#like we joke (''joke'') about her becoming their marriage counselor but she says ''boys'' because THEY'RE FAMILY. I'm not okay

[deancasforcutie]

stuff I notice on rewatch and break my own heart all over again

[springday-aus]

SVT’s Jeonghan: Love, War and Everything Between || part one

—

Fic Piece Written by: Admin Grandma of @springday-aus​

Moodboard Link: Created by Admin Grandpa

Character Pairing: Y/N [fem. reader] and Seventeen’s Yoon Jeonghan

Other Characters: Nu’est’s Baekho [known as Dongho], Seventeen [Seungcheol and Jisoo, along with idiot squad!Soonyoung, Seokmin, and Seungkwan], and more to be added along the way!

Genre: historical, romance, drama, royal!au, arranged marriage!au + gender role reversal 

None of this is even remotely historically accurate. This is all purely fiction!

Type: series 

prologue || part 01 || part 02 || part 03 → to be available! check the progress on our upcoming page! 

Word Count: approx. 2.6k 

Plot Summary: Korea’s most distinguished military general arrives home, carrying back glory and honor from the war. However, the general has been revealed to be a woman! Due to the prominent military accomplishments you have made as the highest ranking general, by orders of the Empress, you are arranged to be married to the second-eldest prince, Yoon Jeonghan. Only one problem lies between you two: your reputation as a ruthless killing machine, which scares the living daylights out of your new husband. 

→ Inspired by: the Chinese drama, Oh My General (also known as The General Above I Am Below)

Warnings: graphic violence, glorified war, murder, sexual harassment, sex discrimination (mainly against women), poly-relationships (i.e. concubines), political corruption, and homosexual tendencies

It had taken six months for the final battle to commence, and three full years of ruthless war, before they finally conceded. Needless to say, the new recruits were lucky to be under your jurisdiction. Had they not, the body count would have been much higher. 

Your grip tightens on the rein of your horse, feeling the guilt and anguish wash over you once more of those who have fallen. While it is inevitable to lose soldiers in war, it doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt any less. 

You take a small breath in, calming yourself once more and settling back into the reality. 

The war had begun in the fall, whereas now, it is well into the summer season. You close your eyes, feeling the sun shine warmly on your skin. Taking another breath in, you open your eyes once more to take in the sights. 

White butterflies dance over the grass, teasing flowers as they move along. The flowers are in full bloom; even the dirt path, which was once wet and muddy, has patches of grass that pop out from the cracks. While you have traveled to many areas, you were never able to take in the sights—well, at least, the less violent ones. 

Ah, war. Politicians may declare war as much as they please, but they have yet to have seen how it destroys the average person—even a general as distinguished as yourself. 

“General?” 

“Yes,” you say. “What’s wrong, Dongho?” 

You don’t look back at him, but you can hear his horse’s footsteps catch up to yours—slowing down to remain a couple of paces behind. 

“How are you feeling?” he asks. 

You smile to yourself. “Rather sentimental.” You turn to him. “When was the last time we ever allowed ourselves to take in nature like this?” 

His smile reflects yours. “I believe it was the last time we had been called to fulfill our duty.” 

You click your tongue, with a disapproved shake of your head. “We need to go on these outings more often.” 

“Well,” Dongho starts. “It’s hard to go on leisurely walks as one of the nation’s most notable figures.” 

“And this is why you’re my second-in-command.” You let out another sigh, a bit longer than the previous one. “It’s hard to roam around with such a large target on your back.” 

“In hindsight, you are very skilled in many areas. Whether it’s swordsmanship, archery, or taekkyon, only a suicidal fool would challenge you.” 

“A suicidal fool, such as yourself?” 

“Yes, General,” he says with a chuckle. “I’m a suicidal fool, who has yet to have learned his lesson.” 

Dongho has been by your side for as long as you can remember. The two of you lived as neighbors, and evidently best friends, for ten years. When your father and brothers died, there was a brief separation period until you turned fourteen—in which you had met again, when you were starting your military training on request of your grandfather. 

Since then, you two trained together, side-by-side in combat for the next twelve years. You rose the ranks together—you as the General and he as the military counselor. 

You hear a groan from your left side. “Are we there yet?” 

“Kim Jisoo,” you call. “You should know by now how long these journeys are.” 

Your bodyguard playfully scowls at you. “Pardon me for being used to having company on these trips.” 

From beside her, Namjoo, your other bodyguard, directs a punch to her sister’s arm. “You speak as if I’m dead.” She makes eye contact with you, before rolling her eyes at her sisters antics. “Father would be upset had he heard your inauspicious words.” 

Lieutenant Kim worked alongside your father and you’re lucky enough to have him by yours as well. He’s like another family member—practically a close uncle, who is more than aware of your peculiar situation. Along with Lieutenant Kim came his two daughters, Jisoo and Namjoo.

Because he spent all of his time in the military, so did they. They learned as he taught and trained the other soldiers, including yourself and Dongho. Then, when the time came, you gave the both of them the bodyguard positions.

Of course there was protest, especially from their male counterparts who wanted their positions. While the Kims had a good laugh, there were also rumors that spread on your part—you had become known as a playboy, who became desperate for female attention while serving in the military.

Eventually, those rumors had been shut down, considering how your military contributions outweighed the gossip that spread due to envious soldiers. Your status easily overpowered theirs (lack thereof) and you dealt with them... accordingly. 

(No one died, but it didn’t mean you didn’t cause some emotional trauma for them. You were nicknamed the Devil for a reason).

But, alas, this is also the root of your predicament. 

“You aren’t the company I was referring to,” Jisoo says. 

“If you’re referring to those pretty boys back at the capitol,” Namjoo says. “You might as well be the dead one.” 

You chuckle at their banter. Jisoo is right (although you would never tell her): it would be nice to have a pretty boy by your side. But, with the current conditions, you know it would only be difficult for him. 

Granted, this would be made a burdensome situation for you as well—the only difference being that you’re made of the tougher materials in life and will not hesitate to kill a man when crossed against. 

Their banter fades into the background, with Dongho attempting to separate the two before the duo of sisters suddenly becomes solo. 

You look up at the bright and clear sky once more, enjoying the moment of peace before the storm strikes. 

It’s been about three days before you determined a stopping point, in order to set up camp for the evening. Your soldiers have been on rotation since then; you figure that they should get a well-needed break. 

You smirk to yourself. The joke’s on them, considering how the lower ranks are the ones who actually set up: the tents, the cots, the fires. 

The sun has already set for the day; the moon shines brightly and the stars twinkle against the evening sky. It’s truly the countryside; in the city, you don’t get sights like these. Too much pollution and such. It only means you and your soldiers still have a long road back to the capitol. 

A long sigh escapes you as you stand outside your tent—naturally, with Namjoo on one side and Jisoo on the other. 

“What’s wrong, General?” Namjoo asks. 

Jisoo turns to you. “Is something bothering you?” 

You let out another sigh. “It’s less of a bother and more of a concern.” 

“What kinds of concerns?” Jisoo asks. “Could we be of any help to you?” 

“Considering we are your protectors,” Namjoo adds with a pointed look. 

“And your best friends,” Jisoo says. 

“Female best friends.” 

You crack a small smile—one that rarely showed during this period. “When do you think…” Your words trail off, trying to find the correct words. “When do you think this charade should be over and done with?” 

Namjoo blinks wordlessly, not seeming to understand your question. 

“What do you mean, General?” Jisoo asks. “Are you referring to…? Possibly…?” 

“When can I fully become (Y/N) rather than just a general?”

“You’re not just a general,” Namjoo says. “You have risen up to become the General. The one who serves and protects your kingdom best.” 

“It’s not that I’m dissatisfied with my accomplishments. I’m proud of them, but I would prefer them to be my own rather than the son of the (Y/L/N) family.” You laugh inwardly at your own words. 

Son. What a joke. 

You did what you’ve had to, but, what was the real cost? The countless men you have killed? The women and children who were left with no one to care for them in this patriarchal society? 

What about your own life? What would life had been like, had your father and brothers not been killed? Would you have been married off to a family as well? Or would you still be in the military, serving with the other soldiers like now? 

There’s a moment of silence and the two struggle to find their words—whereas you’re left again to your own thoughts. 

It’s Jisoo who speaks first. “I want to tell you it would all be okay and things would remain the same.”

“But?” 

“But it won’t.” She tilts her head up, the stars shimmering in her eyes. “Things will be hard and things will be difficult. And, whenever you make that decision, we’ll be right here by your side.” 

Namjoo elbows you with a mischievous smile. “Just as we have always done. We pride yourselves as your protector.” 

Your smile grows. “That’s a relief to hear.” You turn away from them, taking a step back to push back the fabric of your tent to take a step in. “It’s too late to back out anyways.” 

“Too late for what, General?” Jisoo asks. 

Your head turns to her and your smile doesn’t waver. “The letter has already been sent.”

“Your majesty,” the Vice Premier says. “What do you advise us to do now?” 

The King sits at this throne, setting down the newly passed message from General (Y/L/N)—only to come in view with the court. 

While he may not be downright angry, he is well aware of how the court may feel. He is also unsure of what will result in his best military general, especially since the war is not exactly over and done with—considering how King Wu may still hold resentments due to the aftermath. 

He glances at the letter once again, feeling his head throb. Why did you have to choose now of all times? 

Just moments ago, the second messenger from your troops arrived—announcing his arrival and reading the letter aloud for the rest of the court to hear. Upon the King’s request, he had left the letter to the King, still in shock with the present state of affairs. 

General (Y/L/N) is a woman. 

“Your majesty,” Official Chun says, stepping out from his spot. 

“Accepted, proceed.” 

“It is unacceptable for a woman to be of such a high position, nevertheless a man’s rightful position. I propose we remove and replace the General.” 

Official Lee steps out. “Your majesty.” 

“Accepted, proceed.” 

“If I may remind some of us here that we are forever indebted to the General. We continue to be so, considering the current circumstances. While he—” He pauses, before correcting himself. “While she may be a woman, she is of the (Y/L/N) family. Not only have they been loyal to the throne, serving our country for many years, they have made many great sacrifices.” 

“Your majesty,” Official Kwon says. 

“Accepted, proceed.” 

“Official Lee is correct. We cannot just remove the General.” He pauses, not before glancing at Official Chun and his followers. “The war might be over but we still have to be alert. Allowing her removal is the equivalent of death for our country.” 

Sensing Chun’s anger from the indirect remarks, Official Mae steps out. “Your majesty.” 

“Accepted, proceed.” 

“General (Y/L/N) is a woman. A woman with too much power shall be the root our demise.” He glances at the other side, spotting those behind the Vice Premier. “She must be put into her place before she gets too ambitious.” 

Official Song steps out. “Your majesty.” 

“Accepted, proceed.” 

“From what we are aware, the (Y/L/N) family does not have any male heirs. Considering the circumstances, we cannot afford to replace her when there are still repercussions of the war to be settled.” 

“Your majesty,” Official Chun starts to say. 

However, the King puts his hand up, pausing the conversation from continuing any further. He has already made his decision: you were to keep your position. Your accomplishments have stacked up, leaving the entire country indebted to you and your trained troops. Your reputation in the military is the most impressive—no one can be compared to you. 

Although, it might be too unsettling for the officials for you to remain in your position. There must be some punishment—some kind of way to appease the court while you can still maintain your position, but not harsh enough for you to refute. 

“General (Y/L/N) is to keep her position,” the King announces. He continues, shutting down any more possible verbal opposition. “Our country is indebted to the General. She has obtained previous territories that have been lost in previous battles and she has won countless wars, including the one we have just won. Replacing her would only lead to our doom and, even then, we have no suitable replacement.” 

Official Jeong steps out. “Your majesty.” 

“Accepted, proceed.”

“I believe that’s a wise decision, as expected from our King.” He swallows apprehensively. “However, we cannot leave her be. After all, she has deceived us—including you. What shall we do with her then?” 

The officials murmur and whispers are passed around. Removal is too drastic for the King, therefore an execution is already off the table. No one seems to have any ideas of a possible punishment. 

That is, anyone from the court. 

While the officials scramble for an idea, the Empress’ eunuch, Eunuch Hak, shuffles himself from her side to the King’s throne. 

There’s a hush that falls over the court officials. 

“The Empress requests an audience,” Eunuch Hak whispers to the King. 

“Accepted.” 

From behind her golden curtain, the Empress lifts herself from her spot and gracefully walks towards the court. Her head is held high with elegance and her footsteps are light—almost as if she’s gliding. The officials bow their heads as she walks between them, no one daring to look up at her. 

She stops in front of the throne, smiling as she looks up at the King. 

“Mother,” he says. “How do you suppose we deal with this predicament?”

“I am proposing a marriage.” 

The whispers start up again, unsure of what the Empress is trying to plan. 

“Your highness,” Official Kwon says. “To whom do you think the General shall be married to?” 

Her smile grows. “I believe that the second nephew is the most suitable candidate.” 

“Second nephew?” 

“She doesn’t mean—”

“The second prince?” 

The King straightens in his seat, intrigued with the idea. “You are proposing a marriage between the most distinguished figure in Korea and Yoon Jeonghan?” He takes a small breath in, leaning back with a cocked eyebrow as he contemplates the idea. 

Official Jeong speaks up once more. “Your highness, can you elaborate more as to how this is a suitable punishment?” 

“If you ask me, it’s explanatory,” Official Chun mumbles under his breath. 

Official Mae smirks at the comment, whispering back. “Prince Yoon is nothing more than a joke to the royal family.” 

The Empress lets out a small sigh, proceeding to pretend as if she didn’t hear the rude comments about her grandson. 

“It’s not about punishment.” she says. “It’s about balance.” Seeing the apprehensive look from the King, she continues. “Jeonghan is rather unorthodox. He spends much of his time dancing at the brothels and admiring artwork rather than martial arts or sports.” 

There’s a murmur of agreement amongst the officials. 

The Empress takes it as a sign to continue. “While he is a healthy man with three lovers, he is still uncommitted and unmarried. If the two were to be married, it can help solve the problems that are occurring for both parties.” 

The King nods silently, but awaits for the court. 

“Your majesty,” Official Kwon says.

“Accepted, proceed.” 

“Her highness makes a good argument. I agree.” He thinks for a moment. “Not only would the General be married off to produce a male heir, but the rumors of Prince Yoon could also settle down once he’s married.” 

“Your majesty,” Official Lee says. 

“Accepted, proceed.” 

“I agree with her highness and Official Kwon. This is more advantageous on our part,” he says. “I mean no offense when I say this, but Prince Yoon’s reputation is rather…” He pauses. “Unfavorable, at the moment. The General can help with that change and his with hers when the news spread in the villages.” 

“Your majesty,” the Vice Premier says. “Shall we proceed with the marriage then?” 

“Yes, we shall,” the King says with a nod. “From this day, we shall begin the wedding preparations. Once the General arrives back to the capital, Prince Yoon Jeonghan will become her husband.” 

The Empress moves herself to the sidelines as the King stands up, causing the officials to stop in their spots and lower their heads once more. He steps down from his throne, starting his descent down the stairs and onto the path laid out for him. 

The Vice Premier follows him from the right and his majesty’s eunuch, Eunuch Boo, follows him from the left—their conversation continuing in hushed tones. 

The Empress leaves shortly after the King’s departure with Eunuch Hak on one side and Court Lady Nam on the other, leaving the officials with themselves. 

“Court Lady Nam,” she says. “You shall inform Princess Consort Yoon.” 

“Yes, your highness.” 

She turns to her right. “Eunuch Hak.” 

“Yes, your highness?” 

“Begin the wedding preparations.” 

A/N: As always, thanks for reading! Please don’t ask for updates. If you would like status updates, check out the upcoming post we have with upcoming works that will be posted! 

[imaginationintowords]

Folklore [song series]

the last great american dynasty

Modern Day AU! Bucky Barnes x OC!Reader; Steve Rogers x OC!Reader

Plot: Inspired by Taylor Swift’s new album Folklore. The story follows the timeline of Bucky and Elizabeth’s life throughout the years.

Word Count: 4658

Warnings: maybe some swearing (don’t really remember), mentions of deaths, sadness, loneliness.

Previous Part

Series Masterlist

Age: 17

Year: 2012

Location: Brooklyn, NY

The last few months haven't been the greatest for Elizabeth.

She never did get to run for Student Body President during the months of October and November. Steve ended up running and winning. Elizabeth had even decided to leave student body council once campaigning started. She found no point in staying, everyone in the club didn't like her.

She had kept to herself. She no longer felt the need to make new friendships or continue the ones she had. The rumors made sure of that.

This was not how Elizabeth had thought her senior year would be. She thought she'd be crossing out he dates in her calendar feeling sad with each passing day, but now she's counting down to when she will never see these faces again.

She had also been approached by the principle right before school was dismissed for Holiday break. Principle Alvarez had told Elizabeth that she was the front runner for valedictorian. Elizabeth politely declined the offer, but Principle Alvarez told her to take the next three week holiday to think over it.

Elizabeth promised she would, but that was a lie. There was no way she would go in front of her classmates and give them a fake speech on comradery. 

These people wouldn't know the first thing about that.

Instead she focused on anything besides school.

Her parents weren't oblivious to Elizabeth's sudden change in personality. At first they thought it was because of her breakup with Bucky. But Elizabeth had told them it was a mutual decision. They wanted to believe her, but they knew their daughter. They knew it was not what she had said.

They knew something must've happened, especially with the way Bucky has been actively avoiding running into them. Even going as far as running inside whenever he saw Mr. Sanchez get home from work.

Even Steve stopped coming around. That was another red flag.

Then they had found out from Sarah Rogers, Steve's mom, that Steve would be running for student body president, after Elizabeth stepped down and left the club.

They were shocked to hear the news.

How could she not tell them. Her parents had debated back and forth whether or not they should have a conversation with her.

She had been keeping this a secret for months. Whenever they would bring it up, she told them it was in the works. But she had lied. There was clearly something bigger going on.

They then received a phone call from Principle Alvarez the day before winter break started. She told them about Elizabeth becoming valedictorian but turning it down. Another secret her parents had heard nothing about.

"Mrs. Alvarez, we had no idea," Caterina, her mother, said.

"I figured which is why I called. I told Elizabeth to take the break think it over."

"Thank-you, Mrs. Alvarez," Brandon, her father, thanked, "Actually we were just discussing Elizabeth and her sudden personality change. Do you have any idea what might have happened?"

"Well," she cleared her throat, "I'm assuming you both know about her breakup with James."

"Yes, but she told us it was a mutual decision, somehow we don't think she's telling he truth," Caterina explained.

"I suppose she isn't. Unfortunately, I don't think it's my place to say. Her grades are not falling behind, she hasn't done anything that would create a cause for concern," she half lied.

"But she quit student council. She isn't even talking to Steve," Caterina explained, slightly frustrated with the situation.

"Yes, well," Principal Alvarez pauses, "There was some rumors going around at the beginning of the year, surrounding James and Elizabeth. Sadly those rumors favored James."

"Why are we just hearing about this now?" her father asked.

"I have spoken to Elizabeth, she had asked me not to say anything to you. In order to keep this a safe place for her and other students, there's some things that need to stay confidential.

"I didn't sense any danger and the rumors died down. Yes, she did quit student council, but you wouldn't be surprised by the amount of students who leave a club senior year." she explained to them.

"We have had no idea any of this was happening," Caterina, sighs softly, her eyes getting teary. Her husband softly rubs her back.

"What do you suggest we do? Should we confront Elizabeth about all these lies?" Brandon asks.

"I think Elizabeth is trying to protect you guys and herself. I can't tell you what to do. This is your child. But I can offer some advice," she says, "Give her some time. When it comes, I'm sure she'll open up, it might not be now, but it will be when she is ready. I've seen this a lot with seniors who get thrown a massive curve ball and it just throws them all off.

"It's what I like to call their first taste of the real world. How they get through it shows how they will handle these kind of stressors in the future. Some just go right off the handle and turn to some bad things to cope. Some repress their feelings, and let it all boil until they have some sort of snap. Some, learn and grow from it. Those that learn and grow, take it quietly, figure out what's to come afterwards. They stop worrying about what's happening now, and are ready to move on. The reason I haven't reached out is because I can see how Elizabeth is handling it. Yes, maybe she has changed, grown up a bit, but I still haven't gotten any major danger signs from her that say she isn't handling this in an unhealthy manner.

"Elizabeth has been meeting with our guidance counselor, about once a week. And that was something she had chosen to do on her own. We aren't necessarily obligated to tell parents that because of  confidentiality reasons. If there was any cause for concerns you would've heard by now."

"So we should just wait?"

"Yes," she sighs, "I know it's probably not what you wanted to hear, but just know you have a wonderful daughter, who seems to know how to take care of herself in a healthy mature manner."

The conversation they had with Principal Alvarez brought some peace to their minds. Not completely, but enough to know that if Elizabeth really was in trouble she would go to them.

They had decided that it was probably best to get away for the winter break. Brandon and Caterina were able to work remotely during the holiday season, so they decided to take a trip to the family's cabin.

Elizabeth was excited to head to the cabin for the holidays. It meant that she wouldn't have to worry about running into anyone from school. And any reason to spend more time with her grandmother was exciting. Especially since she would be heading off to college soon.

Elizabeth had decided that Christmas to break the news to her parents that she had decided on the University of Stanford. She would be going as a Pre-Law student. The school was on the other side of the country. When she and her parents visited this past  summer, Elizabeth fell in love with the campus. 

Her last two choices were Stanford and Columbia.

With some talking to her guidance counselor and some major thought, she decided she desperately needed a change in scenery. A change in people.

For the first time since returning home, she had never felt more free. She was excited about the possibility of the future. She could no longer worry about what the hell was happening in Brooklyn.

Her parents were excited to hear about her choice. They were glad that she wasn't keeping this from them. They had decided that Principal Alvarez was right, Elizabeth was becoming such a strong woman in front of their eyes, and they had to trust that she knows what's best for herself.

Elizabeth and her grandma stayed that third week of break, while her parents were sent away by her grandma so she could have some quality time with her only granddaughter.

Elizabeth and her grandmother were currently sat in the living room going through some old photos. Elizabeth was helping her grandmother put them in some new photo albums she had gotten for Christmas.

"So, any new boy in your life?" her grandma, Sophia, asked.

"No, I'm done with high school boys," Elizabeth said, carefully going through the old photos.

"Good, high school boys are nothing but trouble."

"You're preaching to the choir," Elizabeth joked.

While grabbing another small box of photos, Elizabeth opened it up to reveal some very old letters and photos.

"What are these grandma?" she asked softly turning the box over for her grandma to see.

"Oh, I've been wondering where those went," she softly smiled, going over to sit next to Elizabeth on the couch.

Elizabeth handed her the box, and she pulled out a light yellowish envelope, the color from old age.

"Who are those from?"

"My old friend Rebekah," she said looking over at the letter.

"Rebekah? You've never told me about a Rebekah before.

"Well she was an old friend," her grandma said, handing Elizabeth a black and white photo of two young girls. One was her grandma and the blonde next to her must've been Rebekah. The photo was dated 1965.

"How did you guys meet?" Elizabeth asked.

"In junior high, we were both 12," her grandma handed her a photo dated 1960, it was of two even younger versions of the young teens.

"Oh, wow."

"From 12 to 21 we were inseparable."

"Woah, what's this?" Elizabeth asked, showing her grandma a photo of a quickie style wedding.

"Ah, that was Bex's first wedding."

"First?"

"Yup. Right out of high school, freshly 18. Adam Grant. Bex's high school sweetheart. Prom King and Queen."

"What happened?"

"Young love doesn't always last forever. Why do you think I was always so insistent with you not to worry about marriage until after you've graduated college and started your career."

Elizabeth shrugged her shoulders, "Just thought you thought I was too young, and you were right."

"Aren't I always," she winked playfully.

"What happened between them?"

"Adam wanted Rebekah to be a stay at home wife, to start popping out babies. That wasn't Bex at all. Bex was always the life of the party. She was a social butterfly, but she had dreams of making it to Broadway. Adam was set to take over his dad's mechanic shop.

"The marriage had only lasted a year, before they pulled the plug. After the divorce, Bex started to go on more auditions, while she waitressed part time, and once a month she would sing at a lounge in Manhattan. Now when I say she could sing, I mean she could sing. I believe she really could have made it," her grandma reminisces.

"What happened?"

"Bill happened," her grandma said, handing Elizabeth a photo of a man who appeared to be in his late 40s early 50s.

"Who's he?"

"Bill Carter. The richest man I have ever met. His family had oil money. He and his colleagues were in attendance at the lounge on one of the night's Bex was singing.

"From what Bex told me it was love at first sight. After that night Bex couldn't talk about anything but Bill. They were both so smitten over each other. I don't think I've ever seen Rebekah act like that. She started to clean herself up a little bit, to try and appease his family. But Bill loved her just the way she was when he met her."

"They were engaged two months later. This was both of their second marriages. Bill's parents desperately wanted him to have a prenup, but he was completely against it. He said that unlike his first marriage he knew this was the one. Plus Rebekah didn't care about all of that. She had had many opportunities to make some heavy cash by being a few married men's mistress, but that's not what mattered to her."

Elizabeth glanced down at the photo. It was a photo of the bride and groom surrounded by their friends, all of them have drinks and cigars in their hands, with big smiles on their faces.

Rebekah's hair was a everywhere, doesn't look like she bothered to comb it for the big day. Bill's tie was undone, along with his shirt being halfway unbutton, no suit jacket in sight.  Her lips were dark in the black and white photo, which meant she probably was wearing a darker lip, judging by the lipstick marks on Bill's lips, cheek, and neck.

"Was this at the end of the night?" Elizabeth asked.

"No, this was just after the ceremony," her grandmother smiled, "Bex and Bill started the party after they said I do."

"The limo we all rode in together were filled with laughs, drinks, and cigars," she laughed.

"You guys knew how to party," Elizabeth smiled at her grandmother.

"Hey it was the late 60's," she shrugged her shoulders, handing Elizabeth another photo from the wedding.

"This looks small," Elizabeth remarked.

"Yeah, Bill's parents decided they weren't going to pay for the wedding when Bill refused to have Rebekah sign a prenup," she said, "So Bill and Bex decided to have a small wedding. Free of judgment. Just those that loved and supported them."

"That's nice," Elizabeth smiled at the thought of a small intimate wedding.

Elizabeth had never really given much though of how her wedding would be. I mean she and Bucky used to talk about getting married, but that was it. No plans were every truly made. Elizabeth also never truly saw herself as a big ballgown type of gal.

All that had mattered was her and Bucky. Now that's no more.

She felt her eyes get a little teary, she cleared her throat.

"So where did they go to after?"

"Rhode Island."

"Rhode Island?" Elizabeth looked at her grandmother, "Why Rhode Island?"

"They took a trip out there when they were dating, and fell in love with it. Plus Bex has always wanted to live on the sea. She said it made her feel free."

"Did his parents ever accept their marriage?"

"Sadly no," her grandma said, "Especially not after Bill's doctor told him to settle down with the party."

"Did he get sick?"

"Yes, around year 7 of their marriage, his doctor told him if he continued down this path he wouldn't live a long life."

"What did he do?"

"Bill told him he'd rather live the rest of his short life filled with happiness then become a boring old man who lived forever."

"Did he die?"

"Yes he did. He lived another three years, he and Bex were able to spend their ten year anniversary before he passed a week later. The summer of 1979."

"A week later?" Elizabeth asked shocked.

"Yeah," her grandmother sadly remembers.

"Rebekah was never the same after that," her grandmother says, "She never fully recovered from Bill's death."

"Did they have any kids?"

"Not together. Bill had two kids from his first marriage, but the kids only cared about their inheritance, that they never got."

"What?"

"Turns out Bill had changed his will when the doctor had first told him to slow down. He left everything to Rebekah," her grandma says, "That did not help Rebekah after his death either,

"Rebekah wasn't a heartless person, she made sure his children were taken care of, she created a fund for both kids. She never wanted Bill to do that, she didn't even know until the will reading two days after his funeral. All Bex wanted was her Bill. She would've given up all that money just for him."

"That's so sad," Elizabeth commented.

"Very. Even though Bex acted like none of the rumors bothered her, it did. Because that town was painting her to be this horrible woman. Calling her the most shameless woman they had ever seen, saying she enjoyed ruining everything. So she gave them what they wanted. She gave them the most shameless woman they would ever see. From what I had heard the partying got worse. She had parties every day, the house was filled with people from the city. She even got in a feud with one of their neighbors and stole his dog and dyed it green."

"What do you mean 'from what you heard'?" Elizabeth asked confused.

"Well, Rebekah and I weren't close anymore. The last time I had seen Rebekah was the week of Bill's funeral. Before then we hadn’t seen each other in almost 8 years.”

"What happened?"

"Well after I graduated in 1970, your grandpa and I decided to get married and settle down in Brooklyn," her grandma said, handing her a photo of their wedding day, "We were done with the whole party scene. We were ready to begin our own lives. Grandpa and I had already had good jobs lined up. We were ready to be adults. We were ready to start our family.

“Rebekah never understood that. She claimed ‘kids ruined everything’. She and Bill were living this extraordinary life. Kids didn’t fit the picture.”

“What about his kids?”

“They’d visit once per season. Their mother didn’t think that lifestyle was for them, and Bill never fought it,” she told Elizabeth, “And after I had your Uncle Eric in 1972, Rebekah couldn’t put her own feelings for children aside. It put a strain on our friendship, causing me to realize that I couldn’t be her friend if she couldn’t support what made me happy.

“I had supported Rebekah in every aspect of her life. When she wanted to marry Adam right out of high school, I supported her, hell I drove them. When she wanted to divorce Adam, I was there to hold her while she grieved her first failed marriage. She wanted to become a Broadway star, I was right there cheering and supporting her. When she met Bill, and everyone was against their relationship, I was their only support. When they decided to get engaged and married only 5 months after meeting each other, I was there, every step of the way. Did I have time? No, I was busy with school, but I made time.

“I was there for everything. I supported her through everything. But when I was ready to begin my own life, Rebekah couldn’t be there,” her Grandma sighs, “It made me question everything about our friendship.”

“It wasn’t until Bill’s funeral that I fully realized, she was just scared of being alone,” she says, “His funeral was filled with people. But not one of them was there for her.”

“How sad.”

“Rebekah and I finally talked that night,” her grandma says, “She told me all about the nonstop adventures she and Bill had.”

“Did you guys makeup?”

“Yes and no,” she says, “Rebekah was still against kids. She apologized for what she had said, but at that point I had already had three kids. We knew that our friendship would never be the same. We knew that the only way we could be in each other’s lives was if we kept our distance. If any one of us needed each other we knew we could call. But sometimes people come into your life only to be a small part of it. They don’t stay forever, but they make an everlasting impact.”

“Do you know what ended up happening to her?”

“She died, 9 years after Bill’s death. She was only 40 years-old,” she tells Elizabeth with a glimmer in her eye, “She died alone. While on vacation in Italy.”

“I’m sorry Grandma,” Elizabeth sympathetically says, she places her hand softly on top of her grandmother’s.

“It’s okay sweetie, time has come and gone. We all have to go through it someday.”

“What happened to that big house of her’s?”

“It’s still there. It never sold.”

“Why?”

“People claim it’s cursed,” she says, “so now it sits empty on that hill in Rhode Island.”

“They claim a crazy woman lived there, that anyone that were to live there would end up in the same fate as she,” her grandma says, “She wasn’t crazy. She was heartbroken. That whole town exiled her. Blamed her for everything. Made her out to be someone she wasn’t.”

“I get the feeling,” Elizabeth mumbled, looking down at her hands.

“She wasn’t crazy. She was a woman who lost the love of her life. She traveled the world to find anything to fill that void in her heart, and she never did. So she made sure to give that town everything she had.

“She was a very scorn woman. Filled with hatred, and anger to those that did her wrong,” her grandma says, clutching Elizabeth’s hands, forcing her to look into her eyes, “I don’t want you becoming like that Elizabeth.”

“I know whatever is going on in school, is not the easiest. But please, don’t let your heart be filled with so much hatred. I don’t want you becoming like Rebekah. She never learned to forgive.”

“It’s hard to forgive,” Elizabeth sniffled.

“I know, but it’s even harder to carry around so much darkness in your life,” she explains, “You should be able to go to college with nothing weighing you down. Not having anything negative reminding you of back home. You shouldn’t dread going back home, you should be filled with joy. Don’t exile those around you, just because they haven’t figured out that part of their lives.”

“Don’t let these last few moments of your high school life be filled with what those kids are saying,” she squeezes Elizabeth’s hands, “You know who you are. Those closest to you truly know who you are. We love you and support you. And are so incredibly proud of the woman you have become.”

“So please find it in yourself to forgive,” her grandma pleads.

“It’s hard being the bigger person,” Elizabeth sniffles again, silent tears streaming down her face, “they hurt me so much.”

“I know sweetie,” she pulls Elizabeth into her arms, “But let them regret what they have done. Don’t let them win by seeing you become this mad woman. Let them look back in their life, regretting the way they treated you.”

————————

Once Elizabeth went back home, the weekend before she was due to return to school from winter break. She had a lot to think about.

Does she listen to her grandma and forgive everyone for everything they’ve done. Or does she continue down the path she started on months ago.

She had to admit to herself, the path she was on was lonely. She didn’t like it one bit. She didn’t like what they made her become.

She decided to take her grandma’s words, and promised that once she returned to school on Monday, she would go back to being who she was. Not entirely, but at least not filled with so much hatred. She had to move on. For her own soul.

The first step, forgiving Bucky.

She knew that that was the only way to start. She wasn’t ready to talk to him in person, she’s not sure if she ever will be. So she sat at her desk and wrote him a letter:

Dear James,

(Yes, I called you James). I don’t know how to begin this. My grandmother told me I should forgive those that hurt me. You know my grandma, filled with nothing but wisdom. She told me a story about a friend she had, one that let the rumors consume her with hatred. She died alone.

I don’t want to be that person.

I know you don’t believe me to be that person, even after the things I’ve said to you.

But, I do feel myself becoming that person. Hating everyone around me, aside from my own family. (They still have no idea what’s going on with me)

So my first step in letting go, is forgiving you.

Letting all the pain and hate you’ve caused on me go...

I forgive you James.

I forgive you for everything you’ve done.

I don’t think I’ll fully understand why you cheated on me.

I know that’s not who you truly are. So I hope, that whatever you’re going through you come out on the other side.

This is harder than I thought it would be...

I loved you so much. I really thought we would end up together. Maybe that was just a childish thought.

Does anyone even make it out alive with their high school sweetheart?

But I want to thank you. For being my first love.

We were best friends to begin with, so falling in love with you was the easiest thing I’ve ever done.

Being in love with you was the easiest thing I’ve done.

It was just so effortless. And now I’m starting to wonder if that’s not how love is supposed to be...

But thank-you, for loving me the best that you could. You might not think it was the best, but it was.

You’re a part of my life forever. Even if you’re not physically a part of it.

You, James Buchanan Barnes, have left a forever imprint in my life.

So for that I want to thank you and forgive you.

I will always remember you as the 7 year-old boy who taught me how to ride my bike.

-Elizabeth “Betty” Sanchez.

Elizabeth walked across the street and placed the sealed letter in the Barnes’ mailbox.

As she walked back to her house, she felt this heavy weight lifted off her shoulder.

Come that Monday morning she was going to accept, Principal Alvarez’s valedictorian offer. She was also going to talk to the student council and see if there was anyway for her to rejoin student body. She was also going to apologize to Steve. He was just an innocent bystander that got caught in the crossfire. She couldn’t blame him for standing by his best friend’s side.

Monday, her life will officially be going down a different path. One filled with less hatred, and more understanding and forgiveness.

————————-

Age: 35

Year: 2029

Location: Rhode Island

“We haven’t had any interested buyers in decades,” the relator tells the happy couple, “Because of that, the house is basically a steal. The family that owns it just wants it out of their possession.”

“Now, it is a bit of a fixer upper, since no one has lived here since the late 80s. But that shouldn’t be any issue for you since you’re married to the youngest recipient of the Pritzker Architecture Prize.”

The couple shares a brief smile with each other.

“But if I might ask, no one has every showed interest in this house, especially not a young family like yours. Why do you want to buy this house?”

“I think this house has been empty long enough. It’s time someone filled this house with lots of love and happiness. Like before,” Elizabeth smiled, small crows feet forming around her eyes.

“Well what better way then a family like yours,” the relator smiled, “There’s plenty of space for lots of kids.”

“This one is out last,” Steve smiled, putting his arm around Elizabeth, placing his hand on her growing belly.

“Three is enough for us,” She playfully poked Steve’s side.

They followed the relator to the back where two young children are running around playing.

“So what do you think?” Elizabeth whispered to Steve, looking up into his eyes.

“It’s definitely a fixer upper, but I love it,” he smiles, “Like I said before, wherever you go. I’m there.”

Elizabeth presses a soft kiss to Steve’s lips.

“Diane,” she calls out to the older relator who is running around with mini-me’s of Elizabeth and Steve.

“We’ll take it,” she smiles broadly.

[abigailmaitland]

andi mack season 4.

4A ONLY.

Episode One.

Andi’s first day of SAVA. Buffy, Cyrus, Marty, TJ, and Jonah’s first day of Grant High school. They facetime before entering the school and wish each other luck. Jokes about how huge and old everyone is compared to them. They don’t have as many classes together as they used to. Jonah, feeling out of place, has a panic attack while getting his lunch. Andi feeling very out of place during  her lunch texts Jonah - jokingly blaming him for making her accidentally submit her application. Jonah, instead of texting back accidentally facetimes her during his panic attack. Andi, shocked and concerned, helps him calm down. Jonah asks her if she really blames him. Andi, of course says no, and reassures him that one day she’ll probably thank him. Jonah returns to lunch, the group is confused as to where he went, he makes a face and just says “uh, high school food, right?” cyrus says “say no more. please.”

At the end of the school day everyone meets at The Spoon and talks about their first day. Andi comes home to balloons, cupcake, excited parents and a grandparent, who really want to hear EVERYTHING.

Episode Two.

Andi deals with a strict teacher who is very critical of her art for the first time in her life. She struggles with feeling inadequate because she has never had an art teacher not love her work. Definitely cries.

It’s club week at Grant High School, a week where the school encourages everyone to join a club/sport, especially incoming freshman. Buffy, Marty, and TJ immediately know where they belong (basketball & track respectively) whereas Cyrus and Jonah are lost on where to start. Cyrus grabs pamphlets for theater, photography, debate, student leadership, the student newspaper and tries to create a pros/cons list for each one. Jonah feels confused about where he belongs in school, in the group, in life. He misses the old dynamic and feels lost without Andi because everyone else is in a relationship. Being a third wheel is fine, you know, and not totally useless. But there is never a need for a fifth wheel.

Club spirit spreads outside of Grant High school. Bowie decides to join a morning yoga group, Bex starts photography classes as she’s started to take ‘before/after’ portraits for Cloud 10 as well as joins SAVA’s PTA, Cece continues her dance classes.

Episode Three.

Andi finds familiar faces at SAVA. Walker and Libby introduce Andi into their friend group. Andi tells them about the teacher who criticized her art; they reassure her that she’s tough on everyone and that she belongs here.

Buffy helps Cyrus choose the clubs he should join; debate and the student newspaper. He thanks her for knowing him; sometimes better than himself. Jonah continues to have a hard time in high school - whereas the rest of the group have slowly become acclimated to the environment. He used to know so many people and now he feels like he barely knows a fraction. Buffy, Cyrus, TJ, and Marty always include him, but they seem to be so seamless together and Jonah feels like he can’t keep us. He liked when it was just Buffy, Cyrus, him, and Andi. He likes when he hangs out with Cyrus by himself. Or Buffy and Cyrus. He feels like he still has a place with them. He’s determined relationships really do ruin everything.

TJ takes Cyrus on a date and gets embarrassed by his dyscalculia when he tries to pay in cash and finds himself taking too long to count his change and bills. Cyrus asks if he could help - TJ gets frustrated at himself and says he wanted to have a perfect date with him and not look like an idiot. Cyrus reminds TJ he’s not an idiot and offers to help him again. TJ sighs and nods his head. Cyrus counts TJ’s change with him.

Episode Four.

Buffy, Andi, and Cyrus have a sleepover weekend at Cece’s house. During the first night, they almost call it off because Buffy and Cyrus can’t stop texting Marty/TJ and talking about them. Andi reminds them that she’s supposed to be one of their best friends - can’t they have a few nights where they don’t think about boys? They sit in silence for like, an hour, and Buffy sighs, turns off her phone and gives it to Andi. Cyrus follows suit. They both apologize. They have a movie marathon, talk about school, stay up late talking about the future, Andi makes them all friendship bracelets.

At Buffy’s request, Marty invites TJ and Jonah to hang out at his house. They all sit there uncomfortably eating snacks for awhile, realizing despite being together everyday at high school they barely know each other. Marty breaks the ice and they play a game of 21 Questions. We learn more about all three boys and they become more comfortable around each other.

Bex and Bowie have a date night with another couple their age. This isn’t focused on as I think it would be boring for most viewers, but I just want to show them with age-appropriate friends, pls and thank <3

Episode Five.

Andi talks to Walker about his relationship with her and his relationship with Buffy. They reconcile with the past and admit they were pretty dumb as middle schoolers, huh? Andi says yes and then says “we’ll probably think that about ourselves now one day, won’t we?” Walker says “definitely.”

Cyrus asks Jonah why he’s been so out of it recently. Jonah claims that he’s not and they get into an argument, leading Jonah to say “I liked it better when no one was together. I’m not part of this group!” Jonah leaves lunch early, bumping into Amber. She can tell how upset he is. They sit against some lockers in a quiet hallway and talk. Amber tells him sometimes groups change. Jonah says he hates change and just wants everything to be how it was before. Amber says he feels like that now, but reminds him that he felt that way when they were in a relationship too, and would he still really want to be with her? Jonah says no (no offense) and that he guessed some changes were okay. Amber seems to have reconciled with their past and is okay being friends with him. Jonah says “Sometimes I wonder what’s wrong with me.” Amber tells him that she goes to therapy because she felt that way too. He asks if she found the answer. She says yes, and that she finds the solutions too.

Jonah texts Cyrus that he’s sorry. During gym class, he asks to go to the guidance counselor. The guidance counselor talks to Jonah and helps him come to terms with going to therapy and what to expect.

Episode Six.

Libby is angry and upset because they haven’t given her an interpreter yet and she’s struggling to keep up with the coursework and feels ostracized by her teachers. For a group project, Walker, Andi and Libby team up to create an art piece encompassing deaf culture and how deaf rights matter. They bring it to the principal’s office and tell them it’s illegal to not provide Libby an interpreter. 

At Grant, Cyrus goes against a homophobic debater during a practice round (probably about either marriage laws or the guy who refused to bake a cake). He loses because he can’t keep his points straight due to getting too upset. He immediately texts TJ. TJ gets really angry and meets him at the debate room - they go to a hidden, empty corner of the high school. Cyrus cries, TJ comforts him with hugs and head kisses. Cyrus says he hates hiding who he is. TJ says he does too. Cyrus asks to come out publicly. TJ hesitates. “I don’t know if I’m ready?” Cyrus sighs. “Fine...but I’m going to come out to my parents. They don’t have to know about us, though.”

Cyrus gathers all 4 parents in the same room and comes out.

TJ thinks about coming out to his parents, but backs out.

Episode Seven.

Bowie tries to get the Mack family on a vegan diet after learning more about it during his morning yoga class. Andi is pretty accepting of it, but Bex struggles to maintain the diet. Bowie teaching them about how much meat can affect the environment. He makes them try a whole week with no meat and dairy - Bex starts sneaking to Cece’s to eat pizza, burgers, and ice cream.

Buffy notices Marty liking and commenting on two different “cute”/”model-type” girls pictures on social media. They’re both white. She texts Cyrus. Cyrus asks if maybe they’re related, but none of them share his last name. She also overheard a group of older girls talking about how real guys hate “athletic” girls and stop liking them after middle school. Buffy gets jealous, uncomfortable, and insecure. She stops talking to him and ignores during school. At the end of the week, she straightens her hair again and dresses more traditionally feminine. Marty notices and says “you look great, but...what’s up?” Buffy admits that she thought he would like her better this way. Marty asks why - she says that she found out he’s been liking other girls’ pictures and that none of them looked like her. Marty gets embarrassed and says that those girls are his future step-sisters and that his father, Antonio Sousa, just proposed and started egging him to be “nicer” and get closer to the girls. Buffy feels embarrassed. Marty assures her that she doesn’t have to be, that he should have told her and that he barely talked about his family because he thinks it’s “too messy” - he says she looks the most beautiful when she’s comfortable with herself.

Bex admits to Bowie that she’s been sneaking non-vegan food. He’s upset at first, but they come to a compromise. They will have three meatless nights instead of every single day. He understands that it’s a huge life-style change and admits that he’s cheated a little bit too, but that the environment is really important to him because “I want Andi to be able to enjoy this Earth to the fullest...and any other kid we might have.”

Bex says ‘um’

Episode Eight.

Marty, Jonah, and TJ hang out again. This time is more personal - Jonah talks about therapy and Marty talk about his changing family. Since they’re being personal, TJ admits that he’s struggling to tell his family and the wider school that he’s gay and dating Cyrus. The boys listen and try to give advice, but ultimately feel like they can’t really help and say that they’re sure Cyrus understands. TJ nods. “He understands for now, but eventually he won’t want to be with someone in the closet. He wants to be himself.”

Andi and Amber hang out for the first time in forever. Amber admits that she’s just been so bogged down because she’s taking college classes, stressing herself out plus family drama. Andi says that she’s been pretty stressed too and that the classes and projects are a lot harder than she imagined and that she misses always being with the GHC. Amber says that change is necessary and that distance makes the heart grow fonder and that she bet Andi is the best in the school, that she’s just being hard on herself. Andi shows Amber pictures of other’s art - Amber smiles and says that “yours is still the best, bambi.” Andi thanks Amber for being such a great friend.

Cyrus and TJ are distant and haven’t had their weekly date or even really texted. During basketball practice, TJ is frustrated and awful. The teammates ask where Cyrus is, saying that he’s almost always there for their practice as their good luck charm. TJ ignores the question and tries to shoot a three-pointer, missing over and over again. The teammates tell him to chill and take a break. TJ, frustrated, just yells “I’m gay!” His teammates are taken aback, but none seem outwardly opposed. “um...okay?” TJ sits down and drinks water. He says “I’m sorry. I just had to get that out there...for um...Cyrus.” it finally clicks for the team. They’re supportive bc they love Cyrus.

Bex asks Bowie how long he’s been thinking about more kids. Bowie admits that it just kind of came up - that someone in his yoga club was pregnant and his mind started wandering. He says that obviously he wouldn’t force it on Bex, just that he didn’t want to rule it out now either. He reminds her that he didn’t get to raise Andi and is disappointed he missed so many moments. Bex says he didn’t have to remind her and says she will always regret that she kept it a secret from him - but that she isn’t sure about another kid. Financially and emotionally. Bowie says he understands.

Episode Nine.

The mid-year project for SAVA is coming up. Andi is stressed as heck - she can’t think of what she wants to say to the world. She doubts she was ever an artist to begin with. It’s 3am and she finds herself texting Cyrus because she knows he’s always up. Cyrus says that she’s feeling impostor syndrome - but that she earned her place in SAVA, fair and square, and it was obviously because her application or some force in the universe. She says that sometimes she wishes she wasn’t in SAVA and that she went to Grant with the rest. Cyrus says that he misses her but knows in his heart that Andi belongs in SAVA. He updates her on him and TJ and how TJ doesn’t want to come out and he feels like TJ is embarrassed of him and who they are. Andi comforts Cyrus and reminds him how long it took him to tell her he liked Jonah and that they’re just in different parts of the journey. Andi gets an idea for her art project.

Buffy & Marty go on a date. He decides to take her to The Brazilian Day festival in town to teach her more about his culture. Buffy loves learning more about him, including that he can speak some Portuguese and that he can dance really well.

TJ asks Cyrus on a date. Cyrus hesitates. TJ smiles and says it can be a real date and that they can hold hands in public and post pictures on Instagram. Cyrus asks if he came out and TJ nods, before grinning and hugging him.

Bex hints to Cece that Bowie is thinking about another child. Cece tells her how much she’s grown as an adult and as a mother and that Cece is confident that Bex can make a choice. Bex has baby on the brain and is constantly focused on pregnancy - which all comes to head when she does a maternity shoot for her photography. She feels mixed feelings and talks to one of her friends to try to sort out her feelings.

Episode Ten. FINALE.

Andi’s project about change & growing up doesn’t go over well because she rushed it at 3am. This is the first time she’s failed a project and she’s devastated. Cyrus tries to cheer her up with The Spoon and a sleepover with a lot of ice cream.

Marty invites Buffy to his father’s wedding. It goes over well & they slow dance together for the first time. 

Bex tells Bowie that she’s not against having another child, she was just scared. Bowie admits that he’s scared too...maybe they can face the fear together?

Jonah decides to join the music club, as well as participate in the high school “coffee houses” where students showcase their musical talents. He feels like he’s acclimating better.

[mister-honeynuts]

Prompt: Spring / Autumn / Winter Pairing(s): Gwen/David Word Count: 2,440 Summary: Day Four for @gwenvidweek in which they get married the same way they do everything which is to say, untraditionally and without an ounce of grandeur.

David is not ashamed to say that their entire relationship is untraditional to its core.

He’s not clear whether that’s a product of both of them being very much not straight or if it’s just the way their personalities meld but the truth is, David’s happiest with Gwen as they are and he wouldn’t trade it for all the cliche Hollywood romances in the world.

Max had joked, back in the beginning when he’d discovered the shift in their relationship and been around enough to witness how they worked together, that Gwen was his boyfriend. Needless to say, David had taken it as an opportunity to discuss the effects of toxic gender roles which had left Max grumpy but overall noticeably more comfortable in the apartment.

The way he and Gwen operate works for them. For the family they’re making out of an equally untraditional little boy. In all things, they’re equal and so it really comes to no surprise to him or Gwen that neither of them actually proposes.

For as much as Gwen fantasizes about over the top romance, their path to marriage is a simple one. They discuss it. Plans for the future until one day becomes one day soon and casually tossed out suggestions become cemented decisions.

Then suddenly, they have a date and that’s that.

David’s out of school now and it’s letting them live more comfortably but the reality is that they don’t have fantasy dream wedding money. That’s fine. They’ve always been crafty.

There’s no question of where. It’s obvious. The only place truly befitting of their special day is Camp Campbell. And well, it doesn’t hurt that they now technically own the camp. Saves a whole lot of money for other things like feeding the growing number of people in their lives worth sharing this with.

Gwen is immediately insistent that she doesn’t want a wedding dress. Thousands of dollars on some massive, easily stained dress she’ll never have a reason to wear again extends beyond luxury and into stupidity. According to Gwen herself, of course.

David thinks she’ll look beautiful in anything.

Instead, she finds a cocktail dress with a skirt that spills layers of a translucent fabric. It’s a horrible khaki color that reminds David of the jumpers girls in his elementary school were forced into wearing but they’re nothing if not a family of problem solvers.

Gwen spends an afternoon teaching Max how to mix fabric dye in a plastic rope tub they bought to hold drinks for the Summer Social out on the balcony. They take turns prodding at the fabric with a yardstick miraculously fished from the kitchen island until the dress is a beautiful dark forest green.

Involving Max in the process has been important to both of them since the beginning. The wedding is a celebration of their relationship but it’s a celebration of their family too and that extends to Max’s presence in it.

Which is why when Max snidely congratulates Gwen on her now being the owner of a random green dress, Gwen shoves him into the couch and then agrees that it’s missing something that makes it special.

David digs around the sterilite tower he keeps their arts and craft supplies in until he comes across some gold thread Gwen had bought this past summer when Preston decided the costumes for his play were not sufficiently gaudy. He hand sews little golden pine trees around the hem of the skirt in what Gwen claims is overkill but she smiles soft and pretty as she traces the shapes afterwards.

There will never come a day that Gwen’s smile doesn’t fill him with butterflies.

Neither Max nor David own a proper suit. It’s never been a need and clearly the very idea of it offends Max to his core because the thought of having to spend an afternoon in one sends Max into a full-blown meltdown.

“Calm the fuck down. We don’t have the money for suits,” Gwen huffs, placing corn in front of their ridiculous child to husk as this delightful exchange took place in the middle of making dinner. “And you’d look stupid in one anyways.”

She’s teasing and so he doesn’t call her out on it. They’re both aware how cute Max would be in a full suit. But it’s true that they don’t have the money and regardless, it’s entirely not their style.

The comfort of everyone involved is far more important than what tradition dictates.

Gwen finds them nice button ups in an almost exact match to her dress while hiding from her mother’s insane quest to find her shoes that match her dress but don’t make her taller than David. Like either of them have ever cared about that.

David’s got some cheap, generic black ties from back when he was interviewing with schools. He cuts and hems one down so Max won’t look like he’s playing dress up in his dad’s business attire and then, for the heck of it, he sews matching golden pines into the ties.

Max makes a face when he’s shown their matching accessory but accepts the tie without a snide comment which he takes as the ultimate admission of love.

The day before the big day, Gwen’s mom comes by to steal Max and neither one will tell them what they’re up to. Gwen’s mom just winks when he asks and leads Max away with a hand on the shoulder that the boy seems unbothered by.

David watches them go with unease, sighing when Gwen presses a kiss to his shoulder and smacks him on the hip.

“It’s fine,” she says, moving to the kitchen to grab a cup of coffee for this too early weekend morning. “Max is fine with Mom. And she seems to not even realize that he’s the devil so.”

David knows this but it’s not often that Max is away for the day outside of school when David is gone too. Now that he’s not working odd hours, it just doesn’t feel right to not have Max somewhere underfoot in the apartment.

“Mom probably thinks we’re going to have sex,” Gwen mentions offhandedly later in the afternoon when David’s managed to get nothing done but worry.

“Why would she think that?” he asks, blinking when Gwen responds with a small laugh and a cocked eyebrow. “Oh.”

“So dumb. Don’t know why I’m marrying you,” she says full of fondness and pushes him back onto the bed.

Gwen’s mom brings their kid back not a second past five and Max still won’t say what they did, burying his face into David’s leg when David pulls him in for a hug. Gwen asks if they at least had fun and Max shrugs off the question, running off to the bathroom to wash up for dinner.

Max is quiet through dinner and doesn’t complain when David enforces a bedtime even though it’s the weekend.

The next morning, they wake up early and David muses that it doesn’t feel any different than any other day which is to say, he feels lucky and loved.

It takes longer than they plan to get Max out of bed despite how early they all turned in the night before. He seems more withdrawn than usual and David worries that Max has convinced himself of something completely untrue.

The concept isn’t foreign for their family.

Moreover, he’s still half asleep when he comes stumbling out of his room, Mr. Honeynuts tucked under his arm. A less than promising sign. Mr. Honeynuts only leaves Max’s room for camp and when he’s upset about something.

David draws him a bath, worrying his lip with his teeth as Max does not voice his usual pre-bath complaints that he’s not a baby. Crumbling one of Gwen’s less flowery bath bombs into the water, he leaves Max to sleepily soak until breakfast.

“You’re worrying too much,” Gwen tells him, plating up the pancakes she’d been making while David was handling Max. “Max doesn’t handle change well. You know that.”

“But this is a good change,” David argues, looking back at the bathroom door. He loves Gwen. He’s excited that they’re going to be married and he’ll be able to tell people about his wife but…

“Him coming here was a good change too and that still sucked ass for two months. He’s gonna be twelve, David. All major changes are scary, even for Lord Satan himself,” she dismisses.

Max appears a minute later, wrapped tight in a towel and dripping water onto the floor.

“Morning, bud. You with us finally?” David asks.

“David, you asshole. I smell like cinnamon and pine cones,” Max grumbles.

“Then you’ll fit right in at the wedding.” Gwen says, lightly pushing him towards his bedroom. “Go get dressed and you can have this fucked up pancake that’s suppose to look like a bear.” Max scowls and stares up at her with purpose.

“David does it so much better,” he whispers spitefully.

“I’m gonna tell him you think so,” he hears her whisper back, laughing when Max makes a mad dash to escape to his room.

It’s a long drive to Camp Campbell and they’re not even close to the first people there despite living closer than anyone else. Max wastes no time popping out of the car and running to join Nikki and Neil where they’re climbing a tree outside the counselor cabin.

“You look beautiful, honey,” Gwen’s father compliments, helping her out of the car. David beams.

She really, really does. He hadn’t seen the dress on Gwen, their own version of not seeing the bride until the wedding or, well, wedding day at least. She looks maybe not so much like a bride but definitely something out of David’s dreams.

Gwen’s mother tuts at her choice of shoes. Both of them had chosen to go the way of cleaning up their boots for camp, for money and for ease of walking around camp. It was, they decided, much easier to find Max a nice pair of boots than to look for suitable dress shoes for the three of them.

David thinks they both actually look quite nice, their button ups contrasting against new dark denim disappearing into sturdy boots. Maybe not the fanciest but they certainly look like they belong among the dirt paths and towering woods.

Gwen shoots David an easily read look as her mom repositions herself for the hundredth time, heels sinking into the dirt.

Max comes back with Nikki and Neil trailing behind him. He tugs on the sleeve of Gwen’s mom’s blouse and she smiles, patting Max on the head like he swears he hates but he doesn’t voice that fact now.

“Okay,” she agrees though to what, David doesn’t know because no one has said a word. “Max wants to show you what we did yesterday.”

She leads them over to the tents set up for food later in the evening and a table in the middle which sits the prettiest cake David has ever seen. The bottom tier is a vibrant sky blue with a lush icing pine forest circling the bottom. The tiers gradate up into pinks, and oranges, and finally a dark blue with glimmering speckled stars.

David feels emotion well up in his chest, more so when Gwen tugs Max back against her and he allows it, wrapping a hand around one of her arms.

“Max came up with the design,” Gwen’s mom explains. “I never would have considered something like this for a wedding cake but, well, he insisted this is what you’d want.”

“It’s perfect,” David agrees, voice wavering with emotion.

“Gross,” Max grumbles, averting his eyes. “It’s just a cake, David.” The adults all laugh, much to his obvious displeasure and Gwen releases him to make his escape as the rest of their return campers all arrive at the same time.

The ceremony arrives before they know it and it’s perfect in the way that it’s not.

David had ideally wanted a summer wedding but Gwen had vetoed the idea immediately. They were, she pointed out, obviously going to be working and the last thing she wanted was to be married one day and cleaning paint off the Mess Hall walls the next while Nurf tried to glue Space Kid to the ceiling by his helmet.

Now, he’s thrilled they waited. Beyond the reality that planning a wedding during camp just wasn’t feasible, their backdrop is a plethora of beautiful trees in shades of red and orange and golden brown scattered between the pines.

Leaves fall as they say their vows and David sputters when one manages to fall into his mouth. Their guests all burst into laughter, draining him of his nerves. This, like everything else, is a moment uniquely them shared with their closest friends and family.

Max is practically clinging to him instead of standing in his spot right next to David and he rests a reassuring hand on the boys back as he and Gwen are instructed to kiss. He hears Max make a soft noise of disgust and laughs, tugging the boy between them while he makes a show of fighting and clawing his way out of the hug.

“Mom offered to take Max while we’re on our honeymoon,” Gwen mentions when everyone disperses to eat. David offers her a confused glance.

“We’re taking him with us?” he reminds her. They’d planned that from the very beginning. Family vacations were still a little out of their reach. It seemed infinitely unfair for the first one to be without Max, honeymoon or not.

“I know. I told her as much. Wouldn’t be much of a vacation without our little monster. She told me that wasn’t the point of a honeymoon. But it’s the point of our honeymoon, right?” she continues, soothing his worry that Gwen had had a change of heart about the whole thing.

He’s not sure what he would do if he was made to choose between Gwen and Max. Not sure why the rest of the world seems hellbent on making him do so when they were all happy in the compromise that made up their makeshift family.

“I sure do love you, Gwen,” he tells her like it’s brand new information. It feels that way sometimes. Like every day, he discovers love for her like it’s the first time. Bright and overwhelming and good.

She shoots him an amused smile, linking their fingers together.

“Yeah, you’re pretty alright yourself, David,” she teases and she doesn’t echo the words back but David still hears them loud and clear.

That’s their tradition.

[roseandremus]

On My Way To An Unknown Confession - Glee

I know I haven’t written anything for awhile but I just got into Glee within the last month and love it. I have an OFC I am thinking of writing with and this is me trying her out. It doesn’t really have a fit ending because of not knowing how I want the relationships to be like right now BUT I hope you enjoy!

TW: Mentions of self-harm and maybe self-hatred ALSO parental abuse briefly mentioned.

There was only an announcement over the speakers for five minutes to tell them that fateful information that David 'Dave' Karofsky had attempted to kill himself, and that they were able to talk to the counselor if need be at anytime. To say it put a damper on her day would be an understatement. The words that sounded too monotone and scripted hit something inside of Beth. The rush of emotions that all made her wish to cry bubbled to the surface and all she could do was sit there and hope that none fell. The scars on her stomach and high thighs burned with recognition. Suddenly, she wished the day was over and that Glee Club wouldn't be too much of a hassle today.

The group was sitting on the floor in a circular formation waiting for Mr. Schuester to start the meeting. When it did start, Beth was as unsure as the purpose to it as Kurt was. Luckily and unluckily, the lesson came to the surface and those feelings from that morning came to the surface once again for Beth. She tried to pay attention to what they were all saying while also shoving her tears and sobs into the deep recesses of her brain and figurative heart.

"The point is Rory just had a brand-new experience, something as simple as peanut butter." Mr. Shue answered before sounding much more serious. "You guys are young. I want you to promise me that, no matter how depressed you get, no matter how hopeless and alone you feel, you'll try your best to imagine all of the amazing experiences you have ahead of you."

That hit a heart string. The room began to seem too quiet and breathing became a hassle. This can't be happening was all she could think. We cannot be having this conversation.

Mercedes seemed to need to say, "Mr. Shue, look, I know we're a little dramatic sometimes, but I don't think anyone will ever consider taking their own life."

The tears were starting to rim her eyes, and her nose began to work against her desires of coming out of this conversation still in the closet about her self-harm and self-hatred. As every sentence in this conversation came out, it seemed one step closer to her eminent doom of confession. That is until Mr. Shue told his story of how he cheated and contemplated very briefly jumping. He started to tell why and how he is grateful he didn't. It was inspirational but it didn't make her feel any better about this. This was too close to home for them to be speaking so casually about in her opinion.

Then it seemed that he was trying to get some sort of response when he said, "But there's something... everyone has something that might take them up to that edge." He continued with why he was happy he didn't which included them and Emma. He then kindly demanded, "So, right now, I want you all to think of something that you're looking forward to. Big things."

Danger bells rung in Beth's ears as she desperately scrambled for any though of a big event she was looking forward to. It seemed everyone else was for a second before Sam started them off.

"Someday, I want to earn enough money to buy my folks a new place, so they don't ever have to go through losing their home again."

Mercedes went a different route and added, "Yeah, I'm looking most forward to meeting Rachel Berry's children."

That received a laugh from all that weren't concerned with finding a cover reason. The floor was not very inspiring to Beth at the moment, so she looked up at her smiling friends. They were all so much happier than her that it hurt. There was nothing to look forward to except death and that wasn't very conversation fitting.

Artie responded next, "I want to be there to see my kid's first steps." That one made her want to smile and cry at the hopeful irony of his situation.

Sugar was quickly after with, "I want to be there to see Sex and the City Part III."

Everyone was a bit surprised, but the revelation wasn't mood stopping. Mr. Shue even said a quick wow without meaning to.

Noah from his sheltered position softly contributed, "I'm sort of embarrassed to admit it, but I really do want to graduate high school."

Finn was soon after sounding much too hopeful yet serious, "I'm gonna petition the Army to change my dad's dishonourable discharge status to an honourable one."

Quinn came next with no hesitation to say, "I'm looking forward to graduating from Yale at the top of my class."

Santana sounded flat but the sadness could be heard when she commented, "I'm looking forward to the day when my grandmother loves me again."

Quickly Brittany spewed out, "I want Lord Tubbington to kick his Ecstasy addiction."

On a more serious note, Blaine accurately stated, "I am looking forward to marriage equality in all 50 states."

Mike with a satisfied look continued, "I'm looking forward to the first time I dance at Carnegie Hall."

There were very few people left and there was nothing she was looking forward to. She was not looking forward to answering this question.

Tina simply said, "I just want a song."

Kurt after a quick group chuckle stated, "I'm looking forward to watching my dad make a difference in Congress."

Rachel said, "I'm looking forward to being friends with all of you for the rest of my life."

The panic spread through her stomach and nerves so quickly she gave a quick spasm that no one noticed as all eyes went towards Rory.

Rory the last one before her said, "I know this sounds silly, but the peanut butter really is amazing, Mr. Shue, but do you know what I'm looking forward to? Winning at Regionals."

Everyone cheered briefly for his statement before looking over at Beth. They apparently expected her to have something to say, but all she could do was glare at the ground with her arms around her pant covered legs that she hugged to her chest. This couldn't be happening was all she could think. There had to be something.

Without looking up and attempting to keep a steady voice, she babbled, "Could I have a minute to think of one?"

Mr. Shue seeming to understand gave a nod and an affirmative. The pressure kept building inside despite that. She could feel the gazes of her fellow classmates and friends dig into her skin. They had to be so confused and angered. How could she not have anything? Something. Equal marriage? No, Blaine said that. What else? What else was there? Is world peace too cliché? Yea, too cliché. Besides, that wouldn't be happening anytime soon. The world was just too fucked up to do that. Was it even possible to be honest? No more starvation? Same problem. Sarcastic route and somewhat situation lifting route? It seemed to be the only option.

Looking up to see all eyes on her almost made her back out on her pick, but knowing it had to be done allowed her to say, "I am looking forward to no more public speakings without my knowing ahead of time."

That didn't seem to satisfy the group's hopes. Mr. Shue even dared to reply after a moment of silence, "I don't really think that fits, Elisabeth."

That phrase on that day in that moment, struck a chord in her. She had always been unable to take criticism well, but today really was not the day to hear it. She sat paralyzed with uncertainty of whether or not he wanted a new response or if they'd just let it slide. Considering no one moved or talked, they seemed to be unsure as well.

"Is there nothing else you look forward to in your life, anything at all?" Mr. Shue continued after a few minutes seeing that she was unsure. He also sounded like that one day when he listened in on the girls conversation about boy problems a year or so ago.

Instantly and without thinking she whispered, "Death."

There was an unwelcomed silence. Her eyes shut and her head tilted down. She knew she had messed up this time. One of two things could happen. One, he could think she was joking and become pissed because it wasn't a laughing matter. Or two, he could take it seriously, and all of the hiding she had done would be for naught. Either way, Elisabeth was screwed by her own instincts.

"Why?" broke the silence. She couldn't tell who said it and honestly didn't care. Why she hadn't left when this conversation started was beyond her. Now, she had told a dozen or so other people including an adult that she was looking forward to being dead. She pissed at herself for having fucked up this badly. She was also pissed at him for making them do this. Not everyone has a programmed future wish in them.

"Beth," a voice that seemed more cracked than usual said to her direct right. Blaine, she figured for he sat to her immediate right. "why would you say that?"

Could this get any worse was all she could think. She was nudged out of that thought when his inquiry was recognized in her brain. She had need to slice her skin open. She was desperate for it now.

"I said it because I don't have a dream. The only thing I really have to look forward to is sleep at the end of a long day. To escape this world of hurt and tiredness and sorrow. Death happens, I would know. Loneliness happens, I would also know. I just want a break from work and school and expectations, mine and others, and life and bullies. I just want a break and the only thing that seems to fall under each of those wants is death." Beth said each word with no emotion; and understandably, she still couldn't look at anybody. She needed to get out of here, but she wouldn't be able to without someone refusing to let her go alone. "Can I leave? I won't kill myself or anything. If I wanted to do that, I could have done it when I was forced to move here."

She didn't hear any objections, so she dashed for the exit not running yet not walking. As she expected, someone was accompanying her on her way out. They walked side-by-side to the exit closest to her direction home. Neither of them said anything until they were outside. Once there, she turned to see that it was Blaine.

"What do you want, Blaine?" it wasn't insincere but it was a bit emotionless and sounded a little annoyed.

Except he seemed to be in shock from her choice of statements. He kept opening and closing his mouth until he appeared to decide on his response. "I just want to know why. I also want to know if you're getting any better. I want you to be okay, and that is selfish of me, but I want you to be okay and alive."

"Why? Let's start from the top then. My four brothers along with two of my grandparents died within a month shortly after my birthday. Then, my mother's abuse became worse since she lost four of her punching bags along with her mother and father. My father was a lovely man that just couldn't stand up for himself or his children. The summer before my freshman year here, my mother kicked me out and relocated me here after a lot of convincing from my father. She pays for rent and gave me a limited credit card for food and water. I was bullied at my old school and am still bullied at this school. That gets to your head after a while. So, yeah. I'm messed up. I've suffered and suffered. Don't I deserve some happiness? So what if that is death? It isn't like I'm actually going to do it! I've had plenty of opportunities to do so if I was. If you call that getting better, then yes I have. I am alive and that isn't going to change by my hand anytime soon, so don't worry about it. Okay?" It all came tumbling out of her mouth and she somehow looked him in the eye the entire time. When it came to an end, she gave him a slight nod, a pat on the shoulder and then turned to walk home per usual.

TO BE CONTINUED AT SOME POINT

IF MY TAGS NEED UPDATING DON’T BE AFRAID TO TELL ME

[weelittleweasley]

You Can Tell Me | Reggie x Reader

Prompt requested by anon: It’s a difficult time in your life right now and you find it hard to cope with. Reggie is unaware of the whole situation until someone tells him what is going on.

Request status: Open

Ever since you were younger, you had idolized your parent’s relationship. Everything had seemed so perfect. They were a picture perfect couple, both of them being high school sweethearts, getting married after a rough college life without each other, having two kids, and living in the wealthy part of Riverdale. But as you grew older, the cracks in the facade started to peak through. You witnessed more fights than you would care to admit and you knew that things were becoming very rocky between them. Your older brother, Dean, told you that things would all work themselves out for the better, but you were hesitant.

With five months of endless bickering, your mother and father had filed their divorce papers. It was crazy to think that after twenty five years of marriage, they were so insistent on giving it up just like that. They didn’t even try to work out a solution.

You sat in your room, wiping away your tears before Dean knocked on your door. Dean was always there for you regardless of the situation; he was the best older brother a girl could ask for. “Hey,” he calls into your room as you scoot over in your bed, making room for him. “How you holdin’ up?” he asks, rubbing your back.

“How does it look?” you lightly laugh as he gives you a sad smile. “Mom and Dad are getting a divorce...I can’t wrap my head around it,” you shake your head. You lean into Dean’s body as he engulfs you in a hug. 

He sighs, kissing the top of your head. “I know, bud, I know. But we’re gonna get through it. It’s gonna be hard, but we have our friends. You have Reggie. And most importantly, we have each other,” he tells you as you smile. Dean was always an amazing companion, but since dating Reggie, he has almost replaced him. You and Reggie have been dating for almost six months and you couldn’t be happier with him. Before you went out on your first date, Reggie had been pursing you for the whole year, but you had always said no because of the reputation he has had and the fact that he was your brother’s best friend and team mate. The thought of dating him was weird. But Reggie wasn’t giving up on you two and after a long time of asking and flirting, you had said yes. 

But this was some new information in your life that you didn’t want to tell Reggie just yet because you needed time to process it. You didn’t think you were going to tell your friends until a little later to make sure you had enough time to come to terms with the new change. “Thanks, Dean,” you sigh before he gets up. “I’ll let you know if I need anything.”

The next day at school was rough to say the least. You couldn’t focus on your schoolwork and your teachers noticed. Thankfully, your guidance counselor was able to contact them about the news and your teachers gave you sad smiles and some gave you uncomfortable hugs with the It’ll get better phrase. You thanked them as they gave you a free pass for as long as you needed it. Of course, you’d make that the excuse for not doing your homework or bombing a few tests.

Keeping this secret from your friends, but keeping it from Reggie was harder. Reggie knew you like the back of his hand and he could tell that something was wrong with you. You didn’t want to tell him because it would just drag him into the drama. That was the last thing you wanted to do. As you walked down the hallway, he had his arm wrapped around your waist as you leaned into him. His touch was soothing and help your worries melt away in almost an instant. “You alright today, baby? You seem off,” he kisses your temple.

You look up at him, trying to make up your mind about what you should tell him. “Yeah, I’m fine. Don’t worry about me, I’m all good,” you lie, squeeze the hand that rested on your hip.

“Y/N, I can’t not worry about you,” he laughs as he leans against the lockers as you open yours. “That’s like asking me not to breathe.” You laugh at his comment and he smiles at the sound. Your laughter was like music to his ears. “You can tell me if something is bugging you,” he leans forward.

Sighing, you look at him, biting your lip. You wanted to tell him your home life was falling apart. Both of your parents were fighting for custody--your mom wanted majority custody, but your father was fighting for joint custody. It was a mess. But instead, you stroked his cheek gently before connecting your lips with his sweetly to calm his fears. The two of you relax into the kiss, fears and qualms melting away before you pull away. “I’m okay, Reg. I promise,” you tell before kissing him again quickly. The bell rings and you say, “I gotta get to math. I’ll text you after.” He kisses your cheek before you part, “I love you!”

Reggie smiles before waving and walking away. The fact that you had to lie to his face then and there made your heart break, but you know you were doing it to save yourself from excess drama.

The day progressed and it got harder to do through the daily motions. Texts and calls from your mother shot your anxiety levels through the roof that you had to excuse yourself during math to go to the bathroom. You completely got sick in the toilet and took another ten minutes to yourself to pull yourself together. This was crazy to you--you shouldn’t let this stuff affect your schoolwork, but you couldn’t help it.

At the end of the day, Reggie met you at your locker with a smile on his face. You tried to give him the same smile, but it ended up looking like a sad smile. “What’s wrong?” he immediately asks. You shake your head, sighing. “Come on, I know something is bothering you, baby. Tell me,” he pleads. His eyes are begging to know what is happening in your life, but you shut him out yet again.

“I’ve just had a long day and I got no sleep last night. Don’t worry, I’m going home and taking a long nap,” you grab his shoulder walking closer to him as he sighs, wrapping an arm around your waist. “I’m fine, Reg.”

Reggie shakes his head, “Alright. I won’t bombard you. Let me know if you need anything,” he tells you, kissing you sweetly. You smile into the kiss, cupping his face gently. God, you loved him so much and it hurt so much to hide this from him. “I love you,” he tells you.

“I love you, too,” you repeat before he winks, smacking your butt lightly. 

But Reggie wasn’t giving up this soon. He knew something was bothering his girl and he was going to get to the bottom of it no matter what he had to do. At basketball practice as they were doing lay-up cool down drills, he spotted Dean on the bench drinking from his water bottle, packing up his stuff. “Yo, Dean!” Reg calls as Dean smiles. 

Dean fist bumps his best friend with a smile, “Sup?” he asks.

Reggie sat next to him, wiping the sweat from his forehead with a fresh towel. He didn’t know how to say this without sounding invasive. “Y/N. Something has been bothering her. Do you know what? She hasn’t been telling me and I know that she’s hiding something,” he tells his friend. Dean’s smile disappears from his face and he becomes a little more serious. “Is it bad? What happened?”

“Reg, stop being so paranoid,” Dean pats Reggie’s back. Dean clears his throat, “Things at home are a little rough. It’s taken a toll on Y/N.”

The boy furrows his eyebrows a little confused. “Is everything okay? Are you okay?” Reggie asks now, concerned for both his friend and his girlfriend. 

Dean shakes his head, “Yeah, I’m fine. I saw things a little differently than Y/N with this current situation...Our parents are getting divorced.” Reggie’s eyes widen, now everything makes sense. “Everything is okay. Things are being worked through. Y/N is just taking it a little rough because she always saw our parent’s relationship was this picture perfect relationship. But I always saw right through their facade.” Reggie slumps over, questioning why you weren’t telling him the truth. He thought he was a good boyfriend. Why would you keep this from him? “It’s not you, Reg,” Dean consoles him. “Y/N probably didn’t want to drag you into this...But know that you know, she needs you.”

With that, Reggie knew exactly what he had to do.

You had been in your pajamas and a large sweatshirt of Reggie’s, curled up in your room as you watched a movie on your laptop. There was ring at your doorbell as you remained confused. Both of your parents were out with their lawyers and Dean wasn’t due back for another hour. 

Opening up the door, you revealed Reggie who had a bouquet of tulips, a teddy bear, and a tub of mint chocolate chip ice cream in his hands. You asked him what he was doing and he responded, “Dean told me everything.” Of course, he did. “Baby, I know this is taking its toll on you and I’m here to ease some of the pain. Now, you better eat this ice cream before it melts,” he jokes as you smile.

Laughing, you take the items from his hands. “Thank you, Reg,” you smile as he kisses you tenderly. 

“Of course. I love you, babe.”

[spaceorphan18]

SO’S GLEEEPISODE RANKING: NO. 61

I started a Full Glee Episode Ranking between seasons 5 and 6 over two years ago now (!!!). My opinions have changed somewhat since then (retrospect is an interesting thing), and I need to include the thirteen season six episodes I neglected in my original list.  With the two year anniversary of the show being over a few months away, I thought I’d count down to by posting an episode every day.  I’ll tag using: glee episode rankings

Here we go…

61. Pilot (1x01)

Written by: Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk, Ian Brennan Directed by: Ryan Murphy

So - I’ve reached the half way point on my list! Yay!! Interestingly, around the 80s was when I started to like the episodes more than I dislike them, but now we’re getting into really good episodes.  

So I have the pilot here.  Because I wasn’t sure what to do with it really.  On the one hand, it’s a solid and fascinating start to the story.  It’s very funny, and moving, and captures the attention enough that people want to keep going.  On the other hand, I don’t think it holds up as well on rewatch - when you’ve (I’ve) become invested in other stories and characters who are barely there or aren’t there at all.  

The story, as we all know, is about Will - a tired high school teacher in a bad marriage, looking for a way to relive his high school glory days by starting up the glee club again.  The cheerleading coach wants to squish him, and put him in his place for taking her finances.  The guidance counselor has a crush on him.  The football coach has a crush on her, and blames the poor Spanish teach for all his issues.  This sounds like an excellent premise on paper, doesn’t it? [sarcasm]

And then we have Finn - a kid whom Will sees as himself at that age, and takes this conflicted jock under his wing.  Finn’s not a bad guy, but just wanting to figure out his place in high school hierarchy, and feeling torn between his cheerleader girlfriend and jock bffs, and his newfound love for singing.  

Meanwhile, we have our ragtag group of kids, spit on by society; a black girl, a disabled boy, the gay kid, and the Asian-goth girl, led by an ambitious Jew, coming together to form the actual glee club, and becoming unlikely friends.  This sound way more promising than two white dudes paralleling each other’s stories about what it is to be a man? Too bad - they only get about five minutes of screen time.  

So, yeah, the pilot’s good, but just doesn’t interest me the way it did when I first started it - especially when the faults kind of show through the cracks.  So I gave it the honorary middle of the list spot.  

High Points: 

Sue - I’m gonna give her some credit, she’s actually pretty funny in the pilot, and Jane Lynch really was one of the strongest actors they had on the show.  

The New Directions (nude erections) joke was pretty inspired. 

Rachel, Mercedes, Kurt and Tina’s auditions! (And Artie’s there, too) Hello adorable bbs! I wish you were here more! 

Howard Bamboo.  Who doesn’t like Howard Bamboo?

This episode does have some fantastic one-liners. 

Low Points: 

The pilot focuses a lot on Will and his life, and y’all probably know by now, I don’t really care about any of it. 

The pilot, and really the first portion of the show, really does rely heavily on stereotypes.  I’m glad the show could break out of that a bit. 

Puck and Quinn - gah, such awfulness in their limited appearance. 

Music: 

The pilot has a different relationship to music than the entire rest of the series.  Because of that, I’m just going to go over the songs that were fully released.  

On My Own: Yes, give Lea Michele a Broadway classic that both fits her character and shows off her talent.  This was a good choice all the way around! 

Rehab: The Vocal Adrenaline stuff is pretty funny.  The song itself isn’t all that great. But in context it works amazingly. 

Leaving on a Jet Plane: I’m surprised Will didn’t sing more at the beginning of this show, tbh.  Matthew Morrison’s awful character sometimes hides the fact that he’s, indeed, a very good performer, and I think he does well with this one. 

Don’t Stop Believin’: Oh, man, this song gave me chills when I first heard it.  There’s a reason they kept coming back to this one, because it was magic the first time it came together.  I wasn’t completely sold on the show until I heard it, and it made me sit up and listen.  Brilliant, and classic, one of the best things the show ever did.  

Final Verdict: The Pilot was an incredibly entertaining piece of TV, unlike really anything that had been on TV up until that point.  It’s really pretty funny, moving, and engaging.  However, the show turned far away from these original story lines, and I can’t say that I’m too invested in any of the stories told in this episode - especially when the stories I’m interested in are barely there.  

[biofunmy]

‘S.N.L.’ Presents Kellyanne Conway’s ‘Marriage Story,’ Plus Baby Yoda

It was a Christmas miracle: a “Saturday Night Live” opening sketch that wasn’t in any way dependent on a series of surprise celebrity cameos or an onslaught of political impersonations.

Instead, this weekend’s “S.N.L.” broadcast (which was hosted by Scarlett Johansson and featured the musical guest Niall Horan) began with a comedic look at the dinner tables of three families celebrating the holidays around the country. The first was a liberal-leaning family, led by Cecily Strong, living in San Francisco; the second a conservative-leaning family, led by Beck Bennett, in Charleston, S.C.; and the third a black family, led by Kenan Thompson, in Atlanta.

For starters, Strong expressed her pleasure that President Trump seemed on the verge of being impeached, while Bennett lamented it and called it “a disgrace.” Thompson asked his family, “Y’all think ‘Bad Boys 3’ is going to be good or not? I mean, it’s got to be good. Will Smith and Martin Lawrence back together.”

When Chris Redd asked him to please talk about politics instead, Thompson replied, “Oh you mean how Trump is definitely getting impeached, and then definitely getting re-elected? I’m good.”

The dinner guests around Strong’s table wondered who could possibly vote for Trump now, while at Bennett’s table they asked how anyone couldn’t vote for him. To his family, Thompson asked, “Who do you think is going to get voted off ‘The Masked Singer’ next week?”

Redd, trying to steer the conversation back to politics again, said that people would not vote for Trump again. “What people?” Thompson said. “White people? If white people tell you I might not vote for Trump this time, you know what that’s called, right? A lie. Nobody was going to vote for Trump in 2016 either. And then guess who did? Everybody.”

Strong and her guests said they would take any Democratic candidate over four more years of a Trump presidency, while Bennett and his family said they liked Trump better than any of the Democrats. Thompson said to his guests, “You know who I’m starting to like a lot? That Pete Buttigieg.” After a pause, everyone around the table laughed knowingly.

At its conclusion the sketch returned to a snowman played by Aidy Bryant, who told the audience that all three families had one important thing in common: “They live in states where their votes don’t matter,” she said. “Because none of them live in the three states that will decide our election. They’ll debate the issues all year long but then it all comes down to 1,000 people in Wisconsin who won’t even think about the election until the morning of. And that’s the magic of the Electoral College.”

For good measure, the sketch threw in Kate McKinnon as the 16-year-old climate activist Greta Thunberg, who replied to Trump’s social media mockery of her.

“Donald Trump, step to me and I’ll come at you like a plastic straw comes at a turtle,” McKinnon said. “I can’t believe I’m saying this to a 70-year-old man, but grow up.”

‘Marriage Story’ Parody of the Week

When you have an episode hosted by Scarlett Johansson you’ve got to satirize the meme-friendly Netflix movie she’s currently starring in, right?

The “S.N.L.” take on Noah Baumbach’s “Marriage Story” trades the squabbling artistic couple played by Johansson and Adam Driver for the political spouses George T. Conway III (Bennett), the conservative lawyer and Trump critic, and Kellyanne Conway (McKinnon), the White House counselor. As in the movie, the Conways list their favorite qualities about each other, which they then proceed to undermine, and engage in an intensely personal argument: “You’re not even verified on Twitter,” McKinnon taunts Bennett. “Where’s your blue check, George?” In response, Bennett punches his fist through a wall.

Fake Commercial of the Week

What starts off as a seemingly innocuous advertisement for Macy’s becomes a devastatingly precise comedic commentary on the experience of shopping for and dressing uncooperative small children. (Whose parents nonetheless love them very much.)

A genial voice-over promises that Macy’s offers “the best in fashions that’ll have them saying — ” followed by kids shouting, “It’s too hot!” and “It’s itchy!” A third child cries inconsolably. The commercial goes on to boast of “boys’ merino wool sweaters that won’t fit over his head,” “kids’ jackets so big and thick they won’t fit in their car seat anymore” and “snow boots that are so hard to put on they’ll strain your marriage.” Happy holidays!

Weekend Update Jokes of the Week

Over at the Weekend Update desk, the anchors Colin Jost and Michael Che continued to riff on the latest developments in the process to impeach President Trump.

Jost:

After yesterday’s vote approving articles of impeachment, President Trump could become the first president to face impeachment while also running for re-election. Because only Democrats could figure out a way to lose twice in the same year. Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, who was accidentally CGI’d to look like both Joe Pesci and Robert De Niro, appealed to Republicans on the committee, saying, “When Trump’s time is past, how will you be remembered?” Remembered? I barely know you know now and I think you’re my congressman. I hate to break it to you, but the only way Americans ever remember a congressman is if he sent someone a picture of his penis. And we only remember that because his name was Weiner.

Che:

President Trump set a personal record on Thursday when he reacted to impeachment news by posting more than 100 tweets. Causing White House officials to ask, Is everything O.K. in there, sir? [the screen displays a picture of a bathroom door] I don’t get why Trump’s so worked up. I mean, it’s still going to take two-thirds of the Senate to vote him out of office. And that’s not going to happen because, well, take a look at the Senate. [the screen displays the images of several white Senators] It would be like if Obama got voted out of office by the Wu-Tang Clan. But look on the bright side, Democrats, now you know you can cheat. Why are you nerds still playing by the rules? Literally nothing matters anymore. Kamala dropped out because she ran out of money. Rob a bank! Do y’all want this or not?

Weekend Update Deskside Bit of the Week

If we were making this selection solely with our hearts, we would probably choose the return visit from Chen Biao, the irrepressible Chinese trade official played by Bowen Yang. But for obvious zeitgeist reasons, we have to give the edge to this inevitable appearance from Baby Yoda, the breakout Disney Plus character portrayed by Kyle Mooney as a self-aware entertainment-industry player.

He may not know anything about the Force, but this Baby Yoda eagerly shared photos of his squad (consisting of Timothée Chalamet, Robert Pattinson and “the two guys from the Sonic commercials”) and boasted about his new stand-up special on Netflix. (“I basically just tell stories about who hooked up on the ‘Mandalorian’ set: me.”) He also revealed that he has some enemies: “Baby Groot, do me a favor. Keep my name out your lil tree mouth before I snap you like a twig.”

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[optimisticheartbarbarian-blog]

Dating my father. Write only if you are serious! Diana. Age 20 My new photos and sexy videos here >>>

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[sueboohscorner]

#The Flash Season 4 Episode 12 "Honey I Shunk Team Flash" Recap and Review

The episode starts with Joe and Cecile talking about cribs. Then Cecile starts hearing things that Joe isn’t saying. She can read his thoughts.

According to Caitlin, there is no dark matter in the amniotic fluid, so the baby is not a meta. Baby is a girl though. Cisco doesn't believe her until she reads his mind. Caitlin thinks this is being caused by latent dark matter in her cells, like gestational diabetes. It’s temporary.

Caitlin, Harry, Iris, and Caitlin talk about Cecile and Barry’s appeal. Harry is even more grumpy this episode than normal. He doesn’t care that Cecile can read minds and he doesn’t think the appeal will go anywhere because they have no new evidence.

Barry’s playing poker and he’s good at it because he cheats. This is a bit out of character, but he cheats for Big Sir too, which makes more sense. The old mayor is playing cards with them and gets mad at Big Sir. He even alludes to what he’s in prison for.

Big Sir storms to his cell and Barry follows him. After some prompting, he hands Barry a police file. We find out the whole story through voiceover and flashback. 15 years ago, a security guard was shot. He was arrested because he had the same gun. In reality, he tried to save the guard when he heard gunshots. There was another guy there. Barry believes him.

The new mayor is in front of Kord Industries. She doesn’t like metas and has supposedly made a meta proof building. Right after she says this, the building disappears.  A bald guy that was at the scene picks it up after everyone leaves.

Cisco and Cecile meet Joe at the scene. Cecile wanted to help using her new powers, which she is super psyched about. Cisco and Joe aren’t so much, as she doesn’t read anything relevant. She does; however, read that Joe wants her to go.

After she leaves, Cisco goes through the security footage and sees the bald guy driving off. Joe gets a call from Barry.

He wants them to help Big Sir. Harry ends up being the one that does the convincing on this one. Everyone else thinks that they have their plate full enough, but Harry reminds them that this is the only thing that Barry has asked for and it’s not even for him.

While this is going on, they get a plate match to the car. It belongs to Sylbert Rundin. Iris makes a joke about all the villains names sounding like they come out of comics, haha they do, and the boys try to think of a nickname.

Barry gives Big Sir the update. He’s doesn’t want Barry’s help.  Hope is poisonous in prison.

Joe, Cisco, and Ralph go to see Rundin. He has a lot of figurines in his house, which Cisco proceeds to freak out over. He also used to be a boxer. It turns out that they aren’t figurines. When Joe starts to question him, he Ant-Man’s things back to their normal size. For, example the parachute he uses to jump out the window. Cisco vibes them out there, but Rundin shrinks Joe’s car. Then he shrinks Cisco and Ralph.

Caitlin, Harry, and Ralph talk to them and it’s hilarious. I expected this to be super groan worthy, but I actually laughed really hard. Ralph can’t stretch back. Cisco’s having vibe issues. Everyone is trading insults. It’s great.

Iris comes in and tells them the source of Rundin’s powers. He stole some of Ray’s dwarfstar tech from Palmer Tech on the day of the bus incident.

Cecile brings Big Sir’s trial records. They think Rundin is the guy that framed Big Sir. Cisco names him Dwarfstar and Ralph gets stuck on the bottom of Iris’s shoe. Caitlin goes to put them in the hamster cage. Harry goes to fix them.

When it’s just Iris and Cecile, Iris suggests that Cecile and Joe get some help.

They go to the marriage counselor! I honestly love that this has become a running gag this season because all of these scenes are golden.

Barry tells Big Sir that his team found Rundin. Big Sir is still skeptical, so Barry tells reminds him that Henry got out after 17 years. He doesn’t mention that he died soon after, but that’s for the best.

Iris puts Cisco and Ralph in the Lego set they built last year. Having her explain that to Ralph is hilarious. Speaking of last year, Harry revamped the bazooka. It should make them big again. It actually makes it worse. It destabilized their cells and they have 10 hours to live.

Barry and Big Sir talk about how life isn’t a movie. Barry tells him about Iris and gets him to open up. After he gets out, there’s a little village in China that he wants to go where all the monks take a vow of silence.

The warden interrupts their conversation. He tells Barry to drop this case and semi kind of threatens him.

Cecile talks to Iris about Joe. Iris tells her to stop focusing on what Joe is thinking and to ask what he’s feeling.

Ralph needs to pee, and Caitlin has to take him. Cisco and Harry take this time to have a little talk. Cisco kicks Harry in the pants enough for him to get an idea. Dwarfstar needs to hit them again.

He’s at the Central City Weather Society looking at an airplane.

Iris finds him. Cisco and Ralph have 20 minutes before they explode.

Dwarfstar shrinks an airplane, Iris and Harry get there in a truck, and Cisco and Ralph fly in on a drone. Dwarfstar throws cars and helicopters at them. Ralph and Cisco have to jump off the drone.

They go to Plan B. Harry taunts Rundin, who shoots him. Ralph and Cisco were on Harry, so they get big again.  Iris then shoots a metahuman collar on Rundin and Joe arrests him. He won’t confess though.

Joe tells Barry, who tells Big Sir. He takes it really well. Barry reminded him what hope feels like. It feels good.

Nevertheless, this eats Barry up, so when the cameras turn away from his cell, he Flashes Big Sir to China.

Cecile and Joe talk. He doesn’t like her reading his mind because it makes him vulnerable and he doesn’t want her to see him that way. To remedy this, she tells him her stupid thoughts and makes herself vulnerable. They kiss and promise never to think less of each other.

Back at S.T.A.R. Labs, they all wonder what Devoe is planning. Nothing is a coincidence with him, so why? Harry vows to find out.

Barry’s busted. The warden installed extra cameras and caught him Flashing. He also drugged his pudding. Seriously with the pudding. This is the second time someone’s done something with the pudding.

Anyway, he puts Barry in the metahuman wing and then calls Amunet.

For a filler episode, this was good. Maybe Barry will get out of prison next episode? 8/10.