#life is strange samantha

[p41nkillers]

made up some headcanons i have abt nathan: he likes LOVES hearing ppl beg and plead it makes him feel wanted/important bc hes secretly craving for attention like a manwhore probably has a touch starved kink too

hes just too prideful to admit it ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[cringefailkralie]

something something every universe

[dalekofchaos]

If Max never left Arcadia Bay au

So I came up with an au where Max never leaves for Seattle.

Basically Ryan Caulfield got a better job offer from the Prescott Foundation and something he just couldn't refuse. So the Caulfields stay in Arcadia Bay.

Max staying in Arcadia Bay means Chloe has a better influence in her life, stays in Blackwell and could help with Joyce to be the peacemaker between Chloe and David.

Vanessa and Ryan help Joyce through her grieving while Max and Chloe heal together

Max would be friends with Steph, Mikey and Samantha.

During the D&D game sessions, Max's character would be a Dwarven Sorceress. Name? I'm not sure. Let's go with Marcella Stormbreaker

Because of her dad's position, Max and Nathan would've been encouraged to befriend each other. Combine that with Max's friendship with Samantha, than there's a guarantee that Nathan's mental stability would've turned out for the better.

Max meeting Victoria earlier on would've helped Victoria loosen up and be nicer and help influence what the Vortex Club would later become.

Max and Rachel would get along, but Max would help Chloe and Rachel make better decisions, that way they can catch James in the act while none of them get busted or in trouble at Blackwell.

Max would be in the audience as Chloe and Rachel propose perform at the Tempest and Max is speechless and BLOWS up Chloe and Rachel's phone. "OMGOMGOMG YOU MADE IT SO MUCH BETTER"

Bonus points. When Chloe and Rachel kiss, Max takes the picture and titles it "Arcadia Baes"

Because of Max's help to get Chloe and David to get along better, Max tips David off about Damon, they stake out the junkyard meeting and when Damon pulls his knife out, David takes him down and saves Rachel from being stabbed. Rachel steals Damon's phone and finds out where Sera is.

Max, Chloe and Rachel investigate James' office and finds out the truth.

When Eliot threatens Chloe in James' office, Rachel calls the cops on him and is caught red handed with Eliot's fist raised while Chloe's hands raised in a defensive position. Eliot is arrested while Rachel embraces Chloe with Eliot swearing revenge.

James is exposed and is fired as a DA and his license barred.

Oh, and they give James' money stash to Sera. Afterwords Rachel moves out and moves in with Sera and they get to start fresh.

Throughout the three years, leading up to her entry into Blackwell, Max meets Warren and there's an immediate spark. Chloe and Rachel tease Max about him relentlessly. "Our little wallflower is in love" "So precious, nerd love!" all while Max turns shades of red that aren't scientifically possible. And Max finally gains the courage to ask Warren out on a date. By the time they both enter Blackwell, Max and Warren are in a committed relationship.

Max also befriends Kate Marsh before Blackwell. One day while Max was passing by the church taking pictures, she bumps into Kate and they're both apologetic, one thing leads to another and Kate offers Max on a tea date, they hit it off and become best friends.

The events of LIS: Because of Max's influence, the following changed.

Chloe graduated from Blackwell

Chloe and David get along like Joyce always wanted

Chloe and Rachel are still very much in love

Max and Warren are in a committed relationship

Because of Max's influence on the Vortex Club, the Vortex Club is more nice, less elitist and does more to uplift Blackwell than make everyone to be ashamed of Blackwell.

In this version of the story, Max can gently push Kate and Victoria to be friends or something more

Kate never goes viral, but she is still drugged

Rachel gets a complete scholorship to ULA, but is postponed because of reasons you'll find out.

Rachel doesn't seek comfort in Frank or Jeffershit

Nathan doesn't fall under Jeffershit's abuse

Eliot becomes Jeffershit's partner. He wouldn't meekly fall in line like Nathan did, there is no abuse or gaslighting that got him to do this. Eliot's in it on his own free will and because he's as vile as Jefferson. Eliot can help replicate the formula that creates the drugs that Frank sells. Jefferson either kills Eliot for always challenging him or Jefferson keeps him in line by promising to let Eliot kill Rachel and "keep" Chloe, but Jefferson is planning to pin the whole thing on Eliot as he's way to eager and bloodthirsty.

But where things change is that Samantha is the one who disappears, not Rachel.

Samantha's disappearance and Kate's drugging is what propels Max, Chloe, Rachel, Warren, Victoria, and Nathan to work together and figure out what happened all the while finding out dark truths about Blackwell and the Prescott Foundation while Ryan Caulfield is an unwitting accomplice to Sean Prescott's plans for the storm and Pan Estates.

Long story short, Rachel is the key to the Storm happening. If Rachel dies, the storm conjures and wipes out Arcadia Bay.

Rachel is abducted during the events of Episode 4 while Max and co look for her. which results in Eliot and Jefferson drugging and kidnapping Max and Chloe.

Warren would call in David and the police and provides the evidence from the investigation to help find the Dark Room.

There are choices that would determine Rachel's fate.

If you have enough influence on Nathan, then he stands up to Sean and ends the "Prescott destiny" by finding the Dark Room in time and shoots Eliot dead before he can kill Rachel.

Failing to have enough influence on Nathan results in Rachel's death and the oncoming storm.

David arrests Jefferson and saves Max, Chloe and Rachel. The storm is prevented and Arcadia Bay is saved.

Sean Prescott is arrested and the Prescott Foundation shuts down.

But, Ryan Caulfield has acquired enough funds to start up his own business and uses his own wealth and influence to heal the damage caused by The Prescott Foundation. The Caulfield Institute provides education, wildlife and environmental protection and helps Arcadia Bay heal.

Epilogue.

Chloe and Rachel head to LA. Rachel goes to ULA, Chloe follows her angel to their Santa Monica Dream

Max and Warren head to UO to fulfill their dreams in the pursuit of science and photography and plan their future together.

Max, keeps in contact with Chloe and Rachel and never grow apart. They text, do video calls and visit each other now and then. Hella best friends forever!

Nathan finally free of his father and the Prescott shame of a reputation leaves and plans to visit his sister Kristine and hopes to find a career in Marine Biology that helps him be closer to the whales.

Victoria leads her family's gallery while pursuing her dreams of photography

Kate writes books for children and does podcasts to help teenagers and young adults with bullying and any trauma they may be suffering from.

[meg-noel-art]

Happy Lesbian Visibility Week Everyone!! It is thanks to many fictional and non fictional lesbians that I came out myself over six years ago now :)) I love lesbians, wlw, sapphic woman lovers - Celebrate and prop them up this week! It’s Lesbians’ Birthday!

I draw many of them every day and I share my favorite with you all again in illustrious celebration for the week!

[chloe-caulfield94]

"When I'm super pissed, the last thing I want is someone trying to calm me down. But maybe it's what I need. Nathan acted like he didn't want our help yesterday, but trust me, he was glad we did".

Firstly, let's appreciate Chloe for dispensing actually good life and relationship advice. Sometimes what we want is not what we need, especially when we're driven by desperation or sadness.

Secondly, when I heard Chloe say that I immediately thought about her asking Max to sacrifice her in Episode 5. Yes, in that moment of desperation Chloe wants to just end it all. She wants Max to give up on her, just like everyone else has given up on her. Like she's given up on herself. But what she needs is for Max to believe in her and stand by her.

[captainblue-hairedpunk]

Thoughts on Nathan Prescott?

Okay so I'm after as many Life Is Strange fans' perspective on Nathan's character, both the positive and the negative. Literally anything, from deleted voice lines that could have altered his character in the final game, to headcanons. Any and all.

[whatsjulietslastname]

When I first played Before the Storm and I first interacted with Samantha, I thought she had a crush on Chloe. Idk, she just gave off this feeling.

That’s all, thank you for coming to my ted talk x)

[lifeisstrange-incorrectquotes]

"My aesthetic is making other people feel genuinely important and loved."

- Samantha, most likely

[blackwell-academys-airdrop]

Samantha: Are you crazy?!

Nathan: Legally, no. There's not a word for my condition.

[reverse-horton]

Here’s the fanfic I wrote for the @staystrangebigbang - it’s a story about Sam learning to deal with chronic pain and the impact it has on her daily life.

I cannot thank everyone who worked on it with me enough - I’ve had a really difficult last few months and having all the help from my lovely beta reader and the friendships I’ve found in the discord server I joined have brought me unbelievable amounts of happiness. Thank you all for being wonderful, and thank you all in advance for reading it!

[tragictempest]

Hi 👋, My name is Mohammad, and I’m reaching out in a moment of desperate need. I’m a father of three young children living in Gaza, and we are caught in the midst of a catastrophic war. Our home is no longer a safe haven, and the future here seems increasingly uncertain. 💔

I’ve launched a fundraising campaign with the goal of raising $40,000 to relocate my family to a safer place where my children can grow up in peace and have a chance at a brighter future.

Unfortunately, my previous fundraising efforts were abruptly halted when my account was terminated without explanation. However, I remain determined to keep fighting for my family’s safety and well-being. 🫶

If you could take a moment to read our story, consider donating, or simply share our campaign with others, it would make an incredible difference. Every act of kindness, no matter how small, brings us one step closer to safety and a new beginning. 🙏

Thank you for your time, compassion, and support. ❤️‍🩹

https://gofund.me/fd1faea2 🔗

^^^

Go fund them you guys 💓

Will be adding every tag from every fandom I'm in to make sure this reaches everybody it can reach

[i-drop-level-one-loot]

Smile❤️ (Yandere X Loser!Reader)

Micky thought that he couldn't feel love.

Ever since he could remember, Micky couldn't connect with anyone on an emotional level. Even his own family members were like aliens to him, creatures that stretched their lips into strange contortions, ETs that became unreasonable when he wouldn't do the same. As a teenager many girls flirted with him in school, hell, a few guys did as well, but none of their confessions ever stirred any emotion from him, even at the height of his puberty. The smiles of the people around him never felt warm or welcoming. Just, tight. Cheeks pulled back, revealing teeth, expecting him to mirror their action, and Micky couldn't understand why.

Nothing made him smile.

College was further isolating. Group projects seemed to no longer be a thing, (at least in the classes he took) so his interactions with humans slowly became less frequent, making his classmates look more inhuman and monstrous.

Until someone in his college was doxxed for being a creep. It was interesting, watching how quickly people turned on their friend, forcing him into an outcast because someone online revealed his private post history.

An annoying young woman in his language arts class gathered people around Micky's seat to talk about what had happened. Micky wouldn't have searched up the drama on his own time, but he didn't see the point in pushing everyone away.

"This user on Xforums, anonymousXnightmare is the one who doxxed Nathan."

AnonymousXnightmare? How fucking lame.

"That's a lame username..."

"Maybe it's a kid..?"

Micky did his best to ignore them, but the username kept popping up in conversation throughout campus. It was getting a little annoying. Some people were mocking the name, while others were praising the "internet hero". It started interfering with his ability to focus in his classes.

But the gossip cooled down after a week, and life began to run as normal, until another student had their life ruined. A football player, they didn't post anything incriminating or disturbing. It was anonymousXnightmare who posted their own collected evidence. Pictures taken from afar of the player with his highschool sweetheart, as in sweetheart who was still in highschool. Recordings of the two of them. Months of stalking all compiled by the stranger.

Again, Micky was bombarded by chatter, excitable young adults losing their minds over the situation. It was... irritating.

Back in his dorm room, Micky was scrolling through Xforums, the most popular forum used by students in his university, made by students for students, searching for the loser with the lame username. Scrolling past the photos he had heard about, he found a post stating

"Dear Allen Brackens, if you cannot stop blasting your shitty music in the halls on your shitty speakers, I WILL ruin your life!"

and Micky had to lean back, to just take in what he had read. That must have been the name of the football player. What he was doing was genuinely gross, and should have been exposed by someone. But did this poster really stalk them for what looked like months just because he listened to music they didn't like?

It was so dumb.

He scrolled down farther into the mystery poster's history, to the first man they doxxed.

"Dear Nathan McAllister, we all know you're a two faced little bitch. Either stop littering the campus with your Jesus pamphlets, or else..."

Micky, for the first time in his life, was amused. The whole situation was so stupid. They really ruined their fellow students lives, just because they annoyed them?

He made an account just to follow his mystery poster, not sure yet why he was interested to see what they would post next.

Less than two days later, and Micky's phone notified him of another post.

"Dear Samantha Rudbeckia, your obnoxious laughter is driving me insane. Can't you see how annoying you are? Knock it off."

That was it?! That was enough to set you off? Laughter? Micky paused mid step, still staring down at his phone. Something felt off about his face. It hurt.

It was pretty easy to find anonymousXnightmare in his school. Micky picked up a map of the university, and mapped out the paths of the three people targeted. They ran into a lot of different students throughout their day. But they only ran into a couple of people who openly seemed to hate them, and only one of those people was a student named (Reader). (Reader), who constantly appeared as though they would collapse at any moment, the hollows under their eyes so dark they looked sickly. (Reader), who despite being borderline anemic, was very sneaky, and very good and being unnoticeable despite their extreme appearance. Unfortunately for them, they had someone watching them as closely as they watched their victims bullies. Micky watched as they stealthily snapped photos of students from around corners, how they seemed to blend into the background and nobody noticed them hiding in waiting.

Micky felt ashamed for ever thinking you were lame. You were.. cute.

The way you crouched like a bug, hunched over like a roly poly scared of being picked up. The way you bit your dry lips in anger to the point they bled.

Micky's face hurt more and more. Every time he saw (Reader) a pain he had never felt before would strain at his cheeks, and his face would feel hot all over. It wasn't until he caught a glimpse of himself in his reflection in a window that Micky realized he was smiling. He never knew that smiling hurt. But he couldn't stop it.

Pictures and videos of Samantha and her married professor were posted online, and Micky was excited to know what (Reader's) face would look like when they reaped the fruits of their labor. But when he snuck into their classroom, zooming in on their exhausted face with his phone's camera, he felt a new emotion seeing that (Reader) was just as annoyed as they always were. A hard pit fell from his ribs into his lower stomach. He was disappointed.

Why aren't you happy? You won. You should be rejoicing right now.

He felt conflicted and confused. Like an octopus was throwing a tantrum in his abdomen, squirming uncomfortably. And it ruined his day. Micky couldn't focus on any of his classes, and the rest of his day was like a foggy dream. What was it about (Reader) that attracted him to them so much?

A cute young woman with smooth black hair approached Micky, a dark blush complimenting her picture perfect face.

"Um, excuse me? Excuse me? Excuse me?"

Micky snapped out of his thoughts, turning his gaze down towards the beautiful person. Her rosey lips were slightly upturned in a posed way.

She's smiling.

Micky internally verbalized it. The same way he did whenever he saw anyone smiling. It never looked good. Smiling was so awkward, and strange. People loved seeing others smiling, and smiled when they were happy, but it always reminded Micky of how not one of them he was.

"Hi! My name is Maggie."

I don't care.

"We have econ together?"

"Okay."

Why was seeing her smile make her look fake, inhuman, alien? Just like everyone else. Then why was Micky so let down seeing (Reader's) lukewarm reaction to their victory?

"I was wondering, I mean, (laughs), a group of us are going out for drinks later, and we, I was wondering if you wanted to come with us.."

She giggled nervously, fiddling her fingers and biting her lip. The image of (Reader) practically eating their lower lip was triggered like a trap. This woman, whose name wasn't worth remembering, made Micky feel nothing. The uncanny feeling of speaking with a living mannequin or an advanced AI. Her movements weren't natural, her smile was just a contraction of muscles. Then, like an epiphany, Micky realized all at once what made (Reader) so special.

Maybe, it wasn't that everyone else was alien, but Micky. Micky was the only one who never fit in. The only one who didn't feel emotions or connect with others like everyone else could. And there was a bug walking around in human clothes, barely staying awake in class and casually ruining peoples' lives simply because they annoyed them. (Reader) wasn't a human either, just like Micky. That's why they didn't seem happy with their victory. Why would a human bring them joy?

Micky's lips pulled tight, smiling brightly at the young woman before walking away without saying a word.

You're the first person to make me feel, because you're just like me. Right, (Reader)? If no one but you can make me feel, then no one but me should be able to make you smile!

:::::::::::::::::::::::::

(Reader) slouched over their laptop, their messy hair pulled back in a top bun just to keep their untrimmed bangs out of their eyes in the privacy of their dorm, eating another cup of noodle while reading all of their "fan mail". Samantha wasn't getting kicked out like they had hoped, but Professor what's-his-nuts did get canned, so hopefully when Samantha comes back to class she'll be too busy sobbing "woe is me" to find anything funny.

Ba-ding♪

A private message popped up from an account with an automated username.

(Reader) snorted so hard a noodle went up into their sinuses.

user01793664544001: I know who you are <3

"Ah-ow! God damn!"

anonymousXnightmare: Who the fuck is this?

user01793664544001: ur prince charming <3

anonymousXnightmare: Don't fuck with me

user01793664544001: come find me

"Watch me, bitch."

Looking up IP addresses is a lot easier than people make it seem. It doesn't take a genius hacker to doxx someone. Of course, (Reader) goes above and beyond, often following assholes for months to collect evidence of their douche baggery. (Reader) got an address in less time than it took to finish their noodles, and took down their hair, quickly setting out to start getting information on their newest "bully".

The address took them to another dorm across campus. How dumb are they? (Reader) faux chuckled, feeling superior to this newest dick. No one was quite as smart as them.

As they crept through the building, no one payed them any attention as they began taking notes on the residents. It had to be one of these losers.

They didn't have a chance to fight back, as they passed one of the rooms the door opened and pulled them inside faster than they had a chance to scream. The man who abducted (Reader) wrestled them to the floor, panting heavily.

(Reader) glared up at the handsome stranger, smiling down at them in a creepy way, his cheeks twitching like he had never smiled before, like his face hurt from the small action. His face was pink and he was sweating, panting with a feverish moisture glazing his eyes.

"Aren't you happy? You found me~"

"G-Get off of me, you pervert!" (Reader) attempted to kick the kidnapper off of them.

This wasn't the answer he was looking for. His smile fell briefly before bouncing back.

"You're just upset because you don't know me yet. Don't worry, it took me a while to realize you and I were the same species as well, so don't worry. I'll wait, I'll wait for you to realize you love me too..."

He rambled quickly, pressing harder against (Reader's) body. A strange noise squeaked out of his throat as he seemed startled, (Reader) feeling a bulge form against their upper thigh.

"Ah, I'll wait.. I'll wait for you to love me too.. but I need you to do something for me while I wait.."

Micky stuck his fingers in (Reader's) mouth, pulling their dry lips out till they bled across his skin.

"Smile for me..."

[lilghostiequinni]

Started by Just One Night

Main Masterlist Lando Masterlist

Pairing: Former One Nightstand!female reader x Lando Norris

Warnings: Fluffyish, Pregnancy

Summary: One that changed your life for the better.

Requested: NO / yes

In Miami 2024, you went to the Formula One race to appease your die-hard fan of a best friend that you went to a race with her.

You partied with her because her favorite driver won, even though you knew nothing of the sport of F1.

You ended up in bed in a strange that looked vaguely familiar to you, but you couldn't remember the where, who, or how you got here or how you sorta knew the guy.

You slowly got up, not to disturb this other person, but when you found the small dress your friend forced you into, you stole a T-shirt from the floor, grabbing your other stuff as you walked towards the door.

As you got to the door, you saw a pad of paper and found a pen nearby and you wrote a note to the man, telling him you grabbed a shirt because your dress wasn't in the best shape after the night before.

Of course, some things don't work out, and you find out four months later that you are pregnant, of course knowing it was this mysterious guy, never having been drunk enough to be with anyone else, and being too busy with your job and university.

It wasn't until your friend made you tell her what happened after the baby shower for your daughter and son.

It wasn't until your friend showed you the face of the man you slept with that you learned the name of the father of your children.

Also wasn't until just before the birth of your twins that you gained enough courage to actually message him, and when he called just so you could explain better, your twins decided that they wanted to come into the world.

Which sucked for Lando because he was at a race for the weekend.

It was the Monday after the race that Lando came to see the twins, and you told him that a paternity test was ordered as he asked for.

It wasn't that he didn't believe you; it's just that there's always something about being famous, and you understood where he was coming from, so instead of getting mad about it, you just agreed.

Hours later, Lando learned that he was, in fact, the father of your twins.

This news changed his life for the better, the same as yours.

You started out co-parenting and later turned to more.

A/N: More of a drabble

Tags: @poppyflower-22 @samantha-chicago @barcelonaloverf1life @tallrock35 @ellen3101 @hellothere9597

If you want to be removed from a tag list, let me know so I don't keep tagging you. If you are striked through, I don't know if you want to be tagged, but just let me know if you want me to continue or stop

[dalekofchaos]

If BTS was more connected to LIS1

So I was thinking. If we could make BTS more connected to LIS1, here is what I would do. Now I know Deck Nine made their own thing with LIS:BTS and DONTNOD had no plans for anything else with that specific story of the series, but if I could connect it, here is what I would do.

Max would be friends with Steph, Mikey and Samantha. Her friend group after she comes out of her shell would be with Warren, Steph, Mikey, Daniel and Brooke

Romance choices between Chloe, Warren, Victoria, Kate, Samantha or Steph

Samantha would be Max's roommate and suddenly she disappears. Not only Rachel's disappearance and Kate's drugging, but Samantha's abduction is what prompts Max and Chloe to get serious

James and Rose refuse to look into Rachel's disappearance because James became Sean Prescott's personal attorney and because Rachel knew the truth and chose Sera over him.

Eliot would return as Jefferson's secret apprentice. Nathan has proven to be self-destructive and unreliable. So to Jefferson's surprise he finds this former Blackwell student who excels at chemistry after being released from a stint in juvie, soon he won't even need Nathan or Frank because Eliot can just brew the drug and he and Eliot will do great things together. And Eliot is the one who killed Rachel. Revenge for taking Chloe away from him and for him being a fuckboy. Basically Eliot's role is to clean up Nathan's mess and get his personal revenge on Chloe and Rachel and if he can't have Chloe, he'll have Max instead. Basically Eliot is what everyone thought Warren would be on crack.

In this scenario, Chloe isn't killed because Jeffershit would want to reward his loyal disciple. Chloe and David works together. David subdues Jefferson, while Chloe pistol whips Eliot "THAT WAS FOR RACHEL, YOU PIECE OF SHIT" and then stomps on his nuts "AND THAT WAS FOR ME"

We would find out that Nathan helped Samantha escape and there are clues to suggest that Eliot didn't kill Rachel, he killed Sera.

Max saves Chloe and the town. Gist is they find a map in the Prescott barn showing a map of Stormbreakers and leads everyone in them to save the Bay and the Bae

And there would be a tease to a future adventure of Max and Chloe looking for Rachel

[toournextadventure]

a novel life pt.1

Summary: You're a Lit professor at Blackmoor University when you meet Samantha Carpenter. Life becomes... a lot more exciting with her around.

Word Count: 4.3k Warnings: swearing, bullying, sister arguments Pairing: Sam Carpenter x GN!Reader (pt.1) (pt.2) (pt.3) (pt.4) (pt.5)

You liked Sam.

No, that was quite the understatement. You would almost - almost - go so far as to say you loved her! Not quite yet, obviously, you still weren’t completely, absolutely positive. But you were pretty certain that the things you felt for her could be classified as love. At least that’s what your dad said love was, and he had been happily married for 41 years at that time, so how could you possibly argue with that kind of experience?

It wasn’t like you had meant to fall in love with her. Not that you actively avoided it, you just… hadn’t been looking for her. Both you and Sam had a habit of lying when people asked how you met; they always assumed it was some kind of meet-cute. Her friend Mindy was determined it was something adorable, like meeting at a coffee shop or running into each other at the library.

The truth, the cold hard truth, was much more ridiculous.

“Why are you watching me?”

You blinked hard and looked up at the… woman (?) standing in front of you. She was all blurry and all you could really make out was dark hair and beautifully brown skin. If you really squinted, you could see just enough of her posture that, when coupled with the tone, was indicative of frustration. Maybe even anger, if you pushed it.

“I’m sorry,” you said. “I didn’t know I was.”

“How could you not know?” She asked, her tone staying incredibly not happy.

“I, uh-” you cleared your throat, “-I couldn’t see you.”

Her laugh was condescending. And pretty. “You were looking right at me.” Her blurry frame shifted. “Come up with a better excuse.”

This strange woman was rather mean, wasn’t she? You kind of liked it.

“It’s not an excuse,” you said once her frame had officially stopped moving.

“Then how did you not see me?” She asked. “What are you, blind?”

You smiled to yourself and set your bagel down. “Kind of,” you said as you lifted your head to face her. Or at least you hoped you were. “I forgot my glasses at my office.”

“Fuck,” she said softly. Her tense tone had disappeared rather quickly. “I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay,” you said. “Sounds like you’re used to being watched.”

“You have no idea,” she said quickly.

Wait. That was an opening. You hadn’t talked to a woman outside of work in ages. This was your chance!

“Want to sit down over coffee some time and talk about it?”

You really really wished you hadn’t forgotten your glasses. Without them, you couldn’t see the look on her face. Did she think your question was rather rash? Rude, even? Or perhaps she thought it was a welcome idea, even just to get something off her chest. From the sound of it, she had a lot on her mind.

“Sure,” she said eventually. “I’d like that.”

The rest, as they say, was history. You had both gotten your coffee and you hadn’t forgotten your glasses again. Which made the coffee date a little awkward because then you could see just how truly beautiful she was, and you had not been prepared for it. She had watched you become a stuttering fool who could only spout random, unwarranted facts about things.

By some miracle, she had asked you on a dinner date.

The singular benefit of the entire situation was that you had met at the very beginning of summer break. You had decided not to teach a summer class that year, instead opting to use the hotter months to find more material that you could bring to the fall semester. There had to be a wider range of literature from the Romantic Period outside of what the school had already been teaching when you joined the staff. The literature classes at the moment were so… basic.

Because of this, work never came up. Sam never asked, and you never even thought to tell simply because… well, you just hadn’t thought of it. You hadn’t been hiding your profession, you hadn’t even tried to be sneaky about it. After all, your entire apartment was filled with tomes and first editions of novels and the closest thing you could get to original manuscripts of the ancients. And Sam had very certainly seen the inside of your apartment more than once.

The thought had  never occurred to you to bring up what you did for a living. After all, you finally had a girl…friend? You weren’t quite sure if that term could be used officially, but you were going to use it in your internal monologue. Regardless, this was the first time in years, how were you supposed to remember everything she might want to know? Besides, it wasn’t like she had asked yet.

And neither had her sister! Who, unfortunately, you were starting to think didn’t like you. She had never said it out loud, so you couldn’t be sure, but she made sure to give you a, uh, look whenever you would come over. Sam had told you that Tara loved movies - horror movies to be precise - and you had even managed to find a rare copy of a “famous” B-list movie for her!

It still didn’t work.

“Do I need to try and cook dinner for her one night?” You asked, looking up from your book. Sam was still doing her own studying for her night classes.

“If you cook for Tara, she will eat you alive,” Sam said without missing a beat. “She had to cook for herself for years, she will tear you apart.”

“She’s so scary,” you whispered to yourself before looking back down at your lecture notes. “What if I found the original script of her favourite movie?”

At that, Sam put her pen down. Your stomach fluttered; had you said something wrong? Oh of course you had, you absolute fool. You don’t question someone about how to win over their siblings! Well… did you? Maybe you needed to do some research on the topic.

“Your efforts are sweet,” she said with a soft smile, “but you can’t push Tara. She’ll come around when she’s ready.”

You frowned. “How will she be ready if I don’t try?”

“Trust the process,” she said. She leaned over and pressed a chaste kiss to your lips before going back to her studying, and you were left stewing in your own thoughts.

The process didn’t make any sense.

—---

“Do you have to go?” Sam asked in a raspy voice.

You looked up from tying your shoes. Sam had rolled over to her other side on the bed, giving you the perfect view of her. Her hair was a mess and her eyes could barely stay open, but she looked just as beautiful as always. The sun had barely started to peek through the curtains to hit her skin at just the right angle. It looked like she was glowing.

Maybe you didn’t have to go.

No, you had students waiting, of course you had to go.

“I’ll be back after work,” you said quietly. Her eyes were still mostly closed, and you didn’t want to jolt her awake; she deserved her beauty rest.

“Be safe,” she said.

You finished tying your shoe and stood up, leaning down to give her a gentle kiss on the lips. She sighed softly. “I’ll be safe.” You placed one more kiss on her forehead before pulling back. She quickly fell back into bed, already fast asleep.

Thankfully, all of your stuff was outside the bedroom. It made it easier to stay quiet, tip-toeing your way out of the room and easing the door open and shut with as little noise as possible. You waited a moment, listening through the door to see if she had woken up, but nodded to yourself in confirmation before turning back around.

And facing Tara.

“Your nerd shit is by the door,” Tara said a little louder than you would have liked. She was going to wake up Sam if she didn’t quiet down a bit.

“Thank you,” you said. Because of course that was something normal people said in that situation. “Are you, uh, headed to class?”

You gestured your head toward her backpack. Which was clearly filled with school books. Which you were more than aware meant that yes, of course she was heading to school. Where else would she be going? You weren’t doing a very good job at winning her over, now she was going to think you were stupid.

“No, I’m running away,” Tara said with a roll of her eyes.

“Oh,” you said sadly. Then, her words clicked in your mind and you perked up. “Oh.” Okay, she wasn’t going to think you were stupid, she was simply going to bully you.

Jokes on her, you had been bullied all your life, you were practically a professional.

“I’m heading that way too,” you said as you ungraciously shoved your arms through your jacket. “Want to go together?”

Tara looked you up and down for only a fraction of a second. “Absolutely not.”

You watched, dejected, as she exited the apartment without another word. Although you weren’t entirely surprised, you weren’t exactly happy about the situation. Well, there went one of your chances at winning her over. You would have to try again next time. And maybe not be so… what did you hear Tara call you the other day… pathetic in your attempts.

Which was going to be rather hard to do when you couldn’t even catch your bus, leading to you having to walk the long distance to the university. It led to you shedding your jacket before getting halfway to your destination, and blisters on the backs of your heels from your shoes. Maybe you didn’t need to dress quite the same if you were leaving Sam's apartment; clearly it wasn’t a safe choice.

You were nine minutes and 27 seconds late to your class.

“I’m so sorry I’m late,” you said the moment you stepped into the classroom. Everyone was still talking, but they quieted down slowly. “I missed my bus.” You tossed your briefcase onto the desk and started digging for your papers. “Which means, lucky for you, we can skip icebreakers and get right to it.”

There was a mix of mumbled approval and sighs of relief at the release from icebreakers. You would admit, you weren’t too upset about it either. Even though it did help everyone learn names - ahem, it helped you learn their names - it was rather intimidating. No one knew what to say, it put everyone on the spot, and more often than not ended up with no one talking the entire semester. This was better for everyone, and at least you had an excuse.

“Alright,” you huffed, finally pulling the stack of papers out of your briefcase, “pass these around while I tell you about the changes in readings.” Groans quickly followed. “You won’t be buying more textbooks, I’ve got PDFs to share.”

You quickly handed the stack of papers to the student closest to the front, giving them a smile and a mouthed “thank you.” She smiled back and nodded before handing them back. Even as you reached back to grab your own notes, you finally, finally looked out at the class.

And froze when you met a pair of familiar brown eyes.

Tara had a look that you would have classified as “furious.” Although her nose scrunched up like Sam’s, and you could truly see the family resemblance in their anger. That was… well, it sure was something. You hoped you could grow to get used to all of this enough to keep a professional demeanour in class. It wouldn’t do you any good to lose it now simply because your girlfriend’s (?) sister was in your class.

Admittedly, class went on without a hitch. Eventually, after nearly the entire hour had passed, Tara had managed to relax enough to look over the syllabus and even give her input on a few of the readings you had changed up. She was smart. You hadn’t heard much from her, but she was incredibly smart. It was going to be a delight to hear her opinions throughout the semester.

“Alright everyone, I’ll let you out a few minutes early,” you said once you had thoroughly exhausted everything on the syllabus. Had you really needed to take as long as you had? No, but you weren’t going to miss a single piece of information. The point of teaching was to prepare everyone for success, not to throw information out at them and hope they could comprehend it well enough on their own.

The class quickly started packing up, talking about nothing that you had told them about. Which was as expected. You hadn’t been teaching for too long, but you weren’t naive; you knew students usually only cared during class and gave up as soon as they were free.

“Oh, Miss Carpenter,” you said quickly, catching Tara right before she left. “Can we talk for a moment?”

Your heart beat loudly in your chest as Tara sighed, but otherwise nodded and trudged back into class. She didn’t sit, but stayed standing on the other side of the desk. A defence mechanism if ever you saw once. Though, judging by the scar you could see on her hand, you assumed it was for good reason.

“I want to check in with you that my presence won’t negatively impact your time in this class,” you said once everyone had finished filing out of the room.

“Will my presence negatively impact your time with my sister?” She shot back quickly. Why was she so fast? You didn’t answer. She sighed and shook her head. “I’m a big girl, I can handle you as my professor for one semester.” 

“Good,” you said with repetitive nods. “Please inform me if you change your mind.” Tara rolled her eyes, but you weren’t phased. “I do not mean to impede upon your success.”

“Shut up,” she said softly, “you sound like such a parent.”

“I mean it, Tara,” you continued. “You don’t have to like Sam and me, but I don’t want it to impact your life-”

“-Oh my god, I get it,” she interrupted quickly. Her weight shifted between her feet. “Just shut up already, I have another class to get to.”

“Okay,” you said with a gesture toward the door. “Stay safe.”

Tara didn’t bother answering before practically sprinting out the door. You hoped she was being serious about not being too influenced with you as her professor. It was against every part of your being to create a barrier between her and her academics. If she didn’t like you, that was one thing, but if it caused a problem? You would have to talk to Sam about it.

Oh god, you did sound like a parent.

By the time all your classes had ended and you could finally head back to Sam’s apartment, you had nearly forgotten all about Tara being in your class. Now, it certainly didn’t help that you were so focused on getting back to Sam so you could crawl into bed with her and rest. You clearly had better things to think about than a potential, unconfirmed incident at school.

Well, you thought you had better things to think about. When you approached Sam’s apartment door, you could hear elevated voices inside. Elevated voices that were related to each other. And that were surely unhappy about something. Oh gosh. You debated walking away, but what if they were in trouble?

You would not have been the one to save them, but by golly if you weren’t going to try.

“They’re one of my professors, Sam,” Tara shouted while you walked into the apartment.

Oh jeez. You should not have tried to save anyone. Sam was standing near the couch with her arms crossed defensively across her chest. Across from her, Tara was near the kitchen, her backpack and books strewn along the table as if she had thrown it there. Which, judging by her apparent anger, was likely.

“You can’t just date one of my professors,” she continued. “That’s so wrong.”

“You’re an adult, Tara,” Sam said, “you can handle one semester of this.”

You debated stepping in, but couldn’t decide if that would make things better or worse. Clearly Tara had an issue, and you didn’t want to throw it back in her face. That certainly wouldn’t help you win her over. You decided to stay put for the moment.

“I don’t trust them, Sam,” Tara practically shouted. Not quite, but she was building it up. “They just want to show up, worm their way into every part of our lives, and I’m not supposed to be suspicious?” She asked. “After everything we’ve been through?”

“This isn’t-” Sam stopped when she met your eyes.

Tara turned around at Sam’s sudden halt, groaning when she saw you standing there. You lifted your shaky hand slowly, giving a half-hearted wave. Sam’s eyes softened as she watched you, but Tara’s only hardened. And, you supposed you couldn’t fully blame her. She… made a good point.

“I can head out,” you said softly.

“Good-”

“-Don’t.” Tara and Sam said at the same time. Sam glared at the younger Carpenter. “You don’t have to go.”

“I don’t mean to intrude,” you said with a slight shake of your head. “I can come back another time.”

“I’ll walk you out,” she said.

“Seriously?” Tara asked. “We’re talking.”

“And we can talk when I get back,” Sam said quickly. She practically pushed you out the door. “Don’t go anywhere.”

You didn’t get to see Tara’s face at Sam’s order. No doubt it was… not happy. It made you… sad to see them arguing, especially about something as insignificant as you. There was absolutely no reason they should be arguing about you.

Perhaps there was also a small bit of relief at being an only sibling.

Sam leaned against the door and closed her eyes before letting out a drawn out sigh. Your inexperience got the better of you; you didn’t know what to do. Not only had you not had a girlfriend for *ahem* a little while, you also didn’t have siblings. Was this normal behaviour for siblings? For sisters? Surely it was.

No, you needed to think, that didn’t matter. What mattered was that Sam was clearly upset in some form, and you needed to do something to comfort her. What was comforting? Ah, you knew. You reached forward carefully and grabbed Sam’s hand, intertwining your fingers with hers. They linked together perfectly, like they were meant to be.

She opened her eyes slowly and looked down at your hands. A small smile tugged at the corner of her lips before she looked back up at you. There was a slight crinkle at the corners of her eyes; the main indication of her smile that she was holding back. You loved that crinkle.

“I’m sorry,” she said softly.

“Don’t be,” you said with your own smile as you pulled her closer to you. “I don’t blame her for being cautious.”

“I guess it’s my own fault,” Sam said. You both started slowly making your way down the stairs. “I openly disapproved of her partner, so.”

“Payback,” you said with a nod.

“I didn’t know you were a professor,” she said shyly.

You chuckled. “I didn’t know you didn’t know.”

“Tell me about it?” She asked.

You both stepped onto the ground floor in tandem. As much as you wanted to stand there with her all night, you knew she needed to have a talk with Tara. If any of you wanted this to work, you would have to put in the effort and do the things you didn’t want to. At the moment, it was Sam and Tara hashing it out.

“Over dinner?” You suggested. “Next Thursday?” She smiled. “I don’t have class Friday morning and a co-worker suggested this delightful little bistro.”

“That sounds great,” she said. “But you’re paying.”

“It’s only fair,” you said with a shrug. “I suppose this mess is my fault.”

“100%,” she said, biting her bottom lip immediately after.

You didn’t have to be experienced to know what to do next. Her arms instinctively wrapped around your neck as she pulled you closer. Your hands fell to her hips, holding her securely against you. You didn’t have to move very far to kiss her. She tasted lovely; the taste of chocolate, a splash of wine, and the ever-present hint of cigarettes.

She tasted like love

—---

The countdown to your date with Sam had seemed to drag on endlessly. The days seemed to go by too slowly, you only got to talk to her on occasion, and you had been thrown back into the swing of things with… far too many classes to preside over. It was your own fault, of course, but that didn’t make it any more tolerable.

Add to that the fact that Tara, while behaving herself, was keen on giving you some rather distasteful looks during class? It was a rather long week.

But the day had finally arrived! You had finished your class and practically sprinted - to the best of your ability - to the bus stop to get back to your apartment. A simple shower to freshen up, a new change of clothes, and you were all set to go. You stopped by the little bodega on the way, purchasing a small bouquet of flowers, and then you were on your way once again.

Sam had texted you earlier in the day, telling you to stay in the lobby and let her know when you were there. You assumed, rightfully, that it was because Tara was up in the apartment. Things might have been resolved, but that didn’t mean she had to like you yet. It was a fair compromise for the moment.

You texted her as soon as you stepped into the lobby, and she said she would be down momentarily. That was alright, at least the lobby was cool compared to the hot post-summer air outside. It wasn’t miserable, but it was enough that you weren’t too keen on being stuck outside.

“Nice shoes,” a voice said. “They look clean, where’d you get ‘em?”

You looked up from the hole you were staring into the floor to meet the eyes of a youngster coming into the lobby. They had rather kind eyes and a smile that, though accentuated by scars on both sides, was one of the most genuine you believed you had ever seen.

“Thank you,” you said as you rolled your shoulders back. “They’re from, ah, Allen Edmonds? Rockefeller Plaza?”

“I think I know that place, yeah,” the person said. “You’d recommend them?”

“Of course,” you said with a nod. “They’ve been the finest quality shoes I own.”

“I’ll have to check ‘em out,” the person continued. They nodded at the flowers in your hand. “For a girlfriend?”

“Yeah,” you said, “she’s on her way down.”

“She’ll love ‘em,” they said kindly. “I’m on my way up to see my girlfriend, so I’ll leave ya alone.”

You nodded enthusiastically. “You two have a wonderful evening.”

“You too,” they said with a crooked half-smile and a small wave before jogging up the stairs two at a time.

It only took another moment or two before Sam came down, looking as stunning as always. Her dress hugged her curves in all the right places - which was every place - and complimented her eyes beautifully. Paired with a simple bracelet and necklace, and you were one lucky person.

“You look gorgeous,” you said softly, pulling her into a quick kiss but being careful not to smear her makeup. “These are for you.”

Her smile was small, a smile that almost gave you more butterflies than her bigger one. This one was almost reserved for you exclusively, and you would have done anything to see it more often.

“They’re beautiful,” she said, leaning up again to press a kiss to your cheek. You hoped it left a lipstick stain.

You grabbed her hand and led her out of the building, hailing a taxi and ushering her in before following behind. In the privacy of the cab, she let her head fall onto your shoulder as she played with your fingers. You didn’t look down, but you felt her twisting your class ring round and round, almost nervously.

“You know,” you said as the cab pulled to a stop at a light, “I met the most delightful young fellow in the lobby before you came down.”

“Oh really?” Sam asked. She had stopped fidgeting with your ring and had started running her fingers over your clothed thigh.

“They asked about my shoes,” you said with a nod, “and said you would love the flowers.”

Her fingers stopped moving.

“What did this “young fellow” look like?” She asked. Her head lifted from your shoulder; you instantly missed the sensation.

“About yea high,” you said, indicating vaguely how tall they were. “Crooked smile.”

“Scars on their cheeks?”

“That’s the one,” you said with a nod. “I liked them.”

“That’s Tara’s partner,” Sam said with a huff.

“Oh?” You asked, intrigued. Well, you certainly wouldn’t have guessed that.

“The one I don’t exactly approve of,” she continued.

“Oh,” you said with far less excitement. “Well, I thought they were lovely.”

“I’m sure you did,” she said. Her tone indicated annoyance, but you glanced down in time to catch the small smile on her face that gave her away.

You pulled her back into your side and kissed the top of her head as the cab continued its route to the bistro. Maybe it wouldn’t be too difficult to get all four of you to get along. You loved Sam, even if you weren’t quite ready to admit it yet. After all, with her hand in yours and your lips pressed to her skin? What was the worst that could happen?

[chloe-caulfield94]

Thoughts on Nathan Prescott? Do you empathize with him like some players? I surely don't. The guy was violent and killed Rachel and drugged Chloe and Kate.

For me, the overall message of Season 1, Before the Storm and Season 2 is one of empathy. That sometimes people, especially if they went through a lot, don't know how to ask for help but they still need it. That you shouldn't give up on people easily. That sometimes relationships can be fixed. I think that players who react with annoyance or even disdain towards Chloe in Season 1, Rachel in BtS or Daniel in Season 2 have failed to learn this simple, but very important lesson.

Nathan's character could've played into that theme. If his criminal behaviour was a result of the mental condition that his father refused to treat him for, could we really hate or condemn Nathan? But while that angle is teased throughout the game (in Max's nightmare, a phantom of Nathan, who is already dead at that point, asks Max if she's going to kill him just because he's mentally ill), it is demonstrably not an accurate way of portraying his evil deeds.

Nathan has some sort of mental condition which causes him to have sudden violent outbursts. His father, apparently believing that his son being treated by a psychiatrist would destroy the Prescott family name, refuses to provide him with medical care, even though Nathan's doctor is pleading for it.

But Nathan's crimes - his murder and kidnapping of Rachel, his kidnapping of Kate and his attempted kidnapping of Chloe - were NOT crimes of passion. They were NOT results of sudden violent outbursts. They were cold, calculated crimes. His kidnappings of Rachel and Kate were pre-planned, pre-meditated crimes. His photo session of Rachel probably took hours to complete. Those were not sudden outbursts of someone temporarily unable to control their own behaviour. And while his attempted kidnapping of Chloe was him grasping at an opportunity that suddenly arose, he still made a conscious decision to do so.

Likewise, it would be unconvincing to chalk up Nathan dealing drugs at school to his mental condition.

So while Nathan's mental condition is an interesting part of his character, it is ultimately irrelevant when discussing his crimes. He clearly commited his crimes (which were anything but sudden, uncontrolled outbursts) based on his conscious decisions, with planning and preparation.

Another part of Nathan's character is that he's starved for affection from a father figure, because of how cold and uncaring, downright cruel his father is. The way Nathan is treated by his father is shown in BtS. So you could say that Nathan started imitating Jefferson and became his accomplice because he wanted Jefferson to become the father he had never had.

There's a big problem with that explanation. While it might explain, at least in part, why Nathan became involved with Jefferson in the first place, it doesn't fit his murder and kidnapping of Rachel and his attempted kidnapping of Chloe.

Jefferson did NOT want Nathan to perform photo sessions of his own. Jefferson didn't consider Nathan ready for that. When Nathan brought Jefferson Rachel's photos, Jefferson was furious. At that point Nathan had to clearly understand that doing his own photo sessions was not a way to gain Jefferson's affection. On the contrary, he knew it was something that could infuriate Jefferson. But then he decided to attempt to do to Chloe the same thing he had done to Rachel.

This proves two things. Firstly, he didn't mind the possibility of overdosing Chloe, just like he had overdosed Rachel. He didn't care his next photo session could end with another girl dead. Secondly, he didn't do it for Jefferson. He did it for himself. Jefferson didn't want him to do any more photo sessions of his own. Nathan didn't do what he did to Rachel and Chloe because he thought he would impress his father figure. He did it, because he developed a taste for Jefferson's revolting kind of "art". He wanted more. For himself.

This is why I find the voicemail he left Max completely insincere. Who used you, Nathan? Did Jefferson tell you to drug Rachel and Chloe? Nobody told you to do that. That was your choice. Nobody else's.

In the Bay ending, where Nathan is released from prison after mere three years (this is established in Season 2) I'm certain he would go back to his old ways, emboldened by his total impunity. He would find other girls like Chloe. Girls he would on one hand call "whores" and pretend to be disgusted with. But on the other hand he wouldn't be able to keep his hands away from those "whores". He would have to study them for his "art". There would be more shallow graves around Arcadia Bay.

I like to imagine that after Chloe played the matchmaker between Samantha Myers and Nathan, Samantha had a shot at healing Nathan with her love. I want to think that everyone, no matter how broken, can be saved with love. I imagine a timeline where Samantha managed to teach Nathan that love, kindness and friendship bring far greater pleasure than cruelty, hatred and hurting others ever could. In doing so, she would save Nathan. And by saving Nathan, she would save Rachel, Kate, Chloe and ultimately the entire town. The smallest person changing the course of the future, indeed.

But unfortunately sometimes love, no matter how sincere, is not enough. Sometimes people harden their hearts and reject it. And that's how someone starts treading the path of evil. By rejecting love.