#it’s the end of LL draft one

[scribble-dee-vee]

Announcing to the void that it is 12/4, and I have written THIRTEEN THOUSAND WORDS since the start of this month. That’s the update. Just wanted to share bc this is ostensibly a writing blog aksjfkdkfj

[tojiscrack]

are you alive, are you okay?

( ^ you, i think )

me after ^

first of all, i’m not dead… 😤

i nearly died 🙄

i logged off of tumblr since the end of jan thanks for noticing EVERYONE 😒 except for erenismybbg and my mock exam nearly killed me last week, no joke

ran on 0 hours of sleep, 7 mental breakdowns in my room, tripped on the stairs, no satoru, behind on content, experiencing withdrawals, finally got my period back — but it’s heavy and a longer cycle than usual — and three exams waiting for me after the half term break 🙂

ty for asking how i’m doing anyway 😭 my line was meant to be ‘yeah i’m doing great!’ but i looked in the mirror, saw my eyebags, and couldn’t even bring myself to lie 😔

on another note, a lovely reader did request a twitter LL thread a while back which i only just got to doing now! will be posting it soon! <3

[rafecameronssl4t]

honestly so inlove with what’s good John b because you wrote it very similarly to what happened in the show (of course with your twists) and I was wondering if you could do one about reader being rafes girlfriend and being there when he shot peterkin and reader being just so shocked and couldn’t believe what he just did

Me and the Devil || Rafe Cameron x fem!reader

GIF by @tetragonia

A/n: this has been sitting in my drafts for toooo long

Warnings: this is a canon fic that is based from s1 ep 9 so if you were uncomfortable watching it, especially towards the end when Rafe k!lls peterkins, please do not read this as I go into detail.

Word count: 1,693

MASTERLIST

Divider by @yoonitos

"Rafe, what are we doing out here?" you ask, your voice tinged with concern as you unbuckle your seatbelt and step out of the car. The sun blazes overhead, casting sharp shadows on the dusty, secluded airstrip, save for the one airplane on the other side.

"I'm just checking something," Rafe replies, attempting to sound casual as he opens the car door. You hesitate for a moment before following him.

"Oh my god, Rafe!" you whisper-yell, your eyes widening as you spot Peterkins aiming her gun at Ward, with Sarah and John B standing behind him. Rafe halts, and both of you watch the tense scene unfold, the gravity of the situation sinking in. "What is going on—" Your question is cut short by the chilling, unmistakable sound of a gun cocking.

You turn, heart hammering in your chest, to see Rafe gripping a gun tightly in his hand. Panic and confusion flood your mind. "Rafe," you whisper, your voice trembling with fear and disbelief. He looks back at you, eyes wild and desperate, a stark contrast to his usual confident demeanor.

"Hey, hey, I'm doing this for us, okay? Just—just stay in the car," he pleads, though his voice is shaky and uncertain. Your breathing quickens, and you can feel the terror rising within you.

"No—no, I'm coming with you," you insist, shaking your head as you step beside him. You clutch at Rafe's shirt, your fingers digging into the fabric as you look at him with wide, fearful eyes. "Please don't do anything stupid," you beg, your voice breaking with emotion. His silence is deafening, amplifying your dread and uncertainty.

Rafe moves stealthily along the side of the airplane, keeping out of sight, and you follow closely, every nerve in your body on edge. The afternoon sun beats down relentlessly, adding to the intensity of the moment.

Suddenly, Peterkins' voice rings out, clear and authoritative, "You're under arrest for the murder of Big John Routledge." A gasp escapes your lips before you can stop it, and Rafe is quick to react. His hand clamps over your mouth, silencing you as he pulls you against his chest.

Your heart races, pounding so loudly as you the situation you are in sinks in. Pressed against Rafe, you can feel his own heart beating rapidly. The realization that he's willing to go to such lengths terrifies you. He removes his hand slowly, but keeps you close, his eyes scanning the scene ahead.

"Stay quiet," he whispers, his voice barely audible. The sound of footsteps and hushed voices reaches your ears, and you can make out the strained expressions on the faces of Ward, Sarah, and John B. Your hand tightens its grip on Rafe's shirt, your body trembling.

The conversation around you fades into an indistinct murmur as your mind races, grappling with the gravity of the situation you and Rafe find yourselves in. Rafe’s muttered curses, “Shit, shit, shit,” barely register in your ears, overshadowed by the pounding of your own heartbeat. You watch in a daze as Ward crumples to his knees. His shoulders sagas he places his hands behind his head in a gesture of surrender.

Peterkins strides forward with a stern expression, her movements deliberate and unyielding. The metallic click of the handcuffs as they close around Ward’s wrists seems unnaturally loud in the silence that envelops you.

Beside you, Rafe’s panic is palpable. His breaths come in quick, shallow gasps. In the blink of an eye, Rafe is moving past you, gun in hand. Your eyes widen in pure terror as the reality of the situation crashes down on you. “Rafe, Rafe! Stop—” you scream, your voice breaking with fear and desperation. But your plea is cut short by the deafening sound of a gunshot.

Instinctively, you block your ears and crouch down on the ground, your body trembling uncontrollably. Your heart pounds so fiercely you can feel it in your throat, each beat echoing in your ears. Over the ringing left by the gunshot, you can hear Sarah’s screams, high-pitched and filled with horror.

You didn’t even realize you were crying until you felt the hot tears streaming down your face, mingling with the sweat and grime of the moment. A shaky breath escapes your lips as you slowly look up, dread gnawing at your insides. Your gaze settles on the scene before you, and an audible sob bursts from your throat.

Sheriff Peterkin is on the ground, a pool of blood spreading out beneath her. The stark crimson against the earth sends a wave of nausea through you. Rafe stands a few feet away, the gun still in his hand, his face a mask of shock and confusion. He had shot her. The reality of it hits you like a physical blow, knocking the breath from your lungs.

Every detail sharpens into painful clarity—the way Peterkin’s body lies still, the glint of the handcuffs now forgotten beside her, the horrified expressions of everyone around. The world seems to contract to this single, unbearable moment. Your sobs come harder now, wracking your body as you struggle to process the horror of what just happened. The gravity of Rafe’s actions sinks in, and you feel a deep, gut-wrenching despair.

Sarah is sobbing uncontrollably as John B holds her close to him, his face a mix of shock and terror. “Rafe, what did you do?” Ward’s voice trembles with a mixture of horror and disbelief as he stares at his son.

Rafe, his eyes wild and manic, lets out a chilling chuckle. “I saved you, Dad,” he says, his voice tinged with a desperate glee. “I saved you!” he yells, his voice echoing in the stillness that follows the gunshot. You stand there, paralyzed, your hands clasped over your mouth in a futile attempt to contain the sobs threatening to escape.

Peterkins coughs, struggling to breathe. John B rushes to her side, desperately trying to stop the bleeding as you stand by, helpless. Your eyes dart to Rafe, his gun still trained on them. You grab his forearm, attempting to lower the weapon, but he remains unmoved, your efforts only eliciting another sob from your lips.

John B clutches Peterkins' radio, when Rafe shouts, "Hey! Hey, wait!" He lunges towards John B, and you fight to restrain him. "Rafe, stop it!" you scream, panic in your voice. "Rafe, no! Rafe!" Ward approaches quickly, his focus on his son. "Don't try it, asshole," Rafe snarls at John B, who swallows hard.

"Rafe—John B, give me the radio," Ward demands, extending his hand. John B hesitates, shaking his head, "No." Sarah's sobs grow louder, her tear-streaked face mirroring your own fear and shock as you look at each other.

"Come on," Ward insists, prying the radio from John B's hands. Rafe keeps his gun aimed, his expression tense. Ward steps in front of him, arm outstretched. "Rafe, I've got it. Calm down."

"He has the radio, Rafe. Put the gun down!" you beg, your voice trembling with desperation. Out of the corner of your eye, you spot John B getting up and running, pulling Sarah with him "Where are you goin'? Huh?" Rafe shouts, pushing past side Ward as he yells out for Sarah.

In an instant, Rafe attempts to run after John B and Sarah, but you and Ward hold him back, pleading with him to calm down. "Where are you going?" he yells, his voice frantic. "Rafe, no!" you scream as he breaks free from your grip and starts shooting at John B and Sarah. "That's your sister, Rafe!" Ward shouts, trying to lower his son's arms.

You rush to Peterkins' body, your clothes now stained a deep crimson red. "I'm sorry," you sob, your shaky hands pressing against the wound. "It's not your fault, sweetie," she weakly whispers, as you continue to cry, "I'm so sorry!"

Rafe is breathing heavily, pacing as he watches you sobbing beside Peterkins. He regrets bringing you along. "Dad, I was trying to—" "Shut up!" Ward yells, his eyes shifting to you as he approaches.

Ward had always been like a father to you, believing you were a good influence on Rafe and treating you like his own daughter. But after what had just happened, you look up at Ward in terror. "Y/N," he says calmly. You don't reply as tears continue to stream down your face.

"I need you to get up," he says softly. "She is dying!" you scream, your voice breaking. "Y/N!" Rafe yells at you, his gaze cold and hard. You flinch under his glare. "What is wrong with you? You just shot somebody, Rafe!" Your voice cracks as he furiously storms up to you.

"You should've stayed in the car like I fucking told you!" he shouts, grabbing your biceps and forcefully pulling you to your feet. "I'm not going until the medics come!" you argue, your voice filled with desperation. "Get her home, Rafe!" Ward yells behind him.

"No, I'm not going!" you insist, trying to shake off Rafe's grip, but it's useless. "Rafe, she needs help!" you scream, thrashing against his hold. "Honey, I'm calling them, look!" Ward shows you the radio, trying to reassure you as Rafe drags you away. "Rafe, please!" you sob, trying to escape his grip as he manhandles you towards the car.

"Shut the fuck up!" he screams, yanking the car door open. "Get in the car." He shoves you aggressively into the seat, and you let out a scream. "Don't move!" he barks, slamming the door. You flinch, pulling your knees to your chest, your body trembling in terror at your unrecognisable boyfriend.

Inside the car, your mind races, fear and helplessness overwhelming you. You look out the window, seeing Ward and Peterkins, feeling utterly powerless.

[sportswriters]

tsunami - w. eklund

pairing: william eklund x reader | fluff, slight angst, a bit suggestive at the end | friends to lovers | wc: 3k+ | warnings: one of the main characters got cheated on in the past | namu's notes: i was WILLING to write a smut for this one but i'm struggling to do it, so i'll post it before ella reads the open ending (she might actually k*ll me). yeah, byeee!!

i'm going under storm, lightning, thunder i'm drowning in the deepest of truths fuck, i think i'm falling for you — tsunami, by niki zefanya

it happened during a gathering with your friends. well, they weren’t around at the time, some of them lost the game you played to decide who would run to the grocery store before the second period started. you and william were left alone in the living room, your legs over his lap on the couch, which he was mindless tracing his fingers on your skin. the commercial playing on tv was something about taking your lover to one of the most beautiful places on earth — valentine’s day was close by. the invitation got lost on the tip of your tongue, that’s when you realized.

"oh gosh."

"what?" he looked at you.

"i like you!"

"you what?"

"i think i'm falling in love with you!"

you were terrifyingly excited over something so sensitive, that’s why william kept his eyes on you, waiting for the laugh telling him it was a joke. but what he got was a shy giggle as you jumped off the couch, covering your face.

he knew you were aware of his issues with romantic feelings, he knew you were aware of his past relationship. what just happened?

"y/n..."

“goodness, this is so fun! i know you're emotionally unavailable, don't worry,” you pointed.

"it’s not that— listen, you just confessed out of nowhere and it looks like i just proposed to you!"

"yes! i finally know how it feels! isn't it great?!"

william frowned, utterly confused by your reaction. he couldn’t get why you were so happy when you knew he didn’t feel the same. his first girlfriend was his first love back in sweden, but things got messy when he got drafted to the nhl. that was when her behavior started to make sense; how she kept on shaming him for being romantic, that he didn’t have to be so performative about his love — even in private. “that’s not the aura of a professional athlete, okay? you’re so charming, try being more cooler towards me, that’ll keep me interested,” she used to say. he was so blinded by his feelings for her that he didn’t realize how alarming that was. he molded his behavior to please her, just to be cheated on with a guy that was cooler than him, the ideal man to just have fun and enjoy popularity. william didn’t know he was molding himself to become a ladder. then when other women looking for fun started showing up in his life, he came to terms with the environment he would live in from that moment on.

“y/n, i’m not ready for this. we talked about it before."

"listen," you paused to look at the door, lowering your voice so you wouldn’t get caught by your friends. "it’s like an experiment."

"what the hell? what's that supposed to mean? you're scaring me." william put a hand over his chest.

you sat by his side once again, as ready as you would be for a business presentation.

"i want to experience this. i want to give you my feelings and enjoy this while i can. since you won't feel the same, i can easily get over you later."

"that's not how it works, dear."

"i will make it work."

william covered his face and groaned. damn, she’s adorable, he thought.

"please, please, please!" you begged. "this is such a big moment for me, you know i’ve never been in love before."

"and why would you like me?" he stared, making you gulp.

"i have a lot of nice things to tell you, but only if you agree. i'd never do something to make you uncomfortable."

the longest william pondered, the longest you scanned his face — and the need to kiss him all over was strong. he noticed when you got lost in your own thoughts and squinted, holding a smile to himself.

“alright, let’s do this.”

the touch of his hand on your cheek brought you back, making a radiant grin flash on your lips. you went to hug him, but stopped mid action, silently asking for permission. when he crossed his arms around your waist, everything made sense. the scent of his cologne was usually the one that got stuck on your clothes because not only you were always together, but william used to be the last one to hug you goodbye after taking you home. the warmth of his body was also responsible for everything you were feeling in that moment, which kind of hurt to think that you wouldn’t be able to be this close anymore without making it weird for him.

later, you got home and did your night routine, excited about your team’s win and for the realization about your feelings. william wasn’t allowed to take you home that night, “i might not be able to hold myself from kissing you, so let me get my uber in peace.” you didn’t realize how he had to turn around so you wouldn’t see him blush.

you: permission to be corny eky: sighs- permission granted you: i hope you show up in my dreams tonight, hopefully it won’t be weird i won’t tell you if it is eky: and if it’s sexy? you: do not flirt with a woman in love if you’re not willing to give her what she wants eky: my lips are sealed. you: i like them, btw eky: my lips? you: yeah, love when you smirk trying to pretend i’m not the funniest person you know and i love when you laugh out loud, even when i can hear from a distance i love how it makes your nose wrinkle, it’s adorable eky: i’m not adorable, but thank you you: you are to me i’m so excited to be cheeky when i notice all the things that made me feel like this eky: glad you’re having a good time you: sorry you don’t feel good about romance anymore, thank you for not being weird about me eky: it’s okay, you deserve to know how it feels i’ll try to be a great first love for you you: oh my heartbeat is speeding up right now, gotta blast eky: cute sweet dreams you: goodnight, eky

you took a long time to sleep, your racing thoughts didn’t give you a break. your mind kept replaying the events and planning everything for the next day. one of them was telling one of your closest friends, so she would prevent you from going crazy when necessary. the following days, you worked with a silly smile on your face, dismissing your colleagues that teased you about it. you spent some of your breaks writing love letters, giggling like a high school girl because of how exciting everything was. the butterflies on your stomach, the scenarios playing in your brain, the chills every time you thought about william’s touch. you allowed yourself to be delusional, to enjoy every sensation of pure joy that love delivered.

“how will he talk about other girls if he knows you like him? it’s not like he can keep acting normal,” lena said after you spilled what was going on.

“he already didn’t before, so.” you shrugged. “have you seen him with someone lately?”

“no, but that’s not the point. you want to enjoy the feeling of being in love, but you need to be realistic that it will hurt because it’s unrequited.”

“yeah, he’ll keep on living his life…”

“i love it for you, it’s such a beautiful feeling.” she held your hand. “i need you to be careful, don’t want you to be disappointed.”

“i get it, thank you for helping me back down a little,” you said, a tight smile on your lips. “i’ll be seeing him tonight, i’ll give him the love letters i wrote.”

“love letters?” she gasped and started laughing. “girl, you’re down bad!”

“i am!” you admitted, covering your face. “i’m wondering if this is considered some kind of love bombing because i’ll have to get into a lockdown at work for the next week.”

“well, depending on his reaction to your actions, he might show up at your door just to spend time with you,” she suggested. “you know eky is a romantic, he’s just been through a lot.”

“yeah, don’t want to scare him off,” you worried. “well, once last month i wasn’t responding enough so he showed up with groceries and nagged at me until i took a break.”

your friend squinted her eyes, suspicious.

“have you ever considered how comfortable eky is with you in comparison with the rest of us?”

“i didn’t, it’s just that i’m more of a touchy person, but he has other love languages with everybody.”

“i agree, i love my quality time with him, but i sense it’s so different from what i see between you two.”

“okay, don’t do this. i’m already struggling not to jump on him, i don’t want to think of the possibility of any truth in his flirting.”

“he flirts with you?!”

“yeah, well, he has these witty responses to my confessions. you know how cocky he can be.”

“y/n, my love, i need you to be so serious right now.”

“it’s enough that he’s letting me enjoy this first love thing, i won’t go further than that. period.”

“okay, okay. once again, be careful, but pay a little more attention. i might not be overreacting here.”

you arrived at william’s place with your heart in your sleeve. that could be a metaphor or simply all the words you wrote in those journal pages, mixed with cute doodles and printed pictures of you two. you were focusing on not being embarrassed when he opened the door. william looked like the cuddliest human being on earth, his soft cologne taking up your senses when he immediately hugged you.

“hey, dear. craving sushi tonight? it might be here at any moment.”

“sushi is nice,” you agreed, throwing yourself on his couch.

“how was work today?”

“pretty calm right now, to be honest. but we’ll be locking down for the next week to step up in the research of this new found element.”

“oh, are we talking about nasa classified shit?”

“no!” you burst out laughing. “it’s just that we need to have a lot ready for the seminar at the end of the month, so i’ll be working even at home.”

“got it. so i won’t be seeing you for a whole week?”

your eyes softened instantly.

“i think so. i don’t know how i can make it work, lena already said she’ll be texting every three hours to check if i’m taking care of myself.”

“well, i can do that in person. did that before, no?”

“yes, indeed. but what about the games?”

“i can’t accept that you won’t watch them, so i gotta show up and talk about each of them. i’ll be resting as well, so don’t worry about me.”

“okay, you know where the key is.” you smiled. “now tell me how you’re expecting the next matches.”

couple hours later, after you and william devoured the japanese food, he put on the highlights of a game you missed recently. he ended up as one of the top stars, skating around and scoring like he owned the opponent’s ice. at some point, though, your focus changed from the tv to his face, expressions immersed in every aspect of his story.

“y/n.”

“i can’t stop looking at you, what the hell,” you muttered, regretting as soon as it came out.

“kinda creepy,” he teased.

“i know!” you admitted, averting your gaze. “i just like seeing you happy, that’s all.”

his eyebrows raised, william couldn’t hold back the grin hearing you be so forward with your words. he liked watching you be in love, although he still didn’t know how to deal with the fact that he was the one you were in love with.

the silence didn’t go unnoticed by you, which suddenly made you self conscious.

“too far?”

“hm?” william was brought back. “no, don’t worry.”

“now i’m thinking back on giving you the love letters i wrote.”

william gulped, turning his whole body towards you.

“you wrote me love letters?”

“you don’t have to read them, to be honest. it was good for me to reflect on what made me like you romantically when i already loved you as a friend.” unable to hold his gaze, you looked back to the tv now paused in a random player. “and it’s been kind of hard not to touch you like usual or feeling all the time that i’m making you uncomfortable or how you can’t talk to me about other women because you don’t want to hurt me.”

william held your hand, stopping your ramble.

“dear, look at me.” he touched your cheek. “i love you, alright? nothing’s changing that. i feel honored to be your first love, i don’t feel uncomfortable at all. and there’s no other women to talk about.”

you tilted your head and chuckled, making his hand drop from holding your cheek.

“thank you for reassuring me, eky.”

“well, there’s actually a woman that’s been writing me love letters and i still haven't had the chance to read them. i’ll update you when i do, though.”

you laughed, biting your lower lip to hold a gasp when you noticed he was closer than before, his other hand still holding yours. his warm touch was making you dizzy.

“i saw you sighing and licking your lips, dear. you’re not subtle at all,” he said, finding hilarious how he could watch you be a mess in front of him. he was loving every second of it.

“i wasn’t trying to be. i’m more focused on thinking of something else.”

“yeah? like what?”

“like how i’ll hide my spare key so you won’t actually see me for a week,” you whispered. “i need time away from your touch, ‘cause right now it feels like we both want the same thing.”

you noticed when his eyes quickly dropped to your lips, then back to your eyes.

“and what do you want right now?” he whispered back, a haze starting to grow in his eyes.

“i want to go home and hopefully not dream of you tonight,” you said, standing up mid sentence. it confused you to see william seemingly disappointed with your reaction. “this week will be good for us, i mean, i can’t wait to go back to normal.”

william hummed quietly, his body defeated against the couch’s backrest. he was exactly the opposite of you, his eyes wouldn’t leave you for a second.

“i’ll be counting the days ‘till i see you.”

“william!”

his eyes went wide when your tone raised.

“the past week has been fun, but i’m starting to feel sorry for myself.” you bit the inside of your cheek. “i’m in love with you, that’s nice, now it’s time to start getting over it so i can be you dear friend again.”

william frowned, but no words came out of his mouth.

“i think i exposed myself enough, so i won’t give you the letters. i’ll take them as memories of a good time,” you decided, a smile tinged with sadness. “in the future, when it happens again, i’ll recognize it easily enough to do something about it sooner.”

“dear, i’m really sorry.”

“no, it’s my fault. i know what you went through, i know your reasons, that’s why it needs to stop now.” you nodded. “i don’t feel bad about liking you, though, it’s not that. i’m glad my heart made the right choice, it was just not the right timing.”

you got your purse and headed for the door. you heard a frustrated sound coming from him, but you didn’t look back.

“förbaskat, this is not fair,” he muttered, standing up to catch you before you opened the door. “y/n, wait.”

“yeah?”

“i can’t stop myself from living a real love story just because someone else hurt me. i don’t know why my mind got so blurred when i know i’m happy with you, it’s freaking dumb to let you go when i feel the same.”

you didn’t dare to interrupt his train of thought — too shocked to do that, honestly.

“i want to read all your letters, to hear all your confessions, i want to write you my own as well, to tell you beautiful words even though they won’t be as poetic as yours. being loved by you is amazing, loving you is amazing. i don’t know how different it can be from what i already feel. i want you emotionally and physically, i want to be the one you're still in love in the future. so please don’t give up on me yet, let me try to be the boyfriend you deserve.”

william waited, almost out of breath. you just stared back at him, thoughts going crazy around your head.

“eky,” you whispered.

“yes, dear.”

“i have this need right now to kiss the hell out of you. all the touches i held the past week are tingling my skin for having you so close.”

“i can take you, baby. just say the word.”

your purse dropped to the floor, you took a step closer to him.

shake my earth, suck the air out, burn me down it's like you've known me through all my past lives what an evil thought wreck my plans, stop me dead, kiss me now

“your love, give it to me. don’t hold back.”

his hands were all over you in a second. it seemed like william was doing his best to be delicate with the first kiss, but your enthusiasm matched his, which turned everything too intense. your hands went down his sweatshirt, the warmness of his skin against your hands gripped a moan out of the both of you. he reached the back of your thighs and picked you up without warning, ripping a small scream from you, which made you both laugh.

“that was freaking sexy, but don’t scare me like that.”

“sorry,” he pampered you with kisses all over your face. “promise to be more vocal from now on.”

“oh, i expect you to.”

“you’re a freak, dear. hope you’re ready for me.”

[master-of-47-dudes]

Oh! For those of you who like Lancer, I've made major progress in the campaign I'm writing: Kindness of strangers!

LRBT-III, otherwise known as Blanche to the locals. This sun-baked dustbowl of a planet has the high honor of being one of the few habitable terrestrial bodies that anyone has discovered in the Long Rim, and probably the only one that's actually any use to anyone. Luckily- or not so luckily, if you ask some people- it was Union that found it first. Well, about 70 years ago when they stumbled across this star system they got it in their heads that the Long Rim's days were numbered. There’s untold millions living out there scattered along the emptiest shipping lane in the known galaxy who'd need a way out once no one needed to pass them by, and by Christ the Buddha Union was gonna be there for them waiting with open arms.

All of that is background, though. You? You’re a bunch of mercenaries who got their hands on a couple of GMSes, decided to make your manna selling violence for pay. Worlds like Blanche don't take to colonies very well, so even two generations in there's still plenty of frontier out there being settled and railroad tracks being laid. The people out there struggle day by day to survive, and people like you are there to protect them from those who got sick of the hard life. Not everyone out there has the guts to stand up for the little guy- that's why you're called Lancers.

A setting and a campaign all in one, Kindness Of Strangers and its (eventual) follow-up Dancing With the Devil are a series of Wild West-themed 2-mission adventures intended to take players from 0-12 as they find themselves embroiled in the midst of a corporate conspiracy to overthrow the Union-backed government of the isolated colony of Blanche and a ploy to seize control over a nearly completed Blinkstation. All the while, a strange religious movement worshipping an eons-dead alien civilization grows ever more influential in the background...

This campaign tackles themes of colonialism, nationalism, corruption, and conflict between indigenous peoples, settlers, and immigrants, all in a world where well-meaning intentions have gone sour and the ghosts of the past have come back to haunt it.

Kindness of Strangers, Missions 1-3

Field Guide to LRBT-PN

Exotic Gear Documentation

Variant Frame Documentation

Kindness of Strangers Worldbuilding Short Stories

Kindness of Strangers LCP, Maps, and Assets

This latest update includes the first(ish) draft of Mission 3: The Field of Blue Children, allowing play of the first half of Act 2 and extending the LL range from 0-3. Mission 3 is heavily intrigue and RP focused, featuring a wide suite of characters, relationships, and locations in the Tourist town of Baugh- a thriving immigrant community situated on a soda lake.

The PCs have been hired to investigate a bomb threat at the newly completed Baugh Pumpworks, and water filtration and chemical processing facility that stands to end the water shortage and threatens corporate control over the colony's water supply- but is everything really as it seems? In the process, the PCs will go toe to toe with teenage gearheads, Pinkerton-expies, and a group of Sparri Espadas who got roped into this whole mess, and uncover the mystery behind the threat!

Also, there's a subaltern that talks like a pirate and catholicism.

Anyway this mission also includes a custom NPC Template (kind of, I don't know how to design the LCP for that but i did include instructions on how it works), several new reserves, and several custom sitreps!

So, check it out- I'm always looking for feedback.

[puck-luck]

new beginnings | august 19 - 25 (+ epilogue)

hey! whoever thought this day would come! before the chapter, i just wanted to say some thank yous to you all. i am so grateful to each person who has read this series! it was such an undertaking, being over 300K and all, but we did it! we're at the end! i would not have been able to do this without y'all's support and love for characters like honey, bea, the litchton townies, and our boys (who kind of took on a life of their own throughout this story). i want to give a special shoutout to the person who first submitted this idea of tz going feral for a small town girl. you started something that has literally changed my life– before this, i had never completed a book. i would always get bored towards the end and let it die. but now, we've finished it! i'll also give a special shoutout to all the people who helped me out while reading this– looking at pics on pinterest, reading the rough drafts, even just talking about it with me... your influence helped me immensely. i will specifically mention two: cappy and mattias anon, who have left comment after comment and put up with my texts that make everything about stg. they are the real troopers.

i will not wax any more poetics. here it is: the final chapter (+ epilogue) of stg!

85:90 – TREVOR

“Trevvy, baby,” Honey whispers. She traces his nose with a featherlight touch until Trevor wakes. She’s laying in bed next to him, wearing the t-shirt Bea made of him, and Trevor turns into her chest.

It’s so warm there. Trevor groans as the soreness from yesterday seeps back into his bones. He didn’t know that farming would be so much hard work. He’s more sore than he was after his first NTDP practice, which is saying something. 

“I can’t believe I thought I’d be a construction worker if I wasn’t in hockey,” Trevor complains into the space between Honey’s boobs.

She hums and cards her fingers through his hair, planting a kiss on the crown of his head. “I know, baby. You’re built to play hockey and be pretty, not carry heavy things and use your hands.”

Trevor frowns. “I’m okay at using my hands,” he whines. She loves to insult him, even though she’s been known to fall apart on his fingers. He pushes his fingers past Honey’s waistband and goes to prove his point.

“Trevor, we don’t have time,” Honey chastises. 

“Honey,” Trevor patronizes. “We’re not even doing anything today. All we have to do is go to the fruit stand. We have time for me to finger you.”

“You slept ‘til lunch,” Honey says. “I want to get up, I’ve been so bored.”

“I’ll fix it,” Trevor tells her. He kisses her chest, then realizes that he’s kissing the picture of himself on her chest, and pulls back. He picks himself up and moves.

“You just realize that you kissed yourself?” Honey asks.

Trevor looks at her out of the side of his eyes before laying a kiss on the curve of her jaw. “Don’t be mean,” he says.

“Just teasing you, needy boy,” Honey replies. 

She rolls onto her back as Trevor pushes her into the mattress and traps her. His kisses become more consistent, landing in time with her pulse. Trevor won’t even pretend like he’s not the needy boy she claims. “We’ve only got a week, Honey,” Trevor says. “Not even. I wanna fuck you every day to make up for all the time I’ll be away.”

Honey sighs. “Don’t remind me, T.”

“‘ll make you forget,” Trevor mumbles, biting into Honey’s neck and lathing his tongue over the smooth skin. 

“Make me lunch after, too?” Honey asks.

“Mhm,” Trevor agrees. He snaps the band of Honey’s shorts against her hip. “I hate these shorts. We should burn them.”

Honey frowns and wiggles underneath Trevor. “I love them. They’re my favorite.”

“They’re Thomas’ old boxers,” Trevor replies. He pushes them down Honey’s legs, baring her lower half. Once the boxers are around her ankles, Trevor removes them and tosses them far, far away. “Don’t think I didn’t pick that up when you told me they belonged to an old boyfriend. You’ve only had one other than me and I hate him.”

“They’re comfortable and they’re barely even his,” Honey fights back. “I’ve had them for six years. They were brand new when I borrowed them.”

“‘Borrowed,’” Trevor parrots back. “Forever?”

“A fitting price to pay,” Honey says. “You jealous I’m wearing another man’s boxers?”

“Yes,” Trevor admits earnestly. “I want you to wear my boxers to sleep.”

“What will you wear?”

“Nothing.”

Honey snorts. “Lucky me.”

Trevor circles her clit with the pads of his fingers, moving methodically. He breathes in deep, nose nestled in Honey’s neck. “You smell good.”

Honey sighs lightly, humming out a thanks. She lifts her leg and wraps it over Trevor’s hip.

He replaces his fingertips with his thumb and continues circling, swiping the pad of his middle finger through her slick. Her chest rises and falls against his and Honey’s arms circle Trevor’s shoulders. He smiles into her skin and changes the angle of his hand. The heel of his palm covers her swollen bundle of nerves and his first knuckle disappears into her core, suddenly surrounded by warmth and her tight walls.

The sun is shining into Honey’s room, which casts a nice light on her body. Trevor just wishes that she wasn’t wearing a shirt with his face on it. His t-shirt self is staring at him and it’s making him uncomfortable. 

“You need to take your shirt off,” Trevor says.

“No,” Honey drawls. “So unfair. You already told me to take my shorts off because you didn’t like those. You can’t make me take my shirt off because you don’t like it either. Plus, you said that you’d be the naked one, not me.”

“We should both be naked.”

“We can both get naked after you make me come,” Honey bargains. She nudges Trevor’s chin and kisses his lips when he lifts his face. She pecks again and grins. “I’ll spit in your mouth, if you want.”

Trevor flinches back, shocked to his core. “What?” he demands. 

Honey cackles, throwing her head back into the pillow. “Gotcha. You really fell for that.”

“Fuck off,” Trevor groans. “I didn’t know you were that kinky, Honey.” He fits his finger all the way inside of her and curls it, tickling the gummy walls that squeeze him so well.

She clicks her tongue. “There are a lot of things I like that you don’t know about.”

That piques Trevor’s interest. “Tell me,” he says. 

“Not today,” Honey laughs. “I’ve got to keep some secrets to keep you on your toes.”

Trevor whines. “Not fair.”

“I’m thinking I’ll reveal them to you when you’re all the way in Anaheim and I’m still here,” Honey continues. Her hands run down Trevor’s back, then back up his spine. 

He shivers and brings his ring finger to her entrance, taking his time as he fucks into her hole. The two digits flex and twist inside of her, trying to coax the secrets from her mouth now rather than later. 

“That way you’ll get so frustrated over not being able to touch me,” Honey says. “And you’ll regret being so far away, won’t you?”

“When I play in Raleigh, I am going to keep you up all night,” Trevor threatens in a low voice.

“That’s assuming I come,” Honey tells him.

That’s what she said. Trevor lifts his head and eyes his girlfriend.

She hits his shoulder. “Do not fucking say that’s what she said right now, I know you want to.”

Trevor chuckles and lazily connects his lips with Honey’s instead. His fingers scissor inside of her, stretching her entrance until he can push a third past the rim. 

They make out as the minutes tick by. Honey isn’t as concerned with being “late” anymore, it seems. Trevor was right; they’re not doing anything today. He doesn’t know what she was talking about– the fruit stand will be open until the sun goes down. 

Joan told him all about her schedule while they worked on the farm yesterday. She sets up the stand when the store opens at 7, then she packs up once the sun sets. It’s a long day for her, but she gets her best sales on Mondays because of the stand, so she doesn’t mind. Plus, she gets to catch up with people in town and lounge, reading books or completing sudokus while her husband continues to work at the farm. It’s practically a day off work, in Joan’s eyes.

She truly put Trevor to work. He was there for about three hours, picking blackberries and grapes off the vines, lugging cantaloupes from their place resting against the ground to the back of Joan’s wagon that she’d offered to Trevor. He plucked limes, lemons, and peaches from their respective trees. He refused to touch the strawberry plants, lest he saw Honey last night, so Joan had worked on that section of the farm. She’d also picked pears. 

It was nice to hang out on the farm and get to know the lady. She tried to give him some money for his work, but Trevor had waved her off. She’d let him and Earl take that ugly couch from her back porch for free. It was a fair trade. 

Now, the couch sits above Earl’s garage. He’d been surprisingly nimble and strong for an old man. Trevor had gotten winded walking up the stairs before Earl did, but he was on the back end of the couch, so most of the weight was on him anyway. Gravity, and all that. Trevor refuses to be beaten by an old man. 

When he’d complained about being winded while Earl was breathing evenly, Honey had laughed and scratched his back. She told him not to worry, that Earl had lots of experience with manual labor– forty years of it at least– and Trevor shouldn’t feel put out that he was more out of shape than an elderly man. He realized only after that Honey didn’t know why he was hanging out with Earl, but she didn’t ask. If she had, he would’ve told her that he was helping at the hardware store. The lie probably wouldn’t have been believable. Trevor doesn’t even know if the hardware store is open on the weekends– it probably isn’t. Nothing is.

His bicep aches a bit as his fingers work inside of Honey. Her tongue is dainty as it licks into Trevor’s mouth, then retreats, teasing him. He’s still sore, but he’s determined to make Honey come on his fingers. Her hips have started moving against his palm, grinding on his fingers. Trevor lets her.

“Look at you, taking what you need,” Trevor says. He bites his bottom lip and rakes his eyes over Honey’s figure. She’s still in his shirt, so he can’t see the flesh on her chest, but he can see the way her tits heave under the fabric. He can see the way her nipples protrude and rub against the cotton. His eyes land on her neck, watching the column flex and bob as she gasps and speeds up, frantically fucking herself on his fingers. 

A spark passes behind Trevor’s eyes. 

She likes it when I touch her there, Trevor remembers. He hasn’t touched Honey’s neck while they were fucking… ever? Has he? No specific moments come to mind.

She might want to withhold her kinks from him until he’s far away, too far away to touch her– which he knows she’s doing so that she can hear him whine and lament being so far away, because she wants to hear him ramble on about missing her– but Trevor knows this one. 

His fingers squeeze Honey’s waist, pressing into the soft skin before leaving it. His hand traces up her front sensually. Finally, Trevor curls his fingers around her throat. 

Honey’s resulting hum is high-pitched, but confused. Her eyelids lift in a flash, pupils fixing on Trevor’s face, and he would be concerned if not for the frenzied movement that is starting to send an ache through his wrist. 

“I know you like that,” Trevor whispers. He noses Honey’s cheek. “I remember the sound you made when I first kissed you and put my hand right here.” He moves his entire hand quickly, like a pinch, squeezing Honey’s neck for a second then letting go. “I bet you like getting all breathless, huh?”

Honey takes a huge breath in through her nose, head rolling back and revealing all of her throat to Trevor.

A smile crosses his face. “That’s my girl,” Trevor coos. “Come, baby.” He tightens his grip for a few seconds longer, watching Honey tremble. “Come all over my fingers and then we can start our day.”

“Tighter,” Honey breathes out. “Not for too long.”

“Okay,” Trevor agrees, his voice practically inaudible. He obeys, his fingertips curling into her windpipe. The rush of accomplishment doesn’t pass through Trevor because he completes the action of choking Honey, but rather because of the way she relaxes into the touch and lets it happen. Her eyes close again and her face is impassive and serene, mouth open in a quiet moan. That is a huge win for Trevor. When she bears down on his fingers and they overlap each other uncomfortably, Trevor feels the same rush he gets after he scores an OT goal. Honey probably wouldn’t appreciate a celly from him after she finishes coming, but the instinct is there. Trevor loosens his grip on her neck and lets her go, kissing the places where his fingertips were.

Honey snuggles into his side when he draws his fingers, covered in her come, out of her body. The moment is nice and comfortable, but only for a second before Trevor wipes his fingers on his own face adorning her shirt.

“Trevor,” Honey scoffs, rolling away from him and sitting on the edge of the bed. She holds the hem of her shirt away from her body and looks down at it. “You ruined your pretty face, Princess Diana.”

“I think you like that shirt more than you like me,” Trevor tells her.

“Hmm, probably.” Honey stands and walks to her laundry hamper, pulling the shirt over her head like she’s unwrapping a present.

Trevor faux-gasps. “You’re supposed to say, ‘No, Trevor, I love you so much more.’”

“And you are supposed to refrain from wiping cum on my clothes.” Honey plants her hands on her hips. 

Trevor makes himself comfortable on the bed and lays a hand on his stomach, the other cradling the back of his head. He licks his lips. She’s nakey.

Honey rolls her eyes. “This is the problem with you wanting me to be naked all the time,” she scolds. “We will never get anything done.”

“We could get a few things done, I bet,” Trevor replies, snickering when he says it.

Honey doesn’t even crack a smile. She’s back to business. “Would you put some big boy clothes on and wash your hands while I shower?” she asks. “Then you can make me that lunch that you promised.”

Trevor pouts, his bottom lip jutting out as far as he can push it. 

Honey shakes her head fondly and turns away, entering the bathroom and closing the door behind her. 

Trevor lounges in bed for an extra two minutes before swinging his legs forward and getting up. He dresses himself in some short Ducks-branded shorts and a plain black t-shirt. Instead of barging into Honey’s bathroom and and washing his hands there– after peeking behind her shower curtain, of course– Trevor goes downstairs and washes his hands in the kitchen sink. It’s then that he opens her fridge and surveys the options there. There’s plenty for him to cook with, but he’s not confident he’ll prepare any of it particularly well. He’s been known to burn things. Jamie used to get on him about that all the time when they lived together. It’s actually why they climbed onto the roof to eat dinner the first time, so that they could escape the burning smell in the kitchen from Trevor’s charred chicken dinner.

He settles on quesadillas. Honey has chicken that he can throw in a tortilla with cheese, plus some peppers that he can cut up and throw in the saucepan if she doesn’t want to eat them raw. It’ll be a nice meal. 

Trevor burns the first quesadilla. It isn’t a surprise. He’ll eat that one. Honestly, Trevor doesn’t mind the burnt food. He’s gotten used to eating overcooked food.

Honey leaves the shower as he’s finishing up her quesadilla and throwing it on a plate. She comes downstairs and hugs him, standing behind him and gliding her hands underneath his shirt to touch his stomach. 

“Do you want me to sauté these peppers?” Trevor asks.

Honey raises her head and pops up on her tiptoes, looking over his shoulder at the pile of sliced peppers on a plate. “No,” she decides. She pecks the back of Trevor’s neck. “I’ll get some ranch.”

Trevor automatically feels colder when she removes herself from his personal space to grab a half-used bottle of ranch from her fridge. He moves each plate to Honey’s coffee table, taking two trips so he doesn’t accidentally drop any food on the floor. 

Honey sits on the couch, pulling a blanket around her shoulders and crossing her legs. Trevor sits next to her and they start to eat their lunch together. Honey doesn’t have a TV in her living room– come to think of it, Trevor doesn’t think she has a TV at all. He’s never watched television in this house. Anyway– if Honey did have a TV, he’d put something on in the background. Instead, he listens to the rustle of the wind in the trees and the chirping of the birds.

You can’t hear the traffic from Honey’s house. You can’t even hear her neighbors, not that there are any close enough to walk over and ask for a cup of sugar. They’d have to drive. 

“Do you like being alone?” Trevor asks. The question is blunt as it falls from his mouth and Trevor realizes that it sounds rude. He doesn’t mean to say it like that and goes to apologize.

Honey shrugs. “Yeah,” she says. 

“Why?” He’s surprised she didn’t give him a second look for how his first question came out, so Trevor makes a concentrated effort to make this one sound more curious.

She waves a green pepper slice in the air. “It’s nice. I’m not really, like, alone. You know that. I’ve got my friends from Litchton, I’ve got Bea, I’ve got myself, I’m good.”

“I don’t know if I could do it,” Trevor says.

“Being alone?” Honey clarifies. “Hm. I think you could. You just haven’t had the experience with it. I struggled a lot my first few months in Litchton. So did Bea. We were used to a huge city. Charlotte has almost a million people and Litchton has two thousand. Until I moved here, I’d never been in a community that small. Even Myers Park had… 3,500 kids, I think.”

“Myers Park?”

“My high school.” Honey pops the rest of the pepper in her mouth and chews after dipping it in ranch. “I think you’re just used to a big city, babe. It’s, what, 25 miles from Anaheim to LA?”

“Yeah, close enough,” Trevor replies. “26.”

Honey glares at him for a moment. “‘Close enough,’” she mocks. “I was right on the money. Anyway, LA has millions of people and so many things to do. You’re used to that. I think you adapted well to living in Litchton this summer, but you also had six friends here. If it had just been you and– who’s your Bea?”

Trevor shrugs. “Jack, probably. We’re not as close as you two, but he and I are probably the closest.”

Honey laughs. “Okay, imagine you and Jack move to Litchton, just you two. I’m not even here. It’s just you and Jack.” She picks up another pepper. “What do you do?”

“I kill myself within a week,” Trevor deadpans. 

Honey squints at him, pursing her lips judgmentally.

Trevor leans into her space, draping himself over her lap. “I’m kidding,” he tells her. “But I still don’t know if I’d be able to do it.”

Honey brushes his hair out with her fingers. “I guess not. You’re too extroverted. My LA boy.”

“You still hate that I live in California?” Trevor teases.

Honey hums, affirming that she does while she nods. 

“I’ll convince you to like it when you visit.”

“If I visit,” Honey replies. “The hatred for Cali runs deep in my bones, Trevor.”

Trevor rolls his eyes and sits up again, polishing off the rest of his quesadilla. He always eats faster than Honey does. “Are we going to the fruit stand now?”

“Yurr,” Honey confirms. She holds up her quesadilla. “Can I take this in your car?”

Trevor nods. He goes upstairs to grab his keys, wallet, and Honey’s bag. While he was gone, Honey had moved all of their dishes to the sink. 

“I’ll do them later,” she tells Trevor when she joins him by the door.

The drive into town is quiet. Trevor’s hair is getting too long. Honey likes when the windows are down, so they’re down, but the wind is whipping his hair into his face and distracting Trevor from the road. He needs to schedule a hair appointment when he goes back to Bedford to hang out with his family before preseason starts.

They walk hand in hand to the fruit stand. There’s some commotion near the church, which is just visible from the grocery store, and Trevor watches the scene from the corner of his eye. There is a large group of people mingling at the steps of the front entrance– the entrance that Bea never uses, since the parking lot is behind the church, so they just enter through the back door. The front of the church is much more regal than the back. Picturesque.

Honey shops around, handing Trevor piece of fruit after piece of fruit. He bags them all, until the strap over his shoulder is heavy and the mesh fabric is bursting. Trevor tells Honey that they can’t fit anymore, which she frowns at, but concedes. She gives one last longing look at the blackberry cartons before they go to pay Joan.

Joan makes small talk with the duo, telling Honey about how hard Trevor worked the previous day and how helpful it was. 

“I wish I could bring him on every week,” Joan says. “Normally, my husband helps me, but he was able to start prepping the fields for our winter vegetables. We’re seeding tomorrow.”

“It’s a shame he had the idea so late in the summer,” Honey replies.

“I’m sore as can be, Joan,” Trevor complains. “I don’t know if I could do it every week.”

“Well, we’ll see how you feel on Sunday. Would you like to come help me out again? I’d appreciate it.” Joan has a soft smile on her face while she waits for Trevor to respond. He almost feels bad, but there’s no reason for him to. He can’t help that his time is up and he has to decline.

“We’re actually headed out this Saturday,” Trevor says. “So this is the last time you’ll see me for a while.”

Joan’s smile fades. “Well, isn’t that a shame. We’ve enjoyed having you in Litchton this summer, Trevor.”

Trevor’s heart thumps. That’s so nice– Joan expressing that the people in Litchton have accepted him as one of their own and liked having him here. “I’ll be back when I can.”

“No one who comes to Litchton can go very far for very long,” Joan confirms. “I tried when I was y’all’s age, but we all come back eventually.”

“Mr. California,” Honey adds jokingly.

Trevor’s retort disappears when he’s distracted by a cheer near the church. He turns his head, as do the other two, and they watch as a bride and groom burst through the door. The crowd raises their hands and whoops as they descend the steps and the groom dips his bride, kissing her.

Joan chuckles. “The new Mr. and Mrs. Wyatt Hensley,” she says. “Aren’t they just darlin’? Lila’s dress is gorgeous.”

“I didn’t know their wedding was on a Monday,” Honey says. “I guess that makes sense. Didn’t Wyatt’s parents have to come from Texas?”

“Oklahoma,” Joan corrects.

Trevor is still watching the happy couple. The woman looks like Honey. Well, they have the same hair.

“So close,” Honey sighs. “I’m always one off today. Alright– I’ll see you next week, Joan.” She bumps Trevor’s arm. “You gonna say goodbye?”

“We should do that,” Trevor tells her, staring as Wyatt and Lila parade through the group of people towards a car parked on the street.

Honey follows his gaze. “Do what?” she asks.

“Get married,” Trevor explains. The silence that follows is jarring. He turns to Honey to find her staring at him, expression nothing short of aghast. “What?”

She takes a deep breath and closes her eyes, shaking her head. “Say goodbye to Joan, baby.”

“Oh, yeah,” Trevor says. He looks at Joan and holds his hand out for her to shake. “It was nice to meet you, Joan. Thank you for all the fruit all summer.”

“Thank you for all of the entertainment,” Joan replies. “I’m disappointed I won’t see how this conversation plays out. Have a safe trip home, Trevor.”

“Bye, Joan.” He moves Honey’s bag to his other shoulder and takes her hand. They start to walk toward the car. “So that’s a no to getting married?” he asks after they’ve walked a few hundred feet.

Honey takes another deep breath and holds it briefly before exhaling loudly. “We met three months ago, Trevor. We are not getting married anytime soon.”

Trevor frowns. “Darn.” 

Honey scoffs, starting to laugh. “God, you’re weird. This is why I’m always telling you to think before you speak.”

Trevor exaggerates an eye roll, starting to laugh to himself. It really was a crazy thing to say. “So you don’t want to marry me?” he demands, pretending to be upset. “So you hate me.”

Honey laughs louder. “Stop,” she tells him. “We are not having this conversation now. Plus, we’re too young to get married. Maybe if you were a military guy and I was a ‘ring-by-spring’ girl, we could talk about that, but I’m not getting married for at least four more years. How ‘bout you see if you can stand me that long before you ask again?”

Trevor grumbles under his breath, but really, he’s pleased. Four years, and then he can propose? No problem– with the way hockey season passes, the years will go by in a flash. He’s pretty certain they’ll make it.

86:90 – HONEY

They’re two hours from closing time when Honey decides that she can no longer ignore Bea’s attitude. The girl seems to be in a funk and Honey has a feeling that she knows why. Bea hasn’t been willing to listen to Honey’s opinion before now, but things could be different now that she’s moping around like a wet cat. 

Her attitude isn’t actually all that bad. Aside from not wanting to do any actual work and showing up two hours late, Bea’s been mostly normal. The only difference is that she’s quiet and lazier than usual. 

Honey finds her laying on the beanbag chairs in the cozier section of their store. There’s no one in the Nook right now and Ada is sitting behind the cash register, doing a crossword. Honey is free to lay with Bea until they hear the twinkle of the bell attached to the front door. 

“What’s wrong?” Honey asks. She sits on the bag next to Bea, looking down at the girl.

Bea shifts her eyes to the side, not bothering to move her head to look at Honey. “You know what’s wrong,” she answers.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Honey reaches over and fixes Bea’s shirt sleeve.

The girl throws her arm over her face and hides in the crook of her elbow. “I don’t know.”

Honey nods to herself and slides down the beanbag chair until she’s reclining. Her head rests against the bottom shelf of the bookcase and her feet are planted against the ground, knees toward the sky. She reaches her hand above her head and pulls a random book from the shelves, setting it against her thighs and opening it. She reads 38 pages of the historical fiction novel, set in 1580s England, before Bea speaks again.

“I feel like a stupid moron-idiot,” Bea nearly growls. The ‘t’ on ‘idiot’ is sharp coming from her mouth. She throws her arms down by her sides and Honey has to press her lips together to prevent a laugh from escaping. Bea looks like she just got petrificus totalus’ed. “I don’t like it here!”

“Okay, well, you’re not a stupid moron-idiot,” Honey tells her. “I’d say so if you were.”

“Yeah, I know,” Bea snaps. She narrows her eyes at Honey in annoyance. She sighs. “It’s just like… what the hell am I doing, you know?”

Honey prompts Bea to go on with a single hummed note. She closes the book she was reading.

Bea lifts her hands and talks with them while she explains– or tries to. “I don’t, like, ugh. Obviously, I know this isn’t– but I feel like…” she pauses, her fingers curling into half-formed fists. She whines in the back of her throat, frustrated. “This is so fucking stupid. I can’t even fucking explain myself.”

“Watch your language,” Honey murmurs, throwing a look over at Ada. The old woman hasn’t looked up yet, but if Bea continues to lean into this frustration, she’ll only start to swear more often and at a higher volume. 

Bea covers her face with flat palms and scrubs them up and down her skin. “I have never been the person to care, you know? Yeah, I go out with people, I have my fun, I have my friends, but I don’t ca-a-are,” she exaggerates the last word and shakes her hands out in front of her in time with it. Honey imagines she’s holding Christmas bells and has to stifle another giggle. 

This is serious. Not the time for an intrusive imagination.

“And now I’m out here caring! What is with that?” Bea exclaims.

“Well, I think it’s a good sign,” Honey says. “At least we know you have the capacity for romantic feelings now.”

Bea huffs indignantly. “We’ve always known that,” she sneers.

“Having a crush and actually loving someone are two different things,” Honey points out.

“Fuck off,” Bea replies.

Honey allows herself to giggle this time and shrugs. “I don’t know, Bea. I mean, it’s the first time you’ve felt like this. Do you really want to give it up?”

“No, I’m not sure, Honey, and that’s the fucking problem!”

The words explode out of Bea’s mouth and Honey physically draws her head back in surprise. “Wow,” she says.

Bea covers her face again. “I’m sorry. That was unnecessary. I’m just…”

“Frustrated,” Honey supplies. Bea shakes her head. “Confused?”

“Annoyed,” Bea corrects. She rolls her eyes, most likely at herself, and goes boneless on the beanbag. “I am practically at war with myself and it’s making me angry. So I would say that I’m more annoyed than frustrated or confused.”

“What are you fighting over?” Honey asks.

“I need to break up with him but I don’t want to break up with him,” Bea states. “That’s literally it.”

“Okay, so don’t break up with him if you don’t want to,” Honey says. “You guys can work through it. Quinn would be ecstatic to be all domestic and partner-y with you outside of the summer.”

Bea groans out loud. “I know,” she drawls. “But you don’t get it. I don’t expect you to, and I can’t explain it well, but I need to break up with him.”

“Why?”

“He’s not in my future,” Bea says. 

Honey blinks. It’s a simple and cryptic statement. Since when could Bea tell the future?

“It’s not fortune-telling, it’s logic,” Bea continues once she sees the look on Honey’s face. “I don’t see this ending positively if we continue dating outside of Litchton. He’ll go to hockey, I’ll stay here, our communication will diminish because he’s busy, I’ll get touchy and bitchy because I want attention, and then it all blows up and we break up and it’s a thousand times worse than ending it here.”

“How do you know that will happen?” Honey asks. “It sounds like a bunch of what-ifs to me.”

“I’m not emotionally mature enough for a relationship where my boyfriend ignores me eight or nine months of the year and then is all over me for the other three. The whiplash will be insane. If he played in Raleigh, or we lived closer to Vancouver, it would be different.”

It once again hits Honey that Bea has thought this through and won’t change her mind. She says everything so resolutely and has an answer for each of Honey’s remarks. Honey’s words can’t penetrate the iron armor of Bea’s decision and Bea’s explanations can’t seem to wade through the foggy confusion in Honey’s mind. They’re so different.

“I don’t know,” Bea resigns with a shrug. “Our lives are so different and he’s so far away. I think it would have been nice, and Quinn is damn near perfect, but my future isn’t with Quinn.” She shakes her head, breathing a laugh out of her nose in a self-deprecating way. “Is your future with Trevor?”

“Yes,” Honey decides. She means it.

Bea blinks and recoils in surprise, much like Honey did when Bea raised her voice. “Your future is with Trevor,” she repeats. “Really?”

“Yeah,” Honey replies. She thinks about how he genuinely suggested getting married yesterday, which was absurd, but didn’t feel wrong. When she was with Thomas, she knew that there was going to be someone after him. He wasn’t the end-all, be-all. Her gut is telling her that there’s nothing after Trevor. “Yeah. He’s– yes. My future is with Trevor.”

Bea looks at Honey until a prickle of discomfort starts to rise on Honey’s neck. She breathes out in relief when Bea looks away. She couldn’t read the look in Bea’s eyes, which increased the discomfort tenfold. Honey did not like what she saw. 

And she doesn’t think Bea’s eventual reaction matches the stare.

“Good for you,” Bea says. Her words seem shallow, brimming with surface-level congratulations. The layer of joy for Honey seems very thin. Honey doubts it’s because Bea disagrees with Honey’s decision. She thinks it’s because Bea still doesn’t know how to feel about her own.

The bell rings and Honey hears Ada greet a customer. She doesn’t want to leave Bea like this, but one of them has to work, and Bea doesn’t seem up for it. Honey understands that feeling better now.

She takes Bea’s hand and squeezes it tightly, then lets go. 

The encounter with her best friend stays on her mind long after they’ve closed the store. She invites Bea to come back to her place for dinner, which the girl accepts, but then they end up talking a little bit more and not making dinner at all. 

It’s hard to talk about this. Bea tries to explain her stance a little bit more, but she can’t find the words and Honey finds it harder and harder to read her mind with each suggestion that Bea turns down. Honey is doing her best to fill in the gaps, but for the first time in their lives, she and Bea are not even close to being on the same page. Usually, they can find some middle ground. This time, Honey feels like they’re throwing paper airplanes at each other over a canyon.

Bea leaves her house without eating dinner, after standing up and shaking out her body in an almost-violent wave that has Honey furrowing her eyebrows. “It seems like this is going against every instinct you have,” Honey wants to say, but Bea says “It’s now or never” and leaves before Honey can get the words out. 

Overall, it hasn’t been a great day. She feels drained right alongside Bea, trying to share the load as best she can without fully understanding Bea’s plight. It’s terrible.

So when Trevor shows up at Honey’s door half an hour after Bea leaves, his presence is a welcome distraction from the weight on her shoulders.

There’s still weight. Of course there is. The difference is that this replacement weight is physical– Honey is being crushed under the weight of her boyfriend as she tries to read her book in the dying summer light. She wants to finish this one before she goes back and borrows the one she started this afternoon while sitting with Bea. Honey isn’t usually one for period pieces– that’s Bea’s thing– but this one seemed cool.

Trevor might be sleeping, for all Honey knows. She’s twirling a strand of his hair around her fingers, other hand holding her book in the air, and Trevor is breathing evenly in her ear. His mouth is pressed against her jaw and their legs are intertwined. His arms are wrapped around her middle, hips squarely in line with hers. 

He’d sat on the counter while Honey made her own dinner, refusing his offer to cook for her since she already has a bad taste in her mouth from Bea’s problems. He had stolen some of her food off of the plate while she ate, talking all about how, today, he and the guys had to break down the makeshift rink they built for the summer. He and Quinn had done most of the work building the rink and he and Quinn had done most of the work tearing it down. The most Luke, Jack, and Cole did was stack the wood for a bonfire. Trevor knows that Earl won’t take it back.

His impression of the elderly man had been surprisingly spot-on. “Boy, you better not’a come up in here tryin’ to return old wood,” Trevor had mocked in a thick southern accent. “I’m not a bank! I don’t give out loans.”

Trevor had done the dishes this time after Honey was finished eating. She’d reclined on the couch while he did so, head resting on the throw pillow propped against the arm of the couch, and cracked her book open.

When Trevor joined her, he’d crawled under her arms and kissed her lips before tucking his head to the side. That’s how they got to where they are now. Honey only has about fifty pages left of her book, but she has a feeling she won’t make it to the end. Her boyfriend, in the last five pages or so that she’s read, has started nuzzling her neck. 

“You’re distracting me,” Honey says. She turns to the next page, then back because she realized that she skimmed the last paragraph and didn’t actually read it. It’s further proof that Trevor is taking her attention away from the book in her hands.

“I’m bored,” Trevor mumbles against Honey’s skin. “Let’s make out.”

Honey pretends to think about it for a minute, humming and looking up to the ceiling. 

Trevor does his best to convince her, kissing and licking up her neck until he makes it to her lips. “Puh-lease,” he begs in a sarcastic voice, pouting at Honey. He looks like a puppy asking for human food and Honey laughs.

She sets her bookmark between the pages and closes the book, stretching to place it on the coffee table. Trevor doesn’t let her move much. Honey cocks her head to the side, matching Trevor’s pout. She cradles his face.

Trevor’s pout breaks into a smile and he leans forward, catching her bottom lip and claiming it. The kiss starts soft and insistent, barely demanding anything from Honey at all. Between kisses, he touches her sides and sends sparks up her body. Her lips part and Trevor’s tongue explores Honey’s mouth. She breaks from him and laughs when he tries to roll his ‘R’ like he’s in Spanish class, but inside her mouth. He must have thought it would make a fun movement of their tongues, but Honey has to push him away for all of five minutes while she catches her breath.

He can’t kiss her again for another ten without more giggles spewing from Honey’s body. 

Trevor nips at Honey’s bottom lip playfully, then her own teeth tug gently on his lower lip in return. 

Honey is pliant beneath Trevor, the kiss both intimate and lazy and filthy and plundering. She could stay in his arms, pressed into the cushions of her comfy couch and lost in the drugging sweetness of his kisses, forever. The rest of the world fell away when she was kissing him, until Honey’s front door swings open and hits the wall next to it.

The couple separates, although Trevor is still laying on top of Honey. He lifts himself up just enough to look over the back of the couch, at the person attached to the pair of stomping feet approaching them. Honey doesn’t have to look to know who it is. She recognizes Bea’s footsteps well.

“Get out,” Bea announces in a grave, serious, and stern voice.

She really did it, then, Honey thinks to herself, equal parts impressed and sad for Bea. It’s no wonder she doesn’t want Trevor here, especially not on top of Honey and making out with her like a bad reminder.

Honey places her hands on Trevor’s chest and starts to push him off, but has to shift her focus when Trevor starts to fight back, like he always does.

“What stick got shoved up your ass today?” Trevor snaps. 

“Get out,” Bea repeats.

“Trevor,” Honey jumps in, tapping his collarbone insistently.

Trevor eyes fall, not so far as to find Honey, but just to Bea’s midsection. “What is that?” he asks. “You brought a toy with you? Is that the stupid cow that Quinn wouldn’t let Jack cuddle when he found it earlier?”

Honey grinds her teeth together and covers Trevor’s mouth with both of her hands. “Shut up,” she hisses. 

His words have done enough damage. Bea pulls the coffee table out of the way and steps up to the couch, whacking Trevor with Moo-Moo and the flat of her other hand over and over, trying to make solid contact with his twisting body. He’s laughing, because clearly he thinks this is a joke, but Honey doesn’t find it funny at all. Neither does Bea, whose eyes are red, puffy and seething with ire and a fresh layer of mist.

“I hate you,” she tells him with absolute conviction. “You have absolutely no empathy for anyone ever and if you paid attention for more than two seconds, you’d realize that today is not the day to be a cunt to me, Trevor!”

“You’re fucking insane,” Trevor responds, curling up into a ball and hiding behind Honey as she sits up.

Honey catches Bea’s hands and holds them tightly. “Stop,” Honey says. “Stop. I know you’re upset, but stop it.”

“He started it,” Bea deflects tearfully.

“Baby, you told him to get out instead of asking him to leave,” Honey replies, tilting her head knowingly at Bea.

The girl’s bottom lip wobbles and her chest starts to lurch. “I don’t want him here,” she says through gulping breaths. “I need you to stay with me. Alone.”

Trevor has noticed Bea’s state and reacts with the appropriate awkwardness. “Shit,” he acknowledges. 

Bea squeezes her eyes shut and sobs, curling in on herself.

Honey stands and wraps her in a hug, one arm wrapped around Bea’s ribcage and other hand cradling the back of her head. Bea cries into her shoulder, arms locked around Honey’s body. She’s still clutching Moo-Moo’s ear between her fingers, a nervous habit that Honey hasn’t seen since they were in their tweens. 

“Trev, sweetheart, you should go,” Honey says softly. “Please.”

He rises from the couch and touches the base of Honey’s spine. “Sorry, Bea,” he tries. Honey can see that he wants to pat her on the arm, but she shakes her head and he refrains. “I hope you’re okay.”

It’s a really awkward goodbye from Trevor, understandably so, and Honey feels terrible as Bea continues to cry. Honey gets her upstairs and into her bed, which they’ve shared for plenty of Honey’s freakouts, but it feels so much different this time.

Honey positions Moo-Moo so that he’s right under Bea’s nose and his fur is touching her lips. She brushes Bea’s hair out of her face and wipes a little bit of the mascara off of her eyelids. “I’m sorry you had to do this,” Honey whispers. “It sucks.”

Bea hiccups. “It’s for the best,” she manages shakily. “I’d be ten times worse if this happened after… everything I tried to explain earlier.”

Long distance, Quinn’s laser-focus on hockey, Bea’s self-admitted need for attention, the way all of those things will compound until they hate each other and breakup in a much bigger blowout. Those are the bits Honey understood. It’s how Bea got from one point to the other, with all of those assumptions, that Honey didn’t quite get. 

“He thought I would change my mind because you and Trevor are staying together,” Bea adds in a miserable voice. 

Honey feels a flare of anger rise up in her throat. They’ve experienced this before– people always assume that she and Bea do the same thing, together, all the time. They’re best friends, but they’re not clones of each other. It’s their shared pet peeve– which doesn’t actually disprove the statement that they’re the same.

“He said he’d buy me an apartment in Vancouver.” A fresh round of sobs leaves Bea and she wipes them on the top of Moo-Moo’s head. “It’s like– I can’t uproot my life just for him,” she says desperately, as if she has to explain it to Honey. She feels the same way Bea does. Moving across the country with her boyfriend of three months (unofficially) would be a mistake. “He didn’t get it. He didn’t get it.”

Honey closes her eyes and touches her forehead to Bea’s. 

“I explained it to him at the beginning of the summer and he agreed,” Bea reminds herself more than Honey. “And I can’t, I can’t–”

“I know,” Honey murmurs. “Shh, it’s okay.”

Bea heaves in Honey’s arms and soaks her spare pillow with tears. Honey watches her, stroking her cheek and her arm and wiping her running nose with tissue after tissue. It’s hard. Bea used to do the same thing for her, countless times over, and Honey feels dreadful. Bea shouldn’t ever look like this or feel like this. Honey would do anything to change it.

“I’m sorry,” she repeats.

Bea takes a shaky breath, then another. “It felt like he didn’t understand me,” Bea explains in a far-away voice with a mournful frown. “I thought he knew.”

“Oh, sweet girl,” Honey sighs. “He was just hoping something would change.”

“Then he didn’t listen when I told him nothing would,” Bea sniffs. She averts her gaze from Honey’s eyes, down to the space between them. She sniffs again. “Is that Puppy?”

Honey looks down. Her monkey is between them, left on the middle of the bed when Trevor made a scene of returning him to his rightful owner. He did not return the Ducks shirt that magically appeared in her dresser drawer in Charlotte. “Yeah.”

Bea scrunches her face in confusion and breathes out either a laugh or a fresh set of tears– but she’s cried dry, so nothing appears. “Did he become sentient and walk here?” she implores, disbelieving. 

Honey almost laughs in relief at the change in subject. She knows Bea well enough to know that she’s deflecting and moving on because she doesn’t want to cry over her breakup anymore. They’ll come back to it another day, when she’s processed it a bit more. “Trevor and I went to see my parents.”

Bea is silent, mouth open in pure betrayal. “What the hell else have you been keeping from me?” she wails dramatically. “Are you moving to Cali?”

“No,” Honey exclaims. She laughs out loud. “I am not moving to California.”

“Good, ‘cause the West Coast is not the best coast,” Bea asserts stubbornly. 

“Have you eaten?” Honey asks.

Bea’s expression immediately turns into a scowl. She hates when Honey asks that, taking it as a personal attack and an insinuation that she can’t take care of herself. “No.”

At least she’s honest. “Stay right there,” Honey says. “I’m going to go make you something quick. You need to eat.” She kicks off the covers and shoves her feet into her slippers, padding across the floor.

“Make me a water bottle too,” Bea bosses in a grumble. “I feel like a raisin.”

She’ll be okay. Honey is sure of it. Even if Bea isn’t, Honey will be around.

87:90 – TREVOR

i’m sorry i attacked u. that was mean. can i come over later to apologize for real? Bea asks through text message. 

Trevor can’t shake the image of Bea crying in Honey’s arms from his mind. He still feels guilty about how he had provoked her and completely misread the room. It’s their thing, making fun of each other and being each other’s number one hater. Trevor hadn’t known that Bea would be so touchy yesterday.

Honey is coming over at 7 to help me pack

i know. i’ll drive her there and u can drive her to work toma

You won’t stay over?

Bea doesn’t respond to that one– not for another few hours. She texts once Trevor is finishing up his last load of laundry. He’s choosing which clothes he’ll keep out for the next few days when his phone vibrates.

i’ll explain later.

It’s a resolute answer that confuses Trevor. He moves his laundry into a massive pile on his bed so that he actually gets it done before he goes to bed, then leaves the room. He’ll do it when Honey gets here. He wants to prolong their time together, so he’ll fold and she’ll pack. She likes organizational things like that. Three weeks ago, the same day she accidentally called him her boyfriend, Trevor watched Honey take all of her books off of her bookshelves and reorder them accordingly. He doesn’t know her system. He does know, however, that she was very content with the repetitive action. There was a little smile on her face the whole time.

Trevor walks downstairs and finds the main level empty. He goes down the next flight and finds the boys. None of them have even started to pack, which is annoying because they still have to clean the rental house on Friday. At this rate, it’ll fall to Trevor to clean because all the guys are trying to locate their things. Cole will be trying to save his clothes from being stolen by the Hughes brothers, who just scoop up all the laundry as if it’s theirs. Trevor supposes that’s what happens when they share the Michigan house– he wouldn’t be surprised if the spare bedroom had been turned into a joint-closet in the time since he’s visited.

Luke and Cole are playing ping-pong and yelling at each other. Jack and Quinn are laying across the two couches, each with a book in their hand. Trevor almost wants to tease them for coexisting so peacefully, but he plops down on the recliner instead. He snatches the remote and turns the TV on, enduring Quinn’s side eye as he disturbs the quiet surrounding the seating area. 

“The girls are coming over in a bit,” Trevor announces to the group. 

He doesn’t miss how Jack’s eyes lift towards Quinn. Or how Quinn shifts on the couch. Or how the ping pong ball goes clattering to the floor and Cole sings, “Another point for me.”

“Honey’s going to help me pack,” Trevor adds. “You guys should really start packing, too.”

“Don’t be a killjoy, Z. We’ll get to it,” Jack says. “We’re enjoying the time we have left.”

Trevor pauses, gawking at the irony of the words. “You’re the one who didn’t want to come here in the first place,” he points out.

Jack just shrugs and flicks to the next page in his book. He adjusts the baseball cap on his head. “I changed my mind.”

“So you want to come back next year?” Trevor asks.

Jack curls his lip. “No. Not for the whole summer. I’d like to spend my free time in the house I own, thanks.” He reaches his leg toward the other sofa blindly and kicks Quinn. “Right, Q-Ball?”

“Yeah,” Quinn says shortly.

Trevor hasn’t heard his voice sound as curt as this in a long time. He leaves it alone, turning back to face the television and focusing on the episode of The Office that seemed to magically appear, as if this TV has memorized Jack’s watching habits. 

Luke and Cole sit on the big couch after their game of ping-pong ends. Luke puts his arms over the back of it, stretching his long limbs out over Quinn’s shoulders. Cole kicks his feet up on the coffee table and laughs at most of the jokes coming from the television over the next two episodes.

The day passed by quickly with all the laundry Trevor did. It doesn’t surprise him when he hears the front door open in the distance and two pairs of footsteps crossing the floor above them. 

“Hello?” Honey calls, stopping halfway down the basement steps and waving. “Nobody greets their guests at the door anymore?”

Trevor’s face splits with a smile and he laughs. He stands and walks toward Honey. Cole immediately takes his seat in the recliner.

“Hey, baby,” Trevor says. He climbs the first few steps and kisses Honey briefly. “You ready to pack up some laundry?”

“Is it ready to pack or is it in a pile on your bed?” Honey responds.

Trevor doesn’t answer, just looking at Honey knowingly.

She rolls her eyes and pats his chest firmly. “You’re the worst. I’ll go start folding while you talk to Bea.” Honey looks around Trevor’s body. “You okay, Q?”

Quinn hums. Trevor catches the tail end of a shrug when he looks in the boy’s direction. 

“Ask me how I am,” Cole chirps.

Honey’s thoughtful bite of her lower lip after Quinn’s response disappears after Cole’s input. She chuckles. “How are you, Cole?”

“Never better,” Cole brags. “Just won another game of ping-pong against the big guy.”

“By two points,” Luke jumps in. “It wasn’t that impressive. We were neck-in-neck for ages.”

“Well, you’ll get him next time, Lukey. Good job, Cole.” Honey slides her hand into Trevor’s. “C’mon, Trev. We’ve got chores to do.”

“Will you guys be here for long?” Jack asks. “Tell Bea to come down.”

“She has stuff to do tonight,” Honey lies. She tries to keep her face impassive, but Trevor knows that Bea never has anything to do unless she’s hanging out with Quinn. 

The fact that Quinn hasn’t moved at all from the couch since Bea got here is suspicious. 

Oh my God, they broke up, Trevor realizes suddenly. Oh my God. He stares at Quinn. The dark circles under his eyes make sense now.

“Come on, Trev.” Honey tugs his hand and leads him upstairs. Trevor is still looking at Quinn, scrutinizing him until Honey drags Trevor out of sight.

“What happened?” Trevor asks. He pads after Honey, entering the kitchen.

“Talk to Bea,” Honey replies. She brings a hand to Trevor’s jaw and kisses him softly on the lips. “I have to go do the laundry you left for me while you do. You’re a terrible boyfriend.”

“I’m not,” Trevor whines. “I wanted to fold them together.”

“That’s very sweet of you,” Honey tells him, only a slight air of sarcasm in her voice. “But you have to make up with Bea. I’ll meet you upstairs when you’re done. It shouldn’t take long.”

Trevor doesn’t dare sigh out loud, not when Bea or Honey could hear him. He agreed to this, but the thing is, Bea doesn’t need to apologize to him. It wasn’t a big deal. Now that Trevor thinks she and Quinn broke up, he thinks that he should be apologizing. Not that he will. Unless he feels like it in the moment.

He turns away from the stairs and looks for Bea, scanning the room. She’s nowhere to be found. Surely Honey would’ve brought him in here because this is where Bea is. Maybe she chickened out and couldn’t stand to be in the house, so she left.

“Over here,” she says, lifting her arm into the air. She’s laying on the couch in the living room, the one that they rarely ever use. 

Trevor rounds the couch and finds Bea laying there in a tank top and jean shorts, very reminiscent of Honey’s style. He supposes it makes sense– she probably stayed the night with Honey last night. Her hair is up in a bun, also like Honey. “Hey.”

“Hey,” Bea echos. She rolls partially off of the sofa and reaches for her bag in a half-assed way, waving her arm four times before snagging one of the handles and pulling it into her space. “I brought you a treat.”

Trevor sits on the ottoman near the fireplace. “Oh, yeah? What kind of treat?”

“Peanut butter chocolate chip cookies.” Bea pulls a tupperware out of the bag and underhand-tosses it to Trevor. “I need the container back when you guys leave. It’s from the Nook.”

“I’ll wash it tonight and give it to Honey so she can bring it back to work tomorrow,” Trevor says. “You didn’t have to make me cookies.”

“Well, I’m bad at apologies, so I wanted to make a gesture,” Bea says. 

Trevor feels sheepish all of a sudden. “You don’t have to apologize either,” he tells her with a grimace. “I didn’t realize you were having a bad day and I probably shouldn’t have poked the bear.”

Bea talks over him as he stumbles through the last part of his statement. “I do have to apologize. It seems like you’re going to be around for a long time, Trevor, and I don’t want us to be at odds.” 

A blossom of pride blooms in Trevor’s chest when Bea admits to him being around for a long time– absolutely he’ll be around for a long time. His relationship with Honey won’t be ending anytime soon. 

“It wasn’t cool of me to hit you and yell at you,” Bea continues. “You definitely weren’t nice, but I wasn’t any better.”

“That’s kind of what we do, though,” Trevor says. “Bicker.”

“Not like that.” Bea shakes her head. “I should’ve had more control over myself, so I’m sorry. I know you didn’t really mean to make a bad day worse.”

“What happened?” Trevor asks. “If you don’t mind me asking.”

Bea takes a deep breath and looks away from Trevor. She stares at the ceiling and a thick silence settles between them. 

“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”

Bea glares at him out of the side of her eye. That’s back to normal. “Obviously I’m going to tell you Trevor, but I am once again asking you to wait two seconds.”

Trevor looks at his fingernails and picks at his cuticles. “It’s been two seconds,” he grumbles. 

“You are so lucky that Honey is patient with you, I would be swinging on you in a second if I was her,” Bea argues back.

“Right back at’cha,” Trevor bites.

Bea pauses. She eyes him, then looks back to the ceiling. “We broke up,” Bea says with a shrug. “It didn’t go like I wanted it to. It didn’t go like Quinn wanted it to. It was a bad day.”

Trevor doesn’t know what to say. “I’m sorry.”

Bea looks at him, an incredulous squint adorning her face. Then, she snorts and laughs. “Okay,” she says. “Don’t go getting all sappy on me, Trevor.”

“Breakups suck,” Trevor says with a shrug. He’s not being sappy. He’s relating to Bea.

“I might’ve yelled at you for your shit empathy yesterday, but you really don’t have to do all that,” Bea snickers. “I don’t really want you to feel for me, Trevor. I’m happy with our relationship as is. You fight with me like Cece and Trix do.”

“Are you saying I’m a girl?” Trevor asks, making a joke of her sentence. It’s pretty nice, actually, to be compared to one of Bea’s siblings. It makes sense, considering how they fight. It’s how Trevor fights with Griffin and Ava.

Bea taps her chin and purses her lips. “Well, if the glass slipper fits.”

Trevor makes a face at Bea and stands up. “You think you’re funny.”

“I know I am.” She sticks her tongue out at Trevor and sits up, grabbing her bag and hoisting herself off of the comfy furniture. 

“Are you leaving?” Trevor asks when Bea follows him to the steps, toward the front of the house.

“Yep,” Bea confirms. “I can’t very well… stay the night, or anything.” She laughs self-deprecatingly and shifts her bag over her shoulder. “I’ll see you tomorrow, though. We’re supposed to get dinner altogether. Did Honey tell you that yet?”

“No,” Trevor says.

“Well, we are. Tell the boys. We’re going to Mexico and having tacos and margs.” Bea opens the door and slips through. “Have fun with Honey.”

Trevor nods and heads upstairs, walking down the hallway into his bedroom. When he pushes the door open, the pile of laundry on his bed has shrunk drastically, thanks to Honey’s dutiful work. 

“How many loads did you do?” Honey asks as soon as he walks inside. 

“Like three,” Trevor says. “Three and a half.”

“I can’t believe you brought that many clothes for one summer,” Honey says. “I don’t know if I have enough clothes for three and a half loads. Maybe if I was doing my delicates and whites and colors separate.”

Trevor hums and takes his spot next to Honey. When she bends forward to grab another shirt to fold, he slaps her ass playfully. She stole a pair of his boxers, to Trevor’s delight. 

Honey rolls her eyes. “Can we get your laundry done before you start getting distracted by my body?”

Trevor scrunches up his face and pretends to cry, wrapping his arms around Honey’s shoulders and burying his face in her hair. 

“Stop being dramatic,” Honey chastizes. “Pick up a shirt and fold it or I’m going to make you do this all by yourself.”

Trevor is quick to get a move on after that. He fully believes Honey will make him do the chores all by himself. It’s not that he’s incapable, but he wants to do it together. It’s embarrassing how much Trevor likes the idea of folding laundry together, like they share a house and do their laundry together. Maybe next summer they will. Trevor could move in with Honey if she lets him. If she says no, Earl offered the apartment above his garage on Sunday, which might be the closest Trevor will ever come to hearing Earl outright tell Trevor that he likes him. 

He’s two for two. Both Earl and Honey did everything they could to remain grumpy and detached when it comes to Trevor, and look at how that changed. He’s just impressively charismatic.

When Honey asks what Trevor is smiling about, and he repeats his thoughts to her, she snaps a t-shirt at his thigh. 

She loves him. Definitely.

88:90 – HONEY

“Would you get us another round, Luce?” Honey asks, looking up at the dark-haired girl who has worked at Mexico since her family bought the building in her childhood. She clasps her hands together in praying fashion. “Then we’ll be done. I promise.”

“Scout’s honor, Luce,” Bea vows with a big smile. 

“You guys have already been overserved,” Lucía replies with a frown. “You know I don’t care, but my dad worries.”

“Quinn is driving,” Bea says. “Don’t worry. Tell Carlos that he doesn’t have to worry about us and that his Mole Poblano is perfect. He should never change the recipe.”

Lucía laughs. “Yeah, he’ll love that. You know how to work the system. So we’ve got beers for the boys now? Or are y’all still pounding margs like the girls?”

“I’m stickin’ with a marg, dude,” Cole declares. He runs his tongue over the salt rim and smacks his lips, smiling widely at their waitress. 

The Hughes boys decide to switch it up to a beer, as does Trevor. A nice, refreshing beer with a little lime doesn’t seem bad to Honey right now, but she’ll probably have to drink beer at the surprise party. Earl was in charge of the drinks and swore he’d buy enough for everyone they invited, but Honey isn’t certain he knows just how much beer the town can drink during a party. Luckily, Sarah is bringing her trailer-bar in case Earl underestimates things. At least there will be one experienced drinker and party-planner in Trevor’s backyard.

Bea orders another strawberry margarita, Cole orders a normal lime one, and Honey orders a mango-flavored marg, but her mind is elsewhere. The ladies swore on Tuesday that they have planned enough parties in their time to set this one up without Honey’s supervision. 

There are so many things that could go wrong. The alcohol was supposed to take the edge off. Honey wishes she was at the house and she’d left the dinner to Bea. That was the original plan, before the breakup happened on Tuesday. Now, Bea isn’t really that comfortable without Honey acting as a buffer between her and the boys. There’s definitely an awkwardness between her and Quinn, although they’re both trying to ignore it. Honey has seen Quinn watching Bea. Bea isn’t oblivious, either.

Other than the glances between Bea and Quinn, the dinner has been pretty good. The boys seem to believe that it’s their last hoo-rah together and they’re making the most of it. When she’s not worried about how things are going at the rental house, Honey is laughing at Jack’s stupid jokes or at the other boys’ comebacks and quips.

‘One more round’ turns into two before they leave. It’s normal for a Mexico trip to end in a few more drinks than expected, especially as the weekend approaches. By the time they’re walking out the door, the sun has started setting, and Sarah has texted Honey that everyone is ready for them to come back.

She and Bea are holding in their excitement well on the drive back to the house, sharing looks with each other and trying not to spill the secret at the last second.

“What the hell,” Quinn wonders under his breath, sounding confused as he pulls into the driveway and sees that there are more than a few cars parked in front of the house. 

The crowd of people in front of the house should be a dead giveaway to what’s going on. There are tons of familiar faces in the crowd, an impressive group considering Honey only had this idea on Tuesday morning while the ladies were in their knitting circle. 

Bea is bouncing in her seat, jumping out of the car as Quinn puts it into park. Honey exits after her and grins, hoping to find excitement and surprise on her friends’ faces. 

“Surprise!” shouts the crowd around the front of the house. 

“Welcome to your going away party!” Vera adds. She’s right at the front of the crowd with the other ladies, holding gift bags with the boys’ hockey numbers on them. “Come and get your presents.”

They’re all sufficiently buzzed, but Honey is glad to see that they can all pass a sobriety test; the boys don’t stumble or stagger at all on their way towards their respective present-presenter.

It’s really cute how Cole hugs Vera and Trevor accepts a kiss on the cheek from Scarlett. Luke hugs Gillian with one arm and looks over her shoulder at Emma-Kate while he does, sending her a playfully inquisitive look that Honey assumes has to do with the gift. Quinn accepts his bag from Sacha and Jack thanks Rosalind for his. It’s sweet– the ladies had dropped their current projects to create something for each boy, having only two days to craft a knitted item. She knows what each of them are and it’s a wonder that the ladies’ hands aren’t sore and laden with blisters and calluses. 

Vera knitted a sweater for Cole, her favorite of the boys. She asked Honey to see what colors Cole’s hockey team is, so she ended up knitting a navy sweater with red cuffs and a red hem to try and stay on theme as best she could. It was so precious.

Trevor got a sweater too, although his is a cable-knit conglomeration of all of the leftover half-skeins Scarlett has amassed over the past year. The colors change without warning and don’t follow a specific pattern, but Trevor is delighted with it. Honey snorts when he pulls it on over his clothes then and there. Of course he does, even though the temperature is in the high 70s. It’s warm and he’s out here wearing a sweater– maybe if they’re still out partying at two in the morning, it’ll pay off. 

The Hughes boys got beanies, since half of the pictures that came up when Honey looked them up for the ladies featured them walking through hockey arenas in suits and knitted toques. Quinn’s is dark green with a blue brim and Honey notices his tiny, quirked smile as he examines it. He hugs Sacha and thanks her again before tucking the hat into the pocket of his shorts.

Jack and Luke’s beanies nearly match, since each lady except Scarlett tried to match each boys’ team colors. They’re both black and white, although Jack’s is striped and Luke’s is a solid black with a firetruck red rim. There’s a patch on the brim of Luke’s that he seems particularly amused by. It’s black with white letters and a red heart– Honey can’t read what it says– but Emma-Kate is snickering to herself with her tongue poking between her teeth. It must have been her idea. Luke’s eyes tilt up to look up at her and he chuckles, shaking his head. Jack pulls his beanie on, just like Trevor did with his sweater, and Luke places his back in the gift bag. 

The party lingers in the front for a little while longer, with the boys talking to people in the crowd as Honey and Bea (and Earl) walk around the house into the backyard. It looks gorgeous– there are ladders leaning against the side of the house, which Honey assumed were used to hang the fairy lights that are twinkling along the balcony of the house. There are also poles sticking up in the yard, right at the edge of the concrete pad that the boys used as their rink, which allow fairy lights to freefall against the sky like a canopy of stars. 

Honey is glad that she dressed up today in her black, ribbed tank top and long, red boho skirt. There’s music playing through a speaker that Sarah brought with her and Honey wants to dance. The cicadas are out and singing along with the music, trying to screech over the lyrics. 

Bea also dressed up. She’s wearing a white bodysuit that ties in the back with a ruffly, dandelion-colored gingham skirt. She did her hair during her lunch break at the Nook, curling the strands into loose waves that make her look like she belongs on the beach. They need to get a picture.

Earl is stoking the bonfire in the pit that the boys made at the beginning of the summer, so the girls bother him to take their photo for a couple of minutes before he relents. They pose under the lights and hug each other, giggling when Bea turns her head and smushes her lips into Honey’s cheek. 

It’s then that the boys manage to migrate into the backyard. While other guests are heading towards the snack and drink table, or the bonfire, the guys are barreling into Honey and Bea’s photos. Jack grabs Bea’s waist and throws her over his shoulder, sticking his tongue out at the camera. Earl snaps a picture as Bea shrieks and laughs.

After minutes of wrangling, and convincing the boys to really smile, they get a couple of decent pictures together. Luke’s arm is thrown over Honey’s shoulder and Trevor’s arm is around her waist, holding her so tightly that their hips are touching.

Earl eventually gives up and hands the phone back to Bea, saying he’s not a photographer and he expects to be paid if they want any more pictures. Honey thinks he just wants to get back to the fire, which is every man’s happy place, it seems. There’s definitely a dichotomy here. So many of the men and husbands that came along to this party are mingling around the fire with their beer bottles in hand, while the women are all around. It makes Honey laugh, to be honest.

Trevor sticks by her side the whole night. Honey tells him that he can go hang out with Cole or dance around with Jack, but Trevor wraps his index finger around her pinkie and takes a sip from his beer instead. 

They talk with the ladies and with Joan, then with the guys from the Scruffy’s band. Honey challenges Andrew, the bass player, to a game of pool in the basement of the rental house. She still doesn’t win against him– maybe 2025 will be the year that she finally hustles Andrew. Arn, the lead singer of the band, takes her place and promises to “show her how it’s done,” which makes Honey roll her eyes and “hardy-har” at him. She and Trevor go back outside and join Bea around the bonfire.

The party started pretty late for most residents of Litchton. Honey and Bea didn’t meet up with the guys until after the Nook closed for the night, then they’d had about four drinks over two-ish hours, and then they came to the party. A lot of the older people from town, like Ada, have left the going away party with a final well-wish and a wave. Ada even offered to open the store tomorrow morning, so that Bea doesn’t have to leave early if she doesn’t want to. Bea had laughed and said she wouldn’t say no to that, but that she’ll have to make up for all the late starts during the school year.

They started with maybe fifty people, and that’s a generous estimate, but now they’re down to twenty or so. Sarah and Ethan are packing up the trailer bar for the night, but there’s plenty of beer leftover. Tyler ran out to go relieve the babysitter, while Jessie wanted to hang around a bit and talk to some of her old high school acquaintances that Honey has gotten to know over the years. Those four have probably been the oldest people at the party in the last half-hour.

Luke and Emma-Kate are chatting under the covered porch, feet in the hot tub. Jack and Cole are on the dance floor with a couple of Emma-Kate’s NC State friends. Honey doesn’t know how she convinced them to take a road trip to bumfuck western North Carolina during the first week of classes, but she has a feeling that the cute hockey stars might’ve played a factor. 

Both Bea and Quinn are seated around the fire with the townies. Lucía and her older brother Diego made it to the party and are sitting between Bea and Quinn, talking to the person to their side. Diego has a blunt between his fingers and keeps throwing looks at Griffin and his cop-buddy Joshua, who are also sitting around the fire. Diego is arching his eyebrow like The Rock towards the pair every couple minutes and making Griffin laugh to the point that he can’t even look in Diego’s direction anymore.

“You okay, sweet girl?” Honey asks, touching Bea’s shoulder. She’s staring into the fire and lifting her eyes to survey the group every once in a while or to look at Luce when they’re having a conversation.  

Bea puckers her lips at Honey and blows her a kiss. “Yeah, I’m good.” She pouts at Honey and continues to explain, “Coming down from the buzz, so I’m like hungover and drunk at the same time. I think I prefer morning hangovers. It’s also sad that the guys are leaving.” 

Trevor chuckles next to Bea and places his hand on the back of her folding chair. “You’re missing me already?”

Bea rolls her eyes. She knocks her head against his hand. “Not you, you take away my Honey time.”

“Here, Hon, you can have my chair,” Griffin offers, standing up and bringing the chair over to where they’re standing. 

“No, Griff, I’m okay standing and you had it first,” Honey says, waving him off. She doesn’t really want to sit, especially not if she’s taking Griffin’s chair. She’s just checking with Bea, and then she and Trevor are going to dance. Honey’s phone is connected to the speaker now, so all of her favorite music is playing. 

Griffin shakes his head and plants the chair next to Bea. “I’m going to grab another beer and use the bathroom anyway, don’t worry about it.”

“Griffin,” Bea sing-songs. “I know you’re trying to be gentlemanly–”

At that, Trevor’s hand slides around Honey’s hip possessively. 

“–but stop trying to force your chivalry on my best friend,” Bea finishes. A grin passes over her face after she ends her sentence.

Griffin laughs. He taps Bea’s forehead and she bites at Griffin’s finger when he pulls away. He leaves the circle and Bea shoots the hairband around her wrist at his retreating back.

Honey catches Quinn watching them, but he averts his eyes quickly when he sees that Honey is watching him. 

She feels like her stomach is sinking into the dirt. Honey tilts her head to the side, taking in Quinn’s shrunken posture, and sighs.

Trevor sinks into the chair Griffin left behind and pulls Honey onto his lap. She goes willingly, but leans forward and rests her elbows on the arm of Bea’s chair. 

“Are you going to talk to him?” Honey asks under her breath. “You’re both miserable.”

“I can’t,” Bea deflects in a low voice, matching Honey’s tone. She looks at Quinn and looks away just as quickly, biting the inside of her cheek.

Honey presses her lips together and blinks at Bea.

“Don’t look at me like that,” Bea complains, rolling her shoulder up and grimacing in blatant discomfort. “I feel bad, but it’s not…”

“Bea, you have to talk to him,” Honey tells her gently. “He’s not gone yet and you love him.”

Bea looks at her hands and rubs her thumb over the lines on her palm.

“He loves you,” Honey prods. She touches Bea’s elbow. “Finish the summer on a good note.”

“We’re broken up,” Bea reiterates to Honey, an unnecessary reminder of something Honey knows all too well. She was there with Bea before and after it happened. She knows.

“And that’s fine,” Honey says. “But neither of you want to be. You can’t just ignore him.”

Bea takes a deep breath and peeks at Quinn. “I don’t know what to say,” she whispers, still gazing in his direction. 

As if Quinn can feel the eyes on him, Honey sees him glance up and make eye contact with Bea. The corners of his lips turn up slightly in a reassuring smile before he looks away. 

She does the same. 

Honey tucks a lock of hair behind Bea’s ear. “You can do this.”

Trevor’s hands squeeze Honey’s hips and she gets the hint– he’s a little needy for attention. He managed to wait until the end of her and Bea’s conversation, which she’s happy about. It’s the bare minimum, and yet Trevor is impatient and bounces between one thing and another within minutes. He’s so sweet, and he gets rather restless quickly.

She wants to dance anyway. It’s time. Honey stands and pats Bea’s shoulder before she and Trevor approach the makeshift dance floor. She holds his hand and leads him there.

“You’re really good at crisis management,” Trevor says, turning Honey around so that they’re face to face. He puts his hands on her hips and holds her close. 

“I’ve had lots of practice,” Honey replies. She twines her arms around Trevor’s neck and knocks her nose against his. “Five years of it.”

Trevor hums and frowns, leaning in and stealing Honey’s lips a few times. “I hate remembering that,” he drawls. He pecks her lips again. “But you are very good at it. I like that you take care of people so well.”

Honey feels her cheeks go red and she shakes her head, looking over his shoulder at Jack and his brunette. 

Trevor kisses over Honey’s neck and her shoulder. They sway to the music, staying close and breathing in time with each other. 

Honey rests her temple against Trevor’s cheek. She laughs and corrects him when his hands fall from her hips to her ass. She can feel him smiling in a cheeky way after she tells him to move his hands back to a respectable place, although he obeys in an instant. 

A few minutes later, Trevor taps Honey’s waist with his thumb. “They’re dancing.”

Honey is confused for a minute, then her eyebrows lift towards her hairline. “Bea and Quinn?”

“Mhm,” Trevor hums. He spins them around in place so that Honey can creepily watch Bea and Quinn dancing behind them. 

Bea’s got a hand on Quinn’s shoulder, her other hand held in his out to her right side. They’ve got a relaxed-ballroom dance stance instead of the closer hold that Trevor and Honey have on each other. Quinn’s hand is on Bea’s waist and they seem to be talking, albeit in stilted conversation, as they move. 

Quinn’s fingers are tense, partially lifted off of Bea’s waist, like he’s not sure if he can touch her. They relax when Bea steps closer and lets her forearm rest on his bicep, faces close enough that they can probably feel each others’ breath. They look… happy to be like this, but hesitant.

Honey understands why Bea is so choked up every time she has to be near Quinn. After all, Honey doesn’t want Trevor to leave, but it’s inevitable. The same is true for Bea and Quinn. The summer and their time in Litchton was always going to end. Distance is a just a cruel snip of fate.

Honey gulps as they turn, catching the look in Bea’s glassy eyes, fastened on Quinn’s face. She’s biting her lower lip while she studies him. It’s like Quinn is telling her something, but she can’t hear him without remembering what it’s like to kiss him. She’s tormented by how much she likes him and taunted by the fact that it could never work.

Honey loses them in her sight as she and Trevor spin on the floor. Honey takes a sharp inhale and blinks, coming back to herself. 

“I don’t want to miss you in the fall,” Honey says suddenly, as if jolted awake. 

“What?” Trevor asks, thoroughly confused.

“When Bea and Quinn broke up, she said it made the most sense? I don’t think it makes sense for us,” Honey stammers, shaking her head. 

“What are you talking about?” Trevor asks.

Of course he’s confused, since they already decided that they’d be staying together after Trevor leaves, but Honey has to say what’s on her mind regardless. She distantly recognizes the song that has started to play– “A year from now, we’ll all be gone…”

“I never wanted to see Thomas again after we broke up, but I never want to be without you,” Honey says. “We can’t break up.”

“Honey, we’re not breaking up,” Trevor agrees. 

She understands what he meant now– when he came to the Nook for the first time, Trevor told her that he liked her name because it was like he got to call her something special, something sweet. It rubbed her the wrong way then, but hearing his tender tone now makes Honey want to weep. Her name only sounds right, like this, when he says it. “I’m in this. You’re stuck with me. God help you.”

His sincere words break a dam in Honey’s ribs, causing her to giggle. “You’re not going to make me beg?” She jabs back, grateful that he didn’t take her hurried words in a more serious, concerned, worried way. 

Trevor leans down to mouth over her pulse point. “Oh, every day of your life. Know how much you like it, gotta keep my girlfriend happy,” he mumbles along her skin. 

Honey lets out a contented sigh. She hugs Trevor closer. “Knew you were good for something.”

“That’s why you decided to keep me around, hm?” Trevor teases with a smile at the curve of her jaw. “The sex?”

“One of the reasons,” Honey teases back.

“Yeah? What are the others?” Trevor asks. He’s goading her into giving him compliments, but Honey is more than willing to comply.

Honey pulls him up to meet her lips. “I love you,” she says after the kiss.

Trevor grins, his chipped tooth that Honey is so fond of catching her eye. “I love you, too,” he replies and kisses her again.

“Holy shit, what did you two just say?” Cole demands suddenly from next to them. He’s dancing with Emma-Kate’s redheaded friend, to whom he bids goodbye with a squeeze of her hand and a wink. He turns back to Honey and Trevor. “When did this happen?”

“When did what happen,” Trevor asks, narrowing his eyes at Cole.

“The I Love You,” Cole explains, nodding between them pointedly. “Was that the first time?”

Honey blinks. She frowns. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, we’ve been betting on it for weeks,” Cole says. “If that’s the first time you’ve said I Love You, then Jack loses the bet and Quinn wins.”

Trevor scoffs. “That’s kind of funny. I wondered what those numbers on the back of the whiteboard were for.”

Honey’s jaw drops. The numbers that she noticed last week… they hadn’t meant anything to Honey, just doodles of something she assumed was hockey related. Now she gets it— it was their over/under on their relationship.

“He knows when we said I Love You for the first time,” Honey snaps incredulously, sucking her teeth. She looks out on the floor to find Jack. “He was in the room when I yelled about it to Bea.”

“Oh, cheater,” Cole complains, throwing a glance at Jack as well. He catches their gaze, then quickly pulls his brunette towards the hot tub with Luke and Emma-Kate. “That’s not fair. I thought you’d wait until the end of this year. Damn.” He whacks himself on the head gently. “I should’ve known, after all the sex dreams you had, Z. You said it first, didn’t you?”

Trevor is quick to change the subject. “So do we get a share of the money since you were betting on us?”

Honey turns to Trevor, on a completely separate page. “You had sex dreams about me?”

Trevor flushes red. 

“Oh yeah,” Cole laughs. “Why do you think he wanted to fuck you so bad on the boat on the Fourth of July?”

Honey cackles, throwing her head back. She smushes Trevor’s cheeks between her thumb and forefinger. “You’re such a boy. Sex dreams…”

Trevor groans in the back of his throat and takes Honey’s hand. “C’mon,” he says. “Let’s blow this popsicle stand.”

Honey laughs again at his bizarre slang. Even though it’s a relatively common phrase, she somehow never expected to hear Trevor say it.

They go upstairs to his room, deserting the party and getting ready for bed. Trevor does his best to keep his hands on Honey as they change into their pajamas, brush their teeth, wash their faces, and climb into bed. Honey left her phone downstairs to keep playing the music, but she’s sure Bea will grab it when the party wraps up. She can still hear the music playing and some people chatting outside, their voices floating up over Trevor’s balcony and seeping through the sliding glass door, muffled to something intelligible.

They lay there, Honey pulled halfway onto Trevor’s chest so that she can listen to his heartbeat, for a while before dozing off. Honey almost falls asleep in Trevor’s arms, hearing him drone on and on about something that she stopped listening to a long time ago, when Quinn opens Trevor’s door without knocking. He’s lucky that they’re not in a compromising position. Honey is lucky that he’s not catching them in a compromising position– that would be humiliating.

“Honey,” Quinn says breathlessly. He stares at her and runs his fingers through his hair.

Honey sits up from where she was tucked against Trevor’s body. “What?” She asks. She's never seen Quinn like this, all flushed and frantic.

“It’s Bea, I don't know what to do,” Quinn tells her, tugging at his t-shirt anxiously. “Can you come?”

The fact that Honey is just in one of Trevor's big shirts and her panties doesn’t matter anymore. She has left Trevor’s side in a flash and goes down the hall ahead of Quinn, throwing his bedroom door open and not caring that it bangs off the wall. Bea is sitting in Quinn’s bed, wrapped in the sheets, face buried in her hands. 

“What happened?” Honey behests in a sharp voice, talking to Quinn while approaching the bed and brushing Bea’s hair with her fingers. 

“Just–” Quinn starts, but Bea’s voice leaks through the cracks of her fingers and Honey tunes the man out automatically, wanting to hear Bea’s side.

“It’s just not fair,” Bea whimpers. “How can it be like this and it still won’t work?”

“It can work,” Quinn insists. “Bea, I told you, we don’t have to–”

Bea’s shoulders start to shake and Honey wraps her arms around her. She narrows her eyes at Quinn. “You’re upsetting her,” she says. “You knew what you were getting into from the jump.”

“But I–” Quinn argues.

“No,” Honey states. She flashes him a look. “Quinn.”

“I didn’t mean to make you upset,” he says in a softer voice, directing his words at Bea. “Can we talk tomorrow?”

Bea lifts her head and eyes Quinn. It takes a moment, but she nods. 

“Are you sure?” Honey asks, wiping a tear off of Bea’s cheek. 

“We have to talk,” Bea says. “We… we have to talk.”

Honey nods slowly. “Okay,” she says tentatively. “Let’s go to Trev’s room.”

Still wrapped in Quinn’s sheet, they walk down the hall and go into Trevor’s bathroom. Honey gives Bea the shirt that she was wearing so that she can cover up, then goes back into Trevor’s room to grab a new one. She returns to Bea only seconds later and locks the bathroom door behind them.

“What happened?” Honey asks again after sitting in complete silence on the ledge of the jacuzzi for five minutes.

Bea takes a deep breath and scrubs her hands over her face. “Breakup sex,” she explains. “I don’t know what I was thinking.”

“But you wanted to,” Honey checks. “It wasn’t, like–”

Bea’s eyes grow wide. “God, no! No, Quinn wouldn’t do that. It was consensual for both of us and it was good sex, just sad, and I was overwhelmed afterward.”

Honey pinches her lips together, evaluating Bea. After a beat, she says, “You told him.”

Bea chews on a hangnail and avoids Honey’s eyes.

“Bea, look at me,” Honey says, then waits for her to do so. “You told him that you love him.”

Bea holds eye contact, then surveys the tile floor of the bathroom. Her voice is quiet when she speaks. “I shouldn’t have.”

Honey takes in a breath. “Bea…”

“Do you want to look into therapists with me tomorrow?” Bea asks, laughing lightly. She’s still got a sheen of tears in her eyes, but her question is genuine.

Honey lets a silence fall between them again, holding eye contact with Bea. She doesn’t know what to think, really. Honey thinks that Bea should go for it with Quinn, since they both care so much and are so happy when they’re together. They should see if they can make it. It’s the unknown and the chance that something could go wrong that Bea is afraid of, and Honey gets that. She feels the same way, but Bea is so dedicated to the things she cares about. If she wanted to commit to Quinn, they would make it, and if they don’t, at least they tried.

“I’ll see if Dr. Harris does online appointments,” Honey eventually agrees, referring to the therapist she used to see in Charlotte after Thomas leaked her nudes to the public. “We need to get these commitment issues in check, Bea. I want you to be happy. I want you to be able to be with Quinn, if that’s what you want.”

Bea’s smile is rueful. “That won’t happen,” Bea repeats for the umpteenth time. “If the Quinn thing wasn’t over before, it definitely is now. Crying after your ex-boyfriend just came inside you isn’t a very appealing thing.”

Honey covers her face. She’s at a loss for words. “Alright.”

Bea lets out a chuckle, but it trails off. “I don’t know what I’m going to say to him tomorrow.”

“Try not to have breakup sex again,” Honey suggests.

“Well, yes,” Bea agrees. “That… that probably wasn’t one of my better ideas. He’s just– I mean, you know how you kept thinking that you wanted Trevor, and then took it back, and the cycle kept repeating? Right at the beginning of the summer?”

Honey cringes. That seems so stupid, now. She was overthinking so much and it made her so anxious. “Yeah.”

“I just can’t stay away from Q,” Bea sighs. She forms the words slowly in her mouth. “I… love him.”

“I know,” Honey affirms. She offers a small smile at Bea, which the girl returns. “I’m here for you.”

“Wanna have a sleepover?” Bea asks, sounding almost like when they were children trying to scheme their parents into letting them spend more time together.

“Do we have to choreograph a dance to convince Trevor?” Honey teases.

“I think if you bat your eyelashes at him, he’ll agree.” Bea smiles and wipes her eyes one final time, some enthusiasm returning to her body.

Honey huffs out a laugh. “I’ll see what I can do,” she promises, standing and leaving the bathroom to ask Trevor for a sleepover.

Like Bea said, batting her eyelashes worked– plus a pouted bottom lip and a giggly “please.” All three of them sleep in Trevor’s king-sized bed that night, which might be the funniest thing Honey and Bea have ever done.

89:90 – TREVOR

Trevor’s final task of the day is to clean out the fridge. They split the house up into different areas for cleaning, although Jack is going to do the final run-though since he’s the neatest of all of them. Cole cleaned his room and the basement, Luke cleaned the bunk-bed room and the living room and balconies, Jack took his room and the hallways and stairwells and did a sweep of the outside, and Quinn had to do his room and the bathrooms. Trevor was left with his room, the kitchen, and the dining room. It was fair enough. 

Looking into the fridge, though, Trevor is intimidated by his final task. It’s no secret that the boys love to eat. They’re all in their early 20s, with Quinn finally turning 25 just next month and entering those frightening mid-20s where his frontal lobe will fully develop. Luke is a moose, the youngest of them and yet able to put away the most food, but the state of the fridge reflects all of their hunger and diet. 

Even though they’re leaving tomorrow, the fridge is still stuffed with food. There’s eggs and greek yogurt and a bunch of different kinds of cheese. They’ve got two gallons of milk on one of the shelves, one unopened and one half-drunk, which they’ve been throwing in protein shakes and fruity smoothies all summer. There are a couple of BlenderBottles near the milk, storing drinks that the guys never quite finished, and Trevor wilts at the idea of cleaning them out, not knowing how long they’ve been in there. 

Quinn has a bunch of uneaten meals he prepped last weekend, with quinoa and brown rise and whatever kind of meat he threw into the bowl that day. There’s chicken and turkey stuffed away in massive ziplock bags for the guys to take out and throw onto a sandwich or into a wrap whenever they feel like. There’s a tupperware of lean ground beef from when Luke made tacos a few days ago, which he’s been slowly picking at. They have stacks of boxes of cold cuts for sandwiches, none of which they’ll be able to finish. It’s a waste. Trevor realizes that they should’ve started thinking about how much food they have last week– and trying to eat it all until there’s nothing left by the end of the week– but they didn’t. Plus, they’ve got all the leftover food from the party last night, and a bunch of loose cans and bottles of beer on the next shelf, taking up space.

The boxes for veggies and fruits are no better. Quinn bought a bunch of vegetables for his salads and bowls– carrots, celery, cucumber, peppers, spinach, kale, lettuce, avocado… it’s a nightmare. Trevor doesn’t even know how they all fit into the bin. The next one with their fruit for smoothies is no better, packed to the brim, and there’s a thing of hummus sitting atop the carton of blueberries. It doesn’t belong there, but Trevor guesses that there was just no room anywhere else.

The shelves on the doors house a bunch of items that he can probably leave in the rental house for the owners to decide their fate. It’s a bunch of sauces, vingaigrettes and salad dressings, a jar of pickles and a couple of jars of jam, ketchup, mustard, and mayo. In a plastic cup, they’ve got a bunch of packets of soy sauce that came with the Chinese food they ordered months ago, and Trevor isn’t even sure you’re supposed to refrigerate soy sauce packets. He’s pretty sure those could’ve stayed in the pantry.

He wishes he could throw the meat and the fruit in the freezer, although that would only keep it fresh for so long, but the freezer is equally stuffed with items. Trevor won’t mess with any of that– the owners can eat the frozen pizzas or the frozen chicken and he doesn’t have to worry about that. It might be nice to come back to a relatively full freezer, knowing that you won’t have to go and buy more stuff anytime soon. Plus, the frozen food won’t go bad. It’ll be fine.

He kind of wishes that Honey had told him about the surprise party, although he loved how surprising it was. He wore his sweater from Scarlett this morning until it got too hot to wear in the August heat. If he’d known, he could’ve asked her to tell the people to use the items in their fridge. He’s sure that the ladies could’ve whipped something up with the random and nutritious items in their kitchen. At their base, the food doesn’t make for “party food,” but Trevor has faith in the ladies. They’ve attended decades of church potlucks and homecomings and can make something out of nothing, like grandmother magic. 

Ugh. But now he has to clean.

His only consolation is that Honey and Bea are coming over for dinner tonight, so they’ll be able to put away two more servings of food than if it was just the boys in the house. Unfortunately, Bea won’t be able to help Trevor toss food in the trash since she’s supposed to have a big conversation with Quinn– they’re still not going to stay together when the boys leave, to Trevor’s knowledge– but Honey will be around to help. He gets to spend more time with his girlfriend doing domestic things. This must be where the phrase ‘domestic bliss’ comes from.

He’s not looking forward to the months that he’ll endure without seeing Honey in person. His game schedule came out a little while ago, back in July, and he’s been trying to pinpoint which games Honey might want to come to. At the very earliest, he could see her at the end of October, when he plays in Jersey for the first time this season. He thinks that she, and Bea if she wants to come, might get a kick out of seeing Trevor and Jack and Luke on the ice together. Quinn comes to California in the first week of November, so maybe she’d want to come to that. She could come to Montréal with him in early December to face off with Cole, but Trevor doesn’t know if Honey has a passport. He needs to ask before he gets tickets for her. He’ll definitely see her over Christmas, since he promised to see her parents again over the holidays, and he’d love to spend New Year’s together. The Devils play in California on the last day of the year, so they could spend that time together. At the very latest, Trevor will see her January 12th when he plays in Raleigh for the first time this season.

If it takes that long to see Honey, they would spend about five months apart. Trevor detests that. He sees what his teammates mean now when they talk about how it’s hard to be apart from their girlfriends and wives and families.

They play the Canes again in March, but in Anaheim. Trevor will certainly ask Honey to come out for that one. Who knows, she might become a die-hard Canes fan now that she has a reason to pay attention to hockey. Her parents are big NC State fans, having both gone there– and wanting their daughter to continue the tradition– so the family has a stake in Raleigh. If Honey doesn’t learn to love the Ducks for her boyfriend, because of her hatred of California, then she ought to become a fan of her hometown team. 

Who knows? Maybe, a couple of years down the line, if Honey isn’t willing to move to California with Trevor… he’ll try to broker a deal with the Canes and get a trade. He’ll be a free agent again in 2026. Anything is possible.

Trevor closes the fridge and takes a lap around the kitchen. Once he makes it back in front of the refrigerator, there’s nothing left to do but open the doors. 

He takes another lap.

He rolls his neck back, trying to crack it the next time he makes it in front of the fridge. He jumps up and down and stretches his body, focusing on his arms and shoulders. Trevor isn’t exactly sure why he’s so intimidated by the idea of cleaning out this fridge, but he is. He lets out three quick, harsh breaths, and sets his hands on the door handles.

“Why are you so weird?”

Trevor jumps, his shoulders flying up towards his earlobes. “Jesus,” he curses. “You can’t fucking sneak up on me like that, Bea.”

She’s got a perturbed look on her face, looking at him judgmentally. Her hair is in two messy braids on either side of her face, sunglasses sat atop her head and keeping her flyaways out of her face. She squints at him. The judgment is whatever, but Trevor is more concerned with the fact that she’s alone.

“Where’s my girlfriend?” he asks.

“Our girlfriend,” Bea corrects snarkily.

“You’re not dating her,” Trevor sneers. He goes a bit farther than he’s supposed to without thinking. “You’re not dating anyone.”

Bea rolls her eyes and sticks out her tongue. “She’s upstairs, talking to Quinn before I go up there and talk to him myself.”

“Oh.”

“‘Oh,’” Bea mocks. “What are you doing?”

“Cleaning out the fridge,” Trevor answers her. 

Bea makes a face. “Why?”

“Because we leave tomorrow?” Trevor sasses in the same tone.

“Don’t get rid of this shit,” Bea tells him. “I’ll take the milk and bring it to the Nook for our shitty coffee maker. Ada will take your ripe fruit, or Honey will. I’ll put the deli meat in the fridge at the Nook too, I forget to make lunch all the time and I always need to improvise with the nothingness we have. Sarah will take the rest of the unopened cheese so she can pair it with wines at tastings. Earl will take just about all of the meat you have.”

She says it so simply and Trevor stares at her. 

Bea starts to laugh. “You didn’t think about the people around you? Did you think you’d be able to throw all of this food away and get away with it? Honey would’ve killed you for wasting so much.”

Trevor scowls and looks away from the girl, focusing his attention on the refrigerator again. 

“Come on, Trevor, don’t be a pouty baby,” Bea giggles. “At least you don’t have to be the shame of Litchton, throwing away all of your groceries like the spoiled, rich, professional athlete you are.”

“You’re kind of a bitch,” Trevor tells her. 

Bea shrugs. “I don’t have to take the food if you don’t want me to.”

His scowl turns into a glower. “You can’t take it back now.”

Bea smirks to herself and watches as Trevor opens the fridge and starts to sort through all of the old protein shakes and fruit smoothies that need to be removed. Trevor sees her perk up in the corner of his eye and she steps forward, reaching past him and grabbing a slender aluminum can and sets it on the counter. “You might want to keep that for yourself.” She’s got a stupid little smile on her face.

Trevor shoos her away and snatches the bottle back, moving it to the counter on the other side of the fridge. He sneaks a peek at it when Bea has dropped onto the couch in the living room and thrown her feet up on the freshly-cleaned table. He rolls his eyes– it’s the can of Reddi-Whip Cole bought last week after Vera gave him a peach cobbler for his help with inventory on Tuesday. Bea thinks she’s hilarious.

“He’s ready for you,” Honey’s voice says, floating down the hallway. Bea jumps up from the couch and goes down the hall, seeming to stop in front of Honey so that she can add, “Don’t have breakup sex with him again.”

Trevor snorts and closes the fridge door on his head as best he can to hide his laughter. Honey nudges his knee forward until it buckles once she nears Trevor, a reproachful frown on her face. “Don’t laugh at her. Things are hard.”

That’s what she said. Trevor sucks on his teeth and makes eye contact with Honey, trying not to laugh even more. 

She moves like she’s about to bop him in the balls, so Trevor instinctively covers his junk with his hands and distances himself from Honey. She scoffs a laugh and takes his spot in front of the fridge. “What are we making for dinner?”

Trevor takes it as an invitation and plasters himself to Honey’s back, pressing his soft cock against her behind. “I dunno,” he says, wrapping his arms around her waist. “I know what dessert is, though.”

Honey makes a surprised sound that comes out more like a squawk, mouth dropping open and body squirming in Trevor’s arms. “You horny motherfucker,” she rebukes.

Trevor tightens his grip and laughs under his breath, weaseling his way closer to Honey and kissing her neck. “It’ll be fun. C’mon, sweet girl, I leave tomorrow. I need to have you in my bed after dinner.”

She rolls her eyes but goes lax in Trevor’s grip. “Well, when you put it that way,” she concedes sarcastically. Her hand comes up to Trevor’s hair, scratching his scalp, and he hums into her pulse point, leaving peck after peck on the beating vein. “Let’s get this fridge fixed and make some dinner, then we can do… something sweet.”

Trevor is too busy hearing the consent from Honey to fuck all night to hear the lightbulb going off above her head. He’s smiling into her shoulder.

Honey is good at organizing– Trevor has said it before, but he has to repeat it now. She manages the refrigerator so well, creating sections for each person that will receive the food. Honey says that she’ll borrow Earl’s truck tomorrow and his big cooler to store the food, trucking a load to the Nook while the boys pack the cars. She promises that she’ll be back by the time Trevor leaves, not that he’d leave without putting off the goodbye as long as he can. 

He really has to leave by 11, since that’s when checkout is, but Trevor might have to get lunch with Honey if Cole allows him to. He’s flying out of D.C. pretty late, around 9 o’clock, and it’s about a six and a half hour drive. Surely he’d be okay with grabbing lunch. It’ll be tight, but they can make it with time to spare. In his heart, Trevor knows that lunch is unlikely, but he’s trying to convince himself that it can work logistically. 

Honey gives him all of the used dishes to clean while she handles the food, until there’s nothing left for Trevor to do but help. Even then, she hands him leftovers to dig into and finish off before she trusts him with sorting items in her system. Trevor doesn’t mind– he’s not as bottomless as Luke, but he can put away a good chunk of a buffet.

Bea and Quinn join Honey and Trevor downstairs as they finish sorting food. Trevor manages to read the room this time and he shares a look with Honey. There’s a thick tension between Bea and Quinn, but they’re shouldering their way through it. Trevor catches both of them casually touching each other as the foursome moves around the kitchen to prepare dinner. There’s a hand on the small of Bea’s back to squeeze behind her and a hand on Quinn’s bicep when Bea leans past him to grab a knife from the block to chop up a cucumber for the salad. They must’ve come to some conclusion– or a middle-ground that worked better for them than the original breakup on Tuesday.

The boys wander into the kitchen at different intervals. By the time dinner is served, they’re all cramped together in the tiny space and chatting like this isn’t the last time they’ll have a night like this for… who knows how long.

It’s bittersweet. While Trevor is having the time of his life eating pounds and pounds of food with his best friends, his girlfriend, and Bea, he’s also anxious to go upstairs. Honey is in no rush to leave the table. 

They sit there for hours, long after the food has gone cold. They continue eating this whole time and manage to get rid of a lot of the food Trevor was stressing about. Honey holds his hand on top of the table and strokes the back of his fingers with her thumb. 

The guys and Bea leave Honey and Trevor to clean up the kitchen again after cooking and eating– “The kitchen was your realm, dude, why should we have to clean up your shit?” was their argument– and they go downstairs to watch a movie in the basement. 

Honey sits on the counter and kicks her feet, watching Trevor dry the dishes and put them away. When he’s done, and about to grab a beer from their supply, Honey beckons Trevor over. “C’mere, Trev,” she requests, leaning forward to kiss him when he steps between her legs. Her hands fist in the hem of his shirt, tugging. “You should take this off.”

Trevor’s stomach swoops. “Yeah?” He lets his hand trail along the neckline Honey’s tank top, caressing the soft skin of her breasts. 

“I had a funny idea,” Honey divulges sneakily. 

“Mm, that sounds fun,” Trevor hums. He slides his left hand down to palm Honey’s tit and gives it a squeeze.

She laughs. “I didn’t even tell you what it is yet,” she says.

“All I know is that you want me to take my shirt off and we’re kissing,” Trevor says. “No matter what your idea is, it’ll be fun.”

Honey mutters something that sounds suspiciously like ‘horndog’ before taking things into her own hands and pulling Trevor’s shirt up and over his head. Her hands brush over his bare skin, fingers dancing along the tattoo on his ribs before her thumb brushes his nipple. One of her hands leaves him, but Trevor is shivering from the gentle touch on his chest.

Her tongue is flat against his and Trevor moans before there’s a hissing sound and something cool touches Trevor’s stomach.

He pulls back from Honey and looks down, starting to laugh breathlessly when he sees the dollop of whipped cream on his sternum. “That is a funny idea,” Trevor says. “But I think you already had your chance to cover me in whipped cream.”

“So long ago,” Honey points out. She juts out her bottom lip and blinks innocently at Trevor. “You don’t want me to put a little cream on the tip of your dick and lick it off?”

Trevor is bombarded by an image of Honey on her knees, cheeks hollowed and lips wrapped around his cock. He struggles to wade through it and make it back to reality. “That’s… after my turn,” he stammers.

Honey pouts deepens, but Trevor will not fall for this. When Honey first licked whipped cream off of his body on Cole’s dare, the images of that plagued Trevor for days. He thought of all the ways he could get her back and now that he has the chance, he wants to make it even. He takes the can of whip from her hand and takes the appendage with his other, helping Honey off the counter and leading her upstairs.

“Get strippin’, Charlotte,” Trevor jokingly commands once he has his bedroom door locked behind them. He leans back against the wood and sprays a mouthful of whipped cream onto his tongue, swallowing the sweet treat as he watches her bite her tongue and drag her tank top up her body. She pops the button of her daisy dukes and lets them drop to the floor, stepping out of them and marching over to Trevor.

She kisses him against the door, her fingertips digging into his waistband like they did all of those weeks ago. “Don’t call me that,” she tells him after kissing him stupid. 

Trevor’s head is hazy from the movement of her lips, so he nods an agreement before she even finishes talking. 

Honey walks backward, pulling Trevor forward by the fabric around his abdomen, and kisses him over and over. 

Trevor can smell vanilla, Honey’s signature scent, on her skin and can almost taste cherries on her lips. He shakes the can of whipped cream absently, his palm splayed over the tattoo above Honey’s behind. He should cover that in whipped cream. 

It’s tempting, but he has something else he’d rather cover in the delicate white dessert. Her nipple piercings have been healed for years, and she once licked this stuff off of his nipples, and he wants to repay the favor. It’s his first order of business, actually. 

He goes down with Honey when she settles onto the bed, laying on her back. Trevor parts her lips with his tongue and nibbles on her bottom lip, making sure there’s not a part of her mouth that he hasn’t explored before he pulls away and tries to decide what pattern he wants to draw on Honey’s body.

He must take too long, since Honey opens her mouth and resumes her normal sassy, borderline bratty bossiness. “Maybe we should do my idea first, since you can’t seem to think of anyth–”

Trevor leans over her and sprays a mouthful of whip onto her tongue. “Quiet, you.”

“Blah, blah, blah,” Honey replies, a little muffled. She swallows and licks some whip off of her upper lip. 

Trevor takes to decorating her body before she can tell him to hurry up again. He draws two arches over her breasts, then laughs to himself and connects the arches to make a heart, the base of which reaches her belly button. He draws two eyes on the heart– two dollops of the white substance on her nipples– and a curved line that is the heart’s smile. He adds two little legs to the heart and sprays a line above Honey’s waistband, creating a ground for the heart to stand on. 

Honey watches him with a tiny smile on her face, fond and sweet. “You’re a goof,” she eventually says when Trevor places the can on his nightstand. 

“I’m an artist,” Trevor corrects. He carefully makes his way on top of Honey, trying not to ruin his masterpiece before he can lick it away. He decides to start with the heart’s smile, sucking up the treat there as a precursor to the more erotic zones he decided to cover. 

Honey laughs when he moves to the heart’s legs, bracketing the pudge on her stomach that he likes to rest his head on so much when she sits on the couch and reads a book. “That tickles,” she tells Trevor. 

He digs his fingers into her sides at that, making her squirm and giggle. All the while, he continues licking the cream away.

His tongue trails along her hips, dangerously close to her pussy, cleaning up the line that he placed there. Honey’s breath gets a bit deeper when he laps at her skin so far south, yet too north for her liking. He can tell that she’s feeling it, understanding how sexy it was when she did this to him at the beginning of the summer, just because of the way her squirming morphs into something more subtle and needy. 

He ignores the twitch of her hips upward, just placing a hand on her hip and holding her down with gentle pressure. He goes back up to the body of the heart, kissing just below Honey’s belly button before licking up the left side of the heart. He goes up her torso, around her boobs, forcing himself not to indulge in the dots on her tits just yet, and back down to where he started. 

Slowly, achingly slow, Trevor kisses the middle of Honey’s stomach, up the line between her boobs, and to her clavicle. His thumbs rise from her waist and hip to her ribs, pressing into the thin skin mere millimeters from the curves of her breasts. 

“Gonna fuck you after I finish cleaning you up,” Trevor tells her. 

“Hm, you’d better,” Honey muses. “Feels like I’m about to explode, Trev.”

“Imagine how I felt after you left me hanging,” Trevor teases. 

“You rubbed yourself raw, didn’t you?” Honey asks.

Trevor laughs and nips at her neck. “Mean.”

“But true?”

“Mean,” Trevor repeats.

“Definitely true.”

He doesn’t respond, although she’s on the right track. If the boys hadn’t been on stakeout after the dare, he probably would’ve jerked it until his dick fell off. That’s how hot it was when she dropped to her knees and made her way up his body. Instead of answering Honey, Trevor hovers with his mouth just above one of her nipples. He flicks his tongue and takes off the top of the dollop of whipped cream, avoiding contact with Honey’s peaks. He does the same thing to the other, waiting to hear Honey open her mouth to tell him what to do before he covers her nipple with his mouth and damn near bites down, sucking and licking all the whipped cream off of her sensitive skin until there’s nothing but sweetened saliva cooling against her piercings. Even after cleaning both of her nipples off until they’re pristine again, Trevor alternates between them, showering them with attention and hearing Honey grow louder and louder each time he bites down.

“Trev, get your cock inside me,” Honey requests, twirling his hair around her fingers and stroking his neck. She stifles a snort, although Trevor hears it anyway. “Put your cream inside me.”

Trevor muffles his own laughter in her neck. “Good one,” he tells Honey sarcastically. “Very sexy.”

Honey giggles and scratches her nails down Trevor’s back. “It was, wasn’t it?”

“Totally.” Trevor nods in an overexaggerated way. He throws himself down on the bed next to Honey, laying on his back and lifting his hips to pull his sweats and underwear down. 

Honey rolls onto her side and pushes herself up onto her elbows, kissing the side of Trevor’s face before throwing her leg over his lap and straddling him. 

“Ooh,” Trevor muses, bringing his hands to Honey’s behind and palming her asscheeks. “You gonna ride me?”

“Just for the first round,” Honey replies. “Then I’m laying down and you get to do all the work.”

Trevor’s retort fails to sound from his mouth when Honey rolls her hips against his, her wet folds molding around the length of Trevor’s cock. His eyes probably grow bigger from the spark that ignites in his belly when her entrance drags along the ridges of his shaft. 

“You look pretty like this,” Honey compliments. She plants her hands on his stomach and grinds down again. “Under me.”

“You look prettier under me,” Trevor one-ups her, digging his fingers into her ass and spreading the cheeks. He bucks his hips up and makes sure his cockhead brushes her swollen clit. “But I love how you look on top.”

“You like seeing my boobs bounce.”

Trevor grins, showing his teeth to Honey. 

She laughs and hovers above him, wrapping a hand around Trevor’s cock and lining him up with her core. She lowers herself, biting her bottom lip and letting out a sigh as she fills herself. 

Trevor loves the weight of her body settling against him. It makes him feel even more surrounded by Honey, even more under her thumb. When she’s on top of him, the gravity of their position makes him feel so much better. Her insides are hot and gummy and Trevor can feel her slick pooling around his base once she starts to move. 

Her eye contact is insane, making Trevor squirm against the mattress. Her eyes almost affect him more than the grip her pussy has on his cock– evaluating Trevor, scrutinizing him, watching his every move. Trevor’s heartbeat only increases as she rocks her hips and milks the precum from his member. 

“You’re so beautiful,” Trevor mumbles.

Honey lets a sweet smile pass over her face and she tilts her head. “Aren’t you a sweetheart,” she says, pinching his sides gently before leaning forward to kiss him. 

Trevor’s hands travel from her ass to her waist, her back, and her tits. He moves her hair out of her face and touches her jaw as she sucks on his bottom lip. 

“I love you,” Honey breathes into Trevor’s mouth. 

A blurt of precum travels up Trevor’s cock and leaks into Honey’s insides. He has a physical reaction to her words– he’s so down bad, but God, he wouldn’t change anything. “I love you too.”

“I’m sad you have to go,” Honey says.

“I wish I could stay with you all the time,” Trevor replies. 

“I’m glad you came.”

Trevor groans when she clenches down on his length and starts to bounce faster. “Fuck,” he grits out. “That’s what she said.”

Honey closes her eyes and rests her forehead against Trevor’s. “If I weren’t so close to coming, I’d be so mad at you for ruining this moment.”

Trevor chuckles and lifts his chin so that their lips align. He thrusts his hips up in time with Honey’s movements, trying to match her rhythm as best he can. He soaks up the sounds that Honey makes, muffled and longing for more. She’s so tight and Trevor can feel how badly she wants him to fill her up.

He doesn’t make her wait long– once her tongue fills his mouth rather than his tongue entering hers, Trevor feels his balls tighten and he can’t hold back any longer. His cum spurts from his slit, cock twitching inside Honey as his pleasure explodes inside of her. 

Honey’s hips slow and she perches atop him. Her thumb sweeps across his lower lip, cleaning it of her saliva. She smirks at Trevor and removes herself from his lap, laying against the pillows and reaching for the can of whipped cream on the nightstand. 

Trevor watches her with curious, but confused eyes. She didn’t come yet. What is she doing? He picks up his head in surprise when she turns the can of whip on herself, spraying a bit of the cream onto her pubic mound.

Honey sets the can aside and grins at Trevor, proud of herself for her idea. “Dessert?” she asks.

Trevor laughs out loud and rolls onto his stomach, between her legs, and presses a kiss to her clit before licking all of the whipped cream away. He’ll get to the other kind shortly.

90:90 – HONEY

Honey sits on the edge of the tailgate of Earl’s truck, legs swinging beneath her. The polaroids in her pocket are a dead weight, burning a hole against her side. She’s nervous to give them to Trevor, so she decided to wait until the last minute, which is approaching any second. She’s just waiting for the boys to return from their final sweep of the house, making sure they didn’t forget to pack anything, which Honey is sure they did. There’s got to be something in that massive house that one of the boys forgot. 

Bea sits next to her. She twiddles her thumbs. They’ve already done the food-drops that Honey promised yesterday, stuffing fridges full of the boys’ food. They had to use both of their bodyweights to close the fridge in the Nook, since it was filled to the brim. 

The boys have packed up both of the cars. The Hughes boys are taking the big car to Charlotte and flying out from that airport, checking their many bags and landing in Detroit sometime this afternoon. Cole and Trevor are driving to D.C. tonight, where Cole will fly out, and then Trevor will drive the rest of the way to his hometown in New York tomorrow. He’ll spend about a week there, hanging out with his family, before he heads back to Anaheim. 

They stayed up late last night, talking and making out until two in the morning. Honey just didn’t want the night to end, since it meant that Trevor would be leaving when they wake up. They showered together this morning, having one last round before Trevor goes. He’s a horndog, but Honey is just as bad. She’s about to be without her boyfriend consistently for nine months and now that she’s got sex back– and she’s enjoying it very much– it’s not fun to give up. 

The front door opens and Jack leads the way out. He has a plastic bag in hand, which holds a bit of leftover laundry. Honey bets he’s going to try and stuff it in his backpack, which really can’t fit anything else without the seams ripping. Cole has a pair of rollerskates draped over the back his neck, the laces acting like a loose scarf. 

Honey swallows hard, feeling a lump in her throat grow. It was so nice to have them here this summer. She got really close to each of the boys and she’s sad to see them go, devastated that a summer like this probably won’t ever happen again for them. Of course, Trevor plans to come back next year, but the Hughes boys will stay in Michigan and Cole might do the same. She hopes that he will come to visit, but Honey knows that Quinn won’t unless he and Bea get back together, and if Quinn won’t, then the other brothers won’t visit. It’s sad. 

Bea hops down from the tailgate and Honey follows suit. The air is heavy as the boys approach.

“So this is it,” Cole says. He’s smiling, but there’s a twinge of sadness written into the smile. He reaches for Bea and pulls her into a hug, then pulls Honey into the mix. He squeezes them tight, an arm wrapped around each of their shoulders while the girls hug his waist. “You guys are the best. If you ever want to visit Montréal…”

Honey pulls away and tweaks Cole’s cheek. “Thanks, Coley. You’re always welcome back, you know. If hockey doesn’t work out for you, I think Vera would hire you on the spot, even if Earl thinks you’re too little to work in hardware.”

Cole puffs out his chest and kisses Bea’s cheek before she reluctantly lets go of him. “Earl would be lucky to have a spring chicken like me on board.” He grows more serious. “But really,” he says. “This was a great summer. I’m glad we met you both. I don’t think we would’ve made it a month without you.”

“I don’t think you could’ve made it a week,” Honey replies and squeezes his hand one more time before he heads over to Trevor’s car, opening the trunk without all of the bags spilling out and tucking his skates away.

Luke comes up to Honey next, bending down to encircle his arms around her waist and tuck his face into the crook of her neck while he hugs her. “You have to come see us when we’re in Raleigh,” Luke says, his voice bordering on distress. 

Honey pets through Luke’s hair, relishing in the way the curls feel against her fingers. “Just send me a text and I’ll be on my way,” Honey promises. 

Luke tightens his arms around Honey’s waist. “I never had a big sister, but if I did, I think she’d be a lot like you.”

Honey just about bursts into tears on the spot. “Oh, Lukey,” she simpers miserably before hiding her face in his shoulder. “I would have loved to have a little brother like you.”

Luke exhales shakily and pulls back. He sniffs like he’s welling up, but there isn’t any mist in his eyes, unlike Honey, who is nearly spilling over. He kisses the top of Honey’s head and pats her shoulder with a clumsy hand before Jack switches places with him.

His goodbye hug is energetic, sweeping Honey off of her feet and spinning her around. “Stop crying,” he tells her. “It’s not like we’re dying. You’ll see us again, especially if you keep this idiot around.” He jerks his head in Trevor’s direction and grins widely at Honey. 

“Hey,” Trevor complains just for the principle of being annoyed, since Honey can tell there is no heat behind it. 

She chuckles and fixes Jack’s baseball cap. “I expect you’ll be texting me?”

“Every time I miss you,” Jack replies. 

“So as soon as you get in the car,” Honey teases. She tucks a strand of hair behind Jack’s ear and presses a loud smooch on his cheek. “I’ll miss you too, J.”

“We play the Canes like four times before January,” Jack says. “Once before Thanksgiving and once after Christmas. You’ll be in town for both, right?”

“‘Course I will. I never go anywhere,” Honey says. “Send me some tickets so I don’t have to pay for them and I’ll go to the game for you guys.”

“Cheap-ass,” Jack accuses. He pulls Honey in a second time and rocks back and forth on his feet, swinging them from side to side. “Thanks for being my buddy this summer.”

“You guys are all thanking me and Bea like we did anything at all,” Honey says with a crooked smile. “All we were was nice to you.”

“You didn’t have to be,” Jack tells her. He squishes her cheek. “But you were. I’ll call you soon, okay?”

“Text me when you land in Michigan.” Honey offers her pinkie to Jack and he takes it with his. He kisses the tip of his thumb and tells Honey to do the same. She complies, then she lets him go. 

It seems like she and Bea have the same idea, leaving their respective boys for their last goodbye. Trevor and Bea go around the side of the truck, talking quietly, and Quinn leans against the end of the tailgate with Honey. 

They stand in silence for a few moments, aware of each others’ presence but not feeling any pressure to speak– until Quinn does.

“I’m jealous that you guys have chosen to stay together,” Quinn says quietly.

Honey sighs and takes Quinn’s right hand in both of hers. “I’m sorry that y’all aren’t.”

Quinn inhales and presses his lips together. He looks down at the ground and scuffs his shoe against the gravel in the driveway. He forces a smile onto his face and lifts Honey’s hand in his to kiss the back of it. 

Honey takes one arm and wraps it around Quinn’s waist, resting her head on his shoulder. “Don’t be a stranger, Quinn,” Honey murmurs.

Quinn nods. “Love you, Honey.”

“Love you too, Quinn. You’re a really great guy. I’m glad you were Bea’s first boyfriend.” Honey pats his side and distances herself from him. “Have a safe drive.”

“Next summer, you guys should come to Michigan,” Quinn offers. “We’d love to show you our town, since you showed us yours. You can stay as long as Ada will let you.”

Honey nods. “I’ll let you know closer to that date,” Honey informs him. “But I’m sure that would be nice. You have my number. Like I told Jack, you can text or call any time you want.”

“Not sure if Bea would like that,” Quinn responds with a shrug. “But I’ll keep it in mind. I’m sure we’ll see each other again.”

Honey chuckles. “I know too much about you to never see you again.”

Quinn has a funny look on his face, somewhere between bemused and sorrowful. He nods and pulls Honey in for a long hug, nose pressed against her hair. They stay like that until Trevor breaks it up. 

“Alright, alright,” he says with a haughty, macho tone. “Break it up. Get off my girlfriend, Hughes.” He pulls them apart with play force.

Bea stands behind him, laughing quietly. Her arms are crossed over her chest and she’s definitely been crying. She’s a sensitive girl, which Honey loves about her. 

Quinn notices almost immediately and goes to her, taking Bea’s hand. “Let’s get this over with,” Honey hears Quinn say. It makes Bea huff out a little laugh and they go to the side of the truck again, where Bea just was with Trevor.

Trevor touches Honey’s waist and pulls her close, their lower halves touching. “I love you,” he says earnestly. He peppers kisses over Honey’s face until she’s giggling and trying to get away from him. 

She squeals and puts her hand between their faces. “Stop,” she laughs. “I love you too. It won’t be too long before we see each other, you know. I don’t think you’ll make it a month without asking me to fly out because you miss me.”

“I’m going to injure myself on purpose so I can come back here and have you take care of me,” Trevor jokes.

Honey slaps his shoulder. “Don’t joke about that, I don’t want you to get hurt,” she says. “It would make me sad.”

Trevor’s smile softens. “Well, I wouldn’t want to make you sad.” He looks at Honey for an extra beat, then cradles her face in his hands and kisses her gently.

It’s really sweet. They’ve never really kissed like this, soft, chaste, and savoring it. Honey fists the fabric of Trevor’s t-shirt in her hands, focusing on his taste and how he moves. Yeah, they probably will see each other in a month, but she will probably forget how he kisses by then. It’ll be like new when she goes to California– ugh, she has to go to California of all places to see her boyfriend because he has an intense job– and Honey can’t wait.

When his hand goes to her butt and gropes her asscheek, she breaks their kiss. 

“Come on, one last feel,” Trevor requests. He’s got a shit-eating grin on his face because he knows that Honey will let him. 

“I have something better for you, you freak,” Honey tells him. She shoves her hand into her pocket and curls her fingers around the polaroids, fishing them out and pushing the stack into Trevor’s chest. 

He’s excited at the prospect of getting a gift, delight written on his face. He covers Honey’s hand, which covers the polaroids, and takes a peek at the first picture in the stack. His mouth automatically drops open and his face goes slack. He stares at the picture, looks at Honey, and doubles back down on the picture.

Honey feels a creeping shiver pass between her shoulderblades, whispering doubt into the back of her mind. You’ve given these pictures to him and it’s the start of the end, the voice purrs. Honey pushes it back, watching Trevor’s reaction instead. He’s terrible at hiding things on his face and Honey believes that if he’s going to abuse the boudoir pictures she just gave him, she’ll be able to see it in his expression.

“Holy shit, Hon,” Trevor says. He shoves the pictures back into her hands. “I can’t take these. I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

It’s not the reaction Honey expected. She furrows her eyebrows together and asks genuinely, “Do you not… like them?”

Trevor’s eyes are wide. “No, God, no, you look so good and I like them, like, a lot, but because of what happened with Thomas–”

“Oh,” Honey says. “It’s– I wanted to show you that I trust you,” she explains. She pushes the pictures back at him. “I made them for you, I want you to have them.”

“I don’t,” Trevor struggles to say what he means, it seems. He looks at the pictures again, unable to help it, and lifts his eyes to the sky. He hides the pictures against his chest. “I don’t need them, if that’s what you think.”

“No.” Honey puts her hands on Trevor’s lovehandles and kisses him. “I want you to take them. They’re yours. Please take them.”

Trevor grinds his teeth, but weighs her words in his mind. After a moment, he shoves the pictures in his shorts pocket and wraps his arms around her shoulders. “You’re so special to me, Honey.”

“You’re overwhelming,” Honey replies, unable to find a word to describe how she feels about Trevor except for ‘overwhelming.’ He is. It’s not a bad thing, not at all. Honey adores Trevor.

Trevor’s mouth touches Honey’s forehead and stays there. She burrows her nose against his clavicle and breathes in deep. 

Trevor’s car horn sounds twice by Cole’s hand.

Trevor takes a deep breath and sighs. “I have to go,” he whispers.

Honey loosens her grip around his middle and kisses him one more time. “I’ll see you soon.”

It feels momentous when Trevor lets go of her and steps away. She’s not crying, but she feels like she could start any second. 

Bea joins Honey at the top of the driveway. Trevor’s car leads, honking far too jubilantly for the sadness weaving between Honey and Bea’s bodies like a cat brushing against their legs. The Hughes boys’ car follows after, and then they’re gone. Honey still feels their presence like a ghost, even as she and Bea push up the tailgate of Earl’s truck and head out themselves.

EPILOGUE – TREVOR

He thinks about her all the time. California is warm, but Trevor finds himself wearing Scarlett’s mismatched sweater more days than he doesn’t. It’s comfortable, and for a while, it smells like Litchton. He sits on his ugly couch, the one that Colangelo and McTavish make fun of, and watches the sunset through the windows of his house. It becomes a familiar routine. It’s usually too late to call Honey once he gets back from games since she’s three hours ahead, so Trevor finds other ways to express the things he wants to say to her. He’d text them, but that’s too brazen– he wants to speak to Honey and then let the words disappear forever. 

So, he sends letters. Out of sight, out of mind– once the letter leaves Trevor’s hand and makes its way into his mail carrier’s bag, the words are gone. It’s intimate and Honey has told Trevor many times over how much she likes receiving his letters, so much more than if she received the same thoughts over the phone. She always sends something back in a colorful envelope and Trevor traces her handwriting when he really misses her. 

With her permission, he’d included her in his summer dump on Instagram. He saw a few comments wondering who she and the other girl were, “the other girl” being Bea, but he never saw anything mean. He’d have exhausted all of his resources to hunt down any cyberbully who decided to take out their own insecurity on his girlfriend. He’d reported back his findings dutifully, telling Honey that everyone thought she was so pretty and out of his league. Honey had agreed.

Trevor had dutifully reported on summer dumps two other times: when Jack included the picture that Earl took of them at the going away party, Bea slung over his shoulder, and when Quinn quietly included a picture of Bea asleep on the couch in the basement, her hand wrapped loosely around his first two fingers. Her face was mostly obscured, but Trevor wasn’t sure if he should say something or not, so he’d asked Honey. Her face had gotten stormy– which was pretty cute, if Trevor is allowed to say that– but the picture had stayed up. Trevor is sure Honey and Bea handled it and he has a feeling that Bea might’ve felt a semblance of nostalgia when he’d screenshotted and sent the photo to her when she asked. They’re still broken up and not talking, but Trevor doesn’t know how long they can hold out. Honey says that Bea misses Quinn badly, but she’s still too stubborn to do anything. Trevor knows that Quinn is too stubborn to go against Bea’s wishes.

About a month into the season, Trevor wears the sweater to a game. Honey still hasn’t made it out to visit yet and Trevor is getting restless. He has a great game– greater than great– so it’s no surprise that he’s pulled for media after he showers and gets dressed, pulling the sweater on once again. 

Aly, the rinkside reporter, pulls him aside for a more one-on-one chat. Trevor expects that it’ll get clipped and thrown on the Ducks’ socials. They get all the way through the interview before she asks about his fashion choice. “This sweater is clearly handmade, so chic,” she adds on the side. “Where did you get it?”

“A friend made it for me,” Trevor replies. “This summer. It was a going away present, actually.”

“Well, it was a real good luck charm here tonight. You got your first career hat trick– do you think this luck will continue for you for the rest of the season?”

Trevor nods, only half-listening. He just caught a whiff of bonfire from the sweater, a scent memory that is accompanied by the creaking trees that shaded his balcony from wandering eyes. They didn’t make enough use of it. “I hope so,” he tells Aly. 

“It’s a wonderful start, given the rut you fell into last season after your injury. What are you doing differently?”

Trevor tries not to balk at the blatant mention of his broken ankle, the Jamie trade, and his struggles to come back from those events. He rubs his right eye with a closed fist and forces a tight smile on his face, speaking more honestly than he normally allows himself to. “I told my girlfriend that every goal I score this season is for her, so I have to score a lot. Keep me on her mind, you know?”

Aly chuckles. “You’ve got to find motivation somewhere,” she says good-naturedly. “Thanks, Trevor.”

“Yeah, thanks, Aly,” he replies. He walks back into the locker room, ready to grab his bag and his keys and book it out of the arena so that he can crash on his bed, when he feels his phone buzz in his pocket. He slips it out, catching his favorite contact name on the screen. He can hear the eye roll as if she’s talking to him, right next to his ear.

🍯:

Don’t fucking bring me into thisI don’t want crowds of famous Trevor Zegras’ hockey groupies in Litchton when you come back next summer

Then, a few minutes later:

Nice sweater ;)

THANK YOU FOR READING!!! I LOVE YOU!!!! XO, ANDY P.S. See you in Beaquinn's book ;)

[in1-nutshell]

Hey, not sure if you're down for writing a continuation of the “Megatron 'accidentally' adopting human Buddy who fears nothing” post. But there was a line “Rung has a line of bots that express the same worry for Buddy one day doing something dumb and not being able to come back from it.” that I think should be expanded upon. Dangerous things are constantly happening to the lost light crew and Buddy must have the devil's luck to come out of everything that happens unscathed. I'd like to see that luck run out. I'd like to see the crew panicking because Buddy got hurt badly and there's been no news if they'll recover or not. I want to see Megatron deal with the impending mortality of his newly adopted kid poorly. And I want to see everyone on the lost light panic even more because if Megatron doesn't start a war if this kid dies, Whirl absolutely will. P.s please let buddy live, I may crave angst, but not that much.

Have a good day, love your writing

Ooooh! Have you been peaking at some of my drafts? haha! I have been thinking about what would happen if Buddy ever got hurt on Megatron's watch. But now more bots are going to watch.

Hope you enjoy!

Megatron and Fearless Buddy who gets seriously hurt

SFW, familial, platonic, angst but happy ending, mention of injuries but nothing graphic or detailed, Human reader

MTMTE/LL

As we all know Buddy fears nothing

And this put some stress on their friends and new dad, Megatron.

“Hey Megs!”--Rodimus

“Rodimus, don’t call me that.”--Megatron

“Yeah, not gonna happen. Anyways I was wondering if you’ve seen Buddy anywhere. They were supposed to show me something?”--Rodimus

“Show you what?”--Megatron

“Something about being a present for being Brainstorm’s ‘Guinea pig’?”--Rodimus

Buddy flying by on a jet pack.

“Hi Roddy! Hi Megs! Bye Roddy! Bye Megs!”--Buddy

“…”—Rodimus and Megatron

CRASH!

Both mechs start running

But as time continues to go on, their little antics are just normalized. Sure, there are still some bots that know the true fragility of the human life span. Such bots included but not limited to Ratchet, First Aid, Velocity, Swerve, Rung, Megatron, and Whirl

“Where are you going with those pilars?”—First Aid

“It’s nothing illegal, yet.”--Buddy

“What type of answer is that!?”—First Aid

But for the most part the crew thinks Buddy is almost as durable as they are. Yes, even Megatron has been guilty of this type of behavior. He isn’t too proud of that.

“C’mon Fleshy jump and do a flip!”—Random Bot

“Bet—”--Buddy

“I think not.”--Whirl

“Whirl?!”--Buddy

“If you break your dumb fragile bones who else is going to come with me on planet expeditions? Cyclonus? I think not. He sucks out all the fun.”—Whirl

“I am literally right here.”--Cyclonus

So, let the angst begin.

The place was being invaded by space pirates.

The pirates where taking the bridge and had successfully barricaded themselves in.

“Why can’t we just break the door down?”--Buddy

“The main room has delicate equipment. One wrong move…”--Megatron

“Okay that’s a bad idea then.”--Buddy

“We just need an opening from the main door and we can figure out the rest.”--Rodimus

“Hey, I’m tiny enough to fit through the crack under the door. I can open the door!”--Buddy

“Absolutely not.”--Megatron

“For once I’m agreeing with him.”--Whirl

“Hey, its not like we have many options here. Unless someone else has a better idea then I am quite literally the only thing stopping these guys.”--Buddy

“…go then…”--Megatron

He was going to regret saying it like that. The computers dashboard in order to unlock the door or at least give it an opening. So, when they were sure that the aliens weren’t looking, they sprinted over to the console by swinging up with a grappling hook to the chair and began running towards the buttons.

They had indirectly activated the plasma screens.

These were holoscreens all over the ship that would show what was happening on the bridge. Everyone had a front row seat to Buddy sprinting across the console. There where cheers as Buddy was coming closer and closer to the button

“They made it!”--Rodimus

“Way to go Buddy!”--Tailgate

“Just press the button.”—Ultra Magnus

“That’s my Amica—”--Whirl

It was right there…

The alien came out of nowhere…

“EW! A Rat!”--Alien

“A ra—"--Buddy

They swatted Buddy across the room in one swift movement. They’re tiny body hurdling across the room and off screen. A small sickening crack was heard.

It was barely noticeable.

But it caused a deafening sound across the entire Lost Light.

 Good news for the crew, Buddy’s shoe came off from the force of the hit and successfully pressed the button opening the door.

Everyone is lined up to take these aliens down.

Megatron and Whirl are at the forefront of it.

Megatron is trying to find Buddy while Whirl is absolutely destroying everything.

Megatron spots Buddy slumped over in the far corner of the room.

No motion, nothing

He is just frozen in place.

“Buddy…”--Megatron

“…”--Buddy

“Megatron! Move!”--Ratchet

Ratchet snaps him out of it as he is trying to help Buddy.

Megatron snaps out of it a cover him.

Buddy is rushed out an into the medbay.

Everyone is waiting.

The sudden gravity of Buddy’s mortality weighs heavily on the minds of everyone involved.

Megatron sulks in his room thinking about how he failed them. He can’t bear to sit by Buddy in the med bay. Ratchet understands and tells him that he when Buddy wakes up.

Whirl on the other hand, stays by Buddy’s bed side the entire time.

“Hey Tiny. It’s been a hot minute since you’ve open those little eyes… You mind opening them up?”--whirl

“…”--Buddy

“Fine be like that…”--Whirl

“…”--Buddy

“Well, you’ve missed a lot since you took that hit. One you have a ton of inner most energon by your room and a growing number of get-well gifts. I personally made sure none of you’re a secret bomb. Megs is still in his room and its giving everyone the creeps.”--Whirl

“…”--Buddy

“… Don’t tell this to anyone… but we miss you, you scared the ever living Pits out of us.”--Whirl

“…”--Buddy

Whirl has lost every good thing in his life. He is going to make sure that this one thing does go so soon.

Buddy does wake up

“Hye Whirly Bird?”--Buddy

“Buddy?!”--Whirl

“Why you looking at me like that? Someone died?”--Buddy

“You nearly did Tiny!”--Whirl

“But I didn’t, huh? It takes more than a hand to stop me.”--Buddy

“…I guess huh.”--Whirl

Megatron is zooming over when he hears. Buddy is trying to play off their injuries to try and keep the peace.

“Hey Megs.”--Buddy

“Buddy…”--Megatron

“You okay? You look like you’re dying.”--Buddy

“… that was a poor choice of words.”--Megatron

“Yeah I guess— woah, Megs?"—Buddy

Megatron gently holding Buddy’s hand the best he can

“Just let me hold you please, just a little bit.”--Megatron

“Sure Megs.”--Buddy

As they are recovering Buddy is treated with a bit more respect than they had before. Good thing too, they did after all manage to save the ship after all.

[arceespinkgun]

I was going through my drafts and found this one I forgot about from when I was rereading MTMTE/LL:

The Mederi arc in Lost Light is really displaying how much JRo doesn't care about friendship vs. romance. When news of Tailgate's supposed death reaches the Lost Light, nobody mourns him except Cyclonus, despite the fact that Tailgate had tons of close friends and was super popular! I can't help but think about how close Swerve and Tailgate used to be and how they're not interacting basically at all now.... A lot is made about how Cyclonus wasn't emotionally open with Tailgate and it's meant to be a big deal when he tells him he loves him. But the truth is, that wasn't consistently portrayed as a real character flaw for Cyclonus, because he was being emotionally open and vulnerable with Whirl this entire time! But then as soon as Cygate gets to happen, Whirl basically gets dropped by Cyclonus. On Mederi, the Skids illusion appears to no one but Nautica, even though she literally mentions Swerve as someone who'd want to see him so much more! Not to mention the many other close friends Skids had! Like Rung, who was literally coughing up energon and crystals over how upset he was about Skids's death? The Quark illusion appears to Brainstorm but not to… you know… Nightbeat, the guy who was actually best friends with Quark in that flashback?

In retrospect, I think this trend is also one reason why I hated Brainstorm and Perceptor getting together at the end so much. It's not just because Perceptor was barely a character, but because when they got together and announced they both just needed to feel validation in their ideas... Nautica was there since her introduction giving her friend Brainstorm that the whole time and had lots of time to bond with him that Perceptor never had! And the way Swerve kind of gets abandoned by his close friends and Whirl, while he will get to stay with Cyclonus, got ditched to go in and out of prison for some time also makes me feel like my frustration with this trend was valid.

[thecoolerliauditore]

opinions on pearlscar?

first off an apology because being disappointed back to back by two series I was very excited for and following in real time did something very strange to me interest-wise and i've fallen back into being into league and my language has started reflecting that with league terms being reintegrated back into my vocabulary.

so anyway in league (and im sure a lot of other games but ive mostly heard it w/ league) "sleeper OP" means a character who is overpowered but not many people are aware OR people are aware but forget. In other words it's being "slept on" hence sleeper OP.

pearlscar is the sleeper OP ship of the life series. people either 1. are aware that it is peak (even people who don't necessarily ship them ive noticed tend to lean towards "can see it") but don't focus on it as a ship for one reason or another or 2. are unaware of it because people don't make enough noise.

for me personally i adore any ship that involves characters with parallels and well. vaguely gestures towards LL Scar and DL Pearl and their respective partnerships with Grian and Scott. Scar encouraging Pearl's destructive tendencies in DL by recommending powdered snow, although cruel, read to me as a sign of sympathy that no one else really gave Pearl that season. They are very similar people at the end of the day (the villain to their enemies, a loose canon to their "allies" and deeply lonely with a yearning for friendship above all else).

And because they are similar people, they can very easily slot into what eachother need that they're constantly looking for elsewhere with Grian and Scott. Or at least, I think they would.

they also just? idk they make sense in my head as an endgame ship, not that those will ever really exist (except for jizzie ig lmao). I've held this thought forever but it peaked during the SL finale -- probably the biggest showcase of why I love them together so much -- although part of me didn't really fully subscribe to it just cus with gempearl also being a big heavy hitter to my frontal lobe that season it made it feel alot like idk. one of those old anime that was yuri the whole way through but then the mc leaves her gf to die and marries a man and it's all melancholic and upsetting but bittersweet. here have this post in my drafts I made at the time that came out that I was too afraid to post lmao

although ig with WL being as disappointing as it was to me that I've sort of decanonized it in my personal headspace they are as endgame as it gets lol

all that aside just. yeah. two lonely goofy people who find happiness in eachother. and get to be goofy and fun together. thumbs up. also that elven kiss clip was really cute but we all know this

[tojiscrack]

there’s so many things i love about your fic but one thing i specifically love that doesn’t have much to do with your fic is probably the community. like every person that comes into your asks, including the funny anons, feels like family idk STOP I SOUND SO CORNY BUT YOU GET WHAT I MEANNNN. like 1l-ynn’s (i think that’s her username) hatred for anyone that comes in between megumi and y/n is so funny, THE MALAKAI SHIPPING PHASE, THE RANDOM ANON THAT STARTED RAPPING IN UR ASKS, stanheightis stressing out every now and then about the angst is so real, kickingcat’s beautiful artwork as well as azr3na’s, mercupinesspring’s tiktok page dedicated to liar,liar which i stalk with my private account haha. i’m trying to think of the others but yeah, like the community is so beautiful and i think i’m gonna miss that more than anything when the fic eventually ends 🥲

i love u guys i can’ttttt

liar, liar masterlist here:

tagging everyone you mentioned so they see this ‘cause they absolutely deserve to know how special and precious they are, not only to me, but apparently to you too. it’s so absolutely true, my fav thing about writing the series this past year is the growing community 😭🩵

@1l-ynn @stanheightis @kickingcat @azr3na @mercupinesspring

the malakai hate was so incredibly funny to me bc he was never gonna be a second love interest. like, ever 💀 that’d make this megumi/reader story just be crack upon crack, and ik i prioritise comedy over romance in this romcom, but there’s a limit, yk 😭 and it was just funny to be given a taster of how certain ppl feel about a second love interest being introduced at all before i’d even introduced the real one, might i add

with that, watching ppl stress about the angst tag before it had even arrived (it’s still not here, curtesy of my hiatus 😇) was also the funniest thing ever. i’d wake up every morning with a new ask in my inbox stressing about NOTHING. like a singular person even held enough stress for the entire community, and then some 😭

the artwork i’ve received over the last few months have been collected into a google doc that’s how obsessed with them i am, ready to be printed out bc i genuinely meant it when i said i’d do just that for my room 😋 we made it to a point where we can appoint ppl as LL’s co-illustrators, which 16 year old me, who was drafting the first chapter a year and a bit ago, wouldn’t have even predicted such a thing and i’m so grateful bc wdym they were able to make malakai look good? ☹️🩵

their versions of y/n are so beautiful too 😭

and LL content being cross-posted to tiktok? i felt like an old person when i first saw the page and went through the memes made about my story (it’s like old ppl laughing at their own joke) 😀 my fav is definitely malakai core, and the video with ‘how i want megumi to react whenever another guy speaks to y/n’ or smth like that (along those words) 🤭

honourable mentions too bc these guys could never be forgotten by me:

@shaigimo @princesssparklesprinkle @reinaswrld @cutesolecita @britishfailure @b4tm4nn @reocidal @jelly-fsh @miffysmittens @anonymity-222 @crisis-unaverted @sl1004 @watermelonlover905 @loffagirl @seoups @awriterinthenight @ist0leurc0ffee @biancaackerman @2ukika @julieannah @missunrise @briezy04764 @jvpit3rr @sfmegumi @nappingnai @evergumi @crimsonhallucinations @femtaktsfilosofi @manmuncher777

+ more ofc, i’m genuinely trying hard to remember everyone from the top of my head but it’s a little hard given how fast LL is growing.

this doesn’t mean i’ve forgotten any of you that i haven’t mentioned! just means i got lazy and needed to wrap this sappy response up, but i promiseeee i’m well aware of who’s here and who’s not 🤗 the people above have also had several interactions with me, so it’s easier to remember ppl who you speak to on a daily 🥲

i thank the silent readers for still being here anyway. the LL community wouldn’t be thriving without ur support too <3

also if i’ve tagged you and you wish to not be tagged even in sappy posts, just lmk, i’ll know not to do it in future haha 😧

but anyways… in conclusion, i agree. i can’t wait to return to all my children (you guys) in late june ☹️ the only reason why i’m simultaneously dreading it is ‘cause it means my exams would be here but oh well 😭

k gonna end it here ‘cause this is too sappy ew 🙄 (💕)

[bechaerriezlvr]

foreigner

part two of two

nicholas wang x reader

fluff, teeny tiny bit of angst, happy ending ofc, nicknames like “pretty”

THIS IS HIGHKEY CRINGY i think idk, i forgot how relationships work and how they come to be i’ve been single too long i fear. even though this took ages for me to release, this was still rushed. last part was lowkey xo kitty and true beauty inspired. partially proofread so don’t yell at me

this was so rushed it feels like a middle school relationship

author’s note💋: i MIGHT release works on txt soon! i can’t guarantee that because i have 7 andteam drafts and one daniel/kyu one 😛

nicholas picks you up outside of your hotel. this time the sun is ablaze and he’s perched on the side of his car’s hood. you step outside, locking eyes with him. a smile cracks on his face.

“hey,” you greet.

“all ready?” he asks. “and hungry, i hope.”

“oh definitely.” he pops open the car door for you, ushering you inside before he takes his spot on the driver’s seat, driving off.

"am i being kidnapped or are you bringing me somewhere for breakfast?" you joke.

"if it's both?" you both laugh. "i swear, you'll love where i'm taking you." before you could respond, your phone rings.

tzu💗is calling...

"hello?" she says.”

you're evil, you know that?" you reply.

"i'm sorryyy!! you can't even say anything, i couldn't contact you last night!"

"sorry, i was busy and my phone died because YOU ABANDONED ME AND STOLE MY UMBRELLA!"

"'ll give it back! what were you busy doing anyway?"

"finding my way back."

"mm im surprised you even did it."

"hey! i got help!" nicholas laughs at your comment before honking at the driver ahead of him.

"ok ok, tell me about it later, im calling to let you know that i'm fine now, i'm heading back to the hotel in a couple hours- wait was that a honk.. are you in a car.. who are you with?"

“igottagodontyellatmeillseeyoulaterbye!" you quickly end the call, shoulders slumping in relaxation.

"cute," he mutters under his breath while shaking his head. he does a swift turn into the parking lot and parks with ease. "don't get out, i'll open the door for you," he says before quickly running over to the other side.

you laugh, "wow, what a gentleman."

"all i aspire to be," he remarks with a little bow. he opens the door to reveal a cute café. the place is quiet with the ambience of people conversing and the kitchen running. the sound of clinking coffee cups and staff greeting fills the room as he pulls you to a seat next to him. a waitress passes you two some menus letting you flip through them. as nicholas orders for you (again) you can't help but admire him. the gummy smile he flashes and his polite nature. his tall, lean physique and sharp eyes contrasts his playful humor. it's been nothing but a day and yet this man has butterflies fluttering in your belly. the idea of being out, just the two of you makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside. you look away for a bit before seeing a flash in the corner of your eye. you look and see one of the café's polaroid camera aligned with his face.

"you could've warned me!" you laugh.

"well it wouldn't be candid," he chuckles. you take one of him in retaliation.

"here," he hands you the polaroid of you before you push his hand back.

"keep it, i'll lose it."

“i’m not keeping both, take mine,” he says. “it’s weird if i have a polaroid of myself. let's take one together?" you hum in agreement. as he stretches his arm out, he struggles to take one of the both of you.

the waitress returns and smiles softly as she offers to take a photo. setting your food down. you and nicholas look at each other before saying yes. he tightly wraps an arm around you, your bodies pressed together. you swear he could feel the cold sweat that runs down your neck, but you obviously don’t address it. the both of you smile widely like little kids. the waitress takes a seat in the chair in front of the two of you, snapping a photo as the bright light of the flash hits your eyes. she takes two polaroids for each of you to have a copy. she makes a quick remark that leaves nicholas laughing in embarrassment.

"what?" you question in confusion.

"nothing," nicholas waves off the question.

"no come on, you can't say that!"

"...she said we were a cute couple.”

“do you agree?”

“that’s subjective,” he huffs.

“i think not,” you smile.

you two spend some times strolling around the city, staying near the café. you both shopped around, nicholas holding your (his) purchases. you were treated like a princess by his side. he opens doors for you, swipes his card for you, drives for you, feeds you. i mean, what more could you ask for? as you walk around, talking about whatever comes to your head, you spot a familiar face across the street, locking eyes with tzu.

you go wide eyed as she smiles in your direction. you shake your head and hold a finger in front of your mouth, hoping she'll let this moment go so you can explain everything later. she squints her eyes at you before walking off.

"what was that about?" nicholas asks

"oh, nothing, don’t worry about it," you lie before pulling your phone out.

you: thought you were heading home in a couple hours??

tzu: girl it has been hours

tzu: AND WHEN WERE YOU GONNA TELL ME ABOUT THAT

tzu: i’ve been gone for a day and now you’re hoeing around???

you: WOW OK YOU ABANDONED ME

you: i'm sorry i'm making friends like you asked me to 😒

you: and i'll tell u later

tzu: ok ho u better

you: yeah yeah you shouldn't even be out after FOOD POISIONING

days have passed and you've spent late nights fretting about your texts with nicholas and repeating the same story that tzu hasn't gotten sick of during your late nights. you've had a rough history with past lovers and a hard time making new friends. when tzu had figured out you were "venturing out in the world" she nearly freaked out of excitement. although she couldn't contain her happiness for you, she warned you about the boys around town and said she'd "break his neck and use his body parts as fuel for our flight back home" if nicholas broke your heat.

you couldn't get nicholas off your mind. normally, during trips, you'd be equally excited to enjoy your stay and head back home. yet, as the clock kept ticking, you began to dread it. you obviously still struggled around taiwan. two weeks wouldn't magically make you fluent in mandarin, but you felt safe. but that was only because you had nicholas checking in on you. "are you busy" wanna hang out?" "you need anything?" "you hungry?" these texts lingered in your mind, feeling guilty you were leaving so soon even though you both knew it was bound to happen.

it was 3 am. tzuyu was passed out next to you and you couldn't help but succumb to the blaring light of your phone. you had spent the whole night clubbing, eating, drinking, dancing, and retired to your hotel room to get fat on ice cream and junk. you were doing everything out of your comfort zone because you’re on vacation and it didn't matter. and somehow, that's what you were afraid of, enjoying every moment even though nothing mattered. soju and beer bottles were scattered around your hotel room, but you were sober enough to function. you were sitting in the bed, wrapped up in the thick comforter. the scent of alcohol and expensive hotel room fragrance circulated around the room. the lights were dim, and you felt more sentimental than you normally would. the liquid courage began to take effect and before you knew it, your fingers were typing faster than you were processing.

you 💋: hi

you💋: i’m sp sleept

you💋: am i bothwring yu?

you💋: hey, so, i'm gonna miss you when i leave

you 💋: sorry, was rhat too forwwatd

weno🍓: no not at all

weno🍓: are you drunk?

you💋: WOW accusations

you💋: but ywah maybe

you 💋: it's so late i didn't think you'd answer

you 💋: aren’t you gonna miss me too 😞

weno 🍓: i never said i wouldn’t

you 💋: ph so it’s just onwsided and i’m pathwric

weno 🍓: you’re not pathetic, i’ll miss you too

weno🍓: drink some water??

weno 🍓:you seem so drunk

you💋: i’m not teust

💋trsy

💋trst

💋trust

🍓🍓you just proved my point

💋whatevwr

you 💋: i'm getting to the airport at 4:00 am in like fove days,

you 💋: i'll just text when i'm on my way

weno🍓: what time is your flight?

you 💋: 6:00

weno🍓: oh

you 💋: yeah

an awkward pause is created between the two of you before you see him type again.

weno🍓: you're gonna hate me for this

you💋: what?

weno🍓: i like you.

your face runs red and you nearly want to slap tzuyu awake.

weno🍓: im sorry, bad timing, i know lol

weno 🍓:you’re probably not even gonna remember i said this anyway

weno🍓: don't hate me

weno🍓: is there an unsend message option

you💋: it's ok

you💋: i like yu too goofy

you💋: tgis feels weird

you💋: and cliché

you💋: AHHHH

you💋: didn't think yiu were gonna aay it first

weno🍓: woah i didn't think you were gonna say it back

you💋: i didn't even think you were gonna say it

weno🍓: fuck, its only been 12 days and i've gained feelings

weno🍓: i'm going insane

you💋: i said the same thing i thought i was delusional

weno🍓: what do we do now?

you💋: i don't know

you💋: i'm leaving in a few days, i cant change my entire

life right here right now.

you💋: fuck the only thing i can say is nihao and xiexie

weno🍓: i'd say i could help you but i don't wanna hold you back

weno🍓: should we just...idk.. sleep on it??

you💋: if my feelings go away in 24 hours (which isn't gonna happen) leave me

weno🍓: i don’t think i could bring myself to

weno🍓: there's nothing we could do right now

weno🍓: go to sleep, pretty. good night

you💋: good night

you contemplate throwing your phone across the room and punching a hole in the wall. instead you slump over, face first, into your bed. your nerves are nowhere near calm. all you could hope for is that this wasn't a dream and that it isn't something that deserves to be forgotten. you reach for the polaroids from the café. your eyes wander towards his toothy grin and his squinted eyes. his hair is raven black, yet it shines against the flash. you can see his fingers curled around your shoulder tightly as if you’d vanish right then and there. you can immediately recall his silly laughter and the way he’d constantly lick and nip at his lips. the way he’d always look at you first to see if you like the food or if you’re alright. you pop the polaroid of him on the back of your phone. you nearly scoff in disbelief. how could i have fallen so fast? little did you know, nicholas had yours on the back of his phone too.

it’s officially the day you leave. restless all night, you ended up passing time by walking around, packing your stuff, constantly looking in the mirror and fixing your hair. your head pounds harder than the day you were drunk and delusional out your mind. you sit criss cross applesauce on the bathroom counter with the lights dim and the door closed to prevent tzuyu from awakening. as you put away your toiletries, you feel your phone vibrate against you as it rests on your knee. you click on the notification with a bitter smile.

weno🍓: i miss you

you💋: i know

weno🍓: wow cocky

you💋: jk jk me too

you💋: it's 2:00 am, weno

weno🍓: you said my name

you💋: go to sleep

weno🍓: you called me weno

you💋: it’s your name isn’t it?

weno🍓: yeah

weno🍓: i just got butterflies through the screen

you💋: you’re so bold

you💋: go to sleep

weno🍓: so you hate me

you💋: my god, it's too late for you to be up, i have to sleep too

weno🍓: yeah but i miss you

you💋: i haven't left yet

weno🍓: im anticipating the leave

you💋: me too

weno🍓: should i drop you off

you💋: my friend has been back

you💋: idk if you wanna deal with her too lol

weno🍓: fine then i’ll meet you there

you💋: you don’t even have a flight

weno🍓: so?

you🍓: i’ll let you meet me there if you head to bed now

weno🍓: i won’t make it on time then

you💋: you’ll fall asleep while you drive then skid off the highway

weno🍓: ouch

you💋: if that happens then you really won’t see me

weno🍓: wow 💔

weno🍓: fine.

weno🍓: last goodnight in taiwan

you: 🥹

*weno 🍓 loved “🥹”*

you💋: goodnight nicholas

weno🍓: night pretty

the sun is barely seeping out and you’re seated in a taxi next to tzuyu. she leans her head on your shoulder as you both look out the window, into the highway.

“i’m gonna kms,” you say.

“girl, we can always come back,” tzuyu says.

“i guess,” you shrug.

“oh.. him, right?”

“i don’t know what you’re talking about,” you deflect.

“seriously, if he gets over you because you’re heading back home, you’re both stupid”

“hey!” you slap her shoulder. “what’s that supposed to mean??”

“stupid for getting with him and he’s stupid for getting over you.” you roll your eyes in response. “it’s ok you have me anyway,” she jokes, sticking her tongue out. the car rolls into the airport’s drop off. as you and tzuyu get out the car and take your luggages out the trunk, you lug your stuff into the airport. you keep your passport in hand, waiting in line to check ion your bags. you look around the open space, hoping that that you see his familiar face. distracted in looking around, you nearly miss your name being called by tzuyu, beckoning you over. you get your boarding pass while your bags are weighed and passed down the conveyor belt. it’s really time to go?

you take one last look around before tzuyu takes your hand, leading you towards tsa. before you enter the already filled line, you hear hard footsteps behind you and sound waves of your name being called. you whip your head around, locking eyes with the face you hoped to see. you look at tzuyu as if you’re asking for permission. she nods quickly, pushing you towards him. you fall into his arms, engulfed in a warm hug. you embraced him tightly knowing it’d probably be your first and last one. you feel a lump in your throat but you swallow back your tears. he takes your face in his hands and holds you so gently you’re afraid he thinks you’re made of porcelain. you shudder out a breath as you look into his eyes. you both nearly break out in laughter, thinking that the whole thing was dramatic.

“don’t waste your tears,” he says, caressing your face.

“bye, i guess,” you say into his hands.

“is it too late for a goodbye kiss?”

“here?” you say, eyes wide, looking back at tzuyu.

“who knows when i’ll kiss you next?” you sigh, silently complying. he smiles, pulling you closer as your lips press onto his. sweet and gentle, bitter and strong. you smile against his lips before giving him one last peck then pulling away.

“is she disgusted?” you ask. he looks at her from behind you.

“she looks like she’s about to end me,” he laughs nervously.

“sounds just like her,” you laugh. the line for security as lessened and minutes have passed. “i guess i should go now, just in case i get stuck or interviewed or whatever.”

“there’s so much time, there’s like an hour,” he whines.

“an hour which could consist of me getting held back for some stupid rule i might’ve broken. i’d rather be early.”

you both say your goodbyes. as you walk towards security, you hold onto tzu’s hand tightly, trying not to look back. she squeezed your hand back like she’s reassuring you of your unsteady emotions. you look back one last time after the guard had checked your passport. you see nicholas’ bright smile. he didn’t look like he felt a single ounce of sadness, smiling brightly.

you board the plane, ready for your long flight. tzuyu is one seat away from you, making you feel even more disappointed with the fact you can’t sit and chat. you stand on your tippy toes to put your bag into the overhead bin.

“sorry, did you need help with that?”

“yes ple-”

.

.

��…nicholas?”

he grins back at you, looming over your figure.

“i told you not to waste your tears, pretty.”

[ma3mae]

I really want knight tecchou pt 2 that I've been looking at your profile constantly since it was posted praying for it to have many interactions, I really loved it :(

Frail Beginnings

Summary: "Tomorrow" was supposed to be the promised day and yet that rumored Tyrant of an Emperor had managed to put a halt to your plans. Refusing to let your resolve waver at the thought of meeting him, you`d continue to march forward but for how long?

Genre: sweet sweet drama, tetchou and reader being hopelessly in love, maybe some jokes here n there, tehee

Warnings: incoming toothrotting nsfw scene lmao so mdni 🤩 also this got political damn fast skks, maybe a bit ooc tetchou but hes just in love ok, hint of possessive tetchou! mentions ( or them legit doing it) of bj , fingering, short cunnilingus scene 😮‍💨tetchou begging bc yes, its just pure rly romantic smut heehe

Word count: 10k ( idk how i did that lolol)

A/N: im back after 2 years WHAT ?? This might not have gotten as much recognition as my other works but I was so in love with it that I just had to write a part 2 🤩this was sitting in my drafts for too long, m sorry guys omg 👹 also blame my exams rn, i dont wanna study 😭😭🗿 emperor dazai doesnt appear in person but he gets mentioned a lot so i decided to put him in the title too :(( hell be there in the next chapter ,guys. hope you`ll have fun reading this <3

previous Chapter

Knight! Tetchou x Reader x Emperor! Dazai

"Tomorrow"

"Tomorrow"

Tomorrow, my ass!

You begrudgingly thought as you flipped through the 100th page of this month's most popular dress designs while chewing on a cookie as three tailors anxiously waited for your final choice.

One of the tailors flinched at your glare at him, the reason for their presence only etching the frown deeper onto your face.

It`s all that stupid Emperor`s fault!

Remembering the content of the torn letter abandoned on your study`s desk, you huffed out a sigh as you pointed at a design of your choice, the tailors let out a breath of relief as they hurried to bring out one of the designs out of the dressing room.

"All the dresses we`ve brought are mere concepts and can be improved upon by any choices of your preferences, Your Imperial Highness."

"The term" Princess" itself will suffice."

One of them let out a tiny shriek at your statement, the tailor with the signature Emblem of a Crow on one of his buttons, was shaking his head furiously.

Baffled by your blatant request, he spoke.

"B-But Your Highness, the Emperor had requested that we must refer to you only with a title befitting of your status and that we treat you with utmo-"

"Ugh, yes. With utmost respect, I suppose?`"

Flinching at the loud shut of the book in your hands, you gently set it aside onto the table infront of you.

"Your dear Emperor had disrespected not only me but this entire Empire by abprubtly declaring his wis- Wait, actually more like demand, that we hold a banquet to "commerate" our engagement. If his army wouldn`t exceed in size in comparison to ours, then we would have tried to get his head for that but oh well."

Not wanting to indulge too far into your not-so-well hidden distaste infront of his own people (not like it was far too late for that) you tried to distract yourself from such annoying thoughts as your fingers grazed over the meticulously crafted design of the book`s cover.

"Clearly shows us how power can win at the end of the day. Isn`t that right, Karl?" you sighed out, looking straight into the poor tailors eyes, unwillingly letting the dwelling frustration in your chest put words in your mouth.

Karl, one of that man`s most competent tailors, gulped at your question, desperately trying to ignore your sharp gaze at him.

Where was "the kindhearted and generous" part the Emperor had told us about when we would be facing the princess??

"W-Well I think tha-"

Sigh

Shoulders tightening at the soud of your seemingly exasperated sigh, he let his eyes stick to the floor like glue, not wanting to risk getting on your bad side.

Unbeknownst to him, you were just simply and utterly exhausted by this whole ordeal already.

"It's alright. You dont need to put your life on the line just to answer a silly question of mine. "

Trying to ease the tension with a lighthearted joke, you had to supress a groan at your own stupidity as you took notice of his evidently avoidant stance, prefering to look at the floor than atleast an inch of your heel.

Maybe hell tell his Emperor that I am of short temper? Heh, wouldnt be too bad.

Entertaining yourself with funny delusions, you decided to put your focus on atleast getting out of this session which that had been extended for far too long to your liking.

"Just show me the dress and let's get this over with before one of you might collapse from exhaustion. We wouldn't want the Emperor's most competent tailors to tell him that we`ve been working you to the bone, so I`ll give you this."

You beckoned your finger at Clara.

The three tailors let their eyes linger on her figure, following her movements as she went over to a cabin on her right, opening it and seemingly taking something out of it.

Their eyes widened as they caught side of the golden emblem of the chest, their fingerstips slightly trembling at the uneasiness that filled their heads.

Only one question formed itself in their thoughts.

What kind of torture might befall onto us now?!

Yet that uneasiness was slowly morphed into disbelief and confusion as Clara stopped to stand next to you, slowly opening the chest to reveal it`s contents.

"Is that a-?!"

"But Your Highn-?!"

"We possibly couldn`t-?!"

A sharp silence filled the air as you held up your palm infront of them, halting their pleads to stop you from giving them each a sack full of gold.

Letting you eyes glance at Clara to your side, you gave a her a curt nod as you picked one of the gold sacks out of the chest.

The rattling of the coins let a clump form in their throats, forcing them to try and gulp the nervousness down as you seemed to be assessing the item in your hand, feeling the weight of it as you let your hand lightly shake it.

"This might be what? A year full of your earnings?"

No one let out a word.

"Hmm, possibly yes? Yet I told you."

Holding your other hand out, you beckoned them to open their palms, another sigh escaping your lips as a tiny voice in your head wished, it would be as easy to handle the mere presence of their "Employer" as you handled his tailors.

Mere fantasy

Whispered the voice in your head as you let each of the three sacks fall into their hands.

As expected

The corners of your lips tilted upwards as you gazed at their baffled faces, their eyes trembling as they had gazed at you in not so contained excitement.

"I'll make you work but not to the bone. You'll be rewarded graciously as befitting of this house standards since you may be employees of his land. Yet you should remember, that you are also considered esteemed guests and shall be given the right payment."

Easing the tension further, you let a smile grace your lips at them.

"I have to sadly praise your Emperor for atleast having a keen eye when it comes to high achieving members of society."

That`s very blunt?!

Thought the three of them and yet their hearts couldn`t betray the giddiness inside of them as they let the weight of the gold fill their minds.

"Spend it for whatever you want. Family, food, your housings or any other selfish reason. It is yours after all."

Turning your head to your side, you first gazed at the chest then at Clara, lastly nodding at her as she had seemed to have understood the meaning.

Watching Clara turn away to put the chest back into the cabin , you took one last look at the three tailors.

" I shall dismiss you for the day since this must have been quite tiring for you. I shall depart for a break as well."

A quick bend in the knees for a curtesy, you let your feet take you to the table decorated with ready made snacks for your tea time at the far right of the room, a window perfectly displayed on it`s wall to gaze out of it and onto the garden.

The tailors could merely blink at your sudden change in behavior as your lady in waiting stepped infront of them, blocking you entirely out of their sight.

"The princess wishes to take a break. You may use your earnings as however you`d like as she had told you. We will notify you later during the day about the prefered changes of the dress. Sir Suehiro will accompany you while a maid will show you the way to your rooms for the upcoming days."

The clinking of a tea cup being set onto a plate echoed through the room.

"Clara, you may choose Sir Michizou to accompany them. I`d like for Sir Suehiro to stay here at his rightful place as my appointed knight after all." You stated as you took a bite of one of the many cookies infront of you.

Clara merely shook her head at your statement, a sigh leaving her a she slightly bowed her head.

"As you wish, Princess."

Said knight had been guarding outside the door with Tetchou, having heard tiny bits of the conversation.

"Damn, Tetchou. I keep forgetting how much guts the princess has for just constantly badmouthing the Emperor."

He couldn`t help let out a low chuckle at his own words, Tetchou also not resisting the quirk up of his lips at that.

"I know. She's funny."

Cackling at his friend`s blatant statement, he coughed into his hand as the door opened, the glare of the lady in waiting not going unnoticed.

Straightening their backs as the tailors came into their view, they nodded in acknowledgement at them as Clara spoke.

"Sir Michizou, could you please accompany them to their chambers? Just follow this maid and then you can return to your post afterwards."

Shooting her a quick glare at the barely hidden but more than annoying small smirk at him, he supressed a sigh as he nodded.

"Understood."

Nodding her head at one of the maids in the room, one of them stepped forward, hands crumbling the skirt tightly as she hastily made her way towards them before giving the guests a quick bow.

"F-Follow me, please..."

Sarah, the newest maid, hurriedly squeezed her way through the door as she quickly made her way down the wall, the tailors and the knight trying to match her quick tempo.

Deadpanning at her nervous form, Clara turned her full body towards Tetchou, him tilting his head at his stare.

"Does the Princess demand for my Presence?"

Shooing all of the maids out of the room, she closed the door behind them as she sat down onto the couch while Tetchou made his way towards you.

"Clara, you don`t wish to join me for a nice up of tea and enjoy these delicious snacks with us?"

Snatching a cookie from your plate as she proceeded to let her body flop onto the couch, laying on her back as she flipped through the book.

"No. I refuse to spend my time with any of you sick lovebirds. Don't even know how you're gonna manage that while being the Emperor's fiance. "

You watched her movements in amusement as she proceeded to sit up, letting her side lean and putting her arm onto the back of the couch, hand pressing against her cheek as she leaned into it.

"Also why didn`t you choose the other dress? It looks more flattering than the other one." Raising an eyebrow at her sudden question, you decided to be silent, knowing there would be more to come out of her mouth.

As expected, she accusingly pointed a finger at you.

"Also stop calling me by that wretched name when were alone. You seem to be enjoying teasing me a bit too much these days." A deadpan expression carried her actions, as you couldnt help but stifle a chuckle, all while you dismissinlgy waved a hand at her.

"Alright, alright. Sorry, Y-o-s-a-n-o."

"Ugh, kids these days."

Not bothering to supress her groan, she flopped down onto her back, admiring the carefully crafted different shapes which decorated the ceiling, tirelessly trying to ignore the lovesick atmosphere forming not far from her presence.

Tetchou`s eyes had never left your form since you had summoned him to join you, engrossed in the way your eyes would crinkle in amusement whenever you and your lady in waiting interacted privately.

"Also, may I ask why you suddenly had the urge to act like the "kind" and "generous" princess you are supposed to be? Gifting them sacks of pure gold coins?"

Letting a smirk slip onto your lips, you took a sip of your tea.

" Well, just see it as a way of poking at him for putting a halt to my plans."

She knew you couldn`t see her yet still shook her head as a smile made its way onto her lips, your playful side never failing to make things interesting for her.

"Well, atleast you've got yourself some good tailors on your side. Fairly better than the one's your dear mother had hired some time ago."

"Indeed, I have." You spoke as you sipped at your tea, glancing at your beloved knight still standing next to you, feeling the twinkle in his eyes even when you`d close yours.

"Tetchou."

Even after many years, the sound of his name falling out of your lips never failed to make his heart soar higher for you, always enticing him in wanting to hear more of it.

Your sweet voice, the way your hair would fall into your face whenever you~d let your gaze trace his features while letting your fingersd smooth through his barely tamed hair as he`d make himself comfortable on your lap.

The way your eyes would glisten like the morning sun and fill with him with energy to continue through the day.

His favorite was hearing his name through whines and mewls as he`d feel your nails dig further and further into his back, laboured breath leaving your enticing lips, swollen from all the kisses you had given him as you plead for him to go faster, teary eyes blinking at him as he feels you get tighter and tighter until h-

"Yes, Princess?"

Blinking at the sudden mention of his name, which had been some seconds ago, you raised an eyebrow at how a hint of red could be seen on his cheeks.

"You know that you are allowed to sit down onto the chair and grab some cookies if you'd like? I did ask for your company after all."

Tucking at his collar a bit as he felt the heat not leave his face, he raised a fist to infront of his mouth as he cleared his throat.

"If that is your wish."

He made his way to the seat across from you, heart fluttering at the slightest hint of your fragrance wafting through the air as he sat down.

Not restraining a happy smile at being finally to admire his face infront of you, you held up a cookie in front of his mouth.

Without any words, he took a bite of it, savouring it's sweet taste as his eyes still hadn't left yours, a lovely trait of his that would never fail to make your knees buckle underneath him.

"Even after all these years, you still look at me like the first day we met." You mentioned as you let him finish eating the cookie off of your hands.

Wanting to wipe the crumbs off of his lips, you stretched your hand out yet a hold of your hand stopped you. Pulling it gently towards him, he closed his eyes as he licked the remaining crumbs off of your fingers, the light falling into his eyes as he opened them to catch the sight of your heated face.

After having wiped your hand clean with the handkerchief you had gifted him at the yearly hunting tournament, he pressed his lips on each of your fingers before intertwining them with his, enjoying the shade of berries adorning your face.

"I refuse to lose sight of what is important to me. You were the one who had given me a new life and I had sworn to protect you. At the end, you were the one who had shown me what true love is and I want to cherish it together with you."

Glancing at the table, he frowned before his eyes widened ever so slightly, an idea popping up in his head.

Letting the chair screech a bit too loudly to your liking, he pushed it away as he stood up, moving around the table to suddenly stand infront of you, his hand never having left yours.

"T-Tetchou? Is something the matter?"

Cursing silently at your sudden stutter, you blink up at him as he gazed down on you.

He put his free hand onto the back of the chair for support as he leant down, pressing yet again a kiss onto your hand, his intense gaze still boring into yours.

"May I?"

Scrunching your eyebrows together at his odd question, you couldn't help but chuckle at the realisation of what he meant.

"What do you think my answer will be?"

"A yes?" A slight tilt of his head to the side as he had a hunch what your answer would be but the small fear of rejection would always refuse to die within him.

"See? Then you may."

With a smile stretching across his lips, he leaned down further as he pressed a gentle but long kiss onto yours, letting out a hum at the lingering sweet mix of cookies and sugared tea on them.

The clearing of a throat reached your ears infront the both of you.

Trying your best to not let any disdain be shown onto your face, you broke the kiss yet couldn`t contain the small huff leaving your nose at the small but noticeable pout residing on his face as he shot a quick glare at Yosano.

"Ha? What are you glaring at me for?"

Realizing what had slipped out, his eyes widened as he straightened his back, his cheeks adorning the color of chery blossoms.

"I apologize. I did not mean to glare at you like that."

He was met with nly a lift of an eyebrow and the noticeable exasperated sight leaving her mouth as she waved him off.

"No need to hide it, I know I disturbed you two but there are footsteps coming up so you better put your act back on before someone catches onto you."

Before straightening his back to take his rightful position to stand next to you, you gave him a quick peck on the cheek as Yosano took a seat across from you, acting as if the two of you had been conversing about various things.

Right after she had wanted to reach out for a cookie, a knock echoed through the room.

"Princess, may I enter your chambers?"

A smile etched itself across your face as the low and raspy voice of your father's butler rung from behind the door, immediately recognizable since your youngest ages.

"You may."

The tall yet slightly bent down figure due to of old age crooked back with a strong aura rivaling that of your father's made it's way through your door.

The strong loyalty to the empire for centuries dawning on anyone laying their eyes upon him as the golden empire's crest adornes his blazer that could make even the strongest soldier falter in his presence.

Your heart swells with pride and gratitude for having him part of your life, a mere "butler" to accomodate to your needs in the eyes of outsiders, but for you and the people in this castle, a figure contributing strongly to the growth of this empire and especially your own and many others as well.

A rightfully prideful man known for his eccentric and boastful personality throughout the closest family members of the empire yet remains hidden as a humble butler coming from a traditional family having served your bloodline for centuries.

As soon as he had closed the door behind him, you began to hastily walk towards him, your face nearly hurting from smiling as your heart ached at the thought of getting to catch a glimpse of him less and less with each passing year as he`d be occupied with solely serving your father.

"Fukuchi!"

A boisterous laugh erupted out of him as he spun you around, not an ounce of old age traceable in the strenght he had always seemed to hold inside of him as a giggle escaped your lips.

"Little Princess! All these years and you still seem to love to be spun around by this old man!"

"Well you're still going strong! Aren't ya, Old man?!"

"Haha! That's true for sure, you lil' runt!"

Yosano sighed at your antics as she took a side glance to Tetchou, only to deadpan at his expression.

"Please tell me, I'm not the only one concerned by people possibly hearing the sheer volume of this man's voice? I do not wish to be here for another sudden unwished sword fight between these two."

Trying to make sense of this situation as she had seen this scenario way too many times, she took a glance at your knight yet Tetchou's eyes never strayed from your form.

"You think I could also spin her around like that in his age?"

Covering her face with her hands, she surpressed a groan as she took a deep breath in.

Sighing, she crossed her arms.

"Well, it's not my fault if something happens and yet I'm still glad that there are many things and especially people that never fail to lighten up her day."

She said as the corner of her lips tugged upwards yet went the opposite direction as an unpleasant thought etched itself into her head.

"Yet I sadly believe, it will decrease in the future."

Tetchou's eyes narrowed at her words, a terrible foreboding in the gut of his stomach as she stepped forward towards the both of you.

And he might be here because of the reason for it.

Were the thoughts of both Tetchou and Yosano as their eyes locked onto your figures, a different degree of worry in their hearts.

Having gently set you down, you welcomed the slight throb of dizzyness in your head as a feeling of nostalgia buzzed through your body.

Petting your head with an adoring smile on his face, he looked behind you as he saw your lady in waiting and your knight approach you.

"May I ask for what you have come to visit the Princess? I thought you were busy preparing the ball to welcome the Tyrant?"

Letting out a good laugh at the sudden name calling, he shot her a smile before coughing into his hand, remembering the actual serious matter for why he had come.

"I deeply apologize for the delay, Lady Clara. I was sent to relay the Emperor's words to the Princess-"

What's with this 180° turn of personality?

Deadpanned all three of you as you continued to listen to him.

"- which entail that the "Tyrant" you speak of will be arriving a week earlier. Precisely spoken, this evening. "

"WHAT?! What do you mean already this evening?! Is he insane?!!"

I already had to delay my plans because of him and NOW he's also here way earlier than I was previously told to?!

"Why-?"

"What the f-?"

"Fukuchi, I demand an explanation! What is the meaning of that sneaky Emperor's hurry?"

Eyes shaking in near uncontainable anger as the fleeting image of yesterday's letter flashed into your mind, one that you had torn apart to spite said soon to be fiancé.

Is that what he had meant with "I'll be awaiting to soon finally let my humble self be graced by your presence, dear soon to be betrothed of mine."?!

You hadn't thought with "soon" that he had meant a week earlier!

Fukuchi had anticipated your reaction (and of the other two) as he himself was flabbergasted when the idea of a marriage between the you and that man first came up randomly during a delegation meeting.

A meeting he for once wasn't by his emperor's side due to an abrupt leave in concern of "family matters".

.

.

.

"What is this marriage that I have been hearing about, Your Imperial Highness?"

There he stood with his back turned towards him, watching you enjoy a cup of tea in the garden together with your precious lady in waiting.

A sigh left his mouth as he turned to look over his shoulder at his friend and ally of many years, guilt seeping into his body as he fought against the feeling of his shoulders slumping slightly under the pressure of it.

"I hope your family has been well?"

A dreaded silence fills the room as an unwanted shaky breath leaves the emperor`s lips. The buzz of people throughout the castle walls, the birds from the garden and your faint laughter as a smile graced your lips. Eyeing the portrait of his beloved wife and daughter, he closed his eyes.

Turning to greet his greet his friend properly, the frown deepens.

"It is exactly as you heard, my friend. The rumors are no mere rumors. It is as these gossipers speak. There will be a marriage between my daughter and that lying fox."

Fukuchi had never been one to hide his feelings if it came to things that "displeased" him.

Though "displeased" would be far too light to describe it.

The Emperor could see the disbelief morph into anger and disappointment, something he had been seeing in himself a lot emerge like a broading storm in his chest, which had begun to slowly erupt in its full form inside of his old friends mind.

"I have known you for years to know that you had entertained such ideas in your mind before my departure. Yet why did you choose to remain silent and bear the burden by yourself?."

Fukuchi had a hunch to why he had not told him about any of this.

Yet he refused to succumb to his theories on the "whys" and "hows" until he had heard the explanation leave the Emperor`s mouth.

Not that it would make this matter far easier to digest.

"There is a reason for why I have been serving this family for years and it is one of my duties to bear some of it as well. So do enlighten me, Ol' friend of mine."

The Emperor`s lips tucked upwards at the name for a second, a bitter taste beginning to reside in his mouth, his words lingering in mind as he sat down onto the chair in his office.

"I know for sure it saddens and angers you as much as it does for me. The failure of protecting my people and family properly lies entirely on my fault. If only I had more-"

"More people for your army? Then why didn't you simply say so? You knew that I have the capabilities to organize such a grand ordeal. It is nothing than something trivial if it's about recruiting competent people. You have seen what my men can do."

A lighthearted chuckle escaped his friend's mouth, only etching Fukuchi's frown deeper into his face.

"Fukuchi. That is exactly the reason why I have chosen to bear this burden alone. It is no rumor that his army surpasses that of mine in numbers and perhaps even in power. Yet it is perhaps the selfish nature of humanity I have chosen to succumb myself to as the feeling of not wishing to send any more people to war has become stronger over the years of peace."

"Then what about the Princess? Your own daughter whose happiness you had promisedto protect the most?"

The downcast eyes and the slight clenching of his fists were enough of an answer for Fukuchi.

He couldn't blame him.

It wasn't unheard of to "marry off" their own child, mainly daughters, to maintain a certain hold in society and perhaps even acquire more power because of such ties.

Yet the higher the position, the greater the burden that would befall onto them.

And yet, there was a part of Fukuchi which had chosen to believe in his friend as he presented him his heir from the first woman he had ever truly loved.

His friend who had united not only two nations together but also it's people after the Great War 30 years ago. Pouring his own being purely into the improvement of his Empire, focusing on one goal. It lead to many failed marriages, neglected children until he had found the love of his life while all the time, Fukuchi remained by his side.

He was loyal to the empire.

Loyal to it's people.

But foremost, to it's family holding the balance of this nation.

He wished for no such feeling yet the sense of betrayal to his oath lingered in his heart.

The strength in refraining from shaming his friend for such weakness waning with every word spoken.

""I have failed many children of mine. This time, I promised this one years of happiness with me by their side." These were your own words. You can not possibly wish to go against i-"

"Fukuchi!"

Not flinching at the sudden burst of volume residing in his voice and the sudden slam of his fist against the table, he held his gaze as the Emperor closed his eyes.

"You know damn well why I had to make this choice. The marriage will not happen immediately. Only after I have seen and witnessed him myself, will I let my daughter be wed off to him. Until then they shall remain bethrothed. It is a mere prolonging of the dreaded wedding since I do not wish such a burden to befall yet onto her shoulders. But I can not let my people suffer due to my selfishness."

He felt a dull ache in jaw as he realised he had been clenching it the whole time listening to this disgraceful Emperor's words.

Every attempt to derive his opinion of it's disgusting degree of naiveté and foolishness would just be futile and a waste of time.

The Emperor had chosen not to dwell any longer onto his friend's words as he had risen from his seat, back turned towards him yet again as he stared out the window, somber clouds beginning to approach the castle as he watched maids gather your things and carry them as you went back to shield yourself and the others from the approaching rain.

Deep breath exhaled through Fukuchi's nose as he put his hand onto his chest for one last bow.

"I understand, Your Imperial Highness. I shall no longer inquire you about this matter unless you wish to speak of it. I shall now excuse myself and start with the preparations since I do believe it won't be long until he will grace us with his presence."

Only a lowly huff passed the Emperor's nose at the thought of said person.

"Grace, you say? For his people and anyone eyes, he might seem like an angel gracing the lands. Yet none of them have ever bore witness to the sight of such a child's face stained with the blood of his enemies. Truly a frightful sight I have wished to forget but the Gods do not grace us with such mercy as it seems."

Another silence befell upon the room, both dwelling into unpleasant memories before Fukuchi broke it with a clearing of his throat.

"Then I may take my leave, Your Imperial Highness."

The Emperor followed the turn of his back with an eye over his shoulders as Fukuchi made his way towards the door, only for him to halt his movements as his hand gripped the door handle.

"I will repeat myself just like I have for many years now. Even if our opinions differ at times, it is no reason for our companionship to suffer under these circumstances. I believe it will only strenghten it's bond, so I will thank you as always for the patience you have gifted to such a meager and foolish man such as I. As always I'll entrust you with the plannings of the upcoming events and any aid you are in need of shall be given to you immediately."

A foolish man indeed you are.

"I thank you, Your Imperial Highness."

Were his only words as he opened the door, stepping outside of it as he felt the weight of their conversation make itself fully known.

Turning around to close the door, he faced the Emperor's back for a last time.

"I shall also regard to you my gratitude for worrying about my humble family. To ease your spirit, I can assure you that they have been well."

Gently shutting the door, his hand strained against the handle as the grip on his hand had tightened around it unbeknownst to him.

I must hurry with my plans.

.

.

.

It hurt.

Yet you weren`t sure what it was.

Was it the weight of your heart getting heavier with each passing second as Fukuchi`s words rang through your head?

Or the palms of your hands, threatening to be broken by your nails digging themselves further into your skin as your fists clenched to somehow ground yourself.

Yosano took a glance at Tetchou, only for her to shake her head at him, signaling him it wasn`t the right time to interfere.

Not like this

She mouthed at him yet tried to give him a half felt smiled to atleast show him that she felt the same sentiment.

It hurt her as well.

A shiver ran through your body as you suddenly felt something warm touch both of your hands, snapping you out of your trance.

Fukuchi let his gaze fall onto your hands, frowning at the tiny bloodstains forming and making themselves known through your delicate gloves as he lifted them up, slowly unraveling your fist until he could gently grasp your open palms into his.

"Your hands used to be way smaller, little princess. "

Slowly letting your eyes fall onto his eyes, a lump formed itself inside of your throat, his kindhearted smile trying to hide his crestfallen eyes as he continued to speak.

"And yet, you still have to treat them as if they were delicate. A treasure to be taken care of because only with these hands can you change your way of living."

Trying to stop your lips from quivering , you could only let out a whisper, fearing you might break down any moment.

" But how?"

You could see it in his eyes. You were glad it wasn`t pity, yet the answer was laid out in them, only fueling your fear and confusion of what is about to come.

"That, is something only time can tell. But know this, my little bird."

Your lips couldn`t help but quirk upwards as he let one of your hands fall onto your side, the back of your other hand receiving a peck.

" I shall always support the small sun of our Empire, no matter what kind of storm might befall us. Everything I do will be for your and the empire`s sake."

All of the words whirling inside of your head, all the pleas for wanting to run away, to make this stop and yet none of it could make it out of your mouth.

And the fact that it was Fukuchi made a small smile grace your lips as you knew that a silent nod was enough for him to understand everything that needed to be said.

Reciprocating your smile, he gently let go of your hands, your hands immediately seeking his father like love but knowing that he will be needed elsewhere.

A princess mustn`t be selfish

Whispered the tiny voice inside of your head, reminiscing you of one of your many vigorous etiquette lessons.

" Due to my duties I must depart now so I shall entrust the princess in your care, Lady Clara and Sir Suehiro."

"Yes, Head Butler Fukuchi."

"As I always do, Sir Fukuchi."

A sense of relief managed to ease a bit of the weight on your shoulder, knowing he could rely on your most trusted allies, especially havin known both of them since their younger years as well.

"Then I shall wish you a good day, evening and night." were his last words before turning his back towards the three of you, the shut of the door echoing in the far too silent dressing room.

You could only stare after him, your eyes fixated on the spot where he stood infront of you, suddenly feeling like the little girl that couldn`t get out of her room to call for help as the thunder rendered her frozen until Fukuchi had come to check on her during his nightly rounds.

"Y/N."

Startling at the feeling of a hand on your shoulder, you slowly turned around, magenta eyes filled with worry staring back at you.

"Do you want to be left alone or do you want us to stay with you?"

You let your eyes shift towards Tetchou, a shaky breath passing through your nose as you saw the look on his face.

You felt guilty. Guilty for being unable to ease the pain in coursing through his entire being as your pain was equally his but he knew.

He knew as you looked at him.

"I shall tell Tachihara to guard your door for the rest of the day."

He began to walk towards the door, giving the crown of your head a peck.

"I`ll be there as soon as you call for me." he whispered as he let his lips linger for a moment before unwillingly taking a few steps back , engraving your current state into his mind, already formulating plans in how to get you out of this predicament.

Giving Yosano a curt nod before exiting the room, he took one last look at you before letting the door shut behind him.

Never would it leave Yosano`s mouth that she actually admired the bond between the both of you, him knowing by seemingly just a look into your eyes in what you needed.

Or perhaps he was just more emotionally attuned than her but even that , she wouldn`t deny.

"And I will tell the maids to assist you in the evening with your night gown."

Were Yosano's only words as she quickly engulfed you into her arms, yours wrapping themselves back immediately in habit as she gave you a light squeeze.

You could only nod as you felt the lump begin to truly clog up your throat, her only putting a hand on your cheek to stroke it before exiting the room as well.

The sun stung onto your skin as some of it's rays made it's way into your room, nearly blinding you as it made fun of your predicament.

You had originally planned to perhaps take a walk around the garden yet the impending date of his arrival would not let you do so.

"It's no use to cry about it but..."

Before you had even realised it, tears had already begun to stain your face, sobs barely being held back as you continued to gaze at the azure colored sky.

"I really really hate this."

.

.

.

Night had befallen onto you faster than you had expected, a fact that had made you grip your sheets harder as you had been trying to fall asleep for what had seemed for hours now.

Hearing a knock on your balcony door made your heart thump greatly as you hurried towards it, having grabbed the candle holder from the nighstand beside your bed.

Fumbling with the lock on your door as the dim light of your candle merely gave you enough sight of his shadowed figure standing on your balcony, you had finally managed to open it.

A soft 'clack' came from the door as you had closed it after letting him in, the soft light glowing on his form as he stood before you in the garments worn underneath his normally knightly ones.

Long loose sleeves rolled back up to his elbows, the thin shirt leaving little to imagination as the knot on his shirt was loose as well, collarbone and a bit of his chest peeking at you as you quickly let your eyes drift towards his face, yet the small smile beckoned you to perhaps keep such thoughts to yourself for not too long.

Noticing him staring as you had lost yourself in your thoughts, you tried to wave the embarassment off, blinking up at him while you asked.

"May I know what brings you here? I thought you had wished to retire early for the night, Tetchou?"

Resolve wavering at the gentle call of his name, he softly grasped your free hand into his own, your grip on the holder tightening as he put your hand onto his face, your thumb immediately falling into a rhtyhm of tracing tiny shapes onto his cheek as he spoke.

"Not when I know that you're suffering alone in your room. I hope I am not disturbing your nightly rest, Princess?"

"Never."

Was an answer enough for him as you let him take the candle holder out of your hand.

"Then may I help you in getting your well deserved rest for the night?"

Heart thumping at the intention behind his words, you felt no need to act against them, the want in the thought of being held by him having invaded your mind much greater for the past month.

"We both know the answer already."

His eyes slightly lulled at your words, his heart never ceasing it's rapid thumping as if he were embracing you for the first time.

"Then allow me."

Letting a chuckle pass your lips, you wrapped your arms around his neck as he hooked an arm underneath your bottom, lifting you off the ground as he carried you with one arm while the other still held onto the candle.

"It never ceases to amaze me how truly strong you are." You spoke as he gently set you down onto the bed, the candle having been placed onto your nightstand next to your bed.

"It is my duty and wish to be strong enough to hold my place rightfully next to you."

He merely stated as you laid onto your back, head hitting your soft pillows.

Leg slightly twitching in surprise at the cold air from the outside still stinging onto his hands, goosebumps had began to rise onto your entire body in both anticipation and slow creeping up impatience.

"Strong enough to shield you from any harm."

He spoke as he had began to slowly climb his way onto the bed and onto you, gently placing a kiss onto your ankle as he began to trace the addictive form of your body with his lips, relishing the tremble of it underneath him as he continued to speak.

"Strong enough to bear any burden you'll carry."

Your breath hitched as he had put both of his hands on either of your thighs, giving him a nod at the lingering question in his eyes as he let his hands glide upwards, eyes widening at the sight infront of him as he had pushed your night gown up to your hips, his grip tightening, making your back slightly arch into his touch.

"W-Well, you weren't the only impatient one here so I thought I might... make it easier for us..."

Eyes shaking at letting the very image of your naked half seep into his mind ,only thin undergarments hiding little to no imagination while the desire to embrace you started to profusely cloud his sober thoughts, his wish to worship you in body and mind enveloping his entire being.

"Then I will not make you wait any longer since I-"

You felt your bottom lip tremble slightly at the sudden loss of his bare hands, yet a wave of arousal hit you as he pulled of his shirt, the muscles and scars on his chest screaming for your touch as a slight sheen of sweat began to build on it.

"- also seem to not be able to hold back anymore."

Lifting your bossom up as he put his hands on it, he pulled you closer towards his hips, a sudden stutter in them as you felt his groin pressed against your core.

You couldn't help but let out a whine at his firm touch as you instinctively wrapped your legs around him, arms stretched out as you batted your teary eyelashes at him.

"Don't hold back. Kiss me and embrace me as much as you want to. Give me your love just like I'll always give you mine."

Suppressing a groan at your intoxicating words, he let both of his hands press your arms next to your head, tracing their shape before finally intertwining your fingers with his, feeling his desire at the tightening grasp around them while he let his face draw closer to yours until the tips of your nose touched.

"Then I shall do so."

Were the last words he spoke before captivating your lips with his own, whining at the taste of his spit entering your caverns as you opened your mouth in haste, wanting to feel more of it as he replied with his tounge grazing every corner inside.

Pressing the sole of your feet into his back, he let out a groan at the feeling of you rolling your hips into his as he continued to suck on your tounge and engulf your sounds with his mouth.

A bite on his lips made him groan as he broke the kiss after a long while, both of you panting for air as he felt a damp patch beginning to form between his legs, the restraint of his pants growing with each passing second.

"Would you... Would you wish for me to help you with that?"

You knew his answer at the squeeze of your hand as he let you sit up. Helping you with perching you up onto his lap, he turned around as he let his back rest against your bedframe, your chest pressed against his as the soft flesh of your thighs sat on his, stopping himself just barely from cursing out at the feeling of your weight on his groin.

You gave him an open mouthed kiss on his cheek as you began to descend downwards, shaky breaths being exhaled through his nose as you engraved the form of his neck, chest and entire body into your mind, giving him every bit of his love for you back as you traced the shape of his body with your lips.

You let your hands roam, feeling the muscles you could always drool for, contradict under your touch.

The familiar slightly musky smell made your legs rub themselves together as you laid between his legs, face pressed against his very part as you gave it's clothed form a kiss.

You felt his hand gently weave through your hair, making you lift your eyes up to meet his worried ones.

"Do not overexert yourself for my pleasure, my love."

If he'd be a confectionary, then your teeth would be rotten immediately from it's addictive sweet taste.

"Oh, Tetchou. Your pleasure only makes me yearn for your embrace even more. You're always doing so well for me so let me give you something back."

A hiss slipped out of him at the feeling of the cool air hitting his very member and your hand gently wrapping itself around it's head.

"And don't you dare pull out until I say so. These are the only times where I can freely show you my greed and frankly, it is addicting to both you and I."

Were your last words before he let out a whine too loud for his liking as you engulfed him fully in your mouth.

Tears began to build themselves up in your eyes as you tried to inhale as best as you could through your nose while giving him one last reassuring gaze, before slowly beginning to move your head back and forth, tounge wetting and licking it as if it's your last meal, never failing to let your ears be blessed by the sounds slipping past his mouth.

You felt him tug at your hair, the slight sting only encouraging you to take him as much as you can, his shaky hand grasping teh back of your neck and labored breath forcing out whines out of you as you felt yourself get wetter at the sounds of him.

Letting your hand wrap around the lower half of his member as the other one began to cup his testicles, gently massaging them as you continued to suck with fervor while slurping sounds resonated through your room.

Listening to his shaky breaths and feeling his heaving chest made you unable to stop your movements, sounds escaping even louder out of him whenever you'd grip or suck a bit harder, sheets crumpled up under his trembling hands as he held himself back, not wanting this to be done too soon.

"Y-Y/N, please stop." His pleading voice spurred your movements further until you felt him tap your head two times with the hand grasping your hair.

Giving it on last suck, a smirk made it's way onto your face at the feeling of his hips bucking further into your mouth. He felt a shudder run down his back as he watched you lick your lips at the sight of his with already sweat glistening body, chest heaving in deep breaths while his member continued to throb, precum and spit sticking to it while your hands had moved to either one of his thighs, stroking him as he slowly calmed down from his nearly reached high.

"Tetchou~", you cooed at him, "Did you just reject me from getting my dessert before bed?"

Holding back a chuckle at the sudden widening of his eyes, yet yours still crinkling, as he pursed his lips at your words.

"N-No, I would never dare to. I just... I just wanted this moment to last a bit longer."

He really wanted to be ravished by you at this point. For many his honest and blunt words were deemed as "inappropriate" yet in this forsaken world that was led by lying and manipulation, it was welcomed in your palace, especially in the embrace of each other.

Inhaling strongly at the feeling of your core pressing up against him as you sat down on his lap, you felt the thumping of his heart against yours as you put a hand on his cheek, drawing closer for a kiss.

"I thank you for always being honest with me, my love."

Moans being exchanged between your lips, the air getting hotter with every passing second while you kissed each other with fervor, the need to feel the other as close as possible engulfing the both of you.

Soon, squelching sounds were accompanied by your movements, your undergarments deemed useless as they merely continued to get wetter with each thrust.

He reluctantly broke the kiss as he moved down onto your neck, letting his teeth graze and bite into your shoulders, marked spots only in places that would never inconvenience you and only for him to witness and enjoy the sight of them.

"Please, let it be my turn now to pleasure you, my flower."

He spoke as he lifted you from his lap, turning the both of you around as your back rested against the pillows on the headboard. You felt his lips move further down, a hitched breath stuck in your throat as you felt him give your core a languid kiss while he let either of his hands slowly run up and down on each of your thighs, lastly letting them rest on his shoulders as he continued to let his hands glide over them back and forth, mesmerised by their softness.

If he could choose a place to die as your honorable knight, it would truly be between your thighs as they resembled soft clouds embracing him into heaven`s realm.

"Will you allow me?"

Always prioritizing your needs, even when you could blatantly see how eager he was to finally give his full attention to you and pleasure you like no one else could, you only needed to give him a smile and a nod as you braced yourself in anticipation and excitement for what was to come.

Teeth digging strongly into your bottom lip, only the sting of it merely stopped you from whining out loud as he wasted no time to push your underwear to the side.

"T-Tetchou. Don`t keep me waiting for too long." wer you able to squeeze out as he had pushed his face between your thighs, his nose pressing up against your core, letting your fragrance enter his body like a drug that could render him unconscious from how addicting it was.

Embarassment thrown out of the window as you looked down at him, only to be met with yearning in his eyes, making you want to press your thighs together if it wouldn`t be for the firm grip he had on both of them.

"You`re just too addicting to me... But I also can not hold back anymore since..."

Hooking his finger onto your underwear, he pulled it to the site, barely able to stop himself from drooling at the sight of it glistening like the water in your favorite fountain whenever the moon would shine on it.

Letting your hands grip onto his head as you felt him press a lingering kiss onto your clit, you couldn`t stop your back from arching up as he took a long stripe at your core, now feeling the affects that it had been far too long since your last night together.

"You are truly divine." He whispered to himself yet loud enough for you to hear as he let his tounge trace the shape of your clit, changing from sucking at it to lapping at your core like a madman.

You felt your body heat up with each lick and suck as his shameless moans at the taste of your essence further lulled you into losing yourself in his embrace.

In the midst of it all, you twitched at the slight sting in your core as you felt him slide his middle finger inside of you, his other hand rubbing your thigh as an apology.

Not leaving your lower ips before planting a wet kiss onto it, you saw the pleading look in his eyes.

"`M sorry, I just... seem to be unable to hold myself back."

"Then don`t."

You panted out as you tugged his head downwards, your own eagerness nealry making him whine out as he felt the throbbing of his own member not cease, even after having rubbed it against the sheets while enjoying the taste of you.

"I truly love you, Y/N." were the last words you heard as you felt the grip on your tighs tighten.

"I l-love you, to- Ngh?!"

Head luckily hitting against the pillows he had placed behind your back, you pulled at his hair as he wasted not time in going back to work.

It didn`t take long until two and finally three finger fit inside of you, him taking his sweet time to finally feel as close as he could to you as he would always make sure to embrace you fully without any discomfort.

Helping you lie down onto your back as your legs quivered from your previous climaxes while he took his time in "preparing you", feeling too weak to hold back any whines and moans as you felt his member rub against your bare velvet purse.

As his own hands assisted you with pulling your night gown off of you, blown out eyes shook at the way your body glistened as the heat had made its way to you, the sweat clinging onto your body like exquisite jewellry, hair disheveled from all the tugging during your kisses.

Not even the most beautiful dress crafted with only the finest of materials could come close to your bare beauty laid out infront of him.

A sight only for him to cherish and to see.

He had tried his best to refrain from letting such carnal desires get to him in fear of accidentally hurting you and yet the thought of someone else possibly getting to see something for his eyes alone filled his mouth with a bitter taste.

Feeling him tilt your chin towards him, he captured your lips like a starving man, the sudden aggression only fueling your need to be taken by him immediately as he braced an arm next to your head, caging you between him and the bed.

He felt undeserving to utter these next words, his gut churning at the thought of it but even he wanted to be selfish for once, especially when the time to hold you in his arms would slip through his fingers like sand in no time.

"Y/N, would you wish to be mine?"

Surprise laid in your hazy eyes at his sudden question, the dumbfounded look om your face ceasing in seconds as you realized the intention in his words, the slight quiver in his voice not going unnoticed.

Putting both hands onto each of his cheeks, you let a thumb glide over his bottom lip as to seemingly help to put his frown away from his face.

"I have always been yours just as you've always been mine. Not even an Emperor could rip the love my heart holds for you out of me. I would be lying if I'd say i'm not afraid at all but we will always find a way to be with each other. Regardless of what's to come."

Giving him a peck on his nose, you felt a lump in your throat form as you felt the quiver of his lips on your thumb, the glisten in his eyes a sight you've seen on yourself too many times at night and yet, you could fully grasp and feel the bare fear of him losing to a man he'd dare to challenge if there wouldn't be the consequence of you getting hurt, making himself an enemy of the empire or getting beheaded.

"It is okay to fear, my love. We'll love and comfort each other tonight without a mind of this world. Would you like that?"

Nodding silently at your words, you lifted your legs up as he pulled your undergarments off, rubbing the head of his member against your core.

"I would love to, Y/N."

The slight sting of his bottom lip being bitten by him felt like nothing compared to the tightness enclosing around him, a moan slipping out of the both of you as he tried to silence you both with a feverish kiss on your lips, his hand slipping between the both of you as he began to rub your clit, easing the tension of him entering inside of you.

It didn't take long for him to be fully sheathed in, veins popping on his arms and neck as he held himself back from finishing to early, wanting to relish in your warmth for as long as he could as he gently pressed against your stomach with his hand at the sight of his bulge nestled in your walls, making your back arch into his touch.

"T-Tetchou! P-Please move. I can't wait any longer."

"B-But I do not wish to hurt yo-"

Grabbing him at the back of his neck, you pulled him in for a kiss as you pressed the sole of your feet against his thighs, moaning into each other's mouths as you felt him fill you even deeper with his length.

Not wanting to make you wait any longer, he began to pull out until he was barely inside before shoving it in with a slow drag until he was fully pressed against you, not able to push in anymore. He continued with the same rhythm for a while, slowly losing your mind as you kept feeling it his entire length deeply inside of you.

Only a ahort time had passed as he began to quicken his pace while your grip continued to tighten around him, your body fully locking him into a tight embrace just like his lips would never leave yours, only to mark your chest or shoulders in places for his eyes only.

His touch, smell and looks full of devotion and love made the build up inside of you approach you fast, his stamina unrelenting as he had been keeping a steady pace for over an hour now.

"T-Tetchou, 'm close!", you wailed as tears had long begun to roll down your cheeks, the feeling of his pelvis rubbing against your clit as he made sure to fill you up as much as he could.

"It's alright, Y/N. Just let yourself go. I`ve got you."

Whining at the feeling of him continuously shaping yout walls while he slowed his movements, you felt yourself ready to gush at any moment as he gripped the back of your thighs in each of his hands, pressing them against your chest.

"Tap me on my hand three times if it hurts.", were his last words before he began to pick his pace, your mouth hanging open at the way he kept hitting your cervix so deliciously with no intention in slowing down at all.

Your body began to tremble as the momentum continued to build up inside of you, his pants growing louder as you tightened around him with each thrust.

"Let yourself loose, my love. I'll take it all for you."

His tooth-rotting lovesick words edged your build up even further until you felt something snap inside of you.

Engulfing your moan into his mouth, he halted his pace, pressing further into you as you gushed around his length, slicking the sheets and his thighs with your juices.

He waited until your breathing had calmed down, breaking the kiss as he looked at your own blown out eyes, the heat spreading through your body as you saw him shift his eyes towards his thighs and your core, unknowingly licking his lips at the sight of the clear sheen covering your lower half including his, some of it even dripping down onto the sheets.

Gulping at his unbreaking gaze, you felt his still hard member inside of you, wincing slightly as he gently put your legs down yet still stayed sheathed inside.

"You can do more, can you?"

Thrown off by his sudden question, you threw your head back as he pressed deeper inside of you, always trying to stretch you out, shaping your inside to fit for him and only him.

"One more for me, my flower? Since only one isn't enough for the both of us."

Letting out a breathy chuckle at your eager nodding, he let his hands roam over your body before finally settling down onto your hips, his tight grip leaving bruises he'd know you'd love to see in the mirror in the next morning.

"Then I'll make sure to embrace you and satisfy us fully for the night."

It didn't take long for him to get back into his pace, the way he'd embrace you sooner or later not failing to possibly impregnate you, a selfish thought he'd never dare to utter out.

The night was young as you fully relished in the feeling of him and him alone, ultimately forgetting atleast for a night about the events that are about to befall unto the both of you and cherishing the somber moments of peace in each other's embrace as he coaxed out orgasm after orgasm out of you.

omg im back?? more like i had this sitting for AGES in my drafts and was like "wait a minute... This only needs to be proofread??" i thought i legit had like more than a half of it to finish this 😭 welp here u go yall 😋 cant promise when ill update again since im rly busy with exams 😭 so idk i can only say that my updates will pop up like surprises 👻 WHAT i can say is that in the next chapter, our "tyrant" will be introduced hehe, yall already know who 😋😋 anyway until next time and hope yall have been staying healthy!!

[thegamingcatmom]

First off I absolutely love this page, you are doing this fandom a great service and i love seeing your thoughts and opinions on the denalis💜 was just wondering how you think the sisters would react to their mate defending their honour like if someone was bothering them at the club and their mate punched them...sorry for the long ass post...seriously though your keeping the thirst for the denalis alive

-👻(hope this emoji isn't already claimed)

Hey 👻!

(That is the cutest thing, btw.)

First off: I apologize for the long wait. To you and anyone else who´s sent me an ask that I have yet to answer. I see them, and I will get to them at some point. (Some of them are sitting half-answered in my drafts actually, hehe.) 🙏❤️

Tysm for your words. I´ve said it before and I will keep saying it: It is you guys who keep the thirst alive just as much with your lovely words of inspiration. ❤️

Also: Pls NEVER apologize for the length of your ask. That goes to all of you. I TAKE EM ALL. (The longer the better actually, and my thirsty ass is not ashamed to admit it.)

NOW, to your ask:

(Content warning: It´s gonna get rather steamy towards the end...)

(From left to right: Tanya, Irina, Kate)

I think that pretty much sums up their feelings on the matter, LMAO.

Like, they´ll be torn between being worried sick because their hooman is fragile and tiny and very much breakable, and what if you´ve seriously HURT yourself with such a reckless action-

...and other things. 😏

So, the first thing they´ll do is be right up in your face. And I mean it. Like, sticking their heads together as each of them fights to be the most in-your-face, their eyes scanning you from head to toe, hands squishing your face à la fishface only to run them all over you to make sure you´re not broken.

(They tend to get a smidge dramatic in such moments. Moments where there´s a possibility you´ve obtained a scratch, that is.)

It is only when they are 100% certain you´re unharmed that their fear turns into rage. And their attention turns to-

...Yeah, you better run. You whoever has dared to try and claim what has already been claimed. Trying to put your slimy hands on them, leading to this whole mess (you obtaining not a single scratch but could have, that is) in the first place.

Ohh...they´re pissed. So pissed they´re struggling not to show some actual teeth-

How the turns have tabled. Now it´s you who is all up in their faces, trying to calm them down by whispering sweet nothings, touching their faces, gently stroking their arms and chests and just anywhere you can reach. Not an easy feat, considering you have to start anew with the first one once you are through with the last, flitting back and forth the line like you´re trying to prevent pots from boiling over.

Once you´re certain this place (the club or wherever this takes place) isn´t about to become obliberated in vampiric rage, you turn around to tend to-

(Yes, it´s three of em f*ckers.)

You don´t shout. You don´t try to punch them again (mostly because you´ve just managed to calm your still very enraged mates...no need to tempt fate). You don´t even look mad or angry anymore - on the contrary.

You´re quiet, almost too quiet. Gazing at the three of them with an expression that is a dangerous mix between tediousness and vexation because all you´d wanted was a peaceful and fun night out with the ones you hold most dear. Was that really too much to ask??

In other words: You are thoroughly done with shit.

"I think it´s best you leave," you drawl, even going so far as to incline your head in the direction of the exit.

They remain rooted to the spot, uncertainty written all over their faces. You know exactly what´s running through their heads right now - you´ve been there, a long time ago. Torn between disbelief and astonishment as basic survival instincts tell them to run, and fast. As far as their feet would carry them because whatever is glaring daggers at them over your shoulders right now, something deep down their guts tells them it is not entirely human.

One of them opens his mouth regardless, no doubt to tell you that you can shove it with a bravado that´s more show than substance. Anything to appear bigger than he is, in that moment. You don´t know whether to feel pity or admiration for his bravery. Perhaps a bit of both.

Granted, this is a public establishment and they have every right to be here just like you do. But, at this point, you really fear for what might happen if they were to stay. You are doing them a favor, they just don´t realize it.

"...Now," you cut him off before he can get started, raising your eyebrows as your gaze darts between them, hoping your tone and expression - hidden from the shadows looming behind you - are enough to get the message across:

Turns out, it is enough.

They nearly trip over each other on their way out, drawing the curious gazes of other partygoers.

Good riddance...hopefully.

You turn back around to face your wives with a sigh, hoping you can all just pick up where you left off before those three buffoons made lewd advances towards your women, almost getting themselves extinguished in the process, those idiots-

...Only to find them already looking at you, their expressions quite...odd. They strangely resemble the very trio that just fled the establishment, saving their sorry asses from meeting a rather grim fate, no doubt. There is this mixture of disbelief and astonishment on their faces, sprinkled with...something else.

This feels like your very first meeting all over again.

"...What?" you ask when they simply continue to stare at you. You know vampires don´t have the same need for movement as humans do, unless it´s to catch their prey. But this is getting...awkward.

Then, finally-

Kate is the first to recover, her flabberghasted expression slowly morphing into a, quite literally, wolfish grin as she breaks formation and nearly floats over to you.

"Well, well, well," she drawls, her hands settling on her favorite spot to pull you closer, kneading the flesh she finds there. "Look at our little spitfire, making them all run with their tails between their legs like kicked puppies..."

You release a good-natured scoff at your wife´s silliness, about to correct her by pointing out it had very likely been their looming presence behind you that sent the trio running for the hills.

However, her lips press against yours in a wet kiss before you can do so.

Not that you´re complaining.

A sigh escapes you as you wholeheartedly return it, your hands coming to rest against her chest before wandering up to cradle her face as your embrace deepens in passion.

Things are about to spiral out of control, you can feel it. Kate always has that effect on you. Her daring nature is infectious, making you feel as if the rules and expectations of society apply to everyone but you, and if she were to take you right here, right on this floor, you would gladly-

Hands on your chest yank you away then, breaking the kiss you and Kate shared. Your back collides with a wall, the hands on your chest firmly pushing you against it before a different pair of lips finds your neck. They´re running up and down at a leisure pace, only stopping to press even closer - you feel something wet - before they continue. Then, the pressure of teeth clamping down-

Tanya.

"Now, now, sestra..." Kate´s voice grumbles through the haze, barely a whisper to you, before you feel hands settling on your backside again, squeezing as they try to pull you closer. "Sharing is caring..."

The other side of your neck is being attacked then, and all you´re able to do is crane your head back, offering yourself up like a sacrifice to the gods as each of them devours you in a way that is far from holy-

"Tsk..." Ice envelops your hand then, the chill touch chasing away most of the dense fog that had settled just about everywhere. "Trust the wolves not to leave a single crumb..."

It´s you who is floating now as Irina pulls you close, handling you with an urgency that is so different from her sisters´ as she demands her share. Hands come to rest against your backside again, but they don´t squeeze. Instead, they simply hold on, only tightening their grip to pull you closer before lifting you up until the only thing that remains grounded are the tips of your toes.

"What a delight you are, maličký..." A flowery fragrance wraps around you as your mate´s forehead comes to rest against yours. "Defending the honor of three poor maidens in distress..."

Nothing about your wives is even remotely maidenlike.

The thought makes you snort, which earns you a rather firm clap! on your bum before her lips silence the squeak that wanted to slip out just then.

"Hm...she was quite the sight, was she not?" Tanya´s hand runs up and down your back in a near soothing manner, a stark contrast to the forcefulness she displayed just moments before.

"I think some gratitude is in order..." Kate purrs from somewhere behind you as she draws closer, her heeled boots click-clacking on the hardwood floor. "What do you say, sisters? Shall we show our savior just how grateful we are...?"

After that, everything seems to blur together. You don´t know how you got there, but you´re home before you realize it. The bedroom door closes behind you, clothes fall, and you come to the conclusion that-

Who the fuck cares?

OR:

This is one of the very rare times where your wives don´t mind sharing you...

.

.

.

...So don´t be an idiot by questioning any of it.

So...

This got a lot steamier than I thought it was gonna be. But, somehow, I don´t think any of you are complaining... 😏

Things that have stoked the fire here:

Alibi (that song I swear)

Rhaenyra x Someone kissing (don´t wanna reveal too much in case any of you hasn´t seen it yet)

.

.

.

Right so, I think it´s safe to say that one should never approach a hooman and their three drop dead gorgeous yet very much capable of ending your existence vampire-wives on their Girls´ Night Out.

Just...don´t do it, resist the urge. You´ll thank me for it later.

OR:

You have the power of the (Un)holy Trinity at your hands, and ppl would do well to remember that...

Thanks a lot for your lovely ask! 💋💋💋

[altraviolet]

Hello Violet!!!

So I've been wondering about The Echo Garden, when you started it did you have a plan in mind? I think you get these sorts of questions often but, did you ever intend for it to get this big? And one final thing, when you went into The Echo Garden did you edit it as you go or did you write the whole thing out and then edited it? I love your work by the way, keep it up!

Hi potato-sauce!

[googles "potato sauce" to see if that's a thing, finds Czech recipe. oh hell yeah, that looks really good]

:D

>did you have a plan in mind?

I had the very rough plan of "Soundwave needs to go from not feeling to feeling, and then on the side I need to develop Soundwave/Rodimus in a realistic way against the backdrop of the Lost Light." Sub plans included "make the other alt-dimensioners each have a problem that SW solves" and "make the LL bots have different reactions to SW" and "uhhhhh he needs a hobby. crystals?"

My method of writing is more "discovery" than "planned," or at least it was until the end of the fic. Until, say around ch 40ish, I had Vague Ideas for what needed to happen in each chapter, and so I'd write them [aka each ch needs to complete X goals to push the narrative forward], and then as I went, my brain somehow magically sewed almost everything up together. Once it got towards the end of the fic, I could 'see' where things needed to end up. But even then, things were quite fluid when it came to sitting down and typing up any given chapter.

>did you ever intend for it to get this big?

No. I had no intentions at all. I didn't even have a GUESS or a THOUGHT it would get this big. The pairing was SO weird, I thought maybe 2 people would read it. Maybe. One of them has been with me since the beginning, and the other is a friend. I was SO sure everyone would go "pff weird" and skip over it. I was really nervous posting it, actually.

Keep in mind that the pairing is fairly well-known now, and that also a lot of people extrapolated soundrod from Cyberverse. so it doesn't feel weird now. BUT IT WAS INCREDIBLY WEIRD when I posted Ch 1

>when you went into The Echo Garden did you edit it as you go or did you write the whole thing out and then edited it?

I wrote it out over the period of 4 years and posted chapters as they were finished. anyone who read along as it was being posted would never know when a chapter would drop xD I tried very hard not to let too much time elapse between chapters, but sometimes there were large gaps. and other times I'd post 3 chapters within a week. I got too excited to dole them out more slowly, haha. I was bursting to share :D chapters usually came out on Sunday nights or around USA holidays, because I needed some temporal distance from my job in order to get my brain working

I don't think I could've finished the fic if I had fully written it out and then posted it. the comments I got while it was an ongoing WIP helped boost me and made me feel so happy, and that what I was doing was important and worth my time, and worth something to other people. without comments, the Echo Garden probably never would have been finished. that's why I always tell people to comment! especially on ongoing WIPs that you love. it's so encouraging and helpful for authors to know that their hard work is being enjoyed!

anyway I wrote each chapter and then edited the HECK out of it and then posted it when I was done. I also wrote a lot of things out of order, so sometimes when I got to the next chapter, I could grab a chunk of writing from my 'already written scenes' doc and then write around it to sew it into the existing story

the only editing I did after the fic was completely done was going through and fixing grammar/related mistakes. there are a couple things I would change, structurally, if I were going to go through and really edit it, as one should do with a novel. technically, the version on AO3 right now is the first draft! the fic could be edited further, but I'm going to let it stand where it is =)

thanks for the ask! cheers :)

[themaladaptivewriter12]

Mirai Yuhara and Octavinelle

Mirai | Ramshackle | Heartslabyul | Savanaclaw | Octavinelle | Scarabia | Pomefiore | Ignihyde | Diasomnia | Staff |

c/w: None!

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

Azul Ashengrotto

Mirai finds this man prettier than Vil

Will tell Azul this

Azul hates this mainly because he finds that untrue

Mirai will tell him everyday if he has to

Mirai: "You're pretty." (ﾉ´ з `)ノ Azul: .......(-_-)....... Mirai: "But you are." Azul: "What do you want? Test scores? Enemy's weaknesses?" Mirai: "Nope. Just for you to believe it." Azul: "Get out."

Mirai will make it his mission to hug this man on the daily

and of course Azul thinks there's a catch

there is none, but Mirai likes messing with him

Mirai allows Azul to vent to him when he needs to

of course Azul will make Mirai sign a contract

But Mirai insists he doesn't need it, he wouldn't tell anyways

Azul Ashengrotto - Dating Mirai Yuhara

Mirai likes to call Azul "Azu," "ZuZu," and "Az"

Makes Azul sweets and lunch when he can

He knows Azul will protest, arguing about his figure and the calorie intake

But the lunch box ends up empty every time

Mirai will stop by the Lounge knowing his presence flusters the Octo-mer

Cuddles anytime! (ノ_<。)ヾ(´ ▽ ` )

Azul just has to say the word and Mirai's there

Buys one of those reverable Octopus plushes

Mirai: "Azu Azu! Look what I got!" Azul: *Flushes* "No!" Mirai: "But-" Azul: "No, take it. It''ll distract potential clients."

Mirai leaves it anyways

The next time he enters the office it's on his desk ans flipped to the angy side

Jade Leech

Mirai didn't know what to think of the shorter Eel-Mer

Scared? Maybe. Intrigued? Highly.

Mirai made it a game in the beginning to see how close he could get to Jade

To see how far he could bug Jade before he gave him that look

Miari: "Soooooo....." Jade: (ᵔ◡ᵔ) Mirai: "What would you do if someone were to double cross you?" Jade: "Are you planning on it, Dear Prefect?" Mirai: "It's a hypothetical question." Jade: "Would you like a demonstration, Dear Prefect?" Mirai: "Nope. But like-" Jade: ▓▒░(°◡°)░▒▓ Miari: ..・ヾ(。＞＜)シ

Helps Jade in the dining room when takes up a shift

He'll either help man the bar or wait tables

Makes it a competition when they're in the bar together

Jade makes it seem as if it's one sided

but Mirai swears he can see the Eel-Mer working a bit faster than usual

Floyd Leech

Like Ace, they are partners in crime

When the two of them are together, chaos ensues

Although, Floyd's mood swings will catch Mirai off gaurd

Mirai: *Running for his life* ＼(〇_ｏ)／ Floyd: *Cackling* C= C= C= C=┌( `ー´)┘ Mirai: "Floyd! We're supposed to plant the stink bomb in Pomefiore!" Floyd: "I wanna put it on you now!" Mirai: "That wasn't the plan!" Floyd: "That one is boring! I like this one better!"

They fight a lot

Not each other, mind you

Mirai doesn't know if he would even survive that

But they will start fights together

Mainly it's Mirai's fights that Floyd will jump into

Miari doesn't get Floyd's brain, but then again, he doesn't get his own the majority of the time

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

I'm happy to finally get this out! _:(´ཀ`」 ∠):_ It's been sitting in my drafts for like 6 months! I feel so bad, but now its here. It's done and I'm happy. (￣▽￣*)ゞ

[callmekyona]

Birthday Code(Sayoung Choi X Fem!reader)

AN:Before y´all say something,this is one of my drafts,and it´s like- old,VERY old,so that´s why it´s super messy,hope you enjoy it anyway lmfao Summary:When your birthday finally arrives,you are excited to celebrate it with your boyfriend Saeyoung and your friends,but maybe he forgot about it... Word count:1272 Genre:Fluff

"Beep beep,beep beep,beep beep",was the first thing I heard in the morning when I woke up,it could have been better,as today was finally my birthday,I wanted to celebrate it with my loving boyfriend and my friends as I always have done. I got up,got dressed and went to the kitchen to have breakfast,but I was confused when Saeyoung was nowhere to be found.

"Saeyoung?Baby?Did you fell asleep on the couch again?"

Still,I was alone,I searched the whole house but found nothing,it was Sunday,he didn´t worked on Sundays,where was he then?

"This guy...did he left me all alone on my day?..."

I made myself some breakfast,and this was probably the first time since we´ve been together that I had to eat alone...

"Maybe something happened to him?!Omg no no,I´ll text Zen"

And I did,I texted Zen asking if Saeyoung was with him,he told me that he was,that he was helping him with a new role that he got.

"Wait,but wasn´t Zen already working on a role?Did he ended up rejecting it or?...well,whatever,as long as he´s alright.But how come he isn´t here and helping Zen instead,neither him or Saeyoung told me happy birthday,wait..."

That´s when I decided to check my text messages,I had 0 birthday messages,this was the first time something like this happens...

"What- did- did everyone forgot it was today?...impossible"

I called everyone,asked them if they knew what day was today,Zen just told me it was Sunday,Jumin said that today he had to go to a bussines trip(again),Jaehee said she was bussy planning Jumin´s trip,Yoosung said that today he had some LOLOL tournament,Saeran said he couldn´t talk,V didn´t even picked up. Even when I asked Zen to put Saeyoung on the phone,he refused.

"It´s official Y/N,everyone forgot,get over it..."

I couldn´t believe that my best friends and even my boyfriend had forgot my birthday,how? I always remember theirs... I wanted to talk to Jaehee and have a little girl talk to get over this,but she said she was very bussy planning Jumin´s trip,not even on her bussiest days she would refuse a call from me,she always had a spare minute for me even to talk about the most stupid thing.

"Why?Why did everyone forgot?...I- I´ll go to bed again...I don´t want to celebrate nothing..."

I went back to bed and ended up leaving the pillow a little bit wet because of my tears. I scrolled social media for hours,and still didn´t had any message,a story saying happy birthday or a post.When 1pm hit the clock I decided to get out of bed and go eat something,alone,again...

I prepared a quick lunch and when I was finishing,Saeyoung decided to text me.

+Hey babe,can you go to this grocery store and get sugar?We ran out of it

-Sure,whatever

+Ty!! But dress cute

-Why?

+You´re not leaving in pajamas,are you?

-Fine

"So first he forgets my birthday and now he´s telling me to go get sugar to the grocery store dressed up?Why are we still dating at this point..."

I put on a little summer dress I had on my closet,I hadn´t used it yet,the day was perfect to use it.

"Why am I even doing this?"

I got ready,I even did my makeup,maybe he remembered that today was my birthday and was waiting for me at the grocery store to apologize?Nah,that was coming from some romantic movie from the 2000´s,this was real life,or maybe he actually wanted to apologize?

"He better be there ready to apologize..."

I left the house,put the direction on my phone and followed the directions,I never went to that grocery store before,there was one a few meters next to our house,why did he wanted me to go to that one?Was sugar cheaper there?The walk took me around 15 minutes,when I arrived I was kinda...lost?

You´ve arrived at your destiny

"Huh?This isn´t a grocery store,this is...a penthouse?!Am I on the right place?"

I looked around to search for a grocery store,but it was nowhere to be found

"Did Saeyoung sent me the wrong direction?I swear to god that if he´s not apologizing I´m leaving...wait what´s this?"

I didn´t realized there was a sign with the name "Jumin Han" on it.

"What?Did I seriously ended up at one of Jumin´s houses? come on..."

I never visited Jumin at his house,I always see him at the office when I go to say hello,or when all of us hang out,but never actually been to his place,it was a rich neighbourhood.

"Ugh,fantastic,now what?he´s not even at home"

That´s when Saeyoung texted me saying "come in",the big doors opened,I was surprised.I entered the house being greeted by a beautiful garden,I followed the path of rocks to the door,it was half opened.

"Jumin?Your door's open,did you left to the airport already?Hello?"

It was dark inside,I could barely see the floor,I pulled out my phone and turned on the lantern.

"So he has millions and can't afford to have some lights on?where's the switch?!"

I followed the big hall til a room with a door closed,I was kinda scared at this point,this was weird...I opened the door and got scared when all of a sudden the whole lights turned on

"Happy birthday Y/N!"

"God what the-!"

I was in a big living room,all my friends were there,even Saeyoung...it was a surprise party

"Baby!happy birthday!"

"I-I'm sorry?!I thought all of you forgot!"

"Oh come on sweetie,how could we forget such a pretty girl's birthday?"

"Zen,that's my girlfriend who you're talking to..."

"Sorry hehe-"

"No babe we didn't forgot,we just wanted to make you a surprise party,don't you like it?"

"No it's not that,I love this,but you could have been with me you know,I spent almost the whole day alone..."

I could feel a little tear roll down my face,Saeyoung came closer to me and wiped it off

"I'm sorry Y/N,you're right,we just wanted to make you remember your special day"

"And I will"

"Well,do we eat the cake or?..."

"Yoosung be patient please-!"

"It's alright,let's eat it,who bought it?"

"Oh it's not from a store,I uhm- I made it by myself..."

"You did it Jaehee?!Omg I'm sure it tastes amazing!Thank you so much"

"I hope you like it"

We all laughed,shared stories and had a lot of fun,when I left with Saeyoung,he stopped me at the front door

"Y/N wait,I just want to apologize for disappearing this morning,and ignoring you,I just wanted you to have a very special day...we spent a lot of time preparing this"

"It's alright,I accept your apologies,how could I say no to your cute face?"

"Oh come on,besides,didn't you saw the little message?"

"What message are you talking about?You texted me saying-"

"No,not that Y/N,the coordenates,didn't you saw the numbers?"

"What?Well,no,I just put the gps in-"

"Silly innocent girl,look,the coordenates here say 143"

"143 is the code for..."

"I love you,exactly..."

"I love you Saeyoung"

"I love you Y/N"