#since it did take a bit for sophie to get one

[bookwyrminspiration]

y’all got home crystals tf you in line for

[leclarifies]

letters (MV33)

꒰ max verstappen x childhoodbestfriend! reader ꒱

synopsis┊it was confusing, even though you were continents apart, you never understood why max never responded to your letters, until you attend the belgium gp to finally get the answers you were looking for. inspired by the prompt, "why did you never reply to my letters?" "you wrote me letters?"

genre┊ fluffy, the fluffiest fluff i've ever fluffed.

word count┊ 4.4k

aria yaps┊ i have worked on this non-stop for two days, and i loved the way it turned out, maybe one of my favorite works. enjoy reading this as much as i enjoy writing this!!

SECOND PART

she was always around max, either from the sidelines or the first person max ran to when he won a race, it was always her. not even his father, even though he held his father to the highest regard, but it was always her.

the little wrinkles on the edge of her eyes when she smiled at him, the way her lips would curl up, or the way she would giggle every. single. time. that he would come and hug her after every race finish. he remembers it all. and the way he would snuggle his face in the crook of her neck and asked her softly after he would win a race, 'did you see me win, schatje?'

she would always smile back with a laugh, 'of course i did maxie.'

it was always about max, her life revolved around him, whether he liked it or not. she adored him and maybe he adored her a little bit more. they were childhood friends, they were inseparable since they were little babies, their mothers being friends made it even harder for the both of them to not be attached at the hip.

she loved being in his presence and he loved her.

the divorce between jos and sophie was hard on max, he blamed himself and his career but she was always there to tell him that it's not his fault. that their decision was their own and she never forgot to tell max that it wasn't his fault, no matter how much they told him that it was.

she saw the way jos had pushed max to his limits, get physical with his own son and his way of escaping that life was run to her arms, she was there tending to every bruise, every wound whether physical or emotional. she was his rock and it was final. nothing anyone could ever say or do would change his name.

"schatje," max had gently woken her up from her slumber, and she stirred awake from his soft voice, she noticed where she was and finally remembered what happened.

max had finished lower than expected and jos had thrown hurtful things about max, she was there on his mother's couch, comforting him and had fallen asleep that way, with max on her lap, "are you sleepy?"

she shook her head, not wanting to admit that yes, indeed she was sleepy, but if max needed comfort then that wasn't a big deal to her, "what's wrong maxie?"

"nothing, you can sleep on my bed if you're tired. i can sleep here," max had brushed a stray strand of her hair behind her ear but she refused, she hated taking his bed because she knew how uncomfortable the couch was, she wanted him to sleep well.

but he wouldn't allow her to take the couch, so they both slept on sophie's couch almost cuddled with eachother because they were both stubborn.

max was necessarily content with how he was living his life right now, but she made it better and that's all he could ask for. was it her smile? maybe her presence? max didn't care. the first memory he could remember from his early childhood was her, and it was etched into his memory like stone.

she was content with being max's rock, she was there to keep him grounded and she too only had memories of him from her early childhood. she wouldn't replace him for the world, he was too precious for anything in this earthly world.

but there was one day, it felt like a bomb dropped on her. her father had told her that he would have to move to korea to continue work, and she didn't know how to break the news to max until a few days before she had to leave.

she knew it was wrong to keep something this big away from max, but she was so stricken with anxiety that she never got the chance to until max came over to her house and saw all the packed boxes with their belongings.

"why didn't you tell me sooner?" max was angry, she could tell, by the way he was pacing around her room, looking at the packed boxes around. max thought he meant more to her than just a measly friend, he felt frustrated— betrayed almost. why wouldn't she tell him? why would she keep something as big as this away from him?

"why didn't you say something before? why now? why before you could see me race this weekend?" max was raising his voice now, and she didn't know what to do. her eyes turned glassy and those doe eyes max loved so much just looked so sad.

she stayed quiet, a guilty look on her face. she knew max would break from the news, and she knew that it would affect his performance, but she didn't know how to stay, how to convince her father that she didn't want to go, so yet again, she stayed silent in important moments of her life.

"schatje, can you say something? say anything?!" max yelled and she flinches, she didn't know what to say or what to do, she wanted to say something, say anything. but nothing would come to her lips. it was so hard for her when he was angry like this, it reminded her of his father and his father was deathly scary when angry.

a sigh escapes max's lips when he sees her flinch, coming close to her to wrap her in a hug. tears escaped from her eyes as she held onto max tight, "i didn't know how to tell you," she whispers into max's ear but max didn't say anything to that, just held her even tighter and he did not want to let go.

"it's okay schatje, i'm not mad at you. i could never get mad at you, i'm sorry for raising my voice. i just don't want you to go," tears started to escape max's eyes too, he didn't want to see her go. he wanted her to stay, and she did too. but the universe was pulling them apart and there was nothing either of them could do about it.

the ride to the airport was tough, being only fifteen and sixteen respectively. max held her hand the entire time, not wanting to let go, he didn't want her to leave, she was his biggest support system and he couldn't imagine her gone like that.

she was the most scared of the two of them, what if her father never returned to belgium? what if she was stuck there in korea forever? what if she never got to see his pretty blue eyes anymore?

max was the one to ground her, no longer lost in her thoughts, "can you promise me we'll keep in touch? or maybe visit from time to time?" max was holding onto her hands tightly, she felt like they would bruise, she could only smile and nod.

her mother had called her over, it was time to go. she looked at max for what it felt like the last time and left her life in belgium.

dear schatje,

hi, this is the first week that you're gone and it's bene been so hard without you here with me. i forgot that you weren't here anymore and i was expecting to see your face, but when i didn't, i may or may not have almost cried.

i miss you so much. tell me how it is in korea, is it cold? do they have bears there? what about the food? is it good? can you eat it? i heard there's a lot of spiy spicy food there? honestly i don't care about what they have there, i just care about you.

when can you visit again? can you tell me if you're ever coming back? i'm so worried about you there, i miss you... so much schatje.

written with a lot of love, your maxie.

max always handed off his letters to his father, telling his father to hand it off to his mother because apparently they kept in contact and wanted to send it off to the post office on behalf of him.

he just wondered how she was doing there.

it's been months and countless of letters max had sent, and none of them replied. he was starting to lose hope, he didn't want to think that his best friend would forget about him so easily like that, but he held out hope. he knew that she wouldn't magically forget about him now that she was there.

jealousy bubbled within him when he realized that she would be meeting new people, what if she met someone like him? who enjoyed karting and wanted to steal her attention?

no, he couldn't be thinking like that. he loved her and he knew she loved him as much as he did, so he told himself to just be patient, maybe letters to korea took months to reach?

the naviety was almost laughable but he was fine with it. he just wanted to hear back from his pretty girl.

"i do not understand why you keep writing letters to that stupid girl, she doesn't reply to you and all it does is distract you," jos had reprimanded his son, but max was stubborn. he didn't care what his father had to say, he loved all of her, even when she was thousands of kilometers away. he wanted to talk, even when she never replied.

max was in the process of writing another letter, but he never listened to his father, not about her. not about how much of a distraction she's been to his career, he didn't care. he used it as motivation to get better on the track, so the next time she saw him, he would be a world champion, that's what he silently promised to her.

it had been two years, and he hadn't heard a peep back. slowly, he was starting to lose hope but he couldn't lose hope, every single time he would send off the letters, he told himself that maybe it got lost in the mail.

max kept writing though.

max's debut in f1 was explosive to say the least, his interviews would absolutely go viral by the things he was saying in them. he didn't understand why, he just said what was on his mind.

what was truly on his mind was her.

was he not good enough for her? was him being in f1 not enough to impress her? why wouldn't she write back?

oh god how he missed her.

he still wrote to her weekly, it was religious at this point. he never forgot and he always told his father to send them off to his mother and the week after that was always disappointment because he wouldn't hear anything back.

little did he know, she never received those letters.

max had slowly stopped writing letters as he got into f1, he didn't see a point in it anymore. she never replied. she didn't care. letters didn't take years to reach korea, and he finally lost hope.

winning his first championship felt empty, the pretty girl who used to be waiting for him wasn't there for him anymore. of course, he was happy to win such an impressive feat, who wouldn't? but it just... lacked her.

max indeed lost hope that she would ever write back, but never lost hope that she was out there, somewhere, watching him race every single week and beat the shit out of his rivals. she loved watching him race and that's what he intended to do until the day he died, he wanted to impress her, maybe that was his ulterior motive to becoming a formula one driver.

all just to impress his best friend who had lost contact with him for a decade now.

"you need to stop figdeting so much," her mother had scolded her, she could only laugh nervously and stop fidgeting around. she wondered why max never wrote back to her, she had written him letters. did he hate her for moving out to korea and not coming to visit belgium?

she shook the thoughts out of her head, she was here now. for his home race, and for the rest of her life. her father had now decided to move back to belgium, because and i quote, 'i don't want my daughter to lose touch with her culture'.

she was 26 now, and she had guessed that he turned 27 not too long ago. it's been so long since she talked to him and she hoped that the spark that she had been yearning for had not been lost to the passages of time.

getting the paddock passes was not easy, it was a war and a half but she managed to snag some for herself and a friend that wanted to visit belgium and would arrive later on in the week.

"how did you even manage to get paddock passes for us?" heejin, her friend that wanted to visit had asked, she could only laugh and explain how she got them, it was a war and a half. heejin laughed along with her as they both arrived and scanned their passes at the entrance.

"i'm gonna meet my best friend here— well it's complicated. i don't think he considers me a best friend anymore, but i still do," she had softly told heejin who was a big formula one fan even before meeting her, heejin raised her eyebrow when she said that.

the both of them were walking down the paddock, passing all of the different team's hospitalities. heejin raised her eyebrow at her friend, who shrugged.

"who's your best friend?" heejin had asked as they pass by the red bull hospitality, she stopped which signalled heejin to stop as well, she looked at the redbull in awe. she hadn't been to a formula one race yet, the closest she'd been was to karting but that didn't bring on the feelings she felt when standing in front of this red bull building.

"well, he's driving the number one car."

"YOUR BEST FRIEND IS MAX VERSTAPPEN?!"

"YOUR BEST FRIEND IS MAX VERSTAPPEN?!"

max had heard a girl yell, he slowly turned his head. he was confused, he didn't have a best friend— well not anymore. she had moved to korea, all memories of her stuck in his head being replayed all over and over again.

that's all he had left of her.

the other girl shushed the girl who yelled, and that's when it dawned on max. the other girl looked awfully familiar, he couldn't quite place why she looked so familiar but she looked like her, like his best friend.

"shh! you can't just yell that out in public," she clamped a hand on her friend's mouth, "they're gonna think i'm insane!" then the both of them giggled, it did sound ridiculous but now he was curious.

was she back? was that her? who was she with? is that her new best friend? is that her?

as they both walked away, max wanted to run up to them, to ask that one particular girl what her name was. what she was doing here and who she was with but all of that died when he got approached by his race engineer.

then he forgot all about that familiar girl that he saw in front of the red bull hospitality.

max would only get another glimpse of her when it was race day, they were walking through the paddock in a similar fashion, but max promised to himself that he would approach them, that he would ask but there was doubt in his heart.

what if she forgot about him?

she couldn't, right?

and so approach them he did, tapping the girl that he felt was so familiar to on the shoulder, she had turned around and they had locked eyes.

it was as if she never left.

the sparks, they all came rushing back and then his heart started beating out of his chest, he wanted to ask so many questions, why she was here, who she was with, when she came back— why she came back, why she never wrote him back.

but the only thing that left his lips were a simple, "hi."

heejin was freaking out, she could tell. she knew that heejin was a big red bull fan too, always talking about how the team was dominating and they had the better car. she had heard all about it. but the little dutchboy she left all those years ago was standing in front of her and not-so little anymore and all those thoughts about her girlfriend was forgotten.

he looked the same, but grown and decked out in red bull merch. she wanted to laugh at how innocent he looked when he tapped her on the shoulder to get her to turn around, he looked stupid, stupidly cute.

all of those feelings from when she was back in belgium came back, she almost forgot what it felt like to be around max— her max. he looked like he was going to cry when he got a good look at her, that he finally realized that yes, it's her. the one that left him in belgium all those years ago.

and maybe she could cry too.

"maxie?" a familiar nickname slipped from her lips and she didn't get a response back, but a bear hug in return.

god, her scent. it was everything to him. he fucking missed it— miss her.

"i thought... i thought you forgot about me," max buried his face into the crook of her neck, she too wrapped her arms around max and buried her face into his chest. his voice was so vulnerable, all she wanted to do was curl around him and tell him that she would never.

she shook her head as she sank into the hug, "i could never forget my maxie," she mumbled into his chest, he held onto her tighter. he never wanted to let go, not now, not ever. she was where she was finally supposed to be, right in his arms.

once they got time alone after his race, max had stolen her away from her friend and dragged her into his driver's room, locking the door and pushing her against the wall, slamming his lips onto hers. he had been dreaming about this for so long, his lips on hers.

he didn't want to so sexual with her, no not yet. being in the small driver's room where they couldn't be free out of the public eye wasn't a good place. he just wanted to touch her, hold her, love her, make sure that she knew how much he had missed this.

missed them being together.

her hands instinctively went up to hold onto his shoulders, holding on for dear life as he kissed her softly. the feelings going through him were a mix of nostalgia, longing and love. he loved her for so long and it was so like her to show up when it mattered the most.

he won it for her today, to show her, that the little max she knew still had it in him to win and to impress her even with a world championship under his belt.

she felt the softness and the gentleness that max was touching her with, she knew how much he loved her. how much he care, how much he longed for her touch and she did too, only so much more.

she had so many questions in her, on why he never replied to the letters she sent or why he never sent any himself, not knowing what happened with her letters and why they never arrived properly.

but she didn't care at the moment, all she cared about was that she was safely in his arms, never to be let go ever again.

safe to say, her lips were to the point of bruising that night. max had forbade her to go back home, or to be away from his sight. he had kissed her silly, not wanting to let her go and there she was, settled nicely in his arms.

it's not like she wanted to go anywhere anyway.

the movie in the background was long forgotten, max's lips felt like they were molded for hers. he had waited for her for so long, waited to feel her skin after so long and this just felt right, it felt right when he was with her.

"maxie— mmhh— my love, stop," she had to talk in between kisses, max didn't want to let her go, his fingers were basically imprinted onto her waist. she was straddling max as he sat upright and kissed her, so softly. like she would break if he was any harder, even though he absolutely did want to kiss her harder.

max released her from the kiss with a pout, his pretty lips were red and swollen from all the kissing they did. everything in the world just seemed to fade into the background when they were together, like everyone else in this world was so insignificant for their time and they were the only people worthy of each other's time.

"but why? i wanna kiss you, i miss you. i have waited for you for ten years, the least you can do is let me kiss you until you're sick of me," max mumbled against her lips and all she could do was giggle.

god, her laugh, he loved it.

she shook her head and left a final peck on his lips, "because i want to talk maxie, we can't just kiss whatever questions we have for eachother away," she told him but he seemed to think otherwise, she had moved back to put a bit of distance in between them, to make sure max didn't go in to kiss her again.

"oh yes we can, i don't care about the questions, schatje. i just wanna be with you, just like old days, but now it's so different because in those ten years without you, i finally realized what i felt and how i felt for you and i can't wait any damn longer to finally kiss those pretty lips of yours, so please. just let me do this for another three hours and we can talk," max begged as he pulled her closer.

she couldn't imagine kissing for another three hours as they spent the last hour doing it, but with him? she would do it for another life-time if she could.

the both of them later had the serious talk when they were done kissing each other, now wanting answers from eachother. their legs were tangled and intertwined with each other's, not wanting to let go from their skin to skin contact.

"first off, why did you never reply to my letters? i wrote you so many. so many that i lost count, i would always write to you but you never replied, why?" max's voice came out strained, all of the painful feelings from the last ten years of his life were coming out, her doe eyes looked up from where she was, laying against his chest.

"you wrote me letters? i wrote you letters, you never replied. i thought you got too busy with your karting career to reply—"

"i could never get too busy to reply to you, but i never got any of your letters, schatje," max murmured against her forehead, kissing it gently after he spoke. she hummed a response before it dawned on her, she had always sent the letters to his father's address and she knew that his father wasn't fond of her, even offering her a huge lump sum of cash just for her to stay away from his son but she never accepted it, always choosing to be beside max, no matter what happened.

she looked up and sighed, she knew what happened now, she connected the pieces, "did you send your letters off to your dad?" she asked, and max nodded before it dawned on him too.

"that fucker hid the letters from you and never sent mine..."

she could only nod sadly, but it didn't matter now. all that mattered was that they were reconnected now.

scattered around them were the countless of letters max had written to her and all of the letters from her that he never received, the years of pining, longing— all of them tucked neatly away into these little envelopes that held all of those unsaid feelings.

a soft sigh escapes her lips, she looked at all of them, there were hundreds maybe. all of them posted to where she stayed in korea but never sent, always kept in a big box where all of his letters were and hers were stuffed in there in a similar fashion.

her heart clenched when she saw how many there were, there were far more many than whatever she sent, even though she did send quite a big sum.

when max had found out, he stormed into jos' house and demanded to ask why he never sent out the letters that he wrote and a big fight broke out, she had to hold of max from physically harming his own father. then they left after given the big box filled with letters.

"there's so many..." she watched in awe as all of them were sorted by date, from the latest to the earliest, max looked up at her with those big blue icy eyes of his, he looked really sad. stuck in his feelings almost, not understand why his father would do whatever he did in the past.

max held her hand gently, pulling her into his embrace, "i have always loved you, even when i was a little kid. i just didn't understand what those feelings were, i just acted on how i felt and being away from you... i just couldn't. so i sent you my love in the form of these letters."

she left a lingering kiss on his cheek, she felt sorry for having to leave all those years ago. she should've fought, should've stood her ground on how much she wanted to stay but she was just a 16 year old kid who didn't know how to, "i know. i'm sorry i had to leave all those years ago."

"don't apologize, schatje. i have never blamed you for leaving me. i have always held love for you in my heart, even if you didn't know it."

"i always knew max, and i still do."

very willing to do a part 2 to this btw, will only do it when requested tho. not proofread, excuse grammar mistakes.

[fatkish]

The Avengers x Y/N

——————————————————————————

[(Y/n) is sick and has been throwing up and is in the living room with the others]

Y/n: I want Bobo

Sam: *handing y/n a bottle of water* who’s Bobo?

*Bucky walks in*

Bucky: okay I got you that soda you like to drink when you’re nauseous, I also got some applesauce and some warm blankets

Y/n: *making grabby hands towards Bucky* Bobo!

Bucky: *snuggles next to y/n* Bobo’s here.

Steve: *lays the warm blankets on y/n and Bucky before setting the soda and applesauce packets on the side table and settling next to y/n* c’mere doll. You want to ask Loki to read to you? Would that help?

Y/n: yes please

Steve: hey Friday, can you ask Loki to come down and read to y/n, they’re sick

Friday: of course

Tony: wait a minute, you’re telling me rock of ages reads to y/n?

Thor: of course, lady/sir y/n says that my brother has a soothing voice and he often reads books to them that they are too lazy to read themselves

*a few minutes later*

Loki: *walks in with a thick book under his arm and sits behind y/n* alright now, where did we last leave off…oh yes, here we go. *proceeds to start reading aloud*

Y/n: *snuggles into Steve, Loki and Bucky while holding a large bowl on their lap and closes their eyes*

——————————————————————————

Natasha: If you had too, what would you give up food or sex?

Tony: Sex.

Pepper: Seriously, answer faster.

Tony: I’m sorry honey, when they said sex I wasn’t thinking about sex with you.

Pepper: It’s like a giant hug.

Natasha: Y/n, what about you? What would you give up sex or food?

Y/n: Food.

Natasha: Okay, how about sex or dinosaurs?

Y/n: Oh my God it’s like the movie Sophie’s Choice.

Steve: What about you Thor? What would you give up sex or food?

Thor: Oh... um... I don’t know, it’s too hard.

Steve: No, you gotta pick one.

Thor: Um, food... no, sex... no, food... sex... food. Ugh! I don’t know! I want both! I- I want hot people on bread!

——————————————————————————

Thor: So… I’ve seen you’ve been spending a lot of time with Loki recently.

Y/n: No, Thor, it's not what it looks like, I swear.

Thor: Oh really? So no reason for me to be jealous?

Y/n: No! You’re the only one for me.

Thor: Is that so?

Y/n: I promise! Loki and I are just dating, okay? He’s my partner.

Thor: So there are no best-friends-feelings involved?

Y/n: You are still my one and only best friend! Loki is just the love of my life, nothing more!

Thor: But I’m still the platonic love of your life, right?

Y/n: Of course bro!

Thor: Bro...

Loki: What the-

——————————————————————————

*y/n is playing Amnesia the horror video game in their room*

Y/n: *is humming the jeopardy theme song*

Steve: *in the living room* has anyone seen y/n

Peter: uh yeah, they’re in their room, why

Steve: I’m just curious, haven’t seen them since yesterday

Y/n: *the amnesia monster appears and starts coming after them* OH FUCK! Oh no! No no no no no no stay away! I’m gonna die

Loki: *had snuck into their room and was hiding*

Loki: *cast an illusion to make himself appear as the monster from the game and slowly creeps up behind y/n*

Y/n: *managed to get away in the game* phew, I’m safe. *takes off their headphones*

Loki: *taps y/n’s shoulder*

Y/n: *looks behind them and screams* Ahhhhhhhh!

Y/n: * falls out of their chair and runs out of their room screaming*

The avengers are in the living room watching y/n run away screaming followed by Loki smiling

Tony: I seriously do not understand their relationship

Thor: Loki is simply getting back at y/n for hiding the Poptarts and blaming him for eating them

Thor: *realizes something* this one may be my fault

Steve: how so?

Thor: I may have gotten a bit upset and possibly thrown my brother out the window…

Bruce: *looks at Thor with that bewildered and slightly horrified look on his face*

Clint: remind me never to eat the last poptart

——————————————————————————

*Y/n, Peter, Scott and Thor are in the living room with pictures of the other Avengers on the TV screen*

*Natasha’s picture comes up*

Y/n: pass

Peter: respectfully pass

Scott: well I’m with Hope so pass

Thor: I still don’t get the point of this game

Scott: Thor, if you’d have sex with the person who’s picture is shown then you say smash, if not then you say pass

Thor: ah! Well lady Natasha is indeed quite the warrior! Smash

*the other avengers walk in*

*a picture of Clint comes up*

Y/n: not gonna lie, if he weren’t married, I’d totally smash

Peter: pass

Scott: pass

Thor: I too would smash

*clint looks shocked at the others but also blushes*

*a picture of Tony comes up*

Y/n: meh, pass. He’s like a dad

Peter: pass

Scott: he’s mean to me, pass

Thor: Smash!

*Tony rolls his eyes*

*a Picture of Steve pops up*

Y/n: Smash! Smash that ass

Peter: smash

Scott: I want him to smash me

Thor: I too would like to smash the captain

*steve is shocked*

*Loki walks in as his picture comes up*

y/n: Smashsmashsmashsmashsmashsmashsmashsmashsmash! SMASH!

Peter: pass?

Y/n: *looks at Peter bewildered* you’d pass on this glorious piece of art!? Look at him! Look at that beautiful face! Tell me you wouldn’t want to see this face breathless and lust driven. I don’t care if he’s on top or bottom, he can blow my back out any day.

Scott: *whispers* smash

Thor: y/n, you find my brother attractive?

Y/n: yesssssss!

Loki: *walks up behind y/n with a smug look on his face* is that so darling?

Y/n: *turns around and faints upon seeing Loki*

Loki: oh dear, are they dead?

——————————————————————————

*y/n and Peter are in the living room inside of a inflatable kiddie pool filled halfway with water wearing swimsuits. Both of them are wearing snorkels and goggles and are laying on their stomachs.*

Tony: *enters the room and sees Peter and y/n* what the hell are they doing?

Scott: I have no idea but honestly I feel the same

Steve: it’s -5 degrees Fahrenheit outside and these two are laying on their stomachs in a kiddie pool

Tony: how long have they been like that?

Scott: I don’t know, they were like this when I got here

Steve: and how long have been here?

Scott: thirty minutes give or take?

Tony: alright, that’s it, I’m pulling the plug on whatever this is

Clint: *from the vents* it’s fine! The kids are just trying to pretend it’s summer. They’re trying to pray the snow away and bring back tolerable temperatures

Steve: how long have they been doing this?

Clint: *from the vents* 7 hours

Tony: Jesus, I’m getting them out. *taps on y/n and peter’s shoulders* C’mon you two, out.

Peter: *lifts his head and removes the snorkel* but mister stark

Tony: no, no buts. Get out.

Peter and y/n: awwww *gets out*

Tony: and clean this up

——————————————————————————

*y/n comes running into the living room with a box that’s taped up*

Y/n: it’s here! It’s here! *sets the box on the coffee table and proceeds to open it*

Tony: what’cha got there kiddo?

Y/n: *pulls out an old creepy doll* This is Bella-Ann and she’s supposed to be haunted

Clint: yeah nope, I’m not staying anywhere near that thing

Tony: oh come on Legolas, it’s not real

Y/n: Bella killed her last owner, supposedly…

Steve: why would you want that?

Y/n: cause it only cost me 2 dollars and the seller promised it was haunted

Tony: yeah no, I’m calling the wizard. *calls Strange*

Dr. Strange: *picks up and is clearly annoyed* what is it this time?

Tony: y/n bought a supposedly haunted doll

Dr. Strange: and why are you calling me?

Y/n: uh, Tony?

Tony: not now y/n

Y/n: Tony!

Tony: what?!

Y/n and Steve: *hiding behind the couch*

Y/n: *whispers* the doll has a knife*

The doll: *is standing and holding a knife*

Tony: *to Strange* yeah there’s definitely something wrong with the doll, it’s got a knife and is currently chasing y/n*

Y/n: *running from the doll* help me!

Dr. Strange: *sighs and opens a portal* fine

——————————————————————————

*y/n comes skipping into a meeting*

Y/n: Balls in holes! Who wants to put ball in holes?!

Fury: excuse me?

Steve: language!

Y/n: aww ain’t anyone wanna play skee-ball, I’ve got tickets

Tony: y/n, we’re in a meeting

Sam: I’d love to but we’re kinda busy

Y/n: fine, I’ll go play with myself

Steve: you hear what you’re saying right?

Natasha: don’t bother, they’ve been hanging out with Deadpool

——————————————————————————

[sparkleofpizza]

The Alchemy

Lando Norris x fem!reader

The beginning.

THE 2019 SEASON

Melbourne, Australia, 2019

I was nervous, I knew you shouldn't be, but I was.

The sun was shining bright down at the Melbourne Circuit, you could hear the delighted conversations from fans just outside of the motorhome. Everyone was excited for the upcoming season of Formula 1, with new drivers and grid line up changes. And I was one of the new faces at the paddock, although not a driver.

I’ve been no stranger to this whole life at the paddock and following Formula 1. I grew up with it as I’d follow my father around since the moment i learned how to walk.

Jenson Button, former Formula 1 driver and world champion. I carried my last name with pride, I love my dad more than anything in the world, but the moment I showed genuine interest in the motorsport world people started to talk.

So now, I can't help but wonder, what is everyone going to say the minute you walk into the paddock as not a guest, but as a McLaren intern.

Sure, I will be the first to admit that having the Button last name did help I get this internship, but I conclude the training to be here on your effort, with my intelligence, my studies and everything I prepared myself for.

I knew working at the PR department didn't come easy in the motorsport world, I not only had to deal with PR, reporters, FIA, and the drivers, but you had to understand the dynamic of the sport, of the car, and everything else in case I needed to step up to give a statement on behalf of a driver or the team.

I spent countless days, in 2018, going over the FIA regulations, learning about the cars, all while taking classes in UNI and juggling the McLaren PR training.

Someone called out my name in a soothing manner. I lifted your head, meeting Sophie's smile. Behind her there were two men, one standing tall and proud and the other a bit more awkwardly. I knew very well who they were as I will be working close to them.

"Hi, Sophie." I smile at her "Would you like to join me for coffee?"

She nods, taking a sit across from me and gesturing the two men to do the same.

"I wanted to introduce you three properly since you'll be working close together." She says "These are our 2019 drivers, Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris. This is Y/n, she is our new PR intern."

I smile at both of them.

“It’s nice to finally meet you both.”

Carlos smiles “Likewise, I hope we get along well, the three newbies of McLaren.”

I laugh at his little joke and Lando follows suit with his own laughter that is a bit too contagious.

He seems a bit shy, maybe it’s because it’s his first season in Formula 1 and he feels like he has a lot to prove. In a sense I relate to him. We’re both here to show we’re good and deserve to be here.

And without even speaking for more than 5 minutes with him, I can already feel that we’re going to be friends soon enough.

Xangai, China, 2019

I have my back turned to the door of McLaren hospitality as I fumble with the coffee machine. It’s very early in the morning on Friday, a few hours away from the start of free practice. I am feeling exhausted from the long flight from England to China and the different time zones.

“It seems like the coffee machine is winning the fight.” A voice cut through the silence of the hospitality.

I turn around to find Lando standing beside me with a smile on his face, showing his dimples and amusement.

“I can’t get it to make coffee, I think it’s broken.” I complain with a huff

“Did you turn it on?” He asks me amused

“What?”

“Did you turn on the machine?”

“Of course I…” He reaches his arm across from me, pushing a button and the coffee machine beeps before finally brewing my coffee. I feel my cheeks go warm in embarrassment “Sorry, I’m uh still half asleep.”

He giggles, that infectious laugh of his that I always find myself smiling and giggling along whenever I hear it. If there is one thing I have already learned from Lando, it's that it’s nearly impossible to be serious around him. He carries this natural good natured aura, and he’s funny and likes to make jokes and see the good side of things. And whenever I’m around him I find myself a giggling mess.

We grab our cups of coffee and take a seat at one of the comfortable arm chairs at the corner of the room.

“You look tired.” Lando points out, sipping his coffee.

“I’m jet lagged, and I had a paper to turn in for uni so I stayed up until late and I only got a few hours of sleep on the plane because I had to review the questions for yesterday’s press conference.” I tell him, basically chugging down my coffee “Do you think I’d get fired if I drank Red Bull?”

He shakes his head.

“You should get some sleep during FP1.” He tells me

I sigh “Yeah, but it’s not really worth the drive back to the hotel, I will probably only manage a twenty minute nap before I have to come back here.”

“You can nap in my driver's room.” He offers, a friendly smile on his face

“Oh, no, I can’t accept it.” I shake my head “Thank you, thought.”

Lando smiles, leaning over the armrest of his seat to get closer to me.

“I insist. You need sleep to be on top of your game. Come on.” He stands up offering his hand. I eye it for a moment before accepting it. He pulls me up to my feet.

He guides me through the corridors of the hospitality until we reach his driver’s room. He opens the door and I’m a bit surprised at how neat it looks. I half expected it to be a mess of clothes.

“Here, you can sleep on the couch, it isn’t much but it’s better than nothing.”

“Thank you.” I smile, sitting on the couch and taking off my shoes.

I get into a comfortable position, curling up on the couch and instantly closing my eyes. I feel something soft covering me and I open my eyes a bit confused.

“I don’t have a blanket.” Lando says, his cheeks turning red. “So I uh… covered you with my jacket.”

I feel my chest grow warm at his sweet gesture. I smile at him.

“Thank you, Lando.”

He smiles back at me, and at that moment, I think is when I started to have a crush on him.

Barcelona, Spain, 2019

I should have expected Spain to be a bit insane considering the fact that I work with a Spanish driver. The minute I stepped out of the car with Carlos following behind me, the fans started to scream and throw themselves at us.

I’m not unfamiliar with the whole passionate fans wanting pictures and autographs, but since I used be a toddler or a child, they at least head the decency to not push and pull at my dad because I was clinging to him.

But now I am an adult, and they don’t care about those things anymore and I had never been mobbed by fans before without having my dad or my uncles by my side.

The fans screamed at Carlos who was doing his best to attend each and every single one of them. And things only got worse when Lando arrived and they suddenly wanted pictures of the best new funny duo of the grid.

They pulled at me, shoving pictures on my face to get them to sign since I worked with them, and they yelled questions about what it was like to work with the both young drivers.

I tried to step away, get away from them fans, but I was stuck in between the mass of people and to make matters worse they managed to separate me from Carlos and Lando who were looking at me concerned over the chaos.

“What the fuck?! What the fuck is going on?” A harsh loud voice cut through the yell of fans “Stop pulling at her! Get your hands off of her!”

Suddenly a tall blonde man dressed in red was pushing the fans away from me, shielding me with his body as he yelled.

I cling to the back of Sebastian's Ferrari shirt, telling like a little girl again, but completely relieved that he was there with me with his familiar force of comfort he always knew how to bring me.

He wrapped his arm around my shoulder, gluing me to his side and I knew if I wasn’t 20 years old anymore he would have picked me up and carried me like a toddler out of this mess. He glared at everyone who tried to get in our way and stirred me inside the paddock.

“Prinzessi.” Sebastian called me the same nickname from when he first met me as a newborn “Are you okay? Did they hurt you?”

I shake my head “No, I’m… I’m fine.” I say, but my voice is shaky and he can tell that I’m holding back tears.

He places his hands on my shoulders, peering down at me with intense concerned eyes as he scans my body to look for any injury.

“What the hell is wrong with you both?” Sebastian yells the minute Lando and Carlos finally catch up to us “They were eating her alive!”

They look sheepish and terrified of being scolded by the German who looks lived with anger.

“She’s your PR assistant, but you’re supposed to keep your fans in check to keep her safe!” Sebastian continues with the harsh tone “She could have gotten hurt! They were touching her and shoving her! That was so reckless from the both of you!”

They nod, stiffly.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Vettel.” Lando says, eyes wide “I promise this will never happen again. I’ll- I’ll make sure she is safe at all times from now own. I- I swear!”

Sebastian doesn’t correct him on the Mr. Vettel name calling, he nods still with a glare.

“Come on, prinzessin.” He says in a much more soft tone, his arm resting against my shoulder in a protective parental manner “Let’s get you to Ferrari, uh? I will get you one of those chocolate pastries you love so much.”

With one final glare Sebastian takes me away from them. The McLaren drivers share a confused look as they watch me walk away.

Monte Carlo, Monaco, 2019

The Monaco Grand Prix is always a big event. Lots of celebrities and former drivers gather in the city to watch the historical race, and that’s how I find myself sitting at the McLaren hospitality chatting away with uncle Nico while my dad gets us drinks.

“Are you sure you don’t want to watch the race from Mercedes, uncle Nico?” I ask him, making my best innocent look that always got me away with things when I was younger and probably until this day when it comes to the drivers who watch me grow up.

“No, of course not.” Nico Rosberg shakes his head, a found and almost proud smile on his face “This is the first race I am watching this season in person and you’re officially a Formula 1 employee, I’m staying all weekend here with you at McLaren.”

I want to argue with him that I’m not technically a F1 employee as I’m just an intern, but he gives me a pointed look and I only nod.

“So, what is this that I hear about you and a rookie driver?”

I widen my eyes as I look at him.

“What? What are you talking about?”

Nico laughs at me “Seb has told me that you’ve become inseparable from the rookie McLaren driver, Norris.”

I huff, I should have known uncle Sebastian would open his mouth and gossip about me to his retired friends.

As if being summoned, Lando walked into the McLaren hospitality, wearing his cap backwards and smiling big as always. Carlos is beside him as usual and they both make their way over once they spot me.

“Hola, pequenita.” Carlos greets me, ruffling my hair affectionately before spotting Nico sitting across for me and getting a bit embarrassed.

Lando stands beside me ready to make a joke when he notices Carlos’ expression and widening his eyes when he sees Nico as well.

“Hello, Nico.” Carlos greets him

“Carlos, always good to see you.” He smiles before turning to Lando “And you must be one of the 2019 rookies, Lando?”

Lando nods quickly “Yeah, yeah. That’s me, nice to meet you Mr. Rosberg.”

Nico’s smile widens as Lando addresses him as Mr. Rosberg, feeling pleased with himself. I shot him a warning glare.

“Please, join us.” He says, motioning for the boys to the empty seats.

Lando sits beside me as Carlos sits across from me, leaving one empty space at the head of the table.

Nico makes light conversation, asking mostly questions about Formula 1, but I could see the glint in his eyes every time he asked Lando something, who seemed incredibly shy at receiving attention from a World Champion.

“I’m sorry it took me so long to get the drinks, I ran into some old friends.” My dad says walking to the table with a glass of my favorite refreshing drink to have in Monaco “There you go, sweetheart.”

I smile, accepting the drink “Thank you, dad.”

Lando and Carlos both choke on their saliva at the same time when they hear me call Jensen Button my dad.

“Ah, just the men I wanted to meet!” He exclaims “Carlos, Lando, you both have been doing such good jobs here at McLaren. My daughter talks a lot about you.”

I watch as they become flustered over the news. My dad smiles, taking a sit at the head of the table.

“I heard you both let her get swamped by a mob of fans?” He asks with a smile, but I can see the hard look in his eyes.

“Dad!” I scold him ���Uncle Seb already gave them a hard time!”

My father chuckles, soon being followed by Nico. Carlos and Lando’s eyes are wide and they look terrified.

“I know, I know.” My dad lifts his hands in surrender “I’m just messing with them. But I still have eyes and ears on the paddock so…”

“Dad!” I scold him once more.

He laughs again and finally switch subjects, talking about the new grid line up of this year and asking questions to Lando and Carlos who seem to become a bit more comfortable at the presence of Jenson Button and Nico Rosberg.

Hockenheim, Germany, 2019

Lando was in a bad mood, I could tell it from far away. He was moving frantically around the garage and he had a scowl on his face.

The past five races have been of ups and downs from him, he had two DNF, one race out of top ten because he got p11 and two races where he scored points. But he was pissed off still from his p11 on his home race in England.

It also didn’t help that the reporter he got placed with decided to improvise some questions that wasn’t pre approved and it made Lando uncomfortable with the way he was pressing on the matter of him doing a bad job at his home race.

And then, to make matters worse, he DNFed again today.

“Lando.” I say his name in a soft tone

He whips his head quickly towards me, a deep frown on his face.

“It wasn’t your fault.” I say, I place a hand on his forearm, squeezing it in reassurance “It’s raining terribly today, everyone is spinning.”

He huffs annoyed.

“I should be good at racing in the rain.” He complains.

“How many times have you raced in this circuit?” I ask him, calmly.

“Well- this was the first time, but…”

I cut him off “And how many times have you raced in the rain in a Formula 1 car?”

Lando blinks at me as he answers “This was also the first time.”

I nod, my thumb rubbing sof circles on his forearm.

“And how do you expect to be good at something you’re doing for the first time?”

He looks away from me, and I can tell he is staring to consider my words.

“Valtteri has been doing this for a long time and he also crashed.” I tell him.

That get him to look at me again, his frown turning into something a bit more hopeful.

“Bottas didn’t finish the race?”

I shake my head “No, he didn’t. Even the experienced ones are having a hard time out there. This is only your first race in the rain, Lando.”

He sighs, and slowly he nods his head. He shifts his arm, making my hand slide down and towards his. His hand is much bigger than mine and it’s warm despite the cold weather from the rain. He squeezes my hand.

“Thank you. I just-…”

I smile at him, squeezing his hand back.

“It’s okay. I get it.”

And for the first time since he DNFed, I saw Lando’s dimples as he smiled at me.

Marina Bay, Singapore, 2019

Singapore has always been a hard circuit. The warmth and humidity did no good for the drivers to be racing for long periods of time. Still, it’s one of my favorite circuits because I find it beautiful to watch the race at night.

I’m watching from the McLaren garage, this time considering the hot weather conditions, they allowed the PR team to wear lighter clothes, so I’m in a simple dress, standing close to the AC and sipping water every few minutes.

I wince when I watch Carlos spin and crash into the barrier. The garage grows quiet for a minute.

“He’s ok!” His race engineer announces and we all finally breath normally again

A few moments later Carlos enters the garage with an annoyed look on his face. He places his helmet on one of the shelves and go to speak to his team.

I keep my eyes trained on the screen to watch Lando’s progress while I look for the schedule of reporters who want a world with Carlos after his DNF.

I accept the request of two journalists and move over to where Carlos is.

“Hey… you ready for some interviews?” I ask, eyeing him

He clenched his jaw before nodding and following me out of the garage and onto the media pan.

I give out instructions to him on the way there and step back when he positions himself to give the interviews. I watch intensely, jotting out necessary information on my iPad and ready to intervene at any given moment, but despite the bad situation, the interviews go smoothly and soon enough we’re back at the garage.

Carlos excuses himself to go shower and change clothes, clearly not in the mood for conversation.

In a blur of moments I watch as uncle Seb wins the Singapore Grand Prix, a proud smile on my face. Lando finishes in p7 which is great since he’s on the pointing zone.

“Congratulations, Lando. You did a really good job today!” I tell him

His smile grows bigger “Thank you, thank you!”

Even though he’s happy, I can notice the tiredness ok his face. He’s completely drenched in swest and I can see the slightly tremor of his hands, probably about to begin an hypoglycemic episode without even realizing.

“Hey, why don’t you take a sit?” I say, gently grabbing both his arms and walking him to a chair. I move quickly as I push my water bottle into his hands and search for a snack “Here.”

Lando looks at me a bit confused, but obliged.

“Oh.. wow.” He chuckles “How did you even know how to do this? I didn’t even realize I was feeling weak.”

I smile, my hand twitches at my side as I feel the want to run my fingers over his curls.

“I’ve been on the watching side of this sport since I learned how to walk. I learned a thing or two.”

He nods, still munching on the chocolate protein bar I gave him.

“Yeah… I uh sometimes forget you’re the Jenson Button’s daughter.”

“I’m glad you do.”

Lando tilts his head to the side, confused, but doesn’t say anything and I’m grateful for that.

Austin, United States, 2019

The season is coming to an end, thankfully. All the traveling, working and university studying at the same time has been taking a toll on me. It is too much, and I could see it every time I woke up and looked at myself in the mirror. The circles staring back at me.

My body was sore, my throat scratchy and my head hurt. I knew the flu was making it’s way to dominate my body.

Still, I put on makeup to cover up my sickness face and went to the paddock for media day.

“Buenos dias!” Carlos greeted me once I entered the van and sat across from him and beside Lando who was bouncing with energy on the seat

“Good morning.” I say, cringing a little at the way my voice sounded

Lando frowned, pushing his face close to mine to examine me.

“What’s wrong?” He asked in a low voice, his brows furrowing

“Nothing’s wrong.”

Still, he kept analyzing me. From the corner of my eyes I could see Carlos lips turn upwards in a smile he hid behind his phone as he scrolled through it.

Lando said my name slowly, softly.

“You look sick.”

I pout slightly as I say “Geez, thank you for saying I look terrible.”

He huffs, clearly not finding my attempt to brush it off as funny as I did. He lifted his hand up before placing it on my forehead.

“You’re hot.”

“Oh, so now I’m…”

“Stop trying to deflect it.” Lando cuts me off before I can make another joke. “You’re sick. Why didn’t you say anything? You should be in bed resting.”

I shake my head, getting away from his hand.

“I’m not sick. I’m great. I’m just jet lagged and a bit tired, nothing some coffee won’t fix.”

Lando frowns and it takes me by surprise to see the irritated look on his face directed at me. Sure, I’ve seen him mad before when the race doesn’t go the way expected or when the media gets too much, but never aimed at me.

“I’ve seen you jet lagged and tired before and this is not it.”

I say his name in a sigh and he says my name in a warning. We stared at each other for what feels like forever, before Carlos giggles at us and says we arrived at the paddock.

The minute I get out of the van I start to quickly walk inside the paddock, scanning my pass, knowing the guys will stop to talk to the fans and I will be free of Lando’s questioning. I start to make my way to the McLaren hospitality when I feel a large hand land on my shoulder.

I flinch in surprise, whipping my head around and finding Lando beside me, still frowning.

“Lando.” I try to sound stern as I say his name, but it gets mixed up with a cough I try to hold in.

That only makes his frown deepen. He starts to drag me somewhere.

“You’re going to the medic center now.” He says, stern.

I complain and try to stand still, but he is taller, bigger and much stronger than me so he basically drags me.

I can see some people turning around to look at us, but I keep telling him to let go.

“Hey, hey, hey.” Sebastian shows up in front of us, hands on his waist and I know that behind his sunglasses he is glaring at Lando. “What is going on here?”

“She’s sick and she’s being stubborn about it.” Lando says, still holding onto my shoulder “So I’m taking her to the medic center.”

Sebastian frowns, placing his sunglasses on top of his head as he takes a step closer to me.

“I’m not sick.” I say “Lando is being dramatic. Tell him to leave me alone.”

“She is sick! She even has a fever!”

Sebastian looks between the two of us, but he knows me long enough to know I am lying. He places a hand on my forehead.

“Norris ir right, you do have a fever, prinzessin.”

“No I don’t.” I say stubbornly.

He arches an eyebrow, as if challenging me.

“Do you want me to carry you to the medic center like you’re still a tiny baby?” He asks and I shake my head quickly, knowing very well he isn’t bluffing “Then let Norris take you and follow everything the medics say.”

“But Sebby!” I whine.

“Prinzessin.” He gives me an unimpressed look “Go to the medic center with Norris, now. And I’m not asking, I am telling you to go.”

I huff with a pout, knowing I won’t win this argument so I let Lando take me to the medic center while Sebastian watches from the distant as the McLaren rookie fusses over me.

Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia, 2019

The paddock was busier than ever, so many people with so many big smiles and shouts of happiness.

It’s the last race of the season and it leaves a bittersweet feeling on my chest. On one hand I am extremely happy that the season is finally over and I will be able to go back to a somewhat normal routine, going to college everyday, normal sleep schedules, as normal as an university student sleep schedule can go, and staying at home for a bit.

But at the same time, I am upset about being away from Formula 1 for the time being. I got used to seeing Lando and Carlos everyday, they are already a big important part of my life. I like the thrill of being in a different place every other week, of learning new things and watching the races.

I’m sitting at the VIP lounge section at the rooftop, overlooking the paddock bustling with activities. I’m sipping an Italian soda while I soak in the last moments of the 2019 season.

I don’t say anything as Lando slips quietly on the seat beside me. He has dark sunglasses perched on the top of his nose and he’s wearing a black McLaren shirt. His thigh brushes my slightly to gather my attention.

I shift in my seat to look at him and he already has that dimple smile on his face.

“It’s been a long year, huh?” He says quietly

I nod, smiling softly at him.

“It has been… feels like it was yesterday that I meet you and Carlos on my first day at the paddock.”

He hums, reaching out for my glass of Italian soda and taking a sip without even asking for it. I don’t mind, it’s normal between us by now.

“How was your first year as a Formula 1 employee?” He asks

“Better than I expected to be honest.” I tell him, playing with the hem of my dress “I didn’t get bad words from people for being Jenson Button’s daughter.”

Lando nods, understanding what I’m hinting at.

“You’ve been doing a good job, I think you’ve proved yourself here.”

“No, I haven’t yet.” I tell him. “But what about you? How was your first year as a Formula 1 driver?”

His smile widens “It was insane. Sometimes still feels like I’m dreaming. I know the results I’ve been getting aren’t ideal yet, but being here… it’s great.” I can tell he’s happy by the way his eyes lit up “I got so luck to have a good teammate.”

I nod, he sure indeed found a friend in Carlos.

“And even luckier to have the most beautiful and incredible PR intern.”

My cheeks grow hot the minute my brain register and processes his words. I lift my eyes to look at him, his cheeks are also tinted pink and he was a sweet smile on his face.

We stare at each other for a moment, only gazing in each others eyes. I reach for his hand and he squeezes mine in his big one.

“Will you be here with me next year?” Lando asks in a soft tone.

“Yes.” I breath out “I’ll be here with you next year.”

[ironicsoap]

What I've learned from making 2 fursuits!

I've learned a TON from the process of both of these suits, making my 2nd suit I improved on a lot of stuff I had learned from the first! Here's stuff I would've liked to know before I started either of these

For reference, the white cat suit's name is Sophie and she was made first. The blue one is Raine, and she was made second! I'll be referring to them throughout this.

I've learned nearly everything I know about sewing and these types of craft projects from making these 2 suits, I haven't had any prior experience. This is all very much advice From a beginner TO beginners, experienced makers may say some of this is wrong, this is just my lived experience written down. I figured I'd write all this now while it's fresh in my mind! When you get experienced at doing stuff, you tend to forget what problems you faced as a beginner.

Fur Bulk

Fur bulk is REAL and a MASSIVE PROBLEM when making your sculpt. Regardless of what method you use to make your base, 3D printed or foam. Depending on how short you can shave your fur, fur bulk will add about 1cm - 0.5cm of thickness to your base

Look how much her mouth closed up from the base sculpt! I ended up still loving the end result, but it was a bit unexpected. (Despite learning about fur bulk from my first suit, and ALSO testing fur bulk in Blender with a fur particle system when I was making the sculpt for this head.)

Raine's ear is an unfortunate victim of fur bulk still, but I didn't have time to remake it how I wanted it. I even tried to make it slimmer on purpose since Sophie's ear ended up so stupidly thick 😭

Seam Allowance & Stitches

(Talking PURELY about hand sewing, I've never used a sewing machine, I cannot give any advice for that)

You should be using a blanket or whip stitch for most of your fursuit, in terms of speed and seams, they are the most effective! Whip stitch for most of your face, it's going to be glued down.. so truly you just need the fabric together and not SECURE since it'll be glued. Use the blanket stitch for things like paws or stuff that's more likely to pop a seam (ears? tails? etc)

More experienced suit makers might say use blanket for everything, that may be more correct 🤷‍♀️ Whip/Blanket are nearly the same stitch, blanket is just more secure than a whip stitch, takes a little longer, and uses slightly more thread. I haven't timed other stitches, but the blanket takes me about 5 minutes per inch to do.

On Sophie, I had made up my own bizarre version of a backstitch that was stupidly strong.. but also took a million years to do. It also made my paws near IMPOSSIBLE to turn inside out. Sewing raines face together with a whip stitch was way quicker!

For your face pattern, use next to no seam allowance for the cleanest look. The areas that I added seam allowance on Raine, I really regretted the bulged out look they had. If you aren't confident in your pattern making ability, some seam allowance does give you some wiggle room in terms of how easily your pattern fits onto your base

Designing your suit for airflow

This wasn't actually a problem for me, I did this from the start. But I've worn suits that weren't designed for proper ventilation, and it really just makes suiting a very unpleasant experience. You want to have a mouth hole that is right in front of your own mouth, so you can easily get fresh air in your suit. I'm not saying you HAVE to do this, as not all designs can accommodate this, but it's absolutely something to think about for your comfort!

Another thing I've learned, is the roomier your suit is around the mouth hole, the more overall airflow you get! I tried on my friends head which I sculpted, and they printed in TPU, significantly roomier than Raine, and much more breathable! Raine is still comfortable for me to wear even masked underneath, since I made her ventilation so good!

My future suits I make, I'm going to be looking into TPU due to the sheer weight and breathability difference from my PLA suit!

Non-Fur Supplies

I highly recommend getting hand sewing needles and EVA foam at Daiso if you have one! Daiso has lots of little sewing kits, and I got both of my main needles there. The little circle disks of needles you can find at other stores didn't have needles that were the right size and shape for my hands to comfortably use. Daiso also sells EVA foam in the smaller amounts that you'd need for a suit, unlike hardware stores which usually sell giant square packs of 5

For handsewing, I noticed going for the slightly thicker thread lead to stronger seams overall.

For what you should have in a sewing kit for fursuit, here's what I have (ranked by importance)

Multiple handsewing needles you're comfortable with, just in case you lose one

Pins

Wonder clips (the little plastic rainbow clips) ABSOLUTELY necessary for suit making honestly, they work better than pins in most situations

Seam ripper

Soft measuring tape

Some generic white and/or black thread, as well as your fursuits thread

Safety pins

Overall helpful fursuit supplies

Velcro patches

Masking tape

Duck/Duct Tape

Have garbage shitty scissors, and separate scissors JUST for fabric. Your fabric scissors will remain sharp for much longer if you don't use them on other stuff. (3rd pair of scissors that's not used on tape/sticky stuff, but thread and paper also is helpful. The garbage scissors can get gunky when cutting tape, and your medium scissors remain sharp enough to easily cut other stuff)

Xacto knife + LOTS of new blades. The blades go dull FAST when cutting fur and foam. If you're having to use a lot of pressure to cut through your fur's backing, that means you need a new blade

Box cutter + LOTS of new blades for box cutter. I have a Kobalt box cutter, it's nearly as sharp as my xactos. I use it for cutting out big sections of fur and foam.

I get my eye mesh from Curlworks! I love the visibility on it ^_^

Fur Brands

In terms of my fur company quality rankings, it would be this (I've tried fur from a million different companies on my sample hunt for Raine)

1. Howl Fabrics 2. BigZFabrics 3. MofuMofu.shop

Howl overall is the most dense, relatively soft, and best to shave out of all 3. (Canfur is of very similar quality to Howl, except it has a mild crayon or carpet smell. The smell wears off completely after around 6-7 months, at least on the small sample I got)

BigZ is kind of like a middle ground, but shaves HIGHLY powdery compared to the other 2. As well as shaves a little worse/choppy compared to better quality fur.

MofuMofu is the least dense out of the 3, but I would consider the softest. Best if they have a niche color you need. The fur tends to clump together when it is shaved like sheep wool, and is less powdery than BigZ.

Random furs from etsy are usually LQ/MQ and patchy on their density, not great for shaving super short

Fur Shaving / Length

If you're going for a high quality look on your suit, you want SHORT fur for the face, full-stop. Every suit I've seen that's truly made me go WOW has always had VERY short face fur. Shorter fur shows the look of your sculpt better, instead of hiding it all behind any lumpy fur bulk or unbrushed sections. (Brushing fur doesn't last very long after a suit's been put on haha)

If you can buy your fur in shorter lengths like teddy/beaver, ABSOLUTELY do so. It'll make your shaves much shorter and cleaner. The longer your fur is, is the harder it is to get it to a "HQ" shave length. I personally couldn't get Raine as short as I wanted her to be 😩 But her colors are niche, so I couldn't locate them in shorter fur lengths

Once your suit is complete, don't be afraid to go in there with scissors and your clippers to clean up the fur+markings as well! Raine's mouth opened up a LOT more when i trimmed it down to shape with my scissors

Pattern Making

Avoid putting any seams down the middle of your face, it is noticeable! This is roughly how my pattern for Raine worked, I think the eyebrows helped disguise that horizontal middle seam really well! (the fur from the "eyebrow" piece covers the seam to the forehead piece as it is brushed over it!) I also made the nose bridge it's own piece, to utilize the visible seam to create a crease for it.

I also recommend avoid making any + shaped intersections on your seams if you can avoid it, it's really hard to sew cleanly😭 Sometimes they're unavoidable, but I try my best to avoid doing them.

Wearability

I'm not sure how much this applies to foam suits, but I really recommend using some elastic, a parachute clip, and some velcro to make an adjustable strap to keep your suit on your head! I tried to use foam on Sophie to get a snug fit, it did not work and made her struggle to stay on. The elastic strap on Raine is way better and more secure.

Misc / Random

When making your ears, you don't necessarily need to sew the minky/inner ear onto the fur parts! You can get a much flatter look on your minky if you just glue it on seperate, and have the fur not connected to it

(Specifically for beginner suit makers making personal projects) Not everything has to be perfect! No one will notice your little imperfections, and you don't have to make a nice product for a client. You can leave some things unsewn, you can have tiny bits of foam show from weird angles. You can hot glue some things instead of sewing them to save time. You can have small accidental bald spots. You can have little unsewn holes in corners if it's too hard to sew around those parts. Take it easy on yourself!

You may spring for fleece to save some money on buying minky, I honestly recommend not doing this. Minky feels significantly nicer, and minky from Howl is really not that much more than some fleece, for small pieces like inner mouths, noses, ears, etc, all you need is a "Fat Quarter" sized piece. It's more than enough! And only $6.50 (if you want fleece specifically, ignore this haha. I just regret going for fleece instead of minky on Sophie!)

Carving a foam base, to me, is the hardest part of suit making. So much so, that I never plan to do it again :P It's some people's thing, definitely not mine. If you've been frustrated with how your foam results turn out, consider 3D printing! Or buying a base from someone.

When looking for fursuit advice and tutorials, beyond the obvious places to look (matrices, youtube, google), I genuinely recommend Tiktok! A lot gets posted there for small niche problems you may have

Use this method for tying a knot on your thread when hand sewing, it's extremely fast https://youtu.be/LWWhRtxl6eE?si=AEt2HDiwp09AigOS

When making a 3D printed base, do not go too thin. I'd do test prints to see what thickness feels right to you, raine was about 0.5-0.7 cm but I wish she was a bit thicker because I worry a lot about her shattering 😨

Removeable eyes are very useful, if i get hair in my face I'm able to pop out Raine's eyes to move it out of my way x)

[reflectingiridescent]

since youre taking questions: recently discovered redemption was a thing a few weeks ago after being an avid watcher of the og series. what they've done with sophie, especially her backstory in s2, was a real surprise to me, since it seems a significant retcon from leverage og (not a criticism, really, either, just a surprise). given that the tone of redemption is Wholesome Family Viewing Heavy On The Light Comedy-even more than the og series- the specifics of her background with her former london crew are kept very vague, not a lot more than suggestion. listening to one of the podcast eps i know they drew on oliver twist for broad structure; ramsey as an abusive fagin type, sophie as the oliver figure, and most clearly in wilde, even his name arthur reminiscent of the artful dodger. contrasting how vaguely redemption characterized the dynamics in sophie's origin story even compared to parker, where we don't get concrete details but it's communicated clearly over the seasons that her childhood Was Very Bad-- i wanted to see what people's takes on sophie's time in early days london were, based on the pieces we're given, and what's suggested by the performances in the two part s2 finale.

Oh yes, thank you for asking! This may be a bit long, but if you'll indulge me...

I was scared when I realized we were getting Sophie backstory in s2! I know John Rogers hates giving out backstory, which is why we got so little of it in the og series, and I’m also so nervous when backstory comes out in a revival because we as fans have had so long to come up with our own headcanons. 

That said, I LOVE what they did with Sophie in s2 Redemption. I am just so impressed. I wrote a little bit here about how it was such a natural progression from The King George Job, which was maybe the most Sophie-centric episode we ever got there. We never ever see Sophie get personal about a child the way she does about the one in that job, and knowing what we know about Astrid now, it makes sense.

It’s also not that far off from what I personally had gotten from her backstory. Her thing is performing to belong, and people born into money don’t have to perform to belong. They’re def not motivated to do it to the extent it is suggested she does. They just know how to do it because that’s how they were raised.

We know from Word of God on The Beantown Bailout Job that the accent she uses on the mark in Nate’s apartment is as close to her birth accent as we get — and it’s a lower class accent. We also know that she was Mettier’s muse when she was around barely legal and that her grifting career started after that, so it’s not…hard to see how she would evolve from a street rat into who she is now (with so many stops along the way).

I’ve probably said this before, but I think we can also read her alongside another person who clearly is shown to have grown up working class: Eliot. Eliot and Sophie kind of have some friction in jobs where they go to small American towns. And on one hand, she’s not American and so that’s not going to speak to her. But also Eliot is 1000% more settled into himself than she is even at her most settled during the og series, and so my idea for a long time was not that it was because she grew up upper class but because Eliot embraces his class background in a way that Sophie really never does. She barely even engaged with that until Redemption?  I’m thinking specifically about how she never forgets how to get hit by a car, even though she’s in her 50s when Redemption is going. She has a lot of internalized class shame. Eliot does not. Because Sophie doesn’t think she’s going to be accepted if people know that about her, while Eliot’s basically made it his calling card.

(Also Sophie is a woman and Eliot is not, which is a whole other layer we can talk about re: class intersecting with gender, but I won’t get into that here.)

As far as Parker, it makes sense that we got so much backstory about her (more than anyone else with the flashbacks and such), second to only Nate, because she was going to be Nate’s successor. For Sophie, mystery is so tied in to who she is (and who she is to Nate!) that it made sense that we had so little about her: a woman of many faces and names, who worked with crews (she’s the only one who has worked with other crews before) but never for too long.

(And actually, working with crews is her norm, right? That's how she started out. No one else on the og team is like this.)

Now! Sophie’s time in early days London. I think she grew up with a family at least in the earlier part of her life. I don’t think they were outright abusive, but maybe they were neglectful? Sophie has this clear need to be loved and it would track? If her caretakers were out working all the time and didn’t have much time for her, and she learned that she needed to capture and hold someone’s attention to get what she needed? I’m thinking of The Fairy Godparents Job where she is almost childlike herself when she talks to Widmark. Almost like she has to regress to that to tell the truth, like that’s the last time she told the whole truth. Then she just builds upon that need to capture attention in her grifting career.

I venture to say that her parents are dead based on what she says in The Two Live Crew Job about knowing when her aliases' parents died? I don't think every single one of her aliases has dead parents; it probably just makes things more convenient for her + allows her to gain the mark's sympathy. But still, it just strikes me as oddly specific, and it would make sense as to why she would have had to rely on a street crew. I also think it makes sense for her to have lost her parents as an older child - maybe a young teenager? Because a teenager can take care of themselves in a limited capacity. This is all conjecture though. I also listened to that Oliver Twist background, and I like it for her.

Something clear on the show is that she is MILES ahead of Arthur in grifting and planning ability. She’s also the only one (it seems?) besides Ramsey to know which of the masks is fake? So I’m thinking Sophie was obsessive in the way she approached her job on the crew. She studied that whole trunk of cons until she internalized them. She was studying art in her spare time likely before she knew it was an indicator of wealth and prestige, because Sophie is also a person who just loves stories. She was watching and reading every play she had access to because she would have used fantasy to escape from the way her life was going, right? That's kind of what she does as an adult just on a much larger scale.

And she also would have loved the way she watched the audience adore the performer on stage. 

That kind of detail to your work — being that big of a nerd — makes you seem like a loser to other children when you’re young, and so I think most of the kids in the crew found her incredibly annoying at first. Arthur didn't because he grew up with her, and he and Sophie would have grown up watching each other's backs pre-Ramsey. Then Sophie learned to hide how hard she was working so they only saw the fruits of her labor. She would have been a bit of a teacher's pet, able to scam substance-happy rockstars all night and then do museum recon for heists during the day.

She would have also been working like this because she bores easily, but I'll get to that later.

But she would have been such a collaborative person, even back then, and would have understood the importance of "I scratch your back, you scratch mine". And it would have been obvious to everyone how good she was, so they would have all been nice to her face and probably complaining about her behind her back. But being nice to her would have only served them well...until it didn't and people went to prison. Arthur would have foolishly assumed she would have had some kind of loyalty to him...but Sophie didn't. Meanwhile, she got raised into the upper class while Arthur didn't. And then he went to prison.

Sophie is the epitome of "never alone but lonely"? She has so many contacts and has worked with so many, and with extremely limited exceptions, she's had to watch her back around every single one - and also eat them sometimes so she wouldn't be eaten (metaphorically of course - and what a great line to give her).

Okay, so back to Sophie getting bored easily. That's actually part of Gina Bellman's legendary Sophie backstory (she mentions this in one of the aftershow interviews), that Sophie conned her way into the aristocracy and then just started stealing stuff from rich people's houses because she was bored? And then she pulled off riskier and riskier thefts? I think this is one of the reason we see her retiring multiple times. She just gets bored. She's too good at what she does. She worked with different crews to spice it up. She had Nate as an opponent, which made things interesting. When he got out of the game, she retired.

Until he came to her with a new and challenging proposition. Like yeah, she was into him, but she LOVES what she does. She needs to do new and exciting things with her skills, and using them for good was a fun challenge for her before it just became who she was.

Something that also captured my attention (and that I really liked) is that Redemption made it clear that she desires leadership positions despite often playing second-in-command? Which I LOVE, because that was a really nice update from the og series (and a natural progression right?). She was Ramsey’s protégée, but she asserts he was never going to let her be in charge of anything, not really. She was second-in-command to Starke too. (Also Starke considered pulling her in, which is what Chaos balked at…and so Starke proceeded to replace her…WITH NO ONE which says something about her professional reputation.) I think she’s very comfortable polishing drafts of cons as well as pointing out others’ blind spots. I also think that she probably experienced this kind of dynamic quite early on and so just got really good at being a lancer instead of a leader?

Redemption delves into how she's great at part-time leadership, but I also think it’s partially a gender dynamic thing that we don’t see her running a crew full-time until Redemption. All her past associates are shown to be men. She works on the assumption that people are going to underestimate her and holds that in her back pocket as a weapon. And while Nate's control issues were much more front-and-center, Sophie's love of control is more about being the the voice in the wings directing the director. It's a very traditionally feminine way to hold power, and I think part of the reason why she operated this way for so long is because that would have been the easiest way to wield power growing up around so many male criminals with giant egos?

Which is not to say that I don't think she could have led if she really wanted to but I think she craves recognition in a different way than the Nates and the Starkes of the world do? Winning means something different to them than it does for her, which is why we so often hear her referenced as like, the power behind the throne?

And it works for her, right? Chaos isn't scared of Starke; he's scared of her. Every single person we meet from her criminal past is like, wow, you're working with her? You need to watch your back around her. She's nasty. She'll never change.

I think that with Sophie, Ramsey was able to raise the caliber of his entire operation. Unlike Arthur, Sophie dares to dream big and back it up with skill and confidence. I think Ramsey was threatened by just how good she was (and Sophie was just starting out back then, wasn't even as good of a criminal as she is now), which would be why he wasn't going to let her have any real leadership. He belittles her when he talks to her. I think the Charlotte and William situation worked out really well for Ramsey? Because she would have been significantly helping his business but also spending so much time with the family that she wouldn't be around Ramsey as much? Little did he know that Sophie was already planning to get away from him.

I think it's also significant that the way that Sophie defies Ramsey is in a very traditionally feminine way? He tried to make her cold and unfeeling...which is a very stereotypically masculine way of operating? But we know that Sophie's empathy is her superpower and one of her greatest weapons. We know that she doesn't run the sweetheart con anymore because she was so good at it that people got seriously hurt. What he saw as a weakness became her strength.

I like the idea that he's the reason why she's a pathological compartmentalizer. She would have had to compartmentalize all of her emotions to work with him, and she would have had to keep her aliases so partitioned to be able to pull off faking her death with him and to keep him away from every life she lived after that. And she got too good at it.

The last thing I'll say (I've said so many) about her life from before is that I love how she tells the Baby Magiq grifter that she knew she should have felt bad about leaving Astrid but she didn't. And then she follows that up by saying that she just blocked that part of her life out. But also, Sophie didn't completely block her out. She'd kept track of her. She'd helped her out over the years.

It's just such a Sophie way of approaching a situation. There's something there about how she did feel bad but maybe not as much as she thought she probably should have. How she walked away for a lot of reasons, Astrid's ultimate wellbeing being one but not all of them, but also she couldn't completely walk away forever? I love that because we just do not hear that story about women told very often.

[mythicalmaven]

Beyond Boundaries - Oscar Piastri (PART ELEVEN)

Masterlist ↳pairing: oscar piastri x female!norris!reader ↳word count: 3,5K ↳chapters: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, ↳chapter warnings: friends to lovers, brothers teammate trope, angst, talking about feelings

↳series summary: Since Oscar joined McLaren as your brother’s teammate, you two have quickly become best friends. Recently promoted to be Oscar’s physiotherapist, you both relish the opportunity to spend more time together. However, as the new role brings you closer, you both realize you might be feeling more a little more for each other than just friendship

*Saturday, April 6th*

It was early in the morning when Oscar found himself seated in the meeting room. He wasn't alone, you, Zak & Sophie from the media team where there too. It was time for Oscar to get introduced to the one girl he absolutely did not want to meet. The one he was supposed to fake a relationship with.

The reason as to why you were there too, was Zak. He said something about it being important that you would meet the girl too, considering Oscar and you spend a lot of time together being his trainer. Zak pointed out that it would be practical for you to know some of the ins and outs as well.

Oscar looked around the room, his eyes landing on you, pressing his lip together. Almost as if he was silently apologizing to you, trying to not be obvious about the hidden knowledge between the two of you.

It was then when the door opened, a man and a woman walking in. She looked kind, she actually did. She was tall, skinny, had a slightly tanned skin & long brown locks. You could easily tell they tried to find someone with similar features to you, probably to make it more believable that it was her in those leaked pictures. She was pretty, very pretty. In your opinion, a lot more beautiful than you were. It stung a little, if you were being honest with yourself.

Oscar felt bad for you, for himself, but also for the other girl. Wondering if something similar brought her into this as well.

Zak's eyes lit up, a professional smile spreading across his lips. He stood up from his seat, gesturing to the man and woman to take a seat.

"Oscar, Sophie, Y/n, this is Ava, the lovely lady we told you about" he started, looking briefly at the lady. His eyes then shifted to the man next to her "And this is her manager, Liam" he continued.

Ava smiled kindly at all of you, first leaning over the table to hold her hand out to Oscar. He shook her hand and send her a polite smile "Nice to meet you, I'm Oscar, but you probably already knew that" he said, a small chuckle leaving his lips.

The brunette returned a smile "Likewise" she spoke, before moving her attention over to Sophie, introducing herself to her as well, before shifting her attention to you.

She held out her hand, her nails perfectly manicured. When you took her hand and shook it. She send you a smile.

"Nice to meet you!" you weakly spoke, your tone kind, but laced with an uncertainty "I'm Y/n, I'm Oscar's trainer and physio"

"That's lovely" she spoke with an honest smile.

"So, Liam and I have already talked a bit about what could be a plan" Sophie started, clearly not the one to have came up with this fake dating plan. She sounded as if she only said these things, because she had to.

Liam nodded, a smile on his face "We were thinking it might be a good start for Ava to be in the McLaren motorhome tomorrow during the grand prix. Maybe wearing something that's Oscar's, like a bracelet" he started, his attention shifting to Ava "Then maybe after the race, we could arrange for Oscar to walk by you briefly, maybe brushing your hands or him quickly hugging before he walks on?"

Oscar looked at Sophie and Liam, his breath catching in his throat. Not in a good way, but in a way that made him realize how real this all was getting "Y-Yeah.. sure"

Ava nodded "Sure, I think that could work"

⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ ⋆⁺

Oscar sat on the edge of the small couch in his driver's room, hands clasped loosely in his lap as he glanced at Ava. She was perched on the other end, her posture relaxed but attentive. Her kind smile didn't quite reach her eyes, though, and Oscar could tell she was just as unsure about this arrangement as he was.

"So," he started, breaking the silence that had settled between them. "This is... definitely a strange situation to be in."

Ava let out a soft laugh, nodding. "You can definitely say that, yes. It's not every day you agree to fake date someone you barely know."

Oscar's lips twitched into a small, half-hearted smile. "True. I mean, I get why it's necessary, but it's still... weird." He paused, choosing his words carefully. "Did you get into this in the same way?"

She tilted her head, considering his question. "Something like that. It's complicated, I guess."

Oscar nodded, his mind flashing to the conversation with his manager, the pressure of the rumors swirling around him and you. But he didn't want to get into all that. Not with Ava, not yet.

"Yeah, I get that," he said, leaning back a little. "I'm sure we both have our reasons for agreeing to this."

Ava's smile softened. "I'm not really one for drama, to be honest. But sometimes you just have to play along, right?"

Oscar chuckled lightly. "Yeah, exactly. I'm not a fan of all this PR stuff, either. But, I guess it's part of the job sometimes."

They shared a brief, understanding look, the tension between them easing slightly. Ava shifted, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "So, how do you want to play this?"

Oscar rubbed the back of his neck, thinking. "Well, we don't have to overdo it. Just enough to make it believable. We can show up together to events, act friendly—like we're getting to know each other. I don't think anyone expects us to be all over each other."

"Agreed," Ava said, relief in her voice. "I think we should just be ourselves, but maybe add a bit more... I don't know, closeness? Like we're actually interested in each other."

Oscar nodded. "Yeah, that makes sense. We don't want it to look obviously fake."

They fell into a comfortable silence for a moment, the awkwardness from earlier gradually fading. Oscar found himself relaxing a bit more around her. She was easy to talk to, and he appreciated her straightforwardness. Though she was not you.

"Have you ever done anything like this before?" Ava asked, her tone light but curious.

He shook his head, a small smile tugging at his lips. "No, this is a first for me. Feels a bit like acting, doesn't it?"

Ava laughed softly. "Yeah, but without a script. We'll have to improvise."

"I'm not great at improvising," Oscar admitted with a playful grin.

"Well, good thing I'm here then, perks of being an actress" Ava teased gently. "I'll cover for you."

"Thanks," he said, his smile growing. "I appreciate that."

They lapsed into another easy silence, and Oscar found himself feeling grateful that Ava wasn't making this harder than it needed to be. Despite the odd circumstances, she seemed genuinely kind, and that put him at ease.

"Let's just take it one step at a time," Ava said finally. "We'll figure this out."

"Yeah," Oscar agreed. "One step at a time."

As they sat there, sharing a quiet moment in the midst of all the chaos outside, Oscar couldn't help but think that maybe this wouldn't be so bad. As long as he could keep things clear between them—and with the reader—he could get through this. And, with any luck, things would settle down soon enough.

After that they spend some time getting to know each other, just so it wouldn't be awkward when they would have to do interviews. He learned that Ava was 22 years old and born in Australia, but moved to the UK at a young age, something Oscar and her had in common. Ava told Oscar that she had started acting when she was just a kid, so she kinda rolled her way in it when she was young.

Oscar, on his turn, told her about his hobbies outside of F1. He told her about you. Explaining that you have been best friends for a while, leaving out the detail of your feelings for each other. Not wanting to break his promise to you.

"She's the girl you hooked up with according to the media, right?" she asked, honestly interested.

Oscar stayed silent, but did give her a soft nod.

"That explains the awkward look you both had in the meeting" she replied with a laugh "Let me guess, shit-faced drunk?"

Oscar laughed "Pretty much covers it, yes" he stated, scratching the back of his neck.

Ava send him a compassionate smile, folding her hands in her lap "So, let me get this straight" she started, a chuckle leaving her lips "The girl you kissed is not only your trainer, she's also your best friend. And to top it off, she's also your teammates sister"

Oscar shrugged "Yep"

"Yeah, that makes it all a whole lot more complicated" she laughed.

Ava then leaned back on the couch a little, looking back up at Oscar "Before I forget to ask. Liam mentioned that it maybe would be smart to discuss our boundaries. You know, considering the things we have to do. Affectionate wise"

Oscar looked back at the other Aussie, then shifting his gaze to his lap. Time for the awkward stuff, he thought.

"I'm fine with anything to be honest, I'm used to it all considering my job. So if you're up for it, I'm fine with kissing, if that helps convince the public eye"

Oscar felt a tight knot forming in his stomach as Ava brought up the topic of boundaries. He shifted uncomfortably, his fingers playing with the hem of his shirt as he avoided her gaze. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to be convincing in this whole fake dating scenario—it was just that every time he thought about doing anything more than the basics, guilt hit him like a punch to the gut. Your face flashed in his mind, and he swallowed hard.

“Yeah, um,” he started, voice a little shaky, “I guess we should talk about that.”

Ava nodded, her expression calm and open. “I know this is weird, and I’m not exactly thrilled about the idea of putting on a show either, but if we’re going to do this, we should be on the same page.”

He took a deep breath, trying to gather his thoughts. “I’m… I’m kind of socially awkward, to be honest. I mean, I’m fine with doing some stuff, like, a hug or holding hands maybe. A kiss on the cheek is okay too, I guess. But anything more than that—” He hesitated, his heart thudding in his chest. “I just… I don’t know.”

Ava tilted her head slightly, her eyes gentle. “That’s fine, Oscar. We don’t have to do anything you’re not comfortable with. This whole thing is just acting, right? We can take it slow, one step at a time.”

He glanced at her, grateful for her understanding. But even as she spoke, he couldn’t help but feel like he was betraying you. You hadn’t exactly defined what you were, but the thought of pretending to be with someone else, even just for show, made his chest ache.

“Thanks,” he mumbled, looking down at his lap. “It’s just… complicated, you know?”

Ava seemed to pick up on his unease, leaning forward slightly. “Hey, I get it. Really. But you can trust me, okay? I’m not here to make things harder for you. We’ll go at your pace. And if it ever gets too much, just let me know, and we’ll dial it back.”

Her words were sincere, and he found himself relaxing a little, but the nagging feeling of guilt still lingered. He knew she was right—it was just acting, and it didn’t mean anything. But deep down, the idea of kissing Ava, even if it was just for show, felt wrong. Like he was betraying something fragile and precious between the two of you.

“But, if you’re up for it,” Ava continued cautiously, “a real kiss could help sell it. But only if you’re okay with it. We don’t have to, Oscar. Not if you don’t want to.”

Oscar sighed, running a hand through his hair. He knew she was just trying to be professional about the whole thing, but it still felt like a rock was sitting on his chest. “I know, it probably is… I just have to think about it, I guess. It’s not that I don’t want to be convincing, it’s just—”

“You’re not comfortable with it,” Ava finished for him gently. “That’s okay. We can stick to hugs, holding hands and kissing each others cheek.”

“Thanks,” he muttered, giving her a weak smile. “I appreciate that.”

"I just suggested it, since in the pictures that got leaked, it all seemed pretty intense. So I thought, that might sell it a little better, but.." Ava smiled back, her eyes soft. “We’ll figure this out, Oscar. Just remember, this is all for show. It doesn’t mean anything.”

He nodded, though he couldn’t quite shake the unease. He didn’t want to hurt her feelings, but he also couldn’t ignore the guilt gnawing at him. He needed to tread carefully, not just for the sake of the act, but for the sake of whatever it was between you and him. And maybe, just maybe, he could get through this without messing everything up.

"I gotta go now, tho. Liam needed me for something around this time" Ava spoke as she looked at her phone, her voice soft and understanding.

"Yeah, of course. Thanks again" Oscar replied, not moving from his spot on the couch.

Ava stood up, but not before bending down over the couch, kissing Oscar gently on his cheek "Well, see you later, boyfriend" she said, before sending him a cheeky wink and leaving the room.

*Later that day*

A few hours had passed, and you found yourself sprawled out on the couch in Lando's hotel room. The evening had been spent in casual conversation with your brother over dinner, discussing random topics that flitted in and out of your minds. But now, the silence in the room was thick, heavy with unspoken words. Lando had noticed your shift in behavior, the way you’d grown quieter, more introspective, and it was starting to concern him.

He watched you carefully, his brow furrowed with worry. The quiet stretched on, and eventually, he broke it, his voice gentle but insistent. “You know you can always talk to me if something’s bothering you, right? That’s what big brothers are for,” he pointed out, his eyes soft as they searched your face for a clue.

You swallowed hard, your gaze darting away from his. The guilt gnawed at you, the weight of the secret you’d been keeping pressing down on your chest. Lando knew some things, sure, but he didn’t know the whole truth about you and Oscar. The part where you and Oscar had crossed that line from friends to something more, something you hadn’t been ready to share with anyone else yet. And keeping that from Lando, of all people, made you feel terrible.

“You’ve just been different,” Lando continued, his voice dropping to a near whisper, tinged with the slightest hint of disappointment. “You’re so silent. Normally, you always tell me everything. Is it the whole fake-dating thing that Oscar has to do?”

Your breath hitched, and you felt a pang of anxiety ripple through you. “No?” The word slipped out, but it sounded more like a question than the firm denial you wished it could be.

Lando rolled his eyes, a hint of exasperation creeping into his tone. “Who are you trying to convince? Me, or yourself?” he pointed out, leaning back slightly as he observed you with that perceptive gaze of his.

You sighed deeply, sinking into the couch in defeat. There was no point in pretending anymore; Lando could always see right through you. “Ugh, fine,” you huffed, taking a deep breath to steady yourself. “To answer your question... Technically, no, but also yes.”

Lando raised an eyebrow at you, silently urging you to elaborate. The way he looked at you, with that mixture of concern and patience, made it even harder to keep things hidden. Another sigh escaped your lips as you met his gaze, knowing you couldn’t hold back anymore.

“I get why he has to do it,” you began, your voice low and tinged with frustration. “The reasoning behind it makes sense. Besides, it means nothing—it’s just a business deal.”

Lando nodded slowly, waiting for you to continue. He could sense there was more, much more, that you needed to get off your chest.

“But…” you trailed off, your voice catching in your throat. You hesitated, the words feeling heavy on your tongue. Admitting it out loud made it all too real, and that terrified you. But Lando was patient, his presence steady and comforting, like an anchor you could cling to in the storm of your emotions.

“But it’s complicated,” you finally said, your voice trembling slightly. “Oscar and I… We’ve been trying things. We decided to give it a shot, you know, without labels. And it felt great, Lando. It really did. But then, not even a week later, this whole fake dating thing comes up, and it just… sucks.”

Lando’s expression softened even more, and he leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees as he listened intently. You could see the concern in his eyes, but there was also an unspoken encouragement there, urging you to keep going.

“It sucks because… because I wish things weren’t so complicated,” you continued, your hands wringing together in your lap as you struggled to put your feelings into words. “He’s your teammate, I’m your sister, and we work together. It’s already a mess. And now with this PR stunt… I can’t help but wish I could just allow myself to fully be his. But I can’t. It’s like… I’m holding myself back.”

Lando reached out, placing a reassuring hand on your shoulder. His touch was warm, comforting, and it made you feel a little less alone in your confusion. “You’re in love with him,” he stated softly, more of a realization than a question.

You nodded, your eyes stinging with the threat of tears. “Yeah, I am. Honestly, I’m so in love with Oscar. But I’m scared, Lando. Scared of what happens if we make it real. What if it all goes wrong?”

Lando’s thumb brushed gently against your shoulder, a small gesture that carried so much understanding. “You know, sometimes things are worth the risk,” he said, his voice low and thoughtful. “If you’re both feeling this way, then it’s real, with or without a label. And sometimes, putting a label on it doesn’t change anything—it just makes it easier to define what you have.”

You looked at him, biting your lip as you considered his words. “Maybe,” you murmured, “but it’s still scary. And then there’s Zak, and the team… I just don’t want to make things harder for Oscar.”

“Have you thought about talking to Zak?” Lando suggested gently. “Maybe it wouldn’t be as big of a deal as you think. And Oscar’s strong, he can handle this. You don’t have to carry it all on your own.”

You nodded slowly, the idea swirling in your mind. Maybe Lando was right. Maybe talking to Zak could ease some of the pressure. But there was still that gnawing insecurity that wouldn’t leave you alone.

“I thought about it, but I'm not sure if it's the right thing to do. Also, the PR thing might be the solution to, you know, fix things,” you said, your voice dropping to a whisper. “I understand why it’s necessary, and I don’t mind it too much, not really. But it still sucks. It sucks to see the person you love having to act like that in front of the cameras with someone who’s not you. Someone who’s way prettier, someone who wouldn’t make everything so complicated.”

Lando’s eyes softened, and he squeezed your shoulder gently. “Are you afraid he’ll fall for her during this PR stunt? That you’ll lose him?”

You let out a shaky breath, the question hitting closer to home than you wanted to admit. “I guess I am,” you whispered. “I definitely trust him. I know he wouldn’t do anything, but… I’d understand if he did. It would be less complicated with someone like her, and besides, we don’t have any labels. He doesn’t owe me anything.”

Lando shook his head slightly, his expression firm. “Oscar is head over heels for you, sis. I’ve seen the way he looks at you—there’s no way he’d want to look at anyone else like that. Not even for a second.”

His words wrapped around you like a warm blanket, soothing the cold fears that had been gnawing at you. You took a deep breath, letting the tension in your shoulders ease just a little. “Thanks, Lando,” you murmured, your voice soft and full of gratitude.

“Anytime,” he replied, pulling you into a gentle hug. You rested your head against his shoulder, finding comfort in the steady rhythm of his breathing. The conversation wasn’t easy, but it had been necessary, and now, with Lando’s support, you felt a little more prepared to face whatever came next.

—————⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ ⋆⁺—————

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Taglist @aceyalonso @saachiep81 @landosgirlxoxo @andruuu28 @il0vereadingstuff @silentreader128 @edixttor

[newtonsheffield]

I bet Sophie teases Kate endlessly the day Anthony goes to the swimming class with Neddy and Kate sees him shirtless for the first time in almost 4 years.

Oh Kate is going through it that day. She tries not to take it personally that Neddy asked her if his dad could swim with him this week. She knows he’s just exploring the relationship with Anthony because he’s confident that his relationship with her is a constant. And truly she thinks it’s sweet that Anthony hasn’t missed a class since he started going. Even though his phone sits on the bench and rings and rings Anthony doesn’t answer. It’s one of the things Kate admires about Anthony: Neddy has 100% of his focus when they’re together.

“Yeah, Daddy can get in the water next week. Bring your trunks, Ant.”

It’s actually not fair, that she’s nearly toppled off the bench with Neddy sat on her knee while Anthony strips out of his shirt. It feels like the entire world is moving in slow motion when his toned chest ripples with the movement. She remembers running her tongue over that chest, she remembers nipping at it with her teeth before Anthony had fisted his hand in her hair and dragged their lips back up to meet. Her cheeks are burning by the time Anthony tugs a shirt back on.

“Are you ready, Neddy boy?”

“Yes!” Neddy called out scrambling from Kate’s lap.

Kate shook herself out of it and kissed the top of his head. “Have fun, baby.”

Neddy ran off, perched on Anthony’s shoulders and Kate let out a shaky sigh, leaning back against the wall.

“Enjoy the show?”

Kate narrowed her eyes at Sophie. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Sophie chuckled, “Okay. I’m just saying; I feel like he might have done a bit of manscaping with you in mind.”

Kate rolled her eyes, “Pretty sure he didn’t. He looked exactly like that three years ago. I don’t think he was doing sit ups before I arrived.”

“Have a little flashback did we?”

Kate sighed, “It’s actually very hard to be friends with someone you were so attracted to you hired a hotel room to shag it turns out.”

“And your magical single time attraction created Neddy.” Sophie teased. “What a fairytale.”

Kate snorted, “Oh it was not just once. The next morning I was so exhausted I could hardly walk away from him after breakfast. I was inspired to take up yoga because I realised: I’m not flexible enough.”

Sophie let out a disgusted noise, “Jesus Christ. You two need to just shag it out again.”

“We can’t.” Kate sighed, “He’s Neddy’s dad, and it’s messy. Plus his sperm bested a condom once I’m not giving it the opportunity to do it again.”

[oldphanny]

HOW. WAS. THE. SHOW. ⁉️⁉️⁉️⁉️⁉️

AAAAHHH Sorry, I did see your asks earlier, but today has been such a blur cause I only went to sleep at 3am, so I've been napping on and off all day and kept forgetting!!

(I'm an old soul that requires 23 hours of sleep a day)

THE SHOW WAS ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE!!! Thank you for asking :)

However, the more I read and the more I'm answering questions, the more I'm realising that we were missing a lot of props. And obviously, the entire set!

So I like to lovingly refer to my version of tit as 'Bogan Tit' (thanks australian customs!!)

We were missing:

(Starting off with the ones I noticed from seeing spoilers on here prior to the show)

The set - we got a projection like Brisbane did. I don't know whether the same happened in Brisbane, but a bunch of the videos lagged or didn't play properly at all. Honestly, it just led to funnier moments, like Dan weirdly stomping over to the screen and yelling, "WELL THAT WAS A GREAT VIDEO!!!" When the clips for the tour bus conspiracy didn't play lol

The Golden Pig - I'm guessing the golden pig was supposed to be there but Phil managed to find a Golden Koala piggy bank at Woolies as a replacement (who he declared was named Clint, which Dan side eyed lol)

The Dioramas and Dolls - We had bunnings boxes cut up and with a background printed onto them while the dan and phil dolls were replaced with Obi-wan (Dan) and Goku (Phil). I would have loved to have seen PJ and Sophie's work but, again, it honestly made it funnier to have Obi-wan and Goku 'wrestle'?

Phils Silicone Abs - This was the biggest disappointment for me personally 🥲 I don't know when the Abs were supposed to come out through the whole boxing bit but phil just wore a blue singlet. Sucks but obviously shit happens and that's out of their control. I did have the aisle seat because someone wanted to trade seats so I had both dan and phil fly by me (and Dan collapse on the ground in view of my seat) so I really can't complain too much! I'm pretty sure Phil and I made eye contact for a split second before he sped off at a speed I didnt know was possible for him, so heeeyy I'll take it over the Silicone titties

The screen that gets smashed over dans head at the end of the boxing match/ Confetti- it was an officeworks box cut to look like a screen with like paper as the screen. I don't know whether that was supposed to be a better prop? Everyone around me laughed when the officeworks logo was visible on the side. Also, I'm assuming Confetti was supposed to fall out of it? But nothing really came out besides a bunch that got stuck to dans shoulder when he stood back up, which Phil came over and preened off of him 🥲🥲 Dan later on in the bit shook the boxes aggressively so the confetti did fly out over the stage but I'm assuming that wasn't supposed to happen? I'm not sure if this is the confetti you were referring to or whether there was supposed to be more? I didn't notice any other confetti, so perhaps no?

Phan bucks - I was not close enough to the stage to say whether they were the authentic phan bucks or some form of replacement, but something was sprayed out into the front row with one of those money guns.

Foam Fingers - No, I honestly don't know what you were referring too... which I guess means we missed out 🥲

BUT DESPITE ALL THIS, I LOVED THE SHOW! Clearly, they put a lot of work into making the show still feel seamless, and had I not been a chronic tumblr user, I wouldn't have noticed anything was wrong! They really carried themselves well and I loved Bogan Tit, I wouldn't have had it any other way <3 It kind of makes it more special since our show was slightly different :)

I would be interested to see the full show some day if they do post a recording to know how different it really was, but I'm so happy with my experience!! The audience was fantastic and cheering the entire time, so I hope that easied they're anxiety on not having everything to plan <3

[yandere-fics]

I had an overall scenario. How would they take advantage of a touch starved darling? Maybe reader didn't have the best support growing up and can't help but feel warm when being given physical affection.

♡ Do They Take Advantage Of Touch Starved Reader ♡

(chose to do this with the sisters since i did something sort of similar with the city and kingdom.)

♡ Skye is just a little bit stupid and might not notice this tendency of yours, she just is happy you like her and want to touch her a lot but she doesn't think about how she could push you by taking advantage of how much you want touch until one day she works a 14 hour shift at the library, coming back to you being particularly clingy and upset, begging her to never leave you, how you need her, and then the light bulb goes of in her head and she realizes she should totally do something with this to keep you forever. ♡

♡ Sophie is a bit smarter and realizes that she can do something with this though she's highly unlikely to deprive you on purpose, she will have to leave on jobs on occasion but she's not trying to make you desperate because she views herself as like your caretaker and she has to make sure her doll has all their needs fulfilled though she will use it to possibly get away with pushing you into sexual activity even when you really don't want to. ♡

♡ Ellie is also particularly touch starved and often will come out of her office to recharge by holding and biting you so it's a blessing to her that you enjoy her touch and even touch her back, this only makes her more delusional so don't tell her you're like this with anyone else or she will bite you for hours and your skin will actually hurt. ♡

♡ Darla notices even before she asks you out so of course she's going to take advantage of this, she won't let any of her friend group touch you either, no one except her with ever be allowed to touch you so you're so starved for her. Your friend touches your hair to untangle something in it? They'll be bullied out of the college very quickly. She needs the only touch you know from now on to be hers, exclusively. ♡

[vinhteer]

Oh boy here we go!!!! It's been like 10 months. I've been very busy D: Also I fear this is going to be LONG I'm sorry

Design notes:

Aly: "Alec looks blasé as all hell... Oh, wait, that's her sister...?! Must be a family thing, then." - Some bystander LMAO. She didn't have a lot of screentime but I could tell that she's very strong headed. She's basically a kid with an attitude, you know? And also brutally honest; she doesn't seem to be the type to mince her words a lot. She can talk to people, but I don't think she'd fully open up and show her inner world. I thought she'd be part of that closed off looking character trope that's into cute things, so I gave her this semi scene semi preppy look. I think, as a child, since you're still learning about yourself and building your identity, you tend to really want to look like certain people? I think Aly really wanted to do that when she saw scene kids online, so I gave her the hair, the makeup (sorta), the bow, the choker and the lean silhouette. She also likes cute stuff, and it translates visually with the bow as well, the pink, the oversized sweater, the skirt and the mary janes shoes. Facially, I got inspired by a family member! What I think she'd be into: BABYMETAL! Hanabie, Ladybaby, basically cute metal, plus it fits into that trope as well. Since we're still on the topic of songs; MCR, Paramore, 2010s Avril Lavigne could work too. She probably likes monster high, petshops, hello kitty, pucca, shopkins, basically 2000s-2010s things :D

-----------------------------------------------------

Evelyn: She seems to be the type to solely focus on efficiency and go on full-force when it comes to her goals. However, she was still taught to have manners and I bet she has housekeepers to style her appearance. Sure, she can get by the hair and the makeup– it makes her feel professional and well put together. However, the outfits? Uniforms are much more practical. It's stylish and formal and you don't need to think about what to wear the next day. So I had to. Slightly redesign some uniforms. In parallel. I can't lie I was about to rip my hair out. But I did it I guess

For her face; lord have mercy, I had a tough time for a couple months. Like in an older post I made, I thought she was gonna have sharper edges, but then I felt like it was a bit too brute, so I had to smooth it down. I basically sculpted her face. I also got slightlyyy inspired by Katniss Everdeen and Sophie from KOTLC. She's very uhh 2010s novel core but with a little twist, which makes her pretty unique I'd say! So to keep that vibe going on in my design, I overall wanted her to look like the kind of person people wrote beautiful descriptions about. Her pose, the lighting, I just wanted it to highlight her face, hair, basically her vibe.

I also got inspired by 2 ppl in my classes that are like, the studious hard working ppl who also take care of their appearance.

-----------------------------------------------------

Elijah: Taking ummpati's interpretation of him bc I thought it'd be cool and I really like how she wrote him! (we are good friends so I am taking that as immediate consent) (right Pati???? RIGHT???) He's in his 20s, looks like he doesn't shower (he doesn't), looks like a hoarder (most probably is!) and looks like he strolls outside all the time as well like he's homeless or some shit. I tried to make him look intimidating and composed. He has multiple faces, but I decided to just give him a neutral one; blank face but appears like he could do much worse.

I wanted him to look imposing, I wanted him to vaguely look like a VULTURE because he gets rid of corpses :))) #smart #symbolism #bigbrain #Im-Onto-Something-I-Swear. His coat looks like a normal winter coat but the fur is giving viking too, so it doesn't give much of a modern look, which I think works very well! He probably finds the military cool as hell; if Elijah was uh a bit more normal in the head, he'd probably be a soldier. I headcanon his coat, shoes and pants to be from his grandfather who's a war veteran.

I also personally really like how his messy and disorganised look is in parallel with Celeste (in terms of visual language), with the cowl neckline, the necklaces, the tattered pants, etc. On the contrary, Celeste has that zig zag silhouette but Elijah's is sharper, much more imposing. It's just fun seeing their common and opposing traits.

Oh and I added hidden weapons cause it's 1. unnecessary 2. SOOO ELIJAH. The glove you're seeing is a combat glove with gardening claws because he DIYs like that. I wanted claws bc 1. it helps digging a little bit 2. Claws!! Like the ones of a bird!! OF A VULTURE!!! He's a melee guy so I thought it'd be HILARIOUS to give him some weapons. He probably fantasizes about situations where he'd pull them out. He also probably names them.

For his face: I had a classmate who smoked and when my teacher found his electric cig, he was defending it saying that it's better than a normal kind. Needless to say, I used the right guy as a reference /j

[queer-whatchamacallit]

Initial Season 4 Thoughts for THE BEARRR :]

SPOILERS BELOW

So first, I can’t not love this show, it’s my darling that I have to know everything about and has never done anything wrong in its life. Season 4 may not be as good as seasons 1 or 2. In no way does that make it not a fucking EXCELLENT season of tv

One of the first things I noticed is that they took criticism. They listened to what fans were saying. They lowered the amount of Fak time and strengthened the character bonds that made this show what it is. They went with a very popular concept from fans to have Carm leave the restaurant but not just because it’s what the fans want, they recognized how much sense it made for him and specifically for Sugar to put the idea in his head, so they logically weaved it into the story

There were also a lot of complaints from fans that we didn’t get to spend enough time with really anyone but Carm, Syd, and Richie, and I love how it seemed that literally every character (except Manny and Angel still :,( ) got their own arc throughout the season that displayed more of who they are as a person

I once heard someone say that the show should have longer run times which didn’t make sense to me (idk if they have enough going on to keep the pace up), but I got it the second they explained that it would give other characters the time to shine. This season they did that, but they kept the run times pretty much the same, meaning that the entire season felt like it didn’t have enough time

From the moment s3 came out, I and a lot of other fic writers liked the concept that the conversation with NYChef Fields would be such a massive wake-up call that he’d sort of withdraw from the restaurant, letting Syd fully take the reins because he was now so scared of having too much control.

I love the pendulum that Carmy’s character swings in each season between being too into the restaurant and too out of it. I think that’s a really interesting way to write growth, hoping that he’ll eventually find balance. I love that Carmy allowed himself to be soft this season, specifically with Sophie and Eva, and MAYBE it was a bit over the top and he really should have been more awkward but idk maybe we’re just seeing a different side of him. Maybe his need for no kid to feel as isolated and scared and tense as he did brings him out of his shell and allows him to be just a little bit silly (him calling Eva baby was THE CUTEST FUCKING THING) (PS I AM NOT SAYING HE SHOULD HAVE A KID, he needs to work on himself WAY more if that were even something he was interested in, but he’ll be an awesome uncle in the meantime)

Because everything got so little time, everything felt too easy. Richie and Carm suddenly have a sort of truce without anything really happening. Them making Shapiro WEIRD so it’s an easier decision. Carm being willing to go to his mom’s.

The things that didn’t feel easy were PHENOMENAL, going back to that Al Anon monologue from last season about how words, specifically apologies can get stuck. I loved Richie’s arc this whole season, how bad he struggles before the wedding is able to change the very lonely perspective he’s had especially since last season. I loved how EXTREMELY uncomfortable it was when Carmy came to talk to Claire, how bad he struggled to choke it out and get to the point. I love that for as much as Carmy is desperately fighting not to run from things, he is very bad at actually responding to what someone is asking, he’s great at beating around the bush

Every single moment we got with Syd this season was SO FUCKING GOOD, her episode with TJ was such a perfect and fun way of showing her thought process of deciding between the restaurants, and don’t get me fucking started on her cooking show nightmare Jesus CHRIST and how much loyalty to the people there played a role in her decision and how fucking devastated she was throughout ep 10, and OH GOD her talking to Claire about her dad and sobbing about how she wishes she was a healthier, happier person just so her dad wouldn’t have to worry about her so much, that “I would be worried about me too,” and how you can feel how much she loves her dad with every word JESUS FUCK WAAAAAAAAA

I do like that Carmy never explicitly responds to Donna’s request to enter back into his life. Of the things that didn’t get resolved this season, I think I actually do like the move for it to stay up to him.

Unresolved things I did NOT like were that I’m so invested in Chester’s crush on Luca now, I got so blindsided by that and it’s definitely awkward to watch but so funny actually. But anyway sooo uhhh guys… how is Carmy going to pay bills? Bro needs a job still I’m pretty sure. Also what exactly was his big plan to get them out of the debt? Did I just not catch that or did he avoid the point too much and never got to it??

Another thing of them listening to fans is that they made Claire more of a person actually!! Her perspective on the relationship was so interesting and so devastating. I love that she’s characterized both as an adrenaline junkie and as a deeply anxious insecure person. Also it was definitely clear last season that Claire was associated with NYChef and Syd was associated with Terry, and Claire’s been framed in red and with ambulances for a long while so idk what their plan is if there’s a s5 lmao.

So the trailer made me a little worried for the dialogue, but everything surrounding those hard hitter lines is so natural and conversational and perfect, messy, VERY naturalistic dialogue is my everything :]

Okay so I loved Francie Fak as a noodle incident (they leave it open bc nothing’s going to be as funny as the viewer can imagine) but the reveal being that they hooked up? SO obviously the correct choice, nothing in the world can beat that being the lore

I love that Carmy tries to dodge answering what he’s afraid of before giving a true but minor answer. Also shout out to the fuckin hilarious lines this season, including “I definitely get really scared sometimes.” “Yeah, Carmy is very scared, honey.” “Okay 🙄”

So I feel like they were literally making shit up on the spot to get everyone together but I DO NOT CARE HI GARRETT HI JESS HI LUCAAAA hi Rene. But a really good running joke is all the new comers getting them caught up on the family drama and how everyone relates

There was so much full circle stuff this season that I wouldn’t be surprised if this were the last season (SOBS SCREAMS BAWLS MY FUCKING EYES OUT) there were all of the different callback lines throughout the season, Carmy finally telling Richie about the funeral and apologizing for not being home for all that time with that being their very first argument in ep 1, Syd’s bandana from ep 1, Marcus taking Carm’s mantle of being food and wine’s best new chef in 1x02, and Carm’s point to Marcus from 1x04

Marcus does deserve best new chef btw. He’s been a chef for like 2 years, and his capacity to learn especially without ever going to culinary school is so genuinely insane. Of course, I was looking between him and Syd before it was revealed, but in an actual restaurant, she hasn’t gotten the chance to show what she can do completely separated from anyone else aside from the scallop. I wouldn’t be surprised if after Carm leaves, she starts wracking up awards, but Marcus has been given the opportunity to show what he’s made of, and over just 2 YEARS he’s already knocked it out of the fucking park

A character trait of Luca’s that was more clearly brought up this season is how genuinely wise and emotionally intelligent he is. His talking to Tina abt pressure, his supporting Marcus in not wanting a relationship with his dad, him asking Carm how long it’s been since he’s seen his mom, I’m sure there’s more but he killed it this season <3

So idk about franchising The Beef.? The vibes are horrendously off with franchising specifically, but oh god Ebra and his merry band of random guys, I love Ebra, I’m so so fucking happy for him and how excited he is to grow

Also looking back on s2, RICHIE SHOULD ALSO APOLOGIZE, He said some truly heinous shit, and Carm did do some truly heinous shit, but what about ‘You turned out just like your abusive mom’ ‘You’re selfish and an awful person to not go to your brother’s funeral that I had to go through’ seems like something you shouldn’t also have to apologize for

Okay I think that’s it :]. But yeah, it’s a great season of tv, and I’ll stand by that.

[tip-top-cloud-surfer]

To Be a Man - Hangman

Pairing: Hangman / Wife!OC (Sophie)

Word Count: 2.2k

This work, all my works, and my entire blog are 18+ Only

Warnings: Secret Marriage; Non-Traditional Family Dynamics; Mentioned Death of Minor OCs; Marriage of Convenience/Necessity; Mentions of Type 1 Diabetes; Third Person POV, Named OC kids and Wife, No Physical Descriptions of Any OCs

Summary: Hangman is married. And it’s no one else’s business.

Prologue Part 2 Part 3

Master List

A.N. Disclaimer - I don’t have Type 1 diabetes and so this is purely based off of a little research and what I’ve seen my friends with Type 1 do.

“You’re married!?”

Hangman turned around at the accusation to find the rest of the Daggers, save for Coyote, who he was talking to before they were so rudely interrupted, staring at him like he had grown a second head. He scoffed and rolled his eyes, not sure why it was any of their business.  

“Yeah, what’s it to you?”

“Who the hell are you married to?” Rooster asked, earning a condescending smirk from Hangman.

“My wife.”

“Well, no shit Sherlock.”

“Where’s your wedding ring then?” Payback questioned, leaning on the table to inspect Hangman’s left hand. “I’ve never seen you wear one around.”

“It’s on my dog tags, dipshits,” Hangman replied, pulling out the chain to show them, even though he didn’t have to do that. “That a crime?”

“Why do you flirt with other women then?” Bob inquired, sharing a look with Phoenix. “Two women gave you their numbers last night alone.”

“Did you see me calling either one of them?”

“Well . . . no, we didn’t, but—”

“—When did you get married?” Phoenix intervened, tilting her chin up and narrowing her eyes a bit. “And where is she?”

“Two years ago. And she’s driving here right now,” Hangman stated, checking his watch. Pulling out his phone, he looked up his wife’s location before turning back to the Daggers. “She’s about five minutes away, if you want to be specific.”

“She’s staying here with you?”

“For a while, yeah. Like anyone else’s spouse would,” Hangman retorted, getting a bit annoyed with all of the questions. “Why?”

“Well, we’ve got to meet Mrs. Seresin,” Rooster drawled, folding his arms across his chest. “Since we’ve heard so much about her.”

“Do you even have a picture of her?” Fanboy questioned, causing Hangman to shoot him an annoyed look.

“Yes.”

“Well, are you going to show it to us?”

“No,” Hangman snorted, shaking his head. “No, I’m not.”

The Daggers continued to list of questions that Hangman half-answered, half-gave bullshit responses, before Hangman spotted a familiar silver car rolling into the lot. Ignoring the Daggers, he set his drink down and got up from his seat, slipping around the railings on the back porch of the Hard Deck to greet his wife. Coyote was about to take a sip of his drink when he found five sets of eyes trained on him.

“I’m not telling you guys anything,” Coyote stated, shaking his head. “They’ll be here in five seconds.”

“So, you knew the whole time that Hangman was married?” Payback questioned, causing Coyote to nod in return. “And you never thought to mention that?”

“Not my business to tell.”

“Jake!” a shrill voice that definitely belonged to a little kid broke through the air.

The Daggers all quickly pivoted from Coyote to the boardwalk where a girl, probably around six, sprinted down the wooden path. Hangman picked up his pace and scooped her into his arms, lifting her off the ground effortlessly. And if the Daggers weren’t confused and befuddled before at Hangman’s personal life, they sure were now.

“He’s a dad!?”

“What the hell is he doing with a kid!? This is Hangman we’re talking about, right?”

“She called him Jake, dumbasses,” Phoenix pointed out, though she watched the interaction closely. “What kid calls their dad by their first name?”

Hangman kept walking with the girl in his arms, chatting excitedly with her. Then another kid, a boy probably three or four years old, jumped up onto the boardwalk and raced towards Hangman as well. The Daggers grew even more confused. Hangman leaned over and scooped him up like he weighed nothing, pressing a kiss to the side of the boy’s head.

A woman finally stepped out from in between two cars and pulled Jake in for a tight hug, which he tried to return as best he could with two kids in his arms. The Daggers watched their interaction like hawks but gave each other confused looks when the woman, who they presumed was Jake’s wife, pulled away with just a kiss pressed to his cheek.

“That’s his wife, right?” Rooster asked Coyote, who nodded. “They’re not that affectionate?”

“Maybe five strangers staring at them makes them a little uncomfortable,” Coyote suggested, taking a sip from his beer.

Hangman eventually led his family to the back of the Hard Deck, dreading the conversation that awaited him. Jake’s wife glanced up at the Daggers, who were clearly waiting for them, before turning to Jake. Nudging him gently with her hip, she jerked her head in the direction of his squad.

“Did you tell them anything?”

“Nope,” Jake replied, shaking his head. “Not a single thing.”

The family of four made their way up to the back deck. Setting Leila on the ground and taking her hand as they walked up the stairs, Hangman finally turned to face the stunned and even more curious Daggers. Leila hid a bit behind his leg, always a bit shy around strangers, but he rested a hand on her shoulder to remind her that he was there and that it was all alright.

“Everyone, this is my family. Family, these are the Daggers,” Hangman introduced, half-assed, earning an immediate poke in the side from his wife. Gritting his teeth slightly, Hangman restarted. “Daggers, this is Leila and this is Tyler and this is my wife, Sophie”

After Hangman introduced her, Sophie waved politely in greeting to the Daggers, who awkwardly waved back to her. Withholding an eyeroll, Hangman started on the introductions in the other direction.

“Guys, that’s Bob, Phoenix, Rooster, Fanboy, Payback, and you already know Coyote,” Hangman listed off, pointing at each Dagger as he spoke.

“Javy!” Leila called, running over to greet him.

“Hey, Firecracker,” Coyote joked, picking Leila up and setting her on the stool that Hangman had been sitting on before.

From there, the awkwardness slowly dissipated. Very slowly, but it did dissipate just a bit. Leila and Tyler were running around on the back deck, laughing and stretching their legs after the long car ride down from Lemoore. Hangman had switched his beer for a water and returned from inside the bar with a drink for his wife, whose order he knew from heart.

They were in the middle of a conversation, though Hangman thought that it was bordering on an interrogation with some of the other Daggers when Sophie’s phone started to buzz with a weird ringtone. In an instant, Jake turned to where Leila and Tyler were playing.

“Tyler, come over here,” he called, causing them to stop.

Hangman picked up his wife’s phone and tapped it, causing Tyler to pout. Tyler begrudgingly trudged over to where Jake and Sophie were sitting and Jake quickly scooped him up and sat him on his lap. Meanwhile, Sophie had been rifling around in her purse, pulling out a separate bag.

“Fruit snacks or the granola bar?” his wife asked Tyler, holding out both items.

Tyler quickly leaned over and grabbed the fruit snacks before turning around to hand them to Hangman. Taking them without hesitation or delay, Hangman ripped the package open and poured the fruit snacks into his hand for Tyler, who started to slowly eat them one by one. The other Daggers seemed a bit confused, though Bob instantly recognized the situation.

“He’s Type 1?” Bob guessed, causing Sophie to nod sadly.

“Yes, he is,” she replied, checking her phone again. She showed Jake her screen, causing him to encourage Tyler to eat the remaining fruit snacks in his hand, before turning back to Bob. “You know someone with Type 1?”

“No, my dad has Type 2. My sister has the same set up on her phone,” Bob explained, causing Jake’s wife to nod slowly.

Tyler seemed a bit upset, though resigned to his situation, but Hangman did his best to try and make it enjoyable for him. Teasing Tyler for his choice in fruit snacks, hiding them and pretending to find them in random spots, and other very un-Hangman-like actions that caused most of the Daggers to grow even more confused at the situation, Hangman blocked all of that out and just focused on Tyler.

“Alright, just hang on for a second, bud,” Jake told Tyler, who clearly wanted to play again.

After they were sure that Tyler’s glucose levels were stable, Hangman set Tyler back on his own two feet. Leila, who had been chatting loudly with Coyote and Fanboy, let out a shriek and started to run after her brother again as if nothing had happened to disturb them in the first place.

“How long have you known that he has it?” Rooster asked, watching Leila and Tyler play.

“About two years now,” Sophie explained, folding her arms underneath her as she rested them on the picnic table. “He was only a couple months old when his doctor suspected something. Took some time to get an official diagnosis.”

“He doesn’t seem to let it get him down,” Payback commented, watching Tyler laugh and run around Coyote.

“No, he doesn’t,” Sophie replied with a soft smile. “He’s like my sister.”

“Your sister has Type 1 too?”

“No . . . she didn’t,” Sophie stated softly, her tone earning a few confused looks.

“Leila and Tyler are her niece and nephew,” Hangman supplied, gently resting the outside of his thigh against his wife’s own to remind her that he was there for her.

“My sister and her husband died a few years ago,” Sophie continued quietly, shifting a bit in her seat. “I got custody after they passed and after Jake and I got married, he adopted them.”

And suddenly all of the pieces were starting to fall into place.

Leila eventually came running over, asking if they could go down to the beach. Sophie got up to take them down herself, not trusting two kids who grew up in desert territory to know anything about ocean water safety. And when they were gone, all eyes fell on Hangman. After a long, drawn out sigh, he slowly narrowed his eyes at his squad mates.

“If any of you fuckers even think about going to the brass about it,” Hangman vowed, pointing menacingly over at the gathered Daggers.

“Dude, no one here is looking to take insulin from a little kid,” Fanboy stated quietly.

It wasn’t exactly uncommon for service members to get married for the benefits. And hell, you would have had to have been a completely selfish, heartless, brown-nosing government lapdog to try and get someone in trouble for making sure that a kid with a treatable condition lived happily without bankrupting his family.

“How did you meet your wife then? You knew her before the kids’ parents died?”

“Yeah. We were in a long term . . . situation-ship at the time,” Hangman recalled, earning familiar looks from his teammates. “And she told me that it was a lot to handle and she didn’t expect me to hang around, especially because I was deployed at the time. I came back home to visit her and saw how stressed she looked—she was crying, Tyler was still in the hospital at that point, Leila was barely talking . . .” Jake trailed off, a dark expression coming over his face. “I didn’t think. I just told her to marry me and I’d get it figured out. And I did. They live up with me in Lemoore now.”

“And you guys have an open relationship?” Rooster guessed, earning a sharp glare from Hangman immediately.

“No,” Jake replied bluntly.

“Not even a little?” Rooster asked, alluding to Hangman’s flirtatious personality.

“No,” Hangman stated, folding his arms in front of him. “We’re not.”

“But you’re not in love, are you?”

“That’s complicated,” Jake responded, loosening his posture a bit sheepishly.

“Yes, they are,” Coyote called back, earning a look from Hangman.

“Yes, they are what?” Sophie called out, strolling forward with Leila and a soaked Tyler beside her.

“What happened?” Jake asked, standing up from the table.

“Leila thought that it would be funny to push her brother into the ocean,” Sophie returned, shooting her niece a look. “She thought wrong.”

“He kept pulling on me!” Leila whined, stomping her foot on the ground. “I told him to stop! And he didn’t listen!”

“Well, that’s no reason to try to drown him. Go, sit on the bench right there. Now,” she ordered, causing Leila to huff but follow her order.

“I’ll take him,” Jake offered, walking forward to grab a soaked Tyler from his spot next to Sophie. “Come on, Ty, let’s get you dry.”

Jake reached out his hand for the keys, which his wife handed over without even a look in his direction. It was that smooth, that natural. Jake held Tyler, who had started to shiver despite the warmth, in his arms, not caring in the slightest that some of the ocean water was now soaking his own clothes. Coyote seemed rather amused at the shocked expressions on his teammate’s faces, which Jake blatantly ignored as he strolled away.

“What?” Sophie asked, spotting their confused expressions.

“Nothing,” they all echoed back to her.

Prologue Part 2 Part 3

[i-ship]

Here goes, my take on Sam and Cait’s crazy relationship.

// With Outlander done filming, Caitriona is leaving Scotland for LA, and Sam has one last thing to tell her before she leaves //

Long, angsty, fluffy piece. Let me know what you think ♥️

/ One last time /

Caitríona adjusted the wine bottles on the table, her eyes scanning the living room one last time. A cluster of empty glasses and half-finished plates sat on the coffee table, remnants of the night’s laughter and chatter. She glanced out the window at the Glasgow skyline, the city she’d called home for almost a decade.

The farewell party had been her idea. A proper send-off, she’d said, though the truth was, she hated goodbyes. Especially this one. With Outlander wrapped and her next big projects calling from across the Atlantic, she and her family were moving to Los Angeles. It made sense—work was there, and a toddler wasn’t exactly built for Scottish winters.

The cast had all come. Rick brought a bottle of something expensive and bad jokes. Sophie brought her dog, who immediately tried to raid the charcuterie board. Everyone laughed, took selfies, and talked about the wild ride they’d shared over the years. Everyone except Sam, who’d lingered on the edges all night, nursing a drink and saying little.

Now, as the last of the crew filed out with hugs and promises to stay in touch, Sam stood by the door, looking as though he wanted to be anywhere else but here—or maybe exactly here.

“You’re still here,” she said, not looking at him. Her voice was light, almost dismissive.

“Didn’t want to leave things like this,” Sam said, his voice gruffer than usual. “Figured I owed ye a proper goodbye.”

She paused, setting down the glasses. “Goodbye’s a bit overdue, don’t you think? Or were you planning to skulk in the corner all night and call it a day?”

Sam’s jaw tightened, his hands buried deep in his jacket pockets. “Didn’t seem like the right time to talk about… this.”

Her laugh was sharp, cutting. “Oh, this? And what exactly is ‘this,’ Sam? Go on, enlighten me.”

He hesitated, his gaze dropping to the floor like he was reading invisible lines off the carpet.

“Look, Cait…” He let out a breath, rubbing the back of his neck. “I’m not good at this kind of thing.”

“Oh, don’t I know it,” she said dryly, folding her arms. “Go on, then. What’s rattling around in that head of yours?”

Sam’s mouth twitched, almost a smile, but it didn’t stick. “I just wanted to say I’m sorry. For… well, everything.”

Her laughter was sharp, not unkind but laced with disbelief. “That’s a bit vague, don’t you think? Care to narrow it down?”

“For us,” he said plainly. “For screwing it up. For letting you go.”

Caitríona’s arms dropped to her sides, her expression shifting. “Sam, it’s been years. Don’t do this now.”

“I know the timing’s shite,” he admitted, stepping closer. “But I couldn’t let you leave without saying it. You deserved better from me, Cait. Always did.”

Her lips pressed into a thin line, and for a moment, she looked as though she might dismiss him entirely. But then her shoulders sagged, and the tension in her voice gave way to exhaustion.

“Why now?” she asked, her tone quieter. “Why wait until I’ve packed up my life to say this?”

“Because I’m a coward,” he said simply. “And because I’ve spent every day since regretting it.”

She flinched at his honesty, her jaw tightening. “You had your chance, Sam. And you made your choice. You don’t get to rewrite history just because you’re finally ready to feel bad about it.”

“You think I don’t know that?” he snapped, his voice rising before he caught himself. “I know I made a mess of it. But I couldn’t just let you leave thinking I didn’t care. That I didn’t—” He stopped himself, his jaw working.

“Didn’t what?” she pressed.

“Didn’t love you,” he finished, his voice soft but unflinching. “Still do, if you want the truth of it.”

Caitríona stared at him, her eyes glassy but sharp. “Don’t say that, Sam. Don’t you dare.”

“I’m not trying to ruin your life, Cait,” he said, his tone steady despite the emotion brimming underneath. “I just… I needed you to know.”

Her laugh was bitter now, her hands curling into fists. “What exactly do you expect me to do with that, huh? Just pack up my family and run off with you? Fuck you, Sam.”

“I don’t expect anything,” he said. “I just couldn’t let you leave without hearing it from me. That’s all.”

She shook her head, a tear finally slipping down her cheek. “You don’t get it, do you? You broke me, Sam. And I had to put myself back together while you went off gallivanting with—God, with whoever would swipe right.”

“You think I wanted to?” he said, his voice cracking. “You think it didn’t rip me apart to see you with him? To watch you settle for Tony bloody McGill?”

Her eyes narrowed, her breath hitching. “Don’t you dare talk about him.”

“It’s true, though, isn’t it?” he pressed, stepping closer. “He’s safe. Reliable. A bloody beige cardigan of a man.”

Her laugh was bitter. “At least he stayed.”

Sam’s voice cracked as he snapped back, “Do you think I wanted to leave? Do you think I don’t hate myself for how I handled it?”

Her voice was sharp, cutting. “And what? You think that justifies it? You think it’s some grand tragedy that you wanted me but couldn’t handle me? Grow up, Sam.”

Her words were low, dangerous. “You think I wanted Tony because I wanted ‘safe’? I wanted you, Sam. I wanted the man who made me feel alive, the one who made me think I could have it all. And then you—” She shook her head, choking on the words. “You let me down. Every time.”

His frustration boiled over, a mix of anger and regret. He moved closer, his eyes fierce, but there was something broken in his gaze. “You think I don’t know that? You think I don’t know that I fucked it up?” His voice cracked, but he didn’t back down. “But you never let me back in. You never gave me the chance to make it right. Every time we came close to something real, you pulled away. And I… I didn’t know how to fix it. I was scared, Cait.”

Caitríona took a step back, her eyes wild, but she couldn’t stop the heat rising between them. She’d spent so long trying to get over him, so long holding onto the anger, but now, everything was crumbling. “Scared?” she echoed bitterly, her laugh short and humorless. “Is that what you tell yourself, Sam? That you were just scared? That it’s all my fault for not waiting around while you played the field with your—” She broke off, her eyes stinging with the memories of his casual flings, of seeing him with anyone who was willing. “With your models and your apps, and every other bloody distraction you could find. I had to move on.”

Sam stepped forward, closing the distance between them. His voice lowered, hoarse, raw. “You didn’t move on,” he said, his voice cracking. “You settled.”

She shook her head, tears streaking her cheeks now. “Don’t you dare,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. “Don’t you dare tell me I settled. Because I didn’t. I never settled. I tried to move on, Sam. I tried.”

The anger in his eyes softened for a moment, but the hurt in his voice was unmistakable. “I tried too, Cait. But it was you. Every damn time. I could never get you out of my head. Every damn love scene we shot… I knew what you wanted. You wanted me, just like I wanted you. But we couldn’t. It was torture.”

The intensity between them was almost unbearable. “I could feel your heart pounding, Cait. Every time we kissed. Every time I held you close, I felt you—felt your body pressing against mine like you couldn’t get enough.”

She stepped back again, almost as if she were trying to escape the suffocating air between them. But he followed her, the words tumbling out before he could stop them.

“I felt you every damn time, Cait. In those scenes. When we kissed, I could feel you pull back, like you were just as afraid as I was, but we kept going because neither of us could stop. I couldn’t stop wanting you. I couldn’t stop feeling you in every fucking kiss, every touch. The way your breath hitched when I got close… I couldn’t escape it. You never let me escape it.”

Her breath caught, and her chest tightened with a mix of longing and rage. “And then you left, Sam. And then you walked away from me. And I stayed. I stayed and built a life with someone who wasn’t you. And you—” Her voice cracked, the fury breaking apart. “You couldn’t love me enough to try.”

Her anger had shifted to raw pain, and Sam could see it now—he could feel it in every word she said.

“You were never supposed to have to choose,” he whispered, almost as if to himself. “I was never supposed to be the one to walk away. But I was too fucked up to give you what you needed. And it destroyed me watching you move on.”

He reached out, his hand grazing her cheek, his thumb wiping away a tear. “But this… this is the last thing I’ll ever do to you, Cait. I’ll never let you leave thinking I didn’t care. I loved you then, I love you now. I always have. Always will.”

She could feel his breath on her skin, his words sinking deep inside her, but she stopped him before he could take another step. She took a step back, her chest heaving as the tears finally broke free. “I can’t. Sam… I can’t.”

He didn’t let her go, though. He closed the gap once more, pressing her back against the wall, his body firm and urgent against hers. The air was thick, their emotions raw, the alcohol clouding their senses. He kissed her hard, his lips desperate, knowing that this was the last time—knowing they could never go back. She responded, her hands gripping his shirt, pulling him closer, as if they could make up for all the time lost.

The kiss was wild, furious, and all-consuming. His hands tangled in her hair, hers clutching desperately at his chest, as though letting go would destroy them both. Years of longing and regret poured into every movement, every breath.

He pushed her back against the wall, his lips trailing down her neck as she gasped, her hands tightening around him. She pulled him back to her, their mouths meeting again with a ferocity that left them both breathless.

It was raw, unrestrained, and utterly devastating.

“Sam… please. I can’t.” Her voice was broken, the weight of everything finally crashing down on her. “I can’t keep doing this. I can’t keep breaking myself for you.”

He stood there, his forehead pressed against hers, his chest rising and falling with each breath. “I never meant to break you, Cait. I swear.”

The room was heavy with silence, save for the soft sound of their breaths mingling in the tense space. Sam’s eyes were locked on Caitríona, her tear-streaked face a mix of pain, fury, and something deeper—something she couldn’t quite name, even if she tried. He could feel the air between them crackle, thick with everything they’d buried for years.

Sam’s hands cradled her face, his thumbs brushing the tears streaking her cheeks. His voice, raw and hoarse, cut through the haze between them.

“You think this is easy for me? That I don’t feel like a damn fool for wanting you even now? Every scene, Cait… every time we touched, kissed, looked at each other, I felt it. Felt you. Your pulse racing, your breath hitching—hell, I could barely keep myself together, and you knew it.”

She swallowed hard, her hands trembling at her sides. “And that’s supposed to mean what, Sam? That you were tortured, what, because you wanted something you chose to throw away?”

“No.” His jaw tightened, his words sharp with frustration. “It means I couldn’t stop wanting you no matter what I told myself. Every damn second of every day, you were it for me. And I couldn’t have you—not the way I wanted—not the way you deserved. You think I don’t hate myself for that?”

She laughed bitterly, stepping out of his hold. “Oh, you hate yourself? That’s rich, Sam. You hate yourself, and I was the one left picking up the pieces every time you broke my heart. Do you even know what that did to me? To let you back in, over and over, even when I knew you’d leave?”

His voice lowered, rough with regret. “I know. God, Cait, I know. But I couldn’t stay away. Even after you started seeing him, I couldn’t stop myself. And you couldn’t either.”

Her breath caught, and she stepped closer, her anger flaring. “You don’t get to throw that in my face. You think I wanted to keep coming back to you? To betray what little chance I had at moving on? You made it impossible, Sam. You made me impossible.”

His lips quirked into a bitter smile. “And yet here we are. Still impossible.”

The air between them crackled, the tension unbearable. She grabbed his collar, her voice trembling. “Why do you do this to me? Why can’t I just—”

Her words dissolved as his lips crashed against hers. There was nothing gentle in it, nothing held back—just years of pent-up longing and frustration spilling out in the space between them. She clung to him, her fingers twisting in his shirt as if anchoring herself to him.

He pulled her closer, his breath mingling with hers as he murmured against her lips, “Tell me you don’t feel it, Cait. Tell me it’s not still there.”

Caitríona’s chest tightened. He was right. She had felt it—felt the way her body responded to his even when they were just standing next to each other. She’d tried to block it out, tried to keep it professional, but the truth was, she couldn’t stop herself. She couldn’t stop wanting him, even though she hated herself for it.

Sam growled, his hands threading through her hair as he yanked her into him, pressing his lips to hers in a kiss that was like the explosion of everything they had kept locked away for so long.

It was frantic, desperate—two people who couldn’t hold back any longer. His hands roamed over her body, tasting, feeling, needing her. Her lips parted, giving him everything. Their kiss was a storm, consuming them both. She could feel his heart pounding against hers, could feel the heat of him seeping into her skin, her body responding without hesitation.

They stumbled toward the wall, and for a moment, the world outside ceased to exist. It was just them, tangled in this fight of passion, every touch sparking the fire that had been waiting to ignite for years.

Sam’s hands slipped beneath her shirt, pressing her body flush against his. She shivered, not from the cold, but from the electricity that raced through her, the way he made her feel more alive than she had in months. In that moment, she hated herself more for how badly she wanted him, but she couldn’t stop. She couldn’t pull away.

Her hands found his jeans, tugging at them with a force she didn’t know she had. The world was spinning, and the only thing that mattered was the feeling of him, of them together in a way that had never been possible before.

She gasped, pulling back for a split second, breathless, her voice trembling. “God, Sam… we can’t—”

“Please,” he whispered, his voice low. “Please. I’ve been waiting for this, Cait. Waiting for you.”

And she knew, in that moment, that she couldn’t fight it anymore. She didn’t want to.

As their lips met again, deeper this time, all the words left her, and she gave herself up completely to the feeling, to the chaos of what they were creating. There was no turning back now.

[bcacstuff]

Day 3 Highlanders 7 con 21 July 2024 at the Hilton Metropole Hotel, Birmingham

Charles Q&A

They only let him do some stunts. The apple "may have" already been cut in half 😅

At his first OL audition (over zoom from his bedroom), he did a Peaky Blinders accent because thought the English all have the same accent - he works hard on it, accents don't come naturally to him

William inherited the "good Fraser fire" from Jamie but learned how to be reserved (a "board") from LJG so he often feels the conflict within himself what he is vs what he was "trained" to be

One of the auditions (all on zoom) was the Death Song scene with JB - it was weird for him to see these "fictional characters" in real life. Couldn't mention the other audition scenes because they're 7B spoilers

He had phantom pain in his arm from the stick. They sent him to London to have a mold made of his arm

He has no piano in his flat but would go to the Edinburgh train station and use the public piano

Dream role: anything - "I love employment" but likes characters that exist between good and evil

Superstitions: not for acting but the supernatural - hasn't used a Ouija board because he doesn't know if they work but what if they do??

William is "a bit of a shit" and a "brat" when we first meet him in 7A

They did audition someone else for William for S6 (those episodes would have been late in 6) but he would have been too young. Since they shortened 6, they didn't cast William until later.

Someone asked whether he was intimidated by S&C. The audience member then went on telling a story how Caitlin before she got to set, was told S&C were a "power couple" and together in real life. Then when she got there she was told opposite (you could hear people gasp when she said that)

While Charles really didn't answered above, he later on was asked what his favourite movie is, he didn't really have one but said he really loved Ford vs Ferrari, so when he met Caitriona he thought "Whoa"

Mom had watched the show but he binged it in 2 weeks when he got the audition - didn't have the part yet

Felt imposter syndrome and a lot of pressure - do I want to take on being Jamie Fraser's son?

Ultimately LJG is William's dad but important for him to find out who is he to learn about himself

This convention is "so fun" because they couldn't answer any questions during the strike and all they were asked were things like "what's your favourite colour"

Scenes that stuck out when he binged: Claire and BJR in Garrison Commander; the shinty scene

Doesn't have a go-to karaoke song - has never done karaoke. But he would do something like Tequila so all he has to say is 1 word (then they played it when he was leaving the stage)

Sophie, Richard & David

Sophie is apparently a favourite "on the internet" to play Harry Potter's mom in the HBO series. She says "I'm working on it" (ie she'd like to do it).

Their favourite locations to film - Sophie Lallybroch (inside and what they created on set); Richard - University of Glasgow; David - Hopetoun House

David making fun of the questions they always get asked (what would you take from set; what other characters would you like to play) - everyone laughs

If they could play another character, Sophie would play Rollo

Certain scene they were really proud of - Sophie birthing scene "broke some blood vessels"; David never thinks he does well - could have done it differently especially the scene where Jamie offers his body;

What cocktail would your character be: Sophie - Spicy margarita; Richard - Old Fashioned; David Pina Colada because he likes the song (doesn't know any cocktails - people were shouting them out to him)

What would you like to learn how to do: David - Magic the Gathering - watched them play last night and wants them to teach him before wrap; Richard is learning to fly

Which time period do you prefer - Brianna 50/50 - Sophie 1700s "corsets aside" especially since they're all filming together. Richard agrees. David: Lord John in modern times is living in the West Village in NYC running an art gallery called Fraser's 🤣🤣

Karaoke songs: Richard's - Piano Man; David - To be With You (Mr Big): Sophie - Party in the USA

Favourite costume - Richard "from this year" but didn't say which one (didn't want to spoil anything); David - Governor of Jamaica (Sophie says you've had some really good costumes and David said you just realized that???)

Favourite scene to film: Richard - driving around the Highlands (felt like our own little "side Outlander"); Sophie - when she confronts Bonnett in the jail (felt very empowered); David - first day, first scene he filmed dragging Sam on the horse "was a highlight on reflection"

Everyone is treated the same by production

Sophie used to be the makeup trailer DJ but Wendy has taken over

The first scene with Roger & Jamie was fun to shoot but he felt Jamie had "a bit of an overreaction"

What are you obsessed with? Richard - Magic the Gathering; David - his son; Sophie - music

Any scenes that you were intimidated by: David one coming up in 7B (we should all know what it is); Richard - intimate scenes; Sophie - ones that are emotionally challenging and you "take with you"

Question about what you're proud of. Sophie tells the story of when she potty-trained her dog. The dog became so excited he jumped on her, split her lip and she ended up in the emergency room. David then says "do you know what proud means??" • Richard - passing his driving test because he failed 3x; David - when he finished his first block of OL

Character you haven't worked with you would like to - Richard & David said each other. Richard: maybe in the next block then Sophie says "but you're in the 80s", someone mentioned Jemmy and the stones and it just went downhill from there 😅; Sophie - Black Jack

During closing ceremonies everyone is taking photos and Cree (of course) says "go on take your photos like we're animals in a zoo". Then he says something about a "gaggle of lusty women" and Sean says "there is if your name is Sam Heughan"

Sean had organized other fan events then started watching Outlander. He wanted to do an event and learned the person to contact is Steve Himber as he "represents" Sam and Caitriona to get it started. Then Steve says he's "not responsible for Steven Cree"

All credits including pics to my friend at the con (who wishes to remain anonymous) Thank you so much for keeping notes for us (and for me to post!) Great Job, well done! 🧡🧡🧡

[hornyfor-redacted-onmain]

The One With Friends

Pieces of My Heart - Chapter 7 Stray Kids OT8 x reader, Soulmate AU

Masterlist | Next Part

It was a unanimous decision to have you leave the venue from the back and walk over to the entrance to wait in line with the rest of the crowds. None of you wanted nor needed the attention you could get if someone noticed you coming from backstage.

It’s for that very reason you made sure to hide your backstage pass deep in your bag, pulling out the upgraded tickets that the boys’ manager got for you.

You sent out a message once you got into line.

Soulmates

Y/N Guess who’s about to see Stray Kids live? Image.png Felix Omg really? Lucky Jisung And you didn’t invite me?!! How dare you （ > ﹏ &lt; ） Chris Enjoy the concert. Felix Oh yeah, they’ll enjoy it alright ;) Chris Felix …

You let out a laugh, which quickly turned into cooing when Felix sent a selfie with a reluctant Seungmin, and you quickly closed your phone before anyone around you could see it (but not after saving it to your phone first). The line wasn’t moving just yet, so most people were either on their phones like you or chatting with each other.

You got into a fun conversation with the boy in front of you about your favorite choreographies, and then the girls behind you caught wind of your argument over how easy Maniac’s chorus really was and decided to start dancing to it. This caused the others in line to start cheering, and you were quick to film the moment to send to the boys later.

Once the doors were open and people were being let in, the line started to move quickly. Since you had arrived a little bit later, it took you a while to get in, but the conversations you enjoyed with other fans and the occasional text to the boys more than made up for it.

You found your seat easily, a girl with bright pink hair and a tall lanky boy with glasses sitting in the spot next to yours. You didn’t think much about it, sitting down and about to text the boys that you were inside the venue when the girl suddenly turned to face you with a blinding smile.

You turned your phone off to hide your chat.

“Hey, I love your outfit!”

You blinked at her. “Umm, thank you! I love your hair.”

“My name’s Sophie!”

“Soph, please. You can’t just start spontaneous conversations with every person you meet,” The boy piped up, placing an arm on the girl’s arm.

Sophie pouted. “But I really did like their outfit.”

“It’s okay,” I reassured. “I really do like your hair.”

You introduced yourself to Sophie, who then introduced the boy sitting next to her as her boyfriend, Alexis.

“Don’t mind him, he thinks it’s embarrassing to be as friendly as me.”

“I never said that. I think it’s adorable, but I know not everyone does,” Alexis argued.

“No, you just think I’m adorable,” Sophie corrected.

You let out a giggle. “You are kind of adorable.”

“I know!”

Both of you laughed. You spent the next few minutes chatting and getting to know each other, and you found that you had a lot in common with Sophie. The pinkette was easily excitable and a bit loud, which made her bias being Han unsurprising. Alexis was also surprisingly a Han bias, and you found yourself gasping when they admitted that they had met at a fan sign and were fangirling over Han next to each other in line.

It was like a moment out of a movie when they realized they were soulmates, sharing a hidden soulmark that they discovered months into dating each other.

“Have you met your soulmate?” Sophie asked, smiling at you in such an endearing way.

You returned the smile. “Yeah.”

“Oooh. Are they a stray kids fan?”

“I sure hope they are,” You said with a laugh.

The lights started to dim then, and the both of you immediately grew silent for a split second before the music started, and then everyone started to scream. Even though you had spent the past two days literally in the arms of the men who would be performing, you screamed along with the others in excitement as they came on stage.

You knew just from the double take Seungmin made in your direction that you were going to be teased relentlessly for it later, but in that moment, you couldn’t find it in you to care. Sophie echoed your screams, and the both of you shared a brief look in your excitement.

During the next 2 hours, the two of you would sing along to the songs, laugh at the members antics, and chat with each other during the moments between songs. When Sophie made a mad dash to the bathrooms the second the fan dance cam began, Alexis leaned over to whisper to you.

“Hey, thanks for not brushing her off. It’s nice to see Soph having fun with someone else.”

You frowned. “Yeah, sure. I mean, she’s really cool. Do people … brush her off a lot?”

“You’d be surprised,” Alexis told you.

When Sophie returned, since the next song had yet to begin, you took the opportunity to ask her for her number. Her face lit up in excitement and astonishment, and you found yourself feeling annoyed that anyone could ever push her away. Sure, she was a little loud and overly excitable, but it seemed like you were the first person to ever want to be her friend.

You made sure to periodically check in on her for the rest of the concert, which ended far too soon.

"That was amazing," Sophie gushed.

"I know!"

"Did you see when Han hugged Seungmin from behind? Ugh! So cute."

"Or when Changbin winked at Hyunjin and then got surprised when Hyunjin winked back. I was laughing so hard!"

"Babe, what was your favorite part?"

Alexis hummed, moving to grab Sophies waist when she stumbled trying to walk backwards. "I might be a bit biased, but when 3racha were singing their song, Han was looking a little too fine. I'm pretty sure a couple people died when he stuck out his tongue."

"Ugh, a menace that man is. He does it on purpose, I swear."

You laughed at them as they pretended to fan themselves, and as you walked with the pair towards the exit you suddenly remembered your plans to meet the boys backstage after the show. The route you would need to take was in the opposite direction to the exit you were heading towards.

You paused.

"Hey, it was really nice meeting you two, but I actually have to head over that way," You told them, pointing towards the other exit.

"Hmm? Oh, I was going to offer you a ride back to your place since you mentioned not having a car … are you going to uber?"

"Nah, my … my soulmate is going to give me a ride."

Sophie nodded. "Cool. Do you want us to wait until you meet up with them?"

You blinked, letting out an awkward laugh. "Oh, no. That's fine. I think they're already here anyways."

This time it was Alexis who spoke up. "We can walk you to their car. Its dark out, it might not be safe for you to be walking around alone."

"No, really. It's fine," You assured them, finding yourself panicking. "Really, its not that far."

You were touched by their worry, and if this was any other situation you wouldn't have hesitated to accept the couple's offer. But you couldn't exactly have them see you get in a car with Stray Kids without it spelling out your situation in large bold letters.

Sophie frowned, looking very much like she'd like to continue to argue with you, but Alexis just nodded.

"Fair enough. You should let us know when you get home safe though, just in case."

Your shoulders slumped in relief. "Yeah, that would be great."

You exchanged numbers quickly, and you gave the pair a quick wave as you turned around. The stadium was almost empty at this point, most people already having made their way out through the exits and leaving behind a handful of staff members who started cleaning up in their absence. You almost ran head first into the chest of one of those staff members as you turned around, and you took a few steps back with your hand raised.

"Oh, sorry. I didn't see you there."

The staff member gave you an easy smile, and then proceeded to say your name with a questioning tone. Sophie and Alexis looked back from where they had begun to leave.

You nodded your head slowly

"Your soulmates sent me to get you," The guy said cheerfully.

You froze.

The staff member motioned for you to follow them, and you only managed to get a glimpse of Sophie as you shot a look over your shoulder. Her brows were furrowed in confusion, and you gave her a quick wave, hoping the panic that you were feeling didn’t show on your face. You didn’t get to see if she returned the wave as you turned around quickly to make sure you didn’t trip over the piles of confetti that other staff members were sweeping up, and if you weren’t so confused and worried, you might have offered to help them.

Chris was waiting for you outside the waiting room, and the moment you caught sight of him you rushed past the staff member to hug him.

“I think I fucked up,” You groaned.

He patted your back. “What happened?”

You explained the situation as he led you back into the room, and not even the sight of a shirtless Felix could make you feel better. The others listened in as you explained how some random fan might have enough information to put together the puzzle pieces to who your soulmates were.

“Sophie seemed really nice, and I don’t think she’d ever do something like that, but … ugh!”

You expected them to be upset. But you were surprised when Chris simply smiled at you, telling you not to worry. The others looked more or less unphased at the news, Hyunjin even leaning back into the couch with a pout, saying something in Korean. Changbin nodded in agreement, running over to steal you out of Chris’s arms.

“I don’t care if world finds out. You my soulmate, I am proud.”

“But you’re idols. This kind of news could ruin your career!”

The group began to protest, but Changbin cut them off by grabbing your face in between his hands so he could look you in the eyes. “I have your initials on my body since the moment I was born. I have always knowed that I belong to you, and I don’t care if everyone else knows. Only thing that matters, is you.”

“Binnie-“

“Also, I want to sleep with you tonight.”

You brain froze. “Come again?”

“Hey, hey!” Jisung protested.

Chris sighed. “Poor choice of words, Bin.”

Changbin looked around at the others, his face twisting in confusion. “Ah, Minho sleep with you last night. I … want my turn?”

“Oh, yeah. Right.” You let out a giggle. “Of course you can sleep with me tonight”

“Poor choice of words!”

“Get your mind out of the gutter, Felix!”

0o0o0

You ended up seated in between Seungmin and Jeongin on the way back. While exiting the venue, the boys told you to hide, so you squeezed yourself down onto the floor until you were far enough away that you could get back into your seat, nearly falling into Jeongin’s lap as you did. He pulled you into his arms as soon as you were next to him.

“Jagi, did you enjoy the concert?”

You nodded enthusiastically, immediately gushing to both him and the others in the car (Chan and Minho) about your favorite moments and how much you enjoyed the concert. Halfway through your explanation, Seungmin reached over and grabbed your hand. You didn’t falter for a second, intertwining your fingers as you praised Jeongin for his performance to Thunderous, and you cooed when he got shy and tried to hide behind his hands.

“Leave the baby alone, love,” Chan told you from the front seat, his face betraying his own amusement.

“Poor baby bread,” You played along. “So shy now, but you definitely weren’t shy during the concert. Don’t think I didn’t see you wink at me during Red Lights.”

“Hmm, don’t think I didn’t see you fanning yourself when he did,” Seungmin said.

“Man, why would you call me out like that?”

The boys all laughed, and you giggled along with them. When you arrived to the hotel, you all split off to get ready for bed individually, and you took the opportunity to send a message to Sophie that you were back at your hotel. She replied immediately.

Sophie

Sophie That’s great!!! So, about your soulmate … Y/N I know. I wasn’t sure how to explain. Sophie You could have just told me that your soulmate was a staff member. I think it’s sweet they sent a coworker to make sure you were able to get backstage. Y/N Oh. Yeah. I mean, I needed to be safe about it. Sophie No, yeah. I understand. Just out of curiosity though, did you get to meet Stray Kids. Y/N Haha, Yes! They were amazing! Super nice, it’s a shame I didn’t get any photos or an autograph. Sophie Man, that does suck. But you’re so lucky you got to meet them at all.

You felt a little bad about not telling Sophie the truth, but technically you didn’t lie. You just … didn’t tell her the whole truth. It took a huge weight of your shoulders. As much as Changbin and the others insisted it wasn’t a big deal, you knew just how vicious the internet could be to idols and other celebrities when they found their soulmate.

You would protect them for as long as you could.