#so hannah has a chance to counter

[booasaur]

Harlan Coben's Shelter - 1x07

[delusionaldaydreamz]

“We’ll figure it out.” | m.s.

W/C- 2,021 | x reader/ y/n

in which Matt finds out his girlfriend is not in fact sick (trigger warning? Idk if you don’t like pregnancy stuff skip over this one lol)

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

       “You’re lame!” I groaned as Matt informed me he had to take the guys to the grocery store to get stuff for their upcoming blind baking video. He chuckled in response, leaning over me in his bed to give me a quick kiss. “It’ll be fast, I promise.” He assured me before disappearing out of his room. I sighed to myself, staring up at his ceiling. Normally I would’ve gone with them, but I haven’t been feeling well lately, so Matt has been trying to nurse me back to health. Damn kids need to get their licenses so he doesn’t need to keep leaving me. 

      While they were gone, I was texting my bestie Hannah, telling her how I still feel like crap and it’s been over a week now. She kept asking me about symptoms and stuff, insisting I might have Covid but I kept assuring her it definitely wasn’t, repeating over and over the differences in my symptoms and Covid symptoms, until she finally stopped telling me to test for it and sent a message to make my heart drop in an entirely different way. 

    Hannah: well if you’re not gonna get a Covid test maybe try a pregnancy test 😂

    I stared down at the screen for a good minute or two just absorbing the message. She’d definitely sent it as a joke, but it made my heart drop in realization. My period. I had been so worked up about getting sick and having to call out of work because I thought I’d be contagious, that I hadn’t even realized my period didn’t come. After a lack of response in a timely manner, she sent another text 

      Hannah: I stfg y/n tell me you guys use condoms right now 

     Me: I mean yeah 

     Hannah: every single time right

     Me: every time..? Like…… every SINGLE time..? 

     Hannah: y/n!!!! I’ll kill you Jesus Christ 

      Hannah: wtf y/n!!! I’m bringing you a test NOW and you’re taking it NOW

     Me: I’m at his house Hannah 

     Hannah: good, make him fucking sit there and take it with you 

     Me: they’re gone 

     Hannah: even better, I will take it with you 

     As much as I’d like to argue with her, there was no chance she wasn’t already on her way to the store to pick up a test. I could feel my palms getting clammy, staring down intently at my stomach, as if maybe if I looked hard enough I’d see something in there. It can’t be. 

      It only took all of 15 minutes for her to text that she was there, lucky ass living right down the street from my boyfriend. “Here, do you want me to stay or do you want to take it alone.” She looked up at me empathetically once I opened the door. “Um-“ I stared down at the pink box she had handed me. “Um- I don’t- I don’t know. I think alone?” I looked up at her, a questioning tone. All I could think to reply was I don’t know I’ve never done this, you tell me. 

       An overwhelming amount of fear ran through my body just staring down at the box alone. “Okay,” she said pulling me into a hug. “You probably just caught COVID or something okay…” she trailed, her tone wasn’t convincing in the slightest. She sounded more like she was trying to convince herself. I stared down at the box, shaking from how bad my nerves had gotten just seeing the test. As I walked back toward Matt’s bathroom, after thanking Hannah of course, I noticed my pace had slowed, like walking slower was going to make the issue disappear. I steadied my breath before ripping open the box, two tests. Should I take both? Do I need to take both? One is enough… 

       I tore the wrapper off, noticing how bad my shaking had gotten as I set the stick down on the counter so I could pull down my pants. I quickly peed on the stick and flipped it around, setting it back on the counter wrapped in toilet paper. I washed my hands a little slower than usual too, spending extra time foaming them up with the soap and a little extra time rinsing it off. I stared down at the toilet paper wrapped pregnancy test the entire time, though. I looked down at my phone, to check how long it had been since peeing on the little white test, but noticed a message from Matt as well which also made my blood run cold in this very moment. I ignored it. Didn’t even open it. I turned my attention back to the wad of toilet paper. 

      With a large inhale, I slowly started wrapping the paper, like it was painful almost. I prepared myself for the worst, expecting the best. I could basically feel all the color drain from my face the second the test peeked back out of the paper, two little lines across it. Two little pink lines. “No..” I said under my breath. I let out a mixture between a scoff and a chuckle, not believing my eyes, even though I kind of expected it the second Hannah made the joke. It just can’t be. No one even knows we’re dating. 

      I didn’t realize I had left the restroom door open slightly until there was a light tap, making me jump as I turned to face Matt. His greeting fell short as his eyes landed on me, his face also draining of color. “No…” he trailed softly, the exact way I had moments before. “It’s not- that’s not- what is that?” I watched his expression as he stared at the test in my hands, his eyes eventually trailing to the wrapper tossed sloppily around the restroom counter, the box ripped open right beside it. “Um-“ I stared, trying to take in exactly what emotion he was feeling, though I couldn’t place it. If I had to guess, the exact same thoughts were running through his mind as mine. “Is it- is it-“ he had started fumbling over his own words. “Positive..?” I trailed, finally making eye contact with him. “No…” he trailed. “I- but we-“ we both stared at each other for a moment. 

       “Take the other one.” He said, shutting the door behind him quietly for some reason. Clearly he wasn’t thinking straight, his brain most likely littered with worries and concerns like mine had been. Somewhere deep in the undertow a certain excitement surged through my veins too. 

      I sighed, obliging as he picked up the positive test I had placed on the counter so I could open the other one. He stared down at it so intently you’d think he was reading a novel. As he leaned against the counter, brows furrowed, his hand going up to his mouth so he could bite at his thumb I realized, that’s exactly why I’m pregnant. God how is he so fucking attractive, even in moments like this? I shook the thought away, not right now y/n, before I peed on the second stick of the night. 

      “Baby?” He spoke ip as he saw me nervously setting down the second one, also wrapped up. I just looked up at him, to see him staring down at me. His expression held love, but it was still full of concern. “You know I love you right?” He started making me nod. “I- we’ll figure it out okay? Let’s just see what that one says. I’m-“ he paused finding words. As I stood to wash my hands, his hands made their way across my waist, chest pressing to my back firmly. “I love you.” He said, kissing my neck. Oh how I wish he wouldn’t do stuff like that at times like this. “I love you too, Matthew.” I said instinctively calling him by his full name, a bad habit I had whenever I was stressed or upset. He hated it, it always held a negative connotation for some reason, but he let out the slightest chuckle as I turned to face him. “You’re really gonna call me Matthew right now?” 

     I liked that he was still trying to keep everything light, he’s always so helpful with bad situations. I chuckled at him, wrapping my arms around his neck to give him a kiss before looking down at the tests, one positive and one waiting to be read. As we both stared down at the tests I felt his grip on my hips tightened a bit. I genuinely couldn’t tell if there was some hint of excitement in him or what he was feeling, other than obviously scared. “You ready?” I looked up at him, grabbing the second test. He shook his head, his hands not moving from their position at my hips. I took in another breath as I started unwrapping the toilet paper around the test. We both saw the two lines at the same time. I glanced up at him briefly, he was just staring down at the test. He quickly ran a hand through his hair, the other even tighter on my hip now. “I- well fuck…” without another thought he was calling out for Nick, making me quickly throw my hand onto his mouth. “What are you doing!?” Whenever he was having issues he’d turn to one of the guys, depending on what type of issues they were would decide which brother got to listen to his tangents. Me personally I liked to keep my problems inside until I just burst. 

       We both heard a loud “what?” From the kitchen, but we both ignored it as we bickered back and forth. “We cannot tell them!” “He’ll know what to do!” “Matt we don’t even know what we’re gonna do!” “That’s why we need to talk to Nick he’ll-“ our hushed tones were abruptly stopped by another, more frustrated “what!?” As the door swung open. Both Matt and I stood frozen staring at Nick. Nick’s attitude faltered immediately as his eyes widened, quickly looking up between Matt and I. “That is notwhat I think it is.” “What are we supposed to do!?” Matt immediately bombarded his triplet brother. “Why are you asking me, Matt? I’ve never gotten a girl pregnant.” Nick said, his typical sarcasm quickly returning. “Dude the fans don’t even know and there’s no way we could hide that.” “Matt we don’t even know what we’re gonna do or if it’s alive or healthy or anything.” I spoke up, setting the test on the counter. “Jesus Christ, why the fuck are you idiots fucking without protection?” Nick shook his head at us. “It was like two times.” “Well it should’ve been zero. I don’t know what you want me to say about this, I think I’m speechless for this one.”

         Matt sighed, clearly feeling defeated by nicks lack of a solution. “Don’t act like this is my problem Matt!” Nick immediately got defensive. “I’m your brother, not your mother or your pregnant girlfriend. You two need to figure it out.” “Thank you.” I narrowed my eyes at Matt as Nick spoke. “At least you’re not actually sick.” Nick put a sarcastically empathetic hand on my shoulder making me roll my eyes at him. “Not the time.” I said, realizing the tension had broken a lot when Nick joined in, surprisingly. Maybe the initial shock was just wearing off the more we realized it was real. Matt sighed as Nick walked out of his bathroom, looking back at me. “Well I guess the first step is to go to a doctor and see how far it is.” Matt said reluctantly. He grabbed my hand, placing a small kiss on the top of it. “Like I said, we’ll figure it out. I love you.” He kissed my forehead now. “I think the tension between us right now might be too obvious if I film with you guys tonight. I should probably sit this one out.” I sighed softly, wrapping my arms around him. “That’s fine, love. Just go to my room and rest okay?” He said causing me to nod against his chest.  •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

a/n- some of yall are weird about the triplets and pregnancy stuff??? Sooo idk how this is gonna go over in this fandom lolol buuuttt this was just a quick little one bc the Matt one I’m writing is taking foreverrrrr sorryyyy

[yourkimjaejin]

Unwelcome Touch

Finally we have Hannah's tour!angst post!! I know it's been awhile but work got hectic but now we've calmed down a bit so I get my head right. We still have Juno's angst left but until then....Happy Reading!! ~ Author Izzy

Warning: I don't really know how to warn for this but the closest I can come up with is non-consensual touch and cornering. If anything like this is triggering for you, that part starts with the words

“Hi Hannah.”

and ends with

“Hannah!! Thank God! I’ve been looking all over for you.”

I'll bold both of these sentences so you can skip that section if you need to. I'll also put a description underneath the post of what happened.

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Hannah could taste the barbecue on her tongue as she walked to The Smoke-Out, a restaurant she found online.

AG had made it to the Dallas stop on their world tour. Sometimes the girls questioned the decision making in their company. This time they got it right. Giving the members the space to rest between cities provided a small chance to recharge and give their best performance for fans in each city. Which Hannah took full advantage of. Her other members tapped out after three full days of exploring. But not our resident Hawaiian. .

The exploring bug has hit her HARD for the entire tour, but can you blame her. Hannah never traveled outside the borders of her hometown.. Now she lives in Korea and travels the world with AG and WayV. It’s only natural that she’d want to see everything she could. Not bad for a girl from the island

After spending her last free day seeing the sights no one else was interested in, Hannah was walking to a fan recommended barbecue restaurant. She ran forward once the neon sign came into view. Touring around the city really works up the appetite. Luckily some of the crowd had died down and the dancer was able to walk right up to the counter and order. 

“What would you like?” 

“Let me get the rib combo and the brisket combo. One with coleslaw and mashed potatoes. The other with mac and cheese and brussel sprouts. Oh! Let me add a one pulled pork sandwich and one pulled chicken sandwich, both with potato wedges. I’m ordering for four.” Hannah laughs a bit. 

“Totally cool. You wouldn’t imagine some of the orders we get from food bloggers. Your total is $74.35 and you can pay with cash or card.” Hannah tapped her card on the scanner. 

“It’ll be about an half hour wait, if that's okay?” The cashier informed her but Hannah waved them off. 

“The best things are worth waiting for. Especially food.” Hannah and the cashier shared a laugh while she moved to the side. While waiting, she took a picture of the restaurant's wall where dozens of awards and memorabilia were hung up. The dancer's phone camera has been working overtime with all the pictures she’s taken.

While scrolling through the pics she took at the Dallas Arboretum Hannah noticed two guys walk in. They didn’t order but one of them locked eyes with her. The look in his eyes sent a small shiver down her spine. 

Hannah wasn’t crazy. She knew how it looked being a woman, alone at night. And that's why she kept her phone in her hand, shuffling closer to the security camera she saw on the wall. From the corner of her eye she could see them talking to each other but pointing in her direction. A part of her hoped they were nervous fans wanting autographs.

A text from Moxy took her attention off them. 

From Momo Unnie: Where R U??? To Momo Unnie: I’m getting bbq!! Suggestion from Czennie From Momo Unnie: HOW DARE!!! To Momo Unnie: You were asleep when I left From Momo Unnie: I could have been tempted by Dallas bbq To Momo Unnie: ….no you wouldn’t

The two members bickered back and forth, distracting Hannah from the sound of footsteps coming closer. 

“Hi Hannah.” A male voice said from way too close. Both of the boys were now crowded around her. The one to her left was blonde while his friend on the right had brunette hair.  Hannah smiled politely but it never reached her eyes. Something about the way they looked gave Hannah the creeps. She could feel their eyes trailing across her body. She put distance between them, disguising the movement by rocking back and forth. 

“Nice to meet you.” She lowered her head, bowing in greeting.

“We’ve been fans for a long time.” The blonde explained while inching closer. 

“Yeah and we’ve always wanted to meet you.” the brunette continued. The smaller of the three shivered, their voices felt slimy and unwelcome. Hannah made herself focus on their body language, cause the last thing she wanted was to piss off the two boys standing between herself and the exit. 

Hannah plastered on a smile, “Oh really! Thank you so much! One of the best parts of being an idol is interacting with fans. Especially ones we don’t get to see that often” Things got quiet after that. Hannah positions herself as far away from them as possible but they keep inching closer. Panic got her heart beat faster. There’s no way she could fight back against two boys who stood a head taller than her, 

But that doesn’t mean she wasn’t gonna try if it got to that. 

“You should hang out with us.” 

“Someone like you shouldn’t be alone. Especially not in a foreign city.” While the brunette got closer, the blonde reached over pushing a strand of hair behind her ear then trailing his finger down her neck to her shoulder. Tugging her shirt to reveal bare skin. Hannah closed her eyes, forcing her body to still. To not flinch away from a foreign touch. 

She flinched anyway when a new female voice took the boys' attention off of her. 

“Hannah!! Thank God! I’ve been looking all over for you.” A girl ran over to the trio. She was dressed in pajama pants with converse and hoodie. Her black hair was pulled into a hasty ponytail. She barged her way between the two boys and hugged the idol. The girl grabbed Hannah’s hand, pulling her away from the creepy boys and closer to the door. 

“Sorry I took so long, I went to the wrong restaurant. Have you been waiting?” The girl gave a subtle nod, hoping the idol got her message.

Some of the panic faded, knowing this kind stranger was trying to help her. Hannah pulled her into another quick embrace, “I didn’t wait long. I must have sent you the wrong location. I….got caught up with these two fans.” Hannah gestured to the boys standing together dumbfounded. 

The newcomer turned to them and bowed in apology, “Sorry for interrupting. You don’t get much hang out time with friends who turned into superstars.” 

“Oh, you weren’t interrupting and I am hardly a superstar!!” Hannah grabbed the hand of her new ‘friend’, grounding herself. 

“Sorry for barging in. Maybe I could take a photo for you guys. As an apology for stealing Hannah away?” Both boys shook their heads and quickly fled the restaurant. Before either could speak the cashier called out Hannah's name. Both girls couldn’t hold eye contact with the other person. They just awkwardly stood there waiting for someone to make a move. Which turned out to be Hannah. The dancer grabbed her food and expected her ‘friend’ to be gone. But there she was waiting at one of the restaurant's tables, trying and failing to look occupied. Hannah and the girls' eyes locked. They both gave a crooked smile. 

The idol made her way over claiming the seat across from the girl. Taking a moment to breathe now that immediate danger was behind them. Hannah took out her phone, texting her manager to pick her up. I think that's enough excitement for one day, she thought. Hannah took in her helper across from the table who was trying, and once again failing, to not look at the idol in awe. The singer discreetly observed the fan while sending the restaurant’s address to her manager. Hannah noticed the cinnamaroll photocard holder with a pc of her face protected inside. 

“I must have a new perfume on because I keep attracting fans tonight.” The girl's hands flew to the holder in an effort to cover it up. Panicked eyes met hers. 

The girl shook her head frantically, “I promise I’m not like those guys back there! I saw you cornered and I barely registered you were…..the Hannah of NCT AG. I just wanted to help.” Her words trailed off at the end, her cheeks turned red in embarrassment. Hannah couldn't hold back a laugh. 

“You don’t have to be embarrassed. Honestly I don’t meet many people who are fans of myself. What’s your name?” 

The girl's blush spread covering her ears, “I’m E-Emerald. Emmy for short. I’ve been a fan for a while now. Especially of you. WayV’s my favorite subunit and you kill every performance I’ve seen.” She could tell Emerald wanted to say more but was holding back. 

It felt good. Seeing someone genuinely happy to meet her. Performing in Korea helped her develop a thick skin. It hurts when you can tell nobodies there for you. But being on this tour reminded Hannah that she was loved. Emerald was living, breathing proof. 

“It’s nice to meet you, Emerald. And I have to thank you for the save back there. Is there anything I can do? Buy you food or something to drink.” The girl shook her head again. 

“It’s what any decent person would do for another. I can’t accept thanks for basic human kindness.” Hannah tried to offer more things but every time Emerald refused. Seeing she was fighting a losing battle, Hannah moved to getting to know the fan in front of her. She asked about her life in Dallas, what her hobbies were, ect. With every question Emmy opened up more. She even asked questions of her own.  Mainly about Hannah’s management of two groups with equally hectic schedules. 

“My best friend, who wasn’t a K-pop fan, changed her mind about NCT after listening to Basically Over You.” Emerald gushed to the idol. 

“You got your friend into NCT because of us?? That’s amazing!! I guess I’ll see you both tomorrow then?” Hannah was mistaken as she watched the other girl's face fall. 

Emerald shook her head, “We couldn’t get tickets. I heard the rumors about an AG tour but nobody could confirm. So I saved up for Dream’s concert. Now that my friend is into NCT we went to look for tickets but it was sold out.” Emerald perked up a bit, “It’s okay. My friend and I are planning a sleep and stalk night. We’re gonna be all over the official hashtag for videos. One of the good things about international fans, everyone posts on their socials.” The conversation got cut off by a honking horn. Outside, Hannah could see two of her managers in the front seats. . 

Knowing her time with her bias was over, Emerald sighed. But Hannah couldn’t just leave her fan with nothing. 

“Could you wait here for a moment?” Hannah grabbed her food and  jogged outside to the van. She climbed into the back seat rummaging around for something.

“Looking for something Hannah-ssi?” 

“Yeah…Where are those extra tickets we keep?” One of the managers opened the glove box, pulling the tickets out. 

“Do you need them for some….thing” He couldn’t even finish his sentence before Hannah snatched the tickets and jogged back inside. Emerald had grabbed her purse when Hannah stopped in front of her. 

“I know you told me that I couldn’t do anything for you but actually….I can.” Hannah watched amused while Emerald stared at the tickets dumbfounded. Her mouth fell open and her eyes wide. They flicked between Hannah and the tickets, unsure of what to do. 

“I hope you know I refuse to take these back to the car. I guess you’ll just have to take them.” Hannah placed the tickets in Emerald's hand with a smile. “Thank you again for your help back there. Enjoy the concert tomorrow! I’ll be looking for you both.” Hannah waved, jogging back to her van and hopping in. Emerald stood in disbelief, eyes moving between the tickets and the door her bias just walked through.

She just got tickets for AG’s concert handed to her……

And she didn’t even say thank you.

The familiar ringtone brought Emerald back to earth. She fumbled around getting her hand on her phone and swiping to answer. 

“Emmy!?!? Where are you? I was at your front door but you didn’t answer. Are you home? We have less than 36 hours to mentally prepare ourselves for the biggest fomo experience of our lives.” Emerald friend, Peri said to a mostly unresponsive Emerald. 

“Emmy? You good?” Peri asked.

“Peri…..Change of plans.” 

“To what?! There is NO WAY I’m missing—”  “YOU'RE NOT MISSING ANYTHING BECAUSE WE'RE GOING!!!!” Emerald interrupted before Peri could get her rant started. It was silent on both ends of the line. Emerald waited for Peri's reaction while her best friend took in what she said.

“We’re going where now?” 

Emerald envisioned the look on her friend's face as she said, “We’re going to see AG. In concert. Live. In Person. A Day from now. We’re going, Riri!””

“Did you just say we're going to the concert?” 

“I have so much to tell you.” Emerald said, smiling in glee.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Summary if you chose to skip: Hannah while waiting in the restaurant is cornered by two male fans who block her from the exit. One begins to touch her without her permission before they are interrupted by another fan, this time female, who sees the interaction, notices that Hannah isn't comfortable and saves Hannah.

[raspberrysmoon]

HATCHETFIELD CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE

POLL TWO; CHOICE NUMBER THREE

the poll will be at the bottom of the written portion. below the cut is the first section of chapter one.

READ THE EXPLANATION BELOW THE OPTIONS

! rbs appreciated for reach :] !

"come on, hannah, we gotta go." lex groans at the sound of ethans voice. grateful as she is that hes willing to take the girl to school, she still needs to sleep in. thats the point of this. ethan presses a kiss to lex's cheekbone, and she swats at him half-heartedly. "sorry, babe."

shes barely back the sleep when her alarm goes off at 7:15. not opening shift, but not afternoon shift either. god, she misses the afternoon shift. she'd give anything for frank to take her off of the early mornings.

she goes through her morning motions in silence. no music, no loud complaints. every so often, her phone buzzes with a message from ethan- an update on hannah or how long he'd be at the shop- but nothing else. lex only sends a thumbs up in response.

the drive is just as silent, and for the first 20 minutes of her shift she only has the quiet store music and the distant sound of franks son to listen to. as much as she hates the kid, he brings in his friends from school, and they spend some money. the more she sells, the better chance she has for a raise.

the next 45 minutes of her shift are spent sitting at the cash register listening to some kids cartoon and scrolling through her phone. nothing of interest, of course, but at least it kept her mind occupied with false pity for dying animals or some kid who wants to go to disneyland. frank is working silently in the larger area of the store. his son giggles loudly every few seconds. she doesn't hate kids. she doesn't. she does hate this kid.

a man sets a stack of boxes on the counter. hes in triple denim- a jacket, vest and jeans- and his hair is slicked back tight to his head. he smiles at her.

"just these?" lex looks him up and down carefully. she can already hear the jingle of the pins on his jacket. he nods, and his smile grows.

"unless you gotta gift for me? a... couple digits in a line?" his voice grates her ears. she blinks, pulling the stack of plush toys towards her. he winks.

~

positive: lex offers the man a challenge.

negative: lex declines the mans advances entirely.

[he-ate-with-the-wrong-people]

Friends with Military Benefits | Prologue | Jake Seresin x Reader

[graphic]

next chapter | masterlist

synopsis: purple hearts!au in which you marry jake “hangman” seresin for insurance… and what seems like a simple scam might turn out not to be so simple after all

warnings: no use of y/n, mention of divorce

 ...

“Hey! Movie star in the corner! Butt over here, stop lollygagging around!”

“You’re trying too hard,” you call back in response, standing nevertheless and stretching before heading over to where your best friend, Lina, is working on setting up the bar before opening. Bending down to open a few cabinets, you yell into the other room, “Hey, Pen, we still on to perform tonight?”

“Depends on how dissatisfied the crowd is with you stopping their music,” your boss shoots back. Savage.

Penny Benjamin, your boss and friend-slash-mentor, was your saving grace. She had hired you around the time she bought the bar, The Hard Deck, a few years ago from some of the money in the settlement of the divorce with her ex-husband, Darren—or as you and your coworkers call him, Darren the Douche. Creative, you’re well aware. Penny was the only reason you weren’t on the streets, giving you a place to put your feet down and start working to pay back the colossal mountain of student loan debt you had acquired over four years of undergrad.

You’ve given up on grad school entirely.

Time flies as you, Lina, and your coworkers Sam, Evan, Hannah, and Cody finish prepping for opening rush. Penny has six of you on staff—everyone one rotates days off, and today, a Monday, is Sawyer’s. Yours is Thursday, so only three days to go.

Soon enough, the bar opens. It’s the hotspot Navy bar in the area, uniforms filling the place as it gets later on into the evening.

“Lina!” Sam hollers suddenly as she hurries to the bar, calling your name as well and snapping you out of the zone. “Penny gave the all-clear.”

You grin, high-fiving the blonde. “Perfect.” Hopping the counter, you wink at your boss as she comes to take your place, prompting her to shake her head in fond exasperation. The jukebox cuts out suddenly, causing groans as everyone looks to where Evan unplugged it while the rest of you head to the piano that doubles as a makeshift stage for your purposes. One night after the bar had closed, on Penny’s night off (Tuesdays), the half-drunken six of you had discovered that you were all musically inclined. That led to the creation of a band; practices were bi-weekly after closing Tuesday and at Hannah’s apartment on Friday before work.

Picking up the mic, you tap it to gain the attention of the bar’s patrons, who quickly grow excited as they realize what’s about to go down. Despite missing a bassist—Sawyer—who doubles with backing vocals, you’re still going to make some music and it’s going to sound good. It’s a sporadic event, so when given the chance, your group grabs it whole-heartedly.

“Hey, everyone, how we doing tonight?” You greet to cheers and whoops as the band begins playing in the background. You grin, waiting the necessary measures before coming in.

Where it began, I can’t begin to knowing

But then I know it’s growing strong

Was in the spring

And spring became the summer

Who’d have believed you’d come along

Hands, touching hands

Reaching out, touching me, touching youuuu

Sweet Caroline!

You pause, holding the mic out to the crowd as they yell, “BUM BUM BUM!” before resuming.

Good times never seemed so good

“SO GOOD! SO GOOD! SO GOOD!”

I’ve been inclined

“BUM BUM BUM!”

To believe they never would

But now I…

The song ends to soon for your liking, and Penny is motioning for you all to wrap it up instead of going into something different. “Thank you! We are Jukebox Replacement!” You say into the mic, to the groans of the crowd at its ending. You chuckle as one holds up a thumbs down. “Dude, that was your request. Anyways, give it up for Penny, the owner, who really meant it when she said only one song! Oh, and please don’t forget to tip your servers, ‘cause—P.S.—we’re also your servers.”

Laughing with your friends, you move back to your paying jobs, the vibrant air from playing remaining for a split second before dissipating as you return to the real world, feeling far less alive than before.

[unitedbydevils]

Match Review: Manchester United Women 2-2 Tottenham Hotspur Women

In what was dubbed a dress rehearsal for the Women's FA Cup Final on May 12th, United and Spurs managed to share the spoils - for now - but there were positive signs for United if they can sharpen up on goal.

Stats are a lovely tool to have, adding flavour to any match report and game analysis, and the stats - as shown below - point out two things: United were the side in control, and United should have won the game.

United's backline were instantly put under pressure in the first 30 seconds but United woke up and got a good footing in the game. Ella Toone came accidentally close in the 9th minute, trying to find Leah Galton at back post, but it was Melvine Malard who opened the scoring with a beautiful header off a millimetre perfect free kick from deep by Gemma Evans; lofted with the utmost precision for Malard to nod over the approaching Spurs keeper Becky Spencer.

Tottenham countered quickly with Naz and Vinberg - a sign of things to come - but were held off, and as quickly as they hit United, United hit back. Pressure onto Neville saw Naalsund pick up a loose ball outside the box, quick pass to Malard, pivot, shot, and then in the scramble between Spencer, Parris and Nilden, a free kick was given against United.

Poor positioning cost United for the equaliser, with a deep Spurs cross cleared out only as far as Spence. A scuffed volley bobbled the ball through to Beth England for an easy tap home past an aghast Mary Earps, but it was Maya Le Tissier - fresh from her contract signing - that stood out of sync with the rest of the defence and failed to play the offside trap. Frustrating.

United's second goal conceded was in similarly silly circumstances; Mary Earps screaming at Aoife Mannion to chase the loose ball, Mannion presuming Mearps has it, and Tottenham's Vinberg strolling in to play the ball into the box. Le Tissier covered well, with Mannion filling her void in CB momentarily, but wizardry from striker Jess Naz spun captain Katie Zelem and fizzed in a shot straight above Mary Earps' head. Poor from the keeper, poor from Zel, and poor from nearby Tooney who could have easily pressured Naz from that close range with a sprint to jostle. Maybe she was worried about giving away a penalty, but someone should have closed Naz down and forced her to choose the wider path towards a waiting Gemma Evans or to back off outside the box. A communication issue no doubt, given no Jayde Riviere or Hannah Blundell starting.

Blundell on for Mannion at half time made sense, and the second half saw more intensity and aggression from United; with far more crossing to pressure the Spurs defence in the air now that Blundell was on. 55th minute subs introduced both Lucia Garcia for Nikita Parris and Rach Williams for Melvine Malard, but the United couldn't quite find the net. Further subs in the 76th saw Miyazawa on for Toone and Geyse on for Galton, but it took a Gemma Evans corner in the 91st minute to find Rach Williams, the bar, bounce back out, and be crashed into by Maya Le Tissier to even the game up and give United a very much deserved point at Leigh Sports Village.

There will be frustration at United's failure to convert the oh-so-many chances in the second half, but the turnaround in United's style was a good sight to see, and on another day (say, the FA Cup final?) maybe several goals went in and this was a comfortable win rather than a consolation point. --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- The disappointment doesn't end there though. Fans will also be concerned at the potential departure of United's tenacious Spaniard Lucia Garcia, whose contract is close to expiring and - based on Instagram - might not be renewed/extended.

And how we will miss her humour, as well as that unquestionable hard work on the field, if she does leave us. Another huge mistake from Manchester United Football Club if so.

Only three games remain in the WSL; Leicester away, Liverpool away, and Chelsea at Old Trafford - before which comes the FA Cup Final at Wembley. It's going to be a difficult few weeks, but the hottest fires produce the strongest steel...

[canyouhearthelight]

The Miys, Ch. 216

Did anyone really think we were going to make it through the holidays without some sort of family gathering?Did you really?  And when @mustachebatschaos has so thoughtfully given me a teenager who has little exposure to Terran foods? Plus @werewolf2578 long ago dreamt up an amazing surrogate uncle for said teenager?

puh-LEEZ!

Poor @baelpenrose, who I put through so much....

The answer, apparently, was deep frying. Or at least that was the answer that Arthur chose for making goulash portable - panne and deep fry large balls of them and serve with more of the tomatoey base for the stew as dipping sauce. Taking the containers from Arthur with a forced grin gave me something to do with my hands, rather than alternating between clenching them and flicking my fingers anxiously.

“You’re doing great, Soph,” he murmured. “Just smile, take the food, and set it somewhere convenient. Don’t dish it up, just find somewhere it won’t fall off the counter.”

I smiled with even more force. “Conor has been telling me and Maverick that every thirty minutes all day. Do you really think it’s working?”

He winked and pushed his glasses up on his nose. “Not a chance. But it’s on the ‘good friend or partner’ checklist. Requirement, I’m afraid.”

“It’s true,” Hannah added, bumping him to the side with her hips. “However, I get the ‘mom friend’ shortcut.”  I opened my mouth to protest, and a cornbread muffin was stuffed in. “I’ll set these down. Farro, help me at least arrange the food where it will make sense to her.”

I attempted to grab the containers back from him, only to be the next victim of Hannah’s gentle bullying. “Nuh uh! Mingle, hug people, let them hug you. I think Maverick needs pets.” She swore and reddened immediately. “You know what I mean.”

Giving up the fight, I took the other half of the corn muffin in one hand and brushed crumbs off my face with the other. Dammit, it was even sweet cornbread. Dirty, dirty cheater.

Maneuvering into the too-small living room, I saw what she meant about Maverick.  While the door was left wide open to the corridor and we’d been careful to stagger invites, there were still enough people sitting on various surfaces that I had to tiptoe and swivel to navigate.  Tucked into one corner was an anxious ball of chatty pilot with dark hair.

And I do mean tucked. His legs were folded underneath him, left arm hugged across his body to hold a drink while the other hand cradled his chin.  His eyes darted around frantically while he spoke with Alice, weight fidgeting constantly to ensure his long limbs weren’t bumping into people.

As quickly as I possibly could, I danced across the room to him. “Hey, Alice. I’m super sorry to interrupt, but I need to borrow Maverick for something in the kitchen.” My right hand threaded through his hair and combed it toward his face where he liked it, almost immediately settling him somewhat.

“Oh, sure,” she replied, tilting her head. “Do you need any help?”

“Kitchen’s tiny, but thank you.” It was true - none of the quarters were intended for so many people, and the kitchen had originally been a second bedroom, refitted once we were under voyage and Miys had realized that cooking was something humans enjoyed in their leisure time.

She just shrugged. “Hokay. Send Hannah this way if you have to kick her out.”

I nodded and helped Maverick to his feet. Pulling him carefully behind me, I managed to negotiate our way back to the kitchen. “Arthur, Hannah, we need the space. Promise not to dish up food.”

Hannah planted her hands on her hips and started to object, but as soon as Arthur turned, he saw what I meant. Firmly, he set a hand on Hannah’s shoulder and shook his head. “I think Maverick will do a better job than either of us at reorganizing everything.  He’ll at least know that cold all goes at one end and hot at the other.”

That gave her the necessary excuse to scowl at him. “Everyone knows that Sophia puts all the toppings with their dishes!”

Using that hand on her shoulder, he steered her and their argument past us. “Only if no one knows what the dish is. And I brought instructions for everything.”

“Alice is looking for you,” I tossed over my shoulder, assuming that the two of them would know that I meant Hannah. Tugging his hand, I pulled Maverick into the kitchen behind me before tucking myself out of the way into the corner. “Go for it.”

Frazzled, he glanced around and shoved his hands through his hair. “Go for what?”

“Putting the food where it should be most convenient or logical.” I waved one hand at everything. “They were trying to do it for us, but I don’t think anyone has figured out that you’re the one who stages everything, not me. And we both know you’re about to come out of your skin if you don’t find something productive to do.”

It took a couple hard blinks, but he finally saw what I was talking about. “Why… why are there four bowls of sour cream?”

“For the goulash balls, the birria tacos, the latkes - no, I don’t know who brought those, but they are amazing - and I think a general ‘for whatever’ bowl.”

“Oh gods.”

“Mmm hmm. I’ll stand here and tell you what everything is if you have questions.”

“Like why are there chutneys?”

“Those go with the steamed buns. They’re curry-filled. From Xio.”

A quick movement on his part, and a nod. “Doowee noh-ded.” More nodding. “Lamb? She usually does chicken.”

I chuckled. “Special occasion, apparently.”

“Not arguing.”

With that, we quietly worked through arranging everything.  As the minutes passed, I could almost measure how quickly Maverick’s anxiety settled.

“Sophia?”

Turning, I saw Parvati leaning against the entryway, a slight mocking smile on her face. “Hey. I know, I know… Hannah already got onto me…”

She shook her head and grabbed my elbow. “Mav, you got it from here?”

“I got it,” he confirmed. “Sophia, if you need to go, it’s okay. I’ll pull a chair up closer to the kitchen so I can keep everything sorted. And thank you. You were right.”

“Babe…” My voice was soft. “I don’t need to be right. I just need you to feel comfortable.”

He paused long enough to turn his head and give me a genuine smile. “I love you. Now, go find Conor and love on him, too.”

“Love you, too.” A part of me hated that I blushed when he said it, but the majority of me beat that part into submission and told it to shut the fuck up. “And will do.” Turning back to Parvati, I nodded. “Okay, let’s do this.”

“Thank fuck,” Parvati muttered. “We need a translator.”

What the what? “Vati, we have them installed in our heads?”

“You speak teenager.”

“I speak - oh.” Vati didn’t need to tug on my arm to get me to keep up anymore. I was right behind her, walking suddenly made much easier by the number of people standing to make room.

There, just inside the door to my quarters, was a very confused Teeth, no Charly, Coffey, or Nixe in sight, carrying a damp basket. They looked on the verge of either lashing out or crying by the time they saw me. “Sophia! I did the thing! I brought nourishment to share! What did I do wrong?”

Every atom in the universe would cease to exist before the time came when I would tell an upset teenager that whatever they were so proud of smelled absolutely rancid. Instead, I firmly swallowed my stomach into submission and forced myself to step closer. “What did you bring?”

Whatever Teeth said had no translation known to either human or Hujylsogox. Instead, I was treated to an unearthly screech of vowels and grinding noises. With a flourish, the lid was removed from the basket to reveal a genuinely incredible number of small crabs.

Exactly none of which were moving.

“Oh! Those look like crabs… Are they supposed to be moving?”

“We usually eat them raw, yes,” Teeth confirmed. “But I have been taught that humans do not eat living meat.”

I rolled my eyes towards the ceiling and nodded. The logic at least tracked… “So these are dead?”

“Yes.” They wrinkled their nose. “They usually do not smell like this, but many meats humans eat do not smell nice before they are cooked, I have been told.”

Hooooo boy, thank fuck. “You were trying to surprise everyone, weren’t you?”

Teeth grinned widely. “Yes! I did not tell Charly or Nixe.”

“I’m actually impressed,” I admitted. “You did a good job hiding the surprise.  Let’s step out into the corridor real quick, okay?”

They followed me and actually looked relieved when I asked someone to turn on the scrubbers before closing the door. “So, the - “

“Not-crabs,” they offered.

“Not-crabs,” I agreed. “In this case, I think we have a misunderstanding. And that’s definitely not your fault. Your logic makes sense.”

“I am pleased that humans do not eat food that smells like this,” Teeth rushed to say. “Please tell me where to dispose of them. They are foul.”

“Yeah they are,” I chuckled, relieved that Teeth was aware of the issue. “There should be a disposal unit this way.” I turned and started walking briskly.

After a few feet, Teeth broke the silence. “There is something similar in Terran food.” It wasn’t a question; they stated it as a fact. “You recognized that they should not be dead.”

“Crabs,” I confirmed. “There are a lot of Terrans that eat seafood and shellfish. Crabs are one of those.” After a glance, I lowered my voice and confided quietly, “Some we avoid eating around you, because they look like Ix’al and Brol.”

“Ah.”

“Also, we have to either cook the crabs alive, or eat them immediately after killing them.” I gestured at the basket. “That’s why everyone reacted the way they did to the smell.”

We reached the disposal unit, and Teeth dumped their parcel - basket and all - in. A whiff of their hands made their nose wrinkle, but the source of the stench was at least gone. “Is this a religious practice? Like eating the pigs?”

I laughed. “For some people, I imagine they can’t eat crabs for the same reason they can’t eat pork, yeah. But for shellfish in general, it’s biological. The meat spoils very quickly and can make us dangerously sick. So,” I took a deep breath, “we cook them alive or immediately after killing them.”

A knowing nod was their response. “We simply ate them alive on the S’crirs.”

“As small as those were, that makes sense.” I held my hands about ten inches apart. “Terran crabs are about this big usually, from what I understand. Or bigger.”

“Bigger?” A glance showed me that Teeth’s eyes were skeptical.

“Spider crabs,” I confirmed. “Their legs, stretched out, are about as wide as Miys can be tall. Those are the biggest, but none of them are sentient.” I paused, and lowered my voice again. “After meeting your parents, we asked Miys. Just to be sure.”

“I am still trying to understand that humans have had to ask more than once if a food-species was sentient.”

“Unfortunately. Hell, I still can’t eat mushrooms.”

Teeth stopped in their tracks for a moment. “Humans are truly terrifying.”

“Sometimes.”

<<Prev       Masterlist     Next>>

[sideofcalimary]

Break Up, Make up, Heroes

Spiderman and Deadpool stand next to each other, looking at the man that was webbed to a chair in his own home. The events that led them to this situation was a thrilling little mystery as they take on one of Deadpool's more tame and less violent jobs.

Spiderman: We're not going to hurt you-

Deadpool: Unfortunately

Spiderman: We just wanna know where Hannah is

The man in the chair, who was unfortunately named Kevin, shook his head: I don't know what you're talking about! Get out of my house! Deadpool: Lyin isn't gonna get you anywhere, limp dick. Just tell us where she is and we won't cut your hand off

Spiderman: We're not doing that at all

Deadpool: He won't do it but I will Spiderman groans in frustration and gets in front of Deadpool, kneeling down so he could be eye level with Kevin: Just answer us and we'll leave. We can put this behind us

Kevin: Fuck off you spandex wearing freaks! I don't know anything! Spiderman: The longer you lie to us the longer this is gonna drag out. Just tell us where Hannah is

Kevin: I'm not talking to either of you psychos! You call yourselves heroes but you're nothing but good for nothing villa- Deadpool marches over with his gun pointed at Kevin's forehead: I will shoot your fucking CAT

Spiderman: ...

Kevin freezes up at the weapon and stares at it in fear: I-I don't. I don't know w-what that means... I don't- I don't have a cat.. Deadpool: Then who's catbed did I piss on?

Spiderman: ...

Kevin: ...

Deadpool cocks back his gun and aims: Anyways. Tell us where Hannah is or I'll shoot your balls . . .

Rody: So I'm guessing it didn't go so well?

Deadpool: Fuck off, we found the girl and let the police take the scumbags

Rody: and yet you look like a kicked puppy even with a mask on

Deadpool glares at the man behind the counter as he's handed an envelop Deadpool: Mind your own fucking business

Rody: Aaw Did your SpideyBoo scold you again~

Deadpool: FUCK OFF, RACOON ANKLES!

Rody: HAH He did! HAHAHAHA No wonder he didn't come here to collect the money himself!

Deadpool mutters: Says he doesn't want it... Rody snorts and stops his laughter: Seriously? All that and he's just gonna walk away empty handed?

Deadpool: He doesn't do it for the money, you know this

Rody: Can't expect me to trust his word when I've only met him once. Could be lying

Deadpool: he's not

Rody: And how do you know?

Deadpool: ... Shut up I just do

Deadpool tosses the envelope back at Rody and gets up: And give this back. I don't need it anyways

Rody: Going soft, aren't we, Mr. Pool?

Deadpool: Fuck off

-

-

-

Spiderman has been ignoring Deadpool for a week now. He was angry. Upset. Absolutely disappointed and he wasn't sure how much more patients he has for his supposed 'Hero Partner' if he keeps going against his word.

Not to mention how difficult it was to ignore him at all

Deadpool: SpiderBabe I know you can hear me

Oh Spiderman could hear him alright, as well as the boombox he was holding over his head that played 'Careless Whisper'

Deadpool: I said I was sorry! Can't be work through this? Spiderman rubs his temples as he sits on the roof of a building, facing away from where Deadpool was disturbing traffic with his antics by standing on a stop light

Deadpool: I can change, baby! I can be better! Weren't you the one who always told me to give second chances? Spiderman groans: He's impossible...

Shoto's voice spoke through the ear piece behind his mask: He seems pretty reasonable from what I can hear

Spiderman: You're supposed to be on my side

Shoto: We never agreed on that

Spiderman: He's making fun of me Shoto: Pretty sure he's recreating 'Say Anything'

Spiderman: I can hear that

Deadpool: I'M NEVER GONNA KILL AGAIN! GUILTY HANDS HAVE SHOT THEIR BULLETS!

Shoto: I wish I didn't. He's not a very good singer

Spiderman: I should stop him Shoto: You should do it soon before he tries to recreate the saxophone solo

• • •

Deadpool: Spi-

Spiderman shot his web directly at Deadpool's face where his mouth would be. Though in effective to actually shut him up, he got his point across

Spiderman: No. You sit down and you listen- And stop playing careless whisper! Deadpool raised his hand sup in defense before turning off his boombox, walking backwards until he hit the edge of the roof and sat down. His voice was muffled by the webs on his mask: You want me to call you Master too?

Spiderman takes a deep breath and turns away Shoto: If you asked, you could probably make him bark

Spiderman muttering to himself: I regret introducing you to Shinso...

Spiderman turns off his communicator and takes off his hood, looking over at Deadpool who sat there fiddling with something Spiderman: Deadpool-

Deadpool: I'm sorry

Spiderman: Dead-

Deadpool pulls off the webs: No I really am. I know I talk a lot of shit and act on impulse but I mean it when say I didn't mean to betray your trust

Spiderman crosses his arms Deadpool: I know this is gonna sound unbelievable but I didn't mean to kill them. I was in a tough situation and my instincts kicked into high gear. Before I knew it we were falling and SPLAT!

Spiderman: ... Deadpool: I mean, stealing from an orphanage and threatening children deserves a lot more then jail time

Spiderman: ...

Deadpool: And I know I know, I have no right to say who gets to live or die, but I promise I'm trying this whole hero thing for real Spiderman: And what makes you think I'll believe you this time?

Deadpool was quiet, for a moment. Contemplating his answer: Because you love me..?

Spiderman: I'm leaving

Deadpool got him and grabs Spiderman's arm as he turned away: WAIT WAIT Spiderman: Why should I? I've been so patient with you, Deadpool. I know you're not a bad person, despite what you've done. But it's getting harder to trust you when you keep going behind my back like this

Deadpool: I know! I fucked up! I get that but I have a good reason now Spiderman: And what's that? And I swear if you say my ass I will web you by your balls

Deadpool stops himself from making a joke and reaches into one of his pockets. He pulls out a folded up piece of paper. Spiderman takes it confused Deadpool: You told me I was your hero. I wanted to keep being your hero by fighting with you to help people. I thought you'd be the only one to see good in me

Spiderman unfolds the paper and stares at the childish drawing of Deadpool holding hands with a child

Wobbly words written in crayon wrote "My Hero!"

Deadpool: Apparently someone else sees it too

Spiderman looks up to see his hero partner staring down at him. He seemed to have a soft expression despite the mask Deadpool: I never knew how it felt to be seen as more than just dangerous mercenary. But fuck it feels... nice. I wanna help more people like this kid. I wanna win for them so they don't have to suffer Spiderman takes a deep breath and leans forward, resting his forehead against his chest: Damn it. I can't believe your hero arc is actually appealing to me

Deadpool chuckles and raises his arms up wrap around his waist: Does that mean I'm forgiven? Spiderman: Kinda. I'm still upset with you and I still wanna throw you across the city-

Deadpool: Hot

Spiderman punches his gut lightly: But I think I can trust you again. Besides, it's getting boring fighting alone without hearing your obnoxious voice. Deadpool pulls Spiderman closer: Aw~ You missed me~

Spiderman rolls his head behind his mask and decides to play along. He looks up, tilting his head innocently: And what if I did? Can't blame me for missing /My hero/

Deadpool feels heart skyrocket at those words Spiderman laughs at the obvious flustered state of his companion and pushes himself away, tucking the paper into Deadpool's collar before he goes

Spiderman: I'll see you next time, Hero~

Spiderman winks and swings away into the light, leaving Deadpool on the roof Spiderman taps his communicator on: Hey Frosty. Updates?

Shoto: Suspicious activity down on main street. Updates on the Orange Wonder?

Spiderman: It was fine. We worked things out. I think things have calmed down a bit . . .

Denki: Dude can I have my boombox back

Katsuki hands the boombox over, an unreadable expression his his face as he walks to his room: Thanks, Denki

Mina whips her head around from the couch surprised: oohh someone's in a good mood~ Katsuki: Fuck off

Katsuki disappears into his room, leaving Denki and Mina to look at each other before rushing to the door. Both pressed their ears against it to listen in on their friend

Eijiro comes over with a bowl of chips: Whatcha doing? Both Mina and Denki placed their fingers against their lips and, despite how unmanly it was, Eijiro couldn't help but lean over as well to listen in.

Katsuki's voice was muffled behind the door: Fuck... Fuck ah fuck shit fuck... Spiderman... fuck Immediately all three friends moved back to the couch as far away from Katsuki's room as possible. they didn't need to hear any of that during movie night!

Inside his room though, Katsuki continues to pace around his room, a wide happy grin on his face. He's never felt so happy before in his entire life and had no clue how react to it. He jus started walking around cursing and holding his chest, unable to stop the beating of his heart as he replays that scene over and over in his head. He couldn't help but imagine what would've happened if he pulled up both their masks and smashed their lips together. The thought of kissing his first love made him giddy inside

/Gross/

Katsuki: You're gonna kill me like this, Spidey...

[storyshark2005]

Fic Excerpt - Dinner at the Wellers (from Part IV of 'Been and Gone'

["Shades of Blue" - a little excerpt from Part IV! Liam and Noel have gone over to Paul and Hannah Weller's for dinner. Enjoy, hopefully you'll have the full thing soon! &lt;;3]

When they get back to the kitchen, JP and Bowie have Liam cornered at the breakfast bar, both boys holding out a matching set of assault-style Nerf guns. Noel wanders over, dropping down into the seat nearest Liam. Weller slips around the counter to press a kiss to Hannah’s cheek, muttering something low in her ear that makes her smile as she’s stirring a fresh pitcher of virgin Moscow Mules.

Noel turns back to the kids.

“The banana clip only holds 10 darts,” Bowie’s explaining, wiping his nose with the back of his hand. “But you can put extra in the back.”

“And they’re modular--” JP interrupts. “Mine’s set up like a sniper rifle, but you can make it like a blaster, or like a machine gun-- see?!”

“Oh right,” Noel tries to look interested.

“That’s why it’s called ‘the Modulus’-- it means ‘customizable’, you can change all the parts around--”

“The stock is shit though, it’s really flimsy. But the action’s good--” 

“How far can it shoot?” Liam asks curiously.

“Like seventy-five feet!” 

“We measured!”

“We had to go to the park to do it. We don’t have enough room in the garden.”

“It was pretty windy, though. So the wind might’ve carried it.”

“It wasn’t that windy--”

“We made targets! D’you want to try it?” 

“Right, both of you fuck off now--” Weller cuts in, pulling his arms away from Hannah. “Your Mum’s almost got dinner ready, so go and clean up the patio. I don’t want to be stepping all over your darts and action figures-- and ask her what needs carried outside--”

“Can we eat outside, too?” Bowie rests his gun over one shoulder.

“No. You pick out a movie with your sister. Best decide that now, or I’ll pick for you.”

“But we want to eat with Uncle Liam!” JP whines. 

Bowie nods, wrinkling his nose. “And Nova’ll just pick Frozen, again.” 

“Not a chance. Now put those fucking guns away, clean up and make yourselves scarce. You can entertain yourselves for a couple of hours.”

The boys trudge off towards the staircase, assault rifles thumping dejectedly against their knees.

Hannah lets out a long sigh, setting down a couple of spritzy mules in copper mugs. “I never wanted to encourage any sort of infatuation with guns or violence, but all their friends had them, and eventually they just wore me down!” 

“My nephews ‘ave got some mad little shooters like that. It’s like fucking Scarface, everytime I go over there.”

“Oh, Sonny and Donovan?” Hannah brightens, slipping on a pair of oven mitts. “They’re both such lovely boys. We had Sonny over for a playdate, once!”

“Nah, Debbie’s sister’s kids. Not met his just yet.”

“Oh!” Hannah pops up and blows a piece of hair from her face. She’s holding a casserole dish straight from the oven. She slides the dish onto the hob. “Right-- oh, Nova darling, Liam’s not a jungle gym--” 

Nova’s come up to Liam’s chair with a colouring book in one hand, and she starts clamouring up to crawl into his lap. She’s tiny, and she’s got all kinds of sparkly little barrettes clipped into her bright blonde hair. Anais used to love all that girly-girl stuff.

“She’s alright.” Liam helps her up, and Noel has to move his drink out of the way of her colouring book. “You got markers or summat, darling?”

“Oh she’s left them in the living room-- Paul love, can you get Nova’s pencils? They’re over there on the coffee table-- thanks darling.” 

Weller goes off and comes back with a clear, glittery little plastic case. He drops it on the breakfast bar, pressing a kiss to his daughter’s temple. 

“D’you want me to-- d’you want her back?” Liam makes an aborted motion, hands hovering as if to pluck her up. 

Paul shakes his head and settles into the chair next to Noel, watching the pair of them. “She likes you. Don’t normally warm up to strangers so fast.” 

“All kids like Liam.” Noel bumps his shoulder into Liam’s. “Don’t they, our kid?” 

Liam shrugs, not really looking at Weller; instead watching Nova zip open her pencil case, spilling the assortment of colours all over the counter.

“You can colour too, if you want,” Nova suddenly pipes in a soft, sweet little voice.

Hannah slips off her oven mitts, regarding the little scene from across the counter. “That’s very nice of you to share with Uncle Liam, darling.” 

Liam’s eyes flick up to Hannah, wide and uncertain for a moment, still with that same bruised quality of before. Noel can see everything, every doubt. God, Liam really should’ve worn sunglasses. 

“Go on then,” Hannah nods, smiling all warm and encouraging. 

“Which colour d’you want?” Nova twists around to look up at Liam. “I’ve got lots.”

“Erm,” Liam looks from the little girl in his lap to the pile of pencils. “Not sure. I like blue.” 

“These are all blue.” Nova gathers a little handful of Turquoise, Indigo, Navy, Robin’s Egg, Cornflower, Cerulean, and Baby blue. 

“What d’you reckon?” he asks gently.

She studies the pencils carefully before selecting one. “I like this one best. It’s good for sky.”

“Ta much,” he says, and takes the pencil. 

Nova points to the page, and Liam sets to work; filling a black and white world with lovely, beautiful colour.

[anoseforrottenapples]

@timeguardians​ (Nancy Drew)

Continued from HERE

Nancy is rough this morning—when she is too exhausted and distracted to reply to Troy’s observations with anything better than a ‘huh’, Troy knows it is time for some kind of intervention. Nancy needs help before she passes out face first in her dinner. It takes her a full minute to gather her thoughts, admitting that Frank Hardy is the source of her insomnia. Before Troy can do more than smirk, Nancy quickly defends herself against any accusation of romantic fondness for Frank. She is the only one who cannot see her crush on the other young detective, or at least she refuses to see it. The young detective is too exhausted right now for Tryo to needle her. He would only feel bad doing so, kind of like if he went and kicked Lance. Teasing Nancy will have to wait until she feels better.

“Okay, I’ll bite.” Troy takes another sip of his tea as Nancy suggests that he will be able to help her. “What non-romantic thing did Frank tell you that has you staying up all night? If it was romantic, I reckon insomnia makes sense, but non-romantic means it was probably something weird… or some crazy idea his brother dreamt up.” Between the Hardy Brothers, Frank is every bit the ‘older brother’, and takes his responsibilities seriously. Joe is more laid back about everything, and focuses more on having a good time, and flirting with girls’ then on some of his cases. Nancy and Joe both leave the worrying to Frank because he is so good at it. Taking another sip of tea, Troy grimaces and glances down at the sediment settling to the bottom of the cup. That is what he gets for buying cheap teabags, he supposes. He looks up at Nancy as she admits she wants to test out a theory, but is reluctant to go alone… likely because she can barely stand from sheer exhaustion. She certainly cannot drive in her current state. “Of course, he can’t just go through a solid stone wall!” Troy quickly affirms, maybe a touch too quickly as he does keep a slightly open mind to the paranormal. It used to drive Barnaby a bit crazy—hence he has learned it is best not to mention it more then he needs too. “But… how do you plan on trying to find hidden doors? You can barely see straight.” Though Troy is not going to admit to it too quickly, reluctant to give Nancy any kind of satisfaction in that department, he has to personally confess that he is interested in her case. The stakes are quite a bit lower than what he is used to dealing with—but helping with frightened tourists who have had their purses snatched is a nice change of pace from murders. As a DS he would have dismissed such a case as being a waste of his time, and passed it on to uniform if he could. As a mere legal assistant (really over glorified babysitter to the strawberry blonde in front of him) he will accept any task that might get him out of the office and back in the field for a few hours. Setting his cup of tea down on the counter, he gestures at Nancy. “First you got to eat. Hannah left breakfast for you before she went to the store. You explain Frank’s idea, and the theory you got for it while I find the plate she set up.” Hannah is like a mother to Nancy, fussing over her every chance that she gets. When she cannot fret in person, she always passes careful instructions onto Troy for what she wants done. While he cannot say he fulfills her requests with the same maternal vigor that Hannah puts into them, he is confident that he obeys the letter of Hannah’s orders at least, even if he cannot capture the spirit in them.

[blueteller]

TCF Summary Arc by Arc (Part 5/8)

Every TCF story arc in a nutshell

Volume 5: chapters 400-499

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Empire Strikes Back (and fails) [Enemy Beckrock wants to fight!] Beckrock: I invented a way to combine mana and dead mana, thanks to my tragic backstory! Rosalyn: I don't need a tragic backstory to defeat you. Becrock: Ha! Is that so, you spoiled princess? What exactly do you have that I don't? Rosalyn: Money Becrock: Wait wha- Cale: *hands Rosalyn a ton of magic stones* Rosalyn: BEHOLD THE POWER OF BEING RICH AND HEALTHY FAMILY DYNAMICS, B****! Becrock: *gets wrecked* [Enemy Becrock Got Captured!] *Cale & Co. blow up and/or destroy things counter: 26*

Lion King (and the reverse Mufasa) Bud: *video-calling* Cale! All of the enemies went to the North! Cale: Ok let's go then Dorph: *politely* Let's all fight fair and square, shall we? Also Dorph: *throws his own people into a pit of dead mana* I apologize for my subordinate's bad manners Cale: (WTF's with this crazy bastard??) Jack: *heals* Hannah: *charges* Cale: Ok, time for MY money power up Dorph: Wait wha- Cale: *burns magic stones* Also Cale: *burns the dead mana pit* Raon: Human, Goldie Gramps says Choi Han woke up crying and yelling "Kim Rok Soo" for some reason! He's on his way! Cale: … Cale: (Well f***) Dorph: Let's fight, Cale Henitu-! Choi Han: *shows up having received Choi Jun Soo's power and memories* Hi Cale-nim, I mean Kim Rok Soo. What do I call the best friend of my nephew, anyway? Cale: (…S***. Is Choi Han going to beat me up now??) Dorph: Wait, I was in the middle of- Choi Han: You craving some Korean food, bro? Cale: …of course I am, bro? Choi Han: Great. Anyway, are you- Dorph: Excuse me- Choi Han: Are you happ- Dorph: But- Choi Han: SHUT THE F*** UP *goes on a war path* Cale: *relieved* (...at least it's not me) Raon: Human, what were you two talking about? Cale: …Raincheck Dorph: Khahaha! We shall kill you with the golems, then! Cale: *Mokuton-no-jutsus the tress to trap the golems* Dorph: (…well s***) Mary and the Dark Elves: *show up* Dorph: (Oh f***!) Mary and the Dark Elves: *absorb the rest of the dead mana* Dorph: It's not over! We can use the ✨Power of Friendship✨ too! …also we got airships Cale's group: Wait what [A Wild Bear Person Appears!] Dorph: He controls the light, and I control the dark! Sayeru: Together, we're Pokemon Black and White! Cale's group: Our ✨Power of Friendship✨ is more powerful than yours! Dorph & Sayeru: NANI??? Cale's group: *goes back to protect the capital* Cale: It's just me, Choi Han and Raon versus the Lion and the Bear then *Basically Even Fight Ensues* [You got away safely!] *Cale coughs blood and/or faints counter: 17* *Cale & Co. blow up and/or destroy things counter: 27*

Hello From The Other Side Lee Soo Hyuk: Hey Kim Rok Soo, or should I say Cale Henituse Cale: …Am I dreaming? Lee Soo Hyuk: Ruining all your chances at slacker life as usual, I see Cale: Never-mind. You're definitely the real Team Leader Lee Soo Hyuk: So Choi Han got a power-up from Choi Jung Soo, and now you get a power-up from me Cale: …that motherf***ing God of Death Lee Soo Hyuk: Yup. He's a total motherf***er Cale: Ok, so gimme the power Lee Soo Hyuk: Not so fast, punk. First you gotta promise me you'll be a farmer Cale: WHY Lee Soo Hyuk: Because otherwise you'll only keep getting into trouble, that's why Cale: Dammit, good point Lee Soo Hyuk: Also, me dying is not your fault Cale: Agreed Lee Soo Hyuk: BTW, Choi Jung Soo and OG Cale are both happy Cale: *wakes up* Raon: Human! You're awa- Cale: *starts crying from happiness and relief* Everybody: GASP! Cale: …Why am I crying? I'm not sad *tries to smile* Also Cale: *collectively breaks the hearts of all his friends and the fandom* Everybody: *shook*

Secrets Shared At Long Last Jack: So we destroyed all the Alchemist Towers and looted everything. Cale: Great. We'll go to the North next Choi Han: Ok, but first we gotta talk. Cale: *bows* Hello, Senior Who Is So Much Older Than Me, This One is Kim Rok Soo, Choi Jung Soo's Friend Choi Han: …that's just awkward, please stop Raon: So what is going on, human? Cale: I'm from another world, and so is Choi Han. It's a secret. Raon: *unfazed* Okay! Cale: Now, time to set up some Brazilian telenovela level of drama

Ready, Set, Action! White Star & Sayeru: The Whale Tribe is acting very sus… Is it about the Earth Attribute power?? Witira: *confident* I shall kill you, White Star! Clopeh: *dramatic* I shall obtain the treasure that the Whales are hiding and become a legend! Witira: Gasp! Sir Clopeh, you're betraying us?? Clopeh: Indeed I am!! *Whales and Wyverns suddenly fighting each other* White Star & Sayeru: (WTF???) Shickler: *coughs fake blood* Paseton: *with the fake Korean ancient text in his pocket* Father, are you okay?! White Star & Sayeru: Look, they have the ancient text!! *steal it* Cale: *in hiding* Just according to keikaku Raon: See, Choi Han? This is how the experts do it! Choi Han: *nods along* What did you write on that paper, anyway? Cale: I wrote what Raon told me to Choi Han: …? Raon: "White Star, you stupid idiot! We tricked you!" Choi Han: Lol Clopeh: Now we shall spread the rumor that we defended the North from the evil White Star! Witira: (…that's the exact opposite of what happened, tho??)

Alberu Gets His Revenge Cale: *returns to the Henituse Territory* Ah, home sweet h- Cale: …Your highness what are you doing here Alberu: Ok so the nobles want to keep you and your people under control so you don't get any more political power Cale: Well f*** them. We don't want that anyway. Alberu: I gotta give you guys positions without political power then. So Choi Han will be my instructor Cale: Huh, ok Alberu: And you will be my sworn brother Cale: Sure- wait what Alberu: What, you don't wanna be my Dongsaeng? *sad eyes* Cale: (…why am I getting chills all of a sudden?) Alberu: *livestreaming* I shall now announce rewards for the heroes who helped us win the war! Nothing at all shocking or upsetting will happen! …BTW Choi Han is my instructor now Nobles: Wait, wha- Alberu: Oh, and Cale is my sworn brother. Won't you call me Hyung out loud, my dear Dongsaeng? Cale: … Cale: …sure, Hyung Nobles: (…WTF?!) Alberu: So Cale Henituse and his people all declined government positions- Nobles: (Good!) Alberu: -not to set a bad example, however… Nobles: (…why do I hear boss music?) Alberu: …I decided to promote the Henituses from a County to a Duchy Nobles: (F***!!!) Cale: *doesn't care at all* (IGNORE.) Basen: (Poor innocent Hyung... He doesn't realize just screwed over his "peaceful life" is)

Scammer VS Illusionist Valentino: The White Star is going to show up here in the Caro Kingdom? Cale: Yes, and we'd like for you to stand back and not interfere, please Valentino: …This makes me very anxious, but alright Cale: (…I'm sure this won't bite us all in the a** later) Cale: Ok, so- *Sudden earthquakes and fire going off* Caro Kingdom: *panic* Cale: …what the-? Wind Elementals: That fire is fake! It's all an illusion! Cale: …so there's an illusionist in the Dubori Territory, huh Raon: Human, they used some really strong mana disturbance devices! I can't enter Cale: (Well f***) Cale & Choi Han: *sneak in* Sayeru & Elisneh: Fools! We knew you would use that way! We lured you in on purpose! Cale: Fools. I knew you knew we would use that way, and we did it on purpose Sayeru & Elisneh: NANI??? Elisneh: Well, how would you like fighting innocent civilians caught in my illusion! And I shall trap Choi Han in one as well! Choi Han: *falls under illusion of being trapped in the Forest of Darkness for the first time* Elisneh: Ha! That illusion is so powerful, it won't break even if you kill me-! Choi Han: *snaps out of it using Protagonist Willpower* Elisneh: Wait wha- Choi Han: *destroys her medium* [Enemy Elisneh Fled the Battle!] *Cale & Co. blow up and/or destroy things counter: 28*

Dis-Arming the White Star White Star: *shows up* Cale's group: *gang up on the White Star* Sayeru: *loses an arm* White Star: *also loses an arm* Cale: Damn it. I was aiming for the right one. …Oh well Arm: *video-calling to White Star* My liege! Assassins and mercenaries are destroying our secret base!! Ron and Beacrox: *casually reclaiming their house on another continent* We gotta clean up this mess before Young Master Cale shows up Cale: *smug* …NOW he's down three arms Valentino: *freaks out over everything going on* *Cale coughs blood and/or faints counter: 18* *Cale & Co. blow up and/or destroy things counter: 29*

Unlocking: Dragon Half-Blood's Backstory! Dragon Half-Blood: Ok, so this is where the second Arm base is located Dorph: You traitor! How dare you betray your own father! Dragon Half-Blood: *having been experimented on and locked up in a basement for 900 years by the White Star* …are you f***ing serious?? Dorph: Obviously, you betrayed us because you share blood with the Black Dragon! Dragon Half-Blood: …Wait, what Cale: (WTF???) Cale: Ok listen, you can't die before we unlock that backstory, got it?! Dragon Half-Blod: S-sure? Cale's group: *destroys everything* White Star's group: *shows up* Cale's group: Later suckers! *teleports away* Cale: Alright so WTF is your deal, man Dragon Half-Blood: So the heart of the baby dragon from the red egg was shoved into my chest, and the White Star wanted me to eat the black egg too. So I threw it away Cale: Threw it away? Dragon Half-Blood: I gave it to Redika and told him to hide it somewhere with comfort and protection spells all over the place Cale: …you mean you protected it Dragon Half-Blood: Don't be absurd. Clearly I just threw it away, because I'm not a good person Cale: (This oblivious idiot…!) Cale: Ok so I don't like you at all, but you can't die now. So keep on living as long as you can Dragon Half-Blood: …you're a really good person Cale: Don't be absurd *Cale & Co. blow up and/or destroy things counter: 30*

Stealing the Earth Attribute Cale: Hello, my name is Bob and I'd like to climb this dangerous mountain Bobe: Sir, no way! I sympathize over our similar names, but you will definitely die! Cale: I'll pay you a ton of money Bobe: I don't care about the money! …but I have to make sure you fools don't get killed [A Wild Red Snake Appeared!] The Ancient Power: Cale, how are you going to fit that power in your plate?! Cale: A cheat code, that's how Ancient White Star's voice: Would you like to dominate the world through fear-? Cale: What f*caking nonsense Ancient White Star's voice: Wait wha- Cale: *uses OP sealing skill from his Team Leader* [Earth Ancient Power: Blood-Drenched Rock, acquired!] *Cale's Ancient Power counter: 8*

And the Scale Just Keeps Growing Alberu: *completely done with everything* …Cale Henituse. Cale: What's wro-? Alberu: …Why the hell do you claim to plan a bonfire before setting the entire continent on fire?! Cale: What are you… *reads how Valentino publicly declared war against the White Star and asked everyone for backup* …oh damn Alberu: Oh damn is right!!! We're not ready to fight the White Star yet if we want to limit the casualties! Cale: Hm… But you know what, Hyung? Alberu: Call me your highness Cale: Sure, your highness. Remember the Illusionist? Turns out she's the queen of the Molden Kingdom, a major country on the Eastern Continent. How would you like to cut off another one of White Star's "limbs"? Alberu: …Call me Hyung

White Star Becomes a Conspiracy Theorist White Star & Sayeru: *enter the abandoned part of the underground Dark Elf city* Sayeru: Oh wow, look at this place! It must be ancient! White Star: …my power tells me this tree died less than a week ago. This must be a trap Cale: (Well f***) Cale: *steps out of hiding* You figured it out. Now what? White Star: …I finally get it Cale: …? White Star: You're a transmigrator, aren't you Cale: (Dammit, so he knows-) White Star: You're been jumping bodies for centuries while preparing to fight me Cale: …! (Wait wha-?) White Star: *sees a reaction* I'm totally right aren't I! Cale: No? White Star: Feigning ignorance again, I see! Cale: No seriously, I- White Star: You won't fool me!! Cale: *blows up the ceiling* [Enemies White Star & Sayeru Fled the Battle!] *Cale & Co. blow up and/or destroy things counter: 31*

Hidden Backstories and Secrets Everywhere Alberu: …why do you all have such weird expressions Cale: Your highness… the White Star believes I'm a serial body-jumper transmigrator who's been secretly preparing to defeat him for centuries. Alberu: ??? Alberu: …you're not, right? Cale: (Do you even need to ask?!) Obviously, he's crazy. Alberu: ...Right. Cale: Also, he mentioned something about the Gate to the Demon World, so we have to investigate it. And if you could give me some ancient records on your family that would be great Alberu: *breaks into cold sweat* …Sure… Cale: Also Dragon Half-Blood, you gotta fess up about your backstory to Raon and Sheritt Dragon Half-Blood: *near nervous breakdown* …Okay… Dragon Half-Blood: *makes it out of the confession alive but with GUILT COMPLEX(TM)* Choi Han: …you wanna cook with me? Dragon Half-Blood: Sure *chops onions* Beacrox: *pissed* Get out of my kitchen you heathens

Third World Tree Meeting Cale: So I got a question, is there a time-related ancient power? World Tree: I dunno about that, but time is sure ticking down for you – remember that note with a countdown from the God of Death? He sure likes making deals Cale: Oh yeah, like the Vow of Death World Tree: It's a tracker BTW Cale: Wait what World Tree: Yeah, so you shouldn't trust him, since he- *loses a branch* …dammit. Censorship sucks Cale: It sure does World Tree: Anyway, the gods can't mess with fate, but they actually can. You can probably figure out the rest Cale: Right. Thanks World Tree: Also, Alberu Crossman was fated to be here Cale: …that sure is random World Tree: Oh it won't be very soon Adite: Also, Arm created a fake World Tree and it's right there *points at Molden City capital* The Elves all failed to approach it before, can you help us? Cale: …Perfect

Unlocking: Alberu Crossman's Backstory! Alberu: …you asked me about my family records Cale: Right Alberu: *brings him to a secret underground place* So this is it. The truth is… that my family was cursed by the Sun God. Cale: …? Alberu: *points at rock carvings* This right here says that a person with darkness within shouldn't ever become a king. (Meaning a dark elf like me shouldn't inherit the throne…) Cale: *absent-minded* Right…? Alberu: *tender hopes for reassurance and validation crushed* … *Meanwhile, in Cale's head:* The Ancient Powers: So there's, like, a crazy resemblance between the Crown Prince and the Ancient White Star for some reason…? Of course the Crown Prince is much hotter Cale: …! Cale: Your highness Alberu: Yes, yes, I know, I- Cale: -your ancestor was a criminal? Alberu: Yes, my ancestor- wait what. I thought we were talking about me being unworthy of the throne?? Cale: The hell are you talking about?? This isn't about that, it's about the Sky Attribute Alberu: Huh? Cale: It's probably from the Demon World Alberu: Huh?? Cale: And according to an unspecified ancient source, you look an awful lot like the first White Star Alberu: HUH??? Cale: So it isn't really a curse, more like a warning. You should totally be the king Alberu: … Alberu: *exasperated* THEN WHY THE HELL DIDN'T YOU JUST SAY SO Also Alberu: *trust mode maxed out*

Rebellion in the Molden Kingdom Plot – Start! Glenn: We got a problem. Remember how Bud went to investigate Elisneh and the Molden Kingdom? Cale: Yeah? Glenn: Well he got captured by the banished princess. (I so regret being friends with that idiot) Cale: ?! Glenn: *shows recording* Jopis: *elegantly sipping tea with Bud tied up in the background* You there whoever is actually behind this man, come meet me or I'll blow his f***ing head off Cale & Alberu: (…wow, what a woman) Cale: Let's go meet her then Jopis: Hello. I was banished because I saw through that b**** and her illusions due to my weak shaman powers that let me talk to dogs Cale: Wanna overthrow your crazy sister together? Jopis: I sure do. Even if you're the devil himself Cale's group: (…he's something worse, actually) Cale: You're gonna give the Raon Kingdom benefits, tho Jopis: What about your personal benefits? Cale: *official permit to loot in his pocket* …nothing, nothing Jopis: Anyway, how are we going to deal with all the dead mana? Cale: Simple… Cale: Dragon simps. Lots and lots of dragon simps. *Nearly all Elves and Dark Elves of the two continents show up to deal with the fake World Tree* Jopis: …Ha! You are definitely worse than the devil Glenn: Emergency!! All 1,001 mercenaries who went to investigate the Gate to the Demon World went missing!!! Bud: *serious mode* I gotta go. Cale- Cale: Go, we'll join you after we're done Bud: …Thank you. Cale: Let's quickly get started then Cale's group: *barges in and causes chaos & destruction* Molden Kingdom Officials: Rebellion!! Traitorous Princess Jopis has returned!!! Jopis: *leads Cale & co. to the underground maze* The walls are filled with dead mana, so there's no way to- Cale: Break them down Jopis: Wait what Mary & the Dark Elves: *absorb all the dead mana and get stronger* Jopis: ...Well ok then Royal children: We are here on a secret mission for our benevolent queen! She told us to carry those totally-not-deadly bottles with precious black jewels inside! Jopis: That crazy evil b**** Royal children: Look, her majesty is here! She came to save us! Elisneh: Yes, I came to save you all Cale: Such bulls*** in front of the children Elisneh: *nonchalantly poisons one of the children* Yup, they're all my hostages Cale: Welp, time to explode a maze I guess. Elisneh: Wait wha- Cale: *goes on a war path on an F***ing Huge Stone Imugi* *Cale & Co. blow up and/or destroy things counter: 32*

End Volume 5.

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[reds-ramblings]

Hey so with the prompt thing I have two ideas. You don't have to do both unless you really want to. You can pick one. I hope this is right since I've never done this before.

"How could you betray me like that?" Jake & MC

"Why didn't you tell me?" Jake & Hannah

Hello,

Thanks for the prompts. I think those are really good ones and I want to do both but not on the same post. So here is the first prompt.

Cake > Jake

I look at the clock on the wall and notice I'm down to the last five minutes of my work day. This has been one of the worst days I've had in years. The deadlines for three projects were moved up to tomorrow from next week. Because of this, I had to do a week's worth of work in a day. Well, technically, more than a week, because I am a procrastinator. I had to work through my lunch break, so not only am I angry and exhausted, but I'm starving as well. The only thought keeping me sane today is that I have an amazing boyfriend and a slice of German chocolate cake waiting for me at home.

I'm putting the final touches on one of the presentations I've been preparing when I look at the clock again, and it is time to go home. I shut down my computer, grab my bag, and head down to the parking garage to my car. The whole drive home, all I can think of is that slice of cake. I get home, rush into the kitchen, drop my bag on the counter, and open the fridge. I hear Jake sneak up behind me, and before I know it, he wraps his arms around my middle.

"How was work today, babe?" He asks.

"Awful," I say nonchalantly and turn to face him. "Where's my cake?"

"What cake?"

"The German chocolate cake. I had one piece left, and it was here this morning."

"Umm, about that," Jake says, and I can see a blush creep up his neck and across his face. "I may have had it for lunch."

"You what?!" I ask in disbelief while trying to keep myself from crying.

"It had been in the fridge for two days. I didn't think you were going to eat it."

"How could you? How could you betray me like that?"

"MC, it's just cake, not an act of betrayal." He says in a calm tone that makes me even angrier.

"It's not just cake! It's my favorite cake!"

"I'm sor-"

"No!" I cut him off. "I am done with you! I want you out of my house!"

"Seriously? Over cake?" He says dumbfounded.

"I had a horrible day, and all I could think about was coming home and eating my favorite cake, and you ruined that for me! I'm going to take a shower. I want you gone by the time I get out."

Without giving him a chance to respond, I storm off to the bedroom and slam the door behind me. I strip off my clothes, turn on the water, and step in before the water even has a chance to warm up. I start sobbing and allow the water to wash away all of the tears. Am I overreacting? Yes, I am fully aware of that, but I am just so hurt.

After a very long shower and some very hard crying, I come to my senses. Did I really just break up with my boyfriend over cake? "Shit!" I mutter to myself, remembering I told him I wanted him out. I turn off the water, grab a towel, and quickly wrap myself in it before rushing out of the bathroom. I rush into the living room and realize he's already gone. I slowly walk back into the bedroom and sit on the bed. I start sobbing once again at the fact that he's gone. Now, I have no cake and no boyfriend. Those were the two things I wanted to come home to, and now I don’t have either. There's a knock on the bedroom door, starling me.

"Go away," I say, defeated.

"MC, please let me come in," Jake says poking his head around the door.

"Fine."

He walks in with a plate in his hands; on, it is a piece of German chocolate cake and a fork.

"You bought more cake?" I ask.

"I had to go to three bakeries and two supermarkets before I found German chocolate cake, but I would do anything for you."

"Why? I was so mean to you."

He takes the plate, places it in my hands on my lap, and kneels in front of me. He gently wipes my tears away.

"Because I never want to be the cause of your tears. Unless they are happy tears, of course. So, am I forgiven?" I nod and start to dig into the cake. Jake lets out a chuckle. "I can't believe you were going to break up with me over cake."

"I wanted to hurt you like you hurt me." I mumble with my mouth full.

"I'll leave you alone with your cake, and go start dinner." He gets up, kisses my forehead, and walks out of the bedroom. I can't help but smile. Now I have both my boyfriend and my cake again. All is right in the world.

[jugandbettsdetectiveagency]

take what I got and give it

a 3x13 post-ep fic

or read on ao3

This isn’t the first time Nancy has looked right through him.

Ace remembers a little girl in braids and a black beanie surrounded by reporters, coming into the station to give her full statement to the detectives that couldn’t solve the case she could. She was all shoulders back and head held high, a practiced yet genuine smile on her face as she navigated the throng easily. She passed him, camped out with his Game Boy on an uncomfortable plastic chair outside his dad’s office, with not so much as a glance in his direction, and slipped into the interview room like she’d done it a thousand times before.

Interesting, Ace had labelled her in his mind. That’s what Nancy Drew was, even then. Interesting.

He’d added a whole host of descriptors to that one since then. Stubborn. Frustrating. Bull-headed.

Caring. Empathetic. Good.

Important.

He swallows.

This is the first time that Nancy looking right through him has hurt so much.

There’s a prickle of something hot at the base of his throat as Nancy looks around, the soft but firm click of the door shutting in his face feeling like a physical blow. It fades to a sharp sting of recognition he’d been ignoring for weeks.

“I told you,” Hannah says, every inch of her radiating defeat, from the gentle lines around her eyes to the slump of her shoulders. “No one can see us.”

“Nancy will,” Ace replies without hesitation. “If there’s anyone who can help, it’s Nancy.”

.

.

.

.

Ace tries to pretend he doesn’t feel it, throbbing away like an infected wound, when Nancy doesn’t immediately question his disappearance.

As he sits at the counter, watching her reach up to open the cabinet, pull out a glass, hold it under the running water, before mounting the stairs for bed, all he can sense is her disappointment in him.

A faint thought tried to fan a tiny flame telling him that if she’s upset then maybe, just maybe, she might feel the same way. And if only he’d gotten to tell her…

But he didn’t, couldn’t leave well enough alone, wanted to have something to show her, prove to her, and went and got himself shunted into a parallel universe. Nice going, idiot.

He lets her go to where he shouldn’t follow, staring at the mess of unruly stacked dishes by the sink when the last glimpse of her shoes have disappeared up the stairs.

He wonders if she’s text him. He’d left his phone on the desk at the Historical Society. If he could just know whether she had texted him, been angry at him, demanded for him to call and tell her what he wanted to talk about even if he can’t. Just knowing would be enough.

Hannah had told him not to go inside when Ryan had arrived home and opened the front door. He knew he’d be stuck in here until someone else came or went. But he didn’t really care.

The closer he was to Nancy, the more chances he had to try and make her understand, to get her to feel him, willing her to just listen.

Ace taps his fingers in a dot-dash rhythm against the counter, moonlight slanting through him from the window above the sink, passing the time.

H. E. R. E.

He’s here.

He’s still here.

.

.

.

.

When Nancy had started at The Claw, he understood, after some time, that they weren’t people to her. They were side characters in her game of Clue, 2D faces for her to cover in descriptors and fit into her script.

It wasn’t malicious. Sometimes heavy footed, but never meant to be cruel. She was just searching for a way back to a life where everything made sense and everything was how it should be, in its place.

Ace could sense something unsettled in her like he’d felt in himself back when his dad had first come home after the accident. A stumbling, angry, blindsided thing, clawing its way out from the pit in her chest.

Nancy hadn't liked to talk much back in those days before Tiffany’s murder. So he’d talk at her, like he wished someone had done for him when he was sullen and lonely, and squished into a forgotten corner of the library learning how to hack just for the thrill.

A sarcastic reply was good. A smile was a win. And a laugh? A laugh was everything.

He tries it again now, willing anything to slip through the veil.

“So you’re a spearmint kinda girl,” Ace says to the reflectionless mirror, just over Nancy’s left shoulder while she brushes. “That’s cool, I get it, it’s a classic. When I was a kid I had bubblegum flavoured toothpaste and it was the bomb. What age does one think it’s a good idea to stop asking for bubblegum toothpaste? I think I might get some next time I’m at the drugstore. And I’m out of aspirin. And conditioner. Doesn’t stay this soft by itself,” he says, pointing to his hair.

Ace rests his pointer finger against the bathroom faucet, channeling all his energy until it shifts an inch and hot water pours into the basin.

Nancy starts, toothbrush stilling. Her eyes shift, just slightly, over her shoulder to where Ace is standing.

“C’mon, Nancy,” he murmurs, close enough that his breath would rustle the flyaways by her ear if they were in the same realm. “I’m here.”

The steam from the water fogs up the mirror just enough that he can reach out and start writing in the condensation.

Hannah was right, though. He’s barely made it through the first letter of his name before his vision doubles, a pounding behind his left temple unsettling the nausea swirling in his stomach.

“Could really use that aspirin,” he huffs, bent double. He turns, hopeful, but Nancy is shutting off the faucet and turning her back on the room. His shaky name on the mirror drips and clouds over, disappearing before she has the chance to see.

.

.

.

.

“Love?” he asks Hannah, the word sticking in his throat.

“Yes, it’s obvious.”

Ace hadn’t thought so. He looks down at himself, looks at his hands like they’re covered in something he hadn’t noticed. Had he turned into a beacon, insides on his outsides, broadcasting a feeling so ingrained in his being he hadn’t noticed anything had changed?

If he’s being as loud as Hannah—and Bess—seem to think he’s being, the one person who needs to hear him the most isn’t listening.

His attempts have been repeatedly thwarted throughout the day, and everywhere Ace is not—there’s Agent Park, stepping where he can’t.

Park, with his sophisticated edge and sure-footed direction. Park, who knows how to elicit small, full-bodied smiles from Nancy with the right placement of a few simple words. Unlike Ace, who babbles at her with an urgency bordering on desperation. Ace, who tries so hard only to miss the mark at even the closest range.

The prospect of revealing his feelings to Nancy had been daunting, but that kind of daunted you feel as a kid standing on the edge of a swimming pool—filled with anticipation and excitement, and just enough nervous bubbling in your stomach to make you a little bit sick. The act of jumping, toes inching closer to the edge, was the worst part. But the falling? What came after? Made it all worth it.

It hadn’t felt hopeless until Ace watched Nancy disappear into a coat closet, going where he couldn’t follow, wouldn’t want to follow, Park’s hand twined with hers.

Love.

It echoed around his skull as he waited, blood buzzing, for Nancy to emerge, the moon climbing closer to its peak with every passing moment.

These feelings for Nancy had crept so slowly into his chest that he barely realised, like settling a soft blanket over a sleeping child. So cautious and so light; it was like none of his other relationships. They used to swallow him all at once, douse him in water and then ring him dry. But Nancy…

What else could it be if not love? New, and terrifying, and wonderful, and— Love.

His hand is shaking when Ace reaches up to touch her shoulder, but he already knows it’ll work. The ground beneath his boots ceases to move, her body beneath his fingers bolting him to the earth, their point of contact making the veil seem thinner, nothing but gossamer against wind.

“Ace,” Nancy whispers, and he feels the catch of her breath beneath his hand.

Nancy’s gasp melts into his relieved sigh. She gathers him close, and what he wouldn’t give to slip this moment beyond the veil. Fall into a parallel universe and have the time to look into Nancy’s eyes and see what he knows, what he hopes he caught there. Before it was gone.

Of course she figured it out, he can’t believe his faith wavered. It was never really Nancy he doubted, Ace thinks, as he catches them in a kiss. It was always himself.

.

.

.

.

It’s an exercise in futility.

Researching Park and all the ways he was a better man than himself—it wasn’t really going to change anything.

Some part of Ace knows that no matter what he finds out about the guy, no matter what shoves him further down the totem pole, he has to tell Nancy how he feels about her.

It won’t stay inside him anymore. Even if it’s not returned, he decides as they listen to Lev talk in his assiduous way about the privilege of feeling the weight of someone else’s love. Nancy deserves to know just how much she means to them. To him. And that will have to be enough.

.

.

.

.

Ace had never experienced a weight being lifted from his shoulders in such a literal sense, but there it goes with a few simple words:

“I have feelings for you.”

He doesn’t go any further than that for now. That’s enough, if the frozen look of—something on her face is anything to go by.

“I don’t know what to say.”

The moment sits with them, like they’re in the air, jumping into the pool.

Ace feels oddly calm.

Several times over they’ve read about, even triggered, the splitting of someone’s soul. Ace used to think it was a destructive thing, tearing the fabric of someone’s being, the very essence of themselves—frayed and cracked and painful.

But that’s not it, he realises as he stares back at Nancy, trying to keep his expression as bare as possible. Souls aren’t little pieces of jagged rock, resting heavily in the core of a person, guarded, waiting to be smashed.

Souls are the way Nancy fights for justice. Souls are the way Nick would do anything to help someone in trouble. It’s the way George is fiercely protective, and Bess has empathy bleeding from her pores.

Souls are giving tiny pieces of yourself away everyday because it doesn’t make you any less to do so. Souls are constant, and growing, and full of so much power they can crack open a portal to another dimension. And Ace would happily give away a piece of his soul to Nancy every day for the rest of his life if it meant she knew she was loved.

The front door bursts open and Ryan is saying something he doesn’t hear because every drop of blood in Ace’s body is pounding in his ears. He turns to leave without looking back; he doesn’t want a hasty answer in an interrupted moment. He’s left a piece of his soul in Nancy’s gentle hands and she needs time to decide if she wants to hold onto it.

.

.

.

.

He isn’t sure he noticed it before, but there’s something in the way that Nancy moves that makes it feel like she’s drifting towards him at all times.

Ace had thought that it was just him, pulled peaceably into Nancy’s orbit as was completely unavoidable. It’s become more of a dance though, as the day of Temperance’s ritual draws closer—both of them turning around each other in a carefully synchronised series of steps, neither one of them wanting to break the hold just yet.

Crush, crush, crush. A throw away line—it thuds along his veins like a living, beating thing. There’s an adrenaline to each interaction he and Nancy have. A spark behind her hand on his arm, his at her elbow.

How could he not have hope now? After all this, how could it not end the way he wants it to—

.

.

.

.

Sometimes Ace has these dreams.

They’re vivid, with an edge of solidity that makes them feel almost like memories.

Early morning sunlight slants through the window and warms his skin, mixes with the liquid warmth that exists where his bones used to be as he lies in bed, sleepy and content and blissfully happy.

There are other things, too. A smell, like shampoo, that’s light and fresh, just a hint of something that might be cinnamon.

There’s the feeling of fingers, bitten cold by the winter chill, seeking his, shy but not tentative.

There’s a hand in his hair, lips on his lips, pieces of his soul pouring out of him with uncharted abandon until he’s giddy with it.

Sometimes, in his dreams, Ace understands what it finally feels like to want for nothing.

When he wakes up from these dreams (frequently he dreams) Ace feels bereft. It takes him a moment to come back to himself, to see the look on Nancy’s face, in her eyes, shattered and brimming with ice, as she turned away from him that day.

He dresses quickly. He slips his badge for the morgue around his neck and tucks his thermos of averagely brewed coffee into his bag. He takes the stairs to the street with heavy footsteps. He shifts Florence into gear and drives to work. He carries out his duties and eats a mediocre lunch. He finishes mopping the floors and gathers his things as the clock ticks over to five. He pulls on his coat and takes his phone out of his pocket on his way out of the door and texts Bess.

Anything?

It’s a text Ace has sent many other times, on many other days. The answer buzzes in soon after.

Not yet. Still looking x

Ace knows Bess is still looking, but he appreciates that she always reminds him anyway. Because one day the reply will be different. And they’ll finally figure out what Nancy is too afraid to tell them.

When she’d stormed out of his apartment it wasn’t loathing or indifference or anger staring back at him—just pure, unadulterated fear.

Ace remembers that look from a time before. Nancy wore it as they covered George’s lifeless body in white in a desperate attempt to save her.

Nancy is trying to save him, of that much he’s always been sure.

And soon he’ll know from what.

[x-infernhoes-x]

She’s My Collar- Basilio x Reader

Title: She’s My Collar

Genre: Romance, Smut, Porn with Plot

Warning(s): Mentions of Semi-Public Sex, Car Sex, Mentions of Alcohol, Implied Consent, Basilio nearly murdering someone because they spoke badly about you

Description: KAI IF YOU’RE READING THIS, THIS ONE’S FOR YOU AND ALL OF YOU BASILIO SIMPS 

NOTE SOMETIME AROUND 3:00 AM YESTERDAY NAWALA YUNG ORIGINAL PUTANG INA I WAS THIS CLOSE ON FINISHING IT SHDJGFHJBDKJBSEDVGSJHGBKHGSFKJBGBKJGBJGLJBGWL  AN HOUR’S WORTH OF WRITING G O N E AND I HAD TO REWRITE EVERYTHING I AM STRESSED AND DSBJKGBKJFSDGNB SO ENJOY.

4:31 AM NOTE UPDATE YESTERDAY: langya ayoko na. matutulog na nga ako, sakit na ng likod ko.

6:50 PM NOTE TODAY: I’M GOING TO FINISH THIS BEFORE MIDNIGHT COMES. ALSO, DON’T DRINK AND DRIVE KIDS!!

12:10 AM NOTE TODAY: The note above this one is a lie. I managed to continue this after family night lmao but enjoy still. Tried my best to make it gender-neutral as possible but yeah :’) I kinda failed successfully I think???

  You and Basilio have been dating for quite some time now. Although he was a messy guy you made sure that you had his back and helped him out to work on how to keep his sloppy tendencies at bay and in turn he would shower you with love and affection that you would usually get from the demi-god of war. Basilio was the perfect guy, he was a sweet lad who made your lonely days better, he made sure that you were cared for in any shape or form and he always had your back in everything and he would give you anything you would ask for in the world. The two of you barely even fought and if you were to fight, it would be more of a joke one than an all-out screaming match. He was the best thing that has ever happened to you and you constantly thank Bathala for it and Basilio thought the same. The two of you were a match made in heaven.

 Although despite your busy schedules keeping the two of you apart, you both made sure that you and your loving boyfriend would get the chance to hang out together. Often, you and Basilio would frequent the Diabolical together, just basking in each other's presence, tucked away in some booth Hank had reserved for the two of you, or sitting by the bar just chatting about each other’s day. You could recall Hank telling you that whenever you were around or that when someone ever mentions your name, Basilio seemed to calm down and would eagerly listen into whatever conversation had said your name. There was a time where Basilio nearly knocked someone’s teeth out because they were talking badly of you and it took Crispin, Maliksi, Hannah, Amie, Alex, and Hank himself to hold back the younger twin and prevent him from punching someone’s lights or teeth out or even prevent a murder from ever happening.

 “Alam mo, (Y/N) pag naririnig ni Basilio na dadaan ka rito, parang siyang aso na di mapakali. Kulang nalang na magkaroon siya ng buntot e.” Hank joked as he was cleaning the freshly washed glass, watching Basilio flush red, face buried into his forearm as he groaned in response while you let out a small chuckle.

 Now looking back, that memory seemed to be far away from you. Tonight happened to be your anniversary with Basilio and instead of a cozy night in, he wanted to do something different.  Basilio wanted to take you out dancing and bar hopping around Bonifacio Global City’s luxurious bars (sometimes you wondered to yourself how the hell can Basilio afford this.) and maybe take you sight seeing around the place when you got the time. Pacing around your living room in your apartment, you were about to shoot him a text message when a knock at your door had interrupted you from doing so, nearly dropping your phone in the process. “Sandali  lang!” you yelled to whoever was outside the door. If there was one thing you learned from dating Basilio, it was being vigilant. You had to make sure that the person on the other side of your door was your boyfriend and not some kind of Aswang or any malicious person who had a personal grudge against the twins and Alex. Taking a peek at the pee hole your door had, you were greeted by the sight of your boyfriend, Basilio grinning up at you as he waved. Instead of wearing his suit, Basilio was in his casual clothing for tonight, his long silken locks pulled back in a half-up, half-down man-bun.

 Opening the door, you then welcomed him with open arms before proceeding to smack him playfully on his arm, an amused smirk on your lips as you opened your mouth to speak, your tone light and teasing, “Took you long enough! Siguro na-traffic ka no?” Basilio could only roll his dark eyes at you as he placed a loving kiss upon your head. “Hindi a, si Kuya Crispin kasi e, sobrang tagal niya sa banyo kaya ayun.” Pulling himself away from you, he then offered his arm for you to take with a grin, his head tilting towards the direction of the door as he spoke, “So ano? Tara na?” “Siyempre naman.”  

 After making sure your apartment was locked, the two of you went down towards the direction of the parking lot and took a couple few selfies inside the elevator, you and Basilio were off. While in the car, the both of you would scream along to the lyrics of Ang Huling El Bimbo by Eraserheads while in traffic. On your way to BGC, both of you were surprised to see Maliksi and his significant by the stoplight, taking the advantage of the long-ass stop to chat with the Prince of the Tikbalangs and his fiancé. Your conversation was cut short when the stoplight had changed from red to green, saying your goodbyes to each other as Basilio drove away to your very first destination, which was none other than XYLO at The Palace.

  In all honesty, you’ve heard about this bar but it was the first time you got to enter the place itself. The both of you got lucky that the place wasn’t as packed and that you got there early before the actual party had started. Both you and Basilio then made your way over to the bar to grab your first drinks of the night. The two of you chatted for a while, occasionally nodding your heads to the beat of the song. After a while, the night seemed to kick in and both of you were already at what seemed to be your 3rd or 4th bar of the night, this time you and Basilio were jumping up and down to DJ Khalid’s song ‘All I Do Is Win’ before the both of you screamed along with the rest of the patrons, “Putang Ina, Alak Pa!”  and time seemed to flow faster than ever as you and your loving boyfriend went in and about around BGC’s classiest bars, downing every single drink you two could manage and take or even dance along to the songs the bars provided while occasionally sharing a kiss here and there, not minding the reek of alcohol and sweat clinging on each other’s bodies as the two of you laughed.

 Sometime around 10:30, you and Basilio were shitfaced to oblivion but both of you were used to it. You had lost count on how many drinks you’ve managed to down yet you and Basilio couldn’t care less, you were certain that you heard your phones ring but you two never got the chance to answer them because Basilio was busy doing body shots on you or you making out with your boyfriend in some hidden corner of the bar. You were starting to get the hint that after your little make-out session at Club Haze, he was focused on one thing and you knew what that meant, despite being inebriated out of your wits. So what do you do? Put on a show for him of course.

 You knew Basilio was sitting by the bar because you told him you were going to use the bathroom to freshen up a little bit since the club felt a little bit humid. What he didn’t expect was you sashaying over to where the dance floor, the last notes of Nelly Furtado’s Maneater fading away only to be replaced by Doja Cat’s Streets. To you, the sound seemed to have slowed down and you weren’t sure because it was the alcohol’s effects taking over, nobody else in the club mattered but your boyfriend alone.  The figures around you seemed to blur and Basilio was the only one you had your eyes on as your body moved to the beat, eyes half-lidded and lips slightly parted, and even from afar, you could see your demi-god of a boyfriend shuffle in his seat, his cheeks brightly flushed even under the lights of the dark club (yes, Basilio even tried to hide his raging boner from everyone but he was failing miserably). You knew that he was watching you closely like a predator ready to strike and even from afar you can tell that he was getting impatient with your games and that made you smirk. You knew that Basilio had a thing for Semi-Public sex and your several other experiences with him were proof of that, hell the two of you almost got caught one time and you were internally thankful that you weren’t. But tonight, Basilio’s going to abide by the rules of your own game and not his.

The opening bass beat from Beyonce’s Yonce/Partition was your cue to take things up a notch by making your way over to the bar where you had stood upon the counter (you had asked the bartender and the rest of the patrons who hung around the bar save for Basilio in advance and they seemed to agree with it just as long as you were careful) and made your way down the counter, hips sashaying and your body with every beat and drop before stopping to where he was, a smirk on your face, your hands running up from your thighs and right past your chest in a sensual manner, leaning in just so you could ghost your lips over Basilio’s eagerly waiting ones before pulling away with a wink. Once your little show was done and you had gone down from your counter with the help of the bartender you had just spoken to before making your way over to the dance floor once more to dance just as your song, She’s My Collar by Gorillaz began to play only to be caught short when you felt a hand grab you by the wrist.

Despite being drunk you were still smart and quick to retaliate towards whoever had grabbed you only to be surprised to be looking right directly at your boyfriend’s dark obsidian gaze, his breath slow and ragged and you knew you were in it for real this time the moment he said, “We’re leaving.” In a tone, you’ve never heard from him before and that seemed to send shivers and chills up your spine as he dragged you away from the bar to head right outside.

Honestly, the whole trip back to the car seemed to pass you by like a blur, you would occasionally stumble on your own feet, which prompted Basilio to sling you over his shoulder like you were nothing but a sack of potatoes (at least it gave you a perfect view of his ass). The moment you arrived at your car, however, you were thrown haphazardly into the backseat after Basilio had unlocked the door with ease and then entered the vehicle as well, quickly pulling you up on his lap where he locked his lips with you in a heated kiss, hands roaming around your body with such need and you could feel his erection straining against the fabric of his dark jeans. You were surprised at first but once the initial shock and surprise had worn off, you kissed him back as well with the same passion and need that he emulated from his kiss, your fingers and hands made a quick undo of his man-bun and top, hastily unbuttoning them, eager to touch the skin underneath it and leave marks on it. Basilio could only groan in response to your touches, his tongue exploring your mouth like uncharted territory, his hands groping your behind with such force that made you moan out his name, a quiet hiss of “Tangina.” Soon followed your surprise.

 In your mayhem of desire and lust, you didn’t notice Basilio play Chase Atlantic’s song Devilish on the radio.

 Clothes were thrown around and about in the space of the car and in that blur of clothing being discarded around, you were honestly surprised when Basilio had lifted up your lower half towards him, his lips trailing kisses down your stomach and thighs before his head disappeared in between your legs, bestowing you the best oral you’ve ever had received from him in your years of dating. You couldn’t thrash around with him holding you so tightly against his face as he went down on you but your hands were free to roam and tug at his long silken locks, his name spoken like a prayer  and just as you were about to reach your peak, he had pulled away from you, a sadistic yet innocent smirk placed upon his now glistening chin and lips coated in your slick as he spoke, “Not yet, babe.”  Winking at you, he gingerly set you down before he leaned over to where his now discarded jeans were as he pulled out his wallet, fishing out a condom and a small pack of lube for him to use. Once the foil was open and the rubber was on his already hard dick, he then proceeded to open the pack of lube, rubbing it on his length before instructing you to get on your hands and your ass up for him.

 And by Bathala you began to see stars the moment he had entered you. Your nails seemed to dig on the dark leather surface of the car’s upholstery, your back arched to the extreme and you were certain that you could feel Basilio trailing kisses along the expanse of your neck, shoulders, and back, his hands guiding you on his length while yours snaked around to reach for him, tilting your head sidewards to catch his lips in an open-mouthed kiss, his manhood still relentless at fucking you senseless and in between the thrusts and moans, you were thankful that the windows were tinted from the outside or else the two of you would’ve been caught. Throughout the whole night, you two spent it by doing it on every single surface inside the car, doing every single position the two of you could think of, taking each other to new heights with every pose the two of you did, and yes, let’s just say you were sore the morning after that.

 Once the morning came around, the two of you were still naked and you were sure that after your last round with your loving boyfriend, you felt the waves of your hang-over wash over you like a wave, making you groan out in pain. Everything was sore with you and your body was littered with hickies, bruises, and scratch marks while Basilio, who had his healing factor with him thanks to his demi-god status, was relatively unscathed but he did have some hickies of his own to present to the world. Shuffling, you gently nudged Basilio awake as you spoke, “Babe, anong oras na??”

 At your action, your boyfriend, still groggy from sleep, could only groan at this, his hand reaching out to search for his mobile phone to check the time. Squinting, he then saw the time on his phone but the color on his face seemed to drain the moment he saw several missed calls and messages from his twin brother and the Babaylan-Mandirigma herself. “SHIT!” Basilio managed to cry out of sheer panic, his head accidentally hitting against the roof of the car, making him hiss even more, hands holding the spot where he had hit his head. “Lagot tayo kay Bossing, (Y/N), kagabi pa niya tayo tinatwagan kasama ni Kuya Crispin.” At the mere mention of Alex and Crispin’s name, you seemed to understand the sense of urgency before the two of you began to clean up the car, dressing up as you did so, attempting to make yourselves look more presentable and cover the tracks from yesterday’s events. Once done, Basilio was driving like a speeding madman in a rush to head back where his brother and Alex were at.

 It took him at least an hour to arrive at their destination with Alex taking the role as today’s designated driver while Basilio sat in the back with his brother. “San ba kayo galing? Kagabi pa namin kayo tinatawagan ni Crispin, (Y/N), Basilio. Ano ba nangyare, ha?” Alex spoke, her eyes flickering over to where Basilio was, sheepishly scratching the back of his head as he spoke, “Sensya na ho, Bossing. Nag-sight seeing kasi kami ni (Y/N) kagabi tas nag-bar hoping kami tas pagkatapos nakatulog kami dito sa kotse.” A little doubtful of this, Alex could only glance at you from the corner of her eye, expecting for you to react but you held your emotions close to your heart as you spoke, “Totoo po yung sinasabi ni Basilio, bossing. Di po naming sadya na di kayo replyan ni Crispin. Di na po mauulit.” Nodding, Alex then excused the both of you and the car ride was silent, save for the fact that the radio was playing Last Friday Night by Katy Perry. You did feel a little bit cold however and you couldn’t help the fact that something was missing until Crispin screamed out in surprise, horror, and disgust, finally noticing the thing you were missing. Ah shit. “TANGINA BASILIO, ANO TO!?!?!” Crispin managed to yell out, holding up your lace underwear for everyone in the car to see with Basilio quickly snatching the piece of clothing away from his brother, tucking it in his pocket before he responded, “ANONG-ANO KA DIYAN KUYA!?! WALA KANG NAKITA!!”

You silently prayed to Bathala for him to forgive you but you were sure as hell Alex won’t. You made a mental note to not ever do it in the car you guys use for missions ever again.

[simmerandwrite]

Lower The Stakes [02] - Bucky After Dentist

Summary: Bucky Barnes still isn’t sure of his place in the world. For Haley Fisher, making new friends has always felt like a challenge. Though getting a second chance at life gave her the opportunity to reinvent herself and determine where she fit into the world again. It’s time to shift the expectations and determine what she really wants. How does that old classic go? ‘I get by with a little help from my friends.’

(Aka the post Falcon and the Winter soldier friends-to-lovers mini series no one asked for, featuring one ‘grumpy but warming up’ centenarian and one ‘coming into her own’ plus sized original character!) Ready the pre-story here

Chapter summary:  Breaking news tonight at eleven: 106 year old man has his wisdom teeth removed

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x plus size original character

Word count: 3.8k

Parts: Part 01 Part 02 Part 03 Part 04 Part 05 Part 06 Part 07

Notes/warnings: some negative self talk, anxious habits, body shaming! if you see me out interacting in the wild, it’ll be under @simmerandcry​

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Part 02 - Bucky After Dentist

Even after her long, long shower, Haley still felt emotionally exhausted. The last thing she wanted to do was go beyond her apartment walls, although she knew she would benefit from a change of scenery and the entire day ahead belonged to her. She hoped going out and doing something would cleanse herself of the god awful dinner she had suffered through the night before.

Her mother’s voice still echoed in her mind: ‘Honey, most people who lost those five years of their life seem to be trying to catch up. Time is fleeting. Women can only safely have children before they’re 35 you know.’ 

Haley had politely tried to sail beyond that topic. Her mother’s favourite talking point - how Haley was running out of time to become a thinner and better version of herself to land a husband. 

Heather Fisher-Nelson had carried on without even an ounce of hesitation throughout their evening, as if she enjoyed needling into her daughter’s insecurities on purpose. In those moments, when her mother used every single triggering buzzword against her as they pretended to enjoy salads for dinner, Haley knew her childhood therapist would have brought up fancy words like ‘projection’ and ‘fears’ and her mother’s ‘need for control’. She would have encouraged Haley to defend herself, wearing thick skin like armour, deflecting, ignoring. 

Haley was just tired of it. Truthfully, the only reason why she maintained a relationship with her mother now was because Haley hated the idea of being left out of her brother’s life and she feared her mother would use that against her.

Liam, who had been only four when Haley vanished, was her very favourite person. Haley considered him one of the only good things that came out of her mother’s marriage to John. They had produced an absolutely charming, clever, wholesome son - who was now nine, nearly ten. Haley had literally blinked and missed five years of his life and she didn’t want to jeopardize losing any more time with him. He had nearly been enough of a reason for her to stay in Florida.

Now, she settled for visiting a few times a year and frequent FaceTime dates. Plus, when her mother and step-father were in town for whatever reason, Haley made an effort to see them just to keep the peace. If she could call it a silver lining of some sort, during this particular visit John had some sort of business event to attend to so dinner had just been Haley and her mother.

Over 12 hours later, Haley was still reeling from the entire interaction. She resisted rolling her eyes when her phone buzzed on the bathroom counter, assuming it was some follow up snide comment or a link to a ‘great deal on meal replacement shakes’. 

Instead of acknowledging whatever painful message it could be, Haley looked at herself hard in the mirror and went through the motions of her daily pep talk. What was it that her older sister Hannah always said? Positive affirmations can change your life, Hales.

“You are capable and confident,” Haley muttered to herself as she splashed water against her face. The raw skin surrounding her fingers stung as she applied her toner and moisturizer.

“You are in control of your destiny.” Trying not to wince, Haley gently applied band-aids to the worst of her chewed fingers, mentally cursing herself for leaning into that anxious habit again. What did healthy cuticles even look like?

“You are a beautiful soul who deserves love.” That one made her choke with laughter. She supposed there was some sort of trick behind faking self love but damn, her sunken eyes, frizzy hair and wide stomach made it all seem impossible on mornings when her confidence was so crushed. 

Her phone buzzed again and her shreds of laughter faded. When she read the event reminder in the notification tray, her eyes went wide as she checked the time.

Fuck. Right. She did have to leave her apartment because she had promised Bucky a ride home from an appointment. He had called her the night before to confirm, just as she was heading out to dinner.

Thank God past-Haley had enough sense to schedule the reminder in her phone for a few hours before when she needed to be there. She still had to go grab her car from the overpriced lot she paid to keep it in.

With one more heavy sigh she composed herself. This gave her something to do, this gave her a reason to get some fresh air and not spend the entire day wallowing. Instead it would be a half day of wallowing.

Yes, she was in control of her own destiny.

 -- 

Bucky had little to no recollection of the medical care he received while under Hydra’s control. Those decades of his life still felt like a strange dream - an out of body experience he couldn’t repress or clear out from his mind entirely. He knew that his body healed at a different rate than average humans but some things still felt abnormal. 

Much to his dismay, his high pain tolerance that had been a benefit to Hydra was coming back to haunt him now. It had been a very strange chance meeting a few weeks ago - travelling to meet Sharon uptown, running into Dr. Banner, and, in confidence, revealing his ongoing toothache and jaw pain. Though he wasn’t a medical doctor, Bruce knew enough about human physiology to recognize the signs of impacted wisdom teeth. 

So now Bucky found himself at a Saturday afternoon appointment with a specialized dental surgeon, a personal friend of Bruce, to have his wisdom teeth removed. They walked him through the whole procedure and although Bucky felt uncomfortable asking, Haley had kindly agreed to be his point of contact after the appointment. Even though he had accelerated healing, the medical team would not permit him to leave on his own.

It was funny, in a way. He took a strange comfort in knowing Haley was going to be waiting for him when the whole thing was over. Truthfully, he was scared out of his mind about the whole procedure. Despite what his recovery had been like in Wakanda, he knew there were leftover wounds and triggers when it came to these sorts of things. Sitting in a medical chair, taking an injection, trusting doctors - he had come far enough but Christ, he was worried about what could go wrong. 

But - he survived. After about 30 minutes of agonizingly slow progress through the entire process, and the long wait to see the doctor afterwards, he came out on the other side very alive and very much still Bucky Barnes.

Well, he was mostly himself, at least.

 --

The address Bucky had provided to Haley was super nondescript. Even after she secured a parking spot outside the building in Midtown, she couldn’t help but feel skeptical about the whole thing. Suddenly she couldn’t stop herself from doubting the information Bucky had given her or if she should trust him in the first place.

Even if they had only known each other for so long, there was something about him that made her feel like he was genuinely good. But despite that, she still had some reservations. When she buzzed into the building, she was surprised to see such a sleek, modern office ahead of her.

A straight faced nurse greeted her and confirmed her identity more than once before instructing her to sit and wait in the barren foyer. Haley did as she was told, clutching her phone in one hand while she took in her surroundings. How did she get here again? Picking up her friend Bucky from a hidden office building? Where was he getting an undisclosed procedure? 

Before she had time to let more doubts surface, someone was walking towards her. Haley tipped her head up to meet the kind gaze of who she assumed was a doctor, judging by the clipped name badge at his waist and the stethoscope hanging over his shoulders. 

“Miss Fisher?” The man motioned his head towards the hall as Haley stood, introducing himself as Dr. Kapur. He briefly explained the procedure and what had happened. 

“Just wisdom teeth?” Haley clarified, nodding along. “Is he okay?”

“Oh yes,” the doctor assured her. “James is just a special patient - given his, well, cellular recovery time. I imagine he’ll be over the pain much quicker than the average person. But..” He paused when they stopped outside the door. “Despite our previous plans, he opted to forgo the full anesthesia before the procedure today.”

Her eyes grew wide. “You mean..”

“He was awake for the whole procedure. Although we did everything we could to ensure he didn’t feel any pain during the removal, the dosage of painkillers we’ve given him now have left him a bit out of sorts.”

When he pushed through the door, Haley’s eyes flew open again when she saw Bucky sitting upright on the chair. He was holding an ice pack up against his right cheek and he was grinning at the nurse. And even though he was drooling, it didn’t seem to stop him from being especially chatty. 

“I’m tellin’ you, my friend Sam. He’s great. He’d love to take ya’out.” The gauze padding between Bucky’s teeth made it sound like he was speaking through a mouthful of marbles. 

“Uh huh. Sure, honey. Set me up with Captain America then. Give him my number,” the nurse responded playfully, taking another look at him before glancing back at the chart on the screen. “How are you feeling?”

“Light an’ fluffy,'' Bucky muttered back before turning his head. “Haley Fisher! You came.”

“You asked me to pick you up,” Haley replied quickly, taking a step further into the room.

“I know, I know.” Bucky’s head seemed to be nodding like a bobble head. “But you’re here now.”

“Yes, I am,” Haley said slowly. “You think you’re ready to go?”

Bucky’s head turned toward the doctor now, eyebrows raised. “Whattayasay?”

Haley grimaced as his words slurred. “How long will this last?” Although she found Bucky’s lighthearted rapport quite amusing, she couldn’t help but worry about how she was going to lug him home. Thank god her car wasn’t parked too far away.

“I think he is fine to be released,” Dr. Kapur said with a warm smile. “This brain fog shouldn’t last too long for him but sleep will certainly help.” He took another look at Bucky. “You aren’t in any pain currently, James?”

Bucky’s bobble head tipped side to side. “Pain.. nah. There is no pain.”

All the office staff were helpful as Haley headed to the door with Bucky. She was just grateful he was managing to walk on his own, although she did keep her hand clamped to his bicep to steady him once they got onto the sidewalk. 

God, his arms were firm.

“Wooooaaaah.” A surprised noise came from Bucky’s mouth as they approached her car, releasing his hand holding onto the ice - which promptly fell to the ground. “Look at this..”

Haley sighed and let go of him, bracing and making sure he was steady before she picked up the compress. The dirty New York sidewalk had already ruined it. When she turned her attention back to Bobble Head himself, he was leaning forward and staring through the passenger window of the vehicle.

“You have a car. In Manhattan.”

“Yes,” Haley replied as she unlocked it, reaching in front of him to open the door and encourage him inside. “Isn’t that why you recruited me for this drive home?”

It was one of the only redeeming qualities about her stepfather - strange generosity and buying Haley’s approval. John Nelson owned multiple car dealerships, rental units and a chain of motels in the Volusia County region. And when Haley got her job offer to return upstate, he had gifted her a shiny red car. It wasn’t especially fancy but he had made a point to ‘get her something nice’. The whole thing had made Haley roll her eyes more than once but she knew she had to be grateful.

Not that having a car in Manhattan was necessary, she supposed there was a time and a place when it came in handy. Like when your newish friend needed a supervised ride home from the oral surgeon.

By the time Haley made it to the drivers side of the car, Bucky was slumped over in his own seat with his head lolled to the side, looking at her. 

“I recruited you for this task.. ‘Cause I trust you,” he muttered, eyes closing slowly. 

Haley wasn’t entirely sure how to respond to that. She wondered how Bucky could deem her as trustworthy already, considering they still barely knew each other. Maybe it was her energy or the fact that she was so seriously non-threatening as a person. It made her pause for another few seconds too, because she had to think if she trusted him. 

She decided that yes, she did trust Bucky. 

She couldn’t pinpoint why because it was all kind of crazy. A sane person wouldn’t go into a strange building and pick up some former superhero from his secret appointment. Then voluntarily get in a car with them.

Although, as she looked over at Bucky, softened features and swollen cheeks included, she couldn’t help but smile at the sight. Sane was overrated.

“Hey.” She nudged him gently with her elbow. “Stop drooling on the leather. And I don’t even know your address so I need some bearings to get you home safely.”

Bucky complied, delivering his address in a mostly coherent sentence, not before quickly wiping his drool off his lip and chin. With narrowed eyes, he watched Haley closely.

“What happened to your hand?” He immediately realized it wasn’t the right question to ask, given how quickly she curled her fingers around the steering wheel and tried to hide her wide eyed forward stare.

“Oh. Uh.” Haley considered confiding in Bucky, seeing how in that moment especially his head appeared to still be up in the clouds and maybe he wouldn’t remember her confession. But what would that achieve without more context? Pity? She chewed on her lip, flicking her gaze downwards to the bandages taped to her cuticles. “Just dry skin.”

Without looking over at him, she had a hunch that Bucky didn’t believe her. But if that was the case, he didn’t say anything. Instead, he changed the subject altogether and suddenly Haley was on the receiving end of a jumbled pitch about why Bucky thought he should adopt a cat. At least he stopped drooling.

 --

Bucky ran and ran and ran until he couldn’t feel his feet anymore. From a hard concrete basement, up cracked steps, opening the door at the top only to find another set of stairs. Not freedom, not yet. He kept running, breath heavy in his chest. He had to keep going. He had to find the door that let him escape, that let him be free, that let him start a new chapter.

A hand grabbed for his shoulder and he was back at the beginning, strapped to a chair in a dark room. He pulled himself free again, ignoring the strange feeling in his mouth, and started to run once more. He had to find the door. He needed to open the right door. Up the stairs he went again and again, his feet slapped against each step. 

His head buzzed.

No, that was a phone. A ringing phone.

Bucky’s eyes flew open and he sat up in his head, chest heaving as he figured out his bearings. 

Oh. He had been dreaming. He wasn’t trapped in a dark room, he was in his bedroom, in his little Brooklyn apartment. He stretched out his hands and gripped the sheets beside his legs, breathing slowly as he slowed down his heart rate. An ache echoed through his head, from his forehead down through his jawline.

Right. Wisdom teeth. Or lack thereof.

Sam had insisted Bucky call and let him know how it went but clearly Bucky had failed that task, given the amount of missed calls and messages from Sam.

He sat up on his bed and reached for the phone, promptly dialing Sam back.

“Wow, you’re alive.”

Bucky figured that was a new record, Sam eliciting an eye roll from him before he even responded. “Sorry, I’ve been asleep.”

“I was about to pull the trigger on that background check you adamantly swore against for whoever this lady was picking you up today. How you feelin’ pal?”

Bucky pushed himself off the bed, stretching his neck back and forth as he moved across his bedroom. He would never admit it to Sam directly, but that stupid mattress and bed he had invested him had been a godsend. 

“I’m fine. A little light headed I guess.”

“Yeah, cause they took out all your wisdom, grandpa.”

“Ha. Ha.”

“Switch to video. I want to see those swollen cheeks.”

“You’re insufferable, Sam.”

Bucky stilled, shushing Sam’s reply when he heard a noise coming from his front door. Not just any noise either, it was his door opening. He quieted Sam’s next comment on the line, back pressed against a section of wall in his bedroom while he figured out what to do. Was someone breaking into his place?

He heard a few paper bags rustling and a few footsteps and then -

“Bucky?"

Haley’s voice sounded out from the main room of his apartment and Bucky let out a relieved sigh, shifting on his feet and heading through his bedroom door towards the kitchen. He found Haley there unpacking a few things from a grocery bag.

Bucky tapped on his phone, turning his attention back to Sam. “I’ll call you back.”

“Is that her? Your lady friend?”

“Stop saying lady. Bye Sam.” By the time Bucky had hung up, his earlier memories started swimming back slowly: Haley helping him upstairs into his apartment, ignoring her questions about how he had no food in his fridge and how his jaw might hurt too much to eat solid foods, giving her his keys, collapsing into his bed. 

She smiled at him as he approached, though he noticed her hesitant stance. “Hey, you’re awake. That wasn’t much of a nap. How are you feeling?"

Bucky nodded, lips pursed. “Yeah, good. Did I.. uh.. Did we argue before?”

She smirked, pausing her unpacking and brushing a hand through her hair. “I wouldn’t call it an argument. But you did get very frustrated when I insisted I would go grab a few groceries for you.”

His eyes scanned over the food and he tried not to wince at her kindness. “Let me pay you back for this, at least.”

“Oh, so you don’t remember whipping out a crisp fifty dollar bill from your secret stash?” She waved her hand, retrieving some money from her pocket. “Here’s your change, grandpa.” When Bucky silently accepted the bills, Haley continued on. “I grabbed you some soup, Jello cups, popsicles, potatoes - although you would have to actually boil those and mash them...” She trailed off. “You kind of strike me as the type who will only eat out of necessity so I wanted to make sure you were set up for success.”

“That's very.. Thank you, you didn’t have to do that. The ride home was more than enough.” He picked up a package of the Jello, which was an unusually bright green colour. “I don’t know if I want to eat this.”

“Oh, don’t be so dramatic.” She clapped her hands together as the silence rested between them. “But now that you are awake and conscious, I think I’ll be on my way home. Unless you need anything else?”

Bucky felt a strange twist of something in his chest as he took in her question. A part of him was just so grateful that she spent time on him - driving to the clinic, shuttling him home, ensuring he was prepared with enough food to survive. He hoped he had been honest enough expressing that gratitude, that his appreciation went well beyond what he could articulate. Because after a long time of hard, hard people and situations and walls - Haley was refreshing and soft and kind. 

“I don’t need anything else, no.” Bucky faltered as she headed towards the door with a nod. His eyes met hers and god, he hoped he was expressing his feelings effectively. “Thank you again, Haley.”

When she grabbed the door handle, she turned back quickly. “Oh. Your keys.” She reached into the back pocket of her jeans and extended her hand out, dropping the keychain into his palm. “I promise I didn’t make a copy, in case your mind is going to some outlandish security scenario right now.”

His eyes widened for a second, then a smirk appeared on his face. “Well, I wasn’t until you mentioned it.” With a flick of his wrist the keyring spun around his finger. “Nah, I meant what I said earlier - I trust you, Fisher.” His eyes narrowed, though one eyebrow raised playfully. “I get the feeling you’d only be copying it for some crazy altruistic reason. Like filling up my cupboard with canned goods.”

That got a laugh out of her and Bucky relaxed a touch. “You can’t survive on just bread, eggs and hotsauce. Your fridge is a sad state, Barnes.”

Although he knew the pain in his cheeks wouldn’t last very long, he took some comfort in knowing his food choices were safe for the next few days. 

The next few days. God, what did those even look like? He was waiting on some info from Sam about a new lead they might need to research so Bucky was at the ready. But now, while he came down from this entire surgery situation - which involved some very clear self talk and constant reminders about his gratitude for freedom and medical care - he wasn’t sure how to fill his time. Maybe Haley would want to..

No, his sad looking apartment wasn’t a place where he could host a friend. What would they do? Sit on the floor to watch a movie together?

“Now before you thank me again, I’ve gotta head home.” Haley’s follow up commentary freed Bucky’s racing mind. She tilted her head and gave Bucky one last smirk before she crossed the threshold of his doorway, giving him a small wave as she departed. “Try not to clench your jaw too much!” 

Bucky took in a deep breath and closed his eyes. Okay, he had survived. He came out on the other side very alive and very much still Bucky Barnes, minus some teeth. And for some reason he couldn’t quite pinpoint, the fact that Haley had been there to get him home safely had washed away a lot of his fears. 

--

Bucky (4:32PM): [IMG_155] Bucky (4:32PM): this jello was disgusting Haley (4:35PM): and yet you ate the whole thing? Bucky (4:37PM): I can’t waste it Bucky (4:40PM): the second cup tasted a bit better Haley (4:41PM): I didn’t realize I subscribed to Bucky’s Food Reviews but I am here for it Haley (4:42PM): also a selfie? I’m impressed Haley (4:43PM): now your cute chipmunk cheeks will forever be saved to my phone memory

--

next: a summer heat wave

[unitedbydevils]

Match Review: Brighton & Hove Albion Women 2-2 Manchester United Women

Unlike the Arsenal youth team, Manchester United's women's side did actually make it to Brighton, though it was a difficult affair that took the super sub antics of Rach Williams to save a result...

For United, it really is a case of Jekyll and Hyde at present. In attack, the reds look strong and full of guile and ideas, but perhaps aren't as clinical as they could be - especially given the class of Geyse but her lack of goals since arriving at United.

In defence, Zelem is a dependable captain in the pivot as a passing 6, and Mary Earps - for all the contract drama - is solid in goal (sorry haters, you're just looking to knock her down a peg). The issue comes with the back four. Gabby George, the die-hard United fan and LB, is out injured and missed massively. In her absence we've seen both Hannah Blundell and Jayde Riviere swap between LB and RB to deputise. Both prefer the right side, both aren't at the level of Ona Batlle there, and both aren't as comfortable as George out left. United's defence suffers as a result of the high pressure being put on the wide positions and chances coming in.

For this game, Millie Turner was all over the shop. She missed an early header defending a corner, which forced a clutch save from Mary Earps, and was miles off Terland for Brighton's opener, but it's not purely Turner's issue. Toone lost the ball from a high risk pass out by Blundell. Galton goes to press but then switches players rather than forcing the press and letting someone else - Blundell in this case - pick up the next player. Blundell hesitated which allowed the pass in to Terland, and Turner isn't on the forward whilst Le Tissier is in a weird no man's land behind the pair of them half marking the other attacker and half loitering. Indecision crippled United for the first goal.

It wasn't awful from United though. Geyse was denied by the post first half, as was Ella Toone with a cheeky cross-cum-shot which former red Sophie Baggaley tipped onto the crossbar, before blocking Millie Turner at close range.

The second half saw more sustained pressure from United until finally an equaliser, courtesy of a beautiful curling effort by Ella Toone. Top right corner, perfectly out of reach of Baggaley, and you could see the delight on her face as United were finally back in the game.

Brighton smartly broke on the counter, with Veatriki Sarri testing Mary Earps late on, and again the defensive issues were visible; United's back line clearly not holding any semblance of a line or an offside trap. Rather it felt like a scramble to get back and do anything, which is something coaching needs to address asap.

An 89th minute corner was nodded in back post by Brighton captain Bergsvand to give the Seagulls what nearly all thought was a late victory at the Broadfield Stadium, but never say never when Rachel Williams and Fergie Time are involved. The super sub scored a late late 98th minute equaliser, tapping in back post as Brighton's defence couldn't properly head clear Katie Zelem's corner. Not quite a mirror of Brighton's second goal but a true striker's finish and top positioning to be ready for the opportunity.

With two wins (Villa and Everton) and three draws, United find themselves 6th of 12 in the Women's Super League, though only one point behind City, Spurs, Liverpool and Arsenal - all of whom are on 10 to United's 9 points.

Whilst Everton were easily dispatched, Villa were close to a result against United, as were Leicester and now Brighton. United have only faced Arsenal from the sides above them, so manager Mark Skinner has his work cut out to shape up United's defence ahead of tougher ties in the coming weeks.

The big dilemma will be whether he benches Geyse for Malard as the centre-forward in order to start with the industry of Lucia Garcia, or will he continue to risk being too big a gap between attack and defence?