#she likes catnip now. i think she learned from my roommates cat what to do with it lol

[queerlycarter]

[begin image description: four photos of a tortoiseshell cat with a pink plaid collar, playing with a cat toy that looks like a small bundle of teal chunky yarn. in the first image, she is crouched next to a couch with the toy caught between her front paws. the second image is slightly blurry and shows the cat lying on the right side, partially curled around the toy. the toy is caught between her front paws and her head is blurry. she appears to be licking the toy. the third image is slightly blurry and shows the cat in the same position as the second image, this time holding the toy against her cheek. her head is almost completely upside down. the fourth image shows the cat in the same position, rolled slightly onto her back and holding the toy with both front paws against her chest. end image description]

got lux a new toy (so i could get free shipping with her meds from chewy) and she LOVES it (totally has nothing to do with the fact there's catnip in it)

it's a little bundle of fake chunky yarn, and the band that keeps it together is elastic so when she unravels it i can bundle it back up

i did open it out of curiosity to see how tightly it's bundled and to see if it's going to get strewn all over the house, and there's one piece of yarn tied so tight around the middle i genuinely can't tell if it's just tied or if it's sewn lol. it's gonna be a while before she unravels it

and she loves her other new toy too:

[begin video description. the same cat from the pictures is sitting in front of a round, dark green plastic toy with three levels and a ball trapped in each level. there is a plush bee dangling from a wire attached to the top of the toy. she gently touches the bee with her paw, then turns her head to the side and watches it. she crouches down to look at the lowest level of the toy. she begins to sniff at a leaf-shaped toy on the ground beside the plastic toy. the person behind the camera flicks one of the balls and makes it roll around the track quickly. the cat watches it and bats the ball with one paw twice, then remains still for a few seconds and watches the ball, which is now still. the person behind the camera flicks the ball again and the cat watches it, her head moving quickly with lizard-like movements. the person behind the camera reaches out and moves the bee on the wire, startling the cat. she stares at the bee for a couple seconds with her head tilted slightly, then looks at something off to the left and the video ends. end video description]

[9tzuyu]

the cat next door

prompt: hi sorry i live next to you and i hear you talking to your cat sometimes and- no no its fine, i was just wondering if i could pet it? au

note: i genuinely have no idea what this is. i tried to proofread as best as possible but i am very Sleepy so i’m sorry for any mistakes.

warnings: none, ??????????, take this as you will.

🏷: @c-is-writing

+ help i forgot who’s on my tag list.

. . .

it was the third week in a row where you could hear your newly found neighbor talking to her cat. you’d seen her the day she moved in with a bundle of black fur not far behind her, but never any time after that.

the walls of your apartment were paper thin. you could hear almost anything and everything, but you’d grown accustomed to it having been there for several years now. you’d heard everything from screaming and moaning to glass and tv remotes being thrown against the wall. in time you just learned to tune it out, earbuds becoming your new best friend.

you assumed the redhead next door had no idea just how thin the walls were, otherwise she might think twice before arguing with her cat, liho. sometimes you could hear her fuss over hairballs and catnip strayed across the floor. other times it was over knocking something off the table or running on the counter for a bite of her food.

tonight was no different. you could hear the redhead talk to liho about the importance of being careful when jumping off the top of a tall bookshelf. her voice was muffled, but you could tell she was scolding the poor thing.

it was kind of a funny thing because at first you thought you’d gotten struck with another crazy neighbor. the first few days you’d completely forgotten about the black cat she strung along with her everywhere she went. it wasn’t until you heard the cat growl at her when you remembered the four legged roommate of hers. she’d clearly been trying to clip its nails that night and you debated knocking on her door to see if she needed any assistance, but when her “sorry’s” died down you figured there was no use.

“–okay now that we have that out of the way, do you understand now why you need to be careful? liho i’m over here– stop– hey! get off of that!” the redhead fussed once more.

you couldn’t help the giggle that came from your mouth. who knew such a mysterious woman could have so much to say to a cat?

“liho, no! god you’re so annoying. now stop or you’re going to wake everyone in this apartment up.”

ten minutes later you could hear her softened voice through the walls again.

“i’m sorry i yelled at you. look, i’ll get you some more of those treats you like okay?”

the night was quiet after that and you couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed.

. . .

the next day you decided to knock on the redhead’s door. your curiosity was getting to be too much to handle.

she swung the door open, startled by your presence. her hair was damp, wet spots soaking the shoulders of her shirt.

“hello?”

“hi! sorry, i live next to you and i hear you talking to your cat sometimes and–”

“oh i’m s-”

“–no no its fine, i was just wondering if i could pet it? him? her?”

the woman eyed you up and down, perhaps to analyze whether or not you’d be a threat. you weren’t really sure.

nonetheless, she stepped back and allowed you to come in.

her apartment was neat, bare, had all the essentials someone would need. but somehow, it felt just like her.

“liho’s over there by the cat scratcher. she loves that thing.”

“so i’ve heard.”

the redhead tried to keep the blush from spreading across her face. if you’d heard that then what else have you heard?

“will she bite me?”

“oh no, not at all! if she doesn’t like you she’ll come to me.”

you nodded and extended your hand out to her. “i never got your name.”

“natasha.”

“as in romanoff? like, the natasha romanoff?” a smile broke out onto her face. “so you’ve heard of me?”

“just a few things about you,” you confirmed, scratching behind the ears of the furry animal in front of you.

natasha watched you for a moments worth before sliding next to you. “she’s the biggest pain in my ass, but i love her.”

“oh yeah?”

“mhm. i didn’t even really want her at first. she just kind of showed up at my doorstep and no matter how many times i told her to leave she always came back.”

“that’s really sweet.”

natasha shrugged, making her way to the other side of you. you’d definitely caught her attention now, she knew that for sure.

“would you like to stay for dinner?”

“i’m sorry?”

“liho clearly likes you and i think you’re very beautiful, so… dinner?”

you put on a faux thinking face. “i don’t know, natasha. we did just meet.”

natasha was quick to stop you though. “that’s not true, we met a few weeks ago.”

liho bumped her head into your hand. it was almost as of she was telling you herself to say yes. you internally rolled your eyes at the cliché feeling you were experiencing at the moment.

“and what would we have?”

“anything you’d like.”

“what if i wanted the most expensive sushi in the world?”

“then that’s what we’ll have,” she challenged.

another laugh emitted from your mouth. “you’re ready to risk it all, huh?”

natasha bit her lip, shrugging once again. “well when the world’s prettiest girl is standing in front of you who wouldn’t be ready to risk it all?”

“your compliments are corny.”

“i can tell you like them though.”

“maybe so.” you mumbled, jingling the silver bell on liho’s collar.

there was a beat of silence before natasha spoke again, “what’s the verdict?”

“hmmm…. who would i be to say no to natasha romanoff?”

she licked her lips, “someone insane, obviously.”

you giggled yet again. “you need to stop making me laugh, seriously! now lets go before i change my mind on you.”

natasha took your hand, grabbed a set of keys with her other, and led you into the parking garage. “i’ve got a great idea. just hold onto me tightly, alright?”

“a bike? for me to wrap my arms around you on? oh you’re sooo romantic, romanoff.”

“safety is important, ya know.” she retorted. “now put this helmet on.”

“im beginning to think you were the pain in liho’s ass.”

natasha huffed. “and i’m beginning to think i should take you dumpster diving instead.”

you ignored her for now. instead you focused on clasping your hands around her waist and resting your chin on her shoulder.

“let’s see what you and your bike have got to offer, yeah?”

“yeah, you’ll see.”

[gubes-sweaters]

Mind, Body, and Soul 4

Authors note: Sorry for being MIA for a bit. I was going through a lot of things with my family, school, friends, etc. I got in a terrible funk and I had no motivation to write. I’m doing much better now and I’m going to go back to posting regularly. Another thing I know in the show Spencer drives a Volvo, but for this story, he drives a station wagon like mgg.

Content warning: A brief mention of a drug deal and medication and… teeth rotting fluff if that counts.

Word count: 4.6k

You can find part three here

Chapter 4: My Safe Place

I wake up to the smoke alarm going off. It takes me a second to realize what’s going on but as soon as I realize I make a mad dash to the kitchen. In my haste, I slip on the rug in the living room that connects to the kitchen. My morning couldn’t be more chaotic. Both of my roommates are coughing up a lung from the smoke while opening windows and fanning out the area. Turns out that they decided to make breakfast but somehow they can’t even make eggs and toast without almost burning the place down. I quickly gather myself from off of the ground and join Tweedledee and Tweedledum in cleaning up their mess. It takes thirty minutes to clear the smoke and to clean up the kitchen. After all, is said and done I look over at the stove and see that it’s already 9:30.

“Shit shit shit!” I shout while running towards my bathroom trying to get ready. Stella and Raven follow me into the bathroom wondering what I’m freaking out about.

“What’s the freak out for?” Raven says before peeking her head in the bathroom door. I’m already stepping into the shower as they both lean up against the bathroom counter exchanging confused looks.

“I uh forgot... I made plans with Penelope that have been a month in the making.” I stammer out from behind the shower curtain. In my mind, I’m debating telling them what I’m actually up to. Their two of my best friends and we’ve been friends since elementary school. I tell them practically everything, but on the other hand, I enjoy spending time with Spencer without it being a big deal. Of course, my friends would be happy for me but at the same time, they also tend to treat me like a child because I’m a year younger than them and I’m their “innocent” friend. I almost feel like I’d be disappointing them if I break from that title. I love them both so much but I think for now it’s better to keep those parts of my life separate.

“Well tell Pen that we said hi. Oh, and don’t forget about Daisy’s birthday on Saturday.” Stella reminds me before walking off with Raven. Daisy is a girl that Raven and I used to study with our freshman year of college. Raven, Daisy, and I had the same psychology class, and Raven and I clung to her pretty quickly. Raven and Daisy both happened to be going for forensic psychology, but I’m getting my degree in social work, so our sophomore year I didn’t have classes with either of them. My point is I haven’t seen her in two years but Raven and Stella are both close with her still and for some reason Daisy also invited me. I’m not complaining because she was really sweet, and I distinctly remember she was the type of person who showed their love through touch. If you needed a hug she was there, if you needed a shoulder to cry on she was there. I just feel like I’m intruding now because I haven’t seen her in two years and according to my roommates you wouldn’t even recognize her anymore, so I’m not sure if I’m going to be able to talk to her without awkward small talk. I’ll have to worry about that later now I have to worry about being late for a date... an outing. I’m not sure what to call whatever Spencer and I are doing today.

I rush to blow dry my hair, put on a little bit of makeup, I throw on a sublime t-shirt and a pair of jeans. Just as I slip on my vans, I get a text from Spencer.

Spencer (pain in my ass): I’m out front :)

me: okie dokie I’ll be down in a minute!

—————————- Time Skip —————————

We’ve been driving and listening to music in comfortable silence for the past 30 minutes. Soon enough though, we pull in front of a small café. The place seems oddly familiar, but I can’t put my finger on it. No matter how many times I asked Spencer he would never tell me where we’re going. He called me boring, yet our first stop is a café. I’m not complaining at all, but it seems a little more mundane than I would expect from Spencer. Either way, I’m excited because I’m seeing him again.

“You ready?” He turns to look at me with a big goofy grin on his face. It’s nice seeing him smile I could get used to seeing it more. No. No. No. Don’t think like that this isn’t a date he’s simply keeping a promise that he made to me. This definitely isn’t a date right?

“Of course, but where are we?” I asked still not sure what I’m walking into. Despite me asking him he doesn’t answer, he just unbuckles his seatbelt and steps out of the car. I follow in his footsteps because I don’t want to look like a dork just mindlessly sitting in his car.

“We’re just popping in for some coffee don’t worry about it.” Spencer says while basically pulling me into this building. As we step in the smell of coffee brewing fills my senses, as I try and take in my surroundings I hear the sounds of cats purring and meowing. I turn my head and see that this isn’t any regular café, it’s a cat café. I remember some of these cats because this is the cat café that has adopted some of the cats from the Humane Society the Pen and I volunteer at. That’s why this place seemed so familiar.

“I asked Penelope what you did in your free time. She mentioned you volunteer and you’re a big animal lover, so I figured this was a fun way to ease you into today’s events.” He turns to me with a smile on his face while we wait in line for coffee.

“This is amazing Spencer. Seriously this is perfect.” As we're waiting in line we watch the cats in the next room over through the large window. We watch as some kittens chase after one another. A couple of the older cats are either sitting on the windowsill purring or sitting in someone’s lap instead of playing like the kittens. As we go to order Spencer insists on paying, after a while I concede. He pulls out a large wad of cash from a money clip, which I wasn’t expecting, I mean I didn’t expect him to be broke, but most college students don’t have that kind of money lying around. Maybe he gets money from his parents, or he happened to have a really good paying job. Instead of being lost my own thoughts and mental gymnastics, I focus on the cats in the room that we’re walking into.

About five minutes later we both get the iced coffees that we ordered. Spencer got enough sugar in his to give somebody a heart attack. With the coffees, we got a small little bag of catnip. A chubby orange cat immediately starts to take a liking to Spencer, the cat is sucking up to him because he’s the one with the catnip. About half an hour later we get ready to leave, but not before I watch Spencer trip more than once over himself while entertaining the cats and inevitably everybody else in the café that started watching. We decide to call it quits before falls, and he cracks his skull open. As we get back into his car he announces now that I’ve dipped my toes in the “fun pool” it’s time to kick it up a notch, but once again he won’t tell me where we’re going.

—————————— Time Skip —————————

I find myself mindlessly tapping my fingers to Kid Cudi, while looking out the window I feel a pair of eyes on me. I turn and see that he’s watching me with a big grin on his face.

“What?” I ask before he shifts his eyes back to the road momentarily.

“Nothing, I’m just lucky to be hanging out with you today. I honestly thought you were going to be sick of me by now.” He confesses, and he looks sad as if he could ever burden me.

“Spencer’s I know it’s only 11:30 and the day just begun, but I don’t think I’ve relaxed and had this much fun in a long time. Don’t think that I’m ever going to get sick of you. I promise that I’m having a really fun time.” I feel like I almost convinced him, but there’s this small little part of his brain that wouldn’t believe me regardless of what I said.

“You say that now, but I’m pretty sure after this you’re gonna hate me.” he says while gesturing to what’s in front of us. As he puts the car in park I look straight forward and see that we’re at a skate park.

“Uh, I don’t know how to skate... like at all.” I say hoping he doesn’t expect much coordination or skill out of me.

“I figured that much. I thought I could teach you, still wanna give it a shot?”

“Why not that’s the whole point of today right?”

“That’s the spirit!” He says before jumping out of his car and quickly grabs a skateboard out of the trunk. He looks like a kid in a candy store while we walk to a section that’s not occupied.

I’m glad I wore vans and jeans because I have a feeling in any other outfit I would have a very unfortunate wardrobe malfunction. He shows me two or three times how to properly kick off without falling. Then he asked me to give it a try or to at least try and find my balance on the board first. As I step on he holds my waist, so I don’t go anywhere, but that doesn’t stop me from wobbling a couple of times in the process.

“Make sure you put your back foot towards the front of the board when kicking off, if not the board will fly out from underneath you. Don’t worry about falling though I got you I promise.” He says while slowly loosening his grip on my waist. I start to learn to push off and eventually with Spencer‘s help I can go a couple of feet before I chicken out.

“Don’t worry about it. You’re not going to get it all at once, a lot of people can’t learn how to skate in a matter of hours.” He tries to cheer me up and coax me out of my embarrassment because I’m not fully understanding it.

” Yeah, I think I want to try it all by myself once maybe I’m having trouble because I’m using you as a crutch.” This is where I made my mistake because I got a little too cocky, and instead of getting it like I thought I would I fell. When I fell, I fell hard and I scraped both of my knees. Of course, this would be the day that I wear jeans with rips in the knees. As soon as I hit the ground he booked it towards me, and when he reached me, he crouched down in front of me with his hands on my shoulders searching my face to see if I’m okay.

“Are you okay? You didn’t break any bones, did you? Do you need to go to urgent care?” He asks a couple of ridiculous questions with panic very present in his voice. I’m obviously not hurt that bad, but that doesn’t stop him from freaking out momentarily.

“I’m okay Spence I promise. I only fell off of a skateboard I didn’t get shot.” I say before chuckling, trying to lighten the mood.

“I’m glad you’re okay, but you scraped your knee bad. We’re going to have to get that cleaned up, you don’t wanna know how many germs are in that cut now, let alone the various infections that you could get if you leave it alone.” He says before standing up in extending his arm out to me. He collects his board, and we make our way back to his car. We go to a drugstore around the corner, and he runs in to get Band-Aids, alcohol wipes, and Neosporin. Again I insist on paying because this is my fault, but he brushes me off and leaves me in the car. He comes back and asks me to sit on the side of the seat, while he kneels in front of me in the parking lot. He cleans my knees off while reeling off facts either about the products he’s using or about all the germs in my wound. He finishes his nervous ramble by putting a Band-Aid on my knee before placing a gentle kiss on that knee. I blush at the small bit of contact, while he collects all of the products off the ground and puts them back in the plastic bag.

“Change of plans were going to take a small detour. I got a good idea while I was in the store.” He says climbing back into the driver’s seat and starting the car.

“Let me guess I don’t get to know ahead of time just like before,” I asked hoping that he would at least give me a little hint.

“That’s correct.”

It’s 2:10 by the time we arrive at the mall. I have no clue what would make him think of going to a mall and what we're even here for. Either way, it doesn’t stop me from blindly following him right into the mall. For someone who’s a bit of a germaphobe Spencer hasn’t seemed to mind holding my hand everywhere we’ve been today. The first two times I thought he was grabbing my hand, so he could just pull me to whatever activity I had in store for me. This time is different though because as we enter the mall our fingers intertwine together as if it was second nature. He still led me but this time we’re walking side by side. He stopped me very abruptly right in front of a store that I haven’t even seen since I was eight years old.

“Spencer, mind telling me why we’re at a Build-a-Bear?” I ask while we enter the brightly colored store.

“While I was in the drugstore I saw teddy bears and it made me think of this place. Also, we need to kill a little bit of time before we make our last stop of the night.”

Turns out we’re not the only adults who had the same idea as Spencer. Two other couples looked lovingly at each other while making a bear. This seems like a date night activity and not whatever the hell Spencer and I are doing. We end up picking a light brown teddy bear and just about every employee that we came in contact with told us we were a cute couple, but Spencer nor I corrected them. It didn’t seem to bother him so it didn’t bother me either. When it came time to pick out clothes for the bear he insisted that he had “impeccable style”, and he knows what he’s doing.

”Spencer’s you’re wearing a baggy sweater, jeans, converse, and mix-matched socks. I don’t think that your style is peak fashion.”

“Hush you’re ruining my vision.” He jokingly said while staring at the clothing with his thumb and forefinger gripping his chin. We both crack jokes and make fun of each other‘s sense of style before we inevitably end up basically picking the same thing that Spencer is wearing. We dressed the bear in a red sweater, black jeans, converse, and only because Spencer insisted on mix-matched socks. Yes, we did pay for two pairs of socks, so we could mix-match his socks. Spencer finally let me split the cost on something when it came time to pay. After we made our way out of the store with our fingers once again intertwined and our son that Spencer jokingly called the bear in the store. Our poor son doesn’t even have a definite name because he insisted on naming the bear Spencer Jr. or Sativa, but I told him there’s no way I would ever let him name the poor bear Sativa and Spencer Jr. is on the fence. As we’re about to walk out of the mall Spencer gets a call and then three texts in a row. He tells me he’s just gonna wait to open his phone once we're in the car. Once we get in the car, and he checks his phone his face drops.

“Is everything alright?” I ask because of his shift in demeanor.

“Yeah, everything is good I just need to take this call quickly.” He says before stepping out of the car and closing the door.

Spencer’s POV

When I get three texts and a call from my mom‘s doctor saying that there’s a problem my heart automatically sinks. I mean she’s all I have left and my mom is the one person who’s ever been in my life consistently with unconditional love. I call my mom‘s doctor as I step away from the car a couple of feet. I ask what’s the issue and it turns out it’s her treatment, her doctor tells me that because of her recent change in medication as well as the increase in dosage I’m going to have to start paying more for her assisted living. The situation is a lot better than what I was thinking. It’s a minor problem that I can easily solve. After I talk to my mom for a couple of minutes and make sure that she’s doing okay before making my way back to the car. As if my prayers have been answered I had an old friend text me and asked if he could buy two grams of weed off of me. I hurry up and tell him I can meet him right after he gets off work. This way I can kill two birds with one stone because he works at a gas station not too far away. While I am there I can pick up snacks that I’m going to need before we go to our final destination tonight.

Readers POV

Spencer never addressed the phone call when he got back in the car, but instead just turned on music and placed his hand on my thigh. The mood totally changed from calm and relaxed to now very awkward with tension. We only talked for a couple of minutes before it went back into an uncomfortable silence. Something seemed off about Spencer as he told me that we need to go to a gas station before wherever we’re going next. It’s not because I think stopping at a gas station is odd, but it’s because he insisted on this certain one, but he wouldn’t tell me why. He also was digging through a bag in his backseat for a bit before shoving something in his pocket and walking into the store, and as much as I wanted to snoop I didn’t because I respect his privacy. I trust him a lot, probably more than you should trust someone who you haven’t even known for a week, but my mind keeps wondering as I’m sitting in the car alone once more. That’s another thing that I thought was odd because he asked me what I wanted and insisted it was pointless for me to go in as well. He’s also taking a really long time I’m trying to brush it off, but there’s some part of my brain that can’t help it profile his body language and everything he is saying. I try to never profile people because it seems unfair, but having a dad as a profiler that would always profile me every time I saw him made reading people's body language second nature to me.

I’m glad when Spencer returns he seems a lot more happy and relaxed. When he gets back in the car he has a huge smile on his face as he puts the snacks in the backseat. I ignore the change in mood for the second time because it’s probably something he didn’t want me knowing about right now. In the little bit I’ve known Spencer he’s been pretty much an open book, so for him to not share something it must’ve been very personal.

“So we have one more thing planned for today and it’s very special to me. Are you ready?” He asks sounding genuinely happy and finally his normal self.

“Ready as I’ll ever be.”

————————— Time skip ————————-

Before we get to this secret special location it’s already dark out. Tonight the stars are shining so bright and the sky was so clear. Since I am not even paying tension I don’t realize that we’ve arrived until I hear Spencer turn off the car. He quickly hops out of the car without any explanation whatsoever. I try and take in my surroundings and realize that we must be at some park. I see a few benches, signs leading to different walking trails, and a cute little playground.

“Stay there.” He says while opening the trunk of his car. So, I comply even though I have a feeling this is how dumbasses like me get murdered. He tells me not to look at what he’s doing, so instead, I go on my phone for a bit. He announces that he’s done and I need to come look, so I hop out of his car and see that he’s cleared out his trunk, and collapsed his backseats. He also has a lot of snacks set up with soft pillows and fuzzy blankets. He smiles proudly at me, and all I can do is chuckle because I think this is the absolute sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me. I tell him thank you while giving him a tight hug.

“You’re welcome.” He says, well rubbing my back with one hand and cradling my head with the other. Before we break from the hug he plans a gentle kiss on the top of my head. After we both crawl in the back and slip under the blankets.

“Do you mind me asking why this place is so special?”

“Well… it’s because I lost my virginity here...” He tried to keep a stoic face before busting out laughing.

“I’m just kidding obviously!” He says before laughing once more. After our laughter died down a bit his face becomes actually serious. He draws in a deep breath to prepare himself for what he’s gonna tell me.

“In all honesty, this place has given me a lot of solace since I’ve moved here. Back home in Vegas I never really fit in much, so I learned to create my own safe space. When I moved out here this park became my new safe space. It’s also really special because I’ve never taken anyone here before. Mostly because that way I could just slip away from everything and no one would know where I’m at, but I also never found an occasion special enough to share something personal like this.” He admits while adverting his attention away from me and more onto his fingers. He fidgets with them as if he were nervous to open up like this, as much as I want to know everything tonight is not the night to push the envelope.

“I’m glad you feel that you could trust me with this. Spencer in all honesty who you seemed to be when I first met you is a complete 180 from who I know now. I love the side of you and I want to see more of it.” I say while taking his hands in mine commanding his attention. When I finish he looks up at me with those sweet puppy dog eyes. He moves his hands from mine and rests one of his palms against the side of my face. He stroked my cheek with his thumb before we start to lean in. He puts his other hand on the side of my face and snakes his fingers into my hair as my eyes flutter shut. I hate saying something cheesy like there were sparks, but that’s the only way I can describe the fire that was lit inside of both of us. He pressed his soft lips to mine and we moved in perfect synchronization as if we’ve done this a million times before. He swipes his tongue across my bottom lip asking for access. I wrap my arms around his waist in attempts to pull him and impossibly closer. As things start to heat up Spencer slows the pace and eventually pulls away entirely. After he presses his forehead to mine as we both pant. He grabs the side of my face with one of his hands once more before moving to grip my chin and presses a kiss to my forehead.

“I care about you so much. I get it’s stupid to say because this is all of a sudden, but you’ve brought so much joy into my life and I don’t want you to leave.” He confesses with his hand planted on the side of my face and his other resting on my waist.

“Trust me I don’t plan on going anywhere anytime soon.” I promise him.

“Plus splitting up would not be good for our son.” I joked trying to lighten the mood from the serious turn it took.

“Yeah, I don’t need to add child support payments to the list of bills I already pay.” He says before laughing and removing his hand from my face. We talk a bit more and get comfortable under the blankets before he grabs his laptop out of his bag and hands me the snacks I asked for. As we’re falling asleep he says just one word to me.

“Atlas.”

“Huh?” I ask him, trying to keep my eyes open long enough to finish this conversation.

“I just thought it was a cute name, for the bear I mean. In Greek mythology, Atlas was a titan that was called upon by Zeus to carry the heavens on his shoulders. It means the one who bears a heavy burden. I feel overcoming a huge burden or even carrying a burden that you don’t need to makes you strong and courageous.” I can tell that this story meant something to him. Something that I didn’t know about yet.

“It’s perfect.” I say before shutting my eyes as he grips me tighter.

By the time that the credits were rolling, we were both sound asleep in the back of his car. Our arms wrapped around each other and my head on his chest. I fell asleep to the sounds of a small breeze whistling through the trees and the soft thumping of Spencer’s heart.

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Taglist: @rexorangecouny​ @haylaansmi​

[tenseoyong]

bambi liz i am like two seconds away from taking in a stray cat. backstory: we have strays on campus mostly from pandemic times when people got rid of their pets. last year a new cat popped up near my apartment dorm and she is so so friendly and allowed pets and rubs and at one point had a makeshift house.

but now the novelty has worn off now that we’re back from summer break and when i see her sometimes she keeps getting skinner and people have stopped feeding her and her makeshift home is gone and i don’t know where she stays when it rains and we just had a thunder storm 🥹

and the cherry on top is that i learned from my professor that she used to be a past student’s cat cause she was spayed and everything and it just makes me feel so bad.

all this to say do you have any tips on how to properly take in a stray especially on a limited budget? my roommates are offering to pitch in as well for like food and supplies but i’m thinking more along the lines of vet stuff

i just really want to help her because we truly believe she’s not gonna be healthy for much longer

considering she’s technically not a “true” stray ie a completely wild cat, makes this waaaaaaay easier. she’s apparently very friendly, used to people and is fixed so hopefully that means she’s also vaccinated (because that’s really the biggest concern with stray animals, what they may have contracted), and is probably used to being inside until she was dumped.

maybe a bit controversial to say, but cats are ridiculously easy to care for—they do most of the things themselves, you just have to provide for them.

a private litter box is pretty much an absolute to have for a cat, especially one that’s been outside (I don’t have science behind it but I swear there’s something about outside cats not liking being seen when they potty, i think it’s something that leaves them exposed for ambushes so….), a plain litter box with just a basic cardboard box around it is more than enough. and I’m not sure where you’re from but the dollar store has cheap cheap boxes and litter, like maybe $2-5 dollars, along with a scoop so. litter is probably what’s going to be the most expensive part because you have to clean it twice a day.

as for food—sometimes it’ll depend on how much of a brat she is. our outside cat is a snob, and won’t eat the cheap stuff anymore and only wants wet food, so good luck hopefully she isn’t that finicky. but again, dollar stores have cheaper alternatives, usually about $3-7 for a bag. a nice scoop in the morning and at night is all she’ll need, especially if she’s lost a lot of weight, you don’t want to overfeed her and hurt her tummy. then, you can upgrade to some “better” stuff, (i switched my cats from hard food which isn’t the best for them, think of it as like junk food for people. it’s good, yeah, but not the best. and ended up buying cans, which they like waaay more and seems to give them more energy). maybe even your people will pitch in for a nicer end wet food here or there.

toys are simple. a ball of paper will do. but again, dollar stores have really cheap packs of little puff balls and feather toys to entertain her.

something to scratch, again, even a cardboard box is pretty good. if you spray it with catnip, she’ll have a ball.

i don’t know her temperament, but no doubt she’ll need a flea bath so. you don’t have to buy expensive soaps, i always used just straight dawn dish soap. make a line around her neck so the fleas can’t get into her face and just absolutely smother her body in it—fleas won’t have a chance.

As for vets, if you said she’s fixed she’s probably vaccinated but if you could pull the money I’d get her checked out. she might have ear mites, fleas and probably ticks or something akin to that you’ll need to get medicine for.

I think that’s about it, but do keep me in the loop! i wanna know what happens and if you need any more help im here!!

[lapzoli]

history repeats itself: I

//screams because I finally finished chapter one

Summary: In which some people end up with an unwanted roommate.

ao3

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It had been a perfect trip planned in the spur of the moment.

Or perhaps on the whims of a teenager’s obsessive fanatics.

Either way, upon hearing there was a museum dedicated solely to Ladybug (and Chat Noir), Chloé had instantly demanded her father fund a trip for her to go.

The mayor, however, saw it as an opportunity to gain favor with the voters and the heroes as their third anniversary approached. The way he saw it, if the heroes saw how much he appreciated them, they would help his campaign, and once the people saw the heroes favoring him, they would too.

Simple.

So he compromised with his daughter; an exclusive, all-expenses-paid field trip for her class to see the museum in London, where they would roam the city and be able to learn the history of the two heroes before returning to Paris in time for the anniversary banquet he would hold on Ladybug and Chat Noir’s actual anniversary (since becoming heroes, that is).

It was perfect, and it certainly got the rest of the class up in a frenzy.

Alya, in particular, was bouncing with joy. She was almost excited enough to copy Marinette’s infamous butt wiggle.

Almost.

“Girl, can you believe this?” Alya gripped her phone, grinning ear-to-ear. “We’re going to learn all about Ladybug and Chat Noir! Where they came from, what they did...agh, I can hardly wait!”

Nino turned in his seat, unable to not hear his girlfriend’s excited squeals, and leaned close to remark, “Yeah, I’m pumped too. And, not that I’d ever tell her, but I’m glad Chloe’s dad is funding this trip. No way my family would have been able to afford it.”

Alya sighed at that. “Yeah, same here. I hate the idea of having to thank her though.”

“Don’t worry. She’s gloating enough to let us know she knows we’re thankful,”remarked Marinette, rolling her eyes. “It’s a miracle she hasn’t shoved in directly in our faces yet.”

“Well, I think the real miracle is that Adrien’s old man let him go,” said Nino, playfully nudging the blond next to him. “How did you do it?”

Adrien rubbed the back of his neck, smiling sheepishly. It was amazing how at seventeen, he still had the same innocent smile he did three years ago.

“Well, Chloe can be pretty persuasive when she wants to be,” he said as an explanation. “And...I had a good argument myself to go.”

Alya leaned in. “Really? And you won?” She grimaced. “Not to sound...impressed or anything, but your dad’s one hard nut to crack.”

Adrien sighed. “Believe me, I know. But yeah...I had a pretty solid argument for why I should be able to go. Aside from it being paid for and all that. Nathalie already rearranged my schedule and everything, so he can’t change his mind at the last minute.”

He sunk down in his seat a bit.

“And I happen to know he’s pretty good at backing out at the last minute.”

Marinette clicked her tongue, reaching across to rub his shoulder in what she hoped was a comforting manner. While it was true she still had feelings for him, she was proud of herself for reeling in her emotions. If she hadn’t done that, she wouldn’t have been able to grow closer to him the last three years.

(Though not all of the posters had come down off her wall yet…most! But not all.)

“Hey, if your argument is as solid as you say, no way he’d have a reason to suddenly back out,” she reasoned.

Adrien smiled a bit and put his hand over hers, squeezing her fingers lightly.

“Thanks, Marinette,” he said. “So everyone in the class is going?”

“Yeah, pretty much,” said Nino. “Who’d turn down a free trip? My parents are thrilled about it. But maybe that's cuz my mom is probably planning to deep clean my room while I'm gone.”

Alya rolled her eyes. “I've been in your room; I don't blame her.”

The aspiring DJ grinned as he shrugged his shoulders.

“Hey, not all of us can magically keep our room clean - despite having two tiny tornadoes you call sisters,” he said. “How do you even do it?”

“Easy. I tell them there's a giant octopus monster in my closet that tickles little girls all day long, so unless they want to be tickled, they have to stay out of my room,” explained Alya. “It's...pretty effective.”

“Would work on me,” said Adrien, grinning at the two. “You think they won’t go in your room while you’re gone though?”

“Who’s gonna save them from the giant octopus monster if I’m not there?” Alya remarked, snorting. “They won’t be going in there, trust me.”

“But they may try to convince your dad to let loose one of the animals at the zoo and eat the octopus monster,” pointed out Marinette. “Wait, why are we even discussing an imaginary octopus monster?”

Nino shrugged. “Why not?”

Adrien chuckled and looked at the aspiring fashion designer.

“He’s got you there,” he said.

Marinette rolled her eyes, slumping her shoulders. “He does, doesn’t he? So is your mom really going to deep clean your room while you’re gone, Nino?”

He laughed. “Probably, but it’s all good. Nothing really worrying for her to find that she doesn’t already know about.”

“That poor woman,” said Alya, her voice oozing with sympathy. “What horrors has she seen?”

“Er, an empty turtle tank I use to store random stuff?” Nino remarked. “That’s about the oddest thing in my room.”

“And why do you have an empty turtle tank in the first place?” Adrien had to ask. “You don’t have a turtle.”

“That’s why it’s empty, duh,” teased Nino. “Eh, I wanted one when I was a kid. My neighbor had a tank he didn’t need anymore so he gave it to me, and I just never got a turtle.” He laughed. “I don’t know. Maybe I’ll get one later. It’s a good tank, huge and full of space, so it’d be a shame that a little turtle dude didn’t get to use it.”

“It’d be like having a bunch of catnip and no cat to play with it,” remarked Marinette, thinking of the plants on her balcony.

“A shame,” said Adrien, shaking his head gravely. “No catnip should be neglected.”

“Well, it’s gonna be, unless you have a cat you’d love to lend for a few hours,” replied Marinette, resting her chin on her hands. “Maybe I’ll just ask a stray cat I know…” She chuckled suddenly, as if remembering an old joke. “Mm, maybe I’ll do that.”

“Okay…” Alya shrugged off her best friend’s kookiness; she was used to it at this point. Though she was never any closer to figuring out what Marinette was so amused by. “Well, back to the trip, at least we know we’ll be comfortable. Chloe would never forgive her father for putting her in a cheap hotel, and since he can’t show favoritism - more than he already does, clearly - he’d put us in pretty decent rooms.”

“That’s true...hey,” said Nino. “You think we’ll get to choose who we room with?”

“Mm, I don’t know.” Adrien furrowed his eyebrows. “We should, right? As long as we’re not inappropriate,” he said as if scandalized by the word alone.

“Can’t be any worse than what some people do in the hallways,” said Alya. “Then again…”

Marinette snorted. “Not everyone has, as Adrien said, inappropriate intentions.”

“Not everyone,” agreed Alya. “But a bunch of teenagers? Wouldn’t be surprised. But I hope they don’t randomly assign us rooms. Ugh, imagine getting roomed with Chloe.”

“She’s not that bad, really,” said Adrien, quick to defend his childhood friend despite their faults.

“Yeah, you saying you want to room with her for two weeks?” Marinette cocked an eyebrow at him. “I’ll go tell her now.”

“Don’t, please,” said Adrien, making a face. “I...alright, fine. But I mean, aside from Chloe - and Lila - everyone gets along with each other fine; what’s the worst that could happen?”

.

“Can...Can you repeat that, Madame Bustier?” Rose squeaked as she and her classmates stared at their English teacher in shock. “I don’t think we heard you right…”

The red-haired woman hummed, mindful of the bright screens above their heads, each one depicting the flight times.

“Ladybug and Chat Noir were presumingly thrown into a new situation and forced to adjust, despite - we assume - being strangers,” she said. “You all will face a similar situation, by your room partners. This was decided by a random generator, and this means anyone can be your partner. Now, there’s an uneven number of you so one of you will have a room to yourself. And no trading is allowed.”

“Is this even...allowed? The school allowed this?” Mylene asked quietly, blinking up to see if anyone would answer her.

Madame Bustier didn’t hear her as she pulled out a sheet of paper.

“Since there are chaperones waiting for you in London, I will not be attending this trip with you. Therefore, I’ll be reading you your partners’ names now,” she said, a hint of tiredness - and, was that amusement? - in her voice. “I do not want to hear any of you complaining - or trading. Your chaperones have already been told of this, so they will know if you switched.”

She cleared her throat.

“First, Rose.” The blonde-haired girl squeaked a little. “You’ll be sharing a room with Juleka.”

“Wicked,” said Juleka, smiling at her best friend. She nudged Rose a little, allowing the smaller girl to sigh in relief.

Everyone else shifted anxiously. Even Chloe was eyeing their teacher, silently hoping to be paired with at least Sabrina if not Adrien. She wouldn’t be able to stand anyone else.

“Ivan, you’ll be rooming with Max,” continued Madame Bustier.

Ivan and Max glanced at each other, both clearly skeptical but also fairly relieved. This was good; the random pairing wasn’t that bad. And no one had been paired with a member of the other-

“Kim and Alix.”

Spoke too soon.

Alix stared openly at her teacher before she gaped at her rival, who did the same.��

“Oh, no,” she muttered.

“Please don’t kill each other,” said Madame Bustier simply before she looked back down at her list. “Next, Mylene and Sabrina.”

The two girls eyed each other suspiciously; they weren’t exactly friends, after all. Not enemies either, but not friends. Nowhere near friends. That was fine; there were plenty of roommates who weren’t friends but managed anyways, right?

Madame Bustier eyed Nino and Alya for a moment before she said, “Nino, Alya. I know you two are dating, but no funny business, please.”

The two of them had the decency to look abashed, though didn’t hide their excitement at being paired together.

Chloe had moved closer to Adrien at this point; since Sabrina was taken, she was confident she’d be paired off with him. It’d be better than being forced to share with Marinette Dupain-Cheng, of all people! Hell, she’d even take that lying fox or the lovesick artist-

“Nathanael, you’ll be with Chloe.”

“Wha-?” The redhead looked as if she had just told him his death date as his eyes darted between the teacher and Chloe, who was gaping at Madame Bustier just the same.

“What? No,” shrieked Chloe. She looked between Adrien, Marinette, and Lila, the latter of which looked all too smug. Just like she had before she was assigned with the boy who couldn’t even accessorize properly!

“No trading,” said Madame Bustier firmly. “Now, to the three of you left.” She stopped as an announcement came on, telling them it was time to board the flight. “Alright, alright. Hurry, hurry. We don’t want you to miss your flight, do you?”

She ushered the kids towards the boarding area, ignoring their surprised cries as they picked up their suitcases.

“Wait, Madame Bustier,” protested Marinette before her teacher could push her into the plane, mindful of the poor flight attendant nearby. “Who are we-”

“You’re with Adrien,” said Madame Bustier quickly. “Lila, you have your own room. Now go and find your seats.”

She smiled at the teenagers, waving them goodbye.

“And have fun!”

Marinette gaped at her teacher even as Alya dragged her along.

“What?!”