#our mom raised us to love nature so this is peak

[butchyena]

brother's townhouse has a bird's nest thats been infiltrated by a black-billed cuckoo and hes promised to send me regular updates oh boy oh boy

edit: OR its a brown-headed cowbird....

[pastanest]

if you’re wondering why I’m having to repost this, or why you were perhaps previously following me but no longer are, please refer to this post. I was able to retrieve this thanks to @rosieathena - thanks so much!! ♡

Spencer Reid x she/her!reader

Familiar Face

“What about you, kid, did you have a crush in school?” Derek asks Spencer, a natural progression considering everyone on the team had already discussed their school crushes. Even Penelope joined in from the computer screen. It‘s a long flight, they have time.

The image of you enters Spencer’s mind as soon as the question is asked.

“No, I didnt.” He answers, the picture of you seeming to grow until it envelopes all of his thoughts.

Emily raises an eyebrow. “I think someone is telling a lie!”

This peaks the entire team’s interest, all of them leaning forward in their seats, profiling him expertly in terrifying silence.

“Alright, alright! There was a girl I had feelings for!” Spencer admits defeat under the deadly gaze of his friends, who all smile in joint victory.

“Come on kid, you’ve gotta tell us more!” Derek says, already prepared to tease the genius to no end.

Spencer sighs. “She was my best friend. My only friend, actually. Nobody could really...stand to be around me, nobody my own age, back then. The only reason I wasnt mercilessly bullied was because of her, she so fiercely defended me all the time.” He laughs fondly, losing himself to thoughts of you. “She was always much smaller than me, but she was fearless. We used to play imaginary games where we were both police officers chasing bad guys; it was her who inspired me to want to pursue a career like this. Before her, the bad guys scared me. My mom loved her, and she loved my mom, they were always laughing together whenever she came over. I can distinctly remember my heart stopping when our imaginary police games got particularly dramatic and she’d grab my hand, for just a few seconds I was allowed to believe I had a chance with her.” Spencer shakes his head, pulling himself out of his thoughts and clearing his throat. “But that was a long time ago, she has most likely forgotten all about me.”

He looks down at the case file in his hands and pretends to read it while the team exchange glances. He did his best to reveal as little personal information possible about you, so that they have no way of finding you and forcing you to see him again, but he couldnt help still feeling worried.

It had been a while since Spencer had thought of you. His mind drifted to you every so often, but he only ever let himself very shallowly recall memories of you, he wouldnt dare relive them properly. But after talking about you aloud for the first time in so many years, the dam was broken, and his mind was flooded.

Not only does he recall how his heart stopped when you held his hand, he remembers the way you’d grin every time you saw him, even if you’d only spent an hour without him. Spencer recites the countless facts he remembered specifically to tell you. He remembers every word you ever told him, from the day you met when the two of you were five years old, until the day he graduated high school at 12 and had to leave for college.

That day in kindergarten, you left the other kids you were playing with so that you could go and sit with little Spencer, who was reading a book by himself. You introduced yourself and asked him to read to you, which became an ongoing tradition in your friendship, up until the day you cried into each other before he had to leave for college. You told him you adored him, that you’d do everything in your power to stay in touch with him, and then you kissed him. Neither him nor you had ever addressed any feelings outside of friendship, and even then, neither of you said anything. It was your shared first kiss.

Spencer remembers every detail of every incident when you physically jumped in front of him to protect him from school bullies. He counted six times that you got called to the principal’s office for punching, kicking and biting people that were mean to him. It would always be Spencer who pulled you away from a fight and held you back, you werent scared at all. He remembers when you got a black eye in a particular incident protecting him, he felt so guilty that he threw up and tried to avoid you, because he thought you’d be safer and happier without him. But you found him, you always did, and you told him you’d break every bone in your body if it meant he would be safe. That was one of the moments, one of many, that made him fall so hard for you.

A week passed, a week of Spencer daydreaming of you in the same way he did all those years ago. None of the team had brought you up again, which gave him just as much relief as it did stress; he couldnt tell if they were planning something or if they’d simply moved on. Regardless, the team’s focus is presently on a case of a missing child. This case is only a short drive away, no flight necessary, which was the only pleasantry of this case.

“We contacted a CARD team investigator to assist us on this case.” Aaron briefs the team as they enter the station, and everyone nods.

The CARD team, Child Abduction Response Deployment, works to recover victims as quickly as possible and helps apprehend those responsible for taking them. There are only 60 or so agents who make up the CARD team, stationed at field offices and assigned to one of five regional teams. They are seasoned veterans of crimes against children, especially child abductions, and have received extensive training. While some local law enforcement agencies may only work one or two child abduction cases a year, CARD team agents work these kinds of cases all the time, keeping their unique skill set honed.

An officer approaches Aaron. “Agent (Y/L/N) has already started interrogating the first person on the local sex offenders list.”

Hotch nods. “Rossi, you and Prentiss speak to the first victim’s family. JJ and Derek, go and speak to Addie’s parents.” He instructs, referring to the child currently missing. “Reid and I will assist Agent (Y/L/N) with interrogations.”

Spencer feels his mouth dry up, Agent (Y/L/N)? It couldnt be, could it? The probability of that coincidence is far too low, it isnt logical, only hopeful.

The team splits up, with Spencer and Aaron heading to the interrogation room. The CARD investigator has her back to the window, sitting opposite a particularly seedy looking middle aged man.

“How many times are you and I going to meet in these circumstances, Mr. Williams?” She says, a hint of sass mixed into her authoritative tone.

“As many times as you jump to suspect me the second a kid goes missing!” Mr. Wiliams snaps back, raising his voice.

Although Spencer cant see her face, he can practically hear her raise an eyebrow sarcastically as she laughs. “Oh, you overestimate yourself, Mr. Williams. You are simply the first name on the list, there are plenty of other creeps far more capable of such a professionally executed crime. As far as Im concerned, you’re an amateur.”

Spencer smiles slightly. Hotch looks at him.

“She’s good, isnt she?”

Spencer nods. “She’ll break him in no time.”

He cant help recognising her voice as somewhat familiar, but he discards it as his mind playing tricks on him.

“Garcia said she’s quoted as the best CARD investigator in her regional team, if not the best of them all. In every case she’s worked, she’s found every child, and found them alive.”

Spencer frowns slightly, looking to Hotch. “Why did Garcia do a background check on a CARD investigator?”

There’s a flicker of panic in Aaron’s eyes, but he immediately regains composure. “She’d heard of Agent (Y/L/N) prior to this, in various articles Garcia likes to read about children who were reunited with their parents after being kidnapped. She hoped to join us on this case so that she could befriend the investigator.”

Spencer nods, that does sound like Penelope. But he couldnt shake the feeling that something was off. Penelope had never mentioned an Agent (Y/L/N) before.

“You’re obsessed with me!” Mr. Williams scoffs. “Even though Im in therapy for my inappropriate attractions, I’d rather have my dick cut off with a butter knife than sleep with you!”

The CARD investigator laughs at that, she really laughs, dramatically wiping tears from her eyes.

“Oh, now you’ve dug yourself a hole!” She says as she rises from her seat, placing her palms flat on the interrogation table and leaning over to him. “I’ve got a game for you. Why dont you go ahead and give me a list of women who would sleep with a man who can only get it up for little kids? Oh, wait, sorry, Im getting you confused with pedophiles who can get it up in the first place. You missed that train, didnt you? I also think you’re forgetting who was at your court case, and who saw the naked pictures of you that were passed around the court.” She chuckles, shaking her head dismissively as she walks around the table and leans over him from the side, her hair shielding her face from Spencer’s view.

“Sweetheart, my pinky finger would give me more satisfaction!” Agent (Y/L/N) cheers.

Mr. Williams tugs at his handcuffs, and she laughs harder.

“You’re really gonna try that with me? Do you WANT to go back in a cell? From what I remember, the other inmates dont take kindly to people like you, but Im sure you know that from your own experience, right?” She leans closer to him, Mr. Williams shrinking away from her. “Where were you at 3pm on Tuesday the 13th?” She tucks her hair behind her ear, and Spencer’s blood runs cold.

It’s you.

He knew it, the moment he heard your name, heard your voice, your laugh, he just didnt want to admit it!

“How did you find her?” Spencer asks, his voice stern.

“Garcia.” Hotch replies, neither of the men looking at each other.

Spencer nods and speed walks away, feeling his entire body heating up until he steps outside the building. He feels lightheaded, dizzy, like he’s dreaming. Before he knows it, his phone is pressed to his ear.

“You’ve reached the desk of the one and only sex goddess-“

Spencer cuts Penelope off. “How did you find her?”

He hears her swallow nervously. “W-Well, you graduated early, so I knew there was no point looking in yearbooks, but there were school pictures from before then...she was always stood next to you.”

Spencer sighs, Penelope doesnt say anything else, and he knows why. She’s worried that he’s angry with her, but he could never be. He knows that the team put her up to it for that exact reason: Garcia is the only person on the team he cant hold a grudge against, because her intentions are always nothing but kind. Without her needing to say it, Spencer knows she found you because she saw how happy he was just talking about you, she wanted to reunite the two of you. Set him up with someone that he already knew, or did, many years ago. And for that, he cant be upset with her.

“I havent seen her since I was 12, what do I say?” Spencer asks, truly lost in a situation he had not prepared himself for.

He can hear the relief in Penelope’s voice at his response. “Just be yourself! That worked when you were kids, so it’ll work now!”

Spencer looks over the door of the police station. “How can you know that?”

The smile on Penelope’s face is obvious. “You both ended up catching the bad guys.”

Spencer cant help but smile, too. It’s a strange bit of reassurance, and he appreciates it more than he can say. “Thank you.”

Penelope squeals. “Go get her!”

Then she hangs up, causing Spencer to laugh as he tucks his phone back in his pocket. He takes a few deep breaths as he stares at the door, hyping himself up before he nods to himself and walks back inside. Determination fills him as he makes his way back to the interrogation room, but the determination melts when he sees you talking with Hotch in the entrance hall. He had anticipated he’d have a few more seconds to mentally prepare, but that was gone, and so was his confidence. Spencer stops dead in his tracks, frozen to the spot.

You and Hotch smile as you talk, your eyes distracted from him by something you couldnt figure out, until they glanced at the door. Your expression fell into one of utter disbelief. Wide eyes approach Spencer at a pace that could slow time itself. Once you’re close enough, you lift your hand at the same snail speed, gently touching his cheek with your fingertips.

“Is it really you?” You whisper, such a quiet contrast to the confidence in the interrogation room.

Spencer nods, parting his mouth to speak, but then your face begins to change. A smile forms, blooming into a grin until he recognises it as the same smile you’d always give him, and quite suddenly all words lose their meaning. No amount of syllables or sentences could come close to a justified description of your beauty.

“Well, let me start by saying with complete confidence that my childhood crush on you has transcended its previous laws.” You say, blushing slightly at your own confession.

“How so?” Spencer asks with a small smile.

“Childhood crushes are supposed to end when childhood does, but here I am!” You declare, playfully mad at him.

He laughs. “Last time I saw you, you very unfairly put me in a state of shock that made me mute for an entire day.”

Your eyes widen with concern. “I did? Why!?! How!?!”

Spencer sighs. “You kissed me, and as soon as you did I couldnt function.”

“And why is that unfair?” You ask teasingly, grinning again.

“You rendered me physically incapable of responding appropriately!” Spencer states in joking accusation.

You raise an eyebrow, processing the sentiment behind his words. You take a step closer to him, standing on your tiptoes to wrap your arms around his neck. “Well, what’s a 20 year break in a conversation? I’d gladly continue it! A little less sadly this time around though, if possible.”

Spencer leans in. “Oh, that’s definitely possible.” He mumbles quietly, half a second before your lips meet his.

Spencer’s hands go to your waist, then to the small of your back, then your hips, while yours run through his hair and hold him to you, not that he’d ever try to escape. Your lips collide in the most gorgeous way, dancing together wordlessly, perfectly detailling the extent of your yearning for each other. You pull away, panting, and Spencer feels himself swell with pride noticing how impressed you are. Maybe waiting 20 years to kiss you back was good, since he got some practise in before the final test. Seeing you still recovering from his kiss, he finds confidence he never would’ve found without you.

���So, dinner tonight?”

[ravendruid]

Be In My Eyes - Chapter 1

This is a Vaxleth-centric College AU fic, where our group of chucklefucks share an apartment. You can also find this fic available on AO3. The title was inspired by the song Flowers in Your Hair by The Lumineers.

In the town of Byroden stood a large oak tree, behind which a small girl tried to hide from her brother, her dark hair in a messy braid and her hazel-brown eyes searching the direction from which she had seen him last. She was holding a stick almost as big as her with a piece of string tied to each end in what looked like a makeshift bow.

“Come on, Vex! It’s getting late, and I’m hungry!” A boy’s voice sounded in the distance. The girl, Vex, took a deep breath before she started to round the tree, as slowly and quietly as she could, looking for the source of the voice.

Vex wasn’t as great at hiding as he was, so he spotted her with ease, crouching by the roots of the large tree with her back to him. His equally dark hair fell at the sides of his face, a face so similar to the girl’s, but for the slight change of his features. The boy was able to approach his sister from behind without her noticing, his feet so silent against the dry ground that one could guess he was levitating. 

“Caught you!”

The girl jumped in place, raised a hand to her chest, and screamed as she turned to face him. “Vax! You scared me!”

Vax laughed at his sister’s reaction. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders. “I’m sorry stubby. We really should get going." He pulled her along with him. “It’s getting dark."

The girl finally nodded in agreement and they walked together, his arm still draped around her, until they reached the small wooden house, where a woman with thick dark hair stood in front of a stove, stirring a pot of stew.

***

The mountain town of Zephrah was located on a hill of the Summit Peaks, surrounded by trees and nature, among which stood a small, modest house, made of logs and stone. The gravel path leading to the wooden door was laden with beautiful flowers of various colors, and the planters in front of the windows sported a few bulbs of flowers ready to bloom. 

There was chatter coming and the nice smell of food cooking from inside the house as a tall, white-haired man stirred a pot on the stove while a small red-haired girl sat at the table, drawing flowers on a piece of paper.

“We learned about flowers today." The girl said as she drew a daisy. “We learned about cherry blossoms, snowdrops, and wildflowers… there are so many flowers with so many colors, and they’re all so pretty!” She finished tracing the daisy, only to start drawing a second one right next to it.

"Yes, flowers are one of the most beautiful things nature has to offer." The man said, looking over his shoulder. “They don't necessarily need to be merely decorative. They can have many uses, as you know." The girl nodded with her gaze still focused on the drawing, seemingly happy with the answer. “Keyleth dear, will you please set the table? Dinner is almost ready."

Keyleth nodded in response before her father turned his gaze back to the pot and started to collect her things by placing her coloring pencils inside a cute green pencil case. “Dad, what was mom’s favorite flower?”

Keyleth’s mother had died almost five years ago, when she was only five, and she didn’t have many memories of her, so she often asked her father questions about her. Keyleth knew that sometimes it hurt him to talk about her mom, but he knew it was important for her to know about her, so he would always answer her questions, especially the ones about what her mom loved and all her favorite things.

“She loved chamomiles." Her father answered with a smile. “They are beautiful, smell good, and they make great tea!” Like every time he spoke about his wife, Keyleth could see the threat of tears at the corners of his eyes.

“I love chamomiles too. I remember when mom used to make me tea when I was sick." Keyleth’s voice was soft and nostalgic. “I miss her so much."

Her father stepped away from the stove, making sure to turn it off beforehand, and approached her, crouching to her height and pulling her into a hug. “I know dear. I miss her too."

[nerves-nebula]

TW: VRISKCOURSE IN THE YEAR OF OUR LORD 2023

Feel free to ignore

Ding ding the witch is dead (the witch being vriska)

But honestly while I do agree that vriska represents Tumblr better I'm glad she lost because since I read homestuck for the first time 5 years ago I always found her kinda boring?

Like she only becomes interesting when interacting with other characters, like Terezi's whole thing with her, John/June's complicated feelings towards her, the many times she assaulted tavros and how that affected him, her relationship with Meenah (honestly I'd argue that Meenah is more interesting and spend less time with her than vriska, and she's still a dick so trust me the issue here is not unlikeability)

People act like she's the peak of unlikable female characters but she's just a popular girl that bullies others because her mom sucks, I already dealt with plenty of those IRL (especially during the time I first read HS), the machinations of her mind really aren't that complex, the only thing interesting about her is her powers.

Otherwise she's just a plot device

Basically what I'm saying is that there are unlikable female protagonists out there that are more interesting

Then again maybe her making me respond in this way is the point, maybe the point of a Tumblr woman is to make you wonder why anyone finds her interesting but I dunno I only been here for 6 years what do I know?

i mean i think that the way shes mean is why people hated her so much, cause she was mean in a way they found Too Close to real life. she wasn't unlikable the way a fictional character is SUPPOSED to be, she's unlikable the way your worst friend who ruined your life for years was, hah.

i dont really have a horse in this race as far as the Tumblr Culture goes, cause idc that much. but I do have an interesting relationship with her character so I might as well share it here.

I have particular affection towards Vriska because she reminds me A LOT of my older sister. which you might think is a bad thing and it sort of is, but its more complicated than that.

SEE my oldest sister basically had to raise all of us, on top of dealing with some weird emotional incest stuff with our mom (our mom would call her her "little husband" so it wasn't great) and worst of all she had to protect us from our oldest brother who was and still is an incredibly violent and volatile person. so she'd basically get beaten up all the time protecting us, and if my oldest brother was picking on one of us she'd antagonize him to get him to beat her up instead cause she could take it or something.

ANYWAY she's gone through a lot of trauma processing now and I love her and everything she stands for, but she was kind of a cruel kid/teenager. which makes sense, our childhood was a never ending hellscape of fighting and injuries and abuse, especially for her. So she did what she thought it would take to keep us (relatively) safe, including some rather abusive tactics to try to stop us from appearing weak, and she also lashed out cause she was like 13 raising 4 kids and constantly fighting 1 bigger kid

Anddd the thing about Vriska is that she's also a teenager and she's also been abused and she basically doesnt trust anyone else to NOT screw up (which is very much like my oldest sister too, but you cant really fault the controlling nature when everything was so high stakes hah)

soooo fsdfdsfsdfsadfds like,, my oldest sister wasn't a very good person until a bit into her later teens. So I can't really hold Vriska to like a Worst Person Ever standard because to me she doesnt represent a person who was awful to me and who I stopped being friends with or whatever. She's like a child version of my oldest sister, and that child deserved to be cared for instead of thrown into the hell that she was. I would wrap her in a blanket if I didn't think she'd stab me for it or something.

ANYWAY that's what I feel about this fictional character.

plus i love abused characters, what can I say. she was never my favorite but i did always wish the best for her hah.

[silly-thinkings]

The cursed Stone~ Part 5

3.8k words on this chapter! Please enjoy. Please do not repost my work. Likes comments and reblogs are appreciated :)

Day 3 Bruce's eyes fluttered open. He looked up at the ceiling feeling oddly relaxed. He suddenly felt movement to his right. Bruce did realize that he had company. To his surprise, it was Y/N stirring awake. "Mmm Good morning handsome~" You say softly. "Hello, beautiful" amongst his confusion his words rolled off his tongue so naturally.

Y/N pressed her body against his and let out a sigh "Today's the day. You excited?"

Bruce's brows furrowed. You sat up with your arm supporting you "Don't tell me you forgot about the game today"

He wrapped his arms around you and pulled you in "of course not. I just want to stay like this a bit longer."

the door burst open "C'mon guys, Alfred said breakfast is ready."

Dick happily jumped on the bed and snuggled in between the two adults.

You giggle "yes honey. We're on our way."

~~~

Bruce opened his eyes again and quickly looked to his right. He frowned to see the empty space beside him. He got up and did the usual. Shower, brush his teeth, then his hair, and finally pick out his clothes. Bruce decided to go with a simple white dress shirt and some jeans before making his way towards the kitchen.

Upon arriving he saw his eldest son with toast in his mouth whilst on the phone.

"Yea? Mhmm. Alright"

Dick gave Bruce a slight nod before leaving the room. Odd, he was more social yesterday.

Jason bumped into Dick at the door causing him to drop his toast. He floundered around before catching the bread.

"Woah, Jason? What are you doing here? I mean. Don't get me wrong, I love seeing you but I didn't expect you to be here. Let alone sleepover."

Bruce raised an eyebrow while Jason scratched the back of his head "What are you talking about? Of course, I'm going to be here. Mom is coming over today, remember?"

"Mom?"

Dick looked at Jason bewildered, then back at Bruce "Conner, I'll call you back." He hung up the phone and crossed his arms. "Ok, who are you talking about?"

Now Jason looked at his brother stunned "Y/N, remember we're trying to set her up with Bruce. To get our lives back."

Dick smirked while looking back at his old man "Well I'll be. Bruce has a date!" He nudged Jason's side "and you're already calling her mom. I'll have to meet her sometime."

"What the hell man. If this is some kind of joke it's not funny." Jason snapped

Dick raised his hand and walked back a bit "hey hey I'm not trying to be funny."

His phone buzzed. He looked at the caller Id and smiled. "Good luck with your date Bruce. I gotta go." Dick turned around and answered the phone. Promptly walking out of the manor.

Jason quickly turned to Bruce "what the hell happened"

"I'm not sure. But it seems like he's recovered from the fever." Bruce said, just as confused.

Jason scratched his head in frustration. "How can he forget about Ma like that?!"

Footsteps that were clearly Tim's began growing louder. He walked in with eyes wide in horror "The headache, the fever, that stone is trying to adjust to this reality." "And how do you know that?" Jason asked crossing his arms "It's happening to me"

***

Jamie felt the cool wind hit his face. The warm sun rays peaked through the curtains making him smile. He got up from his bed and made his way towards the kitchen. To his surprise, you weren't there. He then checked your bedroom and found you sleeping still in the fancy night dress you'd use for the club.

Jamie shook his head and returned to the kitchen "I'll make her some breakfast"

He grabbed the items that he needed while humming to himself. When he picked up the mug he noticed his hands all bloody. Jamie stepped back looking down on his shirt only to see red liquid seep through.

"What... no. I'm alive."

At the sound of glass shattering the illusion quickly dissolved itself. Jamie's breathing was ragged and harsh. He looked into his shirt "I'm good. I'm ok."

He took a deep breath "I'm alive. I got time."

Jamie frowned at the remains of the shattered mug "I hate cleaning glass."

~~

The smell of eggs and toast slowly awoke you. Your eyes slowly open to see Jamie holding a tray of food by the door.

"Aww man, you woke up before I reached the bed." He said, pouting a little.

You smile and sit up "what's this?"

"Uhhh appreciate your mom day." he rolled his eyes "It's a national holiday. you should know this." Jamie opened the legs of the small tray and placed it in front of you.

You put your hand on his head and ruffle his hair "thank you. This means a lot to me."

Jamie felt his heart swell. He'd do anything to protect his mother. The only woman that took him in and gave him a proper chance at life. As Y/N ate there was a knock at the door.

"Mom, are you expecting anyone?"

You check the clock "no, not in this hour."

Jamie got up "I'll check it out." He left the room and approached the door. He looked through the peephole only to see that there wasn't anyone there. Jamie unlocked the door and opened it to find an Elegant black box on the floor. He picked it up and closed the door with his foot.

Jamie returned to the room "Did you order something?"

He put the box down in front of you. You uncaringly wiped your hands on your dress before moving the mini table aside.

You opened the box to see a beautiful F/C Necklace with a matching long sundress.

"Damn. Who's it from?"

You blush thinking about the only man who could possibly have given you such a gift. Then you remember what today was. You looked at the clock again and your eyes widened "My date!"

You take the box and get out of bed. Unbeknownst to you, a note dropped onto the floor.

Jamie watched you quickly disappear into the bathroom. He picked up the card.

"I thought I told him to stay away." Jamie grumbled to himself. He put the note in his pocket and begrudgingly walked off to his room.

A few minutes later you walked out of the bathroom and stared at yourself in the mirror. Suddenly your head began to throb.

You looked into the mirror again to see yourself wearing a different dress. One more elegant than the gifted sundress.

"I'll never understand how a man like me managed to have someone like you in my life."

That voice. His voice. You can see Bruce look into your eyes from the mirror.

"Bruce?"

There's that feeling again. This isn't a hallucination. This isn't a dream. This is a memory. You turned around and the illusion faded around you. You were back in your room. Wearing the sundress he gave. You place a hand on your chest trying to control your breathing.

Your phone lit up, the vibrations catching your attention. You pick up the phone.

"Hey, I'm downstairs."

"A-alright. I'll be down in a bit."

"Everything alright? Did something happen?"

"No no everything is fine. I'll see you in a bit, honey."

Without waiting for a response you hung up the phone. You took a deep breath before walking to your son's room. He was tinkering with something before tossing it in his bag.

"Jamie. I'll be off now."

Jamie turned in his chair. "I'm coming with you."

"What?"

Jamie stood and grabbed his bag. You didn't even realize that he too changed into something more formal-casual "sorry mom, I don't trust that rich guy and his stalker sons. So I'm going to."

You blink a couple of times before resting a hand on your hip "honey, I'm more than capable of taking care of myself."

Jamie didn't respond which was unusual to say the least. You noticed a frown on his face. His eyes seemed distant, deep in thought. Without another word he sidestepped and left the apartment. ~~ The car ride to the manor was a pleasant one. Alfred Pennyworth kept a steady conversation during the ride to the manor. Jamie on the other hand had his headphones on and scribbled something on his notes. When you arrive at the manor Bruce was waiting outside looking ever so wonderful. It made your heart flutter when he opened your car door. "Welcome Y/N. You look beautiful," he said with a perfect smile. You placed your hand in his as you exited the car "Thank you, Glad to be here Bruce~"

Alfred opened the car door for Jamie, who gave his thanks before standing beside the butler. "Is there anywhere I can hang out? Preferably somewhere quiet." Alfred nodded "I can show you to the library" Jamie walked to his mother and gave her a hug, which you gladly returned "be nice" you whispered. You felt him nod before walking away with Alfred. Bruce extended his arm for you "Is there a reason why your son tagged along?" You wrapped one of your arms around his "He's worried about something. He says it's your reputation, but I think otherwise." Bruce gave a hum in response. "I promise I won't be doing anything of the sort. Now, Alfred has prepared food for us. All of it waiting in the garden." *** The afternoon soon turned into evening, but Jamie didn't really mind spending half his day In a mansion. In fact, he was feeling pretty relaxed. He stayed in the library messing with the contraption that he brought with him to keep him busy. On occasion, Y/N or Alfred would come in and check on him which was alright. Jamie noticed Y/N's mood completely changed. She was happy. The way she maneuvered around the manor was like she lived here herself. Jamie looked down at an equation on his notebook, then back at the small device in his hand. "What are you working on?" Jamie jumped a bit at the sudden voice. He turned his head to see one of the Wayne boys walking towards him with two cups of coffee. "You wouldn't understand," Jamie said, picking up a small screwdriver. Tim looked at his notes, then the device in his hand. The item looked to be a simple watch, followed by smaller bits of metal in a pile next to him. "No way dude. You're working on nano-tech?" Jamie paused, he looked up at Tim "huh, so you aren't like the rest of the ignorant rich in Gotham." Tim sat on the floor across from him and placed a mug of coffee down next to Jamie. The blond raised an eyebrow before Tim picked up one of his notes "So, you're having trouble with the bots actually activating." Tim took a pen and wrote out a new formula. Scribbling arrows and writing more in-depth details "Try this" Jamie rose the coffee mug to his lips as he looked at the paper "I've thought of this before. But I don't have those pieces. it's expensive." "I gotcha. I'll just say it's for a school project." "What's the catch?" Jamie spoke sternly. "Uhh, you'd actually give us a chance." Tim said with a confident smirk. **** You and Bruce sat on a swing in the middle of his hedge garden. "Looks like brunch will turn into dinner soon," You said snuggling up against him. You felt his headrest on top of yours. He absolutely loved this feeling. Never in his life did he think he would settle down with someone who would accept him and his nightly activities. "Y/N how has your week been so far?" Your brows furrowed with the question "crazy. You wouldn't believe me if I told you what's been happening." Bruce smiled "oh yea? Try me" You sit up and look at him in the eyes "I've been having these... weird dreams. That feels more like memories. About us, and your sons. Like we're a-" "Family" Bruce finished your thought. He placed a hand on hers gently "I've been seeing that too." Bruce noticed your lips starting to quiver. He sat up and placed a hand on your face. Involuntary tears streamed down your eyes. "Are you not happy with that life Y/N?" "No no, I love it. But where's Jamie?" You brought your voice down to a whisper "Why isn't he with us Bruce?"

Bruce frowned "I'm sorry. I don't know why he isn't with us." He averted his eyes, unable to look at her.

Bruce rested his forehead against yours. This calmed you. Your moment with Bruce was interrupted due to the sound of footsteps.

"Father? Is this a bad time?" Damian asked softly.

Bruce looked at his watch then back at you. "I'll be back.

"I'll go check on Jamie." you give Bruce a quick kiss on the cheek.

Bruce watched you leave with an idiotic smile on his face. He placed a hand on where your lips just were.

"Have you told her yet? We're wasting time." Damian grumbled "Patience Damian. You seem to have forgotten something crucial" "And that is?" Bruce looked down "Even if what you say is true. You expect her to give up her son?" He said, crossing his arms.

"It doesn't matter. The mission is to get our lives back. That teenager isn't important."

***

You walked into the library expecting to see Jamie but only saw his bag.

"Is everything alright miss Y/N"

Alfred's voice startled you, making you squeak "yes, everything is fine. Have you seen Jamie?"

Alfred smiled "yes miss. This way."

Alfred led you up the stairs and through the long halls. He opened the door to the home theater and stepped to the side.

"No fair! I totally had you." Jamie whined

"Ha! Better luck next time kid." Jason said, ruffling the blond's hair.

"When do I get a turn." Tim groaned.

Jamie grumbled to himself and passed the game controller to Tim, reaching for another cup of coffee. Jason placed his controller down and leaned back on the couch. Tim took some candy from a bowl that was beside him and tossed the wrapper in the trash.

You smile at the scene. If anything, you felt a little too happy. You didn't think Jamie would get along with the rest of the boys but here they were, playing video games and eating junk food. You felt your eyes blur with tears.

Jamie noticed you by the door and quickly made his way to you "hey mom! Hows the-"

He noticed your tears eyes "what happened?"

Tim and Jason came up behind him. Their faces also showed concern.

"No nothing. I'm just... very happy to see you three getting along."

Jason crossed his arms "don't be shy, do tell us If Bruce is fucking with you. It'll give me a reason to punch his gut."

You giggled "Jason, please. Language."

You placed a hand on Jamie's cheek, then one on Tim's head "Bruce is treating me just fine." You then place both hands on Jason's shoulder "so don't hunt him down. Understood?"

Jason rolled his eyes but had a playful smirk on his face "Yes Ma'am"

Alfred sighed, getting everyone's attention "it would seem you've all spoiled your dinner."

All three boys sheepishly looked away from the butler making you laugh more. "Forgive them Alfred. They were having fun."

You began walking towards some of the wrappers "boys c'mon, help me clean this up."

Jamie followed your lead with no problem. Jason leaned down a bit bringing his voice to a whisper "Dick was right. Totally a muscle memory thing."

Tim nodded "Jamie's actually pretty cool too. It's a shame that he..."

Tim's words trailed off. Jason stood tall "maybe there's a way to stop it."

Tim's eyes widened as he looked at Jason's face. "What. we both know it's not impossible. I mean, Look at me" he said with a smirk. Suddenly a wild pillow made contact with his face.

"Hey!"

Jamie snickered "what. Making sure you're alive Dude."

Then A much larger pillow hit Jamie, causing the boy to fall over on the couch. Tim and Jason looked to their mother who held a confident smile on her face "clean first. Then I'll destroy you all. In a pillow fight." ~~~

After some time the Theater room returned to its original state. "Good as new~" You say proudly. "All that's left are the mugs" Jamie added walking towards the door. Stomping footsteps could be heard from outside. When Jamie opened the door he watched the young tween stomp towards Y/N "Damien!" Bruce yelled walking into the room behind his son. You look down at the boy who took out half of the stone. He grabbed your wrist and placed it in your hand "Damian w-what are you-" "Mother, I am sorry for the words I have said to you. May you please forgive me?" Jason and Tim's eyes widen. Jamie felt a rage bubble up inside him. He stomped towards Damian and reached for him "Why you little-"

Damian skillfully dodged and kicked Jamie down. "This doesn't concern you." Damian scowled Jamie lost his footing and fell on the floor. You pulled your hand away still holding the stone "What the hell do you think you're doing" "I'm trying to bring you back to reality." You looked at Jamie on the floor groaning in pain. Your vision begins to cloud. Now you weren't in the room anymore. You were on stage as if you were performing. Jamie lay on the floor. A pool of red liquid with many bullet wounds on his chest. his eyes void of life.

"No... NO NO NO JAMIE! Stay with me my boy please!"

You felt hands grab your arms. "Let go of me! Let me go" Then a splitting headache.

"AHHHH"

Y/N placed her hand on her head. Tim followed suit.

"GAHH!" Tim knelt in a desperate attempt not to pass out "My-My memories. They're being altered... to adjust to this reality. GAHH!"

Tim finally fell over "how did Dick manage with this... pain."

Bruce knelt down next to Tim "He's having a Seizure. "

Jamie quickly got up and roughly shoved a shocked Damian out of the way "What the hell did you do!"

Damian walked back. Stunned by what he was witnessing. Y/N and Tim's screams finally quelled. Her body collapsed to the floor

Jamie caught you, breaking your fall. "Mom. Mom, can you hear me?"

"Jason, with me." Bruce picked Tim up and ran out the room.

Jason walked over to Jamie. His eyes were filled with hurt and worry "it's ok. You can't carry her by yourself. Let me help."

Jamie's hair fell over his eyes. He looked at your form. You were still shaking, sweating bullets, and muttering things about his death.

Jamie finally nodded his head.

Jason picked you up and quickly left the room. Leaving Damian alone With Jamie.

Jamie picked up the stone "the hell do you mean 'back to reality'"

Damian's eyes narrowed "I come from a time where you were nothing but a memory. You died-"

"At the auction." Jamie finished. He turned around "so the blood son is trying to kill me? Take my mother away from me... because YOU messed up?"

Damian got into a fighting stance "What I said to her was idiotic. I never meant for this to happen."

"Well, it happened Damian! And now I'm back." Jamie walked over to Damian. He looked him in the eyes as he towered over the 13-year-old " I have no intention of leaving her with a brat like you."

Jamie put the half stone in his pocket "Don't even think about going near her again."

Damian watched Jamie leave the room, slamming the door behind him.

***

Alfred led Jamie to one of the guest rooms. Y/N laid on the bed sleeping ever so soundly. Like what happened earlier never occurred. Jason sat on the chair across from her reading a book aloud.

"The 39 clues" Jamie whispered, gaining Jason's attention.

"Her favorite" he responded with a smile.

"How did you know that."

Jason held a smile while he shrugged his shoulders.

Jamie sat on the other chair and held his mother's hand "Thank you."

Jason closed the book "not a problem kid. Sorry about the brat" He stood to leave but Jamie quickly grabbed his wrist.

"What the hell is happening. First, you called her mom, then Damian. Tim said things about memories being altered." Jamie looked up "There's more to all this and I demand to know"

Jason looked at you, then back to Jamie

"Tell me damn it! Holding information is only going to make this situation worse."

Jason frowned and looked away.

"Fine, don't tell me." Jamie looked back at you "call Alfred. I can care for her at home."

"You're leaving? But it's late. And you can't possibly-"

"I'll care for her at home! Besides, I think this is the last place she'd want to be in after the stunt you all pulled."

Jason nodded. As much as he wanted them to stay, he completely understood Jamie's hostility. If a group of people waltzed into their lives claiming to be family he'd probably react much worse than how Jamie is handling everything.

~~~ Jamie arrived home. Much to his dismay, Bruce carried Y/N to her bed. She still hasn't awoken from her shocked sleep. Bruce looked around the studio apartment. I wasn't too bad of a place, given the area that they lived in. But he much rather have both of them in the safety of his home. He gently placed you on your bed. A soft breath escaped your lips.  Bruce turned around to look at the young man "Call me if you need anything." He said sternly  "We can handle ourselves. Now see yourself out, Mr. Wayne"  Bruce watched Jamie sit on the floor and pull out notebooks and metals. Bruce made a mental note to himself to ask Tim what kind of technologies the kid is working on.  Jamie listened to the retreating footsteps of the grown man. then finally the door closed. Jamie let out a sigh "Damn it."  Y/N's phone began to buzz, annoying Jamie. Without looking at the caller ID he answered.  "The hell do you want."  "Watch your tone boy. Don't let your mother's protection get into your head." Jamie gulped. He didn't expect Maxwell to be on the other end. He only spoke to the boss twice in his life.  But he has seen enough of the aftermath of those who's crossed him to know that this man isn't to be messed with. "Yes sir." Jamie spoke softly  "Good. Now can you pass the phone to your mommy? I got something important to talk to her about."  Jamie let out a shaky breath "Y/N isn't available right now. w-we got jumped on the way back from shopping today. Hurt really bad." There was silence on the other end of the phone.  "Uhh... Hello?" "I'll send some of my men around your area. Make sure she's well for tomorrow and Friday."  Maxwell hung up the phone. Jamie looked down at the cell "Oh goodie"

[drtenebres]

who are the most developed/most focused on characters right now??

Thanks for the ask!! It’s hard to say who is the most developed character right now, due to so many brain cells trying to work together, but we’ve all got our own individual ones we’re working on that we feel the strongest about !

@shslstraws :

blah blah blah this is where jude talks about oumota -Snelly (SHAAAAADDUPPPPP -Straws) 

Kaito (My beloved) - A commonfolk who was oblivious by the magic world around him until he inevitably is pushed to it, by living his new life as a Tenebroso werewolf. The cause for how he became a werewolf is unknown, and he tries to keep away from his friends and family to protect them from this “curse”. Kaito gets in a mix of mages and eventually meets with Kokichi, a plague doctor who claims he can cure him. He slowly realizes and comes to face the reality that is Tenebres. 

Kokichi (Most developed??) - A mage who lived in an orphanage until he gets adopted by two mages, Nagito and Hajime. Kokichi dreams of being far powerful than both his dads and going back to recruit the other orphanage kids to his upcoming organization. Until he gets a set back when he takes things too far with the magi academy, he gets demoted to a Plague Doctor; a low status of a mage. It is until he meets Kaito, on one of his duties, and believes if he figures out the mystery behind Tenebrosos, he will earn the right to regain his place back in the academy. 

Shuichi (Most Focused on ATM) - Born from the great Kyoko Kirigiri and Makoto Naegi, there are a lot of expectations put upon Shuichi since he was very young. The expectations were too high and too heavy to carry that Shuichi decided to leave behind that life and the Kirigiri name. He meets up with Rantaro who gives him the ability of a werewolf, and thinks he can finally start anew. Until he faces the same problems with being a werewolf and being part of a pack, Shuichi decides to live amongst the commonfolk with his new friends Kaito, Kaede, and Maki by his side. 

@baylardian-1 :

Kyoko (Most focused on) - A detective who grew up working under a large magefolk entity in the specific branch that deals with magic-based crimes. Kyoko is telepathic with a hindered use of magic due to a strange curse covering both of her hands. Because of her ability to read minds and the overwhelming loudness many voices can create in her head, Kyoko prefers working alone. Eventually she retires from her occupation and becomes a private investigator alongside her husband Makoto.

Hifumi (Most developed) - A hamster familiar most closely resembling a smitten patsy for Celestia Ludenberg. Not having many friends he impulsively chose to follow a pretty girl one day and has never ceased. Initially out of threat, Hifumi would perform healing spells for Celestia after her hunts in addition to take care of her every beck and call. Nowadays their relationship takes on a more unspoken respect and fondness for one another.

Mukuro (My beloved) - A Tenebroso werewolf nearing closer to being 400 years old in age. Born a mage alongside her younger twin sister Junko, many events surrounding their past are shrouded in mystery. As a Tenebroso she has an unnaturally extended life. Mukuro is naturally covered in scars and physically looks to be reaching her mid 50's-early 60's. She is most often however seen to be disguising herself as a young girl.

@snellymain :

Kiyo (Most developed) - A socially reclusive vampire with a guilty conscience and a sworn duty to feed by killing swiftly rather than turning anyone else into a vampire; since he hates his vampirism and his sister that cursed him with it. Has a huge fondness for humans and anthropology after his controlling sister's hatred for them caused him to have extremely limited interactions with them. Ends up committed to a mage named Angie while the unwanted spirit of his sister began haunting him after many years of being dead.

Mahiru (Most focused on) - A standard mage with very little powers and a high respect for her non-mage mother, matching her disdain for her mage father. She got into photography as she had no attachment to her underwhelming magic, until her mother urged her to go to an academy so she wouldn't let her powers go to waste like her father did. After doing so, being out in the world more, she met Hiyoko and Hiro; in which she happily adopted the former and angrily married the latter.

Angie (My beloved) - A healing-based blood mage raised communally on an island, she heals others wounds with their own blood and often secretly takes their blood for her own use while doing so; mostly to feed her partner Kiyo, but she also has a fascination for blood of her own, initially being a result of her village's blood sacrifices and now a result of her blood magic. Generally a loud nuisance, though a medically helpful nuisance, in her academy.

@samsquatchem :

Doodle + blurb done by Snelly ♥

Yasuhiro (Their beloved) - A nomadic powerful mage with a wide variety of powers, mostly focusing on clairvoyance and near-limitless telekinesis; generally wanders around getting money wherever he can but spending it horrendously, ending up in a constant flat circle of time. He’s basically homeless; not out of poverty but what he considers convenience and tax evasion, for the most part and bums around Mahiru’s place. Close friends and a father figure to Hiyoko, (much to Mahiru’s initial dismay) the two bond over their shared tendency to wander and be in a new place every week + magic that neither know how to use properly, she became quickly attached to him due to him being the first person to talk to her after she ran away from home. Hiro is able to see the future but unable to speak it verbatim or else the opposite outcome will come to fruition, he can only nudge clients in the right direction of his visions. Most people think his magic is a scam and he’s the most useless mage ever.

@sutexii :

Chiaki (My Beloved) - A wooden mask enchanted with a human soul, powered by dream juice and magic robotics. Created by Chihiro to live in the dream realm (where u go when u sleep + also where the killing games take place) to gather data on it for Chihiro’s research, and help those in it travel safely. Has a deep fascination with the unpredictable and strange, and enjoys seeking out new knowledge wherever she can. Still likes her games, and while originally given access to some to help entertain those she’s traveling with, she just ends up hoarding them herself.

Tenko (Most Focused On ATM) - Commonfolk w/ a smidge of monster that comes out when her anger peaks. Abandoned due to said anger issues as a child, and taken in by Aoi and Sakura. She had a very Ghibli idyllic childhood, having adventures with friends and delivering donuts for her mom. Learned martial arts from her mom, taking a particular liking to Aikido, and through it learned to control her anger. Follows childhood crush Himiko around to protect her, leading to her entering the less than legal artifact smuggling trade with her later in life.

Aoi (Most Developed) - Water elemental with a love for baking donuts and raising/rehabilitating carp. Married to Sakura, having met when she wandered into the pond in her family’s abandoned dojo and decided to stay to fix it up, motivating Sakura to fix the rest of the place up in turn. Very carefree, friendly, and laid back, loves kids and taking on the “fun auntie” role. Never worked on her humanoid appearance much at all until motherhood, Tenko enters their life and it became hard to hold back a feral monster baby with fins.

@Soupcifer_ :

Nekomaru (Franken-maru) (most developed) - A reanimated corpse who was brought back to life thanks to the help of Kazuichi and Mikan. Unfortunately, he has amnesia and thus no recollection of his past friendships and family. He's a lot more quiet and mellow in comparison to his old self which makes him seem pretty dull, but in actuality he's being rather attentive and simply trying to understand everything that's happening. He does a lot of behind-the-scenes work when no ones looking like cleaning up after Kazuichi and setting reminders for Akane (still a team manager at heart).

Gonta (My beloved) - A vampire raised by werewolves. He only recently came to terms with being a vampire as he lived most of his life assuming the form of a wolf. He has an obsession with bugs, classic literature, and vintage clothing. Gonta likes to follow around a few of his friends, Angie and Korekyio (wink), and be of assistance whenever he can. He unfortunately has trouble dealing with his vampire nature sometimes due to only having lived with werewolves, so he often turns to Korekiyo for help.

Chihiro (most focused on) - An electric elemental! Chihiro is the creator/parent of Chiaki and Monomi. They have a passion for creating things that run on electricity and magic and as a result created their two lovely daughters (that and to investigate the dream realm). Chihiro also has the ability to possess electronics and machinery! Despite being incredibly small, they can emit a surprisingly large amount of energy which makes possessing large or complicated machinery an easy task.

[fanmoose12]

Hi fanmoose! Got a prompt for you, if you're interested: Levi seeing the 104th and the vets preparing gifts for Hange's birthday, but he's wondering what to give them so he goes above and beyond... all the Scouts are taken by surprise.

Thanks, and good luck!

i changed a couple of things..... hope you still enjoy it! thanks for the prompt <3

Jean got a notebook. Armin made a new quill, using a feather from the owl he and Mikasa caught. Connie brought from his home village a whole basket of peers Hange loved so much. Sasha was responsible for baking a cake.

Nifa made her favorite brownies. Mike decided to gift Hange a new jacket, Nanaba bought a new pair of shoes, Erwin got her a new pair of glasses and a microscope she was whining about for so long. Moblit drew a fucking portrait of her.

Even Eren, as obtuse as he was, prepared a present for Hange.

“My mom was very good at sewing,” he shared with Levi, in the middle of his training, “she didn’t teach me how to do it,” at that, his voice lost some of its edge, tints of sadness appearing, “but Mikasa knows how to sew and she promised to help me with it!”

Levi could only arch an eyebrow. “And how is that related to a gift for Hange?”

Eren leaned closer with a hand next to his mouth, looking so serious, like he was going to tell the biggest secret in the world. “I’m going to sew a plushie for Squad Leader.”

“A plushie? A fucking toy with your titan’s face?”

There was a beat of silence. Then… “Damn it.” Eren took head in his hands, tugging at his hair with alarming desperation. “Damn it! I should have sewed the plushie of my Titan! Hange-san loves it!”

Yeah, as much as it annoyed Levi, there was certainly no way he could deny that.

“So… what did you sew instead?”

Peaking beneath his fingers, Eren mumbled. “A plushie of me holding a heart that says ‘I love you, Hange’.”

Fuck… as dense as Eren was, Levi had to admit… the gift was not bad at all. Especially for Eren. Especially comparing to his gift, which consisted of…

Nothing.

Just two days were left before Hange’s birthday, and he still no idea what to give her. Hange was probably expecting a present from him. Or, maybe, she was not. She was nice like that – always giving without asking for something in return. Hange was also kind, she thought he was her friend, and even more than that. Best friend, she once told him. And Levi had to admit. He felt it too. Hange was his friend. The first one he made in Survey Corps. The closest one he had.

Some friend he was, apparently. Not even preparing a gift for her.

Sensibly, he knew that he was making a problem out of nothing. He could give Hange something simple – a shampoo she obviously didn’t possess; a book she would probably like and squeal in his ear about; a new shirt or a bottle of good wine.

Hange would probably enjoy these kinds of gift. They were certainly useful. But were they meaningful? Would Hange remember them, ten years from now?

He wanted her to. Hange was his friend, perhaps, even something more. He wanted only the best for her. That’s why picking up a gift was such a problem.

With only two days left, Levi was getting desperate. He was thinking about seeking out help, but just before he gathered the strength…

The help came to him themselves.

“Good day, Levi,” with a good-natured smile, Erwin invaded his office, Mike and Nanaba trailing after him. “Are you busy?”

Levi pointedly looked at the mountain of paperwork on his desk. “Yes,” he drew, “All thanks to you, Erwin.”

“Well, you can take a break,” Erwin waved his hand dismissively, and took a seat on the opposite end of Levi’s desk. Nanaba and Mike occupied the sofa. “We came to discuss something very important,” the smile was gone, as Erwin clenched his jaw and knitted his eyebrows in a hard line. Looking at that expression, Levi felt his stomach sinking. What was this all about? If it was about their upcoming expedition, then where was… “A little birdie shared with us,” Erwin interrupted his heavy thoughts, “That you still have no present for Hange.”

What? Levi gawked at his guests, switching his confused gaze from one to the other.

“And what is the name of that birdie?” He would find that birdie and give them a piece of his mind, for sure. Who dared get poke his nose into his personal matters?

“Please, Levi,” Mike joined the conversation, “You couldn’t get more obvious. I can smell your desperation from miles away.”

Levi’s annoyance rose. Birdies, smelling desperation. Could they talk like normal people?

Seeing his increasing frustration, Nanaba decided to come to rescue. She smiled, tucking a lock of her hair behind an ear. “I overheard your conversation with Eren. You looked a bit distressed, honestly I thought you were going to kick his ass again… And since I doubt Hange is enamored with Eren in that way, I concluded that you…”

“Are angry not because the boy is a titan and spends too much time with Hange, but because he already has a gift prepared, when you do not.” Erwin finished.

Well… the conclusion was sound, at least. But that didn’t mean that Levi felt any less annoyed.

“So?” he raised an eyebrow, staring judgingly at his intruders. “What do you want from me?”

“We want to help, of course,” the smile was back at Erwin’s lips. “And we have some ideas.”

“Such as?”

Nanaba bounced from her seat, crossing the room to bang her palms against the surface of Levi’s desk. He jumped slightly, certainly not expecting it.

“You know what Hange really likes?”

“Books?” Levi tried. “Science? Titans? Books about titan’s science?”

“No, dummy,” Nanaba shook her head, “Hange likes you.”

It took him a long moment to comprehend. Even then, the only thing Levi could get out of his mouth was a very faint, “Eh?”

“We all know how much Hans makes you happy.” Mike said.

They did? How so?

“You spend a lot of time with Hange,” Erwin noted, answering his unasked question.

“And you allow her to do things that you deny everyone else,” Nanaba continued.

“And when she is with you, that constipated expression disappears from your face.” Mike finished.

He… didn’t have a constipated expression. And while Hange did make his days more pleasant and his survival that easier and more enjoyable… Levi was sure that no one knew about it, but him.

“Listen, we all know that you like Hange, and we’re telling you that Hange likes you. That’s why…” Erwin lifted his chin, his smile becoming nearly devilish. Were they still talking about a simple birthday gift? “I made a reservation in a restaurant in Sina. Take Hange there, eat good food, drink some wine, have a good night… Make Hange happy.”

Their suggestion was certainly better than Levi’s nothing. However…

“What you’re offering seems a lot like fraternization. Isn’t that illegal?” he narrowed his eyes at Erwin, skepticism oozing from him. “Are you trying to get rid of me?”

“Perish the thought!” not swayed by Levi’s scary expression, Erwin chuckled. “You’re correct, technically, two officers are not allowed to enter romantic relationship, but I think it’s a little too late for that.” Huh? Just how Levi was meant to interpret that? “Besides… think about humanity, Levi! If you and Hange were to conceive a child…” the expression on Erwin’s face was so dreamy, Levi felt chills at the base of his spine. “A child born from the union of humanity’s strongest and smartest… It could very well save our world!”

Levi stared at his Commander, at loss of words. Saying ‘you’re fucked up in the head, Erwin’ seemed a little too rude even for him, considering that Erwin was his superior officer. Still… he was fucked up in the head.

“Don’t listen to him,” Nanaba spoke, attracting Levi’s attention. “But think about our offer. An evening like that will really make Hange happy. You want that, don’t you?”

Did he want to make Hange happy? More than anything…

“Do it for Hange,” Nanaba urged.

“Do it for love,” Mike added.

“Do it for humanity!” Erwin passionately concluded.

Fucked up in the head, Levi thought. All of them were. Himself, included. But what was he going to lose? Besides, their offer was better than anything he could have come up with.

“Alright,” he surrendered, a sigh escaping him. “I’ll do it.”

Nanaba cheered. Mike nodded at him with a smile. Erwin looked like he was about to cry. Then, to Levi’s horror, he saluted.

“Get out of my office now,” he shooed them away, lowering his gaze back to the papers. “I need to work.”

“Just another quick thing,” Nanaba patted his shoulder with a cheerful smile. “Walk Hange to the door of her room after the dinner. And make sure that you return after nine o’clock.”

Ah. So they had an ulterior motive. Of course. Levi shouldn’t be surprised.

“You’re planning something for Hange, I take it?”

“A little party,” Mike confessed. “We’ll deal with food and drinks, but you’re in charge of getting Hange there in time.”

Levi didn’t remember agreeing to be in charge of Hange, but… he didn’t like the idea of anyone else doing it in his stead.

“Nine o’clock, four-eyes’ room, I got it. Now get out of my office.”

Nanaba, Erwin and Mike didn’t need to be told twice.

___

After finding a solution to his main dilemma, Levi was now met with another, no less important and challenging than the previous one.

Erwin and the others got him a reservation at the restaurant. But... now he needed to invite Hange there.

His first attempt, executed not long after Erwin, Nanaba and Mike left his office, failed spectacularly, despite his expectations. He naively thought that a simple note, carried to Hange via Moblit, would suffice. But, perhaps, the note didn’t reach its destination. Or Hange forgot to read it. Or she somehow misinterpreted the sentence ‘do you want to dine together?’. Or the fault laid in the absence of Levi’s signature.

Nevertheless, he needed to do better.

His next attempt was slightly more successful. At least, he got some kind of reaction. Still not reaction he had needed. Apparently, there were ways that one could misunderstand the simple phrase ‘hey, four-eyes, want to eat with me?’. Levi had expected a very enthusiastic ‘yes’. Instead he received ‘I’ll see you at the dinner’ and a door to his face.

Evidently, he had to do not only better, but also be a little clearer about his intentions.

After lots of pondering, Levi decided that nothing could be clearer than throwing a shiny new black jacket from Mike at Hange and barking, “Get dressed, Hange. We’re going out.”

That got him an intrigued ‘oooh’ and a promise to be ready in five minutes.

Levi smirked to himself. Finally, his plan had worked. Finally, he got through that brilliant and extremely dense head.

___

At first, the dinner was, for the lack of better word,extremely awkward.

Erwin failed to mention just how fancy the restaurant would be. Turned out, it was fancy. Very fancy. Fancier than anything Levi had seen in his life. Even Hange, despite not being a street rat from Underground, was feeling a little off.

“Everyone is staring at us,” she whispered to him, leaning over the table to do so.

Hange was right. Everyone was gawking at them. Perhaps, the reason for it was their clothes. Both of them were dressed in their best suits. Still, their best didn’t even begin to reach the best of the gathered crowd. Perhaps, other guests were weirded out by Hange’s loud cheer at the sight of meat in the menu.

Or, perhaps, their reputation preceded them, and everyone in here knew about humanity’s strongest soldier and crazy titan scientist, two of Erwin Smith’s loyal devils.

Whatever the case was, Levi didn’t like the obvious staring. They came here to eat and have a good time, not be observed like clowns in the circus.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered back to her. He really was. It was Erwin’s mistake, but it was Hange’s birthday and it was his fault for not checking the restaurant beforehand. He was a scout, for fuck’s sake. It was his job.

“Don’t even start,” Hange huffed, waving her hand dismissively. “Not the first time I receive that sort of treatment. Probably not the last one as well.”

Hange paused, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively. “And if they want to look at us so much, let’s give them something to stare at.”

Levi’s lips twitched up. “And what do you suggest?”

“Let’s order the priciest meals they have, eat them like animals they think we are, and then run away and let Erwin deal with that.”

There were many reasons why Levi loved Hange. This was one of them.

___

True to Hange’s plan, they were at their worst behavior. They used spoons instead of forks, they drank straight from the bottle, Hange ate the dessert with her hands, smearing cake all over her mouth, cheeks, palms and shirt. Barely keeping himself from laughing out loud, Levi wiped it all with his cravat, as Hange cooed at his chivalry.

Two hours later, their stomachs were full, the crowd was scandalized, their hearts were merry and their eyes were shining with unbridled mischief.

“I think we’ve succeeded at making the worst impression possible,” Hange spoke, following it with a loud laughter. Several guest scoffed at the volume. Levi showed all of them his scariest scowl. The rich fuckers returned their attention to their plates in record time.

“It’s time we make our exit,” he agreed.

He looked at Hange more closely, thinking if he should take the risk. She had been touching him freely throughout the whole evening. She pressed their calves together under the table, she ran a hand through his arm, she let him touch her face and tilt her chin. She didn’t seem opposed to the idea, so… Levi took a deep sighed, searching for every bit of courage inside of him. Once all of it was gathered, he took Hange by the hand, helping her to stand up.

To his surprise and huge relief, she didn’t shake his hand off. On the contrary, she squeezed his palm and interlaced their fingers.

Hand in hand, they started towards walking out of the restaurant. On his way there, Levi discreetly pushed a plate of soup at some wealthy lady, staining her light creamy dress and receiving a indignant cry and a joyous giggle from Hange.

After that, they had to speed up a little. It was Hange’s birthday. Levi didn’t want to spend it in the prison cell.

Once they were outside and some distance away from the restaurant, Hange stopped.

“Shit, Levi! Had you seen her face? She was—”

She didn’t finish. Hange leaned against the wall and threw her head back, laughing without abandon. She doubled over, hugging her stomach, her mirth not ceasing. Finding her mood strangely infectious, Levi couldn’t help but chuckle too.

Still snickering to herself, Hange looked up to meet his gaze. Her whole body was shaking from the laughter, and tears gathered in the corners of her eyes. Disheveled, red-faced and laughing, she was the most beautiful sight Levi had ever seen. The moonlight and faint stars only accentuated her beauty.

Levi was lost in watching her.

Subconsciously, in a mindless attempt to get a better look at the wonder that was Hange Zoe, he leaned in.

Hange leaned in too, her hand finding place at his shoulder. She moved that hand slightly, closer to his neck. Her fingers ghosted around his hairline, making him shiver.

He was looking in her eyes. Hange was looking at his lips.

The world around the two of them faded, the sounds of a street at night, the singing from the nearby pub disappearing to the background.

Levi didn’t know, had failed to register who moved first. But a moment later, his hand was on her waist, and Hange buried her fingers in his hair. And then, they were kissing – sloppily, desperately, without skill but with lots of passion.

Levi felt like he was struck by lightning. Nothing he had ever done before felt even remotely as good as kissing Hange did.

As the kiss progressed, becoming deeper, Levi found himself pressed against the wall.

Hange was everywhere – her tongue was in his mouth, her palms on his cheeks, her knee was rising, resting against his crotch. It was almost too much. And yet, not enough.

“Hange, Hange,” with some difficulty, he separated himself from her hot mouth and soft lips. “Hange, if someone sees us—”

“Oh, right,” still pressed dangerously close to him, she giggled. “Erwin would have a heart attack if we get jailed for making out on the streets. He’d deem us a disappointment to humanity.”

“Back to barracks then?”

Hange licked her lips and winked. Levi felt another strong surge of desire. “We can continue there.”

After that kind of promise, Levi hurried to find where they left their horses. He all but raced there, and jumped on his loyal stallion, grasping the reins a little too tightly.

Hange followed his suit. “Who arrives at the barracks first, gets to be on top?” she challenged.

Without waiting for his reply, she started off. Cursing, Levi struggled to keep up.

That day, he learned one essential lesson. Riding a horse with a raging boner was a fucking torture.

___

Hange was the first one to reach the stumbles. Dismounting her horse, she ran up to Levi, pulling him off the saddle and instantly connecting their lips. Levi would have liked to complain, but… who was he kidding?

Without another word, he brought Hange closer, putting his hand on her hip.

Just as the first one, the second kiss was amazing, enough to knock his breath out and make his knees buckle underneath him.

“If that’s my birthday gift,” Hange murmured, panting after they broke apart. “Then it’s the best one I ever had.”

And here Levi thought that there was nothing more enjoyable than kissing Hange. But as he saw her gentle smile, the adoring expression in her twinkling eyes, he was ready to melt in her arms.

However, he wouldn’t be himself if he passed an opportunity to use a sarcastic quip. “Is it better than Erwin’s microscope? Than Eren’s plushie?”

Hange put a finger to her chin, looking up with a thoughtful expression. “The microscope is really good, and that plushie is so adorable…” Levi’s good spirits vanished, as something ugly found its place inside his chest. Before it could manifest in a scowl, Hange caught his lips with hers once again.

“But nothing is better than you, shorty,” she confessed as they separated.

Hange likes you, Nanaba had said. She wasn’t wrong, it seemed.

“Your room or mine?” he asked, already tugging off Hange’s jacket.

“Mine. I was the one to win, after all,” she smirked, rapidly turning away and starting to run. Levi had no choice but to chase her.

___

He caught up with her near the entrance. Ceasing the moment, he wrapped arms around her waist, pressing her to him. Hange’s giggle turned into a moan. Levi delighted in that.

Exchanging messy kisses, they tumbled through the front door. Unable to break away from each other, they clumsily walked through the barracks, tripping and stumbling. And, despite the growing desire, they didn’t hurry as well. They stopped near the stairwell, so Hange could put a hickey on a spot above his collarbone. They paused at the middle of the hallway, so Levi could grind against her. Hange pressed him against the wall to whisper, “Fuck, Levi, this feels so good.”

When they reached the bedroom, Levi was ready to cheer. It was the longest walk through the barracks he had ever had. Was Hange’s room always that far away from the entrance?

With her hands shaking, she searched through her pockets for a key. She found it after a long minute that Levi spent kissing her neck. Once she fished it out, she put the key in the keyhole, and decided to celebrate that grand achievement with another breathtaking kiss.

Getting a little too eager, Levi pushed Hange forward. That was his mistake.

Apparently, the door to her room wasn’t closed. And, apparently,the room also wasn’t empty.

Unfortunately, Levi realized that and remembered the second part of Erwin’s plan a second too late. After he had heard the loud and cheerful ‘Happy birthday, Hange!’

With his arms still around Hange, he froze. Everyone else in the room froze too. The awkward silence settled over.

Levi’s thought frantically moved around his head, jumping from one corner to another. What should he do? Apologize? Let Hange go? Tell all of them to fuck off so he and Hange could finish what they had started?

However, he didn’t get to decide what to do with the unexpected audience. Hange chose for him.

“Guys!” she clasped her hands joyfully, her smile brighter than all the candles that stood around the room combined. “That’s so sweet! Thank you!”

She pulled away from Levi, sprinting to get to her friends. She gave a tight hug to Erwin, Mike, Nanaba, Moblit, Nifa, Eren, Armin, Mikasa, Sasha, Jean, Connie… Levi thought the string of people who wanted Hange’s attention would never end.

After hugs, came cake, and after cake was wine. He felt ignored, he felt utterly forgotten. He contemplated if he should go back to his room. He wanted Hange to kiss him again.

But instead he was sulking in the corner, munching on a cake Sasha had prepared. At least, the cake was good. But his frustration left a bitter taste in his mouth.

As his plate was emptied, Levi thought once again about leaving. But in that exact moment, seemingly out of nowhere, Hange appeared by his side.

“Planning to ditch the party early?” she wiggled her eyebrows, staring at him with unmasked mischief.

“It’s your birthday, not mine, four-eyes.”

“Exactly!” Hange threw an arm over his shoulders. “You’re my guest of honor!”

Ignoring the awakening of butterflies in his stomach and chalking them up to the effects of Sasha’s cake, Levi grunted, “Meaning?”

“Meaning I want you to stay!”

Levi rolled his eyes. He couldn’t really say no to Hange today, right? Although, he had troubles saying no to her any other day as well…

“And thank you for spending the whole evening with me,” Hange punctuated her gratitude with a kiss to his cheek. The butterflies were now flying freely, making Levi dizzy. It was hard to deny their origin anymore, with the trigger standing so close to him. “It was the best birthday I ever had.”

Well, that was all the gratitude Levi needed.

Before she left his side to receive more birthday wishes from their friends, Hange put her mouth above his ear, lowering her voice to a whisper, “Stay until the end, shorty. I’m not finished with you.”

She bounced off before he could give an answer. Perhaps, it was fairly obvious to her.

After all, how he could refuse Hange on the day of her birthday? How could he say no to receiving more of her attentions, and kisses?

With a satisfied hum, Levi settled against the wall, aiming his glare at all the guests. He couldn’t wait until all of them would leave. He couldn’t wait to have Hange all to himself.

[the-tiniest-one]

Parenting Rock Lee with Might Guy :)

Note:@xemaliahrssx here ya go! I hope it tastes just like you dreamed it would!

Sitting at the kitchen table, watching Guy and Lee devour the dinner you made, had you feeling nostalgic... You watched with your head rested on your hand. It was the little family moments that you appreciated more than anything else these days. "Yeah! and then I caught him in a cross block!" Lee said, describing their latest mission, his mouth full of food.

"Haha yes yes (y/n) you should have been there, our Rock Lee is becoming a real force to be reckoned with, much like his handsome sensei" Guy said with a wink in your direction.

"Handsome indeed" you said with a grin.

Thinking back to the days when you were a little more of a workaholic made you laugh. If you told your younger-self all those years ago that you would be Konoha's worst helicopter parent in just a few years, you'd have never believed it. Guy was a perfect match for you in that regard. You two were a well oiled machine when it came to parenting.

While Lee could do no wrong in your eyes, Guy was a bit heavy handed in his discipline of Lee's skills as a shinobi. You kissed every bruise and scrape, while Guy was teaching him how to prevent them in the first place.

Rock Lee has had more than his fair share of the short-end-of-the- shit-stick his entire life. BUT One could be forgiven for not recognizing the true level of hardship the boy has overcome in his short tenure as a shinobi. Lee is a true underdog.

Lucky for him, you've always been a bit of a sucker for an underdog.

You thought back to those early days......

Even before Lee evolved to a mini version of your childhood crush, you felt the need to protect him. Watching him fumble and practice jutsu in vain day after day.....early in the morning and into the night. You would watch him from a distance while training your own team. One early morning, you decided to check in on the boy with long black hair. He kicked at a post, counting off as you looked on...10....11.....12.....his kicks were weak even for his young age. As he got closer to 50 he fell back, overwhelmed by the pain of repetitively beating his shins into the wood without chakra to safeguard his bones.

Clearly angry at his situation, the thought occurred to you that maybe he wasn't using chakra because he couldn't....the boy had tears streaming from his eyes. It broke your heart to watch a kid who couldn't be more than 10, cursing his life.

"A kid working that hard shouldn't have to feel that defeated..." you said to yourself.

You felt conflicted. Torn between wanting to step in and takeover his training...but feeling the weight of responsibility that would come with encouraging a child to chase a pipedream that would only lead to disappointment. You knew all too well what happens to weak ninja. The reality was that it would be cruel to encourage the boy to peruse a life as dangerous as that of a shinobi. You were no slouch when it came to taijutsu but ninjas are able to compete with one another because of the advantages that come with developing kakai genki.

Could a boy with no use of chakra stand a chance against the generations of those families of ninja who use fearsome jutsu and tactics like lightning...wind....wood or even hereditary gifts like the dreaded sharingan or byakugen? The real answer was sad and harsh. No. He couldn't.

You wouldn't be so irresponsible as to tell the boy he could be anything but a failure.

If he perused that path, he would die young.

So you stood back, restraining the desire to comfort and nurture the little boy out of what you told yourself was mercy. Day after day, week after week....you watched on....until it became too much. You couldn't sleep anymore, couldn't function on missions the same way. Always thinking back to him still out at those training grounds.....always struggling.

....

One morning it was pouring rain. You called off training that day for your team and headed out to the place you knew he would be. He was there of course. He was doing his best to catch a cold while practicing hand signs to no avail. After watching him for a few minutes you finally asked, "What's your name kid?" speaking loud to project over the rain. Startled he looked up to where you stood, perched on a post a few feat away. "I...Im Rock Lee" he said timidly. You laughed at his shy but sweet face, "Im y/n" you said.

"Your kicks look like they could use some work", holding your palm about chest high, to show him where his blow should be landing. The boy grimaced...clearly angry with his lack of direction in training. You laughed and the both of you worked on his kicks for the duration of the morning.

"I think you'll be a splendid ninja someday" you said as you offered him a bit of lunch you packed. The boy looked up at you with the most heartbreaking fear in his eyes, "I can't use chakra" Lee said barley above a whisper, clearly ashamed to tell you the truth.

You ruffled his hair. "Look kid, life is shitty sometimes. But I can tell you are someone who will never quit. No matter the odds, and that is something worth more than all the talent in the world." He instantly smiled up at you, melting your heart for what would be the first of a million times. Laughing and showing you also first time you saw that shiny smile that you would come to love more that anything on earth.

From then on he was your responsibility. Your chest burned with pride in his concrete determination. Feeling instantly the protective burn and feral instinct to insulate him from anything that would hurt him.

....

It was about a year later when things evolved. You and Lee had become close. He, being an orphan as you found out he was, had taken your invitation to live in your spare bedroom. It wasn't long before you were nagging him to be sure and eat breakfast before class, take baths every night. You were often hearing your mothers voice echo in your own as you guided the child to a structure he lacked.

You even went to his parent meetings at the Academy, much to the surprise of Iruka (because he himself was 2 years older than you and had known you since you were smol) laughed when you asked to see Lee's reports.

----

Then one hot summer day you got the order... your team was dispatched on your first extended mission with your new genin. 3 months on a C rank mission to Suna. Your heart sank as you remembered Lee's graduation exam was in just a few days. Before you left, you kissed his forehead and promised a tearful Lee who had become just as attached as you over the last year, that would bring him back a graduation present.

You just knew he would finally pass.

....

Returning to the village near midnight you couldn't wait to see Lee. After giving report to Lord Third, you quickly made your way home. Quietly cracking the door to his bedroom, you peaked in to see his sweet little face. The snoring boy looked peaceful.

"He cut his hair?" you thought puzzled..."he must have done it himself, it looks a little odd." You laughed at the thought of him using a bowl to cut his hair.

Then your eyes traveled to the headband still around his forehead, "He passed!!!" you quietly celebrated, careful not to wake him up. You placed the promised gift on his dresser, a brand-new set of num-chuks you'd had made in Suna.

The next morning you were up before sunrise making a celebratory breakfast when an extreme round of knocking came from the apartment's front door.

You quickly answered, immediately flustered when on the other side was none other than Might Guy....the same Guy you'd had the hots for over a decade.

"Y/N!, I must have the wrong address! I was looking for one of my students!" Guy said in his familiar boisterous cadence. Laughing nervously you started to respond, when behind you Lee pushed his way through the doorframe. Your eyes widened at the sight.

The haircut made sense now, Lee stood side by side with his sensei. He was wearing Guy's jumpsuit... they could have been father and son.

Looking at the two of them standing side by side in front of you for the first time gave you the most jarring sense of dejavu.

"Guy sensei! Look what Y/N brought me from her most dangerous mission!" Lee brandished the weapon, beaming up at his teacher who laughed and winked in your direction. "Ah, a great choice! Only the most skilled ninja know how to use such a fine weapon! We must enlighten you at once Lee my boy!" With that the handsome jonin and your sweet Rock Lee were off to train.

You had known Guy since he was still struggling to gain entrance to the Academy, you knew that the man who radiated confidence today, only earned that ability through blood, sweat, and tears.

You apprehensively accepted that Might Guy was a good match to be Lee's sensei.

"Be careful!" you called, more than a little apprehensive at the thought of your sweet baby boy training with such an admittedly impulsive man. Feeling a small tug of sadness as you watched the two of them disappear down the street.

"Lee's getting tall..." you though as you closed the door.

....

Over the next few years Lee had grown into a strong young man. You felt such extreme pride in everything he did. Even though you being in your mid-twenties were not nearly old enough to be Lee's mother, he had taken to occasionally calling you mom.

Lee was never embarrassed of you as he grew into a teen like some of the other kids his age. He was always just as willing to give you a hug before a mission as the day you met him.

It would be a lie to say that the relationship you and Guy shared hadn't also matured along the way. Although you weren't Lee's biological parents, anyone would be forgiven for thinking that you were. Everything you had admired about Guy, his hot-bloodedness, his devotion to youthful perseverance, his love of his village had been passed down to your surrogate son.

It was only natural that you and Guy would become a team in raising Rock Lee. Over time after a few years of dinners, training sessions, birthdays, holidays etc...Guy decided to propose to you.

It was a literal dream come true. You couldn't say yes fast enough. But as required when two shinobi become married, when you went to sign the paperwork to make your marriage official, requesting a stamp of approval from Lady Tsunade....she extended to you a folder with a second set of forms.

Guy beamed as you read the contents. Adoption papers with Lee's name printed at the top in bold.

"He will always be our son. Since we are making it official... why not add one more?" Guy said with a laugh. The tears began welling in your eyes. "He's 17" you laughed, "I love you" is all you could think to say in response to the most kind gesture you have ever witnessed.

Guy held his trademark thumbs up high as he replied, "Lee will always need his mom, no matter how big he gets!" His words like music to your heart...

You'd never felt so complete as you walked hand in hand with Guy, on your way home to surprise your sweet son with the news.

Upon telling Lee what the two of you had done, he looked from the papers back to you. Confusion spread across the sweet ravenette's features. "But I do not understand" Lee said with a hand rubbing the back of his neck. "Have you not always been my mom?"

The innocent look in his eye and profound sincerity in his voice made tears well in your eyes for what felt like the tenth time that day. You laughed and swept he and Guy into a hug that didn't last long enough. "What's for dinner?" the two men asked in unison and in that moment you knew you were the luckiest person in the world.

[angelsswirl]

Dodging Angels

Company

Notes: A short chapter

Rating: M

Wrd Cnt: 900

Y/N: How about @kimjennie and I give you a sneek peak? Love Lies feat Jennie Kim coming in 2 days.

@kimjennie replied: @y/n 👀

You watched in amusement as your feed blew up. Your fans were always hungry for content and you loved giving it to them.

DeukieJen 🙃👅🐻: You really love giving your fans heart attacks, huh?

Y/N🙊🙄: You really love texting me like we aren't in the same room, huh?

Jennie looked up from her phone with a frown. You were sitting in the studio of some random radio show waiting for your interview to start and were bothering each other to past time.

In the time you had spent together recently you noticed you both had a lot in common and loved to tease each other about your individual interests.

Jennie made a face. Sure you were cool, but she had to make sure this relationship was strictly business. She was not the one to catch feelings. That's simply not the type of person she was. She had to keep her head clear and focus on making money for her family.

After a few more minutes the interview starts and the DJ immediately starts off with the hard questions.

"So you guys have been seen together lately, and I heard the song, it is more on the sexual side. Does this song have anything to do with your experience with each other?"

Jennie's eyes widen, she stays silent in hopes that you would save them.

"Ah. Okay, guess I'll go. This song was actually written before we even got our hands on it, so I would say it has little to do with our experience with each other. We had actually only met the same day that we recorded the song, but I'm glad we gave that good of a performance." You explained effortlessly. Jennie nudged you under the table as of to say 'Nice save'.

She had always found eloquence sexy, and you possessed the trait as if it was natural.

Jennie raised her eyebrow slightly. She had been having these unwanted thoughts for a while now. And she was kind of desperate for them to stop. She doesn't need any type of feelings to go with this little deal she has.

That would be the absolute worst thing to happen.

"Well, I can tell right now this song is going to be a hit. Your fans are in for a treat. I wish you all the best and thanks for coming in!"

Shopping as a celebrity was always...an event. Shopping as a celebrity with another celebrity was a nightmare.

Your security detail was decent sized. Two very large intimidating white men followed every step you made.

Jennie stared at them, her eyes wide. She watched as you interacted with the two as if they were harmless children.

The monsters were even nicknamed Baby Bear and Puppy. Jennie doesn't know if you gave those to them, or if they requested to be called that and at this point, she's too afraid to ask.

"Why are we shopping together again?" Jennie asked as she eyed all of the random patrons of whole foods. She never liked doing her own shopping. Her mom or her personal chef ended up doing most of the domestic things such as that for her. Being in the middle of so many hungry white women made her uncomfortable.

"You invited me out. Remember?" You explained as you tried to avoid taking yet another picture with yet another fan. Don't get yourself wrong, you loved your friends, but wouldn't you find it annoying if your every sentence was interrupted eighty times a day for a damn camera flash.

Jennie scrunched up her face. Yes, she remembered now. She did invite you to dinner. She didn't invite you to the fucking grocery store, however. Because who does that? Fucking. no one. No one invites someone out to whole foods!

"I was inviting you to dinner, not this common white squash convention." 

You nodded. You knew this. You weren't stupid. You're actually surprised Jennie hadn't picked up on your own plans yet. You sighed, clearly the girl was a tad bit slow and you would have to tell her. "I was grabbing ingredients so I could cook something for us, Idiot."

Jennie blinked. Oh. She hadn't made the connection. Well, she never claimed to be very smart outside of the studio.

"Oh. Well, in that case, I suddenly love it here and I am starving."

"Come on, Goofball. We gotta go now or else we will be up all night, and we can't because of the music video shoot tomorrow morning."

'Jennie Kim and Y/N were spotted out together once again ahead of their new single release. Is there love brewing for this smoking hot duo?'

Joel smirked in the quiet expanse of his empty office. Oh, he was so getting a promotion for this.

[thick-person-chronicals]

Lately I’ve been really heart broken over the fact that I was never anyone’s first thought, I was always the last. This goes for parents, grandparents, siblings, friends, teachers, etc. I was never thought about. So, here’s a list of things that has fucked me up so I can vent and relieve some stress.

Shit my mom has said and done (I’m no contact with her for two months now):

• growing up she’d play WOW all day and wouldn’t get up for anything, INCLUDING feeding me and my siblings, taking us to school, helping me bathe (I was really young), taking the dog out (none of us kids were strong enough to take him), so he legit shit all over her room, and living room and never cleaned it up. Her room was literally covered in shit for 2 years. We were evicted because neither of my parents would work, and the house was deemed a biohazard and was tore down.

• wouldn’t allow me to see or contact my dad after kicking me out, told me he just didn’t want to, that he didn’t love me enough to visit. When she finally let him pick me up and hang out with me for a day, my dad came to take me to a birthday, his female friend was in the passenger seat, I was in the car (9y/o), she saw the woman and pulled me out of the car through the driver window because she was jealous and kept asking my dad to be with her again. I was bruised and bawling. When he left she started screaming at me to stop crying, and went inside without me.

• she started starving me, because I was over weight naturally. She’d force me to work out with her, wouldn’t let me eat unless it was a meal and even then she gave me the smallest portions. Her bf started starving me too, cause whenever she was asleep or at work I would get a snack and he wouldn’t let me eat when she couldn’t stop me. She’d shame me for eating, because I began to binge eat.

• my dad started going to my school to see me and gave me a phone to talk to him with. I told him about her drug use and how she’d beat my older brothers. I went to the police station so they’d let me live with my dad. Instead the cop drove me back home and told her what I said. The second he left, she started screaming at me, “fine, you wanna see your dad so bad?? You got your wish, you won.” And went upstairs and got high. Instead of seeing him, we moved to a different town and changed schools so ‘my dad wouldn’t find me’. She brainwashed me to believe my dad didn’t love me and he busted wanted to hurt my mom using me.

TW/SH

• I was extremely depressed, and people on the internet told me that cutting helped for them. I tried it, and began cutting every night in the shower after my mom went to work. One day I was wearing shorts, sitting in the living room talking to my brother. She walked in, saw them peaking out from my shorts, gasped, didn’t say anything and was visibly angry. She took a picture, and it was never brought up again. She didn’t talk to anyone, get me a therapist, nothing.

• when my oldest brother came to our mom and confessed to her that he was depressed, she then talked shit (like she usually does) about him to me and our other siblings. She said to me, “He has no reason to be depressed. I did good at raising him, he needs to get over it.” She said this to me, and smirked at me cause she knew I was self harming. My cutting got worse after that.

TW/Su!c!de

• at some point, I attempted suicide in middle school and got scared. I stopped the bleeding, and knew I was at my lowest. At the time, I didn’t know school counselors were mandated reports, so two days after I attempted I told the counselor. She called my mom to come to the school and told her what happened. We walked to the nurses office so they could see the damage and the nurse counted over 100 cuts from the day before. I laid on a bed and watch GMM on my phone. They always made me feel better, I giggled while she walked in and she said “well you’re not upset anymore, you’re fucking laughing.” The nurses stopped talking, and just stared at her. She was dead silent after that and took me home. On the way home she said to me, “you’re embarrassing. You embarrassed me. Now they think I’m a bad mother.” When we got inside she made me show her my cuts and got even more angry and I hid in my room for the rest of the day while she called her friends and talked shit about me (yes I could hear her. She talked shit about me and my siblings all the time on the phone).

• the next day she took me to a hospital to get referred to a psychiatrist because the school counselor demanded it. I knew this was my only chance at getting help so I told a nurse that I needed to be admitted. They understood and admitted me. This took a long time. My mom was absolutely pissed that I was being admitted and asked them not to but they told her I needed to be place on suicide watch. At some point I was trying to sleep while I was being admitted, and nurse came by to check in on us. My mom thought I was sleeping, and told the nurse that I “was just an attention seeking whore.” I don’t even remember how I reacted but she knows I heard her because she told my brother that she “feels sorry for saying it,” but has never once apologized to me for it.

I could keep going, but this would be an essay at that point. The next time I add to this I’ll try to add more. Thank you for listening 💜

[thewalkingdead-imagines]

Negan Imagine ~ Magic

Summary: Negan takes you on a surprise trip to one of his favorite places on earth.

This is my entry for twdsunshine’s 3k followers writing challenge! I hope you all enjoy it!

The soft purling of the streak sounded through the air, mixing with the gentle breeze that whirled through the crowns of the trees, just enough to let their leaves rustle as you watched nature’s beauty unfold right before your eyes.  Tiny blossoms of lilac heather peaked through the spots of earth in between the rocks that formed the streak, their color enhanced by the warm light of the dusk that broke through the trees and danced over the water. It glimmered, like little diamonds that adorned the crowns of the waves as it made its way down the stream. It looked like a view you’d only see in movies, so filled with magic that you couldn’t peel your eyes from it. “Sweetheart, I’d love to stay here longer but I gotta get us to your surprise destination before sunset...’cause that’s where the real damn magic happens”, you heard Negan’s deep voice rumble, a chuckle falling from his lips as his warm hand grasped yours a little tighter and made you finally look back up at him,”Promise, it’s gonna be even prettier than here.” “Not really sure if that’s possible”, you said with a soft grin, watching the roguish smirk on his face expand a bit more over his handsome features. “Lemme prove it to you”, he said, winking before he nodded towards the small beaten path you’d been following until now,”It’s not far anymore.” “Alright...I’m curious”, you said, feeling a warm tingle run through your body as Negan tugged softly on your hand.  It didn’t need more than that for you to follow him, move back onto the path as your excitement grew with every step you took. Barely a minute later he lead you off the trial, into the undergrowth. It wasn’t too thick, just enough to still comfortably walk through it, though this little twist peaked your interest all the more. You kept looking out for something, kept observing Negan to see whether his reactions changed but he kept his pokerface on until more light started to gush through the spaces between the trees.  You could peak through them just enough to divine a glade behind them, though the curve of the small hill you were walking up kept you from seeing its entirety yet.  “Ah wait”, Negan suddenly said, stopping as he shot you a grin and earned a curious but confused look of you. “Surprise is surprise, right?”, he chuckled, his hand leaving yours for the first time in a whole while as he moved behind you. “What are you doing?”, you asked with a small laugh, turning your head towards him just as he rose up his hands to your head and you started to put two and two together. “Baby, I know you. If I’d tell you to close your eyes for the last few feet you’d peak. You’re curious as fuck”, he said, chuckling deeply as you let out a groan and nudged him softly with your elbow.  “Just sayin’ the truth, now close your eyes and lemme put my hands over that beautiful face of yours”, he said, winking at you one last time before you turned your head back around and allowed him to place his large, warm hands over your eyes.  “If you let me stumble over rocks or roots, I’ll chase you”, you chuckled as you made your first careful steps upwards, testing the ground beneath your shoes’ soles while a deep laugh rumbled through Negan’s chest. “I’m faster than you, doll”, he teased back, still leading you forwards,”Won’t let ya fall though, promise.” You only hummed in response, still focusing on your movements before you started to feel the soft breeze becoming a little stronger, barely noticeable but still enough to realize that the trees that had been shielding you from it up until now were gone.  “Alright, gonna let ya go now but I need you to keep your eyes closed for just another second, I wanna see your reaction”, he said, waiting for you to nod before his warmth left your face. You listened, keeping your eyes closed as you heard him move beside you while you almost bursted with excitement. “Okay”, he finally said before you started to open your eyes that slowly began to adjust to the light around you. 

For a moment, your breath seemed to stop as you started to take in the beauty that unfolded right before you, even more beautiful than the view earlier, just as he’d promised.  A small valley was stretching out right in front of you, most of it covered in the blossoming, lilac heather and here and there, a few bright green grassy spots were peaking out in between them. A few birches had struck roots within the deepest spots of the valley, their white stems were lit up in warm, orange tones right where the evening sun hit them and from up here, they almost seemed small. Right beside them, a few deers were grazing peacefully while two or three others were napping in between the heather, though you were sure there were more of them hiding in between the flowers, finding their peace for the night.  it looked magical, from the flowers, to the trees, to the deers, everything seemed to be bathing in the warm dusk light that let the scenery look like straight out of a fairytale.  “Wow”, it fell from your lips as you were still staring at the landscape, so taken aback by its beauty that you could barely say anything else. “I was right, huh?”, Negan asked, a big grin plastered over his face as you peeled your glance from the pretty view and nodded. “How did you find this?”, you asked, glimpsing at him as he let out a deep chuckle and shrugged his shoulders. “Magic”, he grinned, though a small snort left his lips as you tilted your head a little and raised your brows, too curious to be satisfied with his answer. “My mom used to take me here sometimes as a kid”, he finally said with a small sigh, his glance wandering back down the valley,”Y’know, when things got too hard and she thought we just needed a break from reality.” You gave him another small nod as he glimpsed back at you, the big grin now a small but warm smile as he moved in to wrap his arm around your waist and pull you gently into his side. “Always wanted to take you here but it only blooms like that once a year”, he said, nodding towards the heather,”It’s always beautiful but I thought it would be the best to introduce you to it when it’s in its full damn beauty.” A bigger smile started to grow on your lips and a fuzzy feeling spread through you as Negan glanced down at you and tightened his arm around you a little, “And ‘cause I thought the both of us could use a damn break from reality too...well, I thought now was the right moment.” “Thank you”, you mumbled, still taken aback as you wrapped an arm around him to hug him back, nuzzling your nose against his shirt as a wider smile grew on your face,”I don’t even know what to say.” “Already? This isn’t all though”, Negan retorted with a chuckle, enough to let you look back up at him as he gestured towards the backpack that hung from his shoulders,”Didn’t pack this fucking big bag for nothin’.” An excited expression pressed in over his features as he didn’t say more but instead loosened his embrace and grasped your hand so he could start to lead you down the hill.  You didn’t move all to far down, just a little until you could spot a small, natural platform that had formed through the hill’s curves, a sweet little spot between some small heather flowers that seemed like a perfect place to rest.  You watched as Negan let go of you and moved towards the spot, kicking a few smaller rocks off of it before he let down his backpack and pulled a wrapped up picnic blanket out. He was quick to spread it out over the grassy ground and dragged his backpack closer before he plumped down onto it and grinned up a you. “C’mon, lets get comfy”, he said, patting the blanket as you moved towards him and sat down on the fabric while he reached back into the backpack, grinning wider as he could see the curiosity plastered over your face.  “Alrighty, here we go. We’ve got our two besties, whiskey and wine”, Negan said proudly, pulling two bottles out, wiggling some cooling pads off of them that fell right back into the bag before he moved his hands to feel the glass surfaces and let out an excited sound,”Those fuckers actually stayed cold...can’t believe this cooling shit actually worked.” He grinned to himself before he reached back inside and first took two glasses and then two smaller boxes out, holding them up for a moment as he gave you another wink. “And some snacks...got some bread, spread, fruit and some of those bacon-cheese sticks stuff you liked...y’know all that good shit”, he said, placing them beside the backpack before he pulled another one out and let your mouth drop slightly open as you saw how much of an effort he’d made. “Baby, if you keep your mouth this open some bug’s gonna fly in there”, you heard him say with a smirk as he looked back up at you, moving his finger up to gesture with a wiggle at your lips before you let out a snort and playfully swatted his finger away. “Idiot”, you laughed, only watching the smirk on his lips grow wider ,”I’m just impressed....that surprise worked.” “Good”, he mumbled, before he moved over to grasp your hand and give you a nod, “C’mere.” You didn’t need another invitation to climb over to him and move into the spot between his legs, sighing as you could lean back against his warm, broad chest. His arms were quick to wrap around you and cradle you closer, holding you tightly as he pressed a kiss against your temple. A thick but content sigh fell from your lips as you felt his rough beard stubble brush softly against your skin, nudging you to sink deeper into his embrace. “You wanna drink something?”, he mumbled against your skin before he backed a little off and raised his brows at you while you quickly nodded. “Yep, can’t let it get warm after you did all that to keep ‘em cold”, you said with a grin as Negan reached for the bottles, “Think I’ll start with the wine.” “Yes, Ma’am”, Negan chuckled, moving in to pour some wine in one of the glasses for you before he got some whiskey for himself and handed you the drink. “Cheers”, he said, raising his glass to you before he let out a deep chuckle,”Oh and look into my damn eyes, doll. Y’know what they say, no eye contact during a toast gets ya seven years of bad sex, can’t have that.” “Well, I don’t think bad sex is possible with you either way”, you chuckled as you raised your glass to him as well, grinning as he let out a thick laugh. “Damn, you’re trying to make me blush?”, he chuckled back, winking at you before he let his glass clink gently against yours, sure to keep your eye contact. “Maybe”, you chuckled, before you took your first sip and let out a content sigh, “That’s good.” “Sure hope so”, Negan grinned back, gulping down some of his whiskey while you leaned back against him and cuddled closer, feeling how he wrapped his arm tightly around your waist and rested his head against yours as your glance swayed over the landscape.  The sun was starting to sink behind the skyline of the trees, surrounding their crowns with a glowing line of its last but warm light, while its last rays were dancing over the grass and the heather. It seemed to look more magical with every passing moment, with each new spot you seemed to discover and with each glance you got at the flowers, the grazing deers and the softly swinging trees. A large smile was spreading over your face as you cuddled closer into Negan’s embrace, allowing him to engulf you with his warmth and comforting scent while more and more happiness washed over you. “Thank you...so so much, it’s perfect”, you mumbled, placing your glass securely beside you before turning your head a little so you could look at him ,”You’re the best...I got so lucky with you.” Negan’s eyes lit up as the small laughter lines at the sides of his eyes wrinkled softly and his dimples sunk slightly in as a warm smile widened his lips. You knew how badly he needed to hear this last sentence from time to time, reassure him that he was being a good partner to you. And he was, not only a good one, he truly was the best you could have ever wished for.  Glancing only a mere second away he placed his glass beside himself, sure to not drop it before his glance captured yours again as his rough hand reached up to cup the side of your face. Leaning in, he let his lips meet yours in a kiss, loving and surprisingly soft, yet with enough passion to let you realize how much joy he was feeling as well. “I love you, Sweetheart”, you could hear him mumble against your lips ,”So goddamn much.” He moved in to peck your lips once more, allowing you to taste the hint of whiskey that was still laying on his lips before he backed a little away to look you over, the adoration in his eyes giving you an even warmer feeling than the one that was already cozily making itself at home in your body. “I love you too”, you mumbled back with a bright smile before he moved to cradle you back against himself, hold you tight but comfortably as you watched the sunset fill the rest of the sky.  Sighing softly, you sunk deeper into Negan’s embrace, trying to soak up everything about the moment that would turn into a dreamish night, with drinks and snacks, the most beautiful view you could imagine, and most importantly, with Negan right by your side. 

[oikawaplssteponme]

The Apartment: part 5

▪️for parts 1-4, click here

pairing: Kuroo Tetsurou x fem! reader

rating/warnings: swearing, angst (?)

synopsis: You knew that living with your three best friends, Kuroo, Oikawa, and Bokuto, would be a wild ride. It’s never a dull moment with those three. Let’s just hope you can keep your huge crush on Kuroo a secret when he is only a room away.

a/n: hi friends✨i hope you all are doing well:)) just a friendly reminder to eat something today and stay hydrated 💕 as always, my inbox is open for anything and everything so feel free to reach out:) and the taglist for this fic is still open if you’d like to join✨ okay, enjoy xx

•

Five: best friends

“Okay do you have all your bags?” You asked. Bokuto nodded, holding a backpack and small suitcase.

“Yes Y/N.”

“And your phone? And your pillow, because I know you hate hotel ones. And-“

“Y/N calm down you’re going into ’mom mode’,” said Kuroo. You rolled your eyes.

“I just wanna make sure he has a good trip.”

“Akaashi will take care of him, don't worry,” smiled Kuroo.

“Do you not want me to have a good trip?” pouted Oikawa. You put your arm around him and smiled.

“Oikawa, I wouldn’t mind if you didn’t come back.” You joked.

“I fucking hate you,” he growled, pushing you away. You laughed and ruffled his hair.

“I love you both okay, now get out of here, Iwa and Akaashi are probably already outside,” you smiled. The four of you gathered for a group hug. Oikawa was off to his mini getaway with Iwa and Bokuto was joining Akaashi for his writers conference. The apartment would be just you and Kuroo.

“Hey, Y/N,” called Bokuto. He pulled you aside and whispered something in your ear.

“Remember what I told you.”

You sighed, remembering well what Bokuto had told you those days ago. You nodded.

“Farewell my lovely apartment! You two better not burn the place down while I’m gone,” said Oikawa.

“No promises,” smiled Kuroo. He pushed Oikawa out the door as Bokuto followed.

“Bye you two, we love you!” You cheered. Kuroo shut the door behind Oikawa and Bokuto, leaving you alone with him.

“You act like they’re never coming back,” laughed Kuroo.

“Not my fault I’ll miss them. I don’t remember the last time I went more than a week without them,” you explained. Kuroo nodded.

“Wanna grab some food after class?” Asked Kuroo. Your face felt warm.

“Uh yeah that sounds good.” You and Kuroo both had a lecture together today for your marketing course.

“Just give me 10 minutes and we can head to class,” you said. Kuroo nodded. You went inside your room and saw that Oikawa had left something on your bed. You picked it up and it read: “I suggest you use this before it expires”. You turned the card over, and saw that it was a coupon for 10% off a purchase at Party City. You groaned and threw the card away.

“Dickhead,” you mumbled.

“Who, me?” said Kuroo. You jumped.

“Kuroo oh my god you have to stop sneaking up on me like that,” you ordered. Kuroo laughed and sat down on your bed.

“Hurry up I don’t wanna be late.” You sighed and grabbed your jacket and shoes from your closet and slipped them on.

“Fine then let’s go.”

~

You and Kuroo walked a couple blocks to campus. Your lecture hall wasn’t too far away.

“A 3 hour lecture never gets easier,” you sighed. Kuroo patted your shoulder.

“Come on Y/N, don’t you just love getting all that knowledge thrown at you.” You rolled your eyes.

“Marketing is boring, even a nerd like you could agree,” you joked.

“Okay fair,” smiled Kuroo. The two of you reached the lecture hall and took a seat next to each other.

“Hi Kuroo! Mind if I sit here?” a voice said. You turned to see a girl standing next to Kuroo.

“Oh Calie, hi, yeah sure,” said Kuroo. The girl joyfully sat down next to Kuroo, causing you to clench your fists.

“Uh Calie, this is my friend Y/N, Y/N this is Calie, we have organic chemistry together,” explained Kuroo. The girl flashed you a dazzling smile. Great, she's pretty and smart. You shook her hand firmly.

“Wait aren’t you guys roommates too? That must be so fun living with someone like Kuroo,” giggled Calie. You gave her a sarcastic smile. I already hate this bitch.

“Yeah we’ve been friends forever so I definitely get my fair share of Kuroo.”

“Well you’re probably so sick of him, mind if I borrow him after the lecture?” She asked. Calie wrapped her hand around Kuroo’s bicep. You had to stop yourself from beating the shit out of her.

“Well actually-“ you began.

“Sure that sounds fun. You don’t mind right, Y/N?” said Kuroo. Is he being serious right now?

“So I’m supposed to grab dinner by myself?” You whispered, without thinking. Kuroo’s eyes widened. Calie gasped.

“You can come with us! I’d hate to leave you all alone,” She smiled.

“Yeah come with us,” said Kuroo.

“No no it’s fine, you two have fun. I’d rather be alone anyway,” you muttered. Before Kuroo could reply, your professor had walked in and began his lecture.

~

Your lecture felt longer than normal. Probably because all you could focus on was Calie’s giggles as she whispered with Kuroo throughout the whole 3 hours. Kuroo was always good with the ladies. His confident nature caused girls to be drawn towards him. Yes, you liked him too but you liked all of him, not just the surface level of Kuroo.

You tried to contain your annoyance with Calie and Kuroo. It was obvious she was flirting with him.

“See you next week,” said your professor as he wrapped up his lecture. You got up from your seat and began packing up your things. You didn’t look at Kuroo and headed right out the door.

You began walking back to your apartment when you heard Kuroo call after you.

“Wait Y/N-chan!” You turned around to face him.

“Are you sure you don’t want to hang with me and Calie? She’s really nice once you get to know her,” he said. You almost rolled your eyes.

“No it’s fine. I promised I’d FaceTime Oikawa now anyway,” you lied. Kuroo raised an eyebrow.

“Well if you say so. I’ll grab dinner with you tomorrow, okay?”

“Yeah sure. Make sure you have your key to the apartment or else I’m locking you out,” you said. Kuroo laughed and nodded.

“Bye Y/N!” cheered Calie. You gave her a wave and watched as Kuroo ran back towards her.

-

You walked back to your apartment, upset. Kuroo had every right to hang out with other girls but that didn’t mean it didn’t hurt. It was just another reminder that Kuroo might not share the same feelings as you.

The apartment felt weird being so empty. All dark and quiet. You threw your keys on the counter and plopped onto the couch. You checked your phone and saw a plethora of texts from Oikawa.

i've been in the car FOREVER -sent 5:35pm

my legs are cramping -sent 5:40pm

do you think if i asked Iwa to stop for a bathroom break he would be mad? -sent 5:41pm

bc we just stopped 30 minutes ago and i said i didn’t need to go -sent 5:43pm

but now i do -sent 5:47pm

update: he stopped for me🤩 -sent 6:01pm

y/n answer me -sent 6:37pm

im bored -sent 6:38pm

you better be buying that maid costume -sent 6:40pm

that coupon expires soon -sent 6:41pm

btw bokuto forgot his pillow but he told me not to tell you -sent 6:52pm

oops -sent 6:52pm

wyd -sent 7:03pm

You laughed at your phone. Good to see you weren’t the only one missing your friends.

well im currently sitting alone in the apartment as kuroo ditched me for some girl -sent 7:15pm

HE DID WHAT -sent 7:18pm

maybe im being dramatic but he’s kinda on a date with some girl from his organic chemistry class -sent 7:19pm

i bet she’s ugly -sent 7:19pm

no she’s gorgeous -sent 7:20pm

fuck

well

im gonna beat his ass

how dare he -sent 7:20pm

it’s fine

maybe it’s better im alone rn anyway

gives me time to get over him -sent 7:21pm

come on hun

don’t say that

don’t give up -sent 7:25pm

idk toru

i feel like it’s never gonna happen

especially when he could have someone like her -sent 7:27pm

bokuto said it best: kuroo would be stupid not to like you -sent 7:28pm

i guess he’s stupid then -sent 7:30pm

:(((

okay Iwa and I got to our hotel but I’ll talk to you later okay love? -sent 7:33pm

okay

bye shittykawa -sent 7:34pm

why do you hurt me? -sent 7:35

You set your phone down and checked in the kitchen for anything worth eating. You weren’t in the mood to go out anymore.

Rice. We have rice. Well, rice it is.

You took out the rice cooker and began to prepare your sad dinner.

Why didn’t I just go with them?

As the rice cooked, you sat down on the couch and turned on the TV. You put on ‘Gilmore Girls’, wishing your friends were there to watch it with you.

~

It was late. Close to 11pm. Kuroo still wasn’t home. You laid on the couch, basking in your loneliness. A little dramatic yes but you hated being without your friends. It was a weird concept that they had friends beside you.

You heard keys jingle outside the door and you felt a wave of comfort come over you, knowing it had to be Kuroo. You got up from the couch and peaked at the door.

“I was starting to wonder what happened to you…” your voice trailed off when you saw that Kuroo wasn’t alone.

“Hey Y/N! Oh my gosh your apartment is so cute!” said Calie. Your jaw dropped and you looked over at Kuroo.

Your expression had to be screaming: “are you fucking kidding me right now!?”

“Oh uh thanks,” you muttered.

“Is it cool if Calie stays for a bit? Her roommates are having people over and she doesn’t know them too well,” explained Kuroo. Hmm I wonder what that’s like.

“You don’t have to ask me, it’s your apartment too,” you said plainly. Kuroo raised a brow.

“Just checking…”

Calie walked around your small apartment, admiring all the decorations that you had up.

“Aw isn’t this the cutest photo!” She said. She picked up a picture of you and Kuroo. It was when you had gotten dressed up together to take graduation pictures. Your smile was the brightest it’s ever been. Holding your diploma as Kuroo wrapped his arm around you. In the background of the photo you could see a faint image of Oikawa and Bokuto.

“Yeah I love that picture,” Kuroo smiled. Kuroo took the photo from Calie’s hand and looked at it.

“Best friends, right?” He looked at you. Your heart sank.

“Yup, best friends,” you whispered with a dull smile. Kuroo smiled and showed Calie to his room. You tried not to react. You walked over to your room, locked the door, and curled up onto your bed.

Is best friends all we are ever gonna be?

•

[taglist OPEN: @vangoghpoets @vangoghmusings @lilnuances @tetsoleil @cloudswritings @foxyyychan @tamaguchi @jessie9008 @bitandbytes @yeehawnana @166cm @bigchaosenergy @tumbledor3 @captain-janeway @answer-the-sirens @simpletype @ysatrap @stinkybitch1919 @bokutory ]

[hyrule-kingdom-updates]

Astor just sighed to himself as he walked down the castle’s long hallways.

The windows on this level of the castle spanned from the floor to ceiling, with natural sunlight dripping in through the gold trim. His eyes squinted at the light, and he let his hair fall closer to his face. I should get a hood one of these days.

His footsteps were mostly quiet and unnoticable, which unfortunately for him, led to a less than ideal collision with someone as he turned the corner.

“SON OF A—”

The man ran straight into Astor, his papers scattering across the floor. He shook a fist at the prophet, angrily—he was some old soul with blond hair with bits of grey, and a weathered round face with a set of furious blue eyes. 

“Watch where you’re going, you clod!” Ligero yelled. “I have half a mind to report you for interfering with sensitive documents!”

Astor leaned down, picking up the papers—seemingly just full of various recorded tax benefits—and rolled his eyes, mumbling. “Yes...and we wouldn’t want you to stress yourself working on only half a brain…”

“What was that?”

“Mm...nothing…”

“You youths...I hate mumbling…” 

Astor fitted the papers into a neat stack before handing them back to Ligero, which he snatched up, flipping through them carefully. The prophet gave a shallow, shallow bow. 

“My deepest apologies...Lord Ligero.”  

Ligero suddenly stopped reading, raising an eyebrow and looking him up and down for a moment. “Do I...know you?”

He narrowed his eyes. “If the stars had aligned correctly, this would be our first and last meeting.”

The Lord wagged a finger at him as his eyes lit up. “Ahhh...you’re that crazy star seer. The one aways snuggled up in the queen’s shadow…”

“Gh…...I’m not—”

“Yeah…” Ligero rubbed his chin. “You’re that sickly twig that’s been whining about our deaths and such...always making a fuss since Elane died.” He chuckled to himself, while Astor scowled.

“Her Majesty’s...passing, puts the future of Hyrule on a path of certain doom. I believe I’ve made my predictions of past clear, that the princess will not awaken her power in—”

 “Ayap-yap-yap-yap-yap-yap…” Ligero opened and closed his hand like a mouth in mockery. “Listen boy, you won’t win any favours by spewing your miserable thoughts at every meeting.”

“Maybe I don’t desire your favour.”

“Well then who are you looking to please? Cause I’m afraid it’s a little late to cuck His Majesty any further.”

“Excuse me?” Astor took a step forward, but the Lord stood his ground with a smile, cocking his head to the side. 

“I mean, that’s the only reason some nobody like you is here in the first place, isn’t it? Royal connections? Lovely pity on a scrawny useless orph—”

“I’m here to do my job.”

“Aw, don’t live in denial, boy. I have an eye for this sort of thing. And I’m always partial to helping a lad in need…”

Astor was already turning to move past Ligero, but suddenly stopped. He smirked to himself in amusement. “Is that so…?”

“Oh sure. My own son I’ve raised to be the peak of perfection. Striking young man, dashing blond—like me—and skilled. Rising up the knight’s ranks faster than an octo balloon! That’s all me, all my parenting right th—”

“And which son is that?”

“My oldest, my…...one, son.” He glared at him with a frown. 

“Hmm…” Astor could barely hold back from snickering. “And what do you think of this oldest son then?”

“Oh, too much of his mother’s child, if you ask me. But much better than I in some regards, though of course, not all of them. Ohoho…”

“Yes…” Astor smiled to himself. “You’re a funny man, Ligero Hartell…”

Ligero finally stopped laughing to himself. “But you see, perfection like that isn’t born. It’s made and nurtured, you have to coax it out of them.” He poked Astor’s chest, and he flinched away in disgust. “Quit your mumbling, your babbling, your little grief stricken dreams, it’s all useless. No one cares for it.”

The Lord went to pat his head, like a puppy, but Astor dodged out of the movement with a verbal “nope” as he whipped behind him. Ligero just shrugged. “If you can’t churn yourself to be a better man, then you’ll have to settle for the next best thing. You want to be something more? Something of actual merit? Taken more seriously than some child that was dragged up these polished steps out of a late woman’s mercy?” He flicked his wrist, adjusting the cuff of his pristine white sleeve. “Stop chasing the dead. Don’t be blinded by replaceable things like compassion and the sort. Find a wealthy friend or something, get rich, get power.” 

Ligero turned to continue walking down the hall. “Besides, even if it is like you say—then all the more to ride the sayings of, ‘You only live once.’”

Astor glowered, watching Ligero walk away. He scoffed, and started to turn back towards his own destination, before the Lord called out once more—  

“And cut your hair or something! You’re no Rito, quit with the braids. It’ll get all greasy and frizzy...Trust me, I knew someone with hair like that, once.”

Astor’s expression softened just a bit—nearly undetectable—before immediately being replaced with a darker scowl.

He kept walking, his deep purple robes dancing just a finger-widths above the stone polished steps. He opened and closed his hand to himself, miming Ligero’s speaking.

“Always partial to helping a lad in need...gods, seems childhood memory has still captured him to perfection.” Astor came up on the wooden door, and walked inside. 

The ceiling was a stone dome, littered with old parchment maps, and Sheikah charts, along with chalk that outlined ancient constellations and designs. There was an old chalkboard—stolen, from the Sheikah department—with further sketches and notes, torn out pages from old journals and texts pinned to the board and walls. Even the window was covered by hanging gyrospheres and astrolabes, twirling in infinite suspension. Since they blocked the window’s hinges, they were probably the reason why the room smelled so musty.

Astor closed the door, and flopped down on an old velvet bench, staring at the ceiling in silence.

“BOO!”

“GAAaaAAAh!” Astor shot up, whipping his head at the dangerous intruder, only to find a giggling, blonde girl.

She was doing her best to muffle her laughter by holding her hands to her mouth. “Gotchu again, Mr. Astor!” 

He sighed. “What are you doing here?”

The princess shuffled towards his desk, hands already bored and ready to play with the nearest pointy object. “You took so long to get heeeeree….why was that old guy even talking to you?”

He fixed his hair behind his ears, not really paying attention. “Oh? You heard all that, then?”

“Yeaaah, the halls are—” she cupped her hands over her mouth, “—ECHOEY, Echoey, echoey...echoey….” Her voice grew fainter at each repetition. 

“Stop shouting in my study. You’ll attract the rats…”

“I like rats!” She ran back up to Astor, sitting on the other end of the bench. “They’re like dogs! But small!”

“They’re rodents. Think more possums and mice.”

“Like that old guy, right?” She played with a loose thread on her dress. “Last week you called him a gross...virgin? Vermin… Velvet…? I forgot the word—”

Astor suddenly scooped the young Zelda up under her arms, holding her out in front of him like she was a disease. “Don’t tell anyone I said that, alright? That’s our secret.”

“Put me doooooooown!!”

“No. Get out. I’m working.”

The princess struggled in his grip so much that by the time he reached the door with her, she was nearly upside down. He opened the door and she craned her neck up, pleading at him with an upside down frown.

“Pleeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaase let me stay??? Dad never bothers to look for me here….and your room is so cool! Even mom hung out here a lot…” Astor physically flinched, and Zelda took that as an opportunity to let loose some puppy eyes. “Pweaaaaaaase????”

Astor was so ready, so ready to shake her off his arm and let her possibly break a bone tumbling down the steps. “Oh! It was an accident, Your Majesty. She was so busy talking and talking and bouncing off the walls she forgot how stairs worked! I tried to stop her but she used her superglue prank again! Oh what a shame!” It would have been so easy…

Instead, the prophet just sighed, turned around, and let her topple onto the room’s floor. She yelled a “Yay!” before scuttling towards the windowsill, adorned with sparkly objects. Astor made his way to his desk, muttering.

“You can stay for five minutes. But don’t touch anything.”

Zelda immediately started touching and spinning the gyrospheres around in her hand.

The princess pranced and sat and played and pondered around the room—five minutes, ten, fifteen, and twenty. Finally she hobbled up to Astor, her arms full of shiny orbs and trinkets. She peered at his desk.

“So whatcha working on?” Zelda asked, looking at the weird sketches. “You seeing the future and stuff?”

“Something like that,” he replied stiffly. Silence resumed in the room.

Zelda set down her arm full of collectables, before standing on her toes to catch a better glimpse. “So what’s gonna happen? What’s gonna happen in the future?”

The prophet rolled his eyes, still trying to focus on his work. “Oh, you know. Death, doom, destruction. You’ll fail to awaken your powers, everyone perishes...the usual sort.”

Zelda crossed her arms and sat on the ground with a huff. “You don’t know that.”

“I do know that.”

“Oh yeah? Well if you can see the future, then WHAT am I gonna do next? Betcha can’t tell!”

“You’re going to attempt a backflip.”

“I’m going to do a b—” Zelda had jumped up, her arms already in the air, before she let them drop and sputtered angrily. “H-Hey! How’d you know that?!”

“Because that’s what you always do to try and disprove me.” He nodded towards the broken chair beside the door, along with a broken shelf, and a broken footstool.

“Hmph!”

“But that’s not how telling the future works anyways.”

“Oh yeah, well how am I supposed to know if you never TELL ME!” She suddenly scrambled into Astor’s lap, trying to steal his papers. 

“H-Hey! Get off you insolent—”

“Tell me what your jooooooob issssss you never doooooooooo anything despite having the coolest room…” Zelda palmed her face on his papers, refusing to move.” 

Astor was just about pulling his hair out, before taking a deep breath. “If I tell you, will you get off me?”

“Maaaybe.”

“Ugh. You’re insufferable…” Astor leaned his head back, staring at the ceiling. 

“Well it’s like this. Every choice and possibility exists. Every universe and timeline with every outcome and conclusion you could imagine exists in the grand unknown. There’s a universe where you’re a boy, there’s a universe where you don’t exist, there’s a universe where you’re quiet and don’t bother me all the time—”

“Is there one where my mom’s alive?” Zelda leaned her head back and looked up at him.

He was silent for a moment, pondering his words. “...Yes. There is.” 

He finally raised an arm, gesturing to the decorated ceiling. “See now, predicting the future is all a matter of trying to identify exactly what kind of universe you’re in. You look to the stars—gifts from the spirits, who roam as a constant in all timelines. You look to dreams, and magic, and visions...your surroundings, the people...there’s a pattern and predictability that I can use to identify what universe we’re in, and how the future will play out.”

“So you think we’re in the one where the Calamity wins?” Zelda raised an eyebrow.

“From what I’ve seen, I’m almost certain. Yes.”

“That sucks.”

“It does...suck.”

Zelda jumped up and went back to playing with the gold and silver trinkets. “Why don’t we just go to a universe where we don’t lose?”

Astor turned back to his work. “Because that’s not possible.”

“Really? You sure?”

Astor stopped, pondering for just a moment, before shrugging and continuing to work. 

“Probably anyways. I imagine millions of people have tried before, millenia ago. And from the looks of things, nothing’s worked.”

Zelda fiddled with an Ancient Core. 

[starrybethany]

I’m Sure - Adam Boqvist Imagine Part 2

Part 1

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Word count: 3.5K

I shut the front door quietly behind me. I step out of my heels, sighing in relief as my feet can finally breathe. My eyes land on the twelve-year-old on the couch and I can’t help but grin despite his cold behavior towards me lately.

I know he’s an adolescent so he’s going to go through mood swings and say hurtful things-but that doesn’t make it hurt less. It also doesn’t make me love him less. I walk up behind him, wrapping my arms around his shoulders slowly and pressing a kiss to his cheek.

“Mom,” he rips the headphones off of his ears, setting the controller and the headphones down on the coffee table. “You’re home.”

“Are you playing Call of Duty with the boys?” I ask.

“Yeah,” he mumbles, eyes still avoiding my own. I know he’s ashamed of how he treated me this morning before leaving for school, but he won’t admit it. I raised him to admit it when he’s made a mistake, but he’s a boy, and they naturally refuse to do so. He’s still young, too, so he feels like he’s somehow always right.

“What do you want for dinner?” I make my way towards the small kitchen, opening the fridge to look inside.

“Didn’t you get food with Winston?” Holden questions, giving me a confused look.

“Yeah,” I shrug. “But I’m assuming you didn’t eat.”

“No.”

I pull out the supplies to make a grilled cheese, looking up at him expectantly. “Grilled cheese, then?”

“Yeah.”

The fading sun catches the blonde locks in his hair as he looks over at me from time to time, trying to focus on his game but a thought obviously occupying him.

“Mom, is um, is Winston going to be moving in with us?” He questions.

“What?” I laugh. “No, honey, we’ve only been dating a few months. Why would you think that?”

He shrugs. “I don’t know.  You guys hang out a lot.”

“Well, I hope you know that I would have a conversation with you before doing anything that serious,” I reassure him, bringing over a Coke and the plate with chips and a grilled cheese.

“Thanks, mom,” he cracks a smile at me. A sign that it’s all better now.

“So, tell me about school today. How was art? Did you finally compliment Cierra’s painting?” I tease.

“Mom,” his voice cracks with the warning.

“I’m just teasing,” I giggle. “But seriously, Holden, girls love compliments.”

“I know,” he grumbles, returning to his game.

~

“How is Holden?” My sister asks.

I balance the phone between my shoulder and my ear, glancing up the stairs to make sure his door is closed so that he doesn’t hear the conversation. I lower my voice just in case. “I’m still worried about him.  He doesn’t have a lot of friends, he doesn’t hang out with the friends that he does have, he doesn’t want to join any sports or extracurricular activities- his grades aren’t the best. I’ve asked him so many times if he wants to go to therapy and he says no every time.”

“Well, maybe it’s time for you and Winston to get serious. That boy needs a father figure.”

I feel the annoyance rise in my blood and I roll my eyes, grateful that she can’t see me and scold me about the action. “I don’t want to push Holden to accept Winston. Holden will make his own decision of how to perceive him. Look, I have to go, I’m working late tomorrow.”

“Alright. Love you.”

“Love you too.” I quickly hang up, turning off the downstairs lights and making my way upstairs. I peak under my son’s door, seeing a soft light emerging, before doing my nighttime routine and laying down in bed. I scroll through my social media for a while- a habit I’ve been trying to break since Holden was born- seeing that all of my friends who are Flyer fans are getting excited for the game against the Blackhawks tomorrow.

Colorado was not a hockey place. They were all about their Denver Broncos and lived and breathed football. Holden and I moved to Philadelphia with my ex-boyfriend when he was a toddler, and we broke up when he started kindergarten, but we’ve stayed in Philadelphia ever since.

Philadelphia, however, is a hockey place. I understand why- Gritty is the embodiment of the city- but it was odd to be immersed back into the hockey life. Everyone here worships Claude Giroux and flashes of orange are worn everywhere we go.

I asked Holden when he was younger if he wanted to play hockey, since a lot of his friends do, but he quickly rejected the idea- something I was guiltily relieved about. He doesn’t know that his dad is a hockey player, in fact, he’s surprisingly never asked about his dad.

I thought he would want to learn more as he grew older and saw all of the kids at school with both of their parents, but he’s never said a thing to me.

I don’t know if he’s said something to someone else, though.

I set my phone down on the nightstand, exhausted from the long workday and the worry that constantly fills my body about my son. I know I need to do something to encourage him to increase his grades, make some friends, join some clubs- hell, even if it’s to spend more time with me, I wouldn’t mind that.

But right now, I just feel like a shitty mother.

~

I sigh, setting down the papers on my desk and rubbing my eyes. I hate ordering inventory, but someone needs to do it and since the owner of this coffee shop is never here, it lays on my shoulders.

I stand up, making my way to the front of the shop. “Do you guys know if Lia needs any more shirts?”

“I think she does,” Rachel’s voice falls on deaf ears as I notice the person waiting to order. The blood rushes to my head and my limbs run cold. All I can focus on is him. He’s standing in the coffee shop that I manage, a familiar, yet older Alex DeBrincat by his side, just like old times.

My eyes meet Alex’s first. He smiles at me, then I watch as it slowly transfers into a look of confusion.

“Do I- do I know you?”  He asks carefully.

“Y/N,” another voice breathes out. I turn my head, eyes meeting Adam’s. His face is frozen in disbelief, like he can’t believe it’s actually me.

But it’s me. And I’m standing in front of my child’s father, seeing him for the first time in about thirteen years. I hadn’t spoken to him since the day I left, Holden still a little bean in my stomach.

Staying true to my word, I did it on my own- with the help from some ex-boyfriends. But still, I was the one hugging him when he got vaccines at six months old, I was the one rubbing his back when he had the stomach flu at six years old, I’m the one kissing him on the cheek after parent-teacher conferences.

“Oh my gosh, Y/N, it’s been a while!” Alex chuckles, snapping my attention back to him. “I thought you were in Colorado, what are you doing in Philly?”

I force a smile. “Needed a change in scenery.”

It’s not a complete lie.

“How have you been? Is there a husband, any kids?”

Rachel, God bless Rachel, calls out Alex’s name and hands him his coffee before I can respond.

“How are you doing?” I inquire, keeping my eyes on the shorter man.

“Oh, I’m good, Lyndsey and I just had our second, our first boy,” he smiles proudly. He always used to talk about how much he wanted a family with her.

“Congratulations,” I smile.

“Thanks. Boqy here,” he slaps Adam’s chest, bringing him into the conversation. I reluctantly drag my eyes over to him, seeing that he’s already watching me. “Hasn’t changed a bit since you left.”

I nod, biting back the snarky remark that wants to escape. He’s what, thirty now? And he hasn’t changed a bit?

“Well, I have to get back to work,” I respond, wanting nothing more than to escape this conversation. I wouldn’t mind chatting with Alex for a whil- I’m sure he’d love Holden, but I don’t want Adam to know anything about my son.

I can’t help but feel guilty at that.

“Hey, let’s exchange numbers and hang out soon. We’re playing the Flyers and Penguins for the next couple of days, so we’ll be around for a while,” Alex offers.

I nod, pulling out my phone to exchange numbers with him. Somehow Adam thinks it’s his right to add his number into my phone, too.

“Well, it was great seeing you, Y/N,” Alex smiles before leaving, holding the door open for his companion. Adam spares me one last glance before leaving.

I cry in my office.

~

I can feel his eyes sliding between me and his plate. He pushes the corn with his fork, causing a scrapping noise to echo throughout the small room. He’s used to dinner being filled with questions about his day- what did he learn in science? Did he play dodgeball in gym class? But I’m not in the mood tonight.

The last thing that I wanted to do was make dinner and sit down and eat it instead of ordering pizza and crawling into bed, but I know I need to put on a brave face for Holden. He doesn’t need to know that anything’s wrong.

He coughs awkwardly. “I don’t like corn.”

I can’t hold back the rolling of my eyes. He looks shocked at that, like he’s not expecting it, but I’m not in the mood for his snarky attitude tonight.

“Then don’t eat it.”

He studies me before I can’t handle it anymore, shoving my chair back. I quickly throw the rest of my food away and throw my dishes into the sink before practically sprinting upstairs, locking my bedroom door behind me like a teenage girl.

I’m wiping the tears in my eyes furiously, my chest heaving with every breathe. I’m hoping that if I stop the tears from coming now, it’ll seem like they’ve never come at all.

And if they never fall, I’ve never cried over Adam Boqvist.

My phone buzzes angrily in my back pocket and I pull it out, practically groaning when I read Winston’s name. It shouldn’t be like that when I see that it’s my boyfriend calling, I know that, but really? Right now?

“Hello?”

“Hey, how are you?” Winston coos through the phone.

I furrow my eyebrows at the tone. “Uh, alright.”

“It’s just- Holden texted me and told me that you’re feeling kind of, um, off, tonight,” he struggles to explain.

I hold back my scoff. Sure, now Holden likes Winston.

“It’s nothing.”

“Come on, Y/N, how are we supposed to have a healthy relationship if you can’t talk to me?” He persists.

“I just don’t want to talk about it, Winston.”

“Fine. Be that way. But just so you know, if you can’t bother talking to me about this, then don’t bother talking to me ever again.”

I raise my eyebrows at that. “You’re going to break up with me because I don’t want to tell you what’s wrong?”

“It’s the principle of it, Y/N! If you aren’t willing to share your emotions with me four months into this relationship, where are we going?” He rants.

I’m dumbfounded. I know I should be willing to tell him what’s wrong- he’s supposed to be my partner, my confidant, the one I tell everything to.

But to be honest, I don’t really care. I’ve never felt an immense attraction to him. Really, when he asked me out the only reason I said yes was because I like his appearance. But we’ve never clicked, we’ve never had that fire, that passion- like, like what Adam and I had.

“Exactly,” he scoffs, reminding me that I’m still on the phone with my boyfriend. Well, ex-boyfriend.

He hangs up the phone and I sigh, gently resting the device back on my bedside table. I get ready for bed before climbing back under my cozy covers, scrolling through social media one last time before I decide to sleep.

My notification tab lights up, so I click on it, seeing that I have a new follow request.

adamboqvistt Confirm Delete

I stare at that in disbelief. After more than a decade of knowing my Instagram handle, and the fact that I’m the mother of his child, now he decides he wants to follow me?

Now he wants to get and stay in contact, just because he happened to see me at my job?

He took one look at me and decided he should be involved now. I told him when I told him that I was pregnant, it’s all in or all out.  And he decided all out, so now he has to live with his decision.

I close the app in fury, setting my phone down and turning over in bed, tugging the blanket harder than I intend to. Hopefully tomorrow is better than today. Hopefully Adam forgets about me and our child, just like he’s done for the past thirteen years.

~

Holden is slipping down the stairs just as I set his plate of scrambled eggs down on the table, giving me a hesitant look, like he’s unsure of what kind of mood I’m in and why I took the time to make him breakfast instead of hurrying out the door like I usually am with a reluctant kiss and hug.

“I start later today, I’m on the closing shift tonight,” I half-explain, placing the bowl of cut-up strawberries in the middle of the table.

He nods, taking a seat across from me at the table. I clear my throat as we begin to eat and he looks up at me, blue eyes wide like he got caught doing something wrong.

“Winston and I broke up last night,” I state emotionlessly.

“Oh, uh, sorry.”

I shrug my shoulders.

“Can I ask why?”

“I didn’t want to talk about my bad day and apparently that makes me emotionally unavailable,” I respond.

He pauses. “Well, do you want to talk about your bad day with me?”

This time it’s my turn to pause. I could do three things right now.  I could tell him that his father’s going to be in town for the next couple of days, giving him the opportunity to meet him if he really wanted to. Although he’s never expressed wanting to meet Adam, I’m sure there’s some kind of yearning in him to meet the man who gave him half of his genes.

Or I could lie. I hate lying to the kid- it’s not a value I want to raise him with. Plus, if he finds out that I lied, he would be pissed.

Finally, I could shut him out. I don’t want to do that, though. If I shut him out, when will he want to come talking to me? If I’m not willing to talk to him, it’s not fair to expect him to talk to me about things that bother him.

“I saw… an old friend, yesterday,” I say slowly, deciding to leave it at that. It’s vague but specific enough.

“My father?”

I practically choke at the words.

“It’s okay, mom,” he shrugs awkwardly. “I get it. That must’ve been hard for you.”

The deep blush on his cheeks shows me that he doesn’t want to continue this conversation much longer. I don’t know if it’s because of who it’s about, or because we’re talking about our feelings, but I don’t want to pressure him.

“Yeah. So, I’ll be home around eight o’clock tonight, I’ll pick up some McDonalds on the way home. Text me your order,” I inform him.

He nods, and that’s that.

~

I don’t know why a café is open until eight o’clock at night. Usually no one comes in past six o’clock, so the owner is paying someone to sit there for two hours on their phone. Around seven fifty-five, when I’m in the middle of turning off the lights to lock up and go home to see my son, the doorbell rings.

I curse in my head- what asshole comes in five minutes before closing time?

“Hello,” I plaster a fake smile onto my face, turning around to greet the customer. My feet stop moving.

His short curls peak out of the gray beanie, black jacket hanging loosely off of his body. His hands are shoved into his coat pockets and he stands at the door unsurely, deciding to take a confident step forward.

I compose myself, taking a step forward. “What can I get for you today?”

“Y/N-“”My recommendation is our house’s hot chocolate, it’s my favorite,” I give him a sugar sweet smile, relishing in the way that he winces.

“Look, I know that-“”Either order something or get out, Adam,” I break out of my customer service persona.

“If I order something will you talk to me?” He snaps.

I raise my eyebrows at him. “Are you really in the position to be making demands here?”

He sighs. “Get me that- what was it, a hot chocolate?”

“What size?” I snarl.

“Small.”

I grab the cup, reluctantly beginning the process of making it as he begins to speak.

“I requested to follow you on Instagram.”

I don’t respond.

“Look, I know that I messed up, okay?”

“That’s one way of putting it,” I mumble.

“I realize that,” he continues like I never interrupted him. “And I regret it every day, letting you and him- or her, I don’t even know what you ended up having, go, just so easily. I spent thirteen years missing all of the birthdays and Christmases and hockey games and focusing on getting drunk and my own hockey world. But don’t you feel like it’s fate, meeting again after all of these years?”

“Your total is $4.32,” I retort, setting the cup down on the counter.

“Come on, just let me meet him. Or her, you haven’t told me what you ended up having yet,” he pleads, chuckling dryly at the end.

“That’s because you don’t deserve to know. $4.32 please, and cash transactions are closed at this time,” I stare pointedly at him.

He swipes his card silently.

“Thank you, come again,” I state as I hand him his receipt. His fingers brush my own. The softness of them sooth the rage in my body, something I curse at internally.

I, so badly, want to be mad at Adam. I want to scream at him for missing all of our son’s childhood and my whole pregnancy.

But the worst part is that I can’t really blame him. He was a young guy, barely surviving in a league that sucks the players dry of everything they can give.

He knew he couldn’t give everything to raise the child- he knew better than to promise that he could do that.

I know he probably beats himself up for letting this go on so long- as he should- but I know that he’s probably ashamed of what he’s done and how much he’s missed.

There was never a right time for him to reenter Holden’s life. When Holden was a toddler, Adam still barely knew himself, as a kid Adam was teaching the younger players, and well, now- now Holden wants nothing to do with him.

Adam’s fingers glide gently up my arm, eyes double-checking to make sure the action is alright. It is.

It slides down to my waist and the other hand lifts up slowly, softly brushing my jaw. His face moves closer and closer to mine before our lips meet.

It’s like they’ve never left each other. They start out slowly, then move faster, more passionately. I tighten my eyes, cherishing this moment. Who knows when it will come next? The hand on my jaw moves down to my other hip and he tugs me across the counter, moving so that he’s standing in between my open legs.

“This is so unhygienic,” I breathe out as he begins to kiss down my neck. He chuckles, the hot air making me grow more and more needy for him.

“Are there cameras in here?” He questions, looking around- looking out for me to keep my job.

“No,” I respond, pulling his lips back to mine. “But we have to go into the office. I don’t want anyone walking past to see.”

He nods, grabbing onto the back of my thighs to pick me up. The office door shuts behind us.

When I see the, now cold, hot chocolate still sitting on the counter the next morning, I can’t help but wince, regretting everything that happened the night prior.

I just can’t resist when it comes to Adam Boqvist.

[fatiguing-thoughts]

“Natural” - Chapter 15 - Embry Call x Reader

I was stirred from my sleep at the sound of something in my room. 

My initial panic subsides when I hear Embry’s soothing voice in my ear. 

“It’s just me. Don’t worry.” He says, climbing into bed next to me. 

I feel his warm arms wrap around me and I press my face into the crook of his neck.

“What time is it?” I mumble.

“It’s a little past midnight.” He kisses my temple, stroking my hair. 

“Oh wow, I’ve been asleep for a while.” I chuckle. 

“Yeah, you never answered my texts. I figured you’d fallen asleep. You had a long day.” He chuckles, pressing soft kisses to my neck. 

“That I did. We all did.” I sigh.

“We’ll find him, don’t worry.” Embry whispers.

“I don’t know, Em. I’m really worried. I don’t recognize my best friend anymore.” I say, tears falling from my eyes.

“I know, I know. He’s still there, he’s just going through the ringer.” He soothes me, rubbing comforting circles in my back. 

“I know, I just want to help him. He’s been there for me through so much. Jacob’s like my brother.” I sniffle. 

“I know you do, bean. But you can’t fix what’s going on with him. He’s heartbroken and he’s gonna take some time for himself to heal.” 

Embry’s voice and touch always soothed me, but the thought of how much pain one of our best friends was going through was still plaguing my mind. I had no idea where he was or what he was doing. 

“Did you look for him today?” I look at Embry.

“Quil, Sam, Paul, and I all went out earlier. We’re going to be taking shifts looking for him.” 

“Nothing?” I ask with defeat.

“No, we lost his scent. We can’t hear his thoughts. We went all the way to the Candadian border. We’ll find him, he just doesn’t want to be found yet.” He chuckles softly, trying to lighten the mood.

“The Canadian border? How much further could he be?” I ask surprised.

“Who knows, he’s fast. We’ll find him eventually. We will.” He promises.

“I hope so.” I murmur, pressing my face deeper into his neck.

The smell of pine needles and teakwood throwing my senses into a frenzy. 

“In other news, we picked up the scent of another leech seemingly on its way to Forks. Quil and I got him, though. Gotta make sure nothing else comes here.” 

“It’s crazy how casual this is for all of you. I still can’t completely grasp it, yet. It’s just so common, Vampires in Forks. Months ago I never knew they existed, and here we are. They’re just everywhere.” I giggle.

“Isn’t it? But it makes sense why they like it here. They’re just surprised to see us, most vampires don’t even know we exist. Makes our job a little easier.” 

“How many do you think will be at the wedding next month?” I ask.

“I’m not sure. We’re gonna have to figure out who we do and don’t have to worry about, though.” His raspy voice laughs softly into my ear. 

“That’s a really good point, I didn’t consider that.” I giggle. 

“I know, I’m just here to remind you of it all. But you definitely wanna go?” He asks me, looking into my eyes. 

“Well, yeah. I’m intrigued, I wanna see what it’ll be like. I wanna see the wedding, I’m sure it’s going to be beautiful. Seth was really excited, too. So I wanna go for his sake, he’ll need some backup. Plus, Billy is going because of Charlie. I can’t leave Billy all alone. I’m going, but if you don’t want to, I won’t force you. I know you aren’t exactly fond of them.” I give him a soft smile. 

He leans up against my headboard and pulls me with him. He looks into my eyes with a soft smile.

“Babe, if you think I’m gonna let you go to a wedding without a date, you are mistaken. I would love to go with you. Anywhere, really. Besides, I can’t leave you with that many vampires. It’s rule number one of vampire weddings.” He chuckles. 

“Awe, Em. Thank you. How silly of me to forget rule number one.” I smirk as I place a kiss on his lips. 

“I don’t know how you could.” He pulls me in for another kiss.

His large hands find my hips, pulling me further into him. The kiss grows deeper, feeling his hungry lips on my own. 

“What time do you have to go home?” I exhale, pulling away from the kiss.

“Pretty soon, unfortunately. My mom’s gonna be looking to see if I’m in my bed soon.” He sighs.

“I understand.” I nod before placing my forehead on his. 

“I’m sorry, bean. We can have another sleepover soon.” He smiles, kissing the tip of my nose.

“I can’t wait. You’re still coming over for dinner tomorrow, right?” I ask.

“Of course.” He smiles. 

I laid against his chest until he had to leave. His heartbeat thumping against my ear put me to sleep faster than anything else really can. 

I start to stir as I feel movement in the bed.

“I love you. I’ll see you tomorrow.” He kisses my forehead before walking to my window.

I felt my eyes drooping shut before he reaches it. 

“I love you, too.” I mumble into the pillow.

I pull my blankets closer to me as my main source of heat has since left my bed. 

I woke up to see the sun peaking through my curtains. 

I check my phone and see a missed call from Leah. It was only nine in the morning, weird that she called so early. 

I then saw a text from her, asking me if she can come over when I’m awake. I text her back telling her she can come over now. 

I get myself dressed and ready for the day and make my way downstairs. 

I pop some waffles in the toaster and await for Leah’s arrival.

Though it wasn’t long as a few moments later there was a knock on my front door.

“Hey Leah. Come in.” I swing the door open further and she quickly enters. 

“Hi.” She smiles softly. 

“Are you hungry? Do you want anything to eat or drink?” I ask her.

“I’m good with water.” 

“Sit down, Leah.” I smile.

I bring her a glass of water and she gives me a small thank you.

“So, what’s going on?” I smile at her.

“Just the Alyssa thing. I explained it all to her. I just feel so bad about how she learned about all of it. She was so… afraid. It hurt to see her so afraid of us. She looked like she saw a monster.” She sighs.

“I understand. I think it’s natural to be afraid in a situation like that. But what matters is how she handles it from here. Jake made it a difficult introduction, but it seems like a fixable situation.” I place my hand on her shoulder comfortingly. 

“For sure. I get it. She said she needed a day or so to herself, and I get it, I do. But this is painful for me. I showed her me, and she seemed alright but… just really shaken up.” Leah confesses. 

“I get it. I talked to her, she said she didn’t wanna lose the connection she has with all of us, with you. She just needs to take some time to absorb it all. The girl watched a giant boy turn into a giant wolf. Then, she watched another one turn into another giant wolf. Then, she almost saw them fight. And then, she learned about vampires and how they’re running crazy through her hometown. She got a very harsh and rushed introduction, the girl feels like she’s nuts.” I chuckle, placing my hand on Leah’s.

“Yeah. But she said she doesn’t want to lose the connection she has with me?” She smiles.

“Of course that’s all you heard.” I roll my eyes.

“Oh shut up.” She laughs.

I walk over to go get the waffles I toasted and hand one to Leah.

She thanks me and eats it.

“I thought you weren’t hungry?” I tease.

“That was before I heard good news.” She smiles, taking a bite out of the eggo waffle. 

“Okay, fair.” I chuckle.

“By the way, I just want to let you know that I’m relieved you’ll be going to the wedding with Seth. I couldn’t bring myself to go, but you and Embry can keep an eye on him.” 

“Of course. Ya know, despite all the drama this girl brings, he’s still really excited for that wedding.” I laugh.

“He’s just happy to be anywhere. He loves love and he loves the Cullens. Don’t really get why, though.” She rolls her eyes.

“Well, I think Seth sees things in a different light than everyone else. He’s kinda his own sun. I love it, I wish I could be more like him, sometimes.” I admit with a small smile.

“I agree, Seth is really warm. He’s kind. He tries to only see the best in people. Which is why I worry for him, especially at a party full of leeches. So I find comfort in knowing you guys will be there.” She takes a sip of her water with a smirk. 

I shake my head, laughing at her. But in reality, it made sense to feel that way. It made so much sense.

“So, what’re your plans with Embry for the day?” 

“Well, my dad wanted to have dinner with us. So what I have to do is either feed him before or feed him after, because he’s expressed his concern with eating too much in front of my dad. He doesn’t want to raise any suspicions.” I giggle.

“That’s a good point. I guess that’s something to consider.” She picks at the skin on her thumb. 

“Are you actually okay?” 

“I mean, I will be fine soon. It just kinda physically hurts.” She purses her lips.

“Well, let’s go have some fun, then. I don’t have anything to do until my dad gets home from work.” 

“I mean, I don’t have to go on patrol and search for Jacob until 3. We could do something.” She smiles.

“Alright, let’s go.” I grab my car keys and we are on our merry way.

“What’s the plan?” She asks as I turn the car on.

“Uh, not sure. You got anything in mind?” I turn to her before driving off. 

“Not a clue.” She smirks.

“Okay, well we can go play in the woods. I know you’re doing that later, so I don’t know. We can mess with the guys, maybe? Drive around until we find something? We could go get lunch later, maybe?” I start throwing ideas around. 

“Okay, uh. Those are all great options.” She laughs.

“But?” 

“But, I don’t know what to do.” 

“We can hang out on the beach. Maybe look for some seals? I need a dress to wear to Bella’s wedding, but I don’t think you’d be very interested in dress shopping.” I chuckle. 

“Not usually, but we could do that if you’d like. I’d like to go see some seals, though. That could be fun.” She smiles.

“Alright, seals it is.” I smile. 

We drove over to the beach, blasting some fun music. 

Seeing Leah in a good mood was something that I enjoyed, it was something I didn’t get to see often anymore. She really deserved the happiness the world has to offer; and I’m glad she’s finding it. 

After our jam session, we pulled up to the beach and got out. We began our walk, which wouldn’t be too long, hopefully. 

“Do you think we’ll see any baby seals?” I ask.

“Maybe, I think this is like the time when they’re born.” She looks around. 

“Great. I love fluffy seal pups, it’s all I need to see and then I’ll be content with my life.” I giggle.

“Wow, that’s all it takes?” Leah teases. 

“Well yeah, have you ever seen a seal pup?” 

“You got me there, they are very cute.” Leah laughs at me. 

We continue our walk down the rocky shore for what feels like an hour or so before she tells me there are some coming up soon.

“How do you know? Those are just rocks.” I ask her.

“I have really good vision now, one of the perks. Plus, I can smell them. They don’t smell that great.” She laughs. 

“Jeez, all the things I forget to consider.” I laugh.

The sudden realization dawned upon me, what if I smelled bad and didn’t know it? They could all smell so well. 

“Leah, you would tell me if I smelled bad right? I’m gonna need you to do that for me.” I lift up the corner of my shirt, smelling it.

“(Y/N), you do not smell bad. But yes, I will tell you.” She laughs.

We continue walking, rounding the corner. 

“Wow, there they are.” I whisper in amazement. 

“Beautiful.” 

We sit and stare at them from afar for a bit. Talking about life for what feels like hours.

And suddenly our sunlight was blocked by two figures. 

“Can I help you?” Leah’s annoyed tone rings through the air.

“Yeah, we were wondering if we could sit with you two lovely ladies. We figured you might want our company.” One tries to shmooze. 

I look up and see two young guys. One a bit taller than average, lanky build. He had blonde hair and a smile plastered on his face. I look at the other one standing next to him, a little stockier than his friend. He was a few inches shorter and his hair was a light brown, he too was smiling at us. 

“Well, you did not figure correctly.” Leah scoffs. 

“Wow, someone’s feisty.” The blonde teases. 

“You’re a little quiet, though.” The brown haired boy smiles at me.

“It is with the advice of my lawyer that I remain quiet.” I smirk up at him.

Leah looks over at me, realizing what I’m doing. I can tell that she’s holding back her laughter. 

“What?” The blonde one asks.

“My lawyer? Just ever since my case, he said that I shouldn’t talk to men like you guys anymore. It was what provoked me the first time.” I shrug. 

“He was right. It was like something snapped that time. She just missed a sentence by *that*.” She pinches her thumb and her index finger close together. 

“Yeah, my boyfriend’s crazy, too. He just got out of prison. He should be here any minute, though. If you guys wanna meet him?” I smile at them.

“Uh, no thanks.” The blonde one quickly says, grabbing his friend’s arm and walking away.

“Bye! It was nice to meet you!” I call after them, causing them to walk faster. 

After they were out of earshot, Leah and I burst out into laughter. 

“That was impressive.” She laughs.

“Thank you. You did great, yourself.” I laugh.

“I see how you managed to keep up with Quil for all these years.” 

“Oh please, I made Quil the snarky boy he is.” I smirk. 

A few minutes later we decided it was time to go. 

Our walk back consisted of throwing around random things to do.

“I mean, I could go for ice cream.” I chime as we near my car.

“Who am I to say no to ice cream?” She laughs.

So we made our way to the local ice cream spot.

“Can I have sprinkles on the bottom? And extra sprinkles on top?” I ask the woman making my ice cream with an awkward smile.

“Of course!” The kind girl smiles as she packs on the sprinkles.

“Jeez, (Y/N). You want any ice cream with those sprinkles?” Leah laughs as she licks her ice cream.

“Not really, I’m in it for the sprinkles.” I laugh as I pay and thank the woman. 

Sitting on the bench outside of the ice cream shop I look at the time.

“Can’t believe it’s already noon.” I laugh.

“Wow, time flew. But what do we do now?” Leah asks, throwing out her napkin. 

“Well… I still need that dress. And there’s a dress store like fifteen minutes away…” I say, voice trailing off. 

“Alright, let’s go get you a dress. I just have to go on Jacob and leech patrol at 3.” She reminds me. 

“You got it, boss.” I smile as I stand up and throw out my empty cup. 

The dress shop was small but offered a substantial amount of options.

“Thank you for helping me, I need an honest opinion. This isn’t really my thing but I have to get it done.” I smile at her, shuffling through dresses.

“Of course, what else are friends for?” She chuckles.

“You got me there. Do you think long or short?” I ask.

“Uhhh, either works. What color are you thinking?” She asks. 

“I like emerald or purple.” I shrug. 

“Okay, those would work.” 

After about a half an hour of shuffling, we grabbed a few good options and I made my way to the dressing room. 

“No.” Leah says as I walk out in a deep purple dress that came to my knees. There was only one shoulder on the dress.

“Yeah I don’t like the top of it.” I shrug.

I make my way back in, and after we hated all of them I lost hope.

“I found this one, try it on.” She says handing me an emerald green dress. 

“Thank you.” I smile and make my way back into the dressing room. 

I put it on and look into the mirror. The gown flowed beautifully, complimenting my complexion and figure well. The straps and neckline held my chest together well. A modest, yet beautiful dress. It was perfect for this wedding. There was a hidden slit in the dress, I didn’t notice it until I brought my leg forward. I think this would be the dress, as long as Leah gave me the thumbs up.

“What do you think?” I ask as I exit the dressing room.

“That one looks great.” She smiles at me.

“I agree. I think this is the one I’m gonna buy.” I smile before going back into the dressing room. 

I get dressed back into my normal clothes and bring the dress over to the register. 

By the time we got into the car, it was a little after 2:00. 

“I’ll drive you home. Thank you for the fun day.” I smile at her.

“No, thank you. I had fun. Scaring men is a great way to pass time.” She chuckles. 

“It is, we should absolutely do that again. The guy was lucky Quil wasn’t here to add to it.” I laugh. 

“Oh yeah, it would’ve escalated to some kind of mafia story.” Her laughter echoes in the car. 

We got to her house and I said hello to Seth. 

“Hey Seth.” I wave.

“Hey! How’re you doing?” His cheerful voice fills my ears.

“I’m good. I’m gonna go pick up Embry to get him food before we eat dinner with my dad.” I giggle.

“Yeah that makes sense. He eats almost as much as Quil, which is a lot.” His smile beamed like sunshine. 

“I know, it’s crazy isn’t it.” I laugh. 

I say my goodbyes and make my way over to Embry’s house, calling him to let him know I was on my way.

I park my car and see him waiting for me outside with a smile, a few flowers in his hand. 

“Hey, Em.” I smile, giving him a soft kiss on his lips when he gets in my car. 

“Hey, bean.” He beams as I pull away and begin the drive back to my house. 

“How was patrol?” I ask, tearing my eyes from the road for a second. 

“It was alright. Good news is that we didn’t find any vampires. Bad news is that we didn’t find Jacob. But, I saw some pretty flowers and I thought of you. So I picked them.” He smiled, holding up the flowers for me to see.

“Embry, they’re beautiful. You’re too sweet, thank you.” I blush. 

“Anything for you, babe.” He smiles, pressing a kiss to the top of my hand. 

His head looks into my back seat, noticing the dress bag. 

“Oh you got a dress for the wedding?” He smiles at me.

“I did, Leah helped me pick it out today. It’s a little long for me right now, but I think heels will fix that.” 

“I can’t wait to see you in it.” Embry says, causing me to blush. 

“I can’t wait to see you all dressed up, I’m excited.” I smirk.

“I guess that’s the silver lining of this wedding.” He chuckles. 

We drove back to my house, jamming out to our playlist. 

I pull into the driveway and lead Embry into the house.

“What’re we cooking for dinner?” He asks.

“Well, I figured you could find something in the fridge to eat before he gets home and then I’ll make spaghetti and accessories to spaghetti for actual dinner.” I suggest.

“Spaghetti accessories?” Embry laughs, raising an eyebrow.

“Ya know, sauce, garlic bread, that kinda stuff.” I giggle. 

“Wow. Accessories.” He teases, pulling me in for a kiss. 

“Alright, eat some food so that we can start cooking.” I kiss the tip of his nose. 

I place the flowers in a vase and admire them for a few moments as Embry ate some leftovers from dinner last night. I brought the dress upstairs to my room before returning to the kitchen.

We began cooking and before I knew it, it was after 4:00. My dad should be home at any moment so our timing worked pretty well. 

“You know how they say you can tell if spaghetti is done?” Embry asks me.

“How?” I ask with a smirk, knowing damn well what he was going to do.

He grabs a piece of spaghetti out of the strainer and throws it at the wall behind me.

“Oh, no you’re supposed to throw it at someone, not a wall.” I joke with a grin.

I take a piece of spaghetti and throw it at Embry, and it got stuck to his arm.

“See, it’s done. It sticks.” I giggle, walking over to him and the wall to throw out those pieces. 

“Wow, babe. Harsh.” He giggles, wrapping his arms around my waist. 

“It’s what I am, coldblooded.” I joke. 

“Oh yeah, totally.” He rolls his eyes. 

Suddenly, his eyes are ripping themselves from my waist.

“What’s wrong?” I ask, slightly worried.

“Your dad’s pulling up into the driveway. I hear his car from up the block.” He laughs.

“Wow, super hearing. I forget about that.” I laugh. 

My dad opens the door and greets us.

“I’m just gonna change and then I’ll be right back down for dinner.” He says before jogging up the steps. 

I finish setting everything else up and Embry and I take a seat at the table, waiting for my dad.

“Hey, Embry. I’m glad to see you again.” My dad says to him with a smile.

“It’s good to see you again, too.” Embry smiles. 

“How was work?” I ask my dad.

“It was alright. John messed up one of our clients’ accounts, so that was a fun thing to fix for the rest of the day.” He says, voice filled with sarcasm. 

“Oh, sounds like a great time.” I joke.

“Of course, always is. But how was your day? What did you guys do today? Where did these flowers come from?” He asks before taking a bite of his garlic bread.

“Oh, I brought them for (Y/N). I saw them on a hike with Quil and I thought she’d like them.” He smiles.

“That’s really nice of you, Embry.” My dad smiles.

“Leah and I hung out. We went seal watching, scared some men, got ice cream and went dress shopping.” I took a bite of spaghetti.

“Sounds fun, but how and why did you scare men?” My dad raises an eyebrow. 

Embry too was interested to know the story, judging by his face. 

“Well when we were sitting at the beach, two guys came up to us. Flirting with us and thinking they were sooooo smooth. They didn’t get the message that we weren’t interested and didn’t want them around. So I told them my lawyer advised me to stay away from situations like that after what happened the last time. I said I barely made it out without a prison sentence. I wanted them to fear me. Then, I told them my crazy boyfriend who just got out of prison would be there any minute if they wanted to stick around and meet him.” I smile, taking a sip of my water.

Embry laughs way too hard at the absurd words coming from my mouth and my father looks proud yet concerned, he too began to laugh.

“I mean, it worked right?” My dad asks.

“Of course it worked, they looked so scared.” I smile. 

“I’m proud of you. Glad to know you’re still my snarky daughter.” My dad smiles at me.

“I’m proud of your quick thinking, it’s great. But you should call me next time.” Embry says with a concerned face. 

“Yeah, you never know who you’re talking to. Thankfully they weren’t crazy.” My dad agrees.

“I know, but Leah was there.” I defend to Embry.

“You’re right, I forgot she was there for a second.” Embry nods. 

“What does Leah being there do?” My dad asks, confused as to why that meant everything is peachy and safe.

“Uh, she’s just intimidating. Plus I wasn’t alone.” I try to save myself. 

“I mean, that’s true. It’s better to be with someone than by yourself.” My dad agrees. 

Can’t exactly tell my dad that Leah is stronger than any other human that could be threatening me. That she won’t face any physical damage from them, that she could snap them like a twig. That she can shift into a giant wolf. 

“How was dress shopping?” My dad asks, breaking the silence. 

“It was good, I bought a dress.” I smiled. 

“That’s great, I wanna see it after dinner.” He smiled.

“Of course, I have to show Embry, too. The wedding is just a few weeks away.” I say.

“Very fast, very rushed. The invitation just got here the other day.” My dad says.

“The whole thing is a rush.” Embry agrees.

“I mean, yeah. But they’re in love. And it’s what she wants.” I say to Embry.

I knew he was referring to Bella becoming a vampire more than the wedding. It was a lot on Jacob, making it a lot on everyone else. Nobody understood her desire to become one. 

“That’s important, I would hope she wants it.” My dad laughs. 

“She definitely does.” Embry agrees.

“I heard Jacob ran away. Billy’s made missing flyers. You guys haven’t heard from him at all?” My dad asks.

“Nope, not at all.” Embry says with a devastated face.

“No, I wish he would come back. He disappeared after he got the invitation in the mail.” I say, pursing my lips. 

“That’s a shame. Hopefully he comes back soon. Billy’s so upset. Jake doesn’t need her, he’ll find someone.” My dad says in a disappointed tone.

“I know, he’s just inconsolable about it.” I say as I take another sip of my water. 

We finish eating dinner, talking about everything and nothing. We clean it up and sit in the living room.

“Alright, hon. Let’s see the dress.” My dad smiles.

“Okay, I’ll go put it on.” I smile before walking upstairs, leaving Embry and my dad on the couch. 

I put the dress on and walk back down the stairs, lifting it up so I don’t trip.

“Right now, it’s a little too long but when I put heels on I think it’ll be okay.” I smile awkwardly.

“You look beautiful.” Embry says with a smile plastered across his face, eyes almost glazed over with admiration. 

“You do.” My dad smiles proudly. 

“Thank you.” I blush. 

I walk back upstairs and throw some pajamas on, ready to watch some tv with Embry and my dad.

My phone rings and I see Quil’s name flash on my screen.

“Hey Quil, what’s up?” I ask into the phone.

“Yeah, I have him with me. I don’t know why he’s not checking his phone. Yeah, yeah I’ll tell him. Okay, relax there, bud. I’ll bring him over, calm down.” I say into the phone.

“What’s wrong?” Embry asks.

“Sam needs you to come over, there’s an issue with his truck and he’s afraid the engine is gonna be destroyed if you don’t look at it. Jacob’s not there to help anymore, so it’s gotta be you.” I smile. 

“Oh, okay.” Embry says, trying to stay calm.

“It was good to hang out with you guys. Hopefully you can help him.” My dad smiles and says goodbye before we walk out my front door.

“What’s actually wrong?” Embry asks.

“Quil’s words were ‘there’s a few leeches and they need you immediately’ so I couldn’t exactly say that.” I look at him.

“Of course there is. I don’t want you outside, you’re gonna stay inside Sam’s house with Emily and Kim. I’ll meet you there and then Brady and Collin will wait with you guys there. I’ll come get you after we get them. Okay?” Embry says as he makes sure I get into my car. 

He shuts my door and runs into the woods, phasing to catch up with everyone. 

I sped the whole way to Sam’s house, going far too fast. But it was necessary. I would see Embry soon. 

I call Emily to let her know I was on the way and she told me that Brady and Collin would be outside waiting for me. I kept on driving.

“Hey guys.” I say, getting out of my car. 

The two wolves nod at me, coming closer to let me run my fingers through their fur.

Emily swings the door open for me to come in. 

I sit on the couch with her and Kim.

We talk for a little while before deciding it was time to watch cheesy movies. 

A few hours in, I felt my eyelids grow heavy. It became harder to keep my head up, bobbing in and out of sleep. 

___________________________________ Word Count: 5106

I  II  III  IV  V  VI  VII  VIII  VIIII  X  XIR XIE  XII  XIII  XIV  XV XVI  XVII  XVIII  XIIII

[mermaidsneedwater]

christmas with you | chapter five

series page

tag list: @yup-indecisive-girl-cece

It’s the Most Wonderful Time of The Year

Stirring in your sleep, you rubbed your eyes as you felt a pair of arms around your waist. Thinking nothing of it, you shifted to your other side and turned around in the long arms, nuzzling into the man’s neck.

“I had the strangest dream,” You said groggily.

“Oh yeah? About what?” the voice responded.

With your eyes still closed you smiled. “It was so weird. You slept with my sister, and then I went to my neighbor, Mark’s house for Christmas.”

Hearing small laughter, you felt the man’s chest rumble slowly before you both began to realize…

Opening your eyes, you were shocked to see that it was Mark’s arms that you were wrapped in.

“AHHH!” You yelled, jumping out of bed.

“AH!” Mark yelled, shocked at your reaction. “Wha? What? Why are you yelling?”

Holding the pillow to separate the two of you again, you scooted as far away as you could from Mark until you were almost falling off the bed.

“We- you… I. I’m… We were…” You squeaked out.

Sitting up in bed, Mark looked around to see that you two had managed to get rid of the barrier between you two.

“Oh… do I smell that bad?” He asked, raising his arm to do a smell test.

“No- it’s not that.” You said slowly. “I just- I’ll sleep on the floor tonight.”

Mark frowned. “Absolutely not. I’ll sleep on the floor.”

“Mark really I-“

“Mark! Y/N! Breakfast is ready!” You heard Dorine call from downstairs.

Thankful for the interruption, you hopped out of bed and pulled on a sweatshirt. Mark followed your lead and the two of you headed down to find an elaborate display of food.

“Mom, how much food did you make?” Mark asked, stretching his arms out. “You know that there are two other meals in the day that I need to save room for right?”

“I don’t want to hear a peep out of you Mark,” His mother said sternly, “You’ve lost too much weight, frankly you should be having at least 5 meals a day.”

Defeated, Mark held his hands up and took a seat at the dining table.

“Y/N dear, please eat as much as you’d like.” She beamed at you.

“Can I help you with anything? You look like you’ve already done all the hard work.” You offered, hoping to distance yourself from Mark.

“Not at all, just sit and eat!” She insisted.

Nodding and then thanking her, you took a seat next to Mark. With the morning newspaper in hand, Raymond came and joined you at the table.

“Did you guys sleep well?” He asked, looking up from his paper.

You turned to glance at Mark, remembering how the two of you had woken up this morning. “Yes, a little too well actually.”

Thinking nothing of your answer, Raymond sipped his coffee and nodded, he then returned to enjoying reading his paper. Dorine paced between the dining table and the kitchen before finally sitting down to eat.

She dug into the pancakes before turning to Mark. “You should show Y/N around town! You know, show her your high school and all that. Our Christmas festivities don’t start until tomorrow. Don’t you think that’s a good idea Raymond?”

Without missing a beat, Raymond responded, not looking up from the article he was engrossed in “Uh-huh, sounds great.”

Mark looked at you, and then at his mom “I don’t know mom, I doubt she’s interested, right Y/N?”

“Actually I’d love to go.” You said, taking a bite of your toast. “I barely know anything about your past.”

Raising an eyebrow, Mark gave you a funny look before agreeing. “Okay, I guess we can go after breakfast.”

You smiled at him before returning to your breakfast. The more time you were out of the house, the less time you’d have to lie and keep up this charade with Mark’s family.

+++

“We don’t actually have to go to see my high school.” Mark told you as he drove the car out of the driveway. “We can just drive around.”

“No,” You shook your head, “I want to see it. Besides, it would be nice to feel like I’m a truthful person again.”

“Okay.” He nodded his head. Mark then turned on the radio, as the two of you drove out of his neighborhood and through the local streets.

When he finally pulled up to the parking lot of the school, you were again amazed at the plainness of the building. Prior to becoming a trainee, Mark truly was like any other kid.

The two of you stepped out of the car and began to walk around the football field of the school.

“So what were you like in high school?” You asked, desperate to fill the silence between you.

“Me? I was kind of a loner.” He said, smiling at the memory.

“Ah, I can see you haven’t changed then.” You teased.

“Hilarious.” Mark narrowed his eyes at you. “But seriously, I wasn’t very athletic, so I never really joined any team sports. I liked gaming, but it was more of a solitary pastime. I liked music, but it just seemed unrealistic career-wise. I thought I’d just become a real estate agent or something.”

“So then when you were scouted, it must have been a dream come true.”

“Well, yes and no. Yes because I got the chance to pursue something I loved professionally, but no because it wasn’t necessarily the route I thought.” He explained. “I actually didn’t even want to do it, but my family and friends pushed me to go.”

“Imagine if you hadn’t taken the opportunity.” You mused aloud. “Your life would be infinitely different.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” He said, smiling. “What about you? Did you always know you wanted to do PR?”

Your smile quickly faded as you recalled you original dream. “I wanted to be a ballerina.”

“Really? I didn’t expect that.” Mark shook his head. “So what happened?”

“I don’t really talk about it but, when I was sixteen, I tore my anterior cruciate ligament in my knee during a performance of The Nutcracker. Once you suffer through a knee injury like that… it’s impossible to continue. In an instant my dance career was over.” You reflected sadly. “I never danced again after that.”

“I’m sorry,” Mark said quietly.

“I’ve made my peace with it.” You shrugged. “Besides, working for the PR department of the Ballet Theatre is close enough.”

“So you really never danced again? Ever?” Mark asked.

“After my recovery, I was just too scared. When I realized I could never be a professional, I didn’t see the point in torturing myself.”

Nodding silently, You and Mark walked side by side on the track.

“I loved it though. The thrill of being on stage and feeling the music. It took a long time for me to get over it, dancing was my first love.”

Mark watched you face as you spoke, he’d noticed how excited you became when you began to reminisce. Attempting to lighten the mood he spoke, “Well, if you had become a ballerina then we never would’ve met.”

“That’s true,” You smiled softly. “Hey, I may not be a dancer but at least now I can say I’ve been someone's fake girlfriend.”

Laughing, Mark nudged you with his shoulder and teased “You’re a natural. My family loves you. I think they’re really going to be sad when I tell them I dumped you.”

“Excuse me? You’re not going to dump me, I’m going to dump you.” You turned to him.

“Well I’m going to be the one telling my family so obviously I’ll break up with you, I don’t want to sound like a loser.” He pointed out. “Actually, on second thought, I’ll tell them you dumped me. That way there’ll be more sympathy for me and they won’t ask me about getting another girlfriend because I’ll be too heartbroken over you.”

“Wow, you sure think ahead.” You laughed. “Don’t move on too quickly from me. You can have another girlfriend after a year.”

“A whole year?!” He said, shocked. “That’s a bit too long don’t you think?”

“Hey, you need to respect our relationship.”

“Whatever you say Y/N.” Mark shook his head, chuckling.

+++

“Mark I’m tired.” you complained.

“It’s only a little bit further up.” He turned back to tell you, “trust me. It’s worth it.”

You rolled your eyes, huffing and puffing as you trekked up the hill.

After showing you around a bit, Mark had saved his favorite spot for last. Pulling up into the parking lot of the hiking trail, you raised an eyebrow when he’d unbuckled his seatbelt and began to walk up the steep hill.

Turning around, Mark quickly ran behind you. “We’re here. But I’m going to close your eyes.”

He placed two hands over your eyes. Guiding you to the top of the peak.

“I better not fall to my death.” You joked.

“Keep talking and you just might.” Mark said sarcastically. “Okay I’m going to take my hands off and you can open your eyes.”

“Alright.” You said quietly.

Hearing Mark slowly count behind you, your eyes widened at the sight before you.

He’d brought you to the top of Sturtevant Falls. As you peered below, you could see the waterfall streaming below into a small body of water. The sun had turned the sky into a vibrant mix of blues and oranges as it began to set.

“This is amazing.” You breathed out, turning to look at Mark.

“Isn’t it?” He grinned. “I used to love coming here.”

“It’s beautiful. How did you find this place?” You asked.

“Tammy loves hiking so she’d make me and Grace go with her, halfway through the hike I’d ditch her and come up here until it was time to go home. I’ve spent hours at a time up here, just thinking.”

“You do that a lot.” You commented.

“What? Thinking?”

“Yeah. I think people don’t realize that, you may not say much but you’re always thinking.” You nodded.

Taken aback that you’d noticed such a small detail like that, he blinked a few times unsure of what to say. He’d never felt so seen.

“That’s true. By the way, you’re the second girl I’ve brought up here.”

“The second?! Who was the first? A girlfriend?” You pouted playfully.

“My sister.”

“Well you should bring more girls up here, this is a great make out spot.” You commented.

“Should we test that theory?” Mark winked.

“Ha! You wish.” You shoved him lightly, rolling your eyes.

“Anyway, are you ready to head back home, my dear girlfriend?”

“Oh of course, my wonderful boyfriend.” You stuck your tongue out at him.

+++

After your outing, the remainder of the night was mundane. You sat in the living room with Mark and his parents after dinner simply enjoying each other’s company.

“So Mom,“ Mark started “What’s the plan for Christmas Eve and Christmas?”

“Well, everyone’s coming over tomorrow at twelve o’clock. We’ll do all the usual Tuan traditions, we’ll cook and bake tomorrow’s meal.” She laid out the plan “Everyone will stay the night for Christmas and then we’ll do presents and dinner together at night before sending everyone off home.”

“Sounds great.” You smiled. “I can’t wait.”

“It’s going to be a long day tomorrow, so rest up!” Raymond told you and Mark.

chapter four | chapter six