#it is too much work also drawing casper's jacket...

[chocodaffodil]

Scarameow stares into your soul :]

[rubix-writings]

Punisher Pt. 3

Third part of Punisher. I apologize it’s taking me so long to post these, but want to make sure they’re good for you all. Thank you for the support so far!! This is a Chicago PD/Fire imagine with an original character. I don’t own any of the plot points or characters from the show. Also, it doesn’t follow any particular season or sequence in the shows.

Series Summary: Josephine (Jo) never expected to find support and pure love when she left Los Angeles. She ran away to Chicago and was content with living an insignificant, hidden life. But everything changes when she walks into Molly’s to get a job.

Josephine (OC) x Jay Halstead

The italicized lines are internal thoughts of the character.

Warnings: language, mentions of drinking, long (!)

Things are going really well at Molly’s. It’s like falling into step during a choreographed dance. It feels odd to say that I’m comfortable and confident when it’s only my second shift. I’m working with Stella tonight, who to say the least had a lot of fun the night before. When she first walked into the bar she looked as if Casper made a stop in Chicago. At the start of opening she kept her jacket on and slammed down cups of black coffee. Her body seemed to stay in a permanent state hunched over the bar top while she only communicated through slow movements with her fingers. I couldn’t watch her pain any longer, so I used my break to grab a cheeseburger and fries so greasy the oil soaked the paper bag. 

“You need to put something solid into your body,” I announce as I plop the white, greased bag on the bar top in front of Stella’s practically limp body. She slowly lifts her head with a deep groan and analyzes the bag.

“I’m a firefighter Jo, my body is a temple. I can’t eat this,” I can’t stop the laugh that escapes my lips.

“Are tequila shots a part of your ‘temple’s’ regimen?” she sniffs the bag and sighs.

“You see, the tequila actually kills all the bacteria in the stomach,” Stella examines the golden fry before taking a bite. 

“Be sure to tell your theory to the doctors that come in later, I’m sure they’d love to hear that.”

“I will,” she says with a mouthful of cheeseburger. 

Just like magic, Stella is back to her bouncy self. It amazes me how much like Hermann she is, she practically floats around Molly’s. She talks to everyone and makes sure they’re having a good time. Stella sets the tone of the entire bar, bringing life to every inch of the place. It’s nice to watch her interact with others, a part of me is envious of how natural it comes to her. A part of me is, also, envious of her relationship with Kelly. His eyes when he looks at her are filled with unconditional love and the way Stella looks at him when he’s not looking confirms that she feels the same. I’ve never had that… or will have it. The bar top serves its purpose as a closed door to the patrons on the other side, I open it as much as I want and they see what I want them to see. I’m in control.

It’s a busy Friday night, the bar filled quickly. The firemen I met last night stroll in with the same vigor as the night before, obviously hurting a lot less than Stella was a few hours ago. Stella plays it off as if she didn’t have a raging hangover, but Kelly quickly throws her under the bus. Cruz yells as he claims he’s known the truth all along, but Mouch steps in to deny it, leading to Cruz listing out facts about how he knew. I place a few beer bottles in front of the guys, trying not to get involved.

“I’m sorry about them,” Matt says.

“There’s nothing to be sorry for. They’re funny,” I smile.

“You don’t have to hear it all day long,” Matt grumbles as he takes a long sip from his beer.

“This is true. I get them in concentrated doses,” I excuse myself to collect empties at the tables scattered around the room. With my hands full I turn to head back to the bar top, but crash into a hard body. I stumble back from the blow and the mystery man swiftly grabs my arms to keep me from falling. Once I get my footing back, he releases my arms.

“Sorry about that. Are you okay?” His voice is like velvet that draws my eyes up to look at his face. Wow. My mind fell into a haze barely registering his question. 

“Um, yeah. Thanks,” he smirks at how long it took me to answer his question. Really smooth Jo. “I should get back to work, sorry about running into you,” I walk backwards a few steps, he immediately steps forward keeping the same amount of space between us as before.

“Let me at least help you with those, I’m heading to the bar anyway,” before I could object, his large hand cradles the numerous beer bottles that were once in my hand. Before my brain can spiral about his large hands, I spin and head back to the bar. I silently weave through the customer’s of Molly’s, I needed to get back to my safe zone to hopefully make his charm less effective. He gently places the bottles on the bar top for me to discard, I smile and thank him. Before I can ask for his order, the firemen and Stella welcome him to the bar.

“Hey Jay, haven’t seen you around here in awhile,” Stella mentions. 

“Yeah I know. Um have you seen my brother anywhere?” Stella shakes her head no. Brother? I try to seem like I’m not listening while cleaning up behind the bar and get any excuse not to look at him again. One embarrassing moment for tonight is enough. Out of nowhere, Will pops up and slaps Jay on the back. They go in for a quick hug before Will says hi to everyone. 

“Hey don’t kill me, but I invited Nat. I know it’s supposed to just be us, but she had a really rough day,” Will whispers, Jay shakes his head to let him know he’s totally fine with it. “Great, thanks man.”

I put two glasses of red wine on the bar top for two women that definitely want to take a firefighter home tonight. After how many women these men turned down the night before I highly doubt they’ll have any luck, but I’m kinda rooting for them.

“Hey Jo,” Will smiles.

“Hi Will,” I say in monotone to mess with him.

“Have you met my brother Jay?” Will slaps Jay’s chest which startles Jay a little, making me smile. Geez, these guys must have gorgeous parents. Will is handsome of course, but Jay... 

“We kinda ran into each other actually.” I smirk.

“Oh that’s great, he’s a really good guy. He’s a cop, detective, sorry,” Will corrects himself, Jay is glaring at him.

“I’m not making you a manhattan,” he slaps his hand against the bar top.

“Worth a shot. Can I get a glass of chardonnay and a beer, oh and whatever Jay’s having,” I nod and grab Will his drinks. He slides me his credit card to open a tab then walks off to see Natalie at the table.

“I’m definitely missing something, why does my brother want a manhattan?” Jay finally asks. 

“Oh Jay it was great!” Stella jumps in to tell a very colorful version of the events that happened between Will and I. As she finishes up she is swept to the end of the bar to take an order. 

“She was drunk last night” I mumble under my breath. Jay smirks, knowing Stella’s retelling was probably fabricated. “What can I get you?” I try to change the subject.

“A beer please,” I nod. “You’re new here Jo?” He phrases it as a question, but it's definitely more of a statement. 

“Yeah, started yesterday,” I hand him his beer. 

“Thanks. Are you from Chicago?”

“No, LA actually, lived there my whole life,” I lean my forearms on the bar top in front of him.

“Wow, big change.” “Yeah, I don’t know if I thought it all the way through to be honest,” he smiles.

“Well let me tell you if you haven’t figured it out already, snow and winter are incredibly overrated.” “Ah yes, that’s exactly what I needed to hear. I can go back to LA now.” “Glad to be of service,” he shrugs. Jay stayed on the same stoll at the bar for the rest of the night. It was strange how easy it was to talk with him, he offered stories about his job and funny stories about him and Will growing up. It’s so beautiful to have those stories, that he’s gone through life with someone that deeply and come out the other side. I tell him that I don’t have siblings and mostly spent time with my mom when I was young. Jay was quick to offer up Will to fill the void.

“I’ll keep you updated on that,” I laugh.

“Are you and your mom still close?”

“Um no, she… she died about ten years ago,” even though her death happened so long ago it still felt so weird saying it out loud. 

“I’m sorry Jo. I lost my mom to cancer a few years back.”

“So you get it,” he nods and offers a somber smile. 

It wasn’t till Will and Natalie announced their departure, that Jay made any moves to leave Molly’s. The bar was slowly emptying out as last call was already declared. 

“I should head out, it was really nice talking with you Jo,” Jay stands.

“It was really nice talking with you too Jay,” I say sincerely. He smiles wide before making a beeline for the front door. I can’t help but stare until he’s fully out of sight, my cheeks start to hurt from fighting the smile on my face. I tuck my loose hair behind my ear and start grabbing the empty glasses from the bar top. 

“Have fun?” Stella questions, I jump slightly not realizing she was standing there.

“Another good night for tips, yeah,” she looks at Kelly who’s the last of the firefighters at the bar. 

“Sure, doesn’t hurt that Officer Handsome was here all night either.” “I… I’m going to wash the glasses,” I pick up the large plastic crate with dirty drinking glasses and head to the back where Hermann showed me where the sink was. Stella didn’t mention Jay again, but it didn’t matter. The damage was done, Jay’s blue eyes and the way he got so passionate during a story were ingrained in my mind for the rest of the night. 

***

Hermann asked if I could open Molly’s for him the next day as he was running late with paperwork at the firehouse. I had a short shift that night anyway and could use the extra money no matter how little. Hermann told me to meet him at the firehouse to give me the keys since they haven’t been able to cut me my own yet. The firehouse isn’t far from Molly’s, a couple blocks on foot. I prepared myself with my warmest coat for the trek since the wind chill makes Chicago brutally cold. I focus on the sound of my shoes against the wet pavement to take my mind off of how cold I really am. 

The firehouse is a ball of color on this cold, dark Chicago day. The plain brick buildings surrounding it emphasize the reds and yellows. It somehow feels untouched by the rest of the city, a true sign of purity. As soon as I walk through the doors of the firehouse I’m met with the sweet smell of food cooking. It’s as if my feet have a mind of their own and take my body towards the magnificent smell’s source. The kitchen was buzzing with people cooking, talking, and playing card games. 

“Jo!” Stella yells, “what are you doing here?” she walks over to me, leaving her conversation with Matt and Kelly, who both wave at me.

“I’m here to get the keys from Hermann, do you know where he is?” 

“Yeah, he’s in the garage let me take you to him,” I try to argue that it could wait, but Stella insists. “Hermman!” she yells once we get into the garage. 

“What?!” he snaps back. She giggles as we both walk towards the outburst. As we turn around the big fire engine, I see why Stella was so insistent about not waiting. “Oh hey, Jo,” he says calmer.

Jay is standing tall with a notepad in front of Hermann. Stella silently excuses herself from the conversation and makes her way back inside. Hermann pays no attention to his surroundings as he’s searching for the three keys I need to open Molly’s. 

“Hey,” Jay smiles.

“Hi.”

“Here you go, I labeled them for you so you know what lock they go into. Once you get inside, lock the front door, just in case,” I nod and take the keys from him. The silver keys have thin pieces of masking tape on them with dark blue sharpie stating what they open. 

“Thanks, I’ll see you there,” I back away from the men to head back to the bar. Hermann nods and waves.

“Hermann we’re done here right?” Jay asks.

“Yeah, let me know if you find anything,” Hermann states somewhat hopeless. Jay puts away the notepad in his back pocket of his jeans and jogs to catch up to me. The sound of Jay’s thick boots hitting the cement fills the sound of the garage. When he finally catches up to me, he moves ahead to open the door to outside for me. 

“So you’re stalking me now?” He jokes.

“Um how did you get to that? Hermann asked me to come here,” Jay quickly fell into step with me, not that it was difficult as he’s much taller than me.

“I was here first,” he says plainly.

“Oh well, with that bulletproof logic…” he laughs.

“You headed to Molly’s?” we stop walking once we get to the sidewalk.

“Yeah, I’m opening today,” Jay slips the keys to his car from his jacket pocket. 

“Let me drive you.” “Oh no, you don’t have to do that. It’s only a couple of blocks and you’re working,” I spew out trying to find an excuse that’ll stick.

“Don’t worry about me. I’m parked right here,” he brushes off quickly. I roll my eyes at his back and get into the car. Jay puts the car into gear and sets off towards Molly’s. 

“So, is Hermann okay?” I ask since I couldn’t get his hopeless tone out of my head.

“His house was broken into, they didn’t get a lot, just some jewelry and a few Alexa’s. His wife came home which freaked them out and they bolted before they did any real damage.” “Jesus. Poor Hermann. Do you think you’ll find his stuff?” “Probably not, that sort of stuff is so small that they may keep it for themselves instead of pawning it, but we’ll try,” the car is silent for a little while till Jay pulls in front of Molly’s.

“Thanks for the ride.” “Course,” I get out of the car and make my way onto the sidewalk. “Hey Jo,” Jay says out of his rolled down window. 

“Hey Jay,” I say while playing with the keys Hermann gave me.

“Are you working late tonight?”

“Not too late, I have a short shift.”

“How about I meet you here later and we get a drink?” Jay says casually. I bite my lip and look down the street in hopes to take my mind off of what he just asked.

“Maybe,” I say as I make eye contact with him again. “See yah Jay.”

“See yah Jo.”

I’m losing control.

[retrievablememories]

style | jaehyun

title: style pairing: jaehyun x black!reader genre: fluff request: “I was watching the bts for the photo shoots for neo zone and made think about how fun it would be on set with them. Do you think you could write something more jaehyun centric about being like a new makeup artist on set. It can be a black reader as well if that’s cool with you” word count: 2.8k warnings: none that i can think of except some cursing a/n: oof okay my mind somehow skipped over the “new” part so the reader in this fic is actually pretty experienced w/ being a makeup artist. i could rewrite it but i didn’t want to wait any longer to post this fic since it’s already been a couple weeks since the request. i’m sorry if this is not what you were looking for anon, let me know 🤕

Being a Black makeup artist in a mostly Korean music industry can be weird at times. It’s not the life of roses and perfume that many others at the beginning of your career would’ve had you think it is, but you have managed to carve out your own niche. You have friends and people who support you, and a nice apartment you’re able to pay for with the salary you receive from SM, which is enough for you.

It also doesn’t hurt to be surrounded by pretty men all the time.

You worked for many different groups and solo acts before landing a steady job at SM Entertainment—some were nicer than others, and some were straight-up assholes. You can’t say you miss those days much, especially when you were just starting out and not always certain of where your next paycheck was coming from. Now, your most consistent clients have been NCT, which you are grateful for; they’re always pleasant and fun to work with.

Your latest work with them involves NCT 127’s new album, Neo Zone. You’re coming in today for the first day of the album jacket photoshoot, which you’re excited about; you haven’t seen any of the NCT members since you worked on Coming Home. You don’t mind doing makeup for the other SM acts, but there’s a certain connection you have with this group that you just can’t explain.

With your makeup bag on hand, you enter the studio where the boys are going to be shooting today, already taken aback by the loud orange checkerboard pattern on the floor. There are even garish deer heads and hooves mounted up on the walls; SM has really outdone themselves this time.

“Y/N, it’s you!” Jaehyun looks excited to see you, and his enthusiasm rubs off on you; you shoot him a welcoming smile back.

“Hi Jaehyun,” you say, walking over to where he’s standing. Jaehyun doesn’t hesitate to open his arms to give you a hug, and you appreciate the soothing smell of his cologne before pulling away.

Jungwoo and Mark run up to you too, crushing you between them in a hug, and pretty soon you end up embracing all of the boys as they come over for your attention.

“Wow, that is some hairstyle…” you say as you pull away from Johnny. You reach up to pinch one of his twists between your fingers, examining it with a look halfway between mortification and amusement.

“Do you like it?” he asks, an equally awkward grin on his face.

“Um…I’m sure the fans will love it.” You can only chuckle and pat him on the arm before making your way back over to Jaehyun to start on his look for the shoot. You pull your supplies out of your makeup bag as Jaehyun watches you from the chair; his attention is eventually drawn away when Taeil comes over to show him something on his phone.

When you have everything ready and have pinned his hair out of the way, you start painting his face.

Jaehyun only has one AirPod in his ear; you’re not sure where the other is, but you figure it must be with Taeil or one of the other members. You think he’s just listening to music without paying you any mind, but he says suddenly, “I like when you come around.”

“Oh, really? Why is that?”

“I dunno, your makeup just looks better…” He lowers his voice as if he doesn’t want the other makeup artists to hear, and you laugh inwardly.

“Maybe it’s because I know how to use the right foundation shade.” You both laugh openly at that, and Haechan takes notice, dropping in beside Jaehyun.

“What are you two laughing about? I wanna laugh too,” the younger man says, his eyes round and mischievous.

“Just the fact that it’s no fun to walk around with makeup looking like Casper the Ghost,” you say, and Haechan scoffs.

“Try telling that to….” Haechan’s eyes dart around, and you suspect the makeup artist he wants to throw shade on must be at the shoot with them right now. “...nevermind, that’s a discussion for the group chat!” Instead, he goes over to Taeyong to bother him.

“Group chat? I feel left out now,” you say jokingly, continuing with Jaehyun’s makeup.

“You don’t have one with your stylist friends or something like that?” he asks.

“Yes, but I wanna know what you guys are talking about…” You raise your eyebrows. “That’s just nosy me, though.”

“Nothing interesting,” Jaehyun replies, though you can tell by the look in his eyes that that’s far from the truth.

“Mhmm, sure.” You purse your lips together and shake your head. “Don’t let me find out you’re on some fuckboy shit.”

“If I was, would you punish me?” Jaehyun says this loud enough to draw a few mildly scandalized glances from the stylists and makeup artists standing nearby, and you duck your head, feeling equal parts tickled and embarrassed.

“You’re a mess, Jaehyun. I’m trying to keep this job, okay?” you reprimand him, but there’s no seriousness in it at all.

“Of course, you’re right—I’d never want to see my favorite staff member gone.”

“Shiiit, now I’m just a staff member?” You put a hand over your heart, acting hurt. You both laugh and joke around for a while longer until you’re done with his look for the photoshoot.

Once you finish with Jaehyun’s makeup, you do Mark and then Taeil, chatting casually with them all the while. Taeil is still a bit quiet with you, but he’s incredibly funny when he wants to be, and you can always appreciate a good joke or two. You know Jaehyun “flirts” with you noticeably more than the other members do, but you’ve gotten used to all their subtle differences and you don’t think to chalk it up to more than innocent playfulness—or over-playfulness, maybe.

You’re always somewhere nearby in the background, ready to jump in and retouch someone’s foundation or redo a highlight whenever necessary. You sit back and watch Jaehyun take his solo pictures, admiring your good work on his makeup—or maybe his handsomeness all on its own. He has a good face, you think, and try to convince yourself that you’re only thinking about it in terms of how easy his features are to work with.

Your front row view of the show is interrupted when one of the stylists comes over to ask you a question, and you’re pulled to another area to handle an issue. There’s never not something to do on days like these, though you don’t really mind it; being busy doesn’t bother you as much when the work is fairly fun. 

The other boys continue playing around on the set as they wait their turns for solo photos and then group pictures. You eventually end up back in front of Taeil again, fixing a spot on his foundation with a Q-tip as a hairstylist fusses over his strands.

You sit on one of the couches on set for a moment’s break after finishing with Taeil. Johnny comes creeping over to you with the polaroid camera he’s been carrying for the past half-hour, and you can already guess what’s about to happen. You hold your hands up, blocking your face.

“I know you’re the aspiring photographer and all, but can you give me and my visage a break?”

“Just one?” Johnny begs, giving you his best pout. You give him an unimpressed look and cross your arms, but your face eventually cracks when he keeps throwing you exaggerated pouty expressions.

“It’s not happening! I’m not even prepared for pictures today,” you insist. Your complaints are interrupted when Haechan slides onto the couch beside you, wrapping his arms around your shoulders.

“Don’t you want to take a picture with me, at least?” He tries to press his cheek against yours and you gently chide him about his makeup, not wanting to create more work for the other girls on set who’ll have to fix it. “I knoww, I knoww. If you take a picture with me, I’ll stop!”

You sigh in mock distress. “Fine, one photo! Can’t keep these paparazzi off my back, can I?” You and Haechan end up striking multiple poses for Johnny while he pretends to be an enthusiastic photog capturing a celebrity couple.

“Hope Jaehyun doesn’t get too jealous,” Johnny says absentmindedly, holding one of the shiny polaroids between his fingers. You cock your head at that.

“Now why would he get jealous?”

“Because that’s how Hyung is,” Haechan replies, quickly getting off the couch and trying to usher Johnny off the scene. He acts as if the older man has just said something he wasn’t supposed to, and Johnny belatedly notices his “mistake” with an awkward shrug. Before he leaves, he hands you one of the polaroids of you and Haechan.

“Put it in a scrapbook or something!”

“Sure, Johnny.” You stare at the small photo in your hands, though Johnny’s words stay floating around in your mind well after the first day’s shoot is over.

The next day is hectic, much like the last, though the set is quite different this time around. You definitely feel a bit better about having more space to move around in without other staff members practically standing on top of each other. Johnny’s hair is back to its normal state, though now Taeil and Haechan have braids; you can’t help but squint your eyes at that, though you say nothing. It’s not worth falling out with the hairstylists again—you learned early on that these companies are gonna do whatever the hell they want.

“You look really good today—all thanks to me, of course,” you tell Jaehyun after he finishes recording his part for the BTS video. “Aren’t I magic?”

“Don’t knock the hairstylists, they wouldn’t like to hear that,” he snickers.

“I’d like to do more than knock them, but we ain’t got time for that.” You wave your hand and change the subject. “Did you enjoy yesterday’s shoot? I dunno about you, but I think it went pretty well. Hopefully today is the same.”

Jaehyun nods his agreement. “It was great.” Then he pauses before casually mentioning, “I heard you and Haechan were getting close yesterday, though.” You notice Doyoung and Yuta out of the corner of your eye, lingering around as if they’re waiting on their turn for photos, but it’s clear that they’re eavesdropping from the looks on their faces.

“Yes, so sue me for hanging out with an NCT member that isn’t you, how could I ever betray you in such a way?” You cover your mouth in faux horror and the other man shakes his head, grabbing your elbow.

“I don’t know if my heart will ever recover,” he says, going along with your act. He pulls on your arm and brings your hand to chest. “Feel it—it’s broken!”

This feels like a bold move even for him, and Doyoung makes a noise in the background that confirms your surprise. You whip your head towards the other two men and they immediately scatter, finding other things to preoccupy themselves with to avoid your scolding.

Jaehyun’s heartbeat is a little faster than it should be under your palm, and at this point you can probably guess why. Johnny’s words and Haechan’s near panic come to the forefront of your memory again. You behave as casually as you can, drawing your hand back to your side and quirking an eyebrow at him. Someone calls your name from the other side of the room, and you go to see what they’re hollering about, but not before calling over your shoulder,

“Your heart rate’s elevated, might wanna see a doctor about that!”

You end up having to retouch Jaehyun’s makeup more than usual throughout the shoot because of his playing around with the other boys, whether it’s riding in a shopping cart or trying to pedal a damn bicycle up the wall, and you almost have to wonder if he’s doing it on purpose.

“You’re really gonna make me work for this job, huh?” You put your hands on your hips after finishing your quick fixes.

“Maybe.”

You roll your eyes. “You’re lucky you’re cute.”

“So, you admit you think I’m cute?”

“What do you expect me to say? You certainly ain’t ugly...don’t let it go to your head, though.” You pat his shoulder and steer him towards the cameras. “Now go on! Don’t make me have to stay past midnight fixing your makeup all day.”

The rest of the jacket shooting goes smoothly—as smoothly as anything can on a busy set, anyway. Yuta even manages to get you to dance with him to one of the songs blaring over the studio’s speakers, though you scurry off again as soon as you see Johnny coming with his phone in hand. You know his blackmail folder must be huge at this point, and you’re not trying to become a part of the collection.

The boys come over for their hugs again as you pack up your makeup bag. Pretty soon, the only one left without an embrace is Jaehyun.

“Saving the best for last?” you ask as he watches you. He really does do that a lot, you realize.

He shrugs as if he’s unaffected by your compliment, but his dimples peeking out give him away every time.

“You can just say it, you know.” You look around and lower your voice. Though the playlist is still cycling through as loud as ever, you’d rather not have anyone else’s ears in your conversation right now.

“Say what?” he whispers back, still smiling.

“Hello! I think we both know.”

“You want to hear me say it that bad?”

“That’s rich coming from you! I’m not the one who pulled a move literally out of a kdrama earlier.” As you speak, you accidentally knock over a bottle of setting spray on the table, and both of you reach for it at the same time. 

Jaehyun’s fingers linger on yours, sending little sparks of excitement up your arm and through your body. You risk a look at him, and although you’re supposed to be keeping it low right now, you feel as if you’re the only two left in the room. He leans closer, and his familiar scent hits your senses again, threatening to wrap you up permanently in its hold.

“You’re right. I like you.”

Jaehyun picks up the fallen bottle and presses it into your hand, and it takes you a few seconds to react and put it back in your bag.

“I knew it,” you lie. You’re not sure why you feel so nervous about this, or why you feel like you’re doing something you shouldn’t. It’s not uncommon for idols to date their stylists; after all, they’re around each other all the time. But that doesn’t mean the company or anyone else will approve.

“Yes, Detective, you’ve figured out the big mystery.” You glare at Jaehyun for that, but he remains unphased. He turns around and leans against the table, giving off a casual air when he’s really checking to make sure no one is heading in your direction. “So...what do you say?”

You decide to draw this out a little longer just because you can. “To what?”

“I know you like me too.”

“Maybe,” you say, mimicking his earlier answer. “What are you gonna do about it if I do?”

“Make you my girlfriend, duh.” He says it with all the confidence in the world, but then backtracks a little when you give him an amused look. “Only if that’s what you want, though; we don’t have to do anything if—”

“You’re overthinking it!” You shake your head as you put the last thing in your makeup bag and zip it up. “I want to. Really. But you’re gonna have to take me out first.”

“Just tell me where you wanna go. I’ll take you anywhere.”

You sling your bag over your shoulder and sigh. “Have you always been this good with words? Or is it just because I like you?”

Jaehyun pushes himself off the table and steps closer, crowding into your personal space. “You tell me.”

“Don’t be so obvious.” You step back when you notice one of the managers’ eyes lingering where you two are standing. “Just...text me. You know how to reach me, right?”

“Of course.”

You continue stepping backwards towards the entrance, not wanting to let him out of your sight just yet. You smile and wave with both hands, still playing the role of “makeup artist to a super-famous kpop idol” and not “departing girlfriend” like you want to. “Then we’ll talk next time! Bye, Jaehyun!”

Jaehyun waves back, and you don’t turn around until you’re well into the hallway and one of the other boys has called him to hurry up. Leaving the building, you lean against one of the outside walls to take a breather before you head to your car.

“Holy shit.”

[savannah-lim]

Smoke and Maras || Savannah & Dave

Dave fiddled with his teeth covers, trying to jam them into place right. It was, as always, a losing battle, and it was always a bother for him anyway. He’d just have to leave it so it was part digging into his gums, part not hanging right on his back teeth, but it’d have to make do for the detective. No one really looked too close anyhow. He’d sat in a quieter booth, with a dark brown IPA in his hands. He wouldn’t hear her in all this din, so Dave kept his eyes peeled to the door. This oughtta be something. 

Savannah ordered herself a light beer at the bar, scanning the surroundings for Dave. When she found him, she approached and took a seat opposite. “Hi.” Introductions and small talk were such a pain in the ass. “How are you doing?” She could be so good at manipulating a situation to her advantage at times, playing whatever role was required, and then at other times, like when some kid had tried to sacrifice someone in front of her and then gave her visions of her colleague jumping into an endless pit and turning into a tentacle monster, words failed her. Go figure. “I’m not good at this,” she sighed. 

“Good as ever,” Dave replied easily, with a small shrug. He looked Savannah over with a curiously critical eye, trying to weigh her up now he knew she was FBI, not just some random spare sacrifice over a pit as deep as it was evil. Trying to see how she was looking at him. Hopefully not all suspect like. “Prefer the beer over the Devil’s Gullet, anyhow.” He smiled at her admission. “Not really sure about how to talk about the whole human sacrifice shindig either.”

Savannah wasn’t doing anything wrong, so why did she feel like she was under a spotlight? Dave had a closed-off demeanor about him. She sensed he wasn’t the easiest person to get to know. Any sensible person would have just let him be after their Devil’s Gullet fiasco, but here she was, having a beer with him. “I prefer beer over most things,” she snickered, raising her bottle in a half-hearted cheers. “We got a name on that other kid. His friend told us. But he’s fallen off the radar for now.” Why was she talking to this civilian about work? “I’m sure he’ll show up. Can’t live without his snapchat, probably.”

“Guessing the whole FBI thing spooked him right out of here,” Dave commented mildly. “Kids, huh? Too damn dependent on their tech. He’ll sign into like the clock app or something. They didn’t seem all that bright, or like big with the planning. Creepy assholes.” They were, after all, the ones who had put ads in the goddamn paper. Maybe their magic nonsense needed some sort of willing victim, who chose to be there of their own accord. “There’s a whole lot of weird in this town, detective, hope you know what you’ve gotten yourself into.”

“Pfft,” Savannah scoffed. “It should have spooked him. Doesn’t mean he should just fall off the radar though. He probably wouldn’t have the resources to get fake ID’s and a bunch of cash, so it’s just a matter of waiting.“ She was quiet for a moment. “Yeah, speaking of weird, I wanna know what the hell that thing was they threw at me.”

“Sounds like you’re the expert on that one. All I can say is good luck finding him,” Dave shrugged, sipping from his beer, keeping his eyes keenly on her. In part, it was to help him read her lips, but he was also all sorts of intrigued about her. Goddamn FBI in town. Maybe she’d even know something down the line about the lady he was hunting, but asking about that too soon would set off all sorts of alarm bells. Besides, if he finally did kill her, he didn’t need the FBI knowing he’d been snooping around. “Some sort of flash bang with a hallucinogen, wasn’t it?” He asked nonchalantly.

“I wouldn’t be very good at my job otherwise.” Though Savannah’s superiors might have argued differently if they had known what sort of crackpot theories she was already wrestling with. “My colleague went missing,” she blurted out. “Agent Javier Sterling. When they threw that thing, I saw flashes of him… things that didn’t make sense. He was like a squid-man. Like a were-squid.”

“A were-squid?” Dave repeated skeptically. As far as he knew, those didn't exist. Sure, you got the occasional weird ass Nymph, but that wasn't the same. Hell, nothing she'd seen had to be true. It sure was what the kid has said, that he'd shown her the truth, but kids lied all the goddamn time. "Were the two of you close? I remember you said you were investigatin' his disappearance. Must be rough."

“Well, there’s no word for someone who is half human, half Cthulu,” Savannah fired back. “He jumped into the damn hole. Who would do that?” she thought out loud. She could tell Dave thought she was crazy. Hell, maybe she was. “No, not close. I didn’t know him other than by name. But this is my case, and I’m not going to go back with a fat load of nothing.”

“Well, no, guess not,” Dave agreed, for damn good reason - shit didn’t exist. “He jumped into the hole? You mean the gullet?” He asked, and almost felt bad leaving her in the dark. But if the FBI as an organisation learned about this place, shit would hit the fan in the worse way. “I know a thing or two of what that feels like,” Dave said eventually, taking a long drink from his beer. His eyes slid away from her, to some raised voices by the bar. He couldn’t hear well enough to figure out what they were saying, but one of them was wearing shades inside, maybe trying to avoid being ID’d. 

“I think so?” Savannah couldn’t be sure what she had seen. It was all a series of flashes, like a bad dream replaying in her head. It came to her at night too, her mind playing tricks on her as she slept. When she was in it, it felt so real. She had started noting down things she saw, but none of it really made any sense. “It felt urgent. Like he had to do it.” Savannah was doing her best to ignore the ruckus at the bar, but it was growing louder. She looked over at them. It seemed as if one had cut in line and the other had taken issue with it. 

“The hell is the matter with you?” the one wearing shades scoffed. “I was here the whole time.”

“No you fucking weren’t!” the other answered. “Get to the back of the damn like.” 

“Oh my god--” Savannah stood up, as if to rush forward to intervene as she saw one of them reaching inside their jacket for a weapon. “Can’t I just have one night off?”

Dave hid his deeper concerns. She knew something was up, however minor. Maybe he’d need to do something about that. It weren’t too bad yet, she didn’t have nothing on nothing, but she was suspicious. One thing at a time, especially because his options for doing something were… on the short side. It felt urgent. Hm. As Savannah stood up, he didn’t quite catch what she said, but god did he get the tone. His eyes flicked to the knife, getting up and beginning to move himself. Neither of them were quick enough, as the guy plunged the knife into Shades’ chest. And then plunged right through him, his whole hand and fist going through Shades’ torso. Shades grinned, and whipped off his sunglasses. The guy screamed, falling off his seat to the ground. By the time they’d reached the fight, it was over, and Shades had his sunglasses back on like nothing had happened. 

Savannah almost tripped over her chair, because as quickly as she had been moving towards the action, she instinctively stumbled backwards at the sight of an entire man’s arm going through another person’s chest, as if they were made of smoke. 

“What the fuck, you fucking demon!” The man with the knife (now discarded on the ground) exclaimed, stumbling backwards. Savannah stared at the situation in awe, unable to believe her own two eyes, but she got close enough to step on the knife and pick it up with a napkin. 

“FBI,” she declared, flashing her badge. “You’re a little below my jurisdiction, but I suggest you get the hell outta here before the cops show up.” She put the knife in her inside jacket pocket, wrapped in the napkin to keep it safe. “I’ll dispose of this for you. Wouldn’t want anyone getting hurt.” She turned to speak to the man with the shades, only to find him gone, an empty space at the bar where he had once stood. The other patrons and bartender mumbled among themselves, gossiping the way you normally would after a bar room scuffle, but they hardly seemed perturbed by the vanishing act. “Did you see where he went?” she asked Dave. 

Dave did see where Shades went. It was a blink and you miss it moment, where Shades melted entirely into the background, quiet as a ghost. Just before he vanished, they made eye contact and Dave glanced pointedly to the door. Then Shades was gone, and Dave was left with Savannah as she packed up her knife. “No,” Dave replied, and sorta technically, that wasn’t a lie. “Looked like a real agile type. So much for just getting a drink, huh?”

Savannah stared at Dave, dumbfounded. How was it possible that he always missed everything? “Agile? He’d have to be Casper The Friendly Ghost to disappear that fast!” The people in the bar had returned to their drinks and conversation, seemingly unperturbed by what had just happened. It was only Savannah who was still reeling. “He just disappeared! He vanished and he made that knife go right through him like he was made of smoke.”

“Nah, we just saw it from a weird angle. He dodged. Or, I don’t know, was it a stage prop or something? Looked weird to me too, but that’s the only thing that makes a lick of sense.” Dave shrugged, frowning as he looked around, trying to “spot” where Shades had gone. No point in trying hard, but still, he wasn’t trying to draw all that much attention to himself, either. “Fucking hell. Guess he really didn’t want trouble with the police.”

“It was no stage prop! I have it in my jacket pocket.” Savannah sighed. People were looking at her. She could see it in her faces. ‘Why the hell is this idiot woman freaking out?’ Maybe she was actually going crazy. Javier had visions, and she seemed to be following in his footsteps. “Like I said, below my paygrade.” She shook her head. “Whatever.” Savannah lifted her empty glass, gesturing to him. “Another round?” If she was going crazy, she might as well be crazy and drunk. 

[living-dead-parker]

12 Days of Christmas; Peppermint Lane and Christmas Carols

Summary: Days 9 and 10 - The Avengers go visit Peppermint Lane and the do some caroling too. 

The caroling part was inspired by an ask sent to me by @briaw96 so thank you so much for that!!

Warnings: some cussing, mentions of cheating, and Denny’s. 

Word Count: 2.6k

series masterlist | masterlist 

Every year, a local neighborhood likes to set up a mile long light show, allowing visitors to roam the streets and look up at the intricate lights. It was much like a similar one back in California that Tony always took you to as a kid. It was big and elaborate and usually, the last house was the biggest one with the most elaborate design of them all. When you had moved to New York, and Christmas was fast approaching, Tony took to it to find a similar one in New York, finding one not too far from his tower. Eventually, the more you two moved around, he'd always find a new place. This year, he found one not too far from the tower called Peppermint Lane.

The excitement begins to bubble up as you hand Peter the ugly Christmas sweater that matches the one you're wearing. It's red with a reindeer on the abdomen, red light up nose, bells on the antlers, and the sleeves have tiny reindeer printed all over. Peter giggles as he throws on the sweater, looking over to see you're already layered up with a jacket over the sweater. He walks over to you, grabbing your cheeks and bringing you closer to his face. He presses a kiss to your lips but pulls away almost immediately as he perks up a sudden thought entering his mind.

The light necklaces!

He runs off into your closet, grabbing the bag with random little decorative things, pulling out the two necklaces. Almost simultaneously, he opens the two boxes and pulls the necklaces out of their constraints. He watches as they light up when he flips the small switch on the back, glowing light of color, each different than the next. With an eager quickness, he stands in front of you and places the necklace over your head and places it on your next before repeating the process on himself.

"There," he says through a content sigh. "We look like each other now."

You grab his hand and lead him to the mirror, giving yourselves a once over and enjoying what stands before you. The two of you looked like happy little kids instead of adults, though you don't care at all. Everyone has a childish side and Peter of all people deserves to bask in it. A thought that always plays in your mind. Peter deserves to bask in his childishness as much as he's allowed.

"We should head down. I'm sure they're all waiting," Peter says as he pulls you close to him. His face is so close to yours after he leans forward and your eyes can't help but wander down to his lips before meeting back up at his eyes. His grip on your hips is firm and your arms instinctually wrap around his neck in order to hold him close to you. The smell of his sandalwood cologne making your head whirl in the best of ways. After deciding you've had enough teasing, you lean forward and press your lips to his, feeling them mold together in perfect harmony. His hands pull you closer into him until there's absolutely no space between the two of you.

His lips feel warm against yours, the taste of mint hitting you almost immediately. You can feel yourself become needy of air, but you just don't want to part. Something about the holidays and Peter makes you never want to let go. Though, in your defense, Peter is such a cozy and comfy person. His warmth just draws you in. When Peter pulls away, you gently bite his lip, tugging at it slightly but letting go a few seconds later. He rests his forehead on yours, making you lose your breath once again when you stare into his longing eyes. A warm feeling spreads through your body and despite feeling the slightest scared that you're falling deeper, you never want it to end. It feels better than any high you've had and it's the best thing you could ever ask for. Peter is the best thing you could ever ask for.

Peter chuckles as he pulls away, grabbing your hand to lead the way out. "Okay, Y/N. That's enough, we should go."

He steps out of your room and leads the way down the hallway. When the two of you step into the living room, you see almost everybody except Bucky and Steve. You walk over to your father and watch as he plays with Morgan. She's in a fit of giggles as Tony tickles her, the sound of Pepper telling to Tony to tone it down being drowned out by Morgan's giggles. Bucky and Steve finally step out decked out in their ugly sweaters, much like everyone else. You and Peter decided to match with your parents and Morgan. May and Happy decided to match with each other, looking sickeningly sweet.

"Alright, let's get this show on the road!"

The bunch of you, a total of 12 people, head into an elevator and descend to the first floor of the tower. Sam and Bucky joke about getting the elevator, but receive a nudge on the ribs when you tell them it's not funny. They only laugh about it until you give them the glare, which can be pretty scary when executed properly. Thankfully, you always execute it properly.

It wasn't until you reached the beginning of the lane that you were told the news. Everybody but you knew, which was a little suspicious. Peter was in on it too, which sort of had you feigning betrayal. Your sweet boyfriend wouldn't lie to you or hide things, right? Except that he did, knowing full well this was your forte. This was your thing. And he knew about it all day. And didn't say a single word for once in his darn life.

"We're caroling!" Tony tells you as he hands you the book of carols they stuffed in one of Morgan's baby backpacks.

"Father, the fact that you got everybody to stay quiet and not tell me about this offends me on so many levels," you begin as you grab the stupid book. You flip through the pages before dramatically throwing the book at Sam. He lets out a grunt as the book hits his face, but you're not too bothered by it to check on him. He'll live. "But the fact that you think I need some book to help me belt out every single word to Mariah or Justin offends me so much more than anything anyone could ever say or do."

Tony lets out a chuckle and Pepper just giggles as they watch you turn around. You storm off up the driveway of the first house and knock on the door. The wait was only a few seconds, but by the time the door was open, everybody was standing behind you; books open, smiles on their faces, and voices ready.

"Wow! You guys are the Avengers!"

"Jingle bells," everyone starts simultaneously, causing you to cringe a little on the inside. Do any of them know about pitch and range? Disgusting. Absolutely disgusting. Like a true performer, you continue despite the harsh work conditions and terrible background vocals. You can't blame them too much as they're all very much rusty and it's only the first song. A mere warm up.

"Hey, that was disgusting so we need to figure out a new singing system," you say once you've all exited the premises of the first house. Bucky and Sam roll their eyes playfully and Nat just winds up tuning you out.

"What do you mean? She was so into it!" Steve argues back.

"Yeah because her musical palate is that of a child, get in a line."

From there you worked into setting them up in a way that would work for, not only you but for the listener's ears.  Not to say it didn't go down without a fight. Because everyone did try to fight you on it. In the end, because you're a Stark, you fought for it to go your way. So, now after being all sorted out, the twelve of you walked over to the next house, enjoying the lights as you walk up the driveway. After knocking, there was a brief wait until the owner opened up. She was quick to call her family to watch the carolers.

"Have a holly jolly Christmas," you sang, watching as their faces all turn into ones of pure amusement. Slowly, everybody else joined in, having fun with it and realizing it sounded much better than the first. Once the song was over, the family thanked you with some hot chocolate and some peppermint candies. Peter being part spider at this point just gave you the peppermint as he's completely repulsed by it.

The journey through the entire two-mile-long stretch began. That's only on one side of the street. You all still have to make your way around two miles back. It seems tiring but singing for hours should be fun. Plus, the houses had been handing you all items you'd need, so there was plenty of water and tea being given to cool your vocals.

"Alright, we're doing a classic, so follow along," you tell the group as you approach a new house. They all nod as they follow down the main pathway leading to the door. The house is decorated in all colorful lights and follows a Mickey Mouse theme, which is really cute. You knock on the door, and like every other house, the person behind takes a few seconds to open. When they do, it reveals a middle-aged woman who seemed oddly familiar to you.

"Y/N Stark? Oh, it's been so long sweetie!" the woman says. You smile at her, not remembering how she knows you and why she looks so familiar. "Let me get the kids, they're all here!" she says excitedly before turning around. You also turn and look over at your father and Pepper.

"How the fuck does she know me? Why does she look familiar to me?" you ask them. They shrug and when you turn to the side, you see a decoration with their last name on it. Casper.

"Dad get me out of her-"

"Y/N Stark?" a familiar voice says. Pepper's eyes go wide and Tony has to hold back a chuckle. Peter grabs hold of your hand, noticing the slight discomfort.

"Des Caspar. It's been so long," you tell him with faux excitement. He nods eagerly, holding a hand out for you to shake.

"It has been too long! I've missed you so much-" Obviously not when you were cheating on me. "What brings you here?"

"Caroling! With my family and my boyfriend," you say as you hold yours and Peter's interlocked hands. His smile doesn't falter, not one bit. For some reason, it pisses you off. Especially because Sam and Bucky are laughing in the back and you can so hear them. Tony isn't plummeting the kid into the ground and Morgan isn't beating him up like she said she would if she ever saw him. The biggest betrayal is that Peter isn't showering you with love like he said he would if he ever saw him. So you do the only thing you can.

"I don't want a lot for Christmas," you begin, belting the line out. Make 'em jealous and give 'em a show. So once you've reached the middle of the first verse, you turn to Peter and hold his chin in your hand. "I just want you for my own."

By the end of it, you realize you've been belting every note by yourself. Which seems right because nobody seems to know how to sing. It would rude to steal the thunder from your amazing vocals. You also realize how upset Des looks, noticing the same look of jealousy he used to have when you'd make new friends or how his face turned red much like it did when you'd both argue. So as Tony was saying goodbye on everyone's behalf, you left a big kiss on Peter's lips after making sure Des was watching. Putting on a show is just something Stark's enjoy more than anything.

"What the fuck was that?" May asks.

"He was some stupid guys I used to date Freshman through Junior year. Broke up with him because he was a possessive cheater. I liked his sister so the breakup was tough because I was essentially breaking up with them too. The rest of his family, not so much."

"He was a little shit. The night Y/N came to me crying he had the audacity to show up at the old tower and ask for her forgiveness and he got mad at me for not letting him in. I was so ready to aim a repulsor at the kid," Tony rants. You chuckle, shaking your head. Almost as if to shake the memories away.

The rest of the night was a breeze. Singing Christmas carols was fun and everyone seemed to have a good time. By the end of it, Tony decided to buy out a nearby Denny's. You are all seated in a big booth, Peter sitting next to you. May sits on Peter's other side next to Happy. You rest your head on Peter's shoulder as he looks over at one of the menus. Your hand rests on his, wanting to be as close to him as possible. When you look over, you see May smiling at the two of you, the close proximity of being with each other making her heart melt. She always wanted Peter to be happy and to have things he never had before. A family being one of those things. Seeing the big family the two have become a part of made her happier than anything ever could.

"How does it feel having to trade in a big family of in-laws for just one in-law?" May asks you, referring back to Des.

"I mean, at the time it was great because the Avengers were really becoming much closer at that point and before it was just me and Dad. Then Pepper came along and it felt great having a mother back. So having a large family of in-laws was cool at the time. But then when the Avengers were really getting closer and more people were coming along, I felt content with the big growing family I had," you explain, noticing how May leans on her two elbows to look at you better. "So it made the breakup slightly easier. Steve is the big caring uncle, Bucky and Sam are the annoying brothers who protect me, Wanda is the cool sister who I can joke around with about anything. Nat is the cool wine aunt who gives me alcohol and the rest are all uncles to me. When Peter came along, I knew from the get-go he wasn't gonna end up being like a brother to me. I thought he was the cutest shit to walk the planet and I wasn't scared to open up like I thought I would be. Then when I met you I just knew you'd be a great mother-in-law. So, it may just be the two of you but I have a big family to back me up and you guys do too. Because we're all family here."

You notice May's eyes go red and Peter is slightly shaking. Not noticeably shaking, but you can only slightly feel it. He pulls you closer to him, pressing a kiss to your forehead. May goes back to talking to Happy.

"You know, you're pretty badass," Peter whispers into your ear. You shiver at the closeness and because it slightly tickled too.

"Yeah?"

"I don't know how I got lucky with you, but Des was stupid and he didn't deserve you. I'm glad you picked me of all people."

"You're all I want, Parker."

Please leave feedback/requests. Send me asks or just come talk to me!!

[ladylynse]

For @sapphireswimming because she’s a wonderful human being (as anyone who interacts with her knows) and because I wanted to thank her for donating to my newly-created ko-fi. Enjoy some SuperPhantom!

It was a routine hunt, a simple salt ‘n’ burn--except most kids Dean runs across are scared of ghosts once they find out they’re real, and this girl most definitely isn’t. [FF | AO3]

Sam would be fine on his own.

Dean knew that.

This wasn’t the first time they’d had to split up on a hunt.

It wouldn’t be the last.

But it would have been nice if Cas or someone else were around to watch Sammy’s back. He’d drawn graveyard duty and was busy uncovering the remains of Judith Cooper, which meant if Dean didn’t provide a suitable distraction, the ghost would be on his ass the moment she realized what they were doing. And he was fine with drawing the ghost’s attention to himself if it kept her away from Sam and everyone else, but he also preferred to do it when there weren’t kids around who could get caught in the crossfire.

And that girl they’d seen sneaking around earlier had just ducked around the back of the old Cooper place, disappearing into the shadows so quickly he’d have never seen her if he hadn’t been keeping an eye out.

With a huff, Dean stuffed the extra rock salt rounds into his jacket, shut the trunk, and followed her. He didn’t want to yell; it would either spook her or alert Casper-the-not-so-friendly-ghost to the fact that they were here, and that was the last thing he wanted.

The kid was the reason he and Sam had split up in the first place. It would’ve been far safer for the two of them to handle the salt ‘n’ burn together—and a lot faster, too, when it came to the grave digging part, for all that he’d helped get a start on it before leaving—but they’d spotted the girl poking around earlier. More than once. Casual inquiries around town when asking about Judith’s other victims—that is, the recent missing teens who had last been seen in the area and the two confirmed kills that looked like suicides—hadn’t turned up anything solid on who this girl actually was.

Dean was suspicious, but Sam’s bleeding heart had him wanting to give her the benefit of the doubt. There was no question that this was a ghost thing—aside from seeing Judith themselves, the EMF meter lit up like crazy all over her old house—but they had no idea if activity had spiked before or after the kid had shown up. (Sam hadn’t been able to find any patterns or new activity related to the old Cooper residence in his research that could account for her resurgence, and Dean hadn’t come across anything from his interviews with various townsfolk.) If this kid was the one to disturb the peace, she was damned lucky she wasn’t already dead like the others. If she was trying to control the ghost, she had no idea what she was getting into and they’d need to stop her. And if she was just a runaway who thought a so-called haunted house could be a safe haven, they needed to correct her, fast.

There was no sign of the kid by the time he got to the back door, but it was open, and Dean had no illusions about where he’d find her. He unslung the shotgun and held it at the ready (safety on till he had either the ghost or the kid in his sights) as he crept inside, not sure whether he expected to hear footsteps or screams. His flashlight beam didn’t catch on anything out of the ordinary, but—

“What are you doing here?”

Dean cursed and spun, leveling the shotgun at the girl’s head before he realized she wasn’t the threat and lowering it. He hadn’t seen her approach, hadn’t even heard her, and that spoke volumes considering the creaking floorboards in this place. Had he really been that distracted?

The girl didn’t seem fazed by any of this, only drawing herself up taller and repeating herself. She came up to his chest and looked even younger than he’d been thinking. What was she, twelve? She looked like she should be in bed at this time of night, not skulking around abandoned buildings.

“Believe it or not, I’m protecting you.”

The girl snorted. “Not,” she said. “A normal gun isn’t going to do anything against ghosts.”

She had a lot to learn if she didn’t know the difference between a normal shotgun and one that had been sawed off, never mind how it was loaded, but that was just as well. It was better that kids her age didn’t know that difference yet, especially if the reason they learned was because they were caught in something like this. And even if she knew there was a ghost here—and truly believed there was a ghost here—he doubted she knew how to protect herself. Those baggy clothes might be concealing some kind of weapon, but since her hands were empty, it was far more likely she’d come here uninformed and unprepared.

“The rounds are packed with salt.”

“Which is supposed to do what, exactly? A ghost isn’t going to have some compulsive urge to count all the salt grains or anything. That’s, I dunno, vampires or fairies or something like that.”

Well, that confirmed that she hadn’t been raised in the hunting life, at least. “They’ll pack a punch. Now are you going to be a good little girl and get the hell out of here to save your own skin?”

The girl raised her eyebrows. “Are you kidding me? If I leave, you’re going to get yourself killed.”

Right.

Like he was the one who was uninformed and unprepared.

“If you know so much, then fill me in on what we’re dealing with here.”

The girl shrugged. “Standard ghost stuff. Former human still tied to something in this world. Strong enough to cause trouble but too weak to leave this place or consistently maintain a corporeal form.” She cocked her head at him. “You should know that if you think you want to be a ghost hunter.”

He rolled his eyes. “Just stay behind me.” He’d stick her in a circle of salt if he didn’t think she’d be stupid enough to leave it the moment he turned his back, but she wasn’t scared, and if she wasn’t scared, she wouldn’t listen to him. He had a better chance of keeping her alive when she thought she was invincible if he could at least see what idiotic stunt she was trying to pull. “Maybe you can learn something.”

“That would require me to know less than you about this.”

He could kill her later. Right now, he had to keep her alive. And then make Sam deal with her and her snarky remarks.

Dean turned to keep exploring, and the girl followed. This time, he could hear her footsteps. Which was impressive, considering she hadn’t shut up yet. “Judy thinks she’s doing the right thing, you know. Just like you are. This isn’t about retribution or anything. She thinks she’s doing these kids a favour. Freeing them. So they don’t have to suffer.”

Judith should’ve shown herself by now. He’d been here long enough, and the kid wasn’t exactly quiet.

Dean pulled the EMF meter out of his pocket and turned it on. It squealed, instantly lighting up red. The ghost was close.

“At least you have some tech with you. You aren’t completely incompetent. You know they’ve got less noisy things than that, though, right?”

“Just watch your back,” Dean growled, snapping off the EMF meter and tucking it away. “We’re gonna have company at any moment.”

“Assuming that thing is reliable.”

“It’s reliable.”

“Are you sure about that?”

“I trust it more than I trust you.” But he still couldn’t see anything. Couldn’t feel any cold spots. The flashlight beam held steady as he played it along the walls, ducking into one room and then the next. Judith’s last victim had supposedly hung themselves, tying a rope to the second floor banister and jumping. Maybe the ghost was upstairs again, biding her time till round two. Waiting for them to walk into whatever trap was already set.

“I’m going to save your sorry butt when you screw up. It’s not.”

“Are you gonna give it a rest?”

“Are you gonna leave and let me handle this?” At Dean’s incredulous sputter, the girl nodded. “Yeah, that’s what I thought.”

“You’re not protecting me!”

“So you say. But you’re the one who has this backwards. Seriously, who goes up against ghosts armed with salt?”

Dean didn’t bother to dignify that with an answer and instead headed for the stairs. If the kid wasn’t going to listen, fine. He’d save her skin anyway. She might not be so lippy once the ghost actually showed.

He’d worry if it weren’t for the EMF reading. He hadn’t helped Sam with the grave digging for as long as he would’ve liked; Sam had been too worried about Little Miss Know-It-All here to let him stay. But the cemetery Judith was buried in wasn’t far from here, and if she had realized that Sam was the real threat—

The girl gasped the moment Dean’s foot hit the second floor. “She’s here.”

He couldn’t see her, but that didn’t mean the kid hadn’t seen something. Ghosts could be damned fast. “Keep your eyes peeled. She cou—”

“Duck!”

The girl tackled him with surprising strength, sending them both into the floor. She was on her feet first, fists clenched at her side as she faced down the ghost at the end of the hall. The old wooden chair Judith had thrown in their direction lay in pieces at the top of the stairs. The flashlight flickered a few feet away, but Dean had no idea where his shotgun had landed.

“Stop hurting people,” the girl demanded, “or I’ll stop you.”

Dean groaned. As far as threats went, that definitely needed work. Then again, she was a kid. And a stupid one at that, goading a ghost when she didn’t have any weapons on her. He grabbed the flashlight and swept it in a wide arc, but it gave out before he could see anything. He hadn’t heard the gun fall down the stairs, but it could’ve slid into one of the other rooms—

“I just want to help you,” Judith cooed. Dean cursed and lunged forward, towards the kid, but the ghost was faster, standing over her in the blink of an eye. “There’s so much danger out there. Wouldn’t you rather if I kept you safe?”

Judith hadn’t sounded like as much of a basket case when they’d read up on her life, but dying could do that to you. Dean fingered the half bag of salt he had in the pocket opposite the spare salt rounds. She’d disperse when it hit her, but the effect wouldn’t last long, and she’d be pissed once she reformed. On the upside, she’d be pissed at him and not trying to get the kid to join her in death. On the downside, he couldn’t even see anything made of iron that he could use as a makeshift weapon, and—

“I think I can help myself, thanks.” The girl stepped back. “You probably haven’t heard of me. I’d guess you haven’t heard of my cousin, either. But, believe me, I can take you down without breaking a sweat. It’ll be a lot easier on all of us if you just give up now.”

Dean had no idea what the kid was talking about, but he didn’t have time to figure out if there was any truth in what she’d said. Judith’s face contorted into a snarl as she flew forward and—

Dean blinked.

The afterimage left by the blinding green light was still seared into his eyes.

Maybe the kid had a hidden weapon after all.

“Dude, what the hell was that?”

“My secret weapon,” the girl said flippantly as she turned back to Dean. “You find your useless excuse for a weapon yet, Mr. I-Don’t-Need-Protecting?”

Whatever it had been, it wouldn’t hold Judith off for long. “Look, I’ve got enough salt to make a small circle, and if you stand inside—”

“So that’s a no.” The kid crossed her arms. “That’s what I thought.”

And that’s what he’d thought: that she wouldn’t go for it. At least he could tell Sam he’d tried. “You think you’re invincible because you got lucky just now?”

“No, I know I can handle myself because I’ve done it before. I’m still not entirely convinced that you have, by the way.”

Sammy oughta be close by now. Whether he liked it or not, he’d have to draw the ghost out to keep her focus on them. He didn’t like the idea of using the kid as bait, even when he didn’t particularly like her, but she could clearly handle herself for a few seconds if things went sideways. “Just be ready for when she comes back,” he growled, turning to look for the shotgun again. As soon as he had Judith focused on him, the kid would be in the clear, and it wouldn’t take long for Sam to torch Judith once he uncovered her casket. And then they could put this place in their rear-view mirror and forget about it.

The shotgun had slid into the bedroom. Dean walked in to grab it, and the door slammed shut behind him. “Hey!” No amount of twisting and pulling on the doorknob made any difference. This was Judith’s doing. He’d walked right into her trap. And the kid was out there on her own, secret weapon or no secret weapon. “Son of a bitch,” Dean muttered. The door opened inward, not outward, so he wouldn’t have much luck trying to slam into it to break it down. He might be able to make a hole using something else—the wood didn’t seem terribly strong, probably a hollow door rather than solid, and if he was lucky for once, that old bedframe might actually have some iron in it—but that would take time.

And he wasn’t likely to be able to force the door open until the ghost was distracted.

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you!” the girl called, and he wasn’t entirely sure whether she was talking to him or to the ghost. He planted his foot on the wall beside the door and started to pull on the handle, just in case.

There was another green flash, followed by screaming.

He didn’t know whose it was until the door started to give. “C’mon,” he growled. If the series of thuds were anything to go by, Judith was throwing things at the kid. He wasn’t convinced the kid wasn’t throwing things back, for all the good that would do her. There was a larger, heavier thud that sounded like it came from right outside the door, and it snapped shut again, sealing before he even had a chance to see what was going on.

He didn’t need to see everything to guess that the kid had just taken a header into the wall, though.

“This is for your own good,” Judith was saying. “I just want to save you.”

There was another flash, white this time, and—thankfully—the kid’s sharp retort. “Save yourself, you crazy fruit loop.”

“Hurry up, Sammy,” Dean mumbled. “I don’t know how much longer this kid’s going to last.” There were more green flashes, and he could feel Judith’s grip on the door start to loosen, but—

Another crash, and this time the door came down on top of him. Dean wasn’t sure if the white light he saw this time was the same as before or just a side effect from everything else. He groaned and wiggled out from underneath the door. Judith was already there, standing over the kid, and she was out cold.

Well.

Hopefully out cold and not out of the game for good.

Dean’s fingers closed on the half package of salt, and he tossed it in Judith’s direction. Her image wavered and vanished as the salt cut through her, giving him a few precious seconds to catch his breath and check on the kid. He could find a pulse, weak but definitely there, and that’s all he cared about right now. Injuries could be dealt with later. Grabbing his shotgun from the floor, he stood up and stood guard.

“You still want to save her?” He heard Judith before he saw her. He turned, and she vanished, reappearing behind him. “You don’t even know what she is.”

“Still like my idea of saving her better than yours,” Dean shot back, pivoting to keep her in his sights.

“But she doesn’t belong with you.” He took a shot, but Judith had already moved. “She belongs with me.”

Judith’s idea of arguing her point involved her trying to bring the ceiling fan down on him. She managed to clip him as he dove out of the way, and then she was back over the kid. He fumbled to get in another shot—

And then she screamed, louder than before, as flames erupted from her chest. She reached down for the kid anyway, but the girl was more resilient than Dean had given her credit for; she was conscious enough to roll out of the way. The ghostly firelight was reflected in the kid’s wide blue eyes as she stared.

When Judith was nothing more than ash and the forgotten flashlight had flickered back to life, the girl met his eyes with a weak smile. “I take it back. I guess you do know a thing or two about hunting ghosts.”

“You’re not so bad yourself, kid,” he admitted grudgingly as he offered her a hand.

She took it and let him pull her to her feet. “Dani,” she said.

“Dean.” He could see the careful way she held herself as easily as he could see the wound from her head dripping blood down the left side of her face. “Come with me. We’ll meet up with my brother and get you fixed up.”

“I’m fine.”

“You’re not.”

“I’ll be fine.”

“You’ll be better if you let us help you. You wanna go home to your parents like that?”

She rolled her eyes. “I’ll be fine.”

He frowned. “You don’t have parents, do you?”

“I’m not having this conversation.” She tried to walk out, but he grabbed her arm.

“Listen, kid, this might not have been your first tango with a ghost, but if you want to keep breathing, let me help you.”

“I don’t need your help!”

“You can’t do this by yourself,” he snapped. “Whether you want to hunt or not—and, god, don’t get into this life if you don’t have to—you need someone to watch your back. Sam and I have a friend up in Sioux Falls. Jody. She’ll take you in, no questions asked. Give you a roof over your head. A proper home.”

“I’m not some stray you need to deal with.”

“No, but you’re a girl who’s in over her head, and you won’t be the first one Jody’s helped out. So either cough up the names and addresses of some family members or I’m giving Jody a call.” She opened her mouth, and he added, “And I’m not stupid. I’m going to be checking it out first to make sure you’re telling the truth before I drop you anywhere.”

Her mouth snapped shut.

“That’s what I thought.”

He didn’t trust the girl not to pull some disappearing act, but when she followed him to the Impala and climbed in with nothing more than a silent, sulky show of protest, he started to think that Sam was right. She was just a girl who wanted—needed—help, and on some level she must have recognized that or she wouldn’t have come with him.

Of course, she also probably thought she could take him if she had to, but the kid was nothing if not cocky and overconfident. She likely wouldn’t think any different once she met Sam, either, even though she should.

She’d get along well with Jody and her girls.

(see more fics)

[afimi-mi]

all the odd #s

Wow, interesting..! Answer as many as 50 questions... Well, let's go!

1. What is you middle name?

My middle name is Filatova! In Russian it is similar to the word "owl"! ( ˙꒳​˙ )

3. When is your birthday?

May 24! (≧▽≦)

5. What is your favorite color?

I like so many colors.. But most of all I love pink, blue and white!❤💙

7. Do you have any pets?

Yes, I have a Yorkshire Terrier named Casper! 🐕

Nothing that I am going to attach a photo? He's just so cute...(´,,•ω•,,)♡

9. How tall are you?

I'm the lowest of my friends.. 158 cm ≈ 5'2 (´-ω-`)

11. How many pairs of shoes do you own?

Oh, I don't even know..I can only remember 10 pairs 🤔

13. What talents do you have?

Probably drawing..? I'm not bad at painting..🎨

I'll also attach a couple of my works, I hope you don't mind..?(„ಡωಡ„)

15. Favorite song?

This is a very difficult question! I have so many favorite bands and songs, sometimes my favorite song is one and sometimes another. Today I'm in the mood for songs Gone.Fludd! o( ❛ᴗ❛ )o

I love the song "Crash Bash"!🎶

17. Who would be your ideal partner?

Mean a love partner..? Idate (￣▽￣*)ゞ

19. Do you want a church wedding?

I'm not religious, so no? Sounds very interesting, though..🤔

21. Have you ever been to the hospital?

I was a very sickly child, so yes, I was often taken to the hospital.. Luckily, now everything is better (o˘◡˘o)

23. Have you ever met any celebrities?

No, though once in my city came quite populary artist (he once lived here) but I missed the concert because I was sick o(TヘTo)

25. What color socks are you wearing?

Blue cute socks!! 🐻

God, I add too many pics, but just look at them!! o(≧▽≦)o

27. Would you like to be a big celebrity?

Even know..On the one hand, it's cool, you have a lot of money, and you can buy good gifts to friends and family, provide for the family. You will have a lot of fans who will always support you...But there will also be haters, and I'm a little shy of a lot of attention to myself...(•ิ_•ิ)

29. Have you ever been skinny dipping?

Lol what? You mean the sea? Not

31. What position do you usually sleep in?

I love sleeping and hugging the pillow! I have one huge one, when i sleep I like to imagine it's Idate..(*ﾉ∀`*)

33. What do you typically have for breakfast?

I love to drink tea and eat fruit bars! And a slice of lemon 💕🍋💕

35. Have you ever tried archery?

Just a toy. But it would be cool to try to shoot from real archery..ヽ(°〇°)ﾉ

37. Favorite swear word?

Oh, I don't have any favorite sweat word..I don't really like those words..

39. Do you have any scars?

Yes, I was very clumsy in my childhood. I've fallen a lot, so I still have little pale scars on my knees.. And one day I fell off the swing and I smashed my face, and there's a little invisible scar on my cheek that's almost gone!

41. Are you a good liar?

Terribly bad. I don't really like to lie, but when I try to get nervous and blush..😵

43. Can you do any other accents other than your own?

My English teacher was always unhappy with my pronunciation, so no..(｡•́︿•̀｡)

45. What is your favorite accent?

I like the sound of French and Japanese! 🇫🇷🇯🇵

47. What is your most expensive piece of clothing?

I never really remember the prices, and the clothes I have are not branded, so it is not worth a lot.. But all I can think of is a jacket for 1500 rubles (~23$)👚

49. Are you an innie or an outie?

The translator did not clearly translate this question, so I do not know how to answer, sorry! (•ิ_•ิ)

51. Are you scared of spiders?

Yes! I'm terrified of spiders..Once I saw one in the kitchen and I almost fainted..god.. \(º □ º l|l)/

53. Favorite foreign food?

Oh..Sushi? They're delicious!(*´▽`*)

55. Most used phrased?

Um.. "You okay?", "Look at this cute dog!!", "I want summer.."

57. How long does it take for you to get ready?

Not so much! I don't wear makeup, and I have short hair that doesn't need to be braided! I'm getting ready fast enough👌

59. Do you suck or bite lollipops?

I'm afraid to bite lollipops because I have fragile teeth, so suck it! ( ˙꒳​˙ )

61. Do you sing to yourself?

I like to sing lines of songs when I clean or draw..Of course I'm singing in my head!

63. Biggest Fear?

To disappoint the people who believe in me the most..σ(￣、￣〃)

65. Best dramatic movie you've seen?

Once I was flipping through the channels on TV and came across a movie where the story of a young girl with cancer. I watched it only from the middle and this movie really touched me.. I cried several times during the most tragic moments..! (ಥ﹏ಥ)

67.Can you name all 50 states of America?

To be honest

I don't know any of them

69. Extrovert or Introvert?

An introvert! Although with friends I turn into an extrovert ヽ(>∀

71. What makes you nervous?

There are actually a lot of things that make me nervous..When strangers talk to me, when the Internet disappears, when I can not draw something or when I see an insect..(×_×)

73. Do you correct people when they make mistakes?

Not in public. But if he's a good friend of mine, I'll be sure to tell him when it's just the two of us

75. Have you ever started a rumor?

Probably not..? I never really talked about anyone, so no..

77. Have you ever drink underage?

When I was 15 years old, my parents poured me some beer, but it was so bitter that I still do not want to drink..Also, I was allowed to taste the wine, and it was more delicious, but I still do not really like alcohol..┐( ´ д ` )┌

79. Who was your first real crush?

Well..to tell you the truth, in class 6, I fell in love with my friend and I was very embarrassed... I was sad because no one ever told me girls could date girls and I felt like it was bad ( >.

But last summer, I suddenly remembered that, and it turns out she loved me at the time, too..But now between us only friendly feelings \(＾∀＾)メ(＾∀＾)ノ

81. Can you roll your Rs?“

W..what is Rs...? (•ิ. •ิ)

83. How fast can you run?

I never thought about how fast I run..I had an average in gym class 。。。ミヽ(。＞＜)ノ

85. What color is your eyes?

Gray-blue.. I like the color of my eyes..💙

87. Do you keep a journal?

Yes! I have a nice diary, I like to write there! I have a lot of stickers and decorative tape, and colored pens and glitter!✨🎉

89. Do you like your age?

Um..Probably yes? Although I want to go back to early childhood..(っ˘ω˘ς )

91. Do you like your own name?

Yes! Anya..I like the way it sounds like a kitten yawning!🐈

93. Do you want a boy a girl for a child?

I don't want kids in reality..I have enough children with Idate, I love them very much! (๑˃ᴗ��)ﻭ

95. What are your weaknesses?

When people say I'm good and cool or buy me a snack..But my biggest weakness is stroking my head and hugging.. ÚwÚ

97. Were your ancestors royalty?

I've always been interested in my pedigree, but I never really looked, but now I'm interested again..w(°ｏ°)w

99. Color of your bedspread?

Pink! Love my bed..🛌

Ohh, here we go..What a long post, hope it doesn't make you uncomfortable...(´-ω-`)

Also, thank you very much! Have a nice day!!

[cddump]

Again (Sitting Three, 2426 words)

The movers were at least kind enough to place Casper's heavier furniture in the proper places they had discussed beforehand. It had cost a bit extra but he wouldn't have been able to set everything up by himself and having the movers wait for him to help wasn't an option. Casper stood from the doorway and flicked the light switch. The darkness that had encased his living room lifted in an instant, and the brightness revealed his couch and television sitting proudly in their places. A few cardboard boxes sat on the corner, but he ignored them for now and headed into the room to the right. The two-bedroom apartment was chosen specify so Casper could convert one of the rooms into a work office, and as he entered that room his desk was already set up against the wall. All that was missing was the monitor and computer. On the opposing wall from the computer desk was a slanted wooden drawing desk. It's shape and size were perfect for its purpose and he was happy to see it in one piece. More cardboard boxes lined the wall and Casper greedily opened them with the box cutter he had stashed in his bag before the trip started. He peered inside and was satisfied with the condition of his computer, monitor, and drawing tablet. If those key items survived the trip, then there was no doubt his printer and scanner had fared just as well. Instead of opening the rest of the boxes, 

Casper investigated the rest of the apartment for himself and returned to the living room. This was his home now, but it all felt so alien. The silent stillness of it all was off-putting, and despite having most of his furniture already set up, it still looked eerily empty. It was also obvious the place had just been cleaned, as the sterile odor of cleaning agents was all he could smell. It made him dizzy, like the smell within an overbearing and enclosed new car. Casper opened the window that was on the same wall as the TV to let in some of the night's cold air. As soon as he slid the window upwards, a stiff gust hit his face, and he couldn't help but enjoy the brisk breeze. Casper turned around. The small and narrow kitchen was behind a chest high wall. He would be able to watch television while using the stove, and it reminded him of a bar. Albeit a small and cheap one, with a pantry hidden away in the corner for storage. Opposite of his work office was his own bedroom. The office had a bathroom next to its doorway, but this apartment was seemingly designed with a 'master bedroom' in mind and had a small bathroom attached to it deeper in. Inside the bedroom, his bed had been placed against the wall, with a much smaller television placed opposite of it on top of his dresser. “So much for a grand tour,” he mumbled. Still, he couldn't help but smile to himself. The apartment was small, but it was all he needed. For now, he needed to start unpacking. A sudden ring filled the apartment as Casper wiped sweat from his forehead. He had lost track of how long he had been unpacking for, but was surprised with how much he had managed to get done. His ringing phone sat on the coffee table, which he quickly answered happily after seeing the name displayed. “Hello.” Despite how happy he was to see his sister calling him, his tired nature took priority and Casper couldn't work up any enthusiasm for the greeting. “Hey, Casper!” Crystal's voice responded through the line, “how's the move coming?” Casper yawned loudly and with purpose. “That bad, huh?” “It's not terrible, actually. But I can tell it's going to take me a while to get used to this.” “Mmm. That's how it was for me and Zoey too. Think you'll get any sleep tonight?”      “I'll try but it doesn't look likely,” he answered as he rubbed his eyes. “It's a new place entirely. My body needs time to get used it too.” “Well I hope you do. You still have those piano CDs, right?” “Yeah. I'll play them if I can't get any sleep. Hopefully that'll work.” “Is that Casp?” A third voice asked through the line. “Ah, yeah it is,” Crystal said, away from the phone. “Lemme talk to him, lemme talk to him! Hi Casper!” The high pitched voice grew louder with the last two words as Zoey spoke directly into the phone. Casper could mentally see Crystal trying to wrestle the phone back away from her roommate. “Hey Zoey, what's up?” “Forget me, what's up with you? How's the place?” “Quiet, actually.” Zoey made a grunt, one Casper recognized. “Did my sister tackle you to the ground?” “She's mean!” “Give me my phone!” Crystal's voice was in the background and Casper smiled to himself. “Uh-oh. Gotta go, Casp! Byeeeeee!” “Hello?” Crystal said, her voice directly in line with the phone. “Hi, yeah.” “Sorry about that. Anyway, I'm sure you'll get used to the place soon. We gotta visit you at some point too!” “I'd like that.” “Have you made any friends yet? I know it's been less than a day, but still.” “...Well. I wouldn't really call him a 'friend,' but I ran into my neighbor." “Oh yeah? Friendly guy?” “I guess. I think he's a little crazy, but harmless. I hope.” “What do you mean?” “He thinks aliens are after him. That's why he lives on the ground floor.” “...What?” “Or, wait no, he's looking for molemen? And is digging a tunnel to find them? I'm not sure, he was hard to follow.” “Sounds creepy. Have fun with that one.” “I'm sure I will.” “Alright. I was just calling to check in on you, so I'm gonna let you go.” “For sure.” “Call if you need anything, alright?” “Mm-hmm.” “Goodnight, bro.” “I sure hope it will be. Goodnight. Tell Zoey bye for me too.” “Right. Later.” The phone went quiet after that, and Casper stood up to stretch. He had been unpacking for long enough, and he decided to try and get some sleep. After a quick swap of clothing, Casper pulled the covers off his bed and slid in before closing his eyes. He emptied his mind, and waited. The tiredness he felt from traveling weighed down on him like a ton of bricks. His feet were sore from being cramped behind crowded train seats and cold walks through the night. His arms felt as if they were being pulled down by jugs of water, and his head pounded from lack of sleep. Yet, hours passed and nothing happened. He lay there with his eyes closed, waiting for rest that simply would not come. And he knew it wouldn't. He sat up and reached for the music player he had unpacked. His heavy finger pressed down on the play button and smoothing piano and violin notes filled the room. Again, Casper tried. He flipped the pillow over and placed his head on the cool sheet, letting the waves of music wash over him. Another hour passed with no rest to be found. The music had reached its end twenty minutes ago and began to repeat itself, but Casper knew there was nothing he could do. Instead, he stood in irritation and put a jacket on over his sleeping shirt. Sweatpants and slippers would do for what he had planned. He made his way to the kitchen and poured himself a glass of water from the faucet before downing it quickly. Casper grabbed his phone and key before heading out into the building's hallway. Usually Casper would take walks around the block in this situation. It rarely helped, but was better than suffering in bed. However, his feet hurt too much for that and he didn't know this area well enough anyway, so instead he opted to head to the roof of the apartment complex for a change of scenery. Casper walked down the hallway and was thankful to find an elevator. The idea of walking up stairs pained him and he was happy to take the easy way out. He pressed the button against the wall and was surprised when the doors opened instantly. The elevator was completely empty as Casper entered it, and as it ascended he checked his phone. Three in the morning. Crystal had called him at eleven, which meant he spent four hours trying to sleep. He sighed as the elevator halted, and the doors quickly opened for him. The night sky was still dark, though from here the stars were harder to spot thanks to the city lights. The roof's ledges were walled away by a tall chain link fence, and as stepped into the darkness, another gust of wind struck him. “Hey, dude,” came a call. Casper raised an eyebrow. There were lamp posts scattered across the rooftop, and a man walked under the light of one. “Oh, it's you.” “What's with that greeting, man?!” Alex cried. “You should be happier to see me.” “Sorry. I'm tired.” Casper walked towards Alex, who sat on a foldable chair before pointing to a stack of them. “Can't sleep, huh? Pull up a chair, my man.” “Thanks. And no I can't. Not a wink.” Casper placed his own chair next to Alex's. They were facing the fenced ledge over-viewing the city. The streets were empty, and Casper could see some poor bastard at a red light. There was no other cars or traffic, yet the light refused to turn green for him. “Weird.” “...What?” “I said that's weird. This place is super quiet since we're away from the main road. People never have trouble sleeping here.” “Mmm.” “You one of them insomniacs, bro?” Casper sighed heavy as he rubbed his eyes. “Yeah.” “Oh, you are? I was bluffing. Thought you were like me.” “Like you?” “I take twenty minute naps every two hours. It's the most efficient sleep schedule for humans. Plus it keeps you away from the government's designated sleeping hours so they can't brainwash you.” Casper couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of it all. “I'm serious man. I wouldn't be surprised if they tried to brainwash you but failed. That's probably why you have insomnia, you know. Government diddlyed you over.” “Whatever. Do me a favor and don't tell anyone, alright?” “Word. ...wait, why?” Before Casper could answer, the elevator opened once again. “Oh, she's here. I told you I was meeting with someone, didn't I? Don't worry, you can stick around. You're cool enough to pick this up. Cuz you're smart. Like me.” A woman stepped out of the elevator and made her way to the two men. From the limited light available, Casper could see the woman's brown hair was long and straight, though a newsboy cap sat on her head. Her amber eyes pierced through the night as she stared at Alex. “Hello there, miss Chase. How are we this fine evening?” “Damn it, Alex. I should have known better than to take another job from you,” the woman answered as she pulled out a lighter and a pack of cigarettes from her pocket. She gazed sideways at Casper. “Nice bedhead. Mom couldn't comb your hair?” She said. “Nice hat,” he snapped back in tired irritation, “sold enough newspapers for that bike yet?” Chase smiled back earnestly. “Whoa hey, calm down you two,” Alex told them, “Dude, she isn't like us. She needs sleep to function. She gets cranky if she's up this late. And Chase, take it easy, my bro's got amnesia.” “Insomnia,” Casper corrected him. “And I told you not to tell people that.” “But why not? No shame, my man!” “I just don't want to be known as 'that dude with insomnia, alright?” “Hey!” Chase clapped her hands twice loudly before placing the cigarette in her mouth. “I got a job to do. Alex, what the diddly, man? I thought we agreed no more goose chases?” “So it was a dead end too, huh?” Alex asked as Chase lit her cigarette. The burning tip glowed in the night's darkness. “No shit. Hey, 'bro,' you smoke?” Chase tilted her pack towards Casper, but he held his hand in protest. “Nah. I appreciate it though. And I go by Casper. Casper Donn.” “I'm Chase Conner. Here, my card.” Chase reached into her back pocket and handed him a slim white card. It read 'Chase Conner, Private Investigator,' and listed her work address and phone number. “You're a PI?” “That a problem?” “No. Actually I think it's kinda cool.” “It really isn't as glamorous as you think it is. More often than not I just check on cheating spouses or try to find someone's lost cat. Don't even get me started on the jobs this idiot's set up for me.” “I would     love     to hear about the jobs this this idiot's set up for you.” “Hey man, that's not cool,” Alex interrupted. “What about client confidentiality, huh?” “Meh,” Chase shrugged, “just as a taste, this last job involved me chasing a squirrel with a tracking chip Alex placed on it.” “...A squirrel?” “He thinks aliens domesticated all of Earth's and are using them to steal people's prescription meds. Then the squirrels take the medication to their mothership. By the way, Alex. The squirrel you tagged? I found it dead in a river.” “Damn it!” Alex hissed, “they were two steps ahead of us!” “If you know this guy's a nut, why take jobs from him?” “The first gig he set up was an accidental victory,” Chase responded. “He thought there was an underground mutant flea market or something below the sewers on the outskirts of town. I thought he was full of shit but when I went down there I found a huge drug operation. I reported that to the police and was given a nice reward. From then on I figured he might be lucky and might keep accidentally finding good scoops for me.” “How's that worked out for you?” “It hasn't. Speaking of which. Alex?” “Yeah?” “I'm blacklisting you. Don't bother calling for a job, cuz I'm not taking anymore from you.” “Shiiit, really?” “Yeah, really. Good to meet you, Casper. Give me a call if you need my services.” Casper nodded, and Chase walked towards the staircases, opting to walk down with her cigarette. “Damn it,” Alex cursed, “the squirrels must have gotten to her.”