#so funny that Neil and I live in a bubble where they are so clearly equally beloved that bullying David Tennant while calling Michael Sheen

[thealogie]

I think you'll appreciate this ask on neil's blog /730078906850394112 peace and love

Scream. I hate it when he’s objectively funny and correct

[pinkykitten]

Roses

The Good Doctor

Neil Melendez x female! reader

Warning: abusive ex, talking about abuse, violence 

Specifics: angst, romance, fluff, comedy, race neutral reader, one-shot

People: neil melendez, shaun murphy, greg (oc)

Words: 2,344

Requested: By anon Okay hi I'm thirsty for a fluffy protection type fiction. Like maybe Niel Melendez brings his girlfriend out for a nice dinner and shopping day and they end up seeing their abusive ex that decides to confront them so he gets protective (he's got them big muscules so 😂) and idk take it fron there i guess? Please and thank you! 💙💙

Authors Note: ok first off this is a very touchy subject and if u r in a abusive relationship or know some one who is in one pls get help, u dont deserve this treatment and ask someone for help, call someone, call the hotline for ur area this is a very serious subject. i hope i did justice in that area for survivors. i also chose this gif because i luv seeing my bby kissing and like hes just soooo handsome, us good folks all deserve a melendez in our life! also i read that flower in japanese is hana if its not im srry i found it on google.

“So you’re gonna join me at 7 tonight right?” Your boyfriend Neil asked as he stepped behind you, kissing your head. 

“Babe we’re at work,” you chuckled, turning around and greeting his precious, handsome face. His lips curled into a smile, “you think I care, I’m showing my girl some love.”

You wrapped your arms around his neck and kissed his lips lightly, “of course I’m gonna be there. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.” You pecked his cheek and then whispered your parting into his ear, “I can’t wait for you to see how tight my dress is on me.”

“If you keep talking like that I might just want to skip dinner and eat something else instead.”

You rolled your eyes, hitting his shoulder playfully, “forward aren't we today Neil!” As Neil was about to proceed in his flirtatious attitude Shaun showed up and gave his innocent face to the two of you. “What are you two discussing?”

You found that it was your time to leave so you gave a little wave and let Neil take that embarrassing question for the team, “I know babe you’ll come up with a good answer to Shaun.”

You were very excited to meet up with Neil for dinner. He was taking you somewhere that you always wanted to go, according to him. See, the dinner or more like where it is taken at is a surprise. You have not a clue where Neil is taking you. It made you bubbly on the inside towards the day. 

Taking the day into your hands you got out of work early so you could have time to doll yourself up. 

When you arrived home you took a shower, put makeup on, and then slipped on your dress. As you took a look in the mirror at your self you were unsure. “I don’t know, is this too much?” You questioned a loud, peering at yourself from side to side. Thats when you heard a knock at your door. “Oh well too late now.”

You touched up on your lips real quick with your makeup and ran to the door in your heels. Taking a couple of breaths you opened to find Neil.

“Hi babe, wow you look,” your words were stuck in your throat. You eyed him up and down and swallowed harshly. “Wow, you look so, so, so-”

“Look at you,” he whispered, almost like to himself. He was looking at you up and down as well but he looked at you as if you were the most beautiful star in the galaxy. His eyes shone with love, having a little twinkle in them. He was head over heels for you, he was in love. “You look gorgeous baby.”

You smiled away, bashful, “You look amazing as well.”

Neil brought his hand out for you to take hold. He guided you to his car, opening the door for you like a gentleman, “oh you didn’t need to do that.”

Neil bent down to capture your lips in a kiss, “I wanted to though.”

On your way to the surprise restaurant you couldn’t help but try to guess where he was taking you. He would sternly give you a look and then you would pout making him give in and give you hints. 

“Okay we’re here.” Your head shot up to the restaurant. E/c eyes opening wide and bright you squeal in shock. “No way babe, you got a reservation for this restaurant? I’ve wanted to come here for so long, how did you know?”

Neil took a hold of your hand and was giggling at how adorable you were acting, “y/n you talk about this place all the time. Let me tell you it wasn’t easy getting reservations but I kinda had to pull a few strings.”

You embraced Neil and kissed him repeatedly all over the face, “I. LOVE. YOU. SO. MUCH!”

“I love you too, now c’mon.”

You two walked to the restaurant and it was as if you stepped into a fairy tale book. There were chandeliers gleaming and sparkling like diamonds, hanging delicately from the roof. There was gold embroidery on almost everything. A live band playing jazz music was there. All the guests look so sophisticated and glamorous with their outfits on. You were astonished. “Oh my god this is so classy, I can’t believe I’m here.”

Neil places his hand on your lower back to escort you to the table that the waiter had for you two. You both sat by a window, overseeing the city. The lights were bright and small making it seem like fireflies. As you looked down below you could see people walking, minding their own business. 

“Thank you for taking me here. I’m so happy to be here with you. This is the best surprises.”

Neil grabbed your hand and kissed it, “well get used to it. There’s gonna be more surprises along the road. You chuckled and lightly touched his leg with yours, “who knows maybe I have a surprise up my sleeve for you today.” You flirted to him as he raised his brow. 

You two dined fine that afternoon. Laughing, flirting, just having yourself a good time that is until you saw him. You look up into his eyes, your heart and world seem to stop. Its only him and you. It is your ex from your college days, only a couple of years ago did you break up with him. He was a monster. He would abuse you verbally but also physically. Your eyes widen and you are brought back in the present with Neil’s voice. “You okay sweetheart?”

You almost choke on your food but nod not wanting him to worry, “yes I’m fine.” The ex comes to your table with a new woman. She seems to have a bad attitude. “Why if it isn’t y/n l/n. How are you?”

As he gets closer to the table you see clearly his face again. That dam* face, still to this day gives you nightmares. Neil never knew about him because you felt that it was not necessary to tell him of this information. You were quiet with your answer, looking down and not at him, “fine.”

Neil took note of this and knew something was up, he was worried. “How do you two know each other?”

“Oh he’s just an old-”

“We used to date, I’m Greg.”

Neil was about to give his name when Greg stopped him, he shook his hand and said, “no need Mr. Melendez. I know all about you. You’re that doctor in that hospital with that autistic kid. Must have a hel* of a lot stories with him.”

“Actually he’s very good with his job, he’s one of the best.” Neil answered back. 

“Now what do you do again y/n?”

“I’m a doctor at the same hospital. We work together.” Your hands found themselves twisting and clutching the table cloth. You did not act like yourself. 

“Oh how nice, are you two together?”

Neil nodded and grabbed your hand, reassuring you and showing that you two are together to your old ex, feeling a bit jealous. “Yes we are actually. She’s the best thing thats ever happened to me.”

“Thats funny I remember when I used to say that. Man, it seems like a million years ago.”

You could tell Neil was getting over protective of you the way his jaw clenched whenever that wrenched man ever talked about your past relationship with him. 

“I always told y/n though, when she told me she wanted to be a doctor, to reach for something more...possible. Now look! She’s done the thing she wanted to do, maybe I some what some way encouraged her.” He laughed evilly at the end of his statement.

“Well I’ve always told y/n that she can do anything she puts her mind to. She’s very hard working and that is one of the many things that I love about her,” Neil was almost about to break the knife he was holding. His eyes were burning with anger. He was boiling on the inside. His jaw was clenching and he was almost shaking at how rude this man was to you. 

The man took notice of it and wanted to play with fire. He placed his tough hands that were rough looking on your shoulder, close to your neck. “Its a shame, as I recall me and y/n had some wonderful times together. Didn’t we sweetheart?”

Your breathing was coming out in short breaths, your nostrils flaring. Tears almost about to spill. You were frightened. If Neil wasn’t here you would of gotten up and ran away, but you didn’t want to form a show. You nodded to his question. His hand lingered too long on you for Neil’s liking. Greg’s fingers stroking where he used to strangle you when you two were together and then as you were about to pass out he would let you take a breath. He liked to be the leader, the man capable of deciding whether you lived or died. You started to shake with fear and Neil had enough. He abruptly stood up, his muscles showing full well through his tight suit. He looked as if he wanted to punch Greg straight in the jaw. Neil walked so close to Greg you were worried they were about to fight. 

“Don’t touch her.” Neil ordered, his voice rough almost a bark. 

“Excuse me?”

Neil pointed a finger at him, “I said don’t touch her. Get your ungrateful hands off her.”

Greg looked like he was the victim and placed his hands by his side. “You can have the whore, she wasn’t good any ways.”

Neil almost lunged himself at the man but you blocked Neil and stopped him. You placed a hand on his cheek to get him to only pay attention to you. “Hey babe its okay look at me, please don’t worry about him.” Neil tried to focus on his breathing and his temper, leaning his forehead against yours. As he sat down, almost calm, you saw that he bent the knife all the way so that it looked like a c. As things were settled you felt the heat of it all on you at that moment and needed fresh air. 

“I think I’m done here,” you wiped your mouth with the napkin and ran to the exit. Tears streaming down your face. 

Neil tried to stop you, calling out your name. He was very worried about you. 

You sprinted outside and sat on a nearby bench away from everyone. There you sobbed, all of the monstrous things that Greg did coming back to you and haunting you. 

“Baby,” you heard Neil’s voice as he came up to you. “Baby whats wrong?”

He sat beside you and looked at your face. Your cheeks stained with tears. Neil’s arm found themselves around your shoulder. “Please y/n tell me whats wrong?”

“That man inside the restaurant. Its true what he says that we were together, but when I was with him he, he beat me. Neil he used to beat me so many times a day, he hurt me so bad.” You sobbed uncontrollably in Neil’s chest. Neil embraced you tighter, kissing your forehead. “I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry.”

“He scared me Neil, I was so scared!”

Neil was shaking with anger. “I’ll kill that man! I’m gonna kill him.” He was being very over protective over you. You were his life. 

“No please babe, please don’t. I don’t want you to get into trouble, please.” Your eyes said it all when he looked into them. They were begging.

Neil closed his eyes, they were watery. “Okay.” Was all he could say.

You clutched onto Neil as hard as you could. Just wanting him to be with you and to just have his presence. He made you feel safe and calm. 

“I promise nobody will ever hurt you again,” he whispered into your ear. Kissing your face then your lips, showing you how much he truly loves you. 

Neil was there for you. He comforted you by patting your back and whispering how much he loves you. 

“How are you feeling?”

You sniffled and looked up at Neil. Neil wiped your tears away and kissed your cheek. You smiled and basked in his love, “I’m doing better thanks.”

“Why don’t we do something that’ll cheer you up. I mean you look so beautiful I don’t want this beauty to go to waste.”

“What did you have in mind?”

Neil grabbed your hand and brought you to an unknown store named, “Hana.”

“Hmm what is he up to?”

After a few minutes Neil came out of the store. He hid something behind his back, his dimples showing on his handsome face as he grins at you. 

“Another surprise?” You asked as you tried to see behind him. 

“Here its for you, to make you feel better.” Neil pulled the gift from behind. It was a bouquet of roses. 

You felt like crying...again! This man treated you so spectacularly. He treated you like a princess, always wanting you to feel happy. It was silence, you looked at the roses and started to tear up, “they are so beautiful babe.”

“I thought you needed some cheering up. A gift to show you how much you mean to me.”

You smelled the roses but then placed them delicately in the bag. You placed both your hands on Neil’s face and inched closer to him, “I love you so much.”

Your lips joined in unison. You opened your mouth wider to kiss more fiercely. You moaned in the kiss, “I love you so much. I love you so much.”

You two separated and Neil brought you protectively close to him. His arms feeling like a comforting cage around you, they were thick and strong. “I love you too baby.”

You two walked together, enjoying the rest of the night and not caring about any body else except you two’s love.

Tag list: @harrington-lover, @angelgl16, @perfectlybeautifulsuit, @hyehoney, @haven-prelude (wont let me tag), @leasly, @totally-alexa21, @creamy-pasta-boi, @multireese, @fanfictionrecommendations-com, @prentisskelley, @malereaderforkpop (wont let me tag), @guardian-of-cookies, @justafangirl-97, @teenageshitposts (wont let me tag), @andreaoreas, @dippergravity (wont let me tag), @some-booty, @fromfoolishpeopletodeadpeople, @collectiveyou, @wtfisalltherandoms, @fangirl-4-life415

wanna be tagged in my crap? comment!

[prettyboiiharringrove]

#3) What about some Harringrove “I Didn’t Know I Was Pregnant” (was anyone else obsessed with this show on TLC)

( alpha/beta/omega masterlist ) 

boy was i ever. my favorite part is that the actors for the reenactment never looked like the actual people. It was amazing television, so chaotic and confusing and great, and if you haven’t seen is there’s full episodes on youtube, please join us on this wild ride. 

also i don’t know if you’ve ever seen the night shift but i’m basing the doctor in this off of tc and the nurse off kenny because i feel like they’d have a good vibe. honestly actually everyone from the night shift would just take in billy and be like must protec and if neil showed up talking shit literally EVERYONE would be ready to square up thanks now i need this completely unlikely and irrelevant crossover i legit have ideas for it but like no one would be into it lolol

lol y’all got two show recs before i even got to the ‘good’ stuff, finally filling your request darlin. let it be known this could have gone a lot darker but i tried to keep it as angst with a semi happy ending (but also with a where the fuck could this go vibe because i just love to do that to y’all) so please enjoy

also i know you didn’t ask for it but i did teen billy just because like idk it’s what was speaking to me so i hope that’s okay 

back at it again with my fav omega son

 😱 😱 😱 

The most surprising part of all of this is that Nancyfucking Wheeler’s the one that convinces him to go to the hospital. The love ofhis life’s shitty ex and newly appointed best fucking friend, the main sourceof all his jealousy, not including his nagging insecurity, is the one thatdrags him to the car and drives him to the emergency room.

Billy and Steve hadbeen in a fight, still are actually, which means that his stupid fuckingfriends were sent to check on him. He still hangs out with Tommy and Carol, andthey’ve kind of made up with Steve for his sake, so it isn’t that bad when they’reasking fucking questions, even though they never really cared, but when fuckingWheeler and Byers are in his goddamn business, it pisses him off.

He’s sitting on thefloor in front of his locker, curled up into a ball as he tries to bite backthe pain pulsing through him, uncaring of the fact that he’s blocking at leasttwo lockers that don’t belong to him.

“Fuck off Wheeler,” hegroans when he sees her tiny little feet standing in front of him. He’s kind ofpissed off that he can recognize her without looking at her stupid pretty fuckingface.

She crouches down toglare at him, every inch of her 5’4” frame giving off judgement and impatience.She clearly doesn’t want to deal with his shit. Good, she’s equally as unhappyabout these little interactions then.

“Steve’s worried,” shetells him, as if he doesn’t already fucking know, as if he hasn’t been dealingwith these fucking cramps for the last three days, as if he hasn’t wanted tocurl up in Steve’s lap since he woke up at four in the morning sobbing becausehe was in so much fucking pain.

“Good for him,” hetries to sound angry, but Nancy sees right through him. She rolls her eyes. Howthe hell she deals with high school boys and their bullshit on a daily basis,she’ll never know.

“You look like crap.”

“You sure know how tomake a guy feel special,” he huffs out a laugh but then he’s doubling over,cradling his stomach as tears burn in his eyes.

“You should go to adoctor,” she sighs, looking sympathetic. Funny, Billy never thought he’d seethat look directed towards him.

“I’ve had worse,” hebarks.

Fucking liar. If heweren’t in so much pain, he’d probably wonder when his conscience started usingSteve’s voice to get to him. As if to prove a point, his stomach and back startpulsing, and he can’t hold back the whimper that bubbles up from his throat.

When her eyes go wide,he can’t help the pang of worry that he feels in his gut. Nancy Wheeler is veryrarely ever surprised or scared, or rather she does a very good job of hidingit. The only person that locks away worry and suffering better is Billyhimself.

“You’re bleeding,” shewhispers, her tone unsettling.

“So, I probablyscratched a scab open, or walked into something, shit happens,” Neil pushes himinto the brick of their fireplace at least once a week, twice this week, it wouldn’tsurprise him if he got cut; he hardly notices when it happens anymore.

“No, look at yourpants,” Nancy’s gone pale, so he takes a while to look down. He’s already inpain, he’d like to live in blissful ignorance for just one moment longer.Eventually, he glances down, his pants wet with both blood and some otherfluid. He hadn’t even noticed, he was in so much pain.

“Shit,” Billy’strembling now, both from pain and fear. That’s never happened before.  Pain so hard to handle that’s he’s in a heapon the floor, that’s happened before, not to this caliber, but it’s happened.Blood leaking through the crotch of his jeans though, that��s completely new.

“Come on, I’m takingyou to the hospital,” she’s already moving to help him up, and when her handgoes under his armpit to keep him stable, he realizes she’s surprisinglystrong. She probably would have had him up in an instant if he were being evena little cooperative.

“Can’t,” he doesn’ttry and say he’s fine, knows she’ll call him out on his bullshit, but there’sno part of him that is stupid enough to think that blood changes anything. Ifhe goes to the hospital and they see all the cuts and bruises, he’s dead.

“Stop being a child,get up,” she scolds him, tugging on his arm once again. He jerks it away, histemper firing back up despite his pain.

“You’re not fuckinglistening. I can’t go,” he tellsher. He moves to get up himself, to stand and walk the opposite direction, butall he manages to do is crawl less than a foot away before he’s practically sprawledout on the floor, leaning on his backpack. “He’ll kill me.”

Nancy furrows herbrow. She’s not stupid, but he’s always been pretty good at hiding this, andSteve wouldn’t rat him out, not even when they’re fighting. She sighs, noddingin understanding when the gears stop turning. So, she knows his secret now,great.

“Yeah, well if we stayhere, you might be dead anyways. Come on,” she’s gentler now, moreunderstanding, but she’s still forceful. There’s no room for argument, and atthis point Billy’s trying his best to stay conscious and keep himself frombiting his fucking tongue off, it hurts so badly; he doesn’t have any fightleft in him.

He’s not sure how theymake it outside, she’s practically dragging him, and he thinks they run intothe lockers a few times. He vaguely remembers her stealing his keys and shovinghim in the passenger’s seat; it reminds him of the few times he’d beenarrested, the way she cradles his head so he doesn’t hit it and slams the dooronce he’s in. If he were more himself he’d mouth off to her about being morefucking gentle with his baby.

He blacks out on hisway to the hospital.

———————————

He comes to in a room, apparently blood, random body fluids,and being unconscious speeds up the wait time. He’s got an IV in his arm andthe sterile smell is making him sick to his stomach. It’s too familiar, remindshim of the last time he saw his mom and it burns.

He thinks what woke him up was the prick of a needle,considering he sees a nurse stepping away with a small vile of his blood. He’snot quite sure, because the sting of the needle is nothing in comparison to thecramping that’s been coming and going all day.

“Tell me you didn’t call my dad,” are the first words out ofhis mouth, desperate and pleading. He doesn’t care about who answers, just whatthe answer is.

“Your girlfriend told us not to. It’s not usually what we’ddo, but considering all your injuries, we figured that’d be the best decision,called social services and the chief instead,” the nurse tells him.

He doesn’t argue with him about the girlfriend comment,although he would never be caught dead dating her. He doesn’t have the time tocare, not when another sharp pain hits him in his abdomen.

He almost misses the scoff that helps him realize Nancy isstill there with him. He’s kind of appreciative for a second before he realizesit’s all for Steve’s benefit, and then he becomes distracted as he realizeswhat the nurse had said. Everyone’s been called and Neil is going to rip himapart.

“Fuck,” he chokes out as he struggles to breathe. He doesn’thave panic attacks often, and these days when he does Steve’s there to talk himthrough it. A nurse looking at him as he hyperventilates, telling him to calmdown isn’t helping, especially not when his stomach is cramping so badly he’scontemplating finding a scalpel to rip himself open, and he has to count downthe minutes until his dad finds out and slaughters him.

“I’m dead, I’m so fuckingdead. He’s gonna kill me because you assholescouldn’t keep your m—” he cuts himself off with a yelp; at least the pain isdistracting enough to have him biting down on his lip and holding his breath.It doesn’t put a full stop to his panic attack, but it does get him breathingnormal again.

The nurse takes his yelling and general shitty attitude instride, and Billy kind of really hates him for it, because he would very muchlike it if he wasn’t the only one suffering. “Sorry kid, I know it sucks, butwe can’t give you anything stronger than some Tylenol until we know what’swrong with you.”

“Anyone ever tell you that you suck?” Billy croaks out,clutching at his abdomen. Nancy makes an offended squeak, as if she expectedhim to have more manners and is hoping the nurse doesn’t take Billy’s attitudeas a representation of her own. Honestly, who the hell does she think she’swith right now ??

“All the time, part of the job,” the nurse answers with asweet smile, and Billy would probably have a crush on the guy if thecircumstances were different.

“No seriously, if I didn’t think I was gonna be dead by theend of the day, I’d spend like an entire fucking hour telling you just howfucking horrible you are, like I want to like you, but you really really suck dude.”

“No one’s letting you die,” he sighs, almost like he kind ofwants Billy to like him. Billy thinks he sees some glimmer in his eye, like heplans to win him over; he kind of wishes he would have the time to. He’swishing for a lot of things in this moment, for pain meds, for everyone toleave before his dad gets here, for them to believe him when he lies about thebruises, for Steve, oh god does he want Steve.

“Doesn’t matter if you let me or not, I’m screwed,” Billysays it more to himself, but he doesn’t miss the nurse pausing in the doorwayas if he were contemplating saying something; he probably couldn’t think ofanything comforting so he moved on. Billy thinks he made the right call,because there are absolute zero words that can make him feel any better rightnow.

He chances a glance at Nancy, who is just looking at himwith concern and disappointment as she sits awkwardly in a hard plastic chairagainst the wall. He doesn’t say anything to her, wants her to be at leastuncomfortable if he has to be miserable.

———————————

This doctor strolls into the room with a chart and Billy hasnever been so upset to see someone that fucking gorgeous. Of course they’d sendin a fucking supermodel to take care of him on the absolute worst day of his life.Does everyone in this goddamn hospital have to be so pretty ??

“Please tell me I’m dying,” the doctor laughs, probablythinking Billy is joking, but he would much rather die in that hospital bedthan at the hands of Neil Hargrove.

“Heard you’re complaining of stomach cramps and vaginal bleeding.”

“Complaining makes it sound like I’m being fucking dramatic,and trust me I’m not. I get the shit kicked outta me all the time, so trust mewhen I say this shit is fucking miserable.”

“You get in a lot of fights?” the doc questions with a glintin his eye, and Billy notices that the guy’s got a split lip and bruised cheekof his own. He wonders if he sees some of himself in Billy. If they’re anythingalike, Billy feels sorry for the guy.

“Something like that,” Billy shrugs, not in the mood forsmall talk. He just wants to get out of here. If they leave him alone longenough he can walk out before people start asking all the right questions andmaybe Neil will go easy on him.

“Well, if it’s alright with you, we’re gonna do an ultrasoundand a pelvic exam, make sure you’re not dying after all.”

“Trust me, doesn’t matter what you find, I’m a dead manwalking, but sure, do whatever you fucking want if it makes you happy,” it’snot like his body’s ever belonged to him, he might as well let them poke andprod, maybe alleviate the pain so he can have a few minutes of peace beforeNeil rips into him.

———————————

“Well I’ll be damned,” the doctor says as he pulls away fromBilly, letting him drop his legs back down into a more comfortable position andcover himself up with his gown and the blanket. “You didn’t think it might havebeen a good idea to tell us you’re pregnant?”

“What? I’m not,” Billy answers as he looks at this fuckingquack. Pregnant ?? He would have fucking noticed. If he was, how far along ??If it’s hurting this badly something must be terribly wrong. His desperatelonging for Steve hits again, knowing there’s not a damn person in that roomthat can comfort him the way he needs.

“Kid, I know you’re probably scared, you’re what, sixteen ??I get it, but no one here’s gonna judge you. You have to be honest with us.”

“I don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about,” he barksout, unable to even accept this information. This guy has to be fucking insane.

“You’re in labor and you’re telling me you had no idea aboutthis baby?”

In labor. Okay, no, this guy has to be messing with him.That, or he’s fucking insane.

“Look doc, I appreciate a good joke as much as the next guybut I’d really appreciate it if you stuck to your fucking day job right now andfigured out what the fuck is wrong with me because that’s not possible.”

“You tellin’ me you’re a virgin ?? Never had sex before, noteven once ??” the doctor looks at Billy with a raised brow and a smirk. Billywants to punch the look right off his face. The most annoying part is he’dprobably like the guy if he wasn’t in this particular situation.

“Well, no obviously I fucking have, I’m not a nun,” he rollshis eyes, falling back on the pillows.

“So there’s a chance you could be pregnant ??”

“I’m on fucking birth control, and I think I would havenoticed if I was pregnant, I mean do I look—”

“Doesn’t matter how you look.Birth control isn’t a guaranteed deal. It decreases your chances significantlybut it’s not one hundred percent. Sorry kid, but it’s not just a maybe, you’repregnant and that kid’s coming tonight.”

“Fuck me,” Billy groans, leaning back onto the bed andjamming his eyes shut. If he closes them and waits long enough to open them,this nightmare will be over.

“Looks like someone’s already beat me to it,” the doctorsays with a smirk and Billy lifts his leg to try and kick him since the guy’sstanding by the foot of the bed. He can’t quite reach him, and the stretchfucking hurts, but the nurse behind him smacks him upside the head and callshim an asshole. Okay, so maybe the nurse is a pretty good guy after all.

Normally Billy would have a comeback ready, but this timehe’s gripping the metal railing so hard his knuckles have gone white.

“I can’t do this,” Billy’s shaking again, pain and terrorovertaking him as his breathing becomes shallow. Nancy moves from her placeagainst the wall, desperate to think of anything that could get him to calmdown. “I can’t fucking do this. Where the fuck is he ?? I can’t, fuck, I can’t,” he’s hyperventilating now, andat least the doctor has wiped that stupid look off his face.

“Listen, you need to breathe, alright ?? We can help you,but this isn’t going to get you anywhere, it’s just gonna make things worse foryou and your baby, so you need to calm down.”

“Easy…for you…to say,” Billy struggles between breaths, hisargumentative nature never faltering, even as every good thing he’s built upfor himself comes crumbling down on top of him.

“I called Steve. He should be here any minute. It’s gonna beokay,” Nancy tells him, speaking for the first time since he’s woken up. Whythe fuck is she even still here ?? Billy can’t stand her, but the more hethinks about her leaving, the more he realizes he hates the idea.

“None of this is okay,” he argues as he bites back tears,but his breathing finally starts to settle at the thought of Steve. He closeshis eyes, forcing a few deep breaths, and he thinks he hears his doctoroffering up gentle praises for getting his breathing under control, but hecan’t really keep up because he’s not so patiently waiting on Steve while hetries to concentrate on not screaming due to what he now knows are labor pains.

———————————

Billy doesn’t really pay attention to anything anyone has tosay until they’re trying to move him to labor and delivery and Steve’s stillnot fucking there.

“I can’t, I can’t go yet,” Nancy’s never heard Billy sodesperate, and she’s sure she’s never seen him cry. “Wheeler, tell them, tellthem I need him, please, Nancy please!!”

The contractions are getting closer together, and apparentlythere’s a huge fucking chance for complications since he didn’t do any prenatalcare, there’s not much time and he needs to get up there, but if he’s desperateenough to ask Nancy for help, then they both know he can’t go anywhere untilSteve’s by his side.

“Five minutes, come on, just give me five minutes and if he’snot here you can take him,” Nancy and Billy are both looking at the nurses anddoctor with big pleading eyes, and they must be the most charming pair in the entire county,because the group reluctantly agrees.

“Five minutes,” the doctor tells her sternly, and Nancy doesn’twaste any time, heading towards the hallway to try and get cell reception tocall Steve again.

She starts to dial him only to see Steve barreling in, shoessqueaking as he practically slides down the corridor. Social services goes tostop him, although Hopper just rolls his eyes and is happy to let him by.

“He’s the father !! Let him through !!” Nancy yells, and the overdressedjudgmental strangers let him squeeze on by.

“Hey Nance,” Steve answers, panting as he’s hunched over,hands gripping tightly to his knees as he tries to catch his breath. “Wait…father?!!”

“Steve?!” Billy hears his voice, and Nancy decides thatinstead of answering, she’s just going to push Steve into the room to seeBilly, because their five minutes are slowly dwindling down and they can walkand talk.

“Daddy dearest I presume?” the doctor answers with a smirkand Billy, who still has tears in his eyes, groans in both aggravation andpain.

“Can someone please tell him he’s not funny ??”

“Sorry kid, we’ve tried, he just doesn’t learn,” the nurseshrugs, and Billy’s decided that if that nurse leaves his side he’s going tolose his shit.

“Took you fucking long enough,” Billy sighs when he finallyturns to address Steve.

“I’m sorry, someone said father, is no one gonna tell mewhat the fuck is going on ?!!”

“Oh, right. Your boyfriend’s in labor and you’re the dad.Congrats,” the doctor nods and when he’s met with several glares he almostlooks offended. “What ?! Someone had to tell him, and we don’t exactly havetime to draw it out. Rip the fucking band-aid.”

“Your bedside manner is shit,” at least three people saysomething similar, but Billy only has time to hear himself before he turns toSteve, who is a carbon copy of Billy about an hour go, when he was given thesame news. “Steve, baby, I know this sucksand like you can totally be pissed at me later for screwing your life up butcan you just, can you wait until this is over to have your meltdown? I really need you right now.”

“What? Oh, yeah, yeah,”Steve has several thoughts floating around in his head, like how he’s a fewhours from being a dad, maybe less, how he would never blame Billy for this, howhe loves him, how maybe this isn’t actually a bad thing, but his vocabulary isvery fucking limited as he tries to cope with the shock of it all, so he justnods stupidly and doesn’t even notice when the doctor snorts out a laugh.

“Thanks,” Billy croaks, shyly reaching for his hand, unsureif he’s still allowed to touch Steve after dumping this whole mess at his feet.Steve accepts it without question, squeezes it in a comforting gesture, andBilly thinks that despite the pain, he can do this. He can face death so longas Steve still loves him, so long as Steve gets their baby and Neil never getsclose to them.

———————————

Billy spends an hour and a half gripping Steve’s hand sotightly that at one point Steve thinks it might be fucking broken, until heloses circulation in it completely, and then there’s relief as he hearsscreeching, as his daughter is placed on Billy’s chest and he looks at her babyblue eyes and little tufts of hair and loses himself.

Billy finds himself missing the other doctor when the onethat delivered his daughter tells him that this is the easiest labor she’s seenin a while; he has half a mind to rip out her uterus and ask her how she feels.

Billy finds himself daydreaming as Steve climbs into the bedwith him. He rests against Steve and cradles their little girl in his arms andjust pretends, for a moment, that they could be happy. He knows eventually he’llhave to accept reality, that social services and the police are going to wantto talk to him about all the bumps and bruises only for his hope to fallthrough the cracks and Neil to drag him home and beat him bloody, but as hesits in the blissful silence, he lets himself be happy.

“She’s perfect,” Steve whispers and a single tear slips downBilly’s face as his daydream is interrupted.

“I can’t take her home Steve, she won’t be safe,” his voice ishoarse, but his conviction is strong. He needs Steve to hear him.

“What do you mean?”

“You have to promise you’ll take care of her, please, justpromise me,” he begs, holding her closer to his chest, enjoying what littletime he may have with her.

“I’ll always take care of her baby, I’m gonna take care ofboth of you,” Steve tells him, and god does Billy wish he could find comfort inthat.

“He’s gonna kill me, the second he finds out, I’m dead and Ican’t…I can’t let him hurt her too.”

“No one’s hurting anyone,” Steve sighs, leaning in closerand kissing Billy’s temple. “I’m not going to let him hurt you ever again.”

“You don’t know that, don’t make a promise you can’t keep,”he argues, but he finds himself leaning into Steve’s embrace, trying andfailing to fight the hope bubbling up in his chest.

“You’re not going home with him,” Steve says it with suchdetermination that Billy finds himself believing it.

It’s the truth, Steve won’t let them take him, he knowsthat, and even if it’s only their truth for the next ten minutes, he will baskin those ten minutes and hope for a future that may never come, because nomatter what happens to him, their little girl will always be safe in SteveHarrington’s arms.  

[dragonscanbeplantstoo]

10 Questions Tag

Thank you to the wonderful @toboldlywrite for tagging me! I love them, they make me feel like I'm posting actual original content when everyone knows I'm too chicken. Huzzah!

So, the Rules: I answer my delightful tagger's questions, I write ten of my own, I tag more people.

1. Where would your MC most want to travel to on Earth?

Greyson would love to go to Alnwick Poison Gardens. He's really into plants that Do Things, particularly hallucinogenic ones. He likes to see if there's another way to use them that doesn't cause those problems. He often has to fend off Milton trying to steal them for parties.

Levi always, ALWAYS wants to go home. Not Chateau Sang home, but his family's actual house, on the opposite coast of France, sort of near Cannes on the only place I could find that didn't have a highway RIGHT THERE. Anyway, he hardly ever gets back there anymore, and more than anything he'd like to just go back for a long time. Swim on his beach, eat the oranges off his trees, play his piano, sleep in his room. It's funny actually, his room at the castle and his room at home are really similar color/layout but they look SO DIFFERENT. The one at his house has a messy bed by the window with old yellow military history books, and maps tacked up on the walls, cluttered surfaces, and everything is just so lived in and loved. His room at the castle is sparse and usually really clean.

2. If your MC could travel in time, would they go to the past or the future?

Greyson  would definitely go to the past. He would be more careful going into magical hangouts, he wouldn’t have run away from home, much less let his sister follow him. He would change all of that, and she would be alive and well, but he might still be feeling suffocated by the human world. He would do it anyway though.

3. If your MC could have any animal as a pet, what would they pick?

Sterling would love to have a black doe. I mean, she also wants a squirrel and an owl and an anaconda and fifty cats, twenty crows, and possibly a raccoon or Tasmanian devil. To say Sterling loves anything is a stretch, but she gets along really well with animals of all varieties. Deer are extra special though, for some reason. She spends a lot of time kissing deer noses in the dead of night. It’d be black because it would have to match her soul, of course.

4. Is there a particular movie/tv show that has influenced your story/a character in any way?

I get a lot of Levi inspo from Jareth the Goblin King from Labyrinth. Levi contact juggles because of Jareth’s bubble stuff. Predictably, I get a lot of Sterling/generalized Sforza inspo from the Addams Family. And my character Twigga from PookieNovel is clearly inspired my Amalthea from The Last Unicorn. So yes, in small ways.

5. Does your WIP have a theme song?

I just can’t narrow it down to one, there are too many people and aesthetics in AetherNovel to find a single overarching one. Lately though, I’ve been listening to “Introduced Species” by Hands Like Houses a lot. Its a pretty dead ringer for the dragons and I get emotional about it. Others I use a lot are “Prisoners” by Our Last Night, “Reckless and Relentless” by Asking Alexandria, and just about anything from The Synthetic Dream Foundation or In Flames. Also, each of my MCs has at least one Katy Perry theme song. Why? Idk. But “Hot and Cold” is the Original Levi song, “Roar” is Greyson af, and “Dark Horse” is every relationship Sterling has ever had. So yeah. Music.

6. Do you have a favorite OC?

Yep, still Levi. Levi is my masterpiece (some have argued Sterling is, but I actually don’t think she's that complex). He’s gotten me through a lot of ugly times, and actually gives good advice. Or rather, my subconcious uses him a lot to make itself known. Example: I was getting into a relationship i was second guessing, and I had a dream about him sitting in Cafe Nervosa from Frasier in a red peacoat, and all he did was shake his head at me. It was the right thing to do, the guy was pressuring me about sex. 

7. Which OC is the most like you?

I...don’t know. I think most of them are injected with isolated areas of my psyche in relatively equal amounts. Even Sterling is pretty much born from my love of dark stuff and violence. Also my hatred of half-baked “tough bitch” characters.

8. Which OC is least like you?

Probably The Goblin Hunter, because I suck at cars and I will just never be that cool. 

9. What is your go-to reread book?

Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, or The Raven Cycle by Maggie Steifvater.

10. What’s your favorite thing about your WIP (stealing this one because I like it)?

A+ steal. My favorite thing...oh, my OCs, and their relationships. Those are the bits that almost always go right. 

Now, I have to ask some questions! I might be out of juice on these but here goes:

1. What’s one genre you really love the idea of, but are disappointed when you go to read/watch it?

2. Feelings about fire in general? (where my fellow pyros?)

3. Which of your OCs is the kinkiest? 

4. What is the one thing you most want a fan to say someday?

5. Which OC do you think readers will like the most?

6. Were your OCs born naturally, with pharmaceutical assistance, or via c section?

7. What is the single emotion that is the absolute hardest for you to write? (loneliness, loss, hopelessness, joy, etc)

8. If your OC were a cookie, what sort of cookie would they be? 

9. How important do you think it is to describe a character’s appearance?

10. And, spitballing off that, which OC do you think is the prettiest?

Now, gonna tag some faves that I feel like I haven’t heard from in awhile:

@bellepaige @burningemberjade @sirilikestowrite if they’​​re down.

[astro-b-o-y-d]

The Long Road Home Pt. 1

The next three chapters of SOSO are finally here! Author’s notes and additional fic warnings are on Ao3. And trust me, you’ll want to read them.

[Read on Ao3]

"Took you nerds long enough to get here!"

"Nikki, there are other stops before ours," Max said, as he stepped out of the bus and onto the pavement.

"Yeah, we don't have big jock friends who can drive us around like you!" Neil added, following suit.

Nikki laughed as they came to a stop beside her. "Hey, I asked if you guys wanted to be picked up from school, but you said no."

"Yeah, because Stasson likes to keep his front windows rolled down at fifty miles an hour," Neil pointed out. "I catch colds easily, Nik, you know that!"

"Plus, the guy's taste in music is shit," Max added, kicking a pebble off the sidewalk as they began to head up the street.

"Hey, I thought you liked metal!" Nikki pointed out.

"Yeah, I do," Max said. "But there's good metal and then there's metal that sounds like screws in a blender. In a washing machine."

"Says the guy who listens to Hatred of Red Olives," Neil said with a smirk.

Max scowled at him. "You got something you wanna fucking say to me?"

"Yeah, I wanna say your taste in music is pretentious," Neil said smugly. "I mean, really? 'Hatred of Red Olives'? What the fuck does that name even mean?"

"Maybe they just really hate red olives," Max said defensively, and tossed his hands up in the air. "Maybe the 'red olives' represent the man keeping us all down. Fuck if I know! Either way, their music's amazing and highly underrated."

"Hey, speaking of olives," Nikki said. "You think David will let us order pizza for dinner?"

"God, I hope so," Max said. "It's perfect movie night food."

"So, what movie are we deciding on, anyway?" Neil asked.

"I think 'The Cult Camp of Murder-Suicide Lake' is on tonight," Nikki said.

Max rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I think I'll pass on Daniel's biography, thanks."

"Oh, wow, I'd completely forgotten about him," Nikki said. "God, that was a weird day, wasn't it?"

"If by weird, you mean we almost died," Max said, "then yeah, I'd say it was really weird."

"Think he lived through that whole Kool-Aid thing?" Neil asked.

"I fucking hope not," Max said, making a face. "Now, I'm not normally one to believe in being assigned to a place after death based on your actions in life, but if I were, I would hope that he's drinking rat-poison-flavored Kool-Aid in the deepest pit of Hell for all eternity."

"You guys ever wonder what it'd feel like to die?" Nikki asked curiously. "I mean, not like...by killing yourself as a part of some horrible cult or anything, but just in general. You think it would hurt?"

Max stopped mid-step. "You know, it's funny...I've actually thought a lot about that since my parents died."

Nikki's smile fell. "Oh, Max, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to—"

"No, it's fine," Max said. "I don't really do it much anymore, not since I moved in with David. But sometimes when I was really miserable, I'd just think about what would have happened if I decided to stay home the night of the fire. Whether I would have been able to catch it in time, or if I would have just died with my parents? Did they die in their sleep or did they suffer? Would I have suffered? Pretty morbid shit like that."

He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see Neil giving him a sympathetic look. "You okay, pal? You need to get anything off your chest?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," Max assured him, as he started walking again. "I can stop being a downer if you want."

"Hey, if you need to talk, we're all ears," Neil said. "Right, Nikki?"

"Yeah, absolutely," Nikki said as she began to balance on the edge of the curb. "You can trust us, Max."

"I know I can," Max said. "You guys are amazing. But honestly, there's not much else to say about it. They died and I was shipped off to a foster home. End of story."

"Wait, did you even get to attend their funeral?" Neil asked.

"Nope," Max said. "They didn't get one."

"They didn't?" Nikki asked.

"We have no family in this country," Max admitted. "And we weren't close to anyone outside of it. So there was no one outside of a depressed, jobless, fourteen-year-old to pay for a funeral, which meant they didn't get one at all."

"Wow..." Neil said in disbelief. "Life really can't cut you a break, can it?"

"You have no idea, pal."

"Hey, is that David's car?"

Nikki's question caused Max to turn his gaze from Neil and towards David's home at the end of the street. "...That is David's car. What the fuck is he doing home so early?"

"Maybe he quit his job?" Nikki suggested.

Max raised an eyebrow at her. "David? Quit a job that involves caring for children? One of the thing he loves more than life itself?"

"...Good point."

"Maybe he got sick?" Neil said. "It's almost flu season."

"Of course you would know that," Max said as they crossed the lawn. "But he was fine this morning. Wouldn't shut the fuck up about how it was 'Music Day' and he was going on and on about how excited he was to play his guitar for the kids."

They came to a stop before the front door and Max tested the doorknob. Unlocked. With a shrug, he pushed the door open and led Neil and Nikki inside. "Hey, David, you home?"

There was no response.

"David?" Max said again, a little louder as he dropped his bag by the door. "Hello?"

"Maybe he's in the backyard?" Nikki suggested, as her and Neil followed suit with the backpack-dropping.

"Doubtful," Max said, as they headed towards the kitchen. "He did all the yard work a few days ago, and he only goes to stare wistfully at the woods behind the house on Mondays and Thursdays."

"...He only stares at them, and doesn't...like...go hiking through them or something?" Neil asked.

"I think it's some kind of comfort thing," Max said with a shrug. "You know, reminds him of the camp?"

"Again, he can't just go hiking?" Neil asked.

"Look, he—"

Max froze as they passed by the dining room. David was seated at the table, his back to the doorway and his head low. On the table before him, Max could see the familiar pages of the Camp Campbell scrapbook that David would normally display on the coffee table with pride.

Something was wrong. Very wrong. Not the usual, David-sized levels of wrong, which were normally reserved for stupid things like 'birds picking at the flower bed in the backyard' or 'the store being out of his favorite brand of trail mix'.

No, something was 'day-at-the-bonfire' levels of wrong and a wave of fear rushed through Max as the possibilities of what might be wrong began to rise in his head.

One terrifying possibility bubbled to the front of his mind before he could push it back and pretend it never existed, and a strong, aching feeling in his chest followed. Had David, for some reason, lost the right to be his guardian? Had his social worker decided that David wasn't fit to parent him?

...Had David...grown sick of him?

Max made a face at his own stupid thoughts. David was obnoxious, peppy, and annoying beyond belief, but he cared about Max more than Max probably cared about himself.

Plus, even if David had grown sick of him, it's not like it was anything he wasn't used to by now, right? ...No need to get all worked up over the same bullshit he had grown used to over the past year.

...Right?

"David?" he asked, trying to keep his voice casual and uninterested. "Is...everything okay?"

David nearly jumped at the sound of Max's voice, and used one hand to slam the scrapbook closed. "Kids! I didn't realize you were home!"

"We said your name like...twice," Neil pointed out.

"Oh, right, of course." David rose from his chair, his back still to the kids as he began to head for the kitchen. "I'm sorry, my mind was elsewhere. I haven't even started making dinner-"

"It's only four, David," Max said.

"We could order pizza!" Nikki said excitedly.

"Nikki, shut up," Max hissed, before looking back to David. "Something's wrong, David. Don't lie to us, what is it?"

David stopped in the kitchen doorway. "...Nothing's wrong, Max."

"Then look us in the eyes and tell us that."

David was silent for a moment, before his shoulders fell in defeat. "...Mr. Campbell...passed away this morning."

"...Oh."

Well...he hadn't expected that. And he definitely wasn't sad about Campbell in the slightest. The shifty old asshole could rot in Hell (or whatever waited for him in an afterlife that may or may not exist) for all he cared. And he was definitely relieved that David's mood hadn't been caused by something else (something he definitely wouldn't have been upset over at all and no one could prove he would have been).

But it felt like someone had just dumped a bucket of cold, icy water over him in the middle of winter. Numbness, shock, and a mess of other painful emotions had manifested in the pit of his stomach and Neil and Nikki tensing up beside him only made the feeling worse.

"'Heart attack,' they told me over the phone," David continued, clearly attempting (and failing) to hide the shaking in his voice. "I...He was always such a strong man, I...I didn't think...I thought he'd..."

He took a deep breath and finally turned to face the kids. It was more than obvious he'd been crying for a long while, and was smiling widely in an attempt to hide that fact. "Well, I suppose it doesn't matter," he said in a falsely-cheerful voice. "No one can live forever, right? This day was bound to come eventually. It's not as if I secretly hoped that one day, he'd be released from prison and maybe things could just...pick up where they left off all those years ago—"

"David..."

The smile fell and David sank into the chair closest to the kitchen doorway, his head in his hands. "I haven't seen him in about three months," he said, no longer making an attempt to hold back his tears. "I could have made more time, maybe taken a week off and went upstate to visit him every day. There was so much more I could have done..."

He lifted his head and wiped the tears from his face. "I'm sorry, kids. I know this is probably worrying you—"

"What about the funeral?" The question escaped Max before he could process it, and he could practically feel Neil and Nikki's eyes on him. "Aren't you going to his funeral?"

David hung his head. "There...isn't going to be a funeral. Mr. Campbell left a lot of debt in his wake, and the prison didn't want to 'waste more money on him.'"

And now Max felt like someone had dumped another bucket of cold water over him in the middle of the Arctic, as his thoughts drifted back to the conversation he, Neil and Nikki had shared on the way home. About death, about his parents...about the night they died.

How they hadn't even been given a funeral due to their own lack of any family (outside of Max) to pay for it. How he'd only been given a short time to properly grieve before being shipped off to the first of many foster families, where he had been forced to either keep a lot of that grief to himself or unleash it in fits of anger or sadness. How said fits were was usually met with being kicked out and sent to another family.

Just a shitty cycle of attempting to mourn, only to be abandoned and alone.

And it had fucking sucked. It still fucking sucked.

He looked towards Nikki, who had a hand over her mouth and the faintest hint of tears forming in the corners of her eyes, and then to Neil, who looked like he wasn't sure how he should be feeling at the moment.

They had no idea, as far as Max was aware, what it was like to experience that kind of grief of losing someone you care about so strongly. To stay up late at night, as a million 'what could have been' scenarios played out in your head. What you could have done, if you could have done anythingat all. Regrets of not appreciating what you had when you had it. Moments where you wish that you could have been in their place instead of left alone to cry and grieve, and just...hurt.

Cry...grieve...

He could practically feel a light bulb go off in his mind. He hadn't gotten his chance to grieve, but...that didn't mean David couldn't get his chance. Max didn't care if it was about Campbell of all people, and he didn't care if it resulted in him having to answer a number of questions that he was positive Neil, Nikki, and or David would ask at some point or another.

Like Hell he was going to let anyone, especially David, go through what he did. Not if he could help it.

"Hey, David?"

David looked up from his hands. "Yes, Max?"

Max shuffled his feet, and tried to keep his usual, uninterested tone as he spoke: "You're really gonna sit there and tell me that you haven't thought about planning some kind of memorial service for the bastard? Come on, I thought I knew you better than that."

David's eyes widened. "What did you say?"

"I mean, sure, Campbell was a real piece of shit and I'm not going to pretend he wasn't," Max continued. "But if you can't have a funeral for him, then why not do the next best thing and just...have a memorial service? I'm sure there's probably a ton of other camp-loving weirdos who would want to come mourn his death, too. I mean, just because our summer hated the place doesn't mean all of them did, right?"

"Hey, yeah, you're right," Neil said thoughtfully. "If that place was open since David was a kid, then statistically there had to have been summers where the campers actually enjoyed themselves and actually wanted to be there."

"I wanted to be there," Nikki said.

"Yeah, but you're one of the only ones during our summer who did," Max pointed out. "I'm talking about entire groups of campers who actually had fun during their stay at Camp Campbell. Groups of people who have actually-fond childhood memories of that place, as shocking as the idea sounds, and who'd be upset to hear that Campbell kicked the bucket. So why not throw a memorial service and let everyone grieve together. You know, 'misery loves company' or what-the-fuck-ever? I don't know, it sounded cooler in my head..."

David's expression had grown more brighter and hopeful with every word, and his wide, happy smile had returned by the time Max's sentence trailed off. "You know, I think that sounds like an amazing idea, Max! We wouldn't have to do anything too big or fancy—"

"Honestly, spending as little money as possible would be the best tribute to that asshole's memory," Max said, rolling his eyes.

"-but we could still do something instead of just sitting here and crying over what could have been!" David continued cheerfully. "I could make some calls, get in touch with my old counselors, maybe see if they might be able to help get invitations out to any other Camp Campbell alumni who'd want to attend!"

"I could probably convince Harrison to come," Neil said. "And he could probably convince Nerris. I know it's not much, but hey, at least you know you'll have two guarantees."

"There's a dollar store near my school," Nikki added. "My team always gets decorations there for our after-game parties. Though they might still be out of all the black and blue ones after our last shindig... Maybe we can just get white tablecloths and spray paint them black? I know a guy with spray paint, I can call around."

"And there's plenty of room in the backyard to hold the service," Max pointed out. "I'm sure those other camp-loving assholes will love having the forest as the event backdrop."

David stared at him with a fond expression, as tears of joy replaced the ones of sorrow in his eyes. "You know what, I think hosting a memorial service is the perfect way to honor Mr. Campbell's passing. Max, how did you come up with something so clever? I mean, not that I'm surprised in the slightest, you're a very smart child—"

"Yeah, yeah, enough of the compliments," Max said, ignoring the looks that he was positive Neil and Nikki were giving him. "Just go start making plans before I regret giving you the idea in the first place."

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

"Yes, thank you, Darla!" David said happily into his phone. "I can't wait to see you and Gregg there!"

Max looked up from his notebook. "Is she coming?"

David nodded as he ended the call. "She says that throwing a memorial service for Mr. Campbell is a fantastic idea, and that she cannot wait until next Saturday. And she's more than happy to get the word out to any of the other campers she might have counselor-ed during her time at the camp." He sniffled softly and reached up to wipe his eyes. "Gosh, she's just as sweet as she was back when I was a kid..."

"Don't start crying again," Max said, as he scribbled a 'yes' next to the name on the page. "Just call the next person."

"So, I've got some good news," Nikki said through a mouthful of pizza. "I texted Cookie, and he's still got the black tablecloths from our last party, with only a few tears from when one of the guys was dared to do a handstand on the table. And then fell off the table. It was awesome!"

"I think we should just go ahead and buy new ones," Max said, reaching for his own slice from the box. "Also...there's a guy on your team named Cookie?"

"Uh, yeah!" Nikki said. "We call him that because he's the best baker on the team. He makes these caramel cookies that taste like..." She made a motion of approval with her hands.

"Sea-salt?" Max asked.

"Of course, he's not an animal."

Max snorted as he looked around. "Where the Hell'd Neil go?"

"I think he stepped outside to call Harrison and Nerris," David said with a smile. "I definitely can't wait to see them again! They were such good kids."

"You've said that about all of us, and you're been wrong every time," Max pointed out, as he stood up and headed for the back door. "I'm gonna go tell him to get his ass back in here before Nikki eats all the pizza."

"Hey, he snoozes, he loses," Nikki said, as she reached for another slice.

Max rolled his eyes as he pulled the back door open and stepped out into the warm evening. Sure enough, Neil was seated on the bench at the edge of the deck, his phone against his ear and a smile on his face.

"Yeah, of course we can," he was saying softly. "It sounds great, babe."

Babe? Max's smile widened. "Hey, lovebird. You wrapping it up anytime soon?" he asked quietly as he approached the bench.

Neil looked at him and nodded, before turning his attention back to the phone. "I gotta go, but I'll talk to you tomorrow, okay? ...I love you, too. Goodnight."

His cheeks flushed, he hung up the phone and looked at Max. "Harrison says he and Nerris can make it to the service, and they'll even help us with setting up. They've been working on some levitation spells that they'd like to put into practice."

"Yeah, and the whole 'babe' thing?" Max asked, sitting down next to him.

Neil's face grew redder. "We're getting lunch tomorrow. Can you and David cover for us if my mom calls here?"

"Yeah, you know I will," Max said.

"You're the best," Neil said, giving him a playful nudge.

Max smiled and nudged him back. "You really like him, don't you?"

Neil's expression softened. "Yeah, I really do. Max, he's...God, he's really great."

"You big sap," Max said, crossing his arms. "So, can I be best man at your wedding?"

"Come on, we're not that serious."

Max raised an eyebrow. "You're only saying that because you've already promised the role to someone else, haven't you?"

"Oh, absolutely," Neil said. "Sorry, pal. First come, first serve."

Max let out a laugh. "Oh, speaking of serve, I came out here to warn you that Nikki's going to eat all the pizza if you don't come back inside. Plus we could use another phone to call up potential service guests."

"Right, right," Neil said. "Can I ask you something, though?"

Oh, God, there it was. The inevitable questioning. "I know what you're going to ask, Neil. And no, I don't want to talk about it, okay?"

Neil gave him a look. "Max, as soon as David said that Campbell wasn't getting a funeral, your face was as pale as a sheet."

"Your face is as pale as a sheet," Max said defensively.

"Max..."

Max looked out at the forest that lay past the backyard, darkened by the evening with only a few slivers of moonlight between the trees. "Look, losing someone you care about sucks, and not being able to get closure sucks harder. I just...didn't want David to go through what I did, okay? That's it."

"Is it really all it is?"

"It's all I feel like talking about," Max said. "I've unloaded enough of my problems on you."

"You know I don't mind listening," Neil pointed out.

"Yeah, but I don't want to be that friend," Max said. "The one who's constantly depressed and needs to always talk about his issues, to the point where everyone gets sicks of hearing about them. I've see it happen before, and I don't want it to happen with you or Nikki or David, because I actually like all of you."

Neil let out a laugh. "Max, come on. If we aren't sick of you by now, then we'll never be sick of you."

Max let his gaze drop to his hands sadly, a motion that Neil didn't miss. "...Oh. Oh, shit, you're not just making jokes as a way to cope with your issues this time, are you? You're really serious."

"Of course I'm serious," Max said. "You guys are the best thing to happen to me all year. But seeing David that broken up over Campbell, it just made me think of everything that happened to me before I moved here and I mean...you know how my year's been so far."

He pulled his legs up onto the bench and hugged them close. "You and Nikki are my best friends. I trust you two with a lot of things. But...a lot of bad shit's happened to me. And I know you say that you won't get tired of me even if I vent to you, but it's happened before and I just...can't help but be worried that it'll happen again. I don't...think I could handle that. No, fuck that, I know I couldn't handle it."

"Max, you're a strong kid," Neil said. "I'm sure—"

"Neil, you don't understand," Max said, hesitating for a moment before he continued: "...Before I moved in with David, I was in the worst place I've been in all year. It was around the anniversary of my folks' death, and I had...okay, a bad day's an understatement, but I that's what it was. I just...really missed my folks. I was having a hard time, a really hard time. You know what my foster parents at the time did when I tried to go to them for help?"

"What?"

"They told me they were too busy to deal with my problems right now," Max said grimly. "And that we could discuss it later. That's what a lot of them would say if I was having a bad day. 'Let's talk later' or 'suck it up' or they'd just straight up yell at me for being too emotional. They'd get angry with me or just ditch me altogether for being unable to cope with my feelings properly."

"Why the hell would all these people dedicate their time to being parents if they were just going to ditch their kid when things got rough?" Neil asked.

"Why would people dedicate their time to having a kid if they're going to abuse them, neglect them, or kick them out of the house for being gay?" Max countered.

"...Touche."

"There's a lot of people out there who only like the concept of having a kid," Max said, "but don't want to put the actual effort into caring for a real kid. One with their own thoughts and emotions and issues and all that parenting shit that isn't romanticized to Hell and back. And going through family after family like that makes you less and less willing to talk about your issues, to the point where you either repress everything or..." he touched his left arm. "...do something unhealthy."

He didn't dare look at Neil's reaction. "Max..."

"Like I said, I was at my lowest point with my last family," Max admitted. "Probably the lowest point of my life. I'm past it now, so don't start worrying that I'm going to do something drastic, because I'm not. But it did happen. I was just... so tired of everything. And when I couldn't turn to anyone that day, I...I couldn't do it anymore, Neil. I just wanted all of it to end."

He felt tears welling up in the corner of his eyes, which he brushed away quickly in the hopes Neil wouldn't notice. "I'm scared, Neil. I don't want to lose everything I've got here. Yeah, I talk a lot of shit, but I am not strong enough to go through all that again. Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night, and I actually go downstairs to the living room or to David's bedroom to make sure he's still there, just so I know that all of this isn't a dream and I'm not going to wake up with another family who doesn't give two shits about whether I live or die."

He inhaled and exhaled slowly. "It's just...really hard to process that things might finally be okay for me again, like really okay. And yeah, I knowDavid's great and I know I could talk to him about all my stupid problems. Hell, I talked to him the day I moved in, and it was like he hadn't changed at all since camp. He was so nice, so willing to listen..." He hugged his legs closer. "But, like...that doesn't just stop me from thinking that he'll get sick of me if I keep going to him with my stupid problems. Again, I know it's a stupid, stupid thought, because it's David, and he'd never grow sick of me. But it doesn't stop me from thinking about it, you know?"

He fell silent, as he waited for Neil to respond. However, a sharp pinching sensation to the side of his face caused him to yelp in pain and instinctively slap a hand to the spot. He looked at Neil, his fingers in the universal pose for pinching. "Dude, what the Hell?!"

"That was so you could be sure that this isn't a dream," Neil said. "Believe it or not, the pinching thing actually works."

Max's look of confusion melted into one of slight amusement. "You could have warned me, asshole."

"The shock factor would have increased the odds of you waking up, if this had been a dream," Neil pointed out. "But hey, you're still here, so it has to be real, right?"

"Not sure if that's exactly how that works, but I...do appreciate the sentiment," Max said. "As weird and nerdy as it was."

"And as for everything else," Neil said, his expression softening. "I know this is probably obvious advice, but I do think you should talk to David. Even if everything in your head's telling you not to, you should do it anyway. I mean, you said it yourself that you were happy here with David, right? Happier than you've been all year."

Max shrugged. "I mean, yeah."

"So clearly David's a much better guardian than any of the other ones you've had," Neil pointed out. "Which means he'd be more willing to help you than any of the others."

Max looked down again. "Look, I know you're right. But if I talk to him about it now, he'll just spend the next week worrying about me instead of focusing on the service. I don't want to take that away from him."

"Max..."

"I'll think about it," Max said. "But for now...I just can't. I'm just going to pretend everything's fine for a week, and let David mourn Campbell in peace without having to worry about me and my issues. He deserves that, at least."

"...Alright, man," Neil said, rising to his feet. "But if you...get to that low point again—"

"I'm not going to, Neil," Max said, following suit. "I can promise you that I won't."

"But if you do—"

"I won't, okay?" Max said, and touched his arm again. "I was in a bad place, and it only made things worse. I promised myself I'd never do it again and I'm not going back on that."

Neil gave him a nod. "Okay. And, you know, if it helps, you told me all that and I'm not sick of you. Wait, shit, that came out wrong—"

"No, I get it," Max said, a small smile on his face. "Thanks, Neil."

"Hey, heteros!" Nikki called from the back door. "Pizza's almost gone. Get in here, or I'm calling dibs on all of it."

"Nikki, come on!" Neil said. "I was in the middle of a phone call! With my boyfriend! That hetero comment shouldn't have an S!"

"Don't care, I'm gonna eat your slices if you aren't inside in negative five seconds!"

"Nikki!"

Nikki laughed as she ducked back into the house. Neil started to hurry after her, but Max grabbed his arm before he could head inside. "Hey, one last thing."

"Yeah?"

"Don't...tell David about what I said, okay?" Max said. "Nikki, sure, she can know, but...not David."

Neil was silent for a moment before he nodded. "I won't tell him. You should, but I won't."

"I know..."

With a sigh, Max let go of his arm and followed him back into the house, the sound of David's voice as he chatted with another potential service-attender over the phone greeting them as they stepped inside.

[and-his-name-is-rouge-crimson]

1-100 or whichever you care to tell me... I would like to know everything though :3

Well here goes the rest of my night :3 1-100 here we go.

1. When you have cereal, do you have more milk than cereal, or more cereal than milk?

Answer: It honestly depends on the cereal. If it’s anything from the CheeryO’s family, I’ll eat that milk-less. If it’s Cookie Crisp, or Cinnamon Toast Crunch, I had better have some damn milk.

2. Do you like the feeling of cold air on your cheeks on a cold wintery day?

Answer: FUCK NO!! WINTER SUCKS!! 

3. What random objects do you use to bookmark your books?

Answer: I just remember the page number. Despite my crap memory, I somehow manage to remember what page I was on when I’m reading.

4. How do you take your coffee/tea?

Answer: I’ll take an energy drink instead.

5. Are you self-conscious of your smile?

Answer: Admittedly yes, I don’t like giving toothy smiles whenever I or someone else takes a picture.

6. Do you keep plants?

Answer: No, plants=bees. I hate bees. I’m not allergic or anything, I’ve just been stung one too many times for me to feel comfortable around bees. Hell if anything buzzes past my ear, I reflexively flinch even if it’s just a house fly. So no plants for me.

7. Do I name my plants?

Answer: *skips*

8. What artistic medium do you use to express your feelings?

Answer: I write. A lot, though I’m a little self-conscious to post a lot of it

9. Do you like singing/humming to yourself?

Answer: Oh hell yes, I’ll do this all the time. At home, in the car, at work, with my friends … I’ve said too much.

10. Do you sleep on your back, side, or stomach?

Answer: I answered this one already, but since you asked me to do 1-100 (and like a fool who clearly does not value what he does with what is left of his evening) I’ll answer this one again. I’ll fall asleep on my stomach or back, and somehow find myself awake on my sides.

11. What’s an inner joke you have with your friends?

Answer: Ohhh there are several, all with an interesting story behind it. Anyone reading this feel free to ask about said stories of said inside jokes. However, the two best ones I can think of at the moment are: “White-face Mexican Jesus,” and “I’m trying to send a donkey to someone for their birthday, but customs is being a bitch!”

12. What is your favorite planet?

Answer: Pluto (”Ohhh but that’s not a planet anymore” fuck off it’s a planet if I say it’s a planet. And that’s the bottom line, because Stone Cold said so!)

13. What is something that made you smile today?

Answer: Listening to Neon by Jeff and Casey Lee Williams.

14. If you were to live with your best friend in an old flat in a big city, what would it look like?

Answer: Shit. I’m still figuring Tumblr out, so I have NO idea how to link stuff (embed or html or whatever the fuck it is) so… for a base idea, probably something like 221b Baker Street from BBC’s Sherlock.

15. Go Google a weird space fact and tell us what it is.

Answer: *skips*

16. What is your favorite pasta dish?

Answer: Just give me spaghetti and meatballs.

17. What color do you really want to dye your hair?

Answer: Purple. It’s my favorite color, but I seem to have a distinct lack of purple in my wardrobe. But if I was to dye my hair, it would have to be a real dark purple.

18.  Tell something dumb/funny that has since gone down in history between you and your friends that is always brought up.

Answer: *deep breath* No.

19. Do you keep a journal? And what do you write/draw in it?

Answer: I do not keep or have ever kept a journal.

20. What is your favorite eye color?

Answer: Dark brown, kind of like my own.

21. Talk about your favorite bag. One that has been to hell and back, and that you love to pieces. 

Answer: Okay, well I still use this backpack. I’ve had it since my freshman year in high school. Its right strap is worn down, because I only ever wore it over my right shoulder, and still only ever wear it over my right shoulder. There’s also a Wings of Freedom button on the right strap, despite my dislike for the Attack on Titan anime (I liked the manga better). That backpack has been through high school, survived college, and gone to every single anime convention I’ve gone to since I’ve had it.

22. Are you a morning person?

Answer: No, I’m more of a crack of noon person. But high school has ingrained it into my brain that I need to wake up at the ass crack of dawn.

23. What’s your favorite thing to do on lazy days when you have 0 obligations?

Answer: Oh so everyday I don’t have work? Okay then. I either write or play video games, I’m currently playing Mass Effect Andromeda and loving it (despite the issue with the character customization).

24. Is there someone out there that you would trust with every single one of your secrets?

Answer: Yes, and they know who they are.

25. What’s the weirdest place you’ve ever broken into?

Answer: My friend Neil and I once had to break into his own house because he forgot his keys, and nobody else was home. There was a ladder under the balcony of his parents bedroom, we set it up, and Neil held the thing in place while I climbed up and over the ladder and over the balcony (thank god the sliding glass door was unlocked).

26. What shoes have you had forever and wear with every single outfit?

Answer: Normally my shoes don’t last that long.

27. What’s your favorite bubblegum flavor?

Answer: Ummmm… I don’t have a preference to bubble gum flavors. :3

28. Sunrise or sunset?

Answer: Sunset. Sleep is good.

29. What is something really cute one of your friends does, and is really endearing?

Answer: One of them is our designated group mom, and she cares for all of us. Love you Panda!

30. Think of it: Have you ever been truly scared?

Answer: Yes. There is a local haunted place close to where I live. It was an old rock crusher/munitions factory back in WWII, before it exploded and covered nearly all of it’s workers in acid. Since then the place has been haunted by the spirits of the workers who have died there. And then some idiots attempted to perform some ritual to summon some sort of demon … And it fucking worked. Anyways, my friend Neil and I go up there a few years ago on Halloween. In reality I allowed myself to be talked into it, but I was so freaked out the whole time we were up there, and I could have sworn I was seeing shit move just past the range of my vision. Anyways we are about to head back to his house, and we are right in front of the old rock crusher, when I become aware that Neil is not walking beside me. When I turn around, I see him passed out in front of the old structure … Then I hear this horrible voice in my ear: “Leave him, he belongs to us now.” 

31. What is your opinion of socks? Do you sleep with socks? Do you confine yourself to white sock hell? Really, just talk about socks.

Answer: *skips*

32. Tell a story that happened at 3am while you were with friends.

Answer: Ummmm there are no stories like that. Even if we’re at cons, we’re asleep before midnight.

33. What’s your favorite pastry?

Answer: Cinnamon covered doughnuts. So good~

34. Tell us about the stuffed animal you kept as a child.

Answer: I had/have 3. A lamb, and 2 teddy bears. I don’t remember what happened to the lamb. I know it’s in the house somewhere, I just don’t know where. But as for the teddy’s: One is a standard-size teddy bear named *drumroll* Teddy. I was adopted when I was 4 days old, and Teddy is the only thing that I have from my birth mother. The second one is larger, kinda like the size of a carnaval prize. He was given to my by my Uncle Desmond “Dezzy” Caine (I really miss Uncle Dezzy), so he’s named the Dezzy Bear. I still sleep with both and I’ll be 25 in like 9 days. Dezzy still props up my pillows.

35. Do you like stationary and pretty pens?

Answer: Meh, they’re not so bad. I have really bad handwriting so I’m kinda divided 50/50

36. Which band’s sound would suit your mood right now?

Answer: Nightwish. Oh their lead singer’s voice is beautiful~

37. Do you like keeping your room messy or clean?

Answer: Messy, definately messy. Sure it looks disorganized, but I know where everything is in the mess.

38 Talk about your pet peeves.

Answer: No, it’s too late at night for that shit.

39. What color do you wear the most?

Answer: White. Undershirts mostly. I would wear more purple, but there is a distinct lack of purple in my wardrobe, and not a lot of purple clothing in the stores I shop at (mostly Hot Topic) that fit/I would wear.

40.Think of a piece of jewelry you own. What’s it’s story? Does it have any meaning to you?

Answer: Ummmm admittedly, I have a lot of jewelry pieces. Mostly necklaces that I rarely wear. My favorite by far, is a pewter dragon with it’s body wrapped around a blue crystal. I bought it at the county fair a few years back, and it was the last one that was ever sold from that vendor, because I havent seen his stall in the past few years.

41. What is the last book you really, really remember loving?

Answer: Monster Hunter Memoirs: Grunge. It’s a new book in the Monster Hunter series by Larry Correia.

42. Do you have a favorite coffee shop?

Answer: No, I don’t like coffee ever since I made the mistake of drinking the swill on an empty stomach.

43. Who was the last person you gazed at the stars with?

Answer: My friend Neil, and that was years ago when we decided to head up to a local haunted area.

44.When was the last time you remember feeling completely serene and at peace with everything?

Answer: This morning in the shower :3

45. Do you trust your instincts a lot?

Answer: Yes. Going back to when Neil and I were up at the rock crusher, and I heard that voice in my ear. Something told me: “Neil is your brother, get his ass out of there!” I grabbed him, and ran for it.

46. Tell us of the worst pun you can think of.

Answer: Is this some sort of pun-ishment? Well I guess you can call me the Pun-isher (hate myself).

47. What food do you think should be banned from the universe?

Answer: …shit I had something for this, and now I can’t remember…

48. What was your biggest fear as a kid? Is it the same today?

Answer: I was afraid of the dark as a kid (mostly due to my brother being an ass), and that fear carried through. I still have to sleep with a light on.

49. Do you like buying CDs and records? What was the last one you bought?

Answer: I haven’t bought a CD or a record since I had my first iPod. The last one I bought was Disturbed’s Indestructible album.

50. What is an odd thing you collect?

Answer: I answered this one before, but I’ll do it again. I collect and assemble Gundam models. I have 8 currently. And I have yet to finish/start the assembly on the last 3.

51. Think of a person, what song do you affiliate with them?

Answer: I think The Animal by Disturbed would suit Neil just fine.

52. What are your favorite memes of the year so far?

Answer: *skips*

53. Have you ever watched the rocky horror picture show? Beetlejuice ect. What do you think of them?

Answer: Nope.

54. Who is the last person you saw with a genuine look of sadness on their face?

Answer: That would be my cousin who had to recently put her elderly golden retriever to sleep. Something like that is never easy, and I know how bad the pain of losing a pet you have had for years feels.

55. What is the most dramatic thing you have done to prove a point?

Answer: Ummm that’ll be the time when *skips*

56. What are some things you find endearing in people?

Answer: When I find something, I’ll let you know.

57. Go listen to bohemian rhapsody. did you reenact the lyrics?

Answer: Um whoever doesn’t needs to be punished to the fullest extent of the law.

58. Who is the wine mom, and who is the vodka aunt in your group of friends?

Answer: Me on both occasions.

59. What are some of your favorite myths?

Answer: Mostly the ones involving the 80′s horror movie villians.

60. Do you like poetry?

Answer: Meh.

61. What is the stupidest gift you have ever given/received?

Answer: I gave my mom trick candles to use on my brothers cake a few years ago … And they found their way on to MY cake. Does that count?

62. Do you drink juice in the morning?

Answer: Very rarely, and when I do it’s cranberry.

63. Are you fussy about your books and music? Do you keep them organized or leave them be?

Answer: I leave them be. It goes back to the question of how I like to keep my room.

64. What color is the sky where you are right now?

Answer: It’s steely grey. It’s in the transition of seasons. Winter to Spring.

65. Is there anyone you haven’t seen in a long time that you’d love to hang out with?

Answer: Yeah, my friend Neil.

66. What would your ideal flower crown look like?

Answer: *skips*

67. How do gloomy days make you feel?

Answer: Yep skipping that one too. *skips*

68. What is winter like where you live?

Answer: Hoth

69. What are your favorite board games?

Answer: Risk … and I cannot think of any other ones of the top of my head.

70. Have you ever used a ouji board?

Answer: Fuck no! I am not stupid enough to do that! Especially after what happened after the rock crusher.

71. What is your favorite kind of tea?

Answer: I don’t drink tea.

72. Are you a person who needs to note down everything you need to do or else you’ll forget it?

Answer: Only when I am at work, and even then I rarely note things down.

73. What are some of your worst habits?

Answer: *skips*

74. Describe a good friend of yours without using their names or gendered pronouns.

Answer: Hmmmm… Long and lanky, unkempt and scraggly hair and beard. Quick wit, sharp tongue, but with a big heart.

75. Tell us about your pets!

Answer: I had two white Siberian Huskies. Tundra and her brother Topaz were born on the same day I was, and we had 18 great years together.

76. Is there anything you should be doing right now but aren’t?

Answer: Nope.

77. Pink or yellow lemonade?

Answer: Why not both?

78. Are in the minion fanclub or hateclub?

Answer: I’m in the “I don’t give a fuck” club.

79. What is one of the cutest things anyone has ever done for you?

Answer: They wouldn’t want me telling that story.

80. What color are your bedroom walls? Did you chose that color? If so why?

Answer: They’re white, but if I could paint them, they’d be purple.

81. Describe on of your friend’s eyes using the most abstract imagery you can think of.

Answer: *skips*

82. Are/were you good in school?

Answer: I was decent. Not good, not bad, but decent.

83.what is some of your favorite album art?

Answer: I care more about the songs rather than the artwork.

84. Are you planning on getting any tattoos?

Answer: Yes, I’m planning on getting either the enochian sigil from Supernatural, or a full back tattoo of a set of angel wings with the words: “Angels on our shoulders” above them.

85. Do you read comics?

Answer: Not really

86. Do you like concept albums?

Answer: The hell are those?

87. What are some movies you think everyone should watch at least once in their lives?

Answer: All the James Bond movies, Star Wars including the prequils, and the 3 original Indiana Jones movies.

88. Are there any artistic movements you enjoy?

Answer: The only one I can think of (and I’m not sure it even counts) is the Renaissance

89. Are you close with your parents?

Answer: Yes very close, although they drive me crazy at times I still  love them.

90. Talk about one of your favorite cities.

Answer: *skips*

91. Where do you plan on traveling this year?

Answer: Well my group is planning on heading to Washington DC for Ota-con this year.

92. Are you a person who drowns their pasta in cheese? Or do you barely sprinkle a pinch?

Answer: The cheese. Give me all the cheese!

93. What is the hairstyle you wear the most?

Answer: Short and very unkempt.

94. Who was the last person you know to have a birthday?

Answer: My girlfriend. :3

95. What are your plans for this weekend?

Answer: The same thing I do every night. Try to take over the world.

96. Do you install your computer updates quickly? or do you take forever?

Answer: Yes. :3

97. Myer briggs type, zodiac sign, and Hoggwarts house.

Answer: What the hell is the first one? But I’m an Ares, and a Gryffindor.

98. When was the last time you went hiking? And did you enjoy it?

Answer: it was years ago, and no I hate nature.

99. List some songs that resonate with your soul every time you hear them.

Answer: I have 220+ songs on my iPod that attest to that very question.

100. If you were presented with two buttons, one that allows you to go 5 years into the past, and one that allows you to go 5 years into the future, which would you press and why?

Answer: I’d go into the future. Past is past and that’s where it belongs. Plus when I go back to when I pressed said button, I would have an advantage over everyone else *evil smile*

[aion-rsa]

New Horror and Sci-Fi Movies Break Out at Fantasia Fest

https://ift.tt/3eSvxiF

The Fantasia International Film Festival has been serving up fresh and often visionary new voices in sci-fi, horror and other genres for nearly a quarter of a century, and this year’s 24th edition was no different — except, of course, it was all different.

Fantasia, which under normal circumstances physically takes place in Montreal in mid-summer, went online in 2020 for an all-digital edition that kicked off on August 20 and concluded on September 2. The event was a mix of films that were either available on demand at any time throughout the fest (up until a maximum ticket capacity was reached) or were designated to stream “live,” as it were, on one or two certain dates at specific times (also with a maximum ticket capacity).

Although press from around the world was invited to cover the festival, the entire program was geoblocked to Canadian ticket buyers only — which means that as a fan you would have to live in Canada to watch the festival offerings online (this was due to exhibition and distribution restrictions for other parts of the world). In addition, a handful of films — including The Descent director Neil Marshall’s new one, The Reckoning — were available only to a limited list of select guests.

Whether these kinds of restrictions helped or hindered the festival’s transition to an online format remains to be seen. On the other hand, our experience watching films was flawless, with no buffering or other technical problems during a single screening. That aspect of holding a digital festival was handled perfectly.

Less perfect, to be frank, was our personal experience. Being at a film festival or any large event or conference is like being in a bubble where all you do is focus on what you’re there to do; trying to do the same on your couch or at your kitchen table, with all the distractions of home, family, work and other elements of everyday life was way more challenging.

We didn’t watch as many films as we wanted to, but the highlights only proved that Fantasia’s longstanding reputation as a breeding ground for provocative, groundbreaking new talent will stay intact for this year and beyond.

HBO Max

Class Action Park (USA)

Our favorite film of the fest — which you can see right now if you’re lucky enough to have HBO Max — is this wild look back at a New Jersey water/amusement park where there were no rules, anything could happen and the lunatics (i.e. severely underqualified teenagers) were literally running the asylum. It was all fun and games… until it wasn’t, as the injuries, lawsuits and tragic deaths began to pile up.

The documentary delves into the history of the park, which was hatched by the insane/genial Eugene Mulvihill, the unsafe rides that he developed, the crazy atmosphere of the place and the tragedies that brought it down. But like all great docs, Class Action Park is also about an era — a snapshot of a time (the late ‘80s and early ‘90s) when kids were allowed way more freedom than they are now, with results that one could view as both good and bad. It’s a sobering, thoughtful and, yes, hilarious film. (****½)

The Department of Special Projects

Fried Barry (South Africa)

Think of this as the hard-R version of E.T. A heroin addict named Barry (stuntman Gary Green in an astonishing first-time performance) is airlifted from a Cape Town street into an alien spacecraft, painfully probed and dropped back down — only his body is inhabited by an extra-terrestrial explorer. The next few days are a wild, often gruesome yet oddly poignant journey in which the alien/Barry trips on drugs, dances the night away at a club, is brutally tortured, has sex with multiple women, becomes an instant father, rescues children from a predator and even reconciles with Barry’s own family.

Writer/director Ryan Kruger adapted this from his own short film and, as with several other movies we saw, occasionally has trouble stretching it to feature length. But what could have been a nihilistic mess becomes something alternately funny, shocking and moving, in a story about loss, addiction and love anchored by Green’s fearless performance and Kruger’s gorgeous, stylized direction. (****)

Magnolia

12 Hour Shift (USA)

12 Hour Shift was like a refreshing cool drink after watching some of the darker entries at Fantasia. We haven’t seen Angela Bettis (May) in a few years so she is a welcome and sensational presence as a night nurse in a Texas hospital running a side business in organ harvesting with her supervisor. Chloe Farnworth is equally great as her beyond-dumb cousin who delivers the organs to the gangsters running the black market, while David Arquette shows up as a dim bulb cop-killer who’s stuck in the ER.

Grisly mayhem and gooey twists ensue, and while it’s nothing you haven’t seen before, Bettis’ implacable calm keeps it all grounded and grimly hilarious. Writer/director Brea Grant allows herself a few self-indulgent moments, but overall this is a lot of fun. A faux-bombastic score heightens the humor. Watch for this on October 2 from Magnolia Pictures. (****)

Ben Hozie

PVT CHAT (USA)

From writer/director Ben Hozie (frontman of the band Bodega), this is a smart, erotic psychodrama about who we think people are and who they really are, against the backdrop of live sex chats and relationships via screen (the latter all too relevant in these shelter-in-place times). Peter Vack is great as Jack, who gambles online by day and spends his winnings at night on those aforementioned chats. His object of desire is cam girl Scarlet (Julia Fox, alluring in what was technically her first role before Uncut Gems), who seems to enjoy her work while tentatively exploring a deeper connection with Jack.

Hozie captures a pre-pandemic lower Manhattan vividly, and while the movie evokes an undercurrent of dread it never resorts to the predictable idea of making Jack a straight-up incel. The plot’s turns are clever and true to the characters, who gradually reveal their vulnerabilities and yearnings. It’s a small film, but it says a lot about love, loneliness and sex in the age of virtual life. (****)

Unstable Ground

Clapboard Jungle: Surviving the Independent Film Business (Canada)

Justin McConnell is a Canadian filmmaker who has directed two low-budget features but finds it as hard as ever to get a single one of his next potential projects (his “slate,” as he hopefully calls it) financed and produced. This documentary, which McConnell assembled over five years, charts the ups and downs of his quest while offering insight from dozens of artists — including Guillermo Del Toro, the late George A. Romero, Mick Garris (director, 1994’s The Stand), Larry Fessenden (director, Wendigo), John McNaughton (director, Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer) and others — about the difficulties of independent filmmaking.

McConnell’s saga is a fascinating one and his resiliency in the face of defeat after defeat is at times inspiring. Some of the film plays like a checklist as he tackles various aspects of the business (to his credit, he even offers a clearly late-breaking section on the even more challenging environment facing women and filmmakers of color), but it’s still a worthy guide for anyone who dares to travel this path. (***½)

RLJE Films/Shudder

The Dark and the Wicked (USA)

Writer/director Bryan Bertino scared the living hell out of audiences back in 2008 with The Strangers, and while his pictures since then are few and far between and somewhat hard to see, his latest will benefit from a release through Shudder later this year.

In the meantime, we can tell you that Bertino has not lost a step when it comes to crafting utterly skin-freezing imagery and sequences. Siblings Louise (Marin Ireland) and Michael (Michael Abbot Jr.) return to their family’s rural farmhouse to help their mother as their comatose father enters his last days, despite their mother’s entreaties to stay away. Brother and sister learn all too soon that something has come for their family and will not stop.

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Bertino works economically with both his direction and script, sketching in just enough about this family to create the necessary empathy and aided greatly by sterling work from Ireland and Abbot. The atmosphere is thick with dread from start to finish, and the images shocking and nightmarish. If The Dark and the Wicked leaves you with a few more questions than you’d like, that’s okay…this is still a genuinely unsettling watch. (***½)

Film Movement

Lapsis (USA)

Filmmaker Noah Hutton — who wrote, directed, edited and composed the score — sets his full-length feature debut in a sort of alternate universe that’s very similar to ours but sitting perhaps a few more minutes in the future. The excellent Dean Imperial (who has a James Gandolfini vibe about him) stars as delivery man Ray Tincelli, whose ailing brother’s mystery ailment forces Ray to join the gig economy. He becomes a “cabler,” one of a growing legion of freelancers who are literally laying cable across miles of rugged terrain for a quantum computing network that will revolutionize the financial markets.

Everything about the company and tech is enigmatic, as are many of the people that Ray meets along the way, and he discovers that the cabling “medallion” or permit he’s purchased may have previously belonged to an unsavory figure. Lapsis uses its subtle sci-fi trappings to tell a tale about real life, with workers fighting for whatever scraps they can get and wealthy oligarchs literally stringing them along. Lapsis is a slow burn, with a final scene that’s a bit of a head-scratcher, but Hutton has crafted a very distinct, pertinent vision. (***½)

Epic Pictures/Shudder

Lucky (USA)

Brea Grant also wrote and stars in Lucky, an allegory about a self-help author named May who is stalked — every night — by a masked killer who she keeps mortally injuring yet who keeps reappearing. Reality itself begins to fracture around her as she confronts events from her past and begins to realize what is happening to her and the other women in her life.

Lucky stretches a bit too much to sustain itself effectively over its relatively brief 80 minutes, but this is still a movie with vision and guts from director Natasha Kermani. Its central metaphor for the unending assaults faced by women every day is an unquestionably powerful one, driven home by an extended third act sequence in a parking garage that’s hard to shake. Shudder will stream it at a date TBA. (***)

Relic Pictures

Minor Premise (USA)

This intimate sci-fi thriller is steeped in neurophilosophy — and be warned, there’s a lot to keep up with here. Sathya Sridharan stars as Ethan, a brilliant young scientist who’s obsessed with living up to his father’s legacy while forging his own path. He creates a device that maps out memories and emotions in the brain, but his attempt to try it on himself shatters his psyche into 10 different emotional states, each surfacing for six minutes per hour.

Ethan and his ex-girlfriend (Paton Ashbrook), an ambitious researcher herself, try to piece his mind back together while avoiding the states of rage and psychosis that emerge once every cycle. The repetitive nature of the film and some stylistic choices by director and co-writer Eric Schultz drag its pacing down, but the two main performances are strong and the concept is fascinating and at times frightening. Minor Premise is ambitious and cerebral, if a little too dense, and still an intriguing trip. (***)

Global Screen

Sleep (Germany)

A woman (Sandra Huller) plagued with mysterious nightmares begins to piece together the visions she’s having, a puzzle that leads her to a secluded hotel in a small, desolate town in the German countryside. Once there, she has a nervous breakdown, landing her in the hospital and leaving her daughter (Gro Swantje Kohlhof) to discover the dark secrets hidden in the hotel and the town.

A feature debut from director Michael Venus, Sleep is assured in its vision and imagery even if it’s derivative of David Lynch and other practitioners of the macabre. The movie moves at a leisurely pace and Venus transitions seamlessly from reality to dream, but there is a sense of ambiguity at the end that leaves one both unsettled and vaguely unsatisfied. (***)

Hood River Entertainment

The Block Island Sound (USA)

The Block Island Sound, the new film from Kevin and Matthew McManus (Cobra Kai), would actually make a good pairing with The Dark and the Wicked in that they are both about families besieged by forces beyond their understanding. In this case, the Lynch family, who live on Block Island off the coast of Rhode Island, seem to be the target of an assault from above — an attack that is also doing macabre things to the local wildlife.

As with Bryan Bertino’s film, the family patriarch is the first to succumb, while his marine biologist daughter (Michaela McManus) and troubled son (Chris Sheffield) must contend with the fallout. The Block Island Sound has great cinematography, sound design and music, but is hampered by uneven acting and a somewhat undercooked script that shows its cards early and doesn’t really go anywhere from there. (**½)

Rivertop

Monster Seafood Wars (Japan)

A light, trifling satire of kaiju flicks, Monster Seafood Wars plays off the idea that the Japanese people are accustomed to having their cities leveled by giant monsters on a regular basis. Thus the latest siege by a giant octopus, squid and crab is business as usual, with restaurants even obtaining chunks of “monster meat” and serving it up in gourmet dishes as the latest culinary craze.

The film also pokes fun at youth culture, with the film’s three main scientists not just somewhere in their early 20s but sharing a romantic conflict as well. The movie’s kaiju costumes and green screen effects are deliberately cheesy and you’re meant to relax and have fun, but the movie labors hard to be truly funny and not just an oddity. (**½)

Trapdoor Pictures

The Mortuary Collection (USA)

“The world is not made of atoms, it is made of stories.” Too bad the stories in this anthology film don’t live up to those opening lines. Writer/director Ryan Spindell clearly loves the old Amicus portmanteau films, Creepshow, Tales from the Crypt and others, but his beautifully shot and handsomely designed tribute rarely comes off as more than a surface homage.

The framing device stars Clancy Brown (The Flash) in heavy prosthetics as a mortician who welcomes a cynical young woman (Caitlin Custer) into his funeral parlor and shares stories about some recent clients. There is some attempt at atmospherics and lots of gore, but the scares are non-existent and the stories just sort of sputter out without the punchy endings often associated with this subgenre. (**½)

Copperheart Entertainment

Come True (USA)

For Come True, writer/director/editor/cinematographer Anthony Scott Burns has come up with some truly eerie dream imagery, but the story he built around it is tedious and incoherent. Sarah (Julia Sarah Stone) desperately craves sleep and participates in a dream study that unleashes…what?

The movie never really fleshes out what is happening, while both its script and characters remain maddeningly vague. Throw in a sketchy love story between the very young Sarah and the lead scientist and it gets even creepier in the wrong ways. A misfire all around that sent us quickly into dreamland. (**)

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