#ive never met this woman before now and she walks in to her son asleep on my chest and drops that on me

[let-love-run-red]

*hubs asleep on me while we were watching a show*

Hubs mom: hes been better with you around

Me: what?

Hubs mom: he used to be so angry, and I haven't seen him sleep like that without medication in years

Me: oh...

Hubs mom: he's happier, I hope he lets himself be happy

[troubatrain]

four times you talked about having a baby + one time you did - k. hayes

a/n: here’s a very cute fluffy 4+1 from my old blog! :)

I.

You watched Kevin on the floor, listening to the babbling toddler in front of him, laughing along with whatever his niece was trying to tell him. His sister had made the trip down to New York, and was out getting lunch with a friend while you and Kevin had offered to babysit. It was the first time you were meeting any members of his family, and you’d only been dating for a few months - but watching Kevin with his niece was doing something to you.

You pull your phone out of your pocket, snapping a photo of the two, “This is too cute.”

“You’re too cute,” Kevin says instantly, his niece walking over to you to be picked up, a grin finding its way to Kevin’s face.

You pick her up kissing the top of her forehead, “I think she’s cuter than both of us.”

You spend the rest of the afternoon in Kevin’s apartment, playing house with his niece. Watching Kevin run around his apartment with his niece was straight up endearing, and you were happy that she liked you too. She’d fallen asleep snuggled between you and Kevin, a couple of goldfish stuck to her Uncle’s shirt and she rested on your lap. By the time Kevin’s sister and her headed back to their hotel, you were absolutely exhausted - not even considering the idea of headed to your own place and opting to crash at Kevin’s.

“Do you think you want kids?” Kevin asks, plopping down next to you into bed, blue eyes looking at you full of hope.

You’d never really thought much about having kids, just thinking that at the time you were too young. It was something you wanted one day but you didn’t know when you wanted that. You’d just started your career and your relationship with Kevin was new but the way he took care of his niece and the way he always took care of you was starting to make you think a little differently.

“Yeah, one day. Don’t get any ideas though,” You scold, waving your finger at Kevin.

“I know, but one day sounds good,” Kevin says, pulling you into his chest.

Kevin lulls you to sleep that night, talking about the future he wants with you. You’d get married, Kevin would prefer in Boston but he’d let you pick regardless. Maybe you’d move to the suburbs, get a house outside of the city with a yard, so you could have some space for your future children. But he told you he’d be okay staying in the city if that’s what you wanted to do. It was romantic to hear him talk about your future like that, deciding that he would just come for the ride.

II.

Kevin’s large hands were tying your skates, while you looked down at him in his stall at MSG. It was Christmas and with Christmas came the family skate that you’d grown to love. The first year, you were terrified, considering you didn’t even know how to skate and you’d only met a handful of Kevin’s teammates.

“Do you think this will be our last one here?” You whisper, low enough so none of his teammates would hear you.

It was a thought that you’d tried to push out of your mind but there was no way you could at this point. The trade deadline was coming in a few months and Kevin was certain he’d be on the trading block. You’d pushed him to talk about it about tons of times but he kept putting it off, knowing he was nervous about a move out of New York.

“If it is, we’ll make it a memorable one,” Kevin places a kiss to your lips, pulling you up to step out onto the ice. 

You watch as Kevin skates around the ice, Marc Staal’s kids chasing after him in the intense game of tag they’d been playing, while you smile at him from the bench.

“He’s so good with them,” Lindsay, Marc’s wife, says to you on the bench, “I think they’re going to miss him if you guys go.”

You nod, know how many dinners Kevin’s had at their place long before you’d even started dating, “I know it’s going to happen but, we haven’t even talked about it.”

“You’d go with him no?” Lindsay asks, trying to gauge how you actually felt about it.

“I mean, yes, he’s the one but-” You start to say only to be interrupted by the woman next to you.

“Just talk to him about it,” Lindsay says, “I’m sure you guys will be okay”

That night you’d been sitting in your shared apartment, a rerun of some terrible reality TV rerun playing in front of you. Kevin was out grabbing ice cream, insisting you spent the night off snuggled up with a movie. Your mind wanders to the conversation you’d had the family skate, and how you felt watching Kevin skate around with Marc’s kids. It was what you wanted and you knew you wanted it with Kevin but you were scared of the future. You’d been so lost in your thoughts you didn’t even hear Kevin walk back into the apartment. A pint of ice cream finding its way into your hands.

“Hey Kev?” You ask, your voice small, “What are we going to do if you get traded.”

Kevin looked confused, “What do you mean?”

“I mean, am I going to stay here or do you want me to go with you?” You ask bluntly, deciding to just get to the root of what’s bothering you.

Kevin takes a deep breath, walking out of the room and into your shared bedroom. You can hear him rummaging through a dresser, or it could have been a nightstand and step back into your living room with a velvet box in his hand.

“I was planning on doing a better job at his, you know, I was going to plan a nice dinner, make sure you’d just gotten your nails done, the whole thing but I think I need to do this now,” Kevin says, dropping down to one knee, “Baby I love you, and I want to be with you. I want to have a family with you, and spend the rest of my life with you by my side - wherever that may take me. Will you marry me?”

You nod, tears threatening to spill from your eyes, flinging yourself forward to kiss Kevin, over and over again, “Did you actually just do that?”

Kevin smiles against your lips, “I’ve been hiding that since the summer.”

You pull back smiling at the man in front of you, “I can’t wait to marry you.”

Kevin grins back at you, “I can’t wait to have a family, we could be like Marc and Lindsay with all those kids running around the ice.”

The idea seemed like a dream to you, but in reality you were getting to live that life with a man who loved and cared about you. Kevin spends the night talking about your future, the plans seeming more definite than the first time he’d done that. Settling on having three kids, and a summer wedding - even mentioning you could get a dog even though he was afraid of them.

III.

You’d ended up following Kevin to Winnipeg and then to Philly easily. You’d been making an adjustment, but Philadeliphia was starting to feel like home more and more everyday. Kevin was happy and he loved his new team - which made it easier for you to follow suit. You’d both started to become acquainted with the city and you knew this was going to be a good place for the two of you.

You bounce the baby on your lip, singing a nursery rhyme while moving around your kitchen, causing Gavin to laugh. You’d ended up babysitting, Claude’s wife, Ryanne, calling you last minute to complain about their sitter canceling their date night. You and Kevin had agreed on a night in, so you offered to take their son for a few hours. You loved Gavin, and quite honestly you spend more time at games playing with him than paying attention to your fiance on the ice.

“I think we should have a boy first,” Kevin says, sitting on the island watching you with the baby.

“I don’t think that’s for us to decide Kev,” You joke, blowing raspberries into Gavin’s cheek, causing the baby to giggle, “Right Gav, tell him, he’ll be happy with what he gets.”

“What do you want?” Kevin asks, holding his arms out for you to pass him the baby.

“A boy doesn’t sound too bad,” You admit, thinking about how many outfits you’d bought for Gavin that you’d love hanging up in a nursery of your own, “What brought this up?”

“You know, we’re getting married soon, and you just look really good singing nursery rhymes in our kitchen,” Kevin admits, “And c’mon you don’t want a little me running around?”

Kevin holds Gavin next to his face with a pout, rubbing his beard onto the baby’s cheeks causing him to giggle and wiggle in Kevin’s enormous hands. It was a sight for sure, and one that often made you think about just letting Kevin knock you up before the wedding.

“I’m not going to be pregnant at our wedding,” You scold, “I’ve spent too much time planning to not be able to drink.”

“You’ve got a good point, we’ll make a honeymoon baby,” Kevin assures you, as if you had a choice.

IV.

Newlywed life was coming to a halting stop the second you touched down in Philadelphia. The summer of bliss that you’d just experienced was about to be burst in with the reality of a new season starting. You’d bought a new place, the space in the city was far more family friendly than the apartment you’d been living in last season. There were plenty of bedrooms, and some outdoor space that still resided in the city. You’d finally finished unpacking, stepping back after hanging up the last of your wedding photos in the living room.

“They look good there,” Kevin says, wrapping his arms around your waist and lifting you off the couch, spinning you around, “You were right, I do like this place.”

Kevin wasn’t entirely on board with moving, but you knew he wanted to start a family and you wanted somewhere in Philly that you would come back to - a real permanent home. It took a little convincing but you managed to get him to crack while you were on your honeymoon.

You had one surprise that came with the house, and it sat in a box in your kitchen. Inside was a pregnancy test - that you’d taken a day before you moved down to Philly for the season. A very tiny jersey, with your now shared last name on the back, a bright number thirteen stitched onto the back. And to complete a very small stuffed Gritty that you had bought on impulse one day. You were excited to finally share the news with Kevin, keeping it a secret while you both handled all the craziness that came with moving and training camp coming up.

“I have something for you,” You say, slipping out of his arms and grabbing the box from the kitchen - dropping it into his lap, “Open it.”

You were on the edge of your seat watching him open the box and pulling the small jersey out, looking down at what was underneath it, “You’re pregnant?”

“I’m pregnant,” You confirm, placing your hand over your stomach.

“You, my wife, you’re pregnant, we’re having a baby,” Kevin blurted out, a goofy grin gracing his face, “Baby, we’re having a baby!”

You laugh, knowing this is the exact reaction you’d get out of your husband, “I take it you’re happy?”

“Easily the best thing that’s happened to me,” Kevin says, grabbing both sides of your face and kissing you over and over again. He spent the next week telling everybody he came in contact with that he was, in fact, having a baby.

Plus One

You hear a large crash, and a chorus of laughs coming from what was supposed to be your future son’s nursery. You sigh, curling your hands around the def-caf tea you’d been drinking, counting down the days until you actually start drinking coffee again, and you walk into the room, a piece of what was supposed to be a crib on the floor, and TK, Nolan and Kevin’s eyes staring at you.

“Sorry,” They all said in unison, guilt across their faces.

You give them a smile, “It’s fine guys, please be careful, and get this done.”

You decided to stay in Philly until you had the baby, the season ending when you’d hit around eight months and the stress of heading up back to Boston just seemed like too much at the time. Now, you were a week until your due date and you and Kevin had pushed everything till now in regards to setting up a place for your son. It was starting to stress you out, and honestly you were grateful for Travis and Nolan’s help, even if it was like having two kids in your house already.

You felt your stomach cramp up and a feeling in your stomach that this baby was coming, you gasp and look at Kevin, your eyes scared, “Kev - I think it’s happening.”

--

Nine hours of labor later, your son entered the world in a way somehow more chaotic than the way Kevin entered your life. Kevin did good, keeping his cool for most of your pregnancy and labor that you were honestly surprised. He finally cried, when he held your baby for the first time, calmly talking to the little boy who he loved probably more than he loved you. You got lucky, in all the craziness of what was going on, Travis and Nolan stayed back and somehow put together all of your furniture in the nursery, even leaving a few gifts behind for your baby boy.

“Thank you for this,” Kevin confesses, the two of you and your son being the only people left in the hospital room, exhausted from the day of visitors, “I mean I knew we’d get here, but I’m grateful we actually did.”

“I hope you’re still grateful when you have to change diapers at 3 am,” You say, knowing the hard part was definitely coming.

“I promised I’d do it, and I will,” Kevin assures you, intending on keeping the promise that you carried that baby for nine months and that he would take on the middle of the night diaper duties.

And you fell asleep that night like you did so many nights before, Kevin rambling about your future, all the things he wants to teach his son. How he can’t wait to teach him to skate, and how he can play whatever sport he wants - or it would be fine if he didn’t play sports at all. Kevin’s voice lulled you and your little family to sleep - and you knew he’d do that forever.

[oboevallis]

runaway

hey it’s been a hot minute, not really sure what this is ive have it in my drafts for a while, but i feel like everyone’s written this 😂 but i wanted to post something at least also ‘who is he?’ part 4 will be coming out soon hope everyone’s doing well

“It’s always been her, hasn’t it?” Amelia’s voice wavered as she struggled to keep her composure.

“I didn’t sleep with her!” Link exclaimed, slurring his words. “I just stayed with her.”

“Whenever something goes wrong between us you always go running to Jo. Just get it over with and fuck her already! She’ll be all the things I’m not.”

“You have no right to be mad. I poured my heart out to you, I’ve been planning for months on proposing to you. I love you Amelia Shepherd, but your so damn self destructive you’re ruining this for the both of us. I’ve done everything you’ve wanted this is just one thing I wanted. If anything I should be mad, but I’m being the bigger person.”

“You’re being the bigger person?” Amelia chuckled in disbelief. “Talk to me again when you’re sober.”

“Who said I wasn’t sober?”

“Please, part of Jo’s help sessions always result in the two of you downing a bottle of whiskey, which is an incredibly unhealthy coping mechanism.” As she said this she was aggressively packing her clothes in a suitcase.

“Not everyone’s a fucking alcoholic. Not everyone has to sit an a room with fucked up strangers complaining about their lives, when they did that to themselves.”

“You think I wanted to be snorting oxy off of the reception desk of a medical practice while I’ll my friends watched? Or stealing my brothers car and crashing it trying to find drugs? I thought you were different but you’re just like Owen.” That’s the last thing she said before walking into their sons nursery and scooping with up.

“You can’t take Scout.”

“I can because you’re drunk out of your mind, I don’t even know why I’m talking to you.”

“Where are you going?”

“Don’t worry about it.” Amelia yelled before slamming the door behind her. She fought to get the baby in his car seat, she couldn’t seem to catch a break. She needed to get away, she needed to go back to her original refuge.

“Come on Scout, can we cooperate for mommy?” Amelia begged, fighting off tears as her son kicked and screamed. Despite being a movement baby he hated the car, specifically the car seat since no one could hold him. Eventually the baby was secured, and he quickly fell asleep, as he realized how he exhausted himself after his tantrum. Three hours into the drive Amelia immediately started to regret this, it was a 17 hour drive, and she was doing it alone with a baby who just barely turned one. No, she was doing this, she needed to. She’d be sure to take as many breaks as she needed. This was what needed to be done for her and her sons well-being.

After two hotel visits and countless stops along I-5 S she found herself in LA standing outside her sisters door, but couldn’t bring herself to knock. She knew Addison loved her but she couldn’t help already feeling the subtle condescension. ‘How have you already managed to screw this up?’ ‘I love you Amy, I do, but isn’t this a little extreme?’ ‘You’re clean, right? Because I’ll take you back right this minute’

Quickly she turned around to go back to her car to think about her next game plan before a voice stopped her.

“Amy?” Amelia jerked back around to be met with Addison’s confused yet comforting smile.

“Umm I’m vaccinated, but I got tested if that makes you more comfortable. I’m negative I-I just needed to get put of Seattle.”

“I know the feeling.” The older woman chuckled holding the door open wider to allow the two to come in. “Now let me hold my new nephew!” She squealed as she held her arms out for the baby, soaking in his tiny stature. “I miss when Henry was this little.”

“Where is the little guy? It’s awfully quiet.”

“They went camping, Henry’s been stir crazy for over a year and it seemed safe enough for the two to go away.”

“I’m sure Jake was thrilled.” Amelia smirked thinking back to the time the practice went on a camping trip together and Jake had almost refused to go hence his disdain for the wilderness.

“You know it.” Addison joked along, playing with the baby’s tiny fingers. The older woman then lead the way back onto the deck and settled on a lounge chair under an umbrella. Amelia followed behind and took out sunscreen from the diaper bag she was sure to pick up once they got to LA. “He’s absolutely adorable Amelia.”

“Thanks.” Amelia smiled as she lathered the baby’s extremities with sunscreen.

“Gosh i just want to eat him up.” Addison pretended to bite into him, causing the baby to shriek with laughter. Cracking the first genuine smile the neurosurgeon had since after Maggie’s wedding. “You know I was talking to Charlotte a little while ago and she mentioned she was going to go to a meeting if you want to go meet up with her, she still goes to the one near the pier.”

“Thank you, Addison.” It now felt silly to have been scared to talk to Addison, she always knew how to help the neurosurgeon. “Are you sure you’re okay to watch him?”

“More than okay.” Addison beamed, running her hand through the baby’s hair. “And even if you stayed I still wouldn’t let this little guy go.”

“I love you Addie.”

“Love you too Amy.” Addison assured as the woman walked out to her car, it’d be a lie if she said she wasn’t worried for her little sister. But she was reaching out for help, she wasn’t sure what the issue was but she was immensely proud she came to her and not a baggie of pills.

_______________________________________

“Don’t you think you should call her?” Jo asked as she prepared a bottle for Luna.

“No.” Link coldly said, cradling the baby in his arms.

“At least for Scout’s sake?”

“He’s fine, looking back Amelias made it very clear she’s the only parent that matters or gets a say.” Link bitterly replied.

“I’m sure it isn’t like that.” As much as she loved her dear friend, he couldn’t see where he also went wrong in this situation. “She loves you.”

“Not enough to marry me.”

“She isn’t ready.”

“Her and Hunt were off and on, and she accepted his proposal.”

“First off she had a brain tumor, and because of said brain tumor she impulsively asked him to marry her. She thinks clearly now, and I think she just wants it to work out and be right.” Jo turned around and sighed as she saw her friends annoyed look. “You’ve never been a marriage guy, where is this even coming from?”

“I don’t know it just feels right, i don’t want to lose her.”

“Your gonna lose her if you push her into this.”

“I move mountains for her, I’ve adjusted my whole life for her. It’s just one thing, one thing that I want.”

“Link are you stupid? This isn’t fighting over what couch you get this determines the rest of your life. And marriage isn’t all that, it doesn’t keep a person there.” Jo sighed, since adopting Luna she’d been thinking a lot about her ex husband, and how stupid the concept of marriage was.

________________________________________

“Has he called?” Addison cautiously asked as Amelia fed her baby.

“Nope.” Amelia popped the ‘p’. “I get that he hates me now, but I thought he’d at least check in on Scout.”

“He’s just upset.”

“I know, I just thought he understood. He’s nothing like Owen but since we moved into his apartment I just feel suffocated like I did when we were married.”

“Have you tried talking to someone, professionally?” Addison inquired, leaning further back onto the beach chair.

“What so they can silently judge how I have a perfect life but still feel terrible?”

“Amy, you know a therapist isn’t going to think that, their there to help you without judgement.” She stared at the woman for awhile until she came to a realization. “After Scout was born you didn’t have any postpartum appointments did you?”

“No, the world had shut down a week after he was born.” Amelia confirmed.

“Do you think your having a delayed postpartum depression reaction? I mean you were thrown into taking care of a newborn and three other kids who aren’t yours in complete isolation . Then On top of that you didn’t have time to grieve Christopher. It’s difficult on women who have lost a child previously when they bring home a healthy baby.” Amelia held back her tears, as much as she tried to focus on scout she couldn’t help but feel broken over the fact Christopher didn’t have the opportunities scout has.

“Pre-covid a day wouldn’t go by that I didn’t think of Christopher. Then I just got so caught up in everything, and I’d barely think about him. I mean I almost forgot his birthday.”

“You can’t feel guilty about that.”

“I j-just wish Link would get that I don’t want another baby.I mean he’s ten times more understanding than Owen was about my grief but, I just don’t want another baby.”

“You’re allowed to not want another baby, but do you think it has to do with Christopher?”

“I don’t think so, I just can’t love yet another person without losing myself. It feels like I already have, I don’t recognize anything about me. Surgery doesn’t even give me the thrill it use to.” The older women sat up and placed a reassuring hand on the younger ones knee.

“I’m gonna talk to Violet and have her refer someone to you. Then you’re gonna talk to Link and come up with a game plan. And I’m gonna be right here the whole time, you’re my family. Everyone here is your family we’ve got you.”

[potatoesforash]

Ghostbur x reader- Ghostly love

Y/n’s POV

Walking along the path to the clearing in the forest where my cottage resides I notice a change in the weather and very quickly realise it was beginning to rain. Sighing to my self I start to slow my pace in walking enjoying the rain as it hit my skin. My cloak getting soaked but at this moment I could care less and that's when I hear it, a voice coming from behind me. It was soft almost distant but it was loud enough for me to hear. Looking in front of me I see my cottage that I could just run to but out of the kindness of my hart I turn to look at the person behind me. I was shocked to find a pale man with a large gash in his middle looking at me as if nothing happened.

"Hi sorry to bother you but do you think I could possibly come in?" the strange man said

"you see I'm a ghost and I melt in the rain and I would really not like to be out here for long" he added to his previous statement rubbing the back of his ghost head

"Uhh sure thing bud" I say telling him to follow me. Walking into my home the man follows behind rather fast and sits him self in front of my couch facing the fire place that was still blazing.

"This is a nice place you have here" He said looking back at me "If you don't mind me asking what aesthetic is this? Its nice but confusing" He asks

"Oh its Dark Academia and Cottage core mixed into one I um I picked it up from my old friend who taught me everything I know" I say trying not to drop any hints that could get me possibly killed by Dream

"So he was like your professor?" He asks looking at me with a twinkle in his eye

"you could say that" Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Turning to face the door that I hadn't moved from since we got in opening it slightly to find two rather tall men in front of me one with pink hair and one with blonde hair covered by a hat of some sorts, suddenly I feel the ghost man's presence behind me.

"Hello, can I help you two men?" I ask politely opening the door more for them to get a proper look at me

"Yes you can we were told that you could help us with a little problem" the blonde man starts all of a sudden the ghost behind me shouts a loud Phil and the blonde and Pink haired men look at me suspiciously. The pink man quickly draws his sword and holds the tip of it to my thought

"Why is Ghostbur here?" the man asks me with his rough sounding voice

"If I was you I would put your sword down before you regret it" I respond and he just chuckles at me

"What are you going to do-" He asks but is quickly shut up when his sword has been thrown into the clearing far enough away from him so he could not reach it without having to move away from the door. He slowly looks at my hands to see that I have a stick (so he thought) in my hand

"What did you do?" He asks in a threatening tone

"I warned you but you did not heed it so I will ask you this once and once only who-" before I got to question the men in front of me ghostbur spoke up interrupting me

"This is my brother Technoblade and this is my dad Philza" pointing at both the men "she was just letting me stay till it stopped raining she meant no harm" he says putting a hand on my shoulder making a shiver run up my spine, his hand was freezing like ice, Looking back at the two men in front of me I come to the conclusion to speak up finaly

"What did you two want? And how did you find this place" Techno looked at me like he wanted to kill me and Phil just sighs and takes off his hat

"us three where supposed to come find you together but Wil here wandered off and found you we where told you where a necromancer of some kind and where hoping that you could bring my son here back from the dead?" Phil asked with hopeful eyes

"I-I'm sorry I don't do that anymore not since Dream had threatened me with execution if I ever did it again considering what happened the last time" I say looking back at the eyes of this ghosts father "But I can provide warmth, tea and shelter considering night is falling near and it hasn't stopped raining." I say giving Phil a sad smile

"That would be wonderful thank you..." He stops realising that I haven't told any of them my name

"Oh its Y/n my names Y/n" I say moving to the side to let the boys into my house which they gladly step in out of the cold.

*Time skip to later on in the night*

Ghostbur's POV

Me and Y/n sat on her couch enjoying each others company while Phil and Techno shared her bed.

"I just realised your the necromancer that Tommy keeps going on about!" I shout with a chuckle

"Tommy? As in the kid who came to me because he needed some where to hide because of my brother Dream?" she says to me and I look at her shocked

"Your brother is Dream?" I ask in a quiet scared voice like she would hurt me at any time

"Hey don't worry I'm not going to hurt you I'm nothing like the heartless basterd of a brother I have, he threatened me with execution his own sister, so ive got nothing for him anymore" she says tears welling in her eyes. Reaching out to touch her cheek with my icy hand I wipe any tears that had been shed away from her cheek. I look at her up and down and only now I realise that she has a scar running over her eye brow and down towards her soft looking lips. I let out a sight and pull her into a hug rubbing their back giving them a kiss on the head. It was around four thirty in the morning when I realise she fell asleep in my cold dead arms. I can't help but think, think that if I had been alive when I met her maybe then I would stand a chance to get with her. Wait no bad Ghostbur you have only just met her...But for some reason I cant help but be infatuated with her. Just everything about this young woman interests me. Her pretty H/l H/c hair, her E/c eye's and her soft pink lips that just look pleasant to feel against my own. But I have just met her so why do I feel like this? Why do I feel this way about her?

"Son?" I hear Phil's voice come from in front of me "Why are you crying?" He asks looking confused

"Dad, I um It's uh It's stupid really" I say wiping my own tears away

"You can tell me kiddo" He says smiling sitting in front of the glowing fire

"Dad when you met mum how did you know that you like her?" I ask subconsciously rubbing Y/n's back

"Well your mother was all I could think about at any point of the day, Why do you ask son" He replied looking at me in the eyes making me look back down at the sleeping girl on my chest to which he lets out a small 'oh'

"I don't know what to do i just met her and she's all I can think about and it feel so wrong yet so right but I'm also dead and I just I don't know any more Phil!" I say getting louder as I go on feeling Y/n stir in my arms i stop and look down at her seeing that she was still asleep I look back at Dad to see him smirking

"Well I think you've got a chance considering that were the only people she talks to other than villagers for trades" He says getting up and patting me on the shoulder "Try to get some sleep son" with that he walks away back to bed to sleep

*Time skip to 4 months down the line cuz I'm a lazy writer*

Y/n's POV

It's been four months since I met Ghostbur and I met and I have found myself slowly falling for the dead man. But the one thing that has made me realise that is the fact that he has basically moved in with me. But what I didn't realise is that through the forest from my clearing there is a snow biome where Techno's retirement home was sat. But that meant that when my brother went to find Tommy at Techno's house I got a lovely visit from my dick head of a brother.

"Why hello there sister, Ghostbur" He said just waltzing in my front door

"Dream what do you want?" I say to him with an angry look

"What can I pay a visit to my sister?" he asked coming farther into my home that used to be ours till he left for the SMP

"You don't get to say that I'm your sister after you threatened to kill me" I say looking him in that blank lifeless looking mask with the twisted psychopathic smile painted in black.

"Oh sister dearest you know why I threatened you with that and you know what you did to our mother" He said looking over at Ghostbur who had a confused face "Oh you haven't told your little friend here what you did? How you killed our mother in cold blood?" he said trying to gas light me to get a bad reaction out of me

"That's quite enough Dream. I want you to get out of my house now. And I never. Never want you to step foot inside of this house for as long as you live" I say in anger drawing my sword and pointing it at him. He rises his hands in the air and spins on his heels towards the door starting to retreat out of here

"Okay sister but just so you know I will not hesitate to kill you if you step out of line" He said disappearing out of my line of sight. After what felt like eternity I felt Ghostbur's hand on my shoulder and turn me towards his cold body pulling me into a hug

"was what he said...True?" he asks me all I can do is nod my shaky ands grab onto his jumper

"I'm sorry, I if you hate me that's fine I probably deserve it" I say into his chest

"hay no, I don't hate you I just want to know what happened" he said rubbing my back softly

"I...I was born with magic but only one person every one hundred years is born....so at the age of sixteen some people came to take me away but my mum got in the way and....they killed her and well Dream has blamed me for it saying I killed her that it was my fault...But I would never kill my own mother I loved her so much and so if you go outside to the back of the house there is a small grave for her that I made after he left that same day for the SMP when he was seventeen and that's the day he threatened to execute me if I ever try to bring those people anywhere near him so... after they taught me magic they left and they swore never to come near me again" I explained to him all of a sudden Wil let go of me and ran to his room and came back with something blue in his hands

"Your sad hare have some blue it will make yo better" he said handing me the blue automatically making me feel better

"Thank you Ghostbur I feel better now" I say looking up at him to find him staring at me with admiration on his face "hey Will? you okay there?" I ask him but I got no response but before I could ask him again I felt a cold pressure press on my lips It took me a couple seconds before I realised that it was the ghost boys lips and kissed back putting one of my hands on his cheek and the other on his shoulder his hands going around my waist. Pulling away from his lips and press my forehead to his and giggle.

"Phil told me I needed to do that at some point" he said a small smile on his face "I um Y/n if you couldn't already tell I really like you and I would love for you to be my girlfriend" He said to me

"Of course Will! I really like you too" I say leaning back into his cold soft lips kissing him again this time for longer than the last. Every kiss got longer and longer before eventually we where sat on the couch making out. But the make out session was cut short when the loud child burst into the house with Phil shouting after him and Techno not far behind him all three stopping at the door when they see the sight before them and Will And I pull away from each other embarrassed

"Well then... uh I think we will come back later come on boys" Phil says dragging his two other sons out behind him shutting the door quickly leaving me and Ghostbur alone again both of us look at each other and we start laughing soon enough falling asleep in each others arms in front of the crackling fire.

And Ghostbur swore that he could feel warmth after months of not being able to feel it and it was all because of me and loving the sweet ghost boy.

Ayyyyyyy its me here and have this sweet fluff for Ghostbur but I didn't plan on spending four fucking hours on this. Its longer than I spend on my school work which hopefully shows my dedication to this poor book.

[thewildomega]

Second Chance Ch. 1 (Whitebeard x reader)

Summary: He had died, that much he was certain of but what he didn't understand was who this strange woman was and why was she looking at him like this. He was pretty sure he had never seen her before but then how did he know her?  Why, why did it have to be you to come across some Stanger when you went for your nightly swim? Was he dead? Please don't be dead. Walking over to him you looked down at the large male, just who the hell was this guy?

A/N:  Whitebeard deserves love too. Let's see how this goes. Comments greatly appreciated.

"THE ONE PIECE IS REAL!" he yelled. Then everything went black. It felt like he was floating, like he was on a cloud. Trying to open his eyes he expected to see a light like everyone always talked about but there was none. There was only darkness. Closing his eyes again he breathed deeply. He was still in pain, although no where near as much. He was tired, exhausted, he just wanted to sleep. Ace, my sons, forgive me.

.......................

Coming up for air you took a quick breath before your head went back under water. Kicking your legs and moving your arms you rounded the buoy and started back towards shore. The water was chilly, autumn settling in but you would keep swimming until the lake froze over. Another breath, you peeked to the shore to see the small lantern sitting on the land, marking your spot. Pushing yourself on you finished your nightly swim as your feet made contact with the sand below. Standing up you brushed back your hair, panting and rubbing your face as you walked towards the shore to grab your things. Yawning you were rubbing your eyes when your foot hit something. Furrowing your brows you expected it to be a piece of driftwood that had floated up and moved your hands but what you saw made a small scream leave your throat. It was a person! A man! he was laying right beside your things. You were positive he had not been here when you started your swim. Hurrying around him to grab your lantern you shinned it by his face. "Oh God please don't be dead." you said to the air. Swallowing hard you looked over the stranger, he was large, had to be close to seven or more feet tall and he was ripped. He was only wearing a pair of tan pants with some kind of red sash around his waist. He had long blond hair that was wet and sticking to some parts of his long face. Glancing down his wide shoulders and chest you saw a few cuts and bruises but nothing that looked serious. Licking your lips you reached out your hand and placed it on his shoulder, giving him a small shake. "Hey, hey are you alright? Hello?" 

Feeling something touch him he groaned and fluttered his eyes open, having to fight the urge to let them close back instantly. Looking up he saw stars, lots of stars but then a bright light made him close his eyes again, another groan leaving his throat. Was he wet? Why was he wet?

"I'm sorry. Can you tell me your name? Are you hurt, I can get you some help." you said, moving the lantern away from his eyes some. 

A woman? Opening his eyes again he looked to the woman that was standing above him, a concerned look on her face. He was fairly sure he had never seen her before but there was something familiar about her. Blinking he felt his brow twitch at his sore body, he thought there wasn't supposed to be pain when you died. Oh yea, she had asked him his name. "Edward." he managed to mumble out before his eyes closed again. 

"Okay Edward, I'm going to get you some help okay." you told him but he seemed to be back asleep. Grabbing your phone you called for an ambulance, being told it would take a few minutes you went back over to the man and looked again at his face, he was actually pretty handsome now that you looked at him, strong jaw and chin. You couldn't put your finger on it but it felt like you had seen him before, like he was this old friend. Flashing lights snapped you out of your thoughts and you stood up to wave them over. 

Standing back and watching as Sam and Beth loaded him up into the ambulance you knit your brows and heard as the sheriff called your name. Shaking your head you looked back to the older man "I'm sorry Garth what did you say?"

"I asked if you saw him walking down the shore before you started your swim." 

Shaking your head you looked him in the eyes, "No, there was no one here when I came out, I sat my stuff down and then went for my swim. When I came back to shore to grab my things he was just laying there, right beside my things."

Humming he rubbed his chin, "Well I'll get my men to look for any footprints and go over any missing persons reports. Did he speak to you?" he asked the woman again. 

"No not really, he was pretty out of it, he did say his name was Edward though." you told him. 

"Okay well I'll talk with him once he wakes up. They are going to keep him overnight in the hospital." he told her and saw her nod. "You know, I told you it won't safe for you to be coming out here so late at night all by yourself." he started and saw her roll her eyes. "I'm serious Y/n. What if that man had tried to attack you, little thing like you..."

"But he didn't and I'm fine. Besides if I wouldn't have been out here you may have been called in to get him in a body bag." you told him. 

"Yeah well I don't even know why you keep coming out to swim, I know damn well the water is cold, you're gonna end up with pneumonia you keep on."  he lectured her and heard her sigh. Shaking his head he waved his hand, "I don't know why I even try. Go home, get some sleep, I know you have to work tomorrow. If I have anymore questions I'll call you." 

Nodding you thanked him for coming out before moving towards the path that led to your home. Hanging your towel over the porch railing you moved to the door and went inside before locking it. Slipping off your shoes you went to your bathroom to take a shower before feeding Nook and going to bed. However sleep didn't seem to come to you, your mind filled with questions about the mystery man that seemed to wash up out of no where. You were positive you had never met him but something was telling you that that wouldn't be the last you saw of Edward.

.............................

Coming to again he felt a little better this time, his mind clearer than it had been. Opening his eyes he looked above him to see a white ceiling. Turning his head to the sides he looked around the room and noticed the walls were white as well, and the bed he was in. Seeing the IV and machines he growled, he just couldn't escape those damn things could he? Going to lift his hands he felt them stop short, something holding onto his wrists. Snapping his eyes down he saw straps of sorts holding him to the bed. Gritting his teeth he began yanking on the things, he would not be tied down. In the midst of his struggling he heard a door open and when he looked up he saw two women dressed in blue come rushing over to him. 

"Whoa calm down, it's okay..." she tried saying but he cut her off.

"I suggest you unbind me now young lady." he growled. When she didn't move to take the straps off he pulled hard, filling the room with a ripping sound. 

"Sir, sir you need to relax. No one is going to hurt you we ahhh!" 

Getting one arm free he pulled on the other and broke that strap as well before moving to stand. Seeing the two women close to his height he furrowed his brows but brushed it off for now. Moving to pull out the line going into his arm he saw one of the women rush out of the room. Looking down he saw he was wearing some sort of gown that ended at his knees. "My clothes? Where are my clothes?!" he demanded, looking to the remaining woman. Hearing the sound of running he turned around and saw the woman from before rushing in along with a man dressed in the same blue clothes. When he noticed the man holding a syringe he grit his teeth and narrowed his eyes. "I hope you brought more back up than that."

..............................

"Okay I will be back later, please try and refrain from destroying the house." you spoke to the small cub currently fighting with the plushy in the cage made on your living room floor. Grabbing your coffee, keys and wallet you moved to put on your boots when your phone started ringing. Sighing you pulled it out of your back pocket, answering it and holding it to your ear with your shoulder while you started lacing on of your boots. "Hello." Listening to the sheriff talk you stiffened and then knit your brows.  "What?" you asked, thinking you had misheard him. "What do you mean he is asking for me?" you said a little more rough than you had meant to. Groaning you let out a long sigh, "Fine...I said fine! I'll be there in a few minutes." hanging up you finished tying your boots before grabbing your things and heading out the door, grumbling as you made your way down to your truck. "Asking for me?! He doesn't even know me?!" Slamming the door shut you started the engine and took a sip of your hot coffee. Backing out of your drive way you held the phone to your ear again, "Hey Heather. Look I'm going to be late coming into work today. I have to go to the hospital, no I'm not sick just ah.... well I have to meet the sheriff there."  you told her. "Okay well I will be there as soon as I can. Thank you." 

Walking out of the elevator you saw the sheriff standing down the hall some with his arms crossed over his chest, staring into one of the rooms. Moving over beside him you peeked inside to see the man from last night in there. He was strapped down to the bed, legs, wrists, ankles. Pretty much everywhere they could find a place. Raising your brows you looked to the older male. "Why is he..."

"He woke up earlier this morning and went crazy, broke through the straps on his wrists. They got him sedated for a little bit but the drugs don't seem to work that long on him." he told her. 

Continuing to look at him you saw him just laying there, his eyes open as he seemed to stare at the ceiling. "Did you find out anything about him?" 

"Nope. He won't talk to anyone, there were no drugs or alcohol in his system and other than the small scraps and bruises on him the doctors say he is in perfect health. Only thing he has made clear is that he wants to see the pretty woman who found him." 

Snapping your eyes to him you stiffened up. "Why me?" you asked. 

Noticing the man now looking towards them or rather her, he grinned a little, "I don't know. Wouldn't be the first time some wild thing took a liking to you."

Following his eyes you saw the man in the room, Edward looking at you. Taking a deep breath you turned away from Garth and grabbed the handle, opening the door and stepping inside, closing it behind you. Walking towards the chair you stood beside it and raised your brows at him, "You've been giving the hospital staff a hard time I hear." you started off with.

Humming he looked over the woman, she looked to be in her early twenties if he guessed right. Long h/c hair that hung down her back and bright e/c eyes. She wore tight fitting dark jeans, a long sleeved button up shirt with a strange pattern on it made of blue and black. Her arms were crossed over her chest as she looked to him and he couldn't help but grin a little at how pretty he thought she was. "I told you my name lass, but I don't remember you telling me yours."

Grinning you gave him your name. 

"Y/n. That's a pretty name, suits you." 

"So Edward, want to tell me how you ended up on the shore of the lake last night?" you asked, choosing to ignore his complement. 

"I would if I knew." 

"You don't remember how you got there?" you asked and saw him shake his head slightly. "Alright well can you at least tell me where you are from so we can help you get home." 

"Sphinx is the island I am from." he told her. 

Tilting your head some you looked to him, "I've never heard of it. Around where is that located?" 

"It's in the New World." he informed her but saw her look even more confused. "Perhaps you could tell me where we are now?" 

"We are in Madison, Montana." you told him and now it was his turn to look confused. "In the Untied States... America..."

"I have sailed all over the world lass and I have never heard of any of those places you just listed." he said with knitted brows. 

Humming you bit your lip, this man was crazy, no doubt. "You are a sailor?" you asked. 

"Captain, actually." he corrected. 

"Captain Edward?' you asked. 

"Newgate. My name is Edward Newgate and I'm a pirate." 

You were sure your brows were in your hairline now. "A pirate? You're a pirate?" 

"Sure am lass. I'm better known as Whitebeard." 

"Whitebeard? You don't have a beard." you told him and saw him frown. "Look the only pirate I know of is Blackbeard..."

"Blackbeard? That traitorous scum." 

"So now you are going to tell me that you know him too?" you asked. 

"Know him, I was his Captain. I considered him a son at one time." he growled. 

"Well forgive me if I have a hard time believing that, you know with him being killed like three hundred years ago." you said, moving your feet and adjusting your arms. 

"Come again." he said, narrowing his eyes. 

"Edward Teach, better known as Blackbeard. He was a pirate that was executed in 1718. He stayed around North Carolina mostly, he was killed there. Legend has it he was beheaded and his headless body swam around the ship nine times before sinking into the sound. " you told him with a shrug. Seeing him just sitting there you sighed. "Look I don't know who you are, I was swimming last night and when I walked up on shore you were laying there. You weren't there when I went out and I didn't see anyone else at the lake last night either so I don't know how you got there. Unless you want to end up in some place for crazy people I wouldn't go telling people you were a pirate." You told him. Letting out a sigh you started walking towards the door. "It was nice meeting you Edward. I have to go to work now."

"Wait." he spoke when he saw the woman walking away. "Have you and I ever met before?" he asked. 

" I don't think so, I'm pretty sure I'd remember someone like you." you told him, giving him a small smile. 

"Y/n." he said, the name rolling off of his tongue so easily. Seeing her look back at him he felt this strange pulling in his chest. "I know, I know you.." he said, looking into her eyes, "And you...know me... don't you." 

Swallowing hard you continued staring into his yellow looking eyes, such an odd looking color, one that you could have swore you had seen before, in your dreams. Furrowing your brows you turned to the door and walked out of it, hearing him say your name once more, the sound striking a cord in your chest. 

Watching through the glass as she spoke to the man in the uniform outside he clenched his teeth when the man shot him a dirty look. They looked to be arguing, the little woman moving her hand and shaking her finger in front of the man's face. When the man rubbed his face and threw his hand through the air he saw Y/n smirk before she was walking back into his room and over to his bed. 

"Here is the deal. I am going to help get you out of here and then you are on your own. I don't know you, I have never met you but I also don't want them to send you away and lock you up so you promise to behave and not go all crazy again?" you asked. Seeing him nod you smiled and reached to undo the strap on his wrist. "Alright then, get dressed, your clothes are in that cabinet, there is a bathroom right through that door." you said before walking out of the room to give him privacy. 

Undoing the rest of the straps those people had put him in he moved over to the cabinet and saw his clothes in a see through bag along with his boots. Grabbing them he went into the bathroom Y/n had pointed out and flipped on the light. Sitting down the bag onto he counter he closed the door and lifted his eyes to the mirror. "AHH!" 

[salexectrian-heir]

ragged edges and sharp teeth

Pairing: Akechi Goro/Kurusu Akira, Akechi Goro/Persona 5 Protagonist

Fandom: Persona 5, Persona 5 Royal

Rating: M

Word Count: 3,305

Tags: Hurt/No Comfort, Canon Universe, Implied Sexual Content, Non-Consensual Platonic Affection, References to Underage Drinking, Referenced/Implied Suicide (Goro’s Mother), References to Depression, The six times someone kisses Goro Akechi, and the one time Goro Akechi kisses someone, Shuake Week 2020

Summary:

But in truth, in reality, Goro is selfish. Always will be. He is all ragged edges and sharp teeth, he is rough and all consuming and unrelenting.

And ruining Akira is perhaps his most selfish desire of all.

Shuake Week 2020: Free Day (a six and one prompt)

i. his mother

Goro is six years old and he is crying.

The water is scalding against his skin but that he doesn’t quite mind. He tries to fight the tears but they fall despite his brave efforts to not let them roll down his cheeks. Normally, he likes this place. The bathhouse is usually calm and comforting, and feels a little bit like an adventure when he’s sent here on his own. But tonight, he knows something is wrong .

One of her “ friends ” is over. One of the many he doesn’t like. His mother had that look on her face when she ushered him outside, the kind of look that made him want to stay rooted to the spot, clinging to her leg and begging to not be sent away.

He doesn’t know how long he’s been in this place, time almost doesn’t feel real in the bath. But it’s been long enough for his fingers and toes to prune, for his tears to have (finally) run out, and everyone else to have left. He runs his wrinkled fingertips over the tiles of the tub that are smooth and sleek, and wonders if anyone would come looking for him if he stayed in the water all night.

Probably not.

He sinks another few centimeters so that the water reaches his chin, and thinks about staying.

But he would miss his mother too much, and his eyes sting immensely, and all he wants is to fall asleep with her curled up next to him on his futon. He wouldn’t even mind if she hogged all the covers. It would be enough to know she was with him. That he wouldn’t be alone anymore.

He fumbles his way out of the tub and into his night clothes with clumsy, pruned fingers. The street is empty as he walks back to the complex where he and his mother live. The door is unlocked, but he vigilantly locks it behind him like she taught him. She must have forgotten. Again. But that’s okay! Because Goro can reach the top lock now and knows she must be tired, that’s all.

There are no lights on except for the glare from TV, a forgotten channel making ambient noise he barely notices. He creeps towards her bedroom and slides the door aside to find it empty, to his relief. No strangers left to linger in the space he covets. The next place he knows to check is the bathroom, which is where he finds her laying on the ground. Her head lifts at the noise and her eyes widen when she sees he’s standing in the doorway.

“Go-chan?”

He’s seen his mother like this before. He knows she’s hurting but doesn’t know why (a much older Goro would understand and curse himself for not noticing sooner. But he was six, and a six year old wouldn’t know what to do. He would blame himself anway.). He lays down beside her on the floor and she tucks him underneath her chin. He pretends he doesn’t hear her cry, pretends that he hadn’t just been crying himself, and buries his face in her neck. Her hair is damp but smells like home, floral and fresh in the way that makes his heart ache. He is grateful it's not the lingering scent of cigarettes and sweat that sometimes would stain her skin in ways that would make his stomach churn.

He thinks she’ll be okay this time when he feels a tender kiss on the top of his head, on his temple, on his cheek when she finally pries him away from her throat.

He thinks she’ll be okay when she whispers I love you , against his forehead as she carries him into his room, and helps him get ready for bed.

He thinks she’ll be okay when she leaves a chaste kiss on his lips when they are finally curled up on his futon together, as she brushes away the tears that somehow, some way, had found themselves running down his puffy face again.

But he doesn’t hear her when she says I’m sorry with soft lips pressed to his damp eyelids. After his fingers have woven into the locks of her hair like a lifeline.

Because Goro is already half asleep, and doesn’t have the energy to kiss her goodnight.

ii. a relative

Goro is nine years old and he is numb.

It’s freezing outside and no one thought to give him a heavier jacket. So he stands there shivering, hands fisted under his armpits as he tries to breathe normally. The air burns his lungs each time he takes a hiccuping breath, and wishes more than anything that someone would wake him up. Because this has to be a dream. A cruel one.

Then someone grabs his face and kisses his cheek, starling him out of the haze that had settled upon him like a wet blanket. They had meant it to be a comforting gesture he would come to realize much later in his life, but his traumatized nine year old brain couldn’t handle it and he violently recoils.

The shove isn’t strong enough to deter this woman… an aunt? A great aunt? A friend of his mother? Goro doesn’t know. He’s never met her before. Or maybe he has? If so, she clearly wasn’t important enough to remember or leave an impact on his life before this moment.

All he knows is they violated his space and as he remembers what his mother--he chokes on the protest that formed on his lips as he repeatedly pushes himself farther from the person trying to hold onto him--he remembers what his mother had always told him.

“ Don’t let anybody touch you unless you want them to .”

He holds those words close to his heart, hoping the punches he’s throwing get his message across.

He didn’t want to be touched by anyone.

Anger bubbles up from somewhere in his gut. Why didn’t his mother do the same when all those “friends” touched her when she didn’t want them too? Why couldn’t she be strong enough? Why wasn’t he strong enough to protect her ?

Why wasn’t he enough?

Bile rises in his throat when he finally breaks the hold of the hands that were gripping his chin, his elbow... blatantly ignoring the affronted scoffs and whispers of what a disgrace, such a rude child, that circled in the wake of his outburst.

The only person he wants holding him is his mother.

But she is six feet under the dirt at his feet, and won’t ever be able to hold him again.

iii. a girl in the orphanage

Goro is eleven and is taken completely by surprise.

One moment he is huddled around a board game in his room with a classmate, and the next she is suddenly leaning into his personal space, pushing her face into his. His eyes go wide as he braces himself on the edge of the desk so as not to fall out of his seat.

He never really thought about kissing girls before it happened, and knew immediately after that he probably would never think about kissing girls again.

His body reacts faster than his brain and shoves her off. She gasps and stumbles back, her expression twisting in confusion at his rejection.

“Why,” he says, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, “did you do that?”

“Because I like you, and I wanted to kiss you…did you not like it?

He had never been kissed like that before. He thought first kisses were supposed to feel special. But this...felt empty. And bluntly says as much to her.

She looks at him like he had slapped her across the face. “I-I thought...you liked me back?”

“What gave you that idea?”

Guilt only starts to settle in his gut when he sees the tears welling up in her eyes just before she mutters something akin to an apology and bolts out of his room.

He glares at the spot she had been standing.The longer he thinks about it, the angrier and more justified Goro feels. He doesn’t regret telling her the truth but… he drops his head on his arms.

He can’t even make friends right. Maybe he really was broken, like all the other kids say he is.

She gets adopted two days later.

He doubts she even remembers that kiss.

iv. a hook up

Goro is seventeen and it's a means to an end.

Goro hates these events, but has to attend to keep up airs with Shido and his... associates . To be available for Shido to both dangle in front of and threaten his inner circle with. The fact Goro fits in with them at all makes his skin crawl, and he drowns the urge to peel it off with the complimentary wine he’s (illegally) being served. It’s the least offensive crime he’s committed by a landslide.

Goro just needs to be seen and not heard. To both impress and intimidate. And it works every time.

But tonight, it works perhaps a little too well. Or Goro is a little too drunk to care anymore, and wants to get something, anything out of this hell he’s stuck in. Which is how he finds himself pressed up against a bathroom door by the son of some sycophant politician dragged along by his father hoping to get in Shido’s good graces.

The boy is his age, maybe a little older. Far too eager, excited, and sloppy. He kisses Goro hastily, before Goro could stop him (it’s not what they're in this bathroom for, and they both know it). The boy’s mouth is clumsy, and the kiss is full of inexperienced tongue and tastes of the sickly sweet moscato they’ve been chasing. When the boy tries to deepen the kiss, Goro takes a fistfull of this boy’s hair and yanks. It earns him a yelp.

Glaring down at him, Goro simply states, “On your knees.”

And the boy obeys without a second thought.

The boy doesn’t like him . He likes the image he carefully manufactured to be desirable. Even if the boy claims he went down on the Detetive Prince in a bathroom in some fancier hotel in Shinjuku, no one will believe him.

Back at his apartment, Goro slams down the mug of tea he had made to wash out the taste of the boy from the party. If that boy really knew what Goro kept buried underneath the layers and layers of masks he wore, what he was truly capable of, he would run away screaming.

But it doesn’t matter, it’s not like the boy’s affection was really for Goro . And Goro held none for the boy. It means nothing. A release, an excuse to feel something other than seething rage for a few minutes. A pitiable excuse for human connection Goro so desperately craved. How pathetic.

Goro begins to laugh.

And when his manic laughter breaks into sobs he can’t quite tell.

v. his rival

Goro is eighteen and it stops his entire world.

Stepping out of the Jazz Jin, Goro is quickly enveloped by the brisk November chill that finally settled itself in the streets of Kichijoji. It seeps through his clothes and makes him shiver, craving the warmth and atmosphere of the lounge they just left.

He shouldn’t even be here with Akira. Against his better judgment, Goro had reached out, invited him here one last time before…

Akira ducks around him as the door shuts, effectively cutting off the only exit out into the street.

“Akechi, can I ask you a question?”

Goro raises a brow. “I suppose.”

Akira removes his hands from his pockets, and suddenly seems unsure of what to do with them. Turning them over and flexing his fingers as he says, “Um, I’ll need you to close your eyes first.”

“Akira, we don’t have time for games,” Goro chides in that manufactured plastic tone of voice the Prince uses to let his fans down easy.

(Thinking Akira will probably try to shove some stupid trinket in his hands like last time. And Goro will have to repeatedly decline said trinket until Akira inevitably shoves it in his pocket while he’s not looking and only for Goro to find it later when he takes off his coat back at his apartment).

A soft laugh pulls him back to the present. And then, “Indulge me, detective . Please?”

Maybe it was the poorly disguised desperation hidden in Akira’s voice that made him cave to the delinquent’s whim, or Goro’s realization that this was perhaps the last time he would ever get to feel like a normal teenager before...  

Goro rolls his eyes and gives in to Akira’s request with a sigh. “Alright.”

The sounds of Kichijoji’s nightlife are amplified when his eyes flutter shut. He becomes hyper aware of the cold clinging to his skin, the idle chatter of the passerby at the top of the stairs, milling about down the street.The welcoming scent of coffee that never seems to fade from Akira’s clothes.The sound of Akira stepping closer into his space.

Suddenly, alarms are going off in Goro’s brain as he register’s Akira’s hand cupping his cheek, skin to skin.

“May I?” Akira’s question is whispered so quietly, Goro thinks he feels it more than he hears it.

Goro swallows, unable to get his tongue to work to form words. It’s the first time anyone has ever asked Goro for his permission, for his consent, and he has no idea how to even voice how that makes him feel.

It’s blindsiding him.

A thumb traces over Goro’s bottom lip, and his eyes snap open. He’s peering right into irises of silver, sparkling from the string lights that hang around them in the stairwell of the Jazz Jin’s entryway.

“You said you would keep them closed,” Akira whispers, gaze dropping to where his thumb is still idling tracing Goro’s mouth.

Goro’s prolonged silence seems to unnerve Akira, for he begins to pull away. Without thinking, Goro’s hand shoots out and grabs the lapel’s of Akira’s coat, holding him in place. Goro wasn’t even aware he moved until Akira let out a small gasp.

“I never said that,” Goro murmurs, but his eyes fall shut anyway when Akira leans in again.

Akira’s lips are so soft, so delicate and gentle when he presses them against Goro’s mouth. They are everything Goro is not, and Goro is melting . It’s so much kinder than he deserves, far more genuine than Goro is even capable of being.

“To remember me by,” Akira breathes when Goro parts his lips to taste more of him, “since we agreed to stop seeing each other after this.”

Too soon the warmth from Akira’s mouth is gone, and so is the dark haired boy. Having assimilated into the shadows to leave Goro alone in that stairwell.

It changes everything and nothing at the same time.

Goro still puts a bullet in Akira’s brain two days later, but it's his own head that explodes.

vi. a kiss met halfway

Goro is still eighteen, and living on borrowed time.

“ Your life isn’t trivial! ”

Goro has never wanted to believe anything so badly before. But knows in the shell of his empty heart, that Akira is wrong.

That he’s just being a brainless, sentimental fool, giving Goro’s life more meaning than it ever had the right to have.

Yet the thief’s words echo in the recesses of his mind, with each step he takes away from Leblanc for them only resonate louder. By the time he reaches the main road, the words are deafening screams and he has to--has to--

Akira is just where he left him. Sitting there stupidly at the cafe counter with his face in his hands.

The door to Leblanc is ripped open. It shakes on its hinges as it absorbs the aftershocks of being slammed into the wall by the force of Goro’s hand. The jingle of the bell is drowned out by the roar of Akira’s voice in Goro’s ears.

Akira startles and whips his head in the direction of the noise. Goro can see the thief’s eyes are swollen and red, brimming with unshed tears as he pulls his hands away from his face. His mouth falls open, brows furrowed in shock or confusion, Goro isn’t keen on differentiating at the moment because he’s too busy closing the distance between them.

Goro is so sick of other people defining what his life is meant to be. So sick and tired of being manipulated, following orders like some kind of marionette on a string. And for nothing in the end. Because Goro is his own worst enemy the cards were stacked against him from the beginning.

So fuck it. Goro decides for the first time in a long time that he wants to be touched. To be held. To feel the weight of someone’s desire for him pressing in from all angles. He wants to drown himself in Akira until he can breathe nothing else.

And Akira meets him halfway.

They don’t speak of what they’re doing, as they tumble up the stairs to Akira’s room.

They do not name the desperate feeling they are chasing through each other’s clothes as they fall to the floor.

They refuse to acknowledge the truth that is passed between each other’s mouths, secrets they had kept buried beneath flesh now exposed.

But everything left unsaid hangs in the silent spaces between their bodies as they move as one.

+1 a kiss goodbye

Goro is (still) eighteen, and he is dying.

It takes less than a minute.

Goro does his best to keep the desperation out of his eyes but can’t keep it from his hands.

Hands that reach for Akira to roughly pull him into the helicopter after Maruki, who had been tossed aside like a ragdoll.

Goro drags the beaten and bloodied thief into his lap, and no one seems to pay them any attention, too focused on either watching the unconscious therapist in the back, the collapsing palace around them, or the brilliant white light they were heading for.

Akira goes to unhinge his helmet, and Goro lets him. It clatters to the ground, next to where Akira abandoned his own mask.

He lets Akira drag fingers drag across his chest, to travel up and bury themselves in his hair, to cradle the back of his head like the most precious treasure he’s ever laid hands on. So much of Goro yearned to be touched, and there was so little time.

Goro slides his own hands, still encased in clawed gauntlets, along Akira’s battered face. He uses the pads of his thumbs to trace the angle of Akira’s jaw as he crushes his mouth against Akira’s for the last time. Akira’s blood is sweet on his tongue.

For a split second, Goro wishes he could have been a stronger, more selfless man in his final moments. One who didn’t covet things that were never his ( would never be his ), or ruin the things he touches.

But in truth, in reality, Goro is selfish, always will be. He is all ragged edges, and sharp teeth, he is rough and all consuming and unrelenting. And ruining Akira is perhaps his most selfish desire of all.

Goro knows Akira deserves better, but Akira allows it willingly all the same. Letting Goro lay claim to everything Akira is, everything Akira could be for a moment. For a moment, it all belongs to Goro.

And in return, Akira takes everything from him. His revenge, his anger, his envy, his loneliness, his heart. Devouring what is left of Goro Akechi as the false reality shatters around them in a blaze of white light.

[blarrghe]

Hi! I'm going to go for a dramatic one for the cliché prompts: "You’re in a coma and I confess all my feelings only for you to wake up" for Fenders (or whoever you prefer) if that works for you <3

I’m on a bit of a Dorianders kick and can’t seem to stop, so thank you very much for the prompt but I went a bit off book with it... hope that’s alright w you.

I altered this a little to “Dorian’s father is asleep on his deathbed and he confesses all his pent up feelings only for Anders to walk in”

So that’s um, how modern au Resident!Anders and Politician!Dorian met. It got a bit long and is very very angsty.

Summary: Anders is a resident working rough hours at a hospital (in Tevinter?? look this is just going to be a series of ficlets I have not worked out the details yet), struggling with his medical debts and work-related sleep deprivation. Dorian is an idealistic politician working his way out of his recently deceased father's shadow. They meet when Anders is attending to his father on his death bed, and things go from there, I guess.

--

Anders took a deep breath. With it, the something hissing over his heart settled down to a whisper. The hospital always beset him with inner whispers; not a good feeling, but one that compelled him on, nevertheless. Pediatrics hit the hardest, the injustice of it all, but being there also kept his mind steady. Doing something. Critical Care was different. There wasn't usually a lot he could do, in the Critical Care wing. And his rounds today had him facing that patient, the one for whom there was nothing to be done, and who set his obsessively helpful spirit into split ends, because he was also an absolute asshole. When Anders was in a room with him, under steely eyes and the cracking whip of his tongue, the disease in him felt deserved, and some part of Anders burned like blue fire, so hot it took biting his cheek bloody to restrain his bedside manner from bad attitudes. The disease is never deserved, he reminded himself and the licks of flame that still remembered the patient's rude barkings from last time. Even in rich men who in life had been given much more than they ever did deserve, a death like this one was still a hard death, and people who are dying are allowed to die angry. So he took another deep breath, because dealing with some patients just needed that much more breathing, but he could still do his job. And that was the job; to be there, at the end, for anyone.

He was getting worse, sleeping more. It wouldn't be long now, and Anders tried not to be relieved. He checked his charts, his monitors, the IVs still barely holding him up. Increased the morphine, for his pain, and finished without saying a word. For a moment, he almost missed it; at least when the man was swearing at him and ranting in indecipherably bigoted tirades, he was lively. He sighed, staying the extra moment to offer the man's sallow cheeks a sympathetic glance. Death was a natural part of life, and he was old, and an asshole, and maybe he didn't deserve it but... soon the bed would be free again, and that would be alright.

When he turned to leave, there was a dark figure sitting on the bench in the hall outside. He was reading a magazine but not flipping the pages, one leg crossed over the other in the stiff posture of someone who is uncomfortably waiting for uncomfortable news. One of the family. Anders took another deep breath. He hadn't had dealings with the wife, but he'd overheard them well enough. An unpleasant woman for an unpleasant man, trying to buy off death and then trying to kick the whole hospital down with her complaining when she couldn't. If the man waiting outside now took after either of them, his shift was about to get a whole lot worse.

He stepped out into the hall, and the man looked up from his magazine. His features were striking, sculpted. Skin the deep, radiant bronze that Anders was sure his father's would have been, back in his youth before misery and disease stole its colour. And he was, unmistakably now, his asshole patient's son; same steely grey eyes, right down to the faint creases beside them, and just as unfeeling.

"Are you his doctor?"

Usually, that question, asked at this point in the process of losing someone, was croaked out. But the son didn't croak, he asked his question with a continued lack of feeling, and a bit of impatience.

"Not his attending, only a resident. I can page the doctor, if you'd like,"

"No, that's fine. Can you just tell me how long?" The man stood up, tall. Much taller than the way people usually stood in hospital corridors; poised and proud in his posture — not actually taller than Anders, but he felt it. Still a little stiff maybe, but anything uncomfortable was covered up by how well he fit into his suit; smooth and black and clinging to his body like it was made to hold him. Anders blinked, "how long he has," the son clarified unnecessarily, still coolly impatient, "I have places to be, you see."

His eyes wandered past Anders, hesitating over the window to the room where his father lay dying, then snapping back again. Not entirely unfeeling after all, but the sadness in them was troubled by something else, still indecipherable. Anders wondered what kind of relationship a son could have with a father — a father like that — for so many secrets to be buried in that glance.

Anders swallowed. No he didn't, he decided, but the thing that whispered care into his heart was wondering, catching onto the well-hidden glimpse of feeling in the man, craving already to comfort the rest.

"A few days, maybe." He answered, gentle with the news. The son nodded once. "You should say your goodbyes."

The son was looking past him again, back through the window at the sleeping form of his father, more unhappy secrets set into his jaw. Anders watched the jaw tense, and stay there.

"In a few days, maybe." Replied the man, though he barely moved his tense jaw to say it. "He's awake."

Anders turned to follow the man's eyes, landing his own gaze on a twitching hand and barely moving bedsheets. He didnt look back again before darting into the room to offer his patient care.

"Dorian?" Croaked the patient, steely grey eyes opening to scan his face, and then closing in apparent disappointment.

"Your son? He's right outside, I'll —" but he wasn't. The tall, statuesque man was gone, the magazine left lying open on the bench outside in an empty white hallway. "I'm sure he'll be back soon." Anders amended, attempting to offer a bright spot of hope. His patient grunted.

Anders took a step away from the bedside, but as he did a thin, wrinkled hand shot out, and grabbed him by the wrist. The cold, unfeeling eyes opened, except now they were sad. "A word of advice, if you don’t want to be disappointed in life, don't have children." Even breathy and hoarse, he managed to give his voice bite. Then his asshole patient's gaze fell on the little gold earring hanging from Anders’ ear, and he coughed. Anders took a deep breath in preparation for another insult, and to help him recover from the bit of unfriendly advice. "You're lucky they don't let you people have them."

Anders tried not to sigh. The dying are allowed to die angry. "I'm sure he'll be back." He said again.

----

Dorian. The name stuck to him almost as well as his tight black trousers, and Anders couldn't help but turn it over a few times in his mouth after he left the room. He made the rest of his rounds, and checked back in on father-of-the-year Pavus a few more times, lying to himself about what he was hoping to find. Dorian. He never did come back though, not during visiting hours of that day, nor the day after. On the third day things weren't looking well, and Bride of Asshole Pavus had alerted everyone on staff to the fact that it was their fault, even the poor janitors. The bed would probably be free again by the end of his shift.

He made his rounds, thinking as little about that particular patient and his particularly unpleasant wife as he could, trying to tell his inner whisperings that it wasn't worth being sad over, even if the son never said goodbye. Maybe he didn't deserve one, how could Anders judge? (Everyone deserves one). Under his breath, Anders told himself to shush. (If not for the father's sake, then for his own). Again, shush. Then, through the too-thin walls and slightly ajar door as he made his way down the glaringly white hallway, Anders heard muttering. Sad, broken, angry muttering. He stopped.

" —I don't want it." the phrase was repeated a few times, some utterings angry, others sad, all of them broken. "I don't want your life. I don't want to be you. I don't —" Dorian. Dorian choking on a sob. Anders took a step back, careful about the squeak of his shoes. "I don't even know why I —" he tried not to listen in (no you didn't), but the door was ajar. "Everything. I could become everything you ever asked of me and it would still never be enough, so I don't know why I— I —" there was another heartwrenching choke to a stop, then a gutteral sound of frustration that Anders could feel in his own gut. "Just once. You couldn't say it just once?" It sounded like the kind of question he wouldn't be getting an answer to even if the man were conscious. "I'm sorry." Anders felt that in his gut too, and the thing he was trying to keep quiet inside him wondered if the words were from Dorian to his father, or the ones Dorian was begging his unconscious body for, or both.

In hospital rooms, the sound of beeping monitors disappeared into the fray. Wheels on stretchers trundling down the halls, squeaking shoes on linoleum, ventilators whirring and monitors beeping. They only sounded like anything when they stopped, and let out that one long note to signify the end. Dorian choked out his apology several more times, once sad, once angry, always desperate, and then the monitor stopped beeping, drowning out his gasps for air with its ending, and Anders had to do his job. He walked in.

Dorian shot up. Hands swiping at his red eyes and posture somehow rising without even a hint of hunch, and Anders pretended poorly not to see any of it. The attending came, procedures were followed, and Dorian disappeared into the waiting room like he was supposed to, without a look back.

The wife was gone by the time Anders poked his head into the waiting room. It wasn't his job to tell the family, and the news had long been shared, but something told him to peek in anyway. He took another deep breath when he saw him — this family really seemed bent on messing with his breathing — sitting, one long leg crossed over the other, staring down a terrible cup of coffee, not drinking it. He sat straight, his skin shone, his suit fit him like a glove and not a hair on his head was out of place, but he looked tired. Dorian. Anders approached cautiously. It would be a while before the family could take the body, and he should go home, rest. He told him as much, to a response of slow nods. Then Dorian looked up from his coffee, eyes emotionless except for the fact that they were lined in watery red.

"I'm just waiting for my mother to finish hounding her lawyers," he said, and despite himself Anders looked about nervously, "she's not here, don't worry. She left for home an hour ago. If I wait another, she'll have tired herself out and passed out under a bottle of wine." He sighed heavily, "could use one myself, but to be honest with you I don't quite feel like going home." His eyes flicked up into Anders' with a dim light of mischief, and Anders wondered what his looks could do for him on a good day. Things Anders could never hope to achieve, no doubt.

Anders offered him the carefully crafted soft smile he reserved for these kinds of things, and said “sorry for your loss” with just a touch more feeling than most patients’ families received, since the man looked like he needed it. 

“Can’t say the same to you I suppose,” Dorian replied, shaking his head, “though I am sorry.”

Anders opened his mouth, struggled to find anything to do with it, and then closed it again. 

“For my mother,” Dorian explained as he put the coffee cup he was still holding down on the low table in front of the chair he was decorating, apparently giving up any semblance of drinking it, “I’m sure his care was better than he deserved, but she doesn’t do well in situations she can’t control. It won’t come to anything.” 

Anders nodded slowly. Better than he deserved? A phrase Anders might have thought himself, over the past few weeks of dealing with the irate patient as he approached death’s door, but now that he’d gone through it, something about the sentiment irked him.

“Everyone deserves compassionate care,” he corrected with another careful smile, “the best chance we can give, and comfort when that’s spent. No less.” 

The response did something odd to Dorian’s face; first a sigh, then it transmuted itself into a strangled sort of laugh, while he shook his head and regarded Anders with still-dull eyes. “Well, it can’t have been easy,” he muttered, eyes landing on Anders’ soft smile, which he hoped was still there. “Thank you.” 

Anders left him then, offering one more nod and smile before turning away to finish the rest of his shift. Two hours later, changed out of his scrubs and into his tattered old jacket over his tattered old t-shirt and jeans, he walked by the waiting room again, on his way out. Dorian was still there, still staring down that same cup of undrunk coffee. 

“Mr. Pavus, ser?” 

Dorian started at the sound, and looked up from the coffee with an almost angry light in his icy eyes. “Please, Maker, call me anything but that.” 

Anders swallowed. “It’s — it’s Dorian, isn’t it?” Dorian nodded, “Dorian,” saying his name to his face felt wrong, somehow, “it’s getting rather late, is there someone I should call for you?” 

Dorian shook his head. “No,” he sighed. “Are there any bars nearby? A really terrible one, preferably.” 

Anders frowned, but there was a pretty terrible bar just across the street, stuck into a hole in the wall of an alley, with grimy old barstools and floors littered in peanut shells, so he told him so. Dorian stood, always so tall. 

“Thank you, Doctor…” 

“Anders,” he attempted a smile, but there was a good deal too much worry in it, he was sure, “just Anders; I’m off duty.” 

Dorian turned from him, then suddenly turned back. “Would you care for a drink, Anders?” 

Anders blinked. “I uh —” 

“You’ve seen the last of what was undoubtedly your worst patient today, haven’t you? Don’t tell me you didn’t plan to celebrate.” 

His brows creased unhappily, all on their own, and something inside him whispered back the memory of that broken bedside apology. “I wouldn’t —” 

“You should. I aim to. On me?” There was that light of mischief again, a little brighter, coupled with what could almost be a smirk. Maker, was he flirting? 

“I don’t drink.” 

Dorian frowned, and Anders almost wished he did. “A bowl of peanuts on me, then.” Dorian amended his offer with a shrug. And for some unknown reason, Anders nodded. 

“Alright.” 

[kzzzo]

chapter 5 - don't let it bring you down

"but don't let it bring you down and turn your face into a frown"

series masterlist - here

previous | next

a/n: wrote this right after i posted chap 4 and it's already 4 am 😃 im still not sleepy rip. so as i said, ive been writing the whole night so i don't know if this chapter makes sense sksksks

-

Kuroo had a volleyball game coming up in two weeks which made him busy after school. He hadn’t been able to pick up the triplets from daycare and look after them. As for you, he only saw you in the mornings and briefly during classes as they had volleyball practice even during class hours. To say he misses you is an understatement. He even went as far as setting the picture he secretly took of you as his lock screen wallpaper so that you were the first thing he sees when he turns on his phone. He made sure to be careful as to not let a stranger who doesn’t know of your circumstances see it.

Akaashi approached Kuroo who was sitting on the floor with his head tilted back. The curly haired male handed him a bottle of water before sitting down next to the bed haired one.

“Bokuto and I could feel how much you miss (Y/N) from a mile away.” Akaashi bluntly stated.

“Really, now.” Kuroo replied, too tired and (Y/N)-deprived to think of a snarky reply. He chugged down the water Akaashi gave him and stood up to leave. “Well, I’m going first.”

“We’ll be going, too.”

With that, all three of them went back to their respective homes. Upon arriving home, Kuroo went straight into the bathroom to shower in able to go straight to bed. Stepping out of the shower topless while drying his hair off with a towel, he fishes his gym bag for his phone only to be met with anything other than the said device. He felt his heart race. Just when he had something to hide in there, he just had to lose his phone. He poured out the contents of his bag into his bed and he felt the fatigue in his body leave him.

Meanwhile back in the university, a student who had business in the gym saw a phone light up. She picks up the phone and turn it on to try to identify the owner. The lock screen was a photo of a woman carrying what seems like a two-year old baby. She takes a closer look and was finally able to identify that it was you.

Back home you were doing your homework when you hear a series of knocks on your door. Opening it, you were met with Kuroo looking quite jittery and pale. You furrow your brows before asking him what was wrong.

“I, uh. Can you do me a favor? My phone’s missing and I’m pretty sure the location’s on.”

“Oh, sure, sure. Come in. Do you want some water?”

“I’m fine but thanks anyway.”

The two of you work together to locate his phone and he was so relieved to find out that it was just in the university, most likely in the gym. Then he remembered what he had set as his lock screen a few days ago. He quickly thanked you then rushed to pick his phone up, silently praying that no one saw his wallpaper. He didn’t think that you’d be ashamed of your sons, but then you didn’t really seem like you intended to tell people you’re not close to seeing as people usually don’t have anything nice to say. He wanted to respect that decision of yours but because of him losing his phone you might have a hard time. When he got to the university his phone was at the lost and found which only means that someone had seen his lock screen. Fuck.

The next day rolled around and you were in Kuroo’s backseat with the triplets as usual. The two of you drop them off at the daycare and when you went back to his car, he seemed paler than before. He was also tapping the stirring wheel repeatedly, something he does when something is bothering him.

“Tetsu,” the way he flinched at the sound of your voice had you even more worried. “Are you okay?”

He debated whether he should tell you what he’d done. If by chance someone did see it and the news had spread, it’d be his fault and there was a big chance that this would be the last time you’d talk to him. However, he didn’t want to keep it from you and wait before you find out yourself. He sighed, here goes.

“Listen, (Y/N). I just want to say that I’m sorry in advance,” your brows furrowed, heart beating faster. “Why don’t you go grab my phone then turn it on.”

You do as he says, eyes widening at the candid photo of you and Masao. It was surprising, but you didn’t get what was making him so troubled.

“Remember when I left that behind at uni last night?” He glanced at you to check your reaction. Your expression remained confused. “I got it from the lost and found. So, that being said… it’s highly likely that someone saw that lock screen.”

It took you a few more seconds to get what he was saying and then, oh. Oh. You got it. There’s a big chance that at this very second, people would be talking about you and your sons. You didn’t know whether to laugh or what. It was like high school all over again. You were sure of one thing, though. You were scared. Scared of having to walk through the hallways with all eyes on you, hearing their whispers. The disgust and disappointment evident in the way they looked at you.

Your silence made Kuroo even more tense. He couldn’t read your expression from the little glances he’s taking as he drives. You carefully place his phone back where it was before speaking.

“Oh.” You reply shortly. Tears were starting to pool around your eyes and you were sure your voice would break if you speak. You didn’t want Kuroo to see you being weak and worry so you turn your head away from him. He took this as a sign that you were indeed mad at him, his heart broke thinking about how he ruined everything between the two of you.

When you arrived you quickly stepped out of the car and walked ahead. Usually, Kuroo would open the door for you then you’d walk together, but of course, today would be different. Maybe even the following days, weeks, months, years. Who knows? All Kuroo knew was that he fucked up and he’d driven you away from him.

You wiped away your tears before entering the building. Just as you’d suspected, almost everyone was looking at you weird and whispering amongst themselves. You were even able to hear one of the few things they said.

“I heard that the child looked like it was already at least two, that means…”

You clenched your fists and carried on. When you entered the classroom, you were surprised to see people sitting down in their respective seats quietly. Too quietly. You expected the classroom to be the place where there’d be more people talking about you. It still didn’t change the fact, however, that some others have their eyes on you.

“Mornin’, (Y/N)!” Bokuto greeted. You smiled back at him curtly. Akaashi was looking at you with worry but you didn’t notice as you immediately sink into your seat.

Classes dragged on longer than it used to and lunch became unbearable as you decided not to join your three friends. Instead, you lock yourself in a bathroom stall, head tilted back as you try to stop your tears from falling. You thought you’d be safe there but you were proved to be wrong when at least four girls entered, gossiping about ‘that freshie who already has a child.’

‘Please, let this day end already.’ You thought.

When the classes were finally over, you went straight home instead of at work, wanting nothing else but to wrap yourself in your blanket and cry yourself to sleep. You didn’t even realize that you haven’t picked up the triplets from the daycare when you’d fallen asleep.

Kuroo was staring at your number on his phone, debating whether to call you or give you space. When he was about to turn his phone off and shove it into his gym bag, he felt it vibrate. However, instead of your name popping up like he hoped, it was an unknown number.

“Hello?”

“Ah, Sir Kuroo! I’m the triplets’ teacher. Ms. (Y/N) hasn’t come to pick the boys up. I know it’s only been twenty minutes but Ms. (Y/N) is never late unless she calls to say so. She wouldn’t answer her phone either. I was hoping you could check up on her.”

He felt his heart beating faster. “O-okay. I’ll pick the boys up on the way as well. Thank you for calling me.”

“Okay, I’ll have the boys ready. Have a safe drive, sir.”

The call ended and Kuroo slung his gym bag on his shoulder. He turned to Bokuto and Akaashi who were also taking a break from practice.

“Guys, I’m going ahead. The triplets’ teacher called, apparently they haven’t been picked up yet and (Y/N)’s not answering her phone. Cover for me.” He didn’t even wait for their response when he practically sprinted to his car.

When he picked up the boys, they were staring at him with a curious look on their faces. Kuroo wasn’t able to pay mind to it as he couldn’t stop thinking about you. After the three were safely seated in their car seats, they drove to where you worked but alas, you weren’t there. Your boss explained that you didn’t come in that day and that usually you’d call when you weren’t coming in. This didn’t make Kuroo feel any better at all. The only place he knows to check was your apartment.

Back at your apartment you’d just woken up, panicking when you saw that it’s already dark out. You tried to recall if you even picked up the boys. When you remembered that you didn’t, you sprung up. Muttering a string of ‘oh shit’s, you run out of your room. You were about to open the door when someone from the other side beat you to it. Kuroo was standing in front of you, hands on the triplets’ shared stroller. Without a word, you grab the stroller from him and slammed the door on him. You were 100% sure that there were clear traces of the breakdown you had earlier so in fear of having Kuroo see you in that state, you had no choice but to cold heartedly slam the door on him.

Once again, Kuroo Tetsurou’s heart broke.

[365daysofsasuhina]

[ 365 Days of SasuHina || Day Three Hundred Fifty-Five: Timer ] [ Uchiha Sasuke, Hyūga Hinata, Hyūga Hiashi, Uchiha Itachi ] [ SasuHina ] [ Verse: Best Years of Your Life ] [ AO3 Link ]

She’s always thought of it as some kind of pseudoscience, like astrology or basing personalities off of blood types. While many of the other girls she grew up with looked forward to their sixteenth birthdays like it was some kind of rebirth, Hinata just...couldn’t bring herself to put much stock in it.

“Everyone in my family swears by it!” Ino gushed at one point. “It’s how my mom met my dad, and several of my aunts and uncles! And guess what? My cousin’s timer is up in like...three weeks. He’s so nervous he can barely stand it!”

“Doesn’t it seem a bit, y-you know...self fulfilling?”

At Hinata’s quiet interjection, several girls turned to her with disbelieving expressions. “...what’s that supposed to mean?”

Squirming a bit under their gazes, she’d gone on. “...it’s just...people look at their countdown, and they trust it implicitly. Doesn’t anyone t-think for themselves? Or...or want to find love on their own, rather than be shoehorned into it…?”

Ino scoffed. “Y’know, ever since they figured out how to make these timers work, divorce rates, like..cut in half! People are meeting those they’re meant to be with and staying with them!”

“...if it’s so great, then...why are there still divorces at all?”

That earned a cacophony of squawking replies about disbelievers ruining the statistics, and...Hinata quickly removed herself.

She just...had her doubts, was all.

Her parents, and her only aunt and uncle met through their timers. Her uncle, sadly, died when his son was only four, and Hinata three. Therefore, she has no real way to know how their marriage had worked.

Similarly, her mother died not long after having her sister. Hinata was five. All she really has to go on are blurry childhood memories...and her father’s current attitude.

And she really can’t see how the woman she recalls being so kind, so soft, so gentle...could love and marry a man like Hiashi. Cold, calculating, and seemingly emotionally stunted. He rarely if ever smiles.

...she remembers her mother’s smile. So warm…

...so how…?

It’s why, as her sixteenth birthday looms closer, Hinata gets more and more knots in her stomach. The implant isn’t required, but her father has made it very clear that she’ll be getting hers. Likely so he can marry her off as soon as her timer hits zero, and be rid of her.

While so many girls in her year have looked forward to their birthdays...Hinata can do nothing but dread hers.

Like many young people, she attends a school segregated by gender. It’s meant to help avoid fraternizing with the opposite sex and therefore affecting a timer’s readings. Of course...not everyone is attracted to said opposite sex. Hinata herself doesn’t really mind if a person is one or the other, but...she keeps that to herself. Admitting as much would make just about every girl who isn’t highly uncomfortable.

...and yet she wonders what will happen if she’s already met her soulmate.

Will the timer just...not work? Will it already be at zero? If so...then how is she ever to know who they are? Not that she believes it...it’s really all a bunch of nonsense…

...and yet…?

Each day that passes in December sees her more and more anxious - more and more depressed. Hiashi has already arranged for her to have the day off from school, her surgery to implant the timer set for early in the morning. Set into her left wrist, it will allow her to return to school the next day, her dominant hand unaffected and allowing her to write.

The day before, she finds herself at the last stage of grief: acceptance. There’s no fighting it. No use in trying to say no.

This is just how things are.

“Good luck with your procedure!” Ino and Sakura call as classes let out for the day. “See you Thursday!”

She doesn’t answer, just waving farewell. While there’s excitement in her friends’ voices...she can’t bring herself to feel it, too.

Just...get it over with.

Once home, she works on her assignments, numbly browsing social media and not really taking anything in. All she can think about is the surgery. The stupid timer…!

Part of her wants hers to be broken. To prove that it’s wrong. But the rest - despite her stubborn belief that it’s all rubbish - is afraid, so very afraid that it won’t work.

That she’ll always be alone.

Too restless to do much else, she finishes the entirety of her homework, turning in to bed early...and yet unable to sleep, mind too full. Worries eddy in her mind like a slow-moving whirlpool: around and around, always circling back and starting all over again.

By some grace she falls asleep for a few hours, snapping awake at her alarm. Heart fluttering and stomach churning, she gets up, has a light breakfast...and then gets in the car for Hiashi to drive her to the hospital.

The ride is completely silent. Only once they park does he turn to her, expression - as always - unreadable.

“I know you’ve been dreading this...but best we just get it over with. Best to know for sure.”

Hinata doesn��t reply, just exiting the car and following him inside as they check her in. Prep doesn’t take too long. Dressed down in a powder blue gown, she’s wheeled into the surgery suite, given anesthesia...and then goes blissfully blank.

Waking is a slow process. First thing she notices is a dull ache in her arm, eyes dragging open to peer down at her wrist.

It’s wrapped in gauze, her IV in her other arm. The urge to peer at it itches like the skin beneath the wrappings.

Looking groggily around the room, she finds herself alone. Of course her father wouldn’t be here - probably off hounding a nurse somewhere, badgering them about releasing her so he can head home.

...the hospital has bitter memories, after all.

Going lax with a sigh, Hinata stares up at the ceiling. Well...it’s done. No going back now, unless she wants to try digging it out. But she’s not that desperate. She could keep it covered...never look at it...but even now, the temptation is great��

Why does it have to be so repulsive, and yet so enticing? It isn’t fair!

“Hinata.”

Glancing to the door, she finds her father. “...yes?”

“Once the anesthetic has worn off, we can go home. The nurses say an hour or two. Do you...need anything?”

The question surprises her, even more so given his awkward tone. “...no, I’m all right. Um...thank you.”

As he goes, she wonders if he’s been made aware of what her timer said when it was fully implanted. Or maybe they weren’t allowed to tell him…? But something about him just now seemed...odd.

With nothing to do while she waits, Hinata does her best to doze and make up some of her lost sleep. After nearly two hours, a nurse checks on her status, and gives her the clear the go. Hinata changes back into her clothes, moving to leave on her feet...only to have another nurse approach with a wheelchair.

She immediately balks. “Oh, I...I don’t need that -?”

“It’s a precaution for anyone coming out of anesthesia to prevent falls. Just until you get to your car, miss.”

Rather embarrassed - it’s not like she can’t walk! - Hinata sheepishly obliges, head ducked as they pass by other patients, visitors, and staff. As they go, her bowed face is turned to her wrist. Maybe she can just…

Carefully fiddling with the gauze and trying not to be noticed in case she gets scolded, Hinata nibbles her lip as they approach the elevator to the main floor. Easing the material back, she doesn’t look up as the door opens, two other figures in the lift already.

That’s when it happens.

With a soft series of beeps, Hinata flinches back from her arm, holding it aloft as though it’s suddenly on fire. Both Hiashi and the nurse balk, turning to her in question.

And inside the elevator comes a responding chorus of sound.

Time seems to slow.

Looking up, Hinata finally sees the other occupants of the lift. At the front is a young man in a wheelchair like herself, arms loosely folded atop his lap. And behind him, pushing the chair, is a boy more her age.

But he isn’t looking at her. He’s looking at his wrist, which is rapidly trilling.

...oh...you’ve got to be kidding.

The little group remains frozen, half in and half out of the elevator. Hiashi’s face is aghast, looking between his daughter and the stranger opposite them.

Said stranger then looks up, clearly just as taken aback.

The only one calm is the man in the wheelchair, who simply quips, “...Sasuke, I believe you should introduce yourself.”

                                                           .oOo.

     So it occurred to me that I've never written a soulmate AU. Like...ever. At least that I can recall? Admittedly I have a slightly sketchy memory, but...yeah. As soon as I saw the prompt, I remembered seeing this AU floating around, and was like...okay sure, lmao      I know it's a cliffie, but I think I can make tomorrow's prompt work for a part two! So you won't have to wait long, lol - also...with this one done, we're officially down to just ten days left to catch up. It feels a bit weird, admittedly, but I know it'll be even weirder when we're all caught up! Finally xD It's honestly a bit embarrassing having it drag on this long, but...well, couldn't help Life's interruptions.      On that note tho, I really need to get to bed! Thanks for reading~

[johnnysnostril]

Without You

chapter twelve

jaehyun’s pov

alonna and i sat on the couch, as johnny walked through the front door.

he looked defeated and broken.

it was weird for me because i had never seen johnny act like this, over a female before.

alonna stood to her feet, clicking her heels across the tile and grabbed her purse and keys.

“well, im sober now and i’d rather not stay here and watch johnny feel sorry for himself.” she said.

i huffed, shaking my head.

“stop it, babe.” i said approaching her and smacking her booty.

she pouted and turned towards me, swinging her purse over her shoulder.

“but, he could've hurt ivy- jae..” she mumbled as johnny walked past us and up the stairs.

“i know..” i said rubbing her shoulders. “but, just give him a little break. mark just walked out the door with his girl.” i chuckled a little.

alonna shrugged.

“she would've been johnny’s girl if he wasn’t such a douche bag.” she mumbled.

“well, regardless if that’s true or not- it’s none of our business. we just need to focus on us.” i whispered, kissing her lips.

i gently pulled her bag off her shoulder and held it for her.

“you’re not going home though- you’re coming with me.”

taking her hand, i lead her over to the front door.

“we’re leaving johnny! text me if you need anything!” i shouted before walking out the door.

ivy’s pov

instead of falling asleep, like we were supposed to- mark and i talked all morning.

i was relieved when mr. suh text me- telling me to take the day off and that he would run the store today.

i had no objections to that.

“so- you and johnny..” mark started. “you really like him?

i played with his hair as he laid on my stomach.

i wasn’t sure what i was feeling anymore.

all i knew, was that- maybe i was moving a little too fast with everyone. including mark.

i shrugged, answering his question internally.

mark suddenly sat up, looking down at me.

“ivy-” he chuckled. “did i make you uncomfortable with that question?”

i swallowed down the lump in my throat.

“i just dont know what i feel anymore..” i admitted.

mark nodded and traced a smiley face on my exposed thigh.

“and that’s okay. as long as i’m still in the running.” he laughed.

i bit my bottom lip and sat up.

“why do you like me?” i asked, tilting my head.

mark tucked some hair behind my ear then kissed my forehead.

“your vibe is very different from any other girl that i’ve met before. and trust me- we’ve all been around plenty of women.” he stated. “you and alonna just have a special aura about you.” 

mark took my hand and laced our fingers.

“i know i dont know much about you, and it’s only been a few days. but i feel like this is right. and if i’m wrong for that- then so be it.”

i looked down, staring at my bed sheets- keeping quiet.

“i dont wanna scare you off either.” he admitted. “it’s just- i haven’t liked someone like this in awhile and to be frank, i’m scared that this feeling will go away. and i dont want it to.”

mark laid back, pulling me with him. he draped my leg over his waist and rubbed my back.

why was i feeling guilty?

“we dont really get the opportunity to even attempt to have a relationship. so when the guys and i found someone special, we wanna hold onto them as long as we can.”

mark continued.

“i dont know about anyone else, but i wanna fall in love. i have yet to experience it.”

i looked up at him, slightly sitting up.

“you’ve never been in love before?” i asked surprised.

he shook his head.

“not yet-”

johnny’s pov

i decided to stay at my parents’ house, since jae and alonna would be back at the hotel room.

i still couldn't believe that she had slapped me. ever since alonna started working with us, she never struck me as being any kind of violent.

i guess i couldn’t blame her though. i was really acting out of my element. but, i did have a valid reason for it.

mark was always trying to overshadow me, with everyone- and i was getting sick of it.

granted, i shouldn't have put my hands on him.

all that really mattered to me at this point, was how i was going to get ivy back in my arms and out of mark’s.

part of me wanted to go down to the hotel and see if she was there.

but what would i do once i found her?

i didn't have a plan at all.

maybe i should just give her space.

looking over at the clock, i sighed.

8:42am. 

i suddenly jumped up from my bed.

“maybe she’s at the shop!” i shouted.

i quickly slipped into a pair of shoes that laid on the floor, collecting my keys and running out the front door.

as i pulled up to the shop, i quickly parked and ran inside.

“iv-” i started to yell, then stopped- seeing my dad at the register.

“dad?” i questioned as i let the door shut behind me.

“hey son.” he smiled, fixing a bouquet of flowers.

“what are you doing here?”

i was halfway disappointed that ivy wasn’t here.

“where’s ivy?” i questioned.

my father smiled, looking back down at his flowers- ignoring my question.

“how was the party? everyone seemed to have a good time.”

“did she quit?” i pressed the issue, joining him behind the counter.

“you know, the funniest thing happened to me this morning.” he announced randomly.

“dad- where-”

“i ran into an old friend.” he smiled, patting my shoulder. “a friend from college.” he continued.

“when he first walked through that door and i seen his face- for some reason, my mind told me to be upset with him.” 

my father laughed.

“but i couldn’t remember why.”

i sighed and took a seat on the small stool that was behind me.

“he started to tell me that his wife had recently passed and he needs some flowers for the funeral- then it hit me.” my father snapped his fingers.

“right then and there, i remembered his name and what had happened between us.”

suddenly my father got quiet. he continued to make his bouquet of flowers without saying a word.

“so what happened?” i asked. “how come you stopped being his friend?”

my dad put the finishing touches on his master piece, then smiled. pulling out some decorative paper, he wrapped the flowers up and gently placed them on the counter in front of me.

“to keep it simple-” he said folding his arms. “in front of all of our mutual friends- he asked out a woman that i was very fond of. just about everyone knew that i was attracted to her- even he knew. but he still did it.” 

my father smiled.

i furrowed my brows and shook my head.

“and you’re smiling why?”

“because that woman, was your mother.” my father patted my shoulder once again and walked over to the section of tulips that hung from the wall. 

“wait- mom was stolen from you?” i asked following him.

he nodded.

“she was. but, i got her back.” he chuckled.

“how’d you do that?”

my mind was racing, ready to take a mental note so i could use this trick on ivy.

“that’s not the point of the story, son.”

fixing the flowers, he turned his head in my direction.

“but you know, i was holding onto that anger- and i didn’t even know it until i seen his face. hell, i couldnt even remember why i had been mad at him for all this time.”

now, i seen where this was going.

“there’s still a way for you to get her back, son.”

i snapped my head in his direction, parting my lips.

“how did you know?”

“im a suh. i know everything.” he laughed.

my father made his way back to the counter- grabbing the bouquet and handing it to me.

“go make things right, son.”

mark’s pov

i smiled as ivy yawned. 

“are you sleepy?” i said rubbing her thigh.

she nodded.

“well, get some rest then- babygirl.” slowly sitting up, i removed myself from the bed.

“are you leaving?” she mumbled.

“if i dont, you wont sleep at all.” i exhaled softly as she reached out and took my hand.

“do you have anything planned for later tonight?” she asked, looking up at me.

i leaned down, softly kissing her and smiling against her lips.

“hopefully seeing you.”

as i pulled back, ivy hid her face into the sheets, rolling over onto her stomach.

i chuckled, quickly slipping on my shoes.

“sleep, okay?”

i reached over to her night stand, grabbing her notebook and writing my number down.

“call me, when you wake up?” handing her the notebook, she nodded and smiled.

“okay.. i’ll be waiting.”

scanning her body with my eyes, i took in her features for the last time for a couple of hours.

alonna’s pov

“i win again!” i said standing up on the couch and shaking my butt.

jaehyun rolled his eyes and laughed, tossing the controller to the side.

“i let you win, chill.”

jae stood to his feet, taking hold of my hand and pulling me off the couch.

“you’re just a sore loser, babe. you can never beat me.” i stuck out my tongue and tilted my head.

“put that tongue back in your mouth, before i put it to use.”

i quickly rolled my tongue back in, covering my lips.

jae cupped my chin, brushing his nose against mine.

“one thing i can beat though, is that pus-”

“ivy!” johnny said running into the room.

jae and i both looked towards the door, rolling our eyes.

“you have the worst timing, dude.” jae laughed, throwing his head back.

“have you guys seen ivy?”

“she’s not here.” i said folding my arms. “you don’t need to be looking for her anyway. i told you to stay away from her, stupid.”

grabbing the blanket that laid on the couch, i wrapped myself up to hide my body.

as i plopped down on the cushion, my phone began to ring.

sister <3

it was ivy.

i reached to the other side of the cushion, where my phone laid- grabbing it quickly and running up the stairs.

locking myself in the bathroom, i threw the blanket on the floor- answering ivy’s call.

“ivy!” i whispered into the phone.

she laughed.

“why are you whispering, alonna?” she whispered back playfully.

“johnny is here! he’s looking for you! are you still at the house??? where are you?? you’re not with mark are you?” i questioned.

“okay, wait a minute. too many questions.” ivy continued to laugh.

“where the hell are you?”

“i’m at home- i was calling to see if you wanted to meet me for brunch. or are you already, you know- “busy”?”

i knew she was doing air quotes.

“yes, i can meet you. but johnny doesn’t know where we live- right?”

ivy was quiet.

“ivy!”

“i mean, i dont know. unless you told him, cause i fersure didnt.”

i sighed of relief.

“what time are we meeting?”

ivy was smiling.

“wait- why do you sound happy? what’s wrong with you? are you sick?” i asked.

“just meet me at 12pm. Laura’s! i love you, byeeeee.” she sang into the phone.

i rolled my eyes as the called ended.

walking back downstairs, johnny slouched in the chair- in the kitchen area.

“what’s wrong with you?” i said tossing my phone on the couch.

“i gotta talk to ivy. can you please give me her number?” he said running his fingers through his hair.

i really felt sorry for him at this point. but my sister was way more important than his feelings.

“aren’t you supposed to be at practice?” i said folding my arms.

“isn’t jae?” he fired back, giving up from the chair. 

johnny snatched a bouquet of flowers off the counter and headed towards the door.

“how’d you know that ivy likes pink roses?”

i lifted a brow and looked over at jae.

“i didn’t say anything. i didn’t even know that she liked roses.” he laughed.

johnny looked down at the flowers, keeping his mouth shut- then left the hotel room.

[goldvnby]

biography

i. — ‹ ( if there were two guarantees in edward’s life from the very start they were that 1. finding success and upholding his parents’ precious reputation was his only option, and 2. he would not receive the privilege of finding happiness for himself. his family was far from a perfect match for the young boy. his pulse always seemed to race a little faster, his room would get a little messier, and his mind would wander a little farther. still, however, they were nothing if not persistent and by the end of his childhood edward had inherited their overbearing sense of pride. they hardly deserved to be as proud as they were. an affluent and well known family for their little corner of vermont but hardly much to write home about when contrasted against the mega rich only a state away. still, they had enough money to wear their wealth on their sleeves, occupying the largest ( and gaudiest ) home in town and speeding around in luxury cars. his father’s income was enough to support their lifestyle, which allowed his mother to focus on developing a prominent reputation within the community. ).

ii. — ‹ ( when he tells people off his childhood he paints it in a warm light, the good money american dream of scorching summer days by the lake and cozy vermont winters in the ski chalets. in reality, if his childhood was anything it was cold. neither of his parents left much time for their only son, and they spared even less time for each other. whenever possible his mother would head to a warmer climate to vacation and his father would jet off on whatever business trips he could. the times that they were together the pair would alternate between icy silence and fiery arguments. the final blow to their marriage came in edward’s sixteenth year while he was away at boarding school, his mother caught his father with another woman and all hell broke loose. it was a messy divorce that left edward in the crossfire. all in all his parents left him with a pessimistic idea of love and marriage, if he even believed in it at all. one of the major roots of his commitment issues is his fear that he is his father’s son. as it turns out his father had never been a faithful man and edward has simply accepted as fact that the streak of infidelity would continue in him. it seemed easier to accept it at that than to try at love and fail. failure, after all, goes against everything that edward stands for. ).

iii. — ‹ ( when he reached high school, edward was swiftly sent away from his parents home to whatever prestigious boarding schools they could stick him in for the colder months. the schools quickly became harder and harder to find, however, as this was when edward developed his tendency towards debauchery. being surrounded by nothing but other privileged youth he quickly discovered that the perfect mixture of confidence, brashness, and general disregard for the rules, could instantly earn him all the love and attention he lacked in his childhood. he mastered the art of charming the pants off of just about everyone. unfortunately, many schools didn’t much care for his antics and by his senior year, he had thoroughly exhausted almost all the institutions on the eastern seaboard. despite his rambunctious nature and tendency to be expelled, he was still quite successful in his academic pursuits. his charisma, well learned manners, and intelligence earned him the favour of many professors, and he graduated with high grades and a long list of references. outside of academics he always earned himself a place on the lacrosse and ski teams to make friends, as well as the debate team to make enemies. high school was also when he began to establish a long line of meaningless flings and broken hearts. he craved the attention and had more than enough confidence and charm to get it, but he would bolt before things could become serious. he always wanted more. his pride made it impossible to see anyone as worthy of him, his stubbornness made it so he could never see eye to eye with anyone, and his cynicism made him doubt that love was even possible at all. above all, loneliness had always been the dominant factor in his life, and to abandon that was terrifying. ).

iv. — ‹ ( after a gap year spent flitting around europe without purpose ( during which he came dangerously close to destroying himself as well as his liver ), edward found himself studying commerce at columbia. he instantly took to the city. it felt like for the first time in his life everything around him was alive with opportunity. to him it was a place to prove himself, and more than anything he wanted to be part of the upper crust of new york society. when he sets his mind to something edward is nothing if not determined. his act was cleaned up overnight. while he didn’t abandon his hedonistic ways, he relegated them to part of his life where they couldn’t interfere with his upward trajectory. late nights spent making and losing memories in the city were met with hot coffee and hard work in the mornings. with his revelry all compacted into short bursts it became even more volatile. his penchant for self destruction became a general disregard for his own life, and there wasn’t a stunt edward wouldn’t pull for the admiration of others. yet contrasting this completely his daytime in university was spent buttering up professors, joining the best societies, and working the most prestigious internships. by the end of the four years his life was falling into place, and everything was ready for success. ).

v. — ‹ ( things can never really work out for edward though, it’s practically a fact to him by now. just six months before his graduation his father became the centre of a hefty fraud case. not only did he have to deal with his family money being wiped out and his father receiving a jail sentence, the fallout of the scandal seeped into all elements of his life. his career path was hugely derailed. any family connections he had were wiped clean, and the ones he had built up on his own quickly started to disappear as word got out of what had happened. potential employers only had to do a quick google search of his name to discover the familial connection. it took several years for him to build up his credibility and get his life back on track. although he’s now finding success, the murky waters he started out in are not something he’ll easily forget. as for his father, while it isn’t exactly something he can keep a secret, those who know edward know to never bring the man up around him. it’s rare that he’ll confide in anyone about it, even raphael knows only what he can learn from others. he visits the penitentiary once a year on his father’s birthday, and always makes up a lie for why he’s going out of town. ).

vi.  — ‹ ( most of the time edward feels like he’s just waiting for the other shoe to drop. things are going smoothly career wise, he’s shockingly happy being monogamous with raphael, and he feels secure in his friend group. it all seems too good to be true, or too good to be true for edward at least.  there’s a darkness in edward, and so far as he can tell it always manages to soak up every bit of good in his life. he worries that by letting people close to him they’re just going to get caught in the crossfire. he’s at a precipice in his life and it can go one of two ways. he can either shape up and settle down, creating the life he’s always needed and never thought he can have, or he can continue down the path of self destruction, walking right into the life he always feared but didn’t know how to escape. ).

vii. — ‹ ( he’s always been extremely loyal with those he considers his closest friends and that certainly isn’t changing anytime soon, especially with nico. while from an outside perspective edward may seem like a pushy and inconsiderate friend, the reality is far different. while he lacks commitment romantically with friends when he really, truly believes that someone cares about him he returns that commitment tenfold. still, he finds it hard to believe that someone would stick around with him for so long. as for lucy, he values her and fears her in equal measure. he’s certain that she has the ability to turn everyone against him in one fell swoop if she wanted to, and she wouldn’t exactly be without her reasons. she sees right through him, in fact, he’s pretty sure she knows him better than he knows himself, which is quite terrifying for someone who doesn’t like for their true self to be known at all. at the same time, it makes her an easy person to turn to when things get rough. the sting of sophia’s rejection still burns him more than he liked to admit. he likes to get what he wants, and it was more than a bit shocking for the rug to get pulled out from under him like that. he can’t help but feel like its confirmation that there really is something wrong with him, and he feels a pang of insecurity every time she walks into the room. the good thing to come out of the mess with sophia is raphael. he still can’t believe it’s real, and having the same person to fall asleep to every night is actually helping a lot with his insomnia. once he felt secure with raph ( something he’s never found in a romantic relationship before ) he went all in. but he’s had his bad boy behaviour on pause for a while now and he isn’t sure how much longer he can keep it up. he just expects to fail, he’s sure he’ll slip up and ruin it sometime soon. he uses that certainty in his shortcomings like a crux so that when he does blow things up he can say he saw it coming all along. still, he wishes that raphael would just realize the mess he’s gotten himself into and run for the hills now, because edward is getting more and more attached every day. he’s even starting to see a future with raph, and the hope that stirs in his chest makes him feel a little sick. ).

[underthewingsofthblackeagle]

The Murderess of the Grunewald (24): Secret Whitsun Holiday on Rügen (13): Sharing Joy and Suffering (6f) - Jamie’s Story (IV)

“Tür” by Pexels

Previously

Monday night, Whitsun weekend 2020, three days after Claire's release from prison

                 "And? Was the lady a 'rock solid Scot'?"

         "Well, her ancestors, like our ancestors, fled through Sweden to Danzig after the Battle of Culloden and later moved westward. After World War I, they settled in Berlin. And later, just before the wall was built, they also fled to the western part of the city. There she was born and went to school."

          "How do you know that?"

          "Oh, Claire! Of course, Jenny had already learned all that, and of course, that was the topic at lunch the day I met her."

          Jamie was silent for a moment.

          "She studied ecotrophology and then met her husband Ronald at the annual meeting of a traditional Scottish History Association. Later, they opened a restaurant, which made good profits. He took care of the business and the bar, she took care of the kitchen and the guests. But the success made him careless. He got engaged, well, let's say it this way, with people in the wrong circles. Then he also started to drink and became violent to her and their son. Nevertheless, she stayed with him, probably because of the child. Ronald died in a fire when his restaurant burned down. It is not clear what caused the fire. But the police suspected that he had troubles with several people. Perhaps Russians, protection racketeering. It seems he had upset someone, very much - and someone literally lit the house over his head. On the evening of the fire, he was drunk and had gone to sleep in the back room of the restaurant. He died of smoke poisoning before the house collapsed on top of him. Luckily, she and the child were in the family home a few blocks away. Thank God, nothing happened to them.

“Bier” by viganhajdari

         "Uh!"

         Claire looked at Jamie in concern.

         Both reached for their teacups at the same time. Was it genuine thirst or a gesture of embarrassment? Neither of them would have been able to give an exact answer. When Claire set her cup down again, she asked:

         "And? Was the woman, now a widow, looking for a father for her child?"

         "I can’t tell you," Jamie replied, still holding his cup in both hands.

         "We didn’t talk about that at all. As far as I know, there was insurance for the fire damage and she was probably also paid the life insurance of her husband. She and her son seemed to be well provided for."

         Still, he rotated his teacup back and forth in both hands. Claire knew he had a hard time talking about the matter, so she tried not to pressure Jamie. It took a few moments, then he put his cup on the coffee table. His breathing was heavy, it seemed as if he wanted to suck all the oxygen that surrounded him into his lungs. Then he clapped his hands over his face, took another deep breath and gave himself a jerk.

         "It's so embarrassing, Claire! So embarrassing!"

         Claire put her right arm around his shoulders and hugged him tightly as if she felt the need to hold Jamie's body together.

         "Actually, it was a nice day ... I arrived at the estate for half an hour before lunch ... The kids loved it, they had been looking forward to this day ... and, of course, to the presents, I brought with me ... When it was time for lunch, Jenny introduced me to this rock solid Scottish woman. Of course, I knew right away that this was once again one of Jenny's coupling attempts."

         "Why ... why didn’t you leave immediately?"

         "Oh, Claire," he replied, looking at her with eyes that begged for understanding.

         "I was looking forward to this day. I was happy to see my nieces and nephews. I was happy to escape the hot and humid Berlin, which was suffering from the summer heat. For several weeks, I had represented a client in a case before the  District Court, which was subject-specific but also emotionally very difficult. All I wanted was to be with my family, enjoy nature, drink some beer with Ian, have a good conversation, I just wanted to relax. Besides, I thought that Jenny had learned her lesson after her last misunderstanding ... after all, the whole thing had ended in court."

         Again he clapped his hands over his face and breathed audibly in and out.          "Please do not believe that it was easy for me to separate myself from my family. I ... I love them ... everyone ... including my sister ... You can not ... dis-sibling yourself  ... even ... if you sometimes would love to do that."          One more time he went silent for a moment. Claire could not see if he was just searching for the right words or if he needed time to gather his strength for the next step.          "No longer seeing my nieces and nephews ... to no longer seeing Jenny and Ian ... not going to Potsdam anymore ... where we spent so many happy years with my parents ... in the house, whose rooms are full of all the wonderful memories ... No, Claire ... even today it feels as if I had ripped out a part of my heart ... Potsdam, Claire, that was my home too!"          Claire's grip tightened on Jamie's shoulders. With her left hand, she pulled his face down to her and kissed him. Deep inside, his words had touched an area she had almost forgotten. Home.        

“Saint Peter & Saint Paul, Wantage” * Picture by Andrew Mathewson via WikiMediaCommons

         She too had had a home - once. The big house that lay on the unnamed branch of  Loks Lane, just beyond the Ford River, amid old, tall trees. Whenever she had walked this way to their home, alone or together with her parents, she had felt like she was in a fairyland. Built from the large, gray stones that were characteristic of this region of the country, in her childish imagination it looked more like a medieval castle than the residential house her parents had inherited from Papa’s parents. Looking back, the phrase ‘My home is my castle’ meant more than words to her. From their home, it took only a few minutes to get to Betjeman Millennium Park. And from there one reached the Church of St. Peter & St. Paul in just some more minutes. The massive 13th-century building, with its bright interior and stained-glass windows, had impressed Claire since she'd first consciously noticed it. Her earliest memories went back to a Christmas celebration in this church. She could still see it right up to the present: the big lights left and right next to the altar, the adults seated in their pews. And she could see herself sitting on the floor in front of the pews, busy playing with some toys. The choir sang the wonderful hymn of Gustav Holst In the bleak midwinter, which she had never forgotten and which she should forever associate with that feeling of home.

         Home, that was back then - back when her parents were still alive. But this home was lost. Like the memory of her parents, the memory of home was fading over the years. Today, Oxfordshire, Junction Loks Lane was just an address like any other.          

         The globetrotting life that she had led for so many years with her uncle Lambert had been exciting and interesting. But as much as her uncle loved her, Lambert Quentin Beauchamp could not really give her a home.         

         Then, years later, when she met Frank Randall, a certain hope sprang up in her heart: Together, they would start a family and create a home for themselves and their children. At last, she would get back what she had lost many years ago. And she had sworn herself, that she would do anything to make this new home for Frank and the children a place full of love, joy, and liveliness. They would be happy and enjoy life together. The joy she would see on her family's faces when they would be together in their home - this joy would give her the strength to do all the work that was required to run a large household. The love of her husband and the love of her children would compensate her for every sacrifice. She was convinced of that. But her hope had not been fulfilled. Worse, her hopes had turned exactly the opposite. Her dream had become a nightmare. Instead of living in a home filled with children's laughter, shared joy, and mutual love, she found herself in a cage. It was a golden cage, indeed. But it was tight and it cut her off from everything that makes a life worth living. And towards the end of her life with Frank, she had given up any hope that she would ever be happy again, that she would ever find a home. During the days she took pills to stay happy and awake and in the evenings she tried to fall asleep with the help of alcohol. Her life felt like a spiral that went only one way - down.         

         And when she was arrested the second time, her life seemed to have reached its endpoint. The only home she could expect until the end of her life was a 9-square-meter cell in a Berlin jail.          

         But then Jamie had entered the meeting room of the police department - and her life. And again there was a hope growing in her heart. But to this day, Claire had not allowed that hope to really take root in her heart. The fear of hoping for a home and then losing it before it had even become reality kept her firmly under control.

“Wohnzimmer” by JamesDeMers

         Jamie stood up suddenly and his movement tore Claire from her thoughts. He took a few steps to the fireplace, propping his arms against the mantelpiece. Then, all of a sudden, he pushed himself away and turned around jerkily.                  "He takes a warm-up."         

         The thought hit her hard, and inwardly she braced herself for the confession that would follow. His behavior had not escaped Bismarck. The dog had raised his head and was watching Jamie's movements attentively, while Adso was sleeping well-fed (and at peace with himself and the world) on one of the chairs at the dining table.          

         "The day went well and the party was nice. There were also some old friends from Jenny’s and my school days. After lunch, I joined some of them and avoided being alone with that woman. After coffee, Ian and I went for a ride with the older kids and after dinner, the whole company split up into groups. I joined Ian and the other men. They had made themselves comfortable in the garden with good cigars and old whiskey, while the women brought the children to bed and then sat together on the terrace with a glass of wine. Shortly after 10 pm I said goodbye and went to my room to sleep. I didn’t drink that much, but I didn’t want to drive that Sunday night. The next morning I had to be in Berlin. There were appointments scheduled with clients. So I said goodbye and everything seemed to be o.k."         

         Jamie had walked around the room without looking at her. Now he was back in front of the couch. Claire looked at him. Then she held out her right hand. He took it and she gently pulled him down.         

         "And what happened then?"         

         The words came softly out of her mouth, almost hesitantly. Claire herself was astonished when she heard them.         

         "I was in my room for maybe ten or fifteen minutes when there was a knock on the door. I thought it was Jenny - or Ian. So I called 'Come in!' And suddenly the rock-solid Scottish woman in her nightgown stood in front of my bed and started to undress! I told her to stop it. But she refused and said something about loneliness and that she was sorry for me. We could comfort each other in our loneliness."         

         Jamie shuddered, then fell silent for a moment.         

         "Can you imagine that?"  

         He took a deep breath, but only to relieve more of his anger.

         “How should I call that? Mercy sex?!”       

         Claire was startled by the sudden volume he spoke with. It seemed as if he wanted to jump up every moment. The vein, that run from his hairline to the root of his nose and which only became visible when he was trying hard, thinking hard, or when he was angry (and the latter was probably the case right now), was noticeably swollen. But Claire held his hands tight.         

         "What did you do?" she asked in a whisper.         

         "I opened the door and asked her to leave. But she didn’t want to, she tried to argue. I grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her over the threshold. Then I closed the door and locked it. I started to dress and packed my travel bag. She stood in front of my door for a few minutes. Then she probably realized that I wouldn’t take her offer and she went to her room. Sometime later, I sneaked out of the room and down the stairs. In the hall, I met Jenny. She had gotten a glass of water from the kitchen ... " 

“Eingang” by Tama66

         Jamie paused. Claire held her breath.        

         "Jenny asked what I was doing with my travel bag in the hall and I told her that I would leave and never come back. She looked at me as if she did not know what had happened. She ... she played the ignorance in person! As if this woman had dared to come to my room if Jenny hadn’t encouraged her! I ... I was so angry, Claire! So angry!"

         "I understand you, Jamie," she whispered.

         Once again she put her arm around his shoulders.

         "I dropped the bag to the ground, grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her. It broke out of me like lava from Mount Etna. I shouted at her and told her that she had made a brothel out of our parents' house and that I would never forgive her for that. I took my bag and slammed the door behind me ... Then ... I drove to ... Kartzow Palace."

“Schloss Kartzow” by  Axel Hindemith [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)] via WikiMediaCommons         

          Jamie took a deep breath and Claire began stroking his back reassuringly with her right hand.

          "Katzow Palace was once a Prussian manor house. Today it is a hotel. The drive home would have taken only about 45 minutes, but I was so upset ... so upset ...  I didn’t want to risk an accident. I knew that at Kartzow they have a 24-hour reception ... so ... I  got a room and then stayed there."

          He lowered his head and said nothing.

          "And since then there's been silence between you and Jenny," Clair noted in a tone so calm she was once more surprised. Looking at Jamie now, she noticed that his eyes were filling with tears.

          "Yes, since then I have not seen Jenny or the kids. Only with Ian do I meet every now and then when he's in Berlin for business. We stay in contact via email and he provides me with pictures of my nephews and nieces ... Oh, Claire! They've grown so much these four years, I don’t even know if they would recognize me at all ... "

          Claire wished she could say something that would be a real comfort to Jamie right now. But everything she could think of seemed trivial, superficial, meaningless. She knew what it felt like to lose one's family. She knew what it felt to be torn away from home. And she knew that nothing could be a substitute for this singular place called home. Except maybe - a new home. Could she give him this new home? She didn’t know, and if she was honest, she had to admit that there was this little space in her heart that was hosting a big doubt.

         They sat in silence for a while. Jamie had his head against her shoulder and Claire had begun to gently run her hands through his hair, massaging his head. When she looked at her watch, she saw that it was nearly one o'clock at night.

        "Jamie?" she asked softly.

        "Hmm?"

        "I am very grateful that you have told me these things."

        He looked at her and nodded.

        "Let's go to bed now."

        Once again he only nodded. Then they got up, extinguished the light and went up, followed by Bismarck and Adso.

        That night, Claire was laying awake a long time. Jamie had fallen asleep relatively quickly and, as so often, lay on his back with hands folded over his chest. As she looked at Jamie's face, lit by the moonlight, she wondered if this man who had suffered so much did not deserve a better wife than the one she could ever be.

Thank you for reading. Next time, read: “The Murderess from the Grunewald (25): Secret Whitsun Holiday on Rügen (14): Sharing Joy and Sorrow (6g) - Jamie’s Story (V)”

[thestarwrites]

City of God IV (Finan x OC)

Fic Summary: Finan the Agile meets a Celt-Saxon woman, and for once he can’t think of anything else. Kelly has been residing with Hild in Coccham, will their connection deepen now tthey have time?

Part Four

Rating: Adult Language?

Please don’t plagiarize! Tag list; (please DM me if you’d like to be added!) @nxrdist @joyofbebbanburg @medievalfangirl @bookworm925 @buckysskye @jcalpha1@sprinkles617

word count: 2,877

The young woman had been in Coccham for about six months. She would send messengers to her mother every week, and sometimes she would have Finan take her home to visit with them, when Uhtred did not need him for a day, but mostly when he was in Coccham, she was with him. Alone. He taught her how to be more effective with her sword, he barely held back. She would help him learn to cook, and he was a willing pupil, so unlike other men of the age. He thought it was a blessing to have such a woman in his life, someone so willing to share in every aspect of his life, and who he wanted to share in hers. Some of the other men in Coccham teased him about not being in charge of her, not having humped her yet— he didn’t care. After all he’d been through, he had a bright sun shining on him now.

The one problem Kelly was having was the King’s apparently now sober nephew. Aethelwold kept coming by Coccham while Uhtred for the better part of a week, but Uhtred and his men were away on a brief mission. He was a little gnat buzzing around Coccham. Kelly detested the sight of the King’s nephew, she couldn’t figure out what on earth was so important for him to speak to Uhtred about, and only Uhtred. He had also been trying to court her for several months now. She tried to always be around Finan while Aethelwold was there in Coccham. However, Finan was away, though due back any time now, with Uhtred, Sihtric, Clapa and the others one evening when he approached, “Ah, hello, Kelly.” He cooed softly. “Aethelwold.” She said curtly as she tried to walk past him. He clutched his chest, “I’m hurt you dismiss me so easily!” “Let go of me, please.” The man smiled, releasing her, “You won’t even speak with me? Not even now? I have not had a drop of ale in almost a fortnight, and I am burdened with great purpose.” “Then you should go to the bathroom already and unburden yourself.” Aethelwold grit his teeth, “You will be mine, girl.” Kelly rolled her eyes, “Must you continue to pester me? You must know you’re not wanted.” “I didn’t know you were yet spoken for.” She cleared her throat, “I am not, however I have higher standards than cockroaches.” “I am a King by rights you insolent girl.” He growled softly, “You should apologize.” “I’m sorry you’re a horses ass,” she turned to walk away, “Good day.” He grabbed her wrist once again, pulling her toward him and twisting her arm to keep her close, just as Finan, Sihtric and Uhtred walked through the gates. Aethelwold went to steal a kiss and Kelly kneed him in the groin. He cried out in pain and fell to the dirt, “Don’t you EVER grab me again!” She turned and was met with the face of the man she loved. His eyebrows were raised and he smirked, “Problem?” “Not anymore.” She huffed, going to him and wrapping her arms around his neck in a warm and loving embrace. His own arms came around her waist and he hummed in her ear, pressing a soft kiss to her forehead, “Welcome home.” She whispered. Finan smiled and held her tighter, “Never have I felt so happy to be home, my girl. I’ve missed ye.” Kelly smiled, “You were only gone s few days.” “An eternity without you.” He chuckled- turning to look as Aethelwold slinked away into Uhtreds hall. He grimaced s minute, “That worm ever bothers ye again, cut off his balls.” “Yes, Lord.” She chuckled. Finan smirked, “Come- I want to see if ye practiced any of yer sword-skill while I was away- I’ll even let ye practice against Sihtric.” He winked, “Oi! Sihtric! Come an’ spar wit’ us!” Sihtric grinned, “Want me ta embarrass ye in front of yer woman again?” “Pft! Like ye ever did or could!” “Boys boys, please-“ Kelly smirked, “There is no need to fight so, we all know who the fiercest warrior in Coccham is.” “And who’s that?” Sihtric blinked. “Me of course.” She smirked. Sihtric laughed and turned to offer her a piggy-back ride. The girl got on and held to his neck and she laughed as he bounced her about, “Kelly the Man Slayer!!” He cheered. Finan laughed and took it upon himself to smack her arse as they passed. Kelly gasped, “That’s it— I’m cutting your balls off too, Finan!” “I’d like ta see ye try, Princess.”

They lay under the stars that night, and as was their ritual, they kissed for long periods of time, just basking in each other, in the warm affection they had for one another. Running her hand over his ever-growing hair she hummed, “What did Aethelwold want with Lord Uhtred?” Finan thought for a few moments, thinking if he should tell her the truth or not before deciding a half truth would suffice, “He wants to be King.” She rolled her eyes and sat up, looking down at him, “He’s always wanted to be King. What’s so different that he wants Uhtred? What’s changed?” They met eyes and she sighed, “I understand. None of my business.” Kelly lay back down, looking at the sky. “Its just dangerous business.” “Not dangerous for you I hope, Irishman.” Finan pulled her to him once more, “Everything is dangerous for me. And while you’re with me, things are more dangerous for you as well, girl. And I have ta do my best ta protect ye, understand?” She nodded, “I’m trying to.” “I’ll never leave ye in the complete dark, alright? Aethelwold thinks he can get Uhtred to turn on the King, thats what he’s always been trying ta do, but this time he’s talkin’ of ghosts and prophecies and… I don’t know what’s going ta happen. Who knows, we may be crossin’ into Daneland, which is a crime.” “Take me with you.” Finan looked to him, “Wha? No. Out of the question.” “Finan!” She huffed, “I know enough sword-skill to be useful!” “No against Danes, love, I’m sorry but the answer is no.” She huffed. He groaned, “Why can’ ye be a normal girl an want to cook me food and mend my socks?” Kelly sighed and ran a hand on his neck, “Because girls who want to mend your socks don’t also want to kiss you in the middle of a field in the middle of the night.” And with that, they resumed kissing. Kelly putting the thought of going into Daneland to rest for now, especially with everything so uncertain. They’d stopped for a moment to catch their breath after a while. Kelly resting against his side, head on his shoulder, she whispered, “A penny for your thoughts?” A finger tracing over her kiss-swollen lips. “Just wondering how I gained God’s favor.” “God’s favor?” She mused, stroking her hand over his chest. Taking a deep breath he pulled her snugly against him, “Remember when I said I was married? Before?” “Yes.” “I was a prince. In Ireland.” His voice was soft. Kelly blinked a moment, sitting up and looking at him. She almost wanted to laugh and make a joke- but she stopped herself, not wanting to spoil his truth-telling moment, “You were a prince?” Finan moved a hand up to stroke through her unbound hair, “Aye. I had land, horses, men, two sons… an’ this miserable wife.” After another few moments of silence, he continued, “She was a royal daughter of the Uí Néill. My younger brother, Conall had this wife, a simple dairy maid from Ó Domhnaill, the neighborin’ town. It didn’ matter who he married, so he married this beautiful girl, full of life, but he didn’t love her. We tried to elope. We rode south to hide. The Uí Néill pursued me for dishonoring their daughter. And I was stripped of everything. Conall took my wife for his own.” She sat up and looked down at him, “Oh Finan.” Looking down he wiped his eyes, “I killed one o’ my sons, who tried ta kill me first. And Conall is probably raisin the other as we speak. An then the Uí Néill sold me into slavery, doin’ me the one courtesy of not revealing me as royalty.” Kelly looked at him, crying gently. But he reached up to cup her face, “But I was unhappy, you see? An’ now I have everything I could ever want. A Lord who is more a brother to me, friends, a home, plenty of fighting to be had, food, and a beautiful girl ta spend my time with. God made beauty out of the ashes of my life.” Kelly leaned down and kissed him, no words were needed to be said. After a few moments of kissing, Finan spoke again, “Don’ tell anyone. No one knows.” The girl made a cross over her heart and cuddled back down into the crook of his arm, and sighed softly. After a few moments she whispered, “I love you.” He swallowed, looking down at the crown of her head, pressing a kiss there, “An’ I, love you.” He hadn’t told a woman he loved her since Ireland, and he was wondering if he truly meant it, or if he was too tainted to love again. They fell asleep under the stars that night, wrapped in each other’s love.

The day after, they had gone to visit in Wintecester once more. After Finan and Kelly visited with her father and mother, the boys wanted to go to the ale house, to stay up late and play drinking games. Finan had asked if Kelly would join them instead of going back to the townhouse. He wanted her with him everywhere. Upon entering the two cranes with Finan, a few of the drunker men turned to greet her— Some smirked, some approached her. A large looking guard walked up to her and pushed her hair back, “‘Ello little girl… looking for company?” Her cheeks flushed, “No. I am not. And please don’t touch me.” She moved to walk away toward the table where Sihtric, Uhtred and Clappa already sat with some others in their close circle. Finan felt upset that she didn’t say she was here with her man. And as she turned to walk away three of the men were looking at her rear. One even nudged Finan and smirked, “Look at that fat arse— I bet she’d be a good hump, aye?” His jaw tensed and he pushed away from the man, going where Kelly walked, watching her deny advances from man after man. The Coccham Squad sat at a long table in the rear of the tavern. Kelly sat aside Finan, drinking a cup of ale slowly, she kept looking upstairs at the women beckoning men into bedrooms and she flushed, looking to Finan. The Irishman was already on his third ale. Aethelwold the pest sat on the left of Kelly, though she only had eyes for Finan, even though he was practically ignoring her, drinking cup after cup of ale. Across from them sat sat Sihtric, Uhtred, and Clapa. “Ever lain with a real man, girl?” The king’s nephew said low to her, “My cock is sure to pleasure you—“ He wasn’t drunk, but he had been keeping unusually close to Uhtred since the previous day. “Excuse me?” Kelly turned to him. Finan looked with a scowl as he noted more men staring at her, undressing her with their eyes, and hearing Aethelwold he clenched his fist. Aethelwold leaned in to whisper in her ear, "I assure you, lass, your Irishman could never bring you the pleasure I could.” Kelly gasped and turned around to slap him, "I am not a tavern girl up for a price!” She screeched, “And if you dare show me your puny cock, I can guarantee you you’ll never use it again.” She threatened. As the man’s face turns red at being threatened, Sihtric shouts, “Yeah! Take THAT! Kelly the MAN SLAYER IS AFOOT!” And the Coccham squad laughs heartily— well, all but Finan. Kelly blushed and sat back down, draining her cup, and when she got a second she went to down that as well- Finan, who was on his fifth by now, takes the mug gently, “Easy, girl." Yanking her arm from him, she spilled ale over herself and she yelped, looking down at her ruined dress. She looked up at him with angry eyes, “My dress!” She yelled, “You’re drunk! Why can’t I be?” “Best watch out, Finan, she’ll cut off your balls too!” Uhtred laughed. Finan grit his teeth and looked jealous. Every man in the pub had their eyes all over his woman, “FINE. Get drunk! Go home with someone else! See if I care! My cock will find a home elsewhere!” He shouted in her face, and stormed upstairs in the tavern to find female company.         Kelly watched him going upstairs for a lay, and she stood, tearing out of the pub, crying. She knew he was drunk, but how could he speak to her that way? What did she do? Didn’t he only last night say he loved her? Or was his cock just trying to find a home then too?         “Kelly! Wait!!” Sihtric called, getting up and chasing after her, Clapa following in tow. Aethelwold sat at the table laughing.         Uhtred scowled and stood, going upstairs. He heard the sound of familiar grunting and he kicked open the door- and there was Finan, a woman sucking his cock, “Finan!” He roared. The girl recoiled and scurried from the room. The Irishman turned and looked at him with daggers, “Oi!! I paid for an hour!!” He shouted, slurring as he tied up his breeches. His Lord approached him and grabbed the front of his shirt, “How could you do this? Your woman is outside! Crying after the way you spoke to her!”         “Every man in the tavern is all over her and not once has she said she’s with someone else! Never once has she said she’s spoken for! So obviously it means nothin to her!” He slurred          “You brought her to the tavern, my friend.” Uhtred sighed, “Besides, you’ve never asked her to marry you. You’ve never asked her to be yours.” “She shou’ know!” He grunted, “We’ve been kissin’ a’ holdin’ hands an—“ “Stolen kisses in fields and alleys are not a marriage arrangement. How can she think she’s spoken for with a drunken sod like you getting your cock sucked in an ale house! After you told her your cock would find a new home elsewhere!”          Finan looked down and covered his eyes, he felt them begin to prick with tears, “Lord-“          Uhtred went to him, “Go back to the inn, my friend. Sihtric and Clapa have gone after Kelly, she ran out crying. You can talk to her tomorrow after you sober up, and I suggest you beg on your knees for forgiveness.” “Yes, Lord.” He looked up, eyes red with remorseful tears, moving to leave. As the Irishman staggered from the pub, he saw Sitric cooing to his woman, stroking her hair while Clapa held her as she sobbed. His insides felt twisted to look at her, to see his two friends holding her in a way he’d not yet been able to.

As he stared at her crying form, she looked up. Her red wet eyes met his and he was too ashamed to continue to look, he looked down and moved to leave. “I don’t understand, Sihtric!” She wept into the crook of the young Dane’s neck, Clapa standing right behind her, “We’ve been spending so much time together! And he goes upstairs to-“ she covered her eyes and started to sink to the ground.          Clapa caught the young woman, pulling her back up and holding her close to him as she cried, the two Danes liked Kelly immensely, and thought Finan and Kelly made a great couple. Sihtric, as a newlywed himself, was so disappointed in his friend, they’d have some words tomorrow, “Kelly, let us take you back home.” “I don’t want to go home— Coccham is my h-home…” Sihtric held out his hands and Clapa helped the girl into the younger Dane’s arms, “What do you want to do? Do you want to go back to Coccham with us tonight?” She nodded, “I- I want to be with Hild.” She insisted. Clapa frowned, looking at Sitric, “As the lady wishes, then?” Uhtred came out of the tavern, pushing his messed hair back, coming over to the threesome with a small smile, “Come now… don’t take anything that drunken fool has to say.” He put a hand on Kelly’s shoulder, “You three go back home. I’ll stay here at the inn so Finan may know how utterly he’s loused things up.” Kelly nodded, “Th-thank you, Lord.” He gave a smile and walked on after where Finan walked.

Clapa and Sihtric took Kelly back to Coccham, where the Abbess cooed and held to her until she fell asleep. What a mess the Irishman had made.

[jflashandclash]

Traitors of Olympus IV: The Fall of the Sun

Forty-One: Hazel

When Your Mom Scolds the Hope Out of You

             While Hazel rolled between the legs of two battling giants—Eris and some weird chicken-lizard thing—she stabbed a ghoul through the ribcage. She came to a stumbled stop at the horrifying sight of Melinoe and wished Nico was here to help her fight.

           Of course, she also hoped he was safely away, somewhere that hadn’t been crushed by Python or raided by creepy sleep-walking puppets. But, really she would rather he was strong enough to stand with his Stygian iron sword and do some ghoul puppeting of his own. She’d never been as good at controlling the dead, and, if it were up to her, she’d have Miss Half-Mummy-Half-Charcoal doing the Charleston dance.

           If this ghost was Melinoe.

           “Poisoned child!” Queen Marie Levesque stood and screamed where the Goddess of Ghosts had been moments before. She stumbled towards Hazel with a knife.

           Hazel almost dropped her spatha.

           When Gaea manipulated her mother’s voice, Gaea slipped into her own gravelly tone. Here, this creature had the same look of anger, frustration, desperation, and disappointment so familiar to her mother. Here, Melinoe frowned and screamed identical to Queen Marie. Although Hazel hadn’t had one in so long, she thought she was lost in a flashback, one she’d deeply repressed. But, she couldn’t be. This was real.

           While Queen Marie staggered forward with a knife, four other ghosts came closer in Hazel’s peripheral. In her shock, she probably would have been overwhelmed had a blast of water not slapped her in the face.

           Confusion interrupted her terror.

           When Hazel shook the droplets out of her cinnamon hair, she caught the distant glimpse of Percy. He had pulled Annabeth into his lap on the throne of Saturnalia and dragged Piper close—to protect them. One of his hands outstretched towards Hazel. Even from where she stood, she could tell his face was tight with rage as his mouth moved to shout. Tears streaked down his cheeks while he watched his home get ravaged.

           Over that and the chaos, she couldn’t really hear Percy, but, she assumed he was saying, “THAT’S NOT YOUR MOTHER!” and not something about “boar smother.” Likely not the latter—though Phobetor did seem to enjoy morphing into a giant boar.

           Ah, Hazel thought, Eris said Percy couldn’t fight her people. She didn’t say anything about slapping sense back into his friends.

           A voice much louder and clearer, almost too high-pitched for comfortable listening, shrieked beside her, “Tiny child of Pluto, make like a dough lump and ROLL!”

           Hazel dove to the side.

           A giant combat boot with a talon poking out the back and several in the front smashed the ground she had been standing on. Marie Levesque had also dodged to the opposite side, but the four ghostly figures hadn’t moved. Three that should have been smashed instead dissipated and reemerged on either side of the foot. The one that got impaled by the ankle talon poofed, making Hazel wonder if that talon were coated with Stygian iron.

           The giant eagle-snake raised its combat boot up, slammed it back down for better footing, and shoved Eris away from the strawberry field.

           Hazel pushed off the icy dirt, snatching up her spatha. She wished Arion was here, so she could run away from her mother and reevaluate everything from a distance.

           Now that she had broken her line of sight from Melinoe, her childhood terror quieted. She could focus enough to see five Romans and the counselor from Iris’ cabin in a small defensive circle around two downed bodies, one a centurion and one a soldier. They slashed through oncoming ghosts, but there weren’t enough of them to make a proper defensive circle. They wouldn’t be able to hold out much longer, or keep the ghosts out of the camp.

           From their other side, the God of Nightmares and his sleep-walking troop were about to flank them.

           Hazel’s stomach twisted when she thought about what must have happened to Lou Ellen. The daughter of Hecate, who had promised Hazel that she could handle Phobetor alone, was nowhere to be seen. Hazel hadn’t considered that Lou Ellen might have been bluffing and was running low on spells. She had recently pigballed a god after all, and might have fallen easily after Hazel left.

           Hazel would have to thank Percy for snapping her out of it later and the giant bird-thing for… warning her? First, she needed to bust these ghosts, defeat Melinoe, and wrangle Phobetor.

           An army. Two gods. No biggy?

           Hazel quivered.

           Another troop of ghosts were almost upon her, carrying cleavers, pitchforks and a traffic cone. Marie Levesque—no-no—Melinoe stalked towards her.

           Hazel reached a hand towards the sleep-walking campers that were about to attack Butch’s troop. A tug hit her gut. With a flick of her wrist, she disarmed the sleepwalkers. Their weapons spun from their grasps, whipping towards Hazel, until she redirected them to slam into the oncoming ghosts and Melinoe.

           The ghosts shrieked and dissipated under the holy metal. Marie screamed and almost made Hazel freeze up again.

           Her mother stood there, a scowl and wrinkles marring her beautiful face. She clutched where a celestial dagger had imbedded into her saffron robes. “Poisoned child!” she yelled. “Worthless. The main gift your father gave me, and it ended up being a worthless child that would kill her own mother twice!”

           “No! You’re gone! You’re in the Fields of Asphodel!” Hazel choked back tears, struggling to remember that wasn’t her mother she just stabbed. Right? Melinoe couldn’t actually conjure her mother, could she? Hazel didn’t sense the Mist around her.

           “And who put me there?!” Marie demanded.

           Hazel stumbled backwards from the goddess, repositioning her spatha into a defensive stance. With her other hand, she battled with herself to maintain control on the floating celestial and imperial blades. The other ghosts she’d struck had dissipated. Marie had not, and Hazel wasn’t sure she could bring herself to attack her mother again. [1]

           When she saw someone else help the Romans beyond them, Hazel’s tears turned to relief.

           On Butch’s other side, an elephant stampeded the ghosts that were about to flank their allies. Her heart warmed to see Frank tossing the more corporeal ghouls left and right. Some sleep walkers even stirred as he and the giants’ steps made the earth shake. Maybe Phobetor was stretched too thin with keeping the Mist barrier down and controlling a sleep-walking army.

           Seeing Frank gave her hope and reminded her not to listen to this wretched woman—this wretched goddess.

           Butch and the others cheered at his presence.

           The raging elephant morphed into a swarm of wasps—causing some not-so-sleepy sounding cries from the sleep walkers, now jumping awake in shock—then morphed into a gorilla mid-lunge at Phobetor.

           The creepy minstrel raised his piccolo-hatchet to pipe in staccato.

           The few sleepwalkers still asleep collapsed to the ground as—Hazel assumed in horror—Phobetor released them from his spell.

           At the same time, the gorilla face-planted.

           Frank morphed back into a human.

           “Frank!” Hazel cried. She lost control of the imperial and celestial weapons. They cluttered to the strawberry field. Her hearted pounded inside her eardrums.

           During the distraction, Hazel’s mother withdrew the blade in her stomach. She grinned maliciously and lunged at Hazel.

           Hazel barely blocked the attack with her spatha and retreated. Nico had once said he’d met Melinoe, but wouldn’t talk about it beyond that. She understood why now. Hazel felt like she’d forgotten how to control the Mist, how to fight, and how to do anything more than be a scared child, split between watching her friends be attacked and defending herself. Where had this terror come from? How could it return so quickly?

           “Cursed girl. Can’t save your friends. Can’t save your soldiers. Can’t save your love!” Marie Levesque screamed between attacks that Hazel could hardly counter. “All you do is bring misfortunate to everyone around you!”

           Beyond the Goddess of Ghosts, Hazel saw Phobetor grin down at Frank. “Ah! This one shall do nicely!” he said before piping out a few notes.

           Frank jerked to his feet, but his posture was off. Hazel knew his eyes would be closed.

           The previously sleepwalking, now confused Greeks were defenseless when the ghosts turned to attack them. Hazel had taken away their weapons. They scrambled for a way to defend themselves and the Romans tried to join their rank.

           This was too much. The undead army seemed never ending. Every one they took down, more shadows seemed to pour in. How many had snuck out from the Underworld? How many had used her brother like an EasyPass fast lane? How long before her friends fell to panic and exhaustion?

           Hazel needed to save the camp and all of her friends. She’d won impossible battles before, but this was different. She felt alone. Percy couldn’t fight. Annabeth and Piper were too sick. Neither Jason nor Leo had returned. They’d wasted so much of their energy and magic fighting the Triple A Chimera the night prior, and she was the only one who came out mostly unscathed.

           Hazel fell to pieces at the thought of Phobetor making Frank kill the Romans that he’d just saved.  She wondered where Clovis was, if the son of Hypnos was still alive, and if he had the strength to help her wake Frank.

           Her insides quivered to think that this time, without her friends and without the gods to help, Hazel might be about to die again. They all might be about to die. Hazel didn’t mind sacrificing herself in Alaska to stall Gaea. She did mind failing this group of Romans and Camp Half-Blood. She minded not being able to save Frank.

           Something made her shakes become violent.

           Although the ground had been rumbling with each of the battling giants’ steps, the vibration became more consistent, almost rhythmically so. Hazel could sense the ground shifting a few yards away, further outside where the Mist barrier should have been.

           At first, she thought Python was about to make another hole for a second grand entrance. But, it couldn’t have been her; the massive drakon had paused by the cabins, as did a figure running towards the draken, the sinister gleam of the Cloven Terror.

           Even the ghouls seemed to hesitate.

           It was a song coming from the ground.

           When the sound became loud enough to distinguish a terrible cacophony of words, Hazel gritted her teeth, wondering if this song was one more way for the gods attacking their camp to dishearten them.

           “Heartbroken, we found a gleam of hope.

           Hearken to the sound, a whistle blows.

           Heaven sent a reply, however small.

           Evidence of life beyond these walls.”

           Hazel couldn’t tell if it was the shaking ground or the pressure in her eardrums that sent her to her knees. Others, ghosts and allies alike, fell near her. Even the two giants faltered, though, one laughed in squawkish delight. “My favorite lyrical maniac!”

           “We dream of jailers throwing down their arms.

           We dream of open gates and no alarms.

           Look to the day the Earth will shake.

           These weathered walls will fall away.”[2]

           Right as the dissonance became unbearable, the earth itself seemed to give before anyone else.

           Outside the strawberry field, and just outside camp, the grass sagged downward.

           The singing abruptly stopped.

           “K’oop!”[3]

           A male and female voice cried in harmony.

           Then, a greenish, glowing fist smashed through the weakened earth’s surface.

           Something massive crawled out of the hole.

           At first, it looked like a holographic projection—a twenty-foot-tall glowing greenish-turquoise woman with the head of a bestial feline. The semi-transparent warrior had claws as long and sharp as Hazel’s spatha and fangs the same length. At first, Hazel felt herself despair. How were they supposed to fight this along with all the others?

            A familiar voice shouted, “ROMANS! FEAR DOES NOT CONTROL US! WE CONTROL IT! LIKE WE WILL TAKE BACK CONTROL OF THIS BATTLEFIELD!”

           Hazel almost sobbed to hear Reyna. Her terror dissolved.

           When Hazel blinked through the tears, unsure why she had been in doubt before, she could see four figures riding on the cat warrior’s shoulders. In the center of the greenish avatar, a man’s body hovered. When it braced forward, the avatar mimicked his movement and did the same.

           “What in Tartarus is that?!” Phobetor demanded, apparently forgetting his control over Frank. His kiwi bird skull twisted to look at Eris, now shrinking in the lack of continued mayhem.

           “I’m starting with him,” said a girl balanced perfectly on the outside of the cat warrior’s right shoulder. The familiar daughter of Demeter had a faint glow of her own. Euna gestured towards the God of Nightmares with a scythe. With her other hand, she tilted her head back and appeared to drop something into her eye.

           Phobetor huffed. “I beg your pardon?!”

           “Thalia, let’s you and I give the Cloven Terror some cover fire. Don’t want that dodgy prick getting all the glory,” said a hulking figure crouching by the cat’s neck and grabbing on for dear life.

           “Oh my gods!” The huntress’ voice shook with rage from the other side of the neck. “Python wrecked Artemis’ cabin?! Let’s crush him!”

            If Hazel hadn’t been so close, she might not have heard Reyna’s finalizing strategy. Her imperial gold armor glinted in the hologram’s glow like a halo, though splotches of the metal looked tarnished and her cloak tattered. “Are you ready to make good on your debt? Help my troops as I have helped yours,” she said to the cat warrior.

           “Yes, Praetor. Then we’ll go to—” the male and female voice separated from harmony as one said, “my” and the other said, “his” before uniting to say, “brother.” With each pronoun, they split again. “Remember, I/he’s not used to this form. I/he can’t hold it for long. We need to do this fast.”

           Hazel, thankfully, didn’t see the Plague Bringer up there, but she could hear the scratchy singer from earlier howled with glee, “You heard the man-lady! Let’s kick some ass!”

Thanks for reading! Sorry this isn’t my cleanest chapter, especially at the beginning. Things kinda went to Hell in a hand basket between some work and family stuff, so I’ve been struggling to find time to clean these up. >.< Regardless, I hope you enjoyed! Stayed tuned next week for Calex’s chapter: A Boycott on Falling.

Footnote:

[1] Hazel, the level 3 Ranger, casts Blade Storm! Then she rolls a 2…

[2] Thrice. “The Earth Will Shake.” Vheissu 2005. This song is WAY older than I thought it was >>’’ (Mel, I might change the song choice later. I couldn’t find a more recent one that fit so well.)

[3] “Strike” in Mayan.

[peeterparkr]

pretty woman iv|t.h.

collaboration with @marvelousxtsh  and @misformarvel my girls ♡  here’s the next one, enjoy.

a/n: Okay so the exciting part is finally arriving, you know, you might wana watch the movie and listen to the song NON-STOP, btw, just as you’re finishing the chapter press play to this song ;)  

series masterlist- i. ii. iii. iv. v.

after breaking up with your boyfriend, losing your job and barely hanging on to any hope, Hollywood’s sweetheart bachelor party might be the easiest way to get money.

summary: a series of ‘one on one’s

warnings: language, mentions of addiction, fake marriage

paring: tom x reader

word count: 3.8k

our masterlists: marcia | melanie | nancy

Comments & reblogs are appreciated. Be kind.

It was a hard night, the hardest they had in a long time. Amber fell asleep on his shoulder in the drive back to her home. Tom was tired but still shaken by the adverse events of the night. He contemplated the city, from the slum area they were at to the magnificent condo, where his fiancée lived. Tom remembered his talk with Y/N earlier, and he felt guilty to think he was the most miserable being on earth. Maybe love doesn’t exist and what we have is the nearest thing to it. His proposal came back to his mind, he could have done it so much better. He could have tried, at least, to make it better. Now he was asking for a miracle to release him from this absurd charade, which almost happened that night. He would never forgive himself if something happened to Amber. He could not bear to lose her.  

The driver opened the door for them. Tom lifted Amber in his arms, bridal style. She looked peaceful and fragile. For a moment he saw Amber the way the world did, and he didn't like it. Amber wasn't like that at all, she was a thunderstorm. He wanted to hear her laugh cracking the uncomfortable silence. Maybe love didn’t exist, and this was the nearest he would be from it.

Amber woke up as soon as he placed her under her bedsheets. “I don’t deserve you, schatzy” she muttered, her eyelids still heavy.

“You know that’s not true” Tom smirked, sitting on the bedside table. “You’ve been beside a hospital bed day and night for weeks if that’s not enough to deserve this.”

“I did it for me, I needed a quiet place to read my scripts," she giggled tiredly. “It was the least I could do for you, Tom. It was my fault”.

“Well, you encouraged me to do that stunt, but I was the one doing it without following the instructions” Tom grabbed her hand.

“You broke your back Thomas, you could’ve died, or worst, become a veggie.”

“Amber!” Tom stopped her. “I’d stay, but I have to change, and pick up my family from the airport, so promise me you’re gonna rest and you’re not gonna do something stupid.”

“Pinky promise, nothing stupid. At least not today” she smiled, throwing him a kiss. Tom turned the lights off and left the apartment. It was a long night and the next day was going to be longer and harder.

-

“Care to explain yourself, Y/N?” Cassie was waiting for them in their living room with her legs crossed as they entered the room. Her frown was furrowed, and her chest was covered by her arms. She was wearing her blue dress, and the red lipstick was still on. Her cold stare made Y/N uncomfortable as they strolled down to her. Maddie was carrying the red dress, as her friend watched them intently.

Y/N was wearing the sweatshirt she had borrowed from Diego. “I’m sorry, I was trying to save Mad’s friend.”

“I don’t fucking care. Look, we had a deal, you had to behave, right? And what did you do? Blow a fucking client up?” Cassie’s sharp voice was full of poison, making Y/N step back.

“Do you know how mad Senator Warren was? You ditched him and cost me a big client! All so you could have what? A fucking fairytale with Tom Holland and bang him afterwards?”

“I didn’t bang-”

“Of course you didn’t, you left. Where did you even go?” Cassie asked, and before Y/N could even answer Cassie shook her head. “You know what? I get all of this for you and then you back away the first minute. Get out, Y/N. Get out of my house.”

“No, Cassie-”

“Do you know how much money you cost me tonight?” Cassie retorted.

“Cassie-” Madeline stepped in, but Cassie was quick to shut her up.

“No, Madeline. You don’t fucking understand, because you guys got paid by Amber and me? I didn’t get anything, so whatever Amber paid for her, I get the money.”

“Well okay…”

“But I meant it, get out of my house.”

-

The ride from LAX to the hotel was eternal. Tom had a terrible headache and his parents hadn't quit talking since he picked them the airport. His mom was really excited about the wedding. He felt terrible.

The twins knew the truth about him and Amber, but Tom couldn’t tell his parents and little brother about it. They were convinced of his happiness and were very fond of Amber. Maybe that was one of the reasons Tom thought marrying her was a good idea. It made sense for everyone else, they looked perfect together.

“I can’t believe the big day is almost here” Nikki pressed his hand, showing her excitement. “Time flies. It’s like we met Amber yesterday, and she’s becoming a Holland in about three days.” Tom nervously laughed and kept driving with the last image of Amber he had in his head; passed out, laying on a stranger’s bathtub.

Tom booked rooms for his family at the same hotel he was staying in. What a marvelous idea you dick, he told to himself remembering the mocking glances of the staff when they saw Y/N walking beside him. Those glances would be on his parents now, on Amber. He did nothing, but guilt was there, ready to torture him for a while.

Haz and the twins received them with big smiles and long hugs.

“Where’s Amber?” Nikki asked right after she finished squeezing her sons. Sam panicked, and Harry tried to hide a smug grin. Before they could come up with something, Haz invented an acceptable excuse.

“My bad, I should’ve told you before but didn’t want to ruin this moment for you all. Amber called me, she tried to reach Tom, but you know the lack of signal at the airport. She’s kinda sick, so she stayed at home. She's fine now though, says it’s just a stomach bug.”

“Stomach bug, huh?” Nikki said in a suspicious tone “this isn’t a weird way to tell me I’m becoming a nan, is it?”

Tom's eyes went wide open, the twins could barely contain their laughs. “Actually, we grabbed some street food last night, and it was a terrible idea. But you know she’s more delicate than I am so poor Amber, I should probably go to see her” he tried to complete Harrison’s version. “You should check-in and go get some rest. I’m sure you need it after so many hours flying.”

The twins stayed with the rest of the family, Tom and Haz made their way up to Tom’s car. Haz was the one to break the silence.

“You still got time to cancel this whole thing. You know that?”

“Don’t fuck with me now, Haz. I’m not in the mood,” Tom snapped.

“Tom, you’re going to get married, this is nothing like accepting a role in a movie,” Haz warned his friend with pity. “It’s an actual fucking marriage, this is your life.” He knew that sugar-coating the thing wasn’t going to help at all.

“Yeah, and exactly because it’s my life I can decide to do it,” Tom retorted, Haz knew better. His friend didn’t want to do this. And the whole bullshit farce had come too far. Yes, to say they were dating was no damage, but marrying her, giving away his life to every single producer just to get himself the lead parts wasn’t exactly the guy Harrison knew. Tom had lost his essence.

“You don’t love her, you shouldn’t be marrying someone you don’t love,” said Harrison, trying then to convince him with the feelings and not with the life card, he didn’t know what card to pull anymore.

“Lots of people do that, love is bullshit anyway,” Tom shrugged.

“That's cause you haven't found it,” Harrison tried to convince his friend.

“Ah, piss off, Haz,” Tom rolled his eyes and cackled cynically. “Don't pull that kind of crap.”

“Okay, well let’s get real,” Harrison crossed his arms “I know for a fact you shouldn't get married, and Amber? Fucking Amber Healy? Are you willing to put on with all her crap? Just last night you had to look up for someone to get her out of an overdose.”

“She’ll change,” Tom looked away.

“You know that she won’t,” Haz stated.

“It’ll make me look good if I marry her. People want me to marry her,” Tom gritted his teeth.

“But do you, Thomas, do you want to marry her?” Harrison asked.

“Yes,” he hesitated.

“Bull,” Haz took a deep breath. “SHIT.”

“I can’t do anything right now, it’d kill my career if I backed away today,” explained Tom, “and I can't do that to Amber, and besides you’re not helping with this.”

“I’m your bloody best friend, and I can see that you’re unhappy and you’re ruining your life. Harry and Sam think so, too.”

“Well, I’ve already made my decision. I can’t cancel it now,” Tom shrugged, “I owe her don’t you think?”

“What she did for you is no reason to marry her. Don’t get me wrong, I love her, she’s awesome, and as a friend, she’s amazing, but she’s no wife material, she won’t make you happy.”

“Well, at least I’ll have you there,” Tom threw his hands in the air in defeat.

“Not for too long, and you know that Tom,” Haz shrugged.

-

Amber was texting in the back of her car, wearing big sunglasses to cover the big dark circles around her eyes, she had a bottle of water and was drinking some pills to cease a headache the hungover had given her. She was tapping her foot nervously as she approached the place she had been in last night. Just a few days until the wedding, and there were still a lot of things to do, and she couldn’t care any less.

It was all a farce, and it bothered her, not because of Tom, no. She loved him. But she was tired of showing her charming facade to the cameras and audiences. Giving away her perfect life and hiding her true feelings, her roots. It was impossible to keep it a secret, and without Tom, her career would’ve been ruined by now. Because, of course, someone who looked at her expected her to be what she was, an actress part of the infamous Taylor Swift squad, and every teenage girl’s role model. If only they knew. Such a mess she was, and she wasn’t proud of it, but she kept living her life as if nobody was watching because nobody was.

The latin neighborhood looked better in the morning, but it showed the true colors of the place. Amber’s gut gurgled up as she looked out to the small houses.

The place where she had made Tom go. It wasn’t fair to Tom. He deserved much better than her, and it made her feel guilty. She always wanted to make it up to him but ended up screwing up, just like last night. He couldn’t catch a break.

She arrived at the blue house and just stared at it, barely remembering what had happened. “Okay,  Alton,” Amber said to her driver and bodyguard. “It won’t take me long, but if anything happens I’ll scream or something.” she patted his back as she slid off the car.  She rang the doorbell.

“Voy (I’m coming),” the voice answered, Amber, waited up. Diego opened the door, confused to see that Amber Healy was standing right in front of him again in less than 24 hours. He was wearing a blue outfit, Amber assumed he was a nurse. “Oh.”

“Hello,” Amber greeted him and walked past him, without asking for his permission to go in. Diego stared at her and glanced at the car but then closed the door. He cursed internally, Y/N and her troubles chasing him down again and again.

“Miss Healey, this isn’t a good idea. I told you and your friends last night, but it seems like I haven’t been clear enough. This neighborhood is filled with people desperate to make some bucks, and this is Los Angeles, how long do you think it’ll take the press to post pictures of you entering my house?”

“They probably are looking up for me on the other side of the city, expecting to see me in my wedding dress, I think we’re good, and I’m gonna be quick,” Amber said. “You saved my life, and I’m getting married in about three days. You may think I’m a kook or something like that, but I really want you to come to the wedding.”

“What?” Diego laughed, thinking about how bizarre it all was. He saved Amber Healey from an overdose, who was brought by his ex, who was a prostitute now and probably hooked up with the actress’ husband to be. “I guess Y/N’s invited too” he added jokingly.

“Well, her friend Madeline’s coming. If you want I can invite her too and then you can make a move to gain her back since you’re obviously still not over her” Amber giggled and pointed at the framed pictures of the formerly happy couple.

Diego cleared his throat. “Qué? (what?) I’ve been meaning to unhang them, but I never have the time,” he explained embarrassed. “However, I’ll have to decline your offer.”

“Okay” Amber sighed and made a dramatic pause “Time to be honest, I guess. The thing is I did some research today, and I know you work with people who have this, how to say it? Inclination.”

“Now I’m really confused. Did you stalk me?” Diego frowned.

“I’m sorry, but after what you did for me I really trust you. I tend to overstep, but I really need your help. I don’t want to do this anymore. I don’t want to do this to Tom anymore”. She looked down and started bouncing one of her legs, clearly nervous. Diego recognized all of those gestures, she was asking for help with and without words. She was crumbling, and she wanted it to stop. But not for herself, she did it for Tom.

“Look, Amber. I can help you, but you have to do this for yourself, not for him, you don’t owe him anything,” Diego’s voice was soft. “You can’t be forced to do this.”

“I’m not being forced,” Amber shook her head, “I want to do this because I don’t want him to put with all of my crap.”

“Linda (pretty), if he’s marrying you he’ll kinda have to. And you’ll have to deal with his shit too. If you’re not willing to, well, bad news. That’s what happened to the couple in those pictures.”

“When you love somebody you’re willing to change for them,” Amber said. Perhaps she didn’t love Tom the way she was supposed to, but she did like him, and she wanted him to be happy with her.

Diego, oblivious of the true nature of Tom and Amber’s relationship, felt so sorry about the girl in front of him. He saw Tom as some Hollywood dude, and after seeing him coming along with Maddie and Y/N, and his girlfriend in such state, Diego saw Tom as a dickhead.

“I’ll help you girl, but I’m not coming to the wedding, I mean, how weird would that be.”

“Are you kidding me? If you’re helping me you need to come to the wedding, I need to start the day of the wedding.” Diego frowned and she did her “duh” face.

“Do you even need me there? If anything happens I’ll go or-”

“I need someone to stop me.”

“Can’t Tom do that?” Diego scowled. Her fiance wasn’t helping her. Apparently, Tom had been too busy banging Diego’s ex to pay attention to Amber.

“He’ll be too busy covering me up, and speaking with everyone,” Amber hissed. “Look, maybe you’ll hook up with someone nice. I don’t know, who do you fancy? They’ll probably be there.”

“You know what, I admire your totally out of the place type of humor” he grinned. “I’m coming to your wedding, and I’m keeping you sober.” Amber smiled “Then we’ll talk about Elizabeth Olsen,” he joked.

“Well, here’s your invite,” Amber handed it over. “Now I better leave, have to try my wedding dress.”

Amber was determined to change and convinced that this handsome latino was the one to help her. She liked him as much as Maddie and Tom, and Haz, and the twins. They all had something in common, they seemed to care about her.

She made her way back to the car with a grin on her face. Her phone started to ring as soon as she sat in the back seat. “Yes?”

“Amber?” Madeline’s voice sounded through the speaker.

“Hey, hübsch,” Amber grinned. “I thought I’d never hear from you again, what can I do for you?”

“I’m glad you asked, I do need a favor” she replied in a shaky tone. "I'm sure you remember Y/N, my friend."

“Well yeah, I was drunk but no that drunk,” she laughed.

 “Sweetheart, you passed out,” Maddie chuckled and then cleared her throat, “anyway, she needs some help, and I was hoping you'd give it to her. If it's not too much to ask, of course.

“Define help,” Amber requested. “If it’s got anything to do with Tom, I’m afraid-”

“No, no, it’s more complicated than that,” Maddie didn’t sound as cheerful as Amber was used to. “You see, I’m afraid… Look, last night was her first night with us, with Cassie and I, and she blew away one of Cassie’s long-term clients...”

“Oh, her first time, and girl scored no other than Tom fucking Holland, lucky bastard,” Amber laughed.

“Ambs,” Maddie’s voice was cold. “Cassie kicked her out of our place.”

Amber took a deep breath. “Where do I fit into this?”

“She’s going over to Diego’s place, but honestly, she needs to get out of there. I just don’t want her to return to that life, you see, Diego is just too busy with all his medical school thing, and he’s an asshole, and he’s super controlling-”

“You don’t like him,” Amber said because there was nothing wrong with him. What Amber had seen, Diego was a guy who didn’t know what to do anymore with his relationship. Maddie just had something against with him.

“No, I don’t. Look, he may not be that bad, but ugh, I just don’t want Y/N to be with him anymore, and-”

“I’ll take care of her, be her fairy godmother. Let’s give this Cinderella a fairytale” Amber chuckled. “Do you have any idea where she might be?”

“She took a cab so she might be arriving at Diego’s place in any minute,” Maddie said.

“I’ll see what I can do,” Amber hung up and asked her driver to go back to Diego’s place, just in time to see a broken and crying Y/N getting out of the car.

-

Haz and Tom were waiting at Amber’s house. Haz sitting down in the living room as Tom helped himself out in the kitchen, unsteady as he realized Amber was not in her place, the places she could have gone had Tom feeling uneasy. So he was pouring himself an orange juice as he walked from one place to another, trying to calm himself down.

“And you still wanna marry her,” Haz muttered, rolling his eyes. Tom was cracking his knuckles, worriedly. “Okay, Tom-” Haz tried to get his attention, “Tom! Please, can you chill? She probably went out for some breakfast.”

She hadn’t answered the phone, and Tom was dying. What if she had passed out in the middle of somewhere? Or what if she was lost?

“Wasn’t she going to try her wedding dress today?” Haz asked in an attempt to calm him, it worked. Tom stopped and glanced at his best friend, he was right. She was going to try it, that was it.

“Oh, right,” Tom sat down on the floor. “Sorry, I freaked out.”

“And you guys haven’t even married. Anyway, in other news and crazy nights with crazy girls, you left with one last night, huh?”

Tom cleared his throat, his face turning red with embarrassment. “It’s not what it looked like.”

“Uh-huh,” Harrison smirked. “She looked pretty. Such a pretty woman you left with, honestly.”

“I wasn’t the one receiving a lap dance,” Tom reminded him. “But, no, I actually saved her.”

“Such a prince charming,” Harrison laughed, teasing his friend. Tom rolled his eyes.

“It was her first time, and she didn’t want to be there. Then this old filthy senator tried to take advantage of her and well, I took her out.”

“And?” Harrison raised his eyebrows.

“And we went to McDonald's, and then we just talked,” Tom shrugged. “She was scared, she’s had a tough life.”

“Did you like her?” Harrison was being constant with the questions, trying to poke Tom’s nerves.

“I only spent a few hours with her, man. I wouldn’t be able to know, I mean-”

“Ah, you liked her,” Harrison stated. “You should’ve made a move.”

“I didn’t, because I don’t like her and because, if you can’t remember, I’m getting married in three bloody days,” Tom scowled.

“Yes, you’re getting married in three days with someone you don’t love,” Haz insisted. “Look, mate, I’m not telling you this to annoy you, I’m not being shady, I’m concerned about you. And I do care about Amber too. And she’s got a problem, Tom, she has to face it, and this whole fake marriage thing is not helping.”

“So what you’re saying is I should look up for someone who I do love?” Tom frowned.

“I don’t know, might help you, you’ve been so moody these days, you need to at least get laid, man,” Harrison spoofed. “And we both know you’re not getting some at your wedding night."

“Do you even hear yourself?” Tom was getting pissed.

“See! So bloody moody and edgy,” Harrison laughed. “Look, man, I’m just saying, at least you need a diversion, maybe that girl from last night could help.”

“And how would I even contact her again?” Tom scowled.

Before Harrison could come up with an answer the door was opened, with Amber waddling and clicking her heels, she looked up from her phone and smirked.

“Hello, Schatzy,” she grinned. “Harrison, hey,” Amber hadn’t closed the door behind her, and Alton walked in with a pair of dirty suitcases.

“Amber, where were you?” Asked Tom, worried.

“I was getting you a new assistant, schatzy!” She squeaked, as she turned to the door. Y/N walked in.

tag list (ask) <-If you’re using this one please specify it’s for Pretty Woman

[singledarkshade]

Entwined Hearts

Summary: Rip Hunter's perfect life is suddenly shattered when his wife is killed in a car accident leaving him to raise his son. Gideon has been sick for several years in need of a heart transplant, she's given a few hours left to live when a heart suddenly becomes available. Just over a year later, Rip is trying to start his life once more when he meets Gideon. They grow closer but their pasts are more entwined than either knows. Author’s Note: This is sort of based on the basic premise of the movie Return To Me. I have zero medical knowledge so please ignore all errors in that area. It is finished so will be up quickly. Enjoy.                                 ********************************************* Part One

Laughter echoed out the door when Rip opened it, making him smile to be home.

“Daddy!!!”

The joyful cry from his three-year-old son made Rip grin even wider and he reached out to scoop the little boy up into his arms.

“Hi, little man,” Rip kissed the boy’s cheek, “Have you had a good day?”

Jonas gave an affirmative nod, “Missed you.”

“I missed you too,” Rip told him.

“Only him?” came the amused question as his beautiful wife walked towards him.

Leaning over Rip kissed her, “Of course not.”

Miranda plucked their son out of his arms, “Well, dinner will be ready in a few minutes. Come on, Jonas. We’ll let your daddy put his things away while we set the table.”

Giving him a cheeky grin Miranda disappeared back into the dining room, Rip shook his head still unable to believe how lucky he was to have the most amazing woman in the world in his life and a son they both adored.

Hanging his jacket up, Rip took his bag into the office and put it away neatly next to one of the few boxes left to unpack. They’d moved in a few months ago to their dream home, after Rip got the job at Star City University as a lecturer. It allowed Miranda to quit her job at the restaurant, that meant they barely saw each other, and take a part-time job at the art gallery she loved. It also allowed her to go back to painting in the small attic studio Rip had set up as a surprise.

“Are you joining us tonight, Hunter?” Miranda’s amused voice came from the dining room, “Because your son is about to eat his plate.”

Smiling to himself Rip called back, “I’m coming.”

  Jonas was finally asleep. He had demanded just one more story several times of his parents who were sitting on either side of his bed. They tried not to but there were times they indulged their little boy’s wishes. Besides it was Friday night, so they didn’t have to get up for work tomorrow morning that letting him stay up a little later didn’t matter too much.

Rip closed the door to Jonas’ room quietly and sighed in relief when there was no sign the little boy had woken up. Rip loved his son, but Jonas could run rings around the two of them.

“So,” Miranda wrapped her arms around his neck, “Are you ready to try to make another little angel?”

Sliding his arms around her waist, Rip laughed, “Little angel? You referred to him as the demon spawn yesterday.”

“But you saw him sleeping there,” Miranda replied, her voice filled with adoration, “We could do that again. Maybe a little girl this time. A little princess for you to spoil.”

At her smile Rip kissed her, “Sounds nice.”

“It does, doesn’t it,” Miranda murmured, touching a few kisses to his neck.

Moaning softly at her continuing gentle touches, Rip moaned, “Are you sure?”

“Yes, I am,” Miranda dragged him into their bedroom.

  Rip was woken by the sound of the bedroom door banging open, he opened his eyes to see his little boy wander in. Jonas was clad in his favourite pyjamas, blue with space ships covering them, dragging his bear along by its ear.

Gary Bear had been Miranda’s when she was a child and was passed to Jonas who went nowhere without him. There had been a major temper tantrum during the house move when Gary Bear was lost for the longest five minutes of their lives. Reaching out Rip caught his son and pulled him up, planting a kiss on his pudgy cheek before resting him on the bed between his parents. Jonas squirmed until he was settled under the covers leaning against the pillow with Gary in his arms. Rip lay with his arm across the two people who mattered most in the world to him. He couldn’t believe how lucky he was to have them.

He remembered meeting Miranda for the first time, they were fifteen and had been made lab partners. Rip had been sure that she wouldn’t even look in his direction outside the class, never mind go out with him. But she did. In fact she asked him and Rip couldn’t imagine his life without her or Jonas in it.

They’d started trying for a second baby a few weeks before, now that they were in the position to have another child. Jonas had been a bit of an accident. Rip was hoping for a girl who looked like her mother because he couldn’t think of anything better.

Miranda opened her eyes and smiled at him as Jonas lay between them talking to his bear. Rip slid his hand into hers, enjoying the perfect morning with his family.

                                  *********************************************

  “What are you doing?”

The annoyed voice made Gideon look over to the door where her best friend stood, arms folded across her chest with a frown on her face.

“I’m working,” Gideon noted, “What does it look like, Lily?”

“The doctor’s said you’re meant to be resting?” Lily moved to the side of Gideon’s bed, “Not stressing yourself out.”

Gideon rolled her eyes, “I’m writing a computer game for kids, it’s not like I’m trying to climb a mountain. Hey,” she cried as Lily shut the laptop lid.

“You’re meant to be resting,” Lily stated again disapprovingly, “Caitlin was very specific when they released you this morning.”

Gideon sighed, “I have been in hospital all week and I am still in a bed, Lily. I am so bored, I just want to pretend to be normal for a while.”

“I know,” Lily took her hand, “And I hate this too but…” she took a breath, “You will get a new heart. I know this, don’t give up hope.”

Sadly Gideon nodded, “I won’t. Since you refuse to let me work, I’m going to get some sleep.”

Squeezing her hand, Lily leaned over and kissed Gideon’s forehead, “I’ll let Mom know. Night.”

Gideon slid to lie down, annoyed when her arm and hand was caught on her IV line. It had been a cold, a stupid cold virus that Gideon thought she’d shake off in a few days. Then she fainted at work, woke up in the emergency room and the next thing she knew the doctors were telling her that her heart was damaged beyond repair. Gideon was now on the transplant list and spent her time either in hospital or in the room her best friend’s parents had set up for her.

The life she intended to have on hold as she hoped for a miracle.

  “Good morning,” Clarissa Stein smiled when she opened the door the next morning and brought in a tray with Gideon’s breakfast on it, “How are you today?”

Letting out a long sigh Gideon shrugged, “I’m okay.”

“Okay,” Clarissa set the tray down, “I made you an omelette, with some orange juice. There’s water for your medicine as well.”

“Thank you, Clarissa,” Gideon said because as bored as she was, Gideon was grateful that she had been taken in by the Steins.

Gideon and Lily had met at university becoming the best of friends, they’d rented an apartment together for the last few years of their course. Gideon had been on her own since her parents had died not long after her sixteenth birthday so when she met her new friend’s parents, she was surprised but happy that they basically adopted her as their own within minutes. A few years after they finished University Gideon moved to Central City to take a job with Palmer Tech, to Lily’s excitement. When she’d fallen ill Clarissa and Martin insisted that she stay with them until she was better. Gideon wasn’t sure that would ever happen, but she appreciated their kindness. However, all the equipment needed was bought by her. She had the money. Inherited from her parents and Gideon made a lot of smart investments.

While she waited for a heart, Gideon had been relieved when her doctor’s boyfriend’s friend needed a programmer for his small start-up company. It wasn’t hard work or paid more than buttons, but Gideon cared about neither. It gave her something to focus on when the exhaustion and despair filled her.

“Oh,” Clarissa said, “Your friend Cisco dropped off a flash drive for you. He wants you to look over it when you get a chance.”

“Thank you, Clarissa,” Gideon smiled slightly.

Giving her another smile Clarissa started out the room, “Let me know if you need anything.”

Forcing a smile onto her face Gideon nodded.

Maybe one day she would be able to go back to living her life.

                                  *********************************************

  “Jonas, come here,” Rip chased his laughing son around the living room, “It’s time to go.”

The little boy giggled enjoying his game.

“If you don’t come then you won’t get to see all our friends at the party,” Rip reminded him.

Jonas stalled before he turned and ran to his father who lifted the boy into his arms.

“Why do we have to go to this?” Miranda asked with a pout on her face.

“Because Quentin is our friend,” Rip noted as he put Jonas’ jacket in him.

Miranda rolled her eyes, “You almost get arrested once and you can’t get rid of the cop.”

Rip chuckled, “He didn’t arrest you.”

“How would you know?” she tossed over her shoulder as she checked the small bag for Jonas, “You weren’t there.”

“Quentin told me the story,” Rip reminded her adding before she could say anything, “And I believe him rather than you in this.”

Miranda rolled her eyes and took Jonas into her arms, “Make sure you remember the wine.”

Watching her head out to the car to strap Jonas in, Rip smiled amused. It had been only a month after they’d moved to Star City, Miranda was out with a few of her new work mates when a man had tried to grope one of the women. Miranda stopped him, so he tried to hit her and discovered a few seconds later that the small brunette was a black belt.

Quentin Lance, Detective in the Star City PD was at the bar meeting a friend and had intervened. The guy didn’t want to press charges, not wanting to let anyone know he’d been knocked down by a woman almost a foot smaller than he was. Since the owner wanted her out, Quentin offered Miranda a lift home, discovering that they lived on the same block. Now, several years later, they were still good friends with him and his wife Dinah.

The party was for Quentin’s birthday, so he had decided to have a barbecue. The back garden of the house was already full of people when they arrived, Rip could feel Jonas squirming to get down so he could start running around.

“Hey, there’s my favourite boy,” the blonde appeared.

“Say,” Jonas cried, clapping his hands, “Say.”

Sara Lance reached out, Rip let the little boy jump into her arms and Sara hugged him close.

“Let’s go and say hello to everyone,” Sara kissed the boy before she gave Rip and Miranda a smile, disappearing into the crowd with their son.

Miranda hugged Rip’s arm, “I do love seeing our friends.”

“And I thought you didn’t want to come,” Rip reminded her amused.

Giving a soft chuckle, Miranda murmured to him, “We could always find an empty room and have another go at making a baby.”

Rolling his eyes Rip laughed, “We’re at our friends’ birthday party.”

“Wimp,” she shot at him, before smiling as Dinah Lance came over to greet them.

  Jonas was chasing the Lance’s next-door neighbour’s puppy had just got, while they sat around the garden finishing their drinks and the food. Rip kept his arm around his wife keeping half an eye on their son while he ran around.

“So, summer vacation,” Quentin noted as he handed them another drink, “What are you doing now your classes have ended?”

Rip smiled, “We’re heading home next week and staying with my mother for a month. Jonas will be spoiled rotten.”

“That’s what grandmothers are for,” Dinah noted, smiling at her daughters who nodded in agreement.

Miranda laughed, “Although Mary makes sure she tells us how hard it is that she doesn’t get to see her grandson because we moved so far away from her.”

“But that is your fault,” Rip reminded her amused, “Since you persuaded me to move here.”

Miranda chuckled again, “I gave her a grandson. That saved me.”

“Is Jonas going to get a brother or sister one of these days?” Dinah asked, grinning when they glanced at one another quickly, “And?”

Shaking her head, Miranda replied, “We’re thinking about it. Rip is getting more responsibility next year at work and the gallery is giving me more hours after the summer. Adding a baby right now…”

“It’s a lot,” Rip finished for her, “But we’d like another one.”

“You could just get a dog,” Sara suggested motioning to where Jonas was playing, “He wouldn’t know the difference.”

Laurel laughed, “Well, that’s not true exactly. A dog would be less annoying than a younger sibling.”

Sara threw a roll at her sister as the rest of the group laughed.

  Jonas giggled as Sara tickled him while helping him put his jacket on.

“Say bye to Sara,” Rip said to his son.

Jonas gave her a sweet smile, “Bye, bye Say.”

Sara took the little face in her hands and pressed several kisses to his cheeks, “Bye, my boy. I’ll see you soon.”

“Okay,” Rip pulled his son away from her, “We’ll see you on Monday morning.”

“I’ll be there by nine,” she promised.

Rip smiled, “Thanks for agreeing to watch him while we pack.”

“It’s not a problem. You know I’m happy to watch Jonas whenever you need,” Sara said, opening the car door for him, Rip efficiently got Jonas into his car seat and strapped in before the little boy could try to escape. Turning he saw Miranda hugging Dinah.

“We’ll see you when you get back,” Dinah told them, “Enjoy your trip and say hello to Mary from us.”

Miranda nodded before she climbed into the driver’s seat while Rip slid into the seat beside Jonas, “We will.”

With a bright smile she started the car, the radio springing to life and a song filling the car. As they pulled away, Jonas waved to everyone. The couple sang along with the music as Miranda drove while Rip made Gary Bear dance for their son who laughed and clapped.

The sound of screeching brakes filled the car before there was a loud bang, a tinkling of glass, the car was suddenly on its’ side and Rip fell into blackness.