#it hit me like a bag of bricks at 2 AM

[bhaalbag]

ok hear me out i have a theory.

I was maybe 50/50 on it before, but after seeing this post that details Astarion's punishment for his first and only attempt of escaping from Cazador I'm almost certain: Origin Astarion's nightmare was him re-living a twisted memory of when he ran, and when he was caught.

At first, I thought the presence of sussur trees was just the devs trying to lend to dreamscape ambience; but combined with Astarion's knowledge of the tunnels that lead to the Underdark, (he had no idea about the underside of the palace, so I can only assume he means the sewers) I've been thinking differently. What if he tried to escape through there before?

It makes sense. It's in line with how Larian has written his story. After all, how poetically cruel would it be that after being plucked from Cazador's grasp, he's almost immediately taunted by dreams of his own failure to save himself? To be reminded that he'll never escape, not really, not in his heart or mind, until his tormentor is dead and further reinforce his character goals?

[scara-hater]

HELLO I

AM HERE TO REQUEST

Cyno, Tighnari, Wanderer, and Xiao with a reader who feels lonely when they're gone so they knitted/made a mini plushie of them to hug and coddle with affection everyday

Cause plushies are cute and plushie of your favorite character? I will be gripping that piece of cotton for dear life

Idk if you have a character limit so you can just choose how many and who you want to write for, for this request :))

Anon this is so cute?? Yes yes and yes! Apologies if I misinterpret the request! I also got too excited, so apologies x2 if it seems rushed!

Not proofread! One day I will create a masterpiece when i actually edit my work.

Pt.2! <--

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Cyno

You two stay in touch as much as you can, but him being the general Mahamatra keeps your relationship distanced at times. He’s dedicated to his work and everything within the gaps means nothing. With you being the exception, kind of. He tries to make time, but if he views something important, he’ll mutter a quick apology before leaving you to sit around the house alone.

You actually told him that when he is absent, you cuddle a makeshift Cyno instead. You love that thing so much, it never leaves your side. Even when exiting the confines of your home, it is safely secured in your bag. Explaining to him that It’s just comforting, knowing that if the real Cyno can’t be there, at least you have one that stays with you at all times.

But something about that innocent statement, left a wavering feeling in is mind.

after he bid farewell, and was far beyond sight, it lingered in his brain.

You on the other hand, were missing him something fierce. The doll was made out of old materials that belonged to the white haired general, so it made it very soothing when you would hold it to your face. It’s smelled of his freshness, and if you closed your eyes, could imagine him there.

And as the day passes and the sun greets the moon, you grow tired as your eyes can no longer fight your sleep. Now, all that can be heard are your soft snores within the bedroom.

Meanwhile, thousands of meters away, Cyno lay awake. Chewing at the feeling he’s had all day, a doll? Of him? While he finds endearment in that and loves you even more for it, the emotions mixing in his chest sit unlabelled. Rolling to his side he shuts his eyes and awaits to see you in the morning.

And believe me, when he came home and saw you cuddling your dear doll, it hit him like ten million bricks.

He felt guilty.

“Wake up, I want to hold you.”

Tighnari

Told you he’s going to be gone for at most a week and apologized for leaving so suddenly, not forgetting to hug you before he parted ways. Though when he’s gone it feels so quiet. Always resulting in solemn feeling in your chest, you sit around thinking of ways to feel better, until one day it just clicks. make a little fox friend!

You run to your mess of a crafting table and start sewing. With a few stabs and much focused stitch work, you finally have it, your very own fennec fox hybrid! Admiring your accomplishment, you hold the treasure to your chest.

Days past and the mini companion never left your grasp. It sat in your lap as you ate and layed in your arms as you slept, needless to say the doll eased your sadness when Tighnari was gone. It truly helped you through some of those nights he couln’t be with you. And in all honesty? he to misses your company just as much.

Counting down each day until he can nest in-between your body once again, feeling the warmth of your embrace, Archons he’s thankful everything ended early.

Entering the city, putting his work aside and rushing home, he acknowledges the might night return, so he puts in an effort to silently crawl unto the covers without waking you. Now lifting your arm to lay under, only to find something invading his spot. That’s his spot y/n, just what lays in his way?

He picks it up, and upon further insection, it looks exactly like him. It’s a doll.

You really are just the cutest.

Carefully moving it to the side, he then finally shimmy’s into the bed, at last in your hold. Your hands find their place, and he falls asleep, knowing he chose the right mate.

Wanderer

Is often aiding the traveller in their goal of finding their twin. That and tasking in odd jobs around Sumeru, so usually chunks of your day has been dedicated to creating a partner to keep you from feeling empty. And now that it is complete, you can cuddle it as much as you want! Fiddling with it’s nubby hands and tracing it’s rosy cheeks, this was by far the best idea and probably the greatest thing you’ve crafted.

Lone days now accompanied by a tiny wanderer. How cute is that?

“What the hell is that?”

Oh, you didn’t hear him come in, “what, this?” You lift up the dainty thing, “why its you! Just travel size, you’re too big to carry you know?” You joke while he glares at the object. “I can see that, but just why do you have it? Are you going to give that one a consciousness too?” Ahh you see,

he’s jealous.

Putting the doll down, you fold your arms and tell him to look at you “ Are you seriously going to hate on something that was made so horribly? Look at it! If that thing was conscious, it would beg me to turn it back to mere cloth and string.” Pointing at it you continue, “I only made it because when you leave, I do miss you sometimes, is that such a crime?”

Certainly not, he loves it and finds his chest swelling.

“Perhaps not, though I am the only one you should be directing your affections, I too am a doll y/n, or have you forgotten?.” He turns around to escape the ever growing blush reaching his face. Though the tips of his ears are a dead give away.

Xiao

Watches over liyue, that is his priority when it comes to what he does.

And it is hurtful on nights like this one. Today was tiring and draining. Working in a noisy part of the city and interacting with less than enjoyable customers is not what you wanted to deal with. But life goes on, and all you wanted was to see your Adeptus and tell him about how awful today was.

Though, you remind yourself about his duties, and opt for a solution. Taking out your knitting needles, you begin your plan of a replacement Xiao. Harmless and fun. Plus when you succeed, the victory is even greater when you get to cuddle it while sitting down. It’s small and squishable, they both totally have the same vibe. The only difference is, your knitted partner wears a happy smile. Bringing one to your face as well. Oh how you wish he was next to you right now, holding it closer as you caress it’s cheeks with your thumb.

“Did you call me.”

“AH-“ falling of your chair, the squishy mini xiao flies out of your lap and lands on the floor. “Jeez, make some of sound before talking into my ear like that.” Looking his way, you see his gazed locked on the item on the floor. “Uhh, hehe yeah, um- when you’re gone I miss you and stuff so I made it to keep me company.” You say, hoping he didn’t find you terribly weird. Yet, you see him walk over to his mini figure and pick it up, looking over it. And seeing how much effort you put in makes him feeling all tingly.

“Summon me when you feel you want my company y/n, say the word and I’ll be here.” Archons he is so precious, “ I know that, but I don’t want to burden you when there are important matters to attend.” Now that put a pout on Xiao’s face. “you could never burden me.” He takes your hands in his,

“I will never ignore your call.”

Now, on days where you both reside together, two dolls can be seen placed on a shelf next to one another.

Requests open!

[bouncybongfairy]

Hidden In Plain Sight Part 1

Peter Parker/Spider-Man x Fem Reader

Summary: You were on your way to class, finishing up some last-minute homework on the subway. The train derails, causing mass chaos. The subway car you're in is badly mangled, leaving you trapped behind a bent hand railing. While getting saved by spiderman, his mask gets caught on a jagged piece of metal. You come face to face with someone you'd never imagined and ever since then, you can't keep him off your mind.

Work Count: 3k+

Part 2 is now posted! <3

<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3<3

It was raining out, dark clouds were covering the sky. The subway was incredibly sleepy today. Everyone seemed like they were still half asleep. It was peaceful, hearing the rain hitting the roof of the train. You finished up a math assignment that should have been done last night. Your statistics class was really kicking your ass. To make matters worse, you spilled a bit of your coffee onto the corner of the page; it was bugging the hell out of you. You were watching other passengers exit one by one. There was a mother with a baby stroller that was draped in a plastic lining. Two teenage girls who were holding hands, giggling with one another. After finishing the last equation, dusting off the eraser bits off the page and admiring your work, you put it away. It wasn't until then that you noticed that you were alone in the car. You smiled to yourself a little. Normally the train was always packed, so it was cool to have the entire space to yourself. You notice that you're pulling up to your stop, so you put away your phone and headphones into your bag. Before you could even register what happened, you were pinned underneath a bar of metal. 

Your vision was now blurry and the ringing in your ear was so loud that it was making your eyes water. You start moving your limbs around weakly, trying to detect any pain or blood. You looked around, trying to make sense of what was happening. It was like one second you were existing and the next you were so disoriented you can't even speak. There was shattered glass everywhere, drops of water coming from the roof. The metal that made up the train car was busted in several areas, yet you were still completely enclosed. Your bookbag was near you. You try reaching for it, to get to your phone and call for help but couldn't quite reach. You began screaming for help; you were straining your voice so hard that barely any sounds were coming out. Quickly your screams turned into sobs. You were beginning to get claustrophobic. Using all your force trying to pry all bars off you, it was like pushing on a brick wall. The doors were getting pried open; you noticed, but were more worried about getting out from underneath the crushed metal; you were becoming frantic.

"Hi, it's okay I'm gonna help you out of here. Just try to stay relaxed while I figure out a way to get you out of here," he said. 

"Please get me out of here!" you cried out starting to hit the metal out of desperation. 

"I am, hey just listen for a second," he said, grabbing your face with his hands to get you to focus, "I think I can get you out by lifting you through the bars, instead of having to pry them up. It won't take as long. You really need to calm down though, okay?" he said, you nodded your head and started taking deep breaths in. 

He crawled up to the ceiling positioned himself above you, his feet were attached to the wall. He then reached down and grabbed you underneath your arms. He started to slowly pull you out from the space you were lodged in. He was giving you simple instructions while encouraging you. Saying things like 'strengthen your legs a little' or ' you're doing great, you're practically out'. He used his webbing to grab your bag, his other arm was wrapped around your ribcage. Once he pulled you fully out, the adrenaline was starting to ease up a little. You looked up at him and saw his mask, focusing on the stitch lining; taking in every detail. A jagged piece of metal catches the top of his mask and pulls it off. His face was red, like he'd been working out for hours. His hair wasn't soaked but you could tell it was damp with sweat. Due to it being cold outside, when the mask first came off condensation was coming off his head. When you made eye contact, you literally saw his pupils change his eye color from blue to pitch black. You were only making eye contact for a couple seconds but it felt like much longer than that. You could hear the clanking of police gear, their footsteps getting closer and louder. You grabbed his mask and pulled it over his face without saying anything. He adjusted it on his head before leaving you with the police who escorted you to an ambulance. 

Other than a few flesh wounds and a mild concussion you were fine. You were told to take it easy for the next week. Ever since the interaction with Spider-Man you couldn't stop thinking about him. You kept looking at videos of him on the news, where they were filming him while in such dangerous fights. He couldn't have been much older than you and it made you feel bad for him. You were in college and worked, even that made you feel like you were being suffocated with obligations. You couldn't help letting your mind wander a bit, thinking about how his eyes widened; how vulnerable yet strong he looked. You were sitting in the bathtub, it was Saturday night but the last thing you wanted to do was go out. 

The water was so hot it was steaming, it took you a moment to adjust yourself to the hot water. Once you did, you could feel your muscles loosening. You had just finished your homework for the week and you didn't work in the morning. It was nice being able to relax without subconsciously being worried about going to work the next day or an assignment you forgot to do. Music was playing from the speaker, you had a towel next to the tub to dry your hand whenever you wanted to change the song or take a hit from your pen. The bubbles were beginning to lose their battle with the water and were slowly disappearing. 

After getting out of the tub you dry yourself with a towel and make your way to your bedroom. You change into some sweat pants and a tee shirt and order something off uber-eats. The last thing you wanted to do was make yourself dinner after such a hectic week. You ended up settling on walking to your local deli instead of ordering out. The bodega was only three blocks up the road and there was enough light outside to walk there safely. You throw on a pair of shoes and grab your purse before making your way down the stairwell. You saw your neighbor Amarita who was sweeping the steps, she is such a sweet lady. 

"Y|N! I'm glad I caught you, I wanted to let you know there's a new neighbor moving in tonight. All I know is that it's a younger guy, I just wanted to let you know in case you think it's a stranger or creep," she said, supporting her weight on the broom. 

"Thanks for letting me know, do you want anything from Mitch's? I'm going down to get some dinner," you offered. 

"Oh thank you babe! Can you please get me a Tuna sub with lettuce and onions please? But only half, it's so big I can never finish it," she complained and gave you a kiss on the cheek before you left. 

'I love that little old lady'  - you thought to yourself. 

Once you got to the deli you were greeted by a couple workers, you were a regular there. You ordered the subs and then strolled around looking for drinks and a couple snacks. You grabbed a Diet Coke, a pickle and some chips. You got Amarita a coconut water and a chocolate bar; you also ordered her a 12 inch so she would have something to eat later if she got hungry. You walked back quickly because of how cold it was outside. When you got back to your apartment, you knocked on Amarita's door to give her dinner. When she didn't answer even after the third knock you thought about walking in but she came up the stairwell before you could. 

"Oh Y|N you're back just in time. This is Peter, he'll be moving into the apartment in between us," she said beaming.

The minute you locked eyes with him you immediately recognized him, he seemed to remember you as well because his eyes said it all. They widened just as they did on the subway, you swallowed and took a deep breath. You snapped out of it and handed her the food you bought her. She was playfully scolding you about how much money you spent on her. You broke away from eye contact and assured her that it wasn't a big deal and that it was more important to you that she was fed. When you looked back at him, he was still staring, like he was waiting for you to react. 

"It was nice meeting you Peter, I'm Y|N by the way," you said smiling while rummaging through your purse to find your keys. 

"Yeah I uh- It's nice meeting you too," he stuttered out. 

You went back inside and had to check your heart rate. You knew that was him, there was no doubt about that. What would be the benefit of you confronting him about it, it's not really any of your business. It's not like he was doing anything illegal and putting him would be pointless. It did make you a little nervous living next door to Spider-Man. What if he attracts a villain here and you get caught in a dangerous crossfire. You sat on your bed and turned on Jersey Shore eating your food while thinking about the fact that one of New York's top crime fighters was snoring next door. 

The next morning when you got up, you were thrilled to see that you slept in till 11. You got dressed and opened up your laptop, scrolling through your emails. There was none that stuck out to you and ended up closing the computer out of boredom. It was raining again today which made the view out your fire escape look like a windows lock screen. You hear a couple of teenagers shrieking from the ground, pointing with smiles on their faces. Suddenly a blue and red blob flew right past your window. You gasp and jump back before going back to your window to investigate. It was him, flying through the air using his web. Making different poses as he hit his peak height. You looked at the rim of your window and noticed webbing that was left behind. Without really thinking about why, you opened the window and grabbed it. Pulling into your room like a rope. It was sticky but because of the rain, you could tell the adhesive was worn off. You leave in on your window seal, you were mad at yourself for caring so much. You go into the kitchen and pull out the other half of your sandwich before going back to your bed. You turn on your T.V and scroll through documentaries to fall asleep after you enter your food coma. 

~

Your only day off ended as quickly as it started, it was nice to spend the entire day in bed though. It felt like your body needed all that time to catch up on rest. You got up and showered, you had to get ready for your statistics class today. It was one of the first times the sun had been out in a week and a half. After getting out of the shower you began blow drying your hair in the bathroom. Your laptop was sitting on the vanity, playing Jersey Shore. It was blasting through a portable speaker, you kept humming the theme song as it played. You were thankful that the rain had let up because you could finally go out with your hair flat ironed. You bite through your closet and settle on a pair of jeans and a fitted long sleeve shirt. After applying a bit of make-up, you get all your things together and make your way to the subway. As you walk, you take a moment to appreciate the weather. There was a slight breeze, but still enough sun to prevent it from being too cold. Ever since the accident you were hesitant to use public transportation. You're a very practical person and know the likelihood of anything happening again anytime soon is fairly low. It still scares you, like a mild ptsd or something. 

The ride was short and packed which helped take your mind of the ride itself. Once you get to the campus you enter the coffee shop that is adjacent to your classroom. You were grateful that you chose to get your homework earlier this week. It gave you time to browse the library before you had to be there. You weren't looking for anything in particular, just something to read in your pass time. You admired some of binding of the book, some were so used you couldn't even read the title while others looked like they'd never been opened. 

"Ma'am I'm sorry but we don't allow food or drink in here," an older man with white hair, mustache and thick glasses informed you. 

"Oh sorry, I'll be on my way," you said. 

"Don't feel too bad, some of these books are so outdated, they could be improved by a coffee spill," he said with a thick New York accent. 

Once you got to your classroom, there were about 15 students loitering outside the door. This told you that the teacher was late, you expected this of course. She was the type of teacher that would waste half the class talking about her kids or messy divorce. All the other students would talk trash about her if she left the room for any reason. You felt bad for her, teachers that always ranted about their personal life always struck you as lonely. Why else would they be ranting to their students about their problems? You move your straw around your cup before taking a sip. Mrs.Claski finally walks up the stairs towards the classroom. She was rambling about how she was 'so sorry' that she was late. Apparently she was at the vet with her cat, you didn't bother paying attention to all the little details explaining why. You take your seat and pull out your laptop, Claski had to leave to make copies of the assignment we were working on today. As she walked out, Peter walked in. You made eye contact, and it only reaffirmed that he was the guy from the subway. 

He broke eye contact and made his way to a chair, the classroom was full at this point. Only one or two seats were open and of course both were in front of you. Luckily there were still those outdated hulky P.Cs on every desk which put a barrier between you and him. When you saw him, you immediately thought about the web you pulled from your fire escape. Like him being so close was putting you at risk of him finding out. Maybe that's why he looked so freaked out when he saw you at the apartment building. Because he recognized you from not only the train but the building as well. It's crazy because until everything that happened, you didn't even notice that he was in any of your classes. Now it was almost impossible to ignore. Like he had been hidden in plain sight this entire time, right under your nose. The teacher didn't end up coming back to class until there was only 15 minutes left. She apologized and let everyone go earlier, seeing that there was no way the class could get an assignment done at that time. 

When you were on your way home, you knew that if he wasn't busy he would have to take the same train and walk to get there. Your anxiety was through the roof, and what was even more frustrating is you weren't really sure why. The tension between the two of you felt so thick, like it was wrapped around your throat and was tightened when you saw or thought about him. You gathered your stuff and made your way out of the classroom. You put your headphones in and started making your way back to the apartment. You had to stop at the store on your way home, your refrigerator looked like it belonged in a frat house. You decided on making pasta and ground beef, that way you could take some left-overs to Amarita. You Ubered home so you didn't half to carry your groceries from the store all the way back to your building. Once you got there, Peter was walking up to the building. You took a deep breath before entering the building. This was like a sick joke or something. Once you get to the top of the stairs you hand to pass him to get to your building. As you passed him, your bag got caught on the hand railing causing it to rip and send your groceries tumbling. As you began gathering all the food back up again, you looked up and saw Peter begin to help. You looked in his bag that he set on the floor and saw that all it had in it was frozen burritos and some Gatoraids. This made your heart sink and again without really thinking about why you opened your mouth. 

"I- do you want to come over in an hour and have dinner? I'm making pasta and I bought way too much stuff," you said as he handed you a can of tomato sauce. 

"Def- that- I would love too but are you sure?" he asked. 

"Yeah, like I said, is an hour good?" you asked

"I'll be here, thank you," he said. You both walked to your doors and let yourselves into your apartments. 

"What did I just start," you mumbled to yourself before starting dinner.

[jsjsjsksjdjhs]

🗒️'I Wanna Hear Everything ☁︎,📎

collage!ellie ⭑ reader

noties: ellie is anxious & overwhelmed, swearing, angst and fluff w/ happy ending i promise !!

It was exam season and as much as Ellie didn't want to own up to it, she was extremely overwhelmed. No matter how many hours of sleep she missed out on or how many times she attempted to revise, as an astronomy major she couldn't wrap her head around ‘planetary formation’. She severely wanted to call it quits and just drop out but she knew that feeling was momentarily so she urged on.

Ellie had been studying for what felt like all of eternity when she heard a familiar five knocks on her door. You and Ellie had a little code when you’d knock on eachothers dorms. Five knocks the two of you had decided, Ellie had suggested the number five because that's the month you mutually confessed your feelings for eachother, May. She hopped up from her cluttered desk deciding that she did in fact need a break.

“Ellieeeee!!” you greeted her as she opened the door, “Hey baby, what brings you here?” “Just wanted to see you.” You shrugged. You sat comfortably at the edge of her bed, her room was a mess. She seemed to notice the way you looked around her room “Yeah yeah I know m’ gonna clean it as soon as my exams are over.” “ok ok” you giggled, snuggling into her side. “So what have you been up to today Bug?”

“Yeah so then…Ellie? Ellieeee?” you said, “Shit sorry, m’ just tired.” Her sorry sounding insincere. “Alright so then, Ellie are you even listening?” Ellie then looks at you, eyebrows furrowed, “Oh my god can you please stop harassing me for two minutes!” she partially yells, you suddenly go quiet, she sighs. Once she hears sniffing and looks up at you trying to hide your face as it starts to go red. “Shit baby m’ so fucking sorry please don't cry, shit. Look at me baby”. She knows you are sensitive and regrets not thinking before she spoke. She looks at the tears that are starting to stream down your cheeks, That’s when the guilt of what she said hits her like a ton of bricks. You slowly begin to get up from your current position “I- I should go '' you manage to choke out, still trying to hide your face and glassy eyes full of more tears threatening to fall at any given moment. You pick up your bag and she gently grabs your arm. “Bug I am so so so sorry m’ promise I didn’t mean it.” You look at her, tears still sliding down your rosy cheeks and at that moment she feels like she could cry as well.

You pull your arm out of Ellie’s grasp and she doesn’t react, she just stands there red in the face from the amount of embarrassment and guilt she’s experiencing from ever speaking to you like that. You both have argued before but she never raised her voice at you like that before.

Once you’ve reached your dorm, you look in the mirror to see your smeared mascara and the remaining tears stuck to your scarlet cheeks, you feel pathetic. You can’t shake the fact that you had started sobbing over a stupid comment Ellie made, sure you’ve cried in front of her a multitude of times but it was never like this, this time felt different and that’s what had upset you the most.

smelly ellie ⁉️ (2 missed calls) 2:46 pm

Ellie pretended to hate it but she secretly found it kinda cute.When Ellie first noticed her contact name in your phone she acted all offended. “Smelly Ellie? That’s not fair, yours is bugs with a heart! Okay now I have to change it to smelly Y/n!” “Noooo Ellie that doesn’t rhyme” you whined while giggling.

You sighed when you saw that she left a voice message, you played it in your ear. “Baby m’ so fucking sorry y’ know I didn’t mean it please come back so I can apologise properly in person.” The recorded message spoke through your phone.

You put your phone onto your nightstand, you knew you were being stubborn but you also couldn’t help not feeling like a burden. You felt a twinge in your stomach when you realised you had an essay on an artist of your choice for your art class due next week which was going to be worth 60% of your final grade. You had heavily procrastinated this assignment because you had no idea where to even start.

you closed your laptop due to you noticing 4 new notifications on your phone.

smelly ellie ⁉️ (4 new messages) 4:22 pm

smelly ellie ⁉️: baby i'm so so sorry please message or call me back

smelly ellie ⁉️: bugs answer

smelly ellie ⁉️: baby I am really sorry you know I didn’t mean it

smelly ellie ⁉️: bug?

You wanted to respond but you didn't know what to say, you felt equally as bad and embarrassed by what had happened, and you wanted to make up with Ellie but you didn’t know where to start.

You felt guilty not responding but you decided to sleep it off and perhaps your response would come to you in a dream. Ellie knew you didn’t like confrontation as you were quite sensitive and Ellie had known all that yet she still unnecessarily yelled at you and Ellie didn’t know how to make you feel better except apologising profusely.

You had awoken from your nap by 5 soft knocks on your door, you tiredly sat up preparing yourself for this conversation before opening the door.

Once you opened the door you saw Ellie standing in the hallway, she immediately threw her arms around you pulling your body into hers tightly. She released the both of you from the embrace and cupped your cheeks.

“Bug I am so so sorry” she rambled “it’s okay Ell-“ she cut you off “love you more then anything y’ know that, would never mean t’ hurt you.” She explained “I love you too, and I’m sorry for overreacting” you said looking down, cheeks flushed. “no no you didn’t overreact, m’ stupid, said a stupid thing.” She kissed you nose. “m okay I forgive you” once you finished what you were saying you looked up at her, and she kisses the side of your still pink cheeks, “okay now can you please tell me what you were talking about before” she looks at you hopeful, “hm you sure?” You question, “yes bug, wanna hear everything.”

This was my first proper fic!! please let me know what you think <3

[da3dm]

In the deep blue sea, there isn't a place for me

—

Got the second part done, yay! This time from Vara's perspective!

I didn't redo the tilted words this time I'm too tired to bother, but enjoy!

Taglist: @brick-a-doodle-do @i-am-beckyu @justarandomsloth @awkwardgtace @nobodywritingao3 @local-squishmallow (if you want to be tagged you HAVE to tell me, I can't magically know)

TW: Unintentional fearplay, begging to die (Noone dies), blood, one curse word...not sure what else, most is the same as last chapter

Word Count: 3.3k

Part 2/2

His days were slow and peaceful, any given second put thinking about what he'd do to help out next. For now, he planned on heading down to the beach to clean up the aftermath of the storm. Trash always washed up in the waves, but storms seemed to bring a whole truck full onto the usually beautiful sand. It made him sad to see it all dirty, so he was bringing some big trash bags and some gloves for the worst of the trash he finds. Alongside it, he stashed a small kit of first aid in the back…wouldn't be much he could do, but sometimes animals got stuck in the trash too. He wanted to make sure they were safe too, just as much as anyone else.

With not much else to do today, he went ahead and got started, climbing into his truck to drive down there. It was about half an hour away from his house, and his favorite place to visit. Not very many people went there…probably because it was hard to get to, kinda secluded. His ears and tail wiggled happily at the thought of that neat little spot being cleaned up. No need to do more than just picking up the trash. People never using it only made it an even better place to be, in his opinion. He loved helping people, but he didn't like crowds very much. Or being pressured into something.

His ears swiveled and he hit the brakes in time to avoid a rude driver, ignoring their horn and continuing onwards. His mood was soured for no more than a few seconds, as he hummed in delight over his thoughts again. Why stay upset when it was already in the past? Instead, he turned on his blinker to head off onto a dirt road. He glanced around to watch for animals, enjoying the lush plants all around him. It didn't take long for the truck to start bouncing, the only half made road ending as he entered what was mostly just a dirt path. A path worn by use rather than being constructed.

Soon, the trees ended and he was greeted by glimmering waters, a bright sun, and…a dirty beach. His smile faltered for a brief moment, but he went ahead and parked his truck after turning off, keeping himself to the side. With his truck safely out of the way, he shoved the gloves and keys in his pocket, then grabbed the trash bags and hopped out. The sun was beating down rather hot today for being past noon. He gave a curious hum and set about his self appointed task, gazing at the water every now and then, sometimes wishing he could know its secrets. He stopped. How could it be so beautiful, and yet so dangerous?

He turned away from the sea at that question to return to his repetitive task. There was no room for a question like that. He'd be stuck trying to know for the rest of his life otherwise. Although…there were a lot more seagulls than he remembered usually being here. This made him speed up a tad, looking for an injured animal they might be picking on. If it was still alive, the birds might peck it to death! That spurred him forward, searching for whatever might be needing help. Of course, he also knew it could be the trash itself, but harm in being on guard to be sure he helped instead of missing it. He'd rather do it for no reason than let one die.

However, he didn't look for very long until he came across a seagull attacking what looked like an empty bottle. He waved the bird off, including a few others that had been coming closer. The bottle just seemed empty to him, half buried and sand obscuring what might be in it. So as he reached for it, he instead looked at the birds, wondering why they were still sticking around. He was a cat beastman, and yet they weren't leaving? His attention returned to the bottle when he found that it was heavier than expected, strangely enough. Maybe it was full of water? He tilted the bottle to pour it out so he didn't get the trash bag wet.

Then a sound entered his sensitive ears. They swiveled toward the bottle and he tipped it back to how it was, confused. Was there something in there? His hand shifted so he could see in better and…froze up, eyes going wide. What he saw there, was a tiny person. He knew that there were plenty of nonhuman things out there, himself included, but tiny people?? Well, not entirely…it looked like it had a tail replacing legs. He'd almost thought they were a fish, honestly. All he could manage was to stare in silence, struck by this thing even existing.

He raised the bottle higher in a hurry to see it better. As he did, the expression was clearer and…was it snarling at him?? Then there was a quiet, muffled sound and he stiffened. It was hard to not find that, probably a growl, adorable. He knew it was a threat, yeah, but the sound was just so small to him. And yet the little thing didn't even try to communicate better and seemed to be trying to get away from him. Did pressing itself against the other side actually make it feel better? He could kinda feel something cold against his hand through the plastic from its new position though, leading him to tilt his head curiously. Why was it so cold?

He paused. Would it be better to try talking? "...hello? Can you understand me? Are you okay?" Just because it looked sentient didn't mean it was. Still…he wasn't getting a response. Not really wanting to believe this was just an animal yet and overall wanting to help regardless, worry filled him. "Alright…I'll get you out of there. Trust me for a few seconds, okay? I'm gonna tip the bottle." After warning, he prepared his free hand to catch it when dumped out. He was very gentle and slow with the action, but winced seeing it scramble for purchase, but steeled himself. He didn't have something to cut it open with and it couldn't be healthy to be in there. If it got in…it could get back out. Maybe he'd have to squeeze the bottle to get it out if it got stuck in the opening.

Except what it chose to do startled him and he stopped, keeping still. It…did it just spread its arms to get stuck? On purpose? That was…a much more intelligent action. Maybe they just didn't speak the same language? "Please, you have to get out before I can help you." When he saw no change, he decided to not move and wait it out. It appeared to have a rather stubborn personality. Well…so did he! He kept himself calm, remaining unmoving and entirely silent, even when it gave out an even angrier growl. This was starting to be make it harder to truly discern sentience. Everyone did something to survive, but was he really seen as such a threat? He wouldn't hurt anyone for anything.

Finally, his patience paid off and it landed right on his palm, the small body rather cold. He sighed in relief, but grew concerned when it didn't move at all at first. When he was about to try and prompt a reaction to make sure it was okay, the creature became so suddenly stiff he could've thought he held an ice cube. In this situation, he normally would've tried to comfort it, but when it looked up at him, his heart felt like it shattered. He chose to watch wordlessly as it sat up, then hung its head. Instantly, the beastman wanted to fret over the small being. Had he hurt it after all? What if it was so stressed it just died?

Soon it turned its gaze back up to meet his and hope blossomed—only to immediately get bitten really hard for something so small. As much as he wanted to, he could only muffle the sound of pain, but not stop his reactive flinch. In a hurry, he let his fingers curl up to keep it from falling off his hand, confused. Why was it biting him now? Before he could even try for an answer, it latched onto one of his fingers, drawing a suppressed whimper out of him. That was more painful than it had a right to be. In a way…it disturbed him to see how much blood was dripping off that bite. As much as he wanted to stop the bleeding, he needed to focus on the scared creature.

Gently, he tried to move his other fingers safely out of harm's way slowly, hoping to avoid eliciting another bad response. All he could think of to do now was attempt to speak again. "Uhm...will you please let go...? That...it kinda hurts?" It seemed to freeze and for a moment he thought it listened, only for just admittedly adorable snarl to ring out, followed by nastily twisting the bite. He winced, nearly gasping in shock at level of pain it could induce. Not a lot of damage, but definitely hurt. Still, he just bit his lip with a solemn nod, muttering, "Yeah, okay, that's fair." He'd scared it after all. It paused again, only to start clawing at his finger this time. He could only take so much, so this time he tried bending his finger to dislodge it.

It worked, but now he had yet another problem. It had a brief look of realization and changed. While its teeth were still bared, the angry look slowly shifted to a fearful one the more it stared at him. He kinda felt like he was being studied. Did it notice he was a cat based beastman? Though that fear didn't last long, and accompanied by what felt like pinpricks on his palm, it looked at him with rage, of all things. He planned to say something else, but it took a breath and screamed, "The hell are you even going to do?! Stop staring and just do something damnit! You're too loud and toying with me! If you're going to do something to me, just do it!" At the very least, he thought it was a scream based on the tone…it was still quieter than one to him.

Regardless, he was taken aback by the harsh implications of that shout. It…no, he, based off the voice, definitely had sentience. Then…what was this small guy? Why…did he sound so scared and angry? He hurriedly raised his hand up to his face, letting his fingers curl in to be sure the fish person didn't fall. It felt a little risky so he gently held them in place and only stopped when level with his eyes. He could feel his stress building as he started to ramble, "What?? You...do you think I want to hurt you? I'm sorry I was too loud...did I really scare you that badly? I wasn't trying really hard not to—" He faltered, trying not to be loud but struggling. "—but I...I messed up? What did I do? How do I fix it? Is there something you want?" Maybe if he got an answer he'd be able to make him feel safe…being seen as scary kinda hurt.

Then all at once, he ended up feeling worse. They had looked up to meet his eyes, only for them for scramble away with a rather heavy shiver. Those tiny eyes were full of so much fear he wanted to cry for them. They weren't answering his questions and they were only getting scared. How could he fix this? Stressing, he brought his hand a little closer to softly asked, "Hey, are you okay? Can't you speak?" He wanted to help if he could. Maybe they got hurt.

But he was interrupted by him snarling again, the tiny voice growling, "Get the fuck away from me." He blinked in surprise and guilt flooded him. Had he really messed up so badly? His voice sounded so weak. Seeing them lean away, he wanted to say something, but was cut off a second time. "Just...just leave me alone or kill me already. I don't want to play these games anymore." The voice was so frightened, but so full of anger that he almost whined.

Then he registered what had been said to him. "Kill you?! I'm not going to kill you!" He was horrified and quickly tried to fix this. Letting go of them, he cupped his hands together to be more gentle and keep them safer. His heart squeezed when this got him glared at. Was this even fixable? Or had he already ruined everything by just trying to help? He hoped not.

He was pulled out of his spiral when the tiny person snapped, "Why not?! You're bigger than me, you're a predator, I shouldn't even still be alive except to be a handy little plaything for your own entertainment!" This time, he was stunned enough he couldn't even begin to reply. How could he? When someone was so hysterical you couldn't reason with them. He probably had a look of pity mixed with his worry, but…plaything? Predator? What did being bigger have anything to do with it? Maybe it was just a sealife thing he didn't understand. Then he got bit. He winced, hand shaking briefly as he fought to not react. He gasped from the spike of pain he got when they twisted their head to make it worse with a growl.

Whining a little, he started to move his other hand. "Please don't do that…" He carefully cupped his hand over the other one, in a manner like a child might use to catch a butterfly. He'd been hoping this would work, but he felt a sharp pain only seconds later from a different spot. Right. Being bitten all over his hand now. Pleasant. He waited, but…the bite was still going. He sighed, "I'll just put you back in the ocean…" Maybe he just needed to free them. He glanced at the birds warily though, worried they'd come after the small man. There wasn't a response though, so he just started walking, keeping an eye on the birds while searching for a good spot to put him. He did notice he wasn't being bitten anymore and his steps seemed to almost toss them around.

He tried to walk a little more carefully, but found himself being amazed at the feeling of a tiny heart racing against his palm. Only for a muffled voice to ring out and startled him into freezing, his ears angling forward to listen. "Wait wait wait!" He could tell it was meant to be shouted really loud, but…he still didn't match that volume he was used to. He felt them move and needle claws grab his skin when he stopped, so he paused to listen in case something else was said.

When nothing came, only silence, he prodded for an explanation instead. "Don't you live there? I'll put you back, are you sure?" It didn't make any sense for them to be scared but not want to be in the ocean. The silent stillness wasn't very promising but he simply took a deep breath and waited this time. It might help to just give time to think.

Finally, it paid off. He could feel movement before the small voice carried to him again. "...I don't want to be in the ocean. Do whatever you want with me, just get rid of me already, but not the ocean…" The tone was faint and almost shaky…it must be stressful to say something like that.

Except he didn't hesitate to agree, though he was a bit regretful to. "Okay, I won't." He felt them stiffen, so he softly added, "I'll just...take you home. You're probably needing some water about now and my skin can't be helping that, not to mention it's really hot out today, huh? And it's not like there's any other water sources around...I don't even know what else you want if you don't want the ocean. Maybe you'll tell me once you're not so dried up?" Silence. He got a very long, drawn out silence. It made him stress all over again. Did he say the wrong thing?

There was a shift in weight before he heard a very soft, "...fine." He'd barely been able to hear it, but now he'd gotten permission. He nodded to himself and turned back around, leaving his trash bag for now. It was more important to help him than to clean the beach. While walking, it kinda felt like they were laying down now and he started to smile, only to feel pricks from claws. He hissed through his teeth but chose not to comment on it.

Rather, he took a deep breath and tried to be himself instead. "Alright, then let's go! I'll take and get a good look at you to make sure you're not injured and try to find a good place for you to stay!" It would be good to check. He wasn't sure what would happen if they dried out, but he doubted it was good. By the time he got to his truck though and went to open the door, they weren't moving anymore. He pulled his hands apart so he could grab the handle, only to see they were entirely limp. A lurch of fear sent cold down his veins and he immediately yanked the door open, jumping inside and reaching for his water canister. He watched them closely while carefully pouring a little bit of water over them, only to stop when he realized he'd run out of water to transport them.

He took a deep breath to calm down. It's fine. They were fine. The tiny fish man was fine. He could see the chest moving. Shaking his head, he decided to put them inside his water canister and set it in the cup holder. Now he just needed to remember not to drink it. With a smile, he shut the door and made his way back over to get the bag of trash he'd abandoned. On his way, he looked around to make sure there wasn't anyone else that needed help. Luckily there wasn't and the trip to his bag was uneventful, so he just collected some trash and dragged the bag away. He'd been out here cleaning the place…he didn't intend to leave what he'd already gathered. Though as he tossed it in the back, he wondered what he'd do with his new acquaintance.

Amidst his pondering he automatically got in his truck, following the smooth, autonomous actions of getting everything set up and started. He glanced to his water and stared, hand flexing as he remembered the feeling of holding such a small body. The cold touch of scales…the fear. He shuddered, his ears pinning back in discomfort. After a moment of staring again, he shifted around until he could drape his tail around the water while in the seat and nodded, satisfied. How long would he be stuck with them though? It wasn't like he could just keep them in cups all the time either…should he get a fishbowl? That seemed mean, the guy hadn't even said where they wanted to go, just away from the ocean. He studied their sleeping form for a moment. He'd probably get to talk to them for a long time, perhaps going on trips or simply being each other's company. Maybe they'd even become good friends.

——

The end

Part 1/2

[fourseasonsfigs]

Building Block Figs - Catching Light

Continuing on from the last Building Block Figs - Basking in the Sun and Building Block Figs - Beautiful Fight Scene in the Middle of the Lake, Part 1 and Part 2, we have this wonderful set.

These figs make me laugh - I love them so much! I don't know why, I just find them ridiculously charming.

This building block set is 1,544 pieces, measures 8.4 x 17.6 x 15.6 cm, and is rated 10 hours. I did indeed take all 10 hours to build this, if not a little bit more.

Here is the sales pic of what the finished product is supposed to look like:

Cute, isn't it? As usual, sellers do a much better job of setting the scene than I do. I will say, though, that I did make two little tweaks to the set to make it a bit more canon compliant. Can you spot them?

It'll be easier to tell as we get better pictures, so I'll get into it!

First, here's the box of doom bricks. Like the others, this came in a generic sales box, with a super handy little unsnapping tool, and a sticker with a black and white image of the set and QR code instructions.

Once again, you'll notice my line up of extra bricks from the previous sets hanging out in quasi-neat little rows. Originally I figured I'll leave them all out in case I ran short of any, but in reality, this set maker gives me extras of each color every time. Which is handy, as you will see for later posts, when I make some adjustments to the fig sets to make them a bit more canon compliant.

As you can see, there's a LOT of extra bricks left over. To be honest, there shouldn't be so many white bricks - those are from another set that I made a major change to. I'll post about that one tomorrow.

Here's the different order of assembly - I went ahead and started with the base and tree, as they suggest.

As you can see, this is a very beautiful terrain here. I did not remember this area being so green and flowery from the show - in fact, I remember it being kind of sandy and desolate, but my memory is pretty lousy, there might be a scattered flower or so. Let's check.

HUH. There is not a flower in sight, is there. Hmmm. Well, this is kind of gonna bother me. Maybe I should have looked up the inspiration before putting together the entire 10 hour plus set, huh! Well, the little flowers are easy enough to lever off.

Hmm, anyway, moving on (for now).

So a couple things here. First, as you can see, there are only two green colors. I mean, one normal color really - the light green here is actually a neon green. It's brighter than it looks here. It looks great here, don't get me wrong, but now all I can see is the very sandy terrain of that screenshot.

Second, I tried something a little different here. It actually takes a long time to sort all the individual bricks, so in an attempt to shave off some time, I decided to experiment with this set. As you can see, I dumped the entire bag out to the right and am just picking out individual pieces as I go.

You'll note it's now evening. This tree took a LONG time to build. I actually timed myself up to this point, and to get to this mostly-done state took 2 hours and 58 minutes. I was pushing hard, too, because I really, really wanted to get the whole tree done that evening before I went to bed. But there was no way. I was too tired and was hitting the point where it was less fun and more work. So, despite really not wanting to, I summoned my inner adult and called it a day here.

Fast forward through time to the next day, and I'm all bright eyed and ready to bust this tree out. And it's done! I like this tree a whole lot...I think they did a beautiful job modeling it. Imagine if they had the full Lego suite of colors and special pieces! It would be really something. I kind of like it this way though (although I would take more colors, I can't lie). It really has an old-school style charm.

You can see the grey rock there where Lao Wen will be propped up against. And of course, the cheerful greenery and pink and yellow flowers.

Feeling VERY accomplished, I put the tree aside, and moved on to A-Xu.

Yep, looks pretty good. I was a little surprised they picked the medium blue color instead of the dark blue color, considering how bright the dark blue color actually is. But this looks fine too.

I am going to proudly say that I did, in fact, knock this fig out in record time. I've put together two and a half A-Xu figs by now (the half is going to be explained tomorrow, I promise!), so this third one went like a breeze.

As you can see in the back, I couldn't help myself, I was starting to make a few little piles of the colors I was working on. The big messy pile of bricks was kind of a pain, and I had to keep resisting the urge to sort them out.

And here he is! All done. He has a very solemn no-expression on his little brick face, which is appropriate. Can you see how there's a little bit of a neck (nothing too saucy or anything), the thin white layer of his under-robe, and then the lighter blue layer? I love it. Very charming. We also have his black belt with a bit of the tails.

It was yet another evening by this time, but since I did manage to finish him before I went to bed, I did indeed sleep the sleep of the righteous.

I woke up even brighter eyed and with pep in my step, ready to rock this last fig out. 10 hour assembly time? I don't think so!

I had now made three Wen Kexing brick figures, so the fourth one was gonna be just as quick as A-Xu was, no doubt. I pulled up the instructions on my phone, and got ready to go. 95 steps for our battle-weary Valley Master, huh? Huh. That's kind of a lot. But considering A-Xu was 85, not too bad. The tree was 119, by the way.

As I looked at the picture, however, I noticed that they had Lao Wen's (virtually) omnipresent hair wispies here. Given that this red wedding costume is the one outfit where his hair is pulled back all the way, it kind of bugged me. Which is funny because I've never liked how he doesn't have the wispies with this hair style on the show. It's my least favorite look on him, which is too bad, because I did like how they at least mixed his hairstyles up some. In my defense, I feel like I'm right (so right!) about how much better he looks with the wispies with this hair style, because you could see it at the concert. And he looked spectacular.

Anyway. Warring between my extreme desire for him to have the wispies and the simple fact of it not being canon, I started to build.

I got the first big chunk done very quickly indeed. Many of these figs are done where you do a big piece, and then set it aside while you work separately on the next piece. This is where I was.

And that's where I stayed, for a long time. I built this piece three times. I had to completely disassemble the entire thing the first time I built it, because I was off on my brick count, and the second time I had to disassemble it down to the first third.

Part of the problem was the way the directions were. As you can see, they still have the first "set it aside" part showing up on the directions directly under the new piece. Unfortunately, all that red blended into each other when I rotated the image around, and it was very easy to accidentally think I needed more or less pieces than I actually did.

I went ahead and built it with the wispies, as directed...and then just couldn't do it. I disassembled half the head and re-built it again without them. I also think that this fig, just like Lao Wen, does not look as good without them, but canon is canon.

Unfortunately, it was so late and I was so tired by the time I finished him (and yet also pretty jubilant), that I forgot to take a pic of the finished fig! Yes, I literally finished this set late last night, despite my best intentions of finishing it up and then triumphantly posting about it on the same day. It did, in fact, take longer than the 10 hours build time.

It took a long time, in general. My finger tips have actually toughened up a bit, so they don't feel sore from snapping the bricks in place, but my neck isn't all that pleased with me from hunching over these various sets for so long. So, I've been taking a few more breaks to stretch and do other things.

But, I woke up early today, and very happily took this set's beauty pics in the clear light of the morning. I love it!

I love how this set all fits together. We have the tree growing over the edge of the base, and Lao Wen there leaning up against the rock. A-Xu is standing with his elegant posture, and their little brick hands are reaching out to each other. Cute cute cute!

Wow, this light is great. I clearly should get up early to take fig pics more often.

The tree looks great, I think (and not just because I spent hours building it!).

This is a good view of the rocks behind Lao Wen here, and his big ponytail (I do like this part of his hairstyle).

The green doesn't look so bad on the ground, I think. I'll pull off the yellow and pink flowers, and maybe make a brown patch on the corner closest to A-Xu. That'll keep it colorful but make it a bit more like the show.

A-Xu's hair looks great, as usual. You can also see how I removed the wispies on Lao Wen's hair. I'll get a close up later so you can see it better.

Shoot, not my best pic - can't really see any of the detail on A-Xu's glorious night-black hair.

There we go, now you can. Oops, I see I knocked a tiny piece out of kilter on the bottom of his hair, I'll have to fix that. But! Here you can see both changes I made from the instructions - the lack of wispies of course, and then I made Lao Wen's guan gold instead of white. This took a while too, because I didn't have enough yellow pieces. The only yellow I had from any of the sets was literally from the yellow flowers here and the few extra they gave me of it. I actually pulled a few yellow flowers off the base there and replaced them with green or pink, just because I needed them for his guan. I then also carefully checked to see what internal yellow bricks were covered up by the black of his hair, and replaced them with black so I could save the yellow ones for the parts that did show. I'm very happy with how it turned out! It looks just like the white one, except, you know, yellow.

I don't know why they didn't originally design it with yellow, given that it is gold on the show, and they had already included yellow bricks with this kit. Maybe they felt the white stood out more or something. Anyway, it was bothering me it was white, so I'm glad I was able to figure out a way to make it work.

Alright, we're back around! And a bit of a different angle here, so you can see the poses a little bit more clearly.

Alright, a true top-down pic here. May I just say one more time how much I like this tree! The detail in A-Xu's guan is really nice too.

The bottoms-up pics are always tough here with the bases. Not a flattering picture, sorry A-Xu!

A close up of our noble shixiong with his little hand outstretched...

...and our weary shidi. What a great set, I love it! I'm so delighted by it, I can't even tell you.

Alright! come back tomorrow, for the much hinted at next set. And the last one, for a while - I have to wait for the remaining sets to be sent to me.

(Come back tomorrow, she says, as she still has some assembly on the last fig to do! I'll wake up bright and early tomorrow, and hopefully finish up).

Material: Plastic bricks

Fig Count: 506

Scene Count: 35

Rating: They're actually both reaching for their light

[link to the Master Post Index]

[all-risejd]

Chapter 20: Tilted Dimensions 2

Another crossover with After Shine

From the outside, Tilted Dimensions didn’t look that much different from the other buildings on its block back in Tampa, Florida. Seeing the weathered blue sign, with black lettering, white accents around the letters, in Cincinnati, Ohio, however made Danika pause. The building looks exactly the same, from the mismatched brick that sat over the painted blue sign, to the large windows that opened the front to sunlight, and the white metal chairs and tables out front. She pulls her phone out and quickly texts Finn to let him know she was now running late, and would be picking up donuts. Looking around the cold city that was threatening snow, she tucked her scarf a bit tighter and hurried across the street.

Tommy was behind the bar, his usual barista uniform on, with his tried and true black beanie on his head, and a crooked smile on his face, “Ms. Danika.” He grinned, “Good to see you, Ms. Nessa beat you here.” He pointed her toward a corner booth, where Nessa was in fact sitting. Danika looks at her watch, it's barely ten in the morning, she assumes it's going to be another hour visit, so she sets her watch to time them. Tommy calls after her, “I’ll bring you a drink, and some pastries.”

“Thanks, Tommy.” She mutters back, already sliding into the booth across from Nessa. Danika has gifts for the slightly older woman, having started carrying them around since the last time they saw one another. She slid her messenger bag into the booth against the wall and shot Nessa a big smile, “What the fuck happened to your hair? How have you been? Tell me the drama.” She leans forward, elbows on the table, her eyebrows dancing.

-/-

Nessa looks up from her hot chocolate when Danika slides into the seat across from her, asking a million questions. She sips her drink and wipes the whip cream off her lip before answering strategically, “I wanted to match the colors of the group, I was standing out too much. I have been adapting… They know who my ex is, we have talked and I told Angie and Aalyah and it went well. We are now all just getting harassed by them to have children…” Nessa’s leg bounces up and down rapidly and she begins to chew on her nails again.

“I’m fairly sure Rey is terrified at the concept of us adding children to the melting pot at this moment…” Danika exhales, as Tommy approaches with her White Chocolate Mocha and what looks like a pile of cookies. Nessa immediately grabs one, when Tommy is close enough, as Danika continues to talk, “So, the ex, he must be in the Industry if you're worried about it.” Danika doesn’t phrase it like a question, knowing the answer to a point, Tommy settles both down and heads away, Danika sips her drink, smiling at the warmth.

“I’m not so worried about that, I'm processing that trauma and am never alone when in an arena or event… Yes he is in the company, not just the industry. I know they would never let anything happen. Hunter……. Well I have issues with him but he at leasts is investigating the allegations from others especially since I have now told him but ….. I would love to hit him with his sledgehammer right now.”

“I know where that is in the vault, if you’d like directions.” Danika grins warmly, “Met Scrap Daddy yet?”

Nessa smirks, trying to hide it behind another drink of her hot chocolate. “The Scrappiest of Daddies. Yes and apparently I earned his respect when I said I’d go for his job when he implied I wasn’t a real wrestler. Oh yeah I’m training heavy on it right now. We have had some incidents because of Jefe. And with what I just found out… if it gets out… I’m screwed”

“Ohhh, earned it. I just demanded it.” Danika’s smile is one of mischief, “Although I’m pretty sure either of us could competently do Scrap’s job… no one is a real wrestler in the beginning, that’s why it’s called pro-wrestling, you have to become a professional, and to do that you have to be given a chance, did you hook up with those girls I told you about? And Jefe incidents for you are probably about as fun as Angie incidents for me, and whatever you just found out we can compare to Dominik got arrested at Christmas and spent many nights in jail.” Danika said it all in one go, then realized Nessa probably would prefer it if she didn’t drop bombs and rapidly talk.

“Uh well I demanded more training from Hunter who gave in too easily and now I know why. Asuka, Zelina and Indi are currently training me as well as our lovely partners. Like you, I now have many marks on my neck to keep covered. Courtesy of mainly Luis and Dems. Dom leaves his marks below the collar. After we returned from a week off to help Dems I was all… marked up and had it covered but people saw before it was covered and Jefe made Zelina go off script and hold me down wiping off the makeup… DOMINIK MISSED CHRISTMAS!... Yeah that beats my thing, we don't even need to bring it up. Are you ok! How are the kids?” Nessa rapidly asks when she processes the last thing Danika said.

“We are talking about your ex in the company and the thing you got blindsided by, we aren’t cruising by that. However, for now, I’ll explain.” Danika grabs a cookie and bites into it savagely, “Angie called the real police to a kayfabe story.” Danika pauses to grab another cookie to brutalize as Nessa whispers bitch. “The whole household was fucking messy. Like - it was Jace and Angel’s first Christmas with us, and Dom was so upset he missed it, and like he got hurt, not badly, but bad enough.” Danika pauses, thinking again, “Fergal was amazing through it all, and Luis came to the rescue, we borrowed The Bella's cabin in Canada, and AJ is no longer even remotely associated with us, he got injured, and is out. Uh, oh - oh - Rey and Dom made up after everything, and Rey is maybe flirting too close to the sun with Liv.” Danika’s on her fourth cookie.

Nessa munches on the cookies like she is eating popcorn watching a telenovela and nodding along proudly when she hears about AJ’s injury and non association but chokes on the cookie hearing about Jefe and Liv. Tom appears and sets down a glass of water in front of Nessa and pats her back before walking off again. Danika waits for her to recover, before adding the juicy bit of information, “He touched the butt on live TV, Nes, the butt.” Danika’s pitch is scandalized and a bit worried. Nessa begins to giggle uncontrollably once she stops choking.Sobering up Danika offers, “They are good together, like… I hate to say it but they really do seem to find comfort in each other, and if it makes Jefe happy, it makes us happy. Aalyah is a bit, uh, grossed out sometimes, Dom I think is proud that Jefe’s still got it.”

“As gross as that is, I get it. Angie and Jefe are arguing he wants to disown Dom until he comes back but she isn’t having it. She actually said that all of the Judgement Day are now her kids and any kid by any of them are her grandchildren. We can’t go a day without being harassed about grandchildren.” Nessa jokes and looks out the windows nervously before yawning. “Sorry it’s late here. We just finished Backlash and I’m in Puerto Rico so we got that out of the way early.” Nessa shrugs and eats another cookie.

“It’s early for me,” Danika admits, “It’s January sixteenth, Jefe has pretty much adopted Fergie, Luis, and Dems.” Danika admits, “Angie keeps tabs on us through Vickie, uh, Vickie Guerrero, I’m not sure how close your Dom is with Vic or the Guerrero girls, la familia.” For a moment Danika is silent then, “Did you get to meet Luis’ family? In Puerto Rico? He hasn’t let me meet his familia, I’m meeting Kevin Nash instead, he’s basically his wrestling daddy, other than Scott Hall, who I met as a teenager, but can’t meet again…” Nessa winces hearing his name and shoves a whole cookie in her mouth to buy some time. “Oh shit, please tell me Kevin Nash is not your psycho ex!” Danika almost lunges over the table to grab at Nessa’s hands in worry. Nessa rapidly shakes her head and continues chewing on the cookie, crumbs falling on the table, Nessa fighting back a gag while trying to swallow the cookie.

Danika visibly relaxes, then her brain catches up, “Wait a moment, what issue have you got with Nash, he’s pretty daddy as far as I know, like his old school gimmick was Big Daddy Diesel, and let me tell you, he’s big, he’s daddy energy, and he looks like he is super cuddly.” Danika ticks the things off like a research report.

Nessa gags, sticking her tongue out and dry heaves at the thoughts Danika is putting in her head. She collects herself long enough to take a sip of water and gasps a few more times to get her breathing right again. “No Luis did not want us to meet his family yet….” Nessa just ignores the Kevin sized elephant in the room.

Danika is a patient person, with those she loves, honestly, but, “What's the Kevin Issue, it’s that or the ex. We learned last time we don’t get to leave once the door shuts until we talk about everything. Not that I want to leave you but with the hour limit I’d like to get the icky stuff out of the way and then start the fun, like the gifts I brought you…” She pouts a little bit.

Nessa gasps and holds out her hands making a grabby motion and pouts wanting the gifts right away.

“Good girls get gifts, that’s what Luis taught me, you're not being very good now are you.” Danika counters.

“Hey no domming without informed consent you aren't my Dom so knock it off… Please,” Nessa pouts harder.

Danika rolls her eyes, her Dominik and this Nessa are cut from the same baby girl cloth, seriously. “Fine.” She says evenly, “You can have one gift for one question.” A smirk lights up her face, “Whatever your issue with Nash is, the sooner you tell me the sooner we can figure it out, and I’ll even let you choose which gift you unwrap first.” It’s a slight manipulation and tiny powerplay, but Danika’s worried about Nessa. “And you still haven’t told me about the hair, like did you just do it or did you get permission… asking for a friend. .”

“Danika, while I appreciate a good bribe, I don’t appreciate manipulations. I have dealt with that too much. That being said. I just did it. Remember I have control over my style…” Nessa holds out a hand expectantly for one of her gifts since she answered a question.

“Sorry, I guess I’m used to leveraging things to get what I want, growing up the not-daughter daughter of Rey Myesterio does that to a girl, but… good on you for defending yourself. I forgot how your contract is massively different from mine,” Danika pauses, thinking, “Would you like the Damo, Dominik, Rhea, or Finn gift, ooooor the one I brought just for you?”

“Dominik gift please…” Nessa bats her eyelashes, her hand still outstretched.

“I wish you were in my world, you're precious and I’d keep you.” Danika turns to dig through the bag, producing a simple blue and gold wrapped square, she hands it off with a smile, waiting for Nessa to tear it open so she can explain the gift. Nessa gently unwraps it like she is trying to save the wrapper, but really she is trying to annoy Danika who pushed her buttons. Danika has never met another person who takes care in unwrapping to Angie-Mysterio levels, but apparently Nessa does, as someone who has spent many Christmas’ waiting, she just sighs and sits back, watching.

Nessa sees that Danika is not reacting the way she expected so she just pouts and finishes unwrapping it seeing a picture of Eddie and Dominik. “That was taken a month before Eddie died, it’s the last time they spent any time together. It was a Guerrero party, not that that’s important, but there is only one other copy of it in my world, and I had to get Vickie to make copies. My Dom didn’t have it, and I’m pretty sure your Dom doesn’t, so, if you ever wanna make him cry big tears… now you can.” She shrugs her shoulders. “Well if I want to make him cry bitch baby tears I can just tell him I am pregnant.” Nessa gingerly runs her finger over the photograph and sets it down on the table with care, far away from any beverage or melted chocolate.

“Does Dom not want children, or would he be so happy he’d cry? I feel like there is a joke in there I’m missing, somewhere.” Danika hums, already looking for Tommy to bring her another drink.

“Yes, before he decided to be an imbecile and dump me, we were trying for a baby. When I realized he wasn’t coming back I got an IUD. Now we are back together and with the others and Ma just keeps hounding us about when we are going to try again. But I’m like we are still learning each other, it’s not the right time and she is all like ‘two of you are well past the age of when you should have had children so get started ’blah blah blah’.” Nessa bemoans, plopping back in the booth and crossing her arms.

Tommy comes back, placing a cup of tea in front of Nessa who looks up and thanks him and takes a sip, happy it is the perfect temperature. He also settles another White Chocolate Mocha in front of Danika who blows him a kiss in thanks before gazing at Nessa, “I, uh, I’m going off birth control, I haven’t really talked to the others about it, but it makes me icky.”

“I have an appointment next month to get mine out. It is causing me pain, like, constantly. Though I am all for starting a family, but idk how the others besides Damian feels and maybe Dom. It is something we all agreed has to be agreed by all because big decisions are a group decision and that is one of the biggest decisions. I talked to Luis about it and he has talked to the others but they haven’t talked to me and I am waiting on that. Though I should tell you what Luis said to Angie when she was harassing them over the phone,” Nessa smiles, thinking that Danika forgot about the other issue.

“You can tell me what Luis said, but I still wanna know what your issues with Daddy Kevin are and the ex. Then I can tell you more of my current problems.” Danika offers, sliding a blood red gift toward Nessa, this one is the one that Danika had wrapped while thinking of Rhea, and Nessa.

“You are the most infuriating woman…” Nessa complains then continues, “I am paraphrasing because he said it in Spanish and you know how the translations go, he started with I then changed to we…” Nessa blushes and watches for Danika’s reaction before continuing, Danika to her credit only hums, curious. “We would love to give you grandchildren, as many as possible and that she would make a perfect grandma… I almost went to the bathroom to rip out the IUD myself at that point.”

“You are not the first person to call me infuriating, at this point I just count it as flirting.” Danika settles back and thinks about what Nessa said, then, “Angie is a good Abuela.” She offers diplomatically. “Now, about that thing with Daddy Diesel.” At this point Danika is just teasing her, a smile pulling on her lips, “Are you going to open the box or not.” She hums, and pushes the red wrapped gift at her again.

Nessa’s eye twitches but she grabs the gift and unwraps it normally seeing a shirt with Rhea Ripley before she was Rhea Ripley. The image of the young girl is one hundred percent Demi Bennet, with long blonde hair, and an innocent smile, the girl there hadn’t been chewed up by WWE yet, hadn’t found herself, and her power. Instead the young blonde beaming up at her was pure joy. The shirt was cropped just below Rhea’s trunks, with BENNET across the back shoulders. “That was Rhea’s first Merchandise ever made, like for the Indie Circuit, she had others made that were more popular, but we have to share it, because as far as I know it’s the only one in existence.”

Nessa squeals and hugs the shirt to her chest. “Oh my god I love it. I would wear it on Raw if I could, but I am going to wear it next time we go on a date. Oh I can’t wait to see her face!” Nessa plans and taps her feet excitedly under the table. She continues hugging it to her chest and takes a deep breath. “Hunter gave me such a good contract because he knows my father,” Nessa admits and continues, “They are like best friends and I was kind of ambushed after the show. The others don’t know I just freaked out and texted them I was going on a walk and probably to a coffee shop since I knew I needed to vent and calm down I’d probably find this place here since it is like the TARDIS and going where I need it to go.”

“If Hunter is close with your dad that limits who your dad could be - uh XPac? Shawn? Road Dog? Billy Gun? Oh, wait, fuck, Nash is your father!” Danika looked at her with wide eyes, grabbing a cookie for herself, “Jesus, fuck, Dios, do you exist in my world?” She wonders aloud, head tilted back thinking hard.

“Yeahhhh… Come to find out my Dad, the one that was abusive growing up knew and that was why he did it. Though he wouldn’t grant the Get… the divorce, the Rabbi had to force it by convening a rabbinical court and issuing a decree because even getting shunned he wouldn’t give her the Get. Until someone beat some sense into him literally…” Nessa’s eyes widen a realization coming to her but she continues, “Nash paid for everything, even my nursing school. I am just blindsided by this and don’t know how to go forward or even tell the others…” Nessa sips her tea.

“Your step-dad sounds like a fucking asshole, good on the Rabbi who saw the need though. Kevin is about as subtle as a brick, so I’m going to guess he just dropped that shit on you, with no preface. If your Luis has a relationship with Nash, go through him, Nash and Hall, uh, Scott Hall, were big influences in Luis’ persona as a wrestler, and he loves them both very much. Knowing that Nash is your father he could help facilitate you two meeting in a favorable way, probably not at his house, his wife is grieving a son, still.” Danika leaned into the table a bit more subdued.

“I think that is part of the reason why he is reaching out now. One he has learned about my past, things Mom didn’t tell him and he was worried when he saw the marks. And two as a way to heal himself and earn forgiveness for the slight he views that he did against me. He doesn’t want to lose his last child I guess and I can’t hold that against him… But why now, why not before, or when I turned 18… or even after the divorce.” Nessa’s eyes fill with tears and she sniffles, using her sleeve to wipe her nose then eyes.

Danika slides out of her side of the booth, and carefully joins Nessa, to hug her and help her clean her face off, “Kevin has his demons, all wrestlers do from his generation, and hell, our generation. I have a feeling Kevin kept his distance to protect you. It’s not easy to be in a wrestling family, I’m not blood, but the adoption made me a Nepo baby. There is a lot of like… negativity that comes with being one of their children, everyone deals with it differently. I made my own brand, and… oh, shit you don’t know.” Danika looks at her carefully, “I worked with Impact, first, then AEW, I still have a ghost contract with them, and now I’m signed to WWE. I was never not going to be in the business, Kevin might have thought he was giving you an out…” She offered, sadly.

“That's what I am afraid of. Hunter didn’t know when I first applied which is why it got ignored. But when Rey came with the idea and pictures he knew and was on board. I am a Nepo baby, and when - not if - it gets out. I’m realistic, it will get out eventually and it is going to be so bad.” Nessa taps the table with her finger, other things still on her mind. “Other things are bugging you or you wouldn’t be here either. Let's take a break from me please.”

Danika hums, “Fair enough, uh, so… the biggest thing I’m dealing with is the fact that Shelton Benjamin is an absolute piece of shit and did this interview with Logan Paul, I think I mentioned he’s one of my best friends, either way he tried to like steer this whole narrative about how Demi and Luis are abusing us, and like…” She exhales sharply, Nessa grabs her hand to lend support, “So, the thing is, Fergie has barely accepted who we are to one another, let alone admit that he’s happy with us, and Vero, uh, Fergie’s soon to be ex-wife, has been on the warpath lately, so… both of them are pushing these shitty narratives about our dynamics, and I want to pitch this idea to Hunter and Scrap Daddy about me and Damo both being with Finn…”

“Well yes do it, I love that so much. OH yeah Scrap Daddy told me and Luis to be more affectionate on camera even though I just like started and we are barely just now dating but ok no problem. He held me and touched the butt on TV like your Jefe with Liv. And that is so gross about Shelton Benjamin, did the interview air? How are you going to deal with that?”

“So far Logan is holding the interview from airing, he wants us to talk about it and do an interview with him before it airs, if it ever airs, he might end up cutting snippets out of it, we aren’t sure. As far as dealing with it, next time I see that bastard I’m going to throw ring dust in his eyes.” She grinned violently, “The only other thing I’m panicking about is Buddy and Aalyah’s marriage, which I’m sure they will want me to plan.” She exhales bothered.

“Wedding planning is hard love, you do so much for everyone you need a break from what I hear from you.” Nessa nudges Danika’s side and sips her drink again.

“You know while I agree with you, I’m the only one of us with a formal manager, TJ Wilson - he’s married to Nattie, pretty sure in every single universe.” Danika grabs her own drink and sips it, “I have a vacation planned, I’m going to Dems in a couple weeks, then she’s going on to Australia with Jace and Lainey.” Danika offers. Then studying Nessa for a moment, she leaned over the paper to snag a black wrapped box, that was larger than the other two, and passed it to Nessa, “This is for Damo.” She grabs another cookie.

Nessa rips the paper off like a little kid and laughs seeing it is a replica of the 1960’s batmobile and that it is an RC car. “Oh he is going to love this. So, the plan is to go back with these gifts like I spent the time getting these ready for them because I can’t sneak all this back in the hotel room for a later date” Nessa halfway seriously asks, trying to control herself from opening the box and playing with the car. Their time is limited.

“I think we can probably play with the car a little bit, I’ve been dying to. I bought Luis one in my world, and it’s wrapped to give to him as a surprise. I mean, you can trade bags with me, I fit them all in my messenger bag?” Danika offers, unsure.

“I didn’t bring a bag, I literally ran out of the arena.” Nessa looks at her apologetically.

“Well shit.” Danika mutters, then looks toward the counter, “Maybe Tommy can help?” The man does not appear when summoned, “Maybe he’s like BeetleGuise and you have to say his name like three times? Chant it backwards, write it in blood, promise your first born-” Before she can get that out, he appears disgruntled, holding out a large brown paper bag with Tilted Dimensions across the front, “That wasn’t so hard, now was it?” She sasses as she grabs it.

“Thank you Theta,” Nessa smiles at him and throws her arms up in success when he shushes her. “Take me with youuuuuu.” She whines and lays her head on the table as he walks away.

Danika snorts, hard. “Now about that ex?” She prompts, “I still have two more things for you.”

“It’s JD McDonough, we, uh, were together for a few years when we met at a live show I went to on a whim. As always it started out great but quickly went bad very bad. My saving grace was when he got signed to NXT in 2017 I refused to move with him because I found out I was pregnant and wanted to stay near my mom and with my job that had good benefits. That went about as well as you expect.” Nessa stares ahead, getting trapped in the memory, her hand resting on her stomach.

“I take it, the baby didn’t make it.” Danika’s voice is soft, “I lost a baby between the twins and Angel.” She offers, seriously, “It takes forever to heal, emotionally.” She adds, reflective, “And he’s in NXT in my world, actually semi-friendly with Fergal.”

Nessa comes back to the present with a hm before processing what Danika said. “Yeah, about a month after. I told him we were over, never told him about the baby and the distance helped. Dom, Dom really helped me with that, and the hospital mandated therapy. Sometimes it is still so raw but, I was, I am ready for the next chapter and to try with them. Finn, he was the most vocal in his defense when another woman spoke up, but I know Dom would never willingly associate with someone who is ok with that type of person. Finn apologized to me a few days after he found out who. The problem is JD has since been drafted to Raw with the rest of us. Which is why I am never alone.”

Danika tosses an arm around Nessa, snuggling into her, as she pushes the last two gifts at her, one is wrapped in some sort of Irish themed paper the other in deep purple. “I’m glad you found Dom. I’m glad you found your way back to Dom.” She amends, then, “I’m glad you found them, your Judgment Day.” Danika considers what Nessa said about Finn, before adding, “Fergie has changed so much in his time with us, I’m fairly sure he can’t stand the thought of AJ or JD anymore, but we haven’t had the chance to interact with JD, yet. I’m sure it won’t go well, you should talk to Hunter about him, I know it’s scary, but Hunter is one of the biggest protectors of the women's locker room, a part of me thinks it because of how dirty he treated Chyna towards the end, but I have no concrete proof.”

“I… I’m not exactly happy with him, but I think he knows and has a plan up his sleeve. We were in his office after the Zelina/Jefe incident and Damo brought it up and I kinda froze. Hunter then started sending a barrage of texts, some I assume to Nash, the rest to others. Now that I think about it the Usos and Roman have been lurking a lot as well as Ava and others in the locker room…” Nessa realizes as she speaks, “Ohhh he is laying a trap”

“Hunter finds his hands tied by the board a lot more than I think he wants them to be, but he’s clever, sneaky to a point, if he’s got a plan, then you have nothing to worry about. I don’t say this about many men, but you can trust him, and if you get a chance to know TJ, you can trust him too. The Bloodline tends to help me keep up with my kids on the road, not going to lie, Tio Roman is a fan favorite with my kids.”

“Roman is a sweetheart, so afraid of his cancer coming back is always up my ass for a checkup. And …. Fuck he knows about Nash!. Am I the last person to know…!” Nessa realizes when thinking about their past interactions. “He always asked about my dad and how my childhood was, I thought he was just curious. Sneaky fucker.”

“Roman Reigns is never just curious.” Danika snickers, “It’s good he has you, Nes.” Danika offers, with a smile, “Someone who can tell him and he trusts to keep it under wraps. I help him plan shit, from time to time. We sort of are angling for a tentative truce with them, so that’ll be fun kayfabe wise. As far as you being the last to know about your dad, I doubt it. Nash traveled with Kishi, uh Rikishi, Roman’s uncle, I’d imagine the Attitude Boys and Divas know, but the youngbloods and new kids probably don’t.”

“Well that makes sense.” Nessa comments and eats another cookie.

“Hey, not to one hundred degree change the topics, but you gotta open these and next time if you are more comfortable with your training I can teach you my finisher.” Danika smiles almost evilly.

“Oh I would love that… Please. I learned Zelina’s DDT. I can’t do the Riptide even if I tried.” Nessa agrees and opens the present clearly meant for Finn, inside is a lego set that both girls know he’s been looking for (he’d started looking in late 2018 and had yet to track it down, it is something he bemoans from time to time). The Old Trafford, Manchester United Stadium lego set in pristine condition in Nessa’s hands had to cost Danika a fortune, and if she was giving Nessa one, that meant Danika had found two. Nessa sits there shocked and in awe. “You didn’t have to do that, this is too much… shit.” Nessa forces out, guilt setting in that she didn’t bring anything for Danika, she was too in her feelings.

“From personal experience the RipTide is a bitch to take.” Danika for a moment looked traumatized, “I’m going to assume by your face that your Finn has also been after this.” Danika taps the box. “Hey, he really wants it, trust me. And I’m not trying to be mean, but judging by our previous discussion on job history, and money, I sort of… assumed that we could agree money isn’t an issue for me, and although this set is rather expensive, Finn in every world deserves it.” The way Danika says Finn’s name is twisted with love and a bit of bitter pain.

“Ok spill what is wrong with your Finn?” Nessa asks, hearing the twinge in Danika’s voice.

“My Fergie keeps running away. Like, we all told him how we felt about him - and it’s all of us, like Dom suggested we just hold him down and kiss him, but consent is sexy ok, so that obviously didn’t happen.” Danika frowned, “Vero really fucked his head up.” She settled on, “Or maybe all his previous relationships did, I don’t know. What I do know is he seems to think he is unlovable and broken, and just… bleah.” She whined, “Jefe keeps handing him Twizzlers like that will just make it all better, Dom likes those more than anything, but Finn keeps giving them to Dom and Liv - because apparently Finn likes red vines, and Dios, that was word vomit, oops.” Danika giggled awkwardly.

“My Dom likes them too, honestly they are a part of foreplay through aftercare with him.” Nessa smirks, enjoying the payback from earlier as Danika wrenches loudly, obviously bothered.

“Please never tell me what the Twizzlers do.” Danika dropped her forehead onto the table letting out an exasperated noise, “Ewwww. I’m never going to eat another Twizzler offered to me from Liv’s bra again.”

“Ohhh Twizzlers in a bra I’mma start doing that and eating them while I valet the matches!” Nessa exclaims, excited by the idea.

“Well they are never cold.” Danika offered, unbothered, still face down. “And you never know when you need a snack.” She adds, almost giggling, before raising up to look at Nessa again, “Open that one, it’s yours.” Nessa rips it open, tossing the paper behind her and seeing a small brown leather journal, “It’s a recipe book, I put some of everyones favorites in, and then some that I know other superstars like, since I do a bit of like a YouTube cooking channel, if you ever need to befriend Bianca, her favorite Japanese meal is in there.” Danika offers when Nessa doesn’t immediately say anything, “And you mentioned you liked to cook, I have uh, three of these, the journals come from Barnes and Noble…”

“Oh thank you, this is going to help so much!” Nessa starts flipping through the first couple pages and seeing annotations about who they are for and good times for the meals.

“I might have cornered Becky Lynch at some point to find out what Fergie’s favorite foods are, and I got Buddy and uh Bronson Reed - he’s a meatball, let me know when you’ve met him - to tell me normal Austrailian celebration dishes, and then I talked Zelina into giving me traditional Puerto Rican food, which was a whole issue because she hates me…” Danika offers, smiling softly.

“Well she can get over herself.” Nessa responds to the Zelina-comment.

“I get why she hates me, though.” Danika sighs, “She has this misconception that I’m appropriating culture.”

“How, you were literally adopted and raised in that… wow your Zelina had issues.”

“I don’t think she sees it as me being raised in the culture.” Danika shrugs, “I mean at some point we are going to have to talk about, especially with Creative pushing Edge toward re-starting the LWO, but… right now we sort of just avoid each other. I think she dislikes my relationship with Damian, too, but I don’t really get it, she isn’t throwing nearly as much heat behind the scenes at Demi who is publicly only dating a Latino, ahem Dominik, too.” Danika shrugs again, “My Zelina has a lot of issues, I’ll agree. I’m glad yours is better.”

“Mine is trying to teach me Spanish so I can speak it and not just understand it… but it isn’t sticking lol like I can’t pull the words from my brain to translate to spanish. But she is patient with that, not with training. She is kicking my ass but I am all the better for it.” Nessa bites into another cookie and continues talking while chewing to see Danika’s reaction.

“It is admittedly hard to learn a language the older you get. Picking up Japanese when I was seventeen was a bitch. Oh, did your Luis do Ring of Honor too? If so, he totally knows Japanese…” Danika smiles warmly, then adds, “I could suggest some tricks for picking up the Spanish so you're more fluent?” Danika thinks for a moment, “So, uh this next question is hopefully not going to be super disrespectful… So when I joined the Gutiérrez family I was questionably Southern Baptist, naturally I converted to Catholicisim, specifically the Americanized version of Roman Catholicism… with Nash as your father… like isn’t Judisim passed through the parents, like don’t both your parents have to be Jewish for you to be considered… I dunno, worthy? Are you still allowed to be Jewish?” The last little bit comes out in a rush, Danika likes knowing more about different religions in general, but her upbringing (in both households) has left her with a bit less time to study them.

“Oh it doesn’t matter who the father is, it's all to do with the mother. If the mother is Jewish then so is the child. Is the simplest way to describe it. Next time I can explain more since we have more things to cover right now” Nessa waves her hand dismissively.

Danika shoots her a relieved smile, glad that her lack of knowledge didn’t blunder their friendship, considering she’d already sort of been bad. “That’s good. I lowkey can’t wait to hear about you and Nash bonding.” Nessa looks at her warily,

“I don’t know about that. He had a lot of time to come forward after the divorce like I said. And 8 years after I turned 18. I don’t know how much bonding we can really do… Do you think when we have kids I can raise them Jewish at the very least teach them of their heritage. I know Dom, Luis and Finn are catholic and Rhea is Christian oh this is gonna be a problem isn’t it.” Nessa plops her head down on the table repeatedly, the thunking filling the small cafe.

“Uh, my Dems is Catholic coded, but - I don’t think you will have a problem.” Danika waves her off, “Let me see, when Dom and I had the twins, we did traditional familia names from his side of the family, but but he let me have them both baptized in the Catholic way and the Southern Baptist way, no offense to the Catholics, I’m not sure what throwing some Holy Water at an infant does, best to just dunk them completely under and wash the sins of the parents off early…” She mutters the last part, sounding a bit like Angie and Rey. Shaking her head she adds, “I don’t know how much you know about Nash’s son, the one he lost, but Tristian struggled with Alcoholism, during his sobriety journey, which… I might be off a bit but probably a lot of that after you were eighteen time, Nash was focused on getting his son sober, and the sobriety fucking killed him, like it was a seizure brought on by his body pushing back on the lack of alcohol.” Danika explains evenly, “Rey, my Rey, was so broken open, for him, we all prayed for Kev and his wife, Tamara.”

“So you mean to say I’ve lost both brothers to drugs and alcohol then, and I guess I get it, doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt. My whole world has been turned upside down, and what if this gets out… I’m supposed to have my first match soonish…..” Another look of realization crosses Nessa’s face, “Son of a Bitch”.

“Which son of a bitch are we cursing now, beebs?” Danika grabs for another cookie. “If it’s Tio Adam, er, Edge, then we can curse him and wish for a child to be named after him in the Jewish sense, not the Catholic sense.”

“No it's Cody’s ass, he knew and before his match with Finn came up to me and said that we, this new generation needs to stick together. He fucking knows and gave me his and his wifes number.” Nessa explains.

“Oh, I’d been meaning to ask if you’d met Cody. He trained me at the Nightmare Factory.” Danika beams for a moment, then, “Dusty knew Kev, so does Dustin - Cody’s older brother, they are pretty tight even with Dustin in AEW.” Danika offers, “So Cody probably thought you knew by the sounds of it. Him and Brandi are good people, you should know I’m biased because our kids are friends, but they both love wrestling, and both are very devoted to the children of past Wrestlers.”

Nessa sips her tea, “Well I think it is clear to him now I didn’t know, we, that being our lovely idiots jokes about my dad not being my dad and mom having some explaining to do.” Nessa sighs heavily. “I have to talk to Kevin don’t I?”

“Not to be that person, but yeah, you absolutely do. Nessa Nash has a hell of a ring to it. I mean, as far as ring names. It’s probably cooler than Danika Mysterio.” Danika offers, attempting to cheer her up, “And as far as having a parent in the business, Nash is probably one of the better ones. He got his life sorted, and together. He’s not… he’s not a bad man.” Danika offers, reassuringly, “If anything, he’s been misunderstood for a long time. It could frankly be worse, could you imagine being the love child of Chyna and Hunter? The Industry wouldn’t know how to handle that, just… trust the other legacies, they can guide you through how to be a legacy without being super Charolett about it, or like Cody about it where he’s obsessively in love with his father’s fame to the point he wants to finish his father’s story.” Danika thinks for a moment, “Maybe don’t trust Edge though, he likes stepping on legacies to get what he wants, other than recent stuff, just the whole fake-married-to-Vickie-Guerrero bit after Eddie’s death should be enough warning.” Danika devours her cookie with a sad look.

“Well I’ve not had a run in with him thankfully. I guess after Raw I’ll meet up with Kevin with one of the group, maybe Dom. I need someone who isn’t really close to him to be my support and the way you describe Luis and Kevin's relationship makes me worried Luis will try to push a bond. Dom would be squarely on my side that I know. But wouldn’t Luis be hurt if I didn't choose him? As for the other legacies, I think I will, we know Roman knows and already supports me… the bastard, and I guess I'll do that.”

“Dom is your best bet, Demi is a huge fan of Nash, and Fergie is friendly with him, they’ve worked together in the past.” Danika thinks about her question in regards to Luis, “I think Luis would ultimately understand, you just have to be open and explain it to him - you aren’t sure if you're ready to have a real relationship with Nash, and you don’t want Luis to be negatively impacted if something goes wrong between the pair of you. If Roman knows about your relationship to Nash you can bet the twins and Solo do too, so don’t let that catch you off guard, and probably Heyman as well.” Danika reminds.

“Well I know the twins know, they were dropping hints when I did their checkups before Backlash. I honestly think all the legacies know or figured it out…”

“They too are about as subtle as a brick to the face.” Danika hums. “No one really talks about this outside of the Industry but there are two classes of wrestlers, born wrestlers like the legacies who tell each other everything even if they don’t like each other and those who fought their way in. Through adoption I get the legacy flag, just like you get it through Nash. There is a division, and it sucks, no matter how hard you try to shake it off, but you're probably right. One legacy knows, and they all do, and their spouses.” Danika offers, sadly, “So, quick question, our worlds tend to be similar enough, how bad is it when Edge restarts the LWO, like is Rey heartbroken? Does Chavo Guerrero have shit to say? How does Dominik handle it?”

“Oh Jefe started it after Dom betrayed him, Dom is hurt and Edge is MIA since Wrestlemania. Chavo from what I hear is not happy with it either. And he has been in constant contact with Dom.” Nessa starts fiddling with the plate of cookies, unsure if she wants to grab another.

“I’m sorry, fucking what? Rey hated LWO when he was bullied into it the first time, why in the fucking world would he have restarted what he saw as a discrimination group against most wrestlers, that were by and large the answer to NWO without ever being able to handle the fucking…” Danika’s rant tapers off, and is replaced by a bit of giggling. “Oh god…” She trails off, “Chavo must be pissed in your world, he always felt like Eddie replaced him with Rey, and your Rey just fucking…” Danika’s laughter is getting louder and louder, sides shaking a bit, “That is… that is so… Oh I wish I could tell the others.” She finishes, giggling harder. Nessa can’t help it but starts giggling as well at how absurd it all is.

“I pray Jefe comes around, if he doesn’t it will just Kill Dom.” Nessa softly says out loud once the giggles die down.

“Dominik is a lot stronger than most people give him credit for, we both know that. My Dominik had to discover that his real father was Eddie, that Angie cheated on Rey, and that Angie blamed Rey for her infidelity, and that her hatred of one act of perceived kindness from Eddie has now caused her to regret Dominik… Your Rey, while a bastard, doesn’t sound like he’s taken it to that level, just yet. Even with him being worried about your marks, he’s still Jefe, still trying to protect, he just can’t understand yet.” Danika, sobering up from her giggles, admits, “Rey wants to restart the Filthy Animals, as a secondary stable to our Judgment Day, his own nod to Konnan.”

“I wish I had your Jefe,” Nessa groans, “I could tell him and not Angie that I am getting my IUD out.”

“Oh, Madre is gonna want them babies.” Danika teases.

“She is already harassing us about it, and Benito. Hunter dropped hints as well. LIke damn give us some time to figure things out please. I may have had sex with Dom but I don’t think we are back to that… yet…”

“When the time is right, the time is right.” Danika shrugs her shoulders, “Angie was livid when Dominik and I first got pregnant. She wanted us to get married. Not happening, we both agreed we wanted to marry for love, and now that we are a polycule like… marriage is hard.”

“Marriage is hard normally, I think it is hilarious we are talking about kids and not marriage, but something might come up in the future. You know, thank you for making me feel better, I feel more grounded. Who knows maybe next time I will be pregnant…” Nessa jokes, the wish clearly in her voice.

“I will do my solid best to bring Angel next time I see this place, so you can cuddle a half Dominik baby.” Danika promises. “And if you want to be pregnant, then do it, your career isn’t wrestling, you told me that yourself. With women like Maryse getting storylines while pregnant I’m sure you can too.” Danika adds, “In my AEW contract, and my WWE contract, I have a stipulation that guarantees if I am injured or otherwise unable to compete I get to be a manager or I get to be an assistant to the GM.” She flashes a predatory smile, “I worked my ass off to get those assurances.”

“That is a good idea, I think I am going to read over my contract again. Knowing Jefe he might have done something like that knowing him and Ma.” Nessa taps her chin.

“The caveat to that, for me anyways, is that I don’t get to have a creative say in my hair or clothing or my characterization.” Danika shrugs.

“Yet I have that for the most part. I’m just lucky I'm in a story with Luis and we are all actually together. Like last Monday in kayfabe, Benito called me a whore after hitting me with the kendo stick. Poor thing felt so bad after and then proceeded to harass me for nieces and nephews again.” Nessa hums thinking, before adding, “Apparently we are going for a love square between me, Dems, Dom and Damo. I don’t think that will work… Oh shit yeah we just blew past your Finn problems. Honestly you might just have to sit him down and go hey we love you like we love each other and just reiterate how much you love him and that he is worthy. It's like the negative you hear it enough you believe it but this time with positives” Nessa glances at the clock, frowning as she realizes that time has gotten away from them again and they have less than ten minutes until the hour is up.

“I wish I could say we hadn’t already thought about that in the case of Fergie.” Danika tracked Nessa’s gaze, and sighed, “Ten minute warning, huh, doesn’t Tommy normally-” Her sentence trailed off as the man himself reappeared from the back with new drinks for them both, a bag for Nessa, and two different delicately wrapped pastry boxes. “Hey, Sergeant Tom, while I’ve got you here,” Danika snagged his wrist, batting her lashes up at him, “Next time, instead of a kitchen back there, think we can have a wrestling ring?”

The man gave her an exasperated look, “Contrary to you're believes, Ms. Danika, this is not the Room of Requirement, from Harry Potter.” That made Danika snort, “However, there are things that… just like myself, will appear when they are needed.” He gave her a wink, before he looked to Nessa, “I hope you enjoyed your visit, Ms. Nessa.” With that he wiggled out of Danika’s grip and headed for the back.

“You know, I still don’t know if he’s the TARDIS or if this building is the TARDIS…” Danika mumbled under her breath, before sliding out of the bench seat, she’d slid into so she could hug Nessa, she stretched her arms above her head, before moving to lean against the opposite side of the booth, stretching again, popping her back and shoulders before rolling her neck just right, the crackling noises made her grin and hum contentedly before she slid into her side of the booth again, “So, now we have eight minutes.” She offers, looking at her watch, “I don’t think goodbyes are going to get any easier.”

"No, I don't think so. I wish we existed in the same universe so we didn't have to meet only when things go to shit. I think when I get back to the hotel I'll tell them as a group about Kev." Nessa looks at Danika sadly.

Danika tried to give her a reassuring smile, “I’m sure Kevin Nash won’t be the hurdle you think he is. I’ll talk with the others and figure out how to prove to Finn that we love him, and want him for more than just sex… although I imagine the sex is going to be delicious…” Danika trails off, clearly thinking about Finn, his abs, and the implications of getting him naked in her bed.

"OH THAT REMINDS ME!" Nessa startles the other woman with her shout, making Danika shrink away, her hands instinctively coming up to her ears, it’s the first time Nessa has seen any of the scars she assumed Danika had from her upbringing, frankly it's a different sort of unsettling with how Danika presents herself, charismatic and larger than life. Nessa blushes and continues this time quieter, "So they came back after Dom and I did the bing bing and of course Damo was pouty. But Dems said we both want her under us soon and Finn said all of us."

Danika relaxes and rolls her eyes, “Who wouldn’t want one of us in their beds, honestly. We are a whole meal… Did you just call sex bing bing?” A smile pulls at her lips, before she’s giggling again, “Bing bing… That is… you're my official favorite human.”

Nessa blushes harder at the praise and tries to defend herself,"it's less vulgar than the other words and .. well… shut up" Nessa tries to hide her face, even though the older of the two it’s clear she’s more modest and respectful about certain things.

Danika snickers hard, “Vulgar is a fun word,” Then adds, “I’m not sure what our idiots call it, but unless they are being romantic about it, I think we universally just call it fucking around. Not important, we are running out of time.” Danika pouts, “So, you are headed back to the hotel and are going to talk to your idiots about Nash - I’m going back to Ohio to talk convince Fergie that we really do love him, and then I’m going to squish Shelton Benjamin and Vero Rodriguez under my killer heels.” She wiggled her eyebrows elaborately, and pretended to squish the napkin on the table with her fist.

"Yes and I'll keep the boys from catching a case on JD as well. Now that I think about itIi have to add Kevin to that list…" Nessa realizes as Danika nods along empathetically - over protective father figures can be the worst, even if they are only doing what their hearts demand.

Tommy cleared his throat from behind the counter, “Not to rush you ladies, but…” He tapped the clock ticking on the counter, they had under three minutes.

“And yet you will.” Danika levels him with a rather unimpressed look, before sliding out of her side of the booth, grabbing her bag, and moving to help Nessa stack all of her gifts together so they can muscle them into the large bag Tommy had brought Nessa, settling the box of pastries on top of the gifts. “So… obviously, we needn’t try to find this place, it finds us.” She offers meekly. Tears sting at her eyes, she’s never been particularly good at goodbyes.

"Hey Tommy, will it find us for good stuff too, not just the bad?" Nessa asks, tears pricking her eyes as well, pulling Danika into a tight hug. Danika hugs back just as tightly, squishing her face into Nessa’s neck, the older girl taller than her this time.

Tommy smirks, “That is completely up to the pair of you, and what your hearts need.” He taps the clock again, the minute ticking down. “Go on now.” He offers a bit sternly.

"I'll go first since I got here first," Nessa offers walking to the door, sadly not wanting to leave her friend. Danika watches her push out, and disappear from the front view of the coffee shop, for all intents and purposes, Nessa is now lost to her until the universes collide again.

“Hey, Tommy, what happens if we…” Danika turns to find him gone, “For fucksake, someone someday is going to answer the question: what happens if we leave together.” She huffs, before slamming out the door herself, scarf kicking up around her shoulders.

-/- Nessa deflates as she steps onto the sidewalk and turns around, the coffee shop no longer there, in its place was a plain brick wall. The street is abandoned save for a few people walking the opposite way down the street. She is thankful the street is well lit and she can see the hotel just a block away. She checks her phone to see only one missed call and a text from each of her partners responding to her initial text asking for some time alone to walk. She sends a quick message to the group chat, “We need to talk about Hunter just told me, I’m almost back.” sending that message opened the floodgates and her phone blew up with messages asking if she was ok and what happened to make her run out of the arena. She hugs the strap of the bag closer to herself, careful to not crush the pastries that she is going to use to bribe the others, ducking her head a bit as she takes off walking.

-/-

A light dusting of snow has landed on the sidewalk as Danika presses back out into the crisp air. She cradles the pastries closer to her chest, before taking a few steps away from the ringing bell. She looks back, amused to see that Tilted Dimensions has vanished, in its place a stone gray painted building sat vacant with a For Sale sign tacked on the window. She can’t help the laugh that bubbles up from her lips as she makes her way back to the travel bus, darting across traffic, more than eager to meet Kevin Nash now. He might not have a daughter in this universe, but she and her kids could fill in some of the holes in his heart - if he’d let her. Her heart turned sad at the thought of Finn’s little broken gaze lately, shaking the thought from her head, Nessa was right, they (Luis, Demi, Dom, and her) had to fight for him, he was more than worth it.

-/-

Nessa enters the front lobby of the hotel and goes straight to the receptionist, a sheepish look on her face.

“Excuse me miss. I’m sorry but I lost my card to my room 512, booked under the name Martinez.” Nessa informs the young woman behind the counter. The young woman with the name tag Taylor, tosses her bright red hair behind her shoulder and giggles.

“Not the first wrestler to lose their card tonight. Here you go” She activates a new card and slides it over. Nessa thankfully grabs it and holds it in her hand, her other one still holding the box of pastries. She goes to the stairs wanting to delay as much as possible not wanting to have this conversation. Five minutes later she is in front of the hotel room she shares with her partners trying to ready herself for the fussing that is about to come and the answers she is about to give. She swipes the key card and enters the room, averting her gaze and closing the door behind her. There is a silence in the room, everyone waiting for Nessa’s lead. She heads over to the bed where Dominik is sitting next to Rhea, Finn and Damian sitting opposite them. Nessa sits beside dominik, resting the messenger bag in her lap, the box of pastries on top. Her gaze still staring at the brown carpet of the hotel.

Rhea clears her throat, deciding to break the silence, “We are glad you are safe. Your text earlier worried us. Now will you tell us what had you rushing out of the arena alone at night in an unfamiliar place where you can’t really speak the language?” Rhea softly chides, her worry showing through her voice and Nessa looks up, her hands trembling as she holds out the pastry box. Rhea reaches over Dominik and grabs the box, placing it on the bed beside her. Dominik grabbing Nessa’s hand, rubbing circles into the back of it. Nessa swallows thickly, the knot in her stomach reforming.

“Uh,... I… Uh. Hunter had Kevin in the office… He uh…” Nessa sighs, slumping against Dominik, struggling to find the words.

“Did you get fined?” Finn asks, leaning forward, resting his elbows on his knees. Nessa shakes her head. “No, uh Kevin needed to talk with me….. Um… I… The betting board was right….” Nessa manages to get out, hoping they catch on quickly.

“The betting…. OH… OH A Chroí i am so sorry.” Finn realizes first and slides off the bed getting to his knees in front of Nessa, resting his hands on her knees, squeezing them to try to offer some comfort.

“What, that you are secretly a…. Oh that isn’t what had the most tallys when we went in” Damian begins to joke, the realization making his heart break for Nessa. Seeing her in such turmoil and being unable to help making him feel so useless.

“He uh, Kevin… he is…” Nessa stutters, struggling more to tell her partners, people she loves than when she told Danika. With Danika it didn’t feel so real but to say it out loud now makes it all too real.

“Kevin is what, what about the betting board?” Dominik asks, clearly confused. “Dom” Rhea softly calls his name, her tone telling him to stop. Nessa takes a deep shaky breath and swallows again.

“Kevinnashismyfatherandidontknowhowtohandlethis” Nessa blurts out, staring at the wall behind Damian and squeezing Dominiks hand a little harder. Finn gently grabs Nessa’s face to have her look at him, his eyes scanning her face.

“Say that again but slower. We don’t know how to help you if we don’t know what is wrong.” Finn soothes, his accent helping ground Nessa who nods her head, his hands following the movements as they are resting on her cheeks.

“The locker room was right, my mother… had a relationship with Kevin Nash who is my father and I don’t know how to process this” Nessa sniffles. Finn uses his thumbs to wipe away the tears that escaped before standing up, pulling Nessa up momentarily and taking her spot on the bed and pulling her onto his lap. Her messenger bag placed back on her lap.

“First Nes, I think you should talk to your mother, explain what you were told and get her side. I’m sure she has a good …” Rhea begins to try to defend Nessa’s mother but Nessa interrupts her.

“She did, he was an abusive asshole to her and then to me up until she left him. Just my luck i fell into a similar situation before Dom.” Dominik squeezes her hand and gives her a soft smile when she glances over at him. She continues on, telling them what Kevin told her before she ran out of the arena. Nessa fiddles with the flap of the bag waiting on their reactions, glancing at their faces which are a mix of pity and understanding and curiosity. Damian who is still sitting opposite Nessa is the first to speak again.

“I still think it is a good idea to talk to your mother, she would have some good insight as to what you should do next and maybe why he just now told you at 26. I also think that you should talk to Kevin. By the sounds of it you ran out of the arena without hearing him out.” Damian offers his thoughts and grabs Nessa’s hand, his chest tightening at the betrayed look she is giving him.

“I know you are close to him and look up to him and can offer me insight to him as a person but he just dropped the bomb, no lead up, flipping everything I know about my life on its head. I need you on my side in this to help me, not to push what might help someone else.” Nessa explains, trying to pull her hand back from Damian but he won’t let go. He sighs and takes a moment to collect his thoughts before responding,

“I am on your side in this, we all are and want what is best for you. I think we can all agree that at least talking to him, hearing him out once you have had time to calm down and think it through yourself will help you decide how to go forward. I promise you I will not push you to something you don’t want. If you say no the topic is dropped. I’ll even offer this Mariposa, Dom is clearly your comfort, your person, your safe space. Take him when you talk to Kev.” Damian offers, pulling her hand to his mouth and placing a gentle kiss to her knuckles. Nessa lets out a sigh of relief,

“Thats what my friend Danika thought I should do. Get your insight on Kevin and take Dom when I talk to him. Oh she also helped me find some gifts for you guys, well for me and you.” Nessa takes both her hands back, wiping the snot from under her nose and flipping the flap of the bag over. She pulls out Rhea’s shirt first handing it to her. “This is a loan of sorts, I promised we would share this shirt with her, but she figured you’d appreciate seeing it again. She is a big fan of yours” Nessa winks at Rhea who takes the shirt so gingerly Nessa thinks Rhea is afraid to rip the shirt. Treating it like a delicate antique.

“Well when you see her next thank her for me. This is actually very sweet.” Rhea smiles, setting the shirt on the bed, all of them watching what Nessa will pull out next. She pulls out the replica batman car and hands it to Damian, Finn eyeing it with Jealousy.

“Thank you Mariposa, and thank Danika whoever she is. Also, please understand if you don’t want to talk to him that is your decision and I will support it.” Damian promises, setting the box on the bed beside him, keeping a hand on the box. Nessa sighs and rests her hands on top of the messenger bag and looks Damian in his eyes.

“Damian, I know you will support it on the surface, but deep down you would want me to talk to him and at least have some sort of relationship with him. I know that you see him as a type of father figure, at least in the industry. And that is ok Luis. But thank you for trying to push your feelings aside for this.” Nessa softly calls him out but her tone holds no malice, only understanding. Damian relaxes seeing Nessa isn’t upset with him just the situation. Nessa clears her throat and gets off of Finns lap and reaches into the bag again this time pulling out the lego set and handing it to Finn whose eyes light up.

“Oh this is way better than the batmobile thank you, i’ve been looking for this everywhere! You have to tell me how much this cost your friend so i can pay her back it must have cost a fortune.” Finn turns the box over in his hands, looking like a kid at christmas and glancing at Nessa.

“She said there will be no payback. Money is no issue for her and she wanted to do something nice for her friend by treating her partners. She is the only other person I know in a relationship like ours so she is really helping me navigate things.” Nessa explains, her hand in the bag, the picture in her gentle grip, knowing this next one will be bittersweet.

“Dom, this one I don’t know how she found it but she has connections and called in a favor with a distant family member.” Nessa explains pulling out the photo of him and Eddie and handing it to him. “She thought you should have it.” Dominik takes the picture in one hand, the other tracing around Eddies figure, tears welling up in his eyes before spilling over. The grief of missing him coming to the surface. Rhea wraps both arms around him, pulling him to her chest and running her fingers through his hair. “Eddie would be so proud of the man you have become.” Nessa sits back down this time next to Dominik, resting her head on his back, wrapping her arms around around them while they allow Dominik to cry, getting out his hurt and pain of missing is Tio Eddie.

“He would be so mad at how I am treating my dad” Dominik sniffles and Nessa scoffs as does Damian.

“He would be pissed at what Oscar has done to you and Nes. Would have whooped his ass over it actually.” Damian points out, lightly tapping Dominiks foot with his own. “He also would have dragged you back to Nessa by your ear and pulled both of you to a chapel to get married.”

“I don’t know how he would have taken this” Dominik gestures between all of them and Nessa giggles. “A little of oscar, a little of pride and I think he would have accepted us like your mom did” The others making noises of agreement. Bringing up Angie brought another thought to her head that she tables for later, knowing this moment is not the time to bring it up.

“Look, it’s late and we have had a very taxing day and we have to catch a flight super early tomorrow to be in Florida so we can stay at Dems before Raw. So lets go to bed. Things will be better in the morning after we sleep.” Damian suggests, parroting something his mother told him throughout his childhood that rarely failed. No one disagrees, but no one makes a move from where they are sitting, Dominik still sandwiched between Rhea and Nessa, holding the picture of him and Eddie. Finn caressing the box of Legos and Damian looking at the four of them with a mixture of adoration and annoyance, yet again he is going to have to be the adult.

“Get ready for bed, Now” He orders, putting more timbre in his voice which gets the others moving, scattering around the room like cockroaches, grumbling about him Domming them until he clears his throat and they continue in silence not wanting to earn a punishment that night.

[nausikaaa]

Books I Read In 2023, Part One

In January I decided I wanted to track my reading, as I usually don't really have a sense of how much I read per month or year. I don't like things like Goodreads, so I just jotted down the books I read and what I thought of them in my notes app. Now that we're halfway through the year, I thought I might share what I've read, and then in December I can add part 2. So, without further ado,

January

The Girl From The Sea by Molly Knox Ostertag. 3 stars, a bit slow but generally sweet and fun.

Jackalope Wives And Other Stories by T Kingfisher. 5 stars, every story slapped. would highly recommend if you like dark fairytales with a sense of humour.

February

started Helen Of Troy by Margaret George. I still haven't finished it (she is LONG) but i'm really enjoying it!

I Was Born For This by Alice Oseman. 4.5 stars, it was entertaining and emotional like all of Alice Oseman's books but i have to deduct a half a star for the main character (who is from the south) briefly assuming with no basis that being from north = transphobic and the narrative treating this as a rational assumption and not super bigoted and classist, like what the hell was that about? also via this interaction Alice Oseman managed to find yet another way to mention Durham in her books but this time i couldn't even go "yay i'm from there!" because now have this sense that she thinks i'm predisposed to transphobia because of where i'm from. i cannot stress this enough: what the fuck.

The Prince And The Dressmaker by Jen Wang. 5 stars, so heartwarming and i loved the art! I'm trying to get one of my friends to read it because I just know he'll relate.

March

The Lives Of The Saints by Leigh Bardugo. 3 stars, not really my jam but it adds another layer to her other books, which I really enjoy.

Fun Home by Alison Bechdel. 3 stars, made my head hurt at times because it's kinda convoluted, but still super interesting. the musical is great too. and before you mention it, yes, i am reading Dykes To Watch Out For, but it's not on the list because I just started it, and I will probably read the bulk of it and finish it in July so it will fall under there.

April

Lies We Sing To The Sea by Sarah Underwood. 3.5 stars, i'll be honest, i read this out of morbid curiosity and spite. it was a pretty average for a YA book really, not worth all the drama it stirred up in the classics community, but the end surprised me so it gets an extra half star.

A Fatal Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum: Murder In Ancient Rome by Emma Southon. 4 stars, really interesting and quite funny at times but i just don't really like the author's vibe. she's weirdly defensive of Caligula, just as she was in her book on Agrippina that i read last year. like yeah people make fun of him and exaggerate stories about him but he literally killed people, maybe he deserves it.

May

Messalina: A Story Of Empire, Slander And Adultery by Honor Cargill-Martin. 5 stars, super interesting and engaging, i never wanted to put it down! Messalina really did just girlboss too close to the sun.

I travelled this month so didn't have time for any other books, but I bought my own weight in them and will try to work through them.

June

Rain Hare by Anna Barker. 4 stars, a collection of short stories so a mixed bag. I really liked most of them, some even made me cry (to be precise, How Do I Feel About Lentils?, which does an excellent job of blending past and present to help the reader get into the confused mind of the narrator, who has Alzheimer's, and Tunny, wherein the twist hit me like a sack of bricks and all I could do was break down) but there was just one i didn't really like (Sea Glass, i just don't really vibe with the mentally ill narrator dying at the end and this being presented as what she wanted.)

Through The Woods by Emily Carroll. 3.5 stars, good horror, the art was great and the stories interesting, but they all felt like they ended just a bit too soon and therefore lost some of their impact.

Our Wives Under The Sea by Julia Armfield. 6 stars, yes, i'm straight up giving this 6 out of 5 stars because it was so so good! i devoured it in one day flat and loved it. the horror was atmospheric and gripping, the romance made my chest ache, and the ending absolutely devastated me, but in a good way.

so yeah, hopefully i can continue to get through my massive TBR pile in the coming months! and if you've read any of these books, please let me know what you think, I would love to talk about them!!

[lilsweetruler]

Giacomo x Reader |The Friendship| Pt.1

[Some Background- This Reader is gonna be portrayed as an AFAB, and this entire story takes place after the whole Team Star Arc (Lol TSA) Anyway there might be some spoilers, but whatever. enjoy!]

|The Friendship-SFW|

You fell in love with him at first sight but knew that you couldn't ask him out due to having to fight. Oh, but now we're done fighting, right? No, we have nothing in common, golly will he even like me back as a friend. You know what? I became a straight champion of Paldea, I can at least talk to him.

Despite the stereotype of most teenaged boys being messy with their surroundings, Giacomo kept his base spick and span. The Gate stood tall and was probably recently cleaned, the big bell even looked shinier. 'Okay' the last affirmation you needed before ringing the bell.

"RRR-ING-A-LING! Hey who's at the gate? Wait, Is that Champion Y/n? O-hoh sh*t. Come on in!"

*oh sh*t? why are they worried? crap. am I that daunting?* thinking to yourself for too long at a time can prove to be dangerous, for example the gate's been open for at least a minute and every grunt is staring at you.

"Howdy." you stated with a quiver in your voice. 

There he was, as confident and busy as ever, with laptop in hand Giacomo approached. You can't read his expressions too well but you're confident in knowing that he was quite surprised by your dropping in.

"And What to I owe the pleasure in meeting with the sole person, responsible for all the ass-whooping?" he delightfully chuckled at his version of your introduction. 

*CRAP, All the grunts are here,  I don't wanna look like a damn fool in front of all these people* And you did it again, you zoned-out and went through all the possibilities of embarrassment, and he noticed.

"Suddenly not a talker? OK, how's about we talk in my tent." Giacomo was always the problem solver, thank Arceus. You nodded, and off you both went towards the head tent. 

The dread dwelled into your stomach, it's as if you got called to Director Clavell's office, but something was different. The weather was quite perfect, mid 70's, slight breeze, and some cloud coverage. But Most importantly you were going to spend some time alone with Giacomo, away from all those grunts. 

The walk was nice, but awkwardly silent, then he boomed;

"Alrighty, M'Lady we have *Arrived*" He attempted to say this in the fanciest way possibly whilst holding the flaps to the tent open. You couldn't help but chuckle a bit under your breath, but heard and was glad you're not in a terrible mood, as the sudden arrival did worry him.

Now, this was no ordinary tent it was quite spacious. It was even decorated with 2 sleeping bags, a desk, 2 chairs, a mini fridge, and an extension cord. You both sat down and kind of just stared at each other in silence after a quick hello. You broke the silence, stuttering and still very nervous.

"I know the last time I saw you it wasn't on the best of terms..."

"Put nicely. *heh*"

"*hah* .. Yeah, anyway I was hoping that maybe we could be-"

"OH THANK ARCEUS!" was the statement you were interrupted by

Now confused you gave Giacomo a look to explain himself. Unexpectedly he starts a short burst of laughter. Finally finishing, while still leaving you confused, Giacomo began to calm down and begin speaking.

"I honestly thought you came back for another round of battling, I got so nervous because I heard about the fight between you and Nemona." He made a face that could only be described as honest humility. He resumed;

"I'm assuming, but i figure you came back because you rather be friends, then just know me as the guy you beat up a while back"

"That's exactly what I planned to do. Man, I was so worried about you hating me and junk." you relaxed, finally telling him the truth. 

Now, how the hell were you gonna ask him out. YOU JUST BECAME FRIENDS. A moment of clarity hit you like a brick, you needed to slow tf down. Giacomo switched, now he looks nervous again, but only for a second does he wear that emotion. Back to a relatively normal expression, he proposed something; 

"Y'know if you wanted to hang out you could've asked sooner, but if you wanna go to Medali for some grub I wouldn't be to opposed to it" 

*Giacomo, stop reading my damn mind. But holy sh*t thank you*

"Of Course!" you piped up, a little too eager but its ok.

~*"Great, then its a date!"*~  

You got his number and more info for the date, then made up an excuse how your mom texted you and that you had to go home to help her. Walking away from that tent was chipping away at you with every step that you took.

Instead of actually going home you went and bought some clothes, for this "friend" date, nothing too fancy, yet nothing too casual. This is it, you are ready. 

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

This is my first story hope ya'll like it and i look forward to writing more.

[little-corritrice]

*Oliver ~ Crash

Sitting at the desk, I groaned as I still had 20 minutes left. I decided to text Oliver to tell him I'll be running late. 'Hey, bubs. I might run late, so make sure to eat dinner.' I sent with a heart. It was almost midnight, so I was surprised when he replied instantly. 'Aww, I wanted to cuddle early. But okay, I'll leave some dinner in the oven for you.' He replied and I smiled. I sent a heart, and turned my phone off. I started closing down everything, and walked out of my office, locking it. I hated working late sometimes. The night really gives me the creeps, especially driving. But I had to. I got in the car, and locked the doors. I turned the car on, and started the 40 minute drive home. I had the music on, but it was low and the rain pattered softly onto the windshield.

Being in a crash was always scary, even if it was a minor hit. So, when a drunk driver ran the red light, they plowed into me, sending my car flying to the right, and landing on the roof. I groaned as everything hurt. I looked down, seeing a big piece of glass lodged into my stomach area, and a deep cut was on my forehead. I took in everything, and needed to start moving. I was upside down, and my legs were trapped. I started trying to move them, but nothing helped. I finally got them unstuck, so I unbuckled my seatbelt. I fell onto the floor, groaning as the broken glass poked my back. I smelt the gas, and knew I had to get away. The front of the car was smoking really bad, blocking my vision from anything. I was slowly seeing dots come across my vision, and my ears started ringing. I don't know when, but I lost consciousness.

Oliver's P.O.V ~

Sitting in bed, it was probably already 2 in the morning. I got up, going to the window. y/n hasn't shown up yet, and I was getting really worried. I decided to call her again, and this time, I got an answer. "y/n, thank god. Are you okay? Whe-" I started, but this person cut me off. "Sir, I am sorry to say this, but she has been in an accident. She is at XXX hospital." They said, and my heart sunk. "I'll be there shortly." I said, hanging up. I immediately dashed out of the room, running downstairs and grabbing the car keys and my wallet. I rushed to the car, immediately driving to the hospital. My mind raced with worry as I didn't know what was wrong with y/n. I pulled into the hospital, parking and running inside. The nurse looked up at me, giving me a sad smile. "She's over here, Mr. Phelps." She said, guiding me to a room.

She explained to me that y/n's surgery was a success and that she will be fine. I let out a breath as she left, and I stood outside the door. I took a deep breath, trying to clear my mind. I walked into the room, and froze as I saw her. Bruises, cuts, and bandages covering her entire body. All I could do was take in it all before I let a sob escape as I went over to her bed, sitting down next to it. I moved a piece of hair from her forehead, and gave her cheek a kiss. I grabbed her hand softly, giving it a small kiss. I was focused completely on her, and nothing mattered more than her in this moment. Her breathing wasn't even, and I tried to just focus on the fact she was breathing. I rested my head against her hand, silently praying that she would be fine.

~~~

I slowly came to, my eyes fluttering open slightly. It felt like my entire body was a bag of bricks, and I couldn't move. I focused on everything, then turned my attention to the person holding my hand. I sighed as I saw Oliver, and I gave his hand a squeeze. He shot up, looking franticly at me. "H-hi." I cracked out, my throat hurting. "y/n!?" He exclaimed, standing up. His hands came to my face, and I smiled slightly. "Oh, y/n. I was so scared." He cried. I frowned and brought him into a hug. "I...I-I'm sorry." I said, my voice breaking slightly. "No, no. I'm sorry, I'm not the one laying here." He said, kissing my cheek. I gave him a small smile, and patted the bed. "y/n, I don't wan-" He said, but I grabbed his arm, and pulled him down. He made sure to stop himself, so he was hovering over me, not touching me. I frowned, and he sighed.

He helped me scoot over, and climbed under the covers with me, bringing me lightly into his arms. I snuggled as close as I could, despite the pain. I sighed out, relaxing into him. He rubbed my back softly, and played with my hand. "I was so worried when you weren't home yet. Then when I called you, it wasn't you, but instead a nurse telling me you had gotten into a crash." He said sadly, his voice dropping out at the end. "They didn't tell me anything, and I was so scared I was going to lose you." He whispered, squeezing my hand lightly. "It's gonna take a lot more than this to get rid of me, Ollie." I joked, and he chuckled. I smiled softly, tracing shapes on his chest. "Your probably tired, so let's go to sleep." He said, looking at the clock that read '2:54am.' I nodded, pulling the covers up more. "Night, Ollie." I whispered, giving his cheek a kiss. "Goodnight, flower." He whispered back, kissing my head.

[queenii-llama]

hi! feel free to ignore if it's too personal, but i saw you post about ozempic and was wondering about ur experience with it?

Hi🙊 no problem! I just started it a little over a week ago so I've only done 2 doses so far, but I have lost like 3lbs! :D which I know doesn't sound like much but it's huge for me, since I've struggled with weight forever.😭 I won't be able to see how it's impacting my A1c for while, so I can't really say anything for that yet. I do feel like it's helping though🙏

As for side effects💀

I've had pretty consistent upset stomach/nausea all week, I got a low blood sugar one day (although it was a busy day, so I also didn't eat/drink as much), and for a couple days I had pretty bad trapped gas, sulfur burps and constipation (sorry if tmi 😅✌️)

Everyone's always just like "it works so well, I love it!!!!" And like, again, I DO feel like it's helping, I just wish they would've been more open about the side effects, bc they hit like a bag of bricks for me💀😅 but everyone reacts differently to meds so maybe others aren't experiencing it like I am. 😅

All things considered, I am going to keep taking it bc i think it's helping and it's worth it personally✌️

[frayazicat]

guys, i need help

i'll be turning 20 in a few hours and i'm already feeling the responsibility of being 2 all over again hitting me like a bag of bricks and i am NOT READY. it's CHAOS over here, i need help!

we're losing the southeastern barricade to it! please, if you're out there, SEND REINFORCEMENTS!

SEND REINFORCEME - ARGGGHHHhhhh-!

*static*

[destructive-ilya]

long ass messy explaining of today:

well he hit/choked my mom for just trying get our stuff to leave like he had a tantrum we do for leaving a light in our room on at night w us in it and didn’t like taht she barked AT HIS SCREAMING then because he got arrested when he came back (me and dog locked out could remove our stuff had to wait until officers came to like help/oversee) he screamed get out off property then started throwing rocks and bricks at me and nova , keep in mind busy city suburb she has no collar or leash atm (inside and also all of our stuff) so the only safe place is in gate until we can all leave together(either to take her seprate but safe which is why from 9/10am-2pm i was trying to find smth) if she was out that gate she’d be gone. his sister JUST lost a dog in a car accident at same time as he was trying to force open gate while i begged not to shes get out and officers and my mom onw that second to get our stuff and remove us someone else walking by had a dog get out of their leash and he was trying help them “cause i just lost a dog this way” EXACT SAME SECOND

then he like ran off, at the throwing bricks point called 911 (cause i was supposed to anyway so we could remove stuff ) when i was on phone i gave wrong street twice in the panic so it took forever at this point i’m at 2% then officers come plus my mom with water (have had none except the two i asked some guys behind their gate for eternally grateful) and guy has disappeared (hiding out friends place hoping we just leave (everything we own?)) my mom calls him and officers talk to him he says half hour doesn’t get there for a full one and while waiting trying to figure out what to do for nova that’s best for her and maybe we could see again, they decide we could put her in a car and take to station with us u til we could get a shelter, then he shows up and chucks like only a couple things out and when officers walk through HE JUST LIES saying all of ours is his. upwards of thousand dollar worth of food maybe more considering spices (he had border nothing except what we’d given before we even went just cause he had nothing) my toiletries?? a tub of irreplaceable items , photos of my papa who died, birthday card, pictures sent to me, art and drawings given to me/done in treatment, my mom’s computer, a water bottle, a sport bag with my stuffie in it, and some of my clothes and some other things cooking supplies, my dogs food what? for his cat? (he doesn’t deserve that cat, absolutely love not fault on)

and he can do that, they knew he was lying but it’s his residence and it’s like there isn’t anything to do besides sue, i wanted my things back. had to have officer go back for a back pack cause it had my wallet and a cash app card w my name and my mothers meds so i mean he gave that over eventually , and then with like a bunch of stuff just thrown in his back yard we needed to like figure out what had what’s gone and what throw away cause can’t bring that much, and as going throw officers are like we don’t want to stand rushing over you while you go through causing forgetting things, so just call 911 when your done and we’ll come escort you and dog then, they leave, maybe 5 or 6:30, phone is dead now, got rid kf two thirds then he did come out while sorting for his garbage , like yeah we’re in way but it’s almost 8 we were calling that second and finishing up, he’s screaming off property and shit talking again, we were where we were supposed to be i said i’d just deal with his trash if it was so heinous n he didn’t want us touching. he wasn’t supposed tp b there til we had left . so we wait for officers it gets dark and cold and drizzly 5hrs go by nothing i’m just watching creepyass bugs on pavement after i magiver a leashe waist harness thing for her anyway something happend and all cars were redirected no one came until 2/3 am and they were SHITTY mostly mom talked to upfront , nova had been laying falling aslee but she did bark at them cause ya know middle of night she has no food no sleep watched some shit w all of us taday, and they’re like no. and can’t at night anyway no resources too late. so now we’re back in old apt w border nothing comparitive go 24hrs ago just until morning and it’s 4am and i STILL HAVENT SLEPT

[arlecchno]

NEL IS MY BABY I LOVE HIM - scratch / block code is actually like the only “coding language” i know because im too lazy to learn anything else LOL (im gonna try to learn renpy someday for part 2 of nels game though … anything for my silly little alien boi) tbh , scratch isnt too difficult but its TEDIOUS AS HELL 😭 it takes forever for me to make the dumb textbox transitions because i have to keep scrolling up n down , even with copy paste i still have to edit and make sure the timings are correct its such hell lmao

the little emote is basically just a glorified version of me lol (because the laws of physics wouldnt permit me to have a cool hair style)

i own the jacket irl its absolutely sick

LMAO i honestly kinda wish i could relate to the issue that people find me scary , i feel like my life would be a lot easier if i was intimidating to people , because i actually most of the time do have murder / violence on my mind - but noooo im small and squishy LOL

damn ive heard of those kinds of windows , yk those memes where people go onto their balcony / look out their window with their phones and just see like a brick wall LOL . my balcony gets a really nice view of the city sunrise i think , even though ive only been up to see it once or twice

BOOM >:D

i think the silliest thing i own is a ziplock bag from 6th grade that is full of cutouts from my friends mathbook , for example:

for the question … top 5 favorite genshin characters ? and if you want you can explain why but its not required (also if you play on genshin NA servers , wanna add eachother ? i guess this counts as two questions so feel free to shoot two back at me if ya want lol)

wishing you the best on asphodelus !!

- jellyfish

i can absolutely agree that scratch is such a pain in the ass LMAO, it always takes up my time whenever i did it in computing class a few years back

the blonde highlights are an absolute hit for me bro... and that's the xiao jacket, right? (hope i'm not mistaken because i feel like i've seen those around twitter)

AND YES THOSE MEMES IS EXACTLY MY WINDOW VIEW OMG whenever i'm feeling like looking out the window all i see is a brick wall with my neighbour's unit greeting me, and suddenly my day gets so much worse /hj

and those sunrise pics are bomb!!! i feel like if i had a sunrise view i'd be up early every single day to watch it and take cute pictures (i'm literally up before 6 every day, unwillingly)

a ziplock bag full of cutouts...? from 6th grade...? damn looking at it made me realize that 6th grade was so long ago and that we'd do a lot of silly stuff at that age 😭 makes me remind of those times when i was so energetic lmao now i can't even go up a flight of stairs without complaining

i think i'd have to make a separate top 5 list for the genshin characters because i don't think i could combine both genders into one list 😔 i'm too indecisive for that

top 5 genshin men; kuni, kazuha, cyno, dainsleif and alhaitham!! kuni is pretty self-explanatory, but as for kazuha and cyno.... i've been in love ever since they first came out (for cyno i've been waiting since like late 2020 LMAO and for kazuha i first saw him in the beta leaks and vowed to save up for him ever since then) i've also pretty much been in love with dainsleif ever since his first appearance in the archon quest (was it in 1.5??? i'm not entirely sure) and for alhaitham,, well his very blunt personality (and also appearance) have intrigued me 😞 i am apart of the alhaitham fanclub now

top 5 genshin women; yelan, shenhe, yoimiya, yae miko and ei!!! i love yelan and shenhe the most tho, they're my loves and i'm just really in love with their designs 🫶🫶

it's also cool how i have most of them (except for alhaitham, dainsleif and... kuni, unfortunately). i'll most definitely pull for alhaitham soon and hopefully luck is with me hahaha,, i quite literally only have less than 10 pulls right now

and yes i do play on na!!! i'm not really online much because there's not much to do right now but yes we could add eachother!!

as for a question for you... how many 5* do you currently have in genshin? and who do you plan on pulling for next?

thank you!!! asphodelus is going pretty well for me i am really looking forward to this new series

and thank you once again for talking with me jellyfish hehe hope you're having a great day today!! :D

[f1nalboys]

*deep breath* Okay OKAY SO...polyghostface ofc but Im feeling f l u f f y so maybe something where Billy, Stu, and F! Or GN!reader are all pining for each other? Like their inner thoughts and maybe realizing oh shit Im in love with two people god theyre both so perfect for me fuck. And feelings come out one day hanging in stu's room? Some smut if you feel like it, but if not the just that!

couldn't find a good point to get in some smut so i apologize BUT i really laid the fluff on there so i hope that makes up for it!!!

Poly!Ghostface x GN!Reader

WORD COUNT: 1593

WARNINGS: fluff, cursing, lowkey domestic poly ghostface, friends to lovers

Surprisingly, it was Billy who realized his feelings for the two of you first. He and Stu had been together for a few months at this point, exclusive but nothing official. You, on the other hand, were just a friend. A really close, cool, funny, hot, platonic friend. His feelings, something he tended to just shove down until a better moment to handle them (which happened to be never) hit him like a bag of bricks 2 months, 1 week, 6 days, and 4 hours ago.

He still isn’t sure why that was when he realized his feelings, either. Thinking back on it, Billy clearly had a crush on you long before then, but it took this miniscule and almost forgettable moment to realize it. Stu was supposed to be the dumb one, not him.

You and he were in his living room sprawled out onto the floor. He had a huge project due for his English 301 class and, in typical Billy fashion, completely forgot about starting it until three days before. “Remind me again how much notice you had on this shit?” You ask, scrunching your eyebrows together in mock annoyance. Billy sighs and feels his cheeks heat up.

“...A month and a half.” You bark out a laugh and he flips you off, the corner of his lip upturned. “Shut it. I just… forgot that it was a thing. And besides, now that you owe me some help, I’ll get it done in no time!”

“You’re cashing that favor in on this project?” You really were confused about that part. Billy knew that if he had just asked you would've dropped anything and hauled ass to his place to help him free of charge. You shrug. “Whatever floats your boat. Now,” You sit up and scoot closer to Billy, holding a pile of papers with his chicken-scratch on it and dropping it in front of him. You place a hand onto his knee and for some reason Billy can feel his stomach ache. Not in a bad, I’m-gonna-hurl way, but in a good way. “Can you tell me what the hell you wrote? I can’t read your handwriting for shit.”

Something about that moment flipped the switch in Billy’s head. The only logical explanation for him to feel that way after something so… innocent was that he was in love with you. That, or he was coming down with a bug. He wasn’t sure which one he’d prefer, honestly. He fought back the idea of liking you until it was well past two am and you had passed out on the couch.

A sticky note was stick to the side of your face and there was a thin line of drool sliding down your cheek but fuck, he’d be lying if he said he didn’t think you looked cute. There was something so mind-numbingly domestic about this that just had his head reeling. “I like you.” He whispered it softly, his eyes trained on your sleeping form, testing the words. They sounded nice.

You were the next one to realize your feelings for the two men. Surprisingly, you realized it at the exact same time; they had come over your house to comfort you. You had been talking to them for the last two nights about this date you were supposed to go on, your first one in a long time, but when you had gotten to the restaurant and sat for almost an hour, you realized that you had been stood up. A part of you didn’t want to answer their texts asking how the date was going. It was humiliating.

But you knew them and while, yes, they were often assholes, you knew they wouldn’t make fun of you for this. Not with how fucking awful you were feeling. You called them as you got out of the restaurant, tears flowing freely, and you could hear the seriousness in their voice when they asked where you were.

They met you at your house, staying on the phone with you until they saw you face to face, and Stu pulled you in for a bone crushing hug. “Fuck, Y/N, you alright?” He asks with his chin resting on top of your head. Billy had come up and grabbed your belongings from you, putting them in their place while Stu walked you into the living room.

“Yeah...no. No, I’m not,” You said, your voice cracking. The two men wrapped their arms around you and held you, nothing more. They let you cry, only breaking the silence to whisper soothing things into your ear. It was nice. When you finished you were exhausted and they knew it. “M’sorry for making you guys come all the way out here.”

“Stop apologizing.” Billy snapped and Stu nodded in agreement. Billy grabbed your hand and laced his fingers in yours, squeezing your hand tightly. All you could do was look at him, really look at him, as he spoke. “You’re our friend, Y/N. We love you and we fucking hate seeing you hurt, especially because of some piece of shit asshole. You didn’t make us do anything, we chose to come here because we love you. Now, go get changed into comfy clothes because we’re gonna watch the goriest, shittiest 60’s movie I can think of to make you feel better.”

Stu nods, kissing your shoulder in a soothing act, one that had you leaning into his touch ever so slightly. “Yeah! Have you ever seen us do shit we didn’t want to?”

And it worked. Billy’s rousing speech had you getting changed within minutes and when you came back out into your living room the two men had set about their own tasks. Billy was creating a fort using your dining room chairs and blankets, his tongue poking out of the side of his mouth as he set it up. Stu was in the kitchen singing along to the radio, filling in the words he didn’t know with loud noises. He was getting popcorn and drinks together, even making you his ‘world famous’ nachos that he only made when he deemed the situation ‘insane, sad, or happy’ enough for one.

That’s when you realized. You knew you loved them, but up until now, you always thought the warm feeling that filled your chest when you were with them was just the kind that friends get around other friends. But this, the way your heart was thumping and how you couldn’t stop from smiling at the utter kindness they were showing you? That was love.

Stu was the last one to realize, but not because he never knew. In all honesty, he had just assumed you and Billy felt the same way about him that he felt about you and never considered the alternative that maybe your feelings weren’t as strong as his. He was watching you and Billy talk about… something and he felt himself get all fuzzy inside.

That’s not how friends feel about each other. Friends aren’t supposed to think about friends’ lips against their own, they’re not supposed to think about their friends' moans, and they’re DEFINITELY not supposed to think about their friends' bodies. And that’s all Stu was doing/ He thought about more innocent stuff when it came to both you and Billy obviously, but he’d be lying if he said his thought’s had never once been plagued by the image of all three of your bodies together.

And now here you all were, eating dinner in silence, each thinking about the other two in the most romantic, sickly sweet way possible, all while thinking the other two didn’t feel the same way. Stupid, really. Ask anyone else and they’d tell you they really did think the three of you were together with how you were attached at the hip and how the three of you got these big doe eyes and wide smiles when you talked about the others.

Something you said had the boys reeling. It took a solid three minutes before anyone spoke again and when they did, the two men were blurting out love confessions. It was pretty cute seeing them all nervous and fidgety, especially once they realized that the other was saying the exact same thing as them. “So… who do you choose?”

It was Stu who asked and the room fell silent again, both men staring at you, their gaze intense. It was enough to have you shifting in your chair. “Uhm… I’m not choosing between you two.” Billy and Stu visibly deflate. “No! No, I’m saying I’m not picking between you two. I kind of… I kind of like you both and if we’re going to do this, y’know, date or whatever, I was thinking all three of us could try it.”

“Both of us?” Billy asked before turning to look at Stu. They had been together before and you knew that, so it wasn’t a question of being with another man. They just had never once considered the possibility of adding you into the relationship. “I mean.. I’m cool with that, yeah,” He says with a grin, trying to act nonchalant about all this. Stu on the other hand made no attempt to hide his excitement.

“Score! I get to date two hot pieces of ass?”

You groan playfully, tossing your head back slightly. “Don’t make me change my mind, Stuart.”

“Ouch! The first name; you’re in troubleeeeee,” Billy teased, leaning over to you and kissing your cheek gently. Yeah, you could get used to this.

[mamavanheat]

Pullout Couch

Hey guys, this is my first writing project that I've ever finished. I got inspired by fellow writers on here and decided to try to make my own. I hope you enjoy. I'm sorry if there's any grammar mistakes.

WARNING 18+ NO MINORS

Josh X Female!Reader

Backstory: You're a photographer and just returned from a trip taking photos for prints. You realize you lost your keys and it's so late you don't want to bother your friend to come back to your apartment. But you remember there is someone a couple floors away you think might let you stay until you can call for another key.

You feel like you had been on the plane forever and your legs are finally starting to feel normal again walking from your friend's car back towards your apartment building. It was somewhere 2 AM and all you could think about was having a nice hot bath and finally being able to relax. Your 2-week trip had been filled with travel and photoshoots all over the country. You had a good feeling a lot of your shots would sell well this time.

Turning with a smile at your friends exhausted face both of you say your goodbyes and thank her for picking you up and dropping you off so late. Slowly you make your way down the hall from the elevator dragging your suitcase and bags. As you approach your door, you blow the strand of hair from your eyes with a huge sigh and start to dig in your bag for your keys.

After a couple minutes you start to panic a little. Oh fuck. A little annoyed, you toss your bags on the ground and slouch your back against the wall covering your face with your hands.  You slide your back down the wall and scroll through your phone contacts trying to remember if anyone would be up this late to let you crash at their place. Another sigh, and you check your phone for the time. Damn, it’s already 2. I guess it’s too late to call anyone.

Tired and helpless you pull up Instagram and scroll for a while not sure exactly what to do. You scroll past a post of a friend’s friend. It was a picture of him and his band of brothers. You double tap the pic and kept scrolling. Then the thought hit you like a bag of bricks. Wait, doesn’t he live a couple floors above me? You only met a couple times hanging out with your friends but he did mention living in the same building as you. You sit for a moment trying to rack your brain of the number apartment he lived in. Shutting your eyes for a moment you trace through every conversation about it you remember. Was it 614- no I think it started with 5. Hmmm.... 524?

Feeling once again helpless you grunt a little and scroll back through the texts between you and him. Then finally you come across that time he saw your prints and asked if he could buy a few. He texted you his apartment number but you never got around to replying to him about it. Okay he said he’s staying in roooooooom...AHA! It is 524! Finally, you had an escape from just sleeping in the hallway, which would have been your next plan.

Grabbing your bags from the floor, you hastily make your way to the elevator and hit the number 5. Staring at the floor numbers making your way up, you thought maybe you should try to send him a warning text or something in case he had someone over. You didn’t know him well, but you knew him well enough to know him and his brothers love company. You make the maze down the hallway until you reach his door. Taking a deep breath and hoping to not receive rejection, you lightly knock on the door. After a second with no response, you knock again a little harder this time.

Turning your back and thinking to yourself how uncomfortable the floor in front of your apartment was going to be, you hear the door knob turn and click open. Turning back around, you see Josh with his messy hair and almost closed eyes looking at you.  His collar bones contoured around his frame. His chest was bare and he had a pair of sweatpants on resting below his hips. You were taken back by how sexy you thought he was in that exact moment. I don’t think he recognizes me.

“Uh, hello?” he mumbled. Then he let out a big yawn covering his mouth with his fist.

“Hey, um, I’m sorry to wake you up. I know it’s super late, but I lost my keys and I was kinda hopin-”

“Oh, shit Y/N. I didn’t realize it was you. Yeah, come on in,” he waved his hand letting you know it was okay to enter.

Stumbling over your words once again trying to apologize for waking him so late you start sputtering out, “I just got back from my trip and like I said I can’t find my keys. I thought it was too late to call anyon-”

“Y/N, it’s all good,” he stated with a lazy smile. He was being geniune. His eyes were filled with kindness and understanding.

Shuffling inside still holding your bags and looking for a place to put them, you take in his apartment. It was a studio like yours, but his had this amazing brick accent wall in the living room. He only had a lamp in the living area and by his bed lit. You can tell he lit them making his way to the door. You see a small area behind the couch separating the kitchen and living space so you lay your bags there. Looking around to take in his little apartment was nice. It was clean and minimal but had a nice rustic charm to it. You notice he all the instruments in the corner across from the couch. Along the other wall was a huge record collection. Some of the covers you recognized and some you’d never heard of before.

“So um, I’m gonna try to go back to sleep. There’s a couple pillows on the couch, but let me grab you a blanket.” He said retrieving a small throw from the closet. Handing you the blanket your fingers brush past each other and it felt like slow motion. You think he realized it also because he paused for a second and looked at you with a small smirk. He ran his fingers through his hair and let out a small sigh.

“Thank you. I really appreciate it.” Shrugging your shoulders and giving a shy smile. “I didn’t have anywhere else I could think of going.”

“No, don’t worry yourself. It’s fine. I promise.” He comforted you with a smile and nod. “Just don’t wake me up again or you’ll be in trouble.” His smile turned into sexy little grin with a wink. Your face became flushed with red immidiately.

He reached to scratch his bare chest as turned to go back towards his bed. He shows you the bathroom and you see the light flicker off by his bed after him climbing under the covers. “Goodnight, Y/N. If you get lonely I’ve got room for you in here.” Sensing the smugness in his voice you couldn’t help but once again feel your face turning hot.

You go to your bag to grab a hoodie and shorts to change. Then your toothbrush and paste, making your way quietly to the bathroom hoping to have the hot bath you intended. His bathroom is a little smaller than yours. The only layout difference you noticed was, sadly, no tub. Sighing and realized you won’t get to relax after the night you already had, you turn on the shower and scrounge for a towel. The water was nice even though it’s not as relaxing. You stood under the shower head for a couple minutes letting the hot water drape over you. It was relieving to wash the day off.

Suddenly your mind snapped to Josh. He’d been so nice to accept you so late without warning. His sleepy eyes and messy hair let you know he hadn’t been asleep for a while. Realizing now his bare chest revealed his soft skin and happy trial. His collar bones poking out connecting to his small but toned shoulders. His hips barely hugging the pants he had on. Wait. What am I doing? I barely know him. You shake your head snapping yourself back to reality. Finishing your routine, you turn the water off and grab the towel you managed to find in the cabinet. Exhausted and wanting to just lay down, you slip into the sweatshirt and shorts, then comb your hair and brush your teeth. Before retreating from the bathroom, you hang the towel and grab your clothes off the floor.

You make your way through the living room and throw your things on your bag, too tired to bother actually putting them away. You sit on the couch and spread out the blanket over your legs as you turn off the last light in the room. Before you lay down and get settled you look over to his bed and realize the curtains were open letting the moon light up the room. You couldn’t see his face. Just his silhouette laying below his comforter. You slide down the couch placing your head on one of the pillows and using the other one to cuddle. Laying with a pillow on your chest always made you feel safe. Especially since you can’t remember the last time you had any affection.

Laying there in just the moon light you thought you would pass out in no time. That turned out to not be the case. You lay there switching positions over and over trying to get the sweet spot. You let out a small grunt out of frustration. You hear shuffling coming from Josh’s bed so you prop yourself up for a second peak his direction. He was turning over as well but he seemed to not have the same issue with falling back to sleep. After a couple seconds, it grew quiet again and the room was starting to feel lonely. Your mind started getting restless and soon enough you were flashing back to your thoughts from earlier. You wondered what his skin felt like. His curly hair. His soft lips. His hands gripping at your body.

It started turning you on and you could feel the heat going towards your pussy. The urge to touch yourself grew the more you thought of him. The thought of him touching you. You wanted to feel his body pressed on top of yours. The wetness coming from your pants was prompting you to touch yourself. You reach your hand down your shorts and with the other hand grip the pillow tighter to your core. You touch your clit rubbing in circles making sure every breath you took was muted. If he ever found out you’d be embarrassed beyond belief.

The thoughts of him just wouldn’t leave your head. You start getting closer to climax so you swiftly throw the blanket off yourself and roll onto your stomach. Pushing the pillow you were holding between your thighs, you start grinding your hips deep into it. Biting your lips and holding your face into the pillow that was below your head. Squeezing your eyes shut the only images you could see are flashes of Josh on top of you. Feeling the pleasure your mind gave you from what you’d allow him to do to you. Your breathing got heavier and deeper as your visions started to turn to white with pleasure overload.

“Ahem.”

Nearly startled to death, you flew off the couch with hands and legs flailing in the air to grab anything on the way down. Your heart was pounding through your chest. Oh, fuck. Oh, fuck. Oh, no. Already embarassed out of your mind, you peak your head over the couch to find Josh in the kitchen staring directly at you. When did he wake up? Did he see anything? Oh, shit. His breathing was heavy and his eyes were pupil filled darkness. The lights were still off but you could see the shape of his body from the light outside.

“I- um. I’m sorry if I woke you. I just- uh couldn’t sleep.” you mutter staring directly at him. He didn’t move for a couple minutes.

“You know, Y/N, I would have helped if you had asked.” A smirk emerged from his face.  “I was just grabbing a glass of water. Would you like one?”

He walks around the corner counter and your gaze follows down his body as you notice he was relived of the sweatpants he was wearing earlier and is now in his briefs. Something was bulging from them. The pulsating from your clit grew and was now getting unbarable to ignore. You realize your still sitting on the floor hiding yourself behind the couch. What was I thinking? I just wanted to relax. Letting out a small breath you gather yourself to stand up. He’s still gazing at you but you can’t really read his face anymore.

Feeling the tingling in your groin as your legs rub together as you stood up. Nervously rubbing your arm with the oposite hand you try to gather what had happened. Okay, he just woke up to me touching myself on his couch. What’s going to happen next? Your heart was practically in your throat at this point. Slowly he walked walked toward you until he was close enough you could feel his body heat. His curls were outlined with the back light. You could smell a mixture of old cologne and his natural musk. This made your heart flutter even harder.

Almost instinctly his hand rose to stroke your cheek to your chin. With the other hand meeting at your neck, he sank closer to you. His soft lips pecking yours at first. You grabbed his hips pulling him in closer. At this point it seemed both of your hearts were racing with enticement. His little kisses turned to sloppy open mouth kisses filled with tounge. The passion was radiating from him driving you crazy. He suddenly pulled his mouth away still. His hands still gripped around your jaw.

“Did you finish yourself?” He wondered, making intense deep eye contact.

The heat was rising through your face once again. “I was about to... and then I heard you.” A nervous laugh was released and you had to break eye contact.

He moved in close again but this time aiming towards your neck with his lips instead. His hands starting running down the arms of your sweatshirt and to your sides. Softly he pecked at your neck which made your head throw back in desire. “I was thinking. Maybe I could help you finish. And you can say we’re even for letting you stay tonight?” He whispered in between kisses.

How can I say no? You go back to gazing into his eyes and biting your lip you nod lightly. A strand of hair fell from behind your ear into your face. Josh was quick to slide it back behind your ear being sure to not break the stare. He grabbed you by the hips pushing you onto the couch. He leaned over and kissed you one more time on the lips before moving back down to your neck. His hands made their way under your sweatshirt as he worked a hickey on your delicate skin. Realized you had no bra on, he smiles into you and continues to knead at your breasts. Stopping slightly to pinch your hardened nipple leaving you to moan into the air. Startling you, he grabbed the bottom of your top and pulled it over your head with intention. He gazed at you in the soft light. Speechless he caressed your curves admiring every inch. Moving towards your breasts he’s sure to softly leave his mark with a trail. Goosebumps fill your skin with every touch of his mouth.

He stayed on your breast for a couple minutes but you could feel yourself wanting to reach your hand to your clit. Now pulsating so hard and begging for attention. He notices your hand sliding down and he stops you.

“No, let me.” he states making eye contact again. Still feeling your skin with his curious hands, he kissed his way down to your thighs.

He lightly kisses back and forth between thighs and drags his hands up to the top of your shorts. Grabbing at them, he slides them down your legs and tosses them onto the floor. His lips glide across your skin to your legs. Throwing them over his shoulder, he grabs your hips and swiftly pulls you down towards him. He continues running his hands down your legs softly making sure he does’t miss out a single spot as he gazes at your pussy. You’re insanely throbbing and thoughts race through your head of how the release will feel. Wrapping his arm around your leg, his thumb lands on your slit. He rubs down and then up dragging your juices from earlier onto your clit. He slowly starts rubbing in circles then back and forth. All the while, staring intensely observing what makes you go crazy.

“Fuck, Y/N. Do you realize how insanely sexy you are?” he growls at you. “I’ve had my eye on you for a while. You’re amazing. I can’t believe this is happening.”

The only reply you could muster up was, “Fu-” with a whimper shoving your head back deeper into the pillow.

His thumb was replaced with a warm, wet, strong swipe of his tounge. You gasp like you forgot how to breathe. It had been so long since you had been touched with such passion. His tounge flat, he swipes side to side in a fast motion burrying his face deep into you. Your legs become hard to control and every flick of his tounge leads to twitches. He holds you down by your hips as your back arches. Your hands are thrown instantly to grab him by his curly locks as he moans into you. A finger slides into you and you can’t help but let out another moan this time throwing your torso forward making eye contact with him. He uses his tounge to make circles around your clit and sucking while glancing at your expressions.

“Josh- I need you. I need to feel you inside me.” You whisper at him.

He quickly stands up and slides off his briefs. His penis sprug out solid at you. Oh, my god. It’s so much prettier than I thought. He climbs back on top of you and starts reaching his mouth for yours. Your hands grab onto his back making your way up his shoulders and wrapping your legs tight around him. You can feel him pulsating on you and twitching begging for your wetness. One of your hands stays gripped with your nails digging. The other slides up the back of his neck. I can’t believe this is happening. And he’s so damn hot. Grabbing a handful of his hair, he sighs deep at you. He reaches down and grabs himself to slid himself up and down your slit. His head throws back as he starts to slide into you. Both of you gasp in unison and pull each other tighter. His head became burried into your neck. He lets out a grunt.

Slowly at first and picking up pace with every stroke. The deeper he got the higher you felt. The harder he hit the closer you were to peaking. He reaches behind you grabbing a handful of hair and pulling lightly. Your head falls back again. Taking the opportunity, he slides his hand back down to your clit rubbing it in circles. You can’t hold back anymore. You let out a cry of passion and pleasure.

“That’s it, Y/N. Show me what your face looks like when you cum. I want to see you finish first.” He whispered into your ear. Grabbing your ankles, he throws your legs into a new position over his shoulders.

The new friction was driving you insane. Your touch starved body couldn’t take it anymore. You allow yourself to release onto him. “Fuck! Fuck! Oh god! Josh, fuck me!” Your hands grab your breasts and your back arches with each thrust.

This causes him to go almost balistic. His movements and thrusts became more erratic and you can feel him twitching inside you with each stroke. He props himself up with his hands on the couch around your head. Sure to make eye contact once again he leans in to kiss you long and passionate. Deeper and faster he moves until he throws his head back and final time. He pulls out of you and his cum covers your entire stomach and breasts with force.

Both of you lay there twitching with ecstacy and bliss. He looks at your face with a smile and lets out a couple deep breaths. “Whew. That was intense!” he states with a smile and shaking his head as he stood up. He disappears into the bathroom retreving a towel. Returning to help you clean up, the smile never left his face.

This was definetly not how you expected your night to go. Still laying in total shock and bliss, you lay in silence. “Are you okay, Y/N?” he asks you.

You smile and nod at him with your flushed cheeks still beaming. “It’s been a long time. You’re incredible.”

“I knew you’d enjoy it.” He replies with a laugh. He leans in to kiss you another time. This time it was so gentle and soft. Almost as if he didn’t want to let you go.

He grabs your hand and helps you off the couch. Handing you pieces of your clothing he says, “You know you don’t have to sleep on the couch if you don’t want to. My bed is open.” He glances at you as if he wants you to take his offer as he pulls his sweatpants back on.

A giggle was let out from you and you smile huge while replying, “I’d hope so after that.”

He takes your hand once again and pulls you with him to the bed. You climb in first and bury yourself under the comforter. He climbs in after you and pulls you close to him again. You lay there with his arms wrapped around you. It feels safe. It feels nice. Stroking your hair, he lays with you. He kisses your forehead and embraces you tighter.

“Y/N, before you fall asleep. I want you to know how beautiful you are. I’ve wanted to talk to you more but we have never been alone long enough,” he sweetly whispers to you.

This causes a smile to form on your face and you reply, “I hope I can spend more time with you.”