#many injured in bus accident

[lovelytsunoda]

the sixth sense | jake "hangman" seresin

summary: after a car accident totals her car and leaves her with the ability to see ghosts, an anxious police desk sergeant learns to live with the ghosts haunting her home, and the crush she has on the hot pilot who lives next door

pairing: jake 'hangman' seresin x reader

warnings: car accidents, ghosts (but they're very funny ghosts!), sexual innuendos/advances made by a ghost, if you can recognize the names of the detectives/station staff and can correctly tell me what tv show they are from, you get a metaphorical cookie. jake is a very involved neighbour.

author's note: my f1 fics for this collection have been on the struggle bus lately, so here's hoping my top gun one does better

sargeant y/l/n wouldn't say she hated her job, exactly, but there were many days where she wasn't always thrilled with it. take today for example, her desk piled high with requisition forms for fingerprint checks, traffic camera footage, autopsy reports and more.

it wasn't that she didn't like the work. no, she found catching murderers to be most rewarding. it was the people she worked with. detectives who didn't see her as an equal, but as a machine, dropping files on her desk with a demand and an impossible deadline.

"yn, how busy are you for the next few days?"

she raised her eyebrows at the detective across from her. "for you, detective disher? i won't be free until at least the end of the week."

detective disher raised an eyebrow. "how much work are they piling on you? you aren't their servants, you can speak up and tell them you're too busy."

she rolled her eyes, chewing the end of her bic pen. "usually they hightail it out of here before i even have a chance to open my mouth. some of them don't even speak to me or give instructions, they just drop a file on my desk and assume that i know what to do with it."

detective disher frowned. "we really need another desk sargeant."

"you think?"

it was long after sundown when she left the office that night, overtime she probably wasn't going to get paid for. she hoped that leaving at 6:30 was worth it to have a clean desk in the morning, one almost free of files long enough that she could breathe. of course, by the morning, all of the late shift detectives would have dropped all of their files off for her review.

she was about halfway home when traffic started to pick up again, the glow of the led headlights making it difficult to see out of her side mirrors. her glasses claimed to be glare resistant, but what did someone without astigmatism know about glare?

she turned right at the next set of lights, descending down the hill that would lead to her small, cosy neighbourhood. she was still a fair distance away as she watched the light change from yellow to red, taking her foo toff the gas. the car ahead of her seemed to be slowing, but not by much, and the car behind her was uncomfortably close. she sped up slightly, ready to put her foot on the brakes whenever neccesary.

wait a minute, are his break lights out? he's stopping!

she slammed her foot on the brakes, watching helplessly as her car continued to slide forward, her front bumper colliding with the rusted tail hitch.

her head jerked forward from the impact, banging against the steering wheel before it all went black.

she came to in the hospital, where audio was blurry and vision even worse as the doctor explained the symptoms of a concussion to her.

“it was a bad scene all around. you’re lucky you weren’t injured further.” the doctor insisted. “legally, I can’t allow you to drive for the next few days. is there someone we can call?”

realistically, the only name that came to mind was detective dishers. her parents were two cities away, and she didn’t want to disturb them. her sister was on vacation, and she didn’t want to bother any of her friends.

disher picked her up by the main doors, a matchbox twenty song playing on his stereo as she groggily slipped into the passenger seat, a plastic baggie full of prescription drugs in her hands.

“just take me home, randy. I don’t want to talk about it.”

the detective sighed. “okay. But you know you don’t have to come into work tomorrrow, right?”

great. no work meant no leaving the house. no leaving the house meant that her thoughts drove her to the brink of madness.

she simply couldn’t win.

as she slipped into her bed, she must have been slowly losing her mind as she swore that she could hear voices in her room as she was drifting off. she didn't think much of it, chalking it up to exhaustion as she let sleep claim her.

the following morning, she groggily puttered around the kitchen, assembling a light breakfast as she called her captain to explain why she couldn't come to wrok.

"hey captain, i was in an accident last night-"

"i know. randy called me. are you doing okay?"

"no concussion, but the doctor wants me to monitor for signs, so i'm not super hopeful. disher drove me home, and i'm supposed to hear from the mechanics about the state of my car later today."

"well, take care of yourself, yn. if you need anything at all, you have my number, and you have randy's. but don't call adrian, he's probably just going to make things worse."

she sighed, rubbing the skin on her forehead, fingertips teasing the edge of the bandages from where she'd hit her head on the steering wheel. "thanks leland."

"my my, you look a little worse for wear, don't you?" the voice came from nowhere, very thickly british and definitely not familiar.

she spun around, spying a figure in the kitchen doorway. his long hair dusted the shoulders of his leather jacket, and his skinny jeans were ripped to oblivion. she screamed, reaching for the metal ladle in her utensils jar.

"how the fuck did you get into my house?"

"your house?" the man looked confused. "sweetheart, i've always been here. i wouldn't throw that at me, if i was you. you'll just damage the wall behind me."

"who the fuck are you?" she stammered. "you're not real, this is just concussion brain, i should call the doctor back and go another scan-"

"you're seeing ghosts, honey." this voice was older, deeper. kinder. and significantly less british. another body materialized in her kitchen, sitting at her breakfast counter. she was round and plump, with a rosy face and sweet, kind eyes. she wore a nun's habit over a white blouse and a long navy skirt. "rick over there died in 1984. i'm sister katherine, and i died in 1961. lovely to meet you properly."

"the fuck do you mean i'm seeing ghosts?!" yn screamed, the sound reverberating through her skull. "you're not real!"

"i understand that this is a lot to take in." sister katherine insisted "but it must have something to do with the accident you were in last night."

"how do you know about my accident?" she pushed, brandishing her metal spoon as a weapon.

rick rolled his eyes. "because we watched that detective bring you home last night. tell me, are you two sordid lovers? if i wasn't dead i would love to get a piece of your-"

"enough, richard!"

"what the hell is happening right now? has he been watching me in the shower?" yn hissed under her breath, starting to pace back and forth in front of her stovetop.

"if you've got a head injury, you should really sit down." the nun kept trying to reason with yn, but nothing in this situation made one iota of sense.

she shakily sat down in one of the ikea chairs in her kitchen, and noted how badly her hands were shaking. she dropped the ladle on the table, clasping her hands together. she refused to look at rick and sister katherine, instead focusing on where her shellac manicure had begun to chip.

she really should book herself in for a fresh one.

"we have visitors!" rick's voice carried, his ghostly body reappearing next to yn. she startled in the chair, refusing to meet his eyes. "he looks annoyed, and he's wearing mechanics coveralls. i wore a pair of those on stage once. ladies love 'em."

"he was in a very unsuccessful hair band." sister katherine clarified.

"i need both of you to stay quiet for a second." she sighed. "he must be from the body shop."

she closed the front door behind her, although that was unlikely to do much against two beings who could walk through walls, but a girl could try.

"are you y/n y/l/n?"

"sergeant y/n y/l/n." she corrected. "san francisco pd. can i help you?"

"i'm from clint's garage, detective disher brought your car in last night."

that didn't sound good. behind her, she could hear a car door slam in her neighbour's driveway. oh good, jake was home. she tried not to let her eyes wander, waiting with bated breath for what the mechanic was going to say next.

"the front bumper was totally smashed, caved in where you hit the trailer hitch. the hood is also bent back a bit from impact. the good news is that the airbags didn't go off, which means your car can be fixed. the bad news is that it's going to cost more than your car is worth."

she could feel her headache coming back, her legs beginning to feel weak. she knew her car wasn't worth much due to it's age. but the city didn't pay her enough for her to be able to take on the payment for a new car outright, even if she was buying used.

she felt unsteady, and her body was starting to list to one side as two strong arms picked her up.

"i've got you, just keep breathing." the smell of cologne was overwhelming. there was no way in fuck that was rick, and it wasn't the mechanic.

she'd know that texan drawl anywhere. and that meant that right now, she was in navy pilot jake seresin's arms.

and that idea made her feel a little more faint that normal.

jake seresin had lived in that neighbourhood longer than her. she'd moved into her rental house just over four years ago, and he'd bene there on viewing day in a tight white tank top and jeans, getting all sudsy as he washed his silverado in the driveway. she couldn't resist watching from the window as he got into his truck in full navy fatigues before he went to work, or when he worked out shirtless on his front lawn since the porch took up most of the back.

she cleared her throat. "can i get an estimate for the repairs? will it cost less than buying a whole new car?"

the mechanic sighed. "look, even at randy's mates rate, it would still be more advisable to buy something new. go to a dealership and look at the preowned lot, anything less than 20k will serve you a lot better than getting this car fixed up would."

she couldn't form words, mind going fuzzy from the feeling of jakes hand on her lower back, and the thought of going back inside and facing the ghosts again.

"thanks, man. she can't drive for a few days anyway," jake started "but i'll bring her to the car lot when she's better and help her find something nicer."

jake helped her back inside, where the ghosts were watching giddily with their heads through the kitchen wall.

"you didn't have to do that." she insisted, avoiding eye contact with sister katherine while she spoke to jake. "i really can't afford a new car."

she could hear sister katherine in the background, whispering to rick. he's a hot one, and a real gentleman too!

"but you can't drive that one either. it's almost twenty years old, yn." jack frowned. "treat yourself. finance if you have to. take the scrap money and run, that's what i would do. you think the navy pays me well either?"

she fought the urge to bury her head in her hands and slump down on the table. "can you drive me to my follow up at the end of the week? he just wants to make sure there's no brain damage. i was going to get detective disher to do it, but if you have the morning off its less hassle."

jake looked puzzled. "why would you want me to do it instead of your boyfriend? shouldn't that be his job?"

"why the fuck does everybody think i'm hooking up with randy?" she shouted. "jesus, jake. he's my fucking boss."

the pilot's face was red as he carded his fingers through his hair. "he just seems to be over here a lot. he drove you home from the hospital last night and i just assumed."

"he's over here a lot because his girlfriend threw him out so sometimes i let him sleep on the daybed in my spare room while he finds a new place. we've been friends for years, we were at the academy together. i could be where he is if i wasn't too chickenshit to go into the field."

jake paused for effect. "well, this is awkward. are you sure you never thought about it."

despite herself, yn laughed. "we hooked up once back at the academy. we were sooo not compatible."

"i fucking knew it!" she heard rick shout in the background. "men and women can't just be friends!"

"richard!" sister katherine cut him off. "let the girl speak and mind your own business."

"lucky for you," jake grinned, totally unaware of the ghosts arguing behind him, every syllable of their argument making yn cringe inside "i happen to have the day off on friday. i'll take you to the doctors, and if everything is good, we can go to the car lot where i bought my truck. the guy will give you a good deal."

"i want a volkswagen. that's non-negotiable." she warned.

"that's fine. we can even stop by the garage and pick up your scrap money to put towards a deposit."

her chest felt tight with everything jake was offering to do for her. it was a slight anxiety, but a positive one. nerves that sprung to mind when she thought that maybe jake was offering to do all of these things for her because he wanted to be more than just her neighbour.

and as incredible as she knew it would feel to have a special place in jake seresin's heart, she'd been out of a relationship for so long that being in one again scared the ever-loving shit out of her.

true to his word, jake picked her up promptly at ten am the following morning. she had stressed about what to wear all morning, dodging criticisms about her outfit choice from sister katherine ('seriously, what on earth are they selling in the clothing shops these days? tops are supposed to go to the top of your jeans! what happened to dressing respectably?) and outdated sex tips from rick (which came with a knowledge of the ghost's kinks that she wished she could erase from her memory).

"just to be clear, you guys are bound to this house, right? you died here and now you can't leave?"

sister katherine nodded. "that is how being dead works, my love. we have to stay here while you go out gallivanting with your fancy man."

she stifled a laugh. "jake is not my fancy man. and neither is randy."

"whatever you say, cutie." rick winked. "and if you ever find yourself being undead in the walls of this house, give me a call and let me rock your world."

shaking her head with a laugh, she closed the front door behind her and headed over the grass to jake's house. he was waiting with two thermoses of hot chocolate and looked like he had just finished vacuuming the inside of his truck.

"good morning sunshine, let's go get you a clean bill of health!"

the wait to see the specialist was longer than the appointment. it lasted no longer than half an hour while the doctor took another brain scan and declared that there was absolutely nothing wrong with y/n aside from some superficial bruising to the skin on her forehead where she hit the steering wheel. jake insisted that her clean bill of health was worth celebrating, ushering her back into the truck and refusing to tell her where they were going.

"you know i'm a serving police officer, right? one call to captain stottlemeyer and there's a all points bulletin out on your truck."

jake laughed heartily. "i'm not kidnapping you, sweets. damn, you really don't like surprises."

"can't say i'm a fan."

minutes later, jake pulled off a secluded country road and into a parking lot lined in mulch. for a place that was so out of the way, the parking lot was packed to the brim and jake had to park the silverado what felt like miles away from the building itself. like a true gentleman, he helped her down from the truck's cab, one hand on the small of her back as they walked towards the large country store.

"a farmers market?" she giggled. "big bad hangman frequents farmer's markets?"

"how do you know my call sign?"

"you have it written on a metal sign in your garage."

jake winked at her, opening the heavy glass door. the country store was in a large refurbished barn, with the hayloft having been fully converted into a small cafe. his hand was warm through her cinnamon colored t-shirt as jake guided her towards the stairs to the cafe.

"do you like cinnamon buns?"

"of course i like cinnamon buns. who do you take me for?"

laughing to himself, jake had a large smile on his tanned face as he guided her towards a window seat. "make yourself comfy, sugar. i'll be right back."

she hated to see jake seresin leave, but she loved to watch him go, shamelessly watching the rippling muscles underneath his tight levis jeans.

he came back a few minutes later, two white china plates in hand, each one with a steaming warm cinnamon bun on top. as he passed her a plate, the cowboy made the bold claim that these were the best cinnamon buns in san francisco.

"i'll be the judge of that." yn said with a laugh, trying to pick up the sticky pastry in her hands in the most dainty way possible. the buns were large, mostly taking up the small plate.

"need a knife for that, sarge?"

"shut up, hangman."

"you know i outrank you, right?" jake joked, a sly look in his eyes.

she stuck her tongue out at the pilot, wishing she had a third hand so she could give him the finger. "bite me."

"all in due time, sugar."

she tried to hide the blush taking over her face, busying herself with taking the first bite of her pastry while she tried to ignore the images that jake's comment had conjured in her mind.

of course, the moan that she let out upon tasting the pastry did nothing to ease the sinful thoughts creeping into her mind. she could tell jake noticed, his breath momentarily catching in his throat despite the smile never breaking on his face.

"am i right or am i right?"

"fine." she playfully rolled her eyes. "you were beyond right. these are incredible!"

she beamed over at jake, wiping up some of the warm glaze on her chin that hadn't fully dried before she'd taken a bite. he was sitting across from her at the small table, and had yet to touch his cinnamon roll.

"you've got a little something..." he started, reaching a warm hand over the table to brush against her lips, wiping up some cinnamon that had been left behind.

her breath caught at the action, her eyes catching jake's blue ones. he truly was a beautiful man. time seemed to slow, jake's eyes slowly moving from her own to her lips and then back up again, her cheeks heating under his gaze.

"yn, can i kiss you?"

"yes."

he leaned over the table, gently rising from his wooden chair as he pressed his lips against hers. he was soft at first, almost apprehensive until she gripped his wrist where he was caressing her face, tilting her head back to give him a better angle and kiss him harder.

kissing jake seresin was everything she'd wanted it to be and more. if this was a movie, there would be fireworks going off behind them, and a sappy pop rock ballad playing as background music. perhaps something by lifehouse or matchbox twenty.

her lips felt sticky as jake pulled away, a goofy smile on both of their faces.

"you haven't touched your pastry." she said shyly.

jake grinned. "that's because you taste a lot nicer."

they stopped at the dealership on the way back, after having picked up the scrap money. yn test drove a volkswagen, fairly new with few miles on it. she decided to make it a point to come back within the end of the weekend, having already fallen in love with the little car. she felt like was, for lack of better words, walking on sunshine as jake pulled into his driveway, one of his large hands resting comfortably on her thigh.

he helped her down, looking forlornly over to her house, almost as if he'd enjoyed himself and didn't want the night to end.

"i have to go into work early tomorrow, and you've probabaly got heaps of work to do as well, so i'll let you get back to it." jake sighed, scratching at the back of his neck. "but, if you're up for it, i can stop by tomorrow and make you something for dinner?"

she smiled up at him, reaching to take his free hand in hers. "i'd love that." remembering her ghostly guests, she hesitated. "but maybe we could do it at your house instead?"

"i would like nothing more, sarge."

"good." she pressed up onto her tiptoes, kissing jake softly.

his hand snaked around her waist, slipping into the back pocket of her jeans as he deepened the kiss. she hummed contentedly, gently stroking his face with her thumb, hand resting on his cheek.

"i can't wait." she winked at him before she cut across her front lawn, backing towards her property. her southern gentlemen saluted her as she unlocked her front door, slipping inside the foyer.

"soooooooo." rick's familiar english drawl began. "how did things go with john wayne over there?"

and despite herself, yn was very much looking forward to sharing details of her budding romance with rick and sister katherine.

things were coming up roses for sargeant yn yln, and she was so excited to see what the future had in store.

[bet-on-me-13]

Dr's Assistant Danny

So, Danny has to run away from Amity after deciding to tell his parents about his powers. They acted like they accepted him, but when his back was turned they shot him with one of their Inventions and dragged him into the Lab for Study.

They think he's been taken over by a Ghost and decide to be "Surgeons" by opening him up and removing the Ghost by hand. Throughout all of this, they are just telling Danny that they are qualified doctors and can definitely do this perfectly. But they don't even use Anesthesia, and don't know the first thing about Surgery. But their delusions of being perfect Doctors have taken a hold of them, and they can't even comprehend the idea that they are doing it wrong.

After a week of "Surgeries", they mess up and forget to lock his Cell, and Danny manages to escape, hopping on a Bus headed to New Jersey.

He ends up in Gotham, hiding in an Alley to avoid Civilians and to bandage himself up. Thankfully his parents stitched him up fairly well after the last session, but he is still really hurt. And the cuffs restricting his powers don't help either.

He passes out in the Alley and wakes up in a Doctors Office. He panics, thinking that his parents found him and took him back to the Lab. Thankfully, the resident Dr rushes in to calm him down.

It's Dr Leslie Thompkins, and she really wants her patient to stop struggling thank you very much.

She manages to calm him down, and explains that she found him in the Alley, but that he was seriously injured. He was out for 4 days.

He explains what he can, that he told his parents that he had powers and that they didn't take it well. Not the Ghost thing, but he does explain that his parents could charitably be referred to as "Mad Scientists", and Dr Thompkins figures it out from there.

Since he doesn't have a place to stay, she let's him stay at her place. It's not much, but it's enough for 2 people.

After a few days, he starts helping out in the Clinic as a way to repay her.

After a few weeks, he starts taking on the bigger jobs and starts learning about medical aid

A few months in, and both Danny and Leslie realize that he has basically become her Personal Assistant. So she trains him in the legitimate way, teaching him all she can about being a Doctor and basically everything he would have learned in Medical School, which really helps with his trauma over the whole "constant unethical surgery from people who claimed to be licensed professionals" thing.

He still has those Restraining Cuffs on, they could never figure out how to take them off and they were basically unbreakable, but he was fine on his own.

And a note to add to this is that all of this is taking place in the early Years of Batman, like Years 1 and 2. So it's certainly a shock when Danny walks in for work and sees The Batman lying on a Cot.

Over the many following years, Danny gets used to his life in Gotham. He managed to contact Jazz, and his friends as well, even if they needed to keep it very secret for fear of his parents finding out.

He manages to get on friendly terms with most of the Bat Family from their many, many, many visits to the Clinic.

He never does reveal his past to them, he knows that they would never not poke their noses into it, so he tried to keep it on the down low around them. He even hid his Cuffs all these years. (He doesn't want to attract his parents attention)

But that all changed one day.

He messes up. He accidently calls Jazz outside of their scheduled safe times and his parents just so happen to be visiting her new house at the time. They pick up the call for her, and Danny, not knowing it's not Jazz on the other end, says "Hey Jazz, it's Danny. Just wanted to let you know that I'll he busy with work for a while so I won't be able to call as often".

When he gets no response, he gets concerned and asks "Jazz? You there?"

His parents immediately begin to trace the Call, but before they can get an exact location Danny wises up and hangs up. Buts it's too late, his Parents know he's in Gotham now, even if they don't know exactly where.

Danny doesn't know that they tracked him down though, but he quickly figures it out when Red Hood is rushed into the Clinic a week later after being attacked by "A big guy in an orange jumpsuit with a laser gun", who was joined by "A tiny lady in a blue jumpsuit with a baseball bat"

The Drs Fenton reached Gotham and immediately began tracking any Ecto-Signatures they could find. And Red Hood just so happened to be the closest one.

Now Danny has to find a way to deal with his parents without his powers. Since the Anti-Ecto Laws are still in effect, they aren't technically doing anything Illegal, and their Government Contracts would protect them either way.

He needs to figure out how to get rid of them. Due to the high concentration of Ectoplasm in Gotham, there are many unknowing Liminals in the City. His parents could end up attacking many innocent Civilains in search for him, maybe even subjecting them to the same things he was subjected to.

The only way he can think to do that is to give himself up.

Of course he knows Dr Leslie would disagree, but before she can stop him he sneaks out in the middle of the night, leaving a note thanking her for all that she had done for him over the years. It explains that the people who attacked Red Hood are his infamous Parents, and that they are searching for him. They could end up hurting alot of people if they stay, so he needs to nip this in the bud and is going to turn himself in to them.

She immediately takes the note to Batman.

She still vividly remembers the state she found Danny in. He still has the V-Shaped Scar on his chest from his experiences with his parents, and she'll be damned if she' going to let that happen to him again. (She kind of adopted him as her son a while ago)

She tells them everything. How she found him in the Alley, his injuries, how she nursed him back to health, his story about Meta-Hating Mad Scientist Parents, the unbreakable Cuffs he always hid, all of it.

Now it's a race to find Danny and save him from his Parents again.

[book--brackets]

Summaries under the cut

Emily by L. M. Montgomery

Emily Starr never knew what it was to be lonely—until her beloved father died. Now Emily's an orphan, and her mother's snobbish relatives are taking her to live with them at New Moon Farm. She's sure she won't be happy. Emily deals with stiff, stern Aunt Elizabeth and her malicious classmates by holding her head high and using her quick wit. Things begin to change when she makes friends: with Teddy, who does marvelous drawings; with Perry, who's sailed all over the world with his father yet has never been to school; and above all, with Ilse, a tomboy with a blazing temper. Amazingly, Emily finds New Moon beautiful and fascinating. With new friends and adventures, Emily might someday think of herself as Emily of New Moon.

Savvy by Ingrid Law

For generations, the Beaumont family has harbored a magical secret. They each possess a "savvy" -a special supernatural power that strikes when they turn thirteen. Grandpa Bomba moves mountains, her older brothers create hurricanes and spark electricity . . . and now it's the eve of Mibs's big day.

As if waiting weren't hard enough, the family gets scary news two days before Mibs's birthday: Poppa has been in a terrible accident. Mibs develops the singular mission to get to the hospital and prove that her new power can save her dad. So she sneaks onto a salesman's bus . . . only to find the bus heading in the opposite direction. Suddenly Mibs finds herself on an unforgettable odyssey that will force her to make sense of growing up-and of other people, who might also have a few secrets hidden just beneath the skin.

The Last Apprentice by Joseph Delaney

Thomas Ward is the seventh son of a seventh son and has been apprenticed to the local Spook. The job is hard, the Spook is distant and many apprentices have failed before Thomas. Somehow Thomas must learn how to exorcise ghosts, contain witches and bind boggarts. But when he is tricked into freeing Mother Malkin, the most evil witch in the County, the horror begins...

The View from Saturday by E. L. Konigsburg

How has Mrs. Olinski chosen her sixth-grade Academic Bowl team? She had a number of answers. But were any of them true? How had she really chosen Noah and Nadia and Ethan and Julian? And why did they make such a good team? It was a surprise to a lot of people when Mrs. Olinski's team won the sixth-grade Academic Bowl contest at Epiphany Middle School. It was an even bigger surprise when they beat the seventh grade and the eighth grade, too. And when they went on to even greater victories, everyone began to ask: How did it happen?

It happened at least partly because Noah had been the best man (quite by accident) at the wedding of Ethan's grandmother and Nadia's grandfather. It happened because Nadia discovered that she could not let a lot of baby turtles die. It happened when Ethan could not let Julian face disaster alone. And it happened because Julian valued something important in himself and saw in the other three something he also valued.

Mrs. Olinski, returning to teaching after having been injured in an automobile accident, found that her Academic Bowl team became her answer to finding confidence and success. What she did not know, at least at first, was that her team knew more than she did the answer to why they had been chosen.

The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor

When Alyss Heart, newly orphaned heir to the Wonderland throne, flees through the Pool of Tears to escape her murderous Aunt Redd, she finds herself lost and alone in Victorian London. Befriended by an aspiring author named Lewis Carrol, Alyss tells the violent, heartbreaking story of her young life. Alyss trusts this author to tell the truth so that someone, somewhere will find her and bring her home. But he gets the story all wrong. He even spells her name incorrectly!

Fortunately, Royal Bodyguard Hatter Madigan knows all too well the awful truth of Alyss' story - and he's searching every corner of our world to find the lost princess and return her to Wonderland, to battle Redd for her rightful place as the Queen of Hearts.

Misty by Marguerite Henry

"You'll never catch the Phantom," says Grandpa. "That horse is fast as the wind. She's escaped from every roundup on the island!" But Paul and Maureen want the beautiful wild mare for their very own. "I'm going to capture her myself," says Paul.

When Paul finally overtakes the Phantom, he makes a surprising discovery. Running at her side is a brand-new, silvery-gray colt - Misty!

East by Edith Pattou

Rose has always been different.

Since the day she was born, it was clear she had a special fate. Her superstitious mother keeps the unusual circumstances of Rose's birth a secret, hoping to prevent her adventurous daughter from leaving home... but she can't suppress Rose's true nature forever.

So when an enormous white bear shows up one cold autumn evening and asks teenage Rose to come away with it--in exchange for health and prosperity for her ailing family--she readily agrees.

Rose travels on the bear's broad back to a distant and empty castle, where she is nightly joined by a mysterious stranger. In discovering his identity, she loses her heart-- and finds her purpose--and realizes her journey has only just begun.

The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman

The girl known only as Brat has no family, no home, and no future until she meets Jane the Midwife and becomes her apprentice. As she helps the sharp-tempered Jane deliver babies, Brat--who renames herself Alyce--gains knowledge, confidence, and the courage to want something from life: "A full belly, a contented heart, and a place in this world." Medieval village life makes a lively backdrop for the funny, poignant story of how Alyce gets what she wants.

Circle of Magic by Tamora Pierce

With her gift of weaving silk thread and creating light, Sandry is brought to the Winding Circle community. There she meets Briar, a former thief who has a way with plants; Daja, an outcast gifted at metalcraft; and Tris, whose connection with the weather unsettles everyone, including herself. At Winding Circle, the four misfits are taught how to use their magic - and to trust one another. But then disaster strikes their new home. Can Sandry weave together four kinds of magical power and save herself, her friends, and the one place where they've ever been accepted?

Catherine, Called Birdy by Karen Cushman

Catherine feels trapped. Her father is determined to marry her off to a rich man--any rich man, no matter how awful.

But by wit, trickery, and luck, Catherine manages to send several would-be husbands packing. Then a shaggy-bearded suitor from the north comes to call--by far the oldest, ugliest, most revolting suitor of them all.

Unfortunately, he is also the richest.

Can a sharp-tongued, high-spirited, clever young maiden with a mind of her own actually lose the battle against an ill-mannered, piglike lord and an unimaginative, greedy toad of a father?

Deus! Not if Catherine has anything to say about it!

[ts19009]

Hong's Anatomy: Part 1

Pediatrician surgeon!  Joshua x pediatric surgeon!  Female Reader 

Synopsis: Coming to Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital wasn’t on your bucket list, that’s for sure, but when you meet the head of your department, Joshua Hong, it's one of the only things that constantly brightens your day. 

Warnings: swearing, made up medical terms and procedures, i have no idea if any of this is medically accurate it’s just for story, flirting, no smut…yet?

Words: 3.5k (not quite 5k words, but I had to end this part like this)

NOT EDITED, SO I MAY GO BACK AND EDIT LATER (teehee)

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“Julia Harring, fifteen years old, kidney failure. Waited six months on the donor list and today is finally the day,” Surgical intern Jonah read, as Julia nodded.  

“Why do both of you have to work on me? I thought it was only one big fancy surgeon per patient?” Julia asked, referring to both you and Joshua. You chuckled and checked her monitor to record her stats. 

“This is a bigger surgery Julia. You should be grateful that Doctor Hong and I are both making sure that your transplant goes well.” Julia rolls her eyes and smiles. 

“I have to go see another patient, but I’ll see you in the OR,” Joshua smiles, as you nod and Julia waves, before making his way down the hall. 

Julia smiles and looks at you from the corner of her eye, “he’s hot.” 

“You think so?” You joke back, as she nods. “Doctor Hong is quite popular here, so I’m sure you aren’t the only one that thinks that.” 

“Including you?” 

You pause in the middle of changing her I.V to look around the room. Luckily there was no one, but if anyone did here, it would be incredibly embarrassing. 

“I think Doctor Hong is a lovely person and an incredible surgeon, I haven’t paid attention to his appearance,” you state resuming changing the I.V as she scoffs. 

“Please, you were both making eyes at each other the whole time. Don’t tell me you don't like even thinking of becoming a thing with him?” Julia said, lifting her arm both for the I.V and to shrug. 

“I don’t have time to make it a ‘thing’ with Doctor Hong Julia. If I was a ‘thing’ with Doctor Hong, I wouldn't have time to help you,” you say inserting the I.V causing Julia to wince. “Don’t touch the I.V for a bit, I’ll get someone to catch up with you right before the surgery.” Julia nodded, as you left the room and asked Green to check up on Julia’s vitals before the surgery and report to you before your pager went off to go down to the pit. 

“What’s going on?” You asked, watching a whole bunch of people benign wheeled across the pit and placed in the rooms. 

“School bus accident, dozens of kids were injured,” Joshua exclaimed rushing to room one, “go to room five.” 

You nodded and put on a fresh pair of gloves before making your way into room 5. “What’s their case?” 

“Mikayla Thurthey, nine years old. Broken arm, broken rib, punctured lung. If we move the fractured rib or anything on the right side the lung starts leaking and fluid can flood the lung,” Mingyu said, working busily around the room. 

“Shit,” you muttered under your breath, watching the little girl in front of you crying. “Can we get an OR?” We need to fix the arm and fix the lung right now?” Mingyu nodded, and started wheeling Mikayla down the hall to the elevator. While you were running down the hall, you saw Joshua giving a boy CPR and pulling out a crash cart. 

“Clear!”

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“Okay, can you work on the lung. I can do the arm?” Mingyu asked, as you nodded and started washing your hands. 

“How many more kids were like this?” You asked quietly. Slightly terrified of the answer. 

“Just two. Mikayela and Justin, the boy Josua was working on. The rest were hurt, but with a few broken arms and legs or whiplash. These two were at the back and got the grunt of the force from the accident.” You nodded, and took a deep breath.

“Let’s do this,” you said, as you both headed into the OR. 

Once you had gotten to the lung you noticed the puncture and started thinking about what to do. You moved quickly and removed the debris and instructed Green to keep consistent suction on the site to prevent the fluid from flooding the lung while you started working on repairing the site. 

“More suction Green,” you calmly asked, as Green got closer into the site. “Mingyu?” 

“Yeah?” He asked, not looking up. 

“She’s hypotensive, can you back off the arm from a second,” you said, as Mingyu backed away from her arm and looked over to see you working on trying to steady her episode. 

“Green? What do you do when someone is hypotensive?” You asked, as Green paused for a moment, but quickly responded. 

“Ensure effective manual ventilation of the lungs,” He responded confidently. 

“Yes, but she’s already on ventilation, and it’s not helping,” you challenged. 

“I don’t know then,” he confessed as you nodded. 

“That’s okay, we’re going to get you to not only suction but also apply some air pressure on the site to make sure that it’s getting ventilated properly. It’s okay that you don’t know, this doesn’t happen very often,” you reassured him, as he nodded and started applying the pressure. A few moments later, her vitals went back to normal and Mingyu resumed working on her broken arm again. 

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After the surgery, you were given a lunch break, so you decided to eat outside in the ‘greenhouse’ section of the hospital. Once you got there you saw Joshua sitting on the bench you’ve claimed, crying. 

“Joshua?” You asked, slowly approaching him. He quickly spun around and wiped his tears away. 

“Oh. Hi, sorry,” he started, “I was just leaving.” 

“No, please don’t go,” you reached out, “are you okay?” 

You assumed it was because of the boy, Justin, was the reason Joshua was crying, but you wanted him to tell you. 

“I should be better with losses. I’ve had a ton of them,” he sighed, “but Justin was so scared when he was awake, he kept asking for his dad and asking me if his friend Mike was okay.” You empathetically nodded and placed a hand on his shoulder as he started to cry more. 

“You did everything you could,” you tried to reassure him. 

“I know I did. I always try my very best and it wasn’t enough. He died scared and alone,” he sobbed. “He didn’t die alone,” you interrupted. 

“You were there with him, Rose was with him, there were people who cared about him when he died. He wasn’t alone.” Joshua took a deep breath, trying to calm down his breathing, and nodded. 

“How did your surgery go?” He managed to stay in stuttering breaths. 

“It went well. Managed to fix her punctured lung and broken arm and I had a teaching moment with Green,” you said, as Joshua wiped his nose and nodded. 

“That’s good.”

You both sat in comfortable silence watching the clouds move above your heads, before his pager went off. 

“I have to go check on Julia. Her surgery is right after your lunch, so I’m gonna go make sure everything is okay,” he said, wiping his nose one last time and standing up, wiping his hands on his pants. 

“Okay, I’ll be there right when I’m done,” you smiled, as he nodded and started to head in before pausing. 

“Thanks for letting me talk and comforting me like that. I’m supposed to do that for you.” 

“We can treat it like a currency, I’ll comfort you, if you comfort me later?” You joked, as he chuckled, and looked down at the grass. 

“So I’m in debt, great. Haven’t dealt with that in a while,” he joked back before heading inside. Leaving you alone to think about the vulnerable moment you just shared. 

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“Doctor L/N?” Joshua asked, coming up to wash his hands right next to you. 

“Doctor Hong?” 

“Would you mind keeping our interaction, more specifically the… crying aspect of the conversation, private?” He whispered, as you nodded and shut off the water. 

“Of course. I expect none the less when it comes my turn,” you said as he turned to see you and smiled, before putting on his mask.

“Let's go save a life.”

You nodded and walked into the OR to see some nurses you've never worked with before. Jennie, Yuna, and Jake, and a new anesthesiologist Jay. 

“Hello everyone, let’s save this girl's life,” you said, as everyone nodded in agreement and started getting to work. Joshua made the first incision while you made sure the bleeding was controlled and moved a few organ’s around. Jonah had just gone to receive the kidney, since it was very delicate and had to be handled carefully and in a timely manner. 

After about thirty minutes of Joshua making sure everything was okay, you started to make an incision on the lower abdomen to make room for the new one when Jonah came into the room with the new kidney. 

Joshua took the kidney and slowly took it out while you back up a bit to let Joshua fit it in the new cavity. He placed it in when all the sudden the monitor started beeping rapidly. 

“What’s happening?” Joshua asked, trying to not move too quickly and damage the kidney. 

“She’s clotting and bleeding out!” You said, grabbing the suction and trying to clean up the pool forming. “Push Coumadin and get me some rag’s please!” You instructed Yuna and Jennie as they nodded while Jay worked on adding the Coumadin. “Put the kidney back, it’s gonna be a bit.” Joshua nodded and carefully put the kidney back and started moving to stitch up the bleeding. 

You waited a few moments for the blood thinners to kick in but they weren’t working quick enough. 

“Push more Jay!” You exclaimed, as Jay nodded and added more. Finally her blood started to thin out and her vitals were getting better. Joshua quickly finished up the stitches and picked up the kidney again placing it in the cavity and working on attaching it properly. 

Right before closing Julia up you noticed some of her numbers weren’t looking quite right and didn’t want to stitch her up with unbalanced numbers.

“Can we test the kidney before we close?” You asked Joshua, as he nodded. You watched it, waiting for the color to appear into the kidney, which normally took up to two minutes after being placed in the body. 

“Shit.” Joshua said, looking up at the clock. It had been about four minutes and the kidney was starting to look gray, instead of coloring. “It’s dying!”   

“We’ve opened up a spot for her though,” you mumbled, trying to think of a solution when all the sudden the machines started beeping.

“She’s crashing!” Rose said, as everyone started running around. 

“We did everything right! What’s going on?” Joshua confessed as you heard the machine flatline. “Shit, get the crash cart!” 

You started compressions, and whipped your head to look at Joshua who was looking at her vitals wondering what was going wrong in the surgery, wile Rose handed you the paddles.

“Charge to 300. Clear!” You said, as Juila convulsed, but no heartbeat. 

“Clear!”

350, “Clear!” 

400, “Clear!”

“Charge to 450,” you exclaimed as Joshua sighed and looked at you trying desperately to save Julia. 

“Y/N,” he muttered, “she’s gone,” he said. Trying to pry you from her body. 

“No, she was in here for a kidney transplant, not a heart failure!” You cried, looking around the room to see everyone with their head down. 

“Time of death, 17:21.” Joshua said, breaking the silence. You looked to Joshua to see him covering the incision and started to feel sick. 

“Can you close alone, Doctor Hong?” You asked, as Joshua nodded. You quickly took off your mask and gloves and darted out of the OR.

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

“Y/N?” Joshua asked, walking up to you at the Ped’s desk. You were looking over Julia’s charts again. 

“I don’t get it. She was fine, they wouldn’t have given her the kidney if she wasn’t fine, why did her heart just stop like that? The blood thinners don’t stop your heart like that, it must have been something else,” you exclaim, not looking up from your tablet. 

“You’ve been here for a long time, you need to go home. You can do some more research when you get back,” Joshua pleaded, trying to take the tablet from you. 

“Joshua…” 

“No, Y/N. You had two long surgeries, you’ve been here for twelve hours. You legally have to go home now,” he chuckled, but you could tell he was serious. Technically, he was your boss. So you listened and slowly put the tablet down. 

“Julia was my first loss. I’ve been here for almost a month and she was my first loss,” you quietly confess. Joshua wouldn’t have heard it if he wasn’t facing you.

“You’re very lucky you’ve gone this long without a loss,” he answered. 

“I know. My last job, I lost two kids on the first day, but it doesn’t make this loss any easier.” 

“Of course,” he said, “the hard part about this job, right?”

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

Letting the loved ones know that they just lost their person is always the hardest part and unfortunately, that was Joshua’s job today. Julia’s parents were in the waiting room and her father was pacing around the room. 

This was also the hardest part of the job. 

“Excuse me, Mr. and Mrs. Harring?” Joshua asked the couple as they both nodded and stood up. 

“Is Julia out yet?” Her mother asked. 

“There was an unfortunate complication during Julais’ surgery. We were performing her transplant when her heart suddenly stopped beating,” Joshua explained, “we tried everything we could, but we couldn’t save her. She unfortunately passed away.” 

Julia’s mother covered her mouth whilst letting out a sob, and her father furrowed his eyebrows in confusion and held his wife. 

“What? I thought she was in there for her kidney? How did her heart stop?” Her father asked, tears also running down his face. 

“We aren’t sure, the operation was going extremely successful. Neither I, nor Doctor L/N could figure out why. We tried everything we could though to try and start her heart again,” Joshua explained again, as her mother turned around and buried her face into her husband's shoulder, crying even harder. 

“I’m so sorry for your loss.” 

“Thank you Doctor,” her father choked out, before turning and burning his face into his wife's hair and crying as well. 

Joshua waited for a few seconds before heading back to the desk. He sighed, and ran a hand through his hair before grabbing his tablet and started filling out paperwork. 

He had lost two patients that day. He was also ready to go home. 

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“So, how’s your new job Y/N?” Your therapist asked. 

You had been going to the same therapist ever since you graduated college. She was a lovely woman that you met when you lived back in South Korea. She really helped you during your internship and residency. You managed to keep in close contact with her even after you moved. 

You sighed into the phone and took a sip of wine. 

“It’s going well, I really like my coworkers. I’m still getting used to it and I haven’t made any real friends,” you confess. 

“Why haven’t you made any friends?” She asked, you could hear her typing away on her laptop. 

“Well at first I was just trying to keep up with the pace of the hospital. Then I was trying to just be liked by everyone. I never took time to get to know anyone,” you said, “I did ask someone out.” 

“Oh! That’s good. Tell me about them,” she exclaimed. 

“He’s technically my boss? Kinda, he’s the head of the Ped’s department, so we work together quite a bit. On my first day he asked me out, then the next day I asked him out, but we haven’t hung out since.” 

“Are you wanting anything romantic out of him?” You sighed, and took a minute to think about the question. Not quite sure if you knew the answer. 

“I don’t know. I mean he is very attractive and we do have pretty good chemistry,” you blush, “but again, we work together. So it’s complicated.” 

“That doesn’t sound like a no.” 

“Jisoo,” you warn, “it’s not a no, but I don’t want to rush into anything.” 

“That’s perfectly valid, but you’re all alone in a big city. Romantic intentions or not, you should still try and spend some more time with him,” she said, as you sighed. There was only a few minutes left in your session, so you both called it a night and promised to call again next month. Something you weren’t expecting from Jisoo though, was homework. 

Make one close friend by next month. 

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You were always the type of person to do your homework immediately. Assigned all the semester's course work? It was done by the end of the month. So when you got homework from Jisoo, you wanted to get it done immediately. Which meant that you needed to get started immediately. 

Joshua wasn’t coming in until halfway through your shift, so that meant that you had half a day to come up with ideas of how to befriend others. 

“Why the long face?” Jeonghan asked. You never really see him in the Ped’s department, so seeing him was a surprise. Now was the time to try and make a new friend.

“I was just thinking how it’s a friday and that I don’t have any plans after work,” you confessed, “do you want to go for dinner after work?” 

“Dinner?” He asked, you could tell he was quite taken aback, but he had a smirk on his face. “I’d love to.” 

“Great. I get off at seven, but I’d like to go home and freshen up,” you said, as Jeonghan nodded. You both exchanged numbers and agreed that he’d pick you up from your apartment at eight, and go out to dinner. 

Good progress toward your homework. 

“See you at eight,” he smirked, before heading into one of his patients' rooms. 

“Did you just score a date with Doctor Yoon?” Jake asked, as you turned around and tried to hide your blush. 

“Maybe, he didn’t call it a date,” you replied. Jake rolled his eyes.  

“I heard that whole conversation. It’s a date Y/N.” 

“What’s a date?” You heard behind you. More specifically, Joshua’s voice. 

Shit.

“Y/N is going on a date with Doctor Yoon,” Jake answered. You looked to Joshua to see a little look of surprise on his face. 

“It’s not a date, I’m just trying to make some friends,” you mumbled, “and Doctor Yoon seems like a good friend.” 

“He is a very good friend, I would know. He’s my best friend,” Joshua said, putting his hands in his pants pockets and crossing his legs. 

Shit. Again. 

You just set up a date with your boss/kinda crushes best friend.

A/N: OMG, this was quite the chapter. I had a lot of fun learning/ making up some medical procedures. I tried my best to be as medically accurate as possible, but google can only tell you so much. Also, Jeonghan has been added into the arena! I love the banter that Joshua and Jeonghan have and I just new that I had to have his smirky/sassy attitude! I really do hope you like this ♥

taglist: @asasilentreader , @myjaeyunn

[worth-the-chaos]

Adventures in Babysitting - Steve Harrington x female!reader - Chapter 10

Chapter Summary: The Russian invasion and the upside down begin to merge as you meet up with the rest of the crew. You are in the fight of your lives as you scramble to try to stop the monstrous creature from the upside down before it destroys you.

Content Warning: violence, upside down, swearing

Word Count: 5.8k

Author’s Note: I hope you enjoy this chapter. Right now I can’t decide if I should start on season 4 or if it would maybe be best to pick up the story after season 5 drops since it ended on such a cliffhanger. Let me know what you think!

Series Masterlist | Chapter 9 | Next Part

***

The five of you exited the bathroom quietly, merging with the crowd leaving the movie to blend in, hoping that no Russians would find you. Your eyes darted around, scanning for any potential threat as you made your way through the crowd. There were so many people, you were beginning to feel claustrophobic. Suddenly, you felt a hand grab your arm, and your heart jumped to your throat as you turned around and prepared for the worst.

You were met with the concerned eyes of a stranger. You recognized him from somewhere, but right now you couldn’t quite place it. You wriggled free from his grasp as he opened his mouth to speak.

“Hey, are you okay? What happened to you?”

“Oh, I’m fine…yeah, I-I just got into a bit of a…car accident a couple of days ago—while I was out of town!” You quickly added at the end. Hawkins was a small enough town that any car accidents would certainly be reported. He looked skeptical and opened his mouth to speak again, but you quickly cut him off, “I really have to be going now.”

Without another word, you slipped through the crowd, putting more distance between yourself and the boy while you tried to connect the dots to figure out where you knew him from. It finally dawned on you as your mind flashed back to the Hellfire Club shirt he was wearing under his leather jacket. It was Eddie Munson. You never got the chance to really talk to him at school, mainly knowing him via the rumors that circulated around about him being bad news.

“Y/n! Where were you?” Steve whisper-shouted as you finally made your way next to him. His mind had flashed to the worst case scenario when you were no longer beside him, and he was ready to fight tooth and nail to find you.

“I just fell behind a little bit…sue me,” you rolled your eyes, trying to stay casual. You didn’t want to tell him about how Eddie had noticed that you were injured. The more low-profile you stayed right now, the better.

“Alright, we just need to get on the bus with the rest of these people, and home sweet home, here we come,” Dustin spoke up. No sooner had he said the words did you recall a very important detail from your conversation with the Russians.

“Uh, Dustin?” You spoke up hesitantly, “yeah, we might not wanna go to your house.”

“Why?”

“Well, I might’ve told them your full name,” Steve spoke up sheepishly. He felt really guilty about it, but he couldn’t really go back and undo it.

“What is wrong with you?!” Dustin seethed, exasperated with the idiot that his babysitter was somehow in love with against all odds.

“Dude, I was drugged.”

“So? You resist! You tough it out like a man!”

“Oh yeah, that’s easy for you to say,” you rolled your eyes as you came to Steve’s defense. You were in the same position that he had been in and you knew for a fact that you had “toughed it out” and it didn’t make a damn difference with that shit in your system.

“Guys,” Robin spoke up hesitantly. You noticed men dressed in black, checking bags as people left the mall. You immediately could tell that they weren’t some low level mall security guys…these were Russians. One of them turned and made direct eye contact with you and your heart began to race again, mind flashing back to what it was like to be tied up in that underground facility.

“Abort! Abort!” Dustin yelled as you all turned to run the other way. You darted to the escalator, hopping up on the divider between the two and sliding down to the lower level. As you entered the food court, you jumped the counter to one of the various food stands, gesturing for your friends to join you.

“Come on!” You shouted. They swiftly moved behind the counter and the five of you sat with your backs to it as you listened to the footsteps of the Russian guards. Steve’s hand gently began to interlock with yours and you held on tightly, trying to ease the panic that was settling in your chest.

“Y/n, we’re gonna be okay—I’m gonna make sure of it,” he leaned in, his lips brushing against your ear as he whispered ever so quietly. You turned towards him, fear in your eyes as you whispered back.

“I don’t know what to do Steve. It’s not like they’re going to give up,” you started, “they’ll leave when we’re dead.”

Your suspicions seemed to be confirmed as you heard footsteps approaching. It sounded like there was more than one of them, indicating to you that they had found your hiding spot. Your breathing picked up as you braced yourself for the worst. The footsteps stopped and a silence fell across the mall. You squeezed your eyes shut as a single tear ran down your cheek.

Suddenly, a car alarm began blaring loudly, causing you to nearly jump out of your skin. You heard the sound of metal being crushed, and you imagined the car flipping as you felt the ground reverberate with each thud of the vehicle against the tiled food court floor. Slowly, but surely, the five of you peaked out over the counter, taking in the sight of the four Russian guards, presumably dead on the floor.

You looked around, taking in the sight of the crashed car before your eyes finally caught sight of Eleven on the railing. The rest of the kids were with her, as well as Nancy and Jonathan. The seven of them ran down the escalator, meeting you in the middle of the mall.

“What are you doing here?!” Lucas yelled at Erica and you cringed knowing it was on you for putting the Sinclair girl in harm’s way.

“Ask them, it’s their fault!” She pointed at you and Steve.

“True, yeah. Totally true; absolutely our fault,” Steve quickly fessed up, not wanting it to turn into a huge argument.

“I don’t understand what happened to that car,” Robin interjected, her eyes wide as she tried and failed to understand the physics of it all.

“El has superpowers,” Dustin answered simply.

“I’m sorry?” Robin responded, clearly dumbfounded by the boy’s explanation. This was the first time in a while that you realized how ridiculous everything that you had went through in the past two years sounded.

“Superpowers. She threw it with her mind. C’mon, catch up,” Steve rolled his eyes.

“I’m sorry, who are you?” Nancy asked looking at Robin.

“I’m Robin. I work with Steve and y/n.”

“She cracked the top secret code,” you chimed in.

“Yeah, which is how we found out about the Russians,” Steve continued.

“Russians? What Russians?” Jonathan asked confused.

“The Russians!” Steve shouted back.

“Those were Russians?” Max spoke up. Clearly you had all be dealing with different shit and after several miscommunications later, you were still trying to catch everyone up on the latest dangers pervading Hawkins. Suddenly, El collapsed to the floor, quickly ending your very confused conversation as Mike ran over to her followed by the rest of you.

“El! What’s wrong?!” He asked.

“My leg. My leg,” she whimpered, as tears began to run from her eyes. Her face was twisted in pain and your heart ached for her. Nancy unwrapped her wound and you all realized that there was something in her leg, watching as it writhed and slithered underneath her very infected looking skin. She began screaming out in pain and Mike continued to talk to her, desperately worried for his girlfriend.

“Keep her talking, keep her awake, okay?” You looked at everyone before darting off to a storefront in the food court. You pulled several drawers open, desperately looking for anything you could use to remove whatever that thing was crawling in the poor girls leg. You finally gathered a knife, a wooden spoon, and gloves, turning on a burner to the stove and sterilizing the kitchen knife in the flame.

You sprinted back over to the group, who had repositioned El, propping her up. “Okay. Alright, El? This is gonna hurt like hell, okay?” You spoke to her softly.

“Okay,” she gasped in pain.

“I need you to stay very still for me. You’re gonna want to bite down on this,” you handed Mike the wooden spoon and he placed it gently in her mouth, her teeth already biting down on the handle as she cried in pain. Everyone was terrified, and your heart was beating wildly. You didn’t know what the hell you were doing, but given all the weird ass shit you’d been through, you knew you had to get whatever the hell it was win her leg out.

You pressed the knife to her shin, drawing it downwards to make an incision, wincing greatly as she cried out in pain. “I’m so sorry, El,” you breathed out, taking your gloved hand and sinking it into the incision. El screamed out while everyone else exclaimed in disgust. Your eyes started watering and tears began to cloud your vision as you attempted to feel for the thing writhing under her skin but to no such avail.

“No! Stop it!” Eleven dropped the spoon and began yelling at you. You quickly pulled your hand away and scooted back. “I can do it.”

Your heart broke at how pained her voice sounded, and she held up her hand above the broken skin. The slug came back to life as it began to slither across the side of her calf, moving closer towards the incision. She screamed and the storefront windows behind you shattered. Steve and Robin backed up as you darted forward, shielding kids’ heads from the glass raining down.

Eleven finally pulled the creature out of her leg and the sight of it made you immediately nauseous. It looked like a mess of bone and flesh and blood, and she tossed it across the mall from you. It began to skitter away before being quickly smashed under the shoe of the one and only Jim Hopper.

While everybody stared at Jim and Joyce and Murray, you rushed to El’s side, pulling her into a tight hug and cradling her head. She cried in exhaustion as she held onto you. “Shhhh, it’s okay; everything’s going to be okay,” you whispered into her hair, trying to calm her down. You were crying too, tears silently falling down your face as you rubbed soothing circles across her back.

By the looks of it, the three adults had experienced some shit too, and you were afraid of what they had to say as they approached the rest of you.

How much more complicated could all this shit get?

***

After about fifteen minutes of explaining, you were all on at least slightly the same page. It was difficult to wrap your head around it all. It was difficult to imagine all of the people that Hawkins had just quietly lost, disappearing over a matter of days.

“Okay, so, just to be clear, this…big fleshy monster thing that hurt El, it’s some kind of gigantic…weapon?” Steve asked, feeling the need to clarify what he had heard.

“Yes,” Nancy answered. Knowing that her and Steve dated often made you feel small in her presence. Especially since things hadn’t ended quite amicably between them.

“But instead of, like, screws and metal, the mind flayer made its weapon…out of melted people.

“Yes, exactly,” Nancy replied again, her tone indicating that she was a bit tired with his clarifying questions.

“Yeah, okay, just making sure.”

“Are we sure this thing is still out there? Still alive?” Joyce asked. You were grateful the adults were here. Something told you that if you tried to tell any other grown ups about all this messed up shit, no one would believe you. You were glad you at least had the chief of police and probably the most badass mom in all of Hawkins on your side.

“El beat the shit out of it, but yeah, it’s still alive,” Max confirmed.

“But if we close the gate again—“ Will spoke up.

“We cut the brain off from the body, and we kill it…theoretically,” Lucas finished his thought. Hopper looked hesitant and you felt the same way. It seemed like all of you kept going through all of this shit just for it to come back. You were damn tired of it coming back.

“Yoo-hoo! Yoo-hoo!” Murray Bauman’s voice rang out, cutting off your doomsday thinking. He frantically waved papers in the air and pulled Hopper and Joyce aside to explain the maps he’d drawn up of the Russian facility. You hovered behind him, noticing how crudely drawn they were, knowing that his estimates were far off.

“…I don’t know the scale on this, but I think it’s fairly close to the vault room…maybe fifty feet or so,” Murray finished explaining the location of the gate. You scoffed trying to bite back a chuckle at how grossly he’d miscalculated.

“More like five hundred,” Erica chimed in, “What, you’re just gonna waltz in there like it’s commie Disneyland or something?”

“I’m sorry, who are you?” Murray spat at the young girl. Geez, he could use some lessons in babysitting, you thought as you rolled your eyes at his condescension.

“Erica Sinclair. Who are you?” She shot back and you couldn’t help but smile. Sometimes her sass really did pay off…so long as it wasn’t directed at you.

“Murray…Bauman,” he answered, his voice trailing off as he wondered why he was even entertaining her question.

“Listen Mr. Bunman, I’m not trying to tell you how to do things, but I’ve been down in that shit hole for twenty four hours. And with all due respect, you do what this man tells you, you’re all gonna die.”

“I’m sorry, why is this four-year-old speaking to me?”

“Um, I’m ten, you bald bastard,” Erica shot back. You grabbed her shoulders to settle her down.

“Erica!” Lucas scolded.

“Just the facts!” She defended herself.

“She’s right. You’re all gonna die, but you don’t have to. Sorry, may I?” Dustin asked as he sat down with the map. “It’s a bit of a maze down there but between me and Erica, we can show you the way.”

“You can show us the way?” Hopper asked incredulously.

“Don’t worry, you can do all the fighting and dangerous hero shit, and we’ll just be your…navigators,” Dustin assured the man. You couldn’t believe that was even a genuine suggestion the boy had, as you pushed past Hopper, slamming your hands down on the table causing Dustin to jump.

“No way in hell. Literally over my dead body,” you shouted, “what the fuck has gotten into you? I can’t believe you would just—”

Hopper quickly cut you off, putting his hands on your shoulders. “Cool it, okay?” He reminded you before turning to Dustin. “She’s right though. Absolutely no way in hell.”

Hopper moved to start gathering materials and you moved to join Steve as he sat on the countertop of one of the restaurants. “This is all pretty batshit crazy,” you spoke up, hugging your knees to your chest.

“It really is,” he sighed looking around at everyone prepping for the worst. “I mean, I just don’t know how we keep getting ourselves into all this shit, you know?”

“I think we just care too much,” you answered laughing. He chuckled back and there was a pause, both of your minds elsewhere as you tried to process all the shit that was inevitably about to go down.

“Hey,” you spoke up again. He looked up at you and you took in the sight of his bruised eye and his busted lip. “Did you mean it?”

“Mean what?”

“What you said earlier…did you really mean it?” You held your breath as his lips turned up into a small smirk.

“Every word,” he responded simply. When you didn’t really smile in return, he was quick to speak up, sliding towards you as he grabbed your hand. “Y/n, what’s wrong?”

“I just…I-I don’t wanna be another one of your girls,” you repeated the sentiment from your fight earlier, but this time it wasn’t accompanied by seething rage. Instead, it was born of pain and fear. Fear that you weren’t enough for him. Fear that he would leave you. Steve’s heart sank and he wished that he could go back and erase his mistakes, but he couldn’t. What he could do was fix them though.

“Y/n, you’re not just ‘another one of my girls.’ I wish you would understand that,” he started, looking you in the eyes with so much sincerity that you felt compelled to look away, but you didn’t. “You are the girl y/n. I don’t want any of those other girls….I mean, why would I when I have the perfect one right in front of me?”

“But, that’s the thing…I’m not perfect,” you countered as you began to tear up. “I yell at you all the time, and-and I get you into these fucked up situations, not to mention the amount of times you’ve gotten the shit beat out of you so that I don’t get the shit beat out of me, and I’m not pretty like the other girls you talk to and—“

“Woah, woah, woah! Y/n, are you kidding me? You’re fucking gorgeous! Those other girls don’t even come close to how amazing you are. And there’s no one I’d rather get the shit kicked out of me for than you, okay? I need you to understand that,” Steve pleaded. You leaned into him, wrapping your arms around his neck as you held him close. He placed a kiss to your temple, and you held onto each other like that until Hopper came up to the two of you, speaking suddenly and causing you to jump.

“Hey, here,” he said tossing a set of keys that Steve barely caught in time, “I need you to take the kid to his dumbass radio or whatever.”

“Of course, yeah we can do that,” Steve replied hopping off the counter as he reached a hand out to help you down.

“Good…and you two—you’re, uh, being safe, right?” Hopper suddenly asked. You looked at him quizzically, unsure what his line of questioning was getting at before he added, “you know, we don’t need any more kids running around here complicating shit.”

You felt your entire face heat up as you caught on to what he was implying before Steve quickly spoke up, “No—I mean, yes! Wait, no. It’s just, we’re not…we’re not you know—“

“We’re not engaging in any activities that would add to the population,” you answered for Steve, rolling your eyes at Hopper’s intrusive question as you added, “so you don’t have anything to worry about in that department.”

The look Hopper gave you told you that he wasn’t buying what you were selling, and you rolled your eyes again, pulling Steve behind you as you grabbed Robin, Erica, and Dustin, heading out to the parking lot. When Steve saw the car he would be driving, his face lit up and suddenly he didn’t mind being on babysitting duty anymore.

“Oh, man, now this…this is what I’m talkin’ about!”

“‘Toddfather’?” You read the license plate, thinking about how stupid men were.

“Oh, screw Todd! Steve’s her daddy now!” The boy exclaimed as he hopped in the driver’s seat.

“Did you just talk about yourself in the third person?” You asked incredulously.

“Did he just call himself daddy?” Robin added, her question focusing on the more outrageous aspect of Steve’s statement. Steve ignored both of you as he peeled out of the parking lot, chuckling as he honked the horn a couple of times.

“This isn’t a joyride! We’re trying to be inconspicuous here!” You reminded him, a scowl etched on his face.

“Sorry,” he replied but he couldn’t quite wipe the smile off of his face. He thought about how perfect this moment would be if the world wasn’t basically ending…and there weren’t three other people in the car. Just him and the girl of his dreams in a fancy ass convertible, driving as if they had all the time in the world.

Time passed and the glee that Steve was once filled with dissipated, as he continued down the same road for what felt like forever.

“How far away is this place?” He asked Dustin, frustrated and hoping that the boy was relaying the right directions.

“Relax, we’re almost there.”

“This Suzie girl must be pretty special if you lugged this thing all the way out here just to talk to her,” you spoke up, turning around as you smiled at the boy behind you. The young love was pretty cute, you had to admit…even if Henderson was a pain in the ass.

“I mean, nobody’s scientifically perfect, but Suzie’s about as close to being perfect as is humanly possible,” Dustin smiled back at you as he explained.

“She sound made up to me. She sound made up to you?” Erica chimed in, unable to believe the fact that the annoying boy to her left could possibly have pulled a girl as perfect as he was describing. No one said anything, and Dustin’s face twisted into a frown as he looked to Steve.

“Why are you hesitating, Steve?”

“I’m—I’m—I’m not! I’m not! I think she sounds real. You know, totally, absolutely real,” Steve spoke up.

“Left! Turn left!” Dustin suddenly yelled out.

“There’s not a road here?” You replied, turning in your seat to look back at the boy.

“Turn left now!”

Steve cut the wheel hard and you slid in your seat, grateful for the seatbelt holding you in place as you shrieked and Steve began ascending the unpaved hill. The ride was bumpy and as gravity began to work against you, you could feel the car beginning to struggle.

“We’re not going to make it!” You shouted at Steve.

“Yes we are! Come on, baby, come on!” The car stopped as its wheels spun. Steve kept revving the engine, but to no avail.

“Guess the Toddfather has its limitations,” Robin spoke up from the backseat. Steve scowled, putting the car in park as you all got out, walking the rest of the way to Dustin’s radio.

As Dustin gave Murray directions, things were pretty boring for you, Steve, and Robin. You had been drugged during the time the kids were moving through the ducts, so you weren’t useful in navigating. So, you laid on your back staring up at the stars as you waited. Being so far away from Hawkins made them easier to see, and you took a deep breath as you reveled in the moment of calmness, trying to forget about the horrors you were facing, just for a minute.

Your moment of tranquility ended sooner than you had expected, as you heard Steve’s voice ring out. “Hey guys.”

You immediately shot up, joining him as he looked down the hill. You could see all of Hawkins from here and the lights on the mall were going ballistic. You all ran back towards the radio and Dustin screamed into the transmitter. “Griswold Family, this is Scoops Troop! Do you copy? Over!”

You heard a monstrous shriek over the radio as an inhuman scream ripped through the air around you. Dustin kept repeating his call over the radio but it was no use. They were in deep shit back at Starcourt.

Steve got up, sprinting away and you were right on his tail as Erica shouted at you. “Where are you going?!”

“To get them the hell outta there!” Steve shouted back.

“Stay here, contact the others!” You yelled, following Steve to the car.

“Stay in touch,” Robin tossed you a walkie talkie, letting you know that she’d keep the kids safe and far from danger as you hopped into the passenger seat. Steve took off down the hill and you gripped to anything you could hold onto as he drove recklessly back towards the mall.

“Steve, I’m scared,” you spoke up, gripping the armrest of your seat.

“I know, y/n. I am too,” he replied, “but if I know anything about the two of us—after all this shit we’ve been through—it’s that we’ve got this, okay? So we’re gonna get them and get the hell out.” You took a deep breath as he said it, nodding. You drove the rest of the way in silence, trying to control your breathing as you psyched yourself up for the hell you were about to face. Steve described it so simply, but you knew it wouldn’t be that easy.

Just as you were peeling into the parking lot, you saw the familiar sight of Billy’s car…speeding straight toward Nancy Wheeler. Steve pressed his foot to the floor, ramming into Billy’s car just in time to knock it off course and save Nancy from getting mowed down. You would definitely have whiplash the next day, but you decided it was very much worth it if it meant that Nancy was unharmed. You and Steve finally looked up, catching your first glimpse of the massive creature scaling the outside of the mall. It looked exactly like the shadow monster Will had drawn, except it was fleshy and bones stuck out at odd angles every which way.

“Get in!” Nancy shouted, as she pulled her car around and the two of you piled in the back. The monster leapt from the building, following as Nancy sped off out of the parking lot. Your heart raced and you buried your head in Steve’s neck as you grabbed onto him, not wanting to look at the creature anymore.

After getting a considerable distance away from the mall, hearing a weird ass musical number from Dustin and his girlfriend, who against all odds really did exist, you realized that the monster that had been following you had turned around.

“It’s turning around!” You yelled out.

“Maybe we wore it out?” Lucas suggested.

“I don’t think so,” Jonathan spoke up, quickly cutting the wheel and turning back towards the mall. Lucas passed all of you several fireworks and you split up, making your ways to different spots on the upper level.

When you got back into position, the flesh monster was standing right in front of El and Billy, reaching for her as you enacted your plan. You threw the first firework, it exploding in a spray of sparks as the creature shrieked, it exploding against its fleshy exterior.

It was really a sight to behold as the mall erupted into bright flashes of color. It was being hit from all sides, distracted from El, as it continued to get knocked from side to side.

“Hey asshole! Over here!” Steve yelled as he lit another firework and chucked it as far as he could. This is absolutely batshit fucking crazy, you thought as you threw another firework. As you threw them, you thought about all that you had been through. You thought about the young kids around you who had to grow up way too quickly. You thought about Will and Barb and Bob Newby and the horrors they had faced. You thought about all of the people that were killed to form the fleshy creature right before your eyes.

You thought about all that you had lost and you threw the fireworks with all your might.

Your stash was dwindling and as you lit another firework to throw it, Steve screamed over the walkie talkie. “Dustin! We’re out of time!”

“Hurry! Close it now!” You heard Dustin’s voice crackle through the receiver, letting the adults know that it was their time to shine. Steve threw your last firework, which went off in a fiery spray of multicolored sparks, before you realized that there were no more fireworks to be thrown.

You could see Billy standing in front of the massive monster, stoping one of its clawed arms as it reached out towards El. More bony arms appeared, slithering out of the creature as they darted forward stabbing into Billy’s side. You stared wide eyed, in shock and unable to look away. You began to hyperventilate, terror gripping every inch of your body as your legs began to give. Steve was quick to grab you before you fell, quickly pulling you to the floor as he sat, cradling the back of your head as he pulled your face into his neck.

“Don’t look, don’t look, don’t look,” he whispered to you and you could hear the terror in his voice as well, “I’m here, y/n. I’m here, okay?” He wanted to tell you that everything would be fine, but this time he wasn’t so sure. He glanced over at Billy as another arm darted forward, piercing through Billy’s chest. Steve quickly averted his eyes, wishing he had taken his own advice and hadn’t looked. Billy wasn’t coming back from that.

Max screamed out to her brother and you sobbed into Steve’s chest. Suddenly the creature began writhing, screeching and snarling in pain as it stumbled around the mall. It crashed into pillars and Steve was barely able to move you both out of the way as it careened into the railing right beside you. It thrashed a bit longer before finally falling to the ground with a resonating thud. You all gawked at it, and even though it sat in a heap on the floor, you couldn’t help but feel unease at the sight.

You didn’t get to stare at it for long before the army was bursting through the doors of the mall, guns a-blazin’ just as Steve had predicted. You all put your hands up to display that you weren’t a threat as the US soldiers escorted you out of the building. You all sat in the parking lot while they searched the facility, finally torching the mall once everyone was out. It was an elaborate cover up but you understood why it had to remain a secret.

Emergency vehicles soon showed up to attend to the fire and the wounded, and you and Steve sat side by side on a gurney. You weren’t really sure what to say. It didn’t feel like there was anything you could say in this moment. It felt like the world had ended and you were just so damn tired.

“I guess we’re gonna have to find new jobs now,” Steve finally sighed as he spoke up, smirking at you after his statement.

“Yeah….maybe ones with less obnoxious uniforms this time,” you smiled a sad smile back as you leaned into him. He threw his arm around you and it all felt so comfortable. You wished it could be under better circumstances.

After getting checked out by the EMTs on scene, your face was looking a lot better; no longer caked in dried blood. Miraculously, a soldier had located Steve’s car keys in the Russian base, and an EMT returned them to him as you sat there.

“That was quite the fire,” the EMT spoke up. You stared wide eyed and clueless for a second as you tried to gather your thoughts enough to play to the narrative that had been constructed.

“Uh, yeah…we were, um, we were really scared,” you breathed out, deciding it was better to focus on half truths at least. You never were the greatest liar.

“Yeah, I’m sure,” the EMT responded, flashing his light to check your eyes. He continued as he clicked it off, “I just don’t quite get how you both would have sustained injuries like this though. I mean, seems a bit odd considering none of the other kids showed up looking like this. And I guess I’m a bit put off by the fact that the US military is here. Hawkins is a safe town, seems a bit extreme for a mall fire.”

“I don’t know what to tell you, man. There was a fire and we got hurt. And I don’t really have a clue why the military is here; I’m just some dude working for minimum wage at a nautical themed ice cream parlor,” Steve spoke up, his tone very much indicating that he wasn’t going to give the EMT any more information.

“Whatever you say I guess. Anywho, you guys are good to go,” the EMT replied, dismissing you from the gurney. Steve and you walked over to his car, and he opened the passenger door for you and you went to get in, hesitating before you ducked down.

“Y/n? Are you okay?” Steve asked, his hand still on the door. You turned around quickly, staring up at him through your lashes. Your eyes met his and you just stared at each other for a while before you glanced down at his lips. He got the hint and began to lean in towards you, one hand going to the nape of your neck as the other wrapped around your waist to pull you closer.

Finally, his lips were on yours, and it was well worth the wait. Maybe you were two broken people who walked through hell and back, but right now it didn’t matter. All that mattered was the way he was kissing you like his life depended on it. You didn’t care about the way your lip was still split and bruised, reveling in the pain if it meant that you got to have him; if it meant that he could be yours.

Your lips moved with his in such a perfect harmony that you felt like you were dreaming. After a moment, he placed a few more gentle pecks against your lips before pulling away. Your lips chased his, desperately wanting more, but you opened your eyes to look up at him. Your heart caught in your throat at the expression on his face. You’d never seen him look at you like that before.

“Steve?”

He opened his mouth to speak but couldn’t seem to find the right words. How was he supposed to tell you that you were perfect? That you were the only thing really holding him together? That you were the reason that he woke up in the morning and showed up to that shitty job and the reason that he decided to stay in Hawkins instead of trying to move away from his shitty parents?

How was he supposed to tell you that you were his reason for being?

He didn’t think he would ever find the words, so instead he settled on “I really love you y/n—like a lot.”

You smiled up at him and pulled him into a hug. “I think I love you too, Steve,” you chuckled, pulling back to plant another kiss on his lips. He smiled into the kiss, realizing that he would never get tired of kissing you.

***

It was three months later and you and Steve were finally, officially dating. You were rocking out to the radio in the front seat of his BMW, singing off key with Robin as Steve pulled into the parking lot of Hawkins’ Family Video.

“You put your mom down as a reference?” Robin asked incredulously as she stepped out of the car.

“Yeah. Why not? She’s like, super well-respected,” Steve argued and you rolled your eyes, biting back a smile.

“You’re such a dingus,” Robin sighed, stepping through the door Steve held open. You stepped through the doorway after, Steve placing a hand on the small of your back as he guided you into the store.

Your nose twitched a bit when you realized that Keith worked here. He was kind of really icky and had asked out just about every girl you went to high school with. You’d never met someone that desperate for a girlfriend before. When you had handed him your resumes, he looked at you all like you were idiots, clearly irritated that you were wasting his time.

“We didn’t get fired, you know,” you spoke up as you scowled, annoyed with the boy at the counter.

“Yeah, the mall burned down, and like killed a bunch of people,” Robin chimed in. In a way, she was looking for pity…most of the Hawkins’ community knew that you kids had been there when shit went down.

“Thanks for sharing. Didn’t know,” Keith deadpanned. “Three favorite movies, go!” He added pointing at Robin.

“Uh....The Apartment, Hidden fortress, Children of Paradise.” She quickly answered.

“You, go!” He swiveled and pointed at Steve.

“Favorite movies?”

“Did I stutter?”

“Uhhh…Animal House for sure…yeah, uh, um—Star Wars!”

“Which one?” You asked, looking up at him, annoyed that he’d just named an entire franchise.

“The one with the teddy bears, duh,” he smirked back at you as you groaned while he squeaked like an Ewok. “No? Uh…oh, the one that just came out. The movie that just came out—the one with the DeLorean and Alex P. Keaton, and he’s trying to bang his mom,” Steve chuckled while he explained it and you rolled your eyes.

Keith couldn’t really believe what he was hearing and he pointed at you and Robin. “You two start Monday,” he said before turning to Steve, “and you start never.”

“Will you just, give us a minute,” you said gesturing to you Robin and Keith.

“Why?” Steve asked, annoyed.

“Steve,” you warned the boy not to make things more difficult, placing a small peck on his lips which was enough to convince him to move along.

“Oh come on! Steve, y/n? Steve?”

“Listen, I know he’s a bit…he’s a bit of an idiot, but that’s beside the point. Anyway, he’s got other qualities,” you argued.

“He’s a douchebag of the highest order, y/n.”

“He was a bit of a prick to us in high school, I’ll grant you that, but he remains…a total chick magnet,” Robin gestured to you, and you flushed wildly.

“And this is relevant to me how?” Keith questioned, done with Robin’s bullshit.

“Uh, earth to Keith….the ladies will come in just to see him. They’ll come in, in droves. We sold so much ice cream they had to get a second shipment from Michigan! Isn’t that right, y/n?”

“Yep. Michigan,” you confirmed her lie.

“And these ladies are hot,” Robin continued, “they are so very hot. And there are too many of them for little Steve, especially now that he’s unavailable. He needs your assistance Keith.”

“What’s in it for you? Are you guys some sort of weird ass thruple?”

As soon as he said it, Steve clumsily knocked down a cardboard cutout, awkwardly trying to fix it.

“Gross, no,” Robin replied, “we’re just friends.”

Steve turned around the cardboard cutout recognizing immediately the movie it was from. “Oh Fast Times! Fast Times, ever heard of it? Top three for me, Keith.”

You and Robin laughed, and Keith groaned. “Fine, but if he screws up, it’s on the two of you.”

You knew he was gonna screw up, but you didn’t care, running over to him as he pulled you into a hug. “You ready to be coworkers again?” You asked as you smiled up at him.

“I mean, we do make a pretty kick-ass team.”

***

a/n: I hope you enjoyed this! If I end up going on hiatus, send me some requests! I’m definitely interested in continuing writing for Steve as a character. Reblog if you’re feeling generous ;)

taglist:

@season4steve @sassyheroneckgiant @tangledinthegreatxscape @maeve-wileyy @palachannie @chaerfull @usaguisenpaisblog @emilieluckwood @sabrinadelreyy @mochminnie @xprloki @kitdjarin1

[darkinfinity]

Happy 28! Here are all the fics I read and enjoyed this past month!

☁ Call out my name by lesbidirection (E, 101k)

Apparently, it's bad PR to fall in love with the omega you hired to help you through your rut.

Harry Styles begs to differ.

A soulmate AU where two lovers find each other entirly by accident, featuring photoshoots, Gucci suits, too many takeaways, having sex and feeling sad, an alpha who feels lost, and the omega that finds him. It shouldn't be this easy, but it is.

☁ don't be afraid to love (and love again) by @voulezloux (T, 83k)

All Louis’ life, he’s known he’s been different. There’s always been something at odds about how he felt.

As the eldest daughter of seven kids, he knew something was wrong with his body. Something was off, he just couldn’t quite put his finger on it. His mum dressed him in dresses and tights, plaits in his hair as he wandered around with the local neighborhood boys. They called him a girl, called him she and Rosemary when his name is Louis. He had told the boys as such, but they would tell him Louis is a boy’s name, not a girl’s.

Louis is a boy. He knows he is.

or the one where louis is trans and afraid, harry is cis and brave, and being 100% yourself is easier said than done.

☁ Wither & Bloom by @dizzy-pixie17 (E, 65k)

No one knows that legendary Harry Styles is an omega. The record label, the fans, and even his family have no idea, leading to a very isolated and very lonely life for Harry. He knows it's for the best. Otherwise, he'd never have the career he wanted and he contents himself in the knowledge that he's not the only one. But when Harry injures his voice during a performance, his manager hires a new vocal coach to help put him to rights. Cue Louis Tomlinson, the sweetest, sexiest, kindest alpha in the world, stepped right out of Harry's dizziest daydreams. While Louis tries to figure out why there's something so incredibly un-alpha-like about 'Alpha-King of Pop' Harry Styles, Harry is busy trying to control his omega's undeniable urge to throw himself at the object of his infatuation.

Amid an accidental misgendering, getting slick in public, tour bus snuggles with awkward boners, and unprovoked drops, Harry will have to choose whether he wants to keep living a lie for the sake of remaining in the spotlight or if he'll sacrifice everything to be with the man he loves… Assuming Louis ever comes back.

☁ Give me love by @falsegoodnight & @soldouthaz (E, 41k)

Despite being an omega, Louis’ always had a blatant dislike of alphas.

Or, Louis doesn't feel like a good omega, Harry doesn't remember how to be an alpha, and they figure it out together.

☁ Freeway of love (in a pink Cadillac) by @mizzhydes (E, 33k)

Louis was on his way to Miami to visit an old friend. Harry was going there for a little R&R and take in the sights and sounds. A sudden upgrade in seating brought these polar opposites together. The universe works in mysterious ways and they are unknowingly about to embark on an adventure they will surely remember for a lifetime.

Prompt 107: Sugar daddy AU inspired by this tweet: “going to sit next to the richest looking middle aged man on my flight and scroll through my nudes for three hours straight” with rich daddy Harry and bratty baby Louis

☁ this brokenness inside me might start healing by @loveislarryislove (T, 29k)

Louis grew up in a tiny town, where everyone knew everyone -- or at least, they think they do. Then he left, and became a successful singer-songwriter, a star that everyone in the country knows -- or at least, they think they do.

But when Louis returns home for the birth of his first nibling, he meets a librarian who doesn't know him at all. And that's all Louis could ask for.

☁ Cuddlebug by sun_flowr (Not rated, 19k)

When the call from the adoption agency finally calls, Harry and Louis are surprised to discover that they have been tentatively paired with a young pup named Rami, who suffers from a multitude of issues stemming from the abandonment he’s suffered. But no matter the challenges, they know they will do everything they can to care for and love this pup as if he was their own.

Prompt: a/b/o established relationship where they finally go adopt a child and find a toddler with touch depri/abandonment issues and they build him a nest and comfort him

☁ Stars will align for us by @2tiedships2 (Not rated, 15k)

"The serial monogamist is single," Niall said by way of introduction when he sat down across from Harry in the canteen.

Harry sipped his chocolate milk. "What are you going on about?"

"Your alpha dream boat," Niall said. "That tiny little footie player? I heard from Hannah that he's broken it off with his boyfriend so he’s single and ready to flamingle. Now's the time to make your move."

Harry sipped his chocolate milk harder to keep himself from replying.

Or the one where Harry is an omega at a loss of how to get past his pining and gain the attention of Louis…especially considering the alpha is always in a relationship.

☁ now i'm tracin' all my steps to you by @alwaysxlarrie (T, 5k)

Of all the things Harry was prepared for this summer, Louis Tomlinson and his wonderful, wonderful scent isn't one of them. It probably shouldn't be as shocking as it is that it makes Harry want to nest. There's only one slight problem -- Harry and nesting aren't exactly on familiar terms. At all.

This does not stop Harry from borrowing ("borrowing") Louis' things all throughout summer, though. Oops?

☁ Send me your pillow (the one that you dream on) by fairytalefemme (G, 3k)

Harry is embarrassed to realize he's nesting but can't stop stealing Louis' things for his nest.

Short fluffy o/o gaybo drabble with lots of cuddles and softness and sock stealing <3

[christinesficrecs]

hey! Love your blog. I'm looking for this fic where stiles and the whole lacrosse team is going for some event in a bus but then it meets with an accident and derek and scott are there trying to help the injured. For some reason they're late and stiles is stuck under the bus and derek tries to help him and take his pain but the paramedics also make it hard once they reach. That's all I remember mostly. They do take him to the hospital and melissa is there but there's a rush due to the bus crash and the many casualties. It could be that the crash was supernatural, I think some explosive was involved. But I'm not fully sure. If someone can help, would love it

Hey!

I think it might be this one.

Caretakers by em2mb | 277.9K | Abandoned

Now Lydia sees the white room clearly, Stiles sitting cross-legged on the nemeton in his lacrosse jersey, squinting at a chessboard.

That’s when Lydia realizes her vantage point makes her Stiles’ opponent — and she has him in check.

Her instinct is to push her own king into danger, but Stiles grabs her wrist. “Come on, Lydia,” he says dryly, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Chess might not be your game, but surely you know that’s against the rules.”

Lydia tries to squirm away from him. “But you’ll die,” she insists, his grip tightening so much she’s certain his long fingers will leave bruises.

“Say it, Lydia,” Stiles urges. “Checkmate. Checkmate. Checkmate — ”

[girlactionfigure]

Morning Israel News Summary

ISRAEL REALTIME - Connecting to Israel in Realtime

♦️MAJOR COUNTER TERROR OP.. IDF drone strikes a terror operations center in Nur a-Shams (Tulkarm area).  5 terrorists eliminated, including 1 (another report says 3) released in the last hostage deal.  Multiple semi-official statements that the IDF has started a major multi-week counter-terror operation throughout Judea-Samaria.

▪️KIDNAPPING INCIDENT IN SAMARIA at Tapuach Intersection, cleared.  The IDF: the suspicion of kidnapping has been ruled out.

⭕ ROCKET STRIKES by HEZBOLLAH in Ayelet HaShachar in the north hit homes and start a large fire.

▪️MANY ANGRY.. people, leaders and evacuees from the north are VERY angry that the government and IDF only performed a major strike against Hezbollah once Tel Aviv was threatened.  In a sarcastic response, a number of towns have replaced their town signs with “Tel Aviv”.

▪️USING HUMAN SHIELDS.. IDF spokesman in Arabic:  90% of the launches carried out the night before last by Hezbollah were launched from the heart of a civilian population and near civilian facilities.  In the attack, of the about 230 launches and about 20 suicide drones, 90% were launched from the heart of a civilian population, near civilian facilities - mosques, schools, UN compounds, and more.

▪️PROTEST - FOR A DEAL.. Demonstrators affiliated with the 'Headquarters of the Kidnapped Families' blocking Ayalon south near the Shalom interchange this morning.

▪️BEWARE SHEIN CONTACT LENSES?  Ch. 13 reports of people arriving in the emergency room due to quality problems with contact lenses order through Chinese discount site Shein.  

▪️GAZA POLIO VACCINE DANGER?  An unusual notice from Israeli health professionals - the polio vaccine sent to Gaza by the UN WHO is an experimental live attenuated vaccine that has the possibility of spawning actual polio cases - which can then spread.

▪️BUS vs. CAMEL.. an accident on Negev roads, bus vs. camel.  Drivers in the Negev and headed to/from Eilat are warned to beware wild camels, particularly at night.

▪️TERROR - STONING AMBUSH - SAMARIA.. Lynching attempt in Hawara: Arab rioters attacked a car driven by a Jewish woman from both directions and pelted it with stones. The driver managed to escape from them and miraculously was not injured (the car, however, badly damaged).

▪️JUDGES.. High Court of Justice in the decision against Justice Minister Levin:  If you do not convene the committee, you will receive a ruling in September that will oblige you to do so.

.. The minister responds: the decision is expected, conflict of interest and lack of authority. They are their own judges, actually taking over the committee completely, refusing to accept anyone who is not from their own inner circle.

🔹ANOTHER IRANIAN AIRSPACE NOTICE.. effective September 1, 2024, at 00:00 (midnight) - for 3 days.

🔹US Joint Chiefs of Staff:  The chances of an all-out war in the region have decreased after the attack carried out against Hezbollah.

⭕ 2 rounds of ROCKET attacks by HEZBOLLAH at northern towns overnight.

[h0wlcastle]

The car situation here makes me FUME I fucking HATE CARS

I encounter a lot of older people who can't understand why so many young adults still can't drive in their 20s, and I feel like it's glaringly obvious??

First of all, cars are expensive as fuck, especially when you take into account maintenance and repairs and insurance. It's like an additional rent payment. And when you're living paycheck to paycheck in a shitty apartment, and figure out a carpooling situation that works....

I mean, what's the benefit of getting a license if you can barely afford to house and feed yourself, let alone save up enough money for a down payment on a vehicle? Plus how do you learn how to drive if no one around you has a car and you can't afford driving lessons??

And maybe this is just where I went to school, but when I was growing up, it seemed like every other month we had to attend an assembly talking about how dangerous driving is & how easy it is to either kill someone or get killed if you lose your focus on literally everything around you on the road for half a second. And then taking an 8 hour defensive course is mandatory to get your license, where they do the same thing except amped up to 1000, including extremely graphic and traumatic examples.

Any reasonably cautious young person is gonna hear that and go "holy shit that's terrifying, no thank you, that's too heavy of a responsibility for me just for the sake of getting from point A to point B." Is it just me or is this the ONLY sane reaction. Why do we rely on everyone over the age of 16 knowing how to operate this dangerous complicated machine. WHY. It makes no sense.

I had like 3 classmates in high school that were killed while driving, and nearly everyone I know has been injured in a major car accident. I was recently in an accident where thankfully no one was hurt but I literally never wanted to drive again after that.

I never wanted to drive in the first place!! Like holy shit give us OPTIONS please give us better public transportation. this is ridiculous. I shouldn't have to choose between operating a Turbo Death Machine vs. being on the bus for 6 hours to travel 9.3 miles vs. walking on busy roads alongside Turbo Death Machines that very well might kill you anyway even though you're not even in one

[jacksdinonuggets]

Not So Little Injuries: Chapter 2

Vaggie was released from the hospital the next day. There wasn’t anything too serious that they needed to keep an eye on and there wasn’t really anything they could do to help it other than pain meds. Since lots of hellborn and imps came to sloth for the hospital, they didn’t want a bed to be used that didn’t need it.

 She was very eepy from all the pain meds when she was carried to her wheelchair. She was snuggled up with her stuffy the best she could with the long cast going up to her thigh. She couldn’t remember much, just getting rolled out of the hospital and getting carried into the Morningstar’s limo before falling asleep. Charlie couldn’t put her into her car seat because of her new injury so she had to position her so her leg would be elevated on her lap.

“Come on, Vaggie~ it’s time to wake up, we’re here,” Charlie gently shook her. Vaggie slowly opened her eyes and whined, not wanting to wake up. The pain meds were starting to wear off so anytime she wasn’t unconscious, she felt her leg throbbing in pain.

“Annndd scoop!” Charlie lifted her up out of the limo. Vaggie let out a small whimper and squeezed her stuffy when her leg and feathers were jostled.

“Sorry, baby, I know it hurts,” The princess said, carrying her inside. Razzle was behind them, carrying her wheelchair. They would definitely need the wheelchair for when Vaggie gets out of bedrest, but for now, it’s best that she be carried.

When they first stepped into the lobby, they were bombarded by the residents, asking where she had been and what had happened. Apparently, Charlie didn’t exactly tell the residents that Vaggie had gotten injured and would be staying at the hospital. She had just sent a quick message that Vaggie had gotten into an accident and didn’t know when they would return.

“Guys! Please step back! You’re overwhelming her!” Charlie announced once she realized that Vaggie started to curl up and seemed to be getting overwhelmed. She whimpered, as she was never good with crowds.

Everyone seemed to chill and step back after that. They noticed that Vaggie was feeling very little and realized their mistake of crowding around her.

“Now, If you excuse us, I need to go get Vaggie’s room ready,” Charlie said before taking her upstairs. 

Normally, they would share a room, but Charlie thought it would be best for her if she had her own room. It would make it easier to care for her without having to share. She didn’t exactly tell Vaggie about this plan because she knew she wouldn’t be very keen on the idea. Vaggie always wanted to be near Charlie but she feared it would slow down the recovery if she was either getting woken up by her, or trying to help with stuff.

When they passed their usual shared room, Vaggie whined. She didn’t

“Mama? We passed da room,” She pointed to their bedroom. The princess sighed.

“Baby, I know you won’t like this, but you’re going to be resting in another room,” She explained. Just as she figured, Vaggie didn’t like this.

“Bu, why?” Vaggie whined.

“Cuz If we share, there will be many distractions that will make it hard for you to rest,” She said, opening the door to her new room. She made sure that the room was nice and perfect for maximum recovery.

“Mmm, fine,” Vaggie pouted.

She placed the injured little angel down on the bed. Currently, she was in just her hospital gown and her padding. Because the cast was up so high, Vaggie wouldn’t be able to get shorts or normal underwear on easily and would most likely cause pain. So until she was healed, she would likely have to wear her little stuff. Being big and having to wear her protective padding would no doubt be embarrassing. Not to mention that most of the time, it made her feel really small, and she didn’t feel like repressing. So being little for most of the next month was going to be her plan. 

Charlie helped change Vaggie into her very comfortable onesie so she didn’t need to be in itchy hospital clothes all day. Luckily, she had already changed her diaper before they left so they didn’t need to do that. 

Once she was all set and comfy, Vaggie fell back to sleep. Those pain meds were pretty strong, even if they were starting to wear off.

When Vaggie awoke again, all she felt was pain. Her leg was throbbing and all her previous injuries flared up. Her wing felt so sore and tired. It was laid on so that probably was why. She quickly tried to wrestle the wing out from underneath her to elevate it and hopefully get rid of some of the soreness.

However, she couldn’t get rid of that god damn leg throbbing and phantom pain. For her back, lying on her stomach helped, but everytime she turned or moved, her broken bones would flare up even more. There was nothing she could do to get rid of it. She considered calling for mama but she had already helped her so much that it felt like she would be burdening her. That mindset quickly changed though when she had accidentally kicked her cast while trying to ease up some back pain.

The tears were flowing by the time Charlie got up there. She heard her baby yell for her and swiftly made her way upstairs. She crouched by the bed, next to where Vaggie was curled up in her blankets, gripping them hard. She didn’t want to rip a hole in her stuffy because then she would no doubt have an absolute meltdown and be scared that she killed her teddy. So she gripped the blankets instead.

“Hey, sweetie, what’s wrong? Are you in pain?” Charlie spoke softly and gently, to not scare her. Inside, Charlie was panicking. Alarms were going off and she was internally screaming. She really hated seeing her cry. It was so sad and pitiful to see.

“Uh *hic!* huh!” Vaggie sobbed. She was hiccuping now, unable to breathe properly.

“Okay, baby, I’ll give you some meds but you have to breathe for me,” She took Vaggie’s hand and squeezed it. She squeezed back and started to take some deep breaths. Once she was no longer hiccuping or hyperventilating, Charlie gave her a few pills and her bottle. Vaggie rapidly downed them but was confused when she didn’t feel immediate relief.

“Mama! It isn’t wowking!” she yelled.

“Shh, shh, shh, it will, just give it some time. Let's watch a movie while we wait for it to work, okay?” She pulled out her tablet and sat in bed with her. She put on one of Vaggie’s favorites and cuddled her to help her calm down. She fed her the bottle with water in it, as it was important that she stay hydrated. Although she whimpered and tried to bury her head in Charlie’s stomach for the start of the movie, the pain did ease up and she seemed to be doing a lot better by the time they finished the movie.

Finally, the pain seemed to ease and she was able to fall asleep again when she had her paci. Once she did go to sleep, charlie realized that she had missed the chance to change Vaggie. She did a little check to see if she needed to wake her up or if she was good for a couple more wettings or the other type (in a sfw way though. some people gotta do it while bedridden). It didn’t squish too much so she still had some room left. That was good. She made the plan to change her once she woke up again. But for now, she was going to let her little one sleep safe and sound.

[mothpile]

bus i was in got rear ended so i had to walk like 20 minutes back home with the weather threatening to rain. And i have to say.

getting in car accident, no one injured or anything? Must be embarrassing as fuck when it was clearly you who did it because you were following too closely & quickly and couldn't stop in time. Lucky enough, it was on residential streets where sure maybe not many people walk or drive by and see.

But you hit a fucking bus? Everyone started streaming out of there when the words "the bus got rear ended!" started being said. Everyone goes out and looks at your stupid ass getting out of the car (thankfully safe) and they get out their phone and get a picture of your stupid crumpled car vs the completely fine bus. Everyone sees your blunder. Everyone gets a picture to send friends and family. Absolutely Shameful.

[myechoecho]

Lovely Runner, ep 5

They really are super cute together. The rainbow part was so sweet. Oddly, for someone who is supposedly 30 or so, Sol doesn't act much older than a teenager. I wonder if that has something to do with the time travel aspect of it.

I really do like how they are playing with the idea of memory and things you may have missed at the time. This whole experience is more than just saving Sun Jae - it's giving her an opportunity Even something as simple as Sol learning to ride a bike, for her father.

Creepy Taxi Driver Guy is 100% involved with her accident. It was more than just a car accident. It looks like he actually kidnapped her because she is getting triggered by the sound of his key chain. Plus the dead body that was found, which I assume was the drunk man at the bus stop.

I have so many questions about her accident now. How did Sun Jae save her? What does her mom know about what happened? She has to know something that she's keeping from Sol. Someone saves her daughter's life and she doesn't remember his name? What happened to the taxi driver??

The more I think of it, the more I am convinced that Sol going back is not just for Sun Jae but for Sol herself.

My new wild theory is that Creepy Taxi Driver Guy is the one who killed Sun Jae. Sun Jae saved Sol, so Creepy Taxi Driver Guy could not kill Sol (because clearly he's some kind of serial killer). Perhaps he was injured by Sun Jae and can no longer physically kill people like he could before. Therefore he is resentful. It's harder to get to Sun Jae since he's so famous and presumably has body guards so that's why it could have taken so long.

It's a bit of an out there theory but it would make sense why Sol is sent back to the time before her accident instead of maybe closer to when Sun Jae dies. Now, did she lose her phone in the OG timeline, just in a different way but with Creepy Taxi Driver Guy still picking it up? Or is this new and could it move the accident forward since he's now fixated on her?

I do genuinely love how Sol and Sun Jae's dad tried to protect him from seeing swimming matches. But I think he really is okay with not swimming anymore.

I get the sense though that the harder Sol tries to push Sun Jae away from being in the band, the more she's actually going to push him towards it.

Sol is so baffled that he likes her. It's like she's forgotten her own worth. Good for Sun Jae telling her firmly like he likes her. Or rather asking her to dump Tae Sung while she hears the recording of him telling her he likes her at the same time. I have a feeling this is not going to go over well though.

[abubblingcandle]

Trick or treat! 👻

Ah thank you! I'm still working on the Jamie Stalker fic so I don't have many more snippets BUT for this instead I'm going to give some sneak teasers of upcoming whumptober fics that I am excited about!

Day 8 and 22 - Roll Call

Colin is the least injured in a major road traffic accident involving the Richmond team bus. He struggles to track down all of his teammates and friends to make sure that everyone is safe.

Day 10 - In The Emotional Suburbs

This fic is following Jamie when Zava comes to Richmond and has Zava trying to basically bully Jamie to get in line and Jamie panicking that Zava's arrival is a sign that Jamie is about to get put on the transfer list.

Days 11 and 21 - untitled Kidnapping fic

Denbo and Bug accidentally kidnap Jamie when they are trying to rob him. Rebecca gets a call that if she wants her star player back then she needs to fork out.

Day 19 - Degrees of Separation and in Childhood Trauma

Roy's sister tries to help Roy stop worrying about Jamie's emotional wellbeing by introducing him to academic journals. This does not help Roy stop worrying but does help Jamie.

[beardedmrbean]

When Boubacar Touré and his flatmates heard a sudden, thundering crash beside their apartment, they thought it was an earthquake. But then they opened the windows of their kitchen, where they were cooking dinner, and one shouted: "A bus has fallen."

"We ran down to the spot where the bus was on fire and I heard a woman screaming, 'My baby, my baby,'" 27-year-old Boubacar, who is from The Gambia says, his eyes heavy with exhaustion.

"I managed to pull her through the window and then pulled out her son, who was badly burnt but still alive."

The bus, carrying tourists back to a nearby campsite after a day in the historical centre of Venice, had been driving along a busy overpass when it suddenly careened off the side on Tuesday evening. It smashed through the barriers and plunged several metres towards a railway track where it burst into flames.

At least 21 people died. Of the 15 who are injured, most remain in intensive care. Some of the victims were children, including a baby.

Warning: This story contains descriptions of distressing scenes

Among the dead are nationals from seven countries, the Venice mayor's office says, including Ukraine, Germany, Romania and Portugal.

Boubacar describes how he grabbed the fire extinguisher from the bus to help quell the flames - but that wasn't enough.

"Passers-by were giving me other extinguishers but nothing helped, we had to wait for the firefighters", he recalls. "So I pulled others to safety, a woman and a man and a child. People were bleeding from their heads, there was so much blood."

His flatmate, Odion Eboigbe from Nigeria, was with him, pulling others through the wreckage of the mangled vehicle - an electric-powered bus whose batteries are thought to have caught fire.

"We were able to save many but unfortunately others died", he says.

"I wasn't scared, I didn't think of my own safety because I saw people with their heads split open. Today my colleagues asked me: 'what were you thinking when you went towards the flames,' and I told them I just had to save the women and children."

Once emergency workers arrived, they spent hours dousing the flames and helping the injured.

The fire was so intense that DNA samples will need to be used to identify some of the dead.

At the spot on the overpass where the bus took its final catastrophic turn, the guard-rails are smashed apart and fragments of glass lie on the tarmac. A passer-by has laid yellow flowers.

Authorities say there was no sign of a sudden braking by the bus. Indeed, CCTV from the moment before the crash shows the vehicle steadily climbing the overpass and then apparently slowing down before inexplicably toppling against the barriers and off to the side.

The driver, Alberto Rizzotto, had worked for the bus company for seven years. The most likely cause, say the authorities, is that he had a sudden medical problem that made him lose control. In his last Facebook post, he said he was "running a shuttle to Venice."

Relatives of the victims have started arriving in Venice from abroad. Among the injured are nationals of Ukraine, Germany, Croatia and Spain.

According to local media, they include two German brothers, aged 7 and 13, who lost both their parents. There were "entire families, grandparents, grandchildren, spouses" on board, said Chiara Berti from the Angelo di Mestre hospital.

The tragedy has already raised questions about the state of the barriers on the overpass, which were clearly rusting and aged.

Domenico Musicco, the head of an association for road accident victims, called it "a tragedy foretold".

"Italian road maintenance is poor. Too little is invested in road safety. It is estimated that 30% of accidents are down to that," he told the news agency AFP.

Venice has declared three days of mourning for a tragedy that has profoundly shaken this city.

Boubacar and Odion say they haven't slept since the crash.

When I put it to them that some would call them heroes, they shrug. "If saving people makes you a hero, then maybe", says Boubacar.

"But when somebody needs help because they're dying, you can't just walk away."

[sparkywrites25]

Mobuhan Modern au pls 🫶🏼

I am so so sorry for how late this is. So much for aiming to get things done in a few weeks. Work and life just took me away.

Summary: Moblit gets a call he never likes to receive.

Pairing: Mobuhan

Taglist: @youre-ackermine @lunar-rainclouds @4melo-dy @captain-natey

Trigger Warnings: heavy depiction of anxiety, mentions of injury and brief mention of transphobia

Notes: If you like my work and want to see more then please join my taglist. Form is pinned on my blog.

Mobilit’s attention jumped from pan to pan, brows furrowing in concentration as he examined the progress of each one. The cooked bolognese mince was sitting comfortably on a low, steady heat waiting for the rest to catch up. Next to it, the pan of spaghetti was bubbling nicely. Mobilit swiftly turned down the heat on it and addressed the final pot with the cooking broccoli in it. That too was almost finished. With a satisfied smile, he began to unload the food into large bowls ready for their placement on the dining table. 

He checked the clock. 6pm. 

Hange would be arriving home any minute. They’d assured him that they would not be pulling a late one tonight. It had been too many weeks since they’d enjoyed a meal like this together. Takeaways and ready meals had become too much of the norm for them over the last month so Mobilit had insisted on using his day off to catch up on some errands at home and cook them a meal himself. The red wine was chilling in the fridge and some hot bread sat in the air fryer nearby. 

Mobilit grinned to himself as he remembered how excitable Hange had been over the air fryer, and how much electricity they had promised they would save by using it. The actual oven had been removed from the kitchen and placed in Hange’s home lab. They had insisted that it could still form some kind of purpose for scientific advancements in their experiments. Which meant that the electricity saved wasn’t actually going to be saved, ultimately, but at least the appliance would find another use. 

Once everything was in their bowls and plates, ready to be carried to the table, Mobilit switched the appliances off and wiped up the surfaces. He was just getting the wine out of the fridge ready to pour when his phone rang. Mobilit tensed up as he placed the bottle down at once. 

Oh for god’s sakes, not again, he mentally prayed as he answered the call. It took him half a second to realize that the number wasn’t Hange’s and he exhaled in relief. 

“Hello?” he asked in a fairly cheery voice. 

“Is this Mobilit Berner?” a male voice spoke. 

“Yeah. Who is this?”

“This is Mitras General Hospital. I’m calling about your partner Hange Zoe.”

Mobilit’s stomach and appetite dropped out of him at the same time. The air was punched from his lungs and for a moment, he couldn’t breathe. His vision blurred in front of him and suddenly he wasn’t sure that his legs would hold him up. His free hand scrambled for the counter and clutched onto it. 

“W-what about them? What’s happened?” he fired the questions out in a stumbling mess. His brain was already contemplating some scenarios and creating painful visuals along with it. Hange having picked an argument with the wrong person. Hange being cornered on a quiet street. Hange having experimented with too many chemicals and having an allergic reaction in their skin or something. Hange stepping out into the road at the wrong time because they were too busy thinking of ideas around whatever stumbling block they’d hit at work. Hange just simply tripping and falling into a moving bus or something. 

“Hange’s been injured in a laboratory accident at their workplace,” the receptionist - Mobilit assumed anyway - answered. “There was an explosion and-”

“Oh god!” Mobilit cried out, slumping against the counter. More images flew through his head one by one; violent images of Hange blistered, bleeding and screaming or Hange lying in hospital with missing limbs. His chest constricted and he grit his teeth to force back the cry that threatened to rip out of him. 

A vicious, violent accident had put Hange in danger and it had happened at work. Worse, this was a line of work where that sort of thing could happen. That reminder stabbed through Mobilit’s insides. This could happen again and again. This could be something he’d have to live with. What if next time Hange didn’t just get injured? What it it killed them?

“How bad is it?” he managed to get out finally. 

“They’ve suffered some superficial burns on the face and arms but those are very shallow and will heal in a week or so.” 

Mobilit bent his head, offering gratitude to whatever deity might be out there that had given Hange superficial injuries. He forced himself to focus on the receptionist once again as the man began to speak once more.

“From what we understand, they weren’t standing directly next to the chemicals when the explosion happened.” 

A small bubble of relief began to grow in Mobilit’s chest. Another mercy was granted to him, at least. Although, his brain offered in its wicked voice, the mercy wouldn’t have been down to Hange being particularly careful. They were just lucky. In another scenario, it could have gone very differently. The relief was instantly swallowed up in a wave of horror-struck imagination. 

“But still, the force of it threw them across the lab and they broke their arm.” The receptionist continued after another pause.

 Mobilit appreciated that he was delivering the news in processable chunks. Of course he probably has to do this, and worse, every day, Mobilit thought abstractedly. That must be one of the worst parts of that job; having to tell people that their loved one is dead or dying or seriously injured or ill. He tried to snatch some gratitude that at least he wasn’t being told any news that was worse. Even so, anxiety gnawed away at him and he could barely find it in him to refocus on the conversation.

“They have hit their head, though, as a result. So we’ll be monitoring that injury for a few days. However all the tests so far have come back clear.”

Mobilit tried to take the rest of this in but, primarily, he felt himself sagging closer to the floor in another wave of relief. “They’re going to be okay?” he sounded breathless and his stomach flipped over and over itself uneasily. 

“They will make a full recovery, yes. We’re keeping them in for observation and monitoring the healing process of the burns more than anything else.”

“Okay, I understand,” Mobilit scrambled to say as he ran a hand over his face. “Thanks for letting me know. Where are they?”

“They’ve been assigned a private room, number 14 on the second floor. They’re still being treated right now so you might have to wait outside,” he was advised. 

Mobilit’s mind switched off and autopilot took over. He made the remaining pleasantries with the receptionist and ended the call. He wasn’t fully aware of packing the food away into containers, making sure the appliances were switched off and giving the surfaces a last wipe. Perhaps other people might not have prioritized such things in the wake of such a call but the act of cleaning up helped to get him moving and it felt good to be doing something for now. 

Once it was all taken care of, he grabbed his phone and car keys and hurried towards the door. 

— — — — — — —

The clinical smell of the hospital made Mobilit’s throat close up. He took no comfort from the clean scents or the smiling, reassuring faces of the staff that he passed. It was all a charade to cover up the fact that people were ill here, that some of them were dying. That bones had been broken and lives had been changed, maybe forever, in this place. He walked through it all with an increasing detachment, turning his head away from the worried loved ones, sitting around in the same position that he was about to be in. He ignored the tears in some eyes and the despair that poured from their faces as they clung to their friends and family members, mourning the state of things and cursing the events that had brought them here when they could have been doing something else. When they could have been happy. 

And yet it was all imprinting on his mind, so clearly that he could have painted the scene with very little concentration on his memory. Imagining people’s pain forever painted onto canvas somewhere. But then it was there, in so many works of art. Artists didn’t shy away from such things but right now Mobilit wished that he could. 

They’re going to be fine. It’s not like they’re ill or dying. They’re gonna walk out of here in a couple of days. He had to repeat this mantra in his head as he rode the elevator to the second floor. He continued with it all the way down the hall towards the waiting area near room 14. 

Nifa, Erwin and Levi were waiting outside the room when Mobilit finally reached them. Erwin and Nifa were perched on two seats on a string of colourful plastic chairs. Levi leaned against the wall, arms folded and brow furrowed in an expression that many would mistake for anger but Mobilit knew well enough to recognize as concern. The door to the room was closed and the blinds were drawn for now. Mobilit felt his anxiety surge upward as he stared at the covered window intently. 

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Erwin and Nifa straighten up. He turned to them and saw that Nifa’s left arm was in a cast. One side of her face was still quite red although the lack of bandages told Mobilt that at least her face wasn’t considered to be all that injured. 

She swallowed, her eyes wide and anxious as she stared into Mobilit’s face. 

“You called them,” Mobilit remarked as he approached her. 

“Yeah,” Nifa confirmed. “I’m sorry. I was nervous about calling you so the receptionist said that they would do it.”

“It’s okay, Nifa,” Mobilit placed a hand gently on her uninjured elbow. “Are you okay? You look like you took a nasty hit.” Looking over his friend was hard but it gave him something to do other than stare at the door and wait to be allowed to see Hange. 

“I’m fine,” Nifa assured him. “I was further away from the explosion. I just fell badly.”

Mobilit nodded. Anxiety continued to grow inside his stomach like one of those elastic band balls that people built when they were bored and it, ultimately, grew to be quite weighty. It brought an increasing feeling of nausea with it too. “What happened exactly, Nifa? Hange said that they weren’t staying late today.”

The subject chased some of the anxiety out of Nifa’s expression and her brow furrowed in instant focus. 

“It was just after four,” Nifa recalled, “and Hange said they were gonna finish early so we didn’t start any new testing after 3pm. We were just waiting on this last concoction to finish boiling so we could test its effectiveness after being heated. But something must have gone wrong with the glass. The liquid must have spilled somehow. Maybe it splashed out of the glass. It’s hard to know for sure because the explosion took a lot of equipment out when it happened.” She tucked some hair behind her ear and stared down at the ground. 

Erwin stepped forward, putting a hand on her shoulder. “Take your time. The CCTV will determine what happened soon enough.”

“Yeah,” Nifa agreed, a miserable expression filling her face now. “I just wish I could have seen it. I could have stopped it.”

“If Hange had seen it, they would have removed it from the danger area,” Erwin comforted her. “It sounds like it was just one of those things. You can’t always predict them.”

“I’m sure this wasn’t your fault, Nifa,” Mobilit gently took her uninjured elbow in his hands. “They said Hange has some facial burns,” he said after a pause. “Did they notice something before it happened? Were they going to check on it?”

“No, I don’t think so.” Nifa answered. “They weren’t expecting it to be ready yet. They were just cleaning up another table while they were waiting.”

“Huh. Hange was cleaning.” Levi scoffed from behind Erwin. 

Nifa smiled. “They were bored. Normally we’d have another testing on the go at the same time. They had some time to kill.”

“And some germs, apparently,” Levi quipped. 

“So Hange wasn’t trying to go near it,” Mobilit sought out confirmation, gazing intently at Nifa who nodded. But it was Erwin who spoke next. 

“Perhaps you could leave any further questions until later, Mobilit. There’s not much more to learn about how this happened.”

Mobilit nodded and squeezed Nifa’s arm gently. “Yeah, of course. I’m sorry. Nifa,” he said in a quiet but sincerely apologetic murmur. “I really am. I just… I guess I just want to try and picture what happened. I just keep imagining-” he cut off his sentence and pulled back. 

“Don’t go there,” Erwin recommended in a gentler tone. “Hange will be fine. They were lucky.”

“Yeah,” Nifa said encouragingly. “The lab will look at the CCTV and see what exactly started it. Once they tell us, we can take even more precautions.” She smiled into Mobilit’s worried eyes. “I know Hange’s really passionate about their work but we both know that they do take precautions too. We just need to do a few more next time we look at that test. We’ll figure it out and, at least for now, Hange will have to take things easier.”

“You both should,” Levi had moved over to join them. “You and Shitty Glasses are always working too hard. I’m surprised Rico isn’t here already.”

Suddenly Nifa’s eyes ballooned and Mobilit stared into the redhead’s guilty face. A chuckle rose out of his throat despite the circumstances. “You haven’t told Rico,”  he said.

“No… I was too preoccupied with calling people about Hange,” Nifa said biting her lip. She sighed and squared her shoulders. “I’m gonna do it now. Hopefully she won’t freak,” she added as she pulled out her phone and went to take a seat. Mobilit watched her type in a number and then hold the phone to her ears. 

“If Hange’s missed any safety precautions and Rico gets wind of that,” Levi mused, folding his arms, “then Hange’s gonna be in the right place.”

“Levi,” Erwin chided. 

He returned to his seat, beckoning for Mobilit to join him but the shorter man shook his head, running a hand through his hair agitatedly. The nerves and the knowledge that Hange was behind the door receiving treatment, that they were so injured, had bubbled up again during his conversation with the others. Now there was that sinking, overwhelming feeling again, like not being able to tread water. He took a few deep breaths and turned away from the door. 

Levi took his arm. It wasn’t a terribly firm hold but the way Levi’s fingers dug in suggested that he might press harder if Mobilit were to try and throw him off. “Hey,” he told Mobilit. “Breathe. They’re going to be fine.” 

Mobilit tilted his head back to look at the ceiling. “I know,” he mused. “It’s just that… I forget how dangerous this job can be for them.”

“That’s true but it’s also what Hange is good at,” Levi reasoned. “They got unlucky today but they have made significant advancements in medication thanks to their experiments,” he reminded Mobilit. “You’ve been a part of them all so you know. Those tablets that cut Covid down by a few days? The syrup that takes care of the flu within 48 hours? These all came from your partner’s brain and skill.”

“Levi’s right,” Erwin added. “It’s dangerous work but in Hange’s hands it’s also successful work.”

Mobilit nodded, slumping a little as he began to slowly pace in front of Hange’s room. “Yeah… I do understand that,” he said quietly. He understood it very well. He worked with them on this. He knew how passionate they felt about their work and how valuable they were. He didn’t want to be that guy that demanded Hange chose between him and their work. If he was 100% honest with himself, he wasn’t sure Hange would be able to turn their back on something that was such a huge aspect of their life. Asking them to do that would only end up breeding resentment anyway even if they did do it. 

Besides, he loved their passion and their ideas and that completely chaotic drive to do some good in the world. As he considered this, a slight smile played on his lips. Hange wouldn’t be Hange without their love of experiments and seeking out knowledge. They were born to do this sort of thing, to be bold enough to chase down those possibilities. 

It just meant that he had to keep reminding himself that Hange was walking - no, let’s be honest, they were skipping - down a dangerous road. He had always known this from the moment they had chosen to become more than friends. No one could say that he didn’t know the risks. Ugh, just get it together, Mobilit kicked himself mentally. They’re gonna be fine. The receptionist told you that. It’s nothing too serious. Yet, even while he tried to remind himself of that, another voice, one far nastier, began to speak up. 

What if it happens again? What if next time you’re not so lucky? What if next time, they’re not giving you a list of whatever meds they’ll need but a death certificate. 

Mobilit stopped pacing at once. The idea was so horrific and yet so painfully plausible. The thought made him feel viciously sick and he pursed his lips, convinced that he might actually throw up with the bubbling fear that was shooting up his throat right now. He looked up and along the corridor, quickly spotting the doorway to a bathroom. He broke into a fast walk, making a beeline for it.

“Mobilit!” He heard Erwin call after him but he was too occupied to pay him much attention.

— — — — — — —

When he emerged from the toilet stall, Erwin was waiting by the sink. Mobilit washed his face and the cool water helped to ground his uneasy levels of anxiety. He threw more water over his skin, chasing the comforting sensation. 

After a moment, he felt a strong hand on his shoulder. He flinched instantly.

“Just breathe,” Erwin told him.

Mobilit stared up at him. He hadn’t even seen that the man was in here with him. The fact that he hadn’t even noticed Erwin was somewhat surprising considering the man’s size. However, it didn’t entirely surprise him that the man could keep himself out of anyone’s focus if he so pleased. It was kind of a terrifying skill to have but not one Mobilit wanted to dwell on right now. 

 “Just one breath at a time. Don’t think. Just breathe.” Erwin advised. He inhaled deeply himself, gesturing for Mobilit to mimic him. 

Mobilit did so, taking in a deep breath of air and held it in for a moment before copying Erwin’s exhale. They did that together a few more times before Mobilit began to feel the overwhelming feeling begin to settle. Clarity returned to him gradually as well.

“Feeling calmer?” Erwin asked and Mobilit nodded. 

“Thanks.”

“No worries,” Erwin said. “I figured you’d want to calm yourself down before you go in and see Hange.”

Mobilit straightened up. “Can I go in now?”

“Yes, a doctor came out just as you left. Levi is speaking to him now. I’m sure he’s asking about the cleanliness of the room and the quality of the supplies in relation to whatever budget the hospital has,” Erwin answered. He spoke the last part with a smile that eased Mobilit a little. 

“I guess the doctor won’t be hanging around then,” he managed to joke feebly. 

“No, I shouldn’t think so,” Erwin smiled. “But Levi can tell us what he said anyway.”

“Yeah. I just really need to see Hange right now.” Mobilit said.

“Of course,” Erwin gestured for him to exit the bathroom ahead of him, “just try and stay calm. Remember, they weren’t too badly hurt. They’re going to be okay.”

Mobilit tried to focus on that as he left the bathroom and stepped out into the corridor again. He began the walk towards Hange’s door, a walk that felt so long the more he thought about it. He was about to see Hange and see for himself that they were okay. Why wasn’t he excited about it? Why did his stomach feel like it was going to empty itself? Why did his legs feel this wobbly? It wasn’t the first time Hange had been hurt and - while he hated to think it - it probably wouldn’t be the last. He just needed to get used to it. 

Levi was waiting outside the door, noticeably alone, leaning against the wall. Nifa was sat near him, still on the phone to Rico. Levi eyed Mobilit thoughtfully as he approached. “I hope you cleaned up in there,” he muttered although the words had none of their usual harshness. 

It was enough for Mobilit to crack a smile. “Of course I did.” 

Levi nodded to the door. “We’ll wait out here,” he said. He then looked to Nifa. “Or we can take her for some tea. It sounds like Rico isn’t too happy,” he mused. 

Mobilit glanced over to Nifa who was grimacing and speaking her quickly and lovingly down the phone. “Can’t say I blame her,” he remarked. “Nifa could have been a lot worse as well.” 

At last, he returned his attention to the door of Hange’s room and pushed at it, stepping inside. 

— — — — — — —

Well, this bites, Hange huffed to themself as they stared out of the window with their uncovered eye. 

Not that the other eye was missing much outside of the glass. It wasn’t even a good view. All they could see were constant columns of grey corporate building, their windows plastered with colourful posters promoting the usual lies and propaganda of billion dollar companies that were destroying the planet one office at a time. Hange’s fists clenched in the bedsheets for a moment as they gritted their teeth. Instantly half of their facial muscles twinged and they eased up on the expression instantly. 

That’s going to be a pain. Hange acknowledged. Being an emotionally expressive person and having half of their face being sore and tender for a week or so were not going to be friendly bedfellows. They looked down at the menu list for dinner soon and sighed. 

I was supposed to be having dinner with Moblit tonight. He was making his spaghetti bolognese. I love his spaghetti. That man is an artist in the kitchen too. Instead, I’m gonna be stuck here eating whatever processed crap they serve up. With a heavy sigh, they leaned back against the pillows and ran a hand down the uninjured side of their face. They’ll have called him by now. He’s gonna freak. I promised him I wouldn’t be late. It’s his day off too. Who wants to spend that in here?

They’d been careful today. So fucking careful. It had been too long since they had had a date night and almost as long since they’d last eaten Mobilit’s cooking. It was the nature of Hange’s job that things tended to get intense and all-consuming very quickly. Anything else tended to take a back seat. But they and Mobilit had recognized that. They’d made plans to take time for themselves. All through the day Hange had kept her mind on how long things would take to finish and what they could do instead to fill up the hours before leaving early that wouldn’t involve starting a new test. It was all supposed to be straight forward and that stupid explosion had fucked things up for them. 

I’m amazed that he doesn’t lose patience with me. Hange reflected as they tapped their fingers on the table hovering over their legs. But then that was Mobilit. He’d been by their side, putting up with a lot of shit for years now. 

The door opened again and Hange’s attention whipped towards it just as Mobilit stepped inside and closed the door. They beamed at him and waved with one hand. That was another thing that would be hell to get used to. Managing with a broken arm. They already missed their double wave. 

“Mobilit,” they greeted softly with a smile that disappeared as soon as Hange saw their boyfriend’s eyes. 

They were glassy and filled with so much pain and fear that any confident, quirky quip that Hange might have conjured instantly died in their mouth. Their own face tightened with immediate guilt. I did this to him. Worrying about me again has done this. 

His shoulders were trembling, not a great deal but enough for them to notice. They watched as Mobilit’s eyes roamed over their injuries, lingering briefly on their face before dropping to take in the sling that currently held Hange’s left arm. With every second, the anxiety seemed to bloom more across his features. Hange saw his fists clench and his jaw tighten. They recognised those signs instantly. 

“This isn’t something you could have prevented,” Hange told him in as calm a voice as they could manage. “It was just an accident, Mobilit. I’m gonna be fine.”

“Just an accident?” Mobilit repeated, his voice cracking. “Are you being serious?”

It had been the wrong thing to say and Hange grimaced. “I’m not playing it down.”

“Yes you are,” the retort that came back so quickly was angry and it surprised Hange. Mobilit’s chest was starting to heave. “Yes, you are,” he repeated. “It happened and it’s a big deal, Hange.” Their boyfriend stepped forward, grabbing the nearest plastic blue seat and pulling it towards the side of their bed. The left side, Hange noted, closest to their heart. It was sweet and they wanted to smile but right now, faced with Mobilit’s anger, Hange forced that smile back for the time being. “You’re about to tell me that it could have been worse, right?” he asked and the pain in his voice was evident. 

“Yeah,” Hange admitted. “I’d rather focus on the fact that it wasn’t. I was lucky.”

“Do you hear yourself?” Another crack in Mobilit’s voice. “I have to think that we’re lucky because you only ended up here with a broken arm and some burns? That’s not lucky, Hange. That’s you being hurt!” he snapped. Tears shone in his eyes. “You being hurt is never lucky.”

Hange itched to reach out to him but he was sitting on their injured side. “Okay that was a bad choice of words-”

“Hange!” Mobilit’s voice came out as a dry sob. “Just stop! Stop trying to make this okay! It’s not okay!” He bowed his head and clasped his hands over his face. “God, this is not okay, Hange. It’s not.” His shoulders shook and Hange’s heart broke a little for him. 

Hange couldn’t remember ever having seen Mobilit this anxious before. He always worried so much about their welfare and their safety. Things that, admittedly, were not high on Hange’s list of priorities and they never really had been. Such things took up too much room in their head that could be better filled with ideas and possibilities and combinations. 

Hange had been that kid experimenting with dangerous stunts or homemade scientific concoctions as a child. They had had their fair share of hospital visits back then too. Even then, they hadn’t been terribly afraid of the pain or the healing although it had certainly been inconvenient for their relentless curiosity and determination to explore and investigate. It was just normal for them to handle things this way. Their parents had been worried about it at the time, back when they had been someone her parents could approve of. Back when they had accepted them as their child. They had supported Hange’s curiosities and strong scientific mind and forgave the occasional hospital visits. 

It was just their gender identity, that they couldn’t forgive. Their so-called “decision” to be different. Their ultimate rejection had been a lesson in being careful who to trust, after that. Hange was lucky in that they had accepting friends to help them through it. They had moved in with Erwin and Levi for a while as soon as they left home at 17. A year later, Erwin had introduced them to Mobilit. Life had transformed for the better since leaving that house. 

Mobilit had shown concern about the risks of Hange’s experiments and their tendency to overlook the risks right from the beginning. Hange liked to call him their worrier. He worried so they didn’t have to. But seeing him now, guilt churned away inside their stomach. How much of that worrying had stayed inside Mobilit eating away at him?

“I’m sorry,” Hange reached out their uninjured hand and smiled when Mobilit slid his into it. “I’m sorry,” they said again. “I know this isn’t okay. How much you worry.” They stroked the backs of his fingers with their thumb gently. “I’m just trying to focus on the positives. It could have been a lot worse and I’m grateful that it wasn’t.”

“Me too,” Mobilit mumbled. “I am. It’s just that it could have gone the other way so easily, Hange.” 

“Mobilit,” Hange kept their voice gentle as they squeezed his hand. “Thoughts like that don’t help. If we worry about what could happen, we’d never live our lives. You could go to the store tomorrow and get hit by a bus,” they explain. “We could take a vacation and get scammed out of all our money. We could get sick. Our house could burn down.” They exhaled gently. “It’s a rabbit hole but you can’t go down it. Look at what it’s doing to you.”

Hange lifted Mobilit’s hand to kiss it. “How long have you been holding back your worries, Mobilit?” they questioned. 

Mobilit lifted his face to theirs with a confused frown. “Since I got that call this afternoon.” His brows furrowed deeper. “How did you expect me to react? Am I just supposed to shrug it off now? To be used to you getting hurt?”

His partner shook their head. “No. I’m not saying that. But Mobilit, this feels like it’s been going on longer. You sound like you’ve been carrying this for a while.” 

Mobilit’s eyes shifted away from theirs and his frown deepened. “I… I always have to worry because you don’t,” he mumbled. “Someone has to.” One of his hands lifted to run through his hair, his eyes squeezing shut with obvious frustration. His shoulders sagged even lower and Hange’s heart went out to him. This was the worst they had ever seen him react to one of their accidents at work. Some of it had to be build up from previous concerns. They had been injured worse than this before. 

“Do they?” Hange asked. They kissed his fingers again. “Caring and concern are one thing but this… Mobilit, this is anxiety and it’s not healthy for you.”

Their boyfriend stared at them for a moment or two, blinking slowly. “Really?” he asked. “Really?! You’re lecturing me on what’s not healthy from a hospital bed? Because it’s so healthy to disregard your own safety.” Mobilit’s sheer disbelief seemed to chase a great deal of the anxiety from his face for the moment. Hange welcomed that distraction for however long it lasted. Seeing some of the pain leaving his face was a very good thing. 

Hange’s lips twitched into a smile. 

Mobilit stared at them like that for a moment before a small smile began to take over. “You’re unbelievable,” he mused softly. “You’re really something else, you know?” He lifted his hand and brought theirs to his lips softly. He exhaled again, this time releasing a weak laugh with it. “You’re such a pain,” he joked. 

Hange smiled wider this time. “Yes but I’m your pain.” 

“Yes you are,” Mobilit’s smile was growing as well. “Although I could very much live without these trips to hospital, you know?” He pointed out, cupping their hand in both of his. “And we both have much better ways of spending our time, don’t you think?” He sighed, his features relaxing more although some of the anxiety still lingered in his eyes. “So, if you could very kindly spare just a little of that massive brain of yours into taking more care,” he suggested and heaved a dramatic sigh, “I’d really appreciate it very much.”

Hange nodded emphatically. “I’ll try and be more careful, Mobilit,” they assured him. “I promise.”

“Good.” Mobilit leaned forward, resting his elbows on the bed. He eyed the bandages over half of Hange’s face and lifted their hand for another kiss. “I really wanna kiss you but I guess your hand will have to do for now,” he remarked. 

“I wish you could,” Hange complained quietly. “My face is stupid sensitive right now.”

“At least the burns aren’t too bad, so the doctors say,” Mobilit answered. 

“Yeah they’re just enough to be a pain but they won’t leave lasting damage,” Hange told him. “Not gonna lie. A few burns might have given me more of a badass edge in the science department but ah well, I can live without it.”

Mobilit bowed his head, releasing a laugh of mingled amusement and exasperation. “You’re a freaking maniac.”

Hange grinned and then winced at the pain in their cheek at the movement of their mouth. “Yeah well, you still love me right?”

“Of course I love you,” Mobilit stroked their hand in his. “I’m never gonna stop loving you.”

“And I love you,” Hange’s smile softened, easing the pain in their cheek. “I promise to be more careful. And at least we can take some positives from this.”

“Yeah?” 

“I’m gonna be home for a little while now thanks to this stupid thing.” Hange gestured to their sling. “So I hope you’re prepared for me to drive you a little crazy.” 

“Hange,” Mobilit laughed a truly happy sound, “you already drive me a LOT crazy. But I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

[dystini]

Indycar Driver Lore

Indycar Driver Lore Masterlist

David Joseph Malukas

Birthdate: Sept. 27, 2001 Hometown: Chicago Residence: Chicago Height/Weight: 5’10”/150lbs

Rookie Year: 2022

Team: None

Follow him on: Instagram Twitter

Career Stats

2022: Dale Coyne Racing w/ HMD Motorsports - 16th Overall 2023: Dale Coyne Racing w/ HMD Motorsports - 17th Overall

-2021 INDY NXT by Firestone runner-up, claiming seven wins, 16 podiums, six pole positions. -In 2016, started racing cars in Europe before focusing on the Road to Indy and racing in USF2000 in 2017 and Indy Pro 2000 in 2018. Also raced in Formula Regional Americas Championship Powered by Honda, where he finished second in the series with two wins and 15 podiums. -Was a multi-time karting champion who was featured on TruTV's "Kart LIfe" in 2015. -A first-generation Lithuanian American and the only son of immigrants who moved to Chicago in 1991, David inherited his father Henry’s love of racing. Grew up watching his father race at Road America. He wears both flags on his suits -David lives in the southwest Chicago suburbs – not far from Dale Coyne Racing’s shop – and enjoys mountain biking, hi-fidelity music and “I’m a bit of a gamer.” -loves to dance -david was homeschooled for high school due to being in europe for karting -never had a prom/standard high school experiences -was very homesick during his time in europe -used to know some german and italian -plays more strategy heavy games like Hearts of Iron and Stellaris, but does play mainstream games like Apex: Legends and Beatsaber as well -Uses Beatsaber for reaction-time practice -Can't have coffee anymore. Used to be addicted and his doctor said no more. -star wars fan, said his favorite season was season 7 and thinks Cad Bane is a cool villain -fan of Chelsea FC

-Dad and Mom (Henry & Daiva Malukas) are owners of: -HMD Trucking -HMD Bar & Grill -HMD Motorsports

Iconic/memorable moments David's episode of Bus Bros. INSIDE THE RACE // DAVID MALUKAS AT BARBER MOTORSPORTS PARK Tom Griswold Interviews David Malukas (2022 Indy 500) The Rookie Chronicles 2022 TRACK WALK // LONG BEACH WITH DAVID MALUKAS 2022 PACE CAR LAPS // TAKUMA SATO AND DAVID MALUKAS AT BARBER Marshall Pruett and David Malukas practice/quali/race reports 2022-23 2022 RACE RADIOS // DAVID MALUKAS AT WORLD WIDE TECHNOLOGY RACEWAY How did 20 year old IndyCar rookie David Malukas celebrate on the podium W/O champagne? “OMG They’re Penskes!”

Tiny car race David Malukas vs. the NBC admin. JAVA WITH JAMES // DAVID MALUKAS Welcome to the team David! Welcome David Malukas Trying Different candy part 1 part 2 Holiday Tree Blindfolded Challenge Holiday Family phototshoot Behind the Scenes Baking Challenge: Part 1 Baking Challenge: Part 2 Spill your guts game Intro Part 1 Part 2 Off Track with Hinch and Rossi – The Papaya One Malukas injures hand in mountain bike accident Malukas out for six weeks following wrist surgery Arrow McLaren staying the course with Malukas as his rehab from injury continues ARROW McLAREN RELEASES DAVID MALUKAS FROM TEAM Statement from David Malukas: Malukas released by Arrow McLaren David Malukas gets to know Will Power on and off the track | Over the Wall | 2024 Indy 500 | INDYCAR

David is genuinely happy and excited to be in the Indycar series and it shows. He is enthusiastic, ready to participate in any social media activity, even the embarrassing ones. Despite driving for a team on the lower end of the budget scale, David has shown remarkable results on occasion and always expresses awe to find himself racing against the big names and big teams of the series. His talent is undeniable at just 21 years old and we will be watching his career with great interest for many years to come.

Look, I’m trying to be objective about him but he’s so stinking cute and fun and I think everyone should adore him. As a friend said, just a cute little fairy creature who decided to be a racecar driver for whatever reason. He’s all happiness and sunshine and it’s rare to see him sad or upset.

Fanfic Lore There are really no set pairings for him. He’s been sort of adopted by the Bus Bros as a Bus Cousin. Battled for the IndyNXT championship title with Kyle Kirkwood and they are friends. Karted with Christian Lundgaard in Europe when they were kids.

ROOKIE PALS, RIVALS LUNDGAARD, MALUKAS CROSSING PATHS AGAIN