#like. some of y'all REALLY need to know when to just. make an OC already. | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

overrboarrd · 3 months ago

Text

sanctuary [3]: kick off

firefighter!roman reigns x azure clarke [oc]

warnings: brief mention of spousal loss, light drinking, lots of football

word count: 5.5k

a/n: hello my beautiful peoplee <3 sorry this update kept getting pushed back, i've been annoyingly busy these past couple weeks. this chapter is a chill one, but i really hope y'all like it! the next update may be delayed a couple days cause my birthday is next weekend and i'll be outsideee 🤪 but yeah, i appreciate y'all always! thanks for reading <3

Azure stood at the kitchen counter, pulling a few dishes from the small box she had finally decided to unpack. It wasn’t much—just some mugs and plates—but it felt like progress. The morning sunlight streamed in through the window, casting a warm glow over the bare kitchen. She leaned against the counter, staring at the mess of cardboard and packing paper, absentmindedly turning over a mug in her hand.

She pulled out a few plates, stacking them on the counter, then paused when her phone rang. With a soft smile, she picked up the phone and answered, cradling it between her ear and shoulder. “Hey, Jade.”

“Hey girl! You settled in yet or still living out of boxes?” Jade teased, her voice bringing a bit of comfort to Azure’s morning.

“Definitely still in the 'living out of boxes' phase,” Azure laughed lightly. “I’m unpacking the kitchen right now, but it’s dragging.”

“Ugh, I hate unpacking,” Jade groaned. “But you doing okay? I’m sorry I didn't call sooner, my father in law’s birthday was this past weekend, and you know how Reggie is when it comes to going to his parents’ house.”

A soft smile spread across Azure’s face, “It’s okay sis.” Her teeth captured her bottom lip in contemplation. “I’ve actually met a few people,” Azure admitted, trying to sound casual, but she knew Jade would pick up on any hesitation in her voice.

“Oh? Do tell.”

“Just some neighbors. They helped me move some boxes.”

“That’s good!”

“Yeah, they’re... really nice. Two guys, twins, Jimmy and Jey. Invited me to a cookout later on today.”

“Wait, twins? And they already invited you to a cookout?” Jade teased, a playful edge to her tone. “That sounds promising.”

“It’s not like that,” Azure laughed. “They’re really nice but definitely married. And then… there’s their cousin,” she hesitated. “Roman.”

“Okay…” Jade’s voice trailed. Azure swore she could hear a hint of a smile as Jade continued. “Tell me more about this Roman guy.”

“We talked a little. He welcomed me to the neighborhood, but I think I might’ve rambled. I was telling him about my day at work, how Dr. Rollins pulled me aside because I was running late.”

Jade hummed thoughtfully. “And?”

“And, well… I don’t know. Roman just seemed kind of tense when I mentioned Dr. Rollins. I might’ve made things awkward.”

“Girl, you did not make it awkward. You were just trying to spark up a conversation, right? You haven’t talked to new people in a while… it’s going to feel a little weird. But that doesn’t mean it was bad.” Jade’s voice softened, offering the kind of encouragement Azure needed. “Maybe he’s just one of those quiet shy guys, you know?”

“Maybe,” Azure said, biting her lip. “It’s just—I don’t know. It felt like I was rambling, and he didn’t say much.”

“Azure, stop,” Jade said firmly. “You’re doing great. You’re starting to meet people, and that’s good. Just because it wasn’t a perfect conversation doesn’t mean you blew it.”

Azure sighed, knowing Jade was right but still feeling that small nagging doubt. “Yeah, I guess.”

“And what’s this about the cookout?” Jade’s tone shifted, playful again. “Are you going?”

“I don’t know if I should. Jey and Jimmy invited me, but I feel like it might be too soon, like I don’t really know anyone well enough to go.”

“That’s exactly why you should go! You’re invited, Azure, and it’s a cookout. You’ll meet more people, and it’ll give you a chance to see Roman again. Maybe even smooth out any awkwardness from yesterday. Come on, you gotta go.”

Azure leaned against the counter, cracking a few of her knuckles. “I don’t know…”

“No ma’am. No excuses. You’re going. Next time you see the twins, tell them you’re coming,” Jade insisted.

After a long pause, Azure sighed with a small smile. “If I see them, I’ll let them know I might be there.”

“I guess that’s better than nothing. You’ll have a good time, I promise.” Azure heard Jade exhale a deep breath before she continued. “Azure...” Jade’s voice softened, “I know it’s scary. You’ve been through so much, and it makes sense that you’d want to protect yourself. But you can’t close yourself off forever. You deserve happiness, too. And maybe that happiness is waiting for you in this new place, with these new people.”

Azure’s eyes stung with tears. She hadn’t realized how much she needed to hear that. “It’s just... hard. Every time I think I’m ready to start over, it feels like…” A lump starts to form in her throat. “Like I’ll forget about him.”

“You’re not going to forget about Derrick,” Jade said firmly. “You’re honoring him by finding a way to live again.”

Azure swallowed, her emotions swirling. “Thank you for that sis.”

“Of course girl,” Jade said, her voice lightening. “And remember, I’m always here if you need to talk, okay?”

“Thanks, Jade. I really appreciate it.”

After they hung up, Azure looked at the small kitchen box she hadn’t quite finished unpacking. Jade was right; she needed to put herself out there, even if it felt strange and unfamiliar. Jade’s words echoed in her mind, but the fear remained. She had come here to start over, but every step toward something new felt like she was leaving pieces of herself behind. She wanted to blend into the newness of this place, to feel the laughter, the warmth, the life around her. But what if it hurt too much?

What if joy felt like a betrayal?

Could she really open herself up again?

The thought of Roman tugged at her, though she quickly brushed it aside.

Azure strolled out to the front porch. With a sigh, she pocketed her phone and made her way to the car; the gentle warmth of the Pensacola morning wrapping around her like a light blanket. The street was quiet, a slight breeze rustling the trees overhead as she unlocked the car and leaned in to retrieve a bag of things she had left the day before.

As she pulled the bag out, she heard the familiar rumble of a car engine from across the street. Glancing up, she noticed Jimmy pulling into the driveway at Roman’s house. He hopped out first, his usual energetic self, followed by a woman she recognized but had never formally met. Jimmy’s wife, she assumed, was stunning, her dark hair framing her face perfectly as she moved with an easy confidence.

Jimmy noticed Azure first. He waved enthusiastically before leaning over to say something to his wife, who looked in Azure’s direction and smiled.

“Aye, Azure!” Jimmy called out, his voice warm and friendly as always.

Azure froze, caught in his enthusiasm. She smiled politely and gave a small wave. “Hey, Jimmy.”

Without missing a beat, Jimmy nudged the woman, and the two of them started walking across the street toward her. “Thought we’d come say wassup before we head inside,” he flashed her a grin.

“Hey, I’m Naomi. We haven’t officially met, but I’ve seen you around.” Naomi smiled brightly, her energy as vibrant as her husband’s. Azure nodded, feeling a bit of the tension ease as she introduced herself. “Yeah, I’ve seen you, too. It’s nice to finally meet you.”

Naomi’s eyes sparkled, and she gave a quick glance toward Roman’s house. “We’re getting ready for the cookout at Jey’s, and Jimmy mentioned you might be coming?”

Azure shifted her weight slightly, unsure how to respond. “Yeah...I was thinking about it.”

Jimmy chuckled, nudging Naomi with his elbow. “What’d I tell you? She’s still on the fence.”

Naomi swatted his arm, turning her attention back to Azure. “You should come. It’s gonna be fun—nothing too big or formal. And Jey always makes sure everyone feels welcome.”

Azure bit her lip, feeling a mix of nervousness and uncertainty. “I appreciate the invite. I guess I just feel... out of place since I don’t really know anyone yet.”

“You won’t be out of place at all.” Jimmy chimed in again, his tone playful but sincere. “We all family. Besides, if you ever need someone to talk to, you got us.”

Naomi seemed to sense her internal debate. “Hey, no pressure. If you decide to come, we’d be happy to see you. If not, there’s always the next one.”

Azure glanced down at the bag in her hands, weighing her options. She didn’t want to keep feeling like she was isolating herself, not after Jade had basically given her an entire pep talk over the phone.Yes, it was just a cookout, just an afternoon with her neighbors. But it was more than that. It was a choice, a small crack in the armor she’d built around herself, a chance to remember how to belong again. Finally, she took a breath and looked back up at Naomi and Jimmy. “You know what, I’ll come. I could use some fun.”

“Great!” Naomi’s face lit up. “You won’t regret it, I promise.”

“Yeah, we’ll have a good time,” Jimmy added with a wink. “Glad you’re coming.”

Azure felt a weight lift off her shoulders. It wasn’t much, but agreeing to the cookout felt like a step forward. “Thanks y’all, I’m looking forward to it.”

“Here, give me your number.” Naomi said, pulling out her phone. “That way, if you need anything or want to come over early, you can text me.”

Azure quickly rattled off her number, feeling more at ease while Naomi typed it in and smiled.

“Alright, we’ll let you get back to it,” Jimmy said, giving her a quick wave before heading back to Roman’s with Naomi.

“See you later!” Naomi called over her shoulder with a friendly smile.

Azure watched them go, feeling lighter as she stood by her car, a small smile tugging at her lips.

Roman stood in the doorway of Audrey’s room, watching her small figure nestled under the covers. The soft rise and fall of her breathing filled the quiet space. A faint smile tugged at his lips as he leaned against the doorframe, taking in the sight of his daughter. She always slept so peacefully, a contrast to the whirlwind of emotions and responsibilities that often swirled around them.

He took another sip of coffee from his mug, savoring the warmth. His mind drifted back to his conversation with Azure the night before. She’d been so open, talking about her day at work and how Seth had checked in on her. Her words replayed in his mind: “He pulled me into his office just to make sure I was adjusting okay.”

A familiar tension crept into his chest, his grip tightening around the mug. Rollins. Even just hearing his name brought up old resentments, ones he hadn’t realized were still buried so close to the surface. But this wasn’t Azure’s fault; she didn’t know the history, and she definitely didn’t need to bear the weight of it.

The sound of soft footsteps broke his thoughts, and Roman looked down just as Audrey appeared at the doorway, rubbing her eyes.

“Mornin’, angel,” he murmured, setting his mug down on the side table. He scooped her into his arms, her tiny body warm and heavy with sleep, her head nestled against his shoulder.

“Morning, daddy,” she mumbled, still half-asleep.

He ran a gentle hand over her back. “Did you sleep okay?”

She nodded, her cheek pressed against his shirt. “I dreamed about Uncle Jey’s dog. He was chasing Kitty around the house.” A little giggle escaped her, and the sound brought a lightness to his chest he didn’t realize he’d needed.

“Oh yeah?” Roman chuckled, hugging her tighter. “You think Kitty’s ready for the cookout today?”

Audrey perked up, her eyes brightening as she pulled back to look at him. “Are we going to Uncle Jey’s?”

“Mhm. Uncle Jim and Auntie Naomi are comin’ over soon to grab some stuff for the party. You’ll get to see everyone.”

Audrey wriggled out of his arms, a new energy lighting her face as she ran back into her room, ready to find the perfect outfit for the big day.

A smile still lingered on his lips as he made his way downstairs, only to hear a knock at the back door. He set down his coffee as Jimmy strolled in, his familiar grin lighting up the kitchen, Naomi right behind him.

“Morning big uce!” Jimmy called, already heading toward the fridge.

“Morning, Roman,” Naomi added warmly, giving him a quick hug before playfully swatting Jimmy’s hand away from the orange juice.

Jimmy leaned on the island, his grin unfazed. “Thought we’d swing by early, help you grab the cooler and some extra chairs for later.”

Roman nodded toward the garage door. “Should have everything in there, but let me know if you need an extra set of hands.”

“I’ll handle it,” Jimmy said, sauntering toward the garage.

Naomi took a seat on one of the barstools, resting her elbows on the counter as she looked at him with a curious smile. “You ready for today?”

“After all this work I’ve been doin’, I definitely need a break.” he admitted, but his thoughts wandered back to Azure, and the tug of their conversation lingered in his chest.

Naomi’s eyes sparkled knowingly. “Oh, by the way, Azure’s coming to the cookout.”

Roman looked up, surprised. “She is?”

Naomi’s grin grew wider, clearly enjoying his reaction. “Yep. She was hesitant, but I convinced her. Got her number and everything.”

He exhaled, trying to act indifferent, but his gaze softened. He hadn’t meant to come across as distant last night; he was just... caught off guard. The last thing he wanted was to make her uncomfortable.

Naomi must’ve noticed his thoughtful silence because she placed a comforting hand on his arm. “Want me to help Audrey get ready?”

“Yeah, that’d be great,” Roman said, the slight edge in his voice fading away. “She’ll be excited to see you.”

As Naomi left, Jimmy returned with the cooler and a few chairs. He noticed Roman’s thoughtful expression and raised an eyebrow. “I was gone for two seconds, uce. What got you lookin’ like that?”

Roman shook his head. “Talked to Azure last night. She mentioned Seth.”

“Rollins?” Jimmy’s face shifted, his casual demeanor replaced with a more serious look.

“Yeah,” Roman murmured, the bitterness creeping back. “Can’t believe he’s still tryna charm his way around. She doesn’t know, though. She doesn’t know what went down with him… with the chief.”

Jimmy rubbed his chin, his gaze sharp. “You still holdin’ onto that?”

Roman didn’t answer immediately, instead staring at the floor. His muscles tightened with a memory he wished he could bury deeper. "It’s hard not to hold onto it," he said quietly. "You know what almost happened. That mess with the chief… my career was on the line. All because of him."

“Yeah, I remember.” Jimmy grimaced, the weight of the past hanging in the air. “But come on, that was years ago. You made it through. Hell, you got promoted after all that.”

“I know, but it wasn’t easy.” Roman shook his head. “I had to work twice as hard to get back in their good graces. The way Rollins played it, he could’ve ruined me. I can’t just forget that.”

Jimmy crossed his arms, leaning back against the counter. “Look, I get it. Seth fucked you over, no doubt. But that’s his problem now, uce. You moved on, and you been solid ever since. He don’t get to mess with your head every time his name comes up.”

Roman met his cousin’s gaze, his grip on the mug loosening. “It’s just… hearin’ her talk about him like that— like he’s some kind of good guy? I can’t stand it.

Jimmy grinned, a playful glint in his eyes. “You’re protective of her already, huh?”

“Not like that.” Roman’s voice was defensive, though he felt a flicker of something he couldn’t name. “She’s new. Tryna be neighborly, s’all.”

“Sure, uce.” Jimmy clapped a hand on his shoulder, bringing Roman back to the moment. “Just remember, today’s about family. Rollins can’t mess with that.”

A soft sigh fell from Roman’s lips, finally feeling a bit of the tension drain away. He nodded, letting Jimmy’s words settle over him.

As Jimmy took the cooler outside, Roman took a long breath, listening to the house come alive around him—the sound of Audrey’s voice drifting down the stairs, Naomi’s laughter mixing with it, and the faint hum of the van outside. Today was supposed to be about family, about finding peace in their little corner of the world.

But as the day unfolded, he couldn’t shake the feeling that seeing Azure again would bring more than he was prepared for.

The late afternoon sun bathed Jey’s backyard in a warm, golden light as the cookout got underway. Azure felt the humid warmth settle on her skin as the smoky, savory aroma of grilled ribs and burgers filled her senses. The laughter and familiar scent made the yard feel like a haven she hadn’t realized she needed. Picnic tables were scattered around, some with folding chairs and coolers brimming with drinks nearby. The end-of-summer air mixed with the distant sounds of football from the TV inside, made for the perfect backdrop to the Saturday afternoon. Kids ran across the grass, their voices blending into the hum of the adults chatting around them.

Azure arrived a little after two o'clock, gripping the strap of the small bag that hung over her shoulder. Her steps were careful as she approached the yard. Her eyes scanned the familiar faces of Jimmy and Jey, who were already loud and welcoming, laughing as they teased each other near the grill. Watching Jimmy and Jey bicker lightheartedly made her smile, but a small pang of loneliness crept in, a reminder of the family gatherings she missed back home.

Roman, she noticed, was there too. He leaned against the wooden fence a bit further back, but still near his cousins with a beer in his hand. As soon as Roman caught sight of her, he offered a small, friendly smile. It was a polite acknowledgment—nothing more, nothing less—but enough to make her stomach flip. She smiled back, feeling his eyes linger on her for a moment longer than needed, but he didn’t approach. She quickly moved to Naomi, who was arranging plates and utensils on the table.

“Hey, girl!” Naomi greeted her warmly, her bright smile infectious. “You made it! Jey was starting to think we’d have to send Jimmy over to drag you out the house.”

Azure laughed, feeling some of the tension melt away. “Ixnay the wellness check y’all, I‘m here in the flesh.”

“There you go!” Jey happily chimed in from the grill, flipping a row of burgers with exaggerated precision. “Stick around—it's gon’ be a great time.”

Jimmy sidled up beside the women, grinning ear to ear. “And don’t forget the game! It’s the best part of the cookout. You watch football?”

“Here he goes.” Naomi shook her head smiling while she finished setting up.

Azure smiled sheepishly. “I might be a little into it. I usually watch a lot of the games with my dad.”

“Aye, that's what we like to hear!” Jey exclaimed, transferring some of the food off of the grill and into an aluminum pan. “We take football very seriously ‘round here.”

Naomi rolled her eyes, though the fondness in her voice was undeniable. “That’s one way to put it. These two are like little kids whenever football's on.”

As they continued to talk, Azure felt a little more at ease. She enjoyed the lighthearted banter between the twins and Naomi, appreciating how they welcomed her. Naomi, especially, seemed attuned to Azure’s hesitance and kept things easygoing.

Roman, who had been watching them from a few feet away, finally stepped forward, offering a drink. “Hey, Azure,” he said quietly, though his voice carried easily over the noise. “Glad you could make it.”

Azure looked up, meeting his gaze. “I almost didn’t.” She admitted, accepting the drink with a gentle smile. “Y’know, your family is very persuasive. But this,” she gestured to the yard, “It’s nice.”

“They are.” He gave a firm nod in agreement, though his tone remained soft. “And I get that. Sometimes, meetings’ new people feels… complicated.” His words carried a weight she understood, a vulnerability that was subtle but genuine.

“Yeah,” Azure replied, pausing as she gathered her thoughts. “Especially when the past tends to follow you wherever you go.

Roman’s eyebrows rose just a bit. “Yeah, exactly.” There was a moment of silence between them, but it didn’t feel uncomfortable. Instead, it felt like an unspoken understanding, a quiet space where words weren’t needed.

“So, yesterday-”

“Man what kind of play was THAT?!” The sound of Jimmy shouting at the TV drifted over from the back door of the house, interrupting Roman.

Azure chuckled nervously, nodding in the direction of the commotion.

“They weren’t playing when they said they took football pretty seriously, huh?”

Roman let out a small laugh, glancing toward the house. “Oh yeah, it’s basically a family requirement. You’re either all-in or on the sidelines, and there’s no in-between. But-”

“I think I’m gonna head inside, the game sounds like it’s getting pretty good.” Azure gently tapped her fingers against the glass bottle of her beer, cutting Roman off.

“Right,” he replied, her heart racing slightly as she stepped away from him, grateful for the excuse to avoid the conversation. I’ll see you in there?”

“Yeah, definitely,” Roman cleared his throat, watching her with an intensity that made her pulse quicken.

•────────────────•

Inside the house, the game was in full swing, and Azure eventually found herself in the living room, drawn to the TV. She smiled as she watched the players race down the field, her heart speeding up with the game’s intensity.

A little girl soon wandered over to her, eyes wide with curiosity as she plopped down beside Azure on the couch. "Are you watching the game too?" The girl asked, her voice small but full of interest.

Azure looked up, recognizing her immediately. Roman’s daughter. "I sure am.” Azure grinned. “Do you like football?"

Audrey nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah! Uncle Jimmy and Uncle Jey always watch. Daddy watches sometimes too."

She hadn’t even noticed the little girl mimicking her movements, sitting cross-legged on the couch and watching the game with the same focused expression. It was hard not to smile at the sight.

"I bet your uncles get really into it, huh? They’re over there shouting louder than the TV." Azure smiled, her eyes flicking towards the open back door where the twins were already deep in a loud debate over a recent play.

Audrey giggled, her eyes lighting up. “They do! Uncle Jimmy says the refs are ‘blind as bats,’ but I don’t know what that means. And Uncle Jey is always yelling.” Azure laughed as Audrey went on about her time with her uncles, with a mix of childlike intensity and joy.

Azure noticed Roman from the corner of her eye, catching his gaze for a brief second before looking away. Her heart raced, the conversation from the previous evening still lingered between them, but the last thing she wanted to do was embarrass herself even more.

“Aye, uce! You just gonna stand there and look moody all afternoon, or you gonna go inside with everybody?” Jey yelled across the yard.

“See.” Audrey added, causing Azure to to suppress a laugh.

Roman chuckled, shaking his head as he made his way over to the group. As he settled onto the arm of the couch next to Audrey, he glanced at Azure, the playful spark in her eyes meeting his own.

“Think you’re stealin’ our cheerleader here.”

Azure raised an eyebrow. “Maybe she just knows a good team when she sees one.” She glanced down at Audrey, who giggled and nodded in agreement.

“Oh, I see how it is,” Roman said with mock offense. “Guess I’m just the backup then?”

“Looks like it,” Azure shot back, a glimmer of humor in her eyes. She relaxed against the couch, her hands resting on her lap as she kept a slight distance.

“Careful, Roman. You might lose your spot for good if she keeps this up,” Jimmy teased, settling in his own seat as he glanced at the game on the TV.

“I don’t know, uce.” Roman rested his arm on the back of the couch. “I think I can handle the competition.”

•────────────────•

Throughout the afternoon, Azure caught him watching her more often than she expected. Their eyes would meet and there he’d be—his gaze lingering on her, studying her. It’s just curiosity. She told herself. Just the same polite interest people held when meeting someone new, yet there was an intensity to it she couldn’t ignore.

As the sun began to dip lower in the sky, casting long shadows across the yard, the cookout started to wind down, with people moving inside to clean up or grab their last plates of food. Azure decided to stay behind in the kitchen to help clean up some of the dishes. She saw Roman out in the yard, gathering up plates and empty cans, her eyes following him as he stepped through the sliding glass door and joined her at the counter. The sound of clinking dishes filled the silence between them for a few moments before Roman spoke.

"Thanks for helpin’ out," he said, his voice low but sincere.

"No problem. It’s the least I could do." Azure looked up, setting a plate back down in the sink.

“You mentioned Seth Rollins yesterday," he started, his jaw tightening slightly at the name.

“I didn’t mean to bring up anything uncomfortable...”

“It’s fine,” Roman paused, drumming his fingertips on the marble counter before continuing. “Let’s just say we had some...disagreements in the past.”

Azure’s gaze softened as she watched him, noting the tension that crept into his eyes. “You don’t have to tell me if it’s too much,” she said gently, sensing the weight behind his words.

“It’s not that,” He stared down at the plate in his hand, his voice measured. “I just don’t want you gettin’ blindsided by him if he decides to get involved in anything…beyond work.”

She furrowed her brows, curiosity blending with concern. “Involved how?”

Roman lowered his voice before leaning against the counter, facing her. “Seth’s got a habit of getting close to people, making them trust him, and then…things go south fast if he doesn’t get his way.” His gaze flickered to hers, a shadow passing through his eyes before he glanced down.

“Sounds…complicated,” Azure chose her words with caution. She could sense this was something he didn’t open up about easily.

He shrugged, though a glimpse of hurt still lingered in his eyes. “Just be careful. I’m pretty sure you can handle yourself, but he’s… persuasive. And I wouldn’t want you caught up in his web.”

She nodded slowly.

Their eyes met, and for a moment, the room felt smaller, the noise from outside fading into the background. Roman’s gaze softened as he looked at her, a hint of something unreadable in his expression. “Just… watch out for yourself, alright?”

Azure’s voice softened in response. “I will.”

The intensity in Roman’s his expression faded to something warmer. “I have to admit,” he said, crossing his arms casually, “I didn’t expect you to be such a football fan. You might even give Jimmy and Jey a run for their money.”

Azure laughed, a sound that seemed to light up her whole face. “I don’t know about that. Those two are intense,” she replied, glancing toward the yard where the twins were laughing loudly and nudging each other as they sat at one of the tables, sipping their beers. “I just grew up around it, so it sort of stuck.”

“Oh yeah?” Roman raised an eyebrow, looking intrigued. “Your family must be football people then?”

“That’s definitely an understatement,” Azure nodded. “Every Sunday was a huge thing growing up. My dad’s a big fan of it, and I’d just sit there with him, getting into the game and the whole atmosphere.” Her eyes softened a little, lost in thought. “I guess it just… reminds me of home.”

Roman watched her carefully, noting the brief flicker of nostalgia in her eyes. “Well, you came across the right people,” he said, gesturing to the yard. “Between the twins and Audrey, they’re all in serious need of someone who actually knows what’s happening on the field. I swear Audrey’s been pickin’ up their bad habits.”

Azure chuckled, shaking her head. “She’s already got a bit of Jey’s attitude in her cheer, I can tell.”

He glanced back at the living room where Audrey was napping. "So you’ve converted my little girl to your team, huh?" he teased, still leaning casually against the counter.

Azure raised an eyebrow, a smirk tugging at her lips. “I can’t help it if Audrey has good taste. Besides, she was all in after a few plays.”

“I noticed.” A bit of pride evident in his smile. “But I can't help but feel a little jealous that you stole her away from me today."

Azure placed a hand on her chest, playfully taking offense. “I would never! Maybe you should join us and see what it’s like to be on the winning side for once.”

Roman raised his hands in defense, playing along. “Oh, it’s like that, huh? Careful, you might just end up recruitin’ me to your team.”

Azure’s smirk softened, her eyes holding his for a second longer than she’d intended. She liked this playful side of him, a glimpse into something that felt less guarded. “Not sure you’re up for the challenge,” she shot back.

Roman chuckled, his usually stoic demeanor breaking with the smallest of smiles. “Tell you what,” he said, reaching into his pocket for his phone, “maybe next game day, you can give me some pointers. Since you’re so sure I’d lose.”

Her eyes widened slightly, the offer surprising her. She paused, then nodded, taking her phone out too. “Alright, but don’t say I didn’t warn you,” she said, her fingers hovering over her screen. “And if Audrey sticks to my team, you’ll know why.”

Handing his phone to her, Roman watched as she keyed in her number, a spark of warmth flickering between them. When she handed it back, he gave her a small nod, glancing down at the new contact saved on his screen. “Guess I’ll just have to work twice as hard to win her back,” he said, his voice low, but his smile hinted at a more personal admission.

Azure gave him a playful side-eye, “I’ll believe it when I see it.”

•────────────────•

Dear Brother I know I said I’d write to you sooner, but I keep finding it hard to put everything into words. I feel a lot worse than I let on, and it dredged up so much I’d been burying. I couldn’t take it anymore—the control, the way everything's been twisted to make me feel guilty. I thought putting distance would help clear my mind, but the past just won’t stay in the past. I hate feeling like this, and knowing that there’s nothing I can do to change it. Oh, and about that person I met a while back…it’s been…really good, actually. It’s comforting and freeing in ways I hadn’t imagined. And I didn’t realize how much I needed that until now. I think this might be something real, and that thought scares me but also excites me. You two would be the best of friends, I know it. I just wish you could be down here with me. I love you, always.

#roman reigns fanfiction #roman reigns fanfic #roman reigns fic #roman reigns x black!oc #firefighter!au

68 notes · View notes

sleepyspudbrainrot · 7 months ago

Text

Carry You Home (Pt. 2)

Roman Reigns x Lale (OC) | 18+, NSFW, eventual smut, fluff | 1954 words

Pt. 2 of that fluff piece... hopefully y'all enjoy this part as much as the first.

And let me not forget to tag ... @southerngirl41 ❤️️

The next morning, Lale found herself with her face buried in the chest of the man beside her. His muscular arm thrown across her waist, his breathing even as sleep held him longer still. She sighed softly, chewing on the inside of her cheek as she debated the likelihood of being able to slide out of his grasp without waking him. A slight shift in movement proved that likelihood to be slim to none. A rumble vibrated through the males chest as he shifted, drawing her closer to him still. Her cheeks warmed, but nonetheless she settled comfortably against him once again, her head making use of his broad chest as a makeshift pillow.

At some point sleep claimed her once more, the buzzing of her phone on the side table the only thing obnoxious enough to wake the both of them up. First Joe this time, careful not to move too much in the hopes that Lale would remain asleep. However, she was much too sensitive to her phone, and given that it was more than likely an alarm…

“Shit.” Lale sat up right, her phone slipping through her fingers to land in her lap. “What time was your flight?”

The next half hour was a blur of movement. Two separate showers, the scramble to pack up her things, as well as the sprint to his room to gather his things as well. Which she, of course, felt obligated to help with. Thankfully he’d only really pulled out what he’d needed, leaving most of his things still ready to go. Once they’d gathered both sets of luggage, they made their way out of the hotel to the waiting cars. One car for the both of them, perhaps a benefit that she’d come to appreciate when her heart wasn’t trying to beat out of her chest.

“I haven’t slept like that…” In months? In years? Lale honestly couldn’t remember such a sound sleep, especially with another person.

“Your welcome ma, if you ever need some more of that… you know how to reach me.”

His smirk tugged at something within her. It also served as a reminder that she did not in fact know how to reach him. “Did you get enough sleep Joe? Because I feel like you’re missing one key factor in that…”

The man sitting beside her raised an eyebrow, turning to look at her. “And that would be?”

“When did we exchange numbers?”

She fiddled with the phone in her hand, hesitant to offer the device to him. It was a step in a direction she wasn’t entirely certain of. A crossing of boundaries, from ringside interviewer and wrestler to something more.

“Well? What are you waiting for… at least if you’ve got my number, we can avoid me having to look for you next time.”

He didn’t have to look for her for the entire month of june. He had his matches, she had her gigs on both Raw and Smackdown. There were glances exchanged and entire text conversations had. Ones that usually ended with one of them, nine times out of ten her, falling asleep and continuing the conversation the next morning.

It was one of those same conversations that she was engrossed in as she sipped on her morning cup of matcha. A soft smile taking permanent residence across her mouth.

“Who’s got you smilin’ like that La?”

Lale felt the presence over her shoulder before she could truly see it. Cathy Kelley had snuck up on her in the hotel’s coffee shop. And she could very clearly see exactly who was making her smile like that.

“I’ll give you two guesses… might need a third, but I’m sorry I just can’t justify it given that you’ve seen too much already.”

Cathy laughed, sitting down across from her at the table near the window. “You two have definitely become fast friends… could’ve sworn you had a thing about friendships with the male wrestlers?”

Lale blinked, “Did I say that?” She absolutely had and new her line of bullshit wasn’t convincing Cathy of anything. “I figured it was the least I could do after he was there for me… it felt… wrong? To just ice him out after that.” Even though she hadn’t exactly told him what was wrong, even now a month later.

“Well… you’re not going to hear me complain. You need support. You can’t just soldier through everything on your own ya know?”

While Cathy was in fact correct, Lale couldn’t help but snort. “You and I both know that’s not how my father raised me.” Her phone buzzed in that moment, the mention of her father a call to the universe that she clearly needed the update from her mother that scrawled across her screen.

Her heart dropped into the pit of her stomach. ‘He’s officially turned in his drivers license.’ Reality crashed down hard. A gut punch that knocked the wind from her. Her matcha cup was set to the side, her appetite dissipating with her breath.

“Lale…” Cathy reached a hand across the table, resting her hand on top of Lale’s. “I know that face… you made that exact same face - -”

Lale shook her head, chewing on the inside of her lip. She had to tell her friend. She had to let her know exactly what was sending her into this spiral. But something about speaking it aloud… it just made everything too real. Her phone buzzed again, her thoughts jolting to a stop as Joe’s name lit up the screen and pushed her mother’s text further down.

“It’s… about Dad. He’s…” The lump in her throat grew with each word, her eyes burning. “He just gave up his license and…” And she did not have time to process this right now. She had errands to run before the show tonight, messages to answer, so many things that she wanted to take priority over processing what she’d just been told.

“I’ve… I’m going to go. I’ll see you tonight alright?” She didn’t give Cathy a chance to respond, pushing away quickly from the table and departing the cafe as fast as her legs would allow. Her phone remained clutched in one hand and she found herself opening up Joe’s message.

“We’ve really got to stop meeting like this ma.”

She stood in front of her open hotel room door, her gazing settling on the presence of Joe in a full suit, clearly prepared for the nights events. While he wasn’t a main eventer on Raw, he occasionally would make appearances to prove a point, usually with the rest of the bloodline in tow.

“I just… didn’t want you to have to look for me this time?”

She hadn’t been entirely sure that she’d make it to Raw tonight with this news. She needed someone to hold her accountable. To force her to get ready and push through, even if it meant compartmentalizing the processing she’d been trying to do before Joe had arrived.

“You planning on actually telling me what happened this time?”

She owed him that at least. “Yes, just… please come in?” She stepped aside, allowing him entry before shutting and locking the door behind him. She moved to sit on the end of the bed, having flashbacks to the month prior. “I should’ve told you that night and…” She ran a hand through her hair, releasing a breath through pursed lips.

“Take your time ma, I don’t have anywhere to be for a couple of hours.”

It was slow to start. Her words catching as they began to flow from her. An explanation of the past several months of doctor’s visits and diagnosis’s. All leading up to the news she’d received only hours prior. By the time she’d finished, the tears were flowing and she was glad for a brief vain moment that she hadn’t already put on her makeup for the night.

“So… that’s why you had to find me the other night. I’d been…” She sighs softly, looking down at her hands in her lap. “I’d been trying to just not think about it… to avoid it, until well…” Until she couldn’t. It was something she’d done her entire life. Most of the time, it was easier to run than to face the reality that threatened to overwhelm her.

They sat in silence once she’d finished speaking, her gaze settled on her hands in her lap. Joe seemed to sense her hesitance, the fear that looking at his face would reveal another reality that she wasn’t prepared to face. An arm wrapped around her shoulder, drawing her into his side. In a similar fashion to the last time, she found herself relaxing into his chest. A hand resting over his heart, the beat a calming rhythm that settled the torrent of thoughts that had swarmed her with all that she’d had to relive.

“Why are you doing this?” The question was out before she could stop it. Her face upturned in order to meet his gaze with hers.

“Doing what?” He raised an eyebrow.

“Coming when I call?

The question seemed to catch him off guard now. He still managed to shrug, his thumb rubbing comforting circles into her shoulder as he did so. “Because ma, underneath all that tough reporter shell, I know you’re a softie… especially when it comes to me.”

She pursed her lips and resisted the urge to roll her eyes once more. “I’m not sure what else I was expecting…” A soft sigh escaped her as she settled her head back against his chest.

After a moment, Joe spoke once more. “If you wanted a real answer… I know what that pain feels like and I know what it’s like to face it alone.”

That was what stuck with her as she moved from interview to interview later on that night. Her grip white knuckled as she offered the mic to wrestler after wrestler. She couldn’t remember most of the matches, or even the questions she’d asked. It was as if she’d hit reset and for the time being was stuck on autopilot. So it was a relief once the night was over and she was settled into SUV that was waiting to take her home. The tension from the day sunk out into the plush leather seats behind her, her phone once again in her hand, her text thread with Cathy lighting up her screen.

Cathy was understandably curious to see how her night had gone. They’d of course seen one another in passing, but hadn’t had a chance to catch up or have Lale explain her quick departure this morning. Once she’d told the other woman, she was understanding and made some small comment about nearly sending Joe her way again.

If only she knew…

The car pulled up to the Hotel’s entrance, leaving her response to Cathy half finished and forgotten. The lobby of the hotel was silent outside of the click of her heels and the hydraulics that served to open and shut the elevator doors. She focused on the numbers above her head as the elevator crept closer and closer to her final destination.

To say she was surprised was an understatement. Opening the door to her hotel room, only to be greeted by a bottle of wine, a box of takeout that was still warm, and a bouquet of flowers. “Who…?” Had Cathy worked her magic? Was it someone else? She couldn’t think of anyone other than her family and Cathy that would know the type of takeout she’d gravitate towards. She plucked the card from the center of the bouquet, tugging off the envelope to reveal…

“You looked great tonight. Take some time to rest” - Joe

#roman reigns x oc #roman reigns fic #roman reigns #roman reigns fanfiction #sleepyspudbrainrotfic #roman reigns fluff #carry you home

82 notes · View notes

skyfallslayer · 8 months ago

Text

Should We Stay or Should We Go? || Chapter Three

-A ST Rewrite Feat. Steve Harrington x Henderson!OFC-

Main Masterlist || Series Masterlist

🎲Summary: An Increasingly concerned Nancy looks for Barb and finds out what Jonathan’s been up to. The boys pair up with El for an investigation. Joyce is convinced that Will and Steph are trying to talk to her. Meanwhile, Steve feels like someone’s watching his every move.

🎲Pairings: Will x Platonic!OFC; Dustin x Sister!OC; Slow burn! Steve x Henderson!OFC (Ex-bestfriends to Lovers); Slow burn! Byler

🎲Rating: Teen-Mature

🎲Word Count: 15,209 (Oh, lord)

🎲Date: 05/27/24

🎲Warnings: Angst; Heavy Language & Dialogue; References To Broken Friendship; Talks of Kidnapping; Mental Strain/Breaking Down; Talks of Mental Health Issues; Bullying of All Kinds; Physical Fighting; Lying; "Death"; Crying (Lots of it); Brief Mention of Corpses; Gun Use; Implied Unloving Parents; Will & Steph's Mental Strain - Joyce's Too; Hopper Being a Great Cop & A Total Mess; Dustin Being a Gangster & A Total Mess; Steve's 'Asshole Era'; Steve's Emotional Damage. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK

-This also contains me not knowing how the fuck the Upside Down works despite so much research.-

(And let me know if I missed anything)

🎲A/N: So… this is a very long, very intense one. Very emotional too. Hopefully y'all are ready for this. I notice a lot of you readers are spitting out theories and I can't help but love them. But unfortunately I have to stay silent and let you guess wait 🤭. While rewatching this episode, I totally forgot how fucking good of an actress Winona Ryder is. Seriously, rewatch the scenes with her and the lights again and you'll see. Any who, Happy Memorial Day everyone! Enjoy!

Steve practically had to “bully” Tommy into taking his girlfriend home last night. It was hard for him to make eye contact with her after their argument – A real argument, not just some mindless bickering they’ve done in the past that doesn’t pack much heat, but a real, real argument – and when she came back to his room only a few minutes later telling him that Barb must have left already and needed a ride, he couldn’t bring himself to do so.

Was this making him feel and look like a coward? Probably. But it’s not like he didn’t want to risk having another eye opening conversation with her again.

Eye opening, my ass. There was no “eye opening”. I’m just being paranoid. But was he though?

Nancy, oh, sweet Nancy, always talked about how she was aiming for journalism as her major. For a while, to be honest, he couldn’t really see it. Sure, curiosity was practically tattooed on her heart, but the months they’ve been dating he hasn’t seen anything else that screams “I’m a Journalist”.

That was until last night.

He’s not sure why he never put that box away after their friendship ended, he doesn’t know why he didn’t just stuff it into his closet or under his bed, but the fact that someone had found it in his spot he called “out of sight, out of mind” shocked him. The little box that could fit under his dresser, completely oblivious to anyone who stands next to it. Of course out of all the days for someone to finally have spotted it was the day he brought his girlfriend to his home (Still, it might have been better for her to find it rather than his parents. They sure were… nosy).

And of course she would be the one to break him down when he was trying to forget, forget because it was the best option here.

And his girlfriend was smart, one of the traits he most admired, and she could read through his lies most of the time, a trait he hates. Loathe. But… did he really think he could have avoided all this? That once he put a lid on their friendship she would suddenly vanish? Every single thing about Stephanie Henderson would be forgotten? That was the plan, the “dream” so to speak. I guess dreams don’t always stay dreams unless you put work into them.

“So who is she to you?” Nancy asked, standing up and flashing the memorabilia at him.

She was just… just some kid he knew since they were five. Nothing more than that, It shouldn’t be more than that. She was just some girl that had confidence radiating out of her as they lock pinkies and swore–

“I’m not jealous. I’m just curious.” Nancy replies, honestly. She takes another look at the photos in her hand before looking back at him. “I mean, if she isn’t your friend anymore, then why do you hang on to all this stuff? Or better question–”

“Nancy, stop, it’s just–”

“Why did you break it off?”

His brain short circuits again. “What?”

“I said, ‘Why did you break it off?’ I mean…” She flips through some of the photos he has, memorized. “From what I see, you two remind me of Barb and I. You two look like you were tied at the hip. So why break it off?”

Because he had to. He needed to. God knows if he didn’t, her and her family would be… Jeez. He could barely remember it, not wanting to remember it.

The memory was blurry. So blurry. Maybe it was the many hits in the head for his shitty memory, or maybe he was really, really trying not to remember it.

What was his parents planning on doing again that made him so… scared?

“Look, I just want to understand you. I mean, every time I think I have you figured out you throw me through a loop.” She gives him a reassuring look as she picks up the box, shuffling whatever was remaining around. “I mean, from what I see, you seem like a completely different person then. I just wonder if it’s a good thing or a bad–”

No… no. He still doesn’t understand what she meant. He hasn’t “changed”. He’s still the same person since the day he was born. What was she even getting that from? A couple glances at some photos gave her a new impression of him? There’s no way. It’s laughable. It’s totally laughable. Everything that’s happened between him and Henderson was totally laughab–

“‘CAUSE IT WAS MY FAULT!! OKAY?!” Steve snaps, startling them both (He can’t believe he just lost his cool like that). He swallows again, head spinning at the memories (Why did he fucking leave the box right there?). “I just… there was an incident and… it… shaped my decision, okay? But it didn’t involve me or her with a gun, it was… s-someone else. Someone I know. I don’t know why I’m holding onto it, I…”

That certainly wasn’t laughable.

Sometimes that memory is hazy, which he preferred, but the other times it was crystal clear. Too clear. Just a heated exchange between him and someone else just before it went to shit. He still remembers the pain in his bicep, the wind feeling like it was getting knocked out of him with someone’s loud scream. Then came the sinking realization that Henderson wasn’t bouncing up to her feet like he did.

It still… fucks with him sometimes. Taunting. Haunting. Torturing.

Nancy breaks eye contact, and only reverses it when she gathers the right words. “Look, Steve, I’m sorry I intruded, I probably shouldn’t have but… I’m just trying to understand you.”

Steve shakes his head, still confused. “I-I…” He shrugs, and crosses his arms defensibly. “What’s there to understand?”

Exactly. There’s nothing. N-O-T-H-I-N-G. Nothing. She doesn’t need to go digging around Pandora’s box.

But Nancy looked at him with eyes full of pity and took another step closer. “I don’t know what the reason was for you two to stop being friends, but all I know, from what I gathered, she wasn’t the one to end it.” She places Steph’s flier on his chest that he subconsciously grabbed, and said one last thing before leaving his room. And that was,

“Maybe there was a good reason for you to end it, but that’s not an excuse for you to stop being who you really are.”

But I haven’t changed. I’ve been the same person since I was born. Even his own gut coiled at his denial. The heaven’s beyond were probably busting a lung. Hell was shaking its head. He just keeps telling himself that lie and maybe it’ll come true one day.

Yeah, right.

This boy’s been telling himself that for almost two years now and hasn’t even sunk in yet.

Steve sighs, rolling in his bed to face his alarm clock; The red numbers glaring at him. It hadn’t even gone off yet, he still has about an hour but…

Another sigh. School. Right.

He didn’t even feel like going, too mentally exhausted from staying up pretty much all night, completely alone with his thoughts – His very dangerous, troubling thoughts. He didn’t want to go, but his parents were going to be home any minute now from their trip and were not going to be happy if they saw him just lying around. They were surely going to berate him for missing a day of learning. Except...

Fuck. Going wasn’t an option, his brain hurts and his body was dragging and he really, really didn’t want to see Nancy’s pitiful eyes, or listen to Tommy’s mocking, or Carol’s sexified comments. Fuck, no. Fuck.

Where can he hide out for the next eight hours? He started putting what was left of brain together as he threw something on, not even trying to dress to impress today, and snagged his precious car keys. He is about a foot outside his bedroom when something tells him to stop. His chocolate eyes stare at the box on the end of his bed, something deep inside tells him not to leave it unoccupied.

He swallows, wanting to tell his subconscious to fuck off and leave him be, but…

“Fuck it.” He races back over, making sure the lid was on before taking it with him.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

|| THE OTHER SIDE ||

It’s been… how many days since then? They don’t know. They stopped counting every time they ran into trouble. Like… right now. Traumatized by the beast pulling an innocent woman into the Harringtons’ pool and violating her before coming after them. They were lucky to have some kind of head start or otherwise they might have been goners. But–

Jesus. It was getting hard to breathe in this place, the cold weather was getting to them too.

Eventually, miraculously, they had escaped from their predator when their bodies finally gave out.

“Fuck.” Stephanie gasped as the two of them collapsed in someone’s backyard. They both sat on their hands and knees, a line of sweat dripping off their icy noses. She sniffles and pants, her breath being seen in the air. “This is getting ridiculous.”

It really, really was. They can’t even take a break without worrying if that thing would come after them.

How am I supposed to figure out how to get out of here if I can’t even stop to think? She sits back on her news, frowning. “Why does it keep coming after us?”

Will sneezes, and sniffles before resting his body against the side of the random house. He starts fiddling with his frigiding fingers, worried if he was going to say something wrong. “I don’t think this time it was. It looks like it was attacking someone else.”

“That’s true.” She sighs, taking her cap off for a second to rest. “However, we either were at the wrong place at the wrong time, or that thing was following us and grabbed the first prey it saw.”

He nods. “Yeah. But that doesn’t explain where the person came from. Does… that mean we aren’t the only people here?”

“I don’t know.” Are there actually more people here? “I mean, I guess on the bright side, if more people are going missing someone’s gotta know what’s going on, right?”

That honestly didn’t cross her mind at all while being here. She was so worried about keeping herself and especially Will alive that she didn’t think about what was going on on the other side. How was her family reacting? His family too? And what about the town? Did the police actually give a fuck this time?

I really hope it’s Hopper. He seems like the only one who gave shit last time. Stephanie prays he’s on her case as she subconsciously tries to grab the chain around her neck, only to find nothing. Her heart sinks as she looks down and feels around the front of her shirt.

“Shit.” She says, dreadfully. Did she really lose her–

“What?” Will replies, concerned.

“Uh, I just…” Fuck. “I just uh, lost my necklace.” She frowns again. “I didn’t even realize it.”

Now it was his turn to look sad (I guess you could say he was just copying her expression). “We can go look for it if you like.”

She’s already shaking his head. “No. It’s okay. I could have lost it on the first day here without realizing it.”

“Can you replace it?”

“It’s… I don’t know. It was a gift.” She looks over at him, his expression seems so broken over her confession. “It’s okay, Will. It’s not a big deal.”

“I know, but still.”

Stephanie couldn’t help but crack a small smile on her peach lips, and ruffle the boy’s hair. “Don’t ever change, kid. You’ve got a good little heart.” That seemed to do the trick because the boy blushed and seemed all proud of himself.

“Do you think it’s safe to rest here for a bit?” Will asked, as she looked around.

“Yeah.” She nods. “I think we’ll be fine. How about you pull out the blanket?”

They both shrug their backpacks off, and keep their guns by their sides pointed safely away; Will unrolls the blanket they took from her house and scoots closer. Steph tucks the fabric under their feet before the boy snuggles up to her side. Dying from the cold was off the menu for the both of them. For most of the time they stayed quiet, controlling their breathing and rubbing their cold hands in their laps.

“There’s something I don’t understand though.” Will blurted out. I guess this was the thought that came to mind in the moment of silence.

“And what’s that?” The older girl asked, sparing him a glance.

“If that thing is supposed to… you know, kill people, then why bring them here?” He stares up at her nervously. “Why not just kill us in our world? Why the extra hassle to bring us here?”

Her eyes widened slightly, those words hitting her like a truck. “That’s… a good question.” A really good question. It was something else she hasn’t thought about either. If the beast could go between worlds, why bring them here for the kill?

Will must have noticed the wheels turning in the girls head and looks down hopelessly. “It’s going to be hard for people to find us then, right?”

Stephanie says nothing, and gnaws on her bottom lip because he’s right. If they’re stuck in another world then…

How are their loved ones going to know?

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

When Jonathan woke up the next day he wasn’t expecting his mother to be leaving before he did. “Mom? Where are you going?” He asked, as she stopped upon hearing him speak.

“Oh, I’m going to town. I’m going to pick up a few things.” She replies, putting her belongings into her purse. “I was… you know, thinking about maybe getting some stuff Will likes to eat so he can have it when he gets home. Or, you know–”

“Mom?”

“And maybe a new phone? Our old one’s obviously not fine, so–”

“Mom?” Jonathan tries again, getting a hum. “You sure you’re okay going by yourself? I can miss school again if you don’t feel comfortable yet.”

“No, no, don’t do that. Go… I just need to get out of the house. I’ve been stuck in here for a few days.” Joyce replies, reassuring her oldest. “I’ll be okay.”

“Okay.” He nods. “But if something happens just… call the school and I’ll be there.”

“Okay.” She says, giving her a quick hug. “Thank you, sweetie. I’ll see you later.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

In the early morning at the Wheeler’s house, the boys were planning a mission to finally figure out what happened to their friends.

“We just tell our parents we have AV Club after school. That’ll give us at least a few hours for Operation Mirkwood.” Mike explains, the three of them gathered around the upside down D&D board.

“You seriously think that the weirdo knows where Will and Steph are?” Lucas said, making the other boy eye roll.

“Just trust me on this, okay? Did you get the supplies?”

“Yeah.” He nods, and shows off what he’s got. “Binoculars... from ‘Nam. Army knife... also from ‘Nam. Hammer, camouflage bandana…” He grins. “And the wrist rocket.”

Dustin looks at him strangely, almost laughing. “You’re gonna take out the Demogorgon with a slingshot?”

“First of all, it’s a wrist rocket. And second of all, the Demogorgon’s not real. It’s made up. But if there is something out there, I’m gonna shoot it in the eye–” Lucas snaps the rubber and startles his friend. “And blind it.”

“Dustin, what did you get?” Mike asked, trying to get straight to the point.

“Well, alrighty.” Dustin starts pouring stuff out of his bag, also proud of what he grabbed (Which is totally not what Mike told him to bring). “So, we’ve got... Nutty Bars, Bazooka, Pez, Smarties, Pringles, Nilla Wafers, apple, banana, and trail mix.”

“Seriously?” Lucas said, disappointed.

“We need energy for our travels. For stamina. And besides, why do we even need weapons anyway?” He points to the girl on the couch. “We have her.”

“She shut one door!”

“With her mind! Are you kidding me? That’s insane!” Dustin could almost laugh with all the stuff he could think of about her powers. “Imagine all the other cool stuff she could do. Like…” He quickly looks around and grabs a giant toy version of the Millennium Falcon. “I bet that she could make this fly!” He stands in front of El and holds it out. “Hey. Hey. Okay, concentrate. Okay?” He lets go of the toy that quickly drops to the floor. “Okay, one more time. Okay. Use your powers, okay?”

“Idiot.” Lucas mumbles once the toy drops to the floor again.

Mike sighs. “She’s not a dog!” He says, taking it away from him.

“Boys!” Karen calls out from above. “Time for school!”

He crouches down in front of Eleven as the rest of his friends make their way up stairs. “Just stay down here. Don’t make any noise, and don’t leave. If you get hungry, eat Dustin’s snacks, okay?”

“Michael!”

“Coming!” Why must he be rushed? “You know those power lines?”

“Power lines?” El asked, confused.

“Yeah. The ones behind my house?”

“Yes.”

“Meet us there, after school.”

“After school?”

“Yeah, 3:15.” It took a second for Mike to realize that she didn’t understand. “Ah. Hang on.” He unstraps his watch and ties around her own wrist. “When the numbers read three-one-five, meet us there.”

“‘Three-one-five’.” She repeats.

He nods. “Yeah. Three-one-five.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

|| THE OTHER SIDE ||

“Did you get any rest?”

Her tired blue eyes looked back at him, his face scrunched up in concern for the girl that almost tripped two seconds ago. And to answer his question, it was ‘no’. Their little rest had turned into sleep, but once again she couldn’t dare close her eyes with the beast lurking somewhere (She’s honestly surprised she’s still standing at this point).

“Yeah, I got a little.” She said, hoping that sounded convincing.

Will narrows his eyes and steps in front of her, stopping them from walking any further. “No you didn’t.”

“Will–”

“Why aren’t you getting any sleep?”

She sucks in a breath. Guess there was no point in arguing with a twelve year old. “Because I’m keeping an eye out.” She tries taking a step around him but he follows.

“That’s bullshit.” He replies, shocking her (She’s honestly heard him cuss before. Which is ironic since he hangs out with three boys that act like cussing is their first language).

“Will, it’s true. I’m keeping an eye out.”

“Yeah, I understand. But you can’t keep missing sleep because of that.”

“Someone’s got to protect you. Just like I promise.”

“Well how are you supposed to do that when you can barely stand?” That seemed to strike a nerve. “Can you just… next time we sleep, I’ll watch and you actually sleep.”

“Will–”

“And, if I hear something, I’ll wake you up immediately. How’s that?”

Well… she can’t say no to that face. She sighs. “Okay. I’ll sleep.” She replies, getting him to smile. “But you wake me up if you hear anything, okay? Don’t you even think about doing the opposite and handling it yourself. I don’t want you to wound up hurt or dead. Got it?”

“Got it.”

The two of them continued their unwanted detour that ended up being Hawkins’ little downtown. This place looked more like the apocalypse than their neighbourhoods. Dark, abandoned, quiet and completely trashed. It seemed a little scarier to walk around than the previous routes they took.

“Maybe we can hide out somewhere here?” Will asked, as they stopped at an intersection to look around.

“Possibly. If anything’s open we can. I want to avoid making too much ruckus in case that’s what attracts the monster.” Steph said, thinking.

They walked slowly and carefully by each store, peeking inside to see if anything got their attention. Stephanie blissfully sighs upon seeing a familiar sign and points.

“Dude, I kill for some chicken parmesan right now.” She says, smiling at the thought of eating Italian at ‘Enzo’s’.

“Hmm, meatball’s sounds good. But I think I really want my mom’s Sloppy Joes.” Will admits, and can already picture it in front of him.

“Sloppy Joes are awesome too. I wouldn’t mind eating that when I get back either. Then Enzo’s.”

“Totally Enzo’s.” He chuckles. “Uh, so when we do get out of here, how do we explain this to someone?”

“What? This?” She gestures to the open air. “You mean that telling the authorities that we were abducted by an eight foot tall creature with just a mouth and brought to a creepier version of Hawkins doesn’t sound truthful?”

He makes a face. “I… I don’t know. They might think we’re crazy.”

“Crazy, but it’s true.” She shrugs. “I really do wonder how we’re going to explain this.”

“I hope my mom contacted Chief Hopper. I know they were good friends growing up, I’m sure he believes her.”

“I hope it’s him, I don’t really like some of the people he works with.”

Will tilts his head, confused. “You don’t like cops?”

“No, I don’t certain cops here. I don’t trust them as far as I can throw them.”

“How come?”

“Well–” She cuts herself off and stops, eyes trailing to something inside one of the shops. She takes a second to make sure she’s seeing that right before pointing and saying, “November 6th.”

Will perks up at that. “That’s the day when we had our D&D campaign. The night we disappeared.”

“Yeah.” Steph looks around her hand following up to another object, a clock. “Nine Twenty-Three. That’s probably around the time we disappeared too.”

“But why is everything stuck this way?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, didn’t this place exist beforehand?” Will asked, head spinning. “How come everything is stuck on the night we disappeared?”

She purses her lips. “It… exist because of us? Or does time run differently here?”

“This is making my head hurt.”

She chuckles. “You and me both, kid.”

They continued their walk, popping into a few shops when they saw something useful, like another set of matches or even a sleeping bag they could share. They eventually ended up at a hunting store and scavenged there. Steph started grabbing a couple boxes of shotgun shells and ones that could fit inside Mr. Harrington’s pistol. It felt strange to have something like this in her possession, especially given the history of it. A very… bittersweet history of it.

Stupid, Harring– The small box tv on the counter startled her when it made a noise. When her gaze locks onto it, she realizes it’s not even on. She sighs, shaking her head. Now I’m imagining shit? This is getting fucking ridiculous.

She starts making room inside her bag for the ammunition when–

|| –Those Poor Children. ||

Stephanie nearly drops everything and grips the gun and starts frantically searching for the voice. What in the fucking–

|| Jesus, I know. I can only imagine what their families are going through. ||

|| It’s such a shame– ||

“What the…?”

“Did you hear that too?” Will asked, eyes full of hope as she looked between him and empty space behind the counter.

“Huh? Um… Y-Yeah. I-I did.” She swallows and then realizes something. “Wait… is that what you– Is that what you were talking about?”

“Yeah!” He shakes his head eagerly. “I told you, I swear I could hear my mom and Jonathan talking that night. I told you I wasn’t crazy.”

Stephanie takes a deep breath, still in a bit of disbelief I mean– This changes everything she’s thought about this place. “If we can hear somebody, then…” She couldn’t even finish the sentence. It was so shocking.

“Maybe we can talk to them. I know for a fact my mom heard me when I called the phone. She even responded when I talked back.”

“So it’s totally possible.” She goes silent to think, an idea coming to mind in a matter of seconds. She grins. “Follow me.”

Will of course does, a little intrigued by the fact that they found themselves climbing to the top of an old bell tower that overlooks most of Hawkins. “What is this place?”

“Somewhere I probably shouldn’t have been hanging out at when I was young.” Steph admits. “Don’t worry, the tower hasn’t been used in decades ‘cause the bell’s broken. Alright.” She smacks her hands together. “We have to figure out a way to get someone’s attention. Whether it’s your family, my family, friends, or hell, even some random stranger. We just need to get someone’s attention.”

“But how? I’m not even sure how any of this works.” Will asked, truthfully. He’s still not even really sure how he was able to contact his mom that night.

She hums, scratching her head. “Where’s your house at?” He gets close to the edge, looks around and points to it in the distance. She nods and starts doing the same as she speaks, “Alright, well there’s mine, Lucas’, and Mike’s. So we got options. We just need to figure out how you were able to speak to your mom that night. If we can figure that out, maybe we can do it again.”

“All I really did was just dial my house’s number and she picked up.”

“Okay. Maybe it’s just that simple after all.”

“Well… I know whatever happened that night, it fired the house’s phone. We’re going to need a new phone.”

“We can get one. And if that doesn’t work, we’ll move on to another house. Hopefully, one of our friends will pick up.”

And they have to. This is our only plan right now. She waves for him to go first. “Careful going down, it’s more tricky than going up.”

“Okay.” He says, doing what he was told.

She starts to follow closely behind when another voice appears.

|| I am such an idiot. ||

She froze, her heart sinking again. She looks back at one of the corners of the tower, and an aching feeling in her gut.

“Steve?”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Steve had a cigarette in one hand, and his other tangled up his own locks; One leg was dangling off the tower, while the rest of his body laid against the arch of the opening. Today was stupidly sunny, barely any clouds and no smell of precipitation in the air for a chance of rain – the aesthetic was the complete opposite of his mood right now.

He took a puff of nicotine and blew it out like a long, heavy sigh. The shit from last night keeps replaying in his head, provoking him to do or say something he’s probably not supposed to (or is supposed to, his subconscious yells at him) – He still doesn’t understand why he suddenly ended up here out of place. He could have gone to skull rock, or even the quarry, or maybe even just running around the mall hoping no one realizes he’s a teenager and asks why he’s not in school.

He groans, closing his eyes, listening to the traffic below and people bickering, praying nobody looks up and finds him here. Again, why did I pick this place?

“I am such an idiot.” He mutters, then the insecurities he had slowly started to fade away when he felt a presence nearby. Worried that maybe a cop finally found him, he changes his sadden look for something cooler before opening his eyes and looking.

But strangely enough, no one was even there.

“Huh.” Steve blinks, swearing that he could feel someone was watching him. Maybe though? I mean, this was an old church that may or may not be haunted.

He shakes his head. “Fuck this.” He puts his bud out on the ground and stands up to leave.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“Hey, Where’s Steve? I didn’t see his car in the parking lot.” Nancy asks, butting into Carol and Tommy’s conversation. She honestly wanted to see him to give him another apology, she still felt bad for prying so much about something she probably shouldn’t have seen. And I want to see if he’s in a good mental state today.

She watches the couple spare a look and gets worried, “What?”

“You haven’t seen him yet?” Carol said, as she shakes her head. “That’s weird.”

“Steve never skips school.” Tommy adds.

“What did you guys argue about last night?”

“Us?” Nancy said, pointing to herself. “You think he’s not here because we fought?”

“It’s a possibility. He finally has a girlfriend who’s charm finally made the King skip class.” Carol said, arms cross. “I’d say that’s an achievement.”

She scoffs. “First of all, It was just a disagreement, nothing more. A second, there’s no way that’s the reason he’s not here.”

“Maybe you hit one of his insecurities you were yelling about last night.”

Nancy holds her tongue and ends up just leaving in a huff. Every time she thinks she’s finally on their level, she’s pushed back down. She sighs and enters her first class of the day. Her gaze follows over to where her friend would be at, but atlas, her desk was empty.

She reaches out and taps the girl in front of her shoulder. “Hey, Ally. Where’s Barb?”

The girl raised an eyebrow. “Um, shouldn’t you know?”

Nancy’s stomach dropped. “You haven’t seen her anywhere... at all?”

Ally shakes her head just as the bell rings and everyone’s ordered to sit down, leaving the Wheeler to wonder if she stayed home too because of their bickering.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“There she is. Emerald City.” Powell announced as they pulled up to the one and only laboratory in Hawkins. They were going off really their only lead at this point, and hoping it plays out.

“I heard they make space weapons in there.” Callahan replies, getting a look.

“Space weapons?”

“Yeah. You know, like, Reagan’s Star Wars. I guess we’re gonna blow the Ruskies to smithereens.”

“Hey, can I help you?” The guard asked once the police car rolled to a stop just in front of the gate.

“Uh, yeah. We’re here for a tour.” Hopper lied.

“Oh, we don’t give tours.”

“Okay... A quick look around.”

“You have to get clearance for that. You can contact, uh... Rick Schaeffer at the Department of Energy.”

“Maybe you seen it on TV.” Hopper pushes, not backing down from this. “We got two local kids missing. We have reason to believe they might have snuck in here.”

“Like I said, you have to speak to Mr. Schaeffer.”

Hopper exhaled through his nose, and turned the car and placed his hat on the dashboard; His partners beside him grew quiet, and let him have at it. “What’s your name?”

“Patrick.”

“Patrick, I got a panicked mayor, and I got reporters breathing down my neck and I got two very upset mothers.” He said, his face growing softer, more wounded like. “Now, I know the kid’s not in there, but I gotta check off this box. Patrick, would you do me a favor? Would you speak to your boss and see what you can swing for us? I’d really appreciate it. I’m talking ten minutes, tops.”

Just ten minutes to see if they were in there. That’s all that the police chief needs…

And wants.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Steve heads inside the shop nearby, his stomach growling for food. It completely slipped his mind this morning – or afternoon now – he’s completely lost track of time.

Now what kind of junk sounds appetizing today? He starts wandering around, not at all familiar with this layout or the shop for that matter (Why didn’t he just go to the sandwich shop next door again?). As he slips through one of the aisles, he notices the person in front of him struggling to reach for something off the high shelf.

Deciding to be a nice boy, he reaches up and grabs it down for her. “Here you go, Ma’am.”

“Oh, thank you.” She said, surprised and grateful. “How kind of you.”

“Early Christmas shopping?”

“Oh, I wish. No, I just need a new phone in case my son calls the house.”

He nods. “Your son lives far then?”

“Um, no, h-he’s missing.”

Oh?

Oh…

Oh!

Steve’s eyes widened at the realization. “Oh, oh my god, I’m so sorry. You’re that kid’s mother.”

“I am.” Joyce says, shifting her weight around.

“Am… so sorry, I-I didn’t know, I–”

“Like you said, you didn’t know.” She puts the phone into the shopping cart. “It’s okay.”

“Okay, um…” This was awkward, right? Steve shifted on his feet too, not really sure how to wrap this up. “Uh, do you have… uh… heard any updates?”

Joyce shakes her head, sadly. “Not yet. I know the Police Chief has put many of his guys and volunteers to work. But I think at this point they covered all of Hawkins.”

“Oh. I’m sorry. I just, uh–” He trails off, struggling to make a sentence. “Sorry, I was just being nosy. I don’t really hear much news, I…” He swallows. “I went to school with the Henderson girl, so...”

Is he making any sense? Hopefully she’s understanding what he means– Fuck, his heart’s racing so fast.

“Oh, yeah?” Joyce said, looking bittersweet – Looking like she was a mother staring at her hurt child (How come his own mother never looked at him like that?). “Must be hard knowing someone you knew is missing.”

Damn, right on the money. “Yeah.” He says, his throat feeling tight.

She hums, and then gives him a stern expression. “Shouldn’t you be in school though?”

Annnnddddd… Fuck.

Nice Going, Harrington. He scolded himself as he racked his brain for a believable lie. “Oh, uh, I-I graduated already. I was a grade ahead.”

“Oh.” She says, apologetically. “My mistake.”

“No worries, seriously. It happens all the time.” At least he didn’t say something stupid, and needs to get out of this conversation before he does but… damn his little heart sometimes. “Uh–” He gestures to her cart full of different items. “Do you want me to pay for some of that? For bothering you? Or uh, I… I know you’re probably–”

“Oh, no!” She shakes her head. “No. Thanks, but I can get it. Money’s a little tight, I’ll admit, but there’s nothing I can do about it. You know?”

“You sure?”

“Yes. I appreciate the offer.” Joyce smiles, and subconsciously pats the young man on his shoulder. “You’re very sweet. Take care.”

“You too.” He says, seeing this as he exits and walks past her.

Joyce watches as he turns to another aisle, growing a bit sad by the interaction.

Alright, do I have everything? She has a new phone, some groceries– things she knows Will would like–

The display of string lights flickered for a second.

Confused, thinking most likely it was probably a short circuit, she doesn’t understand why she ended up muttering her youngest name, “Will.”

Coincidentally, the light flickers shortly afterwards. “Will!” She says, again, hope blooming in her chest. Then, all the lights on the display shined for a few seconds.

God, call her crazy, but maybe this was a sign that her son is still close by.

Before anyone could blink, the checkout counter was filled up with so many boxes of Christmas lights, some just the basic color, and some of the tri-colors. She can only imagine how much this is going to cost her, but who cares! If this is strangely how she can talk to her son, then this is what she shall do.

Her Boss, who was the clerk for the day, looks at her worriedly. “Joyce–”

“Just ring me up, Donald.” Is all she said, patiently waiting until he was all finished. Without sparing another word, she gathers all the bags into her hands and races to her car.

Donald sighs while watching her leave. “That poor woman.” He says, just as Steve comes up to the counter with his snacks and drinks. He raises an eyebrow. “Aren’t you supposed to be in school?”

“Aren’t you supposed to be minding your own business?” Steve said, becoming bitter again.

“Mmm, hmm.” He scans everything and a price pops up on his screen. “That’ll be Five-Fifty.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

|| THE OTHER SIDE ||

“Found a phone.” Will said, almost immediately as they entered. It shouldn’t be a shock since this is the place his mother works at.

“That should work.” Steph said, smiling. “Let’s get a move on.”

Will gets up on his tippy toes to grab it, slowly pulling it off the shelf when something presses his hand. Startled, he falls back and the older girl grabs the box before it falls.

“What happened?” She asked, worriedly.

“S-Something touched me.” He says, taking a step back.

“What?” She hands him the box and peeks over the shelf herself (She’s not exactly tall either). There was nothing odd out of the ordinary, just the normal dust and native plants that grew in this world. She frowns. “I don’t really see anything.”

Suddenly the display of lights flickered. Out of instinct her hand reaches for the pistol at her side. Then her heart sinks at the next thing.

|| Uh, do you want me to pay for some of that? I know you’re probably– ||

“Steve?” Stephanie says, surprised.

So she wasn’t crazy after all. She did hear him.

Will looked up at her, stunned too. “Steve Harrington?” He asked, but before she could speak another voice could be heard.

|| –I can get it. Money’s a little tight, I’ll admit, but there’s nothing I can do about it. You know? ||

|| You sure? ||

|| Yes. I appreciate the offer. You’re very sweet. Take care. ||

“Mrs. Byers?/Mom?!” They both erupted, then went quiet to see if they could hear anything else.

Nothing.

“Shit.” The oldest said, and now gnawing on her lip again, nervously (And completely forgetting about Steve for the time being). “That might have been our chance.” She hears the boy drop the phone somewhere next to her. “Will?”

The boy seemed fascinated with an idea swirling around in his head. Stephanie finds herself just watching, waiting to see what he had in mind. Will reaches up and lets his fingers brush the display of some string lights, the lights getting a little bit hazy – It was almost like his touch was giving them electricity.

|| Will. ||

Joyce’s voice broke through very faintly, but they both heard it and nearly cried.

“Touch the light again.” Steph said, urgently. Will does what he’s told and they both stay quiet again.

|| Will! ||

“She hears us.” He says, happily.

“Holy shit…” She chuckles. “I have an idea. Touch all the lights.”

Frantically, they rush to touch all the lights they saw on display, not even questioning how this was even possible, they just hoped Joyce got the message. Once the hue died down they both held their breaths, and crossed their fingers. And then…

|| Just ring me up, Donald. ||

Stephanie threw her hands up. “Yes!” She says, with Will laughing beside her. “Thank you, Ms. Byers.”

“My mom’s the best.” He said, with a warm look.

“Hell, yeah she is. And forget the phone–” She locks eyes with him, determined. “I think we figured out a better way to communicate.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“And you think these missing kids may have crawled through there?”

Hopper spares the man a glance before looking back at the drain. Somehow, he convinced the security guard to let him and his guys in, but so far their theories are turning out pretty sour. “Well, that was the idea.”

Their “Tour Guide”, I guess you can call him that, made a fact that was all smug and prideful. “Yeah, I just don’t see how that’d be possible. We’ve got over 100 cameras. Every square inch covered, plus all my guys. No one breaks in here. Certainly not some kids.”

Hopper perked up at the news, eyes trailing to a few cameras in view. Now it was his turn to be the smug one as he asked, “Those cameras, you keep the tapes?”

Well… I don’t think the guide was expecting that reaction.

Now, the three of them were following the man inside, the hallways swarmed with men in lab coats, and a security team blocking a room that was marked “hazardous”.

The police Chief found this a bit suspicious and asked, “If you don’t mind me asking, what do you guys do in here?”

The guide chuckles. “You’re asking the wrong guy.”

“Staying one step ahead of the Russians?”

“I expect. Something like that.”

“Who’s in charge here?”

“That’d be Dr. Brenner.”

“And he builds the space lasers?” Callahan asked, eagerly.

“Space lasers?”

“Ignore him.” Hopper replies, sighing. They eventually entered the surveillance room, the three of them watching the screen closely. “This is the night of the 6th and 7th we’re seeing here?”

“That’s correct.”

Hopper narrows his eyes, waiting to see if he sees anything unusual. However, to his surprise, the tape only lasted less than a minute. “Is that it?” He asked, in disbelief.

“Like I said, we would have seen them.”

And then the cops were practically shoved out of there, and the guide gives them their condolences for the tired search (Yeah, what an asshole, right?).

“The night of the 7th, we had a search party out for Will and Stephanie. You remember anything about that night?” Hopper asked, seeing if he wasn’t the only suspicious one.

“Mmm, not much to remember. Called it off.” Callahan replies, thinking.

“‘Cause of the storm.” Powell adds.

“Yeah, a lot of rain that night.” Hopper says, arriving at their car. “You see any rain on that tape?”

“What are you thinking?”

“I don’t know.” He spares a look at the building, a sinking feeling in his gut. “But they’re lying.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Meanwhile, on the other side of town, the boys were outside shifting through the playground for some rocks. Mike picks one up and shows it off. “How about this one?”

Dustin looks and shakes his head. “Too big for the sling.” He says, getting on his knees to do some digging. “So, do you think Eleven was born with her powers, like the X-Men, or do you think she acquired them, like... like Green Lantern?

“She’s not a superhero. She’s a weirdo.” Lucas replies, rolling his eyes.

“Why does that matter?” Mike snaps, offended. “The X-Men are weirdos.”

“If you love her so much, why don’t you marry her?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Mike, seriously?”

“What?”

“You look at her all, like…” Lucas makes a giggly face, and softens his body language, followed by a higher pitched voice, “‘Hi, El! El! El! El! I love you so much! Would you marry me’?”

“Shut up, Lucas.”

“Yeah, shut up, Lucas.” Their bully, Troy, announced as he stomped towards the group. “What are you losers doing back here?”

“Probably looking for their missing friends.” James said, smirking.

“That’s not funny. It’s serious. They’re in danger.” Dustin hisses, annoyed.

“I hate to break it to you, Toothless, but they’re not in danger.” Troy bites back. “They’re dead. That’s what my dad says. He said that Byers was probably killed by some other queer. And maybe your sister’s been killed by some crazy stalker who is into weirdos like her.”

The two bullies laugh as Dustin looks like he’s about to strangle someone. No one says anything about Will like that. And nobody especially says something like that about his big sister.

Mike sees this, and puts his arm in front of his friend to soothe him. “Come on. Just ignore them.” He says, and starts to leave, only to be tripped – and face planted into the ground.

“Watch where you’re going, Frogface.” Troy spats, but he instantly gets a taste of his own medicine.

To everyone’s surprise, Dustin was the one to deliver the karma, which was forcibly shoving him to the ground.

Everyone stared, and before someone could speak he shoved James too and scrambled to pick up Mike.

“Lucas! Let’s go!” Dustin yells, and silently tells Mike to go. As they were leaving, he flips the bullies the bird and snaps, “You shitheads need to keep Will and Phanie’s name out of your mouths! Got it?!”

And then they broke off into a Usain Bolt type sprint.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

|| THE OTHER SIDE ||

They finally ended up back on Mirkwood, guns loaded, backpacks full, and hope in their chest. If this works, if Joyce does this right, then maybe they can finally communicate to the other side. All they needed to do was tell her where they are, and maybe they could figure out a way to get back.

It sounded easy, and they just hoped it was.

The two of them were silent for most of the walk, and when they got to this specific road, the boy grabbed her hand, shaking. She says nothing, ‘cause nothing needs to be said about it. If that’s what made him feel safe then so be it.

“Do you think it’s negative emotions?” Will eventually said, breaking the ice.

Stephanie tilts her head, confused. “Hmm?”

“Do you think that’s how we can hear some people? Through negative emotions?” He looks up at her. “Like my mom, she must be worried about me, maybe that’s why we can hear her?”

Her eyebrows shoot up, shocked. It’s definitely a plausible theory (But would that apply to Steve as well? And if so, why is he so worried?). “Maybe.”

“But would that go with us too?” He adds, the wheels in his head really were turning today. “I mean, is that how the beast picks their victims? Because they’re in a bad mental state?”

Well, now that makes sense if you put it that way. “It’s possible.” She said, nodding. Yeah, that’s completely possible.

It explains a lot of things. More or so she wanted to admit. She knows these last two years were… interesting to say the least. Definitely could qualify as a ‘Bad Mental State’. And… she also has felt a bit stressed about school and talks about her future. But if she knew herself was in a bad state, then that means–

“Then… are you okay?” Steph asked, realizing something. The boy froze, like actually froze when she said that. It was a trippy sight to see. “Will?”

“What?”

“Are you okay?” She tries again, a bit gentler this time. “Mentally?” Nothing. “Will–

“I… I’m fine.”

And then he lets go of her hand and starts walking a bit quicker– not even realizing he was doing so. She stops, concern on her face. She wasn’t expecting that kind of reaction from a simple yes or no question. She makes a note for herself that when they do get out of here she’s going to have a talk with him (Or at least tell Joyce about her concerns).

She sighs. Always got to be the therapist, Henderson.

She takes a step to move but stops, her eyes trailing off the road to her right, right into the void of the trees. It was weird. She felt like someone was standing right there – The same kind of presence back at the clock tower.

“Huh.” She turns her attention back in front of her, then proceeds to freak out a bit when she notices how far Will was. She cusses and breaks into a sprint to catch up quickly.

Completely unaware of who that presence really was.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Steve steps over the barricades, his feet sinking into the leaves. Curiosity got the best of him you could say, or maybe the conversation last night really was getting under his skin (Like he’ll ever admit that), but he found himself here. Standing at a… crime scene, I guess.

Her car went off road with herself and the Byers boy in it. Not long afterwards, they ditched it.

His brown orbs trailed from the tree the vehicle hit and down the long road. He also knows, from what he’s heard, they both ran back to the boy’s house and then the trail went cold after that. But that’s the part that tickled his brain a bit.

Why run all the way back home, a place you’re probably the safest at, and then leave it? It didn’t make sense in his book. Hell, it shouldn’t make sense in anybody’s book. What was the urge for them to run away from home and into the thick woods that surrounds Hawkins?

He rubbed his chin and started thinking like he was going to solve this or whatever. Like…

He then scoffs at himself.

What the fuck am I even doing? What is he doing? Why did he drive himself here? It’s not like he should care anymore. I mean, he shouldn’t care anymore. His parents would have his head if they knew–

Then there it is again.

That strange feeling that someone’s watching him.

He turns around, half expecting a cop to be there to scold him, the other half expecting nothing and– Oh! What do you know? It was nothing.

But even if it was nothing, he swears someone is standing there, watching his every move. Almost like this presence was here to judge him and see what other stupid things he can do today.

It was definitely giving him the heebie-jeebies.

He frowns, and looks away. “What the fuck…?”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

It took her an hour, but Joyce got all the lights up. She strung them all through the house, up along the wall and hanging gently off the ceiling. She hopes that she’s not losing her mind – She knows how silly this looks; Putting up Christmas lights in November (I mean, the holiday’s not that far off but still). She was expecting some reaction to happen, some or maybe all of them would immediately start blinking; Instead, her doorbell rings and she’s met with Karen Wheeler.

Not wanting to be rude, Joyce invited her and her youngest in. Karen pops in a casserole she made into the oven, sitting next to the worried mother and tries to see what state she was in.

Joyce chuckles nervously when her guest notices the festive decoration. “Will always loved Christmas, you know. So I thought if I... I put the lights up... I don’t know, he... I’d feel like he was home somehow.” She covers part of her face with her hand. “I-It’s silly, I-I know…”

Karen shakes her head. “No. No, it’s not silly.” She takes the other woman’s hand in hers, giving her a gentle squeeze. “How is Jonathan holding up?”

Joyce takes a deep breath. “You know, he’s good at taking care of himself. He always has been, you know? I…” She scoffs. “I mean, he thinks I’m losing my mind, but…”

“Joyce.” Karen says, softly. “I want you to know something. If you need anything, anything at all... Ted and I are here for you.”

This sentimental moment caused them both to become oblivious to the lights flickering on in the hallway, a walkway pointing towards Will’s room. The only one who didn’t miss it was Holly, who was now sliding off her chair to follow.

“Thank you.” Joyce said, sincerely.

Karen smiles. “Okay.”

The two women continued to talk, Joyce even bringing up Mike’s feelings about the whole thing – and even wondered if Claudia and Dustin were okay too. Meanwhile, little Holly Wheeler watched the lights flickered on and off, guiding her to the bedroom. Her eyes watched in awe as the many, many lamps that were lingered around Will’s room turned off and on one-by-one in a symphony-like way.

She giggles and claps, excited to watch this “show”. Then…

They all stopped and the nightmare began.

Her happiness starts to pool away as she hears a scary sound. She then turns white as a ghost when she notices one of the walls was moving and stretching out towards her.

Who knows what would have happened if Joyce hadn’t come in and grabbed Holly, handing her back to her mother.

“She shouldn’t be here.” Joyce said, scared in both tone and facial expression.

Karen didn’t notice the seriousness of her look as she apologizes, “Oh, I’m sorry. She’s quite the explorer these days.”

“Wait, did you see something?” The worried Byers brushes her off, and the little girl nods quickly. “What did... what did you see? Tell me. What did you see?”

“Joyce!” The blonde scolds, but she’s already being shooed away.

“Karen, thank you for the casserole, but I need you to leave.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Nancy tapped her foot repeatedly, impatiently waiting for the person to pick up the phone. “Come on, come on, come on…” She mumbled, gripping the payphone tight. “Come on–”

[ ‘Hello?’ ]

Oh, thank god. “Hi!” She says, eagerly. “Hi, uh, Ms. Holland, it’s Nancy.”

[ ‘Oh, Nancy, how are you?’ ]

“Good. I’m good. Um, I was just wondering, uh, is Barb there?”

[ ‘Mmm... No, she hasn’t come home yet.’ ]

“But she did come home, right? After the vigil?”

[ ‘No, she said she was staying with you last night.’ ]

Shit. Nancy mentally scolds herself. “Right, yes. She did, sorry. I meant, did she come home this morning? I think she left some textbooks and she was gonna go pick them up.”

[ ‘Oh, um, no, I haven’t seen her.’ ]

“Do– do you know what? I just remembered... she’s at the library.”

[ ‘Nancy, will you please have her call me as soon as you find her?’ ]

“Yeah.” She shakes her head, frowning at how worried Barb’s mother was sounding. “Yeah, I will. Sorry to bother you.”

She hangs up the phone, frustrated. This wasn’t like Barb at all. In the past when they’ve had some disagreements, she’s never once disappeared like this. The only thing Barb’s ever done that was “extreme” was she did the silent treatment for most of the school day.

This is so weird. This whole day’s been weird. She sighs and digs out some more change for the machine, and dials another number she knows by heart. The whole time as it rang she was nipping at the tip of her thumb. To her surprise, a voice she’s never heard before answered the phone.

[ ‘Hello?’ ]

The voice was a bit husky, but sweet with a pinch of sass.

Nancy’s confused, and twirls the phone cord around her finger. “Oh, I’m sorry, who’s this?” She asked, wondering if she dialed the number wrong. “Is this the–”

[ ‘This is Jessica. How can I help you?’ ]

Jessica?

Jessica? Who’s…

Her eyes widened.

Oh.

Now she recognizes the name.

It was Steve’s mother – The woman she hasn’t met yet – The woman she’s “meeting” for the first time over the phone.

She swallows, nervously. “Oh, I-I’m… sorry. I was trying to get a hold of Steve.” She replies, feeling a bit awkward (and nervous?).

[ ‘Steven? And who are you to him?’ ]

Well she sounds lovely. She can hear the snobbishness in her tone, almost offended that someone was calling for her son. That’s a little weird.

“Um, I’m his girlfriend.” Nancy replies, trying to sound confident. “I was just wondering if he’s home? I haven’t seen him at school day and I’m a little worried.”

Then came the very long, very uncomfortable pause. For a second there she thought the mom hung up, it was so quiet.

[ ‘Girlfriend? That’s new. ]

“Did Steve not tell you about us?” Nancy asked, a bit hurt and a bit confused. He seemed so proud to show the whole school that they were dating, how come he never told his mother?

[ ‘What’s your name?’ ]

Skipping my question. I love it. “Um, Nancy. Nancy Wheeler, Ma’am.”

[ ‘Wheeler, you said?’ ]

“Um, yes.” Now she was puzzled even more. Was this a bad thing–

[ ‘That’s wonderful!’ ]

Nancy blinks. “It… is?”

[ ‘My son’s dating a Wheeler! I almost can’t believe it.’ ]

And the woman was laughing with joy(?), which Nancy puts to the side. She just needs to get an answer to her own simple question. “That’s… wonderful, um… is Steve there?”

[ ‘No, he’s not. *Sigh* I swear if that boy’s skipping school, we’re going to have a problem.’ ]

And I think I just made everything worse. She straightens herself up, ready to end this. “Okay, Well… thanks, Mrs. Harrington, I’ll see if he’s maybe hiding out somewhere in the school.”

[ ‘Okay. Well, you have a good rest of your day, sweetheart.’ ]

Sweetheart? Nancy shakes her head again. “Thanks. You too.” She hangs up the phone. Well that was even weirder than the last one.

She crosses her arms, turning to head inside only her eyes to beeline to Carol and Tommy following someone closely – Tommy looking pissed off, especially.

“What the heck?” She says, and hurries towards them.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Hopper and his partner entered the library with an idea – an idea hanging on a very thin thread that is. So, he puts on his best smile and takes off his hat, strolling up to the woman at the desk. “Hey, Marissa. How you doin’?”

The librarian pursed her lips. “You have a lot of nerve showing up here.”

He blinks. “What?”

“You could have at least called, said, ‘Marissa! Hey, it’s not gonna work out. Sorry I wasted your time. I’m a dіck’.”

Oh, now he remembers. “Yep.” He said, agreeing immediately. “I’m sorry. Uh... Maybe we could go out again next week?” She, and even Powell, made a face at him that gave him his answer. He smacks his lips and looks around. “Newspapers? You guys got newspapers around here?”

Marissa nods and shows them where they all are. “We have the New York Times, the Post, all the big ones. Organized by year and topic. You can find the corresponding microfiche in the reading room.”

“Okay, we’re looking for anything on the Hawkins National Laboratory.”

“Well, shouldn’t you be looking for that missing kid?”

“Yeah. We are.” Hopper pushes, and adds, “So, why don’t you start with the Times, and we’ll check out the Post.”

She scoffs in disbelief and walks off, Powell stepping up with a look on his face. “The librarian?” He said, getting a shrug.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Nancy sped up when she saw who they were stalking in the parking lot. Why would two people like Tommy and Carol go after a kid like Jonathan Byers? Nothing that went through her mind would give her that answer. When she got closer is when it got more intense.

Tommy was practically manhandling Jonathan, yelling and trying to take his bag away from him. The eldest Wheeler sped up even more, full on running now.

She manages to step between the two of them, arms out in defense. “Hey! What’s going on?”

“This creep was spying on us last night!” Tommy said, pointing furiously. “Nicole says he was taking pictures of us by the pool.”

“I was looking for my brother.” Jonathan replies, holding his bag close.

“Bullshit. Now let me see.”

“Back off!”

Nancy steps in between them again. “Tommy, stop!” She yells, making him scoff.

“You’re defending this creep, Wheeler?” Carol asked, in disgust.

“First of all, you really going to believe what Nicole said? The girl’s like the boy who cried wolf.”

“Nancy–”

“Lastly, so what if he has photos of us at the pool? It wasn’t like we’re naked.”

“Naked or not, he still took pictures of us!” Tommy snaps, taking a step closer as she takes a step back.

“Pictures or not, he was looking for his brother–”

“How do you know, huh? How?”

“Because he’s been hanging out missing poster signs of him and missing school because he’s the big brother.” Nancy looks over her shoulder, locking eyes with Jonathan. “Go.” He hesitates. “Go, man!”

Not wasting another opportunity, he hustles off towards his car. Tommy tries to lunge towards him, but Nancy isn’t letting up.

“What the fuck, Nancy?!” Tommy shouted, and she chose to ignore him by walking away once she knew Jonathan wasn’t around. “Nancy!”

“Nancy, get back here!” Carol yelled.

“Nancy, you such a fucking princess! Wait until your boyfriend hears about this!”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“Dude, I can’t believe you did that!” Lucas said, as they bike away from the school. “You know Troy and James are not going to let that slide.”

“I don’t care!” Dustin says, bitterly (and if he could cross his arms right now he would). “I don’t like when people bad mouth my friends, bad mouth my sister! I mean, for Christ’s sake, she was giving Will a ride home. What’s so bad about that?”

He doesn’t care if James’s waiting tomorrow to give him a wedgie, or Troy’s fist plummeting into his face, he doesn’t care. Both Will and Phanie had their fair share of bullying themselves, or whispers of derogatory names and speeches – All because Will was the “quiet kid” and wears “colorful” clothing; All because his sister wasn’t a “girly-girl” and a total nerd. He’s heard that all throughout his life, and sometimes he said something, sometimes he stays silent when told too – He probably should have done that today.

But those… fucking bullies just had to poke him when he was the most stress. Stressed out with each day that none of them had come home.

Jeez, he’s either going to get scolded or praised by his mother if she finds out about that interaction.

“And don’t even try to convince me to beg them for forgiveness. They don’t deserve it and I’m standing my ground.” Dustin adds, shutting his friend up. As they rode closer and closer to their houses, he frowned, worriedly.

I just hope El knows what she’s talking about. He just wants to find them both soon (Safe and sound would be a plus).

The boys continued to ride until they arrived at the power lines behind the Wheelers’ house. Mike shouted and told the girl to hope on, warning all of them they only had a few hours to pull this off.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Joyce was standing in her kitchen with a cigarette when Chester started barking. She looks up to see the lights in the living room start flickering, and hurries in there. As soon as she entered they died down. Then, slowly the light directly above her activated, and then made a pathway to the other side of the room. Her fingers laced around them, and followed, ending up being directed at a bundle of them lying on the floor.

She rushes to take them in her hands, sitting down and taking a deep breath. It was now or never to find out if she was really losing her mind or not. She closes her eyes, and whispers,

“Will... are you here?”

There was a brief pause followed by the ball lighting up and fading. She chuckles in excitement, completely over the moon with fresh tears in her eyes.

“Okay, good, good, good, good. Are you…” How should she do this? “Um, blink once for yes, twice for no. C-Can y-you do that for me, sweetie? Can you do–” The ball lights up again just once as she feels a tear run down her cheek and hugs the object.

She can feel it in her bones, in her heart now. She knows this is her baby boy. She knows that her son is still with her.

Joyce smiles and sniffles. “Oh, good boy. Good boy. Okay, Will, um–” Another deep breath. “Is… Is Stephanie with you too?”

One blink. The girl who was kind enough to pick up her son is still with him despite all this time. She can finally put some of that guilt away now.

“That’s wonderful news.” She said, her expression growing bigger. However, this was going to be the hardest question yet to ask. “Baby, I need to know…” She swallows. “Are you guys alive?”

One blink and her heart skips a beat. She thanks any God who’s listening for this.

Her lip quivers as she follows up with, “Are you guys safe?”

Two blinks.

Her son and Stephanie were not okay.

Now, Joyce was shaking like a leaf as she clenched the lights tighter, her mind running a mile a minute on what she can do. What could she say that wouldn’t revert to playing twenty questions four times over?

“I need to know where to find you two, honey. Where... where are you? Can you... can you tell me where you are? Can you…” She chokes, her cheeks completely stained. “Please, baby. I need to find you. Tell me what to do. Please just... Will…”

She didn’t know how long she sat there and cried, wondering what she could do for her baby, for Steph; But at some point a light bulb idea appeared. She suddenly found herself stringing some lights on the wall over her couch, a row of three, before popping open a can of black paint and began brushing letters on.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

|| THE OTHER SIDE ||

“How do we get my mom’s attention when we can’t see what she’s done?” Will asked after hours of walking back to his home, he was disappointed to find that his house still looks the same. I guess their theory about earlier was right–

This world was stuck on the day he and Steph got kidnapped by the beast.

The oldest walked around a bit, thinking. Unfortunately, despite all the lights Joyce bought, they can’t see any of them. “Did she put it in your room, maybe?” Stephanie thought, and wandered inside.

Nothing. Of course. The only thing she saw that was possibly different was some scratch marks on the wall, ones that would be too high for a dog to do.

She swallows and leaves, meeting the boy in the hallway. “Did you have scratches on your wall before?” Will gives her a weird look and shakes his head. She hums. “We got to find those lights quickly. I think that monster’s been lurking around here.”

They found themselves back in the living room, and started moving their arms around, squinting too to see if something would appear. All hope was starting to seem lost until her hand hits an object above, a glowing hue appears for a split second.

“Whoa…” Will said, in awe, and suddenly, they both swore they heard a dog barking. “Chester?”

Steph took this as a sign to keep going, hitting the same spot again before gently moving her hand along the imaginary line. She trails to the little cabinet against the wall, feeling around until she hits something that makes light.

Come on, Ms. Byers. Please tell me you’re home. The two of them waited anxiously, waiting for the woman to speak, waiting for–

|| Will... are you here? ||

Joyce’s voice broke through, breaking them.

“Mom.” Will breaths, coming down to sit on his knees. “What do I–”

“Start feeling around. Just like I did.” Steph said, coming to sit next to him. He nods again, keeping calm and feels around – His fingers touching something that made the hue appear again. “Perfect. Just like that.”

|| Okay, good, good, good, good. ||

“See?” Steph says, happily. “It’s working.”

“Mom.” Will says again, smiling. Now, they just have to stay silent and listen.

|| Are you… Um, blink once for yes, twice for no. C-Can y-you do that for me, sweetie? Can you do– ||

Of course they can. So Will reaches out and touches it once.

|| Oh, good boy. Good boy. Okay, Will, um– Is… Is Stephanie with you too? ||

One touch. Will is eternally grateful that he’s not alone in this scary place.

|| That’s wonderful news – Baby, I need to know… ||

There’s a pause, and they hold their breaths.

|| Are you guys alive? ||

Their hearts clenched at how painful she sounded.

His poor mother. I can only imagine what she must feel like. Steph thought, and touched his shoulder, trying to give him some comfort.

He touches the air with a shaky hand, trying not to beat himself up over how much his mother was suffering.

|| Are you guys safe? ||

They frown, and he touches the air twice.

I’m sorry, Mom. Will says, trying not to picture the state she was in after that answer.

|| I need to know where to find you two, honey. Where... where are you? Can you... can you tell me where you are? Can you… Please, baby. I need to find you. Tell me what to do. Please just... Will… ||

“Mom?” He croaked, after she went silent. “Mom?”

“Ms. Byers?” She said, worriedly.

“Mom, please… where did you–”

Then they heard the couch scrap across the floor, hitting the wall, followed by the sounds of hammering.

“What is she doing now?” He asks, both of them standing and hearing the string lights she must have in her hands clink together, and move along the wall. “Why is she hanging up more lights?”

Although he was puzzled, Stephanie was not. She walks over to the couch, getting onto the cushions and feeling around, the hues returning when she hits a certain spot. She laughs blissfully.

“Oh, your mom’s a genius.” Steph said, with a huge smile on her face.

Will gives her a look. “I don’t get it.”

“Watch closely. See–” She touches a line of lights near the ceiling. “Eight.” Then the middle. “Nine.” Then the bottom. “Nine. It makes twenty-six. Your mom’s a freaking genius.”

“Still not getting it.”

“Don’t you see? She didn’t just hang up more lights–” Her smile grows, and soon will his. “It’s an alphabet wall.”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Nancy wasn’t sure what she was going to do. First Steve doesn’t come into school, and now no one knows where Barb is. She decides to kill two birds with one stone after school, and takes a drive over to the Harrington house. A quick driveby shows that her boyfriend’s car wasn’t there, so she figures he must have just skipped school because of last night’s disagreement. As for her best friend though, she couldn’t have said the same thing.

She slows down and parks directly behind Barb’s car, jogging over and taking a peek inside. Everything was the same, Barb’s purse was on the floor board, and the sweater she changed out of was laid in the seat.

No. No way. She couldn’t believe this. If Barb didn’t drive home last night then where was she? She tried to come up with excuses, tried to make up ideas that would lead to her coming home without her car but…

Nothing made sense.

She about cried on the way home, on the verge of a breakdown as she thinks only but the worst of the worst.

“Hey!” Her mother calls out as she enters the house. “You’re home early! How was the game?” When her mother notices how quiet she was, it is when she meets her daughter halfway. “Nancy? What’s the matter?”

“I-It’s Barb.” Nancy croaks, shaking. “I think... something happened. Something terrible.” She hopes she’s just over exaggerating, but she doesn’t know about that.

She can’t shake off this dreadful feeling in the pit of her stomach.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

“I don’t know, Chief.” Powell begins, really on the fence about all that they read.

“What don’t you know?” Hopper asked, confused.

“This lady, Terry Ives, sounds like a real nut to me. Her kid was taken for LSD mind control experiments? She’s been discredited. Claim was thrown out–”

Hopper sighs. “Okay, forget about her. Take a look at this.” He slides over a newspaper clipping he printed out. The headline said: ‘MK ULTRA EXPOSED’. He points to a familiar face in the picture. “Dr. Martin Brenner.”

“Who?”

“Brenner. He runs Hawkins Lab.”

“Okay…”

Hopper sits back in his chair with disbelief and scoffs. “You don’t find that interesting?”

“Not really.” Powell said, with a shrug. “He was involved in some hippie crap back in the day, so what?”

“No, this isn’t hippie crap. This is CIA-sanctioned research.”

“Doesn’t mean he had anything to do with our kids.”

“Come on. Look at that.” Hopper points to the other people in the picture. “Hospital gowns. All of ‘em. Now, that piece of fabric that the teacher found by the pipe. That sure looked like a hospital gown to me, huh? Am I wrong?”

“I don’t know, Chief.”

“Come on, man. Work with me here. I’m not saying that there’s some grand conspiracy–” (You sure about that?) “I’m just…” He sighs, exhausted. “I’m saying maybe something happened. Maybe Will and Stephanie were in the wrong place at the wrong time, and they saw something that they shouldn’t have.”

Powell makes a face. “It’s a reach.”

“It’s a start.”

Before more could be said, Powell’s radio goes off, and Callahan starts speaking.

[ ‘Hey, Powell, is the chief with you?’ ]

Hopper wastes no time to reach over and take the radio off his partner’s shoulder, answering it, “Hopper here. What do you got?”

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

The boys follow Eleven through the woods, the sun finally setting, slowly engulfing them in darkness if it wasn’t for the lights on their bikes. To everyone’s shock and confusion, she had brought them to a familiar place.

She turns around and faces them, replying, “Here.”

Mike gives her a look. “Yeah, this is where Will lives.”

“Hiding.”

He shakes his head. “No, no, this is where he lives. He’s missing from here. Understand?”

“What are we doing here?” Lucas asked, dropping his bike in annoyance.

“She said he’s hiding here.”

“Um…” He looks around. “No!”

Now it was Dustin’s turn to look annoyed. “I swear, if we walked all the way out here for nothing–”

“That’s exactly what we did. I told you she didn’t know what the hell she was talking about!”

Mike sighs and looks at her. “Why did you bring us here?”

“Mike, don’t waste your time with her.” Lucas replies, fed up and tired.

“What do you want to do then?”

“Call the cops, like we should have done yesterday.”

“We are not calling the cops!”

“Hey, guys?” Dustin says, something catching his attention.

“What other choice do we have?” Lucas yells again.

“Guys!” He snaps, drawing their attention to the police cars rushing by, followed by an ambulance. Their sirens were blaring loudly, and were heading in a direction they all knew where it led to.

A dreadful feeling came to all of them instantly.

“Oh no…” Mike whispers.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

|| THE OTHER SIDE ||

Stephanie wrote on the wall with a marker the best she could, drawing the alphabet in each row. They couldn’t see the lights or the letters Joyce probably scribbled on too, but they could make do with what they had.

“This should probably help, right?”

“Definitely.” Will agrees with a nod.

“Good.” She smacks her hands together. “Alright, come on Mrs. Byers, talk to us. Ask us some questions.”

“Come on, Mom.”

They waited and waited, until they finally heard her speak.

|| Okay. Okay, baby, talk to me. Talk to me. Where are you guys? ||

“What should we say?” Will asked, as he climbed onto the couch.

“Uh…” What could they say? “Here! Right Here. Tell her that.”

“Okay.”

Will Reached up and started touching right above each letter, listening – His mother repeating back whatever he touched.

|| ‘R’. Good, good, good, good. That’s good. Come on, come on. ‘I.. G... H... T... H... E... R... E…’.‘Right here’. ||

Stephanie frowns, worriedly. Yeah, I know it doesn’t make any sense but it’s true.

“Come on, Mom. Understand. Please.” Will begged, quietly.

|| ‘Right here’? I… I-I don’t know what that means. I need you to tell me what to do. What should I do? How do I get to you guys? How do I find you? What should I do? ||

“Um…” Will looks over at the teenager. “What should we tell her?”

Steph’s mouth opens and closes quickly. What do they tell her if they’re not even sure what this place is? “Fuck… um…” She scratches her head. “How about–”

. “I KNOW WHAT YOU’RE DOING.” .

The vicious voice seemed to spread itself around the house like a disease making the hair on their necks stand, and a chill ran up their spines. And then all the supposed “dead” electricity started going off, turning the whole house into a light show; Radios and TVs started going frantic; Fans turning on and spinning around too.

Will starts looking around all disoriented. “Steph, what’s going on?”

“I–” She gasps as she hears the infamous growl in the distance, then the sound of the beast trying to bust through the wall behind her. “Will!!”

The boy frantically writes something out of his mother, just as the monster’s claw broke through the house. Steph takes a quick shot to stun it enough for them to run out the back door – From there, they were off running into the forest.

Again.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Joyce set the brush down, her alphabet wall was done and ready to use. She takes a few steps back so she can see the whole thing, and rubs her hands impatiently.

“Okay.” She breathes, mentally preparing herself. “Okay, baby, talk to me. Talk to me. Where are you guys?” It takes only a second for a letter to appear. “‘R’. Good, good, good, good. That’s good. Come on, come on. ‘I.. G... H... T... H... E... R... E…’.‘Right here’.”

What?

That doesn’t make sense. What do they mean they’re right here?

“‘Right here’?” She says again, puzzled. “I… I-I don’t know what that means. I need you to tell me what to do. What should I do? How do I get to you guys? How do I find you? What should I do?”

She sees the light flicker again, and waits to see what they spell. Slight spoiler…

It was not what she expected them to say.

They were letters that were going to take her breath away.

And then all the lights in the house turned on and flickers rapidly, a sound of growling coming from behind. Scarcely, she turns to find something trying to crawl out of her wall. Terrified to even scream or speak, she starts to back away towards the door as a beast breaks through the wallpaper and hisses.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

The boys biked faster and faster, trying to catch up to the emergency vehicles, fearing the worst was yet to come. Just like they suspected, they ended up right at Sattler Quarry.

Meanwhile, Hopper was shaking, praying that what Callahan told him was not true. He arrives at the scene to find paramedics going deep into the water, two stretchers trailing behind. He doesn’t even know if he parked the car or not as he rushes out; A terrible, terrible feeling in the pit of his stomach. He runs and blends into the crowd of firemen, waiting (im)patiently for their findings.

“Oh, Jesus.” He mutters, trying so hard to keep his composure. “Oh, God. Please tell me it’s not the kids.”

The boys and El hid behind a truck, hearts in their throats as they watched as a waterlogged body of a boy was being loaded on the stretcher – soon followed by a larger female.

As soon as he saw the clothes, as soon as he saw the color of their hair, Hopper knew he was too late. Not wanting to break down right there and scream, he turns away and heads to his car. How in the world was he going to be able to tell Joyce and Claudia about this? How was he going to tell them that he failed to save their children after they begged him to? What could he have done differently to change this atrocious outcome?

The boys were shaking their heads from afar, not wanting to believe what they’re seeing. It was a nightmare. Just a nightmare. It has to be! They can’t really be–

“It can’t be them.” Mike choked, shaking his head. “It can’t be.”

“It’s Will and Steph.” Lucas says, lips quivering. Both boys were a mess, almost coming undone, but Dustin…

Oh, Dustin.

He felt like he was about to faint.

“Phanie…?” He whispers, taking a step back while holding his head. No. No. No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No– No! This can’t be real! This can’t be! She can’t be–

“It’s really them.” Lucas said, after getting another look once the bodies were brought back to shore. Tears were in his eyes, and they were ones he wasn’t even going to try to hide like he normally would.

Same thing goes with Mike, who was hugging himself, and sobbed. His best friend was gone. A girl that was like a sister to him was gone. He just couldn’t… wait. “Dustin?” He begins, looking over his friend who seemed so far away from this world.

It was a scary look, enough for even El to get scared and worried. She reached out to him, to comfort him; She even muttered his name for the first time.

To everyone’s surprise, he slaps her hand away.

“‘Dustin’? ‘Dustin’, what?!” He snaps, hatefully. “You were supposed to help us find them alive. You said my sister was alive?! Why did you lie to us?” He points at her, scaring her again. “What’s wrong with you? What is wrong with you?!”

Eleven stays quiet, not even sure what to say from his outburst.

“Say something! Give me an answer, damn it!” He yells, as Lucas and Mike take a step closer.

“Dustin–” Mike tries, but the boy shakes his head and backs away.

“Screw this! Fuck everything!” Dustin turns around and grabs his bike, his friends ushering him to calm down before taking off. But whatever they say wasn’t going to be enough. The Henderson was practically up the hill when they finished their speech, and wasn’t planning on slowing down no matter what happens.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Meanwhile, not too far down the road, Joyce was running for her life – running whatever that thing was that crawled out of her wall. She was so scared that she didn’t even realize a car was coming towards her. Luckily, it stopped mere inches away, causing her to scream.

“Mom?” Jonathan says as he gets out. “Mom, what happened?” His mother couldn’t speak, only reaching out to grab her son and hold on to dear life. “It’s okay. It’s okay. I got you.”

But everything is not okay. Far from it.

Because in the distance, police were coming to inform them of the unfortunate news of their son and brother.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Steve slips through the sliding door in the back of his house since it was much quieter. He really didn’t feel like facing his parents just yet, and he knows this is around the time at night where they sit around with a glass of wine/beer and watch their shows. He’ll just see and deal with them in the morning, and hopefully they don’t notice any signs that there was a party last night.

He walks lightly across the floors, his mind set to go for the stairs which was going to be a bit tricky since they do tend to creak in some spots. A quick look into the living room he finds his dad on the couch, and his mother standing up but facing the opposite way.

Perfect. He thought and made his move just as his mother’s voice broke through.

The black, wavy haired and brown eyed woman was pacing around a bit, clearly upset about something – or someone to be exact.

“The boy was skipping school today, Richard. Can’t you believe that? How is suppose to keep up his grades?”

Steve had to hold back from groaning as he eye rolled. Here she goes again. He chooses to ignore it, and is about to when he hears the next thing.

“If it wasn’t for his girlfriend calling we would have never known.”

He froze as soon as his foot touched one of the steps. Nancy called?

His girlfriend actually called the house? She was actually calling because she was wondering where he was at? Even after their fight? He could smile because it warms his heart that she cares, but he was also devastated that his mother was the one to pick up the phone. He hasn’t even told–

“On the bright side, he’s dating a Wheeler. A Wheeler! You know what her father does for a living, right?” She chuckles with excitement. “It’s perfect. I can almost cry.”

And here comes another eyeroll. See this is why he didn’t bother mentioning this girlfriend this time around to his mother. He knew once she found out who her family was it was going to be a game changer.

Jesus, Christ. He can’t wait to see what’s in store for him in the morning.

“Well, it beats the other choices he’s had in the past.” His father said, pouring salt into old wounds and making him shake his head.

These freaking people, man. I swear. Steve starts to go up the stairs when he hears another voice; This time it was on the TV.

. < In Other words– breaking news. The bodies of some local children, William Byers and Stephanie Henderson have been found. > .

He froze again, this time more rigid and cold.

No.

No, he didn’t just hear that right.

No, his mind’s just playing tricks on him because of last night…

Right?

. < The children have been missing since the 6th, and local authorities and it’s volunteers worked many hours to bring them home, only for it to end in a tragedy. > .

“About fucking time.” Charles said, raising his beer with joy. “Damn weirdo. I guess our worries about her hanging out with our son again are put to rest.”

Jessica sighs with relief. “Thank God for that. I was tired of seeing her face everywhere.”

“Amen to that.”

He listened to his parents laugh, and clink their drinks together as the world started to spin around him.

No.

This isn’t right. This isn’t right. This isn’t right. This isn’t right. This isn’t–

He’s not sure how much noise he made, or if he made any, but Steve was out the door again in a split second – running straight for his car where he’ll speed off to the unknown parts of Hawkins.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Dustin stumbles inside his house, slamming the door with more force than necessary. Maybe it was necessary ‘cause it got his mother’s attention. She came from the other room, asking what’s going on as he stares at her with a red face and puffy eyes, cheeks stained with tears that wouldn’t stop falling.

“Dustin? What’s wrong?”

He felt like something was wrapped around his vocal cords, and there was a knife sticking into his chest, and there was something hot poking at his lungs. He has to speak. He has to tell her. It’s better if she knows from his lips rather than a man in blue.

“Dustin?” She tries again, getting closer.”

“M-Mom…” He begins, his whole body starting to tremble. “St-Stephanie… sh-she’s… she’s…” Oh, god. Why can’t he freaking say it?

“She’s what?” Claudia asked, worriedness creeping up onto her features.

“Sh-She’s… she’s gone.” He whispers into a sob. “Th-They found them both in… I-In the quarry.” Another sob. “Th-They’re b-both gone. M-Mom. St-Stephanie’s gone…”

And then his mother started to shake her head and said ‘No’, followed by Dustin’s reassurance. This went back and forth for who knows how long, but it ended with Claudia being in the same state as her son – a hobbling mess.

“I-It’s true…” He gasps. “I-I saw it my-myself. They’re r-really b-both gone.” And then he broke down again, this time in her arms. She holds him tight, trying to be the strong one here.

“Shh, baby, we’ll get through this.” She soothes, rubbing the curls on the back of his neck. Her son grips onto her clothes, burying his head into her chest and lets out never ending gasps for air.

“Mommy…” He choked, as his ears picked up on the sirens in front of his house.

•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°•°

Steve’s surprised the gas pedal hasn’t gone through the floorboard yet with how much force he’s applying. He doesn’t even know where he’s going, doesn’t even know if he’s hit something, or runs a red light, but he does know that he’s not anywhere near the speed limit.

The news story was still playing around in his head and it was certainly not helping the situation.

. < From the looks of it, the poor children had plummeted into the quarry and ended up drowning with possible hypothermia. But the mystery still remains on why these two disappeared in the first place. Hopefully, the police can find the answer to that, and bring some closure to the grieving families. > < Hopefully so, Liz. I can only imagine what they’re going through right now. > < Everyone here at WCPK would like to give our condolences. And we advise everyone watching to give a moment of silence for the children. > .

Steve slams on the breaks, the wheels spinning and making an awful sound as he stops along one of the abandoned roads in the town. He starts breathing heavily, which slowly turns into panting. His heartbeat was in his ears, his throat tight and dry, his brown eyes starting to gloss over.

“Fuck…” He whispers, in disbelief. No matter how many times he thinks this is a dream, thinks that maybe they were wrong and it was two other kids they found, his guts tells him ‘No’ and ‘This is real’.

“Fuck…” He says again, the pain was slowly turning into anger which eventually led to him banging on every surface in his car. “Fuck. Fuck. Fuck, Fuck, Fuck, Fuck!”

Stephanie Henderson was dead. The girl he knew since five was dead. The girl he made promises with was dead. The girl who was there for him at his every low was dead. The girl who was the only one to make him really laugh and smile was dead.

The girl he had to give up to protect was dead.

Stephanie Henderson… The girl that was his friend.

No.

Screw that!

He didn’t want to make that choice but he had to.

The girl that is, and will always be, his friend is dead.

She was just supposed to keep moving on in her life, she was just supposed to keep hating him until she completes her dreams. She was supposed to stay in Hawkins and pretend not to know him until her dream life opens up and whisks her away.

She was supposed to be alive and safe.

She wasn’t supposed to be dead at the bottom of a quarry with a boy she offered to protect.

Everything he did to make sure she lived was now pointless.

Now, tears rolled down his face, his hands trembling and his lower lip quivered. Every emotion he kept locked up from their old friendship had returned and it was eating him away, tearing him bit by bit, suffocating him till he turned blue.

He still couldn’t believe it. He wishes he could blink and reality would reveal it was just another dream.

He knows it won’t be like that. It never will be. So instead…

Steve found himself screaming until his throat ran raw.

(TBC)

A/N: Did I emotionally destroy all of you enough? I apologize a bit if so...

~~~

-Taglist is Open-

@ladygrey03 @poppet05 @tooearlyforthis @lovesfics @lordzzz

@mirkwoodshewolf @sadbitchfangirl @olivewisp

@emsownuniverse @unspecifiedvisitor @smaryamsstuff @kitty49646 @jinxeee @bookkeeperlove

65 notes · View notes

hiramaris · 1 year ago

Text

Kiss It Off Me

CHAPTER 2

Chapter Summary:

And what does Haley do when things don't go her way? She sabotages. So it wasn't a surprise when Haley's mouth opened and the next words that came out were ones she never intended to say. It was a defense mechanism, a way to push people away before they could hurt her. "If it weren't for those horrendous clothes, you might actually be pretty," she blurted out, regretting it as soon as the words left her lips.

Pairings: Haley x Fem!farmer

Disclaimer: I do not own Stardew Valley or any of the related characters. Stardew Valley is created by and owned by ConcernedApe. This fanfiction is intended for entertainment only. I am not making any profit from this story. All rights of the original Stardew Valley story belong to ConcernedApe.

Warning: None so far? Just Haley being her usual self

Notes:

Okay, so originally in my AO3 this is meant to be a Haley x OC and I have already created a solid description for my character. However, I thought it would be much better if I changed it to a reader-insert instead tho I'll probably keep some physical descriptions that I had already inserted, so sorry about that. Also, if some of y'all have already read this in my AO3, expect some minor changes.

Gif from loriedarlin.tumblr.com

Spring 1

Haley rises with the grace of a blooming sunflower that she is. It's finally Spring!

No longer will she suffer from the icy chill that makes her toes feel like they're about to fall off, none of that ridiculously nasty snow that forces her to use that Yoba awful boots she had hidden at the deepest part of her wardrobe, and just as equally terrible gloves that hinder her from using her camera let alone her phone when she finally got that once in a blue moon occurrence of perfect lighting outside.

And most importantly; no more dry, frizzy hair.

AND.

She could finally continue her tan!

Oh, the endless possibilities that await her in this new season. So much to explore and experience. Haley is positively bursting with excitement, eager to dive into all the joys, and wonders what something new Spring has planned for her.

****

When Haley expected something new, She didn't mean new 'new' like a new person but new as in something exciting like a freshly arrived parcel from the shop she ordered online, or perhaps a new conditioner that makes her hair bounce and makes it shinier that Yoba could mistake it as the sun.

Her expectations were already at rock bottom with Pelican Town being the dullest place on earth.

But why oh why did she even bother to expect?

"The new farmer's coming today, just so you know," Emily casually mentions as she washed their dishes that morning.

Haley scrunched up her face. She had already forgotten about it. Why bring it up again?

"Oh, goody. Another reason to avoid the Townsquare today."

Emily turned to her with her typical condescending look she learned to hate. "Hay, you don't have to become BFFs with her right off the bat. Just say hello and try not to be your usual mean self. You'll thank me later."

"And I don't have to introduce myself within the day, Em." Haley crossed her arms, standing her ground. "This is no classroom where you need to acquaint the new kid on her first day."

"I know." She sighed as if she was having a conversation of repetition with a toddler and she's running out of patience. "Just be nice to her, yeah?"

Haley didn't answer. With camera tucked carefully between her hands, she left the kitchen without a word. Emily never fails to make her feel like a child being taken care of by her. Like she's in dire need of a babysitter and without her guidance, Haley would be nothing.

It's infuriating really.

No.

She wouldn't let this ruin her day.

Today was going to be a good day. Emily's incessant nagging couldn't change that. Besides, she probably wouldn't even meet the new farmer. It was already past 10, and the girl was most likely already mingling with the locals or resting in that old cottage of hers.

She can still take pictures back in Marnie's ranch. then she can hang out with Alex in his place. Go back home exactly during Emily's shift on the Saloon and then she'll have the whole house to herself while she can finally cook something edible without Emily breathing down her neck.

Yes, that would be ideal. Today is a good day.

****

Wrong.

Just as Haley stepped foot outside 2 Willow Lane, she was greeted by a tall, unfamiliar woman strolling by her house at an infuriatingly slow pace.

You held a whole map of what she assumed was the town's which was big enough to hide your whole face, and as well as hinder your vision to notice Haley on the side, much to her relief.

Are you the new girl?

All that she can tell is that you have the darkest hair she has ever seen in her whole life. It was shiny, and ridiculously long, too which kinda compliments its wavy nature.

Also, why the hell are you in a dress shirt and a tie?

Haley may be a bit far behind the books but she's sure as hell that isn't the right attire for someone who'll work on a farm.

If Haley didn't know Lewis is the mayor, she'd probably think you're the new mayor with your totally immaculate wardrobe— a dress shirt and a tie, perfectly flattened slacks, and a pair of leather shoes that probably look expensive.

Shit. Are you really the farmer? Or just a visitor?

Oh, no. Are you turning around? Oh, Yoba, she is!

Haley scrambled to her feet. Not sure if she should bolt inside the house, run to the Townsquare, or what.

With her probably last brain cell that saves her from the utter embarrassment of being caught checking out the new farmer (absolutely not, the disgrace), her own body moves on its own. She grabbed her camera and positioned herself like she was taking a photo of the least appealing subject she had ever captured in her life— Emily's cactus.

Please not now, Yoba. Not now.

She found herself praying to the deities she no longer talked to when she felt your eyes burning into her back. She had probably taken a load of mediocre photos of Emily's plant when she finally felt the farmer leaves.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she turned around and found the street empty apart from her. Only then did she notice how fast her heart was beating against her chest.

Thank Yoba for saving me from that mortifying introduction.

Why is she even nervous anyway? She didn't even see me. Even so, that was so embarrassing.

Wait, no.

Embarrassed, not nervous.

Only embarrassed, nothing else.

The word nervous and Haley doesn't fit. In fact, it should never ever be used in a single sentence. Haley doesn't get nervous, ever.

She was just caught off guard, that's all.

Next time, she'd prepare an introduction so fantastic that you would be left with the impression that Haley is too good for you— kind and never mean, but still way out of your league.

Just you wait, stranger. She thought determinedly, trying to ignore the voice at the back of her head that sounded suspiciously like Emily, asking her if she was really sure it was going to be a good day.

Haley doesn't really know.

****

"Did you meet Y/n?" was Emily's first words when she arrived home from her shift.

Haley remained sprawled on the couch, flipping through the pages of her fashion magazine for this season. The struggle was real, trying to choose between the blue skirt or the pink shorts.

"Who?" she asked, her eyes still glued to the glossy pages.

"The farmer, Hay." She can feel Emily rolling her eyes at her.

"Oh," Haley feigns interest, barely lifting her gaze. "That not-so-tall, dark-haired farmer with a fashion taste of an old woman ready to retire from her corporate job?"

Emily gasped, and Haley turned to look just in time to see her scandalized look. To be fair, you don't look that bad. You also tower over Haley for a couple of inches and your fashion sense isn't the worst that she has seen in her life. Haley wouldn't be caught alive admitting that aloud though, especially not in front of Emily.

Lies are an easier language to learn after all.

"Don't tell me you just insulted her on her first day?"

"Of course not." Haley protested, magazine long forgotten. "I saw her but I didn't even talk to her nor she even tried. The doofus was so busy with her stupid map to even see me."

Looking back at the scene made her feel embarrassed, relieved, and offended at the same time.

Like how could you not notice a true beauty in front of you? Her face alone was enough to catch the attention of all the people in the area. She's not crowned flower queen for nothing yet you just walked passed her like she's just an average woman!

How dare she?

But on the side, it would have been embarrassing otherwise for Haley to be caught alive staring at the newcomer with wonder in her eyes.

Would anyone really blame her though? It was perfectly natural to size up the competition in terms of beauty.

Right?

And it's not like she noticed how broad your shoulder was or how your lean physique perfectly suited your chosen profession. Not at all, pft.

"Still, you could have said hello," Emily tries to reason with her, oblivious to the internal conflict turning on the gears of Haley's brain.

"Why should I? I'm not the new girl, aren't I?" She shrugged indifferently, turning back to her mag once again. "And what kind of lame name is Y/n, anyway?"

"Haley." There's that tone again.

"What?" she snapped.

"Don't even start. Y/n is actually nice." Emily chided softly, her eyes boring into Haley's like a disappointed mother. "You said it yourself, this isn't high school anymore. Being mean doesn't get you anywhere."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Haley bristled at the insinuation, standing up to face Emily with a fierce expression. "Are you saying I'm directionless just because you have a job, and I don't?"

"I'm saying that being kind is always the right choice," Emily's calmness only fueled the anger she felt. "And trust me, it doesn't cost you anything to be nice to someone. But being mean can cost you more than you think."

Haley remained tight-lipped, not wanting to argue with her sister anymore. Emily seemed to mistake her silence for compliance.

"I'm just trying to look out for you, okay? Sorry if I came on too strong," Emily consoled her, giving her a pat on the head. "I'm off to bed now, gotta wake up early tomorrow. Goodnight, sis."

As Emily headed off to bed, Haley was left to ponder the events of the day—

No fantastic photos in Marnie's ranch because the nasty smell of animal waste was enough to drive her back to her entry steps, and the risk of running across the new farmer is greater there so, no.

As for Alex, forget it, she didn't have the stomach to endure his stench after playing with his ball all day. Her only option was to head back home.

Emily left early which is a good thing but when Haley went to the kitchen to finally practice her baking skills, she only found out that they had no more eggs. She could have run to Pierre's to get some but she isn't really keen on doing the shopping herself. That's Emily's forte, not hers.

And now, she's been lectured by her sister like she's some rebelled teen.

What a good way to start the year, huh?

Yeah, today is not a good day.

****

Spring 2

Haley was out with her camera in Cindersap Forest just by the river. Unlike yesterday, it seems Marnie was just as bothered by the smell of her animals and decided to deep clean her ranch or whatever. So, the air was fresh and crisp, allowing Haley to breathe deeply without cringing.

The weather was ideal for taking photos— partly cloudy with a gentle breeze that carried delicate flecks of pollen through the air.

Despite her aversion to dirt and anything that possibly has germs in it, Haley loved taking pictures of nature. Behind the camera lens, she felt a profound connection to the world around her. She was in her element, lost in her own world, and nothing else mattered. Once she found the perfect subject, she was determined to capture it, no matter how dirty or injured she might become.

At this time of the year, the river looked especially magnificent in the soft light, and the falling pollen added a magical touch to the already enchanting scenery.

Just as Haley was about to snap the perfect shot, she heard a little squeak that was impossible to ignore. She turned her head to locate the source and was delighted to discover a...

Squirrel!

The little creature was the cutest thing she had ever seen, second only to the bunnies she had spotted at Marnie's ranch last year.

Haley raised her camera, ready to capture the moment forever. As if sensing her intent, the little guy let out another adorable squeak before darting off toward the deeper part of the forest where the weird old guy with the tower lived. She hesitated for a moment, wondering if it was worth it to follow the squirrel, but her impulsive nature won out in the end.

With ragged breath and hair slightly disheveled, Haley finally caught up to the squirrel. And then, as if time had stopped, she stumbled upon a sight that took her breath away.

There you are, the farmer— Y/n, she reminded herself, with your back hunched over as you fed the little guy a handful of wild walnuts that you had foraged from the forest.

No longer did you look like the poised and polished woman in your dress shirt, tie, and slicked-back hair. Instead, you wore a well-worn jumper over a faded farmer's shirt, with your hair loosely tied up in a haphazard ponytail.

You looked... different.

It was as if you belonged in this community far more than Haley ever could.

Maybe it's the clothes, or maybe it's the way the little squirrel was so comfortable in your presence.

Before she knew it, Haley's body moved on its own, and she instinctively raised her camera to capture the moment. It was a picture-perfect moment that spoke to her soul, one that was raw, genuine, and brimming with vulnerability.

For years she hadn't seen something as picturesque and just raw and so vulnerable as this.

Suddenly, you whirled on your spot with wide eyes.

Wide, so gray, very surprised gray eyes, and your just as dark eyebrows rose so high it disappeared behind a thin curtain of bangs. The little squirrel darted behind a bush in fright, startled by the sudden flash of Haley's camera.

It felt like ages before Haley's fried brain decided that maybe it was time to finally move and stop making a fool out of herself for the second time around. You are just as frozen, your hands still holding three walnuts suspended in midair.

"Uhm," you started, voice soft and hesitant. Finally standing from your place, Haley could just stare at how tall you are in this proximity. You let out a small smile. "You're the girl with the camera yesterday, right?"

Haley could only nod. The words dying on her tongue. Her brain is still short-circuiting in all ways possible.

"Oh..." Haley breathes out, her heart racing as she takes in the sight before her. "You're that new farmer girl or whatever, aren't you?"

Just how the hell did the gray get so green though? She wonders as your eyes bore into her with piqued curiosity. Was it the lighting and the green scenery that did it?

Good Yoba.

Is it possible for someone to be blessed with a nose this fine, so shapely up close? And don't even get her started on how a farmer could have such luscious, shiny hair when Haley has to spend hours just to get that shine and bounce that she likes.

What kind of mouth is that even? It's so small yet so plump. It doesn't look chapped though. You don't seem to be a lip gloss type, so you must be using chapstick regularly. That's good.

And wait, were you talking?

"Huh?" she mutters to herself, catching herself from zoning out once again. "Oh... I'm Haley." She manages to respond in what little she had caught up from your ramblings.

She only understands the word grandpa, Zuzu City, Y/n, and new.

You smiled and that's all that it took for the accumulating embarrassment to flush on Haley. It was too bright, too happy, too much and Haley couldn't handle all that.

For the first time, she's at loss for words, flustered, and was that her being nervous?

In a desperate attempt to regain control, Haley shook her head vigorously, hoping to shake off the ridiculous embarrassment that was consuming her.

And what does Haley do when things don't go her way?

She sabotages.

So, it wasn't a surprise when Haley's mouth opened and the next words that came out were ones she never intended to say. It was a defense mechanism, a way to push people away before they could hurt her.

"If it weren't for those horrendous clothes, you might actually be pretty," she blurted out, regretting it as soon as the words left her lips.

Your smile evaporated in a split second and Haley almost missed it immediately.

Almost.

"Excuse me?" You looked offended, and Haley could easily admit that she didn't like your eyes when they were darkened like this.

"Actually, never mind." She replied, steady and fast. Hoping the farmer didn't really hear her stupid comment.

Just what the hell is wrong with me anyway?

You pursed your lips and went silent for a second or two as you turned and rummaged on your rucksack which Haley hadn't noticed before. "Here," you held out a freshly picked daffodil, and Haley almost swooned. Almost.

Her lips parted in a soft gasp. "For me?"

"Hmm. It kinda looks like you."

Haley's lips curved into a small smile. "Thank you."

You hummed in acknowledgment, but you didn't return the smile. Had Haley gone too far with that comment earlier?

Haley rarely feels guilty. She always tells herself that she doesn't have anything to apologize for. Her parents didn't, so why should she?

But right now, that dreadful feeling came resurfacing. It's suffocating.

The silence is suffocating.

"It's my grandpa's." After what seemed like forever, you turned to her with a small, almost nostalgic smile. You must have noticed Haley's questioning look. "These clothes are his," you clarified. "I moved here with nothing but myself after I decided spontaneously that I can't live a life as I had in Zuzu's." You gave out a low chuckle.

Oh.

That's why you looked like that yesterday. It makes sense now. The guilt now creeps on her like a palpable living force. Emily's words came echoing at the back of her mind.

Being mean can cost you more than you think.

The apology is at the tip of her tongue yet a small part of her, the mean one, kept telling her it was just a harmless comment and that she meant nothing of it. How could she know it was your grandpa's? Or that you suffered back in your old city and you're finding a fresh start here?

Because you didn't even give her a chance to know her before you judged her. This Emily conscience of hers is really starting to scare her. But she's right, she did judge you immediately.

"I—"

"Sorry, I didn't mean to be so grim." There's that smile again. "Uhm, sorry to cut this short but" you stared at your watch. "I still have to tidy the farm up; you know it's not exactly the cleanest place right now. I just took a break to feed the little guy. I'll catch you later, Haley."

Haley didn't even have the chance to say goodbye.

Or even apologize.

She sighed as she watched you retreat back to your farm.

****

"How do you say sorry?" Haley asked hesitantly, her voice barely above a whisper. She never saw Emily abandon her sewing machine that fast. In record time, she sat beside Haley who chews her bottom lip, clearly troubled. She barely even touched her fruit salad and that's something.

"What did you do?" was her only question yet Haley found herself telling her sister everything.

Yep, today isn't a good day, too.

~~~~

A/n: had to delete the other one due to some minor changes again.

#stardew valley #stardew farmer #stardew haley #haley x farmer #haley x reader #stardew fanfic

287 notes · View notes

highonincense · 10 months ago

Text

One thing I absolutely despise in drarry fics —and by this I mean a specific subset, not like in general cause there are many amazing fics— is the characterization of harry (and draco), the way he's an absolute fucking doormat!!!! I get it y'all are tryna portray him as a social dimwit, it can be done in a normal way without making him seem like a piece of cardboard! Are we talking about the same dude here?? You don't actually have to completely demolish a character, take away their key traits just to make the other half of the ship look better.

Let me give a pointwise description:

1. Dude stutters after every bloody sentence, like he's so overwhelmed talking to draco "smirking, smooth as butter, sardonic, sleek, godly" Malfoy who keeps insulting him every fucking second. Do you really think that harry would entertain that bullshit, especially in post-war fics!!! Like he'd just take it and not put him in his place?

2. I read this fic long ago and I don't remember the name, but good god it was unbearable. Basically the golden trio apologizes to draco for his tragic life that they were responsible for after the war? Like wtf? Why is there even a need to do that? 😭 That was too much and I stopped midway

3. Again, draco "3 OWLs" Malfoy, some supersmart / second coming of tom riddle, keeps patronizing every action of harry, the amount of times harry's intelligence is insulted? Immediate no from me, like are we still doing the whole "harry dumb mf potter is unobservant, slow, stupid, can't function without some rat hissing in his ear that he's an idiot 24/7"? Don't you think it's lame?

4. Harry has to always put up with his shitty attitude, I am all for character development, I know characters are multi dimensional and complex, and showing draco having a difficult personality is well and good, but it starts to get annoying when there's no real growth in him. I've read fics where he's absolutely despicable until the end which is covered up as him being a dickhead in general and harry "fondly" keeps up with his shit. *gag* canon harry would NEVER

5. I think it genuinely wouldn't make a difference if harry was there or not, I am not kidding or being dramatic, those fics might as well be character × y/n fics

All of this leads me to hate draco's character more! You portray him as this insufferable bastard who has a heart of gold apparently (where?) who has no real growth, shows no humility or regret or even pretends to and you think harry will put up with that?

It would be interesting if he starts out that way, works on himself and grows and changes, that would be more tolerable and interesting!

But no, he's always this annoying guy who hurls insults, keeps mocking harry or his friends every other line, you might argue it's in his character, but aren't those the traits which make him unlikeable? like those aren't cute or quirky? wouldn't it make more sense to show him grow out of it? It's really annoying

And harry, let's not go there, he's a completely new character, might as well be an oc atp, you can't even compare him to canon harry, that's how bad it is! I still haven't completely discussed it cause it's already getting long, but he's this wet bloody blanket and I can't stand it, the gryffs (except Hermione) in general are shown as some bumbling buffoons who can't differentiate between their hand and foot!! And the slytherins are all savvy, masterminds, geniuses... I really don't know whether it's admirable cause it's weird seeing them pushed into these moulds where they can only behave a certain way!

I'm so tired this is still going on like?? Why are their characters such caricatures? All of this sounds like it may have been a thing of past, but I am appalled it's still happening!!!

This is not directed at all drarry fics out there, cause there are some gorgeous fics written by amazing authors who fucking get these characters and make it about them, about their relationship and explore it in a depth and nail their characterizations without making either one of them boring. There are a good number of fics that I actually enjoy cause of the way they write drarry's characters, which makes or breaks the fic imho

#drarry #harry james potter #draco malfoy #harry potter #rant sesh #draco lucius malfoy #anti drarry?#anti drarry #wizard #wizarding world #hjp

64 notes · View notes

luvangelbreak · 1 year ago

Text

Deprived | Four

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16 Part 17 Part 18 Part 19 Part 20 Part 21 Part 22 Part 23 matthew sturniolo x layla venita (female!oc) summary: everyone knows the story of the bad boy and the good girl but what happens when the school's most popular boy, Matthew Sturniolo, and the girl who notoriously is never there, Layla Venita, cross paths. warnings: swearing (don't think there's anything else but lmk) word count: 3k a/n: my first time writing from matts pov and I'm nervy but hope y'all like it. also i know very little abt the seasons of hockey games at schools so if that's off, just ignore it lol.

pov: matt

I don't know why I ditched school with Layla. I never really left school unless I was sick or when Chris and Nick needed a ride home. I knew that I would be fine if I skipped a couple classes, my grades were good enough for me to miss a full month and I would still pass but I tried to stay above average.

As I drove us back to school, my mind wandered to when she put her earring on my lip. It made me realise how gentle she was, the way she grabbed my chin to turn my head and pulled my lip down to delicately place the ring on my lip made my mind fuzzy. She always seemed like she was tough and rough around the edges. The way she carried herself around school as if she didn't care about anyone or anything was a deep contrast to who she was in that moment of softness. I let my mind travel away as I parked in my usual spot at school, sliding my seatbelt off before I turned the car off.

I turned to face her, seeing her pick her bag up from the ground and going to open the door before I interrupted her movements, "Hey."

She turned to face me, letting go of the door handle as she looked at me expectantly, "What?"

"Do you wanna sit with me at lunch? I know you don't really go to the cafeteria but it's better than wandering around the school alone," I offered, praying in my head that she would agree.

"I don't think your friends will want me there," she mumbled, not making eye contact with me as she looked out at the school.

"Doesn't matter what they want. I want you to sit with us," I smiled at her, hoping it would convince her further. I knew my friends would be confused but I hoped I could convince them by showing them she was just like everyone else in the school and she wasn't some monster our peers had made her out to be.

"I don't know..." she trailed off, biting her lip which I picked up was a nervous habit. She had done it so many times in the short amount of time that I had been talking to her and I tried to not make it obvious that I was staring at her lips, coughing before sitting upright.

"Come on, it will be fine," I smiled once again before I jumped out of the car. I made sure my phone was in my pocket as I hopped out of the car, grabbed my backpack from the backseat and waited for her to close her door before I locked it.

We started walking into the school as she trailed behind me. She was mindlessly following me as she looked at her phone. I swung the door open, stepping aside to let her walk in before me. She sent me a half-hearted smile as a thank you making my chest swell with warmth.

I liked seeing her smile and knowing that I'd only seen her smile when she was around me made me proud in a way. I couldn't explain why but I felt myself pull towards her every time I saw her in the hallway. It had taken me a while to figure out if it was a good idea or not to talk to her, but I'd now decided that I was going to keep talking to her until she was sick of me.

I made my way to the cafeteria, noting that the clock on the wall read that lunch had already been happening for about 5 minutes. Her walking slowed and I turned to face her, slowing my pace to match hers.

"You don't have to stay for the whole lunch. Just come say hi to everyone at least," I offered her another smile and she chewed at her lip making me glance at them again, "Please."

"No need to grovel, pretty boy. I'll go," she rolled her eyes, her hard demeanour returning now that we were on school grounds. I smiled wider at the nickname she had given me and I was glad to know it stuck. After putting my backpack in my locker, we walked towards the cafeteria again.

We walked through the doors to the large cafeteria, eyes turning to look at the both of us. I ignored them as I walked through the tables, making a B-line to where my friends sat as Layla travelled behind me.

"Hey," I nodded to my brothers, sitting down beside Nick as they glanced over my shoulder at Layla making me turn towards her. I patted the seat beside me, letting her know she could sit down. She slowly sat down next to me and I could feel how tense she was by her body language, "Nick, Chris, Nate, Allie, this is Layla."

"Hi," Layla mumbled from beside me and I hoped that my friends could pull themselves together and at least pretend to be nice until they got to know her properly.

"Hey," Allie smiled at her politely as Nick and Nate both gave her a small wave. Chris nodded at her, his face showing his distaste for her being here making me run my tongue along my teeth. Chris looked at me and I made a face to tell him to be nice.

"What the fuck is on your lip?" Nick asked and I rang my tongue over the ring that was on my lip.

"It's fake. Just trying it out," I shrugged and Nick looked at me in confusion but I brushed it off.

"You getting any food?" Nate asked me and I shook my head as I watched him snack on the small tray of food he had in front of him.

"What are you doing here?" I heard a familiar voice speak and I looked to my right to see Mia staring down at Layla with confusion.

"Mia," I deadpanned and she glanced at me with a shrug of her shoulders, her cheerleading uniform riding up slightly as she did so.

"I'm just asking. She never even comes into the cafeteria and now she's sitting where I always sit," she stated in a bitchy tone making me frown at her.

"You can manage not sitting next to me for one day, Mia," I told her and she pursed her lips, a frown covering her face as she sat herself in between Layla and Allie.

"So why are you sitting here?" Mia asked Layla, her tone still bitchy as ever making me roll my eyes.

"Matt asked me to sit with you guys," Layla answered honestly, her tone not wavering in the slightest.

"Why?" Mia retorted as she opened the protein bar I didn't even notice she had.

"Because I wanted her to," I responded to Mia, my tone sharp to try and get her to stop. She was my biggest worry when I offered Layla to sit with us but I didn't realise she'd be so dramatic about it.

"Why didn't you get any food, Matty?" Mia asked me, now leaning over the table a little and completely ignoring Layla.

"I just ate," I answered honestly and I felt Layla's shoulder brush mine as she wriggled in her seat to get further away from Mia.

"What?" Nick asked now and I turned my head to face him.

I shrugged before replying, "We got McDonald's."

"And you didn't get anything for me?" Allie gasped dramatically making me smile at her as I shook my head.

"You skipped? For McDonald's with her?" my attention was brought back to Mia's bitter tone as she made a face of slight disgust.

"No I skipped because I wanted McDonald's and I asked her to come with me," I kept my tone flat to give her the hint that I was not impressed but she didn't seem to catch it.

"Why didn't you ask me?" Mia pouted and I shrugged, playing with the rings on my fingers.

"You were already in class," I told her and she rolled her eyes before I continued, "Besides, you never skip."

"What class do you have after this?" Allie asked Layla and I was thankful she diverted the conversation politely.

"Art and gym," Layla answered honestly and Allie's smile widened.

"You're in my gym class, right? Mr Rodes?" Allie asked and Layla nodded in response, "You should group up with me in class!"

"Uh, okay," Layla answered, confusion in her tone. I figured it was because she expected Allie to be a bitch, her cheerleading uniform and perfect red hair giving everyone the impression she was like Mia. Allie was one of the nicest people in school, she was down to talk to anybody and it's one of the reasons I was excited for Layla to sit with us.

"You always pair with me," Mia mumbled to Allie as she flipped her brown hair over her shoulder and Allie shrugged in response.

"You can go with Melissa? She always wants to go with you," Allie gave her a solution before digging back into her salad. Mia seemed more irritated than before and I hoped she would save it till Layla wasn't sitting with us. Unfortunately, I was wrong.

"She's here for like two seconds and fucks everything up," Mia mumbled under her breath as she bit into her protein bar.

"If you're gonna shit talk me while I'm sitting right next to you at least say it with your chest, Mia," Layla deadpanned to Mia and she seemed taken aback as she just stared at the bleached blonde girl sitting next to me.

"You're gonna let her talk to me like that?" Mia asked as she glanced at me and I raised my eyebrows.

"He's not your father. You can stand up for yourself," Layla spoke clearly and I pursed my lips, resisting the urge to smile as Mia looked in shock. Almost no one pushed back with Mia, we all knew she would blow up and just make things worse than they needed to be. But I enjoyed seeing Layla stand up to her, it proved to me that she wasn't scared of anyone, she just didn't care to talk to them.

"This is bullshit," Mia huffed as she crossed her arms and Layla raised her eyebrows in response. I looked over at Chris who was hiding his smile behind his sandwich and Nick who coughed in order to cover his laugh.

"Right well, I'm gonna go. I'll see you in gym Allie," Layla picked up her bag and stepped over the bench as she adjusted her hoodie. I realised she left her leather jacket in my car but decided I wouldn't tell her yet so I had an excuse to see her later.

"Where are you going?" I asked as she turned back to face me. Instead of speaking, she made a motion with her hand like she was smoking an imaginary cigarette as she walked backwards slowly with her eyebrows raised. I smiled at her while shaking my head and I watched as she spun around, walking out of the doors of the cafeteria.

"What was that about?" Nick asked as I turned around to face the group who were now looking at me expectantly.

"What?" I asked, my eyebrows furrowing as I ran my tongue over the ring on my lip, pursing my lips to hide my smile.

"You said you weren't gonna talk to her anymore," Chris deadpanned and I shrugged, grabbing Nick's water and taking a sip before he ripped it out of my hands.

"I changed my mind," I lied, knowing I never actually intended to stop talking to her in the first place.

"She's bad news. You shouldn't be hanging around her unless you wanna end up being a junkie," Mia mumbled and all joy from my face dropped as I turned to look at her with a glare.

"Mia, can you shut up for once?" I spat and she frowned, her mouth hanging open and Nate raised his eyebrows, his mouth in a downturned smile of surprise before he and Allie looked at each other briefly.

"You hang out with her for one day and you're already a dick. You just proved my point," Mia looked at me with a cocky smile and I rolled my eyes.

"You guys are so fucking annoying," I sighed, running a hand over my face as my mind flashed the moment she grabbed my lip to put the ring in my lip, "The only reason she was rude to you is because you were being a bitch about her sitting here and then not pairing up with Allie in gym. It's not that big of a deal."

"I mean... I've heard a lot of shit about her man," Nate piped up as he raised his eyebrows at me and I shook my head.

"Who cares? She's not this psycho everyone pretends she is," I defended her and Nate just shrugged, on the fence on whether or not he thought it was a good idea for me to be talking to her, "You guys just have to give her a chance."

"I don't have to do anything," Mia mumbled, her irritated tone making me grind my teeth together to keep my cool.

"If you wanna continue being my friend, Mia, you're gonna have to figure out why you're such a bitch to her," I huffed and Allie's eyes widened and before I could say anything further, the bell for our next class rang through my ears. I got up from the table without another word and made my way to my locker, playing with the ring on my lip that was quickly becoming a habit.

+++

My last two classes were spent trying to focus but instead, my brain wandered to Layla, hoping that Mia didn't scare her away from me. I leaned against the driver's side of my car, Nick and Chris talking about something as they walked over to me.

"Why aren't you in the car?" Chris asked, noting the fact that I usually waited for them in the driver's seat.

"Layla left her jacket. Gotta give it back to her," I told him honestly and he rolled his eyes as he jumped into the passenger seat. I was sure he was sick of me talking about her, I'd been building up the courage to talk to her for weeks and I constantly talked Chris's ear off about it. He always told me it was a bad idea and I, of course, never listened.

Nick slid in the back seat, shutting the door behind him and I felt the window behind me roll down. I turned around to see Chris holding her leather jacket out to me through the window and I gave him a small smile with a nod. He raised his eyebrows briefly as I took the jacket from him and he started rolling the window up.

"Just don't take forever. We gotta get our shit for training," Chris called out before the window was full rolled up. I turned back around as I hung the jacket over my left arm, pulling my phone out of my pocket to quickly check the time.

"I believe you have something of mine," Layla's voice rang through my ears and my head snapped up to see her standing in front of me, an amused look on her face. I stared at her for a moment, noticing that she was wearing her shorts from gym still and I could see a few more of her tattoos on her thighs before she spoke again, "You gonna give it to me or am I fighting you for it?"

"Oh right. My bad," I shook my head as I slipped my phone back into my pocket and handed her the jacket. I slid the ring off of my lip, wiping it with the hem of my shirt and I couldn't help but notice her eyes glance at the tattoos along my waist.

"Gonna miss that super cool lip ring," she said sarcastically as I chuckled, handing her the ring as her fingers brushed against mine. Her skin felt so much more soft than mine, it raised goosebumps along my arms.

"Give me another month and you won't have to miss it anymore," I smirked at her and I noticed her eyes lit up slightly as a smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.

"You're gonna get it?" she asked, her voice full of hope as she slid her bag off of her shoulder and slipped her jacket on before grabbing her bag again.

I shrugged, leaning back against the car again, "Probably. Under one condition."

"What?" she asked sceptically, her eyes squinting at me and I smiled.

"Come to my last three games this season," I stated and she tilted her head as she looked out into the parking lot in thought.

"I won't have a way to get there," she retorted and with a raise of my eyebrows, I pointed to the car behind me before pointing to myself, "I don't know what to wear to your games."

With a shrug, I said, "Just wear whatever you're comfortable in."

"What day are your games on?" she asked sceptically before she bit her lip and I tore my eyes away from her mouth and back up to her eyes.

"Fridays at five," I told her and she sighed, shaking her head.

"I don't know..." she trailed off and I bit my lip to hide my smile.

I sighed dramatically as I pushed off of the car, "Guess I won't be getting my lip pierced any time soon."

"Oh for fucks sake. Fine," she huffed and I smiled at her, crossing my arms over my chest.

"I'll have to pick you up around four because we need to be there early to warm up but you can wait in the car if you don't wanna come inside," I explained and she nodded, goosebumps covering the skin on her legs from the cold air, "You need a ride home?"

"We don't have time for that. Hurry the fuck up!" Chris called from inside the car and I held up a middle finger behind me to flip him off.

"Nah, I'll be good," she gave me a half smile and I nodded as she started to walk backwards, "I'll see you when I'm looking at you."

With that she spun around and started walking out of the car park, leaving me with a triumphant smile on my face. I hopped in the car to see Nick and Chris staring at me with a judgemental look on their face.

"What?" I asked with a smile but they both stayed silent as I started the car, driving back to our house to grab mine and Chris's gear for training.

#matt sturniolo #matthew sturniolo #matthew bernard sturniolo #matt sturniolo fanfic #sturniolo triplets #sturniolo #the sturniolo triplets #sturniolo imagine #sturniolo edit #sturniolo fanfic #sturniolo smut #christopher sturniolo #chris sturniolo #nicolas sturniolo #nick sturniolo #christopher owen sturniolo

74 notes · View notes

mysticstarlightduck · 5 months ago

Text

OC Smash or Pass!

Thanks for tagging me @the-golden-comet (here)! Imma give y'all a tough choice with this one (:

Dylan Millihan

Info/facts:

Gender: Male

Sexuality: Straight

Age: 23

Occupation: Medical school dropout (had to quit college to take legal guardianship of his sister after their toxic grandmother died of a heart attack and left nothing but debt in their name), now works 3 jobs - security guard at a lake resort, delivery driver and warehouse loader.

Personality Type: ISTP, Introvert, 6w5

Appearance: Tall and handsome, Dylan is very athletic and works out a lot. He has medium to long hazel hair that usually frames his face in soft waves, and has tan white skin. His eyes are dark brown, and he doesn't smile often, being a really serious person, but when he does smile, he really means it. He usually wears long-sleeved button-up shirts, usually not buttoned up fully and usually in dark grey or graphite black, simple jeans and converse sneakers. He is 5'10'', or around 180cm.

Pronouns: He/Him

Pros:

Very loyal and protective, ride-or-die even to a fault - he always makes sure his loved ones are okay before even thinking about himself. While his cold or gruff exterior may lead some to think he doesn't care at all about anyone other than himself, that couldn't be farther from the actual truth. Dylan cares a lot, even if in a "hey, take care of yourself, you damn idiot" way - he usually expresses his care in actions rather than in words, and may have a hard time verbally expressing his true feelings.

Calm, practical, and efficient. Dylan knows how to handle high-pressure situations really well and can navigate dangers with ease without batting an eye. He tends to be rather unflappable when it comes to most trials and tends to face problems head-on rather than avoid them, so he is definitely a go-to person if you are in trouble or need some kind of help.

Responsible and hardworking, will always make sure things are going smoothly and knows how to make the best out of a situation despite his outwardly pessimistic outlook.

Loves music, especially folk-pop, and always has a playlist playing in the background, be it on a speaker, on the radio or on headphones. This means that the environment around him tends to be lively despite the fact that he is really quiet.

Is actually a really good listener and despite his often harsh or distant attitude, actually gives some pretty good advice when he wants to, and knows when to just stay quiet and let someone vent.

Loves cuddles but precious few people are close enough in his emotional circle to warrant that level of trust. You'd probably need to spend a lot of time developing your relationship but it would be 100% worth it.

Gives the best gifts, actually.

Cons:

Dylan tends to be very aloof and guarded, typically keeping others at arm's length because he assumes everyone is already judging him and/or has a hidden agenda. This also makes him someone who is very reserved and feels awkward at social gatherings, making him quite a bit difficult to get close to.

Can be strong-willed to the point of board-headed stubbornness, especially when something causes his emotional wounds to cloud his judgment. When angry has a rather pessimistic outlook, especially about himself and how his life is going.

Has a rather blunt personality and while this has a good side, as he says things as they truthfully are and doesn't mince words in a time of need, this can also make him unintentionally sound more callous or come off sharper than he intended to.

Tends to bottle up his feelings behind a "Yeah, I'm fine," and "I said I would handle it!" facade because he thinks he needs to handle everything himself but that just means he shoves his emotions into a box like a pressure cooker and that isn't a really healthy way to handle problems. Still thinks vulnerability is a threat to his and his loved ones' safety and thinks he needs to act accordingly.

Tagging (gently): @sleepy-night-child, @kaylinalexanderbooks, @smol-feralgremlin, @wyked-ao3, @topazadine @littleladymab,

@winterandwords, @eccaiia, @sarahlizziewrites, @illarian-rambling

@agirlandherquill, @anoelleart, @ray-writes-n-shit

@writernopal, @anyablackwood, @unstablewifiaccess, @forthesanityofstorytellers

@i-can-even-burn-salad, @cakeinthevoid @thecomfywriter

@thepeculiarbird, @clairelsonao3, @memento-morri-writes, @starlit-hopes-and-dreams @amaiguri

@cherrychiplip @thecomfywriter @thelovelymachinery @bookwormclover

@differentnighttale, @leahnardo-da-veggie

#wip what lurks in the hollow #oc smash or pass #oc smash or pass tag #writers #writers on tumblr #writerblr #writing #my wips #character writing #my characters #writeblr #my writing

23 notes · View notes

itsa-not-me · 9 days ago

Text

FOR REAL EVERYONE NEEDS TO THANK NIGHTUNITE BECAUSE KENNEY IS HER PRECIOUS OC AND IN THIS HOUSEHOLD WE LOVE KENNEY

This is an AU where really what we need to know here is Phillip is a vampire, Kenney is a werewolf, and they love each other, Phillip just doesn't know how to express that.

CW; Sex toys, anal, dirty talk, I don't even know how to describe the use of this sex toy. It's dirty y'all

@nightunite I hope you like this

Phillip Graves would never say he was a good man.

Hell he'd never say he was an okay one either. He knew he was a bastard, and he enjoyed it. Made the last four centuries of his life interesting at least. He knew who he was, what he was, and he very rarely ever apologized for it. Though rarely wasn't the same as never.

Kennedy was a rarely.

Phillip hadn't imagined that a night out with some shadows and a back alley hook up would lead to something that was dangerously looking like domestic bliss, and yet.

So Phillip learned to live with rarely. Learned not to be so sharp all the time. Learned that sometimes it was better to keep his mouth shut, or better yet transform into a bat so the bullshit that clawed it's way out of his mouth wouldn't form actual words. Learned that apologizing, even if he didn't really agree what for at times, was much more satisfying than seeing his werewolf hurt.

And Kennedy was his.

Phillip could admit that before he didn't believe in love. Not for him at least. There was lust, attraction, manipulation, mind games, maybe even affection, but love was something Phillip never wanted to hold in his grasp.

And then he was waking up one morning after a back alley hook up, warm arm wrapped around his waist, warmer breath hitting the back of his neck where a very fresh wolf bite was tingling. One morning became two, became four, became weeks of Phillip working his way back into Kennedy's bed, back into his arms. Kennedy became a need, a hunger that crawled under his ribs and made a home for itself where his heart used to be.

Somehow all of that lead to the two of them practically living together. Phillip would still maintain that he had his own space, an apartment that was in his name only, though in reality it became more like crash pad for when he needed time to unwind from missions, or needed to just disassociate, stare into space with white noise filling the space behind his eyes. He wouldn't comment on how most of his clothes seemed to have migrated to Kenney's closet, or how the spare toothbrush in Kenney's bathroom got more use now that the one in his own.

Admitting to any of it made his chest feel itchy with emotions.

Instead he'd focus on the...perks of having near constant sleep overs with his Kenney. Like how it seemed Phillip was never allowed to go cold. He was constantly either being bundled into Kenney's sweatshirts, big enough that even he swam in them at times, or had the werewolf himself pressed against him, always wanting to cuddle in some sort of fashion.

Or how Phillip had finally convinced Kenney to let him set a standing delivery with his preferred butcheries to his home. He still remembered the first time he'd hand fed Kenney pieces of steak, the way his eyes got wide, like a puppy discovering treats for the first time. That evening lead to them discovering plenty of other fun things besides the pricier cuts of meat.

Of course the sex was good, great, amazing. Phillip enjoyed the way Kenney would crowd into him, pressing as close to Phillip as he could as if they could melt into one being. Didn't matter the position, missionary, cowboy, doggy Kenney was wrapping himself around Phillip as he fucked into the man, making stars burn behind his eyes. And the knotting. Kenney had already been one of the biggest lovers Phillip had taken, but then add in the knot, the way he swelled to lock into him and it was that knife's edge of just right to too much that Phillip wanted to chase over and over.

Though Kenney took just as sweetly as he gave. Phillip was still torn on whether he enjoyed edging or overstimulating the wolf more. Both lead the same delicious sight of Kenney whimpering and crying for more, for him. He'd discovered his puppy could be such a crybaby at times, and really he took every advantage of it. Over taking his senses with every touch, and kiss, and whisper of praise until tears dotted Kenney's lashes.

The joy of living in a world with magic was how it could improve one's life, broaden their horizons, reach new levels of debauchery. Phillip had to admit that Valeria had outdone herself this time. He was sure that he'd finally reach the limits of her patience when he wrote his request to her, though the promise of a hefty payment probably helped keep him in the witch's good graces. It'd taken a few weeks, but Phillip was pleased when a non descript brown box had arrived on his doorstep, and even more so with the items inside of it.

The first was a bracelet he'd held onto since the turn of the 20th century. When he had first gotten it he had only liked that it was expensive, had expected to use it as some sort of non committal gift to some plaything he had back then. But he never did, instead holding onto it and then forgetting about it until Kenney had mentioned how he loved opals. Then Phillip knew exactly who the opal studded bracelet was for, even if the moon motif was a little on the nose.

The second was no where near as antique. Instead it was one of the more modern inventions that Phillip could honestly say he thoroughly enjoyed. While he personally never doubted his ability to acquire a sexual partner, Phillip did enjoy how portable and convenient a fleshlight was, how customizable they could be. And this one was no exception.

It'd taken a few hours of sweet coaxing, of working Kenney open on his fingers and tongue before the other man had even been comfortable thinking about having photos taken of his ass, let alone letting them be used as reference for a sex toy. But Phillip had told him how much he craved Kenney, how he wanted to have a piece of him to have on missions, a reminder of how good he felt wrapped around his cock when all he'd typically have was his fist. Phillip wished he had recorded the sounds Kenney had made once he was allowed to cum after agreeing.

So Phillip had his fleshlight modeled after Kenney's ass, and it was very well made. Worth the extra tip he had thrown to the craftsman. And now with the enchantment Valeria placed on it it was perfect. He'd made it very clear in his letter what he had wanted, a connection between the fleshlight and the bracelet, one that allowed to wearer to experience everything that was happening to the sex toy as if it was happening to them.

He didn't know what had been cuter, the way Kenney had stared at the bracelet in awe (oh his puppy was still so shy about accepting expensive gifts), or the way he had flushed all the way up from his chest when Phillip had explained what the bracelet connected to. He'd made it clear that Kenney could wear the bracelet whenever he wanted, but that it meant it came with the possibility that Phillip would decide to test out how good Valeria's work was.

It'd been a few days now of Kenney wearing the bracelet, side eyeing Phillip in the morning, or sending photos of himself with the bracelet always in view. He'd let the obvious shows of Kenney's willingness slide, letting the man get use to the weight of the bracelet and the possibilities that came with it.

But today...today felt like a perfectly good day to be the bastard Phillip knew he could be. The perk of being CEO of his own company meant he had the biggest office and the power to tell people to fuck off when he felt like it. He'd still do some paperwork, not wanting to face the wrath of his secretary, but he wouldn't entertain any meetings. He had better things to do.

He started off lightly, just running his thumb along the cleft of the fleshlight's ass, dryly pushing his thumb against the ring. It didn't clench in anticipation the way Kenney's would, excited and nervous, but it still had a decent resistance. He kept it up as he looked over field reports, thumb absentminded as he was occupied.

He knew Kenney's schedule, that he'd spend the morning at the rec center, first few hours a little slow before gaggles of school youths would come trickling in from field trips. It was the perfect time to warm Kenney up, let him realize that Phillip was finally taking advantage of their new toy.

After the first hour Phillip was letting his thumb push a little firmer against the fleshlight, tip of the finger just barely dipping in before pulling back, only to repeat the stroke again. He could picture the way that Kenney's breath would catch with each one, probably bracing himself for the next swipe just to try to keep up the charade that nothing was wrong.

Phillip wondered how Kenney reacted when he spat on fleshlight's ring, using his spit as lube to push his thumb deeper, just to the first joint. He gently pulled at the rim, just using a soft pressure to begin to stretch the fake muscles. Poor puppy probably jumped, shoulders drawn as his back arched. He did like when Phillip got him a little dirty.

So he spent a good few minutes just warming up the toy, adding to the spit when it felt like it was drying out. Phillip could admit he was impatient, feeling himself harden in his own pants as he imagined the way Kenney was probably squirming and sweating. Glancing at his watch he saw he still had a good hour before the first batch of kids would arrive. Plenty of time for a first round, he decided as he went to undo his pants.

Opening his desk drawer he pulled out several tools, most of them he'd use later. The most important at the moment was the lube. Phillip knew that it would still be cool, almost cold, but Kenney had once admitted that sometimes he liked it when Phillip forwent trying to warm it, he liked how the cooler sensation matched Phillip. So instead of trying to warm it, he simply poured the cold substance straight over the cleft of the fleshlights ass, thumb still pulling at the rim so a little would seep into it.

He bet that made Kenney whine, it always did.

Phillip treated prep like he would a mission, precision the forefront of his mind. No action was wasted as he pushed a finger, and then two in, stroking along the toys walls, spreading and scissoring his fingers. He did all the things he knew Kenney liked, but didn't drag it out since the man wasn't there to gasp and tremble under him. No Phillip had to just imagine that. Maybe he'd found a corner to hide in the back facility room, or even the stall in the employees bathroom. Was he rocking back on the phantom feeling of Phillip's fingers, or scrabbling at a wall as he felt fingertips ghost past his prostate but never push against it? He was tempted to try calling, to have Kenney's cries fill his office like he was actually there to be Phillip's toy, but imagining what Kenney was doing was half the fun.

Once he was sure that the toy was given enough prep to not cause Kenney discomfort, Phillip was positioning the fleshlight right above his head, anticipation making him hold breath that he didn't need. His watch said he had forty minutes. If he didn't keep his cool it'd be over in five. So...Slow. That's what he had decided when planning this all out, start off slow.

With a shuddering sigh he tilted his head back into his chair, eyes shut tight as he started to push the toy down over the head of his cock, feeling the excess lube drool over him. He only went as far as the tip before pulling the toy back, jaw clenching as he heard the light suction of the toy popping off. He repeated the action, only letting the toy sink down a fraction further each time.

Behind his eyes it was Kenney in his lap, desperate to ride him while the ironclad grip Phillip had on his hip was the only thing that kept him from sinking down entirely. He loved how desperate Kenney got for his cock. By the time he pushed his entire length into the toy he could practically hear Kenney begging for more. And then as if summoned by his mind, Phillip's phone started to ring, and it was exactly who he had wanted to hear from.

"To what" Phillip hissed as the toy dragged wetly up his cock, "Do I owe this pleasure Darlin'?"

"Ph-Philliiip..."

Wasn't that music to his hears. Exquisite and so much better than what played through his head.

"Yes Darlin'? Something on your mind?"

"P-please..."

Oh his precious, silly puppy. Didn't he realize it was much to soon to give into temptation yet?

"Please what Baby? I'm a lot of things but-" He cleared his throat as the drag of the toy pressed the vein along the bottom of his cock, "A mind reader ain't one of 'em."

"I'm-I'm at work-" Kenney cried out as Phillip gave into temptation and thrusted hard back into the toy, angled in a way that he knew would thrust directly into his sweet spot. The sound was muffled like he had slapped a hand over his mouth. The downside of Kenney being at work.

"I know you're at work. Been thinkin' about you all morning."

"But you're-" Whimpers cut off whatever Kenney was going to say.

"Fuckin' the pocket pussy I got of your ass? I know. Ain't as good as you though."

"Fuck Phillip, I-I can't-" Oh he was sounding so whiney, he was probably starting to tear up a little, crystalline tears darkening his thick lashes.

"All you gotta do is take the bracelet off Baby. Then you'd stop feeling my cock fuckin into you." Given the silence he was getting on the other line they both knew he was right. Kenney held the power, he could take the bracelet off at anytime and end the game.

"But you don't want to do you Darlin'? You like feeling me fuck you while everyone else doesn't have a clue. Hmm?"

Kenney's ragged breathing was the only thing that told Phillip he was still on the line.

"Like that while I'm shoving my cock into this bit of plastic, all I can think about is you? What you look like, sound like. And you get to feel exactly how I want to fuck you."

His hand was getting faster, bringing the toy down harder onto his cock.

"Are you touching yourself Baby? Stroking that pretty cock while you feel me fucking you?"

"N-no..." Oh he was. Even if Phillip couldn't hear the wet strokes of Kenney touching himself, he knew the way his breath hitched when he did something he liked.

"I'll make deal with you Baby. You resist cumming the entire day? I'll let you pound all that into me tonight. Be your own personal fleshlight for you to fuck and cum into. That sound good?"

The whine was high pitched and breathy, and for a second Phillip thought that Kenney already came. But then his beautiful, wonderful, darlin Kenney was answering, voice shaky but determined.

"D-deal."

"Glad to hear Darlin...now be good and let me hear you while I enjoy myself okay?"

Phillip had ten minutes, and he was going to make them count.

He had no idea where Kenney had hidden himself, but hopefully it was somewhere soundproof because Phillip was not going gently on the toy anymore. Each thrust was hard, hips meeting the silicone as he thrusted up into the downward motion. With Kenney crying and whimpering into his ear he could almost imagine that they were together.

What finally brought Phillip over the edge though was the way Kenney chanted his name, like it was a plea and a pray all wrapped into one, the exact way he sounded when he looked the most angelic.

With a grunt Phillip was cumming, shoving his cock into the toy with short, rough thrusts before grinding his hips as deep as he could. He could hear Kenney gasping for breath, hiccupping as he probably tried not to cry.

Phillip wet his lips before speaking again, lazy grin breaking over his face as they just listened to each other. He kept the toy on his cock, wanting to keep the cum lodged in there as he listened to Kenney catch his breath, calm himself down. He murmured something about need to go get ready before the kids came in. Phillip couldn't help but chuckle.

"Oh Darlin...I hope you're ready for the day we are going to have."

He outright laughed when Kenney hung up, dropping his phone back onto his desk. With a groan he pulled the fleshlight off his cock, tilting it upright so not to spill a drop. He'd still have to clean himself off but before that he needed to do something important, to his plans at least.

Picking up the anal plug that he had left on his desk earlier, he quickly lubed it before sliding it into the toy, making sure that the cum he'd just fucked into it would stay inside. He had plans on making Kenney feel full of his cum by the end of the day, wouldn't do to have it all go to waste right from the start.

He set a time for a couple hours, just in time for Kenney's program to end and his break to start. It'd give Phillip plenty of time to get his work done before round two.

Phillip Graves enjoyed days he could be a bit of a bastard.

-------

there is going to be a part two, but this felt like a good natural break

for those who are curious this is what the bracelet looks like

Just instead of pearls imagine opals

#phillip graves smut #phillip graves x oc #COD Smut #...I don't know what I've written #Kenney AU?#Can I call this the Kenney AU?

9 notes · View notes

yandere-fics · 1 year ago

Note

how would your oc's react to a clingy/needy darling? Like EXTREMELY clingy/needy?

(I am so sorry this took so long! I'm soft launching Nikolai so enjoy.)

♡ How They React To An Extremely Needy Darling ♡

♡ Y'all are nasty to look at together, the people in the office were already sick of her bringing you to work normally since she's so unbearably clingy, if you were also the same level of clingy it would be so much worse. Not that she really cares about her reputation in the office, it's already rock bottom since she's constantly calling out of work since she feels like she will die if she's separate from you. If she were not the only elf ambassador she would have been fired long ago but since she is they decided to just let her work from home for the most part. ♡

♡ The most common sight people will see is you napping on her lap on the video calls. She doesn't actually mind people seeing you like this since it's pretty clear you belong to her. It could not be any clearer if you tried. This will tone down her tendencies a bit though since you're not going out as frequently so she doesn't have to make sure she fits in all her affection into a smaller block of time. She's also going to cry a little less now but she'll still find reasons to cry. ♡

♡ If she's still being patient with you when she discovers how clingy you are, even to your friends, she'll quickly lose patience. Even if you only show this side to her, what if someone else sees it? She can't let that happen, she has to be your only source of attention and so into her apartment you go. Is it even kidnapping though if she merely invited you over one day because she knew you'd miss her too much to step foot outside of it? You don't realize that the door is locked at first and even if you try to leave while she's at work, you'll be too happy to see her return to the apartment to remember to ask her about the locked door. ♡

♡ She might allow you to follow her to work though since unlike Miriel, she gets her own private office because she can be trusted with these things. She'll make sure you're happy in the office, just order food or something because she does actually have some important work to focus on, and unlikes Sawyer, she would not be able to concentrate on anything if she let you sit on her lap while she works. ♡

♡ Despite being a type of demon, angels are a relatively low maintenance mate and while she does enjoy you clinging to her, most angels are simply content to have their mate in their living space. Nikki really does appreciate the added attention but she doesn't fully understand why you go out of your way to express your affection like this when she already knows your feelings and beyond that you are bound to her so you shouldn't worry about keeping her attention, she literally could not leave you if she wanted to. But god help your soul if you dare cling to even one of your friends, you'll discover quickly what a high ranking demon is capable of. ♡

♡ She will try her best to satisfy your need for attention, especially if you try to seek comfort from others but she's also just not going out of her way to do this and it's highly likely she won't remember unless you remind her a few times. Again, it's not that she doesn't love you or your attention but angels show affection in different ways and beyond that, she takes her work very seriously due to the rigid hierarchy upper rank demons go through so she doesn't always have the most time for you. ♡

♡ Nora is delighted by this, it was what she was hoping for but she would have never asked for it while you two were merely dating but ever since the two of you moved in together, you'd be stuck at her side. Actually it was beginning to make work difficult but she wouldn't trade it for anything. She could drop dead wrapped in your arms and please help anyone who knocks and disturbs Nora's most precious time. Even The Boss knows not to send Nora on missions while you're awake, especially since Nora has virtually been on the verge of collapse due to her forced immortality. ♡

♡ It does become challenging when you wake up in the middle of the night and she's not in bed with you but that's mostly just turned her work into a speed run. Beyond that she can always tire you out before bedtime to make sure you sleep through the hour or so she's gone every night. ♡

♡ You''re out here saving lives every time you cling onto her. Rudie is also naturally very clingy but since she can't cling to you every second, she often takes her frustration out on her unfortunate victims. Obviously she still needs to go out and kill, it's how she makes her living but now unnecessary people don't have to die and she doesn't waste her time on the small fry. ♡

♡ Be warned, this much added attention may result in a lot of marks and losing the ability to walk the next day. She's killing less so she'll instead take her pleasure in taking you apart in a fun way. If you want to get railed then I highly recommend clinging to Rudie for an entire day. ♡

♡ Sawyer finds this mildly annoying, while it's cute if you can be content with just sitting on her lap as she works, it's troublesome if you actually need her attention all the time. She has a lot of work to do so she can't always give you what you need if you want the city to keep functioning. At the penthouse it's a different story, she'll try her hardest to fulfill all your desires and make sure you know she loves you. This really does present a problem though. ♡

♡ Hmm, perhaps she'll just kill the whole city instead so then she can solely focus on you, or maybe she'll hire a few more ambassadors to spread the work out more evenly so that way she can take more vacation days with you. ♡

#yandere oc #yandere lesbian #yandere x reader #yandere x y/n #yandere asks #yandere scenarios #my oc sawyer #my oc mirial #my oc kassien #my oc nora #my oc runa #my oc nikolai

53 notes · View notes

btsgotjams27 · 2 years ago

Text

this is us ~ jjk | 17

it's been one year since the breakup, have jungkook and y/n been able to move on?

✨ title: this is us | ongoing series (sequel to all grown up) ✨ pairing: jungkook x f!reader | ✨ rating: m/18+ | minors dni ✨ genre/au: drama, romance, angst, fluff, smut | est!relationship, age gap ✨ playlist | AO3 & Wattpad ✨ a/n: if you haven’t read the prequel to this, please do so here! :) ✨ a/n 2: hi, everyone! i'm sorry this update took so long but a lot of y'all preferred a longer chapter and here it is! i opted out of one scene but may save it later for a drabble. let me know your thoughts, especially how you think jk & oc will meet again. 👀

[ SERIES MASTERLIST ] | next ✨ 18 ~ you're seeing things, aren't you?

chapter seventeen ~ one year later | wc: 8.8k warnings: pov switch, alex is back (but just for a bit and some of you may or may not like their convo), alcohol consumption, language, yoongi + oc bickering, yuna being yuna, baby indie is a big girl now T_T, jk has a new friend 👀, mama jeon is such a treat, some of our fav friends make an appearance, our jk + oc are both growing

~ one year after the breakup ~

Jungkook POV

The silver key struggled to fully unlatch the lock. Jungkook would remind himself whenever he needed to contact the landlord, but he could never remember until he unlocked the front door.

Summer in LA was warm and dry, but of course, with his luck, this was Jungkook’s first week of the summer without any air conditioning.

He shouldered the door, putting his body and weight into it. “Jeez,” he mumbled under his breath.

Not only was the door and air conditioning a mess but also his apartment. Clothes scattered everywhere, the stuffing from the sectional coming undone, it almost looked like someone partied too hard, but that wasn’t the case for Jungkook.

The sound of shuffling and grunting caused him to sprint toward his room, to find a tail wagging joyfully before him. Bam’s head was buried deep in Jungkook’s sock drawer, not giving a care in the world because he was looking for some kind of hidden treasure.

“I was wondering who was making all this noise.”

The six-month-old pup stopped digging and turned around. Just like his dad, he had big doe eyes that also held the stars in them. Hanging from Bam’s mouth was a white sock, clearly filled with something in it. Jungkook quickly took it from Bam’s mouth, stuffing it into the same place it was found. Bam sat and lowered his head.

“Aye–I really can’t leave you alone, can I? How'd you get out?”

Jungkook set his backpack down and sat in front of his big baby. He ruffled and scratched Bam’s floppy, brown ears before placing a kiss on his head.

“What are we gonna do when I have to leave you next week, hmm?”

Bam whined and then licked Jungkook’s cheek, making him lean back.

“What were you looking for?”

The Doberman backed up and returned to the drawer he found the sock in, his nose nipping at the loose knob.

“No. No. There’s nothing in there for you.”

Bam begins to paw at the drawer again, unrelenting in his pursuit of whatever was in that sock–so, he did find treasure. Jungkook decides to give up on Bam. No matter how many times he told him there was nothing in there for him, the stubborn pup would just keep going back to it.

“Bamie, should we go for a walk and get dinner?”

When he heard ‘walk,’ he whipped his head around, panting excitedly at his owner. Taking Bam on a walk was the best way to distract his four-legged friend.

If there was one thing Jungkook never took for granted, it was the beauty of a California sunset. The sky was painted with soft shades of peach and cotton candy pink, palm trees dispersed along the guided path, bicycle bells faintly dinging in the distance, and chatter and laughter filled the air.

The blood pumping through Jungkook’s veins was going into overdrive, as this was the second run of the day for him. He already ran before going to work. But doing this would tire him and Bam out, so they would knock out when returning home.

He called out to Bam before slowing down and coming to a complete stop. Although the summer nights in LA were cool, he was still getting used to the dry heat. His fringe was getting too long, falling and covering his eyes when he ran. He had been tempted for weeks to cut it, but Jimin suggested tying it up or getting a headband. There was no need to cut it dramatically if he liked his hair long.

“Sorry!”

A voice cried out, brushing by Jungkook and Bam, nearly knocking into them while on their rollerskates. Jungkook instinctively pulled Bam’s leash to the side, veering away from the congested pathway. He hadn’t realized how busy this time of night had become. He kneeled down, rubbing under Bam’s chin, turning him from side to side to see if he was okay.

“Bamie, are you okay?�� His pup didn’t seem fazed as he licked Jungkook’s mouth. “Oh–” He scrunched his face from the wet saliva and dog breath. “Remind me to brush your teeth when we get home.” Jungkook chuckled and shook his head.

A buzz reverberated from Jungkook’s pocket. He pulled it out, answering the video call, while walking toward a bench to sit, and Bam obediently followed.

“How’s my baby?”

He could see the outline of a small human, and when the video cleared, the only thing in the frame was his niece, Indie's chubby cheeks and double chin.

“Wo-wo. Wo-wo.”

Jungkook raised an eyebrow, trying to decipher what Indie could be referring to.

“Wo-wo. Wo-wo.” She continued repeating the same phrase while sitting in Yuna’s lap, clambering her little chubby fingers at the screen, causing the phone to shake on their end.

“She wants to see Bam.”

“Oh–” Jungkook finally understood and panned the screen to Bam. If the two were to ever meet in person, they’d be inseparable, Jungkook thought.

Indie’s babbling persisted before the screen panned back to Yuna. “Who’s a big boy now?” she asked in a baby voice. Bam barked in response. “Yes, you–you’re a big boy.”

“You’re doing it again.”

“Sorry! It’s a bad habit. I’ll stop. Where are you, anyway?”

Jungkook switches the camera to the back, showing off the sunset he witnessed before switching it back to his face.

“It’s so pretty! We really need to come visit, or better yet. When are you coming back to visit?”

“I’m planning to come next week.”

“Oh, you are? Perfect!” Yuna stood and placed Indie on her hip while struggling to hold onto the phone simultaneously.

“Why?”

“Because it’s also Mom’s birthday, and she wants to have a big dinner with our family to celebrate.”

“Yeah, that’s why I’m coming back. For her and, well, to see my baby.” He didn’t know when it started, but he started to call his niece his baby since she was the only person he could call that now.

“Okay–cool. Are you gonna stay with us? Mom? Jin? Crash with Hyunie and Taehyung?”

All of those were viable options, but he knew if he stayed with his sister, there could be a chance he’d run into you, and he wasn’t sure if he was ready for that yet. Granted, it has been over a year, but the thought of seeing you after so long still made his stomach flutter. “I haven’t decided yet.”

“Yuna! I brought your cheesecake!”

Jungkook’s ears perked up, and he looked to Bam for comfort, who was scanning every person walking by. He instantly recognized that voice. He’d know it anywhere.

“You can put it in the fridge!” Yuna turned her attention back to her baby brother. “Just let us know, ‘kay?”

“Where’s my baby girl? Auntie missed you so much!”

Jungkook became flustered, scrambling to devise an excuse so he didn’t have to see you in the video call. “My phone’s gonna die. I’ll talk to you later, Noona!”

Click.

He leaned back on the concrete bench, with Bam turned to him, tilting his head at his owner’s curious change in demeanor. Seeing you in photos was enough for him, but to see you live and in action, with the possibility of you saying hi—he wasn't ready for that. Maybe he'd work up the courage someday, but today wasn't the day.

four days until Seoul.

It's not that he was dreading seeing his family. He was excited to celebrate his mom's birthday and to meet his niece in person. He dreaded the giant elephant in the room when he would be around everyone again. He'd put his money on Jin or Taehyung to say something to 'ease the tension,' but he shouldn't expect anything less because he did leave without proper goodbyes. It's been a year; they should be over it, right? They should've forgiven him by now.

A knock on his office door brought him back to reality. He looked up to see his ex and colleague, Alex.

The door creaked open, and Alex poked her head through. “Late night?” she asked, slowly opening the door wider, keeping her hand on the knob as she leaned against the frame.

“Yeah, just finishing up this presentation for tomorrow’s meeting. Everything has to be perfect before I leave.”

“Everything always has to be perfect for you, huh?”

“What do you mean?” He stopped clicking and clacking at his keyboard and looked up at Alex.

“I mean, we fucked around a lot in college, but I couldn’t not notice how you needed everything to be perfect. Your grades, attendance–for god’s sake, you fold your underwear.”

Hearing this from Alex was surprising. He didn’t think she paid attention to anything else but sleeping around.

Alex cleared her throat. “Anyway, can I talk to you?”

Jungkook gestured for her to take the seat facing his desk. You’d think this would be another ploy from Alex, considering this is how the mess with them started–Alex walking into his office and sitting in a chair. But since Jungkook started his new job in LA, it was like Alex was a completely different person. He could hardly recognize the person she was when she returned from her vacation. She was nicer and happier. It was like she did a complete 180. Jungkook was wary when she would come around his office, so he kept his distance and was civil in his interactions, along with keeping his head down in case anyone figured out anything happened between him and Alex.

“Can we talk about what happened when I was in Seoul?”

She did apologize somewhat, but Jungkook felt it wasn’t genuine at the moment. He thought he’d never see the day she would be sorry for her actions.

“What about it?”

It had been so long ago that he had accepted his mistake and moved on. He wasn’t sure why she needed to bring it up now. Maybe she was having a faith crisis and asking forgiveness from those she wronged. It did sting every time he saw her for the first few months at work, a constant reminder that he wasn’t with you, but it also garnered him to hold his ground and be a better man–to not give in so easily to his desires. He knew it wasn’t going to be easy working with Alex, his guard was always up, ready for anything that she’d throw his way, but like the wildcard that she is, she always surprised him.

“I'm not good at this ‘whole talking about my feelings thing,’ you know that. I, um, just thought I should apologize for how I've treated you throughout the time that we’ve known each other. I wasn't the best person when you knew me in college, I was going through a lot of my own shit, and you were kind of my outlet—well, sex was kind of my outlet, and then with the whole thing in Seoul. We talked about it, but I shouldn't have come onto you like I did. It was wrong of me to take advantage of you, and I’m sorry that I made you uncomfortable.”

Jungkook leaned back into his office chair, processing everything Alex said. He wasn’t sure what to make of it. He could easily be spiteful, blow her off, or forgive and accept her apology.

“What’s done is done. We can’t go back and change the past.”

Even if there was a time machine to go back and fix mistakes, Jungkook wouldn’t do it because it would’ve created an alternate timeline which could’ve led to the same outcome for you and him. Regardless of how things turned out between you and him, he knew you needed time apart to grow up and blossom independently without him.

His decision to move to LA was made out of a reckless, emotional place, but he acknowledged that and learned not to make such illogical decisions based on how he’s feeling at the moment. Maybe minus the unexpected choice of getting Bam on a whim, but that’s beside the point. Jungkook had learned from his mistakes and was trying to improve. He didn’t want to return to how things were and how he was.

“Yeah, I know, but I can still apologize for my past behavior and hope to change for the future.”

He took a moment before responding, “And are you changing? Or trying to, at least?”

That’s all one could hope for, right? Even with a person like Alex. Everyone deserves some kind of redemption and the right to move on and be happy. He wasn’t the kind of person to wish the worst on someone. It wasn’t in his DNA, no matter how hard he tried.

“I think so? I'd like to hope so.”

Alex’s phone buzzed, and she took a moment to answer, grinning from ear to ear. Jungkook had never seen her smile like that–it was authentic, filled with joy. She returned her attention back to Jungkook, holding her phone out, which illuminated the home screen. He couldn’t help but glance at her wallpaper, a photo of her hugging someone. He had heard rumors going around the office, but he wasn’t someone who cared for gossip. It was her life, and she could do what she wanted. It was none of his business.

“Okay, then, I guess that’s all I can really ask for.”

“That's one thing I always liked about you.”

“What?”

“How after all the many things I put you through, you’re always so forgiving. I bet the people in your life don’t deserve you, huh?”

Jungkook stopped to think about it. Was he always so easy to forgive and forget? Maybe that was his problem. “Probably not, but—” he shrugged. “Anything else you need to get off your chest?”

She shifted in her chair. “Why’d you do it?”

“Do what?”

Alex bit the inside of her cheek before speaking, “Give into me.”

Jungkook wasn’t expecting to go there with Alex, but since she brought it up, the question lingered night and day for a long time, and ultimately, he concluded that he did it out of fear. He wasn’t scared of Alex; he was scared of not being enough for you because you didn’t share yourself with him, and he resorted to a place of familiarity. It’s no excuse, and he knows that, but it wasn’t something he could change now.

He cleared his throat. “I was insecure at that time in my relationship. I didn’t think I was good enough for her.”

Alex nervously rubbed the back of her neck. “Got it. I, um, you don’t have to explain any further.”

Jungkook lightly tapped on his desk, unconsciously swiveling from side to side in his chair. His lips thinned, waiting to see what else she needed from him.

“There’s one last thing. It looks like you’ll need to pack up your office because you’ll be getting mine.”

“Oh? Why?”

“I'm leaving, Jungkook. I got a new job. Guess you won’t be seeing me anymore.”

He was tempted to ask what was next for her, but he bit his tongue. Whatever she had going for her must’ve been a good offer if she were to leave her current position. Alex always knew what she wanted and went after it; to some degree, Jungkook admired that.

Alex stood, making her way out of Jungkook’s office. Before heading out the door, she stopped to ask one more thing, “What happened with you and your girlfriend?”

“You mean the one that slapped the shit out of you?” He tightened his lips and tried hard to suppress the smile creeping up. He was still proud of you for that. “We broke up. I wouldn’t be here if we were still together.”

She nervously tapped on the door frame, avoiding his gaze. “I’m sorry about that. I do hope you guys find your way back to each other. You seemed to have loved her very much.”

Jungkook acknowledged her comment with a nod and a low hum. He had dreamt about that happening so many times, but it’s been over a year since the two of you had broken up. So he gave up on you coming back to him a long time ago. It was a silly dream that he needed to let go of–the one thing to really set him free.

“Good luck with everything.”

“Thanks, Jungkook. You too.”

Friday nights wouldn’t be complete without Korean fried chicken and cold beer. It was Jimin’s turn to buy, and Jungkook told him to go all out before leaving on his trip. He wanted his belly full of yummy food.

“Where’s Lana?” Jungkook asked before taking a huge bite out of the crispy chicken drumstick.

Jimin chewed as fast as he could before answering, “She’s out with her friends at a bachelorette party.”

“I guess it’s that time when everyone we know is getting engaged or married, right?” Jungkook set his drumstick on the plate before him, and he looked over at Bam, who was patiently waiting for any scrap of food from his owner. He made a face at his four-legged friend, who whined as he lay beside Jungkook.

“It’ll be my turn soon.” Jimin dug in his back pocket, struggling to take out his phone. He unlocked the screen, then scrolled through his photos, handing his phone to Jungkook.

“No way! You’re gonna propose soon?”

Jimin grinned, taking the phone from Jungkook to stare at the ring he had chosen. “Yup! I have it all figured out.”

“Congrats, man. That’s exciting.”

“Thanks! Let’s pray she doesn’t turn me down,” Jimin jokes, sipping his beer. “What about you? What’s new?”

“Alex is leaving.”

“Whoa–the bitch is finally leaving us for good,” Jungkook deadpanned. “What? Am I wrong?” he asked dryly, raising his eyebrow.

Jimin only knew of the ‘Alex’ in college, not the one where she had actually grown up. Jungkook couldn’t help but witness the miracle unraveling before his eyes at work–it was hard to avoid.

“I think she’s changed.”

“Oh! Don’t tell me you’re standing up for her!” Jimin blinked a few times at his naive friend.

“I’m not–”

He wasn’t. He was merely acknowledging the growth he had seen. He couldn’t deny it, even if his friend didn’t believe him. Who would’ve thought that Jungkook would live to see the day someone like Alex could actually change? That was the beauty of knowing someone over a period of time, right? Seeing them go through different stages of their lives, becoming better or worse, in this case, Jungkook had witnessed the miracle of Alex becoming a decent human being.

“She ruined your relationship–”

“I know…” Jungkook said, “But I think she’s really different now.”

Jimin set his beer down and interlaced his fingers, waiting for his friend’s explanation. “Please, Jungkook. Enlighten me.”

“She’s moving to Switzerland,” he paused, “With her girlfriend.” Jungkook tilted his head, ready for Jimin’s reaction to the news. It also took Jungkook a second to process and rethink everything he had with Alex.

Jimin’s eyes widened as he covered his mouth. “Shit–” Jungkook kicked him under the table. “What? I mean, good for her! Who would’ve thought that Alex was into girls? Man, that really threw me in for a loop.” He leaned against the sofa’s cushion. “Well, I guess she’s not gonna be a problem anymore.”

Jungkook let out a rueful chuckle. If only things had turned out differently for you and him. Where would the two of you be now?

“So, are you excited about going back to Seoul?” Jimin couldn’t help but wiggle his eyebrows. Jungkook knew what he was referring to.

“I’m just visiting; besides, I've moved on.” It was something he needed to convince himself of on a daily basis, but it was easier said than done.

“Uh-huh, sure. Is that why you still keep that thing hidden in your sock drawer?”

Jungkook opened his mouth, but nothing came out; then, he looked at the culprit sitting beside him. And which thing was Jimin referring to? The small box? The photo album? “How do you know about that?”

Jimin leaned over to pat Bam’s bottom. “This big guy knows all your secrets. Don’t you, Bamie?”

Jungkook rolled his eyes, scratching the back of Bam’s ears. “You guys better not go digging through my things while I’m gone,” he threatened with a stare. He definitely didn’t want Jimin coming across your boudoir album. He had kept that baby safe–at least, he hoped he did. Maybe he should move it again or put it in a safe deposit box or something; imagine it getting into the wrong hands.

“Hey man, it’s not gonna be me.” He leaned over to Jungkook and glanced at Bam. “It’ll be this guy,” Jimin added while covering his mouth and pointing to Bam.

Bam is a smart aleck; he knows when others are talking about him. He stood and walked over to Jimin to lay his head in Jimin’s lap.

Jimin leaned down, ruffling Bam’s ears. “Don’t worry, Bamie. I won’t tell Jungkookie what we find.”

Jungkook shook his head at the two schemers. He had meant to get rid of what was hidden in his sock drawer. He just hadn’t had time to do so.

back home in seoul

Jungkook found it odd how quiet Namjoon and Yuna’s place was. He thought it would be booming with laughter and chatter, granted he came home to celebrate his mom’s birthday.

“Ma! Noona! Hyung! Is anyone home?” Jungkook nearly tripped over the small step in the entryway as he took off his shoes. “What the hell? I thought they said they’d be here.” Unless they changed the location last minute and forgot to tell him.

He set his suitcase down; the lights illuminated the hallway as he walked toward the living room.

“Surprise!”

The rest of the lights in the house turned on as Jungkook clutched his chest with one hand and leaned against the wall with the other.

“What the fuck!” Jungkook shook his head and let out a sigh of relief as he walked over to everyone.

“Yah–Is that how you greet your friends and family?” Jin strolled to the young man, ruffling Jungkook’s long hair.

“You know how much I hate surprise parties.”

“We couldn’t help it. We had to,” Yuna interjects, walking from a room with Indie on her hip. Indie squirms her way out of her mom’s arms, insisting on walking instead of being held. Yuna strode over to Jungkook, giving him a hug. “It’s good to see you, little brother.” She pulled away, taking a good look at him, her thumb gently caressing his cheek.

Indie ran over to Jungkook, pulling on his pant leg. She looked up with her big, curious eyes, her hair in cute little pigtails. “Wo-wo. Wo-wo.”

Jungkook knelt down to her level, squeezing her sides. “Sorry baby girl, wo-wo is back home.”

Indie is obviously uninterested when she learns her favorite pup is not with him, so she runs off, screaming around the living room.

Namjoon greets Jungkook with a hug. “My brother–you look good,” he paused to touch the ends of Jungkook’s hair, “It’s getting so long.”

“I don’t like it,” Yuna adds, “You look like Frodo Baggins.”

Jungkook rolled his eyes. His sister was always opinionated, and didn’t expect any less from her. He tried something different today; it was too curly for his liking, so he tied it half-up, half-down.

Namjoon glared at his wife before returning to Jungkook. “It looks great, man.”

Jin walked up behind Jungkook. "Sorry to break up the love fest but I just wanted to pop in and say hi. I'll see you later?"

Jungkook nodded and said goodbye.

The sliding door to the backyard opened, and in walked Jungkook’s mom. “Ah–there’s my baby boy!” She sprinted over with open arms, cupped his cheeks before pulling him in for an embrace, then withdrew to get a good look at him, and that’s when she playfully smacked his arm. “That’s what you get for leaving without saying goodbye to your mother!”

“Ow–” Jungkook rubbed the spot she hit. “Ma–you’re still mad about that?”

She scowled at her son and muttered indistinct words under her breath as she walked into the kitchen.

Jungkook turned to Yuna. “Is Mom really still mad at me?”

Yuna shrugged. “It’s like college all over again. You never call. You never visit.”

“You know why I can’t.”

“Why can’t you guys just be grown-ass adults and be okay with being in the same room as one another? It’s not that hard.”

It was easy for Yuna to say. She wasn’t in an intimate relationship with you; she didn’t break your heart, and she didn’t run away because she couldn’t deal with all of this.

Jungkook’s eyes followed his sister as she walked into the kitchen, helping their mom prepare a dish. He hesitated to ask but mustered up the courage. “Is that why she’s not here?”

“She would be, but she’s in Phuket. She’s using Yoongi’s vacation home.”

“Oh.”

“I mean, she needs it. It's been a rough year for her.”

His mom doesn’t say anything. She peered at her son, wanting to tell him all the things you’ve been going through with your own mom, but it wasn’t her place to say anything. She looked away, going back to her previous task.

He could see the disappointment in his mother’s eyes; he had seen it before. A part of him wished he could be a part of your healing, but you’d blossom more without him.

Jungkook nervously tapped the counter. “Is Yoongi her boyfriend or something?” he asked as nonchalantly as possible.

“No, they’re just friends,” Yuna responded curtly.

Indie came running into the kitchen, dragging her blanket behind her. She wandered to the living room, and her eyes lit up when she spotted something in the entryway. She shuffled her little feet and dropped her blanket on the ground before grabbing the stuffed bunny, which was just as big as her.

Yuna chuckled. “I’m guessing that’s for Indie?”

The curves of Jungkook’s mouth curved up. “Yeah–you said she loved stuffies, so I found the biggest one when I arrived.”

Indie babbled and trotted along to her Uncle Jungkook, pulling the bunny by its ear. He picked her up along with the bunny.

“My baby, Indie, is so big now.” She wriggled out his arms and ran off with the stuffed animal.

“Gosh–I’ve missed so much. Next thing I know, she’s going off to college.”

“You could move back, you know, and not miss any of this,” Yuna suggested.

Jungkook had thought about this every time he hung up with Indie. He had always wished to be the type of uncle who would be there for his nieces and nephews and hoped he would one day be able to do so.

“Hey, Ma. I’m gonna head out.”

“You’re leaving me already?” She teased as she stood to hug him.

Jungkook chuckled. “You know I can never leave you, right?”

She cupped Jungkook’s face, looking into his big, brown, doe eyes. She didn’t say anything. She wanted to take everything in–seeing the little boy she raised to become a good man who loved so deeply and passionately, just like his father.

“Are you going to let go or make me stay here all night?”

The corners of her mouth curved into a closed-lipped smile. “Don’t hurt her again, ‘mkay?”

Again? Hurt who? Hurt you?

He could only assume she was talking about you. There was a slim chance he knew he could run into you, but he wasn’t counting on it. Even if he could muster up the courage to start a conversation, he was too scared to go there, too scared to hear you tell him off again, to tell him there would be no chance you’d give him your relationship another try. He wouldn’t risk it.

Jungkook mirrored his mother’s smile, pulling her in for another embrace. Her frame felt smaller, or maybe he was just getting bigger.

She patted his back, withdrawing from him and looking at him once more. “It was good to see you, sweetheart. Don’t be a stranger and call me sometime, hmm?”

The dinner to celebrate his mom was quiet and low-key, and for that, Jungkook was thankful. He didn’t want a big spectacle of returning to town and dealing with distant relatives questioning his life. As much as he loved his family, he was already itching to leave the second dinner came to an end.

The taxi pulled up to a familiar location, one that brought too many memories of good times with you. But Jungkook wanted to stay with the person that was less likely to question him.

“It’s good to see you, man,” Jin sipped his beer. “I've missed having you in the office, but I hear you’re doing big things out there.”

Jungkook stared at the beer glass in front of him before looking at Jin, “I'm just trying my best. I wish I could come back.”

“You can!” Jungkook glared at him. “I’m joking. I'm joking, but seriously, are you doing okay out there?”

He was good. It was better than expected–being busy with work helped get his mind off many things, being near the beach calmed his nerves, and having Bam has been a huge comfort.

“It was hard at first, but now I'm getting into a steady rhythm with work and everything. I do miss everyone.”

“Come back when you’re ready, man.” Jin rubbed his shoulder, staring at his friend. “She's good, by the way. She’s doing a lot better than she was a year ago.”

Jungkook chuckled. It seemed as though everyone could recognize the big elephant in the room, semi-acknowledge it but didn’t delve further–maybe out of respect for you and him. It’s not that he didn’t want to talk about you or what happened, but he felt it would be better not to explore the ‘what ifs’ and ‘what could’ve been.’ It was more so for his sake, so he wouldn’t be disappointed and maybe move past it.

OC POV

You had been staring wide-eyed at your phone for far too long. Texts and photos were already deleted; the last thing you needed to do was delete Jungkook’s phone number. It’s not like you have called it or anything since you left that voicemail for him. The contact for him had just been there in case he ever drunk-dialed you, which he never did. But your therapist suggested maybe it was time to stop holding onto the last thing you felt was keeping you tied to him.

The button was right there.

Delete–to remove, to get rid of, to erase.

It was simple. You just needed to move your finger and hit the six-letter word. But instead, you chickened out and hit the call icon instead.

You brought the phone to your ear, “The number you dialed has been disconnected or is no longer in service.”

Of course, it was no longer in service. It was stupid of you to think he'd still have the same number. He lives in California now, so getting rid of his Seoul number would make sense.

Maybe this was your sign to delete it, finally. There was nothing to hold on to anymore. It’s not like you were expecting to get back together with him or anything.

But the contact still read: Boyfie.

You hadn't changed the name on his contact, and it still read what he was last to you.

Your shaky index finger moved closer to the three dots on his contact. His number was no longer in service; there was no need to keep it. How silly of you to be so scared just to do it, but you needed to let go and move on.

Taking a deep breath, you hit delete, and then the pop-up read: This contact will be removed from all your synced devices.

Cancel or Move to Trash.

Your finger hovered over the two options before hitting 'Move to Trash.' But there was one last thing to do. You went to your phone's trash and clicked 'Empty Trash Now.' If you didn't do this part, then his number would just stay there for another 30 days, and what would that exactly do for you?

Delete forever? - This can't be undone.

Cancel or delete forever?

Trash empty. 1 contact deleted forever.

You thought this moment would bring you relief, but it didn't. There was a twinge of sadness like your therapist had told you would happen. Getting over someone wouldn't happen overnight or in a millisecond; it would take time. Every day, you chipped away another piece of Jungkook–the more you chipped, the easier it became.

No more texts. No more photos. No more Jungkook.

You sported a lopsided grin–you were proud of yourself. Getting here had taken a long time, but you finally did it.

A knock on your door broke you out of your dazed state. You forgot Yuna was stopping by. Quickly, you ran to the door, opening it for her.

“I can’t believe I forgot your keycode,” she said, handing you a tote bag.

“Oh my god, Yuna. What the hell is in here? And why is it so heavy?” You struggled to lift the bag but did your best, bringing it to your kitchen counter.

“You know my mom loves to set you up with all her banchan. She doesn’t want you to starve.” Yuna put the other tote in her hand on the counter next to yours.

“I don’t think I’ll be starving for the next few months,” you joked, opening up your fridge. “Besides, I don’t know why she packed so much. I’ll be leaving soon for my trip.”

“Oh–right! That means you’ll have to eat it before you go.”

“How can I possibly finish all this?” You stared at the six stacks of Tupperware that filled your fridge. How was one person supposed to finish this? Maybe you could hand some off to Yoongi. He definitely ate take-out way too often.

“Take it to Hyunie and Taehyung’s. I’m sure they’ll appreciate it,” she suggested as she took out three more dishes from her tote.

Your eyes widened, and you shook your head, waving your hands. “No, no. Yuna–you have to take those back. I don’t want to waste anything your mom makes.”

“She loves you, you know. That’s why she made me bring all these.” Your lips thinned, taking the rest of the items from Yuna. “She’s sad you can’t come to her birthday dinner.”

“I want to be there, but I’ve planned this trip for a few months now.” You have never missed their mother's birthday dinners for the many years you’ve known Yuna. This one would be your first.

“I know. I know,” she trailed off, folding the tote before her. “I swear sometimes she likes you more than she likes me.”

You chuckled and looked at your best friend. It’s funny how you always thought the same about your mother and Yuna. Oh, how the tables have turned.

“Hold on–I have her birthday present.”

You strolled toward the hallway closet, pulling out a pastel pink bag.

“What’d you get her?” Yuna asked, peering through the white tissue paper to look inside.

“She’d been talking about this handmade tea set for the last few months, so I finally managed to get my hands on one for her.” It was made of the most beautiful marbled ceramic with rose gold painted throughout the tea set. You weren’t going to lie; you wanted one for yourself even though you didn’t drink tea.

“Wow–you really would’ve made the perfect daughter-in-law.” You deadpanned. “What? I’m just stating the obvious.” Yuna stood, strolling to your living room.

“Anyway, give that to her for me, okay? And tell her I’ll bring back a souvenir from Phuket.”

Yuna slumps on your couch. “Can you pack me in your luggage? I wanna go lounge around on the beach and do nothing.”

“I’m sure Yoongi would be more than happy to let you guys use his place next time, or we could all make a trip out of it.” You were grateful for Yoongi being so generous with his vacation home. This solo trip is very much needed.

“Hmm, maybe once Indie is older, we can all go.” You nodded, taking a seat beside Yuna. She turns to you, patting your thigh. “I’m proud of you.”

You scoffed. “What’s there to be proud of?”

“Don’t sell yourself short. I know I’ve been hard on you these last few months, and you know I’m only doing it because I love you and want what’s best for you.”

Everyone always needs someone to keep them down-to-earth and sincere, and Yuna was yours. After all these years, she’s stuck by you through thick and thin.

“I secretly think you love getting on my case.”

“Someone has to tell you what’s up!” Yuna sneered, crossing her arms.

You turned to her, pulling her in for an embrace. “And I’m so glad you’re my person.” You kissed her temple as she withdrew from your hug, annoyed by your sarcasm. “No, seriously. I can only imagine how hard it was being stuck in the middle between Jungkook and me. So, thanks for sticking it out with me.”

“You’re my best friend. I’d do anything for you. I’d fight for you before I would for Jungkook,” she half-joked. “Kidding. I love you both, and I’m glad to see you doing better, and this trip will only help with that.”

“It’s been so long since I’ve done anything for myself. It’ll be a nice little retreat for me.”

“What are you doing while you’re there?”

“I’m not sure yet. Swim, eat, explore, maybe write a little.”

“That sounds heavenly. I’m jealous.”

“You can come with me next time.”

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

“I want you to imagine yourself as a little girl. What age are you?”

With your eyes closed, you try to imagine yourself as a little girl. You only see the back of her, and she’s in a floral dress. “She’s about 7 or 8.”

“Can you describe your surroundings?”

“It’s quite dark, and I can’t see where she is. But it could be an open field?”

“Okay, that’s a good start. Now, I want you to go up to her and see what happens.”

You do as your therapist says, walking up to this imaginary version of you. You hesitate as you stand behind her to gather the right words. The imaginary version of you begins to whimper and cry. Immediately, you walked around to her and knelt, getting on her level. The little girl looks down at you, wiping away her tears.

“What’s wrong?” you asked, holding her hands in yours.

“I’m scared.” Her eyes were glassy, with tears threatening to fall.

“What are you scared of?”

“That no one loves me.”

A faint mumble of your name could be heard, calling you back from this short exercise. You opened your eyes, and like the imaginary version of you, your eyes were glassy with tears building up.

“What did the two of you talk about?”

You hated these exercises your therapist made you do. You always ended up in tears and coming to the same conclusion, except you’d talk to yourself at different stages in your life. Though this one was the first time you’d spoken to your younger self, and this one was tougher because she was so young and childlike and hadn’t done anything wrong in her life.

“The same thing we always talk about.”

“And what is that?”

She knew what it was, you’d been doing this over the past few months, but she always made you verbalize it.

“That no one loves me.”

“And do you believe that’s true?”

Your mind automatically said yes, though, in your heart, you knew it wasn’t. You looked at your hands, interlaced on your lap, as your thumbs twiddled back and forth.

She called your name again, waiting for your answer.

You straighten your posture and look directly into her eyes. “No, it’s not true.”

“And how do you know it’s not true? Who are the people in your life that love you?”

“Yuna, Hyunie, Namjoon, and maybe Taehyung,” you chuckled. The two of you loved to squabble and disagree on many things. It’s not that you didn’t like him or anything; you adored him. He was just a very hard person to read, and sometimes you sensed you bugged him.

“I’d say that’s a pretty good list.”

The corners of your mouth curved up. “They’re good people. I’m lucky to have them in my life.”

“So, our session for today is coming to an end. There is one thing I’d like you to focus on while we’re on a small break.” You nod, leaning forward to give her your full attention. “Have fun.”

You’re taken aback for a moment. You thought she’d have something insightful and profound to say before you went on your trip, but it was as simple as possible.

“That’s it?”

She chuckled. “Yes–that’s it. You’ve put in the hard work, and you’re growing, even if you may not see it right away. So, go have some fun, and I’ll see you when you return.”

Flying has never been your strong suit, and then to add on, doing everything solo sent your anxiety through the roof. Your research for this trip could be put into a how-to guidebook at this point.

When you arrived at Yoongi’s vacation home, you were expecting something dark and cold like his apartment in Seoul, but it was the exact opposite–warm and welcoming.

The view from the balcony was impressive, to say the least, the backdrop was the lush, green jungle, and you were only fifteen minutes away from the beach. Although you had a few things planned, you weren’t in a rush to check off your list. You wanted to take your time and really soak everything in. After all, this trip was meant to be relaxing.

Three days into your trip and you were already bored out of your mind. As an overachiever, you crossed off two-thirds of your list. You went to the night market, visited a few temples, fed the elephants, and even went to the island where they filmed James Bond.

You realized that you liked having time to yourself, but you wanted to enjoy these experiences with other people–specifically those you loved. The thought even crossed your mind to cut the trip short and make it back in time for Yuna’s mother’s birthday dinner, but you knew Yuna would just scold you for returning so early.

Guess you’d be stuck here, but maybe you should try to make the best of it. It’s not often you’re in a tropical setting by yourself.

You opted for a luxury resort spa on Naka Island for the next few days. Your bank account would hate you, but you’d worry about that later when you got back to Seoul. There was no need to stress about it now.

The only noises that left your mouth were moans and groans–from the knots the masseuse managed to draw out from you. You wished it was from something else, but you promised yourself you wouldn’t rush into anything with anyone. You didn’t want to repeat the past because that’s how you got into trouble. If the right person came along, then you’d take your time. There was absolutely no rush.

The warmth from the sun had felt wonderful on your skin as you sat beneath the beach umbrella. The calming sounds from the ocean helped relax your body after the intense massage. You rolled your shoulder back, groaning in pain as you stretched.

You told yourself if inspiration struck, then you’d write, but other than that, you wanted to disconnect from your phone and the rest of the world.

Daily naps on the beach became your go-to, along with a Sabai Sabai, a Thai cocktail you’d grown fond of. And with being disconnected from the world, you had nothing better to do than listen to strangers’ conversations which sparked an idea that bloomed into the script you began writing.

The premise? A rival-to-lovers, where two CEOs have to work together to take down the company that wants to destroy both of theirs while being stuck on an island. You had to include an island setting. It only made sense after all. It had become your source of inspiration.

Your mini-getaway to Naka Island was a smart choice. You came back to Yoongi’s place with nearly thirty pages of the start of a new script–a proud feat, to say the least. So you’d spent the last day getting ready to return to Seoul.

You snuggled into the king-sized bed, taking advantage of the spectacular view and adding a few more pages. The apricot and peachy hues of the sunset painted the sky, and you stayed focused on the scene until dusk had taken over. With your laptop being the only light source, you closed it and set it to the side. This bed was too comfortable for your own good.

It was nearly two in the morning when you heard a noise coming from the living room. You were sure you had locked the door, but maybe one of the stray cats you saw around the neighborhood had entered the house.

With sleepy eyes, you rolled out of bed, scanning the room to see what you could take to protect yourself. The only thing you still had out was your hair straightener, so it would have to do for now.

You shuffled into the living room with your straightener in your hand and flipped on the light. “What the fuck! Why didn’t you call me to say you were coming? I could've killed you.” You were right; it was a stray cat.

“With what? Your hair straightener?” Yoongi blinked, scanning you up and down. “Nice jammies, by the way. Were you expecting company or something?”

You used your robe to cover yourself, crossing your arms and scowling at the man before you. “Shut up.”

“Sorry, I tried getting in touch, but you never responded. So I had to come to make sure someone didn’t murder you. You know, since you have some weird obsession with that happening to you.”

“Oh—I’m sure you’ll smother me in my sleep tonight.”

“Well, just don’t tell me your dreams never come true.”

You rolled your eyes. “What are you doing here anyway?”

“I’m meeting with my location manager to scout some spots tomorrow.”

“Don’t tell me you’re going to the James Bond Island.”

Yoongi tilted his head and narrowed his eyes. “How’d you know?”

“I took a wild guess.” You watched him set his things down. “Well, I’ll be out of your hair soon. I can move my things so you can sleep in the master bedroom.”

“No, no.” He waved his hands. “It’s fine. I’ll take the spare.”

“Yoongi, it’s your place. I don’t mind.” You walk off toward the bedroom, determined to make sure he takes the master bedroom.

“Are you always this stubborn?” Yoongi asked, following after you.

You turn to him with a smile. “Yes.”

“You’re not gonna give up until I sleep in this bed tonight, huh?”

“Nope.”

After the early morning intrusion, Yoongi wanted to apologize by treating you to coffee before you had to leave. The freshly made Patongo donuts were sweet and fluffy, perfect for your Thai iced coffee, and the view from the cafe was gorgeous. It was a great day to lounge outside.

“So, how’s everything going?” Yoongi asked, taking a bite of his donut as he slouched in his seat.

“It’s fine.” Yoongi gave you an expressionless face. “I mean, it’s going well. It’s been wonderful. It’s so nice; I might just retire here,” you teased.

“You’re gonna be an old lady with your twenty cats.” The two of you witness a stray cat walk by.

You sneered at Yoongi. “That was a weird coincidence, and I’m not really a cat kinda gal.”

Yoongi chuckled. “Well, I’m glad you’re doing well. It’s nice to see you happy.”

You put your hand over your chest in exaggeration. “Did Min Yoongi just give me a compliment? Today must be my lucky day.”

“And that’s all you’ll get from me, you hear!” He smiled and shook his head. “No, but seriously. Your energy—it’s different.”

You didn’t want to continue quarreling with him. Instead, you nodded in agreement. This past year was painful and full of heartache, but then it started to look up—with more smiles, laughter, and tears of joy. Your hope was it would continue like this. After all, you deserved it.

You stuffed your things into the back of Yuna’s car before taking a seat on the passenger side, and to your surprise, you heard baby Indie babbling behind you. The only thing you could see popping above her head was a giant stuffed bunny.

“That’s cute. Did you buy it for Indie?” You asked as Yuna drove away from the airport.

Yuna quickly glanced in the rearview before looking at you, hesitating to answer. “Jungkook bought it.”

“Oh.” He must’ve ordered it or something, right?

“He came to visit while you were gone,” she admitted while her eyes were focused on the road. “I didn’t tell you because I didn’t know if you’d try to sabotage your trip and come back early.”

She was right. You would’ve been tempted to devise an excuse, but you really had no reason to. “Well, I wish you would’ve told me so I could make my own decision instead of you making it for me.”

“I know. I’m sorry. You’ve been doing so well with moving on and therapy–I just didn’t want you to regress.”

You understood where her heart was, but still, you were a big girl. You didn’t need her to mother you.

“Wo-wo. Wo-wo,” Indie continued repeating the phrase before throwing her bunny to the side and clapping at her accomplishment.

The car came to a stop, and Yuna looked over. “Do you forgive me?”

You rolled your eyes. “I guess, but can you let me make my own choices next time?”

“Yes, ma’am.” Yuna smiled, pausing to see Indie’s hands playing with her shoe from the rearview. “So, how was Phuket?”

“It was great until Yoongi showed up.”

“Yoongi showed up?” Yuna questioned, her tone going up an octave.

“Yeah–for like a split second. He caught me on the last day of my trip.”

“Oh,” Yuna’s comment lingered, indicating something else was happening. “And there’s nothing going on between you two?”

You shook your head. “No,” you said curtly, “I didn’t sleep with him if that’s what you’re asking.” Why did something always have to happen between a man and a woman? Could they simply not be friends? Was there always something more?

“Okay, I’m just curious, that’s all.”

“We’re just friends. Nothing more.”

“Okay, okay. Message received–loud and clear.” She tapped on the steering wheel. “So, when are you guys getting married?”

“I–you’re lucky we’re in the car!”

“Shh–Indie is trying to nap, so I brought her.”

You scoffed at your best friend; she wouldn’t let this go so easily, was she?

Coming back home felt torturous. You had nothing lined up in terms of work. The only thing you had going was the script you had started in Phuket. You guessed you could work on that for the time being.

But–you were stuck. Writer’s block came in like a wrecking ball. Maybe you should’ve stayed in Phuket longer. Yoongi even offered to have you accompany him to scout some places, but you didn’t want to overstay your welcome. He had already provided so much in terms of his vacation home.

A notification from your phone went off. You pick it up to see a text message from your agent.

Jae 9:27 AM How much do you love me?

You 9:28 AM You know you’re my favorite person in the world.

Jae 9:29 AM Now I know that’s a complete lie. Anyway! I have a big opportunity for you. Are you free for lunch today?

“Jae, can you just say what you want to say? I’ve been sitting here listening to you ramble about your pet hedgehog.”

Jae blinked profusely as his lips thinned. “Okay, fine. Netflix wants to partner with you,” he finally spits out while you choke on your water.

You cover your mouth as you cough and clear your throat. “I’m sorry, what?”

“They really loved your show with Kenji and want you to come to their headquarters to discuss potential positions they could see you in.”

Your eyes narrowed. “You’re joking, right?”

He pointed to his face. “Does it look like I’m joking?”

You sighed, looking around the table and then back at Jae. “I don’t know what to say.”

Jae put down his fork. “Say you’ll take the meeting.”

“Is it here in Seoul?”

He shook his head. “It’s in LA.”

✨ next ~ 18 ~ you're seeing things, aren't you?

#fic: this is us #jungkook fanfic #jungkook fic #jungkook angst #jungkook romance #jungkook drama #jungkook x yn #jungkook x you #jungkook x noona #bts fanfic #bts fic #bts x you #bts x y/n

108 notes · View notes