#there's no Karens to yell at me for stupid shit

[sea-dukes-assistant]

I, too, have constructed a fort of pillows and blankets (and bae, of course).

My very gay not girlfriend and I have decided to take our bullshit and move it somewhere else. This hellsite is getting increasingly more atrocious to use, and I personally am over trying to sort of re-invent this, unsuccessfully, as I try to move on from the trauma of the way I've been treated in this fandom for *checks notes* running a blog about a royal guy. It's inhibiting expression and not fun anymore. I am 37 years old and on my 2nd life. I am tired of holding back because I don't want to further be harassed, psychoanalyzed, insulted, told to end my existence in various ways, berated, scolded/treated like a little boy, talked to like I'm too fucking stupid to understand anything *cackles in above average IQ*, and generally disrespected for no fucking reason.

Also I'm getting more and more anti-Meghan followers who are not only lacking critical thinking skills, but are also hella conservative and anti-alphabet which, considering I fall into that category somewhere now, gives me Concern™. Sea Duke is for everyone, just like hockey and beer (unless you have Celiac Disease, then don't do that, I will drink it for you), even the horse piss Anheuser-Busch has branded Bud Light.

This will not be abandoned; I've put too much work into it to do that. Content will be even more sparse though.

If you would like to join me/us in this endeavor, I can send you invite codes for free dollars and zero cents; pls to message me. I'm not posting the link to my account because I don't want the crazy following it and killing what brain cells I have left. I told y'all I'd stay until this was no longer fun. Well, that time has come. This is no longer a happy place for me, especially since his death.

[hella1975]

it's been pointed out on here before that a lot of terf arguments are actually rooted in sexist idealology that feminists fought and died to unnormalise decades ago and that's its own kettle of fish but one thing i also find very frustrating about this so called 'radical' feminism is that it's so... defeatist? like the moment you categorically label an entire section of society as Bad and Inherently Evil then there's also the implication that nothing can be done about it, and it completely takes all accountability away. saying all men are evil is just another way of saying boys will be boys. he raped her because he's a man. he hit her because he's a man. he didn't listen because he's a man - it's almost offensively oversimplified. there's no point trying to fix this issue in society because men are just Like That, okay! so now what? it's not like they're going anywhere, so you just accept that 50% of the population are evil and will forever treat you terribly and there's nothing to be done about it bc they're biologically predisposed to it? like is that fr the argument here? you're soooo radical for that

[yumenosakiacademy]

?????? dad called me a "REEEEE KAREN" 4 simply explaining smth w a level-yet-slightly-Done tone after he made a 'joke' 2 me tht was an offshoot of smth he legitimately yelled at me 4 the other day jus now w a less-angry tone so i was p sure he was jus being a dense jackass again n trying 2 tell me off (which he prob still was but didnt like tht i wasnt laughing n loling at his assholeish way of speaking bc im not a yes man)

[omgwhatchloe]

STUPID MODERN AU HEADCANONS ALERT

-they all have one hideout they stay at after too many of their apartments kept getting raided. its…its chaotic sometimes.

-bill snores so fucking loud and sleeps on the sofas. he DOES have a bed, he just ‘rests’ his eyes during whatever he’s watching, spreads out and snores like hell. its the most infuriating thing, and arthur does not hold back when beating him with a pillow.

-however if it was lenny or one of the girls who’d fallen asleep on the sofa, lets just say hes sneaking back into the house after late night adventures, and he finds them, arthur would absolutely cover them with a blanket or even carry them to bed depending on how tired he was.

-the men of the gang have differing opinions on drugs, strippers, etc. some will absolutely spend their money on that, others will never even consider it. you gotta remember, this is a gang and theyre criminals.

-movie nights are very random as theyre all constantly in and out, doing this and that, but it is nice when a group of them can settle down and watch something. but you know theyre getting interrupted constantly, because lenny thinks that doesnt make sense and johns hungry and sean thinks theyre hot and tilly cant decide if she wants some of the blanket or not and micah’s just walked in and decided the whole ordeal is very gay etc etc

-STREET RACING. sean, lenny, arthur, john, javier, karen, sadie, even abigail all love it, and it miiiight just be one of hosea’s guilty pleasures.

-leopold strauss does not like dutch’s music. imagine, theyre coming back from a job and he rides with dutch and hosea, who plays ��old classics’ because dutch thinks thats what theyre into. cut to strauss staring longingly out of the window, watching arthurs car with the roof down and pitbull up. he is a very unhappy old man in that moment. he does NOT WANT to listen to big iron, HE WANTS TIMBER!!

-booktok is lenny’s biggest opp. he likes the classics and to wander around bookshops (sean trailing behind him and picking up random books on weeds and fitness to offer him because he doesnt actually know what theyre about) looking for his own books to read and get his own opinion on.

-sean can read, but does struggle with dyslexia and still dislikes books for this reason. he doesnt mind being read too, but feels overwhelmed and gets upset with himself when actually attempting to read.

-mary-beth loves to watch tv in her room only to fall asleep with it on, causing susan to poke her head around the door and yell at her to turn it off at like 3am. but trust me, the girls seen everything. every dating show, reality show, drama, documentary, she has seen it! she also has teddys/stuffed animals!!

-john never grew out of enjoying sleepovers, but thankfully neither did javier. they’d always get drunk and high together, do dumb shit, snuggle only to deny they did in the morning, and get yelled at to shut up. of course, john’d eventually get to have a sleepover every night with abigail, but he feels like its just not the same…

-charles WILL go to sleep in your car and you cant stop him. arthur finds it cute tho.

-the cupboards do not have snacks because everyone is too possessive over what they want and just keep it in their rooms.

-a lot of the time only a few people are having stew, since the rest are off getting fast food or just not eating.

-sean misses ireland so much, homesickness is a big problem for him (to the point he may actually be sick from upsetting himself so much) and he wishes him and his da never had to leave donegal. though obviously he struggles with booking flights and decides to just not do it instead of asking for help. for a perfect birthday present, lenny booked a trip for them!!

-seans da is not dead!! though he lives quite far from where the gang are staying (different state, not back in ireland) and sean misses him more than he likes to admit. the little irishboy loves to sit in his da’s house with a cup of tea, stealing all the biscuits and yapping on. he used to like to bring lenny too, when they were closer (in distance, not relationship)and his da decided he liked lenny more than sean, joking ofc.

[fuck-customers]

today, mar 25 2024, a woman came into my red hardware store and dumped her bag of returns on my counter. she said "i have a fucking return. it's all coming the fuck back. i don't need any of this fucking stuff" and i was instantly on edge because she's being loud and every other word was another f-bomb. and i GET IT i get swearing, i get being angry, but why the hell are you upset with me lol i looked at the pile of stuff and was like "oh did you buy this yesterday?" because i recognized the pile of items as things that i had personally rung up at some point. it's a bunch of electrical stuff like outlet covers and some solenoids or wtv. but god i shouldn't've said anything. because she snaps "No what the fuck. i bought this fucking weeks ago. and i dont fucking need it. so i'm returning it"

and i'm like.. damn ok, fine. she's digging for receipts. and has a huge stack of Orange Hardware store receipts. and i'm watching her flip through them and she snaps "go ahead and grab yours if you recognize it!" and i'm like 'uh.. ok i'm pretty sure that my store's receipt is this one' and i pointed at one (idk if its just the font but i recognized my store's receipt and yoinked it out.

so i start processing her return. she's like "ugh i need to go get my card from the car!" and i'm like ok, that's fine. she doesn't really need it for the return but 1) i want her to get away from me because i'm gonna call a manager she's being such an asshole. 2) her friend was looking for other stuff to buy.

she comes back in with her card. i'm like scanning and returning the items. 3 items i KNOW are NOT ours are on the pile. im like.. i don't want to deal with her trying to insist that they belong to our store. but i scan one. it beeps 'item not found' i go 'oh well these items aren't from our store, sorry i can't return them"

and she's like "i dont see how that's fucking possible! everything in that bag is from this fucking store!" and she's just absolutely shrieking. and i don't understand why she's mad, like i don't get it. the manager came up and was like 'we don't sell this product. sorry we can't do a return on it.'

she screams some more but accepts that they must be Orange Hardware and not Red Hardware. She goes out to "make a call while her friend shops"

and i swear to god that she was screaming at someone on the phone for next fourteen minutes and everyone inside the store could hear her from the parking lot. every other word out of this woman's mouth was "fuck" and it was setting my nerves on edge.

her friend finally came up to buy his shit. and it totals $77. she's standing at the door handing him her visa and she is PISSED that the total is $77. she says she doesn't understand how it could add up to that much. and im like uhmmmm.. they're plumping parts.. and the stupid toys you're buying for your grandkids pushed the total to $77 after tax.. either buy it or leave. i don't care

she ended up buying it but you could still hear her swearing up and down the parking lot as she was screaming on the phone with her mother (apparently) saying that she was going to need to be reimbursed for the shit she was buying

and i'm just like... goddamn, i dont care how awful your day is. don't take it out on employees or customers you asshat.

the only funny part about this is the fact that her name was actually Karen. which just made me laugh. but all the other staff had come up to the front to make sure i was okay while she was yelling. and she did get intimidated by some of the men and slink out while her friend paid for the stuff. but still.. a big yikes.

Posted by admin Rodney.

[zarkishere]

give me your thoughts on the callanders pls

OUGFHHH I WILL !!!

soon (monday lol) the designs i made will be posted with some hcs so im sorry if i repeat some 😭😭

i think they both have naturally VERY LOUD VOICES like Karen constantly tells them to quiet down and they're like " HUH?? IM NOT YELLING--oh. nvm. " - this cuz of the thing Karen says of missing telling the boys to shut up. they yap a lot and they yap LOUDLY when they're home - Davey fights it more i think. like if he's feeling like being annoying he'll talk louder just because fuck you. (it makes Mac laugh too) - Mac's laugh is also just VERY LOUD while Davey wheezes and starts tearing up

they're a bad influence on Sean(?) like Sean is a bit mischievous by himself but together they're a NIGHTMARE because Mac and Davey will literally do whatever the fuck and Sean is like 'i wanna go too!!' - they're not allowed to go on missions alone because Shit Will Happen and they frustrate the hell out of Arthur. - one time Arthur almost had a nervous breakdown trying to get them back home. He'd be dragging one to the horses, be like 'alright, stay here', he leaves to get another, comes back...and whoever was there Is No Longer There (at some point Mac got sober enough he helped with Davey) (Davey said in a very sad drunk voice 'you betrayed me' and Mac's heart broke)

i hc Mac was a little shorter than Arthur Davey is a little shorter than Mac and a lil thinner too (you'll see that tho)

they brawl. give them 5 bucks and they will beat each other up just for funsies (and the money) - they used to defend it by saying they're just practicing - it almost worked. - folk aren't allowed to egg them on anymore. (looking at you, Jenny)

they understand each other in an almost mystical way no one else understands. they'll be in complete opposite sides on a mission and SOMEHOW know what the other is gonna do and how to help - usually they go together, though. you'd never see one without the other.

Davey doesn't remember much of Scotland so when he can't sleep he'll ask Mac to tell him stories of the place and their parents - Davey DOES remember the railway and secretly really likes trains

Davey actually hates cheating (unless Mac is playing, but he only cheats with Mac to fuck with him) - Mac tells him he's cheating when they play poker if he's losing and Davey gives him a silent glare every time

Mac literally keeps literally everything Davey gives him. He once lost a nice rock and was THIS 🤏 CLOSE to start wrecking shit if he didn't find it - it was in the back pocket of a pair of pants he forgot he used the day before - Davey cried laughing at him and Mac got really embarrassed

they argue a lot (like brothers do), but they always end up forgiving each other and patting each other on the back - (really hard, for the record. don't get a pat in the back from them, they'll split your spine in two)

Davey gets really jealous and Mac teases him about it. Like, if Mac happens to spend 'too much time' with Bill or someone else (more than 10 minutes HJKASGJASG), Davey will go over and give a NASTY glare while tapping his foot on the floor with arms crossed. - Mac pretends not to notice at first but usually relents

actually, in general they're a bit too codependent (more Davey than Mac, but they both are) - when they got separated in blackwater they both panicked REALLY BADLY and Davey had to be dragged away because even as he was bleeding out he was kicking and screaming that he couldn't bear the thought that something was happening to Mac and he couldn't help - while Mac was getting tortured by the Pinkertons he asked if Davey was okay and his last few words were him apologizing to Davey for fucking up - Davey's last words were also him apologizing to Mac for being so stupid. the whole ride to Colter he blamed himself for being too reckless and getting them split up

on a happier note i think Davey's love language is words of affection - but they're very passive-aggresive

Mac's love language is gift giving - but he won't tell it was him

[babiebom]

Stardew Bachelor/ette’s as Mean Girls (2024) characters

A/N: i recently watched the new mean girls musical movie and it wasn’t as bad as people were saying it was. Like the singing and the songs were good, the cast fit their characters(except for Aaron’s actor sorry I feel like they could’ve gotten someone hotter but I do understand where Cady was coming from like he’s cute enough that if you’re in high school and in the same class as him at least one person would have a crush on him.) so like I do with everything I consume let’s stardew-ify it!!

Tw:mentions of bullying, cursing, sex, drugs, lmk if there’s something I missed!!

Bc: at least 4 for each

Stardew Valley Masterlist

Shane

Principal Duvall

Is tired of this shit

And teenage girls lowkey frighten him

Would yell and get everyone’s attention in the hallway bc I think he has the lungs

Would leave it to Leah to take over the assembly lmao

“Tell everyone you’re not a drug pusher PLEASE”

Elliott

Damian

While Elliott and Abigail aren’t really friends

He has the flamboyancy I feel to fit this character

Also it’s canon that all characters are bi so it’s okay for him to be in this role

Would probably have all the tea and would be as dramatic as Damian

“She doesn’t even go here?????”

He just seems bestie type

Alex

Aaron Samuels(is that his last name?)

I think this is as obvious as who Regina is.

I don’t think he’s as smart as Aaron is, BUT is popular enough to make Haley want to have some claim over him.

And is cute enough that new girls will immediately have a crush on him

Would actually be crushed if he got cheated on

Harvey

Kevin

The guy on the mathlete team or whatever it was called

Mostly because he’s smart and I do think he would’ve been in some nerdy ass club as a kid

Also at high school college point I do think he would’ve gone through a slightly edgy phase of being a nerd that talks about getting bitches all the time

Would want Maru on the team

Leah

Ms.Norbury

Because I think it’s funny

Like out of all of them Leah would be the one to be called a drug pusher

Like I personally think she smokes weed or eats like weed salads or something

And personally I think she’s above all of the drama of mean girls

Would gather everyone and be like WTF is wrong with y’all we are better than this.

Emily

Karen

Now don’t get me wrong Emily isn’t as dumb as Karen at all

BUT they both have this daydream-y airheadedness about them

And I don’t mean airhead as in stupid either, just more….in outer space than other people if you know what I mean

Like always in their own head

Don’t care about what others think to an extent

If you think about it she fits kinda

Somehow finds herself in the drama even though she’s just been daydreaming this entire time

Maru

Cady Herron

Listen I don’t think Maru would have the balls to do what Cady did

But they both are insanely smart and I can see Maru falling in love with any boy in her class that gives her attention

Would tell someone they aren’t as smart as they thought they were while drunk

She is in calculust yall

Penny

Gretchen Wieners

In the movie Gretchen is very insecure and just wants to be the best friend she can be even if it’s by helping Regina bully others

And at some point turns on Regina because she’s had enough

And is quiet enough to be overlooked as the pretty friend of the popular one

Meek and accepting like Gretchen is

Literally just wants to fit in

Abigail

Janis

I went between her and Leah for this but I think Abigail fits this role more

I think it’s more about style Janis always has a punk rock look about her and Abigail is emo/goth/punk

And while she isn’t autistic I think she is more likely to be called a pyro-Les than Leah is.

Abigail is just the right amount of unhinged to be Janis

Haley

Regina George

Come on this was the most obvious thing about this list

Like actually blonde, gives off bully vibes

Would take over a school and is probably rich.

Would be an absolute bitch and be mean to people then throw a fit when it turns around on her.

Tell me who “world burn” and “introducing the plastics” fits more. I’ll wait.

Unfortunately there aren’t enough characters so Seb and Sam don’t get anyone to themselves but I think both have the energy to fit both Aaron and Damian. Like both are total cuties that anyone would have a crush on even though seb is intimidating and introverted. And both I feel like would have the sass and bestie vibes of Damian so both could be both oof

[walmarttrashbag]

Hurt - Mike Wheeler Pt.2 TW: bitchy, annoyed Mike. hurt-part-one Suggested by: Https-Lola It was finally over! You finally had gotten over the stupid fucking dumbass Mike Wheeler crush of a lifetime, and you have never felt any better! You've turned your life around for the better. You feel so much healthier and happier after the loss of feelings for Mike. Mike, however, couldn't help but stare from afar with a frown. Why did you become so beautiful? Why was your smile so sparkling and outrageously perfect? Who let you go outside and look like a miracle from beyond the stars? Mike had a little over too many questions just about your pretty face. That night while the party was playing DnD, Mike just couldn't shake the thought of you out of his head, and it was like a bad song.

"Mike, are you okay? You're not raging at the fire-breathing dragon coming your way," Dustin pointed out, but Mike was still in a trance. Lucas rolled his eyes and walked over, giving Mike a forceful shake, "Wake up, Lover boy, the dragon awaits!" Lucas said in a jokingly wizard-like voice. Mike flinched, "Lucas, don't do that!" He said, getting defensive over nothing.

Lucas scoffed, "Sorry, sleeping beauty, I didn't know you were dreaming of your princess charming. Just get over Y/n already, I heard she was dating someone anyway!" Lucas said, not realizing all hell broke loose for Mike.

"SHE WHAT?!" Mike screamed out, standing up as he banged his fists on the table, making the characters and dice jump slightly.

"Michael!" Karen yelled from upstairs, "Quiet down!"

But this was no time for being quiet, and Mike quickly jumped to questions, "Who is he? What does he do to her? Why is he with her? What did he do to earn her?! TELL ME!" Mike yelled at his friends. Will spoke out, "I don't know much about him but I heard he's from Maine or Maryland or Missouri or one of the M states," He shrugged. "Yeah, and someone told me he's got a thing for Hawaiian shirts, and being the class clown," Dustin continued from Will's statement, "He honestly sounds really cool," Mike scoffed, "Yeah, who's this bozo's name anyways?" Mike asked, looking at the 3 expectantly for a clear answer. "It was like Rory Turner or something," Will replied. "No, it was something like Remi Taylor," Dustin told Will. Lucas rolled his eyes, "No, dumbasses! It was Richie Tozier! His name is Richie! And Mike, he looks exactly like you!" Lucas pointed the finger at Mike. Mike gasped, "Me? So you're saying I still had a shot with Y/n if she's bagging this Richie guy?!" "Guess so," Will replied, making Mike's blood boil. "That's it. Tomorrow I'm gonna find Richie and give him a piece of my mind," Mike promised himself. "Great, now can we please get back to defeating the dragon?" Dustin asked the party since so much time had been wasted on this dumb conversation.

The next day, Mike got up to school and saw a new bike on the racks. Mike had heard that Richie always biked to school as well. It was like Richie was a big stupid copycat! Mike had a note of description. Hawaiian shirt, shorts, converse, and giant stupid thick-framed glasses.

Mike skittered through the hallway like a cockroach and found a guy who matched the description perfectly, just without a Hawaiian shirt. Mike tapped the guys shoulder, "Hey, are you Richie?" Mike asked the guy.

The kid turned over and it was scary how much he looked like Mike, "Yeah, why?" Richie asked Mike, nudging up his glasses. Mike now knew this was the guy he should be shitting on. "Just know, your girlfriend, Y/n, liked me way before you did. You're just my rehash. The only reason why she's with you is because you're just me in a reskin," Mike told Richie, spitting out venom at the guy.

Richie's face scrunched up before he made a big obnoxious laugh in Mike's face, "Oh that's rich! That's really rich! I know who you are, Mike! And Y/n has told me all the things she's done to try to get you to like her back, and from what I've heard, you're a selfish prick who didn't take the chance when you got it! I've got the prettiest girl on earth, and you're kicking rocks! Go blow your dad before you spit out shit that's not real," Richie gave a condescending smirk to Mike, whose face went beat red in not only embarrassment but anger too.

Mike threw the first punch, and the hallway went from school to hell. Michael Wheeler and Richard Tozier fought things out. Some people get on Mike, and others get on Richie making the school out to 50/50, but before things could be settled out for the last time, you ran to the both of them. "Stop it! Stop fighting! Mike what the hell is wrong with you!" You lashed out at Mike, making him shocked. "Y/n! Come on you still have the chance for me! Why not ride the Wheeler train?" Mike said heartbreakingly as held his left eye.

You were grossed out by Mike as you helped Richie up, "Oh, Richie... Your nose..." You said, wiping the blood from under Richie's nose, before turning to Mike, "Mike, you're just a prick! You avoided me like the plague and you beat up my boyfriend because you're a petty jerk!" You went off at Mike, making his heart hurt on the inside. You walked Richie to the nurse's office, and Richie looked back at Mike, giving him an evil smile signaling that he had won your side once again, which was deserved.

Mike slowly but surely got up, "I'll win her back one day, you're stupid rehash!" Mike yelled out to Richie as the hallway crowd fanned out with no conclusion to the win. Mike was determined to get you back, one way or another, no matter what. He was gonna see Richie fail, and he was gonna King up to the Jester of all jokes.

[ennwen]

"Fake Service Dog" videos

I'm gonna be blunt here: they suck

I see so many "fake service animal compilation" videos on YouTube and I've watched maybe one or two of them, and I want to say:

THEY ARE HARMFUL TO THE SERVICE DOG COMMUNITY

Yes, I do understand that they spread awareness of how big the problem is, but I see them so abundantly and frequently, and what I've seen some of them don't even warrant be filmed or at least posted ONLINE because some dogs aren't causing a large problem.

Ninety-Nine to 100% of these videos are posted without consent. While having a fake service dog is a crime, so is filming and sharing a video of someone without consent. A crime does not fix a crime (usually).

I'm not saying that it isn't ever okay to film something like this, because I completely understand needing proof, but in my opinion, these videos need to stay between the service dog handlers, the people who care for them, and store managers at least 80% of the time.

Too many people do bring untrained pets into stores and it's ridiculous seeing people not being able to control a reactive dog and not doing anything to correct them. It's stupid, and it makes it hard for Service Dogs and SDiT's to stay focused. It's enraging sometimes with how much shit we already have to deal with.

But taking the effort to film a pet in the store and posting it online for thousands of millions of people to see could put you and whoever you're filming in danger. Not only this, but when people with Service Dogs start to yell and make a big deal about it, it makes the situation stressful for everyone in the mix, probably usually including the handlers filming. It also creates bad representation for the community imo, and it's the reason some people call us "Karen's". Telling someone that they shouldn't bring their fake service dogs into the store is one thing, but yelling it after them over and over does nothing but attract attention to the real SD handler and the dog. There's also the fact that Most of these people already know what they are doing, and doing these things are virtually useless unless you can talk about the situation to a manager or the authorities. Most of the videos don't teach anything, and a compilation of these out of control dogs make the public even more skeptical about service animals.

Not only this, but they can also make Service Dog and SDiT handlers more nervous about going into public. What happens if your SD pukes or has diarrhea out of the blue (shit literally happens) and someone films and posts it online? What happens if your SDiT sees something scary they haven't before and reacts differently than you've trained them to and it becomes a viral sensation? There's no way of telling what situation an animal is in either. The person you could be filming may be homeless and not have a way of keeping their pet at home. They might be a older looking child/teen who doesn't know the laws on SD's.

Almost every other type of video is absolutely fine to post online and I wish I would see more of them. Public access issues where someone is being denied service, videos where the handler is showcasing/talking about tasks or showing how they've been trained, videos showing/saying that service dogs are still dogs and make mistakes are my favorite type of video because they inform instead of cause more drama within the community.

I'm not saying all of these videos are harmful, but a majority of them don't need to be posted online. It makes me uncomfortable.

Anyways I guess this was kinda just a vent. Thanks for reading if you read all the way to the end and don't be afraid to let me know what you think about them or if you have a different opinion in a respectful way!

[demons2003]

My Boys (Chapter 62)

Series List

Y/n's pov

Everything after Max was a blur. Steve somehow got us all in the car and drove us back to Nancy's. We made sure all the kids were good and then Steve and I were cuddled up on the arm chair. We talked for a little bit, trying to get a hold of everyone in California in case they had any ideas and waited for Nancy and Robin to get back. When they were back, we filled them in on what happened with Max and they let us know what happened with them. After the long discussion we all thought it was best if we went to sleep and regain our energy.

"Hey, Dustin, this is Eddie the Banished. You there?" I hear through the walkie talkie. I groan and little and shift on my chair, which was Steve's lap. He groans as well but I shush him and quickly get off. "Dustin, can you hear me?" I hear again through the walkie. I look over to Dustin to find him still sleeping. I shouldn't wake him. He really needs his sleep. "Dustin? Earth to Dustin?" Eddie says again. I quickly pick up the walkie and move over to the table. "Hey, it's Y/n," I whisper, hoping he doesn't just ignore me.

There's a small break of static before Eddie says, "Hey, I'm gonna need a food delivery, like, real soon, unless you want me going out into the world." I panic a little and quickly reply, "No, no, please don't leave the house Eds. Stay there and we'll be there as soon as we can." "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Listen, um... can you pick me up a six-pack? I know, it's stupid as shit, drinking right now, but a cold beer would really calm my jangled nerves," Eddie asks. I look behind me and notice that the couch is empty. "Hey Eds, I'm sorry but I'm gonna have to call you back," I rush and turn the walkie off. "Nancy! Nancy!" I yell, shaking Nancy's shoulders. She groans and glares up at me. "What the hell do you want?" She asks. "Aren't you meant to be on Max watch?" I ask her. She rolls her eyes but nods. "There where the hell is she?" I ask her, getting more annoyed. "She's right there. A second ago. I swear, I just dozed off for..." She says but realises that Max is no longer laying on the couch. She looks down at her watch and her eyes grow in shock. She looks back at me and whispers, "an hour."

I groan and we quickly stand up, heading up the stairs. We head into the kitchen and find Max still at the table with her headphones on. I sign in relief and walk over to her. "Morning guys!" Karen greets us. "Everything okay?" She asks us after we don't answer her. "Yeah. Yeah, everything's okay." Nancy replies. "I think it's so sweet that you guys are sticking together like this," Karen says, putting some pancakes on a plate. "Could try sticking together at a different house for a change," Ted says. I roll my eyes but don't say anything, walking over to Max on the table. I sit down next to her and see a bunch of coloured drawings all over the table.

Max notices me next to her and stops the tape, pulling her headphones down. "Hey," She whispers. "Hey. You okay?" I say back, moving a little closer to her. "Just couldn't sleep. People kept blasting music in my ears, for some reason," Max tells me, looking down at her drawings again. I chuckle a little and she continues with, "But Holly let me borrow some of her crayons. We've been having a fun morning, right Holly?" We look over to Holly but she continues what's she's don't and says, "Mmmm-hmmm." I look back down at the table and ask Max, while moving one of the drawings closer, "Is this what you saw last night?" "I mean, it's supposed to be. I though it'd be easier to draw it out than to explain it, but... not so much." Max explains to me. "Is that...?" I start to ask, moving another drawing that seemed to be of Chrissy and Fred in front of us both. "It was like they were on display or something. And then there was this red fog everywhere. It was like a dream. A nightmare," Max explains to me. "Do you think Vecna's just trying to scare you?" I ask her. "With Billy? Yeah. But when I made it here..." Max tells me, pointing at the drawings. "I don't know, something was different. He seemed surprised, almost. Like he didn't want me there." Max continues to explain to me.

I look confused as Dustin, who randomly moved to the table with Nancy, says, "Maybe you infiltrated his mind. He invaded your mind, right? Is it that big of a leap to suggest you somehow wound up in his?" I look at him and nod, thinking about everything that we are learning about. It is weird though. How did Max end up in his mind if he didn't want her there? "Like Freddie Krueger's boiler room," Dustin adds on. "Freddie Krueger?" Holly asks Dustin confused, causing me to laugh a little. "He's a super burned-up dude with razors for fingers. And he kills you in your dreams," Dustin explains to her as child friendly as he can. "Dustin. Seriously? Nancy snaps at him. "Yeah, not like that Dustin," I whisper to him, looking over at Holly's scared face. Dustin looks at her and realises and says, "Sorry. It's a movie. It's not real." "Just... think about it. What if you somehow unlocked a backdoor to Vecna's world?" Dustin asks, looking back towards the three of us. He picks up a drawing and continues, "Like, maybe the answer we're looking for is somewhere in this incredibly vague drawing. God, we need Will."

"No shit. But I tried them again this morning, and it's the same busy signal." Max explains to us. Nancy seems to get idea and reaches over to grab a drawing. "Is this a window?" She asks, showing Max the drawing so she can answer. "Yeah," Max says. "Stained glass with roses," Nancy tells us. I look over and see that exact description on the drawing. "Yeah. See? I'm not so terrible after all," Max sasses to Dustin. "Yeah, well, it helps that I've seen it before," Nancy tells us, ruffling a few of the drawings around. She starts to fold a few of the drawings and move them around until it starts to builds a house. "It's pieces of a house," Max stats as Nancy starts to draw a black outline onto all the papers. "Not just any house," Nancy tells us. We all looks confused at her while she places the last piece of paper down. "It's Victor Creel's house," She tells us, standing up from her chair. "Where you going?" Dustin asks around a mouthful of food. "Waking the others," She says, walking towards the basement door. I quickly get up and run after her as well.

We walk down the stairs to find everyone down there still very asleep. I walk over to Steve but Nancy beats me over there. I scoff quietly but move over to Robin instead. I gently shake her and move a piece of hair out of her face. She groans but opens her eyes. "What time is it?" She asks as she goes to wipe her eyes. "No clue, but we need to go." I tell her, helping her still up and stand. "Where are we going?" I hear Steve ask loudly. I look over to him to find him looking at me in questions, rather than Nancy who is standing right in front of her. "We need to go to the Creel house," Nancy says, seeming to be slightly annoyed. He nods down at her but looks back at me. I smile at him and nod, motioning to the door. "Why don't we get everything ready and head out when we can?" I suggest. Everyone nods, and we gather what we can for the journey.

Sometime later

"This place is so creepy," Robin whispers as I pull up to the Creel house. I look out the window and say, "Yeah." We get out of the cars and start making our way up the stairs that lead to the Creel house. "Yeah, that's not creepy," Steve says, all of us stopping and looking at the house. "Let's get this over with," I say, grabbing Steve's arm and dragging him up to the door. When we get to the door, Steve starts to pull nails out of the wood. I stand on the other side to get the nails out as well. "What exactly are we supposed to be looking for in this shithole?" Steve asks as he throws a nail behind him. "We're not sure," Nancy replies. He looks at me for conformation and I nod. "We just know this house is important to Vecna," Nancy continues for him. "Because Max saw it in Vecna's red soup mind world?" Steve asks. "Basically," I say, getting a "Great," in response.

"Maybe it holds a cluse to where Vecna is. Why he's back. Why he killed the Creels. And how to stop him before he comes back for Max." Dustin adds on. Steve and I look at Dustin but then turn to each other a little more worried again. "We don't think he's in here, do we?" Lucas asks, looking at all of us. Max answers him, "Guess we'll find out." I shiver a little but continue to help get more nails out of the door. "Ready?" Steve asks after a second, getting ready to get the board down so we can enter. I nod and we both let go of the wood, it falling and almost hitting the kids, Robin and Nancy who are behind us. As the wood falls, we find ourselves face with an old door with a glass stained window in the middle of it. "Well, this is it," I whisper to myself as Steve tried the door. "It's locked," He whispers after shacking it a little. "Should I knock, see if anybody's home?" He asks us. "No need," Robin yells, causing Steve and I to turn to her confused. She stands all smug and holds up a brick saying, "I found a key." I laugh and move out of her way so that I don't get hit.

Robin throws the brick right in the centre of the window, leaving behind and almost perfect hole. Steve looks through the hole and then carefully puts his hand through the glass and unlocks the door so that we can all come inside. He pulls his hand out and pushes the door open, causing it to screech. "God I hate that noise," I whisper to Steve, getting a nod in reply. Steve steps into the house first, whistling but the rest of us walk in almost straight away. We all slowly walk through the start of the foyer, looking around to see if there was anything out of the ordinary. "Looks like someone forgot to pay their electric bill," Lucas mumbles to us after trying to turn on of the lights in the doorway. We all start to turn our flashlights on as Steve asks, "Where'd everyone get those?" Dustin looks at him confused and gives him attitude while asking, "Do you need to be told everything? You're not a child." Steve looks at him in disbelief while I softly laugh at the interaction. "Thank you," He sarcastically says while I pull out another flashlight from my pocket. "Here you go Stevie," I whisper and pace it over to him. He smiles at me and takes the flashlight slowly from me.

I start to make my way around the house like everyone else but don't get far before Steve is grabbing onto my arm to stop me. "What?" I ask him, confused why he would stop me. "Go with Robin," He tells me, nodding over to where Robin is. I look at him confused and ask, "Why can't I go with you?" He smiles at me and steps a little closer. "You know Dustin. He'll probably start to start something again. I don't want you to have to deal with it if it can be helped. I nod, still confused why he'd not want me with him, and move over to where Robin and Nancy are starting to head. Nancy looks at me confused and annoyed but doesn't say anything. She turns back around and we start to make our way through the house.

"They just left everything," Nancy says as we look into one of the many rooms in the house. "I guess a triple homicide isn't good for resale value," Robin say back. "Yeah, wonder why," I say before starting to walk further into the house. "Hey guys," Max calls to all of us. We all turn towards her as she asks, "You all see that right?" In front of her stands an old grandfather clock. The grandfather clock that Max saw when she had her visions. Nancy walks away from us and walks closer to Max to ask, "Is this what you saw? In your visions?" Robin and I walk behind her as well, taking a closer loo at the clock as well. "I mean, it's... just a clock. Right?" Robin says, looking between Max, the clock and I. With no response, Robin moves past Max and cleans some of the dust from the clock glass. She turns back to us all and says, "Like a normal old clock." "Why is this wizard obsessed with clocks?" Steve asks us all and adds on, "Maybe he's, like, a clockmaker or something?" I smile at him trying to work it out but Dustin sarcastically tells him, "I think you cracked the case Steve." I lightly smack him in the back of the head which causes him to glare at me while Nancy says, "All I know is the answers are here. Somewhere." "Alright, we need to split up. Make sure you all have a buddy, no one walk around this place alone," I tell everyone, all of us starting to split up and walk around the house.

[christinebloodwrittings]

Something exactly like this

Third part here! Honestly one of the worst things to do in the laboral world is managing clients, I'd rather clean toilets, I would deal with less shit, no kidding xD.

Pairing: Hobie Brown x Fem!Reader

Warnings: Harassing, violence.

Words: 2578

Chapter three: The way of the punk

Taglist: @xoxobabe @lavndrluv

It was around 6pm, things were as slow as ever, but my mood shifted after seeing Spider-Punk, maybe because of that I made a few extras on my tip.

It seemed like a good day so far, I was preparing the inventory for later, and then, it went down when I heard someone scream.

When I hurried back to the counter I saw a couple punks harassing Jess, one of them had her cute scarf on his hand, pulling on it so she was literally glued on the counter, unable to move.

"HEY" I yelled, "Let her go, I'll provide service for you" the taller one let go of Jess, making a disgusting grin, "Now that's better, see how easy is bein' nice?" He pushed her head against the wood harshly before sitting on a booth.

"What can I get you?" The same bastard eyed me up and down, licking his lips, "Don' know, you in the menu?" He and his peers laughed at his lame joke. Normally I would at leat try to knock him out, but like I said before, same shit every day.

"Sir, if you're not gonna buy anything, I'm going to ask you to leave".

"Sweetheart" he grabbed my note pad and wrote awfully his order, then the threw it back to me, "Don't get your knickers in a twist, hurry to the kitchen", I almost wished he said thay it's where I belonged so i had a reason to kick his face, but I just let them laugh as I walked behind the counter.

"Three eggs with bacon and three coffees" I placed the order, feeling Jess's eyes on me, "Are you okay?" She rubbed her neck a little, "Yeah, sorry I didn't know what happened back there" this time I was inclined to hug her, "Relax, stay in the register".

Usually we have people every certain amounts of time, so it's never really full, the rush hour started between 5pm and 7pm, because people started managing from home their businesses, due to all the violence. Only a few thousand were brave enough to work outside, like delivery people, or mall staff.

Punks were the worst clientele, you can ask anybody who has to work with people for a living, besides Karens, old people with children and perverts, punks were simply the worst.

"Order up!" The cook handed me the plates, which I took to the table swiftly and without dropping them, not bad since the leg.

"Thank you sweetheart, that'll be all for now" the other tried to copy his comrade stupid attitude, but couldn't make it sound as disgusting, more like pathetic and uncharacteristic. Rather cringy really.

The air around me changed when I saw that one of them had a gun.

Couldn't made a single movement that was too erratic, neither alert Jess without being too obvious, so I just acted normal, like I didn't give a fuck and started to fill up ketchup containers.

One thing is being shot from behind a smoke curtain where you can't see the gun or the person behind it, but it's totally different to have someone point a gun directly to your face.

No one should know what that's like.

Had to be calm, breathe in, attend them and then they would leave. I kept repeating that when they ordered pie, the plates moved with my shaky hands, and just didn't know how to act anymore.

"Ah, why so nervous luv?" His hand went down my thigh, caressing gently with his dry as fuck fingers. What could I do? I couldn't see his other hand, so I guessed it was on the gun, which he showed me with a dark smile.

"Gonna behave now huh? That's why little humming bird went silent?" The third now spoke, making the supposed leader snicker.

His hand moved upwards, reaching towards my ass, never taking his eyes away from me. I couldn't get out of there, Jess, tired of the scene, tried to get closer but I shook my head slowly, couldn't risk her being involved.

"Let's see how well you do me now, whore" he pulled me to his lap, his hand fully grabbing the gun now. He undid the laces behind my apron and slid it away, then he used the cannon of the gun to slip up my shirt, "Wahoo, little bird is bein' cooperative" mocked the second one, firstly taking my hand and then pinning it on the table.

Now, his hot stinky breath was against my neck, along with his tongue, going up and down. Shivers ran down my spine, while I fought the urges to cry and throw up. "Shakey aren't we? I like that" One more word out of his mouth and I literally wouldn't be able to contain my stomach.

In the midst of an awful situation, his head went backwards and dented knife was pressed harshly against his throat, "You better unhand her, things will get messy otherwise" I looked up, "Sir, please" I whispered not believing my eyes.

"Come get y'er bitch huh? No worries, I'll return her to you when we're finished" this guy seemed to not be able to read the situation he was in, until the manager in a blink of a eye scratched the hand with the gun, giving me a window to break free and run to the counter.

"Look what you made me do, you couldn't just wait your turn huh?" I wanted to say he was in an unfair fighting situation, but two of the guys slipped away as soon as they say thr massive riffleon his hand, so it was just the leader vs him.

"Beat it Claude" so that was his name, it was a bit off for a dude like him. "This ain' over, old geezer" he spit and left, but his gaze lingered on me for some reason, it gave me goosebumps.

If only Spider-Punk had appeared instead of him, I would've kissed him right there on the spot.

"Thank God sir, thank that was so badass" she called him?? "No problem, wonder why he was here of all places, wasn' on his turf, besides no one manhandles my waitresses" he said brushing back his white hair.

"Th...Thank you" I ended up stuttering, and my voice broke as soon as I made the effort to speak up, "Did he hurt you?" Jess walked past the counter, brushed my hair away from my face and neck, then she eyed at my arms, torso and legs.

"Only emotionally, but besides the touching and licking, he didn't do much" she sighed, "You're pale, need anythin'?" She seemed really worried, "I'm sick, so I'm gonna take five in the bathroom, I feel...dirty" I turn away from Jess, for some reason I felt embarrassed, maybe was the fact that everyone saw that horrible scene back there, but the embarrassment was going to pass, the feeling of his hands and awful words wasn't, not easily.

After I puked my guts out, I resumed work, then at 7:30, locked myself in the back to do inventory, alone with my headphones, blasting pop clasics instead of listening to my thoughts, otherwise they would eat me alive.

Later I was walking home when I remembered Spider-Punk could come, and since I didn't really had the energy to deal with people, at all, no matter how nice, I thought of leaving a post it on the window, because I couldn't exactly text him, right?

Home sweet home.

Was it really? Sure I entered a department hardly decorated, half of the walls painted in a minty green that was hideous, with two corners occupied with stacks of empty boxes, a single brown couch and a bedroom as boring as vanilla ice cream.

So yeah, home.

Lonely, cold home. With no one who greets me with a hug, with something freshly cooked, or at least the damn lights on. Just the emptiness and coldness, as usual.

Is sometimes a curse to be independent.

I threw my work bag on my bed, it looked tempting as fuck, but I knew I wouldn't be able to get up. The only things in my mind were an instant Ramen cup I had stashed somewhere in the kitchen, and a shower.

And I couldn't wait to be clean.

But as soon as I opened my window, the masked man fell from the roof and stopped to be face to face with me, upside down like earlier.

"Hey there luv" there he goes again with the gorgeous British accent, "Hi, I was just about to ask you for a rain check"

"Why? Somethin' happened?"

"No" Yes, "Work drained me, socially speaking, so..." I sighed, my eyes shut fighting a few tears "Sorry I just can't deal with anything or anyone right now"

"Wanna be alone, talk about it, a distraction, just stare at the telly, or a hug with no questions?" I really appreciated him giving me options, but I was just so tired, "I want to sink in the dirt, so can we...do this some other time?" He bowed his head slightly, "Of course, have a good night luv" he was so polite and understanding, it made my heart flutter.

"Same, be careful" He jumped away, but as I was about to close the window he came back to open it back again.

"What are you-" he didn't let me finish, a single jump and he was inside my room, "I know the best to shake off a bad day, come with me" he suddenly was so illuminated, but I wasn't sure, and he noticed. "We'll be back before curfew, cross my heart" he assured me, and seemed confident enough.

"You sure?" I placed my hand on his, "I bet you a kiss" I grabbed my cellphone, and my keys just in case, before following him to the window, "You're on".

He took me to the roof, the last bits of the sun shining at the distance made me forget the cold wind blowing.

He jumped on the edge, and pressed my body to his before leaning back, and fully jumping off the roof, his arm firmly wrapped around my waist. "Oh my- Fuck!" I yelled, holding him for dear life. I heard him fucking laugh, "Don't mock me you punk!" He laughed even harder, "You're so cute!" I heard him, and felt the movement of his cheeks, I bet he was smiling.

We landed in front of a cafe, not like the one I work in tho. It had a simple style, not much like the 80's, more like modern but it felt like home. The smell coming out of the kitchen was sweet, warm, welcoming.

Gosh how did I missed a place like that?

"Man like Sam! Spare us an hour or two?" The man from the counter lifted his head, "Yo wassup Spider-Man, sure thing, the usual?" Seemed that they get along just fine, "Yeah, but not for me, you're not alergic to cherries right?" I shook my head, "So that and a... coffee? Or perhaps a milkshake, luv?" He gave me a nudge on the shoulder, making me laugh at his funny tone.

"Making fun of me, huh?, a capuchino please" the man nodded with a sweet smile before going to the back.

"I wasn' ya know? Just thought you were the kind of girl who enjoys the milkshake with the share heart straw" I laughed as I followed him to a booth.

"I mean, I do enjoy a good cliché, but this is not that kind of situation, and you're too cool for that" he gasped in a dramatic way, "You're assuming the way of the punk don' like cute stuff?" The smile on my face grew a bit, "I suppose so" he leaned his body against the wall, punching his chest with both hands pretending to stab himself.

"Way to punch my heart lil' luv" he was so weird, "You like clichés? Aren't those a way the media has to make people buy into a fake romance idea, and make money out of it?" I saw how he tensed his jaw, only to mouth a dry, "Yes" probably clenching his teeth.

"Not very anarchist of you to like 'em" I bluffed,

"In my defense, don't believe in consistency, luv" he was so enigmatic, but so simple? I had so many questions.

"Right, so you're a hopeless romantic?" He sat normally, took a second to think about it, then sighed, "I enjoy the lovey-dovey shit, it's a good rest from the hard leather and violence" waving his hand in the air.

The same man from before brought me a piece of cherry pie, with whipped cream and a ball of ice cream on top, and the capuchino, it was so cute, it had a shape of a cat on the foam. I thank him and offered the spider a bite but he refused, maybe because he just didn't wanted to lift his mask, too much exposure I guess.

"Must be hard" I broke the silence, while toying with the crust, "The what?" He asked, I was going to mention his whole vigilante life, but I figured something more, complete.

"Living in a constant fight flow" he looked down, then to the window, like looking for something in the foggy night.

"Already used to it, but yeah, who wouldn't be fed up already?, this seems like it's..." he punched the table, sighing exhausted. He seemed so tired of everything.

"Endless" he lifted his gaze at me and nodded, "Yeah", the only thing I managed to do was place my hand on his, to bring at least some comfort,"I feel you" his hand faced the other way, so he could lace it with his fingers.

"What had you so down?" His voice was low and soft, as if he was being careful and put a lot of thought into the question.

The piece of pie went hard down my throat as soon as he asked.

"I just...I really hate man that think they can do whatever the fuck they want to women" I felt how his hand had a firmer grip, not quite menacing like the punk at the coffee shop.

"Did someone do something to you today?" He suddenly went straight with his tone, and also his words.

"Honestly he was an imbecile punk, I don't care anymore, by the way no offense, but most idiots nowdays are punks" I stared at his fingers playing with mine, his other hand tapping the table occasionally.

"What did he look like?" He insisted.

"So you can do what? Forget it, if only he didn't had a gun, I would've kick his ass myself" the air went quiet for a little bit, again it was like I could hear the gears in his head turning, "Did he hurt you?" I shook my head, not wanting to disclose what he actually did, "Nothing physical".

"If I had stuck around, maybe would've helped" that made my heart flutter a little, the idea had crossed my mind, him swinging and saving me from that asshole, "It was hours after you left" It wouldn't have changed a thing, but he sighed and murmured a low "Still", his gaze, I just knew he had it on me, but how I wished I could see his eyes.

"If it makes you more at ease, this helps a lot" I laughed, but the sound of a police siren brought our attention to the window, and ruined the whole evening.

[scarabsinthestardust]

Better in the Morning // Ch. 6

MASTERLIST

word count: 2300+

CHAPTER WARNINGS: Language, mentions of a strained parental relationship, anxiety

I’ll admit, I was shocked when Jake first told me he wanted me to meet his family. He proposed I tag along with them to Michigan for the holidays; he was beyond excited to show me his hometown, and to introduce me to his mom. I shouldn’t have been surprised- we’d been together for almost two years, and it wasn’t the first time he’d mentioned it. This was a perfectly normal thing for couples to do, so why was I so goddamn nervous? The way the guys talked about their family, it was safe to assume they had wonderful, caring, loving, and normal parents. I worried that I wouldn’t belong there. I played scenarios over in my head that someone would ask about my parents, and it would all be downhill from there; they’d think I wasn’t good enough for Jake, that I’d tarnish the bloodline. It sounds so ridiculous when I say it out loud. Looking back, I realize it was a stupid thing to worry about at all.

My knee was shaking, and Jake placed a hand on me to still it. I was never bothered by planes, but I let Jake believe I was just a nervous flier. It was easier than explaining why I was terrified to meet his parents.

He warned me that December in Michigan would be cold, but I wasn’t prepared for how cold. He chuckled at me, bundled up in all my layers, my teeth chattering as we waited for our ride outside the airport. “What, are you cold or something?” I shot a glare at him and the shit-eating grin on his face. “Doesn’t it get cold in West Virginia?”

“N-not like this. B-b-besides, I was born in T-Texas. I th-thrive in heat.”

He wrapped an arm around my waist and brought his lips to my ear. “Well, I guess I’ll just have to warm you up later, huh?”

The next shiver that ran through me probably wasn’t from the cold, and an involuntary gasp escaped my lips.

“Get a room!” Sam yelled overdramatically, in his exaggerated Midwest accent. Jake grinned and flipped him off just as the car pulled up.

The ride was easy, full of excited chatter from the boys, and it helped me to swallow my nerves for the time being. Danny was dropped off at his parents’ house first, with promises to come by the Kiszkas’ later. I didn’t tell anyone I saw him squeeze Sam’s thigh before departing. When we arrived at our destination, my heart started pounding again.

Jake grabbed my hand as everyone was unloading. “It’s going to be fine, babe. They’re going to love you.” I could only pray he was right.

I sucked in a deep breath as we entered the house, Josh leading the way. I was immediately aware how warm it was inside, a welcome shift from the freezing temperature outside. It smelled nice, like a mix of pine and peppermint. The initial excitement, everyone exchanging hugs and ‘I missed you’s had me backed into a corner. I felt like I was only going to be in the way. But when Karen, Jake’s mom, had greeted all her children, she turned her attention to me.

I’m sure it was obvious how nervous I was. She shooed the boys away to give us some space. “You must be Kya. I’ve heard so much about you. I’m so glad you could make it.” She extended her arms to pull me into a soft, welcoming hug. I hugged her back and returned the sentiment. “Let me look at you.” She pulled back to look me in the eyes, her hands on my shoulders. “I can see why you caught Jake’s eye, you’re so pretty.”

I felt the blush creep up my cheeks and did my best to mutter a thank you. I was introduced to their dad, Kelly, and received an equally sweet welcome from Ronnie, Jake’s younger sister.

Most of the evening was spent chatting, everyone getting caught up on what was going on in each other’s lives. Karen asked me questions about my job, how I liked living in Nashville, and some general small talk. No one ever raised any questions about my family, and I wondered if Jake had already said something to them. On one hand, I was grateful I wouldn’t have to force out any awkward explanations to people I barely knew, but I didn’t know how much Jake, or even Josh, would have told them.

They really were such nice people; I didn’t feel like I was being judged or looked down on. They made me feel welcome. We all sat at the dining room table and shared dinner, which was frankly quite delicious. I wasn’t surprised; Jake had to have gotten his culinary talent from somewhere. But as the night progressed, us all gathered in the living room sipping on wine, the nerves started to make a comeback. Jake stood in the corner by the record player, chatting with Kelly about some vinyl or another. Everyone was absorbed in their own conversations, and I was suddenly feeling entirely too hot. I grabbed my jacket and slipped out the back door, hoping no one would notice. Someone did.

I stood against the railing on the back porch, reveling in the quiet and focusing on getting my thoughts in order. It wasn’t that I wasn’t having a good time, and the Kiszkas had been nothing but nice to me. So why did I feel like crying? I pegged it on to the fact I was tired, or maybe I could blame it on some seasonal depression and told myself to get it together.

I jumped at the sound of the back door opening. I expected Jake and was caught off guard when I was met with Karen instead. “You alright, sweetheart?”

“Yeah, I’m sorry. Just needed some air.” I forced a smile to show her I was fine.

What I didn’t know was how observant a mother of four could be, and I certainly wasn’t expecting her to pick up on what I was feeling so easily. “I know it can be a little overwhelming sometimes. There’s nothing wrong with needing to take a breather every once in a while.”

Sighing and rubbing my eye, willing myself not to cry, I fiddled with one of the rings on my finger. “I’m sorry. You guys have been wonderful. I’m just not used to… all this.” I waved my hand around, gesturing to the house and hoped she wouldn’t take it the wrong way.

“Oh, it’s okay. Like I said, things can get a little chaotic in this house when the boys are home. I know… I hope you won’t be upset with him… Jake told me a little about your parents. I won’t pester you for details, but I want you to know you have a family here. And if you ever need to talk, woman to woman, you can always reach out.”

At the time, I couldn’t understand why she was opening up and inviting me into her family so easily. Part of me expected her to be like Josh, distrusting and overprotective. She didn’t know me all that well. And I had a hard time fighting off the thought that I didn’t deserve this.

She must have noticed my confusion, although the few stray tears that escaped might have been a dead giveaway for how I was feeling. She grabbed a soft hold of my hand. “Jake speaks so highly of you. Josh and Sam, too.” I was a bit dumbfounded to hear that even Josh had talked about me to his mom, and that it was all good things. “I can’t thank you enough for taking care of my baby, Kya. I think you’ve been so good for him, and I can tell he loves you so much.”

And with that, any ounce of self-control I had went out the fucking window. The tears were flowing freely now, and this amazing woman who had brought the love of my life into this world hugged me, just comforting me like any good mother would.

I eventually calmed myself down and pulled away from her, wiping my eyes. “God, I’m so sorry. I’m a fucking mess.” I flinched at the curse that slipped out, but she didn’t seem fazed. I’m sure she’d heard worse raising the boys.

She tsk’d at my apology. “Oh, stop it.” I heard the back door open again; this time it was Jake that stepped out, a worried expression on his face. I quickly wiped my eyes, hoping he didn’t see me crying on his mother’s shoulder.

“Everything okay out here?”

Karen smiled. “Yeah, we’re good. Girl talk.”

Jake placed a hand on my back and looked at me, searching my own expression. “Your lips are blue, babe.”

I giggled. I was so distracted I hadn’t noticed how cold I was. “That’s because we’re in the damn arctic, Jacob.”

With a smug grin on his face, he planted a kiss on the tip of my nose. “You just need thicker skin.”

Back inside (and back in the comfortable warmth) and feeling like a weight had been lifted off my chest, I was able to enjoy the rest of the evening. After everyone retired for the night, I was laying with Jake on the small bed in his childhood bedroom. It still looked like a teenage boy’s room; old posters lined the walls, including what I guessed was the first Greta Van Fleet poster they made. The room still held remnants of when they were young, whispers of memories of much simpler times. Jake held me close and told me stories of their youth until I started to doze off.

“Thank you for coming with me,” he whispered into the crown of my head.

“Thank you for letting me into your life.”

~

The rest of the holiday went off without a hitch. Early Christmas morning we gathered around the tree in the living room, everyone excited for the gift exchange. The fire was lit, giving the house a nice, cozy feeling. I sipped on some coffee and sat cozied up to Jake on the couch, happily watching everyone excitedly opening their gifts. I’d even made it out with a handful of presents myself, which I didn’t really expect but it was sweet, and I was so appreciative. By the end, the floor was littered with shreds of wrapping paper and bows, haphazardly tossed to the ground. I helped clean up while Jake helped Karen start prepping for the huge dinner they would serve later. I also spent some time talking with Ronnie, getting to know the other Kiszka sibling.

I’d gotten a few ‘Merry Christmas’ messages from friends, and one from Richie asking if I was having a good time. I sent a few scattered responses, not wanting to appear to have my nose buried in my phone for too long.

We’d stuffed ourselves way too full at dinner and I was ready to crash. I found myself on the couch, snuggled up with Jake. We had swiped a fleece throw blanket and under the cover of it, his fingers traced along the skin under my shirt absentmindedly. Another buzz from my phone had me holding it up in front of my face.

Unknown number – 8:34 PM

Merry Christmas. Hope you’re well, mija.

I let out a sigh, debating if I wanted to respond. I glanced up at Jake to find him staring at my phone inquisitively. “My dad,” I explained.

“You don’t have his number saved?” I could tell he was only curious; there wasn’t anything judgmental in his voice.

“He changes his number frequently. Probably using a burner phone or something.”

“Is… is that normal?”

He sounded so confused; I couldn’t help but laugh. “For that nutjob? Yeah.” I shot back a quick text, just wishing him a Merry Christmas, not wanting to reveal too much information. He was the last person who needed to know I was in Michigan with my boyfriend.

~

When it was time to pack up and leave, it was bittersweet. Karen loved having her kids home for the holidays, but the time always came for them to return to their lives in Nashville. Plenty of hugs were exchanged and promises made that we would let her know when everyone was home safe.

Karen ensured I had her number and gave me another reminder to call if I ever needed anything. “Even if you just need me to keep Jake in line once in a while,” she joked. He’d rolled his eyes at that, bidding one last goodbye to his family and leading me out the door.

Jake promptly fell asleep on the plane ride home, giving me some time to think. That was when I realized that my previous worries were, in fact, stupid. His family had welcomed me with open arms, even when they didn’t know me. His mom treated me like I was one of her own, never once shying away, despite my emotional meltdown. She provided the kind of motherly love that I didn’t get to experience as a child, and it made me feel safe. On top of it all, Jake’s willingness and eagerness to invite me into his own family so easily warmed my heart.

He looked so peaceful while he slept. I was a little jealous at the ease with which he could fall asleep on an airplane, neck craned at what I knew had to be an uncomfortable position. I studied him then- his jawline, his lips, the shape of his nose, how his eyes fluttered behind his eyelids as he dreamt. He was beautiful, and I was so proud of him and everything he was, and he was all mine.

[dwobbitfromtheshire]

To Change

A/N: Wayne and Ted friendship, but it also could be read as something more. I don't know much about Ted's background in TFS, just the hedgehog thing. Here ya go!

Ted Wheeler wasn't a perfect father. He knew, but he figured he was a thousand times better than his own abusive father had been. Maybe he had tried too hard not to show his anger that he inadvertently put up the distance between him and his children. In his own stupid way, he thought he was protecting them. Maybe if he didn't get upset or show anger. . .maybe Karen would stay, that they would stay. He hadn't understood, though, just like with most social interactions, that they needed more from him. He didn't understand how to let them know that there were some things that he might not be able to give them. He didn't know how to talk to them but he had to start somewhere. He had caught Mike crying in the bathroom and trying to cut his hair.

"Here, let me help," Ted had said softly.

Mike didn't say anything. He just handed Ted the scissors. It was quiet between them as Ted cut his hair. He noticed how tall Mike had gotten. When did that happen? Pretty soon, Mike was going to be tall like him. In this moment, Ted was proud of his boy but also sad and angry for him. He shouldn't have had to go through something like this. None of them should have. Ted gently brushed the hair off the back of his neck.

"Thanks," Mike said stiffly.

"Mike," Ted said softly. "I'm so sorry about your friend. I lost a friend myself at that age, and I know how - "

"Bullshit!" Mike yelled.

"Michael!" Ted exclaimed.

"I don't believe you! I don't believe anything you have to say. You don't give a shit about anything! You just sit there in your chair, and you do nothing! You care about nothing!" Mike screamed. "It should have been you!"

Mike stormed out of the room, leaving Ted standing in the bathroom amongst his hair. He slid to the floor and let out a sob. How did he fuck up this badly? Ted gripped his arms. He began rocking back and forth as every noise in the house suddenly became overwhelming to him, even the sound of his own beating heart, which he wished he could rip out. He wished he couldn't feel anything because nothing hurt more than hearing your son wish you were dead. He knew Mike was hurting, but the words that spilled from his son's mouth still cut him like a knife to the heart. After crying for a while, Ted stood up and wiped his eyes before cleaning up the hair.

It was later that afternoon that Ted had invited the rest of the party into his house to talk about what their next plan of attack was. He didn't know what to do or to say. He really was useless. The awkwardness he was feeling made him feel uncomfortable in his very skin, and listening to them talk about what all the kids went through made it even more so. Now, the other parents were yelling at Hopper and Joyce for keeping them in the dark for so long. He didn't blame them for being angry, but the noise was too much for him to bear. Ted pulled himself out of the dining room and into the kitchen, trying to practice the breathing techniques his mother taught him to do when he was younger.

"Yeah, the noise overwhelms me too," a voice spoke, and he jumped. "Sorry."

Wayne Munson had followed him into the kitchen.

"It's fine. . .I just don't know what to say in there," Ted said.

"You're telling me," Wayne scoffed. "I don't, either."

"You want a beer?" Ted asked.

"I think the situation calls for it," Wayne sighed and Ted snorted.

He pulled out a couple of beers for himself and Wayne. They drank in comfortable silence for a while. The only sound was the parents chewing out Joyce and Hopper, but it was more muffled now that they were in the kitchen.

"I feel like my head is spinning," Ted said.

"Yeah, mine too. . .you had no clue at all that it might have been something like this?" Wayne asked.

"I can't even tell when someone is being sarcastic with me," Ted said. "How was I supposed to guess?"

"Yeah, I can't tell when people do that either. It made it easier for my brother to manipulate me," Wayne said. "Even with all the stuff I believed, I never would have guessed. . ."

"I don't know what I can possibly do with all of this or to say, and I know how it looks to people. . .like I just don't care," Ted said, sipping his beer.

"Yeah, some people think cause I don't talk much that I don't care neither," Wayne would tell him. "Like I have always told Eddie, people will see what they want to see. If all they see you as are the people in their lives who hurt them, that's all they'll see unless they decide otherwise. People won't change their minds unless they want to. Can't do it for 'em."

"I thought you don't talk much," Ted said.

"Asshole," Wayne smirked.

"Sorry about Eddie," Ted said. "Mike says he's a good man. I didn't know him. I wasn't sure what to think of him at first. . ."

"You change your mind?" Wayne asked.

"Yeah."

"You're better than most."

"I caught Mike crying in the mirror and cutting his hair. I helped him fix it. I told him how sorry I was. He yelled at me that he didn't believe me and that I didn't give two shits," Ted sighed.

"It breaks your heart, doesn't it? When they think you don't give a damn?" Wayne asked.

"Every damn day," he whispered.

"We're going to save this town even if they went after my boy. I'm gonna prove them all wrong," Wayne said.

"I'll help," Ted said. "I'll figure it out somehow. I can't let my boy think I'm completely useless. I can't let anything happen to him or my girls."

"Ain't no one going to stop you from trying to prove yourself?" He asked.

"No."

"Well, I guess someone is going to have to look after your stupid ass," Wayne replied.

"I'll do the same," Ted said. "Someone should look after you, too."

"The next person who says you don't care, I'll give 'em what for," Wayne said.

"To change," Ted muttered softly and held out his beer, tapping it with Wayne's.

"To change."

Ted came through for his kids and for his wife, summoning all of his courage to do it. He remembered that time Mike tried going to camp for the first time. He hadn't liked it and called him immediately. He remembered driving all through the night, through bad weather, to go and get him. Then there was that time that Nancy had gotten sick with the chicken pox. He had driven all over trying to find the brand of juice she liked. . .just trying to do whatever it took to make her feel better. He didn't know how to give them the comfort they deserved. He wasn't good at the whole hugging thing, and he didn't know how to talk about his feelings, but he could do things for them. Even when they wanted to go to a fair and everything overwhelmed his senses. He'd do it for them. He also remembered when Holly was born and she nearly died. When Ted wasn't by Karen's side, he was by Holly's. There was one moment when he wasn't by either, and he had gone down to the chapel to pray. Ted wasn't all that religious, but he was willing to do whatever it took to make sure his family was okay.

"Please, don't take my baby. Don't take any of them. I'll do whatever you ask of me. . .just don't take her," Ted had pleaded. "Take me instead."

Wayne had kept his vow and attempted to protect Ted's stupid ass from danger over the last few months as he also tried to prove to the town that his family wasn't anything to be afraid of. Holly had been in danger once again as well as his wife. He couldn't let anything happen to them; he couldn't let that fucker take his little girl. The Demogorgon had come for both of them, and he threw himself at it, his glasses getting knocked off of his face in the process. He heard the sound of them breaking underneath the creature's feet and then Ted felt the claws sinking into his own flesh as though it were butter. He let out an inhuman shriek of pain as fire exploded overhead and lit the creature up. It ran off, hollering and then he heard Mike.

"Dad! I'm sorry. . .I'm sorry, shit!" Mike cursed as he fell to his knees, crying. "I know, I've said a lot of things, and I know how hard you've been trying. I know you care; I know you care. Please, I don't want you to die."

"I'm proud of you," Ted whispered and closed his eyes.

"DAD!"

Ted saw nothing but darkness, and he thought for sure that he was dead at first, but then he opened his eyes for a moment. He was looking up at the dim lights of the hospital. Shit, what the fuck? He lived? He was moving quickly as though people were pushing him. He briefly saw Mike out of the corner of his eye, trying to run after him. A nurse stopped him as he couldn't follow them after that point. Wayne grabbed him from behind, trying to hold him, and he struggled in his grasp. A look of understanding passed between them as Nancy caught up with them. Wayne had his boy, and Nancy had Holly in her arms. He could sleep now.

"Dad!"

When Ted woke up, he was lying in a bed with annoying beeping sounds filling his ears. God, couldn't they turn it off? It probably wouldn't be a very good idea, he realized.

"Ted," a familiar voice spoke to him.

Ted turned his head to find Karen looking at him from the other hospital bed. The last time that he had seen her, she had looked dead. He sighed in relief and tried to get out of bed but was pulled back by the pain in his sides as well as his IV. He laid back in his bed.

"I thought you were dead," Ted sobbed.

"I thought I was too for a minute there," Karen chuckled weakly. "The nurse came in a while ago. Everyone's sleeping in the waiting room. We won, Ted."

"Shit. . .we did?" he asked.

"Our family is safe," she whispered.

"I can't believe that our kids have been dealing with this all this time," Ted said and cursed. "I know I should be feeling happy that we won and that our kids are safe. . .but all I feel is anger that we could have done something about all this. . .that they could have had you to help them through it. I've never been good at the emotional stuff but you were."

"I haven't seen you this angry in a long time, Teddy," Karen said.

"I don't like being this angry," he replied, and he went silent.

"Oh, Teddy. . .is that what you've been worried about? Even at your angriest, you aren't even close to being like your father. It's alright to be a little passionate about things, especially things that other people don't understand. They don't have to," Karen said. "I can't believe you've been worried about this all this time."

"I don't know how to get the words out or where to find them but even when I do. . . they seem to get stuck in my throat," he said.

"I think we both have a communication problem," she said. "I should have been honest with you about what I've been wanting in my life. I want something more, Teddy, something that you can't give me and almost dying made me realize that. It's such a shitty time. . . "

"You want a divorce?" Ted asked.

"I'm sorry," she sobbed.

"Don't be, Karen," he said. "I shouldn't feel relieved. . .right? Is that a bad thing? I mean, I feel sad. . .maybe I've been wanting something more. . .I just don't know what that is."

"I think it's a good thing, Teddy," she said. "I don't know what I want either."

"It's been a while since you called me that," he realized.

"I love you, I always will. . .but we were friends first. I know that not many people know that. I want to get back to that," she said. "You gave me a really good life and I still want you to be a part of that."

"I want that too," Ted said. "I love you."

There was a long silence after that Ted had used to drift off to sleep. The next time he had woken up, he woke up to the sound of voices in their room. Ted opened his eyes to find that Nancy was leaning over him, her eyes red from crying.

"Hi, daddy," Nancy said.

"Hi, pumpkin," Ted said.

"It's been a long time since you called me that," Nancy sniffled.

"It's been a long time since you called me Daddy," Ted said. "I think the last time you did, you were still rolling your ds."

"What?" Nancy asked.

"You probably don't remember, but you had this speech thing when you were little. Doctors made us take you to this speech therapist who you did not like. Told us and you that you would always have trouble speaking," Ted said.

"You definitely didn't like that," Karen laughed.

"I have never seen a more determined look on such a little girl," Ted said, and Karen laughed.

"It was cute, though," she said.

"It was. You've always been so headstrong," Ted said. "I'm so proud of you. Of all of you."

"I'm glad you're still here," Nancy said, her bottom lip trembling, squeezing his hand.

Mike shuffled forward to stand on his other side.

"I'm really sorry," Mike whispered.

"I heard you, son," Ted said. "And I know you didn't mean it. You've all been through so much, and even as strong as you are, I know all that hurt and pain is still going to come out. I never handled it well myself either at that age. Don't really handle it well now. I tried so hard not to be like my father, but I became more like a robot than anything else."

"You never talk about him, and whenever I mention it with Nana, she said I shouldn't ask you about it," Mike said.

"My father was an abusive asshole who knocked me around for being different. Nothing I ever did was enough for him. I tried so hard to be what he wanted me to be, but I realized how miserable it made me. I started doing what I wanted, what made me happy, and when my father caught me with a boy. . .that's when the beatings started," Ted sighed.

"But you and mom - ," Mike started to say.

"I never really cared about what the packaging looked like, just the present inside," Ted said, touching his hand to his chest.

"And you can really do that?" Nancy asked.

"You can do anything. . .within reason, I suppose," he said.

"I had no idea, Ted," Karen said softly.

"How were you supposed to? I never told you and I should have because I always thought you were my best friend," Ted said. "My own father never understood. When my mom found out. . .well, Nancy, you can wield a shotgun as well as your Nana. She didn't hesitate to shoot him."

"She shot him?!" Nancy and Mike asked.

Suddenly, Ted was grateful that Holly was curled up in a chair, fast asleep. She was always a heavy sleeper.

"Grazed the bastard, but yes. He left not long after that, decided neither one of us was worth the trouble," Ted said. "I always blamed myself for what happened. I was too weird, and it what drove him to madness. Everything was too loud for me. I couldn't socialize right. . .certain clothes didn't fit me. I was too picky about what I ate. . .always said the wrong thing. . .I was too queer. . ."

"No, Dad. It was him. He was the one who couldn't accept you. He's the mouth breather," Mike said. "Nana should have shot him in the dick."

"Michael!" Karen and Ted exclaimed.

"Sorry."

"If you think there's something wrong with you, then there's something wrong with us. We've always worried about those things. I know I'm always worried about saying the wrong thing, and I don't always pick up on things either," Nancy said.

"Neither do I, and I don't know it when I'm saying something shitty," Mike frowned.

"There's nothing wrong with you," Ted said thickly, and they looked at him. "There's nothing wrong with us. You're all so strong. . .so much like your mother and your Nana."

"We get a lot of things from you, too, Dad," Nancy said. "You're strong, too, Dad."

"He's certainly stronger than his eyesight," Mike quipped. "That's something you have in common with Dad, Nance."

"For the last time, I do not need glasses!" Nancy exclaimed.

"Bullshit!" Mike yelled and picked up a book. "What does this say? Read it without squinting."

"I don't think it's going to hurt if you get them checked, at least," Karen said.

"I guess it wouldn't," Nancy frowned.

"Still that determined little pumpkin," Ted chuckled weakly. "I'm going to need new glasses anyway. Might as well come with me."

"You can't see, Daddy?" Holly asked sleepily as she sat up. "You want me to read Nancy Drew to you?"

"I would love that more than anything," Ted said.

"You read Nancy Drew to her?" Nancy asked.

"Just like when you were little," Ted said. "And Mike, but that was during his following Nancy everywhere she goes phase."

"Oh, I miss that phase," Karen grinned and Mike groaned.

"Mom, I'm reading!" Holly said.

Ted chuckled as Holly opened her book and began to read, after moving her chair in between her parents' beds. He looked over Holly's head to share a look with his soon to be ex-wife. Their marriage had been over for a long time, but they are still what they have always been. . .family. They still had a lot to talk about and so many other things to deal with, but Ted felt like there wasn't anything they couldn't handle. An hour or so later, after Karen had drifted off to sleep, Dustin appeared in the doorway.

"Hey, Ted, glad to see you're not dead," Dustin said.

"Well, someone's got to stick around to make sure you don't eat me out of house and home," Ted said dryly.

"God, I would have missed this," Dustin said, shaking his head fondly.

"I thought you hated my dad," Mike frowned.

"Michael Dean, whatever gave that idea? You really know nothing, don't you?" Dustin asked. "Anyway, thought you ought to know that Max is awake. . .if you're interested at all."

Dustin disappeared as quickly as he had appeared. Mike and Nancy shared a look.

"Go, I'll be fine," Ted chuckled.

"If you're sure," Nancy said and then took off with Mike.

A moment later, Wayne appeared in the doorway, looking a lot happier than when Ted had last seen him.

"I was wondering when you were going to come see me," Ted said.

"I was just giving you time with your family," Wayne said.

He looked about as awkward as Ted usually felt. He wasn't sure what to say here either, though they had a lot of moments like that. They also had a lot of moments where they sat in comfortable silence. Ted was still learning to pick up on things with him. Wayne was a hard man to read sometimes, especially with Ted's limitations. He frowned as Ted watched him.

"Is there some wrong, Wayne?" Ted finally asked.

"Eddie's alive," he said.

"Jesus," Ted gasped. "How?"

Wayne exhaled loudly before explaining that the bat bites had turned him into a creature of the night and that Eddie had been instrumental in taking Henry Creel down.

"It's a lot to process even for me but he's still my boy," Wayne said.

"Well, I'm really glad that you got him back, Wayne," Ted said.

"Yeah. . .I heard that Karen wants a divorce," Wayne said bluntly and Ted looked at him. "Dustin's got a big mouth, very loud one too."

"That's true," Ted scoffed. "Yeah. Karen wants a divorce. It's going to be better for us and our family even if the kids can't see it right now. . .it is. I think when we were younger, we both just assumed that that's how our friendship should evolve. It's been over for a long time, and we've both been trying to hang onto something that was never really there. . . I told them about my father. You were right. They understood."

"Of course they did. Did you tell them about your boyfriend who died?" Wayne asked.

"No. . .I couldn't. . .still trying to process telling them all of that. . .I wasn't quite ready to say that I think my father might have killed my boyfriend," Ted sighed.

"You'll get there," Wayne said.

Ted was practically blind without his glasses, but he could tell that something had moved underneath Wayne's shirt pocket.

"There's something wiggling underneath your clothes," Ted said.

"You really don't know what comes out of your mouth, do ya?" Wayne asked, laughing.

"What? . . . Oh! Wayne!"

"I got something for ya," Wayne said.

"No tricks!"

"Of course. You know me. . .perfectly innocent," Wayne said and Ted scoffed.

Wayne pulled a hedgehog out of his shirt pocket and laid it on Ted's chest.

"What? Where did you get this?" He asked.

"Went down to the animal store," he said. "You mentioned once that you had one as a boy, and it seemed like you might have wanted one again, so I got you this little fella."

"Thanks, Wayne," Ted said, touched by the gift, and then he laughed. "You know, most people give flowers. They don't sneak hedgehogs into a hospital."

"I ain't most people," he shrugged.

"That's true," Ted said. "You're better."

Suddenly, Eddie popped into the room with Mike following after him.

"I heard Uncle Wayne made a friend, I had to come see for myself," Eddie said, flashing his dimples.

"Oh, lord," Wayne said with a sigh.

"Is that a hedgehog?" Mike asked.

"Wayne gave them to me," Ted said.

"Most people buy flowers," he pointed out.

"I'm glad to see you aren't dead, Eddie," Ted said. "I know your uncle has been a mess without you."

"Yeah, me too," Eddie said as he looked softly at his uncle.

"Is that Eddie?" Karen asked, spoke up. "What's going on?"

"Hey, Mrs. Wheeler, glad to see you alive," Eddie said with a grin.

"I think I've heard people say that a lot today. . .it's starting to sound weird," Mike said.

Ted quickly told Karen what Wayne had told him.

"Oh my God!" Karen asked.

"Don't worry, I don't feed on humans," he reassured her.

"No, honey, I'm just relieved you're back," Karen said.

"Yeah, so are the rest of Vecna's victims. . .turns out they weren't really dead," Eddie shrugged.

"That includes Chrissy. . .what was that song you played for her?" Wayne asked teasingly.

"Shut it, Uncle Wayne," Eddie said, rolling his eyes, and he softened his expression. "I think because of Dustin, everyone in the whole damn hospital knows about your impending divorce. Sorry about that."

"Don't be, it's the best thing for us," Ted said.

"Well, hey, Karen, if you don't want him, I'll take him," Wayne said, and Ted laughed with her. "I've had worse, unless. . .what's he like when he wakes up in the morning?"

"Asshole," Ted said.

"I keep telling everyone that my uncle is a menace," Eddie muttered. "But no one believes me."

A moment later, Nancy came in with Jonathan and Steve. All three of them were wearing yellow sweaters.

"What'd I miss?" Nancy asked.

"Was this on purpose?" Mike asked, looking at them.

"Well, my uncle seduced your dad with a baby oppossum," Eddie replied.

"Okay, I know for a fact that's a hedgehog," Steve said.

"What?" She asked.

"Did Nancy dress you?" Mike asked Steve and Jonathan.

"Yeah," Jonathan said. "So, what's going on?"

"Nancy and Michael have a new daddy now," Eddie cackled.

"That's great," Nancy grinned. "I've always wanted two dads."

"What? Since you were a little girl, you closed your eyes and wished real hard?" Steve asked.

"Yeah, but only because mom didn't let me have a marshmallow before dinner," Nancy grinned, and they all laughed.

"You can have all the marshmallows you want, darlin," Wayne said, and they laughed harder.

"I'm glad Dad has a friend like you," Nancy said softly.

"I'm lucky to have a friend like him. He's a handful but. . .he's a good man," Wayne said.

Ted swallowed as he gazed at him, recalling all those talks they had and all those times they sat in comfortable silence. Despite how uncomfortable he was, he looked directly into Wayne's eyes. He remembered all the times the other basketball players had wanted to be his friends. . .they hadn't truly wanted to. They were just basking in the fact that he was good and that he was popular. They hadn't given two fucks about him. The same went for all the girls he had dated back then. Even though it had taken him a while, he saw them for what they had truly been: pretenders. He hadn't found someone who truly cared for him until Karen, but they had both assumed that it had been romantic love, but they had been blind and so, it had led to much frustration. Wayne truly wanted to be his friend, and even without his glasses, Ted could see that.

"I think the hedgehog just pissed on you, Ted," Eddie cackled, breaking their gaze.

"Goddamnit."

[fuck-customers]

🐎

(To find it later)

Oh, have I got an ASS of a customer.

Well, my first sign this one would be trouble should've been the amount of makeup she was wearing. If my legally blind ass can tell you're wearing a shit-ton of makeup, you're probably actually wearing TWO shit-tons.

Her mistake was having her TODDLER try to hand me the money. I'm trying to accept the payment while taking another order (which is what you're supposed to do in drive-thru). The toddler drops the money.

Guess who this Karen-ass yells at for it.

"Why would you let go of the money? Now I have to get out of my car and get it." And then she's mad that I'm taking another order. So she yells at me for that, then goes to the second window (without paying me, instead of, y'know, just handing me the money after she picks it up? Like literally everyone else who comes through here when they drop their money or card? Like a normal person?), so now I have to make THREE customers wait while I have to go up there to get her damn payment. And she's all "are you gonna hold on to it this time?" Lady, I'm not the one who dropped it. Maybe don't have the toddler handle the money? Especially when there's a fucking LINE AROUND THE CORNER behind you. (I didn't say this, but I sure as hell thought it.)

Why are people stupid?

Posted by admin Rodney

[ryttu3k]

Thoughts on Doctor Who - Boom! Some negativity ahead, maybe a 6/10 overall.

Well that was about as subtle as a sledgehammer XD Yes yes the algorithm is bad, yes yes capitalism is bad, yes yes war industry is bad, yes yes religious extremism is bad. I agree with all that! And tbh there are people who do need that message to be about as subtle as a sledgehammer because they Do Not Get It!

But holy shit, this one made Orphan-55 look subtle XD

(That said, kind of adore the chutzpah of doing the Capitalism Is Bad story in the first season of the show as owned by fucking Disney.)

A… weird aesop at the end. "Blind faith is bad. Also, just because I don't like it, doesn't mean I don't need it, because apparently I need religious people to tell me what to do."

Splice was… odd. Grew up in a warzone, also launches herself into said warzone because Dad sent a weird message. Seems singularly unable to recognise what had happened despite, y'know, growing up in a warzone, but that's okay because Holodaddy mentioned seeing antelopes. I feel she was written to be much younger (like, five-ish), which is an issue with the casting, actually, because as it is she just kind of came across as dense as a sack of bricks. No, stupid child, you do not run into the minefield! I did see commentary about how chilling it was for her to be so easily placated by the AI, though, so that could be a deliberate choice, I guess?

Mundy is okay. Didn't make me go, "Yes, she absolutely needs to be the new companion!", which is a pity, and the whole romantic tension between her and the other dude felt whoppingly out of place. Yes, half the planet is going to blow up but that's okay, her crush likes her back! Hoping that either she's playing someone totally different as companion (like Freema Agyeman and Karen Gillan having smaller roles before being cast as companions, to say nothing of some of the actual Doctors!), or that Mundy actually develops some personality beyond 'romantic yearning', 'Christianity', and 'portents of doom'. That said, if she is playing Mundy again, I do enjoy the idea of Mundy Sunday XD

Last annoyance, promise - lmao god if Moffat's head was any further up his arse he'd be a mobius strip. Villengard (although setting the episode in the 51st century is at least consistent with its destruction), the Anglican Marines, preservation of dead people in incomplete digital formats, the president's wife poem/song thing, even fish fingers and custard. Dude. I know. You're still salty about being replaced as showrunner. Doesn't mean you have to yell about how great your era was by throwing in every single self-congratulatory reference you could think of XD

(That said: I much prefer him writing standalone/double episodes. Do Not let him write arcs or be showrunners, but he certainly can work a single narrative.)

Positive notes: Even if it was as subtle as a sledgehammer, I did enjoy the reveal - that there wasn't actually any war, and it was entirely a self-perpetuated conflict based on algorithm and profit. Like the writing could have handled it better, but the premise was really cool.

Ncuti Gatwa's acting was fantastic. Beautiful tension and stress. Loved him monologuing to Ruby's dead body because if he doesn't talk, he can't think right.

"I'm more explosive than I look - and honey, I know how I look."

"Ruby, I forbid this." "Yeah, good luck with that :)"

"- and frankly, your lifespan sucks." (Just wanted Ruby to go, "Dude. I've been dead for the last ten minutes.")

Continuity

Enjoying the continuation of Ruby's snow.

Susan Twist has appeared again, although I still have no idea what this could be building up to. Much bigger role than some of the earlier ones.

This is Ruby's first alien planet, but The Devil's Chord implies she's been travelling with the Doctor for six months? So this would have to be set before Devil's Chord, or else they've just spent six months in space stations and time travelling on Earth alone.

A lot of emphasis on the Doctor as a father, tying in with his mention of Susan last episode, which also dealt with the familial connection between the Toymaker and Maestro and the whole Pantheon thing, and brought up the stuff with Ruby and her lineage again (the AI glitching out when trying to work out her next of kin, although I feel Moffat forgot that… next of kin doesn't mean 'blood relative'… she has a Mum!). I feel there's definitely going to be something about the Doctor's family in this season as well as Ruby's. The TARDIS identified her as human, but could there be a connection?

Season ranking

As of s40e03:

The Devil's Chord

The Church on Ruby Road

Space Babies

Boom

And on a deeply silly note: I initially heard 'Kastarion' as 'Karstarion' and went :D because BG3 ship mentioned <3

[becausegoodheroesdeservekidneys]

Doctor Who, but Chronologically: 33

It has happened a few times, so far, that we've seen episodes that, whether good or bad, had little impact on the series: they answered no questions, and posed no new ones.

This, however, is the first we've watched this way that suddenly answers a shit-ton of arc while offering new elements, and also hints at a whole bunch of vital story we haven't seen yet, and is completely fucking batshit to the point of near-incomprehensibility.

It's 1938, and the episode is Let's Kill Hitler.

We open with a "Previously On" that contains nothing we've previously seen LMAO ALMOST AS IF OUR WATCH ORDER IS DEEPLY FUCKING STUPID but it turns out Amy was pregnant after all, her baby was promptly stolen by a one-eyed woman fighting a war against the Doctor that the Doctor was apparently unaware of (insert Don Draper "I don't think of you at all" meme), the baby is called Melody and has Time Lord DNA because... well that wasn't explained but maybe it's why Amy's pregnancy test was inconclusive, and there are some aliens called the Silents. Oh, and at some point Amy was melted. Is Rory still plastic? Not sure.

Anyway, we open with Amy and Rory trying to get the Doctor's attention by writing his name in crop circles in a scene that made me wonder how much they had to pay the farmer to film it. "Have you found Melody yet?" Amy begs of her missing baby, except she doesn't, because Karen Gillan imbues the scene with the urgency of a housemate asking if you remembered to check if Shell or British Gas will give you cheaper bills.

Then Amy and Rory's BESTEST FRIEND MELS turns up. The show then has to introduce us to Mels, because in spite of being presented as an indispensable part of their lives, even people watching the normal way have never even heard of this woman before now. Then she pulls out a GUN from somewhere and insists they all go to kill Hitler, which... I'm on board, actually.

Except a shapeshifting justice robot staffed with tiny people (I love the shapeshifting justice robot staffed with tiny people btw they should get their own spin-off) is already here and trying to kill Hitler, so the TARDIS smashes in and accidentally saves his life. There is a genuinely very funny and enjoyable scene where they punch Hitler and put him in a cupboard.

And then the episode just fucking nosedives in quality. Mels was accidentally shot by Hitler, and regenerates - into River!!! We know her, she was a criminal who could fly the TARDIS. What this means, though, is that Amy and Rory - new parents, who are desperate to reclaim their kidnapped baby - find out in that moment that their baby... will never come back to them. They're never going to see her again. They're never going to get to raise her, never going to see her take her first steps, never teach her to identify trees or swim or dance. A whole childhood and adolescence of memories and experiences, stolen away. They're to be grateful, they're told, that they knew her as their childhood tearaway friend Mels - because that's just like raising her after all. Except prior to being Mels, she was raised and abused and brainwashed into being an assassin - a "psychopath", because the writers don't know what that word means. They will never be able to protect her from that.

That is a horrifying thing to realise; the sort of thing that will mean you're in therapy forever.

And the episode considers it to be so unimportant that Amy and Rory are IN THE BACKGROUND OF THE SHOT WHEN IT'S REVEALED.

Who gets our focus?!? Why, the Doctor of course! Who else but the Specialest Man. This is obviously deeply relevant to him the most. Jesus fucking wept. Also I should mention this is easily the most misogynistic episode we've seen yet. The Doctor asks and receives permission to hug Amy - from her husband. River regenerates while yelling "I'm trying to focus on a dress size!" and makes another three fatphobic comments within the same scene. When Amy says "But River's not a psychopath in the future! What's wrong with her right now?" the Doctor responds "She's been brainwashed and also she can't help it because she's a woman."

(That's not an exaggeration. "She's a woman" is literally given as the reason she's a "psychopath". In a scene in which said woman has spent half her lines stressing how thin and fuckable she is.)

Anyway, the rest of the plot is what you'd expect, probably - River tries and succeeds in killing him with slow poison, Amy manages to be useful inside the shapeshifting justice robot staffed with tiny people, there's a showdown where River decides to save him by using up all her regenerations on him. At the point the Doctor dies, Karen Gillan and Arthur Darville literally forget to cry. It's an utterly sterile scene where you're just waiting for them to hurry up and resolve it. At the end, the Doctor now knows that he's going to be killed by River (dressed as an astronaut! A plot answer!) in Utah in 2011, which he hides from Amy and Rory for no clear reason given that they already know. We learn the Silents aren't an alien race but a religious sect who believe that Silence Will Fall when the first question is finally answered, though why they want that silence is a mystery (technically so is the question but I'mma be real with you all, lads, I remember watching this series when it was first on and immediately guessing so lol). Hitler is still in a cupboard.

However, it was very nice seeing Cardiff museum.

Plot threads!

“She” (an unknown person) is returning (perhaps River returned as Missy. Maybe Me? Maybe Clara???!)

There is something on Donna’s back

An entire planet, Pyrovilia, just… disappeared, somehow. (Maybe because the TARDIS is exploding??? Saturnine was also lost, and that WAS because of the TARDIS exploding. The lion man’s planet was also lost but he was a bit of a knob about it if I’m honest.)

Amy is maybe dead (she’s not)

The Doctor has been cubed (he’s out, but how?)

River is possibly blown up  (unless she’s Missy)

The TARDIS has blown up  (It’s fine now. Except it’s sort of melting now because it’s corrupted, but it’s fine again)

The universe appears to have ended  (the universe is back again)

The Doctor has employed(?) Nardole

(And Nardole was “reassembled???” Nardole had glass nipples and invisible hair?? WHAT THE FUCK IS HE)

There’s a vault in the TARDIS and it contains Missy but we don’t know why (sometimes she knocks for the bants)

What has happened to all these companions and where are the new ones coming from?

There’s an immortal Viking girl now. Her name is Me and she’s now looking after the people the Doctor abandons

Why was Rory entirely unconcerned by the entire world suddenly going silent when that is Not Normal and should have been, at the very least, extremely disconcerting?

What did the Doctor do to Queen Lizzie One?

Who is Captain Jack Harkness? (Is he the one who gave the companions a warning about the lone cyberman?)

Why is Amy seeing a one-eyed woman in a vanishing window? (NEW INFO: she's with the Silents, but we don't know why Amy saw her)

Why is Amy's pregancy inconclusive? (NEW INFO: because the baby had Time Lord DNA?)

Who is Sarah-Jane Smith?

How is the Doctor Bill’s teacher and why/where does he have an office?

What is going on with the Cyber War and the Cyberium???

What happened with the Other Cyber War?

What happened with the Third War that deleted the void?

Why does Rose seem particularly important?

What’s with the Weeping Angel statues, and why can’t you blink at them?

What order do these Doctors go in? (Eccleston, Tennant, uncertain, Smith, Capaldi, Whittaker)

Which companion just… forgot the Doctor, and how?

Yaz and Vinder are about to die as Mori/Mwri/Muuri

There is a Lupari shield around Earth.

What’s a Time War?

What’s the Rift?

What’s Bad Wolf?

In which war did the Doctor become a war criminal, and how?

Who is the Master?

Why has Amy forgotten Rory?

Is Rory plastic or not?

Why is the Doctor sulking on a cloud?

How exactly does the Doctor have a cloud?

What exactly happened with Strax to, uh, tame him?

Which friend killed Strax?

Which friend brought Strax back?

Where did this lesbian lizard and human couple come from?

What happened with Clara as Souffle Girl and the Daleks?

How does Clara actually join?

Why so many Claras?

Why is Missy apparently in robo-heaven?

Why is probably!Missy pushing Clara and the Doctor together?

What is Trensilor and what happened there?

Who is Handles?

The Doctor is about to be dissolved by a beautiful geode man

The universe is being crushed by the Flux

Will the Doctor open the fobwatch?

Sontarans are invading Earth again

Who is Kate?

Who is Osgood? Another name of Clara’s again?

The fuck is the deal with the Grand Serpent

Does Martha get to go to an ice cream planet with 12-fingered massage aliens?

How did the Doctor forget Clara?

Who is Bill’s puddle girlfriend Heather?

How did Nardole die?

When does Bill get Cyberman-ed and die?

When does the Doctor shrink and enter a Dalek called Rusty?

Whittaker is falling to her death rn

Was that ring relevant?

Does anyone know the Doctor’s name?

When did Yaz talk to Dan about fancying the Doctor?

When did Dan talk to the Doctor about fancying Yaz?

Who was the Doctor’s wife?

What’s happening with the bees?

What happened with Donna’s ex and a giant spider?

What war wiped out the Daleks, and is it one of the ones already mentioned?

What did the Doctor mean when he said “The (Daleks) always live, while I lose everything?”

If Dalek Caan is the last Dalek left why are there more now?

How did the rest of the Time Lords die?

How and why did Amy melt?

What's the question that will make silence fall?

Why do the Silents... want silence to fall?

How and why are Silents at war with the Doctor when he... hasn't even heard of them?

How does Hitler get out of the cupboard?