#like he got the jump on Craig and got the first few hits in but then Craig kicked the absolute shit out of him

[melhekhelmurkun]

Y’all I’m in love with the show Sharpe. I stayed up until 3am last night watching it and I only made it through two episodes (they’re long as fuck)

[angelicyouth]

Youth ; Chapter 1

⇢ pairing: kenny mccormick x marsh!reader x craig tucker

⇢ synopsis: ❝Growing up with the boys as the sole girl of the group, it was only natural for them to grow protective over their pseudo-little sister as the years went by.❞

⇢ [AO3 link] ; [series masterlist] ; [next]

“....-N…. Y/N..? Helloooo? Y/N!”

I jolt when I hear someone calling my name through the music I’m listening to. I take off my headphones and let it hang around the back of my neck, answering without looking away from the computer screen in front of me.

“My bad, what?” I question disinterestedly as the music continues to play faintly below my ears. The clicking of my mouse can finally be heard since I threw my headphones on for full immersion a while back.

“The guys are coming over, throw on some pants.”

I take my eyes away from the RPG that I’m currently playing and when I notice that my brother is wearing nothing but boxers and a graphic tee, I lazily lift an eyebrow at him.

“What?” He mocks as siblings typically do when he notices my condescending gaze and I roll my eyes at him, saving the progress I’ve made on my game.

“Clyde got that new video game we were talking about last week.” He continues to say as he lifts his body up from his laidback stance against my door frame, typing something on his cellphone. Probably the guys telling him that they’re on their way.

I hum a simple hmm in answer to him as I get up from my chair and stretch the kinks in my body after spending the past few hours sitting down.

"Oh yeah, do you know whose burrito is in the fridge?” My brother distractedly asks as I take my time walking to my closet to look for some shorts to throw on.

Similar to my brother, my current attire is just an oversized band tee and my underwear. On me, however, it reaches my mid-thighs. Dwarfing my body, I wear these types of shirts often to sleep as a makeshift pajama dress, meaning I forgo any bottoms since no one but my family sees me like this. Because of this, my brother and I wear each other's shirts, which is often the cause of our mom’s headaches when we fight over clothes.

“You know it’s mine.” I quickly glare at him as I pull the article of clothing out from its designated shelf.

I do this carefully so that I don’t disrupt the other pajama bottoms its in between because Lord knows that if I fuck up this area in my closet, I’ll carelessly handle my other clothing until the whole closet becomes a rat's nest.

It’s already messed up here so it shouldn’t matter if I do the same to everything else. I’ll clean it soon anyways… Not.

“Yep, I know. I already ate it.” He laughs, a shit eating grin on his face as he slams my bedroom door shut. The sound of his feet quickly hitting the floor can also be heard as he runs to wherever the fuck he decided to hide.

“STAN, YOU DICK!” I yell, pulling up my shorts in anger.

I grumble and pout to myself while I do a quick check in the mirror to make sure I’m presentable. I was looking forward to reheating my leftovers after getting in a good amount of progress on my game.

Why the hell do siblings touch shit that isn’t theirs? Ugh. And the audacity he has to directly ask me about it when he already ate it. If he's still hungry, I'll just give him a knuckle sandwich.

I throw myself onto my bed to check my phone since I went MIA for the past couple of hours that I was preoccupied with the gaming world. The date catches my attention and I grimace when I notice that tomorrow would be the first day of sophomore year. It’s easy to lose track of summer when this shitty town is covered in snow all year round. Hearing the front door slam open and multiple muffled voices overlapping, I bring myself downstairs to the living room and spot Clyde putting a disc into the gaming console in front of the television.

“Sup?” I call out to no one in particular with multiple variations of hey being thrown back at me.

I jump over the back of the couch and settle myself in between Kenny and Tweek, with Tolkien sitting to the right of the coffee addict. Kenny automatically pulls my legs up to settle over his lap, resting a hand on my calf as he fiddles with his phone with the unoccupied one.

“How the hell do you guys not have any cheesy poofs? What kind of household is this? I’ve been busting my balls for years waiting for this game to come out and when the day finally arrives, I can’t even enjoy it with the best snack ever?? I’d expect this from broke ass Kinny but not the Marsh’s!” Cartman complains as he follows the ever aloof Craig over to where the rest of us are lounging, stomping his feet from the kitchen to the dining room in a normal Cartman-like tantrum.

“Shut up, fatass! Stans ordering pizza so stop complaining before we put a limit to your slices!” Kyle threatens from the kitchen while Kenny and I roll our eyes.

“You’re welcome to leave.” I sarcastically mumble with my eyes still trained on Clyde setting everything up. He always looks really cute when he's concentrating.

“Oh shut up Y/N, this is your poorass pantry I’m talking about.” Cartman shoots back as he dramatically plops down on a seat at the dining table, his head down on the tabletop and his arms stretched out on either side next to Butters. I flash my middle finger at his pathetic display and see that Craig is sending him one too so I snicker when the black haired boy and I make eye contact.

“Instead of bitching, here's a suggestion. Why don’t you make your fat self useful for once and get some at the store then? You can even take it back to your house and just stay there for the rest of the night.” I snark back despite the sickeningly sweet tone of voice I adorn.

“Aye!” Fatass sits up and yells back at me before Kyle walks into the room, rolling his eyes.

“Dude. You can lay off the snacks for one night, can’t you? Cause you know, I’m pretty sure you have enough fat stored in your body to last you without any type of food for a few months and you’d still be alive.”

“Shut up, Craig!”

・ ─ ・ ⋯ ・ ─ ⊹ ♡₊˚๑

Loud, but this is just a typical night in with the boys. The boys, meaning Team Stan, Team Craig, and of course, Butters. We all hang out together as one but like any other group, there are cliques within it. I guess they formed when we were younger and would play games that required opposing teams having to go against each other.

Having to split, these are the groups that always formed when we played stuff like catch or basketball, and why the guys in each respective teams are a bit closer to one another as opposed to the other team. They naturally formed because Stan, Kenny, Cartman, and Kyle live near each other whereas Craig, Tweek, Tolkien, Clyde, and Jimmy live closer to one another.

Of course, I’m usually in my brother's “team” and this works out for us because Butters typically likes to sit our games out and play moderator instead.

Speaking of. My brother, Stan, and I are actually twins. Because of this, our parents decided to separate us and have Stan and I go to different schools when we got into elementary. They wanted to encourage us to be independent individuals and to make our own friends, instead of being comfortable with sticking together after we went to preschool together. Yes, we met all the guys and became friends with them when I still attended the same place as my brother, but my parents were worried that I wasn’t spending enough time with other girls my age.

Even though I went to a separate elementary school and middle school than the others, I still grew up and spent all of my time with them when we were outside of school. Because of this, I’m still as close to everyone else as they are with each other.

This year, however, my parents finally decided that we were old enough to make the decision of whether or not my brother and I wanted to finally attend the same school. Of course, I jumped at the opportunity to go to school with my older brother and our friends. Well, okay. It was more like I insistently begged them and they finally caved in and gave me the green light to transfer.

Gathered around the television on either the floor or the couches and with pizza in our faces, Kyle silently curses as he checks his phone.

“My ma wants me home early since tomorrow is the first day of school.” He informs us, wincing when he remembers the start of a new school year.

“Ack! I completely forgot!” Tweek’s eyes widens and twitches as he clenches his shirt in first day jitters.

“Oh gee, me too! But that means we’ll finally be able to go to school with you, huh, little buddy?” Butters nudges me with his elbow and I smile into the can of soda I’m drinking from.

"Yessss! I can’t wait! I’ll finally be able to meet the other schoolkids at South Park!” I beam, throwing my arms around the blonde and hugging him in euphoria.

Growing up with the boys and being the only girl, everyone has naturally grown to be rather protective over me as they see me as their pseudo-little sister. This meant that they constantly whisked me away from others our age and would promptly pull me away if I ever did something as simple as wave to someone outside of the group. They called it taking me away from the lame-o’s, as Cartman constantly reminded me.

Of course, I knew the other people that my friends are cool with like Timmy, Scott Malkinson, and Dovahkiin. They tag along with us from time to time and it’s a refreshing change of pace when they do.

“I’m also excited about the commute! Finally, I get to catch some more sleep in the morning because mom or dad don’t have to drive me thirty minutes just to get to North Park!” Cue me dramatically fake sobbing into Butters shoulders as he consoles me by petting my hair.

“There, there, buddy. You won’t have to worry anymore!” I giggle as Craig pulls me away from the little cutie.

“Lameee, I already see your ugoo face enough. I don’t need to see it at school either.”

"Shut up, Cartman. How do you think we’ve felt seeing your fatass in and out of school for all of our lives? That’s a decade too much.” Kyle tiredly says.

“Aye!”

“Well, I’m excited to finally see my bestie at school!” Clyde throws his arms around my shoulders from behind me. We giggle to each other in excitement as I place my hands on his arms.

“I’m going to get so much second-hand embarrassment when I finally get to see you try to flirt with a girl, Clydey.”

“Y/N! You wound me! Did you forget that I’m the most handsomest, most charming, and most smoothest guy in school—no. In all of South Park!” Clyde boasts while I continue to laugh, consolingly patting his arms in pity for his delusions.

“Besides, I wouldn’t think to do that anymore now that I have my baby girl going to school with me!” He says as he puckers up his lips and exaggeratedly makes kissing sounds towards me.

I’m still laughing as I lightly block his face from me. Clyde is always so silly and more sensitive than the guys (ahem, a crybaby, ahem), making him my partner in crime in stupid antics like this.

“Dude.” Stan pinches the space between his eyes and furrows his brows at the obnoxious flirting. The boys and I play flirt all the time for fun, but mostly to annoy my brother.

“You’re like this now, Stan, but wait until tomorrow. In a small town like Shit Park, a new student will be the talk of the school.” Tolkien slyly smirks, trying to get into the ravenette’s overprotective head.

“Oh shit. Fuck, I forgot. You’re fresh meat.” My brother stares at me uncomfortably, his face going pale at the overwhelming thought.  

“Leave him alone, guys… Besides, my princess will have her trusty knight by her side.” Kenny gloats.

When we were younger, there was a fantasy game we liked to play, involving a “Stick of Truth” that we fought for. Kenny chose to be a princess at that time to cheekily spend more time with me, another princess in the game. The pet name stuck and has been something he’s fondly called me from then on.

“More like mangy dog. You’re just going to drop her as soon as you see someone else with legs and a pulse, McWhoremick.” Craig deadpans, setting Kenny off as he clenches his jaw in anger.

“Anyways!” I cut them off before it escalates, “I’m most excited to see the poor girls you guys have dated!” I teasingly smirk.

“No. No, no! Respect my authoritah, Y/N! I'm seriously! Don’t come anywhere near those stupid skanks, nothing good ever comes out of girls!”

Cartman always gets defensive when his ex or any of the girls that the boys know gets brought up. Probably because the guys still clown him for the voicemail they got ahold of when we were kids, crying and threatening to commit suicide if she didn’t get back together with him. They like to joke around and say that they’d use “dying pig Cartman” the way those rappers use voicemails in their hit songs.

・ ─ ・ ⋯ ・ ─ ⊹ ♡₊˚๑

As I lay in bed after the guys go home, I restlessly toss and turn, repositioning myself in bed for hours into the night. I can never sleep due to both excitement and anxiety before the start of any school year. Deeming all my attempts futile, I pull out my phone from under my pillow and text the group chat to see if anyone else was in the same boat as me.

GROUP CHAT (EVERYONE)

N/N: yoooo

Toolshed (Stan): nooooo (barf emoji)

N/N: aye! fucking RUDE >:(

N/N: imma stuff you back into mom’s womb

HumanKite (Kyle): LOL gross dude.

theCoon (Cartman): not as gross as ur mom’s jew vagina

HumanKite (Kyle): Shut the fuck up, fatass.

theCoon (Cartman): you know, its ironic you call me that when you have a fat bitch mom!

SuperCraig (Craig): idk cartman, your mom’s must be gaping to have been able to push a fat baby like you out

Mysterion (Kenny): LMAOOO tru dat

Mysterion (Kenny): phat pussy

theCoon (Cartman): AYE! at least my mom didn’t willingly fuck a soulless ginger like urs craig!

SuperCraig (Craig): (middle finger emoji)

Tupperware (Tolkien): Your mom literally did, Cartman…

HumanKite (Kyle): Fucking dumbass.

theCoon (Cartman): details, DETAILS

theCoon (Cartman): his parents are still together so she still does!

HumanKite (Kyle): Yeah, but that just means your poor mom has to work hard to make enough money to feed herself and 10 other people because you eat enough for an army.

theCoon (Cartman): shut up you fucking JEW!!!

N/N: i can’t sleep :(

Toolshed (Stan): no one cares lol

N/N: shut up

N/N: you know how theres always a twin who's less attractive, even when they're identical?

N/N: that's you, stanley

N/N: ur just bitter cause im the cuter twin

Toolshed (Stan): ur literally ugoo but i admire ur confidence i guess

Tupperware (Tolkien): I never get why you always insult each other's looks, you're literally twins

ProfChaos (Butters): poor buddy

ProfChaos (Butters): want me to hop on my switch? we can play animal crossing together until you get sleepy :3

Mosquito (Clyde): oooo, i can’t sleep too so i���ll also visit ur island :D

theCoon (Cartman): laaaame

theCoon (Cartman): kick these pussies out of the chat ffs

theCoon (Cartman): lets hop on our PCs and start an online campaign instead

FastPass (Jimmy): hop on this dick instead :P

Mysterion (Kenny): AYO??

Mosquito (Clyde): LOL, NO HOMO BRO???

FastPass (Jimmy): nah bro, all the homos (sunglasses emoji)

Mysterion (Kenny): AYEEEE

Toolshed (Stan): LMAOOO

FastPass (Jimmy): lmao wait no i was just kidding (crying emoji)

theCoon (Cartman): you guys are fucking idiots.

N/N: ewwww, with cartman?? who can be that desperate, even as a joke jimmy? (barfing emoji)

Mysterion (Kenny): want me to swing by N/N? i know a few ways to make you tired (winking emoji) (smirk emoji) (devil emoji) (tongue emoji)

SuperCraig (Craig): (middle finger emoji)

Toolshed (Stan): DUDE.

WonderTweek (Tweek): Want me to oo br ing you coffee eee tomo rrow Y/N?? ??

Tweek’s twitching often has him typing like this. He doesn’t bother fixing his typos since it’s not hard to make out what he says, anyways.

N/N: my gate is open butters :3

N/N: idk clyde, you trampled on my flowers last time.. >:(

N/N: ily tweek!! <3

Mosquito (Clyde): Y/NNNNN!!! T—T

FastPass (Jimmy): he did it on purpose too, Y/N

FastPass (Jimmy): i saw him

FastPass (Jimmy): i kept telling him not to

FastPass (Jimmy): he laughed like a maniac and everything while he did it

FastPass (Jimmy): he also threatened to chop down your trees

Mosquito (Clyde): LIEEEEES

Mosquito (Clyde): DON’T LISTEN TO HIM Y/N

Mosquito (Clyde): people are always trying to take me down because im HANDSOME so SHUT. UP!!!

Mosquito (Clyde): jealousy is a disease, jimmy, and i hope you get better soon because it looks UGLY on you!!!

・ ─ ・ ⋯ ・ ─ ⊹ ♡₊˚๑

Despite sleeping late due to playing on my switch with Butters and Clyde, I wake up earlier than my alarm multiple times. Because of this, I decide to give up on going back to sleep when I notice that it's not that long until I should start getting ready anyways. I opt to pass the time on my phone instead, scrolling through social media like Coonstagram.

With my morning routine out of the way, I barge into my brother’s room without knocking to make sure he’s not still asleep so we’re not late to the bus stop… and also, to be annoying. After confirming that he is, in fact, awake when he throws a comic book at me, I go downstairs to eat some breakfast.

“I can’t believe you and Stan are already starting your second year of high school… Soon, you’ll be off to college like your sister and leave your father and I behind.” My mom laments as she places a plate of food in front of me.

“Don’t worry, mom. I’m pretty sure Stanley will still be living with you guys until he’s at least 35!” I smile sweetly at her while I spread butter onto my toast, as a muffled AYE! can be heard from upstairs. She tiredly sighs at us for getting onto each other's nerves so early in the morning but I continue to innocently eat my food.

“You remember what we talked about, right?”

“Hmmm..?”

“Even though you're going to school with your brother and the others now, I still want you to try to branch out into other things without them. You’re in high school now and I don’t want you to miss out on once in a lifetime opportunities and experiences because of the boys,” The brunette continues.

“Yeah mom, I know. Don’t worry, I’ll make new girl friends when I try out for sports. Maybe volleyball? Or basketball. I don’t know—something. I still haven’t decided yet.” I shrug around a mouthful of food.

“You know that's not what I mean, Y/N… Just think about at least trying to join, maybe, I don’t know. Cheer? We don’t care if you don’t make it, but at least just attend tryouts? Who knows, maybe you’ll like it.”

Ahhh, and there it is. Even after all these years, my parents are still trying to push me to be more independent from my brother and the boys by doing more female dominated activities.

“Pffffttt!” Shelley snorts behind a glass of orange juice and I glare at her, angrily stabbing at my poor eggs.

“Why are you even here? Shouldn’t you be on campus, at your dorm or something? I bet she’s ditching classes, mom! Wasting all that college tuition!” I tattle annoyingly on my elder sister in spite.

“Shut up, TURD!” She voices over me, kicking the leg of my chair and making me pout even more.

・ ─ ・ ⋯ ・ ─ ⊹ ♡₊˚๑

When my brother and I walk to the bus stop, I’m still pouting at what my mom reminded me of. I get more upset when I think about how we have to take the bus, even though most of the guys know how to drive.

Admittedly, we’re not of age to even get our license yet but some of us have their driver’s permit. They learned a little earlier because all of our parents are pretty chill with us learning how to drive as South Park doesn’t get traffic at all. This eases their anxiety as there are barely any other drivers on the road.

It doesn't ease my anxiety though, which is why I never learned to drive. I mean, why would I need to when I have a servant—oops, I mean brother, who can? The only problem is that none of our parents have gotten any of the guys cars to freely use (except for richass Tolkien) and aren’t planning to until they can legally drive.

“Mmph mmmph mmph? (What’s up with you?)” Kenny asks me before pulling down his parka’s hood.

“I don’t know, man. She’s been pouting since breakfast. Just ignore her,” My brother shrugs in answer for me and I pout even more.

“Probably that time of the month,” Cartman snarks before Kyle punches him in the arm.

“Shut up, fatass.” He says so I seek comfort from the ushanka wearing teen for coming into my defense, hugging his arm and leaning my head against him so I can comfortably mope.

“Hey! I asked how you were first. Come here, Princess.” Kenny whines and makes grabby hands at me but before he can do anything, the bus pulls up. As I look around at the new faces sitting all around me, Kenny grabs my arm and pulls me to the seat beside him.

“What’s wrong, beautiful?” He asks, putting his arm around me but I just shrug in response.

“Is it because you didn’t get enough sleep last night? You know you don’t need beauty sleep when you’re already so pretty. And Tweeks bringing you coffee, yeah? Just wait a few more minutes and you’ll be able to get your fix,” He gently offers but I just shake my head.

“Are you nervous for your first day? Don’t worry baby girl, daddy’s here.” He teasingly says while winking at me, and it works. I crack a smile because of how cheesy and ridiculous his words are and softly slap the hand that's on my shoulder, leaning my head against him for the rest of the ride.

・ ─ ・ ⋯ ・ ─ ⊹ ♡₊˚๑

South Park High looks the same as it did on orientation when we got our class schedule, prior to the first official day of school. Even then, I’m not as nervous about transferring to a completely different environment since I have my boys with me.

Kenny still has an arm around me as he walks me to my locker, until Craig pulls him by the hood to take him off of me, choking him in the process.

“Fuck! You asshole!”

“Can any of you guys not get into trouble on our first day of school?” Kyle sighs with his eyes closed, fingers pinching the bridge of his nose when he and the others get to us. I finally get my much needed coffee and hug Tweek out of appreciation.

“That’s like asking Cartman not to eat.” Clyde snickers to the guys, eliciting laughs all around and lifting my mood up even more.

“Aye!”

“Ngh! Whoever gets to the cafeteria first grabs us an empty table, right?” Tweek interrupts while we voice our confirmations, my arm wrapped around his lower back from our earlier hug as I sip on my warm cup of caffeine.

“I’ll pick you up after class for lunch, N/N.” Craig’s monotonous tone reaches me, leaving no room for a no as the others pick up conversation around us.

“You don’t have to! Isn’t your class at the other end of the school? I don’t want you to have to go through all that trouble for me.”

“Yeah, dude.” Stan side eyes him, having heard our exchange.

“You’re so short, I don’t want you to get lost in a sea of people and miss lunch.”

“Pffft, Craig! Even if I did get lost, I wouldn’t miss the whole lunch period.” I smile fondly at him, letting go of Tweek to adjust my backpack’s strap.

“Yeah, if anything, I can pick up Y/N.” Kenny pipes up as Craig furrows his brows at his interruption. Stan rolls his eyes at the both of them, deciding to leave the conversation and go talk to Kyle instead.

“We have the same class, you idiot.”

“And? Everyone knows I’m faster than you.”

“Says who? My legs are literally longer than yours and I’m the tallest of the group. One step from me is equal to, like, four struggling steps from you. Three if I’m being generous.”

“Ugh, you guys are annoying. I have the class before lunch with Clyde so we’ll just meet you guys there, okay? Sheeeeesh,” I make the decision for them.

“You rang, beautiful?” Clyde drops his prior conversation with Jimmy and Tolkien midway to nosely join ours at the mention of his name, leaning his arm on me like I’m an armrest.

“Shut up, Clyde.” The three of us say as I shove his elbow off of me.

・ ─ ・ ⋯ ・ ─ ⊹ ♡₊˚๑

When it’s finally lunch time, Clyde and I enter the cafeteria to see that a few of the guys managed to snatch a table for us so we head straight to the lunch line to grab some food. On our way there, we stop by a table and say hi to Jimmy, Scott, Timmy, and Dovahkiin.

“You go here now, baby Marsh?” Dovahkiin types out to me on his phone, an eyebrow raised.

“Yep! My folks finally decided to let me go to school with everyone!”

“Oh boy.”

“Hmmm? And what do you mean by that? I don’t like your tone, Dov.” I playfully shoot back.

“More trouble this year :p”

I laugh, “We’re not that bad! Actually… that’s valid. Whatever! You’re just jealous that you don’t get the attention of being the new kid now that I’m here!” I stick out my tongue at him and push down the bill of the hat he’s wearing to cover his eyes.

His melodic laugh can be heard and I smile, feeling proud that I was able to get a sound out of the notoriously mute Douchebag. I notice that a few other students look our way in surprise from the corner of my eyes.

I settle myself in between Craig and Kenny while Clyde takes a seat at the other side of the table between Tolkien and Tweek. The rest of the school day goes fine and the day after goes similarly. The third day, however, is different. It’s during one of our passing periods when I’m at my locker to switch out my books that it happens.

I share all of my classes with at least one of the guys so I usually have a buddy with me throughout the whole day. While Butters normally walks with me during this passing period, he had to use the bathroom and told me that he’d just meet me at class. When I close my locker door shut, a group of girls come up to greet me.

“Hi! My friends and I were wondering what your name is, new kid.” The black haired girl smiles at me. She’s really pretty and I can tell from that, her silky hair, and cute sense of fashion that she’s probably popular with others.

“Oh! Hi! My name is Y/N!”

“Cute name! I just wanted to formally introduce myself. My name is Wendy Testaburger. I’m the student body council president and co-captain of the cheer team,” I nod at her words, impressed. Holy shit, she’s only a sophomore and she was able to get people to vote for her for president?

“My name is Heidi Turner! It’s nice to meet you!” A girl with light brown hair introduces herself next. Her headband is so cute and unique with a flower sitting to the side of it, I’m in awe of her personal style and confidence.

“I’m Bebe Stevens! Stick with us and you’ll be fine, okay new kid? We’ll let you know which boys are a waste of your time!” The blonde giggles, twirling curly hair around her perfectly manicured finger.

I can’t help but to think that the aura she exudes is more mature. Maybe it’s because of the higher end attire she's sporting? Or maybe… it’s her rack..? Ah fuck, don’t look there, stupid! Eyes up, idiot! God dammit, this is all Kenny and Clyde’s fault!

“The name’s Rebecca McArthur but you can just call me Red! If you want to try out for cheer, let us know so we can tell you when our coach has a date set for tryouts!” Wait, are they all cheerleaders? The boys will be jealous of me once they find out about my new pretty friends hehe.

“We actually wanted to ask if you’d like to have lunch with us, too. Find us in the lunchroom if you ever decide to and feel free to sit with us! It doesn’t have to be today, but anytime you feel like it! We’ll see you around, okay?” Wendy invites me as the rest of the girl say their byes.

While being the new kid means that a good amount of people have been greeting me in the hallways or going up to me in class to introduce themselves, this was the first time that I’ve been invited to sit with someone for lunch. I’m so excited that I inform my lab partner of the news.

“no one new has invited me to sit w/ them at lunch since i came! :D” I write out in my notebook before sliding it across the two-person lab counter to my seatmate in science class.

“duh, it’s cause ur bro + his friends are super overprotective of you. no one can approach you even if they wanted to since you’re with them all the time :P” Dovahkiin writes back and I frown at this revelation.

“huh… that makes sense, i guess? oh god ew, i hope no one thinks that im dating any of them :x my brother?? CARTMAN?? vomit!!”

“its ok, you can tell anyone that im ur bf if they do :D” I softly hit his arm with the back of my hand even though I’m rewarded with his melodic snickering.

By the time lunch comes around, I’m giddy when I grab my food with Clyde. I tell him to go on ahead of me and he doesn’t question it, probably thinking that I want to stop by Timmy and the other’s table again. I don’t, however, and scan the room until I find the table that the girls are sitting at.

I sit next to Wendy and Bebe after I skip to their table, the ravenette patting the seat between them with a smile on her face. It feels nice talking to the girls as we get to know each other, with them asking me about how I’m adjusting to the school and what classes I have.

“We have another friend, her name’s Nichole, but she said she has to do something in the library today.” Red informs me and I soak up the information, enthusiastically nodding my head at her words.

“Speaking of Nichole, we actually noticed that you hang out with her boyfriend and his friends.” Bebe nonchalantly brings up as the girls all glance at one another.

“Oh, what! Wait, so that means your guy’s Nichole is the same one that's dating my friend Tolkien, then? No one else has a girlfriend that I know of,” I smile up at them.

“Mhmm, we actually noticed that you're really close to the guys,” She continues. The other girls seem interested too as they give me their undivided attention.

“Haha, yeah. They’re like my brothers!”

“Really? You just started going to school in South Park though?” They’re all surprised.

“Yeaaah, but I’ve known them all my life! I’ve actually lived in South Park all my life too. I just went to school in North Park until this year,” I say as I munch on my fries.

“How? Are you neighbors with one of them or something?”

“That, but I also went to preschool with them. If you guys have always been in South Park like me, we probably even went to the same preschool! I can’t remember shit from that long ago though so you guys probably don’t remember me too,” I shrug.

“Huh. I’m surprised that you guys kept in contact throughout the years then.” Wendy says to me in thought this time, the other girls nodding.

“Hmm, I can see why you'd say that. But my brother’s one of those dumbasses, so…”

“What?!” All the girls exclaim. Their unexpectedly loud response causes a casualty in my fries. I look at the fallen piece of food under the lunch table and mourn the tiny loss.

“So that makes you twins then..? Unless one of them flunked, resulting in you getting stuck in the same grade with him. It’s honestly believable with how dumb those guys are but we’ve gone to school with them all of our lives and we know that none of them have been held back a grade…” Wendy mumbles out and I laugh, agreeing with her statement.

“Yup, twins! I’m a Marsh!” I proudly boast, smiling wide with my teeth showing. Wendy chokes on her water and all the girls share a meaningful glance with her.

“Pfffft, oh man! We wanted to warn you about those dumbasses because we always saw you with them, but we just thought they got to you first and you were oblivious to who they were. I didn’t think you grew up that close with the guys, much less being related to one of them!” Bebe laughs at the unexpected turn of events.

I blush, flattered that they cared enough about a new girl like me to want to warn me about who they thought the ‘wrong crowd’ was.

“Not like you can say anything though, Bebe. You dated one of them,” Red scoffs, entertained at Bebe’s slowly reddening cheeks.

“That doesn’t count! Who even counts relationships from when they were in elementary school?!”

“Wait… Does this mean you’re the same Bebe that dated Clyde?” My entire expression does a complete 180 as I cross my arms and lift an eyebrow at the blonde.

“Dude. You used him for shoes.” I continue, furrowing my brows at the mortified girl.

“I was just a selfish little kid! I didn’t know any better! At least I didn’t date Eric Cartman!” She throws Heidi under the bus in an attempt to divert the attention away from herself. I continue to stare at her, unamused.

“Well, Wendy and your brother dated on and off when we were younger!” My eyes widen as I turn my head to the person sitting on the other side of me.

“Aw, dude.” I say to her in a mixture of pity and disgust, the expression reminding the girls of when Stan would say it. If there were any doubts about my bloodline, this further confirmed it for them.

“I-I-It’s not like that anymore! I haven’t thought of him in that way since elementary school!” It’s Wendy’s turn to get red in the face and embarrassed.

“Yeah, it’s the other Marsh. Homegirl has a type~” Bebe snickers at the other girls but I don’t hear it, still in disbelief that my brother managed to date someone as pretty as Wendy, regardless if their relationship wasn’t legit due to their age.

Before anyone can say anything else, the bell signals the end of the lunch period and the disbelief remains throughout the day. I catch up to the guys outside of the lunchroom and they waste no time questioning me.

“What the hell, Y/N! Why’d you eat with those bitches?! I know it might be hard for you but I thought I warned you to stop being so stupid!” Cartman seems irritated as the other guys echo their sentiments at having seen me eating with the girls. No, their exes. I squint my eyes at my dumb brother and at the fatty.

“Hello? Y/N! Don’t tell me your weak ass got brainwashed in an hour?! Jesus fucking Christ, woman!” Fatass continues while shaking my shoulders. I roll my eyes and push his grubby paws off me.

“You’re an ass. Heidi’s such a sweet girl. I don’t know why I’m so surprised that you managed to fuck that up,” I tell him as we continue to walk in the hallways.

“Nuh-uh! She was the crazy bitch in the relationship! She manipulated me! She took advantage of all this,” He waves his hands over his body, “For her own selfish gain!”

“What is there to even gain from you? A few pounds?” The guys laugh and I fistbump Craig.

“And you! Bro. Brooo. Wendy? When will you surprise me for once and not embarrass me for being related to you?” I cross my arms while Kenny hugs me from behind, throwing his arms over my shoulders and smiling at Stan from over my head.

“Nah, she's nicknamed Testabitch for a reason, babe.” Kenny takes out the lollipop in his mouth to reply and I push his hand away from my face when he offers the sweet to me.

“She’s not your babe,” We hear from Craig’s deep voice as he eyes the blonde in disgust at his offering.

“Did Bebe say anything embarrassing about me?” Poor Clyde tugs on my jacket to get my attention. I offer a sympathetic smile and hug the jock, breaking out of Kenny’s hold.

“Don’t worry Clydey, she seemed embarrassed that I knew about her using you for shoes.”

“Don’t hug him for being a fucking simp, Y/N. It’s his fault for being a dumbass. The only thing that bitch is good for is her fat rack.”

“Shut up, fatass.” Of course, Kyle is the one who replies.

“Shit, right? I couldn’t stop staring at them!” I turn my head towards Eric to say.

“Y/NNN!” Clyde whines in betrayal and I pet his head in apology.

[jacobscharacter]

Jaspers Journey (short story)

Jasper is a 15 year old kid digging his ski boots 1 by one into the rock solid ice on the side of the halfpipe. Jack frost has been and the lifty's are still down at base camp having their morning coffee's. Jasper never complain's. He actually really enjoy's having the sun slowly aluminate his path as he battles the incline of the mountain. The kid just has a lot on his mind. As the crunch of his boot tip hitting the ice eco's once more, Jasper can be seen hunched over with his bottom lip threatening to drop. Only his googles can hide the black circles under his eyes and only his favourite signature Henrik Harlaut inspired Wu-tang Clan hoodie can hide the goosebumps on his pale skin. Jasper feels alone, as if nobody see's what he doe's. As if nobody see's how much he tries. So why should he try at all?

In 2008 Jasper Julian Jenvey was born. In the small farming community of Owaka. Destine to become the predecessor to the many sheep sheering prodigies who came before him. Jasper had other idea's. In 2010 Jasper Jenvey could ski down your average chairlift run with more grace than any given 40 year old. He could get air time by 4, 360's by 6, backflips by 8 and his first cork 7 at 10 years old. In 2019 Jasper set foot in the half pipe. His father was quoted saying "it was like a duck to water". With his family's dreams of him still becoming the next winner of 'New Zealand's got wool' long gone. The support for Jasper's skiing career were second to none. Driving up to Queenstown and Wanaka to train and compete every weekend. By 2023 Jasper really wanted to make it big. He needed to do what all the big names in the sport were doing. Back to back winter's. Amazing, fun, time of your life! Yet horrifically expensive. The rail selection at Laxx, the jump building technology of Aspen and the swiss pipe shaping ability of Good Mountain weren't just a 3 hour drive away. The 25 hour country to country plane fiesta was enough to make the Jenvey's accountant say "yea, na", but Craig had other idea's.

Jasper's Dad Craig had always been his number one fan. No matter the people, place or wool shed party that was being held back home, Craig wouldn't miss watching Jasper ski for anything. Craig's family had taken him skiing as a kid. He was more like a fish on land as he would put it. Craig loved the family skiing holidays as a kid and was in awe not only of the stunts Jasper could do but the passion that he showed for the sport. It never took any convincing to get Craig out of bed for the early morning drive up central ways for a few icy morning turns. He just wanted to see Jasper do great, that's all that mattered to him. So when it was do or die and Jasper needed to go overseas, Craig did anything but hesitate. They made a deal. Craig and Jaspers Mum Ella would pay for Jaspers ski gear, lift pass and most importantly travel fee's. Once in Switzerland Jasper would find a job and pay for his accommodation and living costs. Jasper had helped out around the farm for years. Never thinking twice about having to feed the animals, gather the eggs or tidy up the pig pens. It was second nature and he was about to go chase his Swiss Alps dreams and reap the rewards.

Craig and Ella just want to see their son have fun. Yet Jasper doesn't just want to just be the best young skier out of Owaka. He wants to be considered one of the greats. He's proven himself as a top competitor at world cups winning his first one this year, (2023). That was on home soil though and Jasper wants to make the Olympics. You must be among the best not only in your home pipe but all the others around the world to achieve such accolades.

Now overseas Jasper is dedicated to be gracing the surfaces of the vertical halfpipe walls. Rather than spending the weekdays tackling runaway Ewe's, Jasper is soaking up every second upside down towering above the walls of Good Mountains (GM's) Olympic size pipe.

He's been lucky enough to find a job as a dishy at GM's on mountain Cafe and Eatery. Each night he works from 3pm - 10pm. This provides enough money for his favourite kimchi Bowl Noodle Soup, as well as a bed in the mountain staff sleeping quarters.

Jasper is finding himself very lethargic at the end of each shift. He thinks the energy he doesn't have is holding him back from landing the both way back to back 1620's that he knows will secure him a sure fire spot in next years Olympics. He needs those tricks to fall sooner rather than later. Last week at the GM world cup event Jasper's din's had mysteriously been turned down. His mind was focused and thinking about his switch 1440 on his third hit. Then on his first hit his ski let loose on take off. This comp was vital as the New Zealand Olympic team has just been named and Jasper didn't make it. So with one wildcard spot left Jasper needs any boost he can get.

It's not the ski popping off moment that's messing with Jasper's head though. Because after the comp as his main rival for the Olympic wildcard spot, James Jamison stepped up to the podium, he gave Jasper a menacing wink. As if he had something to do with Jasper's out of the blue blunder.

Fast forward one week to present day. As the crunch of Jasper's boot hitting the ice can speak 1000 words. Jasper is hunched over with his bottom lip quivering like a flag fluttering in the wind. He worked an extra half an hour last night and Apres at the staff sleeping quarters turned into a late night affair of erratic dance moves coupled with thumping liquid DnB. Little sleep was had and the ominous wink shot directly at him by James is playing over and over in his head. Craig isn't there to tell Jasper how good he is. Craig isn't there to make him laugh or get excited at every little thing he doe's. Craig isn't there to tell him everything is going to be alright. The Olympics are one year away. Craig and Ella are 18,588 km's away. It's just Jasper, his favourite Wu-Tang hoodie and the symmetrically cut edges of the GM halfpipe. A lost cold boy with no one to turn too, this is Jasper.

[the-iceni-bitch]

The Days and Nights are Long

Pairing: clueless!Colin Shea x clueless!fem Reader

Words: ~4K

Summary: You and Colin are being idiots and it’s driving his band crazy.

Warnings: explicit language, explicit sexual content (m receiving oral sex, unprotected vaginal sex, multiple orgasms, squirting), idiots in love, SMUT!!! 18+ ONLY!!!

A/N: It took way longer than I had planned but here’s some more of our drunk, musical idiots in love for you hoes!!! I love them so, even though they’re morons. Tagging my Colin babes @starlightcrystalline and @wayward-blonde because I know they’ve been waiting for this.

I no longer do taglists so if you want to stay up to date on all the latest filth, follow my sideblog @the-iceni-library and turn on notifications!

Colin shook his head and shrugged uncomfortably as he stared at his phone, wracking his brain to think of what exactly he should say to you.

“For fuck’s sake, Shea, just ask her to come up.” Matt looked exasperated, twirling his stick through his fingers as he rolled his eyes when Colin scowled at him.

He’d been moping for the past two weeks, ever since the two of you had slept together. All of his bandmates were getting sick of it, the man was the biggest pouty baby on the face of the planet. If they had to listen to him sing Everybody Hurts one more time they were going to kill him.

So they’d come up with a little plan to get him out of his funk, lining up a gig that would really lend itself better to a female vocalist and feigning innocence when Colin pointed that out. They had really enjoyed hanging out with you on that exceptionally hot evening, and if having you join them again was the only way to get their boy out of his funk, even better. He had actually smiled before pulling his phone out, but then he realized he had no idea what he should say.

The two of you had still been cordial whenever you ran into each other, but there was definitely a strain to your interactions now. No matter how much you both told each other it wasn’t awkward, it was definitely awkward. It was also weird that he was pretty sure you hadn’t come home after 1 AM at all in the last two weeks, and you usually at least spent your weekend nights at some other asshole’s apartment. Not that he’d had any visitors either, but he didn’t want to explore that too much.

He was still staring at his phone screen and trying to come up when some nonchalant greeting that would entice you to come sing with them when the phone was suddenly plucked out of his hand by an exasperated looking Keith, who ignored his spluttering as he typed a quick message before tossing the phone back to him.

“You’re thinking about this too hard.” The bassist said, setting to tuning his instrument and chuckling at the indignant look on Colin’s face.

Colin was about to give a snarky reply when he felt his phone buzz and looked down to see a text from you, grinning when he saw you saying you’d be right up. With an exclamation point! He didn’t even notice the pleased grins his bandmates were giving each other as they watched him start to tune his guitar, plucking a happy little tune and humming to himself.

They were all expecting you to come through the main door from the stairs, so when you shouted hello from behind them after climbing up your fire escape, you were greeted with the sight of five grown men almost jumping out of their skins before turning to greet you.

That grin on your face was enough to make Colin melt, all the awkwardness that had been lingering between you disappearing in an instant when you met each other’s eyes.

“Alright boys!” You took the mic Brad handed you with a warm smile, rolling it in one hand as you trailed the cord through your fingers. “You said you needed my help with something Col, what’s up?”

“Right, these idiots lined up a gig for us without consulting me first.” They all avoided his halfhearted glare with doe eyed innocence, focusing on their instruments. “And, well, the set list isn’t really in my range.”

“Lemme see.” You took the sheet of paper from his hand and scanned it quickly. “That’s a whole lot of girl rock.”

“Yeah, like I said, Ann Wilson and I aren’t really in the same register.” Fuck, it was nice to be able to talk to you again.

“Why don’t you just modulate it, then?” You mumbled absentmindedly.

He gaped like a fish at that question. He honestly hadn’t even thought about it, and even if he had, he wasn’t expecting you to know about modulation.

“If we modulate for him, none of us can hit the harmonies.” Craig piped up from behind the keyboards, and he could have kissed him.

“That right?” You teased, shooting a wicked smirk around at them. “You boys sure you didn’t just miss me?”

Colin tried not to sound too hysterical when he let out a laugh, missing the indulgent eye rolls his band mates were giving behind your backs.

“What do you think, we booked a gig where I can’t sing any of the songs on purpose just so we could hang out again?” Good thing he was pretty, the man was clueless.

“No, you’re not that clever, Col.” He made a mock wounded gesture and you grinned at him, looking over the set list some more. “What kind of gig is this anyway?”

“Yeah, Craig, you never told us what the actual gig was.” Colin and the rest of the band gave the keyboardist a variety of inquisitive stares.

“Uh, it’s a bachelorette party.” He mumbled, avoiding making eye contact with his bandmates when they started groaning.

“Fuck, Craig! I do not want to get felt up by a bunch of drunk, horny women!” Colin threw a balled up sheet of music at you when you started laughing.

“That seems right up your alley, Shea.” You teased, dodging when he threw a pillow from the couch at you. “You don’t want to pick up some rowdy bridesmaid?”

“No, they’re scary aggressive.” He shuddered when he thought about the last bachelorette party they had done, they’d practically ripped the band’s clothes off before they could get out of there.

“Aww, well I’ll be there to shield you this time, sweetie.” You winked at him and moved a little closer to everyone. “Let’s practice, boys. Don’t want to give those girls cause to complain.”

---------------------------------------------------------

It was the day of the gig, and you and Colin had decided to drive together to streamline things. He was waiting in your living room and tapping his foot nervously as he waited for you to finish getting ready, anxious about what actually performing with you would be like.

“Y/N, we need to go!” He never thought you would be the type to take forever getting ready.

“Yeah, I know!” You strolled out to the living room with a grin on your face and he had to swallow a groan. “How do I look?”

“Good, really good.” The way he was looking at you made your grin grow even wider.

The outfit wasn’t even that special, just a denim mini skirt and a tight v-neck tee with a leather jacket. Oh, and thigh high leather boots. It was definitely the boots he was staring at, his eyes trained on the few inches of bare skin between the top of the boots and the hem of your skirt. You gave him a couple minutes to just stare at you before rolling your eyes and strolling towards your front door, grabbing him by his shirt and pulling him after you.

“C’mon Shea, we don’t wanna be late.” You scolded, shoving his amp into his hand and slinging his guitar case over your shoulder before heading down the stairs.

He had trouble focusing on the road as he drove you to the bar the party was going to be at, all he wanted to do was memorize the way you looked in that outfit. It was like someone told you exactly what to wear to drive him crazy. Maybe bringing you into this gig hadn’t been the best idea, because all he wanted to do right now was pull over and let you ride him while you weren’t wearing anything except for those boots and that jacket, and maybe whatever lingerie you had on under that outfit.

“Colin, you’re going to miss the turn.” Your voice snapped him out of his little daydream, and he cursed as he took the turn towards the bar a little faster than he would have liked.

“Sorry, just got a little distracted.” He mumbled, slowing down as he turned into the alley behind the bar and put the car in park behind Matt’s van.

The rest of the band was already unloading, waving at you two as Colin shut off his vehicle and you stepped out. You actually gave Craig and Keith little side hugs before you started helping with the unloading, he hadn’t realized you guys had gotten that close over the past week, and for some reason it made him smile.

“How’s it going man?” He didn’t know how he felt about the look Matt was giving him as he helped carry the bass drum inside, it felt suggestive of something. “Y/N seems excited to be here.”

“Yeah, I thought she might be nervous about performing but she’s handling everything like a pro.” He watched you laugh at something Brad said as you worked on connecting your mic. “Maybe we should make her an official member.”

“Whatever you say, man.” Matt just shrugged, laughing when Colin rounded on him and started spluttering.

“I was joking! We can’t just ask Y/N to be in the band!” Could they? Having you around had been a lot of fun, and the band dynamic had helped alleviate some of the tension that had been growing between you two. But seeing you tonight looking like you did and knowing that you were gonna have to have some on stage chemistry to make this work was making him think twice about things. You got a little intense during rehearsals, and the added pressure of being on stage might make him combust if you kicked it up at all.

Matt shook his head at him and set to assembling his kit while the rest of the band started tuning and connecting their instruments. You just sat on a stool and sipped some water, running through a couple vocal exercises absentmindedly as you scrolled through your phone. It only took a couple of minutes for everyone to finish setting up and then it was mic checks all around.

Everything sounded good and balanced after a couple adjustments and the sound guys gave you the thumbs up to start warming up. Colin couldn’t stop watching you. You were so unbelievably relaxed on stage and it was just endearing you to him even more. He thought for sure you would have been a bundle of nerves but you seemed to be right in your element, tossing him a couple of lazy grins over your shoulder as you ran through a couple of songs before the partygoers started filtering in.

The band switched to doing some instrumental ambience shit while they waited for the party to really get going, and Colin wandered over to talk to you when you took a step back from your mic.

“Still feeling ok about this?” He asked, beaming back at the soft smile you gave him.

“Yeah, I’m excited.” You bounced on your toes a little, adrenaline flooding your veins as the crowd grew. “Think I’ll get any bras thrown at me?”

“You never know with bachelorettes.” He laughed, strolling back over to his own mic so he could introduce the band.

If he thought jamming with you was special, it was nothing compared to watching you perform. You were a goddamn natural, coming alive and feeding off the crowd’s energy until you were completely lost in the music. Every time his eyes met yours you were grinning at him, and your chemistry with the rest of the band was palpable.

Not to mention, you kept drifting close to him on the stage, brushing your hand over his shoulders or leaning against him when you harmonized and it was making his knees weak. , God, he could do this with you every night, even though he was pretty sure he was going to need to sneak into the bathroom to jerk off afterwards.

The show was over too soon, the extremely drunken crowd of rowdy bachelorettes finally getting crazy enough that the band was ready to make a hasty escape. You were bouncing on your toes with residual energy as you started helping the guys pack up their instruments, grabbing Colin’s amp after he shoved his guitar in the case and you both made a run for it to his car when a wobbly woman started to try to climb on the stage.

“Colin, holy fuck that was so much fun!” You managed to make it to the alley unscathed and were giving him the most heartbreaking grin. “We’re definitely doing this again.”

“Yeah? Well you did a great fucking job.” Goddamn it, he’d missed you. “We can do whatever you want, honey.”

“Really?” You slammed the trunk closed and started to prowl closer to him. “Whatever I want?”

“That is what I said.” He could feel his voice dropping into that low register that meant he was in desperate need of some sort of release, so he really hoped he wasn’t misreading this situation. “Why? Did you want something now?”

“I think I do.” Your chest was right against his and you could feel it heaving, gazing at him through your lashes while you ran your fingers over his abs. “I stole the keys to the van.”

“And, you wanna go on a joy ride?” He breathed deep when you brushed your lips over his, winding an arm around your waist and pulling you close.

“Or, we could just fuck in the back while the rest of the guys search for these.” You pulled back a little and jingled the keys in his face, sucking your bottom lip between your teeth while he ran his hands over your hips.

“Yeah, that’s a great idea.” He smashed his lips to yours and let out a low moan, his fingers digging into your ass while the two of you stumbled towards the side door of the van.

You fumbled with the keys for a minute because you didn’t want to take your mouth off Colin for any reason, but then you were sliding the door open and the two of you were falling inside in a tangle of limbs before somehow managing to kick the door closed behind you. Trying to undress each other was a little difficult with how wrapped up you were in each other but you managed, tossing your garments away haphazardly as your tongues curled tangled together. Colin grabbed your hands when you went to remove your boots, pulling them up to his face and kissing your palms before winding your arms around his neck.

“Keep those on.” His voice was a low growl and fuck, you forgot how sexy he was.

“Well, cannot say I’m surprised you're a little kinky, Col.” You wound your fingers through his hair and yanked, purring at the groan he gave you. “I’m gonna suck that pretty dick of yours, but then I’ll give it to you nice and rough.”

“God, baby.” He wished he didn’t sound so whiny when you started kissing your way down his chest, but he hadn’t gotten any release except from his hand for the past two weeks and he really needed you to keep doing what you were doing. “I’ll take whatever you give me.”

“Yeah? Knew you were a good boy.” You winked at him when you started kissing the skin above the band of his boxer briefs before you were yanking them down his thighs and immediately licking a heavy stripe up the underside of his cock when it sprung up against his abs.

Colin had to brace a hand against the side of the van when you worked him over, spitting on his tip and watching it drip down his length before spreading it over him with your lips. You wrapped your hand around his shaft and gave him a nice, smooth stroke as you ducked down between his length to press gentle kisses over his balls while you jerked him off. He almost choked on his tongue when you wrapped your lips around his sack and tugged softly, the hum you let out sending a vibration up his spine while your thumb swiped over his swollen tip.

The sounds he was making from just a handjob were enough to soak through the thin lace of your panties, and when he shouted your name when you moved a little lower and teased your tongue over his asshole, well you almost fucking came just from that. You couldn’t believe you had stupidly waited two fucking weeks before indulging in this man again, you finally felt like yourself again. It was driving you absolutely crazy, the way his hips were wriggling underneath you spurring you on until you couldn’t take it any more.

If he thought your hand was incredible, it was nothing compared to the feel of your lips wrapped around his tip while your tongue swirled around his sensitive head. With all the women he’d slept with, he’d definitely suffered through some mediocre and downright disappointing blow jobs. But you felt like you were about to suck the soul out of him, and you’d only just started.

“Ah, Christ.” He was going to pass out if you kept going like this, your mouth was like fucking heaven. “Honey, fuck.”

You shot him a wicked look when you started bobbing your head, taking him just a little deeper each time while your tongue curled around him as much as possible. Then you opened your throat and swallowed him whole and he lost his mind.

He wrapped his hand in your hair and held your head still as he started fucking your throat, his hips bucking wildly while you choked and sputtered around him. Drool was running down your chin and soaking his thighs as you started breathing through your nose, digging your fingers into his thighs while he used you like a fuck toy. You kept your tongue pressed flat against your bottom teeth to avoid choking on it, moaning softly when you tasted the salty tang of his precum hit your tongue. His grip on your hair was growing painful, and you could tell by the way his abs were twitching that he was close.

“Wait, ah shit!” He somehow managed to gather enough self control to pull out of your mouth, groaning at the long string of saliva that kept you connected even as you bit at your swollen lips. “I’m not coming unless it’s in that pretty pussy. How do you want it?”

“Fuck me from behind, Col.”

He growled as he sat up and smashed his lips to yours, savoring the taste of himself on your tongue before flipping your over and burying his face in your hair. You let out a low moan when he slammed into you with no warning, gasping at the punishing pace he was setting and purring when he started mouthing at your neck.

The van was shaking like some sort of cliche while Colin fucked into you with abandon, his hips bouncing off your ass in an obscene display while the two of you whined and panted together. Colin was going to lose his fucking mind, two weeks with barely even talking to you and now he was finally inside you it was all he could do to not go completely feral.

“Oh god, honey.” He was practically whining against your skin when you clenched around him, sucking your ear lobe between his lips while you arched your back and purred for him. “Fuck, you’re so tight and wet. Pussy so fucking good. Tell me you’re close, I need to feel you come.”

“So close, Colin, shit!” You gasped when he hit you deep, curling your body backwards around him and reaching over your shoulder to wind your fingers through his hair and press his lips to yours. “Need that dick so bad. Feel so good when you’re inside me.”

“I know, baby, I know.” He wound one hand around your neck and the other arm around your waist, holding you close while he kissed you deeply and swallowed your wanton mewls with a deep groan. “Come for me.”

His hips ground against you and you slapped the floor of the van when you came, sobbing into his mouth and vibrating underneath him while your pussy strangled his cock. Your teeth nipped at his lips once you were finished, humming happily as he continued fucking you through your high.

“Need more, Colin.” You whimpered when he started slowing down, trying to thrust your hips back towards him as you tried to bring yourself to the edge again. “Harder, I need it.”

“Fuck, I’ll give you whatever you fucking want.” He tugged at your lips with his teeth, squeezing your neck gently and groaning at your soft whimper as you clenched around him. “Jesus Christ, you feel so fucking good.”

You couldn’t respond when he started pounding into you furiously, the way his cock was punching against your soft walls making it a little hard to breathe, never mind thinking. He was hitting every spot you needed him to with each thrust, grunting into your ear each time his hips slammed into you until he felt your breath hitch.

Every time he bottomed out you thought you were going to pass out, the tip of his cock punching against your cervix and making you see stars. It was so good, he was hitting you so deep and smooth you couldn’t believe you’d been denying yourself for so long.

Colin growled when a particularly vicious push had your entire body rising off the floor of the van, your fluttering sigh sending a shiver of pleasure through his body. One more thrust and you lost it, screaming with ecstasy as every muscle in your body vibrated and you squirted all over Colin’s thighs and the floor.

“Fuck, fuck, baby.” Colin was desperate, his rhythm completely gone as he chased his own end while you fluttered around him. “Gonna fill this pretty little pussy up until I’m leaking outta you for the next week.”

“Oh god, please.” Your eyes rolled up in your head while you let him use you, his lips tracing your jaw hungrily as you pushed your hips back to meet his. “Give it to me, Colin.”

He buried his face in your neck and let out a strangled cry when his hips stuttered, thick, warm ropes of white shooting against your soft walls until he was collapsing on top of you with a sated moan. You tangled your fingers with his above your head as your breathing regulated, his breath hot on your neck while the two of you melted into each other.

“We’re not waiting two weeks again, right?” Colin’s arms wrapped around you as he nuzzled into your hair, his lips spreading in a slow smile when he felt you purr contentedly.

“Nope. I’m definitely gonna need this to happen on the regular.” You turned a little so you could rub your nose against his. “You know, in between our other, normal escapades.”

“Right.” His heart fell a little at that, but maybe just interspersing his trysts with you with his other one night stands would help flush his crush on you out of his system.

Before he had a chance to say anything else there was a sudden pounding at the van door, snapping the two of you out of your haze with a pair of exasperated groans.

“Shea!!!” You untangled yourselves as you started to pull on your clothes. “That had better be Y/N in there! If you sad fucked some bachelorette and we have to listen to you sing stupid breakup songs for the next month I’m going to kill you!”

[tomhardysteeth]

Use Your Imagination

[ao3]

2.9k Eddie Brock/Venom Based entirely on the Venom: Let There Be Carnage trailer

Eddie woke up to the feel of his body tugging indiscriminately out from his back. He sighed and reached behind himself, easily finding a tentacle and tickling it until it retreated back inside him.

Wake up, Eddie, Venom said cheerily, running a slimy three-pronged tendril across his face delicately. We’re hungry.

“Ugh, can’t you just bring me something in here?” Eddie replied grumpily, burying his face in his pillow.

No. Venom took control of his legs and lifted him up and onto the floor, and Eddie momentarily lost his balance before a tentacle righted him.

Eddie groaned and stretched his back, cracking it. He headed to the bathroom and took a piss while a tentacle brushed his teeth.

He was exhausted, because he and Venom had finally tracked down all the guys harassing Mrs. Chen and had spent half the night running—literally running—them down. But Venom was even more chaotically energetic than usual because it had gotten to eat three people.

And Eddie couldn’t drink caffeine anymore—Venom hated it—so he was resigned to his orange juice and to spending the entirety of the morning just trying to wake up. 

“Babe, what the hell are you making?” Eddie asked as his body shifted minutely with the extension of several tentacles all over the kitchen. 

Breakfast, Venom replied as it knocked several things out of the fridge and onto the floor.

“You can’t possibly be hungry.”

No, but you are. 

Eddie wasn’t entirely sure how their digestive systems worked, but he knew his body didn't even notice when they ate people, and his appetite was completely different than it used to be and also completely different from humans in general. He had to eat big, disgusting meals at least three times a day, and despite Venom assuring him that they both needed the sustenance to survive, Eddie couldn’t help but notice that he had gained weight.

Not that he could get on a scale. He broke his bathroom scale when he tried, presumably because a massively dense alien inhabited his body. That being said, his belly stuck out farther than it used to and his jeans were too tight.

Venom was making a mess and singing along (terribly) to the radio, so Eddie took a seat at the kitchen table and tried to dig his phone out of the pocket of his robe with his hand, but a tentacle got to it first and handed it to him.

He scrolled for a few minutes, ignoring the crashing sounds and the fire that he could see in his peripheral vision. Venom would clean it all up eventually, so it was fine. 

“Don’t forget to feed the chickens,” Eddie said distractedly, still looking at his phone.

Don’t forget to feed the chickens, Venom mocked in a nagging voice. 

They always had a few chickens in their apartment that Eddie got from a local farmer so Venom could eat live meat whenever it needed it. Except for the one chicken Venom had apparently imprinted on and was actually just their pet. Venom had named her Popsicle.

Ta-da, Venom said as it dropped two plates stacked high with who knows what underneath the waffles. 

“Thanks, Vee. Looks great,” Eddie lied. 

Venom swirled the end of a tentacle across his face, and Eddie reached up a hand to hold it steady so he could kiss it. 

Venom always helped with eating, because despite Eddie’s weird appetites, he still found it difficult to actually put food to mouth without gagging a bit. He also hated how long it took to eat enough to make him full, so Venom took to mindlessly feeding him, quicker than Eddie could feed himself, while he checked his emails and read the news.

What do you want to do this weekend? Venom asked as it put a fork to Eddie’s mouth.

“Nothing,” Eddie mumbled around the food.

Oooh, spicing it up a bit from last weekend when we did nothing.

Eddie huffed a laugh and reached for a limb, tangling his fingers through the threads of Venom’s biomass. 

After breakfast, Eddie got caught up in reading on his phone, so Venom took over control of his body and moved him onto the couch. It laid him on his back and propped pillows behind his head and under his arm, then it produced several tentacles out of the center of his chest and took to cleaning the mess it had made.

Eddie couldn’t see his phone past the tentacles, so a smaller tendril emerged and held it for him. His hands free, he stuck his right down the front of his boxers and lazily played with himself. 

Venom ignored him, too busy humming along to the radio to notice that Eddie was getting hard. After about five minutes, Eddie got bored and stopped his hand, resting it palm down inside the waistband of his boxers. His neglected boner softened.

There was a knock on the door, followed by Anne’s voice shouting at them to turn off the music. 

Eddie jumped and reflexively sucked a couple tentacles back into his body. Another limb caught his phone before it fell to the floor, then even more tentacles came out of his back and pushed him upright and closed his robe for him. 

Venom had cleaned much of the mess in the kitchen, but there was still cereal all over the counter, dishes piled precariously in the sink and on the stove, bullet holes in the fridge door, a tire swing hanging by the kitchen table, gaping holes in the ceiling, a four-foot stack of various bones from different creatures in the corner—hacked up by Venom during digestion.

“The chickens—grab the fucking chickens,” Eddie whisper-shouted as he walked to the door, Popsicle under his arm. 

Venom grabbed the other three chickens and held them out of sight of the cracked door. 

“Hey, Annie,” Eddie greeted. 

She tried to peer through the door, but Eddie had a tight grip on it, only revealing a sliver of his body to her. 

“You didn’t text me last night,” she said.

Eddie closed his eyes. “Right. Sorry. We got home really fucking late, and it just slipped my mind.” 

“Eddie, I have to know you’re OK.” Anne tilted her head and moved her eyes like if she looked hard enough then the door would magically swing open. 

“We’re fine, Annie. We took care of things.” Eddie avoided telling Anne details of his and Venom's vigilantism, but he always tried to text her to let her know they were safe. 

“Eddie.”

“Hmm?”

“Are you holding a chicken?”

As Eddie looked down at the chicken under his arm, Anne shoulder-tackled him and the door simultaneously and made a break for it into his apartment. Venom immediately encased her in tentacles and tossed her back into the hallway and slammed the door shut in her face.

I HAVEN’T FINISHED CLEANING UP IN HERE, ANNIE, AND I’D LIKE TO SPEAK TO YOUR MOTHER ABOUT YOUR FUCKING MANNERS, Venom shouted.

Several neighbors yelled and banged on the walls, demanding that Venom shut the fuck up. 

“HEY!” Eddie shouted at the top of his lungs. He grabbed a broom with his hand and a mop with a tentacle and aggressively hit the ends of them against the ceiling and walls. “NEED I REMIND YOU FREELOADERS WHO TOOK CARE OF CRAIG?” 

Craig was their (missing for 35 days and counting) landlord. 

Anne pounded on the door. “Eddie, open this fucking door, I swear to god!”

Eddie forcefully cracked the door, only enough for Anne to see one of his narrowed eyes. “You’re not allowed to judge how we live.”

She pushed on the door, and he allowed her to come inside. A solid minute passed in which Anne stood in the middle of the apartment with her hands on her hips and surveyed the room without saying anything. Then, in an even tone:

“Alright. First question. Tire swing?”

Venom continued cleaning. Eddie stood next to Anne.

“Do you want the real answer or the PG answer?”

Anne’s whole body revolted. “Ew, oh my god. Gross, gross, gross—”

No, Annie, look, it’s just for this, Venom said, extending a head out of Eddie’s shoulder and snaking several tentacles around the tire. It spun the tire as fast as possible in one direction and then unraveled itself in a gooey mess as the tire spun in the other direction. 

“Oh,” Anne said. “Is that really what you use it for?”

Venom’s head was in the middle of the tire with limbs extending out to swing itself back and forth. No, I suspend Eddie in it and fuck him until he cries.

Anne cursed and threw her hands up in the air. Eddie and Venom laughed.

“Alright, next question.” Anne said after she had recovered. “Are the chickens for eating?”

“Yeah, except for Popsicle.” Eddie pointed across the room at where Popsicle was pecking at unidentified detritus on the floor.

“How the hell do you know which one Popsicle is?” 

“What do you mean? She’s that one.” He pointed again.

“They all look the same, Eddie.”

No. Popsicle looks like that. Venom pointed a tendril toward Popsicle. And the food looks like that. Another tendril split off into three prongs to point at the other chickens. 

Anne dropped her head and put her fingers to her temples, rubbing in circles. 

The toaster oven exploded. 

“Jesus, Vee, what did I tell you about—”

WELL maybe if SOMEONE would let me steal an oven then we could—

“Where the hell are we gonna put an oven in here? You gonna steal it from one of our neighbors?”

They continued arguing with each other while a tentacle grabbed a fire extinguisher from their stash of fire extinguishers in the coat closet and put the toaster oven out. 

“I don’t think you’re gonna get your deposit back, Eddie,” Anne said, still looking around his apartment. Her eyes stopped on the wicker basket full of dildos by the TV, but she didn't comment on it. 

A rock hit Eddie’s window. Venom opened it and stuck a tentacle out, and the neighborhood kids down on the street cheered and asked if it had time to play. 

“Go ahead, babe,” Eddie said.

It always felt a little strange when Venom removed so much of itself from inside Eddie’s body. It of course had to leave some still inside him, but just one tiny thread connected them together as Venom fanned out on the outside of the apartment building and juggled as many mundane objects as the children had in their power to throw up at it. Rocks, old toys, dolls, basketballs, baseball bats, a lawn chair, a pan of broccoli casserole, a cat. 

“How the hell do you live like this, Eddie?” Anne asked. 

Eddie cleared a space on the kitchen counter by shoving cereal onto the floor, then he grabbed two mugs off the sink pile and dug the coffeemaker out from the back of an extremely disorganized cabinet. The coffee itself was hidden from Venom in a plastic bag duct taped to the wall behind the fridge, so Eddie easily nudged the fridge to the side to retrieve it. He figured if Venom played with the kids long enough, he could get a little bit of caffeine in his body without it noticing. 

He said to Anne, “I’m in a relationship with an alien. What do you expect?”

Anne looked at the fridge then at Eddie, clearly confused by his inhuman strength. “I don’t know? For you to still act like an adult human?” 

Eddie internally tugged at the strands of Venom still inside him and found just enough biomass to make thick black veins pop out all over his face. “How ‘bout now? Do I still look like an adult human?”

“Jesus fucking Christ.”

Eddie pulled the veins back in. “Stop worrying about us, Annie. I know it looks like a disaster in here, but that’s because our life is a disaster. It works for us.”

A child shrieked in a loud laugh. Eddie could just barely see through the window that Venom was juggling the 5-year-old twin girls that lived in the apartment below them. 

“Babe!” Eddie yelled. “Put the girls down before somebody calls the fucking cops!”

The girls aww’d their disappointment as Venom carefully lowered them to the ground. 

“Eddie.”

He turned his attention back to Anne and waited for her to continue.

“Are you, um, safe? Like, what are the logistics of your...sex life?”

Eddie scrubbed a hand down his face. “Well, Annie, Vee is made up of a whole bunch of malleable tentacles, so I’d say use your imagination.”

Venom slithered its way back in, so Eddie tried to gulp down his coffee but didn’t finish before a tentacle wrenched it out of his hand and slung it into the sink.

“How do you know you’re not, like, subjecting yourself to some kind of alien STDs?” Anne asked. “Or, like, what if it’s changed your body composition so much that you guys are, like, capable of reproducing?”

Venom and Eddie both gasped and smiled at each other, Venom’s head floating just a couple feet away from Eddie’s. 

Eddie said, “Oh, that would be so cute if we had a little—” at the same time that Venom said Aww imagine if it had your good looks and my complexion—

“Fucking Christ, you guys are intolerable,” Anne interrupted. “Can you not be weird for, like, two seconds?”

Venom pouted at her and moved its head over to Eddie’s shoulders, nudging at his face and bumping against him like a needy cat. It wrapped two big tentacles around his waist like arms, and Eddie dropped his hands over them and squeezed affectionately. 

“What else did you come over here for, Annie?” Eddie asked.

She cleared her throat. “I was going to ask if you and Venom would like to come over to my apartment sometime to have dinner with me and Dan.”

Venom’s head popped up from where it was resting on Eddie’s shoulder. Dan is finally ready to hang out with me?!

“Yes, but he’s still a little delicate since—”

I tried to stick my tongue in his mouth when you were kissing him goodbye before going to rescue Eddie from Riot, yeah, I get that.

“You what?” Eddie asked.

“So if you could just try to temper yourselves a tiny bit, maybe leave the chickens at home and don’t talk about fucking each other,” Anne concluded. 

“He knows that we’re fucking each other, though, right?”

“Yes, but knowing it and being confronted with it are two totally different things.”

Hey, Annie, tell Dan I think he’s boring.

“Hey, be nice,” Eddie chastised, reaching a hand up to pat Venom’s face. 

Anne told them she would let them know a date and time, then she headed for the door with Eddie close on her heels. She turned and hugged him on her way out and didn’t flinch when a couple tentacles clung to her, too. 

They’re not going to feed us enough, Venom said after she was gone. 

“Yeah, we’ll have to pre-game.”

Eddie went back to his lazy spot on the couch and Venom went back to tidying up. This time, when Eddie’s hand inevitably found its way into his boxers, Venom took notice right away and teased a small tendril out of his thigh to join in on the fun. 

ALEXA, PLAY “LET’S GET IT ON” BY MARVIN GAYE.

“You broke the Alexa yesterday, babe.”

Right, I’ll just have to sing it myself.

Eddie closed his eyes and leaned his head back, stroking himself slowly. “Please don’t.”

Venom rumbled a complaint through Eddie’s entire body, but then it snaked two tentacles over his shoulders and down his chest and pulled his boxers off completely. Two more tentacles pushed out of Eddie’s back and hammocked him in, folding underneath him and then turning up toward the ceiling to grip the holes.

When they started having sex, it wasn’t really so much of a monumental decision as it was Venom participating in literally every single other aspect of Eddie’s life that it just didn’t make sense for it not to be involved in the most fun bit. After Venom had been with Eddie for a week or so, Eddie couldn’t avoid his sex drive anymore and tried to quietly jerk off. Venom, having already stuck its tentacles into everything else Eddie did, simply wrapped a limb around Eddie’s hand and helped him out. And Eddie, stupid and horny, had immediately asked the alien to fuck him with its tongue. 

So, here they were.

With Eddie suspended, Venom moved its head under him and licked its way around his rim. There was still only one small tendril helping his hand pump his cock, but they had plenty of time to—

“Eddie, I forgot my—oh my god, oh my fucking god, oh my fucking—”

Eddie dropped back down on the couch, biomass encasing his nakedness in a safe little cocoon, but Anne had already rushed out the door and slammed it shut. 

He sighed. “I guess she doesn’t have to use her imagination.”

[love-takes-work]

Live on Instagram, Rebecca Sugar and Ben Levin (with help from Ian Jones-Quartey) have given us a two-hour fundraiser to benefit the Trevor Project, in honor of Bi+ Awareness Week.

It was a lovely evening hanging out with them. Please see below for a little breakdown of what songs they played and what was discussed during the stream in terms of bi+ youth resources, Rebecca’s experiences, and the importance of having support for bi+ people.

Please go to The Trevor Project and learn more about what they do and how you can help. Their Resources for Bi+ Youth packet is available on the site! You can also donate through Rebecca’s specific fundraiser.

More below:

Rebecca announces this event is for Bi+ Awareness week for the Trevor Project. Ian Jones-Quartey is giving some help with the fundraiser in the background.

First Rebecca plays "Love Like You" on guitar. It's a lovely stripped down version. They're a little bashful about making a couple glitches on the guitar. It's very sweet and charming, Rebecca, no one minds. :)

Next Ben Levin joins on bass and they play "Fries," a longer version than was in the Adventure Time show.

Then Rebecca talks about the Trevor Project and its suicide hotline that they provide for the LGBTQIA+ youth they support. After some tech glitches, they discuss how great Trevor is and what resources and research they provide on why it's so important to support these communities. Since this is Bi+ Awareness Week, they have put together a resource guide. They encourage us to donate to this organization.

Rebecca discusses Ben Levin's involvement on Steven Universe and Craig of the Creek. They decide to play Jeff Rosenstock's song "Illegal Fireworks and Hiding Bottles in the Sand" as a mashup with the Craig of the Creek ending song.

Then they give an update on the donation amounts and Rebecca gets so excited about the support. They admit to being really nervous after no performances for so long.

Rebecca decides to play a solo song and doesn't announce the title at first but Steven Universe fans all know "Escapism." It's a slightly different version with some great guitar additions in an added interlude, and they even throw in some fun super-high squeaky notes at the end.

They give a shoutout to Jeff Liu for the beautiful guitar part. They tell a story about Adam Muto (who worked on "Escapism" with Joe and was Rebecca's board partner on Adventure Time), and how he asked Rebecca to write a song for the Adventure Time finale. Rebecca goes on to play "Time Adventure."

Then they bring Ben back to do the bass while Rebecca sings "I'm Just Your Problem." Rebecca does a cool guitar solo in the middle while Ben rocks on the bass.

Then they do a nice little instrument switch and bring in the omnichord and set up "True Kinda Love." They shout out Chance the Rapper, aivi and surasshu, and of course Estelle for the help writing this song.

Rebecca gets excited again about the amount of people who have donated and gives us info about the hotline for the Trevor Project, how their hotline is available for phone, chat, and text. They also point out the existence of Trevor Project's available pamphlet, which can help people understand their Bi+ friends and family, as well as helping actually Bi+ people understand how they can expect to be treated, how to understand themselves, and that they aren't defined by their partner.

Rebecca then takes a moment to set up with an acoustic guitar (so they can have their foot on a box since they don't have a strap) and they cut out briefly to get it organized. Then they do indeed come back with their foot on box.

With a shoutout to Kate Micucci (who is watching on Instagram Live), Rebecca says she will play "a Lars and Sadie song" that she's figuring out on guitar, and plays "Be Wherever You Are."

Rebecca goes back to getting excited about the donation amount and they can't believe it's as high as it is with the concert less than half over! They say they'd like to make a tradition of doing a Bi+ Awareness Week fundraiser every year. She didn't have access to information that Trevor is now providing to bi youth when she was growing up in the 2000s, and thinks their resources are so vital. She suggests using their resources yourself or that you slip the resources to people in your life who want to support (or need to know more about how to support) bi youth.

Rebecca says they're about to play a "really really hard" song that they're nevertheless excited to go for. They said maybe we can guess what it is. They shout out Nick DeMayo, who's in the audience, the animation director of Steven Universe who is Greg's namesake and taught them a lot about music. And then they jump into . . . a guitar and bass version of "Other Friends"!

They shout out aivi and surasshu, Jeff Liu, and Sarah Stiles for all their contributions to that song, and how cool it is to play a "campfire version" of the song even though it's different.

Next, she wants to play a solo (but will need Ben again right after!) but takes a moment to thank everyone in attendance for supporting the stream and the Trevor Project. They say "thank you for bearing with me" regarding the performance rockiness. 

They talk about Marceline and how they felt so connected to this character--writing episodes like "What Was Missing" where Marceline would be revealed to have had a relationship with Bubblegum and be known to be a bi character, and Rebecca felt so astonished that the audience understood Marceline was bi and understood she would always be bi, not fluctuating in orientation based on current relationships defining her. Rebecca explored this about herself only after she saw it explored with Marceline, and understood it was so important to have media that helps people understand who a bi person might be. She never related to the "party person" or extrovert stereotype of bi people as they’re usually shown in media, and thought as a nerdy person who was shy, she couldn't be bi if that was true. Cartoons helped her connect with people who understood those things about Marceline and eventually about herself. 

Trevor is so important as an organization to help the next generation understand all of this. Rebecca has felt that knowing herself wasn't possible if she didn't understand her bisexuality or accept it as what it is, and it spread instability throughout the rest of her life. What brought her to finally being able to process and understand this aspect of her identity was cartoons, and she hopes cartoons can bring some others in as well. With that, she brings out the song she was asked to write for Marceline even though she had left the show. Rebecca plays "Everything Stays."

Rebecca then says they were a little conflicted about whether they were going to say all that stuff, about why this issue is personal to them. (It's okay, Rebecca, this is the best!!!) 

She says that song was about her stuffed black rabbit that was her favorite toy that she thought she loved so much, but she forgot it in the garden and it was damaged. That it was so surprising to her that she could have loved this rabbit the way she did and not realize it was missing, and that it could change without her. "Everything Stays" was obviously about that, but she also says the situation with Spinel was inspired by the same toy. She switches to electric guitar to sing and play "Drift Away" with Ben back on board on bass.

They point out that they're rocketing through the set list and Ian suggests maybe they'll have to do some encores. In thinking about what songs to play, they point out that so many songs were written about their mental health journey and coming out to family and friends. A song that was "at the end of that whole arc" for Rebecca was "Change Your Mind." It can go on forever, they point out, but they'll only play it a few times. On we go with a really smooth guitar version of "Change Your Mind." (It's the extended looping version.)

They announce that now with the Instagram contributions and the landing page we've reached the goal of $20,000, and they can't believe it's at the halfway point of the stream and we have already reached it despite that the show's been done for a long time and they "broke a lot of social media rules" by stepping away for so long, but that's been crucial to their mental health and their journey.

After they come back from a break, they discuss some funny artifacts that they finally got to take home that were left in the office--a Steven Universe piñata that they were supposed to smash in celebration of a pickup and they didn't want to because, you know, hitting a representation of their younger brother is kinda wack? Haha. 

They also had a model of Marceline's bass. 

These items were left in the office and just kind of frozen in time because Rebecca's last day (written on the white board, still, when they returned!) was March 13, 2020, just as the pandemic was coming down. Returning to collect stuff was like visiting a room that had been frozen in time!

Rebecca offers a stretch goal to get to $30,000 instead of the original $20,000, and talks a little more about the Trevor Project, discussing how important representation has been, to have bi representation in terms of DIRECT support for LGBTQ+ youth. What they've gotten to do with cartoon representation, having queer characters who can just have fun the way heteronormative kids can and see representatives of themselves is great, but these specific resources are also so important.

Rebecca then plays "Heart of the Country," a Paul McCartney song they're learning that has a hard solo they hope they'll nail. After playing it, they say they flubbed some of it but it was super fun.

Rebecca comes out with an old ukulele--older than the one they wrote the Steven theme song on and auctioned off for National Bailout--that they wrote a bunch of Adventure Time songs and got as a Hanukkah present. (They mention happy 5782 for those of us who celebrate Rosh Hashanah.) Ben is also using his first bass! They recommend musical instruments as gifts for bi people because those are the gifts that keep on giving! They mention working on guitar during the lockdown (which has been therapeutic!) and not having played uke in a while because of that. With that, she dives into "Here Comes a Thought."

They decide to talk about the background of "Mindful Education," how they were coming out at the time they were writing that episode and song. They said coming out was like having the ground spin around. They thought mindful meditation, being so wonderful and helpful, could become an 11-minute episode where Steven leads kids in mindful meditation. With help from Ben (and Matt Burnett), Rebecca realized it would work better if they show characters benefiting from the lessons. They have a little joke about how the episode number was 108 and they prided themselves on knowing the episode numbers. Then they put aside the uke and pick up a big black guitar to play "Found."

After this, she talks more about Trevor Project's hotline, chat, text, and resources. They remind us that bi+ people experience very specific forms of marginalization and this organization can help everyone who wants to understand. She thanks everyone for helping with donations and she can't believe the Instagram fundraiser has gotten to $10,000. She's amazed that "the thermometer is bursting" and promises to draw it later. Ben thinks he could be part of future fundraisers and Rebecca reminisces about times they've played together, like in 2016 at SDCC and a Gallery Nucleus show.

Rebecca goes back to the other guitar to do some audience requests for repeat songs and talks about the song "Fries." The story behind this one, when she was writing it--the first song she wrote for television and the first episode she boarded--since she was introverted and struggled with pitching, she went on the roof of Cartoon Network to practice being louder until she was actually audible. Ian helped.

They decide to do the ending Craig song again and Ben says Jeff Rosenstock's song is really nice and Rebecca talks about getting teary over the Craig ending with people sitting around the dinner table. Rebecca's favorite line is "speaking in a stupid secret language." She feels like she still hasn't moved on from that in her life and likes to surround herself with people who speak that language. After it's over, Rebecca says hi to Jeff Rosenstock in the chat.

They do more shoutouts for the Trevor Project and then discuss encore songs. Rebecca decides to do "Love Like You" again because they were sad they messed up a chord during the first performance. It's another lovely version.

After more great discussion of the Trevor Project's resources and Bi+ Awareness Week, Rebecca says hi to her Brazilian friends and how awesome it was to visit there for a convention, and she loves that Trevor is trying to expand resources to be more global. She knows how important those resources would be to help people worldwide. She thanks people for coming out to see her, and admits to being surprised that her life has come to include actual performances since she always thought she'd just be behind a desk as an animator. She gets very nervous about performing but loves that people support her. They love being able to perform and once got a sweet comment from John DiMaggio (the voice of Jake on Adventure Time) who would hear the early demos that were a struggle to be audible, and he told her that she's come so far that it now sounds like she enjoys performing, enjoys the sound of her own voice now. She feels that coming out and all the support from friends, family, and organizations has made that confidence and comfort with herself possible.

With that, Rebecca plays the Steven Universe theme song on guitar!

And then, they play "Time Adventure" again.

Rebecca talks more about the astounding amount of support for Bi+ Awareness Week, how moving it is and how hard it is to hold it together while talking about what it was like to be an adult who didn't know if they were even allowed to be bisexual and nonbinary, how much of their adult life was in such a quagmire over not knowing fully who they were.

For their next to last song, they play a song written by aivi and surasshu with lyrics by Rebecca: "Being Human" from the ending theme of Steven Universe Future.

Finally, Rebecca says thank you to everyone who's been involved in the songs--the performers, aivi and surasshu, Jeff Ball, the Crew, Ben Levin, Ian Jones-Quartey--and everyone who's helped raise over $11,000 just through the Instagram concert. She plays "Change Your Mind" one more time, adding that the journey is ongoing even though this song was written at a time she considers at the end of an arc of self-discovery for her.

Thank you!

(Yes, I did a donation.)

Links:

https://www.thetrevorproject.org/

https://www.thetrevorproject.org/resources/how-to-support-bisexual-youth/

[malebodysuittf]

The Wrapping

In my last story, I wanted to write a dark thriller-ish story with a villainous protagonist, but I wanted this story to be a whole lot more wholesome (though still devious) for the holidays! It’s kind of silly and not as hot tbh, but hopefully it’s kind of fun for someone. It’s been one hell of a year, so here’s to a better 2021. Merry Christmas, and Happy Holidays y’all! Stay safe, and make sure no one you’re close to is plotting to suitify you! ;)

edit: Oh crap, I totally forgot to post this yesterday! Here it is though, my message stays the same! 

-----------------------------------------------------

I sighed as I listened to the mundane tapping of fingers on keyboards, nails hitting the desk, pens clicking. Over and over, my head rang with the same sounds throughout the morning. No one who was here wanted to be here. Except perhaps my boss. That piece of shit put us all to work instead of giving us the holidays off. Only reason he might be happy to be here is probably because, if his wife has been hearing any of the rumors regarding his interactions with the female employees of our company, I’m assuming their marriage is disastrous.

I thought I’d be able to relax at home, spend Christmas with my boyfriend, Craig. We’ve been together for a couple of years now, and this was our first year living together. Our first Christmas spent together. The last one, we had both flown home to see our parents, splitting up. 

But of course, my piece of shit boss had called me up. Told me to come in and work...subtly threatened unemployment if I objected. I wanted to quit right  then and there, but money was tight and I knew how much Craig and I could use the cash. I had to break the news to Craig, but he was understanding. He promised that we’d open up presents tonight, or we’d open them up tomorrow if I was too tired. It was heartwarming to hear the support loved one, but made the act of going to work the next day no less grueling. 

“Hey Lance, you get that call from boss too?” I jumped at the sound of my name being called and turned to see my coworker and one of the few friends I’ve made in the office, Trevor. He was a good lookin’ guy, though he only had a frustrated face at the moment. 

“Yeah. Fucking ridiculous.”

“Right? Sick of this fucking job. Frankly, I’m not even sure what I fucking do at this point,” he joked. A hint of a smile popped up on his face. He slapped me on the arm and got up, heading towards the bathroom. I closed my eyes and imagined what I’ll do with Craig. It was the only thing that could motivate me to keep up with my work. 

----------------------------

Hours later, the sun was setting and an orange hue painted the sky. It was a surprisingly beautiful sunset, considering it was Christmas. I finally finished my work. I watched the tired people around me cleaning up their desks, disgruntled and ready to go home. I glanced over at Trevor’s desk and noted he was still missing...weird. I hadn’t seen him the entire day ever since he left to go to the restroom. I guessed he had wisened up and just left. I sure as hell wish I could afford to...I know Trevor came from a pretty wealthy background. But at least I could finally find some respite with the end of the day approaching. 

Until I saw the secretary walking to my desk. 

She placed her hands on my desk and looked me in the eye, almost remorsefully. 

“Mr. Campbell would like to speak to you.”

My heart sunk as I realized I’ll be spending more time in this shithole instead of celebrating the holidays with my boyfriend. I slumped in my chair and nodded to the secretary. She left me and I cleaned my act up. Surely it must be something quick, right? I couldn’t imagine him calling me in at the end like this for any reason. 

Walking over to Mr. Campbell’s office, I opened the door and saw my dapper boss staring at me intimidatingly. 

“Hello, Lance. I’m sure this little meeting may come as a surprise. Take a seat, won’t you?” He motioned towards a chair opposite from his desk, while seating himself in a larger one. 

“I know you might be a little confused as to why I called you in. But let me assure it’s nothing bad.” He smiled at me, something I had never seen before on his face. He always looked menacing and unwelcoming. But right in this moment, something seemed different. 

“I just wanted to give you this for being an outstanding part of this office. You’ve always been productive and loyal to this business. You deserve proper compensation. Especially for coming in on Christmas.”

From behind his desk, he pulled out a fairly large box, wrapped in a snowman-covered paper, perhaps the size of my torso, and slid it across the desk. I cautiously took the box, wondering what the catch was. There was no way he decided to just randomly give me this out of kindness or gratefulness. Not Mr. Campbell. This is the abusive boss who makes people work on Christmas, threaten their jobs and their records, and, allegedly, numerous women have quit and spoken up on him firing them if they did not oblige to sexual favors. On top of that, why the hell is he only giving this to me? Still, he was my boss for now, and I had to appeal to him.

“...Er, thanks, Mr. Campbell. I appreciate the gift. I’ll make sure-”

“Why don’t you open it?”

“Right here? Right now?”

“Yes. Open it. I want you to see it.”

Confused, I still obeyed and started to rip the wrapping paper off. I glanced up to give the boss an acknowledging smile as I lifted the lid up. I found a folded up suit and tie, along with pants.

“Clothing, Mr. Campbell?” I tried to feign gratitude with a hesitant smile.

“Keep going.” 

I lifted the clothing and saw an ID on top of a peach colored object. On the ID, I saw a picture of...Trevor. A chill ran across my spine as I felt the peace colored object...it felt like skin. I pulled it out and lo and behold...it was Trevor in the form of a flimsy suit. 

“Is this some kind of...costume?” The thing gave me the creeps, but I couldn’t defy my curiosity. 

“You could say that.”

“Was that...you earlier then?”

A grim glare shot across Mr. Campbell’s face. “No.”

“Then...what did you do to Trevor?” My voice quivered as a ton of horrific scenes ran through my head. 

“It was just an injection. Don’t worry, he’ll be fine.” He pulled out what looked like pink stickers. “All you do is slap these magic tags on, and he’ll be restored within an hour. Sorry to alarm you.” 

A sigh of relief escaped my mouth, until Mr. Campbell said, “Why don’t you put him on right now?” 

“What? Right here? I don’t even know-”

“Take your clothes off. Stretch open the mouth. You can figure out the rest.” 

Something told me I didn’t have a choice. I laid the suit on the floor and started to pull out of my clothing, tossing it over the chair. I grabbed the Trevor suit and dipped my toes into the mouth. Surprisingly, it was soft and comfortable. I slipped into the legs and did a few test jumps. Mr. Campbell observed closely as the suit matched my form. I squeezed my way into the rest of the suit before pulling the face over my own, before a painful ache rushed through my body. Suddenly, a lifetime of memories flooded my mind. I recalled feeling a prick in the neck before everything went black...I wasn’t exactly sure what to say to Mr. Campbell.

“Is there something you would like me to do with this?” Trevor’s voice escaped my throat! It was like I was him entirely. But why did Mr. Campbell want me in this suit? I was confused on what to do now. I stood there awkwardly, naked with an admittedly sexier body. Mr. Campbell walked around his desk and came up to me.

“Why don’t you unwrap your second present?” He grabbed my crotch, though I immediately relented and backed up.

“I’m sorry Mr. Campbell, but I’ve got a boyfriend, and frankly, this is a little weird...”

“Don’t you want to provide for him?” I gulped, knowing my job was on the line. Craig would understand, he always does.

I started to unbutton Mr. Campbell’s jacket and slid it off of him. The white button-up was already partially open, displaying the man’s hairy chest. Despite how awful my boss was, I confessed I considered him an attractive man. I pulled off the shirt and was down to his pants. I looked at him, unsure if he wanted me to go all the way. He nodded, urging me to take it all off. I unbuckled his belt and slid it out, the pants visibly loosened and slipped down with ease. I looked up for another nod of approval before removing his shoes and socks, smelling the subtle rankness of his feet. Finally, i slipped his underwear down, and a lengthy member dropped in front of me. I examined the man in front of me, up and down. Were these the kind of sexual favors my boss wanted? Was he interested in men? 

“Why don’t you keep going?” 

I raised an eyebrow at him, dumbfounded. “What?” 

“Keep going.” He walked closer to me, sensually looking me in the eye. 

I couldn’t quite grasp what he meant, until he tugged at his cheek, revealing something else inside. I rubbed Mr. Campbell’s face and he closed his eyes, groaning in pleasure. Slowly tracing down his face, I hooked my fingers under his lips and started to stretch the mouth open. I could feel the scruffy facial hair move under my fingers as I tugged at his face, the face distorting as a familiar face was revealed under Mr. Campbell’s face.

“Craig?” I was absolutely speechless as I slipped off the entire face of my boss. The upper half of the face landed in a heap behind him, while the chin lay across his chest. I backed up in shock at the spectacle before me! 

Craig gave me a devious smile and started to rip the skin off of himself. Still using Mr. Campbell’s hands, he grabbed at the mouth around his neck and started to pull. As he did, the skin started to give, and he started to rip it off, like wrapping. Truly like a Christmas gift! The face split in half and he tugged towards his left arm. With a forceful motion, the arm sleeve ripped right off and he tossed it towards onto the desk, the fingers hanging over the side as they flopped around. He continued to rip the other side off as the suit seemingly got shredded. With the torso hanging over his hip, the torn up skinsuit hung onto the cock in pieces, the face hanging by the side while the right hand of the suit laying flatly on the ground. Craig heaved as he pulled the rest of it off violently, further shredding the skin until it lay as a mess on the floor. He picked up it and slung the mangled skinsuit onto the desk.

“Merry Christmas, babe!” He held me by my hips and kissed me.

“Craig, what the hell is this?” 

“I bought us some of these serums, and figured they would make a nice gift. I didn’t originally plan to use it on these guys in specific, but when you got that call and told me about your shitty boss...I figured we could get a bit of revenge. Plus, you’ve told me about Trevor being hot. So I figured, why the hell not?” 

“But what about Mr. Campbell? You ripped him up!”

“Don’t worry, trust me, some tape and those little sticker things he showed...he’ll be back. And he’ll be humbled.”

He went back behind the desk and pulled out a paper and slid it over to me. I skimmed through it...this was a document giving the company to me!

“Oh my God! What the fuck? This is...”

“Yep. I always said you’d make a great leader. And whenever your coworkers come by to hang out with us, you have no clue what they say about you. They’re gonna love you. And Mr. Campbell over here, signed the document. Hopefully, he takes the time off to reimagine himself as a better man. All you gotta do is sign it yourself.” He rolled a pen over and I held it within my hand. I scoured through Trevor’s thoughts, and he had said some of the sweetest things about me, and his conversations with our colleagues suggested that maybe I could be the one  to make this shithole better. I brought the pen to the paper and voila, my signature was on it.

“You get to be the boss now, Lance.” Craig got up and came to embrace me. I was too stunned at everything happening to give him much of a response. “You can make this place so much better next year. But for now, why don’t we enjoy that sexy suit you’re in?” He started to kiss me, and I returned the favor. I pulled back for a second and looked Craig in the eyes.

“This is the best Christmas ever...Why don’t I give you my present now?” I gave him a suggestive look, rubbing up against against him. I pushed him down across the desk and whispered into his ear, “I love you, babe. Merry Christmas.” 

[mind-reader1]

All of Me (Jake x MC)

This is for @princesstopgunswife 

A/N: The Jake and MC reunion that everyone wanted. 

Find a link to my masterlist here

Warnings: angsty, fluffly. 

Word Count: 2,743

Five years, none of them could believe it had been that long since they’d all been together in one place, since they’d all left the island...well almost all of them. 

Everyone had mourned the loss of their friend, the person who brought them all together and of course the one who saved them all. Despite mourning her, they still moved forward with their lives, graduated college, got jobs, reconnected. Grace and Aleister got married, Sean and Michelle decided to give it another chance. Even Estela worked to move on, accepting that she could have a life without vengeance. That wasn’t the be all and end all of her existence. 

Then there was Jake. He’d lost Mike, he’d lost his wife all in the course of 24 hours. Lundgren was dead, eliminating all his hopes of clearing his name; of going back to the states to see his family again. He stayed in Costa Rica after flying the newfound group of friends off La Huerta. The first few months he would drink himself into a stupor every night, replaying her voicemail until he fell asleep, desperate to hear her voice again. 

They had all come to visit him at one point or another, worried about him and how he was coping. Especially Diego, he’d lost Varyyn, he understood Jake’s grief. Diego tried to convince Jake that Taylor would’ve wanted him to find happiness with someone else, but Jake never did, he couldn’t do that to her. Even if they didn’t get to spend their year and one day together, they’d had thousands of lives together on La Huerta and they would always be connected. No one would ever fill that hole in his heart and he didn’t want anyone too. Diego didn’t push, he felt the same way about Varyyn, connected forever. 

The five year reunion was upon them now though, Jake leaned against Deliah trying to play it cool, but he was nervous to return to the island, unsure of what to expect. He’d thought so often about going back there himself, about trying to find any trace of her but he’d never been able to bring himself to do it. 

“How does he get to look the same after all these years baking in the sun when he doesn’t even use moisturizer!” Jake cracked a smile, he’d recognize that voice anywhere. 

“I think it’s the rum Maybelline, you should try it.” Michelle rolled her eyes. 

“Good to see you Jake.” 

“Cap.” Sean came up and dropped Michelle’s bags before clapping Jake on the back. 

“Caught your last game. Talk about a hail mary, guess that’s why they pay you the big bucks though.” 

“Chyeah! Only because I made it possible for him.” “Drax.” Sean and Craig had gone pro and been drafted together, the dynamic duo of the NFL. 

“Don’t you nerds have anything to talk about besides football?” 

“Skrillex. Hack any foreign governments recently?”  Zahra smirked. 

“Whenever you want that record cleared, you better have my money.” Jake smiled, Zahra had offered to hack the government and clear his record so he could return home to his family. He felt like he would only be a burden though, were Taylor still with him, things may have been different.

 “...the laws of quantum physics clearly state-“ 

“Malfoy, brain trust! Heard y’all got married. Congratulations!” Grace beamed at Jake and pulled him into a tight hug. 

“Thank you Jake!” Grace swiftly hit Aleister on the arm. 

“Yes, thank you Jacob.” 

“Let’s see, still missing Petey, Ariel, Julio Child and Katniss.”

 “I’m right here.” Jake jumped and turned to see Estela staring at him, Diego walking up behind her. 

“Dammit! You don’t need to sneak up on me like that.” Diego chuckled as Estela smirked and climbed onto the plane. 

“What are you laughing at Petey?” Diego innocently held up his hands and boarded the plane.

 He heard the laughter of the last two before he saw them, Raj was licking something off his fingertips, no doubt something that had come from the container Quinn was carrying. 

“Jake, dude, you have to try one of these cupcakes.” Raj happily rubbed his belly. 

“I’m sure they’re great Ariel, but I don’t want to get frosting all over the cockpit. Save one for me once we land?”

 “Of course!” Quinn also wrapped him in a big hug and kissed his cheek before boarding the plane. 

“All right. Well we’ve got the whole Brady Bunch now….so let’s do this.” 

The plane was eerily silent as they flew over the water, their minds inevitably drifting back to the first plane ride they’d taken together. Diego made his way up to the cockpit and took a seat, Jake was rigid at the controls, a death grip on yoke. 

“Jake...how are you?” Jake didn’t take his eyes off the horizon, his body trembling softly with adrenaline. 

“I’m fine Petey. It’s an island. Been here probably a hundred times.” 

“Jake, you know what I mean.” He hated being vulnerable, sharing his feelings, anyone he opened up to he inevitably lost. Diego was the closest connection he had to Taylor these days, he was the sole reason Taylor had even existed. 

Talk to him Jake. He could hear her voice in his mind, encouraging him to keep making those connections.

“I miss her Diego. So damn much. I thought I could do this with you all but I’m not sure.” It was the first time Jake had ever called Diego by name. 

“I miss her too. I think this will be good for us Jake, maybe we can leave the ghosts behind.” 

“I don’t want to forget, I never want to forget.” 

“You never could, I’m just saying...maybe it’s time to leave behind the guilt that keeps haunting us.” He had a point, Jake felt guilty still, like he hadn’t done everything he could’ve to make her stay. Deep down he knew that was wrong though, he knew it was her decision and she was a selfless person. She chose the world over herself, so that he could have a life to go back to, maybe it was time to stop feeling guilty about living that life. 

“Thanks Petey. Now get back to your seat so I can land.” Diego smiled softly and returned to his seat as Jake made a smooth landing on La Huerta.

 Since Rourke’s arrest, Aleister had taken over the Celestial resort. When the world had returned to normal, so had all the guests and the island had continued to operate as if nothing happened. For this weekend though, Aleister closed the entire resort to outside guests and staff. It would be the eleven of them alone. 

They all collected their room keys, staying in the same rooms they’d had before, except for Jake. He stared for ages at the honeymoon suite key, it was the room where they’d spent their first night together, something he would never forget. He wasn’t sure he could face it again though. Taking a deep breath, he steeled his nerves and swiped the key, riding the elevator up to the room, it seemed to move at an agonizingly slow pace.

He entered the room and sucked in a breath, flooded with memories of that night. 

Hey you. 

Hey. 

Jake wandered over to the large pane windows overlooking the island. He remembered every moment of that night, this is where they’d kissed each other, he’d pushed her back up against the glass, desperate to feel her body pressed against his for the first time, what he wouldn’t give to feel that just one more time. 

“I’ve never wanted anything as badly as I want you.” He whispered in longing. 

Then have me. She had said that back to him their first night together and that was the beginning of the end for him. He was hooked. They’d thrashed that room and didn’t give a damn, it was strange to see it put back together. He opened the window to get some fresh air but he could swear he smelled her perfume drifting to his nose over the ocean breeze.

 He slammed the window shut and laid down on the bed still in his clothes, staring at the canopy. The bed felt cold and foreign to him, he tried turning on his sides but he couldn’t fall asleep, every time he closed his eyes he would see her beside him in bed only to reach over and find it empty. He slipped out of the room and went down to the beach, snagging a hotel towel on his way out. Maybe a night out under the stars with the ocean waves could help him clear his mind. 

\\

Vaanu had been made whole again and should have felt at peace, but there always seemed to be something keeping it from its eternal rest. Just a sliver that felt like it was missing, the feeling only grew the closer the 5 year anniversary of becoming whole came. 

Why do I feel as though I am still broken? Vaanu bellowed in despair. Desperately searching for the beacon from its missing shard, it followed it to a well known place, La Huerta. Vaanu summoned the physical manifestation of Taylor that had been created by one of the shards, it could sense that she was the part of itself that was still missing a piece.

 “Where am I?” 

Why am I still broken? Memories came flooding back to Taylor like a tsunami, saying goodbye to Jake and the others, then it was all black until waking up here. She could hear its voice in her mind and feel exactly what it was talking about, she felt a sense of emptiness. It took her only a moment to realize why. 

“Jake.” That feeling of emptiness only grew, she longed to see him again, to hear his voice. She could feel the ghost of his touch on her skin, lighting it on fire with pleasure, a feeling only he could give her. Something she couldn’t live without. 

Jake?

“Jake and I fell in love over 1,000 times in different timelines. I promised him a year and a day, a part of my soul will forever be with him.” Taylor wondered how long it had been, wondered if he moved on, if she still felt this broken though she knew he hadn’t and that somehow hurt her more.

 Broken. 

“Let me be with Jake. If we’re together then the shard is together, you’ll be whole again.” She didn’t know how, but she could tell Vaanu was thinking. “Please, you know you won’t feel whole until he dies and that will be years. Years you could have spent being whole again if you just let me go to him.” She pleaded, desperate. 

There was a bright flash and when Taylor opened her eyes she was on the familiar beach of La Huerta, there was a towel on the beach, void of an occupant. She needed to get her bearings, find a way to get in touch with Jake. She was back! 

\\

Jake had been unsuccessful trying to sleep on the beach as well, he’d turned to his last resort, alcohol. He’d found some rum but what he really wanted was the good stuff, some strong whiskey that would knock him right out. 

Someone poked him in the shoulder and he turned to see who it was, it was Taylor, smiling at him in her blue tank top and khaki pants. He must’ve been hallucinating another memory again. 

“Help ya with something Princess?” He turned away, his focus back on liquor, he didn’t notice her frown. She thought he’d be more excited to see her, like she was him. Maybe she’d been mistaken, maybe he had moved on. 

“Just seeing what you’re up to.” She said deflated. 

“Trying to see if we got any good whiskey left so I can stop reliving all these damn memories. Like this one of you asking me to come to your room. You?” 

“Jake...this isn’t a memory.” 

“Must be dreamin’ then. Guess I did find the good whiskey.” 

“Jake look at me! I’m actually here!”

“You say that in all my dreams and then I wake up Princess.” He whispered heavily, sounding emotionally tired, it would go away if he’d just listen to her! She hit him in the arm and scowled at him until he looked at her. 

“Ow!” 

“Jake, please. It’s really me.” He shook his head, she could see the pain in his eyes. 

“No. You went with Vaanu and that was it. My wife is dead!” He was fighting back tears. 

“Jake, what do I have to do to prove to you I’m real, that I’m here?” He turned and grabbed both sides of her face, their lips meeting in a fiery kiss with years of longing poured into it. Taylor melted against Jake and he pulled away, breathing heavily his eyes still closed. 

“If I open my eyes, are you still gonna be here Taylor?” 

“Yes, Jake. Now please, open your eyes and look at me.” She whispered, cupping his cheek. Her touch felt so real, Jake didn’t want to risk it. He wanted to stay in this moment for just a little longer.

“I can’t Princess. I can’t.” Stubborn ass, she thought to herself. 

“Come with me.” She had one last idea up her sleeve to convince him, dragging him to the elevator, she kept their hands laced together as she pulled him to their room. 

“I’ve got to give myself credit, this is my most elaborate hallucination yet.” 

“Jacob Lucas McKenzie. I am right here, right now, with you. Your wife. Your naked wife. So help me god if you don’t open your eyes to look at me I will go back to Vaanu.” Taylor had in fact stripped down to her red lacy bra and underwear set, she knew it was Jake’s favorite and if this didn’t convince him, nothing would. “Dammit Princess.” Jake opened his eyes and stared. There she was. Still there. In front of him. He couldn’t believe his eyes. He rubbed them and blinked a few times but she was always still there. He was overcome with emotion. He didn’t know if he should cry, kiss her or give into the desire coursing through him. 

“I have never wanted anything as badly as I want you right now.” 

“Then have me.” 

They came together and years of pent up energy came pouring out. Sure they’d wrecked the room the first time, but this was 5 years of pent up sexual energy between newly-wed soulmates, it was a whole new level of destruction before they finally made it to the bed. 

As they laid there after, Jake couldn’t stop staring at her, tracing every line of her body. 

“I missed you so much Taylor.” He whispered. 

“How long was I gone Jake?” 

“5 years.” Her heart sank, imagining him alone for 5 years, they could’ve had kids by now. 

“I’m sorry Jake, I’m so sorry. I'm never going to leave you again.” He pulled her close and pressed his forehead to hers, their noses gently brushing. 

“I wouldn’t survive it if you did Princess. I don’t understand though, how are you back? I would’ve sold my soul if it meant getting you back but I didn’t think it was possible..” 

“It’s because of you Jake.” His eyes shot open in confusion. “When we got handfasted, after spending all those timelines together and falling in love every time, a part of me is literally in your heart Jake.” 

“I don’t follow.” 

“Vaanu wanted me to return so it could be whole, but we’re soulmates Jake. A little shard broke off and resides in you. When we’re together, we’re whole, because we’re whole, so is Vaanu.” 

“So you really are back for good? You’re staying forever?” 

“Forever top gun.” Tears of joy began to stream down Jake’s face and Taylor wiped them away as Jake wiped hers. 

“Good, because it’s going to take a long time to catch up on those five years of married life we missed.” Taylor let out a soft laugh. 

“I guess it’s a good thing we don’t have to leave this bed until morning. Now, tell me everything.” Jake laid on his back and Taylor rested her head on his chest, looking up at him as he told her about everything she’d missed. 

Finally, I am whole again. 

@drakesroyalromance​

[derivativealigner]

I rewatched the second season of South Park and took so many notes that I had to split them into two parts. Like seriously, I took so. many. notes. And pictures this time. I started rewatching just in case I’d find some cool little facts to sprinkle into my fanfic but I went way too far and now there’s a million facts under this cut (including gay stan, a domestic violence psa, and craig fucking dying)

Stan doesn’t like hospitals, he finds them gross and he gets sick 🤮. Also the hospital in South Park is called Hell’s Pass hospital. Early seasons have the name as Hells Pass but it gets fixed later

Cartman has to sing all of Come Sailing Away by Styx if he hears a part of it. After he says this, Kyle sings the first part and Cartman has to sing the rest. Kyle does it again later, which is kinda mean

Cartman’s mom tries to abort Cartman, who is an eight-year-old child and thus cannot be legally aborted. Later, after she slept with Bill Clinton to change the law and make 40th trimester abortions legal, it turns out she meant adoption

Kenny sacrifices himself to turn on the generator to the hospital and save Dr. Mephesto’s life along with others. He says “I’ll fucking do it” then does it and dies, absolute legend

Cartman gets way too into his deputy role. He goes undercover, pretends to be a prostitute, says “Respect my authoritah!” a lot and beats people up with his police stick

Kenny’s brother first appears when Cartman responds to a call about a disturbance at Kenny’s house. Apparently there are like 10 adult family members in the house at that time. Kenny’s dad has a black eye because Kenny’s mom punched him. She says he can’t hold a job

Token sits in the classroom in season 2

Cartman starts hating hippies in this season, like a lot

Chef tells the boys that the right time to do drugs is in college

Ike’s name is Ike Moisha Broflovski and he was born in 1996, making him 2 years old in 1998 when this season aired

This is probably obvious but yeah Kyle and Ike are circumcised

Kyle says family isn’t just blood, it’s who you care about, and he says “That’s why you guys are more than just friends, you’re my family. Except for Cartman.”

Craig’s finally sitting in the classroom in S02E04

None of the boys like dodgeball

Clyde gets a dodgeball to the face and he cries :( and he’s the only one who cries by the way

Pip throws a dodgeball in Kyle’s face and breaks Kyle’s nose

When Kyle’s mom tells the boys about conjoined twin myslexia (which isn’t a real term) and says anyone might’ve absorbed their dead twin in the womb, Stan and Cartman run away screaming but Kenny and Kyle stay to listen. Kenny even leans in to look at the book “Freaks A-Z!” that Mrs. Broflovski is reading from, and when she leaves, Kyle grimaces and Kenny laughs

Stan’s mom (Sharon) calls Kyle’s mom (Sheila) when Stan is all freaked out and trying to put an icepick through his brain, and Sharon tells Sheila to get run over by a truck. Sharon is pretty mean in these early episodes

Mr. Broflovski doesn’t really listen to what Mrs. Broflovski is saying, bad husband >:(

South Park’s team is always called South Park Cows no matter the sport

The school nurse, Nurse Gollum, went to Colorado State University

I just realized Butters exists. I think he appeared before S02E05 but I didn’t notice but yeah he’s there with the dodgeball team, injured

Here’s a picture to make up for my disgusting anti-Butters bias

Kenny’s dodgeball uniform number is 69 obviously. Kyle is 7, Stan is 4, Cartman is 325

Sheila smacks Gerald in the face so hard he falls off his chair, lots of violence perpetrated by women in this show. Remember, don’t do domestic violence no matter your gender, it’s not cool

I realized after this whole Butters thing that I should’ve made more notes about Pip, so I’ll make a note about his anger issues now. When people call him French, he gets angry and throws dodgeballs at them

The boys launch a jelly roll at Ms. Crabtree and make her crash the bus. They do it just for fun

The kids somehow go to China in the school bus

Cartman references Moby Dick, but he probably doesn’t know what he’s talking about

Kevin Stoley gets named in S02E05 and has his first speaking role when he says he has Chinese parents and after Cartman hears it he immediately says something racist. smh cartman, what a problematic fave

Cartman says “I love you guys 😊” but Stan and Kyle just stare at him and he goes 😐 “Eh, screw you guys 😠”

If Jimbo and Ned really fought in Vietnam, they youngest they could’ve been in 1998 is early forties, which means in the latest seasons they would be early sixties. Btw they met in Vietman

Jesus and Pals is a recurring TV show in seasons 1 and 2. Jesus just kind of lives in South Park

I just remembered that Terrance and Phillip are really old in canon, it’s so weird, like how can South Park canon still be changing, it’s been 20 years

Also the early seasons are casually racist who knew

Kenny flashes his ass on a tape the boys send to Jimbo and Ned’s TV show, which airs and at least 12 people see Kenny’s bare naked ass

Cartman really doesn’t like hippies in these early seasons. He throws a chair at Ned and yells, “Take that, hippie!” (Ned is in a catatonic state and did nothing to provoke this)

Jimbo and Ned live together I guess. Jimbo’s gonna take Ned home and show him some hardcore porn to snap him out of his catatonic state, good husband unlike Gerald Broflovski

Saddam Hussein is in hell and has a Canadian accent and is Satan’s lover in S02E06, I guess he died in Canada in the first episode this season but I wasn’t paying much attention since that’s the Terrance and Phillip episode that pissed a bunch of people off in 1998 because the audience wanted to know who Cartman’s dad is instead. It was kind of a boring episode so I understand why everyone was pissed, but it is funny that Matt and Trey did that so I’m not mad about it

Aww look at them!!! We’ve got background Style, the vaguest inkling of Crenny, and Cartman/Cake

I’d take more screenshots but it’s a pain since I’m watching legally and stupid legal websites block screenshots so I have to find youtube videos instead ughhhh piracy is the answer kids

Apparently there’s a huge waterfall and canyon somewhere close to South Park, maybe? At least in Stan’s dream

Mary Kay Bergman was an incredible voice actor. How the hell did she voice all the moms, Wendy, Shelly, principle Victoria, the mayor, Nurse Gollum, and fucking Ms. Crabtree??? Holy shit what a queen

Kenny has some feelings about death. He reimagines the episode where death boops him to death and in his version, he beats death the fuck up, then has ice cream and is happy 😊 But again, this is in Stan’s dream

S02E07 kind of establishes that nobody remembers Kenny dying because when Cartman tells a story where Kenny dies, Kyle questions how Kenny could’ve died then when he also died just a few hours ago when a giant monster took him

rip craig, he falls out the bus and into a canyon

But it’s okay because it was all Stan’s dream so everything in the episode is questionable. Everything after this is no longer a dream

Pip’s parents are dead and he has to go to summer school while everyone else is having a nice summer break

Officer Barbrady and the mayor are having sexual relations, I’m sure this is the most interesting note I’ve made so far. Idk I’m just writing everything down, this is how I enjoy things, I have no off switch

Ew summer bus stop, cursed

Kyle casually sings little tunes every once in a while, how cute

This is pretty obvious but Kenny likes dirty jokes, he laughs when Cartman innocently says he loves Chef’s salty chocolate balls (which are chocolate candy). Nobody else laughs

Cartman says “Screw you guys, I’m going home” or variations of it a lot in this season

So Stan throws up when he likes someone, right? Well, he’s watching an indie movie about two gay cowboys who start making out and he throws up, which is either a terrible homophobic joke or confirmation that Stan’s a little gay. I know which one I prefer

Kyle says Mr. Hankey is his best friend after Stan. Like I know it’s definitely canon that Stan and Kyle are best friends but it’s still nice to see confirmation, it’s very precious. Also Kyle is best friends with literal shit, so cute 😊

Kenny deaths:

S02E02 Kenny sacrifices himself by connecting a generator wire, which electrocutes him but brings power back to a hospital

S02E03 A tree falls on Kenny and crushes him

S02E04 Kenny falls in a grave and the gravestone falls on him

S02E05 The Chinese dodgeball team throws a ball at Kenny and he gets splattered against a wall

S02E06 Two guys pull on Kenny and tear him in half, as in one has the head and one has the legs

S02E07 A big scary monster plucks Kenny out of the school bus and carries him away. Also in Cartman’s fake memory of Fonzi jumping over cars, the motorcycle hits Kenny and crushes him against a brick wall. Kenny gets smashed against walls a lot, doesn’t he?

S02E08 Flashback: Baby Kenny has a firecracker and it explodes, sprinkling little baby Kenny parts everywhere. Later in the episode, current day Kenny dies when a giant firework snake bumps him off a stage and under a fence, which then crushes him.

S02E09 Kenny is playing with a yoyo outside a movie theatre when a bunch of people come outside and trample him to death. They say “Oh my God, I found a penny!” and “You bastard!”

I’ll post part 2 of season 2 in a couple days. I’m having way more fun writing these stupid notes than I thought I would (also gnomes is coming up soon and i am fucking ready for tweek)

[queenofthefallenangels]

Dean Ambrose x Reader

Rated M

Warnings: Smut, some bullying.

Requested by: Anonymous

A/N: Yes, this was meant for Valentine’s day, but I got busy and now all this stuff with Corona. It has been crazy. I hope you are all staying safe. I love you. 

From my love 💞💋: Hey, I know this is coming at an odd time with Valentine’s Day coming up, but things just aren't working out between us. I need time for myself. I hope you understand. 

A day before Valentine's day. This fuckin prick. I slammed my locker closed. Tears already in my eyes. I willed myself not to cry. I was in the makeup area surrounded by other females that would be nosy about why I was crying. I also hadn't exactly been honest either. Craig and I have been dating for six months secretly. He always said that someday he would tell everyone about us. We had met when I had some makeup looks at ESPN for Becky. He was one of the new sportscasters there. It seemed like love at first sight. Or so I thought. Maybe I should have known with all his secret-keeping that he had no interest in me. He just was looking for someone to mess around with. I felt so dumb. I just let him use me like that. I wanted someone like that to want me so bad I didn’t care about all the red flags that were flapping in my face. 

I slammed my hands hard against the table just ready to run, scream and lose control. I heard two chuckles from behind me. “Awe, is (Y/N) angry?” Dolph said in a teasing manner. 

“Don’t antagonize her, Dolph, “ Baron chuckled. “You might get the hulk to come out. HULK SMASH. It will be the first Earthquake in Florida history.” 

I rolled my eyes, “Do you have anything better than juvenile insults to throw my way?” I really wasn’t in the mood for them. They were always giving some stupid fat jokes. It was why I had to request HR, so they no longer were on my list to do makeup for. Luckily, I got them off, but that didn’t mean that they still didn’t come back and bug me from time to time. It was hard enough to work in a place surrounded by supermodels and not feel insecure. They never helped it at all.

“Aw, if it’s so juvenile, why did you have to run to HR and have us reported?” Baron asked his head tilting to the side. “Did we hurt your feelings? Good, because you don’t belong in our world.” Baron sneered. 

“Even our hair and make-up people need to meet the right standards and let's face it.” He looked me up and down.  “You don’t make the cut.” 

“There are tons of people like me here,” I said. My voice was so small that you could barely hear it.  

"Oh, but they are built like a steam engine while you are built like a dumpster full of trash." Dolph laughed. He high fived Baron so proud of his pun. I felt hot tears burn my eyelids. I begged them not to fall, but they did anyway. I could hear their laughter roar louder. I covered my face. I was a god damn adult and I was crying over something a high school bully would say. Why was I so upset? It didn’t help that I had just gotten dumped over the phone two minutes ago. 

"Hey!" A voice boomed from the other side of the hallway. All three of us snapped our heads towards where the voice had come from. It was to my shock, Dean Ambrose. Dean Ambrose and I have barely ever spoken a word to each other much less enough for him to feel the need to stick up for me. "Why don't you idiots go back to high school if you want to bully people? Or at least pick a fight with someone who can fight back." He said as he got inches from Baron's face. "You must have a tiny ass dick, Corbin." 

Baron glared at Dean. His eyes never left him. Dean held up his fingers with barely an inch between them. "Is this what it looks like?" He asked. Baron grumbled and pushed passed Dean, Dolph following quickly behind. I returned to my station trying to busy myself. I had still been crying a bit when I felt his hand on my shoulder. It was strong and solid. I felt so weak underneath it. The truth was, though we never had much communication, I desperately wanted to. I wanted it so bad that it held me back from it. I didn't want to sound stupid to him or trip over my own feet making me sound like a huge idiot to him. 

"Don't listen to those fools. He doesn't know how to talk to actual humans, just airheads with no substance, but appearance." Dean told me as he rubbed my back. I nodded his touch, melting me. "Hey, (Y/N), don’t let those idiots get it for you. They wouldn’t know what a good looking woman was unless it came wrapped in plastic. You are beautiful no matter what those idiots say.” 

“You are just saying that to make me feel better,” I said, still unable to look him in the eye. 

“Why would I just say something like that if I didn’t mean it? I mean it. I don’t go around trying to butter everyone up.” He said as he turned me towards him to face him. He put his finger under my chin causing me to look into his clear blue eyes. I was lost the second that our eyes met. I bit my lip as he moved a piece of my hair behind my ear. "You are so beautiful, they don't know how to handle it." I blushed deeply. This was definitely something I would have expected from the lunatic fringe. He was smooth, but not normally sweet like this. It felt genuine coming from him. He leaned in and his lips touched mine. I was surprised by how soft they were compared to his hands. His hands were always rough and calloused, but his lips were soft and warm. I was happy when his hands landed on my waist cause I was melting where I stood. He pressed my back against the cold wall as the kiss deepened. This kiss was never anything like when I kissed Craig or any guys for that matter. It was gentle, but at the same time rough. His hands moved up and down, as he felt every single curve. 

He broke the kiss as he moved his lips to my ear. “Come to my dressing room in a few minutes.” He whispered in my ear. His voice was deep and husky. I could feel him push his hard-on against me before he pulled off. He turned walking back towards where his dressing room was. My mind raced as he vanished out of sight. He shares his room with Seth and Roman...They might need to come in. But, what if he knew they wouldn’t be. The show didn’t start for another half an hour and I had most of my clients done which is why I had taken to my phone. The rest of my clients started after the start, so I had free time. Would this make Dean a rebound if I did this? I didn’t want to be that type of girl. Everything ran through my head, but my body was on autopilot. It went straight to the shield’s dressing room. I hadn't even finished playing out every single scenario in my head when my hand was already knocking on the door. 

Dean opened the door with a smile on his face. He pulled me in before he locked the door behind him. I bit my lip looking down. My heart was racing, it felt like my heart was going to fly out of my chest. I was close to aborting this whole thing. What was my body thinking when it took me here? 

I felt a finger go under my chin as he pushed up my face to look at me. “Everything okay, kitten?” He asked. 

“Yeah...I mean..I guess. I don’t generally do stuff like this.” I sputtered out. A blush deepened on my face. 

“Oh, I know. I wouldn’t have asked you otherwise.” His hand traveled down to my waist. “Truth is, I had my eye on you for some time now. Becky had warned me about your boyfriend, but-” 

“We broke up,” I said quickly, stopping him before he could speak anymore. His smile grew on his face as soon as the words left my mouth. 

“I figured something had to have happened. I saw you upset and was going to stop to talk to you until the two idiots got to you before me.” 

“Why did you kiss me if you didn’t know we broke up till now?” I asked him. 

He shrugged. “I took a chance. Honestly, I don’t care about some pretty boy reporter. You deserve better anyway.” I noticed as he got closer to my body, he was pushing me back towards the wall. 

“Like who?” I said rolling my eyes. I didn’t mean for it to come out rudely. I just want to make sure this wasn’t all a dream. There was no way Dean Ambrose could really like me, but every time I caught a glimpse of his eyes, I could see nothing, but softness. 

“Like me.” He said before pressing his lips back down on me. He pushed himself against me, closing the space between us and pressing my back hard against the wall. He grabbed my wrists and put my arms above my head. He held them there with one hand. “You got to stop doubting how amazing you are. I am going to prove it to you.” He said as he pushed my hair away from my neck. He turned his head as his lips went on my neck. His kisses were gentle at first, but as he got closer to my collarbone, he started to sink his teeth into my skin as he left little bites behind. I jumped once he hit my sweet spot, letting out a quiet moan. I could feel his grin against me. He opened his mouth and began to suck on that part of my neck. My knees felt weak. I tried to move my hands down, but he kept a firm grip on them. He used his other hand to go under my shirt. He moved over my skin. His fingertips felt like fire on. His hands moved to my breast as he cupped it roughly. He reached around and unsnapped my bra. I was surprised at how easily he did it. My mind was starting to fog as he pinched my nipple twisting it between his fingers. I moaned as my head flew back exposing more of my neck. He took advantage of it and began to kiss down my exposed cleavage. He pulled my shirt down further exposing more till they fell out. His lips moved down to my nipples as he wrapped his lips around the right one sucking on it. I could feel wetness start to build between my thighs. I rubbed them together trying to feel something. Dean Ambrose was going to be the death of me if he kept on teasing. I felt his hand finally let go of my wrists as he moved it between my legs rubbing it. I whimpered softly against his hand. His grin got bigger as he felt how wet I was. He took me off the wall and let me to the couch they had. He moved me against the arm bending me over. He pulled off my pants with one quick tug as he pulled them down. I felt nervous as he looked at my exposed backside. I knew I wasn’t perfect back there. I had stretch marks and cellulite back there. I was scared that might make him back out. It didn’t. He gave a quick smack to my ass before he grabbed it with his hand. “Fuck you are gorgeous.” He said as he pushed his finger through my folds before he got down on his knees. His tongue brushed on my thighs. He kissed up to my heated core. He laid his tongue flat as he licked up and down. I moaned loudly as I gripped onto the couch. He pushed my folds apart as he pushed his tongue inside exploring every inch. I moaned loudly. I was almost unable to contain myself. I knew these rooms weren’t soundproof though. I could easily be heard. Soon, I could care less about who heard, as I ground myself against his face and felt the prickle of his beard. That mixed with his tongue was sending me over the edge. I couldn’t help but want more. I wanted him inside me. I wanted to feel him stretching me. I looked back at him. His face soaked with my wetness. He pulled back, licking his lips. Lust clouding his blue eyes as he looked at me. He knew what I wanted. He didn’t have to ask. He got up from his knees and undid his jeans. I watched him the whole time as he pulled his pants and boxers down. His eyes never left mine as he stroked his already hard cock. I licked my lips when I saw how thick he was. He pushed the tip between my lips rubbing it up and down. He made sure it was well lubricated before he pushed it inside me. I closed my eyes as I stretched around him, hugging his cock tightly. I moaned as he started off at a slow pace. Once he could tell I was used to it, he pushed himself in and out. He smacked my ass as he went deeper with every thrust. It felt amazing. It wasn’t long until my pussy clenched tightly around him. I was milking his cock as my high came to life. He gripped onto my hair as he pulled it back causing my back to arch so he could push himself as deep as it could possibly go. I could feel the tip of his dick rubbing against my g-spot as I came around him. My toes curled as my juices spilled around him. He wasn’t fair behind me as he pulled out a spilled all over my back. I felt the warm ooze of him all over my back. He walked towards his gym bag as he grabbed a towel whipping me off. 

“So, tomorrow is Valentine's day, how does a date sound?” He said once he had cleaned my back off and I was sitting on the couch.

I was still trying to catch my breath, but I nodded. “That sounds amazing.” 

[dc41896]

Penny for Your Thoughts

So I saw an ask on my good sis @honeychicanawrites page (if y’all don’t follow her already please do because her writing is 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾❤️❤️ *chef’s kiss* AMAZING!!! She’s so wonderful and deserves all the love💕💕!!) from @damnitaa mentioning football player Chris with a buzzcut, and not only was I shook by this image (whew chile the flavorrr🥰!!!) but I soon got inspo for an imagine based off of it and I hope you guys like it☺️! I also had song inspo from “I Know You” by Craig David ft. Bastille and if you guys want to check it out I highly recommend it, it’s one of my faves!

Pairing: QB!Chris EvansxBlack Reader

⚠️: Mentions of cheating, drinking, same old fluff as usual💕

Swallowing the last of his third beer, he gently slides the glass bottle to the side raising his hand just enough to get the attention of the owner/cook so he could get him another one.

He could already hear his coach’s booming voice yelling “if you guys want to drink and party go ahead, but know you won’t win any championships!” from the sidelines during practice tomorrow. Was that gonna stop him from indulging in more of the bitter liquid though. No chance.

“Alright kid, I’m cutting you off after this one.”

“C’mon-,”

“Nope if I let you keep going you’re gonna drink out my whole supply,” Paulie chuckles, lightly smacking his shoulder before going back to ESPN behind the counter.

Hearing the ding of the bell from the front door, the click of heels and a soft voice divert Chris’ attention away from the latest headlines to the stranger sitting at the counter.

“There’s my girl! How you been? You haven’t come see me in a while, I was starting to take it personal.”

“I’m sorry, I’ve just been busy with work and school. I promise to come see you more often,” you smile as he sets a plastic cup in front of you.

“Okay now, I’m holding you to that. I don’t want you coming in here when I’m 80 years old saying ‘long time no see’,” he replies making you giggle. “What can I get you sweetheart?”

“I’ll just have some fruit and a water.”

“Alright you got it,” he smiles before disappearing in the back.

He tried not to, but Chris couldn’t stop glancing in your direction. All he could really see was the back of your head and partially the side of your face, but you seemed familiar to him. And your voice only made that familiar feeling strengthen as he searched his brain for the answer.

Well the best he could feeling the buzz of the alcohol start to set in.

“Here you go, fruit but with no strawberries since you don’t trust them and your water.”

“Thank you Paulie!,” you smile immediately grabbing your fork to dig into the colorful contents. “So how are they treating you at that job on campus?”

“My coworkers are fine but some of the customers make you want to scream with their complicated orders-,”

“Starbucks girl!,” Chris shouts accidentally making you jump and Paulie look at him like he was crazy.

“I’m sorry I didn’t mean to be loud, I was just trying to figure out where I knew you from and I just remembered,” he responds with a nervous smile.

“It’s okay. I’ve been there before, just maybe not as loud though,” you softly laugh going back to your fruit.

Motioning him to sit at the counter, Chris shakes his head no fearing he’ll embarrass himself more than he already has. Plus he didn’t want to intrude if you were trying to have a peaceful night to yourself.

“You’ll have to excuse Chris here. He’s been hit in the ole noggin more than enough times,” Paulie jokes making you giggle.

“I have not! Well okay I have, but that’s not why- you know what, let’s just start over,” he says waving his hands to stop everything. “Hey you look familiar, where do I know you from?”

“Well I go to school at Boston College, so you might’ve seen me around campus. Or you might’ve seen me at Starbucks since I work there.”

“That’s where I know you from! I go there all the time,” he smiles propping his head on his hand and making you laugh.

A comfortable silence falling over the both of you, Chris takes a drink of his last beer of the night watching the man on television talk about the upcoming NFL season as you retrieve a book from your bag.

Taking another glance at you, he notices the circular frames now on your face as you remove the plastic bookmark and eyes follow the words on the paper in front of you. Respectfully eyeing your outfit, his interest now peaks as he sets his beer down in front of him.

“Sorry if I sound intrusive, but I feel like you weren’t supposed to be here tonight.”

“Oh? And what makes you say that?”

“From your outfit and how that’s definitely not a first choice for someone who wants to come to a diner at 11pm on a Friday night just to read,” he smirks.

“Maybe I’m different then,” you reply matching his smirk and making him softly chuckle. “But you would be right. I was supposed to be meeting my friend at Scenic for drinks, but her boyfriend called last minute and I’m sure you can guess where that left me.”

“That sucks,” he answers taking another swig.

“Yea I’m a little mad, but also I know that’s her boyfriend and they want to spend time together so I feel like I just have to deal,” you shrug. “And if you don’t mind me asking what brings Make A Way Evans here on a Friday night by himself?”

“For the lovely company of my man Paulie of course,” he smiles raising his bottle to the middle aged man who gave him a tip of his hat in return as he leans against the counter.

“Oh of course, everyone knows Paulie’s the best,” you add with a giggle as he winks at you.

“But before I came here, I was planning on surprising my girlfriend with a present. Turns out we were both surprised from me finding her in bed with my best friend and teammate.”

Eyes now serious and painful as he looks down at the table, his fingers tap against the dark glass in his hands. You immediately wanted to hug him and tell him he would be okay although he might not feel it right now, but restrained yourself knowing it might be a bit weird.

“I’m so sorry that happened Chris.”

“It’s alright, I’ll get over it. Better yet, I’ll ‘make a way’,” he sarcastically smiles finishing his drink.

“Hey I know we don’t really know each other, and you’re probably not in the mood to talk, but if you are, I don’t mind.”

“Nah it’s ok, I don’t want to take away from your reading time.”

“I’ve actually read this book before so I’m not missing anything,” you smile tucking one of your long twists behind your ear. “Like I said though I completely understand if you don’t want a stranger knowing all your business.”

“Well I’ve pretty much already done that,” he chuckles standing to his feet and making his way to the barstool beside you. White sneakers squeaking against the floor, his dark grey long sleeve shirt clung onto his defined chest and arms as his jeans almost looked to be skinny ones from how they fit on his muscular legs. Necklace resting ever so perfectly around his neck, you knew the girlfriend must’ve been crazy to cheat on such a specimen.

“The only thing missing now though is your name.”

“Y/N,” you answer as he stuck out his hand which you joined with yours.

“There, now we’re not strangers anymore.”

For the next few hours you both talked about any and everything that came to mind from classes to sports to your favorite movies. Noticing your lack of a Boston accent, he asked where you were from, which then led to both of you talking about your childhoods. You guys could’ve stayed there talking forever, but Paulie had to close so he could get some rest before coming back for the lunch crowd.

Having walked to the diner since his apartment was only a couple of blocks away, he planned on doing the same to get back but you refused to let him from how late it was and offered to drive him home.

“I’ll be fine there’s no one out there.”

“That you know of,” you replied making him roll his eyes.

“Listen to her kid, she’s only trying to look out for you,” Paulie added as the three of you stood outside while he locked the door.

“Fine if you insist,” he jokingly groans following you to your car once you both told Paulie goodbye.

Within 15 minutes you were parked in front of his place standing on the passenger side to make sure he exited the car okay.

“I promise I’m not that drunk, I can walk perfectly fine,” he chuckles closing the door and meeting you at the front of your car.

“Hey I’m just being a responsible chauffeur and making sure you enter your place in one piece sir.”

“Well thank you I appreciate it,” he smiles walking close beside you.

“Oh watch your-,” you began trying to warn about the upcoming step only to be brought to the ground with Chris landing with an “oof” on top of him.

“Sure you’re not that drunk?,” you ask with a smirk.

“Yes I just accidentally tripped I promise,” he laughs.

“Yea I’m not sure how much I can trust your promises now.” Covering his mouth, he tries to avoid waking any of his neighbors with his boisterous laugh, but it still somehow echoed as it carried down the street.

Of course your laugh mixed in with his probably didn’t help diminish the noise.

“Ugh you kids don’t care where you do it now huh?,” an elderly woman in a pink, fluffy robe with curlers in her white hair calls from her window.

“No Ms. Waters it’s not what it looks like, we just-,”

“I don’t want to know what you were just doing. Don’t do it out in the open next time.” Forcefully shutting her window, you and Chris only laugh more at your current situation.

“You know, you’re the first person besides my family to laugh at me falling.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. It would’ve been nicer to ask if you were okay first.”

“No don’t apologize, I meant it in a good way! The slightest trip or bump people are always asking if I’m hurt and worrying about me being able to play. It’s weird, but it’s nice being laughed at.”

“I guess you’re welcome then..?”

Chuckling at your confusion, the streetlight burning above making the side of your face and eyes glow momentarily causes him to lose his breath from the trance the sight had him under. It made your face look so soft and delicate like a painting hung in a museum.

Realizing how he had been holding you there for quite some time, he clears his throat as he begins to sit up.

“I guess we should get off the grass huh?,” he chuckles standing up with you still being held close to his side. “You okay?”

“Yea, my pride’s a little bruised that’s all,” you answer checking for any grass on your clothes. Following him upstairs, he opens the white door to be met with barks and nails hurriedly tapping against the floor as they come closer to the both of you.

“Hey booboo! Did you miss me?,” Chris smiles as he locks the door. “You don’t have a problem with dogs do you? Like are you allergic or anything?”

“No no I’m fine,” you giggle as the excited dog circles around your legs looking up at you asking for scratches. “What’s his name?”

“Dodger.”

“Hi Dodger, you’re such a pretty boy!,” you smile scratching behind his ears making his tail swing back and forth while he lies his head in your lap.

“He just met you and he’s already in love with you.”

“That’s probably because I’m doing what he wants.”

“Possibly, but he never lied down like that on Kelly or gave her much attention really,” he admits sitting beside you and patting Dodger’s back. “Maybe if I listened to you bud I wouldn’t be in this situation now. They do say dogs have an excellent sense of character.”

Looking over at Chris, you see his head tilted back and eyes closed causing you to mentally awe at how peaceful he looked. Having the day he had plus a game coming up soon you were sure he had a lot on his mind and just wanted to rest.

“Hey I’m gonna head home ok? You go to bed and get some rest. I’m sure you have practice tomorrow.”

“So soon? The night’s still young,” he yawns lifting his arms over his head.

“The night might be, but your battery isn’t,” you giggle standing up to head towards the door.

“Alright you have a point.” Following behind to see you out, Dodger softly whimpers beside him poking your leg with his nose looking up at you with soft big brown eyes.

“Dodge come on bud she has to go home. Also I feel some type of way since you haven’t done that whenever I leave in a long time.”

“I’m sorry I can’t stay longer Dodger, but take care of your dad ok? Make sure he actually goes to bed and doesn’t trip anymore,” you giggle bending down and giving him a final scratch as he licks your hand.

“Thanks for the ride Y/N and everything else tonight, I really appreciate it.”

“It’s no problem, you don’t need to thank me. And everything’s gonna be okay. She was crazy to cheat on an amazing guy like you and I know you’ll find a girl who’s ten times better and loves you unconditionally.” Giving him a small wave, he watches you walk down the hall and the staircase before closing his door with a small smile on his face.

Feeling something tap against his leg, he looks down at Dodger walking back and forth by the door as if anxiously waiting for someone to return.

“You literally just met her and you like her that much?,” he chuckles beginning to cut off the lights and leading him to the bedroom as part of their nightly routine. “Can’t blame you too much on that though, I like her too.”

———

Entering the back for your shift, a sigh leaves your lips already hearing someone complain about their drink clearly not having extra soy in it since it didn’t taste right. Tying your apron around your hips, you see a note with your name on it in the spot you usually store your belongings slightly confusing you.

“What’s this?,” you thought unfolding the notebook paper as you leaned against the metal table nearest to you.

“Hey thanks again for last night and keeping me company. Maybe we could do it again sometime? Without the falling on the grass and being judged by my neighbor of course lol. -Chris”

Smiling to yourself, you immediately pull out your phone adding the number he left to your contacts before sending him your reply.

Y/N: Hey it’s Y/N aka Starbucks girl lol. So I just got this mysterious note at work...know anything about it?

You didn’t expect an answer right away thinking he was still in practice, but was pleasantly surprised to feel your phone vibrate and see his name light up your screen.

Chris: Lol hey! And that depends, what’s your answer?

Y/N: I’d love to

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[ladyseaheart1668]

Endless Summer Book 4: Daughter of Vaanu (Chapter 52)

Description: As Alodia and Diego flee toward Northbridge, Zahra makes an astonishing discovery

Tagging: @endlesshero1122 @mysteli @feartheendlesssummer @whatmcsaid @xo-endlessmayhem-xo @tigerbryn11

Chapter 52: Stranded

Zahra

“...The Hydra is a myth. Look for the triumvirate. Crassus has betrayed Caesar and Pompey. ...JAKE!”

“You listening to that recording again?” Craig's voice is languid with sleep. I don't need to look up from the computer to know that he's in his boxers in the doorway with his hair adorably tousled with sleep, because that's how I left him.

“I've got it on in the background.”

“The background of what?”

“Iris and I are looking into the background of that plane Lundgren used to get Jake and Sean and Michelle to the island.”

He wanders over to stand behind my chair and absently massage my shoulders as I click and clack away at the keyboard. “I thought the cops or whatever had already looked into that?”

“They have. But all they've told us is that it wasn't one of ours. They didn't say anything about who it was actually registered to.”

“Maybe they're still trying to figure that out.”

“Yeah, I'm guessing they are, assuming they're not actually actively hiding something. Either way, I'm not inclined to wait for them to decide what we should know.”

I have the numbers I need. The tail number, and serial numbers for various parts on the plane. Now I just need to get out without a trace, and into another database where I can plug those numbers in to find their matches. Even if the plane was cobbled together from stolen parts—if that's even possible—I can trace the parts' histories and their last legal location. Hopefully, there is enough consistency to pin down a location where the plane was most likely assembled. Or where it was stolen from. Craig sits down in the chair beside me. I reach over to rub his shoulder appreciatively before returning to the task at hand.

I won't admit out loud that this chasing after airplane parts is mostly to occupy myself and make me feel like I'm doing something now that my progress with the Galatea recording has stalled. I've gone over it from every angle I can think of. But now I feel like I just need to step back and work on something else for awhile. Look at it with fresh eyes after a relatively simple task like tracking down the owner of a possibly stolen plane.

Craig nestles his head in his arms on the desk beside the computer while the numbers flash over the screen. He starts to snore softly. When Iris' hologram flickers to life and floods the room with blue light, Craig grunts and mumbles something unintelligible.

“Zahra,” Iris says, “I have found something that I believe you need to see.”

“Yeah? What is it?”

“I believe the plane was not assembled from stolen parts. ...However...if you will observe the information on the screen...”

I turn to look at the screen. I squint as I scan what Iris has projected there for me. Then I feel my eyes go wide.

“...Holy shit...”

Diego

We change drivers about an hour into the trip when we stop to refuel. After another hour, we change again. Conversation ebbs and flows as we speed along a dark and empty stretch of road that runs through what must be a forest preserve. When we speak, it's mostly about where we should go when we reach Northbridge. Estela and Quinn first, we decide. We don't know whether Michelle and Sean made it back from their honeymoon or not, or they would be our first stop. Actually, as Allie points out, if Jake was taken prisoner at the same time we were, it's possible Sean and Michelle were taken, too. Even more reason to try someone else first. If Estela and Quinn can't be reached, we'll seek out Aleister and Grace, then Zahra and Craig, then Tahira. The important thing is that we get Allie someplace safe while we try to get a handle on what's happened to Jake and if he can be located.

“Midwife said the wouldn't kill him as long as he could still be used against me,” she says softly. “...But...when they find out I've escaped...”

“He'll be that much more valuable,” I assure her. “And they'll want to use him to lure you out, which will probably make it that much easier to find him.”

“...What if they hurt him to punish me for escaping?”

My heart squeezes at her question. I can't say they won't. I can't ignore the possibility. But I also can't let her think escaping was a mistake.

“Allie...as soon as you're safe, my priority and everyone else's is going to be to get him safe. You know that, right?”

She nods. “I know. But it's not like not worrying is really an option...”

“Hey, I get it. But let me tell you something. When we first got back after the island, Jake was arrested almost the moment we set foot on American soil. ...We had him out in four months. And that was while we were trying to make up a semester's worth of college work.”

“...You're exaggerating.”

“Nope. Cross my heart, it's true. You can ask him yourself when you see him again. Which, by the way, is going to be before you give birth to his kid.”

“Well...it's certainly hard not to trust confidence like...” She trails off so suddenly that I can't help but feel a quick, hot flash of dread. I glance over to see her frowning.

“What?”

“Are...you messing with the light level on the dashboard?”

“What? I don't think...” I feel my stomach lurch as I get a good look at the dashboard and see what she means. The panel has gone dim. So dim that I can barely read the time on the clock, much less the GPS screen. The headlights aren't looking their brightest, either. My gut tells me to pull over. A worn dirt road just ahead of me drifts off the main road. The dimming headlights are just bright enough to illuminate it, and I just manage to pull off as the car abruptly stalls and dies, slowing to a stop. It's only once we've actually stopped that I realize my heart is pounding and my knuckles have gone white on the steering wheel. I carefully peel my fingers off the wheel and feel the tremors racing through my body as I put the gear shift in park. I look over at Allie. It's dark, without street lamps along the quiet road, but what little moonlight there is reflects off her pale face and shows me a stunned expression.

“Are you all right?”

“W-what happened?”

“The car kind of...lost power. And I think...” I experimentally turn the key, but nothing happens. I try again. I flick a few switches, try the key a third time. “...I've had this happen before. It's probably a bad alternator.”

“...What do we do? How do we make it start again?”

“...There's...there's a portable jump-starter in the back with the gas cans,” I offer, but the knot in my stomach doesn't loosen. “We don't need another car to jump-start with one of those, but...if I'm right and it's the alternator, it might not do any good.”

“It's worth a try...”

I nod, grabbing the flashlight that we found in the glove compartment the first time we stopped to refuel. I pop the hood and get out of the car, shivering at the blast of bitingly cold air that hits me. I rub my arms vigorously as I make my way around to the hatch at the back of the jeep. I'm not dressed for this weather. Maybe a native northeasterner wouldn't feel the cold so badly dressed in a sweatsuit, but I'm from southern California, and I don't stop hopping as I fetch the portable jump-starter and hook it up to the car battery, the flashlight's beam shuddering over the maze of parts and wires under the hood. Unfortunately, I'm proven right about the effectiveness of the power pack. The car stays stubbornly dead. I groan, pressing my forehead to the steering wheel.

“Cell phones,” I mutter. “We should have asked Midwife for cell phones...”

“I've already groped around the glove compartment for one,” Allie says apologetically. “Granted, the light in there is out, too. I could take another look with the flashlight, but...”

“It's worth a try,” I echo ruefully, and pass her the flashlight. I'm not surprised when it turns out she didn't miss anything. “...Shit. What now?”

“I guess we need to get out and walk.”

“Walk?” I repeat incredulously. “Walk where?”

“Follow the road we're on. Or the main road. The forest preserve can't be so big that we won't hit civilization after an hour or two.”

“But it's night. In the northeast. In late March. We're really not dressed for it.”

“There's the tarp that was over the gas cans. We can wrap up in that. Beside, the heat won't last in here if we can't keep the car going.”

“But we will be a little better shielded from the elements. We could wrap up in the tarp and wait until morning. At least the sun will keep us warmer.”

“But we'll lose our head start. We're only about two-and-a-half hours from where we escaped from. Granted, we'll be slower on foot, but at least we'll be moving. Come on, it's not like it's likely to be a lot more walking than we ever did on the island, right?”

“You weren't nine months pregnant on the island,” I can't help pointing out.

“...Yeah, I know. Not saying that won't make it harder. But when you weigh the options...I gotta say, I think we'll both be safer if we keep moving.”

“I guess splitting up isn't an option...”

“No way in hell.”

“Yeah,” I agree with a rueful smile. “I wasn't keen on that either. Just thought I should make sure we didn't ignore any options. Guess we're walking then.”

* * *

We opt to follow the main road, but stick to the shelter of the forest preserve to avoid being seen by anyone who might be on the road searching for us with hostile intent. Getting into the trees proved a challenge, as the incline up into the forest from the dirt road we stopped on was steeper and higher than we anticipated. With a little bit of help, and a little bit more panic from me, Allie made it up onto relatively level ground, but the going is till tough. The path is uneven, and everything outside the beam of the flashlight is a mess of black shadows with patches of navy blue.

Huddled under the tarp, pressed close together, the cold night air is at least a little more bearable. Still, my fingers, my toes inside my worn sneakers, the tips of my ears, and my running nose are all numb. I dab at the mucus trickling from my nose with the tarp draped over my forearm and sniff forcefully, hoping give myself at least a moment of relief. It doesn't really work. My breath is short with the exertion of trying to navigate an uneven terrain while pressed close to another person, and the cold, dry late winter air is like gaseous fire in my lungs. My throat is starting to itch. I don't even know how long we've been walking.

“Allie? You holding u—hpp!” Okay, clearly trying to talk was a mistake. The itching in my dry throat is suddenly unbearable, and I have to cough. And once I get started, it doesn't stop. I double over, hacking and coughing like a 20-year chain-smoker. I only vaguely feel Allie guiding me to the edge of the path to sit down against a tree and catch my breath. I collapse on my butt in the cold dirt and lean back against the rough bark as I draw in wheezing breaths and release them in another round of explosive coughing. She crouches down in a slightly awkward motion, and I feel her cold hand rest gently on the back of my neck as she places the plastic rim of a bottle to my lips.

“Here. Take a couple sips. Slowly.” I do as she tells me. Cool water flows soothingly down my throat, and I start to breathe a little easier.

“W-water bottle?” I question hoarsely when I think I can speak again without starting the whole ordeal over again.

“Found it behind the gas cans. Not a big one, but I thought I should bring it along. Been carrying it in my pant leg.”

I nod as she takes a sip herself. I can believe that the baggy sweatpants with their tight cuffs made a pretty nice pouch for what I can just about make out as a 20-ounce water bottle.

“Must have been cold holding it there, though.” I sense her shrug more than I see it in the swimming darkness.

“The heater in the car had warmed it up enough. And the heat from my body kept it at a bearable temperature. You feeling good enough to press on?”

“Yeah. Yeah, I'm okay now.”

“Good. But...actually, take a couple more minutes. I need to...um...well...squat.”

I laugh, which almost makes me cough again. “Say no more. Take the flashlight and yell if you need anything.”

* * *

Once we get moving again, I'm not sure how much more time passes before I first start to notice the space around us turning the slightest bit grayer as the first hints of light start to wink at a horizon obscured by foliage. I don't remember what time we started out on foot, but I can guess now that it's pushing six in the morning. I have no idea of the date or the day of the week. Hopefully civilization isn't much further. And hopefully it's a work day. More likely that people will be up and about at the buttcrack of dawn. By now, the exertion has warmed us up enough that we aren't huddled so close together, though we keep our hands clasped firmly to keep from losing each other. I think I can see a bit of a break in the trees ahead. I gently steer us toward it, and Allie follows my lead.

What happens next happens so fast that I'm not sure what happens first. One second, Allie is right beside me, her hand curled in mine. The next, I hear the sound of loose earth shifting, pebbles tumbling over each other. I feel a tug, our hands pulling sharply apart. I hear a human body hitting the ground, and my best friend's strangled cry of pain. I turn to see empty gray air beside me where she had been standing.

“Allie!”

I just manage to stop myself from diving into the space where she was. A good thing, too, as I realize when I swing my flashlight towards the sound of her whimpering and catch a flash of golden hair in the beam. She's lying on her side halfway down the inclined bank of what looks like a dry creek bed. From her position and mine, it looks like she put her food down on the edge of the incline and lost her balance.

“Diego!” she groans through clenched teeth. “Stay back, okay? It's really steep here!”

She's right. There is at least three feet of distance between us, but at least she seems to be at least somewhat anchored where she is.

“Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

“...Yeah...” she admits, her voice a croak. My heart drops into my stomach with a sickening splash.

“What? How? Where? How bad?”

“Not entirely sure. I need to get up.”

“Right. Rightrightright, okay...” I look around frantically, spotting a solid looking tree that appears to be in a good position. “Allie? I'm gonna wrap the tarp around this tree and feed it down to you. Grab on, and then you've got something solid to hold onto if our hands slip.”

Between me and the tarp, we slowly and laboriously manage to get Allie back on level ground. She curls up on her side, gasping, her face twisted in a grimace. I rub her shoulder and brush stray wisps of hair off her forehead.

“Where does it hurt? Can you stand?” Fear seizes me afresh as a horrible thought worms its way into my head. “Is it the baby?”

“Baby's fine...” she manages to croak, though it sounds like it takes a lot of effort. “She's squirming away in there. It's my back, Diego. My lower back. I got cut by something...”

“Shit...”

I move to kneel on her other side and shine the flashlight at her lower back and shudder at what I find, my veins fizzing with anxiety. A long, jagged wound oozing blood in the fleshy part of her lower back, running from above her hip bone almost up to her last rib. As gently as I can, I put my thumb to the edge of the wound and lift just enough to see if I can tell how deep it is.  Allie gasps sharply, letting out a whimper as she exhales.

“It...doesn't look very deep...but it's deep enough to be bleeding pretty badly.” I run my fingers through my hair, grabbing a fistful. The pain in my scalp feels somehow steadying. “I'm going to use the tarp to put pressure on it.”

“The tarp is filthy,” she protests weakly.

“I know. But it's all we've got right now.”

“We don't have time to stop. We have to keep going.”

“If you drip blood, that's just going to make it easier for them to track us.”

When she doesn't protest further, I help her sit up carefully. Quickly as I can, I find a relatively clean section of the tarp and press it to what looks like the deepest part of the wound. I fold and wrap and tuck until it feels like I have a sufficient enough bandage to last a little while. Allie doesn't protest when I pass her the flashlight and tuck myself under her arm to help her get to her feet.  

“You're going to have to be in charge of the flashlight. I'm not letting you get away from me again.”

She laughs weakly, mirthlessly. “Wasn't actually trying to. Promise. ...Anyway, I don't think we have a lot farther to go. I think I can see a building up ahead.”

Alodia

The building that I see in the distance was probably at one time a cute little ranch-style house. With a brown-brick-and-stucco facade, gray-shingled hip roof with wide eaves, and a front-facing bay window overlooking the porch swing, it must have been like a fairy-tale cottage on the edge of the forest preserve. But as we get closer, and the sun lifts over the horizon, I realize it has probably been abandoned for at least a decade, if not longer. The rows of shingles have gaps in them like missing teeth. The windows that aren't cracked or broken are layered with grime. The facade is crumbling in places. But it's shelter.

There's a stabbing pain in the arch of my left foot. My legs and thighs throb with exhaustion. I have to pee again, and the wound in my back is burning. That's not to mention hunger and thirst.

“We have to get inside...” I croak weakly. “I need to rest.”

Diego hesitates for just a moment before nodding. He needs rest, too. And now that the sun is coming up, I think he's just as inclined to get out of the open as I am. We shamble up to the front door, and Diego knocks experimentally. When I look quizzically at him, he shrugs.

“Don't just want to barge in if someone's squatting here.”

But no one seems to answer. When Diego tries the door, it opens easily. We cross the threshold into a small foyer with cracked, filthy linoleum and peeling wallpaper patterned with strawberries that probably looked cute and cheery in its prime. The archway to our left opens into the kitchen. Just ahead is what looks like it used to be the living area. And then to our right is a hall that leads to the bedrooms. I'm not sure what I was expecting it to smell like, but it smells better than I would have expected. Dust, mothballs, earth, and just a hint of mold, but it's nothing overpowering, even with my sense of smell still heightened by pregnancy. Diego guides me into the living room, and eases me onto the dingy carpet.

“Here. At least you can lie on something a little more comfortable than tile while I look around.”

“What are you looking for?”

“Just...wanna see what we're dealing with...”

I don't miss the tremor in his voice, and I can guess what's worrying him. I reach out to grasp his wrist. “You shouldn't go alone.”

He shakes his head. “You're hurt. And exhausted. It's better if you stay here and rest for a moment.”

“At least don't go completely unarmed.” I glance around, and I catch a glimpse of the fireplace on the far wall. It looks like it was an old-fashioned wood-burning fireplace, rather than gas, unless the fireplace stand on the hearth is just for decoration. “Take the poker. For my peace of mind.”

“Twist my arm, why don't you,” he quips. “Lie down for a few minutes, Allie. You need some rest.”

I don't lie down until he actually takes hold of the poker. Even then, I take the water bottle out of my pant leg first so I can take a swallow. But once I am horizontal, whatever kept me going through our slow slog through the forest drains right out of me. My lower back is on fire, and the worn, ragged carpet feels coarse and greasy against my cheek. But I am so damn tired. The abandoned room around me fades into a gray fog populated by dancing ghosts.

I looked out the window, and I couldn't see. It wasn't too dark, it was just too foggy.

The voice is distant, buried inside my head, but it sounds like a child. I can almost see a child, too, cooing in a sing-song voice at a toy that they walk across the carpet. And a smaller sibling, naked except for a diaper, shrieking with delight as their parent chases them with a pair of footie pajamas.

“Allie?” Diego's voice draws me back from the warm, happy fog, and reality crashes over me in a chilly wave. I feel a shiver race down my spine as I force my eyes to open and look up at him. It's a good deal brighter than when we came in, and the light hurts my eyes enough that I can't fully focus. But there's still something in his voice and his grip on my shoulder that alarms me.

“What's wrong?”

“I think there is someone living here after all,” he says grimly. “There's no one here at this exact moment, but I found definite signs of life. Including generators, a mini fridge, a hot plate, and a Porta Potty. There are also mattresses in the bedrooms. And blankets. And I found a first aid kit in the bathroom.”

“Is it stocked?”

“Fortunately, yes. Here's my plan: I get you into the bedroom. We set ourselves up in there with some food and water and blankets and stuff. Then we lock the door and hole up in there until nightfall. We can get some rest, and if the original squatters come back, there's a desk under the window inside, and an HVAC unit outside. It wouldn't be the easiest escape, but we could get out.”

“Or we could leave as soon as this cut on my back is cleaned and bandaged.”

“Look me in the eye and tell me you're up for that, and that's what we'll do.” But of course, I can't. I can barely even get my eyes to focus on his face. I need rest, and so does he. I exhale slowly, closing my eyes as my answer. “Yeah, that's what I thought. Come on. I'll help you up.”

I lean heavily on Diego as he walks me down the hall. I don't mean to give him so much of my weight, but if I'm honest with myself, I don't feel steady at all. The sight of a mattress on the bedroom floor, complete with pillows and blankets is truly a welcome one. Even if when I lie down, I discover that the mattress is far from new and that it smells faintly of stale sweat. A lamp clicking on behind me sprays the wall in front of me with harsh white light that crests over my dark, crisp-edged shadow. Diego helps me sit up just long enough to untangle myself from the tarp before I let my head drop back onto the pillow.

“...I still can't quite reach Varyyn,” I murmur softly as Diego gently lifts my sweatshirt away from the wound.

“Midwife did say it would take awhile. ...Seems like it stopped bleeding. ...But it also looks like it's a little deeper than I thought...”

I hear him rattling around with the first aid kit. Tears start to well in my eyes, whether in anticipation of the pain, or...everything else, I'm not sure. Maybe it's both. Probably. Last time I was in a similar position, Jake was with me. Everyone who matters was with me. Well...everyone except the baby in my belly. I think I felt stronger then, though. Sure, I was in pain and scared of everything happening around me. But somehow, the Celestial felt smaller and more intimate than this tiny abandoned ranch house. And the faceless enemy whose purpose at the time was still unknown didn't feel as close and threatening as the former Arachnid goons hunting me now.

A flicker of movement at the edge of my vision makes me suck in my breath. Diego has stuck his hand over my shoulder, fingers splayed in an invitation. I lift my hand to his and squeeze it firmly. I start to draw it back, but he gently tightens his grip.

“It's okay. I gotcha. I can do the cleaning one-handed.”

“Thanks,” I murmur.

“You ready?”

“Go for it,” I reply tightly, screwing my eyes shut. “Let's get it over with.”

I manage not to flinch or cry out, but I kind of fail at breathing slowly and deeply like they've been teaching me in my birthing classes. My breath hitches in my throat, and I'm crying by the time Diego sticks a few piles of gauze pads to my back with first aid tape. Diego is quiet as he strokes my hair comfortingly.

“...Thanks,” I say at last, my voice hoarse. “Thanks for doing that.”

His hand pauses on my head. “...You protect me, Allie,” he says softly. “It's what you do. It's what you've done all our lives. But we both know you can't be the strong one all the time. I know I'm not a naturally brave person, but I'm always going to protect you when you need me to.”

“You're braver than you think you are,” I whisper, squeezing his hand.

“You just get some rest, okay? I'll fix us something to eat.”

Zahra

As usual, I'm already at the office by the time Aleister comes in at eight in the morning. He's maybe a little surprised to find me in his office instead of mine, but he doesn't show it with more than a raised eyebrow.

“Good morning, Zahra,” he says as he closes the door. “What's going on?”

I flash the file folder in my hand. A paperclip keeps the pages inside secured to the flap. “I had a feeling the cops were hiding something from us with regards to the plane that took our friends to the island. I was right.”

“I see.” He sits down at his desk. “Do we know who owns it?”

“Yeah. But that's kind of the least of our worries. I ran the tail number, serial numbers on the parts, everything they had that I could think of. They all came up attached to a single plane. ...A plane that is currently in pieces in the custody of the NTSB. And what pieces aren't in their custody are at the bottom of the ocean.” I push the folder across the desk toward him. “...All the numbers match a certain plane that crashed in 1996. ...The same one that Alodia's parents were on when they died.”

Aleister flips open the folder and scans the pages inside, his eyes alternately widening and narrowing as he takes in the information.

“...I would say that's impossible,” he says slowly, “...but I think we both know that's not true. Even if the how escapes us.”

“I'm a little more concerned with the why. Why use that plane specifically? If they didn't want to use a currently existing plane, why use the one that killed Alodia's parents? Why not a different plane from the past?”

“Perhaps they needed one with a connection to Vaanu. The one that killed his human form perhaps has more of the energy they need.”

“Yeah, I guess. ...I mean, it's all speculation at this point.”

“Did you relay this information to Jake and the others?”

“Nah. I mean, Craig knows because I tell him pretty much everything, but it doesn't seem like this is gonna do much to help actually find Alodia here and now. I feel like this tidbit can wait until they're done with their part.”

“Hmm. I suppose there is wisdom in not throwing them any potential red herrings when time is of the essence. What about the recording? Have you gotten anywhere with that?”

“I'm stuck,” I admit. “I figured out that the recording was mostly spliced, but then there was that cry for help that wasn't spliced...but where do I go from there? I mean, I guess I could isolate the background audio for any potential sound signatures that could give me an indication of where the recording was made...but that's kind of a long shot, even with Iris to help.”

“Truthfully, I am a little more interested in the coded message before that.”

I shrug. “Seems to be a code in keeping with your dad's Greco-Roman obsession. I looked up the First Triumvirate on Wikipedia, but didn't get much that was useful.”

“The relationships between the key players certainly don't seem to reflect history if Crassus is betraying Caesar and Pompey. Crassus and Caesar were steadfast allies. Historically, Pompey was the odd man out.” He sighs. “Ironically, I expect Alodia would be very helpful in figuring out the message.”

“She is our resident history buff,” I agree. “...But...maybe history isn't what's important here.”

“I expect not,” I agree. “But you sound like you're thinking of something specifically.”

“Your old man's a megalomaniac. He's interested in building himself up as a god. Maybe we should be focusing on mythology rather than history.”

Aleister frowns thoughtfully. “I don't disagree with your assessment of my father. But if the message is from Alodia, wouldn't history make more sense?”

“You're assuming it is from Alodia? If that's the case, why go through the trouble of splicing her voice together?”

“Perhaps as a distraction to anyone else who might be tracking her? If nothing else, the fact that her cry for help was not spliced suggests she knew the recording would somehow reach Jake.”

I'm still not sold on the idea, but whether Alodia sent the message or not is not my point. “Even assuming the message is from Alodia, that doesn't necessarily make what I said wrong. Don't forget she was the Endless. She succeeded in making a god of herself to the Vaanti. She knows how to build a mythology.”

“...She knows how to build a mythology from facts,” he says slowly. “...She knew what my father was planning. She knew he could be stopped if we had the Vaanti's help, and she knew that she needed to change the Vaanti to protect us.”

I raise an eyebrow. “Now you're the one who sounds like you're onto something.”

“As the Endless, Alodia built her mythology around what she knew would happen in the future. It's hardly an uncommon scenario to play out when one imagines traveling to the past, is it?”

I shrug. “Probably not. People imagine a lot of things when they imagine time travel.”

“Right. What if this message is the same sort of thing in reverse?”

“...In reverse? Like, building facts from mythology?”

He frowns, shaking his head like he's trying to dislodge a bug from his hair. “No...not quite. Or perhaps.” He blows upward, briefly lifting a few strands of pale hair from his forehead. “I think the metaphors are rather getting tangled up in themselves.”

“Yeah, probably,” I agree slowly. “But I think we're ultimately ending up on the same page. ...It's not history or mythology that's important here, but both together, right?”

“Yes! Precisely!” He snaps his fingers. “Ancient Rome's history is littered with apocrypha, especially about high-profile figures like Caesar and Pompey and Crassus. History and myth are already difficult to distinguish.”

“Okay, so what do we have to go on? I guess we can assume that Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus represent three different people. Or...factions. Seems likely one of them is Rourke.”

He nods. “I would put money on Silas Prescott also being represented. Given their long-standing rivalry, I would have considered him and Father to be shoe-ins for Pompey and Crassus...but the message states that Crassus has betrayed Caesar and Pompey, and based on what Grayson told us about his holiday encounter with his father, I think it's more likely that Father and Prescott are working together.”

“Right. If Grayson's suspicions were right, and we're right about what Rourke is ultimately planning, then Prescott has probably gotten in on the Janus Project somehow. From what Tahira said about their showdown, it seems like all Prescott wants is his wife back.”

“And if Father is to be believed, he can deliver that.”

“So, if Rourke and Prescott are Caesar and Pompey, who is Crassus? Who betrayed them?”

Aleister sighs, slumping back in his chair. “That is the question, isn't it. The possibility that we have an ally out there is tantalizing.”

“They might not actually be an ally,” I warn. “We might have a common enemy, but that doesn't necessarily mean they're on our side.”

“I suppose not. ...But returning to Caesar and Pompey for a minute, I think I might have an inkling which is which.”

“Oh, yeah?”

“Caesar was the one who made himself dictator. He's primarily remembered as the politician, while Pompey is primarily known as the general.”

I snort. “I think I see where you're going with this. Your old man's Caesar, right?”

He smirks. “Precisely. And when you consider their respective foils, it makes even more sense. Alodia is my father's foil, both as herself and as the Endless. Especially as the Endless. The Endless succeeded in building herself up as a god, and thus prevented him from doing the same. Meanwhile, Prescott's foil is Tahira. He raised an army of criminals to take down her band of superhumans. All in all, they project a more militaristic image than the Endless and my father manipulating and influencing to gain power over each other.”

“Which is pretty much what the First Triumvirate did, isn't it? Manipulate and influence and all that?”

“That's pretty much what Romans did.” He chuckles, but there's enough of a pause beforehand that I don't think he's chuckling at the comment he just made.

“What?”

“Julius Caesar had two known children, a son and a daughter. And a few illegitimate children who were suspected to be his, but two that are widely accepted as his: a daughter, Julia, by his first wife, and a son by Cleopatra called Caesarion.”

“As in the Cleopatra?”

“The very same.”

I can't help myself. “Which kid do you think you are?” I ask with a smirk.

He laughs. “Oh, without a doubt, I am Julia. Born to his wife, but ultimately useless to him. No doubt he considers Estela his Caesarion.”

“Even though you both rejected him in the end.”

“Well, it's hardly a perfect parallel. Caesar never even publicly acknowledged Caesarion was his, and Olivia Montoya hardly shares my father's ambition. For another thing, Julia was married to Pompey in order to cement the alliance with her father.”

I snort. “Now that seriously tangles the metaphor. We'd have to rethink every...” I trail off as I realize that Aleister is suddenly sitting ramrod straight, his eyes wide. “...Uh...Aleister? You okay there?”

His eyes lock with mine. “...Blair. Blair Hall. ...Blair Hall is Crassus.”

Michelle

I check Tahira's wound every time we stop the car to refuel and eat. I have found her to be a very easy and relaxed patient, in spite of the rough environment. Clearly, she doesn't share her cousin's fear of medical procedure. She stretches out in the backseat of a car as I press gently around the edges of the wound with vinyl-clad hands.

“You're healing nicely,” I tell her. “Not quite ready to have those stitches out yet, I think, but it won't be long. Any pain?”

“Not anymore. I just need to be ready to fight by the time we find Alodia.”

I carefully peel off my gloves, discarding them in a portable biohazard box. “I can't make any promises. Particularly because I don't know how long it's going to take us to find her. But you are healing faster than an ordinary human being would.”

“Guess that's all I can hope for. ...I tested my powers at the last rest stop. I managed to fly and tear a branch off a tree with my bare hands, so I think we can safely assume those are intact.”

I pause for a moment. “...If this is too personal a question, feel free to tell me off. But if you did lose your powers...do you think you'd be okay?”

“Ultimately? ...Yeah. Probably. Frankly the worst part would be feeling helpless. I mean...before I got my powers, I was a business woman. I did some volunteer work in my spare time, and I worked out, but I never felt like I could really protect people from anyone who wanted to hurt them. Honestly, that's something I admire about Alodia. By all accounts, she's been a fighter all her life. The type of person who wouldn't hesitate to face down a criminal or a bully, with or without superpowers. On the night I got my powers, my friends and coworkers and a hundred innocent people were threatened by armed robbers, and my instinct was to comply with their demands so that they wouldn't hurt anyone.”

“That is a very sensible reaction,” I say firmly.

“Yeah, I know. And it's still the advice I would give anyone in a similar situation. But it's still nice to feel like I don't have to take that advice myself anymore.”

“I get that,” I concede and smile wryly. “And I certainly don't mean to imply that Alodia's courage shouldn't be admired. Actually, she's usually very good about recognizing her limits. But she won't hesitate to risk everything if she thinks there's half a chance of protecting her loved ones. ...Right now, she's a prisoner, and most likely, her best friend is with her. ...I don't know whether her being pregnant makes me more or less worried about that.”

Tahira sits up carefully, raising an eyebrow. “More, I should think. Right?”

“Well...in most ways, yes. Her being pregnant makes her situation a lot scarier to imagine. But I'm at least reasonably sure she's not going to take any undue risks when her baby depends on her to be healthy. Still...if they try to control her by threatening Diego...there are a few ways that could go. One, we find Diego hurt very badly. Two, she submits to protect him, but the stress has other ill effects on her health. Three...she fights back...”

Tahira puts a hand on my shoulder. “Michelle, I may not know her as well as you guys do, but I know her well enough to know how much that child means to her. She's not going to be reckless.”

I nod. “You're probably right. If I am honest with myself, it's the second option that seems most likely. The problem is that stress could negatively affect her baby as much as her. There is no safe way to keep a pregnant woman prisoner...”

Tahira squeezes my shoulder, grinning. “Well. Then it's lucky we're coming to rescue her, isn't it.”

Alodia

I'm dying. I can feel my body going cold as the blood drains out of me from the hole the bullet tore in my side. Jake's face swims above me, and I am vaguely aware of his hands on my face and hair.

“Come on, Princess, stay with me.” Agony flairs as the world tilts sickeningly around me, and I hear myself cry out. “Shhh. I'm here. I gotcha. I know it hurts. I'm right here.”

“Entry and exit wounds,” I hear Michelle say. “Straight through. Shit, I really hope this works...”

Darkness is creeping in at the edges of my vision. Suddenly, I feel myself growing warmer, and the pain starts to dull, replaced by a pleasant tingling sensation. The darkness recedes and the world reasserts itself. Jake has me cradled in his arms, and Michelle is beside us with one hand on my belly and the other on my back. A healing leaf under each palm repairs my torn flesh. Within ten minutes, I am breathing painlessly. Jake smiles down at me, tears still shimmering on his cheeks and eyelashes.

“There she is. Welcome back, Princess.”

“Hey,” I croak.

“How're you feeling?” Michelle asks.

“...Probably not up to running a marathon. But probably not dying, either.”

“Yeah, I bet. You've lost a lot of blood, so you'll need to take it easy. Unfortunately, I don't think a transfusion is possible. But at least what you've got left is staying on the inside.”

Jake eases me upright, and that's when I see that I'm not the only one injured. I frown.

“Michelle, you're bleeding...”

Michelle glances down at the deep gash on her lower leg and winces. “Yeah. Looks worse than it is, though.”

“It could still probably use a healing leaf.”

“Unfortunately, those were the last ones.” She shrugs dismissively. “I'll wrap it up. That should hold it until we get back to Elyys'tel.”

“...It isn't going to.” As I say it, I realize with terrible certainty that I am all too right. This is a memory. I have lived this before. I know what happens. Over the next two days as we journey to Elyys'tel, that wound will fester...

“Don't,” Michelle says firmly. “Don't linger here, Alodia. Don't think twice.”

“About what?”

“You're going to figure out soon what you're remembering. It's going to be used against you. ...You know what you are to us. What you were made to be. Let that be your strength. Not your sorrow.”

“Michelle...”

“Come on, Alodia. We need you.”

Diego

I found a couple pots in the kitchen. I used them and some of the bottled water supply to make us some ramen on the hot plate. We cleaned our hands with alcohol wipes from the first aid kit and ate with our fingers straight from the pot. Then while Allie slept, I went through the house and locked every door and window. The front door wouldn't lock, but I stacked up a pyramid of canned goods behind it to give us a warning if someone decides to come in. Only then did I lie down on the mattress beside Allie to get some rest myself.

The space heater I found isn't very big, but with the door and windows closed it's enough to bring the air to a tolerable temperature, and its hum is soothing. Exhaustion takes over, and I drift off almost immediately. I'm not sure what time it is when I wake up, but it's dark again. I find the flashlight beside me and ease myself out from under the blanket. I won't disturb Allie just yet, but we should probably get moving soon. But first, I want to make sure we can go out the door. I'm not going to make my injured, pregnant friend climb out the window if she doesn't have to. I grab the fireplace poker from beside the door and creep out into the hall with my flashlight shining.

I'm painfully aware of how much I'm shaking as I creep through the house, thoroughly checking every room. My breath is shallow with anxiety, my throat tight. I swear my heart is about to hammer out of my chest, especially when I have to creep into the cobweb-infested basement. But every room is empty. The cans behind the door are undisturbed. Relief floods through me as I return to the bedroom. I lock the door again when I get back in. No good letting our guard down. We're safe now, but that could change pretty quickly.

“Allie? Are you awake?” She makes a noise that's a cross between a moan and a whimper, like she just woke up from a bad dream. “It's okay. It's just me.”

“...Diego...?”

“Yeah. I'm gonna turn the lamp on, okay? It's dark out.”

“...We escaped. We hid in an abandoned house.”

“Yeah.” I flip on the lamp. Her back is to me, but I still see her flinch as the light floods the room. “How're you feeling? We should probably move on before either the original squatters come back or Fiddler and her goons show up.”

“...I don't feel right...” Her voice comes out in a weak whimper. Something cold trickles down my spine.

“Allie...?” I make my way around to the other side of the mattress and feel my breath catch in my throat. Allie's face is ashen in the harsh light of the lamp. Tiny beads of sweat glisten on her forehead.

Oh, no...oh, please God, no...

The thought comes before I consciously realize what's happening, but deep down, I know. I drop to my knees beside her and reach out to press the back of my hand to her brow. I almost yank it back when I feel the heat coming off her skin.

“Shit! Allie, you're burning up!”

“...I'm cold...”

“It's chills. You have a fever.” I leap up to move to the other side of the mattress again. “I'm just going to check your wound. I'm gonna have to move the blanket.”

She moans, but she doesn't protest, though she does shudder violently as I expose her back. I carefully peel back the pile of gauze and first aid tape. I can't help sucking in a sharp breath. The skin around the wound is swollen, glowing an angry shade of red. I cautiously press the skin with my fingertip. It's hotter than her forehead, and she flinches at my touch, whimpering.

“Oh, God...Allie, hang on, okay? I'm gonna clean the wound again...”

I fumble for the first aid kit, pulling out an alcohol pad and a tube of antibiotic cream as I try to swallow my fear and doubt. Keep going, Diego. Just take care of her. Keep her safe.

But she's not safe. We're not safe. And now our situation is worse.

God help us. What are we going to do now?

[crimsonbluemoon]

22 minicat bc im a horrible human being :)

Number: 22Prompt: sweet kisses that turn filthy; hair pulling, biting, butt grabbing, throat grabbing, etc.Pairing: Minicat

Warning: Its a bit smutty

“Are you nervous yet?” Craig’s sickly sweet tone when running his lips across Tyler’s cheek made him snort, trying to ignore the warm hand skimming down his inner thigh. 

“No.” The fingers crept higher on the inseam of his jeans, teasing the sensitive skin under the material. Mini’s mouth refused to stay idle, nibbling down to his jaw before kissing the edge of his mouth. His toes itched to curl in his socks, but Tyler remained motionless, hands gripping the armrests of his beach chair straddled him in. The night had long ago risen to play with the moon and stars, their friends drunk and reckless in the waves. The kindle snapped and burned a few feet from where he sat on the beach, but he refused to get closer and shed light on the game currently being played. Nogla’s loud scream over something Brian threw at him was drowned out by the heat swarming Tyler’s mind when Craig’s thumb brushed just along the edge of his arousal, making his stomach clench in need. 

“How about now?” The words were breathed against his ear. When Tyler didn’t answer, a soft kiss pressed to the lobe, making him shiver when the sensitive skin was sucked between Mini’s lips. 

“Our friend’s are thirty feet away,” Tyler hissed, knowing they’d been left alone on purpose. They probably weren’t coming back. It annoyed him that their friends knew what was going on, but he tilted his head into the sensual affection when Craig’s laugh vibrated the lobe. 

“That make you nervous?” This game was getting old real fast. He knew why Mini played it; neither was dumb enough to think their sexual tension was hidden well, even if the words were never spoken. Their friends assumed they were already dating from how often they hung out, sharing meals and space like they were tied at the hip. His emotions were tangled, the line of frustration always shaded with a hint of love too light to focus on. And in his defense, Craig wasn’t jumping at the bit to admit his feelings, either. Years passed with stifling tension, their fights more fueled by jealousy and insecurity when one tried to walk away or date someone else. It was a path filled with bitterness and longing. Both men were just too stubborn to take the first step past the line they’d clearly drawn. 

But the physical side of their expressions were all too easy to show, which was why Tyler was used to how turned on he got each time Mini’s fingers wandered over the zipper of his jeans. Where words failed them, touches didn’t. This ‘game’, as Mini always called it, had been going on for years; Craig would touch Tyler, would let kisses and half-spoken admissions linger on his skin, until Tyler got ‘nervous’ and pushed him away. Both knew it was never nerves that ended the game; one of them would just get too close to the truth. Even now, with Mini laid over his lap and a hand wedged between their hips, their words meant nothing. Anger that normally didn’t hit him until hours later (when he was in his bed, alone, horny and longing for something he shouldn’t want) crept up through his veins like poison, and his eyes glared up at the sky in silence. Fingers dug into the plastic of the beach chair again, sure he’d break something before the game was over. 

He just didn’t know what.

“Lighten up, Tyler.” The words felt wrong paired with the soft kiss against his forehead, feeling Mini’s free hand slide over his neck to cup his cheek. The touch was too intimate, too heartfelt, and it pushed Tyler closer to calling ‘uncle’ and breaking the moment again. “Shh, it’s okay. It’s just a game; we’re supposed to be having fun together.”

“Shut up.” He growled slowly, tension building in his lower back. His eyes forced themselves shut when Mini’s warm mouth kissed each lid, contradicting the slow grind of hips against his. The lust shot through his stomach like a bullet, but Tyler wanted to press the wound and drown in the feeling. 

“You know what to say if you want me to stop.” Chapped lips slid down the bridge of Tyler’s nose, a peck placed to the tip. Even with his eyes closed, Tyler could feel the smile too warm to be sexy pressed against his skin. A heartbeat of silence stirred between them, a hot puff of air sprawling itself across the skin above Tyler’s mouth. Craig always teased a kiss between them, but Tyler always cut the game off at its knees. He could ignore the touches, the hints of attraction, the soft edge of the petnames. But a kiss…

“I don’t want to stop.” Finally opening his eyes, Tyler forced his intense gaze on Craig, hand snapping up to catch the blond hair before Mini could move away. “Not tonight. Not ever again.”

“Then say what you want.” The words came out weaker than before, but Craig’s body relaxed against him when Tyler pulled him back down. For once, Tyler didn’t hesitate. 

“Fuck this game, I’m done playing it. But I’m not done with you.” He growled the words out, finally stepping clean through the warning tape put up between them. Mini’s mouth met him in the middle with a groan, teeth smacking together from the force both used to get there. Tyler shifted his head and pressed up, their chests bumping while he deepened the kiss. Hands gripped his hair tightly in pleasure, Craig not hesitating to be rough in the exchange. Tyler responded with a bit at the edge of the lips he’d stared at for years, wanting to leave them bruised and tingling from his touch. 

With one hand occupied angling Mini’s head, his other slid down Craig’s back, grabbing his hip and dragging him hard over his lap. Tongues met between their lips while they moved, years of tension and emotion making their motions fluid and synced. The rush was higher than before, feeling Mini’s moans wrapping around each lick of his tongue. A possessive fire rose in him, and he let his hand drift to cup the firm ass and pull him closer. His name was gasped into the heated air between them, but Craig arched into the touch, letting Tyler claim whatever he wanted. And Tyler knew what he’d wanted for years, cursing himself for never saying it before now. 

Feeling Mini’s body tremble in his touch, he knew it was worth the wait.

[codyssfern]

drinks and confessions

synopsis: you reunite with shawn at a party after being broken up

warnings: lots of swearing, some aggression, and a lil bit of angst

word count: 2k+

ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*  *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧ ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*  *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧✧･ﾟ:

“can’t believe you’re forcing me out the apartment tonight.” you say to your best friend, brian, as you two walk down the hall.

“y/n you’ve been in here for weeks!” he exclaims, “weeks, y/n and frankly me and the boys are worried.”

you roll your eyes, “it’s because one of your boys that i’ve spent the last month in hibernation.”

“shawn won’t be there tonight. he’s recording something with teddy at his place SO,” brian stands in front of you and places his hands on the side of your face, “put on a happy face, grab your purse, make sure there’s rubbers in it, and let’s get drunk baby!”

you burst out laughing. brian has always found a way to make you laugh even when all you wanna do is cry.

“rubbers? god you’ve spent way too much time in the america.” you laugh.

this goes on for about 10 more minutes before one of the boys finally picks you guys up. on the way you couldn’t help but feel like you shouldn’t even be going out in the first place, it was one of those gut feelings you got once in a while. even though brian said shawn was busy, you had a feeling he’d show up at the party anyway. you haven’t seen him in 3 months, almost 4 and you didn’t want to see him tonight.

“this place looks familiar.” you say as you get out of the car.

“it’s geoff’s holiday house.” one of the boys say.

you look at brian in disgust, “why are we at his house? he’s rude.”

“i know, i know but we really didn’t have another place to throw the party and one of the boys hit him up and well he said he had a spare house,” you start laughing not believing geoff actually said he had a ‘spare house’ “shut up. i know he’s ridiculous.”

the place was already packed when you went inside. you knew some people from back in high school and some from your first year at uni which surprised you.

“oh my god… lauren is here!” you whisper to brian as you walk pass her and into the kitchen.

brian shrugs his shoulders, “and?”

“she hates my ass! remember when shawn invited us to her prom and she freaked and ‘accidentally’ spilled punch on me?” you ask as you prepared yourself a drink.

brian was so used to you thinking everyone was conspiring against you all he could do was laugh.

“y/n, you think everyone is out to get to you.” he takes a sip of your now finished drink making you whine, “this drink is delicious by the way.” he smiles.

“you owe me one!” you yell at brian as he walks out the kitchen.

you feel a tap on your shoulder making you jump. when you turn around you’re met with some of the boys from earlier.

“i heard geoff has like 4 hundred worth alcohol in this house.”

you scoff, “what? no way.”

you start going through the kitchen cabinets until you find the one filled with alcohol and grab the first bottle you could lay your hands on.

“the mcallan 64,” you mumbled, “worth…$4,250?!”

geoff was so humble, you thought to yourself.

“if i spend $4k on alcohol, it better kill me.” you say making the boys laugh.

and you hoped it at least had some magical effect on you. you only agreed to go out because you were tired of getting drunk by yourself at home. you took the bottle of whiskey to the living room and sat down on the couch.

“y/n what’s up with you and the mendes dude anyway?” nick, from high school and also the dude who used to put garbage in shawn’s locker, happened to the first one to break the ice.

you sighed, “why? what’d you hear?”

“heard he dumped your ass for that other singer girl!” he laughs taking a sip of his beer.

well you certainly weren’t expecting that.

“sort of like you and kelsey right?” you put your hand on his thigh, “you know when she dumped your ass that one time cause shawn invited her on tour and well you know what happens when shawn invites girls on tour…”

nick’s friends started laughing. “bro you said you dumped her!”

nick shrugs his shoulder, “i did!”

“ONLY AFTER MENDES WAS BALLS DEEP INSIDE HER!”

everything happened so fast you didn’t even see when nick stood up and started beating the shit out the guy. you thought this was the perfect time to leave.

about 4 hours passed and you were already feeling drowsy. you also couldn’t find brian anywhere. you asked around and no one had seen him either, he was probably upstairs getting “busy” you still tried and called him. he probably had like 10 missing calls from you. nevertheless you sent him a text.

to: bri craig.

from: stupid y/n :)

dudeeeee i want 2 leave. i’ll be oytside pleasr hurrtgy!

you didn’t even care about the typos. you still pressed send.

“ugh what the fuck!” you yelled as you put your phone back in your pocket.

“someone’s drunk and cranky.”

geoff.

“go away geoff.” you start walking towards the house.

you hear him chuckle from behind, “baby, cmon! don’t walk away from me.”

“dude if you don’t leave me alone i swear i’ll-”

he grabs your arm, “you’ll what?”

“fuck off!” you try pushing him off of you.

by now people are starting to notice and geoff didn’t like that one bit. you kept tried to shift out of his grip but it only got tighterr.

geoff leans into you and says, “you’re too drunk. you need someone to take care of you.”

“she can take care of herself!”

suddenly your body hit the ground and you felt everything around you starting to spin. you hear people cheering and yelling and it made your head throb. but that voice from before, you recognized it.

“y/n?! y/n are you okay?”

you look up to see see brian, you nodded as he helped you up. thinking it was him who pushed geoff of you, you were confused when you saw geoff a few feet away from you still fighting with another boy.

“who’s that?” you squint your eyes.

brian, still with a arm around your waist to hold you up, says, “that’s fucking shawn!”

you were so confused and your head hurt so bad you felt like you could pass out at any moment. soon enough though, some of the boys finally broke off the fight. brian still didn’t let go off you.

“dude what the fuck was that?” brian asks the tall figure that was now walking towards you.

“he was gonna hurt her.”

brian clicks his tongue, “no i mean you! like where the fuck did you come from?”

“i always drive through geoff’s house on the way home and so i thought i’d stop by.”

you were amused as how to they were having a whole conversation with you standing there almost about to collapse.

“god did you get taller?” you ask patting his shawn’s chest and making him laugh.

brian was struggling to keep you up and shawn noticed.

“here,” shawn places an arm around your waist and the other around your shoulders, “i’ll drive her home.”

brian shakes his head no, “i-i i don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“brian… it’s me.”

“i know but you know you’re not exactly her favorite person right now.”

shawn sighs, “i just got punched in the face and ribs for her. i think she can learn to forgive me.”

“you’re bleeding!” you point to shawn’s lip.

brian chuckles as he lets go off you, leaving you in shawn’s grip. “call me when you get her home yeah?”

“course’“ shawn shakes his hand.

once you two start walking to his car or well once he’s dragging to his car you realize what was happening. you hadn’t fully processed the fact your ex-boyfriend just popped up out of nowhere, beat up a guy for you, and was now taking your drunk ass home.

“you know i think,” you start to shift in shawn’s grip, “i can walk home.”

shawn’s grip around your waist got stronger, “and i think you’re just drunk and can barely walk.”

“i can walk!” you blur out and manage to get out of his grip. he was quick though and he held onto your hand.

shawn groaned, “y/n slow down! that’s not the way home.”

in your head you thought it was but of course your head wasn’t properly functioning.

“can you just,” shawn gets in front of you, “get in the car and i’ll take you home yeah?”

you scoff, “aren’t you here to party? go get drunk! cheat on your new girlfriend while your at it! it’s your specialty after all.”

he places his hand on your lips shushing you, “would you shut up?! you don’t know what you’re saying.”

in a matter of seconds you saw everything upside down. took a minute to realized shawn had picked you up on his shoulder. you didn’t even fight it, you were really tired and frankly wanted to leave. you were surprised at how easily he managed to pick you up given that he was just in a fight and was probably bruised all over.

“put your seatbelt on and drink this.” shawn said once you were in the car. he handed you a bottle of water before starting the car.

you winded your eyes at how serious he sounded. you thought that maybe your comment before made him mad.

“i didn’t cheat on you, y/n.”

you look at him. hands gripping the steering wheel and eyes glued to the road. he seemed tensed.

“i don’t know that,” you take a sip of water, “i’ll never know that for sure.”

shawn was trying to think of ways to explain to you why he did what he did. explain to you that his hands have been tied for the past 3 months and that he’s being forced to lie to his family and friends.

“i’m telling you that i didn’t!” he turns to look at you for just a second, “i would never do that. especially to you! i loved you. hell, i still love you.”

you groan. how could he do this? just pop up out of nowhere and tell you that he loves you after being seen with another girl.

“my head hurts shawn and you keep fucking yelling,” you lean your head against the window, “just take me home. i’m tire-”

he cut you off, “it’s a contract okay? a contract that i was manipulated to sign and now i’m fucked! we’re fucked! i lost you.” his voice cracked.

no way. you thought to yourself. shawn would never sign a contract if he knew it wasn’t good for him.

“a contract? like those publicly stunt ones? or whatever their called.”

he chuckled, “a pr contract, yeah. andrew somehow manipulated me few months ago to sign it, he didn’t even let me read it and now i’m stuck.”

you nod your head as you let your brain process what has just been said. shawn never cheated on you and he couldn’t tell you what was going on because he was contractually compromised.

“you didn’t lose me.” you say under your breath.

shawn hums, “what?”

“me. you didn’t lose me. you never did,” you look at him, “as you can see i’m in car with you, letting you take me home when i’m supposed to be furious at you so no. you haven’t lost me.”

once you arrive at your place you beg him to come in so you could clean the cuts on his face and put ice on his bruises. takes him a while to say yes actually. he’s always given you space when you’re drunk, he used to put you to bed and then proceed to sleep on the couch.

“okay just keep it pressed on there lightly,” you instruct him as you let him hold the ice pack on his bruised ribcage, “don’t be rough or it’ll hurt.” you warn.

as you leave shawn on your bed and go look for disinfectant spray in your bathroom, he starts looking around the familiar place. chuckling as he sees the picture of the two of you at graduation on your nightstand.

“now i’m warning you,” you start as you walk back in the room, “i’m still a bit tipsy but this isn’t the first time i’ve cleaned your cuts while i have alcohol in my system.”

shawn laughs, “i got in a lot of fights back high school didn’t i?”

“thanks to geoff!” you defend, “don’t know why the fuck you even tried to be his friend to be honest.”

shawn groans as you kneel down and pressed down on his bruised thighs. you mumbled a soft “sorry” as you positioned yourself in front of him. you took the ice pack from him and placed it on the nightstand.

“you’re all good.” he smiles and leans in to your touch as you start taking care of his bruised lip.

the cuts weren’t as bad as you thought. the worst one was his lip, it was split and didn’t stop bleeding even when you spent like 2 minutes on it.

“did you mean what you said?” you break the silence.

he raises an eyebrow at you, “where?”

“in the car when you said you still loved me.”

you stood up and made your way to the bathroom.

“of course i did,” he followed behind, “i’ve loved you since i gave you that stupid car on your forehead.”

you shake your head and laugh, “oh no you haven’t!”

“i so have. you can ask literally anybody that knew us back then! ask my mom even.” he says as he sits on the bathroom counter.

you stand there looking at him. not understanding how even with a bruised lip and bruised abs eye he still looked handsome. it was almost annoying.

“are you gonna keep staring or are you gonna come over here and kiss me?”

you slowly made your way to him and placed your arms around his neck. “not sure it’s safe for me to kiss you with that bruised lip.”

“i don’t care.” he whispers before leaning in and leaving a soft yet passionate kiss on your lips. “i’ve missed you.” he admits.

you nod, “i can tell.” he tilts his head back making you laugh, “i’m joking! i’ve missed you too.”

he leans into your touch as you caress the side of his face. you really have missed him.

“let’s go to bed yeah?” you say softly.

he smiles, “let’s.”

[uniqueleewritten]

B is for Battlefield

This one is a bit longer (a little bit late but shh) but it’s a fun one! Hope you give it a read through!

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"Hey, Ellie?" Lil called out as they were walking into their kitchen.

"Hi, Lil, what's up?" Ellie asked as she put another bowl into the dishwasher.

"Wondering if I can help you."

Ellie looked out at the others sitting around Lil's living room table, yelling at the board game.

"Had enough of that?" She asked pointing to the chaos.

Lil didn't even bother nodding, they just continued to stare at Ellie who eventually smiled in return.

"Well, you can help me decorate because that's the last thing to do at this point."

"I'm not good at cake decorating."

"You don't need to be with the yule log actually. Wash your hands real quick and then you can help."

Lil quickly did as they were told and then stood next to Ellie, grateful to be in the room with the person closest to them in height. They for once didn't have to look up when she was talking.

"Ok, so the cake and the ganache are both cool enough to work with now, so you just need to slap it on top and then use this offset spatula to spread it around, ok."

Lil took the spatula, once again amazed that such a thing existed, and then did as Ellie said. Ellie smiled at them before going to the refrigerator and grabbing the tupperware bowl of meringue mushrooms she had made earlier in the day. She set it down on the island next to Lil before grabbing the small bowl she used for melting chocolate.

The melted mixed chocolate would be amazing with the decadence of the meringue. The milk chocolate would add a touch of sweetness to compliment the high percentage dark chocolate pieces, keeping it all from being overly sweet. Something everyone but Lil would notice.

"What are these?" Lil asked holding a white meringue cap in their fingers.

"Meringue mushroom. Or they will be once I put them together anyway."

"Both?"

"Yep, I made normal meringue and chocolate meringue for it. I like the look of both together, makes them look more like mushroom clusters to me."

Lil didn't say anything and instead just stood, waiting for Ellie to give them more instruction. She handed a fork over before pulling her melted chocolate from the microwave and sitting across from Lil at the island.

"Ok, now you just take the fork and make a bunch of lines thru the frosting. Then we have bark on the log."

Lil made an affirmative noise before doing as they were told. Ellie quickly worked thru the meringue mushrooms, attaching the stems to caps with a bit of the chocolate and setting them aside. Soon the two were done and then they went about adding the mushrooms to various spots on the log.

"This looks good," Lil said when they were done.

"It does. Now we just add a few cherries and raspberries and then a bit of powdered sugar on top and it's finished. It will probably need to cool in the fridge for a bit before-"

"FUCK YOUR MONOPOLY!"

Ellie and Lil turned to look at Melvin beginning his tirade, Maya sitting there looking smug. Why anyone went with her idea to play Bankrupt or Billionaire, no one knew but Melvin sure was suffering from the sounds of it.

"Well, let's finish decorating before Maya's fat head knocks your condo down 3 floors."

"I hear the ground floor units have cheaper rent anyway." Lil joked in response.

Ellie snickered at the remark before starting to pour some powdered sugar into the sugar shaker. Lil grabbed the container of bright red fruit from the fridge and handed it over. Working together they easily decorated the cake, Lil placed cherries underneath some of the mushroom clusters while Ellie had placed a few raspberries along the bottom.

Ellie then showed Lil how to put the powdered sugar on top with a shaker. They told her that their parents had always used the mesh strainer to do this part and was a little amazed at the shaker. Lil was constantly surprised at the gadgets that existed to help around the kitchen.

Altogether the yule log looked amazing and Lil salivated at the thought of getting a slice.

"NO FUCKING WAY!"

"THAT'S WHAT YOU GET, YOU FUCKING WHORE!"

"Say it again you little bitch! I'll knock you so hard you might get smart."

"You wanna go?"

"KNOCK! It off you two!" Sheb yelled and then lowered her voice. Most likely trying to get their attention without causing any more noise, for all the good it did her.

Ellie shook her head before turning back to Lil who was doing much the same. They shared a laugh before putting the cake in the freezer to chill for a while.

"Now we do the cleanup and by the time we're done it should be set."

"Cool."

The two listened to the incessant yelling of the others, Melvin and Maya ranting at each other, Sheb yelling at them to calm down and Delphon yelling at Melvin for trying to jump over the table. The normal sounds of family board game night when Maya was allowed to pick the game.

If the games didn't end with Lil winning with skill, or Delphon winning out of luck, then Maya won out of a slow and agonizing torture spree that drove the others to dramatic deaths.

It didn't take long for Lil and Ellie to clean up everything as they worked together. Ellie rinsed the bowls out, giving the melted chocolate one a quick scrub, before stacking them into the dishwasher. While Lil cleaned off the island and wiped the countertops down before getting out the plates and silverware.

"Game up!" Lil called, from the safety of the kitchen still. They hoped the others would at least put the board game away. Maybe they would all have to eat their cake around the pieces and possibly bloodshed if Melvin got out of Delphon's grip.

Ellie set the knife on the counter and told Lil to come back in for it after they set the plates down. She would bring in the cake after she took pictures of it for her social media. She quickly snapped a few, listening to Lil kick the game off the table so they could put the plates down, before grabbing the tray. Lil passed her as they came back into the kitchen, careful not to bump into the tray she was holding.

Sheb was in the games cabinet, most likely putting the game up while Delphon was sitting on the couch, looking far more exhausted than Ellie had ever seen before. Maya and Melvin were standing, arguing about who the real winner was in light of the game ending early.

"I was the winner, you wannabe punk, get over it," Maya said, giving him a push.

Melvin gave a push back, not seeing Delphon's legs were right behind Maya and Ellie knew what would happen before she could stop it. She twisted somewhat, hoping the cake would survive but as Maya fell back on top of her, Delphon reaching out to catch her and Melvin staring in shock, she knew the yule log was done for.

The two hit the floor with a thud and the cake hit the carpet with a splat.

"Oh my god, are you two ok?" Melvin asked as Delphon moved to pull Maya up.

"Yeah, I'm ok." She told them, letting Delphon manhandle her over to the sofa. "Ellie, you ok?"

When Ellie didn't answer Delphon quickly knelt down and looked to see if she was ok, constantly calling her name. Ellie laid there on Lil's plush carpet just staring at the remains of her hard work. The last 4 and a half hours of her life sat in a mess all along the carpet.

"Oh shit," Melvin said when he noticed.

"Come on Ellie, let's get you up," Delphon said, all but picking her up like a parent does a sleeping child, before setting her down on the couch near Maya.

"Well, that's bad," Sheb said, a bit of worry in her voice.

"You're telling me," Melvin grumbled, running a hand through his hair. "I hate cleaning Lil's carpet."

"I meant Lil, actually," Sheb whispered fearfully.

Everyone but Ellie turned to look at the kitchen's archway and saw Lil standing there, the large cake knife in their hand.

"Oh fuck."

"Lillen, let's put the knife back down," Del said, slowly approaching them. Hoping to convince them with his words or stop them from using it in the worst-case scenario.

Maya stood and walked behind him, trying to apologize while also using Del as a shield between her and Lil. She told them that she would go out right now and buy whatever dessert Lil wanted, as an apology and a replacement. Hearing those words made Ellie see red.

How dare Maya think she could just replace 4 hours of work! How dare she think any other dessert would be comparable to her fantastic if not damn near perfect brandy yule log! How dare she think she could just replace the fucking meringue mushrooms!

Before she could stop herself, Ellie grabbed one of the large and decorative throw pillows and hit Maya in the head as hard as she could, sending the other woman falling to the couch with a shout. Before Maya could say anything Ellie was beating her with the pillow, repeatedly hitting her and hitting her and hitting her. Maya all the while yelling at her to stop.

"That fucking hurts!"

"Well, it should! I spent 4 hours on that cake Maya Thornridge! 4 hours!"

"I'm sorry!"

"I used good brandy in that cake damnit! And now it's sitting on the fucking floor!"

Ellie ignored Maya's pleas and instead heard Melvin chuckling behind her. She swiftly swung around and hit him in the face as well, sending him tumbling back into a chair with a thud and an oof. He quickly raised his arms to protect himself from her onslaught of pillow pummeling, not even bothering to try and apologize.

"Don't you dare fucking laugh at her Melvin Craig! You're the one who pushed her! I don't care if she pushed you first! You pushed her on top of me and we lost 4 hours of fucking work and the good brandy I put in there and the good chocolate I used for the ganache and I bought real actual cherries to go on top and you! pushed! her!"

She punctuated her last words with particularly hard swings before running out of steam. Her arms hung low as she panted, her chest and shoulders heaving with each breath she took before she simply let the pillow go. It dropped atop the plates and silverware forgotten on the table, making a loud clacking noise as they bumped each other around. Ellie fell back onto the couch, the fight completely out of her.

Everyone looked at her in silence, amazed that so much anger had come from her when before they had barely heard her yell at someone, let alone pummel them with a pillow.

Lil looked at the knife in their hand before shrugging and turning around. "Guess we don't need this anymore."

[balfecaitriona]

CHAPTER UPDATE! Hello! It’s been quite a long time since I last updated this story and I just want to apologise for the long wait, I hope not to take so long again but life happens! I have a good idea where I’m going with the next few chapters and I’m very excited to continue. I just want to thank everyone who’s stuck by me with the story and the lovely words I’ve received about it, I really appreciate it everyone of you and I hope you enjoy this long awaited update!

CHAPTER NINE | END OF THE WAR

ARCHIVE OF OUR OWN

FANFICTION

CHAPTER SUMMARY:

The war is finally over and Claire's feelings only deepen for Jamie.

PAIRING: Claire x Jamie. RATING: Mature. WORD COUNT: 2832.

CHAPTER NINE

END OF THE WAR

The past few days felt like a dream. Claire had now invited a full, six-foot tall Scotsman to live with her and she didn't give a damn what anyone had to say about it. She was never before so impulsive, but she wondered if in fact it was the war making her behave so, that no one could perceive just how long they had left and it was better to grab life with both hands and enjoy every second of it than spend her time worrying with regret.

Frank was gone, lost to the battlements of war and while that had been a rather difficult pill to swallow, the fact that Jamie remained by her side was not. At first she had felt so terribly guilty, every time she caught a glimpse of the shimmering gold band on her finger. What if Frank had returned? Could she have allowed Jamie to leave her life so easily? Or perhaps she would have never allowed her feelings to deepen so quickly. But every time she had the same horrid thought that made the pit of her stomach feel heavy with guilt, she remembered the night she had taken Jamie to the Craig Na Dunn and what she had felt in the car, the thought of losing him forever to the past and the feeling in her stomach settled. She had never felt that way for Frank, even as he boarded the train for war.

Claire was moved from thought the moment Jamie entered the living room and found her at her writing desk. Her face immediately softened and she grinned at the sight of him, and the warmness that filled her belly knowing he had no intention of leaving her now.

"There ye are sassenach..." Jamie said carefully, trying to juggle two cups of tea. The fine bone china looked so awkward and delicate in his enormous hands.

He set the tea down on the desk, some of the contents swishing from the cup, leaving splatters on the dark mahogany.

"I think I got it right... two sugars?" He raised a brow, and Claire nodded with a toothy grin that turned into a laugh, her eyes warm and besotted with him.

Jamie sat on the edge of the armchair, bringing the cup to his mouth and swallowing half the contents in one sure gulp.

"I dinna ken how ye can drink this stuff, sassenach..." He glanced down at the cup with furrowed brows. "The English always did confuse me..."

Claire let an airy laugh leave her before she brought her own cup to her mouth and almost spat the contents out at the bitter taste that stung her tongue. She made a face akin to a vomiting baby.

"No wonder... What on earth have you put in this?" Claire said with disgust, setting the tea down to go and investigate in the kitchen.

"Well I boiled the water, and let it stew with the tea bag in the pot like ye said..." Jamie was quick to defend, getting up to follow her, his eyes sheepish like a scolded dog.

"Then why does it taste so vile, it's definitely not supposed to taste like that..." Claire said, looking around at the rather messy worktops. Jamie always did have the impression of a bull in a china shop. This kitchen was much too small for him, and even though she didn't mind doing the domesticated things, Jamie insisted that he make the tea today, and she soon realised it was something he had never done before.

"Then I just added the sugar... See?" Jamie said, and Claire realised he was holding a small salt shaker in his hand, to which she began to laugh, much to his dismay.

"That's not sugar!" She made to take the shaker off him. "It's salt!"

"Oh..." Jamie scratched his head, his cheeks flushing a bright pink. "I thought the S stood for sugar."

"No, the sugar's over here..." Claire proceeded to pull a little blue tin from her cupboard, and sure enough, inside where the dazzling sparkles of sugar grains.

"Go and sit down, I'll make us a proper cup of tea." Claire shooed him from the tiny kitchen as Jamie sat down in the chair by the desk and pawed through one of the books that sat there.

"Ah well... I suppose I'll stick to what I know in future." Jamie said, with a defeated sigh, but there was humour in his tone.

"I appreciate the offer!" Claire said, laughing to herself as the kettle boiled. She moved to lean on the door frame, arms folded, looking at Jamie lovingly, as though he were a small child who'd tried their best.

"I don't think tea-"

There was an almighty crash that broke Claire's sentence. The sound of loud cheering and banging outside. Jamie's head turned to look toward the window to see a crowd forming, moving steadily down the hill outside.

"What are earth is going on..." Claire exclaimed, running to open the front door, Jamie right behind her.

On the street there was a great buzz of people chattering and laughing, Claire felt a little relief to understand nothing terrible had obviously happened but she was still curious.

Front doors lay wide up, people where crying, shouting and cheering. Strangers grabbing each other in tight embraces, throwing their heads back in euphoric laughter. Claire and Jamie merely stood at the doorway watching, more confused than ever before.

"It's over!" Shouted a red haired woman, leaning over Claire's gate. Her hair was in rollers, kept in place by a hairnet. She looked as if she might jump over the gate altogether with glee. "The war! It's finally over! The Germans surrendered!" She cried, before she moved along to join the crowd of happy people.

Claire couldn't quite understand what she was hearing. It didn't seem to hit her as violently as she thought it would. All those years, cooped up alone in the wards of the hospital, she imagined a day where all of the fighting might stop and how she might feel.

She gasped loudly, her face breaking out into a smile. It was finally over. She looked up at Jamie, who still seemed confused but smiled back at her nonetheless, catching her infectious happiness.

"Oh Jamie..." She whispered, the words seemed to flutter out of her in an airy laugh. Over five years this war had slogged on, and many began doubting if it would ever end at all. But it had. It was now. It was over.

Claire threw her arms about Jamie's neck, feeling lighter than she had in years. It was like a wash of relief ran through her body, assuring her that now everything would be all right. The dark gloomy clouds that refused to let her look to the future where vanishing and the world seemed lovely again, and for the first time in a long time, she was happy merely to be alive, but most of all to have Jamie here to share it with.

Jamie patted her back, leaning in to smell the sweetness of her hair. Although he had not been here long to see the full affects of war, he had been here long enough to see how awful it was, unlike any war he had ever known. And like any war, the relief and happiness felt when it had ended were the same, no matter the century.

"Aye Claire..." He muttered back into her hair. "The fighting is done." Was all he could manage to say. Jamie understood what this meant to her. He had watched her exhausted form drag out of bed every morning and sludge back home every night. Now, it was done, there was light at the end of the tunnel at last.

Claire pulled herself from him, laughter leaving her lips as she turned to walk up the garden path but not before she made to grab Jamie's hand, taking her with him. They left the little yard and ventured out into the joyous crowds. Immediately someone thrust a bottle of champagne into her hand and she made to gulp it, long and hard before thrusting it into Jamie's chest.

He too took a generous swallow, but not before making a face of bitterness as the fizz stung his nose. "Aye it's no whisky, sassenach..." He remarked, but Claire was too enthralled about what was going on around her to take notice.

People where hanging out of open windows, children skipped around their feet with little Union Jack flags in their hands, waving them and laughing ceremoniously. Someone was blasting the delightful tunes of Glenn Miller's 'In the Mood' on a radio to the crowd. Strangers hugged strangers and people had erected tables with food and drink that seemed to appear from nowhere. And Jamie and Claire where in the middle of it all, a celebration not to be forgotten. The war was finally at an end.

***

Some hours had passed, day had turned to night and the party didn't seem to end. People were growing merrier on the copious amounts of alcohol being supplied. Merchants left their shops to join the celebrations and all in all, the good atmosphere was infectious. Winston Churchill had announced the end of the war in Europe, and for once Claire could feel weightless and happy again, even if deep down her heart did sink for Frank, who had never lived to see this day come to pass.

"Aye... War doesn't seem to change in the passing of the centuries." Jamie seemed to conclude after a long moment of thought, he had spent a great deal of time just watching people. "At least the celebrating a victory is verra much the same." He commented to Claire who had now lost count of the drinks she had consumed.

"I was beginning to think this war would never end." Claire replied, taking a swig of whisky, no longer did she wince at the sour taste and the burn it left in her throat that made her want to gag, she had grown used to it's flavour now.

"I think ye've had enough lass..." Jamie tried to say, moving to attempt to try and pry the glass from her hand, but Claire tugged it away before he could get it.

They had found themselves sitting on bar stools in one of the numerous crowded bars in Edinburgh. The sound of people laughing and singing merry songs was music to Claire's ears, it had been so long since people were so happy and carefree and Claire wanted to revel in it while it lasted.

"Don't start." Claire said, rolling her eyes. Although she couldn't deny the slur in her words and the fact that the room seemed to be spinning. She attempted closing one eye to see Jamie clearly. His red head was fuzzy in her vision but there was no denying it was him.

"Aye I've seen that look before, sassenach and it usually means it's bedtime." Jamie said with a smirk, moving to pull the glass from her grasp this time and downing it's contents himself. The Scottish had a reputation for being able to handle their drink remarkably well, and Jamie was no exception.

"How dare you!" Claire scowled in an exaggerated rage, irked that Jamie thought to do such a thing. "Don't you dare tell me what to do!" She slurred. "If I want to sit here and drink until daylight then I fucking will!"

"Aye, sassenach." Jamie said carelessly, ignoring her words. Every time he made to try and direct Claire from the pub to take her home, she would dart away. That was until Jamie managed to grab her, and he lifted her tall, slender form with ease and slung her over his shoulder.

"Put me down!" Claire started shouting, kicking her legs and wriggling. "Put me down you god damn bloody bastard!"

Jamie merely laughed, as did the many other people he passed along the way as he brought a very drunk Claire home to her bed.

***

"Here we are..." Jamie said finally, slumping Claire down outside her garden gate. He had came to know the area well enough to be able to get to Claire's house and back. "In ye go." He directed her, the front door still wide open from before.

"No!" Claire replied like a defiant child, head spinning from the alcohol but she refused to take orders from Jamie.

"Aye ye will, or I'll lift ye again." Jamie replied calmly, folding his arms and looking at her with a smile at how she was behaving. He had never seen her mad with drink before, her hair seemed to stick out in a fuzz that made her resemble an irked hedgehog.

Claire made to walk away, but staggered and fell. It was then an almighty laugh left her lips. The anger at last had seemed to leave her, and now the infectious giggling set in.

"Come on... Ye bloody fool." Jamie laughed, grabbing her and lifting her up. This time she gave in and held her arms around his neck, like a tired child being carried to bed. Giving in to the defeat, too lethargic to want to argue or fight back. Suddenly, a warm cosy bed seemed to sound heavenly.

Jamie set her down the on the bed and she lay back, hair askew and laughed some more, it was breathy and easy and he knew the tired groans of sleep where not far off.

"I take it ye had a good day then sassenach..." Jamie whispered, a toothy grin on his lips as the answer seemed obvious.

"Wonderful!" Claire replied with a loud sigh, stretching her arms out on the bed. It had been a very long time since she was able to let her hair down and enjoy herself without any fear at the back of her mind or stress from her constant shifts at work. Work hadn't even entered her mind today, but she would deal with the repercussions tomorrow, the thought of now made her head spin again.

"I'll bid ye goodnight then Claire." Jamie said, making Claire sit up in sudden alarm to see him leaving the room.

"Don't be silly..." She groaned, outstretching an arm. "Sleep here." She patted the quilt beside her.

"I'm fine with the sofa, still." Jamie replied, but seen Claire was defiant again. She had rose from the bed to move to grab him in the dark, suddenly being without him seemed truly unthinkable.

Her hands moved to grab his stubbled chin, forcing his lips against hers. For a moment, Jamie gave in and moved his lips against her own, but he soon knew this was a different kind of kiss, and one she had not given before. Without realising, Jamie was being pulled back to the bed. Claire's nimble fingers moved down his shirt, never before did buttons seem to irksome as her hands struggled awkwardly trying to remove his clothes.

A gentle grasp from Jamie made her drunken recklessness stop for a moment, but only to protest. Jamie seemed to know where this was leading, but Claire had a desperate longing for him, as he had all along, but the alcohol had only seemed to heighten it. She had to have him now. The flame within her would not be silence by his honeyed words.

"No sassenach..." Jamie whispered, moving to push her eager hands away.

"But I want you..." She muttered back against his lips with impatience, her forehead touching his.

Jamie smelt the strong stench of whisky on her breath, and although he fought with himself for rejecting her like this, he knew her head would perhaps ache with regret all the more tomorrow if he allowed her to explore her passions. He could not have her like this, until he knew that is what she wanted, with a sober mind.

"Yer drunk out yer mind Claire..." Jamie replied almost sorrowfully. He didn't want her to think he didn't want her, it was quite the opposite.

"I'm not!" She said with a defiance, though there was a rueful whine in her voice that knew it to be true.

"I want ye Claire..." Jamie whispered, wanting her to know how true it was. "But I canna have ye like this..."

Claire seemed to understand then. For a moment the drunkenness seemed to vanish, and she felt open and ashamed. She moved back on the bed, clutching the top of her dress with a shy embarrassment, her face looking as though she might burst into tears at any moment.

Instead of saying anything more, she lay down on the bed, curled up like a kitten and Jamie felt his heart ache for her.

"Sassenach..." Was all he could muster, opening his mouth to say more but nothing would come out.

"Goodnight Jamie." She whispered with a tired sigh, and Jamie took his leave to the cold sofa downstairs.