#ortega trash

[mikavlcs]

Dog Days

Pairing: Wednesday Addams x reader

Summary: The help you need to confess to your crush winds up coming from an incredibly unlikely (and furry) source.

Warnings: ooc!wednesday, hints of bad poetry lol, bad writing, this is another very unserious story

Word count: 3.3k

Notes: the poetry part of this request kicked my ass and you can tell LMFAO. sorry it took so long (and sorry it kinda sucks), but i hope you guys enjoy!

Masterlist | Bonus

Confessing your feelings to someone you like was one of the most profound plights a person could ever face, you’ve decided.

Because to you, right now, there was no greater challenge to overcome, no finer show of courage than to look her in the eye and profess the nebulous depths of your infatuation without keeling over midsentence.

And this anxiety would be easier to conquer if the girl you had caught feelings for was a normie, or really any other outcast housed within Nevermore’s four walls.

But your crush was Wednesday Addams, and that more than justified the intense fear that came with the possibility of confessing.

For the past semester, Wednesday had been assigned to sit at your table in Botany, meaning that you two were almost always lab and project partners in that class. Throughout that time, she wasn’t exactly nice to you, but you’ve yet to be on the receiving end of her notoriously colorful threats, so you figured that put you somewhere friend-adjacent on the small girl’s relationship scale.

That made trying to confess to her no easier, however. Because she could literally just kill you if she decided it wasn’t good enough. If she decided you weren’t good enough.

You hoped knew she wouldn’t considering your short but cordial history, but she technically could.

Now despite her reputation (and the previously outlined possibility of murder), Wednesday never scared you. She certainly tried. You’d lost count of how many grisly medieval torture facts she offered up while working together, but they never had the intended effect of instilling fear into you. Not even once. The absurdity of it made you laugh more often than not.

But, while she didn’t scare you, she did intimidate you. Even now, months and a fully developed crush later, she could render you speechless with a single look.

That immediately did away with the possibility of a verbal confession since you were sure your vocal cords would cease operation before you could even properly start, leaving you staring at her like an idiot. So you were left to figure out another way. And after days of careful deliberation, you decided upon the vessel with which you would confess your feelings.

A poem.

Yes, it was stupid and cliché, but it was something you were familiar with, and you figured Wednesday might have at least some appreciation for it considering she herself was an aspiring writer. But very soon, you came face to face with a problem.

Wednesday herself constantly strived for perfection in every facet of life, so you knew that if anyone were to attempt to court her, she would be expecting no less from them as well.

Everything about this poem—diction, rhythm, rhyme, form—had to be superlative, efficient while effectively flawless.

It needed to be perfect and you just…couldn’t get it there.

Attempt after attempt wound up in your garbage, the papers overflowing out of the small pail by your desk while your hope slowly diminished with each failure. After the 27th trashed page, you knew you needed to stop and recoup.

This approach obviously wasn’t working, so you had to find a different one and to do that, you needed incentive. You needed inspiration. You needed the creative ascension that came with reading good, fresh poetry.

The only issue was that all of your poetry collections were well-worn, memorized from cover to cover. Though you could never tire of them, you knew they wouldn’t provide the spark of creativity you needed.

So you took a trip to the small bookstore in Jericho since the school library had very little in the way of poetry and picked up a few that caught your eye.

You were on your way to catch the shuttle back when you heard it.

A high-pitched yip rose from the alley you had just walked past, making you pause. Curious (and without much else to do), you stepped back to peer into the alley, and you let out a gasp.

Just down the alleyway was a small puppy, covered head to toe in gorgeous gold fur. A golden retriever, your mind helpfully supplied. He didn’t notice you, entirely too preoccupied tearing up an old newspaper to care about your gawking, but you were entranced.

And without your usual forms of impulse control (your teachers and parents) there with you, your mind was made up in an instant.

A twenty-minute trip to the local pet store saw you ready to leave town a few hundred dollars lighter and many bags heavier. You got all the essentials—food, toys, a collar and a leash, a bed, bowls, and whatnot.

All that was left was getting the dog.

Quietly approaching, you set your bags down against the mouth of the alleyway and crept closer to the puppy, careful not to startle him as he stalked a bug of some sort. Once you were within a few feet, you crouched and tore open one of the treat bags you bought. The noise got the retriever’s attention, and he stopped his pursuit to watch you, intrigued.

A soft smile made its way onto your face while you fished a treat out and held it out. It took no time at all for the pup to curiously trot over. He sniffed it for a moment, thoroughly inspecting the cookie before devouring it and looking back up at you expectantly, tail wagging furiously in the air behind him.

With a laugh, you offered him another one, then another, and another. And just like that, a friendship was formed.

The driver barely gave you a second glance when you waltzed into the shuttle with your bags and the dog, just waited for you to be seated and pulled off onto the main road. Definitely not protocol, but you imagined he wasn’t being paid nearly enough to care.

When Nevermore’s castle-like features came into view ten minutes later, you realized with a jolt that there was one thing you hadn’t accounted for: actually trying to smuggle this puppy into the school.

Given that the shuttle was already parked, you had no time for strategy. As you stepped back onto campus, your only plan was to make a mad dash for your dorm. And, after tucking the puppy inside your shirt, that’s exactly what you did. Or tried to do. You only got halfway through your journey when Yoko intercepted you in one of the halls.

“Hey! I see someone went shopping today,” she commented, giving the plethora of bags you were holding a humorous look. “Preparing for a zombie outbreak or something?”

“Something like that,” you answered, taking a step around her, but she moved with you and started matching your hurried strides.

“So, you ready for that Vampire Anatomy test tomorrow? Personally, I think I’m gonna ace it,” she smiled, fangs flashing in the overhead light. You shot her a look, because, of course, a vampire would ace that test.

You opened your mouth, a scathing retort on the tip of your tongue, but the pup chose that moment to show his restlessness, flailing his little limbs violently under the fabric of your shirt.

“Uh,” Yoko slowed at your side, brows drawn above her sunglasses. She pointed at your stomach, where the puppy was violently squirming. “What’s going on there?”

You glanced away, mouth opening and closing. Hard as you tried to come up with a plausible excuse, none came, so you said the first thing that came to mind.

“I’m pregnant.”

Poor Yoko looked positively baffled. You ran before she could say anything else.

The sprint back to your dorm was blessedly uneventful, allowing you to stumble inside with minimal issue. Thankfully, your roommate was out, so you wouldn’t need to deal with any more questions for the time being. You set the puppy down on the floor, letting him explore his new surroundings while you set his things up.

Once his bed, bowls, and toys were in place, your attention turned to another pressing issue. The pup needed a name.

Dozens of names crossed your mind in the minutes that followed, but none of them fit the energetic boy in front of you. Pondering, you watched leisurely as the retriever dragged his new leash across the floor. The sunlight pouring through the window softly bounced off his golden fur while he pranced around your room, leash still securely in his mouth.

A metaphorical light bulb clicked on and in that moment, you gave him the most beautiful, poetic name your mind graced you with.

-

“Choklit!”

The puppy in question froze and looked up at you, short tail wagging dutifully. He was already giving you his best puppy dog eyes, but you knew better than to fall for them. You moved to stand in front of him, hands on your hips.

“We’ve talked about this. Edgar Allen Poe’s collected works are not a chew toy!” You moved the book away from him, held up a blue squeaky toy in its place. “This is what you play with, got it?”

He offered you a yip in response, tail wagging a mile a minute as you handed him the bone-shaped toy. “And remember, play lightly!” you tagged on as he tumbled off his bed.

Principal Weems hesitantly allowed you to keep the puppy on the agreement that your roommate agreed to him (which she did, ecstatically) and that he not be too loud in the room. By some miracle of god, you had been able to abide by that rule for the past two weeks.

Hopefully, your luck would persist.

With him placated, you turned back to the task at hand—finishing your poem. It was coming together, a solid vision of your end goal forming. And after another ten minutes of brainstorming the last line—a woefully overdramatic would you go on a date with me? that hopefully wouldn’t get you killed in your sleep—it was finished.

You pushed back against your desk and leaned your head against the back of your chair, taking a moment to rest. Then, sitting back up, you reread the poem carefully.

A wave of inadequacy crashed into you as you ran back through the words you just wrote. Something about it just wasn’t right, but you couldn’t pinpoint exactly what.

Was the rhythm off? Were the rhymes varied enough? Outside of that, was your prose structured competently? Was the poem too much? Was it not enough? Five rereads only heeded more questions and no answers.

Frustrated, you balled the paper up and threw it behind you, already priming another paper to begin the poem anew.

The telltale pattering of paws reached your ears, turning to find Choklit nosing at the crumbled paper. With a sigh, you walked over and went to pick it up. “Sorry, bud, but my personal failures as a poet are not your toys.”

Choklit, thinking it was a game, quickly snatched the ball up in his mouth and bowed, sending light growls your way. Though you knew it wouldn’t help, you raised your hands in surrender and leaned back.

“I’m not trying to play. I just need that—” You tried to swipe it from his mouth, but he bounced backward and rushed toward the door.

At that exact moment, your roommate returned from choir practice, opening the door just in time for Choklit to run out with the paper in tow. You scrambled to your feet, edging past her into the mostly empty hallway.

“Sorry!” she yelled after you, to which you just waved.

“It’s fine! I got him,” you threw back at her just before you turned a corner in pursuit of the retriever.

You had to admit, the little guy was fast. Faster than you thought he would be (or maybe you just needed to exercise more…who knew). Bewildered students parted for you as you gave chase, giving them a quick thank you! as you kept your eyes on the golden blur ahead.

He toppled down another hallway, one you knew led to a dead end. You grinned and picked up the pace, intent on scooping him up, only to skid to a sudden stop after you turned the corner.

Because there Choklit was, sniffing around at familiar black boots while pale hands smoothed out the paper the puppy dropped before her. You were frozen, trying to figure out whether this was real or some terrible lucid dream.

Wednesday’s cold timbre inadvertently answered your question.

“I didn’t think they allowed dogs on campus,” the girl remarked, giving the puppy at her feet an inquisitive look. Your response came without thinking.

“You live with a werewolf, don’t you?” Your eyes widened. The comment was meant as a joke but could easily be interpreted as an insult. And knowing how close the two had gotten over the past few months, the last thing you wanted to do was accidentally mock Enid.

You watched Wednesday closely, but the only physical response you received was the slightest raise of her brows.

“That was almost funny.” Her words were delivered with her trademark deadpan stare, but you could hear the slightest hint of humor threaded into her neutral tone. Looking for attention, Choklit stood on his hind legs and pawed at Wednesday’s shin, giving her a clear view of the tag on his collar. The disapproval in her voice was clear as day. “You named it…Choklit?”

You gave a half-hearted shrug, pulling out a grin full of confidence you absolutely did not feel. “Can’t be a literary genius all the time.”

“I’m sure,” she retorted sarcastically, holding your unsure gaze for another moment before turning back to the paper in her hand. You followed her eyes and stepped forward with a grimace.

“Sorry, that’s… you weren’t supposed to see that.” You tried to take the paper, but Wednesday stepped back, moving the paper out of your reach.

“It’s addressed to me.”

“That it is,” you conceded with a sigh, “but it was never intended to actually be delivered to you.”

Wednesday hummed. “Well, it seems your dog disagrees.” With that, she turned her attention to the poem. You were tempted to try and take it again, but you liked having your hand attached to your body, so you resisted.

Impatiently, you waited as her eyes ran along the lines slowly, your anxiousness building with every passing moment of excruciating silence until finally, she met your gaze once more.

“A few things to note,” she began, tone much too studious for the occasion. “I applaud the fact that you made the decision not to write a sonnet. They’re easily the most overblown, abominable form of poetry and I would have had to burn this if it was.”

She gave you a small nod. “Now, I will say that I’m a bit disappointed. This certainly could have been written in perfect rhyme rather than end rhyme, but since you said this wasn’t your final draft, I’m willing to give you a pass for this oversight. Mostly. And while AABB isn’t the most complex rhyme scheme, it’s just tolerable enough here to not detract from the poem as a whole.”

You gaped. She was making the same type of comments that your teachers would when they graded your assignments. If you didn’t know any better, you’d think she was reading off the notes from a book report and not talking about a literal love confession.

The ridiculousness of the situation pulled a wry laugh from your throat, but you were quickly silenced with a harsh glare. Once you quieted, she continued, “The biggest problem I see is that this poem is lacking in length, having only a measly 12 lines. A few more couplets would have made this feel more complete.”

“Now onto the poem itself. Though your vernacular pales in comparison to mine, I will admit that your vocabulary is surprisingly expansive considering what you named your pet.” She sent Choklit a pointed look. “Furthermore, I appreciate the use of alliteration in lines like ‘A mind molded by misery and mischief’ and ‘Down into the dark depths of a dreadfully early grave’ but feel it could’ve been utilized more throughout. The mixture of masculine and feminine rhyme is interesting, though choosing one could have aided with overall cohesion.”

You just stood and stared, silently taking in her thoughts and critiques because it was all you could do. She paused, folded the paper neatly in her hand, but still didn’t give it back to you.

“In conclusion, parts of this are noticeably undercooked, but the simple act of reading it doesn’t make me want to purge my insides. I acknowledge the effort you put forth to tailor this poem to me and my interests and will admit that being described as ‘the purest of darkness personified’ is almost flattering.”

A nervous chuckle escaped before you could quell it, but this time she allowed it, her stare remaining blank. You cleared your throat, injected some joviality into your tone. “Great, so uh…do I get an A+?”

“B-, actually,” she amended, running over the folded page with her eyes. “Maybe even a C+.”

At that point, you swore you could feel the humiliation seeping into the very essence of your being. But you were determined not to let it show, to preserve what tiny amount of dignity you had left.

“Okay, well, I’m just gonna take that back and then go vanish off the face of the Earth so we never have to see each other again.” You gave her a pained smile and reached for the paper, only for her to snatch it out of your reach with a glare.

She glanced down to Choklit, who was seemingly enjoying the drama as his eyes ping-ponged between you two, then to the paper again. Another long moment passed before she looked back at you.

“I never said no.”

You blinked a few times, confused. “What?”

“The proposition outlined at the end of the poem,” she clarified, “I never said no.”

“You…” you began to repeat but trailed off as the realization of what she was implying really began to sink in. “Wait, I—you…you can’t possibly mean…”

Growing visibly impatient, Wednesday cut off your verbal meltdown. “Meet me outside the school gates after light’s out this Saturday. I get to pick the activity.”

The unsettling smile she gave you felt like a bad omen, but you couldn’t care less, still fighting off the incredulity clouding your mind. You opened your mouth to respond but when no words came, you settled for a hurried nod.

“Good,” Wednesday peered out the window momentarily. “Now, I must be going. Eugene is expecting me. I will see you Saturday and if you’re late then you’ll be the next autopsy I perform.”

Carefully, she stepped around your puppy and walked off without another word, leaving you to ponder what the hell just happened.

“Oh my god,” you whispered to no one in particular. Again, louder this time, “Oh my god!” At the sound of your excitement, Choklit came scampering over and you bent down to meet him. He stood on his hind legs, bracing his front paws on your knee. “Did you hear that, boy? The poem actually worked!”

He gave you a yip in return, tiny tail a blur behind him. You rubbed your hand along his back, chuckling at the fervent licks your hands received in return.

Only after a student skirted past you both did you realize that you were still in the middle of a hall. You promptly scooped Choklit up with both hands and cradled him by your chest, looking down at him as you began your way back to your dorm.

“Come on, let’s go get some treats. I owe you big time, buddy.”

[ianthedebonair]

Old(er) man Damien, maybe? (assuming he doesn't get anymore banged up or telepathically go nuclear at the end 🤷‍♂️)

[romancedream]

There is just no correct way to be a man anymore...

He was damned no Metter what he did...

The only thing I didn't see coming was @netflix dropping him from the show... 😡

Convicting him of crimes he never committed.

All of his problems could have been solved if he kept his job.

Instaid, they had to give all the losers on the internet the power to destroy his life 😡

[cigarettesandinevitablebetrayal]

Okay! This is the second piece that I'm tossing out. This one took me a long time to let go of because I really liked a lot of the writing of this one. Unfortunately, the tweaking I'd need to do to save it would absolutely shred it, so it's time I let it go.

This is Built on Lies, a rewrite of the self crash scene from Ortega's perspective involving my Sidestep Rashad Basri. This was written immediately after their first run through Retribution when they were closer to Canon characterization Sidestep and when they went to HG themself (because it was my first run. Of course I was going to see HG). It also plays around with the idea that, while Ortega can't have their mind influenced or manipulated by telepathy, that it didn't mean they weren't psi-sensitive. This has since been shot to hell (/lovingly and teasingly said) by the Rydén himself, hence another reason I just have to let this one go.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy. I really liked working on this one. Happy reading!

The silence is insufferable. Ricardo doesn't generally like the quiet. He usually finds any excuse to fill it, with idle chatter or flirting or gentle ribbing, anything really. The silences with Rashad are different. He doesn't feel the need to fill up the space between them. Rashad may be unable to read Ricardo's mind, but that resulted in Rashad dropping their mental shields around Ricardo which, in result, means they accidentally projects their thoughts and emotions out and around them.

Ricardo has never mentioned this. He's too worried that if he does, those walls will slam right back up. And he'd miss the heady mix of desire, nostalgia, fondness, and nervousness that radiates off Rashad's mind like the steady waves of the ocean. Rashad's anxiety feels different this time. It chafes against Ricardo's mind as if they don't fit together here. Not now. Not after what Ricardo had seen.

They sit in the front seats of a stolen car - a car Ricardo watched Rashad steal not five minutes ago. Hollow Ground’s haunt is still within view. Rashad is wearing a fine pressed suit that Ricardo has never seen. He would have never guessed Rashad even owned a suit. Everything about the situation makes Ricardo’s stomach twist in unpleasant knots. Nothing feels like it’s as it should be.

"So…" The word hangs between them like a guillotine blade, just waiting to see whose neck it severs first. Ricardo stares at Rashad. His love. His friend. His family. The glare of the Los Diablos sunset pierces through the windshield, painting Rashad's dark skin in warmth. It makes their eyes turn from near black to molten gold. Ricardo wants nothing more than for Rashad to look his way. To say something, anything.

Rashad, as is their wont, says nothing. They stare straight ahead, ignoring Ricardo altogether, their lips pressed into a harsh line. They're driving faster than the speed limit is set, their gaze jumping to the rearview mirror every couple seconds, but with Ricardo in the car they're not likely to be pulled over.

"Talk to me." The words come out of Ricardo's mouth harsher than he intended. He's tired of begging Rashad for every inch. He's tired of pretending to be in the dark. Tired of pretending to simply take every one of Rashad's idiosyncrasies in stride. "You just stole a car. I'd hate to think you did that for no reason."

Rashad hunches their shoulders, their knuckles paling on the steering wheel. "I thought I was being followed, alright? I couldn't tell it was you." They shoot Ricardo a sharp look. "Besides, the driver was drunk. I did him a favor."

Ricardo grits his teeth. There's a vice on his heart and with every word it tightens. Maybe it will be crushed beneath the weight of what's between them. He hopes not. "Why were you in Hollow Ground's club?"

Something hardens in Rashad's dark eyes, but something else begins to crack. This mask won't hold for long, so Ricardo presses harder. "I need to know."

Rashad's irritation is just as predictable as their silence. They switch strategies like clockwork - dancing the same dance they always have. "What were you doing spying on me?"

"I won't let you make this into an argument," he says softly. He means it. He'll press, but he won't fight. "Not this time."

"So I see." Back to silence. Ricardo's never seen what happens if he doesn't give in to the fight. If he keeps needling, will Rashad open up or shut down. He prays it's the former.

"Look." Ricardo sighs deeply. No other way but forward. "I didn't want it to come to this. I had hoped you'd trust me with the truth, but-" 

"But what?" Frustration again. Without Ricardo giving in, Rashad’s tactics seem to be stuck in a loop like a broken record.

“I know it must be hard on you.” Ricardo tries to keep his voice soft, consoling. He honestly doesn’t know what he’d do if he was in Rashad’s place. He can’t imagine what it would feel like to be torn between his family and his partner. “I just need to know if you’re on my side.”

There’s a flash of fear in Rashad’s expression before they school it back into ambivalence. Their voice still shakes when they say, “Why wouldn’t I be?”

Ricardo sighs again, but it’s more in relief than anything. This admission is, at least, a reassurance. He stills wants Rashad to say it out loud. “You know why.”

The stiffness that settles in Rashad’s jaw only lasts a few seconds before everything slips out of place. Their posturing and mask fall away like pieces of jagged glass from a broken window. They look more tired than they've ever seemed before, but also there’s a hint of relief there. “You’re right.” They take a long, slow breath in. “I should have trusted you with this long before now.”

“Finally.” It takes all of Ricardo’s self control to bite back the sharp laugh at the back of his throat. “I was starting to think you’d never tell me.”

“It’s not an easy thing to confess, even when you know.” Their warm voice is soft, hesitant. There’s so much grief weighing down his words. “I should have known you’d find out I’m Heartbreak sooner or later.”

All of Ricardo’s thoughts come crashing full stop like a train into a cliffside. He feels as though Rashad has knocked every breath out of him. He wades through his thoughts, struggling as though pushing through knee-deep mud as the sentence sinks slowly deeper in. He stares at Rashad, jaw working with countless words to be said, but nothing makes it past his teeth.

Heartbreak. The snake in the grass and bane of Los Diablos politicians and corporate bigwigs alike for the better half of a year. A ghost that stalks the shadows, stealing and extorting as he pleases, ousting people from power like it’s a game of chess and he’s simply picking pieces off the board. Ricardo can still see that mirrored helmet, cold and alienating, when he closes his eyes. He still remembers the way Heartbreak’s boot felt against his ribs.

Heartbreak is Rashad. Rashad, who always throws themself into a fight for the weak. Who tries to reach out to every animal that crosses their path. Who cries at corny tv movies. Who looks at Ricardo like he’s hung the moon every time he says something silly. He can’t justify the idea that the person who cried into his arms not a fortnight ago is the same as the villain who sent Herald to the hospital at the Memorial Museum. No, that can’t be right. It doesn’t make sense. “What are you talking about?”

Ricardo sees his own horror mirrored back to him in Rashad’s expression. “You didn’t know,” Rashad says slowly. They look like they want to bolt, even from the moving vehicle. Unfortunately, neither of them can. “Fuck.”

The silence gives way to anger and denial. No. Rashad wouldn’t choose this for themself. They were pressured. They must have been. “Did Hollow Ground force you to do this?” Rage tempers the question into something cold and hard. What could that bastard possibly have over Rashad?

Rashad’s brows furrow. “What makes you think that?”

“It can’t be easy to go against your family…”

“My family?” Rashad draws back like they’ve been struck. There it is again: that fear. Whatever it is that ties them to Hollow Ground must be heavy. “What do you know about my family?”

"Hollow Ground." Ricardo clarifies. But there's something wrong here. He can't quite put his finger on what. "I've seen his face. And I had to know if I was imagining things. So I did some digging, found your arrest records. You were just a kid, but you didn't look so different back then."

"What the fuck are you talking about?" There's a quickness to Rashad's breathing that catches Ricardo's attention.

He supposes it was a breach of privacy. It hadn't been easy finding those records. They'd been sealed and buried and it had taken more than a few greasing of palms to get them. "It must have been hard, breaking from the family business, but I didn't want to dissuade you back then. So I kept your face out of the papers." Ricardo looks down at his hands. He balls up his fists as he lets the anger wash over him. "I guess I should've worked harder. He found you anyway."

“Ricardo-” Ricardo can hear the beginnings of an admonishment. It doesn't come. He trails off, their eyes unfocused as they do so often when something catches their attention telepathically. Their attention zeroes in on something in the rearview mirror in the next second. 

Ricardo glances over his shoulder, but not fast enough to see anything before Rashad hits the gas. "Shit!" He presses himself hard into his seat, trying irrationally to put any space between himself and the cars they’re now weaving through. “Watch it!” he shouts as Rashad nearly clips a car they speed past.

Rashad stares out the windshield, intent on finding the fastest ways through the traffic without scraping up the car too much. Their knuckles are pale on the steering wheel. Ricardo can feel the eclectic panic sparking from Rashad’s mind. “We’re in trouble.”

“That’s nothing new!” Ricardo’s voice pitches up on the last word as Rashad pulls a sharp turn.

Ricardo is just barely aware of something streaking past when a sound like a small explosion goes off not far behind them. He can see sparks streaking off the now exposed rim of their back tire as it scrapes across the asphalt. Instinctively, he ducks his head down and out of view of the windows. A gunman? He tamps down on his growing panic. He knows the drill. He's trained for something like this. Back to familiar territory.

His thoughts begin to speed by as Rashad pulls another hard turn. Something isn't right here. Hollow Ground wouldn't have had the time to set up a gunman, especially when stealing a car was a spur of the moment decision. The timing is all wrong, even if Ricardo can see a sliver of motive.

Another shot and his heart skips as they take another jolt. The wheel jerks out of Rashad's grip. There's a split second where Rashad's hand is on his shoulder, grip tight, before he shoves Ricardo back and upright in his seat.

Ricardo tries to protest. They both know the safest thing to do now is duck, not sit up. He only just notices the truck before it makes impact. The airbags explode out and the world goes black.

~ ~ ~

Ricardo comes to as though he has to swim through molasses to get to the waking world. His eye stings in that familiar way that tells him blood is dripping into it. Every muscle in his body aches. He can feel the bruises beginning to form. There's a sharp, spasming pain in his left arm - a malfunctioning emitter, he realizes. That's going to be a problem.

It takes a minute later for him to realize he's hanging upside. Or rather, the car has flipped. Ricardo fumbles with the seat belt, falling to the roof of the car with a groan. He sits there, leaning against one of the slowly deflating airbags, and takes stock of himself. He's not too badly off, all things considered. Sore and bruised, a twinge in his neck, and the malfunctioning emitter, but all in all he's been in worse scrapes. If Rashad hadn't -

His eyes snap open, turning to look at the driver's seat so fast, his neck protests. Rashad is hanging limply in their seat, held only in place by their seat belt. Their face is starting to swell and bruise. They aren’t moving, completely silent, and Ricardo could swear they’re barely breathing.

Panic begins to set in.

"Rashad." Ricardo lightly touches Rashad's shoulder. He gives his love a light shake. "Queride?" He touches Rashad's face as gently as he can manage. They don't respond to the touch. Their breaths are shallow and far between. 

Ricardo lunges for Rashad's buckle, making his head swim in the process. He manages to catch Rashad against his chest as they ragdoll down. Just from a glance, Ricardo knows there's something wrong in the way their legs land. He cradles Rashad closer to him, brushing their messy black hair out of their face. "Stay with me, mi amor," He begs, pressing a desperate kiss against Rashad's forehead. "Don't let go."

The thought of losing them should not cut him so deeply, not in light of what he's just learned. It isn't just Rashad he's holding in his arms, it's Heartbreak. He's holding a supervillain, weeping into a supervillain's hair, begging a supervillain to cling to life. He can't seem to find it in himself to care. The thought of losing Rashad again makes Ricardo feel as though he can't breathe. He can't go through this again.

He shoves his hand into his pocket, praying that his phone survived the crash as he fishes for it. He flips it open and hits the emergency line saved in his speed dial. It rings once before someone picks up. "Location?" The curt voice says.

Ricardo glances out the shattered windshield, squinting past the pileup of cars. Between the panic and confusion, he can’t seem to locate the signs. “Corner of Eighth and Maple.” It’s a rough estimate, but it’ll have to do. “I need an ambulance!”

[hislittleraincloud]

Shit, whenever that movie she had with PHW becomes available to the general public, I just know *those* fans are gonna rage quit themselves over the two kissing (and I’m sure you’ve seen that bts photo of the two of them on the bed cuddling that was posted by one of the crew members awhile back) and I honestly can’t wait for that day to come 💀

I love how any hint of heterosexuality makes them dissociate from reality and grasp at anything that they can twist into 🏳️‍🌈, like the whole Winnie Kiss thing from Miller's Girl. They literally did not understand what the Male Gaze was, and how that whole thing was absolutely meta (serving Male Gaze within the storyline and inherently). Throughout the whole damn movie Cairo kept rejecting Winnie until she was rejected and pissed at Jon, and she used Winnie to try to get under his skin. She was so upset in the scene I was expecting a Stewie Griffin-like snot bubble to form (almost did, look!)

That's part of what made her so evil, FFS. 😭 Using her BFF's soft attraction towards her and screwing them all. We loved Winnie, Winnie was one of the cooler things to come out of Miller's Girl, and to see her get fucked like that was probably a bigger hurt than Jon (since his pain was to be expected).

Anyway, I'm just waiting for Ortega to do a decent dramatic role that doesn't suck/isn't just her crying, screaming, or being a sarcastic teenager** who has issues with her mother. Maybe she just sucks at the drama/needs to stick to horror and comedy. Actors all have their strengths and weaknesses, and she has excellent comedic timing.

**Ah, so of course she's Cairo and Wednesday. Again.

Girl is gonna end up playing "an ambitious teen whose intelligence separates her from the rest of her peers" for the next ten fucking years if someone doesn't smack the shit out of her and tell her to look at other types of roles. She's literally shoving her own little ass into a type/pigeon hole.

[just-a-tiny-goldfish]

Sometimes I think of pre heartbreak Orellia and I’m like she was just a baby

[unjust-dust]

get to know me (me)

I was tagged by the wonderful @wheresmulder - thank you I have a lot of fun doing these things!!!

three ships: AAAA! Off the top of my head? Wenclair, Wayhaught and Lumity

first ever ship: This took me a hot minute to think about, but Doctor Who came out when I was 5 so I remember being really passionate about Ten and Rose being happy. The song Doomsday KILLED ME.

last song: Male Fantasy by Billie Eilish. I'm on a massive Billie Eilish kick right now.

last movie: The Fallout (2021) - I'm also on a Jenna Ortega kick as well. This has somehow become my comfort movie??? Don't look into that 😅.

currently reading: I'll be nice (oversharing) and actually tell you what book and fanfiction I'm currently reading. Book: Wild and Wicked Things by Francesca May, this book is so so good it's like magic in the 1920s but it's prohibited. It's set in Britain AND it's queer so 10/10 would recommend. Fanfiction: Home and Away by @boojangs. My god. It is the SLOWEST slow burn I have ever read, usually I don't have the patience for them, but all of the delays in communication make fucking sense for once so for once I've stuck with it. It's a Wenclair pairing (surprise surprise!) and the rating is Teens and Up Audiences.

currently consuming: Absolutely nothing. I've just woke up. But last night I had a Domino's pizza which was *chef's kiss*

currently craving: Pancakes. My sister left me a pancake kit for babysitting her dog so I'm trying to motivate myself to get up and make them.

tag 9 people to do the thing: @discoerysimum @dratiniwasbluebefore @schrodingers-redfish @siren-is-not-a-rat @kinda-gay-ish @cheesecurdlingscream @fictionalized-lesbian @existentialvoidofexistence @infinxtlyfinite

[krikeymate]

Do you like Tara or Sam better?

There's no competition. I like them both enough as individual characters, but it's their character's together that I love. If we removed one from the story, the remaining character would just be eh to me. Sam has the more exciting/unique backstory, but without her motivations being her sister, it wouldn't be that interesting or gripping, to me personally. They're two sides of the same coin, in personality, in narrative, and in importance.

I find it a bit easier to write from the perspective of Sam, because she has a darker/more depressed mindset, which is what I relate to. But I also find it easier to think about how Tara might react to things, because she's younger and has less experience - we're seeing her world experiences, whereas Sam has so much of her story and experience and maturation prior to the movies.

[juanabaloo]

reading about some Hollywood veteran talking trash about Jenna Ortega's actions on her show Wednesday...

[hislittleraincloud]

Me every time I see a post about this gloriously bad movie on my fyp

Jenna Ortega as Cairo Sweet 📚

🎥: Miller's Girl (2024)

[stabortega]

NO SURPRISES — CHAPTER TWO

Summary: Having to deal with the aftermath of that situation was definitely worse then finding out the truth.

Pairing: Jenna Ortega x Fem!G!P!Reader

Warnings: NSFW. Implied fem reader, she/her pronouns used. Mentions of sex, dirty talking and sexting. Knife play. Mentions of kinks, nothing explicit. Top!Reader x Bottom!Jenna. MDNI.

Author's Note: Still think my writing is trash but you guys seem to like it. 💜

MASTERLIST.

"What the actual fuck?!" Jasmine almost yelled as Jenna shoved her inside one of the dressing rooms in the set, while she tried to shut the other actress up. "Thank god someone's paying that poor girl's college."

"This is not fucking funny, Jasmine. I shouldn't have told you." Jenna locked the door behind her, looking at her apprehensively. She made a terrible mistake by telling Jasmine what went on last night. "And now they expect me to work with her? After I-"

"Seen her dick? Oh god, what will be of you?" The black girl laughed, while sitting down on the couch. "Chill, alright? She probably doesn't even know you donated. I mean, what was your username?"

Jenna gulped. "I don't wanna say it."

"Come on, was it that obvious??" Jasmine rolled her eyes, waiting for an answer.

"It was my first name then the first four digits of my birthday."

"I cannot fucking believe you."

Living in New York wasn't easy. Every apartment was obnoxiously expensive, so you had to resort to leave the city and start living in Brooklyn. It was a nice neighborhood, the best you could afford if we're being completely honest. Moving to the big city was by far the best and the worst decision you've ever made. Other than starting college, obviously.

I mean, you loved every second of it, but it started to fuck your financial life right up the ass.

"You should create an Only Fans or something." You almost spit the whiskey shot you were drinking right back to your cup, looking at your friend as if she just told you that she had killed three men with a needle. "I'm serious, (Y/N). Do you know how much money you can get just by posting out some feet pics, or whatever?"

"I'm not gonna sell pictures of my feet for cash, Liana." She shook her head no while taking a sip of her Appletini.

"Then don't. Sell your dick pics, or livestream. Come on, I know how much you're struggling and you know you're putting that body to waste. What's the worse thing can happen?"

And she was right. You started out with just an account on that website, posting some pictures here and there; until one of your followers suggested livestreaming and said she would pay some good money just to watch you cum on your stomach (which obviously, she did). It happened so fast that, when you realized it, you were able to get yourself a better place right downtown, pay off your college debts and buy a professional video camera to shoot some amateur movies. And no, not the pornographic kind.

You wanted to be a director someday, but you were also really good with a camera; which is why you got the opportunity to work in the upcoming Scream movie as an assistant videographer (and because Liana put in a good word for you). It was your first real gig in your area of interest, you couldn't be more excited.

The first day was just like any other. You got to meet a few people and get a hold of the equipments you were going to use.

"Ay, (Y/N)! Come here for a sec!" Your boss, Dave, called your name while you were looking at one of the IMAX cameras, which you've never got the opportunity to film with. You realized he wanted to introduce you to some people, which he did. You just didn't expect it would be one of the protagonists (and the newest it actress of Hollywood). "It's a pleasure to meet you, Jenna."

You extended your hand for her to shake, which she did after looking at it for a couple of seconds, almost if she was analyzing you. "Nice to meet you too, (Y/N)."

And that was pretty much it, you guys didn't exchanged any other words besides that on that particular day. You even thought that she could be avoiding you, for whatever reason. All throughout the day, you felt her gaze on you multiple times, but everytime you looked at her, she just looked away.

"You're definitely not subtle." Jasmine whispered in Jenna's ear, while she watched you handle one of the camera films. "I'm pretty sure that she can physically feel your eyes on her butt as we speak."

"She's definitely gonna find out that I was on her stream last night." The Ortega took a deep breath, looking away when she realized you looked at her again.

"She's not, don't get paranoid. You have the most obvious and boring username ever? Yes. It would take just one Google search to figure out your identity? It would. But still!" Jenna got up from the chair she was sitting, realizing that all she wanted to do was to smoke this off.

"You're not helping, Jasmine." She took out her pack of Marlboro's and her lighter once she was outside. "I never even watched porn before, not even by myself."

"And now you donated $1500 to a complete stranger just so she could cum while moaning your name. That's a character development." Jasmine stood beside Jenna, who had just started smoking so she could even try to forget that she wanted to sit on her coworker's dick less than 24 hours ago.

"I'm never doing that again, Jasmine. It's inhumane and gross. It was the first and the last time."

jenna2709: thought about you a lot today.

"Oh, did you? Good to hear that." She locked the door behind her and sat on her bed. That was Jenna's, at least, 10th day of watching your streams nonstop. And she had just "caught" you in the beginning of your livestream (which meant that she had the notifications of your page on and was too much of a chicken to admit it). So that meant that you weren't even undressed yet, you were just rubbing your dick over your sweatpants and chatting a litte bit with your followers before you started your actual show. "What exactly were you thinking of, huh?"

jenna2709: of me sucking your cock under this table while you tell me how much of a good girl i am.

Jenna realized what she said after she already sent the message. Where did that came from? She thought while looking intensely at the livestream, hoping you would just stop with the teasing and take your cock out of your pants for her to see (and drool). "Oh baby, I'm sure you're very good with your mouth. Wanted to cum right on your throat and make you swallow every drop."

jenna2709: i would be honored to be your cum dump.

"Okay, I crossed the line." She took a deep breath, not even recognizing who was that person inside of her, the person that would say the most obscene and erotic shit that she ever heard. It was almost if something awakened inside of her everytime she saw you. Every couple of days, at exactly 10PM, she would lock herself in her hotel bedroom and fuck her pussy so deep until she passed out from having like, five orgasms. And that was the easy part, obviously. The hardest part was definitely waking up in the morning and having to look at you as if she didn't saw your dick inside of a fleshlight the night before.

Jenna grew up christian. In a american dream type of household. But getting in touch with Hollywood and all of the film industry made her get out of her bubble and quite literally, discover the world. She drank, she smoked, she went to 2AM parties at some A-List celebrity's house that she never even met before. But sex? Never sex. She met a few people here and there, but nothing further. It made her think about that, the fact that she couldn't even be interested enough in someone to actually have some sort of contact with them; but with you, she would stay all night thinking about you fucking her raw and senseless until she couldn't remember who she was.

"Stop teasing, Jenna. We both know you were born to be my cum dump, and mine only." You were so horny imagining having that stranger on her knees while she had her mouth open, waiting for you to dump your cum inside of her pretty little throat. You took your cock out of your pants, a little bit earlier than you've expected, but you were getting so worked up that you didn't even thought about your stream routine. You started to stroke the member gently, feeling your dick pulsate right on the palm of your hand. "I know that you're the only one who can take care of this right, don't you think?"

jenna2709: if you were mine, i would make you cum on my pussy everyday.

Jenna started to get scared. Who was this person that was hiding inside of her? Was she really like that? Is she the female version of Christian Grey and doesn't know it yet? How the fuck she got so horny all of a sudden?

She knew that the reason you were playing that little game with her was merely money. But there was a part of her, a tiny part that hoped that you felt attracted to her as much as she felt to you. Even if you'd never seen her face, or her body. It didn't mattered if she had just met you a couple of days ago; she wanted you to want her, the same way she wanted you.

"And if you were mine, I would carve my name on your belly so everyone would know who you belong to." Oh yes, the knife play.

Jenna wasn't naive or innocent, she knew about fetishes and BDSM practices; and thankfully there was the option of marking your kinks on your own profile when you created your account. The actress spent an embarrassing amount of time researching some of your kinks that were listed on your profile (there was so many things she didn't even knew existed, to be completely honest). And the thought of you doing all of those things with her got her aroused in a matter of seconds.

jenna2709: you could carve your name on my face, for all i care.

jenna2709: i would definitely want people to know that i'm yours.

The rest of the livestream went as usual, you doing all of the things that your subs asked you to, Jenna being awarded as the number 1 tipper for the 5th time in a row, nothing out of the ordinary. You were just about to cum for the second time when Jenna tipped you again with a request.

Wow! "jenna2709" donated $2000 with the message: i want you to cum for me, again.

"You know I never decline your requests, baby. But, let's be fair this time around?" You answered, a little bit breathless, masturbating your cock as hard as you could. "I'll give you a private livestream if you show me your face."

Oh, a private livestream?

Jenna had been following your for awhile now ever since her first time watching your stream. She knew that private livestreams weren't something you did. And yet, you were here, offering one for free, just to see Jenna's face in return. It was a really good offer, but Jenna couldn't accept. If you found out who she was, the shooting would be the most awkward work experience for both of them. It would be like, "Hey, (Y/N)? Can you get this camera ready for me? Also, I've already seen your dick and I'm having wet dreams with you fucking me like the slut I am." So, she took one last breath after she decided to stick with her original plan and decline.

jenna2709: it's a deal.

[alyyybrooke]

date night

Jenna Ortega x fem!reader

A date with Jenna

Warnings: making out

Word Count: 1.2k

You were rifling through your clothes, trying to find the perfect outfit for your date with Jenna. She would adore you in anything, she even said you could wear a trash bag and she'd still find it hot, but you wanted to look perfect for her. You opened drawer after drawer, but nothing seemed to call out to you.

You were about to open another, when a pair of strong arms wrapped around your waist, and soft lips brushed against your neck. You giggled and leaned back into her.

"Hi, baby," you whispered.

"Hi," Jenna replied, peppering kisses all over your neck.

"I can't find anything to wear," you groaned, turning to face her properly.

"Actually I have something for you, if you don't mind wearing it. I just think you'll look really good in it."

"Oh yeah?" you teased, raising your brow.

She left briefly, and came back with a long, elegant dress, one that would bring out your eyes and hug your curves perfectly. You nearly swooned when you saw it. Jenna always had good taste.

"You like it?" she asked nervously.

"It's perfect. Thank you baby." You kissed her lips softly and she left to give you privacy.

When you walked out of the closet, her eyes widened and she let out a little gasp. Her brown irises twinkled with love and admiration.

"So hot," she whispered under her breath. You laughed and stepped closer to her.

"Charming," you muttered sarcastically.

"I mean it. You're so hot, Y/N."

"Says you."

She reached over and grabbed your jaw, pulling you in for a heated kiss. Her arm snaked around your waist, and her tongue skillfully traced your bottom lip. You groaned in pleasure, parting your lips, and she took the opportunity. Her tongue grazed yours sensually, eliciting another moan from you.

"Mmph, Jenna," you mumbled into her lips, pushing her away. "You should change. We're gonna be late."

"Fine," she sighed. Clearly she didn't want your little makeout session to end.

When she finally revealed her outfit for the night, your jaw went slack. She was adorned with a powerful black suit, and she smirked when she saw your reaction. And she thought you looked hot.

You stepped towards her and pushed her against the wall, before crashing your lips onto hers. But unlike earlier, the kiss didn't last long.

"I thought we were gonna be late," Jenna teased while pushing you back.

"Shut up," you mumbled. She chuckled and pecked your cheek.

"C'mon, let's go, my love."

—

Jenna had taken you to a lavish, fancy restaurant far away from the city, just in case the paparazzi decided to trail you.

The drive was a little long, but just being with her made it seem so short. When you arrived, Jenna got out quickly before you so she could open your door.

"Such a gentleman," you giggled. She held out her hand and when you gave her yours, she brought it up to her lips and kissed it softly.

"Only for you," she teases.

She happily led you inside, and the waiter took you to your table. It was in the back corner of the restaurant, dimly lit with the glow of a few candles. A soft melody of song played throughout the restaurant, and couples talked amongst themselves. It seemed love was in the air.

You skimmed the menu and decided to order the pasta, Jenna deciding on fish. Your waiter came and filled your glasses with wine. Jenna took your hand and stroked it softly.

"You look beautiful, baby. I'm so glad we were finally able to do this," she said, eyes twinkling in the candle light.

"Yeah, I missed you." Jenna had been away filming her newest movie, Winter Spring Summer or Fall, alongside someone you absolutely despised. So having Jenna back in your arms, where she belonged, comforted you deeply.

"How was filming?"

She sighed.

"Exhausting if I'm being honest. With all the talk and rumors going around, I just... needed to get that movie over with."

You smiled and squeezed her hand softly.

"I'm just glad you're back home."

The waiter came back and took your orders.

"So...when's your next project?" you ask curiously. You didn't want her to go, but it was always good to have the date of her leave in the back of your mind.

"I have another movie in a few months," she answered grimly.

You, seeing her face, decided it was probably best to change the subject.

"When will I get to meet your family?" you asked, stroking the back of her hand with your thumb.

Her face brightened with the question.

"Whenever. They keep telling me how much they want to meet you," she said, taking a sip of her wine.

"We should totally plan a dinner then! Though, if I'm being honest, I'm a little nervous. I mean, your family is huge."

"They'll love you, I promise."

Soon, your food arrived, and you both talked the night away. The sun quickly sunk, and couples slowly left the restaurant, leaving just you and Jenna still having pleasant conversation.

She checked the time and her eyes widened.

"We should probably get going, babe. I think the restaurant closed ten minutes ago," she giggles.

She paid the bill, albeit there was a lot of argument from you, and you two left. You shivered at the bitter cold, and Jenna removed her suit and wrapped it around your shoulders.

"Shoulda brought a jacket."

"Eh, it's okay. I have you," you tease, pecking her cheek.

"What if I get cold?" she pouts. You kiss her frown away.

"I guess that's the price you pay when you devote yourself to your girlfriend."

She rolls her eyes and grabs your hand, tugging you onto the sidewalk.

"I actually have one more thing planned for tonight," she tells you.

"Oh yeah? And what's that?"

"You'll have to find out."

She leads you around the corner of the restaurant, into an alley.

"Uh...you're not gonna murder me are you? I know you're in Scream, but I'm pretty sure Tara isn't Ghostface. Though that would be hot..." you mumble.

"Relax, I'm not gonna murder you."

She tugs towards a set of stairs leading to the roof of the building, and she starts to climb the steps slowly.

"We're technically not supposed to do this, but I bribed one of the waiters with an autograph and a picture," she tells you.

"Perks of being famous, I guess."

When you reach the roof, your breath hitches at the sight. She had set up a bunch of fairy lights all across the roof, and her record player sat on a table.

"Oh, Jenna..." you coo, kissing her deeply.

She walks over to the record player and plays some old 60s song. Its melody echoing into the night. She turns back to you and extends her hand.

"May I have this dance?"

"So cheesy," you giggle, rolling your eyes, before accepting her hand.

She brought her hand around your waist and held yours in her other. You rested your hand on her shoulder and leaned into her embrace.

"I love you, baby. Thank you for being so patient with me and my work. I know it's hard when I have to leave."

"I love you too, Jen. And trust me, it's all worth it."

You swayed to the beat of the song, dancing the night away. Crickets chirped around you and the stars twinkled above. Everything was perfect. When the song ended, you tugged her by her tie and pulled her into a passionate kiss, one of pure love and admiration.

"I love you so much," you whisper, pressing your forehead against hers.

"I love you more, sweet girl."

[be-missed]

Find You Again (Chap 2)

Jenna Ortega X Fem!Reader

(pictures not mine)

Summary: Reuniting as stars, former high school sweethearts stage a fake relationship to boost their public image. Navigating the scripted romance, sparks fly. The big question: can this staged connection reignite their real love?

Warning: curse words, notify me if there are any. Credits to the owner for the picture that I used below the cut. There's a lot of time cut, just because.

A/N: I'm so excited to write this, enjoy. New series for y'all.

Song: South of the Border- Ed Sheeran (Feat Camilla Cabello and Cardi B)

That white dress (you can also see this in Enrique's Instagram)

Masterlist

Chap 2

______________________________________________________________

"What the fuck?" Y/N screamed inside her hotel room when she woke up "I didn't even went home with her, I... I went home with... I don't know what the fuck?" Y/N added clutching her head that's aching. Her publicist enters and said "That's what you get for trashing one of the paparazzi... But he deserve it anyway." Emilia gave the medicine to Y/N and added "Well, going home with Jenna is a much better headline than you assaulting a paps, right?" with a smirk on her face waiting for Y/N's reaction.

Y/N's eye widen with what Emilia said and replied "Hell no, the both of them aren't good for me, they need to be taken down, or like tell the media that I'm with some dude" finding her phone and trying to search a man in her contacts. With a disgusted look earned from her publicist, Emilia said "You would rather be linked with a man?"

Y/N gave Emilia a look that says "I would rather not be involved with anyone." With a smile, Emilia said "There's nothing we can do about it, even if we try to pay the media, we cannot pay the people in the internet, we're gonna be broke" and chuckled.

Y/N was lost with what Emilia said, "What do you mean by that?" Emilia replied "Well, you and Jenna are trending since yesterday up until..." and fished her phone up, opened her twitter and shows Y/N the top trending worldwide "now. Wow, the both of you are still trending."

"Fuck, this can't be, I'm gonna release an album in the next few months." Y/N said trying to pace around the room "Okay, then it's gonna be a good publicity for you" Emilia said that made Y/N stop in her tracks and looked at Emilia "No, it will not be a good publicity. I don't want my songs to be incorporated to that girl."

Emilia gave Y/N a questioning look "Who's 'that girl'?" with a teasing tone and Y/N replied "You know who Emilia..." and Emilia still continues to act clueless. "Jenna Ortega, of course" Y/N said and rolled her eyes.

"As your publicist, I don't see any problem with that. She has a good reputation, no bad issues, and her career is thriving" Emilia stated facts as Y/N tries not to listen because she knows that Emilia is right "Why are you even mad about the issue?" Emilia teased Y/N.

With a heavy sigh, Y/N walks to the bathroom and yells "YOU KNOW DAMN WELL WHY EMILIA" and slams the door.

As Y/N was trying to rinse her face hoping her headache will be passed through the water that damps her face, she can't still believe that people will push the her and Jenna together.

On the other side of New York City, Jenna was staring at the wall of her hotel room while chewing her lower lip trying to think how can she get out of this mess.

"Are you okay? What's the matter?" Jenna's publicist asked her while she checks the news outlets and every social media. Jenna stays silent trying to think, until she blurted out "How about a PR Stunt?" She hates the idea of it, being in a fake relationship with someone that she really doesn't care about. "We can have a fake PR Stunt so that the rumors with that singer will stop, once and for all." Jenna suggested.

Wendy, her publicist looked at her and said "You don't need no PR Stunt with anyone, you're career is going well and you have no bad blood with anyone and we're not gonna start that now. She and her team aren't giving statements about it too, so let the rumors be rumors. Not if you want to prove them right, and that's the only thing that you will do if we release a statement and they still keep on seeing you two together." With an annoyed look, Jenna then answered "I just don't want to be linked with that woman, please." She pouted and looked at Wendy, trying to make her idea work.

"No, no stunts will be done and no statements will be released. This rumor is good for the both of you can't you see? The both of your careers are striving so well, her fans are supporting you and vice versa. The public sees you both as a good pair, so why not use Y/N as a stepping stone." Wendy said stating a good point that Jenna herself can't see a hole to poke in. Jenna hates it that Wendy is always right.

With a huff Jenna replied "Ugh, fine, but it will stay as rumors" and went to the bed and plop herself trying to gain more sleep.

---

Weeks after the said rumors have spread, both the singer and the actress went on the low since they didn't want to be seen together. Each of them kept on working privately for their own careers. Y/N doing some major to minor revisions for her album release in the next few months, while Jenna does some photoshoots and guesting in YouTube.

After the MET Gala in May, the both of them were thankful since they haven't seen each other in person. But surely, the rumors from their fans can't die as they sure did have a lot of photos and videos to talk about from the MET and those old photos of the both of them resurfacing from god knows where.

Y/N received a lot of incoming projects just like working for a song that will be played on a movie this coming December, she accepted the work, just for the fact that she will be writing a song; she just loves to write one, okay. Her agent would have explained for what movie it is, but Y/N just asked about how did the love story goes and then started to write one.

As for Jenna, September has been a chill month for her, a few fittings here and there for the Paris Fashion Week next month that she will attend and will be dresses in Dior. She spent her birthday with her family and closest friends. Trying to be more private and be less seen in public to not cause any disturbances in her life.

---

As September flew by with a bat of an eye, October has come with such a busy time for Y/N as she released her new album, every track has become a hit and has settled into the Top 10 songs of Billboard, her albums also sold millions and her songs are played in every radio station, which just means that Jenna, even if she doesn't want to, listened to songs that Y/N released.

Inside the car driving in the roads of Paris, Jenna was seated and a radio blasted a song...

She got the, mmm, brown eyes, caramel thighs

Long hair, no wedding ring, hey.

"EVEN IN PARIS?" Jenna exclaimed, she just arrived from her flight and she can't believe that Y/N is still haunting her. "What? It is a bop. Y/N, Camila, and Cardi did great with the song, you know..." Enrique teased her.

I saw you lookin' from across the way

And now I really wanna know your name

"Why would she even write a song like that?" Jenna tried to argue with Enrique, and her stylist just smiled and said "I mean, she just stated that she wants a woman with brown eyes, caramel thighs, long hair, is single, wears a white dress, and probably a Latina. You know I know someone with the same characteristics" Enrique ended with a teasing smile and a knowing look. "Fuck no" Jenna answered Enrique, trying not to barf herself out with that thought. Why would Y/N wrote a song about her.

She got the, mmm, white dress, but when she's wearin' less

Man, you know that she drives me crazy

"You did wore a white dress, you have brown eyes, hmm you had your hair long, you have beautiful thighs, you are Latina, and I'm pretty sure you're not married" Enrique pushed his luck trying to really into Jenna's nerve. "When did I wore a white dress? Huh?" Jenna tried to challenge Enrique, but as her stylist, of course he knows when did Jenna wore a white dress and answered "You remember that film interview with Melissa, that white dress from Zuhair Murad..." Jenna now remembers, and thought "Oh fucking shit, hell to the fucking no"

Enrique internally laughed at Jenna's reaction while Jenna pulled out her headphones, wore it and opened her phone, as she open her Spotify, she clicks the shuffle play to a playlist. Enrique smiled at what Jenna did, but in all honesty, even if Jenna hides it, Enrique can see that Jenna did enjoy Y/N's songs and even muttered lyrics of it, but only stopped when she noticed herself that she is singing her ex's songs.

In a hotel room in Paris Y/N exclaimed "WAIT, I'M ATTENDING DIOR? Am I not signed in another brand or something?" and Emilia just shrugged "No hun, you will go to Dior, you will meet big names there that will again boost your music and your status, so yes, Dior."

With a loud grunt Y/N started to pace around, which is a thing that she do when she tries to think of a way out for something that Emilia put her into. "Okay, please tell me that Jisoo will attend this show" Y/N says with her eyes closed and fingers crossed, Emilia just stared at her and answered her with a "Yes".

Just as Emilia thought, Y/N is a fan, and going to concert of Jisoo's group will be hard so this is a gift for Y/N and can also be a meeting place for new deals that Y/N needs to attract more people for her art and to gain more attention. But what Emilia didn't say is that Jenna will also be attending the Dior Fashion show. Even though Emilia knows about Jenna and Y/N's past, she can't let the rumor about the two die, since Y/N benefits a lot, she also knew that Jenna is benefiting by the fact that her publicist and her management is not releasing any statement, despite the allegations of Jenna dating Y/N and vice versa.

---

A large crowd has gathered, voices can be heard even from a mile away with how many people have gathered just to see the ladies and gents that Dior has invited.

Jenna with her black dress arrived, strutting down the big area that has been surrounded with people, waving and smiling to every people that calls her name. Walking inside the venue, she gets to meet a lot of people, from businessman, to artist, singers, and models.

A crowd has gathered in the middle of the room and she heard a voice coming from her publicist, "Okay, I don't know if you know her, but Jisoo is a global ambassador of Dior and she is in a group called Blackpink, go make friends." And with that, Jenna started to strut her way to a crowd of people and photographers, with her current status, of course people around her would know who she is, and without a doubt Jisoo and her are asked for a picture together.

On the other side of the venue, Y/N has been doing everything that she can just to meet Jisoo, but to no avail, she is stuck with old business man that has been eating her precious time, talking about old stuff that she really doesn't know. And in every French that will speak to her, she will just answer "oui" because who the fuck understands French? Not me, Y/N thinks.

But of course, the venue isn't as big as the USA or even Paris, so of course Y/N heard whispers that Jenna Ortega is also in the same vicinity as hers, but why would she believe something that she can't even see. Y/N thinks that if Jenna is really in the same place as hers, they would probably meet each other by now.

"You need to take your seat now, the show will start" She can hear Emilia's voice behind her and with a heavy heart, she decided to seat and hopes to meet JIsoo later.

Trying to get comfortable with her seat, a group of men started to walk her way and Y/N thinks "Who the fuck gets guarded like that on a fucking fashion show?" and when the men started to disperse, a lady wearing a high heel that is dressed in long black flowy skirt, a black see-through top, and a jacket with a long white jewelry hanging from her neck; Y/N's eyes travels upward and see's a terrified look on the other person's face.

Y/N's own face contorted with disgust, her fist clench on its own and when a curse word tries to get out of her mouth, a pinch to her side coming from Emilia broke her and said "Act nice." Wide eyed with a tight lipped smile greets the other person that is also trying to contain her emotions because...

"WHAT THE FUCK IS Y/N DOING IN HERE?"

Exactly, that was Jenna's thought when the body guards in front of her started to go to their post and give her her space and lead her to her seat. Her eyes widen, feeling that her blood suddenly is pushing upwards, feeling a little bit dizzy with how much her heart is pumping her blood from the anger that she feels from the inside. Her eyes suddenly moves to the side and looks at her publicist, jut like how her character Wednesday stare at people. Her publicist then whispered to her "Be good, now."

The both of them are now staring at each other, bewildered on how the fuck did they ended up seating next to each other on a Paris Fashion Week, knowing so damn well that there are hundreds of brand that's doing the same thing that they are doing right now.

With forced smiles and a toned down anger, Jenna seats beside Y/N, creating a big space between them that could accommodate another person if they wanted to. The two women, seating side-by-side, thinking of ways on how can they seat through the whole show without murdering each other or just to try to not cause a scene. Jenna did not brought enough patience for this show, if she only knew that Y/N will be here, then she would probably brought a lot of extra patience with her. As for the other girl, if Y/N would have known that Jenna would be here, she would've declined this offer immediately and just attend another show.

Without looking to her side Y/N whispers "what the fuck are you doing here?" Jenna trying not to look at Y/N has her ears ringing from anger with what she heard from the other woman and answered in a hushed tone "the fuck do you mean why am i here?" Y/N then turns her body towards Jenna and stated with a sassy tone "Why are you here? Are you trying to follow me?" This doesn't go unnoticed by Jenna "You're so full of yourself, I don't even know that you're in here you dumbass"

Before Y/N gets to speak, a photographer appeared and asked for a picture of them. With forced smiles, the two girls closed the gap between them and smiled brightly at the camera, acting like they weren't trying to slit each other's throat before he came in.

"Nice, another picture with you" Y/N said with a sarcastic tone, Jenna was trying to do some breathing exercise, praying that she wouldn't lose her cool because if things will just be on her way? She would've smacked Y/N right in the head with her purse. "Wow, who said I like being on one frame with you?" Jenna said with a tone full of disgust.

A cough from behind them ca be heard coming from both of their publicist, and they know so damn well how things will go if they continue to banter. So what they did was to be quiet, smile at the camera and the guests, and watch the fashion show unfold.

Half of the show have passed and Y/N wants to peel her ass from her seat, run to the nearest wall, and just smash her head. She can't stand another second of Jenna nodding at every model and hearing muttered words like how wonderful they are. Y/N moved over to Jenna and whispered "Don't act like you're interested, I know how much this things bore you." Jenna's hand travelled to Y/N's thigh and grips it, hard enough so that Y/N can feel Jenna's nails digging through the fabric of her dress "Shut up."

Y/N yelps and bites her lip to contain a surprised gasp that she just made, Y/N then lightly slaps Jenna's hand, "Don't you dare do that again, you're harassing me" Y/N said trying to threaten and Jenna gasped and pulls her hand away "I'm not harassing you!"

"Girls..." Emilia whispered from behind, with that, the two women sat quietly and tries to keep their hands from trying to pull each others hair. The scene that unfolded earlier where Y/N moved closer to Jenna wo whisper something and Jenna's hand on Y/N's thigh could tell a different story when you watch it from afar. That is why photographers tried to capture it, other guests also noticed the two being closer to each other.

While Y/N and Jenna watched the entire show quietly, both of their publicist seemed to arrived at a certain business deal that would greatly benefit the two stars that they are handling. But they know that this'll need more meetings and contract signings.

---

Dior Fashion show ended a few hours ago, Jenna was just chilling in the living room of her hotel trying to find a new movie to watch, but before she press play, her publicist messaged her that they need to have a dinner meeting to discuss future projects and this one is urgent. So what Jenna did was she got up and went to her dresser trying to find a semi-formal attire to wear and for her to somehow look decent.

In the lobby, there was Wendy, waiting for her with a bag on her hand and a cluster of paper on the other. "Sorry for the late notice, I just got this deal earlier" Wendy said trying to lead Jenna to the Hotel's Restaurant. While walking Jenna thought "Wait... why is my publicist making deals and not my manager?" And it made Jenna stop from walking and looked at Wende and asked "Does my manager know this so-called-deal?" and Wendy just answered "Of course, they're inside with the other party waiting for us" with a suspicious and eerie feeling, Jenna followed suit and walked towards the private room that Wendy entered.

A waiter opened the door on the other side and there was a big table with people who are seated and are talking, on the other side that faces her, she saw her manager, the other party which she guessed are facing their back to her. Wendy ushered Jenna to sit in the middle and while trying to look for the faces for the other party, Jenna feels like she knows the faces of these people. Starting from the right, analyzing her face, her hair, and the paper that is in front of her Jenna thought "Oh, probably she's the publicist" and when she moved from the so-called-publicist left, she sees a scowling face, eyebrows pushed together in the middle, lips are tight, and a rigid body posture, and Jenna thought "No fucking way" ready to run from where she is to the door, her arms were held down by Wendy and is trying to push her down to seat in front of none other than Y/N.

"What is this?" Jenna asked and Y/N "What do you think?" with a biting remark. The two of them holding a staring battle, trying to push each other's luck and trying to feel if the other one is gonna send them a punch or a slap. "Shut up, adults are talking" Jenna said with a smirk and Y/N answered "We are literally the same age, what are you talking about?" and before Y/N gets to add another remark Jenna cut her off and said "Oh yeah? Well the shut up, people who are mature enough gets to talk."

Y/N then stood up from her chair ready to pounce on Jenna when her manager hold her down and forced her to seat down and said "Calm down you two, we are not here to set you both to fight on a boxing ring in Vegas" and the other person in the room chuckles.

"Is this some kind of joke? What am I doing in here?" Y/N asked her manager and her publicist and Emilia answered her "Calm down first and we will explain, please girls." And Y/N tried to calm herself down staring at the wall.

Throughout the entire meeting, both of Y/N and Jenna's manager and their publicist explains how good it will be if the both of them will be in a public relationship. They explained that the media, the public, and their fans loved the two of them together, seeing how the rumor between the two of them isn't dying after months, how their status and fanbase got bigger, and how can this publicity attract more people to support the both of them.

"But I thought I'm gonna be okay without any public relationship?" Jenna said pertaining to what Wendy said and she answered "Well, it still is, but if you are in a relationship with Y/N everything will be better. It's gonna be a win-win situation for the both of us."

"I don't need this, I can do things on my own" Y/N said and her publicist explained "Yes, but it will be more better with a help you know" and that made Y/N furious "Okay, first of all I don't need her charity, I don't need anyone to boost my career. I am talented and that's what I'm gonna use." Then her manager butted in and said "Yes, we didn't mean it in that way Y/N and you know it. You're just gonna help each other out, be each other's stepping stone. When the contract finishes, there will be no bad blood and we will say that things just didn't work out because of schedule."

When Y/N's manager said that, both Y/N and Jenna looked at each other's eye, feeling like it did struck a nerve on the both of them, holding each other's stare for a second, the room went silent. Y/N then looked down at her lap after she caught Jenna stared at her, she plays with the end fabric of the table cloth. Jenna on the other and was just staring at Y/N, biting her lip, trying to say something but she can't eve formulate a word.

"Okay, I think we are done, we can continue this tomorrow, sounds like a plan?" Wendy said collecting the papers in front of her, the managers were standing up and trying to leave the room.

Y/N was still seating and looking down, Wendy and her manager knows so damn well that they need to leave Y/N alone when she went this silent. Jenna was also the same, still seating down in her seat, feeling like someone nailed her to where she is.

With a deep sigh, Y/N raised her eyes in front of her, where Jenna's eyes were awaiting. A lingering sense of familiarity can be felt in line with a feeling of deep longingness and hatred. The air was thick, both of them trying to read each other's mind. Y/N knows Jenna, she knows all of her, but not the one who is seating in front of her. On the other hand Jenna's waiting for Y/N to say something, because she knows Y/N so damn well, she knows her that well. Both of them feels like they were thrown back from where they were, contemplating and thinking on a restaurant.

Y/N and Jenna stared at each other for a second, Y/N's lips opened a few times, trying to say the words that runs through her mind, but failed after a few attempt. Jenna tries to calm her breathing because it seems like everything seems to fall on her shoulders, hitting her like a brick.

This wasn't what they imagined themselves after years of their break-up. They didn't imagine them seeing again, sitting on a restaurant, talking about their relationship. Everything that's happening brings ton of memories from the past that the both of them were trying to bury. So there they were, seated, facing each other, trying not to break down, and praying to whoever listens that this was just a joke, a prank, a dream, just not a reality that they need to face.

____________________________________________________

South of the Border Singer Y/F/N Y/L/N and Actress Jenna Ortega seen Dining together in the City of Love

Y/F/N Y/L/N and Jenna Ortega both attended the 2023 Dior Spring show together and both seated side-by-side, some photographers from the inside released pictures of them getting close to each other and seemingly enjoying each other's presence.

Just as we thought that it will end there, the two stars surprises us with them being together dining in a hotel where Jenna Ortega is currently staying. Sources from the inside told that they dine inside a private room. Both of the stars arrived and went away separately. But this doesn't stop us from getting a moment of them together.

This occurrence only ignites the rumor that Y/N's new songs from the album are all about Jenna. Both of the stars aren't releasing any statements and their agency are still silent about this issue.

Stay tuned for more of this brewing love story that us slowly unfolding in our eyes!

______________________________________________________________

A/N: HI, apologies for the long wait, I hope you like it. I'm open for your thoughts and comments. Thanks again for reading and waiting. Not proofread, so notify me if there are any mistakes.

Tag list:

@hy-uk-ai @ortegalvr @mirage018 @geed-3 @idkjustliving2 @aurora-starwars (sorry just tagged all of you)

[romancedream]

By liking this comment, Miles Millar gave validation to the relentless bullying, harassment, doxxing, and death threats that @percy received after the hate campaign that was created only because he stared in Millar's streaming series: @wednesdaynetflix

Despite the concrete evidence of the young man's innocence. The series' showrunner and writer decided to terminate Percy's role in the show out of fear of losing viewers and, by extension, money. Completely disregarding the 22-year-old's mental health, well-being, and career prospects in the future. 😡😡😡😡😡

Both @milesmillar and @goughalfred watched silently while @percy was being used as a punching bag for the obsessive fangirl haters who couldn't stand his role as "the love interest" of Wednesday in this fictional show. They let him absorb all the hatred that came along with the massive success of the series,

and then they threw him out of the show, hoping to start a new clean page, while Percy gets to suffer from the negativity and destruction of the hit series all by himself.

It's important to note that Percy and members of the cast of Wednesday, alongside their new costars from other shows and films, are still getting bullied and se*ualized to this day by the same online psychopaths that millar supported.

[crazyoffher]

WATCHTOWER. - 2

jenna ortega x fem!reader

summary: the same late-night visitor meets with you once again, this time with a goal in mind.

warnings: unedited. somewhat long, which i'm very sorry for i just love attention-to-detail sometimes.

word count: 2600+

part one part three

Scandal was playing on the TV, but you weren’t paying attention to what was happening — not that it mattered because you replayed the show so much you could name an episode's events off the top of your head. It was a rather chilly Thursday night for springtime, and you lay on the couch all sprawled around with a massive headache and a runny nose. 

You had allergies, and they acted up harsher than usual, causing you to take the entire week off of work. You wanted to stay around in case Jenna came in that week, but you felt like fainting the first Monday, and you had been told to go home by your manager, Derek.

You were mindlessly scrolling through your phone, looking through Jenna’s entire Instagram your feed, when you were interrupted by a caller screen. It was your regular closing buddy, Jack, calling. 

“I told you, the cleaning supplies are stocked under the boxes on the shelf next to the cooler.” You sighed, assuming that he was calling because he couldn’t remember the location of where you put the items. 

“No, bro, it’s not that.” He practically screamed into the phone, erupting a groan out of you. “Keep your voice low; I have a massive fucking headache.” 

“Well, I'm sorry that I can’t contain my emotions after just dealing with Jenna Ortega, who was looking for you.” That got you to sit upright. You have to be fucking kidding me.

You sighed heavily. “You can’t be serious! Ugh.”

“What? You were expecting her? God, I hate when you keep exciting secrets from me (Y/N), like when you literally served Zendaya and I had to sit and gawk at you when you were telling me you and her had a conversation!”

Rubbing your eyeballs, you put the phone on speaker as you pulled yourself up, turning to clean up the mess of tissues and plates that had accumulated over the past two days. “What did you say to her?”

“I told her that you work Monday, Thursday, and Saturday every week, but that you’d be gone the rest of the week because you were sick. When the fuck did you meet her?” You loaded the tissues (and empty ice-cream pint) into the trash and set the plates into the sink, saying, “Two weeks ago, when you decided to do the easiest job on Earth and leave me to do all of the cleanup work, you assface.”

“Man, you better be good by Monday because she looked pretty down when I told her you weren’t here.” You sighed at that; it only made your hatred for your pollen allergy worsen. “And she told me she’d be back on Monday if she wasn’t too busy that day.”

“I’ll take this as a sign to actually start taking my antibiotics.” You filled a cup with water, grabbing a Tylenol pill for your headache. “Why haven’t you been taking them in the first place?”

“So I’d have an excuse to take more than four days off. You just have to hate working at a Michelin star that celebrities love to raid sometimes.” You downed the pill, or more so, tried to, as it came back up, making you cough.

“Yeah, well, you tell that to Marissa, who’s been covering your days. She looks like she’s on the edge of a breakdown constantly.”

You attempted to swallow the pill again, this time successfully, as you downed the entire glass of water before placing it in the sink, joining the dirty plates. “Well, she’d be more accustomed to it if she didn’t decide to work only once a week and constantly coax me for a share of my tips. Now go back to cleaning up.”

Leaning against the counter of your kitchen, you hung up the phone, saying your goodbyes to Jack. Couldn't she have come around next week?

On Monday, you returned. In your nice suitwear, you made sure to groom yourself extra well in the morning in case Jenna did make her return to you that day, and she did…not.

To say you were disappointed was an understatement; you even stayed out five minutes past twelve to see if she’d walk in, but to no avail. Closing the doors to the restaurant with Jack, you took each step to your car with a form of anger.

“Are you alr-”

“You said she was going to come today!” You huffed. He shrugged, choosing the right words to reply to you; otherwise, you’d go insane.

“If she wasn’t too busy, she said. She probably just had an overwhelming day.” He assured you, but you weren’t necessarily in a positive mood. You mimicked him, putting your hands on your face and rubbing your eyes.

“Or she just didn’t want to see me. She probably saw that I wasn’t there and was like, “Oh, well, fuck that girl then.” Ugh, I hate sickness.” Sneezing right after your sentence, Jack shuffled away from you slightly before climbing into your passenger seat when you unlocked your car.

You had promised to give him a ride because his car’s engine sounded off and he didn’t want to take it to work. “I call the music!”

“It's my car, asshole.” You jumped into the driver's seat without fighting Jack for the Bluetooth, as he had already been connected. “All I’m saying is, you shouldn’t worry. Celebrities, especially rising ones like her, are always busier than we are. Plus, you’re not all that special; I know I wouldn’t willingly go to a restaurant to see you at midnight when I’m a second away from passing out from tiredness.”

You shoved him, one hand on the wheel, as you rolled out of the parking lot and onto the immediate freeway. “And you’re so amazing?”

“I’m perfect, thank you very much.” 

It took you about thirty minutes to drop off Jack at his apartment, seeing that it was in a different town, and he made you stop at a gas station for a bag of Munchies. As soon as you fell onto your bed, you were out like a light.

When Thursday came around, you weren’t so optimistic about Jenna showing up. Actually, you debated calling out just because you didn’t feel like working that day, but you knew that your request would probably get declined because it was last-minute and it wasn’t for an emergency, so you got ready.

To your surprise, the day was calm. There were only about two well-known celebrities, and they were enthusiastically nice to you and tipped generously, leaving Jack to complain about your tips for the day, considering that he had almost half less and had a drink thrown on him by a TikTok influencer.

“Why do you always get the nicer tables with big tips while I get stuck with cows who try using their “influence” to get out of paying for their seven-fifty ($750) dollar meal?” He huffed, pretending to be busy because he was currently dealing with — actually, not even a D-lister, just somebody who was in the background of a Marvel movie in 2015.

Meanwhile, you were on your thirty minute break, munching on a burrito you had bought before walking into work that morning. “Because I’m nice and charismatic, even to those that throw their food on my clothes. You, on the other hand, have no charisma at all, and you purposefully set a bitchy tone whenever someone’s mean to you. Nobody’s tipping a man who looks to be on the verge of throwing them onto the highway.”

“Well-”

“Carlile!” Derek called out Jack’s name — or technically, last name, “Back to work, there’s a girl that came in, I’m thinking B-list but on her way to the A-list.”

“I’m dealing with some background extra right now!” He called out, buttoning up his vest he had unbuttoned earlier to breathe, and Derek came into the back where you guys were. “They wanted to leave, so Harvey gave them their check and took your tip from them while he was at it, so go and serve the girl!”

Derek left, and Jack huffed. “God, I hate that fucker. I’m getting that tip back.” And with that, he disappeared as well, anger evident in his step. You just laughed at him, twenty minutes left on your break as you laid back on the chair, tearing up the bulky burrito.

Not even five minutes later, Jack came rushing in, sweat beads on his forehead as he had a large smile on his face. “Guess who’s here.”

“Mmm, by the way you’re smiling, I’d say Spencer Charnas.”

“No, dumbass! Jenna’s here.” You coughed, choking up the burrito chunk you tried to swallow. “You’ve gotta be kidding me.” Getting up, you viewed yourself in the mirror. Your hair was messed up, tie in disarray, and your shirt sleeves slightly wrinkled from having them rolled up. You were not looking sharp.

“Yes, I told her that I’d switch her table over to you after getting her the drinks she and her — might I say, massive bodyguards, ordered. So go!”

He ushered you out of the backroom, hands on your tie fixing it into place and undoing your sleeves, fixing them down to your wrist. “I thought she was gonna come after we closed, like how she did before.”

“I guess she couldn’t wait to see you, buddy. Now you go and get your first girlfriend, yeah?” He patted your back, and you slapped him on the arm before heading into the dining section. Luckily, she was sat at the edge of a window where there was an empty walkway to her table, avoiding you of any interruptions by surrounding customers.

“What would you like to get started with?” You adjusted your vest, not making eye contact with Jenna just yet. Any observant person could tell you were nervous. “Well, hello to you too.”

You looked up, meeting her eyes and smiling. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there last Thursday, got a little sick and thought it was best to not infect everyone, especially you.” 

“It’s fine. Oh, and here.” She reached into the bag sat next to her, pulling out the book before handing it over to you, urging you to take it due to the weight of it. “Thank you. I didn’t expect you to finish so early, you said you’re busy constantly, after all.”

“I read it on the days I wasn’t all too busy, mostly on the way to meetings and in my trailer on set.” Jenna shrugged it off, adding, “And you were right, it’s a really good book.”

“Well, if you ever need any more book suggestions, I’m here. You want to get something to eat, or do you want me to come back in a bit?”

“Mmm, give me like five minutes, yeah?” She flashed you a smile that you dumbly nodded at, turning on your heel and heading into the kitchen, meeting Jack halfway there and you practically jumped on him.

“Someone’s giddy.”

“Oh, shut up. She’s making me nervous, Jack, she keeps eye contact — do you know what it’s like to hold eye contact with a pretty girl?”

“I’m assuming it’s nervewracking.”

“Oh right, I forgot. You can’t talk to girls.” You put his hand on his shoulder, sending him a fake sympathetic smile that he glared at.

“So, when are you asking her out?” Jack grabbed a couple plates, presumably for the table he was serving and you just laughed, causing him to send you a look.

You stopped upon seeing his confused glare. “Oh, you’re not joking. She doesn’t like me, I think I’d know if a girl likes me.”

“But, you wouldn’t. You’ve never had a girlfriend in your life, despite your many talking stages, all of which were online. You’re not experienced in body language, bud. Go out there and take her order, and see how it goes from there.” Leaving you standing in the busy kitchen, you thought about it.

Taking advice from Jack wasn’t the best idea, though. He dated a catfish for five months, for fuck's sake. 

Walking back into the main room, you walked over to the shelf and put the bulky navy-colored book back in it’s former place, shifting some books to slot it in. Eyeing Jenna’s table, you saw how she sat there, hands clasped together, talking to her bodyguards.

“You ready now?” You walked up to the table, hands together behind your back, and gave her a small smile.

“Yeah, I’ll have,” Jenna re-opened the menu, pinpointing her option as “Lobster ravioli with Mascovy duck breast, whatever that is.” She laughed slightly, a smile still etched on your face, and said, “And…a date with you.” She spoke lowly, as if she were purposefully lowering her voice so you couldn’t hear her.

“And a what? Sorry.” You apologized, leaning in slightly closer to hear. “A…chance to hang out with you, if you’re up for that. Other people, like friends, can be there too, of course.”

Your mouth gaped open, and the longer you took to answer, the more anxious Jenna became.

"Definitely, yeah, sure.” You managed to get out, nodding your head extensively, and Jenna’s anxiousness faded. 

You got her bodyguard's order as well, practically running to the kitchen to give your paper to a chef before scanning for Jack and watching him eat a lobster that one of the cooks seemed to have prepared for his break time. “Did you ask her out?”

“No, but she asked me to hang out with her.” To your words, Jack shot one hand up and mumbled something that you couldn’t recognize, lobster in his mouth.

“She practically wants you.” He repeated, this time more recognizable. “Yeah, yeah.” You waved him off, pacing around with your hands glued together, thinking. 

“No, think about it.” Jack set his plate down, swallowing the last bits of his lobster. “She’s busy, right? She’s got like five thousand movies coming out this year and next year, which means that she’d be making time through her busy schedule to be with you! She likes you a lot.”

You stopped, your hands transferring over to your hips. You eyed him, skeptical at first, before sighing. “You think so?”

Jack nodded. “Definitely, go get her tiger.” He pushed you away, hearing the sound of your name being called along with four plates being set off to the side.

You took the plates, setting them on a tray before balancing it on your hand, suddenly a lot more paranoid about dropping them than you’ve ever been. “Here you go.”

Bringing the tray into both your hands, you set the plates aside one by one before tucking it under your arm. “If you guys need anything else, just call me over.”

“Well,” Jenna’s voice stopped you from walking away, “In order for me to see you again, I’d need your number.”

“Right!” You said rather enthusiastically, taking her phone that she held out and typing your number in, sending her one last smile before retreating back into the kitchen.

Sadly, that was the last time you saw her that day because Harvey decided to steal your table, as he did to Jack earlier, to try and capture your tip.

“(Y/N).” Derek called out for you, walking into the room to catch you wiping up tables. “That girl you served earlier, the one that Harvey stole, told me to give your tip to you. She definitely caught on to him.” He laughed, handing you a stack of money before waving goodbye.

You gawked at the amount, five-hundred dollars as a tip was probably the biggest you ever got, and it was from a girl who, besides you, took an interest in you that she was sure to soon act on.

☟ ☟ ☟

i feel like part one was written remotely better than this part, but regardless, i hope you enjoy this :)

[hislittleraincloud]

Minor Reconning UVC

On an unserious note, the Under Virgin Circumstances universe has been thrown for a little bit of a loop.

I've been writing in real time for our favorite taboo couple. As everyone knows, the main story takes place at the end of the Fall 2023 semester/picks up right at the moment the movie ends. The short "The Bigger Picture" describes a scene that took place in June 2024, shortly before Cairo and Jon were supposed to take off on her gap year living abroad/writing/experiencing before starting at Vanderbilt in September 2025. Said gap year was described at the end via Cairo's narration as

Paris. London. Berlin. Budapest. Florence, for the roses. Pamplona. 

Each location was planned as a two month stay. They had arrived in Paris (to the apartment in Cergy) in early September and were due to leave for the "London" apartment near the end of October. The second short, "She'll Be Alright", takes place in October/last month, when they were beginning to get ready to go to England.

But I dunno. I don't know if I can justify keeping them in London, given the shit that's been happening. And yeah, Putin's threatened shit before, but that ICBM was pretty fucking concerning. Not to mention the whole...dragging North Korea into the Ukraine War, or the coming Green Light the fucker will be given by his Orange Fuckpuppet. I don't think UVC Cairo would be able to handle it, even if the threats are empty and nothing would ever happen to Britain. Yes, she's evil, she's a badass, but she's not in the least suicidal — clearly, very clearly, self-preservation is her biggest thing — and my Cairo has some nervous quirks that I've only scratched the surface with in "She'll Be Alright". Something like all that shit over there is unanticipated bullshit and she wouldn't want to be dealing with it/be so close to everything (it's not something they even considered when planning any of it).

And thus they were scheduled to be in their rentals:

London — Nov. 2024 to end of Dec. 2024

Berlin — Jan. 2025 to end of Feb. 2025

Budapest — March 2025 to end of April 2025

Florence — May 2025 to June 2025

Pamplona — July 2025 to August 2025

(Yeah, I purposely coordinated their Spain stay with the running of the bulls. 💀)

I'm not concerned with Italy or Spain.

And okay. Fiction is escapism. I always have to remind myself of that, especially when I have a bunch of nitpickers clanging about real world laws in regards to Satisfying Afterburn, even though that world is 1 million % more fictional than Cairo and Jon's. Such is why I'm moving a little bit away from reality with that one, and hoped to keep Cairo and Jon somewhat grounded in the reality of their world/which is our world.

And it just so happened that what happened in our world directly affected the UVCniverse with the flash flooding and storms of the hurricanes this season, hence "She'll Be Alright" (wouldn't have been the case if Miller's Girl took place in Texas or...fkn Idaho, though I could see it taking place in a small town in either state — now that might be fun AU). I have Benson placed in Eastern TN nearer to the borders, but for all we know, Bartlett placed them closer to Nashville. Anyway, the point is that the real world does affect them simply because Miller's Girl/UVC are dramas that take place in the real world (much like Finestkind...but we won't talk about that even worse movie 💀).

Escapism — I've considered pretending like nothing's going on, but that would mean going against my own established canon. So the canon that hasn't been affected (stuff I haven't gone all-in on the writing yet) can change, but that means minor retconning of Cairo's establishing moment in her monologue/narration. I'm not sure exactly what will happen, but my initial thoughts are that (their remaining time in) London, Berlin, and Budapest are probably out, which is a shame because I freaking adored Budapest when I visited ten years ago. But now the country's run by a goddamn authoritarian too who gradually chipped away at Hungary's democracy, and politically isn't the same country as it was when I was there.

Also, Cairo is hating the weather around London right now. Hating it.

I might move them back to France. I feel like Cairo really liked it there, and Jon (is) trying to convince her not to worry too much; France would be an okay compromise, despite Macron joining in with the UK's permissions re: their Ukraine assistance. The Deus Ex would of course be their luck at being able to rent the same quaint little place that they had lived in before. The issues with where in Hell they can/will go will be of their forthcoming discussion/arguments. Of course they're committed and their relationship is solid, but there will be a bit of emotional turbulence for little Cairo who hasn't been through these types of toughening experiences yet.

At the end of all of it in 2025, I'll probably end up putting it together for the next volume of UVC. That had been my intentions for them since the beginning (to continue their adventures). The shorts coming out of this in between now and then are just snapshots of their realtime lives.

It's minor. Whatever changes (if they are to be made) will hardly be noticeable. It's just that their dreams have taken a little detour/might be headed in a different trajectory than expected. They'll still come out fine.

This movie was trash but I'm its #1 trash panda 🦝💕 Just look at the casual way she takes his cigarette to light hers. It surprised him that she was smooth like that, hence the brow raise. They both played this scene so sweetly. How can you not love them 🥹💘