#please be patient with me my memory is very bad! but i am happy 2 be back here with my silly pictures

[mayra-quijotescx]

Roommate and I joined the 68,000* yesterday evening.

But I lived, bitch.

"What happened?" Roommate, who was delivering 120 water bottles downtown with me while he'd suffered a day-long treatment-resistant headache and weeks of inadequate sleep, blew a red light 2 blocks from the gathering of unhoused people to whom the water bottles were to be distributed, and someone (from Dallas, my god I'm so sorry this is a Major Houston Memory for her now) who was obeying traffic laws plowed into the front passenger side of the car we were in because she had too much momentum to stop.

AND GUESS WHO WAS IN THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE OF THE CAR, YEAAAHHHH BABYYYYY

Parties I consider at fault: -Houston, being a massively shitty 'built for cars and not people' nexus of hell that forces people in any and all conditions to pilot killing machines to get from point A to point B. -Houston again, and honestly all of US society, with its violently negligent attitude toward anyone even temporarily down on their luck and its refusal to house unhoused people, even though mountains of studies attest that not only is housing the unhoused the right fucking thing to do, it's cheaper. We would not have been schlepping downtown both nigh-lethally exhausted out of our minds to deliver water if the people in this city were properly cared for. -Yeah honestly my roommate, he's kind of always made me nervous behind the wheel bc his ADHD makes me look downright neurotypical by comparison, and I've chewed him out several times for dumbass shit he's done on the road while I was present. He's been in absolute hell since last night over screwing up so bad he lost his car and almost killed multiple people including a friend, though, and I'm not going to add to his anguish by being angry at him. I am honestly kind of angry, but I'm working through it. -not the person we hit, she did everything right but unfortunately lost her car to a combination of What Our Society Chooses To Be and my roommate driving while unfit to do so. "Are you ok?" By the grace of God, airbags, seatbelts, and the intercession of several saints, despite being the one who was hit, I got out with only some bruises and an uglier-than-it-feels spot of road rash taking up the lower half of my upper arm. I was well enough to decline an ambulance and walk a mile to the nearest ER (the one good thing about the stupid themepark for oil and gas pencil pushers that downtown Houston is: there is an ER on St. Joseph's Pkwy that is pretty easy to reach from most of downtown if you can walk.) I hurt, but by all accounts I should probably be in much more pain than I am... though I'm sure when/if the adrenaline finally wears off, I will cry.

I am probably going to need some help with being able to ride passenger-side again, and when roomie gets his replacement car (because this city is fucking garbage and his continued employment depends on him having a car to get to/from work) I am probably not going to be able to ride with him, because what trust I had there is honestly just fucking demolished. But God willing I will be okay nonetheless.I have other friends who can drive, and I know they'll be patient with me insisting on taking the middle back seat until my brain can recover.

TL;DR: Airbags are your friend, and wear your seatbelt always. Please. Do it for me, at least. Everyone I talked to last night (when not helpfully informing me that I was in shock) asked if I was wearing my seatbelt. I was, as I was happy to inform them. That and the airbag are why I'm able to dick around online from the comfort of my home this morning instead of being strung up in ICU or lying in a bag at the morgue.

*there are approximately 68,000 wrecks on Houston roads every year. We outrank several states in terms of volume of auto collisions. Even the very nice fireman who wrapped up my road rash told me when he moved here from Chicago, he totaled his car within two weeks bc he hadn't quite adapted to the concept of feeder roads yet and got bowled by someone in a hurry/not paying attention. This place fucking sucks, man, never come here. Stop moving here.

[ohwalley-blog]

My most powerful talent.

Wow, I can not believe it has been 4 years since i have written in the blog and a lot has happened!! A lot. Even so, let me tell you about last week.

One of our more "complicated" patients were admitted during the night. A lot of "He said, we said, they said" went on, but nothing was done. A table of nurses, pharmacist, physicians and other disciplinaries were sitting around the table and no one understood what the plan was for this patient and where to even start. Then I felt 7 pairs of eyes look at me and one said "So what are you going to do about her ma'am?" I couldn't believe I solely had the responsibility to figure out the care and plan for this patient.

As the day went on, NO ONE, i mean no one wanted to touch this patient. Then, I took over the conversation and placed things in perspective and BOOM. There was momentum in her care and she got what she needed. Physicians, Nurse Practitioners, Physicians Assistants and registered nurses all listened to me. I was simple, straight forward, but real.

On that day, I used my talent, my most powerful talent: my tongue and it gave that girl life.

A couple days later I saw my L and he told me some terrible things. That I had said some things and it made him feel unwelcomed and ungrateful on my birthday! It was so hard to hear those things. He continued to say that my words were so hurtful that he did not want to spend my next birthdays with me (I am still trying to process that). I cried, for like an hour.

It took me over 2 years and so many miles to build this relationship, this foundation with my L and it came tumbling down after just a few words.

In one week, my most powerful talent, the one thing I am very much known for, gave someone life and healing, but then killed the relationship of me and my L.

I don't want that same tragedy to happen to people. Today I am given the opportunity to do Children's Story and THAT is what I am going to teach about: the tongue - our double edge sword.

I am going to write out this next portion as I am going to speak about it in church. This is one of my favorite stories.

Happy Sabbath boys and girls! Welcome back to children's story where this time during our church service is specifically for you!

Anyone here know what a weapon is?

A weapon is used for two things: to either kill or to protect.

Who here has a weapon? Everyone here carries a weapon, I know I have a weapon with me at all times! This weapon on me is so strong that it can make people move, scare away bears and it is so powerful that it can kill someone else and your weapon can do the same thing!

Can anyone guess what that weapon is? YOUR TONGUE!

When people tell me: don't say bad things, I always think about the "bad words" that are inappropriate, but this lesson is deeper than that.

Before we start our lesson, let's read our memory verse: Proverbs 15:1-2

For the bigger kids & adults behind me, if you want to follow along with our lesson, please open up your Bibles to 1 Samuel 25:1-38

In the book of 1 Samuel chapter 25, there was a very rich man named Nabel. This guy was rich! He owned property near the town of Carmel and he owned 3K sheep and 1k goats! Sounds rich huh?

He married this woman who was described to be sensible, smart and can manage his riches. He sounds lucky huh?

Lucky, for Nabel, King David had his 600 men were stationed near his property. while King David's men were there, Nabel's animals were never harmed, Nabel's shepherds were safe and were never robbed.

Sounds like Nabel was living the good life.

One day, one of King David's men found Nabel and said "Hi Nabel, we were sent by King David and we have been providing your flock and shepherds with protection. Would you be kind and please share with us some food and water?"

Do you think rich Nabel would be able to afford it?

This is what Nabel said in return

"David? Who is this David? Who does he think he is? There are lots of servants these days who run away from their master. Should I take my bread, my water and my meat that I harvested, slaughtered and sheared myself and give it to these people who came from who knows where???"

Well, Nabel's words got back to King David and it infuriated King David. "Get your swords!" King David said and with 400 men, his plan was to kill Nabel, everything he owned and his family!

Meanwhile, one of Nabel's servants told Abigail who had no idea any of this was going on. Abigail had to think smart and had to think fast.

So she gathered meat, bread, grains, fruit, wine and packed her donkey. She and her servants went to face King David themselves!

When she came face to face with King David, he was so angry!! Abigail fell at his feet and asked for his forgiveness. "Please my King.. I accept all the blame for this. Please do not pay attention to my husband Nabel."

King David looked at her and said "I did a lot of good for Nabel, because of the protection I provided, Nabel prospered!" but at the same time, was impressed with how her words calmed him down and decided not to kill Nabel after all.

Before they departed ways, Abigail used her words to bless him. "My King, I know the Lord lives in you because he kept you from murdering my husband and taking vengeance on your hands. So let all your enemies be cursed."

In this entire story, did you hear me say any "bad words" any inappropriate words? No, the words that were spoken in this story are words that we use and say every day.

But our words matter. The way we say our words, where you say it, how you say and who you say it to... all matters.

Nabel's words almost got himself, his animals and family killed. King David's words was able to provide protection at first and then ordered a murder! Then Abigail was able to use her gentle words to save her husband and gave him life.

Before we separate, i just want to share one more Bible verse:

James 3:10 Blessing and cursing come from the same mouth. My brothers and sisters it should not be this way.

[soulemissary]

okay this stupid app needs to update so im going to play stardew but hi hiiiiii omg hi everyone i missed u so bad my personality has changed vastly and i am nicer now. live laugh love or whatever have a wonderful day <3

[lunaralight09]

SFW Alphabet - SCP 049-j

Requested by XxSilverbarxX in wattpad

A = Affection (How affectionate are they? How do they show affection?)

Very fucken affectionate to you . You're his family now . And don't ask any other questions . He didn't see his brother for so long time . And now he's with you . He will always hug you . And this hug will be for 30 minutes or even a hour .

B = Best friend (What would they be like as a best friend? How would the friendship start?)

Ohhhhh . He'll try to teach you . No he WILL teach you how to cure people . What ? Don't look at me like that . You need to take r/o (Random object) aaaaaaaaaand- Hey ! Where are you going y/n ? Wait for me ! He's like a child near you . He's child like person .

C = Cuddles (Do they like to cuddle? How would they cuddle?)

Oh my ... He just loves to hold you or you holding him . He really like to spoon with you . And love half-spooning ... Wait . He don't really care how to hug you .

D = Domestic (Do they want to settle down? How are they at cooking and cleaning?)

He really want to live with you . After few days he will try to follow you home . Not secretly . He'll be JUST RIGHT BEHIND you . And you'll be like : Stop it ! I- You could just be secretly follow me ! Not breath on back of my head ! He can accidently trash all your home . But he can cook ! He's really good at cooking .

E = Ending (If they had to break up with their partner, how would they do it?)

It's probably because he sensed disease in you . And he know that people can die because of sickness or after they have been cured . So he'll just disappear . Yes , it could hurt you . But he can sometimes sense disease , but people aren't sick . So ... yeah .

F = Fiancé(e) (How do they feel about commitment? How quick would they want to get married?)

He likely thought about it a lot when he was younger. Maybe marriage to her ideal person would let him be more calm and happy !

G = Gentle (How gentle are they, both physically and emotionally?)

Very fucken gentle . Doesn't care physically or emotionally . He really like nuzzling up to you and loving on you . Btw he knows you’re feeling down or if you ask for him to be more affectionate .

H = Hugs (Do they like hugs? How often do they do it? What are their hugs like?)

He ADORES to hug you . You're just so sweet and huggable . No matter what . No matter where . He WILL hug you .

I = I love you (How fast do they say the L-word?)

He probably says it in passing one day after a you started dating . He'll always say it . Every single day . 25 hours per 8 day a week (WAIT WHAT-)

J = Jealousy (How jealous do they get? What do they do when they’re jealous?)

He trust you with all his life .(That he took from his 'patients ') Please . Don't cheat ... Please?

K = Kisses (What are their kisses like? Where do they like to kiss you? Where do they like to be kissed?)

He will 'kiss' you everywhere . And he will tweak on your cheek . It's his way of kissing . And he will love any affection you're giving him . He don't care where you kiss him .

L = Little ones (How are they around children?)

Really good with children, he actually enjoys teaching how to cur- NO . JAY NO- . He's like a over grown child himself sometimes .

M = Morning (How are mornings spent with them?)

He's lazy . He don't want to get out of bed . No way he do it on his own will . He'll probably wrap himself around you . It's his way to trap you to stay with him .

N = Night (How are nights spent with them?)

Cuddling close and watching movies until both of you or just one . It's you . He won't sleep before you fall asleep . Then you're asleep . It will take . Uhhhhhhh , around 10 sec for him to sleep.

O = Open (When would they start revealing things about themselves? Do they say everything all at once or wait a while to reveal things slowly?)

He will open to you after a week . Or at day you become friends/couple . He tells you its the best way to tell you about himself .

P = Patience (How easily angered are they?)

He’s got the patience of a 7-10 years kid .

Q = Quizzes (How much would they remember about you? Do they remember every little detail you mention in passing, or do they kind of forget everything?)

He’d remember important things you’ve said or mentioned but he has a horrid memory . But he remembers his brother . And how his family looks and their names . But he'll try to remember every single thing you say .

R = Remember (What is their favorite moment in your relationship?)

Then he made you laugh for first time . Your laugh made his heart melt .

S = Security (How protective are they? How would they protect you? How would they like to be protected?)

Protective as hell . He’s your bird like guardian and he’ll make sure you’re protected . He don't want you to be sick from others .

T = Try (How much effort would they put into dates, anniversaries, gifts, everyday tasks?)

He is so thoughtful when it comes to gifts and dates ! He’s like really into gift giving as a love language .

U = Ugly (What would be some bad habits of theirs?)

Killing people with his shoe ...

V = Vanity (How concerned are they with their looks?)

He ... don't care . He wear his doctor's costume . And only .

W = Whole (Would they feel incomplete without you?)

Omg you're his half . Half of his life . That's why he's so close to you .

X = Xtra (A random headcanon for them.)

He really want to make his brother proud of him ... No . He's not really proud . They had . Mom , dad , 2 little sisters , 1 little brother , Estienne had wife and he have daughter . And that means that Jay have niece ! Oh ... Then Jay was human . He didn't have romantic partner . You're his first ! Lucky him ! And you too .

Y = Yuck (What are some things they wouldn’t like, either in general or in a partner?)

He don't care about your habit and etc. Well he do hate to see you sick . He really hates it .

Z = Zzz (What is a sleep habits of theirs?)

He sometimes ... Talk in his sleep . In French . And he can talk in English in his sleep . And it can scary you . Imagine just sleeping and hearing someone talking pretty loudly and it's 2 am .

[antebunny]

Parent Trap AU Part 2

...with a side of on-the-run hacker!wwx AU and celebrity!lwj AU. Full series here).

“It’s not going to work,” Wei Sizhui says when they corner him after breakfast the following morning.

The three boys fold their arms and block the path, as if Wei Sizhui can’t just walk around them on the grass.

“Why not?!” Ouyang Zizhen wails.

“You don’t understand,” Lan Jingyi wheedles. “This is the most interesting thing that’s ever happened to me. Yeah my uncle is a celebrity, but he’s so boring.”

Jin Rulan huffs. “Why do we even need his help? We can just find him on the last day of camp!”

Wei Sizhui pinches the bridge of his nose with two fingers. He can feel a headache coming on. “Guys. No. They really cannot meet,” he says.

“But why not?” Ouzang Zizhen says again.

“Because,” Wei Sizhui says patiently, “my dad is wanted for kidnapping. Kidnapping me. From my other dad.”

All three of them just stare at him.

“So if your uncle met my dad while I’m there…” Wei Sizhui shakes his head. “That’s really just bad.”

Lan Jingyi plonks himself down on the paved path right there. “Okay, wait, wait,” he says. “Explain this to us again.”

“We have class in twenty minutes,” Jin Rulan complains, but he sits down too.

“Yeah!” Ouyang Zizhen hurries to scoot in between them. “Tell us the story, Sizhui.”

“I told you yesterday,” Wei Sizhui protests, but when none of them so much as blink, he sighs and sits down as well. “My dad was in prison,” he begins, and they all nod along. “Someone hired by the Jins attacked him in prison and he realized that he wasn’t safe, and I wasn’t safe.” They’re still nodding along, so Wei Sizhui continues. “So he broke out of prison,” he finishes, “and took me from my other dad’s house, and we’ve been on the run ever since.”

They stop nodding.

“But that doesn’t make any sense,” Jin Rulan says plainly. “Why didn’t he go to my mom? Or my uncle?”

“Or Jingyi’s uncle?” Ouyang Zizhen puts in. “Why didn’t he go to Jingyi’s uncle?”

Wei Sizhui shrugs helplessly. It seems rather straightforward to him. He doesn’t understand what they’re confused about. “Why would he? That makes no sense.”

“And why wouldn’t Lan Jingyi’s uncle be a target if you were?” Jin Rulan demands. “They were married! That doesn’t make any sense!”

Once again, Wei Sizhui can only shrug in the face of their questions. “Maybe he thought nobody would expect him to care about an ex who abandoned him.”

“My uncle would never,” Lan Jingyi says, face red. “You take that back! That’s–not what happened!”

Wei Sizhui is indeed taken aback by Lan Jingyi’s insistence. His dad doesn’t talk much about his ex-husband, it’s true. Well, his dad really doesn’t ever talk about Wei Sizhui’s other dad, but Wei Sizhui knows that even after they divorced, his dad still carries their wedding photo around every country they go to, so he supposes he just assumed.

“Yeah, why would Lan Wangji keep a photo of your dad in his wallet if he doesn’t care?” Ouyang Zizhen challenges.

Wei Sizhui rubs his eyes with the heels of his hands. It’s too early in the morning for this. He just wants to go to class and stop thinking about his dad’s former love life. “Can we please just go to class?” He begs.

“No!” Jin Rulan refuses. “Until you explain why we can’t get them to meet!”

“Even if everything does go well, my dad is still wanted for forgery and hacking in half a dozen countries,” Wei Sizhui argues. “What would them meeting do other than make them both sad? And even if Lan Wangji didn’t divorce my dad, he can’t be happy that my dad just ran off with me. It’s been nine years! They’re probably both over each other.”

Wei Sizhui has precious few memories of his other dad, and he’s never quite worked up the courage to ask for more from his dad. Lan Wangji is a tall, sturdy giant in his memories. He recalls large, warm, gentle hands, a deep voice that sung him lullabies, and a steady presence that watched him stick his tiny toddler hands through the bars to pet their two pet bunny rabbits.

But the most vivid memory Wei Sizhui has of his other dad is his warm, steady presence carefully lifting Wei Sizhui away from the glass and blocking his view of his dad. His large, warm hand came down to pat Wei Sizhui’s head, but he was talking to Wei Wuxian.

“I am sorry,” he said. “You cannot see Sizhui anymore.”

“Whose decision was this.” Dad’s voice was distorted through the glass, but even then, Wei Sizhui knew he’d never heard his dad so angry before.

Wei Sizhui clutched his dad’s leg. Pat pat, went the hand.

“I am sorry,” his dad repeated.

“Whose decision, Lan Wangji.”

“...Mine.”

Afterwards, after the yelling was over and Wei Sizhui went home with Lan Wangji, he remembers gripping his dad’s hand with all the strength in his chubby little fingers, like he might disappear at any moment, and asking; “When are we gonna see Papa again?”

Wei Sizhui was too small to see his dad’s face at that moment. Too young to remember whether it was sidewalk or carpet he walked on, what shoes he wore or what the name of the city he lived in was. What he remembered was the way his dad squeezed back, even tighter, and said never.

Wei Sizhui remembers never once considering that his dad could be lying. Not even when he woke up months later, in the middle of the night, to find his dad back and in the middle of a very intense game of hide-and-seek.

It’s been nine long years since then, and Wei Sizhui doesn’t think he wants to see his other dad again.

If only his friends could be convinced of the same.

“That…sounds like a whole lot of excuses,” Jin Rulan says, rubbing his eyes as well.

“He’s not guilty of any actual crimes, just cool crimes,” Lan Jingyi asserts. Wei Sizhui wants to scream.

“Your dad doesn’t have to be alone anymore!” Ouyang Zizhen says enthusiastically.

“Hey,” Lan Jingyi says. “Don’t be mean, he has Sizhui.”

Wei Sizhui instantly forgives him for everything. Still, he thinks his dad could be perfectly happy without Lan Wangji. Maybe without the Jins after him, and the FBI, but the idea still stands.

“Guys,” Wei Sizhui intervenes, trying to stave off the coming argument, “it doesn’t even matter, because my dad’s not gonna be here on the last day of camp.”

“What? Why not?” Jin Rulan squawks.

“He’s picking me up two days early,” Wei Sizhui explains. “So that he’s not seen by any of the other parents.”

Summer camps care far less about identification than they do about money, which is a bit of a problem because it’s far easier for Wei Sizhui’s dad to forge identities for them than to open a bank account. If there’s one time that someone actually manages to track down his dad, it’ll be through the money he’s spending on Wei Sizhui’s summer camp. So just in case, they’re disappearing two days early.

The plan is for his dad to break into the camp two nights before the end of camp. Wei Sizhui’s been keeping him updated on the best ways to do so.

The three of them are staring at him again.

“The campus security is pretty terrible,” Wei Sizhui adds thoughtfully.

“So…you’re just going to disappear?” Jin Rulan asks blankly. “When were you going to tell us?”

“Tell you?” Wei Sizhui asks, equally blank. “Why would I–that ruins the whole point of sneaking out two days early! We have to ditch everything. Phones, the fake bank account, the passports, everything.”

“But then how would we keep in touch?” Lan Jingyi asks plainly. “How would we text?”

“We wouldn’t?” Wei Sizhui says uncertainly. “We wouldn’t stay in the country after disappearing from a summer camp. I mean, I don’t know where we’re gonna go, but–somewhere. Probably Thailand,” he adds pensively.

There’s complete silence for one stunning moment.

“Wow,” Jin Rulan says flatly. “Is this is how Jingyi’s uncle felt when Sizhui’s dad disappeared?”

“Probably,” Ouyang Zizhen says.

“No, no, we can work with this,” Lan Jingyi declares. “We just need to get my uncle here two days before camp ends.”

“And how are we doing that?” Jin Rulan asks.

“Easy,” Lan Jingyi says cheerfully. “I do something that gets my uncle called down here.”

“So, expelled,” Ouyang Zizhen says, nodding along.

“Wait, what?” Wei Sizhui says, baffled, but nobody’s listening.

“Exactly,” Lan Jingyi says, beaming. “My uncle will forgive me once he learns why I did it!”

“But what is he getting expelled for?” Jin Rulan asks curiously.

Lan Jingyi grins, and a shiver runs down Wei Sizhui’s spine despite the heat of the morning summer sun shining behind him. It's a smile that says there's little he won't do to see Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji reunite. At least Jin Rulan and Ouyang Zizhen also look a little apprehensive.

“Hacking."

[dialovers-translations]

DIABOLIK LOVERS MORE BLOOD Vol.2: Mukami Kou [Track 1+2]

Original title: 目隠しされて & 無神コウ

Source: Diabolik Lovers More, Blood Vol. 2: Mukami Kou [CD not owned by me]

Audio: Here (00:00~14:03)

Seiyuu: Kimura Ryouhei

Translator’s note: Continuing my marathon of MB CDs, everyone’s favorite idol Kou-kun is up next! I’m not a huge Kou fan myself, but he’s the main bias of my best friend so I’m always reminded of her when I translate his CDs. :p I used to find his voice quite annoying in the past, but in this CD, it didn’t bother me too much.

Track 1+2 ll Track 3+4 ll Track 5+6 ll Track 7+8 ll Track 9+10

→  LIKE MY TRANSLATIONS? SUPPORT ME ON KO-FI!

Track 1: Blindfolded

“...Hey!”

*Creaaak*

“Hey, you...!”

*Creaaak*

“Are you listening?”

*Rustle rustle*

“Say, say...~”

*Rustle rustle*

[00:15] “...Ah! Seems like you finally woke up! Ahー Thank god! You just kept on snoozing forever, for a second I thought you’d never wake up again!”

You look around, seeming confused.

“Eh? You want to know where you are...? Eeh...~ How cruel! You don’t recall? ーー Everything that happened before getting here, I mean.”

You flinch.

“Ahaha~ Seems like you remembered, huh? Exactly. I kidnapped you here~”

You ask him why.

[00:52] “...’Why’? You’ve been asking an awful lot of questions this whole time, haven’t you? Oh well, I guess it can’t be helped. After all, you’re currently stuck in pitch-black darkness. I guess it makes sense to grow anxious or scared...Fufufu~ But rest assured.”

*Rustle*

“I’ll explain the whole situation step by step, okay? First and foremost, you’re currently blindfolded, lying on top of my - Mukami Kou-kun’sーー

*Rustle*

ーー bed, you see~”

*Rustle rustle*

[01:31] “As for why I kidnapped you. Hmー There’s a few, but one of them would be because you’re a special human. ...Fufu~ Do you know what that means? It basically implies that you’re in a different league from just any other regular human out there. You might not be aware of it yourself, but to our species, your existence stands out as extraordinary.”

*Rustle*

“Actually, you know that already, don’t you? You’re being kept as a pet over at the Sakamaki manor after all.”

You protest.

“...Eh? You’re not being ‘kept’? Ah, sorry, sorry! I didn’t quite put it right, did I? I take back my words. More accurately, you’re their...prey, aren’t you?”

He pins you down.

*Thud*

[02:23] “Fufu...Ahahaha~ No need to look so dissatisfied. It’s the truth, isn’t it? Besides, that’s the second reason which made me interested in you so I dare argue it’s a good thing?”

*Creaaak*

“Hm? You want to know who I am? Didn’t I name myself earlier? You’ve got such bad memory.”

You shake your head.

[02:51] “Ah...That’s not what you meant? Ahー Gotcha. Hm...Can I spill the beans already? But I feel like Ruki-kun will give me an earful if I do and he’s a pain to deal with when he’s upset. ...Let’s see...~ Fufu...~ I’ll tell you when I feel like it, okay?”

*Creaaak*

“Anyway, I gave you an answer to your questions so happy now? More importantly, I want to know about you first. All sorts of things...~”

*Rustle*

[03:32] “We actually managed to get a hold of their weakness, so just like Ruki-kun is always saying, I should get an idea of what I’m dealing with. So to start off, I better do a little investigating to find out what exactly makes you so special...~”

*Rustle rustle*

“Fufu~ You’re shaking...My touch is still foreign to you, isn’t it? No need to be so scared though. I’m a nice guy after all.”

He pulls you close.

[04:04] “Here, I’ll stroke your head for you. ...Good girl, good girl...So stop trembling, okay?”

*Rustle*

“Hm...You’re more alert than I thought. Fufu~ You’re letting them have their way with you despite that?”

You protest again.

[04:28] “How odd...Or perhaps you’re simply feigning this cautious attitude? In that case, you’re one hell of a naughty kitten~ They say that a skillful hunter gets a kick out of going after highly alert prey and honestly, I think I may understand where they’re coming from. It’s boring when something is too easy to get. ーー I can already get my hands on pretty much everything I want through my job after all.”

*Rustle*

“...Ah! But I don’t really like how I’m implying those guys are skilled by saying that. What do you think? As the one they’re hunting for, how do you feel about them?”

You remain quiet.

[05:17] “Heeey~ Aren’t you going to answer? Giving me the silent treatment is a little mean, don’t you think? Hmー I guess it’s a little difficult of a question to start off with. In that case, let me ask you an easy one. Ah, right! How about this? ーー Does it really feel good to have them suck your blood? You know, does it make you feel like you’ve ascended to another world? Like your body is just floating mid-air~”

*Rustle*

“...No answer once again? You really are dull, geez. What will get you to talk? Should I ask you about your favorite spots? Or perhaps you really don’t care about those guys at all?”

*Rustle*

[06:12] “Ahー I’m kind of fed up with this already. I’m out here trying my best to be nice and all I get in return is the cold shoulder. What are you playing at?”

You explain.

“...You can’t say those things to someone you’ve only just met? Heh~ I see...That makes sense now that you mention it. In that case, I suppose I have to introduce myself  first.”

Track 2: Mukami Kou

He removes the blindfold.

*Rustle*

“Here. Take a cloooose look at my face. I removed your blindfold as well. See? I’m this close to you. Our lips could almost touch.”

You look straight at him.

[00:19] “...Fufu~ Can you see me? I guess I should say ‘nice to meet you’? I’m sorry for suddenly abducting you like that earlier~ However, it would have been difficult to take you away otherwise. I guess you could say it was the optimal timing? It really was my one chance.

...Say, are you the type who doesn’t watch television very often? Well, I guess you don’t strike me as a girl who would.”

You tilt your head to the side.

“Ah, no, I’m just talking to myself. I just figured that you’d probably recognize me if you watched TV every now and then. Not that it matters though.”

*Rustle*

[00:57] “But really, things went surprisingly well if I may say so myself. I’m sure those guys are frantically looking around for you right about now. After all, their precious little treat was snatched away from right underneath their nose, haha~! Fufu...Ahahaha! Just remembering those foolish expressions on their faces makes me laugh.”

*Rustle rustle*

“And I’m going to dig into their precious meal soon...Haah...Somehow just being this close to you makes my breath hitch.”

*Rustle*

“Is this what you’re capable of? Say, how come you’re this delicious?”

*Sniff sniff*

“...You smell amazing. What kind of scent is this? Hm...~”

Kou takes a deep breath.

[01:55] “I can’t get enough of it...I wonder where it’s coming from?”

*Sniff sniff*

“Not here...”

*Rustle*

“Then here maybe?”

*Sniff*

“I can’t quite tell through your clothes...”

*Rustle rustle*

“Why not take them off? It’s not like you need them, do you? ...Come on, hurry. The scent on the fabric is throwing me off.”

*Rustle*

“Come on, go ahead!”

You hesitate.

[02:29] “...Hurry up, will you? You might not guess it, but I’m not the most patient guy around. If you refuse to take them off yourself...You’re not going to have a good time.”

You refuse.

“...Tsk. Ahー What a fucking drag! Do you think I’m a joke or something? Do you have any idea what’ll happen if you oppose me like that?”

*Creaaak*

“Ugh...”

*Thud*

“I’ve gotten a little irritated you see. And once that happens, everything starts to annoy me. So that look you’re giving me...Ahaha...It pisses me off.”

*Rustle*

[03:12] “...I’m going to gauge out those eyes of yours, for real. I happen to kind of like that sorta stuff.”

You start taking off your clothes.

“...Huh? You’re gonna strip? Ahー So you’ve chosen to obey? How boring. I just had so many good ideas of things to do to you.”

*Rustle rustle*

“Anyway, if you’re just gonna bend to someone’s will in the end anyway, wouldn’t it be better to simply listen from the very start? Or did you want me to snap at you?”

You shake your head.

“Ah, I see! Right! You’re that kind of girl, aren’t you? You wanted me to lose my temper...so I’d treat you horribly, right? Fufu~ What an M-neko-chan you are~”

You seem confused by the nickname.

[04:03] “Hm? You want to know what ‘M-neko’ means? Isn’t that obvious? You’re more stupid than I thought. The ‘M’ is the same one as in ‘Do-M’, duh! Masochists, you know? You’re the type of girl who gets a kick out of the pain, aren’t you?”

*Creaaak*

“With that kind of personality, I can understand why you’d enjoy spending time with those guys. We’re capable of pleasing you in ways a regular human never could after all. Fufu...~ Is it true the pain is addictive?”

You try and explain.

[04:45] “When you put it like that, I almost want to turn into a human girl for one day and have a bunch of Vampires feast upon my blood~ Well, of course, I much prefer being the one doing the sucking. ...Aah, I was told this as well. Apparently having your blood sucked feels like strong currents of electricity running through your entire body, is that true? How nice~ I’m envious~”

You frown.

“That being said, I’d rather not get bitten myself. I’d love to get a taste of that pleasure, but I’d rather die than let some other Vampire pierce me with his fangs. Heh~ ...Ah, oh no, I’ve been rambling...”

*Rustle*

[05:39] “Come on, take those clothes off. I’ll figure out where this delicious scent is coming from first. You’re hiding it underneath that dull (1) outfit of yours, aren’t you? ーー Your precious secret~”

You start to take off the rest of your clothes.

“Fufu...Exactly~ You’ve got to show me your meek side like that, or else I might just poke your eyes out~”

You tell him you’re done.

[06:08] “...Eh? You took them off? Now don’t be ridiculous. When I say ‘strip’, I obviously meant everything, right? You move your jacket to the side a little and call that ‘taking off your clothes’? Heeh...You really must be making fun of me, aren’t you? ...Listen, I hate being ridiculed more than anything...There are many girls in this world who would kill to be in this kind of situation with me, you know? Yet here you are, living that dream...”

*Rustle*

“Ah, right! You’re just pretending to be embarrassed but you’re actually happy, aren’t you?”

*Rustle*

“Oh! Or perhaps...You want me to rip you apart? I would never resort to such violent actions though. I mean, there’s nothing fun about tearing apart someone who won’t even scream from the pain, is there? Fufu...~”

ーー TO BE CONTINUED ーー

Translation notes

(1) More specifically, he describes her clothes as lacking even the faintest hint of sexiness.

[baby-bearie]

romeo, juliet, and evites to funerals

(NOT MY GIF)

jj maybank x reader

taglist: @sunflowermotel @howdyherron @drew-starkey @maraseavey @outerbanqs @tinylatina01 @yelyahryan @loveylangdon @obxwriterfan @jjmaebank @avashroom @rewindlr @katie-avery @raekenliar @ceruleanjj @adoreyoudrews @dolanfivsosxox @heyhargrove @lashtonandmalumsbaby @beautyandthebleh @pancahke @outrbank @kiarasflowr @corleigh @poguemacking @kristineee-obx @shawnssongs @thorsangel @daniel9seavey9 @hopefultrashforanythingreally @pixelated-pogues @dpaccione @thatshiscigar @hesscott @damonsalvawhore27 @fanficscuziranout @trustfundparker @teamnick @becca-harlow @trashmouthpogues @rudys-pankow @ilovejjmaybank @tomzfrog

a/n: uh oh. back again. thank you @jjmaebank for the beta read i love u. i did switch that one tangled reference i made.

JJ hates when you’re mad at him. You won’t text him, you won’t answer your phone, if you actually see him you’d never acknowledge him, and kisses? Forget about it. You’re not exactly a lot of fun when you’re mad at JJ.

You’re currently mad at JJ.

He figured that out after about the 3rd call you failed to return, and now he’s blowing up your phone. Nearly 50 unread texts, 27 missed calls and 13 voicemails, all in a span of 2 hours.

He’s persistent, he really is. Annoyingly so. Whenever JJ upsets you, his go to plan is to just irritate you into forgiveness. He thinks you can’t ignore him forever. You’re determined to prove him wrong. It’s been 3 days, and you’re proud of yourself. This is the longest you’ve held out against his torrent of digital apologies. You want to go longer.

It didn’t take JJ long to realize what you were mad about. For at least the fourth time this month, JJ had missed your date. You had planned a day on the mainland at a local fair, but you spent last Friday waiting as the ferry came and went.

If he had just canceled, you wouldn’t be mad. But he didn’t cancel, he just texted you every half hour, just when you were ready to give it up and leave, that he was coming and to hold on. And then around 5, a good 3 hours after he said he would come, he showed up.

And then he made fun of your outfit.

“Dude, what the hell are you wearing?” He even laughed.

So you left.

It is now Monday morning, and your phone has not stopped ringing for the past 8 hours. How the hell did he manage to keep going, nonstop, for 8 hours?

You can’t deny that you miss him. Going without JJ’s touchiness is affecting you too. Last night you had to cuddle a pillow.

You’re fixing your bed when the pebbles start hitting your window.

One, two, three, four. A pause. And then at least 30 pebbles all hit the window at the same time. You huff in annoyance, rolling off your bed to unlatch the window and shove it open.

“Hi, baby.” JJ is standing on your lawn, sheepishly smiling at you. His hand reaches up to rub the back of his neck.

You quirk an eyebrow at him, unamused.

“Oh, c’mon, Y/n! You can’t still be mad at me.” “Oh, I very much can! Or could you not tell from the numerous times I called you back?” You scoff.

JJ laughs, pushing his hands out at you, as if he’s reaching for you. “See, you’re talking to me already.” “Go away, JJ!” You grit your teeth.

“No.” “Go. Away.” “I don’t want to! Not until you forgive me!” “If you stay here another second, I’m literally going to ignore you for the rest of your life. We’ll get married and have kids and I still won’t talk to you.”

JJ snorts. “That would be bad for our family.”

“I will communicate with you through our children.” “Okay, well you’re pretty, like, vocal, if you know what I mean- “JJ, you disgust me.” “so I don’t know how you plan on me puttin’ a baby in you if you won’t talk to me. Communication is key, Y/n.”

“Okay, first of all, shut the fuck up. Second of all, if you don’t get off this street in the next ten seconds, I will call John B and I will make him drag you off.” You deadpan.

“That wouldn’t even work, John B would take my side.” “I’m his favorite!” You insist.

“Okay, I’m done talking to you, goodbye forever,” You begin to close the window, and JJ shouts. “Wait, wait, Y/n, wait, I swear I will start yelling.” “Goodbye, JJ.” You shut the window and JJ sighs dramatically.

He smirks up at you through the window before he opens his mouth.

“I am hopelessly in love with Y/n Y/l/n, and I’m going to scream about it now.” He whoops. Your neighbor sticks his head out his door. JJ turns and waves at him. “She’s up there!” He shouts, pointing at your window.

You yank the curtains in front of your window and flop back on the bed.

“Y/n, oh, Y/n, parting is something something? Oh, sweet sorrow! Something, something, I never read Romeo and Juliet last year, true beauty?” He screams.

You pull another pillow on top of your head, trying to muffle JJ’s yodeling outside your window. It barely works. You can make out more half-assed Romeo and Juliet references, but you know for a fact the only version of that play he knows is the gnome one.

Eventually, he leaves. You don’t dare actually check to see if he’s gone, scared that in true JJ fashion, he’s just baiting you. But after a good 30 minutes of quiet, you know JJ’s not patient enough for this. He’s gone.

He’s not done though.

He continues to overheat your phone with calls and texts. At one point he sends you an evite to his funeral. “Rip: jj maybank. Cause of death: lack of y/n.” The invitation reads.

At least he’s getting creative.

You’re almost thankful when the clear weather turns into a thunderstorm, knocking out your power. With no wifi, there’s no JJ.

Or so you were hoping.

You’re curled up with a cup of coffee and a family sized bag of chips in front of the TV, barely paying attention to the movie playing when he starts knocking on the door.

You’re not sure who would be at your door in the middle of a storm this bad. Obviously, one boy, but even he’s not dumb enough to come all the way here in weather this bad.

Except he is dumb enough.

You swing the door open to reveal a soaked JJ, squinting in the rain and holding up a bouquet of drooping carnations. He grins at you goofily.

“JJ, you dumbass, what the hell? Get in here!” You grab his wet arm and drag him inside. Even better, he came here in the rain, in a sleeveless shirt.

“Did you get my evite? Because I’m fucking freezing. I think this is how I go.” He’s dripping all over the floor.

You throw a glare over your shoulder as you retreat to find a towel.

Once you’ve wrapped it around him and forced him into a chair, you finally get to scream at him.

“You’re- You’re infuriating, you know that?” You cry out. “You drive me insane! What am I supposed to do if you get sick? Or worse!”

“Then you could’ve sent out those evites.” He smiles hesitantly.

“I’m being serious!”

JJ gives you another toothy smile and holds out the wimpy flowers. You take them from him and immediately hit him with them, spraying water droplets across his face.

“Ow. Okay, I deserved that.” JJ holds his hands up in defense and you hit him with them again.

“Maybe I shouldn’t buy you flowers anymore!” “You’re such an asshole!”

“I’m the asshole?” JJ stands now. “Yes, you’re the asshole.” “I’m the one getting beaten up with flowers!”

“What, did you think you could just show up here with stupid flowers and your stupid face and all would be forgotten?” “Well, no, okay, kind of?” JJ doesn’t know what to say to make you happy.

“That’s not how this works. You can’t just pull some big gesture and fix everything.” “Okay, you’re right. Y/n, I’m sorry.” He grabs your shoulders to look you dead in the eyes.

“You’re sorry?” “I’m sorry.” He shakes you a little.

“You’re sorry for what?”

JJ rolls his eyes, but finishes. “I’m sorry for standing you up and then being harsh about your fashion choices. I did not mean to hurt your feelings. It will never happen again.” JJ sounds like he’s reciting from memory.

“It’s going to happen again, you loofah.” “Loofah? I feel like that’s a new one.” “But you have to apologize, JJ.”

“I tried!” JJ protests, but you cut him off.

“And not over the phone.” You give him a look.

“Okay.” His hands travel to your hips. “Next time, I’ll say I’m sorry. Not over the phone. Can I please just kiss you now?”

“Is that all you came here for?” You laugh. “Pretty much, yeah.”

JJ leans down to kiss you, and you can feel him smile against you.

You pull away, eyes still closed. “I swear, stand me up one more time and I will dump you for- “Shut up.” JJ kisses you again but you lean back. “For good.” You finish and kiss him again.

“But then how would we,” He pecks your lips between words, “have that family you were talking about.”

You tug your head back completely. “I will leave you and my imaginary family.”

JJ shakes his head at you before he looks at the tv.

“What are you even watching?” “Romeo and Juliet.”

“Wait, isn’t he supposed to be a lot shorter than that?”

[fidothefinch]

maybe it's enough (to know that we were here together)

For Dick & Damian Week 2021, day 2: "He's my son!"

I wrote this over the last two hours. Fair warning, it is not proofread. Title from Kina Grannis's "For Now," for fake-deep reasons.

(More warnings: this story strongly features hospitals and difficulty breathing (and poison). Please take care of yourselves and skip it if it will hurt you, especially because of the last year we've all shared <3)

Nightwing woke up with a gasp like it was the first breath he had taken in a long time. He floundered for a moment, instinctively worried he had just surfaced from Gotham’s harbor (it wouldn’t be the first time), but it only took one hard smack of his wrist to recognize the very solid ground beneath himself.

Panting, he leveraged himself to his side to empty his stomach onto the concrete.

Something was wrong. He tried to check his surroundings, but he was only able to make out grey blobs that may have been buildings and wildly swinging lights.

No, they weren’t swinging. That was just his vision.

He squeezed his eyes shut, wishing he could just will vertigo away. It wasn’t a feeling he was used to; growing up swinging from a trapeze conditioned him to enjoy the swoop in his stomach. But right now, he was either on a boat or drugged.

Sirens doppler-ed towards and away from him, somewhere down below. Definitely drugged, then.

He lifted one hand to his pounding head and was happy to find his domino was still in place. So were his gloves. But when he checked, he was missing an Escrima stick and a handful of wingdings. He grappled with his memory, trying to pull up some idea of what could have happened. A fight, obviously. But was he in Gotham? Blüdhaven? Somewhere overseas?

He flipped to his back and stared at the sky, still breathing like he had just run a marathon. Drawing in air was like drinking through a silly straw. Above him, the sky was a mottled green-black, the wind rolling the clouds inland. The motion threatened to make him sick again. He considered the merits of rolling to his side, just in case, when his eyes caught the flicker of a familiar shape against the clouds.

The Batsignal.

So, he was in Gotham. Now that he thought about it, that felt right. He could recall riding in earlier on his bike, the wind whipping through his hair, weaving through wild traffic. But traffic had been going the wrong way? Everybody had been leaving the island. . .

He sat up suddenly. “Robin!”

Sitting up was a bad idea. He pushed through his temporary blindness to wobble to his feet, anyway. “Robin!” he called again.

Damian didn’t answer. He was nowhere to be found.

More sirens rang down below him, passing in the same direction the last set had. Dick scrambled to the edge of the roof to watch the ambulance pass. What he found took his breath away. Cars lined both sides of the road, all headed toward the bridge that led off the island. All empty, abandoned. There didn’t seem to be a soul in sight, except the emergency response vehicles speeding down the clear sidewalks.

Everything snapped into focus, and Dick’s memory returned. Somebody had called the Gotham PD with a thirty-minute warning before releasing an aerosolized drug into the sewer system. Nightwing had sped into town as quickly as he could, and Batman teamed him up with Robin to cover the south quarter, and they had gotten separated—where was Damian?

Dick leapt off the building, shooting his grapnel as he fell to swing into a perfect arc to the ground. His bike wasn’t within eyesight, so it was too far. He took off, running after the ambulance.

Toward the hospital.

-

“Sir, you can’t be here.”

Dick had never seen the hospital so busy. Patients were lined up along the walls and hallways, crammed into the rooms like sardines. The staff actually ran between beds, looking haggard and exhausted already. Dick stood out like a sore thumb in his Nightwing gear, but nobody had the time or energy to move him.

Except the head nurse, behind the desk. “You have to leave,” she said. “We don’t have room.”

“Is Robin here?” Dick asked. He had scanned the pinched faces of the patients he passed on the way back into the ER, but nobody was familiar. He was almost thankful; the victims of the poison were sweating profusely and gagged on their own breath.

“I can’t tell you that,” the nurse said.

“I need to know that he’s okay,” he pleaded, leaning into his palms. They had been planted on the desk for stability, but now they were the only thing grounding him in his panic. “Please.”

All of Gotham was supposed to be evacuated, but there were still so many people too slow, too many people without a way off the island. When the threatened poison hit the city, there were too many people left behind. Nightwing had rushed over from Blüdhaven as fast as he could, but by the time he had joined the rest of the Bats it was too late. Half of Gotham was sick. Dying.

And somewhere in the panic, as noxious steam shot from the sewers and spilled from the vents, he had lost Robin.

The nurse studied his face, her lips pursed. “Robin was admitted two hours ago.”

Dick’s knees nearly buckled with relief (it had nothing to do with his legs feeling like jelly). “Where is he?”

“I can’t tell you that.”

“Why not?” Maybe the words were clipped, but he didn’t have time for this.

“No visitors. Hospital rules.”

“He’s just a kid!”

“Then maybe you should have helped him evacuate,” she said, levelling a glare at him that could melt glass. “Instead of encouraging him to run straight into the line of danger.”

Now Dick growled. “You don’t understand what you’re talking about.”

“I think he’s better off here than with you.”

“He’s my son!” Dick slammed his fist on the counter between them, making the nurse jump. He would have time to feel guilty about it later. “If you don’t tell me where he is, I’ll find him myself.”

She opened and closed her mouth a few times, not getting any words out.

“Nightwing!” somebody else called. Dick spun around (too quickly), and another nurse was gesturing quickly behind herself. “I’ll take you to him.”

“Moira—” the head nurse started. But she wasn’t fast enough to catch Dick as he weaved through the maze of gurneys.

The nurse had dark circles under her eyes, and her bun was frayed. “Pediatric wing,” she huffed, already jogging down a wide white hallway. Dick followed, heart racing. “His oxygen was too low. He must have gotten a face-full of the stuff.”

“What does that mean?” Dick asked.

Her face screwed up. “He’s on a ventilator.”

Dick’s heart squeezed in panic at the words. He began to mentally prepare himself for what he would find.

The nurse he was following stopped abruptly, almost making him run into her. She flipped a hand at a set of double doors. “Stairs,” she explained. “You’ll have to go up to the third floor. Room 329.”

Dick didn’t question why she wasn’t coming; she had work to do. He nodded as he pushed through one of the doors. “Thanks.”

By the time he reached the third floor, he could tell that he had been dosed. Maybe not as badly as the other patients there, but three flights of stairs should have been child’s play for him. He arrived to patient hallway sweating and panting too hard, jelly legs making their displeasure felt.

There were doctors and nurses in this wing, too, but they were also scrambling too quickly to give him more than a passing glance. The crammed hallways on this floor were even more disconcerting, because the flushed, moaning faces were those of children.

None of them were the one he was looking for.

He forced himself to slow down, not able to bear the idea of passing Damian’s room and missing him accidentally. When he found room 329, he steeled himself before barreling through the door.

There were two beds crammed inside the small space, made possible only because the beds were child-sized. The smiling clouds painted on the ceiling were a harsh contrast to the dark, noisy machines wound around the beds.

Damian was in one of them.

Dick rushed to his side, sparing barely a glace toward the other child. Damian looked tiny, dwarfed by the size of the gurney and the mouth of the ventilator. His domino was in place, but somebody had flipped the screen over the eyes back, so Dick could see that Damian was asleep. The IV in his elbow connected to several bags, and Dick had no doubt at least one of them was a sedative. They would have to, to put him on the ventilator.

Dick snaked his gloved fingers into Damian’s bare ones and squeezed lightly. Even through the gloves, he could feel the smallest pulse.

He legs threatened to give out beneath him again.

And, well. Then they did.

A passing doctor saw him just as he had sprawled on the floor like a starfish. “Nightwing? What’s wrong? Are you hurt?”

Dick shook his head, gesturing to his chest about the tightness still persisting htere. “Just dizzy.”

The doctor clucked his tongue, reaching out to the chair wedged into the corner. “Think you can get in this chair?”

Dick nodded (a mistake), and with the doctor’s help he was able to slide into the seat. The doctor flit out of the room and returned less than a minute later with a nasal cannula and oxygen tank.

Dick waved it away. “I’m fine.”

The doctor rolled her eyes. “Uh-huh, and I am, too.”

Dick didn’t fight it when she applied it. The steady stream of dry oxygen through his nose was a relief, and his head began to clear again almost immediately. “Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it,” the doctor waved.

Dick stopped her on her way out the door again. “Wait.”

She paused, obviously a little irritated at being interrupted.

Dick blushed in apology. “When will he be taken off the ventilator?” he asked, gesturing toward Damian, in the bed.

The doctor only shrugged. “When he’s ready.” And she left, hustling toward her next patient.

Dick pulled his glove off and ran his free hand through Damian’s hair, brushing back the strays. It was still damp with sweat.

However long Damian was asleep, Dick would be there when he woke up.

[gryffindordaughterofathena]

You’ve unleashed the beast with those angst prompts. My evil evil brain is already spinning 😂

do number 1

“Come on, say something. Please, just say something, anything.” A’s voice broke, “Just fight back, I’m begging you.”

Ethan saying it to Diana.

WOUND ME PLEASE! Rip out my heart

I should have been working on Love and Lies but I did this instead. I hope it is to your liking and has been able to "Rip out" your heart.

COUNTDOWN

Book : Open Heart

Pairing : Ethan Ramsey x Diana Ramirez

Word Count : 1200 words

Rating : Teen to be safe

Category : Angst with a happy ending

Trope : And an idiot went to Amazon, And one of them has an injury

Warning : None

Summary : It's the fight against time, losing which might cause him to lose the one who matters the most. Who will win?

Feel free to drop a request from this list

10...

He was running...

Running towards her...

Towards the place he left behind...

The place where everything had started...

It was all his fault,he could have stopped it if he had been there, every thing that had happened was the result of his actions.

He will make things right, he has to...

9...

The clock was ticking

Time had no intention of slowing down

And neither had his wildly racing heart. ...

She was slipping out of his grasp and he was still too far away from her to do something, Diana was the only thing that had ever mattered...

8...7...

All her memories come slowly rushing back to him.

The past year, every little memory of her, his Rookie, hits him with the force of a freight train....

He had tried to forget, tried to reset, tried to bring things back to what they were before she came barging into his life.

He tried to forget the feel of her hand under his as he guided her through the Thoracotomy.

Tried to forget the tears streaming down her beautiful face as she looked over Ethan Hudson.

Tried to forget how heavenly she looked with her hair cascading over her face as they researched Naveen's case deep into the night.

Tried to forget the feel of her beating heart in the secluded Miami balcony

Tried to forget the pain in her voice when she said, “It's not complicated, not for me”

Tried to forget her cries when he brought her to the brink of pleasure...

He tried to forget Diana Ramirez ever existed

And he had failed utterly.

6...5...

He still remembers her last voice mail, the words that would haunt him till the end of his life.

“This is the last time I'll call you, I promise it Ethan, I am considering a transfer to AIIMC Chicago, the hospital has been suffering without you, please come back, just for once before I leave Boston behind, I don't know how long I can..... "And then the unmistakable sound of the screeching of a car, glass breaking and then the voice mail ends.

Ethan doesn't remember his actions after that...

Calling Naveen, booking a flight, boarding it, and then the agonizing wait of seventeen hours, all the while clinging into every little information about her, everything blurs into one rhythmic pace of unrelenting pain and regret.

4...3...

The plane touches Boston in the wee hours of the morning, the city still sleeps, peaceful, unaware of the turmoil in his entire being.

Unaware of the self blame that kills him from within.

Once again he is running...

Not away from his feelings, but towards the life that hangs through the singular chord of the hope that he'll come.

The journey to Edenbrook had never seemed this long.

2...1...

He stands before her hospital room, the very same room where he had seen her diagnosing patients...

The very same room where they had the last conversation before he left for the Amazon

The very same room where he had heard her heart shatter and felt his own break into a million pieces.

Doctor Varma stands outside her room, her head on her hands, her stance defeated and he assumes the worst.

“How bad is it Dr. Varma? Am I too late? ", Ethan doesn't recognize his own voice, it's broken and doesn't come out in anything more than a whisper.

Jackie jumps at his voice, something passes over face, replacing the defeat with steely resolve, “You were too late the moment you left Di behind and ran away to the Amazons, do you know how much pain she went through? And we knew nothing about it till the accident, it's your fault that she is connected to IV stands in that hospital room now, if things don't improve in an hour we'll have to put her in ventilation and we know what will happen after that.She waited two months for you and now you came crawling back, forgive me if this comes off as insubordination but today I know that Ethan Ramsey is a coward,don't let me hold you back, go see the damage you have done", she turns her head away.

0...

Life was slowly extracting itself from her.

She was a wilting flower in a field of dead leaves.

Like Persephone in the edge of spring and winter, of life and death and of victory and loss.

The heart monitor showed the frail fight that she was still putting up and Jackie's words come crashing back to him, “go see the damage you have done”, she had said.

She was right.

He was the sole reason behind this predicament. And the fight went out of him, leaving behind the shell of a man, broken and lost without the light that guided him.

Her limp hand was lying by her side, still as the darkness of the room.

He took her hand in his, like all those days ago when he had taken it outside the hospital as Mrs Martinez left...

This time her hand was limp, without it's usual warmth....

This time it didn't squeeze his hand lending silent strength....

This time he was alone... all alone.

And it was as if the dam had broken down, his pain giving him unusual eloquence....

“Rookie please wake up, please forgive me, just this once, don't leave me... I can't face the reality without you, just give me another chance. Come on, say something. Please, just say something, anything.” Ethan's voice broke, “Just fight back, I’m begging you.”

The tears came freely now, not holding back, the one hour would be over in another ten minutes and she would probably slip out of his hands forever...

“Diana... ”, his pleading was that of a man, a part of whom was dying, a man who was in the verge of losing everything that he held dear, “Don't leave me, I promise I'll never run again, I— I love you, I love you so much that it hurts, please don't leave me... please.”

“Ethan—", the voice was so low that he almost missed it in the whirring of hospital machines and the sobs that wracked through him.

“You are here, you are really here, it hurts, it hurts so much... ”

The countdown stops

The magnanimousity of his feelings scare him sometimes, yet there is a thrill to it that keeps him captivated, almost intoxicated in the euphoric feeling of her hand held tightly in his, her breathing normal, the crisis averted.

And he knows... he knows that he loves her and that she feels the same and a feeling of belonging blooms in his chest.

He looks at Diana's peaceful sleeping form, her hand still tightly clutching his as if she is afraid that he was just a dream that would abandon her once the night gives way to the day and he remembers Dr. Varma's words as she went home to inform her friends, “She is too forgiving, but don't fuck this up again." He had no intention of doing so ever again.

He knew that he would do whatever it takes.

He would fight for her, for them.

He would make things right.

If you have read my trash writing this far, thank you. I hope you have a good day.

—Dri💕

(Tagging Separately)

[whyrish]

Hello! I’m angry and want to rant so Stranger things season 4 spoilers under the cut.

I am so again angry that Steve decided all of his character development is due to Nancy. Yes, she was a part of it but the “kick upside the head” was her telling him that she didn’t love him that they were bullshit and then getting with the guy she told him not to worry about. (Btw I literally love Nancy Wheeler and she is one of my favorite women characters so this is NOT Nancy hate)

But putting all the emphasis on her breaking up with him as the main source of him realizing he isn’t all that feels like it lessens the other major events that happened in his life. As if he wasn’t affected by Barb dying in his pool (although he did get over it easier than Nancy did 100% as evidenced by him moving on) As if he didn’t almost die 5000 times from the monsters, from Nancy holding a gun to him, from the Russians, from Billy practically beating him to death. I’m pretty sure that those things could have accounted to knocking him around.

If it isn’t just the bad things happening to him that gave him the jumpstart, then how about the good things. Caring for her made him a nicer person yes. Absolutely. But most of his character development you see with him comes from his friendships with primarily two people: Dustin and Robin. He learns to be less selfish and open up and care for Dustin and by extension the rest of the gang over the course of season 2 and 3. Then he meets Robin who constantly holds him accountable for his douchebaggery and teases him and teaches him to take himself less seriously. You watch all of these platonic relationships affect him and watch him learn to be more and more selfless and stand up for people and be more open and understanding and patient.

Steve has had his character development unfurl our eyes since season one, and attributing it all to a romantic upheaval from Nancy not only cheapens that development, but also feels reductive to Nancy’s character and makes her feel like just another love interest. The way he goes on to talk about his dream of a bunch of kids with Nancy as the mom only makes it worse to me. What about her dreams? He had moved on from her in season 3 and now he’s back to liking the idea of her. When has Nancy ever said she wanted kids??????????????????

Overall, I feel like this points to an overall problem I had with season 4. It has lost sight of a common theme that was SO important to me for the first three seasons: the theme of chosen family and friends. You can see this in how Mike just doesn’t see his best friend since childhood crying next to him that he spent season 1 and 2 fighting tooth and nail for and biked through the rain in the middle of the night to talk to in season three cause he couldn’t sleep knowing Will was mad. How Eleven is only able to power up when her love interest (which is what Mike pretty much all he was this season) said he loved her and gave her a pep talk as if her best friend who she had come to help literally dying was not enough for her to have that breakthrough. How Max’s only happy memory was the dance with Lucas (which was a very cute scene yes) and not bonding at the mall with El or bonding with Mike in the Gym, or them teasing Dustin. Why was that dance the ONLY happy memory she could retreat to? Also how Steve lets Robin run off into the woods alone. How we only see Dustin affected by Eddie’s death as if the whole gang wasn’t friends with him.

I know this whole rant is borderline incoherent and please tell me if I misremembered the show or certain elements because I want all this to make SENSE.

[shypandawrites]

New girl (Twilight au Witch x Edward) Part 2

WARNING: Here is part 2 cause why not! And if this has typos or is just bad I do apologize but thank you for reading!

Hope you enjoy !

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next day at school was interesting, watching people just stare at the Cullen's was a little funny. I can see why they would be fascinated with them. I just subtly nodded to Alice and walked around them, only to bump into Asher. “Hey.” He laughed, as I backed up a bit. “Sorry,” I mumbled, walking around him.

It was only until I got to the school doors that I realized that he followed me. Oh right. He said he was going to be a guide for me. “Forget?” he joked, walking with me in. “So what classes do you have?” We stopped a bit as I pulled out the schedule and handed it to him.

I waited as he looked it over before giving it back to me with a grin. “So you have a class with Edward and then with Alice neat.” I watched as he got a little shy when I continued to look at him, before letting out a little chuckle. “Does my guide know the way to my classes?” I joked as he seemed to snap out of it with a grin. “Yes, this way.” As we walked to my class we talked about our mornings and he started telling me about this play of Romeo and Juliet and how they are the ideal couple.

“No, they aren’t”

At first, I didn’t realize that Asher had stopped until I looked back and saw him catching up. “Why aren’t they? They are the main reason for the Romeo and Juliet tragedy. How can you say that.” I chuckled, at his enthusiasm. He must be a true romantic. “Don’t you think the whole ‘woe me and die with me’ thing a little funny. I mean I get why they are willing to die for each other but there were many ways they could have done it instead of that way and still be happy.”

His eyes seemed glazed like he was thinking about what I said. “Then how would they make it so they would be together?” He questioned as we reached my first class. “Talk later?” I saw Edward go into the classroom and dropped my head. “Huh? Oh yeah, talk later!” Asher grinned as he walked away.

Immediately after I entered the classroom I headed to my seat next to Edward and pulled out my Calculus book and waited for Mr. Varner to come into the room and write on the board the pages we would be doing. I took a piece of paper and started doing the problems while he explained them to everyone. Not once did I look at Edward as I did the math problems. Even when it was getting close to the end of class and everyone was chatting with their friends.

No sooner did the bell ring than I got up and walked out the door to see Asher walking towards me. He seems like he can brighten up a room. Together he walked me to my next class while we debated on if Romeo and Juliet were the ideal couples and every time I would come up with a good enough reason he would just fire back with some reason that they were meant to be together.

He left me at my next class saying that the debate was not over. I got to my seat to see Alice grinning at me next to me. “Hey, Luna having a fun debate with Asher?” I nodded as Mrs. Wilcox came over to me with a history book. “I’m sorry for not giving you one, it must have slipped my mind but if you need any help Alice said she would help you.” “Thank you,” I replied as she turned and started the lesson when the bell rang.

Alice seemed to be watching me and I listened to the lecture and took down notes. “Your handwriting is pretty.” She commented as she was writing down the same notes. “Thanks. Yours is pretty as well.” I told her, taking a glance at her neat paper. It was.

“Ok, that is all for today but class I need you to read chapter 6 and give a little review on it. Because next time is going to be a pop quiz.” Mrs. Wilcox said, looking around, stopping at me then going on. “Ok.” She smiled, turning to go back to her desk, as the bell rang.

Packing my stuff I made it to the door just as Asher came around the corner, panting. “You ok?” I asked, concerned, reaching out and placing a hand on his shoulder. “Yup. Just catching my breath.” He waved me off as he stood up and took deep breaths, calming down his heart.

After he caught his breath, we talked more but he kept insisting that they were. And at one point I agreed and he looked triumphant until I disagreed. The look on his face when I disagreed was hilarious. He seemed very determined to get me to agree with him.

I laughed at him as we rounded a corner and nearly ran into Edward. My body froze an inch from his. I took a step back and nodded my head to him, walking around him. Don’t wanna make him hate me more than he already does. He stepped in my way again. “I want to talk with you after school.” He whispered to me as he walked away.

“What was that about?”

Watching him walk away I just shook my head. Even I wasn’t sure. “No idea.” The next classes I have were fun. Drawing is something that always soothed me when I was feeling sad. And in English, we just had to write a poem of our own so that was easily done.

When it was time for lunch I got my food and sat at the empty table. Eating as I sketched, minding my own business as the lunchroom started to get loud. I threw my garbage away when I saw the Cullen's come in and sit at the table next to mine.

Not two seconds later Asher came through the door and came and sat next to me after he got his food. “Leaving a friend how nice.” I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at him. “I knew I would see you at lunch so I thought it would be fine,” I said, closing my sketchbook. “What were you drawing?” He asked, interested. Why not. I opened it again and put it out in front of him. It was a picture of Esme, she was smiling, with flowers behind her.

“You drew her so well. How long have you been drawing?” I shrugged, taking back the sketchbook. “My whole life. I enjoy drawing, it’s calming to me.” He nodded and ate his food when I started to hear the rain hit the window. A little gasp left my lips as I turned to the window and just listened to the rain. I must have zoned off cause then I felt Asher shaking my shoulder. Jerking to him I ducked my head to see Edward and who I am guessing to be Jasper looking at me, each with unreadable expressions. “Sorry.” Asher just laughed and reached over to flick my head, which I easily dodged.

“What was so distracting?”

“The rain.”

Before he could ask what I was talking about, I smiled, keeping my eyes closed. “Haven’t you ever listened to the rain?” I peeked to see him shake his head, confused. “You should, it is very calming to listen to. I’m sure you can easily fall asleep just listening to it.”

The silence was weird. I would think he would find it weird or funny but he said nothing and that made my heart start to drop. “I never thought of it that way.” Letting out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding had me resting my head on the table. He seemed to find that funny as he ruffled my hair. Thank goodness. I took a swat at his hand and lifted my head. “So, how is your day so far?” “Good yours?” Can’t complain today at least. “Good.” A ping went off in my head and as I focused on it, it led me into the mind of someone coming close to us.

Who though? Their mind wasn’t kind, to say the least, they only thought of hurting others. “Hello, you must be the other new student.” A girl’s voice said, holding out her hand to me. “Crystal.” I heard Asher greet her, he seemed confused about her being there. I stared at the ground as I shook her hand. The memories of her bullying others flood my mind but I block it off for the moment. “Hello, nice to meet you. I’m Luna.” I greeted her with a nod.

She let out a loud laugh. I get that the lunchroom was noisy but it seemed like she was trying to draw the attention of others. “Well, welcome, and if you need help I wouldn’t mind helping.” Her smile was very misleading when her eyes were clearly saying she wants nothing to do with me. “No, it's fine. I have him as a guide and I’ll think I’ll stick with him. Thank you though.” her smile dropped for a second before it was back and brighter than ever. “Ok, then.”

Even though she said that she continued to stand there politely, it wasn’t till Asher went to throw away his garbage that she got close to me. “Listen here new girl, what the hell do you think you are doing?” “Sitting here and talking with a friend?” I questioned, acting dumb. I held back my anger with what she said next. “Right. Like someone can be friends with that Cullen kid. My guess is you’re just using him to get to the other hotter siblings right?” She started to giggle but got cut off by me. “No. I’m not using him, and why would you care if you don’t seem to even know his name.” I defended Asher, I will not stand by as she talked bad about him. He is very kind.

That had her drawback a bit until she got in my face again. “I know what his name is you bitch I ju-” “Then what’s his name?” I interrupted her again, waiting patiently. “It’s . . . Henry of course.” Really? I stared at her for a moment shaking my head. “Wrong, now if you don’t mind please leave me alone.” As I was talking she snatched my sketchbook and was looking through it. I stood up to grab it but she held it out of my reach.

“You make such pretty drawings, would you like to join our drawing club?” Her voice was loud enough to get multiple people to turn and stare. “No, I’m good. Can I have my sketchbook back please?” My hand still out to grab it. “Sure.” As I grabbed it she got close to me and whispered. “Watch it, girl, I can make it so you never have friends here.” At that, I smiled and whispered back. “That’s ok. If you’re going to do that then I just need him as a friend.” Shrugging I pulled my sketchbook out of her hand. She glared at me and turned and walked away with a smile.

“Very rude to not even know his name,” I mumbled to myself.

Asher came back looking confused. “What was that about?” Ok, not going to tell him about that. “She wanted to know if I wanted to join a drawing club and I told her no thanks.” I shrugged, putting my sketchbook in my bag. “Ready to go?” I nodded as I got up and we walked out the door, and for some reason, I felt like someone was watching me.

We made it early to our class and sat in the corner and got back to our Romeo and Juliet debate. He gave up after a bit of trying to convince me about them being the ideal couple. I could tell he wanted to talk about it more but gave up for now. Even when we went to our next class and I was reading the history chapter and was writing a review on it I felt his eyes on me.

I started laughing cause he still looked like he wanted to say more but didn’t want to at the moment. I made it to my car when I heard someone call my name. Glancing back to see Asher running at me had me a little confused. Why come over here when his family is on the other side of the parking lot?

My silent question was answered as he got to me. “I’m going with you so you don’t bail out of coming over.” If I said I was going to come over I’m going to come over. “Fine.” I unlocked my car and he hopped in, turning the radio on and we listened to the radio on the way to his house.

Esme was standing outside to greet us. “Welcome back.” She grinned as she let us inside. I placed my backpack below where I was sitting and pulled out my sketchbook as we talked and waited for the other kids to get home. And I got that snack she was telling me about.

But as soon as the rest of them did get back Asher was already trying to get me to agree with him. “Asher! If they were the ideal couple then why did they die?” He stopped to stare at me. “If someone loves another then they would do everything in their power to protect them from even their own family and if they were so in love then they would have the guts to tell their families.” I stopped to take a breath. “Loving someone I’m sure means you put their feelings above your own and if they fell in love at first sight then they should have eloped and no one would have to die. And they could tell their family about it and it would be their family’s choice to accept them or not.” Asher was just stunned looking at me as well as the others.

“So do tell me why you think they are the ideal couple? I get that they are the woe of that century because of their love which causes their deaths.” I stopped to take a drink of the lemonade that Esme had handed me. He was silent as he thought of what to say. From the corner of my eye, I saw Alice and Edward close to laughing, while Emmett was just grinning as he watched us.

I waited patiently as he thought. “I...Um...Well, they...Fine.” He looked down in defeat. I’m sorry to bring your spirit down Asher. With a pat on his shoulder, I smiled at him. “You know if they are the ideal couple for you then why not just let it be for you?” When he nodded I sighed in relief.

“Then what’s your idea of an ideal couple?”

Shrugging a shoulder as I went back to my sketchbook I started to draw the view from their windows. “I don’t know to be honest. Maybe a couple who will not give up on each other or allow anyone to hurt them, I guess when you love someone you accept everything about that person.” I stopped as I shaded parts of the drawing. “I’m pretty sure when you fall in love it will be like a hurricane. Sometimes it’s unexpected, and sometimes it’s stronger than you think. But just like a hurricane, it can hurt you.”

A hand was placed on my shoulder which made me look up to see Asher, grinning at me. “You are a romantic aren’t you?” Rolling my eyes at him I pushed his hand away. “You are too. But isn’t that everyone? Wanting to be with someone that you don’t have to keep secrets from?” I stopped drawing at this point and just had it on my lap as everyone started talking. Not noticing that someone was staring at me.

It was close to nighttime when I headed home and Asher insisted on walking me home but I waved him off cause I drove here. He laughed and went back inside as I drove the short distance to my house. As I got out I went to open my door when someone clears their throat.

“Hmm?”

I turned to be met with Edward and Emmett in the tree line. “Can I help you?” I questioned, stepping closer unafraid. They were silent as it was getting darker. “Who are you?” Edward asked as the porch light started to be the only light around aside from my house lights. “Luna?” Emmett chuckled at his brother before he leaned against a tree. “I think he means what are you? You seemed to know what we are. So it only seems fair right?”

Does it matter though? My head tilted as I just looked at them. “Why? It doesn’t seem like it matters.” They started to protest before Emmett just shrugged “Fine by me as long as you don’t mean my family any harm.” and walked away into the darkness. With just me and Edward the silence lasted until I went to turn to head inside. “How do I know you’re not going to harm my family?” He asked as he grabbed my arm. A cold breeze blew past us and sent a chill down my spine.

Wanting to get inside I grabbed his hand on my arm and easily pushed it off. “You will just have to trust me, Edward.” I ignored his memories for the moment as I dropped his hand. Hugging my sweater to myself I waited as he was silent as the wind blew. I gave up after a few more minutes of standing in the cold and went inside.

After I ate with my dad I headed upstairs to make sure I had all my homework done and then just listened to music as I drew a little more before heading to bed.

**************************************************************

Hope you liked it and if not I'm sorry, trying to improve. Any feedback is welcomed just go easy!

[kyoupann]

Please do more of the writing head canons. It’s really interesting to see other people’s ideas on the topic, so if you can be bothered, I would highly appreciate more, thanks bye <3

Y’all don’t know how happy I am to talk about these headcanons, they are my babies and I love them so much :’) thanks for asking g <3

Handwriting Headcanons

Same dynamic as before, try to guess whose handwriting it is before reading and tell me how many you got right! <3

You can find the first post here (no need to check it tho)

Quick disclaimer: halfway through making my initial notes, I remembered I had one (1) single lesson of graphology in my applied linguistics class, but that was a year ago and some information might be off. I just thought it was neat to include.

Another quick disclaimer: I don’t know much about Hylian, but I like to think it has a similar stroke system to Japanese, so the pressure and accuracy of your strokes play a major role in your handwriting (among other things, ofc.) so there are some parts where I focus more on that

(First Row, from left to right)

Sky

Our first boy is mother hen! Believe it or not, he has the prettiest handwriting out of all of them! Sky: probably has nice, even elegant handwriting because Sun forced him to practice when they were little. In the end, that paid off because his handwriting is the prettiest one. There’s no pressure, but he is confident in what he writes that his lines aren’t thin. Mistakes? what is that? this boy has impeccable grammar and spelling. No mechanic errors to be found in his letters! I’d like to think that many of Hyrule’s classic/staple poems were originally written by the firt king aka sky child. Like, imagine, after a retiring from being a Person of Power (as the first ruler), Sky finds comfort in the arts: revisits his old woodcarvings and starts writing poetry about the world he still doesn’t fully understand. wowie. tldr: sky writes poetry and you can pry it from my cold dead hands.

This is what one of his letters would look like: 

Next one is the one and only, our Hero of Time

2. Time

I’ll die on the “Time didn’t know how to read and write” hill. His handwriting is simple, not pretty but not messy. It has some grammar and spelling mistakes here and there. Can become unreadable if writing in a hurry, he sorts of forgets spaces between words are a thing/letters have different sizes and lowercase letters end up the same size as capital letters. I’m not saying he sometimes forgets to write articles: he just doesn’t want to. Honestly, he just has this dad-neat handwriting. He is a gentle dad and writes like a dad, if he puts too much pressure onto the paper, his handwriting become too sharp/angle-ish and ends up looking ugly. And as much as he would like to not care about it, in the end he does (:

Malon taught him how to write and it was quite the experience. At first he didn’t want to because he was ‘too old’ to learn and it was torture at first, but now look at him devouring his cowboy novels. 

A chunk of his handwriting: 

*sniff* such a dad quote.

3. my mansss, your  4x1 deal at Target: Four

Look, my boy is patient! He could do some nice and fancy lettering if he wanted to. He was taught that handwriting and spelling said a whole lot about him as a person, you know, like a first impression kinda thing; so he always proof reads more than twice before sending ­a letter. Super rare grammar mistakes.

The faster he writes, the more slant his writing becomes. Under stress/ when not sure how to write things down, run-on sentences are everywhere and his handwriting is inconsistent in general (I don’t headcanon each part of him having completely different handwriting because handwriting becomes muscle memory over time. It’s just slightly different variations of the same, like idk  Vio’s handwriting is neater than Green’s and Red writes hearts instead of any dot/circle and no, I do not take constructive criticism on that, jk i do.) Adding on to each of the colours’ handwriting, I’d think Red and Green write with words slanted to the right( inclined), Vio is a mix of the opposite, so reclined and straight, and my mans blue a true neutral writes straight (kinda like Time’s).

The logic behind this is that inclined writing supposedly means honesty and need for giving (and getting) affection; reclined means, as you can probably imagine,  defensiveness and repression of true feelings, but also shows great concentration; straight handwriting means self-control, observation and reflection as well as distrust and indifference. But as complete being (tm), Four just writes as in the image example which is not too straight and not too inclined, and I believe that’s a good middle for him

HOWEVER, if I’m feeling in the mood for crack, I totally accept this boy to have the ugliest, chicken scratches-looking handwriting! :’D It’s just funny to think that someone like him, who has to be precise and careful in his work, can't write neatly to save his life. 

One of his letters would look like this: 

Also I just LOVE how his hero titles look in this font ksksks

and that’s

(Middle row, from left to right)

4.- Mister Bunny Boy - Legend

His uncle taught him how to write. I’d call his handwriting pretty and neat at a first glance, but he presses too hard on the paper, most of the time staining the back or the following page. Sometimes will retrace some words if he doesn’t like how it looks (which only makes it messier). According to my notes, a thick or strong handwriting represents determination/commitment.

As I also headcanon him to know many languages, mechanical errors are more present than grammar ones; that is, weird capitalisation of words. Punctuation is somewhere in between; uses too many commas when he should just cut the sentence. he mixes punctuation from two languages or more in writing when too distracted (or too focused, because, well, pressure.); when he writes for himself, he has almost no problem following said language’s punctuation rules. Also, this is just polyglot culture, and I’m projecting a bit, but when he forgets a word in the language he’s writing, he just replaces it with its equivalent in another language because we don’t care about fluency, but rather functionality. in this household (more on that in my language hc, ksksks).

An example of his writing:

so powerful

4.-  Mr. Wolfman, howl me a song - Twilight

I don’t have much for him because 1) I don’t think he writes a lot and 2) he is a hands-on/visual learner, I’ll die by that. He only learnt how to write because Ulli insisted it was important and he was not about to disrespect his momma; he IS That Guy, but doesn’t really write enough to have neat handwriting.

Many people seem to overlook the fact that his house is filled with books and write him as completely illiterate (which if not explored properly, ends up feeling a bit disrespectful and full of prejudice, but go off I guess; and that’s on my core Headcanons for Twi); however, he sticks to simple sentences. Knowing how to read and understanding a text is different from knowing how to write them. Like, when we would see a semicolon and understand its position in the text, but didn’t understand the nature of it. Is this clear? idk i’m sorry. So yeah, boy reads a lot, writes very little.

As for his Actual Handwriting, as opposed to Legend, his handwriting is thiccc but not because he presses into the paper; he is just that messy, he has no sense of ink-flow-control, he does what he can with what he has. To the untrained eye, his handwriting illegible letters like v, n, u are very similar; when he makes notes for himself he does it in the form of doodles or small ‘icons’. But! He reads a lot, so he rarely makes spelling mistakes (: he is your go-to guy when you don’t know how to write a word.

An example of his writing:

He keeps a journal, sue me.

3. My first born- Warrior

Okay, first off... I accept this is completely biased. I saw the idea and said “That’s True”. If you haven’t, please read Effective Communication; or The Lack of Thereof by htruona, a fic where the boys reflect on the language barriers between them. It’s incredibly funny and probably what made me start making these silly notes. So, if you’ve read that fic, you know where I’m going.

My man, Warrior, can’t fucking write. I mean, he physically can, but it’s very bad. Here’s the reason for it, tho, and it’s not his fault: Technically, he knew how to write alright but he joined the military and whatever note he had to write had to be concise or in the worst case coded. He mixes capital and lowercase letters. If we consider that he joined the military at around 15, his handwriting and grammar had yet to continue developing. Just think about how after summer break, your handwriting was always slightly worse than before because you didn’t write for an entire month. Now think what 2 years can do to that. Hmm, not cool, dude. He makes quick notes, when writing he’s all gotta go fast. he is the lighting mcqueen of writing; good for emergency messages, not ideal for love letters. His punctuation also suffered a lot, he only know full stops and commas and hardly uses them. A sentence for him is either one word or fifty without a single comma, no inbetween.

His hero title and an example of his writing.

(Bottom row, or what I like to call “fuck cursive” row)

7.- Magic man - Hyrule

I’m basic and I do agree with the popular headcanon of he not knowing how to write because well, y’all know his Hyrule. He only knows how to write his name because that’s important, same with numbers. I don’t see why would he write/read except checking the roadsigns. (he can even use this as an excuse for getting lost frequently; he thought it said something different.) But I do think that because his habitual reading consists of roadsigns, his ‘punctuation’ is weird af and places full stops/points/periods at the same level of his words and his commas/question/exclamation marks below them. Yk, creative license. Sadly, I don’t have much about my magic hands man so here’s what his writing would look like if he actually wrote a paragraph:

Man, I love Hyrule.

8.- Man, I don’t understand this boy -  Wild

Cursive? ain’t nobody have the time for that. He woke up and had to save the world in his underwear while not knowing how to read nor write.  He learnt during his journey and was taught by multiple people from different regions, that explains his inconsistent spelling of things and names for them. So Wild knows language variations for many items and uses them interchangeably (even if they aren’t exactly the same). Another headcanon related to writing/language skills that I’ve been thinking about is that if the shrine was able to cause amnesia, I’m sure there were other areas in the brain affected which leads us to language disorders such as agraphia and aphasia. But that’s a story for another day ksksksk

An example of his writing (after relearning)

9.- The best of sons - Wind

I don’t have much for him and that makes me sad. Look, he’s a kid, doing kid things like stabbing dudes on the head. This boy was taught cursive by his grandma, but could never do it and no one needs it anyway. His handwriting is good enough for his pirate life, Tetra is the one to handle Official stuff, he just gotta sign. Spelling and grammar mistakes abound. He is still relatively young and can correct his handwriting if he desires. But same as Wild, with how many times he’s been thrown out and hit his head, I’m starting to consider some language disorder for him as well.

An example of his writing:

aaand that’s it.

Thanks, y’all for showing interest in this silly thing uwu it was fun to finally talk about this. If you ever want to discuss ideas/headcanons(especially if they are related to language and culture), I’m your person (: I’m always happy to hear new headcanons. Feel free to add anything to this post either in a reply or in a reblog, I’d love to hear from y’all <3<3

[makeste]

BnHA Chapter 276: Our Turn to Save You

Previously on BnHA: In a refreshing change of pace from the usual “the adults refuse to tell the kids anything” shtick, Deku and Kacchan flew around trying to get Tomura’s attention while refusing to explain jack shit to Endeavor! Deku eventually thought to ask Kacchan why he was getting in on this, and Kacchan launched into a two-page Denial Speech which seemed expressly designed to prime him for losing his quirk any fucking second now! Tomura then showed up and the two of them were all “KJSDLFK” but thankfully Gran dove in to rescue them from dying INSTANTANEOUS HORRIBLE DEATHS, and reminded them that there are practically SIX WHOLE GROWN-UPS left who can definitely still fight Tomura and won’t die at all!! And one of those grown-ups is Aizawa! Who’s getting ready to fight Tomura now! Listen Horikoshi you fucker, when I asked for more Aizawa angst and badassery this ISN’T WHAT I –

Today on BnHA: Tomura is all “THIS QUIRK WON’T STOP ME BECAUSE I CAN’T READ” and sort of shrugs it off and continues to kick ass even though his Decay and AFO powers aren’t working. The pros all try to stop him with Endeavor taking the lead, and because THEY ALL SUCK, APPARENTLY, nothing they do is effective in any way whatsoever! Meanwhile Gran dumps Deku and Kacchan off and is all “YOU’LL BE FINE HERE” which is the most ridiculous thing anyone in this manga has ever said, and then pretty much as soon as he says it at least nine more High Ends (excuse me, NEARLY High Ends) just POP UP OUT OF NOWHERE and are all “RARR” and the heroes are all “oh shit” and Tomura is all “lol yeah I actually had more High Ends this whole time” and Ujiko is all “it’s true!” and, fuck. The chapter ends with Tomura charging in to kill Aizawa only to be intercepted by MY TWO PRECIOUS BABIES, MY DARLING LITTLE HERO HATCHLINGS, and...!! I blame Gran for this.

gotta say, my sense of time is distorted enough as it is these days without chapter leaks coming out A WHOLE ENTIRE DAY EARLY out of nowhere. not that I’m complaining, because I want to see Aizawa kick some ass & immediately lose his fucking quirk as much as anyone, but it is disorienting

anyway time to dive into this chapter which I predict will be titled “everything instantly goes horribly wrong.” I’ve had a lot of time these past two weeks to think about what is going to happen next, and I’m pretty sure I nailed it you guys

so we’re opening with a familiar sight

I like that Horikoshi thinks that helicopters go “chop chop.” well, close enough

anyway, so yet again we have a scene in BnHA of a town in the process of being destroyed by villains while a helicopter whirs (WHIRS, Horikoshi) and chuffs (SOMETIMES THEY CHUFF TOO) anxiously nearby. I wonder if this helicopter is going to fucking disintegrate. that’d be something new

ARE YOU GOING TO DIE, MISTER LIVE REPORTER SIR. OH MAN. OH GOD I’M ANXIOUS

dozens, you guys! there are dozens of them left! not to worry then. the good guys definitely still got this

oh hey it’s that news anchor with the cutely fucked-up backstory of chopping off his own horn so as to more handsomely report the news

oh god don’t tell me this whole thing is going to be broadcast live. that’s all we fucking need right now. I wonder what’s going to throw society into chaos more, the reveal of just how powerful Tomura is now, or the exposure of what the government-mandated child soldiers get to do during their super-educational practical on-the-job training! no coffee-fetching for these kiddos! we’ve got ‘em rolling up their sleeves and getting their hands good and dirty!

oh hey and it looks like this means that All Might will get to watch protege #2 lose his quirk live on TV -- HEY WHAT ARE YOU SERIOUS

BAD BABYSITTER!! MY GOD MAN, I KNOW YOU’RE THE INDULGENT GRANDFATHER TYPE, BUT MAYBE CONSIDER CHANGING THE CHANNEL TO DOC MCSTUFFINS FOR THE TIME BEING??!

also I know this is just a perspective thing probably but lmao his hand on her shoulder is fucking huge. All Might you been working out again

but seriously this is not good for either of them to witness. they don’t need more trauma in their lives! All Might doesn’t need yet another thing to blame himself over! and he has conflicted feelings about Tomura still on top of that which I’m sure isn’t going to make this any easier. ANGST ALL AROUND. EVERYWHERE YOU LOOK, EVERYWHERE YOU GOOOO

MOTHERFUCKER I --

is Mitsuki looking at fucking baby pictures of Kacchan. reliving the memories of the good old days, thinking about how far her baby boy has come and how proud she is. that’s just great you guys. that’s just fucking great. these aren’t even red flags at this point these are red fucking tapestries

(ETA: and this basically goes without saying, but I’m sure the fact that not one but THREE Todorokis are represented in this little montage means that Endeavor and Shouto are also going to be just fine.)

:)

HE’S SO HAPPY just fucking try and tell me he doesn’t have a mental fucking link to Tomura and Deku you guys. this bitch knows exactly what is going down right now and he is LIVING FOR IT. that does it. someone please save my spot in the chapter for me I am going to go take a quick walk to calm down

and of COURSE that’s a fucking lie though, god -- [frantically clicks to next page]

LOL HOLY SHIT YOU GUYS

FUCKING MANUAL IS HERE TO SAVE THE DAY LMAO. YOU CAN ALL FUCKING RELAX NOW. and fuck me, I’m so fucking happy RockLockRock is still alive as well but WHY ARE YOU STANDING RIGHT NEXT TO AIZAWA IN WHAT I LIKE TO CALL THE “CAUTION: YOU WILL GET SHOT” ZONE. swear to god Horikoshi THAT MAN HAS A FAMILY don’t you even think about -- !!

sigh, anyway so then the rest of the page is panels of Gran & The Boys, Endeavor, and Tomura, along with the text “WHICH SIDE IS THE VICTOR”, which is not helping matters any! also the title of the chapter is “Cheating” which I assume is a reference to both the erasure of Tomura’s quirk, and the soon-to-happen permanent removal of Aizawa’s. I’m just an optimist like that

oh hey and Tomura’s sending out some quick orders to his squad as well

and to think this homicidal maniac is in my top ten favorite characters. sob. I do love you kiddo so please don’t take it personally that I have to unequivocally root against you here. maybe if you listened to me once in a while and would even just consider my radical alternate plan of not killing anyone in sight

anyway lol but here everyone including myself thought he was going straight for the bullets and instead he was pulling out his phone. shows what we know. [braces myself for the follow-up panel of him putting the phone away again and THEN reaching for the bullets!!]

meanwhile we’re being introduced to some new sidekick of Endeavor’s who’s probably going to set the record for shortest time in between being introduced and dying horribly. sorry Kido. I’m just jaded

don’t mind me I’m just putting up emotional walls in between myself and any new lovable characters as a means of self-preservation. mmhmm. he can manipulate the trajectory of things. that’s nice. he seems nice. wouldn’t that be a nice quirk for Tomura to steal and then trajector a bullet straight towards Aizawa ffffff

(ETA: watch this space, everyone. Endeavor’s Sidekick Kido. gonna fuck everything up for everyone, mark my words.)

so I can’t help but notice that now that Tomura can’t use his quirk anymore and is helpless, they have all decided to just sit around doing nothing again?

like. far be it from me to openly wonder why they are not immediately knocking him out or setting him on fire again or whatnot. I am just a lowly civilian. it’s not my job to question these things

(ETA: I must learn to be patient.)

also lmao at Manual saying Aizawa’s ankle is “twisted”, similar to how Deku is constantly “twisting” all of his arms and legs all the time. or did he mean “twisted” in the sense that his leg was pretty much literally wrung out like a fucking towel

anyway so Manual is waterbending liquid into Aizawa’s eyes like that’s supposed to help him NOT close them

has Horikoshi ever had water splashed into his fucking eyes. he and I have had very different experiences as to the effects of this apparently

there we go!!

at least someone out here is fucking trying. for a second there I was honestly worried we were going to see a repeat of “oh well he seems dead enough, let’s just leave, see you at the victory party this weekend, X-Less”

LMAO WHAT KIND OF NONSENSE

[GRABS THESE PANELS AND WAVES THEM IN FRONT OF THE UNCONSCIOUS HAWKS] DID YOU HEAR THAT. DO YOU SEE THAT, BOYO. FACTS. BEING WEAK TO FIRE IS, IN FACT, 100 PERCENT A CHOICE. IF YOU HAD JUST DONE MORE PUSH-UPS AND TRAINED HARDER YOU WOULDN’T BE IN THIS SITUATION RIGHT NOW. SMDH. YOU FUCKING WIMP. YOU RECREANT. YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED

hooooh man. hokay. whew. has anyone seen my suspension of disbelief. I’m so used to having it on me at all times when I read this manga that I must have let my guard down and now it seems I’ve spaced it out. well we’ll just keep a lookout for it

so now we’re cutting to Ujiko who is gleefully bragging that Tomura’s strength is on par with All Might Prime’s, which is just great. and now he’s also starting this sentence and then just... not... finishing it

that’s fine. you just trail off, then. hang those implications. whatever dude

meanwhile RLR and Manny are helping Aizawa limp away while he awkwardly has to twist his neck around to be able to still keep Tomura in his line of sight. I feel like there was probably a better way for them to do this but whatever

anyway thanks for confirming that Ujiko did make Tomura into a Noumu in addition to giving him AFO, though, Horikoshi! that’s very nice of you to unsink one of my theories like that. appreciate it

and hold up, so it occurs to me that “Being Fireproof” could still be a quirk, but just a mutant-type quirk rather than an activation type, meaning that Erasure would have no effect on it! aha! oh, there’s my suspension of disbelief lol it was in my pocket the whole time!!

anyway so Endeavor and Tomura are tussling but I really wish they’d be more careful because if Tomura is still capable of super strength and super speed then he could propel himself out of Aizawa’s line of sight really easily and I feel like this isn’t really helping

is it just me or do they look like they’re TRYING to jump in between Aizawa and Tomura, like?!?! GUYS

LMAO now Gran is just

SHUP. toss. dusts off hands. well that takes care of that

and apparently he’s under the genuine impression that a mere “now stay put you dumdums” is going to have any effect on these two whatsoever. lol okay. we’ll see

anyways YESSSSS, KACCHAN MEET GRAN, GRAN, KACCHAN

meanwhile Kacchan falls silent as he mentally tries to work out who tf “Toshinori” is lmao. I’M SO CHUFFED ABOUT THIS. YES THAT’S ANOTHER USE OF THE WORD “CHUFFED.” VERY VERSATILE AND REMINISCENT OF HELICOPTER BLADES WHIRLING

and now here’s a convenient map showing how far away Deku and Kacchan are from safety!

thanks for that. that’s so reassuring to have this nifty little visual

OH MY GOD GRAN

DO YOU WANT TO FUCKING DIE?? DOES EVERYONE IN THIS FUCKING ARC HAVE A DEATH WISH. MY GOD

“BUT FAR BE IT FROM ME TO LEAVE WITHOUT ANY OMINOUS FORESHADOWING!!” NO INDEED WE CAN’T HAVE THAT!!!

rather than focus anymore on how goddamn foreboding that is, I would instead like to take this moment to call attention to the fact that Gran apparently knows Bakugou’s name but not Present Mic’s. that’s amazing

sob

what good indeed. imagine if they couldn’t even do that. I imagine that would have some far-reaching consequences which might even be interesting to explore as part of a story

:O

I made the same face as them just now fyi

fucking Schrodinger’s High Ends. they only exist when the plot says it’s convenient for them to exist. maybe they’re like fairies and if you say you don’t believe in them they drop dead. where the fuck did these things actually come from?!

WAY TO DROP THE BOYS OFF IN THE MIDDLE OF NOUMU FUCKING CENTRAL MY GOOD MAN. MAYBE WE SHOULD SCROLL BACK UP AND UPDATE THAT MAP. GOOD JOB LMAO

WHAT THE FUCK

welp. they deleted Tomura’s quirk and then sent the strongest guy they had after him, annnnnnnd he went and beat him anyway in like two fucking seconds. so that’s. ... wowee. ...so do we have a plan b, or...

like, holy shit though?? and can you imagine the kind of psychological impact this is having on everyone watching this live on TV right now?? this is literally the anti-Kamino. holy fucking shit. also did Tomura lose an arm or am I just not understanding this image right?? NOT THAT IT SEEMS TO BE BOTHERING HIM IN THE SLIGHTEST??

(ETA: somehow I missed the fact that he is even calling attention to it lol. “I’ll raise [the other hand] when it’s back.” fucking look at Mr. Transcendent here who’s so powerful that when you tear his arms off all it does is make him more sassy. is he secretly related to Mirko.)

idk guys I really think my original chapter title was better

at least Endeavor isn’t fucking dead just yet. four more pages and you might actually make it out of this chapter alive my good man

blah blah blah flashback to Ujiko explaining that the Noumu could be activated by an electric current flowing through them, and that they’re programmed to move only on Tomura’s orders. you know. just more good news

oh hey but at least these ones are mindless so I guess it’s okay for the kids to kick their asses without feeling too conflicted. it’s just too bad “their strength is higher quality than the others” but you win some, you lose some

OH GOOD, THEY’RE GOING STRAIGHT FOR AIZAWA

I’M SURE THAT MIDORIYA “MY BODY MOVED BEFORE I COULD THINK” IZUKU AND BAKUGOU “I’M THE ONE WHO’LL GET PAYBACK FOR THAT DAY” KATSUKI WILL TAKE THEIR GRANDPA’S SAGE ADVICE AND GO AND HIDE WHILE THEIR TEACHER IS IN DANGER. IT’S NOT LIKE THEY’VE LITERALLY GONE TO SCHOOL FOR AN ENTIRE YEAR EXPLICITLY MAJORING IN NOT DOING THAT. YES THIS IS FINE THIS IS FUCKING FINE AND GREAT

NOW WHAT’S HAPPENING THERE’S LOTS OF RUBBLE FALLING AROUND AND STUFF MOVING AND SOMEONE IS TALKING

OH IT’S HIM

excuse me. EXCUSE ME. no, you are NOT. going to fucking die, Aizawa Shouta. HORIKOSHI KOUHEI!!! YOU’RE UNDER ARREST FOR THE CRIME OF DRAWING THIS FUCKING PANEL. THIS ONE, RIGHT HERE. YOU KNEW WHAT YOU WERE DOING. HOW DARE YOU. how FUCKING dare you sir

and if anything happens to RLR I SWEAR TO GOD!! you know what?! you know what?!?

STOP IT

[sitting curled up into a little ball with my knees drawn up to my chest, drawing little finger circles on the floor] I see. so he’s not even concerned about himself at all. it’s his two tiny little hero eggs, his problem children, and the fact that if he dies here there won’t be anything preventing Tomura from finding and killing them. ahh. okay. it’s okay. that’s fine

and goddammit what is he pulling out from his belt. everyone is on the same page here, right? Aizawa’s Not Allowed To Die. that was the deal. WHAT HAS THIS ALL BEEN FOR OTHERWISE

(ETA: yeah but he seriously did just pull a knife out of fucking nowhere though like the kid in that fucking vine lmao. APPARENTLY HE’S HAD IT THIS ENTIRE TIME?? “what if I just stabbed him” lulz. based on the way things were trending, I’m willing to bet it would have literally bounced off of Tomura’s chest at this point, but I’ll give him credit for making the effort.)

NOPE NOPE NOPE NO

(ETA: Shinsou being in the bottom corner... ;_; )

is anyone listening to me!??! I’m over here screaming myself fucking hoarse??! AIZAWA ISN’T FUCKING ALLOWED TO DIE??!! HELLO!?!?!

lol well at least RLR didn’t get steamrolled over

well everyone. we’ve reached page 18. one more to go. what are the odds we end with the boys arriving in the ta-da nick of time to defend their teacher. just who is watching over whom

THERE IT IS!!!

OH NO OH GOD AM I CRYING??! YOU HAD TO GO AND PUT THOSE FLASHBACK PANELS IN?? HIM SAVING DEKU AND CO. AT USJ, PLUS THAT ONE TIME HE DEFENDED BAKUGOU DURING HIS MOST VULNERABLE MOMENT IN FRONT OF A NATIONAL AUDIENCE??? “IT’S OUR TURN TO SAVE YOU”???

and they look so determined and desperate?? and the “Aizawa-sensei!” echoing in both their minds?? and meanwhile Aizawa looks fucking horrified though, because of all the... [gestures] you know? the Terrible Danger?? sob??

anyway. I really let this manga do this to me every damn week. let it just have its fucking way with me. at least Horikoshi didn’t end up breaking the law after all. I don’t know if I could continue to support a mangaka who is willing to commit an actual war crime. no touching Aizawa. OKAY?? OKAY

[fixxofvixx]

BLOODRIGHT - VAMPIRE JAEHWAN AU - CHAPTER 11

Hello! Believe me, I am just surprised as you are that I have a chapter to update! haha! But inspiration hit and I went with it!

I hope you enjoy and let me know what you think!

🧛‍♂️🧛‍♂️🧛‍♂️🧛‍♂️🧛‍♂️

Jaehwan kept the horse's pace slow. You were thankful for that since you were able to see the scenery more easily.

"How long have you lived here? Everything just looks so beautiful."

"I inherited this land from my father about 150 years ago. It had gone to weeds and brush mostly. I hired a bunch of people to help me bring it back to what you see now.” Jaehwan’s voice sounded proud.

“My parents always told me that you had killed off all of the people that lived on your land and took it for yourself. They said you killed entire families and just left the bodies. I used to be so terrified of what I would find here.” Your hand tightened on the saddle horn as the horse turned uphill.

“So you asking me how long I’ve lived here was your way of finding out if I killed all those people?” Jaehwan seemed amused but you spun around, eager to quell any suspicions just in case.

“No! I swear it wasn’t! I just wanted to know and then I remembered what my parents told me. I swear!” His face was mere inches from yours but the height difference caused you to look up at him. He chuckled and looked down at you.

“I was only teasing you. I just don’t understand why your parents wanted you to fear me so much.”

“I don’t know. They just always told me that I needed to watch what I say all the time. I’m sorry if they have offended you.”

“I think what I feel for them goes way beyond offense. But there is no need for you to apologize for them. Min has been watching them and they seem to be preparing to move. He saw them selling off some of their things in town. Perhaps they will become a distant memory for you.”

“I would like to think that too but I just don’t believe my mother will give up on the money that easily. She would always send me to different houses to perform different jobs for them. I hated going to the local doctor’s house the most. He was very creepy and talked about inappropriate things but he paid the most money so she sent me there a lot.” An involuntary shudder passed through your body when you thought about going to that house.

“She did...what?” A quiet anger replaced the amusement in his voice from earlier. The atmosphere changed and you could feel Jaehwan’s body tensing up. You looked up at him again and his face was the epitome of fury. Your heart quickened and a cold sweat could be felt on the back of your neck.

“I….um...shall we go back? Maybe we shouldn’t stay out too l-late” You turned to look back the way you had come. Jaehwan put his hand under your chin and brought your face back to his.

“What do you mean by inappropriate? Was is just talk or did he…” It took you a moment to understand what he was asking and you gasped.

“Oh! No, there wasn’t anything like that.” A heavy blush covered your cheeks and he leaned down even farther.

“Tell me the truth, Y/N. You know I can hear your heartbeat.” Jaehwan really didn’t want to hear the answer because he knew how he would react.

“He tried…..” Your voice locked up and tears stung your eyes. You felt so exposed mentally but you knew he wanted an answer. “He said….he said he needed more research...on anatomy. I refused but he came towards me and grabbed my arm. He….He has a table with restraints for mentally ill patients and he was able to put one of them on me but his assistant came in and got me out of it saying there was an emergency patient waiting. I ran home and told my parents but my mother….she just told me I should have agreed and asked for more money.”

You could feel Jaehwan shaking now and you desperately wanted to get off the horse. You knew if you tried, you would most likely break a leg or worse so you were forced to sit there beside a seething Jaewhan. Tears of embarrassment and frustration fell from your eyes.

“Min.”

You wondered for a second why Jaehwan was calling for his head butler but only 2 or 3 seconds later, a rush of wind produced the exact man he’d called for. You knew vampires were fast but how did he hear him so well all the way out here?

“You called, Your Highness?”

“Kill him.”

“As you wish.” Min started to bow but you interrupted.

“No! Please! I don’t--”

“Don’t what? Do you really think I would let him live after what he did? And what if he tries the same thing with another young girl?”

“I know but--!” You grabbed Jaehwan’s shirt and looked up at him, desperate. “Please don’t kill anyone on my account. I’m not worth it and I don’t think I could live with that.”

“You are worth it, Y/N.” Jaehwan’s hand cupped your cheek lightly. He looked at your tear-streaked face and sighed. “Min.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Leave him alive…..destroy his business and find a new doctor for the town.”

“Of course.” Min left just as quickly as he came. You let go of the breath you didn’t know you had been holding. Relief flooded your body as the realization that you wouldn’t be responsible for someone’s death. Punishment however….well, at least he would be alive.

Content and relieved, you slowly wrapped your arms around Jaehwan’s waist and squeezed lightly.

“Thank you.”

“I wanted to kill him.” You didn’t release him but still looked up at him. “But I seem to be powerless when it comes to your demands.”

“I didn’t mean to demand it! I was just…”

“I don’t mind, Y/N. Demand whatever you want. If it is within my power, you will have it.”

“I already have everything I could have ever wanted. More than I deserve.”

“If you say that one more time, I’m going to put you in my dungeon.”

“But you said you didn’t have one!”

“I’ll make one! A very tiny one, just for you. You’ll stay there until you learn that you deserve more than you've been given!" Jaehwan smiled, teasing you again. Your heart felt light again and you couldn't help but smile.

"I think I'm very lucky."

"Lucky?" He asked as he turned the horse off the path and through some trees.

"Yes, lucky to have a very nice owner."

Jaehwan's smile disappeared and it was replaced by a disapproving glare. He stopped Fynnias near a group of tall oak trees and got down. He reached up to help you off the horse. You watched his expression and it didn't change. He didn't look angry but you couldn't place his emotions. The horse walked off a few steps to graze in the field surrounding the few trees. Jaehwan turned to you and placed his hands on your shoulders.

"Y/N, I am not your owner. That’s not what I want to be. I don’t want to own you.”

“But being a donor….”

“Is an inheritance that you didn’t choose but accepted with that big heart you have. That doesn’t mean I own you. You are not my subject, either. You are free. Free to live how you want. If you want to travel, we can do that. If you want to raise horses, grow flowers, or have a hundred puppies running around, we can do that too. All you have to do is ask.”

Jaehwan’s words brought new tears to your eyes. But these tears were because of the joy you felt. Jaehwan reached forward and slid his thumbs over the teardrops falling down your cheeks. You suddenly thought of something that you wanted but didn’t know if he would agree. You looked up at him but hesitated.

“Go on, what do you want? I can tell from your expression that you thought of something.”

“Well….there is something that I’ve never had before and I was wondering if you would agree but you don’t have to because I understand that it is a rather odd request to ask of a member of a royal family. You honestly don’t have to agree……” Jaehwan’s laughter broke through your ramblings and you couldn’t help but smile.

“What is it, Y/N?”

“Be my friend?” You noticed Jaehwan’s eyes widened for a moment and you feared that you had offended him. Surely, no one had ever asked that of a prince. You started to take back your request when Jaehwan smiled.

“I’ll be whatever you want me to be.” Jaehwan’s soft voice made you blush for some reason. “Of course, you’ll be my friend in return? Not just a donor?”

“I would be happy to---oh! Speaking of donor, I marked it on my calendar and saw it this morning. It has been a little over a week, hasn’t it? Do you need to feed? We can go back and--”

“That might be a good idea before all the guests start arriving. I’ll need the strength to deal with them. If you’ll agree, I can do it right now. I’d say it’s rather nice weather for a picnic, don’t you think?” Jaehwan laughed at his own joke and you felt the desire to join in.

“I have no objections, although I might be a little useless on the horse going back. I don’t want to be a burden.”

“You won’t be.” Jaehwan stepped closer to you and wrapped an arm around your waist.

Although it was only the second time he had done this, it already felt familiar. You felt no fear or hesitation. You started to move your hair out of the way but he stopped you.

“I’ll do it.” His voice was barely above a whisper but you could hear him easily since he was so close. His fingers lightly brushed your hair away from your neck and held the strands away by threading his fingers through them.

He leaned in closer and you prepared yourself for the short pinprick. He didn’t bite you right away and his breath was cool on your overheated skin.

“What would you like to feel this time?” His breath tickled your ear as he spoke and stopped yourself from giggling.

“I have no idea. You don’t have to use the extra energy like that, it’s not worth--ah!” A short yelp came from your lips when you felt Jaehwan’s teeth on your ear. “Why did you do--”

He didn’t answer but instead sank his teeth into your neck. The burst of pain caused you to gasp but it was short lived. Soon after, a new feeling emerged. The feeling was so unfamiliar that you had no idea what to call it. There was happiness, curiosity, and an odd sense of longing like what you would feel if you were craving something but couldn’t quite get it. It wasn’t a bad feeling but it was foreign to you.

All too soon, your world began to turn hazy. Jaehwan’s arms tightened around you as you lost the strength to stand. His fangs left your body and he closed the wounds quickly with his tongue. He lingered at your neck for a moment before leaning back to look at your tired eyes. He clicked his tongue and Fynnias trotted over to where you both stood. He placed you on the horse and hoisted himself up behind you before you even had time to fall over.

You were tired but had yet to pass out. Instead, all the questions running through your head kept you awake.

“Sleep, Y/N, I won’t let you fall off.” Jaehwan’s voice sounded almost far away but you knew he was right next to you.

“What….was that...feeling?”

“Hmm?”

“What...did you...make me feel?”

“Sleep first, Y/N, I will tell you later.” Jaehwan reached up and leaned your head over to rest on his chest. There was such a great sense of security in his arms and that you couldn’t help but fall asleep.

When Jaehwan heard your breathing even out, he breathed a sigh of relief. He was thankful that you were too tired to question him. He wasn’t even sure why he’d chosen that feeling either but it was the first thing that had come to mind.

Love.

[quickspinner]

Month of Miracles Day 8 - Uncertainty

Find the prompt list here!

Hallmark Movie AU Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 (end) | Read Month of Miracles on AO3

Marinette had a lot of experience with embarrassment, and she was well aware that no matter how much she wished it, the odds of the earth opening beneath her and swallowing her up were pretty slim. In fact, at this point in her life she was pretty sure that if it ever did happen, it would be while things were going perfectly fine, just to spite her. 

So as she stood on the sidewalk outside of the library, peeling a sticky bow off her forehead (and probably a perfectly square section of her foundation with it, which she was sure would look just great), trying not to look at the very attractive rock star (former rock star?) beside her, she was annoyed but not surprised that the ground remained solid under her feet.

“Well,” Luka sighed, “I guess since Rose is paying...can I take you to lunch?”

“I, um—” Marinette began, and then shivered, grabbing her arms as the wind suddenly cut through her. 

“Here,” Luka said, and Marinette finally looked at him. He was holding her coat open for her, waiting. He was already wearing his. “Marinette?” he asked when she didn’t move immediately, and Marinette jumped.

“Oh, thank you,” she said, hastily jamming her arms into the coat. It was harder than it should have been, since she still had the big stick-on bow in her hand, and her internal screaming grew louder as Luka continued to hold the coat patiently until she finally got her hand through the cuff. She jammed the bow in her pocket as she turned towards him with a grateful, if embarrassed, smile as she began buttoning the coat. “Um, thank you, but I’m sure you have things to do, and, well Rose didn’t exactly give you notice there, so if you need to, um, go, I understand.”

Luka gave her a slow smile. “Well, since one of the things I have to do is eat lunch, I’m not going to turn down a slice of Sally’s pie on Rose’s dime. And since she kind of played us both here, I think she owes you one too. Unless you don’t like pie?” 

“I love pie,” Marinette blurted, and had to stop her hand from flying to cover her mouth. 

“Well, okay then. Let’s get some pie.” Luka gestured, and Marinette found herself walking alongside him. “Maybe some soup, too. Sally’s tomato bisque is amazing when it’s cold outside.” 

Marinette made a noise that she hoped sounded like agreement. What on earth was she doing? Didn’t this make it look like she wanted to go on a date with him? What if he thought Rose was acting on Marinette’s behalf?

A touch on her arm jolted her out of her spiral. “Are you all right?” Luka asked gently, slowing down his walk. “Look, I know Rose is...a lot. I didn’t mean to enable her pushiness, so if you’re not comfortable—”

“No!” Marinette exclaimed quickly, and then sighed. “Well...yes, a little. Not she’s a lot a little, but I’m a little. Uncomfortable, I mean. N-not that you did anything, or...um…” She clamped her teeth together and fought the urge to scream.

“It’s just that this is a little awkward, because Rose has all the subtlety of a brick to the head and now we’re both trying to pretend that we don’t know we were set up?” Luka smiled, and Marinette actually laughed a little bit despite the vivid blush she was sure was spreading over her face.

“Yeah, kinda,” she admitted, hunching her shoulders. 

Luka shrugged. “Well, we could bail on lunch, walk away and pretend none of this ever happened, and hope that we never see each other again. Buuuuut this is a pretty small town, and avoiding people here is hard, so the chances of recurring awkward are high.” 

“Good point.” Marinette winced. “Um...what are our other options?”

“Well, I’m personally a big fan of just embracing the awkward.” Luka gave her a lopsided smile that looked nothing like his posters. “So I propose that we go have lunch, no pressure and no expectations, ask all the questions we’ve been dancing around until now, and see if we can’t just power through the awkward and come out friends—or at least acquaintances that can greet each other on the street without combusting from embarrassment.”

Marinette laughed. “That...that actually sounds like a plan.” 

Luka’s lopsided smile turned into a grin, and in that moment she could see a flash of the rock star she remembered. 

It was a short walk to the café (it was a short walk just about anywhere on Main Street, really), and before she had quite recovered from that grin, Luka was holding the door open for her and waving her through. 

“Hi, Sally,” he said as he followed her into the café. “Where should we sit?”

“Anywhere you like, hon, just don’t take up the big tables,” Sally replied absently, preoccupied with something behind the counter. “Your usual?”

“Am I so predictable?” he sighed, leading Marinette to a small booth near the windows. 

“You are when it’s this cold out,” Sally laughed, looking up, and noticed his companion for the first time. “Nice to see you again Marinette! Do you need the menu?”

“I’ll have what Luka’s having, actually,” Marinette said, blushing a little as she slid into the seat across from Luka. “Now that he’s talked it up I have to try it.” 

“Sure thing, hon. Tea instead of coffee for you though?”

“Yes please,” Marinette replied quickly, shrugging out of her coat. She raised a self-conscious hand and touched the spot on her forehead where the bow had been, glancing at her reflection in the window. 

“Rose’s treating today, so make it the big bowl please,” Luka called, and got a good natured wave from Sally to indicate she’d heard him. He turned his attention back to Marinette, and she tried not to squirm.

“So,” Luka said, slipping out of his coat and stuffing it into the corner beside him. “Do you want to start?” 

“Why did you retire?” Marinette blurted, and covered her mouth. 

Luka winced. “Wow, right out of the gate.”

“I’m sorry,” Marinette backpedaled frantically. “You don’t have to answer that.”

“No, it was a fair question,” Luka sighed, sitting back and tapping his fingers lightly on the table as he thought. Marinette bit her lip, feeling terrible for asking, but also really wanting to know. 

“Sometimes you take a chance, and things don’t work out,” he said finally. “But...sometimes they do work out, and then you find out it wasn’t actually what you wanted in the first place. I love the music, I thought I loved performing, but that whole lifestyle just...didn’t work for me.” 

Marinette wasn’t sure what to say to that, and was grateful that Sally arrived just at that moment with her tea and Luka’s coffee.

“Okay, my turn,” Luka said, leaning his elbows on the table. “Why are you here? In this town, I mean. No offense, but you kind of stick out.”

Marinette made a face. “The real reason? My mother thought I was on the verge of some kind of breakdown, so she conspired with my grandmother to guilt me into taking a vacation. As if all my problems aren’t still going to be there when I go home.” She glanced up at him, gathered her courage, and said, “Why are you here?”

“My family is here,” he said, pushing the salt shaker around on the table absently. He leaned back as Sally came to slide two bowls of soup on the table. Luka thanked her, and then looked back at Marinette. He gave that lopsided grin again at the slight pout she was aiming at him, and gave in. “So it was the logical place to come when I decided I needed to figure out what I really wanted out of life.”

Marinette raised her eyebrows. “And did you?”

Luka shrugged. “It’s a process, but...yeah, I think I’m on the right track.” He raised his eyebrows back at her. “What was stressing you out so bad at home?”

“My boss,” Marinette groaned, as they both picked up their spoons. “There’s so much she can do for me in the industry but she’s so rude and mean. The words constructive criticism seem to have no meaning for her. It’s like she expects me to read her mind and fix things without any guidance. Why did she hire me, if she hates everything I do so much?” Marinette stirred her soup listlessly, and then finally tried some. She smiled at Luka. “This is good.” His mouth was full but he aimed a wink at her in lieu of an I told you so. “So why a Christmas tree farm?” she asked.

Luka shrugged. “I don’t even really know myself. When my mom bought it I thought it was just another one of her crazy whims, and that she’d sell it again before the next season even came around. But, turns out she likes the farm, and she likes the town, and she runs a kayak rental during the summer that keeps her adventuring spirit satisfied. I still expect her to up and leave with practically no notice someday, but for now she seems happy. Make sure you try the toast on the side, by the way, it’s amazing.” He tilted his head slightly. “Why does Christmas hate you?”

Marinette had to take a moment for that one, taking her time with her next spoonful of soup. Luka didn’t press her, just went on eating his own.  “I’ve never had much luck with Christmas,” she muttered, and then felt like he deserved more of an answer than that. “Not every Christmas, some were fine, but some were...just times when I found out that people weren’t the friends I thought they were. Then last Christmas...” She hesitated, feeling foolish. “My boyfriend dumped me,” she said finally, and then blushed. “It sounds really stupid and pathetic when I say it out loud, and it’s not like he did it on Christmas or anything like that, but...” She shook her head.

“But now it’s Christmas again and you’re having a hard time separating the season from the memories?” Luka suggested. Marinette nodded. 

“My ex, he’s...kind of famous,” she admitted, “And now he’s back in the news because he’s got a new girlfriend, and there’s rumors there’s going to be an engagement announcement soon, and we work in the same industry so we’re still part of some of the same circles, and...yeah.” She shrugged and looked down, eyes suddenly stinging. “It just kind of feels like Christmas isn’t on my side this year either.”

“Hey,” Luka said, reaching across the table to catch her hand. Marinette looked up at him, startled, and he smiled. “What kind of pie do you want?” 

His hand was rough, but warm from where it had been wrapped around his coffee, and for a moment she could only stare at him. He has kind eyes, she thought. 

She hadn’t seen that on his posters, either.

“Blueberry,” she managed to say, and it wasn’t as hard to smile back at him as she thought it would be. 

Fiction Master Post | Month of Miracles

[liusaidh-writing]

Call it True - Chapter 3

[Prefer AO3?]

[Chapter 1] [Chapter 2]

Here is Chapter 3! I am sorry it’s so late. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy. Chapter Four is on its way soon, too!

*****************************

Claire and Jamie exchanged texts and phone calls in the following days and nights. Unable to connect in person, they did what they could to remain close. Claire's night shifts ended after a week, and she was relieved to be back in the world of daylight once again. She also hoped this meant she and Jamie could get together again. And soon. 

I'm free! Well, until my time rolls around again, anyway. Next two days off, and not a single thing planned!

She hit send with a grin and imagined what she and Jamie might do on her time off. Go to dinner? Watch a movie, preferably curled up on a couch. What movies did he like? She started compiling a list of possible options while she rode along in Lesley's car after her final night shift had ended in the early morning hours. They’d picked up a grumbly Harry at the sitters before heading to Claire’s flat.

Lesley, in the driver's seat, reached back to grab Harry's snack cup before it was flung to the floor by a frustrated toddler.  The car swerved slightly as she turned back in her seat, causing Claire to gasp before Lesley set it right again. 

Lesley thrust the snack cup at Claire, snapping, "Did you not hear me? I was asking you to grab it from him! Where's your mind been these last few days, anyway?" 

Claire grasped the cup in her hands, dropping the phone in her lap. "Sorry! I just...didn't hear you! I’d rather the snack cup take the hit next time instead of us!" 

"You're sitting right next to me, and unless you've gone deaf in the last ten minutes, you're just not paying attention," Lesley said in a sing-songy voice, ignoring Claire’s comment regarding her driving, but making an obvious effort to keep her tone light. She sighed, flipping the wipers on to clear the windshield of mist. It was annoyingly rainy, only a mere drizzle, but oddly cold for a spring morning. "Feels like winter outside, does it not," she remarked, attempting to change the subject.  

"Yep...pretty cold." 

Claire's mind wandered back to Jamie in the sweater he'd worn on their date. It had looked so cozy, and Claire wondered how it would feel on her. She blinked rapidly, forcing herself back to the present.

"So, you had been telling me earlier about...custody?" 

Lesley sighed, grudgingly answering Claire's question. 

"Yes...I told you everything, but you were off in lala land half the time. Not surprised you don't remember. If you're here with me now, I'll tell you again."

"Yes, please, I'm really listening." Claire shoved her phone between her leg and the seat, hoping that having it out of sight would help her stay focused on what her friend was saying. 

"Well, Frank has decided he wants full custody of Harry. Make me some kind of weekend Mum." Lesley gritted her teeth thinking about the very idea of it. "Like he's capable of taking him on full time," she said, gesturing at Harry in the back, who'd fallen asleep. “He wouldn’t last an hour before he was calling me, begging for help.”

"He doesn't have grounds, surely! He can't just...make stuff up!" Claire was indignant, knowing how great of a mother Lesley was, and how perfectly lousy Frank was at everything from keeping Harry fed when he had him to keeping promises to Lesley about drop off times. 

Lesley shook her head and rested her left elbow on the car door as they sat at a stoplight. "It's absolutely insane. He thinks because he makes more money that he should have Harry. That my schedule at the hospital isn't 'suitable for a toddler.’  He's just making sure I waste my money on legal fees fighting him instead of spending it on taking care of Harry so I'll look bad," she finished, glancing at Claire with an incredulous expression. 

"Well, you know I'll do anything to help, Lesley!" 

They had reached Claire's building, and as Claire got out she reached back and lightly ruffled Harry's hair, giving Lesley a smile and thanked her for the ride. She grabbed her things and headed to her door, feeling her phone signal that she had a text message as she walked. She quickly unlocked her door, slung them to the floor and hungrily unlocked her phone to see a message from Jamie waiting to be read.

Good to hear, Sassenach. I suppose you’ll need to go home and sleep. How about I come by later this evening? 

Claire quickly sent a reply and beamed at...well, no-one. She locked her door and dreamily waltzed to the shower, eager to strip off her scrubs and wash the night away.

“Jamie and I are hanging out tonight!” she squealed, raising her arms in victory over her head. She gave a little twirl as she moved past her bedroom. Taking off her top, she flung it on her bed. Claire felt like a teenager - she was sure her cheeks were pink and her mind raced with all the possibilities of the evening. She nearly replied to Jamie that she didn’t need to sleep, but...that wasn’t true. She was dead on her feet and her shift last night had been especially brutal with several stressful patients. She sighed,  realizing she deeply regretted not having made the effort to really meet Jamie earlier. Why had she wasted so much time? Now that they were friendly, she couldn’t seem to get him out of her mind.  Lesley hadn’t been wrong when she’d said Claire had been in la-la land. She reminded herself to thank Lesley for saving her ass more than once at work in the past week. If it wasn’t Jamie’s calls or texts, it was her own imagination getting her in trouble. Over the phone, Jamie had told her all about his family, his nieces and nephews and sister. He had a best friend named Ian, who happened to be his brother-in-law. And a father he clearly cared a lot about. Claire had never known that sort of reality, growing up as she had. She revelled in Jamie’s stories of his boyhood, clinging to bits of him that he unknowingly exposed.

For instance, Claire was sure that Jamie was secretly in love with his father’s farm, though he had claimed he didn’t care to run things when the time came, that he’d gotten his flat in the city to escape that reality. He talked of it with such pride, and Claire wondered why he didn’t live there full time, as much as he was there. It held fond memories of his mother, and it was his connection to his extended family, and she knew family meant a lot to him. 

She couldn’t exactly relate - though she had loved her uncle a great deal - but it was almost surreal hearing about hectic holidays or birthday celebrations Jamie got to experience growing up. Claire was rather envious at times.  Her holidays usually involved Uncle Lamb flat-out forgetting them, and though he always remembered her birthday, he wasn’t the greatest at remembering to mark the date in any meaningful way other than a sweet ‘Happy Birthday, darling,’ and a pat on the cheek.  She quickly made a mental note to ask Jamie about his birthday sometime. 

Pulling back the shower curtain, she sighed as the steamy hot water washed away the night at the hospital; it succeeded in making her drowsy enough to fall quickly asleep. 

---

Claire woke to a rather loud knock at her door. She rolled out of bed, hair all akimbo, eyes squinting as she opened her room darkening curtains. Padding towards the door, she quickly wrapped herself in the throw from the couch before turning the knob. There stood Jamie, a slight smile on his face that immediately fell when he caught sight of her. 

"Oh God--" 

"I'm sorry--" 

They both spoke at the same time, Claire wrapping the blanket more securely around her shoulders.  She had shorts and a small tee-shirt on, but no bra.  She began to speak again, wondering if she looked as horrible as she feared. Jamie grimaced and took a breath. 

"I am so sorry, I didn't wake you did I?" 

"Oh, no. It's fine, really! I must look frightening..." Claire carefully took one arm out of her wrap and tried to smooth her hair in an attempt to calm her curls. 

 "NO! You look...stunning!"  His eyes were wide, as though he’d seen a ghost.

 "Oh, God no.  Would you like to...?" 

She gestured him inside, and quickly caught that he was holding a few things in his hands.  A wad of blankets and a small thermal lunch bag were clutched in his arms as he shuffled inside. 

"Let me just...go change. Have a seat, will you?" She moved towards her bedroom as she watched Jamie sit on her sofa, placing his things on the cushion beside him. 

She closed her bedroom door, tossed the throw on her bed and leaned heavily against the door, her head making a distinct thumping sound as it hit. "Ow..." she muttered.  "Hope he didn't hear that..." 

She was jittery and her mouth was dry. He had that effect on her - one she couldn't put into words.  Her stomach was consumed by a swarm of butterflies as she got dressed, brushing her teeth and washing her face. She raised her arms over her head checking her armpits for odor, and swiped on some deodorant, finishing with a quick spray of her favorite perfume with a flourish. She didn’t dare go back out there smelling like a hospital. She wasn’t entirely trusting of the shower she’d taken.

Taking a few deep, but not-so-calming breaths, she went back out to her living room, where Jamie waited patiently, thumbing through a magazine on her coffee table. 

“I’m all for color in a room, but this shade of green makes me think of vomit.” Jamie was pointing at a photo of a painted room in some home decor article, curling his lip up in disgust at said shade of green.

He smiled at Claire, dropping the magazine and taking her in slowly, his eyes large and bright. 

Claire looked down at her outfit - Jeans and a warm, deep red top. She’d been told it ‘brought out her eyes’, whatever the hell that meant, so she figured it was a good choice. She smoothed her shirt down and gestured at the magazine.

“Well, we don’t have to worry about that - I asked if I could paint when I moved in and was told no. Can’t wait to be able to live somewhere without blank white walls.” She waved haphazardly around the room, devoid of artwork, save for several of her own photos from various trips, and a few of Uncle Lamb, of course.

“It’s good to see you again, Claire.” Jamie stood up, moving towards her with his hand out. She wasn’t sure what he was going for, so she moved with him, meeting him in the middle. He clasped her hand in his, and they both paused for a moment, Claire watching his eyes dance as he gazed at her. He gave a small smile with one corner of his mouth, and quickly kissed her cheek. 

“It’s good to see you again, too,” Claire sighed, her breath coming out in spurts. She felt him relinquish her hand, and she glanced at it, half expecting it to be bright red the way it radiated his lingering warmth. He stepped back just a bit, and gestured to the items he’d brought with him.

“It’s a little wet outside, but there’s a free concert at the park. Would you like to come? If you don’t want to sit on the ground, I have chairs.” He raked a hand through his hair and tapped the fingers of his right hand against his thigh. He hadn’t taken his eyes off her.

Jamie’s voice was shaky with nerves, and Claire quickly tried to put him at ease.

“I don’t mind the ground!” She figured Jamie could offer her spikes to sit on and she’d accept them if that meant he’d be there, too. “Let’s go, it’ll be fun!” 

Jamie nodded, picking up the blanket and lunch bag. “Brought some goodies for us to snack on, too.” 

“Oh, good. I’m starving! Haven’t eaten all day!” 

Claire grabbed her purse as they walked to the door together, slinging it over her shoulder and grabbing her keys from the counter. She didn’t know what kind of music would be playing at this concert, but she didn’t care in the slightest. She was also rather eager to find out what was in that lunch bag. Her stomach gurgled, and she made a face as Jamie hid a smile.

He took her hand again, pulling her toward the door and out into the damp night. It was about 7 in the evening, and though the days were getting longer, the rain clouds obscured any remaining sunlight. 

-----

Having picked the driest bit of ground he could, Jamie spread out one warm wool blanket, gesturing for Claire to take a seat while he unfolded the other one. It was as large as the one they sat on, and doubly thick. Claire shivered slightly as she watched him swirl the blanket around her shoulders. He sat down next to her - quite closely, so she could feel the heat coming off him, and he wrapped the other half of the blanket around his own shoulders, meeting the two ends in the middle between them. It was cozy, and the band had just started. She looked around, wishing they weren’t surrounded by other people at the moment. Claire looked at Jamie - who had been casually checking out the band. He glanced at her, then reached for the lunch bag.

“What do you have for us?” Claire’s stomach growled again, and Jamie chuckled as he unzipped the bag while Claire held the blanket in place. 

“Erm...not much. Some crackers, cheese, grapes. A small bag of chips, if you’re in the mood for junk food?” He held the chips out to her and she hungrily ripped it open, popping one in her mouth with a satisfied grin. 

“Mmmm...so good. I’ve not had anything to eat since about 6 this morning. I forgot to eat when I got home from work.” Because you texted me, she added in her head, and I wanted nothing more than to go to sleep quickly so I could see you. 

Jamie went for a few grapes, munching them as he watched her devour the chips. She offered him one, holding it up to his mouth. 

“Have one!” she exclaimed, wiggling it in front of him.

He went for it, and she quickly pulled it away. She laughed as he pursed his lips in mock irritation. “Give me that,” he said, pulling her hand towards his mouth again, taking the chip between his teeth. His lips slightly brushed Claire’s finger tips, and a shiver traveled through her body as they laughed together. 

Their bodies were touching entirely now, from shoulder to toes, and Claire didn’t want to be anywhere else. She leaned against him, and he let her put her weight against his chest as he held the blanket with his left hand. His right arm wrapped around her waist. Claire felt flush, slightly feverish, silently basking in his glow. The rain was cold, the ground was colder, but she wouldn’t have known it with Jamie securely keeping them both comfortably warm.  

The band played on, the bass pulsing through her. She didn’t know the songs, but nodded her head with the beat periodically. For all the sound, though, her mind was somewhere else entirely. She wanted nothing more than to turn around, place her lips on his, and fall into him. She glanced at the people around her again, most of them chit-chatting, drinking, or eating. She felt him squirm slightly, and glanced back at him as best she could in her position. She felt his arm leave her side, make its way up her arm to her shoulder, and then into her hair. He played with her curls as he stretched one long leg out in front of them, where his boot got wet with rain. Claire’s hands were in her lap - she was entirely unsure what she should do with them, so she clutched her middle as the swarm of butterflies (more like angry hornets, if she was honest with herself) engulfed her middle. Her eyes fluttered closed as Jamie continued twirling her curls around his finger.

“Hey, Sassenach, are you thirsty? I could go get us some drinks at the food cart?” Jamie gestured with his head, back behind them where beer and soda was sold at an exorbitant price. 

Claire turned slightly and looked at him, his brows raised in question.

She took a breath, swallowing all her fear and uncertainty. The hornets in her stomach faded to a dull ache as she turned some more, raising her hands to his face.  She’d caught him off guard, and as her lips enveloped his own, he was still for a split second before deepening the kiss with his hand still in her hair, clutching her curls now, tugging slightly. Claire breathed in deeply, the noises of the band and people around them fading into oblivion, a fuzzy mirage at the corner of her vision as she closed her eyes, unwilling to break their connection. His tongue danced with hers briefly before he pulled away. Claire, with her eyes still closed, felt him rubbing her cheek with his thumb. 

“Oi, if we wanted to see that, we’d have gone to see a movie!” 

Claire’s eyes snapped open, her head whirling around to her right searching for the person that matched the voice. A young teenage boy smirked in their direction, sniggering a bit as she eyed him. He held a full pint of beer in one hand, and cocked his head, daring her to say something in return.

“He’ll break up with ya tomorrow,” the boy said, laughing with his mates, one of them slapping him on the shoulder in congratulations for his stupendous observation. Claire’s brow knit in confusion.

“Why don’t you-” she was cut off by Jamie, who stood up quickly, pulling the blanket that was around them up into a ball. He put it down, and stretched his arms over his head, making himself appear even larger. The kid with the beer blanched, spilling a bit in his lap as he involuntarily jerked away at Jamie’s stone cold glare. 

“Come on, Sassenach. Let’s go…” He gathered up the lunch bag, and offered her his hand. She took it, letting him pull her up. She was shivering now, his warmth having left her. She moved so he could pick up the other blanket, and they slowly picked their way through the crowd. 

Claire was surprised to feel her chin trembling a bit. Was she going to...cry? God, not now, she thought. How silly. It had just been a kid trying to stir up trouble for a laugh. It wasn’t funny, though, Claire thought angrily. It made her feel ashamed, but for what? She’d simply kissed Jamie. She held her breath for a moment, as she wondered if Jamie had minded that she’d done that - in the middle of the park, surrounded by people. She let her breath out again as she felt him grab her elbow and tug her closer. Perhaps he hadn’t minded afterall. He wasn’t making excuses to leave, anyway, she thought with some relief. 

She felt Jamie put her hand through the crook of his elbow as he guided her back towards their building. She still shivered, and Jamie pulled her in, their shoes meeting the pavement in unison. 

“Don’t worry about him, Sassenach.” 

Claire looked up when he spoke, gave a small smile, and leaned her head against his shoulder. 

“It’s ok…” she mumbled, wondering what the rest of the night would hold. She’d be up all night now, and didn’t particularly want her time with Jamie to come to an end. 

“How about we get that full meal in you? You must still be hungry,” Jamie offered. “Let me drop these things by my flat and we’ll go, yeah?” 

Claire nodded. “Sounds good, Jamie.”