#they spin around my head microwave style and make me happy

[honey-bird10]

Retelling of real events that happen in the tscir novel:

Hyj: has two (2) breakdowns in front of shj

Shj: i-

Shj: ......

Shj: *gets down on one knee* would you accept me to be your sugar daddy?

Hyj: no

[hypnobyl]

could you do some fic about swanqueen.. like where regina and emma are friends but secretly have feelings for each other and one of them confesses after having too much wine?

also wanna ask if you have any advice or starting to write fics? i’ve found that i just really like to rush when writing and find myself in writers block a lot because i always want to get to the point and the exciting stuff. also just suck at wording things and writing in general lol

I thought a lot about your question. What I did was just write a lot of little short things. Not everything has to be a novel. If you have a huge idea and get stuck on exciting moments, follow that passion and write those moments first. Build from whatever inspiration you have.

So, write a bunch of really short things, just little moments, to get the hang of your style and voice. It's a great way to practice wording. If you ever want prompts for these moments, hit me up!

And if any of those little pieces strike a chord with you, start asking how did the characters get there? Where are they going? And build the context from there.

---

“I would not have guessed you’d be into this sort of movie,” Emma said between bites of popcorn—the snack, too, was surprising: buttery, salty, and totally unhealthy. She couldn’t quite parse how the woman who limited Henry’s fast-food intake was so enthusiastically enjoying a microwaved bag of heart-attack fuel.

“I’m full of surprises, dear.”

Regina likely hadn’t meant that to sound flirty. Like, definitely hadn’t. Emma stared at the television screen, a piece of popcorn held in front of her lips for a moment too long. In the few short months that she’d been coming over on Friday nights for movies and drinks, she’d been forced to confront the fluttering of her emotions caused by Regina’s attention. But now, she realized her feelings were taking too much control. She was seeing and hearing what she wanted, not actual reality.

“Definitely,” she replied after tossing the popcorn into her mouth and crunching away. “You’re very mysterious.”

“Sarcasm?”

She glanced over and caught Regina’s wry smirk. “Oh, no, definitely not.”

They returned to the movie, and Emma gnawed on her lower lip as she tried to banish the enticing image of Regina being happy. She didn’t offer up genuine smiles often, although Emma was seeing more of them lately. Of course, Henry could evoke them at the drop of a hat, but Emma found various ways of provoking positive responses—like texting silly emojis during meetings and bringing a bag of Skittles on tough days.

An explosion flashed on the screen, and Emma attempted rather futilely to refocus on the plot. She reached for another handful of popcorn and brushed against Regina’s hand. The small touch jolted through her, and her mind dove back into reassessing each of their interactions.

She cleared her throat. “I think it’s time to break open the wine.”

Regina stood to fetch the bottle from the fridge, and Emma followed after to snag a few glasses from a cabinet. She knew her way around Regina’s kitchen by now, and they moved around each other with practiced ease. Regina shifted behind her, placing a hand just over her lower back to establish her position and presence, and Emma hated how much she felt at home.

She was too sober.

“You got the white I like,” Emma noted as she placed the glasses on the counter.

Regina huffed. “I thought a safe pick was better after the faces you made last week after each sip.”

While Emma hoped this was some sign that Regina paid attention to her wants and needs, she took Regina’s explanation at face value. It was more likely that Regina wanted to avoid her acting out. Whatever the reason, she was grateful for the kindness because she could all but chug her glass without wanting to scrape the taste from her tongue.

“Thirsty, hm?”

“That popcorn was super salty.” Emma could feel the warmth already spreading through her, and some of the tension bled away. “Super good, too, but that salt, y’know?”

“Perhaps some water would have been a better choice, then.”

“No, wine is good,” she said too quickly. “Super good.”

Regina gestured back to the living room. “Shall we?”

“Oh, yeah, sure.”

As the movie crept toward its climax, Emma downed another glass. Feeling bolder, she scooted a little closer on the pretext of easier access to the bowl of popcorn. Their thighs came into contact, and Emma tried to sit as still as possible to avoid drawing attention. She really didn’t want Regina to inch away.

The main character delivered a powerful line before enacting a magnificent feat of physical prowess, and Regina snorted. Emma echoed the noise, which sparked more of a real laugh. Despite the movie’s tension, they laughed, and Emma tossed a bit of popcorn across the centimeters between them. It landed in Regina’s cleavage, and the wine helped Emma decide to try and retrieve the food. By the time her brain caught up with her actions, she had her hand down Regina’s shirt.

“Oh, shit, I’m sorry.”

She jerked her hand away, leaving Regina’s blouse tugged low to reveal the edge of a lacy black bra. Stop staring, she commanded herself. Please, she amended a moment later when her eyes refused to travel back to Regina’s face. Everything felt very warm.

“Emma?”

“Yeah?”

Regina gingerly adjusted her blouse, and Emma finally looked up.

“I think you’ve had too much to drink.”

Emma’s emotions tumbled around her stomach, sloshing through the alcohol and getting mired in past pain. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I didn’t want to be a burden. I’ll go.”

Regina’s hand settled on her knee, effectively holding her down with the barest of touches. “You’re not a burden.”

Lip trembling, Emma shrugged. “It’s okay. I’ll—It’s…”

“What’s upsetting you?” Regina paused the movie and turned to better look Emma in the eyes. “I may poke fun at the cricket, but his advice has… it’s helped a good deal. I need to better express myself, or so he says. I enjoy our evenings together, but I’ve noticed you’ve become jumpy as of late. Have I done something to cause you to drink more? Do you need to be drunk to bear my company?”

“No!” Emma shook her head too fast, causing the room to spin. “I just…”

“You just?”

“You’re so hot.” Her face flushed bright red, but she was too unsteady to get to her feet and flee the emotional moment, like she wanted to. Instead, she let her verbal vomit fly. “That’s like too rude, but it’s true. I like you. Like a lot. And I want you to want me, and my brain is like reading everything too much. Between the lines, or whatever. I don’t even really watch the movies anymore. I can’t. I’m just thinking and thinking about like oh god, our hands touched, and you did your make up so good and your lipstick is so red and I can’t stop looking at your lips and what if we kissed?”

To stop the flow, Regina answered the question by leaning in. Because she interrupted Emma’s tirade, the kiss was mostly teeth at first, but Emma was quick to shut up.

[choerrypuffs]

so this is love.

sleepy-euphoria said: If you don’t mind, could you write about Jaemin being super sleepy and wanting cuddles? Thank you! anonymous said: hi! can i request fluff w jaemin? like oc giving up their dessert for him even tho it’s their favorite but they’d much rather see him happy. lol i have no idea if that made any sense

pairing: boyfriend!jaemin x ceo!reader

genre: fluff!!! lots of it!!!! cheesiness galore!!!!!

word count: 1.6k

synopsis: you realize you’re in love in love with your boyfriend.

author’s note: these two requests gave me the same vibe so i combined them! anyways this is literally just a word vomit of me wishing i was jaemin’s gf so if you like at least a little bit of angst in your stories then this is not the one for you 

You wonder what your past self from a year ago would think of you right now. 

Twirling the fountain pen between your fingers, you stare at the clock on your desk, counting down the second you can get the hell out of this stuffy office. It’s currently 9:59 PM, and that forsaken minute feels like an hour. Your eyes are heavy with fatigue, and your back aches like you’re seventy-five. You just want to go home and be welcomed by Jaemin’s arms. 

In the past, you would’ve had your nose buried in work until at least 2 AM.

The clock finally turns 10, and you sprint out of your office—nearly forgetting your coat and purse. Two security guards tip their hats at you as you run past them. You give them a quick wave, saying goodbye over your shoulder (though you’re not sure if they even hear you). You press the button for the elevator several times, as it that would quicken the process. The doors open with a ding, and you do the same thing with the floor button. You bite your lip impatiently, glancing down at your watch.

After the elevator arrives at the lobby and the doors open, you make another mad dash. Your heels click against the floor loudly, and you get strange stares from another pair of security guards. The cold air hits you like a wall when you go outside, but you barely even feel it. You wait for the pedestrian crossing light to turn green, but it takes too long so you look both ways to make sure there’s no cars and jog across the street.

The bakery still has its lights on, and you can see the workers inside cleaning up. Feeling like an asshole, you push the doors open. Panting, you say, 

“Please give me a strawberry shortcake.”

The workers, rightfully so, look annoyed. They exchange glances before one of them pipes up and says, “Er, well, we’re sold out of cakes for the night. But we still have an individual slice of strawberry shortcake left.”

You nod quickly. “That’ll work.”

The worker nods and walks behind the counter, pulling the slice of strawberry shortcake out of the display. She wraps it up for you in a cute box, and you give her an extra tip because you feel bad. You promptly leave so they can finish cleaning up, staring at the box in your hand. 

Did you really just sprint a mile and barge into a closed bakery just to buy your boyfriend some cake? For absolutely no reason other than the fact that he likes strawberry shortcake? You can’t help but laugh. The past you would’ve scoffed at things like this. The past you would’ve called present you an absolute fool for allowing yourself to be wrapped around a man’s finger. 

Oh, how you wish past you could see this.

When you come home, Jaemin is asleep at the dinner table. He has one cheek against the table, and his mouth is slightly open. Your dinner is neatly set in front of him, wrapped in cellophane. This isn’t your first time coming home to the sight, but you’re still hit with a pang of guilt. Walking over to him, you kneel down so you can see his face more closely. Jaemin always looks so peaceful when he’s sleeping, unlike your fitful slumbers. His skin is smooth and dewy, like honey. His lips are the perfect, kissable rosy pink. He’s like an angel, and you wonder how someone so perfect could be yours. You brush his faded pink bangs out of his eyes and he begins to stir. 

“I’m home,” you whisper. 

Jaemin groggily mumbles, “Welcome home, my love.” 

“If you’re tired, go sleep on the bed. Stop waiting up for me,” you scold gently. Not that he’s listened the first hundred times you’ve said it.

“Mm, I want to eat dinner with you,” he insists, shaking his head. He sits up, rubbing his eyes. You can’t even begin to describe how adorable he looks. 

“Don’t tell me you haven’t eaten yet,” you say incredulously. 

He gives you a sheepishly smile, picking up a plate. “Here, let me heat this up.”

“Na Jaemin,” you say sternly. 

He leans forward and gives you a small peck on the nose before getting up and microwaving your dinner. You sigh loudly. How did a CEO like yourself, whose main job is to give orders, fall in love with a man who never listens?

“What’s that, by the way?” he asks, nodding toward the box in your hand. 

“I bought cake because I thought you ate dinner already,” you huff.

Jaemin’s face lights up, and his smile always takes away your breath like it’s the first time you’ve seen it. Your heart races like a schoolgirl, and your face turns the color of the strawberry on the cake. It makes you realize that you would’ve broken into that bakery if you needed to in order to get that cake for him.

He sits back down with the warmed food and two bowls. You tell him about your day and he listens, piling more and more food in your bowl without you noticing. You don’t know how hungry you are until you realize you’re stuffing your face like a vacuum cleaner. Jaemin has barely touched his food. Instead, he has his head propped up on the table with his elbow as he stares adoringly at you. 

Clearing your throat, you bashfully look down at your food. “I-I’m full. Let’s have dessert.”

When Jaemin sees that you only have one slice, he frowns. “Why’d you only get a piece?”

“Well, I knew I was going to be full after dinner, so I just got a slice for you,” you lie. 

He looks at you dubiously. “Really?” 

“Yes,” you say, rolling your eyes. “If you don’t eat it, it’s just gonna get thrown away and that’ll waste my hard-earned money.”

He laughs. “Well then, don’t mind if I do.”

Whenever Jaemin eats his favorite sweets, he gets this sparkle in his eye. For someone as jaded as you are, it’s something that you’ve never experienced. There’s an innocence to it that you want to protect with all your might. You wonder how he managed to make himself so precious to you in such a short amount of time.

Jaemin catches you staring and smiles. He picks the strawberry off the top of the cake and gestures for you to open your mouth. In the past, you would’ve gagged at how cheesy the whole scenario was. But now, you happily let him pop the strawberry into your mouth. It tastes sweet, and you lick your lips. He leans across the table and steals another kiss, licking his own lips after. 

The two of you talk for a little longer before Jaemin yawns loudly. He stretches like a cat before walking over to you and picking you up bridal style. You let out a small yelp. “What are you doing?”

“I’m so tired because I was up late waiting for my lovely girlfriend to get home,” he hums. 

You snort. “This is early for me.” 

“Let’s cuddle and go to sleep,” he says bluntly, opening the door to your shared bedroom and gently laying you down. 

“At least let me shower and change into something more comfortable,” you protest.

Jaemin whines loudly, climbing on top of you and laying his head on your chest. His arms are wound tightly around your torso as he nuzzles closer to you. Without even realizing it, you begin to run your fingers through his hair.

“I love you,” he mumbles into your neck. 

It finally hits you. It finally hits you that you love him too. You love him so much that you become putty in his hands whenever he so much as smiles at you. You love him so much that for the first time in your life, you think about something else more than work. You love him so much that you remember all the small things. You love him so much that you would do anything for him. You love him so much that you let him break down all of your walls.

“Jaemin,” you whisper. 

“Yeah?” 

“I think I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”

Jaemin sits up, bringing you up with him. Gently cupping your face, he stares at you like you have galaxies in your eyes. He stares at you like you came down from the heavens. He stares at you like you breathed life into him. He stares at you like he can’t live without you.

He pulls you close and kisses you sweetly. It’s soft and slow, but your head is spinning and your chest burns. Na Jaemin somehow always manages to take your breath away. When he leans back, your mind is blank. He takes both your hands into his own and kisses them. 

“Let’s get married.”

The past you would’ve went on a tirade about how marriage only serves to tie a woman down.

The current you tells the past you to fuck off.

[rhinoswriting]

A Life On The Road - Part 2 (A Luke Hemmings FanFic)

Overview: Elizabeth and Calum have been best friends since they were 15/14 respectively. Elizabeth is from and lives in the UK, but her family lived in Sydney for a brief 2 year period which is how the two met.

With Calum’s band, 5SOS, embarking on their biggest and most ambitious world tour to date, he has invited Elizabeth along to work as a photographer/content creator for their social media. This is in the hopes that travelling with them and getting to explore so many new cities will help Elizabeth achieve her dream of becoming a full-time travel writer.

Elizabeth is acquainted with the rest of 5SOS but doesn’t know them tremendously well. Obviously that changes as they are all forced to be in one another’s company for the duration of the tour. As the tour progresses and new friendships blossom, Elizabeth feels the connection between her and Luke grow more and more.

A/N: Picking up where I left off in Part 1 and getting into the main story now. So if you weren’t a fan of Part 1 because it lacked 5SOS, you’ll be glad to know they’re all now entering the main narrative.

Part 1

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

I woke up when the train was 15 minutes outside of Edinburgh and tried to gather my bearings as quickly as I could. The coffee, bagel and nap had all definitely helped make me feel a bit more human. But I was a bit groggy from the 3 hours nap so rummaged in my bag for the almond biscuits I had purchased in Sheffield. I ate the two biscuits in the hope that the sugar would perk me up by the time I met up with everyone at the station.

So it turns out that Edinburgh station is fucking huge. I absolutely hate being late, so the stress of trying to find my way through the station was very anxiety inducing. Eventually I decided to just follow the crowd and call Cal to find out where everybody was. He picked up after a few rings and gave me directions to the right exit as well as a description of the tour bus.

Look for the black and bronze bus. I thought to myself as I scanned the row of coaches, vans and buses. Once I had spotted it I began to make my way over. As I did so I was suddenly hit by a truck-load of anxiety. What if I don’t get on with the others? What if no publications pick up the pieces I write? Will I even be in a place long enough to write about it? Oh God, was this all a mistake?!

I forced myself to walk on and did my best to ignore all the intrusive thoughts firing around my mind. As I got closer to the bus I spotted someone in a bucket hat talking to a blonde man and an older man with a very round beer belly. The bucket hat instantly made me feel calmer and I rushed over, dragging my suitcase behind me over the uneven pavement.

“CAL!” I yelled as I grew closer to him.

The three men paused their conversation and turned in the direction of my voice. Calum broke out into a stupid, big grin and rushed towards me to close the distance quicker. My right hand let go of my suitcase as I opened my arms and threw them around Calum.

“I’ve missed you! I’m so excited for this! Thank you again for inviting me!” I said gleefully while still embracing him.

“I’ve missed you too, you melon! This tour is going to be so fun with you on it.” Calum responded, squeezing me tighter before letting go and standing in front of me, “Come pick your bunk then!”

Before hopping on to the bus to pick my bunk I said hi to Michael and Tom (the older man who was the driver) and swapped pleasantries. 

I knew the bus was going to be impressive and blow my mind a little, but even that didn’t prepare me for just how fancy the interior was. The first section was the lounge area. One side had a leather sofa with some overhead cabinets and the other had a small dinner style booth coming off the end of a counter top with a sink, microwave and kettle. Through the thin, fabric curtain lead to the bunks. There were 6 in total, with three stacked on top of each other on both sides. I opted for the top left bunk and ‘claimed’ it by throwing my rucksack and camera bag onto the mattress. I then followed Cal through to the last section of the bus which was another lounge area. It had a U shaped sofa with a mini-bar at each end and a TV with games console already set-up.

“Shiiiiit, I could get used to this.” I said doing a slow spin to take in all of the second lounge area.

“COFFEE BETCHES!” Was suddenly yelled down from the other end of the bus.

“I put in your usual order with the boys, come grab it.” Cal said, immediately making his way towards his bandmates and awaiting beverage. 

I followed closely behind. When I got into the front lounge area the guys, driver, manager and a two of the roadies were either grabbing their coffee cups or sat down already taking swigs from the take-away cups.

“Hey! Elizabeth! It’s good to see you again!” Luke said enthusiastically when he noticed my presence behind Cal.

“Excited to come on the road with us?” Ashton added, “Oh, uh, here’s your coffee.”

“Hey guys, it’s been a minute! And yeah I’m really looking forward to it!” I beamed at them as Ashton handed over my second cappuccino of the day. 

Then their manager, Lou, quickly took control of the room, sharing the necessary details of tonight’s press event as well as a brief on tomorrow’s press, soundcheck and show in Glasgow. He sent the roadies back to their bus after this and then turned his focus more specifically on me. He gave me a brief of what images and content they were after, checked I had my laptop with me to edit videos and then gave me the login detail to the band’s socials. Once he was assured I had everything and knew what I was doing, as opposed to being the band’s freeloader, he bid us a safe journey to Glasgow and went to get in his hire car so he could drive ahead to the venue.

After grabbing headphones and or gaming devices the four men settled into the front lounge before Tom pulled the bus out of its parking spot and headed for Glasgow. Ashton and Michael were on the sofa, Calum and Luke were sat on one of the booth’s benches, while I stretched my legs out across the other, my head against the window.

“Ahhhh, it is so nice to be travelling and have leg room.” I said as I settled into the faux leather.

“You’re 5 foot 2; you are not allowed to complain about leg room.” Cal teased.

My response was simply to flip him off while gulping down some more of my cappuccino. Both Calum and Luke seemed amused by the gesture.

“So, have you got any story ideas in mind for any of the stops?” Cal asked.

“Not really. I’m probably not very well prepared. But I don’t want to go to a city with too many assumptions in case they’re off. But if you guys have suggestions I’m down to hear them.”

“You’ll be spoilt for choice in Berlin. The history, the art, the nightlife.” Luke said after a moment of thought, while counting off his suggested story angles on his fingers. I noticed he made a point of emphasising ‘nightlife’, so I already had a feeling Berlin was going to be a really fun stop.

“Paris will be good for art and galleries too.” Calum added, “Oslo has a tonne of rooftops bars you could review.”

“I’d be more than happy to do a bar crawl if it’ll help you write an article!” Luke enthusiastically offered.

“I know I can’t exactly demand anything. But I demand a rooftop bar crawl in Oslo.” I stated as I began to mirror Luke’s enthusiasm for the idea.

Our conversation had clearly grabbed Ashton’s attention. After a few more suggestions were thrown out, Ashton looked up from his phone and said, 

“If you join us in Japan after Europe you should write about the fashion over there. I’ll be personally offended if you don’t.”

Not one to be left out, Michael then pulled an earphone free to get caught up on the conversation he’d been missing while engrossed on his Switch. Once he was up to speed he threw his first idea into the ring, 

“Milan has some insane architecture. If you get to explore it, definitely go for an architecture story.”

By the time we reached Glasgow the guys had thought of so many solid angles and ideas that I had 15 of the best ones stored within my Notes App.

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

After a week I was pretty well adjusted to my new temporary lifestyle with Cal and the guys. The daylight hours spent on the bus in transit were usually pretty chill. A lot of the time the guys spent napping, playing video-games, on the phone to family or stuffing their faces with junk. As well as hanging out with them and competing in Smash Bros tournaments, I used a lot of this time to work on some of my article ideas and edit together a video diary of the tour.

When the guys were doing press during the day, I used those free hours as my opportunity for solo exploration of whatever city we were in. But I always made it back for soundcheck and the beginning of the backstage hang out pre-drinking, in order to get shots and clips for the band’s socials. Then when it was time for them to take the stage I’d switch between side of stage, in front of the barrier and back of house in order to cover all angles.

After the encore I’d head back to the bus to shower and change while Cal and the guys met fans outside. Once they all clambered back onto the bus at varying stages of exhaustion we’d just hang and have a few more drinks before one by one peeling away from the group and heading to our bunks. Other than when they had a free day to explore a city with me, these post-show hours were proving to be my favourite times with them all on tour. And tonight in Liverpool was no exception. 

I looked up from my laptop as the bus door opened and saw Michael enter, with his stage towel still draped over both shoulders.

“Ayyyoo! You were on fire tonight, Mike!” I congratulated him as he collapsed onto the sofa.

“Thanks, E,” He responded in a voice that matched the exhaustion exuding from his posture more than it did the grin on his face.

“I got some great footage of you during Jet Black Heart tonight. You want another drink?” I asked as I got up from the booth to refill my own cup.

“I’ll take a beer if there’s any left in the mini-fridge.” 

As I handed him a cool bottle, Cal and Ashton got on the bus both in stitches over something one of them had said.

“How great was tonight?! We fucking rocked it!” Ashton exclaimed as soon as he saw Michael and I.

“Best night of the tour so far! Joint with London!” I excitedly responded as Ashton pulled me into a hug, “What a way to end the UK portion of the tour!”

Ignoring my freshly poured drink and Michael’s bottle that was only missing a few sips, Ashton decided to kick off the post-show celebrations by concocting cocktails for us all. He was pouring the bright blue mixture into glasses when Luke got back on the bus and completed the group. His entrance once again prompted us to shout about how great the show had been, while Ashton handed out our drinks.

After the first cocktail went down, Ashton was immediately preparing seconds and someone was blaring our carefully curated ‘Rock Party Playlist’ through my Bluetooth speaker. So needless to say it wasn’t long before the dancing began.

At some point Michael managed to sneak off to his bunk. Cal was the next to head to bed after wishing us a good night and gracefully turning down our pleas that he stayed and partied on.

So for a while it was just me, Ashton and Luke dancing about the front lounge and opting for shots over cocktails. It was at some point during this stage of the night that the infamous video of the three of us belting out the lyrics to Rock n’ Roll All Nite by KISS was uploaded to Ashton’s IG story and introduced my face to their fan base.

Then, just before he reached blackout drunk, Aston took himself off to his bunk, making it a party of two.

“Last ones standing!” Luke declared as he held his shot glass high into the air.

“Last ones standing!” I echoed as I clinked my shot glass with his and promptly downed the liquid.

A few songs after this the playlist ended. Instead of finding a new one or repeating it, we both embraced the quiet that washed over the tour bus. Neither of us quite ready for bed, we sat at opposite ends of the couch with our knees pulled into our chests so we could face one another and started chatting.

“You’re doing a great job by the way,” Luke told me, “Lou, would never praise you to your face, but I know even he’s impressed. You’re doing a really good job, even though it’s not the main reason you’re here and I want you to know that. And I’m glad you’re here. I don’t know you as well as Cal does, but I want us to be genuine friends too.”

“That’s incredibly sweet of you. And thank you for thinking I’m doing a good job here.” I responded as the compliments added a darker hue to my already flushed cheeks, “Also we are genuine friends, Luke. Cal and I being best friends doesn’t negate the fact that you and I have a friendship.”

“I know. I know. I guess what I meant is I want us to be better friends. I want to get to know you as you, not as I know you now.”

“And how do you know me now?” I asked a little defensively.

“I know you as Cal’s British best friend from high school Science and History the last two years we were there. I know you as Elizabeth, the girl who comes to at least our London show with Cal’s sister when we tour the UK. I know you through Calum. What I’m trying to say is I want to know you myself. More than just the surface level stuff and the stories Calum tells us of your good times.”

I guess he has a point. I guess until this tour I’ve only really know him, Ash and Michael through the stories Cal has told me and from hanging out in the same packed backstage dressing rooms at all their previous London shows with MK.

“More than the surface level stuff you say? Well then go ahead and ask me something you want to know. Let’s build a better friendship tonight.” I smiled

[harryfreakinstyles2]

Torn (Part 5) H.S.

“What the hell are you doing here?" I whisper. My pulse instantly starts to race, partially from his presence and partially from the terror of being in a room with him and Julie at the same time.

"Julie invited me yesterday. I figured the offer still stood. And I figured you wouldn't invite me." He whispers back eyeing me down. He definitely did not like my reaction to his presence.

"You need to leave now. This is a bad idea." I whisper. I look behind me nervous but the view of the front door is just out of sight from the kitchen wall blocking the living room. Putting my hand on his chest I push him back out the front door. Hoping he will not fight me on this and just leave.

"No, I'm not leaving. We're friends now, so what's the problem?" He says testing me and even though his voice sends a shiver up my spine I want to kick him in the shin for being an ass right now. He leans in even closer so he is only inches away waiting for my response. My pulse starts racing and I hope he doesn't notice. God this boy is stubborn.

My breathing has become rapid and uneven. I notice my hand is still on his chest when I feel his heart start beating faster. I pull away quickly embarrassed I take a step away from him to help clear my head.

"Who is it, Allie?!" Julie yells from the living room making me jump slightly.

"Fine." I say coldly to him not wanting to argue with him when everyone is right inside and turn back into the apartment. I can feel him following close behind me. Why is he doing this to me? Why does he have to make this harder for me. It's like he enjoys watching me suffer.

"Look who's here," I say with a fake cheerful voice to the group as I walk back into the living room and take my seat on the floor.

"Harry!!" Julie says in her high-pitched squealing tone making my ears ring slightly.

"Hey! You guys don't mind if I join you right?" Harry responds casually while avoiding the scowl on my face.

"Of course not! But you'll have to sit on the floor with Allie because we are out of seats," Julie informs him with a smile and my body tenses. What the hell I figured at least she would have him sit with her. This just keeps getting worse.

I watch him as he slips his shoes off and makes his way towards me. He is trying to hide his delight, but I can see his smile forming which both irritates me and sends another chill up my spine at the same time. He purposely sits closer to me than necessary but luckily no one else notices. He is wearing a light grey hoodie and his usual black skinny jeans and looking so good it makes me want to scream. I start eating handfuls of my popcorn to keep myself occupied as I try not to glare at his cheerful attitude.

After a few minutes of Dylan arguing with Maya and Julie about what movie to watch the girls finally win with the classic "The Notebook" as their choice movie of the night. I have avoided speaking since I sat back down not wanting to bring attention to myself and not being able to focus on anything other than the inch of space that separates my body from Harry's. I keep my legs crossed Indian style with my popcorn in my lap trying to keep my distance. Julie finally gets up and starts the movie and then continues to shut off every light in the entire living room. And I sigh annoyed that I can't seem to catch a break tonight.

The first thirty minutes of the movie roll by without Harry moving an inch. He is completely focused on the movie. Every now and then a slight laugh escapes his perfectly shaped lips and I can't help but smile to myself even though I am still pissed at him for coming here in the first place. Realizing that Harry seems to be on good behavior tonight and is done torturing me I finally start to relax. With my popcorn gone I lean over and place the bowl on the floor next to me as I stretch my legs out in front of me. I grab my blanket spreading it out over of me as I relax back against the couch. I can see Harry looking at me from the corner of my eye. I turn to glare at him again and he makes a gesture for me to share my blanket with him. I sigh reluctantly and hand him the edge of the blanket closest to him. Pulling the blanket over his legs he takes the opportunity to close the inch of space between us. Our legs are flush against each other and our shoulders are touching, my body instantly starts to react to his as my pulse brings to race, and I can feel every inch where his body touches mine and I feel like I am on fire. I try not to move so he won't notice the effect he has on me. I casually look behind me and both Julie and Dylan are passed out leaning on Maya who is still eating a bowl of chips. Luckily both her and Sam are so focused on the movie they don't seem to notice Harry and I sitting so close together on the floor. I turn back around focusing my attention back on the movie when I feel Harry's fingertips rest just above my knee under the blanket. My eyes widen, and I do not dare to pull them away from the movie. Slowly his fingertips start to trail up my thigh and in this moment I am so happy I decided to wear pants instead of pajama shorts, so he cannot feel the goosebumps that follow the path of his touch. His slow pace is torture as my heart pounds and my breathing uneven with every inch he moves up my thigh my body tingles more. I know I should move or swat his hand away but I can't. I flinch startled from a loud crunch of Maya eating her chips behind me snapping me back to reality. Remembering the room full of people and my best friend behind me I rush to my feet to create as much space between Harry and I as I can.

"I'm getting some more popcorn!" I announce much too loud not caring as I break the silence in the room and startle everyone on the couch. I head for the kitchen stepping over Harry's long legs carefully while I glare at his barely visible face in the darkness. I see his huge grin on his face knowing he had his intended effect on me.

I stick the popcorn in the microwave and place my hands flat against the counter trying to return my breathing to normal. The effect he has on me makes me feel like I could burst into flames every time he looks at me. It has been so long since I have felt this way about anyone I almost forgot what it was like. I hear someone enter the kitchen behind me but I don't turn around. He is fucking killing me.

"Hey Allie," I hear a soft voice say but not the one I expected.

"Hey! What's up?" I respond turning around surprised to find Sam standing in front of me.

"Umm, I know this is random but I was just wondering if you had any plans this coming Friday night?" He asks while staring at the floor his usual awkwardness heightened tonight.

Right now?! You have to be kidding me! I know exactly where this is going and I panic not wanting to answer his question. But maybe this is good. Maybe this is exactly what I need. Maybe this will make Harry stop his merciless taunting.

"Uhh, I work in the morning but besides that, I'm free," I say casually bracing myself for his response.

"Is there any chance you would like to go out on Friday? With me?" Sam mutters too fast while still looking at the floor he says exactly what I have been anticipating for months. Why he waited until now when things are complicated I have no idea. But things are not complicated really I realize. So despite the gorgeous guy who just had me almost hyperventilating sitting on my living room floor two minutes ago I answer with a simple, "That sounds great."

My answer takes him by surprise and his head snaps up so fast I feel like he may have whiplash but a smile takes over his entire face and I cannot help but smile back.

"Awesome! I'll text you this week and we can make a plan," he tries to say casually but I can practically feel his excitement.

"Sounds good," I answer with a smile.

He turns and walks into the bathroom across from the kitchen and I sink back against the counter once again and sigh deeply. This is not where I saw tonight going. The microwave beeps and I grab my popcorn pouring it into the bowl and go to head back into the living room to face Harry again. Turning to leave I nearly smack right into him. He looks pissed but there is also a sadness in his eyes that I have not seen before and it cuts me to my core. His mood has shifted from five minutes ago and I can feel the tension between us. He doesn't say a word and I know he heard Sam and I's conversation. I rack my brain to find something to say to him but it's blank. I don't have any reason to need to explain anything to him but I still feel like I need to.

"Harry," I say reaching my hand out to touch him but he pulls away quickly.

He turns walking away from me and I don't say a word as I follow him back to the living room. What is there to say. I watch helplessly as he puts on his shoes and walks right past me and out the door without a word. I feel like my head is spinning so much has happened in the last ten minutes I can't think straight. I don't know why he is so pissed. Nothing is going on between us. Besides him torturing me. He has no reason to be upset that I am going on a date with Sam. But I think he is and it confuses the hell out of me.

"Is he okay?" Julie says looking at me confused by the strange scene that just unfolded.

"Yeah, he said something about not feeling well and that he has to be up early for work so he decided to head home I guess," I say shrugging my shoulders as I lie to her with ease. I realize I don't even know what he does for work. My stomach turns with guilt for lying to Julie again but I couldn't explain what just happened even if I wanted to.

Sam smiles at me as I walk back to my spot on the floor and take a seat, but I pretend not to see it because I can't return it right now. I feel utterly helpless and like a complete jerk. Why didn't I say anything. And why should I feel guilty, it is not like I am cheating on him. We are not even together. We barely know each other. But for some reason I can not focus on the last bit of the movie with Harry's sad eyes stuck in my head. Not be able to take it any longer I pull out my phone.

Me: "Can we talk? Please!" I text Harry and wait for a reply.

He doesn't have a reason to be mad at me when I told him we could only be friends. He knows that is all I can offer him because of Julie. But it still does not stop me from feeling guilty and shattered by the look on his face when he left. I continue to check my phone every two minutes for the remainder of the movie but Harry never texts me back and the pit in my stomach keeps growing. Everyone gets up starting to chat when the movie finally finishes, but I feel even less like talking than I did before.

"I am heading to bed. Night everyone," I say to the group not waiting for a response and walk into my room and shut the door.

Collapsing on the bed with a sigh. I pull up Harry's contact on my phone, his name just the smirking emoji. I thought it suited him. I put it just in case someone saw him pop up on my phone. By someone I mean Julie. I hit the call button this time and listen to the ringing through the little speaker. It rings again and again until it finally gets to the automated voicemail.

"Ughhhh!" I groan loudly. I wish I would have said something to him. Anything would have been better than this.

Accepting that I will not be hearing from him tonight I put my phone on my nightstand and grab my planner to make sure I did all my homework that's due for class tomorrow before sleep finally takes over.

[its-epic-poem]

Brian may Imagine

Groaning I crumple up the piece of paper that was in front of me, “C’mon self you have to finish this damn song for tomorrow” I say to myself. I look down and get angry, “FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK” I scream throwing everything off of the table, I start to cry and tangle my fingers in my curly poodle like hair, I get up and grab some beer before sitting back down at the table, I pick up the pencil and start to jot down words for the song ‘39.

“In the year of '39 assembled here the volunteers In the days when lands were few Here the ship sailed out into the blue and sunny morn The sweetest sight ever seen” And that was how far I got before feeling a pair of arms around my shoulders, smelling the sweet smell of the perfume that she wore, “Are you ok?” Y/N asked as she kissed my cheek, I nodded yes, “Don’t lie to me Brian” She said before I shook my head no.

“How about you take a break from writing” She said back before walking over to me and bending down so she could see my tired face, with the bags under the eyes, the scruff from the beard that was starting, the smell of beer on my breath mixed with the smell of being tired, and my hair being a unmaintanced mess, eyes bloodshot from staying up late, I look down at the floor not even acknowledging that my best friend, my crush, my love was standing in front of me.

She lifted my face up with her hands cupping my cheeks, my eyes fighting to not look at her in the eyes, “Brian, babe please look at me” She said with the kind, sweet sound in her voice that always makes me melt. I look up at her, noticing that she had her worried look on her face, “Darling tell me what’s wrong” She said back, I just looked at her in the eyes not even knowing how to start with why I can’t even get this damn foolish song done for freddie for tomorrow. I felt a pair of lips against mine, pulling my train of thought to a halt, making me realize that my girlfriend is kissing me, before I had the chance to deepen the kiss she pulls away leaving the feeling of her lingering on my lips making my heart flutter with butterflies like I had when I first met her at the pub the night that the band was playing on stage for the first time together.

My eyes flutter open to see that my hands are on her wrists keeping her close to me, our foreheads touching, not even acknowledging the fact that freddie somehow came into the house and was standing in front of us watching the two lovebirds together.

We break away from the moment of silence between us, not caring what was going on in the world around us. I look up and jump as I notice Freddie standing there, “What the bloody hell are you doing here standing in the middle of my house mate?” I ask making Y/N and Freddie burst out laughing, “Well I tried to call you but you didn’t answer and so I thought I would come over to see what was going on and so I came over and came in to see the two lovebirds having a moment and I didn’t want to interrupt you guys.” He said back giving his cheeky devilish smile that he always has when he has to ask me something important.

I sigh, “Well what do you want to know you devilish child of love” I ask making Fred roll his eyes at my remark before speaking, “Did you finish the song yet?” Freddie asked, ignoring the crumpled up balls of paper all over the floor and the beer bottle next to the fifth or whatever number of paper that was on the desk and the fact that my eyes were bloodshot from staying up night after night trying to finish the silly song that Fred wanted to be perfect.

“Not yet, but I am almost done” I said back, he nodded ok and smiled, “Don’t forget to use protection you two lovebirds” Freddie said before exiting out of the front door leaving my girlfriend and I alone once again.

I turn back to the mess of paper with words on them, and start to walk over to them only to have my hand tugged by Y/N, I look over and see the sweet but devilish puppy eyed look she gives me everytime that she wants something, “Brian you need to take a break from the song, you’ve been working on it for so bloody long” She said back making me smile,

“Ok then what do you want me to do instead of trying to finish this bloody piece” I asked, she sighed and came over to me and gave me a peck on the lips, “Be with me and have a night without any interruptions from the bloody music.” She said back, making me laugh as she smiled her cheeky smile that makes me fall for her everytime. I sigh, “Well then what do you want to do tonight” I ask, “I have an idea” She said back, I give her a confused look, “Let’s invite the others over and have a game night” She said back, “Ooh that sounds like a good idea to me” I said back before giving her a kiss on the lips.

I call the boys about the information and go over to the desk and clean up the mess of crumpled up papers that lined the floor around the desk, I hear the pop of popcorn in the microwave, I get some games out as there was a knock on the door, as I walked over to the door it flung open and came in a very happy blonde boy, “Ello Roger” I said as he came over and gave me a brotherly hug, I smelled the smoke in his breath as he greeted Y/N.

We waited for the others to come over and we started the game night with the game of scrabble. I look at the clock and sigh as I notice it’s already around 10:00 P.M. “Guys I’m hungry” Roger said, “Ok well let’s order some then” John said as he grabbed the phone and called dominos.

After the call we decided to turn on a movie and wait for the pizza to come. In the middle of trying to watch Star Wars and having Freddie commitate his opinion on what he thought would and would not actually happen in the real world if we lived like they did in Star Wars, The doorbell rang and Roger jumped up and grabbed the pizza instantly and we had to fight for the pizza from the hungry wolf of a man.

“ROGER GIVE ME THE DAMN PIZZA!!!!” John yelled as he tried to grab the box from Roger, but had no success. Finally Y/N went over to him and calmly got the box of pizza from him and we were all able to finally have dinner with the hungry wolf getting his dinner and being able to calm down and come back to his normal self.

After finishing the pizza and the first Star Wars movie, we were sitting in the living room and just watching the rest of the Star Wars movies and having fun not thinking about the song that was sitting over on the desk unfinished.

“So how are you and Y/N doing?” John asked curiously, Freddie laughed and looked over at John, “Darling, when I came over earlier they were basically having a moment” He said laughing at his drunk self.

We rolled our eyes at him and ignored the laughing little child on the ground petting the cat we had, calling it Delilah not remembering that the cat’s name was Cassie, I turned back to John, “We are doing good” I said back, Roger interrupted the silence by laughing, we turned to what he was laughing at and noticed that Freddie was holding Cassie up in the air and was singing the song from the lion king making us all laugh.

Twenty minutes passed by and we somehow managed to be on the floor laughing at freddie, and forgetting that we were trying to be civil human beings and trying to have a normal night with a normal conversations with having some pizza for dinner. Finally the laughter died down and most of the boyd were asleep on the floor or in the chairs.

Sitting there I felt Y/N shifting in her sleep, I looked over and smiled before I kissed her head. She stirred in her sleep, “Mmmh babe c’mon back to sleep” She said trying to grab my arm and pull me down to her, I laugh and lay down next to her on the couch, I shifted so our faces were closer together with our noses basically touching.

She scooted closer and teased me with her top lip touching my lips, I groan as she backs away and leaves the lingering feeling of her almost kissing me on my lips. Damn that girl can tease so well.

She tries to roll over but I grab her by her waist and spin her around so we are face to face again. I pull her closer and smash my lips onto her lips getting a groan out of her. I smile against her lips and kiss her again.

I tease her by trying to deepen the kiss, but she doesn’t let me so I grab her butt and it makes her groan and I deepen the kiss trying to not wake the others. We kiss for a couple of more minutes before breaking the kiss.

I wake up to see her head on my chest and my arm around her waist holding her close to me. I kiss her head and snuggle my nose into her head, staying like that for as long as I could.

Next thing I know I get a bucket of water dumped on me, “WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?!” I scream as I jump up, I see Freddie bend-over laughing his arse off and Roger laughing so hard he can’t even stand up.

“Ooh you are going to get it you little-” I began to say before I hear the footsteps of Y/N behind me, “Darling it’s too early to swear at little fred.” She stated in her half-asleep voice. I turn to her and nod ok before I cup her face and kiss her head, she leans her head against my chest and falls asleep, I turn to look at the others and sigh before I scoop her up in bridle style, I put her on the carpeted area by the fireplace and cover her with a blanket.

I kiss her head, and go upstairs to get ready for the day. After getting ready I come downstairs and grab the sheets of music and Y/N before going over to the car and meeting the others at the studio. I lay her down on the couch in the studio and sit next to her with the paper and pencil on my lap. I finish the song finally and give the music to freddie.

I look down at the sleeping beauty and run my fingers through her beautiful Y/H/C Long hair, kissing her head. She shifts in her sleep, and lays her head on my lap falling into deep sleep once again.

I rub her back and watch as my beautiful girlfriend sleeps soundly and softly in my lap. Freddie barges in and Roger runs over and shushes the loud child before Y/N had the chance to wake up. Rogers points over to Y/N and Freddie nods and says sorry before going back to the studio.

I watch as my girlfriend sleeps a little bit more before I slowly drift off to sleep not realizing that my head was resting against the couch and my girlfriend was asleep on my lap. The boys took photos of us asleep and fangirled like teenage girls at the sight of the cute couple sleeping together.

I wake up to see that we were alone, Y/N stirred in her sleep shifting her weight so she could be comfortable. I look down and see that Y/N is waking up slowly, “Ello Beautiful” I say as I run my fingers through her hair kissing the top of her head. “Mmh How long have I been asleep for?” Y/N asks, I look at my watch, “For a couple of hours love” I say back before she yawns and nods ok, she rubs her eyes and gives me a weak not awake smile, “I love you” She said back, before putting her head on my shoulder, I lean my head down onto hers, “I love you too darling, I love you too” I say back before kissing her head.

She lifts her head and looks up at me, “Mmh you are beautiful” She says to me as he touches my hair, “Thanks darling, you are beautiful as well” I said back making her blush. She looks up at me and leans in and kisses me before leaning back so she can see my eyes. The lingering feeling of her lips stayed on mine.

“Have you finished the song yet?” She asked, I nodded yes and grabbed the guitar strumming it before playing the song. I notice that she is swaying slightly to the beat, not giving a second thought about what people may think of her when she does the dancing to the music.

I smile and stop playing, she notices that the music stopped and she gives me a worried but confused look. “Are you ok?” She asked, I nodded yes and I lift her chin up by my fingers under her chin so she can face me, I look into her eyes and lean in to give her a kiss. We stay like that for a couple of seconds before the footsteps of the others were heard coming into the studio.

We split from the kiss and smile as the others come back noticing that we were awake finally. They smile back and I get up to record my part for the song. As I was recording I saw my girlfriend sitting with Deacon, making him laugh and smile as she dances slightly to the song.

That afternoon we finally finished the song and Freddie was finally a happy boy because the song was done. My stress was finally down because the song was finished. That night my girlfriend and I had a movie night with the two of us. We had fun together and we were both glad that the song was finally over.  

|| T H E  E N D||

My first imagine on here, please enjoy it and comment what you think of it, I know it’s long but I love how it turned out so yeah. Please enjoy this imagine

[looselucy]

December

I sat with my mouth slightly dropped. Maybe I licked my lips once or twice, I don’t know, but it’s very likely. Harry and Zayn were both stood topless in the kitchen. I mean, I didn’t mean to ogle, but it was bloody hard not to. Even Ringo had made a surprise appearance, and she was exactly the same. Zayn was a little weedy, but I could see from the look in Ringo’s eyes that was exactly her type. Me personally, it was Harry who had my attention.

I still hated him. It was the 19th of December, which meant he had moved into our flat just over a month ago, and we still weren’t on good terms. I was thankful that neither of us had ever mentioned the night where I found my head on his shoulder, his cheek against mine, our breathing in sync as he helped me throw up. It had been a strange moment that we shared, and one I was glad we didn’t really acknowledge. There had been a few more nights out, a few more arguments, and our situation hadn’t improved. However, ignoring all of that, his body was absolutely lovely. I would never understand that tattoo, that bloody moth or whatever it was. I tried to blank it out and stare at the pure bliss of his abs. They were something else. I knew Harry went running a lot, he would get up early in the morning and run around campus, but I couldn’t explain or even begin to comprehend how he kept that figure up. Especially with the lifestyle we were all leading. I had been too fascinated trying to find out if I had just spotted a third nipple to notice that he had seen my staring. Which obviously, he loved. “You enjoying yourself, Pip-Squeak?” “Hm?” I mumbled, darting my eyes up to his. “You just… taking it all in, yeah?” He smirked. “Your tattoo is the weirdest thing I’ve ever seen.” I tried to cover my tracks. “Is it a moth?” “It’s a butterfly.” “Does it have sentimental meaning or do you just like giant, horrible tattoos?” I shrugged. “I like anything that makes a girl stare at my body like that.” He raised his brows playfully. I scoffed, returning my gaze to the TV on the wall. I was so looking forward to the upcoming two weeks I’d be spending at home. With Christmas only a few days away, I had begun missing my family more than you can imagine. I hadn’t gone home once, which I wasn’t expecting, being such a home orientated person. But I guess with it being that way, I just got more excited that I would eventually be home with them. Of course I was sad Liam wouldn’t be there with us, but we had promised to skype him throughout the Christmas meal, and that was better than nothing. I was even excited about the train journey to get home. I needed it all. The thought of two blissful weeks without Harry Styles made me want to cry with happiness. My phone pinged and as did my stomach, knowing it would be Louis. Louis: I might be slightly gutted I won’t get to kiss you on NYE. Many kisses had been exchanged between myself and Louis, but still, nothing more than that. I always asked, I always hinted. I was getting desperate for a shag, but he was so hesitant. I wondered if he looked at it how I should be doing. Thinking of taking it slowly and maybe we could get somewhere, rather than rushing it. I tried not to be completely paranoid about the whole thing, but I was not doing a good job. Me: I might feel a similar way. Louis: I’ll kiss you when we’re back. All over. Me: All over? Louis: All over. I felt my stomach churning, and it really felt like my day. He was finally kind of, secretly saying, it’s going to happen. In the new year, it’s going to happen. Finally, I would be able to feel his lips somewhere other than my lips, and neck, and ears, and every other place he had let those dainty things wander to. I sunk further into the chair, no idea what to reply to him, my stomach in absolute tatters. Ringo scurried back into her room, making sure to get one more eyeful of Zayn before she rushed off. I was still relatively breathless when Zayn came and sat next to me. “Louis?” “Yeah.” I sighed. “You shagged him yet?” “No.” “You dying?” “Yeah.” “Thought so.” He nodded. I was going to miss Zayn over the break. Two weeks isn’t really a long time, but when you live with someone it definitely feels like it. Zayn had been just across the hall from me for three months now. The thought of not having that did make me feel slightly uncomfortable. “Next year.” I told him. “It’s on.” “Yeah?” He chuckled. I tried to ignore Harry as he scooted and slumped down on the sofa next to me, some kind of pasta dish in a giant bowl, which he quickly started munching into, eyes on the tele, no interest in myself and Louis. “Definitely. In January I’m getting some.” “I’m trying to eat here.” Harry groaned beside me. “Yeah well on more than one occasion, I’ve been trying to sleep when you’ve had a girl in your room, so I’m sure you can deal with this dinner conversation.” He couldn’t argue with that. There had been Tally within his first week and two others since. Maybe that was the same girl but there had been two other occasions. I couldn’t help but think about how awful Tally felt on the other side of him. She must have been able to hear those noises as clearly as I could. Poor girl. The microwave pinged eventually and I dashed over to get my meal, excited that this was the last microwaveable meal I would be having for the next fortnight. Being home and eating properly was going to be a beautiful thing. I noticed Harry shuffle even further into the corner of the sofa as I went and reclaimed my spot in the middle, trying not to spill any gravy from my bangers and mash dish. “I’m gunna miss this.” Zayn sighed. “Living like a slob?” Harry asked. “Yeah, pretty much.” “Same.” Harry agreed. “Gunna miss me, Styles?” I asked with a grin. “More than I can explain, Pip-Squeak. My heart aches at the thought that you won’t be around pissing me off.” “I figured that would be the case.” “Do you two ever shut up?” Zayn groaned. We did try to keep it as low-key as possible when Zayn was around. Neither of us necessarily enjoyed putting him in the middle, because one of the only similarities we shared was our mutual love for Mr Malik. Mike exited his room with a massive rucksack on, cheering merrily to himself, making Harry and Zayn laugh, whereas I turned up the volume on the TV. “Guess who’s going home for Christmas?” He bellowed, and then pointed to himself. “This guy! This twat right here.” I had to let out a little chuckle at that, seeing Mike do a little dance round the kitchen. The thing on his back suggested he was going camping for a week, the dance he was doing definitely suggested he was going to a festival. All in all, he looked brilliant, possibly even taller than I had previously thought. “Don’t you have a lecture tomorrow?” I asked him, aware of his schedule by that stage. “Yeah, but they called it off, so this twat, is going home a day early.” “Why do you keep calling yourself this twat?” “Because this twat, is in the best mood ever.” He told me. He did a couple more spins in the middle of the kitchen floor, pointing and cha-ing whenever it felt good to him, and we all watched with little smiles on our faces, tucking into our meals. Everyone was feeling pretty similar, to be honest. The only one of us who had gone home during the three months had been Tally. It was proof we liked it at uni, a lot, but it didn’t mean we all weren’t ready for some time at home. “Y’know what, Mike?” I said, shovelling some food into my mouth and smiling up to him. “I’m actually going to miss you.” “I… I mean, of course you are. Why-why do you sound so surprised by this?” He asked, offended. Harry let out a little sniffle beside me, laughing and shaking his head. Mike could be the most annoying person in the flat, which was saying something, but I would miss him even more thanks to that. He was too lovable. He shuffled off into the hall and started banging furiously on Tally’s door. “C’MON, TALLY-WHACKER, TIME TO GO!” Harry spat out some of his pasta, his laughter coming from his mouth and nose and even his fucking ears and literally any single way it could get out of his body, it did. I turned with an alarmed look on my face to see him, in absolute pieces. “Tally-Whacker.” He shook eventually. “That’s fucking genius. Why didn’t I think of that?” “You save your shitty nicknames for me.” I scoffed. “You know Tally-Whacker is worse than Pip-Squeak.” He turned to me. “You probably like it so much just because Tally has seen your Tally-Whacker.” “When was the last time you saw a Tally-Whacker, Pip-Squeak?” He bit back. “WILL YOU TWO JUST SHUT THE FUCK UP?” Mike yelled from the hall. “TALLY, COME ON! MY MUMS GUNNA BE OUTSIDE IN TWO MINUTES!” ”OKAY OKAY, I’M COMING.” We heard her mumble from her room. Harry threw down his empty bowl and crossed his arms, huffing loudly, nudging me with his shoulder as he did. I was glad Mike had interrupted when he did, because I could not think of a good come-back to what he had just thrown in my face. It had been a long time. A few minutes later, Tally came out of her room, dragging a giant pink suitcase behind herself and then locking her door, double and triple checking to make sure it was definitely locked, knowing me, Zayn and Harry were here for one more night. Who knew about Ringo. But if she left it open, we were bound to do something ridiculous for her to return home to in January. “You getting a lift?” Zayn asked her, forcing her to come into the kitchen and speak with us, even though she avoided Harry ten times more than I ever had. “Yeah. Mike’s mum was nice enough to say she would drop me off on the way.” If I remembered correctly, Mike was another half an hour’s journey or so in the car past the town where Tally’s family were. Then, in that exact moment, I had a sinking feeling; like a really sinking feeling, thinking about locations, adding things up in my head. And I swear, Harry had the same thing. He dramatically turned his head my way and I did the same to him, our eyes wide and our fears quickly being realised. “What train are you booked on tomorrow?” He asked breathlessly. “Seven to Manchester Piccadilly.” I answered. “Shit.” He cursed. + + + I swear I could feel Harry’s eyes on my face from across the table on the train, but then the second I looked up, his nose was back down in his book. So that’s where I returned mine, realising I must have read the same page at least three times, but it still hadn’t really been processed. Myself and Harry had had another run in in the communal showers the night before, and just discussed that we would sit away from each other on the train. Easy. But he had been running late, unlike myself, I had arrived in plenty of time. So when I saw Harry dash into our carriage, my stomach sunk, knowing that the seat directly across from me was the only one still free. I scowled at him with beady eyes, then once again, went back to my book, my eyes flickering between the words and him, seeing him hesitantly lift his head to look at me. That time, I had him. I bolted my head up so quickly he knew I had seen him drop his back down. He crinkled his nose, pretending to read as I stared him out, wondering if he would ever lift his head and tell me what the fuck he was staring at. I kicked him under the table. “Oww!” He cried, facing forward. “What?” I shuddered. “What?” He asked back. “Stop staring at me!” “I’m not fucking staring at you! Get over yourself.” I could see the lady next to Harry glancing between us, confused by the foundations of our relationship or if we were just two strangers on the train. Either way, the whole thing was stupid. We fell back into silence, the train bulking underneath us every other second, and I couldn’t help myself. I placed the book down, rubbing over my face with the back of my hand in case there was something on my skin, if that was why he had been staring at me. He chuckled under his breath. “What?” I shot again, through gritted teeth. “Nothing.” He shrugged. “Would you just give it up, Harry? I’m bored of it now, aren’t you?” “Honestly, Pip-Squeak, most of the time I get it, but I have no idea why you’re kicking off this time.” “You were staring!” I was almost squealing by this stage. “Why the hell would I be staring at you?” “I don’t know, you should probably have the answer to that since you were the one staring!” He pretended to strangle me from the other side of the table, shaking his floppy hair and returning to his book. I looked out of the window, wishing I had the window seat, since the guy next to me had fallen asleep and was not making the most of his seat at all. He looked like a student too, it seemed those three months had completely worn him out. I noticed scratches on his arms, worried his glasses were about to fall of the end of his nose and crack on the table or the floor, debating whether I should just push them back up a little, just to be safe. My fingers played with air thanks to the temptation, before I picked my book back up and ignored the urge. I don’t think Harry looked up to me again. If he had, I didn’t see, but I had finally been able to read my book, after many failed attempts. My heart fluttered with appreciation as I noticed we were pulling into the station, grateful to be so close to home, grateful to finally be escaping Harry. It also made me laugh that I knew he was another train journey away from his destination, whether it was a short one or not. It definitely made me feel a little better. Harry moved and put his book into the bag he had brought with him, which I figured looked relatively small for two weeks, but he did really only ever wear the same pair of jeans and a select few t-shirts. He looked across to me, seeing I was looking at him already. “Who’s staring now?” He smirked. “Piss off.” Once we had come to a complete standstill, the carriage unloaded itself. My suitcase mimicked the sound of the train as we walked side by side through the station. We trailed to the end of the line, and for some reason I stopped by Harry’s side as he looked up to the boards, and we both notices pretty quickly that his train was delayed. “Fuck.” He muttered under his heavy breath. It was busy in the station, people coming in from all over the country, others moving out, places to go, people and family to see. It was almost impossible to feel the way Harry did about families during such a season. I wondered where his head was on the matter at that point. I wondered what he was going home to, if he wanted to go home at all. He hunched his bag further on his shoulder, and even though we were practically indoors, the cold air reaching from the far end of the station made his breath appear in a thick cloud. “Gutted.” I mumbled up to the board. “Hope you’re not stuck here for hours. And hours. And more hours.” He looked down to me with one of his least amused faces yet as I tried to hold back my smile, my nose twitching as I attempted not to laugh at my own genius sarcasm. “Don’t you have somewhere to be?” He groaned. “Yes, actually. I’ll be spending Christmas with my beautiful family. Should be home in... tops half an hour.” I grinned. “Then fuck off and go.” He sighed. The way he was reacting to my jokes, it didn’t seem like Harry would be going home to a mess of a family. He so wanted to get back. I knew having a train delayed going anywhere was frustrating, but nothing seemed to suggest he would be going back to hell. I grabbed hold of the handle to my case again, smiling smugly to myself. “Will do.” “Try to enjoy it without your brother.” I wanted to slap him for that comment, but in all honesty, I probably deserved it; I hadn’t been laying off him at all. But I still scowled and gave him the middle finger before I began storming off again, just about to make way through the glass doors when he called for me. “Pip-Squeak?” He yelled, necessarily loud. I turned around, waiting for him to say something. He awkwardly tucked his hands into the pocket of his giant coat, looking around himself as though asking why the hell he had just called my name, why the hell he had asked for my attention. Time dragged on, and I was mere seconds away from turning back around and clambering into the first taxi I saw outside, ready to get away from him. “Merry Christmas.” He simply said. I squinted my vision, staring blankly to him. He looked down to the floor as soon as he had said it, clearing his throat. It was so out of his nature, even just to say that, I could see his whole body rejecting the well wishes. It was totally surreal. “Merry Christmas.” I said back. Then I quickly turned around and dragged my case behind me, a weird lump in my throat, like I was going to cry. I held it back. + + + My mother screamed so loud when she flung the door open and saw my face, honestly, I almost fell backwards. My suitcase was left abandoned outside as she pulled me into her, still screaming, my face in her plump breasts, barely able to bloody breathe. I put my arms back around her for the first time in over three months, happy to be home. I lifted my head from its titty prison and glanced over her shoulder, seeing how inviting and warm my family home looked. It was an old building but had been made to look pretty modern on the inside, old wooden pillars leading to the ceiling that had been painted white, the hall long and thin with the stairs on the right-hand side. Thanks to the fact it was Christmas my mother had decided to just make the whole building a fire hazard by littering fairy-lights absolutely everywhere. But at least it looked nice. I had to drag myself away from her after the hug had gone on for far too long. “Oh god.” She grabbed at my cheeks. “Look at you, look how you’ve grown.” “I look exactly the same.” “No, no. You look like a woman. It’s like you getting your first period all over again.” ”Jesus Christ, mum!” “Come on now, Pippa, it’s Christmas. No blasphemy now.” “Yeah because we’re really religious.” She ushered me in and shut the door behind us, the cold air only lingering for a moment or two before an unfamiliar warmth wrapped around me. We always put the heating on at uni since our bills were covered in the price we paid to live there, but it never got that warm, it never felt that homely and comfortable. “PHILLIP!” My mum shrieked up the stairs, making me cringe. “PHILLIP YOUR DAUGHTER IS HOME, COME AND SAY HELLO.” “I’M JUST SENDING OUR DAVID ONE OF THESE EMAILS!” We heard him yell back down. “YOU HAVEN’T SEEN YOUR DAUGHTER FOR THREE MONTHS, PHILLIP! GET YOUR ARSE DOWNSTAIRS!” “I’M JUST TRYING TO FIGURE IT OUT, LOVE. GIVE US A MINUTE.” My dad was as behind on the technology front as my grandparents were. Probably even further, actually. He owned a company that fixed cars in the centre of town, a pretty small business but it had helped my mum and dad live a very comfortable life, alongside my mum being a dentist. They had more than a comfortable living, to be honest. But thanks to my dad’s every-man job, he had never needed to learn what he was doing online, and he was trying his best to catch up with the rest of the world. But it seemed even sending an email was a task. I wandered blissfully into the living room on the left side of the hall as my mum bobbed off to the end into the kitchen, flicking the kettle on and then joining me. We flopped onto the sofa together. “So how’s it been?” She asked excitedly. “Yeah it’s alright. The lifestyle is great. The lessons are alright.” “Urgh. You sound just like your brother.” “I’m happy with that.” I giggled, flicking through channels. “I thought you might be.” She grabbed the remote from me, sticking with one channel. “Have you spoke to him?” “Briefly. A few texts. He rang me last month too, that was nice.” I could see her welling up, just talking about him. He’d been gone a long time; I hadn’t seen him since I was 13 years old. I knew my mum and dad had gone to see him at uni a few times, but I never did. Even so, we managed all those Christmas’ without him, we did birthdays without him, that was just how things were. Of course, he was easier to talk to and be in touch with before he went traveling, but it wasn’t a complete shock to the system. But my mum still got emotional about it, she still held in tears every single time he was brought up. Maybe it was getting even worse for her. I missed Liam, but I guess I was used to it. I think it was getting harder for her, rather than becoming accustom to it, she started thinking about how long it genuinely had been since he left. She probably wondered why he never came back. I felt for her, I really did. I let my fingers slot between hers, giving her a little smile as she pulled herself together, and my dad walked into the living room. “Kettles boiled.” He told her, opening his arms for me as I leapt to my feet and embraced him. “Oh, my love, how’ve you been?” “Really good, yeah.” I pulled away. “And you?” “Aye not too bad. Hows uni?” “Yeah it’s good. It’s fun.” “The living situation?” He asked. “Mixed emotions.” I huffed, flopping back down as he moved into the armchair, and my mum went to make the tea. “Grace moved out, as you know, which was awful. But they’ve replaced her with this guy... and we really don’t get on.” “Why not?” He asked. “We just... wind each other up. We’re just not alike. Always at each other’s throats. Sometimes we let it be kind of playful just so we can get our frustration out, but then other times we’re literally so fucking angry with each other. He’s awful dad. He randomly punched some guy on a night out and I think he’d fuck anything with legs. Just not my kind of person. But all my mates get on with him, and obviously I live with him, so I have to deal with it. All the time.” “He sounds like a pillock.” My dad nodded. “You’re not bloody wrong, Phil.” My mum came back with our teas a few moments later and we all settled into a quiet evening in front of the TV. It felt like such a relief, being able to openly talk about how much Harry annoyed me with someone who didn’t like him or live with him or anything. It was a nice feeling, no matter how brief. So I told myself that would be it. I wouldn’t have to even think about Harry until next year. Now that, was a beautiful feeling. + + + I watched my grandad with a chuckle threatening to escape me, as his head kept going, his eyes closing themselves. He had farted himself awake about a minute earlier, so I was still kind of laughing about that, but watching his sleepy little head keep going like a baby or a puppy was just as amusing. Suddenly he went, chin down on his chest and snoring straight away, to which my grandma cringed and tutted and scowled in his direction, always like she was angry at him. Years and years of marriage had done that to them, but they still loved each other really. “What film are they showing this year?” The frail lady asked as she rose to her feet, collecting all our plates. I was still looking at my grandad and trying to contain myself. This had happened for the last few years. He had reached the age where as soon as a meal was done, so was he. It was his bedtime. I found it hard to recall years where my grandad hadn’t fallen asleep at the dinner table on Christmas Day. “E.T. I think.” My mum stood to help her. “It’s always bloody E.T.” My grandma scowled. I figured she was quite an angry lady, but that was her charm. She was still drinking vodka, like she did most nights, I had never once seen her nail-varnish chipped, her short hair was always in perfect ringlets down to her shoulders, her figure even better than mine. She was a pretty mesmerizing woman. Perfectly on cue with our conversation, which made me feel like it was fate, Louis text me. Louis: E.T. is on bbc in half an hour. I’m going to be crying like a baby. I liked that he remembered our first interaction, when he admitted to always crying at that film. I would be lying if I said I wasn’t feeling something stronger than bog-standard attraction at that point. Me: The Secret Garden was on earlier. I’ve already done my crying for the day. Louis: I avoided that one like the bloody plague, I can only hack crying once a day otherwise I worry my masculinity will leave and never come back. “Pippa, who’re you texting?” My mum asked nosily. “No one.” “Is it a boy?” She asked, to which I rolled my eyes. “They’ll stay in the back of your head if you keep doing that, Pippa. I’ve always warned you.” “Yeah, but now I’m not ten years old I don’t believe you. Unlike the time you made me cry because I was so convinced.” “But then you didn’t roll your eyes until you turned into a grotty little teenager. I had three years of absolute bliss where you didn’t roll your eyes once.” She smiled, beginning to clear the table. My grandad mumbled some non-coherent bullshit as he came back to life for a split second, probably speaking a section of his dream before he was straight back down, snoring again. I could virtually see my grandma strangling him in her head. “So who is he?” My mum asked after a few minutes of silence. “Are we really doing this?” I groaned. “Yes.” My mother and grandmother chimed in time. “Fine. He’s called Louis.” “From university?” “Yup.” “What’s he studying?” My grandma asked. “Art.” They both made disapproving noises as they collected plates and took them over to the sink, which just made me sigh and roll my eyes yet again, glad my mum wasn’t looking to catch me the second time. I expected nothing less from a family who had made sure I went to university to study English rather than Photography, a family who had been disapproving enough when I studied Photography at college. They’d rather I was meeting a boy who studied something apparently ‘sensible’ like Maths or Science or anything like that. “Everyone in my flat does subjects to do with the arts.” I shrugged. “You’re joking?” She seemed appalled. “What do they do?” “Zayn does Art. Mike and Tally do Drama. Ringo does Music and Harry does Photography.” “I just can’t believe those are actually subjects you can study at university.” My grandma shook her head in disbelief. I understood it a little more from her. She was old… Old as fuck. Her generation were beyond the point of catching up. It’s only really people my grandmas age who could get away with being completely narrow-minded. You’d just kind of have to shrug it off, say ‘oh you’ and forget whatever bullshit just slipped from an elderly persons mouth. But my mum being so baffled by those subjects was weird for me. When she had bought me my first camera, I thought it might have been her aim for me to develop a passion rather than take pictures of mindless bullshit and me and my mates on a night out. It turned out she would rather see pictures of me in a drunken state than seeing anything I had put a little effort into. Thanks to that, it was a rare occasion I would pick up a camera other than my phone. It felt too disheartening. I kept my head down and locked my phone, feeling discouraged. Christmas Day was actually always pretty boring, I wished I still had my brother around to make me laugh. My dad strolled into the kitchen and grabbed my mum by her waist, making her squeal and giggle as he turned her around and held her back to his front, kissing her cheek as my grandma left the room tutting at them and their public display of affection. Usually I would be the same, but due to recent conversations about family, it was kind of nice seeing them being that way with one another. They gave me hope. I stood up and began collecting glasses, putting them into the sink, ready to sit down to watch E.T. and probably text and think about Louis throughout. + + + The Christmas season had taken its toll on me. I don’t even remember being sober for any part of it, to be honest, and New Year’s Eve was bound to be no different. We were round at Sophia’s, because her house was huge and her parents were a little surreal, they had no qualms in her having as many people round at their family home as she wanted. So due to the surreal amount of friends Sophia had, the place was jammed. The 24 hour clock on the wall said it was 23:23 which meant we were very close to entering the next year, which basically terrified me because of the thought of going into the second year of uni, getting older, another year on the list without my brother. It honestly terrified me. On the 1st, I would be fine, wouldn’t even think about it, but the lead up to the actual event was a completely different story. Like an impending doom kind of feeling. “You kissing anyone?” Katie asked me. “Am I fuck.” I huffed. I think the main thing was I didn’t even want to kiss anyone if it wasn’t going to be Louis. Not that there would be anything wrong with it, there was definitely nothing official between me and him, but I didn’t like the thought of kissing anyone else. I liked kissing him. Katie was fine for the whole kissing moment, since she had been going out with Gregg since the first year of college. The worst part of it all was I kind of hated that I didn’t have anyone to kiss. I should have never felt that way, but I definitely did. “There are so many guys here though.” She cried to me. “Yeah well, you’ve not seen Louis.” I sighed wistfully. “Okay, well show me.” I got my phone out of my pocket and scrolled through my camera album in the hope I had a picture of his beautiful face somewhere, since the lad refused to get a Facebook like a normal person. Luckily, I stumbled across one, and even more luckily, he looked as good in the picture as he did in real life. My face went painfully smug as I held my phone in front of her eyes and let her look at him. “Yes.” She nodded. “Yes. He will do nicely.” “I know.” “Shag him. Shag his brains out.” “I plan to.” En route to dragging my phone back into my pocket it started buzzing in my hand, knowing it would be Zayn since he promised to ring, but still pretty excited to see his name and a little picture of us in Thimble to accompany it. I began pushing through the crowd in the hope I would make it outside quickly to answer the call, but the amount of people in there made me realise pretty quickly that if I left it that long I would miss the call completely. I swiped my thumb across the screen and yelled. “GIVE ME A MINUTE!” “Jesus, Pippa, where the hell are you?” I heard him giggle. “GIVE ME ONE MINUTE.” I held my phone up in the air as I pushed and shoved until I was out in the cold. It wasn’t really quiet, you could still hear the music blaring from inside and all the smokers had congregated there for the evening, but it was loads better. Even so, I pushed my finger into my spare ear and held my phone up against the other. “Okay, I’m here.” I smiled. “Good. Finally. You alright? Sound sober.” He grimaced. “As a judge.” “Why?” “I tend to hit my peak in the beginning shreds of January rather than the last of December. Happens every year. Literally, I’ll be fine and then at about one-minute past twelve, I’ll be on the floor. It’s a beautiful thing. Can’t explain it.” I already missed him, so even his voice was a kind sound to my ears. I guess over that Christmas break we both realised how close we had gotten in our time together. Yeah, it was nice being at home with the people I had been to college with, my best friends from home, but none of them were like Zayn. “I’m sober as all hell too.” He replied. “How come?” I pressed my back against the bare brick. “Me and Harry have agreed to drop something as soon as it hits midnight, though by the looks of things he’s found some lass to kiss.” “Wait, you’re with Harry?” I swear my stomach dropped. I hated myself for it straight away, how pathetic it was to get jealous of a friendship. But I hated Harry and I loved Zayn and the thought that they were now pally enough to spend their New Years together didn’t sit well with me. “Yeah. We were talking and he said he didn’t have any plans so I invited him to spend it with me.” “Oh. Cool.” “You’re the worst liar of all time, Pip.” “When did I lie?” I huffed. “Well maybe it wasn’t quite a lie but you definitely don’t think it’s cool that Harry’s here.” He laughed. My eyes were right in the back of my head but I couldn’t help but laugh a little, not too surprised he had figured me out so easily. “You having a good time though?” I choked. “Yeah, he’s a laugh.” “Then that’s good. It shouldn’t bother me.” “Honestly, Pip, I’m gunna speak to him too, but when we get back next year I think you should both just try that little bit harder-” “I’ve tried, Zayn!” I butt in rudely. “I know you have, Pip, but you could both try a little harder. He’s a good lad, we all know you’re the greatest woman of all time-” “Agreed.” “- so if you could just do that, for me, that would be the best thing ever. And you’ll feel ten times better for it. So?” “So what?” “Will you try?” He begged. He sounded so adorable. If he had been with me I probably would have punched his arm and yelled a little more, but it was hard to be mad when all I could hear was his silly little voice. “You have to speak to him too.” I sighed. “If he agrees to it, so will I.” “You promise?” I could hear him smile. “Only if-” I tried. “PROMISE, PIPPA?” “OKAY I PROMISE!” I heard him celebrate to himself on the other line, hearing the background noise to the party he was at as much as he could probably hear the background noise at mine. “You’re the best, Pippa.” He said eventually. “If it doesn’t work out this time than that’s okay, I’ll let you off. Just one more go and if you still hate each other, I’ll abandon him forever.” “I knew you’d pick me over him.” I smirked. Even though I knew he was joking, that wasn’t the case at all, I was happy because he knew that saying that would comfort me, thanks to how protective I was of our friendship. It was enough. “Obviously. Anyway, I’m gunna go. See if we’re doing this MD together or if Harry is going to be fucking this girl instead.” “Tell her he has an STI, that ought to put her off.” I grinned. “What did I tell you about making an effort?” He told me off like a naughty toddler. “You’re right. Go have fun. See you in a few days alright? Be safe tonight.” “Will be. Happy New Year’s, Pippa.” “You too, Zayn, bye. Bye. Bye.” I often found it hard to hang up the phone without saying bye at least two times. This was something I seemed to inherit from my mother. I strolled back inside with a lazy smile on my face, kind of hoping that the month of January would be the month that mine and Harry’s friendship flourished. But that was just for Zayn, no other reason.

[writingonjorvik]

The B Team Druids - Chapter 1 - Strange Customs

The bus rolled to a stop outside a Spanish styled wall. Standing up from her seat, the last passenger on the bus pulled herself out of her jet lag as she walked towards the front. She smiled sleepily at the bus driver as she adjusted her backpack and tightened her grip on her case. “Thank you for making this extra stop.”

“Of course. Not that uncommon this time of year.” The bus driver pushed lever to open the bus’s door. “Besides, night’s a pretty time to drive. Don’t mind having the time to myself on the way back.”

She nodded her thanks, fishing out a handful of coins to tip the driver. Dropping the large gold colored into the tip bin, she smiled again at him before waving goodbye and stepping off the bus. She landed with a soft crunch in the dirt that covered the cobbled roads that seemed common in Jorvik. To be fair, she had been here all of three hours, and all of it was in the middle of the night. Not much of a sightseeing trip so far.

The doors to the bus closed behind her, leaving the young woman illuminated only by the vehicle’s headlights and surrounded by the sound of crickets and the nearby waves. She pulled herself away from the bus so the driver could head back to Jorvik City where she had landed. In front of her were the off-white walls of Moorland Stables, or what she hoped was Moorland Stables. It was too dark to read any of the nearby signs and her phone was having a difficult time loading a map.

“Ms. Price, I assume.”

Looking up, the young woman saw a heavier built man walking towards her, flashlight in his hand. She nodded. “Hi, yeah.”

“Pleasure to meet you, Carrie,” the man said, extending his hand out to her. “I’m Thomas Moorland.”

Carrie quickly took his hand. “It’s so nice to meet you finally, Mr. Moorland. I’m sorry to get in so late on you.”

“Think nothing of it, happy to have you here,” Thomas answered, his grip firm to Carrie’s nervous, frantic shaking. “Bet you’d like to get a bit of sleep tonight though, so let’s skip the tour and get you set up in the hostel.”

“Sounds good,” she replied, wearily as her jet lag crept back in. “Is there anywhere I could rent after tonight?”

“There’s a few bedrooms in the main building here you’re welcome to use as part of your board, but most folks live in Silverglade Village up the road,” Thomas stated as he led her through the silent stable yard. “Whatever you want to do is up to you, just give me some notice so I can do the paperwork.”

She nodded, her hand wrapping tighter around her backpack strap. “When do you need me to start?”

“Tomorrow, if you’re up to it,” Thomas said. “It’s a big move though, so you’re welcome to spend the day getting used to the time change. We’ve got breakfast at seven in the main building if you do decide to get up early.” He started fishing around in his pocket before pulling out a key and handing it to Carrie. “This first one here is yours for the next week. I’ll hold it if you want to stay here and not move over.”

Stepping onto the porch of the hostel, Carrie started to weigh how tired she felt with the idea of waking up for free food. “I’ll do my best to get to breakfast. Thank you again.”

“No pressure if you can’t. We’ve got enough hands. Night, Carrie.” Mr. Moorland waved before walking off with his flashlight, leaving Carrie is darkness.

The hostel room was small, but liveable. There was a microwave, a table, a dresser, and a bed, the bare minimum needed. But doable. Carrie threw her backpack over the table and set her suitcase by the bathroom door, fishing out her phone as she squeezed over to the bed. She set an alarm for the morning, and then a second one for what seemed like a more reasonable time. She’d do her best, she reminded herself, setting her phone on the headboard.

Carrie leaned back into her bed, her back hitting the wall before she could lie down completely. The hostel was uncomfortably close to the stable. She had grown up around horses enough that the smell was beginning to fade, but she had never had to sleep feet from the barn. She hoped her nose would adjust quickly. Two steps out of door and she was there, at the stables. That in it of itself was a dream come true. Being here was a dream come true.

Sure, she wasn’t here for some kind of fancy university scholarship. She’d been passed over for a more-- No, no, she wasn’t doing that. Carrie clenched her fist and held it up in front of herself. She had gotten here and that’s what matter. Tomorrow she’d start her job at Moorland Stables and her new life would begin.

Flexing her fist, Carrie let that thought sink in. Whatever miracle had opened up this position, she was happy for it. Mr. Moorland had mentioned something in their emails about the last person who had worked here had gotten involved in too many stables to stay in Moorland, eventually ended up working for some kind of cult in one of the nearby towns? Carrie wasn’t sure, it hadn’t seemed like the thing to ask about compared to international flights and benefits and other things getting a job in another country should have focused on. Wherever they had gone, Carrie hoped they were doing well. And was secretly very glad they had left, but she’d never have to admit that.

Tapping her fist to her forehead, Carrie relaxed her hand. She was made it. She drifted down the wall until she lay flat on her bed, legs hanging off the edge. She had found her way to Jorvik. Sleep began creeping over her, the sound of the waves and the smell of manure the last senses she remembered.

She was here.

Carrie’s dreams led her into a starfield. She floated through the cosmos watching constellations come to life, herds of horses springing out from the stars. When she reached to find her footing, she could never quite take purchase, and continued drifting around the field in a steady spiral between the herds. And for a while, Carrie was content with this, watching the celestial horses move, the stars highlight each muscle in their bodies. A sense of peace washed over Carrie.

It was in this steady drift Carrie began catching glimpses of something behind her. A ball of light stood before four figures, no, five. Carrie attempted to swing herself around to face the people, but she never managed it, the current always spinning her away. She could only capture the shortest looks at the five before the light touched the middle figure, the fifth. They were silhouetted by the glow, features unreadable.

The other four’s features were similarly blacked out, though Carrie managed to see some small details between their light and shadows. A warrior’s stance beneath a beanie, a scholar’s glance behind the wide rims of glasses, a healer whose muse’s hands were coiled in black roots, and a spy whose long hair was trapped in pink ice.

Carrie attempted once more to spin, to make out some detail out of the fifth figure, but the light and the drift prevented her from facing the scene. As she tried harder, she began to spin more, round and round, faster and faster until she was thrown out of the drift. She expected to fall at the feet of the five, to see their angry glares for stepping into this ceremony. Instead, she feel at the foot of one. The ball of light’s glow was dimming, a woman left in its wake. Carrie squinted a bit, raising her hand to block the brilliance. As she did, the light extended her own hand.

When Carrie hesitated to take it, the woman spoke, “Welcome to Jorvik, Carrie Price. I’m glad you heard my call.”

There was something warm in the light’s voice, something caring like a mother, something wild like a mare, something ancient like...Carrie didn’t have an antecedent for that. This light was old though, very old, beyond the words to describe.

“I have a quest for you too, dreamwalker.”

“Wh-who are you?” Carrie managed, pushing herself up off the ground. She watched the light, watched her hand as Carrie rocked back onto her knees.

“I am the Goddess of Jorvik.”

“Do you have a name though?”

The light chuckled. “I have a name in the waking world, but it is not my place to tell you. That is an answer you must find yourself.”

“Um…” Carrie began to pull herself back from the light, though she wasn’t sure where she would even go. “Alright then.”

A bemused smile crossed the light’s face. “Tell me your questions, Carrie Price, and I will always answer what you need to know.”

Carrie stood up, the light’s hand following her as she did. Carrie glanced at it before she returned to watching the light. “Who were they? Those other five people I saw.”

“Some were images, one was a dreamwalker too. They all share a quest, a very grave one,” the light answered. She laughed softly. “Your’s is not so grim.”

That didn’t sound terribly promising. What quest? What did this light want from her? Why was it so intent on shaking her hand? She had so many questions, but based on the ethereal nature of this place, “what she needed to know” was going to be full of secret rules. What could she actually ask?

“I ask that you will take my quest, nothing more. You can not, and stay in my fields and rest easily this night,” the light stated, her other hand sweeping out to gesture to the starry space around them. Bringing her hand back, she finished, “I will not force you.”

But you won’t tell me anything, Carrie thought. She looked out at the stars. She knew nothing about this place, her waking or dream world, and this light wanted her to take on some kind of quest? Maybe come back in a week when she knew what she was doing here, knew how to give people directions to the nearest supermarket.

The light had still asked, had been asking for a while. Carrie hadn’t felt any kind of call, but here she was. Without a purpose beyond a job now that university was out of the picture. Maybe this would help her find a direction. And it wasn’t a dangerous quest, unlike that other person’s.

“Alright, sure,” Carrie answered, reaching forward to take the light’s hand. A warmth wrapped around her fingers as the light’s figure became more ephemeral. Carrie’s hand tightened, trying to hold on, but the light merely vanished, slipping away into a wisp and a trail of golden dust. Carrie drew back her hand, studying it for a moment, her jaw slightly ajar. So much for answers. She shook her head, hand still in front of her as she wondered where the light had vanished too. Carrie sighed. “Guess it was just a--”

Suddenly, Carrie was jerked forward, thrown at a violent speed out into the stars. Light spiraled around her, turning from orbs into spears as she was thrown past them. She felt herself moving forward so quickly it didn’t feel like she was moving at all, rather like she was being thrown against a wall and pressed down by the speed of it. Images shattered off to the side. The sun, the moon, the star, the storm. The light. That one was in front of Carrie though, coming closer with each second, until finally she would slam into it.

She couldn’t move a muscle, not with how fast she was being propelled forward. Carrie braced as the images went fleeting behind her. She winced in anticipation, waiting to be crushing between an unstoppable wind and the solid light before her. She went sailing on, until the moment of collision and--

Carrie landed on the floor. Her head bounced off the wooden floorboards before she groaned and rocked back. Rubbing her head, Carrie looked at the bed with a scowl as if it had been the one to throw her off itself. Her head was heavy as a wave of fatigue washed over her.

Sunlight struggled to get into the room, for which Carrie was grateful that the hostel was pointed west. Her phone buzzed on the bedside table as her alarm rattled off. Carrie pulled the phone down to her rather than getting up, massaging her forehead as she read off “Breakfast in 10” on the notifications. She turned the alarm off and closed her eyes. She didn’t think she had gotten an ounce of sleep last night, not with the thudding in her forehead. That might have been landing on the floor though. She took a moment to massage her temples before reaching for her suitcase to change.

Moorland Stables wasn’t really a town, but as Carrie walked from the hostel to the main building, she could feel the pull of village life around the barn. The local riding club was up, chatting about some fashion magazine and a big Jorvegian pop star Carrie had never heard of. She wanted to find it cozy, the interconnectedness of the stables and its boarders, but she found herself daunted by the meaner side of small towns; the exclusion. She didn’t know anything about fashion, or local celebrities, or the vapid conversations these high school aged girls were having. And even if she didn’t care, she wanted to know just to be part of the mesh here. A high bar for day one.

Gripping her arm, Carrie looked down at the dirt and stone as she made her way into the pavilion in front of main building. The wings of it stretched around to form a little courtyard. Carrie tore herself from the stones to look up at the building, at its size and its history. This had been here for generations. These people had existed here without her for generations. Did she really have a place here, or was this just some fantasy?

No, she had a job. She moved her because that job was so fantastic it was worth leaving everything behind to come here. She would get to work with horses every day and go on trail rides around this beautiful country and be a part of something here.

Still, she struggled to remember what the point had been.

“It’s Carrie, right?”

Carrie looked up, her head jumping to face the speaker. It was a young man, about her age, with shaggy black hair. The silver streak seemed a bit odd for someone that young though. Carrie smiled, or tried to. It was too early to tell. It felt contorted as she tried. “Hi, yeah, that’s me.”

Extended his hand, the young man grinned at her. “I’m Justin, Thomas’s son.”

As Justin held his hand out, Carrie hesitated. Something about that felt familiar. Carrie held her hand still for a moment before reaching forward to shake Justin’s hand. “Nice to meet you. I guess you’re...also kinda my boss then?”

“Heh, no, not really. You’ll be working mostly with Jenna, she’s the stable manager. Dad and I help obviously but he’s more of a paperwork owner than in charge specifically. And I’m...hm…” Justin paused a moment before laughing. “I guess I don’t really know what I do around here. Generally help, or I hope that’s what they call it.”

Carrie chuckled. “I’m sure it’s important.” She pulled her hand back, awkwardly folding it against her other hand. “Mr. Moorland said there was breakfast for everyone.” She jerked her thumb in the direction of the front door.

Justin glanced towards the door before smiling wide again. “Yeah, there is. Sorry, didn’t mean to keep you this early in the morning.”

Taking two steps towards the door, Carrie shook her head. “No, no, it’s fine. It’s nice to finally have a name and a face here besides, well, the boss.”

“Did you just get in last night?”

“Yeah, plane came in to Jorvik City at 10, but it’s a bit of a time jump for me. States are pretty far away.” Carrie pushed the door open, holding it as Justin followed her in. “Setting a new schedule early seemed like a good plan and hey, free food.”

“It’s really good too. Our neighbor, Mrs. Holdsworth, she sends honey and biscuits every week,” Justin added, rubbing a hand over his stomach. “I got sick the first time she sent some over eating so many.”

They both laughed, Carrie more nervously than Justin. She replied, “I’ll be counting on your recommendation then.”

Justin led Carrie through the narrow halls into the dining room. It was merged with the kitchen, separated only by a small dip in height. Justin mentioned the whole space being community use before he stepped away to go eat, leaving Carrie to study the room alone. A long oak banquet table was stretched through the center, absolutely covered in food. All number of chairs were pulled up alongside it, employees and visiting boarders alike seated along the table. Sausage and eggs fought for the prevalent smell of the room as Carrie took a seat halfway down the table.

A shorter, brown haired girl leaned over the table as Carrie took her seat. “You the new hire?”

Carrie smiled briefly and nodded, taking the carafe of coffee from the table. She seemed to have been very well announced around here. “I guess, unless there’s someone else.”

The young woman shook her head. “Shouldn’t be. I’m May.”

Spooning up a pile of breakfast potatoes, Carrie nodded again. “Carrie.”

May leaned onto the table, elbows pushing her neighbors to the side. “It’s so nice to have the spot filled. If you need any help with the horses, you let me know. I’ve got one real troublemaker, Lynx, and if he ever gives you trouble, I’ll tell you how we got him to straighten himself out.”

Taking a pile of eggs, Carrie continued nodding. “Yeah, I will.” Good to know all stables had a trouble horse at least.

Leaning forward even further, May pointed down the table to the head where Carrie noticed Thomas Moorland was sitting. Beside him was an older blonde woman, maybe in her late 20’s, early 30’s, and Justin on the other side. When Justin noticed May and Carrie looking in his direction, he waved. Carrie briefly waved back. May pointed to the blonde woman. “That’s Jenna, she’s the stable manager here.”

“I heard she’s the one I answer to,” Carrie replied, leaning back to avoiding bringing any more attention to herself. She stuck a fork into her breakfast and took a bite that should have made it obvious she didn’t really want to talk right now.

“Yeah, she’s a pretty ok boss. Like we used to have these awful guys hanging around on the beach, some of them were even stealing, and her and one of the old stable hands like fought them off by themselves, it was great.” May tossed her head back and forth before continuing. “Well, I mean, they didn’t fight or anything, but they like solved this mystery and found evidence and they almost got the police involved like real detectives and it was so cool!”

Carrie took another large bite, nodding politely like she was listening, before tuning out May’s rambling about this old stable hand and how they liked to toe the law with Jenna. She rocked back in her chair and cradled her coffee cup, sending a glance down at the head of the table. Who exactly was she working for that would be so ok with some of the things May had rattled off having happened in the past month or so? Sabotaging constructions sites, dealing out vigilante justice. Maybe this person leaving had been a good thing, but she couldn’t help feeling there was some kind of expectation for her now.

As Carrie drifted away from her conversation with May, or half-way conversation, she started to pick up on conversations around the table.

“Hey, did you hear that the gates to Golden Hills got opened up recently?”

“Oh my god, no way! Now we don’t have always ferry through Cape West to get awesome autumn pictures. Those trees are totes magic.”

“I know, right. But there’s still that spooky hill with all the weird ghosts. No wonder Tan never goes with us, I’d be so scared riding there at night.”

“Everwind is so much closer, and it’s so much nicer to ride since those oil wells got shut down.”

“I know, right. I heard they were murdering baby ducks over there. It. Was. Horrible.”

Carrie found herself staring into her mug, her expression bleak in the poor reflection she got off the glass. May was winding down from another story, “-- even got me an autograph! Like, woah, right! How awesome.”

“Yeah, that sounds...that’s sounds super cool, May,” Carrie muttered. She took a tenuous sip from her mug.

“Hey, you ok?” May asked, genuine concern in her voice.

Smiling as best she could, Carrie sighed. “Yeah, just tired. Long night.” Half true.

At least May finally backed off and let Carrie in peace. She would have rather taken her plate and hidden in her room back at the hostel, but she didn’t think she’d ever leave if she did. A streak of panic was setting in, followed by an overwhelming amount of self-doubt. She had been expecting to get here and for everything to be amazing, like all the pieces would slide into place. Now she felt like she was back in high school. High bars to set, but she couldn’t help it.

“Hey.”

Someone tapped her on her shoulder, and Carrie almost spilled coffee on herself as she turned around to see who it was. Justin waved back with two fingers and a kind smile. Carrie released one hand from her mug to wave back. “Hey, Justin.”

Rubbing the back of his neck, Justin started to explain, “I’ve got a bit of a story for you, but to start, I need to you to come with me to Fort Pinta whenever you’re done eating.”

“Where?” Carrie asked, setting her cup down. She’s lost her appetite anyway. She wouldn’t turn down some fresh air, but she wanted to know where she was getting carted off to.

Leaning over the table, May stated, “It’s this fort about an hour’s ride from here. It’s so cool.”

“Or a fifteen minute drive,” Justin added, pulling out a set of keys.

Sure, it would be good to get a few local landmarks. And out of this room. Carrie pushed herself away from the table and waved to May. “I’ll catch up with you later.”

“Later,” May replied, beaming. “Justin, does Jenna know?”

“Yeah, she knows. We should be back in a few hours.”

Short breather, but a breather. She just needed some space from all this, some time to think through what she was doing here. Digging her hands into her pockets, Carrie leaned against the back of her chair. “Ready when you are, boss.”

Dangling the keys from his finger tip, Justin turned from May to Carrie. “Alright, follow me.”

Justin led Carrie out to an old truck and trailer. A older dapple warmblood was loaded into the back, though there was room for another horse to fit. As Carrie climbed into the cab, she asked, “So, what’s up with this trip exactly?”

Her driver didn’t answer, focusing on backing out for the first few minutes. When he finally set the car into drive, Justin gave her an apologetic smile. “Sorry, want to be careful. Anyway. Normally, we offer hands a horse so they can go on rides themselves or if they want to teach lessons they can or whatever. And, I mean, it’s Jorvik. We’re that weird horse country.”

“Yeah, I remember reading about that online,” Carrie answered, her stomach twisting as she tried to laugh.

“So, we had this nice Jorvik Warmblood for you to rent, or for this position in general, but the last person who had this job bought the horse,” Justin explained. “About two weeks ago, before moving off to do odd jobs around Jorvik. I don’t really know what exactly. But the point is, we don’t have a horse and we haven’t found a new horse to replace it.”

“So I don’t get a horse for a bit?” That was fine, she was ok just being about Moorland. Carrie pressed her lips together, remembering the kind of people she’d be dealing with. Well, she’d survive.

“That’s what Dad and I were talking about this morning,” Justin replied. “Because we figured that’s not really fair for you, particularly with you just moving here and everything. I reasoned that since things have been getting better with G.E.D. and Dark Core moving out of the area, kinda shady businesses who wanted our property, our business is getting good again, and we should have the money for a horse. So we are going to Fort Pinta to buy a horse that you can have. Or rent. We’ll own it until you buy it from us.”

“Ah, I see.” Carrie looked out the window as they drove up a hill. There was a lighthouse on her side, and old barn like building on Justin’s. Ahead she could make out an old church, but it was still on the horizon. “Any horse?”

“You may have to settle for a pony depending on how much James is asking, but maybe,” Justin said. He gave her another apologetic look. “Sorry.”

“No, no, not your fault. I’m getting a horse out of this, sort of, and a job with room and board. Like, back in the States, I’d be working my tail off for just the room, not to mention a horse,” Carrie replied. She managed a weak grin. “I mean, there are some perks to this. That is why I decided to move.”

Justin laughed, focusing on the road. “Fair. But if we do get a horse today, I brought my own so we can go for a trail ride. First trail ride in a new country, there are worse places than Fort Pinta’s coastline. Personally I prefer the woods around this farm near Silverglade though.”

“A ride on the beach does sound pretty nice,” Carrie muttered, propping her head up on her hand as she looked out the window. She didn’t mind Justin, though she would have prefered to spend the time alone. Well, she didn’t know where she was and she would be riding a horse he technically owned. She’d get her space later. They rounded a bend by the old church she had seen, before heading down onto a peninsula where the fort was perched. The drops were steep beside them, but not nearly as harsh as the cliffs Carrie could see across the bay. The yellow stone walled fort rested peacefully at the edge, ferries coming and going through the waters below. Tourists rode along without trail guides, or paused for pictures in the middle of the roads. None of it was too bad until they approached the fort and the narrow one-way road over the gap to where the building rested. Carrie felt her stomach knot as they drove across a thin rock arch, avoiding looking at the drop down.

There was a squeeze on her shoulder, and she turned to Justin as he put both hands back on the wheel. “Gets everyone the first time. We can drive on the dirt path the way back.”

“Those are the only roads into town?” Carrie asked, alarmed to say the least.

“I mean, Fort Pinta is a tourist trap, not really a town. Kinda like living in a landmark,” he replied, shrugging as if this were normal. Carrie felt her expression go bleak again. What kind of country was this that allowed that kind of dangerous road to be legal?

They parked the trailer outside the main paved road beside a hotel that looked like it had been built onto the old fort’s buildings as cheaply as possible. Carrie pushed the car door shut behind her as she looked up at the old building. Some parts of it had to have been rebuilt to accommodate the additions. Had to. No one would be so cheap to just shove a hotel into the back of building like that.

A southern sea breeze rushed up the cliffs, tossing Carrie’s hair. She pressed her hand to her forehead as the strands billowed around her palm. She heard the car door slam on the other side, harder than it probably was intended to have been. Justin’s head peaked out over the front of the car, smiling briefly before he vanished again behind the car. Carrie looked down towards the back of the trailer where she spotted a hand reach up to open the door.

Carrie looked around, smiling briefly to a few tourists and other visitors before walking down to the trailer. “Is everyone here a tourist then?”

“Pretty much, James pays visitors pretty well to take care of his horses,” Justin answered as he hooked a lead to his horse. When Carrie gave him a confused look, he went on, “Most of Jorvik has an ‘Open Helper’ policy around the stables. Any registered boarder can work at another one, though it’s usually minimal chores like mucking or refilling feeders. The more involved work is left to actual stable managers and local staff.”

“Can you make a living off that? The Open Helper thing?” Carrie asked, remembering the now traveling, former Moorland worker she was replacing.

Justin shrugged. “Maybe if you did enough odd jobs, or had another source of income. It would probably depend on how many people you’re trying to support, or animals.” He smirked at Carrie. “You’re not planning on leaving too?”

Carrie laughed, shaking her head quickly after. “No. It’s just interesting. Encouraging though for a trail ride. Go to the next town over and pay for dinner working for a half hour. Not a bad weekend out, even if it’s mucking stalls.”

Her companion chuckled as he led his horse out of the trailer. “James has horses lined up in that paddock there by the entrance and then over there by the hotel.” He pointed as he mentioned each of those groups. Carrie noticed five or six horses of different breeds in each of the areas. “I’ll go see if I can’t find James while you get a look at these horses and see if one catches your eye.”

“Right,” Carrie answered as Justin walked off, leading his horse over to a nearby barn. She watched him for a moment before rocking back against the truck. She turned towards the show paddock, debating whether she should wait for Justin or not to give her a price range. It didn’t hurt to look. It’s not like she’d get her heart set in one glance. So she took the five steps over to the fence.

Leaning on the fence, Carrie watched the four horses on display. There was a big bay Shire horse and a stunning Lipizzaner that Carrie was impressed by, though she figured those would be on the higher end of the spectrum. As a pretty Arabian Pinto trotted by, Carrie looked over her shoulder towards the show stalls behind her. The horses there were smaller and more common breeds and coats, more likely to be in whatever price range was set on this.

Beyond that, Carrie spotted Justin talking to someone she couldn’t quite see. Justin was looking down towards whoever it was, maybe James, but there was a fence in the way. They were probably just obscured by her angle.

She didn’t know what to think about Justin. From the gossip she had heard this morning, it sounded like he had a girlfriend. Or at the very least, the top dog of the cliche of a riding club had a thing for Justin. Yet despite the girls he seemed to attached, Justin himself seemed like a pretty decent guy. Not really her type, but alright.

Carrie turned away, that wave of self-doubt persistent as she pondered over the people she had met and the country she was planning on calling home. It was strange, that was sure, but she had to be open to that. Another country, another set of traditions. There were people back in the States who deep-fried Twinkies. Most of the questionable things she had heard about since she was here were at least better than that. Her fingers drumming on the top of the fence, she decided people everywhere just made weird choices.

Oh right, she was supposed to be looking for a horse. She had never had to do this before. She would be fine with a quarter horse or a thoroughbred. She wasn’t really sure what kinds of horses were inexpensive, really, just the ones that were. Carrie lifted her head and found herself staring back at someone else.

Brown pools reflected back at her. A long strand of black hair fell down over one eye before they bounced their head and Carrie realized she was staring at a horse. She leaned back from the railing, wondering how she hadn’t heard the horse coming up to her. She hadn’t been that spaced out. Right?

The dapple snorted, jostling their mane. Black coronets stretched up all four of their legs as they trotted along the fence away from Carrie. She watched the little horse go.

“That’s a Connemara.”

Carrie nearly jumped at the speaker. She turned to see Justin, but it hadn’t been the Moorland who had spoken. She looked down to about Justin’s waist where a younger man was standing. Man wasn’t even appropriate for him. He was a kid, hardly a teenager, really. Carrie gave a concerned look to Justin.

“It’s a type of Irish pony,” Justin answered, folding his arms and smiling. “Fort Pinta has been known for ponies for awhile now, though I didn’t know you were selling any, James.”

“Recent addition,” the younger boy stated, adjusting his square framed glasses. “Faster too. Not the competition I need exactly for those pony sisters.” The part came out as a bit of a grumble.

As the boy went off on a tangent about some pony loving sisters docked down below the fort, Carrie blocked her mouth with her hand. She mouthed “James?” to Justin, who simply nodded. Carrie scowled, briefly looking around for some kind of camera before mouthing “He’s a kid.” Again, Justin only nodded.

Everyone had weird traditions indeed.

“Point is, Polly and Penny won’t let them in their race or the championships,” James finished.

“Championships?” Carrie asked, this time aloud.

“Jorvik doesn’t have a very big competition scene,” Justin answered. “Most stables have a few cross-country or jumping tracks you can ride and the stable will post daily times, but the real competition is with the championships. They’re big races held every few hours for any riders in the area. We give out cheap rosettes for the winners. Usually a decent turnout.”

“Are there really that many people riding for that to work?” Carrie pressed.

James nodded, his hands on his hips like he was three feet taller. “Equine business is the most successful and widespread business in Jorvik. Almost everyone owns a horse, or is visiting with a horse. We have riders visiting all year long just to spend a few weeks riding around the countryside on horseback. There’s always a demand.”

“Not a big business for tour guides, huh?” Carried joked.

“There’s nothing dangerous enough that would warrant any,” Justin replied, shrugging his shoulders as he did. “Most of the horses know their way home and there isn’t enough traffic usually for people to be worried about walking or riding at night. The biggest threat in Jorvik is wolves, and there is plenty of warning about them near where packs are spotted.”

“But the Connemara,” James pressed in, somehow making that the more normal conversation to be having with a ten year old. “Would you like her? I’ll lower the price for you this one time, Moorland, if you do.”

Justin turned from James to Carrie, a half smile and an expectant look on his face. This was Carrie’s decision to make, not his. Carrie sighed, this whole conversation so much to take in. She turned back to look at the dapple mare trotting around like she knew she was the most stylish thing in the world in those long black leggings. To be fair, if Carrie could pulled off stockings like that, she might have the confidence to think the same thing.

“Uh, sure, why not?”

[itsclydebitches]

AO3: x, Prompts: Breaking Away, Challenged, Shadows, Faith, Pretense, Troubling Thoughts, Future, Reflection, Running Away, Complicated, Exhaustion, and Breakfast (most below the cut). 

“Oh c’mon!” Tulip howled, torn between kicking Cass from the backseat and clamping her hands over her ears. “You’ve played almost nothing but Clarkson for the last hour. Who the fuck put you in charge of the music anyway?”

“That coin,” Jesse muttered, glaring daggers down where it had rolled into the footwell.

Cass just cranked the volume higher, pretending not to hear them. “Take a chance, make a change, and break awaaaaaay!”

Tulip grabbed hold of Jesse’s ear and twisted. “We’re ditching him at the next gas station.”

“You don’t have to tell me!”

***

“You certainly make the strangest of friends,” DeBlanc murmured. He carefully slipped the jacket from Jesse’s shoulders and folded it over his arm. His shirt and two rings followed.

“They ain’t exactly ‘friends’...”

Definitely not based on how the beefy guy was eyeing Jesse, just itching to break him in half. Which he could do, easily, if Jesse made the mistake of letting him get his paws on him. Lucky for him though, smaller meant faster.

“I’m taking him out quick,” Jesse whispered, right from the corner of his mouth. “When I do the rest of these bastards are gonna come and they’ll come hard. During the fight to ease back towards the far corner. When things get hairy make a break for the backdoor.”

DeBlanc’s eyes had gone wide, then they narrowed. “I can help you, preacher. I—”

Jesse turned, just enough to bump his shoulder against DeBlanc’s. It was, he realized, a gesture of companionship.

He was the friend.

“Cass and Tulip ain’t gonna make it in time, and one of us has got to get Fiore.”

DeBlanc hesitated at that. “But—”

“I’ll be fine.” Jesse smiled and with a last, reassuring look he walked out to face his opponent.

And yes, against all odds he was.

***

Nighttime was Cass’ territory. No fucking duh. You’d think his dumbass friends would remember that after all these years.

“The fuck does that have to do with Twister?” Tulip hissed. She had her legs awkwardly wound around Jesse, her arm beneath Cass’ elbow, and her ass pressed up into his face.

Not a bad place to be, in all honesty.

“Because,” he said, straining to spin the wheel. Ha. Green. “You guys know how much goddamn skill it takes to avoid the sun each day? I’m a twisting master.”

“Cheat—” Jesse bit out right before he collapsed on them both.

***

Ah. Their obvious choice. The glue that bound them all together, beyond pasts, perceived futures and—hell—even species. Faith was the one constant in all their lives and it never wavered. Which, they supposed, was exactly what faith was meant to do.

Problem was, none of them had it in God anymore.

Jesse, tearing off his collar and burning it with his lighter, grounding the ashes beneath the heel of a well-worn boot. Tulip, literally turning her back on the town that had claimed her, raising middle fingers high to the sky. For the first time in decades Cassidy taught himself restraint in his feedings, reclaiming the humanity that was stolen from him on the bank of a river. Fiore carved his love for DeBlanc out of rebellion and DeBlanc rebelled solely for his love. None of them needed the likes of God anymore.

They’d already found faith in each other.

***

They’d known each other a week and all Cass could focus on was how damn nice Jesse was. Jesse fucking Custer, who gave him clothes and meals and beer out of his fridge. Who practically shoved him into the (comparatively) five-star accommodations of the church attic and gave him his conversation every day—every day—like it wasn’t something rare and precious. Jesse had been a generous constant for seven days now and Cass was poised for the other shoe to drop.

“Don’t know what you’re so tense about,” Jesse said casually, ignoring the way Cass’ shoulders shot up around his ears. “But whatever it is, you can chill the hell out, okay?”

He couldn’t. Men like Jesse just didn’t exist.

Still.

“…right then,” Cass muttered, accepting one more beer.

Maybe he could pretend. If Cass got to keep waiting for Jesse’s cruelty for another week, a month, a year...

…he’d wait forever. If only he was that lucky.

***

“Do you ever think he orchestrated it?”

The question caught DeBlanc off guard. He paused in his reading, looking up to find Fiore staring at the bible in his hands. It was another long moment before he was able to put two-and-two together.

“You mean...us?” he asked, voice pitched low.

Fiore gave one, jerky nod.

Taking a deep breath, DeBlanc dropped his gaze and deliberately turned the page, casual. “If that’s true—if our relationship is really a part of his grand plan—then it in no way lessens my love for you. You can plan many wonderful things in this life. Parties. Children. Vacations. Your future. The planning does not take away from the joy of the act itself.”

From the corner of his eye, DeBlanc caught Fiore swallowing.

“And if this is his will then clearly you have his blessing, and... and I am happy for you.”

Silence reigned in the hotel.

“...thank you, DeBlanc.”

***

“Please stop,” Emily whispered, her kids kicking up more of a racket than usual. It was like they were trying to get in a life’s worth of excitement in under an hour. They were indescribable. Endless.

She loved them—of course she did—but sometimes Emily wondered if this was the only life waiting for her. Three chaotic toddlers who’d turn into sullen teenagers, then adults who wanted little from her but money and material support. It was a horrible thought... but one based in evidence, if the history of this town was anything to go by.

Emily hung her head, rubbing fiercely at her eyes. There must be something. Something else to look forward to. A meaning to this life—

No. She thought she’d found that in a preacher.

“Please,” Emily begged, unsure if it was a demand or a prayer. “Give me something—”

And something came. For a brief second it was the hottest wave against the back of her neck. Emily had just enough time to straighten, turn, and catch nothing but white on the horizon.

She indeed found something in death.

***

Another morning, another routine to run through. Jesse took the shower as Cass fetched breakfast. Tulip cleaned up while Jesse ate. Cass gathered there shit until Tulip was ready to go. They had differing needs and preferences at the start of start their day, but they all took a moment to acknowledge the mirror.

Jesse took stock of the new scars on his face. He catalogued them, forcing himself to remember each mistake.

Tulip did the same, though her scars were figurative. You couldn’t see them on her skin, but she knew they were there. Her mouth had never puckered like that. Her eyes didn’t use to be that heavy.

And Cass did what he’d done for decades: watching the slow, seamless change he underwent, year by year. He didn’t get older exactly... he just got different.

They took stock of who they were on that day and what those people needed to do.

Only then did they walk out the door.

***

“I’ve got a plan,” Cass hissed, just loud enough for Tulip and Jesse to hear. It was like a breath of fresh air after being stuck in a stuffy room. Unconsciously, both of them relaxed—just a bit.

“Yeah?” Tulip said. She eased back a step and the mass of gang members came even closer. She froze, listening to the sounds of weights shifting, weapons readying, the tipping point before all-out chaos. “Care to share?”

“Remember RWBY?”

If the situation hadn’t been so dire they would have balked. As it was, Jesse barely restrained from kicking him.

No, no. Kick the enemies. The hoard of them.

So Jesse swallowed instead, praying that this was going somewhere. “That shitty anime you had us watch?”

“It’s a web series and yes. C’mon, you noobs. The fuck did Jaune say before they fought the Nevermore?”

Jesse was staring like Cass had lost his mind, but Tulip actually cast her mind back.

“Run and live,” she said.

Cass straightened, grinning. “Yeah, luv. That’s an idea I can get behind.”

Jesse pursed his lips. “Run it is then,” and the three of them kicked up dust as they got the hell out of dodge.

***

“It ain’t that complicated,” Cass drawled. Their bartender seemed to think otherwise.

She pointed at them each in turn, as she’d done twice now throughout the night. The other patrons were starting to get real sick of being ignored, but a few quick looks from Jesse kept them planted in their seats.

The woman bit her lip in concentration. Her pointer finger settled on Tulip. “So you and the preacher had a thing way back,” she said slowly. “Broke up. Then the preacher man started a thing with him...”

“Name’s Jesse,” Jesse muttered, not for the first time.

“And the two of you, you two men...”

“Were together,” Tulip finished for her, voice tight.

“...right.” The bartender nodded just a little too forcefully. “But then the preacher got back together with you, but you didn’t break up with you—”

“We’re all dating,” Cass bit out. “We’re. All. Dating.”

She snapped her mouth shut before smiling awkwardly. “But how does that work?”

“Jesus fuckin’ christ.”

***

“Aww, ain’t he cute,” Cass sang, pinching Jesse’s cheek. Rosy coloring and deep, even breathes. He didn’t stir. ‘Dead to the world’ didn’t even begin to cover Jesse’s state. Cass was sort of tempted to take a picture. And then plaster it everywhere.

The stares pulled him out of his daydream though. Cass side-eyed the people lined up on either side of the street, pausing in their daily lives solely to give them the stink-eye.

“Uh...”

Tulip smirked. “Really. You’d think they never saw a black woman carrying a white preacher bridal style before.”

***

Saturday morning and things were as perfect as they’d ever been. The church goers weren’t due for another hour, giving them plenty of time for a hearty breakfast before things got underway. Tulip had made up a variety of options (well, she’d bought frozen and microwavable things) and she and Cass both were still dressed in nothing but t-shirts—both of which were Jesse’s. It was going to be another hot day, but for now it was just pleasantly warm. Scattered beams of sunlight fell in patterns across the table.

“Hit me with the waffles,” Tulip said, her foot sneaking out play with Jesse’s beneath the table. He grinned and caught her in a quick kiss.

“Now that ain’t fair,” Cass teased, so of course he got one too.

Jesse couldn’t remember the last time he’d been this happy.

And yet... he paused, suddenly the plate of waffles held suspended in the air. The briefest flicker of doubt crossed his face and Jesse acknowledged the shiver that ran down his spine

“Is… is this a dream?” he murmured.

Cass smiled. “Well of course it’s a fuckin’ dream. You’re never gettin’ the nine-to-five life. But I’ll tell you, Padre, you’ve got another twenty minutes before you gotta wake up.”

Jessie nodded, then finished passing the food. “...Alright then. That’ll do.”

[sporadicbeepboops]

20 Games I Loved in 2016

The Switch delay. Several big AAA duds. Another year without an official Mother 3 U.S. release. 2016 could have been a disappointing year. (Outside of video games, it certainly took its toll.) But at least from my perspective, the good far outweighed the bad. Virtual reality finally made it out of the gates, and despite some hiccups, it shows real promise. Long-delayed games like Final Fantasy XV and The Last Guardian somehow made it to store shelves AND surpassed expectations. And love it or hate it, Pokémon Go inspired a genuine pop culture craze the likes of which we’ve never seen before, at least as far as games go. I think all of that is worth celebrating.

Before we get to the list, some quick shout-outs and no-brainer caveats…

2016 was not kind to the Wii U, but the 3DS quietly had one of its best years ever. That’s partly reflected here, but I couldn’t make room for Dragon Quest VII, Fire Emblem Fates, BoxBoxBoy!, Metroid Prime: Federation Force and Gotta Protectors, to name a few. Sometimes it felt like Nintendo was just cleaning out its closet — how long ago was DQVII released in Japan? — but we benefited either way.

Overall, I played fewer games this year, but the ones I did play held my interest longer. Thanks to various microtransactions and DLC, 2016 probably hit my wallet just as hard.

What didn’t I play? Stardew Valley, SUPERHOT, Final Fantasy XV (at least past chapter 2), Frog Fractions 2, Hitman — oh, and I didn’t get to stuff from last year like Yakuza 5 or The Witcher 3, either. Yakuza 4 was pretty solid though.

I left off any new ports of games that came out last year or prior, unless there were substantial additions that changed the experience in a meaningful way. That meant The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD and Mini Metro weren’t in the running, while Rez Infinite technically was.

Love making lists, hate ranking items in said lists, just because I’m incredibly fickle. There’s a good chance that I’ll want to shuffle everything around the moment I publish this. But my podcasting buddies are counting on me here, so it’s time to be decisive.

Keeping all that in mind, here are the games I really loved in 2016…

20. The Witness - I’m already cheating because if I’m being honest, I didn’t actually love this game. The Witness takes a couple dozen hours to finish, and I spent at least half of them staring at a notebook, drawing grids, connecting dots, and having no idea how to pave forward. But even if I didn’t love the game, I respect it immensely. I admire Jonathan Blow’s commitment to this singular idea, of taking the kind of puzzle you might see on a restaurant placemat and coming up with every possible permutation of it. And there is of course a “meta” layer on top of that, where solutions to each component change the environment around you — tree top bridges that unfold based on the paths your lines take, or colored glass panels that create new puzzles on top of old ones. It might be cold and off-putting at times, but The Witness is still commendable as the ultimate puzzle box.

19. SuperHyperCube - I bought into PlayStation VR for games like Rez Infinite and RIGs — big, flashy, “immersive” experiences. And they delivered! I’m a very happy PS VR owner, and I hope Sony builds on its momentum this year. (I’m skeptical, but then being a virtual reality early adopter was always a leap of faith.) However, while I got exactly what I expected from most of the launch titles, it's the simple puzzle game seemingly modeled off of “Brain Wall” that I keep coming back to. I turn on the headset to play Job Simulator or Battlezone, but I always play a couple rounds of SuperHyperCube before I’m done. A solid case for virtual reality not as a thrilling roller coaster, but a hypnotic, relaxing voyage.

18. Headlander - The best game Double Fine has put out since Iron Brigade. Free-roaming Metroid-style exploration, a perfect 70s-synth sci-fi score and a fun body swapping gimmick at the heart of it all. I wish there were more vessels for your noggin to control, but there’s a strong foundation here. 

17. Kirby: Planet Robobot - It’s easy to take Kirby games for granted, and that’s especially true of Robobot, which uses the same engine and many of the same powers as the recent Triple Deluxe. What does the former bring to the table then? Smart level designs that take advantage of the new mechs without letting them dominate the action. A novel mechanical world that feels distinct from the typical pastel meadows. New amiibo support. OK, so maybe it doesn’t add that much to the series, but it’s right up there with Super Star anyway. 

16. Pokkén Tournament - This game is a fresher, more enjoyable fighting game than Street Fighter V. It doesn’t even matter (too much) that the single player is pretty thin or that the roster is small. When’s the last time you played a one-on-one fighting game that felt truly new? Pokkén is a great 3D fighter and a great 2D fighter at the same time, which is no small feat. And it’s also a gorgeously animated recreation of those battles we all imagined happening in our Game Boys 20 years ago.

15. Uncharted 4: A Thief's End - The popular sentiment seems to be that Madagascar is when this final Uncharted entry really takes off. Slow drama and frequent cut scenes give way to island exploration and memorable shootouts. My take? The back half is fun and the epilogue is lovely, but I could spend an entire game in Nathan and Elena’s living room, or hopping around the globe for the next story sequence. Wherever you stand, this is a fine way to close out a reliable series.

14. Picross 3D: Round 2 - Seven Picross games — eight if you count the Twilight Princess freebie — on the eShop. That’s a lot of a perfectly fine thing. But none of them are Picross 3D. Thankfully, the real deal finally arrived this year, with hundreds of puzzles and a few extra gameplay wrinkles. Worth the premium price tag.

13. Titanfall 2 - The campaign didn’t need to be good. Multiplayer FPS games live and die by their multiplayer, and many developers seemingly write off the single player experience as an afterthought. That’s why Titanfall 2 is such an unexpected treat. The factory, the time hopping, the airborne carrier — all cleverly designed, with platforming gimmicks that would feel just as suited for a Metroid Prime game. I think the reason the new Mirror’s Edge fell flat for me was that this game featured the same parkour moves in a much more exciting package.

12. Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE - This crossover game is Persona-lite, yes, but I think that sells the characters and world a bit short. While its inspiration focuses on the pressures of being a Japanese high schooler, #FE is all about the Tokyo show biz scene. Pop music, soap operas, microwave cooking shows — it’s all very goofy, but the game still takes its protagonists’ dreams and ambitions seriously. #FE also makes clever use of the Wii U GamePad, turning it into a tablet/social app that helps keeps the conversations going. Even if you’re not into this particular “scene,” #FE may still win you over.

11. Rhythm Heaven Megamix - I can’t get enough Rhythm Heaven. They could put 20 new musical minigames on a cart annually and it’d make my list every year. Sumo wrestlers, lumberjack bears, monkey slumber parties — all magic.

10. Severed - A Vita game! It’s great to see DrinkBox Studios stretch beyond sidescrollers with this first person dungeon crawler full of grotesque monsters and creepy, colorful mazes. Swiping and poking on the Vita’s touchscreen feels great. The controls are key to Severed’s success; if battles were menu-driven, the entire game would fall apart. 

9. Pocket Card Jockey - I hope Nintendo keeps letting Game Freak be this weird. It’s not just that it’s horse racing plus solitaire. It’s your jockey biting the dust and being brought back from the dead to repay his debt to the angels. It’s the brassy, big band score that accompanies every race. It’s horses with luchador masks and cats hanging from their backsides. Pocket Card Jockey is a miracle of localization.

8. Pokémon Sun - Yes, another Pokémon game. The Alola region is the best thing to ever happen to this series. Previous games had regions based on cities like New York and Paris, but the results always felt half-hearted. In Sun (and Moon), the tropical island setting influences everything from the creatures you catch to the trials you complete. I’ve never demanded a believable world from this series, but that’s kind of what we get here, and it’s terrific.

7. Inside - This is the type of game where the less you know going in, the better. It’s Limbo — a previous Justin GotY — filtered through a twisted dream logic that I still can’t get out of my head months later. 

6. Paper Mario: Color Splash - I know you don’t like Sticker Star. Rest assured: that 3DS oddity feels like a rough draft for Color Splash, which improves upon its predecessor in every way. A textured, vibrant world that rivals Tearaway in its papercraft. Thrilling scenarios like a train heist, an underwater game show and the throwback above. Hilarious dialogue that mostly makes up for the many, many identical toads. I miss the liberties Intelligent Systems used to take with the Mushroom Kingdom, but everything else about Color Splash restores this spin-off series to its former glory.

5. Overcooked - This year’s couch co-op champ. Cooking with a partner is all about communication, and that’s doubly true when the kitchen is split across two flatbed trucks or on an iceberg rocking back and forth. My friends and I love head-to-head games like Smash Bros. and Towerfall, but it’s nice to play a game that’s all about puzzle solving and careful planning together. And I love the wistful stage select music.

4. Dragon Quest Builders - Minecraft has always fascinated me, but I don’t do well without direction. That’s why I’m so grateful for Dragon Quest Builders, which breaks down the open world construction into small, manageable tasks. I started off just sticking to blueprints and keeping decorations to a minimum; now, I’m spending hours building up towns the way I want them to look, for no other reason than my own personal satisfaction. Even taking the crafting element out of the equation, Builders does a great job of capturing the adventuring spirit of its parent series.

3. Pokémon Go - I didn’t set out to put THREE Pokémon games on here, and in a vacuum, this is much less satisfying than Pokkén or Sun. But we don’t play video games in a vacuum, and certainly not this one. I played Pokémon Go in Central Park, talking to strangers to find out where the Ivysaur was hiding. Or I played on my lunch breaks, exploring parts of South Street Seaport with coworkers that I had ignored for years. Go’s peak came and went, but it remains one of my fondest experiences of the year.

2. The Last Guardian - Another game that’s more than the sum of its parts. The Last Guardian is finicky and sometimes frustrating. Trico is hard to climb. The camera doesn’t know what to do when you’re up against the wall. So what? How many games feature a creature this lifelike? He may be an illusion made up of A.I. routines, scripted animations and fur shaders, but all of those elements come together in a uniquely convincing way. His evolution from reluctant ally to friend has a subtlety I’ve never seen before. I’m glad Ueda spends as much time focusing on the inner struggles as he does the external ones. Hope it doesn’t take another decade for his next game.

1. Overwatch - I didn’t even know what Overwatch was until two weeks before its release, and even then, I didn’t expect much from it. I had played Team Fortress 2 and thought it was just fine. I knew what to expect. Medics, tanks, builders — that sounded familiar to me. But I was so wrong. Overwatch isn’t just a team-based shooter; it’s the superhero team-up game I’ve been longing for since “The Avengers” was in theaters.

All 23 (and counting!) heroes have their superpowers, and all of them have their jobs to do. What really sets Overwatch apart is when these heroes are bouncing off of each other. Any combination of six is going to have its own dynamics. Mei dropping ice walls to give Reinhardt time to recharge his shield. Junkrat dropping traps to help Bastion watch his back. Mercy gliding up to Pharah to give her rockets a little extra punch. Every battle brings new possibilities and strategies to the table. I’ve played over 100(!) hours and feel like there’s still so much to learn.

But it’s not all serious business either. The colorful personalities, animations, costume designs and more do so much to shape the world, even when I know next to nothing about the overall “lore.” Last year, Splatoon felt like the only shooter I’d ever need, but Overwatch has actually managed to supplant it in my heart. That’s something this Nintendo fanboy never thought he’d say. Can’t wait to see how Blizzard builds on their masterpiece in year two.