#this girl's going on a road trip with a stranger to find her grandma

[rabbit-hearted-girl]

I have a feeling that Cinder and Scarlet are gonna be besties (at least I hope so)

[bumbershots]

Mistletoe & Wine

A/N: Hello this is my collaboration for @goldenbluesuit very well put together Christmas song fic challenge. It’s my first time participating and my first time posting my writing here as well (I’m sort of new, I have no friends) so, I’m kind of nervous and English is not my first language (sorry for any mistakes) thanks to my boyfriend for being a Brit so he could help me with the “slang” and for reading this about fifteen times and listened to Mistletoe and Wine by Cliff Richard throughout the entire week with me lol. Thanks for  taking the time to read this :) If you want to befriend a twenty six year old Aries, or just send me an ask click here.

Word count: 2.8k

Summary: Harry meets a woman that is not here to stay, he will need to decide if that will keep him from making the most of the very few days they have together or dread the imminent separation.

It was raining when her flight landed in London. The kind of rain that doesn't pour heavily, instead it settles over the city for days. And although she can't afford to take a cab, she steps out of the airport just to stare at the endless grey of the sky and wrap herself in her coat because of how cold it was. After a few more minutes she goes back inside to find the way to get out of there on the tube, she knew it to be possible after all the research she's been doing since the age of twelve on the internet.

Soon enough, the man she approached to ask for help, confirms that a train is leaving in a few minutes and she can easily get off at Hammersmith, he even helps her buy the ticket and recommends to get an oyster card if she is going to use London's Underground often. But she doesn't know, she relishes in the element of surprise that is surrounding her life for the next 3 weeks. It excites her to an unfamiliar degree to see people come and go into the carriage, it almost makes her miss her stop, but she manages to get off just in time, her hands clutching the heavy suitcase that contains all her nicest and warmest clothes. She follows the crowd up the stairs and out of the station, the busy street revealed before her is straight out of those books she restlessly studied at school, people wearing trench coats and long scarfs hurry in hopes to avoid the rain and then a red double-decker bus passes by. The cherry on top.

The spontaneous decision to spend Christmas in England instead of her home country was made months ago, on the night of her birthday, although her closest friends would say that she's been dreaming of it since she read Harry Potter. No one gave her a hard time for it, in fact, almost all her friends and family members went to the airport to wish her a safe trip. Her grandmother was cheeky enough to slip a twenty pound note when hugging her goodbye.

Every day of the first week went by in a blur, visiting museums, galleries and walking around the city, getting soaked in its beauty and the endless rain. By the beginning of the second week, a bit tired of the scarce options from the hotel's breakfast, she ventured out, burying half of her face in the scarf she bought the day before at Primark, her feet guiding her almost out of instinct to the little cafe at the end of Hercules road. The place is warm and the menu seems to have it all for a very fair price. After a couple of minutes the Full English wins, she iterates the order to the woman behind the counter and adds a cup of tea handing over the money.

"Get a seat love, I'll bring it over." The elder lady says making the girl smile and thank her before scampering across the room to sit by the window at the four seat table tucked in the corner.

It doesn't take long for her food to arrive and for her to dig in, feeling kind of full almost at the end, she slows down then, a trick her father passed down on her. Let it settle in for a few minutes before going back at it. Works every time. She gets lost on the daily life happening before her eyes, the people walking by, some in a rush maybe to get to work, others in a rush to get to the shops early and buy presents. She could easily tell the difference between one and other. The elderly couple walking to the market, slower than anybody else, arms linked and without a care in the world. A girl around her age doing "the walk of shame" elicited a smirk on her lips. Good for her.

"Do you mind if I take a seat?" She almost missed the question by the stranger standing there. "There's no empty seats elsewhere I'm afraid, I won't bother you." He was right, in the span of thirty minutes the place was full to the brim with families, the three seats at her table the only ones free so, she nodded and even managed to smile in a friendly way. Unfortunately for her, the green eyed stranger did the same, a sweet dimple on his left cheek more prominent than on the right one and she had to eat a spoonful of beans in an attempt to hide her blush.

Two weeks in the country, almost two weeks, and the best looking man on it decides to show up on a greasy spoon cafe when she's eating what's left of her sausages and beans. His food is delivered by the same lady from earlier, of course it is something that looks healthy. The sudden need to fly away from the place pops in her head, it's not a bad one, he doesn't even know her name. She wants to know his. She remembers how he said he wouldn't bother her, it's almost disappointing, she wants to be bothered.

The situation seems to be straight out of a rom-com, she is cutting the banger in little pieces, as if the formula to spark conversation with the mystery guy keeping her company is hidden in them. But after five minutes she sighs quietly, knowing that her own shyness won't let her even glance at him again. She will have to do her best to remember him and observe from the corner of her eye until the last piece of minced pork is consumed by her. And maybe she will gush about how gorgeous he was with her friends once she is back home, describing his shiny emerald eyes for them, sharing a sigh when she recalls how dreamy his accent was and squeal upon the memory of his raspy voice.

Ten minutes later her last bite is chewed and swallowed, the cup is empty as well. She's about to grab her coat draped on the back of her chair. "I'm going to have to break my non-disturbing you promise but... um, that's a sick cardigan." His voice doesn't sound confident as before, he even clears his throat, but his eyes never leave hers.

"Thanks, my grandma knitted it for me." She forgets about her coat and straightens out a bit for him to appreciate the colourful patchwork and extends her left arm to show the over-sized sleeve. Her companion hums in approval. "She hates it."

"What?" His green eyes widening in disbelief and she just shrugs.

"As soon as I put it on she went on and on about how horrible it was, the wrong proportions and how it all seemed better off in her mind." They share a giggle and don't notice that their empty plates have been taken away and the place is no longer swamped by people. "But I like it, I like it a lot, does a good job keeping me warm." And makes her look lovely, he thinks but doesn't say.

Instead he licks his lips before speaking again. "I'm Harry." He offers his left hand and she quickly eyes the cross tattoo.

"I'm a tourist." She says before adding her real name, earning a deep chuckle from him before letting go of his hand.

The set of circumstances in which she met Harry is dreamy for sure, but something about him made the set of affairs so real. When he asked about the places where she'd been the scoff afterwards and the roll of his eyes made her ask what was wrong about them. But he didn't answer, with a shake of his head and a deep sigh he asked for her phone number. The promise to show her the real London lingered in the air as they parted ways outside of the corner cafe.

Her heart raced at the very sight of him outside Borough Market the following morning. "Morning love, alright?" he greeted her before hugging her tight and quick. It was so genuine it made her wonder if she really just met him the day before. "Do you like doughnuts?"

"Who doesn't?" she says with that grin he worries will wait for him in his dreams.

"Wisest words ever spoken." Harry's arm is wrapped around her shoulders, guiding her on their quest inside the huge market.

The early morning is spent too soon, Harry guides her to talk to the stall owners, they are so passionate about their produce, most of them willing when possible to give them a sample. The highlight is the stop at Bread Ahead, they buy more doughnuts than what she thinks they need. They eat them all while sharing a Monmouth coffee. Harry shares with her stories about almost every stall they passed by. "I'm not a fan of red meat, and oysters." She keeps record of it, basking in his lovely anecdotes that seemed to summon the sun from it's hiding place. "We're granted a sunny day in winter!" He celebrates and it's impossible not to join him. "Let's go to Richmond Park."

Of course she nods in agreement and follows him down the street where he parked his car before she gets in the passenger seat. The stranger danger alarm, should've gone off in her head. But there was something about him, like he was holding her in place. As she heard Harry speak about his job, it started to make more sense in her head. Harry was a lot like this country, foreign, new, exciting and hers for the next few days. He made that clear when they parted ways at the end of the day.

"Come home with me for Christmas." Harry asked her on what would be the beginning of her last week in London, while having a picnic on Primrose Hill.

"With your family?" Her eyebrows were shot up when he nodded, fighting back that deadly smirk of his. "All your relatives will be there?" He nods again and she scoffs completely agitated. "Don't be daft Harry!" She voices out her feelings borrowing an expression of his.

He laughs and it's impossible for her not to join him, her face growing hotter by the second. "I don't want to go without you, and mum will love to have you there," that's what she fears.

"I don't know Harry, might be weird." He disagrees right away.

"It's close to Liverpool, we could spend a day or two over there." The past week he's been trying to learn as many things from her as possible and if he chooses his words carefully he can convince her. "Pay a visit to Anfield, The Cavern." His fake nonchalant attitude makes her roll her eyes, "Strawberry Fields is there too, you know?" She agrees and he kisses the back of her hand to mask the proud grin on his face.

In the past, she was always careful not to let a partner know how deeply she cared about them. The thought of being vulnerable made her lose her mind, thinking it was a sign of weakness. But seeing Harry drive through the English countryside, singing at the top of his lungs to Mistletoe and Wine by Cliff Richard and smiling just for her. It made her want to tell him, but not even all the words in every single language ever spoken by humanity could be enough to give him an idea of how much she cares for him.

There hasn't been a proper kiss between them, it puzzled her at first. Because his gaze seemed to be constantly directed to her lips. But then there was all the touching, holding hands, tucking her to his side when walking, his tender touch before hugging her goodbye. And the way he was always running his hands through her hair.

"She's a friend," he introduces her to his mum Anne and sister Gemma, after saying her name, chewing on the word like it's that mint gum he carries in his purse everywhere he goes. "Was a bloody tourist when I first met her but now... she's a proper Londoner." She doubts it, but she agrees on them being friends and she likes it, a lot.

They help Anne and Gemma to set the table and the finishing touches for dinner. Only three more family members show up and she chastises Harry for making her believe that all of his offspring was going to attend. That's how they usually spend Christmas Eve back home, she explains.

It saddens him, the thought of her going back to her home country in five days time. All the way across the Atlantic, six hours behind him. It's almost unfair.

"Tell me more about it," Harry's curiosity is genuine, thinking that he would love to know more about her traditions. Perhaps even be lucky enough to share them someday.

"We don't have these," she regrets taking a tube of brightly coloured paper. "We have piñatas though." She adds proudly and Harry's jaw hangs open in surprise.

"No fucking way!" He is immediately told off by his mum as they all take a seat at the table. "I thought that was only allowed for birthdays."

"There's no rules for that!" She takes the Christmas cracker out again and Harry takes it from the other end. "So, I just pull it?" He nods and it makes a noise revealing the present.

"You get the crown." Harry unfolds it before helping her fix it atop her head. "And the little toy, what is it?oh... I get the joke!" His family groans, his sister hiding her face in hands, but all she sees is the glint in Harry's eye before he reads. "Who's Rudolph's favourite pop star?"

"I don't know," she's the only one that was going to ask him. And she really wanted to know.

"Beyon-sleigh!" Harry watches in delight how the girl before him snorts at the silly and not so funny joke.

"That was awful." She confessed.

"Agree, next year we'll make our own. Riddles only." His mum adds and Harry protests right away but is shushed by Gemma's voice reading out loud the riddle from her cracker.

Next year, she will probably be spending the day with her numerous family, she thinks. Harry will be here again, telling awful jokes, pulling away Christmas crackers. Perhaps he will bring another person with him. She tries to push the poisonous thoughts down with a big gulp of wine. Only succeeding when Harry's left hand rests on her knee, his thumb rubbing circles on her skin exposed by her ripped jeans while he listens to his sister talk about her podcast. It marvels her how he is there, for everybody.

After dinner they play family games and Harry makes a fake tantrum after his cousin Chloe claims his companion for her team.

"She's mine!" He argues, his long arms embracing her easily. She ends up joining the other team, but the quick kiss she bravely gave to his neck before he let her go, confirmed the words he spoke.

There is a three step process Harry follows to know he's fallen in love. If he finds himself talking about them with every living soul, if he does something they like just because it makes him miss them less and finally if he takes them home to meet his mum. He knows that for the past few days, there was no other topic to discuss with him than the girl sitting beside him in the sofa. He's been drinking tea every morning, just because it reminds him of her. He watches her talk to his mother about how much they like Rod Stewart and knows that he's in too deep.

It should bother him, because she will leave. And all these moments spent, will be just distant memories for him to torture himself over and over again. He wants to feel the angst of knowing that maybe she will forget him, maybe she has a partner back home. He gives up on trying to feel miserable, agreeing with that song from earlier. It is a time to rejoice in the good that we see, a time for living and believing.

Right now all he sees is her, he sighs before tucking her by his side, her brown doe eyes meeting his briefly before sneaking an arm around his waist. She continues to chat with Anne and Gemma even after the rest of the guests leave, still holding onto him. Harry can see the fondness radiating from his mother and sister for the girl in his arms. He sees trust, and he smiles thinking of a new beginning.

What a beautiful sight.

[abbacchiosbelt]

Upon The Shore | Mer!Joseph Joestar x F!Reader

A commissioned piece for @lovelystand!

3.7k words, not sfw. CW for a description of drowning - however, the reader character ends up safe.

In his mind, he sees it — though it’s only been described to him, he has no trouble picturing the rolling green hills and the bright blue sky, humans bustling about on two legs as they go about their daily business. The buildings that had been described to him are harder to picture in his mind’s eye, their architecture complex, and their outsides less colorful than the environment he had grown up in. He yearned to explore their insides, eager to see what sort of things the surface held.

If someone else were in his place, someone who had lived on the land their whole life instead of in the sea, they might be thinking of something similar - venturing beyond their regular life to experience something new that they’d only heard stories of. For most regular humans, a life under the sea was unthinkable.

Joseph Joestar was no regular human, however.

- Joseph’s long, green tail flitters impatiently in the calm water as he listens to another one of his Grandma Erina’s lectures about how dangerous the surface was, though his mind is far away as he daydreams about the surface.

Joseph had heard her spiel hundreds of times over each time he was caught close to the surface, but it never stuck. Joseph’s curiosity about what lay above the sea was endless. He knew his Granny Erina was just worried about him – all of her family save for his Uncle Speedwagon were gone.

Still, the call to go beyond the ocean pulled at Joseph’s body every day.

He snaps back to attention when he hears his Granny huff in annoyance, having caught him daydreaming instead of listening to her.

“Joseph,” Erina sighs, resigned to the fact that her grandson was unlikely to listen to her no matter how many times she warned him. “If you’re going to disobey myself and your Uncle Speedwagon, at least do us the favor of telling us where you’re at. We don’t want you to get hurt.”

Her voice softens as she stares past her grandson, the bittersweet look in her eyes familiar to Joseph – it’s the same way she looked when she’d reminisce about her late husband and his grandfather, Jonathan. “I suppose you are a Joestar. This kind of thing is in your blood. Your grandfather had the same heart for adventuring as you do.” Erina smiles and meets Joseph’s eyes again. “Just promise me you’ll be safe. Don’t stay up for longer than a day.”

Joseph’s eyes go wide, and his mouth falls open in excitement — it wasn’t exactly approval, but she was no longer outright forbidding him from taking a trip to the surface. He glides forward in the water and swoops his Granny Erina into a hug, spinning around in the water.

“Thank you, Granny!” Joseph practically shouts. Erina slips out of Joseph’s hug and shakes her head, unable to resist the smile pulling at her lips. He really was so much like Jonathan.

“Just remember what I said, JoJo.” Joseph nods eagerly at his Granny’s words, his body thrumming with nervous energy and excitement.

Tomorrow, he’d finally get to experience the most exciting adventure he’d go on yet.

-

Joseph, normally a late sleeper, rises with the sun the next morning. He’d barely slept through the night but still found himself buzzing with anticipation. It only takes a few minutes for him to gather his supplies for the day – the clothing he’d need was stored in a shallow cove he’d found and snuck into to store items he’d pilfer from the shore.

When Joseph emerges from his home, he sees his Granny Erina and Uncle Speedwagon waiting for him. For one second, he balks, thinking they’ll tell him to turn back – but his Uncle puts a firm arm on Joseph’s shoulder, his once brilliant black and white tail swaying slowly beneath him.

“Your Granny told me about your plans, JoJo. We know you’re capable of protecting yourself, but please, don’t do anything rash.” His Uncle squeezes his shoulder before he drops his arm. “You know, your grandfather and I got into quite a bit of trouble up on the surface… I’ll have to tell you about it once you’ve seen it for yourself.”

Erina shakes her head at Speedwagon, though the twinkle in her eye makes Joseph wonder what his Granny was thinking about. Before he can ask, she gives him a stern look. “Remember, Joseph. No longer than a day.”

“I get it, I get it…” Joseph says. “Don’t go too far. Don’t stay up longer than a day. I got this, Granny!”

The rest of their goodbye is quick – it’s not long until Joseph emerges at the cove, he’d stashed the clothing he’d stolen in, perfectly dry as it hung over the rocks.

He has no second thoughts as he hauls himself out of the water and feels the effects of land on his body, his tail giving way to strong legs that had unnatural, green scales running up and down the length of them.

The process has Joseph grunting as his body is pushed to its human form for the first time. It was a power that few merpeople held. The Joestar line was one of them, the power having been taught to them by a mysterious benefactor and passed down between generations.  

When it’s complete, Joseph tries to stand, his legs shaky. It takes a few tries for him to get his bearings, but when he does, he finds himself standing tall as he looks down at his body. He knew he was large for a merman, but somehow, he hadn’t expected it to affect his human form.

Joseph yells a loud ‘Nice!’ to himself before he turns to grab the clothes he’d stashed away. The shirt, a plain olive tank top, goes on easy enough, but dark blue jeans are another story. He struggles to pull them up his thighs and falls a few times before he finally feels them slide over his behind and over his hips.

Anyone else would hesitate in a moment like this, but Joseph wastes no time testing out his new legs by running out of the cove and onto the beach, feeling sand between his toes for the very first time. It’s such a strange feeling that Joseph pauses, looking down to wiggle his toes before he kicks his foot and sends the sand flying with a laugh.

Joseph continues down the beach, looking around in wonderment as he experiences the land above the sea for the first time. The sea breeze on his skin is cool and refreshing, the smell reminding him of his home despite the fact he’d only just left. He’d experienced the sun on his skin while sunning on large rocks before, but to feel it now felt like a whole new experience. Joseph puts his hands over his eyes and squints as he looks to the horizon, a small town looming ahead.

Joseph grins – this is exactly the type of thing he’d been looking for. He didn’t just want to experience places… No, Joseph wanted to experience new people. He takes off down the beach, his long legs growing steadier with every step. It’s only a few minutes before the town is right in front of him.

His Uncle Speedwagon’s descriptions gave Joseph an idea of what he would be seeing upon the surface, but it still took him by surprise to see humans walking upon two feet on the sidewalk and cars driving down the road. Joseph stands to marvel at the sights for a second, unusually quiet.

He’s unsure of where to start until he spots a girl – a very cute girl, if someone was asking Joseph. Brown hair, a cute and thick body, and some glasses. He watches as she heads into a small, two-story store with pictures of books on the sign. Though he had no need for books (they were far and few between under the sea, of course), he couldn’t resist a cute girl.

—

You breathe a sigh of relief when you walk into the bookshop, content to see that the only person present was the kind elderly owner, Maria, who also doubled as your landlord. It’s not that you didn’t want to see the shop succeed – you just weren’t feeling up to the small talk the local townsfolk usually wanted to engage you in.

“Hello, dear.” Calls Maria, raising her hand in a tired wave. “I’m feeling a bit worn out, so do you mind taking over for the last hour?”

You shake your head, happy to help the woman that gave you dirt cheap rent in turn for some extra help throughout the week. Besides, it’s not like there would be any more customers today, right? Maria bids you a goodbye as you take over for her behind the small front counter, leaving you only with the sound of the ocean outside.

A few minutes pass before you decide to crack open the book you’d been reading – but the second you open up the book, the chime above the door rings out. You look up, locking eyes with the most handsome man you’d ever seen. He definitely wasn’t a local. He grins when he sees you looking at him, marching up to the counter with confidence. You assume he’s just a lost tourist.

“Hello.” You say, quiet. The brunette grins, bright green eyes staying locked onto your own. “How can I help you?”

“Oh, I can think of several ways.” The stranger replies. You feel your cheeks burn with embarrassment. His grin grows even wider. “How about your name?”

You balk for a second – was a customer really trying to flirt with you on the job? On the other hand, you doubted you’d see this guy again if he was a tourist. Though your nerves are on fire, you manage to murmur out your name to the stranger in front of you.

“Oh! That’s a pretty name. I’m Joseph Joestar, but you can just call me JoJo.” He pauses, putting his elbows on the front desk as he leans down. You notice that he has no shoes on and can’t help but to stifle a laugh. Who was this guy?

He scrunches his nose up. “Are you laughing at me?”

“N-not exactly,” You manage to say between giggles, both shy and embarrassed by just how different Joseph was from any other man you’d met. “You… You forgot your shoes.”

His eyes go wide, and his eyebrows shoot up as he looks down at his feet. “Oh no!” He exclaims loudly. He looks at you with a sheepish grin and puts his hand on the back of his head. “I knew I was forgetting something. I’m, uh… New in town. I lost… the box they came in. Yeah. The box.” Joseph says, sounding unsure. You decide not to question it, though it has you raising an eyebrow in confusion. Joseph simply shrugs, and you drop the subject for now.

The two of you manage to chat for the next hour, with Joseph mostly leading the conversation. He’s so charismatic that despite your shyness, you feel comfortable around him. When you notice the hour on the clock, you sigh.

“Sorry, Joseph, but I’ve got to close the shop.” You pout to yourself before you remember what he said. “Wait, you’re not a tourist, right? You said you moved here?”

“Yeah!” Joseph shouts in reply, startling you. He gives you the same sheepish grin from earlier. “Uh, sorry. Is it okay if I stop by tomorrow?”

You were the kind of person that never expected this sort of thing to happen to yourself – you thought you were plain and boring. Too shy, not pretty enough… And yet here you were, talking to a handsome stranger who was giving you genuine attention without being creepy. No longer did you want to deny yourself of experiences like this due to shyness – with a small smile, you nod.

“Sure. You can stop by before we close.”

-

Joseph comes the next day, and the next, until you realize he’s visited you almost every day for a month. You didn’t think it was possible to fall for someone so fast, yet every little thing Joseph did had you falling more in love with him every single day.

The first day he doesn’t visit in a while is a stormy day – you’re not upset. You wouldn’t expect anyone to go out in this kind of weather. Not only was there a torrential downpour outside, but the sea and wind were raging. The sidewalks in the town you lived in weren’t built to withstand heavy rains despite the location, so it was best not to go outside during bad storms.

Unfortunately, you’d found yourself on the opposite side of town from the shop after a short grocery trip for yourself and Maria. Though it’s against your better judgement, you decide to step out from the walls of the warm grocery store into the chilly and turbulent storm. Each step seems to be more dangerous than the last, and you consider running back to the store when you reach the hill that leads down to the shop.

With a hesitant step, you begin to walk down the hill. Suddenly, you feel your world turn upside down as you slip on the wet earth, your body tumbling down the hill straight towards the raging ocean. The bags you were carrying are flung out of your hands as your body roughly smacks against the ground and you’re propelled down the hill – the only thing you can do is brace yourself for impact into the water, the fear coursing through your body making your heart pound a million miles a minute.

You’re tossed underwater and find yourself being drug under by the strong waves in an instant, your body nearly freezing in shock before you start to thrash wildly. Even though there’s a voice in your head screaming at you to try and calm down, your body continues to panic no matter what you do. You push against the water as your lungs burn, helplessly trying to force your head above the water.

You don’t know how much time has passed before you feel your body give up without your consent, your limbs falling limp by your sides in the water as the last bits of air escape from your lungs. The sky above isn’t even visible above the choppy waters – and then you’re being pushed through the waves at a blinding speed before your head emerges above the water as you gasp for air, lungs expanding painfully as you gulp in fresh breaths.

“You scared me,” You hear a voice say, though it sounds distant. Weakly, you turn your head and come face to face with Joseph – or at least you think it’s Joseph. There are bright green, iridescent fins sticking out of the side of his head where his human ears normally were. Before you can think about it too much, you find yourself sinking into darkness as your body starts to pass out from all the stress you’d just put it through.

The last thing you remember is Joseph calling out your name before you close your eyes.

-

When you wake up, you’re back in your own bed… except there’s a large, warm presence next to you that has never been there before. You blink wearily until the form turns over, revealing Joseph’s snoring face to you. Even though you’re still weak with sleep, the events of the past day come rushing back at you.

If it weren’t for Joseph, you wouldn’t be here right now. Though you want to wake him up to thank him, to tell him how much you love him, you know it’s better to settle back down and let sleep take you once more.

When you wake up again, Joseph is still next you, though he’s no longer asleep. Instead, he’s sitting against your headboard and flipping through a book with his brows knit. You stare at for a moment before he notices you, his mouth dropping open in surprise.

“You’re up!” He shouts, practically throwing the book down to gather you up in his arms. “I was so worried…”

The two of you remain like that for a moment, Joseph’s strangely cool arms wrapping around your body with ease. Despite how grateful you are and how happy you are to have Joseph next to you… You have some questions. You pull back and put your hand against Joseph’s cheek, meeting his gaze.

“So…” You say. Joseph echoes the sentiment, looking sheepish. “A merman, huh?” Joseph eyes you for a moment, nodding. “There’s record of merpeople, but they were thought to be extinct. At the very least, merpeople that were able to walk on land have been unheard of for years.”

“Yeah, well…” Joseph says, rubbing the back of his neck. “Surprise?”

He looks nervous. You roll your eyes and smile – typical Joseph. “We can talk about this later. For now… Let me thank you?”

“T-thank me?” Joseph says, his suave persona falling away. He was finally able to be vulnerable in front of you, the bravado he usually carried fading as Joseph felt more and more comforted by your presence. “Babe… If you’re sure.” He pulls you onto his lap so that your legs are on either side of his body but makes no further moves. “I think you already know this, but I love you.”

Even though you knew you would hear it from him someday, you still blush. “JoJo,” You sigh, happy. “I love you too.”

Joseph leans forward and presses his lips to yours, leading you into a tender kiss that quickly turns passionate as his tongue swipes at your bottom lip. He tangles his hands in your brown hair to pull you even closer until you’re pressed flush against his chest, his movements careful as so not to pull too hard. Joseph was gentle, despite all his enthusiasm and strength.

Joseph slides his hands from your hair and down your sides as he continues kissing you, until he’s pressing you down into the bed, finally pulling back to smile at you. He puts a hesitant hand at the hem of your shirt. “Can I?” Joseph says, sounding breathless.

“Please,” You murmur. Joseph lifts your shirt up over your head easily – and though you feel like covering your body with your arms for a moment, the reverent and loving look on Joseph’s face makes you change your mind.

“Wow,” Joseph breathes out. “You’re beautiful.” You feel your face flush even redder at the sound of Joseph’s compliment and he takes it as a cue to continue on, pressing his lips to your body until he’s kissed his way up to your neck. You squirm beneath him, core aching already for Joseph’s touch.

Your own hands come up to press against Joseph’s prominent pectorals and he gasps in surprise before he looks up from your neck and grins. “Like what you’re feeling? I can take this off for you.” He leans back and practically rips his olive-green tank top off, exposing his muscled and tanned body. You’re speechless – Joseph is beautiful. The confident grin on his face grows at your expression. “I don’t need any words from you, babe. That look is enough.”

The next few minutes feel endless in their pleasure as you and Joseph explore each other’s bodies, hands gliding up and down and lips pressing against the most sensitive spots either of you can find. Both of you end up with your clothes on the floor as you stare at each other longingly, finally ready to connect your two bodies as one.

Joseph is laid back against the bed as you hover over his straining member, his fingers digging into your plush hips. You can barely believe you’re here with him now – but you are, and he loves you. You sink down onto his cock and Joseph groans headily as your soft walls squeeze him, your own moans falling out of your lips as you adjust to the stretch.

“JoJo,” you moan, squirming as he bottoms out inside of you. It’s like nothing you’ve felt before, but you feel so full and so good. “You feel so good.”

Joseph stops himself from bucking his hips at your words and digs his fingers into your hips tighter. “I’m ready for you, baby.”

An experimental roll of your hips, and then another has you and Joseph moving in tandem in only a few moments – it was like the two of you were perfect for each other in mind and body. The emotions from the day have both of you running on high and you feel your climax coming sooner than usual. By the look on Joseph’s face and the grunts he was making, you know he’s not far behind.

“I’m close,” You hiss – Joseph doesn’t hesitate to bring one of his rough finger pads to your clit as you ride him, circling it with sloppy motions but with enough pressure that it has you crying out for him and clamping down around him as your orgasm washes over your body. Joseph cries out your name only a moment later and you feel his cock twitch as he releases himself inside of you. You collapse onto his warm chest and wrap your arms around him as both of you breathe heavily and come down from the moment.

Later, after the two of you have gotten cleaned up and shared a long conversation over several cups of tea and coffee, you find yourself in pleasant shock as Joseph presents a beautiful pearl ring to you and says, “Will you marry me?”

-

12 months later, you’re sat on the shore while your husband shows off for you in the ocean. Marrying a merman wasn’t something that came with a guide, but the two of you had more or less figured it out. Joseph’s family, though surprised and confused, were delighted once they too had come to the shore to meet you on the day after Joseph’s proposal.

You startle when you feel movement in your stomach and you place one of your hands on the round dome, feeling little feet kicking at you. Joseph notices you’ve stopped clapping for him and swims over, eyes alight in wonderment as he sees you cupping your belly.

He swims close to the edge of the sea and you inch closer until he can rest one hand opposite of yours on your bump, smiling.

“You know, I think I’ve thought of a couple names.” He says.

“How about Holly for the girl and Josuke for the boy?”

[m6p2s5gziax8]

Deconstructing Season 3 Jim Hopper

Note1 - I wrote this before the 2020.02.14 "Stranger Things 4 | From Russia with love" teaser. I'm glad they didn't try to drag out the "is Hopper really dead" question - he's 100% back! Note2 - Ok, now that so many of us are inside and ST4 is delayed, I'm going to finally post this and hope some folks find it interesting. Note3 - 6+ months later, I'm finally posting this for real, enjoy! :)

Please Read * !!! MASSIVE S3 SPOILERS !!! * I am a huge fan of Stranger Things and Jim Hopper. * This is a critical analysis of season 3 Jim Hopper, aka s3-Hop. * I would never want to sour anyone's enjoyment of the show or s3-Hop. * Please skip this essay if you enjoy s3-Hop! * If you viewed season 3 and thought "Hopper sure was different" or "Hopper wasn't enjoyable like in s1 and s2" then please read on!

uber-TL;DR * s3-Hopper was unbelievably and (for me) unenjoyably different from s1/s2 * for s4, my hope is this extreme character shift is acknowledged by Hopper to Mike, Eleven, and Joyce

longer-TL;DR There were many changes in Stranger Things with season 3: the mall, the bright color pallet, the love-quadrangle pitting El/Max vs Mike/Lucas, Dustin splitting off from the boys to join the Scoops Troop, and the campy, Scooby-Doo-esque Russian base plot. I can accept these changes and enjoy many of their elements.

But s3 brought one massive change that was not a new character, location, nemesis, or team combo: I felt Jim Hopper's character change was simply unbelievable and unenjoyable.

Sadly, I may be in a tiny minority that does not speak up or that critical comments about a beloved show get "black holed" by show boosters on social media. Many ST fans were sad and angry that Hopper appears to have died and the letter reading at the end of s3 was very dramatic and moving. So analysis, and especially criticism, of s3-Hop is frequently down-voted or not liked and thus not socialized.

This is an attempt to collect the thoughts of one very unhappy s1/s2-Hopper fan about s3-Hop. I hope readers will enjoy the long detailed analysis (sorry it is so long!) and I look forward to any comments and feedback.

FWIW, I'm a big Stranger Things fan and David Harbour is a great actor (even in s3) and a Good person IRL. I loved s1/s2 Jim Hopper and how he was written in the official book Darkness on the Edge of Town.

Here are some collected and reformatted writings I've done on Hopper and his s3 change. My fave ST character is Eleven so s3-Hop becoming so different and unenjoyable is particularly jarring for me.

s3-Hop was so different from s1/s2-Hop as to make it seem like he is a new character. Not only that, but I did not enjoy this new character who acts: * anxious * whiny * selfish * sarcastic * self-entitled * super-violent

Recall Hopper's pre-s3 history from s1, s2, and the official book Darkness on the Edge of Town: * volunteered for the military at 18 (not drafted) * 3 years combat in Vietnam, awarded Bronze Star * 2 years as a Hawkins policemen, marries, has a daughter * 6 years in New York City as a homicide detective * after his daughter dies, hits the bottle/pills, gets divorced * back in Hawkins as Chief of Police and dating women * goes into the Upside Down and literally brings Will back to life with Joyce * takes Eleven in, she runs away, they each apologize * Hop protects Eleven while she unloads at maximum to fend off the Mind Flayer and close the Gate * El goes to the Snow Ball dance and Mike comes over for 6 months to be with her (and smooch!)

Now look at s3-Hop - a very brief s3 timeline: * he's anxious, has no gravitas or authority - he gets advice from Joyce on El/Mike * the evening of s3e1, s3-Hop writes about "emotions" and how he's upset about change * Then s3-Hop continues writing wise words about life that are all read in s3e8 * AFTER writing why he's upset and these wise words, s3-Hop proceeds to act like a mega-jerk * he is gleeful when Eleven is upset that Mike is not coming over * s3-Hop bizarrely thinks whining to Joyce will make her like him * WORST OF ALL, s3-Hop does not say "daughter", "kid", "Eleven", or "El" from s3e2-s3e7

Hopper went from a mega-over-protective dad in s2 who was able to legally adopt Eleven right before the Snow Ball to a jarringly different character in s3. I can see s3-Hop making bad judgments and behaving badly but just not in this anxious/silly/immature way. Why not have him be brooding and angry? That would be consistent with s1/s2. I fear the writers wanted a whacky/silly/goofy characterization for s3-Hop so that's what we got instead.

I can not stress this point enough: Hopper went from being El's loving, protective parent to forgetting about her once he broke her and Mike apart.

At the start of s3e2, Hopper watching El being upset and storming into her room because she missed Mike, his smiling while eating cereal, and then gleefully singing while going to work is when I was broke and I thought: This is not my Hopper.

s3 Hopper and Eleven then Hopper forgets Eleven - an episodic timeline:

e1 - Hopper is anxious and unnerved by Mike visiting Eleven daily since it reduces s3-Hop's time with El e1 - Hopper lies to Mike about his Grandma being sick and then frightens him into not coming over

e2 - When Eleven is upset the next day about Mike not appearing, Hopper is joyful e2 - Note, the song played while s3-Hop is gleeful at Eleven's separation from Mike is the same one that was used when s2-Hop took El into his cabin and started cleaning it up. What a terrible ruination of a wonderful, charming moment from s2. When I hear "You Don't Mess Around with Jim" now I just think of how unhappy El was and how uncaring s3-Hop was of her feelings after he chased Mike away.

e3 - Hopper drives home drunk and enters the cabin yelling angrily only to burst in on El and Max with no Mike; s3-Hop is very happy e3 - Note, s3-Hop wrote in his letter the night before that he missed spending time with El so his accepting Max with El at the cabin is inconsistent with what he wrote.

e4 - Hop adventures with Joyce (no mention of Eleven)

e5 - Hop, Joyce, and now Alexei road trip on the way to Illinois e5 - Hop does not mention El but at the gas station Joyce is worried and calls Karen: JOY - Oh, hey, Karen, it's Joyce. Yeah, I... I'm just checking on Will. At the movies?

e6 - Alexei describes how the Russians are re-opening the Gate and Joyce quickly gets up: HOP - Where are you going? JOY - To call our children. e6 - Note, Joyce said "our children" so she is also worried for El while an indifferent Hop drinks vodka with Murray e6 - Hop calls the feds and afterwards sits down and lights a cigarette, then: JOY - So, now what? HOP - Now, we, uh... we wait. JOY - How long do we wait? HOP - As long as it takes. JOY - How can you just sit there being calm? HOP - I am not calm! JOY - Our kids are in danger! HOP - You said they were at the festival! JOY - Which is, like, ten minutes from the gate! HOP - What are you doing? Joyce? HOP - What are you doing? JOY - [she calls the feds again pressing them to hurry] e6 - Note, s3-Hop talks here (and in most of s3) with various combinations of sarcasm, exasperation, indifference, and irritation. Just hearing his tone is so unpleasant and jarringly different from s1/s2-Hop.

e7 - in the car ride home, Hopper sarcastically ridicules Joyce about her being concerned about the kids: HOP - Oh! Wait, that's right! We're on our way to rescue our children from the big, bad Fourth of July celebration! JOY - You know what, if you can't handle this, then just turn around and drop me off first. HOP - What are you gonna do? You gonna walk back to Hawkins? JOY - I will do anything if it gets me away from you!

e8 - FINALLY Hopper arrives at the Mall and holds Eleven while she drinks a soda and rests her wounded leg e8 - Inexplicably, Joyce agrees to go on a date with Hop before the climax when he disappears

Why did the Stranger Things writers change Jim Hopper so much and so negatively in s3?

I think the writers want us to enjoy (or experience in my case) a new, goofy, ha-ha, funny version of Hopper who: * can't parent a teenage girl dating a boy, * is chasing Joyce for a date and then a relationship while she is still grieving the loss of Bob, and * despite acting like a jerk "sacrifices" himself in the end.

Then, to cap the season off, we get gut punched emotionally by Eleven reading s3-Hop's letter.

The writers likely thought the viewers would fall into two groups: * s3-Hop likers who enjoy this new s3-Hop would be upset at his "death" and moved to tears by the letter * s3-Hop dislikers who were annoyed by s3-Hop would flip to likers because of his "sacrifice" and feel guilty so they are also moved to tears by the letter

But remember: the timing of s3-Hop writing the letter about emotions with sagely advice. He wrote it the end of s3e1, after getting advice from Joyce at the store and just before lying to and threatening Mike to break him up with El. I don't think the writers thought viewers would catch this since the letter is so dramatically read (awesome performances by David and Millie) way at the end of the season in s3e8 after s3-Hop disappeared.

Why did s3-Hop act so different from s1/s2 and so badly if he can write so openly and wisely in s3e1 about emotions in the letter?

Why does this dramatic character transition occur? * s1/s2-Hop - bad temper, apathetic, lackadaisical with a good heart and over-protective of Eleven * s3-Hop - anxious, whiny, sarcastic, immature, self-entitled, selfish and mocking of Joyce for worrying about the kids including El

The breaker with s3-Hop for me was his complete turn around regarding Eleven. For s3e1 his only interest was stopping Mike from coming over and taking up El's time which he wanted for himself. Once the breakup was achieved he was very happy despite El's obvious upset.

Note, after breaking up El/Mike we never see s3-Hop make Eggo extravaganzas or watch a western with Eleven like he said he yearned for in the letter. Nor does he mention it to Joyce after breaking El and Mike apart. He read El's note on the fridge and proceeded to adventure with Joyce, all the while whiny to her about wanting a relationship.

Joyce on three occasions showed concerned and called someone about "Will", "our children", and "Our kids" and finally she said to Hop "I will do anything if it gets me away from you" because of his mocking her concern. (That was my favorite line in s3! - Joyce is so awesome)

After breaking up Mike and Eleven, from e4 to e7 Hopper did not show concern or caring about his adopted daughter. It was not until s3e8 in the Mall when Hop is seen holding El while she sips a soda and later he talks to her and is loving and supportive.

Is this Jim Hopper from s2 who was an over-protective, super-loving father to Eleven? Does Mike coming over and using most of El's time turn this decorated Vietnam combat veteran, who was a 6 year NYC homicide detective and current Chief of Police into an anxious, shrill father who can't think straight?

Why not have Hopper react to wanting more time with Eleven and wanting to date Joyce like the normal s1/s2-Hop we know and love?

I blame the writers from wanting s3-Hop to have an arc from nervous/unhinged to "sacrificing himself" and then the letter being read.

I think the s3-Hop character change was done so we'd be gut punched when he "died" and then the letter was read. And there's the additional goal of getting Hopper to fit in with the "summer of love" theme of s3 with him breaking up a love pairing with El/Mike and pursuing his own love with Joyce.

But the timing of when Hop wrote the letter just doesn't make any sense because of how he acted later. Additionally, if s3-Hop can not follow the life advice he wrote down, why does he act badly in such a different way then when he acted badly in s1/s2?

Because of this extreme character change I sadly can not watch s3-Hop anymore without being upset. It's just so unbelievable and unenjoyable.

Did Sarah's death or Mike's dating Eleven or PTSD from Vietnan explain or justify Hopper's s3 change?

These items have been mentioned as possible explanations for s3-Hop being so different from s1/s2. I initially tried to use Mike dating El as an excuse for Hopper's changes but after three s3 viewings I gave up because of everything else I've written in this essay. Here are some reasons while these explanations do not work for me.

1) Sarah's death was wrapped up when Hopper and Joyce saved Will in the upside down. Hopper literally brought Will back to life, something he could not do with Sarah. This was in incredibly moving scene and the end of a powerful arc for Hopper. But the point is it was the end of the arc: Sarah's death still impacts Hopper in s2 dealing with Eleven but Sarah dying isn't a driving force for s3-Hop and how he acts. That arc wrapped up and though it guides s2-Hop, he still acts in a consistent manor. In season 3 there's no mention of Sarah making s3-Hop stressed out so that arc is not in play.

2) Mike dating Eleven and their disrespecting Hopper are certainly stresses for s3-Hop but his reaction to breaking them up is out of character. El and Mike giggle and whisper with each other. Then s3-Hop - an adult, parent, and police chief - cruelly lies to Mike that his grandma is sick and then holds him in the car and threatens him after Mike angrily used profanity. Many commenters call Mike a "little sh|t" and side with tough guy s3-Hop and his approach. It would be consistent and believable for s3-Hop to act like this at night and then the next morning to have shown some remorse or some kind of caring to Eleven. s3-Hop could have said "too bad Mike isn't coming, let's have Eggos tonight and watch a Western." But he did not say anything to El. Instead, he smiled and then happily sang in the car on the way to work.

3) PTSD does not explain s3-Hop's behavior since we never see any evidence in the show that he is having flashbacks or any issues related to Vietnam. Also, writers just can't use PTSD as a do-anything-whenever-you-want-with-a-character excuse. Not only is there no Vietnam PTSD evidence in the episodes, there are many quotes from the official book with Hopper that he does not have PTSD.

3a) In s1, s2, and s3 the words "Vietnam" and "veteran" are never spoken. The only indication of Vietnam is a box under under Hop's cabin floor that Eleven sees when she discovers the trap door. Hopper never speaks of dreams or flashbacks and there is no other indication he has PTSD from Vietnam. His divorce, drinking, and pill abuse are all from Sarah dying based on what we see in the episodes.

3b) From the official book Stranger Things: Darkness on the Edge of Town (published May 28 2019):

1984 DECEMBER 26 - 11 days after the Snow Ball Dance with Jim and El in the cabin: The truth was, Hopper realized, that he didn’t want to talk about Vietnam, not because it was a trauma or a personal demon, but because it was ancient history—but more than that, it felt like part of some other person’s life. Although he hadn’t really stopped to consider it properly, he was aware of how he had compartmentalized his past in his own mind. So, yes, Vietnam had been difficult, and he had come back changed—as most people did, of course—but it just wasn’t relevant, not anymore. That wasn’t him, not now. Because he had come to accept that there were really only two parts to his life. Before Sara. After Sara. And nothing else really mattered. Vietnam included. He just wasn’t quite sure how he was going to explain that to El. “Because,” said Hopper with a smile, “Vietnam was a long time ago. I mean, a really long time ago. And I’m not that person now.” He leaned forward on the table, resting on his elbows. “Look, I’m sorry, really. I can understand that you are curious. And I understand you want to know more about me. I’m your—” He paused. El raised an eyebrow, cocked her chin again, waiting for the response. Hopper sighed, happily. “I’m your dad, now. And yes, there is a lot you don’t know about me. Vietnam included. One day I’ll tell you about it, when you’re older.”

1977 JULY 13 - Homicide Detective Hopper in New York City: This was a support group for veterans of the Vietnam War. Hopper knew such groups existed. He knew full well that such groups were needed. That he’d come out of the war unscathed and with his marbles all where they should be was a blessing. Okay, it had changed him, and he wasn’t going to pretend that it hadn’t been difficult at times. But what the war had done to some people... He’d never felt the need to attend a meeting like this himself, but he was glad they were there for those who did feel that need.

How can Jim Hopper's portrayal recover in season 4?

First off, there is no doubt that David Harbour is returning to play Jim Hopper in season 4 (and s5 if there is one). This is David's big, career making role that is getting him award nominations/wins (the most for any adult ST actor), and he just got a huge raise (80k to 350k per episode). And, most importantly, he loves doing the show and the people in it (especially Millie).

Since what's done is done with s3-Hop, what can happen with Hopper in s4 to bring him back into a believable and enjoyable form for huge ST fans who miss s1/s2 Jim Hopper?

I am very much hoping that Hopper will dial back or eliminate his new s3 qualities, like being whiny, selfish, complaining constantly, etc. Please bring back some of his old s1/s2 strength and empathy under a grumpy exterior.

And I hope Hopper does a reset with three people:

1) Mike - Hopper needs to do more to make up to Mike than just saying "Mike, Be careful" like he did in s3e8 at the Mall. Hop should clearly say that he accepts Mike as El's boyfriend and that he knows he'll do everything possible to keep her safe. Which is actually what Mike did for all of s3 while s3-Hop was adventuring with Joyce.

2) Eleven - While the Letter explains why Hop was feeling upset (change, less time with El, etc), it does not justify how s3-Hop acted afterward when he lied and threatened Mike breaking them up. Hop needs to clearly apologize to Eleven for being selfish, immature, and inconsiderate.

3) Joyce - I hope that Hopper admits to Joyce that he acted like a jerk towards her and that he promises to be a better person in general and especially better with her. That's the only way I can make any sense out of Joyce and Hopper being any kind of couple: Hop has to own up to his terrible behavior towards Joyce and promise to be better.

The End! Sort of... :)

Well, you've read or skimmed or skipped all the way to the almost end and I thank you for taking time to look at my thoughts about Jim Hopper's portrayal in season 3. I still love Hop and think David does an incredible acting job with him in each season. I've been 100% sure he's coming back since the Duffers have bluntly said: no body = no death. So while I'm a little scared at how Hopper will be characterized in season 4, I'm also very excited to see it! Word is that season 4 will have more episodes (10, 11, 12?) than normal. Plus, the Duffers just signed a big deal with Netflix so I'm wondering if season 4 will be a semi-finale for the series and give the Duffers and the stars a break to do other stuff and then come back for a movie or a season after more ideas have percolated in the Duffers' creative minds.

So, here's looking forward to season 4 when we can see Jim Hopper evolve along with all the other great Stranger Things characters.

[lockdownfest]

Lock Down Fest Masterpost PART I (20-30 March)

1917

feed me just enough that i’ll never need a cage by Cunninglinguist. (E) 7.4k,  Tom Blake/William Schofield. “Come on.” Sco stops walking, runs a hand over the faintest marking on a tree trunk. “It’s just a little farther now.” “I’m coming.” Tom huffs a sigh, yanking his shotgun strap over his shoulder so the barrel lands in his hands. They’ve been on the road for nearly a week now, an unfortunate consequence of their last shelter getting swarmed by an army of dead ones. Though skinning rabbits to eat over hastily made fires and taking turns sleeping against trees, spending the days and nights consumed with fear, and jumping each time a stick cracked were hardly desirable circumstances, it certainly wasn’t their longest or harshest stint on the run. They had endured worse, by far, and Tom had no doubt that this particular stretch of time would come to an end when Sco said it would. He knows the way, he always knows the way. Plus, Tom wouldn’t want to spend this time with anyone else in the entire world.

If The World Was Ending by RisingShadows. (not rated) 3.7k, Tom Blake/William Schofield.  When a dangerous virus begins spreading across the country William Schofield and Tom Blake quickly find themselves the last two standing of the team working in their lab.

AKB48

#unmeida by summoninglupine. (G), 788 words. Sashihara Rino/Watanabe Mayu, Kashiwagi Yuki/Watanabe Mayu.  Ready for an all-girl vacation in Okinawa, Watanabe Mayu doesn't see why she has to be the one to nursemaid their sick tour guide. Things would be different, she is sure, if Yuki was there!

ALL FOR THE GAME

I see truth somewhere in your eyes by DeyaAmaya. (M) 2.8k, Kevin Day/Thea Muldani, Neil Josten/Andrew Minyard, other background relationships. In a moment of insanity, Kevin decides to check Instagram. In the multitude of inane celebrity posts telling the mass people to stay home, he finds a lovely, recent photography of Thea. Someone from their College took it. The lighting perfectly captured the dried tear tracks down her unmoving face. Kevin disregards the emotional caption and instead checks the date. 18 March, the night he-  (The night he thought he had a hallucination.)

Quarantine and exy by Fornavn.  FANART. (G) 116 words, Andrew/Neil.  The monsters is stuck at home while coved-19 is terrorizing the world. They are bored.

ANNE OF GREEN GABLES

Alone and in a Circumstance by middlemarch. (T) 700 words, Gilbert Blythe/Anne Shirley, Marilla Cuthbert & Anne Shirley, Diana Barry & Anne Shirley. Anne had a key, so she let herself in, quiet as a mouse, arms laden with bags from the market. Her sophomore class's papers on A Tale of Two Cities were poking out almost jauntily from the quilted bag Diana got her for her birthday.

AVENGERS ASSEMBLE

Worry by Neverever. (T) 2.4k, Steve Rogers/Tony Stark.  During the pandemic, Steve wants help the best he can but immuno-compromised Tony worries about his company and his health.

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST

Poetry and Plants by the_many_splendored. (T) 1.9k, Adam/Belle. It's amazing how much you can open up to a person when you're locked in a bookstore reading together.

BELLEVUE

Knives and Lighters by goreds. (M) 2.1k, Annie Ryder/Peter Welland.  Annie Ryder finds herself in Bellevue's psychiatric hospital. She pretends to tolerate the whole experience, even if she really hates it. When a new, quiet guy comes to the ward, though, she finds herself intrigued.

BLACK SAILS

If this is Our Last Night by remuirius. (E) 2.3k, Captain Flint/John Silver. Silver and Flint are locked up together on the Walrus. Certain of their looming death at an enraged crew’s hands, Silver finds the courage to do things he’d only dreamed of until now.

BLACKKKLANSMAN

Someone Like Him by cowboykylux. (M) 2.2k, Flip Zimmerman/Reader. 'If there was one thing true more than anything else about all the reasons you loved him, it was that once your husband had his heart set on something, he was going to accomplish it.' Or, a sudden snow-storm cancels your plans for a date, and Flip Zimmerman decides that nothing, not even snow, will get in the way of treating you to something special.

BOKU NO HERO ACADEMIA

Tell me it won’t always be this hard by Graendal. (T) 4.3k, Midoriya Izuku/Todoroki Shouto. He’d met Midoriya a few months ago during a field trip to the library. The kids had adored him, of course, even the ones who were usually shy about participating in new activities. Midoriya had a way of projecting a sense of all-encompassing safety and comfort with just his smile.Shouto had adored him too, maybe, even back then. A silly crush that had only grown during every subsequent field trip — which is truly absurd, considering the vast majority of their interactions at the time consisted of occasional eye contact while singing children’s songs.But now that they’ve spent hours talking almost every day for the past few weeks… calling it a silly crush might be an understatement. The idea that he’s actually been able to help Midoriya through this is inordinately pleasing.If there’s a silver lining to this at all — for him personally, at least — it’s that he’d seen Midoriya’s post requesting a virtual board game buddy. And that Midoriya is a patient enough person to teach Shouto how to play everything from scratch. He’d actually seemed excited at the opportunity.Maybe the opportunity for any sort of ongoing social interaction is worthy of excitement. These are strange times.

CALL THE MIDWIFE

Sanctuary (In Each Other) by WednesdayGilfillian. (T) 2.6k, Bernadette-Shelagh Turner/Patrick Turner. Set during the Christmas Special in S2. Specifically, during the unsettled night that Shelagh turned up on Patrick's doorstep.

CAPTIVE PRINCE

When We Went from Strangers to This by Aerica_Menai. (T) 3.5k, Damen/Laurent. Laurent is really sick, and decides to shut himself in his apartment and deal with it alone. His downstairs neighbor, Damen, gets worried enough to check on him, which went just fine - and then Damen got himself locked in. Featuring Star Trek TOS, coming outs both accidental and intentional, and Damen being his usual sunshine puppy self.

DCU

would you lie with me by Glove23. (G) 660 words, Diana (Wonder Woman)/Clark Kent/Bruce Wayne. Bruce catches a virus, and Diana and Clark come to help him.

DEADPOOL/SPIDERMAN

Avengers Monopoly by MsCaptainWinchester. (E) 1.4k, PeterParker/Wade Wilson, James “Bucky” Barnes/Steve Rogers. The Avengers are quarantined in Avengers Tower, and Peter and Wade see this as the perfect opportunity to try the new Avengers Monopoly set. They have their own house rules for property negotiation. No one told Tony. Oops?

omg they were quarantined by Jdragon122, LunaStories. (M) 2.6k, Peter Parker/Wade Wilson. Spidey has a cold and Deadpool, being the sexy boyfriend he is, goes to take care of his baby boy. But they're under quarantine and oh no, there's no more lube? What should they do?

Superheroes Don’t Get Scared by DefendersofMCUniverse. (T) 3.6k,  Peter Parker/Wade Wilson. Peter, fresh out of college, gets invited to the tower to stay in one of the guest floors that has been left unoccupied for some time since the previous tenant ‘hero’ decided to leave for unknown reasons. Of course, a few weeks into living there and getting into a routine, the last hero pops onto his balcony. Peter offers for him to stay on his old floor because the dude looks like he could use a familiar place, and also dude is kinda terrifying, and like hell he is gonna admit that to the other heroes in the tower.

DETROIT: BECOME HUMAN

Games. Family. Love. by heizl, NickEllis1314. (G) 1.8k, Carl Manfred & Markus. Because of some rebellious protesters, Androids, and owners of said Androids, were ordered to stay inside. It'd been a long day of restlessness, and boredom, and Markus was almost genuinely excited to get Carl to bed so it could all finally be over. Carl wasn't exactly tired yet though, so they reminiscence for awhile.

DOCTOR WHO

What We Did During Our Quarantine by badxwolfxrising. (M) 4.6k WIP, Metacrisis Tenth Doctor/Rose Tyler. Rose and the Metacrisis Doctor return to Torchwood from Bad Wolf Bay and are placed in a mandatory 72 hour quarantine. However will they pass the time? }:-)

DRAGON AGE II

shaking fingers, open palms by asexualf. (T) 2.4k, Fenris/Merrill. Kirkwall has issued her people remain in their homes until the sickness overtaking the city is gone. As always, the Alienage suffers the most under this new rule - and those who enforce it.

EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES

Three in a room by Tagus Knoll. (T, Underage) 4.6k, Kazuto/Darius Maynor/Chester Hayes. When Kazuto finds out they all have to be in the same room, he didn't expect that Chester, Darius and him end up dating.

FALL OUT BOY

‘Cause Everything Else is a Substitute for your Love by PadawanRyan. (G) 1.9k, Patrick Stump/Pete Wentz.  Patrick and Pete are each self-isolating with their kids during the coronavirus pandemic but well, Patrick’s in Chicago and Pete’s in LA.

quarantine, or: how to land a boyfriend in 14 days by TooRational. (T) 6k, Patrick Stump/Pete Wentz.  Patrick turns his head in Pete's direction and sees him, Patrick sees him, and his frown goes up a notch, and a fisted hand settles on one hip in that typical Patrick-is-a-grandma-pose, and Pete grins and runs full-tilt into Patrick's arms, disbalancing them both until they slam into the side of the house, tangled and half-frozen and definitely soon-to-be-bruised. He interrupts whatever rant Patrick had prepared that starts with 'you idiot' by tucking his frozen nose into Patrick's neck and sucking the warm air coming from Patrick's skin into greedy lungs, and grins even wider when Patrick yelps, offended as he always is by a breach of his personal space.

FIRE EMBLEM SERIES

Shelter from the Storm by Dameceles. (T) 4k, Elincia Ridell Crimea/Tibarn.  It's a dark and stormy night when Elincia lends aid to Tibarn. He wants to return the favor, but she doesn’t have wings.

FRONTIER

Fever 1793 by goreds. (M, MCD) 2k, Samuel Grant, Cobb Ponds. Cobbs Pond and Samuel Grant experience the yellow fever epidemic in Philadelphia, 1793. One of them gets better.

FROZEN

It all comes out in the wash by middlemarch. (G) 1.1k, Anna/Kristoff.  She'd knocked. Really, she had. It was their en suite bathroom, the room he said was over-the-top and extravagant and aggressively tiled, so it wasn't exactly her fault that she'd effectively barged in on him.

GAME OF THRONES

The Luckiest Man in the Whole F***ing World by OrangeTabby. (M) 7.2k, Sandor Clegane/Sansa Stark. Sandor Clegane is in isolation at home after picking up the virus in the line of duty. Luckily, he’s got his cat for company and plenty of rubbish TV to stream. Then Stranger decided to go next door for a visit…. A story about friendship, food, romance and dubious television. And a pandemic.

GARGOYLES

Cabin Holiday by Isimile. (M) 1.2k, David Xanatos/Janine “Fox” Xanatos, Owen Burnett/ David Xanatos/Janine “Fox” Xanatos.  After everything that happened, they decide to spend a week away in a cabin, to relax and to perhaps talk about their relationship. They're unexpectedly snowed in, which triggers memories of the Unseelie War.

GILMORE GIRLS

How dare the robins sing by middlemarch. (T) 900 words, Rory Gilmore/Jess Mariano, Dean Forester/Rory Gilmore, Dean Forester & Jess Mariano, Luke Danes & Jess Mariano. The two of them, the diner, for how long? At least the coffee shipment had made it in time. What he wouldn't have given for a fifth of Jack-- or anyone else. Literally, anyone.

HAIKYUU!!

Anchor by farfetched. (G) 5.3k, Semi Eita/Tendou Satori. Spreading their arms out either side of them, they stare at the ceiling. This is pulling on them in so many ways they didn't expect; laying here, on Tendou's floor, in Tendou's clothes, right down to their underwear because who expects a lockdown to get enforced overnight? They didn't bring anything much. They should have. They ought to chance going home. But they can't, so they don't. Home is an empty place right now anyway, and here there is food and laughter and music and in between all that is their realisation that they're not so over this Tendou thing after all.

Lockdown by needles. (T) 1.5k, Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru.  You never know what will escape from a box when you open it, just ask Pandora. For some it may be a disaster, for Iwaizumi could it be a golden opportunity?

Lockdown With A Fox by runningfromrealitytoanime. (T) 4.1k, Miya Atsumu/Sakusa Kiyoomi.  Sakusa Kiyomi was a very careful person when it came to cleanliness so what happens if a certain setter with no sense of hygiene crashes at his place when Japan goes under a 2 week lockdown period?

HANNIBAL

Crumbles of unfulfilled expectations by Cinnamaldeide. (M) 11.9k, Will Graham/Hannibal Lecter and other multi. Collection of ficlets of the length of a tweet or two ❀

Professor Graham’s Cheekbones Hotty & Extraordinary Foodie Husband by TheSilverQueen. (T) 3.3k,  Will Graham/Hannibal Lecter. Online classes due to the quarantine are Professor Graham's students learn that: 1) Professor Graham has a cute dog; 2) Professor Graham is married; and 3) Professor Graham's husband is smoking hot.

HARRY POTTER

A Long Night on The Bus by CuriousEmWanders. (E) 3.5k, Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter. In which Draco & Harry are Auror partners stuck on a bus overnight. Draco has some memories that cause him to make some choices. Smut ensues, obviously.

A Pandemic by Theodore_Writes. (T) 611 words WIP, Luna Lovegood & Weasley Family. A new strain of Dragon Pox breaks out becoming a global pandemic. Many were unaware due to Fudge covering it up in an attempt to look better as a minister but when Xenophilius Malfoy/Lovegood reveals to his long time friend Arthur Weasley about what is happening around the world the entire Weasley family is horrified and takes immediate action. This is the story of what happens when a pandemic hits the Magical and Muggle world's.

A Welcome Distraction by MaesterChill. (E) 2.9k, Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter.  Draco and Harry get trapped in a Ministry lift. Whatever shall they do to distract themselves?

An Intangible Embrace by Drarrelie. (G) 365 words, Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter.  Harry is bored. Thank Merlin his husband had finally agreed to start using Muggle mobiles after Score was born, or he would've surely gone mad now.

And on the Seventh Day... by slytherco. FANART. (T) 0 words,  During an Auror raid, Harry and Draco are separated from their partners and end up being hunted by the wrong people. Desperate times require desperate measures, so both men are sent to an unmarked location where a temporary safe house was set up for them. Stuck for Merlin knows how long, they have plenty of time to examine their turbulent relationship.

“Are you sure you know how to play that?” by julchen_in_red. FANART. (G) 0 words, Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter. Harry and Draco offer comfort and entertainment to their neighborhood under lockdown by performing a traditional wizards' evening ballad on their balcony.

Better Side of the Bed by gnarf. (T) 2k, Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter.  It was all Malfoy's fault. Harry could be at the Burrow right now, but instead he was trapped in Malfoy's tiny flat. All because that dick couldn't stop bothering him about a stupid life debt he didn't even care about.

Breaking Point by Drarrelie. (T) 365 words, Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter.  After almost two years as Auror partners, they've learned to function quite well together most of the time. Right now, though, Malfoy seems to be more on edge than ever.

Civil Hands (Unclean) by p1013. (E) 8.5k, Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter. While he and Malfoy reached something like a truce in the years between the end of the War and now, their Quidditch rivalry has only grown. And with it, a simmering tension that is absolutely not sexual, no matter how many times Hermione raises her eyebrow when Harry's drinking at her and Ron's house. Not even when his head is resting on the kitchen table next to his empty glass, and he's moaning about Draco bloody Malfoy, and his bloody perfect seat on a broom, and his bloody perfect technique.But as Harry stares over his teammates heads towards the Puddlemere United bench, he catches a flash of wet white-blond hair and flashing grey eyes, and he thinks that Hermione's eyebrow might have a point.

Conservation for Beginners by Aneiria. (E) 4.6k, Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy. Hermione Granger didn't think twice about taking guardianship of Hoddholm Island for the summer. A deserted, peaceful island among the endangered Golden Snidgets is just what she needs to escape the anxieties that the end of the war brought with it. When Draco Malfoy arrives as the other guardian and they are left to themselves for a month, they both seem to be struggling in their own ways. Can they be there for each other when they most need it?

Exposure by Bridgette_Hayden. (M) 2.6k, Harry Potter/Severus Snape.  Snape and Harry volunteer to quarantine themselves for charity, and to comfort the world. Isolation leaves them feeling exposed. 

Flames by Aneiria. (E) 3.9k, Hermione Granger/Theodore Nott, Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy, Draco Malfoy/Theodore Nott, Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy/Theodore Nott.  The whole of the Ministry of Magic and its workers are forced into an in-place lockdown quarantine following a magical accident at the DMLE. When Hermione Granger and Theo Nott are put into isolation away from their boyfriend, Draco Malfoy, how will the triad cope?

G Guess I'm Stuck With You by LittleSixx. (T) 4k, Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy.  Draco and Hermione are stuck in a Ministry lift on New Year's Eve.

In a Week by Suchsmallhands. (M, MCD) 12.4k, Sirius Black/Remus Lupin.  Sirius goes under quarantine in his flat, but fortunately he was able to get some reading material and a friend to keep him occupied during isolation.

Into the Wine Cellar by vivi1138. (E) 2.5k, Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter.  Harry should know better than to touch random objects that do not belong to him. Getting stuck in a cellar with Malfoy, of all people, leads to an interesting development.

Lockdown with the Malfoys by a_reader_and_writer. (G) 1.2k, Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter, Lucius Malfoy/Narcissa Black Malfoy. Dracos's parents are just visiting Harry and Draco for their weekly dinner when the Ministry of Magic announces a total lockdown. Awkward situations happen.

Lockdown Husband by Houseofmalfoy. (T) 4.7k,  Rodolphus Lestrange/Augustus Rookwood. "Got ready to leave after a hook-up for the guy to break the news that we’re on lockdown. We’re stuck together. this is the start of my bad rom-com."

Risk and Reward by nagemeikenu. (G) 2.6k, Rodolphus Lestrange/Augustus Rookwood. Augustus (Gus) Rookwood manages to survive completely alone in a burned down cabin for nearly three weeks. He's rescued by a gorgeous state trooper. Fluff ensues.

She’s A Rainbow by Ladderofyears. (M) 4.8k, Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter.  Draco never dreamt that he'd have to give birth without Harry, but when his beloved husband is put under MACUSA quarantine, he finds that he doesn't have a choice. With all the bravery he can muster, the best friend in the whole world and a pilfered magic mirror, Draco discovers that hope can be found even when you least expect it.

Stay with me through the storm by Pinkelephant42. FANART. (NR) 23 words, Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter.  Dragon Keeper Draco finds ways to keep his boyfriend Harry on the dragon retreat longer. Harry probably doesn’t mind.

Ten below and falling by agentmoppet. (E) 8.6k, Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter.  In which a pandemic results in Harry being locked in the Astronomy tower with Malfoy while they struggle to find the cure.

The Question of When by Misdemeanor1331. (G) 5.3k, Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy.  When a global pandemic emerges, Draco and Hermione are once again called upon to discover a vaccine.

Unlikely Quarantine fellows by Isimile. (T) 861 words, Neville Longbottom & Blaise Zabini.  Neville and Blaise are quarantined together following an accident in their potions class and they get talking.

HAWAII FIVE-O

Spring Break by stephmex. (T) 3.5k, Steve McGarrett/Danny Williams.  Danny had been looking forward to this trip for weeks, ever since the Christmas holidays when he had planned the Spring Break vacation together with Grace. But as much as he’d been looking forward to it, boarding the plane with Charlie's small hand grasped tightly in his own feels slightly off. One thing feeling off is this stupid new virus that you just can’t ignore because the news coverage is all over the place. The other thing feeling off goes by the name of Steve—and Danny is leaving him behind with insomnia and a concussion and the sure knowledge that there is something that Steve is not telling him.

HOUSE OF CARDS

Skilled Hands and Talented Tongues by goreds. (M) 1.2k, Remy Danton/Jackie Sharp/Alan Cooke. Frank Underwood's made enemies, so it's no surprise that Jackie Sharp and Remy Danton get locked down due to a threat during one of their meetings at the White House. But Alan Cooke's there too, which just creates a brand new dynamic.

IT

Isolated by Slashaddict96. (T) 1.3k, Connor Bowers/Richie Tozier.  Richie and his parents get stuck isolated at the hospital when a dangerous outbreak occurs. What's worse it's with his least favorite person

IWATOBI SWIM CLUB (MAZE RUNNER CROSSOVER)

Free from the Maze by runningfromrealitytoanime. (Graphic Depictions of Violence, MCD). 33k, WIP, Gen.  Haru finds himself without his memories except for his name before he was chucked into the Glade populated entirely by boys. As he tries to make sense of his new life amongst the Gladers, Haru realizes there is only one goal in mind: to run and escape the Maze.

KINGSMAN

Rarely Pure and Never Simple by andthenshesaid-write. (T) 2.3k, Harry Hart/Gary “Eggsy” Unwin.  Eggsy and Harry get stuck in a train. Some important things need to be said.

LITTLE WOMEN

a party hardly ever goes the way it is planned by middlemarch. (G) 900 words, Theodore Laurence/Amy March, Friedrich Bhaer/Josephine March.  Teddy had written she must come. He had run out of arguments.

Distances by MercuryGray. (G) 1.5k WIP, John Brooke/Margaret March.  A Modern March AU - In the midst of global pandemic, the March and Brooke families are trying hold it together.

MCU

Bracing by babywarg. (G) 2.5k, Tony Stark/Stephen Strange. In which Tony Stark makes a few declarations in response to a disease outbreak, and brooks no dissent.

Must Love Dogs (Right Here at the End of the Line) by bookjunkiecat. (G) 2.3k, Bucky & PTSD, Bucky & Pal (dog), Bucky & Steve.  During the virus pandemic, an already fragile Bucky has to venture out to pick up more of his very necessary meds. Returning home, he has a panic attack and retreats into an alley. While there he rescues a dog...or rather, the dog rescues him. Once he calms down, Bucky calls a veternarian's office, and reaches a warm, calm man named Steve.

Take Two by heyjupiter. (T) 14.1k, Bruce Banner/Tony Stark. When Tony Stark is injured in Afghanistan, he wakes up in captivity to find that a mysterious American doctor has plugged his heart into a car battery and saved his life. Tony is determined to repay the favor; when he escapes from the Ten Rings, he's taking Bruce Banner with him.

MERCY STREET

I took my Power in my hand by middlemarch. (G) 1.9k, Jedediah Foster/Mary Phinney.  It wouldn't do to consider just what it was that had spilled. It was war, it was a kitchen with a corrupt steward, it was a rapidly warming April in Virginia and the man she wasn't supposed to have any finer feelings for was looking at her quizzically.

MERLIN

Merlin Versus Quarantine by coconutknightshade. (T) 1.3k WIP, Merlin/Arthur Pendragon, Leon/Morgana. Merlin isn't quite 50 Shades of Done with Quarantine, but he and Arthur do have dry-erase "Day's Since Last Meltdown" boards mounted in the kitchen.

The Night Is So Long When Everything’s Wrong by Hum My Name. (G) 4.2k, Merlin & Arthur Pendragon. One month after banishing Merlin, Arthur's given a message in the form of a dirty red neckerchief. His ex-manservant's been captured and the captors want the king to pay the ransom.Going after Merlin is the easy part. Spending a long night in a small cell with no one but Merlin with him is a bit more difficult.

MIRACULOUS LADYBUG

Love Bug by onetruthree. (T) 3.3k, Chat Noir & Marinette Dupain-Cheng.  Marinette feels the safest with her friends by her side. But when the dead come back to life, that safety is tested.

Quiet by BookGirlFan. (G) 669 words, Chat Noir & Ladybug. Ladybug and Chat Noir sit on a rooftop in an empty Paris.

MIRAGE

Murder Scarecrow and His Pissed-Off Handler by goreds. (M) 1.7k, Gabriel Taylor/Doug Marsh. Gabriel screwed up a fairly simple mission, and now he and Doug are trapped in a tiny safe house somewhere in Eastern Europe. Sort-of romance ensues.

NCT

I Go Where You Go by CocoaBop. (T) 5k, Dong Si Cheng/Lee Taeyong. Taeyong thought he was prepared for another global pandemic. But this pandemic was different. In just a few weeks of isolation, Sicheng went from the shy, awkward roommate Taeyong rarely saw to his only anchor to the outside world.

OCEAN’S 8

Every Princess Needs a Castle by ShadowHaloedAngel. (T) 1.3k, Lou Miller/Debbie Ocean. Being stuck inside is sending Debbie a little bit crazy, even though she knows it's for a good reason. Fortunately she has Lou and a foster dog to help keep her sane.

Your Princess Is In Another Castle by ShadowHaloedAngel. (T) 3.3k, Nine Ball/Tammy. Nine Ball decides if she's going to be locked down, she'd rather it was with Tammy and her kids.

ONE DIRECTION

and the sun will shine by leighbot. (G) 5.1k, Zayn Malik/Harry Styles. They're practicing self-isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Two little boys shouldn't be too hard to entertain, right?

PITCH PERFECT

Basic Sickness by CamGray. (M), 1.3k, Chloe Beale/Beca Mitchell. Chloe snaps the mask over her face and replies, “I was always smart, you just weren’t paying attention.  Vet school didn’t hurt either.  Now come on.  I’m going to rest, why don’t you go get some work done.  You can’t nanny me all day.  You’ve got more important things to do.” Beca shakes her head.  “What could be more important than this?”  She says, stressing each syllable.

Dry Spell by aliciameade. (E) 2.7k, Chloe Beale/Beca Mitchell. Tumblr prompt: Just imagine Beca and Chloe casually watching a porno together and when I say “casually” I mean “getting horny and ending up doing it right there.”

High-Speed Connection by aliciameade. (E) 4.1k, Chloe Beale/Beca Mitchell, Chloe Beale/Aubrey Posen, Chloe Beale/Beca Mitchell/Aubrey Posen. So Beca is a bit of an exhibitionist. So what? What could possibly happen when she decides to play with Chloe while she Skypes with Aubrey?Sin. Sin is what happens.

Ready Or Not by aliciameade. (E) 4.6k, Chloe Beale/Beca Mitchell. In a time of social-distancing, Beca and Chloe finally find a way to pass the time.

She’s Such a Bad Girl by CamGray. (E) 711 words, Chloe Beale/Beca Mitchell. “Chloe!” Chloe pauses her singing to call back to Beca. “Yes, love of my life?” Beca rounds the corner. “You’ve sung ‘Work From Home’ every day for the past 128 days. You know I love your singing voice, but can you please, for the love of the Carona gods, do something else.” Chloe pouts. “Well what should I do?”“I don’t know. I’m about to clean the house.” Chloe flips her hair flirtatiously and rests her arms loosely on Beca’s shoulders before saying, “You do too much. You’re not Superman you know.”

Watch Our Bodies Intertwine by tmylm. (E) 7.2k,  Chloe Beale/Beca Mitchell.  Beca and Chloe are quarantined (yes, another "and they were quarantined!" fic) in Beca's Los Angeles home. Beca has managed to push away the feelings she harbored for Chloe back in college—they're adults now, she can behave herself. Or so she thinks.

you are my favorite thing by iPhone. (M) 3.2k. Chloe Beale/Beca Mitchell.  Beca and Chloe find themselves alone in their apartment after the instruction comes to self-isolate. Set pre-PP3. Just pretend PP3 doesn’t exist.

POLDARK

Tenderness is not like money by middlemarch. (T) 599 words, Demelza Carne/Ross Poldark, Demelza Carne & Dwight Enys.  What was the real crime?

QUEEN

Stay Right Where You Are by Stormtrooperinclogs. (T) 2k, John Deacon/Brian May, Freddie Mercury/Roger Taylor.  Brian and John are under government-mandated quarantine because of the virus. What are they gonna do???

RED WHITE & ROYAL BLUE

bend the rules by perfect-porcelain. (E) 6.8k,  Alex Claremont-Diaz/Henry Fox-Mountchristen-Windsor.  Alex is stuck inside with his roommate Liam and Liam's boyfriend Spencer and he thinks he's going to go insane but when his neighbor in the alleyway across from his window moves in he supposes that the quarantine won't be so bad after all.

Just Checking In by JessJesstheBest. (G) 1k, Alex Claremont-Diaz/Henry Fox-Mountchristen-Windsor.  In an au where COVID-19 happens to Henry and Alex, they try and stay connected through self-isolation.

SHADOWHUNTERS

Malec Malaise by Fluxx. (G) 2.9k, Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood.  Magnus has a cold! In the absence of his magic, it seems he managed to catch some common Mundane bug. Well, that should be fine. Nothing a little rest and tea can't take care of... right?

SHERLOCK

Going Viral by trillian_jdc. (G) 1.1k WIP, Mycroft Holmes/Greg Lestrade.  Mycroft Holmes has been exposed to the coronavirus and prepares to self-quarantine, which he's very used to. His isolation is accidentally interrupted by Greg Lestrade, who winds up sheltering in place with him.

Thank You John by AnAnYaH. (G), 352 words, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson.  Quarantine day fic.

SHETLAND

Remote Communities by aurorlaura. (T) 3.4k, Duncan Hunter/Jimmy Perez.  Jimmy Perez, Duncan Hunter and their daughter Cassie experience the Covid-19 lockdown in Shetland.

STAR TREK: PICARD

Of Malady and Mother by Boldlynyooming. (G) 4.1k, Elnor & Zani. There was an outbreak of Beluxian flu on Vashti, and Elnor was not allowed to go out.

STAR TREK: VOYAGER

Confined To Quarters by ShayneyL. (E) 1.6k, Harry Kim/Tom Paris. Tom and Harry are in trouble again. Will they find a way to entertain themselves while confined to quarters? (Spoiler: yes.)

Social Distance by MiaCooper. (T) 1.2k, Chakotay/Kathryn Janeway. The terrible trials of a captain in quarantine.

STAR WARS

Fever of Love by ladyofreylo. (E) 8.1k, Rey/Flip Zimmerman.  Rey and Flip shelter in the library overnight during a flu epidemic. Rey believes Flip is part of a racist group, and Flip can't tell Rey he's undercover because it jeopardizes his investigation. He asks her to trust him. Will she? And will she allow him to help her friend's brain-damaged brother escape the clutches of the evil organization?

I Know You by Idrilhadhafang. (M) 739 words, WIP, Poe Dameron/Kylo Ren.  After a dogfight outside the Raddus, Poe Dameron and Kylo Ren are trapped on a planet below, with no memories for either of them and only being able to rely on each other.

Please don’t take him just because you can by middlemarch. (T), 911 words, Finn & Rey, Rey/Ben Solo, Finn & Rey & Rose Tico. It wasn't a terrible job, it was the pandemic. Rey kept telling herself that, hoping she'd believe it. Or that it would all turn out to be a bad dream caused by eating government cheese before bed. Still, there were bright spots.

Something To Look Forward To by spacewitchqueen. (G) 1k, Armitage Hux/Kylo Ren.  While self-isolating, Kylo manages to make a new acquaintance. Perhaps even a new friend? Perhaps in time something more.

There’s been a Death, in the opposite house by middlemarch.  (G) 100 words, Kylo Ren/Rey.  Crisis was supposed to bring out the best in people. That was the silver lining, Rey was pretty sure that was the line anyway.

STAR WARS LEGENDS

Cabin Fever by Keldae. (G) 1k, Gen. Theron hates being locked down in one location on the best of days. Being isolated with only a Sith Lord, an irate Wookiee, and (the head of) a protocol droid that won't shut up for company? He's pretty sure he's in at least the second Corellian hell.

Pinned Down by Keldae. (T) 696 words, Female Jedi Knight/Theron Shan.  The only option is to stay hidden inside and hope for a rescue.

The Waiting Game by Greyias. (T) 4.4k, Female Jedi Knight/Theron Shan, Satele Shan & Theron Shan. The worst part about all of this was the waiting. Theron hated standing on the sidelines as everyone else risked their lives. He needed something to do. Anything to keep him distracted from his own thoughts.

SUPERGIRL

Darkest Before The Dawn by Val_Creative. (T) 1.4k, Kara Danvers/Lena Luther.  Lena ends up diagnosed with a serious virus. Kara gets a little panicky about this and worries enough to visit her.

SUPERNATURAL

Fourteen Days and Four Dozen Eggs by Mandala Rose. (E) 5.6k, Castiel/Dean Winchester, Jessica Moore/Sam Winchester.  As the Milton-Winchester household prepare to hunker down and #flattenthecurve, Dean makes a trip to the grocery store, for what was supposed to be their normal weekly grocery run. After all, they aren't the kind of people to panic and over-buy, right?

Hickory Dickory Dean by Carrieosity. (M) 2k,  Castiel/Dean Winchester.  When Castiel's library has to close because of the coronavirus pandemic, the librarians need to get a little creative in order to keep serving the community. Castiel has no problem recording virtual storytimes, but when it comes to adding in songs and things, he needs to call in a little extra help.

Knock by hit_the_books. (E) 2.5k, Castiel/Dean Winchester, past Dean Winchester/Lisa Braeden. Dean and Cas have been living together as roommates for about a year when the COVID-19 pandemic forces Douglas County health officials to issue a "stay at home" order. With Dean working from home and Cas trapped there with him, Dean starts to realize that he doesn't really know much about the younger man he's living with. And then he knocks on and opens up Cas's bedroom door one day and discovers far more than he was expecting.

It'll Be Fine. by ChloeDarling. (G) 1.4k,  Castiel/Dean Winchester.  Forced to self-isolate, Castiel finds himself succumbing to the boredom as he runs out of ways to keep himself entertained. Luckily, Dean Winchester has a plan to save the day.

Next Time, I Choose Death by CeliPuff, Winchesterlovr0508. (M) 1.2k,  Castiel/Dean Winchester.  In light of this pandemic, I decided to write some daily journal entries on how we survived the 14 day quarantine. It’s me, my brother and my best friend, what can go wrong?

No Dent by spnsmile. FANFIC AND FANART (E) 7k, Castiel/Dean Winchester. Because the Impala is the best place to lock Dean and Castiel away when in the middle of another fight. They really need to talk and close the distance created by their stubborn heads. At least, Jack thought so.

Throw Away the Key by CeliPuff, Ketch22. (E) 2.1k WIP,  Castiel/Dean Winchester. multiple other relationships. After his father dies and leaves him nothing but the coolest car ever manufactured, the whole world turns to shit. Caught in the middle of a pandemic while attending the funeral, Dean is told he can’t return home and has to find somewhere else to ride out the mandatory month-long quarantine. Out of options, he calls his best friend Benny.Cas has lived with Benny for awhile - the bed was comfy, rent was cheap... the orgies were just a bonus. It wasn’t a half-bad place to live out a permanent bachelor lifestyle, or an irritating lockdown - but he’s about to get more than he bargained for when Benny takes in a stray.

Outbreak 2019 by spnsmile. FANFIC AND FANART (T) 1.7k, Castiel/Dean Winchester.  There's a spreading virus around and against it the medical staff are in the front lines. Castiel is a doctor and he just texted his husband he's positive of the virus.He awaits his fate in silence thinking of Dean.

THE 100

In Fair Corona by eternaleponine. (M) 8.3k, Clarke Griffin/Lexa. While returning from a service trip abroad, Lexa volunteers to take another flight when theirs is overbooked, and Clarke is forced to accompany her. When someone on the flight gets sick, they find themselves quarantined far from home with only each other for company. Can they overcome their differences and realize that they're in this together?

THE AVENGERS/MASS EFFECT TRILOGY

Stuck with You by sgteam14283. (G) 3.3k WIP, Clint Barton & Natasha Romanov, Female Ryder/James Vega, Kaidan Alenko/Female Shepard. Adults can handle being stuck somewhere for a long period of time. For the most part.

THE EXPANSE

How to Have Fun in Quarantine at the UN by goreds. (M) 1.4k, Chrisjen Avasarala/Sadavir Errinwright, Arjun/Chrisjen Avasarala.  Chrisjen Avasarala and the whole of the United Nations, including Sadavir Errinwright, are on lockdown during a pandemic. Mild non-social distancing ensues.

THE FLASH

Between Hope and Fear by Purpleyin. (T) 4.1k, Cisco Ramon/Hartley Rathaway.  During the pandemic, Hartley tries to help. He tries to keep going and do whatever he can, from a distance. Everything is going as well as can be expected, until his world comes crashing down with one phone call from Caitlin Snow.

THE GRISHA TRILOGY

watch the world go by by JemDoe. (T) 823 words, Aleksander Morozova/Alina Starkov. “The plague of 758 was a very serious issue, made worse by the Fold, Alina. Supplies were so hard to reach to the other side of the country…” “Wipe that smile off your face before talking about a plague that was made worse by your actions, then."

THE HOBBIT

Cave in by Isimile. (T) 1k, Bilbo Baggins/Thorin Oakenshield. Of course the cave in has to happen just when Bilbo is accompanying Thorin to a visit of the newly re-opened mines. Thorin just have the worst luck.

THE LORD OF THE RINGS

Nowhere else by Roselightfairy. (T) 1.2k, Gimli/Legolas Greenleaf. In preparation of an anticipated attack from nearby Dunland, Éomer has ordered that Aglarond go into lockdown.At least Legolas and Gimli are together.

THE MAGNUS ARCHIVES

a melody played in a penny arcade by aguntoaknifefight. (T) 2.7k, Martin Blackwood/Jonathan Sims, Elias Bouchard/Peter Lukas. Jon is trapped in the Institute. Things change.Or: Peter Lukas’s post-divorce pettiness inadvertently saves the world.

THE SIMARILLION AND OTHER HISTORIES OF MIDDLE-EARTH

A WORLD WITHOUT GRANDPARENTS by bluehair. (G) 1k, Maglor & Finwe.  I really didn't plan this. But it wanted to be written.

THE SOFT DOCTRINE OF IMAGINOS

On the Wrong SIde of the Mirror by Imaginos_Buzzardo_Desdinova. (M) 2.1k, Gen.  Trapped on the wrong side of mirror, Imaginos must find his way back to stop the evil Desdinova. He finds only one other person who also was tricked into the mirror.

THE TERROR

Lift Fire by Gigi_Sinclair. (G) 2.5k, Thomas Jopson/Lt Edward Little.  "Tom doesn't speak, either, until there's a strange grinding groan, the lights flicker, and the lift shudders to an unexpected stop.Oh, you have to be joking, Edward thinks, as Tom says, 'I'd heard they'd been having some problems with this one.'"

Look for the Helpers by goreds. (T) 1.2k, Captain Francis Crozier/Commander James Fitzjames.  Dr. Francis Crozier, stuck at home, lends a hand to his sick next-door neighbor, James Fitzjames.

THE TRANSFORMERS

Maybe it’s enough by choomchoom. (T) 2.8k, Drift/Rodimus, Prowl/Starscream. The boys deal with the pandemic.

Quarantined by pipermca. (G) 2.7k, Gen. Even when the Decepticons are forced into quarantine to stop the spread of a deadly disease, Soundwave still has work to do. If only his cassettes would keep it down...

THE UNTAMED

The Usefulness of Bunnies as Messengers is Strictly Dependant on the Bunny In Question by theskyandsea. (G) 2.8k, Lan Wangji/Wei Wuxian. Wei Wuxian is quarantined in an apartment with Jiang Cheng and it's going about as well as one would expect. Which is to say, the second Wei Wuxian discovers just how hot his across-the-street neighbour is he jumps at the opportunity to talk to someone else.Even if that talking is through the medium of messenger bunnies.

We’re on a boat and... by chatcolat. (T) 1.4k, Gen. Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian get stuck on a boat and accidentally end up talking to each other for five minutes while they wait for rescue.

THE WITCHER

Carefully We Gather by tackytiger. (M) 2.4k,  Geralt of Rivia/Jaskier. They've been snowed in at the inn for six days now, and Jaskier still isn't speaking to Geralt.It's just, killing monsters is what Geralt does. Just because this one came a little bit too close to killing him first, doesn't mean that Jaskier has to get in a sulk about it. And why does he care so much, anyway?

Distanced Dears by jaskiersvalley. (T) 2.2k, Geralt of Rivia/Jaskier, Cahir Mawr Dyffryn aep Ceallach/Geralt of Rivia, Geralt of Rivia/Yennefer z Vengerbergu, Cahir Mawr Dyffryn aep Ceallach/Jaskier, Geralt/Jaskier/Yennefer/Cahir.  Given the fact Geralt worked in the Accident and Emergency department, it was highly likely he would catch the virus, even with every precaution. Not wanting to put his whole family at risk, he and Cahir move into Cahir's old flat and they try to weather the storm by themselves when Geralt does get infected.

No More Water, but Fire Next Time by ladivvinatravestia. (T) 7.7k, Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon & Jaskier, Geralt of Rivia/Jaskier.  Jaskier and Ciri take shelter at a refugee camp following the fall of Cintra, where they find that Pestilence and War often ride together.

oh my god they were plague-mates by wombatpop. (T) 4.3k, Geralt of Rivia/Jaskier. “They’ve closed the streets, Geralt. We’re stuck in here.” Jaskier and Geralt stuck in an inn together. What could go wrong?

The Fortnight by Elizabeth. (E) 7.5k, Geralt of Rivia/Jaskier.  A plague is ravaging the Northern Kingdoms. First Oxenfurt is locked down, and then Novigrad. Geralt is immune, but Jaskier isn't. Rosemary and Thyme is a pretty nice place to spend a fortnight, but it's still a long time to spend with just one person--even if that person is your best friend.A lot can happen in two weeks.

Trouble In Here by Val_Creative. (M) 2.5k,  Geralt of Rivia/Jaskier. Jaskier accidentally barricades himself into Geralt’s room when he’s been cursed, forcing them to isolate together.

YU-GI-OH! DUEL MONSTERS

And they were quarantine-mates by Alecto. (T) 4.8k, Jounouchi Katsuya/Kaiba Seto. The order came down while they slept. Now Kaiba was stranded at Joey's place for the foreseeable future.

YUYU HAKUSHO: GHOST FILES

Six Feet Apart by Penguiduck. (G) 2.4k, Kurama/Reader.  You've only been living in your condo for two months, but you have yet to meet your neighbor. When you're sentenced to working from home due to the recent COVID-19 virus, you step onto your shared balcony for the first time. You meet Shuichi and really like him. The only problem? You have to stay six feet apart.

[chwesolai]

change up. | lee chan

inspired by change up by seventeen and grease, yes, the movie (you’ll understand why in a second don’t you worry)

university au!

nerd!chan x class clown!y/n

-

chan spent his times in his books, in his studies, in ‘always looking in the future’. he never took a break. but towards the end of his senior year of high school, his parents wanted to reward his hard work and studious efforts. it was post-finals, he finished, he got into the university he dreamed of. 

he was free, finally.

so the trip began, his family packed their bags and the road trip to Daecheon Beach from Iksan. chan and his younger brother remained silent most of the ride, chan's brother playing on his phone, occasionally showing chan the new character he unlocked.

"you're going to fry your brain because of those games," chan scoffs, lifting his head up from reading.

"you're going to become evil because of all those scary books you read."

"then, let me."

the two brothers laugh and slowly immerse themselves into their activities and as the sun sets, the two fall into a deep sleep.

four more hours later and the sun began to warm chan's face, they have arrived.

y/n's parents allowed her to pick this year's summer family vacation, her older sister picked last year and her older brother did the year before. they've been to the us, europe, japan but she just wanted to stay home. but her family just didn't allow that so she picked the beach. 

"THE BEACH? Y/N ARE YOU KIDDING?" her sister wasn't here for that, but her brother backed her up, "hey less money spending for us then. we wouldn't need to exchange money, buy flight tickets, bla bla blah."

"exactly." y/n proud of her decision.

"alright, i guess we could go visit my hometown's beach then," y/n's dad shrugs looking at her mother, who was nodding in agreement, "ok, saving money this trip, I like it. we could stay at mom's house then," it was set.

y/n packing her bags, excited to just bathe in the sun, swim, eat her grandmother's food again, this was her trip.

the car ride was absolutely chaotic.

y/n gained the entire back seat to herself with her two older siblings stuck ripping each others' heads off in the middle seats.

"I WILL GIVE YOU TWO MY LAST TWO POCKY IF YOU SHUT UP RIGHT NOW." 

"ok bet," her brother held out his hand as his little sister handed him a strawberry pocky packet and her older sister then received her chocolate pocky.

"thank you," y/n bathes in the silence as she goes back to her drama.

the two met at y/n's grandmother's restaurant. y/n was peeling oranges as chan's family walks in, if you're offered to earn some money on vacation, you take it, y/n dropped the peeler, telling her grandma she can take this table.

chan pushed up his glasses as he looks up at the possibly cutest girl he's ever laid eyes on. she was definitely she was shorter than him, her hair held back in two braids, she kept her pen behind her ear and she looked just like how chan envisions the female characters in the classic novels he reads.

"hi welcome to kitchen by paradise, i'm y/n and i will be your server today and if you have any questions about any items on the menu, i'll be more than happy to recommend you anything! now, could i get you all anything to drink?"

chan's mom ordered water, his dad got a cola, his brother banana milk and chan didn't have a clue.

"and for you?" y/n says as she turns her attention towards chan.

"u-um. um. do-do-o you guys have any specialty drinks?"

"oh yeah! we grow our own oranges so we have a whole specialty of drinks. we have an orange-hibiscus iced tea, an orangeade, an orange-pineapple refresher and an orange mint sunrise."

"could i get the orange-pineapple one? please?"

"of course, that's my personal favorite," y/n smiles and chan could've sworn his heart melted, "i will get those ready for you guys and again, if you guys have any questions, call out for y/n!"

"thank you!" chan's parents chimed in as y/n walks away.

"channie has a crush channie has a crush." 

"i will drown you." chan glares at his little brother as his cheeks began to flush.

chan never knew he could fall so easily, i guess this is what happens when you're not focused on studying instead of girls, but this charismatic waitress got his attention.

chan watched y/n peel oranges and make the drink he had ordered, almost feeling bad because the drink looked so tedious to make. he saw the tray of drinks coming their way as she finishes pouring the yellow-orangey iced drink.

"here we go!" she places the drinks at the table, handing each drink to its rightful owner, "so are we ready to order?"

y/n took everyone's orders and y/n couldn't help but giggle at this nerdy guy stuttering ordering his seafood bibibimbap.

he's cute i can't deny it.

"alright let me repeat your guys' order and i'll send this to the kitchen!"

-

chan's family finished their meals and had left while y/n was on her break, disappointing chan, so he jumped to this opportunity. his 18 y/o heart couldn't believe himself that he left his number for this cute waitress he just met, i mean she probably is a local here and i'm here for the next two weeks.

y/n couldn't believe either. she smiled that that dorky kid thought she was cute, so she saved his number, texting him around sunset.

to orange boy: hey! this is y/n!

to server girl: hi! i'm chan i can't believe you actually saved my number ha

to orange boy: i just had to thank the guy who called me cute and also thinks my favorite drink is good because its our least popular haha

to server girl: thats surprising its rly good omg

to orange boy: so are you free tomorrow?

to server girl: i think my family is just hanging out tmr why?

to orange boy: my grandma is sending me to the market tomorrow to pick up some ingredients and i know you're here for vacation and i know im just a stranger but idk want to explore the coast tmr?

chan couldn't believe it, in his 18 years of his life, he is being asked to go out. with a girl. and she isn't trying to steal his study book.

y/n couldn't believe herself, she just asked a stranger to go out with her.

to server girl: i'm down wanna pick me up?

to orange boy: tmr 12pm i'll bring us lunch 

to server girl: sounds like a plan, so whats your favorite color?

the two spent all night getting to know each other, learning they're the same age, chan was older by a month and a half, y/n's favorite color is every color and said some picasso joke making chan laugh in his hotel room. they both felt like they've known each other for years.

the next day came and y/n packed her backpack and her scooter for the day, writing down the list her grandmother has told her the night before and then sending a text to chan for his address.

"I'M TAKING THE SCOOTER!" y/n yells as she runs down the stairs, "TEXT ME IF YOU NEED ME!"

her family all replying as they hear her leave.

as she makes it to the garage, she ensures she brings the second helmet.

this is a vacation. the wind blowing in her hair as she follows the directions to chan's hotel. her dark blue scooter shimmering in the sunlight and she arrives in front of chan's hotel, rich kid huh?

to orange boy: outside by the lobby!!

chan was already in the lobby for the past ten minutes, didn't want to look like a complete weirdo and come out right when she texted so he waited for a good minutes before walking out. he was wanted to be casual, didn't want to screw anything up with her.

"hey! chan over here!" he walked out seeing the pretty girl from the restaurant on a blue electric scooter? taking off her helmet waving her hand around. he smiled and waved back as he walked towards her.

"this is tomi, my trusty stead," she smiles proudly at her scooter making chan stifle a laugh, leading y/n to laugh at his poor hiding of a laugh, "this is yours, hop on!"

"did not expect this to be the start of my day," he laughs as he puts on the helmet, he gets on the back of the scooter and before y/n turns on the scooter, she grabs chan's arms and to his surprise, wraps them around her stomach, "we're going fast so i don't want you falling off," she turns and smiles at him. what am i feeling right now? butterflies swarm around the two teenagers' stomachs, falling in love before they've even gone out.

"oh o-ok."

and they were off. 

y/n parked the scooter in her usual spot, the noise of the market sang to her and before getting off, she introduces the market, "welcome to daecheon market where old men try to peddle tourists and where local teenagers find the best clothes AND one stand has the BEST fruit produce." 

"y/n i think i should just call you fruit girl because you seem very enthusiastic about them," chan smirks

"i dare you to, orange boy."

"alright fruit girl."

the two laugh as they barely even notice chan's arms are still around y/n, y/n begins to take off her helmet right before she bumps chan in the face with her helmet.

"OH MY GOD! i am so sorry chan oh my god im sorry oh my god i-"

"y/n its ok really," chan laughs at her worried look, "i'm all good no bleeding see?"

"alright im still super sorry i kind of forgot i had a passanger with me," she nervously laughs, im such an idiot what is wrong w me wtf y/n

chan hops off and helps y/n down, "thank you, sir," y/n bows.

"you are very welcome madam," chan bows back, leading them both to laugh once more because of their dorkiness.

"here hold this," y/n opens the scooter compartment and hands chan a camera, "thats my prized possession, keep it safe." she pretends to glare at him but ending up laughing anyways, "you're on picture duty and i am on food duty," y/n pulls out a picnic basket and a large water bottle, "before we explore lets eat!"

y/n leads chan down to a secluded area next to the market, "my siblings and i love coming down here and eating lunch and playing ball. its our secret hideout, and you are a new member of paradise cove, mr chan."

"i'm honored," chan couldn't believe how comfortable he felt around her, a stranger that he had a very long text conversation last night about their favorite colors and whether or not aliens exist. y/n couldn't believe either. why did she feel so bubbly around a kid she met on the job at her grandmother's restaurant?

chan helped her put out a small picnic blanket from the basket and y/n began to pull out the food, “so i remembered your order from the other day and grandma pulled through and made some more this morning and a special touch, an orange-pineapple refresher. dig in!”

-

their picnic was nothing but boring, time passed so quickly while they talked more about the city and high school and where they want to go for univerity, and what they want to be. a convesation nether of the two have had with another human being. they both took some pictures while they were at it, y/n always doing some silly pose when chan had the camera and chan always looking away from the camera. they were comfortable with one another. 

“so, let’s explore the market shall we?” chan standing up, offering his hand to her, she was hesistant at first, “come on y/n i don’t bite,” he laughs, looking away. feeling odd with  his hand out for so long, he looks back at her smiling this time, “i’m feeling a cramp coming on”

standing up, she grabs his hand and pulls him close to her, both of their faces flushed now. y/n had NO idea what she was doing, “can i?” she looked at his lips and then back up at his eyes, prepare for any reaction

“yes,” once y/n heard his answer, his hand caressed the side of y/n’s face and pressed their lips together, almost melting into the kiss. y/n felt her cheeks burn up, the kiss lasted a few seconds but felt like an eternity. pulling away, the two laughed with their eyes closed and foreheads pressed against each other, “so the market?” y/n slowly opened her eyes, seeing the flustered boy in front of her interlocking their hands together.

“i thought you were the romantic,” he smiles back.

-

two spent nearly everyday together. y/n told chan she didn’t live in daecheong, they both knew they were both on vacation and the day one of them was leaving was soon appoarching them. “what will you do without me?” “cry.” “shut up chan” “you asked i answered~!”

chan didn’t want to believe but neither did y/n. their two weeks was up, y/n helped chan pack. “are you really going to cry?” “y/n you’re my first kiss, my first love, my first crush, the first girl that actually has gotten my attention so what do you think?” “now, you’re going to make me cry.” she pouts “y/n you have my number, i have my license, you have a kickass scooter. we have ways to still see each other even if that means our universities are miles apart, we can do this.”

-

to orange boy: i miss you

they couldn’t do it. the long distance lasted about a month and then school started.

to server girl: i’m sorry

chan was at yonsei university and back to his old ways. head in the books, no partying no social interaction just studying. this physical therapy major wasn’t moving an inch.

now, what chan didn’t know was y/n was ALSO at yonsei. this visual arts major was the biggest party animal on campus. she ruled frat parties and she was a good students. her professors loved her and her charm.

- ten months later -

HALLOWEEN

“CHAN! you have to come dude!” chan’s roommate, xuxi, begs him. xuxi was the polar opposite of chan, same age same major COMPLETELY different social class.

“no ‘xi for the last time, i’m not a party guy.”

“chan please dude, its a costume party, nobody will know its you.” chan began to consider it, when was the last time i had fun?

“what are you dressing up as?”  “i’m going to be capt. american because im going as the avengers with mark and the other guys. if you don’t want to be recognized then wear a mask, be a masquarade ball dude? idk wear a suit and a mask, be that DUDE”

“i’m in.” here we go lee chan

to server girl: finally going out with the boys for the first time hope you’re well i miss you

y/n read the text almost immediately, “i wonder where he’s going?”

“who?” y/n’s roommate jungeun asled as she’s doing her makeup.

“some summer fling, he just texted me after like three months.”

“he’s more than a summer fling hon if you saw his text so fast.”

“shut up”

“kiss me,” jungeun stuck her tongue out at her, “so what are you dressing up as y/n?”

“poision ivy, mark said they’re going to be the avengers and so i’m showing him up and being dc’s sexiest villian.”

“you’re such a heartbreaker miss y/n let the boy breathe, he may have cheated but-”

“but nothing! he treated me like a one night stand and i wanted more! im going all out!”

-

chan looked at himself one more time in the mirror and xuxi walked behind him in his captain america outfit, “my son you look so fucking good,” pretending to tear up

“shut up,” chan rolled my eyes, sitting back down on his bunk, “should i still go?”

“YES! you look good dude! can’t even recognize you, you look so different and the contacts? you’re really hiding your identity with this one channie.”

“this is the only night we get to be other people so,” he puts on his lacey masquarade mask he bought from target, ‘let’s go.”

xuxi wraps his arm around him, “LETS FUCKING GO!”

-

“MISS Y/N YOU DID THAT HONEY!”

jungeun and y/n nearly in shock of how well this costume curves around her body.

“green is your color girl,” jungeun sighs, “you knock them dead baby.”

“you look amazing yourself j OMG ms daphne over here.”

“I’m finding my fred tonight ok?” she smiles as she ties her scarf around her neck.

y/n places her red mask on, “i’m heading out!”

“HANG ON!” y/n was practically out the door before jungeon runs out, “ok ready.”

“let’s go fuck shit up.”

-

the party was everything chan was not used to, drinking, loud music, people EVERYWHERE, you could say he was slightly overwhelmed. 

you could say he also wasn't used to the attention around him, girls coming up to ask if they wanna hook up or take a shot with him which he declined all of them until she walked in.

ms poison ivy walked in.

it was about 30 minutes after the party started and y/n walked in like she owned the place, jungeon next to her, y/n walked in red heels and green latex in its full glory.

"i'll go get us drinks!" jungeon pracatically screams in y/n's ear.

"OK!" now alone, chan saw this as an opportunity, still not knowing who that was or even who he was in this moment he walked up to her.

"hi!" y/n was drawn back but the handsome stranger in front of her

"HI!"

"I THINK YOU LOOK REALLY PRETTY!"

"THANK YOU! I THINK YOU LOOK PRETTY HOT YOURSELF! LET ME GUESS, a VAMPIRE?"

the music got increasingly louder as this conversation went on so chan yelled back, "NOT EXACTLY, IM A MASQUERADE BALL HOST"

y/n felt eyes beaming her up and down and she saw him, mark, and before he could come any closer, y/n kissed this handsome stranger in front of him.

chan had no idea what was going on but he really didn't care anymore, this kiss began to be a full makeout session in the middle of the dance floor.

"IM SORRY BUT DO YOU WANT TO GET OUT OF HERE?"

"YEAH I DO ACTUALLY"

 both of them walk out of the loud frat house, "so who do i owe this honor to mr masquerade man?"

"chan, i'm chan. how about you?"

"i'm sorry did you say c-chan?"

y/n hasn't heard that name in what feels like ages until today.

"yes? is something wrong?"

was it really him?

"no its just i knew someone named chan awhile back, ha." she sadly smiled.

it can't be him chan was never this bold.

"ah i see, how about you ms poison ivy?"

"y/n"

"y/n huh?"

"yes, what about it?

"do you still have that blue scooter?" chan takes off his mask and turns to face the girl he's been wondering about for so long.

"c-chan?"

"long time no see huh?"

"i-i-i didn't even recognize you? where're your glasses? did you get your braces off too? your hair's lighter, you look really good, chan," she sighs in disbelief.

"college does stuff to you i guess," he nervously rubs the nape of his neck, "and you? wow. i didn't think someone could look so gorgeous in latex." he smiles all goofy.

"chan."

"y/n?"

pulling herself into his chest, "i've missed you, im sorry for being an asshole, im sorry for saying those things i shouldve held on im sorry im-"

"nothing is your fault y/n, look at me," he pulls her out of his chest, "i'm here now! we just needed time i guess," he lets out a small laugh.

"now you're the jokester mr lee."

"lets restart. hi im chan."

"hi im y/n," she smiles and takes his hand in hers, "lets never leave again."

"yes ms poison ivy."

“never call me that again.”

[artificialqueens]

All I’ve Got To Keep Myself Sane, 4/8 (Jackie/Widow) - Juno

Chapter Summary: Night is falling in Atlantic City, and Jackie and Widow are no closer to going in separate directions. Unless it relates to Star Trek.

A/N: This chapter is almost entirely fluff with some Star Trek references thrown in for good measure. I hope you enjoy part four!

Jackie’s head swirled in memories once more. Or maybe it was swirling in alcohol. Two pina coladas? After pizza? And she was already tipsy? She almost felt ashamed of herself. Her college persona could drink more than that in a night and still walk home!

On the other side of the table, Widow had nursed her own cocktail for the evening, while Jackie was on her third. Widow mentioned she didn’t really drink very often and only wanted one, which Jackie didn’t mind; but it hadn’t stopped Jackie wanting to shove as much alcohol as she could down her own throat.

“… Jackie?”

“What? Oh. Sorry.”

It was starting to feel more comfortable. Widow was becoming less of a stranger, more of a friend; their heart-to-hearts on the beach feeling like a release of tension. They were freer to just be in each others’ company.

Jackie was enjoying watching Widow relaxing more; the ready smile which lit up her face, the cheeky glint in her brown eyes, which shone with the colourful lights on the boardwalk. She was even cracking jokes, a dry sense of humour emerging, along with a contagious laugh.

There was a fun woman under the introverted mask she wore. A fun, interesting woman.

“Hello? USS Enterprise calling Jackie Cox?” Widow laughed. “Why are you staring at me? Do I have something on my face?”

Jackie was already regretting confessing her love for the original Star Trek after just one cocktail. She felt herself flush, and put a hand to her forehead. “Sorry. I’m just thinking. And in fact …” Jackie giggled, leaning nearer to Widow, “I just realised something.”

“Come on then, spill!” Widow leaned in too, her face alight with mischief, obviously thinking of something funny.

Jackie opened her mouth, but then closed it. More alcohol was needed for this.

She lifted the straw of the third pina colada to her mouth and drank, drank and drank until the brain freeze started to take over and she dropped the straw to pinch the bridge of her nose until it went away.

She put the now almost-empty glass down, maybe a little harder than intended, and set her hands crossed, facing Widow straight on, letting a grin spread across her face, although she didn’t know why – there was no humour in this.

“Oh, this is gonna be juicy,” Widow shuffled gleefully, mimicking Jackie’s pose. “I’m getting comfy for this!”

“Right,” Jackie chuckled, biting her lip. “It’s juicy.”

“Come on, then, tell!”

“There’s no family here in Jersey at all! No visit to grandma! There was just a dirty weekend road trip planned, for me and Jan. For me to forget about my life. And maybe, Jan would tell me why she ran away from New York, from me! Why she didn’t want to come and live with me when she left her flat, and instead went and got a transfer with her job to Pittsburgh! Except, I found out she didn’t get a transfer! She moved jobs completely within about a month!”

Jackie leaned back on the chair and tittered, the alcohol making the boardwalk and the lights blur before her eyes.

By contrast, Widow’s smile was slowly fading from her face as she watched Jackie silently.

Jackie opened her mouth again, more thoughts spilling out to fill the space between them. “It makes sense now, she was talking to that – that bitch before she even left! Oh God; that’s why she left New York, not for a fucking work transfer like she told me, for some other girl! And I never had so much as a fucking one-night stand while she was gone, and she’s been screwing some girl behind my back in Pittsburgh! I wasted nearly two years of my life on –“

But Jackie felt Widow grasp her hand tightly on the table, silencing her tittering immediately.

“Maybe you’ve had enough. You know alcohol makes you depressed, right?”

Jackie nodded, biting her lip. “I’m a loser.”

“You’re not.”

“I’m a fucking loser.”

“Jackie, stop it.” Widow was glaring at her now.

“It was all going on under my nose and I didn’t see a thing!” Jackie whispered, her hands still shivering. “I’m so naïve.”

“You didn’t deserve to be treated like that.” Widow’s eyes bored into Jackie, seeming to speak to her very soul. “You don’t deserve that.”

Jackie took a shaky breath, feeling herself calm on the exhale. “I think I’ve had enough.”

“Let’s get out of here, then.”

They paid their bill and left, back onto the boardwalk. Jackie felt a little unstable on her feet, but Widow was pretty much sober, and Jackie felt her link an arm through hers to keep her steady.

Night had now fallen, the expanse of sky above them in deep indigo, with stars appearing above them as they walked. The colourful lights on the boardwalk, once entrancing and exciting, were making Jackie feel a bit nauseous, and she insisted on heading down to the beach. They traipsed down the path to the sand, the tide right out now, the sea in shades of black and coal-grey before them.

“I like the stars,” Jackie murmured to Widow, looking up wistfully, “because they’re always there. Even when you can’t see them.”

Widow laughed. “Cheesy bullshit.”

They lay on the sand on the towel again, Jackie feeling the alcohol start to fade off a little, her mouth becoming a little dry. She reached into her bag for a bottle of water, drank some, and lay back down, reaching for Widow’s hand to interlace her fingers.

“What are you doing?” Widow murmured.

“Sorry,” Jackie started to pull away, but Widow held onto her.

“It’s fine, I don’t mind; I just wasn’t sure you knew you were doing it.”

“It’s because it’s my love language. I like to be tactile with people if I like them.”

Jackie felt her face flush again as the words left her mouth. Where the hell had that come from?

But Widow just squeezed her hand back. “Oh, me too.”

“I’m a hugger. All my friends hate it,” Jackie giggled tentatively.

“Same, girl.” Widow’s laugh had a tinge of nervousness to it.

The alcohol was definitely fading, thank god. Jackie felt a bit more clarity than she had during her earlier tipsy outburst. The night air was cool and clear, the breeze stronger than in the day, and Widow’s warm skin next to hers was comforting. The stars above them started to become more and more distinct. Jackie felt her eyes chasing the stars as they started to appear above her.

“Do you know which constellations these are?”

Widow scoffed at Jackie’s question. “Of course! Astronomy is my specialist subject.”

“It is?”

“Sure.”

“How did you get into astronomy? Did you study it at college?”

“Jackie, we just spent ten minutes arguing about how many episodes of the original Star Trek there were, right, because you can’t deal with The Menagerie being two episodes, and not one?” Widow laughed. “Let’s just say that being a Trekkie got me into it. I can tell you anything you wanna know about the stars.”

“Which star is that one then?” Jackie pointed to the brightest star she could see near the Atlantic horizon.

“That’s not a star. That’s Venus. Just a planet, pretending to be a star. Shady bitch.”

Jackie snorted with laughter.

“And also, I don’t know the name of every single fucking star in the sky, Jackie. But I know a few things about the stars, and the planets and shit.”

“Alright, well, which planet has the most moons?”

“That’s easy. Saturn. Saturn has, like, forty. And one of them, Titan, has a similar atmosphere to the planet Mars. Which only has two moons, Phobos and Deimos.”

“Oh really?” Jackie asked.

Widow nodded fervently, sitting up. “In fact, which way is south? I think you can see Mars on the horizon right now.”

Jackie sat up and pointed to the sky behind the arcade on their right. Widow nodded, and pointed out a star there.

“Yeah, see that one which is a little bit red to look at? And not, like, twinkling?”

“I see it!” Jackie gasped.

“That’s Mars. Mars only appears in the sky for a couple of months, every two years. But you can see it, if you look for the one that looks red, if you know what I mean. Planets don’t twinkle, like stars do.”

“How come?”

“They don’t generate light. They just reflect it.”

“Oh.”

Jackie wasn’t sure what to say to that, but Widow’s face had lit up as she spoke about the stars, and Jackie wanted her to keep talking to see the radiant smile that had spread to her cheeks, but Widow licked her lips nervously and looked away, laying back onto the towel.

Jackie mentally kicked herself. She’d made Widow feel self-conscious about something she was evidently passionate about.

“So, what’s the best star sign?”

Jackie had meant it as a joke, and she didn’t even need to look at Widow to know she was rolling her eyes. “That’s astrology, not astronomy. Completely different. Load of bullshit.”

“Says the woman who only came to Atlantic City based on a Tarot reading!” Jackie teased, squeezing her hand.

Widow squeezed back, cackling beside her. “Alright, you win that one! One-nothing to Jacqueline Cox of the USS Enterprise!”

“Shush!” Jackie kicked at Widow’s foot, missed, and then let her bare ankle come to rest on top of Widow’s.

“Are you gonna share the whole reading with me?” Jackie asked.

“Yeah, alright, hang on.”

Jackie hadn’t expected her to do it, but now that Widow had sat up and was reaching into her bag, Jackie was more than a little curious. Jackie sat up and looked over her shoulder, shuffling a little nearer.

“Here,” Widow held open the page, and Jackie cast her eyes across it, resting her chin on Widow’s shoulder from her side. Jackie was finding she was losing herself in the floral perfume that Widow wore, blinking to keep her eyes on the page of the notebook.

“Queen of Wands – Fire – feisty woman, confidence, passion

The Tower – upheaval, disgrace, liberation

Five of Cups – Water – loss, abandonment, forgiveness.”

“Well, it’s obvious,” Jackie said, “it’s about you meeting me!”

It was Widow’s turn to aim a playful kick at Jackie, but Jackie just shuffled nearer still to her, wrapping her arm in front of her to point at each line.

“No, see? Feisty woman? All I’ve done is be angry since you’ve met me! And the upheaval, liberation bit, that’s me being freed from the cheating bitch in Pittsburgh!”

She chanced a look at Widow, her face inches from hers, but Widow wasn’t looking at her, but down at the notebook, a nervous smile playing on her lips.

The warmth of her skin, the glow of her cheeks – Jackie’s head was starting to spin a little. She let her hand come to rest on Widow’s lap.

“What about the last bit?” Widow murmured.

Was it Dutch courage? Jackie wasn’t sure. But she found herself leaning nearer still, her lips millimetres from Widow’s ear.

“That will be when we have to say goodbye tomorrow,” she whispered.

Widow just turned her head slowly to look at Jackie silently out of the corners of her eyes, the small smile still there. Jackie couldn’t tell what she was thinking, but the intensity of her stare made Jackie’s stomach twist in a knot. She suddenly felt a twinge of shyness, and moved away again, letting Widow lay back down on the towel.

Jackie followed her, not saying a word, just letting the sounds of the ocean roar around her. The alcohol was still wearing off, and she felt like she might need more water soon.

Maybe she’d been a little too brave.

But before that thought had fully formed itself, she felt Widow’s hand creep over her own, slip her fingers between Jackie’s, and Jackie’s mind sang once more with the sensation. The stars above them, the sand beneath them, was all Jackie felt she needed at this moment.

“Widow?”

“Yeah?”

“The Menagerie was definitely only one episode,” Jackie smirked.

Widow spluttered with laughter at her question, waving her free hand in protest. “No way, I’m not getting into the Star Trek debate again. Nope! I’m too sober for that!”

“Maybe we should fix that!”

An excited scream came from the arcade next to them. Jackie watched Widow turn her head to the boardwalk, to the arcade, and then back to Jackie, mischief shining in her eyes as she squeezed Jackie’s hand.

“I have a better idea.”

They packed the towel up again and walked back to the boardwalk, Jackie watching the colourful lights pass her by, suddenly full of energy rather than nauseous. Widow tugged her along, a hand linked in hers.

Once they got to the entrance, they stopped, Jackie watching Widow’s face as the bright, easy smile spread from one cheek to the other.

There was no harm in a little … competition.

Jackie leaned to Widow’s ear again. “You’re going down!”

Widow threw back her head and laughed to the heavens.

“You’re on, Jacqueline!”

And suddenly they were both running inside.

High on adrenaline, drunk on the fight for dominance, they ran after each other like teenagers round the arcade – shivering on the electric chairs, racing around the tracks in the Super Mario chases in the racing chairs, shooting up zombies in their VR headsets, jumping and shrieking as the zombies appeared right in front of their vision. Always trying to outdo the other.

When Widow won a game, Jackie felt her body pulsing, her heart racing, wanting to come out victorious next time.

When Jackie won something, Widow’s eyes would flash with a dangerous glint. One that said game on.

Jackie craved more of feeling this alive.

They finally stumbled out of the arcade, Widow clutching Jackie’s hand, both of them in fits of excited laughter. They strode along the boardwalk, heading back in the direction of the hotel, both of them still floating on the adrenaline pumping through them, slowly dissipating, leaving them shivering, each only having to glance at the other before starting to giggle again.  

“I have to give it to you,” Widow said finally, smirking smugly, “you’re actually not bad.”

“Just not bad?” Jackie spluttered, “I was on fire, what are you talking about!”

Widow gave an unimpressed shrug. “You said you were the queen of that air hockey machine, and you lost to the air hockey virgin!” She cocked an eyebrow. “I wouldn’t call that fire. Maybe a match at best, I guess!”

Jackie put her face in her hands. “Stop! That was actually embarrassing.”

The hotel was only ten minutes’ walk from the arcade, and Jackie looked out to the sea on their right as they walked. They both swayed, Jackie’s balance still off and Widow leaning with her.

“Hey,” Jackie said, an idea coming to her mind.

“What?”

“You want a decider round?”

“What?” Widow followed Jackie’s gaze to the sea, and her eyes narrowed slightly as she realised.

“Come on! Race you in!”

Before Widow could protest, Jackie let her go and sprinted down the walkway, kicking off her shoes. She hitched up her skirt from her knees to her mid-thighs, and ran towards the rapidly-receding tide.

“Jackie!” Widow was calling after her, her voice faint, but Jackie was powered by her adrenaline once more, and before she knew it her feet were wet, then her shins, then her knees and the waves around her curled around her thighs. Hitching her purse over her shoulder, she slammed her fists into the water, sending splashes around her.

“Jackie, I’m not going in there!” Jackie heard Widow shriek at the edge of the water, pulling a bare foot from the foam and sprinting away, crying “Shit that’s cold! Oh, shit!”

“What do you expect? It’s the north!” Jackie squealed with laughter and bounced as the waves rushed to shore around her, not caring that her shirt would be likely to be soaked by now.

“I am not getting in that fucking sea! No way!”

Jackie waded back out and grabbed Widow’s hand, but Widow was far stronger than Jackie was, and she didn’t budge an inch.

“You can’t make me!”

“Come on! Just a few steps!”

“Jackie – “

“Come on!”

“Let go!” But Widow was starting to laugh now, and her strength fading as she did; Jackie tugged her reluctantly into the water and after a few more protests, managed to get her to calf-depth, where she refused to budge any further.

“Shit, shit, shit what is wrong with you Canadians? This is fucking freezing!” Widow protested, but Jackie simply gave her a gentle shove, and Widow took two steps backwards before finally defeating the pull of gravity and catching her balance without falling.

“Ha! Nice try, Jacqueline!”

Jackie responded by splashing her.

“Stop that!”

“No!”

Widow came nearer to her, grasping both her hands. “Stop splashing!”

“Make me!”

Jackie saw Widow’s eyes darken as the words left her mouth, before she pulled her forwards by her hands, until their bodies were suddenly pressed together, putting her own mouth to Jackie’s ear, the guttural words setting her mind alight –

“Do you really want me to make you?”

Before she knew what she was doing Jackie turned her face and suddenly, her lips were on Widow’s, both of them frantic with need, devouring each other. Widow’s hands snaked up to her shoulders and neck, while Jackie gripped Widow’s hips, slipping her hands to the small of her back, all her senses spinning with desire, pulling Widow close, but just never close enough –

It was Jackie who disconnected, after what must have been hours; but Jackie’s hands refused to move, seemingly fused in place; Widow also still, holding Jackie to her.

Forehead to forehead, they stood perfectly still as reality like the waves rushed back in, centimetres apart. She could see every eyelash that Widow studied her through. Could smell Widow’s vague scent of coconut and tobacco, and that light floral perfume, mingling with the salt in the sea air. Jackie was starting to lose herself, intoxicated with her lust, this current of anticipation threatening to pull her under.

“So, what’s the next round?”

Widow’s half-smile told Jackie that the games weren’t quite up yet.

The thumping of Jackie’s own heart in her chest told Jackie that she didn’t want them to be.

[softest-cinnamon-roll]

Omg u just posted part 2 but pleaseeee do the road trip au part 3. Whatever you want. With or without Sonia. I just LOVE reddie as parents and I need more of it in my life

part one || part two

“Are you sure this is a good idea, sis?” Ollie asked, looking down at his phone and then back up at his sister. “Dad thinks we’re visiting grandma and grandpa, he’ll go crazy if he finds out we’re here…” Glancing back at the house in front of them, Ollie swallowed.

Grace rolled her eyes and nodded her head, unbuckling from the car, “Well technically, she is still our grandma, just not the one we told dad we were going to visit. Not that I’m saying we won’t go and visit grandma and grandpa, but I just…I want answers.”

Even though Grace was a child when she had her first, and only encounter with her dad’s mother, the memory was still ingrained in her mind. She would never get over the way the woman had spoken to her dad, and then to her, in the middle of a supermarket that is.

“Okay fine, but after we’ve spoken to her we need to go to grandma and grandpas. Dad has probably already messaged them and they’ll be waiting for us.” Ollie sighed and Grace nodded before stepping out of the car and walking up to the porch.

Unlike her brother, she wasn’t nervous. She wanted answers. She wanted to know why someone would treat her dad the way his mother had. She may be her grandmother by blood, but in her heart? She was just another person in the world who was ignorant and selfish.

Grace kept her head high when she knocked on the door, firm and with purpose before stepping back. There was a noise behind the door before it swung open and Grace jumped back a little. The woman who answered the door wasn’t Sonia Kaspbrak, and Grace had to reset her brain as she considered maybe this was the wrong house.

“May I help you?” The woman asked, her eyes narrowing as she looked back and forth between Grace and Ollie. “I’m not looking to buy anything if that’s what you’re after.”

She moved to close the door and Grace jumped into action, stopping her with a shake of her head, “No, no uh, we’re looking for Sonia Kaspbrak? Is she home?”

The woman paused, blinking at the two of them before she sighed and crossed her arms. “Sonia passed away last week. Heart attack. I’m her sister, Marge.” She said. “What can I do for you?”

At the news, Grace felt a little heartless for the lack of emotion she felt over the fact that her other grandparent was dead. Though she wondered if anyone had been in contact with her dad. She doubted it, as apparently she passed away last week, and her dad hasn’t seemed off since then. Not even her Papa seemed off, and he couldn’t keep a secret to save himself.

“Oh I’m so sorry-” Ollie spoke up, as Grace had been silent for too long. “Uh, this might sound weird to you but we-” He stopped. “We’re her son, Eddie’s, children. Sonia’s grandchildren. We were in town and we wanted to, uh, connect with her?”

Grace rolled her eyes at her brother’s words and she finally found her voice, “Actually, no, Ollie is just being too polite. We weren’t here to connect, we were here for answers on why she treated our dad like shit. Since you’re her sister, I’m sure you’re aware. Would you be able to answer our questions?”

Marge, their great-aunt apparently, stared at the two of them for a second before nodding and stepping to the side, allowing them to come into the house. It wasn’t anything like Grace imagined and the thought of her dad growing up here made her shudder. “Please take a seat,” she motioned and both Grace and Ollie followed her instructions. “What would you like to know. I have to admit, I might not be able to answer everything but I will do my best.”

“Why did Sonia not want my dad and papa to be together?” Grace asked first, narrowing her eyes. “My dad being Eddie and Papa being Richie Tozier. I’m sure you know who he is.”

“Yes, I am familiar with who Richie Tozier is,” Marge sighed. “I can answer that. Sonia didn’t agree with homosexual relationships. It was against her religion. She also believed that Richard was corrupting Eddie and turning him against her. Which he did, in the end, as they ran away together without so much as a goodbye.”

Grace scoffed, crossing her arms, “They were in love with each other. Since when was being in love a crime? And my dad had every right to run away when he did, she was lying to him about his health! What kind of mother lies to a child about being sick? Ollie,” she pointed to her brother. “He has actual asthma, and do you know how difficult it was to get him diagnosed thanks to my dad’s child trauma? Too long!”

With a sigh, Marge shook her head, “Sonia wasn’t always like that. When Frank was still alive, they were a happy family. Yes, Sonia was a little wary of Eddie doing dangerous things, but Frank softened her out. When he passed away there was nothing stopping her from going insane.”

That was when Ollie finally decided to perk up, “But there was,” he said calmly. “There was you, and other family members. All you had to do was talk to her, and convince her she was being unreasonable. It wasn’t that hard, and yet…you didn’t bother did you?”

Marge gasped, “It wasn’t any of my business!” She hissed. “I wasn’t getting involved.”

“It was your business though!” Grace snapped. “Eddie was your nephew. He was family and I was raised to believe that family helped each other. Turns out it’s not the same for this family.”

The room fell into silence before Marge sighed once more, “Eddie left a lot of things behind, and they were put in the attic. I’ve sorted through it all. Would you like to take it?” She asked and Grace blinked, not expecting the question. “Some of the things were what he left behind before he ran away.”

Grace nodded, “Yes, we would definitely like to take it.” She stood up. “I think we’re done here though. Thank you for your time.”

Both Ollie and her helped take the boxes out into their rental car before driving the short distance to their grandma and grandpa Tozier’s house. When they got there, Maggie was out on the porch, running to greet them with kisses and promises of hot cocoa. Grace smiled and met her eyes with her brother, sharing a silent agreement.

Tomorrow they would call home and explain to their dad what happened, and what they had gained from the visit. Right now though, Grace was desperate for some of her grandma Maggie’s hot cocoa.

* * * * * 

@richietoaster @tozier-boy @eds-trashmouth @bitchbrak @sloppybitchreddie @its-stranger-than-you-think @maximusfraker @jem-carstairs-is-perfection @thejadeazalea @halfway-happy353 @tinyarmedtrex @inthebreadbinwrites @kat-ships-everything @takeourpure @lo-v-ers @that-weird-girls-blog @studpuffin @s-s-georgie @reddie-for-anything @trashmouthtozierr @richietoizer @girasol-eddie @bi-bi-richie @honeybeehanlon @mars-14 @reddiesetandgo @marsisaplanetyall @xandertheundead @sedanleystanley @hawkinsbabe @beepbeeprichiellc @stellarbisexual @oldguybones @thundercatseddie @eduardoandale  @purplepoisonedgem @reddie-to-cryy @pink-psychic @violetreddie @deadlighten @queen-sock @appojoos @moonlightrichie @rreddies @disneyfan567 @annxmatron @lifesucksheres20bucks @anellope @roobarrtrashmouth @are-you-reddie-for-it @callmechee @nancynwheeler @reddieforlove @twoidiotsinl0ve @madi-artist @tozierking @s-onora @atownofeggs

[purplesurveys]

615

Christmas is coming. Who are you buying gifts for? Christmas already did come and the most stressful part that is gift shopping is finally over, thankfully. I got gifts for all the members of Gab’s family, save for her grandma who doesn’t like me and who I don’t like back because I don’t go down without a fight lolol. I also got gifts for my mom and sister. When somebody intimidates you, how do you usually act around them? I wouldn’t want to show it and so I’d always try to act like my usual self. Is your favorite singer in a band or does he or she ride solo? She used to be, and gained popularity for being, in a girl group but she’s already gone solo for a very long time. Did your parents ever hang your old artwork up on the walls? They do this with my sister’s works, because she’s a bigger artist than I am. They’d probably do the same with me if only I was the artistic type too. How often do you wear chapstick? Never. I don’t own one, and I haven’t for like probably a decade now.

Do you walk around your house with your shoes on or do you take them off? Take them off, because I’m Asian. What is the weirdest obsession you've ever had? My obsession with the 80s sitcom Perfect Strangers back in 2011 was not weird, but definitely out of place for the time. I was posting stills of the cast and sharing funny quotes from the show that absolutely nobody could relate to, so I kinda got why I didn’t have much friends at the time or why no one really knew how to approach me. How long can you be in a car before wanting to get out? I can handle road trips pretty well, honestly; I’ve been in 15-hour drives where I can’t say I had a hard time. I’m guessing it’s because my dad would have us go on verrrrrry long road trips, and at some point I just got used to our 8, 10, or 12-hour long drives. Would you rather be in lust or love? Why? Love. Lust is a bit hard to come by on my end considering I’m demi. How many of the seven deadly sins have you fulfilled today? Envy, gluttony, greed, and pride. Should guys always kiss the girl on a first date? Uh, I dunno dude it’s 2019 – you do you. Which band has the corniest music videos? Corniest lyrics? The Vamps has always fucking sucked for me in all aspects. What subject is/was hardest for you in school? I have tons of different classes in college but I struggled the most with fact-checking and economics, which I both unfortunately took in the same semester so it considerably pulled down my general weighted average for that sem. Have any songs ever inspired you to play an instrument? There’s a lot of great movie scores out there that have made me want to learn the piano. Do you ever use Pandora? No. I don’t even think they offer that here.

Are you better with creative writing or writing essays? Essays, definitely. I doubt I can do creative writing to save my life. What is the first facial feature you notice on a person? I don’t really look at faces; my eyes usually go to what other people are wearing. When was the last time you were rick rolled? Last night, I can’t fucking BELIEVE IT LMAO. I was on Reddit and saw a popular post from r/teenagers, I had no clue what it was referring to but because my fingers just go around clicking stuff I went ahead and clicked on the post – it gave me the lyrics to the song. Not the music video, but the lyrics. What is the weirdest animal you've ever seen as a pet? I don’t think I’ve encountered any weird pets. Which is good, because most of the time weird = illegal. If Ronald McDonald stole your bed, where would you want to have sex? This is...a weird question... If you had to change one, would you rather change your hair or your eyes? My hair, because it’s wayyyyyy too frizzy. When was the last time you had a 'she-mergency'? Two Mondays ago. I was in a photo studio for a shoot and I realized then and there that my period had started during the trip and that by the time I got there, the crotch area of my jumpsuit was already quite soaked. Which sounds creepier: sleeping in the attic or the basement? I’d find it scarier sleeping in the basement, just because those are less common here and because I know JM has a room in his house’s attic and he’s doing just fine. Do you listen to music while using Bzoink? I’d sometimes listen to music while taking surveys on here. I don’t directly use Bzoink. What was your favorite computer game as a kid? Diner Dash, Cake Mania, and Insaniquarium hahaha. Have you ever tried on your mom’s wedding ring? Yup, and my dad’s. Would you rather travel to a desert or the North Pole? North Pole. Any shows on TV that you flat out refuse to start watching? Yeah, too many. I don’t watch Riverdale, HTGAWM, HIMYM, all the Marvel stuff that became series, etc. Pajamas with feet: yay or nay? I’ll go with, “that’s a thing?” What is your opinion on fruitcake? Leave it. What do you do when somebody tries to make you jealous? I’ve never really felt it if/whenever someone tries to make me feel this way hahaha. I just go about minding my own business. Here's a tough one. Would you rather marry your cousin or a dog? That’s just sick. Did you know that Albert Einstein was a womanizer? No. Who did you last dream about? I forget my dreams easily, so I’m afraid I can’t answer this. Do you have trouble remembering important things? Not really. Which animal can you imitate the best? Dogs I guess, because I have one of my own. How many people do you think you've met in your life? At least more than a thousand, I’m guessing.

[theartificialdane]

Andromeda: Requiem

Violet recieves a letter. Her stepfather is dead. This is what happens when a mothers love forces her to face her worst fears. Galactica and Paris AU tie in.

/ Thank you to @veronicasanders for her eternal patience, great guidance and insistence on pushing me beyond my comfort zone. This would not have been made without you.  Dedicated to @imanationalphenomenon - I’m sorry I made you wait this long, but here it finally is!

“Make a right.”

Sutan nodded, Violet guiding him through a tiny suburb outside Atlanta, the city sign saying Lilburn. Violet had gotten the message a little over a week ago that her stepdad had died, his wife barely reacting as she read the letter that had arrived to their New York address from someone who had called himself Dax. Sutan had never seen Violet’s childhood home, had never met anyone from the family that had his wife for the first 13 years of her life. He didn’t know what he was expecting. He turned down the road, it all looking strangely normal. Where Violet had grown up just a normal neighborhood filled with small suburban homes with front lawns, trampolines and garages.

They had attended the service after circling for what felt like hours looking for the right church, the town feeling like it was 80% churches compared to Manhattan. The service was surprisingly full from what little Sutan had heard from Violet about the kind of person her stepdad had been. They had slipped in and sat at the very back, Sutan holding Violet’s hand through the entire thing. Sutan hadn’t even realised he had never seen a photo of Violet’s stepdad, until he was faced with the picture of him next to the casket, a large brunette man looking back at him. Sutan knew that his name was John, and how Violet’s expression darkened when she was forced to talk about him. What was the most bizarre of all though, was when he spotted a short plump woman at the very front of the church. She had to be Abigail Dardo. She was saying hello to everyone, a handkerchief clutched in her hand, her blonde hair in big curls, her blue eyes so unlike his wife, the only thing they had in common the set of their mouth and, as Sutan looked closely, the shape of theirs hands. He had wanted to get a better look at the woman who had attempted to raise the woman he loved, curiosity nearly killing the cat, but Violet had left the church in a hurry after the service, almost like she had spotted something.

”Here…”

Sutan stopped the car outside a completely normal two story house with a porch and a garage. They had circled around town, Violet clearly trying to kill time, though Sutan had no idea what she was waiting for, pointing him in different directions. They had passed a small run down dance studio, Violet gently touching his arm to make him slow down, though she hadn’t asked him to stop. The house had been the first place she had actually talked to him. Another car was parked there as well, Violet jumping when she spotted it, but she hadn’t said anything.

“So.. This is where you grew up?”

Violet nodded, his wife twisting the wedding ring on her finger again and again, the thin gold band rubbing back and forth. Violet hadn’t told him what they were doing here, but he knew she wouldn’t have insisted on going if there wasn’t something truly important she had to do, something she had to get.

“Are you sure you want to go in?”

Sutan looked over at Violet, the woman still quiet, just as she had been on the entire trip to Georgia. “Alright.” It was something he had learned to accept, even if he didn’t like it, but after almost two decades of marriage, Violet’s silence when it all became too much was as expected as how she always curled up in his arms to find enough peace to sleep after a day just like this. “Let’s go.”

Sutan moved to open his door, but Violet reached out, catching his wrist in her hand, stopping him.

“I…”

“Yes?”

“Thank you for coming with me.”

Sutan smiled, his heart filled with tender affection, Violet’s voice so very small. “I’d never let you go alone.” Sutan kissed her gently, before opening his door and stepped out on the cold winter road.

///

Violet took a deep breath, her hand shaking as she reached for the doorbell. Walking up to the house had felt like walking in a dream, everything so surreal. She knew she had fallen into silence, that Sutan was worried about her, but how could she not when everything around was just like when she was small, the road one she remembered so vividly, walking home in her beat up trainers, her heels now clacking on the same pavement that had tormented her.

She didn’t want to do this, but she knew exactly who she had to do it for.

Violet pressed the bell, a riiing sounding from inside the house, a dog started yapping, and Violet could hear footsteps, more footsteps than she expected, and then, the door opened.

“Oh..” This was yet another person Sutan had never seen before. She was shorter than Violet, a few years younger too. “So it was actually you.” She had clearly been crying, her mascara smudged. A toddler was on her hip, a little boy staring at them. “Just when I thought today couldn’t get any worse.”

“Hello Becky...”

“What do you want?”

Sutan could feel Violet’s fingers tighten on his arm, his wife’s nails digging into his jacket. The tension was so thick you could have cut it with a knife, Violet and the woman who Violet had called Becky staring at each other, both looking like they expected war to break out. Becky’s blonde hair was in a half bun, her black dress still on, the child also dressed up.

“Hi there.” Sutan held his hand out. “I’m Suta-”

“I know who you are. I watch TV.”

“Ah.” Sutan put his hand back in his pocket.

“Is...” Sutan could see Violet was visually struggling, his wife looking like she was about to vomit. “Abigail here?”

“She didn’t want to leave the cemetery just yet.”

“Can we come in?” Sutan looked at the stranger.

“Not until /she/-” Becky looked at Violet. “-tells me why you’re here.”

“I…” Violet’s nails dug even further, Sutan swearing he could feel them pierce his skin even through his layers of clothes. “I’m here... I’m here to pick up- It’s-”

“I forgot for a second that you were legally retarded.”

“I’m not-”

“You never could take a joke,” Becky rolled her eyes. “Come inside before Joshie freezes.” The woman stepped aside, bumping the toddler up.

They stepped in, Sutan closing the door behind them. {Who is she?} Sutan whispered as he took Violet’s coat, the French easily falling from his lips.

{My sister}

{You have a sister?} Violet had never mentioned a sister.

{Half-sister.}

Meanwhile Becky had put the toddler down who quickly disappeared, the voices of several kids being drowned out by the television in the next room.  

“Is… is that your son?” Violet swallowed, the woman clearly uncomfortable.

“As if you care.”

“Beck-”

“His name is Joshua, he’s 2. Youngest of three.” Becky turned to them, looking Sutan up and down. “Where’s your kid?”

Violet looked at Becky with surprise. “My kid?”

“I read too. Amazing that I learned how in Lilburn, huh Blair?” Becky huffed. “You didn’t leave her in the car, did you?”

Sutan took a slight step forward, Becky’s tone like every model who had ever thrown her drink; Snide and filled with venom. “Our daughter is at school. We didn’t think it necessary to bring her here.” Neither of them had even told Melati that John had died. Their daughter knew very little of Violet’s family, their child actually fully believing her mother was French until they had relocated to America in her early teens. Melati had never met Violet’s parents, had never even heard their name. Melati had asked, just once, but Violet had told her she already her a grandma, that her Nenek was there and that had been the end.

“Of course. Because nothing here has ever been good enough for you.”

“Good enough?” Violet felt a flicker of anger in her belly, the flame the first emotion besides nausea she had felt since she and Sutan had stepped on the plane in New York. “Good enough for me?”

“Yes. you heard me. You show up now that my dad is dead, show up in your fucking.. Designer clothes, and you want to play family? You want to pretend everything is fine?”

“I’d rather die than ever pretend anything that happened in this house was fine.” Violet knew that Becky had never been on her side, but to hear it from an adult instead of a little girl hurt more than a slap to the face. Their parents had always favored Becky, John calling her his little princess. Becky could do no wrong, the girl always praised by their parents, Violet forced to sit and watch TV whenever Becky wanted to, forced to eat food she didn’t like because Becky wanted it, forced to go to every school event because Becky wanted to with her friends from her grade while Violet did her best to be invisible. She had spent a childhood of being invisible, of having nothing, and even though Sutan hadn’t said anything, she knew she wasn’t alone. She had a life now, an actual life she build for herself. She had a company and a career, a husband she loved, she had friends and her dogs and most importantly she had the daughter she was doing this for.

“You’ve always been so dramatic.”

“I was tortured Becky, tortured for, for years, and the man who did it is finally in the groun-”

“Don’t you DARE say stuff like that about my dad! He was a good man.”

Violet couldn’t do anything but stare, the room going completely silent, the TV still running in the other room. “Is that what you truly believe?”

“You have no idea how hard it was for them. You got into that, that ballet school and then you suddenly disappeared. You stopped coming home for Thanksgiving or Christmas. Not even a single birthday card and then you show up in the magazines under a completely different name dating… dating him?” She gestured at Sutan. “And you didn’t even tell us? Mama found out from someone at church, at church Blair! You throw away the only number we have for you and you’re gone, except your face keeps showing up throwing your success in our faces! My dad was a good man who did everything for you, and you never appreciated any of it.”

“Can I use the restroom?”

///

“Close the door.”

Sutan closed the door behind him, quickly locking it as he still balanced their jackets. Becky’s words ringing in his ears. He took a deep breath through his nose, his fists still clenching and unclenching. Sutan prided himself on not being a man who was angered easily. He couldn’t, not in his profession, not with the way he lived his life, but his chest was burning hot. He couldn’t believe what he had heard. How the person who was apparently his wife’s sister defended a man who had done so much damage to the woman he loved. Siblings were suppose to look out for each other, were suppose to protect each other. He couldn’t even imagine how he would have attempted to survive growing up without Raja, a world truly without his sister one he didn’t even want to think of, and here he was, witnessing parts of why his wife was exactly the way she was. Her pride, her walls, the sometimes frightening stoicism that could overtake her when she was pushed to her breaking point.

“Darling-” Sutan wanted to reach out, to touch and soothe and understand. To make sure that Violet was still there and that she was okay, but Violet hiked her skirt up and got on her knees, Sutan freezing in place. “Lovely eyes, what are you-”

“Hush. Please.” Violet tapped her knuckles on one of the tiles next to the sink. “I can’t stay in this house another minute.” Violet tapped another tile, and Sutan got down on his knees as well.

“What’s going-”

Violet tapped a third tile. “There.” Sutan watched as his wife put her nails against the wall, popping the tile out, revealing a small empty tunnel in the wall. Violet reached inside, a whisper of “Oh thank god.” falling from her lips as she pulled a tin box into the light. The box was old, the flower pattern on it clearly painted with a child's hand, a fine layer of dust covering it.

“Is that why we’re here?”

It seemed strange, but also so very very like the woman that he had married; that she would willingly walk through fire for something as absurd as a tin box not even a surprise. Violet nodded, shaking it gently, the sound of several small items rustling inside.

“I don’t want to explain this house, this.. Any of this..” Violet looked at Sutan, her brown eyes blank with unshed tears, her cheeks a pale rose, her lip thick from how Sutan knew she had bitten it. “I don’t want this to be the story my daughter knows, for it.. For it to be her story..” Sutan nodded. Even though Violet was in her 40s, even though they had gone through so much together, she was still trying to escape something, still trying to run away from a piece of herself, and after seeing the scene in the hallway, Sutan felt like he understood it all slightly better.

“She’s so much more than this, so much more than me.. She’s.. She’s so much more than us.” Violet was whispering again. “I have never had words and I’ve never been good at explaining. I mean.. You know that..”

Sutan smiled slightly, his hand finding Violet’s neck, his palms holding her and grounding her. “I do.”

“But I’ll have this now..” Violet gave the box to Sutan. “And that has to be enough..”

“I’m sure it will be.” Sutan kissed Violet, their lips meeting in a gentle, closed mouthed peck, years of comfort and trust in that single movement. “Do you want to go home?”

“More than anything else.”

///

Sutan was sure Violet was seconds from just toeing off her Louboutins and running out the door like Cinderella, but all things considered she was surprisingly calm, her entire body clamping up again the moment he had opened the door to the bathroom.

They made their way down the stairs, just as the front door opened and the worst possible thing that could happen walked through it. Abigail Dardo.

Abigail stopped dead in her tracks, her eyes meeting Violet. “You’ve actually come.”

Violet froze. Pure terror radiating off her, her breath stopping. Abigail looked like a perfectly normal human being. Sutan knew she was two years younger than him and he had nearly choked on his drink when Violet had shared the fact with him. Abigail might actually have looked sweet, like a grandma who tried to stay young, but by Violets reaction, all Sutan could see was someone who had hurt the woman he loved so much that she would forever be damaged by it.

“John would be so happy you’re here, oh I knew you would regret all that nonsense from your youth Blair.”

“Excuse me ma’am, but we were just leaving.” Sutan put a hand in the small of Violet’s back, pushing her forwards as he tried to move in front of her, casually shielding her body like he had done so many times before from interviewers or photographers.

“But you just got here-”

“Flight to catch, can’t wait.” Sutan smiled, taking another few steps towards the door. “We’re very sorry for your loss, may he rest in peace.” Sutan didn’t want John to rest in peace, not even a little, actually he would be quite content if John Dardo spent the rest of eternity in christian hell being spitroasted by the devil.

“Let me see you. You’re so tall.” Abigail blocked their exit, staring at Violet. “You look so different from the last time I saw you..” If the little girl in the photo was anything to go by, Sutan couldn’t agree more. Violet had grown into an adult, a woman who was confident and competent, who carried herself with pride so unlike the few pictures Sutan had seen from her early college days and what little video he had found from the ballet.

“Come here Blair bear.” Abigail reached out, clearly trying to hug Violet, and then it happened.

“NO!”

Violet’s shout was loud and clear, her hands in front of her as she had just pushed her mother away, her eyes large, like she couldn’t believe what she had just done. “No.”

“Blair, what are you-”

“My husband and I are leaving. Right now.”

///

Violet slammed the car door behind her, her pulse racing. She hadn’t seen her mother in the flesh since she was 16, hadn’t seen the woman who had caused her so much pain since she had gotten injured and had dropped out of the Ballet Academy. Violet felt dirty, her skin almost itching where her mother had touched her, light sweat covering her body.

“Can we go?! Please-”

Violet knew she was being hysterical, knew she wasn’t fair, but everything in her told her to chose fight or flight and she had no intention of fighting.

“We can go to the airport right away” Sutan started the car, pulling away from the driveaway and out into the big road.

“No.” Violet couldn’t handle the idea of an airport, couldn’t stand the idea of so many strangers around her, people looking at her, wondering about her. “Just. I can’t fly, I need- Can we just- drive- I- please?”

“It’s a 12 hour drive my love.”

Violet knew she was asking a lot of her husband, knew she was being terribly unfair, knew what she was requesting wasn’t okay, but she couldn’t go to the airport. Her mind was racing at the risk of being followed, and the only thing she could think of that would help was an open highway, driving as fast as they could. “Please.”

Sutan looked at her, and Violet couldn’t help but worry he would say no, that he would tell her she was overreacting and that she was being dramatic.

“Of course darling. Of course.”

////

Melati was typing away on her computer, her art history essay unfortunately not writing itself. Next to her she had the thick dictionary she had gotten as a gift from her aunt Fame. Most of her classmates didn’t understand why Melati prefered a physical dictionary whenever she could, but it just wasn’t the same with an online one, her brain that was heavily anchored in french not truly understanding a new word unless she did the physical act of looking up a word. It was most likely something she had picked up in Paris, her private school there so focused on papers and actual books that even after she had fully transferred into the american school system, there was still something about it.

Melati heard a knock on the door, her mother standing there with a steaming cup of tea in hand.

{How’s the exam going?}

{Okay.} Melati smiled, moving the piece she was working on away so Violet could put the cup down next to her computer, the scent of peach tea filling her nose. {Thank you Mama.} Melati turned her attention back on her computer, but a small cough made her look back up.

{I.. Umh..} Violet sat down. {I have something for you.}

{You do?}

Melati didn’t often get presents from her mom, gifts so much more something her dad excelled at and found delight in.

Violet placed a tin box on the desk. {Here.}

{What is it?}

{Something I had long ago..} Violet smiled, her eyes sad. {I know.. I know I haven’t always been.. Good.. at answering your questions.}

Melati felt a brief stab in her heart. To say that her mother wasn’t good at answering questions would be the understatement of the century, if not the millennium. She had never thought about how little she knew as a child. She knew her father's family, summers in Indonesia with her toes in the sand and she had thought she knew her mother, Autumn in Paris with the leaves falling and slow weekends spend in the country home eating grapes and playing with Frida. Melati Lavender Amrull had known who she was, what she came from, until she had found out that France wasn’t her mother's blood after all, and that there was so much she had no idea about.

{I didn’t.. The reason I haven’t told you much- I… Melati, I want you to understand.. I wasn’t a very happy child.. And that’s.. I want so much more for you, puppet.} Violet gently stroked Melati’s cheek, her cool thumb gliding over brown skin. {I can’t give you everything you ask for, but I can give you this..} Violet pushed the box forwards.

Melati looked at her mother, confusion without a doubt clear on her face as she gently opened the box, the thing creaking slightly.

{These are.. Things, I hid as a child. Things that were important to me. Treasures that brought me comfort and joy.}

Inside there was a picture of a little girl with a backpack that looked almost twice the size she was, a timid smile on the child's lips. Melati instantly recognizing the nose and she realized it was the first photo she had ever seen of her mother as a child. There was a smooth white rock, a piece of thick white ribbon, three light blue marbles, a piece of rosa soap shaped like a flower, a single dangling earring with a red stone and three cents.

Melati held up the photo, studying it.

{That’s from my first day of school. The backpack was my favorite.} Violet smiled. I never really.. I never liked going to school.}

{Why?}

{I might tell you another time.}

Melati nodded. Normally a response like that from her mother would make annoyance rush through her, but as she looked at the things, she realised that this was more than she had ever been told before. Even though the things that had been saved might have looked jumbled to a stranger, Melati felt like she recognised it all from her mother's designs. The childhood treasures all carrying the sense of gravity and wistfulness that so many praised the Chachki universe for. A somber longing for something else. A childish hope that something could change. A promise that the future could somehow be better.

{Thank you Mama. Thank you for these.} Melati reached out, taking her mother’s hand in hers, Violet holding it tight. Violet nodded, the grip of her fingers trying to express everything she couldn’t say with words.

[midnightloversville-blog]

Nate & Maddie

Their story is set on an hot summer night. In a small town that is located near a river and has beautiful flowing green mountains. Two, maybe not so, strangers will cross each other’s paths.  

Word count: 1200

Warning: none (a few cursewords tho and a tiny bit of blood)

Nate

20, Loyal, playful, adventurous, status is important

Lives on edge of city in an enormous house. The house is empty most of the time, because his family doesn’t have or make time to spend together. He only uses a small house in the garden, he won’t recognize it, but it makes him feel less alone.

Someone pounded on the door. ‘Mom and dad are home. You come?’ It was his little brother Steve. Nate was in his garden house modifying an old car. ‘Steve, you know, you can always come in? Unlike to other people.’ Said Nate while walking to the door. ‘Yes, I know, they are fighting again.’ Little Steve looked sad and a bit impressed by his big brother. Nate sat down before him. ‘My car is finished. Shall we make a little ride?’ Steve’s eyes glittered of excitement. ‘Hell YEAH!’ he ran to the drivers seat. ‘Woo woo, who taught you those words?’ ‘Youtube!’ He answered joyful. ‘Come, shove, shove!’ Steve laughed and shoved to the seat next to Nate. ‘Let’s go on an adventure!’ Nate turned the engine on and opened the door. ‘YEAHH!’ Steve shouted in excitement out of the window, while Nate accelerated and the old mustang drove gracefully through the gate of the property.

Maddie

19, good-girl, reader, edge, traveller

Is hiking through the forest to search for some new grown tea leaves to go with her new book. Has a backpack with her with an herbology book, pocket knife, flashlight and slices of cake.

 How come two and a half years later my love for tea has grown? I was into books since forever. Let’s blame this one on my lack of perseverance in eating healthy. Tea goes hand in hand with cake. Maddie wondered while closing the door of a white old house. ‘Dear, wait!’ She walked back in because she knew this would take forever. A old woman dressed with an embroidered oven apron and her hands still in oven mittens walked through the kitchen. ‘Here, take this with you. Some cake, on the go, you know.’ She winked and shoved a paper bag in her hands. She walked back and threw one hand in the air. ‘Could you get me some lemon balm and raspberry’s, please.’ She turned. ‘And please be back before dawn.’ ‘Always, grandma. I see you in a few hours!’ Maddie closed the door and made her way through the full grown flowery garden. Herbs, greens and fruits always grew best on the mountain. They enjoyed more time in the sun than down in the valley.

She made her way up the mountain, she did this often and knew her way around every turn, rock and small stream. The sun was already lowering and the red bowl was slowly sinking over the opposite mountain and fjord. She felt the golden rays warming up her back and the world around her was turning orange. The last day of school and the beginning of her days far away from here. She would leave her grandma to start studying in the big city, which was an two hour flight from here. Little did she know that here life would change.

     ‘C’mon, Nate! I wanna go faster!’ yelled Steve. Nate pressed the foot pedal and they got pressed into their seats. The road was tortuous and had some nasty turns. They drove in up the mountain pass and saw at every end of a turn an deep abyss. The sun was sinking an the sky was turning from orange to pink. ‘Woohoooo!’ said Steve and threw his hands in the air. Nate laughed. 

Maddie decided to go back as it was getting dark. Also she didn’t like a few clouds that rolled over the top of the mountain. Time to go. She tightened her backpack and hopped down over the rocks. This was the fastest way to gain your speed. Wind was coming and it was getting chilly. The clouds above her were growing and gaining the most spectacular black and even green shades. Raindrops started to fall down and Maddie got a bit scared. It’s no good to stay so high in a possible coming thunderstorm. Wind was swirling the trees and the road got slippery. ‘Argh fack fack.’ She cursed. She heard a cracking noise and the sky got electrocuted. Home was still another 45 minutes away. She had to take shelter and find a place with less height and trees. Her feet slipped away in the gravel and she felt a snap in her ankle. She rolled down, on a steep hill. Hurting every place on her body.

 Nate lowered his speed and drove more safe, since he couldn’t see much of the heavy rain. ‘Steve, keep you’re eyes open. We don’t wanna hit a branch.’ ‘Nate, I don’t like thunder.’ Steve was very quiet. ‘We’re safe from thunder in the car. So no worries, little guy.’ He gave Steve a smile. ‘WHAAA!’ they both screamed. Nate pressed the brakes hard and pressed with one hand Steve in his seat. They hit something heavy. A small landslide of mud, rocks, trees and water was pouring down on the street before them. ‘You okay?’ Steve nodded. ‘Stay here, I’m gonna check on the car.’ Steve nodded again. Nate stepped in the pouring rain and saw that a few rocks were pressed against his bumper. He didn’t know if he could fix this. The scrapes and print were deep carved in the car. Thunder and lightning enlighted the dark road. He walked around the car to see if he could drive away. Till he thought he heard a scream. He was alert and the adrenaline was still pumping in his blood. He walked to Steve’s side and said that he had to stay here. This was no problem since he was already playing games on Nate’s phone. Nate climbed on the place were the rocks got down. He heard a scream again and crying. ‘Hello?! Someone here?!’ Raindrops were teasing his sight as they fell in his eyes. He walked through the forest to the noise. He tripped over what he thought was a branch. ‘Awhh! Jeez!’ he heard somebody say very close. He turned while he laid on the ground. He saw a girl laying in the mud. ‘Do you need help?’ ‘Do I look like I need help?!’ she said pissed. ‘You just tripped over my already hurting leg!’ Nate standed up ‘Do you hurt a lot?’ ‘Stop with asking this stupid questions!’ Thunder cracked above them and the light enlighted his fair face. She was quiet. ‘I can’t really move, my ankle got twisted and everything hurts.’ Nate was already looking at her scratches and saw her ankle in an unnatural position. Mud everywhere and sticks in her hair. ‘Let me help you.’ He sat down next to her and lifted her with no problem in his hands. You didn’t saw it but Maddie was so impressed her heart pounded real fast and her cheeks were blushing. ‘Wait! My backpack!’ A few steps further he saw it laying desolated in the bushes. ‘Sorry.’ He laid her down again, and putted the backpack over his shoulders. ‘Now let’s go, bush woman.’ ‘Don’t call me that!’ He got dimples in his cheeks by the way she was so easy to tease, this was the least thing he expected to find.

  Hope you liked it 😊

Get ready for part 2!

Thnxx for reading!

 Xxx lots of love  🧡

[thetravelerbewithyou]

Please to meet you, hope you guessed my name! 

Raven Reyes, famous Zero G mechanic and IT genius is on her way to her best friends wedding, when she meets a hitchhiker who needs her help. Raven isn’t going to deny her genius to the good looking guy. 

Read on Ao3

“Can you tell me again, why you are driving alone to D.C. instead of carpooling with Octavia and Niylah? Bellamy is kind of freaking out about this.”

“Bellamy is always freaking out, Clarke. I’m a grown woman and a fucking astronaut. I’m well able to drive for 14 hours on my own.” Raven let out an exasperated sigh and dropped her bag in the back of her Porsche 356 that she just refurbished. She was really proud of it.

“I know Rae. But maybe text him or me every now and then, just so he can sleep.” Clarke said through the phone. “On a different note, I’m so happy you are able to come.”

Getting in to the car, Raven hooked up the phone to the hands-free car kit she installed and pulled out of her driveway.

“Like I could ever miss you idiots getting married! I’ve been waiting for this day since sophomore year of college, Clarkey. So have Octavia, Monty, Jasper, Murphy…hell, even Abby.”

At Clarkes laugh Raven had to smile as well. It was about time for them to tie the knot and she couldn’t be happier for her friends.

“Babe, I have to hang up. My mom and Kane just arrived.”

“Have fun and talk to you soon. Oh and Clarke, tell Bellamy to get himself together!”

After hanging up Raven started playing her road trip playlist, which was basically 80s Rock, almost as loud as possible. She had snacks prepared because it wasn’t a proper road trip if you don’t have a massive amount of Reese’s, crunchy chickpeas and some tostones her abuela had made, sealed tight in a plastic container.

Raven had planned to drive the whole way to D.C. with only one night in a Motel/Hotel/whatever. Clarke had invited her to participate in what she called “the glorious Spa Day before the big Day” before going to the rehearsal dinner the same evening.

With the sun on her face and wind in her hair, Raven started singing loudly to her music as she drove onto the highway.  

Zeke never believed in Karma or anything similar but looking up to the sky he knew someone up there was having a field day with this. Probably his grandma, who always had something to say about his Harley. He could still hear her voice in his head: Don’t drive on this machine of hell, boy. Please don’t make your Nana unhappy.

Zeke was understanding of her fear, but he would choose speed over most things.

He walked around the front and looked at the black lacquered engine skeptically. For fucks sake, he was a computer genius and not a mechanic. And if he remembered correctly— which he always did, thank you very much— there was no garage in the last two towns he drove through.

Great.

It wasn’t until he pulled out his phone to call a tow truck for his bike that Zeke realized there wasn’t even service around here.

With a sigh, he sat down on the floor. What in the name of the lord was he supposed to do now? This really wasn’t what Zeke had planned for his road trip through the US and Canada.

Using the Air Force Carrier intermission program and going on this trip offered a much-needed break for Zeke. He basically worked non-stop for the last 6 years and even his Captain told him to take the sabbatical. Zeke loved the thrill of flying and serving for his country but the last two deployments had taken a toll on his mental health.

Sitting here and brooding wouldn’t help his Harley, so he checked his phone again: still no service. So he started walking. Hitchhiking to the next city with a garage it is then.

Raven loved her car a lot. It was powerful (like her), it was black like a Raven (also like her soul��kidding). And the most important thing: she basically made it from scratch. When she bought the Porsche, it wasn’t more than a shell. It had taken her month to find the original seats, because at least her baby should look authentic. But the engine was a completely different story. The way it screamed when she accelerated and, yeah, it felt like the best thing in the world.

She was about to pull into a motorway station with a Starbucks (she needed caffeine like air, don’t judge) when she saw a guy walking next to the road. Upon hearing her (great) engine, he turned around and held out his hand. Thumb raised.

Taking Krav Maga lessons from her friend Echo might have made it safe enough for her to pull over, but she wasn’t stupid enough to let some stranger into her car in the middle of nowhere.

Without giving it another thought, Raven pulled up to the Starbucks and left her car outside.

“Can I get a tall cortado with a double shot espresso, please,” Raven said with a smile and a generous tip in the jar. From her college days, she knew how shitty Starbucks was about paying their baristas.

Her coffee was hot and delicious, exactly what she needed.

As she headed towards the door, it opened unexpectedly; Raven reacted too slowly and bumped into the incoming body.

With every bit of grace she had left, she was able to at least save her coffee from spilling all over her MIT hoodie. The floor wasn’t as lucky.  

“Jesus, I’m sorry, Ma’am,”

“Ma’am, really?” was all Raven answered before looking up. Then she stopped. The guy from beside the road was looking at her apologetically, his hands almost reaching her. Nice hands and nice face.

“Well, my mom didn’t raise an imbecile,” he said, looking down at her, as his smile turned crooked. “Again, I’m sorry. Let me buy you a new one as compensation.”

Raven tipped her head to the side, considering his offer. He seemed nice and her very reliable senses weren’t tingling, but she still took her time to decide.

“Well, because you asked so nicely…” Throwing her ponytail back, she started walking towards the register without looking back.

Amused and intrigued, Zeke followed the brown-eyed woman. He tried not to check her out, but she was undoubtedly beautiful. And kind of scary. A dangerous combination for a thrill-seeking kinda guy like him. Despite having never met her, her voice seemed somehow familiar, but he couldn’t pinpoint where he could have heard her talk before.  

“Can I get a grande black coffee, no cream and whatever you want?” With a questioning smile on his lips Zeke turned to the woman next to him. But before she could answer the barista interfered.

“You had the cortado with a double espresso, right?”

The woman only nodded, leaning on the counter while Zeke took out his wallet. “Double shot of espresso in a cortado? That’s a lot of caffeine; I’m impressed.”

But she didn’t say anything, and they waited for their coffees in silence.

He wasn’t really sure what to think of her. The way she looked at him, completely unimpressed by his charms was something he never really experienced. Growing up with three sisters he felt easy around girls and he would lie if he’d never taken advantage of it.

Their drinks came up; turning to the door, Zeke made sure to hold it open for her.

After a few steps he realized they were walking in the direction of the beautiful matte black Porsche he had admired before going into the coffee shop.

“It was really nice of you to buy my coffee,” she said kindly, with a nod towards the car, “but I have to get going.”

Shell-shocked, Zeke could only stare at her as she smiled amusedly, turning her back to him and walking away, before getting his shit together.

“Hey, wait!” Zeke jogged over to where she turned over her shoulder to look at him.

“Do you need anything? I’m kind of in a rush and this little incident back there is really throwing of my time plan.”

Raven was starting to get annoyed. Yes, he was cute and kind of charming, but she was still in a rush. It had been hard enough for her to get the weekend off to go to Bellamy and Clarke’s wedding, but driving was cutting it real close to being on time for the rehearsal dinner.

The guy looked like he ran through a couple different things he wanted to say before he settled on, “You wouldn’t know a good mechanic around here, would you?

Slightly confused, Raven looked at him, fidgeting with his coffee but holding her gaze.

“My Harley broke down a few miles back, then my phone battery died,” he explained, “and I need a ride to the next town to get a tow truck…You look like someone who’d know. With the car and all.”

Now Raven actually had to laugh. “Well the best mechanic is in New Orleans and currently on holiday.”

The guy now sighed, looking disappointed. “That’s just my luck, isn’t it. Well, do you know the second best? By any chance?”

Despite his clear frustration with his situation he tried to smile at Raven; she admired that. A quick run through the mental math told her that she could drive most of the way to DC tonight, and still take a look at his Harley.

“I wouldn’t look so crestfallen just yet.” Raven walked over to the driver’s side of her car and got into the car.

“Excuse me?”

With his brows furrowed like that, he was even more handsome than before; Raven pushed the thought away and pointed to the seat next to her with a smirk.

“I’m the mechanic on holiday and if you’re not getting into the car right away I’m not gonna bother looking at your bike.”

He got in the car.

His eyes were wide as looking at her in bewilderment; Raven’s smirk turned into an amused smile as she held out her hand for him to shake.

“I’m Raven.”

Zeke took her hand and was met with a slight spark that send a thrill down his back. Surprised, his eyes shot up to look in her dark brown eyes. Reluctantly, he let go of her hand

Raven… The name made bells ring; he had heard it before and he wasn’t sure when. It wasn’t a common name and it bothered him a bit, not to know.  

Then it dawned on him.

“Jesus, are you Raven Reyes? The Raven Reyes? Zero G Mechanic and IT specialist for NASA?”

Raven’s smile faded, and she squinted her eyes at him. Not reacting to his question but instead raising one of eyebrows at him in question.  

“Fuck, what a small world,” Zeke shook his head, smiling brightly at her. “I’m Lieutenant Zeke Shaw, USAF. We shared some delightful phone calls regarding the test flights of the shuttle cargo last year.”

Recognition dawned across her face and she tilted her head. “I remember them being not as delightful: your guys weren’t even able to fucking start the damn thing.”

Never in a hundred years Raven would have imagined meeting the cocky bastard she’d had the pleasure of screaming at, after two test pilots almost crashed her shuttle without it even leaving the ground.

“Well, if I remember correctly, your guys didn’t give them proper instructions,” he shot back at her, still smiling.

Rolling her eyes, she started her car and pulled out of the rest stop, retracing her tracks from earlier.  “And I screamed at those idiots as well.”

“It’s nice to finally meet you in person, Raven. The programs you coded for those shuttles are amazing.”

Taking a sip from her coffee, Raven tried to hide her smile.

“I am amazing.”

“And so down to earth, too,” he muttered sarcastically.  

Her loud laugh seemed to surprise her as much as it did him, and Zeke had never heard a better sound in his life.

While working with her, she had been smart as hell and even more intimidating. He had liked her instantly. It had been hard work to coordinate the test flights while being stationed overseas but Zeke had always been resourceful. The only thing he regretted was not testing the damn shuttles himself.

“Aren’t you supposed to know some basics in mechanics?” Raven asked, pulling him out of his thoughts.

“Well…yes. But a motorcycle engine is different from an airplane engine.” He shrugged unapologetically. He wasn’t the best mechanic and he knew it; he could do far more with a computer and the control systems and his co-pilot was more skilled in fixing the rest. Zeke told her as much.

Raven just huffed. Air Force Lieutenant and not even able to fix his bike. But at the same time, she knew no one could be as great as she was.

“Did you fix this beauty yourself?” Zeke carefully reached out his hand to stroke the cream-colored dashboard of the car. “Or is that something you don’t have time for, working for NASA?”

“It’s calming me down when I get to go home for more than a few hours, so yes. I did. New motor, authentic leather color and a few technical toys here and there.”

“It’s a special car.”

“That she is.” Raven looked at Zeke beside her with a content smile on her lips. She really was proud of what she’d done with the car. It had basically screamed her name when she bought it and now it suited her even more.

They continued driving in a comfortable silence, that had surprised Raven. She had not considered she would feel this relaxed next to a stranger, but then again, he wasn’t really a stranger. Her road trip playlist still blasting over the speakers but on a more humanly volume.

After a few miles, she realized had Zeke started to silently sing to “sympathy for the devil”. For some reason a rush of affection shot through her. It felt really weird, she just met him, but she couldn’t help it.

“You need to go off the highway at the rest stop over there.” Zeke pointed to the next exit, which Raven then took.

She parked her car next to the Harley with raised eyebrows. “I know you said you had a Harley, but if I’m being honest I expected a newer model.”

Zeke just shrugged his shoulders. “It belonged to my father and he loved vintage rides.”

“Good man, your father,” Raven replied while lifting her toolkit out of her trunk.“You’re lucky I bring this with me everywhere I go, otherwise this would’ve been more complicated.”

Zeke casually leaned against the car, watching her take off her hoodie and toss it next to him onto the backseat.

“Can I help you with something?”

He didn’t want to just use her for this and then drive off. It’s not like he’d get a chance to learn from THE Raven Reyes any day, so he knelt next to Raven, who had placed herself in a position where her braced leg was stretched out.

“Hand me my tools when I tell you to and maybe hold the flashlight, will you?” He liked her bossy tone and went to get the flashlight he saw in her trunk.

Raven quickly figured out what was wrong with the bike; she just had to fix the spark plugs and the engine would purr like a cat again. While working on it, she pointed out what was broken and what she had to do fix it, and Zeke who sucked in every bit of information she threw at him.

She hadn’t realized how close his face was to hers until she turned to look at him.

Their eyes met, and Raven felt herself freeze in position, not able to move or look away. His piercing glance made her feel like her blood was about to boil. His breath tingled her lips and she had to fight the urge to lick them.

Zeke wasn’t sure what was happening, but the the way Raven looked back at him had him reeling with expectation and excitement. He had realized how easy she was to talk to back in the car,  and her taste in music was immaculate. Without realizing what he was doing, he glanced down at her lips.

Raven suddenly felt as dizzy as a teenager before her first kiss. He carefully leaned in, his eyes never leaving her, checking that this was okay, that she was okay.

Right before his lips touched hers a truck on the motorway blew his horn, startling them both. Raven lost her balance and fell back, stopping the fall with her arms.

Zeke couldn’t help himself; he started to laugh. It came out breathless and a bit ragged. Raven realized then, that she wasn’t the only one affected by their almost kiss. And she couldn’t deny herself the realization, that she would have let him kiss her.

Raven -I’m a grown ass woman who needs no man (or woman for that matter)- Reyes would have let this guy kiss her. What was happening to her?

With a confused smile, she tried standing up, but her leg wouldn’t let her. Damn this. Glancing up, she saw his hand stretched out in front of her, offering to help her up. But hell, if she would let him help her now. He almost kissed her for god’s sake; she could at least spare herself the embarrassment of needing help to get up off the ground.

On her second attempt she made it and immediately started packing her tools.

“Okay, so your bike is good to go now,” she said as evenly as she could manage.

He was watching her now but kept his distance, as if he knew she needed to sort through her thoughts. She snapped the toolbox shut and headed towards her car.

“I’ll see you around, I guess,” Raven tossed over her shoulder as she opened the door. Even as she started the engine and avoided looking at him, she felt Zeke’s eyes on her, and saw his slow nod in her peripheral vision.

“See you around, Reyes,” he muttered to himself, as he watched her drive away.

The incident in the Parking lot with Zeke had rattled Raven more than she liked to admit. And she had panicked, which annoyed her even more. After she had calmed herself down, she called Harper to rant about what had happened. Usually, Raven would’ve called Clarke, but she hesitated— not because Clarke wouldn’t understand, but because Raven didn’t want to bother her right before her wedding with unimportant things. At least, that’s what she told herself.

A few miles after Nashville, Raven yawned three times in 5 minutes and she could no longer deny that she was fucking exhausted. Fortunately, only a bit later a sign for a motel greeted her with its neon lights.

She pulled into the parking lot and went into the foyer of the main building to find the reception. There was a small line before her and Raven tried to hide her yawns from the rest of the guests. As much as she wanted to pretend that she wasn’t, she was still annoyed that she had panicked. Also that he didn’t ask her for her number. Maybe he would have if she hadn’t panicked and sped away? It didn’t matter anyway. She wasn’t going to see him again.

The motel had a room for her and Raven went to take her bags out of her car. As she approached her room, a familiar figure was about to open the door right next to hers. At first, she thought she was imagining things but as his head turned slowly to look at who was coming his way, Raven smiled in spite of herself.

“Are you stalking me, Shaw?”

Zeke just smiled. “I thought you were a ghost back in Louisiana as fast as left. And you can’t stalk a ghost, don’t you think?”

Raven just shrugged. “I was in a rush.”

“Sure, you were.”

Zeke was just standing there looking at her expectantly, but Raven just held his gaze as she had done the whole 2 hours they had spent together that day. Growing impatient with the situation, she walked to her door and started unlocking it.

With her back to him, Zeke didn’t have to hide his smirk. He wanted to kick himself for not asking for her phone number, for not kissing her. But he had reluctantly made peace with himself, that the moment they’ve had was just that: a moment. Zeke would’ve savored it as an experience but now, seeing Raven again so unexpectedly, he thanked fate for bringing him here into this motel.

Right before Raven was able to disappear into her room, he called her name. She turned, expectant, and he took a deep breath and asked, “Have dinner with me?”

Raven just smiled and nodded.

_______________________________________________________________________ Thank you @the-most-beautiful-broom for being the best beta, support, inspiration and creator of the best moodboards a girl like me could ask for! This would never exist if it wasn’t for you! 

[widewildbrowneyed]

strangers i've met who deserve gold stars and free bouquet flowers for life

- Two kiddos who playing hide and seek, shouting “Mbak e cantik..”

- Gojek driver who help me strolling around Depok to find some medicine and texted me “Jangan lupa makan kak” after the trip finished.

- A machinist who nodding his head and smile before driving a train

- A man who seats next to me in smoking room area at the bus from Bandung to Jakarta, said i have to meet his cousin because he thought we’re match (that’s funny and cute)

- A guy who light up my cigarettes 3 times straight. I will ask your name if we meet again.

- A father that keep on kissing his daughter’s head in the Psychiatrist’s waiting room.

- A street sweeper who gave me tissue when i cried under the hospital’s tree.

- Security man who let me smoke at Security Post

- A grab driver who refuse to be paid by bank transfer because i left my wallet at home (this is actually strange but i wish you a damn good life)

- Sekuriti KRL yang ngerokin leher gue karena mau pingsan buat kedua kalinya hahaha

- A guy who paid for my coffee at Lawson Sudirman

- A grab driver who pretend as my uncle when i went to BRI because i lost my dad’s card

- A warkop worker who wears #cabutomnibuslaw tee.

- Homeless man at Gejayan street, praying at the corner of abandoned house.

- A mom of unpad’s student (we don’t know each other), sent me lots of messages through instagram saying i am strong woman and she proud of me. She keeps on replying my instagram stories. I love you, you make me feel like i have a mom figure.

- A grab driver who offered to wait for me until i finish my lunch at Dimsum Sembilan Naga and willing to take me to Lempuyangan for free because it was raining outside and he’s afraid i’m going late. Such a sweetheart.

- Blanco’s barista who accompanied me in the sharing table, knowing my phone is on charging and i have no one to talk to.

- A girl who told me that i look cool at Backroom’s Bar

- An old man who sits next to me in the train to Yogyakarta, telling me stories of his life and we took a cigars break in Kebumen station.

- A Starbucks’s Blok M barista, who chuckles at me when I said I only have 64.000 left on my balance. He gave me free upsized drink and write “Dolores, you are unique” with love and flowers drawn on it. Second time I went back there, he wrote “berry happy to see you”

- A young lady who holds her sleepiness to gave and elder a seat at train

- A grab driver who taking care of my sister along the road to hospital at 01.00 am

- Definitely everyone who smiles at me when we made eyes contact. It boosts my mood up.

- A dad at MRT Istora Senayan, wearing same outfit with his son and watched football together. Thank you for your time to be spends with your son, not every dad will take that chance.

- A grandma who keeps holding my hands along the way to Bogor station.

- Kempinski’s head chef that offers me so much free meals and his signature dish. I love it when I listen to his stories carefully.

(and more to come...)

[laidbackmarco]

Trinkets of a Different Time

As a kid I remember rifling through my dad’s nightstand to find small pocket knives, trinkets, and various other personal articles. As a romantic and philosopher I believe the inanimate objects we interact with everyday tell us a lot about ourselves, and have deep vast stories hidden with them. One could argue that they are as much a part of this living breathing universe as we are. The imagination of a child allowed me to daydream of a life lived before I came into the world.

  How much do I know of being a minority in the 60s, 70s, 80s? What Tacoma was like, the stories of Kansas and Virginia which always seem to not be long enough for me to know anything. Or on my mom’s end how could I know what it was like to lose my father at an early age. To grow up in a third world country miles away over the pacific ocean. I hear short snippets of each of their lives through oral stories passed down from one generation to the next. But it’s often strange to think about how little we know about the people who raised us, and often weirder thinking that they have as little of an idea of what they are doing as you do.

Strangers With The Same DNA

My mom being a party animal, my dad being some sort of geek. . . If I met them on the street would I recognize them? What I would give to be Marty McFly and meet and observe my parents in their youth. My knowledge is so limited I have troubling remember what happens in a day if I don’t journal. The images I have of my parents are constructs in my mind that change and shift with every passing moment. Remember the image you held of your dad when you were five, its probably the way my elementary school students think of me now as a 23 year old adult. Up till seven I thought my dad was some sort of flawless super hero. Of course that image has since changed, but as I grow into adulthood and discover how hard it really is, I can once again say that I am amazed by the things my dad has accomplished on his time on this earth. The flaws my dad has only make him more relatable, and overcoming some of them is a testament to how much he cares.

Parents lie to their kids all the time, I think my parents lied about their past as much as they tell the truth. Of course they could be lying on accident due to the lackluster perception of self present all humans. (including me the author)

Most of my parents lives I was not a part of . . .the time I spent with them is less than half of their lives. I know mostly nothing about the people that live under my roof with me and have guided me through the world that they too had to figure out and find meaning in.

The Same Name

Maurice Vincent Harris

My dad and I share practically the same name, but I have never once called him Marc or Maurice, to do so would just feel wrong. Even calling him dad for the sake of my “audience”(thanks for reading really. . .and most of you are English speakers I’m assuming?) feels so unsettling. Because to me he has always been Tatay. Hearing that word in my head makes years of memories fly through my mind. Recently he’s picked up the name Beefo, a name my little sister has knighted him with. During my time in high school my friends had come up with a name for my Tatay that is the most fon for me to use Black Mario.

Black Mario felt just as right as Tatay and is less intimate so for the sake of this chapter let’s call him Black Mario.

Things Only I Know

What can I tell you about my dad that no one else knows? He’s afraid of dying just like everyone else, he hates his job although he appreciates all that it’s provided for us, his favorite cigarettes are menthol lights, he worries all the time about all his kids. Karina, Cristina, me. . . But he worries about Karina the most. . . Because they are scarily alike. He is very old fashion and rarely cooks, cleans, or does the laundry, but he does like to do yardwork and keep all the vehicles in working order. Some of his bad habits are gambling, smoking, and road rage. It’s hard to sleep around him because he snores very loudly, and once he’s out it’s hard to get him back up(yay for sneaking in xbox time). He’s not afraid to express what he feels at restaurants, but for some reason can’t get in touch with his sensitive side. He misses the days when I was little. His mind is always on the future, but is sometimes impulsive. He doesn’t sleep much, but he can sleep for a while when he finally retires to the bed. He’s not as fast up and down the stairs as he used to be even just ten years ago when the regular pace of the slight jog going up the stairs has turned into a labored and offset slower paced climb up them. He expresses his emotions in weird ways like some sort of anime tsundere.

That’s my image of him now, but I know with all things this wasn’t how he always was.

I remember growing up I used to tell people I was black and they wouldn’t believe me until they saw my father. Trying to describe my father to someone who had never seen him went as follows. Well he’s a tall black guy with a mustache, who always wears a hat, and blue Boeing coveralls. He is a plumber/maintenance worker. A description closely matched by one of the world’s most famous Italian plumbers in the world. Mario. . .

Slice of Life

Although Black Mario is my father, the knowledge I have on this specimen is, only a slice of his life. Most of his existence remains shrouded in mystery.(If I ever have kids they can literally search through my teens and twenties, and even further back if I get around to scanning and uploading our photo collection) They need to hurry up with that assassins creed machine Animus please. I know his birthdate by heart thanks to all those damn how old are you things on the internet for mature games not porn I swear. I always put in my dad’s date of birth for some reason so my Xbox live account says I’m in my sixties. I always think about Alan Watt’s description about how we describe a beginning, did my father’s life start when he was born, when he was conceived, or when he was an evil gleam in his father’s eyes?

Baby Boomer

Black Mario is a baby boomer born on December 31st 1954, being part of a military family he was born on the other side of the country in Virginia. Dave and Patricia Harris. Like many, my grandfather had served in Second World War another young man thrown into a battle that shed much blood, but also brought the world together. When the war was over he was in his late teens and met a young girl from the Philippines who returned with him to the states. In the Philippines due to the lack of documentation it was possible for my grandma, who was actually 14, to lie about her age. Perhaps America was the land of opportunity  and a chance for her to seek adventure out of her small province. Due to the different cultural values of both the time and the region, it wasn’t strange for people to be settling down and having families at a young age. I mean the concept of “adulthood” is a construct created by culture. Using an arbitrary number such as one’s age to determine responsibility is pretentious, preposterous, and absurd. There was a time when people settled down much younger in life due to the short life expectancy. In other cultures the marriage ages vary to some degree as well, and for all you Christians out there, Mary was like fourteen so . . . Yeah.

Two teenagers went about raising a family . .  What could possibly go wrong?

My Grandpa was a short tempered, sharp tonged, sometimes violent man. . . God. . . He’s starting to sound like the stereo typical African American T.V. Dad. Although I imagine being in the military during war time will change you, being African American his role was limited to a cook. He was damn good at his job too often getting requests from generals and officers to have him be the one to prepare their meals. I can’t really speak much about Grandpa Dave as I know almost nothing about him.

Mark In The Middle

My dad is a younger middle child of a large family. . . 12 kids I believe, Lola tells stories of never ending cooking, cleaning, and laundry. . . My worst nightmare. . . Laundry. The values at the time consisted of a breadwinner and the stay at home mom. With limited education and the high cost of daycare what choice was there for Lola. Did she have any bigger dreams than that? For someone like me with delusions of grandeur I often forget that some people’s dreams is to provide and care for a family.

  My dad’s journey began in Virginia, where there are a lot of other Harris family groups, but I have never been to the big Harris Family reunion so they might as well be aliens with similar D.N.A. My dad himself doesn’t seem to remember much about Virginia as the earliest stories he had was the drive to Kansas itself. With no freeways, it must have been a traumatizingly long journey for a kid to remember it. When I was a kid when I thought of Kansas I thought of the Wizard of Oz and little house on the Prairie. But included in my dad’s memories are a packed station wagon full of stuff and kids. The American Road trip has some what of romanticized image.  With no smartphones the entertainment you had was the people with you and watching the world fly by you.

Kids tend to complain when enduring such things as their perspective on time is much different from a fully grown adult, since time is a relative function 1 year to a five year old is 8 times longer than it is for a forty year old. They would have complained but I imagine grandpa would probably say this when he was at the end of his nerves. “Stop complaining before I give you something to complain about”

The thought of a Parent striking a child is something that I’ve been protected and shielded from for the most part. Sometimes black Mario would spank us or give us a light tap on the head.  . . But never beat or strike us with full force. . . Apparently his dad would “beat the shit of of him” and his siblings sometimes. . .I don’t know if this extended to my grandma as well. The terrifying thought and reality of a child being abused in any way isn’t something we like to keep in our minds, but it happens  I can only wonder what kind of feelings Black Mario must be harboring about that, he never talks about anything, so that’s not how he expressed it. Perhaps in some journals in the garage somewhere I can find an answer. (Although I’m one of the people that thinks kids are too soft now a days, I mean I got spanked and I turned out somewhat fine. . . Right?)

I doubt that Black Mario has many memories before he was ten, because I’m a third of his age and I have barely anything up there, but from what I can gather about Kansas is that its flat, cold in the winter, hot in the summer, and there are tornadoes. Being stuck in the basement of a house sounds like as much fun as a being millennial in a power outage without cell service.

The Place Where I’m From

When Black Mario was in the third or fourth grade he moved to the City at the Center of my heart. The 253, T-Town, the city with the famous aroma. . . The city of Tacoma. And his family lived in the one place they could afford a home, Hilltop. Which if you’re not a local has a bad rep with being a not so good area to be in, Tacompton. Although neighborhoods were not segregated by color in essence with the way housing prices were in certain areas they might as well have been. Speaking of Black Mario experiencing racism in his youth. It’s not a matter if he did, the question is how much and when he met these challenges and from whom. Being a mixed raced Filipino sometimes it’s hard to fit in with either group and you end up in this limbo between races. Thankfully being in the pacific northwest the harsh treatment was padded to a certain extent, but not eliminated.

  I find it extremely odd that events I’ve read about in history books like the moon landing, JFK, Nixon, and all the fantastic things that were happening with the red scare and the cold war were experienced by the teenage version of Back Mario. I ought to pester him and ask him about that one day over a beer. .  . Or a joint I mean I’m in Washington let me pick my poison XD. I get these stories but, there are certain things that don’t come to the surface when hearing these stories. It’s so hard to interpret another’s worldview and the personal experiences they have that shape the way they see things. What kind of ten year old was he? A shy quiet one, or the ever rambunctious loud type. Being the younger of the boys of his family, I can speculate that he was given a lot of hand me downs, having the nickname buck(for bucktoothed) probably means he was the one getting teased by his older siblings. Being that my dad is like me and has trouble communicating and keeping friends he and my uncle Cisco or Coach were probably really close.

  One thing I know about my dad from his stories is that he is a hustla. He used to shine shoes or sell things to the businessmen of Tacoma downtown, he had a paper route, and he worked in the school cafeteria. Which has a number of benefits, extra food, free lunch, and cash. But it was probably hard for him to make friends if he was working while most kids bond over things like meals. He went to Jason Lee middle school where he played in the drum line and was a bench warmer in sports. To be honest being a black kid  in America you’re expected to come out of the womb dribbling a basketball, but luckily for black Mario he enjoyed basketball, but where he actually played the sport I have no Idea.

East Side

Sometime during the teenage years the family moved from hilltop to the East side of Tacoma. The house they lived in was very small for the amount of people that were housed there, but you have to make do with what you have.

This house is very close to the original home in east Tacoma, shown here is my uncles place

When Black Mario hit high school age he went to Stadium High school where he once again played the drums and remained on that shiny bench keeping them nice and warm for the starters. Black Mario didn’t actually graduate from stadium, although he did get his GED. During this time I have stories of him getting caught underage drinking with his stadium friends in northeast Tacoma, when apprehended by the police, he was met with the terrible consequence of pouring the beer out “I had to pour out a whole 30 rack once it was the saddest thing as the cop made us pour them out one at a time”.

When he joined the Military in 1972 as a young Kid. Often hearing his disdain of the government it’s really surprising that he would ever join the military, but I guess you can’t argue with a job with decent wages that provides meals and housing for its soldiers. Not to mention that being in the military teaches values such as work ethic, the importance of time, and some other valuable skills. Other than the whole training you to kill other human beings thing, it’s a pretty good deal. With the military he was able to go to Germany and Korea. Those memories unforgettable as he still talks about the days abroad.

My favorite story is after a night of drinking his best friend Rodney began to put his uniform on.

Black Mario: Nigga why you putting your uniform on Rodney: They serve midnight chow and you gotta be in this here uniform to get some chow. Black Mario: Hey wait for me I’ll put my uniform on too.

While he was in the military Black Mario did some real evaluating and thinking. He calculated the amount of money he got paid per hour to be a solider and compared it to what they were making at Boeing. In 1977 he was honorably discharged from the military achieving the rank of Sergeant. His stint with the military gave him priority for getting a job at Boeing. The company he’s still working for into his sixties. Unfortunately his first relationship didn’t last as long as his job, and neither did his second, but he did have kids and I got extended family members out of the relationship.(well more like they got me because I was to come later) What is a mystery to me is what he was like through the 70s and 80s.

The Big Mystery is What was he like?

His vocabulary and humor makes me feel like he experimented with drugs, I mean that 70s show and Cheech and Chong are funny for most people, but the green guys n gals find it more funny. He and his friend Bobby used to Deejay, but what kind of records did he spin house, hip hop, disco, techno? We get snippets of the music he liked, Funk, Disco, Old school Rap, disco. Did he like dancing and stuff going to the discos?

Having owned a Harley, a Firebird, and some other cars like an RX7, he must have enjoyed motorsports as much as I did.

I think he was a geek, because I remember he had a NES, a Nintendo entertainment system, and so many nerdy toys from the late 80s that he has to be a nerd. Not to mention he beat the Mario Arcade Game, he knew the Pacman Pattern at one point, and he is insanely good at Bullet Hell games. I felt like he went to the bar and played the arcade games and pool, more than socializing or drinking. His memorabilia includes Transformers, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, so like me he was a grown man who watched cartoons did he read comic books as well?

Family Guy

My dad has fond memories involving my three cousins Ja’nielle, Jarod, and Jon Jon, where he was that cool, weird uncle who lived next door. There was probably a part of him that longed for that family life after his relationships didn’t work out as he had hoped.

Life changed for Black Mario when he went to either a party or a bar one night, he would encounter the most dangerous thing known to man. . . A pretty Woman.

If anyone wants to learn about where I come from this is an article that's about a millenial kid thinking about his boomer dad #babyboomer #millenial #family #kids #dad #father #black #mario #autobiography #tacoma Trinkets of a Different Time As a kid I remember rifling through my dad's nightstand to find small pocket knives, trinkets, and various other personal articles.

[locke-writes]

Lights, Camera, Action

I made a movie recommendation list awhile back but since then there’s a lot more I’ve seen. As that one was based on what to watch if you were a film student I figured I’d make one that’s what to watch just to enjoy film. I’ve got them set up by decade starting from the 1800′s until now. This list is far from complete and id certainly missing some great films but nonetheless hopefully you find something enjoyable to watch.

For more films I’m itsnoah on Letterboxd

The Burglars (1897)

Fire! (1901)

A Trip to the Moon (1902)

The Great Train Robbery (1903)

Rescued by Rover (1905)

The Cameraman’s Revenge (1912)

Gertie the Dinosaur (1914)

The Tramp (1915)

The Cabinet of Dr Caligari (1920)

The Kid (1921)

Nosferatu (1922)

Metropolis (1927)

The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928)

Blackmail (1929)

City Lights (1931)

Dracula (1931)

M (1931)

Frankenstein (1931)

Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (1931)

Freaks (1932)

Modern Times (1936)

Le Grande Illusion (1937)

Snow White and the Seven Dwarves (1937)

Robin Hood (1938)

The Wizard of Oz (1939)

Gone With the Wind (1939)

Mr Smith Goes To Washington (1939)

The Grapes of Wrath (1940)

The Great Dictator (1940)

Citizen Kane (1941)

Casablanca (1942)

Double Indemnity (1944)

Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)

Detour (1945)

Hamlet (1948)

Oliver Twist (1948)

The Red Shoes (1948)

Bicycle Thieves (1948)

The Third Man (1949)

Sunset Boulevard (1950)

The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)

A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)

Julius Caesar (1953)

Seven Samurai (1954)

On the Waterfront (1954)

Rear Window (1954)

Night and Fog (1955)

Father Panchali (1955)

Rebel Without a Cause (1955)

12 Angry Men (1957)

Cat on a Hot Tin Rood (1958)

Vertigo (1958)

Breathless (1960)

Psycho (1960)

The Time Machine (1960)

La Jetée (1962)

Lawrence of Arabia (1962)

To Kill A Mockingbird (1962)

The Birds (1963)

Dr Strangelove (1963)

Doctor Zhivago (1965)

The Trip (1967)

The Graduate (1967)

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Easy Rider (1969)

Midnight Cowboy (1969)

Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factor (1971)

A Clockwork Orange (1971)

The Godfather (1972)

Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974)

Young Frankenstein (1974)

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975)

Taxi Driver (1976)

All the President’s Men (1976)

Hospital (1977)

Days of Heaven (1978)

Elephant Man (1980)

An American Werewolf in London (1981)

Tootsie (1982)

The Outsiders (1983)

WarGames (1983)

Amadeus (1984)

The Last Starfighter (1984)

The Breakfast Club (1985)

The Goonies (1985)

Blue Velvet (1986)

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)

Sid & Nancy (1986)

Heaven (1987)

The Lost Boys (1987)

The Pick Up Artists (1987)

The Princess Bride (1987)

Less Than Zero (1987)

Beetlejuice (1987)

Big (1988)

Young Guns (1988)

Heathers (1988)

Mississippi Burning (1988)

Rain Man (1988)

Working Girl (1988)

Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure (1989)

Do the Right Thing (1989)

Weekend At Bernie’s (1989)

Dead Poet’s Society (1989)

Glory (1989)

Edward Scissorhands (1989)

The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

Reservoir Dogs (1992)

Death Becomes Her (1992)

Of Mice and Men (1992)

School Ties (1992)

Chaplin (1992)

Swing Kids (1993)

Benny & Joon (1993)

The Piano (1993)

Heart and Souls (1993)

Searching for Bobby Fischer (1993)

Dazed and Confused (1993)

Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

In the Name of the Father (1993)

Natural Born Killers (1994)

Clerks (1994)

Leon the Professional (1994)

Tommy Boy (1995)

Empire Records (1995)

Seven (1995)

Mallrats (1995)

Sabrina (1995)

Jumanji (1995)

Mr Holland’s Opus (1995)

Trainspotting (1996)

Primal Fear (1996)

Gattaca (1997)

Boogie Nights (1997)

Wag the Dog (1997)

The Truman Show (1998)

Can’t Hardly Wait (1998)

Pleasantville (1998)

Rushmore (1998)

What Dreams May Come (1998)

Velvet Goldmine (1998)

Office Space (1999)

Never Been Kissed (1999)

eXistenZ (1999)

The Iron Giant (1999)

Spring Forward (1999)

But I’m A Cheerleader (1999)

Being John Malkovich (1999)

The Talented Mr Ripley (1999)

Man on the Moon (1999)

Galaxy Quest (1999)

American Psycho (2000)

High Fidelity (2000)

Almost Famous (2000)

Cast Away (2000)

Donnie Darko (2001)

A Kight’s Tale (2001)

Legally Blonde (2001)

Ghost World (2001)

Wet Hot American Summer (2001)

Kate and Leopold (2001)

The Pianist (2002)

Equilibrium (2002)

Gangs of New York (2002)

Danny Deckchair (2003)

Elephant (2003)

School of Rock (2003)

Shattered Glass (2003)

Big Fish (2003)

Cold Mountain (2003)

Garden State (2004)

The Girl Next Door (2004)

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)

Shaun of the Dead (2004)

13 Going on 30 (2004)

Dear Frankie (2004)

Napoleon Dynamite (2004)

The Woodsman (2004)

Hard Candy (2005)

Red Eye (2005)

Kinky Boots (2005)

Breakfast on Pluto (2005)

V for Vendetta (2005)

Grandma’s Boy (2006)

Marie Antoinette (2006)

Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

Stranger Than Fiction (2006)

Employee of the Month (2006)

The Prestige (2006)

The History Boys (2006)

The Holiday (2006)

Zodiac (2007)

I Could Never Be Your Woman (2007)

Paranoid Park (2007)

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007)

Control (2007)

Martian Child (2007)

August Rush (2007)

Juno (2007)

Be Kind Rewind (2008)

Definitely, Maybe (2008)

Charlie Bartlett (2008)

Fish Tank (2009)

Legion (2010)

13 (2010)

Peacock (2010)

Inception (2010)

Brighton Rock (2010)

Hanna (2011)

We Need To Talk About Kevin (2011)

Super 8 (2011)

Butter (2011)

Warrior (2011)

The Ides of March (2011)

In Time (2011)

J Edgar (2011)

Moonrise Kingdom (2012)

On the Road (2012)

Mud (2012)

Lawless (2012)

For A Good Time Call (2012)

The Words (2012)

Seven Psychopaths (2012)

The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)

Warm Bodies (2013)

Side Effects (2013)

Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)

The Way Way Back (2013)

Locke (2013)

Prisoners (2013)

The Skeleton Twins (2014)

Nightcrawler (2014)

Theory of Everything (2014)

Adult Beginners (2014)

Interstellar (2014)

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (2015)

Chappie (2015)

Mad Max Fury Road (2015)

The Gift (2015)

Room (2015)

The Martian (2015)

The Lobster (2015)

Christine (2016)

Midnight Special (2016)

Blue Jay (2016)

Brimstone (2016)

Call Me By Your Name (2017)

T2 (2017)

Baby Driver (2017)

The Shape of Water (2017)

Lady Bird (2017)

Three Billboards outside Ebbing Missouri (2017)

Phantom Thread (2017)

Red Sparrow (2018)

Love, Simon (2018)

Isle of Dogs (2018)

[thisbibliomaniac]

All the aesthetic asks please 😘

flower crown: when did you last sing to yourself?I was singing Carrie Underwood on the way home fairy lights: if a crystal ball could tell you the truth about anything, what would you want to know?What is it going to take to get out daisies: what is the greatest accomplishment of your life?This game of roller coaster tycoon I accomplished last night But seriously, a handful of photos 1975: what is the first happy memory that comes to mind, recent or otherwise?Seeing Beehive with my grandma a few weeks ago matte: if you knew that in one year you would die suddenly, would you change anything about the way you are now living?I would quit my job and actually do things black nail polish: do you have a bucket list? if so, what are the top three things?Mostly just travel pantone: describe a person close to your life in detail.I'm not sure what this means? moodboard: do you feel you had a happy childhood?Yes stars: when did you last cry in front of another person?In front of Bob when Noodles died. It was not a good day. plants: pick a person to stargaze with you and explain why you picked them.There are a lot of friends on here with whom I would be comfortable just existing in silence converse: would you ever have a deep conversation with a stranger and open up to them?No lace: when was your last 3am conversation with someone, and who were they to you?Probably @identityconstellations, and mostly because we were in different time zones. handwriting: if you were about to die, and you could only say one more sentence to one person, what would you say and to whom?Nope cactus: what is your opinion on brown eyes?I mostly find eyes unremarkable sunrise: pick a quote and describe what it means to you personally.Answered oil paints: what would you title the autobiography of your life so far?Answered overalls: what would you do with one billion dollars?Buy my mom and my sister cars. Probably a new truck for my dad. Take my grandma on vacation. Take my mom to Hawaii. Buy a cute 100 year old house in my neighborhood. Rent an old Victorian house in my favorite place and open a consignment shop. Etc. combat boots: are you a very forgiving person? do you like being this way?Yes, and no. It sucks, because people walk all over me. winged eyeliner: write a hundred word letter to your twelve year old self.Lol no pastel: would you describe yourself as more punk or pastel?Punk tattoos: how do you feel about tattoos and piercings? explain.Not personally a fan of tattoos. I like most piercings piercings: do you wear a lot of makeup? why/why not?No, mostly just eye makeup. It's easy bands: talk about a song/band/lyric that has affected your life in some way.I should've read these questions before reblogging messy bun: the world is listening. pick one sentence you would tell them.Repent of your sins and place your faith in Jesus Christ cry baby: list the concerts you have been to and talk about how they make you feel?All this feelings nonsense Chris Tomlin Christmas concert. It was fun, although I don't like him. Went with our friend Sam in her parents rv Tobymac and Brandon Heath. Best concert I've ever been to hands down. My mom took my sister, and our friends Abby and Ananda and me. It was an awesome night, and a lot of inside jokes and great memories came from it. Mark Schultz with family. Also fantastic. grunge: who in the world would you most like to receive a letter from and what would you want it to say?Anyone!!! That sounds like fun. space: do you have a desk/workspace and how is it organised/not organised?I sort of do. My good pens are hidden in the drawer. I'm supporting two staplers. white bed sheets: what is your night time routine?Come home from work. Shower. Put together orders. Read my Bible. Go to bed. old books: what’s one thing you don’t want your parents to know?Anything they can use against me beaches: if you had to dye your hair how would you dye/style it and why?Probably very dark. I've always wanted to know how it would look eyes: pick five people to go on an excursion with you. who would you pick and where would you go/what would you do?@hobbitsetal, @jayykesley, @lalalalyndsey, @identityconstellations, and @dangerously-human 💖 we would go on a road trip to wherever we ended up 11:11: name three wishes and why you wish for them.For a house, because I need space. For a kitten to put in my house. A job that makes all of this possible. painting: what is the best halloween costume you have ever put together? if none, make one up.I was a gypsy once. It was neat lightning: what’s the worst thing you’ve ever done while drunk or high?( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)thunder: what’s one thing you would never do for one million dollars?Can't think of anything at the moment. What do YOU think I wouldn't do? storms: you on only listen to one song for the rest of your life, or only see one person for the rest of your life. which and why?One person. The cashier at my favorite book store. And I would never have to deal with another person ever again. love: have you ever fallen in love? describe what it feels like to realise you’re in love.Nope clouds: if you’re a boy, would you ever rock black nail polish? if you’re a girl, would you ever rock really really short hair?Shortest I can go is shoulder length coffee: what’s your starbucks order, and who would you trust to order for you, if anyone?If I have to have Starbucks, it would be a chai tea latte, or an iced chai tea latte with very light ice. Not too complicated marble: what is the most important thing to you in your life right now?Not losing my mind There you go.