#second one is based on when i was at the food truck getting my lunch and i had to get them like this because i am. Short <3< /div> Explore tagged Tumblr posts

[kumkaniudaku]

Sorry 2024

Summary: This is Terry's sorry for 2024. He ain't gonna mess up no more this year.

Pairing: Terry Richmond x Black!OC

Word Count: 3.4k

Warnings: None

Previous: *Askew

Pastel blue light filtered through linen curtains and filled the quaint kitchen while Patrice maneuvered between the refrigerator and nearby counter. She spoke a mile a minute, running through a laundry list of important tasks and updates to keep Terry aware of the day’s needs. 

He halfway listened while he scarfed down piping hot oatmeal to satisfy post-workout hunger and used his index finger to scrub backward on game film from the previous week. His receiver core was shaky at best. They’d need to tighten up in the final game of the season if they planned to start their playoff run strong and remain in the hunt for a the ever elusive state championship.

“Honey, don’t forget I’m driving your truck to work because you’re getting my oil changed during your lunch. Where are the keys?” The sugar-sweet lilt in her voice reserved for Terry and Terry only went mostly unnoticed by her husband. 

“Yeah. That’s good, baby.”

Patrice paused packing her lunch and shifted her weight to one side with a hand on her hip. “You’re not even listening to me.” 

“I heard you,” he answered, finally looking up. 

“What did I say?” 

“That you’re taking the leftovers. That’s good with me. I’ll grab something on base.” 

“I said that fifteen minutes ago. Strike two.” 

Terry’s mouth hung open for a half second as he thought back through their one-sided conversation. Admittedly, his mind was split into a million different streams of thought. Work problems, coaching responsibilities, household bills, the incoming holiday season, and its host of arrangements all fought for his attention day in and day out, leaving little room for intentional quality time with his wife. 

For Patrice, the indifference toward her when she talked to him was frustrating and getting old. On too many occasions she’d forgiven him for staring off into space or flat-out ignoring her when she spoke. If silence is what he wanted, she was well on the way to granting his wish. 

Swallowing down a gulp of water, Terry rushed to respond. “Woah, woah! Two? What was the first?” 

“I asked you to turn the dryer on last night while I took a shower and guess who woke up to wet clothes this morning? C’mon. Guess!” 

“Oh, shit.” Terry’s face contorted as he winced at the memory finally returning. 

“Oh shit. Go away.” She mocked with an exaggerated deep voice before rolling her eyes and making a face. Mimicry, in his experience since the tender age of 15, was usually the prelude to a vicious attitude that had turned many into sworn enemies for life.

“My bad, Treece. I started wa-” 

“Watching tape and forgot. Sing me a different song, Terrence.” 

The disappointment etched in her beautiful features sent Terry’s stomach into the soles of his feet. Patrice’s full lips sagged into a heavy frown as she wrestled food containers into her lunchbox without looking in his direction. He could take her mumbling her anger or sending more than a few curse words his way. But the sadness in her silence was too much. 

After pressing pause on his screen, Terry took measured steps toward Patrice to avoid disturbing an angry lion. 

He touched her hip first to test the waters. When she didn’t reject him, he moved in to take up space behind her and pull her back against his body. He pressed a soft kiss behind her ear. “I won’t make excuses. Forgive me, sweetheart. It won’t happen again.” 

Resistance faded slowly but surely as he nuzzled his nose into her neck between kisses. Tense muscles melted under his touch, relishing the extra attention meant to settle a disagreement. Anger fought to remain the chief emotion. Everything in her wanted to continue forging a war path until she was satisfied with the destruction. But she’d always had a weakness for this man with a smooth baritone and big hands that he loved to rub up and down her body.

She kissed her teeth before turning to plant a kiss on his cheek as a silent truce. “Whatever. You’re lucky I like you more than most other people.” 

“What I gotta do to get that like to a love before you leave the house?” 

Patrice pulled Terry’s bottom lip into another kiss and smiled. “It’d be great if you confirmed you used your mama’s Costco card to get the study hall snacks like we talked about.” 

Terry froze. For days he’d had the nagging feeling that he was neglecting a task. Something important but vague among all of the other thoughts and responsibilities swirling in his head. He’d hoped for a reminder, but not like this, not on the heels of wriggling his way out of Patrice’s wrath only moments before. 

Ever perceptive, Patrice didn’t need him to speak to know that he’d, once again, missed a memo. Anger was back from its short hiatus and making her body hot to the touch in a way Terry had been spared from his entire life. 

She fought to wrestle free from his grasp, her body thrashing until he relented and let her go. Terry watched her stomp around the kitchen, snatching items from the counter and forcing them into her bag on her way to the front door. He remained hot on her heels with pleas to make things right on his lips until she stopped short at the coat closet.

“Strike three! You’re so fuckin’ selfish sometimes, Terry, I swear.” She grumbled as she swapped her car keys for his on their shared personal items hook. “I thought you would grow out of that by now but here you are, damn near 33 years old, and still doing the same shit.”  

The dig at his past transgressions stung more than Terry expected. He tried to maintain his composure though the wounded man inside wanted to get to the bottom of why she’d chosen to toss such an insult out so casually. 

He took a deep breath to quell the combative questions clawing through his throat while he watched her shrug on her coat with spite in her eyes. “Look, I messed up. We don’t need to start throwing jabs back and forth. How can I help?”

His attempt to reach out for her hand was thwarted once she snatched away to yank open the front door.

“Terrence, the time to help was early this week. Hell, last night even. I don’t have time for your sorry this morning. I gotta go figure this out by myself yet again.” 

Immense guilt attached itself to Terry, producing a heavy heart as he tried to make sense of Patrice’s most venomous blowup to date. Never had she been so crass toward him, not even when he deserved it most. She’d always been the pinnacle of grace and forgiveness. What scared him most was the suspicion that she was more unhappy with his disappearing act than she’d let on in all their honest talks about their path forward after heartbreak. Half of him wanted to chase her into the early morning chill, stop her from leaving, and convince her to call in so that they could sort through every issue, past and present, until they were back on the right side of newlywed bliss. Rational thought told him that some things were best solved through action.

Bitterness fueled the remainder of Patrice’s day. Jokes in the breakroom were no longer funny. Her class clowns were less charming by fourth period. A fierce bout of irritability resulted in a pop quiz for her senior AP English class for not participating in the group discussion to her liking. Every second of every minute carried a dark, heavy cloud that she couldn’t shake. 

She wanted to scream at Terry until her chest caved in from exhaustion. She wanted to throw things across the room, destroying every item in her path until the sting of compounded letdowns, actions he wasn’t even responsible for, was distilled back into the tiny box of rage she kept tucked away in her heart. She kept it hidden on purpose. If it ever got loose, there was no guarantee she could fix the damage it left behind. 

Once school bells had rang and children were carted off to their respective homes, Patrice sat behind her desk with a small committee of cheerleaders congregating in her classroom. She kept her focus on grading the mountain of quizzes she’d created for herself, silently ready to give everyone extra credit for the attempt. 

“Ms. Ellis,” Alana, her captain, started as she dusted Doritos remnants from her fingers. 

Mikayla cut in. “It’s Mrs. Richmond now. She got married! You see her ring.”

“And you ain’t invite us?” Alana gasped, pretending to be offended. “That’s cold Mrs. Richmond. I thought we were cool.” 

“We’re cool, Lana. I didn’t know I was getting married until it happened. No one was invited.” 

“Can I at least see that big ol’ diamond up close?” 

Young girls with fairytales and romance novels seared into their perception of love begged for a chance to see Patrice’s wedding band up close. With more energy, she would shoo them away and redirect them to the bulletin board they abandoned to snack and gossip amongst each other. But arguments before work were taxing and all she could bring herself to do was push away from her desk and join them in the center of their circle with her hand outstretched for their inspection.

Oooh, ahhs, and everything in between overlapped as each young lady took her turn running their fingers up against the clear stone and white gold band engraved with her new initials. 

“I want me a ring just like this!” Camille explained as she took a picture to send to her boyfriend. 

“Can we see your husband? Is he nice like you?” 

Patrice paused. “Uh…yeah. He’s a nice man. You all should be with nice boys, or girls, or whoever you like. Don’t allow anyone to be anything less than nice to you.” 

“Okay, but can we see him,” another girl reiterated. 

“It’s Coach Richmond, duh,” Mikayla exclaimed. “They got the same last name. And they was in this old yearbook together. I saw it in Ms. Shields's class when we were having a yearbook meetin’.” 

More oohs and ahhs, this time fawning over the new football coach on campus and the picture Mikayla had saved to her cellphone. Patrice listened to them gush over the thorn in her side as she eased into a desk to take the pressure off her aching feet. 

Camille looked between the photo and Patrice with a smile. “He was your boyfriend when y’all went here?” 

“For a little bit. Right before we graduated. But we broke up that summer.” 

“How come?”

“He wanted to go to the military and I wanted to go to college,” Patrice answered after a deep sigh. “So, he went his way and I went mine because I wasn’t changing my mind. Remember that. Do what you wanna do. You have a whole life ahead of you.” 

The girls all mumbled some version of their agreeance before another question pushed the tea session forward. 

“Then how did y’all get married. He came back?” 

Patrice smiled at the memory of Terry standing on her porch that fateful summer morning. “Yeah. He just…came back. We talked and never stopped talking after that until he became my husband.”

“Did he say sorry at least?” 

“He always says sorry. All the time. He’s nice like that.” 

A chorus of swooning ‘awws’ rang out in the classroom and escaped into the hallway. Terry was nice like that. It didn’t matter that Patrice wanted to hate him and call him every name but a child of God. He always apologized and he always meant it. 

A distant smile covered Patrice’s face as she twirled her wedding band around her finger. 

Camille took the opportunity to poke fun at her coach. “Aww, look at Mrs. Richmond, y’all. She smiling big! You gon’ let him come to the AP Christmas party?” 

“That ain’t fair! I’m not in AP English and I wanna see him.” 

“Oh my God, we all gon' see him at the games. Calm down.” 

“Alright, alright, alright.” Patrice couldn’t contain her laughter at their eagerness to meet a man two times their senior with no interest in them outside of their connection to her. “Maybe you’ll meet him one day. Today, I need y’all to hurry up and-” 

A knock at the door interrupted Patrice, bringing her attention to a tall, slender young man who instantly turned heads. He smiled bashfully at all the ogling until Patrice redirected his eyes with a wave of her hand.

“What’s up, Deanté? You leave something in here?” 

“Nah. Coach Rich told us to bring some stuff to you. Where you want us to put it?” 

“Umm, I guess you can put it back here by my bookshelves,” she directed, pointing to the back of the room. Confusion created fine lines on her forehead. “I’m sorry, what’s happening?” 

Deanté shrugged in the way only teenaged boys too cool for school could before waving in the rest of his crew. Each of them came bearing the gift of snacks, carrying boxes of wholesale goodies to their intended place like worker ants serving their queen. Chips, cookies, pretzels, juices, and water stacked high along the wall instantly turned her quaint classroom into a stockroom until they’d delivered the final package. Bringing up the rear was Terry with flowers in one hand and a carryout bag from Patrice’s favorite bakery in the other. 

Pressed khaki slacks and a cotton polo fighting for dominance against his veiny bicep should’ve thanked him for making them look better than they ever could alone. Patrice wrestled her gaze away from his long legs to look away before she ended up flustered in front of impressionable children.

He lightly knocked against the door, his gaze soft and his smile welcoming. “May I come in?” 

Like the audience track from a 90s sitcom, young girls squeal in his presence, making him chuckle. Patrice rushed to control the madness. 

“See, this is why I have to keep my eye on y’all. Head to the gym and warm up. I’ll meet y’all down there.” They groaned their displeasure in a last-ditch attempt to buy more time with Terry. She re-emphasized her instructions. “Go on. For every second I have to keep looking at y’all after I’m done talking, that’s a lap. One, two, three…”

Quick feet and the threat of additional exercise cleared the room quickly, leaving Terry at the doorframe waiting for permission to enter. Patrice stood and straightened her turtleneck before inviting him inside. 

“Come in. Close the door behind you.”

Terry did as he was told in silence, hoping to appease the Queen in her castle. Patrice tried to remain stoic as she approached her portable lectern to thumb through the day’s notes and lesson plans. He deposited the flowers onto a nearby shelf then slid into a desk at the front of the class and waited for her to at least acknowledge him beyond a fleeting glance. 

Finally, she looked up and pointed at the white bag resting in front of him. “Is that for me?” 

“Yeah,” Terry smiled. “I haven’t seen you grab one in a while so I hope you still like the cinnamon roll. If not, I got the lemon loaf too. Your other favorite.” 

After all those years separating their adulthood from an entire semester of sneaking away during lunch for a warm, doughy signature roll, Patrice couldn’t believe Terry still remembered such a trivial detail. 

She bit her bottom lip to hide a smile as two short steps took her to the desk beside him. Metal creaked against the floor while they turned to face each other in seats too small for Terry who had come a long way from his high school physique. 

Terry watched Patrice quietly remove her treat from the bag and cut it in half with a plastic knife. She carefully placed one side on a clean napkin and passed it across the small gap separating them. 

She lifted her portion into the air and smiled a friendly smile. “Cheers?” 

“Cheers.” 

Their respective hunks of roll kissed the other briefly before they took big bites to satisfy early afternoon cravings. Terry chuckled as Patrice hummed her satisfaction with her eyes closed and shoulders lifted near her ears. 

A little piece of Heaven. He was happy to provide anything other than the strife he contributed hours earlier. 

“Thank you,” Patrice whispered once the delight of her first bite had passed and her eyes were open again. “It’s still my favorite. You were right.” 

He didn’t respond past a small nod and a small half smile as he watched her enjoy another bite. His thumbs nervously twiddled around themselves while he wrote and erased apologetic statements in his mind in a search for what to say next. 

“Treece, I can’t say enough how sorry I am.” 

“We don’t need to do this. I overreacted and threw things in your face.” She started, trying to stop the uncomfortable discussion before it could start. 

Terry remained steadfast. “No, you didn’t. You called me out and it was the right thing to do. I have been selfish and you’ve caught the brunt of that for a long time now. It’s not fair.” 

“I just…fuck.” Tears that Patrice had managed to keep at bay during work forced their way past her waterline before she could stop them. She dabbed at them with a napkin and took a deep breath. “I’ve had to be really independent for a long time. Relationships didn’t stop me from doing things on my own because they convinced me that asking for help made me weak. Then you came along and immediately took on more than I could’ve ever asked.”

“That’s what I’m here for, baby.” 

“Yeah, but when you stop all of a sudden or pick and choose when you wanna help, it makes me afraid that one day, you’re gonna stop altogether like everyone else. And I really, really can’t take you being like everyone else.” 

Another layer of Patrice had been shed to leave behind an emotionally raw, vulnerable woman searching for an anchor in her life. The tears were gone, but they left evidence of deep-seated hurt on her face. 

Terry reached across his desk for her hand which she offered without protest though she refused to look him in the eyes. He kissed her knuckles softly, paying special attention to her ring finger before lacing their fingers. 

Sad eyes looked across at her. “You’re my main priority. If you want me to drop all this extra shit, I’ll do it in a heartbeat. Say the word and it’s gone.”

“I don’t want that. Be honest with me. Listen to me. That’s all I’m asking.”

“Okay,” he spoke into the inside of her wrist. “Give me a chance to be better.” 

“You already are.” 

Where misunderstanding has once festered, a flower of progress bloomed. They’d traversed uncharted territory as a unit to find common ground that would lay the foundation for years to come. 

Patrice made the first move toward reconciliation, standing from her desk to meet Terry at his side. Her hands cupped the sides of his face, tilting his head up to hers as she stood over him. 

“I love you. Always. I might still be a little miffed, but I’ll get over it. Promise.” She landed a flurry of kisses on his forehead and he accepted while he wrapped his arms around her waist. 

“I understand. I’ll earn your trust again.” 

Fuzzy feelings and chaste affection in what they believed was a safe space were cut short when a small yelp and thud sent a group of girls crashing to the tile floor, pushing her door ajar.

Patrice giggled along with Terry as she turned to get a look at the spectacle. “That’s what you get for being nosey. Now get to the gym for real this time.”

“Sorry, Mrs. Richmond,” they all chanted as they scrambled to stand and scatter. 

Terry listened for them to exit hearing range before turning back to Patrice and leaning up to kiss her lips. 

“I’ll be done with practice at 6:30 sharp and come straight home. Don’t worry about dinner or anything else. Let me handle it.”

“No problem.”

Final kisses and another promise to be home on time sent Terry and Patrice in opposite directions with optimism pumping through their veins. Tomorrow would bring its own storms and issues to work out. But, those were tomorrow’s problems. 

Today, they’d lick their wounds and settle next to each other on the couch with love in their hearts and the taste of each other on their lips to make every hard time worth the end result.

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[reanimatestar]

dogy :D

[guardkeywolf]

I needs some Russian male reader that owns a ranch and da cod boys (and konig and that Spanish dude forgot his name because of how long his name is 👁👄👁) that came to visit since soap praticly begged male reader to visit his ranch along with the boys and male reader agrees and just fanning over the fact of how big and the ranch is and how many animals he has and that fact he makes Russian food and have allot of dogs, cats, snakes, and other pets that you can think of and is able to ride a horse and has a Buffalo

Like I can't find any Russian male reader on any platform i have 💀💀🥲🥲

Russian Male Reader X 141! Boys + Alejandro and König

Stella (Ball Python)

Vera (Stallion)

Alek (Mustang)

Hello @gamersansblog !!!

I was pretty shocked when I got this request to write a Russian Male Reader (considering I'm American lol) and especially about a ranch!

But I really did enjoy this one a lot so I hope you enjoy it as well!

And some slight Soap X Male Reader at the end too...

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When Soap, had asked Y/n to come down to the base for the tenth time, the man couldn't help but sigh and smile as he made his way down to the base.

As a retired soldier, the 141 didn't mind letting the Russian come down and enter their base, seeing him as another friend.

During the 141's lunch break, they were all making small talk with each other about some random topics Y/n didn't particularly pick up on and instead scrolled through his phone. While conversating, Y/n could help but perk up at the word "ranch" leaving someone's lips before responding himself.

"What about a ranch?" He asked looking up from his phone with a curious look in his eye.

Soap looked up towards him with soft eyes.

"Oh nothing in particular, just saw some horses recently on my way here. Couldn't help but wonder what it be like to ride them," his eyes glowing at the thought as he smiled.

"We bet it 'ould buck him off in 3 seconds," Ghost said from behind him, others chuckling as well.

"Oh 'ush! I bet cha' 'ouldn't last any longer than me!" Soap cried making the other laugh more.

"I don't know, Soap, I think Ghost would at least manage to hang on longer. You'd get throw off instantly," Gaz spoke from the other side of the table while sitting next to Price.

"I don't know Hermano... You just might get bucked off," the Colonel voiced while trying to hold in a laugh that he failed at immensely.

"Come on...don't you believe in me König?" The Scottish man turned to the Austrian with glossy eyes nearly shedding a tear.

"I'm sure you zan do zit," König responded softly.

"See! König thinks I can do it!" The Scottish man cheered as smirked at the others.

"Alright then... if you can do it, where are to gonna test it, Sergeant?" Price spoke.

"Ah...well..." he scratched the back of his head.

"I have a ranch... and last time I checked, you've been begging me to go there," Y/n said.

They all turned to him instantly, eyes wide as if he grew a second head. Soap jumped on him immediately with a small grin painting his lips.

"You own a ranch?!" Gaz yelled in surprise.

"Da, I got cow, dog, cat, and horse too Soap," Y/n reassured him as he watched the grown man bounce in his toes in excitement.

"Y/N YOU GOTTA TAKE ME PLEASE!" The Scottish man said, back to being giddy. The man was on his knees as begged the Russian.

"Now hold on, Y/n just said he owned a ranch, Soap, didn't say you could use it," Price intervened.

"It fine, Kapitan, plus it not too far from base. If you'd like to come, feel free," Y/n said, shrugging in the process.

"REALLY?!" Soap squealed.

"да!" ("Yes!") Y/n replied. "Are you all free tomorrow?"

"Last time I check, ye'" Price responded.

"Good, I will meet with you tomorrow, then we can go to ranch," Y/n grinned.

The next day, the 141 waited at the front of their base for Y/n to arrive. When they caught sight of the Russian's truck, Y/n drove over near them and rolled down his window.

"Follow me, comrades," he replied as he watched the others nod and walk to their cars. Meanwhile, Soap and Ghost rode with him. Gaz and König with Price and Alejandro.

They followed him outside the town, a vast array of green plains taking over the landscape. As if time passed instantly, Y/n would end up turning into his ranch.

It was beautiful honest. They were met with the sight of horses, cows, chickens, sheep, some lambs, and even some dogs and cats wandering around. Hell, even a Buffalo too.

The men stared in awe at the mere beauty of the scene. As Y/n turned to park he got out with Soap and Ghost following in tow before waiting for the others to park. When they got out, they couldn't help but stare.

"Ahem," Y/n coughed, "You like, yes?"

Soap was the first to respond.

"Are ya kidding?! It's amazing here, Y/n," the man exclaimed as his eyes sparkled at the sight.

Y/n let a laugh escape him as he motioned for the others to follow him inside to his home.

There, they saw the kitchen but also other foods stored around the house, each labeled for each product with specific animal feed.

Y/n walked them over to his exhibit that house a very, very, long white snake.

"Comrades, met Stella," he waved a hand to the female ball python before opening the top of the enclosure.

Price and Alejandro stepped back instantly as Y/n took out the 10 foot ball python.

Y/n laughed at their reactions.

"Don't worry, she don't bite. She likes meeting people," Y/n reassured them quickly.

"If you'd like to touch her, stroke her scales slowly please," Y/n advised watching the ball python himself as well.

Soap, Ghost, König and Gaz all moved to touch the snake, running their fingers around the smooth scales softly.

"She's beautiful Y/n," Ghost commented.

"Thank you, Ghost. I take good care of her."

Y/n offered to let the Colonel and Captain touch the reptile but both men refused to leave from their spots and Y/n simply nodded before putting Stella back into her glass enclosure.

"Alright, let us go to the horse now."

Y/n led them to the horse stables outside the house.

There, the were greeted by the equines that resided within.

While Y/n introduced each horse, Soap couldn't take his eyes off one in particular.

Brown with white spots and lovely blue eyes and a beautiful mane that Soap could only imagine running his fingers through.

"Y/n...what's this one's name?" He asked.

"That is Vera, a strong stallion I found a couple week ago. Would you like to ride him?"

Soap turned back to him in awe.

"Can I?"

Y/n nodded before telling the others to wait outside by the gates so he could bring out the horse.

As he walked out Vera into the pin, the men couldn't help but enjoy the sight of Y/n and the horse, how calm they looked together.

Y/n beckoned Soap to come over once he finished putting on the saddle.

"Alright MacTavish, you ready?"

"As I'll ever be..."

Y/n first told him to get up onto the saddle first, laughing a few times as he tried to get up along with Alejandro saying something in Spanish making the others laugh, before making sure the man sat properly and the saddle was strapped to Vera correctly.

While Y/n used one hand to keep Vera in place to not move so much, he grabbed the reins and handed them to Soap.

"Be gentle with the reins, and slowly feel in tune with Vera. Animals feed off our emotions, so do not get nervous, da?"

Soap nodded slowly and looked back down at Vera.

"Go ahead and stroke his neck a little bit to get comfortable," Y/n instructed.

Soap followed and let his hand run along Vera's neck, letting soothing words fall from his lips as he greeted the horse.

Vera leaned in slightly to his touch and MacTavish beamed internally.

Y/n smiled as he noticed the action before turning back to Soap.

"Alright, we will go around the pin, ok?"

Soap nodded slowly.

He let Y/n lead him and Vera around the pin before coming back to a stop.

"Well done Zergeant," König said from the other side of the gate.

"Thanks, König."

"Alright how about this time you guide him?" Y/n suggested and the other let out sounds of approval as well.

"Yeah, MacTavish let's see if you can truly ride a horse!" Ghost said from the gate.

"I'll show ya!" Soap replied back before noticing Vera move at bit when he yelled and immediately apologizing.

"How about I ride alongside you, Soap?"

"Please..." Soap looked him dead in the eye as he pleaded for Y/n to ride with him.

Y/n let a chuckle leave and instructed Soap to get off Vera and stay with him while he went to get his own horse.

Soon enough, Y/n walked out with an all black Mustang he named Alek.

"Meet Alek, my mustang," Y/n said as he rode on top of the horse like it was nothing.

He galloped over to where Soap was before getting off and helping Soap back onto Vera, watching the man struggle a bit to get back up and laughing.

"Y/n!"

"It funny," Y/n grinned at him as he checked the straps again on Vera.

Once Soap was ready, he got onto Alek and showed Soap how to use the reins this time.

"Alright, you ready, comrade?" Yn asked.

Soap sighed and nodded.

"MAKE OR BREAK MACTAVISH!" Ghost yelled.

Soap laughed as he gripped onto Vera's reins and looking at Y/n one last time before moving the stallion around the pin slowly.

Thankfully, Vera was easy to work with as she went around slowly and came back around to Y/n and Alek before letting both join on the second loop.

Soap gleamed as he rode Vera and Y/n smiled at him.

"They look good together, eh?" Gaz whispered to the others.

"Yeah, if only MacTavish would ask him out," Ghost commented as he watched the Sergeant enjoy himself on top of the Stallion.

"Now he really looks like a Los Vaquero," Alejandro spoke from beside with a slight chuckle as well.

König smiled under his hood as he watched the pair enjoy themselves on the horses.

"I knew you zould do zit, Sergeant..." he whispered softly.

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-Guards

[streetlightyeri]

Would you ever write for Scott from twisters?

I am in the midst of writing something for him! I have three fics in the works (part 2 for tyler, the main fic that "false god" fits in for boone, and one for scott). they're all based off of Zach Bryan songs.

I just feel like everything I'm writing sounds like I'm illiterate. It's very hard for me to write things that don't have extensive backstories (ig that's what a masters degree in creative writing does to a person lol), so I have to actively fight myself to not write 100 pages of fanfiction about a side character that gets 10 minutes of screen time bc literally no one would read that. for reference of how inane I am when I write: I am currently searching academic sources to get an understanding of sound wave acoustics bc I've decided one of my characters will have a PhD in it - like what is my problem, this is a movie about TORNADOES. anyway lol here's a little sneak peek for the Scott fic. very rough - hasn't been proof read even once. <3

“ASPEN!” It felt like the world was spinning around him, as though he was the center of the tornado. He had his hat clenched in his hand. He felt his lunch fighting to come up. All around him was destruction with a death toll of 14 and climbing. If she was one of them, he wouldn’t know what he would do. He had searched every same piece of rubble that was once her grandmother’s house and had no luck.

Javi walked up to the Tornado Wrangler crew with arms extended in a gesture that one would use when approaching a bull. “I understand you do not want to see me, but trust me, we are not working these people.” He glanced over his shoulder to see Scott scouring what he could only imagine was the remnants of her room for the 3rd time. He pulled his phone and swiped to the photo Scott shared with him. He turned it to the group. “Have you seen this girl?”

Tyler blinked a moment too long and a tanned girl with cropped hair swallowed harshly. Dani was her name, if Javi remembered correctly. She stepped away from the table where she was handing out food and pulled Javi to the side. “It’s bad. I found her in that flipped StormPar truck pinned to the seat by an old iron post through the chest. It didn’t seem like she was trying to take cover, more like she was trying to grab something because this was in her hand.”

Dani handed him a hunk of plastic that would’ve seemed like nothing to someone else. But Javi knew: this was the StormPar data. She could very well be dead, all because she didn’t want Scott to lose everything from the Par.

“It . . . I thought she was dead, her breathing was so shallow. I’m a trained EMT, so I almost called it. Anyone else would have. But she twitched, so I investigated some more. I had to trach her to keep the stress off her heart. Tyler and I put her in an ambulance with the post still in about 20 minutes ago.”

Javi turned to run to get Scott, but Dani’s hand gripped his upper arm, forcing him to turn back to her.

She leveled her eyes with his, steeling her voice. “I can guess who she is to him. She may not have even made it to the hospital. Her breathing depends on how well the EMTs can bag her. What he sees may scar him. He may be identifying her. Make sure he is prepared. Do not give him false hope.”

Javi gave one strong nod. “Thank you.” He glanced at the rest of the group who pretended to not be listening. “Y’all are good people.”

She gave him a sympathetic smile and let him go, watching as he ran to Scott who had screamed himself hoarse. Javi slipped the data pack into his back pocket; the reason she was in that truck was not something he was going to be telling Scott, at least not at that time. Javi tried to explain everything else, but the second the word ambulance came out of Javi’s mouth, Scott was running for the truck. Javi had to tackle him against the door and take the keys from him. “You are not stable enough to drive.”

Scott would’ve argued any other time, but every second he spent outside the vehicle was one where he could be on the way to see her. He complied, climbing into the passenger seat.

[averagewriter-inthedark]

Dagger Squad Takes Universal Studios 🌎| Top Gun Maverick Headcanon

Link to my TGM masterlist

So I just got back from Universal Florida & had this idea so imma use that location instead of Hollywood cause I’m more familiar with Florida

Going to Universal Studios Orlando with the Dagger Squad would look like:

So like any amusement park, adults become children….and that’s exactly how you and the squad become when you walk through the entrance of Universal Studios Orlando Resort.

Y’all pitch in to stay at one of the resort hotels for a couple nights to get use out of both parks and not having to fork out $$ on an Uber by just taking advantage of the complementary bus/water taxi. You’ll room with at least two others and if Mav is with y’all he’s literally the dad. Expect him to hang on to your stuff if he’s not planning on going on a certain ride as the rest of y’all.

Mav also will be like, “does everyone have their tickets, wallet, phone, sunglasses, etc?” He & Bob are the ones packing extra water bottles to make sure everyone is hydrated.

Once y’all are in the City Walk either one of two things will happen: you all will collectively select a park to start together, or, split the squad up. For this scenario, y’all stay together and it is utter chaos. Fanboy is vlogging to his instagram story with Coyote shouting, “oh my God, it’s the Minions!!” When he sees the Minions ride but pouts at the almost 3 hour wait time.

The first thing y’all do is the 3D/4D Transformers for some nostalgia purposes and the guys are just freaking out by how cool the attraction is. Phoenix remains at the front of the line cause she’s in charge of relaying how many is in y’all’s party to the attendant. When y’all get on the ride (seat arrangements are you, Rooster, Phoenix & Bob in the front, payback Fanboy, Hangman & Coyote in the middle and Mav gets the back with a family of three beside him. But he doesn’t mind cause he gets to witness the entertainment that is the guys shouting at the sudden twists & spins), one would not think y’all are some of the greatest fighter pilots the world has seen, cause it’s like y’all are teenagers watching a horror movie.

Men In Black is a competition for all of you. Hangman’s all like, “get ready to taste defeat,” but ends up scoring second to last. Bob pulls out the win after hitting the 100,000 point bonus.

Expect Rooster to be dancing along with the Blues Brothers when they perform their show if you’re passing by it. He also has a dance-off with one of the construction show dancers which brought in a large crowd to witness.

The mummy was rated y’all’s best group picture for that day when you failed to mention it was an indoor coaster when they thought it was something else. The drop had Bob and Fanboy hanging onto each other screaming while you’re pointing to the camera with a big smile. Mav has it framed on his office wall back on base and in his garage.

ET was one for the child’s heart and when y’all had to give the names to the attendant for the passport you all gave your call signs. You never thought in a million years you’d hear ET’s voice say y/c/s, and the names of your fellow pilots but it was something to remember.

For lunch y’all got food at the food truck in the Simpsons land which was worth it. Of course it’s park food so expect a buck and coin but y’all were so hungry at that point you didn’t care.

On a whim y’all decided to see the Hollywood Horror Makeup Show & Phoenix is the one to get pulled on stage. “Oh no,” she mumbles with a smile as she stands while everyone has their camera out to capture the moment. Coyote makes a face and looks away when the fake blood appears on her arm when the guy fakes cutting into it because the man was like, “how the hell did he do that?!”

Since it had a short wait, you quickly all jump in line for the Hollywood Rip-Rocket. It was the first outdoor rollercoaster and what made it great was getting to chose a song to listen to as you rode it. Rooster chose “Glamorous” by Fergie which you heard him belting out at the top of his lungs. “FIRST CLASS UP IN THE—AHHH!!”

The Fast & Furious ride became a source of many great inside jokes. “Guys remember, we’re a family.” “You hear that? Family.” “Why don’t y’all love me like they love each other?” The ride itself was average but the music and the jokes is what made it fun.

There’s going to be selfies in each line so make sure your camera roll is not full. Y’all are stopping almost every 20 steps to take pictures and Mav will literally be like a proud dad taking them. Thankfully some people will stop and ask if he wants to be in it to which you’re grabbing him by the collar to get in the photo. “Let’s go Papa Mav, you’re in this family too.”

Escape from Gringotts had a long wait so y’all decide to come back the next day to start with that. That’s also when you entered Diagon Alley for the first time and felt like you were Harry Pottet gathering his stuff for school. So you damn well know y’all are in Olivanders picking out your wands. “Do I wanna be basic and get Harry’s?” “Ohmigosh they have Luna’s—I want it.” “The Elder wand looks so dope. Question is: do I want it as Dumbledors or Grindlewald?” “Who here is a hufflepuff—oh wait Newt is!”

A cheers is in store when y’all get your first butterbeer, which has almost all of you get some foam on your nose. You guys all then do Gringotts before seeking out the interactive wand spots in Diagon Alley & finding the hidden Knocturn Alley before quickly riding the Jimmy Fallon Race Through New York and wait almost 2 hours for minions. “This better be worth the wait, Coyote.” Thankfully it was funny and cute, but you wouldn’t wait more than an hour for it in the future.

So now that y’all have checked off all the rides and most of the shows in the Universal park, it’s time to head to Island of Adventure. And what better way than to take the Hogwarts Express. Since some of y’all have been to London and seen the real Kings Cross Station, y’all were impressed by how put together the attraction was. Rooster has a picture of you and Phoenix embracing with your wands up pointing to the Platform 9 3/4 sign.

So Island of Adventure has A LOT of thrill rides, which what are those perfect for ?? Pictures. And boy do you have quite the album by the end of your trip.

So the train ends in Hogsmede so of course y’all are freaking out over the fact you’re in Hogwarts. “GUYS WE FINALLY GOT OUR HOGWARTS LETTER!!” So there’s a literally photoshoot going on at the bridge between Hogmede & Jurassic Park. The boys all got their aviators on, showing off their houses and wands while girls and guys are checking them out. There’s photos of you on Paybacks back, dueling Hangman & Bob, cute ones with Phoenix, Mav & Fanboy and mixtape style with Coyote and Rooster.

Hagrids motor bike has A LONG wait, but forbidden journey doesn’t so y’all do that one first and thank God you didn’t eat anything because that sure got you with the motion sickness. The photo is hilarious with majority of you looking confused, petrified & downright frightened. Once anyone who felt a little off got better y’all do the Hippogriff mini coaster. That in itself was quite the sight with the amount of 6’ft men y’all had in your group. Payback and Rooster had to have their own cart cause their legs could barely fit.

After a quick snack and the fact it was heating up with Florida weather, the water rides became your next stop. And once again, y’all have your favorite group picture for that day because the drop combined with the animatronic T-Rex chomping down on the Jurassic Park River Adventure made for some great reactions. You and Phoenix were hanging on for dear life when it felt like y’all’s asses were lifting off the seats. In the photo Rooster has his arm practically holding you down. The ones who came out soaked were Bob, Fanboy, Payback, and Mav though everyone else got a decent amount of water.

Oh and Coyote did his BeReal on the drop just as the T-Rex is coming down which you were amazed he even managed to capture it. He was in the front so everyone behind him got in the photo and you can just see Bob in the corner look like he’s looking death in the eyes. Coyote sends it to the bestbereals on Twitter and it goes viral with almost 500k likes and 200k retweets.

Y’all decide to do Velocicoaster, Hagrids, & Hulk at night when people leave for the wait time to be shorter. In the mean time the gang gets their own boat for the Popeye & Bluto’s Bilge-Rat Barges and that’s where you, Phoenix and Hangman get drenched because it felt like y’all were personally targeted. “Oh fuck, not again !” Every turn had y’all facing the direction of a fountain or passing a gusher as it goes off and landing on your side. It’s so bad you three have to go to the standing dryer once y’all get off. “I should’ve brought a change of clothes.”

The ripsaw falls ride had similar reactions to the River Adventure but not as bad—although Coyote nearly lost his sunglasses. After a quick snack break y’all do the Spider-Man (which had a lot of nostalgia for some of the guys) and decide to do an early dinner so later on when people leave for their reservations the wait times would decrease.

On your way out you hit the King Kong Ride which turned out to be a 3D/4D ride and had y’all surprised the entire time. Jake was next to you and there were times where he kept bumping your shoulder cause he was jumping at the loud sounds and how realistic the 4D felt. “Jesus Christ!” When Kong was fighting the dinosaurs you could hear Rooster and Payback going “Get ‘em Kong!! Show him who’s king!!”

There are many places in the City Walk to eat so there’s plenty of options. Since some of the guys wanted to go watch the game playing at the NBC sports restaurant, you call in advance to see if they have a wait time and luckily they had an opening for your party. “Okay let’s hussle, Hagrids is at a hundred minutes and it ain’t getting lowers than that so y’all better eat like it’s your last meal on earth !”

Mav is that man who’s taking pictures of y’all at the table. You wink at the camera while Bob is smiling beside you as Payback puts bunny ears behind him. Hangman and Rooster are making bets on the game, Fanboy is updating his social media posts and Coyote is Tic-tac-toe with Phee. Everyone is making conversation as they drink and eat. It’s a great time and y’all leave a generous tip to your poor server who it was her first week and was getting used to handling big parties. She did pretty good and gave y’all a military discount after noticing the different navy jackets and hats y’all were wearing.

After dinner you and Phoenix go to the Toothsome’s Chocolate Emporium to share a $17 milkshake which was HUGE. y’all were gonna get your own but saw what they looked like and went ��yeah let’s split it.” Rooster keeps eyeing it and goes, “yo let me get a sip,” every five minutes. Eventually you and Phee get full and let him have the rest which makes him look like a kid on Christmas morning.

So once everyone’s stomach was settled it was time to get back to the park. And like y’all wanted, the wait times were shorter compared to the 70+ minutes they were when you left. First y’all walked all the way back to Hogwarts for Hagrids Motorbike and it was well worth the hour and half wait. It’s a two seater so you all had to figure out who was going with who. You rode with Fanboy in the front row which was amazing cause he’s the biggest HP nerd you know so seeing his expressions on the ride was memorable in itself.

Velocicoater….was the best experience ever with the Squad. Mav sat this one out because he was like “I’m too old for that,” after seeing the high climb followed by the drop. What made it cool was it was dark outside by then so the ride was lit up and y’all got Rows 2-5 with it going: you & Phoenix, Hangman & Coyote, Payback & Rooster, and Fanboy & Bob. Hearing Coyote scream bloody murder the entire way was the highlight of your day. The second time it accelerated for the climb you heard “I CANNOT BELIVE YALL MADE ME DO THIS!” With the faint sound of Rooster & Paybacks laughter in the distance.

I mean y’all pull close to 8+ gs on the daily, but a roller coaster going maybe not even 1 has him shitting his pants. The photo of Coyote because his contact icon on your phone. “Why do you and Phee come out great and here I am looking like I just came out of G-Loc?”

The last ride was The Incredible Hulk and again, you got front row with Payback, Hangman & Coyote (which he hated). The loops had him reach out to hold your hand and thanking Jesus when it was over. “Finally we’re done.”

The last day there was really no game plan since you guys had went on petty much everything. At that point you guys split it up and would met up and switch groups if there was something someone wanted to go again and another person was like “let’s go I’ll do it with you.” Those who wanted to do the thrill rides again stayed together while some went to do the 4D ones. “I’m doing Velocicoater again cause that was fun as fuck. Who’s coming?” “Me. Aye let’s do front row.”

“Coyote, cmon let’s do Hulk again—it’s 20 minutes!” “Hell no!”

“Does anyone wanna share a turkey leg with me?” “Shit, yeah I’ll Venmo you right now.”

“We gotta get Voodoo donuts on our way out tonight.” “They have one here?” “You’re telling me you didn’t see all those people in the City Walk with pink boxes? It was right by the NBC restaurant, Bob!”

At the end of the night y’all meet up in Hogwarts to watch the lighting of the castle and their projection show. Mav, being the surrogate dad he is, got there early to secure a good spot. With one last butterbeer you stood in between Hangman and Fanboy to watch the show. Jake had his arm around you, allowing you to lean into him while being careful not to spill the drink as you paid attention to the castle.

It was sad for everyone having to leave but it was the best weekend you could ask for with the people you cared for most. These were your best friends, your team, your wingmen. No matter where you guys went in your career and even if it would be the last time in awhile before you all could get together again, you would always remember when the Dagger Squad took Universal Studios.

[geisthouse]

"PTOLEMAEA"

Inspired by Ethel Cain's song Ptolemaea and very loosely follows PD's lore.

CW: Violence, Murder

  I watched a bird fly from one side of the window to the other, landing on a thin tree branch, it bobbed slightly under its weight and then balanced out as the bird hopped closer to the base of the tree. 

I stared out the window from the floorbound mattress. He wrapped me in blankets before he left but the attic was more stuffy than drafty so, I ended up pulling them off of me in my sleep.

It had been a few days since we got there, he didn’t want me going outside but I could leave the attic if I needed to. He hid my shoes on the first day and I haven’t had any luck finding them– I suspect they’re in his truck. I was mad at him for taking them from me but, I guessed we’d be on our way out of this state sooner or later and I could have them back.  My stomach grumbled for the second time since I woke up, but sleep weighed so heavily on my body that I just couldn’t get out of bed. He kept me up half the night ranting about how his business here was taking too long to end and we should’ve been out of here a while ago. I tried to calm him down, but I realized I just had to let him get it out of his system.  When he left he said he’d come back with food, though, it had been hours since then. I sat up too quickly and felt woozy— Fuck, I need food. 

I slowly got up but swayed a bit on my feet and lumbered to the ladder. I had been scared of going up and down it, it was creaky, unfinished wood that’s probably been untouched for years. Somehow, I got down without falling and headed to the kitchen.

The fridge was empty except for a stack of American cheese slices, lunch meat, and two six-packs of beer. I pulled a can from the ring and took the ham and cheese from the shelf. The bread was on the counter and I grabbed one of the three plates from the cabinet. The kitchen was joined with the living room and there were two windows on either side of the wall and a fireplace built into the wall. This would’ve been a nice place for an average person to live if it wasn’t so removed. I made my sandwich, grabbed my beer, and headed out of the kitchen. 

Back upstairs, I sat on the mattress and ate. The attic was a fair size, there was a big dark wooden dresser next to the head of the mattress, and boxes were stacked against the wall closest to the far window. My attic back home was around the same size but it was filled to the brim with my grandmother’s old stuff. My mother never had the time to go through it and the rest of the family (the ones that talked to us, anyway) didn’t think she had anything precious to take. I used to go up there and rifle through her old letters, clothes, and jewelry. I stole one of her lockets when I was about twelve and my father yelled at me for wearing it but, when he died, I wore it to his funeral and every day afterward.

During our stay here, we littered the ground with pill bottles, take-out containers, cigarette butts— all of that bullshit. I realized I didn’t know what time it was. I judged by the shadows on the ground that it would have been around mid-afternoon, the fact that I hadn’t been sure put me on edge. 

I finished my sandwich and put the plate on the floor. I stood, walked to the window, and looked out of it, down at the ground. The tree mostly obscured it, but the sliver of the world I could see wasn’t much of anything: dirt and patches of grass led to a larger woodland. I sighed, leaning my forehead against the glass, it was cool on my skin— a fairly pleasant sensation. My eyes trailed down to the hardwood floor; maybe I’ll go back to sleep. There was a stray pill bottle at my feet, separate from the others in the pile across the room. The label was ripped off but whatever it said before probably wasn’t what was in there anymore. I plucked it from the ground and it gave a low rattle as I opened it. A few pills were left in there, all uniform: white and ovalish. I poured two out and I took it— whatever it was— and washed it down with the rest of the beer. I closed the cap and lay back down on the bed, staring up at the ceiling until I drifted off again.

I woke up to the sound of shuffling. He was back. The sun had almost completely set but the remnants of fading blue light would hold on for at least another couple of minutes. I rolled over in bed to see what he was doing; the light coming from the stairs below was just enough to illuminate him, he was looking through one of the boxes.

“Goddammit!” He threw something back into the box.

I shot right up, fighting the fact that my head was spinning,  “What is it? What’s wrong?”

He jerked at the sound of my voice but waved me off seconds later, “It’s nothing.”

I put my head in my lap to recoup, “It’s dark out,” I said looking back up, “Where have you been all day?”

“You ask too many questions, you know that?”

“I was just making conversation.”

“Well, don’t.”

“Fine.” I groped in the dark for the little lamp I plugged in at the foot of the bed. My hands found the embossed brass base and clicked it on. I could see his face now, he looked…different. Harsher. Something was behind his eyes and it made him even more guarded than usual. He loomed at the other end of the room, glaring at me. I sank into myself, pulling my knees up to my chest. His frown deepened and his expression turned to obvious anger. He stepped forward. 

“I thought I told you not to go outside.”

“You did…”

“So why’d you do it?”

“What’re you talking about?”

“Your feet are dirty.”

I checked the soles of my feet and they were blackened with grime, “My feet are dirty because the floor is dirty.” 

“You’re such a little liar! You could mess up this whole plan– our plan, remember?” He pointed at me, “You’re considered a missing person, they’re saying I kidnapped you– do you want me to go to jail?”

“No, I don’t! Even if I did go out, we’re in the middle of the woods, there’s no one around more miles!”

“Get up.” He demanded.

“What?”

“Stand up.”

I scrambled to my feet, he closed the gap between us and got up in my face. His forehead was uncomfortably sweaty and his pupils were dilated like saucers. I tried softening my tone, “Hey, maybe you should lay down, you don’t look–”

“No,” he lowered his voice but kept the same intensity, “If you wanna leave so bad then do it.”

“What?”

“Do it. Run. Run back to your mama and your piece of shit town where they can laugh and beat the shit out of you for being a fucking freak. I accepted you, I wanted you to come with me because I knew you wouldn’t survive there!”

I could only stutter, trying to tell him that I didn’t want to go. 

“Run, or I’ll fucking kill you!” He yelled, pushing me back onto the mattress. I didn’t know if he was serious or not and I didn’t want to find out. I bolted back up and rushed to the ladder behind him. I didn’t know how I climbed down that thing so fast but I hit the floor in no time and started down the other set of stairs. 

That’s when I heard him following me.

He was shouting my name along with every epithet he could call me. I stumbled to the kitchen in hopes of finding his keys. I thanked God for the first time in a while because there they were sitting on the countertop. I grabbed them and headed in the opposite direction towards the door. 

He was at the bottom of the stairs. I undid the deadbolt and the lock and swung open the door. The cool night breeze cut through me and I felt a swell of ecstasy, but it came as soon as it went, his truck wasn’t anywhere to be seen. It was dead black out there at night and he usually parked in front of the door just in case we had to make a quick exit. I was about to book it to the road on the slim chance I’d run into another car, but I felt his big arms wrap around my middle and hoist me up. I started to scream and I couldn’t stop. I dropped the keys on the porch as he dragged me back inside.

I wriggled in his grasp as he carried me into the kitchen. He let go suddenly and I dropped to the floor with a hard thud. I struggled back up and tried to run passed him but he grabbed my shoulders and pushed me to the ground. Before I could get up again, he knelt over top of me, ‘Stay down’ he kept saying. I thrashed and kicked but he got my arms under him. I whined out a series of ‘Please’, ‘Don’t do this’, and ‘I love you’. He barked at me to shut up and, when I wouldn’t, he put his hands around my neck. I pleaded with him but he squeezed his hands tight. I couldn’t breathe– I couldn’t speak– I couldn’t think. It couldn’t have been for more than two minutes but it felt truly infinite.  

And then, he let up. He took all of his weight off me and got up from the floor. The sudden rush of air and lightness was a shock to my system; I knew I needed to move but my body and my brain weren’t working in tandem anymore. He wasn’t far away, I heard drawers open and shut. I was able to sit up on my elbows but the clanging stopped and his shadow bore over me. I braced myself to look up– he gripped a kitchen knife. I screamed no and he dropped back to his knees, held me to the floor, and thrust the knife down.

It pierced my stomach. The obtrusion stung– almost burned. He left it there for a moment as if he was unsure of what he was doing. 

There is a knife in me. 

He tightened his grip on it and pulled it out; blood came with it. I groaned. He brought it up…and down again. Warm blood filled my throat and mouth and I spewed it out. I couldn’t lift my head. I felt the knife everywhere on my torso, and then the feeling faded away– it stopped at some point but I didn’t know when. Either way, it was done, I wasn’t breathing, I was still, I was dead. My eyes, however, were open. The ceiling and part of the counter was all there was for me. 

An hour passed and nothing else happened.

He reappeared over me, covered in blood from his face to his shirt. He had a ghastly look on his face. He kneeled to the ground and was struggling with something around me. He pulled off my shirt and did the same with my jeans and underwear. He left and took my clothes with him. And, again, that was it for a while. 

The next time he came back, he looked considerably filthier. His nails were caked in black dirt and there was a large patch of sweat on the front of his shirt. He lifted me and brought me outside. 

There was a fire going, orange light flickered off the trees, making living shadows on the ground. He put me down a ways away from the flame, my head lolled to the side, facing it. There was a shovel lodged in the ground next to a pile of dirt. He picked up my clothes which were lying in a heap on the ground and tossed them into the fire. He watched them burn.

He didn’t notice my eyes on him. 

He pulled up the shovel and began to dig again however, gave up after a short while. 

He came to me, gawking like he noticed something strange. He moved his hand just below my collar and tore my locket from me, examining then pocketing it.

He took me up and placed me in my grave. The sun was starting to come up, it was as blue-gray as the sunset before. He began to shovel dirt over me, all without closing my eyes.

[umichenginabroad]

Week One - Poitiers, France

I have officially been in France for a week, which means I’m off to Paris now! I had a ton of fun in Poitiers, enjoying the town and getting to know everyone in the program with me. The classes haven’t been too bad - the French class in particular was pretty chill, just learning numbers, basic greetings, and some general French culture. The engineering class - radiative heat transfer applied to thermal control of satellites - wasn’t as easy, but it was still interesting. We got to use Systema, a simulation software that can give you data about the temperature of different nodes of cubesats (small satellites) based on orbit, conductance, pointing direction, absorptivity/emissivity based on material type, and more. The exams weren’t too bad, especially since there were multiple choice questions for the engineering portion, and you only needed a 50 percent to pass the class (I love the French grading system).

ISAE-ENSMA, the first university we are attending in France.

Onto the fun stuff: on Thursday, we had a guided tour of Poitiers and got to hear a lot of fun facts about the town. There is a myth that as long as one of the statues of the Virgin Mary holds the keys to Poitiers (as she has been for centuries now!), then the English will not attack the city. I also found out that every French city has their own version of the Statue of Liberty, and that they have some walls of buildings in Poitiers where you can still see the architecture from medieval times (something you won’t find in big cities because they were rich enough to tear them down and replace them once it was seen as poor to still have them).

The much smaller Statue of Liberty and the medieval architecture from the tour.

Friday, we got to hang out with the French students who take an English class with our French teacher (sorry if that was confusing. She teaches both groups and thought it would be fun to get us all together, and it was!). We had a game night, and their band played us a few songs.

The band playing us music, and a French game described as weird leap frog, where you jump into the line of them and they carry you down before throwing you in the air at the end. Once you're in the front, you get up and jump on. Unfortunately, I was in a dress and couldn't participate :(

Saturday, one of our new French friends took a group of us to La Guinguette, which was a big community space where they had a bunch of food trucks, games, bars, and the soccer game on. It was such a fun place to be (plus the chicken shawarma was really good), so I’m really grateful to know a local who was kind enough to show us!

La Guinguette: first the food trucks, then one of the pavilions where you could sit to eat, play games, talk, or watch the game.

Sunday, a big group of us went to La Rochelle, a beach town about an hour and a half away by train, and it was so beautiful. It was a little historical town, so we got to tour these very old towers (some that were used as prisons and actually had really cool artwork carved into the stone from old inmates), which all had great views at the top. It was also nice getting to go to the beach and play volleyball, something we won’t have the opportunity to do until we’re in Salon-de-Provence in about two weeks. I did manage to beat myself up in La Rochelle though - I cut up my feet pretty good in the ocean (it was really rocky with lots of seashells), and I slammed my arms into the walls in order to not wipe out everyone on the steps below me when I started to fall. Don’t wear flip flops on slippery stone floors, kids, even if you were just at the beach.

La Rochelle from above (the second picture is taken in the furthest tower visible in the first picture, the spikey one), one of my favorite wall carvings, and moments before the near-disaster (see how narrow the stairs are?).

Monday and Tuesday weren’t all that exciting, mostly just six hours of classes with a two hour lunch in the middle, so we didn’t have time for much else. We did have a picnic at a cute park though, and it was super weird because they had goats, rabbits, and various birds there like you were at a zoo. I’ve never seen that before, but it was nice to go to destress before the exam the next day!

Which leads me to Wednesday; we had our exams in the morning, and after lunch we got to go to Futuroscope. It’s a French amusement park, but not in the traditional sense. There weren’t any roller coasters, though there were a few fair rides. The main attractions were 4D movies/rides. They were all pretty funny, especially when you don’t know much French and just have to guess at the storyline. We split into groups, which I think let us cover more ground (there are 20 of us total), so my group would vary between having five and eight people based on who would come and go. We actually split from the original group almost immediately, though it wasn’t the plan, because there was this giant rope climbing playset (I’ll attach a picture below) that was shaped like a hot air balloon with a giant slide, and we’re all kids at heart and couldn’t resist. After that, we started climbing up everything we could, just for the fun of it. We would still hit random attractions in between (a Tornado Chasers 4D movie was one of my favorites), and we went on this big swing, but the most fun was climbing. We got pretty hungry from all the activity (we walked over 8 miles that day), so we went back to eat then watch a movie.

The rope playscapes we climbed and other park shenanigans, feat. me on Sam's shoulders. We were all probably a bit crazy from dehydration by that point.

That’s another thing that’s been happening a decent amount - movie nights! A guy in the program, Sam (the one above), offered up his room a few times to watch movies, so I’ve seen The Batman, Ponyo, and Into the Spider-Verse since being here, and it’s a great bonding experience. The first two were new movies for me, and the last, while not new for me, is to get us all ready to watch Across the Spider-Verse in Paris since they show the movie a few times throughout the day with the original English audio.

Overall, I’ve had a great time in the program so far, and I’m looking forward to our time in Paris and after!

See you next week,

Aryanna Thompson

Aerospace Engineering

Aerospace in Multiple Cities, France

[brattyfics]

Like That

Pairing: Rio x Black!Reader

Summary: You and Rio get to know each other better. Loosely based on ‘Like That’ by Doja Cat. 

Warnings: Smut.

Word Count: 3.5K

Installments: Say So | Like That | Talk Dirty

And baby, I want it, and I'll just be honest 'Cause I just can't front when I look at you

About six weeks have passed since Rio declared himself your man, and you quickly learned he took the title very seriously.

He was busier than usual with ‘flipping his game,’ and you were busy preparing to transition your shop, but you saw each other often despite time constraints. You agreed date nights at least once a week were a must, but when you couldn’t see each other, Rio made sure to end nights with a phone call. Virtually falling asleep next to him gave you butterflies, reminding you just how exciting new relationships could be. It took prodding, but he told you made-up bedtime stories and the boring details of his day. In return, you shared things about yourself— childhood memories, the crazy things your mom did to embarrass you. He was sweet and attentive, and you found it refreshing to be with someone who was just as infatuated with you.

On your second date, he took you to his favorite restaurant, a fancy sushi place with expensive rolls. He taught you to hold chopsticks the wrong way the way he did and even fed you across the small table, a couple of unfortunate rolls falling apart due to his prodding. You tried your best to hide your amusement at the pensive look on his face. For whatever reason, Rio thought of himself as a sushi connoisseur, but it was clear to you that he was still learning.

“You’re no better than me!” He admonished when he noticed the way you held your chopsticks. Like his technique, it was incorrect, but it worked for you— sort of. “I never said I was.” You couldn’t keep the amusement off your face any longer. “You’re the one who comes here weekly. I thought you were a professional, and we’re in the same boat.” He folded his arms on top of the table as he insisted you were wrong, but secretly he found your teasing endearing. Later that night, he called and gave you a cheesy line about loving to see you smile.

The following week, you had lunch at a mom-and-pop soul food restaurant that served the best cornbread and peach cobbler in the city. The owners, an adorable older couple, Donna and Gene, and servers alike stopped by your table to meet Rio. Donna gushed over Rio, showering him with compliments and extra cornbread. “Girl, he is cute!” She told you, failing miserably at whispering. He smirked as you rolled your eyes, but he handled the attention well, being friendly and personable even when Gene kept going on and on about changes to the menu, one chef to another.

A few days later, he called you up randomly and asked you to get ready and ride with him somewhere. “What should I wear?” You asked, hoping for a hint. You could hear him smile as he said, “It doesn’t even matter, ma. You always look good.” The occasion had turned out to be ‘Foodtruck Friday.’ Barbecue, kebab, taco, ice cream, and other miscellaneous food trucks were parked in a spacious lot in Downtown Detroit. You settled at a picnic table and shared several plates of food as you discussed the possibility of your own mobile ‘Mad Batter’ shop somewhere down the line. It got you thinking about the future.

“Where do you see yourself in five years?” You asked the dreaded question in between bites of a colorful Korean fusion taco. He stiffened as he considered the answer. “What is this, a job interview?” Sometimes you saw peeks of bossman Rio rather than the Christopher Castillo you were getting to know. It happened seemingly out of nowhere when you asked questions he felt were invasive.

You looked up from the panko-fried shrimp, red cabbage, shredded carrots, and tasty orange sauce wrapped up in a flour tortilla with a frown. You had two choices: respond in the way he had or make light of the situation. So, you said, “Kinda. You’re auditioning for a spot on my roster, so...”

He stopped chewing the half-eaten dumpling and swallowed hard. “That’s not funny.”

“You better start taking the interviewing part of the audition more seriously then.” You wiped your fingers on a napkin, and he gathered your hand in his own, wearing a look you couldn’t decipher. “You got it, ma.”

You played a game of mini-golf at the local arcade. Rio stood tall behind you, holding you by your hips as he corrected your stance. You purposefully arched your back, brushing against him just slightly. “Like this?” You looked over your shoulder with the most innocent look you could muster, but his eyes were glued to your ass. “Yeah, just like that.” He answered in a low tone without looking up. You giggled as you took your swing, adding a wiggle for his benefit. You pretended to care about the ball as it glided across the bright green tarp towards the hole. “How was that?” You chirped, looking down the lane.

“I can’t even lie. I don’t care about the game right now. I just wanna watch you.” Your aim was terrible, and the ball never went in the hole without several attempts, but he insisted you finish playing the course. You teased him about it for days after despite his claim that he actually enjoyed the game because it was one of Marcus’ favorites.

“Stop lying! You just wanted an excuse to openly watch my ass.”

“Why you always gotta call me out?”

You shopped a cozy health and wellness store with hundreds of cool little trinkets for sale. Neither of you had been there before, so you took your time exploring, stealing unexpected kisses from the other. Rio took full advantage of the size of the store, pulling you by the hand and holding you close to his side.

He frowned at the large collection of shiny crystals. “A rock, really? What does anybody need with a rock?”

“It’s not a rock!” You hissed, head whipping around as you hoped the owner didn’t hear him.

“What is it then? It looks like a rock to me.” He picked one up, turning it over in his hands.

“It’s a crystal!”

“What’s the difference?”

“It has healing properties...” Rio snorted but strung his arm across your shoulder and listened intently as you read the info cards to him. When it was all said and done, he bought an aventurine stone to apologize to the owner for prosperity, well-being, and good luck.

The next day, he disappeared with no warning. You had been worried sick until Mick let you know he was busy handling something. It would have only taken a minute to tell you that, so you were (understandably) pissed. He showed up at the shop several days later like nothing had ever happened. “What’s up, mama?” The greeting that usually melted you grated on your nerves. All of your feelings about the situation bubbled up to the surface. It was hard to find the right words— you were still getting to know each other, so how mad could you be? At the same time, how little did he think of you to not say anything? Finally, you settled on, “I can’t do the disappearing act.”

Rio wasn’t used to answering to anyone, not even his child’s mother, about his whereabouts, but he put his palms up in surrender when he saw the serious expression you wore.

“You’re right, mama. That’s my bad. It won’t happen again.”

And it hadn’t.

But knowing ahead of time only made it a tiny bit easier, especially when he didn’t have a set return date. You were going on day seven (the longest you had gone without seeing him since you started dating) when he called to say he made it home and wanted to see you. Your heavy heart swelled with relief. You missed him way more than you probably should have, so you insisted on a night in at your place, wanting him to feel relaxed and at home instead of on guard somewhere public.

It had been a long six weeks without sex while he romanced you with delicious food and beautiful words. It wasn’t an easy task, but you knew as soon as sex was thrown in the mix, you would be done for, either destined to be his or ruined by him. It was a scary thought, but distance had indeed made the heart grow fonder, and you cared about him enough to take a chance.

He was set to arrive within the hour, but you were still unsure of what to wear, frantically rummaging through the dresser for something cute and comfortable. You let out a frustrated groan when your phone started to ring, thinking Rio might have come early, but when you look down at your phone, you see your best friend’s name and face. You swipe quickly, accepting the FaceTime call. “Hey, girl!”

“Hey, stranger!” You pick up the phone, so you can look at her. “Really?”

“Yes, really.” She replies with just as much sass. “I haven’t talked to you in what— two weeks?”

“We talk—“

“—text.”

“Okay, fine. Text. We text every day. What are you talking about?”

“That’s not the same.” She insists even as you remind her of the ridiculous amount of time you spend trading memes and food pictures with her.

“Anyway, what are you doing?”

“I’m trying to decide what I’m going to wear between this, this, or this.” You move the camera around, showing her the different options. A black-and-white tank and short set with ‘Being cute is not a crime’ in a cute font. A fuzzy grey sweatsuit set with hearts, or a simple cream hoodie with matching shorts.

“Um, what’s the occasion?” You giggle at the look on her face, knowing she thinks none of the above are appropriate for wearing outside of the house.

“Movie night in.”

“You need help picking an outfit for movie night with yourself?” Her face scrunches up in confusion. “Wait, is it movie night with yourself?” You try to be casual about it, shrugging your shoulders in response. As usual, she sees through your bullshit and goes straight into an interrogation. “Oh, bitch. You been holding out on me!” She asks you five questions in a row without stopping to breathe before settling on one. “Who?”

You gnaw on your bottom lip. “...Rio.”

“Rio?” She frowns. “Like the guy we work for, Rio? With the eyebrows and the neck tattoo, Rio?”

“Yes, that Rio.”

“Wow.” You wince but decide it’s best to get it over with. “What? I know you, so I know there’s more where that came from.”

“I don’t know what to say! From what I can tell, he’s a decent dude, I guess, but you know what he does. You definitely know what we do for him! You don’t think that could be a problem?”

“It’s messy, for sure, and I can admit that, but I’ve been thinking about getting out anyway...” She nods. “Then, I guess there’s nothing else for me to say about that. You’re both grown, and you know what you’re doing.” She was your best friend, which meant she’d always give her honest opinion, but wouldn’t berate you about your choices. Just like that, you return to your regular discussion topics, everything from warehouse gossip (yes, even in the business of crime, there’s a rumor mill) to new music releases. Before you knew it, forty minutes had passed, and Rio was calling your phone. You promised to call her more often before hanging up.

You sing your ‘hello’ into the phone, hoping Rio can’t detect the shakiness in your voice as you clumsily pull on your bottoms.

“Hey, mama. You about ready? I know you’re sensitive about your space and all that.” He was referring to the fact that he had never been past the doorway of your home. Your home was your sacred place, so you were extra careful about who came in and what energy they brought. It was always nerve-wracking to let somebody into the space that you cherished so much.

“Yeah.” He picks up on the hesitancy in your voice. “Are you sure?” You nod your head as if he can see you before telling him yes with a giggle. “Alright, well, I’m outside. Can I come in?” You bite your lip, butterflies fluttering in your tummy. “Yeah, I’ll come unlock the door.” He whispers his thanks, and you take a moment to force yourself to relax. When you meet him at the door, you do so with an open mind and heart, taking in his appearance with a goofy grin on your face. As usual, he’s dressed in all black, wearing a well-fitted t-shirt and sweatpants. He’s casual but still so high quality and attractive.

“Hi.” You breathe out like a dork when you realize you’re staring. It helps that he seems just as mesmerized, stepping forward to envelop you in a tight, warm hug. He sways you from side to side before pulling back, his hands resting heavily on the top of your ass. He settles for a quick peck on the lips because he has something to say. “You’re as pretty as ever, darlin’.” He says earnestly, shaking his head as he steps back to look you over once more.

“Kiss me again.” His hands cup your ass as you devour each other in the open doorway. You forget your surroundings. “Damn, ma. Can I at least get inside before you jump my bones? I don’t mind giving your neighbors a show if that’s your thing, but…” You turn to hide your embarrassment, leaving him to close the door behind you as you gesture around the room as if you’re in an episode of MTV Cribs. “... here’s the living room. The kitchen’s through the arch. The bathroom’s over there...” He follows you with his red as you point.

“And the bedroom?”

You snort. “The tour stops here for now. Sit down.” Your tone leaves no room for argument. He settles into the soft couch while you grab the snack tray from the kitchen. Homemade popcorn, chocolate-covered pretzels, and dried fruit gummies are on the menu.

“All this for me?” His arms snake around your waist so that you can curl up into his side. “What we watching?” You grab the remote. “I saw a trailer this week that caught my attention. I’ll play it for you.” He didn’t care what you watched as long as he got to be close to you, so it didn’t take long for you to get the movie started. He stole glances at you when his knuckles brushed against your bare knees under the blanket. You’re embarrassed at how wet the small action makes you, so you stretch out across the couch and place your bare feet in his lap, silently planning your revenge. The movie may as well not be playing because you couldn’t be less interested in the plot as you lightly stroke him through his sweatpants with the balls of your feet.

“Ma...” He warns, watching you in the low lighting. He’s come to learn you like to tease, but he doesn’t think he can take it, not tonight. “Hmm?” You hum innocently, loving the strained look on your face. He doesn’t move even as you sit up on your haunches and kiss him. It’s slow and long in the best way. He pulls you to sit in his lap. His hands roam your body as you grind down onto him, relishing in the feeling of the soft skin on your tummy. He sighs into your mouth as one hand finds your bare breasts.

He pulls away to talk shit. “No bra? You just knew I was gonna put out, huh?” He pushes the cotton material up so he can see you properly. “Perfect.” He murmurs into your skin. You let him kiss and lick and suck on your nipples until the pressure you feel below is too much to handle. You’re a quivering mess when he finally helps you pull the cotton material up and over your head. It lands on top of the television behind you, but neither of you notice.

You nudge him until he removes his own shirt, and then he lifts his hips to help you when you begin tugging on his sweats. They puddle at his feet while you spread your legs wide, desperate to get your hands on him. “I could cry right now.” You admit honestly when you finally see him, biting your lip. He arches a brow. “Is that a good thing or a bad thing, darlin’?” His hips jerk when you take him into your hands, the cold temperature surprising him.

“It’s definitely a good thing.” You whisper excitedly, staring with wonder as he hardens in your hands. He barks out a laugh, stunned by your ability to make him laugh, even with his dick in your hands. “That’s really nice, ma. I feel real special.” Your eyes meet, and silent promises of all the filthy things you’re going to do to each other are exchanged. “You should. I’m about to change your life.” He throbs in your hands, loving that you find small ways to challenge him.

“Come on. Let’s go to bed.” He wraps his arms around you in preparation to get up, but you stop him with a shake of your head. “I don’t wanna.”

“No? What you wanna do then?”

You answer him by slipping to your knees. You spit on his dick, stroking him up and down slowly. He watches you closely as you lower your mouth, wrapping your lips around the tip. It takes a lot of restraint, but he lets you do your thing, slowly working him deeper into your throat. He closes his eyes as he concentrates on lasting, but he can’t turn his ears off, the obscene smacks painting a vivid picture for him. When you swipe your tongue across his balls, he moves to stop you, grabbing your shoulders. Fire dances in your eyes as you realize you got him where you want him. “I don’t wanna.” You repeat.

“You are a brat.”

You release him with a pop. “The biggest.” You admit, swallowing him once more. He groans, thinking he can’t believe you’re the same sweet girl who bakes in a frilly pink apron and begs him to tell her bedtime stories.

“I want you to fuck me now.” He stops you before you can bend over the couch. “Slow down. I want you on your back, darlin.”

You throw his earlier words back at him. “That’s nice. I feel really special.”

“You should.” He mocks you, instructing you to hold your legs wide. He wastes no time licking and sucking you as enthusiastically as you had done him. “You’re so pretty. I could eat this pretty pussy forever.” He compliments as you squirm in his hold. “You’d let me, huh?” You shake your head frantically. “No! You’d drive..me crazy!” Payback is a mother, especially when Rio’s the one dishing it out. “Wait, wait—“You whimper, clawing at his shoulders.

“What?” He cajoles. He almost wants to laugh at the distressed look on your face. “I want you.” You pout, trying to sweet-talk him.

“You have me.”

“Not like this. Inside.”

“Yeah? You sure?”

“Mhm.” You swallow, watching as he fumbles around with his pants searching for a condom. He opens the golden foil packet with expert fingers, positioning himself in between your spread legs. “You don’t have any pointers for me now?” He drags his tip up and down your slit, slowly pushing his way further. Teasing. You shake your head. “No. Just fuck me.”

“That ain’t polite. You gotta say please, mama.” You scowled, but he didn’t budge. “Please.” You pleaded with the sweetest tone you could muster, sighing as he gave in. You cursed at the stretch, him at the way you squeezed him. “You feel…” He couldn’t find the words, so he buried his face in your neck, trying to gain some composure. You caressed the back of his neck sweetly. “You feel good too, baby.”

His hips stuttered forward, and you gasped as he worked himself deeper. You grasp his shoulders tightly, your nails embedding themselves into the soft skin.

“Yes!” You squeal.

“Like that?” He grits out, struggling to keep his rhythm.

“Yes, just like that!” You cry, moaning as he pounds up into you. His lips find yours again, and it’s bliss. Then before you can stop yourself, you’re calling him Daddy like it’s his given name. He groans into your sweaty neck like he’s in pain.

“You’re so nasty.” Overwhelmed and breathless, you whine your protest, “You’re nasty. Look at what you’re doing to me.” His eyes shift to where you’re connected. You’re creaming all over him and leaking down onto the couch, but you can’t bring yourself to care about anything other than coming. You do just that, mewling as you make an even bigger mess between your legs. He whispers filthy things into your ear as he finishes, grunting at the way you seem to be sucking him in even deeper.

“That was—“

“—unreal.”

“Yeah.”

Neither of you can bring yourself to move. Your sweat-covered skin sticks together. You swipe your hand against your forehead while he pants.

“I wanted to ride you at least once tonight, but after that, I’ll be lucky to make it to bed.”

GENERAL TAGLIST

@woahitslucyylu @briannab1234 @sheeshgivemeabreak @breakingnewsin-no-oneasked @angelreyesgirl @blessedboo @glimmerglittergirl @apantherinmypastlife @brownsugarcoffy @marvelmaree @starrynite7114 @scuzmunkie @thewarriorprincessxo @sadeyesgf @pearlkitten33 @imanerdychubbyqueen @literaturefeen @ourlittlesecretsoveragain @everyhowlmarksthedead @yourwonkywriter @trulysuccubus @sparklemichele @luckyharley1903

RIO TAGLIST

@xsweetdellzx​

[study-coffee-chicago]

Country College (A Halstead Brothers + Halstead Sister Imagine; Part of AU-gust)

A/N: Thank you for reading! Remember to like/reblog and comment! I'm also donating all the proceeds that from my buy me a coffee account to Save The Children to help the children of Afghanistan. Buy me a coffee link here.

Also, here's the playlist of songs I listened to while writing this and some of these songs are actually mentioned in the imagine in case you guys wanted to listen while reading: Country College AU playlist.

I went on vacation and I swear, this entire imagine was based on stuff I did in Tennessee and country songs I listened to while there.

Anyway, enjoy!

"You got everything?" Jay asked you at six in the morning.

"For the last damn time, Jay, yes, I have everything," you answered as you jumped in the passenger seat of his truck and put your backpack at your feet and your tumbler of coffee in a cup holder.

"Jesus. I was just asking because I will not be turning this truck around," he said as he moved around the basket of snacks in the backseat so that the two of you could reach them easier. "Someone's cranky."

"Yes. When I finally got to sleep at 12:30 last night and had to wake up at 4:30, I'm gonna be cranky. Please tell me we're stopping for coffee."

"You already have coffee," Will said as he walked up to the truck. "Why do you need more?"

"Shut up. I know for a fact you drink way more coffee than I do, Mr. Med Student."

"Jesus, Jay. You sure you're gonna be able to put up with her for eight and a half hours?" Will asked.

"I dunno, man. Maybe I'll make her ride with you," he joked.

"Yeah, no way in hell that's happening," Will said.

"In all seriousness," Jay started, "stop for coffee in about an hour and a half?"

"Sounds good to me," you agreed.

"Same here. I only have to ditch you guys when we get like eight hours in," Will said.

"Gonna be weird not having you on the drive down, man," Jay mused.

"Yeah, but at least we can meet up at the rest stops and we'll  be in the same state."

"Are we gonna go?" you asked. "If you two were just gonna talk, I could've slept for an extra ten minutes."

"Holy shit," Jay muttered. He turned to Will. "Guess we should get going then."

"Yeah, see you in an hour and a half. Don't piss off the driver too much, Y/N."

You rolled your eyes. "Goodbye, Will."

Will got in his car and Jay got in the driver's side of his truck.

"Eight and a half hour drive plus traffic," Jay started as you both pulled out of the driveway, "so how do want to split it up?"

"I'm tired and I wanna sleep and I don't want to drive through Knoxville because I have no idea where to go," you answered as you pulled your headphones out of your backpack.

"Okay, Miss Sassy Pants. You can drive in the middle, through Kentucky. Might hit traffic, but we'll hit traffic in Tennessee, too, so we'll both have to drive through it. Just please, do not crash my truck."

"Relax. I know how to drive. Just make sure Will stays on your ass the entire time so we don't lose each other."

***

"And, we're officially in Kentucky!" Jay announced. "Time to change the music. At the next rest stop, we'll pull over and go to the bathroom and grab some lunch."

"Jay! You can't be on your phone while you're driving!" you yelled as he reached for his phone in the cup holder, which was also acting as the GPS...even though Jay claimed he could get there without it.

"Y/N, I'm fine. I've done this for three years now. I think I know what I'm doing."

"If you say so."

He turned on a song you didn't know.

"Got a truck, get it lifted," Jay started to sing.

"The hell is this?" you asked.

"Country music. Gets changed from pop to country the second we cross the border into Kentucky. Now, shh. This is a good song. You'll like it. It's upbeat."

Jay drummed his fingers on the steering wheel and sang quietly to Redneck Be Like by Thomas Rhett as he drove while you listened. He was right. It was a pretty good song.

"All day in the sun, always havin' fun, always gettin' stuck in that muddy river. Always got a buzz, always double cup..."

"You'll know the next one," Jay promised.

"And you know this how?" you asked.

"Because it's on Tiktok. When we get there, Adam and Hailey are gonna have to teach you some southern culture."

"So, I'm gonna need a definition of southern culture."

"You'll see when you get there. Now listen. I know you know this part."

Yeah we fancy like Applebee's...

Jay was right: you did know this song. It was Fancy Like by Walker Hayes.

"On a date night," you sang along. "Got that Bourbon street steak..." Jay joined in. "With the Oreo shake. Get some whipped cream on the top, too. Two straws, one check, girl I got you. Yeah we Bougie like Natty in the styrofoam..."

Five minutes later, you pulled off to a rest stop with a McDonald's nearby. Jay and Will filled up their vehicles while you ran inside to go to the bathroom. Once you were inside McDonald's and at a table eating, you asked Will if it was true that he and Jay always changed it to country music when they crossed the border into Kentucky. Will said yes, so you knew you were in for a long car ride. Then, you and Jay switched so that you were now the one driving and you were off again.

***

Hours later, Will took a different exit to get to Nashville and gave you and Jay a salute to tell you goodbye when he changed lanes and then took the exit.

"Not long now," Jay told you. "You excited?"

"Yeah, but a little nervous," you replied.

"Oh, don't be nervous. They're all really nice. And you've already met Hailey, so that helps."

"Yeah, she was nice. She had a cute little southern accent, too."

"One of the many reasons I fell in love with her in the first place."

Before Jay left for a weekend last summer to meet Hailey halfway and then stay in a hotel for a weekend to spend time with her, he finally told you the story of how he and Hailey met.

"Hey, we're goin' to the marketplace," Adam said on the first weekend of their junior year. "You and Will up for it?"

"Uh, Will's studying like normal. I'm up for it. Kim coming, too?" Jay asked.

"I promised her ice cream, so yeah, she's comin'. Baby, you ready?" he yelled down the hall.

"I'm coming, Adam!" Kim yelled back and then walked out of the bathroom.

"Let's go and make some bad decisions," Adam stated, causing Jay and Kim to laugh.

"We can't even buy alcohol yet, you dummy," Kim said.

"I may be a dummy, but you love me." Then, Adam gave Kim a kiss on the cheek.

"Please stop before I puke," Jay said and made a gagging face.

Adam rolled his eyes. "Let's get outta here."

***

Kim was laughing at a horrible joke Adam made while he had his arm slung around him. He had taken off his signature cowboy hat and had let Kim wear it because she forgot her sunglasses. Adam said he felt naked without it on.

They were walking towards Kilwin's when Jay spotted it: a homeless guy next to a blonde who couldn't be more than college age.

"Man, look," Jay pointed.

The three walked faster.

"No, this is for my friend back at the dorm," the girl explained.

"Lady, I'm hungry. Can I please just have your leftovers?" the guy asked.

"I'm sorry you're hungry, but this is for my friend."

The guy reached for the food.

"Hey, that girl sits behind me in my women and the law class," Kim stated.

Jay, Adam, and Kim took off on a run.

"Hey, baby," Jay said and slung an arm around the girl. He leaned in close to her. "Just go with it," he whispered in her ear. "You got Anna's food?"

"Yeah," the girl said hesitantly. But then, she realized that this guy was trying to help her out. And, he was pretty sure that the girl with him sat in front of her in her women and the law class. "Yeah, I've got her food."

Jay raised an eyebrow at the guy and then looked at Adam as if asking the man to try the two of them.

"Alright, well y'all have a good night now," he said and then turned around and walked away.

Once the man was a few shops down, Jay took his arm off of her. "Sorry about that. Just thought you might need some help," he said.

"Was greatly appreciated, thank you, uh..."

"Jay."

"Jay, well I'm Hailey. Nice to meet you."

He didn't miss her cute little southern accent and he loved it.

"You getting ice cream?" he asked.

"No, I uh was just textin' my roommate to tell her I'd be back soon."

"Well, I-- we'd feel much better if you came into Kilwin's with us. Just so that creeper doesn't come back."

Hailey smiled and agreed.

Kim and Hailey started talking about their class while Adam and Jay ordered their ice cream. Then Kim ordered.

"You want anything, Hailey?" Jay asked.

"Oh no, I'm fine, thank you, though."

Jay nodded, but then turned to the worker. "And can I also get a single scoop of chocolate in a waffle cone, please?"

"Sure thing." As she scooped it out, Hailey looked at Jay and he just shrugged.

When they got to the cashier, Hailey pulled out some money and tried to hand it to Jay.

"I've got it," he said.

"But--"

"Hailey, it's fine. I can pay for a little ice cream."

She loved the way her name rolled off his tongue.

"Okay." She took her ice cream cone.

"Hey, Hailey," Kim began when they walked out of Kilwin's. "Do you have friends you need to meet up with?"

"No, I was just gonna head back to my dorm," she replied.

"Oh, did you drive?"

"No, I walked. It's only like a twenty-minute walk from the sophomore dorms."

"Well, after all that, I'm pretty sure we'd all feel more comfortable if you rode home with us."

"I don't know..." Hailey trailed off.

"Those dorms are only like five minutes away from the house we stay at. And, it's on our way there anyway. Please, just come with us."

Hailey sighed. It would be a lot faster than walking. "Okay."

Then, they finished their walk to Adam's truck and the two girls got in the backseat and the two boys got in the front.

And that is how Jay Halstead met the sweet Georgia peach that is Hailey Anne Upton.

***

Jay, Adam, Will, Kim, and Hailey were all at a sports bar one Saturday night in October. It was loud, it was rowdy, everyone was going crazy over the football game on tv, and Hailey was totally over it. And Jay noticed.

"Hey," Jay whispered from his seat next to her. "You wanna get outta here?"

She turned and raised an eyebrow at him. "You'd wanna leave and not finish the game?"

In the past two months, Hailey had been spending a lot of time with Kim, and by default, she had been spending a lot of time with Adam, Jay, and Will. She will admit going over to their three-bedroom house they all rented together was a lot better than being stuck in her small dorm with her roommate. So, she went over there quite a bit to study with Kim. And, turns out she and Jay were both law studies majors, so they had a lot of the same classes, but they were in different sections, so they did a lot of studying together, too. And, she knew like most college boys, Jay loved his football. Not as much as Adam, but he watched it whenever one of his teams were playing. Which, was Chicago or Tennessee.

"Yeah," Jay started, "it's kinda loud in here anyway. And, it's just Tennessee playing. I'd be more likely to stay if the Bears were playing."

"Okay, let's get outta here. I know a great little diner we can go to for milkshakes. Pretty sure they're open until 11 and it's only 10, so we should be able to make it."

"Adam," Jay said over the game. Adam turned to face Jay. "Me and Hailey are gonna get out of here. I'll see you back at home."

"See you," Adam said and then turned back to his game.

"Guess we know where his loyalties lie," Hailey laughed.

The two of them stood up from their chairs at the table.

"You better get my friend home safe, Halstead!" Kim yelled.

"Yes ma'am," he said, borrowing a line from Adam. "You've got nothing to worry about."

Then, the two of them made their way out of the local sports bar and to Jay's truck.

***

"You've gotta be kiddin' me," Hailey said as the two of them walked up to the diner. "They're closed. Closed at 10 and not at 11. I'm really sorry, Jay."

"That's okay. Got anywhere else you wanna go? Or I can just take you back to your dorm if you want?" Jay suggested.

She sighed. "Just take me back I guess."

The two of them walked back to Jay's truck and got in. Hailey gasped at the song that was on the radio.

"What?" Jay asked, quickly turning to look at Hailey.

"This is my favorite song!"

Lights go down, wheels go around. I'm taking you home. Hoping for a slow song to come on the radio now.

Slow Dance in a Parking Lot by Jordan Davis continued to play through the speakers of Jay's truck.

"What's it about?" Jay asked.

"Slow dancing in a parking lot."

Jay listened to a few more lines and then decided to turn up the radio and jump out of the car.

"Jay, what are you--"

But he was already at her side of the car and pulled her door open.

"Dance with me?" he asked, sticking his hand out for her to take.

"What?" she laughed as a huge smile grew on her face.

"You said the song's about slow dancing in a parking lot and we're in an empty parking lot, so, why not recreate the song?"

Hailey laughed once more and shook her head and then grabbed Jay's hand. He helped her out of his truck and then she wrapped her arms around his neck and he wrapped his arms around her waist and they swayed to the music.

"Slow dance with you. Spinning you round by the Walmart sign and moving our feet over the painted white lines. Getting close to you. Making the most of whatever we got, even if it's just slow dance in a parking lot," Hailey sang quietly.

"Spin," Jay said as he held his hand up.

"What?"

"Spinning you round just like the song says."

Hailey laughed and reached for his hand and did a spin.

"Beautiful," Jay complimented.

"Yeah, right. That's was probably the messiest spin known to man."

"Well, um, it was beautiful. You're beautiful, Hailey."

She was glad it was dark so that Jay couldn't see the heat that rose to her cheeks.

"You're somethin' else, but thank you." She rested her head on his chest as they swayed to the rhythm of the rest of the song.

The song ended and the broadcaster started talking.

"Can I kiss you?" Jay asked.

"What?" she pulled away from his chest.

"I asked if I could kiss you. Was that too much? You know what, just forget--"

"Yes, Jay, kiss me," Hailey smiled and then she and Jay both leaned in.

It was just a peck, but it was their first kiss and despite it being in a dark parking lot late at night, it was still magical.

"You know," Jay began once the quick kiss was over, "there's a Walmart across the street. What do you say we go grab pints of ice cream from there and then you can show me your favorite country songs?"

"I'd like that. Adam didn't show you enough?" she asked.

"I've only got like thirty I like. I need to expand my horizons."

"Okay, let's go."

They held hands in Walmart and then picked out their respective pints of ice cream. Then, they went back to the parking lot of the closed diner and Jay plugged in the aux, allowing Hailey to show him her favorite country songs while they ate their ice cream from the pint and even shared with each other.

Hailey knew nobody would have a first kiss story like that.

Then, at the beginning of the winter semester, Hailey's roommate decided not to live in the dorms anymore. Hailey couldn't afford to pay for a dorm all by herself, so Kim offered to let her stay with her, Jay, Adam, and Will. So, that's how she ended up living with her boyfriend and sharing a room with her best friend, Kim Burgess.

"We're here," Jay announced. "Well, actually, we're a few streets away, but that's one of the lecture halls on your right."

You looked out the window to see a big red and brown brick building with white pillars on the steps. There was also a white sign telling you what building this was.

"Wow," you said in awe. "It's like those old-fashioned colleges. I love it."

"Well, we'll give you a tour and help you find your classes sometime this weekend before classes start on Tuesday. That way, you aren't getting lost on the first day. But, we'll head to the house for now and get all unpacked."

"Sounds good to me."

Five minutes and a few back roads later, you pulled up to a simple two-story brick house.

"Alright, let's get our stuff out and get inside," Jay said.

You stepped out of the truck and started grabbing some stuff out of the back seat.

"I'll jump in the truck and hand you the suitcases. Think you can grab them when I hand them to you?"

You nodded.

"Halstead!" you heard someone shout and you and Jay both whipped your heads around to see Hailey and Adam walking out of the garage and toward the two of you. Adam, well who you assumed was Adam, was carrying two cowboy hats and he and Hailey each had one on themselves.

"Catch!" Adam said and threw one to Jay where he was standing in the box of the truck. Jay easily caught it and placed it on his head.

Adam walked over to you.  "And one for you, darlin'," he said as he placed the hat on your head.

"Thank you," you said. "But I thought Kim was darlin'," you said. It'd make sense because if this guy was in fact Adam, then he and Kim were dating.

"You didn't tell her?" Hailey asked Jay.

"Didn't think there'd be a need to." Jay shrugged.

"Tell me what?" you asked.

"Well, Adam calls every girl darlin'," Jay explained. "It's just normal for him. And, down here, you're gonna get a lot of huns, sweeties, and sweethearts. A lot of waiters and waitresses do that here."

"And what do they call you two?" you asked, motioning to Jay and Adam.

"Sir," they said in unison.

"Oh, and you'll occasionally get a ma'am," Hailey added. "But, that one's rare because we don't look old enough to be called ma'am."

"Okay. And, uh, not to be rude, but what's with the cowboy hats?" you asked.

"It's a tradition we just started last year," Adam explained. "We unpack, wear cowboy hats, and drink moonshine. Oh, I'm Adam by the way, darlin'."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Y/N."

Jay handed you a suitcase and you set it on the ground. Then, you did the same thing with two more suitcases.

You grabbed your backpack from the front seat, your duffle bag from the back, and your two suitcases.

"Here, I can take those two for you," Adam said.

"Oh, okay," you said and then allowed him to take the two suitcases from you. So this is what Jay meant by southern hospitality since Adam was from Tennessee and all.

"Jay, lemme take your suitcase," Hailey said.

"Baby, I've got it," Jay argued as he jumped out of the box of his truck and closed the tailgate.

"The hell you do," she argued. "I see all your other stuff in the backseat and that basket of snacks you gotta carry in, too. Just lemme take your one suitcase."

"Let 'er take the suitcase, Halstead. Best to listen to your lady," Adam said.

"I like Adam already," you laughed.

He let go of one of the suitcases and tipped his hat. "Thank you, darlin'."

This caused all four of you to laugh and then you all went inside carrying both yours and Jay's stuff in one trip between the four of you.

***

"Shine in the fridge?" Jay asked after you and he had brought all your stuff to your room.

"Shine, Jay? How southern do you get when you're here?" you asked.

"Oh, he gets pretty southern, hun," Hailey said.

"See?" Jay asked as he pointed to Hailey. "Told you you'd get called hun."

"So, Adam's thing is darlin' and Hailey's is hun?" Hailey nodded. "And it's because you're from Georgia and he's from Tennessee?"

"That's right, darlin'," Adam confirmed and then turned back to Jay. "Yeah, shine's in the fridge. And Kim just texted and said she's on the way back with pizza."

"You got apple pie flavored shine?" Jay asked.

"Hang on. I'm just gonna grab 'em."

The three of you sat down on the bar stools at the counter and waited for Adam to pull them out.

"Alright," Adam started after he put the bottles of moonshine with sip lids on the counter. "We have peach for Miss Georgia Peach." He passed the peach bottle of moonshine to Hailey. "We've got apple pie shine for me and Jay. We've got strawberries and creme for Kim because that's her favorite." He turned to you. "And for you, I got you blackberry because it's not that high of a proof, so it's not that strong." He slid the jar to you.

"Nuh uh," Jay said quickly and grabbed the bottle.

"What the hell, Jay? Give it back! Adam said it's for me, not you!" you argued.

"Last I checked, you're only eighteen."

"Last I checked, Dad's not here. And I know for a fact you drank before you were 21, so pass me the blackberry shine, please."

"I'll take the first sip and then you can have it." He made sure the straw part was open and then he took a sip. "Adam, that shit's like a chaser compared to the apple pie one."

"I know. That's why I got 'er that one," Adam said.

You heard a door shut.

"Pizza's here!" Kim announced.

She walked into the kitchen with three boxes of pizza.

"I got us three pies," she said as she set them down on the counter. "We got one pepperoni and green olive, one supreme, and one meat lovers." She turned to you. "And you must be Y/N. I'm Kim. I see Adam already got you started on that Tennessee moonshine."

"Nice to meet you," you said. "You're from New York, right?"

"Yup, not New York City, though. More upstate."

"Of course she's from New York, Y/N!" Jay exclaimed. "Who else would call pizza a pie except for a true New Yorker?"

"I'll take that as a compliment. Thanks, Jay."

Jay raised his bottle of apple pie moonshine in a fake cheers and then took a sip.

"Now that's the strong shit I need to start off this semester right," he announced and then set the bottle down.

"Oh, and if your brother didn't tell you yet, he turns into a borderline alcoholic when he's at school," Kim told you.

You laughed. "He didn't tell me that, no."

"Better than being a caffeine addict like Kim and Hailey here," Jay argued.

"Shut up," Hailey said. "You know you're a caffeine addict during finals week just the rest of us."

"I was a caffeine addict in high school, so we'll see what happens," you shrugged.

Kim grabbed a stack of paper plates and set them on one of the pizza boxes. "Dig in. Oh, Y/N, did Adam get you the blackberry flavored moonshine?"

"He did. Haven't tried it yet because Jay has yet to give it back to me."

Kim quickly reached down and grabbed the jar of moonshine.

"Hey, Kim! She's only 18!" Jay protested.

"So? I know you drank an insane amount during your freshman year. So shut it." Kim popped open the sipping lid. "Taste."

You took a sip. It did taste like blackberry, but it was also sort of strong, but it didn't burn your throat that bad like you had read in books that alcohol did.

"This is actually pretty good."

"I know, right? And, me and Hailey will let you try ours when we help you unpack," Kim said. "But, do not try the kind the boys have because it's nasty."

"Baby, I don't know what you have against apple pie moonshine, but it's good," Adam said and then took a sip of his moonshine. Kim rolled her eyes. Adam leaned across the counter. "The New York in her is coming out, darlin'."

"Oh, shut up," Kim said and reached over to steal Adam's cowboy hat off his head.

"Baby, now I feel naked without it," Adam argued and tried to reach for the hat.

"Sucks for you. Now eat your pizza before it gets cold."

***

"Morning," Jay said when you walked into the kitchen the next morning. "How'd you sleep?"

"Good. it's nice not having to share a room with anyone like you and Adam, and then Hailey and Kim have to. It was fun having them help me unpack last night, though," you said.

Last night, Kim and Hailey had helped you unpack and when you mentioned that you didn't really know any country music, Hailey pulled up all of her favorite country songs to play for you. You especially liked Girl in a Country Song by Maddie and Tae. They showed you the music video for that song and it was about how, in most country music videos, girls had to dress up in little skimpy outfits and have the boys just stare at them all day. So, in their music video, they changed the roles, and the guys had to dress in skimpy clothing in the music video. It was pretty funny and the song was catchy.

"Let me guess," Jay began, "Hailey showed you some good country music?"

"Yup. The songs she showed me were pretty good, pretty upbeat. Didn't sound like a cat being put in a blender like old-fashioned country, so I guess that's good."

"What do you have against old-fashioned country, darlin'?" Adam asked as he walked into the kitchen.

"I dunno." You shrugged. "Too slow for me and I just don't like the voices I guess."

"You know what we ought to do, Jay?" Adam asked and Jay raised his eyebrows, silently telling adam to continue. "We should show her all the songs that are mentioned in What's Your Country Song."

"Wait, wait. I think I know that one. I think Hailey played it for me last night. Is it the one that mentions Chatta- Chatta..."

"Chattahoochee?" Adam asked.

"Yeah, that funny word. What even is that anyway?"

"It's a river that runs through Georgia," Jay answered. "Pretty sure Hailey used to go tubing down it like we're gonna do today."

You furrowed your eyebrows. "We're going tubing? Like behind a boat?"

Adam laughed. "Christ, Jay! Do you tell her anything?"

"He doesn't," you answered. "So, explain, one of you."

"Alright, I'll do it," Jay said as he poured milk on top of a bowl of Raisin Bran. You looked at him intently. "What we do is, the first Saturday that we're all together before school starts, we go on tubes and float down the Tennessee River. We bring a cooler full of snacks, sandwiches, booze, and water, and a waterproof speaker and we just have a fun time. Oh, and this year, you're the DD."

"Me?" you asked as you pointed to yourself. Jay nodded. "But I don't know where to go! I haven't even been in Tennessee for a full 24 hours yet!"

"Kim's like the mom of the group," Adam supplied. "So she'll still be pretty lucid and could probably drive if she needs to. But, she'll at least be able to give you directions on how to get back here."

You sighed. "Good. That makes me feel a lot better."

"Where are the other two girls anyway?" Adam asked. "They're usually up a lot earlier than we are when we go on the river."

"I think they were a little buzzed last night," you said. "Might still be sleeping."

While you were unpacking, you took a few sips of your jar of blackberry moonshine, but not a lot. You'd never really drank before, much less drank moonshine and you didn't really feel like puking from being drunk or having a killer headache from a hangover...at least, that's what you thought happened from what you had read in books and seen in movies and tv shows. But, Kim and Hailey had each finished like a quarter of their jar, so they had been buzzed last night. They weren't drunk because they could still walk in a straight line and knew what they were talking about, but they did have little dopey smiles on their faces while they helped you unpack.

"She's right," Kim said as she and Hailey walked into the kitchen. Hailey's hair was wrapped in a towel, alerting you that she had just taken a shower. "Adam, can you grab me an Advil?" She took a seat on a stool and put her head in her hands. "My head is fucking killing me. I didn't even think I drank that much."

Adam laughed. "You do this every semester, baby. First shine of the year and you always drink a little too much." He handed her the pills and a cup of water and Kim quickly washed the pills down.

"I just need some coffee," Hailey announced.

"We know, you don't get hangover headaches," Kim groaned.

"Yeah, but I feel exhausted all day. Everyone goin' for coffee? I'll make a bigger pot if that's the case."

Everyone said yes and Hailey started on the coffee.

***

"Okay, we got the tubes, the speaker, swimsuits are on, we have the towels, cooler," Jay rattled off as the five of you sat in his truck. "Anyone double-check the cooler?"

"I did," Hailey said. "We got water, the same shine from last night, some white claws, the sandwiches me and Kim made for everyone, chips, and a few other snacks."

"And I threw in a little first aid kit with bandaids, alcohol swabs, Neosporin, and other stuff. And I've got the sunscreen, too," Kim said.

"See, what'd I tell you, darlin'?" Adam asked as he turned around from his spot in the passenger seat. "Kim's the mom of the group."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Kim said. "It means I'm responsible and prepared."

"Those two would get so damn sunburned and dehydrated if it weren't for Kim," Hailey said as she pointed to Jay and Adam in the two front seats.

"Thanks, Hails," Jay replied sarcastically. "Real nice."

"You're welcome," she said with a smile.

You leaned your head against the window. You were supposed to get stuck in the middle, but seeing as you got car sick easily, Kim said she'd switch spots with you.

"You okay?" Kim asked.

"Yeah, just, Jay really needs to turn on the AC before I throw up from motion sickness and how damn hot it is in here."

"Least you got that cowboy hat to puke in if you need to," Jay laughed as he reached for the AC. "You better not puke in my tuck or you will be walking home."

Adam smacked him upside the head.

"Ow!" Jay exclaimed and took one hand off the wheel and rubbed the back of his head. "The hell was that for?"

"Dude, be nice! Look at her!" Adam exclaimed.

Jay looked in the rearview mirror and saw you leaning your head against the window with your eyes closed and pinching your nose. You groaned.

"Here," Jay said and tossed you a blue bottle of Gatorade from his cup holder. "Drink this. Get you some hydration and electrolytes."

You took a few sips and then handed the bottle back to him. "Thanks."

"Mhm."

Kim moved the vents so that the AC was blowing on you more. "That help?"

"Little bit, thanks."

"Think you'll be good to go down the river?" Jay asked.

"Yeah, because then I won't be trapped in a hot box going sixty down the road!"

"She's right about that," Adam agreed. "You'll be lucky if you go five miles per hour, darlin'."

"Alright, so the motion sickness should stop. Thank God."

"Just rest your head against the window and listen to some country music," Jay said. "Speaking of that, who's controlling the music on the river?"

"I got it," Adam volunteered. "Everyone give me a song and I'll get the queue started."

***

You had been going down the river for about half an hour now and had finished a bottle of water and eaten a banana, too. You felt fine now. Adam was right, you were going slow enough that you didn't get sick, and you also weren't in the backseat of a truck.

"Hey, Kim," you started, "can you pass me my moonshine?"

"Mhm," she said. You guys had tied a cooler to a tube, which was then tied to Kim's tube. Because, the boys figured that between the five of you, she was the most responsible. They toyed with tying it to your tube because you probably wouldn't get shitfaced (like the boys most likely would) since you were underage, but you had never gone tubing down the Tennessee River before, so they decided on Kim. "Here, Hailey, hold my white claw."

She passed Hailey her drink and then maneuvered the cooler towards her, opened it, and handed you your moonshine.

"Thank you," you said and popped open the sip lid and took a sip. "Ahhh."

"Hey, drink it slow," Adam warned, turning towards you and practically yelling over the music. He and Jay were in front of the three of you girls so they could tell you if there were a ton of rocks coming or if it was super shallow coming up. "Heat makes getting drunk a lot easier because you keep drinking it because you're so thirsty."

"I don't think that's how it works, man, but whatever you say," Jay laughed.

Another song started.

"Hey!" you yelled. "I know this song!"

"Yeah, because it's old as hell," Jay laughed.

"Shut up! I like it!"

Baby you a song you make me wanna roll my windows down and cruise. Down a back road, blowin' stop signs through the middle every little farm town with you.

"And this brand new Chevy with a lift kit, would look a hell of a lot better with you up in it. Baby you a song, you make me wanna roll my windows down and cruise," the five of you sang Cruise by Florida Georgia Line while holding your drinks in pure happiness.

Because of this, you didn't notice Jay drifting off to the side toward the trees.

Jay let out a sinister laugh as he got closer. "C'mere, buddy, c'mere." The black snake stuck his tongue out and hissed. "Yeah, I know, you wanna scare Y/N, too." Jay held his hand out toward the snake. "I'm nice, I promise." The snake slithered and went up on Jay's hand and started up his arm. He turned once most of the snake was on him. He started using his other hand to paddle himself back toward the group. "Y/N!"

You turned and looked at him. You saw the snake on his arm and tears pricked your eyes. "No! No!" you shouted.

Snakes were your biggest fear and knowing that they were in the river that you were in right now was absolutely terrifying to you. And, with each paddle, Jay and the snake were coming closer and closer to you.

"Jay, please, please!"

Adam turned and looked at Jay and then back to you. "She scared of snakes?" You quickly nodded as tears ran down your face. "Jay! Stop! She's terrified!"

Jay laughed. "No!"

He was coming closer and closer to you.

Adam quickly paddled over to you and went in front of you. "I won't let it go near you, darlin', don't you worry."

"Uh huh," you said and grabbed onto Adam's arm in complete and utter terror.

Unknown to Jay, Hailey was making her way to him. But, she was behind him, so Jay couldn't see his girlfriend coming up behind him with her empty bottle of white claw raised high in the air.

He felt it before he heard her.

"Don't." Smack on the head with the empty can. "You." Another smack on the head with the empty can. "Do." Another smack on the head with the empty can. "That." Last smack on the head with the empty can.

"Ow!" Jay yelled. "Hails, stop!"

"Put the fuckin' snake back and stop scarin' the daylights outta your little sister or I will keep smackin' you, Jay!" Hailey told him.

"Fine, I'll put it back," he groaned.

"Hailey, keep that can raised above his head. If he tries to come back here, hit 'im again!" Adam yelled.

"You got it!" Hailey said. "Hear that baby? Your head is gonna come in contact with this 'ere empty white claw can again if you don't get a move on."

"I'm going, I'm going," Jay grumbled.

"Good, then you won't get smacked again."

"Just for all that," Adam started, "you wanna pick the next song, darlin'?"

"Can you play Better Dig Two by The Band Perry?" you asked. "That counts as country right?"

"Sure does, darlin'." He started messing with his phone. "Comin' right up."

"I told you on the day we wed, I was gonna love you 'til I's dead," you started to sing. "Made you wait 'til our weddin' night, that's the first and the last time I wear white."

"Snake's gone! Made sure he put it down and I even watched it slither away!" Hailey announced. "Put me in the ground, put me six foot down," Hailey joined in after she had finished yelling over part of the first verse.

"And, as for you, Jay," Adam started over the music and all of you singing. "You don't get to pick a song for the next hour."

"Son of a bitch," Jay muttered.

"Hey, you brought this one on yourself, buddy. So just sit back, relax, listen to our music choices, and enjoy your shine."

***

One week later

"And we're here!" Adam announced as the five of you pulled onto a long dirt driveway. "You ready to ride some horses, Y/N?"

"I dunno," you said. "I've never ridden a horse before."

"Oh, Adam'll make sure you're super safe," Kim reassured you.

"Okay, so whatever horse I ride won't buck me off?"

"Oh no," Adam said quickly, "we'll put Jay on Buck."

"Like hell you will!" Jay argued from the backseat.

Despite the studying the five of you had to do, you were at Adam's childhood home. Adam's parents had rented a cabin in North Carolina for the weekend since it was Labor Day weekend and needed someone to watch the five horses they owned.

His parents used to own a riding place with multiple horses, but since their kids got older, they stopped doing it because they were getting older and couldn't give the tours anymore. So, they sold most of their horses, left five so that their kids could ride them with their friends, but still kept the house and the land. Whenever Adam's parents went out of town, either he or his sister would come and stay over at their childhood home and take care of the horses. Seeing as his sister was married and just gave birth to a daughter, this left Adam. And, luckily for him, his parents were fine with some friends coming over to help Adam out.

"Relax, man," Adam began, "I'll ride Buck."

"Wait, is he called Buck because he bucks people off?" you asked.

"You would be completely right, darlin'. Which, would be the reason I'm riding him and neither of you four will be doing that."

Adam put the truck in park and you got out of the passenger seat. Yes, you had ridden in the front because Adam said you could because of your motion sickness. Jay wasn't too happy, but it was Adam's car, so therefore it was Adam's rules.

You got inside the house and it had two extra bedrooms, one of which was Adam's childhood room and had an extra twin bed in it for when his friends wanted to sleepover (Because, in Adam's words, it was only girls who shared beds at sleepovers and he said guys didn't do that, so that's why there was the extra bed). In his older sister's childhood room, there was a full-sized bed, so Hailey and Kim would share the bed and the boys said they'd move a couch into that same room for you to sleep on.

Adam opened the fridge once all of you had put your stuff in the rooms that would be yours for the weekend. "Ooooh, y'all, my mama left us some food!"

"Oh, he southern southern now," Kim laughed and walked over to the fridge. "What'd she make?"

"Let's see. We got fried chicken, mashed potatoes, cornbread, gravy, biscuits, grits, tater salad, peaches that she canned herself, and apple pie. She must really miss me if she cooked this much!" Adam laughed after he rattled off the food his mom made for all of you.

"Mama's cookin', paper plate, and tater tater salad," you said, quoting a song Jay had played on the way down here that you had taken a liking to and had added it to a playlist and been listening to it a lot the past week.

"Did you just..." Adam trailed off.

"She did!" Jay exclaimed.

"Is it that hard to believe that I know more than two country songs, y'all?" you asked.

All four of them gasped.

"She's southern! She's southern, y'all!" Hailey yelled.

"What?" you asked as you looked around at your brother, his girlfriend, and his two friends in confusion.

"That was yer first y'all, hun!" Hailey told you and pulled you into a hug. "Yer a regular southern belle now."

"Next thing you know, girl's gonna be fallin' for cowboys," Adam said.

"Aw, hell nah," Jay said. "Ain't no way she's datin' a cowboy. No way."

"Shit, Jay just went southern southern, too," Adam laughed.

"What can I say, when my girl goes hella Georgia, I go hella Tennessee," Jay said.

"That made zero sense, baby, but okay," Hailey said. She turned to Adam. "When we ridin'?"

"We can go right now if you want. Everyone good with that?"

You all nodded and then Adam told all of you to put on your cowboy hats.

***

"This 'ere's Maddy," Adam said before he helped you onto the horse. You put your feet in the stirrups. "They feel good? You can reach 'em well?" he asked.

"Yeah," you told him. "Thanks."

"You're welcome, darlin'." He turned to Jay, Hailey, and Kim. "You three remember how to get on the horses since we rode so much last year?"

"We're good," Jay said.

"Hey, baby?" Hailey asked and turned to Jay. He turned to look at her. "You think you can help me on 'im? Pretty sure Diablo's gotten a lot bigger since I rode 'im last."

"Yeah, sweetheart, I got that."

"Did he just..." you trailed off and looked at Kim.

"He did," she confirmed. "She turns into sweetheart around this time every year. Jay gets really southern after only being here a week. Might also have something to do with Adam calling me sweetheart sometimes and he just picks up on it."

Jay helped Hailey onto the huge horse named Diablo and then got on his horse. You were riding Maddy, Adam was riding Buck, Jay was riding Sinbad, Hailey was riding Diablo, and Kim was riding Atta'Boy.

"All y'all need to watch me now," Adam announced from the front. All four of you gave Adam all your attention. "Well, mostly Y/N because she's never ridden before." He paused. "To make your horse stop, just give the reins a little tug. To turn, hold the reins on your right side, and pull towards your right hip, like this." He demonstrated and pulled the reins like he told you and Buck's head turned to the right. "And turn left, do the same thing on the left side. To make them go, just flick the reins a little bit, but they're pretty well-trained, so you shouldn't need to do that. But, if they still won't go, give 'em a little kick. I promise you won't hurt 'em. But, most of all, keep at least one hand on the reins at all times. Oh, and they will try to eat on the trails, but they ain't supposed to, so try and get them to stop by pulling up on the reins if you can.

"Any questions? Everyone sure their stirrups and saddles are good?" Adam finished.

Everyone answered with a chorus of "yeses" and then the five of you were off...that was until Maddy decided she was hungry about a quarter-mile (400 meters) in.

And, to make matters worse, you were in the mountains (because everyone is in the mountains here) and Maddy was bringing you closer and closer to a small ravine.

You did not want to have the experience of trying to control your horse and deciding whether or not to jump off or not and possibly being rushed to the hospital.

"Maddy!" you yelled and tugged up on the reins. Nothing. "Maddy!"

"Pull hard!" Jay yelled from behind you.

"I am pulling, Jay!" you yelled back. "Come on, Maddy!"

Shit, she was still moving towards the edge and trying to eat more.

"Pull to the left!" Jay yelled. You pulled. Nothing. "All the way around! To your left hip!"

You did so and she moved. Finally.

"Now straighten out the reins," Jay told you. You did. "And give her a kick to move."

You did and she continued walking...this time with a huge branch and leaves hanging out of her mouth because she had gotten herself a nice little snack.

"What's with all the yellin'?" Adam asked as he turned his head around and had Buck slow down a little bit. Then, he saw Maddy. "Maddy stop to eat? She acts likes she's starvin', but I promise you she's not."

You kept going and then you started going down a hill.

"Lean forward when going down a hill," Adam yelled back to all of you, "and lean back when going up a hill."

You started going down the hill and kept trying to maneuver yourself so you were in the middle of the saddle. You felt like you were leaning too much to the right, so you kept trying to fix it, but with Maddy still walking, it was kind of hard.

You clenched your stomach muscles to try and pull yourself back to center, but it wasn't working. You tried to push up with your left foot because you were leaning to the right, but that wouldn't work either.

"Just hold on tight, Y/N," Jay told you. "Adam!" Jay yelled as you kept leaning to the right and pulled the reins a little harder to make sure that Maddy would stop.

"What?" Adam yelled back.

"We need a little help back here!"

Adam turned Buck around and he got halfway to you and stopped next to Hailey and Diablo.

"She's fallin' off, you big dummy! You gotta go!" Adam yelled. He flicked his reins. "C'mon, go!"

It was like Buck knew what was going on because the minute he lifted his head up and saw you trying to stay in the saddle, he started coming towards you.

"Buck, stay," Adam said sternly and jumped off him. He walked to your right side. "Now, I'm gonna push your saddle to the left and I need you to lean the same way, okay?"

"Lean to the left?" you asked.

"Yup," he confirmed. "One...two...three."

He pushed up and you leaned to the left, which allowed the saddle and you to be re-centered.

"Can you reach the stirrups okay, darlin'?" he asked. "Or do you need 'em a bit higher?"

"I think I need them a bit higher," you answered. "I thought they were fine, but I guess not."

"That's okay. That's what I'm here for. Take your right foot out."

You did as he said and then he adjusted the stirrups and helped you get your foot back in. Then, he did the same for the left foot.

While Adam was adjusting your left stirrup, Maddy was curious about what was in his first aid bag that was attached to Buck's saddle.

"I ain't got no treats in there, you fatty." He put his hand on Maddy's head. "There's nothin' in there for you. Get out." She started chewing on a drawstring that was on the bag. "Okay, I guess you can chew on that."

"So, to get her to turn, do I just pull like this?" you asked and showed Adam.

"Yes, but put your hand further down the reins when you do that. Works better like that."

"Okay, thanks."

"And, if she keeps tryin' to eat, pull up hard--but not too hard and far that you make her walk backward--and if that doesn't work, give her a quick kick. I promise you won't hurt this little fatty right here."

"Okay, awesome."

"You good?"

"I'm good," you confirmed.

"Okay, so if you ever need to adjust yourself, just grab this 'ere saddle horn." He put his hand on the stub on the front of the saddle. "And put two hands on it...unlike me, and then just push down with your foot on which side you want the saddle to go. Pretty simple."

"Okay, got it," you said.

Then, Adam jumped back on Buck and you were off again.

***

You and Kim were sitting up on the bed in Adam's older sister's childhood room that you were staying in and watching a dumb comedy when Adam poked his head into the room.

"Both you up?" he asked.

"Yeah," Kim answered. "Why?"

"Well, I want to go to the rope swing, and Jay and Hailey both fell asleep spooning while watching some shitty movie in the living room, so do you two wanna go? I'm bringing alcohol."

"Adam, it's like 11 o'clock at night!" Kim laughed. "We won't even be able to see the water!"

"Honey," Adam laughed. "I'll leave the headlights of my truck on! I'm not that stupid to have us jump in blind!" He paused. "You two in?"

"Sure," Kim agreed and then turned to you. "Y/N?"

"Why the hell not? I'm in college, let's go!"

"Alright, I'll let you two get changed and I'll grab the towels and the booze," Adam said.

"Adam, if you're the one driving, you cannot drink a ton!" Kim told him.

"I know! I'll just take like two shots and use moonshine as a chaser."

"You got more moonshine?" you asked.

"Holy hell, Adam," Kim agreed.

"Where do you two think I was the past hour? I went into town and grabbed a few flavors. and, I got both your flavors, too. So, y'all can't yell at me. Now, get changed so we can go before Jay and Hailey wake up and decide they want in on this, too."

***

"You good to sit in the back, Miss Car Sick?" Adam asked you.

"Yeah, you said it's only like a five minute drive, so I'll be fine. Thanks for asking, though," you answered.

"No problem, darlin'."

Then, the three of you were off to this rope swing to jump into a river in the middle of the night.

Five minutes later, Adam threw his car in park and left the radio and headlights on. The three of you got out and Adam grabbed the booze and shot glasses and then you followed him around to the back of his truck. He handed the stuff off to you and Kim to hold while he flipped his tailgate down. Then, he used the flashlight app of his phone to see as he poured each of you a shot of gummy bear flavored vodka.

"Cheers to late night decisions and possibly bad decisions!" Adam toasted.

The three of you clinked your shot glasses together and then took the shots.

"Shit. That was strong," you coughed.

"Chaser, chaser," Adam said as he flipped open the sip cap on the blackberry moonshine.

He handed it to you and you took a few sips.

"Compared to that shot, this moonshine tastes like nothin'," you said.

"See? Told you it had a low proof!" Adam exclaimed. "Now, do you two want me to go first so I can show you how it's done?"

"That might be a good idea, yeah," Kim agreed. "You've only brought me here during the day and it's been over a year, so yeah, you go first, cowboy."

"Oh, that reminds me." He took his signature cowboy hat off. "Hold this for me, will you, sweetheart?" He held the hat out to Kim and she took it from him. "Thank you. Now, watch and learn, ladies, watch and learn."

Kim laughed. "Whatever you say, babe, whatever you say."

Adam walked up to the edge of the river and waded in the water to grab the rope. You and Kim stood on the edge of the river and watched as Adam dragged the rope with him as he stood on a rock, which was right below the tree that the rope was tied to. Then, he cinched the rope between his feet and jumped up and swung forward.

"Yeehaw!" Adam yelled.

Then, after a few seconds, he let go of the rope and fell into the river.

The rope dangled back and forth until Adam grabbed it and dragged it in with him.

"Who's next?" he asked as he held the rope out.

"You wanna go, Kim?" you asked.

"You sure you don't wanna go before me?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure. Go ahead," you said.

"You nervous, darlin'?" Adam asked you as he took his hat back from Kim and placed it on his head.

"A bit." You looked down at your feet. "Are there snakes in there?" you practically mumbled.

"Oh, darlin'," Adam said with a wave of his hand. "I can promise you that there's no snakes in there. You've never seen a snake in there have you, baby?" he asked Kim.

"Nope, no snakes. I promise. Now, I'll go, and then you gotta go because it's so much fun!"

Kim grabbed the rope and then made her way up onto the rock. She did the same thing that Adam did and soon it was your turn.

"I'm stealing your aux, babe," Kim said as she walked toward Adam's truck.

Adam raised an eyebrow. "I don't know why you can't just listen to the radio like we've been doing, but go ahead, baby."

Kim walked over to the truck and changed the input to aux and then quickly pulled up Spotify. From there, she pulled up the song Like A Lady by Lady A, formerly known as Lady Antebellum. She turned the volume all the way up on her phone, plugged it into the aux, and hit play.

"Lady!" came out of the speakers as well as the opening chords.

You gasped as Kim came running back to you and Adam.

"How'd you know this one of my favorite songs?" you asked.

Ever since Hailey had played it for you on your first night in Tennessee when you were unpacking and sippin' on moonshine, you loved this song. It was all about feeling like a lady while wearing jeans and drinking and being comfortable with yourself and not needing a man.

"Y/N, I follow you on Spotify. I can see what you listen to. Now, go get to it, lady!" Kim cheered.

You smiled and turned around. You walked to the rock and climbed up on it just before the chorus. You grabbed onto the rope.

"'Cause I feel like a lady," you sang loudly to the music. "Sippin' on tequila with my Levis on."

You clamped your feet around the rope and jumped.

You felt weightless for just about one second and then you let go of the rope and fell into the water with a splash.

The water wasn't freezing, it was a little cold, but it was still decently comfortable. You started swimming back to the shore and grabbed the rope when it swung back toward you.

"Hell yeah!" Adam yelled as he ran up to you and took the rope so you could pull yourself up onto the river bank. "You did awesome! Did you like it?"

"I loved it! Let's do it again!" you yelled.

"See?" Kim said. "I told you that you'd love it!"

"I propose a celebratory shot for Y/N's first time jumping off the rope swing!" Adam said and the three of you headed back to his truck to have more booze.

And that is how you learned that you didn't get hangover headaches like Kim, but got hella tired the next day just like Hailey. But, a little hangover (despite not being old enough to legally drink) was all worth it because of how much fun you, Kim, and Adam had.

***

Months later

"Welcome to Chocolate Moose, everybody!" Adam announced and fumbled with the lockbox to get the key.

Since it was exam season, there was a tradition that started during the winter semester of their sophomore year that was where they'd all go up to a cabin (each cabin had a name and yours was Chocolate Moose) in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, which was an hour away from school, to go study without the temptation of parties and the libraries that were packed as hell and barely had any seats open because everyone and their mama had decided to study there.

He unlocked the door and opened it.

You walked in and were in awe. When you walked in, you saw a small kitchen complete with a stove, oven, microwave, and pots, pans, plates, bowls, cups, mugs, and silverware stored in cabinets and drawers. There was also a small pantry to your right the minute you walked inside.

Off of the small kitchen were the living room and the dining area. There was a circular wooden table with six chairs and there was a tv and a couch that folded out into a bed. Right next to that was a bedroom with a bathroom, which also had its own tv in it.

And, if you walked to the end of the living room, there was a door that led to the first-floor deck that overlooked the Smoky Mountains. On the deck was a wooden table that matched the wood of the deck and six stools, so it would be a nice place to study or eat breakfast or sip coffee in the morning.

The stairs to go to the second floor were above the table (so the table was tucked beneath the second set of stairs). When you got up there, there was a pool table, a bubble hockey table, another couch that folded out into a bed, and a coffee table in front of said couch.

To the right of the couch and coffee table was a California king-sized bed with a trunk in front of it which held the bedding for the pull-out couches. Then, there was a dresser with a mirror to the side of the bed and a closet. There was also a full bathroom with a washer and dryer and a dressing table (so tons of counter space and two mirrors) upstairs as well.

And, there was another deck on the second floor. This one didn't have a full-sized table, but it did have two chairs with a small table between, and a small couch complete with a bunch of throw pillows on one end of the deck. This deck too overlooked the beauty that was the Smoky Mountains.

"Who's that?" you asked fifteen minutes later after you had finished touring the cabin and figuring out sleeping arrangements.

It had been decided that Adam and Kim would take the first-floor bedroom and that you'd take the pull-out couch on their floor. Hailey and Jay would sleep upstairs and you wondered why you couldn't take the upstairs couch like you wanted to because Jay was quick to tell you no.

You knew they weren't gonna try to do the nasty up there since there was no door shutting the upstairs off from the downstairs, so you had no idea why he wouldn't let you sleep on the pull-out couch upstairs.

"Who's that?" you asked again while looking out the kitchen window.

Then, you saw a head of red hair in the driver's seat and rushed out the door to where the person parked their car.

"Will!" you shouted as he got out of the car. "I missed you!" You wrinkled your nose at what he was wearing: a pair of blue scrubs.

"I drove here right after I got off a twelve-hour ED rotation," Will told you. "Hence the scrubs."

"I would give you a hug, but who knows what kinda bodily fluids have been on those."

"Good choice. We'll postpone the hug until after I take a quick shower and change."

Adam, Kim, and Jay came outside and said their hellos to Will, and Jay took Will's backpack, making a joke saying that it felt like he stuffed a ton of rocks in there.

So, now you knew why you couldn't sleep on the pull-out couch upstairs: Will was sleeping there.

***

"Fuck!" you yelled as you felt a bee sting you on the upper part of your left inner thigh.

"What?" Adam asked.

You, Adam, and Kim were outside at the table on the first-floor deck studying while Will was upstairs studying and Jay and Hailey were studying one of their law studies classes at the kitchen table together.

"The fuckin' bee stung me!"

"Well, you were swattin' at him, darlin'," Adam said, which earned him a smack to the arm from Kim.

"Because he was between my legs!" you argued. "What was I supposed to do? Let him fly up my shorts and sting me there? Oh hell no!"

You got up and walked inside.

"Will!" you shouted the minute you closed the door to the deck.

"Y/N! Keep it down!" Jay scolded. "We're trying to study!"

You had made it up the first set of stairs and leaned over the railing. "Well, I just strung by fuckin' bee, so I think I can yell a bit, Jay! Will!"

"What?" he said and ripped out his headphones when you got all the way upstairs. "Med school's no joke, you know!"

"Well, what do I put on a bee sting?" you huffed.

Will sighed. "Hold on. They asked me to be the one who brought the first aid kit and I'm glad I did."

He got up and then came back with a bottle of lotion.

"Put this on it. Should cool down the stinging. Tell me if it gets worse or starts itching."

"Okay, thanks."

You put it on and hoped it would be better soon.

***

Okay, so this bee sting wasn't getting better. It was actually getting worse.

It had been itchy all day and you were currently shaving your legs in your shower. You felt the place where the bee had stung you and it was swollen as if someone had shoved a disk the size of an Oreo in your leg at the place the bee had stung you.

You got out of the shower, got changed, and walked out of the bathroom where country music was blasting and Jay and Adam were playing a friendly (okay, so maybe not so friendly) game of pool.

"Hailey, is my bee sting supposed to be super itchy?" you asked as you sat down on the couch next to her.

She and everyone else was drinking one of their two allotted white claws. Yes, during finals week you had all decided there needed to be a daily cut-off for alcohol so that you could all get your shit done. And, it helped keep everyone accountable since everyone in the cabin was only having two per day...and you weren't spending a ton of money this weekend on alcohol.

"Um, none of mine have ever been," she said. "Will!" He turned to look at her from where he was sitting and intently watching the pool game...mostly to make sure neither Adam nor Jay cheated. "Her bee sting supposed to itch?"

"Not unless she's allergic to bees...and she's not." He stood up. "Go lay on the bed and let me take a look."

"Oh, fuck no! I am not letting my brother look there!"

"Y/N, I'm a med student. I've seen a helluva lot more than a bee sting on your inner thigh. You can even go put on some short spandex if that would make you more comfortable."

You currently had on loose-fitting shorts that you knew would fall back to expose what underwear you were wearing if you let Will take a look. "Actually, I think I'll go do that," you said.

You quickly grabbed a pair of spandex from your suitcase and went back into the bathroom and changed into them.

"Y'all check for a stinger?" Adam asked.

Will must've filled him in when you were changing your shorts.

"Shit," Will cursed. "I knew there was something I forgot to do."

"What kinda fuckin' doctor are you if you forget to check something like that?" you asked Will rhetorically. "Hailey, I'm gonna need that empty white claw bottle to smack Will over the head with like you did to Jay on the river."

"Sorry, hun," Hailey apologized. "I ain't finished with this 'ere can yet."

"I'll hit him!" Jay yelled, putting down his pool stick and grabbing his empty can.

He hit Will on the arm with the empty white claw can as hard as he possibly could.

"The fuck?" Will yelled. "Why'd you do that?"

"I dunno." Jay turned to Adam. "Why were we hitting Will, again?"

"Holy shit," Adam muttered to himself. "Because he forgot to check Y/N's bee sting to see if the stinger was still there."

"Oh, okay. That was stupid, Will."

You laid on the bed and let Will look at the spot the bee stung you. Then, he put on a pair of gloves and pulled out a pair of tweezers.

"Hailey?" he called. She looked up expectantly. "Can you come over here and hold up a flashlight? I think I found the stinger."

Hailey got up and turned on the flashlight on her phone and crouched down next to Will.

"That good?" she asked as she finished positioning the phone so the phone's flashlight was pointing directly at your bee sting.

"Yup." He looked up at you. "Now, I'm gonna put one of my hands above the bee sting, that way you won't be able to see the tweezers go in. Sound good?"

"Mhm. At least this is better than when Jay tried to attack me with a snake!"

Will laughed. "I bet."

Five minutes later, the stinger was out and Will told you to put Neosporin and a bandaid over it just so you didn't keep itching it because he told you the itchiness wouldn't go away immediately.

"I need a drink," you said after you were all done.

Hailey handed you a raspberry white claw from the mini-fridge next to the couch and you popped it open.

"Thanks," you said.

"You're welcome."

"Everyone shut up!" Adam yelled. "This is Jay and Hailey's song...well, they didn't exactly meet at a bar and Hailey wasn't drinking a white claw, but it was a Saturday and those two did ditch us. So, dance you two!"

They tried to object, but Adam dragged Jay over to Hailey and Kim pushed Hailey up off the couch and towards Jay.

"Sittin' over there in the corner, baby, I saw pretty red lips workin' on a white claw," you all sang along to Single Saturday Night by Cole Swindell. And, you'd be lying if you said that this song didn't remind you of the story that Jay had told you about the first time he took Hailey out when she was bored one Saturday night in a sports bar. "Shakin' to a little Shook Me All Night Long. And I thought, man, what a beautiful sight."

You smiled. Four months ago, there'd be no way you'd know this song. But, thanks to your brother's friends and his girlfriend, you knew so many more country songs. But, most of all, if your first semester of freshman year was any indication, you were going to have the time of your life going to college here in Tennessee.

A/N: Thank you guys so much for reading! Again, please remember to like/reblog and comment because I love reading all your comments and seeing that you voted because that means you enjoyed reading the imagine! As always, if you want to be added to my taglist, just tell me and I’ll add you! Again, I am donating all my proceeds on buy me a coffee until the end of AU-gust to Save The Children to help the children in Afghanistan. Buy me a coffee here.

Taglist: @theambracer88 @virtualreader @kelelas-life @celyndavies @brookerz122493 @musicismyescape27 @anotherfan07 @thexplosivegirl@dreamingwithlens @xoxmariaxox @onechicago18 @iamasimpingh0e @i-like-sparkly-things @herecomesthewriterwitch @liampayne88

[kyndaris]

Once More Into the Fray

This next episode of Dating 2.0 introduces our protagonist: Kyndaris as she ventures to a convention to meet up with another possible suitor. Will she find love? Or will she spend far too much on useless trinkets that’ll make moving a pain and serve to clutter up what space she has?

Catch all that and more in this week’s episode of...Dating 2.0!!

Oft times, I think it is a shame that I remain solely a text-based blog rather than putting in some effort and creating a podcast or YouTube video. But then I think about having to edit them and I pat myself on the back. After all, I don’t need to suffer through the cringe of listening to my voice over and over and over again as I edit. Nor do I have to endure seeing my ugly mug on my screen as I chuck on filters to streamline my appearance to appease my own vanity.

But, back to the topic at hand.

Following on from my first Saturday visit, I was invited to Oz Comic-Con by a second individual that I had met on Hinge. Let’s call him Kaneki. Although I was sure he wanted to meet up early and take a gander around the stalls with a companion at his side, I was a little wary that our first meeting might not go as planned. Easier, I told myself, if we set out time for ourselves rather than push ourselves into each other’s company for hours on end and then find it wanting.

So, arriving a bit late to Oz Comic-Con (and managing to avoid the rain), I headed inside the Olympic Park Dome where the event was being held. Due to the forecast of rain, the event organisers had arranged for most of the food trucks to remain indoors at the far end of the event hall. And while it was a trek to reach them, it also meant that should the storm break and water come thundering down, at least all participants would remain dry.

I’m unsure if, however, that influenced the more cramped layout of the rest of the convention. Several stalls of artist’s alley were pushed up against the side. Coupled with individuals stopping in the middle of the walkway to chat with their friends, it became a nightmare to navigate from one end to the other.

There were times that I had to divert around the die just to get to my destination.

Still, despite the influx of visitors and curious first-timers, I managed to see what was on offer - from tee turtle shirts to posters to board games. In fact, I even managed to sign myself up for a short Dungeons & Dragons campaign. My companions were two kids that looked about ten or under as well as a uni student that had watched quite a bit online but had decided to play for the first time.

Needless to say, it was a simple one-shot adventure where our player characters had stumbled upon a town and were requested to find and rescue a bard that had been missing for five days. The only unfortunate thing about it was one of the kids that was part of our group was keen to mess around rather than take the campaign seriously. This was despite his claims of being the dungeon master (DM) for his own games with friends.

Hopefully, he manages to learn to allow others to do a few interesting things instead of trying to dominate the choices of other players.

I fear, however, that my own biting sarcasm was starting to rear its head every time the kid tried to do something asinine. Props for the actual DM that was running the game for her patience. But considering that they have 5 years worth of experience, it probably stood to reason that they were able to entertain the kid’s fancies without it derailing her more carefully plotted out path.

And as for Kaneki, we finally met up for lunch and got to talking as we waited in line for a food truck advertising Philly cheese and steaks.

I’ll admit, I initially didn’t have the best of impressions when chatting to him on the app, but after actually meeting in person, he definitely seemed much better at conversation than first impressions had led me on the Hinge app. 

As we waited for our food, it was clear that he also consumed a lot of pop culture media - naming quite a few costumes from both anime to current television shows. It’s a feat if I’ve ever witnessed it.

But though our time was short, I like to think we had a decent first meet-up to get a feel of the other person.

My current dilemma, of course, is having to pick between the potentials. Were this an episode of the Bachelorette, I’d have to consider who to give the rose to! Certainly, not an easy decision to make when the people I’ve enjoyed chatting to have proven to be such excellent companions.

Google tells me that after the third date, a person should be able to sense if there’s chemistry. So, maybe I’ll wait for the third date with each person to get an idea? 

Argh! Why is dating so hard?

In any case, this year’s Oz Comic-Con was much better than my previous ones. I suppose it was mostly because I actually managed to get into a game of Dungeons & Dragons and enjoy an actual one-shot adventure instead of putting my name down for a game of Call of Cthulhu only to be overlooked later because a huge group had rolled by.

Or maybe the exhibitors had much more interesting things for sale?

Regardless, it was a good day out hobnobbing with fellow nerds.

[reid-me-a-story]

Fall Fair

Synopsis: a super quick blurb based off of #13 from this prompts list

A/N: Sorry I haven't posted in a while! My wrist has gotten worse over the last 3 weeks so I'm taking it slow and trying to rest as much as possible, but as soon as I read this prompt, I had to write something for it! this is probably the worst one-shot I've written so far but i really wanted to post something since I've been kinda MIA lately

A/N/N: I am so close to 50 followers which i know isn't a lot but I'm so happy that y'all are liking what I'm posting enough to give me a follow! i will be doing a fic as a celebration so please send in your requests! please be patient as I'm still healing from an injury

Couple: Spencer x GN!Reader insert

Category: so much fluff

Content warning: swearing, mentions of food

Word count: 848

You woke up to the Saturday sun shining through the window and Spencer snoring softly beside you. You wanted to take a moment to bask in the moment but you were buzzing with excitement. The day finally came! You could barely sleep last night when you found out that Spencer and your plans weren't falling through because of a case. As much as you loved Spencer and understood that his work was super important, it still bugged you sometimes when plans got cancelled because of a stupid serial killer across the country.

You turned over in bed and looked over at Spencer, still softly snoring. You couldn’t bear to wake him although the only thing you wanted to do was shake Spencer awake and force him out of bed. You couldn’t in good conscience do that – he never got enough sleep. You pulled back the covers and got out of bed as quietly as you could and you padded into the bathroom. You did your usual morning routine – deciding against a shower right now so you don’t accidentally wake Spencer up. After about 15 minutes or so you walk back into the bedroom to see your loving boyfriend starting to stir awake. His hands instinctively reach out for you only to feel your side of the bed cold. You giggle at his confusion and hop onto the bed, straddling him, and kissing his cheek. “Good morning, Spence!”

“Someone sounds excited,” He jokingly deadpans, barely able to conceal a smile. He knows you’ve been dying to go out for weeks but he kept getting called out on cases. Hes glad Hotch decided that the team could have a weekend off. All he wanted to do was spend time with his partner. “I wonder why...”

“Spencer! You know why!”

“Hmm, maybe I need a reminder,” says the man with an eidetic memory.

“Because,” you start, leaning in close to Spencer's face, giving him small kisses in between your next words. “We’re going to the Fall Fair!”

You couldn’t contain your squeals of excitement any longer, causing Spencer to smile. You knew he was excited too. He had never been to a fair and when you brought it up a few weeks ago with the biggest puppy dog eyes he knew he had to experience it with you. Spencer and you decided to head out to the fair after having a late lunch – albeit a small one. You needed to make sure Spencer had the full Fair experience, and that meant eating the greasy food out of a food truck and getting a tummy ache off of too much cotton candy.

You arrive at the fair with Spencer at 3 in the afternoon. You grab Spencer’s hand and basically drag him towards the entrance, he’s stumbling and tripping over the small rocks and roots littering the parking lot, but he doesn’t care. Before going and buying your ticket, you turn to your boyfriend. “Are you ready for the best day of your life?”

“The Second best.” he corrects. You roll your eyes. “The best was when I met you.”

Blushing slightly, you say, “Okay, Lover boy. Let's go!”

You both spend the day walking throughout the fair, watching the local entertainment, eating the greasy fair food and the sweet treats. You even convince Spencer to ride the pop-up rides with you despite his aversion to anything to do with germs. “Fucking deathtraps” as Spencer so blatantly whispered just after getting off the standing ride called “the vortex”. You figured Spencer would love the mechanics of the ride and the physics behind how it works; you weren't wrong but after getting off the ride you had to find somewhere to sit so Spencer could stop his head from spinning. Although you felt a little bad for him, you were also having the best day.

While Spencer loved fall because of Halloween, you loved it because of the fairs. The nostalgia from your childhood, spending at least one weekend going to a fair with your family were some of the best memories of your life.

Once your boyfriend got his bearings, you basically begged him to play a carnival game with you. You knew you didn’t have to beg; Spencer would have done anything you asked of him. You played a few games; whack-a-mole, ring-toss, and Skee-Ball. Spencer had finally won against you at Skee-Ball, winning you a small purple stuffed bunny. “What are you going to name it?” Spence asked as you were walking you your final destination of the night.

You thought for a moment. You never really named a stuffed animal before. “Oliver,” you don’t really know why you picked Oliver, but it just felt right. You smiled up at Spencer before leaning up and giving him a gentle kiss. “thank you”

He looks surprised, “For what, babe?”

“For coming here with me. For doing the things I know you would probably prefer not to do, just to make me happy.”

Spencer just smiled at you, leaning down and pressing a kiss to your lips. “Always, baby.”

[laurfilijames]

Insatiable

Pairing: Modern AU Fili x female OC Prim

Words: 1,629

Warnings: RATED E. Explicit. Swearing. M/F intercourse. Unprotected sex. Anal play.

Summary: Fili and Prim just can’t get enough of each other and indulge in a lunchtime quickie.

A/N: I’m sorry. I couldn’t resist.

————-

“I came home for lunch..”

Her voice was soft and full of insinuation, even from the other end of the phone. He knew exactly what Prim was suggesting, and she was impossible to deny.

Fili bit his cheek as his cock instantly started to harden and sighed, knowing he wouldn’t be able to sit at his desk trying to focus on work while she was at home wanting to be fucked.

“I’ll be right there.”

He hung up and grabbed his keys, practically sprinting to his truck.

Turning the corner in a hurry, he nearly knocked over Kili who was entering the building, carrying food for the both of them.

“Christ, Fili, where are you headed? I’ve got our lunch-“

“I’ll be back, I just have to run home for something!” he called over his shoulder as he reached his truck. “Don’t eat my food!”

The apartment was only a five minute drive away making Fili thankful he didn’t have to wait long to get to her.

Prim stood in the kitchen, trying to keep herself busy while she waited for Fili to get home. She hadn’t been able to get her mind off of him all morning, and although they had been awake nearly all night engaging in certain activities, she needed him again.

He flung the door open and closed the space between them, attaching his lips to hers, stealing her breath as he attempted to catch his own. His chest heaved from rushing over, and the excitement of having himself buried in Prim again added to his inability to take a full breath.

He wasted no time in pulling her pants down while she worked to open the buttons on his uniform. Their lips collided in harsh pecks between trying to free the other from the confines of their clothing. Prim stepped out of her pants and began working to free him from his own, but was interrupted when he pulled her arms up to remove her top.

Fili marked her skin with his teeth and lips desperately, making Prim grin with amusement at how much he wanted her too.

She pulled his already oozing cock out of his boxers and stroked the head, smiling despite Fili biting her lip in response to her touch.

He didn’t even allow time for his pants and underwear to move lower than his ass, needing to be in her immediately.

A gasp left Prim as he lifted her legs up around his waist and pushed her up against the wall, pulling her damp panties roughly to the side.

“Mmm you are horny,” he teased, his throbbing member grazing against her soaked folds.

“Please, Fili,” she begged him, feeling her arousal drip out of her and onto his cock.

Fili raised his eyebrows in amusement before plunging into her hard with a grunt. She clawed at his exposed chest and buried her face in his neck as he started to relentlessly fuck her against the wall.

Cries escaped her lips as Fili played with her clit with his thumb, circling her wetness over it to help her reach her peak.

“Come for me, baby,” he growled in encouragement.

Her orgasm wasn’t far off, feeling the warm tingle creeping up through her body, her legs beginning to feel limp as he continued to thrust deeper into her.

Prim’s entire body trembled as she came, her mouth open and leaving a smear of spit on his neck as she screamed through her high. She rested her head back against the wall and opened her eyes to see Fili’s blue ones staring her down, dark with lust.

He slipped out of her and guided her legs softly to the ground, “Turn around,” he ordered, his voice husky and rough.

Prim did as she was told and faced the wall, her body and mind hazy from her first orgasm, but ready for more. She braced her arms on the wall and felt Fili spread her cheeks apart, his fingers moving to bring her slick up from her folds to smear around her puckered hole.

He squatted slightly to gain access to her and pushed inside once again. His growls and her whimpers filled the air, mixing with the sound of his hips slapping against her ass.

“Fuck, Fili!” she cried as he brought his left hand around her body to toy with her swollen bud, the other resting on her cheek to help spread her open. His finger carefully rimmed around her tight ring before she was able to relax enough to allow it to slowly fall inside.

The sensation of his cock driving hard into her g-spot, his thumb dancing on her clit and now the addition of a finger in her other hole sent her into a frenzy. Her head was spinning from the pleasure, nearing her end for a second time.

“Fi, I’m gonna come again-“ she gasped, unable to say anything more as he increased his pace, getting close to his own release.

She would never be able to understand how he was able to simultaneously keep a pounding rhythm on her clit with his cock inside her, all while gently probing his finger slowly in and out of her ass, but she admired his skill.

“You good, baby?” he asked through gritted teeth, thrusting against her even harder now.

Prim nodded her head, “I need you to come in me,” she pleaded with a moan.

Within moments Prim reached her second climax, her walls strangling Fili’s cock and trapping his finger inside her, pushing him over the edge with her.

She wailed with pleasure as Fili proceeded to pound her, riding out his own high, and felt his spendings coat her insides in forceful spurts.

A whimper escaped her when he removed his fingers from both areas he had been attending to, missing the fullness he provided despite his cock still being buried in her.

His mouth trailed across her neck and shoulders, tickling her sweaty skin with panting breaths.

Eventually, he pulled out of her and turned her around to face him, pushing his tongue past her lips to consume her mouth once more. Prim felt as though she could puddle to the floor, completely relaxed from intense pleasure and elated with love.

“We should come home for lunch more often,” Fili said with a mischievous grin that made his dimples tease her into wanting him again.

“Mhm, I think so,” she agreed.

He reluctantly stepped away from her and tucked himself back in his pants, his cock coated and sticky and still dripping from the tip.

Fili walked over to the sink and washed his hands. Grabbing a glass, he filled it with water and chugged it, clearly parched from his efforts.

His shirt was still open and Prim admired the view from where she was left leaning against the wall, her panties stretched out to the side and covered in their combined spendings. She could feel his eyes on her as she stepped out of her soiled panties and tugged her t-shirt back over her head, now standing naked from the waist down.

“You’re going to get fucked again looking like that,” he said in a low tone, rubbing his hand over his mouth to wipe away water that didn’t make it past his lips.

She couldn’t help but laugh, purposefully bending over to give him a view as she reached for her pants.

Before she knew it he was on her, wrapping his arms around her torso from behind, one hand squeezing her breast through the cotton material as he sucked on the most sensitive area on her neck.

“Fili!” she squealed through giggles, trying to escape his grip.

“I just can’t get enough of you,” he smiled against her hair.

Prim eventually was able to spin herself around to face him, retaliating by grinding herself against the hardening bulge in his pants. Fili threw his head back and clenched his teeth, struggling to resist a second round.

“I really need to get back to work,” he sighed and cupped her face, “but we will be resuming this when I get home later,” he vowed with a renewed look of desire on his face.

“Good,” Prim replied and kissed him hard, tangling her tongue with his once more and squeezing his plump ass in her hand.

“Fuck sakes,” he breathed out after being momentarily released from her lips, “you know exactly how to tempt me, don’t you?” The kiss changed to be soft, and she parted from him despite not wanting to.

“Always, Fi,” she said against his lips.

Fili brushed his mouth on hers again, indulging and sensual.

“I’m going to take my time with you tonight,” he promised. “I want to savour every bit of you. Memorize every sound I pull out of you,” he whispered to her. Moving away just enough to look into her eyes, he continued, “I will show you just how much I love you, Prim.”

It took every fibre in his being to leave the apartment and get in his truck to drive back to work.

When Fili returned to base, Kili was seated in his office eating, a mess of food scattered across his desk.

“I tried waiting for you, but you took too long,” his brother confessed.

“It’s fine,” Fili assured him, grabbing a sandwich and pretty much inhaling it.

“Worked up an appetite?” Kili implied, his eyebrows shooting up in question.

All he could do was grunt in response, starving from his activities and still in the relaxed, post-coital bliss.

“You two are unbelievable,” Kili chided.

Fili gave him a weak grin as he leaned further back in his chair, unable to say anything, just simply nodding in agreement rather than arguing with his brother.

————-

Permanent taglist: @guardianofrivendell

[gubler-me-up]

Unsung Heroes

Request: Hi! I just found your account and I am in LOVE. I know this is a sort of very specific ask, but could you write Spencer Reid dating a masculine/trans masculine person? I think it would be really cool so yeah lol thank u in advance 🥺🥺💖💖 (ur literally so damn talented)

A/N: Thank you so much for the request, anon! Sorry it took a long time to get to but I’m glad I’m getting it out before the end of the year. This is my first masc trans reader fic out of two in my requests, so I hope you enjoy it! Please let me know if there is anything I can improve on or anything you would like to see in my next masc trans spencer reid fic that I didn’t portray well here. I did a bit of research to make sure my portrayal was accurate but I am always open to improving my work especially so readers feel comfortable and represented while reading. Hope you enjoy and happy reading! 💕

Couple: Spencer Reid/Masc trans!reader

Category: Fluff

Content warning: None just pure ~fluff~

Word count: 2.5k

————-

You threw on your favourite flannel to complete your outfit. You looked at yourself in the mirror one last time to fix your hair properly before Spencer arrived. He might not be a fan of styling his hair but making sure your hair was to your liking was your thing. Especially after getting a fresh cut it was important to you that you made the best of it before your hair started to grow back.

You then quickly checked your beard to see if there were any noticeable razor bumps. You didn’t see any visible ones but the ones below the surface were always the dangerous ones. You ran your hand over your beard to feel for any up and coming bumps. You stopped your finger over a spot that felt tender to the touch.

“Ah, you already feel as if you’re going to be a pain,” you mumbled to yourself.

You heard soft knocks on your door before you could continue your battle with your soon to be razor bump. You grabbed your wallet and keys off of your dresser before leaving your bedroom to answer the door. You opened the door to see Spencer standing in front of you with his hands gripped on his satchel strap and an excited smile plastered on his face.

He gently lifted his satchel to bring your attention to it. You chuckled as you saw how full it looked. You looked at him with a quizzical expression as he started to laugh himself.

“I thought we could read some light literature as we indulge in these breakfast burritos you’re so excited about,” he said.

“I haven’t read a good book in a while let alone encyclopedias,” you chuckled.

“They’re not all encyclopedia’s. Just one,” he said.

You laughed as you closed the door behind you. You didn’t believe him one bit about only having one encyclopedia in his satchel but you weren’t going to overly tease him about it. You were more interested in him trying a breakfast burrito for the first time.

You originally didn’t get the hype over breakfast burritos for a while until you were running late to work one morning and saw a food truck nearby. They convinced you to try their breakfast burrito and you’ve been loyal to them ever since. You knew Spencer was more of a coffee and go person but you thought he might enjoy trying something new.

“We’ll find out the truth after we get something to eat,” you said.

Spencer smiled and nodded as he loosened his grip on his satchel strap. He let his hand loosely fall to his sides. You smirked as you reached your hand out to him and he immediately grabbed it. To say he was forever touched starved was an understatement.

You were glad you could give him something he didn’t already have plenty of in his life. Touching books and case files all day definitely couldn’t give him the physical touch he deeply desired. You were happy every day for the past six months you could be the one to embrace him in any amount of touch. Bonus points for him always smelling good as well.

Spencer pressed the button for the elevator. “Are these breakfast burritos really as good as you say they are?”

“You’re doubting me now?” You asked.

“No, I would never do that. I’m just saying we sometimes have different tastes in things,” he said.

“Oh? What kind of things?” You asked.

“Well, you prefer listening to more contemporary artists while I’m more into classical,” he said.

“Musical taste is whatever though. I can get down to Mozart any day,” you chuckled.

He laughed. “Well, you take your coffee with oat milk and three brown sugars. I take mine black with a little sugar.”

“If you think half the sugar canister is a little sugar then I don’t wanna know what you consider a lot of sugar.”

You both laughed as the elevator doors opened. You both stepped into it and you pressed the lobby floor. You looked at him with a smirk before grabbing his chin. He smiled at your touch as he looked lovingly into your eyes.

“What?” He asked.

“I think there’s one thing we can both agree we have good taste in,” you said.

You leaned in and kissed Spencer on the lips which you knew he longed for. He didn’t hesitate to embrace you fully into his mouth. You don’t think you’ve ever kissed a guy with softer lips than him. He latched his hands onto your face and started to stroke his thumb against your beard. It ran over the growing razor bump but you didn’t mind if he touched it.

You parted your lips from him before you changed your mind and opted to spend the day with him in your apartment. He chuckled and didn’t move his hands away from your face. It didn’t seem as if the good doctor was quite finished with you.

“You want another taste?” You joked.

He nodded. You obliged and leaned in to kiss him again. You could have him for breakfast all day every day. Since breakfast was taken up by a breakfast burrito with your names on it, you guessed you could have him for lunch instead.

————

You and Spencer had found a rock to sit on near the lake. The park was quite full for a Sunday morning but with such nice weather you couldn’t blame people for wanting to be out and about so early. You watched Spencer carefully as he took his time eating his breakfast burrito. You couldn’t quite tell if he liked it or not based on his blank stare into the water as he ate.

“How do you like it?” You asked.

He quickly snapped out of his long gaze into the water. He looked over at you and smiled but it couldn’t fool you. You knew something was running around that big brain of his and you wanted to know what.

“I like it. It’s definitely an interesting concept,” he said as he took another small bite.

“Spence, what’s wrong?” You asked.

He shook his head in response to you as he finished chewing. You gave him a second to finish whatever was left in his mouth before he started talking. He let out a drawn-out sigh before licking his lips.

“I was going over case files this week and went over this one from a few years ago. This little boy’s family was murdered  and he was the only survivor. Found out he left his aunt and uncle’s house to go into foster care. Apparently, he’s been having a hard time no matter where he goes,” he said.

“Well, from being a human I can tell you family sucks but from working in social work I can tell you the foster care system sucks. It’s hard to look at some of these cases and talk to these children having a hard time for sure,” you said.

“I just don’t feel as if I’m making a difference,” he confessed.

You shook your head in protest. If anyone was making a difference it was Dr. Spencer Reid. You knew how doubtful he could be of his capabilities sometimes but you knew he just needed a little reminder here and there.

“Are you kidding? You’re out here risking your life to catch serial killers every day and you don’t think you’re making a difference?” You asked.

“But it just stops there. The lives ruined never get fixed. The survivors never know a sense of peace. I just help solve cases and then move onto the next thing,” he said.

“You don’t have to deal with the social work or therapy side of these cases because there are people who take that area over for you. You do enough, Spence,” you said.

“And you do the most, Y/N. You’re so good at social work and when you’re not doing that you’re dedicating your time volunteering for homeless youths,” he said.

“It’s easy to volunteer though. Anyone can do it,” you said.

“And here I am not doing that.”

Spencer stared back into the depths of the water as he took another bite from his breakfast burrito. A bigger bite this time. You were honestly impressed. He probably took a bigger bite so he had more time to chew and less time to talk about his worries. A true genius.

You looked into the water yourself. The waves coming in reminded you of what one of your coworkers said to you once. You laughed to yourself which brought Spencer’s attention back to you.

“You know when I first told one of my coworkers I was transgender they asked if my transitioning period felt as if that one scene in Mulan where she looked at her reflection and knew she was supposed to reflect who she was inside and then decided to pretend to be a man to go into war on behalf of her father. I said not exactly and before I could explain to them why their analogy wasn’t really accurate, they hugged me and said they were proud I was able to reflect who I was inside on the outside,” you said.

“The lake reminded you of your coworker’s ignorance?” He questioned.

You chuckled. “No, it reminded me of that scene in Mulan and then that reminded me of my coworker’s ignorance. That being said though they did tell me how a lot of people they know are unsung heroes. I asked what they meant by that and they said unsung heroes are people who are trying their best but aren’t acknowledged or are overlooked by others or themselves.”

“Are you trying to say I’m a little harsh on myself?”

“Just a little.”

He looked back out into the lake again. You could see the wheels in his head turning as he thought about what you said. You continued to enjoy your breakfast sandwich as you let him ponder on your words. Usually it was the other way around and the words you were pondering were a bit more complex but you were nonetheless glad you could get him thinking.

By the time he looked at you, your burrito was nearly done. His whole time thinking he hadn’t taken another bite of his burrito. You didn’t know if you were happy he was about to talk to you about his insights or upset because he made a good breakfast burrito get cold.

“You don’t think I’m an unsung hero do you?” He asked.

You shook your head. “Of course not. I think you’re just a hero who wants to save the whole world at once but can barely finish a breakfast burrito.”

He chuckled. “This thing’s huge.”

“And so is the world but just like your bites, you have to solve issues within it in small nibbles,” you joked.

He laughed as he took another bite out of it. He tried to chew it with a smile on his face but you knew he hated the fact it was cold. You laughed at him as he swallowed the remains of his bite. He carefully wrapped his half-eaten burrito before looking at you with a wide smile. You were glad to see him smiling again and the doubt lifted from his face.

“I think you’re right,” he said.

“You think I’m right? Say that I’m right again and you might just have to hand over your Ph.D. to me,” you joked.

He chuckled. “Which one?”

You both laughed. When Spencer made a joke, it was definitely one for the books. However, when he made a good joke it was one for the history books. You believed the longer you two are together the better his humour could become.

“All jokes aside, I want to spend my free time volunteering with homeless youths with you,” he said.

You looked at him surprised but a smile soon appeared on your face. You grabbed his hand and squeezed it. He looked at you with those big, beautiful brown eyes of his filled with hope. You nodded your head.

“I would love for you to volunteer with me. I think the kids would love learning a thing or two from you,” you said.

“Teach?” You said.

“Yeah. Every Friday we teach youths a different arrangement of skills that will help them in life. It’s a great sight seeing them have hope in their eyes again. I first started with counselling transgender youths in the program and have branched out to other members of the LGBTQ2S+. I now help homeless youths who have been victims of physical abuse. It’s definitely hard stuff to hear but seeing their faces when they know they’re being helped through their problems is the biggest reward I could ever ask for.”

Throughout your whole speech you could see tears at the brim of Spencer’s eyes. He tried to wipe his eyes before any tears could fall out but you already knew you had touched his soft spot. He smiled brightly at you before letting out a soft chuckle.

“I hope they like physics,” he said.

You laughed. “Taught the Dr. Spencer Reid way, I think they will have a new appreciation of the science.”

You both broke out into laughter again. You broke the laughter by kissing him on the lips. You could never get over how happy he looked every time you kissed him.

“I love you, Spencer,” you said.

He grinned. “I love you too, Y/N.”

“How about we get you some real breakfast and head back to my place for lunch?” You said.

You stood up on the rock and placed your hand out for Spencer to use to get up. He gladly grabbed onto it as you hoisted him up. For someone with a Ph.D. in physics you would think that he would have a better sense of how to balance. It was just another cute quirk of his you loved.

“Some real breakfast?” He questioned.

“Yeah, your coffee with a “little” sugar,” you said.

“Ah, my real breakfast. So what’s going to be for lunch?” He asked.

You grabbed his hand to hold as you two walked through the park. You smirked at him as you looked him up and down. He blushed as he let you examine him from head to toe.

“Your encyclopedia’s of course,” you said.

“Wait, what? Why my encyclopedia’s?” He asked.

“Ah-ha, so there are more than one in your bag,” you said.

He sighed. “Was this your way of making me confess that you’re right again?”

“Yes.”

“So there’s no lunch?”

“You’re lunch.”

“Ah, I see you’re on a diet then.”

“You know what? I love that my humour’s rubbing off on you so well.”

“I think it’s a sign we belong in each other’s life for a long time to come.”

You laughed. “I’m not the romantic type but I have to agree.

“So how come I’ve told all my friends from work you’re the most romantic person I know?”

“Oh? I guess I’ll show you how romantic I can be during lunch.”

—–

MASTERLIST

Tagged: @shadyladyperfection, @slutforthegubes, @pinkdiamond1016, @spencerreidsthings, @itsmyblogandillreblogifiwantto, @slutforsr @bxtchboy69, @fallinallinmendes @haihappen5 @mgg-theprettiestboy @siltuz-png @ptrs-prkrs @tclaerh @agentadhd @alexmarie29 @closetedreidstan @mac99martin @blxckhearthood @jesspavlik0vsky @katexrichardson @keniaasf @reidbuck @corishirogane3 @thegoddamncrazycatlady @keniaasf @pastelbabygirl19 @shadybagelsludgecolor @bootycrackraisinjuice @vintagebeauty1496 @bluerose512​ @laneybobeczko-g​ @averyhotchner​ @littlewierdalien @cynbx @mggsprettygirl​

[writebecauseyoucannotbreathe]

Ultimate Ship Meme: Azulaang

Rate the Ship -  

Awful | Ew | No pics pls | I’m not comfortable | Alright | I like it! | Got Pics? | Let’s do it! | Why is this not getting more attention?! | The OTP to rule all other OTPs

How long will they last? - Until I say so. I can see them being together after death as spirits.

How quickly did/will they fall in love? - Ooooh boy. Azula struggles to understand friendship. I think she'd fall in love fast and hard but take the longest to realize. Aang wouldn't let himself get attached at first because Azula is unapologetic and one of the things I like about Azulaang is how it would push Aang to deals with the nitty gritty gray, not in a The Fire Nation was right all along way but in how even Kyoshi and Roku's conflict resolution let to disagreements. I think it would take Aang longer to fall in but once they reach a semblance of common ground he'd be well aware he's falling in love and would enjoy the ride.

How was their first kiss? - Let's see my fanfics. In Blue it was awkward. In Weightless it was sweet. In Smut it was horny and hate filled. In canon I think their first kiss would be very passionate and then they snap back to reality and Aang would evade while Azula denies so they wouldn't talk about it but they'd for sure be thinking about the kiss.

Wedding:

Who proposed? - Technically Azula. As soon as Aang hears about a Fire Nation wedding, either his friends or he learns about Ozai and Ursa's wedding, his mind would be set on a wedding. He wouldn't say anything but he'd squirrel away relevant wedding information like he'd hear a song and go "I want that instrument to play at my wedding." But Azula would have her life planned out by other people and there'd be a set date where Ozai now Zuko are supposed to comb through suitor requests (it was probably Ursa's role. If she's there she'd talk to Azula directly instead of Lo and Li. I don't think Lo and Li are high enough rank to determine the suitor but I think it would be customary/expected for their input to be asked). Azula would tell Aang something along the lines of "I should be wed." and he'd agree and then Azula will spend an abnormally long time wondering if he married her because he liked her or because it's his duty until she asks him while he's discussing potential baby room colors pre wedding.

Who is the best man/men? - Sokka and Toph. Azula was going to pick Momo but he made a better flower girl. Yes she did this to annoy Zuko (and because Toph didnt want to wear the bridesmaid outfit) it's okay though Fire Lord Zuko was the guest of honor.

Who is the braid’s maid(s)? - Katara, Suki, Mai, Ty Lee. Mai pretends she hates the outfit but she's secretly pleased.

Who did the most planning? - Aang did the most thinking but Azula did the most planning.

Who stressed the most? - Externally Aang. Internally Azula.

How fancy was the ceremony? -

Back of a pickup truck | 2 | 3 | 4 | Normal Church Wedding | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Kate and William wish they were this big.

100% Azula's fault. Aang has no clue what Fire Nation weddings are supposed to be like.

Aang: Wow I can't believe all weddings in your Nation are this big.

Azula: They're not. It's because I'm Royalty and you're the Avatar.

Though I hc that Aang wants to get married in all the different Nations and Azula secretly wants to experience a small wedding so they get married 3 more times with one of them being a very small Air Nation wedding.

Who was specifically not invited to the wedding? - Hmmm I'm not sure. On one hand, Ozai redemption. On the other hand, Ozai death.

Sex:

Who is on top? - Aang. Azula thinks she wants to be on top but she'd rather be pampered and Aang is more comfortable communicating and attending to needs. Aang has no strong preference either way and they do switch but this is their usual dynamic.

Who is the one to instigate things? - Azula but she denies it.

How healthy is their sex life? -

Barely touch themselves let alone each other | 2 | 3 | 4 | Once a couple weeks, nothing overboard | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | They are humping each other on the couch right now

I think it's up to the reader's preference but I can see them being very private (Azula) and naturally talented (Aang) to the point where they assume every couple has sex daily. Hc that Aang and Suki talk about sex freely (ex: When I do __ should I __ or do girls prefer ___? I can never tell with Azula. Why do guys do ___ after ____ ? I've tried asking Sokka but he doesn't give me a straight answer.) Much to the fear of Sokka and Azula.

How kinky are they? -

Straight missionary with the lights off | 2 | 3 | 4 | Might try some butt stuff and toys | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Don’t go into the sex dungeon without a horse’s head

Again up to the reader. They both like learning new things and are prodigies so I think they'd end up reading about things to try in bed (Azula) and would try things out to see what they like (Aang) until they learn what they and each other generally like/dislike.

How long do they normally last? - 

Does the Avatar State remove your refractory period? >;3c

Do they make sure each person gets an equal amount of orgasms? - No. Aang likes overstimulating.

How rough are they in bed? -

Softer than a butterfly on the back of a bunny | 2 | 3 | 4 | The bed’s shaking and squeaking every time | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Their dirty talk is so vulgar it’d make Dwayne Johnson blush. Also, the wall’s so weak it could collapse the next time they do it.

Neither can dirty talk. Azula is rougher. Aang likes to take it slow. She sets the pace in the beginning but he decides when it ends.

How much cuddling/snuggling do they do? -

No touching after sex | 2 | 3 | 4 | A little spooning at night, or on the couch, but not in public | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | They snuggle and kiss more often than a teen couple on their fifth date to a pillow factory.

Azula refuses to cuddle in public but in return they cuddle all night.

Children:

How many children will they have naturally? - hc them having twin boys at first with one firebender and one airbender because poetry. But Azula really wants a girl so they have a third child she is an airbender with Aang's charm and knack for getting in trouble and Azula's ruthlessness. Amon kidnaps her and instead of easily escaping (Aang's genes) she instead viciously mocks him the way only a preteen can (Azula's genes.) It's traumatic enough for Amon even before the parents show up. Then Aang wants another one and Azula wants another firebender so they do the do and surprise triplets! (maybe it has to do with ejaculatimg in the Avatar State lol) So 6 in total and lets say its 3 boys 3 girls with 3 airbenders 3 firebenders.

How many children will they adopt? - None. Azula is wary of motherhood and I know people like to hc Aang as adopting and while I can see him acting as a father figure to several kids I think he'd greatly prefer biological kids especially airbenders. It's a flaw that was barely touched upon and def not handled well in Legend of Korra.

Who gets stuck with the most diapers? - Servants or Aang. After a kid or two Azula would be comfortable enough to change the diapers but it would still be mostly Aang.

Who is the stricter parent? - Depends on the kid. Aang is more lenient with airbenders and Azula with firebenders or girls. I can see Azula being strict with training & studies but not with sharing whereas Aang would have less rules but they'd be more heavily enforced (ex: no airgliding without supervision until you've mastered the safety course)

Who stops the kid(s) from doing dangerous stunts after school? - Azula. She's pretty lenient with the term dangerous esp. when it comes to firebending as long as basic safety measures are applied (ex: you can pracrice lightning as long as it's not pointed towards yourself aka dont be Zuzu) but Aang is of the mindset "How are you gonna learn airbending without dangerous stunts?" And after the first few incidents she started stepping in.

Who remembers to pack the lunch(es)? - Azula but Aang cooks them.

Who is the more loved parent? - Appa

Who is more likely to attend the PTA meetings? Azula. When Aang attends the teachers shower him and his kids with compliments ("You're doing so well teaching your kids the values of the Air Nomads. It must be so hard being The Last Airbender"). They do the same with Azula but unlike Aang she sees through it and manages to get an accurate assessment of how their kids are doing.

Who cried the most at graduation? - Aang was more happy than sad. Azula cried before and after.

Who is more likely to bail the child(ren) out of trouble with the law? - Aang. He is a notorious lawbreaker. Azula would bail the kids and she could do so quicker than Aang in a few cases because of her connections but she'd be mad so their kids would rather call Aang or break themselves out.

Cooking: 

Who does the most cooking? - Tied. Aang at first but then Azula wants to learn and after Aang teaches her since she has less experience she finds more enjoyment in cooking.

Who is the most picky in their food choice? - 

Technically Aang since he's a vegetarian. Azula hasn't tried as many foods and she's used to not making a fuss at the family dinner table to the point of which Aang notices.

Who does the grocery shopping? - Both. Aang has a better eye for vegetables/fruits and Azula is better with prices (it's not about the cost it's about the value).

How often do they bake desserts? - Aang bakes them when he can/weekly. They're fruit based so if Azula doesn't want dessert he gives it to Momo or flings it at a target.

Are they more of a meat lover or a salad eater? - Gee I wonder. Aang eats salad Azula eats meat.

Who is more likely to surprise the other(s) with an anniversary dinner? - Aang but Azula tends to figures it out. Azula is more likely to plan a dinner but she wouldn't make it a surprise.

Who is more likely to suggest going out? - Aang but Azula is a close second. It would be a tie if it wasn't for the bathhouse.

Who is more likely to burn the house down accidently while cooking? - Accidentally? Aang. On purpose? Azula.

Who cleans the room? - Servants or Aang.

Chores: 

Who is really against chores? - Azula hates cleaning up but she's neater.

Who cleans up after the pets? - Aang.

Who is more likely to sweep everything under the rug? - Aang.

Who stresses the most when guests are coming over? - Azula.

Who found a dollar between the couch cushions while cleaning? - Aang.

Who takes the longer showers/baths? - Azula. In the Fire Nation Palace Aang has taken to chatting with Azula in the Royal Spa while he feeds her (and mostly himself) cherries.

Misc:

Who takes the dog Appa out for a walk? - Aang

How often do they decorate the room/house for the holidays? - Never. Once they like the room they like the room. If its an event they'll go to a different location for it or leave the Air Temple as is.

What are their goals for the relationship? -

To stay together.

Who is most likely to sleep till noon? -

Aang slept for a hundred years so I'll give it to him.

Who plays the most pranks? - Tie. They've both pulled elaborate pranks as kids.

[firstdegreefangirl]

Maybe a Chenford prompt with “a hug after not seeing someone for a long time” or “wiping away tears” or “peppering someone’s face with kisses”

Nonnie! This took longer to get to than I’d planned, but I’m slowly poking through all of my requests. This one is partially based on a true story from my trip to New York with my mom, but the ending is different. I had goldfish. Enjoy!

--

“So, we have the whole day ahead of us …" Lucy trails off, bouncing forward a couple of steps until she can turn around and face Tim on the sidewalk. He’s still holding her hand, their fingers twisted together in the air between them, when he smiles at her and responds.

“We do,” It’s like he can tell she’s got an idea. Lucy doesn’t think she’ll ever get tired of seeing him look at her like this, all affectionate smiles and quiet happiness.

It’s the first full day off they’ve shared in over a month, where neither of them have any plans with friends (usually Lucy, but sometimes both of them) or godchildren (Tim, when Angela forgets to hire a sitter and Wesley has to be in court, but Lucy likes to tag along when she can), and no one is likely to be called into work. Lucy’s been looking forward to this all week, a laid-back, easy day with her boyfriend.  

As soon as their coffee cups were cleared and Kojo had been for his walk, they’d climbed into Tim’s truck and headed for the pier. He’s hardly let go of her hand since they left the driveway, other than just long enough to circle around to Lucy’s door after he’d parked.  

“You know what we should do?”  

"Mmm, are you looking for ideas?” Tim smirks, pulling Lucy closer to him and wrapping his free arm around her waist.

“Tim!” Lucy scolds, pushing his chest lightly, then drops her voice to a whisper. “Later. But first, we should eat dessert! Before lunch.”

“Before lunch? Dessert at 11 a.m.? Are you sure you’ll be able to handle that much rebellion?”  

“I think I’ll be OK. Besides, we can always get a second dessert after lunch.” Lucy rolls up to her toes and kisses Tim softly. “Or, maybe a third.”  

“Yeah? Which dessert do you want to start with?” Tim tightens his hold on Lucy’s waist, but she steps out of the grasp and pulls him forward a couple of steps. She looks back over her shoulder and giggles at the look on his face.  

“There’s a gelato place somewhere around here that’s supposed to be fantastic. Oh! Or cookies! I heard there’s macarons, or a grandma’s-type bakery, or—no! You know what we should do?”

“What?” Lucy bounces on the balls of her feet, only encouraged by the way Tim is indulging her.

“We should get cupcakes! I mean, they’re the perfect morning dessert, since they’re so close to muffins. They're just … muffins that believed in themselves!” 

“Muffins that …” Tim shakes his head. “You’re something else, you know that, Lucy?”  

“Yeah, but you love me.”

“I do,” he nods, still following as Lucy pulls him down the sidewalk again.  

“So … can we?”

“What?”

“Go get dessert. Cupcakes. Miracle muffins.” Tim closes his eyes, pushing his brows up toward his hairline, then opens them to look at Lucy and smile.

“Sure, I’ll buy you a … miracle muffin.” He squeezes Lucy’s fingers and tugs her back until they’re walking side by side again. A moment later, he drops her hand, but only to tuck a couple fingers into the back pocket of her jeans. “Who knows, might even have one myself.”  

She sways toward him, leaning against his chest as they walk. Tim has no idea how they stay upright without tripping, legs bumping together every few steps, but somehow they make it a few blocks until they’re standing underneath a bright pink and green awning. It’s casting brightly hued shadows across Lucy’s face as she untangles herself from his hold and wraps her hand around the handle to pull the door -  

Open.  

Except it doesn’t open. It jerks a little bit under the force of her second tug, but stays firmly closed. Tim steps forward and reaches for the other handle, but that door is locked too. He steps back and reads the sign taped in the window.

“12:30 to nine,” he reads, squeezing Lucy’s shoulder gently. “They’re not open yet.”

“Oh,” The sound falls out of Lucy’s mouth, but it’s not quite a word. Tim waits a moment, but she doesn’t turn around.

“Lucy?” She sniffles and takes a shuddery breath, but stares at the door until Tim nudges her shoulder and she turns willingly.  

When she looks up at him, her eyes are brimming with tears.

“Hey,” he starts. “We’ll come back. It’s what, 90 minutes until they open?”

“I wanted a cupcake now, though.” Lucy hiccups and loses the battle against crying.

“Come here,” He pulls her closer, tucking her head against his chest. They’re blocking the door, but it doesn’t matter. It’s not like anyone is coming in or out anytime soon. “Hey now, c’mere.”  

As soon as he’s holding her, Lucy starts sobbing harder. Her body shakes against his, and all Tim knows to do is run his hand soothingly up and down her back. There’s nothing he can say, at least not that he thinks would help her right now.  

It’s a cupcake, and they can come back after lunch. He likes a good pastry as much as the next guy, loves them even, though he’d never admit it, but how big of a deal is this, really?

But for Lucy, clearly it is. And that means Tim is feeling the disappointment just as strongly, even if he’s perfectly happy to have his cupcake after lunch.  

So they stand there together, until Lucy’s cried herself out enough to wrap her arms around Tim. She takes a shuddery breath and leans back far enough to see his face.

“Sorry … sorry about that.”  

“Hey, it’s alright. Was this all about a cupcake?” He asks the question gently; the last thing he wants is for Lucy to think he’s making fun of her. He’s not, he’s just started to wonder if there’s something bigger going on.

“Not really, I-I guess.” Lucy toys with the hem of Tim’s T-shirt and drops her eyes to look at his chest. “It’s just … it’s been a long week, and it feels like we’ve hardly seen each other, then we get this whole day together, and it can’t even start with cupcakes!”  

Tim waits for Lucy to have everything off her chest, then gently turns them around. He’s still holding her, but he’s got his back to the door now, looking over her head at the other shops on the boardwalk.

Shoe store, surf shop, Mexican food, used bookstore, Italian, a couple of storefronts that are too small to tell, but also too small to be what he’s looking for …

There.

"It’s alright. Like you said, the whole day’s ahead of us. There’s plenty of time for cupcakes, I promise.” He brushes a piece of hair out of her face, tucking it behind her ear even though he knows he’ll redo her ponytail as soon as they step apart. His hand lands on her cheek, where the damp trails are hot against his skin. “Meanwhile, do you trust me?”

Lucy nods almost instantly, before Tim thinks she’s really heard what he said, and he makes himself ignore the way his chest goes tight with how readily she puts her life in his hands.  

And her baked goods.

“Good,” he wipes his thumb across her face, carefully grazing the bottom of her eye and swiping the tears away. “And I mean it: we’ll come back. It might be after lunch, but you’ll get your cupcake.”

“OK,” Lucy takes a deep breath and says it again, with more conviction. “OK. What now?”

“Now, you trust me.” Tim says again. He wipes Lucy’s eyes one more time, then presses a soft kiss to her lips and steps back.

Sure enough, as soon as she lets go of his shirt, she reaches for her ponytail. Once it’s resituated, he grabs her hand again.

This time, it’s Tim’s turn to lead Lucy through the growing crowd. He pulls her across the street, kisses her again while they wait for the light to change. Then he’s holding the door and pushing her in front of him into a dimly lit bakery.  

“Tim?” Lucy turns to look at him, and he squeezes her fingers as he walks them toward the counter.

“You’re not the only one who know where to get dessert around here. This place makes the best cookies I’ve ever had.” he watches the smile unfold across her face, then looks up at the cashier. “Two monster cookies, a peanut butter chocolate chunk, and …” Lucy elbows him and points at the case. He rolls his eyes lightly, but nods, knowing he’d give Lucy anything she asks for. “A gingersnap.”  

[pedalnorthvatome]

Day 6

For a campground, there was a lot of pickup truck traffic throughout the night. At 4:16am, someone started their diesel trunk and rattled the camp as they drove out. To compensate for all the noise in the middle of the night, I slept in.

It was a little foggy and chilly when we rolled out of our tents this morning. We lacked motivation to get going and we both agreed that today was going to be more like work than like fun. Since our Warmshowers hosts asked us to arrive after 5pm, we decided to stop often and make the best of the day.

Over the first ten to fifteen miles the roads had fewer vehicles and ran through farmland. As the day progresses we saw more trucks and the roads became much busier.

Our first stop was at mile 15 in the town of Galena, MD. We went to a little breakfast place where the staff was nice but not particularly friendly. However, our sausage, egg, and cheese on English muffins were good. We talked to a highway patrolman who mentioned the high, narrow bridge we had to cross 15 miles ahead in Chesapeake City. This gave me something to worry about for an hour and a half.

The bridge was worth the worry. It crosses the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal which carries ocean going cargo ships, so it had to be tall. Probably built in the 1950s, it had one narrow lane in each direction and a 3 foot wide sidewalk raised a foot above the road surface. For safety we decided to walk the mile from end to end. Every time a truck went by, we stopped and pressed against the railing. The reward after was 15 miles of canal trail.

We made it across!

Once we were up and over the bridge, we met a few retirees who were wrapping up their morning ride. They recommended the restaurant under the bridge. Since it was noon and we had 5 hours to go 30 miles we decided what the heck,

Schaffers is your typical waterside restaurant with lots of seating with water views. After having a second breakfast at 10am, Philip and I decided to go light on the food. I had the tomato based crab soup and a Caesar salad. Philip had the cream based crab soup and chicken wings. All was quite delicious.

Two versions of Maryland Crab Soup.

Outside the restaurant, we were stopped by two older gents from NJ who had come down to try the food. Their routine was to drive someplace new for lunch every few weeks. As a result, they had several restaurant recommendations for us. One of the guys got into the subject of high school sports and it just so happened that his school played my high school, Essex Catholic, back in the early 1960s. We both went on to rattle off a list of rival Catholic schools we knew.

Back on the road, 15 miles of wind in our faces canal trail. We passed relatively few people along the way. We generally focused on forward motion. We found a shortcut, that took us off the canal but onto some industrial roads. Ultimately, we found another bike trail that took us behind a few neighborhoods, under major highways, past a prison, and finally opened up onto a boardwalk over a marsh. That turned into a commercial riverwalk area with bars and restaurants.

15 miles into the wind.

Notice the barge on the canal.

When I say industrial roads I mean it.

Since we had time to kill, we stopped at a place called Big Fish Grill and enjoyed happy hour mussels diablo and buffalo shrimp with a couple beers. We sat and watched the dog walkers and the rowers on the Christina River as they went by.

View from the river walk.

Our Warmshowers was within a few miles. A very nice couple hosted us. They gave us our space. Generally, our evening was uneventful. We did laundry, I finished the book I was reading, and we were ready for sleep by 9am.

All in a days work.

Cheers!

Addition to beer list:

Big Oyster Hammerhead IPA Lewes, DE