#rafe is a villain so what do you expect

[saintsir4n]

“THEY’RE WERE ISOLATING RAFE AND TREATING HIM SO BADLY.” Yeah no shit, he’s the worst and tried to kill them all collectively and individually multiple times. Remove your bias and be so fucking real!

[singmyaubade]

Shades Of Cool

toxic!dark!rafe cameron x female!pogue!reader

summary: you are just living your life, completely normal and free. but, what happens when rafe cameron decides that you are his? he's danger.

warnings: smut! 18+ stalking, manipulation, rafe is obsessed with reader, fingering, swearing, unprotected sex, slight breeding kink, praise, oral (male receiving), dark!rafe cameron, choking, jealousy, violence, heavy smut..

a/n: i'm delighted I'm finally starting this, even if it took me so long. i genuinely hope you all enjoy this series. i understand that this a bit short, but the narrative is only getting started, so things will only get wilder! however, it is to be expected—this is a rafe cameron fic.

series

One thing that you hated about Outer Banks was how the heat still radiated at night, causing excessive amounts of water to be drank and a great amount of fans that blew hot air into your face.

It only made everyone irritable and only caused more arguments like now,

"I swear to god JJ, I am about to fucking murder you if you say another word," You hissed, giving him a glare as he mockingly grew scared.

"I agree," Cleo said before falling back into her nap.

"All I'm saying is that we have been moping around here for hours meanwhile we could be partying on the fresh beach and cool water," JJ replied, using his hands to represent the scenery to all of you.

"I'm going to have to agree with Y/N," Pope said, turning his head to JJ, "I'm already in tough shit with my parents for when you knocked over my great-grandmothers vase," Pope glared.

JJ put his hands up in defense, "I told you tequila makes me clumsy,"

"Besides every single Kook is there, including Rafe and if he sees Sarah with us, it will only bring another fight and you are not going back to jail," Kie warned, still closing her eyes while the fan blew the air in her face, blowing her hair.

"When have we ever been scared of Rafe?" JJ asked.

"When he gave me a full smackdown for doing my job," Pope scoffed.

"And when he almost drowned me," Sarah chimed in from across the room where she was laying on John B's legs on the carpet floor.

"And when he shot Sheriff Peterkin in front of us," John B added.

"And when-" Pope began.

"Okay that's enough," He said as you giggled, turning your head back to the fan.

You didn't know much about Rafe Cameron since you had moved to Outer Banks only last year and you had met the "star Pogues" a few months ago.

You had never really seen Rafe's face ever, only heard of him honestly.

But you didn't know if it was a bad thing.

All you had heard about was how evil and villainous he was which caused some places to be off limits for the fact that the boys couldn't handle another beat down with the Kooks and there was a greater matter at hand.

But still, you always were curious about "evil" Rafe Cameron.

"You guys are no fun," JJ pouted, sitting beside you on the couch.

You patted the lower part of his leg, "Poor baby," You sarcastically said to which moved his leg swiftly causing you to laugh.

Suddenly the lights and fans turned off as you all except for JJ groaned, knowing that meant the electricity was off you and you would have to deal with the heat and darkness.

Which meant the only choice was the beach party,

JJ cheered, "I win!"

You crossed your arms as you walked on the warm sand, lots of cheering and loud music around you. You could see the Kooks and the Pogues in their own groups, not daring to interact with eachother.

It was hard to get used to the fact that there were two groups of people based on economic statuses and that it meant that if you were one thing, the other one hated you.

You had never been to a place like that but you just kinda got used to it.

Yet you still could never tell which group was really which sometimes.

You were forced to walk around by yourself as John B and Sarah wandered off to a quiet spot while JJ started drinking with Kie as his babysitter and Cleo and Pope wandered around.

All of it sounded like a lot of third wheeling which made you stay away.

But you didn't mind being alone, you liked listening to the waves and watching the festivities that went along with a party.

And you knew that a beer would help you get more into the party festivities.

You walked over the keg where a man with a shaved head and a matching tank top and shorts poured himself a beer as you curiously looked at him.

You had to admit that he was one of the most attractive men you had seen before.

His lips were a perfect shade of pink and they were smooth like sucking on a cherry. His veins were bulging from his hands and you could see the peach fuzz on his jawline that you could only really see upclose.

You snapped out of your analysis as he looked at you as you waited there awkwardly, forming a smile on your face.

"Sorry to creepily stand here, I'm just trying to get a uh-" You said, pointing to the keg.

His face studied you for a second, almost as if he was trying to figure you out. You could tell by his face that he had never seen you before and he looked as if he was trying to figure out if you were a Kook or Pogue.

He chuckled, "Didn't mean to take so long, I wouldn't have if I had seen your pretty face sooner," He smirked, looking you up and down, causing you to blush.

You felt stupid for blushing over something that a man probably said to every pretty girl he saw but you felt something different about him.

You were taken aback by his boldness, "Do you say that to every women that waits for her turn on the keg?" You teased.

"Only the pretty ones," He replied, causing you to laugh.

"Smooth talker I see," You smiled.

"Always," He joked, "I swear I've never seen you around and usually, you know everyone in Outer Banks," He probed.

"Yeah, I just moved here last year," You answered, "I haven't made my rounds yet,"

"Figured," He said, "I would've definitely noticed you,"

"Pfft," You beamed, "I'm sure you would've walked past me on the beach, there are many beautiful girls here,"

"Nah," He laughed, looking off, "You are different from them,"

"How could you already assume that?" You asked, curiosity biting at you.

"For one, you aren't stuck up and preppy which is most the girls on this island," He grinned as you giggled.

"Ay, they aren't all like that," You replied.

"Most of 'em," He added, "But I don't pay much attention to them,"

"Figures," You said, eyebrow raising.

He saw your eyes move the keg and his cup before he offered his cup forward.

"Might as well take mine, I wouldn't feel proud of myself if I let you pour one yourself," He winked.

Great attempt at being a gentlemen.

"No no, I got it," You said before he shook his head.

"I insist" He said, his thumb grazing yours.

"Thank you," You smiled, "I'm Y/N" You introduced, taking the cup from him while extending your other hand for him to shake.

He shook your hand, "I'm Rafe," He replied with a smile as yours slowly fell.

The Rafe? The Rafe you were basically supposed to never interact with and who was the supposed devil? That Rafe?

"Rafe Cameron?" You asked, standing frozen.

"Guess my reputation precedes me," He joked as you didn't laugh but instead cleared your throat.

You took your hand back quickly, "Oh, i-it's nice to meet you," You cleared your throat, "My friends are waiting so I'm gonna-"

He clearly figured you out, "Pogue, I'm guessing?" He snickered.

Your face wrinkled, "Is that supposed to be a funny thing?"

"Hilarious actually," He answered, only angering you more.

"I don't see what's funny about that?" You crossed your arms with ur drink resting in your hand.

He wiped his jaw, "Must be tough at the bottom of the food chain,"

Your nose flared, "Must be tough being an elite asshole,"

He laughed, "I just think it's an unfortunate cause, I mean it's just unlucky," He smirked.

Asshole.

"Unlucky?" Your lip pursed, " I think what's more unlucky is thinking that your cool for a fucked up economic status that has been perpetuated on an island,"

"I just don't believe your friends belong on Outer Banks," He said, not a hint of hesitance in his voice.

He really believed in this bullshit.

"I mean you would really rather hang out with a group of dirty Pogues?" He snickered, looking off.

"Well I am one of them and they are my friends," You scoffed, "You seem more dirty than us," You insulted.

"Is that so?" Rafe mocked.

"Do you wanna talk about your father's dirty money?" You asked.

"I would watch that pretty mouth," He replied, inching closer.

"Or what?" You hummed, acting braver than you usually would.

"Fuck around and find out sweetheart," He came closer, breath fawning on your face.

The whiskey on his breath kissed your nose but not breaking your eye contact with him as you inched closer, eyes on his lips.

As he tried to close the gap, you threw the drink in his face. "Oohs" and snickers filled around the both of you as you stomped away from him.

He smirked, wiping the alcohol off of his face.

'What an asshole,' You thought,

Little did you know that Rafe only grew to like you more.

You found JJ and Kie sitting by the beach together as she laid her head on his shoulder. You were thinking about interrupting them but tarnish their moment, you choosing instead to call it a night and also you didn't feel like trying to find the rest of the group.

You were glad that you knew yourself enough to drive to the party considering that you got tired fast. You couldn't really see in the parking lot due to how dark it was and away from the lights.

You digged in your back pocket for your phone to pull out of the flashlight as you reached for your keys but dropped them instead in the process.

You audibly groaned as you searched on the floor in the darkness for the keys. You went on your knees with your flashing light, searching on the ground as you heard footsteps behind you, darting your flashlight behind you but seeing nothing.

You had a bad feeling but you thought it was paranoia because you were alone in the parking lot and maybe a little due to the interaction you had earlier with Rafe.

You couldn't stop thinking about how he came off as nice but switched so quickly into an elitist piece of shit.

Sounds like how they described him.

But still, there was a pit in your stomach that felt like butterflies when he grazed your thumb.

You sighed, pushing the thoughts out as you finally grabbed your keys, using the concrete-sanded floor push yourself back up off the ground.

Suddenly, you felt a cloth on your mouth and a hand covering your waist as your muffled screams filled the parking lot, trying to kick your attacker behind you.

You felt yourself drifting into the darkness as you screamed one last time,

And everything went black.

tags: @hysteriahall @avengersassemblee @lighttism @whereismymindnow @hotch-meeeeeuppppp @vi06ma01 @haven247 @vanessa-rafesgirl @blvebanisters @riordanness @aleidag1rly @muzanjackson22

[billwidoll]

It helps me

Warnings: Depression, anxiety and addictions

You and Rafe had ended your four-year relationship, you didn't understand why Rafe had broken up with you, he didn't say the reason or even less wanted to conclude. But you expected an explanation today. Since Rafe was going to take some of your things that had been left at his house. You were lying in your bed until you heard a noise coming from the door. Rafe opens the door and you look at each other intensely.

"Y/n..." Rafe speaks almost in a whisper with a closed expression

"I thought you weren't coming, I thought you forgot." You say standing up giving a crooked smile

"I forgot. " Rafe is serious, it's cold "here, here are your things" Rafe says, giving you a box full of photos of you, his, and your things too

Just when Rafe was ready to leave you, you got in his way

"Can we talk? You Broke up with me. So stop acting like I'm the villain" you say getting a little angry

"Well, I wasn't the one who started hanging out with the Pogues or at least became best friends with JJ."

Rafe says, walking around the room, literally mad at himself

"They're my friends Rafe..." you say but Rafe interrupts you

"They're like the devil to me and you know it." Rafe speaks through his teeth

"I do not know anything." You say tears already welling up in your eyes

"Ah, seriously! You were dying to start your fake life with your fake friends!" Rafe says with a humorless smile

"I loved you Rafe..." You say almost in a whisper

"No, you didn't love me, But I know. You didn't want to be the girlfriend, much less the wife of an alcoholic drug addict, did you?"

Rafe says thinking that you didn't like him anymore because he was getting into drugs and drinks

"Ow, you're doing it again" you say rolling your eyes

“Doing what, Y/n?” Rafe asks, sitting bravely on the bed.

"Life sucks!" You speak imitating Rafe

"But life sucks." Rafe says it like it's obvious

"it doesn't have to be... you look like you want to lose!" You say sitting on the bed with him

"Well, I know who I am!" Rafe still speaks with the darkness in his To look

"Stop being mad at me for wanting friends and a different future." You say trying to stay calm

"The future is not yours when you are a different person" Rafe says getting out of bed

"So that's it? That's it?" You ask

"Yes." Rafe speaks dryly

"You'll end up dying like this." You say crossing your arms and trying to avoid tears

"I'd rather die alone than wash you away with me" Rafe says, looking into your eyes.

Rafe, walk out the door and leave you alone. Rafe had several psychological and emotional problems and unfortunately he thought you wouldn't be able to live with him like that. He thought you were too young for that, he didn't want to ruin your future. So he preferred Living alone is with your depression as company.

):

[thecameronchronicles]

More Rafe Than Drew

TW: Dom!Drew. Degrading language. Smut. Language. Praise kink. 

SUMMARY: After Drew learns for your intrigue for his Outer Banks character, he decides to embody him for you...

WORD COUNT: 1700

REQUESTED

hehe you told us to send in requests so here's one for drew: drew and y/n are dating, and one day y/n is alone and bored in their apartment so she starts watching s2 of obx and gets really horny when she sees all of the rafe scenes so she starts touching herself and moaning, and right then drew comes home and sees her & starts teasing her and he fucks her kinda in a mean way like rafe would yk?? also happy new year ❤❤ i can't wait for your comeback!!!

More Rafe Than Drew

It was just one of those days where nothing sounded worth upsetting the peace of the day. Where productivity was not necessary to make the day full. And yet, it was also one where you were unbelievably bored. The FYP of TikTok having given you an idea once noticing your boyfriend's face upon several fanmade compilations. Having already missed him, even if you had spent the previous night with him and expected him home in the next few hours, you had Netflix to make his absence feel a bit less noticeable. 

But as always, Rafe Cameron had an effect on you. Specifically because you knew the man behind the disturbed character could not be anymore different. And yet, the contrast is what made watching him now that much more thrilling. You knew the passion available behind those soft lips as he delivered less than desirable lines to villainize his character even further. Those very same lips you craved now. Beginning at the part of your own, trailing down your jaw as it clenched beneath a new smirk, and continuing lower still. 

"Rafe..." You moaned as your fingers trailed as your thoughts replaced the pads of your digits with his familiar touch. Allowing yourself the fantasy as you were alone, you pulled your fingers up to your lips before providing the unnecessary new lubrication to the wet part of your lower lips. Even if it wasn't his trained touch or tongue providing the pleasure, it was enough to hold you over until he could make your fantasy a reality. 

Just as he would have, you began slowly, envisioning the loving and tender yet equally passionate man on his knees before you. Sweet words of how beautiful pleasure read across your face and how he vowed to continue until you shook beneath him. Which you did each and every time. But as you thought of his hands drawing swifter across your clit, one finger bent to your g-spot, you became mindless to your surroundings. 

"Ahhh..." You moaned, a whimper more than a broadcast of ecstasy as a sudden hand wrapped around your wrist to still you. Your pulse paused as your eyes shot open and a blush filled your cheeks. 

"Is THIS what you do all day while I'm gone?" He questioned, more amused that antagonized. 

"Drew-" 

"No baby...I heard you clear enough. You want Rafe..." He controlled the motion of your hand, promoting you to pleasure yourself through his guidance. 

"Jesus, you look so good when you wanna come..." 

"Drew..." He paused, moving closer with a hand to the back of your hair. 

"You wanted Rafe. So fucking take him." He forced his way upwards, your body thrust to the edge of the sofa as he held you at his zipper. Your fingers gebgerly peeled the tab to a slow descent before his angry cock came to view. 

"Did I say to stop your fingers? I worked all day and you decided to have all the fun. I don't see why I need to do any more work than necessary." He tightened your locks around his fingers as he lowered just as you took a hold of his shaft. A flex felt in your grasp making you gasp to the uncharacteristic dominance he usually had solely in compassion. 

"Get yourself close. I know you're good enough to multitask for me..." He lifted his other hand to your jaw, the ringed finger tracing the curve towards your chin before retracting. 

"But you say any name but the one you want and I'll bruise that pretty little throat so deeply that you won't have to worry about getting it wrong again." With your understanding shown by the advancement made to his cock, he teased you with his tip. 

"You know better than to keep from answering me."

"Yes..." You spoke softly, almost fearfully, with gluttonous eyes returning to his cock. 

"You just can't wait for it can you? Then again, I already know that since you stained our couch being so ..." He scoffed. 

"Beg for it..."

"Please..."

"Like you want to please me...not just because you're a whore for it and want it to make you come...like it has every night you've wanted. This is for me...so ask for me.."

"Let me please you..."

"Who?" He asked, a grin and eyes synonymous with the mischief of his words. 

"Rafe..." He exhibited approval by the sudden thrust made into your mouth. But after only a few pumps, he directed himself to the couch beside you. 

"Yes...Just like that...shit..." He groaned in approval before striking your ass. 

"Why aren't your fingers working that little clit, hmmm?" But as you reached to amend this, he hit it away. 

"Lucky for you, I want to feel just how wet you got thinking about me..." He watched your eyes rose to him. 

"Keep taking me baby...might just come for ya..." You rolled your eyes in pleasure before returning to him. His expression altered to split focus as he looked for his hand and the way his finger glistened once pulling it from you, only to witness you shift everytime he set it back inside. He basked in this for only a handful of moments until directing his attention to your clit. 

"You thought you could come without me? We both know it isn't as good..."

You nodded. "If watching you moan like that didn't make me so fucking hard, you wouldn't be getting anything. But you know how it affects me...you're choking on the evidence…" He pulled you to his expression, cock left in only your hand. 

"Look at me..." He quickened his fingers, the perfect friction pulling your orgasm to the front. 

"Fuck!"

"You really are desperate for it, aren't you baby? You're dripping down your own thighs for me..." He pulled you teasing towards his lips to feel your breath against his mouth. His fingers ungodly in pace as he continued. 

"How about I make you pour down em...yeah?" Your eyes rolled as he offered the question just as Rafe would have, the clench of your inner walls making him scoff. 

"Ride me." You groaned in approval, hurrying to position yourself before he stopped you. 

"Drew-" He took hold of your hair. 

"Bad girl...your sweet little pussy is gonna ache now..." He took himself deeply inside of you, forcing you to take him at depth as you came almost immediately. And yet behind your high, he took you through that overstimulation. 

"It's too much!"

"You didn't want to listen...you keep coming until I tell you to stop-" He commanded with a slap to your ass as you whimpered and moaned beneath him. 

"Fuck-" he grunted, lifting you from the couch and onto counter adjacent the small living space. Bending you over it, he took you this way. 

"Ah!" 

"That's right baby...I want all our neighbors to hear you...so fucking jealous they don't get to make you sound this way..." He bit softly into your shoulder as he lost himself in the way you clenched around him. Another swat to your ass correcting you for him. 

"Oh baby...baby!  I'm gonna-" He slowed, edging you as you gripped your fingers around the island within the kitchen. 

"Not yet." He growled, lowering behind you and drawing illustrations with his tongue. 

"Drew!" He bit into your sensitive flesh. 

"Rafe…oh...Rafe…." He savored you completely, your clit swollen and left throbbing as he continued until that familiar orgasm came once more. Only now, he raised just before allowing you to wash over his tongue. 

"Please..." He ignored your plea with a chuckle before tearing the straps of your shirt low until it bunched below your breasts. He turned you to face him. 

"You got to play with yourself without me. Only fair I get a turn..." Your eyes rolled as he twisted and sucked each nipple. 

"Please..."

"We're gonna need a new carpet because of you baby...and you haven't even come yet..."

"I'm gonna..."

"Oh yeah? From this?" He pulled your breasts as you offered an orgasmic expression. 

"Oh shit, you could...maybe I'll let you..." You nodded. 

"Aww...you're so desperate..." 

"Ah...mmmm...Baby..."

"Tell me.."

"I'm gonna come...I'm gonna fucking come..." Your lips parted, a harsh grasp caused by his cock thrust inside of you once again. 

"On me. only me. My girl knows this..." He lifted you onto the counter, finally bringing you to that cusp alongside him. 

"Please! Don't stop!"

"Not this time baby...I'm not waiting another fucking second to come....and your gonna take it..."

"Yes!"

"Every fucking drop!"

"Yes baby!"

"Why? Because you're my little whore aren't you? Wanna be fucked everyday in anyway just to come."

"Yes...yours..."

"Then I know you aren't gonna be quiet...I wanna head you....I know it's fucking close..."

"Right...NOW! OoooH! FUCK! AH!"  You silenced as the orgasm took hold of every nerve until you were left trembling. His body set off immediately as he spurt into you, dripping as he pulled out. 

"Oh my God..."

"You prefer Rafe, huh?" He asked with a smirk. 

"Why decide when I can have both?" You teased, stroking him again. 

"Baby..."

"Now I want Drew...my sweet..." He collected your dual cum from his cock and sucked it off of your finger as his eyes rolled, "Sweet Drew..." He tightened his jaw, pulling you into the bedroom and reminding you why you favored Drew just a little bit more...

TAGLIST: @hopebaker @drewspisces @penny4yourthoughts @magnificantmermaid @pickingviolets @lovedetlost @trikigirl271 @maybankslover @slut4tangerine @slvtherinseeker @obxiskewl @bluesongbird @slut-era @ailee-celeste @camilynn @sweetestdesire @onmykneesforrafe @jjmaybanksangel @phildunphyisadilf @mashdan0916

MASTERLIST

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MARCH MADNESS MASTERLIST

[khaleesiofalicante]

I'm in the feels after reading this. I love how you included David's name's meaning said by the person who loves him the most. It felt like a moment you peeked through the fic.

I'm assuming Luciens' goal always was to dismantle the monarchy so he could have more power? But this time, I dont hate him. I am grateful to him for giving David his choice. His choice to pick Max. I do think he did keep a few of the samples for himself as a backup . Maybe there is a child after all as well. I like that we, as the audience, are aware that because of who he is, that's a possibility, but I'm glad that won't get explored because honestly, once was enough to wreck us all.

Also I remember you mentioning how in the beginning of writing David you didnt think him being a parent would be such a big personality trait of his but it's wonderful seeing that he makes the hard choice always, makes the choice to pick his kids over himself over and over, as any good parent would. For someone who is scared to be a parent, David sure is a great one.

Ofc it was Jackson who started the wave of support for David. I understand David is so understanding of his mother but I felt like what she did wasn't enough, atleast in my eyes. Maybe im being too harsh on her because it is put in contrast with David but I wish she did or atleast even said more in her video.

You gave Anjali and Rafe a happy beginning too. We love a Anjali picking love moment and Rafe being a love sick puppy for her. But it was a really nice moment especially after reading the ficlet you had written on what had happened and how they had started out in the fic.

Was it symbolic that Albert got hit in the shoulder first? Maybe to get hit first right where it had started? It was Lucien who killed him rt. Good riddance ofc. But the parts where he was punished is so complete because it tackles all parts of his psyche. He gets shunned by the public, abandoned by his servants, beat by the boyfriend of his son and then made to realise just what will happen. No pain is ever enough for putting David through what he did but you wrote a very complete punishment scene.

Love Jace and his unwavering loyalty to his family in this as well. It was an amazing fic . Thank you so much for it 🥺

Thank you so much 🥺🥺

Lucien selfishly doing things that work out well for us hehe I guess he's not the worst villain in this fic...

I always see mixed feelings about Coraline and that's super valid. I don't expect people to like her or dislike her. But one thing is she is never important enough to have an actual relationship with David. I am glad he forgave her and understood her but he never felt the need for a relationship with her. If you notice, he even says 'the woman who gave birth to me' and not mother. My boy knows what he wants.

ANJALI AND RAFAEL ENDGAME ALWAYS.

It wasn't symbolic, but I'm glad if it looks that way hehe. And yes Lucien killed him (thank you sir 🫡) And yes I agree there is nothing I could write that would feel satisfying enough for Albert's ending. I try to remind myself that the story is not about punishing Albert. It's about loving David. There is a beautiful quote about this. I'll share it with you.

Uncle Jace has my heart 💛

[rafegasm]

Rafe Cameron’s psycho analysis

What’s wrong with Rafe?

Warnings : mental health, abuse, trauma, depression, violence, drugs

Knowing that I study psychology, and that i have a certain toxic taste for villains in general, i really want to write my psychological analysis on the character of Rafe Cameron in Outer Banks.

Obviously I'm not a psychologist (well not yet), the goal is not to have a 100% real analysis, I just want to give my opinion by arguing my words as best as possible.

I read and inform myself a lot about mental / behavioral disorders, mental pathologies, the different types of behavior or reactions of people, it fascinates me and allows me both an understanding of others, but also of myself.

Also, i do speak english fluenty but it isn’t my first language so i may make some mistakes, please don’t mind them.

no more talk lets get into it :)

To put things into context, Rafe Cameron is Ward Cameron's eldest son and Sarah and Wheezie's brother.

Since the beginning of season 1, we quickly realize that Ward is very protective of his daughter, Sarah, but doesn’t seem to care about his other children, Rafe and Wheezie. He is shown to be emotionally and psychologically abusive towards his son Rafe, and his neglect is visible when he finds out that Rafe was spending his money on drugs after dropping out of college. We see through the first episodes Ward's differential treatment of his son and daughter, one is literally called "the princess" while the brother lives in his sister's shadow, seen as a rebellious and insignificant delinquent.

What is not emphasized enough is how much favoritism towards a child can be the consequence of significant psychological trauma. Every child wants attention. If you deny it to them, or take it away from them, it is normal that they´ll do everything to get it back better. The problem is that they unconsciously choose the "wrong" type of behavior. As a result, aggressiveness, tearfulness, or overly strong or even obsessive attachment can be observed in the child. Children observe their parents, easily imitate their mood and become their reflection. Does that remind you of anyone? His father, Ward Cameron is a liar, manipulator, egocentric with a narcissistic tendency capable of anything to achieve his ends. Finally we can clearly see that his favoritism and negligence towards his son turned him into his carbon copy.

In case of obvious favoritism, there are two possibilities, a child who will be "studious", and hard on himself, always aiming for perfection, for fear of disappointment. Or a child who will feel very sure of himself, but who can also become very narcissistic, due to an injustice wound* (which I will develop later) In this case, we observe a child who demands attention as a right, but does not show gratitude if he receives it. The child will often think he is better than the others, has high expectations of others, difficulty maintaining friendships. In adulthood, narcissism can lead to big problems in personal and professional life because the individual needs constant attention, to be the center of the world.

Obviously, another aspect that may seem logical, the complex sibling relationship. Arguments and fights, which start when children see a situation as unfair. When a child repeatedly receives less love and attention than their sibling, it can become a trigger for arguments, jealousy. Even when they become adults, they fail to find common ground, and often fail to forgive or forget. This is the case with Rafe and Sarah, he does not hate his sister, but he envies and jealous her, and resents her for having always been the favorite, to the point where he tried to kill her under an excess of anger.

Finally, the last point I wanted to address on favoritism is the behavior of the child growing up towards his parents. If you consistently show less love to a child, it can have a big impact on your communication with them in the future. When your child becomes an adult, he may decide to ignore you or even in some cases to take revenge. He only reflects the behavior you had towards him. It can be a conscious or unconscious choice. Here we can see that Rafe tried everything to receive his father's validation and attention, but even trying the best he could, Ward put all the blame on him until he told him that because of him "fucked us all", that he had "dirtyed their family", and that he would never be "a Cameron"

Now I will address the wound of betrayal and injustice which can be closely linked to favoritism.

There are 5 psychological wounds also called "soul wounds". It is these wounds that will cause physical, emotional and mental problems. It is these wounds that will prevent us from being ourselves. Emotional wounds are formed during our childhood before the age of 10. Most of the time, these wounds emerge from the parents or parent figures, and are done without their will.

The 5 injuries identified are:

- rejection

- abandonment

- humiliation

- betrayal

- injustice

Most of the time, one injury will dominate the others, however it can be associated with other injuries. We all develop certain injuries, which will have a greater or lesser impact on our lives. Faced with this "aggression", we put in place, in an unconscious way, "masks". These masks are defense strategies that will be put in place automatically and which will prevent us from being ourselves, from behaving as we would like. do it. Thus, in order to no longer be limited by these masks, it is necessary for us to identify his wounds and accept them.

*be careful, not every wound forms the same, it is not because scientifically it has been proven that they appear at a fixed age or the sex of a specific parent, that this is always the case.

The Wound of Injustice : This is the first thing I noticed through Rafe, a lack of empathy and emotion, certainly linked to his difficult childhood, where he had to create a mask, a shell to be able to defend himself against to his father, and the favoritism he experienced over his sister. The wound of injustice is often caused by devaluation and often leads to perfectionism, to wanting to be strong and by a need for recognition. If you noticed well in season 1 and 2, Rafe tries everything to have the recognition of his father, he wants to be perfect, to appear strong, both physically and mentally after killing Sheriff Peterkin. We see very little of his emotions, he tries to show that everything is fine, but we often see him losing control through various impulsive and violent acts, which perfectly illustrate his unhappiness and his internal wound.

Main symptoms:

- Create a rigid, cold mask

- Push back his wound

- Being resentful towards others and oneself

- Divert your sensitivity

- Authority

- Seeking justice and perfection

- Being unfair to oneself

- Suppress feelings

- Wanting to feel strong in the eyes of others, untouchable

- Need of recognition

The awakening of the injury occurs between 4 and 6 years. This wound often forms with the parent of the same sex who will be perceived by the child as being distant, cold, rigid. The wound of injustice will bring out the mask of rigidity. These are people who will appear without any emotion, insensitive. They will tend to hide their emotions, wanting to be "strong". Because for them emotions are a sign of weakness. In permanent control, these are people who will tend to organize everything in their lives. This hurt can arise because of a toxic family such as toxic parents or overbearing parents within your household which then creates a toxic relationship between yourself and your mother or father. It develops through the actions of your parents towards you.

For example, your father or mother may encourage you to follow the model of your sister or brother during your childhood. An obligation of excellence and a desire for perfectionism were then created, developing this wound of injustice. It is caused by the devaluation of the child and causes excessive emotional reactions in you. When a person is injured by injustice, it is common for them to hold resentment towards others and themselves. Indeed, his constant quest for excellence gives him varied emotions and a high degree of requirement.

A rigid person will be more likely to develop anger towards themselves and towards others. Just like other wounds, injustice is going to have to fill a need. For the latter, it is a need for recognition that must take place. How to heal it: It is important to learn to reconnect with your emotions, your needs, while accepting that everything is not "perfect", to make mistakes. Accept each of your emotions to avoid panic attacks related to emotional denial, "overflow" and impulsivity attacks.

The Wound of Betrayal: This wound has a lot in common with the wound of injustice, namely the need to control everything, and the difficulty of adapting to society. It's a hurt I've seen in Rafe as well, and it's been showing especially since Season 3. After he did everything for his dad, never receiving any gratitude or recognition, that hurt was definitely more seen in him. He started wanting to take control of everything, even his father, where we see the paradox with season 2 and 3 when the father hits Rafe saying "it's me who decides here" and the season 3 where Rafe takes control over his father by fighting with him and tells him "I'm talking now". We notice a darker aspect of him, in particular through his manipulative, lying side, his difficulty in trusting, his impulsiveness, his authority and his resentment. It's a wound that can stay untouched in us until it "explodes" at some point in our lives (disappointment, betrayal, offense, humiliation), at which point the brain sets up a system of protection through the mask of the "controller" to avoid any occurrences of harming us. It is a wound that leads to emotional denial, which in the long run leads to anxiety, phobias and a lot of stress.

Main symptoms:

- Always need to control

- Strong personality

- Authoritarian

- Very demanding of himself and others

- Anticipation (control even in the future)

- Trust issues

- liar, but hates lies in others

- Speed ​​and intelligence (learn very quickly)

- Sensitive but not demonstrative

- Cares a lot about other people's business - Internal anger

- Arrogance

- Difficulty in his love/sexual life because he idealizes his/her partner and cannot let go

Its development takes place between the ages of 2 and 4 years, often with the parent of the opposite sex. Wakes up when the child feels betrayed, manipulated by his parent.

The wound of betrayal, will bring the mask of the controller. The controller is a manipulative person who needs to control everything that happens around them, be it their projects, their relationships, people. She needs to hold the reins and everything goes her way. Seductive, she attaches great importance to the material side or to the image. Controllers will have a strong personality, with an overactive mind and impulsiveness. Controlling people will fear both engagement and disengagement. As part of the betrayal wound, people will have a strong need for trust. For this this need can be filled by the self-confidence and the confidence that she can have towards others (which is very rare because often she has confidence only in herself, and gives her confidence only to a number of very restricted individuals) How to heal the wound of betrayal: Healing will go through learning to let go, accepting that you cannot control everything, and that it does not make you weak.

Now I'm going to talk about Rafe's drug addiction, which is something to consider. Anxiety, relational problems, past traumas and the malaise felt are often at the origin of these uses. Belonging to a group, feeling accepted: the concern for recognition or belonging is very important for teenagers. It is also a way to escape from the real world, and to forget the stress or the pressure, the daily problems. Rafe through his conflicted relationship with his family, got himself a drug dealer, barry and dove into drugs. Not only weed but also cocaine, considered a hard drug, which has many repercussions on health and behavior. The two drugs that Rafe uses are cannabis and cocaine. We feel his addiction especially when he goes to beg his dealer Barry, to sell him rails, against his motorcycle, promising him a large sum of money. But do you really know the effects of these drugs?

Cannabis will "unstuck" and facilitate social relationships. It will relax and relax some people in the face of stress and anxiety in the family, school and / or professional environment. Well-being and relaxation will make you want to feel these effects again. Consumption is increasing and it must be found by all means. Professional and social detachment ensues. There is evidence that cannabis use increases the risk of developing psychotic disorders.

*won’t talk about physical disorders but there are many

* psychic disorders: in the short or medium term (anxiety, suffocation, confusion, nervousness, panic, phobias, delusions, mood instability, hallucinations...), during the "descent" (depressive state, withdrawal) and more or less long term (aggravation or revelation of a mental illness, depression, suicide, etc.)

* social risks: disinhibition can lead to outbursts of violence and/or an inability to defend oneself (loss of self-control, provocative attitudes exposing to aggression, etc.), changes in perception can endanger those around them, even cause accidents...

Cocaine is a potent stimulant that induces instant euphoria, a feeling of great self-confidence, intellectual and physical power, and indifference to pain and fatigue. It cancels out any shyness and gives the illusion of relational ease, a feeling of performance and confidence. When this phase ends, it means that the reserve of neuromediators is exhausted, giving way to a state of strong depression, an anxiety that can lead to alleviating this state by taking heroin or cannabis.

Long-term consumption leads to serious psychic disorders, great mood instability and paranoid delusions, panic attacks and severe depression.

Stopping acute cocaine use is very difficult, because this drug brings a feeling of well-being. The behavior of a cocaine addict is akin to paranoia, because he is convinced that he has the right reasoning and that his actions are right. Weaning is very difficult, because the memory of pleasure remains for a long time, months or even years after the cessation of consumption. A relapse during this period is very likely.

After reading about the effects of these drugs, you might have been able to make the connection with Rafe, the fact that he took drugs to "feel better" and forget his discomfort. Maybe you went through it too, or not, anyway even if it partly made him so unpredictable and irritable in his actions, basically it proves once again that it was only one more misunderstood teenager, who also wanted to taste happiness.

Besides, I mentioned paranoia vis-à-vis cocaine, which I will develop from now on.

The person with paranoia is suspicious, they feel constantly threatened and persecuted. She interprets situations, words, behaviors in an erroneous way. A word or a look can be enough to awaken in her the feeling of persecution. There are several theories aimed at defining the causes of paranoia. Some claim that the disease results from a narcissistic wound, a long-standing wound that the subject has kept buried deep inside him and which makes him particularly vulnerable. Others argue that brain microlesions are the cause of the disease. Head trauma, alcohol or drug use, stress or lack of oxygen to the brain could be responsible for these lesions. Note that Rafe started to really lose control when he killed Sheriff Peterkin, but that already before when he was on drugs he tended to show signs of paranoia.

The main symptoms:

- Exaggerated distrust

- A paranoid person is convinced that the people around him seek to deceive him, exploit him, harm him, manipulate him.

- The doubt

- She doubts the friendship, fidelity, benevolence of those around her, family, friends or professional.

- The tendency to secrecy (The paranoid person confides very little fear that what she says will be used against her)

- Negative interpretation (A word, a sigh, a silence, an action, a banal behavior, everything is interpreted in a negative way. The paranoid person interprets everything and believes he sees humiliating, aggressive, threatening innuendoes everywhere.

- Resentment: Feeling (most often wrongly) hurt, humiliated, used, even insulted, this person does not forgive the person he considers to have been aggressive towards him

- Aggressiveness: This person, feeling constantly threatened, humiliated, hurt, easily reacts with anger or aggressiveness, a reaction that is often incomprehensible to those around him.

- Suspicion: The entourage is suspected of deceiving, of plotting. Also come into play: - An overvaluation of oneself and undervaluation of others;

- excessive pride;

- tyrannical authoritarianism;

- the absence of self-criticism;

- a disorder of social relations;

- passionate reactions to real or supposed events: threats of lawsuits, money affairs, rivalries

- major depression with the possibility of violent action (murder or attempts)

One scene in particular caught my attention when I thought about paranoia was when the police arrive and Cameron is with his dad, in a state of shock and completely disconnected from reality after the murder he comes commit. He tells his father that the pressure is too strong, that he will not be able to get away with it, that he has terrible scenarios going on in his head. Since this episode, he has become twice as violent, twice as aggressive, nothing takes on disproportionate dimensions, he lives in constant fear and guilt. From there we have seen the rise in power of his anger issues, his excessive violence (in his vocabulary, by knocking into the walls, by trying to kill several times) There are a number of emotions that go hand in hand with anger. You may notice the following emotional symptoms: irritability, frustration, anxiety, rage, stress and feeling overwhelmed, guilty. Once again these are character traits very present in Rafe.

On the other hand, before making my conclusion I would like to give you my opinion in relation to the statuses of psychopaths and sociopaths that people tend to give him. For me, these two terms are used excessively, to such an extent that we do not know exactly what these two pathologies are linked to. Because of the world of entertainment, films, series, books, the term psychopath or sociopath is used in all directions, most of the time simply to describe a person who is overwhelmed by his emotions, who does not fit into social norms and unpredictable, often led to kill, torture, kidnap etc. Very often your favorite characters have many pathologies, but none of them are psychopathy.

Why do I think Rafe is neither a sociopath nor a psychopath?

*note that the two pathologies are very similar, we will tend to distinguish sociopathy by more impulsiveness, and linked to the social environment, while the psychopath, will plan and be more in the observation (Joe Goldberg in You can be an example, although there are many other disorders), the psychopath is explained by a mixture of psychological, biological, genetic and environmental factors. The term psychopathy has disappeared from the classifications of mental disorders, but it is still used to describe a complex personality disorder, now called antisocial personality disorder.

Among the main symptoms are:

- inability to conform to laws and social norms

- the tendency to deceive for profit or pleasure (indicated by repeated lies, the use of pseudonyms, scams)

- impulsiveness or inability to plan ahead - irritability or aggressiveness (indicated by repeated fights or assaults) reckless disregard for one's safety or that of others

- persistent irresponsibility (indicated by inability to hold steady employment or meet financial obligations)

- the absence of remorse (indicated by the fact of being indifferent or justifying oneself after having hurt, mistreated or robbed another)

Admittedly, the symptoms highlighting violence are found in Rafe, but the big difference between him and the profile of the psychopath is the feeling of guilt. Many times in the series, we can see how Rafe is consumed by remorse, how guilty he feels. The psychopath does not have access to this emotion, he has a total lack of empathy and does harm for pleasure. He never questions himself. Again, Rafe is not violent for fun, he did not kill Peterkin for fun, he blamed himself. He knows he's a bad person and completely destroyed by his own actions, which he still tries to hide behind his mask of a cold and powerful man.

Conclusion

Here is my conclusion on this character, in my opinion underdeveloped: Rafe Cameron went through traumas in his life that had significant emotional consequences on his life. These psychic traumas are like open wounds if we do not treat them, they follow us as we grow and can get worse, triggering trouble after trouble and deeply affecting our personality. Since our identity is forged until our 7-8 years generally, a toxic environment during childhood is the cause of most of our problems as adults or adolescents. Here with Rafe, we could see how favoritism can totally destroy a child, as well as his life in the long term if he does not heal from this wound. I may sound mean, but no parent is perfect, and even if you love them, some of the hurts you have today were caused by them without you even knowing it. An injury can come from even a very small remark, a very small detail that was made to you. And yet this little detail will follow you for years, until sometimes you have a behavior that does not look like you. Yes, if Rafe is like that today it is the fault of his father, Ward. The fact that he is not known his biological mother is surely also hard for him. He is a young man in pain, haunted by himself, who has a deep unhappiness.

He's not a psychopath, he seems anxious, guilty. He has a wound of betrayal and injustice, vulnerable narcissistic tendencies, a paranoid personality, drug addictions and anger issues. He's not inherently a bad person, he just never experienced a healthy environment and genuine parental love. Now I'm not saying he's forgivable, he tried to kill half of the protagonists, including his own sister. He killed the sheriff too. His violent acts, his impulsiveness and his hatred for pogues (which again I believe is closely tied to his father) makes him a "bad guy" that most outer banks fans describe as "loathsome" and I can understand it.

Nevertheless I think for my part that he is a complex and deep character who could have been better developed in order to not just show this "psychopathic" side to the public but precisely the aspect of the lost and wounded man that he is. . I hope season 4 brings him a healthier environment and better development :) even a love affair with Sofia (apparently confirmed)

I hope you liked it and that it helped you better understand this character! Do not hesitate to give your opinion in comment and to like!❤️

[roleplayfinder]

Outer Banks Search:

Heyo! 25 year old female writer here. I’m eighteen plus so please please please ensure you are before writing to me! Now a little about me, I do work, quick fire would be nice but I can’t always be here. So you may see me post more depending on what ideas I’ve got and what cravings I have. But with my time off you can guarantee I’ll be posting more! Just a heads up I’m looking for clean roleplays! I do prefer discord to conduct roleplays. My discord is eleanorewinchester feel free to add me there or like this post.

So I’m looking for those of you who can use third person, past tense and lots of detail. I say this not to be mean but because I do consider myself to be advanced literate, I expect potential partners to be the same! I’m looking for oc (me) x male canon characters from the above movies but I will enclose further fandoms and movies with in the post! I use third and past tense and would be grateful if you do too! Please note I do have dyslexia. I’d love to get some aus going as well as some love triangles. Doubles are welcome! But please note ALL my roleplays are doubles. I will be prioritising those of you who don’t want to double and are happy to play canons.

I’m craving a chance to write in this fandom and I’d love to pair my oc with JJ Maybank, John B Routledge or Topper. I adore love triangles and I’d simply love to try as many different variations of the above pairings as possible! I’d also be interested in looking at Rafe as well if we wanted a more obvious villain! I love to share head canons and edits etc, so please be as passionate as I am about the verse! I have just started season three though I would like to avoid spoilers. I’d also love to find someone who knows the verse and characters well!

eleanorewinchester

[sun-undone]

Raw thoughts here, so sorry for the scattered mess!

I wanted more of the Pogues together.

It felt like there was too much time with just John B and Big John.

Cleope was cute.

I actually wanted to like Topper, but nah. I hope Rafe continues to be a villain, because I don’t need more people sympathizing with him (and so not here for a love triangle with him). Also, Rafe is a POS for melting down the cross. I was hoping to see him get his ass handed to him by Pope and JJ.

Jiara moments for me were the creme de la creme (let’s be honest, they were the reason I got invested in the show — both together and apart). There are so many positives here, but I want to share my complaints first lol I wanted more scenes with them! Maybe more feral JJ. Better closure between Pope and JJ. More kisses (hello, final episode?). And I’m sad about the time jump because we didn’t get to see key moments at the start of their relationship. And I was hoping the machete scene in the jungle would have been better, like an ambush or something.

Mike pissed me off, but it was nice to see Kie’s mom making an effort. Wish we could have seen some form of reconciliation between the Carerras and JJ.

Okay, but he longing/angst etc. was so good. THE HUGS. Holy shit. AND THE KISS. And we actually got the “I love you” — I cried. And I cried after it was all over because now we have to wait at least another year. Excuse me? I keep replaying these scenes, and I’m just basking in them. So much to dissect here.

HI HELLO thanks for sharing your thoughts!!!! overall, i agree with pretty much every point you've made here ajshdakjdh but let's see if i can ramble about more specifics. the answer is yes and strap in cause this is a mess

the lack of pogues content (core 4 and entire group alike) is my absolute biggest gripe about the season. it legitimately made me so sad to see them split up for what felt like the majority of the season. it was definitely one of my worries going into the season since we knew it would be more romance based and the pogues have been paired off, but damn. i really thought they'd still find a way to have the pogues working together more often. it really felt like they were barely a part of the entire mystery, and it actually made me so angry that only jarah b got to see el dorado or even really do anything in south america. the pogues are the heart of the show, but i think with all the drama and the massive scope of the plot in this season, they got massively pushed to the side, and that stings. the first 2 episodes were gold mines for pogue content, while the rest of the season is a massive drought

the john b and big john stuff was also a big issue, one that's definitely directly connected to the lack of pogue content. and i understand why there was that rift, and in theory, i do like the arc for john b. i just wish it was paced better. in no world would i ever want the pogues' dynamics to suffer in favor of big john development like ?????? who wanted that????? i was also rooting for him to die the entire season so. glad he did and i'm not sorry about it.

cleope was so fucking cute!!!!!! i love how sweet and generally uncomplicated their romance was, it was such a needed tonal shift from jarah b and jiara. i kind of wish they'd done a bit more with fleshing out cleo's backstory as well as the "no love club" thing, which they literally only mentioned twice. but on the positives, i adored seeing cleo interact with pope's parents, her reaction to getting a room all to herself, and them pretending to be engaged in episode 5 that was fucking hilarious. their chemistry was off the charts

i never want to like topper but i actually did not expect to hate him even more than i already did, cause i literally thought that was impossible. but no. would you look at that. he's managed the impossible. i hope he burns in hell!!!

speaking of burning in hell, yeah rafe still sucks but is still the most compelling villain on this damn show by far. it was cool seeing him fly off the handle and go too far with his independence and then have to reel it back in by the end. i do wonder where the hell he ended up though, since we never saw him again after the airstrip. the whole ending scene was weird, but it was extra weird that we didn't get any sign of him, not even a tease. and yeah, i was hoping so badly for jj specifically to FINALLY get to fight rafe this season but. guess not. the pogues barely interacted with rafe at all cause carlos took up so much room as the new big bad.

jiara was overall such a highlight for this season!!!! i do think the writers hyped it up a little bit too much, calling them "the romance of the season" was kind of misleading imo, but YES WE HAVE CANON JIARA!!! i 100% agree about having another jj and pope conversation near the end of the season, i was truly SHOCKED that they never confided in each other about their respective relationship troubles, or really that none of the pogues talked to any of them at all???? not getting to see sarah ask kie about jj post-reunion hug was actually a fucking travesty and i'll never forgive the pates for it honestly. that one moment of john b realizing it in episode 9 was ADORABLE but god it just made me wish we'd gotten more of it. that's really how i feel about so much of the bright spots of this season, lots of potential and groundwork that was laid, but rushed execution. BUT there's also so many positive things to say about jiara!! the fucking hugs we got were incredible and so emotionally charged, every time kie looked at jj you could see her affection written so clearly across her face, and i ADORED how she was so open in expressing it to him. (although i wish there was more direct exploration into the trauma that didn't allow jj to accept that love at first, and more insight into what exactly changed on that front between the anniversary party and the kiss cause it kind of felt like something was missing there). i was hoping for a bit more feral jj too, but i was very pleasantly surprised by the slightly less aggressively feral, but more soul-crushingly worried feral jj that we got. plus the entire scheme of breaking kie out of kitty hawk was so great, he was on a mission and failure was not an option. and then adding onto all that, we got lots of great banter, lots of longing, some beautiful score and soundtrack moments, all in all: we won.

but even with that being said, i'm also 100% with you about the weirdness of the finale, in terms of jiara. i was floored that we didn't really get much of anything for our one episode with established jiara?????? not even a hand hold or a protective arm around the shoulders, idk i haven't rewatched it yet so maybe i'm missing some crumbs, but cleope and jiara in the finale were both so lackluster (aside from cleope's love confession of course that was so fucking adorable). it felt like they had no real reason to even be in south america in the first place, and the limited screen time they did have felt so wasted.

and then yes. we have the time jump. oh the time jump. i had a bad feeling we'd get one, but i was hoping with everything in me that it'd just be a couple of months. not eighteen of them. i can't even express how bummed that ending made me, it was so rushed and didn't really explain anything, and it sucks that we've missed out on such formative periods for both jiara and cleope. BUT my lovely jiara friends are giving me some hope for young adult pogues and all the goodness that could come from that and seeing established jiara a little bit older and more free. i'm also hoping that with the characters finally being older, the show might let itself get more mature again cause holy shit i miss when they let these kids curse whenever they wanted. also jiara sex scene that's all i'm saying

and last but not least, mike fucking carrera. bane of my existence. another gripe with the time jump is that he and anna are cheering for kie?????? so maybe they've reconciled off screen????????? i sure fucking hope not. i really felt for anna for a while too, i liked that she was making an effort to mediate and try to see kie's perspective while mike was so blinded by his own ties to the cut. but anna lost me again when she went along with sending kie away after all. that scene was genuinely bone-chilling, and i don't see any reconciliation from that. kie is with the pogues now. period.

this got so long so fast i am so sorry

[solfics]

ayi’s obx season 3 thoughts:

this is clearly a personal take on the season and these are my opinions, so *dips away*

shoo shoo there’s tons of spoilers here

when i tell you that pope heyward is my main man, i am bringing it with me to my grave.

emphasizing more about pope as this elaborative list goes on

poguelandia is heaven on earth, for real. but ngl i was deadass scared for them because

I CANNOT for the life of me SEE MY 17 YEAR OLD SELF survive in an island even with company around

not joking here, i am clearly amazed with how the pogues are able to live off in an island for about a month (well because it’s fictional) but realistically looking i just can’t pin my head around the idea of it (I DON’T HATE IT BTW)

we were robbed of the friendship scenes

i wish the first two episodes at least showcased the pogues’ life and the poguelandia lifestyle itself

coz that way i would’ve seen what happened to the other pogues when jj proclaimed that the island would be named poguelandia (like imagine how sarah or john b would say “what?” and then pope and kie would agree and be like “poguelandia, that’s it” and jj excitingly goes “pogue-fucking-glandia”) IDK JUST SPITBALLING HERE

haha get it! ok next

rafe did not shine in this season for me sadly

the buzz cut was alright btw

i feel like with singh around rafe clearly became a side character, even ward. like from the way i see it ward and rafe are the villains of the story from season 1-2 but with singh around it looked like rafe was just a side character

i was surprised with the kie and rafe storyline and i was actually expecting more but they gave us 1??? ep and poof that’s it

KIE PUSHING HIM OFF THE BOAT LMFAO i want to feel bad but homeboy strangled my darling THIS IS NOT THE WAY TO GO

back to singh,, he’s such a boring villain please is it just me?

rafe imo is the biggest villain of all.

he’d be a better villain than ward and singh combined idk i just like how drew portrayed rafe’s character !! (WE LOVE YOU DREW)

RAFE AND BARRY AGAIN YUH and i have to say barry looked good w the buzz cut too

i was so confused w rafe’s “love interest” i’m sorry i thought there was supposed to be a storyline between them ?? but ok they look gOOD THO OMYGAWSH

why the fuck is big john here ? why is he hogging the screen time

there is not one episode where i did not think of not wanting to slap the look on big john’s face

bring it home john b- SHUT UP?

idk he’s a bad parent ,, he left john b for HIS safety and justified is as keeping john b safe. not knowing that john b would come after his dad (right? season 1) and look where that got him. danger bestie ,, not so much of a thinker there big john 😕

he showed much more attention to the treasure than his kid PLEASE

the way john b felt so down and guilty and everything negative whenever big john convinced him that what they were doing (k!lling those ppl, stealing, breaking and entering etc) was for their own good because apparently it’ll lead them to the treasure COME ON NOW

did not like how big john treated sarah and the rest esp sarah

SARAH AND TOPPER COME ON NOW WHAT

topper you need to move on bestie…

i thought we were better than this sarah :’( did not like how things went down w her and topper

i thought topper was gonna have a storyline where he gets to officially join the pogues but this is a long shot esp for topper’s character like ik we can all agree that he’d do anything for sarah but joining the pogues?? being one of them?? no right

i do understand how topper can’t move on from sarah but dude *snaps fingers* we gotta go bestie

topper “i’m so mature, i’m so mature” thorton like come on bestie the gasoline? the fire?

the chateau :((((

kie and jj’s chateau scene before the 💥 >>>>

did i mention how we were robbed of the friendship scenes?

i feel like if the scenes weren’t too focused on big john we’d get a whole lot more juice with jj and kiara���s story, the START of pope and cleo’s love story, cleo’s friendship with everyone

i also think that cleo is one of the best additions to the team. she’s got so much to offer and she had her spotlight in this season for real

pope and cleo’s bedroom scene (MY FUCKING HEART HURTS)

“thank you, pope” SUCH AN UNDERRATED SCENE CAN WE TALK ABOUT THIS :((

i freaking hate kie’s parents. period

sarah and john b aww

sarah has the heart of a pogue FOR SURE the gang wouldn’t be where they are if she didn’t understand the clue right away 😎

WE DIDNT SEE MORE OF WHEEZIE BABYGIRL

jj and kiara. that’s it

i was wondering why wouldn’t the school reconsider pope’s situation? he went missing… or maybe is it just the system? i’m not from the west so idk /gen

i will bring this on my grave: pope is a fucking legend.

pope deserves everything he has. i love him and his friends, his family, i love his mind and heart and soul.

“the no love club,” “no chance *swaying w rizz*”

IVE BEEN PICKING MANGOES SINCE I WAS A YOUTH

jimmy 👶

the season was ok but honestly i need more of it

POPE AND CLEO YES MY FUCKING ENDGAME

[whytheylosttheirminds]

(wait why did this reblog go to drafts wtffff!!!!)

I loved this chapter SO much I’m trying to figure out how to explain it. I find Rafe’s pov really hard to write from because let’s be honest who knows what goes on in that head, but you did it so well I was so entranced the whole time! So many good one liners and imagery in each paragraph, here’s some of my faves…

Ward was a hard man, a strong man. The kind of guy who commanded respect, even if he didn’t always show it the way others might expect. But that’s the thing, he was a man of respect. To Rafe, that meant something. Everything.

Captured that dynamic so well, like he knows he wasn’t perfect but he wants the respect that he got and he can’t figure out how to command it so he pushes people away instead

He suddenly pushed himself away from the sink, and turned to face you, his blue eyes practically black with a hurt that was older and deeper than either of you could touch.

Oooooo this sentence was beautiful and I could feel the look in his eyes that’s powerful

“Don’t. Don’t you dare try to make this about me,” he spat, the words ugly in his mouth, it felt like they were scraping their way out of him. “You don’t get to make me the villain in your story just because you’re tired of playing my fucking hero.”

“The words ugly in his mouth” why could I HEAR this line? So good

“Good. Because I stopped feeling sorry for you a long time ago,” you replied sharply, every syllable punctuated with weeks of resentment. “What I feel now? That’s just disappointment.”

If someone said this to me I would simply pass away….

You wondered if he’d put up a fight or if he’d just walked away,  giving in to his sister in that infuriating, self-pitying silence he’d perfected.

Ah yes there he issss

“I’m here. Whatever you need, however you need to do this—I’m here,” she promised, making sure you wouldn’t float away.

I’m obsessed with the imagery of “making sure you would float away” may we all be blessed to have a friend like this ❤️

LOVED YOU AT YOUR WORST - r.c series - SIX

pairings: ex!sweethearts; rafe x thornton!reader; rafe x sofia. chapter warnings: mention of pregnancy; abortion; lack of self-care; drug and alcohol addiction;

Rafe had been clean for the past three years.

Over the course of the year, things between him and you had been smooth sailing. 

It was almost easy, something he wouldn’t have believed a few years back when everything he touched seemed to go up in flames. There’d been a time when he was just too much—angry, impulsive, doing all the wrong things for all the wrong reasons.

He’d been selfish, reckless, it was intense, way too intense, and when you fought, it was like you were both throwing grenades, just waiting to see who’d blow up first. You’d pushed him away, he’d pushed you harder, and you’d both crossed lines that should’ve never even been close.

Eventually, both of you learned to talk instead of shouting, learned when to back down instead of pushing buttons just to get a reaction. You’d gotten better at letting each other breathe. He’d pull back when he felt himself getting heated, and you’d do the same.

It wasn’t perfect; sometimes you’d still get into it, still end up in an argument that felt like old times, but it was different. There were no more lines on the bathroom counter, no disappearing at all hours. 

Until Ward died. 

Rafe didn’t know what the fuck to feel when he got the news. He knew what he was supposed to feel, right? He’d done it before with his mom, now it was his dad’s turn. The man who had raised him, the one to teach him everything he knew about how the world worked, even if it wasn’t pretty. 

Ward was a hard man, a strong man. The kind of guy who commanded respect, even if he didn’t always show it the way others might expect. But that’s the thing, he was a man of respect. 

To Rafe, that meant something. Everything. 

Ward had shaped him, he couldn’t just forget that, couldn’t act like that wasn’t important.

At first, you were there for him, no question. 

He knew you hated Ward, you barely tolerated the thought of him even existing in the same room as you. You spent those first few weeks with him, making sure he didn’t spiral back into the shit that nearly destroyed him. He needed the support, even if he didn’t always know how to ask for it.

You were there, holding it down. You got through it, the late-night talk, but then, you started getting distant.

At first, it was subtle—small things. He’d catch you looking at him like you didn’t quite get him anymore. You’d pull away when he needed you to listen, when he was ranting about Ward, and even though you tried to hide it, Rafe could see the dissociation.

He pretended he didn’t sense it, tried to tell himself you’d come around. 

After all, this was his grief, and no one else was going to understand it the way he did. His dad had been everything to him—maybe not in the way you thought he should’ve been, but that was just the reality of it.

For the first time in years, it felt like you weren’t there with him. It didn’t make sense to him how you couldn’t see it. 

Ward had been a tough guy, sure, cruel sometimes, but he was also a provider, a father who tried to teach him how to survive, even if it didn’t always come wrapped in the right way.

He wasn’t perfect, but he was the only father Rafe had ever known. He was gone all of a sudden and that was what had hurt the most—knowing he’d never get the approval he’d always been chasing, even when he was clean, even when he was doing better. There was no fixing that. 

He wanted to mourn in peace, but no one seemed to understand why Ward still mattered to him, not even Sarah.

Three weeks after the funeral he spent his days surrounded by a few bottles of scotch he’d stolen right out of his dad’s stash. Who was gonna stop him now, anyway? He almost laughed. Three years clean. Shit, that was something, wasn’t it?

He’d had people telling him he wouldn’t make it three weeks, let alone three years. Shit, his dad sure didn’t think he’d get this far. Only you.

Rafe squinted at the amber liquid swirling in his glass, then leaned back in the worn leather of his dad’s old armchair. It felt weird being in here, in his chair, in his office, breathing in that persistent smell of old cigars and varnish.

After the whole “funeral”, with everyone looking at him like he was a wild animal about to snap, this was the only place he could sit without someone judging him.

If you’re so clean, why are you drinking yourself half to death? He took a slow sip, letting it burn down his throat. 

It wasn’t like it used to be, that high that hit fast and hard, and didn’t care if it broke him apart.

This was different, a slower, quieter process.

Besides, he was in control this time. Just a drink, he told himself, fingers tightening around the glass. No powder, no pills. That was progress.

So what if he had to take the edge off? Who wouldn’t, if they’d just said goodbye to their only living parent and had to look at their younger sisters crying like that? 

He was practically swimming in alcohol. Rafe knew he was overdoing it, but he didn’t care.

Every time he saw himself— on a window, mirror, whatever—he had a drink in his hand, and something about it just felt terrifyingly right.

Grounded.

Nobody understood him; they just kept looking at him with that worried face, like he was on the verge of losing it like he used to when he was younger. Maybe he already had.

You watched him—really watched him—and yeah, he could tell you were pissed. He saw it in that little wrinkle between your eyebrows every time he took another sip. But you didn’t say anything. 

Even Wheezie was on his case in her quiet way.

She was hanging around, throwing out old jokes and trying to make him smile, but he barely reacted. She was looking at him like she was scared, as if he was some stranger she was trying not to set off. And he hated that—God, he fucking hated it. So he kept his distance, hoped she would back off, let him get through this his way.

But then came that night at the beach bonfire, when everything changed.

He probably shouldn’t have gone, but he needed to get out and feel normal again—even if that just implied showing up and pretending, he was fine. He dragged you along, flashing that cocky grin you could see right through, but you followed anyway, probably just to keep an eye on him. He could feel it—the way you were watching him, worried as hell, that just made him want another drink.

Half the people were staring, too. Waiting to see if he was gonna go off, if he was back to the same volatile Rafe he used to be, the one they loved watching spin out. And just when he thought he could ignore it, some random pogue, scruffy, half-drunk, threw out a comment loud enough for the whole group around him to hear.

“Guess Ward Cameron finally found some gold he couldn’t buy his way out of, huh? What was he thinking, running off to some country where people don’t just take bribes? Practically killed himself.”

It took everything in him not to lunge right there, but he was too plastered to keep the anger off his face. He pushed his way over to the guy, hands clenched into fists.

“You got something you want to say to my fuckin’ face?”

The guy shrugged, muttering something under his breath, people were looking now, everyone watching to see if he was finally going to give them a show.

Before he knew what he was doing, he was shoving him back, hard enough that the dude stumbled, beer splashing out of his cup. The crowd around them stirred, murmurs, but nobody did a thing—they were just staring, waiting to see the blood spill. He felt tempted to hurt someone, felt that cameron fury crawling up his throat.

It didn’t matter that he was twice as drunk as he should be; all that mattered was the way his father’s name was rolling off this nobody’s lips.

He felt you grab his arm, long nails digging hard enough to pull him back, he jerked his shoulder, trying to shake you off, but you weren’t letting go.

“You’re gonna waste your time on him?”

Rafe gritted his teeth, but you didn’t give him a chance to argue. You hauled him back, forcing him away from the guy, who was still standing there with that smug look plastered on his face. 

“Get out. Now,” you urged him, voice calm but with the tone that even he didn’t want to test. He glared at you, mouth opening to argue, but you didn’t let him get a word in. “Rafe. Now.”

You were mad at him.

It was enough to knock some sense into him, and he let you reel him away, but not before you turned back.

“And you,” you called out, enough to silence the chatter around you. “Keep your fuckin’ mouth shut.” 

There was no bluff, no hesitation, and Rafe watched as the pogue’s smug expression dropped instantly, eyes widening as he realized you were dead serious, your family’s name always had an impact around town, old money and all.

As you dragged him to the car, he muttered that he didn’t need you playing bodyguard, but you ignored it, taking him out of the spotlight he hated but couldn’t seem to avoid.

His head was spinning, his blood boiling, and he couldn’t even look at you, not with how angry he felt.

By the time you pulled up to his house, you got out, guiding him inside with that hard, that silent determination he both hated and admired in you. 

You were there, right behind him with that look on your face—angry, disappointed, like he was missing something big, as if he was the one who didn’t get it.

He stumbled into the bathroom, holding himself against the sink, and before he could even catch his breath, you turned on the faucet and splashed cold water in his face. He jerked back, sputtering, wiping it with the back of his hand. When he looked at you, his anger burned again.

“What the fuck is your problem?” he snapped.

“My problem?” you scoffed head already shaking, “Are you serious?”

“You don’t get it,” he growled, barely controlling the rage, the shame—everything. “You don’t know a fuckin’ thing about him. I had the right to defend him.”

You took a step forward, finger pointed at your chest, “Don’t I? Because I remember standing in this very house, watching him tear you down every chance he got. You’re so busy mourning this man who treated you like shit, that you’re pushing the people who care about you away. It’s not just me. It’s everyone.”

Rafe laughed bitterly, the sound humorless. “Oh, here we go,” he muttered, rolling his eyes as he turned back to the sink, gripping the edge hard enough to make his knuckles turn white.

“Don’t you dare roll your fucking eyes at me,” you retaliated, stepping up beside him. “I stood by you through all of it, I’m not gonna stand here and watch you kill yourself because of him. He’s the reason you felt like you had to be so perfect all the time, why you’re always trying to prove yourself to people who don’t deserve it. And now he’s gone, and you still can’t see it. You’re still trying to be good enough for him!”

He didn’t look at you, didn’t want to see the indignation—or worse, the pity—in your eyes.

“Just stop,” he muttered, but you were past listening.

“No, I won’t stop. I can’t. I can’t keep watching you do this to yourself again. You’re better than this.”

He suddenly pushed himself away from the sink, and turned to face you, his blue eyes practically black with a hurt that was older and deeper than either of you could touch.

“You don’t get to stand there and tell me what I deserve.”

“I know what you deserve.” 

He scoffed, rolling his eyes again, though his face had gone a shade paler. “You think you know everything, don’t you?” he sneered. “Think you know what’s best for me? Get off your high horse.”

“You’re damn fucking right I know better than you do, I’m not the one who’s drowning every night in some pathetic tribute to a man who wouldn’t piss on you if you were on fire.”

He could feel it now, the bitterness you’d been hiding for weeks. It wasn’t just about him drinking himself stupid. It was everything—every fucking thing you’d been ignoring, it had festered between you two while you pretended things were okay.

“You’re the one who’s just tired of me, of everything that comes with me.”

You took a step back, eyes narrowing, but you didn’t flinch.

“What?” Your rage momentarily dialed down, the sound gurgling, “You think I’m tired of you? I’ve been here this whole time, trying to make you see the truth, but you won’t even look at me. You won’t let me in. You’re too fucking blind to notice.”

His breath was shaky, too fast, but he didn’t care. “So now I’m blind, huh? I didn’t see you sneaking out the door when I needed you? I didn’t notice how you pulled back, how you stopped giving a fuck about me? You’re just waiting for me to give you an excuse to leave.”

You opened your mouth to argue, but he wasn’t done.

“You don’t get it! I didn’t need you to fix me, I needed someone to stay. But instead, you—" His voice cracked, the anger choking him up, "Instead, you started to make me feel like I was a b-burden. Some mess you had to clean up. How am I supposed to deal with that, huh?"

You were shaking your head, your eyes had already been filled with tears, your chest suffocating.

“I’ve been here. I’ve been standing right next to you, waiting for you to pull your shit together. I didn’t walk away. You did.

His stomach churned, as if you’d taken every inch of space in his chest and twisted it, just for fun. The worst part was, he couldn’t even argue with you. Not really. He had been so wrapped up in his own shit, so obsessed with keeping everyone out, that he hadn’t even seen how far you’d already gone.

“Don’t. Don’t you dare try to make this about me,” he spat, the words ugly in his mouth, it felt like they were scraping their way out of him. “You don’t get to make me the villain in your story just because you’re tired of playing my fucking hero.”

“I’m not trying to play the hero!” you screamed, stepping closer, your eyes were cold. “I’m trying to help you see that you have to fix this. Not me. Not anyone else. But you. And if you’re so fucking broken you can’t see that, then maybe you really don’t need me.”

The silence that followed was thick, suffocating. Rafe could feel his heart racing, that agonizing coil in his chest, but he couldn’t stop.

“Maybe you’re right,” he said, voice quieter, but just as venomous.

He turned his back on you, walking to the door. The sound of his boots clamped against the wood floor like a countdown.

“Maybe I don’t. Grab your shit and go.”

"Don’t you fucking—" you snarled, but he was already moving, grabbing your jacket off the hook by the door and throwing it your way, “You know what? Fine. Maybe I will.” You shoved that stupid thing on, hands shaking as you yanked the zipper up. “Don’t come running back in two days like you always do. Don’t come crawling back.”

Rafe paused, hand on the doorknob, his jaw clenched so hard you could see the muscle ticking.

He didn’t turn around, didn’t look back at you.

“I don’t need you to feel sorry for me.”

“Good. Because I stopped feeling sorry for you a long time ago,” you replied sharply, every syllable punctuated with weeks of resentment. “What I feel now? That’s just disappointment.”

You watched his shoulders lock up; his whole body wound so tight it was like he was one wrong look away from completely losing it. He didn’t turn around either, even as you slipped out the door, but he knew.

That was it.

Two moths later, almost three, he was standing in front of the ER pacing like a complete fucking idiot after you passed out in his arms earlier.

He’d told himself he’d stay away, make it easy for both of you. 

That shitty plan had gone down the drain once he saw you speed away at that party with absolutely no regard for your safety or Topper’s. He’d seen that wild look in your eyes before—the one that said you were about to burn it all down. Or when your dad’s gala came around, and he couldn’t sleep properly knowing he wasn’t going to be there that year, knowing how you spiraled every time you had to step on that stage.

He had stupidly thought that maybe, one day, you two could still be friends. But today? That shit blew up in his face, for the second time in the span of a week.

He forgot what you could invoke in him when you were standing merely an inch away. He promised himself that he’d moved on, forced to consider that the love of his life might not be someone he could spend his lifetime with. Maybe you weren’t meant for each other.

But how the fuck was he supposed to act when the girl who had been everything to him was hurting? 

No, no, no.

Sofia was what he needed.

Someone who didn’t know shit about his past, who didn’t ask questions he didn’t want to answer. She hadn’t seen him the way you had, hadn’t been there through every drunken rant and punch he’d thrown at the wall or someone’s face, hadn’t heard him rail against his dad or drag himself back from one of his darkest nights. 

She hadn’t called him a fucking idiot when he chose to throw his father’s ashes on the ocean. She wasn’t going to call him a coward for it. She didn’t have a clue about any of it, and that was supposed to be what he wanted.

He looked up at the ER doors for the millionth time in the past hour, his fingers clenched around his jeep keys so tight they left marks on his hand.

It was over between you two. He’d make sure to keep the fucking distance, two whole months. If he didn’t give you enough closure, you’d hate him faster and you’d both get over it. 

So why the fuck was he about to set the whole hospital on fire as he watched John B’s beat up twinkie pull up to the parking area? It shouldn’t have surprised him, but it did. 

Of course you’d call her, his own sister—his father's favorite.

Sarah had always been the golden child, Ward’s little angel who could do no wrong, while he was the family screw-up. Even now, you’d picked her, just like Ward would have. 

He didn’t think before he moved, closing the distance between him them in seconds. 

“What the fuck are you doing here?” He barked right up in her face, daring her to explain herself.

Sarah didn’t back down, though. She just looked up at him with that same cool, level expression she always had whenever he tried to get a rise out of her. 

“I’m here because she called me.”

“She called you?” He scoffed, eyebrows pulling together in disbelief. “You? She called you?” He took a step closer, “So what, you’re her savior now or some shit? Why the hell would she call you if I’m right here?” His eyes narrowed, searching her face like he couldn’t believe it. “Are you kidding me?”

Sarah threw her hands up, a look of pure exasperation on her face.

“Are you dense, Rafe? You’re with someone else! Why would she want the guy who broke her heart to drive her home?”

He blinked, thrown off. “I broke her heart? She broke mine!” He laughed, but it was harsh, bitter. “I did us a favor. We were just—”

“Oh, right. A favor?” Sarah cut in, voice dripping with sarcasm. “That why you’re pacing out here like a goddamn lunatic?”

“Go away. I’m driving her home.”

She stepped closer, her voice steely as she looked him dead in the eye.

“No. She called me, she wants me here. Not you. So do yourself a real favor and go home before you do something even more stupid.”

A breathless chuckle escaped his lips, “She already hates me, Sarah. What’s the fucking harm, huh?” He threw his arms out, as if daring her to come up with an answer that would hurt less. “What’s one more screw-up on top of everything else?”

“You’re real dumb if you believe that. But if you wanna make it worse, then by all means, go ahead. You’ll just prove her right.”

He stayed rooted in place, chest heaving, the conflict ripping him to pieces. His hands shook, his throat tight with words he couldn’t even begin to understand.

But Sarah had already turned her back on him, heading toward the entrance.

“Walk away,” she warned him, looking over her shoulder, “That’s the only thing left for you to do right now.”

Rafe didn’t know why the fuck he listened to her.

It was as if his body had already made that decision for him, understanding that if he didn’t leave right then, he’d end up doing something stupid—something even more fucked up than what he’d already done. His tongue was locked in place, a curse on the tip of his pursed lips, but it never came. 

His feet wouldn’t move, his hands stayed at his sides, and that tightness in his throat wouldn’t let him get a single word out, not one that would make any fucking sense. He hated that. Hated that you still had this kind of control over him.

Hated that he just…felt like something was wrong.

You hadn’t been this frantic, so impulsive since he had to take you home after your sister passed. He didn’t want to remember that night—you damn near threw yourself out of his truck.

But he couldn’t ignore the memory, the desperation on your face, the screams, the fight in his grip as he pulled you by your shirt back inside.

He’d felt like he was holding on to something breaking apart in his hands, something he couldn’t fix but couldn’t let go of either. He’d seen it again in your eyes when he’d caught you earlier at the beach clean-up, the way you’d tried to dodge his stare, voice cracking, legs wobbling when he mentioned the hospital. 

Rafe still felt like he’d swallowed shattered pieces of glass every time he thought about you. And if he could just push it down, if he could just get through one fucking day without looking back, maybe he’d start to forget you.

His feet were glued to the hospital pavement, his heartbeat thundering in his ears. If you were about to crash, if this was anything like before…He didn’t know what the fuck he was going to do.

He had no reason to stay, you’d made it clear as day. He was supposed to be gone—out of your life for good. You’d told him you didn’t need him, he told you he didn’t need you. So why the hell was he still standing here? 

Perhaps because he remembered the last time he’d let you walk out, the way he’d watched you disappear, thinking he was doing the right thing—giving you the clean end you’d both needed.

Maybe that made him sick to his stomach now, thinking of you in there with Sarah, telling his sister things you wouldn’t say to him, letting her be the person he once was to you.

But you’d called her, not him. You’d picked Sarah to be here, and that hurt like a bitch, but it was what he’d asked for, wasn’t it?

This was what he deserved. He told you to grab your shit and go, forced you to leave because that was supposed to make it easier.

He’d impulsively made his choice the minute he’d wrapped his arm around Sofia, pulling her close in front of everyone who’d once known he was yours. He’d talked himself into it. It was the right call, moving on was the only way to finally get you out of his system. 

He was the one who decided it’d be easier to act like he forgot you than to actually try. He thought he could make it easy—pain-free.

Rafe pinched the bridge of his nose as he walked back toward his Jeep. He gripped the door handle so hard he could break it in half if he wanted to, feeling his knuckles strain.

If he let go, if he closed that door and stormed inside, he’d just be right back where he started.

He stared at his reflection in the window, his hardened face staring back. His pulse was pounding in his temples, his gut twisting and turning as he tried to bury it all six feet under—the need to just go to you, to hold your hand or yell at you for making him care so fucking much.

He finally released the death grip he had on the door handle, forcing his fingers to relax, his knuckles still throbbing. He slid into the driver’s seat, the cold leather you’d help him choose, mocking at his skin as he slammed the door shut.

With a quick flick of his wrist, he threw the car into drive, the tires screeching as he peeled out of the parking lot.

He drove like he was being hunted down. He wanted to get as far away from that place as possible, praying the miles between him and you would stop the churning inside him. 

You’ll just prove her right.

He hated her for saying it, hated Sarah for knowing exactly what buttons to push. 

As he rounded a curve, his headlights swept across Topper’s house. Rafe cut the engine and stalked toward the backyard. Topper’s sprawled-out form on a reclining chair, arms crossed over his chest, sunglasses somehow still on evenly.

He stomped up and smacked the end of his chair.

"Wake the fuck up."

He jolted, nearly tumbling off the chair, ripping his sunglasses off and squinting up at him. “Jesus fucking christ, dude, ever heard of calling ahead?”

But Rafe didn’t answer. He just paced, hands in his growing hair, digging into his scalp like he could rip the frustration out of his skull. Topper sighed, propping himself up on one elbow, he didn’t even look at him, just kept muttering to himself, biting his lip, pacing.

“What the hell happened?”

Finally, he stopped, “I need you to find out what’s wrong with your cousin,” he muttered, not wanting to admit he cared enough to ask.

Topper blinked, brow furrowing. “What do you mean, what’s wrong with her?”

Rafe only shook his head, hands on his hips as he stared at the ground. “I don’t know, okay? She just…she’s acting off. And I can’t—I’m not supposed to care, Top. I’m not. I’m with Sofia now, alright? But she’s still…” His voice trailed off, as he scrubbed a hand down it.

Topper tilted his head, eyeing him knowingly.

“Right, yeah, whatever you say. I’ll figure it out.”

If Sarah Cameron didn’t walk through that hospital door within the next three minutes, you’d lose all the courage you’d summoned over the last hours. Or was it just an hour? You weren’t sure how long you’d been lying there, the IV needle taped uncomfortably into your arm. 

Your fingers curled into the thin blanket draped over you, and you wished—desperately—that you didn’t feel so…empty.

Ten minutes later, she strode in with a glance at the door, as if she wasn’t sure if she’d be able to get there on time. The relief on her face when she saw you was reassuring but it only made the confusion in your chest heavier.

She was so different from Rafe, yet still looked so much like him. She sat in the chair by the bed, eyes scanning your face like she was trying to gauge just how bad it was.

“Hi.”

You swallowed, blinking up at the ceiling to keep the tears at bay.

“Thanks for coming.” 

“Of course,” She reached for your hand where it lay on top of the blanket, hesitating for a split second before giving it a reassuring squeeze. “You okay?” 

You felt a laugh bubble up, “Not even a little.”

She let out a small breath and nodded, squeezing your hand again. “I figured,” she said quietly, and you appreciated that she didn’t pretend to have some miracle answer, “I made him leave.”

She’d made him leave.

You could imagine his face distorted with anger.

You wondered if he’d put up a fight or if he’d just walked away,  giving in to his sister in that infuriating, self-pitying silence he’d perfected.

You weren’t going to ask, the less you knew, the better.

“Good.” You were relieved, but it felt bittersweet, “I didn’t want him here.” 

Except your voice shook, like it simply had to let her know you were lying.

You’d been telling yourself for so long that you didn’t need him—that you didn’t want him anywhere near you. But the second you pictured him there, waiting… God, you hated yourself.

Hated that tiny, pathetic part of you that still wanted him to care, even if it was just a sliver of anything that wasn’t anger or flat-out ignoring you.

“He threw a hissy fight, but don’t worry. He’s not coming back.”

You nodded, half in agreement, half in frustration, “He never listens.”

“Especially when it matters,” Sarah added, rolling her eyes. “I swear, sometimes I think he just likes to make things worse for himself. And everyone else.”

You recalled the sound of his footsteps trailing yours earlier, the way his hand had hovered near you when you swayed, the wild look on his face when you told him to back off. He had seemed…hurt. Like he wanted to fix something he’d already smashed to pieces.

“I don’t want to talk about him.”

She respected that—she wouldn’t insist. There was a lot to unpack when it came to Rafe, but you didn’t need to go there right now. She could tell.

"Okay. Do you want to tell me why you called me and not Topper?”

There wasn’t any judgment in her tone—just plain curiosity, confusion. And you couldn’t blame her. If the roles were reversed, you’d be asking the same thing.

You had to bite your lips to avoid crying for the hundredth time that day. You hadn’t planned on telling someone the biggest secret of your life in a public space, or after nearly having a mental breakdown.

Not like this, with the IV in your arm.

"I—" you started, the words tangled in your throat. "I don't trust him," you admitted quietly, "I don’t trust him with this.”

This.

You turned your head to look out the window, the late afternoon light pouring through the blinds, but it never touched the void you felt inside. 

“He’s too close. He wouldn’t get it. I needed someone who could just… not be involved, you know? I mean—You’re still his sister but—”

Sarah’s already frowning, interrupting your pitying party, “Sweet girl, you don’t have to explain your reasons to me. I’m listening either way. I don’t know what’s going on, but I get it, I understand why you’d want to keep him out of this.”

“You’re the only one I can trust to keep this a secret,” you confessed, “If anyone finds out—if Rafe finds out—it’s over. I’m not ready for that.”

A shadow crossed Sarah’s face, her lips pressing into a thin line. She didn’t ask questions about what you meant—about how Rafe had ruined things before. She didn’t need to. 

“I won’t tell him,” Sarah promised, her grip tightening on your skin. “It’s safe with me. I’ve got your back.”

You closed your eyes, breathing out slowly.

This was hard, harder than anything you’d ever done before, and that was saying something considering all the shit you went through when your family died. She had no idea what you were about to say, and you couldn’t help but wonder if it would change everything between you—between you and her, and you and everyone else.

"Sara, I—" The truth choked you once more, cutting you off. You couldn’t breathe.

Your chest felt vacant, something was missing, something that you didn’t know how to fix, but you had to say it. It was the only way out.

“Are you—" she started to ask, but you quickly shook your head. You could hear the hesitation in her voice.

"Just… just let me tell you,” You begged, pushing the words out before you lost them. “I-I’m pregnant,” you finally blurted out, as if confessing it all at once could make it easier.

But it didn’t. 

You didn’t dare look at Sarah right away. 

Your eyes were stuck on the ceiling, blinking rapidly, you didn’t need her to see how much this was breaking you or how terrified you were. You could feel her eyes on you now, and your hand clenched around the blanket, your knuckles white from the lack of circulation. 

Then, slowly, Sarah squeezed your hand again, she was giving you a moment to breathe, even though you didn’t feel like you deserved it.

“Rafe’s?” she asked quietly, confirming what you already knew she understood.

You nodded, not needing to say it aloud; she could sense the truth in the way your chest hitched, how you couldn’t bring yourself to meet her eyes.

“God,” Sarah breathed out, "And you... you want to...?"

You nodded again. She wasn’t asking if you were sure; you could hear it in the hesitation of her question. She was asking if you were ready to make the choice.

“I don’t want this,” you choked out, the tears finally breaking free. “I can’t have it, Sarah. I can’t. I’m not ready for that. I’m not sure I even know what I want anymore," you spit the doubt out with the brokenness you felt, wiping the traitorous tear that traced down your cheek. "I don’t know what to do."

“I’m here. Whatever you need, however you need to do this—I’m here,” she promised, making sure you wouldn’t float away.

“I can’t… I just… I don’t want him to find out,” you managed between shallow breaths. “If he knew, he’d… I don’t know what he’d do. Maybe it’s stupid, but I don’t want him to look at me like… like he owns me something.”

Sarah nodded, not a hint of judgment on her face, “He won’t know a thing from me, I swear. He’ll never have any say in this, not unless you want him to. This is your choice, no one else’s.”

You didn’t know you’d been holding your breath, but it came out all at once in a shaky exhale.

“Thank you. I just… I didn’t know who else I could ask.”

“Hey,” she said, her voice gentle. “This? This is exactly what I’m here for. I’ve got you, no matter what.”

The empathy there, the way she held space for all your broken pieces.

“New Mexico’s clinic rules… they won’t let me go through with it alone. They said I need someone with me.” You took a shaky breath. “I can’t imagine anyone else but you there, Sarah.”

“Then I’ll be there,” she said, without hesitation. “I’ll get the tickets, we’ll go together. And if you feel like breaking down, then break down, because you don’t have to keep any of this in anymore.”

Her words broke something in you that had been holding everything so tightly. The relief, the gratitude— “You’re really… You’d really do this for me?”

“Of course,” she murmured, pulling you close so your head rested against her shoulder, her fingers brushing through your hair soothingly. “Sweet girl, I’d do this a thousand times over.”

“I mean—he’s your brother. I don’t want to mess things up between you two even more.”

She sighed, giving a small, sad smile, almost like she’d been waiting for you to say that. “You think he’s my priority right now? Don’t you worry about me and him, we always figure it out. Trust me, I’m used to it.”

“He might hate me for this. And if he takes that out on you…” You couldn’t finish.

“Listen to me,” she sighed, “I’m here because I care about you. Rafe and I, we’ll always have our issues—he’s stubborn, and he thinks he has all the answers. But that’s our problem. He’ll never have a say over what I do or who I’m there for. Especially not with this.”

You swallowed hard, “I don’t want you to regret it.”

She gave a wry laugh, brushing a piece of hair back from your face. “You don’t have to protect me from him, remember? He’s my brother, yeah, I love him despite all our shit, but I’m not here for him right now. I’m here for you.”

“You’re sure?” you asked, the question a whisper, almost childlike. You were afraid of the answer, terrified she’d eventually pull away.

“Of course I’m sure,” she replied, tilting your chin so you’d meet her eyes. “Whatever’s going on with Rafe will figure itself out—But right now, you need someone who’s all in, no strings, no doubts. That’s me. You focus on you. I’ll handle him.”

You looked down at your hands, fidgeting with the edge of the blanket, “I don’t think he loves me anymore,” you admitted, almost hoping she wouldn’t hear it, “I was so mean when your dad died.”

When you finally looked up, Sarah was watching you with a sad smile, one that made your heart hurt in both comfort and ache. “You really believe that?” she asked quietly, and you could hear the disbelief in her voice as if it was so obvious to her, something you couldn’t see.

You nodded, swallowing down the sting in your throat. “He doesn’t want me, not really. He’s…he pulled away. Like he’d rather hate me than be close to me. He’s with her.” 

The words tasted bitter, and made you want to hurt him twice as bad, but there was finally some relief in saying it out loud.

She sighed, looking down for a second, almost like she was thinking how to tell you something that hurt her to admit.

“I don’t think that’s the problem,” she murmured, with a knowing sadness. “I think the problem is that you two will never stop loving each other. He’s still hurting from dad’s passing, he’s angry because he doesn’t know how to stop loving you. And you—you’re here, angry that he loved my dad so much, hurt that he left, trying to protect me from him, still worrying about me when you should be focusing on yourself. You’re scared he doesn’t care anymore, and he’s scared you don’t need him at all."

Your lips quivered, your heart about to leap out of your throat, your tongue darted out, briefly brushing your lips.

You weren’t sure you should say it out loud, but maybe you had to. “We’re better off without each other, aren’t we?”

“You’re allowed to be someone without him, and you’re allowed to find out who that is.”

You were slipping, falling back into that spiral of guilt and shame, the one that told you maybe this was all you were good for. Maybe Rafe was right to break things off, perhaps he’d realized that, in the end, you weren’t worth fighting for.

And shit, you hated yourself for still caring. For still wanting him to want you, even though you knew it was poison. Even though you knew that being with him, needing him, was only dragging you both down.

“Thank you.”

And as you sat there, in the stillness of that room, with the sunlight dimming outside, you felt that maybe someday you’d be able to trust yourself too. To believe that you were worth more than the heartache you’d come to accept as your own.

TAGLIST: @maybankslover @october-baby25 @haruvalentine4321 @hopelesslydevoted2paige

@rafebb @rafesbby @whytheylosttheirminds

@zyafics @astarlights @bruher @nosebeers @carrerascameron

@serrendiipty @sunny1616 @yootvi @ditzyzombiesblog

@psychocitylights @maibelitaaura @kiiyomei

@stoned-writer @justafangirls-blog-deactivated2

@starkeygirlposts @enjoymyloves @ijustwanttoreadlols @icaqttt

[incorrect-uncharted]

I finally went to see Uncharted!

Like I said in my previous post, I finally got to see Uncharted in the theatre! I was very excited to see it on the big screen and I would like to share my thoughts on it. 

In short: I really enjoyed the movie! The pacing was good, there was a good balance between action and puzzles, the acting was... decent, in my opinion. So overall, I really liked it! I think that both fans of the games as people who know nothing about the franchise will enjoy it!

That said... Of course, as a fan of the games, there are some flaws to it, which I was expecting. But there were some really great moments as well! I’m going to go into a bit more detail below the cut, but just a warning, THIS WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS!!! So if you are still planning on watching the movie, don’t click below the cut!!

Also, for anyone who’s going to watch the movie: there is a post credit scene after the first part of the credits, so make sure you catch that! (I doubt there’s another post credit scene after the full credits, but if there is, I unfortunately missed that one).

Okay, so beyond this point, this post will contain spoilers! And if you read further, I hope you enjoy my ranting :)

- Mod Char

Okay, I’m going to start with the things I didn’t really like about the movie, just so I can end on a positive note. Like I said above, I really enjoyed the movie, but there were some things that bothered me.

Sully. That’s it. I can’t really explain it, but Mark Wahlberg’s Sully didn’t work for me. He wasn’t a bad character, per se, but he just didn’t feel like Sully to me. He lacked Sully’s charm and charisma from the games. I know that this is a version of Sully from before we get to know him, but... Eh? I don’t know. He’d be an okay character if he wasn’t based on the Sully we know and love, but this Sully just didn’t do it for me.

The writers completely changed the way Nate and Sully met. I think we all expected this from the trailer, but I still didn’t like it. It worked in the movie and it’s a decent meeting if you don’t know anything about the games, but I feel as if the way Sully and Nate met is an important moment in the series and changing it to what is was in the movie is a shame. Also, their relationship felt a bit off. Again, this might just be because this is a version of them from before they got close, so maybe that’s just it, but I missed the father/son relationship, the banter, the bad jokes,...

The Bad Guys, Antonio Banderas’s Moncada and Tati Gabrielle’s Braddock. They... Really no offence, but they were boring. They felt like a cheap version of Rafe and Nadine, and I feel like that’s an insult to Rafe and Nadine. There was nothing likeable about them, which a good villain needs. I don’t feel like they added anything to the story? I mean, Chloe felt like a bigger threat to Nate and Sully than Braddock and Moncada did. I just didn’t like them, I’m sorry...

Speaking of Chloe: I did enjoy her character, Sophia Ali did a great job! But there were parts where I felt she was out of character. Now, this could be because, like Sully, she’s a version of Chloe from before we get to know her in the games, so maybe that’s just it. But she betrayed Nate and Sully multiple times throughout the movie and that bothered me. It could just be my “let’s all get along” mindset but... Yeah... Didn’t like that part of her.

Nate and Sam’s backstory. I know this is a small detail and very insignificant to the movie, but it still irked me. The movie said that their parents weren’t there anymore, which is true for their mum, but their dad just left them. Point that out? I feel like that’s an important detail for the brothers’ backstory. Also, the movie said that their parents (or one of them, I don’t remember) told them they were descendants of Francis Drake, instead of Sam coming up with it. A small change, but I don’t think it needed to be changed for the movie.

There were some moments where the product placement bothered me? I know it’s obvious that movies have product placement, but the way they did it felt out of place for me (especially the Papa John’s annoyed me, I don’t know why).

The flying ships at the end xD Though cool, it was a bit much for me.

There are probably other things that bothered me, but I can’t remember them right now. But the things I mentioned above were the ones that stuck with me the most.

Now, for the things I did enjoy (and I think this list is going to be longer than the negative things)!

I really enjoyed Tom Holland as Nate. Was he the perfect actor for the part? Maybe not completely,  but he did it really well! The thing is, I just see Tom Holland as Tom Holland. But I enjoyed his performance, I feel like he did the role justice. And like I said above, I really enjoyed Sophia Ali’s performance of Chloe (apart from the certain ooc moments obviously).

The opening scene. The plane scene. I know this is a complete rip off from the scene in UC3, but I loved that they started the movie like this! It felt like a call back to the opening of UC2 and UC4 where you end up right in the middle of the action without knowing how the characters got there and the game, or in this case movie, then eventually reaching that point. I didn’t realise this was a call back until over halfway through the movie, though... I felt like slapping myself for taking so long to realise.

I wasn’t expecting young Sam and Nate, and I loved it! I loved that the movie brought back St Francis orphanage and that they gave some backstory to the brothers like this. Also, and I know this is me being a big nerd, but I loved that Sam’s shirt was actually red and white like in the game (yeah, I’m that big of a nerd).

Mr. Whiskers. The most unnecessary yet amazing addition to this movie.

REFERENCES! I may have missed a few, but I loved the ones I did catch! To sum up a few:

There was a Naughty Dog sticker on a suitcase

I’m pretty sure there was a “Nate the Great” reference? It’s in the scene where Nate arrives at the bar he works at. His manager is telling him a bunch of things (that he’s late and all) and somehow uses the word “great” as well, to which Nate goes “only the great is right”. So... It could be a reach, but I feel like that was a reference.

They made a “well, well, well” joke. I love it!

The plane scene, obviously.

I think the auction scene was a call back to the auction in UC4? I mean... It pretty much copied it, not gonna lie.

I loved the post credit scene! Not only did Sully FINALLY get his moustache, hawaiian shirt and cigar, but they foreshadowed the German U-boat in the rainforest and they mentioned Roman aka one of the bad guys from UC1.

I’m probably forgetting a few...

Nolan fcking North!!! It was such a small scene, a cameo really, but I loved that they put it in! I was so excited to see him laying on his beach chair! And they actually put Nate’s Theme during this short scene!! It may have made me emotional. Just... Perfect!

Nate and Chloe on that box in the ocean. It was so dumb. I love it.

Speaking of Nate and Chloe: I’m so glad they didn’t have them hook up. So happy about that. I didn’t like them romantically in the games and was afraid that the writers would add this to the movie, so I’m glad it all stayed platonic.

The moment Nate finds Magellan’s ships. There was something that felt so right about that moment. The music was great, the atmosphere of that scene, the time they took for it. Yes.

Continuing the point above, the moment Nathan Drake becomes Nathan Drake. It sounds weird, but when Nate was fighting bad guys on the ship and he puts on the holsters, and he’s got the ring and the shirt and Nate’s Theme begins to play again, it felt like “there he is. There’s Nathan Drake.”

Nate and Sully’s interaction in the helicopter (before Nate put on the headphone’s obviously). It felt like a very Nate and Sully scene and I’m sad they didn’t make Nate commit to saying how thankful he was, but I guess it’s a way to show what their relationship can and will be.

SAM! I mean, when they said he died, obviously I didn’t believe it. But seeing him at the very end of the movie (presumably in a Panamanian jail) felt like a good ending (though I don’t agree that the way he ended up in the prison isn’t the same as in the games). It leaves you wondering what happens next (unless you’ve played the games, of course). I feel like that scene plus the post credit scene could set up a next movie, but that would be one for people who haven’t played the games. Seeing Sam in prison and seeing Nate and Sully talk about Roman, we all know what’s going to happen next. There’s no need for another movie then.

So in general, I liked it! Was it perfect? Far from, but it was an enjoyable movie in my opinion. I feel like the opinions are going to be very mixed, which I’m not surprised about, but I personally liked it.

One thing I missed, was some sort of Elena cameo or a reference. Just, I don’t know, an article with her name in the by-line, like a blink and you miss it thing. I really thought we’d get something like that.

I also felt like I could see certain scenes be actual moments in one of the games? Certain chases or certain action scenes where you just know “yeah, I’m going to have to gun my way out of this one” in the game. I did appreciate that. It made the tie in with the games better.

Either way, I rambled on for way too long. Let me know what you think! I’m curious to hear other people’s opinions! Leave a reply to this post, a message in our inbox (or feel free to message me in private if you prefer that).

If you made it this far, holy crap, thanks for reading!

- Mod Char

[khaleesiofalicante]

Hola Dani 👋🏼 how are you??

Are you about to go...

On us again?

A Fucking Breakup

THE BEGINNING

“Magnus,” Alec swallows, his voice raw and hoarse. “I can explain.”

That always sounds bad, not matter how inocent you are those words would make you sound guilty, which my twin is!!

“Well,” Magnus says and removes Alec’s hands from his face. “Now you do.”

That was rough!!! I'm sorry for my twin I know he fucked up bad and that saying sorry sometimes isn't enough but I hate to see him in pain...

On the other hand,  good for you Magnus, you don't need that lying hoe in your life...!!

What?? I can simp from two fronts 😎

THE MIDDLE

Twitter is starting to feel like the real villain of the story 😒

It had always been his vice with Magnus.

His need to know everything.

Very unhealthy of you!!

He is pretty sure he is no longer entitled to know the things he wants to know.

Ok but...  being married to a person doesn't mean you're entitled to their entire history also I'm pretty sure Magnus would tell you anything if you ask nicely!!

Alec had half expected Raphael to share an angry tweet about how he would rather impale himself on Cleopatra’s Needle than date Magnus - because he had in fact actually said those words out loud once.

Can't relate but what a fantastic quote 🤣🤣

And of course, there was a new hashtag.

#GetAlecLaid

OMG 🤣 was this Maxwell??

It did not help that Max had shared an insta story with a screenshot of the list and said ‘as if he could pull adam lambert lmao”

I knew my chaotic child wouldn't stay away from that 🤣🤣🤣

“You don’t get to break my heart and tell me how to fix it.”

This quote 🤯

Fuck everyone who is in it.

I wanna know who made the list 🙃

He likes gifs.

He loves them.

AQKDLQLQL...!!! THIS RIGHT HERE!! My fellow homies homos and hoes I'm claiming this 2 lines for myself, consider yourselves notified 😌

Max and Magnus have made up a couple of weeks ago – to Alec’s fucking relief.

🙌🏼🙌🏼🙌🏼🙌🏼

Because if there is even a 0.001% that he will get back together with Magnus, he will hold onto it.

As will I...!!!

Because there is a tiny voice inside his that tells him that Magnus doesn’t want him anymore.

That voice is gaslighting you so bad it probably sounds like Camille 😨

He is just gonna have to spill his champagne on his coat “accidentally” and remove his coat so he can reveal what is underneath.

🤣🤣 I can only think of Shinyun

“What? It’s just fever,” Max groans. “It’ll go away.”

Is he faking it just to avoid David??

“I was going to go to Philly before going to the party,” Alec replies.

It's happening!!!

Alec grabs them and throws it right back at her. “Bring out the Maserati.”

Hoe behavior at it's finest!!

Alec shrugs off his coat and Ben literally screams and starts hooting.

The ONLY valid reaction to my twin's hotness 🤣🤣

Ben, um, is a bit of an alcoholic.

Ok, so we let Rafe mi bebé precioso hang out with this man, knowing this without asking any questions??? I know Rafe is an adult ok but he is also a child 😭

“Nice! You came to the right place,” Ben grins and jumps off the couch and then holds out his hand.

Ok sooo... Ben is a mess but he is a funny mess 🤣

“Ah. Okay. I thought his scary girlfriend told him not to talk to me,” Ben chuckles. “She does not approve of me.”

Biggest red flag ever!!! Anjali is a Godess and knows best!!!

Alec finds that ridiculous. Who wouldn’t want a Magnus?

Right? Sorry Ben can't relate

Alec slams his fist into the motherfucker’s face. The man groans in pain and clutches his nose.

Alec NOOOOOOOOOOOO

Alec lunges forward and punches the dark-haired asshole and grabs him by his collar. “First of all, he killed his dad. Do your research. Second of all, my husband is not the crazy one, I am.”

I can hear Lily and Maia groaning from here 😓

David 🥰😍👋🏼😍🥰

This is so not the reaction Alec was going for.

You would have gotten the reaction you wanted if you hadn’t gone to see Benjamin!!!!!

Alec takes Magnus’ hand and puts it on his chest. “Here.”

😭😭😭

Oh Alec 😭

THE END

I'm not ready for this part

“You love him.”

Max opens his eyes.

“Yes.”

Of course he does!! 🥰🥰

Dad lets out a sigh. “I want you to tell me everything. All of it. From the top. Do you hear me?”

Yes, please talk 🙌🏼🙌🏼

Note to self: Maybe ask David if he wants to withstand this shit?

He does!!! Go get your man!! Maybe hug your dad first because he is on sadness level 100

Note to self: Literally, no one is perfect...Except for David. 

Note to self: LISTEN TO THE GAY YODA. 

Please change his contact name to Gay Yoda 🤣🤣

He almost looks like he is going to cry again.

No please if you start crying then I'll start crying

Note to self: Try reading one of David's favorite books. 

I suggest you start with RWRB

“Oh my god,” the woman covers her mouth with a hand. “Have you two been-”

I honestly thought Alec would be the last one to find out!!

“No!” Lexi squeaks. “I’m literally shooketh right now.”

🤣🤣🤣 my precious twin... all my siblings are crazy!!

Nooooo why are they fighting???

Max feels the tears on his face. But he doesn’t make any effort to wipe them away.

😭😭😭😭

Note to self: He is leaving. He is leaving. He is leaving. He is leaving. He is leaving. He is leaving. He is leaving. He is leaving. He is leaving. He is leaving. He is leaving. He is leaving. He is leaving. He is leaving. He is leaving. He is leaving.

Note to Dani: No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No.

“I heard you were leaving to Cambridge,” Max manages a smile and stands up, passing the things back to David. “I came to say goodbye.”

What the fuck Maxwell????

Cry one last time for me, sweetheart.

Noooooo noooooo... IS MAVID!! 😭😭😭😭😭 Daniiii...!!!

Max swallows the tears inside his throat. “You…You gave Rafael your earrings. You left a letter to dad. But you didn’t give me anything.”

Oh Max 😭😭😭

Note to self: See? You’re good for something!

YOU'RE AMAZING MAX!!!

“Okay,” Max manages to say. “Now I’m feeling better about not getting any diamonds from you.”

Bapak lets out a shaky laugh. He kisses Max on the head.

Ok this is weird but it is the first time ever I've understood what a shaky laugh is because I just did it 🤣

I would never miss a David performance for a makeout session. Rip to malec but I am different!

Right?? Who the fuck does that??

I'm crying in Mavid right now 😭

Thank you Dani 💚💚💚💚

THE GIFS. THE FUCKING GIFS. I CAN'T.

Also i loved the GoT references so much.

Thank you for making me laugh as always <3

[downwiththeficness]

In the Bond-Chapter 23 (Final Chapter)

Summary: Lilah often wished she’d never said yes to working with the Gecko brothers—usually while dodging gunfire. At no time was she regretting that decision more than when she’s hanging upside down from the ceiling, staring down a group of hungry culebras and one (1) extremely powerful sun god.

Word Count: ~7,950

Warnings: Violence, blood, the use of explosives, a bad movie reference, death (kind of)

A/N: This is an AU of my Story In the Blood, which can be read here. Basically, this fic explores what would have happened if Lilah had met up with Geckos before she met Brasa.

Taglist: @symbiont13  

Start from the beginning   Previous Chapter 

Read on AO3   Masterlist

They were once again sitting around the conference table looking at a map. In this instance, the squabbling had, thankfully, been kept at a minimum. With a common enemy between them, all the anger and mistrust of each other had been redirected outwardly. There was no sense in fighting with one another when a greater peril threatened them all.

Lilah had marked several points all along an open space in the desert—possible hideouts Benny had used in the past. Javier was currently working with a small, trusted crew to root out where he might be through other means. While waiting for new information, they developed about five plans, all centered around obliterating the ever loving hell out of him.

She’d given up on steering the plan into less violent territory, settling for making things as quick and as efficient as possible. Lilah wanted no more incidents of near-death for the people in this room, herself included. If that meant others had to die, then so be it.

Seth leaned back in his chair, “We won’t be able to get any further on this until we know where he’s holed up. I say we get some food.”

They’d been at it for hours, and though Lilah wasn’t particularly hungry, she was glad for the prospect of a break.

“Pizza?” Seth asked, turning to the only other person in the room not on a liquid diet.

Lilah shrugged, “Long as its not from that place across from the grocery.”

“Oh, come on,” Seth groused, “Its not that bad.”

“The health inspection code is a ‘C’,” she countered, “They found rats.”

“Not in the pizza.”

She leveled a stern look at him, “They found them in the fryers.”

Seth rolled his eyes, but relented, “Alright. I’ll pick another place.”

Lilah leaned on her elbows with an indulgent expression as Seth took out a phone and pulled up the website to order. The phone wavering in her vision, the reminder of how she’d been captured, made her flinch. She covered it by running her hand over the map, but not before Brasa felt it.

Sitting to her right, he had been texting frequently with Javier, relaying the updates as he got them. Sensing her unease, his thumbs paused over the screen as he mentally reached out to her.

Lilah rolled her shoulders, taking the comfort he offered. She had a mission to accomplish. She could cry about being kidnapped later. Belatedly, Lilah realized that the ‘deal with later’ pile was pretty damn big and she would definitely have to take some time to actually deal with it.

Richie, who had been checking in on Kate, tossed his phone onto the table, “Much as I hate to ask, I haven’t eaten since yesterday.”

Brasa gave a curt nod, “I’ll have something brought to us.”

“Its appreciated,” Richie replied in a rare instance of sincere, professional gratitude.

She took in Richie’s appearance. He looked...tired. As a man of nearly unbounded energy, to see the glint in his eye diminished was unsettling.

“I’m sorry about Jackknife’s,” she said, catching his attention.

He lifted a shoulder in affected nonchalance, “Its good. We’ll rebuild.”

That boded well. Lilah half expected to hear that he was moving on to another high risk, high yield project. That he was sticking with the place hinted at Kate’s grounding presence.

“Did the bar top survive?”

Richie smiled, “Yeah. Its a bit singed.”

“That’ll just give it character.”

“Fair point,” he conceded, pushing his glasses further up his nose, “We got interviews with contractors in a few weeks.”

She made a soft sound of praise, “Look at you, doing interviews, being official.”

His eyes dropped, demure, “We figured we should actually follow the policies you wrote.”

“That’s probably a good idea.”

Richie’s attention was momentarily taken by a staff asking him about his blood type preferences, and Lilah found herself staring at the map. The ground cover was too wide, she didn’t have enough supplies. There were too many unknowns for her to be comfortable with moving forward. It frustrated her to no end that she couldn’t just make a decision and be done with it—execute.

The door to the conference room opened and Javier strolled in. Dressed in all white, a gleaming silver cane tapping along beside him, he was smiling wide. Cat and canary.

“I have brought some guests.”

Two staff were each dragging along a single, fighting person. Lilah didn’t recognize them, but she caught their fangs flashing as they grunted in pain. Clothing bloodstained and ripped, they looked like they’d been in a serious fight—which she guessed they had.

Brasa stood, gloved hand sliding along the wood of the table as he circled it, “Do they have the information we need.”

Javier’s smile held, “I believe they do.”

“Good. Bring them to my office.”

“As you wish.”

Brasa watched them go, then turned to the group, “I will need to question them. You may remain here for the time being. Rest. Eat. I will return when I have Benny’s location.”

Lilah cut in, “I’m going with you.”

He fixed her with a hard look, “This is not an easy thing to do. I will very likely need to hurt them.”

She blinked, “I’m sorry, who in this room just got kidnapped? I think I’m owed a little time to take out some aggression.”

From his perch on the tabletop, Richie drawled, “She’s got a point.”

Brasa glared at Richie, earning himself an amused laugh. Then, he gave a single, curt nod, and reached out for her. Lilah took his hand and followed him out of the conference room and to his public office. The two chairs that normally sat in front of his desk had been pulled out so that they faced the walkway dissecting the room. In each sat a battered culebra—one with his head hanging down, the other glaring defiantly at no one in particular.

Lilah let Brasa lead her to them. His step slowed several paces away and he squeezed her hand before letting go. Lilah stopped where he left her, folding her hands in front of her body as she took in the scene.

Javier was standing off to the side, the staff having left prior to their arrival. His expression was relaxed, but she sensed a hardness underneath it. They’d done this before. Possibly hundreds of times over their unimaginably long lives. She drew in a breath to steady herself.

Brasa pushed his hands into his pockets as he regarded them, “What are your names?”

“Up yours,” came from the glaring one.

Without hesitation, and seemingly without thought, Brasa kicked out. His foot landed on the knee of ‘up yours’, the bone crunching audibly. Lilah felt her hands clench at the sound, but she managed to keep the wince from her face. ‘Up yours’ screamed in pain, his chin tilted up to the ceiling. He let out another, softer sound, then visibly calmed himself. He’d been prepped for this.

Stepping forward, Lilah edged around Brasa, one hand brushing his arm. She leaned down and caught the eye of ‘up yours’, “This will go much easier for you if you answer our questions.”

His glare returned, more fierce than before, “We’re prepared to die for this.”

Lilah nodded, two fingers touching his temple, “We’ll grant you that. Death is much better than what he,” she jerked her head towards Brasa, “is going to do to you if you refuse to cooperate.”

“Luis,” came a small voice to her right.

Lilah glanced over at him, “Luis. Is that you?”

He nodded.

“And this one?”

A hesitation, then, “Rafe.”

“Rafe,” Lilah echoed, turning her attention forward once again. “Where is Benny?”

Rafe pulled away from her touch, “Nowhere. Everywhere.”

She very nearly rolled her eyes. They knew that Benny had created a kind of weird mystique around himself and his mission. They also knew that he had cast them as the villains in the story. The technique made a lot of sense—it was still annoying as fuck.

A scoff from Brasa, followed by, “Spare us your delusions.”

Lilah straightened to standing, “Benny failed you over and over. Why continue to protect him?”

Luis cast her a look that was edging on pathetic, “He saved us.”

“From what?”

“From you,” Rafe answered, something more than derision in his voice. Hatred, perhaps.

Brasa moved. Slow. Relaxed. “Why would you need to be saved from us?”

Another answer from Rafe, “You are Xibalban. We know what you do to our kind.”

There it was. They’d been told enough to keep them scared—little truths that were coated in a thin, thin lie. Easy to swallow. Easy to accept. Easy to break.

“It is true that my people once committed inconceivable atrocities against yours,” Brasa allowed with a congenial dip of his head, “But that is not what I intend, nor is it what I will allow. Not any longer.”

Rafe sneered, “Liar.”

“Sometimes,” Brasa admitted, “When the moment calls for it. But, this is not that moment. I am not lying.”

Luis spoke, his lips trembling, “We don’t know that. You’ve been hunting us down. Killing us.”

Again, Brasa acknowledged the truth for what it was, “Only those who put us all at risk.”

Lilah could see how this was going to play out, could already hear the back and forth that would take time that they just didn’t have. Benny could strike again at any time, possibly with more firepower. Every second they spent debating right and wrong, good and bad, was a second that could cost the life of someone she cared about. Lilah made a decision.

Reaching into the pocket of Brasa’s slacks, she pulled out his knife, flipping the blade open. With deliberate slowness, she showed each of them the weapon. Then, she started talking.

“I’m going to give you an opportunity. The offer is time limited, and it will be given to only one of you.  Tell us where Benny is, and you live. First come, first serve.”

The room was quiet, save for the near constant snarls coming from Rafe. Lilah waited. Knife in hand, she simply let the quiet hold, let the uncomfortable stillness of silence make them squirm. If they knew Benny’s whereabouts, they’d tell her, and soon.

Luis broke first, “He’s in the tunnels, about ten miles north of where he...found you.”

The last two words were halting, as if he knew he shouldn’t say it, but couldn’t quite help himself. Next to her, Brasa growled low and long. She could feel the heat of his anger build both physically and within the confines of the bond.

“We have a winner,” she rasped, affected by how viscerally Brasa was emoting. Knowing that the longer they sat there, the risk of blood spilling would rise exponentially, Lilah turned from Brasa, “Javier, if you would, take Luis to be questioned further.”

“As you wish, Lady Lilah.”

Brasa held up a hand, “I want details, Javier. I want to know what Benny is planning.”

With a flourish, Javier hauled Luis up, tossing him towards the door, “I will take care of this.”

Luis landed hard on his knees, grunting in pain. But, he got up and let Javier lead him, limping, out of the room. The door closed with a kind of hard finality that eased Lilah’s anxiety. She felt Brasa’s confidence in Javier’s ability to get more of what they needed from Luis.

That left Rafe.

Lilah’s fingers gripped the knife, her jaw set, “Were you there when Benny took me?”

She didn’t recognize him, but she’d been hit pretty hard and had been too preoccupied with playing possum to memorize the faces of the people hauling her away. Beside her, Brasa removed his gloves.

Rafe shook his head.

“You’re sure?”

Another shake.

“I believe you.”

He visibly relaxed.

“But,” she continued, “I did say the offer would only be given to one of you.”

Rafe, knowing that she wasn’t going to relent, let out a sound of rage, rising unsteadily from the chair, hands outstretched towards her. He was stopped by Brasa’s hand around his throat. There was an almost too soft to hear pop as his larynx was crushed, the sound of his anger cut off with a wheeze.

Lilah closed the knife and slipped it back into Brasa’s pocket. Then, deliberately, she took a step back and crossed her arms. She’d said that she wanted vengeance, but exacting it with her own hands felt somehow unnecessary. All the fire that had been there five minutes before dissipated, leaving her feeling deflated.

Brasa had no such issues. His fingers curled deeper into Rafe’s throat, pushing beneath his skin. Blood welled up, dripping down the back of his hand to the floor. Lilah didn’t have to look at his eyes to know that they were red with rage, the glow of his power burning ever brighter beneath his skin. Flame burst from Rafe’s eyes, smoke wafting from his pores. He seared from the inside out, his body cracking into dust from the top down.

Brasa’s arm dropped, and he wiped the dust from his hands, his attention on the pile at his feet, “I should get a broom.”

Lilah looked at the spread of particles, trying hard not to think about the fact that it had once been a person, “We might have more important things to do right now.”

His brows quirked, “You might be right.”

***

Lilah stood at her station, well away from where the action would go down. The night was deep and dark, the new moon casting no light to guide their way. She looked over her equipment, one hand brushing over the black metal box sitting innocently to her right. Her laptop was gently whirring, all comms connected. At her thigh, her pistol rested in its holster, her knife strapped to her arm. Lilah hoped she wouldn’t have to use them.

According to Javier, Luis had talked freely, answered question after question. All of this was relayed to Lilah in detail until she felt like she had a good grasp on Benny’s plan. Brasa had sent Javier to set up the final blow, refusing to allow Lilah to do it, herself, as was her preference. She was too tired to argue, never having fully rested since the bomb had gone off two days before.

It was hard to think about it, the breakneck pace she’d been going at over that time. Lilah couldn’t even nail down if she’d slept properly, couldn’t remember eating or showering. And so, when Brasa had firmly pulled her into their room, she hadn’t resisted.

Assured that her friends were being taken care of, she’d let Brasa strip her down and run her a bath, let him wash her with soothing motions, until the water cooled And then, they’d tumbled naked into bed, the full darkness of the room letting her fall into a deep sleep.

She wished that she could say that she felt fully rested. While Lilah had slept for a long time, she had awoken groggy. Her body ached with something that wasn’t quite injury. She sleep walked through getting ready for the day, reluctantly eating a meal next to Seth, who sat drinking coffee while he cleaned his gun.

It wasn’t until she began to set up for the job that Lilah’s brain kicked in. This was it. They could be done with this awful mess today. If they succeeded, Lilah vowed to herself that she was going to do something fun—maybe rob a museum.

As she was contemplating this, heat built at her back. She looked up to find Brasa and Javier standing not far away. Brasa was wearing the familiar uniform of leather, sunglasses perched on his nose. Next to him, Javier was very much out of uniform. Instead of a sharply tailored suit, her wore thick canvas pants and a long sleeved shirt. He’d forgone his usual cane, a literal sword strapped to his hip.

“Are we set up?” She asked Javier.

With a deferential nod, he answered, “We are.”

“And you made sure to ground the connection—its just that it could go early if you—.”

Brasa laid a gentle hand on her shoulder, “He was very thorough. This will work.”

Lilah’s jaw shut with an audible click. She pursed her lips, the effort to hold back further questions not inconsequential. She busied her hands and her mind with activating the comms.

“McNamara online,” she said evenly.

It took a few seconds to get a response, but eventually she heard the click of the mic turning on.

“Richie Gecko online.”

“Oh, shut up,” Seth groused, “We’re in place.”

“You’re the one who said we should take this seriously.”

“Yeah, but this isn’t the fucking movies.”

Lilah rolled her eyes, “Alright. Hang tight while we get a lock on him.”

Tapping her mouse pad, Lilah opened the tracking app, “You think he’ll go for it?”

Javier shifted on his feet, “I believe he will. He’s already proven that he’ll sacrifice anyone and anything to protect his own skin.”

She stared at the little dots on the screen, “And Luis?”

“Running back to daddy,” he intoned, derision tainting his voice.

“You’re sure.”

He sighed, “I’ve done this a thousand times over. I know fear. I made him very, very scared before I let him go.”

The intensity with which he spoke, the unsaid threat in his tone, was enough to make Lilah drop the subject. She turned her attention to the screen, taking note of her location and the pair of dots indicating Seth and Richie. At the bottom left corner was a renegade dot that was steadily moving towards them. She watched it shift across the screen, pixels lighting up along the path.

It stopped at a fair distance from where the other two were congregated. Lilah held her breath as she waited for it to either stay where it was or start moving again. It stayed.

“He’s back,” Lilah murmured.

A flash of headlights appeared, lighting her station. She turned around in her seat, squinting at the car coming towards them.

“Is that one of ours?”

Brasa touched her shoulder, “It is. I should have warned you. Richie insisted.”

The car pulled up, dust swirling around the tires as it came to a stop. The engine and lights cut off, the driver’s side door opened. A dark head popped up, hair pulled into a high pony tail. Kate was dressed for practicality—jeans, t shirt, jacket, boots, gun. She closed the door, and walked confidently towards them.

Lilah waved at her, “Welcome to the party.”

She smiled wryly, “Richie said I couldn’t go with him, so I thought I would go with you.”

To be honest, Lilah was grateful for the extra support. It was often the case that she was alone, running the logistics, while others were executing her plan. Today, when the stakes were high, she found that she didn’t like the thought of being by herself.

Brasa took her hand, saying lowly, “Keep the bond open.”

She nodded, “Absolutely.”

“Good,” he leaned down and kissed her temple.

With a nod to Kate, Brasa turned from them. Javier stood a moment longer, his eyes absorbing Kate in detail. Then, he stepped back and followed his lord into the darkness.

Kate sighed with an odd kind of relief, “Well, what’s the plan?”

Lilah lifted a brow, “Richie didn’t tell you?”

“He said that he would be, quote, ‘fucking shit up’, but that’s as far as I got.”

That made sense. As if he’d gotten a power up in a video game, Richie had gotten some of his energy back as they neared the start of the job. As he’d loaded up the car, he’d been fairly vibrating with energy, a wide smile wrapped around a cigarette. Seth, on the other hand, had been stone cold sober—both literally and figuratively. The seriousness of his expression, the cant of his shoulders, told her that he was determined to get this done.

“Okay,” Lilah said, sliding into her chair, “This is Seth and Richie. And this,” she pointed to the errant dot, “is Luis. We’re fairly certain that he is heading back to Benny to tell him that we know his plan.”

Kate peered at the screen, “What was his plan?”

“To nuke the entire cave system, causing a sinkhole that spans across our entire territory.”

Eyes narrowing, Kate said, “That doesn’t make sense.”

Lilah cut her a glance, “What about it doesn’t make sense?”

“Benny’s schtick is all about how Brasa is destroying their way of life, right? What does taking down the cave system do.”

Lilah hesitated, her mind running through it, “I...think its because Brasa said they built it.”

“They did what?”

Hand waving to the land in front of them, “They built it—the Xibalbans. Its this huge maze of tunnels that are carved deep into the rock. I’ve only seen some of it, but its huge and complex and had to have taken forever to accomplish.” She paused, eyes scanning the middle distance, “I think that he made the caves a physical representation of their rule.  I mean, right?”

Kate cocked her head to the side, “That could be right. Benny could also be batshit crazy.”

“Fair point.”

“Well, we can pretty much guarantee that he’s going to change his plan, knowing that we know.”

Lilah shook her head, “If you’re right and he is batshit, then we don’t know that. Crazy isn’t always predictable.”

“That is a fair point.”

“Which,” Lilah added, tapping out a few commands, “means that we need to get a little more inside information.”

She cued up the sound, activating the comm Javier had placed carefully into Luis’ pocket on the way out. For a few minutes, she had to screw around with the settings, trying to get the best sound quality.

We should keep to the plan—Benny. Make their land unlivable, give them no place to retreat. Then, we pick them off like the parasites they are.

What about the Xibalban? Came a voice she didn’t recognize.

They’ll protect their bondmate first. When they realize the danger, they’ll come running.

Lilah reflexively looked around, trying to discern if they were going to be attacked from the deep black of the landscape around them.

“Could they know where we are?”

“No,” Lilah answered, feeling her shoulders drop, “No, they couldn’t.”

“Then…?” Kate prompted, her head shaking from side to side in confusion. “Oh no… get your phone.’

“What? Why?”

“They’re gonna finish off the bars,” Kate’s voice cracked, “We have to get the staff out of there.”

With a long line of curses falling from her lips, Lilah sent off a barrage of texts to the floor manager, telling them to get themselves and everyone else out of the building. As she did that, the conversation coming from the ear piece continued.

We should cut and run—Naya.

We run now, and we’ll keep running. We have to hit them where it will hurt.

Didn’t we already do that? Benny, you burned down his lair, you bombed both their bars—every time you try to hit them, they just keep...coming for us.

That was not untrue, and Lilah hated that she agreed with Naya. Her mouth turned down as she listened, half her attention on the phone in her hands as she waited for confirmation that the staff had been taken to safety.

They aren’t invincible, Naya.

Neither are you. A sigh. Maybe we should leave. Maybe we should just leave them here and go find a place for ourselves.

And let them win? There was that voice she didn’t recognize.

If we don’t fight now, we’re gonna end up like Luis, over there.

A heavy silence landed in the middle of the conversation, and Lilah could only guess that Luis had been killed after he’d told Benny that he’d talked.

We just found each other, Benny. I don’t want to lose you so soon.

You won’t. We’ll handle this, and then we can start our lives together.

The sincerity of his tone, the way Lilah could hear every emotion steeping into his words...It helped her to understand how so many people could believe him when he told them that they could succeed.

Brasa’s voice sounded from over the bond, We’re in the caves. Where should we go?

Lilah relayed Benny’s location, telling him to be careful. She avoided details about the secondary plan, about how Benny had wanted to distract him. It wasn’t necessary. She’d taken care of it, and would fill him in later.

“They’re headed for Benny. If he wiggles out of it again, Seth and Richie will herd him to the back up plan.”

“What is the back up plan?”

“We got incoming!”

Lilah tapped the keyboard, “Seth, what’s going on?”

“Got a group of ‘em heading towards us. Richie and I will take care of it.”

“Yeah, nothing we can’t handle.”

Lilah nodded, even though they couldn’t see her, “Be safe. Don’t do anything stupid. If it gets too hairy, cut and run.”

There was a pause, then, from Seth, “Duly noted, boss.”

Unable to listen to the gunfire she knew was coming, Lilah cut the line. Next to her, Kate checked her phone, tapping on the screen a few times.

“What’s left of Jackknife’s is empty. The staff have gone to ground.”

“Good, good.”

Lilah’s phone had been silent, no response from the manager. She hoped that meant they were taking care of business and hadn’t been killed in the second wave. Her stomach rolled with regret that she hadn’t thought he’d attack there again, that she may have inadvertently put both her staff and the remaining injured culebras in danger.

We knew you’d be here—Benny.

Apparently, Brasa and Javier had arrived. She found herself leaning into the computer as she listened.

This needs to stop, Brasa’s voice was deceptively soft. She could feel how he was going to stop things, how much it took to say what came next, The two of you can go. We just want him.

Not a chance.

I can’t leave him.

This was said simultaneously, but Lilah could pick apart the variation in tone. The unknown man spitting the words out, Naya’s voice soft and weak and desperate. She resisted feeling sorry for either of them.

We will take him by force, Javier pronounced, and she could hear some rustling, then, We don’t want you, but we will go through you.

More rustling, I’m not afraid to die. And, if I get to take you out with me, that’s a bonus.

And then there was a bang that preceded the comm cutting off entirely. Lilah stared at the screen, one finger tapping on the keyboard to try to bring the sound back. No use. It was fried. Closing her eyes, Lilah reached across the bond to find that Brasa far away, further than he’d been since the beginning of all this.

She couldn’t tell if he was hurt, or if he was putting distance between them so that he could concentrate on doing what needed to be done, so that he could shield her from it.

“How fast is your car?”

Kate smiled, “Pretty damn.”

“Let’s go.”

It wasn’t until they were speeding away that Kate actually asked where they were going, “I’m literally hauling ass through the dark, here.”

Lilah pulled up her phone, opening the tracking app for the comms. She had the last location of Brasa, the little dot shining from somewhere below the ground. And then there were the two dots signifying the brothers. They were a little further South than they had been, but they were moving.

She opened the line, “Guys, you there?”

A click, “Yeah, we’re here. Kind of busy, though.”

Then, Seth cut in, “These fuckers just keep coming.”

Lilah swallowed down her rising nerves, “We’ve lost contact with Brasa and Javier. We’re gonna check it out.”

A few shots fired, the sound of it making Lilah wince. Seth’s voice followed, rough with exertion, “That’s a bad idea. He can handle himself.”

“I think,” Lilah croaked, “I think they had the same idea we did.”

There were more shots, intermittently cut through with unintelligible yelling. Lilah tried not to think about what was going on, knowing that her mind was far more creative than was typical of reality. Instead, she focused on directing Kate while she waited for a response that she might not get.

“Ah, fuck!”

“What happened?”

“Got clipped in the side,” Seth ground out, “Its not deep. I’m good.”

He wasn’t talking to her. She could tell. He was reassuring his brother.

“Quit getting hit,” Richie demanded, “We got people to kill.”

“Yes, Richie, that’s so helpful.”

Knowing that she wasn’t going to get them to focus, and the attempt might result in another injury, Lilah turned down the volume and pointed to the left of the car, “That’s about where they were.”

Kate pulled to a stop, shutting the car off, “What do you want to do?”

“I want to find him, and I want to ring his neck for leaving me in the dark.”

“Alright.”

Pull her gun from its holster, Lilah exited the car, using the headlights to peer around, “I don’t see anything.”

Kate had followed her example, a nine millimeter pointed towards the ground in front of her, “I don’t either.”

“They must still be in the caves, or—,” Lilah cut herself off as she spotted a plume of dust settling not too far away.

Kate followed her gaze, her mouth thin as she concentrated, “You think…?”

“Yeah,” Lilah breathed, “We need to be careful. The ground looks unstable.”

And indeed it did. Fissures cut through the rock below, the surface shattered in some places. Lilah eased forward, stepping back quickly when her foot sunk deep.

“Okay, what do we do?” Kate asked, taking a few steps back her eyes flicking back and forth.

“I don’t know.”

In the distance, something blew up. Another. And another. The sound came from all around them. Lilah could feel vibrations in her feet, in her chest, her hair standing on end.

“The fuck?”

Kate grabbed her arm, “The plan—they planned to blow the caves.”

Lilah stared at her, her mind slowly working to put the pieces together.

“He wasn’t going to hit the bars,” Kate said, her eyes shining with intensity, “He was going to bring us here. He knew you’d feel the hit to Brasa, knew you’d come here.”

Lilah looked down. Another bomb went off. There was no telling how many more there were, or when the ground beneath them would crumble. Angry and afraid, she reached out, slamming through the bond as it stretched thin.

I’m here. I’m fine. Javier is fine. We are near your post.

As relieved as she was to hear it, she cut through his reassurances, I already came to you. I followed the comm. Kate and I are standing on the caves.

She sensed his fear, sensed that he’d turned and was running back towards her, I’m coming.

No, no, that’s what he wants. You need to head towards Seth and Richie. They’re the next stop. Kate and I will get out of this.

Kate was already moving to the car, ushering Lilah along. Inside, she slammed the transmission into drive and they hauled ass away.

“We need to get to Seth and Richie,” Lilah said, pulling out her phone.

As she expected, their dots were moving towards the rendezvous points. Unexpectedly, the comm they’d planted on Luis was also moving. It had reconnected to the tracking system, and was flying in a twisting pattern towards the Geckos.

Lilah glared at it, flinching as a bomb went off a little too close for comfort. Kate was driving fast, the car eating up road as the engine roared. If it had been anyone else at the wheel, Lilah might have worried for her safety. As it was, Kate was a notoriously skilled getaway driver, having honed the talent over many jobs.  

She hesitated, her finger hovering over the connection button on the app. Her hunch could be wrong.

Mouth curling, Lilah connected to the comm, “You still alive?”

There was rustling along the line, a bit of feedback, then, “I am alive and well.”

“Wish I could say that I’m glad to hear it, Benny.”

He chuckled, the sound coming out forced, “Good thing I don’t give a fuck about your happiness.”

“I’ve noticed.”

“I’m guessing that you can see where I’m heading.”

“I can.”

“Good,” he bit out, “Then you’ll know when I’ve taken care of your friends.”

“You’re not going to make it that far, Benny.”

“We’ll see.”

The comm disconnected from his side. Lilah sighed and shut down the app. She pushed her phone into the pocket of her sweatshirt and fiddled with the edge of one of her sleeves.

“We almost there?”

Lilah nodded. Whatever she might have answered was cut off as a bomb went off too close to the car, the ground exploding outwards. Rocks shattered the windows on the driver’s side, the car swerving as Kate tried to keep control. A second bomb went off a moment later, the back side of the car lifting about ten feet. As it slammed back down, Lilah could hear the axle crack, knew instinctively that they had to get out, and fast.

“Out! Out!” Lilah cried as she threw off her seat belt.

Disoriented, Lilah stumbled as she got out of the car, looking over the body to see Kate slamming the door closed and rounding the hood.

“You alright?”

Lilah nodded, “I’m good. The car’s fucked, though.”

As if on cue, a bomb went off maybe a hundred yards away, and the ground shifted. Lilah felt it in a way that she couldn’t describe, an intangible feeling that scared her more than she’d ever been scared before. In between one second and the next, the ground sunk down, caving in on itself. The hole grew bigger, yawning ever wider as it worked to swallow them whole.

“Run!”

Lilah had never, never made her feet move so fast. The air whipped at her as each step slammed into the ground. The roaring in her ears was only tempered by the sound of her own breathing. A glance over her shoulder saw the car rear up before falling down into the depths, cutting off the light. Gritting her teeth, she dug into her pocket, her stride slowing as she keyed up the flashlight on her phone.

The path before them was illuminated, much good that it did them. On either side of them, the ground trembled. They weren’t going fast enough. They were going to fall.

Brasa…

He heard her, but his answer was overpowered by the way the ground fell out from under her. Lilah’s arm was caught by Kate, who dragged her to the side.

“Over there, the rock formation. That’s the safest bet.”

Not in a place to argue, Lilah followed Kate’s lead, pushing through the burn and strain of her muscles. As they neared, a tiny flicker of hope swelled, urging her to just keep moving. Lilah obeyed the feeling, arms pumping, breath punching in and out.

Another huge chunk of ground swelled up and dropped, the rumbling sound of crunching rock following. She veered, moving with Kate towards the only goal in sight.

Scrambling up, Lilah climbed as quickly as she could, digging her feet into the stone and scraping her palms. Behind her, in front of her, to her left and right, the earth roiled. She could hear more of the cave system crumble in on itself, taking whoever might be inside with it.

Near the top, with Kate huffing at her side, Lilah turned and watched the disaster unfold. It was a sight she would never forget. The whole world, as far as she could see it, rocked up and down, sinking and rising, turning over almost completely.

“He meant for us to be in that,” Kate said, the barest tremble in her voice.

“He did.”

“Fuck this guy.”

“Yeah,” Lilah said, when she could find her voice again. “Fuck this guy.”

Kate closed her eyes, and Lilah didn’t even have to guess at what she was doing. She drew in a breath to follow suit.

I’m okay. We got out.

Let me through.

Have you found Seth and Richie?

Let me through.

Tell me. Did you find them.

I...did.

And?

Seth’s hurt. We can’t stop the bleeding.

Horrified, Lilah opened her eyes, catching a similar expression on Kate’s face. She made a decision.

“Tell Richie to let you through.”

Not waiting for an answer, Lilah reached out to the bond, got a good grip, and pulled. The world tipped over, and Lilah landed hard on her knee, dry heaving.

“You could have just asked,” Brasa griped from not far away. Then, “Are you alright?”

She nodded, swallowing.  As she looked up, Lilah caught Kate landing next to Richie, who was already bending down to help her up. Next to Richie was an ashen Seth. He was leaning against their car, blood soaking clean through almost the entirely of the front of his button down. His suit jacket was crumbled a few feet away, along with his gun holsters. He looked like he was going to try to stand, took a single step, and crumpled down in a heap.

“You look like shit.”

Seth started to laugh, the sound cut off by a groan of pain, “Fuck you, too.”

Ambling over to him, Lilah sat on her heels, “We need to get you to a hospital.”

He shook his head, “I’m good here. Could use a drink, though.”

“Don’t need to thin your blood any more than it already is,” Lilah shot back, “You’re hurt. This isn’t just a flesh wound.”

“Benny got in a good shot, I’ll give him that.”

Lips sneering, Lilah said, “We’ll get him back for this. We still have an ace up our sleeve.”

Seth sucked his teeth, blood coating the enamel, “You need to be getting to that ace.”

“Not until I know you’re going to make it.”

He was already shaking his head, “This isn’t something you come back from.”

Seth lifted the hand that had been staunching the blood, a spurt shooting out with every beat of his heart until he covered it again.

Lilah to a moment to think, “You can. You can come back from this. Richie can help you.”

She knew the moment that he understood what she was saying. She also knew that he was going to refuse.

“I’m not having this asshole,” he pointed to his brother, “Hold it over me for eternity, thank you very much. I’ve had enough of that already.”

“Are you seriously arguing about this while you’re dying?”

Seth glared at her, though the effect was somewhat diminished by the fact that he was struggling to focus.

Lilah laid a hand over his, worried by the cool skin beneath her fingers, “Then, let me do it.” Surprised by her own words, she glanced up at Brasa, “I can do it, right?”

His mouth parted, closed, parted again, and then he nodded, “Yes. Your blood is my blood, and blood is the conduit.”

Turning her attention back to Seth, Lilah lifted her brows in question, “It’ll be better if its me, right?”

He was quiet for a long time, so long that Lilah began to feel the hope that had sparked while the earth trembled beneath her feet begin to fade. And then he nodded.

Hand digging into her sweatshirt, Lilah pulled out her knife. She rolled it into her other hand. And then, before she could question it, she dug the blade in. Carefully, Lilah dripped the steady stream into Seth’s mouth.

He took a deep gulp, then tried to pull away. Lilah cradled the back of his head, holding him to the wound, her eyes lifting once more to her bondmate.

“How much?”

Brasa’s eyes were fixed where Seth’s mouth met her skin, “A bit more.”

Lilah held her position for a minute or two more, focused enough on her task that she didn’t hear the conversation going on around her. Then, when she thought it might be enough, she pulled away. Seth, already weak, couldn’t keep his head up. His eyes were rolled back, forehead clammy.

“How long does it take?”

This time, Richie answered, “It depends, but not long. I’ll stay with him. You guys go after Benny.”

Kate moved to stand next to Richie, “I’ll stay with him, too. He’ll need someone here who won’t rib him for ‘coming to the dark side’.”

The last little bit of that sentence was said with heavy sarcasm and a pair of finger quotes.

Lilah sheathed her knife and stood, “You’ll let me know that he’s okay.”

With half a smile, Richie tapped the ear piece, “I’ll give you live updates.”

“Thanks.”

Brasa moved to her side, holding up the little metal box from her station, “I thought you might need this.”

Lilah took it gratefully, “I do. Thank you.” She rose up on her tip toes and kissed him lightly, “Let’s go kill this shithead.”

After settling Seth as comfortably as possible, Lilah took the keys to the car from Seth’s coat and hopped into the driver’s side. Brasa’s body dropped into the passenger’s side, Javier nimbly climbing into the back.

She rolled down the window, pointing at Richie, “Real time updates.”

He gave her a little salute and shooed her away, his focus turning to his brother.

It surprised Lilah how quickly they arrived at the rendezvous point, though it was nowhere near where they’d found Seth and Richie. Over the horizon, the sky was beginning to grow pink with the rising of the sun. She pulled to a stop a good distance away from where she knew Benny would be.

If all had gone to plan, they would have all been sitting here, watching this. Lilah comforted herself with the knowledge that they were at least unhurt, mostly. Seth would get better, would be healed before she got back.

Opening the door, Lilah got out, closing it behind her, the black box tucked beneath her arm. She didn’t bother looking for Brasa and Javier to follow, already moving around the huge boulder she’d parked behind. Pulling out her phone, she checked the dot representing Benny. He was right where she wanted him to be.

Below, the rock face sheered off, giving her the best view of the helipad just across a flowing river. Lilah breathed in the cool morning air, wind blowing gently.

Brasa leaned against the rock to her right, glasses reflecting the world below, “I can do it, if you want.”

Lilah looked at him.

“You don’t have to do it, if you don’t want to.”

She caught the glimmer of Javier as he stood at a respectable distance, felt the subtle change in light as the sun continued to rise. The night seemed far away already. The anxiety. The fear. The relief. It all felt as if it were a dream. And yet, here she stood, at the precipice of committing the final act in their plan. She felt no hesitation. She felt no fear. Lilah wasn’t quite sure she could feel much of anything.

“I got it,” she said finally.

And she did—have it.

Looking down, Lilah opened the box, her thumb flicking each of the toggles upwards until red turned green. In the distance, she heard the blades of the helicopter begin the turn. She looked down. Two figures ran for the craft.

“Is that him?” She asked Brasa, knowing that his eyes were infinitely better than hers.

He craned his neck, looking down his nose, “Yes.”

Without thinking, she tapped the comm, “You still alive?”

From across the distance, Benny laughed, “I am. Tell me, is Seth?”

She sneered, “He is.”

“Shame,” Benny replied, unrepentant. Then, with a light, conversational tone, “Hey, McNamara, looks like we’ll be seeing each other again sometimes.”

They wouldn’t.

“Hey, Benny,” she shot back, “looks like you’re on the wrong side of the river.”

Lilah waited a moment more, watching as the two figures climbed inside.

She pressed the button.

The explosion was small—or, perhaps it was only small because she’d seen so many up close not an hour before. From around the helipad, the explosives went off. In a succession of fifteen or so, they obliterated the ground beneath, until it began to crumble in on itself. And then, just for good measure, the helicopter, itself, detonated. Lilah watched until the whole thing fell into the hole the first blast had created, then closed the box and looked to Brasa.

“I want to go home.”

And that’s what they did. They found Seth, Richie, and Kate where they’d left them. Stuffing everyone into the car, they went back to the bar. Lilah was not ashamed to be relieved that the place was still standing. In their absence, the elevator had been fixed. It opened to workers still making repairs, a fine smattering of dust on every surface.

Tired, and half awake, the group filed into the conference room. Seth was laid out on the tabletop. As was his way, Javier was already arranging for food, liquor, and blood to be brought to them. As Lilah moved to sit, Brasa pulled her away from the chair she’d pulled out. With quiet care, he gathered her into his lap, holding her around the waist.

She wasn’t surprised to see Richie doing the same with Kate, though he was watching his brother very closely.

“When will he wake up?” she asked.

“Any minute,” Richie answered, his voice even and sure.

“How do you know?”

“Because Javier is bringing a bottle of shitty bourbon and you know he can’t resist.”

She laughed, some of the feeling coming back to her. Resting against Brasa, she watched as Seth laid on the table, unmoving.  He’d been asleep for so long that she was doubting her decision. Sensing her unease, Brasa ran a hand up her back. Up and down. Calming.

Her shoulders didn’t move from where she’d had them bunched up by her ears until Seth drew that first, ragged breath. The relief coursed through her, tears dotting her cheeks. Sniffing, she wiped them away, resting an elbow on the table as leaned forward.

Richie eased Kate to the side, rising. He took a few steps around the table, lifting a hip and sitting not far from Seth’s head.

“Welcome back, brother.”

“Fuck. You.”

Richie laughed, “Glad to see you’re going to still be cranky when you wake up.”

“I died, you asshole.”

“I know. I was there.”

Seth tried to sit up, dropping heavily back down, “Fuck.”

The door to the conference room swung open, Javier pulling a cart in behind him.

Richie smiled, “Breakfast is here.” Then, softer, “You need to feed, Seth.”

Lilah though he would fight, thought he would grumble and pout until the hunger took over. And yet, when Richie held the bag out to him, Seth took it. With ease that could only come from watching someone do it over and over, he tore into the plastic, and drank it down.

Standing hesitantly, Lilah crossed into his field of vision. He drew back from the bag, breathing hard, game face on.

“Hey.”

He swallowed hard, “Hey.”

“You feel ok?”

One shoulder lifted, “For having nearly died, I feel pretty good.”

“Cool.” Then, “You want to steal a Renoir with me later?”

[maybankiara]

I read your tags about why you thought you shipped specific ships and now I kinda need to know your opinion of why someone would ship the various characters on obx lol

OH THIS IS A GOOD ONE. ok let me get my analysis gloves on!!

sarah and john b - i feel like this is kind of a given? they’re a canon couple and people tend to ship that. i think it’s one of those couples that you just kind of accept, or at least that’s what i’ve seen everyone do. they’re cute enough. but if you go into the issues of each character, you see how both of them aren’t the best people, and they do kind of fit together in a bad way. but honestly, they’re just basic. 

kiara and jj - this is one of the biggest ones, and i’ve noticed that a lot of people who ship it come from teen wolf or the 100 fandom, both of which have a hetero ship that has seasons of buildup. (arguably for bellarke, as they are still not together, but the development is there). i feel like the reason why people like slow burning ships is because it’s a lot like real life. you get to know a person and you fall in love, and it has a long-lasting foundation. i’d even say it’s what most of us hope to have - a love that’s built on friendship over lust. plus, slow burns usually make for great storytelling, if done well, and could be a great addition to obx. now, this is my analysis, but then again, my little sister watched two episodes and she said they’ll end up together, so i guess there’s more to it that i’m not currently able to uncover. plus, on a storytelling level, it would be incredible to see both jj and kiara grow as people, be with others, and then once they are both in a healthy mindset, realising that they are into each other as more than just a childish crush. for them, i think, it’s mostly the potential of a great story and rudy just having chemistry with everything that walks.

jj and pope - rudy and jd. i said it. these two have incredible chemistry and they bounce off each other in a way that most other pairings in obx don’t. i feel like there’s also a slight aspect of “let’s ship bc it’s gay” for some people, too. it’s also the friends to lovers trope, but i think this one is almost exclusively because of the actors and the characters’ dynamics. 

kiara and pope - surprisingly, i haven’t come across many people who ship these two. i feel like that’s mostly because of the audience being shown that kiara likes john b and then a few episodes later, she’s kissing pope. still, it’s a semi-canon ship (can you count one kiss at the very end of a season with little build up as canon?) and i think a lot of people just go “huh, okay” and don’t think much about it. but they’re both intelligent, and could be a power couple, and i guess a lot of people like them together because it’s unpredictable, almost. 

kiara and sarah - again, the chemistry, for the most part, and some of the writing/acting. there were a few hints to kiara having a thing for sarah back in her kook year, and it would be a cute take on the enemies to lovers trope. plus, i think it would be a story a lot of people could relate to - falling in love with your best friend and not knowing how to deal with it, especially when it’s a same sex friend. if it had a happy ending, it’d be a nice story and it would mean a lot to people. actually, the same goes for jj and pope, come think of it.

sarah and topper - i loved them the first few episodes, until i realised topper is an overly protective boyfriend with anger issues to the point of being dangerous to sarah. but i do believe that there’s some part of people who would like someone to love them the way topper loves sarah, to be so protective, or to have them wrapped around their little finger. topper would do anything sarah would ask him to, and doesn’t that sound nice? it’s a bad thing, but a lot of people go for relationships like these because they offer them a sense of security, even if they’re unhealthy.

kiara and rafe - i think people ship this one mostly because of kie’s kook year and the fact that everything points to rafe being a part of it? they have an interesting dynamic, and if they ever intend on making rafe either a proper villain or give him redemption, him having something with kie could be a great way of deepening his character. plus, the idea of the bad boy being soft for the main female character is a much beloved trope. it gives the illusion that even the bad guys, the unhinged ones, the ones we should keep away from, can be changed and soft and different when in love. it’s a common trope. it’s a trope that leaves thousands of girls with unhealthy expectations and broken hearts, but you know. (bonus: the bad boy/good girl is definitely it. even little preteens, like my sisters, are susceptible to it.)

bonus round

kiara and topper - this one is my favourite, and i don’t really think people ship it, but i think it could easily be the most interesting pairing, both for the narrative and for the characters’ respective arcs. they could be each other’s way of getting over their prejudices, their unhealthy ways of coping with things and the way they feel about themselves, and narrative could support this incredibly easily. it’s based in speculation but man, i’m going down with this ship.

honourable mentions

jj and topper - i’ve seen this circulate? honestly no clue, except that it’d be an interesting dynamic

jj and rafe - imagine the hate sex. they’re two sides of the same coin and i think it’s the potential explosive dynamic that draws people in

rafe and barry - i’m gonna say it: drew starkey and rudy pankow both have chemistry with anything that walks. this is mostly for the scene in which rafe confides in barry, and their dynamic

rafe and topper - best friends to lovers extravaganza. again, drew’s chemistry.

honestly, i might be completely off with some (or all) of these, but i’d love to hear why people ship specific pairings!! i know there’s a lot of psychological analysis that could go into this, and i’ve read somewhere that the pairings we like actually mean something, just like the characters we like, but i haven’t really researched into it so i wouldn’t go really deep into this analysis and say it’s fact. but it’s definitely something that’s often on my mind and i love exploring it.

[livvyofthelake]

ok. coherent thoughts on obx2

what i liked:

i LOVED pope’s storyline with the cross and his family, he deserved for the whole season to be about him. his family has always been such an important part of his character and i’m so happy they took that further this season, although it would have been sexy if heyward had known about the cross and everything and had been trying to protect him the whole time. i also just loved sarah and john b, i know the whole marriage thing was probably cringey to y’all but i think chase and madelyn can pull anything off. LOVED that sarah got this huge complex arc that’s my babygirl!! also any scene with all the pouges just hanging... those are my best friends <3333 and of course cleo outsold! and as you all definitely know by now, rafe was an unexpected highlight for me. he’s so fucked up and insane and homosexual, if you guys can all like hannibal i can have this. the whole “killing is nature” speech... brilliant i want that tattooed on my redacted.

what i didn’t like:

did not like what they were doing with kie and pope that was bad. you could have just written off their kiss from last season as a one time thing and not made it weird. and the fact that they’re setting up 🤢 i can’t even say it 🤢 the fact they they’re setting up jia- 🤢🤢🤢 j*ara... i hate it here riverdale would never do this to me. i think the whole season was set up weird, they spend like five episodes not even looking for the key or the cross or even knowing shit about them. it was all just john b running. and then all that was for nothing cuz he got arrested like, immediately after getting home and then the charges were just dropped in like two days. i feel like we could have sped this up a bit and gotten back to treasure hunting sooner. another thing i didn’t like was how little they used elizabeth mitchell. she is SO good at what she does, they gave her like three episodes. limbrey is such an insane villain, she’s giving penelope blossom she’s giving zelena mills! she was so much more entertaining than ward has ever been and they gave her dust! maybe i’m biased but whatever. also kie’s parents were absolutely not it for me, her dad grew up a pouge and he’s showing no sympathy to them now. class traitor bitch. also them literally wanting to send her into the troubled teen industry? hello that is terrible parenting go get family therapy. also all the bonfire scenes were bad. john b and sarah don’t need to have romance jealousy to have conflict they had enough conflict there! and i’m expected to believe sarah would think topper is a good guy after he literally says poor people don’t have feelings. and i’m expected to believe john b would even look at another woman when sarah still breathes. and i’m expected to believe sarah would go hang with topper for comfort after her dad dies because what. he’s the only one that understands. bullshit kiara would understand. sarah could have talked to kiara about her dad. i was robbed i was cheated i was swindled i was betrayed.

overall it was entertaining enough i guess but there were just so many things about it i didn’t vibe with that i don’t think i can consider this a “good” season. like, i’m not watching outer banks because i think it’s a good show but still. i hope if a third season happens (which i’m assuming it will) they get their shit together a little better this time because this was basically garbage. like it was about 55% fun but it’s still lowkey garbage :/

[cognacdelights]

maybe my expectations are too high but i really want obx2 to address the racism in the plot 😳 they did pope so dirty and i hate that the whyte folx do coke and don’t get in trouble even if that’s realistic

we all know that they should address the racism in season two and do better by pope and his storylines — including his romance with kiara (i stand by that they’ve started it, they should let it play out), but i honestly don’t think that they will address the racism unless it’s used as a direct plot point within the show. does that make sense? like, i don’t think they will hold rafe accountable for what he did to pope, nor will they address the blue lives matter sticker on his car, or his intentions behind killing peterkin, but if they were to address any kind of racism it would be using characters aside from the main ones (because they don’t want their villain to be too heinous or it takes away from his “charm” as being a “lovable” character), and it will be something of an “isolated incident” where it’s a majorly, blatantly obvious incident of racism which the main characters will come together and fight against in some big performative display, and completely disregard the smaller, more passive micro aggressions towards poc because that’s usually how things go. like in caos when theo came out as being non-binary (i think that’s what they addressed themselves as) and there was the whole locker room thing, yes the characters stood up for theo, but there were no mentions of it happening after or any smaller acts of discrimination or “off-handed comments” which are more common in a day to day basis. it would be handled as a plot point and not a running theme, is what i’m trying to say.

also, on the not holding people accountable for anything they do, yeah... but to me, the whole show was just a bit whack in holding anybody accountable for anything. like, who was selling these underage teens kegs of beer consistently? who was selling them cases/cans/bottles of beer? it’s a small island (or supposed to be) so the assumption that it’s an everybody knows everybody kind of thing so who’s doing it? then, everybody knows of john b’s circumstances so why does it take so long for DCS to get involved? surely everybody knows luke’s circumstances (at least being an alcoholic who can’t hold down a job) so why hasn’t anybody reported him to DCS in terms of protecting jj? where on god’s green earth is john b getting all this money to support himself, pay his bills, pay for food, gas (car & boat), insurance, etc when he works a weekend or part time job at best which he gets fired from? how are the school aware of john b’s situation but not jj’s? there’s so many plot holes here and i could go on for days

but back to your original point of how rafe won’t face consequences because he’s white, probably... i also think that people loving rafe’s character so much also plays a hand in that, if he’s someone who people love and will bring in a recurring audience, he won’t be going anywhere because the producers will want as many people to watch as possible and a lot of people do only watch for rafe. same with jj, whatever you think of rudy, people LOVE jj’s character so he won’t be going anywhere anytime soon. another thing is also the whole rich dad, throw money at problem, connections in high places kind of thing, too. although i have a theory that rafe isn’t actually ward’s kid... but yes i’ll be very surprised if rafe faces any kind of consequences