#model ofc

[chaoticgeminate]

You're So Classic (vi)

Summary: When you own a diner there are a variety of people that come to get a seat, Zach has become familiar with the constant and changing guests that come in through those doors. The good, the bad, and the ugly all with their own stories and their own lives. He’s witnessed first dates, last dates, engagements, anniversaries, job gains or losses, and birthdays galore.

Enter Nanette Dougherty.

Former pageant child, debutante, and swimsuit model fresh off a bad date and needing to be somewhere that her roommates and agent won’t try to find her. Where better than a diner full of things she’s never allowed to eat? What Nanette never counted on was the handsome diner owner to change her life.

Pairing: Zach Wellison x Nanette Rose Dougherty [ofc]

Rating: Explicit (Blog is 18+ regardless but this is going to be a bit of a heavy story)

Notes and Warnings: Series will involve some heavy topics including but not limited to body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), eating disorders, body acceptance, PTSD, anger problems, toxic narcissistic parents, and abusive relationships both platonic and romantic. This installment features toxic level parenting, bad relationships with Christianity, and corrupt authority. Beta read by the beautiful, lovely, amazing @leslie-lyman 💙

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BLT (k)

Zach wasn’t usually the type to buy style magazines, he hardly ever saw the need before, but now there was definitely a small stack he kept at home. All of them shared one thing, Nanette was featured in the spread somewhere, and his initial idea was to make a cut-out collage as a sort of time capsule for the growth of her career. Something tangible she could keep since the fashion world was so cutthroat, designers rose and fell in the same day even, but then he’d seen the pictures.

Beautiful, of course, there was no denying that she looked stunning. But Zach could see where the photos had been edited, where the few freckles she had were hidden with make-up and digital touch-ups, her waist was far too narrow here than what he knew it really was. But keeping these around felt like it might be a bad thing, taking into consideration her reaction to waking up bloated, he’d never forget that haunted look he’d caught so briefly on her face as she panicked about it and tried to hide it from him.

Instead he kept the magazines on his bookshelf, he knew that Nanette was aware of them since she’d giggled when she saw the first one earn its place on his side table, but she herself never looked through them so he had opted to put them up. He wasn’t going to assume the worst about what she might be going through since that wasn’t his place, but he kept those concerns in his back pocket for now until he felt they were valid or if she addressed it first.

Ramirez had seen the narrow magazine spines on his bookshelf when he’d shown up but he wasn’t willing to ask questions yet, Zach knew the other man had plenty of them but there was a lot of respect for privacy between the two of them. He’d let Ramirez disappear for two weeks, no questions asked, and just told everyone else it was a vacation when Zach knew it was much more severe than that; he didn’t know the specifics but it hadn’t been his business, and he refused to let the man go jobless because of whatever it was. Since then they’d been close, the other man had plenty of opportunities to leave and just hadn’t, and Zach knew that he had someone in his corner who would go to bat for him at the drop of a dime.

“Miso butter roasted potatoes. What do you think?” He was recipe testing with Ramirez, the other vet was not only his head chef but one of his best friends, and once a month they would spend a day or two off together to tweak the menu here and there. Ramirez hummed as he took a bite of the lightly crispy outside, fluffy inside, potato and the other man nodded in approval. Zach tried it and hummed too, putting a check onto the recipe card and dropping it into the box for approved recipes, and then Ramirez was handing him a ramekin with fish pie inside.

It was a European thing, he was sure, maybe even a specifically British thing but he didn’t know quite yet and would have to look it up later; the soft mashed potatoes and creamy filling were good, it wasn’t necessarily his taste but he couldn’t deny that it was worthy of popping up on the specials board. His diner definitely was known for American classics but LA was a food melting pot and the occasional times he offered something more international always earned new diners coming to check it out.

“This is kind of heavy but it isn’t bad, like a shepherds pie but with fish.”

“That’s what I was thinking, I put a little more mustard than what the recipe suggested to try and brighten it up a little bit. I think we should play with the filling flavor a little because we’re working with US ingredients compared to UK stuff which is bound to have even a little different flavor profiles, but I think this one works.”

Zach watched Ramirez go back to the pie filling and smiled, moving on to the next recipe on the list, and he smiled at the general peace involved with the routine of it all. A knock on the door made him exhale a little, patting Ramirez on the back after washing his hands, and Zach nearly froze at the sight of a police officer on his doorstep.

“Are you Zachary Wellison?”

“Yes, Officer. Is something wrong?”

“I need you to get down on your knees and keep your hands where I can see them. You’re being detained for questioning based on reports of assault.“

Zach found himself blindsided as he was handcuffed, though the officer did allow him to at the very least slide into his slip-on sneakers so that he wasn’t marched barefoot to the squad car, and the officer’s partner was reading off his Miranda rights. Ramirez was talking with the initial officer about options for bail if it led to an arrest. 

None of Zach’s neighbors were home at least. Maybe it was stupid but he didn’t want them to think he had actually done what he was being accused of. It was harder to prove yourself innocent than it should be in this day and age.

He didn’t ask questions, he didn’t speak up, because he knew that he needed to get a lawyer stat, but he was genuinely confused. From the wording it sounded like he was a suspect, not that it was a hard accusation, but he had no idea who would even accuse him of something like that. When he did go out to bars with others he never allowed himself to get drunk, he never allowed himself to have more than a few beers or drinks in general because he knew that he was sloppy, but even then he’d never been an aggressive drunk.

The squad car moved through the traffic with ease, finally arriving at the station, and Zach was led into a room with a metal chair and cheap table. As he took his seat the officer took off the cuffs, allowing him to rub his wrists slightly, before someone who could only be a police detective entered the room and sat down across from him.

“Hello Zachary, I’ve got a couple of questions for you.”

“I’d like a lawyer first, please.”

“Of course, there’s one on their way. I don’t want to keep you here longer than I need to, son.”

“I understand that, sir, however I will not be answering any questions until a lawyer is present as is my right.”

The detective leaned back in his seat and nodded, leaving Zach to stare at the table in silence as they waited, the ticking of the clock and the low hum of the fluorescent lights filling the void of the room with background noise. He didn’t know if it had been hours, or days, before the detective got up when a low buzz sounded and someone else walked in. The woman was professional, her salt and pepper hair in a loose bob that fell to her collar bones, and her eyes were sharp.

“Hello Zachary, my name is Margaret McCall. I am your state-provided legal representative.”

“Hello ma’am, thank you for coming.”

“Of course, young man, I appreciate your manners. Now I understand you’re being detained due to accusations of assault?”

“Yes, ma’am, that’s all I know at the moment as I refused to speak with the detective until I had a lawyer.”

Margaret nodded her head in approval before looking at the glass mirror, the detective returning and sitting down his his folder once again.

“Zachary, where were you three nights ago?”

“At work, sir, I own The Chow Hall. The diner on-“

“Ah, yes, the diner for veterans. So you’re a veteran then, thank you for your service.”

His jaw tightened as he gritted out a ‘thank you for your support’ despite wanting to be silent, the cops always seemed to think that just because he was ex-military that he bled blue, and the detective pulled out the photograph of a young woman.

“Do you recognize this woman, Zachary?”

“She comes into the diner after a night out drinking with her friends, it’s a pretty common event, usually weekly. But I only help on the floor when the servers need me, usually I’m in the office or the kitchen.”

“That’s the only place you know her from? You don’t go out partying in her circles?”

“No sir, I only know her from the diner.”

The detective put the photograph away and crossed his arms on the table.

“You have proof that you were at work, son? The whole shift?”

“Yes, sir, we have security cameras. I can access the feed and records from my phone, if you want that proof immediately.”

“Give me a few minutes, son. Let me check with the tech team.”

After he left the room Margaret hummed, scribbling something in her notebook, and Zach glanced at her as she closed the front page.

“The good news is that they have nothing to hold you here, especially with security footage proof on your end as to where you were, so you shouldn’t be detained much longer. In the event that they find something, do you have the name and number of friends or family I could call to confirm details of your week?”

“I do, would you like me to write them for you?”

“Yes, please, Mr. Wellison.”

He scribbled down the information for Ramirez and after only a moment’s hesitation for Nanette as well, though he did make sure to leave a note that she was currently visiting family in Texas and would only be available via video call if they needed to see her face for any reason. He looked up as the door opened and the detective sat down, empty handed this time, before Zach was handed his cellphone.

“If you could access those cameras for me, son, while I can watch you do it I would be appreciative. We’ll need you to send us a copy of the records from 20:00 to 03:30, unaltered. If they’re tampered with we will know.”

Zach made sure to keep his phone tilted so that the cameras in the corner could pick up what he was doing as he accessed the camera app, opening the video feed from three nights ago and creating the clipped segment that he sent to the detective’s e-mail. Once it was received, after the details were confirmed, Zach locked his phone again and handed it back. Margaret waited until the detective left to scoff.

“While I know you’re just looking to prove your innocence, they do require a warrant to request information from your personal devices.”

“I know, ma’am, I just want to go home.”

It felt like hours had passed as Margaret gave him her information, on the chance that they tried to pursue this case further, and the legal protections he had if they tried to disrupt his life over currently unconfirmed charges. He appreciated that she spoke as if he were innocent, because he was, but still with the reality that sometimes innocent people were convicted despite evidence he felt respected.

“You’re free to leave, son, your security footage is clear. Apologies for disrupting your day, thank you for your cooperation.” Zach took his phone back and Margaret led him out, making sure he had her information, and she slipped a piece of paper into his hand behind her business card as she shooed him away. Zach waited until he was in the car with Ramirez, who came to pick him up, to look at it.

Check your phone case for tracking and listening devices.

Zach hadn’t thought about that possibility and held up his finger to silence Ramirez when the other vet went to ask him what he was doing, and the man went on talking about the other recipes he’d gone over while Zach had been in the station instead. Zach found a small device tucked in the back of his case, barely the size of the top of his thumb, and he could see the microphone hole easily. There was even some sort of location tag tracker on it, no doubt they’d be trying to get it back, and he grinned as Ramirez pulled over at the gas station so Zach could drop it in the trash.

Only after he was sure his phone was safe did they head back, sharing a disgusted rant about the LA cops as Ramirez theorized someone had paid the woman to make the accusation against him, and Zach was willing to dismiss the idea. He didn’t have anyone out there who disliked him that badly, at least he hoped not, and the only thing that made sense would be someone who didn’t like that he was a veteran or that his diner was doing well.

Cassie’s nose was busted up but the proud smile on her face had Nanette grinning too, fussing with a rag to clean the blood off as her little sister cradled her trophy, and she could hear Paul’s nerves about facing her mother with Cassie this busted up. It had been right after the last game of the season ended that the goalie from the other school team had gone after one of Cassie’s smaller teammates, who had managed to get a shot past into the net, and Nanette’s sister had jumped in the second she realized Heather was going to get punched and pulled the smaller girl out of the way in exchange for a bloody nose.

“No matter what Paul or mother have to say, Cassie, I’m so proud of you.” Nanette ignored the look Paul shot her in the rear-view mirror, she’d chosen to sit in the back with her sister on the drive home, and focused solely on Cassie’s smile as the teen held the rag in place now.

“Thanks, Nana. Means a lot to me.”

“I’m serious, you’re killing it out there, I have the coolest little sister.” Watching Cassie’s smile turn shy made Nanette glance at her step-father, who was pulling into the neighborhood, and Paul scowled deeper when he realized she was watching him. He knew as well as Nanette did that her mother was going to lose it, the two of them had already been fighting over Paul allowing Cassie to pursue sports instead of pageants and débutante events, and Nanette knew it was in part because her mother didn’t want any other kids and Paul felt slighted that he’d only had one that was his to raise.

The two of them were just selfish and Cassie was being caught in the middle; Paul would always let her get the brunt of their mother’s temper for choosing sports over pageants.

Paul looked even more alarmed when Nanette’s phone rang, since he knew she wouldn’t take a personal or work call inside, and Cassie began heading in with her season MVP trophy. He knew as well as she did that without her going inside beside him that he couldn’t slip away while Nanette dealt with her mother’s anger on the subject of Cassie’s nose. Nanette answered the call and watched Paul skulk inside, hearing her mother’s shrill outrage even from out here, but she ignored it in favor of the call.

“Hi Delaney, is something wrong?”

“Do you remember Francesca’s friend, Lillian?”

“Lillian Hunt? Yes, she wanted to model but refused to follow the calorie restrictions and now she’s looking into acting right?”

“Correct, I called to warn you. Lillian went out three nights ago to celebrate getting a role in a commercial; Cheyenne called me because she showed up to film with bruises all over her and claimed that a stranger assaulted her. The man she described sounds like your boyfriend.”

For a moment Nanette felt that slither of surprise work its way through her, because that was definitely a surprise, but it turned into anger quickly.

“Delaney, first and foremost Zach would never put his hands on anyone like that and I’m insulted you would even believe that of him. Secondly, he was at work at the diner three days ago for a night shift, if the cops were called to the diner it would have been all over social media.” The Chow Hall wasn’t some massive Michelin Star restaurant but it was a very widely known place in LA being so focused on veteran hiring and rehabilitation to civilian life, the countless articles and travel blog posts about it had made it into an internet famous diner.

“As I said, I was just concerned. Please be careful trusting him.”

“Delaney, you are being ridiculous, Zach didn’t do anything like that. Now I have to go, my mother is not patient when it comes to disrupting family time. I’ll see you in a few days when I get back.”

“Of course, Nanette.”

As she ended the call Nanette sent a text to Zach first, asking him if he was okay, and when she didn’t get an answer she simply tucked her phone away. He was recipe testing with Hector today so there was a chance his phone was on silent, it wasn’t a huge deal, and her mother scowled when Nanette stepped inside.

“Was that your agent?”

“Yes, mother, that was Delaney.”

“Are you going to break up with that boy now that he’s proven he’ll run around and hurt people?”

Nanette stared at her mother in disbelief and realized that Delaney had called her already, likely during the game when she hadn’t been answering her phone, and that anger from before returned even as she fought to keep her tone level.

“Mother, Zach didn’t do anything like that and he would never do anything like that, he’s not a man that would go around hurting people. He was at work the night of the incident, if you must know, and the woman who made the accusation simply described someone that looked like him and everyone is up in arms for no reason. Do you know how many guys in LA have close cut brown hair and wear flannels? The answer is, a lot of them.” Nanette kept her tone as dismissive as possible, wanting to just cut this conversation off before it could lengthen, and a part of her felt guilty because the second she did her mother would just start in about Cassie’s nose without a care for how the injury happened.

Watching her mother’s perfectly shaped eyebrow raise and those pale pink colored lips curl into a disappointed expression had Nanette instantly on the defensive. The relationship they had was nothing like when she’d been a child now that she was living on her own and able to see how terrible the woman was. But any time she made the move of cutting her out entirely Nanette would panic and break within days. Her mother had always pushed her to do better and want more for herself, the idea of giving up her family like that was terrifying and she wasn’t brave enough to do it. Nanette’s mother wasn’t a good person but that was her mother, the woman who loved her and raised her, so instead she was as vocal as she could be trying to change her mother’s beliefs.

“Nanette Rose, I understand that you think you love him. I do, honey, I was there once too remember? But the fact that you’re willing to settle for a man that owns some diner in LA when you’re so much better than that feels like a slap in the face for everything I’ve ever done for you. I don’t mean to make you feel like I’m attacking you or your choice, God knows you’re like me and have to learn things the hard way, but I just don’t want to see you hurt or ruin your entire career over him.” The resigned tone of her mother’s voice felt like whiplash when compared against her expression, making Nanette back down since it was pretty obvious that her mother was not going to listen.

“He’s a good man, and a great partner, I hope that soon you get to see that for yourself.” Honestly she missed him, a lot, maybe it was the honeymoon phase or whatever but she really wished he was here; his comfort and care was something she could use right now. It was true that she’d begun spending a lot of time with him but Zach brought calm to her life that she hadn’t even known she’d been missing, and his consideration for her work was unparalleled. He respected her even though she was a model, not once had she heard him make any remarks about her intelligence the way others often did, and he even helped her learn about field hockey so she could talk with Cassie about it with no judgment.

Zach was nothing like some of the male authority figures she’d had in her life, who tried to talk down to her because she was a woman or act like her doing pageants and débutante events made her stupid by default.

“Alright, if you say so, just remember that you can always call if you need help okay? Now, please tell me you understand why I hate this sports thing your sister is doing, or are you delighted that her nose is leaking blood all over?” Nanette couldn’t help it, her eyes rolled and she let out the softest laugh.

“Mother, Cassie is having fun and she’s great at the sport, you have a daughter who has pursued modeling and fame. Let her live her life, please? Sometimes it seems like all you want to do is live through us.” The swat to the side of her head with a rolled up magazine was to be expected and her mother looked absolutely thunderous, the sting was just present enough to be annoying, and Nanette scowled right back.

“Don’t imply that I’m some washed up crone, I don’t live through either one of you, I only want what is best for you both. If I hadn’t taken you in after the divorce your father would have put you in an early grave with his drinking habit, all I ever did was give you opportunities.” Nanette’s ire faded as she was reminded, yet again, just how ugly the divorce had been for her mother; she’d talked to her dad who had confessed at the time he had a drinking problem. He’d told her that he didn’t know if he would have been able to step up and be the dad she needed at that point in her life.

“I’m sorry, mother. I know it wasn’t easy for you, Dad even admitted he didn’t know if he could have stepped up back then, but there was a lot of stress I was under trying to live up to your expectations that I couldn’t tell you about because I never wanted to disappoint you. Please don’t put Cassie in that position, let her play field hockey and be who she is, just let her be a kid while she still can.” Her mother’s annoyance softened to a resigned look as she shrugged, nodding and waving her hand to dismiss the conversation, it was a relief and slightly irritating that her mother would just end conversations she was tired of without a resolution but there wasn’t much Nanette could do without risking her mother getting angrier.

Cassie was sitting in bed, nose patched up and changed, when Nanette walked into the room; the three-bedroom house had one room converted into an office, for Paul, so the ‘guest’ space was the bunk bed in Cassie’s room. It was a twin over double style, so whenever there were guests usually Cassie was relegated to the top bunk, but Nanette was more than okay with her baby sister cuddling up to her so they shared happily and talked most of the night.

“Is mom really mad still?” Seeing the very worried expression on her sister’s face made Nanette immediately exhale softly and sit down, pulling her sister into a side hug gently.

“Not as mad but she’s still pretty heated about it, I’m sorry I can’t do more to help you.” It was hard to navigate standing up for her sister, and herself, while still showing her mother respect.

“I don’t blame you, Nettie, you had it worse than I did with all those pageants and stuff. I don’t know how you put up with it.”

“You’re braver than I was back then, I just wanted to make mother proud. I started to like it more as I got older but that isn’t me telling you to give up what makes you happy. You are Cassandra Dougherty, not Nanette or Marcelline Dougherty, you have to make your own way in life; as long as you’re true to who you are then I’ll always be proud.” The two of them switched to sitting on the floor so Cassie could tell her about the different plays, and how she was excited that she was set to be the Captain at twelve if she kept doing what she was doing, and Nanette helped her sister come up with easier ways to memorize the plays so that she had a better chance at achieving that spot.

If she finished out middle school as the field hockey captain for two years then it would make her more likely to get a good spot on the high school team, since Cassie was having a good time so far Nanette wanted to make sure her sister was able to do the things she aspired for. They were discussing teammates and who was cooperative for extra practice when her little sister got quiet, looking very shy, and Nanette waited for her to broach whatever topic it was she had on her mind.

“Nettie? What does it feel like to have a crush on someone?” Nanette’s brows raised a little and she felt her heart stop only momentarily, trying not to recall the days of her own youth when her mother would take her on dates with boys when she didn’t really want to. This wasn’t that situation at all.

“They make your face feel warm, your chest feels like it's exploding with butterflies, and when they’re telling you about something they really like -even if you don’t understand it- you always want to listen because seeing them happy makes you happy.” Nanette thought about Zach, about how infectious his own happiness was, and Cassie’s brow furrowed.

“Is it… is it normal to feel that way with… with another girl?”

“Absolutely, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. People around here think it’s against the word of God, that it's immoral and disgusting, but it’s not.” Nanette’s chest was tight with concern, outrage on behalf of her sister who hadn’t even figured out life but was already questioning it and would likely be mistreated for it because of how it was around here, and Cassie must have sensed it as she fiddled with her tee shirt hem.

“I don’t know if that’s what it is but I’m scared, I know that Harry’s mom kicked Mason out as soon as he was eighteen because he said he liked boys -she told the whole team all about it because she was really upset about losing her brother like that- and I think I like Nora but I don’t know.”

“Cassie, you’re eleven, you don’t need to know all the answers to everything. Did you know there are people mother’s age who realize that they’re actually gay or lesbian, that they’re trans or bi or anything people would consider ‘not normal’ in our community? You don’t need a label if you don’t want one, and there’s no rush at all to try and find one. Just be careful with who you talk to about this, okay? There’s only so much I can do from LA. Harriet seems like she’d be able to keep your secret, from the sound of it, even if it’s total nonsense that you need to keep it a secret to begin with.”

Cassie’s eyes welled up and Nanette crawled over to hug her, letting her little sister work through whatever she was feeling and glancing at her phone when it chimed. Zach had confirmed he was okay, a relief since she wanted to focus on her sister right now.

Zach glanced at Nanette as she read through articles on her tablet, ever since she’d come home she mentioned needing to do some heavy reading and he’d told her to come to his place since Francesca was doing line reads with other peers at theirs, and he had his music on very low so he didn’t disturb her. He trusted her to tell him what, if anything, was wrong when she was ready to do so and for now he focused on finishing up dinner for them both. He’d just gotten the bacon fried up when he felt Nanette’s forehead come to rest against his back, the light grip she had on his flannel making him smile, and Zach set things aside to turn around and pull her into a hug.

“Need to talk or do you just want me to hold you, pretty girl?” Nanette’s lips curled into a smile against his shirt, the very light giggle that escaped her at the pet name proved her mood wasn’t the worst it could be, and Zach wouldn’t ever be able to describe the warmth in his chest when she hummed thoughtfully since it always came with an explanation. He felt honored to have her trust him enough to share what was on her mind, good or bad, to be her safe place to just voice all the things bothering her.

“My sister thinks she might have a crush on her friend from field hockey, Nora, and I can’t begin to tell you how badly that would go over with the people in my hometown. Much less our mother and her father. I want to help her but shy of convincing mother to let her live with me, meaning I’d have to find a place to stay, there isn’t much I can do except tell her to be mindful of who she tells that she’s even questioning it.” He was floored for a moment, digesting this information, but Zach could hardly believe just how wonderful Nanette was sometimes.

“I think telling her to be cautious about who she opens up to about her feelings is the best given the circumstances, she’s really lucky to have a supportive older sister you know. I would hope that maybe your parents might think differently since it’s their little girl but you know them better than I do so I will not try to challenge what you foresee happening here.” Zach felt Nanette nod lightly, felt the way she was holding all sorts of tension over this, and made her sit at one of the tall bar stools so he could finish making dinner.

“Are you okay with telling me more about your parents? Why they’ll go nuclear about this?” Nanette looked surprised for a second and then offered a small, embarrassed, expression.

“Of course, I thought I’d told you about them already. My mother, Marcelline Dougherty, is also a former pageant champion but she never got into modeling; she became a cosmetologist and pageant coach, as soon as I was old enough to compete I was in kiddie pageants too. My step-father, Paul McReynolds, has been her husband since I was six but he wasn’t really a father to me since my dad kept shared custody and I lived with him two weeks out of the month. He lived nearby up until I was going into Middle School when he confessed to me how he wanted to move a little bit away, I gave him the green light because I just wanted him happy, so he moved to a different town in the city that was far enough that he wouldn’t see mother all the time.” He didn’t voice how odd it was to him that she used the title mother but also the title dad, all that told him was who she was closer to in terms of her parents. Zach held up an avocado after slicing up the tomato and earned a nod.

“Mother and Paul are both very religious, if I wasn’t at my dad’s house or doing pageants I was usually at church or bible studies, they don’t see their bigotry as anything but following the word of God -even if they do cherry pick what they follow and what they’re lenient about- and there are plenty of people who have straight up cut ties with their children because they ended up coming out. Cassie is terrified, and unfortunately she should be, so I’m just trying to figure out how to help her.” Zach set Nanette’s sandwich down in front of her along with a small plate of kale chips for them to share, he’d looked into some alternatives for chips and he didn’t mind these so much, but he could tell it was bothering her.

“Would you be able to get a place on your own? Or are you contracted to live where you are? If you got a house of your own, I mean, couldn’t you just tell your parents you want Cassie to get out of the local area and become a temporary guardian until she’s eighteen?” Nanette chewed on her lower lip for a second and shrugged, looking more than a little lost, and he had no doubt that her parents were the nosy type given the way she was addressing this.

“Mother probably wouldn’t care but Paul wouldn’t like it, Cassie is his daughter -his only kid since mother refuses to go through childbirth again- and he’s the reason she’s even allowed to do field hockey instead of pageants. Even if he won’t actually have her back when she needs him, which is frustrating.” Zach found himself nodding, already disliking the man for putting his daughter -and step daughter- in this position at all since it sounded like Marcelline was the worst kind of bossy Southern woman.

“Well, I can help you go over your employment contract to look at your clause for residency, if you need me to, or I can help figure out what you’d need to put down on a place. I can also just mind my business and let you handle this, I don’t want to overstep.”

“I think I’m going to just learn what I can do to support her for now and if I need to take her in I absolutely will, I don’t want to rush her into thinking she needs to come out with some sort of label right away either, Cassie is only eleven so I’m just trying to be mindful of allowing her to start making her own choices.” Zach nodded and unlocked his tablet, to flip on a video to watch while they ate at the table, before he found himself with another question. He’d left the tablet on his messages application, which had Nanette’s question if he was okay from the day of his almost arrest.

“Hey, uh, that day you messaged me? Why did you ask if I was okay? You never said.” He had confirmed he was fine and sent her a question mark in reply. Nanette blinked and swallowed the mouthful of food with her hand covering her face as she tried to eat quicker. It was a cute habit of hers, to cover her mouth before speaking if she was eating during a meal.

“Delaney called me being super annoying about a false accusation, one of Francesca’s friends named Lillian apparently described someone like you as her assailant when she went out drinking and Lillian’s agent called him so he was all worried about me. I reassured him that she was wrong and you’d been misidentified, but it’s still really annoying. He was so upset about it he called my mother while we were at Cassie’s field hockey game, I mean come on really? I knew you didn’t do what they tried to accuse you of, not only were you at work that night but you’d never do anything like that.” Zach felt torn between relief that Nanette so firmly believed in him and immediate confusion that her agent knew about the incident. He didn’t think it was totally left field for the two agents to know what another, but it didn’t sit right with him.

“Is that a normal thing, those two talking?” Nanette hummed as she looked up from the video before rolling her shoulders in a shrug.

“Kind of? Cheyenne -Lillian and Francesca’s agent- takes a lot of aspiring models that refuse to do the calorie restrictions to try and get them minor film roles. I couldn’t imagine why she’d bring it up unless Lillian’s condition is worse than what I’ve been told, and according to Francesca you wouldn’t even know she’d been hurt looking at her. I kind of think she faked it for attention, wouldn’t be the first time and her boyfriend is a make-up artist.” The food he’d eaten sank like a rock in his gut and Zach excused himself, hating what he was doing as he stood in the bathroom and messaged some of his old contacts. He’d been willing to let it go until Nanette mentioned Lillian’s condition and that she’d faked things like this before.

A confirmation and a promise to dig into it from an old commanding officer of his sent him back to the table and he hoped, against all his doubts, that maybe he was wrong.

All Fics Taglist: @haylzcyon @wordsnwhiskey @pagannightwitch @radiowallet @tauralmie @amneris21 @trickstersp8 @practicalghost @alwaysdjarin @alexxavicry @all-the-way-down-here

Just Pedro Taglist: @maievdenoir @beecastle @littlemisspascal @writeforfandoms @aynsleywalker @lovesbiggerthanpride @mswarriorbabe80

You're so Classic Only: @green-socks @whataperfectwasteoftime @harriedandharassed

[despazito]

Yes we founded this hobby in late victorian europe where we divide animals of the same species from around the globe into races and measure them with calipers and put extreme emphasis on blood purity and conformity but WE SWEAR this has zero links to the eugenics movement that was coincidentally happening at the exact same time and place

[xx-psych0-rabbit-xx]

kirbtober day 6 -royalty

king and queen.

[walrus150915]

I feel like a lot of people in the fandom tend to forget this, so I'm just here to give a kind, thoughtful reminder :]

Ambrosius Goldenloin in the movie is an East Asian man (Korean-coded), his skin is tan, his eyes are monolid and his nose is big

He's voiced by Eugene Lee Yang - a Korean-American actor who also has Chinese and Japanese heritage. Eugene Lee Yang looks like this:

During the production, when Ambrosius was decided to be East Asian, artists looked up queer East Asian-American men, and based Ambrosius off of them. Ambrosius is literally drawn to look like Eugene Lee Yang

Please draw him as such, thank you

[diamondcitydarlin]

WIP western AU !!! what do we think of outlaw Heisenberg ???

[brodorokihousuke]

Dual Destinies (left) versus Spirit of Justice (right)

I picked up on most of the differences without the need of references, but... it's cool to see them directly compared.

Sure, it might've been easier to just have them T-pose or something, but I felt like it'd be more interesting to look at if they were posed.

The right hands look different due to there being no equivalent of the DD one's hand pose on the SoJ model.

[florallylly]

i've seen model steve harrington aus. i've seen child steve harrington aus. i present: child model steve harrington

note: this came from my own desperate need to see this conceptualized and i SWEAR i've searched, i just can't find any content with child model steve so. :(

bc little steve harrington was remarkably cherub-like. his large brown eyes and soft pout ensured endless cooing and fussing from his mom's friends. and when he blushed and ducked his head in shyness, they only complimented him more. when he got home that day, his mom smiled at him.

so steve decided that he would put up with the cheek pinching and the squealing. he sat upright in his chair, sitting on his hands so he wouldn't fidget and ruin the image. because he'd do anything to keep his mom smiling at him. if he was being particularly good that day, she'd let him lay his head on her lap on the drive back home.

but everything changed at his father's birthday gala. a nearly eight year old steve harrington sat prim and proper in his seat, but a smile lit up his face--his cheeks round and his dimples showing up. he raised his hand up to cover his giggle, but he couldn't help but laugh at some silly old man with a loose toupee. then he sees his mom approaching, and his face quickly smooths over, going back to the more polite smile he usually adopted when it came to these events.

he'd ruined it. he hadn't continued being the sweet boy his mom wanted. but then, she smiles at him. and introduces him to the man behind her, who says he's a designer. the man holds out his hand, but when steve puts his hand into his palm, he doesn't shake it. the man simply holds his hand, his eyes scanning steve's face. steve tries not to squirm under the attention. but the man nods and smiles at his mom, and he gives two brief cheek kisses to steve, whispering in his ear "you're going to be a star, darling." steve looks at his mom, confused, but she waves him off to continue talking to the man.

a few months later, steve's mom whisks him off on a trip to france. and steve is so excited to go, nearly vibrating in his seat as the airplane prepares to take off. but instead of the eiffel tower and the seine, steve is taken to a studio. he's posed and changed. once again, he's being fussed over, but instead of wealthy socialites, gossiping make-up artists squeal over him. he's "perfect for the shoot" and "the most darling little boy." steve doesn't understand, but his mom is still smiling, so he lets the nice ladies brush powder over his face.

and he looks in the mirror. his hair is a little more tousled and his lips have a slight tint to them and his eyes seem to take up much of his face. he's put into new clothes, and he feels like a doll in their hands. and when he's put in front of the camera, he simply follows the photographer's directions. afterwards, he's bundled into the car and his mom can't stop gushing about how good he was.

apparently, he's a natural. and then she goes back to fussing over him, focusing more on appearance than his behavior now. but she takes him out shopping and they eat at an upscale restaurant along the champs-elysses. and steve is happy.

and then they go back home, and his mom is so much stricter than before. she has him try out all kinds of different hair products, determined to find the best combination to keep it looking shiny and soft. she controls his food intake and what he wears and makes him use weird creams and serums on his face. but this is what makes his mom happy, so he's happy to let her.

his mom is also on the phone a lot more lately, whispering harshly about the quality of brands and steve just assumes she's being picky about the clothes she buys. later, his mom picks him up and holds him, and asks if he'd like to move to italy. she looks at him intently and it's obvious what answer she wants, so steve nods. she smiles and holds him close, and it's the most loved steve has felt in a while.

so they move to italy, and suddenly steve is a lot more busy. he's put in front of more cameras for more people he doesn't know. but he's smiling and pouting and doing whatever they want him to do. his compliant attitude and polite nature have photographers and designers alike singing his praises, and steve always looks to his mom for approval. but she's been arguing with his dad a lot lately, so she's upset more often than not. but that's okay, the make-up artists are always kind to him.

but then one day, his mom takes a phone call in the middle of the shoot. and when it finishes, she's gone. steve goes back in, close to tears, but the make-up artists still hanging around look after him until a car is sent to pick him up. this becomes a trend. and eventually, steve goes alone to his shoots. he's always taken care of by the crew and someone is always there to pick him up, but it's not fun without his mom there.

but he knows that she's always enjoyed him taking pictures, so he continues to do so, hoping that she'll come watch him again sometime soon. and he busies himself with befriending the chatty make-up artists and the bossy photographers and the eccentric designers. and he's such a cute little thing that they can't help but dote on him.

steve is never catapulted into child stardom, as his mom is picky with his jobs, only choosing luxury brands and well known designers for him. but within the industry, they call him the "little prince."

and then steve is catapulted into puberty, but his intense skin regimen prevents him from getting acne, save for the occasional zit. and his diet and religious exercise schedule help maintain his look. and he's still doing remarkably well, especially now that he's fully aware that he is a Model.

and steve has truly grown into his looks. with time, he's grown more comfortable in front of the camera and made numerous friends. nearly all of them are older than him, but they're fun and loud and it fills up the space that normally surrounds him. and they're the ones who get him hooked on american movies. steve remembers living in america, but he's been in milan so long that everything he recalls is vague.

but he watches them and falls in love with the american high school experience. so when he finally catches his mom off the phone and actually in the house, steve asks if he can go to school in america. and his mom laughs. but steve keeps asking, which devolves into begging. and his mother snaps, slapping him across the face and calling him ungrateful. she cries and begs for forgiveness, cowed into shame by steve's desperate attempt to hold back tears.

and so she lets him go to school in hawkins, indiana. an odd choice, but his parents just so happened to own a property there. (in truth, both of his parents expected him to change his mind within the year). but steve finds his place at hawkins high, because even though nobody in hawkins has ever heard of versace, steve is pretty. he's pretty and charming and he knows the right thing to say. after all, he's spent his whole life perfecting his mask.

and even if his mom ended up moving back home with his dad, leaving steve all alone in that big empty house, steve is happy. he's finally hanging out with people his age and high school is so far removed from the glitz and glam of the fashion industry. and he's settled and content with tommy and carol by his side. while he misses his friends back in milan, steve finds himself longing for the clothes more often. hawkins was certainly the opposite of milan, what with the nearest mall being two hours away and only equipped with a macy's and jcpenny.

through it all, steve is determined to be normal. he laughs along with jokes he doesn't quite get and rolls his eyes at carol's cue, and he joins the swim team. and he joins the basketball team. and he goes to parties and kisses girls and wears dumb little polos with his letterman jacket and does everything that he saw in the movies.

but nancy wheeler is different. steve can't forget his time in italy and who he is and was, and he's reminded of his old life in everyone and everything in hawkins. but not nancy wheeler. she's all hawkins and all his. and then the upside down happens.

and then nancy wheeler breaks his heart.

even after three years, his parents continue to ask when he'll go back to modeling, but he's different now. the upside down and billy hargrove beat that starry eyed little kid who thrived in the spotlight. and nancy wheeler proved that adoration and love is fleeting, so what would even be the point of trying anymore? his dad was a little more approving of steve's retirement/hiatus, saying that steve must want to go to college so he can take over the family business.

but when steve doesn't get into college, he's once again badgered by his mom to go back. but he's grown and changed and he's not sure that he can pretend anymore, so he says no. and they cut him off. enter: scoops era.

the measly scoops salary is not nearly enough to cover all of the new bills and expenses steve has, but he's not willing to leave hawkins. so he reaches out to his friends back in italy, and they refer him to their american connections. steve doesn't model at the same level as before, but he poses for a couple of zines and one artist who got a little too handsy at his exhibition. but he's able to make it through until the mall blows up.

this routine continues and he starts working at family video with robin at his side, but he keeps his side job a secret from the kids, using the excuse of visiting his parents to leave town for his shoots. he's not ashamed, but he knows he wouldn't "be normal" anymore if they found out.

but how does he explain his near mental breakdown at the sight of his healing demobat scars. they're raised and ugly, ruining what should have been a perfect body. and even though he uses scar cream everyday, they refuse to fade away completely. and how could anyone stand to be near such an ugly thing when all his life, steve was meant to be pretty? after all, love and adoration is fleeting.

[funeralprocessor]

I feel like the Primaris should have been the catalyst for like, an imperial civil war. At the very least, much unrest in the house of Guilliman. Their existence, let alone rollout/integration, should have had many chapters absolutely rioting. It should be beyond the pale by several orders of magnitude and be seen as an enormous overreach by the more autonomy loving chapters, a blasphemy by the more orthodox chapters, and an existential threat to chapters with geneseed quirks. Plus anyone with any awareness of the thunder warriors should take one look at them and recognize the writing on the wall. Guilliman should absolutely recognize what they represent, what they imply. Like they're the leading wave of a paradigm shift that doesn't bode well for what came before. And I say this as someone who's not averse to Primaris, I just think they could've, should've, been a waaaay bigger deal. I know they loathe changing the status quo and we're never getting rid of the posterboys but I think we missed out on something interesting.

[akuma-tenshi]

telepathic conversation between melly and alice as orpheus wages psychological warfare on frederick at the breakfast table

original from @outofcontextdiscord

[tsunosagun]

/ᐠ_ ꞈ _マ

[aurinkomoukari]

[palimpsessed]

COC, day 16: Punk

“The Humdrum puts his hands over mine and gives me a small nod. His jaw is set, and his eyes are flinty. He looks like a little thug, even now.”

@carryon-countdown

[doctorsiren]

at the time of sending this it is my birthday. .. Can you possibly draw an izutsumi dungeon meshi.... Pretty please.. for request (when you're feeling better of course. don't overexert yourself over some requests!!).. teehee

nya

[hood-ex]

Hello, I hope you're having a good day today. I was wondering since I see this all the time, is Tim truly Bruce's best Robin? I see people always say that Tim is the best at being Robin, but I don't personally agree with that, what do you think? Though, I guess this could just be a matter of favoritism as well, and I'm kind of biased since Dick is my favorite

I don't know how best Robin would even be ranked. The best Robin listens to Bruce the most? The best Robin does the most flips? The best Robin gets uninjured the most? Like what are we even judging, y'know? And even if we did try to judge on such metrics, we'd all have different opinions about which traits or actions would be higher ranking than others. Plus, there would be overlap between all the Robins in many areas.

Being Robin isn't even the result of some ranked competition. You don't see Bruce setting up a course for a group of kids being like, "Whoever finishes first gets to be Robin." Like nah, that's not how Robin works.

[waywardsalt]

spent a while earlier digging through some phantom hourglass model/texture files and i am extremely happy to report that linebeck’s mouth textures are slightly lopsided

[socialbunny]

erm what the scallop...

how they are kissing actually 👇🏽👇🏽👇🏽