#okay but every time i google her i find something new

[dragons-and-yellow-roses]

I was going to go to sleep early tonight but then I had to Google my most painful ex and listen to the entirety of Five Seconds Flat by Lizzy McAlpine. I may have to listen to it again, so it's going to be a busy night.

[imbored1201]

Lost Child

Barcelona Femeni x Teen Reader

Summary: Being in Sweden was supposed to be a fun new experience for you, then it became scary very quickly

A/N: This is set during the 22/23 season and I have no idea if the google translation was right for the Swedish speaking part, so sorry if it isn’t

You were in Sweden playing Rosengard. The team was on a walk, as usual, to admire everything about a new country. You were with Lucy and Keira, Keira holding your hand to make sure you didn't wander off.

————

Once the walk was finished everyone split into groups. You wanted to go with Ingrid, Mapi, and Frido since they were getting food and you were really hungry. Everyone else was going to go see exhibits and probably cause mayhem you did not want any part in. You had promised Alexia you would behave, and you wanted to keep that promise.

Lucy, being an overbearing mother, strictly told the three girls to keep an eye on you, as you were a slippery little thing and always wandered off without anyone realizing. "It's not hard to keep track of a 16 year old Lucy," Mapi cockily grinned as she put an arm around your shoulder.

"I warned you, if she does wander off, she'll most likely be in a toy store or arcade." Mapi seemed to not care about this information, but Ingrid and Fridolina did. They knew how you were.

They were Alexia's go-tos when she had to rant about your behavior. You were always getting into trouble. Even if you got hurt, the next day you would be doing the same thing again.

————

You and Mapi skipped ahead as Ingrid and Fridolina took pictures of everything. They smiled and watched you look around, amazed by the new scenery.

Fridolina was paying close attention to you and would grab you and pull you back into her body, telling you to stay close to someone when she noticed you wandering off. She didn't want to deal with the yelling Alexia would give everyone if she got a phone call from them telling her they lost the baby.

You guys walked past a outlet as you were going to get food. Ingrid and Fridolina wanted to look around, and of course, you and Mapi would be their personal bag carriers. Ingrid could tell you were on the verge of complaining, so she bought you chocolate to keep you distracted. It did make you feel a little better, but you just wanted food, something like chicken tenders.

"I need to use the restroom; sit right there." Fridolina pointed to the bench, and you surprisingly listened without any snarky remarks. Mapi and Ingrid were nearby, looking at some fancy shoes through a window.

You huffed and looked around at everything and everyone. You loved observing. It was the little moments that made you happy. After a few seconds, you got bored and got up to bug Mapi.

You were confused when you saw they weren't nearby anymore. "Huh" you mumbled as you walked to find them.

After a couple of minutes, you were in front of a bakery, looking around, confused. Completely forgetting every way you just went.

'Should've studied the streets I took,' you said to yourself as you huffed angrily. Of course, this was the only time you decided not to observe anything.

You searched for your phone but realized Ingrid was carrying it in her bag. You sighed as you walked to a park that was near the bakery and sat down on a bench. It was getting dark; you were hungry and wanted to take a nap.

You were thinking of going back to the bakery but were too scared to go in. Wondering what the workers would do if they saw a confused kid who couldn't speak Swedish, shaking and trying to figure out how to communicate with them.

That's when a lady came up to you; she looked elderly and looked at you weirdly as she noticed your terrified expression. "Mår du bra?" (Are you okay?). You looked at her confused, and she realized you weren't from there. She put her finger up to signal for you to wait here and walked away. You knew you had to trust someone, so you waited.

The lady came back 10 minutes later with a bag of goodies. She sat down next to you and handed you a piece of bread. You had no idea if it was even safe or if she hadn't put anything inside. You could already hear Alexia's scolding about taking things from strangers, and you were pretty paranoid about that stuff since you watched so many crime shows.

It was silent between the two of you, but you felt comfortable with her; she had Leah's comforting demeanor. She was just scrolling through her phone and would look at you every 2 minutes to make sure you were fine. After 10 minutes, you heard your name from a distance. Your face lit up when you saw a familiar blonde. "Frido!" You yelled happily as you ran into her arms.

"Kid, you gave everyone a heart attack," she said as she hugged you tightly. "är hon din dotter?" (Is she your daughter?) The lady said to Frido, who shook her head and rubbed your back. "Vän, tack för att du tittade på henne," (Friend, thanks for looking after her), the woman nodded. "Thank you," you told her quietly, making her smile as she patted your back and walked away.

"I told you not to wander!" She scolded you now, and you marveled at the personality change. "I didn't mean to; when you went to the restroom, Mapi and Ingrid wandered off, so I tried finding them, but I couldn't find any of you," you defended yourself. "Hold on, I need to call them to tell them I found you." She got out her phone and dialed Ingrid's number.

"Ingrid, yes, I found her. Calm down; you're talking way too fast. Who told Alexia?" Shivers ran down your spine. Someone told Alexia about you getting lost; everyone was going to get yelled at the next time you guys saw her.

"I have her okay; just go back to the hotel." "I'm hungry," you whined at Frido, who sighed. "She's hungry; it'll probably take a while; I'm going to get her food." You smiled at that. The whole walk, Frido didn't let go of your hand. You didn't care, though, joyfully swinging your combined hands back and forth.

Once she got you fed and bought you some things to make you feel better, you made your way back to the hotel. As soon as you stepped into the lobby, Irene, Mapi, Ingrid, Marta, and Lucy crowded you. Lucy pulled you into her and glared at the girls. "I cannot believe you three; you lost our prodigy. Leah would have killed me and Keira if she found we lost baby England," Lucy said as she led you to the elevator.

You could hear distant arguing as you walked away from the group. You showed Lucy your new stuffed lioness, and the candy Frido got you. No one on the team could say no to you, expect Alexia, and you used that to your advantage.

"That's nice, kiddo. Come on, it's nap time." You gave her a weird look. "I'm 16, not 3," Lucy shrugged. "Do you want to grow big and strong like me?" "I thought you stop growing at 15?" "Okay, but come on, don't you want some nice abs like your favorite defender?"

"Leah's abs are nice," you muttered, and Lucy looked at you, offended. You smiled at her and threw yourself into her arms. "Fine, I'll take a nap, but you have to be my cuddle buddy since Ingrid is too busy being yelled at." Lucy smirked and held you. You loved to cuddle with your teammates, especially when you did something bad. It completely made them forget what you did as they held you.

"I'm still telling Leah about this," you groaned as you shut your eyes and took a nap, knowing when you woke up you’ll have tons of text from Leah and Alexia.

[formulafics]

❀ NEW DESIRE | MV1

SCENARIO: you and max are childhood friends. despite claiming a platonic relationship - or rather, not claiming a romantic one, fans are certain that there’s more to what you both have, especially when max openly simps for you on streams, and most definitely when his private account gets leaked.

PAIRING: max verstappen x fem!reader

AN: i am so sorry this has taken me so long to get to! that being said, i hope you still enjoy it! thank you for your patience and your request 🫶🏻 also i did use google translate for the dutch part so if you speak dutch im so sorry LMFAO

as always, a shoutout to @renarots because these fics truly would not be as good without their input. <3

if you saw me change the title, no you didn’t

MASTERLIST

YNLN on Instagram stories

grandprixsandgossip on instagram

14,567 likes

grandprixsandgossip for a long time, fans of max verstappen have questioned his relationship with childhood friend yn ln. recently, the formula one drivers’ private instagram account posts were leaked after a fan somehow was accepted to follow his private account, which features many pictures of him and yn, dating all the way back to 2014.

you can find the archive of his posts on our website by following the link in our bio. while we weren’t able to gather every comment and like, we were able to get a majority of the posts!

what are your thoughts?

view all 782 comments

formulaverstappen okay so this is pure he-said-she-said, but apparently on the holidays post, max’s sister commented “just friends? 😉” and max responded with the 😳 emoji I AM SICK

rizzciardo anyone who still thinks they’re just friends is LYING to their self

lnnation haunted by the fact that yn learned dutch for max and she helped him learn english

formulanorriz if he doesn’t ask her out at this rate, IM GOING TO

GRANDPRIXSANDGOSSIP.COM

maxemillianv on instagram

maxemillianv goede race, nog betere mensen ❤️ of moet ik zeggen persoon haha (great race, even better people or should i say person haha)

ynln zoveel liefde voor jou. ik ben zo trots op je ❤️🏆 (so much love for you. i’m so proud of you. )

maxemillianv on instagram

maxemillianv out of office

maxemillianv on instagram

maxemillianv happy holidays 🎄

victoriaverstappen just friends? 😉

It’s funny, the way Max is. He’s blunt all the time, but this is different. A part of you is worried that maybe he’s upset, that perhaps something like this will be the reason you and him stray apart - you can’t imagine it. The thought of being anything but with Max matches your chest tighten, and even though you’d like to think that isn’t the case, you can’t be sure.

The wait for Max to arrive at your house is almost torturous. Your mind is racing, and by the time you hear his car pull up, you’re damn near shaking out of your skin. He doesn’t even have to knock or ring the doorbell - hell, he’s barely out of the car when you open your front door and step outside. You study his body language, trying to determine what exactly to expect. You just can’t clock it. With a sharp inhale, you lock your door and then make your way towards the car.

“Is everything okay?” you ask, uncertainty making your voice waver. “Yes,” Max responds simply. It’s a genuine yes, and in fact, he sounds almost happy. Your brows furrow in confusion as he opens the passenger side door for you, and you genuinely don’t think you could be more puzzled. You press your lips together as he returns to the drivers seat and starts the car again, not waiting to pull out of the driveway.

“Max, you’re scaring me,” you say. Scared isn’t the right word, but it’s something along those lines. His eyes stay on the road, yours are fixed on his face, still trying so desperately to read him. He glances at you, offers a small smile, then reaches over to grab your hand. He intertwined your fingers, assuring you that there’s nothing to worry about. It’s still odd - the whole situation, but that does make you feel more relaxed.

It’s quiet for longer than you’d like it to be. Aside from the radio, which is on a low volume, and the smooth rumble of the vehicle, it’s silent.

Finally, Max speaks. “I’m not worried about the posts,” he says, glancing at you for the second time. You find yourself wishing he could look at you for longer, a weird feeling washing over you as his eyes return to the road. He squeezes your hand subconsciously, his thumb soothing over the back of it. “Seriously?” you almost forgot to respond, but at the last minute, you remember his statement. “Seriously,” Max hums. The smile returns to his lips, and much to your relief, he expounds.

“Sure, it’s not ideal, but at the same time,” he pauses, and you can tell he’s trying to think of how to describe it. He chuckles briefly, “The only way to put it is that it’s made me realize that you’re so much more than a good friend.”

You’re still stumped. Now, you’re realizing that you don’t even know where Max is taking you - not that you’re worried about it, but the whole situation is just so strange, especially for you and Max. Thus, you remain silent, eyes never leaving him. You’re waiting for him to say something else, and he’s waiting for you to respond, assuming that you’d understand what he’s saying. Hes the first to realize that you don’t understand, and amused smile playing on his lips at your confusion. “Hold on, you’ll know what I mean when we get there,” He says, and this is somehow so Max, but not him at all, leaving you to sit silently, at least a million thoughts filling your mind.

Max pulls into a parking lot, and it only takes you a moment to realize you know where you are. You’ve been here with him once before, and you still remember that night so vividly. That was the first - and only - time you had ever questioned your feelings for Max. Any other time, you never had to think about how you felt. You knew you were happy with him, and it was the same for him. You didn’t need to know if you loved him, and he didn’t need to know if he loved you.

Now that the memories are coming back to your mind, it begins to dawn on you, what Max said. Regardless, you stay quiet and let him guide you into the club, hand still in his. He takes you to the very spot you both sat the first night you came here, and this time, rather than an empty booth and table, there’s a large bouquet of white roses sitting atop the table, a small note folded beside them. You aren’t sure what to say, or what to do. Your eyes flicker between the roses, the note, and Max, who carefully pulls you closer, his free hand now resting on the small of your back.

“I’ll give you the choice - you can read the card or I can relay it to you,” he says. You choose what first comes to mind. “Relay it to me.” Max nods, then turns you to face him, his hands on your waist. Instinctively, you place yours on his shoulders. “Will you be my girlfriend?” He asks, and even though you’re certain that his words are the briefest summary of what’s in the card, you can’t be bothered. A smile takes over your expression and you nod. Max smiles too, pulling you into a tight hug.

The rest of the night, you continued on like you would have had he not asked you to be his girlfriend. There was no need for things to be different. In fact, the only thing that would change from here would be the pure admiration you both have always had for one another, and that was perfectly fine with you. Somewhere along the line, a certain friend showed up, and you did eventually read the card.

Safe to say, Max’s recap of the words written in the card were indeed brief. Your heart is happy knowing that only you would see such a soft, loving side of him, and only you would be able to clearly picture your best friend- boyfriend, all mushy as he writes the card.

maxverstappen1 on instagram

liked by ynln, landonorris, danielricciardo, pierregasly, and 324,512 others

maxverstappen1 my ❤️

view all 7,432 comments

landonorris okay i guess we don’t do photo creds anymore 😒

⤷ maxverstappen1 👍📸

ynln so much love for you always. ❤️

⤷ maxverstappen1 ❤️🔄

⤷ formulaverstappen IS THIS HIS WAY OF SAYING THAT BACK TO YN??? THERE ARE REAL TEARS IN MY EYES

victoriaverstappen very ‘just friends’ of you

⤷ maxverstappen1 👀

⤷ mv331lvr YALL EITHER GET THIS OR YOU DONT IM GOING INSANE

ln4nation THE FACT THAT LANDO TOOK THESE AND WAS THERE WITJ THEM IM GAGGED

papayabull YN AND MAX CONFIRMED DATING THIS IS THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE

TAGLIST

@renarots @jsjcue @treehouse-mouse @vellicora @spidersophie @arkhammaid @harrysdimple05 @minkyungseokie @leclercvsx @sleepeatread @kortneej81 @elliegrey2803 @i-love-ptv @motorsp0rt @fastcarsandshit @marshmummy @jellyfish123guts @illicitverstappen @lovstappen @sadieurlady @piasstrisblog @pretty-little-bunny382728 @lokietro @stopeatread

Thank you for reading! 🌷

[nikibogwater]

Everybody sit down and strap in, 'cause I have a doozy of a tale to share.

I've had anxiety for literally as long as I can remember. I've had periods of my life where it was so intense it became legitimately life-threatening (don't worry I promise this is going somewhere funny). And this was really bizarre because I have zero childhood trauma. Like, my family life is so idyllic it's almost comical. Therapists would do abuse screenings on me and look utterly baffled when I told them everything was fine at home. They'd interrogate my parents just to make sure I wasn't lying. I have one friend who I'm fairly sure believed I was just severely gaslighting myself when I said my family was great, school wasn't too stressful, and I've never lived in a dangerous neighborhood or experienced poverty.

Anyways, despite no one being able to figure out where my disorder was coming from, my doctors were able to help me manage the symptoms so that I would like, not die, and actually be able to finish high school. Which was awesome. Now fast forward to late 2021. My big sister (who has also had intense anxiety her whole life which no one could figure out why) is finishing up her doctorate and getting her physical therapist's license. Somehow, during all her studying and schooling, she finds out about this thing called Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, which explains literally everything that was going on with us. EDS is a connective tissue disorder that kinda fudges up your body in a whole bunch of little ways, including dysautonomia (episodes of very fast heart-rate that kick your body into fight-or-flight mode), and hypermobility (unusual flexibility). It's a spectrum disorder, so the severity of symptoms vary from person to person, but we definitely checked almost every box on the diagnostic list. My sister went to see a specialist, and yep, she was diagnosed EDS positive. She immediately calls my mom and goes "I know what's wrong with Niki" (thanks, sis, that's real encouraging lol). Initially we're like "okay Katie, that's nice" because honestly this kind of sounds like jumping at shadows, but I go in to see the specialist anyways just to make sure.

One consultation and diagnosis later, and suddenly my entire life makes perfect sense.

Now we get to the funny part. See, the diagnosis stuff happened in early 2022. So by the time late 2023 comes around and we're looking for a new dog (I promise this is relevant), we've been riding that chronic illness diagnosis for a while. Once again, my sister, ever the proactive one, decides she's going to help us get a new dog. She scours the adoption website, sends us photos of the cutest dogs available, and helps us make a decision. This is how we got Beverly, who has been an unstoppable force of chaos in our lives ever since we signed the papers (but she's also really cute so she can get away with it). Now on top of being a very excitable and anxious pupper, Beverly's got a weird little gimp in her hindquarters, which makes her sit all splayed-out and funny-looking, and while it doesn't seem to be causing her pain, we take her to a vet to get it checked out. Vet finds absolutely nothing. X-rays are taken and examined. Still nothing. At this point, they go "well, we could try a CT scan of her brain, which would run about $5,000, and maybe we could find something--" but my parents are already packing this dog into the car like "well that is a HARD nope." So we decide, look, Beverly seems happy and healthy, and those gimpy legs don't seem to bother her, so we'll just leave it be until it becomes clearer what's wrong with her because we do NOT have a cool $5,000 to throw around here.

Readers more astute than my family and I will likely have already figured out where this is going.

This morning, my mom is looking at Beverly sitting in her funny sprawled-out way, and something in her brain goes "wait...weird physical symptoms with no tracible cause that vets can see..." She does a bit of googling. Can dogs have EDS/Hypermobility? Yes. Yes they can. And the listed symptoms describe Beverly to a T.

So not only is my sister the one to finally figure out what's wrong with me, she also unknowingly got us a dog who has the exact same chronic condition as us. Meanwhile my poor dad, who is the only Normal Person in our house, is coming to terms with the fact that he is apparently just fated to always love chronically ill people and animals, and there's absolutely nothing he can do about it.

[scoonsalicious]

Chapter 6, Unattached - Pt. 1

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Avenger!Fem!Reader

Summary: When your FWB relationship with your best friend Bucky Barnes turns into something more, you couldn’t be happier. That is, however, until a new Avenger sets her sights on your super soldier and he inadvertently breaks your heart. You take on a mission you might not be prepared for to put some distance between the two of you and open yourself up to past traumas. Too bad the only one who can help you heal is the one person you can no longer trust.

Warnings: (For this part only; see Story Masterlist for general Warnings) Language, angst (Bring on the Pain!), alcohol usage, dumbass Bucky, noncon kissing that becomes con kissing, so..., arguing, jealous!Pocket, posessive!Bucky.

Word Count: 5.4k

Previously On...: After Bucky left you alone in your room, not wanting people to get 'the wrong idea' about the two of you, you came to the horrible conclusion that you were in love with your best friend. What the hell are you going to do about that?

A/N: Wow, okay! So, first off, Chapter 6 is long, and it only has the one part, so don't worry if you go looking for more and the next thing you find is Chapter 7! Second, there's a lot of progress and updates on Unwanted I wanted to share! I am already well into writing Chapter 14, and have planned out the rest of the story. We'll have a total of 25 chapters, plus an epilogue (unless something strikes me creatively that throws the entire thing for a loop, then all bets are off). This beast, as it currently sits, is already 208 Google Docs pages long and just shy of 80k words, so final product is probably going to be novel-length, which just blows my mind. I want to give a special shout out to @mrsbuckybarnes1917 for being my beta and my sounding board; your help and support has been immeasurable!

Thank you to all those who have been reading; if you like what you've read, likes, comments, and reblogs give me life, and I truly appreciate them, and you!

Banner By: The absolutely amazing @mrsbuckybarnes1917

Taglist: (Please let me know if you’d like to be added!) @jmeelee @cazellen @blackhawkfanatic @les-sel @marcswife21 @buckybarnessimpp @mrsbuckybarnes1917 @erelierraceala @hayjat @capswife @itsteambarnes @jupiter-107 @marygoddessofmischief

You stood in front of the doors to the common room, the low thrum of conversation and music filtering out from inside. Taking a deep breath, you tried for the umpteenth time to calm your nerves following your unsettling realization.

You had no idea how to approach this, how to approach Bucky. Do you tell him how you felt, in the hope that he felt the same way? But what if he didn't? Could you risk losing him all together? Or do you just keep on like nothing's changed, happy with what you have together? Would that be enough for you? Could you even be happy in a real relationship?

Why couldn't your mother have just been a decent human being and let you go to school like a normal child so you could have worked through all your awkward issues at the appropriate time, instead of saddling you with years of trauma and isolation that left you an emotionally stunted adult? God, you needed a strong drink and to talk to Nat, preferably in that order. Pushing open the common room door, you stepped inside, surveying the room with one eye out for Bucky, the other out for your friend.

It should have been of no surprise, then, that instead of either, you first spotted Jade Carthage. She was situated on a couch in the center of the room, like a queen on her throne before her court, and nearly every Avenger and agent with a penis was surrounding her, jockeying for her attention, even Clint who, you knew for a fact, loved his wife Laura more than life itself.

Your stomach dropped when, after one of the agents in front of the couch shifted slightly, you saw Bucky sitting immediately to Jade's left. And while it seemed like everyone else was clamoring for Jade to pay attention to them, she only had eyes for him. Jealousy coursed through you as she leaned in close, whispering something into his ear that had him throwing his head back in laughter. It was an entirely unpleasant sensation that you would be happy to never feel again. Especially because you knew you had no real right to feel it in the first place. You may have just realized you were in love with him, but he had made no similar declaration to you.

"Careful, you glare any harder, you're liable to bore a hole straight through him," Natasha said, coming up alongside of you.

"What if I aim for her, instead?" you asked, reaching for the tumbler of alcohol she offered you and taking a sip to distract yourself. It was like she could read your mind.

Nat shrugged. "So long as I'm not the one cleaning up the mess, I say have fun. But what happened to no-strings-attached, friends who happen to fuck?" Nat asked with a smirk. "Don't tell me you've grown strings, Pocket."

You looked away from the scene in front of you. "There might be some growing of string, in theory," you mumbled to her. Nat was the only person you had confided in regarding your arrangement with Bucky. Of course, your friend had been thrilled that there had been something going on between the two of you, but she'd been more concerned about protecting your heart-- was this the safest thing for you to do? You assured her at the time you'd be fine, but now...?

Nat's eyes widened as a grin took over her face. "Honey, that's fantastic!" She leaned in to give you a hug. "I'm so happy for you!" Taking in your forlorn expression, she quickly lost her good humor. "Why do you look like you're about to throw up?"

You cast another glance over at the couch. Jade was tracing her fingers along the golden veins of Bucky's vibranium arm and you felt like snakes were crawling through your stomach. "Because I don't know what the fuck to do about it, Natty," you told her with a sigh. "I've never felt like this before in my entire life and it's fucking terrifying; what if he doesn't feel the same way? Or worse, what if he does and I mess everything up because I'm so fucking damaged inside?"

Natasha looped her arm through yours, leaning into you. "Honey, first of all, you are not damaged. You've been through hell and it left its mark on you, that's true, but you've been so strong. We're House Martell, remember?"

You sniggered, remembering how, when the entire Tower was obsessed with watching Game of Thrones together and picking what houses you'd each belong to, you and Nat had been drawn to the words of the ruling house of Dorne. And also, Pedro Pascal, obviously.

"Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken," you recited from memory, a reminder that despite the obstacles life had thrown at you, you remained standing, stronger for what you had endured.

"Atta girl," Nat nudged you with her elbow. "And second of all, you don't need to worry about Bucky's feelings. Boy's obviously mad for you. Everyone can see it."

You drew your bottom lip in between your teeth. "I don't know, Nat. He's been acting strange lately. I tried to give him head earlier and he flat out rejected it." Come to think of it, that was exceptionally weird since, in your text exchange, he'd explicitly told you he'd been waiting in your room specifically for the purpose of getting off.

"Huh. That's... not like him." Nat tilted her head and looked over at Bucky, expression curious. "Did he say why?"

"He was real eager to come up here and get in the middle of that, apparently." You waved a hand in the general direction of the couch where Jade's little reverse-harem was still going strong. "I was getting on my knees and everything."

Nat raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything.

"And then he made a really big deal about us coming up here separately. Said he didn't want people getting 'the wrong idea' about us if we arrived together."

Letting go of your arm, Natasha spun to face you, her face a mask of anger. "He said what now?!" she practically shouted, temporarily drawing everyone's attention to you. You looked around sheepishly as you tried to dismiss their stares.

"Nat," you begged in a whisper, "keep it down."

"Okay, okay, sorry." Natasha lowered her voice to a level only you could hear. "I'm sorry, but that's just complete and utter bullshit. Look, I know you guys think you've been in super secret stealth mode about hiding it, but pretty much everyone on the team knows you've been sleeping together. Hell, most of us placed bets on it." You opened your mouth in order to protest but she cut you off.

"If anything, it's weirder if the two of you don't show up to something together, so I don't know what the hell he's thinking."

"I do," you said morosely. "He doesn't want her getting the wrong idea about us."

"Pocket, don't even let your mind go there," Nat said.

"Think about it, Nat; I've been standing here for what, fifteen minutes now? And he hasn't even looked at me. When's the last time that happened?"

Nat's brows creased, her expression clouding over into something immensely sad for you, and you knew she was realizing what you'd already seen. In the last year, you and Bucky had been attached at the hip, nearly physically joined to one another, and if you were apart, your eyes were always scanning the room in search of the other's presence, seeking them out. The fact that he hadn't even looked for you, let alone come to you since you walked in, was telling in its own heartbreaking way.

Nat let out a heavy sigh. "Oh Pocket. Honey, I'm so sorry."

You shook your head, trying to dispel the tears that were threatening to fall from your eyes if you kept down this path. "Don't Natty, please. I can't fall apart, not here."

"Yeah, okay-- you're right. Now is not the time. Come on." Linking her arm through yours once again, she directed you toward the bar where Tony was standing, whiskey in hand. "If anyone can talk you to distraction," she murmured as you approached him, "it's Stark."

You let out a startled laugh and let her guide you toward the man who had already saved you more times than you could count.

"Hey, kiddo; Romanoff." Tony saluted you with his glass and you did your best to smile back at him as you stuffed your emotions down as far as they would go. "What do you think of our new recruit?" he asked Nat.

"I think 'Weasel' would be a better fitting code name for her than 'Vixen,'" Nat replied with a sly smile as she took a sip of wine.

"Ah, saw the security feed, did you?" Tony asked her. Nat nodded.

"Watched it live as it happened. Wasn't going to leave my bestie without eyes on her six." She gave your arm an affectionate squeeze.

Tony hummed and glanced over to the couch. "Wish Cap had been as discerning as you. He refused to watch the feed; said it made him uncomfortable to spy on someone when they didn't know they were being recorded." Natasha rolled her eyes.

"Always the fucking Boy Scout," she murmured.

"So, how did the interview itself go?" you asked Tony, not really sure you wanted to know the answer, but feeling the need to punish yourself with the details, anyway.

Tony leaned back against the bar, resting his elbows on the polished wooden surface. "If it were up to me, we wouldn't even be playing this charade right now," he said, motioning with his chin to indicate the meet and greet. "Girl's a first-class bullshitter."

"Talent recognizing talent?" you asked with a wry smile that almost felt genuine.

He pointed a finger and winked at you. "Exactly. She talked a good talk, but it doesn't take much to see she's suffering from Big Fish, Small Pond Syndrome. She's in for a rude awakening if she thinks she's ready to swim in the ocean with the whales and the sharks."

"So, you're not going to offer her the probationary position?" you asked, hope rising pathetically in your chest. As if you could un-ring the bell.

"Oh, I didn't say that," Tony said as you deflated. "It's not all up to me. Though, given the fact that I personally fund this entire operation, you'd think it really should be, right?" At the look on your face he moved on. "Apologies, I digress. Anyway, Cap thinks it's only fair we offer it to her, seeing as how we don't have a ton of other options knocking on our door, and Fury's not going to get off my ass until we find someone." He sighed. "I think this entire exercise is a waste of time, and we should be kicking her out on her ass for how she treated you earlier, Pocket, but I'm outvoted."

"Thanks, Boss," you said softly, grateful at least that Tony could see through Jade's facade and took how she treated you seriously. Too bad your best friend couldn't offer you the same courtesy.

The timer on Tony's watch went off. "And that's the dinner bell," he said, putting down his glass. Clapping his hands, he called out to the rest of the room. "Attention Avengers, SHIELD Agents, and... whoever else managed to sneak in off the street! Dinner is served, so if we could all head to the dining room before the food gets cold and Raul quits on me, I'd appreciate it very much."

You held back as the crowd of people noisily moved to the dining room, hoping to catch Bucky's eye, but he remained steadfastly absorbed in his conversation with Jade.

"Come on, honey," Nat said as she took your elbow. "You can talk to him during dinner. You nodded and allowed her to lead you into the dining room. You and Bucky had sat next to one another, without fail, for every meal for the last year, the only exception being when one of you was away on a mission. You'd have plenty of opportunities to talk to him while you ate.

Normally, you all ate at one large table, but since this was a special occasion that required the attendance of a lot more than just the regular 13 members of your family (14, if Parker was around), Tony had the dining room arranged more like a restaurant, with a series of smaller tables spread out throughout the space.

You and Nat followed Bucky and Jade to a six-top where Steve and Sam were already getting ready to sit down, but you froze in your tracks when Bucky pulled back a chair for Jade, pushing it in behind her as she sat down before taking the seat next to her.

The air seemed to grow heavy, as though it weighed too much for you to draw it into your lungs and your chest began to hurt. How could such a simple action be causing you so much physical pain?

Steve, who had already been sitting at Bucky's other side at the head of the table, caught your eye and moved to get up to offer you his chair, instead, as though that could make up for Bucky's dismissal of you.

You subtly shook your head, not wanting to draw attention to the awkward situation you found yourself in. Instead, you made your way over to the only two remaining seats at the table: the one next to Sam that was directly across from Jade and Bucky or the one next to Jade at the opposite end of the table from Steve. Deciding it was better to be sitting across from Steve than either of the other two, you opted for the chair at the end, and Nat slid in next to Sam.

You cast a quick glance in Jade's direction and had to stifle a sick laugh-- she was physically coming between you and Bucky, quite literally.

Jade reached a hand out to Nat across the table. "Wow! Black Widow! It is so great to meet you! My name's Vixen; I'm a huge fan! I'm so excited for us to be working together!"

Bless Nat, she just stared at the girl with arms crossed across her chest, impassive and judging, until Jade slowly and awkwardly pulled her hand back.

"I take it, then, that you've deemed the Avengers good enough to be your backup team?" Nat asked without expression.

You did your best to cover the laughter that escaped from you with a fake cough, but you didn't try very hard to be convincing.

"What's this about, now?" Steve asked, leaning forward.

"Little Vixen over here," Nat began, leaning back in her chair until she was perched on the two rear legs, "was live-streaming this morning to her social media followers. Told them it wasn't so much that the Avengers were interviewing her to see if she'd be good for the team, but she was interviewing us to see if we'd be good back up for her."

Jade had the decency to look embarrassed for a moment before she turned to face you for the first time, anger taking over her features. "So, what? Didn't much take you for a tattler. You that intimidated by me?"

You opened your mouth to defend yourself but were interrupted by the sound of the legs of Nat's chair slamming back against the floor. "Pocket didn't tell me shit. I heard it straight from your mouth on the security feed. That and a lot of other interesting things."

"You're spying on her, Nat? Really?" Bucky spoke up. "She's our guest and she deserves a modicum of privacy, don't you think?" You stared at him, open mouthed, but he didn't spare you a glance.

"It was a part of her interview, Barnes," Nat spat. "Maybe if you---"

"Okay, Nat, Bucky," Steve said, using his official Captain America voice, "let's table this conversation for later and just enjoy our meal. Raul worked really hard on tonight's menu, so let's not spoil it for him, alright?"

Both Nat and Bucky grumbled their agreement as the catering staff brought out the first course and placed them on each of your plates. Normally, you loved when Raul, Tony's personal chef, cooked meals for the team; he always made sure to throw in something with lemon in it, knowing how much you loved the flavor; but tonight, your appetite was failing you and you ended up pushing more food around on your plate than you put in your mouth.

You couldn't help but steal glances over at Bucky, who continued to be wrapped in conversation with Jade. You tried to keep up with what the others were saying, occasionally nodding your head in agreement to something, but you weren't able to pay any real attention; your mind was elsewhere until you noticed Jade looking at you.

"You know, I have to say I'm surprised to see so many non-Avengers here. I got the impression that this group was... I dunno, elite? But it seems like you just let anyone in."

Steve laughed from the other end of the table. "Being an Avenger is a team effort, Vixen. Everyone plays their part. And besides, Pocket here's just as much an Avenger as I am." The comment took you by surprise, and you gave Steve a warm, appreciative smile.

"Thanks, Cap," you said, truly touched by his words.

"Well, she's more like Avenger-adjacent," Bucky amended, and all the warmth you'd felt at Steve's compliment vanished in an instant, leaving you feeling cold and hollow. The words shouldn't have stung-- it was how you had referred to yourself hundreds of times, but you tended to reserve it for your low moments, when you were feeling unequal to Earth's mightiest heroes. Hearing the words come out of Bucky's mouth, as if he, too, shared in your belief that you were inferior to the rest of them... well, that fucking hurt.

Steve let out a surprised laugh and clapped Bucky on the shoulder. "Pocket may not have enhanced physical abilities or powers or what have you, but she's got a brilliant mind. She's got a PhD in Mechanical Engineering and Computation from MIT, three Master's degrees, she speaks seven languages, she's got a black belt in Krav Maga, and she was the youngest Chief Technology Officer in Stark Industries history; all without ever having formally graduating high school. It's no exaggeration for me to say that I'd be dead a couple of dozen times over if I hadn't had her at my six. If anything, I think it makes her even more important than the rest of us. We're here because of the physical things we can do– primarily because of things that happened to us by accident; Pocket's essential to the team because of how she thinks, and the strength and quality of the work she’s willing to put in. We're replaceable, Pocket's one-of-a-kind."

You looked at Steve as if seeing him for the very first time. You had no idea he thought so highly of you, and his praise warmed you. You offered him a soft smile, your throat tightening with emotion and leaving you unable to express your gratitude. You mouthed a silent thank you instead, hoping that conveyed how much his words meant to you. He winked back at you in acknowledgement.

Bucky glanced back and forth between the two of you, as if analyzing your silent exchange. He coughed awkwardly. "I just meant that we try to keep Pocket away from the really dangerous stuff," he backpedaled, poorly, in your opinion. "Can't risk her getting hurt." He smiled at you, but you just stared back, expression blank, until he looked away in embarrassment. Good. Let him feel an ounce of the discomfort you’d been feeling this entire time.

Small talk resumed around the table, with Sam telling Steve about some new modification he was making to Redwing, and Bucky and Jade back to being locked in their own bubble. You did your best to ignore the little glances and gestures that Jade directed to Bucky, but it felt like your eyes were drawn to them like a magnet every time she touched him. Which seemed to be happening more and more frequently. You couldn't help but notice the way he leaned toward her when she spoke. Did he ever do that when he was talking with you?

"So, Bucky," Jade said eventually, her voice low and flirty as the caterers took away the main course, "handsome super hero like you, you seeing anyone?" Your eyes snapped up to Bucky's face, watching him. Surely he was going to look to you, make eye contact, something to acknowledge what was between you, to make you feel like you were in the same room, hell, on the same fucking planet as him. But he didn't.

"Nope," he said, running his hand over the back of his neck like he always did when he was feeling self conscious or nervous. "Not seeing anyone, though I'm not opposed to the idea." You had been stabbed in the abdomen on a mission once, and that had hurt less than hearing the words that had just come out of Bucky's mouth. It took everything in you to resist getting up from the table and leaving the room at that moment.

"Really, man?" Sam asked from where he sat on the other side of Natasha, his voice hard in disbelief. The atmosphere at your table had shifted. Natasha, Steve, and Sam all stared at Bucky with looks ranging from incredulity to flat out disgust. Bucky either was oblivious to the stares or was doing a great job patently ignoring them.

You couldn't even bring yourself to look at him anymore. It felt like a betrayal, the way his eyes had met Jade's and not yours. How could he sit there and just completely deny you like that? Had you been deluding yourself? Had you just been some kind of fuck toy this entire time?

The caterers brought the next course, a cold raspberry soup. You sat there, staring into space as you mechanically spooned the soup into your mouth, trying your hardest to appreciate the taste, but everything seemed bitter in light of Bucky's attitude, actions, and words.

"Could you hand me the water carafe?" Bucky asked. You looked up to watch Jade hand him the bottle of water. "Thanks, doll," he said, smiling at her.

You dropped your spoon, letting it fall into your nearly empty bowl with a reverberating clang. Your companions at the table stared, eyes wide as their gazes traveled between you and Bucky. In his entire time at the tower, he had never once called another woman 'doll.' It was a moniker he'd specifically reserved for you.

Or, it used to be.

You could tell the exact moment when Bucky realized he'd fucked up. His eyes locked on yours, the color draining from his face. He opened his mouth as if he was going to speak to you, but you'd had enough. Without a word, you pushed back your chair with enough force that it practically tipped over and exited the dining room.

You made it all the way to the elevator before you heard him calling for you.

"Doll! Doll, where are you?" You stabbed repeatedly at the call button, as if it would bring the car to you faster. You could hear his footsteps drawing closer, and you really didn't want to talk to him right now.

Finally, the elevator doors opened and you slid inside, turning to press the 'Close Door' button just as you saw Bucky turn the corner to the elevator bay. You were ready to breathe a sigh of relief at evading him until Bucky's metal hand shot in the diminishing space between the closing doors. You were trapped.

"Doll, didn't you hear me callin' to you?" he asked as he slid into the car with you.

You looked around, as if searching for another person in the car. "I'm sorry, were you talking to me? Should probably be more specific with your pet names, then. A girl’s liable to get confused." You were impressed that the words came out as hard and bitter as you felt inside.

Bucky flinched. "I deserved that."

You leaned forward to press the button for your floor before crossing your arms and glaring at him. "You fucking think?"

"Look, it just slipped out, okay? I didn't mean anything by it. It's not a big thing you needed to storm out over." You rolled your eyes at him, disgusted that that was the only thing he seemed to realize he'd done to offend you all evening. "Pocket, can we just talk about this?"

"Oh, now you want to talk to me?" you asked, jutting out your hip in annoyance. "Seemed like earlier today, you couldn't wait to not be seen with me, or do you no longer care if people get the wrong idea?"

"Alright," Bucky said, slamming his fist against the elevator's emergency stop button. You stumbled as the car came to a grinding halt. Bucky tried to put his hands on you to steady you, but you pushed him away. "What is going on with you today, Pocket?"

"What's going on with me?" you asked him, incredulous. "What's going on with you? You've been an ass to me all night, that is when you weren't acting like I didn't exist."

"How am I being an ass?" he asked, voice rising. "You're the one who couldn't even hold a civil conversation with our guest! It was embarrassing!" You recoiled as if he'd slapped you, backing away from him until your back hit the elevator wall.

"Wow. Okay then." You blinked heavily, telling yourself not to cry. You'd be damned if you showed weakness in front of him now. Bury the emotions, encase them in ice. "Sorry I'm such a fucking embarrassment to you, Sergeant Barnes. Now that I know how you feel, I'll make sure to stay out of your way so you don't have to put up with me." You moved to press the button to restart the elevator, but Bucky grabbed your wrist.

"Don't do this," he growled at you. "Don't hide behind snappy quips so you can shut down and avoid having a real conversation with me." You stared between his eyes and where he held your wrist in his metal grip. It wasn't tight enough to hurt, but it was tight enough to keep you from breaking free.

His gaze softened as he watched you. "I never said I was embarrassed of you, Pocket. I just don't know why you had to be so rude to Jade at dinner tonight."

"Name one thing I did that was rude to her," you challenged.

"Okay," Bucky stuck out a finger as though he were about to count off all your grievous errors. "Let's see... You said... No, that was Nat... You were... okay, Steve said that... You said... No, that was Nat again." He looked up at you sheepishly. "So, maybe you actually didn't say anything during dinner, but not talking to her was still rude."

You scoffed. "You want to talk rude and embarrassing, Bucky? Do you know how embarrassing it was to have everyone staring at me when you pulled out my chair for Jade, or when my own best friend didn't defend me when she had the audacity to call me a fucking tattler? Like I’m some kind of fucking child?" Your voice was rising and you could feel yourself getting swept up in your anger. "How about the pity looks I got when everyone heard you lie about not seeing anyone, or when you called her 'doll'? Or when you told her I was 'Avengers-adjacent'? You think I'm the embarrassing one? You made me feel like an insignificant piece of shit tonight, Barnes. God, if it hadn't been for Steve saying what he said, you would have driven me to tears."

Bucky had been staring down at his boots as you'd been speaking, as though your accusations were too much for him to face head-on, but at the mention of Steve's name, his head snapped up, blue eyes like ice on your face. "Well, if Steve's such a hero, why aren't you fucking him, then?" he asked, voice clipped and bitter.

You yanked your wrist free from his grasp. "Maybe I should start!" you shouted. "At least he's not embarrassed of me and doesn't forget I exist when another pair of tits shows up!"

Bucky's gaze darkened and in an instant, he was on you, caging your body against the elevator wall, a hand on either side of your head. "Don't you even fucking joke about that," he snarled.

You jutted out your chin, refusing to show any sign of weakness, though his actions were beginning to frighten you. "Who says I'm joking? Sounds like a good idea to me; thanks for suggesting it." You moved to duck under his arm, but he grabbed you by the shoulders, pinning you in place.

His breaths were coming hard and fast now, as though he'd just run a marathon. His gaze darted between your eyes and your lips, as though trying to make up his mind about something. In the next instant, his mouth was crashing down on yours, his tongue demanding entry.

You gasped at the sudden intrusion and Bucky took that as his invitation, deepening the kiss with a primal fervor. His hands gripped your waist, pulling you into him. For a moment, you were stunned, unsure of what was happening. But then instincts took over – he was kissing you, really kissing you. Your stomach fluttered and your heart hammered in your chest.

One of your hands ran through his hair, while the other gripped his shoulder for support. His hands had somehow migrated beneath your shirt, thumbs rubbing soothing circles into the bare skin at your sides. You returned his kiss with as much intensity as he gave. But then suddenly, as if waking from a dream, you remembered why you were angry with him. You pushed against his chest, breaking the kiss.

You were both panting, and despite your attempt to put distance between your bodies, Bucky leaned down, resting his forehead against yours as he fought to catch his breath. "Don't," he whispered hoarsely, his voice heavy with an emotion you couldn't quite place. "Don't sleep with Steve."

"You realize how incredibly infuriating you're being right now, don't you?" you asked. "You can't just treat me like that, ignore me all night in favor of someone else, then kiss me and try to tell me who I can or can't sleep with."

"I know, Sweetheart," he said, nuzzling your nose with his, "I know and I'm sorry, but please, promise me: no matter how angry you are with me, don't sleep with Steve. You wanna fuck someone else to piss me off? Go fuck Sam, Thor, Rhodes, hell, even Parker. I'll hate it, but if it's Steve, it'll fucking kill me."

"Your signals are all over the place tonight, Buck," you sighed, letting out an involuntary moan as his lips found the sweet spot on your neck and sucked at your skin. You had to pull away before he turned you into a babbling mess. "If you think you can just kiss me into oblivion and I'll forgive you for everything you've said and done tonight, you better think again, because that's not happening."

Bucky ran both his hands through his hair, sending it pointing every which way. Then he pressed the emergency stop button again, letting the elevator resume its journey. "I know I owe you an explanation, Pocket," he said. "So, can we go to your room and talk? No interruptions, no one else, just you and me, okay?"

You studied him, considering. A part of you was still so angry at him that you didn't want to hear him out, but the part of you that loved him hated the idea of leaving things in a bad place. In your line of work, you never knew when your next goodbye might be your last goodbye.

"Fine," you said, dropping your shoulders with a sigh. "We can talk, I'll hear you out, but I'm not promising forgiveness."

He smiled, his eyes bright once again. "That's all I ask, Sweets. That's all I ask."

<- Previous Chapter / Next Chapter ->

[merrybloomwrites]

I Feel the Earth Move

Summary: Y/N experiences her first earthquake and her long distance boyfriend, Spencer, needs to know she's alright.

Word Count: 665

AN: I put a post out the other day that showed there's interest in Spencer stories. And then I felt an earthquake for the first time and got inspired to write this. Just a little story to get into the swing of writing for Spencer.

CW: earthquake

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One of the first things you had talked to Spencer about when you started dating was your shared experiences with hurricanes. Bit of a random topic, but with him being from Florida and you being from New Jersey, it was something you had in common. He then told you about the couple of earthquakes he’d experienced since moving out to Los Angeles. A tiny part of you was slightly jealous, but mostly you were happy you live in a place where the ground stays still at all times.

You’ve been dating Spencer for ten months now, but unfortunately, you’ve been long distance the whole time. Being on opposite coasts with a three-hour time difference makes things more complicated, but you’re looking forward to the near future when you finally get to move out to California. You work as a teacher and just need to finish the current school year and then you’re on your way to Los Angeles. You even have a new job and apartment lined up. Spencer sends texts nearly every day counting down until you’ll finally live in the same city.

It's early April, and your school is on Spring Break. You spent the week catching up on things you had been putting off, like doctor’s appointments and deep cleaning your closets. But now it’s Friday, and your to-do list is done. You’re having a lazy morning at home, sitting and watching some new Smosh videos that you hadn’t gotten a chance to see yet.

Suddenly you hear the hallway door rattling. For a second you think it must be the wind, but then the floor starts to shake. Next thing you know everything is rattling. It only lasts a few seconds and leaves you just standing in the middle of your living room, wondering what the hell just happened.

You think that it might’ve been an earthquake, but that would be ridiculous. Because that doesn’t happen where you live.

But then your mom texts the family group chat asking if everyone felt that. Your brother, sister, and dad all text back saying they had. You do a quick google search and within minutes you find the confirmation that it was in fact an earthquake, so you share the link with your family.

The first person you want to tell is Spencer, but it’s not even 8 in the morning in California. You know he doesn’t need to be at work until later in the day and is likely still sleeping. You’ll wait a bit before texting him, so you don’t wake him up.

 Twenty minutes later your phone starts ringing, and you’re surprised to see Spencer’s name pop up.

“Hey, what are you doing up so early?” You say as a greeting.

“Are you okay?” he asks.

“Of course I’m okay,” you reply.

“Why didn’t you tell me about the earthquake?”

“I was going to, I just wanted to wait a little while, so I wouldn’t wake you. How did you find out about it?”

“Like, eight different people from work texted me to ask if you lived where the earthquake happened. Y/N, you’re like, a mile from the epicenter. I needed to check that you’re alright.”

You’re overwhelmed with emotion at this, hearing how much he cares, and how worried he was about you.

“I’m okay Spencer, I promise. It wasn’t that bad. Honestly I was more confused than scared,” you reply.

“Well then we need to work on your survival instincts before you come to California,” he says, causing you both to laugh.

“Thank you for checking in on me,” you say.

“I’ll always make sure you’re safe,” he replies. Your heart melts again, and you can’t believe that he’s real. And that he’s really yours.

“I love you,” you say, unable to express your feelings at this moment in any other way.

“I love you too,” he replies, voice full of sincerity.

“Only 86 more days,” you state, giving him the countdown today.

“I can’t wait, baby.”

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AN: Thanks for reading! This is was just a little warm up to writing for Spencer. Please send me any requests you have for him! Also, please lmk if you'd like to be added to a taglist for all my Spencer stories!

[alexanderwales]

Addendum to the post about Stardew Valley type games:

You know how in games like that, everyone has their set daily routine that changes according to the days of the week, the seasons, etc.?

I think it would be fun to have a game that's just that. You can see what path everyone walks and what they do every day, it's all lines on the ground to you from a bird's eye view: these people are creatures of habit. But their daily routines aren't just something that happens, it's also something that affects them. Bridget spends every day going to stare out at the sea, and it makes her a little bit more sad every day, because it reminds her of her father, who passed away when she was little. Nathan searches for bugs in the woods, hoping that if he gets the right one, he can bring it to show the woman who runs the museum.

So in some sense, this is a train game, but with people instead of trains. Everyone is on their tracks, and possibly there are interrupts to their schedules, but mostly what you're doing is nudging the tracks in various ways and trying to minmax their social interactions and routines.

So if Bridget is staring out at the beach feeling lonely and sad, you can nudge Nathan to go hunt bugs there instead of in the woods, and if you nudge him correctly, he'll end up at the beach at the same time Bridget is doing her mope session. And then, because it would be weird for them to both be at the beach in silence, they get to talking, and their little friendship meter or whatever fills up. And then, at some particular threshold, you get a notification that their routing has changed. The lines on the ground are redrawn, the schedule is updated, and Bridget and Nathan are friends now, and there's no reason for her to be at the beach anymore, because that lonely void has been filled. In the new routing, Nathan and Bridget hunt bugs in the woods together, hoping to find an interesting one but mostly just hanging out.

Your goal is to make everyone as happy as you can.

There's a lot that I'm still trying to work out here, I had the idea five minutes ago. For one thing, I'm not sure how the player should actually go about adjusting the routes. I guess I'm envisioning it like what Google Maps shows you, where you have multiple routes and can select different ones. Or maybe there's an option to change the destination sometimes, if it's one where the actual location doesn't matter. Kids will always have to go to school, but their mother has a choice of different part-time jobs so long as she's making a little extra income, so you can route her to either the doctor's office where she'll be a receptionist or to the mayor's house where she'll clean up. Some routes are therefore locked down hard for various reasons, while others are more flexible. And as the game goes on, which is which will change: someone who sort of didn't care where he was whiling away his time will get a job that's very important to him, two lovebirds will want to spend all their time together, but the carpenter divorces his wife and suddenly has a lot of free time on his hands, or the electrician finally finishes fixing the lighthouse and now is just sort of waiting on orders.

The other major question is how much we're exposing to the player in terms of the whys of our little train-schedule people. I think trying to do this with any more text than a handful of cutscenes would be a fool's errand, and instead you'd want to abstract it out as much as possible. Characters would have Motivations, Goals, Tasks they're making progress on each day, Friendships, Romances, and in general you should be able to look at their route and say "okay, this is motivated by this, this is motivated by that". I think Friendship Points are a kind of ridiculous concept, but they would work here, with each "stop" on the route adjusting friendships and romances up or down on the scale. Tasks gain some completion with every route completion, which is another way the game progresses forward.

The last major question is ... how do you build this? How do you create a town of thirty or so people with their own individual routes in such a way that a player can figure things out and be satisfied with each small solution? Because this is sort of a puzzle game, and as laid out here, it's the same "board" the whole way through, with everything interlocking. I think maybe you could map out the early game pretty easily, solve some trivial problems with a bit of extra routing, have everything else "locked" and unknown to limit scope, but I'm unsure how you advance past that.

Perhaps there's a version of this game where everyone has their routes but we're only looking at tiny slices of the whole town at a time, two or three routes that we can figure out. Maybe there's a man who doesn't care what his job is, so we make him the teacher, which frees up a woman to take a different job she loves, which means that she winds up in the gardens after work and meets a gardener we diverted there, and together they start a pottery club, which becomes a new event that people can be diverted to.

And at the end of the game, everyone is in the job they're best suited for, you've made people couple up, you've fixed all the problems, and the little clockwork town is humming along.

[italiansteebie]

Idk if it was u or someone else that has already done this but I need Steve so out of it (hit his head or high or sum??) he literally forgets to speak English- like maybe he’s just saying stuff in Italian and he’s so confused bcuz no one understands him and he realizes he’s speaking his first language and not English.

Also the party would be drooling after him like?? He’s already cute and he speaks more then one language? Literally screaming!!!

tbh i've probably written something similar to this but for you anon, i'll do it again.

--

steve was walking, and if we want to get technical, he was really wandering, with robin trailing behind him. they weren't paying attention, they weren't really thinking, so.

it just so happened that steve wandered right into an opening door, and he fell back and smacked his head on the side walk. robin proceeded to lose her shit, cackling loudly before realizing he'd actually been hurt.

"oh, shit. dingus. are you okay?"

"oh fuck, i killed him!"

and what a surprise that was. eddie just so happened to cause this brutal door attack. his head was already swimming from the fall and now he has to form words around eddie? really?

"non sono mort." he mumbled, reaching back to run the spot where he hit his head.

"oh my god. he's having a stroke, he can't talk. call 911!" eddie was always one for the dramatics.

"robin, smettila di urlare. per favore."

"is that... italian??"

"non essere ridicolo. sto parlando un inglese semplice."

"steve. oh my god. parli italiano sul serio."

and that caused him to realize what he'd been doing.

"oh no! ha fatto perdere il mio inglese!"

robin doubled over in laughter. she knew it wasn't serious enough to call an ambulance, just knocked a few screws out of place.

"what? what'd he say?! oh my god. i changed steve's language. quick find the reset button!"

this only caused robin to laugh harder, her face turning red and tears leaking from her eyes. steve started to giggle at the sight, but eddie was still watching them, wide eyed.

"are- did i hit steve so hard it started effecting you too?"

as robin sobered up, she took a few shuddering breaths before she realized what just happened. "you speak italian! since when?" she shoved her finger in steve's face.

he groaned, "since always." he brightened, "hey! it's back."

"so i- i didn't change your language?"

"no. he's bilingual."

"oh! so you just decided that for me? you told me that stuff was personal, rob. but what does that have to do with you speaking italian?"

robin laughed shortly, "that's bisexual, dingus. bi lingual means you speak two languages."

"oh. then yeah. im bilingual."

"yeah, we've covered that. but since when?"

steve shrugged. "it'd be odd if i couldn't talk to my mom, right?"

robin shook her head. "it's like every time you open your mouth i found out some new lore about you, steve." and he just shrugged.

and eddie was still there watching this whole thing, trying not to pop a stiffy at the idea of steve speaking italian to him, all slow and sexy- no! bad eddie! steve is hurt, this is not the time.

"so." he dragged out. "i'm okay, ed's." steve assured. "yeah. okay, um. are you... so like. you're one bi... are you the other bi too... or?" eddie said awkwardly.

steve blushed and robin gagged. "yeah. is this your way of asking me on a date?"

eddie nodded dumbly.

"okay. tomorrow? bennys at 6?"

"uh. uh huh."

"sounds good, ed's. i should probably get my head checked out now. a domani, amore mio."

and that was it. suddenly eddie felt like he just got hit with a door. he was still reeling from the interaction when robins distant squealing broke him from his trance.

he shook his head.

steve's got more layers than he thought.

// i did use google translate so it won't be accurate.

"i'm not dead."

"robin, stop yelling. please."

"don't be ridiculous. im speaking plain english."

"you're speaking italian. seriously."

"oh no! he knocked my english loose!"

"see you tomorrow, my love."

[st4rgzer]

heyy i love your fics, like actually you have talent but anyways i have a really specific request so... can you please write something really fluffy where y/n is scared of needles, like she litterally can faint. so she has to go to the doctor (like get vaccine or something) and shes so anxious and afraid and she asks matt (you choose if they are dating or just friends yet) to drive her there and he agrees. she is trying to keep her cool but when she sees the needle and realizing what is going to happed she gets really stressed and like start to panic and matt try and calm her down? can you do it please? also i ADORE youre song fics.

NEEDLES matt sturniolo

summary: Matt goes with you to your dreaded appointment

genre: fluff!

cw!: needles!!!!!

a/n: hi love ty sm for requesting, i’m sorry if it isn’t exactly what you asked for? but i hope you like it, i am also deadly afraid of needles so this was hard to get through😭 (and i really really appreciate you like my song fics<3)

“Matt can we please reschedule the appointment please” I begged, tugging on his arm as he took a can of soda out the fridge.

“I’m sorry, baby, but you already postponed like, 3 times, plus i’ll be right there with you, okay?” He said before opening the can and sipping, then placing it on the counter, diverting his attention to his distressed girlfriend

“everything is going to be fine, we’ll go shopping after, get some food, whatever you want” He cupped my face as he tried to convince me not to fret, reassuring me that, despite my persistent stubbornness and fear of needles, I would be completely fine. I somewhat believed his words, although I think that thats just the effect of Matt being Matt.

I sighed and dropped my head to the crook of his neck.

“I don’t know, I’m just nervous, I know it’s stupid” I mumbled, my muffled words being hard to understand.

“Hey, look at me” He gently held my chin up as a slight pout formed on my face, earning a small grin from him.

“I’m going to be there, it’s just a small moment, nothing more” His words repeated like a mantra in my brain “a small moment, nothing more” I hoped it was just that, an instance.

I never knew why I was cursed with the fear of needles, I just was, ever since I was a little kid, the mindset kind of just stayed with me throughout all my life.

That night I slept uneasy, In Matt’s arms, which helped my situation slightly.

……

I cursed under my breath as the moment came, sat in Matt’s car, googling all the posible breathing techniques, anything that could take my mind off it just a little.

My grip on Matt’s hand became more and more tensed as we got out of the car and approached the doctor, I felt my heartbeats in my throat, and Matt sensed the discomfort in my steps.

“hey, I promise it’s okay” He whispered in my ear, placing a petal kiss on the crown of my head. I took a deep breath, and nodded, before stepping into the dreadful room where I hadn’t been for a long time.

As I sat down on the chair, I felt the heat rise to my whole body, making my hands sweaty, despite it being the middle of winter.

The nurse was friendly enough, I think I would’ve thought she was nicer if she wasn’t going to be actively piercing my skin with a needle.

“okay sweetheart, it’ll just be a pinch” She smiled at me, giving me the kind of comfort you get when an elderly woman smiled at you on the street. That helped distract me for approximately 5 seconds, before returning to taking deep breaths.

“Look at me, don’t look at your arm” Matt cautioned me, fighting to meet my gaze as I looked concerned at the lovely nurse disinfecting the spot that would later be punctured. (dramatic asf)

I hesitantly looked at him, founding some sort of consolation within the familiar smile. I decided to start tracing every detail with my eyes, trying to let my mind wander somehow.

I was enjoying finding new spots and freckles, curves, specs in his eyes, new things to admire . As absurd as it sounds, it surprisingly distracted me enough. My breath hitched and I winced, but when the needle finally made contact with my skin, and came out, it wasn’t as bad as I anticipated.

“Well done my love” He congratulated me, rolling my eyes at the embarrassment of being celebrated like a little baby, and to be fair, I did act like that, but I was enjoying the treatment.

Before getting into the car, he kissed me, wrapping his arms around my waist, leaning against the hood of the car.

“Thank you for putting up with me being a scaredy cat” I mumbled, leaning my head against his chest.

“I’m happy to do so, and I’m keeping my promise on taking you out for lunch and shopping” He grinned at me as a smile started forming on my face, knowing there was no point on trying to convince him not to buy my all these fancy things, he’s too stubborn.

He opened the car door for me and put on my seatbelt, insisting that I don’t move my arm for 2-5 business days, even though the shot was on my non dominant hand. Who am I to decline this princess treatment?

taglist: @dwntwn-strnlo @iha8you @lovelysturniolo @gabbylovesreading @strnlsblog @strniolo @ssturniolo @sturniolol @stvrni0lo

[useless-catalanfacts]

Bon dia. I am writing in English to make sure I get the feeling just right. Maybe this is not the right forum, but please know I'm asking this with nothing but respect and love. So, a few years ago I basically lost everything, and I ended up in the hospital as a result of a suicide attempt. For over a year I was convinced that I was never going to be able to leave my bedroom again, but after a lot of therapy and a small return to normality my friend managed to talk me into a super guiri coded trip to Barcelona. It was my first time being abroad since childhood (I'm Scandinavian). I don't drink alcohol nor do I like crowded places or heat, so while the group I travelled with did classic tourist shit I took some random train out to Terrassa, Cerdanyola, Sabadell and basically just found shadow or museums or some place to read. I had learned some basic Catalan before going, and I noticed that people really enjoyed that. Just by ordering tea I felt like I made friends, and locals offered to show me around or give me special tours of the museums etc. I've never felt more home, and I think I decided already there and then that this is where I wanted to be until forever. I live outside of Girona now, I'm decent in Catalan and I just started my PhD focusing on the political history of Catalonia. I'm a politically active leftist, and have really found a community here. Now, to my question: I want to get a tattoo, haha. I want to get something to honor my new home and celebrate this journey, plus also express some political alignment. When I ask my catalan friends they just laugh and ask why I would want to have a symbol of their "shitty" (said lovingly) country on my body. Their reactions make me worry it might seem like fetishism or appropriating, even if they mainly seem to find it funny. I would love to get a tattoo of the flag (maybe super simple, as in four lines and a star. Or even four lines that simply have the cutout of a triangle to show its the Estelada) but I worry I might be sending signals I don't fully understand. I was considering Montserrat or some other more... physical symbol. But a lot of them carry religious symbolism and that's not really what I'm getting at. I don't know. Maybe the very idea is disrespectful. I simply just need input from someone that's a) not my friend that will just laugh and b) knowledgeable in Catalan culture and codes. So if you have a take, I would be so happy to hear it. Thank you so much for your time.

Wow, thank you so much for all your respect, and I am very happy that you found a place to feel at home here ❤️

It would not be disrespectful at all nor signaling that you don't understand; all the opposite, it's a deep show of appreciation. I think your friends find it funny because it's unusual and, as you said, because they're your friends and friends always joke around with each other.

I honestly can't imagine anyone feeling like a tattoo like the ones you mentioned are disrespectful, fetishism nor appropriating. First of all because you have full knowledge of what you're deciding to tattoo and you are doing it from a point of appreciation, celebration, and also connection with an important part of your life. The only case I feel it's laughable is when people don't know what they're getting (for example, a friend showed me a TikTok where a foreign girl had gotten the tattoo "Besòs Mar" after the metro station in Barcelona for said neighbourhood at the end of the Besòs river —a neighborhood that doesn't have the best reputation, to put it lightly— and was showing it off pronouncing it badly and claiming it means "sea kisses" by her Google-Translate-level Spanish lmao. That's just stupid and will get her made fun of, but it's in every way all the opposite of what you're talking about).

All the options you mentioned seem completely okay to me. As always, everyone (especially Catalan people in this case) is welcome to add their opinion in the comments, but as I said I seriously can't imagine anyone taking an issue with it. I think people's reaction will be more of a mix of "wow!" and "aww ❤️".

I've been thinking of more physical symbols, I could think of a sickle, in reference to the reapers/els segadors, who were the poorest agricultural workers and marched to Barcelona in 1640 to kill the viceroy and to revolt against the monarchy that was restricting Catalonia's historical rights in favour of the king in Castilla. As you'll know, the reapers have become a symbol of Catalonia since then, and the folk song created during that war ended up becoming Catalonia's national anthem.

Painting Corpus de Sang, by Antoni Estruch i Bros (1907) which represents the Reapers' uprising in the Catalan Revolt (Guerra dels Segadors).

You could also do the shape of another mountain (Montserrat was a good shout but I understand the point about religious elements), you could do the Pedraforca or the Canigó, though the Canigó's shape isn't as recognizable and even less outside of Northern Catalonia. Maybe there's some place that you remember from your first trip or from your time here that you've enjoyed, or that you've seen often, a building or something else that you can do its silhouette.

I don't know, I'm saying ideas but the ones you mentioned in your ask were already good 😊

[presidentlokis-hornyhelmet]

Pavitr x fem reader

- Jealous HEADCANONS

A/N: Apparently, Pavitr's costume and fighting style is inspired from Kerala, so I went with him also being from Kerala. (Malayalam is google translated)

Also read on AO3

Pav Pooh is a uwu little jelly bean 

It began even before you started dating. You were bffs so, naturally, you're invited to his house for Onam celebration. 

Pav stands spellbound at your beauty as you'd worn the traditional off-white saree with golden border, your hair done and decorated with flowers. He's about to compliment you when his cousin beats him to it. 

"Are all of Pav's friends gorgeous, or is it just you?" 

Pav's face drains of colour as his cousin flirts with you. And you're indulging him!? That's it, you're not leaving his sight anymore. 

"Flattery takes you nowhere, cousin." 

His cousin ignores him. "Chuchudu, you should really visit Kerala sometime! We can go to all the tourists sites, go on a boatride -just the two of us, I can even teach you fishing!" 

The idiot rambles on and on but Pavitr's eyes blaze in green fury 🔥 Chuchudu!? Chuchudu!?! How dare he call you cutie! 

And, Gayatri just HAS to add fuel to fire. "Aww, you guys look so cute together! Don't they, Pav?"

"Of course! You look like father and daughter. What a rare bond, right?" 

Pav tells himself it's because his cousin is an a-hole, which they are, and he doesn't want to see you hurt. 

Lies, all lies. He jello 

He constantly tries to separate you guys or atleast just be next you like a bodyguard, shadowing over your convos. If his cousin got irritated, they don't show it. And, thanks to his spidey sense, his cousin can't talk to you alone for more than 5 seconds, though they do manage to ditch Pav at times XP 

Pavitr lets out a sigh of relief only after his cousin leaves. 

The next time it happens is when a new guy, Ravi, joins school. Ravi takes one look at you and he's interested. He's always flirting at you everywhere: cafeteria, by your locker, in the hallway -even in the field. 

Weekends usually mean extra superheroing so Pav can only meet you again on Monday morning at school. Or atleast, that's what usually happens. Today, though, you're at your locker with Ravi's arm around your shoulder as he talks to his friends. He says something in your ear which makes you laugh and slap his shoulder. 

Pav is seeing green. And you seem to hang out with Ravi more as the days pass!

You suddenly find Pavitr showing up at your house whenever Ravi comes around, tagging along with you two and always standing inbetween, telling how long you guys are besties at every opportunity, touching you a LOT..

"WHAT do you think you're doing, idiot?" Gayatri traps Pav into a corner and gets him to spill. 

"Okay, okay, I am jealous! I.. I like Y/n. Like, like her like her.." 

"You what me?" 

Long story short, you guys (FINALLY) get together and Gayatri squeals in joy.

After You Begin Dating 

Boy, you underestimated how much he flaunts you

Hand-holding, kissing your cheek when he senses potential threat (thanks, spidey sense!), hugging a lot, lost of texting ("miss u moloo 😘", "can i come overrrr I'm boreddd :< ") 

You assure him he's the only guy for you. "Pav, baby, I don't want anyone else. I've always been yours." 

And, a little later in your relationship, you admit that the whole flirting thing with Ravi and Pav's cousin was a ruse to make him jealous. And Gayatri was in on it! ;P

"I'm sorry but you just look sooo cute when you're jealous!", you say, squishing his cheeks. 

Pav feigns offense but he's melting inside knowing you only have eyes for him. 

Also... C'mon, can anyone resist making this cutepie jealous? 

________

reblogs and comments appreciated!!!

[copias-girl]

To Catch a Cardinal: Chapter VII

**NEW SONG**

A/N: *chanting* SLEEPOVER CHAPTER SLEEPOVER CHAPTER SLEEPOVER CHAPTER 👏🏻 Also! I actually have the pyjama set in real life lol just google ‘garage bored pyjama set’ and you can see pics of it lol ♥︎

All chapters <3

•♥︎𖤐♥︎•

You were excited, getting everything ready for the sleepover you had planned with your girlfriends, desperately overdue for some much-needed girl time. Ever since Cardinal Copia’s arrival, you hadn’t exactly been on the same page as your friends. It’s not like you were a saint; you enjoyed gossipy shit-talking just as much as they did, but you just couldn’t stand the way they ruthlessly bullied Copia. And in some respects, you were even bullying him too. However, you were doing it in a completely different way than they were; you were sexy-bullying the poor man. And admittedly, you were enjoying it far too much.

You missed how things used to be between you and the other sisters, but they were acting like total assholes to someone who didn’t even deserve it. You were the youngest out of them, yet they were the ones acting juvenile. So you were hoping that, with any luck, this fun sleepover would help to get you and the other girls on the same wavelength once more; allowing you to all wind down, let loose, and have some laughs.

The only rule? No boys allowed.

And you were ecstatic when all the girls enthusiastically agreed, because that meant Rob wouldn’t somehow find himself there; as much as he would probably enjoy that.

You were currently making your way to the ministry kitchen, where your friends would be gathering some various snacks for the sleepover. You were especially excited for the pink heart-shaped marshmallows you’d gotten at the grocery store. You had yet to try them and this night seemed like the perfect occasion.

However, as you neared the kitchen, you could hear exclamations of panic and frightened screams.

“What’s going on, is everything okay?” You rushed through the door, not knowing what to expect. A kitchen fire? Did someone get cut with one of the sharp knives?

However, you weren’t at all prepared for the sight with which you were met.

Emily, Mable, Lilith, and Ava were all standing on the kitchen counter screaming. And- Sweet mother of Satan, even Rob was up there too, screaming like a little girl and wielding a broomstick.

“What in Satan’s asshole is going on?!” You asked incredulously, looking around and not seeing any source of imminent danger.

“It’s a-” Mable cried.

“A r-” Lilith was so horrified she couldn’t even finish her sentence.

“A rat!” Emily shrieked.

You turned, half expecting to see poor Copia just trying to grab a snack, but he wasn’t there. It was then that you heard the squeaking, which sent your friends into another fit of screams and helpless cries.

“Hurry, come up here or it’ll get you!” Ava shouted, all of them holding your hands out to you.

“Girls, stay here. I’ll jump down, grab her, and lift her up onto the counter.” Rob declared solemnly, as if he were about to jump into a volcano and save you.

“No, Robbie, it’s dangerous!” The sisters all cried.

“It’s a risk I have to take.” He stated. “I’ll be quick.” He rolled up his sleeves, no doubt just trying to show off his muscles. “Here, baby, when I jump down lemme just grab you and-”

“You’ll do no such thing.” You responded calmly. “Besides, I’m perfectly capable of climbing onto the counter myself. I do it every time I have to get something out of the cabinet.”

“But you can’t just stay there, the rat’s down there!” Lilith pleaded with you.

“What are you doing?!” Emily shrieked in horror when you got on your knees, opening the bottom cupboards and making a “pspspsps” sound.

“I’m trying to find the rat, duh.” You responded casually. “Pspspspsps.”

“Good idea, babe, you lure it out and I’ll hit it with the broom.” Rob nodded at you.

“Don’t you dare! I’ll shove that broomstick straight up your ass if you try anything like that.” You shot him a dirty look, continuing your search. You followed the squeaking noise; obviously the rat was frightened by all the commotion.

“Alright, alright, Satan..” Rob murmured.

Grabbing a piece of cheese from the fridge, you opened a cupboard and caught a glimpse of it. You hushed everyone, kneeling on the floor and holding out the cheese.

Within a few moments, a little sniffing nose and some whiskers poked out from inside a cracker box. The rat cautiously made its way out, instantly bringing a smile to your face.

“Hi there. Want some cheese with your crackers?” You giggled. The adorable agouti hooded rat made its way over to you, sniffing around you before climbing right into your lap, taking the chunk of cheese into its little hand-like paws and nibbling away at it with fervour.

You couldn’t help but grin, as it finished the cheese, sniffing around you and looking up at you expectantly as if to ask for more. Carefully, you picked the little creature up and held it against your bosom, petting down its back and stroking a finger along its cheeks.

“Aren’t you precious?” You cooed before turning to your friends, who were still huddled on the counter, watching you with wide eyes and terror-stricken faces.

“I honestly can’t believe you guys are so scared of such a cute little thing.” You rolled your eyes, going back to lavishing the rat with attention, giggling when it began licking you to show its affection.

“What’s your name, huh?” You baby-talked it. “Oh, you’re just so cute!”

It wasn’t long before you heard a panicked voice and hurried steps coming from down the corridor.

“Biscotti?? Biscotti???” The voice called out worriedly. “Biscotti, dove sei??”

You grinned, recognizing the voice to be none other than Copia. From what you could tell, he had bumped into someone yet again.

“Ah, shit! M-mi dispiace! I-I’m very sorry but, ah… W-well I was looking for someone- eh, something, actually. H-have you seen a little rat around here?” He stuttered nervously.

“Um… no?” The sibling responded.

“N-no?? But… eh.. are you sure? She- she’s white with a grey head, si? A very good rat, eh.. sturdy, you know? Like a potato?” He attempted to describe it, and although you couldn’t see him, you were sure he was gesturing wildly with those gloved hands of his.

“No, um… I haven’t seen any rats around, sorry…” The sibling awkwardly replied.

“O-okay.. ehm.. thank you..” Copia sighed, continuing his frantic search once more. “Biscotti? Come out, Biscotti!”

Suddenly, the Cardinal burst into the kitchen, his mismatched eyes frantically looking all around before spotting you. His gaze landed first on your face, and then on the rat you were holding, who was currently nuzzling into your chest.

“S-Sorella!” The man gasped.

Emily rolled her eyes. “Enter Rat #2. Maybe you can hit this one with the broom.” She scoffed, causing Rob to snort out a laugh.

You got to your feet, a gentle and inviting smile gracing your pretty face as the Cardinal approached you.

“You found Biscotti!” He softly exclaimed, a relieved grin pulling at his lips.

“I sure did.” You beamed, holding the rat against your chest with one hand, still petting it with your other.

Your back was to the counter where your friends were, and just as Rob swung the broom down to try and hit Copia, your free hand shot out and blindly grabbed the stick before it could hit the Cardinal. Without even changing your kind expression, you ripped the broom out of his hand and tossed it across the kitchen where it clattered to the floor.

Everyone was shocked at your lightning-fast reflexes, especially since you couldn’t have even seen what Rob was doing.

“Guys, would you stop being embarrassing and get off the counter?” You glanced over your shoulder at your friends momentarily.

Copia swallowed nervously as you stepped closer to him. You gently took one of his hands, placing it onto the rat.

“Look, Biscotti, Daddy’s here.” You giggled.

The Cardinal’s pink blush instantly turned to crimson as you referred to him as ‘daddy’, although he felt utterly ashamed for having dirty thoughts about the innocently cute comment you’d made.

“S-si, I was so worried about you. And so was your best friend, Crema.” He murmured.

You smiled; Cookies and Cream. Satanas, this man was adorable.

“So the rumours are true. You do keep rats.” You remarked.

“Ehm, yes..” Copia nodded nervously.

The two of you stood close, comfortable silence falling between the two of you as you both pet Biscotti and scratched behind her ears.

“She likes you.” The Cardinal smiled, shy painted eyes flicking up to your face for a moment.

“I really like her too.” You replied quietly, stepping even closer to Copia.

“I, eh, I never thought you would be the type to like rats….” He remarked, eyes once again scanning over your face for a split second, lingering on your lips for just a moment longer.

“They’re my favourite, actually.” You nodded, giggling when the rat began licking you again.

Copia bit his lip. Lucifer below, you were perfect, absolutely perfect. He couldn’t find a single flaw in you if he tried.

“Sweet Satan…” Emily shook her head. “For Yule, you’ll probably be handing out cards that have pictures of you and Cardinal wearing matching sweaters, holding his rats like they’re your children.”

Rob and the other sisters laughed, and even you let out a giggle.

“You know, I’d actually like that.” You smirked. “What do you think, Cardinal?” You asked, playfulness twinkling in your eyes.

He bristled with nervousness under your gaze, finding it hard to meet your eyes but impossible to look away. “W-well I… S-si, I too would like that, Sorella.”

Both Copia and your friends were waiting for some sort of snide punchline from you, but it never came.

Your friends were confused at the fact that you’d actually want to take cheesy pictures like that, while the Cardinal got butterflies in his stomach just from the thought.

“Well, I better get back to my sleepover preparations.” You smiled, sensing the other girls’ impatience.

“Ah, okay..” Copia nodded awkwardly, trying to scoop Biscotti off your chest without groping your tits.

You didn’t let him get away too easily; subtly pushing your chest out, relishing in the feeling of his gloved hands rubbing against your tits and the panicked expression on his face. After finally getting the rat into his grasp, you gently grabbed his wrist, leaning down to kiss the sweet little creature.

“It was very nice meeting you, Biscotti.” You giggled. The Cardinal grinned, a mixture of disbelief and excitement bubbling inside him; no one had ever been so welcoming towards his rats.

“Here, she really seemed to like these.” You handed him the cracker box that she had chewed through.

Copia huffed out a laugh, taking the cracker box from you before giving Biscotti a pointed look. “You naughty thing, you..” He shook his head endearingly.

“Eh.. Grazie, Sorella. I don’t know what I would have done if you would not have found her. Not everyone is so… welcoming of rats.” The Cardinal gratefully looked into your eyes, breath catching in his throat when you placed a hand on his shoulder.

“I’m really glad I could help. I’ll have to meet your other ones sometime?” You offered.

“R-really? Y-you would.. You would want to?” The man perked up. “I-I’m sure they would love to meet you, Sorella…”

“It’s a date then.” You stated simply, making Copia blush terribly from the mere mention of the word ‘date’. He nodded eagerly before stuttering out an awkward goodbye, turning on his heel and making his way out of the kitchen while murmuring something to Biscotti.

You grinned, shaking your head and turning back to the other sisters.

“Alright, so we got all the snacks?” You enquired.

“Yup, all set to go!” Ava clapped her hands excitedly.

“Are you sure you guys aren’t gonna need any help eating all that tonight? Or.. help with anything else?” Rob asked, trying to put an arm around you.

“No boys allowed!” You chirped, slipperily wiggling out of his grasp as you and the other sisters grabbed your snacks and ran to your room.

•𖤐•

The sleepover was going great so far. You were wearing a cute pyjama set; some tiny black silk shorts with pink piping, and a cropped black silk button down shirt with short sleeves. It also had pink piping and it said ‘Bored’ on the back in pink embroidered cursive.

You and the girls were eating snacks, playing games, watching movies, and of course: gossiping. Seemingly all at the same time, too. Thankfully, though, you had kept the sisters away from the topic of Copia; instead talking about other interesting drama that was happening around the abbey.

“I think I saw Kenzie trying to flirt with Dexter. Kind of out of her league, isn’t he?” You commented, shoving another black liquorice jujube into your mouth while rolling the dice. You moved your piece, the iron, three spaces, landing on Park Place.

“No way! How embarrassing for her. He’s way out of her league.” Emily scoffed, the other sisters all in vehement agreement.

“Ava, gimme two hundred dollars?” You asked.

“Um, I think you have to mortgage one of your properties before I can give you any money…” She responded.

“Come on, what do you want me to do? Become a Monopoly stripper so you’ll give it to me?” You sighed, holding out your hand expectantly.

“Alright, fine.” The brunette rolled her eyes, placing the two crisp $100 Monopoly bills into your hand.

“Thanks!” You smirked.

“Hey!” Mable scoffed. “I knew Ava shouldn’t have been the banker, she’s a pushover for you.” She laughed.

“She’s persuasive!” Ava held her hands up in defence.

“By holding her hand out and threatening to become a stripper in a board game?” Lilith prodded playfully.

“No, no! With that devilish look in her eyes!” Ava giggled.

“Hey… where are those pink heart shaped marshmallows I got?” You suddenly asked, looking around.

“Hm.. I don’t see them…” Mable hummed, rifling though the stash of snacks.

“Oh, we must have forgot them in the kitchen when we spotted that rat!” Lilith remembered.

You groaned. “Alright, I’ll go get them.” You stood, putting your slippers on and heading out into the dark corridor.

•𖤐•

Finally nearing the kitchen, you saw a light shining from the doorway. You padded into the kitchen and saw none other than the Cardinal, sitting at the counter and having a snack. It was then that your eyes drifted to what he was eating.

“Well well well!” You exclaimed, causing the poor man to nearly jump out of his skin.

“Ah! S-S-Sorella!” He stared at you with wide eyes.

“What do we have here?” You stalked up to him, snatching the bag of your marshmallows out of his gloved hand. “A little rat.” You smirked.

“W-what? Eh, n-no! I-” He tried to protest, but you said nothing, only hooking your finger in the collar of his cassock, beginning to drag him out of the kitchen and down the hall.

“W-wait, Sorella, what are you-!”

“Well, I’m gonna have to explain to my friends why the bag is open and half the marshmallows are gone!” You grinned wickedly. That was a lie; the bag was still full. The poor thing had only eaten a few.

“P-please, Sorella, I’m sorry, I-I-I-” The man pleaded, weakly struggling against you as you dragged him up the stairs.

You rounded on him once you got to the top, pushing him against the wall, so close that the tip of your nose was touching his.

“Quit stuttering, Rat.” You whispered, lust dangerously swirling in your eyes.

The Cardinal let out a whimper, but before he could do anything, you were tugging him along by his collar once more.

Finally, you reached the door to your room, opening it and pulling Copia inside. You now held him by the back of his collar, as if you were holding him up by the scruff of his neck.

“Look what I found stealing our snacks! A little rat!” You proudly declared.

The sisters all looked at you with wide eyes as you dragged the man inside, giving him a little shove and causing him to stumble forward. You shut your door, once again sitting amongst all the pillows on the floor, taking Copia’s gloved hand and pulling him down to sit next to you. Admittedly, he was scared. He did feel like a rat. A helpless little rat about to be batted around by a bunch of cats.

“If you wanted the marshmallows so bad, you could have just asked for an invite.” You smirked.

“I-I d-didn’t know they were y-y-yours, Sorella! I-I’m sorry, p-please forgive me…” The Cardinal profusely apologized, the lines on his face deepening with guilt, and a bit of fear. Oh, but you knew; you knew that the sweet man didn’t know any better. You just missed teasing your dear Cardinal so much and you wanted an excuse to bring him to the sleepover.

“I thought we said no boys allowed??” Emily reminded you, not hiding the annoyed look on her face.

“Hmm, we did. But he’s not a boy, he’s a rat.” You grinned, stroking a finger under Copia’s chin and making him shiver, his pouty lips parting as a quiet, pitiful gasp escaped him.

“Is that right, hm? Are you a man or a mouse, Cardinal?” You playfully prodded at him.

“Ehm…” Copia paused, staring at you with wide, unsure eyes.

“Maybe a bit of both?” You prompted, to which he nodded shyly.

“That’s what I thought.” You cooed, biting into a marshmallow, popping the other half of the heart into his mouth.

“Mmm, isn’t it delicious?” You hummed, feeling reckless and flirtatious and dangerously sinful.

Entranced by you, Copia nodded in agreement, his cheeks already on fire and burning cherry red.

“Well, what’s next on the roster?” You asked. You’d already played Aggravation and Monopoly, gossiped, and watched Rosemary’s Baby, which had you and the other sisters sighing dreamily about what a blessing it would be to carry the Dark One’s child.

“Truth or dare!” Emily smiled wickedly.

“Perfect!” You hopped up, moving to sit on the plush area rug next to your bed, the black one with the pink pentagram on it. Everyone followed, sitting on your rug in a circle, Copia following nervously and sitting in the circle across from you.

“Have you ever played this?” You asked Copia.

“Ehm.. No.” He responded shyly, wringing his gloved hands in his lap, his plump lower lip bitten and flushed a delicious shade.

Oh Satan, what had the Cardinal gotten himself into?

•𖤐•

You had a few black candles burning around the room, and of course your Ghoul Friend candle from Bath & Body Works. The sweet scent filled the air, flames glowing and creating a pretty ambiance around the room.

The game started off pretty tame, with just dumb girly things. Ava dared you to do a flip on the bed, which you executed immaculately, and you dared Emily to snip off a little piece of her hair. Mable dared you to hold your nose and sing part of a song, which had you chanting a particularly nasally rendition of, “Belial…. Behemoth…. Beelzebub! …Asmodeus…. Satanas…. Lucifer!”

You couldn’t get past that part before you all burst out laughing. Even Copia, as nervous as he was, found it to be quite amusing.

The Cardinal had wracked his brain to try and think of something, and he finally dared you to say the first word that came to mind.

“Fuck!” You’d shouted, immediately clapping a hand over your mouth as another chorus of wild giggles filled the room.

“I dare you to leave.” Emily told Copia.

“I dare you to stay!” You countered when he began getting up.

And after a while of picking dare, you decided to pick truth.

“Do you have a crush on Rob?” Emily asked, causing the Cardinal to perk up.

“Um. Does it seem like I have a crush on Rob?” You raised your eyebrow incredulously.

“Answer the question.”

You could feel everyone’s intense eyes on you, especially Copia’s. He awaited your answer on bated breath, admittedly nervous to hear the truth. He knew you didn’t exactly act like you liked Rob, but some people behave that way when they do like someone. Copia thought that, perhaps by being nice to him and snubbing Rob, maybe you were just trying to make Rob jealous and tease him. Copia’s biggest fear was that your kindness towards him might be part of some kind of cruel trick.

“Of course I don’t.” You scoffed, and the Cardinal released a breath he didn’t even know he was holding.

“Truth or dare?” Mable asked you, and once again you picked truth.

“What exactly don’t you like about him?” She asked curiously.

You shrugged. “Honestly? He’s just not my type.”

Copia was relieved, but also intrigued. It seemed as though everybody thought Rob was particularly handsome, with that perfectly styled dirty blonde hair, muscular build, tall height, and winning smile. It left the Cardinal wondering… if you didn’t like Rob, who did you fancy?

“Alright let’s kick it up a notch, dare me to do something disgusting or whatever.” You laughed, wanting some excitement.

“Alright, I have a gross one for you.” Emily smirked deviously, catching your interest. “I dare you to kiss the rat man. On the lips.”

The other sisters immediately gasped in horror, while Copia’s eyes grew as wide as cherry pies. His gaze whipped to you, trying to gauge your reaction, before staring down at his lap, trembling and ridden with anxiety.

“Emily, don’t make her do that!” Lilith whisper-yelled.

“Well she asked for a gross one, so there ya go.” Emily defended herself with a shrug.

“Yeah, but-” Ava began to whine, all of the girls giving you their sympathies, not even considering the way it would make Copia feel. They were acting like kissing him would be the worst punishment on earth. The poor man felt terrible about himself; even more so than usual.

The sisters were so busy lamenting on your behalf, and the Cardinal was so busy feeling guilty, that none of them even noticed you getting up and crossing the circle until you were already standing over Copia where he was sitting criss-cross applesauce.

Seeing your bare legs in his peripheral vision, he slowly looked up up up your legs, past your sinfully tiny shorts and cropped pyjama shirt, until he was staring at you with wide, sorrowful eyes; once again nervously twisting his gloves in his lap.

The room fell silent, and without a word you slowly sank down to straddle his lap. Your hands found his shoulders, and for a few moments you did nothing, only observing as he grew more and more anxious under your stare. Your fingertips ghosted down his arms, taking his gloved hands and placing them on your hips. Copia’s breath hitched at that, his whole body going stiff as he gazed fearfully into your eyes, but he didn’t dare move a muscle.

Your eyes swept over his pretty face. How cute, his deep blush made his little freckles more prominent.

Your lack of movement and the way you were studying him had Copia on edge, his heart pounding louder and harder with each passing second. He truly did feel guilty that you were being forced into doing this, and he was just about to tell you not to feel obligated when suddenly you were bringing a gentle hand up to stroke your fingers along the cleft of his chin, his jaw, his cheek. Your fingertips danced along his sideburn, and after a moment you were knocking the biretta off his head.

It hit you then that you’d never seen him without his biretta before; and sweet Satan his hair was gorgeous. It was thick and fluffy, and he wore it slicked back. Once a dark chestnut brown, it was now greying; with lighter little silvery wisps coming in near his temples. You grinned to yourself, realizing that his hair was the same colour as an agouti rat’s fur.

You could feel the timid Cardinal’s hands trembling where they rested on your hips, and he flinched when you delicately cupped his flushed face in your hands.

He was beginning to panic as you slowly leaned in, your eyes half lidded, tip of your nose brushing against his. What should he do? He had never kissed a girl before, he didn’t know how, didn’t have time to practice and now he was going to make a fool of himself to you. Oh, Satan, how mortifying. He was a 50 year old man and he had no idea how to kiss. He could speak Latin and perform rituals, but all of that seemed dismally, frightfully irrelevant now. How could he know how to do those things when he didn’t even know how to kiss? He really was pathetic, wasn’t he?

His mind was racing a mile a minute, but then you finally closed the gap, pressing your delicious lips to his, and Copia swore he felt an electric shock run through his entire body and short circuit his brain.

The Cardinal felt lightheaded, already drunk off you, off your intoxicating perfumed scent, afraid he might faint right then and there. You tenderly moved your lips against his, and he let out something between a soft gasp and a whimper when your tongue darted out to swipe across his delicious lips. When his mouth opened, you took the opportunity to deepen the kiss, a little moan slipping out of you.

Copia’s mismatched eyes had rolled back and fluttered closed, feeling oh so helpless against your sinfully sweet ministrations. He was still worried about not knowing what to do, but the way you were sucking on his tongue had him letting out a pathetic little whimper of surprise. You softly hummed in satisfaction. He tasted like cherry coke, while the Cardinal noted that you tasted like bubblegum.

Now, this. This was a first kiss. There would be no doubt in Copia’s mind after this; no wondering, no technicalities. He could hardly believe he was finally having his first kiss. And with you, the girl of his dreams. Copia felt like the luckiest man on earth. And just when he thought it was over, you kept going; tangling your fingers into his soft hair, tugging slightly before hungrily sucking his plump bottom lip into your mouth.

You swallowed each and every one of his little moans, humming in delight as you devoured him. Your sweet Cardinal gasped as you nipped at his lip, subsequently deepening the kiss once more so your tongue could swirl around his again.

Your friends all looked on in a mixture of horror and morbid curiosity, wincing as they watched you make out with Copia in earnest. Even Emily felt bad; she had only meant for you to simply peck him on the lips, but you were going above and beyond.

You elicited yet another wonderful moan from Copia as you sucked his tongue right into your mouth, getting frisky and biting at him a bit harder, the feeling of his moustache against your skin driving you crazy with need. What was once a deep and sensual kiss was slowly growing more passionate.

Alarm bells rang in the poor Cardinal’s head once more as he noticed the maddening throbbing between his legs, realizing in a panic that his cock was fully hard and pressed right against you. Surely you could feel it, since you were just wearing those tiny little silk shorts. How embarrassing. It was leaking precum like a faucet, making a sticky mess in his pants, so hard and sensitive that it was almost becoming painful. And as you continued kissing him it felt like he would cum.

You did, in fact, feel the thick, hard length of his cock pushing against you, but you resisted the urge to grind on him because you relished in the fact that the little perv had gotten so hard just from kissing you.

Copia’s big cock just couldn’t stop twitching in his pants, all for you you you. You and those beautiful lips, that sinfully delicious tongue. You were candy, sugary sweet, and the Cardinal was hopelessly addicted.

Oh, Lucifer below! He almost came just then but thankfully he was able to hold himself back. It was really getting him going, the way you kissed him so deeply, so thoroughly. You always acted as if you weren’t disgusted or annoyed or repelled by him, but poor Copia definitely thought that your true feelings would come out when faced with this challenge. He thought you were going to wince, bracing yourself while giving him the quickest kiss on the lips, before wiping your mouth on the back of your hand. The Cardinal had never been so thrilled about being wrong.

Finally, you pulled away for air; a thick, glistening string of saliva still connecting the both of you. Copia’s eyes fluttered open, the poor man was dazed and confused as you both stared at each other, panting. You leaned in again, pressing a soft little kiss to the corner of his mouth, then another, followed by you nipping at his lower lip once more, causing the Cardinal to let out a pathetically shaky little moan.

You glanced downward then, toward the obscene bulge that was pressing right into your pussy.

“Pervert.” You murmured with a smirk.

Copia’s eyes widened, crimson cheeks burning bright with humiliation as everything came crashing down. He was absolutely horrified that you could actually feel it. But, Satanas, you were right. He was a pervert, he was he was he was. A 50 year old man getting all worked up and horny over being kissed by a daisy-fresh, young little thing like you. And all because your friend had dared you to do this, no less. Copia felt like a dirty old man, ashamed of himself.

As you stood, the man became painfully aware of how tight his grip was on your hips once he was forced to let go. You hoped you’d have marks there the next day. You left him, then, with tousled hair, bruised lips, and glossy eyes. Not to mention, an undoubtedly painful erection which Copia scrambled to hide, adjusting his cassock and placing his hands over his lap as an attempt to conceal the large bulge.

Both your and his lips were deliciously swollen; shiny and spit-slicked, and the Cardinal could hardly believe his eyes as you licked your mixed saliva off your lips instead of wiping it off with your hand. The other sisters winced, glancing among themselves in disgust.

“Truth or dare, Rat?” You asked with a smirk.

“T-t-t-truth, please.” He stuttered.

“Was that your first kiss?” You got straight to the point. And, oh, you knew it was cruel to expose the poor man like this in front of all your mean friends. But you just couldn’t help yourself. You didn’t know for sure, but judging by his ultra timorous demeanour, you could only assume that your dear Cardinal had never been intimate with anyone before.

The poor man looked at you with puppy dog eyes, still dazed and in shock from the kiss, but you just weren’t letting him catch a break from your relentless teasing.

“S-si, it… It was.” Copia answered honestly, ashamed and humiliated and admittedly so needy for you. He stared down at his lap, wringing his hands. He wished he had the guts to dare you to kiss him again.

“Really?? Your first ever kiss?” You gasped. “How old are you again?” You asked coyly.

“E-ehm-” Copia looked taken aback by your question. “F-f-f-fifty…” He murmured quietly, shame written all over his precious, flushed face.

You grinned triumphantly, relishing in his delicious anguish. “Did you like it?” You dared to ask.

Your friends all stared at you, utterly puzzled, growing more confused by the second. They genuinely couldn’t tell if you were flirting with the man, or if this was your own special way of torturing him.

Copia swallowed nervously, biting his lip trepidatiously before his painted eyes timidly met your gaze once more.

“Y-yes.” He nodded.

𖤐 to be continued 𖤐

Taglist: @sucharide @the-hole-in-terzos-shoe @zombiequeenblog @rightintheghoulies @copiaswifey @youhaveahomeinmyheart @mister-girl @faeeeeh @rubyserpentine @ramblingoak @tuttifuckinfruttifriday @my-mummy-dust @angelconservation @yourlocalghouleh @gh0sty6 @nikolaiology @thenick100 @mothsdraw @ivyanddaisies @gothdaddyissues @moonlight-fern @copiaslittleratty @nocturnal-birb @creepyalbatross @lightbluuestars @delta-is-here @1kirby1 @dawnghoul @kyberj @esmiephan @not-ya-girl @notmanagingmymischief @averagecrastinator @anubidian @peripheralviision @morbid-personality @rewin-d @madisyn-grace @oops-hyper-fixated-on-slashers @androidwitchbitch @lilithsgirlfriend @xhorror-nerdx @pxl8ed @gothicwonderlust @i-wanna-perish @r3dc4ndy @justageek @moansforpapa

[cheesecakeluvrs]

Rogue and Gambit in X-men 97’

This is neither One Piece nor Sanami but I’m obsessed with X-men 97’ currently and I need to talk about this somewhere

I keep seeing people say that Rogue is cheating on Gambit in X-men 97’ but that is absolutely not the truth. This is understandable because the general knowledge is that Rogue and Gambit are together because they are in the comics and I’m sure some people who watched the original X-men animated series as a child look back and remember them being together. While they were awfully flirting with one another they never got together officially

This is also probably because Rogue and Gambit were a pretty fresh couple in the early nineties so I’m sure the writers just went with the same flirty approach that they had before they got together in the comics

While it’s clear they have feelings for each other as they kiss 2 times and almost another (although one of those kisses was not consensual) and Rogue also calls herself “Mrs. Lebeau” when she needed a name (which I’m sure there was also confusion on Rogues name due to it also being fresh) they are definitely NOT together

Gambit is literally my favorite character so it’s hard bashing him so much like this but he has no right to get jealous of Rogue. Everyone on the internet keeps saying “poor Gambit” and such and I just wish they would watch the original

Gambit in the original is just not a great guy a lot of the time to Rogue. First, one time Morph flirted with Gambit as Rogue and told him that she had been lying about not being able to touch people (LIKE HOW DO YOU FALL FOR THAT HOW DOWN BAD ARE YOU) so his reaction to that is to go up to her while she’s sleeping and kissing her resulting in his passing out. Like I get you want this woman but leave her to her sleep

Second, he makes kinda creepy comments too. Like one time he tells her “you need to lay off the fried chicken” and one time she was just out of her usual fighting clothes and he said “you should dress up for me sometime” (but she did flirt back in that situation so I’ll give him that one)

Lastly, saying Rogue cheated on him is crazy because Gambit flirts and hits on so many people (even though they’re not serious he still can’t get jealous of someone else’s relationship if he’s doing that) then has the audacity to get all angsty when Rogue and Cody go on a date or when Rogue and Archangel touch and share a sentimental moment due to Rogue absorbing some of his memories one time

Okay okay and DESPITE all this I am still Rogue and Gambits biggest shipper and cheering for them in 97’ so what is going on with Magneto. People who did a single google search keep coming up with the “well Rogue and Magneto were canon in the comics”, yeah they got married in “Age of Apocalypse” but referencing couples outside of 616 is crazy. You know who else has been together when we are counting EVERY timeline? LITERALLY EVERYONE. This is Marvel comics, this is not new, everyone has hooked up and everyone will continue to hook up. Just look up a list of all the people Wolverine alone has been with

Sure they COULD go with Rogue and Magneto for X-men 97’ and I’m just a stupid dum dum for believing otherwise but I see no reason to with all the buildup of the original and that sad face Rogue made in episode 4 was a little hm….

I think this is all for a little drama, a little development, a little spice because if Marvel hates anything it’s happy couples with no problems. I am praying that this is just to improve their relationship and at the end of this stupid love triangle they will finally be together but who knows

There is also a little theory that Magneto and Rogue actually aren’t doing something too crazy. I just find it weird that they haven’t actually shown us anything (I know they can’t show us them doing something devious but maybe at least kissing) only heavily suggesting it with the training room and Gambits nightmare thing. It’s just because a lot of times shows and movies will heavily force something like someone cheating then they later find out that they were actually just spending so much time together because they were planning their birthday party or something

I sound as desperate and delusional as Gambit but I’m doing all I can. I probably should’ve just waited for tomorrow then posted this after watching the new episode but I couldn’t wait so maybe all of my thoughts and opinions will change in a few hours

[raaorqtpbpdy]

In Memory of Mom

Danny meets a strange, Spanish-speaking ghost wandering around Casper High. His Spanish isn't great, but he's pretty sure she's looking for her daughter.

For the Prompt: Danny encounters a strange spanish-only speaking ghost looking for Paulina Sanchez. Being a first year Spanish student, he only recognizes the words "mi hija" and hesitantly leads her to Paulina. It's Día de los Muertos, but because Paulina has been trying to fit in at school, and her papa remarried and doesn't want to make his new wife uncomfortable, they've fallen out of the habit of setting up the ofrenda and marigolds, leaving their mom/wife unable to find her way home. Paulina can't see or hear her, but Phantom can [From @dreamwraith]

Disclaimer: I am white, and I do not speak Spanish. It is with deepest regret that I must admit to using Google translate for the Spanish dialogue in this fic. If you notice any errors in the Spanish, or regarding Día de Muertos (which there might very well be, though I did do my research), please feel free to correct me. I can only do my best, and always appreciate the opportunity to do better.

Read also on AO3

[Warnings for past character death, and mentions of culture death]

Danny typically liked to have more than one day to recover after fighting Fright Knight every Halloween. Not to mention the numerous other ghosts who always had to come out on that stupid holiday to cause as much trouble as possible during the period of time when the barrier between the human world and the Ghost Zone was at it's thinnest.

Of course, Danny never got more than one day, but he would have liked to.

Luckily the ghost that showed during lunch period on November second didn't seem to be causing any trouble. In fact, it didn't seem like she was powerful enough to cause trouble, even if she wanted to. No one besides Danny even seemed to notice her, which at least meant she wouldn't be able to cause any serious damage, even if she tried.

She was speaking Spanish as she walked through the halls of Casper High, and turning her head this way and that as if she was looking for something, or someone.

"¿La has visto? ¿Mi hija? ¿Dónde está mi hija? ¿La has visto?" she called out.

Now, Danny was only a first year Spanish student, and furthermore... he missed a lot of classes, so he wasn't sure exactly what she was saying, but he did recognize the words 'mi hija', 'my daughter'. The last time he'd been to Spanish class, Señora Gutierrez had been teaching family terms. Madre, padre, hermana, hermano, hija, hijo, tío, abuela, that kind of thing.

Subtly, he followed her until she walked into a hallway where there weren't any people, and then, with no one to look at him like he was crazy for talking to the air, he spoke to her.

"Excuse me, are you looking for your daughter?" Danny asked.

"¡sí mi hija!" the woman replied excitedly. "¿La conoces? ¿La has visto?"

Danny knew 'sí', that was 'yes', the most basic of basic Spanish. 'sí' and... and... okay, so Danny couldn't remember what 'no' was in Spanish, but he remembered 'sí'. Ancients, he was really gonna have to start showing up to that class more if he wanted to get the foreign language credits he needed to graduate.

"Uh... tu hija," Danny said, completely confident that he was already screwing up the grammar, "¿que es la nombre?"

"No es muy fluido en español, ¿verdad?" The ghost laughed. "Su nombre es Paulina."

"Paulina?" Danny didn't understand any of the rest of what she said, so he focused on the last bit. "Paulina Sanchez?"

"¡Sí!" she confirmed, enthusiastically. "Mi hija. Paulina Sánchez. ¿Tu la conoce?"

Danny nodded, although he'd kinda fallen off the sentence after 'sí'. "Why are you looking for her?"

"Es el Dia de Muertos," she said. "Quiero verla, pero no encuentro la ofrenda."

Danny had no idea to respond to that. The only word he recognized from all of that was 'la', but he couldn't glean a whole sentence from a single 'the', so he just looked at her with an expression that was half a forced, awkward smile and half a grimace.

"Ummmm..."

Was it safe to lead an unknown ghost to an unsuspecting human? Objectively no. Most especially not when the unsuspecting human was the girl Danny had a massive crush on. But... on the other hand, this particular ghost seemed pretty harmless, and she said she was Paulina's mother. So... maybe it was okay?

"How about I'll take you to her," Danny suggested.

The ghost that claimed to be Paulina's mother nodded excitedly and said something else in Spanish that Danny had no hope of translating. 

Danny led her to the outdoor table where the A-listers always sat, but Paulina wasn't there. After a little bit of prowling the quad, he found her, at an out of the way table no one ever sat at because the the school custodian always ignored it and it was disgusting. 

Paulina had laid her jacket over the bench to sit on, and unfolded a few paper napkins over the surface of the table. She had a handful of sugar cubes, and was poking one with a toothpick for some reason. She hadn't noticed him yet.

As much as he would have liked to go over to her as Danny Fenton and be the hero who let her talk to her mom again, he figured it would probably be suspicious if people knew he could see ghosts others couldn't. A but reluctantly, he looked around to make sure no one could see and transformed into Danny Phantom. The ghost, Paulina's mom, applauded him, like he'd just done a magic trick. To her, it might have seemed that way.

"Thanks," he said, a little sarcastically, and floated over to talk to Paulina.

"Excuse me, Paulina Sanchez?" Danny asked, as if he wasn't sure whether he knew her name or not. "There's a ghost here who wants to speak to you."

Paulina looked up and looked around, then turned back to Danny and raised a perfect eyebrow. She put down the sugar cube she was poking at, and Danny noticed that on her other side, there were two other sugar cubes sculpted into the shape of a skull.

"You mean you?" she asked. "Look, normally, I'd be thrilled, but today isn't really—"

"Oh, no, not me," Danny said. "She has long hair, wearing a nice knee-length dress.... It's kinda hard to describe ghosts in a way that makes them recognizable to people who knew them in life, 'cause colors tend to be different between life-and-death but uh... you and her have the same nose, actually. She says your her daughter? I don't speak Spanish, but I managed to figure out that much."

When he stopped talking, Pauling gave him a flat look.

"Are you messing with me?"

"No," Danny insisted. "She's not a very powerful ghost, so she can't stay in the visible range, but she's here. She wants to talk to you."

"Mamá?" Paulina asked hesitantly. "¿Estás aquí?"

"Sí, hija mía, estoy aquí," Mrs. Sanchez replied. "Estoy muy feliz de verte de nuevo."

Paulina didn't respond for a long moment, apparently waiting. Then, finally, she said, "I don't hear anything."

"I was worried you might say that," Danny said. "I'm gonna have to speak Spanish if you guys want to talk to each other, aren't I?" he sighed deeply. "Alright fine. Apologies in advance because I am gonna absolutely butcher the pronunciations."

"Hija," Mrs. Sanchez said, "volví a verte, pero no había camino para mí. ¿Por qué?"

Danny repeated the words to the best of his ability.

Paulina took a moment to parse them out, with a puzzled expression before finally saying, "Papá se volvió a casar. Su nueva esposa es gringa, así que no le hicimos un ofrenda en casa para que no se sintiera incómoda."

Danny didn't know what any of that meant, obviously, and was grateful he only had to repeat after Paulina's mom, because Paulina herself spoke Spanish very quickly and there was absolutely no way he wouldn't trip over his tongue mimicking her. 

"Pero estoy aquí, debe haber una ofrenda."

Danny mimicked her again.

Paulina looked a little embarrassed. "Sí... yo... hice uno en mi casillero para ti. No quería que no pudieras cruzar."

Her mother gasped. Danny really wished he knew what was going on.

"¿Me mostrarás?"

Paulina's expression lit up when Danny repeated that, and she stood, gathering up her jacket and her sugar cubes.

"Vamos," she said. "I mean, follow me."

She led the way through the empty halls and Danny and her mom followed.

"What were you guys talking about?" Danny asked, then immediately realized what he was asking and quickly backtracked. "I mean, never mind, it's probably personal. I was just curious. You don't have to answer that."

"No, it's okay," Paulina said. "See, my mom passed when I was seven, and every year, me and my dad set up an ofrenda for Day of the Dead with her picture so she could visit us. We moved here from Mexico when I was ten, but we kept up the tradition. 

"Last winter, though, Dad married my step-mom, and she's white, and doesn't know anything about Mexican traditions or holidays. Dad doesn't want to make her uncomfortable, so ever since they got married, we stopped celebrating most of what we used to back in Mexico, so we didn't put up an ofrenda this year, and Mom was asking why she couldn't find it, so I explained."

"Oh... that's... kinda sad," Danny said. "You just had to give up all your culture because your dad remarried?"

Paulina shrugged. "We had to give up a lot of it already, when we moved to America anyway," she said, as if that made it less sad and not more. "At least Sandra's nice, she's just... a little out of her depth sometimes."

"So... where are you taking us?"

Finally, she stopped in front of her locker and turned the dial with her combination.

"I didn't want mom to not be able to visit me, so... I sort of made my own ofrenda in my locker," Paulina explained sheepishly.

The door swung open to reveal the inside. There was a small magnetic shelf stuck on the back of the locker. On it, there was a small electric candle, some kind of orange flower, a pair of black lace gloves, and a heart-shaped locket. The locket was open and propped up so the picture inside was visible. It was the ghost Danny was trying to help.

Paulina reached in an put a few of the sculpted sugar cubes on the shelf next to the locket. The tiny sugar skulls were perfectly to scale with the tiny picture, but absolutely dwarfed by the flower.

The ghost put her hands to her heart and looked absolutely touched by the tiny display.

"Those were her favorite gloves," Paulina explained. "She always wore them when Dad took her dancing."

"What's the flower?" Danny asked.

"It's a marigold," she replied. "Cempasúchil, in Spanish. They're a traditional decoration for the ofrenda. You're also supposed to leave a trail of their petals from the grave to the ofrenda, but... Mom's grave is in Mexico, and the ofrenda is in my locker so...." 

"Ay, esto es hermoso," the ghost said. "Gracias. Amo mucho esto. Te quiero mi hija."

Danny had been to distracted to properly listen, so he wasn't sure how to repeat her words.

"Uh... she says she likes it."

The ghost gave him a look and a light slap that passed right through him.

"A lot, she likes it a lot."

"¡Y te amo!" she added insistently.

"Y te amo, she says," Danny repeated.

"Thank you, Phantom," Paulina said. She leaned forward and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "This means a lot to me."

Danny knew his cheeks were turning bright green, and he cleared his throat awkwardly to make sure his voice wouldn't crack.

"Uh, yeah, no problem," he said. "Don't mention it."

It was then that the bell rang signalling the end of lunch, and Paulina grabbed a couple of books from her locker and headed to class. Her mom followed, even though Paulina couldn't see her.

Danny had to get to class, too. He had Spanish class after lunch, and Ancients knew he didn't need to be missing any more of those.

In class, Señora Gutierrez talked about Dia de los Muertos, and for once, Danny actually sort of knew what she was talking about, thanks to Paulina. Maybe he should ask her to tutor him.

[babybluebex]

italy calling: part three | joseph quinn x fem!reader

summary: part three of three! your time with joe in livorno comes to a tearful end, but, when you return home to london, can you be trusted not to find joe? and can he be trusted not to find you? pairing: joseph quinn x fem!reader (rpf - don't like, don't read) tags: ANGST, lots of crying, but it's sweet, i promise, brief mention of smut word count: 3.4k author's note: since @icallhimjoey is BULLYING me to post this early, i am. everyone say "thank you joey". thank you all so much for your support on this fic, it truly means the world to me. i love you guys, and enjoy the last part!

The rest of the week passed in the blink of an eye. You spent nearly every second with Joe, either laid up in bed or out exploring the streets, and you adored it. He was gentle and kind, though still a cheeky little bloke— at dinner, his hand would teasingly slide between your thighs, only to stay there and not progress, or he would kiss you hard and grin at you when you chased him back into another kiss. You maintained the rules, stopping yourself from texting Lily or Googling him multiple times, abstaining in favor of cuddling and talking. He had so many stories, and he could have regaled you all day if you let him, and you often did. 

All too soon, though, Friday came. You sat in Joe’s bed as you watched him pack— you had offered to help him, but he declined, saying that it was something that he needed to do for himself. He seemed to be taking it hard, his brow drawn and mumbling under his breath as he gathered up his things. He scratched his head and sighed, and he looked at you sort of helplessly. 

“What’s wrong?” you asked. He had a habit of employing big, wet puppy-dog eyes on you when he wanted something, usually a bite of your pasta or a kiss, but you could tell that this was something different. “Joe?” 

He came to you and laid down, settling his head in your lap, and your fingers started to card through his curls. “This has been the best week of my life,” he whispered. “I don’t want it to end.” 

“Me neither,” you admitted. “I… I’m gonna miss you.” 

“I’ll miss you so much,” Joe whispered. He took your hand into his and gently stroked your palm with his thumb, and he added, “This just isn’t fair. I find the perfect girl, and I have to leave her in Italy.” 

“You don’t have to leave me,” you offered. “We could keep in touch after you get home.” 

“No, no,” Joe whispered quickly. “It’s better if we keep it like this. I couldn’t ask you to join me and… My life is messy, love, and you wouldn’t want any part of it.” 

“Yes, I do,” you said, hot tears pricking at your eyes and threatening to spill. You sniffled, and you said, “If it meant I had you.” 

“It’s constant, with me,” Joe said. “You’d constantly be scrutinized, everyone would have an eye on you at all times, everything that’s private suddenly isn’t anymore. Is that the sort of life you want?” 

“What the fuck are you talking about?” you asked. “Why would any of that happen? Joseph, darling, I’d do anything for you, but where in the world did you get that?” 

Joe sat up, his puppy-dog eyes locked on yours with a new intensity, one that made your skin crawl uncomfortably. “I have to tell you something,” he said. “After everything, you deserve to know who I am.” 

“I know who you are,” you told him, taking his hands into yours. “You’re Joe. You like cheesy bread and long walks at sunset and smoking after I blow you, and you hate when people are rude and when I get picky about olives. You have a brother and a sister, your best friend’s name is Wesley, you only smoke Camels and use a pink lighter, you’re ticklish on your left side, you’re insecure about your stomach— Joseph, I know you.” 

“But that’s not enough,” Joe said. “I’m more than that, there’s more important stuff to know about me.” 

“I don’t care,” you told him. “You said at the start of this that you didn’t want me to know, and I'm not going to break that promise, and I’m… I’m okay with that. It’s like you said, we wouldn’t work at home, we only work here.” 

Joe pressed his lips together as he thought, and he finally said, “Alright. I guess this is it, then. Give me your phone.” 

“Why?” you asked, though you fished your phone out of the bedsheets and passed it to him anyway. 

“I’m deleting myself,” Joe told you. He tapped at your phone, swiping and deleting the text conversation, then went to your phone app and deleted every call that you had made to him from your call history. Then, he went to the contacts folder, found himself (still listed under Italy Joe), and deleted it. “No chance of you finding me now. No trace of me left.” 

“Give me yours,” you said, and Joe did the same, pulling his phone from his jacket pocket and handing it to you, and you went through the same motions, deleting your texts and calls and contact. Your heart ached at the sight of your name in his phone— your name with a heart next to it— but, before you gave him his phone back, you opened up the camera, and you tugged Joe close to you. “Maybe you can’t contact me,” you started, snapping a picture of both of you. “But you can remember me.” 

Joe turned and kissed you without a second thought, and you snapped another picture before you set down his phone and kissed him back. You finally let your tears fall, and you whimpered as Joe broke the kiss. He softly kissed your cheeks and eyelids, collecting your tears on his lips, and you tugged him close and held him tightly. “I’ll never forget you,” he told you. “I love you.” 

You shook your head, your frown growing. “No, you don’t,” you told him. “You love me in Italy. At home, I’m messy and boring, and I don’t do anything except watch television and go to bed early.” 

“Then, I’d love nothing more than to be messy and boring with you,” Joe chuckled lightly. “I love you, darling, and location won’t change that.” 

“It’s your rule, my love,” you told him. “No finding each other. We obeyed every other rule, please just… Don’t ruin this. Don’t let this be tarnished by the end. Everything was beautiful, and it’ll end when you leave in a few minutes, and-and that part of our lives will be over, and we’ll be okay with it. Because we have no other choice.” 

Joe nodded gently, and he said, “One more kiss, love.” 

You indulged him, softly pressing your lips to his, and he kissed you with all of the love and softness that he had in his body. This man loved you, and you loved him, and you were about to lose him. And you were okay with that. He was only meant for the short time you were in Livorno, and now that was over. But it broke your heart so thoroughly that you actually felt pain in your chest. When you broke the kiss, you only had one request: “Tell me your name.” 

“Quinn,” he said in an instant. “My name is Joseph Anthony Francis Quinn.” He would give you the shirt off of his back on a regular day, but it seemed as if your parting had broken his will down to nothing. Before, he had faffed about and not given you even his surname, but now… 

“Joseph,” you sniffled. “Joey… Your flight leaves soon.” 

“I can get another one,” Joe whispered. “I can stay here for another day or so.” 

“Darling, you have to go,” you told him. “Your life awaits.” 

Joe kissed you one last time, and he took his phone from your hand, moving to zip up his luggage. He didn’t say much as he led you out of the hotel room, letting the door close softly behind you, and he gave you a tight hug, breathing into your neck and having your scent one last time. “I guess this is goodbye,” you whispered, and Joe gave a shaky breath. 

“Not ‘goodbye’,” he said. “‘See you later’, maybe. We’ll see each other again.” 

“But not on purpose,” you reminded him. “No finding me.” 

“As long as you don’t find me,” Joe said, and you nodded. 

When you got back to your hotel room, you felt empty. You were hungry, but you didn’t feel like eating. You were tired, but the bed was too big and lonely. You had hardly been in your hotel room all week, and it looked sad and deserted. Joe’s light was gone. You needed to go home. 

But first, you called Lily. “Babe!” she exclaimed as she answered the phone. “Oh my God, how is Italy? I’ve hardly heard from you!” 

“It’s fine,” you said. “I met a guy.” 

“Ooh!” Lily said. “Tell me about him.” 

“I…” you started. “I think I know him. His name sounded familiar, and I think maybe we know each other somehow.” 

“What’s his name?” Lily asked. “Let me Google him, maybe I can find his LinkedIn or something—“

“No, no,” you said quickly. “Part of the deal of the fling was that we don’t find each other afterwards. Googling is forbidden.” 

“Oh,” Lily sighed. “That sucks. Why did you agree to that?” 

“Because I didn’t realize how I would feel at the end,” you said. “Lil, I had a-a whirlwind romance, one of those kinds you only read about. I love him and he loves me, but that’s over now. We were only meant to work in Italy, and I’m okay with that.” 

“Your voice is all shaky,” Lily noted. “You don’t seem okay with it.” 

You sighed, and your throat tightened as your tears fell. “I’m coming home,” you whispered. 

“What?” Lily asked. “Your flight doesn’t leave until Sunday night.” 

“I’m coming home now,” you said. “I can’t be here without him. I’ll cancel that flight and get the next flight back to London.” 

“If that’s what you want,” Lily whispered. “Pop ‘round my place when you get back, I need to hear all about your guy.” 

The weeks passed slowly. After coming home from Italy, nothing seemed right anymore. Your flat was sad too, not even having been touched by Joe’s presence and still feeling the effects of his withdrawal. Your plants were wilting, your bed was too hard, everything was skewed and wrong. Where you used to be content going to work and coming home and watching TV, you suddenly found yourself searching for more. 

You started going to coffee shops after work, sitting and reading and trying to enjoy the bustle of people and tourists around you. You had gotten a copy of Joe’s favorite book and tried to read the poetry, but every word made you think of him. Everything reminded you of him. You couldn’t believe that you had been so stupid as to send him away home without so much as getting a picture for yourself. Even three weeks out, already, the image of him in your mind was beginning to fade— everything but his eyes. 

You tried to enjoy yourself more, the way Joe would have wanted you to. You dressed up with Lily and went to girl’s night and you went to nightclubs, but none of it was the same. You remembered in Italy, how, one night, Joe had taken you back to the nightclub where you met and danced with you. He was an awful dancer and it had made you laugh endlessly, though you weren’t much better, but you had found your rhythm with his arms around you, swaying to the music. That night had ended with room service ravioli and cigarettes on his balcony, wrapped in bedsheets and trying to keep quiet as he knelt down and ate your cunt, and you frowned as you remembered it. There was nobody like your Joe. 

Somehow, you resisted the urge to look for him. You hadn’t told Lily his name so that she couldn’t do it either, but you remembered it: Joseph Anthony Francis Quinn. Every day, you wanted to Google that and see what would come up, but you never did, and you were thankful that you didn’t. Even if you found him, there was nothing that said that he would want to see you. Even though he had said that he loved you, that meant nothing. He easily could have had a million reasons why he didn’t want to expand your relationship past Italy. Maybe he didn’t want to fool with long-distance either. Maybe he even had a girlfriend waiting for him at home. There was no telling why he had made that rule, and, even though you tried to pretend that it was blasé and you didn’t care, you cared immensely. 

You held your chin in your hand as you gazed out the window of the coffee shop, watching the London afternoon go by. It was rainy, and umbrellas passed by every second, but your eyes went past them, unfocused as you thought. The next day was a deadline, and you weren’t quite finished with your load of work yet, but you knew that you could finish it tomorrow before noon, before that deadline, but you still sat and worried about it. You chewed on your thumbnail and played with a bit of skin on your lip, and you watched as a man in a suit walked by. 

You saw plenty of men in suits in London, but this one was different. The suit was a sort of warm beige-brown color, and his pants didn’t fit quite right, a little too long and brushing the rain-slick pavement. He wore a white shirt underneath, unbuttoned two buttons down, silver chain on his freckled neck. He had his phone in his hand, looking down as his wired headphones jumped and clacked with each step, and he finally stopped and looked up at the sign of the coffee shop. 

Your heart stopped in your chest, and you jumped in shock. Joe. There was no way. It was impossible. Joe could not be standing in front of you right now. How did the universe orchestrate this? His hair was styled now, pushed back off of his forehead with product, golden-brown curls that you couldn’t help but adore, and his eyes scanned the sign before dropping back down to look through the window. It took him a moment, but those dark eyes found you, and he stood still, his chest heaving as you locked eyes. Slowly, he tugged his other earbud out and held them in his fist, and he gave you a gentle little wave. 

You shot out of your seat and gathered up your bag, and you hurried out to meet him. The world flew by you, and your chest tightened as you stepped out into the drizzle and into Joseph’s warm arms, mashing your face into his neck. He smelled good, like expensive cologne, and you laughed as Joe held you tightly, rocking back and forth with the might of his embrace. “How…?” you started, your voice cracking, and you pressed your cheek harder into his skin, clawing at his back to get him closer. “How did you—“ 

“I couldn’t help myself,” Joe told you. “I went into my data carrier’s call log and found your number, and I Googled it, and I found you. I really just did it so I could see your face again, I really didn’t intend to come find you, but then I found your Instagram, and I saw your post about this place, and-and this cafe really isn’t that far from my flat, and I thought maybe being near you would be enough, and—” 

“I can’t believe it’s you,” you whimpered. “Joe!” 

“Are you mad?” Joe asked, his lips touching your ear. 

“No,” you told him. “So, wait, you mean to tell me that you’re from London? You’ve been right under my nose this whole time?” 

“Born and raised,” Joe chuckled. He pulled out of the embrace, smoothing his hand across his hair, and he said, “I could hardly believe my luck when I saw that you lived here too. I mean, London is huge, but also incredibly small, I can’t believe we haven’t run into each other before— Whatever. Do you… Erm… Did you keep up your end of the bargain?” 

You nodded. “And I really wanted to Google you too,” you whined. “My friend wanted me to so badly, she wanted to find your LinkedIn profile or whatever.” 

“So, you have no idea who I am?” Joe asked. 

“And I don’t care who you are,” you told him. “You could be the King of England, and you’d still be my sweet boy.”

Joe chuckled. “You might want to sit down,” he said nervously. 

“You’re not royalty, are you?” you asked. Without a thought, you sat down at one of the little wire tables, drenched in rain water, and Joe knelt down next to you, taking your hand into his. “Because I don’t think that I can handle being, like, a prince’s consort or whatever.” 

“I’m not royalty,” Joe chuckled softly. “I… If I just tell you, you’ll never believe me. Google my name.” 

Slowly, you pulled out your phone and did as he asked you. You couldn’t even begin to type his last name before it was autofilled for you, and you looked at him with wide eyes before you clicked on it with a shaking finger. 

Articles. Interviews. Pictures of him on red carpets. Modeling campaigns. Dior. Valentino. GQ Man of the Year. Netflix. HBO. Your head began to swim, and you set your phone down. “Okay,” you started. “So, you’re, like, super famous.” 

“To my chagrin,” Joe joked softly, although you got the impression that it wasn’t much of a joke. “But you see why I didn’t want you to know.” 

“Yeah, I get it,” you said hazily. 

“I’m lucky that no fans wanted a picture when we were out together,” Joe said softly. “That would have ruined my whole anonymity thing.” 

“Why did you hide that?” you asked. “This is— Joseph. This is a huge thing to keep secret. Why didn’t you just tell me?” 

“You remember my ex?” Joe asked. “The one I told you about, the one who used me? I needed to be sure that you wouldn’t do the same, and you proved to me that that sort of thing doesn’t matter to you. You’re not superficial or shallow, you don’t care about fame or status, you liked me for me. You were happy with regular old Joe, and I don’t get people like that anymore. You were— you are— a breath of fresh air, and I wanted to keep breathing you. So, you can leave me be, if you want, you can turn away from all of that and keep living the life that you have. I wouldn’t blame you, I wish I still had this sort of life, but… Darling, I’ve been suffering without you. Life just isn’t the same. I come home from set, and I imagine what it would be like to come home to you, and I… Fuck. I want you so bad, but it’s your decision to make.”

It certainly was a big decision. But you knew your answer. You had known it since the moment you met Joe, all those weeks ago, in that nightclub in Livorno. You tugged Joe close to you and kissed him, tasting cigarettes on his lips. Italy Joe was no more— now, he was just Joe. “We can make it work,” you told him. “I’ll do whatever it takes to make it work.” 

“Good,” Joe smiled. “Cool. Awesome. Erm, do you— Would you like to come—”

“If you’re asking me to come home with you, the answer is yes,” you chuckled. “A million times yes.”

Joe smiled, the sort of smile only movie stars could give, and he stood up, taking your hand in his. “I’m just glad you’re not mad at me,” he said. “I thought you’d be upset about me breaking our rule.”

“We’re about to break all of our rules,” you smiled, and Joe grinned at the insinuation. “I’m not mad at all. I’m just relieved that I wasn’t the one who did it first.” 

Joe pulled you into his body as he laughed, and you hugged him tightly, your heart opening up inside your chest. Joe. Your Joe was here, and he wasn’t going to leave. “I love you,” you told him, and Joe kissed you hard, his hands sliding down your body and grabbing your hips, tugging you up on him. It reminded you of your first kiss on the beach, and Joe couldn’t help his smile as he broke the kiss and pressed his forehead against yours. 

“I love you too,” Joe whispered. “I really do.” 

“You know this means that we can, like, vacation exclusively in Italy now, right?” you laughed, and Joe did his laugh that you loved, the hearty chuckle from his chest. 

“Of course,” Joe said. “I’d want nothing else.”

-

taglist: @wordscomehither @aol19 @sadbitchfangirl @cluelesslilsharkie @emma77645 @zestychili @aysheashea @ali-r3n @ace-harrington

[plotting-against-you]

My Own Worst Enemy

Fandom: One Chicago

Characters: Halstead Sister Reader, Jay Halstead, Will Halstead, Dr. Charles, Ethan Choi, Maggie Lockwood

Summary: You have a relapse in your anorexia, and no one knows until you show up at Med.

Warnings: Eating Disorders (i.e., anorexia) and their symptoms and habits.

Author's Note: I know nothing about anorexia, so I had to google it. If this comes off in any way incorrect, please know that I'm sorry. Also, if you ever find yourself in this situation, please seek help...I know it's hard, but we want you safe and healthy.

It started with a harmless comment. That’s what anyone would have thought, though you knew it wasn’t harmless. Not to you at least.

You had just gotten a full-time job at your local library, which seemed heaven-sent. You’d always loved being around books, so it all seemed to click when you found this job online.

Then the comment came.

You were eating during your allotted thirty-minute lunch break in the staff break room a week after starting when two women walked in from another department. You hadn’t met them yet but cringed when you saw their figures.

You hadn’t had the easiest time growing up. You were constantly picked on and developed an eating disorder at sixteen. Coincidentally, that was when your mom got sick, so you hid your illness in an attempt to keep the focus on her. It worked…until it didn’t.

You’d landed in the hospital where they diagnosed you with anorexia, and you’d had to work extra hard to come back from it ever since.

Seeing the women and their “perfect” figures didn’t make you recoil as it once would have, but their comments did.

“Girl, you brought a whole package of turkey to work? How many sandwiches are you planning on making?”

The other woman shrugged. “Don’t make fun of me! I like my turkey sandwiches, okay? Besides, you know I could eat a whole horse and not gain a pound.”

You looked down at the leftover beef stew in front of you and slowly laid down your fork. You had been having a stressful time recently with the new job, and your already fragile psyche took the hit as if it were a personal attack on you.

Boxing up what was left of the dinner you’d had at Jay and Hailey’s the night before, you tossed it in the garbage and grabbed a water.

“This is all I need today.” You told yourself. “I’ll do better tomorrow.”

…

You hadn’t done better tomorrow.

In fact, it had been weeks since you had started up your old habits. Luckily for you, it was easy to hide the signs from your family since it was just Jay and Will, and they’d both been working weird hours, making it impossible to see each other.

You had just gotten home from your day at work, having had nothing more than a bottle of water for lunch, and leaned against the couch in exhaustion. Though you grew increasingly tired every day, you found it hard to sleep at night.

You knew that was a symptom of the disease that had come back in full force, but you refused to accept it.

Dropping your bag, it made a thud on the floor, and you blinked your eyes a few times to clear them of the dots that danced in your vision. You were dizzy, but you refused to call your brothers for help.

Just as the thought entered your mind, your phone rang, and everything went dark as you reached to answer it.

…

You woke up on the floor behind your couch, your head pounding, your stomach growling, and your phone still ringing.

Reaching out an arm to search for your phone, you pulled it to your ear and scrunched your face in annoyance. “Hello?”

There was a pause. “Thank fuck.”

You continued to lie on the floor but opened your eyes in confusion. “Excuse me?”

“I’ve called you like twelve times.” Jay’s voice said on the other line. “I thought maybe you had been hurt or something.”

“I was napping.” You lied, though you figured it was close to the truth. “It’s been a long day.”

Jay snorted. “You work at a library. How hard can that be?”

“You’d be surprised.”

He ignored you. “Well, did you forget that you were supposed to meet Will and I at Molly’s for a drink tonight?”

“Shit. That was tonight?” Between focusing on work and spending your free time counting your calories, you’d forgotten about the invitation from your brothers. “I’m sorry. I’m exhausted.”

“Are you sure nothing’s wrong?” Jay’s voice sounded concerned.

“I’m fine, honest. Just tired. Rain check?” You ignored the fact that you were still lying on the ground.

Jay sighed, disappointment filling his tone. “Okay. We’ll do it another night.”

“Thanks, Jay.” You told him as you hung up.

Then you lay on the floor, resting a hand on your aching stomach. It had been some time since you’d put anything other than water and some nuts into it but couldn’t bring yourself to care.

You would soon be at your ideal weight, and everything would return to normal.

…

You nearly screamed when you brushed your hair the following day and found a large chunk of it tangled in the brush. Your hair started falling out again, as it had when you were younger, and you sighed.

You knew you needed help, but you didn’t want any. You liked this control, and you liked having this ideal image in your head.

Ignoring the anxious pit in your stomach, you continued to get ready for work and left your apartment. Everything would be fine, you told yourself.

And it was…until midday.

You had been in the stacks trying to locate a book for a patron when the dizziness set in. Blinking it away, you reached for the top shelf when the world tilted on its axis, and you were suddenly lying on the ground staring up at the ceiling.

People were around you immediately, but everything sounded like a train flying past your ears. Sitting up, you waved everyone off but let your director pull you into the first aid room.

He grabbed a bottle of water and had you sit while he pulled out your emergency contact information. “You’re okay, Y/N. I’m going to call your emergency contact to pick you up and get you checked out.”

Groaning, you tried to stop him. “It’s okay, really. My brother is a doctor. I’ll just get him to check me out after my shift.”

The last thing you needed was for him to call Jay, your first emergency contact, or Will, your secondary contact. They would freak out, and you didn’t want them to know anything about this.

“Y/N, you collapsed. That’s not something we play around with here.” Your boss told you.

You shook your head and went to stand when the world went black again, and you crumpled to the ground.

…

“Dr. Choi! We’ve got incoming.” Maggie yelled to the physician and turned to the ambulance bay as the doors opened.

“What do we got?” He asked, running over and meeting the eyes of the paramedic.

“Thirty-year-old female collapsed at work twice. Lost consciousness on the second fall. Severely malnourished and dehydrated. BP is low, and so is her blood sugar.”

Looking down at you, Ethan sighed. He knew what this probably meant and knew your brothers would be worried. “Mags, keep them out of my treatment room until after I’ve finished.”

“You got it.” She told him and looked at you worriedly.

As they transferred you to a hospital gurney, Ethan shined his pen light into your eyes. “Y/N? Can you hear me?”

Your face contorted in disgust, trying to escape the light as you nodded. “Hmm…yeah.”

“Can you open your eyes for me?”

“If you stop shining a light in them….” You muttered but instantly felt terrible. “I’m sorry….”

Ethan shook his head. “You’ve got nothing to be sorry for, Y/N.”

He rattled off a bunch of tests to the nurse before you bit your lip. “I’m screwed, aren’t I?”

He sighed. “Y/N…you know how this looks. You can either let me run a bunch of unnecessary tests, or you can let me call Dr. Charles, and we can get this over with sooner.”

“What about my brothers?” You asked meekly.

“I can keep them out until after you talk to Dr. Charles if you want?” He suggested though he knew he’d have a battle on his hands.

You nodded. “Please.”

“Okay. I’ll have Maggie page Dr. Charles, and we’ll go from there.”

…

While he usually walked into work at a leisurely pace, Will found himself rushing inside to meet his brother. “What happened?”

Jay shrugged. “I don’t know, man. Her boss called and said she’d passed out twice at work today, but when I got here, Maggie and Ethan told me I had to wait out here.”

Turning to look at the nurse, Will’s eyes held fury before Ethan stepped in. “Will, she asked for some time. Dr. Charles is in with her right now, and then you can go in.”

“Dr. Charles?” Jay asked him. “But why would-”

The thought dawned on both brothers simultaneously, and they looked sadly at each other. It had been nearly fifteen years since they had dealt with this, but it looked like your worst enemy was back and swinging.

The door opened, and Dr. Charles walked out of the treatment room. “Boys. You can go in now.”

Jay took off the second the words came out, but Will stayed back, looking at his colleague in fear and anguish.

“Is it…it’s back, isn’t it?” The redhead asked him.

The seasoned doctor sighed. “She’s permitted me to tell you this, so yes…her anorexia is apparent again. She said she’s been dealing with it for a few weeks now.”

The eldest Halstead looked towards your room and sighed. “I wish we’d known. It’s the same thing that happened before, you know? We didn’t know until she ended up in the hospital.”

“This can be a tough thing.” Dr, Charles told him. “But you know as well as I do that recovery is possible, and you had to know that a relapse could happen.”

Will nodded. “Yeah, I just thought we were in the clear.”

“Well, I can tell you that we came up with a therapy plan and scheduled a meeting with a nutritionist. I can also tell you that your sister is very strong but very scared of what you might be feeling, so please…go in and see her.”

Nodding almost robotically, Will moved over to your room and sighed as he took in your appearance. “Hey, kid.”

You raised your tear-filled eyes to him but kept your grip on Jay’s hand. “I’m so sorry.”

Will moved forward instantly and came to your side, brushing the bangs out of your face. “You have nothing to apologize for, Y/N/N.”

“What happened?” Jay asked quietly.

You bit your lip. “I’ve been really stressed lately, and then someone made a comment at work…it just slid away from there. I didn’t mean for it to get this bad.”

“When I called you last night, and you said you’d been napping?”

You looked at Jay sadly. “I had passed out in my apartment and didn’t want to tell you.”

“Y/N…you can’t be doing this to yourself,” Will told you. “I know you’ve started on a plan with Dr. Charles, but will you let us help you, too?”

You nodded slowly. “Please. I need help.”

“And you’re going to get it,” Will promised his little sister.

Jay sighed. “Listen, I think you should move in with Hailey and I…at least for a little while. It might be easier to handle if you have support around you.”

You snorted. “You just don’t want me home alone in case I relapse again.”

He looked at you sadly. “Can you blame me?”

You shook your head. “No…no, I can’t. And I will take you up on that offer so long as Hailey’s okay with it.”

“She will be. You know she loves you.” Jay smiled, though it was strained. “You know we love you, too, right?”

You nodded. “Yeah. I love you both right back.”