#ok fine maybe not this point in time but STILL

[lycheeloving]

Second chapter!! Happy Valentine's day <3

Bruce finds you at work and doesn't leave you alone.

< first chapter

The next day at work, it all feels like a fever dream. Did you really meet Bruce Wayne? And talk to him all night? You feel a bit nauseous just thinking about it, but you just remind yourself that you'll never see him again. Even if you did get along really well...

Whatever, you'll just daydream about kissing him in the moonlight, that's just as fun as the real thing, right? Not that you could compare it to the real thing,  you'd have to kiss someone at some point to know what it's like.

Maybe you should have kissed Bruce yesterday, he certainly seemed like he would have been ok with that, but that was probably just wishful thinking anyways. Oh well, too late now.

The bell that lets you know somebody entered the store rings and rips you out of your thoughts. Fuck. You hate when there's costumers, which is why you chose to work at the shittiest bookstore in Gotham. And are hiding in the back.

You're supposed to say something like "I'll be right with you!", but you're not going to do that. You hate talking loudly. Especially to strangers, especially when you can't even see them. But you never even say anything when you're out in the front and making direct eye contact with them, so whatever. You just hope they won't ask you for help with finding anything, just having to ring them up is bad enough...

Why do you have to get costumers at all? Fuck, you should really look for a job with less contact to people, but this is the best you've been able to find so far.

You reluctantly leave the safety of the back room, only to find a guy in an oversized hoodie and sunglasses absolutely beaming at you. Why is he looking at you like that? Should you know him?

Only when he takes the sunglasses off do you realize that it's Bruce. No way, how did he find you? You feel your palms getting sweaty.

"Finally! I found you! Do you know how hard it was to find this book store with the minimal description you gave me?" 

Not hard enough, apparently, considering that he was able to find you this soon. It hasn't even been a full day!

He's still smiling at you. "I've been to multiple book stores this morning! I'm so glad you told me you'd be working today, or I would have had to ask everyone if you're one of their coworkers!"

"Yeah, well, if I had wanted you to show up here, I would have given you more details, probably." You deadpan, hoping your voice isn't shaking.

He's not deterred, he just keeps talking as if you hadn't said anything: "Wanna get lunch with me? When's your break? We could go to that café around the corner that I saw on my way here!"

Is he not getting that you don't want him here? Well, you do want him here, but you don't. You want him to think you don't want him here so he'll leave before you can embarrass yourself.

"I can't leave for my break, I have to stay here. I'm the only one working right now, I can't just- just lock up and get something to eat." Your boss actually allowed you to do just that, but when you came back from doing it the first time, an angry costumer was waiting for you and yelled at you for 10 minutes about how it's rude to just close the store in the middle of the day. You don't want a repeat of that, so you started eating your lunch at work whenever there were no costumers. Which is almost always, luckily.

"I could go get you something and we can eat here! It doesn't seem like you get a lot of costumers so we won't even be disturbing anyone!" Why is he so persistent? Can't he go talk to some supermodel or something?

"I'm not hungry." You kind of are, actually.

"That's fine, we can just talk! I just wanted to spend some time with you. You know, I haven't clicked with anyone like this in a long time, I couldn't just let you go."

Wait, is he serious? Well, why else would he go through the effort of looking for you... But still, you can't quite believe it. Are you being pranked?

"You should go. What if costumers start showing up? I'm sure you don't want some weird fan to recognize you."

Bruce ignores what you say and stays. He talks to you for about half an hour, well, mostly he talks at you, until he has to leave because his lunch break is over. You just stand there, perplexed. Does he really want to hang out with you?

He returns the next day. And the next. And the next. Every day, always during his lunch break. It takes a few times until you stop trying to ignore him, a few more times until you start actually talking to him, and a few more times until you agree to eat lunch with him. Not go anywhere else, just eat your own lunch at the bookstore.

You can't stop yourself from trying to push him away a little bit, though.

You put down your fork. "You know, it's rude of you to keep visiting me at work, where I can't just leave. This is basically harassment."

"If you want me to go, I'll go. Just say so, and I'll never show up here again, I promise."

You don't want him to leave. Well, you do, because you don't want to get even more attached, but you don't, because, well, you're getting attached. You can't bring yourself to make him leave.

You huff and roll your eyes. "Whatever." You pick your fork back up and continue eating.

He tries to suppress a smile. Gross. He's so cute.

Whenever he catches you playing a silly game on your phone (which is basically every time he enters the store, as you love slacking off), he insists on befriending you on it if possible, so when you're not hanging out he'll send you a booster on your candy-crush-esque game, or play against you on a quiz app.

Sometimes he uses the chat option there to tell you to go to sleep when it's late and he catches you playing, even though he's obviously awake as well! Hypocrite. It makes you smile every time. 

One day while you're eating lunch together, a few months after he first showed up, he puts down his fork and says: "I think I need to make this more clear. I am interested in you romantically. I want to date you."

You almost spit out your lunch, but manage to swallow it without choking. "H- Wh- Huh? What?"

"We can just be friends, I'd love to be friends, we already are friends, in my opinion, but I would also love to date you. So if one day you decide that you want to date me, please let me know."

You already want to, but you will absolutely not be informing him of that, thanks. Asking for what you want? What are you, a well adjusted person? You blink owlishly at him instead of saying anything. That should suffice as a response, right? No, you should probably say something.

"...Look, even if I was interested in dating you—", which, again, you literally are, but why would you tell him that;

"—you're famous, and at some point it would come out that I was dating you, and the paparazzi would publish one single picture of me and I'd immediately panic so hard I would pass out and die. This—" You point your fork between the two of you. "—is already risky enough. Whatever this is, anyway."

Bruce, as always, chooses not to address the parts of what you were saying that were clearly your anxiety speaking and simply grins.

"So you do want to date me? It sounds to me like you're just looking for excuses. Don't worry, if I don't want anyone to know about you, noone will! People don't tend to recognize me when I'm not wearing a suit, especially in environments where they're not expecting me, so anywhere outside of my workplace and fancy parties. It's worked so far, hasn't it? Not a single person has recognized me here! Dating won't change that. So, if you do want to go on a date with me, just say the word. Please."

What word? Wait, he means that metaphorically, right? No, but seriously, what would you say, how would you say that without sounding totally weird?

"That's not what I was saying. At all. Stop misinterpreting me." You roll your eyes at him. He changes the topic, but he keeps smiling until he has to leave.

Lying awake that night, you think about what he said. Does he actually like you? Or is he just pretending, because he likes a challenge? Knew you'd be difficult to get close to, and he gets a kick from being someone's first relationship, kiss, everything, and then leaving them? You feel nauseous and you suddenly feel cold. How are you supposed to figure this out? You try to tell yourself that it's only your anxiety speaking, that Bruce is actually a nice person and wouldn't do that, but you can't quite convince yourself.

The next day, your way home after work (and after pretending your conversation with Bruce yesterday didn't happen, which luckily he played along with), you see something on the ground that reflects the light in a way that catches your eye.

What is that? It's kind of hidden behind a trash can.

You take a step closer, hoping it's not some kind of trap, but you can't think of a villain who would hide shiny things on the floor to kill civilians. At least not in that color, the Joker would make it colorful, and this object appears to be... black?

Oh, it's a Batarang! You've never seen one up close, but they can't be super rare with how often people online post about having found one, there's even one guy who collects them and has an entire wall plastered with them. Allegedly. People online are saying that most of them are probably replicas, but you can't tell, as you've never seen a real one. Until now.

That makes you think, just how many Batarangs does Batman have? More than enough if he let's random people keep them. You think about picking it up and taking it with you. It would be really cool to have a Batarang...

You reach out towards it, but stop right before you touch it. Is it stuck in the floor? Fuck, just how sharp are those things...?

Maybe you should leave it here, you'd just cut your hand open on it, trying to get it unstuck.

Plus, maybe Batman will find this one if you leave it here, and then re-use it! Reduce, re-use, recycle, Batman!

You leave it where you found it, after taking a few pictures of it as proof.

The next day, Bruce asks you if you did anything interesting yesterday, like he does every time he sees you. Usually you'd say no, but you did find that Batarang... Would Bruce care about that?

While you're contemplating, Bruce says: "You'd have said no by now if nothing had happened! Come on, please tell me?"

Fine! Whatever! You'll tell him, even if he'll probably think it's boring.

"Ok, so, on my way home yesterday... I found a Batarang. And, um, it got me thinking, well, first of all, how many of those does that guy have? If he's just leaving them lying around like that, right? Oh, and, it was so sharp, it was stuck in the floor, though I guess maybe that just means Batman is really strong? Either way, I thought he doesn't kill, right, but considering what he's working with it's a miracle no criminal has ended up dead yet, right?" You stop rambling, realizing that Bruce hasn't said anything yet. At least he appears to be amused.

"You have a lot of thoughts about Batman, huh?" He grins. "Yeah, he must have tons of those things, I've seen the posts. Did you take it with you?" He didn't respond to your killing thoughts... Oh well, you did give him a lot of information all at once.

"No, I didn't... But I thought about it! I mean, it seems like that's what everyone else is doing, but with it being stuck in the floor like that I was worried I would cut my hand open trying to get it unstuck! And with my luck there would have been germs or poison on it and my wound would have gotten infected, like, immediately, and I would have died. So I left it there for Batman to hopefully find again. I mean, he should probably be reusing the ones he already has, right? Reduce, reuse, recycle, I'm just helping Batman be more climate friendly!" There you go, rambling again.

Bruce seems almost too amused at all of this.

"Well, do you want it? I can come with you when your shift is over and help you get it unstuck, if you want. If nobody else has already taken it. I'm sure Batman won't mind. And if it ever comes out that he's not trying his best to be climate friendly, I'll personally go kick his ass, I promise."

"Uh. Um. You don't have to do that!"

"...Kick his ass or go get the batarang for you?"

"I meant getting the batarang, but also please don't fight Batman. He'd wipe the floor with you. No offense."

"Well, first of all, I think I'm just as strong as Batman-" You roll your eyes at him. Dork.

"And second of all, I don't have to get it for you, but I want to. Please let me?"

Ok. Fuck. Whatever. This is the first time you'll be seeing him outside of work, excluding your first meeting.

"Uh. Ok? I, um, my shift ends at 8."

"I'll pick you up in front of the store, then. It's a date!"

"Uh! No, well, yes, but, it- um-"

"I'm just teasing you." He winks at you. Winks! Is he trying to kill you? You turn your face towards your food so you don't have to look at him. Asshole. Stop being so hot.

Later, at 8, he's already waiting for you in front of the store while you're locking up.

"Ready to go?" He smiles.

"Uh, yeah! Sure!"

You start leading the way to where you found the batarang, talking about whatever comes to mind on the way.

Finally, about halfway on your way home, you reach the place where the batarang should be. You hope it's still there, but somebody else could have taken it. You push the trashcan it was behind to the side, and...

There it is!

"Look, it's still here!" You turn around to Bruce, smiling. He smiles back. You fight the urge to giggle or hide your face behind your hands, he needs to stop being so cute.

"Didn't you say it's stuck in the ground? Why wouldn't it be here anymore?"

"Uh, you said you'd help me get it out? Somebody else could have done the same thing!"

"Right. But they don't have my getting batarangs unstuck from the ground skills."

You roll your eyes. How often could Bruce have come in contact with a batarang? His only advantage compared to you is that he's stronger and not afraid of cutting his hand open. At least that's what you think.

You watch as he grabs the batarang and gets it unstuck in seconds. Seriously? It was that easy?

"Woah. I think I would have been able to do that myself, that looked super easy. Sorry to have made you come all this way..." Apparently it wasn't stuck in there as much as you thought? Even if a considerable part of it disappeared beneath the ground. Hm. Weird. Maybe there was a batarang shaped hole there before it landed there? Or Bruce is just a lot stronger than he looks.

"No, I'm glad I came along! I wouldn't have wanted you to cut yourself accidentally." He wraps the batarang in a piece of fabric. Some kind of rich people tissue, maybe.

"Let me carry it home for you?" He looks at you in a way that makes you melt a little bit. Ok, fine.

"Oh, uh, sure!" You did enjoy walking around with him. And not just because walking with someone in Gotham is safer than doing it alone.

"Also we could maybe order dinner? And eat together at your place?" And let him into your apartment that's not cleaned up? That looks shitty even when it is cleaned up?

"Don't push it."

"Or we could go somewhere? I'll pay, of course."

And absolutely embarrass yourself and make him never want to see you again and talk about you to journalists that you're a horrible person, which gets published in every newspaper ever so you have to move and change your name? Ok, maybe that was a bit dramatic.

Bruce can clearly see the anxiety on your face.

"It doesn't have to be a date, if you don't want that."

Be brave! Be brave! You can do this!

"Uh." You almost choke on your words. "And... if I do... want that...?"

You might actually pass out, this is horrible. If he doesn't respond in less than a second, your flight response is going to win and you'll run away. And quit your job, so he can't find you again.

"That would be wonderful! We can take it slow, ok? Absolutely no pressure to do anything you don't want to do whatsoever, I promise."

You nod, not feeling brave enough to say anything. Maybe those were your last words ever.

"So... Dinner at your place? As a date?"

You nod again. Shit, fuck. Are you actually going to date Bruce Wayne? What were you thinking? Wait, does going on one date even mean you're 'dating' him? What's the definition here?

You start walking again, leading Bruce to where you live. If he hates your apartment and leaves and you never see him again that's fine and you'll be able to handle it, right? But that won't happen, so calm down. But if it did happen, you'll be fine and ok and fine. It's fine! Oh fuck, what if you misunderstood him? Did he even mean dinner tonight? Are you embarrassing yourself by assuming he'll come with you right now?

Bruce walks right beside you and starts talking again.

"I'll order. What do you want?" While saying this, he puts an arm around your shoulder. You tense. Woah.

"You said you'd take it slow!" Look at that, you can talk again.

"Too much?" Yes. But also no. But yes. But no.

"I don't know! Maybe?" He takes his arm away and you can breathe again, but somehow at the same time you miss his warmth.

"Don't worry, I'll take it so slow. The slowest. You won't regret dating me, I promise. This'll be so much fun, you'll see." He smiles.

You don't know about that, but you do know that at the very least it'll be interesting. You hope he won't notice you looking up what the definition of dating is on your phone while he's ordering food later.

[bqstqnbruin]

Letters Unsent

Listen listen I know this is my second Quinn fic in a row but I was scrolling through Libby yesterday during parent/teacher conferences and I saw a book that was about letters written between twins that never got sent and then I browned out and next thing I knew this fic was written.

Shoutout to @nicohischier for reading thing while I yelled about it in her dms when she was living life

Warnings: SA(?) (kissing without consent and then she knees him in the dick), swearing, drinking, mentions of sex, angst

WC: 4006

____________________

Dear Quinn, 

My therapist told me I’m supposed to write letters to the people I wish I had one more conversation with. Apparently it’s supposed to help me get all the feelings that I’ve kept bottled up, out in a way where I don’t have to actually say them. Not only did she tell me I had to, but she told me she would read them. Talk about an unnecessary invasion of privacy. Is that even legal?

But, I’m paying her (or my health insurance is paying her) for a reason, and Kelly seems chill anyway, so I guess that’s fine. I’m writing to you and to my grandmother, the one who passed away when I was little, so don’t feel that special. You’re not even going to read these anyway, so I’m not sure why you would. 

Do you remember when we first met? Elias was convinced that the two of us were meant to be, and for some reason, Brock and Ally agreed, too? Ally still brings up that even when we were friends, our entire friend group somehow knew that you and I would end up together. I’m actually surprised it was Elias who said it was us first, and not Ally. It was always supposed to be us.

I just wish we didn’t end that way. 

Lov From,

Sarina

Dear Quinn,

I don’t remember the last time I went out to a bar and got as drunk as I did last night. Ally kept buying drinks (or, conning men into buying us drinks, her favorite pastime). I think the last time I really drank that much might have been the night we first met. Ally told me that I needed to go out for once and forget, since I’ve really just been moping around the apartment (Kelly I know you’re going to read this, calm down I’m writing it for a reason). But what’s the point of going out when there’s nothing to really see? 

Going to bars bores me, you know this. Why spend money to get to the bar, then spend money to get into the bar, then spend more money once you’re inside the bar, then spend even more money to get home from the bar, when I can stay at home and drink for a lot less money and with a lot less people around?

Anyway. 

I still don’t really understand how we all became friends. At that point, Ally was just my roommate, and it was just the two of us against the world. I think if Brock hadn’t spilled his drink all over me, we probably would have just avoided the three of you. The fact that we even went out in the first place was astonishing. I didn’t even realize what had happened, the fact that I was covered in some sticky, alcoholic liquid, until I heard you scolding him for it. Your voice is what pulled me in to the group, you were what kept me in.

Brock, of course, insisted he make up for it, as he would, while you just stood off to the side and laughed into your drink, the scolding from moments before gone while you watched Brock make a fool of himself (as Ally and I would later learn, was actually just him being him). He brought the five of us so many drinks, he might have spent a year's worth of his salary that night alone.

Ok, not his salary. My salary, maybe. 

I don’t know what came over me that night we met, though. You know me well enough to know that I am not the type of person to do something big, or something that might scare me if I can help it. 

Asking you to dance was definitely because of the alcohol. Working up the courage to do that when the rest of our friends were standing talking was easy because of the alcohol. There was something about the vibe that night that made me want to do it. Something inside me was telling me I had to, or that I would regret it.

Part of me does regret it, sometimes. But, fuck, I’m glad I did it. 

Maybe that’s why they all say that we were meant for each other. Something about you had me doing things I never would have done otherwise. Ally took pictures of us while we were dancing. She said that we should use them for when the two of us inevitably got married. I don’t think I’ve ever looked at someone the way I looked at you.

Maybe it was the alcohol. 

Maybe it was because you were looking at me the same way. 

LoFrom,

Sarina

Dear Quinn,

I hate my job I hate my job I hate my job I hate my job.

Something, something, Kelly would tell me that if this is making me this unhappy, that I should quit, blah, blah, blah.

In this economy, though??? With this job market??? Maybe I go to another country…

I fucking hate that one guy, Jamie. Do you remember him? 

I feel like I ask you that a lot, if you remember certain things. I guess I’m just wondering if you think about me and us as much as I think about you. I hate how that sounds/reads/looks, but unfortunately for me, it’s true. I shouldn’t think about you as much as I do, but, here we are. That’s probably why you were the first person I thought of to write to when Kelly told me to start (sorry Grandma).

Anyway, Jamie was that guy we ran into that one night at the bar, before we started dating. Of course you remember him. You probably remember him more than you remember anything about me at this point.

He kept hitting on me, at one point had his hand on my arm and you went fucking crazy. 

It was insanely hot. 

I’ve told you that before, but I might as well tell you that again.

  What was even hotter in the moment was when you came up behind me and wrapped your arms around my waist. I always felt safe in your arms, if I’m being honest. That’s fucking corny of me.

Whatever.

You came up behind me and told him that you were glad he was keeping me company, that I was safe with someone I knew. I’m almost positive I heard you call me ‘your girl,’ but it was so loud in there, who knows. I hope you did. 

I’ve never seen someone so pissed off as I had when Jamie stomped away. 

I’ve never seen someone look the way you did, almost hungry? Jealous? When Jamie came over to me in the first place. I saw you the entire time, the way you clenched your glass, how you nearly threw it at Elias when you first saw Jamie touch me. I thought you were just trying to be a good friend. 

But it was the fact that you didn’t let go of me, you rested your chin on my head, even when Jamie was out of my sight.

I finally was able to turn around and get a look at you at one point after we just stood there for a little bit, the two of us starting to sway to the music. For me, it felt like there was no one else around us. I asked you why you were still holding on to me.

The fact that you just smiled at me, your hands tightening on my waist instead of outright answering me made my heart skip a beat. Every stupid, gooey, wonderful feeling you could think of when you know that you were in love with the person in front of you ran through me. 

My mind went blank when you finally kissed me. When I finally could form a coherent thought, the only thing I could think of was how that felt right.

You felt right.

I started this letter to talk about my job, but honestly, Jamie isn’t even worth it. He never really was. 

LFrom, 

Sarina

Dear Quinn,

The fact that we didn’t outright start dating after that night you kissed me drove me fucking insane. I don’t think I ever told you that, but seeing you talk to any other girl when we went out made me feel like I was going fucking insane.

I can’t believe you let me be jealous about a guy, about you of all people. I’m honestly pissed at you for that. And, the fact that I can see you reading this, see you throw your head back laughing at this, that kind of smile on your face as rare as it is would make me even more pissed at you.

The first time you asked me to come to a game after we kissed was the worst. Together, both of us tried to act like it had never happened. Ally apparently kept texting you telling you what you should do next, since, of course, she would be the one in our friend group to not only see us kiss, but to record it. Another video for our wedding, apparently (I still don’t know what she meant by ‘another’). Regardless, we had continued on like nothing happened, like we hadn’t kissed. Like it hadn’t meant anything to you.

And I had to pretend the same, even though it was sending me into a spiral.

After the game, you told us how to meet you outside your locker room so we could go get dinner (I kind of hate matinee games? They’re too early to do anything before and end too early to do something meaningful after? I felt like we were supposed to get a senior citizens discount when we finally made it to dinner). I saw you talking to that one girl; she was gorgeous. Honestly, when you think of the perfect girl, you probably should think of her. 

I saw you laugh and smile at her, and I felt a pit in my stomach wishing it was me you were talking to. 

When you hugged her, your hand lingering on her arm and the smile on your face staying there after you walked away, before you saw Ally and I with Elias and Brock, I felt like I could scream.

You knew something was wrong when I barely said anything on the way over. You were the one who didn’t buy it when I said I was just tired from work still, that I hadn’t slept the night before. You were the one who called my bluff when I said I wasn’t hungry because you were the one who heard my stomach, who was on Facetime with me when I went to sleep the night before.

I hated that you were the one who could call me out; not Ally, who I’ve lived with and been best friends with for how many years, you. I hated that you were the reason I shut down.

I hated you for a second.

How was I supposed to know that was Jake’s sister? 

From, 

Sarina

Dear Quinn,

When you finally asked me out, I knew it was because Ally had threatened you (affectionately). I pretended to be surprised that you were going to ask me, but I knew it was coming, I just didn’t know when. You never really were the type to let everyone in on things right away, were you?

I was surprised how you had the audacity to take me out to dinner and only let me know after you dropped me off that you thought it was a date, our first date. It must have been nice to go into dinner knowing it was a date when I had no idea it was. 

Sometimes I just wish you would have talked to me when you were thinking. You’re so quiet, you always look like you’re lost in thought, and I thought I could tell how to find you again. I felt like I knew everything, but apparently, I didn’t.

From,

Sarina

Dear Quinn,

Kelly told me that she wants to open up more in these letters. Apparently, I’m not letting myself ‘feel enough’ and that these letters are too vague, whatever that means. 

Fine, Kelly. 

You know when I knew for sure that I loved you? The first time we slept together. 

I didn’t tell you for three weeks after that that I loved you, even though I knew, and you didn’t tell me you loved me for almost two months after that. 

I can’t believe you didn’t tell me.

If you had told me, we wouldn’t have gotten so pissed off at each other all the time. I know I’m shit when it comes to sharing my feelings, but god, you were even worse. 

The first time we fought was barely a real fight. It was just us not talking. 

You were pissed off when I told you I had to do a project with Jamie. It’s not like I asked to be paired with him. I actually actively asked to not be anywhere near him as much as possible, but apparently, so does everyone else (capitalism is the worst, what do you mean the guy we all hate can stay at the job because he brings in a lot of money?) when I said I was talking to him at night because we had to get this project done, that the faster I could get the project done, the sooner I could go back to ignoring him.

Jamie was a fucking prick. Jamie is a fucking prick. But god, that night I would have talked to Jamie if it meant you didn’t act that way. 

I don’t remember everything that brought us up to it, but I remember it dawning on me. I didn’t know for sure that you liked me, or if you hated Jamie more from the stories I had told you. I doubted you. I doubt you. I never told you that outright, in those words, because how do you tell the person you’re supposed to love that you don’t think they love you back?

I asked you if you kissed me that night because you actually wanted to, or if it was just to make Jamie mad. He was still in the bar, even if I didn’t see him. You had seen him. You could see him. You saw him when you kissed me. You saw him over my shoulder when you pulled away. You admitted to it. 

You kissed me to get back at a guy you hadn’t said more than a couple words to. 

And then you told me it was because you loved me. Because you were in love with me. That you apparently knew when you first met me that you were going to fall in love with me, if you hadn’t fallen already.

I stared at you, furious at you and believing that you started our relationship because you wanted to, what, claim me? Mark me? I don’t even know. But then you told me the one thing I wanted to hear from you and the only thing I wanted to do was throw something at you.

So I walked out of your apartment instead. I called Brock, I had him pick me up, and he drove me back to my and Ally’s place. 

It was Brock who tried to convince me that what you said was real, that you actually meant it, and that he and Elias knew it was the truth because you told them. For some reason, you had waited until then, until we were screaming at each other, to tell me. It was Ally who needed to be calmed down after threatening to kill you, only once Brock pointed out that the city would probably riot against her. 

I was numb. 

And it was you who made me feel that way. I felt nothing. I wanted to feel so many things, anything really, but I couldn’t. I couldn’t feel a fucking thing. These letters are supposed to be me going back and figure out and really acknowledging what I was feeling throughout what I think were our biggest moments. But I didn’t feel anything.

Are you happy now, Kelly?

From,

Sarina

Dear Quinn,

I think after that last letter, I was nervous to write another. Ally found me sitting and crying at my desk. Apparently I never told her the full story of what had happened that night or why I didn’t talk to you for two weeks, even though she and Brock tried to get it out of me, Elias going over to your place once you called him. Elias didn’t know either, from the sound of it. We were Rory and Logan without the Bridal Party (if you still don’t get the Gilmore Girls reference, then we really shouldn’t have been together in the first place. We watched the show seven times, at least). 

We didn’t really know how to be around each other for a bit after that, did we? It took us a while to get back to where we were before. 

Who says that they love someone when they’re in the middle of a fight like that? Who says it for the first time like that? If you loved me, shouldn’t you have told me before? Shouldn’t you have told me in a different way?

I didn’t think you meant it when you told me you loved me, but everyone told me that you did, so I think I let myself believe it. At least at that point, I did. I think you loved me. You never seemed to be able to reassure me when I had my doubts, if you even knew that I had them. I know I loved you. 

I’ve spent the last year and a half trying to convince myself that I don’t love you anymore. 

Kelly, is that what these letters are supposed to be doing? Am I supposed to convince myself that I don’t love Quinn, or that I do?

We’re about to have a really intense session, aren’t we?

From, 

Sarina

Dear Quinn,

At this point, I’m just mad. These letters are just making me mad. I’m still mad about how we broke up, I’m still mad that you kissed me the way you did. 

I’m still mad that I think about you all the fucking time. 

The reason we broke up is what makes me furious.

I told you nothing was going on with Jamie.

I don’t like him. I have never liked him. I will never like him. The only person who mattered to me the entire relationship was you. You are were the one who mattersed to me. 

I told you so many times that Jamie was the one who kissed me. You knew I would never kiss that guy.

But the fact that you saw it? I’ve never felt like screaming and crying more than I did in that moment, causing a scene in public and embarrassing everyone be damned. The look on your face when I finally was able to push him off me, only to see you standing right there, drinks for both of us in your hands. I could see the tears in your eyes, your Adam's Apple bobbing up and down while you swallowed what I was sure was rage, anger, hurt, fury. You didn’t see that I was crying, too. You didn’t see that I was struggling to get him away from me. It was only a kiss, one that I didn’t want to happen, and you didn’t see anything other than his lips on mine.

If you did, you didn’t seem to care. 

You nearly broke the glasses as you slammed them down on the table near you, knocking over multiple people when you stormed out of the bar. 

I had to knee Jamie in the dick to get him off me so I could chase after you. 

You broke up with me right there. I don’t know how I could forget the look in your eyes when you told me you didn’t want to see me anymore if I was going to cheat on you with Jamie when you were standing right there, as if I intended to do that. You looked like you could kill someone. 

You didn’t care that I wasn’t the one who fucking kissed him, that I didn’t kiss him back, that you are the only person I want to kiss. If you heard anything I yelled at you when you were walking away, you didn’t care. You left me there, and I had to watch you walk away.

Ally found me on the sidewalk, sitting on the ground against the building outside where you told me you didn’t care about me anymore. I couldn’t even tell her what happened because I screamed so loud that my voice was gone.

Fuck you for that, Quinn.

Sarina

Dear Quinn,

Fine, I fucking miss you. That’s why I thought of you first to write to. There are so many fucking things that I never got to say, that I never got to ask, that I know you never told me that have been eating away at me and occupying my thoughts more than I want them to.

I miss you, I miss being held by you, touched by you, kissed by you. I miss the feeling if your skin against mine, the feeling of you inside me, for fucks sake. I miss when you would talk to me like I was the only person who mattered to you, because I know that you loved me as much as I love you. 

I miss every god damn stupid habit that you have, every little quirk of yours that you did on a game day that would drive me fucking insane. 

I still come home sometimes when you guys are on a road trip and expect you to call me, no matter where on the continent you are, because you missed me and I missed you and we needed to hear each others voices. 

I miss the guys and being friends with them, even though Ally still talks to them and gets to see them. 

You never let me tell you what really happened, because I don’t think you cared. I don’t know if you loved me.

I wish you did, because, fuck, I still love you. 

Are you happy now, Kelly?

I still love Quinn. You’re going to tell me that I’m too young to say this, but: I will always love that stupid, sad, wonderful boy that I met by chance one night at a bar and got to spend time with. I will always love the guy who made me laugh so hard I couldn’t breathe and cry so hard I couldn’t speak. I will always love Quinn, no matter who else I will fall in love with, or out of love with, if I stay here in Vancouver until I die, or if he gets traded or if I move on my own.

Fuck.

Love, 

Sarina

Dear Sarina,

I get that I was never supposed to see these. I probably am not supposed to know they even exist, but I’m fucking glad I do. You’re going to kill Ally for sending these to me, but, let’s face it, she’s the one who’s been pushing for us since minute one. Would we have had anything if we didn’t have Ally? 

But I don’t want to talk about her. 

I miss you.

I want you back.

I’m a fucking idiot for not being with you, for walking away from you that night.

You think that I didn’t love you? I’ve loved you this entire time. I loved you from the first time we talked, even though, you’re right, I didn’t say it when I should have because I’m an idiot. 

Can we talk?

Love,

Quinn

Dear Quinn,

Yes.

Love, 

Sarina

[melodyartist]

Do u have an opinion on Hades 2 Odysseus ^_^?

*Crack knuckles*

Oh oh oh! I do indeed have an opinion on this bastard, it's an unreasonable love and hate relationship with this guy. I played the game for just like 20 hours till now and I still don't know If I like him or want to strangle him.

It's also funny that 4 or more characters in the game are directly linked to his misadventures, "what do you mean they hate me more because you had beef with them" Polyphemus my boy need some justice honestly 😭 (but the funniest line he had untill now was about Poseiodon)

Design wise? He is cool like everybody else in the game,definitely not the best and not the worse, nothing really bad to say. I would even like to admit that he has a refreshing design with all his maps and trinkets, plus the dagger on his finger is so unnecessary, I love it for a show off like him.

Side note: I've tried to draw him from memory a while ago it was almost 4 A.M when I still didn't buy the game at the time... It didn't go that well, the only thing that I remember vividly was his grin, eyes and weird mantle with crosses, he ended up looking like Peter B parker 😭

"We got Odysseus at home" looking ahh drawing

Going back on track! Personality wise? That's where I want to throw hands with him.

Is he funny? Yes sometimes, do I skip his dialogue? Of course not, I don't skip anyone's dialogue, I didn't even skip Theseus dialogue in the first game so Odysseus is no exception (Mainly because I love the voice acting of all the characters, is so well done)

But do I want to wrap my hands around his neck in a so not loving way every time he says "my goddess" and tries to be flirty in a subtle way? Absolutely!

This version of him is clearly a womanizer and I'm ok with that! He is weak to women, that's fine, give me a man with flaws! But who wouldn't be? Have you seen the women in this game? chef kiss, stunning, gorgeous...but that's not what's throwing me off... There is something in him that just make me wants to kick him, idk I can't pin point it...

Maybe it's because I've missed it but not even once he mentioned his wife and kid, or any type of deep remorse for his past life, while Achilles was kind of the opposite. I don't really see him like an Achilles counterpart but more like a Hypnos counterpart.

Catch my drift, his role (at least right now) is to bring back reports and update Melinoe on the situation, adding funny anecdotes and comments. His dialogues feels less like a mentor/father figure watching over you, like Achilles was to Zagreus, and more like a friendly companion who is there to keep track of your progress just like Hypnos

So that's it.

[no-goodbyes-no-regrets]

Happy (belated, sorry, I'm bad at planning and deadlines!) Valentine's day @tellmegoodbye ! Here's your gift for the @tarlos-secret-cupid exchange!

You said you liked different first meeting AUs, and those are some of my favourite things to write, so I hope you'll like this one.

For one weekend only (AO3)

What if Carlos and TK had met in NYC before Owen and TK came to Austin?

----

"What are you doing for valentines day?" Luisa asked, walking into Carlos' town house without bothering to ring the doorbell or even knock.

"Do you mind?!" Carlos demanded, quickly closing his laptop. "I'm busy. And how did you get in?"

Luisa held up a key.

"Mom and dad have a spare key."

"Yes they do. For emergencies. This is not an emergency and you shouldn't have that key."

"I told mom you borrowed something of mine that I needed and you were at work." she sat down on one of the barstools in Carlos' kitchen. "I didn't think I'd be walking in on my little brother watching porn though." she nodded at his laptop.

"I wasn't watching porn!" Carlos protested. "And even if I was, that's none of your business. Now what are you doing here?"

"How would you like to go to New York City?"

Carlos frowned.

"New York City?"

"Yeah. Big city on the east coast. Times square, statue of liberty, Broadway, that kind of thing."

"Yes I'm familiar with it, thanks."

"Ok so, how would you like to see it for yourself?."

"Are you offering me a trip to NYC?"

"Yes. Kind of. You and me together." Luisa told him. "It'll be a nice brother and sister bonding trip."

"You want to go to New York with me... What's the catch?"

"What makes you think there's a catch?"

"Because the last time you were nice to me for no apparent reason was when I was 10 and you got Miguel to put a lizard in my bed on the ranch."

Luisa laughed a little at the memory.

"I never knew you could scream that loudly."

"Yeah, yeah, it was hilarious. So now tell me what's up with this trip to new York?"

Luisa rolled her eyes.

"You're so suspicious. You're just like dad."

"Lu…"

"Ok fine. Remember that guy I was dating? Ricardo?"

"Hmm."

"I dumped him."

"Good. He was a tool."

"You only met him once!"

"And yet I know he's a tool. You only ever date tools."

Luisa rolled her eyes. She knew Carlos had a point but she'd be damned if she was going to admit it.

"Anyway, he was sleeping with two other girls behind my back."

"See? A tool."

"I only found out because one of the other girls DM-ed me and showed me pictures."

"Still not beating the tool allegations."

"So I dumped him but I'd booked a trip to NYC for us for valentines day."

"Ok…"

"And everything is paid for and I'll lose my deposits if I cancel. And the flights are non refundable."

"Right."

"So I thought I'd take my baby brother to the big city." she clapped in her hands. "We can go to a gay bar and get you a guy. And who knows, maybe I'll find a girl who is worth my time."

"Since when do you date girls?"

"I don't. Well. Not yet. I've never been with a girl so I don't know if I'm actually into girls or not. This could be my gay awakening."

Carlos sighed but decided against arguing with his sister about the details of her sexuality.

"Come on Carlitos. You and me and a wild weekend in the big city. There on the Thursday, back on the Monday."

"What if I'm working?"

"You can take a few days off."

"Ok. Fine. But I'm not sharing a bed with you so you better make sure there are two beds in that hotel room."

“Fine. I wouldn’t want to share a bed with you anyway. I’d end up with a black eye. You’re such a restless sleeper. Even as a baby.”

“Never had any complaints.”

“Yeah? And when was the last time you shared a bed with someone for more than a quick hook up?”

“No comment.”

“Thought so.” Luisa said and got up. “Anyway, the flight is booked for 4pm on the Thursday and I booked an airport shuttle to drop us off at the hotel there. You do have a valid ID right?”

“Of course.”

“Good. I’ll pick you up around two. Don’t pack too much, we only have a carry on bag each.”

“You’re driving? You want to pay for airport parking the entire weekend?”

“No. Ricardo is. He just doesn’t know it yet.” Luisa gave him a sweet smile and walked to the door. “Be ready on time. And don’t forget condoms!”

“Lu!”

By the time Thursday rolled around, Carlos had to admit he was getting excited about this trip. It wasn’t every day he got the chance to visit a big city like New York for free.

Even if it was with his big sister.

Luisa picked him up in a car that was definitely not hers, and just grinned when Carlos asked whose car it was.

Their flight was delayed and by the time they got to their hotel in NYC, all either of them wanted was food and sleep.

They decided to grab a quick burger from the place around the corner from their hotel and planned out their itinerary for the next few days.

“Do you want to do the tourist thing?” Luisa asked. “Statue of liberty and all that? The hotel offers all day walking tours.”

“That could be fun.” Carlos shrugged. “We could try to get tickets to a Broadway show. Don’t they have this lottery deal? I read about it online.”

Luisa nodded.

“I kind of want to do something more… active than sit in a theatre though.”

“Like that tour?”

“Maybe. Or we could just walk around and see where we end up? I had all these romantic things planned… but I don’t want to go on a horse-drawn carriage ride through central park with you.”

“I could drive one of those myself.” Carlos commented around a bite of food. “Remember when dad and uncle Emilio let us drive one around the ranch?”

“I hated that thing. You always tried to crash it.” Luisa pointed a fry at her brother. “But you never got in trouble because you were the baby. Carlitos wouldn’t do such a thing.” she mocked.

“You and Ana got me in trouble plenty of times!”

Luisa shrugged.

“Payback is a bitch.”

They spent the rest of the night just hanging out in their hotel room and the next day they decided to do all the touristy things you’d see on TV.

They walked around Times square, went to the Natural History museum, had lunch in central park, and hit up some of the tacky touristy shops for some souvenirs.

Though Carlos drew the line at I ♥ NYC t-shirts, Luisa did convince him to buy a shirt with the NYPD logo and a key chain of the New York city skyline.

“So I got a reservation at this restaurant in Manhattan that’s supposed to be really good.” Luisa said when it was nearing dinner time and they were walking through the city on the way back to their hotel. “It’s also supposed to be really romantic and a great place for couples to get engaged.”

“I’m not fake proposing to you to get free dessert.” Carlos said immediately. “Or have you fake propose to me.”

“I wasn’t going to suggest that! It’s just… that’s why I booked it you know?”

“You were going to propose to the tool?”

“No! Well… maybe?” Luisa groaned and dropped her head in her hands. “Things were going so well between us. I really thought… well…” She sighed. “I thought he was the one. That I was the one for him… but I was just one of many.”

Carlos’ face softened.

Despite her questionable taste in men, he did love his sister and wanted nothing more than for her to find a guy who was actually worthy of her and be happy.

“I’m sorry Lu.” He let her link her arm through his. “Tell me about this restaurant. Can we eat there and not max out our credit cards?”

She smiled.

“It’s not that bad. I looked for mid range prices. Something nice but not too expensive… Not gold plated truffles, but no fast food either.”

“Alright. I’m in. But I’m still not fake proposing to you.”

After a quick stop at their hotel to change and freshen up, they made it to the restaurant and Carlos had to admit it was a nice place. Though they definitely had gone all out for the holiday and there were pink and red hearts all over the place. They even had a guy sell roses at the tables.

Carlos declined but Luisa ended up buying one for him and calling it feminism.

The food was nice and they talked about everything and nothing and just enjoyed catching up, not paying much attention to the couples around them.

That was until Luisa excused herself to go to the bathroom and Carlos was alone at the table. He played with the swizzle stick in his drink and tried to subtly look around.

He didn’t want to be the weirdo openly staring at people.

There was an elderly couple at a table to his left, holding hands and looking every bit as in love as Carlos imagined them to have been when they first got together.

A little further away there was a couple who were barely looking at each other. She seemed bored and looked longingly at the exit, but the guy didn’t seem to notice. Or maybe he just didn’t care.

He shifted his focus to the other side of the restaurant and saw a guy by himself at a table. He seemed nervous. Constantly looking to the door, playing with the table decorations, his leg bouncing up and down, and taking deep breaths to calm himself; which didn’t seem to be working much.

After a minute another guy walked in and the first guy’s face lit up. He smiled and got up to greet the second guy with a hug and a kiss.

Oh. They’re on a date.

Carlos kept watching them. He figured it must be a first date, given the first guy’s nerves, though they seemed comfortable around each other.

Maybe they’d been friends for a long time?

“Next time I’m going to the men’s toilets. There was a line a mile long for the ladies’ and the entire time I was waiting, only one man went into the men’s.” Luisa complained when she got back to their table. “I’ll pee in a urinal if I have to, I don’t care.”

Carlos scrunched up his face in mild disgust.

“Can we not talk about you peeing while we’re eating please?”

“We’re not eating anymore.” Luisa pointed out. “Do you want another drink or dessert?”

“No, I’m good.”

Luisa nodded and put up her hand to call over a waiter and ask for the bill.

They paid and made their way outside, but as they were trying to decide what to do next, Carlos was suddenly knocked to the ground by someone rushing out of the restaurant.

He wanted to yell at them, but the second he gathered his bearings enough to do so, he noticed it was the nervous guy from before and he didn’t look very happy. The date must not have gone well.

"Are you ok?" he asked, getting up and holding out a hand to help the other man up.

"I'm fine." he said, dusting himself off and avoiding Carlos' gaze and ignoring his outstretched hand. "Just look where you're going next time."

"Uhm you ran into me." Carlos pointed out. "You couldn't get out of that restaurant fast enough.”

"Exactly. So please move aside so I can get out of here. I haven't had the best night ok, I just want to go home."

Carlos stepped aside to let the man pass, but then saw a small box on the pavement.

"Hey, wait, you dropped this."

The man glanced over his shoulder and Carlos swore he saw tears in his eyes.

"Keep it." he said and started walking again.

Carlos frowned and opened the box, revealing a diamond ring.

"That's an engagement ring." Luisa said, looking over his shoulder. "Go after him."

“I don’t think he’s really in the mood for company, Lu.”

Luisa rolled her eyes and ran a few steps after the guy.

“Hey, we were thinking of going dancing somewhere, want to come with us?”

The man looked at her like she’d lost her mind, Carlos thought she might have but still went after her.

“Why would I do that?”

“To improve your night? To show a few helpless tourists a good time?”

“Wow, hold it right there.” the man stopped walking and looked back between her and Carlos. “I don’t know what your deal is.” he motioned to the two of them. “But I’m not looking to be anyone’s third. And I don’t do women. I’m gay.”

“So is Carlos.” Luisa said happily, like that was the best thing to come from the entire exchange.

“And she’s my sister.” Carlos clarified. “We are not together. Not like that.” he shuddered and Luisa punched him on the arm. “What?! You’re my sister. I’m not supposed to find you hot.”

“You didn’t have to be all disgusted. Way to make a girl feel special!”

“I apologise for my sister. Obviously I’m the only normal one in this family.” Carlos explained. “But the offer does still stand. If you’re maybe in the mood to forget what happened in there?” he nodded at the restaurant.

“I don’t know, I don’t think I’ll be very good company tonight. And I’m not much of a dancer.”

“Neither is Carlos. He does a little shimmy, puts on a tight shirt, and turns on the fuck me eyes, and thinks that counts as dancing.”

“Whereas Luisa is obviously America’s next top… dancer?” Carlos said and laughed a little.

The man smiled.

“Alright. I think I know a place. I’m TK.” he said and shook hands with both Reyes siblings when they introduced themselves.

They followed TK and ended up in a bar where he seemed to know everyone. The bouncer let them in without question and once inside several people came to say hello. He introduced them to some people and soon Luisa was dancing with a girl with green hair and a drag queen in 9 inch heels.

“Looks like your sister is enjoying herself.” TK commented. He and Carlos were standing by the bar, nursing a drink, and watching people let loose on the dance floor.

“Yeah. She usually does. She’s a people person.”

“And what about you? Does it run in the family?”

Carlos smiled.

“Sometimes. But I tend to prefer smaller groups of people.”

“Yeah? How small?” TK’s eyes flicked down to Carlos��� lips

“I think… two people is probably my limit.”

TK took Carlos’ drink from his hand and put it on the bar, before running his hand up Carlos’ arm until he reached his neck, and pulled him in for a kiss.

Somewhere in the back of his mind Carlos knew it was a bad idea. The guy had just broken up with his boyfriend (Probably? Maybe?) and a weekend hook up was definitely not his style, but TK was kissing him like a man possessed and Carlos would be lying if he said he wasn’t enjoying every second of it.

So he decided to just let go.

They ended up on the dance floor, kissing, grinding, groping, not caring who saw them.

At some point TK’s shirt had become unbuttoned, and Carlos’ own shirt was hanging from his back pocket.

He’d felt exposed for about .03 seconds after he’d taken it off, but TK running his hands over his chest and abs had quickly made him forget any discomfort.

And when TK started kissing his neck and slipping his hands into the back of his jeans to pull him even closer, every coherent thought Carlos had ever had went out the window.

“Do you want to get out of here?” TK asked him, breath hot on his ear.

Carlos could only nod and let TK drag him to the toilets.

They ended up in the last stall, and before Carlos’ brain had caught up with what was happening, TK was on his knees giving him the blowjob of a lifetime.

He grinned and wiped his mouth after he was done and pulled Carlos’ in for a lazy kiss, letting him taste himself on TK’s tongue.

“I bet you didn’t expect that when you came to NYC with your sister.” He said, sounding rather smug.

“I really don’t want to talk about my sister right now.” he pushed TK back against the wall and slowly kissed down his chest as he sank to his knees. He undid TK’s jeans and looked up at him as the other man ran a hand through his hair and tugged on his curls.

He had better things to occupy his mouth with.

---

A few months later.

“Morning.” Lexi greeted Carlos as she walked into the locker room to change into her uniform before their shift. “How was your weekend?”

Carlos shrugged and finished the last of his coffee.

“Not bad. It was my nephew’s birthday. He turned 5. So I kind of helped my sister and her husband wrangle twenty hyper five year olds.” he said and Lexi winced. “The kids had fun, that’s what matters.”

He waited until Lexi finished changing and the two of them made their way to the precinct garage to get their patrol car for the day.

“I’m driving.” Lexi insisted, and after the weekend he’d had, Carlos was happy to sit back and let her.

"Did you hear about fire station 126?" Lexi asked, fastening her seatbelt while Carlos did the same.

“Yeah they lost the whole crew a couple of weeks ago, didn't they?”

"Yeah, my sister is AFD, she said the whole department took it pretty badly. Only one guy survived."

"Damn…"

“Yeah...” she trailed off. “But they brought in this big shot fire captain from New York to rebuild the place. It's in our jurisdiction so I figured we should go say hello? We're going to be working with this guy and his crew, might as well get to know them.”

"Sure."

They drove to the fire station where somehow every builder in Austin seemed to be working at the same time.

"Officers, what can I do for you?" a man in his 50s in an AFD uniform approached them as they walked in.

"We're just coming to say hello to the new neighbours. Welcome you to the neighbourhood." Lexi told him and extended her hand. "I'm Lexi Mitchell, this is my partner Carlos Reyes. We work this part of the city too so we'll probably run into each other in the field from time to time."

"Oh well thank you for the welcome." the man shook her hand before moving onto Carlos. "I'm Owen Strand, I just moved here from new York City with my son... Who should be around here somewhere." he looked around. "TK!"

"What?" came a voice from further into the fire station.

"Come down here a second."

They heard footsteps coming closer and someone walked down the stairs. When TK came into view Carlos had to remind himself how to breathe.

TK the new fire captain's son, was the same TK he'd spent the weekend in New York with. One of the best weekends of his life.

He was vaguely aware of Lexi introducing them and shook hands with TK on auto pilot.

He remembered the way those hands had felt on his body. How it had felt to kiss those lips.

"Nice to meet you both officers." TK said politely.

But apparently TK didn't remember him. Or didn’t want to remember him.

It wasn’t like they’d kept in touch after that one weekend, or even exchanged phone numbers. TK didn’t owe him anything. They didn’t owe each other anything. They weren’t dating.

“You too. You work here too?” Carlos asked and TK nodded. “Yeah, I’m a firefighter, just like my dad.”

“Yeah it’s a family affair here.” The fire captain joked. “We’re working on getting the house back in order and getting a new crew together. Hopefully station 126 will be back in business soon.”

Carlos gave him his most professional smile and nod.

“I look forward to working with you, sir. Station 126 has always been an important part of our city.”

They exchanged pleasantries for a few more minutes before Carlos and Lexi left the station to continue their shift.

“What was that?” Lexi asked, pulling out of the parking space by the fire station.

“What was what?”

“You sucking up to the new fire captain and his son? Are you switching teams on me Reyes?”

“What are you talking about? I just said hello. Welcomed him to the city.”

“Please. The guy is probably wondering when your application will be coming in.”

Carlos rolled his eyes and debated telling Lexi about his weekend with TK, but decided against it. TK clearly wasn’t interested in a repeat performance and Lexi didn’t have to know everything about him.

“Whatever.” he mumbled, hoping that would be the end of the conversation.

The rest of their shift was thankfully uneventful, as was the rest of the week, and by Friday Carlos had convinced himself he didn’t care about TK Strand and accepted the invitation from some of his coworkers to go out for drinks after work.

Jason from Missing Persons wasn’t bad to look at after all.

The place was busy when he arrived, and he looked around for Jason and the other guys from work. When he didn’t see them, he figured he was the first one there, and ordered himself a drink. He sat down on a free stool at the bar and watched a group of people laughing and line dancing in the middle of the dance floor.

He recognised the new fire captain and found himself looking around to see if his son was there too.

“Fancy meeting you here.” A voice in his ear made him jump. He turned around and came face to face with TK.

“Oh… uh… yeah… hi.”

TK smiled.

“Hi. You come here often?”

Carlos raised an eyebrow at the cheesy come on.

“Sometimes. I’m supposed to meet some people from work.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. But they’re not here yet.”

“Good. That means I’ve got you all to myself.” TK said, and didn’t give Carlos more than a second to think before he put his drink on the bar and pulled him in for a kiss. The move so much like what he’d done in New York it gave Carlos a sense of deja vu.

And also he remembered he really liked kissing TK.

“I was hoping I’d run into you here sooner or later. I heard a lot of cops come to this place too.” TK admitted after they’d come up for air.

"Wait… So you do like me?" Carlos asked, confused. Between TK’s kisses and the cold shoulder from earlier in the week, he had trouble keeping up.

"Yeah... I thought that was obvious. Especially after what we did in New York.”

“But you pretended not to know who I was when I came into the fire station.”

“I know… but you were working. And my dad was right there. I had to keep it somewhat professional."

Carlos nodded. He understood keeping up appearances while on the job.

“So… if this had been the first time you would have seen me again… what would you have done?”

TK grinned and pushed open Carlos’ legs and stepped between them, hands coming to rest on his thighs as he leaned forward, face inches from his.

“I think you know.”

[thejudeduarte]

This girl who's entering this top secret base could be thinking of 101 other things right now such as "omg I'm a spy now!!" Or "I wonder what the other spies are gonna be like?" Or pretty much ANYTHING else at all but her mind wanders to Cardan.

It happens every time too and she's still trying to convince herself and everyone that she's not crushing on him? I'm not buying it, sorry Jude 😭

[pickypickypeak]

[maraschinotopped]

ive been staring at the naqtube channel page just doing analysis thoughts in my head for like 15 minutes and ive just been hit with the realization that Damn this is not normal. normal people dont do this. either the mental illness or the mild sickness is doing something to me right now.

[unmanageably]

joy is gone until mavs know how to use klay HOW WILL U RESPOND @ jkidd

[loserelf]

maybe i do need to go to therapy bc its probably not good that ive been living on autopilot and the last 7 years went by so fast but also bc i was deliberatly Wanting the time to go by to put as much space between me and the events of 2017-2020 as possible all while somewhat knowing my young adulthood was slipping me by and now both my teenage years and my early 20s are gone and i still feel like my 19th birthday was yesterday yeesh!!

[follineo]

UUUUGHGGHGHGHGH,,,,

[californiaquail]

the observerrrrrr

[tiktaaliker]

ITS BEEN A FUCKING WEEK. PASS THE DETRITUS

[milkweedman]

Coincidentally my usable warp is like exactly as long as my dining room. Point is tho, i am finally done thank fuck

[floral-hex]

One of my brothers is moving away to college today + I have to skip therapy, so it’s a lot of… a lot. a lot.

[mqonlighting]

real talk in the tags for a second because i have a crush on a girl and i. a hehe. ahehehe.

will be burying this in reblogs and never touching on it again

[todayisafridaynight]

I know it'll be a cold day in hell when Masato asks for Jo's input and actually listens but sometimes I like to think about Jo helping him pick out his new name. He never gave himself the opportunity when he was born and Arakawa had his turn yk... only he put actual thought into it and Jo's just like It Sounds Like Jo 😭😭

THAT WOULD BE CUTE WOLUDNT.... whenever i think of jo getting small chances to be a dad i feel my heart and soul grow 50 times its original size i SWEARRR (;´༎ຶД༎ຶ`)