#that one scene in the movie where he emerges from behind the car i’m CRYING

[gongyussy]

#albert einstein in his babygirl era WHAT? WHERE?

e = mc-utie

[heyitsme1040]

Home [p.p]

summary : You knew your boyfriend was Spider-Man. Anytime he had to protect the city, you would worry. Even when you began to help him from the safety of the Roosevelt train car you were concerned. Every time Peter was about to be in a dangerous situation, he would claim his earpiece was damaged and turn it off. You’d lose your only way of being in contact with him, and were resigned to worrying until he came by your apartment after the battle. After his most recent battle against the Scorpion, you need to patch him up more than usual. You stay calm until you finish bandaging Peter’s injuries, then finally break down. You tell him that you can’t take the worry anymore, and Peter promises to do better by you. The two of you manage to figure out what needs to be done, and fall asleep while the city wakes up.

pairings : TASM!Peter Parker/Reader

warnings : Mentions of injury (mainly bruising and mild burns), kind of angsty until the very end, sappy ending, crying. No use of y/n. If I missed anything please let me know.

word count : 3k

AO3 (x)

a/n : Any Spider-Man fics I write are likely going to be The Amazing Spider-Man based. So while it is Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man, I’m also using the comic books of tasm as reference material. Maybe later on I’ll do the MCU’s Spider-Man (somehow have still not seen any of the movies and avoided spoilers), and I don’t think I’ll write any focused on Tobey’s Spider-Man because while I grew up on those specific ones they’re more nostalgic than interesting to me at this point.

You dropped a token into the turnstile and rushed through it while taking your backpack off. While the train car came up from the tracks you grabbed the earpiece Peter had given you and put it in. Once the train doors slid open, you rushed in and went to what you had claimed as your workstation.

“Alright, Peter, what’s happening?” You demand as you place your laptop on the counter and log into the system you helped him create.

“I’m almost on scene,” Peter talks over the sound of rushing wind. “Maybe seven blocks out? What do you see?”

“It looks like the police managed to clear out all bystanders. It appears that the Scor–”

“Scorpion!” Peter’s sudden yell has you wincing as you hear the thud of him landing. “What’s the matter? You get lost looking for your burrow?”

“Peter, what are you doing?” Your fingers fly across the keyboard as you try to pull up the traffic cameras feed to see what’s going on.

“Spider-Man, what took you so long?” Scorpion laughed.

You tried to get into the camera feed, but you didn’t have the time to figure out the access code. With a frustrated huff of air, you decided to pull up the news feed that was inevitably covering the scene. From the aerial feed you saw Scorpion’s tail move, revealing a passed out bystander. The spiked club on his tail was hovering over their head and was aimed at your boyfriend. Acid dripped out, narrowly missing the head of his hostage and melting through the street below with ease.

“Peter, you need to be careful. His suit’s different, and it looks like his acid is stronger,” you warned.

“What do you want, Scorpion?” Peter called with his hands moving in a manner to show he didn’t want any trouble.

“You’ve been making things very difficult for us.” Scorpion raised his tail and drew it back, “So we decided to start making things more difficult for you.”

Scorpion whipped his tail forward, releasing the unconscious man toward Peter. You watched as Peter caught the man and took the impact of them crashing into a nearby building. Peter emerged with the hostage, and swung him behind the police line before returning to where Scorpion was waiting. As he approached, Scorpion launched himself at Peter and sent them crashing into another building.

“Peter, you need to try and lead him out of the city,” you desperately instructed.

The only response you heard was a groan and more crashing, the news feed unable to capture what was happening inside. You held your breath as you saw Peter crash through a window, a stream of acid following him as he fell before swinging to the top of a nearby building. Scorpion emerged seconds later, punching into the building and using his lodged fists to scale the side of the building. As Scorpion approached the top, Peter swung away once again to lead them away from the city.

“Peter look out,” you gasped, but it was too late. A stream of acid melted away his web, and Scorpion was once again tackling Peter.

Peter was unable to push Scorpion off of him, but webbed the spiked end of his tail. You worried as you saw Scorpion land punch after punch on Peter. Before another hit could make contact, Peter finally forced Scorpion off. He managed to swing away once again, just before Scorpion melted the webs off his tail.

“Peter, you need to lead him to the east of the city. The direction you’re going now has another police barricade coming up in five blocks, and we can’t guarantee he won't harm someone else,” you guided him.

“Got it,” Peter confirmed.

You watched the news feed as Peter began turning a corner, but there was a sudden shake as the camera’s view dropped a couple feet. The edge of the news feed captured a stream shooting through the sky. It panned down and you saw Scorpion with his tail aimed directly at the helicopter.

“I think he just hit the news helicopter that’s behind you,” you warn. “The feed isn’t steady anymore, you need to get them out of it before it goes down!”

Through the graininess of the feed, you saw Peter clinging to the side of the helicopter. He got the pilot and reporter to hold on before he swung out of it. He swung in the direction of where you told him the police barricade was approaching. Once he had swung to safety, the feed completely cut out.

“Are you guys okay?” You heard Peter over the earpiece. “Two blocks that way is a police barricade, you’ll be safe there.”

You waited in silence for a few moments, hoping Peter would continue to lead Scorpion away from the city. You once again tried to access any of the street cameras in hopes of being able to see what was happening.

“How’re you holding up?” You ask as you try to get the camera access codes from the police’s database.

“I’m okay,” Peter’s voice strained from swinging through the city. “He clearly got a bigger upgrade than I thought, that new suit is making him a real pain to fight. I’m pretty sure he’s stronger than me now.”

“There isn’t much of him exposed. Whoever managed to break him out had a reason to. They decided to make him as armored as possible,” you thought aloud. “If you could manage to damage his suit enough, then you should be able to stop him and–”

“I think my earpiece is messed up,” Peter rushes in a tone you’re far too familiar with. “Maybe it was hit when–”

“Peter don’t you dare turn it off again,” you warn. “Every time something bad is about to happen, it just conveniently breaks.”

“Hey, that’s not true!” His voice ticks up an octave.

“Peter. If you shut it off instead of letting me help you, I swear that–” but you get cut off as static fills your ears.

You tried reconnecting the earpiece to the other channels the two of you use, but each one held the same static of dead air waiting for someone else to connect. You move away from your workstation and pace out of frustration. You have no idea what’s going on right now between Peter and Scorpion. Your frustration quickly sours into panic as you can’t help but worry over what could happen tonight.

“Every time,” you mutter, frustrated. “I don’t know why I even try. He clearly doesn’t want my help.”

Knowing that Peter won’t turn his earpiece back on tonight, you resign yourself to an evening of worry. You begrudgingly log out of the system that was made so you could help Peter while he was fighting and patrolling the city. You shove your laptop into your bag, rougher than necessary, and grab some of Peter’s bio-cable capsules. You watch as the train car lowers itself below the tracks once again and retrieve the token that was ejected from the turnstile. Slowly making your way out of the Roosevelt station, you carefully navigate the city towards your apartment as the sky begins to darken.

You’ve lost count of how many cups of coffee you’ve drank by the time you hear the window to your apartment finally lift. You cover the short distance from the table in your kitchen to the living room just to see Peter sliding the window closed and locking it. As the sky lightens with the beginnings of sunrise behind him, you try to fight the pricking of tears that come to your eyes upon seeing him. Raking your eyes over him, you take note of the burn holes in his suit and the dirt covering his face from the rips in his mask. You walk toward him and guide him toward the bathroom so you can patch him up.

You ignore Peter as he’s sat on the closed lid of your toilet while feeling his eyes on your face. You open the drawer you keep the first-aid supplies in and see him tug off the damaged mask. You remove the mask from his hand and place it on the counter. It’s silent except for your occasional sniffle, and the shuffle of supplies in your first-aid kit. You grab a cloth and wet it with warm water, finally meeting his eyes as you clean the dirt from his face to better see his injuries. Peter gently settles a hand on your waist and uses the other to wipe away the stray tears that make their way down your warm cheeks. You do your best to ignore the stress and worry you’ve been feeling for hours, but the more of his skin you reveal the harder it is to forget about. You wring the cloth out and take out the rubbing alcohol and cotton pads from the kit.

“Sorry,” you mutter as he winces from the alcohol cleaning the cuts on his face.

“Not your fault,” he reassures, tugging you closer while trying to lock eyes with you once again.

You refuse to look into his eyes, because once you do it’ll all be too much. You can’t imagine just how hard tonight was for him. He hasn’t come home this hurt since Doctor Connors was the Lizard. You use butterfly bandages to help keep the cut on his temple closed and apply neosporin to his split lip. You wish there was something you could do for his bruises, but know the only thing that will really help those are ice.

“What’s the verdict doc?” Peter jokes, smile falling slightly when you don’t react.

“Your face is all patched up, but I can’t patch the rest up when your suit is still on,” you state.

“If you wanted me to take it off you could’ve just asked,” Peter joked again as he began to try and remove his suit without hurting his injuries further.

“I made sure to grab some more of your web capsules, by the way,” you mention softly to keep your mind busy as you help him peel the top part of his suit off and let it dangle from his hips. “I couldn’t remember whether or not you’d need more if you stopped by.”

“What do you mean ‘if’ I stopped by?” Peter sat back some so you could assess his upper body. “O‘course I was going to come over. I always come ‘n’ find you after playing hero.”

You didn’t say anything as you took stock of the bruises that littered his body. You knew they would need to be iced later, but they should be completely gone by the morning.

I guess they’ll be healed by tonight then, you think once you see the light outside slowly turning the sky from blue to orange to pink.

Your main concern was that he had what looked like a few burns from the acid. The burns weren’t too serious, but there were plenty of them. You carefully moved his arm to look at the largest burn on his side. You saw the smaller burns scattered along his arms and shoulder, and had to swallow down the lump forming in your throat once again. Lightly prodding around the burns, you quickly retreat your hand when Peter releases a pained gasp.

“You’re fine,” he quickly reassures whilst reaching for your hand. “You didn’t hurt me, I swear. But, you’re not going to be able to wipe those ones clean.”

You tilted your head trying to think of how to clean the burns without hurting him further. You needed to disinfect the area so his super healing could do its job better.

“Do we still have that antiseptic spray you found last time?” Peter prompts.

You nodded silently and pulled out two sprays to show him, “I found another one, it had pain relief on the can. I don’t know how good the pain relief would work in your case, but figured it was worth picking up.”

“I trust your judgment,” Peter spoke with a fond smile.

“It doesn’t feel like you do,” you grumble as you spray the antiseptic onto his burns and then secure dressings over them.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

You don’t bother answering him as you pack up the first-aid kit and return it to the drawer you’ve turned into a medical supply cache. Once again, you feel Peter’s eyes trained on you as you close the drawer. You walk out, avoiding the hand Peter reaches out to stop you. Now that he’s home, that you’ve patched up his injuries so they can properly heal over the next few days, you have nothing else to keep your thoughts at bay. You make it to the living room and collapse onto the couch with your face buried in your hands. Your tears fall fast, no longer having a good reason to be held back. All the panic and worry you’d been feeling overshadow any bit of relief you’d been clinging to upon his return.

Peter emerges from the bathroom minutes later. You look up at the sound of his approach, seeing through the blur of your tears that he took off the rest of his suit and was wearing the sweatpants you insisted he keep here. The calm that washes over you at the realization that he’s here, that he’s still alive, makes the tears falling from your eyes speed up in frustration. Peter rushes over, and as he’s about to pull you into his arms you stop him with a hand on his chest.

“You’re an asshole,” you sniffle while wiping your eyes with your sleeve. “Why did you turn off the earpiece again? I had no way of knowing if you were okay! I thought you were really going to die this time.”

“Shh, baby, I’m okay. See? I’m alive, and I’m right here, and there’s nothing for you to worry about,” Peter holds the hand on his chest over his heart.

The steady beat of his heart under your fingertips reassured you that he really was there. The calm that washed over you earlier felt heavier as the anger inside you began to slowly fizzle away. You knew you could never hold what Peter did as Spider-Man against him, and that if you did then what kind of a girlfriend would you be?

“You’re not okay. You could have died tonight, Peter. I know what caused those burns, and you’re lucky the acid didn’t just melt you,” you’re voice was wavering more and more with every point you made while your hands weakly hit his chest. “When you first told me you were Spider-Man, I was worried sick every single time you went out. You suggested I could be your lookout while you were out there being a superhero. We agreed!”

“I was trying to keep you away from the fight. I don’t want you hearing when things get too serious out there,” he comforts tenderly.

“I don’t know how much more of this I can take,” you whisper. “It’s been eight months of you going off the radar in battle, and every time you do I can’t take it. I don’t want to lose you, but when you turn off the earpiece I worry worse. I know the only times you turn it off are when things are going to be bad. I need for us to–”

“Please, don’t do this,” Peter’s voice shook as he interrupted.

“Peter–”

“What if I gave you control? I’ll stop turning off the earpiece, listen to you more, make sure you’re as involved as possible.”

“Peter, I’m not trying to break up,” you rest your head against his uninjured shoulder, “I just don’t want to lose you. You mean so much to me.”

Peter wrapped his arms around you and pulled you into his lap, “After almost two years together? You’re not getting rid of me that easily. I promise you won’t lose me.”

“You can’t promise that, though.”

“What if I stopped? I could give up the mask. If that’s what it’ll take, then I’ll stop being Spider-Man.”

“I don’t want you to stop being Spider-Man, I just want you to let me be there. I know I can’t do much, but I feel better knowing someone’s watching over you while you watch over everyone else.”

“I’ll work on it. We can even work on setting up a better base in the train car for you. Whatever it takes for you not to worry like this ever again, I’ll do it all.”

You hold onto Peter a little tighter, glad that he was okay. Your tears had stopped, all that remained of your worry and anger was the occasional hiccup. Peter buried his face in your hair as he laid the two of you down on the couch. You kept your ear pressed against his chest while avoiding his bandages, finally allowing yourself to relax into him. You gazed at him as the sunrise cast the room in a golden hue and turned the brown of his eyes into honey.

“I’m really glad you’re okay,” you whisper against his chest as your eyes droop.

“I’m sorry I didn’t consider how my protectiveness was affecting you,” Peter ran his hand up and down your back. “You can sleep now, baby. I’m not going anywhere.”

“Promise,” you breathed out trying to fight the tiredness off.

“Promise. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else; I’m home.”

You stopped fighting the tiredness that clung to you. You focused on the steady beat of Peter’s heart, the feeling of his hand rubbing your back, and let his warmth relax your worries.

Home, you thought. Anywhere you are feels like home to me.

You felt Peter briefly shift beneath you, then a blanket was settled over the two of you as he pressed a kiss into the crown of your head.

“I love you so much,” he confessed softly.

“I love you more than you know,” you kiss right over his heart.

Your heart beats slowly begin to match the other’s as your chests slowed their movements and allowed sleep to take over each of you as the city awoke outside your apartment.

Author's Note : Reblogs are appreciated, likes are welcome, and if you want to read more of my fics then maybe follow.

©heyitsme1040 If you find this post on any platform under a username different than heyitsme1040 it is not their work.

[alohastyles-x]

Faith In You - Two

Faith In You | Sequel to Loyal To Me

Summary: How long can a grudge truly last? Your return to earth leaves you emotionally confused as you reconnect with your fellow Eternals. As the Emergence comes, you discover who you truly are, what your true purpose is in the universe. Can you handle it?  | Druig x fem!eternals! reader

Notes: excited for you to read this chapter! mostly just retellings of the eternals banning together- next chap is the one you dont wanna miss! Please let me know what you think, I really appreciate your feedback! Also, not sure I'm a fan of this mood board, so let me know your opinion on that as well!

Warnings: Innacuracies to the movie scenes ; I try to be as accurate as possible but I didn't have time to rewatch these scenes, im so sorry | mentions of puking 

ok on with the story now :) word count: 2.3k

Druig Masterlist | Main Masterlist | Marvel Masterlist | Wattpad | Series Masterlist

The hot Mumbai sun singed your skin as you stepped out of the airport. People were milling about, figuring out where they were headed. Sprite led the way, as she had a rough- albeit spot on- idea of where Kingo would be. Throughout the years, of course the two best friends kept in touch; Sprite fueled the creative mind of Kingo, who became a huge movie star in India for generations, although to Bollywood, he was a part of the Kingo family.

You were amazed by yet another bustling city, much larger than the cities you left behind on Earth centuries ago. People fluttered in and out of crowded streets, cars honking over each other. You fell in line with Sprite's bubbly steps, fearful of being sucked into the vast city if you fell behind.  While Asgard was advanced, this was advanced on a whole different scale.

"It's just up ahead," Sprite called out to the others, pointing to a stone-gray building that sat amongst what seemed like a thousand other buildings.

Loud, lively music came from Studio One, where the doors sat wide open. As the four of you walked in, you were met with a myriad of brightly colored dresses fluttering about, pretty women filling them in. Their faces were adorned with glittery jewels and make up, twinkling under the spotlights as they danced. There was a row of men behind them, adorned in similar colors, just in darker hues. They joined the women, dancing together to the rhythm of the music.

Suddenly, Kingo stepped out from behind one of the women, a dazzling smile on his face. He looked truly happy, as if he was made for the screen. The Kingo you knew most definitely was, his love for storytelling and the visual effects aid from Sprite made every story the two of them told spectacular, lasting for centuries.

"Alright, cut!" He yelled, and the music stopped. He continued cheering everyone on as he turned to where the four of you stood, smiling brightly at him. His smile only brightened at the sight of his three fellow Eternals standing before him. When his gaze lingered to you, his smile fell slightly in disbelief at the sight.

"Y/N?" It came out barely above a whisper, tears forming in his eyes. You merely nodded your head, the sudden outburst of emotion leaving you speechless. Like his best friend, Sprite, Kingo also erred on the side of caution with you. But he was also one for dramatics, which meant him crying over your return was rather on brand.

And to be fair, your death was still hard on everyone, regardless of their relationship to you. The very idea that you, a fellow Eternal, died so easily at the hands of another was eye opening to them, which is why they disbanded entirely after your death.

Kingo made his way over to your group, giving Sprite a hug, as well as Sersi and Ikaris. He stopped in front of you, sighing as he placed his hands on the sides of your arms.

Again, dramatics.

"Y/N. I don't know how you're here but I want you to know that I always let your legacy live on in my movies, naming at least 1 thing after you. Also, I hope there is peace between us." You grimaced slightly as his theatrics, but quickly put a smile on your face.

He took that as a yes, bringing you into a tight hug. You weren't sure how you felt about him yet, but for the sake of figuring out why a Deviant appeared after centuries of no disturbances -at least according to Sersi-, you embraced him.

"So, why are you guys here?" Kingo asked as he pulled back. Before anyone could answer him, a short man with a video camera appeared next to him.

"Hello, hello," he greeted, reaching out his hand for everyone to shake. "I am Karun Patel, Kingo's valet. It's truly an honor to be in the presence of the great Eternals." He introduced himself, a goofy smile on his face as he raised the camera and pointed it at Kingo.

"Not now," Kingo whispered, pushing the camera down.

"He... knows?" Ikaris asked, an "I-can't-believe-this" look pasted on his face as he looked at Sersi.

"Yes, Karun knows everything. I trust him completely, in fact, when he first met me, he thought I was a vampire. Tried to stake me in the heart," Kingo laughed.

"I have apologized so many times," Karun responded.

"Not quite enough times, but very close. I'll let you know. Anyways, did you like the show so far? It's called the Legend of Ikaris..." he trailed off, waiting for Ikaris to sound surprised. But, instead, he just felt weird.

"We need to talk," Sersi said slowly.

"Come on, we can talk in my tent, I have to get ready for the next scene-"

"Kingo, Ajak is dead," Sprite cut in flatly. Kingo turned abruptly, looking her dead in the eyes.

"What?" He sounded taken aback, unsure if he heard her correctly.

"She was killed." Ikaris spoke this time, and your head spun to him. Why was no one else noticing his demeanor change? You looked to Sersi, who just had her eyes fixed on Kingo. Maybe it was all your centuries of training with Loki that helped you pick up on the subtle fluctuations of his voice, or the inconsistencies of his body language. Or maybe you were just delusional, said the small voice in the back of your head. You shook it off.

"You need to come with us," Ikaris said, gently this time, as he laid a hand on Kingo's shoulder.

Kingo dove into a dramatic moment, contemplating his decision, and saying goodbye  to his cast mates. You snuck a glance at Ikaris, watching him closely as he waited patiently for Kingo to finish his speech. There were beads of sweat gathering at the nape of his neck. Grabbing a cloth off of a nearby costume table, you walked up beside Ikaris and held it out to him.

"Here. You're sweating," you said flatly, staring straight ahead at Kingo who was now arguing with Karun about not joining him on this mission.

Ikaris turned and gave you a cold stare, but took the cloth anyway. You turned to meet his gaze, matching his icy glare, before stepping forward to where Sersi stood while Kingo returned to your group.

"We can take my private jet. Oh, and Karun will be joining us." You could feel the groan everyone held back as Karun smiled happily beside Kingo. It was a death wish. There was no way a human could survive two seconds with a Deviant around, but you knew he was insistent on joining Kingo, his loyalty firmly tied to him.

Everyone followed Kingo to the hangar that stored his private jet, and loaded in.

"Where to?" Kingo asked, as he stood outside of the cockpit.

"Australia. That's where Gilgamesh and Thena are." Ikaris responded.

At the mention of Thena your blood ran cold. You stiffened in your seat, not prepared to see the Eternal who had betrayed you. The one who took you from your love. You rose from your seat quickly, as the contents of your stomach began to bubble up through your esophagus. Retching could be heard throughout the plane, making everyone aware of your outburst.

You heard three loud raps on the bathroom door, before Sersi's voice followed.

"Y/N, are you okay?"

When you didn't respond, she tried again.

"Listen, you don't have to come if you don't want to. But I think you should know... we discovered why Thena attacked you."

You stood, wiping off your mouth with toilet paper, before flushing the toilet. Hesitating for a moment, your hand lingering over the door knob. You flung the door open to see Sersi. She had a sympathetic look on her face. You nodded your head, agreeing to listen, and moved to go sit down in one of the seats.

"She had fallen ill with Mad Wry'y. It's a disease of the mind. It caused her mind to split under the weight of her memories, until she couldn't decipher reality from what the voice in her head told her to do. It's why she thought you were someone else, and also why she was on high alert to... well, kill you. After your death, Thena and Gilgamesh relocated to a remote part of the Australian Outback, where Thena could learn to cope peacefully, away from any innocent victims. Her mind still betrays her from time to time, according to Gilgamesh, but he can always bring her back out of it." Sersi explained gently, studying your face as you took in this new information.

You weren't sure how to feel. Cautious, for one, but also empathetic. You witnessed Thena's delusions first hand; they were the cause of your untimely demise. But you also felt angry. Angry that this got resolved right after your death, and not before. A whole range of emotions flooded through you, before you finally landed on one: grief.  

In all this time, you hadn't let yourself just grieve. Grieve the loss of your previous life, the loss of your love, the loss of your family, no matter how divided it was, and worst of all: Grief over a fellow eternal struggling under the weight of her mind, not understanding what was happening in the moment. Questions then began to flood your mind. Did she deserve your grief?

It all came crashing down on you with the weight of a thousand stones. You hadn't let yourself cry for centuries, too afraid that once you started, you wouldn't be able to stop. But there was no controlling the tears that now flowed freely from your eyes, splashing your cheeks and rolling down to your chin. The sobs broke free, causing an unfamiliar sound to escape your lips. You dropped your head into your hands, partly out of shame, but also out of the force of emotions that left your body just now.

Sersi moved to sit next to you instantly, wrapping a comforting hand around your shoulders and squeezing gently. You let your head fall against her momentarily, until you could gain back the control over your tears and emotions. One very important question popped back into your mind, and now seemed as relevant of a time as any to ask.

"Do... do you know where Druig is?" It came out barely above a whisper, sounding as if spoken any louder, the words would break. Sersi cleared her throat.

"After your death, he... Well, he possessed a handful of the Tenochtitlan villagers to follow him into the woods. But that's all I know," Sersi mumbled.

You were speechless, taken aback at what you just heard. Possessed? That didn’t sound like your Druig. Why would he do something like that? Endless thoughts poured into your mind as the plane took off of the runway.  Thoughts of worry and dread,  doubts and uncertainty.

If no one had heard from him, and Heimdall couldn’t get through to him… what if he wasn’t alive anymore. The thought made you feel sick again, and you bolted out of your seat.

“Y/N! Stay seated while the plane is departing!” Kingo called out, but you ignored him. Your stomach couldn’t wait. You reached the bathroom just in time, retching over the toilet.

“Oh, Nevermind. That- that’s an acceptable reason to get up,” Kingo called out from the cabin.

Hours later, you had arrived in Australia, with no escape from the Sun that hung high in the sky. It was a long trek to Gilgamesh’s hide out, that stood alone in the middle of the outback.

Your nerves were shot, too strung out from your anxiety induced puking on the plane. Sweat had begun to build at the nape of your neck, but not just from the heat. Your palms itched as they clammed up. An uneasy feeling settled in your bones, a sign you took that you were close.

Just over the hill, a hut appeared that looked relatively abandoned. There were a few appliances littered about, including a table with a cloth adorning it.

As you approached, you began to feel like you were going to faint. It began to feel like too much too soon, struggling to control your emotions. There was a light breeze flowing through, one your subconscious had sent to cool you down.

Ikaris approached the door, knocking loudly. An uncomfortable silence fell over everyone as you waited. Waited for god knows what to happen.

Suddenly, the door flung open, and a bright and smiling Gilgamesh stood behind it.

“Friends!” He yelled, pulling everyone in one by one for a hug. You hung back, not wanting to over step, and not entirely feeling comfortable at the idea of a hug from him. He merely nodded in your direction, understanding your hesitation.

“Where’s Thena?” Sersi asked, glancing around her.

“Over there,” Gilgamesh pointed to a tree nearby, glittering in the sunlight. Iridescent chimes hung from the branches, and perched below in the dirt sat Thena, meditating peacefully.

The sight of her sitting so still, so calmly, brought a feeling to you that you didn’t know existed. Peace. It didn’t last long, as Sersi began to walk towards her, and instinctively, you followed. The air around you stilled, as you stood near the eternal who took your life centuries ago.

Maybe you could forgive her. Maybe, after all, it was just a sickness, something that can be understood? If she didn’t mean it… that’s what matters right?

You were suddenly pulled from your thoughts as an all too familiar glittering caught your eye. The familiar sound of Thena’s sword filled the silence, as she stood hauntingly in front of you and Sersi.

You froze. Something you never did, something you were specifically trained not to do for centuries. But at the sight of her icy stare, your body shut down.

“I see you’ve returned once more, Fulgora.”

| ᴄᴏᴍᴍᴇɴᴛꜱ, ʟɪᴋᴇꜱ, ʀᴇʙʟᴏɢꜱ, ᴀɴᴅ ᴏᴘɪɴɪᴏɴꜱ ᴀʀᴇ ɢʀᴇᴀᴛʟʏ ᴀᴘᴘʀᴇᴄɪᴀᴛᴇᴅ |

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[bellakitse]

To Love is to Know You

“Carlitos got hurt at work,” she whispers, her face pale and frightened. “He got shot, and they are rushing him to the hospital.”

+

When Carlos gets hurt on the job, his parents find out about the important parts of his life he’s been keeping from them, mainly the man he’s in love with.

Gabriel Reyes' POV

*there is accidental outing in this since this isn’t how Carlos planned on telling his parents.

6.3k

They’ve settled in for the night and are in the middle of watching a movie their son recommended when the phone rings.

“Carlos really likes this?” he questions skeptically as more blood goes spraying across the screen.

His wife chuckles at his tone even as she winces at the scream the protagonist lets out for the 100th time.

“He’s young, Gabriel. I don’t think we’re actually supposed to like what Carlitos likes,” she tells him as she leans across the couch, reaching for her phone. She turns to him with a smile as she shows him the caller ID. “Hablando del diablo,” she says fondly before pressing talk on their son calling.

“Tell him I’m questioning his choices,” Gabriel jokes, pausing the movie as Andrea says hello with a smile. He watches as that smile quickly drops, his heart seizing in his throat as she lets out a gasp and a shaky ‘what?’ to whoever she’s speaking to. It’s obvious now that it’s not their boy.

He waits for her to end the call with a fearful ‘we’ll be there soon’ before she turns to him with tears in her eyes.

Even before she speaks, he knows, and his hands shake as they reach for hers.

“Carlitos got hurt at work,” she whispers, her face pale and frightened. “He got shot, and they are rushing him to the hospital.”

 ֎֎֎

 The drive to the hospital is both short and the longest drive Gabriel Reyes has ever had behind the wheel. Next to him, Andrea grips the rosary his mama gave her after they got married. She doesn’t pray, though, and he thinks she’s too worried to remember any prayer at the moment.

“He’s going to be okay,” he tells her, his voice rougher than he would typically use with his sweetheart, but he can see her starting to spiral, and he needs her to focus on his voice and not on all the troubling thoughts he knows are running through her head at the moment. “Carlos is young and strong. He’s going to be fine, he –”

“Is our baby boy,” she whispers, looking at him with those big brown eyes, so like Carlos’ when he was little, looking at him to make everything okay.

“El va estar bien, amor,” he tells her softly, willing himself to believe it too.

He pulls into the hospital parking lot. They quickly exit the car, holding hands as they rush towards the doors and the front desk. He’s sure they both look a fright as they ask the girl behind the counter for information.

“Mr. and Mrs. Reyes,” calls out a tired voice to them, and when they turn around, they find a familiar-looking young man with brown hair and green eyes standing before them in an EMS uniform.

Gabriel is struck by his eyes. They’re wide, the worry in them plain to see, and it’s obvious he’s been crying by how pink and puffy they are.

“I’ve been waiting for you both; I didn’t want you to get lost,” he tells them, pointing to a door at the far end of the hall to the left. “We’re in there.”

“How’s Carlitos?” his wife asks at the same time as he says. “We’ve met you before.”

“Uh – yes – you have, sir. I’m TK,” he answers with a grimace. Gabriel knows it is the young man’s effort to smile but just can’t. “We met at the farmer’s market about nine months ago.”

TK turns to Andrea, his expression softening instantly. “They took Carlos to the back when we got here, ma’am, but we haven’t heard anything yet.”

“What happened?” he asks TK and is struck again by how expressive his eyes are. Gabriel sees pain, fear, frustration, and anger cross his face.

“We were answering a call to a disturbance; a man was threatening to set fire to his ex-bosses place and was holding them hostage inside. He was armed, so Carlos and the rest of APD went in first,” TK takes a pause, swallowing hard, and Gabriel is struck by how the young man is keeping it together when it’s undeniable that it’s difficult for him to do so. “Shots were exchanged, and the suspect was neutralized but not before he hit Carlos.”

“Where?” he asks, hoping against hope that his son was wearing his vest. TK’s face, scared and apologetic, tells him it doesn’t matter.

“T – the,” TK clears his throat, lifting a hand to run through his hair. Gabriel catches the slight shake of it. It’s not the only thing he spots on them. Though mostly clean, Gabriel notices specks of blood on them. Looking him over once more, he sees some on his uniform too. “The neck, sir.”

Andrea lets out a gasp, bringing her hand to her mouth to try and muffle the sound.

“You worked on him,” Gabriel realizes. He needs to focus on something other than the information they’ve just been given.

“Yes,” TK answers, biting down on his lip to the point that Gabriel wants to wince at how painful it looks. Given the redness of his mouth, the kid has probably been doing it a while now. “My Captain didn’t want it to be me – ” TK stops.

He takes a breath, collecting himself. “We stabilized him on the field and then brought him over. My Captain is here if you want to speak with her while we wait for the doctors.”

They follow the young man down the hall into a private room, and Gabriel is shocked to see how full it is with first responders, most still in uniform like TK. Everyone seems to turn to look at them when they walk in.

“These are Carlos’ parents,” TK explains to the crowd before turning to a tall woman with a sympathetic but no-nonsense look on her face. “Captain Vega, could you – ” he gestures towards them.

The Captain nods, standing from her seat to walk over to them. She has a bag with her that she hands over to TK.

“Nancy brought your stuff from your locker,” she says to the kid with a kind smile. She places her hand on his shoulder, giving it a squeeze. “Why don’t you go change while I speak with Carlos’ parents.”

TK nods, looking relieved. “Yeah, Cap, thanks.” He turns towards them, looking like he wants to say something else but doesn’t. Instead, he gives them a small nod and walks away, leaving them with his Captain.

Gabriel focuses on her, reaching out to hold his wife’s hand as Captain Vega goes through the emergency in more detail. She’s compassionate but honest as she breaks down her assessment of Carlos’s injuries on the scene and their handling of it.

“TK is one of the finest medics I have ever worked with,” she tells them, with something akin to pride in her voice. “And it’s Carlos. He wasn’t about to lose him,” she continues softly, knowing. “We got him here, and they’ve had him in the back for the last hour. I’m sure they’ll come out and tell us something soon. All we can do now is wait, unfortunately.”

“And pray,” Andrea whispers thickly.

“Never a bad idea,” she says with a small, understanding smile. She looks away from them when someone calls her name, an older man in uniform walking towards them.

“Tommy, any word? Where’s TK?” he asks, rushed.

“Nothing yet,” she answers the man whose uniform says, Captain Strand. “And TK is changing. We didn’t want him to still be in the uniform that – “ she pauses, her eyes drifting to them.

“Right,” Captain Strand nods before his blue eyes turn towards them. Gabriel watches as he quickly recognizes who they are. “Mr. and Mrs. Reyes?” he questions, exhaling loudly when he answers him with a nod.

“Owen Strand, TK’s dad,” he says, extending his hand to Andrea first and then him. “Nice to finally meet you. I’m sorry it can’t be under better circumstances.”

Gabriel cocks his head at the peculiar comment.

“You work with our son?” Andrea asks politely, probably trying to distract herself from the worry she’s feeling.

“Often,” Owen gives them an honest smile. “He’s one hell of a police officer, good instincts, good head on his shoulders, strong,” he tells them intentionally. “He’s going to come through this just fine.”

Gabriel appreciates the comment, if anything, because it makes Andrea smile for the first time since they heard the news.

“Why don’t we sit down,” Owen continues. “We’re going to be here a while,” he points towards three firefighters with the same 126 insignia he has on his clothes, and they quickly get up, giving them the space. “Maybe we can get you some coffee or tea?”

He shakes his head but nods towards Andrea. “Some tea might be good for your nerves, vieja.”

Andrea nods absently, and Owen turns his head towards the trio who gave them their seats. “Strickland, Marwani, Chavez – “

“On it, Cap,” says the young Latino whose chest tag says, Chavez. “We’ll get for everyone.”

Owen offers the kid a grateful smile. “Get TK a sandwich. I know he hasn’t eaten.”

“He might not want to,” says the other man in the group with a deliberate look.

“We’ll sit on him and force him if we have to,” answers the young woman in the headscarf with a glint in her eyes that tells him she’s not joking. Gabriel watches them leave the room.

“They’re good kids,” Owen comments, catching his gaze. “They care about Carlos very much,” he says with a soft laugh. “Probably because he’s always feeding them when they hang out at his place.”

Andrea smiles at the comment, but Gabriel finds it curious. He doesn’t find it strange that his son would be welcoming. Like his mother, Carlos has always strived to make everyone feel at home. He is just surprised that his son is so close with this particular firehouse and its members.

TK comes back into the room in a hoodie and sweats, looking around. Gabriel watches as his eyes land on them before moving over to his father. He watches as the kid’s shoulders drop at the sight of his dad and quickly makes his way over, almost plowing into him as Captain Strand stands with his arms open, circling them around his boy.

“He’s gonna be okay,” he hears him whisper into his son’s ear. “Carlos wouldn’t leave you, you know that.”

Gabriel takes a sharp breath at the words; he looks over at his wife, seeing that her eyes have gone wide as she stares at the father and son with a newfound gaze, and he knows she’s caught it too.

Before they can come to terms with what it might mean, a doctor in green-colored scrubs walks in with a manila folder in hand. “I’m looking for Officer Reyes’ family?” he questions, startling as everyone stands or looks over at him.

Gabriel is surprised himself but warmed by the idea that so many people care about his son. “Over here,” he calls the doctor over. “We’re his parents.”

The doctor nods in response, crossing the distance between them until he’s standing in front of them, TK and his father joining in. “We’ve stabilized your son enough to move him,” the doctor starts. “He’s in the O.R. now; we’re repairing the damage. He was lucky that the bullet didn’t hit his carotid artery.”

“Is he going to be okay?” Andrea rushes to ask, fear coloring her question.

“We’re doing everything we can, ma’am,” the doctor answers softly with a sympathetic look. “He’s holding strong and was brought in quickly.”

“When can we see him?” he asks, his heart dropping at the shake of the doctor’s head.

“It’s going to be a while,” he answers. “We’re not sure how long it will be in the O.R., and then in recovery, it’s going to be a couple of hours.”

Gabriel feels the room deflate around him at the answer and feels the same.

“For now, I need his next of kin to sign off on some waivers,” the doctor continues as he looks inside his folder, reading out of it. “Who is Tyler Kennedy Strand?” he asks, the question filling the room with sudden tension.

“Uhh – me,” TK stammers, his eyes going to him and Andrea awkwardly. “But his parents – “

The doctor cuts him off with a shake of his head. “Officer Reyes’ work forms have you as the one with the power of attorney over any medical decisions on his behalf. You are aware of this, yes?”

TK looks pained and uncomfortable, apologetic even as he looks at Andrea before nodding. “Yes,” he says softly. “Carlos and I spoke about it a few months ago.”

“Then I need you to come with me, Mr. Strand,” the doctor answers, his eyes shifting over to them as well. “It’s just a formality, you understand.”

TK nods again, gesturing for the doctor to go first, following him out of the room, leaving the rest of them in silence, and he and Andrea stunned.

“They’re involved,” he states, not sure to who, but he catches Captain Strand’s slight wince.

“TK will explain when he comes back in,” he assures them, though Gabriel isn’t sure what he would have to explain. It’s pretty obvious the kid is someone important enough to his son that he would leave him in charge of his care if anything happened to him, and he and his wife know nothing about him.

Andrea reaches for his hand. When he looks at her, he sees the same confusion and hurt in her eyes he’s feeling. He squeezes it reassuringly as they retake their seats, neither knowing what to say.

They stay like that, silently waiting for TK or the doctor to come back. Owen walks away from them, drifting towards the other Captain.

After a few minutes, the ones who walk in are the trio of firefighters the Captain sent out for a snack.

“Te de manzanilla,” Chavez says with a boyish smile as he hands the cup of tea to Andrea. “My Abuela says it’s good for nerves.”

Andrea takes it but doesn’t drink right away. “Thank you – um?”

“Oh! I’m Mateo,” he answers before pointing at the other two who are finishing handing out bottles of water and coffees. “That’s Paul and Marjan. We’re friends of Carlos,” he says with another friendly smile as they come over to them.

“Nice to meet you all,” Andrea answers, elbowing him in the side to do the same.

Gabriel checks out, his mind drifting while his wife picks up the slack and chats with the trio, exchanging small talk. He only tunes in when Mateo asks about their new filly.

“You know about Sally?” he questions, frowning, confused. He gets a few nods from all of them and smiles.

“Carlos showed us pictures of her the last time we were over at his and TK’s place for dinner.”

Gabriel can’t help the sharp breath he takes at the comment.

“They live together?” Andrea asks, shocked, her voice above a whisper.

“Oh,” Paul says softly, his eyes widening with realization at their lack of knowledge. He exchanges worried looks with the young woman Mateo called Marjan. Both open their mouth as if to speak and then stop at a loss for words. Luckily for them, TK walks back into the room, making his way towards them.

“Guys, could you give me a second with Mr. and Mrs. Reyes?” he asks politely but firmly.

“Yeah, of course, man,” Paul says quickly, while Marjan tugs on Mateo to stand, moving away. Paul starts to follow them, only to stop and look at TK, speaking again with an apologetic look on his face. “We’re sorry, we didn’t know – “

TK waves him off, a half a smile on his tired face. “Don’t worry about it, Paul.”

Paul gives him a nod, looks at them, and nods again before walking away.

“I’m sure you have a lot of questions,” TK tells them softly, biting down on his lip for a moment before taking a breath, straightening his shoulders. “I’ll do my best to answer them. Should we find somewhere a little more private?”

He looks over at his wife and finds her studying TK with a curious eye. He’s not surprised. He’s more than curious himself about this man who is important enough in his son’s life to be making decisions of life and death for him and apparently living with him. “I think that might be best.”

TK nods mostly to himself, motioning for them to follow him.

He leads them out into the hallway and into another room that Gabriel realizes is the chapel.

“Is this okay?” TK questions nervously. “I don’t want to be disrespectful,” he gestures towards the altar.

“It’s fine, TK,” Andrea assures him.

They take a seat together towards the back of the room, TK sitting across from them.

Nobody says anything for a long moment. He sits watching TK as he taps his foot, and Andrea plays with her hands, struck by the similar nervous motions. He recognizes as TK looks at them with a worried wrinkle between his brow, he doesn’t know where to start, and Gabriel is struck by how young he looks like this. It reminds him of Carlos’ nervous habits growing up, so concerned with disappointing them.

“How long have you and our son been together?” he questions, ripping off the bandaid.

“We’ve been dating for over a year,” he answers honestly, wincing when Andrea lets out a shocked sound. “But we’ve known each other for over a year and a half. It took a while for us to get – us, right.”

“A year?” Andrea questions, surprised and more than a little sad. “He’s kept this from us for a year?”

“He didn’t mean to,” TK rushes to explain – to defend their son to them, Gabriel realizes. He stops looking nervous, and Gabriel can honestly feel the wave of protectiveness coming off the young man.

While the part of him that isn’t still shocked at this sudden news is pleased that Carlos has found someone obviously loyal to him, another part of him is at a loss at being someone this young man thinks he needs to protect his son from. It leaves an unpleasant feeling in his stomach he tries to push down before he reacts in a way that he’ll regret later.

“Then what did he mean?” he questions, trying to understand. “Because if you guys have been dating for a year, that means you two were together when we met you at the market, and he called you a friend from work.”

He feels bad as his words cause the kid to flinch, and a small cynical smile twists his lips upward for a second.

“Yeah, that caused a big fight between us,” he answers dryly. “Look, this is something you need to talk about with Carlos when he comes to. We both knew it was a long time coming, and trust me, he’s been working up the nerve to tell you both about us.”

“Why would he need to work up the nerve?” Andrea questions while Gabriel watches as TK’s eyes flash, his hands curling for a moment. He’s struck by the fleeting anger he sees there – at them.

“Because you’re both more traditional, and he didn’t want to rub your noses in our relationship,” he answers tightly, making Andrea gasp.

Gabriel feels his hackles raise at the resentment he hears in the words. “Hey now, you don’t get – “

“Carlos’ own words,” TK interrupts, his voice sharp enough to stop him. TK stops too, taking a deep breath, closing his eyes for a moment.

“I apologize,” he starts again, his voice calmer. “It’s not my place at all, and Carlos needs to be the one to explain this to you.”

Gabriel exchanges a glance with his wife, letting out a sigh when she gives him a serious look. He turns towards TK again, taking a calming breath of his own. “But he’s not here right now, and we’d like to understand.”

TK lets out a sigh, nodding at them after a moment. “You’re right,” he agrees quietly, running a hand through his hair. “I just really wish he was here, though,” he pauses, the pain and love in his eyes as he speaks striking a core with him. This man loves his son. That much is clear.

“Okay, first things first. Carlos loves you both so much,” he tells them reassuringly. “He speaks of both of you with so much respect and admiration. Please don’t doubt that for one second. He didn’t keep us a secret from you because he doesn’t love or respect you.”

“Then why?” Andrea asks, trying to understand.

TK presses his lips together, giving her a helpless shrug of his shoulder. “Because he was scared of upsetting you, of disturbing the tentative peace that the three of you have had since he rocked your world by telling you he was gay at 17, and then none of you ever spoke about it again. He didn’t want to disappoint you.”

By TK’s expression, Gabriel knows that he hasn’t just spoken with any malice, yet he still feels his words hit him like a punch.

“But – that’s,” he stumbles at a loss for words. “Carlos could never disappoint us,” he looks at Andrea to find her with tears in her eyes. “We love our son.”

TK gives him a smile; it’s kind and understanding. “I don’t doubt that,” he tells them, looking at Andrea. “He’s so easy to love, of course, you love him.”

“You love him,” Andrea says in awe, still crying, but it feels different than before, almost happy in the middle of the hurt.

TK’s eyes fill with tears; they spill over even as he gives them a bright smile. “More than I have ever loved anyone in my life, ma’am. He is everything to me.”

Gabriel hears how much he means it in his voice and instantly remembers something from earlier. “You worked on him at the scene,” he exhales over a dull ache in his chest at the thought. “Jesus Christ, kid, how did you – “

“The worst moment of my life,” TK whispers, losing his smile, his bottom lip trembling. “And life has thrown some curveballs my way,” he inhales deeply in an effort to control his emotions. “But I wasn’t about to lose him, not like that and not now. We have our whole lives ahead of us, and I plan to spend mine with your son.”

Gabriel hears the conviction and the subtle threat he’s issuing them. He’s telling them he’s not going anywhere, and while a small part of him wants to be annoyed at the warning, Gabriel finds himself mostly impressed. He finds himself liking the kid despite the situation.

“You love him so much,” Andrea whispers, shaking her head to herself. Knowing his wife, she’s mourning the fact that they’ve missed out on seeing it. “And he loves you?”

TK nods quickly. “He never lets me doubt it, not for one single second,” he swallows before another smile takes over his face, soft and involuntary. “He’s wonderful.”

“I’m so sorry we’ve missed it,” she tells him, and Gabriel smiles to himself at how easy he can still read her. “It was never our intent to make Carlos feel like he couldn’t share with us his life. When he told us he was gay, yes, it was a surprise, but we never loved him less,” she frowns, letting out a soft breath. “We wanted him to feel like nothing had changed, and instead, we made him feel like he couldn’t talk to us.”

“But he can,” he continues for Andrea, hoping TK will understand.

Andrea nods in agreement. “He can,” she repeats. “We want to be part of the life he’s building with you.”

TK smiles. It’s wobbly but iridescent as it lights up the room. “He – we would like that very much,” he tells them, chuckling softly. “You have no idea how much I’ve wanted to know you both. You need to tell him when he wakes up.”

Andrea looks fearful again as she turns from TK to him and back again. “What if – “

“No,” TK answers resolutely. He holds out his hand for Andrea, covering it when she places it in his. “Carlos is going to be fine. He’s not leaving us.”

Gabriel watches them hold each other’s hands, his wife taking comfort from the man in love with their son, and hopes, for all their sakes, that he will turn out to be right.

 ֎֎֎

 The next three days are the longest of Gabriel’s life. After over seven hours of surgery and recovery, they’re allowed to see a sleeping Carlos.

If there was any doubt in his mind about TK’s feelings for his son, they’re wiped out the moment he sees him at his bedside. The way he takes his hand in his, holding it for dear life as he whispers in his ear that he loves him and that he’s there, that they all are.

They wait, hours and hours they wait for Carlos to wake up. The doctors tell them the surgery was successful, and now they just have to wait for Carlos’ body to recover enough for him to wake up. They’re not sure when that’ll be.

He walks into his son’s hospital room after taking a call from work to find TK alone with Carlos, his wife nowhere in sight.

“You know, sweetheart, if this is payback for the time I got shot and ended up in a coma, then message received,” TK talks to a sleeping Carlos, bringing his hand to his lips. “You can wake up now because I’ve learned my lesson.”

“You were shot?” he questions, raising an eyebrow, wondering exactly what these two have been through.

TK blinks up at him. He lowers Carlos’ hand but doesn’t let go. “Yeah,” he nods, clearing his throat. “Before Carlos and I officially got together, it was a house disturbance gone wrong, an accident, but I got hit in the chest and ended up in an eight-day coma. Carlos had to sit through it, the eight worse days of his life, he likes to remind me,” he turns back to Carlos, his expression softening. “I really didn’t need to learn the hard way how this feels.”

Gabriel makes a sound at the back of his throat. He takes the seat he’d been occupying next to Andrea, finding her purse still there.

“She went to the restroom and to get something to drink,” TK tells him. “I told her I would stay with Carlos.”

Gabriel nods in understanding, and the room goes quiet as neither says anything else. They both just watch Carlos, focusing on the rise and fall of his chest. His eyes stray to TK —his focus on Carlos, the way he reaches out to touch his skin like he can’t bear letting him go for a moment for fear he’ll slip away. The last few days, he and Andrea have gotten to know the kid better, along with the rest of his crew.

Their love for each other and their love for Carlos is evident in every gesture and kind word they have to say about him. It still hurts him to know he and Andrea have missed so much. As he laid in bed holding his crying wife, more than a few tears slipped his own eyes at the lost time. Every day that passes, he promises to fix it when his son wakes up.

“You know, when he was around ten, he convinced his cousin to help him up the stallion at the farm,” he starts telling him, lost in the memory. “And this was a rough horse, even I didn’t ride him much, but he got on, and the thing, of course, sent him flying,” he shakes his head to himself. “He was knocked out maybe five minutes, but they were the longest five minutes of my life.”

“Was he okay?” TK questions, concerned even though it obviously turned out okay in the end.

“A fractured arm,” he answers, chuckling. “As soon as the cast was off, he was right back at it – this time bribing the horse with apples, carrots, and beetroots until he won him over. By the end, it would only let Carlos ride him. He was so smug about it, tipping his hat at us as he rode him.”

TK grins from ear to ear. “Tell me there are pictures of him in the hat.”

Gabriel stands, pulling out his wallet. He fishes out an old worn picture, passing it over to TK. He watches as the boy takes gentle care, running his index finger over the image as he smiles down at it.

“Damn, that’s cute,” he murmurs, handing back the picture after a moment longer. “You know, he won me over with patience too.”

Gabriel raises an eyebrow at the comment, waiting for him to continue.

“When he and I met, I wasn’t in a good place emotionally,” TK starts to tell him as he looks back at Carlos, reaching up to brush his hair back. “I’d gotten out of a relationship that left me messed up, and I wasn’t looking for anything serious. I hurt his feelings at the beginning, and honestly, he should have just cut his losses.”

He looks over at him. “But Carlos doesn’t give up on people, especially when they’re hurting, so he became my friend, someone I could trust with the not-so-great parts of me. He never judged. He just cared about me more, making sure I knew that I was worth the effort even when I wasn’t so sure of that myself,” he smiles as he retakes Carlos’ hand. “He loves me even when I don’t always love myself.”

“I’m sure you do the same for him,” Gabriel answers. Even with Carlos asleep, he’s seen enough to know the two of them genuinely love each other. Now he just wants his son to wake up so he can see it for real.

“I try,” TK answers. “He makes it easy.”

“Do you think he’ll forgive us?” he can’t help but ask, the question playing in his head the last few days as he learned more of the parts of his life Carlos felt the need to keep to himself for their comfort.

TK frowns as he looks at him, shaking his head slowly. “Carlos will tell you there is nothing to forgive. He doesn’t blame you.”

“He should, though,” he can’t help but argue, feeling frustrated, angry tears at the back of his throat. Fear clawing its way back after three days of waiting for his boy to open his eyes and wondering if it will ever happen. “He was 17, a kid, scared but brave as he told us his truth, and while we accepted it at that moment, we didn’t make sure he knew that it would always be okay with us. That’s on us. We should have done better.”

“Do better now, Gabriel,” TK says to him quietly, shrugging his shoulder when he looks at him, his expression nothing but kind. “Forgive yourself, because Carlos never blamed you to begin with, and do better now.”

“Are you always so wise, kid?” he asks, smiling when TK lets out a bark of laughter.

“That is the last word anyone who knows me would use to describe me,” he shakes his head, still giggling. “Usually, it’s stubborn or reckless. Carlos has been known to call me a brat quite a few times,” he says fondly as he looks down at the bed.

“Because you always get your way,” Carlos rasps out, eyes still closed.

Gabriel isn’t sure who’s gasp is louder, his or TK’s as they both stand to get closer.

“Carlos? Sweetheart?” TK asks, cautious but hopeful, and Gabriel holds his breath as he waits to see if Carlos is genuinely back with them.

It takes a minute, maybe two, maybe three, but slowly Carlos opens his eyes.

“Hi, sweetheart,” TK whispers, tears falling even as he smiles widely down at Carlos.

Gabriel watches as his son frowns as he tries to weakly reach up to touch TK’s face. TK helps him, lifting his hand and holding it against his cheek.

“Don’t – cry, Ty,” Carlos gets out slowly, brushing his thumb under TK’s eye, earning a wet laugh from him.

“I love you so much,” he says to him, and though he’s obviously tired and in pain, the smile Carlos gives TK is the brightest Gabriel has ever seen.

“Love you too, amor,” his son whispers back to his boyfriend, sounding just as hopelessly in love with him. It reminds Gabriel of him and Andrea, and he can’t help the small sound that escapes his throat.

“Dad – “ Carlos says softly, surprised as his eyes find him; they shift back to TK, concern coloring his expression.

“It’s okay, babe. I promise,” TK assures him with a smile as he gives his hand a squeeze.

“It is mijo,” Gabriel tells him, hoping to wipe away the slight fear he sees in his son’s eyes. He never wants to be the cause for that look again.

TK looks over to him, smiling at him reassuringly, and Gabriel remembers what he said to him moments before Carlos woke up. Forgive and be better.

“I’m gonna go find Andrea and a doctor,” TK declares, giving him a nod. He turns back to Carlos, leaning down to kiss him on the forehead. “I’ll be right back.”

TK steps away from Carlos, squeezing Gabriel’s arm as he walks by him before leaving the room, leaving him alone with his son.

Turning back to Carlos, he finds him still looking concerned as he stares at him, and that simply won’t do for him. He shifts over to where TK had been standing, now next to Carlos. “How do you feel?” he questions gently, getting a tiny shrug back.

“Tired,” Carlos gets out, his voice raspy. “Thirsty.”

“Oh! Of course,” Gabriel says quickly, turning to grab the pitcher of water on the bedside counter and a cup. Filling it, he turns back to Carlos, raising his bed a bit before bringing the straw to his lips. “Slowly, mijo.”

Carlos does as he asks, all the while looking at him. After he’s had his fill, Gabriel pulls the cup away, putting it back on the counter. He reaches out to his son, running a hand over his curls like he would do when he was a little boy.

“You scared the hell out of us, kid,” he whispers, swallowing hard as the last couple of days catch up to him. “We were so scared we were gonna lose you.”

Carlos leans into his touch. As he closes his eyes, a tear rolls down his cheek. “Sorry, pop.”

“No, I’m sorry,” Gabriel shakes his head. He takes Carlos’ hand. “These last few days have shown your mom and me how much of your life we have missed, and we’re so sorry.”

“Dad – “ Carlos tries. “I – “

“We messed up, Carlos,” he continues, needing to get it out. “We thought we were keeping things normal by not making a big deal out of you coming out, and instead, what we did was make you believe that you needed to keep parts of your life a secret for us to be comfortable. But our comfort isn’t the most important thing. Your happiness is, and as long as you’re happy, so are we.”

Carlos’ eyes fill with more tears, and Gabriel is struck by how young he seems as he looks up at him hopeful.

“We met your boyfriend,” Gabriel chuckles fondly. “I mean, obviously. He’s pretty special, Carlitos. You picked a good one.”

Carlos laughs. It’s wet from tears but joyful. “I picked the best one.”

Gabriel smiles at the pride he hears in his son’s voice. “We’d like to get to know him, son,” he says. It’s a hope and a request in one. “Your mom and I, we’d like to know him and you,” he swallows hard as his eyes burn. “We love you so much, but loving someone isn’t always knowing them. If it’s okay with you, we’d like a chance to fix that now.”

Carlos stares at him, mouth open, and there is the slightest tremble of his bottom lip.

“Carlitos.”

He and Carlos turn their heads to the door where Andrea and TK stand together. Carlos smiles at his mom, the smile growing when he notices that she’s holding hands with TK.

“Mami,” he says softly.

Andrea walks towards them, tugging TK along with her. Reaching the bed, she reaches out to touch his face. “Baby,” she whispers, shaking her head as she tries not to cry. “Please never scare us like this again.”

Carlos lets out an amused huff, closing his eyes for a second. “I’ll try, Ma.”

“Good,” Andrea grins at him, amused by his tone. “And you better be ready to be smothered for a while. TK and I have been making plans. We’re not letting you out of our sight.”

“We have a shifts chart,” TK teases him, sharing a grin with Andrea.

Gabriel watches with amusement as Carlos looks scared again, this time at the team he sees being created before his very eyes. He laughs, happy and relieved, when Carlos turns to him for support.

“I wouldn’t fight it, kid,” he warns him. “You know how your mother is, and your boyfriend seems just as bad; just accept it. They’re bonded. We all have.”

Carlos looks around at all three of them, the contentment he sees in his son’s expression, a blessing, and Gabriel knows it’s going to be okay. There is still a lot of time that he and Andrea will have to make up for. Conversations that will still need to be had.

But his son is alive; he’s safe, happy, and in love with a good man. He and Andrea haven’t missed it all, and they don’t plan to miss anything else when it comes to their boy ever again.

Carlos grins at him. “I think I’m okay with that, dad.”

Gabriel smiles back. He’s okay with it too.

[stxrrywildflower]

echo

pairing - bau team x teen!reader

summary - you have to protect henry from an unsub

warnings - mentions of case, violence, injury

word count - ?

when you were sixteen, j.j. and will hired you to be nanny for henry due to their demanding jobs as an fbi profiler and police detective. obviously, you had agreed as you would need the money for college soon.

the two parents were incredibly welcoming, immediately treating you as one of their own. henry loved you too, always being such a good kid when you babysat for him.

however, you knew that with both of their jobs. you were at some risk. j.j. and will planned ahead, giving the code word of ‘echo’ incase you were ever in trouble. one text to them and they would instantly go into full parent mode. it was only to be used in emergencies, such as if henry got seriously injured or some criminal threat.

tonight, for the first time ever, you had to use the code word.

it was a fairly normal friday afternoon. j.j. had called and asked if you could babysit henry while her and will worked the same case. the exact details weren’t revealed but you knew it was bad judging by the news as well as the fact that two separate divisions were solving the case together.

after being dropped off at the families home, you slung your backpack on your back and walked through the gates up to the front door. you first knocked on the door before stepping back. will opened the door a moment later, greeting you with a slight smile, “hey y/n.”

“hey will, is j.j. already working?” you asked, spinning around when you heard thumping on the stairs.

henry rushed in and immediately ran into your arms. you grinned at the young boy and picked him up, placing him on your hip as you ruffled his hair.

“yeah she had to head in early. i just have to grab my bag and then i’m heading out,” will informed you before leaving the room to get his stuff.

you had been babysitting henry long enough that you didn’t need instructions from them. everything was already memorized. henry jumped out of your arms and ran into the living room.

will walked in with his bag and kissed henry on the forehead to say goodbye. “i’m not super sure when we’ll be back. you already know everything and where your room is if you stay over. thanks again,” and with that, the police detective left the house to drive to quantico.

“alright henry,” you started, “you ready for lunch?” henry’s giggle was answer enough.

for the next six or so hours, you and henry played games, colored, and finally watched tv. by eight pm, he had finally settled down to watch a movie.

while henry’s eyes were glued to the tv, you slipped out of the living room and grabbed your phone so you could watch the local news without scaring or distracting him. the breaking news made you extremely uneasy.

“the local killer who has been terrorizing washington d.c. has been reported to be roaming the streets. all residents have been advised to stay inside and lock there doors. a picture should be showing up on your screens now. if you see this man, please contact the police,” the news anchor reported.

you slipped your phone into your pocket and made your rounds around the house to double check that the doors were locked. just as you were locking one of the windows in the front, you noticed a strange van outside of the house.

at first, you thought that it might have been one of the neighbors or some utility truck. but, after the man inside stepped out, you filled with panic. standing outside of the house, just seconds away from walking up, was the killer on the loose. he seemed to noticed your figure in the window and grinned wickedly.

he was targeting you. he was going to storm in this house and kill you. he was going to kill you and then kill henry. oh my god, henry.

you were on autopilot as you ran through the house, picking henry up in one swift motion and only putting him down when you hit the stairs.

“remember when we would play hide-and-go-seek?” you started. upon seeing the young boys nod, you continued, “i need you to go upstairs and find the best hiding spot you can. stay quiet and don’t move until i come and get you. there’s a man outside who wants to hurt us. i love you henry. now go hide.”

“i love you too,” henry replied before running up the stairs and down the hallway as fast as his little legs could take him.

you slipped behind a wall, thankful that you kept your phone with you. after taking a deep breath, you opened the messaging app and clicked on j.j.’s contact. it was a simple four letter word that you sent that could potentially save your life.

‘echo’ you typed before pressing the send button.

by now, all the lights in the house went out. you ditched your phone on the ground just before the front door slammed open. you shut your eyes, a stray tear slipping down your face. it was now or never.

at quantico, j.j. sat at her desk surrounded by the team at their individual work stations. will remained next to his wife while many of the other cops were out on the street. just as j.j. finished going over one of the files about the unsubs past life, her phone buzzed.

j.j.’s furrowed her eyebrows as she noticed it was a message from you. one four letter word was displayed across her screen. ‘echo’ she read.

“oh my god,” j.j. spoke as she jumped out of her chair, grabbing her bag and making sure her gun was on her hip. “hey,” will called, grabbing her wrist to prevent her from going anywhere.

“echo will, echo,” j.j. repeated. after those words processed, will stood up too, his eyes going wide.

hotch and rossi both emerged from their office and walked down into the bullpen. “what’s going on?” the unit chief asked.

“i think the unsub is at my house. y/n sent a text with our code word she only uses in emergencies,” j.j. ranted as she ran her hand through her hair. hotch pondered for a split second before turning to the room.

“let’s go,” was all he said.

meanwhile, back at the house, loud footsteps walked through the house. a million different scenerios flowed through your mind. if you stayed put and hoped j.j. was on her way, you could just hide and hopefully wait it out. but, there was always the chance the man would discover you. the second option was that you fought back. the only con is that he had a knife and you had just barely above average fighting skills.

after choosing the later decision, you went into full stealth mode to find the best vantage point. as you slipped through the rooms and behind various furniture, you held back a smirk as the killer looked around randomly.

finally, when the mans back was turned, you striked.

the first attack was a solid kick to the back of his knees. the mans knife clattered across the floor as he stumbles slightly. you held your hands up in fists as the killer turned around. he charged at you, pushing you back into the wall. a hard punch was landed to your nose and eyes. your lip managed to split in the process too along with your injured ribs from the tackle. you managed to get out of his grip and kick him in the crotch. when he doubled over, you elbowed him in the back causing him to cripple to the ground.

you were honestly slightly proud of yourself for making it this far but you still had a long way to go. after kneeling down beside him, you punched him once in the nose to add to the pain. the final blow, which knocked him out, was a hard kick to the head.

with shaky hands, you rushed out of the main room and into the connected garage. as fast as you could, you rummaged through the cabinet trying to find something to further prevent the man from causing anymore harm. you stumbled upon zip ties and let out a sigh of relief.

you fastened the zip ties around his wrists and ankles thus preventing him from moving if he did wake up. you left the man on the floor and ran to the stairs.

“henry!” you called, your voice echoing up the stairs, “it’s safe, you can come out now.” maybe that last part was a slight lie but you needed henry to know that it was okay.

the blond-haired boy peered around the railing before running down the stairs and into your arms. despite the pain it brought your ribs, you picked henry up and placed him on your hip as you hugged him. after moving into the main living room, you leaned against the back of the couch and shut your eyes.

for the second time that night, the door slammed open. in stormed the bau team and you could hear other sirens outside. you winced at the lights being turned on so suddenly but still turned to face the group.

j.j. and will immediately rushed over to where you were with henry. will took his son out of your arms and lead him away from the scene. j.j., however, pulled you into a hug, cradling your head with her hand as you began to cry. you were sure that the blood from your nose was definitely getting on her vest.

“i’m sorry,” you choked out.

frowning, j.j. pulled away and placed her hands on your cheeks. yours, in contrast, moved to hold her wrists.

“hey, don’t even say that. you saved henry and for the most part, saved yourself. did you take him down all by yourself?” j.j. questioned.

you nodded as you used the back of your hand to wipe away some of the blood on your face. “i am so proud of you.”

the man was all but thrown into the police car as hotch walked over to where you and j.j. were still standing. “ambulance it waiting,” the man spoke. she turned to you, “we need to get you to a hospital to look at your injuries. i know your parents are out of town and i’m already down as an emergency contact. is it all right if i go with you?”

j.j.’s voice mirrored the one she used for henry. after shaking your head yes, j.j. wrapped an arm around you before leading you out of the house and to the driveway.

with one final smile to will and henry, you both climbed inside, j.j. holding your hand the entire way.

[kim-miyeon]

Hell Above- Chapter Fourteen

PAIRINGS: Hwang Hyunjin x Female Reader

WARNINGS: Series contains mature content. read at your own discretion. Mafia!AU, explicit language, sexual scenes, fighting scenes, abuse, pregnancy, family issues, angst, 18+

WORD COUNT: 4.1K

Previous | Next

Fine, Maybe I’ll Pretend Right Now, But I Swear To God I’m Gonna Change The World

 “Y/N”

 Minho looked at you as he saw your eyes grow dark. Orbs blackened and the intense rage had swept over the room. You have had enough. Death is our option.

“Execution?” You whispered, loud enough to be heard and eyes shooting daggers at you grandfather. Minho watched you, still near you trying to watch your every move as you threw your gun to the ground in anger. You jerked Minho’s arm away from you and clenched your jaw. 

“Death? I stand before you now, Grandfather. Without my weapon, fully vulnerable.” 

Your grandfather rose and you watched as the blood from his arm seeped slowly through the dark gray suit he wore. A bullet that couldn’t kill him but made a mark that you were ever so capable to finish him off. Wondering to yourself, if you should but knowing the consequence is you were to kill your own flesh. Because if you were to kill such a man with power, hell would rise above you. He had every ability to strike you down and hide his efforts away . That was the way it was, corrupt and cruel against those who stood no chance. Even as leader, you were nothing because he stood before you as the last remaining Lee from the generation before. He was a previous leader, and until he passed you would not have your rightful place. So killing you had to keep an emerging leader at sea. Minho was a contender and even so was just as powerless. Your grandfather grabbed a slight hold of his weapon and you smirked.

“Why wait another week to bury me, when you could end it all now? Shoot me.” You spoke confidently and saw your grandfather grow hesitant before he raised his weapon. You felt no fear in that moment as the adrenaline ran through your veins. You knew how to dodge a bullet, how to escape harm's way. Minho grew anxious as he watched your grandfather, raising his weapon to aim. You then felt Minho’s arm reach around your front and pull you quickly behind him as he drew his weapon and aimed at your grandfather. Your gaze pulled as you watched both men aim their guns at each other and you grew worried immediately. 

“Minho…” You whispered. 

“Minho. Move.” Your grandfather demanded. Your head began to pound with anxiety. Minho sternly looked back at your grandfather as he held you back when you tried to move.

“No.” Minho gritted.

“Minho stand down.” Your grandfather’s tone rose and Minho cocked back his gun and held it at your grandfather.

“MINHO!” Your grandfather shouted.

“NO!” Minho shot his gun at the ceiling causing you and your grandfather to dodge in fear. You had your hands over your head, crouched down and Minho didn’t move an inch. You looked up and saw Minho breathing deeply and staring at your grandfather in anger, and hatred. It was a sight you had never seen. One that had been long overdue.

“My whole life. I have given you my whole life. I’ve bled and cried because you. You took everything from me. You--” Minho choked up and began to well tears in his eyes as your grandfather rose slowly to stand again, “My mother didn’t deserve to die.”

“Minho-“ Your grandfather softly pleaded.

“Your greed and obsession with being the best has caused you to lose everyone around you and you don’t even care.” Minho then grabbed your hand from behind him and you stood up as he began to slowly shift his way towards the entrance, still aiming his gun at your grandfather.

“I will not partake in your wishes anymore, Grandfather. I have watched you hurt Y/N too many times.” You listened to Minho’s words as he kept shifting you towards the entrance door.

“The Lee family was built to last beyond you two. The Hwang family emerged to strike us down. And you still wish to sleep with your enemy. as long as I live, there will never be peace between the families.” Your grandfather spoke and you caught a glimpse at his eyes, just soulless.

“Come on.” Minho whispered as you two made it to the entrance door and were about to run off before your grandfather yelled out to you as you looked at him.

“You walk out that door, you watch your every turn.” 

You looked at Minho and you two ran off into the dark hallway, you in front and Minho behind as you made your way out of the chamber. Once in the light you searched for HYunjin’s car and Minho approached behind you. 

“Where is Hyunjin?” he asked as you saw a car approach and you two began running towards it. Once Hyunjin pulled up next to you, both of you got in the car and you wasted no time.

‘HYUNJIN DRIVE!” You yelled as he began to accelerate the car and you watched as you guys sped away from the building and where you had just left. YOu leaned your head back against the chair and then realized what had happened. You turned around to Minho in the back seat and you went at it. 

“ARE YOU FUCKING INSANE?” You shouted and he looked at you in shock.

“What is your problem?” He loudly answered.

“What happened?” Hyunjin asked curiously as you continued lashing out at Minho.

“MINHO, DO YOU REALIZE WHAT YOU’VE DONE? WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT?” You exclaimed.

“He was GOING TO KILL YOU!” 

“What?” Hyunjin softly said looking at you quickly. 

“YOU SHOULD OF LET HIM! I HAD HIM.” You retorted and felt the car come to a halt.

You felt the car jerk you to the front as Hyunjin stopped and looked at you. 

“You were going to let him kill you?” Hyunjin looked at you in complete dismay. You watched his eyes grow weak and sad as you felt the entire mood changed and you sighed.

“No. Minho protected me.” You softly said.

“I had to.” You heard Minho’s soft voice from the back echo and you looked up and saw him hanging his head low. 

“He didn’t hesitate to pull his trigger. He was going to shoot you. I couldn’t let him hurt you again.” You felt your inner child wanting to cry at his words. Years of feeling put down and helpless were healing. Minho stood over you and defended you. 

“At what cost?” You softly remarked and Minoh looked up at you and you sighed, “He’s going to come for me and you know it.”

“Come for you?” Hyunjin repeated and you looked at him as he continued, “What happened in there?”

*******************************************************************************************

“So he ordered the massacre?” 

It was almost a scene from a movie. Extremely rare and almost sacrilegious watching the table of the conference room filled with those of opposing families. You and Hyunjin stood at the front as Jisung had just summarize the information you gave to the boys. 

“ We always knew it was Chan’s father who carried out the massacre. Uncle took the blame for his little brother because he had too.” Jisung continued and you looked over at Hyunjin who lowered his head.

“He cared for his brother, but it meant nothing.” Changbin stated. 

“Chan has always been very obsessive over the title of leader. He always said it was an honor.” Jisung said back as you grabbed Hyunjin’s wrist and he looked at you. 

“Where is Chan?” You asked and Hyunjin opened his mouth before Changbin interrupted. 

“Compromised.” 

“He helped Yeji to get information on you.” Hyunjin looked at you and you nodded.

“That family line is easy to bribe hmm.” Felix teased, earning a small glare from Jisung. 

“So what’s the plan? What happens now?” Seungmin asked and you sighed looking at Minho quickly. 

“He’s going to come for me, when I least expect it.” 

“What?” Hyunjin gasped, unaware of this new news

“He will take me. I don’t know what he will do but he is going to try and kill me and the baby.” You looked down at the table, earning a worrying sigh from Hyunjin. 

“Baby?” Changbin stated and you looked at him and he shook his head, “Fuck you two really have turned this thing into shit” 

“So what do you think we should do?” Felix questioned. 

“Changbin you’re good with weapons and medicine, no?” You asked and he nodded. 

“I mean I dabble in the art of it. Why?” 

“Faking my death.” You said and Minho dropped his arms.

“Fake your death? Is that your brilliant plan?”  He asked and you looked at him.

“Grandfather won’t quit until he knows I’m dead.” You started and pointed at Minho, “ And he’s going to want you to finish me.” 

“I’m not going to shoot you Y/N.”

“If I’m “dead” grandfather will make you leader and you will be able to infiltrate the network and find out how we can end all this corruption.” You explained and Minho looked at you distressed and you sighed. 

“We need a bullet that won’t enter your body.” Hyunjin said and you looked at him as he started at you in worry. 

“ I can’t create a prototype bullet that won't enter your body.” 

“Then I’ll have to get shot. Can it stimulate me enough to slow my heart rate?”

“Yes it can--.”

“Can it damage the baby?” Hyunjin interjected and Changbin sighed and blew it out his mouth. 

“I can’t confidently say no, I have never used it on pregnant women.”

“I don’t know Y/N.. it’s-” Hyunjin started and you cut him off.

“We are doing it” Everyone grew silent and you groaned in annoyance. 

“Guys if we want to end a war we didn’t start we have to sacrifice.” 

“At what cost?” Felix said and you looked at him as he looked uneasy back at you. 

“Excuse me Y/N” You didn’t realize a soldier had walked in and you looked up at him and nodded.

“Yes”

“There’s a phone call for you” He stood by and waited for your acceptant nod as you stood straight up and looked around the table and then to Hyunjin, who looked the most stressed. His anxiety heightens, his face white. He didn’t feel comfortable with this decision and it broke your heart cause you knew that this was the only viable way. Your grandfather will never quit attacking you and looking for you if he knew a child of both Hwang and Lee blood existed. He had power that you could overthrow if everyone teamed up to let it happen. Minho could infiltrate the corrupted network of leaders who followed your grandfather. 

“We are doing it. It’s my call” You sternly said as you walked towards the exit door and out into the lobby, leaving the men in the room.

*******************************************************************************************

The pounding of your heart was in your ears as you looked at Hyunjin. He stood in front of you, gun pointed at Minho. His eyes were dark, like he craved this. You felt hazy, nothing in that moment felt real. Your knees grew sore from being in the gravel. You looked up to the side of you and saw Minho. His eyes, sad and hurting. You thought he would cry. But how could he in this moment. But the gun in his hand at you didn’t feel staged anymore. Nothing felt right. You were beginning to question your sanity. Had all of this been a lie? Were you once again fooled? Your grandfather’s claps interrupted your thought process as you turned to him as he chuckled.

“All three of you. In one vicinity. How delightful it is to see sucha scene, and how pathetic it is to see the son of Hyun-woo sacrificing his life yet again for a woman.” Hyunjin clenched his jaw as he looked at you and you stared back. He was hard to read, something that never was difficult before. He looked busy in his mind, thinking about something deeply. You turned to Minho and he looked down at you as you tried to read him. Blank. You felt your heart beat quicken and the pit of your stomach felt light. Where were they? Why were the not with you?

“Since I have you three here, I might as well use this to my advantage.” your grandfather stepped closer and looked at Minho.

“Shoot her.” 

“Don’t you dare.”

“Shoot her Minho.” 

“Minho I swear to god, don’t you dare pull that trigger.” 

“No?” Your grandfather looked at Hyunjin and he smiled at him. “ Then you pull it Hyunjin. Pull yours.” 

You looked at the scene and felt tears brim your eyes. Nothing felt right and this was not the plan. You looked to Hyunjin and then Minho. Minho began to shake and you pleaded with your eyes. 

“I don’t care who pulls the trigger, it means nothing to me. One of you has to die anyways…” 

“You heard him Y/N.” Minho said softly and you looked at him in fear as he cocked his gun back and you saw the light escape his eyes, full blown rage. 

“One of us has to die.”

You raised your body straight up from the bed and began to gasp hard and felt your sweat dripping from your forehead. Your lungs felt tight and you couldn’t breathe. You felt the body next to you shoot up and a hand laid on your back. 

“Baby. Baby..” Hyunjin’s voice drowning in the back as you felt your panic attack wash over you and your eyes widened as he clasped his hands on you cheeks and made you face him 

“Baby, breathe. Honey, I need you to breathe.” 

You tried to catch a breath and you couldn’t, then you felt Hyunjin’s thumb stroke over your cheek as you failed to realize tears were falling from your eyes. You gripped his wrists and he placed his forehead on yours and connected your eyes. 

“Inhale... “ He spoke softly and inhaled breath as you stared back into his eyes following his commands. Trying sto intake air at a slow rate. 

“Exhale..” 

You breathe the air out staggering and followed Hyunjin’s breathing as he kept repeating it. Inhale. Exhale. Tears uncontrollably falling from your face and you felt the need to have him closer. You needed his skin and his warmth. You wrapped your arms around him as he began to stroke you mid back and cooed in your ear. 

“I’m here love. I’m right here.”

You cried into his bare shoulder, feeling his fingertips glide across your clothes back, lifting the edge of your shirt intimately. He placed kisses on your neck and shoulder as he comforted you. 

“It was a bad dream. Just a bad dream love.” 

You held him close and felt your breathing begin to sync up with his. He kept shushing you and  rocked you back and forth, his fingertips drawing comforting circles on you skin. He was your rock. This is what it was. You knew that life would be fine without him but to imagine a world where he wasn’t wit you like this made you sick. Through the good the bad, and the ugly. He stood by your side in these moments and never ran away. He always held you close, two hearts as one. Because with him, it was bliss, a piece of heaven. Every moment with him erased what life was , the revolving piece of hell that towered over you.. Suffocating. Hyunjin was your escape, your angel sent from above. You needed him. 

You pulled back and he once again placed his hand over your cheek, thumb stroking over the fallen tears. He leaned in and placed a soft kiss to your lips and you closed your eyes, letting the sensations overtake you, your heart calming down and coming back to normal. 

“You’re stressed out.” He whispered. 

You were. “I’m not.”

“You’re afraid.” He kissed you again and you shook your head. 

You were mortified. “I’m okay.”

“Y/N. That’s the third time this week.” 

You sighed and nodded. He was right. Tomorrow would be the day of the battle. Your execution. He was coming for you somehow, someway. You didn’t know what to expect, what was to come.. 

“I don’t know what he’s going to do to me.” You bit your lip giving up on trying to act tough.

“He won’t lay a hand on you.” Hyunjin grazed his fingertips up your arm as he stroked you. 

“What if I die..” 

“You won’’t.” 

“But what if I do-” 

“Y/N. I have spent my whole life searching for a purpose to live. I have allowed myself to submit to the order of being the leader of a mafia I don’t want. Meeting you, being with you, loving you, gives me purpose. I can not allow this man to put a stop to what is right. From what matters to me.” 

“You will not die tomorrow and I will make sure of it. I will protect you like I always have and I will never let you go.”

This was it. You knew it. This was the last time. The last night you and Hyunjin would have to feel drowned by the lives of those before you. The last time you two will have to live alive created for you. Your chance was now and you were going to take it, regardless of the consequences.

“Hyunjin..” 

He hummed in response and you looked at him.

“Make love to me.” 

Hyunjin stared at you for a moment and you looked into his brown orbs. He was so soft, so small. You trailed your hands up his neck and touched the ends of his soft blonde hair. He leaned forward and kissed your lips ever so softly. You felt every line on his lips as he molded into your mouth. His hands rubbed up your back as he leaned you back against the mattress and towered over you. Hyunjin kissed you with extreme passion, every move sent electricity down your spine. 

Hyunjin grounded his hips against your pelvis and you moaned into his lips as he sucked in air. You felt his member grow hard through the thin material of his boxers and you chuckled. Hyunjin pulled back with lust soaked eyes and smiled softly before playing kissed along your jawline and down your bare neck. His hands reached down to your hips and played with the hem of your shirt. You arched your back into his bare chest as he slowly glided his hands up the skin of your stomach and close to your breasts before his large hands clasped over your breast and rubbed you slowly. You hated the clothes between you so you took the initiative to remove your sleep shirt and have your chest exposed to him. Hyunjin groaned looking at your naked chest and began to pepper kisses around the top of your chest and over your boobs. His tongue extended and slowly licked over your nipple making the tingle shoot up your chest and you arched your back in pleasure again. He smirked against your skin as he began to pepper kisses down your stomach and above the lining of your sleeping shorts. 

“You’re the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.” Hyunjin whispered looking at you as he used his hands to slide the shorts down your legs. You bit your lip in anticipation and you watched as Hyunjin was ready to go down on you but you lifted his head and pulled him closer to you for a kiss.

“I want to feel you inside me.” You whispered against his lips and he pulled back in a bit of shock but then agreed.

He pulled his boxers down and you watched as he pushed you gently back down to the bed. Hyunjin spread your legs open and wrapped them around his waist as he glided the head of his cock up and down your slit. He hissed at the warmth and wetness you gave as he coated his head with your juices. Hyunjin looked at you as he inserted himself into you, stretching you out. Your mouth agape as you moaned at the fullness he provided, Hyunjin collapsed his body on yours as you wrapped your arms around his neck pulling him closer. Hyunjin began to thrusts his hips into you slowly, making you feel every vein and rigid ness of his member as he grazed your inner walls. You moaned into his ear as he grunted into you. He pulled himself up to look at you, strands of his blonde locks were taking from his tiny ponytail. He bent down to kiss you still pumping into you, a bit faster but every thrust had a meaningful moment. He wasn’t fucking you, he was giving all of himself to you. This was the most vulnerable and intimate way Hyunjin could show you his love.

You grasped him harder as he began to hit your g spot a few times.  “Fuck Hyun, do that again.” 

“You like that love?” He thrusted harder into you and you whined.

“God damn, Hyunjin.” 

“You feel so good around me, love. You always feel so good around me.”

Hyunjin was so close to you, the way he pounded into you was so hot. Your body temperature rising and your skin grew flush. The tip of his dick and the angle you two were in was enough for him to graze against your sweet spot time after time and you were clawing at his back, be going for release. 

“Oh my god Hyunjin, you’re gonna make me cum.” 

“Hyunjin then buried his lips near your ear as he thrusted at the same speed, your moans frowning louder and more frequent.

“I want you to cum around my dick baby girl. I want you to quiver and shake against me. Tell me how god I make you feel. How good I’ll always make you feel.” 

His words sent chills down your back and near your pussy. You felt yourself begin to clench around him as he whispered to the feeling.

“Ahh. AHH” you screamed and Hyunjin fucked into you harder as your walls tighten against him and squeezed him harder as he picked up the pace. You felt your body give out as Hyunjin kept thrusting into you at the same speed. Your orgasm flushed through you and began to pick right back up as he over stimulated you, chasing his own orgasm. 

“OH MY FUCK-“ you cried out as he pulled you to the side and began to thrust into you at a new angle. You groaned and Hyunjin whimpered. 

“Fuck i wanna cum too.”

“Please daddy, cum inside me.” 

Hyunjin lifted your leg up a bit still thrusting into you an you felt your second orgasm come as your walls began to clench again. You leaned your head back and cried out.

“Hyunjin fuck me oh my god.” 

Hyunjin then began to thrust more sloppily and you felt the spurts of his cum shot into you as he laid his head against your shoulder blade, and your orgasm washed over you. 

You both were breathing heavily and Hyunjin was thrusting into you lazily and slow as he gripped your chin and pulled you in for a soft kiss. You two stayed like that for a moment. This was it.

He wrapped his arm around you pulling you closer than ever before. His heart beating hard against your back and his breath down your neck. You moaned and snuggled closer to him as you closed your eyes and interlocked your hands together.

“This is it.” He said and you smiled and nodded, “This is the last time you and I will ever live like this.” 

“I wouldn’t want to have loved anyone else.”  You smiled and kissed his fingers and heard he smile

“Sorry you fell in love with your enemy.” He laughed and you chucked too at it and turns over to face him. You looked at his eyes and he looked back at you and you smiled.

“Hyunjin, I love you more than anything else in this world. And if something bad happens tomorrow, just know that you have been the most amazing part of my life.” Your words struck a nerve with Hyunjin, he felt compelled to pull you into his chest closer and kiss your forehead. You snuggled close and closed your eyes and he rubbed your naked back.

“Nothing bad is going to happen to you. I promise.”

A/N: Everyone, we have reached the final two chapters of this series. Two more weeks left of this beautiful series. I think I might cry. But I am in the process of thinking about my next move... not sure what to do. But as always thank you for reading, loving, and just giving me the validation as a writer and human I need, I live for you all every week and I am so glad you came on this journey. Until next week loves. 

Taglist:   @hyunfeji @zenzedana @datura-inoxia@minaamhh @ninjaleeknow @beethiin @hyunsxle @hwangful @huntressfrost25 @exonations @p0t4t0don14ll​ @beaann​

[ikleesfiction]

I'm a fucking alcoholic (with a sweet tooth)

Fandom : Chicago PD TV Word count : 1,623 words Pairing : Jay Halstead x reader Author's note : This is the third one shot of "Will you follow through if I fall for you" fic continuation. It would be better if you read it first. But if you don't, here's the quick summary. Warning : It's fluff. I hope it doesn't end up too cringy?

Disclaimer

◢◤

It is a cold Friday in Chicago. You would say it is super cold since you worked in the warm weather of Los Angeles last week. Jay is coming over to your place after work. Now both of you are snuggling on the couch, watching movies on TV.

"I cannot watch this part," You hide your face in Jay's chest, preparing for the frightening scene. The darkness in the room increases the tension.

"What are you talking about? This is not even a horror movie," Jay looks down at you, bemused.

"Say you! Watching Tom Cruise blowing up a Gallardo distressed me. My soul is crying. It is a nightmare!"

You move out from Jay's embrace to point out the screen where Maggie Q said it is such a nice car. "Yes, it is! Don't do it, Zhen," yell you at the TV.

However, The Lamborghini on screen still went kaboom and was engulfed in fire. "Oh, no!" You put your hand on your heart, feeling devastated.

Jay grins at your silliness, "I'm sorry for your loss," He rubs your back, offering his condolences. However, his smile turns flirty. "If there's anything I can do to ease your pain..."

You play along with his idea. "Hmm, is that so?" Your hands wrap around Jay, pulling him closer. Your nose is tracing his neck, up to his jaw, his cheek. Your lips softly grace his skin, make their way closer to his. Jay wasted no time to kiss you and keep kissing you.

You don't know how long it goes, and you don't care to know. Until Jay moves back abruptly, tilting his head away from you, "Your pho..."

Your lips cut his words as you get on his lap. Jay puts his hands on your waist to stop you, halfheartedly, "Babe, your phone is ringing,"

Your hands curl behind his neck. "Let it ring." You whisper to his ear. Jay shudders when he feels your breath on his neck. Your mouth soon follows to make a mark on the same point. Jay tries to hold himself back from reciprocating the gesture.

Unlike Jay and his work, you got no obligation to pick up your phone. No life or death depends on you tonight. But the phone keeps shrieking. It started to annoy you because Jay stops participating in this make-out session.

"Might be important," This is one of the rare times you want to curse Jay's occupation.

"I assure you it won't be," You try to get Jay back in the game.

"Well, at least you can tell them to call you back later," Jay lands a soft kiss on your forehead. With a loud sigh, you move away from Jay's lap to pick up your phone.

Seeing the caller ID frustrates you even further. "You are interrupting our date night," is the first thing you say to your best friend, Alex, when you receive the call and put it on speaker.

"Hi, Jay!" Alex chirps his greeting, ignoring your complaint.

Jay greets back with a chuckle, "Hey, man. Nice to hear from you," He takes the remote to pause the movie, where Tom Cruise is gunning a Mercedes CLK down the road.

"No, it's not." You grumble under your breath. "What's up? Did you just come up with a song idea that would make Bruno Mars wished he wrote it?"

As a fellow songwriter/producer, you understand that song inspiration could come anytime. But it would still piss you off if Alex insists on working for it tonight.

"Not yet. But we do have a potential project for you,"

"Couldn't it wait until next week?" You moan your refusal. "Jay and I got plans for the weekend,"

"Of course. As long as you promise to pick up your phone when Angelique calls. I know you have been dodging her." Alex chides you.

Huffing your aversion, you lay your head on Jay's lap. In reflex, he plays with your hair. "Who's Angelique? A new talent?" Jay never heard that name before. He is pretty sure that he knows everybody at Pyramid, Alex's record label in Amsterdam where you work for.

Alex starts to explain, "She is a singer. Been around for a while,"

"Country singer, turned bubblegum pop singer, and now I guess she wants to try dance music as well?" You elaborate to Jay and asking Alex at the same time. You have written and produced songs from various genres, but your notable works so far are mostly EDM.

"Maybe," Alex answers casually.

"Angelique..." Jay ponders for a moment before lighting up, "Oh! Is she the one whose songs you keep skipping whenever they pop up, babe?"

Your best friend lets out a big laugh from the other side of the phone. "Angelique wants Y/N to produce her next album, but all of a sudden Y/N here cannot find the receive button on her phone," Alex emphasizes his sarcasm.

"I took yours, didn't I?"

However, Alex begins his interrogation. "Why are you avoiding her calls anyway?"

"I don't wanna work with her," You know you sound petulant.

"Come on, Y/N, it would be great! Angelique's third album sold triple more than her second. Her last single went neck to neck with Taylor Swift's song. Now, she is gonna let you work on her fourth album! Other producers would kill for this opportunity," Alex tries to reason.

Jay whistles, being impressed by the story.

"Well, my boyfriend here is a cop. I don't wanna get involved in any criminal activity," You are intentionally being obtuse. "If it were so great, why don't you do it? You're the one who still works on stage."

"You know people talked about how you could be the next Max Martin, right? Made sense that she asked for you," Alex states. "Angelique doesn't need another artist to perform with her. She needs someone who writes and produces good stuff."

"Every producer could be the next Max Martin if they work hard," You shrug the notion.

Jay looks confused with all these new names. "And Max Martin is...?"

"We are never ever ever getting back together?" Alex starts singing a couple bars to show Jay some examples of Max Martin's works.

"Uh..." Jay doesn't show any recognition.

"ou make me feel like I'm living a teenage dream?" Alex sings another song. Your best friend is nothing but persistent.

"Uhm.." And yet, Jay is still clueless.

"Jay is not keeping up with pop music for the last decade, Lex," You joke to your best friend. "Try some songs from the Backstreet Boys,"

"Hey!" Jay protests. "I know your songs," He smirks at you in full smug. "Especially the ones that were written about me."

You laugh at his adorable and sexy smirk. Sitting up from Jay's lap, you kiss the smug out of him.

"Guys, I'm still here." The flat tone of Alex on the phone stops Jay from taking the kiss further.

You peck a corner of Jay's lips one more time. "Your own fault. Who told you to call during our date night anyway?"

"Since I'm not there to poke and pinch you, I hope Jay could help me convince you to take this project." Your best friend is shameless.

"Is Angelique not a good person or something?" Jay tries to understand the situation. He knows you are a hard worker. It is rare for you to run off from a big project like this. "She ought to be a good singer, right? With all of that achievements,"

You cross your arms and glare at your boyfriend, "It is a prerogative to hate your best friend's exes, no?"

Jay frowns, "Wait, Angelique is Alex's ex?"

"Oh, come on!" groans Alex. "It was years ago!"

"You know how the saying goes. Quote-unquote, "You are my friend. She is your ex. You get to forgive and move on. I get to hold a grudge until I die”

"That was kinda harsh," Jay comments.

"Your best friend still hates me until now, Jay." You roll your eyes at your boyfriend.

"Mouse doesn't hate you. I even haven't got a chance to tell him about you since he's been deployed," Jay raises his eyebrows.

"She meant your work partner," Alex answers Jay for you.

Jay frowns deeper, "Hailey doesn't hate you."

"Wanna bet on that?" You challenge him.

Alex prevents the couple from bickering further, "Guys, listen! Angelique and I broke up amicably. There were no hard feelings between us now,"

"Excuse you!" You exclaim. "I still remember those dark days. You cried over so many Tequila bottles. And those boxes of chocolate!! Why did we have to consume that much chocolate over a breakup?? My waistline did not come back to its original measurement for three months!!"

Jay lets out an amused snort.

"Oh, you don't get to talk, man!" Alex hits the couple back. "Your temporary breakup also forced me to replenish my Jenever stocks! I got bakeries phone numbers on speed dial for chocolate cake emergencies!"

Jay puts his hands up in surrender. "Okay, okay. You guys continue to discuss business," He stands up from the couch. "I'm gonna go warm up some pie," Jay gestures to the kitchen area. "Alex, it's nice to catch up with you. Hope the next time we talk, it would be more social and less about business,"

"And you, love, try to listen to what Alex offers first before you cut him off," Jay bends down to kiss your lips teasingly. "Please don't pull out any bottles with more than 40% alcohol content. I need you sober for our plans tonight." He winks at you before moving to the kitchen, leaving you to deal with your pushy best friend alone.

+x Taglist +x

@lorenakaspersen @life-treatments @itsdesiree86

Foot Note: - Tom Cruise and Maggie Q blew up a Lamborghini Gallardo in Mission: Impossible III (2006). All of the MI movies are classics in my household. - Max Martin is a Swedish record producer, songwriter. You might not know his name, but I'm sure you know his songs. In reference to this fic, he co-wrote and co-produced Taylor Swift's "We are never ever ever getting back together", co-wrote Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream", co-wrote and co-produced some of Backstreet Boys' biggest hits. - "You are my friend. She is your ex. You get to forgive and move on. I get to hold a grudge until I die" line is taken from Henrietta Wilson on 9-1-1 TV Series S02E04 "Stuck". I thought it was hilarious. The line became the reason for this particular fic's existence.

I'm sorry for the long note. Thank you for reading this fic and the note. You are so welcome to reply, ask or tag me. We can talk about music, series or Jesse Lee Soffer's abs. :p

[dreamescapeswriting]

The Fun Fair ~ PJM [M] [Reqest]

↬↬↬Word Count: 2.6K

↬↬↬Genre: ANGST

↬↬↬Pairing:Jimin x Fem!Reader

↬↬↬A/N: I personally don’t like the term crazy so I’m not going into too much of what happens with Jimin afterwards but I hope this is okay.

↬↬↬TRIGGER WARNINGS: Suggestive comments made my drunken men, men grabbing you, drunken states, murder, blood, angst, physical abuse.

It had been three months since Jimin and she who shall never be named again had broken up and you had finally picked up the pieces of his shattered heart and put them back together. Three months since your best friend showed up on your doorstep crying and sobbing about how she'd ripped his heart out and broken it into pieces, you wanted to kill her the moment he showed up. You'd warned her when they first started dating that if she ever hurt him you'd kill her, rip her head off and a bunch of other threats that slipped your mind. 

"You okay?" Jimin asked as he looked up at you, you were on his sofa looking at the TV screen as you watched some Romantic movie about how the friend and the best friend always got together at the end of the movie and it made you think of your crush on Jimin. 

"Wanna go out?" You spat out before you could even think about what you were saying, Jimin started at you while he blinked. 

"What?"

"I mean- No...Yes, do you want to go out on a date?" If he started laughing you could just tell him you meant with someone else other than you but if he agreed then all of your dreams were going to come true and you wouldn't have to hide how you truly felt about him anymore. 

"With you?" He wasn't laughing so that was a good sign, you nodded slowly at him and bit your lip. Jimin wasn't going to lie to himself and say he'd never thought about it before because he had before he had started dating Mina he'd been hung up on you. 

"We don't have to, I thought it would be fun there's the new funfair-" His lips on yours cut off your rambling when he kissed you and you smiled against his lips leaning into the kiss, sparks flying off your body as he drew you closer by wrapping his arm around your waist.

"Funfair date tomorrow it is," He whispered to you cupping your chin in his hand and smiling as you got shy under his touch. 

"I'll meet you by the hook-a-duck booth?" He suggested as he ran his thumb along your bottom lip, it had been where you used to meet whenever the funfair was in town when you were kids. 

"Sounds good to me Jiminie," You whispered kissing him again as you got up from the sofa and began walking towards your apartment door, he chuckled wrapping his arms around you and kissing you again. 

"I never thought I'd get to do that you know," He laughed softly as you stood at the door just talking. While you were both lost talking about the details of your date tomorrow you hadn't noticed Mina's best friend walking past your apartment and snapping a photo of you both together, sending it to Mina to ask what was happening. 

Mina had told everyone that she and Jimin were just on a short term break while she worked her way around things and not the truth, that she'd cheated on him with most of her guy friends. That was the thing about Mina, she craved the love and attention she got from everyone around her it was as though she was addicted to the dopamines. 

"I'll see you tomorrow night okay?" Jimin chuckled kissing you a final time as he tried to force himself to leave your apartment, he wanted to go home and get ready and you needed to spend the entire night pampering yourself. 

While you got ready for your date that night Jimin went out to buy you some flowers to bring with him - he was going to bring your favourite ones, he was about to leave his apartment when he saw Mina walking up his driveway crying. He frowned looking as her shoulders shook, holding a tissue to her nose as he heard small sobs falling from her lips,

"J-Jimin!" She wept loudly running towards him and throwing her arms around him, just like that you melted out of his brain and the only thing that matter was making sure Mina was okay. 

"What happened?!" He panicked tilting her head up to look at him as he frowned looking into her eyes, 

"I'm sorry! W-What I did! It was so wrong, Jimin I'm so sorry." She pushed him into the apartment and kicked the door shut as she sobbed into his arms, begging for his forgiveness for everything she'd done to him. 

"I-I was stupid, I just craved attention and I'm sorry Jimin...It won't happen again." She whimpered looking into his eyes as she pleaded with him to take her back staring into his eyes as she cried hysterically. 

"Mina-"

"Jimin I'll never hurt you again, I love you too much to ever hurt you again." She whispered running her hand over his cheek, as soon as she touched him he fell into her trap. Giving in and kissing her roughly as they made out on the sofa, 

"Fuck I missed you so much!" She cried out, running her hands down his shirt and towards his jeans. While he kissed her neck she rolled her eyes at everything he was doing, she didn't want to be there but she didn't want him to go out with you so she was going to do everything she could to keep him there tonight. He was hers and no-one else could have him even if she didn't want him just yet.

"I need you Jimin," She moaned kissing down his neck while her hands worked on undoing the jeans he was wearing, 

"F-Fuck I missed you too." He whimpered pushing his jeans down and moaning out as she touched him for the first time in months her hands pumping him slowly as she kissed him roughly. No one could ever replace her in his eyes, she was going to be the only one he would ever need. 

Biting your lip you checked the time again, it was getting late and dark which meant soon enough the fair would be packed with people who were drunk and you hated the thought of it.

"Jimin call me? You're an hour late and I'm getting worried," You heard giggling coming from in front of you and you looked up to see Mina's friends walking by shutting up as soon as they saw you looking at then. You shook it off as if it was nothing and tried Jimin again but there was no response. 

"Hey, baby!" Your heart filled with hope as you heard a voice calling out but when you turned around you saw two drunken men walking towards you so you stepped out of the way pretending to be busy on your phone.

"What's up? Date stand you up?" One asked as he stood in front of you, the smell of Vodka dripped from him as if he'd been bathing in the stuff and the one behind you chuckled as he held onto your arms. 

"We just wanna hang out baby girl, why don't we go on one of the rides?" You shook your head trying to answer them but the one in front laughed, 

"Don't be nervous, you can ride me if you want." You shoved him away from you trying to get out of their grasp but he didn't like it,

"Who the fuck do you think you are?!" He yelled grabbing onto your wrist tightly and pulling you into his chest so he could look deep into your eyes,

"Well?! Who do you think you are?!" You were growing more and more uncomfortable with each passing second and people around you ignored the scene as if they couldn't see it so you stomped onto his foot and tried to make a run for it only to have the second guy drag you into his arms. Pinning your arms down by your side as a hat was placed into your mouth to stop you from screaming. 

"You're a fucking dirty bitch!" The first one yelled slapping you across the face as they began to take you behind the booths, you tried screaming out for help from people but hardly anyone was around and the hat inside of your mouth was muffling your cries for help.

"Leave me alone!" You whimpered as he ripped the hat from your mouth, the first one kicked the back of your knees knocking you down onto the ground so you would have to kneel in front of them and then took both of your arms and pinned them behind your back. 

"Keep your mouth shut!" A pocket knife was pulled from the first man's pocket and pressed against your cheekbone cutting into the skin, 

"Such a pretty face, it's a shame it has to get so wasted," The blade stung as it cut down your cheek and dug into your skin, you could already feel the blood dripping down, 

"Why are you doing this?!" You asked them as you fought to get out of the other man's grasp but he only tightened his hold on you. 

"Because it's fun because we can and we have before." You struggled against the grasp when you got a slap across the cheek,

"D-Done what before?" You stuttered out watching the man in front of you with the knife, 

"Killed. It's fun you know, watching the life of someone drain out from them right in front of your eyes." You whimpered trying to kick yourself up but he lunged himself towards your pushing the small blade into your side and twisting it, only to do it again and again until he felt satisfied with himself. 

Jimin woke up with Mina in his arms, snuggling against him when he heard his phone vibrating, he had 60 missed calls from your phone and a text. 

[Y/N]: Help! SOS! Along with five siren emojis beside it, he tried calling you but the phone was cutting straight to your voicemail, he shifted out from under Mina. The only time you ever used those emojis was when it was in a real emergency and panicked washed through him as he realised where he was supposed to meet you and when, 

"Where are you going?" Mina asked looking at him, 

"Y/n, I think something's wrong, I'll be right back-"

"Jimin stay with me," She whined holding onto his arms but he told her that he had to do this, that it was something serious. 

"Whatever, I don't care. I won't be here when you get back," She scoffed looking at him as she got changed into her own clothes, he had no time to waste on asking her what the problem was he just sprinted out to his car and drove to the fair. 

"Y/N!?" Jimin screamed out in the almost empty park, it was going to be like finding a needle in a haystack, he began calling out your name before ringing you but your phone wasn't connecting to anything it was just going to your answering machine, 

"Y/n?!" He called out but that was when he heard a strangled version of his name, 

"Y/n?!" He panicked rushing over to the hook-a-duck section that was closed when he saw your legs poking out from behind the booth, 

"Y/n...What are you doing down here?" As soon as his eyes landed on you he called for help, dialling for an ambulance on his phone as he took you into his arms. He didn't care about the blood that was coming from you, you looked up at him weakly your head feeling too heavy to hold up anymore. 

"You came," You stuttered out looking up at him and smiling weakly, he smiled softly at you and nodded.

"I came, I know I'm late but I g-got held up," He didn't need to tell you what had held him up right now all that matter was getting you some help, he told the ambulance where he was and he held you close to him trying to keep you warm. 

"I'm cold Jimin," You whispered to him as you felt a shiver run through your body, you could barely feel your feet anymore and you were starting to feel dizzy, 

"Save your breath okay? We'll get you to the hospital and they'll warm you up." He whispered laying his jacket over your arms and trying to support you but you shook your head at him, you both knew you weren't going to make it through this. You'd lost too much blood and the world was starting to sound as though everything was further away than it was. 

"T-They were wearing all black," You whimpered trying to describe the men to him so he would be able to catch them before they did this to someone else.

"T-The one that had the knife he had a scar along his lips as if someone had tried to put a smile into it." He shook his head at you begging you not to keep talking. That he would get you safe and you could tell the police all of this yourself, 

"J-Jimin I-I love you." You whispered to him as you felt your hands going numb, 

"You're saying goodbye," He whimpered looking at you as you nodded at him, you were too tired to fight it off anymore. You'd tried phoning for the ambulance yourself but your phone died after calling Jimin so much and now you were too tired to do anything.

"I love you." You repeated as your version began to blur, he sobbed shaking his head as you looked up at him biting down on your lip, he pulled you closer promising not to let go until he got you some help.

"Jimin it's been a year now, how are you feeling?" What kind of question was that? The doctor stared at him while she waited for an answer but Jimin stayed silent and turned to look out of the window. 

"Does anyone else in the group want to talk?" Everyone in the room began talking about their experiences but Jimin just stared down at the grass that was in the hospital garden. 

"Cat got your tongue?!" Hoseok - one of the other patients asked as he came up behind Jimin. He hadn't even noticed that the group therapy was out of session until Hoseok grabbed his attention away from the window. 

"Sorry Hobi, I haven't been sleeping again," Hoseok laughed sitting across from him, 

"We both know I have the opposite problem of that." Hoseok was in the hospital - narcolepsy - he'd been left there and he and Jimin grew close over their time there together. Jimin had spent most of his time here after you died, you'd died in his arms and he began to see you everywhere, every time he went to sleep you were in his dreams and then you began appearing around the house. After a while his friends took him to see someone who advised he come into the hospital to be watched and ever since he'd never left, he never wanted to. It felt it was a good punishment since he blamed himself for you dying that night he blamed himself for everything if he hadn't had fallen dumb to Mina he never would have left you alone that night and you would still be there with him.

"Come on, I know how to get some extra pudding," Hoseok said, he knew where Jimin's head was going and he wasn't about to let him suffer alone. 

Tagline: 

@writingdreamsnottragedies​ @snowy-meowl​ @jooniesdarlingdimples​ @lyoongx​ @fan-ati--c​ @mitzwinchester​ @callingmyangel​ @rjsmochii​ @taestannie​ @kneel-begyourpardon​ @innersooya​

[wordsoflittlewisdom]

Watching bop again

I kinda forgot Cass was at the roller derby game. Love how all the characters are connected

Why does Roman’s voice...sound like that

Boss Bitch is weirdly nostalgic now

I like that the whole roller derby team is wearing like. team jackets. and harleys got her whole fringe sleeves thing going on

YES LOVE WHEN SHE THROWS THE NECKLACE AWAY

The chemical plant blowing up as fireworks was a very Harley choice

“So I’ll start where I fucking want” four minutes ago

huntress huntress huntress huntress huntress

I read somewhere that this huntress and Montoya scene was one take and they just changed the lighting to show the change

romans middle name being beauvais is probably the clearest clue they could have given that he was from a rich family

Love that Renee finds the necklace and knows Harley and the joker broke up. I like this idea that superheroes/villains are kinda like celebrities in this world

The egg sandwich scene is great what more can I say

Love that there’re cars and people just living their lives in this city

It’s a crime that we never see Harley wear this glittery fanny pack

The music is really good in this

It’s neat how the line between her narration and her dialogue is blurred, like how she’ll say the first part of something in narration and the second part in dialogue

Huntress’s little flute theme

And Montoya knows Cass; c o n n e c t i o n s

Montoya’s been going after Roman, too

And now we’re flipping back to the bertinelli massacre and diamond

Even if the whole missing diamond plot isn’t that unique, everything’s woven together so neatly

And now Dinah and Renee are on the phone about Cass and the diamond

It’s all connected

Harleys whole “I’m here to report a terrible crime”—she could have just run in there but she wanted to be Dramatic

I do wish the vocals were a little louder here maybe?

Big fan of this fight choreography

Harley pausing on a frame where she’s making a weird face before rewinding to explain about the diamond—it’s so rare to ever get to see women like. making weird faces in movies. All the women in his this are gorgeous but they don’t always have to be; they look beat up after fights and get dirty and make weird faces and it’s great

Dinah singing? Exceptional

“Loans, liquidity, laundering” ah yes the three L’s of illegal business

I unironically listen to Black Canary’s man’s world.

I like that everyone just calls Dinah “Canary”

“I’m all on my lonesome. It’s great” Harleys even an unreliable narrator when she’s just talking

I’ve really never seen a movie that feel like it’s from the female gaze visually as much as this one—all the rings and earrings, the hair, the makeup, it feels like what women might fantasize about dressing like

Dinah yelling “you motherfucker!” While beating some creeps up is quality

What time of day is it? Dinah would probably be leaving early in the morning, but I Refuse to believe that Roman would be awake particularly early any morning

She either canary is leaving her nightclub singing gig in the late morning/early afternoon or roman is still awake from the night before and is going to go to sleep soon

Cass and Dinah in the same building. (Bernie voice): I am once again talking about the connections

I’ve riffed on this before but i refuse to believe that Roman can drive

This Dinah and Renee scene establishes character, backstories, and moves the plot along all at once

Jesus some of ewan mcgregor’s acting in this is painfully bad

I love that Cass has a big bomber jacket and longer, looser shorts

Jurnee’s abs wow

The lights from behind the hands with the eyes behind Harley, who’s surrounded by people and then Roman and Victor emerge from the back, whispering to each other? Beautiful

One of the grievances roman has against Harley is “constantly interrupting him, like I’m doing right now”

Harleys “you’re really not as complicated as you think” bit is almost satirical of this cult we’ve created of “complicated” white male movie villains who have massive fan followings (cough cough joker)

Interesting that Roman holds the knife to Harleys face but hands it off to Victor to do that actual cutting

Someone handed Roman a bowl of popcorn

Harleys pocket tampon

It’s diamonds are a girls best friend yeah babey!

The male backup dancers are wearing muzzles/masks (Roman has one too for a split second) is an interesting flip on the way women are typically the ones being silenced, as well as Harleys desire to silence the men around her and be the one telling and controlling her own narrative

“Hey! you’re that singer no one listens to!” “Hey! You’re the asshole no one likes!”

Harley with her glitter gun

Harleys reaction when the sprinklers go off is perfect—Margot makes her feel like a living cartoon

This cell block fight scene is a showstopper

I like that cass doesn’t immediately want to stay with Harley. It gives her some agency in a story where she’s mostly just following the curveballs life throws her

Harleys little stare straight into the camera when cass admits to eating the diamond

Harley at the grocery store really emphasizes that she’s a total weirdo

I think I heard somewhere that the pic of child Harley with the nuns is a pic of young Margot??? Not totally sure though

Cass not knowing who the joker is goes with the whole supers are like celebrities thing—cass probably follows a whole different group of them (like how most kids follow different celebrities than their parents)

Huntress huntress huntresssss

“Give me number 32. Mild”

This kid in helenas flashback doesn’t really look like she’s grow up to look like Mary Elizabeth Winstead

This filming in this flashback has so much style

Helena practicing in the bathroom mirror with her drawing and her multiple bottles of travel mouthwash

We’re in the scene where Roman makes the girl dance on the table and oh god it’s so uncomfortable

No no no no no not this hate this

Alright that nightmare’s done

“and that’s why you should never pay federal income taxes”

Harley offering to bring cass to Roman after hearing doc say “business is business is interesting

OH ITS HIT ME WITH YOUR BEST SHOT TIME

Dinahs car is yellow because it’s...canary yellow

Roman putting on the mask is cool and all but he’s just gonna have to take it back off to get changed

This Harley vs Renee fight is fun because they keep mirroring each other—they’re fighting each other, but they’re really on the same side

The way the women all kind of circle each other at first and don’t immediately get along

Cass popping up with the gun also gives her some agency—she’s at the end of her rope with the diamond and being betrayed by Harley

“I am nOT THE CROSSBOW KILLER”

The way Huntress sounds so uncertain when she says “...and now I’m done” Mary’s acting really popped off

Roman’s a bitch but I like his outfits

Helenas little smile when Harley says “you just killed his BFF”

I love how excited Harley is when they all agree to work together

Roman’s giving his little speech in the back of a pickup truck?

When all the guys turned around with masks on I got chills

“I love this chick she’s got rage issues.” “I DONT HAVE RAGE ISSUES”

Huntress stabbing the guy while going down the slide is peak cinema

This set lights up as the scene progresses and reveals more

I love love love that Helena is genuinely caring towards Cass and recognizing that children shouldn’t have to go through trauma like her

“When the fuck did she have time to do a shoe change?”

THE HAIR TIE YEAH

Forgot to mention this but it’s a stroke of genius for this place to be called the booby trap

Love me some canary cry

“Told ya she had a killer voice”

Harleys chase was a real group hurrah—the canary cry cleared the way and pushed her forward, Huntress towed her, Renee gave her the gun with one bullet

Cass and Roman are just sitting in the back seat. That must have been an awkward car ride

Cass pulling the gun away from Roman when he tries to shoot up at Harley when Harleys on top of the car is elite

Damn this is one foggy pier

When Harley starts with “your protection is based on the fact that people are scared of you” you expect her to say that it’s wrong or something but she says “I’m the one they should be scared of” this movie messed with tropes so much

That also includes the whole “one bullet” thing—Harley misses with her one bullet, and you don’t really know what’s gonna happen next

“I took your ring”

You can pinpoint exactly when Harley and Roman realize what Cass did

I’d put the entire taco scene here if I could

Renee moving the drink away from cass shows her caring side—she doesn’t want a kid to get into alcohol and make the mistakes she did

“Does she always talk like the cop in a bad eighties movie?”

Harley and Cass stealing the car is a fun way to show that she may be on the side of the good guys sometimes, but that doesn’t necessarily make her one

“Woman” by Kesha

Wow the outfits in this scene are iconic

I mean they are in the whole movie but I especially like these

Cass riding around with Harley and a hyena, wearing cute outfits and learning the ways of chaos

Harley got her sandwich!

The credit art for this movie is cool

Especially how they represent each character

In conclusion this is still my favorite movie

I know I’ve been kinda absent recently, but watching this again has really reminded me how much I love it. I got really busy but I’m going to Make An Effort to be a contributing member of the bop fandom again.

[luci-in-trenchcoats]

Won’t You Stay (Part 1)

Summary: The reader is almost ready to start filming her movie, The Dark Woods, with her dad but is nervous but how it will all turn out. She’s feeling better by the first day of filming but when her other lead actor quits, she needs to find a new one and fast...

Masterlist

Pairing: Jensen x Director!reader

Word Count: 2,900ish

Warnings: language, car accidents

A/N: Please enjoy the first of many parts!

______

“Alright, so we’re going to have Ethan run down this hallway here, turn, tight in over his shoulder and push past to go down the way he came to catch sight of the baddie chasing him,” said Mark, your director of photography. You pursed your lips and hummed, walking through the warehouse location, your dad watching off to the side.

“Reverse it,” you said. “I want the supposed baddie’s back, in the first hallway, chasing my dad. Tight in over his shoulder, push past that guy and then get onto my dad. It’s supposed to be scary. I want the chase and tension.”

“You got it boss,” said Mark.

“You sure that’s what you want to do, kiddo?” asked your dad, Ethan. You glanced over your shoulder and raised an eyebrow.

“I want a ‘heart stops beating in the chest’ moment,” you said. “Fear. Prey being hunted.”

“But my character turns out to be the predator in this case,” he said, leaning against the wall.

“Exactly. The audience won’t know until it’s too late. Heart stopping, edge of the seat opening scene. I want them to feel for Hale and then have him flip the tables on them and then flip ‘em right back. I want the hallway shot one long continuous shot too. We might need to work on it some and get in a few rehearsals but it’s what I want,” you said.

“Sounds good. Opening scenes can really make a movie. I can’t wait to start filming next week,” said Mark with a grin. “This is going to get nominated for an Oscar or some shit.”

“I’ll settle for not bombing at the box office,” you said, pulling out your phone to check the time. “It’s starting to get late. I’m good for the day if you guys are.”

“Good with me. I’ll see you bright and early on Monday, Y/N,” said Mark. You gave him a wave as he headed out, your dad poking his head down the hallway again as you walked around one last time.

“I sound like a total bitch, don’t I, demanding what I want to do,” you said. He whipped his head around and frowned.

“No sweetie, not at all. Director ain’t an easy gig. You’re gonna have to know what you want all the time and some days, you’ll have to be a hardass about it. But you’re doing very good with all of your prep work. No one knows this story like you do,” he said.

“Why did I agree to do this,” you groaned, rubbing your hands over your face. “I wrote the damn book. Why did I say I’d direct it too? Direct my own father?”

“Because you love this story. I love this story. Mom and Anthony and Ella love it. You wanted it to get the treatment it deserves. You’re gonna do great,” he said.

“Remind me of this when I’m two weeks into filming and I end up flipping out,” you said. He gave you a big squeezing hug, spinning you around in circles. “Dad.”

“Mhm, sweetie,” he said. “You’re coming over for dinner to relax. No excuses.”

“I’ll take the free food,” you said, resting your head on his shoulder as you walked out towards where the car was parked. “How’d you not be terrified all the time?”

“Terrified of what?” he asked.

“You had me when you were 18. I was nine by the time you were my age. I can’t even keep a houseplant alive and now I’m making a multi million dollar movie and I feel like I’m gonna explode already. I can’t imagine being responsible for a kid,” you said.

“I was terrified to be honest. Grandma and grandpa helped us a lot. The whole family did. Becoming a rising Hollywood star was nothing compared to single dad though. You used to be the center of attention when my buddies would come over. You remember that?” he asked.

“I was your responsibility though,” you said.

“And I don’t regret having you for a second,” he said, kissing the top of your head. “How cool is it that we get to work together? This is going to be great, sweetie. I’ll try to help the hard days not be so hard too, okay?”

“Okay. I grew up on film sets. Hopefully this doesn’t go as bad as I think it will.”

“What do you mean he’s out? He can’t be out. He’s the other fucking lead!” you shouted into your phone late Monday morning. Your dad slurped up his noodles from his lunch at the craft services tent, most everyone going quiet and looking at you. You ditched your plate and went outside to the lot, running your hand over your face. “Where is Gil Nicholas going? He signed-”

“Dropped out. His contract allowed him to do that up until filming started which technically wasn’t until tomorrow so he’s able to do it,” said the casting director on the other end.

“What…” you said, taking a deep breath. 

“Relax, Y/L/N. I’ve known your dad since he was a bright eyed 18 year old kid. I ain’t calling with this kind of news without having a backup plan. There’s this guy out there, Jensen Ackles. He’s an up and comer. He was on a sci-fi horror network show that got the axe after a few seasons. The kid’s good though. Better than Gil for sure. He doesn’t have the name recognition that Nicholas did and this would be his biggest production ever but the kid is used to the horror genre,” he said.

“It’s not a horror movie,” you grumbled. “I’ve never heard of this guy. How old is he?”

“Twenty eight. Been in the business for about ten years. He’s got a good strong look to him. Athletic but soft,” he said. “He’s good looking. The face alone would get some people out to see the film. Get his shirt off and stick that in the trailer, you’ll get people to come see this movie no problem.”

“I wrote the damn book in my childhood bedroom. I published it and sold the movie deal on my own. If I need to get someone naked to sell this story, it doesn’t deserve to be on the big screen,” you said.

“Okay...relax before you blow a gasket. I got some other guys that could play Lyle. We could put together an emergency casting session this evening, see about getting a guy in for the morning?” he asked.

“Alright. Do the session. My dad’s off the rest of the day so see if he’s available for chemistry reads,” you said. “Please.”

“Can do, Y/N. The studio isn’t going to let one of the most popular books of the past few years crash and burn. It’s a goldmine waiting to happen for them. We’ll find the right guy to play Lyle. I promise.”

“Hey,” you said, jogging into the casting studio around 8 that night, catching your dad reading over a page of the script. “How was Ella’s volleyball game?”

“They won. She spiked the ball and hit some poor girl in the face though. She was crying the last time I saw her,” said your dad.

“I’ll call her after this,” you said, closing your eyes. “How’d the chemistry reads go?” 

“Just got that Ackles kid left to do. I’ll be honest. It ain’t been pretty in there. Two hot shots that ain’t worth shit, one that sounds horrible and another that can’t even pronounce full words,” he said.

“Lovely,” you said. “Where’s the Ackles guy then? I thought you guys were expecting to be wrapped up by now.”

“Late. Not the best sign,” he said. You squeezed your eyes shut and tilted your head back. “Go take a walk around the building, kiddo. I’ll talk to casting, see if there’s other possibilities. Worst case, we rework schedules, film anything without a lead while they find one.”

“This is a disaster and it’s only the first day,” you said.

“Y/N. Go on, take a breather,” said your dad. You sighed but went back outside, throwing your head back as you started to walk the block for a few minutes.

A whistle from a dim alley made you roll your eyes as you walked past. 

“Hey, princess. I was talking to you,” said the man.

“Fuck off. Not in the mood,” you said. Next thing you knew a hand was on your shoulder and you were being shoved back against a brick building. 

“Well that’s not very nice,” said the guy.

“Hey!” barked another voice. You both turned your heads to spot a younger guy already looking a little beat up walking down the sidewalk. “Pick on somebody your own size.”

“You want another ass kicking tonight? Looks like you already lost,” said the guy. He turned his attention to the other man but you were still stuck in a dead end alley with him. You tried to brush past him but the guy caught your arm, the younger one staring him down. “Just having a fight with my girlfriend, buddy.”

“I’m not your girlfriend, fuckface,” you said, stomping on his foot and turning around, kicking him in the nuts. He dropped your arm and you ran past to the young guy, standing behind him for a moment.

“Get out of here. Now,” he said. You took off back down the block to the casting studio, ducking into the lobby. Five minutes later you were pacing the halls, trying to get through on the phone to the police when the young guy appeared sporting a freshly bruised cheek. “Hey, you okay?”

“Yeah. Thanks. You? I’m trying to get through to the police but they put me on hold,” you said. He gave you a smile and shook his head.

“I’m fine. Rough night is all,” he said as he wiped some dirt off his cheek. He was handsome and looked strong but you could tell he wasn’t the fighting type.

“Busy saving other damsels?” you joked.

“The car in front of me tonight got in an accident. Car rolled and I helped get the driver out. Guy went into diabetic coma for a hot second so that was fun hanging with him until the ambulance got there and then that just happened. Obviously not my night. I’m supposed to be having the biggest audition of my life two hours ago here. Probably a sign it’s not meant to be,” he said.

“Well there’s at least two people out there grateful for you popping up tonight. Maybe your audition will go well,” you said, smiling to yourself. 

“I doubt it,” he said. “I should just go home. They probably won’t even let me anymore.”

“I know some people that work here,” you said, his ears perking up. “Give me your name. I’ll make sure you get your audition.”

“Really? Uh, thanks. I’m Jensen Ackles. I’m supposed to be auditioning for Lyle Sullivan on The Dark Woods movie,” he said.

You stared at him, Jensen giving you a smile. 

“You okay? If you don’t know anyone on that that’s cool, really,” he said. You nodded and said you’d take care of it. You went down another hall and into a large audition room where your dad was talking with the casting director while on the phone with one of his cop friends.

“Hey. Ackles is here,” you said.

“Kid’s two hours late,” said the casting director.

“We’re desperate, not that desperate,” said your dad. “Trust me. If he can’t even show up for an audition on time-”

“He’s the guy that just got that other one to leave me alone on the street,” you said. Your dad immediately put down his phone and looked at you. “He says he helped a guy who was in a car accident earlier and that’s why he’s late. He looks it. I want to give him a chance.”

“Alright. He can have a chance,” said your dad.

“Alright. Ethan, scene 22 again. Y/N, want to watch in here or on the monitor?” asked the director.

“Monitor. I’ll pop back in with my decision,” you said. You went in the back room and sat down, a TV on a small table in front of you. You turned it on and reached across the table, finding one of the pads of paper and pens that were normally there. You jotted down a few things to yourself.

He had the look of Lyle which was a huge plus for you. Short cute brown hair in spiky strands. The signature green eyes. The slight scruff on his cheeks.

He popped in front of the camera, still and quiet as he watched a few people move about. He was tall and had strong arms but there was something innocent and kind about him you couldn’t place. You smiled. Lyle had to be both the soft sweet boy and the tear your throat out with his teeth type. This guy seemed like he could pull that off potentially.

You sat back and watched your dad appear on the screen, shaking hands with Jensen briefly before they started.

Twenty minutes later you leaned back in your seat and stood up. Jensen was good. Nervous around your dad and shy but that was okay. During the read, all of that fell away. He was Lyle Sullivan, far better than Gil had ever played him. Jensen seemed to know just how to play Lyle’s relationship with Hale and it made you wonder if he’d ever read the book.

You popped into the casting room, Jensen no longer in there, your dad and a few other people discussing what they’d seen.

“We know what we think. What about our director?” asked your dad as he crossed his arms.

“I want him. I want him real bad,” you said. “He was good.”

“Alright. I think we’re all at a consensus then,” said the casting director with a smile. “We need him in tomorrow morning to start filming though. We need to work a temporary contract out tonight and-”

“Give him Gil’s contract, minus the ability to pull out,” you said. “It’s simple.”

“The studio ain’t paying a small screen, barely has a fan base, guy a couple million dollars,” he said.

“The Dark Woods is a wildly popular book with a built in fan base. Pay the man his money. What’s the big deal,” you said.

“I’m telling you right now, they won’t pay the kid three million,” he said. “He isn’t worth it in their eyes. Your dad is an established, multi-franchise, lead for both TV and movies. There is a reason your father is being paid very well. You earn that in this business, kid.”

“I negotiated my salary and a movie deal, on my own. Don’t call me a kid. I am twenty seven years old and do not tell me I don’t know what I’m doing. Use Gil’s contract and get him signed before he leaves the building,” you said. The casting director stared at you before he got up and left the room. Your dad gave you a look that you rolled your eyes at. “What?”

“You’re gonna be just fine as a director, kiddo.”

“Hey,” you said around midnight when you finally had all of the paperwork settled. Jensen was walking out into the main hall with his agent by his side. “How’d it go?”

“I got it!” he said, all smiles, his agent saying a quick goodnight to him. “Thank you so much for putting in a good word. I can’t believe they even let me audition let alone gave me the role.”

“Well, I just got you the audition. You got the job on your own,” you said.

“Still. I owe you a drink,” he said. He had big bright green eyes, still a bit shy but you could tell his excitement was giving him some confidence.

“I have work very, very early in the morning,” you said with a laugh, his face falling for a split second. “But I will definitely take a raincheck for Saturday night?”

“Alright. Sounds good to me,” he said as he smiled. You swapped phones for a moment, Jensen practically bouncing with excitement.

“You excited about this job, huh?” you asked as you put your phone away.

“You ever hear of The Dark Woods book? I love it. It’s so good. I was super excited to hear they were making it a movie and now I get to play Lyle freaking Sullivan? If you haven’t read it, you got to,” he said. “It’s awesome.”

“I’ll have to take a look sometime,” you said. “I’ll text you sometime for Saturday then?”

“Yeah. This is turning out to be the best day ever,” he said with a smirk. “I’ll see you around, Y/N.”

_______

A/N: Read Part 2 here!

[guardianspirits13]

Hi, I saw your art for the AU where Touya weakness is a medical conditon and I wanted to know if there is a story based on it or a one shot ?

PS: I love your art, is amazing

Hi!! Sorry that I’m so late to respond, I never check my inbox so I was surprised to find so many kind messages there!!!!

The concept for Touya with a quirk-based medical condition is my own idea, so while there is no fanfiction it was based off of, I do have a work in progress for the story! It’s nowhere near finished but here’s an excerpt just for you 😘

(read under cut)

(Important side note- in this au, Endeavor and Rei are good parents who do everything possible to help Touya’s condition. They do inadvertently give less attention to the other kids, but it’s in no way malicious since he has different and more urgent needs)

Touya had always been a small kid.

It was his small stature perhaps, that gave him that spark in his eye. That determined gaze, setting his jaw and taking the world on every step of the way. If he had to fight to be heard, to be seen, then so be it. He refused to be forgotten, lost to a cloud of strangers who were taller, stronger, better.

Natsuo knew this more than anyone.

He had always admired his big brother, always looked at him through the eager eyes of a child. Touya radiated warmth- he was gentle and kind and smiled in the face of pain, if only to comfort his younger siblings- and Natsuo loved him more than anything else in the world.

Touya had always been different. He was always a little unbalanced, always heasitant to rush into things. Always looking out for himself, everywhere he went, lest he take one wrong step and land right back in the emergency room.

For as long as Natsuo could remember, Touya had been sick, but he never let that stop him.

-

He recieved the diagnosis two weeks before his sixth birthday.

It was a cloudy winter day, wind whistling around the walls of the Todoroki estate and cold air seeping through the cracks of thin wooden doors.

This couldn’t have mattered less to six-year-old Touya, however, as he played with his father in the training room. Well, not exactly playing. His dad referred to it as training, but Touya loved it anyways. Hurling brilliant bursts of fire at his father and dodging blasts in return was thrilling. He loved the crackling whoosh of the flames, and their dancing warmth on his skin. He loved running around, laughing, spending time with his dad.

Nothing, it seemed, could ruin this moment of joy as he barely managed to dodge a fireball and it tickled his ear. He emitted a small giggle as he rolled onto the floor. He looked back up at his opponent, towering above his tiny form, and grinned mischeviously. He feigned taking a moment to catch his breath, using it to focus all his power into his hands and create one small, brilliant ball of  sparkling blue flame. As Touya stepped up off the floor, the flame flickered violently, roaring like a caged lion- yearning to be set free. He posed properly, as he had been taught, and reeled his arms to his side.

With a shout of victory he thrust his arms forward, and a wall of flame engulfed the room. It was blinding. The bright light engulfed everything, the walls, the floor, the ceiling. Everything was white, and suddenly Touya felt a wave of exhaustion wash over him. His body went limp, and the last thing he saw as the white faded to black were his father’s eyes, contorted with worry.

-

He woke up in the hospital. He only recognized the scene from movies, white-washed walls, a large window obscured by sheer curtains and a steady beep…beep…beeping sound coming from somewhere behind him. He lay in a small bed, just as white as the rest of the room. A tube stuck out of his hand that hurt a bit whenever he wiggled his fingers, and it seemed to have some sort of liquid running through it. On his other hand was some sort of weird clip, and right below his nose was another tube that itched his nostrils. He looked around the room again, hoping someone was there that he could talk to. Nope. He did his best to sit up without moving any of the wires, and just as he crossed his legs the door peeked open.

“Touya!” His mom stepped in the room, and nearly ran to pull him into a gentle hug, her cold hands making his skin prickle.

“Hi, sweetie…how do you feel?”

“…I’m hungry.”

“That’s okay, the nurse should be in soon with a meal.”

“What time is it?”

“It’s past your bedtime.” His mom laughed softly. “It’s almost eleven o’ clock.”

Touya looked up at her with wide eyes. He had never stayed up this late before. It felt like he was a grown-up or something. He glanced at the tube in his hand. Maybe he didn’t want to be a grown up. It seemed scary.

“Am I going to die?”

His mom looked at him, eyes bright and wide.

“Oh, no, sweetheart, you aren’t going to die.”

She reached over and took his hand. “Everything’s going to be okay.”

“Then why am I here? Isn’t this where people die? What is this for?” He fired off all his questions at once, embellishing the final one with a tug on the tube that sat awkwardly on his face. His mom gently guided his hand away from it.

“You passed out when you were training with your father. We brought you here just to be safe. The doctors have to run a couple tests, but you’ll probably be allowed to leave first thing tomorrow morning.”

“Where’s dad and Fuyumi and everyone?”

“Your father had to go home to tuck them in. We switched places to look after Natsuo, because babies can get cranky in hospitals.” She brushed the hair out of his face, fingers heasitating for a second as they raked through the fresh streak of white in his dark red hair.

Touya closed his eyes as his mother leaned in and softly pressed her lips to his forehead. The motion was calming, and he relaxed as another bout of exhaustion called to him, lulling him to sleep once again.

-

A week later, the only evidence Touya had of having been in the hospital was an All-Might band-aid on his right hand, where the weird tube had poked his skin. He stared out the window of the moving car, counting mailboxes and trees as they flew past. His mom and dad said they needed to talk to the doctor again, because Touya had a test. He didn’t remember taking a test, but he hoped he didn’t fail it, anyways. His little siblings got to stay at home with a babysitter to watch a movie. He was jealous of them.

Once they got to the doctors office, a nurse led them through identical hallways until they got to a small room. Inside was a countertop, and a big chair, and some normal chairs. Touya got to sit in the big chair. His feet were so high off the ground! His mom sat in a small chair next to him, and his father stood. The nurse left them there alone for a few minutes.

Touya swung his feet lazily as he waited for something to happen. He watched the clock. He hummed a song.

Eventually the door opened, and a short, round man with similarly round glasses stepped in. He shook hands with Touya’s dad, then his mom, then Touya. He said he was the doctor and they were going to figure out what was wrong with him. Touya didn’t know there was anything wrong with him. He looked to his mom for reassurance, and she smiled and took his hand.

The doctor settled down in the second chair. He reached into a pocket on his white coat and pulled out an envelope. He said a few words before slitting it open, and retrieving a single piece of paper. He said some big words that Touya didn’t umderstand. He talked for a few minutes, but Touya was bored so he ignored him. He looked around the room- the bright lights on the ceiling; his father taking up the whole corner; his worn sneakers with stomp-lights that didn’t work anymore. His mom squeezed his hand, and he turned to look at her.

Was mommy…crying?

She reached up with her free hand to wipe her face and smiled at him again, but this time her smile was different. It was a sad smile, like the ones she used whenever Touya scraped his knee or ran to her crying after he fell off his bike. Touya stared back at her. He didn’t know how to feel. He didn’t understand what was going on. His mom turned again and asked the doctor a question. He answered patiently. Then another one. He answered that one too. And on it went, until the doctor finally stood up, shook his parents’ hands once more, and left without a word.

The room was silent for a moment, then Touya’s dad reached down and picked him up off his chair, holding him to his chest with one arm. With the other, he grasped his mom’s shoulder. She had her face covered with her hands, but in a few seconds she sniffled softly and took the hand on her shoulder, allowing herself to trail behind them as they headed back out to the car.

-

“I’m afraid your son has a rare quirk disease.” The doctor looked up from the creased paper containing the damning lab results.

Rei’s heart dropped. She turned to look at her husband. He was stoic, standing frozen in the corner, face shadowed by the ceiling light. She let her eyes rest on her child, seated closer to her, fidgeting with the zipper on his sweatshirt. Touya, her eldest child. Her baby. She took a deep breath and turned back to the doctor, who continued.

“It is known as Degenerative Quirk Disease.” He paused. “The cause of the disease is unknown, but the essence of it is that the quirk preys on the life force of the user. The more he uses his quirk the faster his body will deteriorate, and unfortunately once the damage is done there is no known way to reverse it. As per the name of the disease, it is degenerative and will get worse over time. Unfortunately this does mean that your son will have a shorter lifespan. All known cases have eventually proven to be fatal.”

The room was silent for a moment. Rei’s vision blurred with tears. She squeezed Touya’s hand and he looked down at her, wide-eyed and innocent.

“Mommy?”

Rei smiled softly at him as tears broke her waterline. She haistily swiped them away. She couldn’t bring herself to reassure him. What a terrible mother she was.

She turned away, looking back at the doctor.

“Is there anything we can do?”

He nodded slowly.

“While there is no known cure, there is treatment available. In fact, just recently a villain-strength quirk suppresant was approved for medical use. The only way to slow the disease is to prevent the usage of his quirk as much as possible. This is the best option available, as even among those who thoroughly abstain from using their quirks, there are still accidents and passive attributes to most quirks that would expedite the disease, such as fire-resistance.” He nodded at the man in the corner. His face, normally highlighted with dancing flames, was dark and unreadable.

Rei prompted him further, eager to learn how to save her child.

“What does treatment entail?”

“The most promising option available is a weekly IV treatment supplemented with oral medication.  Both help to suppress quirk usage as much as possible to delay progression of the disease. With regular use his lifespan could be expanded by up to five years, compared to manually abstaining. Now I know this doesn’t sound like the most effective treatment, but given the life expectancy without treatment, five more years of life is the best gift you could give him right now.”

-

That’s all I have for now! If I ever decide to finish it I’ll upload it to my Ao3, and if you like my writing you can find more of it there as well :)

Again, thank you so much for the support! I’m so glad you like my art so I’ll be sure to keep on creating!

[wlntrsldler]

Maybe (Bucky Barnes Roses Series)

Prompt: Bucky tells Y/N he’s the Winter Soldier. The next day, he’s taken by the government and that’s the last Y/N sees of him... until they cross paths again. But what if Bucky doesn’t remember her? 

ROSES MASTERLIST

ROSES | SAFE INSIDE | MAYBE

-

I don't know what's going on

Where you came from and why you took so long

All I know is that I feel it

Like it's the realest thing, I mean it

Since that day, you and Bucky reconnected. It was like the two of you were getting to know each other all over again. To him, it was exactly that. To you, it was like re-visiting your favorite memories and making new ones all at the same time. At first, he was apprehensive with you and you couldn’t really blame him. 

The way he started to remember things came to him at first in one huge wave. He told you one day he woke up and he swore he felt you leaning against his chest, deep in sleep. Then like a wave, all of these memories of you two drinking wine from paper cups, dancing to terrible pop music, cooking together, being intimate, just flooded his memories. It was overwhelming. He said he went to your work the following day, wanting to make sense of the memories he started to recall.

After that sudden revelation, his memory started to trickle in little by little. You would get calls from him, sometimes during the most ungodly hours of the day, and on the other side of the line, would be a sheepish Bucky, whispering the details of the memory that popped into his dreams that night.

One time was at 3 in the morning, you woke up to the special ringtone that you set up for Bucky. 

“Hello?” You asked groggily.

“Hi, Y/N,” Bucky whispered. You could picture the blush on his cheeks. He would always apologize for waking you but he was too afraid that he’d forget what he remembered. He was tired of not knowing his past. He was tired of not knowing you. “’M sorry for waking you but I remembered something.”

You chuckled, “No worries, Buck. What did you remember, sweetheart?”

“We were in my old apartment, the one you talked to me about... and we were just watching a movie, it was a cartoon. Disney, I think? I don’t know, it was like a girl with long hair and she had this lizard pet? She was blonde-”

“Tangled.” You cut him off. You thought about the memory, fondly. He would always be muttering something about how his hair looks so much better but her hair had the ability to heal, so it wasn’t fair. “It was your favorite.”

“Really?” He laughed. You heard his sheets rustle over the phone. He was trying to get comfortable again. “Can we watch it next time you come over, doll?”

“Of course, Buck.” You sat up, knowing that you won’t be able to go back to bed after this. It always happened, but you didn’t mind. You enjoyed talking to Bucky and as much as your body hates you for never getting proper rest, Bucky made sure to make it up to you by bringing you coffees and giving you massages. “Now, continue.”

“Oh right,” He trailed off. “So, we were watching Tangled, right? And there’s this knock on the door and it’s this old lady and she just smiles at me once I open the door. She goes, “Just in case you and your lady haven’t had any supper yet, sonny.” Do you remember that?”

“I do,” You giggled, bringing yourself back to that day. “We were sitting on your couch and we didn’t want to get up. We were convinced that it was the most comfortable place in the world. We were about ready to starve to death. Then, Mrs. Ruddminski, she was your neighbor. She looked after you, you know. But anyway, she stopped by and gave us a home cooked meal. We ended up eating out of the pot she gave us, still on the couch. We fell asleep like that.”

“That sounds nice.”

You could sense his smile through the phone. You knew just how much those little memories meant to him. It’s the details that he was chasing after. He wanted to stop and look at the smaller parts of the big picture. He wanted to remember what you two shared. You kept thinking back to the times before everything happened. For such a long time, you deprived yourself from even thinking about him, fearing for his safety. And now here he was, safe and with you, and now he brought the key to unlock the memories you tried so hard to forget. 

“Y/N.” His voice snapped you out of your thoughts.

“Oh, sorry. Yes, Bucky?”

“I said, I won’t keep you up any longer.” He repeated. “Goodnight, Y/N. Thank you again.”

You whispered a “goodnight” and waited to hear the click of the line before you confessed, again, your love for him to nobody on the other end.

Something changed when I saw you

Oh, my eyes can't lie

You said, "They're so damn blue

And I love how you're so forward

Is it too soon to say I'm falling?”

It wasn’t unusual for you to spend much of your days in the tower with the team. They knew that you were an essential part to Bucky’s recovery and truthfully, the team grew fond of you. You were always pleasant to be around, never complaining about the team’s bickering, no matter how annoying and how often it happened. And you were patient. 

“I don’t know how you do it, Y/N,” Tony confessed to you one day after Bucky’s session. “You must be getting tired of this.”

“Not at all.” You smiled fondly, watching Bucky emerge from the other room. “For him, I’d wait a lifetime.”

Here you were, sitting closely beside Bucky, watching Tangled for the first time since. He would exclaim how he remembered some parts of the movie and curse himself for remembering more of the movie than the time you two spent watching the movie. You just reminded him that you didn’t mind that he didn’t remember because you were gonna stick around to remind him. 

“Thank you, Y/N.”

“No problem, Buck.” You replied, beaming at him. You redirected your attention back to the screen, seeing that the scene with the lanterns was about to happen. “Look, it’s your favorite part.”

You felt him shift his eyes from you to the screen. You took this opportunity to sneak a glance at him. Bucky’s eyes lit up as the music started to play. The glow of the screen reflected beautifully on his blue eyes, immediately taking you back to those many times that you two watched it in his small apartment. His eyes flickered to look at you, his Adam’s apple bobbing harshly. His hand inched closer to yours, your breath suddenly getting stuck in your throat.

He hasn’t touched you since he first remembered and yes, you were yearning for the day you would feel his arms around you again, but you also knew that he needed to take his time to fully recover. So when his hand touched yours, just for a brief second, your eyes welled up with tears. His hands were just as soft as you remembered and his touch was just as warm as you imagined. Bucky saw the single tear rolling down your cheek, his reflexes too fast for you to hide your reaction. 

“What’s wrong?” He removed his hand quickly, feeling like he did something wrong. “Is everything okay?”

You wiped the tear from your cheek, “Everything’s good, Bucky.”

“Then why are you crying doll?”

“You haven’t touched me in so long.” You whispered, giving him a soft smile. You hoped your eyes could convey the love you had for him because you knew that there were no words in the world that could even touch what you wanted to say. 

Bucky hesitated for a moment before intertwining his fingers with yours. He sighed at the familiarity of it all. It felt right. “I’ve wanted to for so long, in the most innocent way but I’m afraid of hurting you.”

You stared at the way his thumb rubbed across the back of your hand tenderly. Your heartbeat accelerated at the simple gesture. You raised your intertwined hands and placed a light, feathery, kiss to his, “You could never hurt me.”

So maybe

Maybe we were always meant to meet

Like this was all our destiny

Like you already know

Your heart will never be broken by me

Since the day Bucky held your hand, he started to show more affection towards you. He still held himself back from touching you with his metal arm but his flesh arm always found its way to the small of your back or back to your hand. And every single time his hand touched your skin, there was a burning sensation there. It was like your body reacted that way to show you that it’s all real. He’s real. He’s actually beside you. 

You were at work, finishing up a shift, when you heard the sound of his Steve’s voice talking to the hostess. You clocked out and rushed to the front of the restaurant to find a distraught Steve. 

The blond man’s eyes widened when he finally saw you. “Y/N, thank God! You have to come with me right now. It’s an emergency.”

Those words were all it took to take you back to the time you lost Bucky, all those years ago. Your head started to spin and your mouth got dry. You couldn’t even form a coherent sentence, you just nodded furiously and followed Steve out of the restaurant. 

During the ride to the tower, Steve explained the situation to you but you’d be lying if you said you were paying attention. The words that left his lips entered your brain in jumbled chunks. “Bucky... hurt... bad... mission.. HYDRA.” Those were the only words you comprehended in the twenty minute car ride. 

When you arrived at the tower, you left Steve behind, rushing to get to the medical wing. You’d been there a handful of times getting patched up after incidents in your silly adventures with Bucky. A few times from slipping in the kitchen due to your failed baking attempts turned to food fights. Another few from nights you spent throwing up trying to outdrink the super-soldier duo. 

You saw Bucky. And it hit you. 

There was no way you were about to lose him, not again, not ever. He was making tremendous progress, according to Tony. He was starting to remove himself from the Winter Soldier, his trigger words almost falling short. It would only take a few more sessions to completely remove it from him. 

Now, he laid there, broken and bruised on the hospital bed with tubes and ties attached to him. His metal arm was gone, the ragged edges of it showing that it wasn’t removed voluntarily. You raced to be by his side, not knowing or caring, if he even felt your presence. You took a hold of his hand, leaning against it to silent your sobs. 

Steve arrived at the medical wing not too long after you. Wanda and Nat looked at the scene in front of them, sadly. Wanda took a step forward, almost opening the door to Bucky’s room to comfort you, but Steve stopped her. 

“Give her some time.”

The young girl nodded, looking at Nat as their cue to leave you alone. The trained assassin followed Wanda as she exited the medical wing, giving Steve’s shoulder a comforting squeeze. 

So is it crazy

For you to tell your friends to go on home?

So we can be here all alone

Fall in love tonight

And spend the rest of our lives as one

“Y/N, you shouldn’t waste your talents by working as a waitress.” Tony said, as you handed him the tools to fix up Bucky’s new arm.

“I need the money, Stark.” You sighed, looking over the sketches you designed for Bucky. “Not everyone has an inheritance they can fall back on.”

“I just got a billion dollar idea,” He dropped the tool on the table and faced you. You cocked an eyebrow, urging him to continue. “Work for me.”

You scoffed, “Yeah, right.”

“I’m dead serious, Y/N.” He pointed at the millions of papers on the table. “You designed this. You’re talented, kid. What do you say?”

You pretended to ponder it for a minute, but you knew deep down it wasn’t really a question. “I guess I’ll put in my two-weeks notice tomorrow.”

Tony let out an overly-excited “Yay.” before returning to work on the arm. 

You continued to help Tony on the arm until late into the night. All you could think about was how excited Bucky would be when you tell him you now work in the tower. You kept looking at his room, hoping to see some changes. It’s been two weeks since the incident and Bucky still hasn’t woken up. 

Although the team would never say it out loud, you could tell they were starting to lose hope. The HYDRA attack was strong, so strong that it was able to take down a super-soldier. Sitting in on the medical reports made your heart sink to your stomach. You knew the doctors were trying their best to tiptoe around the fact that Bucky had a small chance of waking up. The only people who shared your optimism were Steve and Tony. 

Steve was just as in denial as you. Bucky is his best friend and he wouldn’t know what he would do if he lost him again. Especially after the loss of Peggy, Steve knew the loss of Bucky would internally kill him. And Tony refused to believe that Bucky’s demise would be caused by HYDRA. “Bucky’s too strong for that, he’ll pull through.” He said, everyday. Sometimes you started to feel like the words were losing their meaning. 

It was 12:37AM when Tony called it a night. The arm was finally starting to take shape and you were excited to see the final product. Tony bid you a tired goodnight and retreated to his room. You, on the other hand, made your way to Bucky’s hospital room, as you did the past two weeks. You first slept on the couch the first three days but after you got back from work on the fourth day, there was a small bed installed in the corner of the room. You knew it was Tony and Steve’s doing, they didn’t have to own up to it. You appreciated it, to say the least.

“Hey, Buck,” You whispered, like you did every night. “The arm’s looking good. I can’t wait for you to try it out. I designed it, you know. I hope you like it.”

“I’m quitting Olive Garden, by the way. Tony managed to convince me to take a job here. Crazy, right? I don’t know how I’ll handle working for Stark but I’ll make do. Plus, I’ll be seeing you more often so it makes it all worth it.” You continued, placing your hand above his. “It’s been two weeks, Buck. I’m going insane here. Maybe you can pull off another miracle and come back to me one more time?”

You used your other hand to wipe the tears off your face, “I don’t care how long it takes but just come back to me, yeah? I lived without you once and I don’t think I ever wanna do it again... Goodnight, sweetheart. I have many more stories to tell you when you wake up.”

I should take your hand and make you come with me

Away from all this noise and impurity

'Cause I feel like you're too perfect

And I don't mean just on the surface

“His injuries are severe, Y/N.” The doctor reiterated sadly. “I don’t think I can confidently advise you to keep him in this state.”

“So what do you suggest, huh?” You spat, your lips trembling. “You wanna pull the fucking plug? You wanna give up on him, is that it?”

“Y/N,” Steve held your forearm, trying to calm you. You looked back at Steve. He looked defeated, tired, worn out. “It’s been a month and a half and no progress. Maybe we should start thinking of other options.”

“Like what, Steve?” You asked, your anger bubbling up inside you. “You wanna give up on him too?”

“No, never,” He assured you. “But we need to do something other than waiting.”

“The only other option is to trigger the Winter Soldier inside him again to enhance his body systems again.”

“I know, Y/N, but he would be able to live.” 

“He’d live in agony again, Steve.” You stated, sitting back down in your seat. “He worked so hard to remove that from himself. It’s the one thing that destroyed him the most. Nothing that destroys someone can ever be the way they’re fixed again.”

Steve nodded, knowing that you were right. “Alright, so what do we do? Let’s come up with a plan.”

That entire day was spent with Steve, Bruce, and Tony, trying to figure out a way to trigger the Winter Soldier’s abilities without actually triggering the Winter Soldier. To your dismay, the cure wasn’t found that day but you weren’t about to give up. And you tried your hardest to ignore the sympathetic looks from everyone as you said, “Let’s reconvene and figure this out tomorrow.” You weren’t giving up on Bucky.

You slid into the covers of the bed inside Bucky’s room. Tony brought some of Bucky’s pillows from his room for you to use. It was a week ago when he first gave it to you and his scent was slowly starting to fade. You laid on your back, eyes screwed shut. It wasn’t supposed to be this hard, was it? Especially not for Bucky. He had already gone through so much. When will life finally say enough is enough? If there was anyone in the world who needed a break, it was Bucky. 

You waited for sleep to take over your body in the eerie silence. The only noise was the hissing of the machines and the sheets rustling under your body as you moved around. 

“Y/N?” A hoarse voice croaked out. 

Your eyes shot open. You immediately sat up, “F.R.I.D.A.Y, turn on the lights please.”

When the lights flickered on, your eyes met the blue ones that you never thought you’d see again. 

So don't be scared, I am too

'Cause this chemistry between me and you

Is too much to just ignore it

So I'll admit it now, I'm falling

“How are you feeling, Bucky?” Clint asked, patting him on the back as he leaned back on the couch. 

Bucky looked over his shoulder, the black metal of his new arm in his peripheral vision, “Feeling like i’m not a day over 100.”

Clint laughed at his joke, mumbling a, “Good to have you back.” before disappearing into the crowd of people. Tony decided that after a coma, Bucky needed nothing less than a gathering of his favorite people.

“My favorite people?” Bucky cocked his head to the side, confused. “A party with just Steve and Y/N?”

Tony glared at him, “Ouch. I’m gonna pretend you didn’t say that.”

Alas, despite his refusal, Tony threw him a party. It wasn’t Stark-sized, which Bucky was thankful for, but it was a significantly larger crowd than he was used to. There were 30 people in total but the one he was looking for was nowhere to be found. 

“Looking for someone?”

Bucky turned around and saw you, smirking at him. He instantly smiled, getting up to wrap his arms around you. You snuggled into his chest, loving the feeling of him against your body. After Bucky healed, he was no longer shy with his affection. The night he woke up, he kissed you the second you were close enough to his face.

“I heard you, you know.” He confessed, breathless after you pulled away. “I was screaming trying to tell you that I wanted to come back to you and that I would do everything in my power to. I can’t leave my best girl again.”

“Bucky...” You cried, your hands cupping his face. “I love you.”

“I love you, Y/N.” He replied. Your heart bursted in your chest. He loves you. “Hearing you talk and knowing you were by my side through it all made me realize that my biggest fear is losing you. So for the time that I’ll have you, I’m making sure I use it wisely.” 

Wisely, he did. He kissed you at every chance he got, took you out on dates the minute he got cleared, and always reminded you how much he loved and adored you. 

“Wanna dance, soldier?” You asked, pointing to the dance floor. 

Bucky extended his hand for you to take and you obliged. He pulled you close to his chest as the soft melody swayed your bodies back and forth. He breathed in your scent, sighing in contentment when he felt your lips ghost over his jaw. 

“I never stopped loving you, even through those years.” You said, lifting your head from his chest to look at him. 

“You made me fall in love, twice.” He said. “And somehow, I’m still falling for you more and more everyday.”

So maybe

Maybe we were always meant to meet

Like this was all our destiny

Like you already know

Your heart will never be broken by me

[leverage-ot3]

notable moments from The Mile High Job

leverage 1.08

Nate: We need a key card.

Eliot: And I hate to say it, but you know who we could really use --

Nate: Don't even say his name. I don't want it spoken aloud

eliot begrudgingly admitting they could use hardison because although they may bicker all the time, he knows to appreciate him

- - - - - 

[Leverage Headquarters]

(Hardison is watching a microwave, which dings)

Hardison: Yeah, buddy!

(he tries to pick up the pizza pocket but it is too hot and he drops it)

Hardison: Damn it!

(he blows on it and picks it up to eat it, then takes a watering can and heads out of the kitchen)

why do we (and parker and eliot) love this fucking idiot so damn much ???

- - - - - 

(Hardison walks through the offices watering plants)

he’s such a nester + he’s probably watering parker’s plant too which is adorable

- - - - - 

Eliot: All right.

(open the door to the hall to find Parker waiting)

Parker: So, what are we waiting for?

Eliot: How does she do this?

Nate: I don't even ask anymore.

Hardison: Don't bother with the stairs. I got you a ride down.

(elevator dings and they enter)

we love to see parker defying all laws of physics and logic and the team being baffled by it e v e r y time

- - - - - 

(Nate, Parker and Eliot run into the lobby, headed for the door)

Nate: No, it’s right behind us, it’s right behind us!

(guards put their hands on their guns)

Parker: It’s furry, it’s big, it’s chasing us, get down now!

(they grab Sophie on the way out the door, leaving the guards confused)

Nate: Come on, we need to get to the airport, now!

that’s actually a really clever way to escape a situation ??? it was very effective to distract the guards ???

- - - - - 

Hardison: What I.D.s have you got on you?

[LAX Airport]

Nate: Let's see...

(team begins looking through their pockets)

Nate: We got, Peter Davison, Sylvester McCoy, and I have a Tom Baker. Yeah.

Sophie: Ooh, yeah, I have a Baker. Sarah Jane.

[Leverage Headquarters]

Hardison: Perfect. I now pronounce you man and wife. (typing on keyboard) Now go on and kiss that bride.

[LAX Airport]

(Sophie hands Nate a ring that he places on her finger)

hardison bases their ids on doctor who characters, what a fucking nerd

also, we gonna talk about how sophie carries a bunch of different wedding rings with her at all times or ???

- - - - - 

Sophie: How did you both know there'd be an extra uniform in the bag?

Nate: Everyone knows flight attendants are required to carry extra uniforms in case they get called to work unexpectedly.

Eliot: Or if something happens to the one that they're already wearing.

Sophie: How does "everyone" know that?

Nate: Worked airport security.

Eliot: Slept with a flight attendant

sophie being exhausted + eliot never mentioned the gender of the flight attendant so let my bi heart dream okay

- - - - - 

(security guard opens Nate’s luggage to find many BSDM items inside. Nate gives Sophie a look)

Sophie: What? We needed luggage. Lost and found.

Nate: You didn't check the bag first?

Sophie: We were in a bit of a hurry. (to guard) Yeah. Cuffs are his. Whip's mine. (slaps Nate’s butt) Second honeymoon.

Eliot (picking up his bag): Idiots.

me watching this scene: part horrified part secondhand embarrassed 

- - - - - 

Hardison (on computer): Let's see what we can learn about Nathan Ford today. Online poker? Online chess? Sudoku. Crossword. What... Damn. Somebody needs to get laid.

y i k e s

- - - - - 

[Coach]

(Parker on P.A. while another stewardess demonstrates)

Parker: Place the mask over your mouth and nose and breathe normally. In the event of a water landing, your seat cushion can be used as a flotation device. But let's face it, if this thing goes down in the water, more than likely the impact will kill you. 

(Eliot grabs the bridge of his nose while the other passengers get alarmed)

Parker: Please take a moment to locate the nearest emergency exits, because if this plane's on fire, you're gonna want to get out quick. Jet fuel burns at over 1,000 degrees. That's hot, folks.

Eliot: All right, Nate. We're here. Now what?

eliot looks exhausted like 300 different times during this episode

+ bless the other flight attendant that just carried on with the crazy white chick being crazy over the speaker 

- - - - - 

poor eliot with the guy sleeping on him, he’s so exhausted already lmao

- - - - - 

Steve: Nothing. It’s just... I could've sworn I saw a maintenance guy get in that elevator.

Hardison: A- A maintenance guy? Wow. Real nice. I bet you think we all look alike.

Steve: That's not what I meant.

Hardison: You know what -- If I have to go to one more of those damn sensitivity seminars, I know who I’m blaming.

Steve: No, no, no.

Hardison: I know who I’m blaming.

Steve: It's not what I meant.

Hardison: I blame you! You! (walks away)

hardison using societal tendencies of racism is iconic every (every) time

- - - - - 

(Eliot gets up and begins going through luggage in the overhead racks. One of the passengers watches him suspiciously)

Eliot (to passenger): Can I help you with something? Watch the movie.

what would you even do in this situation ???

- - - - - 

Marissa: I know. It's just -- It's like a placebo effect. It's not really working, but it makes you feel better anyway.

Parker: Yeah? So, when's that supposed to kick in? (she moves forward) Look. Flying isn't really all that scary when you think about it. I mean, there are a lot more likely ways to die than on a plane. Car crash, house fire, electrocution, drowning, autoerotic asphyxiation. I mean, the fact is, death haunts us every day. No matter where we are.

(Parker smiles and moves away)

Y I K E S

- - - - - 

Hardison: You kidding? Did you get the new expansion pack? Woman, I was up all night. Now, look, I mean “Burning Crusade" was great, but this new one is mind-blowing.

Nate: Hardison…

[First Class]

Nate: …you bailed on the job because you were up all night playing a game?

[Genogrow Break Room]

(Hardison turns aside and opens a cabinet door to hide his face)

Hardison: First off, "game" is hardly adequate, okay

hardison is DONE with them not taking his “games” seriously ,,, also LMFAO that’s why he was late 

- - - - - 

Hardison (opens door): The meeting's starting, sir. (closes door)

Haldeman: What meeting? (sighs and puts on his jacket)

that is such an effective tactic tho ???

- - - - - 

Parker: Hatbox full of Euros, pouch of uncut diamonds, and a stolen Stradivarius. Now, I’ve never lifted one of those.

Nate: Parker..

let! her! steal! it!

- - - - - 

Eliot: Ms. Devins, those payments were not made in error. They were bribes. He was trying to pay off the researchers so they would not testify.

Marissa: What are you talking about? What the hell is going on here?

(Parker sits down next to Marissa)

Parker: The guy in 1D wants to kill you. Ginger ale?

Eliot: Just – sh-she--

that poor lady is NOT having a good time

also eliot looks sO DONE WITH PARKER LMFAO

- - - - - 

Eliot: Erlick's a pro. He had a ceramic knife. If anything was going down, he'd sniff 'em out when he saw them coming.

Nate: How would they do it?

Eliot: Easiest way? Take 'em out in transit.

Sophie: You mean bring down the plane they're on?

(everyone looks at her pointedly)

Sophie: You mean bring down the plane we're on?

Nate: Yeah

that’s interesting meta to know but we hate to see it

- - - - - 

Nate: Okay, Parker, I -- Parker, I need you – (to Eliot) All right, we got to talk to Erlick now.

[Plane Bathroom]

(Dan is still unconscious on the toilet as Eliot and Nate come in)

Nate: Geez!

Eliot (patting Dan on the face): Hey!

(Dan does not stir, Eliot sighs)

Eliot: When I knock people out, they tend to stay knocked out.

Nate: Hey!

(Nate taps the guy on the face)

Nate: Luggage tags.

(they search Dan’s clothes and take his luggage tags. Eliot grabs the ceramic knife before they leave the bathroom)

eliot doesn’t fuck around lmao

also he did the flippy thing with the knife

- - - - - 

Hardison: Parker, the device you found -- is it anywhere near an orange box?

Parker: Yeah.

[Haldeman’s Office]

Hardison: Oh, god. They tapped into the black box.

[Cargo Hold]

Parker: No, no, it's not black. It's orange.

[Haldeman’s Office]

Hardison: Yeah, the black boxes, they're orange.

[Cargo Hold]

Hardison: Makes them easier to find in the debris.

Parker: Oh. Oh…

[Haldeman’s Office]

Hardison: They've hacked into the flight's computer, which means they have access to the system, which means they can spoof the black-Box data all at the same time.

[Cargo Hold]

Parker: Crash the plane without anyone knowing it was sabotaged.

[Haldeman’s Office]

Hardison: Exactly

that’s terrifying

- - - - - 

Nate: Listen to me!

[Haldeman’s Office]

Nate: You can do this! I trust you!

(Hardison looking very unsure of himself)

[Cockpit]

Nate: No matter how many times you goof off or screw up, you always come through in the clutch.

[Haldeman’s Office]

Nate: You're the only guy I can count on in a situation like this.

Hardison (cracks his neck): You know what? I-I-you... You're right. 

You're right. I got this.

[Cockpit]

Nate: Yes! Yes! Yes, you can!

Hardison: You're right. You're -- I'm the man.

[Cargo Hold]

Hardison: I'm the man. I got this. I'm gonna do this.

hardison is amazing and they need to appreciate him more

- - - - - 

[First Class]

(Nate and Eliot stumble into seats and belt up)

Nate: Sophie?

[Coach]

Sophie: Yes?

[First Class]

Nate: You okay?

[Coach]

Sophie: Yeah. You?

[First Class]

Nate: Ask me again in 10 minutes.

[Coach]

Sophie: You're gonna remember this one, aren't you?

[First Class]

Nate: Oh yeah.

everyone else on the comms: ,,, y’all have to flirt right this second ???

- - - - - 

[Haldeman’s Office]

(Hardison watching footage on the Internet of the plane landing)

Announcer (on monitor): …emergency landing on the seven mile bridge…

Hardison: Whoa! (gets up and dances) Baby! Unh! Age of the geek! Smooth! Too smooth! Lord, I was so scared, I wanted to cry, call my mama. Y'all cool? Y’all cool?

Nate: Yes, cool.

Hardison: Family. All right.

hardison is baby + HE CALLED THEM HIS FAMILY !!!

[thedefinitionofendgame]

Love Is Enough

Surrera and Station 19 family multi-chap | Rated T | Canon-compliant

*spoilers for season 4 of station 19*

A/N: we all knew I was going to write a fic about the s4 finale after it ended the way it did. I am very upset at the writers for portraying Sullivan in the way they did—they did him dirty 110%. anyways, that’s where I come in with a fix-it fic. while all events that took place in the finale did happen prior to the start of this fic, that’s where similarities end. this is how Surrera makes it back to each other and how Sullivan makes it up to the team. also cute marina scenes because they’re married now (the only good part of the finale)

•

You can read this work on ao3 as well ; Prequel fic for Code Red

Written & cover by @thedefinitionofendgame

Chapter 1 - I Don't Know How

Andy was beginning to regret sleeping on the couch. When she had moved into Sullivan’s place after their marriage, she wasn’t so sure about a brown leather couch that had stiff rectangle sides. It turned out to be a good couch for movie watching and pretty sturdy for sex, but sleeping was a whole different story. Especially after seven days of this.

Sullivan—her husband but she had resorted to calling him only by his last name when she was mad—had told her that she could sleep in their bed and that he’d take the couch. But Andy was too angry to accept any pity from him. She could barely look at him, and wished she could just sleep at the station. However, with everything happening, the station was worse than sleeping in the same house as him. A traitor to her, her station 19 family and most of all to her best friend Maya. While it was out of respect for her best friend that she was angry at Sullivan, she was also just pissed off that he would try yet again to move up the ranks fast. Who on Earth ever thought that was a good idea? Clearly not Sullivan, because if he had stopped that thought for a goddamn moment, he wouldn’t have tried to swoop in and take Maya’s job.

“Stupid vulture,” Andy muttered under her breath, as she rolled over two inches and ended up off the couch. He was vulture-like; swooping in and stealing something that wasn’t his. Vultures ate dead animals on the sides of roads and Sullivan moving in after Maya’s captaincy job went up in flames, was really no different. Yes, Andy quite liked her new comparison of her husband to a vulture.

Unfortunately, Sullivan walked downstairs at that moment to see her smirking. “Something funny?” He asked, in the husky voice that he used only in the morning before his coffee. Ugh, she needed to take her mind off that immediately.

“No.” Andy refused to meet his gaze. Picking up the blanket she had stolen off their bed, she moved to climb the stairs. “I am going to take a shower and get ready. You better be out of this house by the time I return downstairs.”

Sullivan sighed. He had tried for the past week to try to get his wife to hear him out, but she wasn’t having it. He knew how stubborn and headstrong she was, although he never thought she would ever use it for longer than a couple hours on him. After day two, Sullivan found out he was very wrong. So he just begrudgingly agreed to whatever she told him. “Alright. You do know we could drive together? Save money on gas.”

“There is no way I’m sitting in the same car with you for the twenty minute drive to work. I can barely be in the same room as you for two.” With a final swish of her hair over her shoulder, she climbed the stairs and slammed their bedroom door behind her.

Sighing louder this time, Sullivan poured himself a coffee and leaned against the kitchen counter to drink it. He could hear the water start upstairs and he wished that he and Andy weren’t fighting. For reasons other than sex, of course. But his mind couldn’t help but wander because on a regular day he would’ve chased her to the bathroom and had his way with her. Clearly that wasn’t going to happen for a very long time now. Knowing he had better be gone by the time Andy got out of the shower, Sullivan quickly downed his coffee, grabbed his keys, wallet and phone, then left wondering if it was always going to be like this. He sure hoped not.

»«

When she emerged from the shower in a cloud of steam, Andy listened at the door for movement and wondered if Sullivan had actually left or not. She stepped outside of the bedroom but was met with silence. Andy silently thanked her husband for leaving; he had finally taken the hint that she didn’t want to hear his excuses. What he had done was unforgivable, and frankly Andy didn’t know if she would ever be able to look at him the same way. He really thought that it would be possible to justify his actions after everything that happened. Maybe Maya losing her job had been inevitable, yet it was not inevitable for Sullivan to volunteer himself for the captaincy position.

Andy thought she knew her husband. She thought she knew the man she had fallen in love with. While she understood how being demoted had affected him, mentally and physically, that did not mean he could go and take Maya’s captaincy job. When she had found out what he did, there had been so much yelling and screaming, Andy was surprised the neighbours didn’t call over wondering what the hell was going on. Her behaviour at the wedding was two days after what happened, and she was still steaming with anger.

Now, Andy was mad. But she wasn’t upset so much as disappointed. Yeah, that was what she felt. Disappointment. Nearly everyone she knew had been flabbergasted to say the least, that she had married the battalion chief after dating him in secret for a few months. Heck, Andy was a bit surprised herself. Yet Maya Bishop had stuck by her side and congratulated her about her marriage, even when the rest of the station freaked out. Travis and Vic had calmed down soon enough, though Jack seemed to be the most judgmental. Rightfully so, as Andy had turned down Jack’s proposal ages ago but accepted Sullivan’s when it was even more of a surprise. That didn’t mean Andy hadn’t been a bit hurt about it, and she had even ranted to Maya about everyone’s reactions later that night. Maya and Andy had had their rough moments—what friendship didn’t, was the real question—although in the end they were there for each other. They stuck up for each other, and they stood beside one another. Andy agreed with Maya’s call that day with the young boy who needed to get to a hospital as fast as possible. In the same situation, Andy would’ve done the same thing. She had been very tempted to tell Fire Chief McAllister that fact herself. Fear of losing her own job held her back at the time but now she wanted nothing more than to storm his office and tell him just what she thought.

Ugh, he just makes me so mad! Andy thought, slamming down her hairbrush. There were tangles in her curls still, yet she couldn’t be bothered to get rid of them. Instead she twisted her hair into a low bun and threw on some clothes. Time to face another day of work. Maybe she would go see Maya afterwards, and share her new nickname for Sullivan with her. At least that might make her smile. Maya could use all the love she could get right now, although luckily Carina was there to put her wife through the motions everyday…

»«

“Do you want me to go over there and punch him?” Carina asked, pacing up and down the short hallway between their living room and bedroom. “Because I will, and I don’t think he wants to hear an Italian woman screaming at him alongside the stinging blow to the face.”

Maya tried to smile to let her wife know that she was thankful for the sentiment, but everything was just too fresh to make a joke about. “No. I don’t want that. Plus what would Andy say?”

Carina’s eyes narrowed, then she relaxed them and the corners of her mouth turned up. “I heard Andy’s been arguing with Sullivan non-stop at the station. Even giving him the silent treatment. Like she said the other day, she’s on your side. So I personally believe she’d thank me if I decided to punch her husband.”

“Haha.” Maya finally laughed even though inside she felt like crying. It had been five days since she had lost her job. Lost her standing as captain and the respect it had built. She had been the first captain of Station 19, and frankly one of the first captains of the SFD. And for what, to be demoted back to firefighter for a small protocol issue? Damn, well clearly someone had it out for her from the beginning.

It made her feel a little bit better, though, to know that Andy was on her side. She could easily have taken her husband’s but she chose her best friend’s side. That was some dedication. Maya just hoped Andy and Sullivan’s marriage would be okay. She remembered making comments about their marriage on her own wedding day and how perfect they were. Little did Maya know at the time, Andy and Sullivan were fighting behind closed doors about his choice to swoop in and attempt to steal Maya’s job.

At this point, she didn’t even know what was going on at the station. Maya hadn’t been back to work since she got demoted, mainly because she had planned to take time off after her wedding. She and Carina couldn’t travel anywhere due to COVID restrictions, but they had planned to lounge around and have sex all day long. So much for those plans. It was yet another thing Maya was sorry about, and would need to make up for in the future. Luckily Carina didn’t seem to have a problem with their plans being cancelled. She preferred to play the game of “what other way can I make Sullivan miserable” every minute. Even though Maya knew Carina wouldn’t follow through with any of them, some of the things she thought up were sort of clever. The answers ranged from filling his turnout boots with lego bricks, to kicking him in the shins; both things Maya had thought about doing the day after she found out her verdict.

While Maya wasn’t anywhere near ready to forgive Sullivan, she certainly wasn’t as angry with him as Carina was. She was hurt and confused, but not angry. Which surprised Maya, because she normally jumped to conclusions when it came to wrong-doings. Though maybe Maya was growing as a person after this demotion. God, it still hurt to think about it.

Maya swung her feet off the couch and stood up. “I’m going to take a shower,” she announced.

Carina stopped pacing immediately. “Would you like company?”

Sadly, Maya shook her head. “No thanks, babe. But I would love some of the soup you made last night.”

“Okay, I’ll warm some up right now.” Carina quickly came over and wrapped her arms around Maya. “I love you, no matter what. I married you for you and I’m prepared to be here for all of it; the good, the bad and the ugly.”

“I love you too,” Maya said and leaned into her wife’s embrace. Maybe one day things would be okay. But clearly not for a very, very long time.

[cecilspeaks]

168 - Secret Blotter

Life is 10 per cent what happens to you And 90 per cent false memories of what you think happened to you. Welcome to Night Vale.

In an effort to bring more transparency to the Sheriff’s Secret Police, a chronicle of one night’s dispatches will be released to the public. This action comes at the behest of the City Council, who voted unanimously on a resolution to ban plastic bags.

Now, OK, while those two things may not seem related, Sheriff Sam misunderstood the vote as a rallying cry against tyrannical surveillance and a personal threat, involving being thrown to the pit of vipers behind the bowling alley. Sheriff Sam, who has a paralyzing fear of vipers, proposed a compromise in which Secret Police dispatches would be temporarily divulged, so the public can get a better idea of what agency does and how tax dollars are being spent. A plan which was readily accepted by the Council, though they continued to roll their eyes and gnash their teeth and chant softly: [creepy voice] “Viper pit! Viper pit! Blessed be the viper pit!” Which is just how they express a “yay” vote on procedural issues.

As a result, Night Vale has its first ever police blotter. Let’s dig in. 9 o’clock PM. Missing person reported inside the Ralphs. Night manager on duty says employee went to stock some cases of Lime-A-Ritas in the new walk-in beer cave and never came out. Reporting officer thoroughly checked beer cave and confirmed it was deserted. Three cases of the beverage were left haphazardly in the middle of the floor, and a loading dolly had tipped over onto its side. Manager states employee originally brought in four cases. Manager added one missing case of Lime-A-Ritas to the report. When asked if this kind of thing has happened before, manager changed subject and asked if officer would like to look at some of the children’s drawing contest submissions. Officer was amenable to this request.

9:16 PM. Noise complaint. Dog barking in an unknown language annoying residents. Dirty white fur, human face. Gone when officer arrived on scene.

9:25 PM. Two underage residents attempted to sneak into an R-rated movie by pretending to be one tall person in a trench coat. When confronted by officer, they turned into a swarm of flies and dispersed.

10:01 PM. Noise complaint. A sound resembling television static was being emitted from a shower drain out in the Hefty Sycamore trailer park. When recorded and played backwards, it turned out to be a broadcast from a 1952 episode of the game show “Beat the Clock”, where contestants competed to see how many pieces they could smash a clock into. A plumber was called.

10:15 PM. A resident of Desert Creek searched for “easy tortellini recipes”, but none of them were easy enough. It was so late already, and they needed to get to bed soon, but they were also very hungry and needed to eat dinner first. They wanted something quick, but they also wanted a real dinner, not a false dinner like… cereal? They became hyperaware that the more they deliberated on what to make, the longer it was all taking. And factoring in the decision-making time on top of the meal prep time was becoming additionally stressful in relation to the desire to get to bed soon.

11:30 PM. A Coyote Corner’s swimming pool filled with blood and began swirling furiously in a counter-clockwise direction. Home owner appeared distressed. Officer advised home owner to drain pool.

11:31 PM. Multiple residents awoke in a cold sweat from the same dream. It wasn’t necessarily a nightmare, but it was definitely not pleasant. The only thing they could recall afterwards was that it was showing, and that there was a tree with seven limbs.

12:00 AM. Witches.

2:00 AM. That time of night when everything starts getting hazy. Were you headed to a crime? Checking a surveillance station? Listening to a wiretap? Going home? Returning to headquarters? Signalling an invisible helicopter? Sometimes you lose track. An old local legend comes into your mind, and you try to recall the details. It’s been so long since you heard it. You watch the headlights bounce along the dirt road ahead, and your eyes begin to play tricks on you, sensing movement in the dark margins where the light doesn’t penetrate. You turn off the lights and slow the vehicle. They weren’t tricks after all. There is movement here, a dark writhing mass entering the roadway. You are forced to stop the car. Eyes flesh open in the dark. Many sets of eyes. This isn’t part of a half-remembered legend. This is something very, very real.

More of the blotter soon. But first, let’s have a look at traffic. You’re hunting in a pack near the Old Highway. The smell of blood is in the air. Headlights bounce over the rise and your stomachs rumble. The moon flees behind the clouds and you fan out, along both sides of the road, moving parallel to it like a lazy river. The car approaches and slows. It shuts off its headlights, as you knew it would. Some of you push ahead to the car, blocking its path. Others move to the rear and others remain at the sides boxing it in. You converge, surrounding it more tightly the door opens, then closes again, the fleshy creature inside cursing softly. You hear a crackle of radio static, but you know it is inconsequential to you. You consume the metal shell first. There are explosions of air and the hiss of leaking fluids. Then the glass, crunchy and cool in your collective gullet. And finally, the screaming delicacy in the center, the cloth-wrapped package of meat and bone. There are other things afterward, less enjoyable, but consumable nonetheless. Papers and electronics, and the pleather, and cold French fries in the back. Nothing must remain. By the time the moon emerges from the clouds, the old highway will be deserted once more. This has been traffic.

And now a word from our sponsors. Today’s show is brought to you by TickTock. The only app that tells you exactly how long you have left to live. The sleek countdown display synchs easily with all of your devices, so that you can check your mortality at a glance. The premium edition provides additional details, such as manner and location of death, and updates to the minute, as you make different choices throughout your day. You’ll find yourself asking questions like, why did returning a library book just subtract 4 years from my life? How did leaving late for work change my final outcome from drowning in gulch to birds of prey? Why does it say “tomorrow” all of a sudden? [panicking] It must be some kind of glitch, right? OK, OK, I’ve updated the app but it still hasn’t changed. It still says “tomorrow”. I just got checked out by a doctor and they said I’m in great shape, I’m staying home from work, I’m not answering the door, I’ve closed the blinds and I’m sitting on the couch, surrounded by pillows, not moving, not even blinking, I’ve done everything dammit, EVERYTHING!!! WHY DOES IT STILL SAY “TOMORROW”???!! Tick tock. Tick tock. Tick tock. This has been a word from our sponsors.

Back to the Sheriff’s Secret Police blotter. 2:30 AM. Responded to an officer distress call on the Old Highway. No sign of officer or vehicle found. Must have been a false alarm.

3:15 AM. Nude man ranting in middle of old highway, carrying a case of alcoholic beverages. Identified as the night shift stocker at the Ralphs. Claims he entered the walk-in refrigerator at work, reached up to place the case of beverages on the shelf, and abruptly found himself in a network of ice caves. He eventually climbed up a snowy mountain where he met a robed figure he refers to as “The Oracle”. “The Oracle” foretold of a hungry darkness with a thousand eyes and urged that the portal must be cloooosed. The Ralphs employee also reported that “The Oracle” had slurred speech and seemed unsteady on its feet, and may have been inebriated. After this exchange, he then found himself standing in the Sand Wastes nude. He does not know where his clothes are. Officer escorted man back to the Ralphs to finish out his shift.

3:35 AM. Domestic disturbance. “He won’t stop practicing the flute!” a Cactus Bloom resident reported, indicating his dopplegänger who stood in the corner of the bedroom, staring unblinkingly at the wall and playing the same halting scale on a wooden flute. Officer advised resident to take a melatonin and try to get some sleep. “If he doesn’t stop, I can’t be held responsible!” the sleep-deprived resident threatened. “Sounds fair,” the officer agreed and left the premises.

4:00 AM. An alarm clock went off in Old Town. A woman attempted to get out of bed, but her cat walked sleepily onto her person and began purring, preventing her from rising. Her cat is elderly and the woman knows its number of purrs are finite and must be honored. Eventually, she put on coffee and took a shower. She used Herbal Solution shampoo for a lifelong dandruff condition, though she has not seen any improvement after years of using the products. She continues using it, because she likes the way it smells. It smells medicinal, like it’s helping, and it does tingle, like the label promises. The tingle means it’s working, the label says. So it must be working.

And now a break form the police blotter for some sports news. Night Vale High School – go Scorpions! – has added a concession stand to be used during sporting events. The parent-teacher association proudly unveiled the new stand at last week’s baseball game, dedicating the plywood structure to the memory of favorite AP auto shop teacher, Nick Teller. Teller reacted with confusion at this news, as he is still alive. “Oh, of co-, no, of course you are,” the PTA responded awkwardly, “but we just wanted to honor – your memory, as in what a great memory you have. You-you know how you’re really good at remembering stuff? We just wanted to, yeah uh, honor that,” the PTA went on, seemingly unable to stop explaining themselves, whilst standing in front of the dedication plaque, which featured several doves, a Celtic cross, and an image of clasped hands. Teller admitted he does have an excellent memory and is very honored. The following concessions are available at the Teller memorial stand: Special allowances, the granting of rights, the acceptance of certain things as truth, the yielding of certain other things as untruth. Also, RC Cola and popcorn.

Oh, which reminds me, we actually have another word from our sponsor, Royal Crown Cola. Invented by Ferdinand the 1st, king of Naples, who built a museum of mummies inside his palace to house the bodies of his slain enemies. “I am parched from building this museum of mummies,” he famously said, and the rest is history. RC Cola – the drink of ruthless monarchs.

In local news, I have the results of the Ralphs drawing contest. Local school children were encouraged to submit a drawing to the store this week, depicting their favorite Ralphs product. I’ll start with the runners up. The third place drawing comes to us from Ella Snider, a student from Night Vale Elementary, and it shows a large black scribbled mass with a lot of eyes on it, with the Ralphs building on fire in the background. Very creative, Ella!

The second place drawing comes from Jace McCoy, also from Night Vale Elementary, and this one also shows a black mass with many eyes and a big bright red splatter of blood across the page. Nice use of color, Jace!

And the grand price winner comes to us from Heather (Fathusam) [0:16:52] of Daggers Plunge Charter School. Her drawing features a beautiful black mass with lots of lovely eyes, and it’s holding a box of store brand frozen pizza rolls. Congratulations, Heather!

Back to the blotter. 4:01 AM. Distress call from the Ralphs. Upon arrival, officer was pulled into the manager’s office. The employee from the earlier incident was also present, huddled under a desk. Manager frantically indicated the surveillance window that looks out into the store, which he normally uses to spy on shoppers and report on what they are wearing for his Customer Fashion newsletter. Shelves of products were being knocked over and consumed by a vast dark nothingness. The back of the store then burst into flames. The manager implored the officer to quote, “Do something, please, or we’ll all be killed!” Officer used the intercom system to tell the nothingness to vacate the store immediately, and advised it of trespass and vandalism laws. The nothingness took the form of many dark shapes with many eyes. A tank of fresh seafood exploded and numerous shellfish were damaged. Officer advised the shapes that they were all under arrest. “Stop talking to it!” the manager cried and knocked the intercom mic out of the officer’s hand. Approximately 1000 eyes turned to look at the office window. Interesting. Well.

Let’s have a look at that weather.

[“Best Friends” by Curtains: https://curtains.bandcamp.com/]

4:35 AM. Situation escalated at the Ralphs. Officer, manager and employee embraced one another under the office desk amid the shattered glass of the surveillance window. The building trembled around them, products flew through the air, half the inventory was sucked into oblivion, and a great fire blazed, spreading to the bakery section. After doing an estimated 200,000 dollars worth of damage, the darkness and its many eyes entered the beer cave and did not come back out. Officer investigated the beer cave and found it to be empty. “You have to shut down the cave!” the Ralphs employee implored the manager. “That’s its doorway to our world!” The manager hedged and responded that a big heat wave was coming and if they hoped to recoup any of their losses, keeping the beer cave open was going to be instrumental to the store’s survival. “People will spend big on frosty cold beverages,” the manager responded. “Not to mention they’re gonna like standing around in there for a nice cool-down.” The employee wrapped his robe tightly around himself. Oh, the manager had lent him the robe, one of the many fashion items the manager kept in his collection, since the employee still didn’t know where his clothes had gone. “OK,” the employee said. He picked up a Lime-A-Rita and guzzled it down in one continuous gulp. Then he said, his voice already a little slurred: “I’ll have to try to shhhhtop it myself.” He ran into the beer cave and promptly vanished.

5:40 AM. Tree with seven limbs seen growing out of a hole in the vacant lot out back of the Ralphs. Snow observed on the branches, which melted off quickly as the sun rose.

5:45 AM. Real pretty sunrise.

Well, that concludes our Secret Police blotter. I dunno about the rest of you, but I personally feel a lot more safe and secure getting a closer look at what our Secret Police do. On behalf of Night Vale Community Radio, thank you for your service. I’m sure we will all rest a lot easier knowing that our fate is in your hands. Our sleeping bodies are under your watchful eye, and our every thought and action is being monitored for the greater good. As Secret Police mascot Barks Ennui always says: Stay tuned, stay, vigilant, report your neighbors. Woof. Woof.

Good night, Night Vale, Good night.

Today’s proverb: Six out of seven dentists have no idea where that seventh one disappeared to. Honest, they all have rock solid alibis and that blood could have belonged to anyone.

[thatfoxnamedfinley]

[SPOILER ALERT FOR POST] ok so I marathoned the John Wick series over the course of 3 nights (one per night) and SOMEONE TALK TO ME ABOUT THIS SERIES I;M FUCKING **EXPLODING** FROM WITHIN

 ok first of all 

SPOILERS FOR ALL THE JOHN WICK MOVIES OK’

ok so Keanu Reeves, I’m fucking dead. What a fucking movie star. Like. I remember listening to a podcast where they said he reminds them of John Wayne, Cary Grant. Just real leading men with gravitas and pathos of such intensity....his presence evokes sympathy.

John Wick is an amazing character. He’s conflicted. Torn between the violence of the job that he is so good at. The best at, actually. So much so that there are stories about him. A lot of stories. Stories meant to scare. True stories. People stop when he walks in. He gets respect wherever he goes.  The Baba Yaga. 

When he comes for you, you run. I remember this one scene in John Wick 3 when he was fighting Zero. It pans behind Zero to darkness. And, while wearing his signature black suit, he spins and emerges from the darkness like a real monster. I LOVEEEEEEED that shit.

ok so wait

John Wick Chapter 1:: Viggo was hilarious. YOU STRUCK my SON. Why? uh bro he stole john wick’s car and killed his dog. OH.

I WAS SCREAM CRYING AHAHHAHAHHAHAH

introduction of the “He once killed 3 men with a pencil. A FucKInG PenC iL.”

SO YOU CAN EITHER HAND OVER YOUR SON OR YOU CAN DIE SCREAMING ALONG SIDE HIMMMM

chills ~~~

THE PUUUUPPPPPyYYYYYYYY

When he read the letter from his wife, actual waterworks, I was hiccup crying when his puppy died.

Winston (IAN MCSHANE aRG) looking so so happy to see John and then buying him drink. I guess we know who the favorite is now...

AND LANCE REDDICK THATS MY BOI FROM FRINGE!!

The fight in his house then the cop was like “uh yeh, noise complaint”

“you....working again John?” The dark humor was greattttttttttt

BODYCOUNT? ANYONE?

John Wick Chapter 2:: yo Santino exerted massive bisexual energy. Just me? like WOAH. lookin at John with bedroom eyes

For half a second during their initial meeting I thought Santino was going to reach out and put his hand on John’s but he was just sliding his Marker to him. I was like

This was a REALLY great sophomore entry. So good. 

THE FIGHTINGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG

Uh the scene with Gianna understanding the meaning of why John has to kill her; CONSEQUENCES. Her brother has a Marker. He has to honor it. The Marker is what got him out of the game. And the woman he loved was worth it. Her understanding of that and then proceeding to kill herself was a GREAT scene.

“I lived my life my way” I was like DAMMMMNNN GIRLLLLLL yeah okkkkk

Oh right Common was in this too as....Cassian. I think was his name. He as interesting. The fight was cool. I like that they had a weird respect thing going on. I love world building in this way;; there are rules and they must be followed. 

No business on Continental grounds. They have a drink together to understand the other’s motivations.

Ruby Rose was the weakest link imo but she was fine. She used sign language but I just didn’t find her convincing enough to perceive her as a threat. 

LAURENCE FISHBURNE BABBBYYYYYYYYYY and he was playing a dope character that actually helped John too! “SOMEONE **PLEASE** GET THIS MAN A GUN” lololuolololololololol

THE ENDING HAD ME LIKE

John Wick Chapter 3:: *folds hands* I watched this one last night. First of all, John Wick throwing knives is one of the greatest things ever. ALSO. The camera LOOOOOOVES Keanu Reeves. He just holds the entire screen with ease. He’s a true movie star. I really mean that. He invokes sympathy. He has an overpowering magnetic quality that makes him so fascinating. 

((And honestly don't even speak to me about the fact that he is in Cyberpunk 2077 coming out later this year I CAN NOT WAIT FOR THAT SHIT, DAY 1 BABY AND IM GETTING THE PS5 TOO)

ok anyway

ThE KnIFE FiGHT and HE REALLY TOoK On The WHoLE ASSASSIN GuiLD HuH

Then when Winston decided not to step down and John decided not to kill him and they both turned around to look at The Adjudicator like

**DUCK LIPS** WHAT NOW BITCH

and she was like “no cool, that's fine. ima deconsecrate your hotel”

boi

I want him to FUCK UP the High Table in John Wick 4

HALLE BERRY WITH HER DOGS FAMMMMMMMM when that guy shot her dog and then she shot him and she was like HE SHOT MY DOG BRUH

And John was like *sympathetic nod* I get it

I was like THIS IS FUCKING GENIUS WHAT THE FUCK

then she backwashed into his water lol what

tHE ENDING MorPHeUS and NeO A TeaM aAGaiN??????!?!?

This series is so good. Consistent. PLEASE Let me know any thoughts yay have on this or want to talk about this shit.

ok that’s all I feel for now