#so many Tommys jeez

[ketaundkrawall]

hi girlie! idk if yr taking requests so feel free to discard it but i was listening to agora hills by doja cat and the idea of reader being famous artist and joost being the fan just didn’t leave me alone😭🌀🩵

thank you for the request 🫶🏻 i hope you guys enjoy it <3

Stargirl Interlude ☽｡⋆ Joost Klein

Summary: you’re a famous singer meeting one of your fans

Warnings: none, just fluff and two fangirls meeting each other (maybe smut in pt. 2 bc this ends in a cliffhanger kinda), not proofread, afab!reader, no use of Y/N

WC: 1.1k

A/N: guys pls lmk if i should do a part two (i will) 💫

What you loved most about your job was seeing the happy faces of your fans whenever you came on stage. Well, it wasn’t really a job to you, it was your destiny to stand on stage and make people happy.

You loved when the crowd chanted your name, absolutely making every stage performance of yours better when they sang the lyrics. It made you proud. And it was everything you dreamed of when you were a child. Seeing people happy and being able to help them with your music somehow.

Nonetheless, every time you went on stage you were nervous. It was a feeling that accompanied you ever since you started your career.

Today you performed in a club in Amsterdam. You’ve never actually travelled to the Netherlands before so you were really excited. Not only to perform but also to explore the city, since it was your last tour stop you were doing at the moment.

Right now you were getting all set up to go on stage. You could already hear the people outside waiting for you to come out and start the show. “You’re going to kill it babes.” Your best friend, Tommy, said as he came to a stand beside you with a drink for you which you accepted with a thanks and sipped on it. “I really hope so.” Smiling you gave him the empty cup.

Tommy always travelled with you. He has been there for you since the very beginning of your career and never left your side, always calming your nerves before the shows started and you were so fucking thankful for him. “Jeez stop being so nervous! You’re a bomb you know that and now go out there and fucking show them what you got!” He cheered you on and you laughed. Giving him one last hug and taking a deep breath you ran out

“AMSTERDAM ARE YOU READY?! LETS GET THIS PARTY GOING!” You yelled and instantly felt happiness and relief flowed your body as the crowd screamed and just went completely crazy.

And so you started your show, loving the way all the people singing with you. It really filled your heart with joy. After an hour or so you were out of breath and just needed some water. Your hair was sticking to your sweaty forehead but honestly? You couldn’t be happier. Looking throughout the crowd you smiled. “Gosh we’re having some really good looking guys here tonight done we?” You grinned and the crowd screamed.

And with ‘good looking guys’ you meant one particular one that caught your eye since the beginning of the show. Of course you knew who he was. You saw him on your TikTok the whole time, liking way too many edits that popped up on your For-You-Page.

Eyes roaming the crowd again they stopped at him for a short moment but you were sure he noticed. “Never thought an Eurovision candidate would be a fan of mine.” You now grinned at the blonde, walking towards the front of the stage and kneeling down. “Joost mother fucking Klein is listening to my music guys!” You screamed and the crowd cheered again. Eyes darting to him, you saw him laugh. It would be a lie to say you didn’t listen to his music, even though you didn’t understand a word.

Walking to the back of the stage to your DJ you said something to him and soon the melody of Europapa was blasting through the speakers and you and almost the whole audience did that silly little dance and you saw Joost laughing and cheering, definitely liking it.

After the song finished you kept on going with your show, watching Joost sing along to all of your songs. Something you never thought would happen. You played your last few songs, totally forgetting the time and soon everything was over. “THANK YOU AMSTERDAM!! I LOVE YOU!” You screamed into the mic, your eyes finding the blondes again, before walking off stage.

“Jesus babes that was amazing!” Tommy practically yelled and hugged you, making you giggle. “Thanks Tommy, hey, could you get Joost backstage?” You asked in your sweetest voice possible, bashing your lashes at him and he grinned. “Uhhh.” Scoffing you hit his arm earning a huff from him. “I see what I can do.” And with that he was off.

Walking back to your dressing room you flipped down on the couch, taking a cup with whatever liquor was inside, and opened your instagram. Your DM’s and notifications were flooded with messages, pictures and videos of what just happened. People already shipped you and even had a name for the both of you. You giggled and went on TikTok, notifications blowing up on there as well. Being so concentrated on your phone you didn’t hear the knock that was coming from the door.

As you finally did notice tho you quickly yelled a “yeah?” and the door opened. Joost standing in the doorway.

Sitting up straight now you smiled widely. “Hey.” He breathed out like he couldn’t believe he’s finally meeting you. “Hi.” You smiled back and got up to hug him. “Can’t believe I’m finally meeting you.” Joost chuckled and you smiled, pulling away. “Really?” He nodded. “Been listening to your music for a while now actually.” He confessed and it made you really proud somehow. “Well thank you.” You giggled.

Both of you sat down and started to chatter away and you couldn’t stop yourself from noticing how he was smiling the whole time as he was excitedly talking to you about everything. And you got along so well. The time flew by so fast and soon it was 4 in the morning.

“I should get going.” Joost said as he looked at his phone. You just nodded. “Yeah I’m so done. Need a lot of sleep now. Long day tomorrow. I want to do some sightseeing.” You smiled, pulling your knees to your chest. “Hey uh.” Joost started and scratched the back of his head nervously. “How about I give you my number and you hit me up? I can show you around if you want.”

Your eyes lit up as you nodded. “I’d really like that you smiled as he dropped his shoulder. You didn’t even noticed how nervous he actually was to ask you that question. Handing over his phone you quickly typed your number down along with his name. He smiled as you gave it back to him. “Then good night I guess. I see you around then.”

And with that he walked out of the club, not being able to stop the smile that was forming on his face. Taking his phone out he looked at your contact and chuckled.

You saved yourself on his phone as ‘Stargirl Interlude 💫’, your stage name.

[unamused-boss]

Ngl im literally obsessed with ur writeing rn so! I have a request! Could you do a billy x reader where you are in a band and you invite billy to a show and hes like your biggest supporter ever. OH and you play the guitar and are the lead singer ( Yall r highsxhool yall have no money) so yeah, tysm if you do the request!!!!

That's my Girlfriend!!!

Billy Hargrove x Fem Reader

Disclaimer: This maybe a bit short, underaged drinking, some harsh language

.............................................................................

"If I'm gonna be honest I'm actually shitting myself Billy." You panicked to your boyfriend. He looked to you softly.

"Can you stop shitting your pants, you will do great." He said.

"You really think so." You look to him with big eyes. He can't help but laugh at the state of you. The first night Billy had met you was, of course, at a party were you promptly punched him in the nose. To this day you say it was an accident but Billy knows it was on purpose. He was being an ass... and you both were drunk.

"Hey." Billy smiled to you. " You are going to give the most amazing show these hicks the best show of their lives and after we are going to have the best sex of our lives." Billy laughed as you punched him in the arm for the horrible sex joke. Your expression still did not change. He brought you closer to squeeze you into a hug. He kissed your lips as an announcement was heard throughout the bar.

"Everybody, I would like to introduce a new band to you. You don't know them, but many mothers have complained about their volume level. I'd like to welcome.... VELVET CONCORD!!"

There was a small clap echo that went through the Hide Out bar. That didn't help in any way for you. Your expression stayed the same, terrified.

"You got this babe." Billy whispered. You nodded.

"You ready girl?" Dusk asked right behind the both of you.

"With the amount of crap in my pants... I guess." You are unsure about this.

This has been your dream ever since you could play guitar. You met Thorn, Luna, and Dusk all in middle school. You guys came up with Velvet Concord for the middle school talent show in 1977. That show solidified your friendship. Sure you guys didn't win but you didn't care. You all found something that will bind you together forever. This show in this bar is your first real show, not one for some school dance or party with preselected music. You will be playing original songs that you wrote, with notes that Dusk came up with, bass from Thorn, and drums from Luna. You didn't want to screw this up for them.

We've dealt with so much bullshit. From bullying cause of how we dress, to our music, jeez it only stopped when you started dating Billy. Everyone would pick on us until they needed a band for the party, and in the words of Tommy H. "I'd rather have you than the freak and his band." At least you weren't the second pick.

You and Velvet Concord made your way on stage. You nearly tripping over some cords. You were sweating, so much sweat. My throat is dry. The lights are glaring down at me. ' I can't do this' 'I should give up'.... 'What am I doing?'

"Yeeeaaaah!" A voice broke you off your head. "Let's go Velvet Concord!" It was your Billy. The Billy you punch in the face. The Billy you asked out. The Billy that asked you to be his girlfriend. The Billy that told you how sexy you look in your stage outfit tonight. The Billy that has non stopped supported you once both were together.

"Um... Hello everyone we are Velvet Concord." You started. "This is my bassist Thorn, my drummer Luna, and my pianist Dusk." Okay you've introduced everyone.

Now the show begins.

"1...2...3..."

Your guitar was on fire. You were synced with the band as if it were second nature. The upbeat rock blared through out the Hide Out. Luna put every heart beat into her drums. You don't think you have ever felt so alive. Every lyric that was sang was like it was being constructed for the first time all over again. You're back in the garage practicing what cord goes were and what note was perfect. The set that your prepared for the night was selected perfectly. Nothing can beat this. The nervous sweat now turned to excitement. Screaming every note with passion. Everything was right, this is how it is supposed to be. Velvet Concord under bright lights, even if they were from some dingy rock bar. The last riff finally hit. Thorn played it out a bit as usual.

"But on my tombstone when I go just put death by rock and roll~"

There was an eruption of applause through the crowd. The lights were turned down now you could see everyone in the crowd. Everyone cheering for your band.

"That's my girlfriend!!" A shrill voice yelled. You laughed at Billy's antics. You didn't see where he was until a force came up on stage an tackled you into a hug.

"This is my fucking girlfriend!!" He yelled to the crowd. Which in return made them scream even louder at his banter. You looked behind to see your band mates laughing at your boyfriend. You step forward away from Billy for a moment.

"Thank you everyone!." You and your band took your, very much rehearsed, bow to the crowd. You quickly unhooked your guitar from the speakers to be dragged backstage by your boyfriend. As he turned you around he brought you in for a hot kiss. Which surprised you cause you thought this would be saved for later.

"You were the most amazing and sexy woman I have ever met!" Billy cheered to you. You laughed in response. He brought your into a bear crushing hug.

"Was it really that good?" you asked.

"Good? It was better than good, it was great!" He yelled.

"Yo Y/n, get your mans under control." Thorn laughed. "We've only just begun, if he's this excited about our first show he might wipe out by our next." You girls laughed along with her. Meanwhile Billy was smothering you with a hug. If your hair wasn't already frazzled it would have been a mess.

"Guys! Guys!" Luna shouted as she ran to you all. "Joel just gave me out check!" She waved. You quickly snatched it from her flailing hand.

"Oh my gosh!" Your eyes widen at the amount, sure for some it wasn't a lot but damn!

"Who want's to flipping celebrate!!" You cheered.

"Yeeeeeaaaaahhh" Everyone else cheered in agreement. Going to run out to the bar to party. Billy stoped for a quick moment alone.

"You really are the best girl ever." He smiled. you smiled to giving him a kiss on the lips.

"Now let's get wasted!" He cheered taking you along with him.

"Yeah!"

.........................................................................

Hope you enjoyed!

Fics are gonna be coming out a little slower cause of school plus I'm having writers block. But I will try to get a Halloween fic out by the end of the month!

[radioactivereads]

bros cuddles (hlvrai)

summary: the science team is Tired and they Cuddle . thats it . lol

a/n: im a tommy kin and i was having a hard time sleeping so i wrote this a few months ago . its all platonic. also bubby is hard to write

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

The dripping sound of the pipes was pounding in his head. Every noise felt elevated to the highest degree. Tommy stared at the ceiling, sitting against the wall of the Black Mesa floor, the chill of it feeling like it sunk into his bones. Around him the rest of the crew slept.

 In his brain’s constant quest to identify patterns around him, the science team's sleeping habits were now familiar.

Gordon always slept curled up on his side, tense in his sleep. Tommy had hoped his dreams would allow him an escape from how on edge he always seemed to be, but after noticing that he wasn’t so sure. 

Dr. Coomer and Dr. Bubby often stuck close together, and they were no different now. Coomer liked to sleep on his back, even if it did make him snore, which Bubby complained about, but he also liked to prop his head up on Coomer and lie next to him, resting his head on Coomer’s stomach and muttering in his sleep.

Tommy wasn’t quite familiar with Benrey’s sleep patterns, only catching them napping in the middle of other conversations, or once when he woke up and they were still asleep. They seemed to sleep wherever was most convenient, which was often just wherever he was when they got tired.

However, none of these patterns soothed him in this moment. He found himself struggling to sleep more and more. The sounds of all the weapons echoed in his mind. Each day he was dealing with much louder sounds than what he’d become accustomed to.

He wished Sunkist were here, if only for the selfish reason he wanted to hug her. Her soft fur always helped him fall asleep, and she’d often curl up next to him or by his bed, guarding him from threats, real or imaginary.

But it would be dangerous for Sunkist to be here. Despite her immortality, Tommy always worried that the exact moment she got hurt would be when she suddenly would stop being immortal, or maybe she’d forget she was immortal and maybe that would make her not be anymore.

His dad was nearby, he knew that. He’d been watching more closely these days. Whether that was because of Tommy, Gordon, the ‘incident’, or maybe a mix of all of them, he couldn’t be sure.

He- again selfishly- hoped it was because of him, though he knew deep down that was probably not the case. 

His feelings about his father, the ‘Gman’ were complicated at best. They’re his dad, and he loved them, sure, but the recent reappearance after many years of absence was a big thing to get used to.

His father was busy, yes, but Tommy had always hoped they’d have more time for him someday.

But they never did, and Tommy had stopped hoping.

Tommy didn’t exactly want his fathers “comfort” at the moment. His dad was not very good with emotions like comfort, and Tommy knew it’d likely make things worse.

Tommy was only startled out of his thoughts when someone snapped their fingers in front of him. He scrambled back quickly, but realized it was only Bubby, who was squatting in front of him.

“Jeez loueez no need to be so jumpy!” Bubby scowled, but Tommy had learnt he often did that, and it was not indicative of his mood.

“Sorry���” Tommy muttered. His gaze flicked to Dr Coomer, who was still lying on his back, pawing at the air in his sleep and muttering something about a championship and some sort of gaming console.

Tommy wondered what he was dreaming about before turning back to Bubby.

“You look terrible kid, you should sleep”

Bubby was quite blunt.

Tommy bit back a retort, knowing Bubby was much better at that than him, and it wouldn’t be very smart to start that kind of fight.

“…I can’t sleep” Tommy complained “it’s too much- I-it’s way too loud in here. Even if- even when it’s quiet”

Bubby sat, thinking seemingly

“I usually use Coomer as a pillow” he began, Tommy didn’t inform him he already knew this information

 “but when I focus on his snoring it helps me drown out the sound of anything else”

“But how do you- how are you sure you’re gonna be safe all night then? If nobody’s keeping watch over you”

Bubby waved a hand

“You all are very loudl. If something happens I’m sure I’ll wake up to Gordon yelling his head off”

“…I guess so…” Tommy still didn’t feel convinced.

“Why don’t we try to find a noise that you can focus on?” Bubby offered. Tommy sighed but nodded

“Yea… Usually I have Sunkist a-and she helps me feel safer…” Tommy hugged his knees, and Bubby was lost in thought.

“...Say, you like Wikipedia right?” “The- The free online encyclopedia that anyone can edit?” Tommy looked up hopefully

Bubby grinned. It wasn’t like how people were supposed to grin, Tommy thought. It was more like a chimp bearing its teeth, but he’d learned that was just how he smiled.

Bubby walked over and nudged Coomer with his foot. Coomer muttered about gloves and Bubby rolled his eyes (Or, Tommy assumed he did. He couldn’t quite see behind his glasses.)

Bubby picked up Coomer and carried him over, dropping him on the ground. Coomer jolted and yelled something about ropes, but Bubby tapped him and he calmed down.

“Oh, Hello Dr. Bubb-” “Shut it! That one’s still sleeping” He jabbed a thumb towards Gordon, who stirred a bit.

Coomer’s voice was quieter, but not like a whisper, more like someone had used a remote to turn the volume down.

“Coomer, recite the boy a wikipedia article!” “Wikipedia, The Free Online Encyclopedi-?” “Yes, yes that!!”

Tommy tried to get comfortable on the floor, but it wasn’t working very well. Coomer lied back down, resting against the wall, and Bubby lied down next to him, resting his head on Coomer’s side.

Coomer noticed Tommy’s struggles and kindly patted the spot next to him, offering Tommy to share the space. Tommy was hesitant, he wasn’t very used to any sort of physical contact. He hadn’t had many friends, let alone ones who wanted to be affectionate with him. 

He hated to admit it, but he still flinched whenever Gordon put a hand on his shoulder.

Coomer was the exact opposite however, constantly poking, hugging, and messing with other people, so Tommy suspected it was very normal for him.

Awkwardly, Tommy scooted closer, resting his head on his side, and Coomer put an arm over him. It was very comforting, he had to admit.

“A Chair Is A Piece Of Furniture With A Raised Surface-” Coomer began reciting, and Tommy felt himself relax. 

It reminded him of his dad. Gman would recite OSHA guidelines, rules, and encyclopedias to get him to sleep, whether because he thought it would bore Tommy into tiredness or because he genuinely thought it was interesting was beyond him, but Tommy had grown a liking for them regardless.

As he listened to Coomer ramble on, his mind wandered.

His dad was nearby, and he was safe. He shouldn’t worry about that. Even if it wasn’t as direct as Sunkist’s guarding, Tommy doubted his dad would let him get hurt.

But he didn’t just have to worry about himself anymore. He willed his tired eyes- which he hadn’t realized had closed- open, and his gaze tiredly flicked to Gordon, who was still curled up. He looked to Coomer, who was still reciting the entire page, reading out each resource link letter by letter.

“Hey Dr Coomer?”

“Yes, Tommy?”

“...Can we uhm- Can Mr. Freeman join us? He’s- he looks… cold” 

Coomer’s eyes squinted in a strange sort of smile. “The More The Merrier!”

Tommy stood and walked over to Gordon,  and very gently reached down, tucking his arms under Gordon’s, and lifted him up, careful to not wake him. Gordon stirred a few times, but ultimately Tommy was successful. 

He sat down, moving Gordon to be close to the pile. Tommy curled up by Dr. Coomer again. Bubby was already asleep, and contrary to what he said, he was the one snoring it seemed. Tommy hadn’t noticed that before.

Coomer continued reading out the link he was on, while Tommy’s eyes slowly closed. The dripping of the pipes was merely a background sound now, and easily filtered out. And though he felt the cold of the room threatening to chill him, he felt so warm next to his friends.

This was nice. Tommy appreciated the group's company, of course, but as of late it’d felt… Better than before. Tommy realized in this moment that they were his friends. They cared about him, and they’d help him.

Tommy smiled tiredly, curled up by Dr Coomer and Mr. Freeman.

The cold had passed, and only warmth remained.

He hoped it would last a long time.

[avastrasposts]

The Pilot and his Girl - ch. 32**

We are slowly moving towards rock bottom with poor Frankie as he tries to get a handle on his addiction and his own demons.

I'm about to update the warnings for the next chapter. If there's something you're very sure you don't want to read about, please heed them. And if you don't want spoilers, please send me a DM and I'll tell you if you need to worry or not. I am moving towards something very dark and I know it might not be everyone's cup of tea and that's absolutely fine!

Series Master List

Chapter 33- Warnings have their own post - Word count: 10.9k

Another week passes, and you think maybe Frankie does better although his nightmares are still ever present, he gets moody sometimes and he’s always too tired, but slowly you think, maybe, you see an improvement. At least he stays away from Joel, you know that. He comes with you to the radio office in the morning or goes straight to someone who needs help fixing something, sometimes he goes scavenging for spare parts, or trades for them at the market, but never outside the QZ. When he’s done he comes by the radio, or you meet him and the guys at the bar. Often Tommy joins you, sometimes even Joel. Pope tells you he’s asked Joel if Frankie has tried trading for drugs again and Joel says he hasn’t seen Frankie at all.  

It’s been four weeks since Frankie came clean to you all, and the warm spring air seems light to you, even in the QZ. The ever entrepreneurial manager of the bar, Liz, has somehow managed to turn the grimy backyard into a ‘beer garden’ of sorts and now you’re all out there, sprawled in an assortment of patio furniture around a white plastic picnic table. 

Will keeps glancing at the door, Diana hasn’t turned up yet and even though she’s not late, you know Will is on edge until she gets here, just like you are before Frankie turns up. 

There’s been an increase in Firefly activity and FEDRA is on high alert, meaning random stops and checks in the street were now commonplace. The group you’d first only heard about through the scattering of graffiti throughout the QZ, had started making noise. Suddenly they’d recruited more people, were spreading their demands for a more just rule of the QZ, and almost every alley wall had their ‘slogan’ hastily spray painted across it; 'If you're lost in the dark, look for the light’. 

More than once you’d been approached by them, random women mostly, striking up conversations about FEDRA’s unjust methods and harsh control of the QZ. You knew the guys had also been approached, their reputation as men who knew how to handle themselves and any gun placed in their hands, made them prime targets for Firefly recruiters. So far all attempts had been shut down, getting involved in rebellions was something they’d done back in Delta Force and they were done with that. 

Will’s eyes flick to the door leading out to the backyard again as it swings open, but this time it’s Frankie. He’d gone inside for a round of drinks and he stumbles across the threshold, nearly spilling the tray of glasses he’s holding. 

“Jeez, Fish,” Benny laughs, “How many drinks did you have before I got here?” 

“Only one,” Frankie grumbles, carefully watching his steps as he crosses the yard and sets down the tray on the table. 

“The old man can’t take his alcohol anymore,” Tommy jokes, the two youngest men of the group chuckling together as Frankie rolls his eyes and hands you one of the glasses before sitting down next to you, his hand drifting to your thigh almost by its own accord. 

“You feeling ok?” you ask him in a low voice as Ben and Tommy continue celebrating being the youngest, and he nods, taking a sip of his drink before he gives you a quick smile. 

“Yeah, I’m good, just tired, didn’t sleep great last night again,” he answers and you put your hand on top of his, braiding your fingers between his. 

“It’ll get better, Frankie,” you soothe him, “you’re doing great.” 

Frankie looks at the whiskey swirling around his glass and gives you a weak smile before he takes another sip and looks over at Pope who’s asked Will something. You keep glancing at Frankie when he’s not looking. You know something isn’t right, but you can’t push it, not yet. He’s too tired, too sluggish even though he seems to be doing better. Pope had said it might just be the withdrawal symptoms, and it’s been only two weeks. But you feel blind, you can’t do anything but trust him, if he’s still using, you won’t know until it’s too late. So you scan his face, watch his moves, hoping and praying he’s being honest with you all and that he’s just fighting withdrawal symptoms. 

You lean back, taking a sip of your own drink, when from the street a loud explosion suddenly rocks through the air, making you all rush to your feet and turn towards the entrance to the bar. Shouts can be heard from inside and the sound of breaking glass. 

“Come on,” Pope says, “we need to get out of here!” He runs to the door, Frankie’s hold on your hand tightens and you follow him and next to you, you hear Will curse loudly. 

“Fuck! Diana is on her way here, I’ve got to find her!” He wrenches the door open, everyone inside is on their feet, facing the front door and someone is carefully looking outside. Just as Will crosses the room, heading for it, the door swings open and Diana runs inside, covered in dust, coughing. He’s on her in a split second, carefully cupping her cheeks. 

“Honey, please tell me you’re ok! What happened?” 

Diana coughs again and nods, “I’m ok, I think, the explosion was pretty far down the street, I just got pushed by the blast.”

Will is running his fingers over her head, scanning her body for any injuries, before he pulls her into a hug.

“Thank fucking god,” you hear him mumble. 

“We should get out of here,” Pope says, the bar is emptying now. The other patrons are filtering out through the door, looking down the street before hurrying off. When you’re all out on the street you can hear the rumble of FEDRA trucks approaching and the blaring of their alarms. 

“You guys should come over to our place, it's the closest, gonna be a bitch to get home now,” Frankie says. 

“I’m gonna head over to my girlfriend,” Tommy says, “she’s just a couple of streets over, gonna make sure she’s ok.” He waves a quick goodbye before he takes off, jogging down a side street. 

“C’mon,” Pope starts walking towards your building. You walk fast, getting out of the way of more and more FEDRA soldiers moving in, heavily armed and looking ready to take down anyone they don’t like. You feel relieved when you make it inside, everyone piling into your apartment, it’s bigger than Pope’s. Just as you’re about to step inside, one of your neighbors comes up the stairs. 

“Did you hear the explosion?” he asks and you nod. 

“Yeah, we were at the bar, do you know what happened?” 

“Those damn Fireflies, they blew up a truck! Blew a big hole in the street!” He shakes his head as he starts up the next flight of stairs, “FEDRA’s going to be worse than ever now, mark my words!”

You sink down on the couch in the crowded living room, Frankie sits on the arm rest next to you and you put your arm around his waist, leaning into his side. 

“Fucking Fireflies,” Pope grumbles, “I know they’re trying to make things better but what the fuck do they think blowing up trucks will do?”

“FEDRA will crack down even harder now,” Will says, handing Diana a damp washcloth and helping her clean the dust off her face and clothes. “Have they even been successful in other QZ’s?”

Through the radio, and overhearing people’s messages, you knew the Fireflies have spread over most of the US. From almost every QZ came reports of their activities, usually hiding dissent at how FEDRA ran the QZ’s, it was clear that FEDRA wasn’t doing a good job anywhere. 

“I haven’t heard anything of them having any major success,” you reply, “at most they manage to disrupt things, and from what little people say, FEDRA cracks down hard on everyone, not just the Fireflies.” 

“How does FEDRA respond?” Pope asks and you shake your head, grimacing. 

“Not well…extended curfews, harder punishments, even death penalties, harder controls of medicine and food, checkpoints across the QZ, a couple of places even have public executions, I heard they do hangings in Kansas City.” 

“Great,” Benny sighs, “It’ll be fucking Arlington all over again if they keep this up.” 

“You can’t blame them though,” Eve says, she’s sitting on Benny’s lap, “FEDRA are fucking fascists, the Fireflies want to over throw them and have democratic rule.” 

“Yeah, sure, FEDRA are a bunch of fascists, but when has bombing city streets ever helped?” Benny asks and Eve just shrugs. 

…

The next day FEDRA trucks drive through the QZ, blaring an announcement from loudspeakers in the truck beds. 

“The criminal gang known as The Fireflies is now classified as a terrorist organization. Any citizen found collaborating or participating will be tried and convicted.”

They drive through the QZ all day and before long you feel a headache throbbing behind your eyes as you sit at the radio. There’s less people stopping by today, most are too scared to go out unless they have to. 

“Joy came by with a message for her brother,” Sean says as you share lunch in the office. “She said a FEDRA officer told her they are going to execute anyone found to be a Firefly member.” 

“That’s terrible,” you say, “FEDRA’s trials are a joke already, now they’re going to execute people based on those?” You shake your head and scrape the last of the thin stew up with your arepa.

“They’ve put up checkpoints everywhere,” Sean sighs, “It feels like this is only the beginning.” 

“Not only checkpoints, I was stopped three times in the street by soldiers on my way over here this morning, everyone is a potential terrorist in their eyes now.” . 

Your lunch is suddenly disturbed by a door slamming open down the hall and shouts from the few people waiting for your lunch break to be over. Heavy boots come stomping down the hallway and you throw a worried glance at Sean. The door of the office is only half closed but now it’s thrown wide open, slamming against the shelf behind it with a loud crash. Two FEDRA soldiers step inside, their rifles pointed at the floor thankfully, followed by an office and two more soldiers. 

“On your feet!” the office barks, “Up against the wall!” You’d already flown to your feet when the door slammed open, now the soldiers advance on you both with their guns raised and you back up against the only window in the room. 

“Where are your records of incoming and outgoing messages?” the office asks, his voice rough as he pushes the papers on the radio desk around. 

“We-we don’t keep any records.” Sean stutters, “Sir,” he adds. 

“Why not? What are you hiding?” the officer, his name tag says Ambrose, barks, “All incoming and outgoing messages must be logged.”

“Only civilians use this radio, there is no rule saying we have to keep logs of their messages.” 

“New rule, from now on you have to keep a log of all messages,” the officer sneers, “Check those shelves for contraband, you two, check those boxes.” He directs the soldiers to the shelves and boxes that line the wall and they start rifling through the content. You know they only contain spare parts for the radio, nuts and bolts, a few wires, but the soldiers go through it like they’re expecting to find drugs and weapons, every piece is pulled out and left scattered on the floor. 

“Please, be careful with that, they’re spare parts for the radio,” Sean protests as one of the soldiers knocks over a box of equipment. 

“Shut up old man, or I’ll toss ‘em out the window,” Officer Ambrose snarls, “you’re lucky we’re letting you keep ‘em to start with.”

“They’re parts for this particular amateur radio model,” you interject, “they won’t work with the more powerful army issue radio FEDRA uses.” Frankie had taught you that when he helped Sean find some of the parts in an old AV shop a few blocks away. 

Ambrose looks at you and you see a glimmer of recognition in his eyes, “You’re Morales’s wife,” he says, “you and him hang around with the Millers and that other beaner, Garcia.” He looks you up and down, “No wonder you work there then, that’s how they get their information.” You feel your skin run cold, if he’s saying what you think he’s saying, then FEDRA knows about the smuggling. 

“She works here because she’s an excellent radio operator and she knows this machine better than even I do!” Sean protests, “I don’t know what you’re insinuating.” 

“Start keeping those records, old man,” he snarls, still looking at you, “Or we’ll come back and smash the radio and your office to pieces. And just a warning; I catch as much of a whiff of Firefly activity here, you’re both going to the scaffolds.” He barks orders at the soldiers and they step outside, marching behind Ambrose down the hallway. Sean and you are left surveying the mess they’ve left behind, the content of the shelves and boxes scattered across the floor. With a deep sigh you bend down and start putting things back, checking for damage as you go. 

It takes you the rest of the afternoon to tidy the office while Sean handles the people still waiting to receive and send messages. He writes down the messages people send, and the ones received, putting all the scraps of paper in a box. If FEDRA wants to read what people talk about, they’ll have to sort through it themselves. Although Sean does raise the suspicion that maybe FEDRA will try to listen in on what the radio receives or broadcasts, it means you’ll both have to be much more careful in the future. 

You head back home, feeling rattled by the day’s events, together with the checkpoints and being stopped in the street, FEDRA’s presence in the QZ is starting to feel oppressive. You remember how quickly it escalated in Arlington, praying it won’t come to that. 

Frankie hadn’t been past the radio office today, he’d been helping a friend of Sean’s clean out and repair an old open fireplace in exchange for new boots he desperately needed, his old ones falling apart. When you open the door to the apartment you see the new boots neatly placed inside the door and heavy snoring comes from the living room. You look around the corner and smile, Frankie’s on his back on the couch, one arm slung over his head, the other across his chest, mouth agape while he snores, loudly. He’s not usually a heavy snorer but he hasn’t been sleeping well, often waking up tired and groggy. You kneel down next to him and put your hand on his arm, he twitches but keeps snoring, his nose wiggling over his mustache, making you smile. He looks younger and softer than he has in years when he’s sleeping like this, relaxed without nightmares. He must’ve decided to take a nap on the couch after coming home so you leave him sleeping. You tiptoe past him and into the kitchen to start making dinner. 

The arepas are waiting to be fried when there’s a knock on the front door. You hear Frankie stir but he doesn’t wake up and you peek out before you open. Pope’s standing outside, a bag of groceries in his hand. 

“Hey,” he says as you let him in and take the bag from him. “I brought some of the groceries I got with my ration cards, your cooking is better than mine,” he grins as he toes off his unlaced boots. 

“Thanks,” you peer into the bag, spotting some stuff that was definitely not obtainable with ration cards, Pope, Will and Benny had made sure you had more than enough even though Frankie wasn’t smuggling and always seemed to make excuses to fill your pantry. “I’ll cook for you every day if you bring things like this,” you say and pull out a side of pork, something you hadn’t seen in a long time. 

“Frankie’s living the good life I see,” Pope chuckles, spotting him, still stretched out on the couch, snoring lightly now. 

“He’s not sleeping great at night, he must’ve been really tired,” you look over at him and smile, he mumbles and turns on to his side, back to the room. “I should probably wake him up now though, or he won’t sleep tonight.” 

“You get him up then, I’ll put this stuff away,” Pope takes the bag from you and goes to the kitchen while you go over to the couch and kneel down, wrapping your arm around Frankie’s waist and leaning your chin on his shoulder. 

“Hey, Frankie boy, time to wake up,” you whisper, running your hand up and down his side and he mumbles incoherently, still firmly asleep. “Frankie, baby, wake up, or Santi’s gonna eat all your dinner,” you tease, shaking him lightly. He must be really tired, usually he wakes up the second you touch him, now he only mutters and rolls over onto his back, throwing his arm over his eyes. 

From the kitchen Santi starts rattling plates around; “C’mon, pendejo, despiértate! I’m fucking starving!” he yells and Frankie finally stirs enough to peel his eyes open. 

“Cállate…” he mumbles while he blinks the sleep from his eyes. 

“Hey baby, wake up,” you smile, pressing your lips to his scruffy jaw, “you’ve been sleeping for hours I think.” All you get in response is a grumble and you take his hand, pulling him up to sitting. He rubs his hands over his face and blinks a few times again, his eyes are red and he looks pretty out of it still. 

“Are you feeling ok, Frankie? You look pretty terrible.” 

“Thanks,” he mumbles, giving you a weak smile before he yawns, “I slept like shit last night and I was fucking tired all day but I had to help with that fireplace, got ash fucking everywhere.” 

“Your eyes are really red, did you rinse them?” you ask and he nods. 

“Yeah, but I only had water, I hope it was clean enough.” 

“C’mon, dinner’s served,” Pope calls from the kitchen and you give Frankie a hand up. 

“The other’s aren’t here yet,” you say, “Will and Benny are coming over with Diana and Eve.” 

“Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you,” Pope replies, “Will asked me to tell you that FEDRA is putting a new curfew in place, 6 am to 6 pm. It won’t come into effect until tomorrow but they didn’t wanna risk being outside with FEDRA soldiers looking to jump the gun any chance they get.” 

“But that means we won’t be able to have dinner together at all!” You sink down in your chair with a grumble, “Fuck FEDRA.” 

You start serving the stew, Frankie’s got his head in his hands on the table, giving you a tired smile when you place the bowl in front of him. 

“Thanks.” 

“Speaking of FEDRA assholes, an officer came by the radio today with a bunch of soldiers and turned the place upside down, luckily they didn’t break the radio,” you say, serving yourself. You see Frankie’s eyebrows furrow. 

“What did they want?” he asks. 

“Anything, I think,” you reply. “First they asked about logs for in- and outgoing messages, which we don’t keep of course. So they told us we have to from now on and I think they want to see if there’s any mention of the Fireflies from other QZ’s.” 

“And they think you’ll write that down in a log book?” Santi says, shaking his head, “they’re more stupid than I thought…” 

“I always just assumed they were listening in on the radio. That can’t be hard, it’s just regular amateur radio.” 

“You give FEDRA way too much credit, cariño,” Frankie says while dipping his arepa in the stew, “they don’t know shit unless they have someone who actually was a radio operator before the outbreak. And I doubt it.”

“There was something else, more worrying,” you say, “the officer, Ambrose, recognized me as your wife. He made it sound like he knew about the smuggling. When he saw that I worked the radio he said ‘so that’s how they get their information.’ “

“We haven’t used Sean’s radio for setting up trades for years,” Santi frowns, “he couldn’t know about the smuggling through that, he’s hasn’t been in the QZ long enough.” 

“So that means he knows about it some other way, but he doesn’t know how you get the information,” Frankie replies, “but how does he know?” 

“Yeah, that’s worrying,” Santi says, tapping his fingers on the table as he furrows his brows, “I’ll have to talk to Will and Benny, see if we’re missing something. Or someone.”  

The three of you fall silent while you finish dinner, it’s not until you’ve all sunk down onto the couch that Santi speaks again. 

“I’m thinking we should probably be more careful with our runs, go less often, even if FEDRA aren’t getting nosy,” he says, opening the bottle of whiskey he’d brought. “Runs are getting more and more risky, not just getting out without FEDRA noticing, but also getting through the area around the QZ.” 

“More infected?” Frankie asks and Santi nods. 

“Yeah, people who are trying to get to the QZ are getting infected before they get here. And if they can’t, or don’t want to, kill themselves, they just add to the ones already there.” 

“Please Santi, please be careful,” you plead with him, “it was always dangerous, if it’s even more now then maybe it’s best to stop.” 

“Don’t worry, we have some ideas,” he says, smiling at you. “We’ve got a contact with FEDRA who’s willing to make sure certain supply trucks don’t get checked too thoroughly. I need to make sure he’s reliable and then we can start bringing in goods that way.” 

“What’s Joel and Tommy doing?” Frankie asks. 

“Still looking for someone to partner up with, don’t think they’ve found anyone yet though.” Santi replies, “And as far as I know, they’re still going outside pretty regularly.” 

“I guess they have to if they want to meet up with the guy from Concord,” you say, “he’s the one supplying the oxy right?”

“Unless they found someone else, yeah, it’ll be the same guy.” 

Santi stays until he sees Frankie yawn and your eyes starting to droop closed, the day catching up with you both.. 

“I’ll see you guys tomorrow, get some sleep, both of you,” he winks, “no pre-bed activities, you both look like shit.” 

“Thanks Santi, always the charmer,” you mock scowl at him as Frankie yawns again, wide enough to make his jaw pop. 

“Night, hermano, see you tomorrow,” he mumbles, getting to his feet. After Santi’s left he locks up and follows you into the bathroom. 

“I need a shower,” he mutters, his eyes half closed, “should’ve showered when I got home but I was too tired.” 

“I need a shower too,” you say as Frankie begins to peel off his clothes and he gives you a tired smile.

“Please shower with me, hermosa,” he says, holding out his hand as he kicks off his jeans, “No funny business, I promise.” 

“What if I want some funny business?” you smirk at him as you unbutton your own jeans but poor Frankie just shakes his head. 

“I’m sorry, I’m so tired, cariño, without the pills the nightmares are kicking my ass,” he says, turning on the water and letting it run warm, “I’m not being a very good husband.” 

“Don’t be silly, Frankie, you’re the best husband I’ve ever had,” you smile, dropping your shirt in the hamper and stepping in after Frankie, wrapping your arms around his waist from behind. The warm water runs over you both and you sigh as it soaks over your tired muscles. Frankie just hums in response, hanging his head and letting the water run over him, until his brain catches up. 

“I’m the only husband you’ve ever had,” he says with a snort, turning in your arms and putting his own around you. “You have nothing to compare with,” he smiles down at you as you blink up at him through the water. 

“Am I the best wife you’ve ever had?” you ask with a coy voice that makes Frankie chuckle. 

“Hmm…let me think about it,” he says, stroking his beard while you playfully poke his ribs and he smiles again, “Best wife I’ve ever had, best human I’ve ever known, you’re perfect in every possible way,” he says, bending down and running the tip of his nose along yours, gently nudging your cheek before his lips find yours. You moan into his mouth as he makes you open up for him, his tongue slipping along yours, tasting you and pulling you closer, deepening the kiss until you’re breathless. 

“I thought you said no funny business,” you mumble against his lips when you finally break apart. 

“I’m just kissing my wife,” he mumbles back, the heavy weight of his cock making itself known between you. 

“Does your dick know that?” you ask, sliding your hand between the two of you and closing your fingers around the thick length, even with the warm water from the shower, it feels hot in your hand. Frankie groans and you feel his hips jolt, thrusting into your hand as you start stroking him. 

“Let me take care of you, Frankie,” you mumbled, reaching up and pressing your lips against his neck, your tongue slipping over his wet skin. You can feel the rumble of his throat under it as his cock twitches in your hand. “I want to taste you, feel that heavy weight of your cock in my mouth as you come.” You pull back and look up at him, his eyes already closed, his head tilted back, “Say it, Frankie, tell me what you want me to do.” 

“Cariño,” he moans, “please, I want your mouth, suck my cock.” His hips jolt again, he’s holding back from fucking into your tight fist but you can feel him grow increasingly hard under your light grip. You give him a final kiss on his throat before you make him back up against the shower wall, he drops his head back with a dull thud. The harsh bathroom light is on and you take your time as you drop to your knees, admiring his thick and long cock, the shower has made it wet and slick, the head swollen and weeping. Looking up at him, blinking through the shower water, you see that he’s still got his eyes closed, but his breaths are rapid and strained. Still watching him you stick out your tongue and run the tip lightly over the slit. The effect is instant, a strained groan rumbles from him and it makes you smile, you love the sounds you can pull from him when he lets himself focus only on what you do to him, without him trying to make you feel good at the same time. 

The water makes your hand slide easily up and down his shaft while you take the head into your mouth, tasting the salty drops leaking from him as you make sure your tongue licks over every part of, tracing the ridge and veins, circling the head with warm lips. He bucks into you, his heavy groans louder as your hand closes more tightly around what’s not in your mouth, he’s already close, you can feel him swell and twitch in your mouth. Pulling back a little you glance up at him and see him looking down at you, open mouth and glassy eyes. Like always when he concentrates his tongue rests on his bottom lip, the pink tip peeking out. He’s breathing heavily and his hips start to thrust lightly almost of their own accord. Still looking at him you let him slip out of your mouth and lick a wide stripe from the bottom of his cock, all the way up along the underside, your hand gliding  down and gently cupping his balls as your mouth envelops him again, adding pressure, sucking him in between your tight lips. 

“Fuck, bebita, please…” he moans, almost a pained expression on his face, “don’t stop, I need your mouth,” he’s kept his hands by his sides, fist clenched, but now he cups your cheeks, caressing your skin as you take more of him, deeper into your mouth, his blunt head nudging against the back of your throat. His moaning is downright filthy, a panted whine as he squeezes his eyes shut. You increase the pressure, tightening your mouth’s firm grip around his slick cock, letting it slide in and out of your mouth as Frankie’s breathing grows erratic. 

“Don’t stop,” he groans, “so close, fuck, your mouth, hermosa…”

You breathe in and take him as deep as you can, your nose nudging the wet curls at the base of his cock, you can feel him spasming as you swallow around him, heavy on your tongue. Your mouth tightens around him, sucking firmly along the whole shaft and with a sudden, loud groan he comes, his hips bucking his cock into your throat, making you gag as you breathe through your nose. Hot liquid fills your mouth, dripping out on the sides as you suck him through his climax. He’s moaning above you, incoherent strings of Spanish, filth pouring out until his cock begins to soften in your mouth. You let him slip out, gently wrapping your hand around it and cleaning him off. 

“I might pass out,” he mutters, breathing heavily as he tilts his head back, trying to compose himself, “Fuck me, I needed that, cariño.” He opens his eyes as you stand up, placing a soft kiss on his little belly before he can kiss your lips. 

“Best wife I’ve ever had,” he mumbles and you giggle against his mouth.

“I know,” you smirk, “thought I’d remind you.” 

“Thank you for the reminder,” he smiles back. 

…

The next day things in the QZ get worse. As you walk to the radio with Frankie you can hear the new announcement from FEDRA; Going outside the QZ without a permit is now punishable by death. Entering the QZ without a permit is now punishable by death. Bringing in illegal contraband is now punishable by death. Collaborating with the Fireflies is now punishable by death. A special military court will be set up to deal with all violations of these rules

There are soldiers everywhere, check points every few blocks and everyone is on edge. Frankie holds on tightly to your hand, both of you keeping your heads down as you hurry through the streets. Life in the QZ was never easy, but now it feels like a police state, much worse than Arlington when it all blew up. Frankie looks worried when he leaves you but he’s got work in a different sector. 

“If I can even get there, so many fucking check points,” he grumbles, looking over his shoulder as another FEDRA truck rumbles past. 

“Be careful, come back if it gets too crazy,” you say, reaching up and giving him a kiss. 

“I’ll see you soon, cariño,” he gives you another quick kiss before leaving. 

He makes his way towards the eastern section, down towards the docks, passing through two check points on the way. It takes time but he’s only a little bit late when he knocks on the usual door. After a minute a window above him opens up and Tess looks down at him, her long auburn hair tied back. Lowering her gun she raises her hand in a wave.

“I’ll be right down.” 

“What happened to Georgie?” Frankie asks as Tess lets him in through the locked front door. 

“He got caught coming back,” she say with a scowl, “fucking idiot took a wrong turn in the tunnel and popped up right in front of a patrol.” 

“They’ve made that punishable by death now,” Frankie says as he follows her into the empty hotel she and Georgie use as a base, “they were announcing it all over the streets when I came over.” 

“Yeah, I heard. He was caught a couple of days ago and is still in lock up as far as I know, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they hang him.” Tess sighs as she unlocks a door to her makeshift office, a small room tucked away at the end of the building behind signs reading ‘Entry prohibited - Bio-hazard’. 

“I hope he makes it, he’s not exactly a good friend but I can trust him and he scares the shit out of people.” She holds the door open for Frankie and he steps into the familiar little space.

“I need a favor from you,” she says as she closes the door behind them, “You know Joel Miller.” It’s a statement not a question and Frankie nods, his hand closed around the stack of ration cards he has in his pocket. 

“Since Georgie’s most likely gone, I’m going to need a new partner. Georgie had the connections for bringing in most of what I trade. Some connections I can take over, but most he handled on his own. Can you set up a meeting with him? I know he and his brother have been looking to partner with someone,” Tess opens a small safe, making sure to not show Frankie the combination, and pulls out two small baggies. “You still want oxy and ambien?” 

Frankie nods, “Joel really doesn’t trust anyone, you sure you wanna work with him?” He gives Tess his ration cards and she hands him the baggies before she counts the cards. 

“From what I hear, he might not trust people, but he won’t sell me out to FEDRA,” she replies, sticking the cards in her back pocket. 

“No, he wouldn’t do that, and as long as you know his loyalty is only to himself and Tommy, and you can handle that, he’s good to work with, knows his shit.” 

“How come you don’t work with him anymore?” Tess asks, ushering him out of the door again. 

“My wife doesn’t want me smuggling anymore, I’m all she’s got,” he says, a twinge of guilt eating at him as they walk back through the hotel, “she’s all I’ve got,” he adds. 

If Tess notices his uncomfort, she doesn’t mention it, “Must be nice having someone like that, something like that,” she says, “How long have you been with her?” 

“Since before the outbreak,” Frankie replies, “we’d been dating for a year when it happened.”

“You’re lucky, both of you,” Tess opens the front door again, leaning against the frame after Frankie’s passed through it. “Both of you still alive, together, must be nice,” she says again and there’s something she’s not saying, Frankie recognizes the undertone of grief in her voice, and he nods. 

“Yeah, we’ve been lucky, but we’ve lost people too,” he’s got his hands in his pocket, his fingers closing around the pills in the bags. “If I can introduce you to Joel, what’s in it for me?” he asks and Tess raises her eyebrows. She’s surprised it took him so long to ask. 

“Discounts,” she smirks, motioning with her hand to his pocket. 

Frankie nods and starts leaving, “I’ll talk to Joel, see if he wants to meet with you.” 

“Thanks Frankie,” Tess gives him a wave as he walks away. 

…

It doesn’t take Frankie long to get hold of Joel and tell him about Tess but the situation in the QZ deteriorates and plans are put on hold. The Fireflies attack the checkpoint into the sector where you live the day after he meets with Tess and for a few days it’s impossible to leave. You can’t get to the radio or to Will and Benny’s places, there are soldiers everywhere and all there is to do is to stay inside and lay low. You’re both starting to get worried about the situation in the QZ. 

“I don’t know where we’d go, but I think we should make an emergency exit plan,” Frankie says one day. “A plan to quickly get out of here if things go bad.”

You nod, looking down at the street through the window. There’s another patrol going down the street, heavily armed. There’s no curfew during the days, you were free to go outside. But as you watch the patrol stop two women walking down the street, searching their clothes and bags, it’s clear FEDRA isn’t letting anyone walk the street in peace right now. 

Frankie comes up behind you, leaning his head on your shoulder as he puts his arms around your waist. 

“I’ll talk to the guys, see what we can do. We hid a working car just outside the wall, that’ll get us away from Boston at least.” 

“All seven of us?” you ask, looking back at him. He sighs and shakes his head. 

“No, all seven of us won’t fit, but we’ll figure something out.” 

“Maybe we should just try to find some abandoned farm somewhere remote, live away from everyone else,” you say, leaning back so that you can feel his solid chest behind your back, “just risk it out there rather than in here with FEDRA, it just keeps getting worse and more and more oppressive.” 

“Maybe the Fireflies will be successful,” Frankie mumbles, watching the patrol disappear around a corner, “turn things around.” 

“You really think so?” you ask, he can hear the doubt in your voice. 

“No, not really,” he sighs, “but I like your farm idea, fuck everyone else, just you and me.” 

“It’s always just you and me, Frankie, even here. The others are like family but not like you, not the way you’re my family.” 

He buries his face in the crook of your neck as he tightens his grip on you, you can feel his warm breath on your skin. He doesn’t say anything so you just stand there while he breathes in your scent, memorizing it, as if he wouldn’t recognize it anywhere already. 

…

The morning the checkpoint reopens he leaves before you’re out of bed, gently dropping a kiss on your cheek while he rouses you, sitting on the bed. 

“I need to see Miguel about some spare parts, the clinic needs to fix some medical equipment,” he mumbles, his lips close to your skin while you wrap your arms around his neck to pull him closer. He chuckles and untangles himself, “I’ve got to go, cariño, I’ll see you this afternoon, I’ll come pick you up at the radio.” 

He makes his way through the checkpoint and over to Joel’s place. Tommy’s already there and Frankie leads them to the meeting spot he’d agreed on with Tess before the check point was bombed, hoping she’ll come back at the same time. Appointments were often postponed or interrupted in the QZ so there was a habit of just turning up at the same place, same time a couple days in a row and hoping for the best if you didn’t hear from the other person.

Tess is there, waiting, when the two Miller brothers and Frankie scramble up to the second floor of a partially bombed building. Joel grumbles about having to ‘drag and climb a fuckin’ dumpster’  but stands up straight and gives Tess a once over when she pushes herself off the dilapidated office desk she was leaning against. 

“This is Tess Servopoulos,” Frankie says, “Joel and Tommy Miller,” he points at each man. 

“Nice to meet you, Tess,” Tommy says, holding out his hand to her and she takes it with a smile. 

“Same, your reputation precedes you,” she replies, holding out her hand to Joel too, who accepts it and gives her hand a firm shake. 

“Only a good reputation, I hope,” Tommy chuckles, easing the tension in the meeting, although Joel still stands rigid, putting his hands into his jeans pockets after shaking her hand. 

“Frankie says you’re reliable and know your shit,” Tess says, eyeing Joel's silent form like she’s trying to gauge him. She knows he’s the one she has to convince and he’s doing his best to look as standoffish as possible. 

“We’ve been smuggling pretty much since the outbreak,” Tommy replies, “been in Boston for about five years now.”  

Tess nods, “I’ve been working with Georgie for about six years, here and there, but he got caught by FEDRA last week.” 

“Yeah, Frankie told us, bad luck,” Tommy nods but Joel scoffs. 

“Bad luck…he got sloppy, if that’s the kind of operation you run, we’re not interested, darlin’,” he says and Tess narrows her eyes at him, opening her mouth but closes it again, biting back whatever retort was on her mind. 

She turns to Tommy instead, “I know you used to work with a few other guys, why are you looking for a new partner?” 

“Our cousins have a thing about not smuggling drugs,” Joel replies, cutting Tommy off, “that a problem for you?” 

“Smuggling ‘em? Not at all,” Tess says, glancing at Frankie and he does his best to not look at Joel. When Joel asked how Frankie knew Tess he said he’d traded with her for spare parts for the radio. It was true, he had traded with her for parts, but only once. 

Joel looks at Frankie, connecting the dots, as Tommy gives Tess a rough outline of how they usually operate, what they can get their hands on. 

“You ok with that, Frankie?” Joel asks him, “Tess trading drugs? You got a handle on it?”

“Yeah, it’s not a problem,” Frankie looks up at Joel and wills himself to keep his eyes steady on the older man, “it’s fine.” 

Joel gives him a slow nod, “Ok, as long as you’re fine with it.” 

But Tess frowns and looks at Joel, “What do you mean?” she asks, eyeing him, “Why would Frankie have any problems with me trading drugs? He buys them from me.” 

Tommy raises his eyebrows at this piece of information and looks at Frankie who tries to square his shoulders and look like he’s in control. 

“They’re worried I’ll get addicted,” he says, “I got pretty bad PTSD after I left the army and when shit gets too dark here, it comes back,” he shrugs, feigning a casual attitude he doesn’t feel, “but I just need the shit to sleep, the nightmares never really went away and the pills help with that, that’s all.” 

He knows he’s not telling the whole truth and Joel certainly knows that, but Frankie meets his eyes and refuses to look away, willing the man to understand that he’s got it under control.  

Tess gives him a hard stare as Frankie tugs on his ball cap and crosses his arms. “Ok, as long as you’ve got a handle on it, I don’t have any issues, I’m not your moral compass, we all do what we need to do to get by. And from what I hear, you guys sell drugs too?,” she looks over at Joel who nods. 

“Yeah, but I stopped selling to Frankie a while back, and we stopped working together, what we did triggered his PTSD.”

“I’ve got it under control now,” Frankie says, he can feel the familiar panic creeping through his nerves. If Joel tells Tess to cut him off he has nowhere else to go. “Since I stopped with the smuggling I’m fine, it’s just the nightmares that give me insomnia, I just need the drugs to help me sleep on nights when it gets bad. But it’s less now, hardly ever.” He’s lying through his teeth, trying to keep his voice steady and his poker face on, but he’s not sure he manages.

“I don’t give a fuck, Frankie,” Joel says, “I’m not selling to you, mainly out of respect for your wife and Will and Benny. But like she said, I ain’t your moral compass.” He turns to Tess again, “Either way, that doesn’t affect our potential partnership. Since Frankie trusts you, maybe this can work, but I need to talk to my brother in private first. We’ll let you know in a couple of days.”

Tess nods and shakes both Joel and Tommy’s hands before the two men leave. Frankie and Tess follow after them, jumping down onto the dumpster. 

“Your wife’s not gonna come after me for supplying drugs to you, is she?” Tess asks as they reach the ground. 

“No,” he shakes his head, starting to walk away. 

“She doesn’t know, does she?” Tess has crossed her arms over her chest and is giving him another hard stare. 

“She does, she knows I take them to sleep,” Frankie tugs on his cap again, he knows it’s a nervous gesture and Tess just shakes her head. 

“You’re a shit liar, Frankie,” she says as she gives him another hard look, “Just keep it under control, ok?” 

“Yeah, I’m fine, it’s under control:” He raises his hand and gives her a wave, “I’ll see you around, I’ve got to get going.” 

“Yeah, I’ll see you around, Frankie.” 

…

Despite Joel’s mistrusting nature, he agrees to start working with Tess, on a trial basis. Frankie finds out a few days later when he asks Tess for an actual spare part for the clinic. 

“Joel’s a piece of work, but I prefer that to someone who throws his trust at anyone, that’ll get you killed,” she says, taking the ration cards the clinic had given him in exchange for a pristine looking piece of equipment. Frankie doesn’t know what it does exactly but he knows the one in the machine is broken and he’ll fix it somehow. 

“Joel knows his shit,” Frankie says, tucking the equipment into his backpack, walking back through the hotel with Tess. “Thanks for the part, Diana will be happy, the machine is important to them.”

“Sure, let me know if you need anything else.” She gives him a wave as he leaves. 

When he meets up with the rest of the guys later at the bar he tells them about Joel’s new partner. 

“I’m surprised Joel’s prepared to work with someone else,” Benny leans back on the couch and kicks out his long legs, “Tommy says he’s turned down both Miguel and that guy Robert.” 

“It’s a smart move,” Will replies, “FEDRA is all over the place, he’s gonna need an extra pair of eyes for any bigger trades. We’re gonna need to be real careful too, it’s no longer just a few nights in FEDRA lock up. They’re actually going through with fucking executions.”

“As if dealing with raiders and infected wasn’t bad enough, now FEDRA wants to kill us too?” Benny huffs, “Half the stuff we bring in goes to soldiers, for fucks sake…” 

Pope nods and takes a sip of the bar’s homemade whiskey, grimacing at the taste, “They were setting up for a hanging when I came over, three guys caught in condemned buildings. If FEDRA’s  already suspecting us like your girl said, Frankie, then we should probably lay low for a few weeks. We’ve got the supplies we need for now.” 

“What about the trade we have planned, we’ve got stuff coming in from Worcester, that deal Will and I set up? We’re gonna need to receive it and get it stashed as soon as it comes in.” Benny looks over at the others. 

For years their best contact had been a FEDRA soldier in the QZ, and through him Benny and Will had made a connection with a FEDRA officer in the Worcester QZ, the man’s brother in law. It had taken months but a convoy of FEDRA trucks were due to come over from Worcester, together with the officer and a number of much needed supplies hidden among the official FEDRA shipments. Thanks to Boston being a much bigger QZ the guys had been able to offer him a large stack of ration cards in exchange for a number of in demand items. 

Pope nods at Benny, “Yeah, we have to handle that one, we won't be able to postpone it.” He glances over at Frankie, “I hate to ask, hermano…” he says, “but we could really use your help, just as a look out, for that trade now. You think you’re ok to do it? I hate to say it, but you still look like shit.” 

Frankie shrugs, “I still don’t sleep great, the nightmares are a bitch, but yeah of course, if you need me, I can do it.” 

“Are you sure, Frankie?” Will asks, “I don’t want you doing this if you don’t feel ok, we’re not risking your recovery for this. The three of us will just do it as usual.” 

“If you need me, man, I can do it. And it’s just as a lookout right? That’s just keeping an eye on things, making sure no FEDRA patrols are around?” 

“Yeah, we’ve set up a lookout point near the location and we got some radios. All you’d need to do is sit there and radio me if anything happens.” Pope says, glancing over at Will who nods. 

“Talk to your wife first though, we don’t want to cause any family drama here, make sure she’s onboard with it and thinks you're ok to do it.” 

“Yeah, I’ll talk to her tonight, I’ll let you guys know tomorrow,” Frankie says, putting down his glass and getting ready to leave. “I’m picking her up from the radio office in a little bit. What day is this happening?”

“Thursday,” Pope says, “I’ll come by tomorrow and we’ll talk it through.” 

“Ok, yeah, I’ll talk to her, but I feel good, I can do that, I wanna help you guys anyway I can,”

“Appreciate it, man,” Benny says, Frankie drops his hand on the younger man’s shoulder as he’s leaving and Benny gives it a quick squeeze, looking up at Frankie. “It’s good to know you’re doing better, Fish.”  

Frankie gives him a crooked smile and a wave to the other two and heads out the door of the bar. 

…

Frankie’s waiting outside the radio when you step outside, Sean’s taken over the radio for the evening and you’re stretching out your back after a long shift hunched over the dials and notebooks. You see him before he sees you, leaning against a barrier on the other side of the street, watching a group of children playing on a makeshift playground in a small park. They’ve all got the rough looking hand me downs the orphan children of the local FEDRA school wears and there’s two elderly ladies in FEDRA uniforms keeping an eye on them. 

Frankie looks tired, dark circles under his eyes and his ordinarily tan skin is ashen and gray. His curls are still brown but his scruffy beard is mostly silver now, as you watch his hand comes up and absentmindedly rubs across his jaw, scratching at the short hairs. You’d spent some time last night giving his beard and hair a trim, giggling as he wriggled his nose when the hairs tickled him. Sometimes he was back to his normal self, relaxed and soft around you, sleeping better without nightmares, even cracking jokes and messing with Benny when you met up with the others. But you could see that he was struggling still, the good nights were far apart and most mornings he moved like a sleepwalker, taking time to come back to life. In the evenings he stumbled to bed and was fast asleep as soon as he’d curled himself around you, sometimes the nightmares would plague him but he couldn’t wake up, you’d shake him and he’d be trapped in his nightmare. When you finally managed to rouse him he’d be disoriented and panicky until he fell asleep again, almost instantly. 

Now you walk across the street as he watches the kids take turns on the makeshift tire swing. You know which one of the children he’s looking at; a young girl, about five, with the same dark curls as Lucía. She’s hanging on to the swing, shrieking with laughter as another girl spins the tire around, her hair whirling around her head as she throws it back and giggles. 

“Hey Frankie,” you say as you come up to him, he turns around as you sneak your arms around his waist, pulling him out of his silent reverie. 

“Hey cariño,” he says, giving you a kiss before turning back to the park. The girl had gotten off the swing and was running towards the slide. “She reminds me of Lucía,” he mumbles, glancing over at you, “makes me wonder what she’d look like now.” You give his waist an extra squeeze as you watch the girl shoot down the slide and run around to climb back up to the top. 

“She’d be fifteen now, too old for playgrounds,” he gives a small smile, “although, I don’t think she’d ever get too old for swings, she loved them.” 

The little girl has climbed to the top of the slide for a third time and is standing up, waving at someone. 

“Come here! Ellie, come on the slide with me!” she calls, waving her arm and a younger girl hurries across from the swings and climbs the stairs, her short legs struggling with the big steps. The older girl instructs the younger to sit down in front, and together they slide down, their high pitched giggles carrying in the clear spring air. It makes your heart clench, the sound and the image so normal, reminding you of the times you’d been at the playground with Frankie and Lucía. 

“C’mon, we should get moving,” Frankie says, pulling his eyes away from the dark haired girl as he takes your hand. His mood is subdued on the way back to the apartment. You tell him about your day and he hooks his arm around your shoulder, listening as you walk through the crowds. But he remains silent, lost in his own thoughts when you stop talking. When you get back home he toes off his shoes and goes to stand in the doorway to the kitchen, leaning on the frame with his arms crossed as you fill a pot of water.  

“Joel and Tommy are gonna partner up with a woman called Tess,” he says after a while, breaking the silence. “Tess has been helping me get spare parts for the clinic and she asked if I’d introduce her to them.” 

You look over at him, you can hear from the tone of his voice that he’s not done. And he confirms it as he drops his gaze, his hand coming up to rub the back of his neck. 

“Pope and the guys asked if I could help them out on a trade, as a lookout, but they wanted me to talk to you first, make sure you’re ok with it.” 

“Tell me about it,” you say, turning to lean on the counter as he comes over and stands next to you. 

“They’ve got a connection with this guy in Worcester, he’s bringing in supplies on a FEDRA truck, as part of a bigger convoy. They need me to be the lookout when they meet the men inside the QZ. I won’t go outside and I won’t be near the actual trade, just be the lookout.” 

“Do you feel ok about it?” you ask and Frankie nods. 

“Yeah, I wanna help them with this,” he says, turning a bit so that he can look at you. “FEDRA is patrolling more and they need me to warn them if there’s a patrol approaching.” 

“Your nightmares are still really bad though, and sometimes I can’t even wake you up from them, Frankie. If something happens, is it gonna trigger you even more?” 

“If something happens and I’m not there to keep watch, that’s gonna be even worse,” Frankie shakes his head, “They need my help with this. Once they’re done with this they’re gonna lie low, FEDRA’s hanging people over the smallest charge now,  but this trade is too big and they can’t postpone it.” 

“And you’ll only be lookout, away from the actual trade?” you question and Frankie nods again. 

“They have a lookout point nearby, I’ll have a radio and just contact Santi if something happens, that’s it.” 

You lean against the counter while Frankie looks at you, waiting for your answer, for your approval. It makes you realize that he hasn’t done that before, let you make the decision. He’s told you about the plans, listened to your opinion and adjusted the plans and made changes so that you would be more comfortable about letting him go. This time, when what he’s been asked to do really doesn’t seem all that dangerous by comparison, he’s leaving the whole decision up to you. 

“Ok, if you think you’re ready for it, I trust you Frankie, you should help them.” 

“I do, I feel strong enough to do this, thank you cariño,” he steps in front of you and grabs your thighs, hoisting you up onto the counter so that he's standing between your legs. It makes you smile, wrapping your arms around his neck as his hands find your hips, kneading the soft flesh under his fingers. 

“When is it?”

“Thursday…was your skin always this soft here?” he’s running his nose down your neck, pulling back the scruff of your hoodie and burying it just above your clavicle. 

“You’re distracting me, Frankie, I had more questions,” you laugh, his tongue comes out and licks a warm strip across the ridge of the bone. 

“I know, that’s the point,” he mumbles against your skin. 

“Much as I love this horny version of you, you should try and get as much sleep as possible until Thursday, I know how tired you are.” 

“Take me to bed then,” he chuckles, still buried against the crook of your neck, leaving a burning trail of nips and kisses up your throat. 

“We haven’t even had dinner,” you laugh as he tries to make you hook your legs around his waist so that he can pick you up, “Let me make dinner and then I’ll take you to bed for dessert.” 

“My favorite kind of dessert,” he smiles, pulling back from your neck to kiss your mouth, making you part your lips for his tongue. 

“Why don’t you take a nap on the couch while I make dinner, Frankie,” you say when he starts working his way back down along your jaw, “because at this rate, we’re never getting dinner,” you have to giggle when he starts pushing up your shirt, his warm hands palming over your back. 

“Too horny to take a nap now,” he chuckles, but he stands up and lets you slip off the counter. And when you start pulling out ingredients he gives your butt a final squeeze and does go to the couch. It doesn’t take long before you hear his soft snores, when you look over he’s face planted on the couch, one arm dangling off it, the other under his head as a pillow.

…

The trade is set up to take place after dark, and after curfew. Sunset in May in Boston is late so Frankie and the guys make their way to the meeting spot well before the curfew comes into effect and bunker down to wait for darkness. In an off limits building, an old office building near the QZ wall, Pope, Will and Benny have set up a secluded spot for the trade. Now the four of them are in the building across the small square, up on the fifth floor, inside a spacious apartment with a bird’s eye view of the neighborhood, the lookout point. 

The sun is slowly sinking below the horizon while they wait for the agreed upon hour. Benny’s brought an old battered pack of playing cards and they’re killing time by playing rounds of poker. Frankie curses when he loses yet another game, thankful they’re only playing for the silver cutlery Pope found in the apartment's kitchen. The utensils clink as Will drags them across the dining room table after winning his seventh game. 

“Fuck, Will, teach me your ways,” Frankie grumbles, he’s down to two spoons and one knife.

“Skill, Catfish,” Will chuckles, sorting his cutlery into neat piles, “And years of counting numbers.” 

“I just keep getting shit cards,” Benny mutters, tossing his losing hand onto the table with a snap of his wrist, making them scatter. “Your turn to deal, Pope.” 

Pope gathers the cards and quickly deals again, “I’m winning those spoons back, Will, just so you know.” 

“Whatever you say, man, you’re happy to try,” Will chuckles, straightening out the six large spoons he’s got neatly lined up along his eight knives and eight forks. “Just need to get Frankie’s two spoons and I’ve got a full set.” 

After two more rounds, Frankie kicks back his chair and throws his arms up in defeat, “I’m fucking bust.” 

“It’s alright, Fish, Diana and I will be thinking about you when we have dinner tomorrow,” Will smirks, sliding the spoons over to his side of the table. 

Pope looks at his watch and out at the dark night sky, “We should get going, scout the area again and position ourselves.” 

Benny gathers the cards and they all pack up. Frankie makes his way out to the large balcony wrapped around the corner of the building and scans the square and the surrounding streets. 

“All’s quiet out there,” he says in a hushed voice as he comes back in. Pope grabs his radio and turns it to the pre-agreed frequency and tests the connection. 

“I’ll radio you when we’re in position, make sure the connection is clear,” he says, clipping it onto his belt as Frankie does the same with his radio. “And don’t forget our contact is going to signal you when they cross the square.”

“Yeah, I know, it’s all under control,” he nods, waiting while the three men pick up the equipment they’d put by the front door when they came in. Even though it was a trade, old habits die hard, and they all had concealed handguns and backpacks with extra gear. Frankie secures his own gun at the back of his pants and triple checks the battery on the radio before picking up a battered pair of binoculars. 

“Alright, ready to go?” Will asks and the other two nods. “Radio us if there’s anything irregular, Catfish.”

“Stay safe, I’ll see you at the rendezvous soon.” 

Frankie locks up behind the guys as they leave the apartment and hunkers down on the balcony. He’s dragged out some of the less damaged couch pillows and propped them up along the railing and floor, making a nest where he’s hidden from sight. Through a small opening he can scan the streets below, laying flat on his belly with the binoculars in front of him. His nerves are making him jumpy, he’s not used to being without the sleeping pills this long, and it adds an extra layer of stress to the usual laser focus he has during a mission. Even though he’s ‘just’ the lookout he feels the familiar tingling in his spine as he scans the street. 

The radio crackles to life on his belt and Pope’s voice comes through; “Catfish, we’re in position. Do you copy, over?” 

“Loud and clear, Pope. I’m in position, over.”

“Maintain radio silence unless necessary, over.” 

“Wilco, out.” 

He clips the radio back on to his belt and settles down. There’s still about thirty minutes left before the other party is due to turn up, but both Will and Pope like having plenty of margins to work with. He glances at his watch and calculates in his head how long it would take for one of the oxy tablets to kick in. He needs something to sooth his nerves, it’s like he can feel every seam and stitch on every piece of clothing he’s wearing, scratching and grating against his overheated skin. Even his hair is itching where it curls over his ears and he swipes off his cap and pushes it back. Just one oxy, to take the edge off, let him focus while he waits. 

He swallows it dry, almost regretting it as the bitter flavor coats the inside of his mouth. But soon he feels the effect, his body goes loose, the scratching stops. He watches two men hurry across the square, stopping to give a one handed wave three times up towards Frankie’s balcony. The trade is underway, he leans back against the wall. 

It’s so quiet up here. The QZ is always so noisy, so many people in such a small space, up here he can’t hear anything, it’s so peaceful. 

All the people are gone. It’s only him. Up here. 

And these pillows are so soft, they feel like clouds against his face. 

Only him high up in the sky with no noise.

Just soft pillows and soft clothes and darkness behind his eyelids.

Chapter 33

Taglist: @pimosworld @i-own-loki @casa-boiardi @littlenosoul @stormseyer @mxtokko @javicstories @nunya7394 @welcometothepedroverse @harriedandharassed @meveispunk @hiroikegawa @jwritesfanfics @vickie5446 @your-slutty-gf

[ladykailitha]

Okay, I've already asked for it once this Wed, but could I please have a bit MORE sugar baby?🙏☺️

WIP Wednesday!

Just clearing out my inbox from yesterday!

Send as many as you want of the one you want. If you four from one story send in four asks for that. You don't have to do one each or just one or two different stories.

Snippet

Max finally let go of his waist, but she grabbed his hand, and led him into the house. Steve smiled after hearing from his friends that they wouldn’t take him, after Tommy had done a runner, his parents threw him away like an old soiled rag he had forgotten that he had people who loved him.

Alice and Benny at the diner, his kids.

Once he entered the living room, he was bombarded with questions. He couldn’t even hear what they were saying, it was so loud.

He put his fingers to his lips and whistled long and loud. “Hey, dumbasses! One at a time. Jeez, I’d ask who raised ya, but I know that and they didn’t raise you to behave this way.”

[sneakyblinders]

19, 27, and 37 from the OTP asks for Tommy and his darling wife 🥰

Eek thank you for requesting these 🤩 OTP relationship asks link

19 - How do they deal with being away from each other for a long time?

The Mrs. is alright. She often feels safer when he is around, so his absence makes her a little more anxious than normal. (Being married to a gangster is anxiety inducing stuff I'd imagine) She doesn’t sleep quite as well without him there. She hates eating alone. However she does take advantage of the nights she has alone to get caught up on reading (Tommy often distracts her) and after they have their children, she plans little activities to do with the children, who are also missing their father. She usually comes up with sweet ways to welcome him home that involve his babies. He gets the biggest smile on his face when he sees the little projects they've made for him while he was away. (And this is super top secret, but he's never thrown a single thing away that they've made for him. He'd never admit that to anybody though. The Mrs. only found out about it one day when she was shuffling through boxes in his closet trying to find a very specific chain for his watch.) Tommy though… after a few days of being away, he gets quite irritable. His men hate when he has to be away for more than two or three days at a time with him. His temper is shorter and it doesn’t take much for him to lose it on somebody. Patience is super thin on trips when he’s away from his beloved. When he gets home he just wants to snuggle and be close to her. He tells her every time he returns home that it'll be the last time he's away for that long. (Which, inevitably never happens but he swears one day he'll never have to go away again.)

27 - What random everyday object/activity makes them think of each other?

When Tommy was in his rather serious accident the first few years of their marriage, and he had cracked some ribs, it was difficult for him to bend for a while--it caused him some pretty severe pain. And so, tying his shoes was nearly impossible for a long while. So for those months when he was healing, his wife knelt in front of him in the mornings and tied his shoes. The first few times he was embarrassed beyond belief. I can't even tie my own laces, he'd think to himself. But she'd look up at him with those eyes and he'd have to look away, overcome with emotion. And after the embarrassment faded, an overwhelming feeling comes over him and tears spring to his eyes. Whether it's because he can't believe he got this gem, or because he can't believe he was almost robbed of so many more years with her, so many more memories with her, he can't figure out. But he thinks of her every time he ties his laces now. For their first anniversary, Tommy got his beloved a locket with his initials engraved on the back, and a photo of them on their wedding day tucked safely inside. Whenever she was lost in thought, whether concentrating or finding herself nervous, she would start fumbling with the locket, anxiously running her thumb over the engraving on the back, and instantly thinking of her husband--every fear disappearing.

37 - What do they like the least about each other?

Aah jeez. The Mrs. has some serious issues with how arrogant Tommy can be--with how above death he seems at times. Most of their fights revolve around her reminding him he is not immortal and that one day his arrogance and pride will take him to the grave. Tommy has some serious issues with how trusting his bride can be with others. She, despite all the evil she has seen in this world he has brought her into, has never seemed to be able to shake the ability to see the good and the best in people, which much to his annoyance, she manages to find in everybody. It's gotten her into some pretty sticky situations before. (In her defense, Tommy is skeptical about everything and everyone... any time she tries to tell him about a new person she met at the market or the store he narrows his eyes and tries to see it from every angle. How they could be trying to take advantage of her. Sometimes its worked in her favor and others... not so much.)

[talia-the-gemini]

Meeting

A/N I just want to clarify I haven't watched the peaky blinders before, and I've only watched shadow and bone season 1 and the first couple episodes. And this is my first time publishing my writing.

2 A/N This doesn't follow the current events of either show I've only used some events from shadow and bone.

Fandom - The peaky blinders x shadow and bone crossover Relationships - The peaky blinders (separate) x Brekker!reader (R) Crows x Reader (P) Kaz Brekker x sister! Reader Keys ~ (R) = romantic (P) = platonic

Trigger warnings - Mentions of Alcohol, violence, cigarettes, guns, and swearing.

Masterlist

This is not proofread.

Y/n pov

We sit in Kaz's office after a successful mission, except for a minor tussle. Sitting on the couch Jesper leans on my shoulder and Inej sits on my other side as I close her wound.

"We have another job." Kaz states while holding a slightly browning letter in his leather gloves.

"From who?" Jesper asks whilst playing with one of his guns

"A letter was sent from Birmingham, From a gang by the name of the peaky blinders."

Ineji pipes in "Why would they request a job be done by us?"

"It says that the leader Tommy Shelby requests a meeting"

"They're offering 800,000 kurge." "Spitting that 4 ways will leave us with 200,000 each."

Jesper's eyes sparkly at the thought of 800,000 kurge.

"I will send a letter back and we take leave in three days' time, So I suggest that You start packing." with that said Kaz lets us go with a nod of his head.

Leaving the boat, you slugged yourself and Kaz's bag on your shoulders whilst taking in the dull and dreary streets that had similarly to the barrel. With the aged cobblestone roads to the old & chipping brownish-orange bricks holding up houses and shops.

"Jeez, this place reeks worse than Ketterdam" I admit, scrunch my nose at the stale smell of Brimingham. Jesper hums in agreement

"Well, we need to find a bar called the Garrison" Kaz informs us holding the letter in his none occupied hand.

Walking next to Kaz I relax to the sound of his cane clacking on the gravely-cobblestone pavement we fall into to a comfortable silence with bustling city around us, we come to a sudden stop when Kaz's cane snapped Infront of us. Glancing up I see quite a large bar with a large white sign that says [The Garrison] , sort of like the crow club.

Walking in, there are many round tables scattered around the place with a bar (typical pub style). You walk up to the bar and asked " Is there a Tommy Shelby here?" the bartender walks to a small sliding window made of wood and knocked, It slips open slightly enough for the bartender to talk through.

"who's asking?" questions a gruff voice from the backroom.

"Kaz and Y/n Brekker."

A few moments of murmuring later the door to a backroom opens and we get lead in by the bartender.

The room was quite spacious for a backroom, the center stood a large table with a L shaped couch behind it, sitting on the couch are 2 men they look like brothers with a slight age gap smoking cigars, standing Infront of what might be a alcohol cabinet is another man that looks around late 20 to early 30s.

Kaz steps in front of us "So who is Tommy Shelby?"

"That would be me" the man standing replys

Inej and Kaz share a look and Kaz asks "what's the purpose of this meeting?" without showing any emotion.

"Have a seat" he says while nodding his head at the rest of us.

I sit next to Kaz, Jesper sits next to me and Inej sits on the end of the couch,motioning towards the other couch "my brothers Arthur and John Shelby".

GIF by desetincelles

"Kaz Brekker" Kaz says

"Y/n Brekker"

"Jesper"

"Inej.."

GIF by capinejghafa

"So" Tommy says while taking a seat next to his brothers "I heard you're familiar with the man named Pekka Rollins"

"Yes he's very, well known in Ketterdam" Kaz replies annoyed at the mention of pekka

"Well he's gone and partnered with our rival billy kimber"

"And how is this our problem?" Jesper interjects

"It is your problem because he should be in Ketterdam, not in Birmingham." John says agitated.

"Well what is it that you want us to do?" I say

"Kimber is hosting a party to show case his jewel that are going on the market, I want you and your crew to take them"

"And this is for 800,000 kurge correct?"

"correct"

"we need 4 days" Kaz states getting ready to stand

"deal" Tommy replies extending his hand for both of you to shake

Reluctantly Kaz and you take it

In two days time Inej managed to get the blue prints of the mansion and copy it to make a map and find an entry and exit point.

{6:00 am}

Walking into the garrison with the Peaky blinders following closely behind us we make it to the infamous room and Kaz forcefully places the map onto the table.

"I received a letter from Wylan and Nina this morning, about the crow club" Kaz says while looking at the map, then glancing at us

"What about the crow club?" Inej questions

"You know how our last job we need you but you were under contract with Heleen."

Inej hums in a unsure way

"The letter was a warning from Wylan for returning home to Ketterdam"

"Why?" Inej asks

"Because I used the crow club as collateral for your contract with Heleen.."

"What!?" You and Inej say in a panicked shock

"Kaz please tell me we still have the crow club.." you plead

Kas stay silent as the tension thickens

"The warning is because we have a warrant for our arrest..."

After Kaz's last comment there was just silence letting all the information process.

"What the fuck." Jesper mumbles

"How the fuck do we have a warrant for our arrest if we haven't been in Ketterdam?!?" You exclaim in destress

"Two words Pekka Rollins,he killed Heleen and since she's dead he has rights to her documents..." Kaz sighs

"Meaning that Pekka Rollins.. has the crow club." you say in a hushed tone, you feel like your going to faint almost forgetting the other 3 men in the room

"Awww man I had really good hats in there too" Jesper sulks

"Well the faster we finish this job the faster we can plan how to get the crow club back."

We nod in agreement

"Well here's the plan"

Notes - Hey guys I hope you all liked the first chapter and the next chapters are probably going to take a while to be published/written.

-Talia ♡

[lazysailor]

50 Avery and Kayden

Avery opened his eyes and slowly sat up, his eyes slowly adjusted to his room as he woke up. He could see a white light outline against his curtains, it must've snowed overnight since it was around January now.

He got out of his bed and stretched before he went over to a mirror he kept in his room. He stared at himself in the mirror as his appearance changed, again.

He was able to convince his dad to get transplants from the bio-builder. He was able to get his arm and eye back, along with new skin to cover scars he had gotten.

It was a bit weird adjusting to using his arm again and having to use both of his eyes again, but surprisingly it has been easy for him to adjust too.

He leaves his room and heads downstairs towards the kitchen, as he went to open the fridge he noticed a note on the fridge.

‘Hey kid, I had to head out on a business trip. I'll try to be back soon as possible.’ The note read.

“Again.?” He quietly said to himself.

‘Ever since he stopped making transplants and switched over to software, he's been going out on so many business trips.’

Avery opens the fridge and takes an egg carton, he then takes out a couple eggs and puts them back in. He then gets out a pan and starts hearing it up.

After a few minutes he heard the front door open as he was cooking some scrambled eggs.

“Oh hey Kayden! How was hunting?” He asked her as she walked over to him.

“It was fine, I was able to get some rabbits but they'll only be good to make some food with.” She tells him as she grabs some eggs off of the pan and puts them on a plate.

She sits down at the counter as she starts eating the scrambled eggs.

‘Ever since Nathan offered to teach me how to hunt it's been a great pass time activity when I'm not busy.’

‘I was hesitant at first though..I couldn't really handle a gun after what happened with Tommie..’

‘But I've been able to not think about him as time went on and I was able to actually focus on hunting without thinking back to him.’

She finished her breakfast and put the plate and fork in the sink.

“Thanks Avery, they were good.” Kayden tells him.

“No problem, but jeez you need to learn to not eat that quickly.” He says to her.

“I was just hungry, that's all.” She says.

She walked out of the kitchen and headed upstairs, planning to wash off the smell she had gotten from hunting today..

..

She stood under the running hot water as she washed out anything that got into her hair this morning.

‘Maybe I should take a nap after this.’

‘At Least my sleep schedule has gotten better over the past few months, now I don't have to stay up all night or wake up really early.’

‘Now I can just take random naps throughout the day instead of having to be awake constantly.’

‘I wonder what I should do after night classes.?’

‘Unlike Avery, I somehow can't get myself a job.’

‘Well at least Nathan let us get a proper education after we came here.’

She finished up her shower and put on some more comfy clothes rather than heavy camouflaged clothes she had to wear earlier.

Kayden walked back into her room and shut her curtains, then turned on her fairy lights. Even though it had been only a few months she was able to litter her room with stuff she likes like band posters, stuffed animals, and her bass guitar that sat near the corner of her room.

She laid down on her comfy bed as sleep was already waiting for her. She moved her arm around the cat plush she had since she moved into Nathan’s house and fell into a comfortable slumber.

..

Avery waters a couple plants to keep himself busy. He decided to work at a plant shop because other than a couple fast food places, this was the only place that was open for hire, plus the job had a decent pay. He only had to work with two other people which was nice since he would much prefer that than a loud work environment.

As he was misting some plants, he couldn't help but overhear a news broadcast playing from a nearby tv.

“Have you heard the latest rumor surrounding the biobuilder?” The female reporter asks.

“No Kim, I haven't.” The male reporter answers.

“What is it?” He asks.

“Well this rumor talks about how in the future teens who were unwound in the past could be potentially brought back with the biobuilder.” She tells him.

“Really? But what if they end up like the rewinds that were rumored to be on Molokai?” The male reporter says.

The two reporters continued to talk to each other, but Avery stopped what he was doing as a thought came to his mind.

‘If that rumor about people being brought back, then could that mean Ryder could come back.?’

‘I mean if he ever came back, then it would probably be hard to find him.’

‘He would probably still hate me..’

Avery shook those thoughts out of his head and went back to focusing on his job.

At the end of shift as he's about to leave, he spots a pot of marigolds that seemed to not be there before.

“Did those come in today.?” He asks one of his co-workers.

“Yeah, they came in only a couple hours ago when you were on break.” His co-worker answers.

“Hm.” He hums.

He looks at the marigolds for a few moments.

‘I feel like Ryder would've liked these.’

He picked up the pot and brought it up to the counter.

“I'll get these then.” He says to his co-worker.

“Alrighty then.” His co-worker responds as they scan the barcode attached to the pot.

Avery then pays for the flowers and then walks out of his job, now having at least one thing to remind him of Ryder.

..

‘Hm, today's lesson was surprisingly easy.’ Kayden thought to herself as she left her class.

But then she feels someone grab her shoulder.

“Kayden! Wait for us!” Her friend, Robin says as her other friend Ethan is next to her.

‘Oh yeah, I actually have more friends now.’

‘I thought I would never be able to make any friends again.’

They all walked over to a nearby seating area so they could further talk to each other.

“So, when should be the next time we all practice together?” Robin asks them.

‘Our band, I remember Robin came up with the idea around last month since we all knew how to play instruments on a basic level.’

‘I learned some basic bass chords, Ethan knew how to play drums, and Robin knew how to sing and play guitar.’

“Well I'm fine with practicing anytime, the more we practice together, the more we'll be better as a band.” Ethan says.

“Yeah, I can agree with that.” Robin says.

Then Kayden suddenly came up with an idea.

“How about we work towards a goal?” She suggests.

“What do you think our goal should be?” Ethan asks.

“We should get good enough to the point we can perform at a gig!” Kayden tells them.

An excited look forms on both of their faces.

“That's a great idea Kayden!” Robin says.

“Yeah!” Ethan adds on.

‘They like it!’

A smile forms on Kaydens face.

‘I should definitely get some personal practice in later! I still have to get up to their level of good.’

..

Avery and Kayden both stare up into the night sky together as they sit on the deck. The sky was clear tonight which allowed the stars to shine in all of their glory.

She turns over to Avery and looks at him.

“Hey Avery, do you think our lives could've been different if we didn't meet each other.” She asks him.

He thought about it for a few moments.

“I probably would've gotten caught by the juveys quickly and been sent off to a harvest camp way earlier.” He tells her.

“What do you think would've happened if your brother ever made that fake order?” Avery asks her.

“My life would be boring like how it was before and I would still have to deal with my family.” She tells him.

“I wouldn't have been able to make any friends either, I couldn't make any before.” Kayden adds on.

“Yeah, our lives would've been totally different.” He says.

“Hey, do you have any dreams Kayden.?” He asks Kayden.

She thought about it for a few moments.

“I wanna try to become famous with my friends.” She says.

“Oh yeah, you're in a band now right?” He asks.

“Yeah, I am.” She answers.

“Do you have any dreams Avery.?” Kayden asks him.

“Yeah, I wanna finish school and go to college.” He starts off.

“Then after I graduate college I'll start a business where I sell plants and crops.” He adds on.

“That sounds nice.” She compliments.

They both smile at each other then they go back to staring at the peaceful night sky.

Their lives were finally on a normal track after two long years, even if it came with tragedy and loss.

As the end of unwinding becomes closer day after day, all the other people who were impacted by it would hopefully live in peace now like how Kayden and Avery were.

[strawwritesfic]

jeez Tommy is such an asshole??? Telling Joel to get out and leave Ellie with them? There’s no universe in which he would ever do that. What a dick, thinking he knows shit bc he’s with Maria lmao

And clearly Tommy and Maria are crap leaders considering there was an infected in the infirmary! If I was Joel I would literally be like “yeah ok bye” and take Ellie and leave lol

(I have a deep hatred for Tommy for leaving with the fireflies and after finding Jackson, just never contacting Joel ever again. Like bro, Joel thought Tommy was in trouble or dead while he was living it up in Jackson. Fed and warm and having everything he needs and he never bothered to try and get Joel there??? Your only living family member? And then telling Maria god knows what about Joel and making him seem like a monster? When both Tommy and Joel did shit to stay alive and protect each other. He’s such an asshole and I will forever stand by that. So fuck Tommy!)

Can reader and Joel take over Jackson lmao like they would be much better leaders (once they sort their shit out… lmao)

Can’t wait to read more and see where this is going! How many chapters do you think there will be? :)

Ah, thank you!

I might not be writing them very well, to be honest (or might not have been writing them very well; I think I started writing this in 2013 or 2014). It's been literally years since I interacted with the game in any meaningful way, and although I am going through and making little corrections here and there when I wrote something particularly silly ("Woah, that's definitely not how a person who knows how to use firearms would handle a gun!"), I don't remember enough about the characters to be making any major corrections to their behaviors at this point. If I decide to pick up where I left off, I'll probably need to watch a let's play of the game...

There are currently 17 chapters written out, 12 of which I have fully edited for reposting. If I decide to wrap it up, there's 32 chapters total, so I'm about halfway done, not counting a few of the random scenes I wrote on scrap paper back in 2016 and have carefully kept in my writing desk all these years.

[denzartriste]

Vague My Little Pony bedrock bros au/ideas fuck this is unhinged behaviour, i drew good art to accompany it as i explain the mental illness (tw for major character death)

Going off the assumption that either anyone reading this doesnt know about mlp plot-wise or just doesnt know that much about it plot-wise. So im gonna say the few things that is kinda important to this au, if you know what the things are skip it its a lot of words:

Changling - Hivemind Bug like creatures that are kinda pony shaped. They can do magic(they have a horn), fly (they have wings), shapeshift, and their main thing is eating love. <- eating love is a legit need for them, like food - without eating love they will starve (this episode shows that, starting at around 7 minutes (theres also a banger song at around 17 minutes, but thats my bias talking)) The way they eat love is by shapeshifting (into someones thats loved) and then feeding off that love. They can also shapeshift into just a random pony that doesnt exist. Also this is what a changling looks like, btw. Easier to show than explain v

And the hivemind part is a bit iffy? I mean they say its a hivemind but in the episode i linked the changling (forgot their name because im a fake fan :( ) wanted a friend the second they were hatched so who knows. This isnt that serious this is me making bedrock bros angst from mlp world

Anyways! In my au/idea-for-angst, changlings feeding off of a person's love can harm the person they're feeding off of. I don't know if its like that in canon, which is why i'm saying its an au thing

Tantabus - In canon it's only in Princess Luna's dreams, but canon is dead i shot it, so thats not important. But the reason it exists is Luna felt guilty and made it so that it would give her nightmares (oversimplification, but it's fine) Photo example of what it looks like v

Pony - There are four types of Ponies. Earth pony (no wings + no horn), Pegasi (Have wings but dont have horn), Unicorn (no wings but have horn), Alicorn (Royalty. Have wings + have horn). Ponies also have cutie marks, which is just basicly a magic tattoo they get when they discover their talent/passion

Jeez wow that was way to many words already

Time for more words. I have two versions of this au/idea, but im gonna start with the one i drew things for.

Tommy is a changling (his wings are too damaged to fly with) and Techno is an earth pony. Tommy is a pretty young changling who Does Not like being a changling. He wants to be a pony, but at the same time he wants people to love him for being him. it's contridictory.

He doesn't take form of anyone specific, the first thing he sees are two disks resting on a bench and he decides that can be his cutie mark. He's never heard music, but he thinks he wants to.

He meets Techno, a potato farmer with apples coated in gold and Tommy didn't know that was possible, and turns out it's just a decoration and he did try to eat it but does it really matter if Techno gave him some love for it?

Techno keeps loving him, and maybe he realized something was wrong when standing for hours started to feel draining when it never had before. Maybe he realized something was off when Tommy's main was growing wrong - jutted out, the hair stiff - and maybe he shouldve realized when Tommy barely hid a gag when he ate anything techno gave him.

It takes time. Techno has a job, but he can't do it anymore. He's tired - it doesnt seem physical until he needs to close his eyes for longer. It doesnt seem like a big deal until silent acts of love towards Tommy make him need to take a nap.

It doesnt seem like a big deal to Tommy, until he realizes that this is why it's so hard to feed a big group. This is why he was allowed to leave alone, because the town is too small and they thought he was smart enough to feed off not just one person.

It doesn't seem like a big deal to Tommy until it's been months, he is full, and Techno stops opening his eyes.

It doesnt seem like a big deal until Techno's last muttered words are that he knew, and he should have done something diffrent, but-

Techno, who's cutie mark is a sword going into his skin - Techno, who's real and true and is able to love. Techno, who may as well have been born for this and who regrets this.

Techno, who stops, either because he physically cant say more or because he mentally cant. Soon enough, his chest stops rising.

Techno didnt like flowers that much, but he didnt mind them and liked the smell of the golden ones outside of his home. He wore it in his main. And tommy, a changling without much of a main or tail, wraps himself in golden flowers and sits close to Techno. There's no use pretending anymore, but he still does.

Tommy makes a Tantabus for himself, he closes his eyes not unlike Techno, and he lays down.

And he dreams.

And the flowers around him wilt.

And he can't hear anything from the hivemind - he hasnt been able to for a while now. He doesnt know how that happened, why it happened, or if it was always like that.

[h3artf3ltint3nt]

get to know Kiry

last song you listened to : 赤子 (Chi Zi) by Yu Bin. Wen Ning's song from the Chinese style music album. I was listening to it while cleaning at work lol.

what's your phone wallpaper : my lockscreen is a Jiang Cheng collage I found online and my homescreen is a Cloud Recesses wallpaper from the donghua. Plus all my widgets & icons which are also MDZS/The Untamed to no one's surprise xD

currently reading : The Husky & His White Cat Shizun volume 4

last movie : Inside Out 2 in theaters lol

what are you wearing right now ? : pinkish Stranger Things sweatpants, grey Angel Grove Alumni (Power Rangers) t-shirt & my Hamilton hoodie cause I'm cold T-T

how tall are you ? : I believe about 5'7? About 170cm?

piercings / tattoos ? : just my ears, no tattoos

glasses / contacts : yeah glasses. Contacts scare me xD

last thing you ate ? : I just ate a York Peppermint Patty. Don't worry I ate dinner before this lol

favourite colour : pink & purple :)

current obsession : MDZS/The Untamed. Heaven Official's Blessing to a slightly lesser extent lol.

do you have a crush right now ? : not aside from Wang Zhuocheng/Marius. I don't go anywhere enough to have crushes that aren't celebrities xD

favorite fictional character : oh jeez. There's SO SO many x.x. Jiang Cheng (obvs), Jiang Yanli, Nie Huaisang, Nie Mingjue, Wei Wuxian, Lan Wanghi, Shi Qingxuan, Hua Cheng, Xie Lian, Feng Xin, Mu Qing, Liu Qingge, Wanda Maximoff/Scarlet Witch, Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel, Bucky Barnes, Moon Knight, Crowley, Aziraphale, Steve Harrington, Eddie Munson, Blackbeard/Edward Teach, Stede Bonnet, Kimberly Hart, Tommy Oliver, Daenerys Targaryen, Hobie Brown and more but I'll stop there xD.

last place you travelled : Travel? That's funny. I guess Pittsburgh, PA for Tekkocon counts? I never leave this gods forsaken state T-T

Tagged by: @meihuasmight

Tagging: @adversitybloomed @battleguqin @roscvcins @dcstinyscdgc (if you guys haven't done it lol) and whoever else wants to

[herefortarlos]

Hello! Nice ask week asks for you! 1) What are your top three Tarlos moments? 2) Have you ever been the same again since discovering Tarlos? 3) If you could hang out with TK and Carlos for a day and you chose the activities, what would you get up to?

Awww, thank you for the ask, Cig 🥰 I can answer question 2 real quick; no I have not been the same since discovering Tarlos 😆! Tarlos is my 3rd extreme hyper fixation I've had over a fictional couple, but it is the first time that I've not only found 2 characters I absolutely love but they are also canonically a couple! It is becoming more common thankfully, but it is still so hard to find a well written AND canon gay couple in media! Tarlos has been such a nice change where I don't have to imagine these two wonderful characters being together and only having fanfic and some scenes to base that on, they are officially together, they have many on screen kisses and they're married!! And I've made so many wonderful friends and have also been more open about my sexuality and who I share that with because of Tarlos! 🥹 So I hope my obsession is here to stay for a long time!

Oh jeez, my top 3 Tarlos moments?!? But there are so many to choose from and it's always changing 😆 Get ready for my long winded thoughts! I do think my #1 has to be the wedding! I still can't watch the vows scene and listen to them without crying, I just loved their vows to each other sooo much, they were perfect to me and who TK and Carlos are as people and how they have grown since season 1 to now! And I loved TK asking Tommy to sing Being Alive for him as a gift to Carlos and to me that's not a spur of the moment thing, that is a, TK asked Tommy weeks ago if she would do this and why this specific song was so meaningful and I cry just thinking about that conversation and how honored Tommy felt that TK went to her 🥹. And the way TK and Carlos cry and hold each other during her singing is just too much and I love it! I'm so happy they're married!

For my second top moment I am including the entirety of s3e13 Riddle of the Sphynx! I rewatched that episode and skipped to all the Tarlos scenes the other night and I was a wreck! I loved all the domesticity and flirty Tarlos we got, I loved jealous Carlos and that dinner table conversation is still one of the absolute best scenes that Rafa and Ronen have acted together. TK trying to explain to Carlos why he can't help with this and Carlos begrudgingly accepting it and then fully realizing, when TK is looking through photos of his mom, that he is out of his depth and if he wants to help TK then he needs to get in contact with the person that can truly empathize and help him, and that is nothing against Carlos! Him realizing that this isn't about him, it's about the man he loves, and that little "I love you. I know" moment, TK knowing then for sure that he is going to marry Carlos, and then Carlos' little happy, satisfied smile as he leaves the loft, all of it made me a mushy, blubbering mess and absolutely blew me away again, after seeing that episode like 10 times now! Oh and the use of Transatlanticism was amazing as well!

Phew, and finally for my third moment, I am going to cheat and say TK's and Carlos' proposals!! TK's proposal being at 3 in the morning in their bed, where it's soft and quiet and just meant for TK and Carlos 😭 absolutely perfect! I loved that TK was no longer afraid of love or losing it and it was such a pinnacle moment to show that TK is done running from Carlos and then he proved that time and again in season 4! I also loved him petting Carlos' hair and rubbing his ear!

Then at the end of season 4 we get the gift we didn't know we needed in Carlos proposing to TK! Them saying that they have saved each other, Carlos realizing that TK and wanting to be married to him are the only things in his life he is 100% certain of! TK getting the joy of being proposed to and Carlos smiling for the first time in days when he sees that he made TK smile 🥹 My favorites may change again but these are the moments that first came to mind and I love them all so much!

Okay and finally, if I could hang out with TK and Carlos for one day and do anything, I would honestly want them to show me around Austin! We would need to go to a cat cafe, I looked it up and Austin has a couple! (I am currently watching a stream of a cat cafe and that is influencing my choice 🤣) because Carlos could finally pet an animal and TK and animals are a match made in heaven, and can you imagine how cute they would be surrounded by cats 🥹 I would also want to go clothes shopping with them because Carlos needs some more variety aside from all the plaid dad shirts, just a little bit of style and color! And seeing some of the research that people have put into looking up TK's clothes, that man has expensive tastes and I want to know if he actually looks at price tags or just grabs all the things he likes without looking 😆 And I would want to go back to the loft and eat some of Carlos' cooking! Give me some ropa vieja and tamales, please 🤤. And then I would want to go out to a queer club where this supposed night life is that we haven't gotten to see 🤣 Ohh, what a dream that would be!!

[kissorkill16]

The Golden Boy, The Wonder Girl, and The Fallen Angel: Chapter 2

Summary: How they all came together.

Steve was running to the bus stop. He was super extra excited to get to school today, because he heard that there was going to be a whole ass showdown in the gymnasium.

Meilin Peace and Tommy Boomowski were going to fight against each other and he didn't want to miss anything.

With Josie, she wanted to get to school on time so she could meet up with her best friend, Linda. Linda was the principal's daughter, and the bond they formed with each other was unbreakable.

Her and Linda shared so many interests in getting to school on time, acing tests, and trying to make the school a better place.

With Barron, he wanted to get to school on time so he could eat something, because his stupid dad made him skip breakfast.

Also, he had a Chemistry exam. That's why he'd stayed up all night last night studying his ass off.

All 3 kids were all so lost in thought, they all crashed into each other and fell to the ground.

"Ow...", Steve groaned, rubbing his temple.

"I'm so sorry. Are you okay?", Josie asked, getting up to check on the boy.

"Yeah, I'm great. Nothing I can't handle. I am invincible after all.", joked Steve.

"Hey! Watch where you're going you big jerks!", Barron shouted at the 2. Steve and Josie turned their heads to look at him, startled at his outburst.

"Jeez, we're sorry!", Josie said.

"I wasn't looking where I was going, none of us were.", Steve said. Barron just scoffed at them. However, he knew he was also not looking where he was going, but that didn't stop him from biting back.

"I have a headache. What's your excuse, dingus?", he said.

"WOW! Name-calling? How childish.", thought Steve. "I'm in a rush to see the fight. Haven't you heard? Boomowski and Peace are gonna compete in hand to hand combat in the gym."

"Oh. Loud mouth and poser bitch?"

"...I guess."

Josie wasn't paying attention. She was too distracted by Barron. For some reason, in her eyes, he looked so cute. His black curly hair, his red eyes covered by window like glasses, and his beautiful, porcelain features.

They were all so lost in deep conversation and thoughts, no one registered that the bus already pulled up behind them. It wasn't until Shailene Wilson, bus driver, called out to them.

"WHILE WE'RE YOUNG, KIDS!"

They all ran into the bus, sat down, and they all rode to Sky High. Most of them, ready for the day.

[the-firebird69]

Audioslave - I Am The Highway

we watch him uffer and it is hard. i see his point. action and so on.  need it and to move around. and jumble.  but this worked here. yes. they say it too  our stuff now. ok.

- the psudo empire is taking territory and they hold it as they do here. and it is their specilaty.  and in space they are compitant and morlock are not. thusfar morlock ahve lost their fleet steadily to them.  and the psuedo empire still has the rrefuel bases and laser bases. are different.  and hold them.  are good at theat use it wisely.  they are also gathering ammo and ordinacne. fast and tons of it.  and keep it. hold it store it right. and take tons. from all over. and they occupy teh usa bases and they hae ammo and ordinance there.  most bases.  hae jets and aireships.  too. and the us navy.  their ground forces grow and they hire all of theirs and to defend new territory and they hold it and use force as they do here sam stuff ok and works. soon morlock will seek tommy f hardwre to bereak ther lines.  but for now they hold.  and the morlock lost the space bttle an it is down to 8.6 ok.  heheh ok he says lol.  however will be 7.9 shortly and we agree.  soon.  nd th psuedo empire grabs more. tons of them ye. in.  we have soe and forg. not a ton.

-morlock sent in tons to the tunnels and all of the and bunkers. armies there now hit. and hey psudo empire loaded up fire bck and blow them away.  are hefting the anti personell and use it too and tons of it. they are whiped out.  and all day too. early mornign started losing. they see it now the explorer is the jeep and juiced and the trumps want my husband in an accident. and his owon doing and john r said this one more time.and im outa here and he did not and says it about my husband. and is a fruit.  we nailhim and now and shorlty.

he is a fn moron and it is the compuer trie dto nab them no tommy f and is after him has him do stuff.

we so taht discipline program on these idiot trumps and jeeze getou out ok.

we seek  you out joh r for drivinig our son were toldnot to. and do it now.

and ps are after you now for your comments all afternoon. your a moron ok. 

and n the tunnels ok.  they have sent tons.  and it is hard to say.  they shrink all over. and tons go in.  tons.  oveall the past four days they shrunk by five percetn and are at about 22.7 off isle but pack in and aaround holes and ohter. bunkers. and such.mostly those. and now they try their old lands. and fuel but really minor so far.  huge bombs are dorooped on them to save ammo. and where they sit too and hey move in. allday and  night. tons see no. and dispercsal till the cows ocme home fr toomany.  and the losses are huge very huge.  we think they wont last too long. tons go into the tunnels tons.  and yes macs hit them topside.  hard and tons. huge losses by cork and he puoshes them to get there. and rols faster now. and tons of trucks in and out tons. allday and night. now fly vehicles and too many. tons. and smaller ones rillinos of them tons.  now in. fast.  it is horrendous the sight.seeks ammo and arms and the caverns now.  is in a few no near not quite tries now though.  an ongoing effort he says.  more shortly it is huge. are huge events.

Thor Freya

Olympus

and the car lol hahah how long and stuff. but really  need funds or it will sit rotting

Hera

we hae that covered they wont  the pseudo empire will 

Nuada Arrianna

and assured us no are the one and ok

Thor Freya

and we fight now and work

Olympus we saw your messages use them and it. and the idea. good.  we do this now.

[tommymaddox]

The shyness of a smile kisses his lips at the sound of Garrick's laugh. It's a delectable sound that Tommy wants to chase after, hating that it fades just as quickly as it burst into the air. "There's plenty of them around here, but the closest thing I had to an animal growing up was when the mice got into the house." A common occurance given the state of his house growing up, but also the fact there was a lot of field space around Merrock where the wildlife went wild. Tommy was far from the farm boys that tended their land and worked with livestock. Dealing with Rue was hard enough.

"Lucky the bookshop had an opening then." He recalls their meeting, the fact they'd let Rue into the store on the hot day when many would turn a dog away from their business. It showed Tommy a bit of who Garrick was right away, a kindness and a respect for animals an admirable trait. He thinks of her now, hoping she's lounged out with the air conditioning still on keeping her satisfied. "Would you have come to Merrock if it didn't? Actually, did the job come first or were you just winging it?"

Tommy's laugh is carefree at the reaction he gets out of Garrick. He takes a moment to collect himself, wheezing as he touches his beer to theirs. The glass of the bottle rests against his lips as he tilts it back, his blue eyes, filled with mischievousness, on theirs as he drains the rest of the liquid inside.

"Six of you? Jeez, I thought one of you was enough," he teases. Tommy was feeling awfully loose with the alcohol in his system. Despite they were just getting to know each other Tommy felt, at least in his intoxicated state, that Garrick could take the playful jap. Their friendship was in the early days, the waters being tested on what was okay and where lines would be drawn, and Tommy was rather hopeful Garrick wasn't easily offended.

There's something in the tone that catches Tommy's energy and pulls it down a level. He squints, trying to work it out but whether it's the darkness of the night or the alcohol content in his body, or just his usual inability to understand people, he can't put a name to it. He slows in his step, listening to what Garrick shares. It's a delayed realisation that it was pain that intertwined in their worry as they recall the rough time of their sibling. "I'm sorry, that he struggled," Tommy offers in a much softer tone. "I have a little sister.. well, she's not so little any more... but I know what it can be like worrying over them. Like you can't breathe right, there's something caughter right here," he rubs at his chest close to his heart. "I hope your brother is doing better."

Tommy’s laughter fills the night. The sound both jovial and deep, echoing in his chest. Garrick grins, expression turning the slightest bits of sheepish. “I guess it does. Compared to someone else who hadn’t grown up tending to cows and sheep.”

His eyes fall onto the road ahead of them. There’s a surprising absence of cars out on the road at this hour, assuming that much of the town is either tucked into their quaint homes or still lingering at the party. “I think I’ve always been a book boy.” His voice leans into his final two words, teasing Tommy with a lighthearted impression. “I played lacrosse in college, but got into school for my academics. I was a good student. Loved reading so much even as a boy that I ended up studying and teaching it.”

Garrick tips his beer back, almost spurting out the light amber drink at Tommy’s exclamation. He has to stop walking, pausing to press a hand to his chest, overcome with laughter. He holds out his bottle to Tommy, beckoning him to keep pace with him. Blue eyes regarding him with shock and curiosity. Garrick rights himself and brushes at his lips, the back of his hand catches any spare drops of beer and cleans his chin. “There are six of us in total. The youngest are twins and we were already a handful for my mom at the time they were born. After them, she couldn’t fathom experiencing another toddler stage.”

Expertly, Garrick coasts around Tommy’s secondary question. Skirting around any talk of his parents’ marital pastimes. They hardly touched by the time Caelan was an infant. Tender moments between them were even more rare. His father, a phantom of his own making, seeping into every room and empty space. A shadowy figure that consumed doorways and latched onto thresholds. Nails biting into wood and scraping at paint until he abruptly vanished.

“The black sheep?” Garrick repeats, smile sobering but the softness remains. “I wish I could say it was me, but I was too much of a mama’s boy growing up. I had to help her look after the younger ones. I think it would be Tavin—the brother closest to me in age. He got into trouble, struggled in school for awhile, closed himself off from us for a brief period in his twenties. We were always worried about him.” There’s an inherent fondness to his words as he adds, “Tavin’s personality is… more reserved and rougher than mine. He’s very different from the rest of my siblings.”

[strawberrylemonz]

Tree of Innits

Part 4

Part 5 [CURRENT]

Part 6

DT: @wintercat96 and @snapdragonfirefly

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They were not expecting this, not one bit. They were expecting more Tommys, of course, it was expected at this point. What they didn’t expect was receiving so many at such a rapid pace. Thomas was feeling grateful for making such a big tree, only to realize that they would need more room soon. That was a future problem, however, for the group had a very important topic to discuss. 

“I want to be called Tommy!”

“What the fuck, I don’t want to be called Theseus! You can be called that.”

“Fuck no! You can have Theseus, I’ll take Tommy!”

“I’m Thomas!”

“No, I’m Thomas!”

“Maybe finding different variations of our name was a bad idea.”

“No shit, sherlock.”

“Okay, everyone, shut the fuck up! Sit down, and chill out. We’re all restarting, we’re getting new names.”

Tommy’s of all kind pushed each other around, no ill intent behind any of the actions. From a distance, it appeared as if there was a group of clones playing like children. In a way, this was an accurate description. As the group sat down by the tree, they began to come up with new names for each other.

--------

“Hey, we all agreed on the rules. The one with the most trauma is the one who bares the name Theseus. Sorry, not our fault you’re the most fucked up out of all of us.”

Theseus grumbled as he crossed his arms. It wasn’t fair! He was just Thomas, now he’s Theseus? That stupid name seemed to haunt him wherever he went. Technoblade’s stupid story would haunt his mind forever, followed by the wither attack. Stupid Dream SMP. That server seemed to be cursed when he was on it. Rolling his eyes, Theseus reached over and swatted the winged teen upside the head.

“Hey!”

“Shut it, Chirp.”

Chirp, also known as Avian, just grumbled as he rubbed his head. He glared over at the only other winged Tommy there, who was laughing at his misery.

“Oh, shut up. At least my nickname isn’t fucking Tweet.”

Tweet, also known as Ash, glowered at Chirp. Much to his annoyance, Chirp just gave him a smug smile. Rolling his eyes, Tweet huffed as he spoke up.

“It’s not my fault that BB claimed the nicknames TB and Phoenix. Selfish prick.”

“I’m basically you, so that makes you a selfish prick as well. And I’m the one with the phoenix feather necklace. I was also the third Tommy to show up, so deal with it.”

Rust snorted as he tuned his guitar. He found it quite amusing how some of them got their names, himself included. Name them after the worlds they came from? Why didn’t they think of that earlier? Tommy, Toms, Rust, he didn’t care what he was called as long as they all had names to distinguish themselves from one another. He peered up to see Princey, deemed as Thomas, run his fingers across the carvings in his crown. Thomas, unlike most of them, grew up with a family. This didn’t mean that his own problems were less than everyone else’s. Sighing, Rust got up to sit by Princey. Across from them sat the youngest Tommy there. As the youngest, being only 9 years of age, he was automatically given the nickname Champ, but they also agreed to call him Toms. The young boy smiled as he spoke to RL and Sunny. RL came from a world where it was only him and Boffy. He spoke of dragons and creatures of all kinds, as well as the harsh weather. Sunny was a starchild, a demigod amongst them all. He spoke of the gods and goddesses that ruled the worlds, as well as the children who came from them. 

“Really? A sun?”

“Yup. Kristin had begged Clara to save that dying sun, and Clara was more than happy to do so. From that dying sun came a baby boy, me. I was gifted to Kristin, and then eventually joined Phil, Techno and Wilbur, all gods themselves. I still haven’t earned the role of a full god.”

“Woooooaaaah.”

Terraria hummed as he watched Magma show off his abilities to Kraken and Danger. Once he was done, they turned to Kraken, who proudly showed off his sorcerer and shapeshifting abilities. When it was Danger’s turn, he just shrugged. He explained that he came from a world without all these abilities. He did bring up that he learned to fight from Technoblade, much to his annoyance. He had been adopted by Phil a few months prior to this strange experience. Both of his new “brothers” didn’t seem to like him, not that he blamed them. He was always labeled a troubled kid by the foster system. 

“They taught me how to fight, and that’s about it. I do know some tips on thieving and running away, so there's that. I also play video games and watch YouTube.”

“What are video games?”

“What is a YouTube?”

“Holy shit, my phone better work in this place. I’m showing you guys my favorite song.”

--------

The Tommys were busy at work, all settling into their new home. Avian and Ash settled down on the tallest point of the trees. Avian was having a blast as he teased Ash about being called Tweet, making the latter even more annoyed. Danger was setting up his things in his area, pleased that his presence brought internet with him. He was, however, disappointed to find that he couldn’t message Tubbo. Champ just sat down on Danger’s bed, watching as the older boy explained the concept of video games. Theseus sat outside of the tree, in front of the entrance, and stared into the trees. So much was happening in such little amount of time. So many versions of himself had popped in, almost all at once. The most concerning manner was the fact that they had received a Tommy that was far too young. Everyone else but Champ were 16, making them all confused as to why Champ was the only 9 year old there. No matter, they all had a silent agreement to keep the child safe. 

“So much for three makes a team, huh?”

Theseus hummed in agreement, continuing to stare ahead as he was joined by Rust and TB, both sitting on either side of him. Rust was the first to speak up. 

“So, unkillable? God slayer? And you can fly a plane?”

“Eh, what can I say? The phoenix feather works wonders. Besides, I was also a baby zombie to those around me. The name had to stem from something.”

Theseus snorted as he and Rust turned to face TB, giving the smug boy amused looks. 

“What about you, huh? At least I didn’t create a dome cult.”

“He’s got you there, Rust.”

As the three of them conversed, they couldn’t help but feel a sense of peace. They didn’t know what the future held, but that didn’t matter. As of right now, they were all safe and sound.