#they spend their entire time celebrating their anniversary holed up in their house

[anarkhebringer]

I've been thinking about Arkhe and Rekrito's wedding anniversary, which happens right after they can finally go home in Shadowbringers, so it's even more special to them.

[itstheoneshot]

Unlucky Thirteen

Request

Summary: Your anniversary is supposed to be special, celebrating many years of love shared, memories made, but this year is proving to be a little more difficult.

Word Count: 2.8k

Pairing: Lee Junho x Reader

Warnings: 18+, NSFW, Restraints, Choking, Unprotected Sex.

Thirteen years. Thirteen years to this very day, since you met the man you eventually married three years later. Thirteen years since you met and fell head over heels with your now husband, Lee Junho.

You had spent the day packing, organising the last pieces that needed to be, for your trip away to celebrate this milestone. Junho, of course, had not. As usual, he was holed up in his home-studio, working on new music, wanting to get, in his words, just one song done, before your joint week abroad.

You weren’t mad…

Okay, maybe you were a little mad.

Or a lot.

Yeah, okay… you were very mad.

Junho had woken up before you, and he had locked the office door shut, not coming out for the entire day. At this point, you had all but decided that he had completely forgotten about your anniversary, or that he had remembered, and simply didn’t care.

It is hard to rationalise with yourself, you know that you are not flying out until tomorrow, but you had hoped that Junho would have wanted to spend the day with you still. You have the suitcases lined up by the front door, ready to wheel out to the taxi when it arrives tomorrow morning. The house is clean, a house-sitter has been organised to come stay tomorrow and look after the cats, and you are ready to relax now.

———

“Yeobo,” You sigh, resting your head against the studio door as you knock gently, “Are you almost done?”

It has come and passed dinner time, you had managed to find some leftover noodles in the refrigerator for yourself to eat, though Junho still had not left the studio. You can hear him, although the room is soundproof, the muffled noise escaping through the gap between the floor and the door.

You hear nothing in response, though a moment later you jump back as the door that you were leaning on opens. Your husband stands in front of you, looking both frustrated and dishevelled, his shirt unbuttoned halfway, his hair a little messy, and your head spins as you try to remember what you were waiting for.

“Baby,” He sighs, “I’m so busy.”

Try as you might, you can’t help the pitiful whine that leaves your lips, tilting your head back to try and compose yourself. You know that he hates your whinging, but you truly have not got the energy to hold it in anymore.

“You’ve been in there all day,” You mumble, “Is it really that important?”

Junho grits his teeth, and you question whether your tone was a little brattier than you had meant it to be. He takes a second to reply to you, raising his brow as he looks at you with narrowed eyes.

“You know not to interrupt me,” He murmurs, “And you know that my work is important.”

Your heart drops, the tone of his voice is dark, frustrated, you have only heard it like this a handful of times before. You try your hardest, always, to be on your best behaviour, only acting out when you are extra needy, and clearly that is exactly where you are at right now.

“I’m sorry, oppa,” You reply in your sweetest aegyo, knowing full well how much Junho hates when you try to get out of trouble by being cute, “But aren’t I important too?”

Junho steps forward, and you instinctively step back, trying to get away. Your back hits the wall behind you, and you watch fearfully as your husband takes another step towards you. You realise quickly, that you should not have pushed it, that you should have taken him seriously, and as his gaze darkens, he makes you feel so small in front of him.

“Of course you are,” He replies, “But I promised Chan I’d have this song done today.”

You are silent now, as you stare up at him in front of you, too nervous to say another word. You know him well enough though, to know that you have to reply, so you muster up all of your courage to speak.

“I’m sorry,” You apologise again, “You can go back and finish if you need, I don’t mind.”

It is a lie. You do mind, you don’t want to spend the rest of the evening waiting for him to leave the office, only to come to bed and fall asleep straight away, like you know that he would.

“I won’t be doing that,” He shakes his head, “You’ve distracted me, baby, I can’t work anymore.”

Guilt washes over you, and you worry about the outcome of this. Junho is a perfectionist, more than any man you know, and a delay in his work is never a good thing for him. You are in trouble, and there is no way you are getting out of this now.

“What do you need me to do?” You stutter, flinching as he lifts his arm up, placing his hand flat against the wall next to your head, “I’ll do anything, yeobo, you know I will.”

He smirks at you, and you know that you are done for. Though you are not shy to admit to yourself that you wanted him like this, you love it when he gets mad at you, when he is pent up, frustrated, and you are his source of release.

“Oh, I know,” He smiles at you, “You’ll be good to me tonight, you always are.”

Straight to the point as usual, you are more than ready for what Junho has in store for you. He never disappoints, especially if you have infuriated him beforehand. You try to maintain eye contact, but you look down momentarily, to see his hand on his belt buckle, and you gulp as you lift your gaze again, to see that his eyes are darker than they were before.

His movements are quick, too fast for your brain to comprehend as with one hand he grabs your wrists and holds them together, and the other unhooks and rips out his belt from the loops. You can’t say no, or protest, you only watch on as he easily wraps the leather around your wrists, pulling it back through the buckle to tie it together.

“Yeobo,” You whimper, “Please…”

Junho laughs, shaking his head at you, before tugging you closer to him, and away from the wall. You have to be quick on your feet to keep up with his much larger strides, and you have no choice but to obey him, as he leads you up the stairs towards your bedroom.

“It’s too late for that, sweetheart,” He murmurs, opening the bedroom door, “You don’t get to try and pretend that you don’t want this.”

You stifle a scream as he pushes you backwards onto the mattress. With your hands tied in front of you, you are unable to support your fall, landing flat on your back, you are reminded again that you are at his complete mercy. Though he is right of course, you want this, you love being his target, having his full attention, no matter what that means for you.

Transfixed, you watch as he effortlessly unbuttons his shirt, allowing the material to fall off his shoulders, and down his arms to the floor. You admire his body, desperately trying to use your core strength to sit yourself up, reaching out to touch him. Junho laughs at you again, though he takes your wrists, unbuckling the belt to free you.

You try to pull him closer, but with a stern look from your husband, you stop yourself, and remain still as he pulls your sweater up over your head, leaving your top half exposed. Of course, you should have known that he would not free you for long, as he guides you further up the bed, only to pin your wrists together against the metal bedhead, looping the belt through once more to secure you.

Junho leans down to kiss you softly, chuckling as you whine, tugging on your restraints as you try to free yourself. The way that his bare skin feels on yours is electric, your head is spinning and he has not even really touched you yet.

“Are you gonna tell me what you want, baby?” He asks you, his tongue swipes across your bottom lip, but he moves back before you can react at all.

You don’t hide the confused look on your face, but the pieces come together for you in your head, and you realise that you had not made a request, you had not told Junho why you had interrupted him from his music.

The brat in you is insatiable, unable to stop yourself, you close your eyes, smiling as you shake your head. He is going to have to force the words out of you, as you would never willingly admit that all you wanted was his attention, not a chance.

Once again, you can only watch, as he trails his fingers down your neck, your chest, your stomach to the elastic waistband of the leggings you are wearing. You writhe under his touch as he kisses where his fingers have been, paying close attention to your breasts, massaging one while his mouth works the other, teasing your nipple between his teeth before swapping to give the other the same treatment.

You hate that you can’t touch him, desperately wrapping your legs around his, pulling him as close to you as he will allow. Your wrists hurt from pulling on the belt, but you don’t stop trying, earning whines and pleas for freedom as Junho further undresses you. You can see that he is hard, too, and he is not afraid to show it, the button of his slacks undone from the pressure, as he works to tug your leggings down and off you.

“Baby,” He murmurs, fingers gently pressed to your core, though your panties are in the way, “You need to tell me… I can’t help you unless you tell me.”

You want to resist some more, but his touch, his closeness, it is too much, it is always too much. You are not strong enough, you can’t help yourself anymore, you will give in, any second now, you are going to give in.

“Daddy, please,” You whine, watching his eyes light up as he stares at you, “I need you. I need you to fuck me, it hurts…”

Junho smiles at you, as his fingers hook into the elastic waistband of your panties, you allow him to tear them from you, only slightly ashamed as you see your arousal stringing from the fabric when he throws it away.

“Oh, sweet baby,” He coos, his tone so condescending, as he moves to pull his own pants down, “You need Daddy’s help, huh?”

You hate the way that his words make you even needier, it is pathetic, the way that you nod enthusiastically, your legs kicking impatiently as you wait for him to join you again. You admire the man that you married, his perfect body, defined abs, and that fucking v-line that leads directly to the… part that you want the most.

“Daddy’s so hard,” You observe, your words a little slurred as you stare at him, mentally preparing for what you know he will give you, “Please fuck me, I promise I’ll be good.”

Junho positions himself between your legs, as you willingly oblige him, spreading yourself further in hopes that he will not resist for long. Though he does not do as you hoped, leaning back as he wraps one hand around his cock, the other moving to touch you, dripping wet and throbbing already.

He enters you slowly, with only his middle finger, your back arching for more instantly. Your wrists ache from the way that you pull on them, watching your husband touch himself as he touches you is pure torture. One finger moves to two without warning, and your eyes flutter shut at the feeling.

“More, more, please,” You beg, “I need you. Daddy, come on… don’t tease me...”

You swear that you could cry, although he makes you feel good, you want more, you need the stretch that his cock gives you when he fills you up. Junho exaggerates his moans, guttural and deep as he strokes himself, as his thumb presses to your clit and his fingers curl inside you, it is bliss, but it is not enough.

Junho mimics you, closing his eyes and smiling sweetly as he shakes his head, his fingers work a little harder, faster, it leaves you breathless. Your words are caught in your throat, you want to beg, but all sense is gone, you are defeated, broken, and you know that it is nowhere near over.

You know that you are close, and you are sure that Junho feels it too, as he loosens his grip on his cock, to focus solely on you. He leans forward, close enough for you to feel his breath on your lips, but just too far for you to be able to reach him. You can’t help the tears that form in your eyes, as pleasure overwhelms you, and your orgasm rips through your body.

“Fuck!” You cry, as Junho continues at the same speed and rhythm, despite the overstimulation he is causing, “Enough, Daddy, I wanna touch you, please!”

Your desperation is met with his own, as he pulls his fingers out, and moves to thrust straight into you instead. You were not ready, although you are dripping wet, the stretch still stings as Junho gives you no reprieve. His moans are low and breathy, the intensity is so high, as he takes from you like you deserve.

You open your eyes again, as Junho presses his forehead to yours, and you cannot stop him as he wraps his pretty hand around your neck. The gentle press of his fingertips into the sides has you swimming, vision blurry as you only watch on.

It is in moments like this that you are reminded that in the bedroom you are nothing but a toy for him, to use and play with however he desires. It is always rough, sometimes more than others, but you like it best that way. You like feeling his fingernails as they dig into your skin. You love feeling your cervix bruise with every thrust harder into you. It drives you fucking crazy, being everything that he wants, as he fills every one of your desires too.

You lose track of time, cock-drunk as your husband fucks you, though you know that you are close, and you are certain that Junho can feel it too. The way that your body clenches has Junho moaning louder, leaning in to kiss you as he gains in on his peak. You can’t control yourself anymore, but your husband doesn’t deny you either, helping you over the edge with eager thrusts.

Your words are surely incomprehensible, barely able to make out his name as you moan into his mouth, arms aching as you still try desperately to free yourself. Though Junho finally does exactly that, releasing his grip around your throat to instead reach up and unhook the belt buckle, the leather falling down behind the bed as your arms collapse on the mattress.

You are exhausted, as Junho finally releases, your body aches, but the feeling of him inside you makes it all so worth it. His praises, the way that he stares down at you as his movements slow, make it all so worth it.

“I love you,” Junho murmurs, “Happy anniversary, baby.”

It takes a moment for your head to clear enough to process, and when it does, your jaw drops. The expression must have been obvious, as Junho bursts into laughter, earning yet another stare from you.

“You didn’t think I had forgotten, really?” He asks, “Ya! I would never forget the best day of my life… or our vacation planned.”

You breathe a sigh of relief, leaning up to kiss Junho sweetly, before he pulls away only to reach over your head to take your hands in his. Your wrists are red, raw, and painful, and you laugh as you think about what you can wear to cover them as they heal.

Junho massages your wrists softly, making sure that the pain is not too bad for you, and that you are fine, which you reassure him of. You forget completely that you were even upset at him in the first place, as once more you are reminded that you are the centre of his universe, just as he is of yours.

[sunlight-moonrise]

The Law of Attraction (Reid Imagine)

Summary: Reader cannot understand how Spencer is in a relationship with someone who is his complete opposite. 

A/N: Hello Everyone!!! Here’s another story from the secret-fic-swap in the Discord server. I tried my hand at a new genre and I like how it came out. A big thank you to @imagining-in-the-margins​ for helping me make this real nice for y’all (this story was also written to her). Enjoy!

Category: Hurt/Comfort

Content Warnings: If you’re a fan of Max or Maxcer, this may not be the story for you. Sacrifices needed to be made for this story to be told. 

Word Count: 4.2K

Masterlist

The thought that the concept of ‘opposites attract’ was only true when it comes to physics. After all, the comparison of people to magnets doesn’t make any sense. If two people are together, there should be some similarities to build an established relationship, right? Without that foundation, the structure will surely crumble back into the fragmented pieces that created it, leaving them cracked and weaker for it.

Compatibility is necessary, yet there is none whenever I look at them. This is the fourth function that he has brought her to, and with each event, I find it harder to look their way. But when I do find them among the crowd, I can’t look away. Like a car crash or thunderstorm ripping tree roots from the ground.

It doesn’t make sense to me, why on earth would Spencer Reid be with a girl like her.

“If you keep staring at her, she might drop dead,” said a sarcastic voice, breaking me out of my reverie. I turned to see Tara with an amused smile occupying her face.

“I just don’t get it,” I mumbled, focusing my attention on the drink in my hand.

“What’s not to get?” she asked, glancing over at the couple in question. “They seem cute together.”

“They have nothing in common. He might as well be talking to some random person in this bar.”

I chugged the remainder of my beverage with desperate hope that the alcohol will somehow make things better in this situation. It didn’t.

“You sound bitter.”

“I am not bitter,” I bit back.

“I didn’t say you were, I said you sound.”

I didn’t respond to her because deep down I knew she was right. I just fiddled with the straw in my now empty glass as Tara continued, “Look, they both like coffee and going to the park, that’s something.”

I couldn’t stop the laugh that escaped my throat at the thought.

“So do half the people on the administration floor, he might as well have a harem if those are the main qualifications.”

“So what type of person should Spencer Reid have?” she asked, an eyebrow arching up as she focused her attention on me.

“I don’t know. Someone who is family-oriented and loves kids. Someone who doesn’t judge him for his idiosyncrasies. Someone who listens to his rambles and actually responds to them. Someone who he can escape to when things get too tough. Someone who understands when to give him space but will continue to support him unconditionally. Someone who can challenge him and make each day exciting and interesting. Someone who can ke—”

“Whoa there, I didn’t think you were going to give me a whole novel.” If she thought that was a novel, then the rest of what I wanted to say would be considered an encyclopedia. The only one that Spencer would never read.  

“I just want him to be happy,” I relented.

It was the simple truth. Everyone deserves some sort of contentment in their life, but with everything that Spencer has gone through in the past, his happiness should be at the forefront. He always put others before himself. It was time that someone prioritizes his wants and needs for a change.

“And she doesn’t make him happy?”

Not in the slightest. 

But I didn’t want to say that. I was sure half of the team already thought, or knew, that I was infatuated with him. But I didn’t need to give them the satisfaction of a confirmation by talking about this any further. The looks that Tara had been giving me the past few minutes validated my belief that I didn’t need to dig myself into a deeper hole.

“Maybe,” I said, hoping to put an end to the topic.

But just then, I heard a laugh despite how noisy the place was. I knew without a doubt that was Spencer’s laugh – it was the only sound that would demand my attention that quickly. It was the one he used when he felt uncomfortable.

“Excuse me, Tara.”

I didn’t give her a chance to reply before I hopped off the barstool and made my way to where Spencer and his girl were as casually as possible. Jennifer and Penelope were also with them, and it seems as if the three ladies were doing most of the talking.

“….like kids someday?” I heard Pen say. I didn’t need to hear the beginning of the sentence to know what it was about.

“Ehh, certainly not. My nephew is a handful as is, I don’t think I need any more than that one in my life,” she laughed. She, of course, being the ever loving, ever annoying, Max. A quick glance at Spencer's face confirmed that he was bothered by the subject being discussed. If the rest of the ladies were a bit more sober, they’d probably have seen it too.

“Hey guys,” I interrupted, taking my previous seat next to JJ, “I ordered some water for us and some appetizers. Tara is going to bring it over when it is ready.”

Cheers and thank you were shouted across the small table, but there was only one face I cared to pay attention to. Spencer’s mouth was quirked in a sad smile that was meant to hide the discomfort that had already taken root in his heart like an invasive vine.

“Did you place my fries order?” Max asked, garnering my attention. As much as I wanted to ignore her, I couldn’t. I wouldn’t openly be a bitch to her, no matter how much she irked me. She hadn’t done anything wrong. Other than stealing the affections of a man I’d never actually pursued, that is. But I couldn’t really blame her for that one, right? I should’ve jumped on the opportunity before. It was my fault.

“Yup,” I answered quickly with a small fake smile before focusing on the wooden décor of the bar.

“So any plans for Halloween? Assuming we don’t get called in for a case of course,” JJ asked the table.

“There is this pop-up haunted house coming that weekend.” Spencer said, his voice laced with that childlike excitement that made my heart race, “It is near the annual fair, so I’m going to try and do both.”

“Awww, that’s a cute date idea.”

The table was silent for a moment before Max announced, “I probably won’t go. I am not a big fan of anything spooky or… horror. I’ll leave all of that to this guy.”

The table shared an awkward laugh in a poor attempt to lighten the mood.

“Anyway,” I coughed out, attempting to save this poor conversation, “you guys need to hear this terrible joke the bartender told me. So basically, this screwdriver walks into a bar….” and just like that, the topic had been changed.

Tara joined us shortly after and the conversation remained lighthearted for the remainder of the evening. We later said our farewells and readied ourselves to go back home. While I should’ve been sad to leave him, I couldn’t help but feel a bitter joy from the fact that Spencer and Max didn’t talk directly to each other for the rest of the night.

●●●

It’s been a couple of weeks since the last team outing. Rossi must’ve missed us, because he decided to host a dinner at his place to celebrate the ending of a long and tough case. No one was going to pass up the opportunity of free food and wine, especially after dealing with a bunch of cops and detectives with entire tree trunks up their asses.

I was the last to arrive, which was not surprising since I live the furthest away from Rossi. Krystall welcomed and settled me in while informing me where everyone was. What I assumed was a team gathering turned out to be a whole party. There were definitely more than two dozen people occupying the space.

Good god. 

“What’s all this?” I asked as I greeted Rossi in the, thankfully, empty kitchen. Because, of course, Rossi wouldn’t be Rossi if he didn’t take care of all the hors d'oeuvres himself.

“Krystall wanted to celebrate our anniversary,” he sighed, as if this ordeal was somehow troublesome. I had to roll my eyes; he wasn’t fooling anyone. We all knew that Rossi would move mountains for his wife.

Their love was pure and genuine, a perfect example of two people meeting again at the right time and sharing something wonderful with one another. As I reminisced on their beautiful wedding day, a thought came to my head.

“Isn’t your first anniversary coming up in a few months?”

“That’s for our second marriage, this is for the first.” Rossi simply stated with a proud smirk, as if it was standard to celebrate any and all anniversaries in life. I supposed that for him, it was.

“Why do I get the feeling that this was more your idea than Krystall’s?”

“Guilty.”

Classic. Well, I wasn’t going to tell a man what he should celebrate nor how to do so. I wasn’t going to ruin any opportunities to eat some fresh crostini.

Once I made my way back out into the main room, I was able to find my team within seconds. My eyes instantly landed on Spencer’s tall and lanky form. And I would’ve been excited for that, if it weren’t for the familiar woman standing beside him.

Max was there. Hooray.

Usually, I was able to properly prepare myself for seeing her. It actually, unfortunately, took a lot of effort to not be openly hostile to someone I dislike. It wasn’t something I was proud of, but it was true. Typically in a situation like this, I’d avoid the person all night. However, I wasn’t going to allow her presence to influence the night, much less stop me from spending time with one of my closest friends.

“Hey guys.”

“Ahh, you’re finally here,” squealed Penelope, “I already grabbed your favorite drink!” She stepped aside to make room for me in the small gathered circle before handing me the glass.

“So what did I miss?”

They all caught me up on the harmless gossip circulating around the office and the new happenings emerging in everyone’s lives. Everything was going well until I heard the next words from Max, words that felt like a bucket of ice water and lead being poured over my head.

“Well, Spencer and I are moving in together.”

Time slowed down, I was sure it had. Because I was able to gauge everything in a matter of seconds. Tara’s concerning glance my way, her hand reaching out and retreating as if to hold me. Penelope’s joyful appearance over the news, her arms rising quickly causing her wine to slightly spill on Rossi’s floor. Matt expressing congratulations as he roughly patted Spencer on the back.

And Spencer….

Spencer looked like he rather be anywhere but here. His lips were drawn in a too tight smile that I knew was far from authentic. He was tapping his heel against the floor and wringing his hands together.

If this was merry news from the two of them, why did he look like he swallowed a spiked fruit?

The loud clanging of metal against glass brought everyone’s attention to the noisy source. Time returned back to its normal pace at Rossi’s call, thanking everyone for joining in on the celebration and announcing that the food was ready in the dining room.

While everyone cheered and made their way towards the ornate display, I headed to the balcony. It was too hot, too stuffy, too loud inside the house. There was one too many people there.

As soon as I passed through the double doors, I took a deep breath of cool, refreshing air. Everything around me felt muffled. Like I had stumbled into a small pocket universe that only differed from ours by a few notches on the volume knob.

I was thinking too many things, and none of them adding up or making sense in my head. How do you move in with someone you’ve only known for such a short amount of time? What was he going to do with his apartment? With his personal belongings that were scattered and settled on crowded shelves? Why did he look so uncomfortable when she announced it? Did he not want us to know? Did he want to say it himself?

“What are you doing out here?”

As if being brought back to reality by the very same hypnotist who enchanted me in the first place, I became aware that I was not the only one on the balcony. I turned to look at Spencer, taking in his disheveled and tired appearance.

“I just needed some space. I was feeling a bit crowded.” It wasn’t a lie, but my companion and I both knew there was a lot more than just that. Trying to keep the attention off me, I asked, “What are you doing here?”

“Checking on you. I saw you come out here dressed like that and wondered what would drag you out into the freezing cold.”

Now that he mentioned it, the breeze was hitting hard. I didn’t notice my body trembling until now. It is funny how you can’t feel much when lost in your own thoughts. The pain was a welcome distraction, I supposed.

Spencer stood next to me and shrugged off the suit jacket he was wearing. I opened my mouth to refuse, but he gave me a pointed look before I could. Instead, I accepted the warm jacket over my body. The scent of cinnamon and spice immediately enveloped my form and I tried to hide the way my inhales grew deeper. Trying to keep him as close as I could for however long he would allow. He kept his hands on my arms, rubbing them up and down the sleeves of the jacket to instill some heat in me.  

“So whatever happened to taking it slow?” I asked bluntly, keeping my eyes on the interesting speck of dirt that had ended up on my shoe. I didn’t feel bad about getting to the point -- There was no way I could subtly ask him what the deal was, and I’d rather not beat around the bush.

“Well, after the whole situation that happened, sh— we decided to pick up the pace of things,” he spoke lowly, as if he was unsure of the words coming out of his mouth.

“Has she even met Diana? Or know about her?” I instantly regretted asking, the angry look he shot my way had me feeling remorseful. But it also answered my question.

Max only knew the surface level of Spencer. She wasn’t aware of all the good, bad, beautiful, and ugly layers that comes with a man like him. She wasn’t the only one to blame, but I wondered how a profiler couldn’t tell that he was hiding those parts from her because he didn’t want to share them with her. He didn’t want her to know, because the knowing made it real.

“I just want the best for you.”

His irritated expression dissolved into a defeated one as he released the breath he was holding.

“I know, I know. It’s just…”

He stopped talking, appearing scared to share his opinions and feelings with me before he remembered that, unlike Max, he never had to hide things from me. He didn’t want to.

“It’s just…” I prodded, hoping he would continue with what he was going to say.

But he just stayed stuck there, opening and closing his mouth multiple times. I could practically see the cogs in his brain whirling as he properly tried to explain. “Well, the thing is that Ma—”

“Spencer?”

We sharply turned our heads to see Max and Tara staring at us. It wasn’t until that moment that I remembered our position. With Spencer’s hands rubbing tenderness heat onto my arms, his jacket over my shoulders and our bodies pressed together to keep warm.

It would be one thing if everything was settled, but this situation was anything but. Max had every reason to be angry. This wasn’t a new thing to her. So when she turned around, she stomped away fueled by the belief that she’d nearly caught her boyfriend committing adultery. Again.

“Fuck,” I heard the man in front of me whisper as he released me back into the cold night.

Still, as he left, he looked back at me. His eyes burned into mine up until he tore them away, making his final decision and hastily running from the balcony. Away from me. Towards her.

Tara and I shared the silence, but she looked at me with those inquisitive eyes, as if I was a client seeking out therapy from her.  

“What?” I hissed, “We were just talking.” I refused to feel guilty over something that I didn’t do. If anyone had done anything, it was Spencer. But at the same time, I didn’t think he was entirely wrong, either.  

“I didn’t say anything,” she muttered, holding her hands up high as a sign of surrender.

“You didn’t have to, I can feel the judgment from here.”

“Look, I’m not judging you. But I do want you to put yourself in Max’s shoes. You guys were gone for a while and she finds you two all over each other.”

“What are you talking about, Tara? Christ, it’s not like I was fucking him on the balcony!”

Although I didn’t intend for my words to be humorous, Tara laughed. I was conflicted on whether it was at me or with me, but it ended up amounting to nothing, anyway.

“Look, the night is young and you need to relax. Come back inside, enjoy the party, and don’t let them bring you down. At least for the next few hours.”

She was right, as she usually was. It was why I usually sought her out as the voice of reason; I knew that despite everything, she would always have my best interest at heart.

“Okay,” I agreed before following her back into the chaotic fray.

I heeded her advice and avoided the couple for the remainder of the night. Shockingly, it was pretty easy, but I was sure it was because they were avoiding me too. There were times, lots of times, where Spencer and I made eye contact, but we’d just as quickly look away, as if we were ashamed of what we have done.

All we did was talk. So why did it feel like something more?

There were also times when I made eye contact with Max, but instead of shame, there was anger and contempt. If looks could kill, like Tara had suggested, I was sure my heart would have given out.

It wasn’t until later in the evening that I saw Max take a cab home while Spencer was still inside the house. No one else but me noticed that they didn’t leave the party together.

●●●

I hadn’t seen Spencer since the incident at Rossi’s a few weeks ago. He had to take his mandatory sabbatical leave and I had to take an abrupt trip back home. What used to be almost daily texts between us became nonexistent in a matter of hours. It was a terrible predicament that I was hoping to fix soon.

As I arrived, I spotted him at his desk. For a long time, I stood there staring at him. If he wasn’t nose deep in a bunch of files, I was sure he would’ve seen me, too. I contemplated on how I should go up to him, but nothing I could think of was good enough to say. 

Hey, I have your jacket, I took it to the dry cleaner’s, so it is all clean. Rid of me like you wanted to be. 

Hi, how were the lectures this time around? Still have a bunch of teens crushing on you?

What’s up, it’s been a while, do you want to get lunch during the break?

I hated that things were awkward, even though I was pretty sure that I was the only one that was making it so. I should have just gone up to him, greeted him, and acted like everything was normal, because everything was normal. Right?

Just when I was about to do so, Emily called us in for a meeting. Impeccable timing.

We had a serial killer case in Louisville, Kentucky. My situation with Spencer was going to the backburner.

During our stay in Louisville, Spencer and I barely interacted. We exchanged notes and passed long messages, but that’s pretty much it. I wasn’t surprised. Our specialties don’t really correlate when we are working on a case. Anytime I did catch some free time, I’d look his way, longing for the opportunity to speak to him. He didn’t look back.

Then, just as the case ended, another chance presented itself. After five days of hardly any proper rest, we finally found the unsub. Everyone was in their respective room catching up on some much needed sleep. Except for Spencer, whose gangly body was tucked away at the bar by himself, a glass of what appeared to be soda in front of him.

Silently, I took the seat next to him, and for a few minutes, everything was quiet. But unlike the usual, comfortable quiet, it was torturous.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

I stared at him, letting the silent communication denote the fact that I knew he was lying to me. Spencer released a sigh and looked at me with eyes more intoxicating than any whiskey that shared their color.

“Actually, no, I’m not okay.”

I was going to ask him what was wrong or if there was anything I could do to help, but before I had the chance to do so, he hastily answered the question I hadn’t asked.

“Max and I broke up.”

I stared at him, my face and mind blank as I tried to comprehend what he’d said. That Max and Spencer broke up. They were no longer together. Spencer was single.

I thought that if this ever happened, I would be happy, elated, jumping at the chance to take her place by his side. But I felt none of those things.

“What happened?” I didn’t want to appear nosy or meddlesome, but I needed to know.

“We were fighting a lot, and I couldn’t take it.”

“Oh.”

“We were… actually fighting about you.”

I sharply turned my head at him, both intrigued and disturbed by the implication that I had anything to do with the failure of their relationship.

“What? What about me?”

“She thought I liked you,” he said while staring straight back at me, daring me to scan through each fleck of gold and green to ensure that he was telling the truth. But his hazel eyes expressed nothing but honesty as he continued, “and she was right. I do.”

“Y-you do?”

All he could do was nod his head, lifting his hand and catching a loose strand of hair before tucking it behind my ear.

“Can I try something?” Spencer shyly requested.

Once again, the universe felt different. I held my breath, trying to wake from the dream. Although he didn’t say it, I had an idea of what he wanted. If the hand on the side of my face and the staring at my lips were anything to go by, I knew what was going to happen next.

I nodded back and closed my eyes. A few seconds passed, the sweetest kind of anticipation. But then I felt the gentle pressure of his lips against my own, sweet and tender. He moved his head to get a better angle while I brought my hands up to cup his face. The roughness of his stubble against the tip of my fingers was a perfect contrast to the softness of him. I could taste the soda he was drinking on his tongue and breathed in the cinnamon scent that seemed sunken into his skin.

When we pulled away, it was full of hesitation. All it took was one look for us to know we couldn’t do this. Not now, not yet. He was still healing from the recent break up and I didn’t want to be a rebound. I didn’t want us to resent one another for jumping into a relationship so soon. We weren’t ready.

We sat there in relative silence, taking in everything that has happened.

“Maybe one day,” he paused “one day we can give it a chance.”

“Yes. I’d like that.” I beamed at him, “And I look forward to that day. Until then, we remain as friends.”

He returned my smile and I realized that it had been a while since I’ve seen his real smile. I missed it so much.

“Friends,” he confirmed.

And for the first time in a long time, I felt relief and comfort. Because I knew everything was going to be okay. I had hope that someday Spencer will get the happily ever after he deserves and he’ll get it with me by his side. One day.

[girlwithshipsshitshow]

Chapter 32

Misaki sits at his desk in his old room on a chilly May morning. The smell of coffee is wafting through the air; he is preparing Usagi's schedule for the week, although he already has his entire month planned out, he knows telling him week by week would be less overwhelming for the author. Usagi knocked on the cracked door, then leaned against the frame, smiling at the younger man.

Usagi: What are you doing, baby?

Misaki: *Grins, keeping head down over his work* I'm working on your schedule for the month, but I'm only going to give you what you have to do this week. I don't want you to get overwhelmed.

Usagi: *walks over to the younger boy, wrapping his arms around his shoulders.* Why are you in here? You haven't been in this room in months.

Misaki: This is the only room with a desk.

Usagi: My office has one you know. *Kisses Misakis cheek*

Misaki: Heh, I know, but you were in there; you looked super busy and... I needed to work.

Usagi: Hey, *He turned Misaki's chair, so the man was looking at him*, we should move this desk into my office.

Misaki: No, um, we don't have to do that... it's your office; that's your space I-

Usagi: Misaki, I want this desk, *he taps it* In my office, it's too big, there's a lot of room now since I moved the bookcase beside my smaller desk, and the couch against the window, your desk will fit in there.

Misaki: Are you sure? I don't want to intrude.

Usagi: *Rolls eyes* Stop. Plus, we're going to be sharing an office at our new place anyway, so what's the difference?

Misaki: Do you ever think we spend too much time together?

Usagi: Um, no? don't you remember when we were apart for a week, or even a few hours, how that felt?

Misaki: Yeah, it sucked.

Usagi: If we need time alone, it's not like we can't tell each other.

Misaki: I know. Uh, anyway, we can worry about my desk another day, we're getting way off-topic here. Do you want to look at your schedule for this week? *Hands him this week's agenda*

Usagi: Wow, busy week, huh?

Misaki: Yeah, that's why I'm giving you your schedule week by week, and not showing you the full month. I think you might pass out if you saw what I had written for the month.

Usagi: *Laughs* Well, on the plus side it's still Sunday, and early at that.

Misaki: Yeah, *stands* Want to go make breakfast?

Usagi: We could go out instead?

Misaki: Well, we are running low on food, and we don't go to the store until tomorrow...

Usagi: *Grins* So?

Misaki: I guess, but I need to shower first.

Usagi: Can I come?

Misaki: *Laughs, wraps arms around Usagi's neck* Usagi, I love you so much.

Usagi: *Puffs lips out*

Misaki: Don't give me that look, sweets, I just need to take a shower, and if we take one together, it won't be quick.

Usagi: Okay, hey um I'm going to grab some coffee, it smells great.

Misaki: Okay, I'll be down soon. *Kisses Usagi's nose*

Usagi: It's chilly out so wear something warm.

Misaki: Yeah, I know. *Smiles* Thank you.

Usagi and Misaki sat in their regular booth at their favorite hole-in-the-wall restaurant near where the house was being built; they haven't been there in over a month due to being out of town, but they were happy to be back.

Misaki: Hey, so should we get our usual?

Usagi: *Flips through the menu in front of him* I can't believe we've been gone a month. They've updated the menu. Look, they have lemon poppy seed pancakes now; and honey maple bacon. *Smiles at Misaki, taking his hand* Want to share that?

Misaki: Sounds good.

Cherry: Hey ya'll, *Leans against both* Haven't seen you boys here in a while, what've been up to?

Usagi: Hey Cherry, my love here graduated at the end of March, and I took him on a trip, then we were celebrating our anniversary.

Cherry: Congratulations on graduating Misaki, and the anniversary; how many years have Y'all been together?

Usagi: Five years. *Grins at Misaki, squeezing his hand tighter*

Cherry: Long time.

Misaki: *Blushes* Yeah.

Cherry: So, what can I get started for ya?

Usagi: We're going to share the lemon poppy seed pancakes and honey maple bacon.

Misaki: Two glasses of orange juice, and coffee as well.

Cherry: Alright, I'll have your drinks right out, and your food should be out in about fifteen minutes.

Usagi: Thanks, Cherry.

Cherry: Sure.

Misaki: *Blushes*

Usagi: What's wrong?

Misaki: Why did you have to tell her where we were?

Usagi: She asked, why did it embarrass you?

Misaki: It just did. I don't know. *Plays with his necklace* Usagi?

Usagi: What it is, baby?

Misaki: I was wondering, um, why do you wear your vest and tie so much? Like even if you don't have meetings? Who are you trying to impress?

Usagi: You?

Misaki: *Snorts* Yeah right, you're dressed in joggers and a sweater right now.

Usagi: Can't I just look nice?

Misaki: Of course you can, but remember when you got out of the hospital, you said you were more comfortable when you were wearing casual clothes?

Usagi: Yeah, and it's true. I haven't worn my vest and ties since, but I will when we start meetings again.

Misaki: you know, when you do your book tour, it's your tour, you can wear what you want, who cares what you look like?

Usagi: I want to look nice though.

Misaki: I know but, you can look nice and be comfortable.

Usagi: Yeah.

Cherry: Hey ya'll, here's your drink, sorry for the wait, had to brew some fresh coffee, and your food should be right up. *Places their drinks on the table*

Misaki: Thank you, Cherry.

Cherry: You got it, I'll be right back with your food.

Usagi: Thanks.

Misaki: Anyway, we don't have to think about that right now. We have two weeks. You could get a sweater vest, you'd look great in one.

Usagi: No offense hon, but that's more your style, and I'd never wear that.

Misaki: What's wrong with my style?

Usagi: *Grins* You're so cute.

Misaki: You're ignoring my question.

Usagi: It's gotten better.

Misaki: Okay, Tie man. *Rolls eyes* Remember when you called me ugly? This is the same thing.

Usagi: *Gasps* I never did.

Cherry: *Sets food down* Enjoy.

Misaki: You said I'm not very good-looking.

Usagi: Misaki, *sighs* stop it, You're extremely attractive.

Misaki: *Takes a bite of bacon* Not like you.

Usagi: I can't believe we're having this conversation again, you're so sexy Misaki, and amazing, you make my heart skip so quick every time I look at you or touch you; I love you so much. *Takes Misaki's hand* I'm sorry I told you that a while ago, but why didn't you say anything then?

Misaki: I know it's true. I'm not attractive, not like you. *Pulls hand away*

Usagi: That has to stop, stop comparing yourself to me; it happens every once in a while and I don't know why.

Misaki: I mean, look at you, you're sexy, and you will defiantly have perfect eggs for the IVF-

Usagi: That's not true, yours might be the perfect ones.

Misaki: Look, Usagi, I just want you to know that I love you, and I don't always feel this way. It's just today I'm... *sighs* In a mood. I'll get over it, I'm okay. I love you.

Usagi: Something else is bugging you, what is it?

Misaki: This is about me feeling like I'm nothing compared to you.

Usagi: I figured.

Misaki: This is about me starting as your assistant tomorrow. I'm nervous.

Usagi: I know.

Misaki: I'm sorry, I should've told you straight up instead of covering.

Usagi: But, some part of you feels like you're nothing compared to me, or else you wouldn't have said it.

Misaki: A little of me, but I know you how much you love me. You make me feel so special, even when I don't feel like much, thank you.

Usagi: I love you too, Misaki You make me feel so happy, I was really lonely before we met, and I know you know, I still have those feelings sometimes.

Misaki: *Nods, takes a sip of coffee, then takes Usagi's hand* Yeah, I do.

Usagi: Thank you for making me feel not so lonely.

Misaki: Anytime. *Smirks*

Usagi: What is it?

Misaki: We should eat. The food is getting cold.

Usagi: Yeah, *Clears throat*, enough of this sad talk.

The two smile at each other, digging into their meal, changing the subject, talking about happier things.

[headcanonthings]

Zukka Hockey AU

(with a hint of Social Media AU bc why not?)

Sokka and Zuko meet in the later years of college due to mutual friends

Sokka is an engineering student with a full ride hockey scholarship; Zuko entered as a business major but by the end of his first term he realized he was doing that because it’s what was always expected of him, he then changes to a double Lit & Theater Major (he decides to minor in business so he can help Uncle with the shop)

Neither of them are really looking for a relationship with being so busy with school, sports and jobs but thanks to their mutual friends they start hanging out and become pretty good friends

After college Sokka gets recruited to the pros and quickly becomes a fan favorite; Zuko becomes a moderately successful screen actor

They don’t lose touch so much as they just don’t stay close, they’ll message each other every now and then but mostly through social media like congratulating through tweets or instagram

But then Aang and Katara finally set the date for their marriage and Sokka is Aang’s Best Man and Zuko is invited as one of their dear friends which leads the two of them reconnecting

Zuko’s been out as gay since college and has been vocal in his career about his sexuality and mental health; Sokka on the other hand, while comfortable with his bisexuality, hasn’t been as open due to the heteronormative culture of sports, plus he’s always leaned more towards women then men so he never feels like he’s really hiding anything (the important people like his family, Aang, and Suki all know)

But during the Kataang wedding the two realize how much they’ve really missed each other and something really clicks between them over the few days they spend together

Before heading back to Caldera Zuko decides to shoot his shot (after a prep talk from Mai and Ty Lee) Sokka hesitates which has Zuko going from some what suave to his usual awkward turtleduck self as he quickly tries to backpedal, Sokka immediately jumps in to calm him down saying he’d love to but he’s not out publicly and sports as a whole ain’t that open let alone hockey and Sokka knows Zuko’s been out and doesn’t want him to like go back in the closet or anything

Zuko says he understands, but he really likes Sokka and Sokka has mentioned a few times over the past couple days that his hockey career isn’t a forever thing and Zuko’s willing to keep it on the downlow if it means giving them a try; neither of them are that big of celebrity that’ll be hard, they just need to be careful

It actually goes really well; they have to deal with virtual dates at first with Zuko in Caldera and Sokka on a southern Earth Kingdom island where his Southern Water Tribe team is located

About two months in Zuko’s between acting projects and he’s been wanting to try his hand at writing (he’s had a few short stories published under a pseudonym) so he rents a place on the southern earth island

(it’s a complete accident on Zuko’s part but very intentional on Mai’s part that the place happens to be only a few blocks away from the hockey training arena)

Being so close makes everything easier; being together is so easy in a way neither of them expected; their close friendship in college means they already know a lot about each other like Sokka losing his mom and Yue and Zuko’s entire family situation

By the end of Zuko’s first month on the island Sokka’s pretty sure he’s gonna ask Zukos to marry him someday; by month four of the relationship they agree it’s time to start telling their friends and family

Their six month anniversary hits and Sokka being RomanticTM sets up this huge display at his house I’m talking roses everywhere and fairy lights strung up on his back patio with specially ordered food and drink from the most romantic restaurant in town and a lit candle on the table and soft music playing from a little BT speaker and Zuko almost cries because he is also a RomanticTM but no ones ever done anything like this for him before

And the night is wonderful and there is absolutely nothing wrong but Sokka can’t help but think about how he really wishes he could have taken Zuko out to the restaurant and maybe done some kind of activity before hand and he’s got some really cute selfies with Zuko that he wishes he could share with the world instead of just spamming the gAang group chat

A few days later he’s scrolling social media after practice and realizes that it’s National Coming Out Day and he sees all of these cute and inspiring messages and he wants so badly to be apart of that

Later while he’s laying in bed with Zuko he can’t get those posts out of his head and he’s looking at Zuko curled up into his side and thinks Fuck It

He tells Zuko what he wants to do cause he’s going to come out but if Zuko doesn’t want to be part of it he’s not going to make him but all Zuko does is ask if he’s sure and Sokka is so he snaps a quick pic of them curled up together gets Zuko’s approval of the pic and posts it with a little message (including a bi and pride flag emojis)

Zuko in solidarity makes his own post using one of the photos they took during their anniversary

Sokka gets a call first thing in the morning from his coach and the PR guy asking him to come in; Sokka’s a little worried he’s about to get sacked but reminds himself that he’s still fairly young and he’s been smart enough to get his masters online during the off seasons

To Sokka’s minor surprise everyone is pretty ok with it; the PR guy is a little annoyed they didn’t have a heads up to help cut off the a-holes on the internet but they’re like the only statement we’re gonna put out is one that says the team supports all sexualities but they don’t want to make a big big deal out of it if Sokka’s not comfortable with that

All of Sokka’s teammates flood his mentions with support messages and follow Zuko’s account as another sign of support

The GAang are also quick to share a lot of pics and messages supporting the couple; Katara is super happy to share some of the mushier and embarrassing texts Sokka’s sent her like a whole paragraph about how pretty Sokka thinks Zuko’s eyes are

Bonus:

Mai is Zuko’s best friend since childhood, she went to school for something like Poli Sci and somehow in the process of helping him move to Caldera she ended up moving to; she helped him with his theater classes like running lines and studying and actually picked up a lot of the behind he scenes info so before she knows it she’s helping Zuko get auditions and PR and when someone asks if she’s his manager she only hesitates for a second before saying yes; she asks a family friend to help write up a contact that Zuko barely looks over because he trusts her

Once the initial fervor calms down, Sokka agrees to do an interview but specifically requests a little known journalist (Korra? A different Krew member?) he picks them based off of Zuko’s recommendation, Zuko remembers how kind and easy it was to speak with them; when Sokka tells the interviewer that they nearly faint

 Sokka loves Twitter but Zuko is more of an Instagram guy

Sokka and Zuko eventually end up having two weddings, a small personal one that is mostly family and really close friends and then a much larger event type one where they invite Sokka’s full team and the many celeb friends Zuko’s made like other actors and directors

[jemej3m]

losing your wedding ring and other hostage situation things

im having way too much fun, you will have to pry this au from my cold, dead hands 

two birds, one stone, lets GO

(tw for: violence, hostage situations, mention of recreational drugs, a bit of swearing, neil being a mouthy ass mf, mild stabbings)

*

Andrew had been having such a good day. 

Those were rare to come by: some form of disaster usually appeared, if not by mid-morning, then by lunch. A perp that was too handsy; an elderly woman shouting tireless angst at Andrew over not being able to find her precious, street-rat looking cat; a stack of overdue paperwork from the nightshift fuckers who were the worst people to exist ever. 

No: instead, Neil had woken him up with a tray of hot coffee, chocolate croissants and strawberries for their anniversary celebration (not that either of them had mentioned it), kissed the crumbs away from the corner of his mouth and lead Andrew into the shower with that damned smile of his. 

He’d driven Andrew to work (something about Allison holding down the fort), which meant Andrew didn’t have to commute and deal with the general public, or figure out where to park for half an hour. It was coming dangerously close to their rule of ‘don’t talk about work’, but Andrew couldn’t complain when Kevin had been too busy to scrutinise him upon entry to the bullpen. 

He and Renee had cracked a decent case, a burly dealer with a ‘Nittany Lions’ emblem tattooed across her collarbone had been shut away for being the primary distributor of a lethal strain of methamphetamine, and there hadn’t been a queue in his favourite subway corner store at lunch time. 

Wymack had stuck his head out of his office at about half-past two, with a quirk to his eyebrows. “They’re requesting backup at a shootout situation, up north. Change out.”

Andrew, who had just been getting slightly bored signing neighbourly complain forms, took this in his stride. Renee smiled at him as they left, always knowing more than Andrew ever let on. He hated being known at first, but years with Neil had tempered that discomfort, and having someone who knew what he needed when he couldn’t express it wasn’t half bad. 

He cut over Kevin’s music in the patrol car and let the windows down, siren tolling. There were no deaths on the scene as of yet - and Andrew had a feeling there would be none. 

It seemed as though there was where his good luck had run out for the day. 

Upon exiting the car, protocols had been adhered to, blocks were canvassed, civilians were removed, and Andrew found himself squatting behind a crumbling brick wall, Dan and Matt ahead of him, Kevin and Renee behind him. 

Dan looked around the doorway, signalled clear, and so they skirted into the small courtyard. The house in question had been the location for the shooting: how Andrew and the rest of his team had found themselves in the infiltration force was another issue entirely. 

“Sargeant, everything’s gone quiet, what’s happening?” Wymack demanded. 

“House is looking clear -” a distinct thud and Dan’s disgruntled “Oof!” had Andrew drawing out his gun once more. 

“Guns down,” came a strained voice, stepping out from behind the door with a gun held to Dan’s head. He had a ski-mask on. “Everyone put your guns down, or she dies.”

For fuck’s sake, Andrew thought, slowly crouching down and putting up his hands. Matt’s entire body was shaking, but he followed suit, Kevin and Renee copying him. 

Three men appeared: one grabbed Matt, another grabbed Kevin, whilst a third went for both Renee and Andrew. The glint in Renee’s eyes said it well enough: it wouldn’t do these fuckers well to underestimate either of them. 

But Dan still had a gun to her head, and Andrew was in no business of letting decent people die because he didn’t play along, so he let himself be shuffled into the basement of the house: there, he was shoved against one of the old, wooden pillars and tied up, hands behind his back. The rope burned against his skin. 

“Body in the corner,” Renee whispered, nudging his foot with hers. “Stripped, two bullet holes in the head. Look, you can see the Butcher cross on the back of their hand. It has to be a Bearcat.”

Andrew stared at the Butcher’s mark. His husband’s father had once liked to mark his loyalists with two gashes on the back of their hand, often with his favourite cleaver. Neil said he’d left similar marks across his father’s eyes when he’d finally brought him to his knees. The corpse in the corner had to be an older member of the Wesninski gang: Neil had changed a lot of things since inheriting his father’s syndicate. 

Gang violence was never great, nor simple, but perhaps a man who was loyal to Nathan Wesninski was better off dead. 

“Quiet!” one of the men barked, kicking Renee in the side of her head. Andrew grit his teeth as her head whipped back against the wall. 

“Search ‘em,” the other said, crouching by Dan. Identification, a spare twenty, her gun and taser and baton were all removed. When she tried to head-but him, he decided to gag her and tie said gag to the beam she was shoved against. He checked her hand for an engagement or wedding ring, of which neither Dan nor Matt ever wore during their shifts. Matt, Kevin and Renee went through the same thing, radios and guns and spare cash filched from their pockets. 

Then it was Andrew’s turn. He coiled up as soon as hands were on him, gritting his teeth. He hated sitting like a victim. He hated waiting around to be rescued. He would be able to cut through this rope somehow if he was just given a minute, but instead he was enduring hands across his arms and shoulders and back, down his legs. They didn’t find the knife in his boot - something he’d copied from Neil - but one of their fingers did catch on the silver chain around his throat. 

His eyes closed as they pulled it out. 

“Ha,” the crook sneered, snapping the silver chain and holding up Andrew’s wedding band. “Who’s the lucky girl? Doesn’t matter, I s’pose, if you never see her again.”

“You’re married? Since when!” Kevin remarked, and got a knee in the ribs for good measure. 

Andrew watched the man pocket his wedding ring and sighed. He’d have a hell of a lot of explaining to do to Neil when he got home. Hopefully his husband wouldn’t go out on a spree for vengeance just to get the ring back. Worse would be if he decided to go teaching everyone not to touch his family. 

For a few moments, the men left them alone, stomping around the house and yelling for good measure. They’d taken Dan’s radio to lay down their terms: they were no doubt in the midst of negotiation. 

“I went to the ceremony,” Renee offered in the strained silence. “It was very sweet.”

“Shut up, Renee.” Andrew muttered. 

“It’s their anniversary, today,” she added. 

He glared at her. “I hate you.” 

“What a way to spend it,” Matt murmured, looking to Dan, who was still gagged. He looked back to Andrew. “We’ll make sure you get back home to your...partner?”

“Husband.” Andrew confirmed, then mentally cursed himself for giving away such needless information whilst in a dusty basement, held hostage by some randoms who had already murdered one member of said husband’s gang. Instead, he shuffled his feet around to Renee. 

“I’ve got a knife,” he said, like she didn’t already know. He just didn’t want the others to see Renee trying to take off his shoe with her teeth when he’d just mentioned that he has a husband. She nodded, leaning down to pull at his laces, then tugging off his shoe with her knees. The knife skidded out: she kicked it back to Andrew, who flicked it into his hands. She shuffled around so that her ropes were accessible to him, and he got to work sawing. 

It only lasted thirty seconds before the men thundered back down stairs: Renee sat on the knife after Andrew dropped it to the floor. 

“They need a little more motivation,” the burliest one sneered, stomping over to Dan. “How about you, sarge?”

“You’re making a mistake,” Renee said, calmly. “I’m sure that if everyone walked free right now, we’d be able to figure something out. It doesn’t have to end badly.”

“Shut your fucking mouth,” he snapped. “God, you’re annoying, aren’t you? Not everything’s so simple, pig.”

“No,” a new voice agreed. “It’s not. But you could’ve at least cleaned this place up a bit before you made such a scene.”

“What the fuck,” the ringleader managed, just as two men dropped to their knees, hands to their stomachs. Two new figures stepped into the basement, dressed similarly. Both wore black jeans and sweaters, though one was a hood tugged firmly over their head, a bandana over their nose and mouth, whilst the other wore a ski-mask with a singular window for the eyes, long hair tucked up into a twist under the wool. 

The shorter figure’s blue eyes sought Andrew out immediately: he gave the man a quick nod. I’m alright. 

Those eyes burned like the ninth circle of hell. Instantly, Andrew knew he was safe. 

“The fuck is this?” the man said, just as another knife buried itself into the chest cavity of his third ally. “Hold on, hold on - are you repping Wesninski? How the fuck did you get here -?”

“Learn your place, Gorilla,” the shorter one said, spinning a knife around on his fingers. His counterpart - and if Andrew didn’t know it was Allison, he would’ve still been able to tell she was a woman - busied herself tying up the other three that were moaning on the floor. Gloved hands, double layered but still deft. Andrew grabbed the knife that was under Renee and kept sawing at her closures. 

“You don’t mess with a Wesninski, nor his people.” the knife was slowly raised to ‘Gorilla’s chin, just as gloved fingers reached into the crook’s pocket and drew out a small, silver band. “Too predictable with your trophies, Hawking. Dumped again?” 

The man - who was more than a foot taller than their savior and definitely double the width - roared with fury, raising up his hands. He was too late, his body slumping with a pinch to the back of his neck. 

The woman looked over to the corner, where the body was dumped, and sighed. “You weren’t the worst, Richie.”

“Definitely bad timing, A.” the man said, hopping over the unconscious body of his rival to lean over Andrew: the others looked on with intrigue as the mysterious man slipped Andrew’s wedding ring into his front pocket. 

“Go,” Andrew muttered from out the corner of his mouth. Only Renee would be able to hear. “We’ll be fine.”

“Love you,” Neil whispered back. Not a moment later, he was gone. 

“We’re we just saved by a Wesninski gang member?” Kevin wondered aloud. 

Not just any gang member, Andrew thought. Kevin would shit himself if he knew who was under that mask. 

“Stranger things have happened,” Matt said, though he was unsure. At that point, Andrew had cut Renee’s ropes free, and she set to work unbinding them all. 

Wymack was the first into the basement, fury scrawled across his scraggly brows. “Is everyone - Christ.” He looked to the four men on the floor: three stabbed and bound, still alive and writhing in pain, and one unconscious, jaw at a bad angle from where he’d fallen over. “Do I even want to know what happened?”

“I don’t think you’d believe us if we told you, sir,” Renee said, sweetly, as she cut Dan’s gag free and helped her off the floor. 

Wymack simply rubbed at his temple with one hand, the other reaching for his radio. “Four stretchers. All threats have been disengaged. Stand down: everyone is safe.”

*

Andrew felt his phone buzz as he was stood behind his desk, packing things into his bag to head home. Hostage situation aside, it’d still been a good day. 

Home now - got more ice cream and borrowed Bridget Jones’ Diary from Ally’s collection

I hate you, Andrew texted back. Heading home now - i can detour and get Joe’s thai

no, Neil said immediately. i’ve already got food being delivered. need to see u home and safe. 

Andrew felt something warm in his chest. I’ll be there soon. 

He tucked his phone into his bag, and brought out the ring that he’d kept tucked into the pocket of his pants all day, seeing as the chain had been broken. Carefully, he slid it onto his finger. It still fit, though he wasn’t sure why he’d thought that it wouldn’t. 

Across the room, Matt smiled, nudging Renee and gesturing to where Andrew had put on his wedding ring and was almost ready to leave. “The Monster has a husband.”

“Stranger things have happened,” Dan agreed, sidling up to the pair.

You barely know the half of it, Renee thought, watching her partner amble out of the bullpen, a fondness in her smile. 

*

wow. SOFT.

[hibiscuswrites]

How would Félix Gallardo surprise the reader with a romantic night when she thought he'd forgotten about their anniversary?

He’s a busy man and due to that, sometimes he forgets certain things

He doesn’t mean to, of course 

But certain things do sometimes slip his mind  

Important dates, however, he never forgets 

Dates that are important to either of you are always remembered 

He’d have to be riddled with bullet holes before he ever forgot you anniversary 

He can be late to them sometimes though 

Things happen, mistakes being made, lesions needing to be taught 

Some days, things just don’t go according to place and he doesn’t get the chance to spoil you from dawn til dusk the way he wants to 

Today, your anniversary, was no different 

He had left the house before you had woken up, planning to be back early to spend time with you 

That hadn’t worked out though and before you knew it, it was already nearly dark out without so much as a call or text 

You had waited all day, giddy that he was just teasing and would call you to tell you Happy Anniversary any moment 

You had dolled yourself up

Wearing his favorite red dress and matching red lipstick

You were more than ready to celebrate with the love of your life

But by 7PM, you were just  hoping to get a text 

You received nothing though and with a heavy heart you came to terms with the reality: 

He had forgotten your anniversary

His day had been so overwhelming, that he hadn’t even had a moment to spare the thought that today was so important 

And you’re about to start wallowing when your guard come into the bedroom, just in time to stop you from starting to take off your makeup 

“Miguel wants you taken somewhere. I can’t tell you where.” 

And you agree with a sigh because this isn’t the first time you’ve been relocated with no info

You ask to change though and the guard tells you no, that there’s no time

Your uncertainty and fear all melt away though as you pull up to your favorite restaurant 

It's entirely empty save for a select few staff to take care of you and you realize that Miguel rented out the entire spot just for you

He’s already got a secured perimeter, his men all on guard outside 

And he’s in a different suit than he heft in this morning, much more lavish 

As soon as he lays his eyes on you, you can see all of the love swimming in them 

He takes your hand and kisses your knuckles before raising it up higher and having you spin for him 

“Que belleza. El regalo más preciado de toda mi vida.”

Your smile is bright and he returns it, walking you over to your chair at the table that’s been set up, pulling your chair out for you 

And he’s sitting across from you then, gazing at you adoringly

“I thought that you forgot.” 

As the food comes out, he shakes his head, his love for you tangible 

“Nunca.” 

General taglist @a-dorky-book-keeper  @jigsawlover10  @titty-teetee @my-rosegold-soul  @felicity-x0 @vibranium-soul @ateliefloresdaprimavera @preciousbarakat @elcococruz @glimmerglittergirl @hatterripper31

[novantinuum]

Fifteen

Fandom: Steven Universe

Rating: General Audiences

Words: 1.6K~

Summary: Every year, on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, Pearl runs away.

I managed to churn out a hurt/comfort one-shot focusing on Pearl and her relationship with Steven and his birthday for the occasion. Happy birthday, lil’ fella!

AO3 link to be posted in reblog. 

__

Despite their shortcomings as an intelligent species otherwise, Pearl would be remiss to admit that humanity at least has a few positive attributes and customs.

The concept of leisure, for instance, is a good example. After all, back on Homeworld, actions that don’t directly benefit the Great Diamond Authority’s cause would be labeled as treason. Knighthood is another one she quite fancies. Despite her origins she’s always admired the thought of pledging one’s lifelong service to another by active choice, and all the honor and decorum that goes with that lifestyle. From there, the list is short, but cherished: humanity’s inclination to collect otherwise useless objects as mementos, their innate desire to seek out physical means of affection, (thanks to their attitudes towards cross-fusion, something else considered incredibly taboo throughout most of the empire), and the fact that their music isn’t something that’s restricted to only the elite.

Five attributes she admires. Many, many more she’s confused or even disgusted by. Amethyst’s obsession with human food, for instance, she’ll likely never understand. But out of every universal custom the denizens of Earth partake in, the one she’s never managed to wrap her mind around is the idea of celebrating one’s day of... emergence.

Gem emergence back on Homeworld is no impressive event. One moment you don’t exist, and the next— you do, imbued with just enough knowledge to properly carry out whatever purpose you’ve been assigned to fill in the ever-spinning clockwork of Gem society until shattering or the eventual heat death of the universe. That’s it. Clean cut.

In stark contrast, human birth is a complex, messy affair, marked by hours of nonstop wailing and suffering at both ends. So why, then, does humanity insist upon spending a significant portion of their already minuscule lifespans planning, attending, and observing celebrations of this day? She hasn’t a clue. Honestly, from her perspective it seems quite distasteful.

But She, on the other hand, couldn’t get enough of Earth’s frivolous celebrations. She made it her purpose to understand as much about their primitive way of life as possible. She— despite all her desperate pleas for her to choose otherwise— decided to take her overly obsessive fascination one step further and submit her body to it.

Which is how fifteen years later, Pearl finds herself broken, alone, sitting atop the same floating mountain where she first pledged her willful, eternal loyalty to the former diamond she now mourns. Her shoulders shake as she sobs without restraint, lithe fingers gripping so hard into the grass that she pulls up roots. Tears drip off her chin and into the dirt. She’s a coward. One of the most important days for humankind, despite her lingering confusion as to why, and she can’t even manage to pull herself together for a second to be there for... for him.

Just thinking about it sends her whirling through every year of her regrets as if she’s living through it all afresh.

She isn’t there at the very beginning. None of them are. It‘s just Greg, and, and... and Her, and some local she can’t remember the name of who agreed to act as midwife. The next ten or so years are much the same, every single one of them except the boy’s father keeping their distance so they can grieve in their own private ways. Garnet grows more withdrawn than usual, holing herself away in the burning room to conduct inventory of the bubbled Gems. Amethyst always warps to her former Kindergarten to do shard knows what, likely resorting to violence as a means of burning through the confusing emotions. And as for herself, she runs here. Every time. To Strawberry Battlefield, where the others dare not follow.

Eleven years. Despite Greg’s warnings otherwise, the energetic young half-Gem personally invites the three of them to his party. Garnet and Amethyst politely decline this invitation, knowing they don’t have the emotional strength to deal with the other young human children on this already difficult occasion. They do, however, concede to join him and Greg for a small cake lighting ceremony later that evening.

Pearl attends neither.

Twelve years. This time, there is no big party full of noisy, ungrateful human children the boy’s age. Most of their families had since moved away. (If she has to guess, the town’s prevalence for dangerous Gem activity was the root cause of that.) Upon Greg’s request, the others agree to meet up on the porch of the house—almost complete— to sing him that dreadfully banal song.

When approached about it later, she claims she forgot. No one dares press further.

Thirteen. She must leave immediately to take care of an urgent solo mission. No, she doesn’t need help, but thank you for offering.

Fourteen.

For the first time, she actually attends the celebration. It’s small, cozy. She manages a smile for most of that day. Manages to keep her thoughts pointedly directed away from the raw, recent past she’s usually running towards in her own self destructive way. Foolishly, she dares to imagine that maybe, just maybe she’s beginning to move on, to change with the rest of them, just like that young half-Gem is with every passing moment. But then the new shirt Connie got him is pink, and the whole countryside is spinning around her, and she can barely hear Amethyst asking her if she’s alright, and before she knows it, her feet have propelled her away, away to the warp pad nestled in the nearby field, and straight into the strawberry scented arms of the grief she can’t quite separate herself from.

It’s not normal. At least, it shouldn’t be normal. Grief isn’t something Gems of a lower cut have reason to even express. Where one is shattered, a replacement is incubated in the crust of some other unlucky world. Even for a Gem as powerful and rare as a diamond, such deep sorrow is waved away as nothing more but a waste of time and resources. And yet in this case the gem in question isn’t actually shattered. Perhaps it’d be a different story if She were. Perhaps Pearl could find the strength to finally thrive on this anniversary if that gemstone’s achingly familiar song really was cut off for good, if she could bury all her unresolved feelings with the shards She left behind.

Instead the song lives on, unceasingly, within the very boy she's helped raise.

Fifteen.

She hopes he knows that she tried this year, she really did. After everything they’ve been through together... every truth she’s revealed, every secret he’s confided with her, every hard wrought battle they’ve won... she honestly tried.

But no matter what, she can’t quite dodge the guilt ridden fear that his happy day will never be happy for her.

Miserably, she hugs her legs to her chest, her hard light form long since purged of all strength from her weeping. The tracks of her tears have already dried on her cheeks, and they’re left feeling sticky as a result. Looking up, the fields below are stunning in the stark amber glow of sunset. They genuinely are. Beyond the floating mountains wild strawberries stretch as far as the eye can see, but today they stir nothing within her.

Today, even beauty is without meaning, and in the moment so is she.

The vines emerging from the base of her solitary plateau crack and rustle, knocking her from her thoughts. She startles with a gasp, almost whirling around to see what’s disturbed her, but then... that song, oscillating through the thick air in waves far too small to hear. Of course. Who else would have the courage to run after her?

“Pearl,” he says softly, edging towards her frail, quivering frame.

And truthfully, she’s not sure if she’ll ever get used to the sound of that boy’s voice, how low its dropped ever since his sudden growth spurt a few months back, so, so different in register and yet intimately familiar regardless. Arms wrap tight around her midsection. She sniffles in response, hot tears threatening to burst their dam at any moment. Yet, still every bit as stubborn as the day she emerged from under the iron rule of Homeworld, she refuses to look behind, refuses to visually acknowledge the truth that’s weighing down on her more than even the fate of entire rebellions: the undeniable truth that like it or not he’s changing, faster and faster as the days creep onward, growing and maturing into a young man she knows with every burning fiber of her being that She would be so proud of.

It’s almost not fair, how quickly humanity can change. Progress... move forward.... leave behind.

Forget.

Die.

She begins quivering once more, not able to hold back her tears for his sake. They’re messy, every bit as undignified as she deserves in this moment.

To his credit, the boy doesn’t say anything more, knowing her well enough by this point to merely comfort her in silence as she brokenly wails. Minutes pass. At some point, he leans his face against her back, hugging her the same way as the first time he followed her here. It’s grounding, a welcome reminder of all the other days she has to live for. Taking a deep, steadying breath, she closes her eyes for a period, reaching up to blot at the edges of her puffy eyes.

“Happy Birthday, Steven,” she whispers, wiping the last traces of tears away before clasping her hand solid in his, steeling herself in both mind and body to face the unknown future with him together... one fifteenth of August at a time.

[dalekofchaos]

An analysis of Michael Myers as he's portrayed only in the original Halloween

From reddit user silviod

When we think of Michael Myers, we think of The Shape - standing, staring, white mask and blue overalls. We think of the music, and the relentless pursuit. We think of the iconography of the killer and his permeation into horror and cinema. What we generally don't think of is the human, and that makes sense: John Carpenter has often described him as being 'almost supernatural' and 'a force of nature.' In Halloween itself, released in 1978, Michael Myers' psychiatrist, Dr. Sam Loomis, describes Myers as being "pure and simply evil." He is evil personified, and that is it. But let's get into a bit more detail here, because despite everything, the Michael Myers that we see in the original Halloween has flesh and blood and hair.

Let's just get one thing out of the way straight away: Michael Myers isn't Laurie Strode's brother. This was, of course, a twist invented by the alcohol-infused mind of Carpenter and Hill for the 1981 sequel and has no relevance here. I'm talking specifically about Michael Myers as he's presented in Halloween and Halloween only. So we open with the POV shot of Myers killing his sister Judith. He walks outside and his mask is removed by his parents - he's near catatonic, and seems shocked at what he's done. Bullshit to all those who say he had a blank expression - that is not the fucking look of an expressionless kid. It might not be much, and his shock doesn't imply he's less evil, it just shows that this is probably his first exposure to anything of the magnitude of murder. Skip to years later, and Michael is 21. Let's outline the moments we spend with Michael, as well as his actions and the way he holds himself. Loomis and a nurse are going to Smiths Grove to pick him up and take him to be tried as an adult. As they approach the sanitarium, they notice many wandering inmates in the darkened fields. As Loomis gets out to investigate, Myers leaps onto the car from behind like an animal. He's swift and quick, and is already playful in his actions. He makes noise on top of the car to startle the nurse, then smashes the side window and tries to grab her. He jumps down, throws her out the car and hops in. He drives away. Now he embarks on his 100 mile plus road trip to Haddonfield.

On the way, he stops at a garage, kills a guy there, and steals his overalls. He arrives in Haddonfield, breaks into a shop and steals a mask. He returns to his old home, eats a dog, and sees Laurie walk up to the door. He decides to start following her, so he hops in the car and does so. He follows little Tommy, Laurie, and Laurie's friends. He stands on the streets and in gardens and intentionally exposes himself, then hides. He's letting them know that he's around. In my head, Myers was always robotic, with surgeon-like stillness, but he really isn't like that. He holds onto the trees as he hides behind them and leers out from the side. He stumbles and knocks a plant over when watching a girl in her house and backs away quickly as it made noise - or was this intentional? Either way, he's not anywhere near as robotic in his mannerisms as I remembered.

His stalking is deliberate and unsubtle. He doesn't give a shit if people notice him, as long as the ones he's targeting do. He's really getting off on this. Eventually, he decides to actually start killing them. He sees Annie naked, as she spills whatever-the-fuck-she-spills on herself. He watches her this entire time - these scenes constantly have Myers presence, because he's constantly there. At this point, he's staying within a tiny radius: just two houses. He's got everything else out the way now His sister's gravestone was successfully retrieved earlier and he's already popped that into the house ready to decorate his house-of-horrors. The killing begins. He's stalked for at least twelve hours, and by now he understands the people he's watching and he's figured out their interpersonal relationships. For a man who does twelve hours of stalking, his kills are pretty quick. A strangulation, a cut throat and a stabbing. It seems this isn't the ultimate goal for him, it's just the final piece in a long chain of excitements. When he killed Judith as a kid, he watched her first. It's probably likely that, for hours, days or weeks before the scene that opens Halloween, he was watching Judith not with eyes of a younger brother, but eyes of a killer.

He kills Annie and then takes her corpse upstairs where he positions her on the bed. He waits again, this time for someone else to arrive. Lynda and her boyfriend rock up soon after, so it's time to start killing. Michael has paid the least attention to these two in terms of stalking, so he gets to business quite a bit quicker. He lets them have sex - yes, this is a matter of him allowing them to, because he was there the entire time. Then, the guy goes downstairs to retrieve some beers. There, Michael makes a noise and then hides in a closet, waiting for the guy to investigate. He lunges out the closet and pierces the guys' chest, nailing him to the wall with the knife. The guy dies, and Myers does what is now considered one of his trademarks: his head tilt. He probably had a similar experience after killing Annie, but it cuts pretty soon after that one so we don't get to see it. Nick Castle - the actor portraying Myers - was told by Carpenter to act like a kid who had pinned a butterfly to a board: it's almost as if there is an element of curiosity here. And that's where we get to an interesting point: Myers has been catatonic and lifeless since the killing of his sister 15 years ago. Not a word spoken. We imagine Myers sat in his room, all day, every day, staring. Staring at the walls. He grew. He went through puberty. He grew into a man. All whilst in this state. It's not unreasonable to surmise from this that he's probably, on some level, in a state of arrested development. What could there be to develop him? He was, presumably, a normal child, in a normal household on a normal street in a normal school, before he murdered Judith. Whatever was brewing inside of him took over when he killed Judith, and he froze in that moment - he'd have to. He spent all of his time thinking about that kill, because if not, why would he instantly start trying to memorialise, to relive? Why bring his sister's gravestone to his new house of mayhem if he didn't have some affinity to it? Michael Myers is still that six year old boy, and he's still got that curiosity. Whatever it is that drives Michael to kill, it's in the same state as it was when he was six: he likely killed Judith out of curiosity, and here he is again. He's amazed that he just pinned someone to a wall! Wow, no longer does he only have one kill to fantasise about, but he's wracking up more and more.

He then follows this firey curiosity with another infamous Myers moment - he takes a bedsheet, cuts out two holes, puts it over his head, puts his recent victim's glasses over it and heads upstairs. He opens the door of the bedroom and stands there, then after a moment, edges himself closer. After a while, he strangles her and she dies. But let's think about this: after killing that guy, whose name I have just completely forgotten, he cuts holes out of a bedsheet and wears it like a ghost. What does this say about Michael Myers? He roamed around the kitchen searching for scissors, cut out eyeholes, put the bedsheet on over the mask he's already wearing and puts the glasses on top of that. Is this his sense of humour? Is this just a method of getting closer to his victim without her knowing, so she's easier to attack? Some people say it's that, but Michael Myers simply wouldn't care about that. She was in bed, naked, a few feet from him. If he opened the door as himself or as the bedsheet, it wouldn't matter. He's just curious, and weird. He wanted to watch her for a while. By doing this, he can see her not just in a state of fear, but in an unalarmed, happy state. He didn't know what she'd do, but he was curious and excited to see it. His decision to do this also shows his creative flair - even if he is celebrating an ode to Judith's original kill 15 years ago, he's doing different things. Lynda was in a bedroom, naked and post-sex with her boyfriend. The environmental factors were almost the same as Judith's original kill. If Michael was simply trying to recreate the kill as an obsession to the original kill, he wouldn't be adding new elements. Hes building on the old memories, he's improving himself, pushing himself.

So he starts piling the bodies in different ways: hanging upside-down in a closet, shoved onto a shelve and laid on the bed below his sister's gravestone. Now he waits for his next victim. Laurie comes, but this time she manages to fight back. There are two schools of thought now: was Laurie his final girl, or was she meant to be another victim? Was his plan supposed to end with Laurie, or was she simply going to be another body? Based on what we see, he wanted to fill that room, and likely the house, with bodies. Clearly, he had planned what he was going to do for a long time. In his head, as he sat at Smiths Grove, he thought specifically: I'm going to take Judith's gravestone and surround it with more bodies. Either that, or this is all just on a whim, but I don't buy that. He escaped for a reason, on the anniversary of her death. He knew what he was going to do all along.

I don't think Laurie was all that important to Michael's plan. If he had successfully killed her too, he'd have continued to just find more and more bodies until he couldn't anymore, setting the house he was in as a giant mousetrap for the people of Haddonfield to fall into. But he couldn't because Laurie kept attacking him and he kept falling.

Now let's look at Michael's invincibility and supposed supernatural abilities. She stabs him in the neck with a sewing needle and he falls to the ground. It takes a while for him to get back up, but a wound like that likely wouldn't kill straight away. Sure, it would incapacitate, but we've learnt that Michael can be very "inhumanly patient" when he wants to be, what with his time at Smiths Grove as an example. He gets up and continues - does he feel pain here? Did it affect him at all? The fact he was down for a while implies, at least to me, that Laurie did manage to strike a fatal blow with that needle, otherwise Myers would get up straight away. Either that, or he didn't feel it, and simply allowed her to get away a bit to continue the chase. We've already established how much Michael enjoys the chase and the stalk, so of course he's going to give her that edge again. Then she stabs him in the eye with a coathanger and then in the chest with his own kitchen knife. Fatal blow. He falls. She gets the kids out of the house, and then he... gets up again. What was he experiencing? What was he thinking? He does think, because he isn't an empty vessel, so what was he thinking? Was he confused that he wasn't dying, or was his single desire to kill so overwhelming that he was able to override everything and continue? Either way, he goes for one last attack, where she demasks him. Here, we see that his eye is messed up. So his body does respond normally to physical stimuli - his eye was stabbed so the eyelid curls up. He bleeds. He's definitely human.

Then he's shot six times, falls out of the window and gets up again. This is the moment that a normal human being couldn't survive, so how did he? He must've been baffled! But anyway, through all this, we have to imagine the same scenes playing out not with the globally-recognised Michael Myers horror icon, but with the man behind the mask. He's a weird 21 year old guy who killed his sister when he was six and now he's back. He does weird shit. He's curious about kills and amused at the ways he does them. He stalks and watches. He used his sister's gravestone in his new rituals. He's just a young guy who really fucking likes killing. I don't want to explain why - it wasn't druids, but it might be that he's a pure incarnation of evil. But even if he is, he isn't just a shape. He clearly has a personality, and enjoys the way he stalks, and understands humans and how to get under their skin. If we imagine the same film but without the mask, it's a different picture. He's just a complete fucking weirdo, and somehow, his pure desire to kill grew so overwhelming that it broke reality and transcended life and death, and allowed him to become something more - his giver of death allowed him to escape it himself. This is Michael Myers. Haddonfield weirdo.

Now, I don't want to denounce the concept of evil here. I don't want to portray the concept of evil as being bound to the supernatural - it's often described Myers is the incarnate of pure evil and therefore he is a force of nature and unstoppable/unkillable - not human. There are many cases in real life of men who are truly evil - or at least commit heinous acts in the same vein Myers does - and this is the real world, where there is no supernatural. His ability to withstand stabbings and gunshots is not related to that, and is, to me, the ambiguity and amalgamation of the character of Michael Myers: all of Michael's personality traits are the perfect bedding for pure evil in a supernatural sense, but this doesn't negate Michael from being a human being who has lived 21 years and has his own personality, thoughts and internal lexicon. There is a precise logic and rhythym to Michael, and that's precisely because of the way he's portrayed: hes curious, playful, intelligent, agile, sadistic and childlike. He's inventive and creative and driven. He's Michael fucking Myers!

[letsrewindtimeblog-blog]

Episode 1 Blog - Candy Kitchen

Andrew and I got married on May 18, 2018 and for our honeymoon, we went to Fenwick Island, DE to spend a week at the beach. One year later, we celebrated our one year anniversary by returning to the beach, this time going to Ocean City, MD. Even though we were in another state, we were still only a couple of miles from where we stayed for our honeymoon since our 2018 hotel was right on the MD state line.

Our hotel in Ocean City, MD was a little nicer as it had an indoor pool, an exercise room, and we didn’t have to cross the major roadway to access the beach. We spent our first day mostly at the beach and then we walked around the area that afternoon to hunt for souvenirs. Although we didn’t find any souvenirs to buy, we did go into a department store that I thought had long since been discontinued, Roses! They even had a little carousel out front, so I had Andrew pose for a picture. I hadn’t been in a Roses department store for YEARS! It brought back so much nostalgia!

We then went to the ACME (it’s a grocery store and the first time I had ever heard of one) to try and find some pimento cheese. I know, strange as it sounds, I really wanted a pimento cheese sandwich. But they wanted almost 5 dollars for a small container! I said, forget about it and had to do without for the entire time I was at the beach. The bright side to this story is that when I finally got back home, I bought some pimento cheese spread for less than 3 dollars, so I did get to eat my sandwich after all (and it was good!)

For dinner that night, we walked to Big Pecker’s Bar and Grill. Now before you start thinking dirty, there was a large chicken statue out front so I’m assuming that it was the “big pecker” that the restaurant was named after. I had a huge burrito and Andrew ate a cheese steak with fries. We ate outside in these cute little rocking booths and sat by a fountain. I threw a unique quarter with a hole in it into the fountain to try and see if I could find it later, but with no luck. It began to rain on our way walking back to our hotel, but it did let up just long enough for us to grab a picture of the beautiful sunset.

Our second day was spent at the beach and we had a little mishap. It was a little windy that day and we were both having fun playing in the ocean. I kept watch over our chairs and beach umbrella, just to make sure the wind didn’t knock them over. About the time I turned and realized our chairs were flipped over and our umbrella was missing, I hear Andrew yell that our umbrella is in the ocean! We both scramble across the waves after it and I eventually grab hold of it while Andrew trips and falls over into the water because he was running so fast. Later that day, we bought an umbrella stand that stays secure in the sand so it wouldn’t happen a second time!

We ate at a place called The Dough Roller on our second night. We were both in the mood for breakfast-type food and this place had pancakes. We both ordered the same thing, blueberry pancakes with chocolate milk, yum! We then walked back to our hotel (this time free from rain!) and enjoyed a nice evening walk along the beach.

Our third day was (you guessed it) spent at the beach! Our umbrella stand worked like a charm and our umbrella didn’t go anywhere near the ocean. On this day, we drove to Bethany Beach, DE to walk the boardwalk and to celebrate one year later (on the exact day) visiting Candy Kitchen. We bought some different flavors of fudge and assorted salt water taffy. We also bought some souvenirs. See our adventures from that day in the video below:

We ate dinner that night at Grotto’s Pizza. It was about a 6 mile walk there and back to the hotel. We were fortunate to not have any problems with weather. We spent our night eating our treats from Candy Kitchen and catching up on sleep due to the noisy people from the room next door keeping us up the night before.

Our final day at the beach was SUPER windy! The wind was blowing the sand so hard that it stung as it hit against our skin. That coupled with the fact that it was an overcast day made it very cold. We didn’t stay on the beach very long just because we were being buried by the sand constantly blowing over our things. We went back to our hotel room where I spent time editing the above video while Andrew indulged in a NCIS marathon that was airing on TV. 

We drove to dinner on our final night since I had to refuel the car and we ended up getting Chick-fil-A since we were both craving chicken. It was a pretty good distance away and I kept asking Andrew if he was sure he didn’t want to walk it (jokingly, of course) and he responded he was definitely sure. After dinner, it began to downpour rain and after seeing a poor guy riding his bike in the storm, we were thankful that we drove.

We got back to our hotel for our final night and kept seeing advertisements on TV for the new orange vanilla Coca-Cola. By this point, the rain had let up enough for us to walk to the nearest gas station so that we could try it. My guess is they were going for an orange creamsicle type flavor. It was okay, but Coca-Cola is not my favorite soda and would love to see Pepsi come out with some different flavors!

We finally said goodbye to the beach and packed up the car ready for our next adventure - driving to my mom’s house for Memorial Day weekend.

[akaluan]

It occurs to me that Erich's family - wife, daughter, etc - probably have graves. Mental headcanon of Erich - on his anniversary, on important dates like birthdays or celebrations - just spending a quiet day there, with flowers and a packed lunch, remembering. (Uryuu is the first one to figure out where he's going and why; he eventually joins his great-grandfather, who tells him stories about the relatives he never had a chance to meet.) (Far, far down the line, Kisuke joins Erich as well.)

((Haaaa.. I’m in a Mood myself.))

It’s a bare week after he helps Uryuu regain his powers that Erich finds Karakura’s graveyard. He’d been wandering the town, familiarizing himself with the area and with places he could hide out from the local Reapers; he’d already deconstructed the hidden chamber he’d built with Quincy Arts to retrain Uryuu in, and now he needed… somewhere.

A graveyard wasn’t /somewhere/, but… he wondered, as he stared at the headstones, if this was where he and his wife were buried. He… doesn’t really have much to do during the daylight hours, anyway; with Uryuu spending time with his friends completing his school work, and Erich unable to be seen by most residents of the town, he’s at loose ends almost the entire day.

(It’s a bit morbid, he thinks, as he hops the fence and starts to walk through the rows of tidy graves, To walk in a graveyard as a dead man, looking for his own grave. Do other spirits do this?)

It takes him a few days to find their graves; the Karakura graveyard is a large one stretching back centuries, and even if he doesn’t know the people he is walking past, graveyards are not Erich’s favorite place.

(He’s been to too many funerals, too many memorials. Classmates and subordinates and fellow officers alike, the names of the dead stretch long in his mind, even decades later. The names might be faded now, his memory of them dimming with every passing year, but the /shape/ of it remained.)

But he does find them: his grave, and then Alexis’. Nadja’s and Souken’s a few plots down. And further, another woman with the name Ishida; Uryuu’s mother, he suspects.

(She died so young, Erich mourns, kneeling before Ishida Kanae’s grave and reading the dates. It doesn’t take much to count back the years in his head, to approximate Uryuu’s age at her death, and it… saddens him. She died so young, unable to see her child grow; what took her life, he wonders. What saw her off before what should be her time?)

But it’s not an unknown that he’s here for, and Erich turns back to Alexis’ grave. His wife didn’t live much longer than he, only a few years before passing on as well.

(Is she still out there in Soul Society? Wandering the districts, looking for him? Or has she moved on already, passing into the cycle of souls and reborn as a new person. Erich is… unsure of which he prefers.)

That first day, Erich simply sits, reclining on the grass beside his wife’s grave and staring up at the sky, spilling his worries and fears into the air in German, voice rough and low. It’s a lie, he /knows/ it’s a lie, but he can always pretend that she hears him, that she’s leaning against his side and laughing at his foolishness, poking holes in his fear, encouraging him to take the steps he needs.

(’Will you really let your hesitance come between you and your great-grandson?’ She would ask. ‘They /are/ Reapers, and we should be cautious, but doesn’t that mean we need to take responsibility and do our /own/ duty as Family Heads? He’s just a youth, Erich, and woefully under-trained for his age. What if he’s walking into a trap he can’t escape from by himself?’)

(Erich leaves the graveyard that day with a new, if fragile, resolve. Alexis always was the stronger of them, and even if it’s only a memory of her strength, he still feels better for the imagined discussion.)

He comes back. Birthdays and anniversaries and days that were significant to /them/ that he can still recall. Some days he stays only briefly, murmuring a greeting and a farewell before moving on, needing to return to the teens, to his duties, before he’s missed. Other days he once more settles on the grass and stares at the sky, spilling his mind in German, sentences broken in places where he /expects/ her response.

He asks for advice, asks for patience, asks for /guidance/. These Reapers confuse him, and he’s not certain he can /trust/ them, but the teens /do/. They have so few adult figures in their lives already, he’s hesitant to rip them away from /another/ set on the basis of his own fear.

(The instincts and skills he learned in the Great War, on assessing personnel for medals and promotions, on who to trust at his back and who to send away, /scream/ that he can trust these Reapers. That they’re worthy. That, if they were not /Reapers/, he would have been calling them associates, and perhaps even /friends/, /weeks/ ago.)

(Is his Quincy upbringing in the wrong, or is his ability to read men and women wrong?)

(And if his Quincy upbringing is wrong, why, then, does it feel like such /betrayal/ to consider these Reapers as friends?)

It’s Ichigo, actually, who figures out where Erich disappears to on certain days. When Uryuu mentions that Erich seemed distant and more reserved than usual, before vanishing for a day, Ichigo… wonders. It sounds familiar, sounds like /him/, on a certain day every year.

It’s Ichigo that points Uryuu in the right direction, but it’s /Uryuu/ who sneaks after his great-grandfather, worried and needing confirmation that Ichigo is /right/. And it’s Uryuu who, shame-faced at being caught, slinks over to Erich when the man calls him out.

But Erich doesn’t reprimand him, just watches him for a long moment, then pinches out his cigarette and asks if Uryuu ever heard any stories about his great-grandmother Alexis.

And when Uryuu says /no/, admits he knows almost /nothing/ about his family history, Erich huffs in frustration and tells Uryuu to get comfortable. He tells Uryuu of growing up, of training alongside Alexis and several others from an early age. Of the mischief he used to get up to with her.

(’But didn’t you… have a marriage contract?’ Uryuu asks, confused.)

(’Of course we did. The Rerugen lineage is a noble one, and marriage contracts are important to that.’ Erich answers honestly. ‘That doesn’t mean we were strangers when we married. We accepted the contract because we were already close friends, and worked very well together. Love would come — or not — in time, but it was more important that we work as a team and got along than anything else.’)

(Uryuu isn’t certain he understands Erich’s stance, but… it still nice to hear that his great-grandparents weren’t forced together.)

By the time they leave the graveyard that evening, Uryuu has a new, confusing image of Erich in his mind. It’s so /hard/ to equate the reserved, wary, battle-hardened man in front of him with the cheerful mischief-making child of Erich’s stories.

(It’s hard to imagine Erich and Alexis leading a group of other Quincy children, lurking in an apple orchard in order to ambush Quincy adults for fun. Or building a ramshackle tree-house only to have it fall apart on them. Or stealing tarts from a window to eat.)

(Uryuu… wonders. How he would have grown up, if he wasn’t the last Quincy child living.)

(It’s a sad thought.)

[darlingpetao3]

Meet Your Doom (EoWells x Reader)

Rating: T

Summary: What happens when you find out your seemingly perfect boyfriend turns out to be the psychotic evil Speedster Team Flash has been hunting this whole time? The prequel to Out of This (Doom)World.

A/N: I may have altered the timeline of the final episodes of Season 1 a bit in order to fit my vision for this story. Hope it worked out!

Life was perfect.

You have the job. The friends. The boyfriend. And sure, you tend to have these pesky visions that sometimes bring on headaches in varying degrees of pain, but other than that, life was perfect.

With a pep in your step, you arrive at S.T.A.R. Labs, the workplace of your love, Doctor Harrison Wells. How did you ever get so lucky?

Your heels clack on the floor as you enter the Cortex where Team Flash relaxes after a hard day's work of metahuman ass-kicking. Harrison had let you in on the secret of him leading the superhero group devoted to saving the city and helping Barry to run faster. How your man juggles so many philanthropic projects at once is awe-inspiring to you.

“There's my favourite journalist.” Harrison is the first to spot you. He always is. He always has his lovely baby blues glued to you. “You look exceptionally beautiful today,” he says adjusting his glasses. He makes your heart skip a beat.

“And you look especially sexy today.” You bend down to give Harrison a kiss hello and he returns it with a passion you're not used to seeing outside of the bedroom and certainly not in front of his colleagues. It catches you by surprise.

“Doctor Wells, do you and the Mrs. have to do this every time?” asks Cisco.

“Apologies, Cisco,” Harrison replies. “And (Y/N) isn't my Mrs. Not yet, anyway.” He flashes you a very aware smile and takes your hand to hold.

You rest a hand on his shoulder. “Ready to leave, babe?”

“I believe I am.”

“May I?” you ask, gesturing to his chair.

“Please do.”

You sit yourself down on his lap and Harrison drives his chair out of the Cortex. Even when he turns the corner, you can still hear Cisco's voice, “See, why can't I have something like that? Something beautiful and gross.”

That evening, you cook for Harrison. You wanted to do something special for your two year anniversary with him and what better way to spend it than a quiet, intimate night in, just the two of you?

The night is filled with deep conversation and loving gazes, which also follows you to your shared bed, where you celebrate your love of each other in a whole other way....

But oddly enough, you didn't sleep well afterwards. Your body tosses and turns in the middle of the night as a vision cruelly interrupts your sleep cycle. It pounds your brain with an urgent intensity. Your visions have never disturbed you in your sleep before.

In the vision, you see a man standing with his back to you. Harrison's motorized chair rests behind the figure, and when the man turns to show his face, you feel like screaming bloody murder.

It's Harrison. The love of your life.

But his eyes glow an evil red as if possessed.

Red lightning emits from his body and in a split second, he's gone.

You wake up with sweat on your forehead and feeling out of breath. What you just saw scares you to your very core. If this vision is true (and why wouldn't it be?), you needed to alert Team Flash. All your lives were in danger.

Harrison Wells is the man in yellow.

You try not to wake your more-than-likely-evil boyfriend by pulling back the covers.

“(Y/N),” comes Harrison's sleepy voice, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah. Yeah, I'm just going to get a glass of water,” you lie. “Be back soon.” Reaching for your phone on the nightstand, you get up and attempt to casually leave the room without looking back. Out in the living room, your fingers attempt to type out a text message to Barry, the only person who has the ability to help you in this moment, and quickly.

I don't think Harrison is who he

says he is. I need help. NOW.    

Before you can hit send, a voice sends a chilling shiver down your spine:

“I wouldn't do that if I were you.”

What's strange is that you've heard this voice for the past two years and never once has it brought this kind of fear out of you.

“I knew your visions would eventually cause problems for me,” Harrison continues, moving bit by bit closer to you. He knows. It's difficult for you to wrap your head around him walking after all this time. “But hey, it's the price I pay for loving you.”

You feel sick.

“You're him. You're the Reverse-Flash.” He's been under your nose this whole time. Almost every night you'd ask Harrison how Team Flash was faring with the hunt for the man in yellow and every time he'd say they were making progress. Lies. All lies. How could you have missed this?

“Please, call me Eobard, my dear.”

“Eobard?” The name doesn't sound right in your ears, but it could be just that you're used to saying Harrison when speaking to the man with this face.

“Yes, and it sounds so good to hear it from your lips. Say it for me again, would you?”

“I wouldn't want to give you the satisfaction.”

Harris- no, Eobard, is closing in on your personal space. You have your phone grasped tightly behind your back. If I could just press send...

Done!

The villain shakes his head. “It's a shame it has to come to this.”

“C-Come to what?” Eobard is faster than you had anticipated, as he whisks you out of the house and passes buildings and vehicles in a total blur. You tumble to the cold, hard ground of some dark and unknown underground location.

“So what? You're going to leave me in this hole to rot all alone?”

Eobard laughs.

“Well, you won't be alone,” he says. “Isn't that right, Eddie?” A weary grunt comes from over in the corner. CCPD Detective Eddie Thawne sits limp and tied to a chair. He looks dreadful. Weak. How long has he been down here? Wherever here is?

“I don't know what kind of sick, twisted plan you have going on, but you won’t succeed.” It takes everything for you to not let your voice waver. To not let him hear your broken heart through your words. “Barry will stop you.”

“Au contraire, my dear,” Eobard says with an evil smile that seems to fit him. “Mr. Allen will be helping me. Whether he likes it or not.” You have no idea what this means. Eobard uses his super-speed to carry and tie you up to another chair like Eddie's in the blink of an eye. The rope scratches at your wrists.

“You know, if we were alone, this could be fun,” the Speedster's breath is warm in your ear. “Very reminiscent of your birthday last year.”

Your stomach churns.

“Shut up.”

“Aw, come on, (Y/N). You know I love you? I'm doing this for us. Soon we will be out this archaic time and the world will be ours. I have a plan.”

We? Plan?

“I don't want any part of this. Leave me out of it.”

“I'm afraid that's not an option.” Eobard steals a kiss from you. There's no other word for it other than steals. “I'll be back for you. Sit tight.”

“Ha ha.” The underground area becomes quiet once your psycho boyfriend leaves, save for the detective's noises of discomfort. Well, one thing's for sure...

No one has had a worse anniversary than you.

Hours pass. You're sure of it. What you are unsure of, is whether Barry or anyone from Team Flash for that matter has received your hasty text for help. Your multiple attempts to talk with Eddie about the current situation are futile. He's so out of it. You wonder how long it will take until you become this way, too.

But then, you hear the sound of a hatch opening from above. A man and a woman's voice echo down to the depths of where you're being held.

It's Joe and Iris West.

“(Y/N)! Eddie!” Iris cuts away your binds while Joe takes care of Eddie's.

“Thank God you're alive!” she says. “We've been looking everywhere-”

“Iris,” you tell your work friend, “It’s Harrison. He's the Reverse-Flash!”

“His name is Eobard.” Eddie's voice is scratchy. How does he know this? “He said that we're family. He's a Thawne. My descendant.”

You are so confused. Joe must see this on your face.

“Come on,” he says. “Let's meet up with the rest of team... And get you both some clean clothes.” You look at Eddie, whose suit is dingy from however long he's been down here, and then to yourself, still clad in your nightgown. You're too tired and shaken to feel any kind of embarrassment.

“Good idea.”

You end up sleeping for almost an entire day and a half. While Team Flash works out a way to deal with Eobard, you sleep the stress and heartache away in a back room of S.T.A.R. Labs. You wish you could be more help, but you don't have the energy right now. Besides, Team Flash knows what they're doing. Right?

On and off during this time of mental recuperation, a recurring image of a dark hole in the sky flickers in your mind. Sometimes you see it for longer periods of time, others shorter. It's unclear what this means, or when this phenomenon will take place, but nonetheless, it frightens you even while sleep.

A knock on the door wakes you. Your eyes flutter open to see Caitlin standing in the doorway, peeking in. She looks upset.

You sit up. “Caitlin?”

“(Y/N), I have terrible news.”

“What? What is it?”

She takes a breath. “Doctor Wells... Thawne is getting ready to return to his time.”

“Isn't this good news?”

“He... He threatened us. Saying if you didn't go with him to the future, he'd kill us all.” This statement cuts at you like a knife. Like hell if you were going with Eobard!

But if you don't, your friends will suffer.

I have to go. For their sakes.

“Take me to him.”

Eobard, the man you thought you knew, holds his arms out and open to you as if welcoming you back into his presence.

Where is Barry? And why is he not jumping in to save the day?

You suppose you're the one saving the day, in a sense, going with this man to keep your friends from being killed. Eobard is handsy with you and very firm when ushers you towards a glass bubble-like machine. Dressed in his infamous yellow and black suit, he has you sit down beside him in the chair within. The door closes on you both and he smiles to himself. Eobard is getting his way. Like he's planned for since the beginning. As he punches a button on the control panel, the futuristic machine begins to hover off the ground. There’s a far-off look in his eye.

“Home,” he whispers.

It may be his home, but it will never be yours.

Then, a torpedoing red streak hurtles its way directly at you both. The Flash. Barry smashes the glass machine, shattering it into a million shards and broken pieces, while also managing to cradle and shield you from the collision. Eobard starts yelling furiously at Barry.

“Get back,” Barry instructs you, staying in between you and the villain. It doesn't take long for the two Speedsters to begin fighting all around the courtyard to the death. Out of the corner of your eye, you spot Eddie, who has come to help you out of the situation safely. He offers you his hand.

“Go. Get away from here, quickly.” But Eddie doesn't seem to be coming with you.

“What about you?”

“Don't worry about me.” The detective looks sad as he says this, but you hurry off to join Joe and Cisco far away from the violent battle. The moment you reach them though, a deafening gun-shot blast rings out in the air. Joe rushes to his partner, now collapsing to the ground, a seeping, bloody wound forming at his chest.

You can't breathe.

“Eddie is Eobard's ancestor,” Cisco explains in shock. “If Eddie dies, he'll never be born and- he's being erased from existence!”

You can't take your eyes off of Eobard. The face of Harrison, the face you loved, the face you've kissed an immeasurable amount of times, transforms before your very eyes. The shape of his jaw, his eyes, his hair. He's turning into a completely different looking person.

But he's still the same man who betrayed you on the inside.

Eobard keeps his focus on you witnessing his change. It's almost hard to watch with the amount of tears welling up in your eyes.

“Oh, (Y/N), we could have changed the world together...”

“You've changed my world enough for one lifetime.” Cracks of light emit from his body slowly, then all at once. Eobard lets out a painful holler as he disintegrates into the air, then and there.

Eviscerated from time.

Harrison is gone. Eobard is gone. All that's left of what once was is you toppling to the ground, with your head in your hands, unleashing everything you've been feeling since finding out his secret through an uncontrollable series of silent sobs.

It takes you a while to fully realize the entirety of Team Flash is huddling around you, trying to force you back into the Labs and away from the pull of the wormhole in the sky.

My vision.

“(Y/N)! You gotta get up!” Barry shouts. “We can't lose you! Not like this!”

Before you can yell back “what's the point?!” Barry says one final thing:

“You are a part of this team as much as anyone! Team Flash doesn't abandon one of their own!”

His words are the driving force you needed to bring you to your feet. You stare up at the daunting, spiralling wormhole hovering above and wipe the streaks of tears from your face with your sleeve.

“Okay, Team. Let's save the world.”

~

Anonymous Request: OK I know this is an odd request but can you do a sequel/prequel or mid-equal to out of this doomworld - like I love how you wrote the relationship and want more ? but only if you're cool with it. Thanks! ×

[itsybitsybatsyspider]

Frosty Phantom Pt 1

Word count: no idea, just rolling with it.

Summary: it's Danny's first Deathday, so Frostbite decides to give the unexpecting halfa a present that he never thought he would have.

Disclaimer: i, sadly, do not own Danny Phantom

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

Summer was coming to an end, and unfortunatly, the public hell that was most commonly known as 'School' was just around the corner. And while some kids spent the last days in the sun and out spending time with their friends, and while others were holed up inside of their rooms playing videogames to their hearts content, there was one iconic group of friends who decided to do none of those things. Instead, there was an anniversary coming up; one that only four people in the entire world knew about. It was the day that changed all of their lives in fact. For it was the day when Danny Fenton became Danny Phantom.

"Danny, c'mon! You know you gotta do SOMETHING!" Tucker whined as the trio sat in Danny's room.

They all decided to get together one last time before the school year started. Since Sam's parent wanted to spend the last week at their beach house and Tucker's family was planning to go on a camping trip and go crabbing. Leaving Danny all alone with his spontaneous, ghost hunting family.

"No, Tuck, I don't. Can't I just treat it like any other day?" He asked lying on his bed. Already knowing the answer behind the pointless question.

"No." Same stated bluntly as she continued to listen in on the conversation and draw new suit designs.

"Well then fine, what should i do then? Throw a party? Invite some friends over? How about a movie marathon with some ghosts? Oh wait! I can't because i can't throw a party without friends, and i can't invite friends over because you two are the only ones, AND i can't have ghosts over for a movie because practically all the ghosts in the Ghost Zone hate me."

"Not all of them." Tucker mutteres under his breath as he glanced down. Danny gave his friend a light glare.

Sam put down her sketchbook and crossed her arms with a sigh, "As much as i hate to say it, Danny's right. There's not much he can do for his Day of Death."

"We are NOT calling it that!"

"Fine. Day of Half-Death." Danny leaned up on his elbows and gave Sam a 'done' look.

"Well even if he can't do a lot, that doesn't mean that he can't do anything. He can still celebrate in his own way." Tucker said as he continued to tinker around with his PDA, while also paying attention to the conversation. Sam pointed at Tucker and looked at Danny.

With a groan, Danny flopped on his bed again, having finally given in.

"Fine! I'll do something for my Dead Day."

Sam made a face. "Yeah no. We're not calling it that either." She looked at her spider watch and sighed. "Well i gotta get going. If i miss my curfew again, my mom's gonna get on my ass about it. See ya guys later." She made her way to the door with a few mumbled good byes before Danny turned to Tucker.

"Did you know she had a curfew?" Tucker shrugged.

They ended the day by playing a few videogames before Tucker, too, called it a night and went home. Which left Danny to think about the anniversary coming up.

He knew that he should do something for it, but at the same time, he didn't know what to do. He glanced at his clock, and seeing that it read 8:56, decided to make an unplanned trip to the Ghost Zone.

After transforming into his alter ego, Danny turned intangible and invisible and slipped through the house until he reached the lab. With dread, he saw that his parents were still working on some new invention, refusing to give up on it until it worked. Danny thought for a bit before an idea came to mind. A mischievious smirk crept onto the half-ghosts face.

He went back up to his room, and threw on some random clothes on top of his normal suit that hadn't been worn for months. Hd turned invisible once more, and snuck back into the lab.

"Jack, could you hand me the screwdriver? And make sure it's not the drill that got contaminated with that spilled ectoplasm!" His mother called. Her auburn hair whipping around as she looked across the lab for said screwdriver.

"Sure thing Mads!!" Her husband exclaimed as he walked around the lab looking for it. And while they were both focused on their tasks, Danny drifted down from the ceiling and started to make stereotypical ghost wails. Both of his parents stiffened instantly before spinning and grabbing the nearest ghost weapon they could find.

"OOOOoooooOOOoOoOooohhhHhhhHHHH!!!!"

"WHERE ARE YOU GHOST!" Maddie yelled out into the lab

"OOhhhOooooOooOOOOIHHHhhhh!"

"SHOW YOURSELF YOU COWARD!"

And before anything else could happen, Danny turned the clothes on his body visible, making it seem like they were floating of their own accord.

YOOOuuuuuu wiiIiiIIIILLLLllL NEeeEEVeerR CaaaAtHCCcc MmmmEEE!!!" Danny said in a fake gravelly voice before taking off and flying through the lab door and into the kitchen.

He turned the clothes invisible again and became intangible before he entered the lab again just in time to see his parents scrambling up the stairs to the kitchen.

"WE'LL SEE ABOUT THAT GHOST!!" He heard father yell as he climbed the stairs and exitting into the kitchen and slamming the door.

Danny became visible again and couldn't help but laugh. Without realizing it, he was clutching his stomach and tears started to form in his eyes. In the middle of his fit, he remembered why he was down there in the first place and attempted to calm himself down. Still snickering, he floated over to the Fenton Portal and pressed his thumb against the keypad. It dinged and lit up green before opening up to the other world that sat in the poor halfa's basement.

And still smiling, Danny flew into the emerald vortex.

After being met with the usual sight of the green void, purple doors, and floating islands, Danny altered his course to that of the Far Frozen. It didn't take long for him to get there, having been visiting Frostbite frequently to learn the extent of his ice powers and of any others that he may have.

The sight of the frozen waste land came into view and Danny smiled as he saw it.

Over the past few months, Danny and the people of the Far Frozen had grown closer. They had become like a second family to him. He played with the children ghost yetis and would attend their birthday parties if they conjured up enough courage to invite him. They loved hearing his stories about the Human Realm and the strange and different devices he would sometimes bring; like books, his cellphone, different foods, NASA shuttle models, and so many more. The adult yetis loved having him over for parties, dinners, festivals, and even just normal visits. They have taught Danny many things, ranging from dead languages, like Atlantean, to different arts of combat, and most importantly, how to use his ice powers. He learned how to create life-like flowers and sculptures, weapons made of ice, slides and so many more.

All in all, Danny held the Far Frozen close to his heart.

He landed in the snow with a soft crunch and sighed as the cool air washed over him. Still wearing the clothes over his jumpsuit, he took those off and decided that it would be fun to show the yeti children.

The halfa set off for the village that he so dearly loved and found it after not too long. The sight of the yeti children running around in the glittery snow met his vibrant eyes. The ice caves that served as homes had smoke coming out of a few of them and yetis both male and female alike were dutifully walking around. Finishing up chores that the children had discarded and talking with one another. One of the yeti children sspotted Danny, a grin lighting up his face.

"The Great Danny's back!!" He yelled excitedly. The other children followed his gaze and saw the white haired ghost boy too. Soon the entire village was filled with the sound of the children shouting

"DANNY'S BACK! DANNY'S BACK! THE GREAT DANNY'S BACK!!!"

Danny smiled sheepishly, and waved as he started to walk down the snow hill. That was the one thing that kind of peeved him. No matter how many times he told them that they didn't have too, they still insisted on calling him the 'Great One'. That is until they came to a compromise.

"Danny! Danny! What did you bring this time?" One of the girl yetis asked!

"Stories?" One boy with ice glasses said.

"A rackot ship?" A girl asked?

"Food?" Another boy asked. Danny laughed at their excitement and tried to calm them down.

"No, sadly i didn't bring any books. I think you meant 'rocket shop'. And sorry, but i didn't bring any food." Their enthusiasm died down a little, but it wasn't diminished.

"I did however bring clothes from the Human Realm. Wanna see them?" He asked, already knowing their reaction. They all nodded their heads so vigorously, Danny was somewhat concerned that they were gonna fall off.

He handed them the pile of clothes he had and instantly, the clothes were scattered throughout the small crowd of children.

"Whoa! What's this!?"

"That's a shirt."

"What about this?"

"That's a hoodie."

"And this?"

"That's a sock."

The yeti children kept asking questions about the objects Danny brought for them, and as much as he wanted to, he couldn't stay very long and answer all of their questions. With many 'aaww's and hugs, Danny bid the children farewell as he looked for thier chief.

He finally found him talking to one of his guards and drinking some sort of Far Frozen specialty. Clearly taking a break from his chieftain duties. Once he saw Danny and his signature black and white suit, Frostbite'a face lit up with a smile.

"Well look who's here! I was wondering when you were going to visit next." The yeti said in his booming regal voice. He grabbed another mug of the drink and offered it to Danny.

"Ah, no thanks Frostbite. I actually came because i need your advice."

Frostbite'a face suddenly became serious and he set his mug down. "What do you need Great Daniel." He asked as he put his ice hand on Danny's shoulder.

"Well, you see, my anniversary is coming up. You know, like the day i became half-ghost, and i don't know what to do to celebrate it. I mean, i can't hang out with my friends because they're gonna be gone, and i can't come here because my parents are gonna be locking down the lab for a day. Thanks to my sister. So...what should i do?" He asked. Completely lost.

A smile reappeared on Frostbite's face. "You mean to tell me, that your Deathday is coming up and you do not know how to celebrate it?"

"Wait, it's called a Deathday?" Frostbite nodded before continuing.

"We of the Far Frozen do not tend to celebrate Deathday's, because we are still living in a sense. But we do still celebrate special occasions. What we tend to do is each of us creates a tradition. Like, form an ice rose and add it to a collection of ours, or create a charm and add it to a bracelet of the sort. But all of our traditions have a personal reason behind them. And of course, we give gifts to the special one!" He smiled a big toothy smile and drew Danny in for a hug.

"Do not worry Daniel, you will figure out something. I know you will. It's not everyday you have your first Deathday." Danny pondered on what Frostbite had said, before making up his mind.

"Thanks Frostbite. I think you just gave me an idea." Danny suddenly floated up and with a wave good bye, he left the Far Frozen to return home.

And while Danny flew away, Frostbite turned to the yeti he was talking to earlier with a grin on his face.

"I have an idea."

[cremedelacremefanfic]

Crème de la Crème: 33

August

“Yo Aug, you coming?” Ashton pointed at the chartered van that we arrived in

Pressing my phone against my ear, I nodded, holding my finger up letting him know that I needed a minute.

“Give me one reason why I shouldn’t hang up in your face right now?” my wife asked

“Because we both know you just as relieved to hear my voice than you are angry, so what’s up baby?” I smiled

“Don’t ‘what’s up baby’ me.” she mocked my voice “I know your plane landed more than three hours ago, so why are you now just calling?” she asked

“I was held up on the plane when we landed and I told you that I had a meeting, what you think I came here to find another woman or something?” I asked

I probably should have taken the time to Call Corrie while everyone was worried about Evie’s choice of clothing but it was just too much going on at the time, so I opted to wait until I was done with my meeting so I wouldn’t have to rush her off the phone.

“Who knows, August who fucking knows but remember I am an attorney so I know exactly what I need to do in order to get away with killing you and that hoe.” she kissed her teeth which only made me chuckle

“Yeah okay, Corrie. You weren’t even tripping this much last year.” I pointed

Despite all the time I spent with Corrine before I boarded the flight to Buenos Aires,  she was still unhappy with me leaving. I understood though, not only did I wait last minute to inform her about the trip, since we’ve been married this was the longest we would spend apart.

“We weren’t married this time last year, you expect me not to miss my husband?” she asked

I smiled at her words “You home, Corrie?” I asked

She kissed her teeth “Yeah, why?” she asked, attitude still laced in her voice

“Go look in the safe,” I instructed 

She once again kissed her teeth but I knew she did as I asked due to the rumbling going on in the background.

“Tickets to Italy, for what?” she asked

“Happy anniversary, baby girl. Despite what you think, this last year being married to you has been the best one of my entire life, you make me feel so complete.” I confessed “I never knew I could love someone the way I love you. You said you’ve always wanted to go to Italy, so I thought I would take you to celebrate the first year of our union.”

I only wanted to make my wife happy, but I knew me doing these little things for her were going to go so far.

“But I told you that when we first started dating.” she sniffled

“So, I’m not supposed to remember?” I chuckled

She sighed “I really do love you, August, I’m just acting sour because I miss you, miss seeing your face, miss waking up next to you, miss feeling you. This feels so foreign that I can’t even feel as happy as I truly am that we’re going to Italy next week.” she admitted

"I know baby girl, I miss you too. Just try and relax for the next week. Go pamper yourself, hang with your friends and mama because when I get back, that ass is mine" 

She laughed "I'll try…" she trailed off "I love you."

"I love you too, I'ma call you a little later, okay?"

"Uh huh, talk to you later."  She blew a kiss into the phone

Evie

“You changed again?” Tish questioned. I had her on facetime as I changed my outfit for the third time in the span of thirty minutes. I blew out air as I looked through my suitcase. 

“Yes! Your nigga and his damn friends won’t let my ass fuckin’ live.” I said angrily. Seven men on this damn trip and all of them were treating me like I was a fuckin’ baby and it was pissing me the fuck off.

I was low key only changing because I spilled my drink on my sundress but Tish didn’t need to know that.

“First off, Sean is not my man.” I rolled my eyes as I looked down into the camera of my phone. She could deny all she wanted too but I saw the looks the two of them gave each other at my house.

The sexual tension is definitely there. 

“Girl stop lying.” I laughed at her. She twisted her face up at me and rolled her little beady ass eyes at me. “We both know that something is going on between you and Sean, stop lying,” I told her.

I didn’t know why she thought that I wouldn’t catch on to her and him. “Whatever, you just worry about your baby daddy.” 

“Who the hell is my baby daddy?” I questioned, staring at myself in the full sized mirror. I decided to wear this cute sundress with the split going all the way up to my hip. 

I didn’t care what either of them had to say about my outfit it was my birthday weekend and I was going to enjoy myself. “Ashton, Ashton is your baby daddy.” She teased. 

“That man is definitely NOT my baby daddy. Why would you say that?” I scoffed as she cackled louder than she should have. I didn’t see anything funny about what she just said. Ashton was pissing me off big time. 

“You two just need to fuck the shit out of each other because you two are out of hand. You know you wanna fuck him so stop playing.” 

"What would give you the crazy idea that I wanted to have sex with that man? I do--"

 "Evie, this me you talking too. This is your sister talking, I know you like the back of my hand and I know you like that light bright nigga." I sighed heavily.

 "Yes, I like him but he's such an ass hole! Like I've never met a man like him before, why did I have to like him." I whined.

 "Girl, if you don't just bounce on that man dick and bust a good ass nut and call it a day. That's what's wrong you ain't getting them walls tore the fuck down. Let that man make you cum and enjoy your birthday weekend." Tish shouted. 

 I couldn't believe that she was actually green-lighting me to have sex with Ashton. Actually, I do believe what she was saying because that's all she been saying for the last couple weeks. 

 Was I attracted to Ashton? 

Hell yeah. Did I like him more than I should have? Absolutely. 

 But it couldn’t be a coincidence that something always interrupted us then there was confirming that he and Adrienne still were messing around and I refuse to be caught up in that bull.

"Whatever! So do you like my outfit?" I showed her my outfit as she clapped happily. "Hell yeah! Girl I see that you are taking my styling tips. That ass is looking good in that dress" She squealed.

"Bye girl, I'll call you later."

"Have fun on the sightseeing adventure and remember use condoms, Eve. We don't need no baby Asht--"

I hung up on her mid-sentence. I couldn't stand her ass sometimes. One thing was for sure, I was about to enjoy my vacation, hell I might even find me a fine ass man out here.

After getting dressed, we all met up in the hotel lobby and of course, all of the guys just had to say something about my dress. They are gonna make me beat each and every one of them.

“That dress is kinda of lo--”

“Okay, so what we not about to do is complain about my choice of fuckin’ clothing on this trip. I’m all the way grown and not one of you big headed lil’ boys are my daddy so chill out. You may be my close friends, but y’all need to not run your pressures up!” I huffed and looked around at the wide eyes of all of the guys.

“Well shit, she told y’all.” Sean joked. He acted as if I wasn’t talking to his ass too. As I looked at him and tried to suppress my laughter. Of course, that was unsuccessful, I can always count on Sean to make me laugh. 

I looked to my left and saw Auggie on the phone, he looked like he was having a deep conversation with whoever was on the other line. I needed to talk to him because he’s been a little off lately. 

"Alright let's go! C’MON!" Ashton yelled, making my head whip around and face him. He walked inside the hotel lobby screaming like a mad man as if he wasn't the one running late. 

"Aight bruh, calm down." Sean laughed as he playfully bumped shoulder as we walked outside "Yo, Aug you been on that phone all day, let’s go!" Ashton asked. 

August held his hand up as we boarded the charter bus. As I walked towards the bus, Ashton was hot on my heels.

"Evie, stop walking so damn slow."Ashton was breathing down my neck. He was all in my damn personal space. My back hit his chest as I felt his hand grip my waist. Once again, he pressed himself onto my ass making me feel the bulge in his pants as he moved me out of his way.

I glared at him.

He looked back and winked at me making my blood boil.

I wasn’t gonna play these games with Ashton, I came here to get away from the bullshit, not to have another problem on my hands.

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

“Evie, I hope you’re not feeling left out of anything seeing as though you’re the only girl here,” Marlo said

Today had been a long one. We had walked what seemed like the whole of Buenos Aires and on top of it dealing with these guys made it so much more exhausting. All they did was argue and guess who got nominated to play mediator?

I was just glad we were finally sitting down for that dinner that Mr. Martin promised us.

“These guys?” I chuckled “I'm fine with being the only girl, plus I think these guys would've kidnapped me if I didn't come on this trip." I chuckled. 

"I've never seen them so protective over one person before. They care for you." Mr. Martin spoke as I looked around the table at my guys that  I had the privilege to call friends. They made me sick like I other but, they were my babies and I would fight to the death for them, except Ashton bitch ass. 

He has been irking my whole nerve all day. From the moment we got onto the bus ‘til now at dinner. To make matters worst he decides to sit down next to me at the table. 

Of all of the available seats that he could sit in, he decided to sit directly next to me. I looked up at him, to my surprise, he was looking down at me at the same time. He licked his full lips slowly and flashing a smiled.

I tore my eyes away from him, shaking my head. I didn’t get Ashton ass, I really couldn’t understand why he was fucking with me like this. First, he wanted me and then he wanted to be friends to barely acknowledging my existence and now he wanna rub and feel on me and lick those crusty ass lips at me.

Okay, who am I fooling? His lips were nowhere crusty, they were pink, thick and suckable if I might add. 

I just hated how he was acting towards me and I wanted to slap the taste out of his mouth because I could tell he was enjoying every moment of his torture.

I needed to get far away from this nigga, and FAST.

The waitress walked over to our table with a huge smile on her face and her eyes trained on Ashton. I chuckled softly and looked off to the side. My eyes caught Aaron’s who was smirking at me. 

I rolled my eyes at him and smiled. 

“Hi, what can I get you?” Her squeaky voice caught me off guard. Picking u my menu, I looked it over before speaking. “I wou--”

“I was talking to Mr. Michaels.” She said as I looked up at her, taken aback by her words. “Bi--” I felt someone place their hand on my bare thigh and squeezed it. My head jerked to the side as I looked at Ashton who was smiling at the waitress. 

“Well shit, I didn’t know he was the only person at the table,” Aaron spoke up which stirred up chatter among the table

Ashton just chuckled “I’ll take the Steak and potatoes, and bring your best champagne out here for me.” He flashed her an award-winning smile as he caressed my thigh in a tender way. 

She looked at me and her smile faded. “And you?” She asked. This bitch was rude and was only interested in serving Ashton his food which I think the bitch would’ve served him her pussy on a platter if given the chance to. 

Why did I care?

“I’ll take the seafood platter and an iced tea if your rude ass doesn't mind,” I mumbled the last part as Ashton gripped my thigh. I snapped my head towards him once again and eyed him. 

“Chill out.” He mouthed to me as his hand moved up my thigh. My eyes went wild as I looked at him. I looked around the table and of course, everyone was in their own little world. 

I gripped Ashton wrist to remove his hand but he was way stronger than I was. His hand felt amazing against my skin but that was beyond the point. He leaned over and pressed his lips against my ear. “Stop it.” He whispered and kissed my ear softly. 

“Ashton, please don’t.” I quietly pled with him

“Care to share with the class Ash?” August interrupted catching the attention of a few

The big brother in him was acting and I was both upset and relieved by it.

“I just wanted to know why she’s not drinking.” he simply said 

That must of satisfied everyone because they all went back to what they were doing before which was ignoring Ashton’s silent attack on me.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath before exhaling. As I was mentally trying to get myself together this nigga took things to the next level.

His fingers trailed up my exposed thigh, slowly prying my legs open and gripped the inside of my thigh. 

I felt his fingers pull my thong to the side and caress my pussy lips. When I say I almost came on myself from just him touching me, I meant it. I was gonna kill his ass for doing this. 

He leaned over again and whispered, “Spread your fucking legs.” He growled lowly so that I can only hear him. I obediently did as he said and the next thing I knew his index and middle fingers were being pushed inside of me and causing me to gasp out loudly. 

Aaron, Mr.Martin, and Sean looked at me since they were the only ones closest to me. “Are you okay, Evie?” Mr. Martin asked as Ashton eased his fingers from between my legs. 

“Ye-Yeah, I’m fine.” I cleared my throat as I sat back in my seat. I looked over at Ashton as he sat there with a smug look on his face. I didn’t know what he thought he was doing but he needed to stop. 

[granxaire-a-blog]

a series of unfortunate events otherwise known as renaud grantaire’s life, a timeline:

2012 -attends first ABC meeting as a prospective student -immediately picks a fight with the pretty boy student leader -gets the euterpe tattoo on his arm -starts college with a double major in jazz and classical history -rooms in the dorms with joly and bossuet -continues to attend ABC meetings with joly and bossuet -meets musichetta through classes and introduces her to joly and bossuet -parties way more than he should -gets into regular trouble with the campus cops

2013 -ends his first year with low as shit grades -moves into a dorm with strangers in his second year -crushes on enjolras but recognizes it as hopeless and so flirts by pulling pigtails -receives academic warning from the music dept and the riot act from his adviser -responds by fucking up a bit more -finally pushes the end of enjolras’s good graces and is kicked out of the ABC -responds by drinking way more than he has before and getting sick over it -finally admits to himself that he’s fucked up and needs help -exists solely on jbm’s couch for awhile trying to figure out what the fuck he’s doing -begins by crawling back into his professors’ good graces and actually applying himself -starts cutting a large junk of the partying scene out of his life -starts fiddling with the composition of the song -contacts enjolras for the first time in weeks and asks to meet him -has the most painful cup of coffee in the history of man and apologizes -given one more chance to be part of the ABC

2014 -visible improvement in handling himself as a fucking adult -replaces parties with bars as a performer rather than patron -crawls his way out of academic probation -learns how to disagree and argue with enjolras without being a shit -begins an actual friendship with enjolras -starts composing the song in full -gets a job at a downtown music shop -starts the school year with his own apartment -is acquired by cat -this blog’s story beings -beings to realize he might actually have real feelings for enjolras -still thinks things with him are probably hopeless and hates that its his own fault -the beginning of the strip dreidel tradition at grantaire’s place -somehow still fucking blind to the fact his feelings aren’t entirely one sided

2015 -tattoos an excerpt of the song to his body -the boxing vs. fencing bet is made -starts dating marcel enjolras, nerd extraordinaire on valentines -gets shot at a rally in a case of mistaken identity -spends 3 months under house arrest to recover -quits smoking because he has a fucking hole in his lung -enjolras moves in with him during recovery -enjolras graduates and grantaire receives extensions to graduate on time next year -loses out on his study abroad opportunity due to recovery -enjolras is asked to move in permanently and sells his apartment -enjolras takes grantaire to the philippines to get out of the city -starts his senior year -strip dreidel at the grantaire family residence -spends new years in new york with enjolras

2016 -boxing begins to cause tension between him and enjolras -tattoos the planetary alignment down his spine on the anniversary the shooting -a massive fight over grantaire’s sport leaving him bloody finally breaks -the two make peace, but enjolras stops attending his fights -begins to hide injuries from enjolras leading to another fight -admits he was in the wrong this time, they both try to get over this -performs the song at his senior recital and graduates -enjolras competes in the rio summer olympics and wins gold -enjolras beings to attend some of grantaire’s bigger matches again -takes enjolras to greece to celebrate gradation/rio -strip dreidel at the enjolras family residence

2017 -officially stops competing after a semi-serious concussion -does not stop training or boxing with friends, but doesn’t come home bloody anymore -enjolras proposes ( probs in spring/summer, but roleplayed on vday for cute gross ship pts )

[takebackthedream]

Check Your Wallet: Can You Find the $4k Pay Raise Trump Promised? by Frank Clemente

It was a promise that couldn’t have been clearer: when President Trump sold his tax scam to Congress and the American people, he said the average family would see a $4,000 pay raise from their employers. “I would expect to see an immediate jump in wage growth,” added Kevin Hassett, head of Trump’s Council of Economic Advisors.

That was last October. The tax bill passed in December, and it’s now Labor Day, a good time to review how if at all the Trump-GOP tax scam is actually serving working people.

For most of them there’s a simple answer: it’s not. They’re still waiting for that $4,000 pay raise they were promised. Trump admitted as much (unknowingly perhaps) when he boasted during a speech marking the six-month anniversary of the tax cuts that “more than 6 million workers have received bonuses, pay raises, and retirement account contributions” because of the new law.

But do the math. Six million workers are barely 4% of the overall U.S. workforce of 155 million. So how about the other 96%? Incredibly, when you add in the rising cost of gasoline, prescription drugs and other necessities, real wages for most Americans have declined from a year ago.

Meanwhile, the wealthy and big corporations – let’s face it, the real intended beneficiaries of the tax cut law – aren’t waiting. They saw an immediate reduction in their taxes. For corporations, their tax rate was slashed from 35% to 21%.

Multinationals also got a $400 billion U.S. tax discount on their untaxed profits stashed offshore, and the chance to pay about half the domestic tax rate on future foreign earnings.

Many Republicans justified the huge tax cuts by saying they would spur economic activity and increase government tax revenues. President Trump’s top economic adviser, Gary Cohn, said that “we can pay for the entire tax cut through growth.” Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) said that even “a modest amount of economic growth” could “cover the cost of this bill.” And White House budget director Mick Mulvaney went so far as to say the tax cut “actually generate[s] money.”

So what really happened?

Corporate tax receipts to the U.S. Treasury have plummeted—by over 40%, from $264 billion last year to $149 billion this year. Meanwhile, corporate profits have soared – up over 8%, reaching nearly $2 trillion in this year’s first quarter alone.

And what have corporations done with this windfall? Instead of spending on pay raises for their workers, they bought back their own stock. A lot of it. More than $700 billion worth of stock buybacks have been announced since the Trump-GOP tax law was enacted. That’s 100 times more than the $7 billion workers got in bonuses and raises.

Stock buybacks are a Wall Street maneuver that artificially raise the price of a company’s shares. Who benefits? Mostly CEOs, who receive a lot of their compensation in the form of stock, and other wealthy, well-connected shareholders, not rank-and-file workers.

The tax cuts have also added almost $2 trillion to the deficit. Now Republicans are trying to cover the hole they created by cutting critical public services that are important to working families.

Trump wants to cut Medicare and Medicaid— even though he promised during the campaign he wouldn’t touch them – as well as the Affordable Care Act (ACA). His cuts total $1.3 trillion over 10 years. Upping the ante, Congressional Republicans want to cut $2 trillion from these services. If adopted, this will mean millions of Americans will lose their insurance coverage. Premiums will soar for millions more, the age of Medicare eligibility will go up and prescription drugs will be even costlier.

Stagnant wages, rising costs, a ballooning deficit, cuts to healthcare and other vital services. Sadly, American workers won’t find much to cheer about this Labor Day in the much-ballyhooed tax cut law. But if a new Congress repeals the tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations and invests the money to make healthcare more affordable, provide free tuition to public colleges and rebuild infrastructure, then next Labor Day workers may really have something to celebrate.

Frank Clemente is executive director of Americans of Tax Fairness.