#it ain’t bad it’s just life and he’s happy to learn more about to being the best he can be

[elizakai]

i love the MTTRIO because they are all judgy hypocritical little shits living off of spite and appy juice

[softtdaisy]

🌲 a found family l max verstappen

summary. you and max can't spend Christmas together but a trip to his dad and the love he has for you make him realize that he deserves better. a better life. a better love. a better family.

words count. 2,596

a/n. and this is the last piece for this Christmas series. Thanks to all of you for sticking me through December. and a massive thanks to my favorite person @monzabee for encouraging me and for giving me this beautiful idea to end the series 🫶

a very angsty Christmas l masterlist

You looked absolutely gorgeous, wearing a dress Max had bought you this year during one of your holidays. One of the many gifts he did to you this year, because if there were one thing that could describe your boyfriend it would be his generiosity. That man could buy you the world if you wanted it. 

And that was maybe what was making him the saddest tonight.

He could see you wearing it and neither could he offer you his gift. 

Because you were not spending Christmas’ eve together. But in each other’s family.

“You know this look is a great excuse to skip the diner at my dad’s?” Max asked which made you laughed. He was still sit on your bed, his shirt barely closed and his hair absolutely not styled. He was the closest to his place, compared to you who had to drive for almost two hours. 

He watched you as you walked to your phone, that you had put on your wardrobe to show your whole look. “You’re such a flirt, Maxie.” you kept laughing, specially when he started making his poutty face that you absolutely love. You always found it funny how most people saw him as this arrogant guy when he was such a sweetheart. 

“Ain’t I allowed to flirt with my girl?” 

“You are. It’s a shame you won’t enjoy the result of this flirt tonight.” 

This hasn’t been an easy decision for either of you. It’s was only your first christmas together since you started dating on january. And you really wish you could have spend the evening together. But you learn one thing through this past year: never go against Jos Verstappen’s plan. 

From the first race you attended, you got the feeling Jos didn’t really appreciate you. You tried to talk about it with Max without making a whole drama out of it but he didn’t really react. Or say anything, actually.

Not that Max didn’t care. It was even far from it. He just didn’t know what to do. He never talked about his personnal life with his dad and it wouldn’t be a first now. Specially not with these type of question. Max always assumed that his father only care about his racing career. It couldn’t be that bad if he wasn’t interested in his son’s couple. Right?

“I have to go” you told Max, who was lost on his thoughts. He enjoyed for the last few seconds to sight of you before you had to hung up. “Call me if you need, alright?” 

“Even if I don’t need it.” he laughed before letting you go.

Every time he had to say goodbye to you, on the phone or because you couldn’t follow him for the next race, Max felt a little hole in his heart. He never thought one day he’ll met someone that could complete him like you did. 

That’s all he thought about until he arrived at his dad’s place. All the thing he wanted to do with you before the new season starts, where he would take you during the holiday, which races you could be there and what places he wanted to show you during these weekend. More than just happiness for your couple, Max realised how important you were for his anxiety. Before he met you, most of the time he had to drive to see his father, he was anticipated all the bad things that could happen. The critics, the disapproval, the yelling if they really did disagree on something. And the worst part was that, in the end, he was just living the nightmare before it happened.

And maybe it was the fact he didn’t think about all these things before arriving, but Max felt good when he arrived.

“Uncle Maxie!” And being around his nephew was definitely a good help.

For many years, Max never consider having children. The anxiety he developped because of his own childhood was a perfect argument to avoid trying. How could he give a child what he needs if he doesn’t know himself what a kid should have? He knew what he shouldn’t do, that’s all.

But these past weeks, from seeing his nephews and calling them, he realized that maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea.

And maybe, you weren’t for nothing in this change of mind.

“You’re shinny, uncle Maxie.” 

“Shinny?” he laughed, still playing with the little cars that represent all the Formula one drivers.

“Yep. You’re happy.” 

Max didn’t know what to answer to that. But then he felt two hands on his shoulders and a kiss from Victoria on his hair. “He’s right.” He turned around to look at her. He guessed that the look she had was just another proof that indeed, he was lookier happier. “It’s for the toast, come.”

It was some kind of tradition. Everyone had to say what they were grateful for at the end of this year. Kids, health, career… each other always revolved around these subjects. Max was not going to break the circle. Not today.

“Well I’m grateful for the amazing year I spend. Winning the championship again was more than I could expect at the beginning of the season. So yeah I’m grateful for the team, for the work we did to win the races and create such amazing memories all together.” 

Max stopped for a few seconds, thinking about what he could be grateful for. There was one thing, obviously.

If he met his father’s eyes, he wouldn’t have continued. But he didn’t. He looked at Victoria and her massive smile. 

“And I’m grateful for my girlfriend. I couldn’t have go through this crazy year without her. She’s my rock, she’s my best friend, she’s without a doubt my soulmate and I’m glad I could finally found the person I want to spend the rest of my life with.”

Max heard all the lovely and loudly sound from his family. And before he could notice her, Victoria was already in his arms, telling him how proud she was that he finally found the happiness he deserved.

Again, he could have focus on the good thing, all the congratulations and excitement about this new family member that they all couldn’t wait to meet. But this time, Max did saw Jos look on him. One that he sadly knew by heart: disappointment. 

At first, Max decided to ignore the situation and spend most of the evening playing with his nephews, pretending to be a car himself to drive them around the house. But he couldn’t escape the heavy atmosphere forever.

Max saw that Jos was sitting by himself in the living room, with a whisky in his hand. He hesitated, did he really wanted to break all the good vibes for a talk for his dad? And then again, he was too nice to avoid him. No matter if he knew he would end this conversation with some broken feelings, Max couldn’t escape it. Because if there was one thing he was sure about, it was that he never wanted to become like his father. A man that would rather ignore the people he love for the sake of disappointment. Silence was never the solution.

“So, how do we feel about new season?” Max asked, sitting next to him. If there was one subject they couldn’t really argue about was his career. Or at least, even if there was some disagreement, it wouldn’t end up badly.

“You have to leave her.” It was simple. Five words. Said with a hard tone. Like an order. “You’re already losing your man over that…stupid girl. You can’t let yourself fail for a woman, Max.”

Maybe he should have gone with the swerve, in the end. “What do you mean? I’ve been with her for a year and I still won.” He could have, maybe, understand if the season was a pure fail. But it wasn’t. The car was amazing and he won almost every races. There was not single doubt that not only you weren’t a burden but you were a motivation for him. It didn’t make sense. But still, Max knew where all of this came from. Because he knew his father.

“A woman is always a burden in a career.” 

“This is why you got married thrice?” It left his mouth without Max had time to notice it. Truth is, he got tired as he grow older of the need to think about his words. What could he say what he mean to his dad? Why should he still be afraid? “Trust me, you terrible at giving relationship advices.” 

“You should watch your mouth.” Jos replied, taking a stew towards his son. For many years, Max used to step back to avoid the confrontation. Not anymore.

Instead, he took at step towards too. “You should watch yours. I won that fucking championiship, again. And you can’t even congratulate me? All you think about is the woman that want to spend her life with me? Not you, me.”

He noticed the change, again, in Jos look. It was getting darker and darker, like his anger was taking over himself and he was close to not be able to contain himself. Usually, Max was scared of the moment he would explode. There was just one change in his mind. You.

Max could accept any criticism about his career or life choices, he didn’t care. It was his life. Sometimes he might be wrong and he could deal with his dad saying that he warned him. He was still young and could deal with some mistakes.

But there was one thing he could never let Jos critcize or give his opinion on it: you.

“I won’t let you ruin your career for some stupid woman.” Jos got the time to grab his wrist. Max hated feeling like a child, all over again. Looking for his dad approval. 

Expect that this time, he didn’t want it. “Fine. It’s my career. I don’t need your opinion.” he managed to free himself and was already leaving the room. He couldn’t continue this without letting it become some shit show. No matter the situation, his family didn’t deserve it. Specially not on Christmas eve. 

“If you don’t leave her, then i’m not supporting you anymore.” 

Max stopped in the middle of the room. He heard the sound of a glass falling in the kitchen sink. He heard the sudden silence in the children’s playroom. This was the results of year of fighting for Jos seeing him as an equal, as a real driver and not a child who wants to grow older and be consider an adult. This was the results of feeling like his dad loved him.

Max was hurt. But he couldn’t fight anymore. “Fine.” he didn’t turn around, didn’t want to look at his father. It wasn’t the idea of seeing him. It was the idea of Jos seeing how bad he broke him, again. “I’ll do better without you.” 

The silence was still everywhere when Max walked to his sister to kiss her and said goodbye to his nephew. It was for the better, he knew that he wouldn’t be able to fight if they asked him to stay. But Victoria knew his brother, and what he deserves was to be in a place where he felt loved. 

And there was one where he knew he would never be ignored and rejected.

When you opened the door, you imagined different scenarios. But never one where you would see Max on your doorstep. “Baby?” you asked with confusion, almost like you were sure he was real.

“I’m sorry, I should have called, I know i wasn’t invited but…” he didn’t need to continue. Because you recognized the look in his eyes. One you sadly saw before. When he argued with his dad on the circuit and you couldn’t do anything than holding him in your arms. Telling me it would get better. That he wasn’t alone.

That was the only truth Max needed. He was far from being alone.

So you offered your hand to him. “Come in baby.” you noticed the little hesitation in his look, on that sadden you. It wasn’t that Max didn’t want to come in. It was a pur fear of opening his heart to you and losing you after. It didn’t last long, because he knew deep down that you were here to stay. But you were scared that this was a kind of thought that would never leave his mind.

You gave him a small and simple kiss on the lips, a kind of silent promise that you were supporting him. It wasn’t much, but it was more than Max even asked for. He was so not used of being understood and loved, this simple attention was enough to light up his heart again.

“Sweetie, who’s th… Oh Max! What a lovely surprise!” 

You were interrupted by your dad who almost push you away to take Max in his arms. You weren’t surprised. First, because your dad was a very lovely and tactile person who couldn’t resist this type of greeting. Second, because he appreciated Max so much, he was probably the one praying every day for a wedding. Third, because he had been asking you all night why you didn’t bring him. 

But Max, on the contrary, was more than surprised by that. Was he really that happy to see him? “Come in, you’re getting cold. Did you eat? We have…” you didn’t even hear the rest of the sentence that your dad had already pulled Max to the living room. Your boyfriend just had the time to turn around and give you a curious look. To which you replied with a smile. It felt right to see him being appreciated and treated like he should.

All your family spend the night talking to him, asking questions and making him feel like he was home. That was the truth, actually: this place was also a home for him. It was yours. And your family already considered him as a part of it. There was no reason for Max to not be a full member. 

It wasn’t until you got to bed, in your bedroom, that he let his mind speak. You were laying on his chest while he was looking at the ceiling and caressing your hair. It was relaxing for both of you to stay in silence after the crazy night you had. 

“I’ve felt much more at home here in a few hours than in all my life with my dad.” Max said slowly, in a whisper.

You turned your head just enough to look at him while he was still focused on his thoughts. You were making a whole speech in your head to make him feel better. You had no idea how he felt about this. This must be such a strange situation to feel more loved by your family-in-law than your own. 

But then he put a kiss on your hair and started to smile. “Thank you.” he whispered, like he was scared to be heard by anyone else. “For finding me and for loving me.”

You could feel your heart melt at this confession. “Thank you for opening your heart to me.” you replied. 

And you stayed like that for a good minute before you made a debrief of the whole evening here. When you both fell asleep, you realised you had the greatest gift you could ever dream of. Happiness in the arms of your loved one.

[vanishingstarrs]

pancakes for dinner ( k bakugo x nurse!reader, pro hero era, established relationship, just soft and pure vibes, down bad bakugo aka my boyfie fr, slight smut at the end, NSFW, minors DNI ) ( guysss i’ve been so sick and i’ve been suffering having to work still bc #hispanic we ain’t eva allowed to call out )): i’ve been wanting to write please please please x bakugo but haven’t had the energy, meantime hope y’all enjoy this little fic <3 just wholesome mushy stuff for y’all but then it turned smutty at the end because why not lol also i’m pretty new to writing explicitly so pls lmk how it came out !! idk if i'll do that again lmao we shall see i guess )

You were exhausted.

Mentally and physically.

Work had been a tad overwhelming lately, with extra things being piled onto your already heavy workload after a big merger between two of Japan’s biggest hospitals, which in turn caused a lot of people to be let go. Not only had it been stressful wondering whether you’d make the cut or not after a “re-interview”, but when you learned that you had been accepted you’d also been asked if you could take on a few extra duties.

You had never been one to back down from work, always taking initiative and being happy to help any one of your coworkers that might need it.

Lately though, it seemed every single person needed help. Your coworkers, your patients, and if it wasn’t those two then it was your boss asking if you could help her with management duties that had nothing to do with the extra work you’d been assigned to do on top of everything else.

You were sick and tired.

Your muscles cried out as you pushed your apartment door open and immediately kicked off your shoes, groaning as you bent down in order to place them onto the shoe stand. You were sure you heard your back crack as you stood straight once more to hang your purse and keys.

You didn’t bother unpacking the lunch you never got time to eat, leaving the bag you packed it in tied up and in the fridge before heading into your bedroom and immediately shedding your scrubs. You hated doing skincare, but thought about how dirty your face must be after dealing with so many patients and dragged yourself into the bathroom to get it over with.

By the time you were finished doing everything, your body was begging you to lay down for just a minute.

A little power nap never hurt, you told yourself as you fell onto your bed face first and sighed. You hugged your pillow to your aching body and allowed yourself to relax for just a little while.

Though “a minute” quickly turned into three hours as the sun went down and the night sky pulled you further into dreamland.

You didn’t hear the front door open or close, you didn’t stir when your boyfriend started removing his hero equipment, much less wake when those heavy gauntlets he somehow wore all day hit the floor or when his pounding footsteps carried across the hardwood as he made his way to your shared bedroom to check on you.

You missed the brief smirk on his face as he found you lying on his side of the bed, on your right side with a leg propped up for comfort.

Katsuki knew how hard you’d been working lately with the merger between the two hospitals and how stressed it made you. With him working as a hero, he encountered many people that wound up needing to go to the hospital. On top of that, you also had all the other sick people that hadn’t been involved in some villain attack. You likely dealt and saved more people in a single day than he did in a month, he knew this, he was proud of the fact, actually, and incredibly proud of you.

He was damn lucky to have you.

And for all these reasons, he was happy to see you rest for a bit.

He’d often come home late and find that you’d already done all the cleaning around the house, as well as meal prep for both you and him, and still found the time to bake desert on top of making him dinner. You went above and beyond in all aspects of your life, often even calling and checking up on his parents when he hadn’t done so in too long. He’d receive texts from his mother scolding him and making sure he was taking good care of you the way she knew you did him, he swore you were the favorite and he understood why you were.

Everyone loved you.

He adored you.

Except he hadn’t been doing his part as well as he should be lately.

And so, while you slept, he quietly changed into some loungewear before carefully shutting the bedroom door closed behind him.

He tried his hardest to be quiet as he went around cleaning up throughout the house, he swept, he steam mopped the floors (and prayed he didn’t miss a spot), he did your laundry, took your work shoes and scrubbed them clean for your next workday, he took your old lunch and tossed it out before setting to work on preparing you something delicious for tomorrow.

Being in the kitchen was actually soothing for him, he liked being able to experiment with recipes and different things for you to try. He hated that he hadn’t made the time to recently. He cooked enough dinner to pack lunch for both you and him, then last minutely decided that you’d definitely want something sweet when you woke up and pulled out the ingredients to make pancakes from scratch.

You liked it best when you had pancakes for dinner, not breakfast.

He was extremely pleased when they turned out light and fluffy just the way you liked them and he set out to cut up some fruit for you to put on top, making sure everything was ready before heading back to your shared room.

Katsuki was less quiet this time around, as he slid into bed next to you. He propped himself up on his elbow as he buried his fingers into your hair and gently scratched your scalp.

You were exhausted, and likely wouldn’t have woken up if not for him leaning over and placing kisses from your neck all the way up to your ear. You felt his hot breath as he whispered for you to please wake up, which made you groan softly.

You’d yet to open your eyes, but who else would it be? You asked,“Katsuki?”

“Made you food, baby, c��mon, I saw you didn’t eat your lunch, you gotta put somethin’ in your belly.” He explained as he removed his hand from your hair and lifted the material of your shirt to rub up and down your stomach, you felt him inch closer to your chest before stopping himself and tugging your tank top back down to your waist.

You turned toward him, quickly finding the divet in between his shoulder and neck to plant your face in. You were barely awake, not really comprehending what he was trying to say.

“Missed you.” You relaxed further into him.

“Missed you so much, sweets.” You felt him kiss your forehead,“Hate to pull you from bed, but you really gotta open your eyes for me.”

You did as he asked, smiling as his face came into view, lit up by the soft light streaming in from the hallway. “Hi, honey.” You managed to get out as he smushed your cheeks (cuteness aggression) and placed three kisses onto your nose.

You grinned as he said hi back and repeated that he’d cooked for you.

You beamed, you hadn’t had his cooking in a while, but didn’t exactly make a move to get up from bed. It wasn’t until he revealed that he’d made you pancakes, that had you up in seconds.

He chuckled as he followed you down the hall, lightly smacking your butt as you happily made your way through the apartment. You turned to him with surprise,“You cleaned too?”

“Course.” He scoffed as he tugged on your hand and sat you down at your small table that sat four people max. “I’d do it more if you didn’t always beat me to everything, I was thinking I should be doing a bit more around here anyway.”

“I can handle it.” You said, like always.

He rolled his eyes as he brought over the plate he’d prepared for you.

“I didn’t say you couldn’t, I’m just saying you don’t have to give a hundred percent every day, you know? You could give me thirty and I’d be more than happy to give the remaining seventy.” He began to explain,“I wanna take care of you too, and that starts by you not doing everything.”

You silently watched him cut up your pancakes before placing some fruit onto them and drizzling maple syrup all over, he gave you tea to drink and pulled his chair closer to you while you ate.

He ran his fingers through your hair again as you told him all about your day before asking about his and what time he’d gotten home. He let you feed him a couple bites of food and you snagged a few extra kisses each time you lied and told him he had syrup on his face.

When you finished, he asked if you’d like a bit of real food, claiming he wanted you nice and full. You agreed, happy to eat what he’d prepared.

You were less tired now, satisfied with your belly full and sitting with your lover as he recalled a story about retrieving someone’s lost kitten in a tree. You laughed at the classic save and felt your mental load becoming lighter the more the minutes went on.

After eating, the pampering continued.

Katsuki demanded you allow him to run you a bath, and he quickly made the bathroom up with a few candles. He set up a movie for you to watch on your laptop as he came into the room with you and offered to wash your hair. You requested he get in with you then, and he obliged quickly, taking his time when it came to massaging his hands through your hair and pressing kisses against your back at every opportunity. He held you against his chest as you relaxed into him.

You honestly started to get sleepy again.

And then it was ripped away from you once more as Katsuki led you to bed, not to sleep, but to have you spread out against the mattress for him to plaster his tongue against you and demand he get his dinner now.

“Wanna take care of you.” He’d said.

He quickly had you squirming and writhing underneath his touch and the feel of his fingers inside as he worked you until completion. He sung you praises about how hard you’d been working lately, telling you how you deserved this and more, as well as making sure you knew how good you always did for him.

“One more, baby.” He begged.

One more turned into two then three, and by the time he finally lined himself up to your entrance you were spent. He worshipped your body, kneading your breasts and holding one of your hands back so you couldn’t hide how flushed your face had become from not just his compliments, but from the way he fucked you.

“Katsuki,” You moaned,“Close.” Again.

“Cum with me, baby, please.”

The movement of his hips was starting to get sloppy, but neither of you noticed through the haze. He whined in your ear as you latched onto his back with your hands and wrapped your legs around his waist, your walls squeezed him and he moaned one last time as he got lost in euphoria. He didn’t make a move to remove himself as he pressed his sweaty forehead against your own and kissed your cheek and then your neck and then your collarbone, making a line all the way down to your bellybutton.

He occupied himself with making sure you stayed awake despite your eyes being closed as you attempted to catch your breath, he sucked hard enough to leave a few marks along your chest and before you knew it you started to feel him become hard inside of you again.

Your eyes snapped open as you gave him a look.

Katsuki smirked as he rubbed your hip and stole your mouth briefly,“Gotta make sure you’re nice and full, baby, one more time f’me, please?”

“You’re insatiable.” You told him.

And yet, how could you say no to him when he looked at you that way?

It was a good thing you’d taken that nap earlier, especially now that your body would soon be aching for a different reason.

[staybabblingbaby]

Soulmate Garden AU Ch.3 (Daffodil) a2d2

[Caution: These are not full fics, or even full parts of fics for some, these are part of my writing progress archive!]

Concept: Growing up, you knew Soulmates weren't all that they cracked up to be. So when, on your 18th birthday, your skin is painted with a garden of flower buds, you resolve to hide it from everyone. Who had ever heard of someone with 8 soulmates, anyway?

Or; Reader has 8 soulmates and no issue avoiding all of them. It's up to SKZ to show her that while every soulbond might not be made of fairy tales, theirs certainly could be.

Word Count: 3,060

Notes: Happy very late birthday to my dearest moot @thatgirlangelb! Thank you for always letting me babble away in your DMs <3 You give me so much motivation to write whenever we talk, I swear over half of BFP wouldn't be written without you. You're a magical and special human being and I hope life treats you so incredibly well <<<333

This chapter is on the shorter side, but it's longer than I was expecting it to be? That seems to be the trend for SG lmao. This one actually came out pretty smoothly and there weren't as many small edits as usual. Ofc I say that and then I'll come back in 4-8 business days and absolutely abhor it lmao. I tried to make it pretty obvious who Reader encountered in this chapter before the little reveal, but y'all'll have to lmk how I did. I tried to do it with actions instead of descriptions bc I'm rlly bad at describing body shapes.

Dividers by @saradika

Warnings: She/Her Reader, allusions to past domestic violence?

Leave me comments or questions or anything! Love hearing from folks <3

Masterlist <3 | Prev Part | Next Part (Coming Soon <3)

Taylor spends all of the next morning bugging you about your soulmates.

It’s mostly friendly teasing, you know. A fanboy excited that you’re connected to his idols and a friend who wants you to feel more at ease in a difficult time.

It’s still annoying as hell.

Over breakfast, “Listen, I know men ain’t shit, but these ones have benefits! For me. Maybe give them a chance?”

While you brushed your teeth, “I’m all for independence! Feminism and all that. But they’ve got crazy money.”

Through the door while you were getting dressed, “They’re dancers! I’ve never met a dancer who didn’t know how to use their hips.”

Even as you were walking out the door for work, “They produce their own music, they might even write songs for you!”

You finally turn around to face him, the lucky bastard still in his pajamas since he was smart enough to get the day after the concert off from work. You place your hands on your hips and cock your head to stare him down.

Immediately he starts to stumble and sweat, your quirked eyebrow a hint to your waning patience.

“I-I just- I mean- I was just sayin’-”

You roll your eyes at him and quickly slug him in the shoulder. Ignoring his yelp of pain, you relieve him of his stuttering misery.

“Listen, I know you’re excited because I’m your Idol’s soulmate and whatnot, but I don’t even know them.” You chide him. “Besides, only Bangchan is for sure my soulmate right now. For all we know the other seven are completely unrelated.”

Taylor just gives you a flat look for that. Neither of you believed in coincidences very much, and you knew as well as he did who your remaining soulmates were.

“But you could know them,” Taylor counters, “Soulmates are a lifetime kinda thing.”

“Exactly why I don’t want to meet them right now!” You nod as if to agree with your own point, “We said we’d let fate do it’s thing and we’re gonna let it.”

Taylor opens his mouth to start bargaining with you again, so you cut him off before he could annoy you too much.

You and Taylor didn’t fight much. You’d quickly learned each other’s limits way back when you'd first moved in. Unfortunately for him, you'd woken up with a migraine this morning because of everything that had happened the night before.

He was lucky he still had a head.

“And anyway, what would I even do? Track down their hotel? Chase down their plane? Email JYPE? I’m sure they have fans claiming to be their soulmates all the time. Bangchan didn’t even seem to notice the bond forming, they’d probably file a restraining order.”

Taylor finally deflates at your argument. He’d know even better than you what kind of environment surrounded celebrities and their soulmates.

“I’m just saying,” He whines, “that you don’t have to run from them when you meet them.”

You feel your ears burn with embarrassment at the reminder of how you’d panicked last night.

After you’d dropped the Bangchan bomb on him and closed your door to get to bed, Taylor had thrown it right the way back open to interrogate you. You’d spent another hour explaining the whole harrowing tale before he’d finally let you go to bed.

It was a good thing your hours were as flexible as they were, you’d have been waking up seconds after you’d gone to sleep otherwise.

“I wasn’t gonna run!” You mutter petulantly. Taylor just raises a brow at you. You’re getting tired of how communicative his face is.

“I wasn’t!”

“If you run,” he smirks at you, eyes glinting meanly, “You owe me twenty bucks. If you don’t, I’ll owe you.”

You pout and protest, but end up shaking the devil’s hand anyways. Letting fate do it’s thing included not fleeing when you were confronted by it’s design.

You leave the house a grumpy mess, Taylor seeing you off with a blinding smile.

The rest of your day goes about as swimmingly as the start of it.

You’re already grumpy, irritated, and hurting. Your soul mark prickles at your side every now and again, as if annoyed at you for ignoring it.

You hope Bangchan isn’t experiencing the same thing, the poor guy deals with enough.

Work goes as smoothly as you always expect it to, which is not at all. There’s always some emergency to deal with, another fire to put out. Always started by someone higher than you on the corporate ladder so you can’t even yell at them.

The relief you feel when your lunch break rolls around could power a city.

You leave the building with haste, avoiding all of your coworkers as you went. It’d be a tragedy to be flagged down with more work at this exact moment.

You make your way out to mix with the crowds of L.A, letting the flow of people carry you to your destination a few blocks away: A quaint little coffee shop at the mouth of an alley.

It's quite possibly your favorite spot in the whole city. Decked out with a jungle of plants, walls crowded with framed art from a variety of local artists. The lighting was always warm and natural, large windows at the front making the tiny space feel so much larger than it was. You could even buy the pieces on display if you wanted, prices carefully stuck onto the frames.

Your point being, the vibes were immaculate.

You also swear they put something extra in their coffee. No other place carries you through your day in the same way.

When you enter your little midday safe-space, greeted by the charming bell above the door, you’re faced with a busier interior than you’re used to.

Usually at this time of day you can march right up to the counter to chat with the barista while they make whatever caffeinated atrocity your brain cooks up that day. Today, though, it seems like half the city’s population has decided to give your little spot a go.

You’d normally be happy for them. More business; more money and all that. But today the low din of chatter filling the air just scrapes across your brain like a rusted spoon. Your headache from this morning had only gotten worse throughout the day, and you wished you could just call it quits and go home.

Unfortunately for you, you have bills to pay and only so long of a lunch break. The walk here ate up enough of it for you to suck it up and join the line.

When you join the que you’re basically halfway out the door, practically plastered to the back of the man in front of you. He doesn't seem to pay you any mind, yapping away on his phone in quiet Korean.

You study the back of your new line neighbor with bored interest. Your eyes trace the slopes of his shoulders, drifting down to his waist, before moving back up to gaze at the back of his beanie’d head. You notice the straps of a mask around his ears and wonder how the person on the phone can hear him with his voice so muffled and low.

Apparently the person on the phone can’t hear him very well, because soon he’s raising his voice a bit more. It has you wondering if his tone is just naturally that soft, or if he’s just conscious of the space he’s in.

Soon enough you’re two people closer to the counter, halfway into the coffee shop now, and your line buddy has entered into a full blown argument with whoever he has on the phone.

He’s speaking way too quickly for your barely conversational Korean to keep up with- not that you’re trying very hard to- but you can guess from the keywords “Jagiya”, “Soulmate”, and “coffee” that it’s the usual lover’s quarrel.

From the sounds of it, it was a very “We’ve already talked about this” sort of conversation as well. Poor guy. You hope his soulmate and lover get cool with each other soon.

The conversation goes on as the two of you inch closer to the counter. You’re fully invested in the drama at this point, absorbing what little bits you can to rehash with Taylor later. Your own mini soap-opera.

After a bit more back and forth with what you assume is his partner, he begins resorting to some very creative threats to express his displeasure.

You wonder if this guy might be a bit too comfortable speaking a foreign language around English speakers, because if he didn’t sound so damn fond while he was doing it you might’ve needed to tip the police off to a potential murder. Via tissue, if your line neighbor had anything to say about it.

That sends you down a path of your own creative murder options, wondering what sort of other common items your murderous que friend might use. Stabbing their partner through with a straw, maybe? Perhaps a fork, if the straw proved too flimsy.

You can’t see his face from where you’re stood, but you’d bet it’s the face of someone who stabs. Just one of those “don’t mess with me, I can and will put whatever I’m holding through your nearest body part” type of looks. You can feel it in your bones.

You're shaken from your revery as the line moves forward and the potential murderer snaps at his phone for his partner (presumably) to put a "Lixu-yah" on the line. This sparks another argument, and though you can only hear one side of it, it seems that the desired "Lix" is unavailable. Bummer for stabby-guy.

You might be entertaining yourself too much with a stranger's conversation. You can’t feel too guilty about it though, this is the best mood you’ve been in all day. You’d entirely forgotten about your headache there for a minute. Laughter really does heal all ills, you suppose.

It's a bit of a relief when it becomes Stabby's turn and he hangs up with a grumbled declaration of love. If they were fine enough to say their 'love you's then they’d probably make it through whatever soulmate-related rough patch they were going through. You silently wish them luck.

When your stabby friend (who doesn’t know he’s your friend, but you’re endeared now) steps up to the counter it becomes very clear why he’d asked for a particular person to be handed the phone. You assume this “Lix” must have been an English-speaking friend of his, his own halting English giving him trouble with placing what seems to be a behemoth of an order.

He manages the first part of his order alright, a whopping five drinks already, when he finally reaches the limit of his English vocabulary and begins trying to describe what you think might be a shaken caramel macchiato with some extra bits.

He and the barista go back and forth for several moments, a mix of pantomiming, alternative words, and guesses from the poor flustered barista. You watch him grow more and more frustrated, though he remains very soft spoken and polite about it.

Finally, after another moment of watching them struggle, you can't take it anymore.

You gently tap the stranger on the shoulder, earning a startled little jump. He turns to you with weary eyes and you confirm that there’s a mask covering the lower half of his face. With his beanie pulled low over his eyes, you wouldn't have been able to even tell the color if you hadn't been just that bit shorter than him.

As it is, you get lost in deep pools of brown for a moment before you manage to collect yourself.

"Hi," You chirp in Korean, "Do you need help?"

The man seems to war with himself for a moment, clearly stuck between stranger danger and relief at hearing his native language. After a long moment he accepts your offer.

"Yes, please." He gestures back to the counter where the barista is also clearly relieved by your intervention. "I have a large group and they enjoy making my life difficult."

"No problem," You assure him, "where were you at in your order?"

He takes a moment to check a note app on his phone and begins to slowly relay the final 3 drinks in his 8-drink order. It takes some time, even with you translating, but the energy is a lot less frantic.

He's finally able to pay and you catch him give the name 'Lee' for the order. You wonder if it's his first or last name.

He thanks you for your help as he moves off to the side, and you just give him a small smile and a nod in return. You quickly order your own drink, waving off the barista when she also thanks you. This place was haven enough for you to owe them six times over, anyway.

You and Stabby Lee end up waiting next to each other by the pick-up counter. You feel a bit awkward, having entertained yourself with his private conversation, and end up idly rocking back and forth on the balls of your feet with nerves.

He must have realized you’d heard his entire conversation, right? You hoped not. As fun as it had been, you really hadn't meant to invade his privacy.

Besides, the only serious thing you’d heard was the soulmate thing! You defend yourself in your own thoughts, pursing your lips and nodding your head to your invisible argument. The rest of the argument had seemed to be about a vacation plan. The threats didn’t start until someone said “Zipline”.

You thought that was kinda valid. Heights weren't for everyone.

His name is called before yours, but just for one of the simpler drinks from his massive order. He takes a simple iced americano over to the table with the creams and sugars and begins to doctor it to his liking. Your name is called shortly after and you take your red-eye over to do the same.

The two of you quietly shake and stir your drinks for a moment before he speaks.

"Thank you again for your help," he says, "I really do appreciate it."

You're kind of enchanted by the softness of his voice, now that's directed at you. You’re becoming convinced that this really is just his usual tone. He's speaking normally, but you honestly feel like he's murmuring directly into your ear. He could be a hypnotist or something. An ASMR person, at least.

You wave away his gratirude as you pour unholy amounts of creamer into your drink. "No worries!" You dismiss, "I should be thanking you for the chance to practice my Korean."

"Your Korean is very good." He compliments quickly. You laugh a bit and shake you head.

"I doubt it's that good, I'm really put of practice. It's been a while."

"No, your pronunciation is great." He flashes you a bit of an eye smile to show his sincerity and you find yourself even more charmed by a perfect stranger.

You chuckle bashfully as he finishes up his drink, turning to lean against the table so you can continue to talk. You can't help the way your eyes are drawn to the way he moves, enchanted by the simple action.

"I'll make sure to brag about it everywhere." You assure him, earning yourself another eye smile and a soft chuckle.

Good heavens, you think you might be halfway in love.

"Please do."

Scratch that, you might be all the way in love.

You do your best to contain your smile and push down the blush on your cheeks. You don't think it works, if his amused gaze is anything to go by. It’s not your fault this random guy has rizz for days!

"Well, I gotta scoot." You finish turning your drink a pale tan and shoot him your best 'excusing myself from an ended conversation' smile. You're kind of sad you probably won't run into him again after this.

"I wish you good luck getting that monster order to wherever you're going." You say, shooting the pick up counter with it's growing mountain of beverages an amused look.

He huffs another little laugh and you swear your heart skips a beat. "Thanks, you take care." he offers you a tip of his cup and you tip yours right back.

You do your best to scootch past him in the tight space between the tables and the little counter, but don't quite manage not to bump him on your way. Your elbow meets his forearm and you apologize as you wiggle through.

You're already two steps out the door when the pain of flowers blooming across your right side registers in your brain.

Your face scrunches up and you let out a hiss of pain, the hand not holding your coffee automatically going down to press down where it hurts. Your eyes naturally follow it, and when you finally process what just happened your head snaps back up to the glass door. It's still swinging shut.

You meet eyes with your second soulmate behind the glass, his gaze just as wide and startled as yours.

For a moment, you’re lost again in the depths of his stare.

For a moment, you can almost smell something sweet and floral.

For a moment, you feel peace wash over you.

And then sunlight bounces off the swinging glass, breaking eye contact between the two of you. Spell broken, your soulmate moves, takes just a single step toward the door, and memories of shattered glass and echoing yells ricochet across your brain with all the power of a rocket engine.

You turn tail and book it.

By the time Minho exits the coffee shop, drink abandoned on the counter, you're already lost in the mid-day crowd. A glimpse of your bright blue sweater is the last thing he sees of you before you're gone.

He reaches behind himself to gingerly rub the sore parts of his back and pulls his phone from his pocket.

When you get home that evening, you slam a twenty down on the counter in front of Taylor and storm off to your room without a word.

Perma Tag list: @mbioooo0000

[lowfunctioningoptimist]

Being a former Schoolteacher in the Van Der Linde Gang

Prompt: {Reader as a Former Teacher in the Van Der Linde Gang}

Fem!Reader x Various

Summary: It’s no secret that the Van Der Linde Gang brought together all sorts of misfits of all sorts of backgrounds. Hosea had been a stage actor, Bill had been a soldier, and Javier was once a revolutionary. However, with all these strange yet vibrant histories, yours always made you stand out. Far to off in the eastern side of the country, you had lived a modest but respectable life as a schoolteacher. 

Note: Reader is written as being in her late twenties to early thirties. I only have Arthur, John, Dutch, Abigail, Mary-Beth, Javier, Molly, and Sean in this post. I do intend to write the others, I just didn't want this to be too long. I can also write specific imagines or romantic hcs if requested!

ARTHUR

He’s likely to be the first to develop a crush on you. Honestly.

Arthur finds you comforting. You carry yourself with a warmth and a certain air of confidence that makes him feel safe in your presence. He didn’t have much schooling, so he sometimes gets shy about talking about academic subjects. Still, you do manage to coax him into deeper conversations than just “mornin’” and “lovely day, ain’t it?”

Arthur is softer than he seems and sees more than he’s always willing to say. After cracking through the awkward small-talk phase of your friendship, you and Arthur begin to talk more on philosophy. He’s never considered himself all that smart, but you tell him that he’s insightful. Insightful? Him? It's enough to make him blush sometimes.

As he gets to know you better, Arthur starts to do small favors for you. Nothing too big. Just things like bringing back books from town or little trinkets he thought you might like. If you need help with your chores, he might just join you if Miss Grimshaw ain't around. Certain people in the gang have taken to calling him, "teacher's pet."

JOHN

He hardly paid you any mind, at first.

After you spent a few weeks with the gang, he started seeing you with Jack. Thought nothing of it, at first. Then it became a regular occurrence and despite himself, he got just a touch paranoid. You were brand new to the gang. A stranger. Why would Abigail let you near his her son? He confronted her only to find out that Abigail had asked you to teach Jack as his own private tutor. Needless to say, he felt a bit silly.

From what he can tell, you're not half-bad of a teacher. Jack's learning his numbers, writing his name, and is starting to ask for more books. While a part of him wants to be happy... it only vexes him further. Why would such an innocent civilian such as yourself be all the way out here?

John takes a while to warm up to you, but you proved to be less stuffy than you looked. You have a firm yet gentle way about you. And somehow, you can correct someone without ever making them feel stupid or simple for it.

DUTCH

He enjoys your keen mind and education, but he also resents it.

Dutch won't share with the others how he found you or how you became an outlaw. He likes to say that it's your story to tell. Really, he just like to know something no one else does. His reason for recruiting you was just as simple, he hadn't met someone like you before.

It's not everyday he meets an ex-teacher-turned-outlaw. Dutch found your situation interesting, unique. He does so like to collect outcasts. Especially one as educated and clean as you. Dutch starts to linger by you as you do your chores to initiate a playful debate. Unlike most in the gang, you disagree with some of his philosophies and have counterarguments that make him pause. That's not to say you've ever convinced him to change his mind, oh no. His pauses are more for him to steady himself so he doesn't show how bothered your resistance makes him.

As much as Dutch loves to spar with you mentally, he secretly finds offense in your obstinance. What you see as playful debate may just turn into a case against you as a traitor.

JAVIER

Now, this one may seem odd, but Javier is second most likely to develop a strong attraction for you. 

When he first saw you, it wasn’t precisely love at first sight. You were new, having joined just after Charles. Javier agreed with Bill that you wouldn’t last long. Everything about you just screamed, “civilian.” You dressed modestly, wore spectacles, spoke proper English, and seemed clueless as how to survive in the west. The only reason he didn’t outright resent you was because Dutch had been the one to bring you into the gang. 

The crush started around the same time you got more comfortable at camp. Sometimes you let your hair down, literally and figuratively, both of which he found very attractive. You have a mouth on you, and you aren’t scared of much. Seeing you stare down Bill for swearing in front of Jack was enough to prove that. He likes how tough but fair you are. How you’re educated but you’re not stuck up about it, unlike some he’s met. 

MARY-BETH

Is shy about it, but eventually goes to you for help with her writing.

Mary-Beth finds out that you both like “silly romance,” books and she starts to talk about how she writes her own. With it being so hard to find new things to read, you jump at the chance to read her work. Mary-Beth is quite shy about it, but she lets you read a few pages. Much to her surprise, you praise the work and ask for more. She starts to use you as an editor for some of her short stories. You enjoy her writing quite a lot and encourage her to keep going. 

You and Mary-Beth get on very well. You’re both bookworms and not too keen on violence for violence’s sake. Privately, you talk about what you hope your life will be like some day.

SEAN

Finds the fact that you’re an outlaw to be completely hilarious. 

As he gets more used to your presence, Sean starts to come to you with questions about the world. He does this because, as a teacher, he assumes you must know the answer to at least some of these. Questions like, “Why do we call ducks and geese different things when they look alike?” or “How’d we even decide what to name things? Did we see an orange’n on a trre an’ tink, ‘Oh now that’s an orange!’ or did we already have the color all sorted out? How’d they name colors to begin with?”

Sean will sometimes follow you around camp to ask you these questions, and the gang finds it quite funny. You’ll just be doing your chores with Sean slinking behind you as his mouth runs a mile a minute. What surprises most is that you usually at least try to give him an answer. Some folks didn’t believe you were really a teacher when you first joined… They believed you after they saw how patient you can be with Sean. 

ABIGAIL

First, she was suspicious of you. Then, she trusted you more than most.

Once Abigail was certain you weren’t going to sprint back into town to turn everyone in, she had a favor to ask. Jack was getting older and although Hosea and Dutch offered to teach him to read and write, they hadn’t the time to start. She asked you to teach him whatever you could when time allowed. You were excited to help, eager. Jack being as young as he was, took to your lessons fast. In little time, you were helping him sound out sentences and write his name. This started a new problem for Abigail, however. She never learned to read or write herself. Jack would try to show her his work, or ask her to read him a story, and she couldn’t.

Instead of shaming her, you offered to teach her how to read as well. Abigail refused at first, but relented when you said she could teach you how to sew in return. Through her, you start to feel more a part of the gang.

MOLLY

She only started to have a problem with you once she realized you weren’t some old hag.

When you first joined the gang, you were still dressing like a teacher. Your clothes were bulky and formless, hair all pulled back in a bun, and you were quiet. As you got more into the outlaw life, you started to dress a bit more like the other women. Started showing more of your personality. And more importantly, Dutch started to pull you aside more often. 

Molly can’t help but feel paranoid about you and Dutch. When she spies in on you two, all she sees is you both reading or debating. It’s not as if he’s holding your hand or whispering in your ear… but it feels wrong. Dutch talks to you about things he won’t talk to her about. Books, philosophy, world events, the strange and esoteric. It feels like you satisfy him in a way she can’t, and Molly comes unglued thinking about it. 

[cannedpickledpeaches]

The Drive Home

Floyd Leech x Reader

Notes: Haven’t finished the side stories for Insert Your Name so here’s some Floyd angst while you wait.

Somehow or the other, over the years, you’ve become Floyd’s designated driver.

You’re good friends, so of course you go to the same parties. You don’t drink, so of course he needs someone reliable and sober to take him home . . . if he isn’t going home with a new friend. The latter happened often enough in university that you only showed up to events when he was too hammered to leave with anyone else.

You never bothered to learn about his more personal life. It wouldn’t be too weird to ask—he’s happy to volunteer information unprompted, regardless—but you simply aren’t interested. You’re his childhood friend. It would feel almost gross to like him when his parents’ home welcomes you as warmly as your own. Jade and Floyd are just like your annoying brothers, that’s all.

You’re also really good at convincing yourself.

When you were young and fueled by emotion in high school, you constantly dreamed about Floyd if he was the perfect boyfriend. One who was attentive, fun, and loyal. One who would treat you as someone special, who would never get bored and cast you aside. One who would devote his entire being to you.

Maturing is realizing that’s just not Floyd. And you can respect that. Maturing is understanding that no matter how much your heart likes him, that fairytale prince you conjured in your daydreams with his face doesn’t exist. Maturing is realizing just because you like him doesn’t mean he’s good for you.

But you still like him. You tried, but you can’t change that.

Neon letters flicker and cast their light over the interior of your car as you wait in the driver’s seat. After graduating from university, he moved on from frat parties to clubs. Even while parked by the curb, you can hear the booming music thrumming in your steering wheel. The bass pulses like a second heartbeat.

A tall silhouette stumbles to the door on the passenger side. Neon pinks and purples from the sign behind him light up the flyaways in his messy hair. When he opens the door, the stench of alcohol crashes into you the same way he crashes into the seat. The cologne swirling around in the headache-inducing miasma doesn’t help in the slightest.

“You stink.” To alleviate your nostrils, you roll the windows down. The muted music transitions into a different song with the exact same beat. “I’m thinking about kicking you out and making you walk home.”

“Don’t do that, s’not nice.” His words sound as though his tongue has lost half its flexibility. “Ya’ve got your best friend in your car! Would never dream of doin’ somethin’ so mean, wouldya?”

“If you throw up over the seats, I’m kicking you out. Too bad my best friend isn’t worth cleaning up whatever’s in your stomach right now.”

“Won’t throw up.” His snicker ends in a groan. It takes him several tries to secure his seatbelt. “Fuck. Feel like the world’s spinnin’.”

You pull out a plastic bag from the glove compartment and shove it in his lap.

For a good stretch of the drive, he’s content with humming to himself. You don’t play music in case it makes his headache worse. He makes enough noise to fill the car anyway. His off-tune humming switches through several melodies, some you recognize, some you don’t.

The humming fades into silence. At a stop light, you glance at Floyd to make sure he’s okay. His eyelashes flutter against his cheekbones. You think he’s asleep until his eyes flash open and he gives you a grin.

“Eyes on the road.”

“Just making sure you didn’t kick the bucket.” You catch a glimpse of a red stain on the right side of his Adam’s apple. Your gut twists unpleasantly. “If you’re gonna sleep, turn your face to the right.”

“Why? Y’don’t wanna see my handsome face or what?”

You look forward as the light turns green. “No, you told me to keep my eyes on the road. I just don’t want you transferring those lipstick stains onto the seats.”

“Ain’t gotta be salty that you don’t get laid.” You don’t need to look at him to hear the grin in his voice.

“That’s because I have standards.”

“Like what?”

“Something higher than ‘has a hole.’”

He clicks his tongue playfully. “Jealousy ain’t cute on ya.”

You’re aware. Painfully so. Jealousy feels ugly, gnarled, like a twisting mess of poisoned vines reaching insidious tendrils through your veins. They eventually follow your veins back to your heart, squeezing its walls with every lipstick stain you see on his skin. The wish to possess, to confine him in your clutches when the thing he hates above all others is to be tied down—that isn’t cute in the slightest.

Maturing is keeping the worst thoughts inside. A mature adult like you won’t throw a tantrum or cry dramatically in front of him. No, a mature adult like you can do that in the privacy of your room.

“What’s cute on me, then?” You swallow hard. He won’t remember this conversation by tomorrow. Probably. Not when there are so many other, more interesting conversations from the club to remember.

Awkward silence fills the car. Your fingers leave sweat on the steering wheel. Focusing on the road might help distract you from the odd pause from his ever-present noise.

“Your hands.”

You very nearly step hard on the gas by accident. You weren’t expecting an answer at all, much less this one.

“Why? Is that a fetish, or . . . .”

He barks a laugh. “Nah, who knows?”

“Ew. I’ll kick you out.” Both of you know you won’t. If you’re being honest, you’re a little flattered that he thinks your hands are cute, even if it’s in a platonic way. “Why my hands?”

“Dunno. Just the part of ya I was lookin’ at when y’asked.”

Now that’s an odd answer. At a stop light, you look at him again. His sleepy eyes meet yours, and a lazy grin tugs at the corners of his lips.

“I told you to face your right.”

“Right, right.” He sticks his tongue out, but doesn’t oblige. “How’m I s’posed to give ya a proper answer when I’m not s’posed to look atcha?”

“You can’t think of cute things about me if you aren’t looking at me?” You scoff, turning onto a side street. Almost there. “Think of me in your head or something.”

“My head can’t do ya justice.”

Your heart almost skips a beat. Almost. Because you think of all the other people he’s said those words to. All of a sudden, you feel much less special.

Childhood friends. Maturing is understanding that is all you are, and that is all you will ever be, and that you will never, ever be in a relationship with Floyd Leech unless you want it to come crashing down in infinitesimal pieces.

“I like your eyes, too. Always lyin’.” He laughs. “The eyes of a liar, that’s what ya got. But I like them more this way.”

“Doesn’t sound like a compliment.”

“Well, it is.” His chuckles fade into the ambient rumbling of the car for a few moments before he starts rambling. “I like your laugh, too. And the way ya come to pick me up even when ya complain. And when ya scoff when I do somethin’ nice for ya, but it doesn’t take a genius to tell you’re happy anyway. And your nose when it scrunches up. It gets red when it’s cold.”

“Most people’s noses get red when it’s cold.” You choose to ignore everything else he said.

“Not mine.”

“Most humans.”

It’s the novelty that attracts him. You’d have thought that after living with humans all this time, the novelty of flushed skin would have worn off, but it’s hard to tell with Floyd.

“Wouldya like me more if I was human?”

His voice is nearly lost in the humming of the car. You keep your eyes straight ahead. Vaguely, you wish there was more traffic in this side street. Something to keep your mind off the odd vulnerability in his voice.

“I like you the most the way you are,” you say, and it’s the truth. No matter what he is, human or mer or otherwise, you like Floyd as himself. You’ve fallen in love with a natural disaster, and you only barely have enough sense not to throw yourself in the midst of it. The winds would shred you apart. You desperately struggle against the part of your mind that whispers: at least you would have had it once before being destroyed.

But you’re older and more mature now. You won’t indulge that emotional side of you.

You stop outside his home and put the car in park. “We’re here. Get out of my car.”

A mix between a groan and a whine drags itself out of his throat. The alcohol might be making him woozy, but he can walk to his door just fine. You won’t need to help him anymore than this.

He unfastens his seatbelt and leans over to you. The hug he gives you is so uncoordinated, it feels like he’s simply throwing his weight onto you, his arms flopping uselessly.

“Thanks,” he says a little too loudly for his mouth to be next to your ear. “See ya ‘round.”

“Don’t ask me to pick you up again.”

“Ya say that every time.” He laughs again. Laughter always hides just under his tongue when he drinks. “Ya still come when I call.”

“I won’t anymore.” You don’t mean it.

He waves off your remark and plants a sloppy kiss on your cheek. You stiffen, but you’re sure he’s too drunk to notice. With a boisterous farewell, he stumbles out of your car and disappears beyond his front door, leaving the ghost of his kiss on your skin.

You hate being a mature adult. If you weren’t, maybe you would’ve called after him. You might’ve rolled down the window all the way and pulled on his collar, yanking him close enough to kiss him on the lips. Consequences be damned, caution to the wind, whatever else they say about being young and reckless. But you’re a mature adult, and the best you can do for both of you is watch as he leaves.

[am-i-interrupting]

Stalking Shadows | Vox x Alastor’s Child— OATSH

Summary: Alastor has a problem with your choice in company. You have a problem with his problem.

For @aliceneedsphalis or somewhat inspired by one of their prompts.

“Oh, he’s not that bad,” you said.

You’d been listening to your father for the last couple minutes, maybe even an hour, rant about how Vox’s new company was beginning to take away listeners or rather, they were selling more televisions than radios now.

“Oh, yes, people muddling their brains into mush is something to be unconcerned about,” Alastor said, sarcasm coating his every word.

You have him a deadpanned look before rolling your eyes. “It’s not that and you know it. People just like seeing things that they ain’t ever—“

“Have never,” he corrected.

“—seen before. What’s the big difference between watching something on a television and going to a theater?” you asked. “People are just watching other people act out a story.”

“It’s not the same and you know it,” he said, spitting your words back at you. “Going to the theater means leaving the comforts of home, watching a creation of a story that may be said word for word the same but will always be played out differently. The television encourages sinking further into your home, grounding you to a spot that you can’t leave lest you miss something and will always be the same. At least with the radio, you can enjoy it from any place.”

“Uh-huh? And you’re sure there’s not something else going on?” you asked.

Alastor was prone to monologuing when in the comforts of either of your homes but even this had been excessive. His monologues were normally more spaced out than this.

It’d been nearly a year since Vox came into your afterlife and your father had been none too pleased. In a way, you understood but in others you didn’t.

Yes, Vox was taking up some of your time. You went out together to walk the town, get dinner, go to random places or you’d set him up on meetings. However, your time had not been solely taken up by Vox. You saw him planned in person perhaps once a week. Outside of that, you didn’t see him much at all. You still saw your father nearly the same amount. It honestly felt hypocritical of him to complain without actually complaining when at least you told him where you were going. He did not always give you the same courtesy and disappeared for days if not weeks at a time far more often than you’d like.

“What else would there be?” he asked.

You grabbed his hand and used it to wrap his arm around your shoulders as you gave him a hug from his side, both arms around his waist.

“I know you don’t like when things change without your permission—“

“Which is precisely what this is.”

“—but I had a life without you in it. It’s not your fault that you weren’t there for it and I don’t blame you for not being there. But, I did have to learn how to be happy without you. That doesn’t mean I’m not happy with you and it doesn’t mean that I want you to go away. However, Vox was one of those people I found happiness with. A lot of happiness, so just don’t be so hard on him, please. You don’t have to like him, just stop talking like you want to kill him. Okay?”

Silence.

You squeezed Alastor’s torso harder and leaned back, pulling him with you. “Okay?” you asked again.

“I will make an attempt,” he said, sounding like it hurt him to get the words out.

You released him. “That’s all I want.” You placed your hat on your head. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going.”

“And where to exactly?”

Just this once you decided to give your father a taste of his own medicine. “Out.”

You left the house briskly. You had few big plans for the day. You mostly just had small errands. A couple things some of your contracted souls had asked for and not much more.

You went to Trinket’s home to repair her roof, damaged from a recent chase that spanned several districts. You visited Fable and brought them lunch as they were still grieving from the extermination passed a few months ago now but they still didn’t smile like they used to.

You had noticed several times a movement of shadow as you walked and specifically chose a very well lit pathway as a result to at least make it harder for him to spy out of spite.

That is, of course, when you caught site of Vox. He was dressed in a blue, short sleeved button up with a belt that matched and black pants. He looked very. . . relaxed as he strode through the streets of your district.

Of course, not everyone who lived in your territory was contracted to you and while he was one of them, it was nice to see him like this.

Then he saw you and a smile stretched across his face. You waved at him. He came over.

“I wasn’t expecting to see you today,” he said.

“I’ll say it’s a bit ironic that I see you so soon as hearing so much about you,” you replied.

“Well, I hope they were good things.”

“Coming from my father? Never, but he rarely has good things to say about anyone so don’t take it personally,” you told him.

“Ah, still hesitant?”

“Resistant is the word I’d use. He’s not much of a sharer.”

“Unfortunate for him, neither am I but for you, I’ll make an exception.” He smiled more when you rolled your eyes. “May I accompany you wherever it is you’re going?”

You caught a glimpse of a moving shadow. Light spots that looked to close to eyes over his shoulder. Fine, you could be petty as well but you were going to say yes either way.

“Please. I don’t believe you’ve met Ziggy yet unless you’ve been seeing others behind my back,” you said.

“I would never dream of it.”

The two of you began to walk side by side together. You used the swinging of your hands to hide the gesture that caused the shadow to be swept away with the wind.

[sweater-daddiesdumbdork]

Curtis and Honey Autumn This Or That 🍂

Week Seven: Warm Blankets or Cozy Mugs

Summary- 1.3k Curtis x Plus!Sized Reader. Curtis is struggling with the cold season approaching and you pick up on it.

Warnings- Curtis dealing with his childhood trauma.

A/N- I absolutely loved this chapter. I hope you all do too. Thank you so much for reading and continuing to share and support them. We are slowly coming to a wrap with this series, only one week left after this. Again, Thank You for everything! Happy Reading.

Curtis and Honey This or That Masterlist

Life Is Short So Make It Sweet Masterlist

Curtis liked many things in life and being cold wasn’t one of them. He hated it more than he could describe, it brought up memories that continued to haunt him after all these years. 

Him as a toddler with blue lips while stuck in the car, the winter storm howling and frosting the windows while he cried for someone, anyone to hear him as the car horn blared into the darkness. Whenever his few memories of that accident take hold, the biggest one was how cold he was till the car was found. 

Sometimes it made it a bit difficult when he was with you because you loved the chill, the way it felt when you breathed it in, the bite on your skin, or how puffs of steam would billow from you when you first stepped out. Sometimes your brightest smiles would appear when you felt the cold in the air. You remarked so many times how the first freezing of autumn was the start of Jack Frost coming for a visit.

But you also didn’t miss the wince in Curtis’s features at the mention of it, how he frowned a bit at the picture window where frost was inching along the edges of the glass in delicate patterns, beautiful but a reminder of how cold it will get soon. 

“This all makes you unhappy, doesn’t it?” You had questioned him that day, his response a mere shrug of his shoulder while a bit of sadness made his eyes cloud up. He didn’t really want to tell you, but the way you asked with all that concern in your expression like you wanted to make it better for him. 

“The bitter cold, yes… it brings up many memories from the accident. But Honey Girl, don’t let me spoil how excited and happy it makes you.” The sadness in his gaze cleared, a soft affectionate one coming in its place.”Besides, you make it better, you love it enough for the both of us.” You ended up wrapping him in a hug, wanting that sad part of his past to feel loved, just as much as the rest of him was. 

And he did, Curtis had no doubt about what you felt for him. 

Now it was back, no snow but the earth was going to sleep, preparing for the day snow would arrive. Edgar bustled into the office where Curtis was sorting the paperwork Tanya had given him earlier, shivering. “Fucking blistering cold, christ it gets earlier and earlier every damn year.” 

“Ain’t nothing gonna stop it.” Tanya motioned for Edgar to make himself a cup of coffee she just brewed. “Might as well get ready for it.” 

Curtis growled a bit, signing off on the last of the paperwork stating all the costs of repairs they just performed. “I don’t think you can ever just get ready for it, no matter what you do.” He snapped, Edgar and Tanya glancing at each other knowingly. 

No matter how hard he tried, sometimes the grumpiness he felt seeped through. It came and went but his friends had learned to give him space at this time. 

So the day went rather quickly, getting as much done of the engine Edgar and him were working on, taking breaks in Tanya’s office where she was sure to keep them supplied with fresh hot coffee and snacks, and finally ending the day as the sky had started to get dark with the early sunsets of the season. Edgar had rushed out for a date with Yona, but Tanya stuck around to lock up with Curtis. 

Curtis had been quiet most of the day, well aware none of them deserved his sullen mood, it was enough to make him attempt to shift it. It wasn’t all bad, you were at the house and that made the heaviness in his chest lighten a bit. “Hey…” Curtis said, catching Tanya’s attention while she was getting on her jacket. “Thanks for today, and everything, you know we wouldn’t function without you here.” 

Tanya worried features lightened, reaching over to hug Curtis in a thank you. “Someone’s gotta take care of you boy’s. Now get on home and you let Y/N take care of you tonight, okay? You need it sometimes too Baby.” She cupped his face in her palms, motherly in her actions. “Promise me.” 

“Okay, okay… I will have a nice quiet evening and come back in a better mood tomorrow, m’kay?” 

“Good.” She patted his cheek with a smile. “See you tomorrow.” 

Once Curtis arrived home, he raced from the warm interior of the truck into his lit up house, already in a better mood now that he was home. 

Stomping his boots in the entrance way to clear the railroads dust off them, he kicked them off near the garage entrance to glance around. “Honey, where are you?” 

“Living room, I got something for you!” You called from across the house, making him hurry out of his jacket and go wash his hands real quick before he wandered down the darkened hallway towards the brightly lit living room. 

He wasn’t expecting to find a blanket fort built in the middle of his living room and inside of it was the softest glow of lights.. Moving to a squat in the entrance he peered inside to see that you had fairy lights you strung up around the blankets, you sat deep inside on the cushions, beckoning him inside. “What are you waiting for Curtis.” You reached over to grab his sweater, tugging him to crawl inside. 

“For an invitation of course.” He laid on his side next to you, admiring the blanket fort you must have spent some considerable time on. “But this is perfect, I’m never leaving.” Inside it was warm and cozy, you tugged off his beanie and tossed it back out the door, cupping his face in your hands and kissing him deeply, welcoming him home. 

“No leaving tonight, we’re hibernating in here… get out of these clothes and get comfy, I got our blankets all warmed up to cuddle under and this.” You dragged over a basket of snacks you must have picked up on your way to his house. “As well as this.” You produced your laptop, having the first Lord of the Rings films queued up to the beginning. 

“You don’t have to tell me twice.” He pulled up enough to strip out of his clothes, you tossed them out one at a time from the fort since ‘tonight is all about comfort and pants weren’t it’ till he was just in his boxers and you were spreading blankets over the two of you. 

Fresh blankets, smelling of clean laundry detergent and warm in a way that made Curtis melt into them. You made him shift down a bit, letting him lay against you so you could rub the wide expanse of his back while the movie started playing. 

The warm blankets made him sleepy, content and comfy laying on the livingroom floor with you in your big wide blanket fort, the sounds of the movie so familiar that he didnt even have to pay that much attention to it to know what was happening. “How did you know I needed this?” He finally asked, having his suspicions and you hummed above him, your hand soothing against the back of his neck and rubbing the now warm shell of his ear affectionately. 

“When we talked at lunch time, you seemed so unhappy Curtis, I kinda just guessed that today was a rough day for you. Besides, we deserve a blanket fort date, we never had one before.”

“I vote we have more of these.” Curtis said honestly, hugging his arms around your waist a bit more as you pulled the blankets higher around the two of you, cozy in your little cocoon for the night. 

“That can be arranged.” 

[broken-clover]

SolAxl Week(ish)- Day 7

Okay I am learning a lesson about doing these week-type challenges. They are fun! But I feel bad for the organizers for having to put up with my shitty pace. Promise I never mean to, it just...sorta happens...

Free Day time! I like open-ended options, fun to stretch the creative legs. I decided to whip out something I haven't really used before, the pantheon/god AU. I sorta used it for another prompt fill a while back, and in general the au is sorta unfinished and half-baked, it's fun trying to assign domains to characters and forming a little ramshackle structure of deities. For what unfinished and undecided stuff I have, I am very attached to Axl being a death god, as a jovial reaper who does his best to make the passage comfortable, and Sol being the god of war (among other things), so their work often overlaps and they spend a lot of time around one another.

Content warnings for discussions of death and one (1) sex mention

-

Historically, during the American Civil War, particularly during the 1861 Battle of Bull Run, onlookers set up picnics overlooking the battlefield. At first, civilians had assumed the ‘war’ would be a short one, a casual affair, easily dealt with. They thought so little of it that they chose to treat it as a spectacle, an amusement. Families brought their baskets and blankets to watch death unfold in front of their eyes.

Now, over 200 years ago, a duo was re-enacting that twisted tradition. A pair of men sat on the grass as they overlooked a field. Below, little had changed in the decades passed. Two factions throwing themselves at one another, swords and guns ablaze, frothing at the mouth to draw blood. In their frantic violence, bodies, dirt, and munitions were thrown every which way, even up the hillside. A few bits of debris came close to the onlookers, but neither paid it much mind. They didn’t even bother moving their feet. It was easier not to care when they had no fear of dying.

“They’re still on it down there?” Asked one to the other. Of the two, he would most easily pass for a normal man. His attire was simple, casual, the sort you’d see on some random pedestrian you passed along the sidewalk. His eyes shimmered like galaxies, and a handheld sickle dangled from a chain on his belt, but unless someone was looking for them, those oddities went unnoticed by most.

“Of course. Practically what humans do best.” His companion, in contrast, was more readily odd. As he opened his mouth to speak, smoke poured freely from a glowing throat. His taloned feet made him stand taller than any mortal man, instilling unease even in some of his fellow deathless. His stature and presence commanded attention. His slitted eyes commanded submission.

Despite it, the being at his side regarded him with the offbeat calm of an old drinking companion. “Does it make you happy?” He asked, folding his arms behind his head.

“What makes you ask?”

“I mean, this is your domain, after all.” He shrugged.

The smoke-spitting oddity shook his head, an air of solemnity in his stance. “Doesn’t mean I gotta like it. More deaths mean more work for all of us. You should know by now how much I hate workin’ hard.”

“Mmm. Maybe not all of us. Milly’s been starved for work lately, y’know. Not much merciful death to be had ‘round here. And sure as hell no beauty or solace, neither.” The other replied.

As they conversed, neither faction noticed the two’s presence. Even if they weren’t embroiled in life-or-death conflict, the strangers’ existence would go entirely unacknowledged.

“Maybe we can whip up one of those virgin orgies? I know she ain’t as freaky as she used to be back in the day, but…”

“Tch.” The dragon-man scoffed, sparks flying from his lips like struck flint. “She’ll be pissed if you say that. ‘N then if we did, we’d gotta be sure Johnny won’t show up and screw everything up again."

“Or screw everything again.”

“Yeah. Exactly. He doesn’t need any damn encouragement.”

A mortal shell was lobbed across the field, exploding in a burning ball. Several bodies, some alive and others already gone, flew back under the force. It served as a brief punctuation for the fight, as both parties quickly fell back into gunfire.

”You glad about it? You’re always talkin’ about those reunion ragers.”

“Mmm.” The cosmos in the man’s eyes were dull. “Y’think I don’t know how much humans hate it? I’ve seen it firsthand for millennia. I just try ‘n make it as fun as I can. ‘m not content to be miserable. It’s good when I lose. They all come to me eventually, I’m fine with them takin’ their time.”

“...I doubt they’re going to ‘take their time’ down there.”

He sighed. “Nah. Always in a rush to die, humans. Never made any sense to me. Might sound strange comin’ from me of all people, but…”

“Eh. God of War thinks most wars are idiotic, you can do the same about your own job. We do a lotta work for those flimsy little flesh bags, don’t mean we gotta forget who’s the omnipotent ones here.”

“Fair enough, chief! Fair enough.” Smiling death stretched his arms to the sky. He clicked his tongue, the way a spirit he’d reaped four centuries ago taught him. “Prolly should get to work soon. Gonna sit and watch?”

“I’ll come.”

“Huh? Y’ sure?”

“Beats sitting and waiting.” The joints of his talons cracked as they bent. “Besides. War and death walk hand-in-hand, I heard someone say.”

His companion snickered. “I’ve heard someone say something like ‘they sleep in the same bed.’ Depends on the night though, eh?”

“Don’t push it.” His fellow god elbowed him in the ribs.

He took the weapon from his belt and twirled it. “Hopefully they come easy. Try not to scare ‘em too much, okay, chief?”

“Fine, as long as you can get them all before dinner.”

“Deal. Say, what’s Jam making tonight, anyway?”

“Oh, everything, same as always. Some of Dizzy’s temples out west left some good offerings for the harvest she gave them. Those’ll probably get served, too.”

The light came back to his glittering eyes. “Mortals might do some dumb stuff, but they know how to make damn good food.”

[metamorphosisff]

|Chapter 12| There Is Rain

(Gif credit: @xo-tough-love-xo )

Sweat poured down my face as I finally finished my set of Bulgarian squats. Dropping the seventy pound dumbbells in each hand, I stood up and wiped my face with the bottom of my shirt. As I went to grab my water bottle, I caught Aiden’s stare.

“What bro? I did fifteen,” I said.

Waving me off, he said, “Question.”

The look on his face let me know that I would soon regret giving him the go ahead for his foolishness but I motioned for him to continue as I took a few sips of water.

“Been around any vampires lately?” he cracks, causing me to almost spit my water out.

“Bro, what is your problem?” I chuckle.

“Nothing, I’m just saying. Looking like you willingly offered yourself up. Whore,” Aiden said.

I couldn’t help the snort that escaped as we both busted out into laughter. I wasn’t someone who kissed and told but as I was rushing to get here on time, I didn’t realize there was evidence left behind. If I did, I would have worn a different shirt.

“Something like that,” I say. In a flash I see Mila on my bed spread before me, eyes wanton, chest flushed a vibrant hue of red.

There.

Here?

Yesss.

My reverie is interrupted by Aiden hitting me in the face with a balled up towel.

“Unnecessary,” I said, tossing it back, though he side steps being hit by it.

“Necessary as hell. You ain’t about to be reliving your lil sexcapade in front of me. We close but never will be that close,” Aiden said with a laugh, as he went over to pick up the weights for his turn. “Who is she.”

It no longer felt right to call Mila just my friend but it was hard to describe what we were becoming. If it were Rah asking me this question, I might have a better answer but since it was Aiden, I kept it simple. “Someone I care about,” I reply.

“One you don’t care about people, you be in love. Two, good, tired of you being sad and mopey. Three, you are a shit wingman so you better make her your girlfriend. You ain’t for the streets for real,” Aiden jokes, as he does his set without nearly the amount of struggle I did. 

“Man it’s not my fault you don’t have no game and you're right about that, I’m not for the streets. I want more than falling in and out of beds,” I said, with a shrug.

“Like I said, you be in love and ain’t nothing wrong with that. So what’s her name?” he asked.

“It’s Jamila and it’s too soon for the love word, so chill,” I replied. The last time I thought I was in love that turned out not to be the case.

“Look at you blushing and shit. Lying ass,” he chuckled, dropping the weights.

“Respect that I don’t want to give your nosey ass any details right now. Just know that she’s different,” I said.

“She better be. The last thing you need is another Mariah,” he said.

“Nah, I learned that lesson, trust me,” I said with a shake of my head. Being with Mila was like breathing with the full capacity of my lungs. I didn’t have to hesitate to be myself because everything I said mattered to her. It was a freedom that had been sorely missing from my life until now.

“Only took the rest of your twenties and eight months of walking around looking like an extra for a Jagged Edge video,” he said, causing me to snort.

“Dawg, I can’t fucking stand you sometimes,” I said, as laughter consumed us both.

This was the closest of a heart to heart we would have because Aiden didn’t do feelings. All he cared about was whether or not we were happy and how he could show up when we weren’t. That alone is why no matter how bad he got on my nerves I would always call him my best friend.

With most of my free time being split between watching over Granddad and hanging out with Mila, it had been almost a week since I had been by my parents house. After the hectic nature of the previous one, I needed some space. I think we all did as Veronica opted to spend last weekend at my apartment versus at home with our parents. She was a bit out of sorts after seeing our father collapse which was understandable. We had been having to face mortality a lot recently and she wasn’t even eighteen yet. When I walked in the house, I could hear her and her friends in the backyard most likely practicing tumbling. I’d give my greetings to them later and continue to let them have their fun undisturbed. Kicking my shoes off and placing them in the cubby in the foyer, I padded my way to the living room where I heard the TV on. Sitting in an armchair, looking like the spitting image of Granddad, was Pops.

“Hey Xay,” he greeted, as I walked over to him to slap hands. Like his father, he wasn’t overly affectionate to anyone other than my mother and sister. When I was ten, I came up with a handshake which became our thing. “Glad you stopped by. Your mother has me cooped up in here.”

“She’s just trying to look out for you. Doctor said you’ll be able to do light exercises next week though,” I said, as I took a seat on the couch.

“She’s feeding me rabbit food,” he deadpanned, causing me to chuckle at the exaggeration.”I might not make it that long.”

“Pops,” I said, shaking my head. “Too soon for death jokes.”

“Sorry but it’s how I feel. You know I don’t like being idle,” he said.

“You're not being idle, you’re recovering from a traumatic health event. I think that warrants some down time,” I said, for what had to be the twentieth time. There was something about getting older that made the adults in my life turn mulish in nature. They were less inclined to listen to reason and only wanted to do what they wanted while not taking account of the better options.

He nodded his head while picking up the remote. “You trying to watch this Yankee’s game with me?”

“Sure.”

I leaned back against the couch as he turned to the YES channel. While we watched the game, mom flittered back and forth, making sure Pops was taking his medication on schedule and bringing snacks. I was haphazardly picking pistachios out of my napkin of trail mix when Pops called my name.

“Yes sir,” I replied, looking over at him.

“We just struck out Boston’s best hitter and you didn’t have anything to say. What’s on your mind son?” Pops asked.

He was right. I couldn’t recall anything from this game because I had been trapped in my mind trying to figure out how I wanted to broach the subject of our relationship. However, like there would never be a perfect time, there weren’t going to be perfect words either.

“Honestly, I’m vacillating between being concerned about your well being and pissed about your lack of respect for me,” I said, sitting the napkin down on the coffee table.

“Well since your concern has been duly noted, let’s address the latter. What makes you think I don’t respect you?” Pops asked, as he sat up a bit straighter. A sign that he was actively listening to what I had to say.

Scrunching my face I said, “You did when you insinuated that I wanted to shirk my responsibilities to Granddad and tied that assumption to my character as a man.”

“Xay, I know dealing with Granddad isn’t easy but we are his family, and looking after another is what we do. A man looks after his family, come hell or high water, not passes those responsibilities over. I know you don’t have a family of your own yet but you would want your kids to do the same for you. Hell I want you to do the same for me if it ever comes to it and I’m not sure you will,” Pops said.

“What?” I said, with a raised brow. “How can you even say that shit to me with a straight face? I go above and beyond for this family.”

“Doing what is expected of you isn’t going above and beyond. It’s your duty,” Pops said.

“That’s semantics. Either way I show up, which is more than you can say.  I have a question for you, what’s the name of Granddad’s primary doctor? His neurologist? His physical therapist? Huh?” I asked.

“I don’t see-

“Yeah you don’t!” I said cutting him off. “You don’t see shit. You barely see how not easy it is dealing with your father, the man you supposed to take care of as the oldest of his children! So what kind of man that make you?”

Pop's face darkens with anger as he points a finger in my direction. “And who’s paying for those special doctors? Those medications? Not the V.A., I’ll tell you that. Who is paying the taxes on the house? The car? That’s the kind of man that makes me. I’m doing my part, I’m asking you to continue to do yours.”

“It’s easy to do your part when all it consists of is writing a check. You not getting cursed at and beat on when he can’t remember where he is in the middle of the night. You not getting called every name but your own. You not seeing the bruises on GiGi that he leaves when me, Chase or Ryan are not there,” I said, standing up, my anger roiling too much to remain seated. The feeling made me antsy so I slowly began pacing on the side of the coffee table.

“What?” Pops recoiled, sinking back against the chair. “What bruises? What are you talking about?”

“I’m talking about the fact that you letting your mother, children, nieces, and nephews get beat on by a person who doesn’t even exist anymore. We take it because we love him too but it’s not right. None of us are trained medical professionals! We all work, we all tired, we all got shit going on but none of that is considered because of your idealization of what a man is supposed to be? Let me clue you in, a man should know how to make the correct decisions for his family. Not put them through hell because of their pride,” I spat out.

The more I thought about his inconsideration the more vexed I became. All of the frustration I had previously swallowed was churning in the base of my throat. The acid was on the tip of my tongue but I was trying my best not to blow up. Trying my best not to slip back into the angry child he knew me to be growing up because then he really wouldn’t listen to me. He would accuse me of being emotional and dismiss everything I said in one fell swoop.

“You think my reasoning is about pride?” Pops said, standing to his feet as well. “Let me tell you something boy, everything I do is because it was what I was told to do. When your grandfather first started losing his memory, he knew it was only a matter of time. He made me swear to keep the house and him in it! He trusted me to do right by him and that’s what I’m going to do. He wanted to be at home with his family until the end so that is where he will be.”

“That was before he knew his disease would make him violent,” I said, taking a deep breath. “That changes things.”

“It does, I’ll look into getting an overnight nurse at the house. I didn’t know he was hitting GiGi,” Pops said, putting his hands on his hips. 

“But you knew he was hitting us. Why wasn’t that enough for you to make this decision when this behavior first started?” I asked, squinting my eyes in confusion. 

“By the time I was your age, I had been hit more times than I can count. What doesn’t kill you will make you stronger,” Pops said, waving my question away. He stood with his shoulders squared, no regret written anywhere in his countenance. 

“So because you suffered, I should? That’s your logic,” I chuckled darkly. “The crazy part is you don’t even realize how fucked up you sound.”

“I’m not going to apologize for looking after my family and trying to raise you right,” Pops said.

“I’m not asking you too, I’m asking for you to apologize for failing at it. I didn’t go to Rikers for no reason,” I said.

Indignified, he steps closer to me and I keep my eyes on him as he eliminates the space between us.  “Now, that was your own mistake. You and you alone decided to go joy riding in somebody else's car. Your mother and I gave you everything and you almost pissed it away being careless. Don’t you dare put that shit on me,” he said, pushing his finger into my chest. 

“Yeah it was my mistake but what do you think pushed me into making it? Your constant threat of signing me up for the army actually made prison more appealing. Not something you ever considered huh father of the year?” I questioned, causing his eyes to go wide at the confession before settling into a slant.

“Hey now, what’s going on in here? Why are y’all yelling in my house?” Ma asked, walking into the living room but Pops held his hand up signaling for her not to come any closer. 

“See that’s what I mean right there, you always want a loophole around hardships or something you don’t like,” Pops said, twisting my words.

“No, because I’ve been through plenty of hardships. I want a father who loves me for who I am and not what he wants me to be but fuck that,” I said, slapping my chest for emphasis.

“Your father does love you sweetheart. Come, let’s have a seat, this has gotten out of hand and we need to take a beat,” Ma says softly, inching closer to us.

“Mom is right. As my first born, I didn’t know what my heart looked like until you got here, so don’t be mistaken Xavier. I will love you every day until I leave this Earth and even after but I’m struggling to like you at this moment,” Pops said, his tone full of steel as he takes a few steps back from me, hands on his hips. 

“Alex Taylor!” Ma gasps, shaking her head, as her eyes shift wildly between us both. Words that have been ten years in the making have been purged for what seems like no reason. He still didn’t see me, maybe he never did, and maybe he never will.

Nodding my head, I grabbed my phone from the coffee table. “Likewise.” I place a kiss on my mother’s forehead and move before she can pull me into a hug. The action hurts her but I can’t be touched right now. “I’ll call you Ma. Tell V, I’m sorry I couldn’t stay long.”

With that, I stalk out of the house, the front door slamming behind me. Music still pours from the backyard and I’m grateful my sister didn’t have to bear witness to that ugliness. My legs carry me several blocks away from the house. I’m walking in hopes to calm myself down but it’s not working. This isn’t the kind of anger that burns off. It’s the kind that makes you feel as if you are breaking into a million pieces. I don’t feel like trying to collect the fragments either. Reaching into my pocket, I call the one person who can make me feel something besides this darkness. The call is connected on the first ring. She takes one look at my reddened face and spares me from having to spill my guts with one question.

“You trying to lose at UNO?”

“AYE YOU CHEATING.”

“No I’m not, we agreed to stacking,” I laughed, as Papi looked across the table at my empty hands with nothing but disbelief. In a matter of seconds I had changed the course of game night between the trio when I won my first and then second, and third round of the card games. Mila was happy for my wins because the mother and son duo had been beating her for the previous hour they had been playing.

“Take your L Papi,” Mila said.

“Vengeance will be mine,” Papi says, reaching for the cards to reshuffle but Mari stops him.

“It will be yours another day. We’re going to the movies,” Mari said.

“We are?” he asks with confusion wrinkling his brow but I knew what Mari was doing. Although I came in smiling and was cracking jokes, my energy was off. Even Papi noticed because he was being nice for once. 

“Yes we are. Say goodbye,” Mari said, standing up from the floor where she had been sitting.

Papi made quick work of wrapping his arms around Mila. She gave his curls a playful tug as he held out his fist in my direction.

“See you little man,” I said, bumping his fist with mine. 

“You coming to my game on Friday?” Papi asked.

“Yeah, I’ll be there,” I said. I know it was a big deal for him to ask me, that meant in some way he was accepting me into his orbit.

“You weren’t going to invite me?” Mila asked.

“You always come. Didn’t think I had to ask anymore,” Papi says with a shrug.

“Fair point,” Mila concedes with a smirk.

“Thanks y’all,” Mari smiled. It meant a lot to her to have Papi feel supported and having an extra person to help with that was appreciated. “Boy, bring yourself.”

“Bye y’all, have fun,” Mila said, watching as they bounded out of the apartment. 

Once the door clicks shut I waste no time, pulling Mila across the couch, and settling her into my lap. I push my face into the crook of her neck and inhale deeply, she smells of jasmine and something warmer. Something uniquely her that makes me press a kiss there. Her arms wrap tightly around my shoulders and that’s how we remain for a while. The only sound that can be heard is the show Papi insisted we watch from the tv. I listen to her heartbeat and let it lull me into some semblance of peace. Her fingers trail gingerly across the nape of my neck, moving in small circles. I let the power of her presence subdue the remnants of my frustration. Nuzzling my nose against her skin caused her to hold me tighter.

“You hungry?” she asks after some time.

“Not really,” I replied.

“When’s the last time you ate?” she asked and it apparently took me too long to come up with the answer by the indication of her sucking her teeth. “I’m going to heat you up some pizza and wings. You go wash up. I cleaned your clothes from last time you were here this morning. They are in the chair in my room.”

“Aight, thank you,” I said, retreating from my hiding spot to give her a kiss.

“Nothing to thank me for, go,” she says, kissing me once more before hopping out of my lap so that I can stand. She turns and heads to the kitchen before I can tell her how untrue that is. I shake my head and head to the bathroom knowing how she feels about compliments. One day I was going to tell her about all the ways she made my life better by just being herself. For now, I’d let her think she was slick.

After my shower, she beckons me outside to the small balcony that’s attached to the living room by way of a sliding door. There’s enough space for a chaise and a black cocktail table which our plates rest on. It’s still warm out but the breeze makes it one of the nicer summer nights. As soon as I sit, she hands me a plate. I express my gratitude with a forehead kiss that she blushes at. 

“Are we talking about it or ignoring it?” she asks softly once I’ve eaten half of my food.

“Ignoring for now,” I said, finishing off a wing and looking over at her. “It took a fifty minute Uber ride and seven games of UNO for me to reach the level of calm I’m currently on.”

“Understandable. I don’t need the details to tell you that I’m proud of you and that your braveness is something I admire,” she says, causing my heart to skip a beat.

“I dunno, I’m feeling more foolish than brave,” I said, wiping my hands on a napkin.

A part of me knew the conversation with my father would go left and I had been prepared for that. What I wasn’t prepared for was how deep his need to regulate everything was. I walked in hoping to demand his respect and left wondering why I had wanted it in the first place. He claimed to love me but purposely let me struggle for almost two years to teach me some sort of lesson. Even when I brought up how he failed me he stood in a chamber of ego refusing to let it be chinked with the truth. 

“That’s the risk of vulnerability. No matter how long it may take you, you find a way to express yourself which is the bravest thing any of us can do in the face of rejection or disappointment. I want to be fearless in that way too, I’m trying to be at least,” she said, with a nervous laugh. 

Grabbing her by the waist, I placed her in my lap for the second time this evening needing to have her closer. Her long limbs wrap around me, securing our embrace. 

“You are and it’s beautiful,” I said, kissing her cheek. She was on the cusp of finding her purpose. I considered myself blessed to be able to witness the journey. “I don’t express myself to be brave, I do it to be heard. A side effect of being a military brat I suppose but I won’t lie and say it doesn’t feel good to hear you say that.”

“Either way, you do it, and that’s something,” she said, staring into my eyes warmly. Underneath the glow of the streetlight I’m bathed in her spirit. It’s a balm that lays over the rough parts of today so that I can make it into tomorrow. 

After a moment of openly gaping at one another, she pressed her lips to mine. I kissed her back, tangling my hands in her braids, and chose to get lost in her versus continuing this particular line of conversation. It may be something but that something had not been enough to get my father to hear me. So it was no longer worth lamenting over.

As if she can feel my thoughts traveling outside of this moment, she pulls away from our kiss, to flick the tip of my nose with her tongue.

“Why?” I questioned, as I began to tickle her sides. She squeals as she tries to escape but can’t due to the hold I have on her. The sound of her laughter evokes my smile.

“I regret nothing,” she laughs, as she leans in to do it again. “Now finish eating so we can go start the second Captain America movie because I need to see the full scene of them jumping Tony.”

Tilting my head back, I pinch the bridge of my nose as I groan. “Stooppp watching MCU compilations on Tik Tok.”

[darklydeliciousdesires]

Runaway - Chapter Fourteen.

Wow, besties! You reached that unlock at speed! Something tells me that you’re going to be exactly the same with this chapter, too :D Thanks for your engagement as usual, and I hope you enjoy!

Previous chapters - Prologue  One  Two  Three  Four  Five  Six  Seven  Eight  Nine  Ten  Eleven  Twelve  Thirteen

Taglist - In the comments, please DM to be added/removed

Words - 1,638

Warnings - 18+ content throughout, minors DNI!

Ahhh, stories from respective pasts. A fantastic way to get to know someone, and be thoroughly entertained throughout. At that point in the evening, and with the storm showing no signs of abating, they were covering the school years. 

“So I ask her again, and she predictably tells me no, but by this point I feel like my fuckin’ bladder is gon’ burst, so I just said to her, ‘fine, you asked for this’, got up, walked over to her plant in the corner, and pissed right in the pot. She starts screaming at me, I calmly told her that she should have just let me go to the bathroom, but at least with my way, she got to see the fact I had a real big dick, so it was a win win scenario.  

“The entire class went crazy laughing, she reported me to the principal, but it was only the comment I made about my dick I got in trouble for. Turns out the principal’s wife was a urologist, and so because he knew how bad it was to hold a piss in, she got in deep shit for not allowing kids to go to the bathroom.  

“That ain’t even the wildest part of the story, though. I saw her in a bar years later, and gave her hell about what a tyrant she used to be. She just stood there and took it, then said that since I’d grown up to be such a knockout, I should let her make it up to me. I went home with her that night and fucked her until her bed broke.”

Hannah almost choked on her wine. “Oh my god!”

“What?” he laughed, his dirty chuckle filling the room. “She was a bitch, but she was hot!”

“I’d say I can’t believe that you fucked your former teacher, but it’s you after all.” She nudged him with a teasing foot, Manny grabbing her leg and tickling behind her knee, where he knew she couldn’t bear to be touched. “Get off me!” she cried, her giggles sending sparks of happiness through his insides. It had been a while, since he’d been playful like that with a woman.

“Oh and I bet you were nothing short of perfect at school, right?”  

She fought against him, kicking his thigh until he finally let go. “I was, actually. About the worst thing I did was let the fire alarm off to get a guy I liked out of a test. He never really noticed me like that before, until I walked past him when we were filed up outside, whispered ‘you’re welcome’, winked and walked away. I’d like to think that was one of my smoother moments in life.”

“And did it work? Not that you should have needed to resort to such, being as gorgeous as you are.”  

She nodded, dropping her head for a moment, tucking her hair behind her ear. “Yeah, it worked. We dated for four months before I broke up with him. Me and my poor impulse control struck, the impulse being that the quarterback of the football team asked me out, and I looked at him as a better option.”

Manny leaned forward slightly, arching an eyebrow as he lifted his glass to his lips. “And was he?”

“Nope! I never seem to learn my lesson there. Then again, the last time I acted on impulse, I got something wonderful.” He gestured for her to continue, watching her smile grow. “I got Lola.”

“And you didn’t end up married to an asshole either,” he observed, draining his glass, Hannah hauling herself up to fetch the second bottle from the kitchen. “Anything more there, or is he sticking to his restraining order?”

“I’ve had a few phone calls come through where no one talks, and I know it’s him. I block all the numbers he calls me from just as I always have, but he’s persistent, uses pay phones, I think at one point he was using cheap prepay phones as well. I just have to keep a diary of it, but it’ll be hard to prove it’s him unless he talks. It’s a nuisance, but what can I do?” Sitting down again, she topped up their glasses, setting the bottle down on the table. “I heard through the grapevine that he moved away recently, he’s gone up to northern Cali somewhere, so as long as he isn’t a physical presence in my life, I don’t mind so much.”  

“I do,” he stated with vehemence. “I mind him bothering you. If he ever does turn up again, you tell me, okay? Fuck the police, fuck the courts, you come and you tell me. He’ll leave you alone for good.”  

Her eyes widened a little. “You wouldn’t...” she made a gun motion against her head, her thumb pulling an imaginary trigger, “would you?”

“No! Don’t be crazy, of course I wouldn’t. But I’d make him believe I would.” That was only half the truth. If he ever physically came near his daughter in a threatening way, Michael would cease to breathe, although that wasn’t a truth Manny was quick to share with her mother. “And I’d probably smack him around a little, just for daring to fuck with someone I care about.”

He couldn’t help but add that, the wine getting to him a little. Anything stronger than beer, and it was essentially like giving him truth serum.  

“Manny,” she warned gently, reaching for his arm. “Please, don’t.” It took him a moment to answer, the feel of her hand upon him, her skin on his, even though so innocently placed there making a jolt run straight to the pit of his belly.  

He raised his eyebrows, recovering himself. “He’ll be fine, unless he breaks his restraining order. I saw it, when you broke down and revealed it all, just how fucking stressed out the motherfucker had made you. That don’t happen on my watch, Hannah.” Pausing, he leaned forward, reaching for her face, gently stroking her cheek with his thumb. “Don’t matter how unique it all is, our relationship as parents, what could have been, if the circumstances were different. I meant it when I said I care about you.”  

Perhaps he hadn’t recovered himself sufficiently enough, the blue of her eyes like cloudless skies he wished only to sail through, shining through the candlelight. His mouth felt dry, taking another swig of wine, his heart beginning to pound. No. He couldn’t act. He had to shove it down again, but the lure of her. Oh, the lure, his loins burning at the memory of how it felt, when he was with her. Fuck.  

In turn, the pull she felt to him was intense, like he’d lassoed her insides, as only an accomplished cowboy could, the rope being wound in with every statement that passed over his lips, every compliment, her foundations feeling shaky in the presence of him. Despite herself, her hand covered his, the light of her gaze meeting the dark of his, both paused, perhaps for too long... or not long enough... the wine clouding them, the memories of one another returning. As if that attraction had ever been far from the surface.  

The storm outside swirled with all the potency of what they’d both tried to push down, the sky illuminated as Manny set his glass down, taking hers from her hand, moving up the couch, his hands gripping her knees, opening them enough for his body to slot between them, the boom of thunder rocking the ground as their mouths met.  

Any reservations they might have had were swept away as they fell headlong down the rabbit hole, the tempting promise of what they would experience in their own Neverland of blissful sin tugging at them too strongly, dragging them down, until all that was left was them. There was no Carmen, no time between their only night together and then, no reason why not. Only them.  

A scattered path of kisses scorched her skin, the firm grip of his hands moving to pull at her vest, Hannah suddenly stopping him.  

“I... I look... different.” Her stammered words made him pause, searching her eyes, resting his forehead to hers. “I don’t look as good as I used to, since the baby.”

“Let me be the judge of that.” His kisses landed softer, his haste calmed as he slowly lifted her vest, pulling it from her body, her sweats next to go, Manny sitting back on his heels as he looked down at her, his gaze finding the nerves in her eyes. “This body is beautiful. You know why? It’s the body that grew my child safely for nine months, and if you think just because it’s a tiny bit different to how I remember that it’ll put me off, then you’re crazy. Now, lie back and let me show you just how goddamned beautiful I think you are.”  

She’d be lying if she said her confidence had been truly bolstered in the wake of his praise, no matter how lovely his words were, but still, she felt desired enough to pull him back to her, their mouths locked together, undoing his shirt as kisses of sugared embers grew hotter, the feel of his skin on hers torridly enchanting.  

“Wait.” Sitting up, he lifted her, Hannah wrapping herself around him. “I need more room than a couch has to really fuckin’ enjoy you, darlin’.”

As soon as the bedroom door closed behind them, so did the chapter of them entitled ‘Two parents trying desperately to convince themselves there was only a child connecting them.’ And lord, the chapter they would write together to follow, only legible until the flames that roared between them threatened to burn each word off the page entirely.  

[venusdian]

The Black Aesthetic - 002

Previous | Chapter 1

"Being Black isn't an Aesthetic, It's culture."

(This is a mixture of 1st & 3rd POV) - 2.2K Words

Marí

────

“MARÍ, WHY IS MY MANAGER IGNORING ME?!” She asks, busting through my office doors. I let out a deep and heavy negro spiritual sigh. Courtney Jackson or you guys may know her as Coco Da Don, is not only my childhood best friend, but she is also a client at this agency. She was originally my client until I took the promotion, and now she’s Noah Laurier’ client, one of our best managers for the company. Now, why he was ignoring her, I did not know which means, I, unfortunately, have to send an email to see what is going on, adding more work to the already stressful workload.

I give her an annoyed groan, hoping she would get the hint, but that’s wishful thinking.

“I don’t know,” I mutter. She sits in the chair across my desk and crosses her legs.

“So, Tailah called me. You found out Greg works at E.W.?” I furrowed my eyebrows. Why are two nigglets talking about my business?

“Why are you guys talking about me?” Courtney waves me off.

“Girl, please! You talk about us all the damn time.”

“In front of your presence.” Courtney waves me off again.

“Ok, anyways. What’s surprising to me is Janine and Greg dating. No offense, is Greg even her type? I mean, she dated Tariq…” Courtney worriedly questions. I pondered the same question, scratching my head, as she had a valid point.

If you would’ve asked us back in school? I would’ve said no, but I was also dating him and was a Tier three crash out over him, but Janine and Greg have contrasting personalities. Janine is nice, bubbly, and a bit dorky, while Greg is her opposite.

“Well, it’s none of our business. They seem happy—” Courtney looked at me, unconvinced by my statement, which is absurd because I meant what I said. If Greg and Janine are happy, why would I judge?

“Courtney, stop looking at me like that. You’re giving Jim Carrey.” Courtney scrunched her face in disgust as I chuckled.

“Don’t do me.”

“Then don’t make that face.” She rolls her eyes, waving me off.

“Anyways, I just don’t believe you’re just going to take this information and just sit on it.” I let out a small sigh and sincerely looked at her.

“Look, You can think what you want, but Greg deserves someone that isn’t as fucked up as me.” Courtney rolls her eyes.

“Marí, you’re not fucked up. You’re human, just like everyone else, and you’re working on bettering yourself anyway.”

“But I don’t plan on staying in Anselm for the rest of my life, and I know Greg wants to.” Courtney sighs.

“What is your quip about Anselm.” I furrowed my eyebrows.

“Quip?”

“Yeah, I learned that word doing my daily “learn a new word challenge”.”

“Quip means Witty remark… But, anyways, I just don’t want to stay in a town where my life was an ass at.” Courtney rolled her eyes.

“Oh, come on it wasn’t that b—”

“I lived on Section 8 for my whole adolescence. My mom was never home because she was either busy: Getting high, working at the strip club, or laying up with different men and pretending like I don’t exist. I had to learn how to drive at 10 because the ambulance refused to come to my neighborhood and drive my mother, who had overdosed to the hospital and pray I didn’t die. Sorry that Anselm isn’t some sweet memory for me.” Courtney looked at me feeling guilty for asking me why I hated this stupid town.

I felt bad because it’s not her fault I had a shitty mother out of all of us. I open my mouth to say something, but my phone rings.

“Let me take this.” Courtney nods, getting up. I picked up the phone and pressed my line to show busy.

“Hello?”

“Hey, girl! It’s yo Aunt Ava!” I let out a deep and heavy sigh.

“Ava, why are you calling my office? You don’t have to pretend to like me. The hag is dead.” Ava rolls her eyes.

“Oh, you ain’t gotta be like that, Marí!” I let out another sigh.

“Ava, what do you want? I’m at work.”

“I know, Me too!” I furrowed my eyebrows.

“You have a job? Since when?” Ava groans, annoyed that I asked. Well, excuse the fuck out of me! My Aunt Ava isn’t exactly known for being a hard worker. Honestly, the longest job she’s worked was being a babysitter for me when my mom used to run the streets and even then, she sucked at that too.

“If you must know, nosey! I work as a Principal at E.W.” I furrowed my eyebrows, confused. I know Ava mentioned working at a school but as principal. Who in their right mind would put Ava as the Principal? She couldn’t even be a janitor at the school if it was up to me.

“Ava…”

“Yes?”

“How?”

“I caught the Superintendent cheating on his wife.” I let out a small ahhh.

“Huh, Sounds like you.”

“yup!”

“Wait, So Greg—”

“Hmmm! What about that sexy chocolate thang.” I scrunched my face up in disgust.

“Greg is my ex.”

“And? I’m his future.”

“Ava, don’t piss me off.”

“Why do you care? He has a girlfriend currently.”

“Ava, if you don’t tell me what you want. I’m going to block your number.”

“Aight! Let me use your connections so I can get into Club Blu.”

“Why?”

“I kind of told some of my staff that I can get them in Club Blu.” I take a deep breath.

“When do you plan on going?”

“This Saturday.”

“Fine. I’ll call Johnny and have them look out for you guys.” Ava happily squealed through the phone.

“I knew, You still loved me.” I rolled my eyes and hung up the phone. I leaned my desk chair back and let out a long and heavy sigh. I’m exhausted and it’s not even half my shift.

Tailah

────

I sat at the dining room table, the pamphlet in my hand. I left work early to discuss the Gifted program with Devin. Marí’s words left a mark on me as she was right. Being in regular schooling holding Genesis back, and if it was just up to me? I would’ve signed her up for the gifted program, but Devin holding me back.

I didn’t make Genesis alone, and Devin has every right to be against the idea of putting Genesis in the gifted program, but I don’t want to stifle her growth, and I know Devin feels the same way. I just have to make him see it as such.

Devin comes into the house, and my heart instantly melts, and my clit begins to throb. Devin walks in with his white tank top dirty, and sweaty. His muscles just muscling. I wanted to take him down right then and there. His boot-cut jeans and boots just took me away. Devin walks over and kisses my forehead. His musk was so strong it was like his scent was releasing these Pheromones out of me.

“Tailah, you’re home. I thought it was going to be a long day at the office.” I shake out my arousal, focusing on the task at hand.

“Devin, I wanted to talk to you.” Devin goes to the fridge and grabs the pitcher out of the fridge, humming.

“Wassup, Tee?”

“It’s about Genesis.” He pauses and turns around, concerned.

“Is something wrong with our princess?” I immediately shake my head. I did not need Devin to go crazy. It’s already bad enough, I gotta worry about Marí going insane, but Devin, too? That’s the competition of who can crash out the best.

“No, I just want to talk about Genesis’ education.” I see his face instantly relaxing. He gets a glass from the cupboard, pouring him a glass of juice, then sits at the table with me.

“Wassup, Tee?”

“So, you know Marí went to the Parent-teacher conference, and Her teacher really wants Genesis to try for the gifted program.” Devin takes a sip of his glass, unamused.

“No.” He dryly says. I let out a long and heavy sigh.

“Why not?!”

“Because I don’t want that pressure on my daughter.”

“It’s not pressure if she’s good at it.” Devin shakes his head.

“You know Geniuses have a high suicide rate. She’s only seven, Tee. She just needs to be a child.”

“And she will be! But, she’ll finally be challenged. Mrs. Howard expressed the same thing last year. Why stifle her?” Devin shakes his head.

“Tee, I said no, and that’s final. My daughter is not doing the gifted program. If she wants to be challenged, put her in an after-school program, but I’m not putting her in a class with a bunch of prodigies that are in constant competition to be perfect.” I softly sighed. His tone was serious. I knew he was stuck in his way. I hummed and nodded.

“Ok, De.” Devin takes the pamphlet and rips it up. He walks over and tosses it in the trash can.

“If they recommend this one more time, I will come up there and act like an ass.” Devin threatens. I should be scared, but I wanted him to yoke me up and bend me over on the table and fuck the shit out of me. I look up at him, biting my bottom lip.

“You know, I love when you get angry…” I hummed. Devin leans, licking his lips.

“Oh, yeah?” I silently nod. He hums.

“Well, I gotta finish doing some work, but when I’m done, You can meet me in the shower.”

“Yeah?” I cutely ask. Devin winks.

“Yeah.” He grumbles, caressing my breasts. He bites his bottom lip and silently walks away. His touch lingers on my skin. I know, I should be upset and I am, but Devin will always have a chokehold on me. I may have not gotten what I wanted, but I’m also getting shower sex, so I call that a fair trade.

Marí

────

I exited the Zoom meeting, sighing with relief. That was my last meeting for the day, and that means after these couple of emails are sent, I can get my ass home! I got to Outlook and begin drafting a message when somebody opens my damn office door. I looked up and saw it was Noah.

“Yes?”

“Why is Courtney blowing up my phone?”

“Because she’s your client,” I explained, not looking up from my computer. Don’t be coming into my fucking office asking dumb ass questions. Noah sighs.

“I understand that. But I’m working with Alex Crane and getting her tour started. She should know that.”

“Ok, and? What does that have to do with me?”

“You’re my boss and her best friend—” I took a deep breath and looked up at him.

“You can get Alex to collab with Courtney. You know she’s been trying to get in the music business.” Noah looked at me unsure, taking a seat. I mentally groaned. When I think I can leave early, some bullshit happens.

“I don’t know if Courtney is serious about the music. It’s not like Club bookings where all she has to do is look pretty and party. Music a whole another ball game.” I sighed, pausing my email.

“Look, Courtney is serious about this shit. You just gotta give her the tools to be successful.” Noah sighs.

“Well, I can’t right now. I’m working on a couple of clearances for Alex—” I stop him, leaning on my desk, humming.

“Alex has a studio session soon, right?” Noah nods.

“Yeah.”

“Book her a session. I’ll personally cover the cost of the session. I need you to give Courtney a chance to flourish. She has the chops, but she needs a team to support her endeavors. I gave you my clients because I had faith in you. Courtney may be my best friend, but she’s also a client, as well. She wants to try her hand at music, let her. Your job is to sell it.” I sternly advised him. Noah hums, nodding.

“Alright.” Noah gets up.

“Marí? I have a request.” I hummed, looking up at him.

“I need an assistant. I have twice the workload—” I put my hand up.

“That’s fine. I’m sure I can fit it into the budget. Just talk to HR so they can place an ad out.” Noah’s green eyes happily lit up.

“Thanks, Marí.” I hummed, shooing him away. Noah left the office, leaving me at peace so I could finally leave. As I continued to finish the email, my office phone rang. I let out an irritated sigh. Who in the fuck could be calling me?! I picked up my office phone.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Marí I need a favor.” Tailah says through the other line. I groaned.

“What?”

“Can you get Genesis at 3:30?”

“What’s wrong with y’all legs?”

“It’s busy giving you a godson.” I gagged.

“Ok, Tailah, I did not have to know that. But, fine. I’ll get her. The last thing she needs is to be traumatized, too.” Tailah kisses her teeth.

“Love you!”

“Sure.” I hung up the phone. I looked at my desk clock, seeing it was 1:43 pm. It takes me an hour to get back into town. If I leave now, I can be there at 3:00, depending on the traffic. I guess I’ll just take my work home. Which I was trying to avoid doing, but She’s the apple of my eye, and I really want a godson.

Tailah owes me.

[timaeusterrored]

(L.A.R.P. PT 1)

((This is based off of me finally watching a comfort YouTuber play True Colors. In this, Kerry is a young single dad living in the small town of Haven Springs. Spoilers for the game if you haven’t seen it💕 also featuring everyone’s favorite college AU homies being silly to make Ted happy))

Vincent Welles had been living in Jackie’s apartment alone for well over a month after the incident. In that month, he has reconnected with old friends, and old lovers. And made some new friends along the way. Including the smallest member of their pack, Ted. He was a cute kid and a splitting image of Kerry, and had the same attitude too. But he and Vincent got along well, even bonded over a comic that Ted was making. Vincent was in deep with that, and talked Johnny’s ear off about it. The guy liked to pretend he wasn’t up to date on the latest issue.

But after the incident, Ted shut everyone out. Vincent knew it was coming, he was 10 and still learning emotions. And as much as Vincent adored Kerry, he knew having a single dad that also sucked with emotions couldn’t be easy either. But Kerry was really trying and it was adorable.

And one way he was trying to get his boy’s spirit back was town wide LARP. And Vincent was all for it.

“I swear to god if you don’t find that feather I’m gonna… steal your edibles.” Kerry grabbed his guitar from Vincent’s table and pointed at him.

Vincent gasped, hand over his heart. “You wouldn’t.”

“Try me.” The kiss on the cheek after proved he wasn’t being serious.

Vincent was still getting ready when he got the dreaded text message with the first thing he saw saying ‘Bad News.’

Ker <3

Ted is not feeling this already, his mom is on her way to come get him

Vincent

What?! We haven’t even started! I’ll talk to him.

Ker <3

Good luck. He ain’t talking to anyone. Not even J.

Vincent

I’ve got this. You’ve been speaking my language since you said LARP

Ker <3

Fuckin nerds

Vincent

Dare I say… you’re more excited about this than we were.

Ker <3

Go fix my kid and shut up <3

Vincent

Love you too

Well that wasn’t reassuring. He knew this shit was hard, and he felt like he was the only one that understood where Ted was in his head right now.

So he grabbed his fake sword and made his way into town.

He found the boy sitting on the dock, a helmet and shield by his side. He didn’t even look at Vincent as he approached, but a blue aura surrounded him. Vincent sat next to him, holding his knees.

“I don’t need cheering up. I’m fine.”

Vincent frowned, looking down at him. “Look dude… I know shits tough right now… but Jackie wouldn’t want us to just mope around yeah? He’d want us to go have some fun.”

Ted held himself tighter, but looked up at Vincent.

“And… your dad made us a pretty epic adventure to go through… but I can’t do it alone. I’d be fried out there!” Vincent exclaimed, poking the boy. Ted smiled, sighing.

“Fine… but only if we do it together. I don’t wanna do it alone.”

“Oh we’re doing this together. I’ve been looking forward to this all week.”

And so the two set out on their quest. Fist stop, the Queen.

Color Vincent shocked when he saw Rogue of all people sitting on the park stage, fake crown and all. Even more shocked when she was speaking the language and seemed to really get into it. Her aura was a golden hue, and her thoughts were of Ted.

‘I’m glad Ted is smiling again. Thought we lost him for good this time.’

The two wandered around the park, discussing their quest. Find six scrolls, and three life gems. Goddamn Kerry was making them work for this, but it was a good distraction. And got everyone out of their slump.

“Found one!” Ted ran over and picked up a scroll, waiting for Vincent so he could open it.

Written in Kerry’s handwriting was a congratulations and a clue to their next location. And a warning to watch out for bandits.

The two wandered about, making their way back to the bar. Vincent had left and the place was clean, but now it was a full on murder scene. Vincent briefly wondered if this was too much for Ted, but he knew Kerry was in charge.

At first, they heard no one. Ted took the lead, walking up to the bar… when Mike popped up behind the counter. And if Vincent knew Mike, he knew the bartender was all into this.

“Oh thank the heavens!” Mike cried, leaned against the bar as if it was the only thing keeping him up. “My heroes!”

Ted looked up at Vincent, who tried to stop his laughter and keep serious for Ted. He nodded for Ted to take the lead, he was the main character in this story.

Mike told them the story of a gang of bandits running in and robbing the place, searching for his life gem. Why Mike had a life gem, Vincent didn’t know. This was Kerry’s first time planning this.

Vincent and Ted were walking down an alleyway when a ‘bandit’ jumped down, the bandit was clearly Judy with a bandana around her nose and mouth. Vincent was amazed he was keeping it together so well for Ted, but seeing his friends this way.

What he didn’t expect, when Ted had yelled to run, was to run head first into someone’s chest. He looked up and have to cover his mouth to keep from laughing.

Standing there, full cosplay and all, eye makeup and bandana around his mouth, was Johnny Linder.

[invisiblegarters]

Never Let Me Go Ep 7

Pfft, no, Palm. Listen to Nueng and your mom. Let him do things by himself. Let him learn how to be a real boy! 

Oooh, pillow fight tension. I would be cheering kiss him but we all know it ain't going there. Instead Palm will just hover over him and they'll just stare at each other for nineteen minutes until someone inevitably walks in on them.

See? I better get some damn kisses this ep or I will be very grumpy.

Palm's mom's expression is great though.

"Employee/employer my ass"

Wait, wait, wait. Nueng wants to buy a phone to listen to music? Not to, I don't know, try to find out wtf happened to his mom? Am I the only one who cares about Tanya here? 

Palm, you keep flirting and it keeps going nowhere.

Man, this Phum dude is way too happy about the prospect of Nueng being shot. I get not liking his family but that's…a lot. And he was entirely the one who made the banner - he's too damn smug for it not to be. He does have a point about Ben, I have to say - even if I understand why Ben did the thing it's still cowardly, and he knows it. 

Aw, Chopper to the rescue. 

Man Ben sure does react weird whenever touching Chopper is on the table. I still really want to know what went down there. More and more I'm believing that something did. Something a bit more than friends growing apart. There's just something about the way they interact, man.

Dammit, Chopper. Stop breaking my heart here.

I honestly can't tell if Ben is being deliberately obtuse when he asks why Chopper would do such a thing for him, though. It almost feels like he's prodding him but I don't know if that's just my wishful thinking or not. Yes I ship it but I'm not sure how much of that is me just wanting Chopper to get what he wants. I just adore him. 

Meanwhile, in "Nueng has completely forgotten Ben's existence" land…Nueng is very busy completely forgetting Ben exists and offering up Palm's stretch of paradise so one of the tourist couple can propose to his boyfriend and using the opportunity to flirt with Palm and look at his lips a lot and needle him about romantic moments. Both of them are being ridiculously unsubtle to be honest. Just make out already, you two. Stop dancing around it and playing the questions game and just do the thing already so that we can get to the angst about whether you mean it or not. 

Man, Nueng just keeps poking and prodding at Palm, and I genuinely can't tell if Palm's being deliberately obtuse or if he's sincerely not getting it. I don't doubt he's head over heels because he says untrue things like "all I've ever seen is your nice side" or this:

and only love could explain either of those, but he's so passive and so reserved that I actually feel like Nueng. I want to see that passivity shaken (but first I want to see more angst from Nueng about whether he's just following orders because I like that stuff). 

Him reaching out in the night to hold onto Nueng was sweet though, and a definite, broad hint to his true feelings. No reason to do that other than he wanted to, after all. 

Pfft a little on the nose with the bad fortunes, show. 

Ah so Chanon sold himself and then Palm into servitude to Nueng's family to save Palm's life, eh? I know I should find it heartwarming or it should make me feel a little better about Chanon but nah. Still no. I do like Nueng being like "no one owns your life", although I do sometimes feel like what he says doesn't match up with his actions. He might think that, but he certainly does like to act like he owns Palm whenever Maggie shows up. Granted I think he wants to own him in the romantic sense (and be owned by him just as badly), but I'm not sure Palm quite gets the distinction, and Nueng's spoiled brat act whenever Palm pisses him off doesn't help. 

Okay, Tanya is in critical condition with organ damage. Thank you for finally informing me, show. 

I legit cackled with delight through the entire press conference. Kit blowing all the smoke about how amazing Nueng is and how he desperately wants to find him. I mean, I do think he wants to find him, but not to make sure he's okay. 

Holy crap that one reporter clearly doesn't want to live forever. I love Kit's "how very dare Tanya is my family" reaction to the question, though. Plus Chopper's awesome side eye:

Now that's a good headline photo. “Clearly Guilty Man’s Son Thinks He’s Clearly Guilty!”  

And I guess I was wrong, Kit totally did order the attack. Score one for Nueng. 

Oh, Chopper's devastated little face when he realizes his dad actually did the thing is killing me.

This show is just full of kids who are too good for their parents. I knew Chopper would be the only one who really cared what happened to Nueng. 

I feel for him, and I really really hope he doesn't break bad for his asshole of a father, because that up there is not a face of a dude who wants to get to the top the way his father is choosing. The poor thing is so miserable and I hate that for him. 

That shirt really suits him though. /shallow 

Please Chopper stay sweet and decent. I know I keep saying that I'll be okay if you go evil but I'm a lying liar who lies. 

Speaking of lying liars who lie...Palm, you are so full of crap, my dude. I believe that you don't know what love is, maybe, but that there's nothing between you and Nueng? Nope, not buying what you're selling. 

And neither is his mom, ha!. I love her prying about whether they've kissed or not, and while I have my suspicions that she's gonna sell them down the river eventually because of her debts (there are no good parents in this show), I am actually loving her and Palm together right now. She's not really a mom but she's fun and she isn't afraid to share home truths, like your dad is an ass, you clearly have a thing for that boy, and please don't suffocate him with your love because otherwise he’ll run away like I did (okay maybe that last one is a little projection but). The entire scene with Palm at the wedding was gold. 

Okay I'm kind of impressed with Nueng. Dude has let all the wedding stuff make him brave.

Nice piece of acting here: the way that Nueng wrings his hands together slightly before asking for what he wants. A nice, subtle way to portray how nervous he actually is. 

And Palm can beep boop what is love (baby don't hurt me) all he wants, but he once again kisses Nueng like he's starving. And this time, when the kisses are supposed to be real, they both reach for each other exactly the way they wanted to the first time and didn't. Although Palm’s "is this how couples kiss?" is hopefully going to burrow into Nueng's mind and generate some delicious doubt and angst. 

Also Nueng did this:

So now we have a self-imposed time limit to deal with on top of the angst inherent in Palm being the Most Protective and Most Willing to Do Whatever Young Master Asks making it hard to tell what he’s doing because he wants to and what he’s doing because Nueng wants him to. I would be lying if I said I wasn't into it. 

The last bit made me laugh, and I don't think it was supposed to. Chanon is so bad at his job. So bad. And now Kit's gonna finger him for the shooting and also probably Nueng's dad's murder while he's at it.

And next week, more Chopper. Oh and some action stuff and Maggie laying down some more truths but mostly, Chopper. My priorities are fine, thank you. 

[howredemptionwaswon]

“How am I supposed to tell Arthur, Abigail? I can’t be pregnant. Not like this. I’m going to be thirty-five before the year ends. That doctor can’t be right. Arthur don’t want an old maid for his child. It has to be a mistake.”

Abigail could barely believe her ears. How could Mary think for one single second that Arthur would be anything but HAPPY about the news they just learned? She could understand this kind of reaction if they had been talking about someone like John ─ well at least the way he used to be when the gang was still together.

She had been preparing for this conversation ever since Mary asked her to take a trip into Blackwater with her to see the doctor. At first, she thought something was wrong with Mary, but soon enough she let her in on the secret. Honestly, Abigail was over the moon happy about the news. There was NOTHING in the world quite like motherhood.

“ That ain’t even true. I don’t see a man who carried your pictures around for years bein’ anythin’ but happy. That man loves you with everything he is. “ She tried to reassure Mary. “ And I don’t think three different tests are all gonna be wrong. “ She couldn’t help but smirk a little about how Mary had insisted they redo the test so many times. “ Listen, you’re gonna be a great mother, and Arthur, well he’s gonna be a great father. I couldn’t tell you how many times he went out of his way to do things with Jack when John wouldn’t. I think it’s just a case of nerves makin’ you overreact. “

Abigail could understand though. While most women like herself gave birth at an earlier age that didn’t shake the UNEASY feeling she had. John was still young and unsure of what he wanted at the time. She knew for a fact that Arthur wouldn’t take off as John had. Plus Abigail would be there every step of the way to help Mary through it all.

Mary could only nod along to what Abigail said. It all made sense. Arthur would never leave her. After all, Mary left him. They’d been young and in love, and Mary didn’t believe they could co-exist with such different lives. He proved her wrong, and in the end, they found their way back together, and it was like they never stopped loving each other. The pieces were picked back up, and they eventually became husband and wife. They couldn’t be any happier, but neither expected anything like this to occur. Arthur’s only child was killed long before they met, and Mary’s baby brother was practically her son whom she raised since their mother died when their father became a drunken gambler who cared more for himself than his own family. They doted on Jack like any uncle and aunt would, but to have their own child was simply remarkable and unbelievable. It was like a dream. In fact, Mary fainted in the clinic upon hearing the news. Poor Abigail had her hands full of her that day.

“I don’t know what I’d do without you, Abigail,” Mary told her as she took her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. Out of everyone in Dutch’s gang, she always liked Abigail the best. At first, she was taken aback by her role as the gang’s former prostitute, but she found the woman to be quick-witted, smart, and friendly to talk to. She didn’t make Mary feel like an outcast like the other girls had. And ever since then, she felt closest to Abigail, the one she could confide in most, so it was no surprise that she asked her to accompany her to Blackwater.

As they made their way to the carriage, with her arm linked with Abigail’s, she said, “I’m nervous and happy. I shouldn’t care what other people are gonna think about me being a mother so late in life. I should only care about what Arthur thinks.”

But how to break the news to him? Over a nice dinner? Or just bluntly? Too bad she couldn’t ask Abigail’s advice on that, seeing as how Jack’s conception and birth was a messy situation. Poor Arthur having to be present for all that drama must’ve been a headache.

“Should we buy anything else from the general store besides what the doctor gave me?” Mary asked. “Or you think we’re good for now?”

Abigail guessed running around with a bunch of outlaws helped her develop a thicker skin. It wasn’t easy hearing all the little whispers that would float around about who Jack’s daddy was. Everyone had a part to play and she guessed being a prostitute was the hand she had been DEALT. Long before she even got pregnant with Jack those days had ended for her. Despite the whispers, she knew who Jack’s daddy was. One thing she learned being in that gang was either you learned how to stick up for yourself and not take anyone’s shit or you ended up the ass of everyone’s JOKES and WHISPERS. She stuck up for what she believed in and no one could fault her for that.

From the start Abigail always liked Mary. While she wasn’t like herself or any of the other ladies in the gang there was something about her that changed Arthur. Arthur wasn’t the same RUTHLESS CARELESS man when Mary had been part of his life. She made Arthur a better person and she wasn’t the only one who noticed that. She once overheard Dutch talking to Hosea about how he needed to talk with Mary’s father. Surprisingly it wasn’t long after that when Mary and Arthur started having troubles in their relationship. She knew it had been Dutch’s doing.

” What are friends for? “ Abigail smiled reaching over to place her other hand over Mary’s. ” I think I’m as excited about this as you are. “ She would laugh because it was well past time for Arthur and Mary to have a family of their own.

” See there, you’re learning already. Arthur and that baby are the only things you should be worried about. If someone’s got a problem with you having a baby then that’s on them. They ain’t the one having it so it’s no business of theirs. “ Oh, Abigail would LOVE to hear someone say something ill about it in her presence. She would bet they wouldn’t be doing it a second time.

Once they reached the carriage she helped Mary step up and then she followed suit behind her. ” I think we’re good for now. He gave you what he believes you need. If he wants to add anything to it he will on our next visit to him. “ Abigail knew a few TRIPS and TRICKS of her own since she had gone through this with Jack. She knew all the best tea blends for cramping and cravings. ” That reminds me, have you had any weird cravings yet? “

Abigail took the reins and gave them a crack setting the horses to take them home. ” Have you thought about how you’re gonna tell him? “ She asked once they made it out of Blackwater and were on the trail headed to their ranch. ” I used the straightforward method with John and we know how that turned out but John was a different person back then. I won’t lie, a part of me would like to be there to see Arthur’s reaction but I’ll just have to wait for you to give me the details in full. “

Mary carefully set the rifle across her lap as they rode along the trail home. Arthur taught her how to shoot, and while she wasn’t fond of using firearms, she knew it was important to protect herself and her loved ones. Fortunately, they didn’t live too far from Blackwater.

“Straight-forward will be best,” Mary decided. “I don’t like keeping secrets from Arthur. Seeing as how things didn’t turn out well with Dutch and all of them, with those secrets being kept, I don’t want to let this news linger for long. As soon as I see him, even if he’s busy, I wanna tell him.”

The more she thought about it, the more excited she became. Even when she remembered the doctor telling her of the high risks of being an older mother, it didn’t matter. Arthur had been a young father and lost Isaac and his son’s mother, Eliza. Given the circumstances, it was tough. The only worries Mary had were her age and her body. She had to do everything she could not to stress out so much. She had to be strong, for her sake and most importantly for the baby.

“I want all of you to be present if possible,” Mary informed Abigail. “Even if it’s just Arthur and you, I couldn’t be happier.”

Then she remembered Abigail’s earlier question about the strange cravings. “Hmmm… so far, I’ve been wanting chocolates, boiled eggs, and tuna fish. Just out of the blue. Does that sound strange…?”

Beecher’s Hope stirred with activity. John Marston was loading the last of the milk jugs onto the wagon. Jack was in his room reading “The Wonderful Wizard of OZ” by L. Frank Baum. Rufus ran up behind John and barked up a storm.

“What is it, boy?” John asked the family hound.

Gazing into the distance, another wagon rolled onto the property, being driven by a familiar blonde rancher.

“Miss MacFarlane,” John greeted the young woman who lived on her family’s ranch in Hennigan’s Stead. Once she was close enough, he asked her, “What do I owe the pleasure?”

“And how many times do I gotta tell you to call me ‘Bonnie?’” she scowled teasingly, a bright smile visible on her face every time she saw John. It was no secret that while she pretended to chastise him here and there, she had a bit of a crush on him.

Pulling up alongside his wagon, she parked next to him and hopped down from her seat. “We have extra grains and decided to donate some to you and your family. Old Farmer’s Almanac said it’ll be a brutal winter this year, so you might as well stock up while the weather’s still in our favor.”

John couldn’t believe it. He was quite grateful for this donation, and while his family wasn’t struggling, they could always save provisions. “Miss MacFarlane, I can’t thank you enough. Lemme get some extra hands to help us unload. Uncle! Hey, Uncle!”

He went in search of the old man, and it didn’t take him long to find the old bastard drunk and passed out under a tree.

“That son of a bitch,” John muttered under his breath. “No good and useless as always. What else should I have expected.”

While Abigail wasn’t actively holding a gun in hand, she had a revolver at her side. She HATED that thing and knew how much trouble the guys got into swinging those things around. John however insisted she carry the DREADED THING with her anytime she was away from the ranch. He even took her out several times teaching her how to aim it behind the ranch. Admittedly, she got pretty good at popping cans off the fence line.

“ I know that business with Dutch wasn’t easy for Arthur or John. He was like a father to them. Much like how Hosea was like mine. But you’re right, keeping secrets ain’t a good thing ─ even if it’s a good kind of secret. ” This was the kind of news she knew Arthur would have wanted to share with Dutch and Hosea but that simply couldn’t happen now. God rest his soul, Abigail missed Hosea something terrible.

“ Not far now. ” Abigail nodded in front of them, knowing they only had a few more turns before heading down the stretch of road leading down to the farm. Reaching up with one hand she wrapped her scarf a little more around her neck. Seemed like each day was getting a little colder than the last. She’s heard the talk about how this winter wasn’t supposed to be good. She believed it because she could feel it in the air.

Abigail couldn’t stop smiling. She was FLATTERED that Mary would want her and John to be present when she delivered this news to Arthur. “ Alright. Shouldn’t be too hard getting them together. If you wanna do it soon you see him then get ready cause we’re making the turn now. ” They were making the turn under the fenced archway. “ Those boys are always out and about doing something. ”

Abigail laughed. “ Doesn’t sound strange at all. When I was pregnant with Jack all I wanted to eat was chocolate and peaches. I got some good tea recipes to help calm the craving so they ain’t so bad. ”

Up in the distance, she could see a strange wagon pulled up to the farm. “ Wonder who that is? ” Abigail remarked giving the horse another crack from the reins.

Arthur was busing himself with cleaning the horse barn when he heard Rufus barking. The familiar sound of wagon wheels beating against the ground made him believe the ladies had made it back from their trip into town. Despite the slight chill in the air, he was dirty and sweaty from the work he had been doing. Shoveling horse shit wasn’t the GREATEST chore but it had to be done.

Pushing the wheel barrel out of the way and then placing the pitchfork up against the wall he stepped outside the bar and down toward the house. His eyes would narrow a bit not recognizing the wagon. He did however recognize the BLONDE who stepped away from it. Bonnie MacFarlane, boy was this going to be interesting if Abigail made it back soon.

Arthur only shook his head when John began bellowing for Uncle. That boy was never gonna learn that the old man was never going to be found when there was work to be done.

After everything that happened back with the gang Arthur would be the first person to come down hard on anyone not pulling their weight but for some ungodly known reason, he always seemed to let it slip with Uncle. Perhaps it was because of his age. Or maybe it was because SOMETIMES the old man did come in handy.

“ Marston, stop bitchin’ at him. You know it ain’t gonna change nothin’. What are you bellowin’ about anyway? ” Arthur asked as he began heading back down to where Bonnie was waiting for them. The close they seemed to get the bigger Bonnie’s smile seemed to grow.

Boy oh boy, Arthur thought as he shook his head. “ Good day to ya, Miss MacFarlane. How’s the Ranch been treatin’ ya? ” Arthur glanced over at the wagon seeing the bags of grain loaded in the back.

“Howdy, Mr. Marston!” Bonnie greeted. “Daddy gives his regards for not stopping by, but he says he looks forward to seeing you again at the ranch for another round or two of poker. He says he’s developed a new strategy to clean your pockets good this time.”

Around the same time, Abigail and Mary’s wagon arrived from the opposing end of the ranch. Rufus barked and ran over to greet them. Uncle grumbled and rolled onto his side just as they passed the tree he was beneath.

“Ladies, ladies,” he complained as he finally came about to consciousness. “Was tryin’ to sleep.”

John went over and kicked his shins. He didn’t care what Arthur said. “Get up!” he snapped. “Quit lyin’ around and be of use for once.”

Mary narrowed her eyes as she realized who the new arrival was. “It’s Miss Bonnie MacFarlane.”

Bonnie, taking note of Abigail being the driver of the other wagon, offered her a polite nod, and one to Mary as well. “Hello, ladies! Just here to give your families some extra supplies our ranch had on stock. Can’t be selfish, especially with winter lookin’ to be real nasty and all. Us neighbors gotta look out for one another and all.”

Jack emerged from the house, having heard all the commotion, and approached everyone. “Hi, Ma! Hi, Aunt Mary! Welcome back! Hey, Uncle Arthur! … Oh! Hi, Miss MacFarlane!”

John came back with Uncle and was relieved to see his son. The last thing he wanted was both Arthur and Abigail getting on his case about Miss MacFarlane. Time for a distraction. “Son, go help Uncle and Miss MacFarlane put the new supplies in the barn.”

Uncle groaned. “But I’m feelin’ my lumbago kickin’ up a fuss again, John.”

Jack happily offered, “Uncle, we can make a game out of this!”

“Ohhh, the only game I play is the one involving money,” was Uncle’s huffed and annoyed response.

Bonnie tried to hide her disappointment, as she ducked her head and headed back to her wagon. She climbed back onto it, where she assisted Jack to the seat next to her, while Uncle reluctantly led the way to the barn.

“Well,” Mary replied awkwardly once their wagon stopped, and she carefully climbed down from her seat. “That was… interesting… Now’s as good a time as any to tell Arthur, don’t you think, Abigail?”

Arthur wanted to crack a joke about what Bonnie said about her father but he thought better of it since all the ladies were present. He could already tell by the look on Abigail’s face that she was none too happy to see Bonnie.

As POLITELY as she could Abigail returned the nod. “ That’s mighty kind of you. Not many people are that generous without having other motives in mind. ” And for Abigail, that was being EXTREMELY polite. She had seen the way Bonnie just lit up like a bulb whenever she was around John.

It wasn’t that she didn’t trust John because she did. It was the blonde female she didn’t EXACTLY trust. What decent woman doted over a married man? It just wasn’t right in Abigail’s book. “ I’d say looking out for one another is a good idea. ” She quickly added. The whole bit of her Daddy wanting to play poker with John made her feel like John was spending ENTIRELY too much time at that Ranch.

“ Old man all you do is sleep. ” Her head turned when she heard Jack calling out to them. “ Your FATHER is right Jack honey. See if you can’t help get those supplies into the barn. ” All the while Abigail didn’t look at John. She was fuming and knew John and everyone else could see it. Her attention now turns to Uncle. “ Old man you better help or so help me you won’t be eating tonight and you’ll be sharing the barn. ”

She watched as Bonnie climbed on her wagon looking so UPSET that John wasn’t coming along with them. Lord god if there was one up above she prayed he gave her STRENGTH to bite her tongue and not ruin this moment for Arthur and Mary.

Abigail removed herself from the wagon after Mary. instead of walking over to where John was standing, she stood closer to Mary and near the back of the wagon. “ I think it’s a good time. Needs something to brighten the mood around here. ”

If looks could kill both Bonnie and John would fall over dead. Abigail was blazing mad. He’s seen that look in her eye numerous times before. Arthur also knew when she had that look to steer clear of her. He felt a little bad for John but at the same time, he could only IMAGINE the rage he’d feel if he saw someone opening crushing on Mary. He’d lose his damn mind.

Making his way around to where the ladies stood Arthur crossed his arms looking a little confused. “ Tell Arthur what exactly? ” A brow lifted now wondering what those two had gotten into while they were in town.

John realized that Bonnie was looking at Arthur and probably meant to say “Howdy, Mr. Morgan,” she instead said “Mr. Marston.” Christ help him. He needed to talk to her and be blunt about where their relationship stood. He was lovingly and happily married to Abigail. The two of them went through so much together that there couldn’t be, and wouldn’t be, anybody else he’d rather be with than her. Bonnie was a hardworking girl who’d find a decent man one day, but it wouldn’t be him. Never in a million years. He’d have to make it up to Abigail. While he loved her spitfire, he didn’t want her fuming for days on end. While she was in this mood, he wouldn’t put it past her to really put rat poison in his dinner.

Mary bit her lower lip, and offered Abigail one last look, before approaching Arthur. He smelled of sweat and barn animals, but she didn’t mind. It was all part of the job. Hard work suited him. Living on a ranch wasn’t easy, but she enjoyed every moment of it. She loved it, as she loved this man before her. She wouldn’t trade any of this for the world.

Standing in front of him, she placed her hands over his. Her nerves were shot, but she somehow maintained some composure. She peered into his eyes and stated, “Went to the doctor’s today because I hadn’t been feeling well. Turns out…”

Deep breath in, deep breath out.

“I’m with child, Arthur. We’re going to have a baby!”

She smiled and even squeezed his hands with emphasis. To think she was terrified in the beginning, but the more she talked about it, the more thrilled she was to become a mother.

Despite being called Mr. Marston Arthur knew Bonnie was talking to him. He was the one who had been playing poker with her father. Arthur had been in the process of talking to him about finding a good place where he could buy or rustle up some chickens for their own Ranch. He should probably tell Abigail that it wasn’t John that was hanging out at the MacFarlane Ranch but he’d let John SWEAT a little before he offered up that information. Hell, after that slip of the tongue from Bonnie he wasn’t even sure his fessing up that information would even HELP matters. Arthur was pretty sure that one way or another John would find a way to make it all up to Abigail.

Abigail gave Mary a smile when she looked at her and nodded her head. She PROMISED she would be there and she wasn’t moving until the news was delivered and received. Under better circumstances, she would be at John’s side right now with her arm wrapped around his ready to celebrate this news.

Arthur’s head would slightly tilt to the side when Mary took his hand into hers. What had gotten into her? She was acting a little STRANGE and it was starting to worry him, even more so when she said she had gone to the doctor because she wasn’t feeling well.

He let out a deep breath, one that expelled his ENTIRE lung capacity in one breath. He didn’t move a muscle because he was replaying those words in the back of his head. It almost felt like the wind had been knocked right out of him but not exactly in a bad way. The news had taken him by surprise. It wasn’t like the two of them hadn’t been together before and both of them were younger back then and nothing ever came from it. Maybe he had thought after Isaac’s death that he wouldn’t be blessed with another because he had failed his son.

He took a step back, speechless as he looked Mary in the eyes. She was the prettiest thing he had ever laid eyes on from the day they first met and from that day forward. Their relationship blossomed faster than a field of wildflowers. They had their bumps in the road but they found each other despite the odds against them and made things work this time. He truly loved this woman, and something about this news made his heart SOAR.

He wouldn’t admit it but he was sure she could see his eyes getting a little glossy. “ A baby ─ are you sure? ” He found himself having to ask once more to make sure he had heard her right.

After giving her hands a squeeze he pulled her in close to him. His lips found hers in a way to reassure her that this was the happiest news he had heard in some time. He was going to be a father and he couldn’t be happier about that. This is how their life should have been all along.

Once he broke away from the kiss he looked to Abigail and then to John and shouted as loud as he could, so loud he was sure Uncle, Jack, and Bonnie could hear in the barn. “ I’M GOING TO BE A DAD! ”

Mary wasn’t sure if she could contain her delight. Her spirits soared high. “Doctor performed three tests to be sure, Arthur. It’s true.”

She was then pulled against her husband’s broad chest, and they shared a kiss. She hugged him tight as joy engulfed her. This was a dream come true for them both. Yes, they were up there in age, but they didn’t care. They shouldn’t. This was what they wanted, and so what if this milestone came later in life? They had no more worries, no more dangers. They had a home, they had family and friends. Likewise, they were settled and safe. For them, this was the best time to start a family. If not now, it would be never.

When Arthur broke the kiss, Mary couldn’t help but cover her mouth with her hands and laugh with joy. His reaction was priceless. She loved every moment of this. She wished there was one of those fancy motion picture men around to capture this on film.

Not wanting to test his luck with Abigail just yet (but absolutely wanting to make things up to her as soon as possible), John decided to give his support to Arthur and Mary. First, to his brother from another mother, he threw his arms around Arthur and gave him a hearty hug.

“Couldn’t have happened to a more deserving guy,” he told him, meaning every word. “You and Mary will make a fine family, and we’re gonna help you every step of the way.”

After patting him on his back, he went over to Mary and hugged her as well, along with a polite kiss on the cheek.

“Congratulations, and don’t you worry about nothin’,” he promised her. “We’ll take real good care of you and the baby, Mary. Real happy for you.”

Over by the barn, Jack stood up when he heard Arthur yell. He dropped the sack he’d been carrying and turned to Bonnie. “Did you hear that, Miss MacFarlane?”

Bonnie nodded as she stepped down from the wagon. “Sure as the sun would rise in the morning, Jack. Looks like you’re gonna be a cousin in nine months! Let’s go congratulate the happy couple!”

“Least we’ll know who the papa is,” Uncle commented, remembering the mess that came out of Abigail’s pregnancy. Then, remembering Jack was present, he shooed the boy out of the barn ahead of him before he could ask questions. Bonnie just gave the old man a strange look, shrugged her shoulders, and followed the boy out.

So many thoughts were swimming through the back of Arthur’s mind. For a moment he thought he might have to pinch himself to make sure he wasn’t DREAMING all of this. For years he wallowed in his misery thinking Mary had left him for good and that he’d NEVER find that kind of happiness again, not like he had with her. Now here they were about to bring a new life into the world. Life was good.

Mary always had this radiant glow to her but right now she GLOWED in a way he had never seen before. He just wanted to wrap his arms around her, spin her around and then just dance all around the ranch with her. How he would love to freeze this moment in time with another one of those pictures so he would NEVER forget the look on her face right now.

Before he could even think about his next act John was embracing him in a hug. Arthur pat him on the back and gave him a nod when he pulled away. “ Thank you, brother. Gonna need all the help I can’t get. This is going to be all new to me. ” Arthur wasn’t there when Isaac was born. Yet another thing he could THANK Dutch for.

When John went to hug Arthur Abigail seized her moment. She put her arm around Mary and pulled her close against her arm. “ I know I done told ya all this before but I’m so happy for the two of you. Just like I told ya you had nothing to worry about. ” Abigail grinned.

When John started heading Mary’s way Abigail pulled away and made her way over to Arthur where she gave him a tight hug and kissed him against his cheek. “ Always told ya you were a good and deserving man, Arthur Morgan. You keep her happy, ya hear me? ”

“ Got no worries there, Abigail. Gonna do my damnedest in that department. ” Arthur commented back.

Just for a moment, Abigail forgot about their visitor. She was so happy that she just wanted to hug her husband. With her head slightly dipped she started making her way over to John.

“ Aunt Mary, Miss MacFarlane wants to congratulate you and Uncle Arthur! ” Jack could be heard shouting in the distance.

Suddenly Abigail was reminded and her face soured once more, just short of reaching John. She couldn’t handle SEEING that woman again and not going off the handle on her. “ Excuse me, I’m going to go start dinner and hunt down the rat poison. ” Abigail brushed past John and headed straight up to the house where she slammed the door closed behind her.

John’s shoulders slumped and he sighed. “Goddammit to hell,” he uttered. He couldn’t let this fester for long, and he was instantly on Abigail’s trail, following her into the house.

Before Bonnie could even call out to John, yet another wagon pulled up to the house at an alarming speed. Amos, one of Drew’s ranchers, was driving the wagon. “Miss MacFarlane!” he shouted. “We need you back on the farm! Got problems with the horses and the corral!”

Bonnie scowled. “Not again! I swear, nothing can get down when I’m not there!”

The blonde made her apologies before she told Amos she’d meet him back at the ranch. After bidding everyone goodbye and even thanking the Morgans once more, she quickly helped unload the rest of the grains, climbed back on her wagon, then made haste back to the MacFarlane homestead.

Once the dust settled, Mary couldn’t help but rub her temple. “That was… chaotic,” she couldn’t help but admit, and it was followed by a quiet laugh. “I suppose it added to the excitement of our baby announcement. I do feel a little tired, though, Arthur. I’m going to need to sit down for a bit.”

Inside the house, John caught up with Abigail. He stood before her and cut her off in her path.

“Stop, will ya? Why you gotta let Bonnie get to you like that, huh? Every time she comes around, you get riled up. What do you want me to do? Cuss her out? Shoot her?!”

Bringing a hand up, he caressed the side of her face. “Darlin’, there ain’t no other woman who could make me happy like you, and you know that. I love you.”

Awkward indeed but Arthur was more than used to John and Abigail having moments like these. He was sure that somehow John would make it up to her. That boy always seemed to find a way to get himself out of the DOG HOUSE with Abigail.

Arthur was sure to make sure Mary was clear out of the way when another wagon came barreling into the farm, kicking dust in its wake. In a way a made him feel a bit UNCOMFORTABLE. Normally when folks drove like that someone was hot on their tail and not in a good way. A hand rose to block the sun from his eyes and that’s when the man became recognized by him. Amos, he had seen him on the MacFarlane ranch many times.

Side by side with Mary he listened as the exchange was made. Taking about an evening filled with the unexpected. After Bonnie gave her apologies he nodded his head. “ No need for that. You got a ranch to tend to. Thanks again for the supplies, hope everything works out for you. ”

“ Can’t say that I miss that kind of chaos. ” Arthur was quick to agree with his wife. “ Have to disagree on that one. Don’t think anythin’ could be more excitin’ than that news. ” He would grin but would become a little more serious when she made mention of needing to sit down. “ Say no more. ” And with that Arthur placed an arm against her back and used the other to scoop up her legs to carry her bridal style. Up to the house he carried her until they were at the front deck where he sat her down in one of the chairs. Thankfully the houses were far enough apart that they couldn’t hear the yelling coming from John and Abigail.

“ Mrs. Mary Morgan I didn’t think you could find a way to make me anymore happier than I already am. ”

" Get outta my way, John. ” Abigail stopped in her tracks when John quickly cut her off.

“ Of course, I get riled up. I won’t stand for some woman comin’ to our home crushin’ all over my husband, John Marston. ” Her arms quickly snapped up to fold against her chest. “ You’re a married man and she knows it and it doesn’t stop her from tryin’ to flaunt around here tryin’ to get your attention and in front of your wife of all people. She doesn’t even try to hide it. Women like that ain’t decent, John. ” Reaching out she slugged John in the shoulder. “ Of course, I don’t want you to shoot her you big silly man. What you can do is set her straight John. Tell her can’t be no more of that behavior around here or anywhere else. If you don’t it’s only gonna encourage her. ”

She took a deep breath and exhaled after he said he loved her. It was UNFAIR when he used that method to try and make her less angry. “ Love you too John but it doesn’t change my mind none. Cause next time I’ll tell her myself. ” Stepping forward she rested her head up against John’s shoulder.

Mary held onto her husband tight as she was swept off her feet and carried back home. It brought back wonderful memories of her wedding day with Arthur. Best day of her life, really. It was everything she could ever dream about. The only person missing on the day was her mother, and as she sat on the chair beside her husband, and recovered from her dizzy spell, the harsh reality set in once more. Reaching for Arthur’s hand, she gave it a firm squeeze and didn’t let go.

“I’m so happy too, Arthur,” she told him, but her smile faltered just a bit. “I only wish Mama was here. I wished she was here for our wedding day, and I wish she was here for our baby.”

There was no shortage of support when it came to love, no question about it, but she had to take her mother’s place when it came to taking care of Jamie. She filled the void by raising the household while her daddy wasted away doing whatever he wanted, not caring about anyone but himself. She didn’t have that many years to have that motherly figure for herself. When Jamie was little, she more or less had to figure it out on her own.

“I’m fine,” she told him. “Thank you, Arthur. You know, you’re going to be the best father to our child. From what I heard from Abigail about how you took care of Jack, I already know how you’ll treat our baby.”

Her line of sight fell to their hands, and she couldn’t help but have her thumb rub small circles upon the surface of his skin. “After all, we have been quite… busy at night lately… I didn’t think… that is… I wasn’t thinking this… would happen…”

Her face grew warm as she vividly recalled how wild their bedroom activities had become. The things Arthur did to her - she was surprised the whole countryside hadn’t heard her scream!

John chuckled over Abigail’s statement. He knew she’d go through with it, too. There was no stopping her once she set her mind to something. His arms now wrapped around her slender frame, and he held her against him in a warm embrace.

“Sorry for makin’ you mad,” he murmured into her ear. “An’ I’m sorry for not bein’ there for you when you needed me the most.”

He thought back to those years when he ran away from his responsibilities of being a father to Jack. He’d been in deep denial, and he didn’t care what anybody said about him. The look of sheer anger and disappointment in Arthur’s eyes haunted him, yet he didn’t stop. He simply took off and didn’t look back. For an entire year, he went no contact and abandoned the gang. It was a miracle he was accepted back when he returned, and even then, he didn’t exactly accept his role as a father with open arms. No matter what he’d been doing for Dutch, Abigail remained with Jack: caring for him, raising him, as any loving parent should. There was a lot of growing up on his part, and a lot of questions when it came to Dutch. Thanks to Arthur, John’s eyes were opened, and he was able to become more of a more decent man.

John pulled back just far enough to rest his forehead against Abigail’s, where he peered into her eyes. “Thanks for givin’ this stupid cowpoke another chance for bein’ decent. I promise you, that you can go wild on anyone who tries to make passes at me in front of you, deal?”

Arthur leaned forward in his chair and held to her hand. He knew his wife well enough to know when something was TROUBLING her and this was one of those moments. He didn’t always have the right answers but he always tried his DAMNEDEST to ease any troubles she had in whatever way he could.

It wasn’t until she mentioned her mother that Arthur stopped to think of his mother and father along with Dutch. He could understand that kind of emotion even though he didn’t quite have the same relationship with his mother and father as Mary had with hers. “ I know you do. ”

At a very early age, he watched his mother die of sickness. It’s a memory that would FOREVER be branded into the back of his mind. Child or not, something like that NEVER goes away. Then at the age of eleven, he witnessed the hanging of his father who had been arrested for larceny. For three long years, he roamed the streets alone until Dutch and Hosea found him. Both men were father figures to him. He watched one gunned down in Valentine in cold blood and the other… he couldn’t even bring himself to think about how Dutch had betrayed him.

“ I know things haven’t always worked out the best for us, but I promise that baby, boy or girl is gonna have both a mother and father. I can also promise that I’m not goin’ to make the same mistakes they did. We’ve faced the odds and beat them. ” Arthur was sure Mary knew that if it was within his power to have her mother here she would be.

But the SERIOUS moment seemed to break when she brought up their late-night activities in the bedroom. He couldn’t help but chuckle at the thought. Being back with the woman that stole his heart after so long, well he just couldn’t help but get a little wild with her. “ Got to admit at the time of those activities a baby was the last thing on my mind. ” His eyes couldn’t help but dart over her form remembering how downright SEXY she looked each time she come undone for him. A cough would escape him as he tried to clear his mind of those thoughts for now.

“ How about we get you inside so you can rest a bit? I’m sure I could handle dinner tonight. ”

If there was one thing everyone knew about Abigail it was that once her mind was made up about something there was no telling her no. Through hell or high water, she would do WHATEVER she put her mind to. That was even more so the case when it came to John and Jack. She was FIERCELY PROTECTIVE of them both. Through blood sweat and tears she made her family work and she would be damned if some little daydreamer thought she was going to take that away from her.

“ John, it wasn’t you who made me mad. Okay, maybe a little because you should have said something to her but it was mostly her. ” Abigail admitted. Yeah, she started taking that anger out on him but that’s only because she LOVED the fool. Then she shook her head in a fashion as if she didn’t want him speaking of those times. “ That’s in the past. We promised to leave it there. ”

John didn’t have to say a word for her to know how much he beat himself up over his past actions. They were both younger back then and either one of them was planning on Jack but it had happened. Much like the news had just come for Mary and Arthur. John had to fight through his DEMONS and as painful as it had been at the time for Abigail she understood he needed that time. Things weren’t great when he finally came but the thing was he did come back and that meant something. Everything that happened was just another stepping stone that got them to the place they were standing now. It’s not something she would trade for anything. As silly and foolish as he could be at times he was her silly fool and she loved him with all her heart.

As their heads rested together she reached up and placed her palm against the side of his face. “ Thank you for comin’ back to us. But just so you know, I don’t need your permission for that. That Bonnie MacFarlane would have felt my full wrath had I not wanted to ruin Arthur and Mary’s moment. ” Her eyes caught with his almost DARINGLY before she leaned forward and kissed his lips. The kiss was soft and gentle. She could taste the mixture of whiskey and coffee on his lips and it made her long for more but she had to be mindful of Jack and remember that he could come barging through the doors at any time.

[toehwa6]

What’s up pookie got more bitchin to do

Dawg everyone around me is fuckin insane

Little cousin is a trash goblin who is the blind kind of ambition that can be good or bad

Instead of being a hater I was like ima support this dumbass, make some music, let him push it and build out catalogs

But I’m tellin this kid how I believe in him but his are priorities are fucked point him in the right direction blah blah blah

And he goes

Yeah cuz I know I got the talent, I just gotta blah blah blah

So fucking stupid. I’m just gonna watch him do his thing cause honestly it makes some somewhat good quality from using presets and his music is fr absurd/entertaining

Also, he says the N word, which when I called him out for it, he replied

Naw they say it around here it’s all good

So yeah, kinda hope that doesn’t bite me in the ass for workin with this bozo

Dawg lemme tell you somethin funny

So he’s beefin with his friend and diss each other and make diss songs all that bullshit

So my cousin goes, let me know what you think about this diss

The title is “FUCK (Cousins name)”

So I’m like okay his friend wrote this about him

Turns out it’s all shit. But in the beginning there’s this line

“Yo auntie don’t want to see another family member dead”

And I for one, have a dead lil brother, two, a sad mom lol

So I was like damn this a crazy bar

So I asked cousin about it and he’s like oh no I wrote that

Soooo I’m like wtf dawg shit

And he goes

Naw so his mom died and his auntie raisin him that’s why

Like bro Jesus Christ what’s wrong with this fuckin people

Dawg my lil homie finally got a bitch and she’s cool I met her yesterday

But bro she literally has like aspie meltdowns in public when shit gets mildly difficult

Like she was tryna make a complicated dispensary order, at a new dispensary, for multiple people, with no money

And bro she just lost it and like broke down

Bro she looked fuckin SCARED all day I felt so bad fr like bro you are scared rn

Idk she was also super pissy too, like when her phone was about to die when making that order

It’s just a m, WELL WTF ARE WE GOING TO DO??

And then you could see she got super upset and I was like bitch, chill

I ended up talking to her about mental health at the end and it was wacky

I just asked her how she was doing and shit

Turns out she wants to learn about basic finances and budgeting

She’s going to be more honest with her docs about now takin her meds right

And then I straight up told her to stop being a pussy

I was like bro, you gon be scared forever. And shit only gets harder fr. Push through it’s worth it

She fr took it super well. She had that attitude where she’s super fucked up and doesn’t have anyone real to talk to, so she was like oh fuck this my time

It was cool. It was so joyful seeing this happy young couple together. They remind me of me and my gf. More friends than partners. I like that.

But you could see her tryin to make moves on him, and he was just super oblivious, as you are at that age lol

But I also noticed him struggle to handle those freak out moments. He handled it well but you could see he ain’t dealt with this before.

They’re both cool tho. I set them up with some good actual resources. I was teachin homie about finances, like emergency funds, the 50% rule for bills, and then I said

Just because you got the money for somethin, doesn’t mean you can afford it.

Then I said

Think about that huh? And I tapped my head lol

But naw fr, he’s super cool about it.

He’s said some really nice things to me lately.

I randomly helped him through basically a business break up.

And he was freakin out and I took a chance and was hard on him instead of suckin his dick

He was like my life is over bro and I’m like

Quit being a pussy bro, that’s life. It ain’t always gon be good shit. This is part of the process

I was like, you were in a toxic situation, you learned a lot, and you made some money, now you’re out but you learned those skills

He really turned around and looked different about it

But then he thanked me for bein a good friend to him. That made me feel good

I’ve known him since he was like 16 and he’s 22 now I think

Super cool

I think this shit crashing so ima cut this and start another one