’m the innocent one?”

Y/n’s head snapped to the boy beside her. Crossing her arms before kicking at his leg. A wince sounded from him as she returned her eyes to Sheriff Stilinski. What was with these two throwing her under the bus?

“So where is your usual partner in crime?” He continued, choosing to ignore the prior comment Stiles made. Stiles’ dad was clearly unimpressed with his son, his facing conveying that clear enough. It was almost comical to Y/n that he was so used to his son's shenanigans.

“Who, Scott? Scott's home. He said he wanted to get a good night's sleep before the first day of school tomorrow. It’s just us. In the woods. Alone.” Stiles floundered, heavily wheezing as he tried to convince his dad. It was almost painful to watch as his lying continued to worsen through the sentence. Y/n quickly cut in, trying to save his ass while still even remotely possible.

“It’s true Mr. Stilinski. Just us out here. Scott wanted to make sure he was up and ready for lacrosse tomorrow! You’re coming to the first game right?” She tried to divert the attention away from her friend’s awful lying. Taking a small step forward as if to put a spotlight on her.

“Depends on everything at the station, but I’ll let you know. Do you have a ride home?” The sheriff's face was still unimpressed, just slightly less so.

“No sir, Stiles and I came here together.” Y/n let a sweet smile play at her lips, really trying to sell it. She hoped to god he didn’t pester any further.

“Of course.” he started, “Stiles, take the girl home and then yourself. When you get there we‘re gonna have a discussion about something called violation of privacy.”

Stilinski led the two to Stiles’ banged-up jeep, having them hop in before bidding them goodbye. Y/n let out a breath of relief she hadn’t known she was holding. Whether it was to finally be out of the thick woods or to be done with the sheriff's wrath she wasn’t sure. Whatever she saw tonight was unlike anything she's heard of.

Spending the remainder of the car ride in silence, she wracked her brain for any sort of answer. Finally coming up with one solid conclusion,

“I think I know what killed that jogger.” Y/n’s voice was meek, waiting for his eyes to meet hers. The sound of her own voice confused her. She wasn’t used to sounding so weak. Y/n McCall was many things; weak and uncertain did not fall anywhere on that list. It was clear she was still shaken up, it was just a matter of what exactly had this effect on her. She wished she knew the answer to that. Y/n was so caught up in her own crisis she didn’t even get her usual butterflies she does around the boy driving her home.

“What do you mean what? Don’t you mean who?” Stiles tore his eyes from the road in front of him to make eye contact with her briefly. Turning his head back when her eyes faltered. She was nervous. Sweaty palm, wavering voice nervous.

“That’s the thing. It wasn’t a who.” She gulped before continuing, “I think it was a wolf. A really big fucking wolf.” A laugh bubbling from the boy's chest caught her off guard. He’s laughing at her. Tears had even started to form in his honey-colored eyes.

A scowl quickly took over her features as her annoyance flared up. Like someone lit a fire in her lungs. She recognized the uncomfortable feeling as embarrassment.

“I’m being serious you asshole!” Her arms were firmly crossed over her chest. Any form of uncertainty she had before was out the window. His inability to give her discovery even a single thought fueled the fire that was still burning in her chest. This time the burning was different though. Almost like it was burning hotter and brighter than before. This was pure, jaw clenching anger.

“I’m not trying to be an asshole, but you do know there haven’t been wolves in California in probably sixty years, right?” Stiles justifying his little episode only boiled Y/n’s blood more. She couldn’t remember a time she had been so upset with him. The only account coming to mind was when he ripped the head off of her only ken doll in the first grade.

“Stiles. I know what I saw.” She spoke with conviction to signal the end of the conversation. Her own hand dug into her bicep subconsciously. The rest of the car ride was silent. Tension so thick in the air she could practically taste the bitterness on her tongue. Y/n always had Stiles’ back, so why couldn’t he have hers? She was smart too. Granted, not as smart as Stiles but still. She wasn’t blind and she knows what wolves look like.

If she wasn’t so infatuated with the idiot she was sure her fist would be in his mouth.

They finally reached the McCall residence, slowing to a stop at the curb. Stiles didn’t have a chance to say anything before Y/n was up and out of the car, slamming the door behind her. She needed to sleep this off. It was extremely late by the time she made it to her room; checking to see if Scott had made it home never crossed her mind.

Y/n kicked off her muddy slippers, crawling into bed slowly. Letting out a groan when she finally flopped onto her right side, letting her head hit her pillow. Stupid Stiles and his stupids smarts. Who does he think he is. With his perfect brain and stupid haircut. She felt herself nod off, closing her eyes for what seemed to be only a second.

Y/n gasped, shooting up in her bed as the sound of her alarm cut through the thick silence. She grabbed her phone to turn the blaring alarm off. She sighed sitting on the edge of her bed, attempting to rub the sleep out of her eyes. Continuing to the bathroom to shower for school. School. She was fully awake now at the thought. It was the first day of sophomore year and she was going into it mad at her best friend. With great reason of course. She deserved the same amount of respect and trust she gave her friends, and she’d be damned to not stand up for herself.

“Scott! Are you ready?” Y/n trampled down the stairs in search of her brother. Only to be surprised that he was already standing next to the door, waiting for her. “Woah, you’re never up before I am.”

“Lacrosse. Remember?” Scott countered, fidgeting in his spot. Y/n narrowed her eyes as she slowly stepped closer to him. Her brother seemed to gulp at the intense stare. She assumed he was hiding something, the tell of his jaw clenching giving it away.

Y/n let a smile break out onto her face, simply patting Scott on the chest and continuing through the front door. Dealing with Scott hiding something could wait. If it were that important he would tell her; she was sure of it.

The two set off on their bikes towards the school. Neither spoke to each other and that fact alone was odd. Scott almost always had something to say to Y/n. She brushed it off, assuming he had tryout jitters and that was the reason for his odd behavior. Plus she was still thinking about Stiles. Not in the usual way of admiration though. Just the thought of the conversation the two had the night before was enough to relight her hate fire. Y/n’s knuckles turned white as she gripped the handlebars. Letting out a quick breath to calm herself down.

Her grip loosened as the school came into view bursting with life. The parking lot filling up quickly, kids were hopping off their bus to shuffle into the building, and cliques were already being formed. Y/n sucked in a breath of air, holding it in her cheeks as she mentally prepared for hell.

The two pulled up to a bike rack, taking their time to take off their helmets and lock up. This year was going to be different. Y/n could feel it. She couldn’t tell if it was her outfit choice or something bigger. She chose her outfit. Consisting of a sweater tucked perfectly messy into an a-line plaid skirt. Not only did she look good, she felt great. This year she was going to dress as nice as she wanted, straying from her usual way of dressing. The teen always felt like she was being stared at. She hated that. This year she wasn’t going to care if people stared. As long as she felt comfortable with herself it no longer mattered to her.

The sound of an engine getting closer invaded her thoughts. Her head whipping to the side to find the intrusive sound. A silver Porsche pulled smoothly into the spot next to them. Jackson Whittemore. She identified the king of a-holes immediately.

She watched Jackson step out of his ridiculously short car, promptly hitting Scott with the door.

“Dude. Watch the paint job.” His stupidly blue eyes settled intensely on her brother.

“You hit him, asshole.” Y/n stepped in, crossing her arms as if to challenge him. He scoffed, raising his eyebrows before biting back.

“Whatever.”

“Bite me.”

They watched as he walked away. Keeping an icy stare on the two as he did so. Scott pulled her towards the front of the school, mumbling something about making enemies on the first day. Stiles bombarded the two, desperately asking Scott to see something. Y/n looked between the two. See what? Just as she was about to open her mouth Scott lifts up his shirt. Revealing a large patch of gauze. Blood visibly seeping through the protective covering.

“Scott, what the hell happened.” Y/n’s fingers traced over his side, moving like her hands had minds of their own. Apparently too harshly as Scott jumped back wincing. Her eyes widened, instantly feeling terrible. He barely looked at her and instead continued to talk to Stiles.

“It was too dark to see very much, but I'm pretty sure it was a wolf.” Y/n’s eyes widened, gawking at her brother. A wolf. Just like she said she had seen just hours before.

“Oh, now you too? Not a chance.” Stiles laughed. Instantly reminding Y/n of her anger towards him. He’s still being an asshole. She may have a crush on him, but she wasn’t blinded by the fact. If anything it made her even more critical of the situation.

“Huh. Isn’t that funny he says that Stiles?” She cocked her head sideways, clearly mocking him. While Stiles’ eyes softened, Scott seemed oblivious to the tension as he continued to argue with Stiles.

Y/n stayed walking by the two. She had decided to argue with Stiles at this moment was pointless. If he wasn’t going to listen to her then so be it. She wasn’t going to listen to him. Instead focusing on her class schedule. Mentally mapping out the fastest routes through the school.

“I heard a wolf howling.”

“No, you didn’t.”

“What do you mean I didn't, how do you know what I heard?”

“Because California doesn't have wolves, okay? Not for like sixty years.” Stiles continued to laugh, settling his hand on his backpack strap. They stopped walking, causing Y/n to stop walking as well.

“Really?” Scott says, his tone teasing.

“Yes, really. Look, there's no wolves in California.”

“Really Stiles? You can’t stand to be wrong just this once?” Y/n threw her arms up, “For fuck's sake, two people are crying wolf!” Her blood boiled. Baffled that her usual partner in crime had such a huge stick up his ass over this.

Stiles just sighed dramatically and rolled his eyes.

“What’s up with you two?” Scott asked, looking between the two. Y/n shook her head, mumbling an incoherent response. She shifted her eyes to the ground. “Well, if you don't believe me about the wolf, then you're definitely not gonna believe when I tell you I found the body.” His voice trailed off.

At this point, Y/n couldn’t care less about the body. She just wanted to have a good first day. Clearly, that card wasn’t on the table.

“Are you kidding me?” Stiles’ eyes flashed like lightbulbs. Excitedly reaching his hand out towards her brother.

“I wish. I’m gonna have nightmares for months.” Scott said, a visible shudder wracking his body.

“That is freaking awesome!,” Stiles cheered, “I mean, seriously, it's the best thing that’s ever happened in this town, since-” His eyes shifted to look straight at a familiar strawberry blonde walking by, ”The birth of Lydia Martin. Hey, Lydia! You look- like you're gonna ignore me!” The boy waved, only to slightly deflate as Lydia ignored him.

Y/n inwardly scoffed. Of course he still has a crush on her. Why wouldn’t he? This was the icing on top of her anger cake if that was even a thing. How ignorant could this boy be? She turned around to walk away, trying to contain her sigh of annoyance threatening to surface.

“Hey, where are you going?” Scott called after her, confusion lacing his voice. Y/n turned around, walking backward in her heeled booties.

“Class” The girl shrugged. Technically it wasn’t a lie. She did have class, just not for another 20 minutes. Her creative writing class called her name, seeming even more intriguing as she looked for an excuse to leave the conversation.

Y/n made a pit stop at her locker, swiftly entering in the code. Her body jolted in surprise, someone slamming their locker beside her. Her eyes turned to mere slits, realizing her locker neighbor to be none other than Jackson Whitmore. This day just kept getting better and better.

“What are you looking at? Buzz off.” Jackson said, his voice rapidly becoming more annoying. She barely had enough time to scoff, soft tresses of strawberry blonde hair distracting her. Lydia Martin.

“Jackson. Let's go.” Her voice was demanding, a feminine edge to it. Y/n resisted the urge to roll her eyes, unable to control her overwhelming bitterness. She hadn’t even noticed Lydia’s eyes trailing over to her. “I love your skirt.”

“What?-Oh. Thanks.” Y/n was caught off guard, hands instantly coming down to stroke the plaid fabric. Lydia Martin. Complimenting her. Was this an alternate universe? She didn’t know how to react, too caught up on her prior thoughts. Lydia Martin was a heinous bitch. Wasn’t she?

“You’re Y/n. Right? We had health together last year.” A gentle smile played at Lydia's lips.

“Yep, that’s me!” Y/n replied, internally cringing at the blatantly obvious fake happiness. Clearing her throat she passed the ginger a smile before closing her locker. Turning to walk away from the horrendously awkward situation.

“You’ll have to show me where you got it sometime!” Lydia called out after her. Catching her off guard as she sputtered to a stop.

Y/n threw a quick smile over her shoulder, “Yeah, definitely.” She mumbled, clearly still loud enough as Lydia smiled in response. Promptly flicking her hair over her shoulder before turning back to her boyfriend to reprimand him for being so slow. Y/n continued walking, confusion settling in her brain.

What the hell was happening in this town?

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