#think the song gonna be I hope you find your way home by tyler

[slamrink]

“that’s beautiful” 🥲

from here

[softholand]

pot valiant - t.h

pairing: bartender!tom x reader

summary: pot-valiant, definition; bold or courageous under the influence of alcoholic drink

warnings: drinking, swearing, smut, dom!tom

words: 4.3k

a/n: i did it!!! bartender!tom was always present in my mind and after that picture (thanks paddy!!) i couldn’t help myself ;))) i hope you guys like this and please let me know what you think <3 enjoy!!

Two weeks, three days, 5 hours, and 22 seconds. That was the time your best friend Briana gave you to mourn your last failed relationship. Once that time had passed, she broke into your house, made you take a much necessary shower, forcing you to shave and wash your hair, while she took care of the mess that was your house. Plastic food containers and cans of beer and Coca-Cola littered both the kitchen and the living room floor, making the house smell like a garbage can.

“Glad to see you’re still alive!” Briana cheered after you got out of the shower, wearing your fluffy robe. “I am but barely. Wow, what did you do to my house?” You asked, being met with a completely different scenario from the one you left.

“I just put out the trash, y/n! Something you should have done before.” Briana scolded you, making you roll your eyes. “Should have waited and put me out too, since I feel like trash!” You groaned, flopping down on your sofa.

“Hey, no, no, no! Get up, y/n! We’re going out!” Your best friend announced, before trying to make you stand. “Noooo, please, Bri! I’ll do anything you want, but that!” You pleaded, but it was of no use. “I don’t wanna hear it, y/n! I didn’t come here to clean your house, I came to take you out of here and that’s what I’m gonna do.” Briana stated, taking your hands.

“Bri, I love you, but please let me stay just a little longer, I’m not ready for the outside world yet.” You groaned, trying your best to convince your best friend. “y/n, I love you too, that’s why I’m here! I can’t stand seeing you like this anymore! Yeah, what Tyler did to you was fucked up, but that doesn’t mean you have to stop living your life because of it.” Briana exclaimed.

“I know, Bri! I know! It’s just… hard for me to wrap my head around the fact he ditched me after all this time and that I’m single now.” You sighed, starting to feel emotional. At that, Briana pulled you closer and wrapped her arms around you, engulfing you in one of her best hugs. “I’m sorry, y/n! I didn’t mean to make you cry again.” Bri apologized, making you chuckle through your tears. “It’s okay, Bri! It’s not your fault, really. I’m just… a mess!” You laughed, drying your face with the robe sleeves.

“One drink. We get one drink and if you still don’t wanna stay after that, we leave. I promise!” Your friend offered, with hopeful eyes. “Fine! One drink!” You sighed, to which she squealed. “Yes! Thank you, y/n! You’re not gonna regret it! I’ve found this new club, it opened just a couple of weeks ago. You’re gonna love it!” She grinned. “Now, go put on your best outfit, we’re going out!” Briana squealed, making you laugh at her excitement.

About an hour later and after a whole lot of makeup and trying on clothes, Briana finally decided you were done with what she called: a Cinderella transformation. Of course, you laughed at her choice of words, and to irritate your friend, even more, you asked if you also should be back at midnight. She gave you the middle finger, before giving up and joining you in laughter.

After a quick cab ride, that could be done by feet, not with the heels you two were wearing though, you and Briana were at the new club she talked about. Once inside, you had to admit your best friend was right. The place looked like a mix of everything you enjoyed, the walls were coated in a beautiful shade of red, while the lounge area was filled with dark green sofas. Different from the other places you had been to, the bar on this one was positioned right in the middle, with bar stools in that same dark green velvet texture, rounding the space. The dim light that filled the space gave a mysterious/sensual vibe, something you were also a fan of.

Briana immediately dragged you to the bar, waiting patiently for one of the many bartenders. While she made her request, you took the time to scan the place, noting some artsy bits that complemented the space. “What can I get you?” A smooth masculine voice took you out of your daze, making you avert your attention to him. Right in front of you, a gorgeous boy with hazel eyes and chocolatey brown curls grinned at you, waiting for your answer. What was even the question?

“I’m sorry, I didn’t hear you.” You apologized, making his smile grow even more. “I asked what can I get you tonight, darling?” He asked, making you smile with the nickname. “Oh, uh… a daiquiri, please!” You finally said, not being able to avert his gaze. “Good choice! I’ll be right back, girls!” He smirked, before going to the enormous wall of beverages behind him.

Once he was out of earshot, Briana lightly kicked your bare leg, getting your attention. “Isn’t he hot?” She mouthed, making you roll your eyes. “Really, Bri? Already?” Shaking your head, you went back to looking at your surroundings. “Oh, c’mon y/n! A woman has to eat!” Briana joked, making you both burst out laughing.

Seconds later, hot guy was back, this time with two cocktail shakers in his hands. Like every bartender in the world, he made his presentation while pouring the ingredients into the containers, making sure to really flex his arms while shaking it. Not that you noticed.

With two glasses in front of you, he poured the drinks in, doing the finishing touches before serving them to you. “Two pretty drinks for two pretty ladies, enjoy!” He smirked, before going back to his business. “Oh God, he only gets better!” Briana jokingly fanned herself, making you laugh. “He’s just doing his job, Bri! How many times do you think he used that one?” You asked your friend, who rolled her eyes at you. “You’re no fun!” She groaned, putting her tongue out.

Briana was only halfway through her Cosmopolitan when one of her favorite songs started to play. She made everything in her power to make you go with her but you denied her offer, stating you were fine watching her from the bar. With her drink in her hands, she made her way into the dance floor, purposely shaking her booty at you, which made you laugh and almost choke on your barely touched drink.

“Not into dancing?” The same voice from minutes ago asked, startling you. “Oh, no! Not today, at least!” You shrugged, offering him a smile. “So, what brought you and your friend here? I’m Tom, by the way!” He asked, cleaning the surface in front of him, making the watch he wore catch the fluorescent lights of the club. “y/n! And to be honest, she dragged me here.” You told him, giving into their usual small talks. “Wanna talk about it? I’m a pretty damn good listener!” He offered you with a smile.

You took a deep breath, asking yourself if it was really a good idea to share a part of your life with a stranger, and since you weren’t going to step foot on the dance floor, you thought this was the next most reasonable thing to do. Right? “Well, I was into a two-year relationship that ended a couple of weeks ago, and apparently staying inside your house, eating takeout food, and crying over stupid romantic movies is not a very healthy thing to do, so today she went to my house and here I am.” You smiled, taking a sip of your drink.

Once you looked at Tom, he gave you a pitiful look, to which you shrugged. “That’s not even the worst part though.” You said, the alcohol in your system already making the choices for you. “Instead of calling me or sending me a text asking to talk, you know, like a normal person, he invited me to his parents’ tenth-anniversary party and broke up with me in front of his whole family, claiming I wasn’t what he wanted in a relationship anymore.” With a raise of your glass, you finished your sad story, downing the rest of your daiquiri.

“Damn, what a dick!” Tom breathed after a couple of seconds, making you chuckle. “Oh, well! Cheers to single life, I guess…” You said, raising your now empty glass. “Need a refill?” He asked, pointing to the glass on your hands. “Please!” You huffed, before thanking him. “What will it be now?” Tom smirked, seeing your thinky face. “I don’t know, something strong.” He nodded, giving you two thumbs-ups, before going back to the wall to collect the ingredients.

Once the song ended, Briana came back to you and you two chatted until Tom came back with your drink, waiting for your approval. “It’s good! I like it! Thanks, Tom!” You smiled, locking eyes with him. “Do you want a refill too, darling?” He asked Briana, to which she said a beer would be fine. Once he was off, you felt your best friend's eyes burning a hole in your skull. “What?” You asked, impatiently. “We’re already on a name basis then?” Briana smirked, making you roll your eyes at her. “Yeah, I mean, he introduced himself, what did you want me to do?” You snapped and that was enough to her smirk double in size. “Okay, girl! You sure you don’t want to go home then?” She asked you for what felt like the fifth time. “Yes, Bri! I’m good! I promise!” You assured your best friend before she once again was off to the dance floor.

You quietly took sips of your new strawberry drink, watching from afar as your friend seemed to get her eyes on a specific guy for the night. She gave you a wink, making you roll your eyes at her antics. “She seems to be enjoying herself.” You heard Tom’s voice, turning the barstool to find him looking at you. “Yeah, she always does!” You agreed, taking another sip of your drink. “So, you’re from here?” He asked, sounding interested. “Yeah, I’m a local! You?” You said, raising your brows. “Same!” He smiled, going right to the next question.

The conversation kept going for most of the night, Tom attended some clients, while you took sips of your drinks, and once he was free, he was right back at you with another round of questions. Seeing as Briana wasn’t by your side anymore, you welcomed his company, glad at least this way you wouldn’t be left alone. “Museologist? I’ve never heard that before!” He grinned, making you chuckle. “Yeah, it’s not very common. Basically what I do is investigate and preserve material cultural stuff, like paintings, sculptures or constructions and immaterial, such as traditions and folklore.” You answered and Tom couldn’t help but find adorable the way your eyes lit up while you talked.

Briana came back after a couple more songs, sitting by your side and asking Tom another beer. “So, found your prey?” You joked, making her laugh. “Actually, I did! See that blonde? With the samurai bun?” She pointed and you nodded once your eyes landed on him. “Nice, Bri!” You complemented, giving her a playful high five. “Right? And he’s so sweet and smart and funny! He even asked me if I wanted to go to his house.” She blurted, seemingly disappointed. “And?” You asked, not getting why she reacted that way. “Oh, no! I’m not leaving you. I dragged you here so I’m taking you home.” Briana exclaimed, to which you rolled your eyes. “Bri, I’m totally able to call a cab and go home by myself. I’m fine, I promise! You can go with Mr. Samurai bun if you want.” You assured her, seeing her eyes widen. “No, y/n/n! I promised you!” She protested, making you groan. “I’m fine, Bri! Go with him!” Once again, you insisted. “Are you sure?” She asked and you had to laugh at her. “I’m not a child, Bri! Now go, he’s not going to wait all night!” You teased, getting a hug and a kiss on the cheek from your friend before she was off.

“Lost your friend?” Tom asked once he was back from his bartender duties. “Yeah, it's just me now and I think I’ll actually call it a night and go home.” You told him, making him frown. “Hey, not to sound creepy or anything but are you going by yourself? Because that’s not very safe and my shift ends in like ten minutes. If you want, I can accompany you.” With hopeful eyes, the boy in front of you smiled, making your heart flutter just a tiny bit. You thought about leaving a stranger accompanied you home, you really did, but something in your gut told you it was fine, Tom was a good guy and would never do anything to harm you. So, you went with it. “Yeah, that would be great, actually.” You smiled and ten minutes later, you were both leaving the club, at 3:30 in the morning.

Tom offered to call a cab but seeing as your house was only a few minutes away, you asked if it was okay for him that you guys walked. He agreed and with the moon illuminating your steps, the pair of you made your way into the almost silent streets. You guys kept talking and occasionally your hands would brush on one another, which caused little butterflies to erupt in your stomach. Once in front of your apartment building, you stopped, having no idea what to do next, since you were in a relationship for the last two years.

“It was nice meeting and talking to you, Tom!” You said, opting for the easiest way out. “Yeah, the feeling is mutual, y/n!” He answered, stuffing both of his hands in his pockets. “Thank you for… listening.” You mumbled, making him chuckle. “Of course! Whenever you need!” He smiled, not moving a muscle. “I’ll see you around, then. Bye!” With a little wave of your hand, you made your way to the door, while Tom watched you from his place. “Sure! Bye, y/n!” He exclaimed, making you smile, finally entering the building.

That’s how you found yourself going back to that same club every Friday, getting a couple of drinks while talking to Tom, then being escorted home by him. You had been doing this for almost a month now and Briana was starting to get suspicious. It was Friday again and she had just called you while you finished getting ready. “So, any plans for tonight?” She asked, already predicting your answer. “Not really, just gonna get some drinks and head home.” You said while clasping your black sandals. “Tom’s gonna bring you home again?” You sighed, already knowing where this conversation was heading. “I don’t know, Bri! If he wants to.” You looked in the mirror for the last time, before taking your bag and heading out. Once Briana finally hung up, you threw your phone into your purse, getting into the cab.

The routine was the same, you got in, spotted Tom, sat in one of the many barstools, and waited for him to approach you. “What can I get this beautiful lady today?” He joked, a smile wide on his face. Today he was wearing a simple black shirt, tight around his muscles, the watch still sat proudly on his wrist, and his curls were a little bit messier than most days. “You know you don’t have to waste your pickup lines with me, Tom.” You smiled, watching his reaction. “Okay then, what can I get this grumpy old lady today?” He smirked, making you chuckle. “A Sex On The Beach, please?!” You grinned and after a quick wink, he was off.

The rest of the night passed like magic, you didn’t even see the time pass and once you took a look at your phone, you saw that it was almost time for Tom’s shift to end, which meant it was time to head home. The chilly London air hit as soon as you stepped out of the club, making you shiver, seeing as you were only in a dress. Like the gentleman he was, Tom took off his jacket and placed it on your shoulders, and although you protested, saying he was going to catch a cold, he assured you he was fine with his shirt.

You didn’t know what you were thinking when the words “Do you wanna come inside?” came out of your mouth but now was definitely too late to take them back. “Oh, yeah! Sure!” Tom agreed, making you smile. The short lift ride was awkward and once you walked into your apartment, the feeling only grew. Tom stayed pretty close to the door, with both of his hands in his pockets, while you put your purse away and turned on the lights. “Welcome and sorry for the mess.” You said, going back to the living room. Tom just smiled, before saying, “You call this messy? You should see my house!” You both laughed and the tension was back in the air. “Do you want anything? Water, wine, beer?” You offered, taking off your shoes and his jacket, putting the both away. “Water would be good.” He said and you quickly made your way to the kitchen, shaking your head to try and get rid of some very intrusive thoughts.

“Thanks!” He smiled, taking the glass from your hands, while your eyes kept focused on his arm and the prominent veins and the way his shirt was almost being ripped by his bicep. “y/n? You here?” Tom’s voice brought you back, making your face grow hot with the knowledge you got caught. “Yes, sorry!” You apologized, watching as his smirk grew in size. He placed the cup on the small table by your door, before taking a couple of steps closer. Slowly, as if testing the waters, he put his hands on your hips, leaning the smallest bit in, not taking that stupid smirk off of his face.

His smell was intoxicating, the mixture of alcohol and mint was definitely making your mind clouded. “Tom…” You whispered once he was only centimeters away from you. “What is it, y/n?” He asked, looking between your eyes and your lips. “Kiss me!” You almost pleaded, his smirk the last thing you saw before his lips were crashing into yours. The feeling was new, you hadn’t kissed anyone since your ex-boyfriend and you couldn’t help but compare them. Tom’s was so much better though, his lips could be thin but they held so much power on them, his mouth worked like magic against yours, and before you knew he was pulling away, completely breathless. The pause didn’t last long though, he looked so good with his lips plumped, the tiniest of the smirks still proudly on them, you just couldn’t help yourself and launched yourself at him.

You backed him against the wall, moaning when you felt his tongue entering your mouth. Tom placed both of his hands on your ass, squeezing it before asking, “Bedroom?” Without breaking the kiss, you pointed in the direction of your room and before you knew it, he was carrying you in his arms. You squealed, wrapping your legs around his torso, before going back to his lips. He placed you on the bed, making a trail of kisses from your neck, all the way to your stomach. Once he positioned himself between your tights, he looked at you with his bright brown eyes, asking if he could take your dress off. You nodded and after a little bit of a struggle, he took the thin material out of your body, leaving you in just a pair of white underwear. “You’re so beautiful!” He whispered, going back to your lips and attacking them with kisses. “Tom, please…” You moaned, growing even more eager to feel him. “What do you want, darling?” He smirked, loving seeing you like that. “You, I want you!” With a shake on your voice, you pleaded and he finally took the clue and went to work.

After another confirmation from you, he discarded your panties, tracing his fingers through your now soaked folds. “You look amazing, y/n!” Tom breathed before going straight to your core. You let out a moan as soon as his lips touched you, making your whole body shake with pleasure. “And tastes amazing too!” He purred, focusing on his task. Your moans only grew louder when he pushed two of his slender fingers on your heat. “Fuck, Tom! Feels so good!” You blurted, not being able to control yourself. “That’s it, baby! I can feel your walls clenching around my fingers. Tell me how much do you wanna cum.” Tom whispered, making you clench even more, only by his words. “Wanna cum, Tom! Please…” You were never this talkative in bed and not once has a guy been this dominant with you but you couldn’t say you weren’t enjoying it. “Cum for me, baby! Wanna hear you scream my name!” He mumbled and finally lost control. Your whole body shook with pleasure and you had to contain yourself from closing your thighs around Tom’s head.

Once you came back from your high, you opened your eyes to find Tom already looking at you, with some of your wetness still glistening on his chin. “You alright?” He asked, concern coating his words. “Yeah!” You smiled, before going back to his lips. With a quick move, you straddled him, helping him take off his shirt, letting his chest perfectly exposed for you. You lowered yourself, leaving a trail of kisses on his jaw, neck, collarbones, chest, each one of his abs, and finally, his perfectly sculpted v line. “Are you sure? You don’t have to, I’ll be perfectly fine by just giving...” You interrupted his mumbling by attaching your lips to his, hoping it would be his answer.

With the rest of his clothes discarded, you couldn’t help but admire his body. He was perfect. Sculpted by the gods, even. After wetting your hands, you took his cock, pumping a few times before attaching your lips to it. You twirled your tongue, tasting his precum, feeling him grow harder and harder on your hands. “Holy shit, you feel so good, y/n!” His words of encouragement were enough for you to start moving your head up and down, taking his member into your mouth inch by inch, until he was bucking his hips. “Fuck! You’re bloody amazing, darling!” He praised, while making direct eye contact with you, “But if you want more, you better stop before I coat your throat with my cum.” You had to admit, his dirty talk was doing something to you.

Releasing his cock with a loud pop, you climbed on top of him, kissing his lips. “Do you have a condom?” He asked between kisses. “Bedside table, first draw.” You answered and after a loud smack on your ass, you got off of him, both of you wearing playful smiles on your faces. Tom opened the foil package and rolled the material into his member, positioning himself at your entrance. “You sure you wanna do this?” He asked, making sure you wanted this as much as he did. “Yes, Tom! I want you to fuck me!” You said, kissing his lips.

With both of his hands on your hips and a huge smirk on his face, he pushed himself into you, making you moan. It took you a few seconds to get used to him and once you nodded, Tom started to move, bringing another level of pleasure to your body. “Fuck! You’re so tight around me, y/n!” He whispered, biting your earlobe. “Tom, fuck me harder!” You pleaded, wanting nothing more than to be railed by him. That seemed to take Tom by surprise but he was quick to obey your wish, thrusting harder and harder into your soaking wet core. “You look so beautiful like that, all sweaty, begging me for more!” He kept praising you, feeling how much you liked when he did.

With both of his arms by your head, he caged you, tattooing your face with kisses. “Feel so good, Tom! Please, make me cum!” You mumbled, by now barely able to form sentences. Tom was quick to obey and once his fingers found your clit, rubbing small circles in it, you were gone. Toes curling, you arched your back, getting a handful of the mattress in one hand while the other scratched Tom’s back. “Fuck, y/n!” With a final thrust of his hips, Tom reached his high, moaning your name like it was the most beautiful prayer.

He collapsed on top of you, leaving a long kiss on your lips, before getting up and tossing the condom on the trash. You went to the bathroom to clean yourself up, seeing as you were too tired to take a shower, and asked him if he wanted that too. He agreed and once you were decent enough, you put on clean panties and his discarded shirt, asking him to join you on the bed. Of course, he accepted, he wasn’t planning to go anywhere either so, after putting his boxers back on, he climbed on the bed with you.

You quickly doze off but right before you did, you admitted to yourself that, like most of the time, Briana was right, and going to that new club wasn’t a bad idea after all.

tagging: @stuckonspidey @bi-writes @duskholland @screamholland @missnxthingg @tomhollandthing @wazzupmrstark @peeterparkr @veryholland @spideyspeaches-deactivated20221 @lauras-collection @tommybaholland @rebekkah4766 @hopelessromm @pensivepeter @geminiparkers @mrs-hollandstan @hollandcreep @uglypastels

[megumisbimbo]

- Four -

megumi fushiguro x reader

genre: fluff, slight angst

summary: (y/n) was nothing special. A human being who had no idea that curses walked the same earth they walked. But then they locked eyes with Megumi Fushiguro. Can Fushiguro focus on the task ahead or will he be distracted by the king of curses and his new love interest?

series masterlist

©️ @megumisbimbo — all rights reserved. Please do not repost, modify or translate my work. Reblogs and likes appreciated!

Credit for the main storyline and characters goes to Gege Akutami.

tags: @xreemie @kitkozume @noyakura @vanilnya20​ @tobi--o​

the songs are indicated throughout the story at certain points!

songs used:

put your records on - ritt momney

who dat boy - tyler the creator

goodbye - billie eilish

— put your records on - ritt momney —

(y/n) pov:

It was early in the morning when you were woken up by the sound of rustling. You turn and see Fushiguro frantically getting himself together.

“New mission?” You ask, voice deep and scratchy.

“It was a bit of an emergency, sorry I can’t stay today. But the rest of the sashimi is in the fridge.”

“I’ll be fine Megumi, I promise. You shouldn’t worry so much you’ll get wrinkles.” You say, causing him to let out a small chuckle.

“Are you ready to leave yet?” You ask

“No not yet.”

“Then can I play with Kou?”

Megumi gives you a puzzled glare.

“Kou?..”

“Your white dog. I named it Kou! Isn’t it cute!?”

“You shouldn’t get so attached to them you know.”

“Yes yes I know. Now can I play with it?!”

Megumi smiles and summons his white dog, who he noticed has taken a special liking to you. As much as he knew it would be a bad idea for you to get so attached to his shikigami, he couldn’t help but feel all warm inside when he saw you laughing. He finished getting ready and him and his white dog make their way out the door bidding you goodbye. You stare out the window again, noticing that you tend to do that often. Well you didn’t want to sit around all day bored as hell, so you decide to watch a movie on Megumi’s television and finish the sushi from the day before.

Megumi pov:

They looked so cute playing with my divine dog, how could I say no to that face.

“Snap out of it Megumi.” Nobara says waving her hand in front of my face.

“Were you even paying attention?”

“Of course I was.” I respond, slightly irritated.

“Thinking about (y/n) again?”

“WHA- WHY- WHY WOULD YOU THINK THAT??” I say, startled by her question.

“I don’t know. Just a hunch I guess.”

Itadori walks outside and greets us with a smile. Reminds me of their smile...stop it Megumi you’re going insane.

Ijichi-san’s black car rolls up beside us and we step into the backseat. He drives us to the Juvenile Detention Center in West Tokyo. We step out of the car and walk towards building two.

“Our windows confirmed a curse womb approximately three hours ago. Five inmates are currently trapped inside along with the curse. Curse wombs that grow and change shape can be expected to become a curse close to that of a special grade. You are not to engage.”

I know that a curse of special grade ranking should be dealt with by a special grade sorcerer. Where is Gojo-sensei?

“Satoru is currently on a business trip.”

Of course.

A woman comes running towards us, stopped by the gate guards.

“Is Tadashi...my son. Is my son ok?!?”

I turn and see Itadori’s face turn pale. He needs to stop letting his feelings get involved.

“We cannot disclose any more information at this point.” One of the guards explains.

“Fushiguro, Kugisaki. We have to save him.” Itadori says.

“Of course.”

Ijichi-san lowers the curtain and I summon Kou.

“If it gets close, Ko-... my dog will let us know.”

“Let’s do this.”

— who dat boy - tyler the creator—

We walk into the building and are immediately caught off guard. The whole place is a maze. I turn around looking for the entrance.

“Damn. Where’s the door?”

Kugisaki and Itadori panic but I explain that Kou would be able to sniff it’s way out, since it remembered the scent of the entrance.

“You’re so reliable Fushiguro.” Itadori says with a smile, a familiar glint in his eyes.

He reacts the same way (y/n) does. They really must be close.

We walk deeper into the maze and find the work yard where the curse had first been seen. A mangled up body lay across from us. Itadori walks up to the body and pulls on the shirt he was wearing.

Tadashi Okazaki

“Is it that woman’s son?” Kugisaki asks.

“We’re bringing this body back. His face isn’t that messed up. She won’t be satisfied if we just tell her that her son is dead.” Itadori responds.

I grab onto his uniform and pull him away from the victim.

“Leave him. We have to confirm that the other two are dead.” I say, knowing exactly who this man is.

“Everytime we look back the path is different. How’re we gonna get back here?” Itadori responds.

“I said leave him. I never said we were coming back. He’s not even worth saving alive, why would I save his dead body.”

Itadori grabs onto the collar of my jacket.

“What’re you talking about?” He says, anger laced in his tone.

“This is a juvenile detention center. I read about what he did to get in here. He was driving without a license and hit a girl who was walking home from school, and that was the second infraction. I know you want to save everyone, so they can die a natural death, but who’s to say that someone you save won’t kill someone else in the future?”

Itadori looks at me with a blank stare. Anger festers within him. I can feel his energy shifting.

“THEN WHY DID YOU SAVE ME!?”

I...can’t answer that.

Kugisaki’s voice tears us away from each others stare.

“Knock it off you two! This isn’t the time or-“

Her body being sucked into a hole on the ground cuts her sentence off. We both stare blankly at the spot where she was standing.

No way.

“There’s no way...my divine dog would have-“

I turn around and see Kou’s head sticking out of the wall. Completely dead. My heart sinks. (y/n).

“Fushiguro!”

I turn towards Itadori, fear building up inside me.

“Run! We’ll find Kugisaki after we get away-“

My words are cut off by the immense amount of cursed energy I suddenly feel beside us. The special grade.

I can’t move. Neither can Itadori...I think.

Itadori suddenly swings his slaughter demon upwards in hopes of at least wounding the special grade. It proves absolutely futile when both the slaughter demon and his hand fly through the air landing a few feet away from us. I look back at Itadori and find his arm gushing with blood.

We’ve lost.

“Fushiguro. Run. Find Kugisaki. Let me know when you get out of here.”

“I’m not leaving you behind!”

“Fushiguro...Please...”

My heart sinks as I see Itadori’s pleading smile. I know he’s strong, but he’ll die if I leave him with this curse.

Wait.

I nod and find my will to move. I run as fast as I can through the building desperately searching for Kugisaki, my black divine dog leading the way. I finally reach her and, using my frog shikigami, pull her away from the curse that was holding her. We both manage to escape from the building. I drop her off with Ijichi-san, and my divine dog lets out a howl, signaling our escape.

Please let him make it out.

Ijichi-san explains that he’ll take Kugisaki to a doctor, and insists that I come along with him. I refuse and opt to wait for Itadori outside the building. I ask him if he could do his best to bring a sorcerer higher than a grade one when he returns. Although it isn’t likely he will, he agrees and drives away with Kugisaki safely tucked in the backseat.

I wait for what feels like ages. Suddenly, I notice the expanded dormitory has disappeared, which means the special grade curse has died.

Now if Itadori would just come back.

My thoughts are interrupted by a familiar sinister voice.

“If it’s about him, he’s not coming back.”

My whole body tenses up at the sound of that demon’s voice.

“Don’t worry, I’m in a good mood right now. Let’s talk.”

Where’s Itadori? He should have switched back by now.

“He seems to be having some trouble, but it’s only a matter of time before he’ll switch back. So I thought about what I could do in the meantime.” Sukuna says, an evil grin creeping across his face.

I watch as Sukuna buries his fist inside Itadori’s chest and rips out his heart. My eyes widen as I watch him hold Itadori’s still beating heart in his hand.

“I’m taking this brat hostage!”

He can live without the heart but...Itadori can’t. He’ll die if he switches back.

“Itadori will come back, even if his death is the result...that’s just the type of person he is.” I say, my heart racing.

“You think too highly of him. Just a while ago he was so scared while on the verge of death. He was a mess you know. Talking about (y/n) and why he’s sorry and how he’ll miss them. How pathetic.”

(y/n). Dammit.

My mind is racing as I stare at Itadori’s body, covered with tattoos and gushing red hot blood.

I’ll try and make him restore Itadori’s heart before he comes back by convincing him that he can’t win with a heartless body. I have to. But is that even possible? For someone who couldn’t even move in front of a special grade curse. Doesn’t matter. I’ll do it.

“I’m finally outside, Let’s make use of this space!”

I quickly summon Nue to fight Sukuna. Although I’m using my shikigami, I’ll fight him myself as well. I think I manage to land a blow, but it’s quickly blocked.

“Put some more curse behind your blows!” Sukuna says before punching me in the face.

I summon my Serpent and with the help of Nue, I manage to restrain Sukuna.

“Don’t give him a chance!” I yell to my shikigami, hoping that I’d be able to hold him long enough to land a critical blow.

I watch in shock as Sukuna rips my Serpent apart, freeing himself. Without a second to think, I find him grabbing onto the back of my shirt, flinging me into the air. He follows me up into the sky and hits me hard against the back of my head. I fly aimlessly through the air, but Nue scoops me into its wings and softens the blow of the landing. I turn and pet it’s head.

Nue is at its limit. I have to undo the spell before it’s destroyed. I carelessly used my shikigami and now my Serpent and Kou are both destroyed.

Sukuna lands in front of me.

“Your shikigami use shadow as a medium, don’t they?” He asks.

“So what?”

“Hmmm, you don’t get it do you?

I give him a questioning look, still disoriented from the beating I just received.

“What a waste of talent...in any case, I’m not going to heal the brat. He’s not even worth fighting for.”

“Well I save people...unfairly.”

I let out all of my curse, allowing the blue tinted energy to flow through and around me.

“You’re going to get fired up now? That’s good! Well then. Entertain me Fushiguro Megumi!!”

I begin reciting a chant usually done by shinto priests that is believed to summon the dead. Also known as “The ten sacred treasures.” My thoughts are spinning, disorienting me more.

(y/n). What would they think of me? How could I face them if I lose Itadori.

— goodbye - billie eilish —

I stop, realizing the only way to win is to pull Itadori out of his own head, no matter the cost.

“Itadori, I know you can hear me. I didn’t have any logical reason to save you and (y/n) back then. Even if it was dangerous, even if they are a liability, I couldn’t watch good people die. I had some doubts but... ultimately I made a selfish choice driven by my emotions. But that’s fine. So to answer your question...I saved you because...because I’m not a hero. I’m a sorcerer. I never regretted saving you two. Not even once.”

The tattoos on his body begin to fade, and Itadori’s face resurfaces.

“I see...You’re smart Fushiguro and I think the way you live your truth is right. But I don’t think I’m wrong either.”

Itadori’s chest gushes blood and his body becomes limp.

“Ah, it’s almost time for me... Kugisaki and Gojo-sensei...I guess I don’t have to worry about them anymore. Live a long life Fushiguro, and tell (y/n)...I...love....the-“

His body hits the ground creating a puddle of blood. Tears form in my onyx eyes.

I have to go home to (y/n)...what will I tell them. I’m sorry (y/n). I couldn’t save him.

[jakobdodson]

2021 in Music

Here is a note about the music I listened to in 2021. I hope you enjoy it!

Favorite Albums of 2021

Promises - Floating Points, Pharoah Sanders & The London Symphony Orchestra

I could cheese it up and try to articulate something about how Promises can imbue wonder into the ordinary and blah blah blah... but I like the way this review from Paste puts it: 

“Promises is the kind of album that can rearrange the molecules in the room.”

Word.

I remember studying for the LSAT one Saturday morning earlier this year and deciding to put this one on. I thought it was boring. “Mmm... nice background music!”, or so I thought.

By Movement 6, I had a thousand yard stare and onset existential crisis.

How often do I give my full attention to really listening? (and not just to music...) How often is it taken from me? 

Pretty rare, in my experience. For better or for worse.

Anyway, shoutout to this one for inflicting irreparable damage to my LSAT score!

Favorite Songs:

Movement 6

Movement 7

Movement 8

I Don’t Live Here Anymore - The War On Drugs

Sometimes something finds you at the right moment; a relationship, a nice view, the peanut butter bacon burger at Fat Guys...

I spun this one over and over and over and I think its because it found me at a good time? Musically, lyrically... it really moved me.

“Feel the storm coming on Feel the darkness at your gate Live the loneliness of life Keep on moving at your pace Ain't the sky just shades of gray Until you seen it from the other side? Oh, if loving you is the same It's only some occasional rain”

Just shades of gray, indeed.

Favorite Songs:

Harmonia’s Dream

Change

I Don’t Live Here Anymore (feat. Lucius)

Occasional Rain

_______________________________________________________________________

Runners up

Ignorance - The Weather Station

Talk Memory - BADBADNOTGOOD

My Morning Jacket - My Morning Jacket

Music For Psychedelic Therapy - Jon Hopkins

An Overview on Phenomenal Nature - Cassandra Jenkins

Far In - Helado Negro

Day/Night - Parcels

Liked It

Sympathetic Magic - Typhoon

Two Saviors - Buck Meek

Good Woman - The Staves

A Billion Little Lights - Wild Pink

L.W. - King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard

CARNAGE - Nick Cave & Warren Ellis

As the Love Continues - Mogwai

Yol - Altin Gün

The Pet Parade - Fruit Bats

Collections From The Whiteout - Ben Howard

Green to Gold - The Antlers

G_d’s Pee AT STATES END - Godspeed You! Black Emperor

Head of Roses - Flock of Dimes

Music - Benny Sings

MAYBE WERE THE VISITORS - Page McConnell

Bright Green Field - Squid

Cicada Waves - Ben Seretan

Fire In Little Africa - Fire In Little Africa

Long Lost - Lord Huron

Butterfly 3000 - King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard

Quietly Blowing It - Hiss Golden Messenger

Home Video - Lucy Dacus

I Know I’m Funny haha - Faye Webster

The Moon and Stars: Prescriptions For Dreamers - Valerie June

SOUR - Olivia Rodrigo

Jubilee - Japanese Breakfast

BLONDIE - Nick Midnight

Gold-Digger Sound - Leon Bridges

One Foot In Front Of The Other - Griff

The Ballad of Dood & Juanita - Sturgill Simpson

Lost Futures - Marisa Anderson & William Tyler

Local Valley - José González

Big Bend (An Original Soundtrack for Public Television) - Explosions In The Sky

Year Of The Spider - Shannon & The Clams

Music Of The Spheres - Coldplay

Donda - Kanye West

Projector - Geese

Valentine - Snail Mail

Pressure Machine - The Killers

Infinite Granite - Deafheaven

Tethers - Minor Moon

An Evening With Silk Sonic - Silk Sonic

30 - Adele

Things Take Time, Take Time - Courtney Barnett

How Long Do You Think It’s Gonna Last? - Big Red Machine

Cerulean - Nashville Ambient Ensemble

Meh

For the first time - Black Country, New Road

Little Oblivions - Julien Baker

New Long Leg - Dry Cleaning

Sketchy - Tune Yards

Ice Melt - Crumb

Star-Crossed - Kacey Musgraves

Sob Rock - John Mayer

Afrique Victime - Mdou Moctar

Audio Drag for Ego Slobs - Gustaf

Certified Lover Boy - Drake

Queens of the Summer Hotel - Aimee Mann

Dark in Here - The Mountain Goats

Haven’t listened yet...

Silver Dream - Moon Taxi

Strawberry Mansion - Langhorne Slim

Medicine at Midnight - Foo Fighters

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - New Fragility

As Days Get Dark - Arab Strap

When You See Yourself - Kings of Leon

Reincarnation - BONZIE

The Million Masks of God - Manchester Orchestra

Convocations - Sufjan Stevens

Daddy’s Home - St. Vincent

Changephobia - Rostam

Blue Weekend - Wolf Alice

CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST - Tyler, The Creator

Alem - Altin Gun

Peace Or Love - Kings Of Convenience

Elsewhere - Hammock

Trespass on Foot - Kiran Leonard

Petunia - Tonstartssbandht

Raise the Roof - Robert Plant & Allison Kraus

Which Way to Be Happy - Penelope Isles

Henki - Richard Dawson & Circle

Long Lost - Lord Huron

Not from 2021 (Albums that weren’t released this year, yet finally clicked for me):

Naturally - J.J. Cale

American Stars ‘N Bars - Neil Young

Youth Pastoral - Ben Seretan

Aja - Steely Dan

The Royal Scam - Steely Dan

Exile On Main Street - The Rolling Stones

Look-Ka Py Py - The Meters

Capacity - Big Thief

UFOF - Big Thief

Departure Songs - Hammock

Maybe They Will Sing For Us Tomorrow - Hammock

Live Vol. 1 - Parcels

Wildflowers - Tom Petty

Quarter Moon in a Ten Cent Town - Emmylou Harris

Wrecking Ball - Emmylou Harris 

Concerts Attended in 2021:

Jon Fullbright & Patty Griffin - Woody Guthrie Folk Festival - Guthrie, OK - 7/16/21

Phish - Walmart AMP - Rogers, AR - 7/28/21

Links to past lists:

10 Albums that changed my life, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020

_________________________________________________

Happy Listening!

Jake

[rovewritesit]

Angel Of My Dreams (Chapter 3) John Deacon x Reader Series

Meant to get this out last night but I’m on call 24/7 for my job so ya know, life.

Series Summary: After reluctantly joining a band with your childhood best friends, you are thrust into oncoming stardom with no sea legs and an overwhelming sense of anxiety. But you just might find your way, thanks to some seasoned pros by your side. And the interest of one particular bassist.

This series is a work of fiction, and is loosely inspired by real people and events. Absolutely no offense is meant to actual Queen or their families.

PART 1 - PART 2 - PART 4

Pairing: John Deacon x Reader

Chapter Warnings: Strong language, you know the deal. Feelings of anxiety. Slightly sexual dialogue. Reader is kinda horny? Misogynistic comments towards reader.

Chapter Notes: I may have written out an ENTIRE episode of Pop Quiz before realizing that shoving music facts down your throats isn’t the best use of our time. Apologies if it got a bit disjointed in the trimming process. I work in TV so I just had to add in a cliche meet-cute. Sorry not sorry.

Song/Title Inspiration: Angel - Fleetwood Mac

Taglist: @yourlocalmusicalprostitute​ @brianmays-hair @deacyblues @squishy-geckboye

April 1982 - BBC Studios, London

“It’s not funny, Y/N! Stop laughing. You’re gonna ruin all my hard work!” Dawn chastises you as she sweeps a pale blue eye shadow across your lids, trying her best to complete your request to tone down your usual stage look.

You try to muffle your laughter, teetering on your chair set up in the spacious green room. It comes out as a wheeze, a soft whistle escaping through your nose. “I’m sorry, you said what!?”

“I kid you not, I took one look at his penis and said ‘What the fuck is that?”

A sharp laugh escapes from your mouth once again, failing miserably to prevent tears from leaking out of the corners of your eyes.

“I feel awful! It’s just that I had never seen one before,” Dawn whines.

“Okay, I know for a fact that’s not the first dick you’ve seen. Hell, even I’ve seen some of those. Like ships passing in the night as they raced out of your dorm bed,” you giggle.

“You know what I mean. I’ve never been with one that’s… intact.”

Your eyebrows shoot up, “Oh c’mon. Uncircumcised can’t be that different.”

“It wasn’t! I was just drunk and got spooked, I guess. It was actually kinda cute. Like it was wearing a little turtleneck or something.”

You lose it, yet again. Laughter falls freely from your lips, helping to alleviate the dreaded stress that has now become your constant companion these days. Appearing on a game show alone was not something you thought you’d have to tackle on your third day in London. You’re sure the boys were off exploring the sprawling city that none of you had stepped foot in prior to the trip.

Pop Quiz was apparently a big hit for the BBC, featuring a bevy of famous musicians battling out their knowledge of the industry. You’d never had the chance to watch, obviously not readily available to viewers back home, but a harried man had come in earlier to give you a basic rundown of the format. You were somewhat confident in your knowledge of music, having been a regular at your hometown’s local record shop, you just hoped it would be enough to keep you from making a fool out of yourself in front of an entire country. But your anxiety mostly stemmed from your upcoming appearance in front of the camera without the boys there to play off of.

“How was it, though? I heard they’re supposed to “feel better” or something like that,” your curiosity getting the better of you. “Ooo, was it curved? Sometimes that can be a great thing. Except for one I encountered that was going in the opposite way then you’d think. Like even it knew it should be running away from the dude.”

Dawn’s face screws into a pinch, “Was that Tyler... Wait, don’t tell me. Ew. And I wouldn’t know! The poor guy was so embarrassed he couldn’t even keep it up after that!”

“What a waste,” you sigh. “I thought I’d be at least getting some field research out of your antics. What did I even bring you to London for?” you joke as she holds a tissue out to blot your lips.

“Uh-huh. The day you do some “field research” of your own is the day I chop off my own hair,” she quips, narrowing her eyes at you.

You casually raise your right hand to flip her off. She wasn’t wrong; it had been a while since you’d been with anyone, let alone entertained the fact of jumping into a relationship. There were partners in the past, of course. A few geeky high school boys, a woman who worked at said hometown record store, and the occasional pretentious film kid while at NYU, who spoke condescendingly of women working in film but scratched an itch when needed.

“And there’s no time like the present! You know what they say. When in Britain…” Dawn trails off, failing to finish her bit.

You left eyebrow quirks, “Throw dental hygiene standards out the window?”

Her face twists in disgust again as she uncaps a can of Aqua Net. “Gross. Now close your eyes and shut up so I can be done with you.”

The spray sputters, emitting little from it. “Dammnit,” she curses, turning to rummage around her sprawling kit. “Of course, I didn’t pack a spare. I’ll be right back. Hopefully, their hair department has one we can borrow.” 

She rushes from the room in a sweeping motion, knocking over a coffee that was precariously placed on your chair’s armrest in the process.

“Fuck me,” you breathe, jumping up, your white blouse now doused in caffeine.

You hurry to jog out of the room, trying to catch up with her. “Daw- Shit!”

Your face collides with a hard chest.

Two large hands grip your shoulders to stop your momentum. “Oh! Apologies,” comes a light voice from above, muffled by your full head of ringlets. You jerk your head away quickly, and your gaze lands on a pair of startled greyish, green eyes.

“S-sorry,” you stutter out. “Completely my fault.” You glance down to the hands that still rest on your shoulders for a moment before looking back up. The pair of eyes go wide, and the hands quickly retreat back to the man’s side. 

The man being the bassist of Queen, John Deacon. You scold yourself for only having glanced at the day’s detailed itinerary this morning before heading out. How did I miss that one? Sweat begins to gather on your palms immediately.

“John Deacon,” he hesitantly smiles at you while extending a hand.

“Y/N L/N,” you squeak out as his hand engulfs yours, inwardly cringing at how moist it must feel. You hold it for a bit too long. “I’m one of the contestants on Team A today,” you yank your hand back to your side.

His brow knit together. “Oh? I was told I’d be with Nick Rhodes and Jon Moss today.”

You shift your weight uncomfortably from side to side, having yet to meet his eyes again. “Nick had to cancel, I believe. I’m a last-minute replacement.”

“Okay,” he replies with a tight smile. “Well, good then. I hope you’re ready,” he glances down, noticing the stain splashed across your top. “Or, at least close to it...”

“Huh?” you blurt out before realizing, looking down at your shirt. “Oh, yes. The reason I so rudely ran into you. I should go-” your eye catches something as they finally travel back up to his. “Aw, fuck.”

“Pardon?”

You grimace, pointing directly at his chest. Right to the giant imprint on his tight blue shirt. One that had been left by your bright red lipstick.

He follows your finger. “Ah! Will you look at that.”

“I am so, so sorry,” you rush out, absolute mortification seeping into your voice.

He dismisses your apology with a wave of his hand. “Not to worry. That’s what jackets are for,” he says, zipping up the oversized grey jacket slung around his shoulders. “And at least now I know this shade of red really isn’t my colour.”

You smile up at him, not really knowing what else to say—the full weight of your not-so-smooth first encounter with this man hitting you fast, as people squeezed around you two in the tight hallway. “I should go get fixed up,” you tell him, pointing your thumb back over your shoulder towards your dressing room, ready to make a quick exit.

“Alright. I’ll see you out there then. Cheers!” he smiles back with a wave of his hand, turning to find his own space to get ready.

You stand there watching him in a daze, mentally berating yourself for now having had two inappropriate run-ins with a member of Queen.

Dawn materializes into your field of vision, hands-on-hips.

“Honestly, what the hell. I left you alone for two minutes!”

- - - - - - -

20 minutes later, you follow a stagehand through the back of the soundstage, fidgeting with your outfit while trying not to crash into anyone else. Dawn’s top that she quickly switched with your own was cut much lower than you would’ve liked and left you feeling even more exposed than your current bout of nerves did.

You’re dumped onto the set with the point of a finger over to a tall man. Mike Read, the host of Pop Quiz, stands by a large desk, crew members bustling around him. You stick to your spot out of the way, not sure if to interrupt the conversation he’s currently having to introduce yourself. 

You take in the spacious stage, never having been on a show of this size before. A wave of longing suddenly washes over you, yearning for days on set where you were a part of the crew that moved around you. While at school, you’d worked on several student films, usually as a 1st Assistant Director or Line Producer. You loved the pace of production. Keeping everyone on time, on budget. It was where you felt most confident. While there were a variety of different types of personalities on set, you found it exhilarating to be the one to settle disputes and help everyone stay on track. Your subtle superpower of putting out little fires everywhere you went. Never had it crossed your mind that you’d be on the other side of the camera one day.

“A change of wardrobe, I see,” a voice says from behind you, pulling you out of your daydream. You turn to catch John’s smirk, his eyes trained intentionally on your own.

“It would appear so,” you reply, glancing down at yourself quickly.

“Have you been introduced to Mike yet?”

“Nope. I was working up the courage,” you admit.

“C’mon,” he gestures for you to follow him as he strolls towards the man. “He doesn’t bite.” You follow, trailing behind his long strides as he daintily weaves between the many bodies in your path.

“John!” Mike exclaims as you both approach. “Good to see you, mate,” he claps him on the back.

“You too. Thanks for having me back,” John greets him cheerily. “And look, I brought a present. All the way from America, I’m assuming. Mike, this is--”

“Y/N L/N!” Mike says, a genuine smile forming. “I can’t tell you how happy I am that we fit you in.”

“Oh, thank you. I’m excited to be here,” you mumble as he brings you in for a hug.

“Can I just say, your video for Heart of the Night is absolutely outrageous. I thought my eyes were going to pop out my head when I’d learnt that MTV in the States had aired it,” he laughs. “Daring stuff, really.”

You feel a heat creeping up your neck as you try to accept the compliment. “Yeah, thanks. Glad to hear that you’re all a bit more relaxed in terms of watching the explicit murder of a teenage girl on your screens.” You immediately wince at your own bluntness.

You can’t help but peek over at John, curious if he’d seen the violent clip now making its rounds across UK television sets everywhere. He’s staring at you with eyebrows raised and his mouth hanging open slightly. 

Great. He thinks I’m a lunatic.

“We certainly are!” Mike chuckles. “Have you been briefed on the logistics of how the taping will go?”

“Mhmm, I got the rundown from one of your producers.”

“Excellent. Well, you’ll be in good hands with John here heading your team,” he says, slinging an arm around the man’s shoulders and adjusting his large glasses with the other.

Good hands indeed, you think to yourself, remembering how large they felt when they gripped your shoulders earlier. No, stop that, you scold yourself.

“We’ll be getting started in just a few minutes if you’d both like to find your seats. And you’ll have to regale me with the gory details from that shoot of yours afterward,” he winks, gesturing towards your spots for the show. You turn to follow John to your side of the set.

“Oh, and Y/N!” Mike calls out. “I do hope you’re good. Deacon got absolutely spanked last time he was on.” You bring your hand up to your face to stifle your giggle. John makes a show of rolling his eyes but keeps walking. You notice his face is now tinged a lovely shade of pink.

“You must think I’m daft,” he says, turning to you slightly.

“Me? Oh no, I’m sure we’ll do great!” you reply, a bit too happily.

“No, no, not that,” he laughs lightly, his hand finding the back of his neck. “For not recognizing you during our... colourful meeting in the hallway. It seems you and your band left quite the impression on our dear Freddie.”

“Oh! That’s nice to hear. You can tell him he left quite the impression on us as well, but I’m sure he makes an impression on most everyone,” you shrug. “And don’t worry about it, please. It’s not as if I’m a part of the biggest band in Britain or anything,” you tease. He smiles shyly. You catch the crinkles on the outer corners of his eyes before he turns them downwards.

You reach the long table on your designated side of the studio. There’s one on the other side mirroring it, with three somewhat familiar faces already sitting behind it. You glance at the empty seats before you, moving hesitantly towards them until John pulls out the closest chair, gesturing for you to sit. He gingerly pushes it under you as you lower yourself down.

“Thanks,” you mumble. He nods and moves to sit beside you.

There’s a loud bang to your right, causing you both to jump and look to the source; a large Grip gingerly picks up the c-stand he’s knocked over. John hovers above his chair, watching on as a producer shouts at the poor man, his waist now at your eye line.

You had never understood the fascination with men’s butts. That is, until now. The tight jeans John had on left little to the imagination. As if that would stop you. You shake your head back and forth as if to clear your thoughts. All of Dawn’s talk earlier must have you seriously whacked out.

“Are you alright?” John asks, now situated in his seat.

“Hm?” you break out of your daze. “Yes, fine. It’s just- I haven’t done anything like this,” you gesture to the large room teeming with various crew and a studio audience, “before, on my own. Usually we’re all together, and I’m slightly less charismatic than the rest of them, I’m afraid.”

“Well, I would tell you that it’ll get easier, but I still feel like I’m rubbish without my lot as well,” he sympathies. “And I happen to find you quite charismatic as you are,” he adds softly. “You certainly had Mike going back there.”

“Oh boy,” a voice huffs from the other end of the table, drawing away John’s attention. You’re thankful for the distraction, finding yourself at a loss for words due to his comment, coupled with your previous thoughts.

“I see you two actually arrived on time, ya goodie-two-shoes,” the flamboyant man complains as he plops into the third and final seat at the table.

“Jon, welcome. Good to see you,” John acknowledges, shaking the man’s hand.

“And who’s this little thing at the end, then?” he points at you.

John’s expression turns slightly sour at the informal greeting directed towards you. “This is Y/N L/N of Lo & The…” he struggles to remember, “Legs?”

You bark out a laugh. “The Limbs. But The Legs sounds better actually.” You share a smile, holding onto John’s eyes even though it makes your insides flip.

An outstretched hand is shoved past his body. “Jon Norris. Drummer. Culture Club.” You accidentally brush John’s arm as you move to return the handshake, not missing how he jumps a bit at the contact. “Pleasure,” reply, tearing your eyes away.

The drummer retracts his hand, settling back to swing his shoes up onto the table. “I’m glad to have a bird on the team, actually. Maybe we’ll get a few extra points thrown our way for that tiny top of yours,” he smirks, not even glancing over in your direction.

You look down at your slightly exposed chest, but the color red quickly clouds your vision. John sucks in a breath as he sits up straight in his chair. “That’s a bit ru-,” he starts in an annoyed tone.

But you’re quick to cut in, leaning your body forward on the table to lock eyes with Jon, “Actually, we might get docked a few for that obnoxious suit you’ve got on. Didn’t anyone ever tell you that stripes bleed on camera, sweetheart?” you seeth.

He glances down at his bright pink and green striped suit, clearly taken aback by your quick comeback. “N-no…” he falters, shutting up for the moment.

You catch John’s expression, a mixture of confusion and awe while he gapes at you. You lean back, crossing your arms over your chest. Luckily you don’t have much time to stew over the misogynistic comment as the stage manager’s voice rings out a 10-minute warning.

“Just try not to show me up too much, would you?” John whispers, leaning in closer to you. Obviously, trying to lighten your mood.

You give in. “You, sir, are lucky to have me on your team,” you point at him. “Tell me, what’s more important? The scoreboard or your fragile ego?” You’re not sure where your sudden wave of confidence is coming from.

He brings his hand to his chest. “You caught me,” he says, trying to hide his smile. “One could say I’m overcompensating, given who my bandmates are. Roger’s won this twice already, and it only started airing last year. I’ll never hear the end of it if I muck it up again.”

“Well then, I’ll do my best to save your sorry ass, and maybe that one down there too, if he’s lucky,” you tease. 

Great. Now I’m thinking about his ass again. Fuck you, Dawn.

“If you’d be so kind,” he says before turning his attention elsewhere, content to watch the happenings around him until the show’s start. You hear him start to softly hum to himself, not able to place what the tune is.

You try not to watch him out of your peripherals for the next few minutes, hardly even noticing your lack of nerves as the studio audience starts cheering.

- - - - - - -

“And to end out round one, we have Adam Ant’s team with 3 points. And with a slight lead, John Deacon’s team with 4.” The studio audience erupts in a deafening cheer. “That’ll bring us into round two, which will be a team question. John, your team to go first,” Mike directs from his desk in the center of the set.

John lightly taps his pencil against the notepad in front of him, the current tight score starting to bring about his competitive side. He peeks over to check on his teammates. Y/N looks like a radiating ball of energy. Her feet are tucked up under her on the chair as she hunches forward, pencil already hovering while her teeth chew on the eraser. To his right, Jon doodles away, drawing exaggerated characachers of select members of the studio audience.

“Right, question coming to you in a moment, but first here’s the band, The Band.”

A large monitor towards the front of the set comes to life with a clip from their concert film, The Last Waltz. The chair to his left gives a loud squeak as Y/N begins to scribble furiously as if already knowing the question before it’s been given.

“Here’s a clip from The Last Waltz, The Band’s famous taped last concert. Please name 10 of the 20 rock legends that joined them on stage that night.”

John’s face scrunches in concentration, trying to recall the recording of it that he’d listened to many times before. He writes down the first few that come to mind, struggling to get past 6 names that he’s sure were present.

“Bloody American bands and they’re American friends,” Jon says, shoving his own piece of paper into John’s view. It has 4 names on it, 3 of which John already has down.

“They’re Canadian,” John replies, transferring the extra name to his paper.

“What?”

“The Band. They’re from Canada, I believe. At least most of them are.” Jon shrugs as the clip fades out, their minute of deliberation up.

“Alright, that was The Band with a famous clip from The Last Waltz. If you’d please, John, name 10 of the acts that accompanied them that night.”

A sheet of paper smoothly glides in front of his, Y/N’s messy scrawl covering it with 10 names hastily jotted down. He raises his eyebrows to her, but she just nods at the paper, urging him to read it.

He starts, completely disregarding his own list. “Erm, yes, we have Eric Clapton, Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan, Dr. John, Van Morrison, Ronnie Hawkins, Neil Young, Bobby Charles” he struggles to read the small scribbling, almost illegible. “Um, Muddy Waters? Yes. And Neil Diamond.”

John lets out a breath, silently praying that the young girl beside him is as bright as she seems.

“Right you are! 10/10,” Mike exclaims. “For a bonus point, can you name the two artists that recorded pre-taped performances with them for the film as well?”

“Uh…” John glances at Y/N for support. She shoves another scrap of paper to him. Emmylou and Staples the only thing written on it.

“Emmylou Harris and The Staples Singers?” he answers, more like a question.

“Wonderful, a full 4 points to you all.”

He watches as a deep grin breaks onto Y/N’s face as she finally reclines. She looks over to him, a bit proud of herself, he thinks, as the other team begins their own round of questioning.

He’s quite intimidated by the American next to him if he’s being honest with himself. Her anxious demeanor seemed to have vanished into thin air once the game started, tackling each question thrown at their team with a hungry reverence. But her laugh is what keeps him on edge the most. It’s brash and full, consistently breaking him from his determined concentration to send a confusing jolt through his body each time.

“While your knowledge reigns superior, your handwriting leaves something to be desired,” he whispers in jest, not being able to help himself. She simulates a shocked expression as she leans over to look at her own paper that sits in front of him.

Her accent is thicker as she returns his whisper, “What ya tawking about?” She moves her eyes closer to examine, her shoulder bumping his. “That clearly says Muddy Waters.” Her hair hovers below his chin, almost tickling his stubble. It smells of something citrusy and light. 

“Y’ smell lovely,” he sighs, almost inaudibly.

“Hm?” she questions, bringing her body back into her own seat.

“E-ever-ly,” He stumbles out, still quietly. “I thought it read it as the Everly Brothers at first,” hoping to god his bad save is enough.

She snorts. “You sure you didn’t leave your glasses at home? Would’ve thought you’d bring them to something like this.”

He quickly fixes the flustered look on his face, “Hm, glasses aren’t conducive to my rockstar type of lifestyle. Take Rog, for instance. Always wearing those bloody prescription sunglasses indoors, looking like an absolute git.”

She lets out that sharp laugh again, immediately covering her mouth, embarrassed at the thought of interrupting the other team. “I’ll have to watch out for that. Eat my carrots, all that nonsense,” she answers softly. If Brian were here, he’d ramble on about how there’s no scientific evidence of that or some bollocks, he thinks to himself.

“Let us hope my ears are in far better condition. Then you won’t have to keep, how did you put it, saving our sorry asses?” She smiles down into her lap and bites her lip. Oh hell, don’t do that.

Mike is now wrapping up with the other team. “No, I’m sorry. Their other top 10 hit was “So You Win Again. 3 points it is.” He once again turns his attention back over to John’s team. “Moving on to our third round, we have individual questions. Y/N, we’ll start with you. Here’s the hit Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye. Please name the artists you hear in order.”

The sound bites begin, and Y/N is once again bent over her paper as she listens, brow furrowing. John identifies the first two singers instantly but is at a loss for the third, making him grateful the question isn’t his. The clips fade out.

“Y/N?”

“I think it was Glen Campbell.”

“Correct.”

“Johnny Nash.”

“Good. Last one?”

“And... Bettye Swann?”

“Yes, top job! Known for her R&B hit Make Me Yours. I’ll give you a bonus if you can tell me who the song was sung by originally,” Mike counters.

“The Casino’s,” she says confidently.

“No, I’m sorry. I’ll give you one more chance.”

John realizes she was probably too young or not even born yet when the original was released. He slyly slides closer to her. “Don Cherry,” he mumbles lowly, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible.

“Don Cherry?” she shouts as if to cover up his assistance.

“Yes, John Deacon, you’re right. It is Don Cherry. The point is yours for at least attempting to be subtle,” Mike laughs. Y/N shyly smiles over at him, silently thanking him for his help. 

John and Jon mostly breeze through their questions with ease, racking up a hefty amount of points in favor of their team before turning over to the others. He takes a sip of water as he smugly watches on.

“Glad to know my own ass is in good hands if it’s ever in need of saving again,” Y/N quietly comments. He chokes lightly on his water as an image flashes quickly through his mind. John racks his brain for a reply, but only overtly cheeky responses come to mind.

“Anytime,” he manages, afraid to catch her eyes. She lets out a light giggle, starkly different from her usual roar. It sends a warmth of color to his cheeks. 

Intriguing, he thinks, silently hoping that he’ll get the chance to hear it again.

[khoicesbyk]

A/N: I'm officially obsessed with Wolf Bride and what does one do when she's obsessed with a certain book? She writes an AU about it! 😁 So, Talley Ho! *in my Sherlock Holmes voice*

Rated: Mature. | Contains sexual content and strong language. (You know? The usual from me. 😁) | Bolded and/or italicized words are conversations and thoughts of the characters. | Main Characters: Roman (LI) and Naia Evans (MC) | All Characters and names: (except MC and certain original characters, created by me) are property of Pixelberry.

Current Word Count: 3,680 words. (more or less. I stop counting after editing and re-editing. 🤷🏾‍♀️)

Missing a chapter or want to read a chapter again? I got you covered! Click ——> Here!

Song And Story Inspiration: In The Still Of The Nite-Boyz II Men | Give Me One Reason-Tracy Chapman | Nobody’s Supposed To Be Here-Deborah Cox

Tag List: @shewillreadyou @choiceslady @queenjilian @bebepac @txemrn @texaskitten30 @glaimtruelovealways @hopefulmoonobject @lucy-268 @pixie88 @otherworldlypresents  @choicesficwriterscreations

TW: kidnapping. Read at your own discretion.

Chapter 5.) In The Still Of The Night.

In the still of the night.

I held you.

Held you tight.

'Cause I love.

Love you so.

Promise I'll never.

Let you go.

In the still of the night.

As she slept peacefully in her new bed, Naia dreamed that she was running through the forest. She felt strong. She felt invincible. She could feel the wind on her face as she ran. It was exhilarating. She felt free. When she came out of the woods, she was a wolf. And when she looked up, she saw him. It was the wolf she had seen in her dreams before. It was him. When he howled she did the same.

That’s when she woke up. She sat up in bed, panting with her heart thundering in her chest. She looked around her room in order to get her bearings. That’s when something compelled her to look out her bedroom window. And when she looked out the window she saw a wolf staring up at her. When she shook her head, the wolf was gone. The image of the wolf was still in her head when she went back to sleep.

After waking up later that morning and taking a good hot shower, Naia couldn’t get Roman out of her head. She wanted to feel his arms wrapped her again. He was seductive and mysterious and she wanted more. She could still feel his warm breath on her neck and the closeness of his body to hers. She thought it was insane but never actually questioned why she thought that way.

When she went to the kitchen for breakfast, she noticed a note on the counter. It was from her uncle.

“Good morning. Gone fishing. Be back later. Help yourself to whatever is in the fridge. Uncle Z.”

When she opened the fridge, she grimaced because there wasn’t much in there to begin with. When her stomach rumbled she knew she had to change that.

“Okay well since a home cooked breakfast is out of the question. I think I’ll try the breakfast place I saw when I drove into town. Also I’ll do some grocery shopping while I’m at it. Because this right here ain’t hitting on nothing.” She thought to herself.

With keys and wallet in hand Naia set off for town. After shopping at Banner’s Family Market, she was just about starved and stopped by Tucker’s diner.

After getting a table she sat down and looked over the menu. As she looked over the menu, someone was watching her. Or so it looked that way.

I remember.

That night in May.

The stars were bright above.

I'll hope and I'll pray.

To keep.

Your precious love.

At another table, Trent was eating breakfast with a few members of his team when Naia walked in. He felt a pull towards where she was sitting.

“Yo T! What is it?” Jenkins, one of his team members asked.

“I don’t know. Something weird just happened. Like she just walked in.” He replies shaking his head.

“Man! Please tell me that you’re not talking about that so-called dream girl again!” Sergei said to him.

“If you must know, yes I am.”

His crew collectively groaned.

“Dude it’s been almost a whole 2 months! Let it go already!” Hugo told him.

“As I’ve told you idiots before: I can’t.”

“Can’t or won’t? Which one is it T?” Jenkins asked him.

Trent never answered. He just sipped his coffee. Even though he’s blind he could feel her presence. After going over the menu for a solid 20 minutes, Naia decided on the Lobster Eggs Benedict and a sweet tea. Just as she was about to put her order in, Layla walked in.

“Layla! Over here!” She called out to her new friend.

Trent nearly dropped his cup of coffee. Hearing her voice in real time both scared and excited him.

“You almost dropped your cup. You okay man?” Jenkins asked him.

“Huh? Yeah! I’m…I’m good.” Trent replied, while trying to hide the crack in his voice. With his hearing being better than most, he tuned into her conversation

“Hey! What are you doing here?” Layla asked Naia as she sat down across from her.

“Since my uncle has gone fishing, I decided to do some grocery shopping and I was starving so here I am. What are you and the little one up to?” Naia replies.

“The same thing as you. Have you ordered yet?” Layla asks.

“Just about to. What about you?” Naia replies.

“Oh girl! They already know what I want. A pitcher each of cranberry juice and ice water, their triple berry cheesecake parfait, double blueberry pancakes and a ham, spinach and swiss omelette.” Layla replied.

Naia’s eyes went wide.

“You’re actually gonna eat all of that?!” She asked.

“I mean…I am eating for two, ya know?” Layla replied, rubbing her belly. The two shared a laugh as they continued their conversation.

Trent turned his attention back to his team just as the twins came strolling in. His boss Bernard Sayre is a blowhard who only cares about 3 things. Making money, being powerfully unstoppable and his twins Dylan and Tyler. The twin terrors as they’re known around town, just love getting their way no matter what they do or say. And although it annoyed Trent, he was powerless to stop them.

“Heyyyyy boys!” Dylan called out to Trent and his team. Her voice sounded like banshee screech.

“And here comes daddy’s two brats…” Jenkins groaned as the twins approached.

“So what are you guys up to?” Tyler asked.

“We’re eating. Why?” Trent asks.

“Because we were hoping that you’d join us at Buck’s for the Friday night sing a long and pool.” Tyler replies.

“You’d have to ask Layla if we’re allowed back in. Especially after what happened the last time.”

The twins groaned.

“Well she’s sitting at a table with some girl. So I guess it’s worth a shot.” Dylan said with a sigh.

Naia watched in amusement and shock, as she watched Layla polish off everything she ordered with ease.

“I can not believe that you ate EVERYTHING!”

“Told you!” Layla replied as she swiped her finger on the inside of her parfait cup.

“Uhhhhh Layla…”

“Huh?” She asked.

“It’s all gone! Put the cup down!” Naia replies.

The two laughed as the twins approached.

“Hiiiiiiiiiii Layla!” They say in unison causing Layla to groan.

“Ohhh and hi Layla’s friend!”

“What do you two want?” She asked the twins.

“Weeeeeellllllllllll…we were hoping you’d let us have Friday sing a long and pool.” Tyler said in a cloyingly sweet voice.

“After the shit you pulled the last time? NO!” Layla hissed at them.

“Come on Layla! Our dad paid for the damage!” Tyler whined.

“Yeah he did…after I threatened to sue his sorry ass!”

“Please!” The twins begged.

Layla rolled her eyes then replied, “fine! You can come tonight.”

“Thank you!” The twins squealed.

“Whatever. Go away!”

“You don’t have to be rude!” Dylan said.

“Which would you rather: me be rude or me ban you two from ever stepping foot into MY bar?” She asked them.

The twins stood stuck.

“I thought so. Now again: go away!”

The twins turned on their heels and stomped away. When they were far enough away for her pleasure, Layla turned her attention back to Naia.

“Sorry about that.”

“Who are they?” Naia asks.

“Tyler and Dylan Sayre. Their dad Bernard owns Sayre Energy and Power. They’re a public nuisance.” Layla replies.

“They look harmless to me.”

“That’s because you haven’t been around them when they’re drunk.”

“Touché.”

“I guess since they’re having Friday sing a long and pool, you should come too.”

“Me?” Naia asks.

“Yes you! It’ll be fun as long as those two aren’t drinking.” Layla replies.

“I don’t know about all of that.”

“Also there’s normally a $1,000.00 cash prize for first place.”

“Why didn't you lead with that?!” Naia asks.

“Because Dylan normally wins because no one wants to challenge her.” Layla replies.

“Well as someone who’s still paying off student loans: Count me in!”

So before the light.

Hold me again.

With all of your might.

In the still of the night.

So before the light.

Hold me again.

With all of your might.

In the still…of the night.

That night at Buck’s the party was in full swing. People were dancing, drinking, playing pool and mingling amongst themselves. Naia stuck close to the bar and Layla as they watched the crowd. And like clockwork, Dylan was drunk and ready to sing her heart out.

“Alright you party animals! Let’s get this sing a long on the road! Now all of you know the rules. First place gets $1,000.00! And since that first place is always me I have nothing to worry about! So hit the music!”

“Ohhh God…” Layla groaned.

“What?!” Naia asks.

“Little Miss Banshee is about to assault our ears and sing Deborah Cox Nobody’s Supposed To Be Here.” Layla replies.

“It can’t be THAT bad, Layla.”

“Wanna bet?” She asks just as Dylan grabbed a mic.

After clearing her throat, Dylan began to sing. Sorta.

How did you get here?

Nobody's supposed to be here.

I tried that love thing for the last time.

My heart says "No, no." Nobody's supposed to be here.

But you came along and changed my mind.

I've spent all my life on a search to find. The love who'll stay for eternity. The heaven sent to fulfill my needs. But when I turn around, again, love has knocked me down. My heart got broken, oh it hurts so bad. I'm sad to say love wins again.

So I placed my heart under lock and key. To take some time to take care of me. But I turn around and you're standing here.

How did you get here? Nobody's supposed to be here.

I tried that love thing for the last time.

My heart says "No, no." Nobody's supposed to be here.

But you came along and changed my mind.

This time I swear I'm through. But, if only you knew how many times I've said those words. Then fall again, when will I ever learn? Knowing these tears I cry, this lovely black butterfly. Must take a chance, and spread my wings. Love can make you do some crazy things.

So I placed my heart under lock and key. To take some time to take care of me. But I turn around and you're standing here.

Standing here…

When Dylan got to the bridge, Naia thought her ears would bleed out.

No, nobody, no, no, no, no, no, no, ooh!

No, no, nooooooooo...

How did you get here? Nobody's supposed to be here I tried that love thing for the last time.

My heart says "No, no." Nobody's supposed to be here.

But you came along and changed my mind.

How did you get here? Nobody's supposed to be here.

I tried that love thing for the last time.

My heart says "No, no." Nobody's supposed to be here.

But you came along and changed my mind.

When she was done, Naia was ready to run out the door screaming.

“Ohhhhhh myyyyyyyyy God! That was fucking horrible!”

“Told you.” Layla deadpanned.

“She has to be stopped! What other songs are on that karaoke machine?” Naia asks.

“Hundreds! So if you’re gonna sing, pick one and make it good! That way ears will stop ringing.” Layla replies.

Naia left her seat at the bar and walked over to where the karaoke machine was and went through the list of songs. Doing so, caught the ire of a very drunk Dylan.

“Ummmmmm what do you think you’re doing?!” She asks.

“Picking a song obviously.” She replies over her shoulder.

Dylan huffed.

“You actually think you can beat my melodious voice?” She asks.

“A dead horse can beat your voice. And just like that I found my song.” Naia replies.

“Good luck beating me!” Dylan sneered.

“Watch and learn young grasshopper.”

Naia took the mic and began to sing Give Me One Reason by Tracy Chapman.

Give me one reason to stay here. And I'll turn right back around. Give me one reason to stay here. And I'll turn right back around. Said I don't want to leave you lonely. You got to make me change my mind.

Baby I got your number. Oh and I know that you got mine. You know that I called you. I called you many times. You can call me baby. You can call me anytime, you got to call me.

Give me one reason to stay here. And I'll turn right back around. (You can see me turnin') Give me one reason to stay here. And I'll turn right back around. (You can see me turnin') Said I don't want to leave you lonely. You got to make me change my mind.

I don't want no one to squeeze me. They might take away my life. I don't want no one to squeeze me. They might take away my life. I just want someone to hold me. Oh and rock me through the night.

People started to gather around Naia as she sang. When she looked towards the bar, she winked at Layla. Layla mouthed the words “next drink is on the house.”

This youthful heart can love you. Yes and give you what you need. I said this youthful heart can love you. Oh and give you what you need. But I'm too old to go chasin' you around. Wastin' my precious energy.

Give me one reason to stay here. Yes and I'll turn right back around. (You can see me turnin') Give me one reason to stay here. Oh I'll turn right back around. (You can see me turnin') Said I don't want to leave you lonely. You got to make me change my mind.

Baby just give me one reason. Oh give me just one reason why. Baby just give me one reason. Oh give me just one reason why I should stay. Said I told you that I loved you. And there ain't no more to say.

When she finished the applause was thunderous. She had everyone on their feet. When she looked out on the crowd, she saw a visibly angry Dylan. Naia smirked and winked at her, which further infuriated her.

When Naia walked back to the bar, she got the feeling someone was watching her but she didn’t know who that someone was.

“Soooooo…how was that?” Naia asked Layla as she reached the bar.

“AMAZING! Now if you can beat her brother at pool, the bar is on the house.” Layla replied.

“Sold!”

“Well get to it girlie! Because you’ve been eyeing that bottle of tequila over my shoulder since you got here.”

Naia snickered then took off towards the crowd gathered around Tyler. As she went to WB w the crowd was she got the same feeling that she was being watched. And she was indeed being watched. Trent was tuned into her movements even through his blindness.

“Well this looks like fun!” Naia says as she reaches the pool table.

“Go away! Nobody wants you here!” Dylan hissed.

“What’s the matter princess? Scared I’ll beat your brother like I beat you?” Naia teased.

“You can’t beat me!” Tyler huffed.

“Wanna bet?” She asked him.

“Sure. How much are you willing to lose?”

“Since I beat your sister:  $1,000.00.” She replies. She didn’t think he’d take her seriously.

“You’re on! Best 2 out of 3?” He asks.

“Then you’ve got yourself a game.” She replies.

Once the balls were lined up and it was up to her to break. She got stripes while he got solid.

“Let’s go!” She tells him.

The two were evenly matched with the first game going to her and the second going to him. And it all came down to the last game. Naia had an impossible split. Or so that’s what Tyler and the crowd that was gathered around them thought.

“I’ll make you a deal new girl. If you bank this shot, I’ll up the bet from $1,000.00 to $3,000.00.” He said to her.

“Deal!” Naia replies.

Naia tucked a hair that out of place behind her ear, lined up her shot and sank both balls. Beating a very stunned Tyler.

“TAKE! THAT!” She squealed.

“But! But! I…we…” Tyler stammers as he goes pale.

“You lost just like your sister? Yeah I know. Now pay up!” She told him.

That’s when Dylan jumped into Naia’s face.

“You cheated!” She screeched.

“No, your brother ran his mouth and lost. And now he has to pay up. So give me my money!” Naia yelled back.

When Dylan reared back to slap Naia, Trent caught her hand.

“Hey! Let go T!” Dylan yelled.

“We’re not doing this again. Now Tyler pay the lady her money. You know you have it.” Trent said in a stern voice.

There was something about him that caught Naia’s eye.

“My dad will kill me if I pay her!” Tyler whined.

The twins looked at Trent with puppy dog eyes. But he didn’t budge.

��You’re no fun, T!” Tyler whined.

“Don’t care. Now pay her!”

Tyler groaned as he pulled money out of his pocket then handed it to Trent.

“Here!” Tyler pouted.

Trent took the money and handed it to Naia. When their hands touched, it set off a spark inside her. The same kind of spark she felt with Roman.

“Sorry about those two. They don’t know how to lose gracefully.” He said to her.

“Don’t worry about it. Thanks for getting my money.” She replied.

Trent turned to the twins then said, “beat it you two! We don’t need anymore trouble.”

The crowd dispersed after the twins huffed then walked out. And Naia found herself back at the bar gushing with Layla.

“Ohhhhhh myyyyyyyyy God! Look at this! I just won $3,000.00!”

“I can't believe you did that! No one has ever beaten the twins. Their dad will be so pissed that they lost that kind of money.”

“In the words of T.I. ‘it ain’t tricking if you got it!���”

They two laughed.

“Okay but in all seriousness, thank you! It’s about time that someone brought those two out of the clouds. So here’s your brand new shiny bottle of tequila!” Layla said as she gave Naia the bottle.

“Thank youuuuuu!” Naia squealed.

Just then Trent called out.

“Layla! Another round?”

Layla groaned and rolled her eyes.

“Who is that?” Naia asked.

“That’s Trent. He works for the twins dad.” Layla replied.

“Is he their bodyguard or something?” Naia asked.

“No but he’s always around when those two cause trouble. Let me go fill their orders.” Layla replies.

“Okay. I’ll be here with my brand new bottle.”

Layla shook her head and headed off towards Trent and his crew. Naia couldn’t help but look the same way. Her eyes instantly went to Trent. He was beautiful and there was something about him that stuck with her.

He enchanted her and what she didn’t know was she did the same for him. After the bar closed, Naia began walking back to her uncle’s house. She got halfway down the street when Trent caught up with her.

“Hey!” He said to her.

“Hi! How are you?” She replied.

“I’m good. You must be new in town. I’m Trent.”

“I know. Layla told me your name. I’m Naia.”

“It’s nice to meet you Naia.”

“Likewise. It’s nice to meet another friendly face outside of Layla and my uncle.“

“It’s dark out here. Mind if I walk you home?” He asked.

“Sure. Especially when I’m not sure which way to go.” She replied.

“Where does your uncle live?” He asked.

“Just outside of town. His house backs up to the woods.” She replied.

Even though it was nighttime, he flashed a smile at her that made her heart leap. As they walked they talked about what their lives were like growing up, what college life was like and past loves. She had just met him but she felt she knew him her whole life. When they got to her uncle’s front door, they weren’t ready to say goodbye.

“So this is me…”

“So it would seem. Thank you for letting me walk you home.”

“No thank you. Because I probably would’ve gotten lost and would’ve wandered around the woods for days.”

“I think you would’ve found your way home.”

There was a magnetic pull between them that neither could deny. Before either knew what they were doing, they kissed. It was a slow, sensual and deep  kiss. And when it ended both were desperate for more.

“Wow!”

“What you said.”

“I better get inside.”

“Will I see you again?” He asked.

“Of course. I’ll be here for a while.” She replies.

“Good. Have a good night Naia.”

“Goodnight Trent.”

When she went inside her heart was racing. And she wanted more. She wanted him. This was the exact same way she felt when she kissed Roman.

The next morning after showering, she was in the kitchen fixing herself breakfast. 

Her uncle still hadn’t returned from fishing. She had just sat down to eat her breakfast when the front door swung open. It was a man and a woman. They were two of the people she’d seen with Roman.

“Come! The ceremony awaits you!” He commanded.

“1.) no. 2.) WHAT THE HELL?!” Naia replies.

“We’re wasting time! Come now!” The woman demanded.

“What the hell? Get out!” Naia screamed.

When the woman went to grab Naia, she danced out the way. That’s when the man grabbed Naia and threw her over his shoulder. He dragged her out of the house, with her kicking and screaming.

“Let me go!” She screamed.

She struggled to get free but he was way too strong. She was thrown in the back of a van and a hood was placed over her head. Naia had no idea where they were taking her. And she was terrified of finding out.

[thebrotherssalvatore321]

Keeping Secrets Ch. 14

Keeping Secrets Masterlist

Pairing: DamonxOc, Currently Tylerxoc, Elijahxoc, then Klausxoc endgame.

 Katie put on a black dress and matching flats then picked Tyler up and headed to Vicki’s funeral. They got to the church early and were sitting outside when Katie decided she could no longer stand the silence. “So, what do you think Vicki would think about you being with me?” Katie asked not knowing what else to talk about.

 He just shook his head. “She probably wouldn’t care. I treated her like crap.” He said as he leaned forward and placed his elbows on his knees. “Kinda feels like I don’t even have the right to miss her.” he said with a shake of his head as he looked down at his hands.

 Katie leaned forward mimicking his position. “Did you care about her?” Katie asked and he looked at her to see that she wasn’t jealous or judging, just asking a simple question.

“I did.” He admitted. “I just never showed it because I knew my parents didn’t like her.”

She wanted to point out that his parents didn’t like her either, but he was still good to her. Instead of questioning him about it she tried to make him feel better. “Then you have every right to grieve her.” Katie assured him.

When the funeral was over Katie drove Tyler home, walked with him to his door and gave him a hug and a kiss. She was walking away from the house when Carol called, “Katie.” She stopped and turned back to see Carol walking over to her so she met her half way.

“Yes ma’am?” Kate asked, wondering what she’d done wrong this time.

“I know we got off on the wrong foot, finding you in bed with my son…” she wrinkled her nose and gave her head a slow shake at the memory, “was kind of a shock, but Tyler explained how your grandfather treats you and that he was just giving you a safe place for the night. I realized after I calmed down that you were fully clothed and on top of the blankets.” Katie had her hands behind her back, picking at her cuticles. “I want you to know that while I understand the situation, you will not be sleeping in the same bed as my son again.”

“Yes ma’am. I completely understand.” Katie replied taking her hands from behind her back to swing them nervously at her sides. “It won’t happen again.” She made a strike out movement with her hands.

“That being said, I wanted to thank you for being there for Tyler through all this Vicki stuff.” She told her with a small smile. “It means a lot.”

“It’s really no big deal.” She told her with an awkward shrug.

“Regardless, I appreciate it.” she told her again. “Anyway, don’t be a stranger, okay? You’re welcome here anytime and if you need to get away from your grandfather on occasion you can use our guest room.”

“Wow, really?” Katie asked a little shocked.

“Really.” Carol told her with a polite smile.

“Thank you.”

TVDTVDTVD

"Are you sure about this?" Damon asked as they pulled up to Katie's house.

She took in a deep breath looking at her childhood home through the passenger window of the moving truck that Damon was driving. "We've already packed up my stuff and the queen bed frame that you insisted I take even though I would be fine with my old twin bed. I'm doing this."

“Okay.” Damon pushed his door open and they both got out and headed to the house. Her grandpa wasn't home at the moment so Katie grabbed the hide-a-key rock out of the fake plant on the front porch and opened the door for them.

“Actually I change my mind. I want my parent’s room.” She said as she led him to the room her grand father had made his and opened the door. It was three times the size of her old room and had it's own separate bathroom.

“Okay no problem.” He clapped his hands and rubbed them together. “Let's get to work.” By the time her grandfather got home from work they had moved his stuff to her father's old office, the smallest room in the house, and moved all of Katie’s things into her parent’s bedroom.

Her grandfather walked in to see them sitting on his couch, both of them drinking his beer. “What the hell are you doing in my house?” He asked glaring at Katie and Damon.

Damon hopped up and walked over to the old, too buff, too tan man with a snarl of a smile and clapped his hand down on his shoulder. “Katie, wanna go up to your new room while the old man and I have a little chat?”

"Gladly." Katie answered and took her beer upstairs with her, taking a swig of it as she passed her grandpa.

After ten or so minutes Damon came upstairs and plopped down on the bed. “It's done.” He tucked his hands behind his head. “He won't bother you and I even told him to let Tyler stay the night if you want him too.”

“What?” Katie asked looking at him with big eyes. “Why would you do that? You hate me being with Tyler.”

“Yeah, but I like you more than I hate him.” He said with a shrug as he got up and headed for the door.

“Hey.” Katie called making him stop and look back at her. She walked over and wrapped her arms around his shoulders. “Thank you.” 

“Anytime, Katie Cat.” He told her as she let go of him. “Or am I still not allowed to call you that?” He asked with a playful quirk of his brows and a smirk.

“I think you've earned back the rights to the nickname.” She told him with a small smile.

“And you better not have changed my name in your phone.” He grabbed the doorframe as he walked further out, still looking at her.

“I haven't, but if Tyler sees it I'll have no choice.” She warned him.

“Yeah, yeah.” He rolled his eyes and walked off.

TVDTVDTVD

Katie headed down stairs and her grandfather, who had been sitting in his recliner, saw her dressed in a tight, navy blue dress with a lace back that stopped at her waist line and heals and he got up. “Where are you going?”

She stopped at the door and turned to look at him. “The founder’s kick off party. I’m hoping to make it onto the Miss Mystic Falls court, so I have to attend all of these stupid parties.” She explained, trying with every bone in her body to play nice.

“Oh, well, have a good time and don’t get into trouble.” He told her as he stumbled back to his chair. Katie tilted her head at him, finding it odd that he had nothing bad to say, then assumed Damon had compelled him to not say bad things to her anymore.

“You used to drag me to all of these events when I was a kid, why don’t you go anymore?” she asked out of pure curiosity.

“Big bad Mayor Lockwood decided that he’s too good to be friends with me. So I said fuck him.” He answered talking with his hands while holding his beer in one.

“Right, well, goodnight.” Katie told him finding the whole exchange between them to be off putting.

When she got to the party she found Tyler and his father talking to Matt and Kelly. When Tyler saw her she gave him a smile and a small wave. As soon as he and his father were done talking to the grieving family Tyler walked around to the bar that Katie knew was on the other side of the wall the walked back around with a bottle of alcohol in his hand. “Check it out!” he whisper yelled as he walked over to Katie and Matt.

“Dude, your dad’s going to totally beat you down if he catches you.” Matt said as the two of them started walking off.

“Yeah, let him try.” Tyler said as he took the cap off of the bottle.

“Alright, screw it.” Matt took the bottle from Tyler and took a swig.

Tyler looked behind him to see that Katie wasn’t following them, but instead stood where she had been since she saw him. “Hey, come on, booze…distracted parents…fun…this way.” He told her not moving from where he stood near Matt.

“Yeah, that’s…not really my thing.” She said with a wrinkled nose and a shake of her head.

He finally walked over to her, “Come on, it’s not like I’m asking you to get high with me, it’s just booze.”

Katie couldn’t help but notice that he hadn’t told her hi, or kissed her or anything and it was really bugging her even though she knew it was a stupid thing to be mad about. “Look, Tyler, I just somehow got your mom to like me. I’m not going to screw that up by getting caught drinking with you at your parent’s party.”

“God, you really are a goody, goody. Go kiss my moms ass. I’m gonna go have fun.” He told her with a hard face and a glare then started walking away.

“Tyler, come on, don’t be like that.” she called but he kept on walking.

Damon walked by and saw Katie looking down at the floor with a frown on her face. “Hey,” Katie’s eyes shot up to him and she forced the displeased look off of her face. “You okay?” he walked over looking around for Tyler. “Where’s your boyfriend?”

“I’m fine and I don’t want to talk about it.” she answered as she crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m gonna go home.” She tried to walk around him, but he grabbed her upper arm, gently stopping her. “Damon, please let me go.”

He moved to stand in front of her and let go of her arm. “You didn’t get all dressed up and spend…” he looked over her hair and make up, “and hour in front of the mirror just to leave twenty minutes into the party.” She just looked at him blankly. She was hiding the fact that she wanted to cry and Damon felt like finding Tyler and ripping his head off. Instead he held his hand out to her. “Dance with me.”

“Damon, I-”

“Just one dance.” He cut her off. “Then you can go find your boyfriend and give him a piece of your mind.” She couldn’t say no to the pleading look in his eyes.

“Fine, one dance.” She told him with a small smile and a nod.

1901 by phoenix started playing when they walked over to the bar where Elena stood watching Stefan dancing to the up beat song with Kelly. "Have I entered an alternate universe where Stefan is fun?" Damon asked Elena.

"Is he drunk?" Katie asked with raised brows.

"Yes." Elena and Damon answered at the same time.

"Is he going to be okay?" Elena asked Damon.

"Eventually." Elena just looked at him then back at Stefan. "One way or another." He looked at Katie and jerked his head to the dance floor. "Let's dance."

"No, no, no. I agreed to dance with you when there was slow music playing." Katie argued. "I don't know how to dance to this."

"I'll show you, come on." He grabbed her hand and pulled her onto the dance floor.

She was on the dance floor with Damon when Tyler walked in. All his eyes could see was Damon's hands on her hips as they moved to the music and the way Damon was looking at her ass in the tight dress. He had been looking for her to apologize for treating her the way he had, but she looked just fine without him. So he snuck a glass of vodka from the bar and walked off.

When the song was over Damon excused himself from her and she moved to the bar to people watch. Elena and Matt were dancing when Stefan cut in. Shortly after Katie watched as Elena bumped into a guy then Stefan made the guy apologize twice and shoved him. Stefan was walking away as Damon walked up beside Katie and asked the bartender for bourbon. "I'll totally sneak you a drink if you want it." He offered, holding up his drink to her.

"I said no to Tyler. I’m not going to say yes to you.” Katie replied and pushed the drink away.

"Wait he ditched you because you didn't want to drink?" He asked with a disbelieving look.

"With him and Matt and risk getting caught, yeah." Katie added with a nod.

"The kids an idiot." He told her and she couldn’t help but love the way his mouth moved when he said the word idiot.

"He's not an idiot. He's a normal teen boy just looking to have fun with his fuddy duddy of a girlfriend." She argued.

"Hey." Damon said dipping his head into her line of view to get her to look him in the eyes, "You're not a fuddy duddy."

"Have you noticed what your brothers been up to?" Elena asked as she walked over to stand on the other side of Damon and took an olive off of the tray on the bar.

"Nope I've been too preoccupied with yours." Damon replied as he turned his head to look at her.

"I'm gonna go find Tyler." Katie said then walked away. She had been looking for him for a while when she ran into Matt. "Hey, have you seen Tyler?"

"No, have you seen my mom?" Matt asked.

"No, wanna join forces?" Katie asked.

"Sure, why not?" He sighed and they started walking the house over. "Have you looked outside?"

Katie shook her head no and they headed out back Katie looked one way and Matt looked the other. Her heart dropped to her feet when her eyes landed on Kelly’s hands and lips on Tyler’s face.

"Tyler?" Katie asked making Matt look at his mom and Tyler making out with each other.

"What the hell are you doin' man?" Matt yelled as he rushed over and pulled Tyler back.

"Dude, calm down." Tyler said with his hands held up in surrender, but Matt punched him in the face, starting a fist fight that knocked Kelly to the ground as Tyler tackled Matt and started wailing on him. "Tyler! Tyler stop it!" Katie yelled at him, but it fell on deaf ears. "Somebody help!" Katie yelled and soon Alaric ran over and pulled Tyler off of Matt. With Tyler out of the way Katie went to Matt and kneeled down next to him. "Matt..." Katie sighed taking in his bloody face as Tyler's dad urged him back inside.

"I'm sorry." Matt said with a shake of his head.

“You have nothing to apologize for.” Katie told him with a sigh as she stood up and held her hand out to him.

She was pulling Matt to his feet when Elena ran out of the house and over to Matt and Katie. "Oh my god, Matt, what happened are you okay?"

Katie pulled Elena back a little as she whispered. "Keep him out if the house and away from Stefan." Elena gave her friend a nod. "I'm going to go get a wet rag or something."

Katie got a wet rag from one of the bathrooms then gave it to Elena and Matt. Since Elena had Matt covered Katie went back inside. She was sitting in an empty office, watching the fire in the fireplace when Tyler found her. "What are you doing in here?" He asked as he came inside and closed the door.

"I needed to get away for a minute and try to figure out what to say to you." She answered turning her hurt eyes on him.

"I'm so sorry. I don’t know what came over me." He said as he came over and sat down next to her.

"I know you are. It's written all over your face." She told him as she examined his wide, sad eyes.

"You have all right to break up with me." He told her looking down at her hand on the couch between them.

"Is that why you did it? To get me to break up with you so you don't have to?" She asked.

"I did it because I saw you dancing with Damon." He answered going from ashamed to pissed in the blink of an eye.

"Wow." Katie blinked at him. "Damon is my friend, Tyler, and if you and I are going to make this work," she motioned between the two of them, "then you are going to have to trust me when I tell you that you are the only guy I want to be with."

"How am I supposed to believe that when he constantly looks at you like he wants to eat you?" Tyler asked.

"Because that's him looking at me, not the other way around." She answered. "Besides, I wouldn't have been dancing with him at all if you hadn't ditched me to get wasted with Matt." Tyler just glared at her for a few seconds then looked away. “Look,” Katie stood up and looked down at him. “We’ve both obviously gotten pissed at each other and lashed out like stupid little kids. Why don’t we take a break for a few days? Try to figure out if we even still want there to be an us.”

“Yeah, sure, whatever.” Tyler said with a glare at her as he stood up then left the room.

She walked out of the room to see that people were gathering to hear Mayor Lockwood make his kick off speech. So not wanting to be rude and leave before the speech Katie joined everyone that was gathered around. “Are you okay?” she heard someone asked her quietly while John Gilbert made his speech, and looked over to see Alaric standing to her left.

“I’m fine.” She told him with a polite smile.

“You just caught your boyfriend making out with his best friend’s mom. You can’t be fine.” He told her and she looked away from him.

“You know too much about your student’s personal lives.” She whispered to him.

“Only the ones involved with vampires.” He whispered back.

“Look at his right hand.” Damon said to Alaric as he moved to stand on his other side.

“Whose?” Alaric asked sounding like he really didn’t care.

“The town’s favorite son. Look at his ring.” Damon said and looked at Alaric then noticed Katie standing beside him with her arms crossed over her chest and a frown on her face.

Katie looked at John’s ring as he pulled the rope, ringing the kick off bell. “That looks like mine.” Alaric said aloud.

“Yeah, and that would be a big coincidence if he hadn’t just come back from the dead five minutes ago.” Damon said whispering the last three words.

“You killed him?” Katie asked and Damon hummed a positive answer. “Too bad he didn’t stay dead. I hate that guy.”

Alaric turned his head to Katie giving her a disapproving look and she just shrugged with a ‘what’ face. “Where the hell did you get that ring?” Damon asked taking Alaric’s attention off of her.

“Isobel, my wife.” He answered.

Damon laughed. “Who gave birth to Elena under the medical care of the esteemed Dr. Grayson Gilbert, John’s brother.” Damon whispered.

“You think John knew Isobel?” Alaric asked.

“I think John knows a lot of things.” Damon answered.

“Okay, I’m leaving. See you two later.” She said as she gave them both a forced smile and headed out.

When she walked into her front door she saw her grandfather passed out in his recliner. With a scoff she left him there, grabbed a bottle of his Jack Daniels out of the kitchen cabinet and headed up stairs to her room. Feeling tired, hurt and like a hypocrite for being mad at Tyler for kissing someone who wasn’t her when she had kissed Damon, she sat down at her desk and uncapped the bottle.

Green eyes stared back at her in the mirror that hung on the wall in front of her and she turned them down to the sparkling pendant that rested on her chest as she tilted her head back and took a drink. Thinking about Damon and what Tyler had said about him, she picked it up and looked down at it. The sapphire star sparkled up at her as if it was judging her for being with Tyler when her heart was so clearly with Damon.

But she didn’t want to be with Damon. She wanted to be happy with someone else, with Tyler. Up until tonight he had been so sweet to her, but she couldn’t help wondering if he had made up his mind that he couldn’t be better to a girl, he couldn’t make it up to Vicki by being with Katie. “Thinking about me?” She heard Damon behind her and turned around to see him sitting on her bed with one of her pillows in his lap.

“No, Tyler, actually.” She told him as she let go of the pendant, grabbed the bottle and moved to sit on the bed with him.

“Did you two break up?” he asked as he put the pillow behind his head and laid back.

“We’re taking a break.” She corrected as she put her lips to the bottle and tilted her head back.

“You know that’s better on ice right?” he asked with a nod to the bottle.

“It won’t stay on the ice long enough to make a difference.” She said as she wiped her lips. “Why are you here?”

“I wanted to let you know to stay clear of John Gilbert. He pretty much threatened to hurt you if I step out of line.” He said as he sat up and grabbed the bottle from her.

“Hey!” she said as she tried to grab it back, but he dodged her and took a drink. “Give it back.”

“There’s a reason I prefer bourbon.” He said as he handed her the bottle back. “And you know it’s not good to drink alone?” he asked as she took another drink.

“Better alone than with you.” she said recalling the last time she got drunk.

“Come on, you’re on a break. Your allowed.” He told her with a seductive look that he knew she wouldn’t be able to resist.

“That’s not what a break is for.” She shook her head.

“Sure it is.” He argued as he sat up and took the bottle from her again. This time she didn’t protest. “Back to why I came here.” He paused to take a drink then handed her the bottle back. “John knows too much.”

“How much is too much?” Katie asked before she tilted the bottle back then swallowed and wiped her lips with the back of her hand, driving Damon crazy.

“Everything and more.” Damon took the bottle from her and took another drink. “He knows about Katherine, about me opening the tomb to find her that she wasn’t in there to begin with he knows…everything.”

Katie took the bottle from him and took a bigger drink than usual. “Why don’t you just cut his ring off and kill him?” she frowned at the words that just left her mouth. “God you’re a bad influence.”

Damon rolled his eyes and took the bottle from her knowing that if she didn’t stop she was going to be hugging the toilet pretty soon. “Don’t blame me.” He told her then took a drink. “If I kill him, everything he knows is going to get leaked to the council and he will have you killed. It’s bad enough that those tomb vamps are getting too much attention from them and now with Stefan on the fritz…”

“How is he by the way? He disappeared tonight.” She asked trying to take the bottle from him but he pulled it away. “Gimme it, Damon.”

“Nope.” he told her and she made a grab for it and fell into his lap. He smirked down at her head on his legs.

She sighed and pushed herself back into a sitting position with her legs tucked to the side so she wouldn’t be indecent in the dress that she still wore. “Fine, keep it.”

“He’s not coping well at all and if he doesn’t get it under control he’s going to bring the council down on us with no help from John.” He said then took a drink from the bottle.

“He’s not going to hurt Elena is he?” she asked looking tired as she stood up, but stumbled in her heels even though they were the thick kind.

“No, but you might hurt yourself if you don’t take those shoes off.” he said and she sat on the side of the bed and took off her shoes, letting them fall to the floor with a thump.

With them out of the way she walked over to her closet and grabbed a tank top, then a pair of shorts out of the dresser. “Unzip me?” Katie asked, sweeping her waves to the side as she turned her back on him.

“With pleasure.” He answered as he stood up and placed his hand on her shoulder as the other one pulled the zipper down her back.

She sighed as his hands slipped the straps from her shoulders and the top fell to gather around her hips, the bottom of the dress too tight to fall off her body. A laugh betrayed her when he grabbed the bottom of the dress and jerked it down. “Hey, easy this stupid thing wasn’t exactly cheap.”

“If it’s stupid why did you buy it?” he asked as she turned around, covering her chest with her arms.

“Because I’ve worn all my other dresses to public events twice and that’s my limit.” She explained as she turned from him and grabbed her tank top. “Plus I thought it would get Tyler all hot and bothered.” She sighed and grabbed her shorts.

“Oh it got someone all hot and bothered, but it wasn’t Tyler.” He told her in a deep voice as he grabbed her hips and pulled her against him, the evidence pressed into her rear.

“Damon…” she sighed fighting her desires. “I can’t… I’m too drunk and I’m with Tyler.” Her body defied her words as she leaned back against him, dropped her shorts and lifted her arm to grab the back of his head.

“Drunk sex is the best.” He told her as he started kissing her neck. “And you’re on a break, you’re allowed.”

“Son of a bitch.” She growled, coming to her senses as she turned in his arms and pushed him away. “I can’t, Damon. Stop trying to get me to be somebody that I’m not!”

“I’m trying to get you to realize that you don’t belong with him!” Damon yelled back. “Figure out who you want and stop leading us on.”

“I will when you will!” She told him with a flared nostril glare.

He whooshed out of her open window without another word.

[jbbarnesnnoble]

You Kissed Me First

Summary: You meet a stranger in a bar and wake up in his shirt 

Features: Smut; If you’re under 18, please do not interact 

Pairing: Bucky Barnes/Reader

Notes: A Valentine’s Day Oneshot based on You Kissed Me First by Carly Pearce

Word Count: 1193

You entered the bar, the one place in town that wasn’t adorned with various shades of pinks and reds. Anderson’s Tavern was the one place in town that didn’t cave in to the hype of Valentine’s Day. It was quiet, the only patrons there for the same reason as you: to forget the fact that they were alone on Valentine’s Day. You rationalized that it was a commercial holiday, designed to sell mediocre candy and overpriced greeting cards. 

“The usual?” Danny, the bartender, asked when you sat down at the bar. You nodded. The smooth sounds of an old country song played from the speakers. Danny slid you your drink and you handed over some cash, taking a sip of the drink as you took in the scene. You noticed a group in the corner, bigger than any other group in the bar. You caught the eye of the man with the long hair in the group and smirked over the rim of your glass before scanning the rest of the room, seeing who else had come out that night. 

“Order of mozzarella sticks, on the house,” Danny said as he placed your order in front of you.

“You know me well,” you teased. 

“No date tonight?” he asked. Danny owned the place with his husband and had for some time. 

“Can say the same about you. I would’ve guessed Tyler would’ve wanted you to take off tonight,” you said, curiosity laced in your tone. He chuckled.

“Oh, we’ll have our date,” he said. You just shook your head. A few minutes later someone cleared their throat. You looked up to see the man you’d locked eyes with. Blue eyes. You were screwed before he even said a word. You had a weakness for blue eyes. The way they’d remind you of the sky on a sunny day, the ocean on a perfect beach day. 

“This seat taken?” he asked. 

“That depends, you gonna take it?” you quipped. He chuckled as he sat down. 

“James,” he said introducing himself. You replied with your name. The two of you sat in silence for a moment, each waiting for the other to make the next move. Conversation started flowing, and soon he was buying you another drink, and then he was asking you to dance. A slow song had come on. He pulled you close as the two of you moved together. One dance turned to two, turned to the two of you swaying to the music as you talked the night away, your head on his shoulder.

“How about we get out of here, doll?” he asked quietly after one last slow song. You smiled at him. He leaned in to kiss you before you answered, slow and sweet. When the two of you pulled apart you nodded at him.

“Let’s go. Your place or mine?” you asked. 

When the door to your apartment closed, his lips were on yours. You could spend forever wrapped in his embrace. You weren’t one for one night stands, for bringing home strangers, but there was something special about him. You felt his hand find the zipper of your dress, pulling it down slowly. He pulled away from you, giving you a moment to catch your breath as he pulled your dress down your body.

“Step,” he said, his voice low. You obliged. The two of you hadn’t even made it to the bedroom yet. He pulled his shirt over his head and you took a moment to admire him. The glove he wore on his left hand was pulled off and you took in the metal arm. It struck you as familiar but in your lust induced haze, you couldn’t figure out why that was. All you could focus on was the dampness that was growing in your panties and the man in front of you. Your eyes widened as you took in his nude form. He didn’t give you time to think as he quickly managed to get you out of your bra and panties, before lifting you up. You gave a vague nod toward your bedroom and once inside, you were pushed against the wall. You had your doubts about making it to the bed. 

You let out a moan as his right hand made contact with your clit while his mouth found its way to your neck. You weren’t going to last long, not with how on edge you already were. 

“Want you to cum, baby,” he said, pulling away. He knew what he was doing with those fingers. You cried out as your back arched off the wall. His fingers moved toward your opening and you moaned as he pushed on in, then another. A stream of moans left your mouth as he added a third finger. It was going to be quick and dirty. You had hopes he’d stick around for a second round. He pulled his fingers from you, sucking one into his mouth with a smirk before pressing them against your lips. He groaned as you took them into your mouth.

He lifted your leg, wrapping it around his waist as he lined up with your entrance. The two of you moaned in tandem as he inched his way forward. The only sounds that could be heard were your moans and the sound of flesh against flesh as he pounded into you. You cried out as he tugged lightly on your hair, forcing you to look at him. 

Your own hand made its way to your clit, rubbing slow circles around the sensitive bud. He captured your mouth in a kiss once more, breaking away as you neared your second release of the night.

“That’s it, good girl, such a good girl. Cum for me,” he said as you tipped over the edge. He finished close behind you. You stood catching your breath, his cum dripping from you as he pulled out. 

The next morning, you woke up early, wrapped in his arms. You smirked as you pulled his shirt on, nothing else, and headed for the kitchen. You had just plated breakfast as he entered the room in his boxers.

“Happy Valentine’s Day, Bucky,” you said as you set the plates at the table, not caring that it was the day after. The two of you had plans for the entire weekend. He wrapped his arms around you.

“Happy Valentine’s Day, doll,” he said, kissing you sweetly, a far cry from the hungry kisses of the previous night. You smiled at him. 

“I’m going to have to thank Nat for that idea,” you told him as he chuckled. Pretending to be strangers in a bar had paid off, the soreness you felt from a night of passion shared with your boyfriend proof of that. It wasn’t far off from how the two of you met, minus the sex. That hadn’t happened until a couple months in. But the dancing, the kissing, the connection? 

“I don’t know how I got so lucky,” he said. You smirked.

“That’s easy. You kissed me first,” you said. The two of you had breakfast before heading back to bed. A happy Valentine’s Day indeed.

[straight-into-the-animus]

All Night Long (French Fryes AU)

A continuation of the first part of the 1980s Soundtrack AU! Find the first part here!

Read it on Ao3 here!

Part Three

The diner was a little one, the out of the way kind that serviced the late-night workers on their way to the plants. It was a place for those driving the long commute to get a quick bite to eat and smoke without much trouble. Jacob was almost surprised at the general decor and feel of the place when compared to his companion’s. But his stomach gave the slightest growl at the smell of something greasy frying, and he was happy not to question further as he sat across from Arno in a worn leather booth. 

The man began peeling away his scarf and coat, and Jacob took in his appearance. He wore a sharp red tie and a crisp gray dress shirt as if he had just gotten back from the office. Jacob suddenly felt a wave of self-consciousness at his own appearance as he shed his leather jacket, looking for all intents and purposes he had just gotten out of some neighborhood slum fest in comparison… Which, to be fair, that’s what the bar had sort of been, but that was beside the point. If Arno felt the same, he said nothing or gave any indication of anything aside from a small smile.

Why would he care? A small part of Jacob’s mind asked, and if it were a person, it likely would have rolled its eyes.

“I still think it’s gonna rain.” Jacob gave a thumb jerk to the window and the dark night sky beyond, and Arno gave a small snort of laughter.

“I think it’s done for the night.”

“Swore I could smell it.”

“Don’t people normally say they can feel it?”

“Don’t try and contradict me, Mister Dorian.” Jacob faux-scoffed, surprising himself for a second before receiving a huff of laughter and a smile from the other man.

“Oui, oui. As you say, Mister Frye. I apologize.”

Jacob took another second of near shock to receive the “apology”; hesitation flickered across his face before he quickly snuffed it out. “You better. I accept it.”

“I thank you.” Arno smiled again and almost spoke before they were interrupted by the waitress, an older woman with a hairdo that would have put Bonnie Tyler to shame. She poured the coffee at no prompting and rattled off the typical specials of diner folds. Both men ended up going for pancakes and bacon.

“I suppose it is breakfast time.” Jacob mused before taking a sip of his coffee. He had only put two packets of sugar in it but watched as Arno nearly drowned his in cream and sweet flavoring, nodding in agreement.

“Best breakfast you’ll get in this area.”

“So… you come here often, then?”

“When I work late, sometimes I’ll stop by here before I head home.”

“What do you do?”

“I work as a prosecuting attorney.” He seemed oblivious to the way Jacob’s eyebrows rose and continued on. “You?”

Jacob took a long gulp of scalding coffee to give himself time to answer. Not to tell the truth but phrase it in a way that wasn’t that Roth had always taken care of everything while Jacob puttered around London doing odd work for who needed it.

“I’m between jobs at the moment.” He somewhat mumbled in his cup as he set it down. Arno slowly nodded.

“Well, if Thatcher doesn’t fuck us over, you might be able to get something at the steel plants. They’re always hiring.”

“Perhaps.” Jacob gave a slight nod in consideration before attempting to switch the conversation around. “So… Lawyer? Explains your sharp mind and sparkling wit.”

“My wit has always sparkled, I’ll have you know.”

“I’m sure.”

“Thought you have your own sharp tongue to go along with your… Everything.” Arno gestured vaguely, and Jacob felt his cheeks heat up just a bit. “You might make a good lawyer.”

“I just happened to have the luck to grow up with a twin sister.”

“Is she in London as well?”

“Ah, lives just a bit outside of it with her husband. They’re adorable, really.” Jacob tried to hide the slightest bit of unconscious bitterness at the mention of his sister, and Arno accepted it.

They made a bit more small talk, moving into the more boring aspects of what people could talk about until their food came. Jacob asked a bit more about Arno, and Arno seemed to have a somewhat normal life; when his father had died, he had been adopted by a friend of his father and had a sister that traveled around a lot for business. He had come to London to “strike out”, though he sheepishly admitted he was a trust fund baby. Jacob found he didn’t mind it all that much, surprisingly.

There was something… endearing about him, about the careful and measured way he spoke, as if he was afraid to mess up a word. How even while they ate, he fiddled with his fork to make little comments about the diner or asking Jacob for his opinions on different things. Jacob couldn’t help but try to continue to get small smiles, anything of amusement. But he was earnest, and listened, and… And Jacob couldn’t remember the last time he had felt like this with someone, just at peace without anything demanded of him.

If there was one problem he had, though, it was the lawyer’s taste of music.

“Okay, I could forgive not liking Crüe. But Bowie? You don’t like Bowie?”

“I like Bowie! ‘Young Americans’ is a fantastic album, and so is ‘Station to Station’. It’s just his recent work that I’m not a fan of. He was better in the 70s.”

“So you don’t like Labyrinth.”

“Haven’t seen it. What’s that look for?”

“If there was a theater still open I’d be dragging you to it right now so we can change that.” Jacob warned, and Arno quirked an eyebrow up as he leaned back in his seat, arms crossed but tone playful.

“Is that a threat, Monsieur Frye?”

“Could be.” Jacob grinned, leaning forward. The food was long gone, plates sticky with syrup in front of them and the bill on its way. The only reason Jacob could be arsed to care was because this could very well be it. It could very well be the last time he was going to feel this way. Maybe he was vulnerable, but there was a soft part of him that wanted to keep feeling this way as long as he could. Roth would try and fight his way back, even if Jacob kept his distance; he knew his apartment, after all. He paid for it. But… That wasn’t what he wanted right now.

He wanted to be safe, wanted to be wanted. 

“Jacob? Jacob, are you okay?” He came back to himself and realized Arno was leaning on the table, mindful of the plates but looking at him with concern; he realized as well that he had slumped back against the booth, arm crossed a bit defensively. Quickly he cleared his throat.

“I’m fine, really. Just…” He hesitated before spilling the truth, “I don’t want to go home just yet. This is probably the best night I’ve had in a bloody long time, you know? But you’re… I can’t even offer you anything other than half the check.”

“Jacob, hey. Don’t look away.” He tacked on as the man’s eyes drifted down, and spoke again when Jacob was looking at him. “You’re wonderful- Wonderful company. I just don’t want- It’s-” Arno sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, an embarrassed flush ovetaking his cheeks; Jacob felt the same. “If it isn’t too much to say… I want to continue. I do. But… I don’t want to take advantage of you.”

“Take advantage?” Jacob said a little too loud for comfort, and both of them quickly looked around the diner for anyone that heard.

“This ex of yours… He left you in a bad state. I don’t want you to make some sort of decision you’ll regret because of your emotions.”

“You don’t want me.”

“Shit, Jacob, fine, I do.” 

“And I want you, Arno.” They were hushed at this point, and Jacob could see a conflict clear in the other’s hazel eyes. “Even if it’s just for the night. Frankly, I didn’t think you were… You know.”

“Not as though you’re the picture of a gay man.”

“Fine. Fair enough. But I mean it.” If Jacob could have taken his hand, could have given any other reassurance than his words… He would’ve. “You want me, I want you. S’all that matters at this point.” Finally, a bit of pleading overtook his words. “And I don’t want to go home yet.”

Thinks were quiet as Arno worried his bottom lip between his teeth. Jacob half-held his breath, and let it out in semi-disappointment once Arno signaled for the bill without so much as an answer.

Then, once the server had hobbled away with everything, the Frenchman spoke quietly.

“We’ll have to find a taxi. Can’t walk to my place from here quick enough.”

“Deal.” Jacob smiled in relief and excitement. And he could’ve sworn Arno had his own, small secretive look of relief as well.

Next part is gonna have some smut attached to it, and will probably be a bit longer, so time to get excited! If you’d like to be put on a taglist for the fic series, let me know! Have any ideas or songs you wanna see encorporated? Tell me!

I hope you enjoy! If you do I have a Masterpost here and more ideas for writings and prompts here, so feel free to request!  If you’d like to support me, I have a ko-fi here! Safety and peace!

[holidaywishes]

It Had To Be You XLVI

Chapter Forty Six: How Much?

  Summary: You try to finish writing your vows as Tyler continues lying about why he really postponed the wedding.

  Warning: Angst? Melancholia? the tiniest attempt at Fluff you’ll ever see.

  Author’s Note: I promise the next chapter will be fluffier but I heard this song the other day and fell in love with it. The title of the song and the chorus lines (How much are you tryna love me?; How much are you scared to lose me?) are really what inspired this chapter. I hope you enjoy it even it is a little angsty.

  Song Credit: How Much -- MKTO

  masterlist

  the other masterlist

xx

  “...I promise to keep my makeup on my side of the counter and to clear the dishes when it’s your turn to cook. I promise to fall in love with you more and more every second of everyday, from the second I wake up to the moment I fall asleep; and repeat it each day. I promise to trust you, I promise to confide in you and I promise to be a safe place for you to come home to...”

  You read over your vows for the millionth time but still couldn’t find a way to fix them; they just weren’t what you wanted them to be yet.

  “Have you written any of your vows yet?” you asked Tyler from the table as he flipped through the TV on the couch

  “I started the other day” he said casually

  “And...?”

  “And.. I’m not finished yet?”

  “I just meant how are they coming? Anything that’s gonna really tug at my heart strings?” You smiled to yourself

  “Oh yeah!” he chuckled, not turning around to face you yet, “you’ll be sobbing.”

  “I’m excited to hear them!” you exclaimed, picking your pen back up and hovering the tip on the paper in front of you

  “...I promise to laugh with you, to cry with you, to comfort you in times of stress or sadness and celebrate you in times of great joy. I promise my heart to you...” You continued, striking out the last sentence and scrunching your nose at it, “my heart will always.. No! Who am I? Celine Dion? Gah!” You thought to yourself, scribbling out more words on the page, “I can’t imagine a better person to share my life with, to be in love with. It Had To Be You. I knew it from the second we met, It Had To Be You.” It wasn’t exactly what you were hoping for when you started writing that day, but it was cute, so you left it until you could look at it with fresh eyes; or get a second opinion.

  “Hey Ty?” you called to him again, and he hummed in response, “how’s it going with Mike?”

  “Hmm?” he repeated

  “I mean, it’s been about a week right? How’s he feeling about everything? About the two of you? About your friendship? About our wedding?”

  “He’s...” Tyler hesitated, putting the remote down to stop flicking through channels, “he’s doing a bit better with it. He still needs just a bit more time to really... come around to the wedding. You know?”

  “I get that. I respect that. But...” you sighed, finally getting up to sit beside him on the couch, “we did have a deal. We made our plans. You agreed, no matter what happens with him, we’re getting married on July 2nd.”

  “I know!” he joked, pulling your body close to his and pressing his forehead against yours, “that won’t change. I promise.”

  “It better not!” you smirked, pulling your forehead away from his to tuck yourself into his side, “what are you watching?” He kissed the top of your head and started to flipping through channels again; eliciting a small chuckle from you before you kissed his shoulder

xx

Tyler’s P.O.V.

  “So why did you do it anyway?” You asked Mike, sipping your beer as you sat on your boat

  “The girl?” he questioned, “I was mad and drunk. VERY drunk. I honestly didn’t think she’d go through with it.”

  “Dude I was so messed up that morning. I knew I didn’t do anything but her being there made me question some shit”

  “Maybe that means you’re not supposed to be getting married...?” Mike mumbled, taking a sip of his beer and avoiding your stare

  “Let’s not start this again” you sighed

  “All I’m saying is that you say you love (Y/N) but the first time another girl is in your bed after a drunken night, you immediately think that you slept with her. That you would cheat on your fiancée. Not that this girl roamed into your room and passed out in your bed. Not that you roamed into a room while someone was passed out in there and you passed out on the same mattress. It just seems, to me, that if you love your girlfriend, cheating wouldn’t have been in your eye-line or whatever.”

  “I didn’t cheat though”

  “You know what I mean”

  “I know. I just..” you sighed, hating that you had to admit what you were about to admit, “I haven’t told her about it”

  “You what?”

  “I blamed postponing the wedding on you...” you admitted and he almost spit out his drink in response

  “What?!” he shouted, “why? wait, why did you postpone it then?”

  “I was trying to figure out if telling her would complicate things or if it mattered, since I knew in my gut that nothing happened.”

  “So how exactly did you blame me?”

  “She saw the bruise,” you gestured to your eye, “so I had to tell her we got into a fight. And she just kind of.. made her own conclusions”

  “That you didn’t deny...”

  “I thought about every possible reaction she could have to me telling her that I woke up with another girl in my bed. They were all bad. I thought about every possible reaction to me telling her I needed to postpone the wedding until I could tell her that I lied. They were worse,” you argued, “I guess I didn’t see the harm in telling her that you and I were fighting. And that I wanted to sort it out before we got married. Is that so wrong?”

  “Yes.” He stated bluntly and you huffed, “but only because you’re starting a marriage based on lies. She wants to marry you. She loves you, I see that. I see that you love her, too, but do you want to marry her?”

  “Yes, Mike. We’ve talked about this.”

  “I know we have,” he laughed before letting out a small sigh, “but just.. imagine it, okay? You get married. She doesn’t know about this girl that I told to stay in your bed. Things are fine for like 5 years until it comes up at a BBQ or something when we all have a few drinks and talk about your Bachelor Party. She comes over to tell you she’s pregnant but overhears you talking about this girl who slept in your bed; whose name you don’t even remember. She freaks out, throws the stick at you and runs away. Next day, a bike messenger brings you divorce papers and says ‘you’ve been served’ and you’re a 35 year-old divorcée with a kid on the way and you’re on your way out of the NHL”

  “That’s quite the story.”

  “Look, I think you still have a lot of party left in you. Which is why I think it’s weird that you want to get married now, but I get that you love her and she makes you happy. We’re not each other’s biggest fans but I can learn to deal with her and I’m sure she can do the same. If you believe, with your whole ass heart, that there’s no one else in the entire world for you. That this is the girl for you. Then there’s one thing you have to ask yourself,” he leaned toward you, putting his hand on your shoulder before he asked his question, “How much? how much does she mean to you? How much are you willing to give up for her? How much are you scared to lose her?” You furrowed your brow for a second, thinking about his question

  “Everything. She means the world to me. I would give up anything and everything for her. I can’t imagine a day without her and I’m terrified she’ll wake up one day and realize she’s been wasting her time all these years...”

  “Well there you go!” he laughed and you smiled in return, “you gotta tell (Y/N) about the girl then! It’s the only --”

  “What girl?” (Y/N) said from the dock, a sad expression filling her eyes before turning on her heels and running toward the car

xx

  You had gone down to the dock to say hi to Mike and to apologize for any trouble you’d caused. It crossed your mind that you might still be stepping on some toes or hurt feelings, but you were so happy to see the two of them talking like they used to that you thought it would be a nice gesture. So, you grabbed two bottles of beer and headed outside.

  “You gotta tell (Y/N) about the girl then! It’s the on--” you heard Mike exclaim before you interrupted in shock

  “What girl?” Tyler didn’t say anything, he and Mike only turned to you before facing each other and staying in stunned silence. You turned on your heels, dropping the two glass bottles on the grass so you could run to the car.

  “(Y/N)! Wait! Stop!” you heard Tyler call out to you but you didn’t look back, “Let me explain! It’s not what you think!”

  “Oh it’s not?!” you barked, finally turning around to face him, making him take a step back when he saw the expression on your face, “What girl, Tyler? And why does Mike know about her? How does he seem so cavalier about everything even though he punched you in the face and hasn’t talked to you in week?”

  “Let’s go inside and talk about this.”

  “Talk about what?!”

  “Everything”

  “What girl, Tyler?”

  “From my Bachelor Party” he admitted

  “A stripper?”

  “No” he answered and you furrowed your brow, signalling him to continue

  “She was just some college girl that Mike invited. We got drunk. She was dancing with me. Mike and I started fighting. She followed me into the bedroom with some ice for my eye. I woke up the next morning and she was there. In my bed”

  “In our bed” you corrected

  “In our bed,” he repeated, “nothing happened. I was drunk and couldn’t remember anything from the party. I barely remember the fight with Mike. But I knew that nothing happened with that girl, I knew that I would never do that to you. Because I love you.”

  “I would’ve preferred it be a stripper,” you chided, “how do you know nothing happened with her?”

  “She told me. We talked the next morning. She said that Mike was so angry at me that he told her to stay there, to make me think that I slept with her, cheated on you...” You shook your head quickly, trying to understand everything he’d just told you. When you had somewhat managed to understand what he was saying, you took a deep breath

  “Fine,” you sighed, “but if you knew that nothing happened. If you were sure that nothing happened and this girl was just some prop of Mike’s, why didn’t you just tell me? Why did you keep it from me?”

  “I didn’t think it would be a big deal. It seemed like more trouble than it was worth.”

  “To be honest?”

  “To tell you the truth about something that wasn’t anything.”

  “Just because nothing happened doesn’t mean you don’t tell me! You lied!”

  “I didn’t lie!” he yelled, “I just didn’t tell you!”

  “What’s the difference, Tyler?!” she yelled back, “we’re supposed to trust each other! I can’t believe you’d do something so childish”

  “Childish?!”

  “Yes. Childish and immature”

  “I was trying to protect your feelings”

  “You should’ve told me”

  “Nothing happened so I didn’t see the point”

  “So you’ve said” you shouted, turning your back on him and walking to the car, shifting only when you realized you didn’t have the key

  “Why don’t you get it then? Why can’t you see my side here?” he yelled, following after you as you walked up to the house

  “Why can’t you see my side!” you shrieked, whipping around to face him, anger covering your features

  “I do see your side,” he said, harshly but not yelling, “I thought about every possibility before I chose not to tell you. I thought about how telling you would hurt you, how it might make you think that you couldn’t trust me because I didn’t remember what happened -- whether I said I knew nothing happened or not. I thought about how not telling you might make you happier because you’d be.. blissfully unaware of it all but it might cause me unneeded and unending stress. I thought about how you might leave if I told you. I thought about how you might understand if I told you. I thought about how you might spiral if I told you. I thought about it all. Every single god damn thing. So don’t for one second say that I can’t see your side!” You stood still as he finished his speech. You couldn’t help but feel like you’d been here before, just on the other side of it. Yelling at him to understand how you felt, or telling him that he shouldn’t worry about this thing or that thing because he could trust you. It was an odd feeling, being on the receiving end of a speech like this. Your eyes dropped to the ground as you continued to search for something to say but when you didn’t respond, he huffed and stepped forward, “I love you, (Y/N), and I’m sorry that I chose not to tell you. But believe me, trust me, when I say I hated lying to you about Mike. I hated not telling you about the girl. I hated knowing there was something between us that only I could... solve but I didn’t see how telling you what happened would make things better between us. Sure, maybe you’d have understood how I was feeling but would you have willingly moved our date because I got drunk and woke up with a girl in our bed? or would you have panicked and thought that there was something more going on?”

  “I--” you tried but he didn’t let you

  “I know that my track record with other girls hasn’t been.. great. And I know that you still have some unresolved shit with Kate about me but I don’t care. I would never intentionally hurt you. I am not James and I am not Marcus.” You didn’t think he’d throw out his name but the second you heard it, your mind went blank and your body stiffened. You only saw Tyler’s expression for a second before you turned around and headed for the gate, “wait..” he breathed, realizing what he’d said, “wait (Y/N)! come back!” He managed to catch up with you before you got too far down the street since you were still on foot

  “Why did you bring him up?” you asked, staring straight ahead

  “I didn’t mean to,” he admitted, straggling behind you, “it just came out”

  “Well I didn’t like it”

  “Well I don’t like you thinking that you can just get mad at me whenever something doesn’t go your way” he countered, making her stop and turn around to face him”

  “I don’t do that..” she started, “do I?”

  “Sometimes. It’s not like you mean to but yeah, sometimes you get a little...” he moved his head side to side, “immature.” You smiled at his word

  “I’m sorry,” you dropped your head, “you’re right. I should’ve heard you out before I reacted the way I did. I think postponing the wedding is stressing me out more than I thought it would.”

  “Nothing is going to stop me from marrying you. I love you and I don’t want to lose you.” He put his hands on your waist to reassure you, “so we both get a little childish every now and then. Who cares?” he shrugged his shoulders jokingly as he smiled, “it just keeps things interesting.”

  “That’s one word for it.”

  “I can’t wait to marry you,” he said, “crazy and all.” You smiled smugly at him, scrunching your nose when he pulled you close to him

  “Let’s go back to the house,” you said, “I don’t have any shoes on.” He nodded, smiled and wrapped his arm around your shoulder as the two of you walked back together; sharing your love for each other every step you took.

[my-arlington-academia]

Hey again! Well I was wondering about what kinda dates do you think Axel, Tyler and Raquel would take their s/o? (Let's hope it doesn't get deleted this time) Thank you sweetie

Heya Erre! Finally I get to your request 💝💕 thank you for your patience and sorry I'm so slow 😔🙏 so I guess headcanons right? This made me realize that maybe it wasn't a smart move on my part to allow "main 10 headcanons" because it takes much longer to come up with different scenarios for 10 characters for the same situation. So thank you for choosing those 3! It really made it easier for me to write (not to say that you guys aren't allowed to request headcanons for all the characters! It's just that I have this weird mental thing where I want to do my requests in chronological order instead of "the-quicker-ones" order 😂)

Axel

- he loves going out but because he's so famous, it'll be a huge hassle if you two get caught

- thus you only go out late at night (which is tooooootally not against school rules. Nope 😎)

- you guys hang out in random parts of the town, passing by fancy restaurants and 7-elevens

- the best time is when there's a funfair in town

- as always you sneak out with Axel late at night and yet it still gets you anxious

- Axel quietly laughs at you

- "Aww, come on. It's been a while since we've been doing this and you're still this stressed out about it? Try to keep the adrenaline low because once we get to the funfair you'll have a hard time."

- as he said, the adrenaline rush from all those crazy rides got you good

- somehow Axel managed to get you into some of the most insane rides, you know, those that make you feel like "I think I'm gonna die"? Yeah, those.

- honestly, the haunted house was bland in comparison

- after all of that, ready to go home, you guys sit on a bench farther away from all the ruckus and the mood gets just right

- you scooch over and grab his hand, all that adrenaline has made you feel like nothing else but today matters (but like, not in a bad way! In a really really good way.)

- Axel looks at you expectantly, it seems like the night has made both of you much bolder

- "So uh. We almost kinda died together? Not that I would mind dying with you but don't you think that we should at least give eachother a reward for surviving tonight?"

- lover boy is clearly asking for a kiss

- and well, of course he got what he wanted

Tyler

- definitely takes you to the movies

- his father being a movie director and his mom being an actress, he used to watch a lot of movies as a kid

- first he planned to go for the obvious route and do the "put my hand on your hand" thing when the movie gets to the romantic parts

- but at the end he got too invested in the plot and forgot about it

- curses himself for making such a dumb mistake

- it's not over though! There's still the fancy-pancy restaurant after the movie

- ngl he just really wanted to show off and be classy

- but most of all he wants to impress you

- "I'm paying all of it so don't worry about the prices and order whatever you want, okay?"

- it makes you even more worried for the prices because you don't want Tyler to empty his wallet for you

- his parents may be rich but you don't want to make him feel like you're trying to take advantage of him

- the food is so good tho

- the evening is well spent (and Tyler's money too whoops...)

- when you guys sneakity-sneak back into the dorms he stops in front of your room

- secretly really wants you to invite him in and honestly you want the same thing too... So you do it

- "You wanna come in? Not for long but... like 5 minutes or so."

- Tyler is not an idiot, in the past you already invited him once and he refused by reflex but he won't let this chance pass by a second time

- tells himself that he absolutely has to find a way to kiss you in those "5 minutes"

- fortunately it didn't take long.

- the moment the both of you step in, no one says anything since you want the same thing

- it naturally happens

- in the dim light of your room, you exchange a kiss with Tyler

- when you pull away there's a silence again until Tyler speaks up

- "So um. I think this was only about 30 seconds? Should we kiss for another 4 minutes or ...?"

- like usual he's half joking and half flirting

- you kiss again, though you guys aren't sure if it lasted 4 minutes...

Raquel

- tries to sneak you in a nightclub

- "No worries! I'll forge you a fake ID, they won't notice the difference."

- you tell her that you're not comfortable enough with the idea, she gives up immediately and finds an alternative

- "Alright! So what about a concert? There's this really dope group coming to the town, they have a small following but they're great."

- you swiftly make it out of the dorms without getting noticed

- you guys hold hands while running in the streets and laughing

- somehow Raquel makes even the smallest things super fun

- the concert goes swimmingly well, you spent yesterday listening to all the songs from the band so you can sing along with the audience

- because of that, everytime a new song starts you're getting hyped up with Raquel

- when you can't see the stage very well (because of tall people in the front 😂) Raquel gives you a piggyback ride

- after about an hour and a half you guys go to a convenience store to grab some drinks before going home

- "So? It was amazing am I right?"

- however, when you try to go back to the dorms unnoticed a problem arises

- "No way... they're still making the rounds? Dammit!"

- Raquel has a track record of sneaking out when something big happens in town and she's not the only one

- it seems like other students were at the concert and they're trying to get back safely as well

- a few minutes pass by before you guys and that other group of students realize that it's gonna take a while for them to give up

- they probably already noticed that some students are missing and now they're patiently waiting to catch them red handed

- Raquel speaks up

- "Okay guys, I'm gonna sacrifice myself. I'll keep them busy will you guys make it safely to the dorms, okay?"

- dramatically kisses you in front of that random group of friends before running away

- those people quietly cheered when she kissed you, now looking at them, it seems like a couple of them are in fact from your classroom... welp.

- despite your heart beating fast and not having completely processed the kiss yet, you decide to take the role of leader and make the students get back to their rooms safely

- once it's all over you bury your face in your pillow, still thinking about the kiss

- the next day you recognize those people in the hallways when they pass by and it turns out you somehow became friends with them after this "midnight escapade."

[nicklangfordmuse]

The Bachelor Party | Part 2

The groups were arrested and were held behind bars for the night. It was already 2:30 in the morning and bails weren't accepted until 6 in the morning.

"Officer, come on. They started the fight!" Donnie tried to explain to the cop but he wasn't buying it. "Even if Barney started the fight, you're to be kept here until 6 in the morning once bail is possible." The officer said as they sat on benches. They were held in two different, opposite cells so they could still see each other.

This is not how Nick was hoping to spend the night of his bachelor party to be. He was even hoping to go for that night swimming they promised so this is really a bummer. But still, thinking about that dance off and how he got to punch Mateo, Nick had to chuckle.

"Dude, Nick is still drunk." Sam told the guys which made Nick laugh more. "Yeah, well, he won't be laughing his ass off anymore when Katrina bails us out of here." Tyler said with a chuckle but Nick shook his head. "No, no. Okay. No one's calling Katrina. She's with Shawn. I don't want her to stressing about us anymore." Nick said, still laughing a bit. "I'm just...it's so funny how we won a dance off with the gummy bear song." Nick said and the boys làughed along. "Oh my god, my wife's gonna kill me after this but I hope she finds the humor in it. I danced in public!" Nick said, making them laugh more. "Yeah, plus you gave Mr. Know It All Jelly Legs a black eye. That'll teach him a lesson." Grant added and Nick smiled, looking at the guy who was holding an icebag over his eye. Mateo got up and made his one phone call, which alerted the boys.

"Who are we gonna call, guys? We wouldnt want to wait till 6 in the morning to call someone to bail us." Joe said. "We can't just call anyone. Rachel's pregnant, Katrina and Polly are with kids, Rowena's on a business trip. Just...let's just wait and ask if we can bail ourselves in the morning." Nick suggested, hoping the guys are okay with that.

The hours felt so long but finally, it was 6 in the morning and bails are allowed. Surprisingly, a guy showed up in between the two cells, looking at both Nick and Mateo. "Paul?" Nick asked in surprise, as well as confusion. "Finally!" Mateo said out loud, standing up and holding the bars to get closer to the older gentleman. "Paul. I knew you'd still have my back. Thank you. It's just...just us 5. Let's get the papers rolling so we can go home." Mateo said, feeling confident. Paul saw the black eye so he went closer to look at him. "Who did that?" Paul asked. "There! Your jack ass future son in law." Mateo said, still taunting Nick. Nick went closer to the bars, confused why Paul is still helping Mateo after everything. "You should've went for both eyes. Eh, one is enough." Paul told Nick, smiling at him. "Come on. Let's get you guys out of there. This is the most embarrassing place to spend your bachelor party, you know?" Paul said teasingly which made Nick and the boys laugh.

"Wait, wait. I called you to bail us. And you're gonna bail him?!" Mateo asked angrily. "Yes, I'm bailing him. You know why? Because he's my son-in-law and my daughter's future husband." Paul said just to mock and piss Mateo more. Nick and the boys laugh as they were lead out of the cell.

"This isnt over, Paul! You're gonna regret this!" Mateo shouted, trying to break the cell even if it was impossible.

Going out, Paul bailed Nick and his best men and Nick still couldn't believe this. "How did you know we were here?" Nick asked curiously. "Well, I got a call in the middle of the night. I couldn't sleep so I was up watching TV. And then, it was Mateo, asking me to bail him because he got into a fight with you at a club. Then, I remembered you said last night was your bachelor party. So...I had to go over here and...bail you out instead of him." Paul explained which made Nick smile. "Thank you. We didn't want to call anyone because...well, we didn't want to bother anyone. But I'm glad he called you. Guess his mistake is our luck." Nick said, signing his name on the paper given to him. "Oh and um...do you mind driving us back to the hotel?" Nick asked one last time to which Paul agreed.

Once they got to the hotel, the boys got out of the SUV one by one, feeling extremely tired and slightly hung over still. "Hey, come up with us. Have some coffee. It's the least we can do." Nick asked and Paul nodded, glad that he was offered that at least, not that he wanted anything in return.

The guys went up to their suite, needing to sleep off the exhaustion they've gone through all night. Tyler and Grant slept in one room, Sam, Donnie and Joe in the other. The dining area was reserved for Nick and Paul to have coffee. Pouring them both a cup, Nick sat across Paul as they took a sip from their coffees. "Does Katrina know about what happened?" Paul asked and Nick shook his head. "I'll just tell her when I get home. I don't want her to worry while I'm away." Nick said to which Paul nodded to agree.

"You know, I had a memorable bachelor party too." Paul shared and Nick was surprised because he didn't expect that. "Really? What happened to yours?" Nick asked. "We spent it at a strip club. Very old school, back when...men think they needed one last hurrah with other woman before they get tied down." Paul explained before continuing. "Beth found out and...even if nothing happened between me and the strippers, she was really hurt and got mad. She almost called off the wedding." Nick didn't know about this so now, he's eager to hear more. "Our wedding was on hold for two months. It took her two months to forgive me and agree to continue with the wedding."

"What happened? How did she forgive you?" Nick asked.

"I stayed by her side. And when I couldn't, I still kept a connection with her. I took her on breakfast dates. During lunch time at work, I'd call just ask how her day was and to tell her I loved her. And then, I'd come home to her after work. Until I need to go home, and then I'd call her one more time before I slept." He told the bachelor. "Two months of that, and then I didn't stop. Even after the wedding, it just because second nature to me, to always call her and to assure her that she has me on her side no matter what."

Nick smiled, appreciating that story from Paul. "That's really sweet. And...some good advice. I...I don't really have a dad to...hear from, to ask advice from, before the wedding so..." He let out a breath before taking another sip of his coffee.

"Well, you have me. I can give you an advice. You wanna know the secret to having a successful marriage?" Paul offered and Nick listened closely. "The secret to a successful marriage is...a secret between the two of you. Only the two of you know how to make this last. You know Katrina well enough. She knows you more than anyone, I'd assume. You know the ups and downs of each other and you know what's right and wrong for each other. Stick with that, be true and honest with each other and you'll go a long way." Nick smiled, really glad that he got this talk with Paul. "Okay, I'll keep that in my mind." Nick assured the father, taking a sip of his coffee again. "Thanks again...for everything. I know we're not there yet but... we're getting there. And we're gonna get there." Nick said as Paul clinked his cup to his. "As long as you take care of my daughter. You're already a good dad, Nick. Keep it up." Paul added and Nick couldn't be more grateful to end his bachelor party with this.

Thanking him one more time, they quickly hugged it out before Paul went down to his car. Nick went to the mattress and laid down, feeling really happy about his party. Pulling his phone out, he saw that Katrina sent him a couple of pictures of her and Shawn. He was glad that they had a great time together but soon, it would be time for him to go home to them.

"Good morning, my love and my big boy. I love you two so much and I can't wait to come home to you. See you in a couple of hours." Nick sent, putting his phone down as he tried to get a bit of sleep before they'd need to check out.

[emotionally-imbruised]

In AIL, do harry and y/n consider the song Accidentally In Love *their song*?

Oh, 100%. It most definitely is their song™️ , and everyone knows it too.

Accidentally In Love: No Escaping Your Love

One night, you and Harry went out with some friends. The small group of you had decided to go to a little hole in the wall pub in London together as a small celebration for Harry’s upcoming Rolling Stone and The Face cover launch, as well as the eventual release of his second album.

Although you and Harry were not together during the era of his first solo record, you were fully aware of the whirlwind of things that would happen afterward seeing as you experienced it all before, as his friend. The interviews, the guest appearances, the future tour dates that you, Gemma and Anne would all plan to attend together were soon going to happen again; but this time around, you’d be cheering him on as his girlfriend… And you knew life would become a whirlwind of events because of it.

That night out was the calm before the storm. The magazines were set to drop in the upcoming weeks and the album not too long after (which you knew thanks to being one of the few people he actually told the release date and even let listen to the album itself.) It was one of the last chill nights you knew you’d share with him for a while because, after that, the album and new era was his primary focus.

Harry never let you fall under the radar by any means, but there was still this invisible weight that seemed to rest on your chest whenever you thought about it all. Specifically, the fact that your relationship with him still wasn’t public knowledge.

The almost eight months the two of you had been together by that point had been nothing short of amazing. And one of the best parts? It was private.

Only a few close friends and family knew about your relationship with him, and although neither of you cared all that much about the word getting out; deep down, you liked your little bubble. You’d grown so accustomed to the world not being in yours and Harry’s business, but you also knew that would soon change because neither of you was going to deny it when people started asking questions.

Regardless of those facts though, you refused to let anything bother you while out with your friends because frankly, the night wasn’t about you. It was about Harry, and you were completely ok with that.

The dinner was lovely. It was great catching up with your friends before flying home alone to LA a few days later; only to be joined by Harry again when he flew back to California as well, but closer to the end of the month. Gemma and Anne were there, naturally, as were a few others and that just made the night even more special.

Harry couldn’t keep himself from smiling the entire night, which you found infectious. Each time he talked about his upcoming projects‍, there was a certain glint of excitement in his eyes that brightened each time he spoke, and it made your heart swell completely.

You hadn’t been able to put into words just how proud of him you were, but luckily, he was able to tell that you were and would reassure that whenever he gently placed his hand on your thigh and rubbed soft circles with his thumb.

As dinner came to an end, you were more than ready to just head home with Harry and have the rest of the night to yourselves. You hadn’t really intended to get too rowdy and were quite content with just spending some quality time with your boyfriend; however, before you could make a move to leave; the workers at the pub brought out a karaoke machine.

The way your friends (who were definitely a little tipsy at that point) lit up with excitement made you smile, and it didn’t take much for them to convince you and Harry to stay a little while longer.

The pub was rather quiet seeing as it was getting late, which was a contributing factor in you even considering getting up on the makeshift stage and singing a song; but eventually, you did. 

After another drink and a few rounds of your friends singing some songs, you and Gemma were able to absolutely nail an off-pitch version of Wannabe by the Spice Girls with zero shame. Everyone went up on the stage at least once, including Harry who attempted to sing the entirety of Bohemian Rhapsody alone and did an overly dramatic duet of Bonnie Tyler’s Total Eclipse of the Heart with his mum. But as the night came dwindling to an end and everyone was just about ready to head on home, one last song was requested.

“I think you and Harry should do the last song, Y/N,” Gemma spoke up from the other side of the table, loud enough for everyone to hear and agree by nodding their heads.

“Are you kidding? He’d put me to shame.”

Everyone around the table started chuckling but proceeded to tell you how you should stop being a chicken and just do it.

Just as you were narrowing your gaze at Gemma for even proposing such a thing, Harry gently nudged you with his elbow to gain your attention. You were quick in glancing towards him and couldn’t help the butterflies swarming in your stomach as he smirked down at you.

“I mean, I’m all for it,” he rasped, his voice a little rough from trying to hit Freddie Mercury’s high notes. “But only if you are, love.”

You couldn’t find it in you to say no to him with the way a glint of childlike excitement shone in his eyes, and he knew it too. So, with an exasperated sigh, you linked your hand with his and stood up from your seat.

“Ok, fine.”

Harry let you lead him towards the stage and got into position with one of the microphones, but you stopped at the edge of the table to look through the book of songs the two of you could possibly sing. However, just as you were about to reach for it, Gemma snatched it away.

“What are you up too?” You asked your best friend skeptically as she started rapidly flipping through the pages.

“I’ve got a song idea for the two of you, just gotta make sure they have it,” she replied without looking away from the book. You glanced over your shoulder at Harry to see if he knew anything about what his sister was plotting, but with the way he just shrugged, you knew he was as stumped as you were. After another minute of searching, Gemma’s eyes finally lit up, and she smiled widely. “Ok, you can go up there now.”

Your eyebrows furrowed at how she just nonchalantly shooed you away, but regardless, you listened and got up on the stage beside Harry.

“Do you know what song she chose?” He asked while leaning towards you.

“Not a clue,” you answered. “But she’s up to something, I just know it.”

The two of you then moved your gaze back to the table. Everyone was snickering as Gemma showed them what song she had chosen and much to your surprise, they all started pulling out their phones to record you just as the music started playing.

The all too familiar intro of Accidentally In Love by Counting Crows started blaring through the speakers, and you had to try really hard to not smack your palm to your forehead. Of course, she chose that song.

Harry burst into laughter as you glared at Gemma, but had to recollect himself quickly when the words popped up on the screen so he could start singing.

“So she said what’s the problem baby? What’s the problem? I don’t know, well, maybe I’m in love.”

A stupidly wide grin stayed plastered on your mouth as he sang the entire first part of the song and you joined in for the chorus. The second verse was all you, which you absolutely crushed as you found yourself getting lost in the upbeat tune from Shrek 2 and began going all out with your performance.

As the song went into its second bridge, both you and Harry were far too into it by then. The two of you had gotten closer on the stage and were circling each other as you repeated how you were accidentally in love, smirking at each other playfully as you did so. Once the beat picked up again, you broke away from each other and finished up the song with a bang. There was jumping, hair whipping, and an impromptu air guitar all up until the two of you got closer again and sang the last line.

“I’m in love.”

Everyone that was in the pub erupted into cheering once the two of you finished. The waiters, bartenders, as well as your friends and family all stared at the two of you in awe as they clapped and laughed at what had just happened.

You let your gaze trail to Harry, who was busy trying to catch his breath just as badly as you were, but as soon as his eyes met yours; his grin became more full, and he wasted no time in closing the space between the two of you by pulling you in for a kiss. He smirked against your lips, mumbling how good you were, before breaking away and pulling you into his chest for a warm hug.

Once your little moment with one another ended, Harry kept one arm wrapped around your waist and guided you off the stage and back to the table.

“I hope you enjoyed that,” you said to Gemma as you sat back down to gather all your things and pay for your food.

“Was everything I could have ever wanted and more,” she replied while winking at you.

The rest of the table continued conversing about yours and Harry’s performance and how it was a great way to finish off the night, which had you feeling all warm inside.

Just as everyone was finishing paying their bills, one of your friends spoke up once again before everyone started leaving.

“If they were like that into that song just by singing it at karaoke, I could only imagine what they’d be like singing it at their wedding.”

At that, your eyes widened, and a blush started burning its way across your cheeks. Harry noticed your sudden shift in attitude, and couldn’t help but smile at the thought as he leaned down to whisper in your ear.

“I mean, it is basically our trademarked song by this point, yeah? Would definitely want it played at our wedding.”

“You’ve thought about our wedding?” You asked quietly enough just so he would hear.

“Lots of times,” he replied nonchalantly. “No rush, but I already know it’s gonna be the greatest day of my life if m’being honest. That is if you were to say yes.”

“Well, you haven’t given me a reason not to say yes, yet,” you told him smugly before leaning in to peck his lips. “But it’s too soon for that.”

“I know,” he agreed with a soft smile. “But also hope you know that I’m willing to wait as long as it takes for you to say yes.”

With that, you simply nodded, but couldn’t stop grinning like a total idiot. The two of you then got ready to leave and parted ways with your friends. You continued smiling to yourself as the two of you drove back to Harry’s flat before eventually diving into more intimate activities. However, the giddy feeling returned soon after you were done as you curled up against his bare chest and began thinking more about your future with him; feeling quite content with the thought of being with him forever before drifting off into a deep sleep.

[emcon-imagines]

🎶200 Followers Song Drabble Event!!🎶

Rules: Send in a character from one of the fandoms that I write for, being sure to specify their full name and the fandom they’re from, along with a # song prompt from the list below (ex: “Could I request a song drabble with Natasha Romanoff + #16?”)

I’ll be writing short drabbles based off both the prompt and the song itself! I love sharing music with you all, so these songs are all pull from a variety of my current listening playlists, from both big artists and artists I think need way more recognition. So while I’m writing up drabbles, feel free to drop in and discuss anything on this playlist, as well as send me more music recommendations!

This event is open from now until Friday, July 31st (the last day to submit requests!)

here is a playlist of all the songs that are included down below, if anyone wants to listen!

Prompts (below the cut!)

“And I pray, oh my God, do I pray. I pray every single day, for revolution.” // What’s Up - 4 Non Blondes

“And he sang all night long... Oh how I sighed when they asked if I knew his name” // Lady Stardust - David Bowie

“I'm slowly drifting to you... I'm on my way” // My Tears Are Becoming a Sea - M83

“I know you, I walked with you once upon a dream.” // Once Upon A Dream - Invadable Harmony

“But this is who we are. This is where we stand: Stuck in the middle, lost in the riddle.” // Stormz - Ephraim Bungumba

“We were driving, driving in your car, the speed so fast I felt like I was drunk, city lights lay out before us and your arm felt nice wrapped 'round my shoulder” // Fast Car - Tracy Chapman

“I try to speak, but nobody can hear, so I wait around for an answer to appear” // Waving Through A Window - Ben Platt

“Feel it in your heart and feel it in your soul, let the music take control” // All Night Long - Lionel Richie

“I know a place where you can get away; it's called a dance floor, and here's what it's for” // Vogue - Madonna

“The Memories I've buried just to let you go, and if I make it out alive, will I ever see my soul” // Buried Memories - Tyler Clayton Appel

“But still, you take my breath and steal the things I know, there you go, saving me from out of the cold” // Fire On Fire - Sam Smith

“So until the next time, it's farewell and not good-bye” // Until the Next Time - Dropkick Murphys

“When will I see you, see you, see you again?... I just wanna hold your hand” // When Will I See You Again - Shakka

“Another night of us getting along, another day of us trying to be friends.” // Fall in Love Again - CLOUDTALK

“People like us we've gotta stick together” // People Like Us - Kelly Clarkson

“With the roar of the fire my heart rose to its feet, like the ashes of ash I saw rise in the heat” // Would That I - Hozier

“I hear the birds on the summer breeze, I drive fast. I am alone in the night” // Ride - Lana Del Rey

“All the lonely people put your hands up high. If you loosen up, you might just learn to fly.” // Learn To Fly - Surfaces (feat. Elton John)

“It's 4 AM again, you think that I could sense a trend. I’m stayin' up too late, just so I can stay awake” // Bored - Tessa Violet

“You're a sweet talker, but darlin' whatcha gonna say now?” // Dancing’s Not a Crime - Panic! At The Disco

“This could be the real thing, if we don't fuck it up by overthinking” // the real thing - wrabel 

“We're lying to ourselves and dancing by the light of the screen” // World Gone Mad - Bastille

“If I'm crazy, I'm on my own. If I'm waitin', it's on my throne” // What’s Up Danger (with Black Caviar) - Blackway

“And hear a voice inside my head: Follow me instead” // March to the Sea - Twenty One Pilots

“I hate accidents except when we went from friends to this” // Paper Rings - Taylor Swift

“And I'll find your lips in the street lights. I wanna be there with you” // Run Away With Me - Carly Rae Jepsen 

“Seems to be everywhere I wanna go is still too close to you” // Liquor Store on Mars - Kelsey Karter

“I don't feel adequate, thinking I'm a monster in disguise” // Gravel to Tempo - Hayley Kiyoko

“Like that night in the back of the cab when your fingers walked in my hand” // Strawberries and Cigarettes - Troye Sivan

“Softly smile, I know she must be kind” // Good Vibrations - The Beach Boys

“What's down in the dark will be brought to the light” // God’s Gonna Cut You Down - Johnny Cash

“I hear her voice in the mornin' hour, she calls me, the radio reminds me of my home far away” // Take Me Home, Country Roads - John Denver

“Born down in a dead man's town, the first kick I took was when I hit the ground” // Born in the U.S.A. - Bruce Springsteen

“Maybe I was too good, just too good for you” // Stay With Me Baby - Scott Walker

“Said you wanted to see me thrive, you lied” // Panini - Lil Nas X

“Cruising down Broadway, girl, what a wonderful view, wonderful view” // Downtown - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

“You're 'posed to hold me down, but you're holding me back” // Truth Hurts - Lizzo

“This is what I gotta do, can't be regretting when I'm old” // C7osure (You Like) - Lil Nas X

“I said make me love myself so that I might love you” // Saint Bernard - Lincoln

“And you're shining, like the brightest star, a transmission on the midnight radio” // Midnight Radio - Hedwig & the Angry Inch

“And I like the way you kiss me, don't know if I should” // Strange Effect - Unloved

“Take me home where I belong. I got no other place to go” // Runaway - AURORA

“But you were still gone, gone... It's like you showed up, just in time” // This Love - Ryan Adams

“Someone must have sent you to save me tonight” // Saved My Life - Sia

“Love is a setting sun, is a smoking gun, is a 4 letter word. I hope it hurts” // Days of Thunder - The Midnight

“Either way, we're not alone. I'll find a new place to be from” // I Know The End - Phoebe Bridgers

“How did we get so far apart, right when we got into each other’s hearts?” // Stuck in My Room - Luke Martin

“In this shirt I can be you, to be near you for a while” // In This Shirt - The Impressibles

“Do you remember the night we first me?” // Sweat - The Newton Brothers & Greta

“And now I'm more myself than I ever was. I'm happier than I ever was” // since i was young (with Kesha) - wrabel

[shawtygonemad]

What Is This Feeling: Chapter 4

Fem!9th Doctor x Male! Rose Tyler

WITF Masterlist

The Doctor and Ross made their way back to the observation gallery. The Doctor went over to the panel on the wall and started to do scans.

"That wasn't a gravity pocket. I know gravity pockets and they don't feel like that." The Doctor turned to meet a tree. "What do you think, Jabe? Listen to the engines. They've pitched up about thirty Hertz. That dodgy or what?"

"It's the sound of metal. It doesn't make any sense to me," Jabe replied.

"Where's the engine room?"

"I don't know," he paused, "But the maintenance duct is just behind our guest suite. I could show you and your…husband."

"He's not my husband," she corrected quickly.

"Partner?"

"No."

"Concubinus?"

"Nope."

"Prostitute?"

Ross finally butt in, annoyed. "Whatever I am, it must be invisible. Do you mind?" He frowned. "Tell you what, you two go and pollinate. I'm going to catch up with family. Quick word with Michael Jackson," he referred to Cassandra.

"Don't start a fight," she warned. She turned and took Jabe's offered arm. "I'm all yours," she smiled.

"I want you home by midnight," Ross called after them.

The two aliens made their way into the maintenance duct. They conversed a little as they continued down the hall of wires. It seemed like it went on forever.

"So tell me, Jabe, what's a tree like you doing in a place like this," she asked.

"Respect for the Earth."Jabe gave a small smile. "Well, perhaps it's a case of having to be seen at the right occasion."

"In case your share prices drop?" She smiled back. "I know you lot. You've got massive forests everywhere, roots everywhere, and there's always money in land."

"All the same, we respect the Earth as family. So many species evolved from that planet. Mankind is only one. I'm another. My ancestors were transplanted from the planet down below, and I'm a direct descendent of the Tropical Rainforest."

"Excuse me," she pardoned herself as she took out her Sonic Screwdriver. The Doctor began to scan the door panel.

"And what about your ancestry, Doctor? Perhaps you could tell a story or two. Perhaps a woman only enjoys trouble when there's nothing else left. I scanned you earlier. The metal machine had trouble identifying your species. It refused to admit your existence."

The Doctor froze. Jabe knew who she was. He knew what happened. The pained Time Lord stared off, flashing back to that fateful day.

"Even when it named you, I wouldn't believe it. But it was right. I know where you're from. Forgive me for intruding, but it's remarkable that you even exist. I just wanted to say how sorry I am."

Jabe gently placed a hand on the Doctor's arm. She instinctively placed hers on top of his. A single tear dripped down her face. She quickly wiped the tear and opened the door to the engine room. The Doctor shook her head, ridding herself of the painful memories. They both stepped inside the engine room.

"Is it me, or is it a bit nippy?" The Doctor questioned while staring at the giant fans running at full blast. "Fair do's, though, that's a great bit of air conditioning. Sort of nice and old fashioned. Bet they call it retro," she laughed and turned from the giant fans. She then began to scan another panel on the wall.

"Gotcha," she said as she pulled off the panel cover. A metal spider-like creature scuttled out and up the nearest wall. "What the hell's that?"

"Is that part of the retro," Jabe questioned, innocently.

The leather clad alien aimed her screwdriver at the spider as Jabe lassoes it.

"Hey, nice liana," she complimented with a smile.

"Thank you. We're not supposed to show them in public."

"Don't worry, I won't tell anybody," the Doctor reassured. "Now then, who's been bringing their pets on board?"

"What does it do?"

"Sabotage."

"Earth death in ten minutes," the computer reminded.

"And the temperature's about to rocket. Come on," she led Jabe back out of the wire pathway, and back to the hallways. They both quickly made their way to the steward's office.

Once they were outside the office the Doctor noticed the smoke, and smell coming from within. The steward was dead.

"Hold on. Get back."

She soniced the door's panel, causing the sun filter to rise.

"Is the steward in there," asked Jabe.

"You can smell him. Hold on, there's another sun filter programmed to descend."

She quickly ran off, following the signal. She hoped no one was in the room. She soon found the room with the descending filter. The Doctor started to work on raising it as fast as she could.

"Anyone in there," she called out.

"Open the door," she heard Ross yell from within. She rolled her eyes, not even surprised.

"Oh, well, it would be you. Hold on. Give us two ticks." She spoke as she continued to work.

"Sun filter rising," the computer announced.

Ross and the Doctor both began to relax.

"Sun filter descending," the computer announced once more.

"Just what we need," the Doctor said, annoyed. "The computer's getting clever."

"Stop mucking about," Ross yelled.

The Doctor began to stress out. "I'm not mucking about. It's fighting back."

After a few nail-biting seconds the Doctor finally got the filter to rise, and stay up.

"The whole door's jammed. I can't open it. Stay there!" She told him before heading off towards the observation gallery.

The Doctor walked inside the gallery as Jabe was giving everyone a briefing. She took the spider from Jabe, and inspected it once more.

"I'm afraid the steward is dead," Jabe informed them.

"Who killed him," The Moxx of Balhoon asked.

"The whole event was sponsored by the Face of Boe. He invited us. Talk to the Face. Talk to the Face," Cassandra said.

"Easy way of finding out. Someone brought their little pet on board. Let's send him back to master."

She set the spider on the ground. It scuffled off towards Cassandra, scanned her, and then moved on. It then moved onto the black gowned group.

"The Adherents of the Repeated Meme. J'accuse," Cassandra accused.

"That's all very well, and really kind of obvious, but if you think about it…" The Doctor moved towards the group. The leader swung its arm at her. She caught it, and ripped it out. "A Repeated Meme is just an idea. And that's all they are, an idea."

She pulled the main control wire from the arm. All of the Adherents fell to the floor.

"Remote controlled Droids. Nice little cover for the real troublemaker. Go on, Jimbo," she nudged the spider. "Go home."

The spider quickly scuffled off to Cassandra.

"I bet you were the school swot and never got kissed. At arms," Cassandra commanded. Her attendants raised their spray guns.

"What are you gonna do, moisturize me," she asked sarcastically.

"With acid. Oh, you're too late. My spiders have control of the mainframe. Oh, you all carried them as gifts; tax free, past every code wall. I'm not just a pretty face," Cassandra smiled.

"Sabotaging the ship when you're still on it? How stupid's that?" The Doctor crossed her arms.

"I'd hoped to manufacture a hostage situation with myself as one of the victims. The compensation would have been enormous."

"Five billion years and it still comes down to money," the Doctor was astonished at the selfishness of humans.

"You're just as useful dead, all of you. I have shares in your rival companies and they'll tripe in price as soon as you're dead. My spiders are primed and ready to destroy the safety systems. How did that old Earth song go? Burn, baby, burn."

The space station shook as the spiders were activated. The force fields suddenly disappeared. They were vulnerable.

"Bye, bye, darlings," Cassandra smirked before she and her attendants beamed out.

The heat levels began to rise.

"We have to reset the computer by hand. There must be a system restore switch. Jabe, come on. You lot, just chill," she told them as she exited the gallery.

The Doctor and Jabe sped to the engine room. They only had two minutes to restore the system. No pressure. Once inside, the Doctor quickly searched for the switch. She spotted it behind the three giant fans.

"Oh, and guess where the switch is."

The Doctor pulled a breaker lever and the fans began to slow a bit. As soon as she let go and stepped away the fans reset their speed. Jabe grabbed the lever and held it down.

"You can't. The heat's going to vent through this place," the Time Lord protested.

"I know," the tree told her.

"Jabe, you're made of wood."

"Then stop wasting time, Time Lady," Jabe used the correct gender term of her race. The Doctor grinned, and nodded.

She made it passed the first fan easily. Once at the second fan she looked back at Jabe. He was still okay. They could do this! She turned back to the fan. Timing it perfectly, the Doctor ran through. When she reached the third fan a cry of pain was heard behind her. She turned to look. Jabe had combusted, and was burning alive.

'No!'

She couldn't help him. It killed her. The Doctor had to keep going. Jabe's death wouldn't be meaningless. It'll be harder to get through the last fan since they were back on full blast.

The fans were going faster than expected. The only way she could get through is if she slowed down time. It was something they were taught to do in the Academy. It wasn't easy. It took lots of concentration.

She closed her eyes and steadied her hearts. Her entire body needed to be calm. She breathed slowly and focused. In her mind everything started to slow down. The fans were at a crawling pace. Holding her breath, she stepped through.

Once she realized that it worked, her eyes flew open. She bolted forward and pulled down the breaker.

"Raise shields"

The Shields raised just in time as the Earth exploded. Once her adrenaline slowed down, she decided to return to everyone. The Doctor walked back under the fans. She stopped and stared sadly at the ashes of Jabe. No matter how many companions she had, there will always be one constant one: Death. She turned away, and strode back to the main gallery.

When she stepped inside, she saw some members mourning their loss. Seeing Ross also lifted a weight off her shoulders. However, first thing she needed to do was inform Lute and Coffa. She stepped over to them and placed a hand on both of their shoulders.

"Jabe is dead," she spoke softly. "He died a hero. Make sure he has an honoured ceremony once you return home. I'm so sorry." She turned and stepped away to let them mourn in private.

"You alright," Ross asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm full of ideas, I'm bristling with them. "She spoke angrily. "Idea number one, teleportation through five thousand degrees needs some kind of feed. Idea number two, this feed must be hidden nearby."

The Doctor walked over to the displayed Ostrich egg. She smashed it to reveal a small device.

"Idea number three, if you're as clever as me, then a teleportation feed can be reversed." The Doctor reversed the device. Cassandra beamed back in.

"Oh," she said, shocked.

"The last human," The Doctor growled, very cross.

"So, you passed my little test. Bravo. This makes you eligible to join, er, the human club," Cassandra lied.

"People have died, Cassandra. You murdered them."

"It depends on your definition of people, and that's enough of a technicality to keep your lawyers dizzy for centuries. Take me to court, the Doctor, and watch me smile and cry and flutter," Cassandra began to creak.

"And creak," asked the Doctor.

"And what?" Cassandra spoke, confused.

"Creak. You're creaking."

"What? Ah! I'm drying out! Oh, sweet heavens. Moisturize me, moisturize me! Where are my surgeons? My lovely boys! It's too hot," Cassandra cried out.

"You raised the temperature," the Doctor spoke coldly.

"Have pity! Moisturize me! Oh, oh, Doctor. I'm sorry. I'll do anything," she begged.

"Help her," Ross said, sympathetically.

"Everything has its time and everything dies," She said stone cold.

"I'm too young," Cassandra cried before exploding.

Without a second glance, the Doctor left the room. She needed pace to calm down. She didn't return until everyone was gone. When she walked back into the gallery she saw Ross staring out where the Earth once was.

"The end of the Earth. It's gone. We were too busy saving ourselves. No one saw it go. All those years, all that history, and no one was even looking. It's just-" he stopped himself.

The Doctor knew just what to do. She gently took his hand. "Come with me."

The both silently held hands as they walked back to the TARDIS. When they were inside, Ross sat on the jumper seat, defeated. The Doctor moved around the console returning them to London. When they landed, the two stepped out into a crowd of people.

"You think it'll last forever, people and cars and concrete, but it won't. One day it's all gone. Even the sky." The Doctor took a deep breath. She was going to tell him. "My planet's gone. It's dead. It burned like the Earth. It's just rocks and dust before it's time."

"What happened?"

She looked at him with sad eyes. "There was a war, and we lost."

"A war with who?" The Doctor stayed silent. "What about your people," Ross went on.

"I'm a Time Lord… well, Time Lady. I'm the last of the Time Lords. They're all gone. I'm the only survivor. I'm left travelling on my own 'cos there's no one else."

"There's me," Ross told her.

"You've seen how dangerous it is. Do you want to go home," she asked, waiting for him to confirm her fear.

"I don't know. I want…" he paused, and sniffed the air. "Oh, can you smell chips?"

The Doctor laughed, "Yeah."

"I want chips," he smiled.

"Me, too," she grinned.

"Right then, before you get me back in that box, chips it is! My treat. We've only got five billion years till the shops close."

They grinned at each other before Ross grabbed the Doctor's hand, and led her towards the glorious smell of chips.

***

Thanks for reading! You're all fantastic!

[artificialqueens]

Hot as Hell and No A/C, Last Chapter: Chapter 11 (Branjie) - Blackhighheels

Read on AO3

I’m going to miss writing this story. I hope you like the ending.

Epilogue

Brock quickly shuts off his alarm, hopeful that for once he’ll manage and let Jose sleep. The groan coming from the other side of the bed just a moment later lets him know he’s failed though.

”What time is it?” Jose mumbles and turns on his side, facing Brock.

”Early. Go back to sleep, babe.” He kisses him softly and rubs his back for a moment and then gets out of bed. His clothes are already waiting for him in the bathroom. Like always he takes a quick shower and gets dressed. By the time he is done, Jose is sleeping again und like he usually does, he takes a second to look at him and memorizes the scene. He’s probably the only person in the world right now who gets to see this loud and boisterous human being, be so still and quiet as he snoozes away.

Brock’s right on time when he leaves the house, walks into his favorite coffee shop to get himself breakfast and meets one of his classmates a few blocks down the street.

He’s still surprised that nearly half of his class are his age or older, because at first he’d been scared that he’d be so much older than the rest of the students. It’s a very eclectic group of people from all kinds of backgrounds race and age, who simply all have their love for photography in common. He loves this school and his classmates and it’s so much different from the first time he went to college.

He’s done in the afternoon and has dinner with his friends on campus. Brock stops by Whole Foods to get the groceries for dinner and grabs some lunch for Jose as well. After dropping off the groceries at home, he ubers to the studio, because it’s too far to walk.

”Lunch break,” Brock announces when he walks into the dance studio, where Jose is just explaining something to the dancers.

”Finally, you’re late today, mate! I thought he’d never give us a break,” Tony, one of the dancers Jose usually works with, complains in good humour.

”Get outta here, asshole, before I fire you,” Jose yells and everyone just laughs. They all leave anyway to get some lunch as well.

”You not late, boo. You’re right on time,” Jose tells him and pecks his lips quickly, but stays away from him.

”I’m a bit late. The first uber was cancelled by the driver because he apparently got a better offer.” Brock wraps his arms around Jose’s waist and pulls him close.

”I’m all sweaty,” he protests

”I don’t care.” Another conversation that feels like they’ve had thousands of times before. This is probably the only moment they get to themselves all day and Brock just needs to kiss him. So he does. They end up making out with Jose pressed up shirtless against the mirror wall. Jose’s growling stomach stops them from going further.

”Probably for the best. If they catch us fucking in here, these hos will never let me live it down,” Jose laughs, grabs the food container Brock brought him and sits down on the floor.

”I’m still traumatised from when your mom walked in on us.”

Jose chuckles. ”She didn’t see nothing, ‘cause she was clever enough to wait in the kitchen until we were done.”

”She heard us! That’s bad enough,” Brock feels his face heat just remembering the scene.

”You just embarrassed ‘cause you was taking the D that day and then you always extra loud. And it her own fault for just walking into our house. Who does that?” Jose really finds this funny.

”Your mother, apparently.”

”She’s not done it again.” Jose digs into his food with a chuckle. ”You working tonight?” he asks after swallowing.

”Yeah, one of the drag race girls is gonna be at Mickys WeHo and they asked me to take some pictures.”

”Cool. Who is it? Someone we know?”

”I don’t think so, but you know I always get confused with their boy names and drag names.”

”Silky’s still not over you calling them ‘Reggie’ all the time when they in drag.”

”That’s how he introduced himself. How was I supposed to know he’s feeling his full female fantasy as soon as he has some lipgloss on?”

”You around them drag hos more than me now, you should know,” Jose chuckles. ”So, who is it?”

”Uhh…” he quickly checks his phone. ”Kameron something.”

”Michaels?”

”I think so.”

”The body builder barbie. He good.”

”So you know him?”

”Yeah,” Jose nods and swallows again before he speaks. ”He the boyfriend of Asia.”

”Asia?”

”Ant!”

”Aaah, ok,” now Brock knows who he’s talking about.

”Tell him I say hi.”

”He’s as dramatic as Ant?” He needs to ask, because the one time he’s worked for Asia, the other man had a melt down over the glitter on his face being the wrong color.

”Nah, he’s pretty chill. A bit quiet at first, that why people say he’s arrogant or some shit, but he just real shy, ya know?” Jose’s done with his food and hands his left-overs to Brock. Another ritual they’ve established.

”You gonna be home tonight for dinner?” Brock has no problem talking with his mouth full, which makes Jose roll his eyes.

”Probably not. They sent us a new cut of the song today and the whole middle part doesn’t fit with the beat anymore. We have to change it all.”

”I’ll leave dinner in the fridge then.”

”We still on for tomorrow? Free day at the beach and all that?” Jose asks and leans his head against Brock’s shoulder.

”Yes, absolutely. We need some alone time before you leave for the shoot next week.”

”I already miss you,” Jose sighs. Brock places the food on the ground and wraps his arms around his boyfriend.

”It always sucks when you’re gone, but it’s just another month until we leave for Hawaii.” They’ve booked a vacation and Brock can’t wait. The first vacation in his life, his first flight, his first trip with his boyfriend.

”I know,” Jose’s lips ghost against Brock’s neck and then he sits back up. ”They all gonna be back in a sec’. See you tomorrow?”

”See you tomorrow,” Brock confirms and pecks Jose’s lips a couple of times. He grabs the trash to take it with him and leaves just as the dancers get back.

Back at home he has time to clean up around the house, do his homework and take care of the cats. He heads to his therapist’s office for his weekly session and when he gets back home, he cooks dinner, even though he hates eating alone and then gets ready to go to work.

It had been Jose’s idea that he could take pictures of the dancers and from there he started to take pictures at the clubs, then of drag queens and now he has a pretty steady group of clients, who always book him when they need photos of themselves or the queens at the clubs.

It’s exhausting being up early to go to school and then work in the clubs at night, but Brock is used to hard work and long hours.

When he gets back home, Jose is already in bed, snuggling Thackery, while Apollo and Henry are spread out on his side of the bed. They run off when he comes in, they know he doesn’t want them on the bed and even Thackery follows them after Brock has given him some attention.

Jose senses his presence and seeks his warmth. He’s just shut off the light when Jose’s suddenly lying half on top of him, fast asleep.

”Night papi,” Brock whispers, kisses his forehead and smiles when he remembers that they are both having tomorrow off.

***

It’s late and all Brock wants to do is go home, but he still has to show the pictures he took to the dancers of the ‘Papi Boy Friday’.

Usually Jose comes with him on these Fridays, but his flight back got delayed and Brock is lucky if he’ll be home by the time he’s done here. Jose has been gone for a week and Brock misses him like crazy.

”I’m the last one?” Tyler, one of the dancers, asks and slides into the seat next to him.

”Yes, looks like it.” Brock confirms and turns his laptop so Tyler can see the pictures.

”Ok, that one’s a no. Look at my face,” the dancer laughs and touches his arm quickly.

”It’s not that bad. I like the lighting,” Brock says and points it out to him on the screen.

”You got a similar one?” Tyler leans closer and steadies himself with a hand on Brock’s shoulder.

”Yeah, this one. You like it better?”

”Yeah. I love it,” Tyler smiles and nudges Brock with his shoulder. ”We take that one definitely,” he decides with a wink.

”Your wish is my command,” Brock jokes and quickly saves the picture into the according folder. They quickly look through the other pictures and pick a couple more.

”You gonna stay for another beer?” Tyler asks him when they are done.

”Nah, I really wanna go home. I’m beat.”

”Oh come on! It’s been a while since we hung out.”

”Fine,” Brock sighs and checks his phone for the time, calculates quickly if Jose could be home by now.

”Here,” Tyler comes back and hands him a bottle. They clink their bottles together and each takes a sip. ”Where’s your boyfriend?”

”Shooting again. He wanted to be back this morning, but his flight got delayed.”

”So you’re single tonight?” Tyler smiles and steps a bit closer to him. A bit too close for Brock’s liking, bit Tyler has never had any sense of personal space.

”Huh?” Brock doesn’t quite understand the question though. Why would he be single just because Jose is…?

Suddenly he is pushed aside as someone slams into him from the side.

”Get your fucking hands off my man,” It’s loud, it’s aggressive, it’s followed by a glass of vodka something being thrown into Tyler’s face; It’s Jose.

”Jo?” Brock can’t believe that he’s here. He’s happy and surprised, but even more so, he is confused by his boyfriend’s behaviour. ”What are you doing here?” he asks, but doesn’t get an answer to his question because Tyler throws the first punch and Jose sees red. The bottles, his laptop and phone crash to the ground as Jose tackles the dancer onto the table and hits him right in the face.

”Imma end you!” he screams and lands another blow.

”Jose, stop!” Brock grabs him from behind and pulls him off. Tyler wants to come after him again, but is held back but two other dancers who have hurried over. Jose struggles against Brock’s hold, but he drags him through the nearly empty club and out into an alley way, all the while Jose is still cussing and swearing and threatening Tyler. ”Stop! God damnit! Calm down. What the hell are you doing?” Brock yells and pins him against the wall by his shoulders, so he can look in his face. He has a wound on his forehead, but his eyes are black with rage.

”Imma kill this motherfucking bitch! No one touches my man. No one!” he screams. They’ve been together for six months and Brock has seen Jose angry, he’s seen him get into fights a couple of times, but he’s never seen him lose it like this.

”He wasn’t touching me. What are you talking about?” he asks, truly confused.

”He wasn’t touching you? Bitch! You lying now? That what’s going on here? I be gone for one week and you hooking up with this dancer ho?” Now Jose’s anger is directed at him.

”I’m not hooking up with anyone. You’re completely delusional. And stop pushing me!” Brock yells back, when Jose starts pushing at his chest, hurting him.

The door opens and one of the bouncers comes out, holding Brock’s laptop bag, camera and cellphone.

”Brock, these are yours, right?” he asks and Brock nods. ”You need some help?”

”No, we’re going home now. Thank you, André.” He takes his things from him and keeps Jose in place with one hand on his shoulder.

”You can go wherever the fuck you want, but you not telling me what to do!” Jose is yelling again as soon as they’re alone.

”Will you just shut up and calm down? I’m not discussing this with you in a dirty alley way at 4 am in the morning! I’m going home now and you’re coming and if I have to drag you there.” He yells back. Dragging isn’t necessary, because Jose follows him the three blocks back to their house. The door slams shut behind them and Brock knows that Jose has obviously not calmed down yet. With a heavy sigh he puts his photo bag down and walks upstairs.

”Where you going? Take a shower to wash him off you? Grab your clothes and leave?” Jose follows him, still yelling. ”You said you no cheater! You said you fucking loyal! You a liar!”

Brock takes a deep breath to not lose his cool completely and grabs the first aid kit from underneath the sink. ”Sit down on the bed. You’re bleeding,” he orders, his voice icy because of all the hurt and anger he feels.

Jose sits down and while Brock cleans his wound and wipes the blood away, he can see the anger draining out of Jose. It’s like he’s deflating, becoming smaller in front of his eyes. When he puts the bandaid on his forehead, Jose speaks again.

”How long’s this been going on? You and him?” Jose asks and his eyes are full of tears.

”There’s nothing going on with me and him or anyone else. Why the fuck do you even think that?”

”‘Cause I get here and want to surprise you and all I see is him flirting with you, touching you the whole time and you smiling back.”

”He was not flirting with me.”

”He was fucking all over you and wants to fuck you. What’d you think it means when he saying ‘You single tonight’?” Jose gets louder again.

”I… I don’t know. I didn’t think about it too much. I know Tyler… hell, you know Tyler. He just wanted to hang out, that’s all.”

”You so fucking thick. He flirts with you every damn time and you never say nothing! Every fucking ho in this place has their hands on you all the time. You always smiling and flirting.. You leading them hos on, even when I’m standing right next you. What the fuck is going on when I’m not there? Tyler wanting to fuck you, that’s what and you just letting him.”

”No one is flirting with me! And I’m not flirting back. I work there, Jo, I’m just friendly and I get along with everyone. But you just had to come in tonight and ruin it by attacking one of the dancers. You’re out of control!”

”No, you out of control! If I’d known you transform from country boy to party toy in six months, I’d have left your ass back in Texas, so you’d keep it in your pants. You not the same.”

”No, I’m not! I’m not depressed anymore all the time, I’m not scared anymore, I’m not dependent on you anymore and I have a couple tattoos more. If you want someone who’s always following you around and depending on you, I propose you get a puppy and not a boyfriend,” Brock yells back, because he’s had it. Jose is absolutely impossible and has gone way too far.

”Brock!” Jose calls after him when he leaves the bedroom and slams the door behind him, but he doesn’t stop. He needs a moment to calm down. He grabs his phone and his keys and leaves.

For a while he just walks around the block, until he finds a gas station that’s still open and buys himself a cup of coffee with the last couple of dollars he has in his pockets. When he feels calmer, he walks back home.

He finds Jose sitting in the living room, a blanket thrown over his shoulders. His face is blotchy, swollen and wet, his eyes are red from crying and the sight breaks Brock’s heart.

”You came back.” It’s barely above a whisper and Brock realises that his boyfriend really thought that he was gone for good.

Brock wraps his arms around him and holds him, because he needs the embrace as much as Jose does. ”Of course I came back. I just needed a moment to calm down.”

”I thought you went to him.” Jose sniffs against his shoulder where he hides his face.

Brock cups his face and makes him look at him. ”Jose, there is nothing going on with Tyler or anyone else. I’ve never cheated on you.” Brock tells him again and looks him in the eyes. ”Do you believe me?”

It takes a moment, but finally Jose nods. ”I believe you.” Brock wipes the tears and the snot off his face, pecks his lips and holds him close again.

”I love you, papi, but we can’t continue like this.”

Jose pushes back and his eyes are wide with shock. ”What do you mean? You breaking up with me?”

”No, I’m not,” Brock pulls him back into his arms. ”But I can’t have you flying off in a jealous rage all the time. You have to trust me. And the fights you get into, the breaking things when you’re angry… you need some anger management classes, babe. And maybe some therapy, too.”

”You’re not leaving me?”

”I don’t want to leave you, Jose. I love you. But… we both need to put the work in, because we both have issues. And I can’t fix yours. I don’t know how to convince you that I’m being faithful and I’m not interested in anyone else. You believe me now, but the next guy who so much as looks my way and we’ll be back right here. I take pictures of drag queens in gay clubs. People will touch me and flirt with me, it’s part of the game, even if I don’t get it most of the time and think they’re just friendly. But I need you to trust me. And if you can’t, then we need to get help. I told you before, but I will not get beat up by anyone again, not even by you.”

”I’ve never hurt you,” Jose points out with another sniff.

”I know and I’d like for it to stay that way.” He runs his fingers through Jose’s sweaty hair. The grief and pain he must feel really affects him physically. ”Babe, if you ever hit me, that’s something I wouldn’t be able to forgive, just like cheating.”

”It on the no-go list,” Jose nods and sits up.

”Definitely.”

”Ok… your therapist, he doing the anger shit, too?” Jose seems embarrassed to even ask the question.

”I don’t know, but I can ask him. If he’s not offering it, maybe he can recommend someone.” Brock gives him an encouraging smile. ”But he could definitely help us with your jealousy.”

”And yours!”

”And mine,” Brock chuckles, because he knows Jose is right. He might not go around and beat people up, but he’s definitely been jealous and has frozen Jose out because of it.

It’s Jose who initiates the kiss that seals their deal, but it’s Brock who breaks it when he sees Jose’s hand. ”Papi, what happened to your hand? That from the fight?” Brock wonders when he sees the swollen knuckles and cuts on his boyfriend’s right hand.

”No,” Jose looks like a deer in headlights. ”I might’ve smashed the bathroom mirror and punched the wall,” comes the hesitant explanation.

”You’re an idiot, Jose,” Brock rolls his eyes, but he isn’t really angry. There’s no point in it, when they’ve already agreed to take the necessary steps to prevent this from happening again.

”But you love me anyway.” It’s a statement, not a question and Brock is glad to hear it.

”True. Guess, we’re both idiots. Let’s go upstairs so I can bandage your hand and clean up the mess you no doubt left in the bathroom.” He gets up and wraps his arm around Jose’s shoulder as they leave the living-room.

”And we still have to make up.”

”Didn’t we just do that?”

”Bitch, if you think we just going to sleep after being apart for a week and then nearly breaking up, you wrong! I expect to be dicked down till the sun comes up!” Jose huffs and Brock tries to hide his smile.

”So for another twenty minutes?” he teases after checking the time.

”Asshole!” Jose grumps before they both start laughing.

***

”James Dean?” The familiar nickname never fails to make Brock chuckle.

”Kitchen, J.Lo,” he calls and turns around to see Jose’s mother walking in, carrying large paper bags. ”Hey,” she greets him and hands him one of the bags, after he kissed her cheek hello.

”Hey. What’s all of this?” he asks and peeks into the brown bag.

”Just some groceries and food and drinks. You two never have anything at home and the kid needs to eat,” she shrugs and starts unpacking. ”There’s three more in the car.”

”Hint taken, I’ll get them,” he laughs, grabs her car keys and walks out to get the rest of the groceries. ”You know that Rachel’s only staying for two weeks, not two years, right?” he teases her when he gets back.

”Oh shut up,” she rolls her eyes and reminds him so much of her son at that moment. ”You heard anything yet?”

”Yes, Jo texted that they started boarding on time, so they should be here in three hours.”

”It’s good that Jose could stop in Houston and pick Rachel up. She’s too young to fly on her own.”

”Yeah, I think she got scared by her own bravado. At first she was all ‘I am not a baby anymore, I can fly on my own’, but she’s never even been to an airport. She wouldn’t have known where to go or what to do. I was overwhelmed by it all when we went to Hawaii, even though Jose was with me the whole time.”

”You gonna pick’em up?”

”Of course. I have to show Jose my new car,” Brock beams.

”Oh, he’s not seen it yet?”

”He was there when I bought it, but it took two months for them to deliver it, so he’s not seen it yet.”

”Ah, right. You should be very proud, you know. Making so much money with your photos and working so hard that you can buy a new car.” Anabel starts checking the things in their fridge, throwing away what she deems inedible, while storing the rest of the things she brought.

”I couldn’t have done it without Jose and his help. I had nothing when I came here, no money, no job… he was fully sponsoring me for the first three months, before I could start paying for my own stuff. And now I can even pay him back.” He feels so incredibly happy and proud. The first time he’d been able to buy Jose a present, a new watch, he’d burst into tears when he’d given it to him.

”You had therapy, that’s more important than making money. We were all worried about you, you know. When Ada called and Jose wasn’t sure, if he should go and get you. I told him, I said ‘Son, if you not going and Brock’s hurting himself or starts drinking like his dad, you not gonna forgive yourself’.”

”That all seems so far away now. I feel so different. Have I told you, I was even able to go off the anti-depressants a couple of weeks ago?”

”See, so proud of you, mijo,” she kisses his cheek again. ”And you got my stubborn idiot to finally stop acting like a teenager who gets into fights all the time. I really thought one day the cops gonna call me and I have to bail him outta jail.”

”He’s still a hothead, but he’s got himself under control now,” Brock laughs, remembering Jose’s last angry rant, when he had walked up to his punching bag in the spare room every couple of minutess, to let his frustration out. ”Most of the time.”

”Have you heard from your parents?”

”Not really. My mom talks to me when I call, but it’s all… the weather, what the priest said at church, bit of gossip about the people in town and what the animals are doing at the farm. The most I get out of her, is when she got into another fight with Lilly about how things are done.”

”And your dad? Still nothing?”

”He hasn’t talked to me since we left and I can’t really ask my mother, because she doesn’t seem to know that he came to see us.” Brock hops up and sits down on the counter.

”He still drinking?”

”Judging by what Ada says nothing’s changed. He’s still an absolute asshole to everyone.”

”Is there like a therapist in town he could see? I don’t think you can just stop drinking.”

”No, there’s not. If my dad wanted to really stop drinking, he’d have to check himself into a program in Dallas or Houston and he’s not going to do that.” Brock sighs. ”It’s just so frustrating, because I wanna help him, but I’m not sure he even wants help. Sometimes I feel like I dreamed the whole thing when we left.”

”Maybe he just wanted you to know…. and not change? It gets harder to change when you get old. I’m still young, but I say I’ll start working out every damn day and what do I do? Drink margaritas and chill by the pool.” Her very true assessment of her own habits makes Brock laugh.

”So, what’s the plan here? What are you gonna cook?”

”I’m not cooking nada. You can cook yourself. I just brought some things for Miss Rachel.”

”Mama Vanjie… as Jose would say ‘you full of shit’. What are you making?”

She slaps him, but laughs. ”I thought, you could Bbq some pinchos with chicken. Or shrimp for Jose. And I make some guacamole, tostones and garlic sauce, mofongo and empanadas. And I brought tres leches as dessert.”

”Jesus, how many people are we expecting? It’s just the five of us.” Brock knows her husband will join them as well.

”I talked to Silky and they will be over later. I said once Rachel’s in bed, we would make Coquito.”

”Isn’t that for Christmas only?”

”We can pretend it’s Christmas,” Anabel shrugs unimpressed and Brock guffaws.

”Fine. If Silky’s coming over so will be A’keria. Then I can also invite Dane and Ant, ‘cause they are in town… Rachel will be spending her first night in L.A. In the company of two gays, four gay drag queens and a crazy Puerto Rican woman. My dad would have a heart attack, if he knew.”

”Or, he’d like to get invited and dress up as well,” she jokes and Brock nearly falls off the counter when he imagines his dad as a drag queen. He will so go to hell for this thought.

Brock helps Anabel in the kitchen – as much as she lets him – and then leaves her alone in the house to pick up Jose and Rachel. Jose’s been gone for three weeks this time and as excited as Brock is about seeing Rachel again after nearly a year, he also can’t wait to see his boyfriend again. The romantic evening surely won’t happen now that Anabel invited half of WeHo over to their place, but Jose won’t leave again for the foreseeable future. They’ll make up for it later.

Impatiently he checks the screens again and again, but they only tell him that the plane has landed, nothing more. It’s not the first time he’s picking up Jose, so he hopes that he’s not gone to the baggage claim on his own for once. He checks the screen again.

”Uncle Brock!” He looks around and finally sees Rachel running towards him, with her backpack in hand and Jose’s neck pillow around her neck.

”Rachel!” She jumps and is in his arms a second later. ”God, you’ve gotten so big!” he points out as he still holds her.

”Are you calling me fat?” she asks in her usual sassy way and makes him laugh.

”Are you wearing make-up?” Brock narrows his eyes when he gets a good look at her face.

”Jose had them paint my nails and do my make up at the airport,” she nods excitedly and jumps down so she can show him her nails, which are painted neon yellow.

”You know your mother will kill me, if she sees you like this?” Brock raises his eyebrows.

”She just wearing some mascara, blush and lipgloss, so calm your ass down. And she won’t be home for another two weeks,” Jose shows up behind them. Brock turns around, sees his smirk and hugs him tightly.

”I missed you,” he tells him, kisses him and pecks his lips a couple more times before finally pulling back.

”Missed you, too,” Jose replies softly.

”We gonna get our bags now or you are you gonna continue making out here?” Rachel stops them, just when they lean in again.

”When did you become such a brat?” Brock asks and ruffles through her neatly combed hour, making her squeal.

”I’m not,” she protests as they start walking towards the baggage claim.

”And she shouldn’t be talking, ‘cause Miss Rachel’s in loooove,” Jose sing-songs teasingly.

”I’m not!”

”Oooh, who’s the guy?” Brock exchanges an amused look with Jose and wraps his arm around his waist.

”Why’d you think it a guy?” Jose grins.

”Ok, who’s the girl?” Brock rephrases, still teasing her.

”It’s not a girl!” Rachel protests.

”Oh, so it is a guy! Who is he? Where did you meet? What does he look like? Does he know you like him?” Brock asks.

”Ok, I’ll tell ya, but you’re not allowed to laugh! Best friends don’t laugh about stuff like that.” Rachel requests.

”Promise,” Brock vows and Jose hides his face in his shoulder, when he has to laugh about the spectacle.

”Ok, so…” Rachel starts her tale as they reach the baggage claim.

”You know the story already?” Brock quietly asks Jose.

”Bits and pieces. Had to keep her distracted when she nearly freaked out during take-off,” Jose whispers back and kisses him again.

”Keep an eye on the conveyor belt. I’m the best friend, I have to listen to this in detail, before she realises I’m really just her old uncle.”

”Not that old, babe,” Jose replies, wraps his arms around Brock’s waist and leans his head against his shoulder as he keeps looking for their suitcases. Brock keeps him close as he listens to his twelve year old niece babble about her first crush, kisses Jose’s forehead from time to time and is happy that he has his two favorite people back in his life, both at the same time.

***

”Babe, stop messing with your hair. You look fine,” Brock tells him and takes Jose’s hand in his to stop him from nervously fiddling with his hair again.

”Fine? Just fine? I have to look smokin’, Imma be on camera,” Jose whispers back, now fiddling with his bow-tie with the other hand. He can’t just look fine. This is the biggest thing that has ever happened to him, well, possibly.

”You are. You’re looking so hot!”

”You still like the suit? Maybe I should’ve taken the grey one?” Jose wonders.

”No, this dark blue one is perfect. You look perfect!” Brock quickly kisses him. ”And now sit up straight, stop fidgeting and smile, ‘cause your category is next.” Jose does just that and grasps Brock’s hand with both of his. Jose knows his palms are sweaty, but he also knows Brock gets it. Dressed up to the nines, both in suits and bow-ties they are sitting at large round table, sweating underneath the large spotlight above their heads. A camera man shows up next to them, doing a close up of Jose’s face. He’s blinded by the light for a second, but tries not to grimace or squint. Instead he grips Brock’s hands even tighter.

”And the winner of the MTV Video Award for best Choreography is….” Jose hears the blood rush in his ears and the seconds seem endless as the presenter opens the envelope. ”…. Vaaanjiiiiie for the video to ‘Hot as hell’.”

Jose freezes, he can’t believe it. He’s won!

”Oh my god, papi! Jose!” Brock hugs him so tightly he can barely breathe and kisses him – that’s when he knows it’s real. He’s won the motherfucking award!

Jose presses his lips to Brock’s again and then gets up. People congratulate him left and right as he makes his way up to the stage. He feels like he’s floating. On stage he accepts the award with shaky hands, smiles and pulls the little paper with his notes out, that Brock made him prepare. The letters blur in front of his eyes and he crumbles it in his hand. When he looks out into the room, he is blinded again, but then, suddenly, he manages to catch Brock’s eyes. Even from up here, he can see that his boyfriend is a very proud, crying mess. It makes him smile even wider.

”Thank you all for this award. I’d like to thank my ma and my whole family, Miss Ada and the whole bunch, my management and all the artists who book me and all the dancers who work with me and bear with me on the regular. I can’t believe I won. It crazy, ‘cause not only did I win with my first nomination, and with the video that has my niece dancing on camera for the first time – shoutout to Miss Rachel – , but also with the choreography that means a whole lot, because it was inspired by the story of the man who means the world to me and who’s been putting up with my crazy ass for the last two years. Brock, I love you so much! This is yours as much as mine! Thank you, boo, for everything.” He holds up the award again and makes his way off the stage. There are photographers beside the stage and he has to pose for a couple of pictures. He’s allowed back during the next commercial break and hurries past everyone to get back to Brock. He gets up when he sees him and ends the talk with the person sitting next to him.

”I’m so fucking proud of you,” Brock tells him and hugs him again.

”Thank you. Couldn’t have done it without you.”

”Not true, but I take it. I love you, too!”

”Wanna get out of here? Celebrate in private?” Jose just wants to be alone with Brock now, away from all the people and the cameras; get out of the suits and just be them.

”Can we do that?” Brock laughs in surprise.

”I got the award. What are they gonna do? Take it back?”

”Alright, then hurry, before they start filming again,” Brock giggles, quickly grabs their phones off the table and then they hurry through the room, hand in hand, and just make it out in time, before the doors close again for shooting.

In the uber back home they are all over each other in the backseat, Jose’s award nearly forgotten in the car when they stumble out of the car.

”Wait, papi, wait,” Brock stops him suddenly when they are making their way through the living room towards the bedroom, Jose’s jacket, shirt and bowtie already somewhere on the floor and his belt and zipper open, while Brock’s still fully dressed.

”What? You wanted to congratulate me… preferably on your knees!” Jose says and tries once more to get Brock out of his suit jacket.

”My phone keeps vibrating. Maybe it’s important.”

”Bitch, are you serious?” Jose can’t believe it. But Brock really takes his phone out and pulls him over to the couch.

”Look, it’s from Rachel,” Brock shows him the screen.

”That could’ve waited,” Jose tried to pretend he’s still grumpy, but he loves Rachel as much as Brock does.

”Oh come on now! She’s so excited about your win! She even sent a video. We can’t let her wait until we’re done, ‘cause that’s gonna take a while.”

”Oh really?” the comment shoots straight to his dick. Whenever Brock’s in that intense kind of mood, things are really getting hot and heavy in the bedroom.

”Really,” the kiss Brock gives him is as hot as the images in Jose’s head, but he has to wait and watch Rachel’s video first.

Rachel is filming and Jason, Ada, Joe and the kids, Dan and his two eldest and even Brock’s mom are all there at the dance studio. They are watching the award show live as Rachel films the moment of the announcement. They’re all silent, biting their nails, holding hands or just staring at the screen. When Jose’s win is announced they erupt in cheers and Ada bursts into tears, because she’s so happy.

”There’s Brock,” his mother can be heard saying and points at the screen, when they are shown kissing before Jose makes his way up on stage. Jose and Brock watch their reactions to Jose’s speech in the video.

”Congratulations Jose! Can’t wait to see you guys again in three weeks!” Rachel can be seen a moment later, now facing the camera. ”But, like, there’s something I gotta do now, 'cause I promised” she smirks into the camera and Jose knows she’s up to no good.

Before he can even guess at what she’s up to this time, she films her family, who are just sitting there now and then walks over to where Jose knows the mirrors are in the studio. She angles the camera at the mirrors and there’s a large paper hanging down from the ceiling. In big, bold letters the poster reads ‘Marry me?’

”What?” Jose gasps. Suddenly Brock is kneeling next to the couch and pulls a ring box out of his suit jacket.

”Marry me?” Brock asks him, this time in person, the cell phone turned off now. Jose stares at him. He can’t believe this.

”You fucking bitch!” he points a finger at him as he bursts into tears. ”This is how you propose to me? When I’m looking like this?” he points to his disheveled and half-dressed state.

Brock laughs. ”That a yes?”

Jose laughs and cries at the same time as he sinks down beside his man, kisses him and tackles him to the ground. They celebrate the win and their engagement right there, naked on the living room floor, with the cold air of the AC cooling their heated skin.

The end