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sidekick-hero · 2 months ago

Text

it isn’t over, it’s just begun

Written for @steddiesmuttyseptember (prompts: backseat | clothes on | soft and slow | bruise) and @softsteddieseptember (prompt: Road Trip). This is super late, I'm sorry.

The biggest thank you to @firefly-party for reading over this and helping me make sense of English grammar and tenses. UGH.

6k | rated: e | warnings: (consensual) blood drinking | tags: vampire!eddie, monsterfucker!steve, dry humping, Steve takes care of Eddie

Read on AO3

“I’m dead, Harrington, not deaf! Haven’t I been through enough? Do you have to torture me with… with this? Crappy music from an even crappier movie? And here I thought we were friends!”

Eddie’s voice grew louder as he ranted, his hands flapping dramatically, his wide brown eyes sparkling under the streetlamps they passed. For someone technically dead, he was so alive—full of energy and life in every way that mattered. Even with his too-sharp teeth, translucent skin, and the absence of a pulse, he was still, well, Eddie.

Not that Eddie agreed.

That’s why they were here now, on this strange road trip to Washington D.C. to meet some friend of Owens who supposedly had a solution for him. How, Steve wasn’t sure. And if he was being honest, he didn’t entirely trust this friend—or Owens, for that matter. They’d been screwed over too many times, and Steve wasn’t about to risk Eddie’s… non-life.

Eddie seemed on edge too, fidgeting and talking too fast, too loud, confined in the tight space of Steve’s trusty BMW.

“If the movie’s so crappy, how do you know Take My Breath Away is in it, huh?” Steve countered, smirking, raising an eyebrow in challenge.

As expected, the question left Eddie sputtering, before he huffed and crossed his arms, pouting.

Steve took pity and turned the volume down, but not before belting out the chorus at the top of his lungs. He couldn’t help but enjoy the way Eddie looked at him, his attention fixed solely on Steve. If he were being honest, that’s all he’d been craving lately—Eddie’s gaze, his words, his touch.

Steve was down bad.

They’d been driving for six hours, and Steve could feel the toll it was taking on him. He still wasn’t sleeping well—nightmares keeping him awake more often than not. The only thing that brought him any real comfort was when Eddie came back from his nightly hunts. It should’ve felt strange that the only time Steve truly felt safe from the horrors of the Upside Down was when the one "monster" they hadn’t killed or sent back to the alternate dimension was taking a shower in his en suite bathroom before crawling into bed with him.

Not that Steve thought of Eddie as a monster—just because he looked a little different and needed blood to survive didn’t make him one.

The only one who saw Eddie that way was Eddie himself. It had taken weeks to convince him to let them anywhere near him, constantly reassuring him that they knew he wouldn’t hurt them, that they loved him.

Eddie had only agreed to stop hiding in the woods if Steve was there, nail bat in hand, ready to strike at the first sign of danger.

That’s why Eddie was living with him now. And that’s why Steve was the one driving him to Washington to meet this friend of Owens.

“You don’t look so hot, Stevie.”

“Geez, tell me how you really feel, Munson,” Steve shot back, only slightly annoyed. Eddie sounded more worried than anything.

Eddie raised his hands in mock surrender, a small smile tugging at his lips. “Relax, you always look hot, big boy. But right now? You look beat. Wanna take a break?”

A break didn’t sound bad at all, Steve thought. Just to rest his eyes for a bit.

“Not your worst idea,” he conceded, much to Eddie’s delight.

Eddie’s voice turned theatrical as he declared, “I only have good ideas, I’ll have you know.”

Steve’s reply came without thinking. “Sacrificing yourself to the bats wasn’t.” The weight of his words hit him the moment the silence in the car became deafening—not even the sound of Eddie’s breathing, which was more habit than necessity, broke the tension.

Shit.

“Eddie, I’m sorry—”

“It’s fine,” Eddie cut him off, his voice flat, the humor gone. “There’s a path over there, leading off the road. Take it. We can park at the edge of the woods. You can rest, and I’ll... hunt.”

Eddie’s whole demeanor screamed for him to drop it. As much as Steve hated the tense silence hanging between them, he didn’t know what to say to make it better. He was sorry for how his words had come out, but the truth was, he’d meant them. Part of him knew it wasn’t fair—he hated what Eddie had done, but he also knew that, in Eddie’s place, he would’ve done the exact same thing. Saving Dustin, buying them time. Sacrificing himself because what was his life compared to theirs, compared to the world?

If Steve was being honest with himself, he’d admit that it wasn’t Eddie he was truly angry at—it was himself. He should have been there. He should’ve been smarter, faster. Better. But he wasn’t. He let them fend for themselves, and this was the result.

The car swayed as it rumbled down the gravel path, pulling him back from his spiraling thoughts. What happened, happened. There was no changing it now. The only thing they could do was deal with the aftermath.

Steve parked the car in a secluded spot, hidden from the road to give them some privacy. The second the car stopped, Eddie swung the door open and disappeared into the woods without a word. Steve sat there, staring after him, regret settling like a weight in his chest.

With a heavy sigh, Steve pushed open his door and went around to grab his nail bat and a blanket from the trunk. He crawled into the backseat, balling up his jacket as a makeshift pillow. The bat went under the driver’s seat, just in case, and he pulled the blanket over himself. It wasn’t exactly comfortable, and with the weight of guilt in his stomach and his mind racing, he doubted he’d be able to fall asleep.

But sleep had other plans. It claimed him within seconds, and as usual, Eddie was the last thing on his mind before darkness wrapped around him like a lover.

He came back to himself slowly, like wading through thick molasses, his senses gradually returning one by one. First, there was the awareness inside his body. He was thirsty. Hungry, too. A dull headache throbbed at his temples, and his neck ached from the awkward position he’d slept in. Everything pointed to him having slept far longer than he’d intended.

Next came his hearing—dulled ever since Billy Hargrove had taken a plate to his head, but still somewhat functional. He could make out the distant hoot of an owl and, if he concentrated, the faint sound of cars speeding by on the nearby road. Then there was something else—a rustling sound, faint and close by. He had to strain to hear it, and might’ve missed it if not for how near it was.

Steve kept his eyes closed, everything feeling too heavy and far away. But now, cautiously, he cracked them open just enough to survey his surroundings without alerting any potential threats.

The car was dark; the sun had set a while ago, from the looks of it. At first glance, it seemed like he was alone, and worry crept in about Eddie. But then the rustling sound came again, and this time his eyes landed on its source. Someone was sitting in the passenger seat, trembling violently.

“Eds?” Steve’s voice came out scratchy from sleep. He swallowed and tried again, softer this time. “Are you alright?”

The figure in the front seat—who Steve hoped was Eddie, though who else could it be—shook its head but remained silent. As Steve blinked the sleep from his eyes and they adjusted to the darkness, more details came into focus. Eddie was hunched over, knees pulled tightly to his chest, his feet up on the upholstery. Normally, Steve would’ve complained, but right now all that mattered was making sure Eddie was okay.

“Eddie, please, talk to me. I can’t help you if you don’t talk to me.”

He sat up and reached out to touch Eddie’s arm, but the moment his fingers grazed the fabric of Eddie’s jacket, Eddie recoiled, scrambling as far as the small space of the car would allow.

“Don’t,” Eddie rasped, his voice raw and jagged, almost unrecognizable.

Ignoring the warning, Steve inched closer, raising his hands in a calming gesture. “Eddie,” he repeated softly, using the name again because he remembered the first time they encountered this version of Eddie—feral, lost, barely recognizing them. Nancy had said to repeat his name often, to remind him of who he was. It became a habit Steve hadn’t been able to shake entirely.

“Whatever it is, you can tell me. Did something happen while you were hunting?” Steve’s stomach twisted at the thought. What if Eddie had hurt someone? Lost control to the instincts he barely understood? He should’ve been worried about whoever Eddie might’ve harmed—and he was, he was—but more than anything, he worried about what that guilt would do to Eddie. That it would push him to retreat, make him decide that he couldn’t be around people anymore. That he’d leave them.

Leave Steve.

At Steve’s question, Eddie finally looked up, and their eyes met. Steve’s heart lurched. Eddie's eyes were no longer the warm, familiar brown. They were red.

A whimper escaped Steve’s lips before he could stop it, and Eddie’s face—what little Steve could make out—twisted in what looked like pain. Steve realized, too late, that his involuntary reaction had struck at Eddie’s worst fear: that they saw him as the monster he believed himself to be.

“’M sorry, Eds,” Steve stammered, rushing to correct himself. “You just surprised me, that’s all. I’m not scared of you, I swear. I’m just worried for you. Let me help, please.”

With his back pressed against the glove compartment, cowering in the cramped footwell of the passenger seat, Eddie let out a dark, humorless laugh. “You have no idea what you’re asking, Steve. You should just take that trusty bat of yours and bash my head in. That’s the only way you can help.” His voice cracked, raw with desperation. “I… I don’t want to be a monster.”

“I’m not doing that, Eddie.” Steve’s voice was steady, even as his heart hammered in his chest. “You’re not a monster. You’re our friend.”

Eddie let out a bitter sigh, his hand fumbling for the car's overhead light. When it flicked on, Steve’s breath caught in his throat. Eddie looked more monstrous than ever—the sharpness of his teeth more pronounced, his skin drawn tight and pale, dark veins spidering beneath the surface. His red eyes glowed unnaturally in the dim light, and his trembling grew worse.

“I haven’t eaten in days,” Eddie confessed, his voice low and filled with shame. “I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t bring myself to kill any of the animals out there. And tonight, when I finally got desperate enough to try… there were hunters in the woods.” He clenched his jaw, as if disgusted with himself. “I couldn’t risk it, Steve. I had to retreat before I hurt them. Before I would have... lost control.”

Steve’s heart twisted at the sight of Eddie—so vulnerable, yet fighting desperately to stay in control. It hurt to see the raw fear in his friend’s eyes, especially when there seemed to be nothing that Steve could do to make it better. There had to be something. Anything.

Eddie’s refusal to feed explained why the monstrous side of him was becoming more pronounced, more visible. The hunger must be unbearable by now, gnawing at him from the inside out. Yet, Eddie—the stubborn idiot—was willing to suffer rather than hurt another living thing. How anyone could see a monster in someone so kind, so selfless, was beyond Steve. He knew without a doubt that Eddie would starve himself to death before ever harming anyone.

But maybe it didn’t have to come to that. Not if Steve had anything to say about it.

“Maybe…” Steve began, choosing his words carefully, “you don’t have to control it.” At Eddie’s incredulous look, he quickly added, “I mean, what if you let yourself have blood—from someone willing to give it to you? You wouldn’t have to hurt anyone if it was, you know, consensual.”

Eddie blinked, his wide, reddish-brown eyes staring at Steve in disbelief.

“Could you repeat that? Because for a second there, it sounded like you were suggesting I should be drinking blood from a person.”

“It sounded that way because that’s exactly what I’m suggesting,” Steve said, keeping his tone calm. “Not just any person—someone who’d let you do it, of course.”

Eddie’s expression hardened as his voice rose, anger mixing with incredulity. “Are you out of your mind? You’re suggesting I just walk up to someone and be like, ‘Hey, can I get some consensual blood-sucking in? I can’t promise it won’t hurt, but you’d be doing me a real favor.’ Is that what you’re suggesting?”

The flare of anger in Eddie’s voice was almost a relief. It was familiar, a sign that somewhere under all that fear, the Eddie Steve knew was still there. Steve would take Eddie’s frustration over the emptiness he’d seen in him any day.

“Of course not,” Steve replied, his lips curling into a smile as Eddie’s shoulders sagged a little. “I’m suggesting you drink from me.”

You could’ve heard a pin drop in that moment, even with Steve’s less-than-perfect hearing. He was certain Eddie had even stopped breathing, not that he needed to. Eddie just stared at Steve like he’d suggested they strip naked, douse themselves in glitter, and run sparkling through the streets of Hawkins.

“Did you hear me? I. Want. You. To. Drink. From. Me,” Steve repeated, enunciating each word with deliberate conviction.

Eddie was already shaking his head before Steve had even finished speaking. “No! No, no, no. Absolutely not. You’re insane. I—Steve, please, no.”

It was like Eddie was going through the stages of grief—anger, denial, and bargaining. Robin had explained those to him once, and now Steve was watching them unfold before his eyes.

He knew he couldn’t force Eddie to do it, no matter how desperately he wanted to. The truth gnawed at him: a part of Steve didn’t just want Eddie to feel better; he wanted to be the one who made Eddie feel better. And wasn’t that a messed-up thing to feel?

“Please, man. You’re dying. I can see it, and you can’t go on like this much longer.”

The look of utter defeat was painful enough, but it was the resignation in Eddie’s eyes that twisted the knife deeper into Steve’s heart.

“I’m already dead, Steve,” Eddie said quietly. “I died that night, and I shouldn’t have come back. Not like this. I don’t want to live as a monster. If I don’t feed, maybe I can at least die as a human.”

His words were calm, as though Eddie had made peace with his fate, but the sadness lurking behind them hit Steve like a truck.

It made him furious.

“Are you fucking kidding me? You’re seriously gonna sit there, look me in the eye, and tell me it’d be better if you were dead?” Steve’s voice shook with raw emotion. “Newsflash, asshole—if you die, it would destroy the kids. Dustin worships your scrawny ass. Mike tries to grow his hair like yours. Max would play D&D just to have you DM the game. And it’s not just them. Nancy. Robin. Me. Did you ever think about that? We need you, Eddie. So don’t you dare say it’d be better if you died, because it wouldn’t. It wouldn’t!”

His chest heaved with the effort of getting the words out, his anger mingling with desperation. But as the weight of his outburst settled, Steve felt something shift—like a festering wound finally being drained. It left him raw, but somehow… cleaner.

For a second, he thought it had worked. Eddie moved toward him slowly, his hand outstretched. Steve noticed the darkened tips of Eddie’s fingers, the sharpness of his nails, more menacing than they’d been just hours ago. But Steve didn’t flinch. He stayed exactly where he was, letting Eddie come closer.

Eddie didn’t bite him. Instead, his fingertips grazed Steve’s cheek, soft as a summer breeze. “You’re crying?” Eddie’s voice was a disbelieving whisper, like he couldn’t fathom that the thought of losing him could bring Steve to tears.

“I don’t wanna lose you,” Steve whispered back, his voice thick with emotion. He didn’t care if Eddie could see everything he was feeling now—all the love and fear, laid bare for him to witness. If it meant Eddie would accept his help, if it meant Eddie would stay, then Steve would give him everything.

“You really mean it.” The wonder in Eddie’s voice made Steve smile, because it was so unmistakably Eddie.

“For someone so smart, you can be incredibly thick. Yes, I mean it. Now would you please get over yourself and bite me already? Jeez.”

Eddie’s startled laugh told Steve he’d said the right thing. “You do know I repeated senior year three times, right?”

“Yeah, and we both know that had nothing to do with you being dumb, dumbass.”

They both grinned at each other, the kind of goofy smiles that made Steve’s chest feel light. In that moment, all Steve wanted was to lean in and kiss Eddie—just close the gap and see what it felt like to finally do it.

But before he could act on that impulse, Eddie’s face suddenly twisted in pain.

“Eddie? Are you okay? What’s happening?” Steve’s voice rose with the anxiety building in his chest.

Through clenched teeth, Eddie managed, “I’m so hungry and you—” He stopped, squeezing his eyes shut.

“You what? Come on, man, I thought we were having a moment here. Talk to me!”

Eddie groaned, clearly struggling, and finally blurted out, “You smell so fucking good, okay? Happy now? You smell good enough to eat and it hurts.”

The weight of Eddie’s words hung in the small space between them, thick with tension. Steve had been through enough—beaten, tortured, fighting interdimensional monsters while babysitting a pack of troublemakers. He’d earned something good in his life, damn it. And if that “something good” was Eddie Munson biting him and drinking his blood to stay alive, then so be it. Steve Harrington would take it.

"Almost," Steve growled, his patience finally snapping. He framed Eddie’s face with his hands, pulling him forward into a kiss that had been months in the making. And Eddie went willingly—no, eagerly—letting Steve lick into his mouth with a muffled, desperate moan.

Without breaking the kiss, Steve leaned back, pulling Eddie with him into the back seat. Eddie followed without hesitation, lips still fused to Steve’s as if they couldn’t bear to part. Maybe it was Eddie’s newfound abilities, or maybe the kiss had awakened some hidden grace, but somehow, Eddie managed to climb into the back with him without so much as a stumble.

The heat between them was electric like a thunderstorm, a shiver of pure need running through Steve’s body.

As they sank onto the cool leather, Eddie’s weight pressed down on him, and for the first time in what felt like forever, something settled in Steve’s chest too—a deep sense of peace. He had craved this closeness for so long, the feeling of Eddie with him, on him.

“Eddie,” Steve moaned, finally pulling back to gasp for air. The moment their lips parted, though, he felt Eddie tense above him, realization dawning in his eyes. The danger of being so close to Steve, so close to his pulse, his heart pounding from desire, the blood rushing beneath his skin—it obviously hit Eddie like a freight train.

Steve knew if he didn’t act fast, Eddie would pull away, put distance between them when all Steve wanted was to be even closer. So he took the leap, pushing Eddie’s face toward his neck just as he wedged his thigh between Eddie’s legs.

“Please, baby,” Steve breathed, voice low and thick with want. “I need you to bite me. I want it. I want you.”

He didn’t care that he was begging—he only cared that Eddie wouldn’t leave him.

“Steve—” Eddie’s voice was strained, pained, and Steve felt the sharp graze of a fang against the sensitive skin of his neck.

Steve didn’t give him time to second-guess. He pressed his thigh upward, right against the growing bulge in Eddie’s jeans, and the movement knocked Eddie off balance. He fell forward, right into Steve’s arms, and Steve held him tight, refusing to let him pull away.

“I know you want to, so do it,” Steve urged, breath coming in shallow bursts. When Eddie still hesitated, Steve rocked his hips up and clawed at Eddie’s back, desperation leaking into his voice. “Do it!”

And then, finally—Eddie gave in. With a groan that was half-pain, half-relief, he sank his teeth into Steve’s neck.

It hurt.

But the pain wasn’t the worst part. No, the worst was the sucking—the sensation of blood being drawn from his veins. It felt foreign, unnatural, mixing with the burning throb of the open wound on his neck. The combination made his head spin, disorienting him in a way he hadn’t anticipated.

Yet somehow, despite—or maybe because of—the intensity of those sensations, Steve was painfully hard. His cock strained against his Levi’s, which already felt tight on a normal day. Now, they were almost unbearable, constricting, and he half-wondered if they’d cut off circulation to his legs soon.

It was confusing, how his body reacted to Eddie feeding on him, but what really sent shivers down his spine were the sounds Eddie was making. Quiet, needy moans muffled by Steve’s neck, soft hums of pleasure that Eddie probably wasn’t even aware of. And it wasn’t just that—Steve could feel Eddie mindlessly rutting against his thigh, the thick, hard length of him pressing into Steve like a promise.

Steve had never been this close to another guy’s hard-on before. The closest he’d come was watching Tommy H. jerk off beside him in his bedroom during a sleepover, Tommy’s eyes dark with something that had made Steve’s skin prickle. But this? This was so much better. It wasn’t just real—it was Eddie. And Steve had been halfway in love with him ever since that day when Eddie talked about Dustin, about how much the kid worshiped him, and how maybe Steve wasn’t such a bad guy after all.

The cramped space of the car was filled with the sound of their ragged breaths and soft moans, but they weren’t just Eddie’s anymore. Steve’s own sounds were growing louder by the second, the initial sting of pain transforming into a heady mix of heat and need. Each pull on his neck sent a pulse of pleasure straight down to his groin, making his cock twitch against the too-tight denim.

He had never felt anything like this before—this blend of pain and pleasure, of intimacy and raw need. And all he could think was how right it felt. How right Eddie felt.

Steve felt like he was drifting in a dream, the world around him soft and hazy, time slipping through his fingers like sand. He couldn’t tell how long it had been since Eddie’s teeth first pierced his skin—seconds, minutes, hours? Maybe even days. It was impossible to say, lost as he was in the slow, heated grind of their bodies. The friction between them pushed him higher and higher, though he wasn’t sure if it was the pleasure or the blood loss that had his head spinning. A distant part of his mind registered alarm at how weightless he felt, how far away everything seemed.

But Steve felt so good. Safe, even, wrapped in the arms of one of the most dangerous creatures he’d ever encountered.

It was Eddie who finally pulled back with a wet, slurping sound, his mouth leaving Steve’s neck as he gasped for breath. “Steve? Shit, Steve, come on, man, look at me.” Eddie’s cool hand cupped Steve’s cheek, shaking him gently, his fingers trembling as he turned Steve’s face to meet his gaze. When their eyes finally locked, Steve was relieved to see that the red had vanished entirely from Eddie’s eyes, replaced by the familiar warm brown that he had come to love.

“’ddie?” Steve slurred, his voice sounding weak, even to his own ears. He caught the worried look on Eddie’s face, the way his brows knit together and his lips pressed into a tight line, stained with drops of blood. My blood, Steve thought vaguely. Somehow, the idea didn’t bother him. Summoning the last bit of strength he had, Steve smiled and placed his hand over Eddie’s, still resting on his cheek. “’m fine. Promise.”

“You don’t look fine, Steve,” Eddie shot back, panic edging his voice. “You look like you’re about to pass out. Goddammit, why didn’t you stop me? Shit, I could’ve killed you.”

Eddie’s voice cracked with guilt, his words thick with fear and desperation. He sounded wrecked, not in the way the still-persistent throbbing in Steve’s groin suggested they both should be, but wrecked with the weight of what had just happened. But Steve didn’t care about that. He didn’t care that he was dizzy, or that his body felt light as a feather. What mattered was making Eddie understand that Steve wanted this. He wanted everything Eddie could give him—his hunger, his desire, his love. And in return, he wanted Eddie to take everything from him — his blood, his heart, hell, even his life. It was all Eddie’s for the taking.

A gasp slipped from Eddie’s lips, sharp and incredulous. “Eddie…” Steve’s voice was barely a whisper, his gaze soft and unwavering as he stared into Eddie’s wide, unblinking eyes.

“You don’t mean that,” Eddie whispered, his voice thick with disbelief.

Steve blinked, suddenly realizing he must have said it all out loud. Oops.

Well, in for a penny, in for a pound, right? So far, Steve’s gut instincts had always guided him right, more or less. He was still alive, wasn’t he? That was good enough in his book even if the Robin in his head was rolling her eyes at him.

“I mean it,” he said, his voice soft but steady. “I know you don’t believe me, but I do. I want you. All of you—the good, the bad, the ugly.” Steve’s lips curled into a smirk, mischief lighting his eyes. “And if you haven’t noticed…” He rolled his hips deliberately, making sure Eddie could feel just how much he wanted him. “I was really enjoying myself.” To drive his point home, he shifted his thigh, pressing it against the unmistakable evidence of Eddie’s arousal. Above him, Eddie’s face contorted in pleasure, a low moan rumbling from deep in his chest.

Gotcha, Steve thought with a smug little grin.

“And I think you liked it, too,” Steve continued, his voice dipping lower. “So why don’t you stop worrying and get us both off, huh? I’m not sure I can right now, so it’s the least you could do to make it up to me, don’t you think?”

It was a bold move, pretending to be nonchalant when, in reality, Steve felt like he was hanging on the edge of a cliff, waiting to see if Eddie would catch him or let him fall. His heart pounded in his chest, and for a moment, time seemed to stand still as he watched Eddie’s face—those deep, whiskey-brown eyes wide with surprise, disbelief, and something else that made Steve’s pulse race even faster.

Then, something happened that Steve did not see coming at all.

Eddie laughed.

Not just a chuckle, either, but a real, belly-deep laugh that shook his entire body. The anxiety that had been etched into his features for so long, the haunted look he’d worn since coming back from the dead, finally melted away. In its place, there was warmth, the corners of his eyes crinkling as laughter spilled from his lips, dimples flashing in a way that made Steve’s heart clench.

Eddie was so beautiful.

Eddie’s laughter faded, the echo of it lingering in the close confines of the car like the remnants of a shared secret. His gaze softened, the humor in his eyes shifting into something far more tender, far more vulnerable. “You’re unbelievable, Harrington,” he said, shaking his head, but this time his voice was filled with awe rather than disbelief. “Here you are, barely hanging on, and somehow you’re still making me feel flustered. What kind of guy are you?”

His fingers, cool but delicate, ghosted over Steve’s cheek, the sharpness of his nails a reminder of the monster Eddie thought he was. But the touch? That was all Eddie—the boy Steve had been falling for piece by piece. “You really want me to believe you’re okay with this? With me? After what I just did to you?”

Eddie’s voice wavered, his uncertainty spilling out despite the bravado. “You’re either the bravest or the dumbest guy I’ve ever met. Maybe both.”

Steve couldn’t help the smile that tugged at his lips, one that matched Eddie’s in its softness, despite the tension hanging between them. “I don’t hear you telling me I’m wrong, man. We’ve been talking about me—what I want. But what about you?” He paused, his voice gentle but probing. “What do you want, Eddie?”

Eddie’s reply came without hesitation. “You.”

Steve’s heart stuttered in his chest while the butterflies in his stomach went wild. His voice dropped to a whisper. “Then have me.”

Blessedly, this time, Eddie didn’t argue. He didn’t hesitate or question whether he deserved this—deserved Steve. He just did what Steve asked.

Pushing himself up on one arm, Eddie moved his other hand from Steve’s cheek, letting it trail down to palm him through his jeans. The earlier intensity had faded slightly during their conversation, but the moment Eddie’s hand found him, it was like lighting a match to gasoline. Heat surged through Steve, reigniting everything Eddie had stirred up.

Eddie's grin widened, his sharp teeth gleaming as he looked down at Steve, the dangerous undertone of it a sharp contrast to the mischievous, boyish excitement that always pushed Steve to keep up with his contagious energy. “I knew you’d be packing, big boy,” Eddie teased, his voice full of admiration and humor. “And all this for lil’ old me?” His fingers squeezed experimentally before running along the length of him, feeling the way Steve’s body responded, hardening further under his touch.

Steve, still a little lightheaded from the blood loss—made worse now that more of his blood seemed to be rushing south—blinked up at Eddie, his thoughts scrambled. All he could do was press his hips up, seeking more friction, his body moving on instinct even if his brain was lagging behind.

His hips began to grind against Eddie’s hand, slowly at first, trying to find a rhythm as Eddie held back, teasing, not giving him the relief he craved. Words failed him, but his body knew exactly what it wanted, each roll of his hips desperate and pleading.

“Didn’t anyone ever—fuck—tell you not to play with your food?” Steve groaned, hips stuttering as Eddie’s touch continued its slow, maddening exploration. It was risky bringing up the fact Eddie had just fed from him, but the elephant in the room wasn’t going anywhere, so why not address it now, while they were both caught up in the heat of the moment?

Eddie paused for just a moment, his eyes searching Steve’s with an unreadable expression. Then, he laughed softly, the sound low and rough, sending a shiver through Steve's entire body. "Oh, sweetheart," Eddie murmured, leaning closer, his lips brushing against Steve’s ear. "You have no idea how much I want to devour you."

Before Steve could even process Eddie’s words, Eddie shifted, settling between his thighs. The new position aligned their hard cocks perfectly, and they both gasped at the intense sensation. Eddie leaned down, nosing along Steve’s jaw until his breath ghosted over Steve’s ear. “Thank you, Stevie,” he whispered.

Eddie's hips rolled slowly, expressing his gratitude with each movement, though Steve wasn’t sure what Eddie was thanking him for. It didn’t matter. The only thing that mattered was the electric friction between them, the delicious drag of flesh against flesh. The weight of Eddie’s body should have made Steve feel trapped, but instead, it just amplified his need, igniting something primal within him. He was prey—and he loved it.

That thought made him cling even tighter, his legs wrapping around Eddie's waist to increase the friction. Eddie’s pace quickened, hips thrusting with more purpose, slow but insistent, like they were making love for real. Like Eddie was buried deep inside him. And suddenly, that’s all Steve wanted—Eddie inside him, closer, always closer. His teeth in Steve’s neck, his cock in his body. He needed to feel everything.

Steve’s fingers dug into Eddie’s back, nails scratching against the thin fabric of his shirt in a desperate attempt to mark him, to claim him the way Eddie had claimed Steve with his bite. Eddie didn’t complain—if anything, the scratches seemed to spur him on. His breath hitched, and he let out a string of grunts and moans, the sounds vibrating against Steve’s skin as Eddie whispered praises into his ear. He called Steve brave, kind, selfless, and so, so pretty.

Steve had experienced some incredible sex in his life, but nothing compared to this—dry-humping Eddie Munson in the backseat of his car, bodies pressed together, breathless, and needy.

A familiar tightness coiled in his groin, his whole body tensing as he teetered on the edge of release. But something was missing.

“Bite me,” Steve begged, his voice high and needy, almost desperate.

Eddie whimpered, his hips stuttering for just a moment. “Steve—”

Not willing to let Eddie pull away, Steve’s hand gripped his ass, urging him to keep moving, while his other hand pressed against Eddie’s neck, guiding him closer to his own neck. “I’m close, baby, so close. Please.”

As Eddie's teeth sank into his flesh once more, Steve's vision blurred, the rush of pleasure and pain so overwhelming it felt like his soul had left his body for a moment. He must’ve floated away for a bit, because when he came back to himself, he was no longer beneath Eddie but lying on top of him, his head resting on Eddie’s chest, while Eddie’s fingers gently combed through his hair in a soothing rhythm.

Steve must’ve made a sound, or maybe Eddie was attuned to the change in his breathing, because Eddie noticed right away.

“Hey, sweetheart, back with me?” Eddie’s voice was soft, warm, filled with affection.

“Mmm,” Steve hummed, feeling content and utterly spent. His limbs felt like they weighed a ton, his body heavy but blissfully sated. “Don’t wanna move.”

“Never?” Eddie chuckled, his laughter light and fond, and Steve could feel himself falling even deeper into this perfect moment, cocooned in the warmth of post-orgasmic bliss.

He opened his mouth to respond, but before he could, his stomach growled loudly, breaking the quiet. Eddie snorted. “I think we have to move, darling. That sounded like a demogorgon.”

Steve groaned in protest, causing Eddie to give in with a soft smile. “Okay, fine. A few more minutes, but then we’ll get you something to eat and drink.” His hand drifted to Steve’s neck, thumb gently brushing over the already healing bite. “This took a lot out of you. Let me take care of you, okay? Like you did for me.”

Steve snuggled closer, the idea of being cared for by Eddie sounding better than anything. “Okay,” he mumbled.

Eddie pressed a lingering kiss to the top of his head, his voice barely a whisper. “Thank you, Stevie.”

#steddie #steddie smut #steddie fanfic #steve harrington x eddie munson #steddiesmuttyseptember #softsteddieseptember #vampire eddie munson #my writing

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frankenstein-ate-my-left-shoe · 9 months ago

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good morning!! it's @henderdads' birthday!!!! happy happy happy birthday to youuuu cass!!!

The minute Eddie Munson turned 18, he could see it; the only color he would see until he and his soulmate kissed for the first time.

Yellow.

Rays and rays of warm yellow sunshine, the middle light (and middle light only) of the one stoplight in town, one half of their school colors, the dandelions spotted agross the grass between the trailers, the stubborn daffodils that keep reappearing in Ms. Wilson’s garden though she’s long since passed…

The half-toned things he’s told are green, half yellow, half blue, and that he got lucky his soulmate’s favorite color wasn’t black or gray (then he felt glad he’d settled on a different color than either of those by time he was older, he didn’t want to subject his soulmate to more black and white..

After Steve Harrington turns 18, he can see the color of the lipstick his mom wore in their last family portrait, the color of the punch that gets spilled all over Nancy’s shirt at Tina’s halloween party, the stripes and piping on his godforsaken Scoops uniform, the red of his own blood rushing down the drain beneath his feet.

The dark tone puddled beneath Eddie’s limp body in the Upside Down.

The same color splashed onto Dustin’s arms and legs.

Pressing his hands into it to stop it from spreading, to start it flowing again, Steve presses his lips to Eddie’s once…he hasn’t done CPR since he worked at the pool….twice…”C’mon man, don’t leave him like this.”....

The third time is when it happens.

The feeble beat of Eddie’s heart starting again, the push of breath into his lungs, the sudden flood of cool, dark colors around them.

“Eddie? Eddie! C’mon man, stay with me.”

It looks like it takes a herculean effort to do so, but Eddie’s eyes open. “H–hey, Harrington. Wh–”

“I’m going to pick you up now, Ed,” Steve says, doing just that, tucking Eddie into his chest and starting for the trailer. “El is keeping the gate open for us but we gotta hurry.”

The four of them manage to get him out through the gate and into the RV, this time with Nancy behind the wheel.

Having to let him go at the doors to the ER is one of the hardest things he’s ever had to do, but he manages, Robin telling him over and over again that she’d already called Eddie’s Uncle and that he’d be safe.

While they’re waiting, filthy and exhausted but victorious nonetheless, Nancy says to him: “It’s blue, by the way. The…everything down there has some sort of blue tinge to it.”

Steve doesn’t ask how she knew, just appreciates that he can look at something and she’ll tell him the name of the color.

The pattern of the chairs is orange and purple, the plant in the corner is green (“All plants are some shade of it for the most part.”), the wallpaper is his favorite though.

“It’s yellow.”

“I guess I know what color Eddie’s been seeing the past few years..” It’s the first and last thing he says until Wayne Munson comes to get them.

“You three need’ta be looked at too. Not jus’ Henderson.”

He leads them back to a room, and Steve recognizes Dr. Owens there waiting for them.

They get looked over, they get cleaned up, and Steve gets a shot of something that’s supposed to help stave off anything those flying rats may have given him.

And for the next week, he stays.

He and Wayne maintain a constant vigil at Eddie’s bedside. Wayne leaves for his shifts when he has to, Steve is allowed to stay because of his soulmate status, and Eddie wakes up a little more than a week later.

Wayne had left a couple hours ago, so Steve will have to call him at the plant but first: “Steve?” Eddie manages to croak out when his eyes crack open the first time.

“Hey Eds, welcome back to the world of the living.”

Eddie shuts his eyes and huffs a laugh, then cringes, “Still painful as always, I see.”

“Oh yeah? What else do you see?”

Steve watches his brow furrow as he tries to make sense of the question, watches as he opens his eyes again, a bit further this time, and when they widen in amazement as they travel around the room.

“What–? What the hell..?” The heightened beeping of his heart monitor makes Steve feel almost giddy, getting to watch him see this for the first time. “What nurse kissed me while I was out?” He pauses, staring down a painting of colorful wildflowers on the opposite wall before turning back to Steve. “And can they come back so I can get more pain meds?”

Steve chuckles as he stands stiffly from the hospital chair he’d been all but glued to for the last week, reaching over Eddie’s head to press the call button.

“What’s so funny?”

“You, of course.”

“Thank you, I try, but what’d I do this time?”

“It wasn’t a nurse, Eds.”

Eddie blinks at him for a moment, confused, “I don’t quite have the brainpower for riddles, Stevie.”

Steve’s stomach flips at the nickname, “It wasn’t a nurse, it was when we were still in the—down there.” he pauses, feeling suddenly embarrassed. Did Eddie want it to be him? His first assumption was one of the nurses… “Someone had to give you CPR.”

He watches as Eddie scrolls through what he can only assume is a roster of their “Team Vecna”; Nancy? It’s been known that she’s been able to see in full color since she and Jonathan got together. Dustin? Yeah..no. Ro–

“And it wasn’t Robin.” Steve says when he sees Eddie’s lips curl into an ‘R’.

“Then who—”

It dawns on him at the same time the summoned nurse arrives with a new shot of whatever it is he needs.

She leaves with an excited “We’ll call Wayne!”, and Eddie drops his head back to his pillow.

Steve’s stomach twists anxiously. “Eddie?”

“So you’re telling me that the one and only Steve Harrington gave me the kiss of life and also the gift of colorvision, and I wasn’t conscious enough to experience it properly?”

Steve ducks his head, scratching behind his ear nervously. “Uh…yeah…? Sorry Eddi–”

“Can you do it again?”

His head snaps up again, “Huh?”

“And preferably before I lose the battle for my consciousness?”

Eddie’s face is soft and open, a smile quirking the pink of his lips and crinkling those dark eyes of his…Who is Steve to tell him no?

He smiles softly in return and stands.

Leaning forward with his weight braced to one side of Eddie’s head, the other hand coming up to cup his uninjured cheek, Steve kisses him properly for the first time.

The first of many many many more to come.

eeee i hope you liked this little thing!!! i've never written anything w soulmates before!! 🥹 i hope you have the most bestest day today, friend!! 🫶🫶

#i looked back at your trope tier list for this 👀#damn was that tag game useful or what?#steddie #steve harrington x eddie munson #steve harrington #eddie munson #soulmates #st #stranger things #eddie munson x steve harrington #steveddie #eddeve #noelle writes

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steddieas-shegoes · 9 months ago

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crawl home to you

for @steddiesongfics february song 'work song' by hozier

rated e | 5,223 words | full tags on ao3

🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸🩸

Steve should never have kissed him. He knew that now.

While Eddie was dying, bleeding out on the ground of their version of Hell, the only thing Steve felt he could do to help him was kiss him. It was quick, just a peck on the lips, lingering only for a moment. Their eyes never even closed.

Steve wanted to take in every remaining moment that Eddie had.

There was nothing else he could do, just hold him, try to whisper comfort that may not have even been heard.

Dustin was yelling to save him, but there was no way to do that. His injuries were too severe, he’d already lost too much blood. Moving him now would just kill him faster and more painfully. Nancy and Robin were trying to hold Dustin back, but their tears were making it harder to maintain any control.

When Eddie was gone, Steve set him back down on the ground.

“We have to get out of here,” he said, biting back the sob he could feel in his throat.

“We can’t leave him! Steve, please,” Dustin begged.

“We can come back for him once we check on everyone else. I promise. I’m not letting him stay here,” Steve lifted Dustin in his arms, ignoring his protests.

******

When they finally managed to sneak through the safest gate, Eddie’s body was gone.

Steve fell to his knees, silently begging any higher power to make him appear.

But Robin’s hand on his shoulder and Jonathan’s voice by his side made him stand up and leave.

He was gone.

He couldn’t even bring his body back to bury it properly.

He’d made another mistake.

******

Nobody moved on quickly, but Steve seemed to feel the most guilt. It was written all over his face anytime someone mentioned Eddie, it was in the way he visited Eddie’s uninhabited grave every weekend to clean it and leave flowers, it was there when he wore the battle vest around town, still bloodstained and obvious.

No one commented on it. Only Robin ever saw him cry over it.

Only Robin knew that part of his guilt was from not saying how he felt before Eddie died.

The kiss was too late and the words were nonexistent, and now Steve had to live with the missed chance.

******

It was a hot summer day when things changed.

It was subtle at first, the sky darker than usual and the air stagnant.

He got ready for his day, skipping the vest since he’d be volunteering and “bloodstains scared the children.”

And then he heard a crash outside, followed by yelling and banging on his front door.

“Steve!” “Open up!” “Code red!”

Steve ran downstairs and threw open the front door.

“It’s time,” Dustin said.

“Now?” Steve asked, incredulous. How had they not had more warning?

They all thought El and Will would be able to sense more of the Upside Down leading up to Vecna’s return, even Dr. Owens had mentioned a possibility of signs for days or even weeks leading up to his return.

How could they all have been so wrong?

“Where are we meeting?” He asked, running through a checklist in his mind of everything he would need to bring with him. Most of the emergency things he planned on having were already in his car, but it helped him keep the nerves at bay to have something to do.

“The cabin. It’s closest to the gate we can use. El’s already there with Will and Hopper getting what they can done. We don’t know how long we actually have.”

“Do they feel him?” Steve had to ask, had to know.

“El said she’s not sure if it’s Vecna or the mindflayer, and Will thinks it’s just the entire hivemind, but yeah. They do feel something. They expected it to be stronger so Nancy thinks something is messing with their connection,” Lucas said.

Steve nodded and told them to load their bikes in his trunk while he finished grabbing some things.

Most of what they would wear was already at the cabin, but he couldn’t do this without a piece of Eddie.

He slipped the vest on and laced up his boots. He put the only ring he had of Eddie’s on his ring finger, the only one it would fit on.

He checked the mirror once to make sure he didn’t look like he was falling apart at the seams.

The black shadows under his eyes and greasy hair would have to be alright.

******

They split up, but differently this time. One group stayed with El, protecting her while she protected the world. One group stayed with Will in the Upside Down.

Steve insisted on being part of the group in the Upside Down.

He carried his nail bat while Robin carried a flamethrower. She had lessons and everything.

Joyce had a rifle loaded with special bullets that exploded into actual flames upon impact, something Dustin and Suzie had cooked up over the last month to try to gain any leverage they could.

Nancy and Jonathan were ahead of them, rifles in hand to fire warning shots if they saw anything before Will felt it.

Will was quiet, but he’d been pretty quiet since he’d arrived in Hawkins.

It was eerily quiet, more than they were expecting. They’d come in thinking they’d be fighting off demobats and demodogs constantly, but so far they were met with nothing but falling ash and the occasional sound of a tree limb breaking.

“Are we sure he’s still here?” Steve finally asked.

“He’s here. I can feel him. He’s just being quiet, waiting,” Will answered. That was the most he’d said all day.

So they continued.

A gunshot went off.

Everyone froze.

Jonathan yelled to them that something was nearby.

“It can’t be him. He’s still too distant,” Will said as Joyce stood in front of him.

“Unless he’s messing with you,” Robin whispered. “He knows we’re on high alert, right? He knows we’re strong and we aren’t just gonna give up. He’s not gonna let himself be known until he’s certain he’s got us in our weakest spot.”

Will nodded. “I don’t think he has that much control over what I can feel, though.”

“He has a lot more control over all of you than you think,” a voice said from to their left.

All weapons were pointed towards it except for Steve’s, who would recognize that voice in any situation, no matter how insane.

“Eddie?” He pushed everyone out of the way and moved towards the voice.

“Wait!” Eddie said from the shadows, barely an outline visible in the darkness. “Don’t come closer yet.”

“Why not?” Steve felt Robin’s hand on his shoulder, comforting and holding him back at the same time.

“I’m not…Steve.” Something in his tone told Steve to actually listen to him, to not push.

“Can you at least let me know if you’re alright?” Steve was scared to actually believe this was Eddie.

Eddie was dead. His body was missing.

If this wasn’t actually Eddie, Steve wouldn’t handle it well. He’d do what he needs to make sure everyone gets out of here, but after that?

Who knows.

Eddie sounded like he was cursing under his breath, which felt like such an Eddie thing, Steve couldn’t help smiling a little.

Maybe the world would end today, maybe he’d die, maybe everyone would die. But right now, Steve felt Eddie’s presence, and that was something worth dying for.

“Okay, this is gonna sound like a trap.” Eddie cursed again. “But I don’t know if I can be trusted near anyone except Steve.”

“Yeah, hard pass,” Robin said as she tugged Steve back. He’d already put one foot forward like he was actually going to get closer. “If I can’t see you, you’re not getting any closer to him.”

“That’s what I thought you’d say,” Eddie sighed. “I just need you to not freak out if I come out there.”

“Why would we-” Steve started to ask as Eddie stepped out of the shadows.

It was still pretty dark, but it was easy enough to see the outline of him.

In many ways, he looked the same, still pale, still long dark curls, still wearing the clothes he’d died in. But there were things Steve noticed immediately.

His wounds seemed healed, which should be impossible. Well, he shouldn’t even be alive, but even still, there should be way more scars covering his face and neck. His eyes were nearly black, not the deep brown they’d been before the life left them in Steve’s arms. When he opened his mouth to speak, his teeth were pointed, sharp.

“I don’t want to hurt anyone. But I haven’t been around anyone since-” He gestured to himself. “And I’m not sure how much control I have.”

“What…are you?” Nancy asked from behind them.

“I wanna say vampire, but nothing is really that simple, so blood-thirsting creature who hasn’t had blood since he discovered he needed it.” Eddie flashed his teeth. “I’ve got no heartbeat, which is weird. And I can hear what Steve’s thinking.”

“What?” Steve asked, almost too shocked by seeing Eddie to actually process what he was saying.

“Your thoughts have been like, the only thing keeping me alive. No blood yet, remember?”

“How does that even work?” Joyce asked, hand on Steve’s arm. “Did you feel anything strange?”

“No,” Steve answered, not taking his eyes away from Eddie. “So you…you know?”

“Yeah, Stevie. I know,” Eddie took one step closer and paused, closing his eyes. “I don’t wanna get any closer to anyone. But I know for a fact that I wouldn’t hurt you.”

“You know how that sounds, right?” Will finally spoke up.

“Yeah, Will the Wise, I do. Which is why I won’t push. But I think something happened when Stevie here kissed me while I was bleeding out in his arms and I’m pretty sure that I would actually die if I hurt him,” Eddie said.

Everyone looked to Steve, who could no longer think of a single reason not to go to Eddie.

Robin seemed hesitant to let him go, but he smiled at her and said to trust him. They all had plenty of weapons if something went wrong.

He walked closer, his only thought being able to actually touch Eddie again, maybe kiss him when he wasn’t dying.

“I wouldn’t be opposed,” Eddie said quietly as Steve stopped right in front of him. He seemed taller, just a couple inches, but definitely noticeable. “Gotta watch the teeth though. They’re pretty sharp.”

“It’s really you,” Steve reached a hand out to cup his cheek. Eddie nuzzled against his palm. “You came back.”

“I’ll always crawl home to you, Stevie.”

“How did this happen?” He whispered, his hand dropping to Eddie’s chest. He really didn’t have a heartbeat. “How are you here?”

“I don’t really know. I woke up and got flashes of your thoughts, and then my own memory kicked in and all I could think about was getting back to you.” Eddie leaned forward until his forehead touched Steve’s. “It killed me to hear how much you were hurting and I couldn’t do anything.”

“Why couldn’t you come through the gate?” Steve asked, fingers curling into Eddie’s shirt. “Why didn’t you come to us when we came to get your body?”

“Every time I tried to leave, I would pass out. One of those times was when I could hear your thoughts about coming to get me and I wanted to meet you at the gate, but I blacked out somewhere by Skull Rock?” Eddie sighed. “I didn’t get to you in time.”

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry,” Steve sobbed.

“Hey,” Eddie cupped his face and shook his head. “You didn’t know. This isn’t your fault. If anything, you’re the reason I’m even alive-ish to begin with.”

It was like everything around them disappeared when Steve leaned up to peck Eddie’s lips.

It was even quicker than the first time, barely even a graze. But they both felt the spark.

Steve fell against his chest, his face nuzzling into his neck as he let out another sob. “I needed you.”

“I know. I’m here now,” Eddie said.

Steve hadn’t realized how much it was true, how much he did need Eddie this whole time. The grief he’d felt was beyond what he should’ve felt, more than what even some of the people closest to Eddie had been showing. It didn’t make sense to him why he felt so much for this man he barely knew.

“It feels like I have your heartbeat in my chest,” Steve mumbled. It didn’t make any sense.

“Maybe you do, sweetheart,” Eddie kissed the side of his head. “Must’ve stolen it from me when you kissed me.”

Steve smiled against Eddie’s skin. “Maybe I did.”

“Um, not to break up…whatever this is,” Robin started. “But Will’s hearing things.”

Steve whimpered as Eddie pulled away.

“It’s okay,” Eddie said as he laced his fingers with Steve’s. “I’m right here with you.”

And it turned out, he was more help than anyone could’ve expected.

He wasn’t exactly connected to the hivemind, but he could sense Vecna. He was almost certain Vecna was the reason he passed out anytime he tried to leave.

Which Nancy had explained probably meant Vecna would need to be severely weakened or die before Eddie would be able to leave.

If Steve had to kill Vecna himself to have Eddie back, he would. He would do anything.

But since Eddie seemed connected to him, he could give them more warning than even Will could when something was going to happen.

That warning is probably what saved them and ultimately helped El get into Vecna’s mind to finish the job she started in March.

It was obvious almost immediately when she won, when they won.

Steve’s first response was to hug Robin, her tears and sweat and a little blood soaking into his shirt while he cried into her hair. He could distantly hear everyone else crying and yelling, cheers coming from the walkie that Joyce was holding.

Everyone was okay.

Robin patted his back and pulled away. “You better get to Eddie before he rips my face off.”

Steve’s brows furrowed as he looked over to Eddie. He’d distanced himself from everyone, and even though he was smiling about their victory, he looked incredibly uncomfortable.

“Hey,” Robin said, patting his cheek. “I’m happy for you. If he’s what you want, I’m glad you get to have him.”

“Thanks, Robs.”

Robin turned to pull Nancy into a hug and Steve made his way over to Eddie.

“We couldn’t have done it without you,” Steve started. “You made sure we got him before he could get us.”

Eddie’s wide eyes wouldn’t focus on him, darting from his face to his neck to behind him.

“Stevie, I-” He groaned. “I really need blood. Everyone smells so strong. I think Vecna was covering some of my hunger before.”

Steve paled. “Okay. Let’s just- okay.”

“Steve.”

“Bite me.”

“Steve!”

“No, seriously. You won’t hurt me. You can’t hurt me. And I barely even lost any blood today. Might as well let you have some.”

Eddie whined. “I-”

“Eds, look at me,” Steve guided his face towards him. “If you drink a little now, we can all leave here. You can come home. You can see Wayne. You can see the kids. You can stay with me if you want.”

Eddie nodded. “I just don’t wanna freak you out. I feel like you’re handling this too well.”

“Maybe,” Steve snorted. “But this is not even top three weirdest things to happen to me. I want you to feel like you have control again. You can be in control of your own body.”

“I don’t know what it will feel like for you. It may hurt,” Eddie said.

“It won’t hurt as much as knowing you’re suffering.”

“You would fall on a sword I’m holding if it meant I was happy, wouldn’t you?” Eddie asked, shaking his head. “How have you not died?”

“I almost have many times.” Steve cupped the back of Eddie’s head and pulled him in, tipping his head to the side so he had better access to his neck. “This won’t be one of them. You can’t hurt me.”

“Steve,” Eddie nipped at his neck. “You smell so good. I can’t-”

“Then don’t, baby. Drink.”

The moment Eddie’s teeth sunk into his skin, every surrounding noise and sight was gone from Steve’s mind. All he could think about was giving Eddie everything, whatever he needed was his.

He could feel Eddie moaning against his neck, but couldn’t quite hear it.

Eddie’s arms were around his waist, holding him up while he took the blood he needed.

Steve lost track of time, lost track of everything except the way Eddie’s lips felt against his pulse point. His tongue lapped up the blood leaking from where his mouth connected to his veins.

They both shivered.

Steve blacked out.

******

“If you killed him, I swear to god Munson, I will kill you.”

Robin’s voice was the first thing Steve became aware of.

And then he felt Eddie’s fingers on his wrist, probably checking his pulse.

“‘M not dead,” he managed to say.

He was definitely in a bed, though he couldn’t be sure if it was his own. He didn’t really want to open his eyes yet.

He turned his head a few inches and let out a small whimper at the sting in his neck.

“Can’t believe you tried to eat my babysitter,” Dustin’s voice said from somewhere across the room. “After he basically saved you by kissing you. I gotta call Suzie. There’s theories on a “sleeping beauty” kiss, but there’s no actual science to back it up. Yet.”

“Dustin, please shut up,” Steve groaned. “I’m fine.”

He finally opened his eyes to emphasize his point, shocked to see almost everyone surrounding the bed he was in.

“This wasn’t really an everyone needs to be here situation, was it? I just passed out.”

“Eddie was panicking. He thought he killed you,” Lucas provided.

“But he cannot. You are soulmates,” El said from a chair on the other side of the bed. She looked exhausted, but otherwise okay. “It is impossible for him to kill you.”

“Well that’s…nice.” Steve was feeling a bit exhausted himself. “How long was I passed out?”

“Long enough to get through the gate and get you back to your house. 30 minutes maybe?” Eddie said, pulling his hand up to kiss his fingers. “I was worried I took too much.”

“No,” Steve said, certain he hadn’t. “I think it was just overwhelming. It won’t happen next time.”

“Did I hurt you?” Eddie’s voice sounded broken and unsure, like he would crumble into pieces if Steve said yes.

“No. You didn’t hurt me. I promise. It felt…good,” Steve was hesitant to say more with so many ears listening in, especially young ones. “It was just a lot.”

Eddie watched him for a moment, determining if he was lying. But he could read his thoughts, knew he wasn’t, and eventually gave a nod and another kiss to his knuckles.

“Well, since we know he isn’t dead and probably won’t be anytime soon…we should go!” Robin said because she was a good friend who knew what Steve was thinking even without the mindreading superpowers.

“But we should monitor him and make sure nothing weird happens. We don’t know what Eddie’s got going on and-” Dustin started to argue.

“Yep, he’s fine.” Hopper started to nudge everyone out the door. “We have stuff to do anyway. Eddie can watch him. He’ll call if anything weird happens, right?”

“Right,” Eddie answered, not taking his eyes off of Steve.

As everyone filtered out of the room, Steve blinked back at Eddie, fond smile spreading across his face.

“You need any more?” Steve asked when the door closed.

“You’re joking,” Eddie laughed, but there was no amusement in it. “I could have actually killed you. I’d never drank before and you tasted so good, Steve. You have no idea how hard it was to stop. And then you passed out! I almost had them bring you to the hospital!”

“I’m fine! I passed out because it felt good.”

“Steve. No one passes out like that just because something felt good.”

“Well, it did! It felt kinda like having five orgasms at once. Except kinda different, too. Like I wasn’t quite over the edge?” Steve shook his head. “Either way, I’m okay and it felt good and if you need more, you can have more.”

“I don’t need more right now,” Eddie sighed. “But I know I will. We’ll figure out what to do to make sure you get enough vitamins so I can drink from you next time.”

“Mhm. Sounds good,” Steve closed his eyes and tugged Eddie’s hand to rest on his chest, where his heart was beating against his ribs. “Feels like you’re part of me.”

“Yeah. You feel it too?”

“El said we’re soulmates?” Steve opened his eyes again and found Eddie’s gazing back at him already.

“I don’t know, but there’s definitely a connection. A pretty strong one. I don’t think we can ignore it,” Eddie admitted, almost apologetic.

“I wouldn’t want to. I should’ve told you before how much I wanted to get to know you,” Steve felt tears in his eyes. “You didn’t deserve to only know after you were already dead.”

“I’m not dead. I’m here with you.”

“But I watched you die. I thought you were dead. I mourned you with the kids. Robin had to stay with me for a week straight because I could barely sleep, blamed myself for everything. You must have heard all of that.”

“I think I heard a lot of it. You tortured yourself. I wanted to come here and tell you I was okay so many times. I tried so many times,” Eddie kissed his forehead. “But I’m here now. You’re mine now. I’m yours. We can figure out what this means for us.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah, sweetheart.”

“Will you get in bed with me?” Steve asked.

“To sleep?”

“Eventually,” Steve smirked. “Remember when I said I was still on the edge?”

Eddie snorted. “I’m not fucking you tonight. No way.”

“Why not?” Steve pouted.

“Because it should be special and because you’ve already been through enough today,” Eddie chuckled. “You can wait a day or two.”

“Can we at least make out a little?” Steve tried to compromise.

“Will you get some rest after?”

“If you make me tired enough.”

“I didn’t know I’d end up with Steve Harrington, The Brat.”

“You’re the one who pointed out I was a spoiled rich kid,” Steve argued, turning on his side so that Eddie could climb into bed next to him. “I’m used to getting what I want.”

Steve hadn’t felt this light in a long time, maybe even years.

Eddie must have sensed it, his beaming smile lighting up the room, his sharp teeth glistening in the low lamplight.

His lips crashed against Steve’s, his arms pulling Steve closer and then on top of him as he rolled onto his back.

Steve moaned into his mouth, licking past his lips and across his fangs.

He could almost still taste his own blood in Eddie’s mouth.

He rolled his hips forward, cock already straining against his pants. The friction was perfect, just enough to keep Steve on the edge, but not so much to make it seem like he was pushing.

He was pushing though. He wanted to see how far Eddie would go, how far they could get tonight even with the events of the day behind them and the exhaustion sinking in.

Eddie nipped at his lip, just enough to break skin, and Steve whimpered.

“Shit, sorry. Forgot how sharp these things are,” Eddie pulled away and thumbed away the blood.

“It’s good, I like it,” Steve gasped out. He pulled Eddie’s thumb to his mouth and sucked on it. “Bite me anywhere.”

“Sweetheart…”

“Please, I’ll be good. You don’t have to drink. Just…bite me.”

Eddie held him still for a minute, his eyes searching his face.

“I have an idea.”

Steve nodded. “Anything.”

“Ever fingered yourself?” Eddie asked casually.

“Um, kind of? I mean I have, but I got frustrated with the angle pretty quick.” Steve suddenly caught up to what Eddie was suggesting. “Are you gonna finger me?”

“If you have lube.”

Steve sat up, nearly falling back over from a head rush. Once he managed to stay upright, he reached over into his bedside table and moved a couple things over to get the lube.

He handed it to Eddie and started to get off of him, but Eddie’s hands grabbed his hips and stilled him.

“Nope, like this. I want you to ride my fingers,” Eddie smirked. “You can find what feels good like this. Use me to get off.”

“Is that what your idea was?” Steve gulped. He’d never done anything like this before and wasn’t sure he’d do it right.

“No, but it’ll make my idea more fun,” Eddie squeezed his hips. “But we can stop anytime, okay? Even if it’s just because you’re too tired.”

“I’m not.”

“Love, you defeated an alternate dimension and its super evil guy today. Plus, I drained you of a pint or two of blood. You can be tired,” Eddie opened the cap of the lube. “You wanna get undressed?”

Steve rushed to pull his shirt off, and quickly stood up to remove everything else. Eddie tried not to laugh at his eagerness; It was honestly pretty endearing.

Once he was naked, he got back on Eddie’s lap. “Are you gonna get undressed?”

“Not right now. This is all about you, sweetheart.”

Steve’s blush went down to his chest, and Eddie was ready to proclaim his love to anyone who would hear it. He didn’t care how ridiculous it was; He loved Steve and his beautiful red glow.

He hadn’t mentioned it to him yet, but Eddie could hear the blood rushing in his veins, could hear his heart pounding even from across the room. He could almost feel every breath in his own lungs.

He spread the lube across his fingers as he helped Steve scoot up enough to make this easier for both of them.

Steve’s breath hitched as he circled his hole, and Eddie heat rushing to the places his fingers brushed against.

He pushed a finger in slowly, slow enough that it felt like Steve’s entrance was making his finger a part of him. Steve let out a long, low moan as he pushed himself down further, until Eddie’s knuckle was resting against him.

“You were made for me, weren’t you?” Eddie said in awe. He’d done this plenty, but never like this, and never with someone who wanted him this badly. “Taking me like you’re starving for it.”

“Am starving for it. Need you,” Steve moved his hips forward and back, barely riding Eddie’s finger.

Eddie pulled his finger out and replaced it with two, trying to take it slow, but Steve wouldn’t let him.

“Oh fuck,” Steve whined when Eddie crooked both his fingers inside him, brushing against his prostate repeatedly as Steve’s hips started moving again.

His cock was leaking, dripping precome down his length and onto Eddie’s stomach. He couldn’t wait to have a taste of it later. Soon, if the way Steve’s heart kept skipping a beat was any indication.

“You want another?” Eddie asked him, somehow feeling breathless despite the fact he may or may not even need to breathe.

“Please,” Steve begged. “Need to be full.”

“You want me to fill you up?” Eddie stretched him open around three fingers, going a bit slower this time when Steve tightened around him. “How much can you take? Think you can do four fingers? Think you can have my whole cock in there next to a couple fingers?”

Steve nodded, though Eddie was pretty sure he had no idea he was doing it. He wasn’t picking up any actual thoughts from him right now, which was definitely good for his ego, but a little concerning.

“Hey,” Eddie paused with his fingers inside him, his free hand against Steve’s chest. “Let me see those pretty eyes.”

Steve blinked his eyes open and Eddie was gifted with a few random thoughts about how nice his fingers felt and how much he wanted to come.

“You wanna come on my fingers?” Eddie asked.

“Mhm.”

Eddie thrust his fingers in and out a few more times before tugging Steve down.

The new angle caused him to nearly scream, Eddie’s fingers putting constant pressure against his prostate as his cock got trapped between them.

“Gonna test something. Can I bite you?” Eddie whispered against his ear.

“Fuck, yes,” Steve agreed, tilting his head to the side like the good boy he was.

Eddie stilled his fingers, but kept them as deep inside Steve as he could. He leaned forward and breathed in the scent of Steve, his sweat, the lingering smell of his body wash from his last shower barely clinging to his skin, his blood.

His teeth found their mark and he bit down, groaning as he broke the skin and tasted the first drop of blood on his tongue.

He didn’t suck, didn’t need to. He lapped at the droplets of blood as he felt Steve tense, let out a high-pitched whimper, and warmth coat both their stomachs and chests.

He pulled off immediately, pulled his fingers out so he could wipe them off on the sheets.

“Fuck, sweetheart, that was perfect. You were perfect for me,” Eddie kissed his neck, his shoulder, the side of his head. “Can’t believe I get to do that.”

“Mmm…again?” Steve’s raspy voice breathed out against his shoulder.

Eddie laughed. “Not tonight, beautiful boy. I need you to rest. You did so good.”

“Mhm. You too.”

Eddie laughed again. How did this become his life? Or death? Undeath? Whatever.

He didn’t have the heart to move Steve, but he knew they’d end up literally stuck together with dried cum if he didn’t at least wipe them down. He managed to lift Steve enough to wipe them off with the sheet, but it wasn’t perfect and they’d definitely need to shower as soon as they woke up.

Eddie had changed as soon as he got to Steve’s house at everyone’s insistence, but he had yet to shower, and he was pretty certain the only reason he didn’t smell worse was because he technically wasn’t alive to produce any body odor.

He turned his head to look into the bathroom.

Steve had a huge bathtub. They could share in the morning.

For now, Eddie ran his fingers up and down Steve’s back as he fell asleep on top of him.

“Thanks for kissing me, sweetheart,” he whispered before closing his eyes and letting out any of the tension he’d been holding onto.

Tomorrow, they’d find a way to explain his presence to Wayne, and he’d really be back home.

But tonight, he’d let the weight of Steve and his love cover him up.

#steddie #steve harrington #eddie munson #stranger things #steddiesongfics #work song #check ao3 for full tags #vampire eddie munson #blood drinking #soulmates #canon temporary character death #canon typical violence

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dancewithdeath11 · 3 months ago

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Swirling Smoke

Pairing: Tyler Owens x Reader

Summary: You contemplate your relationship with Tyler Owens over a cigarette..

Warnings: Smoking, mentions of sex and a complicated relationship, lazy ending & no editing (sorry besties), afab reader

Word Count: 1.7k

Unofficial pt 1 - Confidence (I'm horrible at linking, plz just go look)

======

The burn of smoke was always comforting. You could chalk it up to your Daddy’s smoking habit growing up. The familiarity of the bitter, biting smell of tobacco really made you think of when you were back home playing in the front yard while he smoked on the porch. Or maybe of your first job. Sitting out back with your coworkers as they all had a quick smoke a few feet away, not even old enough to drive yet. Then it blended into the late night college hang outs. Passing one around while laughing over a game of cards.

It was a bad habit. Obviously. It got your Daddy in a bad way, but he got better. After that you tried to cut down too. But every once in a while, you light one to burn off some nerves.

So here you were, confused as ever as you stood out on the balcony of a random motel in the middle of nowhere Oklahoma trying to process things. You were a storm chaser, unintentionally. How the fuck does one unintentionally become a storm chaser? Great question. You grow up with the one and only Tyler Owens, that’s how.

It was one time. You swore it would only be one time.

The way your hands shook as you lit up your cigarette after you finally got out of that god forsaken storm proof truck.. Your heart was racing from the second he put the pedal to the metal and almost crashed the truck chasing that tornado. The adrenaline– the excitement of it– scared you. It wasn’t natural.

It wasn’t normal how you wanted to feel that way all the time. To hear your heartbeat in your ears. Feel your blood run hot and your hands shake. That shiver that runs up your spine that makes you brace yourself on the nearest thing. To want to expel all the air in your lungs in a shout, from the fear or exhilaration of it.

Soon you were wrapped up in it all. One of the tornado wranglers.

You never got enough of it. And it was always fun, of course. Driving head first into danger like a bunch of fucking crazy people. Wandering around the state with no true intent other than to research and help the less fortunate who were devastated by the very storms you were chasing. Stopping at the occasional bar to try and take your minds off things after the more stressful chases.

But things change..

You always see or hear about the heat of passion in the media. Either in a movie or book. Until a close call with Tyler a few weeks back, you thought it was all bullshit. How does it make any sense that the human reaction after a close call is to kiss someone?

There wasn’t supposed to be a storm, but Tyler had a suspicion. So you went to check it out anyway. Next thing you knew the two of you were tearing through a field driving away from an EF1 that touched down seemingly out of nowhere. Mother Nature has a weird sense of humor like that. Tyler thought it was smart to pull some dangerous maneuvers that made your heart jump into your throat.

As soon as the two of you got far enough away and it dissipated, you ripped him a new one. Yelling at him about the dumbass moves he pulled, all while he stared at you with a look in his eye that made your heart race for a whole different reason. The two of you fucked in the back seat of his truck. Then the next day in his motel room…And again a few nights after that in a bar bathroom. Til It was multiple times a week where keeping your hands to yourselves just wasn’t an option.

Same thing happened tonight. Another blissful night between slightly scratchy motel sheets. Softer this time, almost sweet. To the point it made your eyes sting with tears as he held you close and whispered sweet nothings into your ear. You felt so…loved.

You felt like it was your first time chasing a tornado all over again. Your hands shook and your heart raced even as you basked in the afterglow with him. Positively knocked on your ass as you realized what you were feeling. Tyler had been your friend all through middle school. Right up until he moved away. By some odd coincidences you ran into him several times through college. Even after that. Then you discovered him on Youtube, then you’d been riding with the team every storm season for about three years. Now you two are screwing each other every chance you can get.

When you realized you were falling for Tyler Owens, you waited til he fell asleep then crawled out of bed to get a smoke to think about it.

Now here you were fumbling with your lighter with a cigarette precariously held between your lips. Hip leaned against the balcony, the warm summer breeze brushed against your bare legs as you stood there in just his shirt and your panties. Suddenly, the sliding glass door opened again making you flinch, quickly turning to look. “What’re you doin’?” Tylers groggy voice grumbled as he stepped out onto the small balcony. You quickly took the cigarette from your lips and gave a hesitant smile.

“Did I wake you up?” You asked softly as you brushed some hair back behind your ear.

“Woke up and you weren’t there..” He sighed as he closed the door behind him. Walking up with a raised brow as he eyed your hands. “You smokin’?”

You gave a gentle shrug and lifted the cigarette with a shy smile on your lips. “My lighter ain’t workin..”

He didn’t say anything as he took the small stick of tobacco and the lighter from you, offering the filtered tip to your lips. Tyler gently placed the cigarette between your lips, after a few tries and he got it lit. The end burning bright as you took a slight puff, turning to blow it away from him as you leaned against the railing again. “Now..” He started softly, leaning his forearms against the rail with a sigh, “What’s on your mind?”

A soft huff left you as a smile spread across your lips, tilting your head to look over at Tyler. He was really captivating in the low shine of the streetlamps. The soft drone of distant cars driving off to who knows where filling the silence. The buzz of the neon motel sign. As ethereal as he looked, it really was frustrating how well he knew you sometimes.

“Nothin…” You mumbled around the filter, taking another drag before taking the cigarette between your fingers and pulling it away. Flicking off the ashes over the side as you blew out more smoke with a long exhale. The smoke swirling around the two of you, picked up by some stray wind till it disappeared.

He shifted before moving to stand behind you, his calloused hands finding your hips. A quick kiss pressed to your cheek before he wrapped his arms around you. A scalding path following his hands as they skated under your shirt as he hugged your middle. “You can tell me, y’know…” He mumbled as he pressed a kiss to your shoulder.

He continued, kissing up your neck and having you tilt your head for him as you hummed at his affections. Your heart fluttered in the cage in your chest. Then he pulled a hand from your skin, you almost catch his hand to keep it where it was. But he reached over and gently took the cigarette from between your fingers. He pulled away only slightly to take a drag, and all you can do is watch from over your shoulder as he took it in.

It felt intimate sharing a cigarette with him. It was a bad habit you both shared, but he was more of a social smoker. If he gets offered a cigarette in some rowdy bar, he would happily go out front to smoke with whoever offered it.

“Honest?”

“Honest..”

“I’m wondering what I’m gettin’ myself into..” You whispered as you turned fully to face him. He offered back the cigarette, which you happily took and brought it up to your lips once more. Tyler watched silently, waiting for you to continue. A slight worry in his gaze, the kind you’d expect to see from a lover. Not..someone you’re just messing around with. Your brows pinched together as a heavy sigh left you, sharply blowing the smoke from your lungs before taking another pull.

“What d’you mean..?” He whispered, almost like he was scared that he might hear something he might not like.

“Indulging in…this.” You admitted in a hushed voice, looking away from him. It almost hurt when you heard his breath hitch. And when you met his gaze again, looking deep into those soft green eyes, it only made you feel worse.

“Indulgin’, what’s that supposed to mean? You-” He shook his head, his brows drawn together in confusion, “What’re you sayin’, baby..?” His hands found you again, his thumbs rubbing slight circles into the meat of your hips.

“In this… in us. I mean, c’mon, what’re we doin’?” A gentle scoff left your still kiss swollen lips. All you could do was watch as he let out a huff of his own and shrugged.

“We’re havin’..fun? I don’t know? What do you want this to be?” Now, you weren’t expecting that question, and he could tell by the way you gave him a deer in headlights look. He took a deep breath, “Look, I want you in any way possible. That…sounds shallow, but I really like you. If you’d be my girlfriend, I’d be the luckiest son of a bitch alive. If you want to slap me and storm out for assuming, I’d still consider myself lucky that you even let me kiss you in the first place..”

Holy shit...

Holy shit.

“That…is the nicest thing a guy’s ever said to me..”

“And- Seriously?” He frowned, “I find that hard to believe-” You dropped your cigarette in the ashtray.

“Shut up.”

A low chuckle rumbled from his chest as he pressed his forehead to yours, his large hands coming up to cup your neck. "Don't worry, Darlin'...I'll make sure you hear stuff nicer than that." He pressed his lips firmly to yours, it took no more than a moment for you to melt right into him. To get lost in him.

Like smoke swirling in the wind..

======

Note: yes.. I gave up in the end. Eat up, bitches

#tyler owens fanfic #tyler owens twisters #tyler owens imagine #tyler owens x reader #tyler owens x you

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pawnshopbleus · 4 months ago

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These Are the Days Eight - Melted Away

Abby Anderson x Fem!Reader High School AU

For the summary, warnings, and more, please visit here.

Previous Chapter.

Another day of history class meant only one thing, more busy work. The entire class was silent. The only thing you could hear was the scratching of pencil on paper and the occasional cough from a student who definitely shouldn’t have come to school today.

Class goes by faster than usual and the bell rings. Students gather their things, and you're leaving with them for the first time in a while.

Mr. Miller stops you at the door. “I was hoping I could speak to you for a moment.”

You nod, bidding Abby farewell, and lean against the door frame.

“The school board is having a meeting next Tuesday. They tasked me with finding the perfect student that could provide them with some ways to help make the school better and I pointed them in your direction.”

You? You’ve been in Washington for less than a year and at Lakeview for less than five months. Although you’ve gotten accustomed to the school, you don’t know everything about it.

“Mr. Miller, I appreciate the thought but I barely know this school. How would I be able to tell the school board what they should fix?” “That’s why I thought you would be perfect for this. You’ll be able to give them fresh ideas. Not to mention some of the people on the school board are also admissions counselors at The University of Washington. Having a letter of recommendation from them could get your foot in the door.”

You press your lips together. Before moving to Washington, USC was your dream school. It was right in the middle of Los Angeles, just a thirty-minute drive from your old house and right in the middle of the city. It was where your parents went to school. You felt like you’d somehow get closer to them if you went to their alma mater but as you explored Seattle with Ellie, Dina, Jesse, and Abby, you fell in love. It was a beautiful metropolitan oasis that you would surely thrive in. You mentioned wanting to go to The University of Washington to Mr. Miller in passing but you never expected him to remember that.

You gulp. “I’ll do it.”

Mr. Miller nods. “Good, I’ll let them know that you’ll do it. You should invite your parents. I noticed that they weren’t at back-to-school night.”

“They work a lot so I don’t think they’ll be able to make it.”

“Well, that too bad,” Mr. Miller returns to his desk, letting you make your exit. You set off for the library where Dina, Jesse, Ellie, and Abby are all waiting for you.

You sit in between Abby and Jesse, take out your math book, and start studying. You occasionally ask Abby for help but the rest of the group stays silent. It’s unusual for Dina, Ellie, and Jesse to be this quiet. Usually, Dina and Jesse would be bickering about something small or Ellie would be gushing over how good Dina smelled, but today, they all sat with their head down, focused on their schoolwork.

As if he could sense everyone’s discomfort, Owen saunters into the library with a smug smile dancing across his face. You have to restrain yourself from plugging your nose as he pulls up a chair next to Abby.

Owens's hands paint their way toward the back of Abby’s neck and pulls her in close. He kisses her in a way that you know doesn’t feel good but despite that, Abby sinks into the kiss, her hands finding their way towards Owen’s letterman jacket.

Your mouth drops and you look at the other’s for confirmation that this is happening. Owen and Abby are kissing. They’re kissing as if the past week didn’t happen. Abby’s kissing Owen as if you didn’t see her after they had their argument in his car. Owen is kissing Abby as if he didn’t get another girl pregnant. Abby is kissing Owen as if you didn’t comfort her and provide her direction when she needed it most. And all you can do is sit there and stare at them.

The one time you want the librarian to come up to your table, she’s not here.

They break apart after what seems like forever and Abby clears her throat and gathers her things.

Owen throws his arm around Abby’s shoulder and pulls her in close. He leans down and kisses her on the forehead, looking you in the eyes as he does so. Owen ushers Abby out of the library, leaving the four of you behind.

“What the fuck was that?” Jesse’s the first one to say anything. The librarian shushes him and you roll your eyes.

“I thought that him getting another girl pregnant would finally end it for them but I think she’s in deep,” Dina sighs as she leans her head on Ellie’s shoulder.

All you can do is stare out into the window. You thought that you were going to get Abby back but as you stared into the eyes of the devil, you knew that she was gone. The version of Abby that you knew had melted away like snow does at the beginning of spring.

You grab your bag and leave the library. Ellie, Dina, and Jesse watch as you solemnly leave the library. They give each other a knowing look and then return to their schoolwork.

Next Chapter.

Taglist: @colbyweirdo, @rew1nds

Thank you for reading!

#lesbian #abby tlou #abby the last of us #abby anderson tlou2 #abby anderson x female reader #abby anderson x reader #abby x reader #abby anderson #joel miller #ellie the last of us #dina tlou #jesse tlou #joel tlou #the last of us #the last of us part 2

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storiesbyjes2g · 27 days ago

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3.187 Passing the keys

That night, I went back to the rental website to fill the vacancy because it didn't make sense to wait. The house had been sitting all this time, waiting to generate income for us, and it was past time I did something about it. I decided to rent to the older gentlemen, but his application was no longer available. I was kind of bummed because I had already formed a picture in my mind of what he would be like based on the information he shared on the application, and now I'd have to start over. The plus side is that I found a young family like I originally wanted, so I accepted their application right away. In the morning, I got a notification saying they had moved in already, so I went over there after breakfast to introduce myself and get to know them. The application stated they were a married couple with twin infants. The house wasn't exactly setup for two babies, but they can make it work.

As I approached the door, I overheard them arguing, and my whole body tensed up. They reminded me of Mama's friends, who stayed with us and argued literally day and night. I hope to the Watcher these two are not like that. I pressed my ear to the door to see if I could get an idea of what the issue was. It turns out the woman was flustered because she saw a lost dog who needed help but ignored it. She felt guilty about it and wanted to go back and find the dog, but the husband didn't get it. He was very dismissive and said dogs get lost all the time and it was none of her business if someone can't keep track of their animal. Oh boy. This better not be a bad omen. I knocked, hoping to interrupt him berating her, and they let me in. Owen and Jilliana Sage are their names. Owen works at a store and seemed to have a good sense of humor, so maybe he's not so bad. Jilliana is more serious and super smart. She works at the space center, but I don't remember what she said she does there.

She tried to introduce me to the babies, Xavier and Zahava, but they both started screaming because Owen had the TV way too loud. Xavier calmed down enough to let me hold him, though. He was so tiny and made me miss Desiree at that age. I didn't intend to spend the day with them, and they clearly had things to do, so I told them to call me if they needed anything and made my exit.

I had to pass by Chi Chi's house on the way back home, so I stopped by to tell her we were moving to Gibbs Gardens soon. She was bummed about not being around the corner from us anymore, but relieved we weren't leaving the city. Behind her eyes, however, there seemed to be more than just disappointment at losing her favorite neighbor. I asked if something was wrong, and in Chi Chi-like fashion, I got way more than I bargained for.

As she began this tale, my initial reaction was to beat myself up again about not being a good friend because the details of her story started a while ago. But I stopped those thoughts before my brain ran away with them. We all have super busy lives. No one has time to be involved at such a granular level anymore, and no one is expecting us to know everything. I am a good friend, and I don't have to know every detail to prove it. Come to think about it, my friends—minus Dub—know less about me than I know about them. Needless, I'm done with stressing myself about this.

Chi Chi's woes began with her birthday a few weeks back. Like many women her age (especially when they are as fine as she is), she didn't handle the adult birthday well. Of course, she knew her body would change, but like me, seeing it hit differently. Between that and the little lines creeping from the corners of her eyes and across her forehead, she's feeling frumpy. I almost laughed. She is still one of the most beautiful women I've ever seen. Frumpy where?? She would turn heads wearing a paper bag. I bet she could gain 300 pounds, shave off her hair, and still have a trail of thirsty men following her everywhere. Still, if the aging stuff was the only thing she had to deal with, she would be fine in time. The problem is all her other worries reinforce the aging issues, and she is struggling. The short version of the story is her life has not turned out how she imagined. She once told me she wanted to remarry and have more kids, but all the dates she's been on led nowhere. Now, as an adult, she's thinking about giving up on that dream, especially when she's about to be a grandmother! Karmine, her daughter, is grown grown now. She moved her boyfriend into the house without even discussing it. Then, she got pregnant and moved out, so Chi Chi is all alone in the house with nothing but these crushing thoughts to keep her company, and she's not doing that great.

I had no idea if it would help, but I decided to share my midlife crisis story. It felt wrong at first because I never told Sophia I was struggling, but if Chi Chi can walk away feeling better, the discomfort will be worth it. Even though her story is different, I identified with everything she said because I realized life rarely turns out exactly how we plan. The reason is because we never factor in trouble or change. Our plans are always perfect and positive. When change and trouble comes, we feel out of control, like our world is falling apart. But the world isn't falling apart. It's the same as it always was. We just haven't taken off our rose-colored glasses yet.

I told Chi Chi everything would be okay, and she should look at it from a positive perspective. Because she's not starting a new family, and is an empty nester, she's got so much extra time to do all those bucket list things she's been looking forward to. And since she won't have any young children to raise, she has time to time to be super grandma and help her daughter through those oh so difficult first two stages. She's still really young and can reinvent herself if she wanted. And when love finally finds her again, and I believe it will, it will be all about them with no one else coming between them. They'll grow old together and be annoyingly in love.

Like I said, I have no clue if my little pep talk helped, but at least I left her smiling. Kinda like grieving, she'll find her way to accepting her new normal, and when she does, she'll appreciate the picture I painted for her.

#ISBI challenge #sims 4 story #sims 4 gameplay #adolting #adolting gen 3 #luca winston murillo #owen and sage #xochitl luna #tenant drama courtesy of eavesdropping and secrets lol

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queerprojectionist · 5 months ago

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I Saw The TV Glow

As always, a little housekeeping to start things off. This is not a “review” in the traditional sense but a discussion of the themes and the experiences of a film. It is not impartial or impersonal, and there are lots of spoilers though I will try to leave you some reason to watch for yourself. Queer and trans people are deeply affected by the media that does include us, because we’ve fought for so long just to have that. As such, my experience of cinema and my identity cannot be fully untangled and must be presented in it’s gnarled, multifaceted whole. Here there be trauma, folks. Tread lightly and enjoy. I Saw The TV Glow

Jane Schoenbrun, A24 Films, 2024

It is rare within recent queer cinema that a film doesn’t end with some variation on the lesson of you can choose this, if you want to. Coming out of the closet is a choice, just like the bigotry and intolerance queer people face just trying to live an authentic life. The predominant thinking towards coming out is that the independence of that discovery is sacrosanct; we may suspect our friends, family, or lovers are queer, but we can’t make them acknowledge that, before they’re ready to see it for themselves.

I Saw The TV Glow doesn’t agree. It is a burning ice-cream truck of hard truths, about the urgency, the utter consuming need to let our true selves live. A beautifully shot, sumptuously themed fever dream soaked in neon and teenage dysphoria, Schoenbrun’s latest demands that we reconsider; that not only can we choose our true selves, we must.

The backdrop for this proposal, The Pink Opaque, is a television show in the vein of Are You Afraid Of The Dark? (how’s that for a reference, 90s kids?). Tara and Isabel are summer camp friends who share a psychic connection, which they use to confront the forces of Mr. Melancholy, a terrifying celestial god who wants to drag them back to The Midnight Realmand bury them alive. Crucially, it’s their connection with each other that is the force that keeps the Realm at bay, a connection that is deeply sapphic coded. The show takes place across a ghostly, always-night surburban hallucination, an eerily perfect backdrop for Mr. Melancholy’s monsters. It feels deeply and directly queer in a way most shows of the era couldn’t be.

Owen becomes fascinated with the show after seeing advertisements for it, but the show airs after his bedtime, so he isn’t allowed to see it. He then meets Maddy, who he spots reading a book about the show, and strikes up a conversation, despite being in Grade 7 to Maddy’s Grade 9. He convinces his mother he’s gone to a sleepover at a friend’s and joins Maddy and her friend to watch the show one night, altering his life forever.

For two years, Maddy tapes the show’s episodes and leaves them in the darkroom at school for Owen to take home and watch, which he does surreptitiously, fearing that at any time his parents might find them and ask him questions he doesn’t have answers to yet. Isabel asks Tara how she knows things she shouldn’t, and if she’s going crazy, but Tara reaffirms her, telling her never to let anyone call her that. Their experiences are such because they are The Pink Opaque. In the following scene, Owen asks to join Maddy again to watch the show with her rather than on tape, and Maddy asks if he knows she’s only into girls, and who he’s into, which Owen can’t answer. He tries to describe how it feels like where that should be, there is only empty space where someone has carved out his heart with a shovel.

When they meet again to watch the show, there are the beginnings of recognition, understanding why Isabel, Tara, and the Midnight Realm feel “more real than real life”, in Maddy’s words. She suggests they run away together, to escape their own version of the Midnight Realm, and to better understand themselves, but Owen isn’t able to, and within a couple weeks, not only has Maddy left, but The Pink Opaque is cancelled.

The depths of Owen’s fear of who he is, something so many trans people experience, is not subtly suggested; they loom over Owen’s dissociative state much like Mr. Melancholy looms over the suburban terrors of The Pink Opaque. Maddy comes back for Owen years later, when he’s settled into a dissatisfying job and a nondescript life as a ghost of himself. She explains that she disappeared into the show. And there she makes it plain: they are Tara and Isabel, one of whom can’t look at himself long enough to allow that truth to escape. One of the most beautiful and brilliant sequences in the entire film is Tara’s impassioned plea to realize that Isabel is not lost; Owen is she.

But before Owen can fully accept Isabel, he bolts, pushing Tara to the ground in fear and running for home. It is rare for me to cry out in pain during a film, through great big tears no less, but I did so right there. Isabel is so close to realization, but she can’t make it outside of Owen before he stuffs her back into a dark and dissociative corner of his mind. It’s yet another sequence that trans people who fought their own truths for so long will feel like a punch in the guts. Tara leaves for good this time, but leaves a message for Owen on the street outside his house in chalk.

There is still time.

Tara sends Owen one more tape in the mail shortly after their encounter, the Season Five finale, the last episode of the show. In it, Mr. Melancholy captures Isabel, forces her to drink a sedating formula, and buries her alive. He cuts out her heart and puts it in an industrial freezer. The Midnight Realm wins. And it breaks Owen to see the parallels between Isabel’s death in the show and her suffocating inside of himself. Once again, the dissociation is broken only long enough for Isabel’s pain to escape, which it does, viscerally and violently.

I have walked this very road, as a trans person who didn’t make it out until her 30s. There were several times where I tried to re-bury who I was, between flashes of recognition that were both painful and terrifying. We watch Owen try to get on with his life, hold down a job, “become a man” and a “productive member of society” in his words. Just like I tried to start over several times after massive breakdowns where my Isabel almost escaped.

Which is what makes the ending so brilliant. During an episode he later blames on his meds, Owen cuts open his chest to discover the TV’s glow emanating from where, all those years ago, it felt like someone dug out his heart with a shovel. It’s the film’s final message to us, not to be afraid. Isabel and Owen’s path after that isn’t clear, but the overwhelming emotional release Isabel gets after so many years in hiding is so evident on Owen’s face and in his body language that I truly believe this is finally her moment. Schoenbrun leaves that up to us to decide.

Being transgender in a world designed to exclude, demoralize, and devalue you is messy and painful. I often took refuge in my own fictional worlds, not unlike those of The Pink Opaque, and my truth, my Isabel, was so ready to emerge, only for me to stuff her back down before I’d even recognized who she was. Unlike Isabel, I didn’t have a Tara, or a Maddy. I didn’t have anyone who understood the hole in my chest or why I’d routinely dissociate in the middle of conversations or visits with the few friends I kept close.

And I really wish that I had. The true horror of Schoenbrun’s work here is not only what we do to ourselves through dysphoria and fear, it’s also the people we lose, our trans siblings, to the belief that everyone needs to figure this out on their own. How many Isabels are never found, and how many lives are only partially realized . Which is why Tara tries so hard to get to Isabel and turn her gaze inwards. When she reappears in Isabel’s life, she has gone through that death and rebirth, burying herself alive only to emerge, not Maddy, but Tara. And she knows that Isabel is trapped, that Mr. Melancholy is everywhere and is driving her into the ground. He drives us into the ground.

As queer folk, we often recognize other queer and trans people, before they recognize it themselves. We call that being an “egg”, and the realization that they’re not cisgender or heterosexual is known as cracking said egg. I Saw The TV Glow is going to crack some eggs for sure, but it won’t be the only thing that is required for some of us to get to that stage. We also need to start dismantling the decades of trauma that have lead us to the belief that we can’t hold space for and help other queers find themselves. Because our Isabels never truly die, but if they never truly live, then isn’t that the same as dying, in the end?

There is still time.

It was similar words that finally unlocked the closet door for me. I was depressed, scared of who I might be but hating who I thought I was. I had spent fifteen years living a persona I created in high school to cover up my Isabel such that she would never get out again, having been tormented in elementary and junior high schools for my effeminate nature and general distrust of boys. If I had to be one, I just had to make it livable, much like Owen says he’s “becoming a man” by sinking into his work and trying to ignore that everything that brings him joy is dying. I had been married, had several failed relationships, and had no schooling, money, or joy to my name. I was ready to give up for good.

But a friend of mine, a playwright, finally reached me through their art, and gave me the keys to my destiny, an experience that I’ll always be grateful to them for. Sometimes, the pain of dissociation and loss is too great for us to bear alone. And that’s what I Saw The TV Glow was for me. A call to action, to take up arms against the Midnight Realm with our Taras and our Isabels and be there for our trapped fellow queers. Because we can’t expect a world whose hatred for us deepens every day to provide all of the tools and clues necessary for self discovery. I know this won’t be a message that sits well with everyone, and I’m not suggesting the only solution to teenage discomfort is to be trans, but it may well be the only the solution for those of us trapped under the shovel and spell of Mr. Melancholy. That should be enough to try. There may still be time, but purgatory, the Midnight Realm, will sap us of all we have to live for, and as trans people, we deserve better than that, because we are The Pink Opaque.

#queer cinema #queer films #i saw the tv glow

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honey-minded-hivemind · 1 month ago

Note

Here's the color I mixed for Dragon's past life's skin tone. (Strangely, not the weirdest sentence I have typed.) At first I did it on my phone but I did it a second time on my computer so I can color pick the characters exactly and get the best mix of Goliath, Elisa, and Demona.

Those poor three, imagine seeing your child horrifically murdered in cold blood, only to see them again centuries later. But its not them. Their skin is so soft and different and they have no wings, their teeth are dull and they don't have claws. They have bruises from reckless risks and lack of sleep and their clothes are old and unwashed. (Dragon is STINKY. Someone bathe this child!)

But it is also them. They have the same hair and the same eyes that glare just like their father. They have the same sense of caring and leadership for their group as they used to have in the medical wing. They have that same overly strong sense of right and wrong from one mother and the willingness to break rules to do what they believe is right from the other.

Also, If our reincarnated humans eventually get gargoyle forms, Dragon probably gets one too. But what if they never get wings, just stups on their back where their wings were cut off in a previous life?

That, is perfect. Perfect! (It looks a bit like a dusty or dusky rose or lavender, like you'd see it in old tapestries or preserved flowers or in carved stone) (It's gorgeous)

The three parents are a storm of emotions. There's relief, that their child is back. There's worry, wondering where they've been, how they've been treated, and why they're on their own. There's determination, to have them back. And there's guilt, that they weren't able to save them the first time...

But one of their missing young is back, and it seems they're getting close to one of their brothers again. So maybe it won't be so hard to convince them to come out of the shadows, to come and see them...

They do know the child needs a bath, new clothing, and a warm place to rest. The cold is starting to set in, and soon it won't be safe to be out without the needed warmth of jackets and thick cloaks and sweaters...

They aren't sure what to think when Brooklyn comes home one night, nervous, wanting to tell them something but hesitating. They're gentle, not pressuring him to tell them, but let him know they won't be mad or upset. That he can tell them when he's ready. And he does, on the verge of tears, tell them what's bothering him:

That Dragon is sick, and they aren't getting better. It started out with sneezing a little, maybe a cough, but as the nights wore on, they started getting feverish, talking about things that don't make sense, and they shiver like they're freezing, but their body feels hot like fire. This night was the last straw, because now they're barely awake, and he doesn't think they'll be okay if they don't get help.

He's crying by the end, because he hates that his friend could potentially be dying or very ill, he's upset he broke their trust and told his caretakers/parents about them, and he's so, so sick.with worry. Demona is quick to tell him he did the right thing telling them, that he shouldn't feel.so ashamed, that because he did tell them, they can help Dragon. Elisa agrees, and says they can get Drahon medicine, and they'll likely be better in a few weeks, and that they'll be happy to know he cares about them. Goliath is scooping him into a hug, stroking his hair and letting his son/young one get it all out. Hudson is offering words of comfort, Xanatos is already getting a medical bed set up and llgettinh Owen to find different antibiotics and medicines, and Matt is on the case to try and figure out where Dragon stays hidden...

And Brooklyn doesn't want to, but... he decides to tell them he knows where they are. They need to get them back here as soon as possible, and it won't do to not tell his caretakers at this point...

Reader, known as Dragon, has been having nightmares, hallucinations, dreams of things they don't understand. Of being able to soar from wall to wall, of feasts and a castle, of many more beings with wings and tails and many colors, and always the same ending, of running, running, running, from a man with a sharp blade, only to be caught, their wings lopped off, and tossed from the high wall, down, down, down, to the broken, scorched earth below... and then darkness...

#honeycomb thoughts #platonic yandere gargoyles #yandere platonic gargoyles #🌩gargoyles au #🌔dark gargoyles au #🌔mark of the wyvern au #platonic yandere goliath #platonic yandere demona #platonic yandere elisa maza #platonic yandere brooklyn

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ringsreforged · 2 months ago

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Season 2, Episode 6 - Nat's Rambles

Okay – SO – Paulina is still on holiday, and I’m obviously DYING OVER HERE (Natalie, in case you hadn’t guessed) so TUMBLR. I HAVE RETURNED.

Truly though, I don’t think I’ve done this since S4 of The 100 which probably aired 100 years ago at this point…what has this show done to me…

ANYWAY. My immediate thoughts on Season 2, Episode 6: WHERE IS HE???????

Paulina Voice: All opinions herein have nothing to do with me, so only judge Natalie for them.

Important Note: I have only watched once, in a haze of stress and emotion, so I reserve the right to delete all of this later if I change my mind on any of it.

Arondir – Hello! Nice to see you! Glad you’re joining us for the battle!

I did like the detail of confirming that not all the orcs are on board with Adar’s war, but I was mostly laughing that ‘running through the trees’ is how the show has reminded us a character exists for two weeks in a row.

Rhun – I think this was the first episode where I was like GO AWAY, RHUN, NOT NOW. Though, I want to stress that I am super excited to see the conclusion of this, probably in episode 8. The Dark Wizard, the Gaudrim, the fate of the Stoors (honestly, I’m assuming they’re all going to be massacred tbh…which…the optics…but we’ll worry about that later…). In today’s episode, it just felt a bit like ‘hey, these characters still exist.’

I did love the little snippet of Tom and the Stranger, though I felt like it could have just been included in their previous scenes. He is 1000% Gandalf, and I stand by my opinion that this isn’t supposed to be a twist or a surprise. It’s just the narrative telling the story. Destiny or friend is super intriguing to me. It’s very Luke and Yoda from Empire, but I do wonder if his destiny IS to choose his friend…and in so doing, THAT is how he finds his staff…

Nori talking with the Gund was very sweet, and her willingness to give herself up to protect everyone was super in character. Poppy and Merimac were cute (I pray to all the gods that THIS was the kiss Morfydd teased but I doubt it very much…), and Poppy wanting to fight for the Stranger made me pretty emotional. However, I have some bad news…

Guys…I think I’m adding Poppy to DEATH WATCH. And I HATE IT. BUT I CAN’T UNTHINK IT.

Moving on…

Numenor – This continues to be the choppiest of storylines this season, but I do think the broad elements are super on point. And, actually, where we end up makes the Eagle sequence make more sense in retrospect. Pharazon didn’t have things locked down, Miriel is very much still a player on the board, and Mr. Eyebrows is THE BIGGEST HYPOCRIT.

Then again, if you told me I’d see Halbrand in the Palantir I’d probably touch it too…

Ahem. Loved that detail by the way! Part of the reason I felt like Halbrand would be his Numenor form was the small scene he shared with Pharazon back in S1, while Galadriel was taking out the guards. A connection was formed then – perhaps his eyes even bored a hole – and if Halbrand rocks up as an enemy of the elves, that’ll only make him more appealing.

Everything with Miriel and Elendil was absolutely stunning. He was willing to give his life for her, she was willing to give hers for his. WHAT ABOUT MY HEART. Honestly, from the way Owen and Cynthia talked about this season, I felt like they weren’t going to get anything at all romance coded. But I’m just starting to think people in TV only see active kissing as romance, because HELLO?? THAT’S THE SCRIPT????? THAT IS ABSOLUTELY ROMANCE????

I’m very excited to watch the sequence with the sea worm again, and to really let it wash over me (heh), because I was starting to get time anxious at that point in the episode (my brain starts panicking ‘don’t end, don’t end.’ Honestly, my brain SUCKS). But it was incredible, the implications were wonderful, Elendil’s relief was beautiful, and so was Pharazon’s rage. Also, the whole sequence was UTTERLY STUNNING, WOW.

Note for the show overall, or maybe just for myself, though – PLEASE stop spoiling so much of the season through promotional material. My biggest gripe with this episode is that I felt like I’d already seen/put together 90% of it.

Anyway, I’ve left Earien until last because this was a MUCH better episode for her (though, not letting her have any reaction to Valandil’s death was CRIMINAL). To the point that I’m now reforging (heh) my thoughts on last week – who directed her to have such bratty energy last week? Weird.

Anyway, we saw much more of her conflict and fluidity in this episode. She isn’t Faithful, she believes the new order is the way to go, but she’s also struggling massively with it. Her desperate hug with her father broke my heart, I had instant tears in my eyes, but then I also cheered when she brought Miriel in! What a great surprise that was! I’m REALLY interested to see where she goes from here…I’m assuming in the finale? I was sure she was locked onto a super dark path, but she witnessed Miriel survive the Valar’s judgement…will that sway her back around?

I’m going to finish this section with something that’s maybe a bit controversial…Elendil sucks as Earien’s father!!! Now, I’m willing to put this on pacing/editing issues, because I don’t think the show really wants us to feel this way. But good god, man. HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH YOUR DAUGHTER. I really enjoyed their cell scene, but sweet lord baby jesus, these two needed a deep conversation in episode 3. Watching him turn to go when Miriel walked in, and just forget Earien was even there hurt me man…even though I enjoy the Miriel aspect VERY much…

Like, I know you’re mad at her, but you’re all she’s got left…and your pride might mean she watches you die…can you be a little kinder to her???

Dwarves being dwarves, AKA perfect – Flawless. No notes.

The initial sequence with the Durin’s and Annatar was PERFECT. Annatar being rejected (that Balrog glimpse was SO EVIL), and Baby Durin’s flicker of hope. But then the reveal that Daddy Durin is deep in the shit because he’s really just being greedy. My gooooodnesssssss. The show has done SUCH A GOOD JOB setting this up, because we know Daddy Durin isn’t this way! We feel Baby Durin’s pain!

Then Daddy Durin has his IT’S MINE moment with the ring and swats his son away. Anguish. And the anguish only anguished harder when we cut to Durin and Disa. Disa talking about her love for her father-in-law, and her own father, and then DURIN’S TEARS. UGH. UGH. UGH. I was weeping, honestly.

I feel like Durin being suss of the rings this early on is a pretty big change (don’t quote me on this) but I’m for it. Watching Disa turn back Narvi and the others (poor Narvi) was beautiful and then that I LOVE YOU. UGH. UGH. UGH. PERFECT, I SAY.

I doubt Disa has anymore bats to summon, though, so IDK how the heck they stop what’s coming next. Is Durin going to get drawn away by his desire to help Elrond, leaving Disa alone and vulnerable?

I REFUSE TO PUT DISA ON DEATH WATCH, SHOW. I REFUSE. DON’T YOU DARE.

Adar and Galadriel – I wish we’d gotten more, especially because they released a clip yesterday that I obviously couldn’t resist watching, but what we got was JUICY.

I felt that Adar knew Halbrand was Sauron back in the premiere, or at least suspected it. Getting that confirmation paints their scene with the talk of the wine, the tears, and the kneeling in such a different light. TASTY.

I’ve seen people question this, because why did Adar not try and kill him there and then? To my mind, that’s pretty straightforward. He killed him once and it didn’t stick. And last time he had the element of surprise. He knows that Sauron is powerful enough to get out of his chains/to not get caught by orcs, which means he’s here for a reason. If Adar tries to kill him, best case scenario Sauron is off the board for another few centuries, but he’ll likely take down some orcs with him on the way out. And for what? For him to just come back again?

I think Adar decided to play the long game. I think talk of Eregion and Galadriel let him know that something more was going on, and he was biding his time to act.

So, Sauron promised Adar children. Honestly, the Adar/Sauron/Galadriel dynamic that played across this episode was the stuff of my dreams. Adar is holding his own relationship with the fella up against hers, and there’s so much subtext for both dynamics. Was there romance between both? Was it solely manipulation for both? Is Adar what Galadriel might become if she succumbs?

Galadriel definitely wasn’t being entirely truthful with Adar when she mentioned that Sauron promised an army, because that was more what she thought she could get out of Halbrand. And yes, sure, Sauron might have nudged her that way. But Sauron’s true offer came later on the raft, after the army had been delivered. Adar even acknowledges that she’s not being truthful, that she needs to let go of her pride. I feel like we’ll see that play out over the last two episodes for sure…

The line that really stuck with me from a Hal&Gal perspective was Galadriel finishing Adar’s line about the world with Sauron being full of colour, and without him it’s a dull grey. It fits with how Galadriel has come across to me this season. Since Elrond shut her out, she hadn’t had anybody to open up to, and she’s certainly not being fully honest with herself yet. That dull grey speaks to how she’s mostly been…quite contained? The only moments where she’s truly come alive were with Nenya, and when she was fighting.

Later in the episode, she DOES put aside her pride. She calls Adar Uruk!!! She opens up and sees the possibility of an alliance. And I think this goes back to Sauron too. She’s had a taste of darkness and the temptation of it, she knows she’s not secure from succumbing, and so her perspective of Adar – who was once an elf – has massively shifted. However, when he asks if he and his children will be able to return to their home…we all know the answer to that.

I actually never stopped to consider that Adar would be the one manipulating/tricking Galadriel, which is silly in retrospect. Because this much better explains how she ends up in a cage facing the elves (sorry guys, I don’t think she’s bait for Sauron…she’s facing the wrong way…). I’m looking forward to watching this bit again, as I feel it was a bit rushed on first watch. I would have liked to see these two chat for a good two scenes more, honestly.

Adar is falling into the trap, which is pretty devastating, and Galadriel is the one seeing through it. Honestly, I really don’t know how things roll out in the finale. I flip from it making no sense for it to be a S1 rehash, to being sure she’ll defiantly resist, to being sure the show is setting her up to not be able to. I JUST DON’T KNOW. I wish I’d never seen those stupid leak spoilers…the promo makes me think they are real, but then we MUST be missing full context.

Adar is still on DEATH WATCH but like…a little bit less than before, honestly? Mostly because I don’t see how we have time to get ALL the confrontations into the last two episodes. When Adar goes out – and he will – he deserves the biggest death.

Random aside: I am pondering sharing something of a Haladriel ramble/rant but I’m also like…IDK if I want the hassle, so we’ll see.

Celebrimbor and Annatar

Oh, Brimby. My heart aches. The sequence with him forgetting Mirdania’s name was so heartbreaking and watching Annatar isolate him so completely was chilling. First, by taking away the other smiths, then with the illusion.

I actually don’t think I have a lot to say on this section, because it’s been rumbling along all season and we’re just about to reach the climax. Sauron is Sauron’ing his hardest in this episode.

I am now quite convinced that Mirdania is not Celebrian (I already didn’t really believe it, but it’s firmer now) and I do think she’ll die. I think she’ll either be killed by Sauron himself, or she’ll be caught in the crossfire of the siege, and as she dies she’ll make eye contact with him and he’ll just coldly leave her. I feel like there has to be some sort of climax to the whole…you look like Galadriel thing, but I’m not really sure what that could be?? I don’t think there’s going to be a lot of time next episode, so maybe that really was a one and done so the viewer understood he’s thinking about her…

Celebrimbor trying to snap on Annatar, and that flash of true rage in Annatar’s face…oh god, next week is going to be soul destroying. I honestly can’t wait and dread it at the same time. Celebrimbor has fought so hard but then comes the illusion, then comes the lure – more talk of the Valar, of his work, of Feanor and the Silmarils. CELEBRIMBOR. GET OUT, PLEASE. GET OUT.

Sauron was then absolutely buzzing at the end there, as war came, and I wonder if there are more twists to come or if things play out fairly straightforward from here. We know the elves will charge the orcs. Does that happen straight away? Is there any communication? Because it’s complicated, isn’t it? On one hand, let Adar and the orcs try to take our Sauron…but then, you know innocents are being killed. You have to save them, surely?

And that’s that, I think? PHEW.

I must say, it’s harder to get through this season being in fandom because I KNOW SO MUCH MORE and I WANT SO MUCH MORE and people STRESS ME OUT. But, at the same time, it feels nice to love something this hard again?

Let’s get episode 7 and [redacted] out of the way fast, though, yeah?

#rings of power #the rings of power #sauron #galadriel #saurondriel #trop #haladriel #lotr rings of power #adar #celebrimbor #durin #disa #elrond #miriel

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tellmegoodbye · 5 months ago

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Welcome back!!!

One again this is a loving reminder that we now have a fanfic playlist, so if you can't think of any songs for canon but you have some fanfic songs lying around, go for it!

This week I am going back to the original playlists and I'm doing Linkin Park songs! I'm surprised it's taken me this long to do this theme, knowing me.

Sharp Edges - Linkin Park

Mama always told me don't you run Don't you run with scissors, son You're gonna hurt someone Mama told me look before you leap Always think before you speak, and watch the friends you keep Stay along the beaten path, never listened when she said

Sharp edges have consequences I guess that I had to find out for myself Sharp edges have consequences Now every scar is a story I can tell

This is probably my favorite song for TK and Gwyn. She never stopped trying to help even if TK wasn't always ready to listen. It's a bittersweet thing for him to think about now that she's gone.

Shadow of the Day - Linkin Park

I close both locks below the window I close both blinds and turn away Sometimes solutions aren't so simple Sometimes goodbye's the only way, oh

And the sun will set for you The sun will set for you And the shadow of the day Will embrace the world in grey And the sun will set for you

In cards and flowers on your window Your friends all plead for you to stay

This song reminds me of how at the end of season 4 Robert had come to the decision to end his own life. We didn't get much screentime with him and Owen, but their story is still incredibly tragic and these lyrics are the perfect representation of how he had been sad, but also made peace with his choice.

Crawling - Linkin Park

There's something inside me that pulls beneath the surface Consuming, confusing This lack of self control I fear is never ending Controlling I can't seem

To find myself again My walls are closing in (Without a sense of confidence, I'm convinced) (That there's just too much pressure to take) I've felt this way before So insecure

Crawling in my skin These wounds, they will not heal Fear is how I fall Confusing what is real

Discomfort, endlessly has pulled itself upon me Distracting, reacting Against my will I stand beside my own reflection It's haunting

I chose the live version for this song because it hits even harder than the original. You can hear the pain in Chester's voice even more when the song is stripped down like this.

This is a TK song to me, and it specifically makes me think of the flashbacks in 3x08, and that scene on the plane where he's locked himself in the bathroom and has that moment where he realizes just how bad things have gotten, despite the denial he expressed with Gwyn. He's terrified that he won't be able to get better and that he's always going to be the version of himself he sees in the mirror. He feels like he's lost control of himself and doesn't know if he'll ever get it back again.

Quick sidenote: I have had a few people express that they're busy on mondays, but I literally just chose this day for the alliteration, like wip wednesday or seven sentences sunday. You can do these any day of the week!

Tags!

@strandnreyes @lemonlyman-dotcom @goodways @ironheartwriter @herefortarlos

@literateowl @carlos-tk @heartstringsduet @emsprovisions @sapphic--kiwi

@nancys-braids @captain-gillian @reyesstrand

@bonheur-cafe @firstprince-history-huh @paperstorm @guardian-angle22 @reeeallygood

@kiwichaeng @toomanycupsoftea @fandomswonderland @messymindofmine @goldenskykaysani

and anyone else who would like to join in!

#har rambles #music monday #911ls music mondays #music tag

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cozy-mp3 · 2 years ago

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hard feelings

abby x gn!reader

the aftermath of seattle is proving hard to deal with

word count: 1.6k(ish)

warnings: angst/hurt + comfort, abby is bad at processing feelings and so is reader, they're trying tho!!!, everyone cries, lev is mentioned a couple times, mentions of nightmares, kind of canon compliant?, not intended to be ellie bashing, only briefly proofread

a/n: honey, i'm home :D i promise i didnt mean to be gone this long!! i just got out of the habit of writing + using this account, i'm sorry :( i wrote this to help ease back in to everything, i missed u all and i'm gonna devour all the stuff in the ellie + abby tags that i've missed tomorrow

abby is tired. she’s so tired she can feel the weight it, the way her limbs feel like they’re almost too heavy to maneuver, the way her mind feels fuzzy around the edges like she has to pause before each passing thought in order for it to make sense. she can’t let herself sleep though, because sleeping means she has to let down her guard. she knows couldn’t live with herself if something happened to you or lev, she couldn’t save her father or manny or owen, she couldn’t protect them and she lost them and she can never make that mistake again.

a smaller, weaker, more ashamed part of her can also admit it’s somehow easier to sit out here on the deck, to watch the peaks of the cliffs for the shadowy figures of scars or wlf even though seattle is far behind you all. it’s easier to sit and watch and defend because that’s what she’s good at, she can’t listen to the way you and lev whimper in your sleep from nightmares, the way the two of you toss and turn and thrash to get away from things she can’t see.

she doesn’t know how comfort you, she can’t lie and say everything will be ok, she’s never been good at lying to you and she’s hesitant to fill you with false hopes, even more so lev, to treat you both like you’re too slow to see some vague, distant goal even, if it would bring you some comfort. but she can do this, she can sit out here with her gun in her lap and a mug of shitty instant coffee by her side and protect you both so that you won’t have anything to add to the things that scare you from your sleep.

she startles when the door to the cabin open and you slip through, you footsteps muffled by your thick, fuzzy socks. she can almost pretend nothing over the past week happened as you shuffle over to her in your old checkered pajama pants and a hoodie that’s soft and worn and smells like the detergent they used at the stadium. she can’t ignore your tired eyes though, the way they’re bloodshot from lack of sleep and haunted in a way she hadn’t seen before the girl from jackson and her friends had come to hunt her down. this is the only time she’s ever been glad she’s argued with you, that she hadn’t given in to your instance that you travel to find joel with her despite the fact you were healing from an injury at the time. she doesn’t think she believes in god or whatever prophet the scars worship, but when she thinks about that day too long she knows she could get on her knees and thank whoever, whatever, for preventing you from going on that trip.

you hesitate when you’re in touching distance from her and it takes you making a hesitant, aborted step towards her for abby to finally relax her posture enough to reassure you. she sets the gun down beside her cold mug of coffee, and with practiced ease, spreads her legs enough that they’ll be a comfortable cradle for your body before she holds her hand out to you. it doesn’t take long for you to get situated in her lap, your chin resting on her shoulder and your arms wrapped tight around her ribs, it’s a position you’ve been in countless times before.

“what are you looking for?,” you ask quietly, your voice tired and worn even to your own ears, it makes your brows furrow in discontent but there’s not much you can do to fix it. you shift and press your cheek to the firm muscle of abby’s shoulder, your eyes trained on the vast expanse of ocean behind her, it’s still dark enough that the moon casts a white reflection on the small waves that crest and break gently against the side of the boat.

“nothing,” abby replies, her head tilting so she can feel more of your skin against hers, you’re soft and warm and familiar in a way that makes an uncomfortable knot form in her throat, “there’s nothing there,” she continues, clearing her throat instead of acknowledging the urge to cry.

you nod, not quite knowing what to say in response to her so you shift one of your hands to stroke the tense plane of her back instead. everything has been harder than it should be since you’d left seattle. you’d dealt with loss and pain before and you thought you’d grown out of nightmares about people and what they could do to you, it’s frustrating, feeling these emotions that you’d dealt with so easily before threatening to overwhelm you the way they are.

“you should be in bed,” abby tells you after a few minutes of silence, the continued lapping of the water at the hull of the boat and your combined breathing the only sounds in the quiet still of the night.

“so should you,” you counter, shifting backwards on her lap so you can look at her face, your hand cupping her jaw, “come back with me?,” you question gently as you stroke the pad of your thumb over the skin beneath her right eye, she has tired bags that look dark enough to be bruises and the left side of her face is partially covered with gauze to protect a cut that you know hurts more than she lets on.

“i can’t,” she starts with a frustrated pinch between her brows, “i need some fresh air, i’ll come in later,” she sighs, unable to bring herself to tell you about the way her chest seizes with anxiety whenever she isn’t within arms reach of a weapon, that she convinces herself that behind every hill and peak along the coast the sniper who killed manny is waiting to take you away from her too.

“then i’ll stay,” you say, ignoring the long, suffering sigh abby lets out at your response as you lay your head against her shoulder again, “i feel better when i’m with you, so i’m staying,” you add softly to quieten whatever argument she was about to level you with, though you question if your honesty was the best response when her arms tighten around you and she makes a choked sound in the back of her throat.

“don’t say that,” abby mumbles, her lips brushing your hairline and her eyes burning with tears, “god, please don’t say that,” she says a little louder as she shakes her head, “this is all my fault, i ruined your fucking life, you should hate me,” she continues and with a start you realize she’s crying, her tears falling hot and wet against your skin.

“oh, abby,” you whisper and once again you curse the way your mind seems to want to work against you, the way you can’t come up with comfort for her the way you could before, “i don’t blame you for any of this, abby, listen to me,” you plead, your hands desperate as they find her jaw once again, your fingers clumsily wiping away her tears, “listen to me, abigail, none of this is your fault,” you persist as sympathetic tears sting at your own eyes.

abby doesn’t reply, though she allows you to guide her head against your shoulder, to rub soothing circles into her back and hold her against you as she sobs. you find yourself carding your fingers through her hair the way you would after a rough patrol, your nails scratching lightly at her scalp in a way that used to make her sigh in contentment but now only makes her cry harder.

she cries for long enough that your knees are beginning to get stiff where they’re bent either side of her, but the pain is dull enough to be ignored, especially as her sobs quiet down into strangled, hiccuping breaths that she lets out against your neck. you don’t force her to speak but you do steer her head away from you, just far enough that you can use a knuckle to wipe away the tears that cling to her lashes and to the tops of her cheeks.

“i love you,” you tell her a few moments later as she reciprocates the gesture, her calloused thumb brushing away the wetness on your cheeks, “i’ll always love you, ok?” you ask, using your hold on her jaw to finally force her eyes to meet yours so she can see that you aren’t just placating her.

“i love you,” abby replies, her eyes red rimmed and puffy but her gaze genuine and steady on yours, even as you bend down to kiss her forehead, “god, we’re a mess,” she mumbles with a wet laugh after she’s pressed a brief kiss to the corner of your mouth, her grip on you loosening as you stand up and tuck her hair behind her ears.

“it’s ok, we’ll work it out together,” you reassure her, giving her the best smile you can muster, weak but honest, “come back to bed with me?,” you ask again, wrapping your fingers around her wrist to gently tug her to her feet. she makes a face like it’s painful but allows you to help her to her feet and lead her inside the cabin, her steps clumsy enough that it gives away her exhaustion but willing to follow you regardless.

it’s warm and dark inside despite the dawn that was lightening sky you’d left behind and lev’s sprawled out across the mattress you share, his breathing deep and slow as he sleeps. it takes a moment to manoeuvre yourself and abby around him without waking him but you manage, settling under the covers and letting abby tuck your head beneath her chin. she insists on sleeping with her back to the door and you’re both so exhausted that you can’t fight her, but as you close your eyes you promise yourself you’ll talk about it with her in the morning, all of it, you’ll work it all out.

#abby x reader #abby anderson x reader #tlou2 x reader

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elliesflwrgirl · 2 years ago

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cw, just plot! fight to fluff

summary: you and abby have been in a situationship ish type deal, and she hears you’ve been getting real close to a new soldier

this was a request but i lost the actual request so…sorry!!

if u enjoy this reblog and like pls!! i love u.

.·:*¨¨* ・❥・ ≈☆≈ ・❥・*¨¨*:·.

over the past few months you and abby had gotten a bit closer than friends…sleeping in the same beds, kissing occasionally, and as of two weeks ago, fucking.

abby wasn’t very good at communicating how she felt and neither were you. so you two danced around the subject of you guys. things weren’t awkward if anything things just felt right. you loved being around abby and she couldn’t wait to see you after patrol everyday.

when she came home tonight you had already passed out, staying up late at night was not a strong suit of yours. so she smiled as she saw you passed out on her dark blue bed sheets, she just thought you were the prettiest girl she’d ever seen. she decided to catch up with owen, hanging out over at his place.

“so how’s it going with you and your girlfriend?” he teases and abby rolls her eyes. “she’s not my girlfriend, dickhead.” she sighs and he nods his head, “but you wish she was, huh?” abby rolls her eyes again and owen nods.

“i’d make that abundantly clear because she’s been hanging out with some girl…new soldier, but they were pretty cozy.” he tilts his head as he looks at abby. “what?” she asks quickly and he shrugs his shoulders. “they didn’t kiss or anything but the tension could be cut with a knife!” he jokes and abby shakes her head.

“uh, i’ll be right back.” she takes a moment to herself in the bathroom. she tries to think this is a misunderstanding but then again, it didn’t have to be. you weren’t hers. she wasn’t yours. you guys were…friends. as much as she wished that wasn’t the case, that’s the truth. you guys are nothing but friends.

she cursed herself, you’re so fucking stupid abby she thought to herself. she marches out of the bathroom, “mind if i crash here?”

}{}{

you woke up that morning to find abby’s usual spot empty. panic jolts through your body, you sit up quickly. throwing a jacket on and pulling your boots on before running to manny’s place. he hangs with abby a lot after patrol, he’d know if she was okay or not.

you bang on his door like a god damn mad man. “manny!” you shout and he opens the door in just underwear, “god damn what do you want?” he rubs his tired eyes. “abby didn’t come home last night? did something happen? is she okay?” you rush out and he shakes his head in confusion. “last i heard she crashed at owens…she was pissed about something,” and with that your panic subsides only slightly.

pissed about something? “well thanks,” you rush out before walking back to your apartment. your brain racked up reasons abby might be upset. did something on patrol? did someone say something to her? did you do something?

as you’re walking back home you see abby and owen, you run over to abby. wrapping your arms around her and she stiffens under you. you slowly pull away and look up at her, “abs…are you okay?”

owen coughs, “i’m gonna go get breakfast…” he slowly walks off. you furrow your brows, squeezing abby’s arms through her jacket. “i’m so glad you’re okay, i really thought…” you shake your head not even able to fathom what you thought happened.

“are you okay?” you ask again and she purses her lips, “i’m fine, i’ve gotta go eat.” she pushes past you and you stand still for a moment, in completely and utter shock, what just happened?

you grab her shoulder, “abs…cmon what’s wrong?” you ask again and she shakes her head. “nothing, i’m just fucking stupid. say hi to the new girl for me.” and with that she catches up with owen. “what? you’re not making any sense!” you shout to her but she ignores.

you scoff, crossing your arms and rushing back into your apartment. you felt like crying and you felt hopeless. why is she suddenly so upset with you? you start to get dressed, and as you head out you hope this is just some mood she’s in.

you head to the cafeteria, grabbing a breakfast burrito and finding abby, owen and manny. you sit down next to abby, just like you always do. she immediately stands up, tossing her tray in the trash and storming out of the cafeteria. you widen your eyes and look at owen, “what the fuck.” you gape at him and he shrugs his shoulders.

you stand up and follow after her. seeing her head outside, “abs!” she keeps walking. “abby!” you shout and she walks outside, you run catching up to her, “abigail!” you shout and she turns around. “what do you want?” she throws her arms at her side and you recoil, “i…did i do something?” you furrow your brows and she rolls her eyes.

“nope.” she starts heading out into the snow covered trees. you follow after her, “then why are you being such a dick?” you are a few steps behind her at this point, close enough to hear her scoff. “i’m not.” she huffs and you grab her arm, “well you’re clearly pissed off.” she rolls her eyes, “oh am i? i hadn’t noticed.”

“abby just tell me what is wrong so i can fix this! i can’t fucking function thinking you’re upset with me!” you shout passionately and she shakes her head. “nothings wrong! aren’t you supposed to be on patrol with the new girl right now?” she crosses her arms and suddenly it clicks. this new girl.

“are you jealous?” you scoff and she rolls her eyes, “why would i be jealous? you can fuck whoever you want.” she turns back around, trudging through the forest. “except im not fucking her! im not fucking anybody.” you cross your arms as you follow after her.

“well that’s really none of my business.” she mutters and you scoff, “are you serious? are you just gonna act like we didn’t fuck last week on patrol?” you feel anger building up inside of you and she stops in her tracks. “that…that was a mistake.” she mumbles before continuing to walk.

“you really feel that way?” you ask softly, praying and hoping that she doesn’t. she turns around, “yeah i do. so can you just fuck off and go do your job?” she shouts at you and you nod your head. tears brimming your eyes. “uhm, okay.” you turn around, not wanting to cry in front of her.

you walk a few feet away before you hear her voice, “fucking damnit.” a few steps behind you. “wait,” she grabs your shoulder, turning you to face her. your face red, tears sliding down your cheeks. abby’s face fills with empathy, “fuck, no, i’m sorry, i didn’t mean to make you cry.” she wipes the tears off of your cheeks, pulling you into her chest. “i’m sorry, baby. i’m sorry, okay? i didn’t mean any of that. i just…” she shakes her head as she brushes your head softly.

you sniffle into her chest, “i didn’t mean it. i don’t regret it. it wasn’t a mistake, okay?” she pulls you away, cupping your cheeks in her hands, looking you in the eyes. “i just…i know we aren’t a couple so i felt embarrassed and stupid for thinking we would be exclusive and then i felt even more humiliated that i even cared it’s just all so fucked up.” she shakes her head as she brushes her thumb over your cheek.

“but you didn’t do anything, okay? this is all my fault…i should’ve talked to you.” she speaks softly and you nod your head. “why didn’t you just ask me?” you frown and she shrugs her shoulders, “it’s embarrassing,” she frowns and you shake your head, “no it’s not, you can tell me anything. i love you abby—“ you hault your words as you hear yourself.

your face reddens from embarrassment and you widen your eyes, staring at abby. she has a soft smirk on her lips and she raises her eyebrows slightly, “you love me?”

you shake your head, “no, no, no, i just blurted that out, i know it’s too quick to say that i mean we aren’t even together,” she presses her thumb against your lips, making you shut up. “it’s not too quick,” she explains and she smiles softly down at you. “i love you too.” she states and you grin against her thumb.

she pulls her her thumb away from your lips, trailing her hand down your neck, gently holding it. she leans in and presses a soft kiss to your lips, tasting your salty tears from before. you wrap your arms around her big muscly shoulders, kissing her back.

she pulls back slightly with a grin, “this means you’re my girlfriend right?” she hums and you toss your head back laugh, “yes, idiot.” you roll your eyes playfully and she nods her head, “good, just making sure.” she whispers against your lips before kissing her girlfriend for the first time.

.·:*¨¨* ・❥・ ≈☆≈ ・❥・*¨¨*:·.

#tlou #tlou fanfiction #tlou2 #abby anderson #abby anderson x reader #tlou series #abby anderson fluff #abby anderson fan fiction

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herefortarlos · 2 months ago

Note

For episode 5x11- “Owen has no one to call?”

NO ONE to call???? 🥺🥺🥺🥺

Oh they are doubling down on the Owen and TK aren’t allowed to have scenes or acknowledge they’re related vibe this season and it breaks my heart it really does 😭😭😭

Hello there. I don't know if that's a fair assessment, since we have only seen 3 episodes so far. Spoilers, but I know we are getting a lot of TK and Owen scenes around episodes 7 and 8 at least, including Owen sharing more about his past and how he wasn't there for TK at a young age. And it's also important to remember that episodes 1-3 have the time frame of 1 week, if I'm not mistaken. So while we may have wanted a TK and Owen scene by now, it makes sense that the show would focus on other things like setting up Owen and his grief over Robert and deciding on who to name as his new lieutenant. And TK has been focused on his husband which also makes sense, and we need that setup before we get those emotional Tarlos episodes.

I'm sorry you're feeling that way though, but I have plenty of hope that we're going to be getting some great TK and Owen moments to come! This show started with Owen and his son moving to Texas and bringing the new 126 together and I am hopeful that they are going to remember and honor that with this season and leave this great father and son duo in a wonderful place!

#anon asks #desi answers #911 lone star discourse #911 lone star #911 lone star spoilers #911ls asks

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erikiara80 · 1 year ago

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Byler and Will having powers wouldn’t come out of nowhere

I know I know, many people have already talked about this. But the writing process is one of my favorite things, and I love Will’s character, so... Here I am.

I’m gonna start with Will's powers. I’ll talk about things that everyone, not just fans who analyze the show, can see. I’ll only use some of my theories to speculate about the nature of Will’s abilities (imo they’re different from El’s, that’s why it makes sense that the reveal happens in the last season)

I’ll start with this.

If I’m right, this could be like the reveal of One’s existence. If there’s a girl named Eleven there must also be a number One. It was always there.

And if Will has always been connectet to the supernatural plot, either he’s like Frodo, or he has powers too.

The fact that people have found explanations for what we’ve seen so far, like Will just being in the wrong place at the wrong time, or his connection to Vecna just being a consequence of the possession, doesn’t mean that they’re correct.

But that’s a good thing when you write a mystery.

If you don’t want to reveal something till the last minute, you keep leaving hints and clues but also let people find plausible explanations for what they see, otherwise they become impatient to know the truth, and get distracted.

What the writers could use to reveal that Will has powers

Will and El are the only characters connected to the supernatural plot since S1.

Will’s vanishing, one of the most iconic scenes of the show. It’s different from all the other attacks, something even many causal viewers noticed.

Will is the only person who survived alone for a week in the UD. If that’s what really happened, of course. But the fact that it’s still a mystery means that they’re hiding something important. Oh, and he was definitely Vecna's target (here)

The fake body. Either the lab was able to make a perfect replica of Will’s body in two days simply because they were spying on everyone in Hawkins, or there’s another explanation.

Nobody doesn’t really know what those scientists are able to do, and nobody asked in S1. Actually, they never asked anything. But IF Vecna targets Will again in S5, he will have to finally ask himself: Why me?

Will and El big parallels in S2. Now we see WILL in the lab, with Owens, his “Brenner”, who knows the truth.

Also, Will says that the evil wants to kill everyone but him. Something they could use to reveal that his possession is different from the Flayed and Billy’s.

Will drawing the Mind Flayer is so important in S2, everybody remembers it. So, this is a connection with another kid with powers. Henry.

But in S3 and S4 something changes. Will is sidelined, and in S4 it even seems that the writers forgot his birthday. I think this is what makes people think that he’s not important. Now he “only” has this mysterious connection to the Mind Flayer (and Vecna). But in my opinion this could also be a big hint.

Will being sidelined in S3 and S4 could be part of the plan

We can dislike it, but it makes sense.

Think about it. Will is the target for two seasons in a row, but everything changes in S3. I think it's because Vecna realizes that El can also close the gate. That's when he changes his plan. He needs that power to open his own gates. He says that to El.

But he can’t possess Will again to get to her. Will would know what’s happening, and his family would save him again. And Vecna is not stupid.

Also, IF Will is important, then Vecna doesn’t want to kill him. Will is not like Billy and the other Flayed. I don’t even think he was killing him in the UD. The parallel with Sarah means that the tendril was giving him oxigen like the chestbuster in Alien? But this is just a theory.

So, the plot of S3 is to take El’s power to open gates, the plot of S4 is to open gates so big that she can’t close them. And in S5 Vecna can finally get what he wants. Including Will?

In S4 they also reveal something very important connected to Will: that the UD is “stuck” on November 6, the day Will went missing. Sure, it’s the day El opened the gate, but see how they’re always connected? They could definitely use that. And they could use what Nancy says, that when Will was in the UD lights came to life.

Will vanishing, his mind being erased, has always been his story. And so is being remembered and saved by the ones who love him

What happens when my boy is gone? That's the big question. So I’m not surprised that he’s been sidelined.

The very first episode of the show is titled The vanishing of Will Byers. He literally disappears from the world and his family and friends must find him.

In S2, it's his mind that is being erased and they need to make him remember.

Then in S3 and S4 he's sidelined, and there are many very intentional shots in which other characters are blocking him, so it seems that he's not even there. And it starts at the end of S2, when in the last shot of the ball Will is not there (more here)

Imo, this is no coincidence, the writers arent' forgetting Will. It’s the plot. And it would be a cool plot twist, based on a truth that has been hidden in plain sight the whole time.

Will’s powers

Finally, my theory is that his abilities are different from El and Henry’s and mostly connected to the UD. Maybe they only work there. If he’s like Bastian and can somehow influence the UD, shape things, or he's like a battery, a source of power that Vecna can use, then it makes sense that they reveal his powers in the last season, when the Upside Down starts to invade our reality.

I don’t remember who said this, but I find it so interesting. The fact that maybe there’s a reason if Will’s name is WILL. Maybe he IS power. I made a post about the parallels between Will and Cerebro I also have a theory about why both Will and El have powers, their connection, but this post is already so long. I’ll just leave some links:

Theory about Willel connection

Terry and El’s memories

Byler

Well, in this case it’s obvious that if Will was girl, people would at least consider Byler. I’m sure there would be fights between Byler and mlv shippers, but more people would see the signs.

But I think many fans or casual viewers who simply like their friendship will be ok with it once they see how everything is connected and how important Will and Mike’s love is, not just for them but to save the world. That’s smart, it reminds me of Interstellar and many epic love stories. I love it.

Anyway. Byler has been a fundamental part of the story since S1. Their beautiful friendship, their bond, their love.

This scene!

Then in S4 it becomes obvious

I love this. One of the sweetest, most beautiful things this show has done. And it’s also clever! Making Will and Mike’s love one of the keys to save the world. That’s how you know it’s gonna be epic.

So, people could say, but there are sweet mlv scenes too. And Mike is still with El. He finally told her that he loves her. That means that they solved their problems and in S5 they will be stronger than ever. That’s the story.

I don’t think that’s what the story is telling. El and Mike have spent two seasons fighting and not getting closer. The other kid in love with Mike had to push him twice to tell his girlfriend that he loves her, and they lost anyway (and Mike didn’t need Joyce or Jon to tell him keep going in the shed in S2). Also, the only couple that broke up had the same problem. Nancy, Mike’s sister, couldn’t say ILY to Steve.

This means that El and Mike’s relationship is not a happy relationship. And now it’s obvious and even confirmed, that Will, the boy Mike has such a deep bond with, is in love with him. Like, this is such a classic trope.

So, what could the writers use to show that the story has always hinted at Byler?

This

#byler #will byers #mike wheeler #twelvegate #willel twins #will has powers #st theory #stranger things

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tdinyomomma · 1 year ago

Text

Not Quite Famous- TDI X Reader (Chapter Five)

If You Haven’t Read: Four

"Okay, this is so-way-beyond bad. I'm out of fake tanner already." Lindsay whines, telling Gwen and I her dilemma. I looked down from my bunk bed as I was reading my book. "Whoa, that's tragic, Lindsay." Gwen sarcastically comments. "Now, I have to actually like suntan, in the sun." The blonde complains, "Do you realize how shriveled and wrinkly that can make your skin?" She sounds distressed as she gets up and goes over to Gwen, "Oh, you totally do." She frowns. My jaw slacks open in shock. Does this girl really not have common sense or is this a joke that only she's in on?

"All right, campers, enough beauty sleep. Time to show us what you're made of!" Chris announces over the P.A. after loudly blaring an alarm.

I sigh, placing my book down, jumping off my bed. I fix my clothes, turning to Gwen. "I wonder what stupid thing we're doing today." I smirk and she chuckles, agreeing. "Totally, at least we're actually rested for this one." She points out, getting up as well to change into her daily clothes.

"True, I'll see you wherever we're meeting." I nudged her gently, walking away not realizing I made her blush from the short interaction.

We all sat by this stage on bleachers, Gophers on one side, Bass on the other. "Are we gonna see a musical?" Lindsay questions what's going on with the stage. I roll my eyes. "I love musicals, especially the ones with singing and dancing." She clasps her hands together and I shake my head, sighing because of her stupidity. I look over to see Gwen making her way over to us and I wave her down. "Gwen! I saved you a spot!" I grin, she sits down. "Thanks." She blushes, Cody unfortunately comes over and sits on the opposite side of me.

Behind the three is Heather, glaring down at Gwen in annoyance.

Trent also decides to sit with us but he sits next to Gwen who doesn't know that the boy has feelings for her, and is flirting. Cody smiles at me, as usual and I awkwardly ignore him, thanking the gods when Chris starts speaking. "Welcome to our brand new, deluxe state-of-the-art outdoor amphitheater." He greets us, showing off the stage.

"Okay, this weeks challenge is a summer camp favorite, a talent contest." He says and I frown at the announcement but Owen of course cheers like he does for every single thing we get told. "Yes! Awesome!" He shouts.

"Each team has 8 hours to pick their three most talented campers. These three will represent them in the show tonight. Sing, dance, juggle. Anything goes as long as it's legal." He makes eye contact with Duncan, also motioning to him so he knows. Duncan snaps in disappointment.

"You'll be judged by our resident talent scout, former D.J V.J and rap legend Grand Master Chef who will show his approval via the Chef-O-Meter." He points up and something dings a few times. "The team that loses will send one camper home tonight. Good luck." He walks away, I take a deep breath. Three people means I don't have to try out for some talent so I could really care less about who they pick.

Gwen and I stand up together, and we go back to our cabins picking spots to do the judging.

We sit on our cabin's porch, Heather in front of us wearing a whistle around her neck and holding a clipboard. Blowing into the whistle she speaks up. "Okay, I'm the team captain, so here's how it's going to work." She says with authority. "Wait, who said you were team captain?" Gwen questions, holding a book in her arms. "She did. Just now." Lindsay acts as if that was obvious. We knew Heather picked herself but the team didn't agree to it.

"Lindsay, Beth and I took a vote and I won." The mean girl smiles. "Threatening them to vote for you isn't exactly democratic." Gwen explains and Trent comes over with a muffin in hand. "Hey, snagged you an extra muffin." He whispers, Gwen smiles. "Oh, thank you but [Name] already gave me hers as an extra, sorry." She rubs the back of her head. "Oh, no problem." He takes it back, holding it to his chest.

"Trent, you're cool with me leading this project, aren't you?" Heather asks him. "Right on, go for it." He says.

"Good, Beth, Lindsay and I will be the judges." She proudly states. "Whatever." Gwen sighs and I raise a brow at the whole interaction.

Now one by one each person shows off their talent of who wants to even show it off. Owen's first, drinking a whole liter of soda. "Are you gonna audition?" Trent turns to Gwen, "Doubtful." She replies. "You should be in this, Trent, you play an instrument." I remind him and I can tell he got annoyed from me being there but oh well. "True!" Gwen nods, looking up at me. "Are you going to do anything? Didn't you say you play the drums?"

"No," I nervously laugh, "I did say that but I'm not auditioning." The only things I know how to play on the drums are from my embarrassing metal loving past. And I am far from being that person. "I'm sure it would've been awesome but I get it." She leans back on me since I'm sitting behind her on the stairs just one above hers.

Owen starts burping the ABC's, the guys all root for the guy as most of the girls look disgusted. "Yes!" Owen punches the air. "That was excellent, man." Trent high fives him, Heather scoffs. "Well, you're not going to do that in this contest. That's disgusting." She exasperates.

"Do you know how hard it is to burp the entire alphabet in one go?" Trent stands up for the bigger blond boy who ends up ruining it by bending over. "I can also toot Beethoven Fifth."

"No! No, no, no." The girls try to shield themselves. "Owen." Lindsay whines, Gwen starts to walk away.

"Where are you going?" Heather integrates her. "Anywhere that's not here." She carries on with where she was heading.

We move on from whatever that was and Heather shows us her ballet moves, wearing a light pink leotard and tu-tu. We all clap at the end. "Thank you." Everyone continues to clap and she looks over at her minions, clearing her throat. "Oh, I vote for Heather to be in the contest!" The blonde one out of the two raises her hand. "I second that." Beth agrees. "Guys, that's so sweet. Okay, so I guess I'm in. Why doesn't everyone take five?" She disbands everyone. "Except you [Name]! Wait right there!" Heather calls after me, I scrunch my nose in confusion but do as I'm told, leaning against the porch railing as she talks to Lindsay about something.

She gives the girl a walkie talkie then shoves her away.

"What did you need me for?" I quiz as she walks up to me. "I thought about what you said. I want to be friends. Real friends." She smiles, I glance around to see if this is some sort of joke since we're alone. "I'm serious." She folds her arms. "Okay." I shrug, going to head back inside the cabin. "Wait, that's it?" She exclaims loudly and I snicker. "We're friends now, what else do you want? A ceremony declaring it to everyone?" I joke, she stays silent for a moment. "I don't know, I just thought there was more to this."

I shake my head. "Nope, just acting normal. Can I go now?" I ask and she only nods in return.

I ended up joining the group by sitting on the picnic tables as Izzy did her audition. "I call this the dance!... Of the Rattlesnake!" She dances getting in Owen's face while making a noise, the bigger boy actually looks hypnotized.

Then there was Beth, Lindsay and Heather joined us in watching more of the auditions. The shorter girl is twirling fire boutons. "Are you sure this is safe?" Heather gasps and the four of us lean back when she gets too close. "It's okay, I've been practicing." She throws them in the air but she runs when it starts to fall down and we all hide behind the tables.

"I kind of missed the catching class." We all crowd the burnt hole in the ground.

"Uh, guys the bush is on fire." Trent points. Justin comes out and extinguishes the fire out wearing sunshades. Leshawna brings him a bottle of water, for some reason he rips his shirt off while drinking the water. Everyone drools over him while I stand there not understanding what's going on.

"Okay, so I think it's me, Trent and Justin. Any objections?" Heather asks, everyone shakes their head and I just walk away. What's his talent though?

I sit in the cabin on Gwen's bed and start to read my book once again. I also changed into my bathing suit since it was getting hotter outside and I thought about going to the water.

I hear talking outside the door then it opens to reveal Gwen.

"Hey, I'm going to the water, wanna join?" she smiles, turning around to change, I stare down at my now closed book. "Mmm, I might not swim but of course I'll join you."I place the book down, averting my eyes from her as she finishes changing and we leave the cabin.

"You're joining here?" Heather scoffs. "Yeah, I'll see you later, darling!" I wave her goodbye jokingly using a fake British accent. "You two are friends?" Gwen turns to me and I shrug. "Sort of." I question it, myself. "Oh so you do charity now?" She jokes and I laugh. "I've been doing Charities for ever now, I got you, remember?" I tease and she gasps, playfully pushing me and we both burst into laughter.

We sit down on the dock and calm ourselves, watching the moves of the water.

"Sometimes I just need to get away from everyone here, you know?" She sighs, "I mean it's like they're all driving me crazy." She pauses then smiles at me. "Well, almost all of them." She blushes and I mentally gasp.

Does Gwen have a thing for me? No, I could be imagining things. The sun is bright today. My thoughts are cut short when the dock starts shaking. We look behind us to see Cody and Owen running down. "Cannonball!!!" Owen shouts, the two jumping and the water splashes mainly Gwen. "Ugh! I hate this place!" She storms off.

"Nice going you idiots." I shake my head. "Yeah, nice going guy.."

I huff, leaving the place as well and going towards the bathrooms. I hear crying from inside one of the stalls so I hesitantly head over to it. "Hey, is everything okay in there?" I ask a bit loudly so the person knows it's for them. "Mm, no but-" they sniffled. "I'll be fine, I guess." From the voice it sounds like Courtney. "Want to talk about it?" I offer, backing away from the door once I hear the person unlocking it and then coming out.

"Oh, it's you." She seems disappointed so I apologize.

"What's going on, pumpkin?" I go over to the sink, washing my hands and face. "Don't call me that and you're on the other team I'm not telling you anything." She folds her arms, her tears air drying on her face. "I get that but I can still be a friend to vent to." I look at her through the mirror, smiling.

She doesn't say anything, obviously considering it. "I'm sorry-" "Don't apologize, you're thinking of what's best for your team." I turn around and go up to her, placing a hand on her shoulder. Good luck with the talent contest." I close my eyes smiling before heading out of the bathroom.

I join my team in sitting on the bleachers, being next to Gwen as usual.

"It's the T.D.I. Talent Extravaganza!" Chris shouts. "Welcome to the very first camp Wawanakwa talent contest, where six campers will showcase their mad skills and desperately try not to humiliate themselves. First up for the Screaming Gophers is Justin!" Chris declares, we clap and cheer for our teammate, and as he performs it's just him posing a bunch of different ways and then ending it with him leaning back in a chair and dumping water on himself.

"There are two syllables for hot, "Jus "" and "Tin." Man, that guy is just so hot I could kiss him." Owen's eyes go wide from what he just said. "Because he's a good teammate. Dah, why'd I say that?" He beats himself up.

"I don't see why people gawk at Justin. He's a man who uses his attractiveness to get this. Plus as I said. He's a man." [Name] rolls her eyes.

"Okay, I don't know what that was, but dang you got some moves, dude." Chris puts his thumb up and the Chef score moves pretty high. Eight out of Ten."First up for the Killer Bass, make some noise for the big guy, DJ!" He calls and DJ des some ribbon dance, but gets caught on the pink ribbon a few times.

"Dainty and Masculine, let's see what Grandmaster Chef thinks." It was only two points. "Not much." DJ frowns and sadly walks off the stage.

"So, with two down and four acts to go, it's the Screaming Gophers screaming ahead. Next on deck... Trent! Take it away my bro." The boy comes on stage with his guitar, sitting down on a stool. "This one goes out to someone special here at camp." I wince, and hide my face knowing it's for Gwen who does not reciprocate the same feelings. She acts oblivious, not knowing it's for her either. I zone out through the whole song, not wanting to cringe out.

Chris runs out at the last strum, "Nice work, I'm liking your style, dude. So does the Grandmaster Chef." He got half score and for some reason waves at the camera for a really long time.

"All right, quit hogging my light, buddy." Chris shoves him and I try not to laugh. "Three down and three to go, and the Killer Bass are totally sucking so far. Let's hear it for Bridgette."She doesn't come out right away and then shows up doing a handstand. Burping and then throwing up, projectile vomiting. "I'm hit! I'm hit!" Owen shouts.

She continues and hits Katie and Sadie who scream, Katie throwing up as well. And then hits most of my team with her vomit. Luckily Gwen and I didn't get hit.

The poor girl slips and falls off stage and onto tyler. "Hey, puke on your own boyfriend!" Lindsay shouts at the girl who was just sick all over the place. "On your own what, Lindsay?" Heather questions angrily, hands on her hips. "I didn't say boyfriend." The blonde back tracks.

Chris plugs his nose, coming back out on stage. "Clean up on aisle three, four, five and six. In the meantime, we'll take a short break to hose the joint down." He says.

"Going home won't be so bad. I could always work at the surf shack." Bridgette frowns, wiping a tear.

"Welcome back to the T.D.I talent Extravaganza! Okay, so in a strange turn of events, Bridgette's chunk-blowing fest registered two thumbs up by Grandmaster Chef. But it's not enough to pull ahead of the Screaming Gophers who hold the lead with Trents love song. So without further delay here she is for the leaders... Heather!" Chris announces and the girl walks out on stage, sitting on a stool.

"Originally, I was going to dance for you but instead I want to celebrate team spirit with a collaboration." She holds out a familiar book, I tilt my head. She gently shakes it a bit, staring at Gwen. "She wouldn't." Gwen whispers after gasping and I sat there in shock. "No fucking way." I shake my head. "So with words by Gwen, performance by me, enjoy." She clears her throat before reading it off.

"Okay, so I tried just being her friend, but she's just so cute. If they were trying to find the perfect person to distract me with her they got the right one, McGorgeous. We just totally connect. She's pretty much the only person I trust and relate to here and I know it's a cliche but I love how different we are but also so similar. She's so nice to everyone! Even Heather."

Gwen slides off the bleacher and runs off, I furrow my eyebrows in anger. "Thank you," Heather closes the book and makes eye contact with me. I flip her off then run after Gwen.

"People thought I was mean to Gwen. Whatever. All I needed was four votes against Justin. Lindsay and Beth were easy. Izzy's just crazy and Owen, piece of cake." She looks at her nails.

Owen's eating a piece of cake giggling. "Piece of cake." He hums.

I finally catch up with Gwen who was holding herself. "Hey-"

"Could you please save me the embarrassment for right now." She cries out, not looking at me and I frown at the sight.

"But-"

"Please, we can talk later on." She pleads and walks away and I decide to listen to her, plopping down on a tree stump to think about everything that just went down.

"Kudos to you all for an incredible night of entertainment, music, drama, barfing." We all hold our marshmallows and now Gwen is avoiding me so I stand next to Leshawna, staring down at the white fluff in my hands.

"There's only one marshmallow on this plate. Justin you reminded us all that looks matter a lot. And Heather you're full of surprises, but reading another chick's diary out loud to the whole world? Man, that is whack. No kidding, that's really messed up dude." Chris talks in a serious tone which was weird to see since he likes the drama that radiates off of us but even he can admit that what Heather did was extremely wrong.

"Oh, please, just give me my marshmallow already." Heather rolls her eyes. "Justin, I personally think this is very wrong, but tonight hotness just wasn't enough. The last Marshmallow goes to Heather." Chris says with disappointment laced in his voice.

"Time to catch the boat of losers, bruh." Justin sadly walks away. "Later, bruh." Heather waves to him, eating her marshmallow.

"If that evil little cow thinks she's getting away with this she has another thing coming." Gwen states.

"Befriending Heather was the worst move I have made all summer, and it's just begun." [Name] huffs.

The camera catches Gwen knocking on the door to reveal Harold. "You mentioned you brought a red ant farm with you, correct?"

"Yes." He nods.

Next clip is Heather running out of the cabin screaming with ants all over her.

"Sweet dreams everyone." Gwen giggles, closing her eyes to go to sleep.

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