#jb setting: canon

[jtl-fics]

Fluent Freshman - Part 45

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Renee Walker stands next to two of her best friends in the entire world holding up a hand drawn sign. There's an, admittedly crudely drawn, Fox on the sign that Allison had made up.

Renee had seen it and smiled from across the airport as she made her way over to where Dan and Allison were standing waiting for everyone to come. The team had managed to coordinate their flights to land all within about two hours of one another and Allison had exactly zero desire to go back and forth from the airport so her driver was waiting out at a nearby cellphone lot to come and get them once everyone was there.

"Is it nice having a driver again?" Dan asks Allison.

"I sometimes miss driving around in my car but it's a lot easier to do my makeup with him driving." she says with a shrug as they continue to catch up. Renee is holding up the sign since Allison had complained that she had lost so much of the muscle she had previously had.

"Yeah, New York City seems like a major pain in the ass to drive in too." Dan agrees as her phone buzzes. She pulls out her phone and looks at it before a huge smile fills her face, one that means she's talking to Matt, "Oh! They just landed!" Dan says confirming Renee's suspicions.

Allison looks at her watch, "Wow, 20 minutes early. They must have gotten through boarding quickly." she comments.

"Or some good tailwind." Renee offers.

"When are Neil and Andrew due up?" Dan asks looking at Renee who smiles back at her friend.

"Andrew said they're going to take a break halfway here so they'll be here tomorrow morning." Renee says.

"Get it Neil." Allison nods and it had been a wonderful thing last year to watch Andrew and Allison make peace with one another. Their mutual desire to dress Neil up a bridge towards....maybe not friendship but camaraderie.

It warms Renee's heart to see her friends get along.

"The plane got tailwind, Neil's getting tail." Dan jokes.

"I'm looking forward to meeting the new kid that I've heard about." Renee says gently moving the topic on from their friends getting together. It didn't bother her at all, but she knew that Andrew would prefer no one talk about what he and Neil got up to.

"Oh! Yeah, uh..." Dan visibly buffers.

"Dan, you're the only one of us that's met the kid. His name's Smith." Allison says with eyebrows raised in judgement.

"Look, when Coach and I went to recruit the kid my brain was like 90% on the fact that I needed to go to my interview." Dan defends herself.

"So he wasn't that memorable for you?" Allison asks.

"Yeah, I'm surprised that he's getting along so well with the guys." Dan says. "Getting stabbed over Thanksgiving feels more like a Neil move than the quiet kid Coach and I met." she adds.

That had been an interesting phone call from Andrew. Renee hadn't even realized that she had become Natalie describing the best way to get rid of the body until Andrew had clarified that it'd been an accident and Smith was alive. Renee had been a little ashamed.

She was excited to meet the kid who Andrew had spoken to her about. Glad that their strange found family was growing just a little bit bigger.

They wait around continuing to talk about plans for the break together. Allison wants to go shopping and she wants to do it once Neil and Andrew are back. Dan wants to skate at the Rockefeller center. Renee would love it if they could do Christmas Eve Mass.

They're sure that Kevin is going to want to check out an Exy game. They're mostly sure that Matt will want to check out the LEGO store in downtown manhattan and that Aaron will be as excited for that as Matt is but pretending not to be. Nicky wants to catch a drag show and has made it clear that he will be going regardless of what anyone else wants to do. Andrew and Neil will probably just want to be alone when they have the chance though Neil had expressed some prior interest in the EXITES superstore and Andrew will more than likely enjoy the day Allison has planned to go shopping since she wants to update Neil's wardrobe.

The new kid, Smith, will be a mystery, but they're more than willing to be flexible.

Eventually they hear the tell-tale sign of most of the boy's arrival. "Babe!" comes from across the airport and Dan's head shoots up and spots the sight of Matt Boyd approaching his arms out wide almost clotheslining four different families on his way to Dan.

Dan is not much better as she rushes to him arms as wide.

They embrace like they always do whenever they have to spend time apart from one another and Renee knows that part of the reason that Dan took her job as assistant coach where she did is that the Washington State Congress Team had been looking at Matt the year prior to scout him.

She looks beyond the passionate reunion and sees Kevin, Aaron, and Nicky. She frowns brows furrowing...

Weren't they going to bring-

Nicky throws his arm out and it wraps around a kid she hadn't even realized was there. She blinks startled by his sudden appearance and blank expression as Nicky was pointing them out. He points to her and he can see her name on his lips she gives a wave and a smile.

Smith nods back in greeting.

He seems quite nice.

***

Renee is at the end of her proverbial rope.

This kid is a threat and she doesn't understand how she's the only person who can see it.

Being a threat isn't really an issue when you're a Fox. It's almost a given that there's some part of you that can be dangerous when backed into a corner but no one seems to be treating him like a threat.

She watches as Nicky and Matt throw their arms around him. As Kevin pushes smoothie after smoothie into his hands as he blankly sips. As Andrew and Neil sit with him quietly. As Dan pinches his cheeks. As Aaron ribs him for being bad at MarioKart.

She can't feel anything from him, no joy, no anger, nothing.

She can't even track him.

Renee has always prided herself on her ability to keep track of those around her. Spacial awareness was incredibly important when you're in a fight and it had always been one of her strongest points. She always knew where she was in relation to everyone else.

Except Smith.

The kid had given her no shortage of heart attacks as he appeared and disappeared seemingly at random.

She had finally gotten Andrew alone to ask, "Smith's quiet, non-intrusive." Andrew says with a shrug.

There's just something about him that makes the hair on the back of Renee's neck stand on edge and she hates feeling like she's the only one. She hates it even more that there's no real evidence that there's something amiss with this newest Fox.

So she settles in to watch.

They're out shopping and Allison is doing her best to get Neil a proper wardrobe with Andrew's considerable help, AKA nodding in approval when Neil comes out. She's not skimping on any of them but Neil is her main focus.

"Smith, what's a color you like?" Allison asks as she's looking at hoodies.

"I like purple." Smith answers and Renee barely manges to stop herself from flinching as his voice comes from right next to her.

"Pass." Andrew says as Neil comes out in a charmingly orange sweatshirt.

"I like it!" Neil argues.

"You have 10 sweatshirts that are that exact shade of orange." Andrew dismisses. "Try the blue one." he says pushing Neil back into the dressing room.

"Which one?" Neil asks.

Andrew sighs dramatically in a way that lets Renee know that he's doing exactly what he wants to be doing, "I'll show you." he says going into the dressing room with Neil.

"I still don't know how it took Baltimore for me to realize they were together." Nicky says as he's holding up two different purple sweatshirts to Smith's body. "You look good in a more purpley purple." Nicky says putting the more indigo colored sweatshirt back on the rack.

"Pants are coming up next, I'll get a lay of the land. I know everyone else's but Smith what's your height?" Allison asks.

"Five feet, nine inches." Smith answers as Nicky pushes him towards the dressing room. "Nicky it's a sweatshirt, I can put it on out here." Smith says.

"I know but I need an excuse to go back there and make sure Neil and Andrew aren't defiling a dressing room." Nicky says with a grin that implies he'd be more happy if they were.

"Gross." Aaron says as he takes a picture of himself to send to Katelyn to approve of the new outfit that Allison was pushing for him to get. "Wait," he pauses turning to where Allison was looking through various men's pants, "you know our heights? Like you've memorized them?" he asks.

"Yeah." Allison says looking at a pair of black slacks. "Everyone's measurements." she says nodding to herself.

"Even bust sizes?" he asks, voice not as quiet as he likely thinks it is.

"You're such a boy." Allison laughs not even looking up from the very different rack.

"How much longer are we going to be here?" Kevin asks with a sigh.

"Well, at least the time that it took you to ask that longer. We'll be done when we're done Kevin." Dan says long having given up on stopping Allison when the woman is on a spree.

"She knows that EXITES closes at 5 PM right?" Kevin asks.

"More importantly," Matt leans in, "that the LEGO store closes at 8 PM right?" Matt asks.

"How is that more important? The LEGO store is open later?" Kevin asks.

"Because we're not going to EXITES today, but we are going to the LEGO store." Matt says.

"If we don't spend the whole day here we can do both-"

"We're not going to EXITES today Kevin." Dan says with a sigh.

"But-"

"We're not going to EXITES today Kevin." Renee says with an apologetic smile.

"But-"

"Kevin, we're not going to EXITES today. Just sit down and let me find pants that'll make your pin-up days look tame in comparison." Allison says.

"That's not what those posters were!" Kevin argues with a blush on his face.

"Sure." Allison dismisses

***

Renee is quite happy with the sundresses she found even if they won't do her any good here in New York City during the Christmas break. Their next stop on their shopping day is over to the LEGO store where Matt makes no attempt to hide his enthusiasm as Aaron very valiantly does try to pretend like he's not utterly entranced by the sets and builds.

Renee thinks it's all very charming.

"We could have gone to EXITES." Kevin says with a frown as he looks at a build of an Exy racquet. "Can you take my picture with this?" he asks but he's not quite looking at Renee.

"Sure." Smith says from beside her, where he had apparently been.

"Thanks Smiths." Kevin says and stands next to the Exy racquet of LEGOs and crosses his arms and leans back.

"Kevin, stop posing like this will be for the cover of a Forbes Magazine." Andrew says with a sigh as he comes to stand on Renee's other side.

"Shut up, it's a picture for me!" Kevin says and continues to stand with his arms crossed.

"Oh, can you get a picture of me next Smith?" Neil asks coming up eyes shining in excitement as he looks at the racquet.

"Sure. As an apology for letting Nicky-"

"Don't talk about it." Neil and Andrew say at the same time.

Kevin gets his picture and then Andrew hands his phone to Smith for Neil's since Neil had broken the lens on his camera ages ago.

They wander around and Kevin finds a set to build the National Court that he grabs without a second thought. Neil and Andrew find a little LEGO man of Kevin that they buy as their 'preferred Kevin'. Kevin of course threatens to buy their LEGO figures once they have them and refer to them as his 'preferred Andrew and Neil'. A threat that neither of them comment on but Renee does buy the little Jean Moreau she finds. She'll paint it Trojan colors and send it over to him as a little gift.

As she continues to browse with her purchase in hand she hears Nicky, "Smithy, if you like it you should get it!" Nicky insists.

"Is it the price?" Allison asks.

"Yeah, I don't want to spend that much." Smith says with a nod expression still worryingly blank.

"When's your birthday? It can just be an early or a late present from me." Allison asks.

"March 1st, but really I'm fine not getting it." Smith shakes his head. "It's not that I'd like it just my little brother liked trains." he says and Renee watches Nicky's face turn from joyful teasing to intense determination.

"We're getting this set." Nicky says grabbing it and marching over to the counter even as Smith followed after him.

Interesting.

***

They finish off their day with some ice skating.

Matt, Aaron, Andrew, and Kevin all fall into the 'challenged' category.

They get on the ice and all four immediately fall. Renee stifles her laughter as Andrew and Aaron scowl. "Are you okay?" Smith asks and Renee almost loses her balance as he skates by her.

"Why the fuck are you good at skating?" Aaron asks scowling even as he takes Smith hand. Renee skates over and offers a hand to Kevin as Matt and Andrew are being helped up by their respective partners.

"Oh," Allison says skating by, "have you been up to Canada or something often?" she asks.

"I've been to Canada a few times. It's more that there was a rink I would go to every once in a while." Smith answers before turning back to Aaron, "I can help you keep balanced." he says offering his other hand.

"Smith, I don't want to hold your hand. That's kind of gay." Aaron huffs letting go of Smith's hand only to immediately beef it again when he tried to move forward.

***

Skating was fun even if Aaron kept blushing as Smith helped him skate since he never really got his 'ice legs'. The rest of them all more or less skated on their own by the end or, in the case of Andrew and Matt, seemed fine to keep skating while holding on.

Renee was warming herself by the fireplace in Allison's home enjoying some hot chocolate as Allison took a seat next to her. There was a lot of commotion in the kitchen as the team was working to make dinner together. Renee had excused herself after Smith had startled her while she had a knife in hand and she'd almost stabbed him on instinct.

She's just relieved that no one seemed to notice the near murder.

"You okay? You seemed tense in there." Allison asks.

Well, almost no one.

"Yes, I'm fine." she smiles and hopes that Allison will believe it.

Allison looks at her and Renee does have the benefit that Allison is slightly drunk since she was told firmly not to help with the cooking since she'd paid for the majority of the day.

"I'm glad I got you alone, there's something I want to hear your opinion on." Allison says deciding, apparently, to let it go for now.

Renee relaxes smiling at her friend, "What's that?" she asks wondering what purchase or thing unpurchased Allison was regretting.

Allison looks at Renee, expression utterly serious. "Don't you think there's something...weird about this kid?" she asks.

Renee straightens up glad that Allison had also felt like something was off with the kid that her friends had brought along. "What do you mean?" she asks wanting to hear what Allison thought.

"Look, he seems really nice. I mean a little too nice to be a Fox to be honest but I mean I guess you're a Fox as well so..." Allison rambles slightly taking another sip of her wine.

"Yes, go on." Renee nods.

"Yeah, he seems nice and Matt said he's got his own stuff even if he didn't wanna go into what that stuff was." Allison continues and it's a good thing Allison is drinking white wine considering the white carpet and her gesticulations. "But...it's just.. okay you can't make fun of me. Even though this is about to sound crazy." Allison says.

"I would never do something like that." Renee swears.

"Promise me." Allison says expression grave as she lifts up a pinky.

Renee smiles despite herself and hooks her pinky with Allison's, "I promise to not make fun of you." she swears other hand over her cross.

"I think he's Justin Bieber."

MASTERPOST FOR ALL PARTS OF FLUENT FRESHMAN AU

[swordmaid]

post canon jaime sketch for this new jb au im thinking of 🤭

[maybanksmusings]

THE WALLS ; JJ MAYBANK

SYNOPSIS ; when an unknown face appears in the outer banks searching for a father she's never met, she's unaware of how her life is about to be completely turned upside down.

WARNINGS ; jjmaybank x routledge!oc, strong language, depictions of violence, afab!reader, sexual content, mentions of abuse, drug and alcohol consumption, strangers to lovers, fast burn to slow burn, canon adjacent, not proofread.

AUTHORS NOTE ; changes are being made! see this post to learn more. to me, this part seems a little like a filler, but i want to explore veronica as a character and develop each relationship with each character as something more than a side character, not just honing in on her relationship with jj, which of course is a huge part of the story also.

part one. part two. part three.

when veronica begins to stir, the sun had long set. there was no way of knowing how long the pair had been asleep, all she knew was the lights of the chateau were off and there was a bright pink post it note stuck to jj’s head.

‘gone fishin’. jb pissed.’

pope signed off on the note, a small smiley face drawn inside the o of his name. veronica knew the pouges hadn’t actually gone fishing, that is was some sort of code jj would decipher when he came to.

in this moment, veronica was content. wrapped in the arms of the most beautiful person she’d ever seen.

what could only be described as a war was ongoing in her head. she wasn’t exactly one to believe in love at first sight, she thought this entire ‘spark’ thing was something made up by male authors to keep women reading their shitty romance books to keep them hooked, waiting for it to happen to them.

but then she met jj, and he was like a magnet. every time veronica was in his presence she was mesmerised, whenever he was gone she felt like all the colour was drained from the world.

there was only two problems.

there was a maximum of forty eight hours that they knew each other, add to that he was her brothers best friend, then add to that said brother made it crystal clear that inter-group dating was not allowed.

oh, and then the whole ‘nobody knows i’m his sister but us’ thing.

“you’re staring, baby” jj mumbled, his voice low and tired as he stirred beneath her “can’t say i blame you”

with a sarcastic scoff, veronica sits upright in the hammock, her legs laid out across the blonds lap “just admiring the drool on your face”

“aren’t you funny.”

comfortable silence follows, jj crosses his arms behind his head and blinks the sleep out of his eyes. even though she was staring off into the water, veronica could feel jj’s eyes on her.

“can i help you?” veronica quipped, a teasing lilt to her words as she face the boy in question “use your words, you’ll get there.”

unexpectedly, jj sighs and lets his head fall back “what am i doing?”

veronica knows he didn’t intent for her to hear him, but she did. she would be lying if she said she wasn’t disappointed, but she was even more disappointed in herself at the pang of sadness that hit her.

before she can say, or do, anything, jj is sat up a little straighter and speaking again.

“listen, you’re a really cool girl,” he pauses, shaking his head and starting again “you’re hot as shit, damn it!”

barely, veronica manages to mask her giggle with a cough.

“don’t ask me how or why, but i gotta tell you i’m super into you.” he blurts out “yeah, makes no fuckin’ sense, we barely know each other, no pouge on pouge macking, you ain’t feeling me like that-“

her body is moving before her brain can even comprehend what she’s doing, chipped nail polish framing blond hair as she held his face in her hands and pressed their lips together.

then, her brain kicks in, and veronica jumps back like she’d just been burnt.

“fuck, jay i’m so sorry. i wasn’t thinking,”

seconds pass agonisingly slow and veronica can’t help but think about just how badly she had just fucked up.

but she doesn’t get to overthink for long.

a calloused hand tangled in long, brown hair. the other gripping her waist like it was a lifeline, helping her into his lap as his tongue makes its way into her mouth.

the kiss is messy, it’s desperate. like two people drowning, taking in the other like they were air. hands cling to whatever they can, afraid if they let go it would all be over.

any reservations veronica may have had about ‘the spark’ were discarded, undermined even, this wasn’t a spark, it was fireworks.

but fireworks don’t last forever, and when the sound of john b’s rickety van can be heard drawing closer. the newfound excitement being dulled by the shadow known as a protective older brother, a protective best friend.

by the time the missing pouges pour out of the twinkie, veronica and jj are in much less compromising positions, now sitting beside each other trading menial conversation about the earlier events of the day.

“welcome back to the land of the living,” kiara teases, a yellow vape coming up to her mouth as she took a hit “you two were out cold.”

instinctively, veronica’s hand shot out, wordlessly pleading for a hit of her vape. with a groan, kie handed it over.

veronica lets her head fall back against the hard oak of the tree behind her, relishing the feeling of her first hit of nicotine in two days. she had a vape when she left home, but it died before she even made it to the outer banks and being broke meant she couldn’t even go buy a replacement.

“you could’ve woke us up, y’know” jj defended, trying his hardest to act as if nothing happened, reminding himself to stop staring.

pope scoffs, not missing the longing stares sent the brunettes direction but purposefully ignoring them “we tried, it nearly cost us our lives.”

unamused, john b walks past the rest of the group in silence. when he gets to the door of the chateau he looks over his shoulder and nods for veronica to follow.

the girl is suddenly more attentive, climbing over the human embodiment of a golden retriever and padding her way into the house behind the older of the two.

“does the name redfield mean anything to you?” john b questions, passing a beer from the fridge and getting one for himself “like, the surname.”

veronica is quiet, her finger tracing the rim of the can as she goes through every crevice of her brain in search of any name even remotely close, there’s only one.

“chris redfield.” she answers with a nod, popping the tab of the can and taking a swig “but i don’t get how he’s involved.”

“why not? who is he!?”

“a video game character.”

with a huff of annoyance john b drags a chair across the kitchen to sit beside veronica, unscrewing his compass and placing it down on the table. the name ‘redfield’ is carved into the metal.

“we went back to the boat, found a motel key, whatever.” john b shrugs off the rest of their findings, more invested in whoever this redfield person was. “then i remembered when you showed me that note, the one in the compass. then i found this, figured you would know more than i do.”

veronica gently traced the carved metal, it was definitely their fathers scrawl, she’d memorised it from the note she read over and over and over.

it couldn’t be a coincidence, her fathers note asking her to meet, the matching compasses. now this?

“if i’m going to help you, i need to know..” she trailed off, biting at the edges of her nails as she wondered how to phrase her next question “does this have anything to do with dad dying?”

“he’s not dead.” john b’s voice is louder, stern. then his face softens and he tears his gaze away from the compass and to the floor “sorry, just, i know he’s out there. and this? this is proof.”

“john b, i get it.” the younger routledge speaks slowly, trying not to tread on any toes “you’re not the only one who wants him to be alive, that needs to see him. but i don’t see how this—”

“dad found the royal merchant. four hundred million dollars in gold, and he found it. he’s trying to tell us where to find it.”

veronica sighs, fingers rubbing at her tired eyes as she once again tried to think of any connection to any redfield. when it came to family, she only knew the bare minimum, her fathers name and her mothers maiden name.

what she did know, however, was the royal merchant. as a child her father sent her maps and books on birthdays and christmases without fail, until one day they stopped.

“you’ve got books and stuff, right?” she finally asked, not wanting to get either her or john b’s hopes up. a nagging feeling was telling her their dad was alive, but she knew he wouldn’t just up and abandon his son.

the walls of her fathers study feel like they’re closing in on her, john b let her inside and left her to it. veronicas hand ghosts over the framed maps and dusty books. blueprints of ships with her fathers messy scrawl written randomly around the paper.

there’s pictures of john b littered all over the office, all different life stages, a few feature jj and veronica can’t help but smile at the photo of two little boys holding a fish between them.

on the desk there’s a picture frame, immediately veronica recognises her mother, years younger and a gentle hand placed on her tummy. in the same frame, there’s an ultrasound that veronica almost bypassed as john b, but when she looked at the date it was a long time after he was born.

it was her ultrasound.

it was her in her moms tummy, framed and proudly placed right on her fathers desk.

everything comes back at once. finding the note, and in turn the years worth of letters her mother had hidden from her. the dateline special with john b pleading for information about his father, their father. the fight with her mother, packing a bag in the middle of the night and making her way to the address stored safely inside her compass.

the tears don’t register until they hit the glass of the frame, the last few weeks of pent up anger, sadness and hurt bubbling over from the flame that single photo sparked.

her dad loved her.

for years she’d heard about her absent father, then the absent father that passed when she was a baby. the father who didn’t want the responsibility of a child and ran away once he found out.

but the letters, the compass, this picture? john routledge loved the daughter he was forbidden from seeing, from the second he knew about her he loved her.

and now he was dead.

a sudden wave of anger rushes from her head to her toes, glass shattering when she throws the dusty old frame against the wall with a scream. papers fly and maps fall from the walls as she turns her fathers office into her own personal rage room.

the racket coming from the small room shakes the chateau, so it’s no surprise when the pouges come crashing through the door.

the pouges eyes briefly flash with fear when their eyes land on the destruction caused by the newest arrival, but it’s quickly replaced by a familiar sadness when veronica crumples to the ground, screaming as loud as her lungs would allow for them to get out.

they don’t know what’s wrong, but it doesn’t matter. veronica was now considered a friend, and they gathered that’s what she needed right about now.

jj is the first to enter, drawing closer slowly as if he were being cautious “it’s okay, ronnie.” he mutters softly, dodging shattered glass as he knelt beside her “we’re here, we got you.”

kiara, john b and pope are close behind, wrapping veronica in what could only be described as a group hug until her tears subsided.

taglist!

@ren-ni @marleymarleymarleymarley @miidollaasignnn @rainingcecilias @tanyaherondale @xspideyhollandx @sluterainterlude @loverofmarsss @xoxo-ada @gigistalked @genderlessmenance

[gingergofastboatsmojito]

Facts/Math

I've been hearing so much noise lately around ages that I figured I could maybe offer my help.

Here's my reasoning:

Syd's age:

Her resume has the unequivocal answer and it has been in plain sight since 01x01. She worked at Alinea the year before she joined The Beef. Assuming she graduated HS at 17 and knowing that CIA is a 4 to 5-year deal, we need to do basic math here to figure out her age: 17 + 6 = 23/4. Let's give it a 1 year-ish error margin. Even rounding it up, she couldn't have been older than 25 y.o. when she started working for Carmy in S1 (2022).

Carmy's age:

We know for a fact that Carmy's age in S2 was the same as Claire's because they were classmates and when Carmy gave her the wrong number she was in her last year of residency:

So that makes her 29-ish in S2 (2023) -again, if she graduated HS at 17, that is. Or even older, but not much, let's say 30... Thus same for Carmy.

So in S1, when Carmy and Syd met, he was 4 years her senior, approximately. Give or take 1 year. In S3 they both still have the same age, because it's still set in 2023.

Can we all agree that the issue is settled now and move on pls?

PS: IK the original Pilot script said something else and Syd was older than Carmy yatta, yatta, yatta... Actually, it doesn't matter because from the page to the screen the director (in this case Storer himself) can take creative liberties that give them total leisure to change the script, as long as the EP approves and since we're talking about the same person, I don't see how that could have been a problem. What counts is what's canon.

Summing up: We are talking about a 30 to 31-year-old Chef who reached the "most excellent CDC of the most excellent restaurant of the USA" status before the age of 30 and his mirror business partner who is clearly following his same footsteps, and I don't mean this as mentor/mentee, I mean this literally because Syd's gonna be the most excellent CDC, JB award winner, Michelin Star winner (not retainer) under the age of 30, by his side, so in a sense she will 100% smoke him. And he will love it.

It's a love story. And every second counts.

Remember to follow my tag #Gingerpovs 💋

[gingerjolover]

Imagine giving JB a little telecaster ornament for your first tree together 🥹

omgggg okay wait this is SO CUTE

little hc for ya

first off we all know how jb feels about christmas but I think if you liked christmas she would lit do anything to make you happy even if that means the entire house is covered in glitter and bows and christmas lights

im changing this slightly and saying this is the first tree in the new house! (canonically jules and soft!gf have moved to LA from Nash)

i feel like the house is still in slight disarra like its all ogranized chaos and munagenius has been helping as best they can get the two of yall settled yall moved right after tour so it was just one thing after another

i feel like julien was so revered this year but feels a lot of stress at home because she wants to make sure you're feeling appreciated and happy bc of the move and just how distant (geographically) shes been this year

yall have a big fake tree that you used to put in the front room of the nashville house that made its move to LA with yall

and julien has tried to decorate the house outside to the best of her abilities like her tiny ass was up on a ladder before naomi was like "okay dude get down and let me do it"

and once the outside is covered in lights and bows she moves to set up the tree

and you're a sight for sore eyes when she on a step stool wrapping the tree in pretty warm white christmas lights

"hey sugar," she says looking down at you, smiling widely as you approach

she steps down, planting kisses along your hairline as you nuzzle into her

"'got you somethin'" you mumble against her cheek, kissing her gently

"oh yeah? what's that?" she smiles, eyes twinkling as the lights reflect in her (baby cow) eyes\

and you're cheekily handing her a box as she leans against the stair railing, one ankle behind the other as she starts to unwrap the small box

she opens it and her jaw drops slightly, not because its an unusual gift, shocking, or even super extravagant

she just LOVES being known

and for context, i dont think your tree is ever super decorated, maybe there's some ornaments from your childhood or yall have pics of the dogs made into ornaments, there's definitely a queer joy one or some type of pride one, and your friends have also gotten you joke-y ones over the years

but this one is a beautiful mini telecaster ornament

and maybe you got it handmade so julien can lit feel the quality and weight as she holds it

and the back has like the two of your names or the year carved

and youre just smiling nervously because christmas is not the vibe for jb

stammering you're like, "it's just the first tree since being engaged and i thought you'd like it and its one that's just your own and its handma-" and julien is cutting you off pulling you into a deep kiss, dipping you slighty

her hand on the back of your neck, the other pressed against your lower back still holding the ornament

"it's perfect, you're perfect, i love it," she says pressing her forehead against yours

and youre still breathing heavy from the kiss being like "okay, yeah, cool..."

and jb is giggling before putting it back in the box, her hand resting on your ass to push you up onto the step stool

"okay its you're turn to do the wrapping im sick of this shit, im gonna hand the lights to you, yeah?" she says grabbing the line of lights

and you both just laugh, finishing the christmas decorations before the rest of the house is even finished

and then during your little holiday/housewarming party, people walk in and your house is so cozy and warm and beautifully festive, and julien is stoked to show her little telecaster ornament hung at the front of the tree

[melrosing]

What are yours “NO” in jb fanfics? Like u see it in the text in the story plot and immediately understand it’s not for you

I actually have too many and some of these aren’t even the writers’ fault they’re just me and my dumb tastes so no one should listen to me really but

AUs where Jaime hasn’t really done anything wrong/they don’t have that enemies to lovers shit going on. for me that stuff’s crucial to the foundations of jb

also AUs where Jaime and Cersei aren’t twins lol like I do make rare exceptions on this but most of the time I prefer fic that just fucking goes for it w the JC relationship

kid fics where they have like a gazillion children. also family comedy fics generally

show fics

and as a combination of the above, fics where jb are like honorary parents for the stark children like my god. are we forgetting Jaime has literally tried to kill three of them

i don’t really like office/corporate aus. for me it just feels the wrong setting for JB but again personal taste

how the fics manage Cersei as a whole is kind of important for me like if it’s a TWOW onwards fic and they avoid mentioning her entirely it feels a really conspicuous absence to me. I also don’t like fics that just feature her as a dragon to be slayed before jb can get on w their happily ever after. basically I’m interested in fics that engage w the twins’ relationship as part of JB’s story and do so without simplifying Cers herself BUT respect that not everyone wants to bother w that

soulmate AUs

also magical realism etc idk why I just can’t get into it. this is the same for literature generally I groan every time it comes up

high school AUs I can’t get invested in teen romances I couldn’t even get invested in these when I WAS a teen

Jaime’s either A) too snarky or B) too soft. like I think this is at least partly a ‘just me’ thing bc there’s nothing wrong w exaggerating certain characteristics in a fic if that’s working for the writer but I prefer Jaimes to have a bit of bite and also not be dropping a quip literally every other line. like ok yes there are some scenes where he does do that in canon lol but I find it draining when he’s literally incapable of sincerity

and this is really really just me but I can’t stand Declarations of Love Monologues that go on too long or read too rehearsed or when characters talk in language that’s just a bit too flowery and metaphorical. I way prefer sparing dialogue where most things go unsaid - especially w JB who aren’t the kind of characters to over explain themselves

fics where Brienne is a bit of an ‘everywoman’ like I think Brienne is a really interesting character by herself but sometimes ends up getting way less characterisation than Jaime does in fic

also I think a symptom of this is characterisations of Brienne where she’s like. at the club having copious one night stands bc she’s just being adapted as a Modern Woman

and Jaime getting adapted similarly as some kind of playboy type lmao

Quiet Isle fics where Jaime marries Brienne whilst she’s unconscious….. nah

oh yeah and fics where JB live London or Paris or whatever it’s like there’s a whole canon universe to fuck around with here why are they in NEW YORK

and probably lots more but really no one should listen to me bc i can’t even please myself. be free

[nbarpf]

TRANS JB FIC PLEAAAASSSEEEE 🤩🤩🤩

OMG YESSSS!! Ok so prefacing this with some background that i personally am not very interested in fics that do genderswaps or make a “canonically” cis “character” (trying to account for both fictional fic and rpf lol) trans and don’t explore the actual ramifications of a pairing now being lesbians or of someone not being cis. I know a lot of ppl approach it differently which is awesome i just personally enjoy exploring how gender can influence power dynamics and lived experiences. Even if it’s when i’m reading/writing fic about pro athletes tongue-kissing their teammates. Actually especially if

This led to me being like “i’d like to write something exploring what it would be like to be a trans guy in the nba… who’s shorter than 6’5” that i could do this to…?” and then my ig explore page started showing me roommates podcast clips and i was like ohhhh yeah. Ok.

Basically the fic idea i have floating around is set during the nova days while jb was living w josh. The premise is that josh accidentally finds out jalen is trans and now jalen has to deal with having a teammate know this abt him for the second (donte.) time ever. Probably they kiss at some point idk much of a coherent plotline yet bc the real substance of this idea revolves around exploring jalen’s Issues.

Like the main things im interested in are how he already kind of has a chip on his shoulder irl and now having this huge thing that he absolutely cannot talk abt sets him apart from his teammates and makes that worse. And also ofc the rick of it all and how jalen would’ve had to be a young transitioner and his dad holding it over his head/his abusive sports dad training taking the form of “so you want to be a man then you have to be a real man”. Anddddd the trans guy having to be stealth in a hypermasculine environment internalized homophobia and repression. Basically i want to put him through the wringer bc i think someone has to.

Ty for the ask bc i’ve been dying to talk abt this :3

[sunstream7]

Cringe is dead. Xoxo droplets oc.

Real Chiara Hours (loredump under the cut)

Growing up in New York with her younger sister, Delilah, Chiara had a relatively stable life, if without much supervision. Her mother worked a lot, so she had Del attached to her hip. Due to this lack of supervision, she developed bad habits and poor outlets, often getting into fights.

Following the loss of their mother, Chiara (16), and Del (8) ended up in Cali with their estranged father and his wife and kids. Chiara, with no respect for authority, became the problem child, and it was a mutual decision that boarding school would be a better option. They both prefer that. Delilah is absolutely delighted to follow wherever her big sister is going.

This abrasive attitude and propensity for violence didn't fly at SSB, and with a more established presence of adults in her life, and per a teacher's suggestion, she took up boxing. This was a good and bad thing. She chills out a little bit and has a proper anger outlet, but she is frequently in the office because now she knows how to hit someone well. She's not so much a loose cannon as she is constantly trying to reign in her volatility, but lacking the real coping skills to do so, because she knows if she gets expelled, she has to go back to her father's house.

It takes Del getting into a fight with someone for Chiara to really make an effort to better herself. At the start of her junior year she really tries to embrace being kind to everyone even if it's hard.

This goes about as well as one would expect.

The game events are two years worth of Chiara gritting her teeth and making an effort, except she is trying to make an effort with the worst people in the school. She knows of the jerks for the most part, but getting forced into school-mandated group time puts her back at square one- a volatile situation with volatile people, settling her firmly in her niche of a loose cannon who gets aggressive when backed into a corner.

She respects everyone as people and (initially and foolishly) thinks that being somewhat friendly will make the world's worst group a little less terrible but it's hard when she sucks at knowing how to socialize in a way that won't set someone else off.

She only starts hanging out with the guys independently because her sister is bullying her into making more friends outside of her D&D group. She doesn't like it. Nobody involved likes it. she is gritting her teeth going to the zoo with people because she promised she'd try to be a better influence but she's. the way she is. and the way she is isnt really conducive to being a functioning member of society.

JB (and a different OC, Ayla, who doesn't have a sheet yet, smh) is also present and very true to her canon self. Chiara is initially very suspicious of her, but oddly enough, their personalities mesh remarkably well. Chiara is fine with JB calling the shots because JB doesn't try to order her around. They get slushies on Thursdays and gossip. 

ANYWAYS. That is one of the two menaces. I will yap about her if asked (please)

[justr3adin]

I need something to post cos I really don't feel like drawing, so here take my head canons about the personality of each of the Henry paths.

I am also not a shipper (personally shipping people is heckin weird)

Triple Threat- Mr Cheerful, goes along with Charles's plan, likes to chill, best buds with Ellie and Charles, but has a serious side you really shouldn't touch.

Valiant Hero- Mostly depressed since Charles was really his only friend, and is very sensitive about him. Breathe one bad word about Charles and TT may give you a glare, but VH will knuckle punch you in the face and demand you apologise.

Cleaned 'em Out- Friendly and laidback, he doesn't worry much at all, and a master tech Wizz because he was bored one day, doesn't flaunt his riches much, but clear signs of wealth.

Special Brovert Ops- The cheerfullest guy, can do some crazy stunts with Charles, enthusiastic as hell, everyone else mildly dislikes him as he can be really annoying. Surprisingly(or not) VH likes him.

Toppat King- Smug Rich Guy™ No.1, likes annoying R and T4L, but is really good with guns (aimbot on?). Is surprisingly good at negotiating when not actively being annoying.

Toppat 4 Life- Smug Rich Guy™ No.2, is very cold, can come up with killer comebacks. TK ignites his cold heart and they argue needlessly about the dumbest things. Secretly very smug that he runs the clan by himself. Don't bring it up because he can drone on and on and on.

Revenged- Severe anger problems, is no stranger to threats, cold and stoic. Had a mental breakdown when he was revived, but otherwise shows little emotions other than anger. Secretly a sarcasm master, but doesn't show it much. He is very aggressive towards the Toppats.

Toppat Civil Warfare- Is the mediator because no-one else is. Calms down R when he has his bouts of anger. Is the definition of 'when a therapist needs therapy'. Also is a little terrified that Ellie may be brought up.

Stickmin Space Resort- Smug Rich Guy™ No.3, is cocky, but is a master at pleasing others. Lives in his uniform. He often deals with Karens and so hides his anger very well. He has a strict bar, that which you cross, say bye-bye.

Jewel Baron- Smug Rich Guy™ No. 4. He loves to party and is the most obnoxious and annoying out of all of them. But really, he's just depressed, and uses 'party!' to hide it. No-one truly gets him. Can be mature once in a blue moon. Except when there’s a gem involved. He will be dead set on obtaining it.

Pardoned Pals- Has a comfortable life much like CeO, just minus the riches. Best friends with Ellie and is overall very calm. He's the local friend as he is quite neutral and is very friendly.

Toppat Recruits- Mostly friendly but can come off a bit cold, a bit snarky, and very fixated on stealing the ruby and emerald. Respects JB (doesn't know that JB abandoned Ellie).

Master Bounty Hunter- The scariest of them all(R is actually stronger but a machete carried around by a guy whose stare can petrify a criminal is really scary). Has taken up smoking but isn't addicted. Skilled in apprehending people. Has developed a ‘tough guy’ attitude.

Little Nest Egg- The most quiet of the bunch. Despite his riches, he doesn't show it at all. Good at quick decision making and often the most forgotten Henry as he tends to stay back. Also good at surviving in jungles. He does sometimes throw a bag of coins at the Toppat leaders when they argue.

Capital Gains- Smug Rich Guy™ No.5. Often provides snide remarks, but doesn't speak up much. He makes his connection to Ellie obvious, so TCW avoids him the most. He is also laidback, to a lesser extent.

Free Man- The most 'average' of the Henries. He is extremely good at escaping tough situations. A surprisingly smooth talker once you force him to share his thoughts. He's able to stay calm, even through the weirdest situations, also has probably changed the least out of all the Henries.

[otomes-and-tears]

thoughts on shiloh and jb,,,, theyre so fun to think abt as a dynamic no matter how u choose to slice it

THANK YOU FOR GIVING ME THE OPPORTUNITY TO TALK ABOUT THIS, ANON!! I want to smooch your forehead. I'm so happy rn.

Okay so-- I like to think that Shiloh initially only agreed to date JB out of self-interest, but eventually developed genuine feelings for her that he's in denial about.

We all know that he chooses to closely associate with people who will offer him something in return, and being with JB is DEFINITELY beneficial for him in the beginning:

First, by going out with her he's setting himself apart from the other jerks. He already acts differently from them, being nice, cheerful and helpful, and dating someone who others would consider desirable would do good for his social standing (and we know that shiloh has a bit of a reputation for being a manwhore, so actually settling down with someone for once would make him appear better) and it would solidify the idea that he's in the jerksquad by mistake and that he's "totally normal you guys" for people who still didn't catch on to him being a snake.

We also know that part of the reason is literally just that JB is the one thing that all the jerks have in common. They're all attracted to her in some capacity, and Shiloh can rub it in their faces in his own way that he "won" by being with her.

I think that JB being physically attractive and fitting his type are just minor points for him. If it was down to just physical attraction he wouldn't have bothered with a romantic relationship. He did, canonically, have a bunch of flings, so we know that for him accept a serious, exclusive relationship meant that there was a lot of incentive for him to do so.

So by all accounts, this is literally the perfect scenario for him: He's with someone attractive and fun, he pisses Pran off, people will see him in a better light and, the best part of all, JB is aware that he has ulterior motives and doesn't care about what they are, just as long he's praising her and being amusing.

There doesn't need to be any actual feelings involved. It's a mutually beneficial relationship that hinges on both parts fulfilling their pre-assigned roles. It's straightforward and uncomplicated, even if their dynamic is kind of fucked up if you think too hard about it.

But... And maybe this is just the hopeless romantic in me, but I do think that Shiloh eventually starts developing actual feelings for JB, and it would be fucking terrible for him.

There's this one post where GB lady talks about Shiloh's loneliness, and I think about it way too much. Even if you choose to see him as someone who just discards and replaces people in his life as soon as they're not of use anymore, he still feels isolated and lonely, because of course he does! Shiloh spent his entire life not letting people in and just following whoever established themselves as a leader, he even admits to it himself in Our life.

Shiloh doesn't have any actual, meaningful relationships because he can't have them and still maintain that same pattern of behaviour that he's used to, and letting go of these old habits would be incredibly difficult for someone whose entire childhood socialization was built onto this foundation.

Like-- I know that is a clichê for people to trace back everything to someone's childhood, but I cannot stress enough how CRUCIAL childhood socialization is for human development. Of course, people can grow and change even if they had difficult childhoods, but you need a good foundation in order to build healthy habits, and while Shiloh did have loving parents who wanted to do good by him, the behaviours and thought patterns he picked up during his childhood are still things we can see he struggles with throughout his life.

Building long-lasting connections with people means that he needs to allow himself to be vulnerable and genuine, It means that Shiloh needs to let go of the safety of the "boss and sidekick" dynamic that he's used to, and that especially, he would need to let go of his habit of entering relationships with the expectation of leaving them eventually.

I don't think these are things he's incapable of doing, if you choose to believe that he was being genuine with Liz during their conversation in OLBA, but these are things that he has resistance to trying because they have outcomes that are difficult to predict, and Shiloh is as his most comfortable when he's able to read someone and be what they need him to be or manipulate them into giving to him what he wants. He thrives on predictability and control.

I believe that actually falling in love with JB would be something he'd be in denial about for a long time. I think it would be hard for him to rationalise having actual, genuine feelings for someone after he spent an entire life avoiding them, and it would be even harder for him to deal with the very real possibility of this relationship having an expiration date, or, even worse, him wanting to be with her past her usefulness.

And it's not like he has anyone to talk to about these things, or that JB would even believe him if he admitted to actually liking her. I do think that Shiloh is the kind of person who would try to bury these feelings inside as much as possible to try and regain some sense of normalcy and you'd never be able to tell, bc he's just acting like normal.

By the prom scene, I think he actually likes her. I think he purposefully takes advantage of the fact that she doesn't take anything he says seriously to say things he actually means. I think him opening up about his manipulation tactics goes beyond him just wanting to manipulate her further (though I do think that keeping her interested enough she doesn't want to break up is a good motivator for him to keep on manipulating her too) and is also Shiloh's way of testing her boundaries and just how much she's willing to put up with if he starts being honest with her.

I don't think he knows whether or not to break up with her by graduation. She's asking him, but he doesn't know what to answer. Being with her beyond high school and putting effort into staying with JB long-distance doesn't really benefit Shiloh like it did when they were both in high school, and staying with JB long-term would mean that at some point he'd have to look deep inside and ask himself if he's willing to change.

And yeah, he's lonely, and he loves JB, but is that worth giving up everything you know?

Buuut if you want my honest opinion, which I'm guessing you do because you read through this mountain of text, I like to think that him allowing Liz back into his life is a good sign. It, at the very least, means that he is willing to maintain one relationship and that he's willing to be at least somewhat honest with someone. That's already miles better from where he was when Xoxo Droplets started.

By the way-- if you agree or disagree with anything I said here I'd LOVE to hear people's takes on this topic! I love talking about them!

[shadthchan052-blog]

Masterpost

Hello! I'm Bumblebee, the youngest child of Optimus Prime, Elita-One, and Megatron! These are the people you're able to ask questions to:

(This is set for post-season 3. It will be post-season 4 if and when it's been released. Any fics I write are canon to this au)

(Mod speaking)

Bumblebee, Wasp, Rodimus, Zipper speaking | Siblings

Optimus, Elita-One, Megatron speaking | Parents (@ask-megs-op-and-elita & @prime-and-megatron)

Twitch, Thrash, Jawbreaker "JB", Hashtag "HT" (@hash-of-the-tag), Nightshade, Robby, Mo, Dot, Alex speaking | Maltos (@maltobots-roll-out)

Grimlock "Grim", Arcee (@ask-tf-earthspark-arcee), Ratchet "Ratch" (@ask-ratchet-the-medic), Wheeljack "Jackie" (@ask-tf-earthspark-wheeljack), Prowl speaking | Extended Family

Breakdown (@ask-earthspark-breakdown) speaking | Lover

Sari speaking (@sari-but-not-sorry)

Inter-dimensional sibling: @femmebotjazz24

The "Drones": In order from oldest to youngest and their alt-modes

Carpenter: Carpenter Bee | He/Him

Cotton; Shiny Skiddo | She/Her

Mothra: Lunar Moth [wings], Silk Moth [looks], Frosmoth [fluffiness] hybrid | They/Them

Pollie [read Polly]: Rollie Pollie | He/They

Noche: Lunar Butterfly | She/Her

Joltiey: Shiny Joltik | He/They/It {Rarely}

Viral: Viral Bug [living anti-virus] | She/Her

Midnight: {Root-mode: Anthropomorphic Bunny with Raccoon marking} TBD (Protoform) | TBD

Ursa: {Root-mode: Anthropomorphic Black Bear} TBD | TBD

Relationships:

Bumblebee and Wasp: Youger Twins

Rodimus and Zipper: Older Twins

Bee and Breakdown: Lovers

Bee, Breakdown and the Drones: Parents and children

Bee, Grim, Ratch, Jackie, Prowl: Uncle and nephew

Bee, Arcee, @femmebotjazz24: Siblings

Extra Information:

Bee and Wasp are Insectoids.

a) Insectoids are Insecticons with a vehicle form. They're basically triple-changers

Rodimus is on the Lost Light

Zipper is on Caminus

Wasp is in Peru living with the Maximals and Dinobot

Ratchet and Drift are in Philly.

a) Ratchet works at a hospital

Bee is an archer and a blacksmith

Bee can copy fantasy concepts: abilities, magic, creatures, etc.

Bee can produce anything he consumes: Energon, Cave water, metals, etc.

Bee and Wasp used to perform as trapeze artists in a circus

a) Bee can no longer fly in his insect form due to an accident while performing and now has a ripped left-wing.

b) The circus is basically Cirque Du Solie but on Cybertron.

Bee is a songstress/sirenoid

Bee and Twitch have ADHD

Jawbreaker has autism

Roles:

Bee: Queen of the Hive/The Insecticon Queen

Optimus: Prime: Leader of the Autobots | Pupu

Elita-1: Co-captain of the Autobots | Mama

Megatron: Former leader of the Decepticons | Dad

Roddy: Captain of the Lost Light

Grim: Leader of the Dinobots

Ratchet: Cheif Medical Officer

Twitch: Leader of the Terrans

[kimberlyannharts]

Kind of venting.

I dont hate JJ but when he was introduced, everyone was like why isnt Tomberly canon and hated him

Now Olivia is here, and people are like GO! JJ!

I mean, as a guy, I dont want to say it, but bunch of the PR fandom is deeply misogynistic. I am telling you if Olivia was Oliver, people would have loved him, but no... They cant handle strong female characters.

Oh, this fandom is totally misogynistic. It's kind of to be expected in any fandom for a "boys' show" but it's particularly frustrating for something like Power Rangers, where both the franchise and fans think that misogyny is solved and feminism is complete when a female character is badass or wears red or whatever.

So yeah, the sudden jump in support for JJ at Olivia's expense was totally fueled by misogyny towards both her AND AJJ. I remember when SotD first dropped and the majority of reactions towards him were lukewarm "eh he's okay, kinda boring" and outright hatred for the Dragon Shield SPD suit. (Also I think his association with the SPD ranking drama soured some peoples' reception of him.) But then the instant Olivia's character sheet was dropped, suddenly people were up in arms about his place in the canon; that he was the superior character with the superior design; that this was a vanity project AJJ was doing out of bitterness that Kim didn't end up with Tommy. (Note that literally all we had of Olivia at the time was her name, design, and the fact that she was Tommy and Kim's daughter, and that The Return's press had been very clear that this was set in an alternate universe.) The revisionist history at play was INSANE. NO ONE cared about JJ that much before this.

It's why I hate the subsequent "why not both????" push or any kind of pitch involving Olivia and JJ going on brother/sister adventures. I think it's intended to be positive towards Olivia, but it just feels performative to me because they can't support Olivia without being like "but DON'T WORRY guys, JJ is STILL CANON TOO, we LOVE JJ TOO" - like okay but JJ isn't the one being attacked here. JB's tweet that JUST HAPPENED to point out how JJ was in MULTIPLE canon productions while Olivia was JUST EU and thus "didn't break anything" is a good example of something that was probably meant to be supportive, but just came off condescending and dismissive

[swordmaid]

after this comm batch i think i want to update shri'iia's refs + her wardrobe refs since i finally have a design for lurragath and i want to edit some things a bit...

[collecting-stories]

Guts ch. 2 - Bad Idea Right?

setting: spring break (flashback)

summary: Sarah begged and Kiara relented, heading home for spring break and the opportunity to see JJ for the first time since leaving for college. Unsure if that door is even still open, Kiara’s not positive she wants it to be. To make matters worse, she can't get Rafe off her mind.

A/N: Parts of this I’m keeping canon or canon-backstory that applies to this fic are 1). All of season one 2). the beginning of season two up until John B and Sarah return to the island. Let’s assume: JB and Sarah were successful in stealing the gold from Ward, JB made a claim for it like he said he was going to do but instead of splitting the whole lot, most of it was donated back to the island while they kept a small portion for themselves (and JJ gave his portion to Pope so that he could go to college cause the scholarship still fell through). Oh and Rafe didn’t murder anyone…for the sake of him not being a psychopath in this fic.

<- All-American B*tch | Guts Masterlist | Vampire ->

banner by @saradika

It wasn't that they didn't talk at all, it was just that their conversations had dwindled into that awkward phase where they both felt obligated to talk but they didn't really know what to talk about. Kiara had a wealth of stories about school, her dorm mate, parties, clubs, but none of it involved anyone that she knew from home (excluding Rafe, and she definitely couldn't tell JJ about Rafe). All her stories were unrelatable, just reminders that she was hundreds of miles away from OBX. JJ felt like he was talking to a stranger sometimes, a stranger that didn't understand him anymore. 

"It's like there's a translation barrier," Kiara had admitted to Sarah when she called the week before spring break. 

"That's why you need to come back for break." 

Sarah had been on Kiara about spring break since Christmas passed without a reunion. At least, not a reunion that included Kiara. 

"As you said," she juggled the phone between her shoulder and her cheek as she shifted her books into her right arm to open her door. Tuesdays were her worst day, she had two classes in the morning, honor society during Q-time, and labs in the afternoon. She'd answered the phone because she always answered the phone when Sarah called, but she was annoyed too because she hadn't answered to be assaulted with 'come home for spring break' rhetoric. 

Kiara didn't have exact numbers but she was pretty sure (like 99.9% sure) that every college student on the east coast that didn't want to brave Florida came to the Outer Banks for spring break. At least that was always how it felt. The beaches, The Wreck, the promenade, every inch of Kitty Hawk was overflowing with college students and Kiara had always sworn that when she went to college she wasn't going to go home for spring break. She was prepared to say as much to Sarah.

Except when she went to turn the handle on the door she realized she had locked it, which means it had been unlocked. Her dorm mate had class right now and the boyfriend was no longer in the picture. 

"Hold on Sarah," 

"What's the matter?" Sarah only sounded mildly concerned, figuring it wasn't anything actually serious. She knew Kiara's schedule as well as she knew her own and knew she had reached her dorm by now. 

Kiara unlocked the door this time and pushed it open, stopping herself in the threshold when she recognized the intruder, sitting on her bed. 

"Sup Kie," Rafe was lounging on her bed on his back, arm behind his head, reading one of the books that had been on her nightstand. 

"Is someone there?" Sarah perked up at the muffled sound of a guy's voice in the background of the call. Kiara had just spent the fifteen minute walk from class to her dorm building talking about the last conversation she had with JJ and not knowing where they stood with each other. 

"I'll call you back Sarah," Kiara gave a pointed emphasis on Sarah's name, looking over at Rafe as she spoke. Before Sarah could say anything else in response, Kiara was hanging up the phone. "What are you doing here?"

"I felt like hanging out," he shrugged, "Ra...Ro...something, let me in."

"Rosetta," Kiara supplied, thinking she was going to have a serious conversation with her roommate about who to let into a dorm unchecked. Not that she was particularly upset about seeing Rafe, more so that Sarah had been on the phone and if she had recognized her older brother's voice, Kiara would have a very uncomfortable conversation ahead of her. "And she shouldn't have."

Rafe put the book down and sat up, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed, "what's got you in shitty mood today?"

Kiara deflated, tossing her bag on her office chair and putting her books on her desk, "nothing's wrong. I just...your sister wants us to do spring break?"

"You and me?"

"No," Kiara sat down on the bed with him, "me and the pogues...since we didn't get together over Christmas."

"We got together over Christmas," Rafe replied, grin in place. 

Getting together was one way to put it. Rafe had been explicit in telling his father that he didn't want anything to do with a family Christmas and Ward was surprisingly alright with that, given that Rose didn't particularly want to see Rafe either. As a compromise, Ward had given Rafe all-access to their home in Aspen and Rafe, not wanting to be totally alone for Christmas, invited Kiara. Just the two of them, a chateau on the mountains, and almost an entire month away from their families. It'd been good, great even, to hide away from expectations and parents and everything but then she'd come back to reality, just like she knew she would, and she was trapped all over again. 

By Sarah, mostly, who wouldn't let Spring Break die though thankfully she'd given up asking Kiara where exactly she was at Christmas. "Not like that," Kiara laughed. "Anyway, I guess I might go back."

She'd been feeling her resolve dwindling lately whenever Sarah brought the topic up and she was afraid to admit but she really did miss everyone. Even JJ, hopeful that this inability to communicate was just a weird patch in their friendship (situationship) and it could be resolved over the course of seven days and sun and surfing. Like all their problems when they were kids, it could be superficial and fixable and nothing that happened between her and Rafe would leave a permanent stain on her relationship with JJ. 

"Guess you might?" Rafe laughed, "oof, tell me how you really feel." 

"Like you care."

"Hey," Rafe leaned back against the wall, "I am extremely caring." 

"Extremely caring? Since when and to who?" Kiara asked, "and don't tell me about the time you covered for Wheezie last summer when Ward found weed in her room because I've heard that story twice already, plus once from Sarah, and I'm still convinced that it actually was your weed." 

"I never said it wasn't originally mine, I said Wheezie was stashing it for her friends," Rafe replied. "And I wasn't going to mention Wheezie anyway."

"What frat bro did you tuck in after he puked his guts out?" 

Rafe pulled a disgusted face, "gross, none of them. They're all shit heads."

"You pledged to a fraternity of shitheads? Sounds about right."

"Damn Kie, Sarah must have really wedged a stick up your ass over this whole Spring Break thing," he laughed, not in the least offended by her attitude. If living in proximity to each other on Figure Eight, spending unending hours with her over the course of her and Sarah's first attempt at friendship and getting treated like a leper for the second hadn't prepared him for Kiara's snarky attitude, then the last few months certainly had. 

While it wasn't entirely intentional on Kiara's end, talking to Sarah (especially about OBX or the pogues) set her off. She loved Sarah (and the pogues and the Outer Banks) but she hated that constant guilt that ate at her whenever Sarah mentioned going home for the weekend or talking to John B. Pope went away to college, he was further north that Kiara and she had to wonder if he ever felt this gnawing guilt. She didn't talk to him or anyone about it, Sara would just say she was missing home and she should transfer to UNC Chapel Hill: problem solved. But that wasn't it, she wasn't missing home. 

"Sorry," she apologized, attitude deflating as she leaned back against the wall next to Rafe, "your sister just gets under my skin with all this 'we miss you' stuff constantly. I feel guilty enough as it is and then she piles it on talking about how they were all surfing over the weekend or they took the HMS out to fish or they went to the waterpark and like...Pope is away! Pope is in college too! No one ever bitches to him I bet, they don't call him up and try to make him feel shitty for wanting to put a little distance between himself and everything else." Kiara tossed the mushroom throw pillow she had crocheted across the dorm, hitting the wall opposite them and watching the mushroom land on her dorm mate's bed. 

"I think we need to talk about pre-hookup chats cause this foreplay is getting a little too serious for me." 

"Oh, shut up Rafe!" Kiara huffed. 

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding," he promised, holding his hands up in mock surrender before wrapping his arms around her and pulling her against him. It was an awkward hug but she leaned in anyway, her back to his chest as she relaxed. "You know Sarah hates change...I just think it's taking her some adjusting to being at Chapel Hill. Wheez said she's home all the time."

"I know she doesn't like her roommate-"

"Or her psych professor-"

"Or her RA-"

Both of them laughed at the amount of instances that arose at the mention of Sarah's college experience. She'd bitched in earnest to everyone who was willing to answer the phone, Rafe included (on the rare occasion that she'd called him and he'd answered thinking it might've been an emergency). 

"Okay...so maybe I shouldn't have a total meltdown," Kiara tilted her head back to look up at Rafe, "part of me feels like, if I go home and I miss it then I have to come back and it's gonna feel different." 

"How so?"

"I thought you didn't wanna do this philosophical shit whenever you came over?" Kiara pointed out, recalling a few weeks ago when he had told her in no uncertain terms that they weren't 'friends with benefits' they were just the benefits part and he didn't want to hear her unload about class or Sarah or her parents. Her problems weren't his problems, as he so eloquently put it. 

She'd honestly been a little surprised to see him when she'd walked in. He'd seemed like he was cutting off whatever situationship was going on between them because of her own need to emotionally invest herself in something that he saw as purely physical. She'd told him that he'd be back, somewhere during the height of their yelling match (which her dorm mate kindly pointed out was the epitome of actual relationship problems and definitely not how friends with benefits hashed out miscommunications), but she was still surprised. She'd said it, but she hadn't actually thought he would be back. Rafe Cameron had as much ease with campus life as he'd had with social life back in high school. The kook academy had been his kingdom and Appalachia State was just as happy to have him. 

"Just tell me," Rafe replied, avoiding the question. 

"I like being away from home and not having everybody think of me in terms of John B or JJ. I feel like I'm not Sarah Cameron's friend or Mike Carerra's daughter or John B's best friend, I'm just myself. And I really fucking like that but I also kind of miss being all those other things and I miss OBX sometimes and I do wanna see everybody. I just feel like maybe the me that they want to see isn't the me that I am."

Rafe pressed a kiss to the top of her head, "I don't think you changed as much as you think you have, I think maybe you're just finally seeing yourself for something other than everyone's sidekick."

"That's some very philosophical shit," Kiara replied, turning her head so she could kiss Rafe back. The edge of his jaw first and then, when he tilted his head down to look at her, his lips. 

"Yeah, what can I say," he slid his arms out from around her and she shifted in the bed so she was sitting and facing him, "I was being a dick when I freaked out on you a couple weeks ago."

"Oh, I'll agree with that assessment-"

"Of course you will."

"Is there going to be an actual apology or just like...yeah I was a dick, man," Kiara said, dropping her voice an octave to do her best impression of Rafe that she could. 

"I'm sorry I was a dick to you and said the shit I said. That was out of line...I like when you dump all your shit on me like ten minutes before we fuck, really gets me in the mood actually-"

"Okay, you suck at apologies!" Kiara laughed.

"Yeah? I suck at other things too, want me to show you?" He teased, leaning in. 

-

Despite nice distractions and crushing midterms and Rafe's invitation to meet up with Topper in LA (which seemed like a terrible idea on all fronts but mostly because Topper would tell everyone he had ever met that Kiara Carerra, pogue, was spending her spring break with Rafe Cameron and Sarah would be at the very top of that list), Kiara ended up driving down to OBX for spring break. 

The drive wasn't terrible. If anything she spent the entirety of it listening to the other three freshman she'd promised to carpool down to North Carolina talk about high school boyfriends and up coming class projects and where they bought their swimsuits this season. It was a nice, droning, easy conversation that didn't require Kiara to ruminate on her own high school boyfriend or whatever was going on with Rafe. She felt like they were dating but then he'd 'get busy with school' or 'get distracted by frat stuff' and they wouldn't talk for a week. She didn't want to ask because he'd already, very clearly, multiple times, defined what he wanted them to be and she had agreed every time. Easy, no strings, just sex. But it never was what he said it was or what she said she wanted it to be and instead it was something else. Something that had taken on a life of its own and threatened to burst out of her every time she answered a phone call from Sarah. 

She felt like she was always just waiting, as if Sarah knew something and she was going to call her out on it. The first time they were friends, freshman year of kook academy, Sarah had sussed out the (probably very obvious) crush that Kiara had developed on Rafe. The way she tried to steal glances at Rafe whenever she was over for dinner, the significantly cuter outfits she wore around Tanney Hill (especially the amount of allowance she invested in sets from Victoria's Secret because she was somehow convinced that Rafe would stumble upon her in the kitchen at midnight and fall madly in love with her), Sarah saw it all and called her out on frequently. By the time they were friends again, Kiara's crush had dwindled to nothing more than an acknowledgment that he was even more attractive than he had been the spring before. She didn't like him though, there was too much bad blood there on the surface between him and the pogues, only amplified once Sarah and John B started dating. But Sarah knew all Kiara's secrets, even the ones she dared not to tell anyone else in her close circle and Kiara was sure there was no way to hide this secret. 

It helped that Rafe was in LA with Topper and not there in OBX because at least then she could pretend like he was still just some kook that didn't matter anymore. She could focus on JJ and whatever was still left there and being with her friends, at least for Spring Break. 

"You seem distracted," Sarah offered a tequila seltzer to Kiara as she joined her on the lifeguard station. 

Kiara wasn't even a full day back on the island and already she had found herself at a party. One that, like all the others she had ever been to, was supposed to be small but ended up on the beach with every pogue she'd ever met inviting themselves. John B had finally found a reason to detach himself from Sarah, night surfing with JJ, and Sarah had inevitably found her way over to Kiara. Partly because she wanted to spend some time with her best friend and partly because she was fishing, she knew there was something Kiara wasn't telling her. A rare phenomenon since they'd repaired their relationship the summer after sophomore year. 

"Not distracted," Kiara promised, practically chugging the seltzer, "just tired from the drive or whatever." 

"JJ was excited to see you."

Kiara groaned, leaning back against the railing, "why don't you just tell me what you want me to tell you?" 

Sarah raised her eyebrows and scoffed at her best friend's tone, "Okay, shit. I was just gonna say you don't seem like you wanna be here so...do you wanna be somewhere else? Did you meet someone, at school?" 

"No," Kiara replied quickly looking away from Sarah to avoid any further scrutiny, though she was sure that Sarah could tell she was lying. 

"Is there a reason you don't want me to know?" 

"No, I just...I don't know if it's really anything worth ruining things with JJ over. It's not serious and it doesn't mean anything, technically."

"Not technically?" Sarah asked, "so, does it not mean anything to you or to this other person?"

"Both of us."

"Okay...does this person have a name?" Sarah asked.

"Does it matter?" Kiara rebuffed, "I mean, you don't know them so..."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Well, you're obviously missing them if you're up here moping and not joining in on the party."

Kiara groaned loudly, standing up and taking her drink with her as she climbed down off the lifeguard post. She wasn't missing Rafe. That was an entirely crazy, ludicrous, absurd, idea. She would have to be absolutely out of her mind to miss Rafe. Her best friends' (plural) arch-nemesis. The guy who made the summer after her sophomore year (and a couple years after that) pure hell. Miss him, never. She didn't miss him. She didn't miss the stupid look on his face whenever they got into the real deep shit, somewhere between 3am and a shared joint. She didn't miss the way he'd bring her coffee when he knew she was struggling to stay awake between classes on Tuesdays. She didn't miss how easy it was to talk to him or how funny he could be when he wasn't trying to be a dick. She didn't miss anything about him. She didn't. 

She just, wanted to know if maybe he was missing something about her. 

"Hey lonely girl," JJ called as he approached Kiara, offering her the cup in his hand. She'd seen them set up the keg a while ago and she was surprised there was any beer left in it. 

"Hey," she couldn't help the smile that crossed her face. Despite the craziness of their relationship, JJ was always her closest friend and her most trusted confidant. If there was anyone that would safeguard a secret, she knew it was JJ. It felt good to be here with him, even if Sarah had accused her of not being happy to see him. She was always happy to see him, it was just that this time she was keeping the kind of secret that she couldn't ever tell him. The kind of secret that could very well ruin their friendship. 

"You okay? You seem a million miles away." 

"Must be the spring break high wearing off," Kiara joked, sidestepping anything too serious. A party on the beach with her best friends should have had her on cloud nine. She knew why she felt so off-kilter she just didn't want to admit it. Not to them, definitely not to herself. 

"I heard once you're a college freshman you're more introspective." 

Kiara laughed, "I'll have to get back to you on that one...I'm not sure that's taken effect yet."

JJ looked like there was something else he wanted to say, something that might've burst their little bubble and ruined the spring break high she was chasing but had yet to achieve. 

"I was thinking this morning that we have to go night surfing...any surfing at all really...before the week is up. I was like hanging out the window on the way down here, trying to take in the salt air." 

"Are you sure you weren't just car sick?" JJ teased, the light coming back to his eyes as he smiled at her. 

"I don't get carsick! That's Pope!"

"Oh yeah, what about that time in eighth grade?" 

"No, no, you can't bring that up as evidence!" Kiara laughed. 

The sound pulled John B and Pope away from their respective groups, drawing them into their own little circle of fond memories of P4L and nothing more complicated than where they'd catch a wave or drop a line. JJ was recreating the time Kiara puked her lunch all over the back of the Twinkie (still in Big John's possession back then) after John B and JJ convinced her to go a joyride with them. Eighth grade, no license of any kind, and the four of them rattling down the main road in the Cut, going almost 70 miles an hour. Peterkin, as Pope recalled, pulled them over and was nice enough not to give them all tickets or worse, book them.

"She made us do community service for a month!" JJ argued, still convinced the punishment hadn't meant the crime.

"Yeah and you were lucky she didn't fine us or not let us get our licenses on time or something," Pope replied.

"Charge us with car theft," Kiara suggested. 

"My dad would've let her," John B laughed.

"And we would probably still be paying for that shit, which is why community service was no big deal. Besides, you barely showed up. If it wasn't for Pope and me, you two would've been fined for skipping out," Kiara pointed out. 

She liked this. Liked talking about old things that had happened, funny moments they could all laugh and reminisce at. Because she knew them back then and they knew her. Maybe too well at times but it was familiar and easy and fun back then. There didn't feel like some great divide existed between them, a canon of months that had changed her and changed them too. She wanted to grab JJ's hand the same way she used to in high school and squeeze to reassure herself that this JJ standing in front of her was still the one that she fell in love with. But she knew it wouldn't matter if he was, because she wasn't the same girl anymore. 

Over the rim of his cup as he took a sip of beer, JJ's eyes met hers and she could already tell he was grinning the way he always did before he propositioned her. Kiara had told him once that he looked down right mischievous when he looked at her like that, like he was just asking for trouble. She could never deny him though. The look alone sent her pulse racing. Tonight was no different. Whether it was because she wanted to shake Sarah's suspicions off or because she wanted to convince herself that whatever was going on with Rafe really was 'just sex', she let herself give into JJ's smile and take his hand when it reached for hers. 

They weaved their way back through the partygoers and down the beach to where the Twinkie was parked. The door creaked when JJ slid it open but even the jarring sound wasn't enough to break the spell Kiara let herself fall under. This was what spring break was supposed to be like. This was the way she had always dreamed everything would work out. That she would get the guy she wanted and get to have everything else too and she'd be damned if she didn't let herself enjoy it. Indulge just for a moment in the fantasy. She ignored the voice in her head saying that this wasn't a good idea. That she was messing with JJ's feelings, whatever they might be, and she was messing with her own too. Because she wasn't all in. She was half way out the door on a good day, always weighing every option and decision against some bigger picture she created in her head, and this was not a good day. Tonight, right now, she was barely there at all. She couldn't get Rafe out of her head, couldn't stop thinking of the implication of inviting her on spring break with him. Had it been a joke because he knew she would decline or was he serious? Did he think it was more than sex or was she just in her head about everything because she felt so disconnected. 

"You okay?" JJ asked and there was real concern there. Actual emotion in his voice and his eyes. 

"Perfect."

[britney-rosberg06]

🐑 send me a fake set of fic tags, and I’ll try to come up with a summary for it!

Tags: Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Canon Related, Angst with an happy ending, (Mutual) Pining, Jealousy (or Possessive behavior), Domestic bliss

For Princess Cake plz (or any ship of your choice)

Title: Life on Martin Street

Blurb:

It was so wrong and so frowned upon. But…Nico was better than fate. Right? His marriage was happy and comfortable and he thought they loved each other. But every damn day that fucking JB stared back at him from his wrist. And he would see Lewis staring at the SV on his own.

It’s just…he never expected to actually meet the notorious JB. In the form of the nice newly-single dad that moves in across the street.

Summary:

Thinking they’re better than soulmates, Nico and Lewis marry young cause they were in love. Soulmates don’t always work out, better to have someone you really like. They have two children and a relatively happy life until Jenson moves in with his son (Logan) and through things like PTA meetings and meet cute stuff he realizes that Jenson is the one he loves. His Soulmate. He still doesn’t know what to do, he has two children with Lewis, who is also slowly coming to terms with their deteriorating marriage.

[jaimexbrienne-fic-finder]

Hello! I'm back to read JB fic after pausing for a while and can't find one fic I've loved to reread, I hope you can help🙏🏻 In this fic J/B got together, married, canon-verse. I think Dany is on the throne at the end?? (Can't really remember) The focal point is Cersei still live through the very end, and C set to the public execution. Jaime visits her last time, gets his closure, but refuses to stay with her at the last moments. And a bit plot twist, the one who kills Cersei is Arya. Cersei tried to convince Arya to kill Jaime instead by revealing that Jaime was the one who crippled Bran. Arya just answer 'yes I knew he told me' and push C out of the tower. (I like the Arya-Cersei convert so, so much). Thanks you a lot 💞🙇

Thank you for the detailed description! Still, I am sorry I can't think of anything that fits, just a few where Arya kills Cersei but by stabbing or strangling.

I hope someone else can help!

I am afraid just thinking about it harder won't help me find it but I will continue to poke around ao3 a bit!