#tiny park hidden in the woods

[yagodichjagodic]

We find the best places

[woso-dreamzzz]

Second Time's The Charm IV

Alexia Putellas x Reader

Summary: Alexia gets her puppies

His name was Kitchen Sink Putellas, though everyone just called him Sinky.

His name came about by accident just like him.

Alexia would say that it was fate. You could swear she had set you up for it.

It had happened on one of your night walks.

Maya was a bit of a restless baby so you had found that going out for a little walk in the early evening was good to get her to fall asleep without too many tears.

You were pushing her pram gently as Alexia chattered your ear off about getting a puppy. With the house fully completed and all three of you moved in, Alexia was adamant about getting Maya a puppy.

She seemed to forget that you already had a family pet in the form of old Mr Stinky, the extremely senior cat that you had gotten at seventeen from your parents.

At thirteen years old now, he was very slow and slept a lot but he was your little furbaby and you just adored him.

Alexia, less so but she had always been a dog person, which was why you weren't surprised when you saw she had adopted little Nala.

Even through social media, you could see just how much she adored Nala and just how heartbroken she was when Nala unexpectedly passed away.

You could still see the pain lingering in her eyes now when she spoke about getting a puppy for Maya.

Alexia had adored Nala and hadn't thrown a single thing away, still packed up in a box she thought she had hidden in the back of the closet.

You got into a relationship with Alexia knowing she was a dog person and, while she secretly loved Mr Stinky, you knew no animal would come close to being loved like how a dog would be loved.

You had already been convinced weeks ago but you weren't letting Alexia know that. You were curious to see just how far she was willing to go.

You were focused completely on Maya's sleepy face as Alexia spoke. You hadn't even noticed she stopped talking until you turned to look at her.

She was crouched on the ground, her hand offered out to a little puppy on the side of the road.

"Hi, little guy," She cooed," It's okay. I'm here to help."

The little puppy whined, taking a step forward before retreating again when Alexia reached for him.

"It's okay," She said again," Come here. Let's get you some help."

He was a tiny thing. Absolutely tiny and he shook in Alexia's arms when she finally managed to pick him up.

You reached into Maya's baby bag to pull out a spare blanket, helping Alexia to wrap him up nice and warm.

"We need to take him home, amor," Alexia said, suddenly deadly serious," I can't see his Mama anywhere. He is alone."

You glanced around the area, brows furrowed.

Alexia took that as refusal and she looked ready to get on her knees. "Amor, please! You cannot think we should leave him here!"

"Take the puppy and Maya home, Alexia," You said, whipping out your phone," He doesn't look old enough to be weaned. I'll try and find him some food. I'll meet you back at the house."

You watched Alexia gently place the blanket wrapped puppy in Maya's pram with her before sprinting down the street with the speed only a professional athlete could possess.

It was late out but you paid extra for puppy milk and wet food to be delivered in a few hours. It was a flimsy excuse to make but you just couldn't shake the thought that this puppy wasn't completely alone.

It wasn't a rural area that you lived in but there was a park that backed into a little wooded area and surely you would have noticed if the puppy had been dumped in a box.

You flicked on your phone light to wander through the park. You checked everywhere you could before you came across a little bush.

The soft barks were enough to confirm your suspicions and your heart broke at the sight.

She was panting heavily, lying on her side as a throng of puppies drank from her. A heavy stick of wood was planted firmly in the ground and a piece of rope was fixed like a noose around her neck.

She wasn't aggressive as you released her. If anything, she sagged in relief and allowed you to gently stroke her fure.

She was some kind of collie though in the low light, you couldn't quite tell what kind.

You'd had a rough collie as a child. Good old Mr Porkchop who had been put down when you were eleven.

He had always been well looked after though, the pride of your father's life. This collie was nothing like Mr Porkchop though and you dialled Alba instantly.

"Alba? Can you come to the park near our house? I'm going to need your help."

Alexia was desperately working at the kitchen sink when you came in. Her sleeves were pushed up to her shoulders as she desperately scrubbed at the little puppy, trying to get him all warm.

A ring of soap was around his neck.

Clearly, she had listened to your lecture a few weeks ago about how it prevented fleas from climbing onto the heads of animals.

"Amor!" She called out behind her after hearing the front door open," I'm just getting him washed! I put him up on the counter while I changed Maya into her pjs but he fell in! I think he's chosen his name!"

"Alexia?"

"I know it will be a lot of work," She continued," But I promise I will take great care of him. We can set him up next to one of the portable heaters tonight and I've got the day off tomorrow so I'll take him to the vet and-"

"Alexia."

"I know you said Maya is still young and I know you think keeping a puppy this little is dangerous but-"

"Alexia Putellas!"

She turned. "What is-?"

"I found his Mama and siblings," You said plainly, leading the mama in gently as Alba trailed behind you with the other puppies," I've ordered food already and we'll have to take them in to the vet tomorrow."

"Amor..."

"Now." You gently guided the mama to a pile of pillows as Alba reunited her puppies with her. "What's this about his name?"

The puppies and mama were all healthy or, at least on their way to being healthy. The mama had no collar and no microchip. The vet theorised she was part of some puppy mill because she was barely out of puppyhood herself.

You knew by Alexia's face that you would be keeping them all. The Mama, Sinky and his extra three sisters.

You were nervous about it all but Alexia really took the reigns, a far cry from the thirteen-year-old version of her that once cried when you made her leave a cute dog being walked by its owner at the park.

Maya adored the puppies as well and seemed to know to be gentle. Even Mr Stinky seemed to enjoy their presence, taking shifts when the mama was sleeping to make sure that none of the puppies got into mischief.

Mainly, you were impressed about how long it took Alexia to spill about having puppies in the house.

Four weeks since you found them and you finally allowed Alexia to take them into training.

"I'll be out with the others soon," Alexia promised as she wrapped Sinky up in a blanket.

"Ale," You said," He doesn't need the blanket anymore. He's a big boy."

"He's a baby!" Alexia insisted, wrapping him up like a baby in a swaddle.

You rolled your eyes. "Go and bring out your teammates, Ale."

She practically skipped into the locker room with her little bundle of blankets.

Mapi was the first one she noticed and paled dramatically. "No!" She declared," No, you can't be serious, Alexia! You've already got one baby! You can't have gotten another one so soon!"

"Don't be silly, Mapi!" Alexia laughed," We didn't get another baby. Now yet anyway."

"Then what is that?!"

"Sinky!"

Sinky barked happily as he was uncovered by the blankets.

Ingrid rubbed Mapi's back as she hid in her girlfriend's neck.

"Sinky?" Keira echoed," Like Sinclair from Canada?"

"Don't be silly," Alexia said," Because it's short for Kitchen Sink, which is his name."

Mapi might have burst into tears.

"But there's more!" Alexia continued," Come on, come on! I'll show you!"

She sprinted out of the room and her teammates scrambled to keep up with her.

She'd traded in her old Cupra a few weeks ago for a much more family friendly minivan and she pulled open the door.

The first and most obvious thing everyone saw was Maya, happily in her seat waving one of her stuffed toys to the tune of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star which was playing in the car.

The next was the beautiful brown and white Border Collie, Lady. You had laughed a little bit about the name Alexia had bestowed upon her, making a joke about her enjoying naming dogs after Disney characters.

Sweet Lady sat in the seat next to Maya, laying her soft head on your baby's legs.

Her three remaining puppies wrestled in the stair well and all came falling out as soon as the door was open.

"Oh no," You heart Mapi say.

Alexia smiled triumphantly. "Oh yes!"

[hotyanderedaddies]

Hey so what about naga yandere? That's been watching reptile obsessed darling from afar waiting for the right moment to pounce

Yandere Naga Loves to Watch Ophidiophobic You

**Ophidiophobia: intense and overwhelming fear of snakes

[Yandere! Naga x GN! Ophidiophobic! Reader]

·゜·:.。..。.:·☆·゜·:.。..。.:·☆

Daddy wakes up extra early in the morning so that he can slither out of his den and towards the edge of the forest, his green eyes honing in on a certain building that is within his view.

The window upstairs to the far left was lit up from the bedroom light, signifying that you were awake and getting ready for the day.

Daddy's heart raced in his chest as he listened to the heavenly noises of you humming to yourself as you showered and dressed up into your school uniform. And once you were all ready, you skipped out of the front door and started to walk to school.

As soon as his eyes landed on you, Daddy's face stretched out into a wide, cadaverous grin, his forked tongue flicking out of his mouth so that he could taste your scent.

"Good morning, Darling," he whispered, low enough so that you couldn't hear him from his hidden position, "today's going to be a good day."

He knew this too, because your backpack was packed a little more than usual, bulging out with your extra change of clothes because your Biology class was taking an overnight field trip to the local national forest where you'd be spending the night in the woods... which was in Daddy's territory.

"Soon," he promised you.

The very first time that Daddy had laid eyes on you, he'd been searching for a meal, and you had been wondering along one of the trails in the woods to take pictures of local wildlife for a class project.

He'd totally planned on eating you when he'd caught sight of your cute face, making him freeze in his hiding spot behind the trees. Instead of devouring you, he'd curiously watched as you wandered around the woods, treating nature with a sense of whimsy and respect, earning his devotion.

He'd immediately loved that you were a kindhearted soul and that you were a smol who was very adorable, and he'd wanted nothing more than to scoop you up in his arms and carry you off to his den to be all his.

There was just one tiny issue:

Daddy is a naga, and whereas his human half is very handsome by most standards and he looks very strong and gorgeously rugged, his lower half is that of a gigantic serpent that slithers silently about the woods as he stalks his prey. And you're a human who's very--

"AHHH! A snake!" you shrieked as soon as you caught sight of the tiny field snake that was about the size of a child's index finger. You took off sprinting down the road, flailing your arms wildly as you desperately tried to put as much distance between you and the baby snake as possible.

The snake looked up at Daddy confused, and he just shrugged at it, knowing that it meant no harm.

But still, Daddy was extremely disappointed that the love of his life has a phobia of snakes.

Granted this definitely was a damper on your relationship, Daddy refused to let you go. He made sure to watch you every chance he got, keeping a protective eye on you at all times. He could easily see your house from the forest, and made sure to slither around it in the dark, marking it with his scent so that other creatures knew that you were off limits.

He always followed you whenever you walked to school, hissing ferociously at any animal that was stupid enough to even think about charging at you.

You're his Darling, and Daddy can't wait until the two of you can finally be together.

But he's getting really impatient.

Which was why he was over the moon about your overnight school trip.

As the day progressed and you spent time in the forest with your classmates, Daddy made sure to be as close as he could. The park ranger/tour guide made things difficult, but he still managed to keep his distance while maintaining sight of you. You eagerly took in every word that you could on your trip, happily learning all about nature and the creatures that live in it.

Daddy made a mental note to take you on daily trips through the forest so that he can show you all the sights, after he steals you away.

As the day turns into night, Daddy watches as everyone go their cabins.

It's quiet for a while until he hears a little creaking emanating from your cabin, and the door swings open as you tiptoe out. You head towards the bathroom cabin that is at the end of the row of tiny cabins. There's no one else outside either.

Daddy's smile stretches out even more as he realizes that this is his chance. He slithers to the bathroom cabin and quietly waits by the door for you to exit.

"Gotcha," Daddy gleefully whispers the second you step foot outside.

He pounces and wraps his snake half around you, trapping your limbs at you side. With his human arms, he tightly wraps them around you, securing a tight hand over your mouth.

You start to panic over the feeling of a strong figure around you, but the panic turns into sheer horror as soon as you feel the smooth, scaly quality to the figure. You try to look downward, but it's really dark, preventing you from seeing much. Yet, the tightening squeezing sensation forces your imagination into overdrive and all you can think of is the most terrifying thing in the world:

Snake.

You try to thrash about as much as you can, desperate to get free. But it's useless.

Daddy is much, much stronger than you.

"Shh," Daddy coos in you ear. "It's okay, Darling. Daddy won't hurt you. Daddy's just gonna take you home with him. Okay?"

He doesn't wait for your answer, and instead starts to slither off into the dark forest at a high speed, his prize trapped tightly in his clutches.

Daddy has you, and he's never ever going to let you go.

You'll learn to love snakes, he'll make sure of it.

[zzeraphilm]

Fight For Me

Kuroo Tetsurou x Reader (GN) Word Count: 1,882 Part two Summary: Not every relationship is one to admire, passions and everyday lives will always come in the way of romance. But Kuroo Tetsurou only realises this a bit later than Y/N had hoped. After watching the HQ movie in theatres and being the only person in the cinema to laugh I needed an outlet 

The dumpster battle of the century. The booming echoes of Nekoma’s cheers sent shivers down your spine. Each hit of a palm to a volleyball resonated waves that shattered across the arena. Y/N sat slightly hidden from view of the rest of the Nekoma team. 

Prior to the tournament, Y/N saw it befitting to end their relationship with the notable volleyball team captain, Tetsurou Kuroo. Despite his sly and frivolous behaviour, the black haired mop head agreed with a robotic hum. Their time together was not as revered as one might seem. On the outside, the pair were known across the Tokyo school for their names would always slip from someone’s lips. Personalities so unalike and yet they were so in sync. 

Y/N did not want to burden Kuroo’s drive to win. Kuroo did not want to neglect Y/N. Days of no contact turned to weeks. Kuroo was always at practice till nightfall, Y/N was cooped up in their room studying meticulously for their university entrance exams. By the fifth week of no contact beyond school, Y/N had sent a message to Kuroo for the first time in over a month.

Meet me by the park, after practice. 6PM.

The park’s swing set was rusted from the skin of the bolts into the grooves of its spiralling metal. Y/N still kicked their feet lightly whilst perched on the wood awaiting for the captain’s arrival.

6:30PM. 6:45PM. 6:50PM. 6:55PM. 6:57PM. 6:59PM. 

Clumping running shoes came knocking towards the H/C haired figure on the swing. 

“Sorry, practice ran over again.” Kuroo Tetsurou was always the first to arrive at Nekoma’s practice and the last to leave. He decided if practice would overextend. He knew Y/N was waiting, but still only cared for the game. 

Y/N couldn’t help but think that Kuroo saw them as an afterthought. Despite their moments of hilarity and nonsense over the last three years, more often than not Kuroo would see his focus else where, usually towards the court. 

“You’d always say that.” Y/N’s tongue spilt a tiny drop of venom at the end of their comment. 

“It’s the truth.” 

With a huff, Y/N stood to challenge the boy. No, man. Even within a few weeks, he had been scarily evolving to a matured, aged version of himself. Yet Y/N never noticed the way Kuroo’s shirts no longer fitted him the same way, or the slight stubble growing on his chin and upper lip or how his cologne had shifted from a softer, powdery scent, to a peppery Oudh masked with a floral kiss. Y/N didn’t get to experience his metamorphosis from a boy to a man, he saw it with his brothers, his teammates, with volleyball. Y/N wasn’t the first person that Kuroo would go to over news about his life advancements. Y/N was merely a shadow. The awkward smiles that they had to endure whenever their friends mentioned their boyfriend of three years, acting as if they had spoken properly in the last few hours, yet in reality had only seen each other’s faces passing each other in the halls. Not even a hand brush or a light peck. Just stares that lasted mere milliseconds, that held no emotion behind them. 

Kuroo knew he wasn’t giving Y/N enough attention or time. He knew that the trajectory of his life at the moment was solely on volleyball and his studies. Dates, after school hangouts, good morning and good night texts no longer found a place in his daily schedules. His passion for the sport only grew further from the summer camp, where Y/N was abroad on holiday with their family. Which, selfishly, allowed Kuroo to solely think and breathe volleyball. He didn’t call Y/N every Friday night like he promised. He tried but all of his energy was directed in a laser beam towards the court. His heart would beat at exponential rates, each breath would feel like a stab in his throat and he could feel each pulsating beat from his heart pumping his blood throughout his body. It was torturous, yet so incredibly fun he wanted it to never end. Time would stop when it was just him on the court and a ball. But Y/N would never cross his mind. He wouldn’t realise until the next morning when Y/N would attempt some form of contact with a text, usually saying:

Good morning, enjoy your day. Don’t overwork yourself <3

The texts dwindled over time going from paragraphs of care and patience to blunt words of indifference to nothing at all. They both could sense the fading of their bond. They were just scared to see who would be the first to rip off the bandage. 

“Let’s break up. This isn’t working. We don’t have time for each other, it’s not worth the pain of being ghosts of each other and pretending to be okay in front of others.”

Y/N imagined this scenario multiple times before they’d fall asleep. Sometimes Kuroo Tetsurou would scream and wail, grabbing them by their shoulders begging for mercy, begging to stay together, begging for their love. Other times Kuroo Tetsurou would be the first to initiate the conversation, saying how he holds no feelings for them anymore, that there was someone else or some dramatic reason that would paint him to be villain in Y/N’s fantasies. Y/N clung to these thoughts, of a Kuroo Tetsurou that would fight for them, of a Kuroo Tetsurou that would plead for them or a Kuroo Tetsurou who lived up to his perceived image. 

Yet, Kuroo just agreed. Gave a small nod, a wave goodbye and walked off.

As Kenma desperately screamed to reach the ball, it was futile. The yellow and blue ball bounced on the polished court for nearly a second before the huddle of crows screamed in unison. Between the rival teams, Karasuno proved their victory. Y/N would only attend Kuroo’s games if it meant the two would get a bite to eat afterwards, usually at a nearby family diner. Y/N tried to learn the rules of volleyball yet couldn’t handle its quick gameplay. So volleyball felt empty without Kuroo. 

But this game was riveting, Y/N felt their soul boom at each spike and block. Despite having never stepped foot on a court beyond the Nekoma school gym, Y/N craved the illustriousness of the court. The despite to jump beyond the heights of giants and reach the sky, to slam their palm against the flying ball and hear the shattering screams of contact between the ball and the court. Y/N could finally see why Kuroo loved the sport. But, they could only see the back of his frame. They were sure that there were a few tears shed from his eyes. But Kuroo Tetsurou still upheld his Cheshire smile that brought those around him to laugh. As the boys hugged each other, shook hands and exchanged jokes. Y/N knew, they knew why this was more important to Kuroo than they were. They understood what it meant, but just because one can understand doesn’t mean that they aren’t allowed to feel resentment. 

Y/N did not harbour any ill will towards Kuroo himself, rather, they hated the choices that he took. He never fought for them, he never tried, he never challenged them. But most of all, he never truly included them in this world that he loved. Y/N could only see it from a far, from a screen or on the sidelines. Where once they left the world of volleyball, the pair would be in their own bubble, floating far away from those Kuroo considered family. Whether it was their childish adolescent calling for self-centred attention or their lack of understanding of one another. Y/N left the arena silently, returning to their isolated world of study, far from Kuroo Tetsurou. 

After three years, Y/N had achieved their dream of studying abroad in Australia for their bachelors. Their parents had agreed to help fund their masters back in Tokyo and Y/N had made their way back to their home country. Their time in the scorching sun and endless nights of parties, midnight assignment writings and the multitude of faces from across the world shaped Y/N into an alluring individual. They had shed the skin that they were trapped in from high school into a blooming butterfly in adulthood. They had everything aligned to the T, as per their promise to themselves when they were 16. 

Kuroo Tetsurou had not given up volleyball entirely. He used his wit and charm to weasel his way into the top of the industry, working aside the Japan’s Volleyball Association, meeting the best players in the world, scouting them and dinning with them. Of course, he had social media. No one in his field was a stranger to the Internet, every moment, every win and loss was recorded online and he had to know it all. Whilst scrolling one summer’s day, in between the break of the game he was sitting in, he stumbled upon them. 

Y/N L/N. His high school sweetheart. The one that got away. His biggest regret. His biggest loss. 

Kuroo only realised his heartbreak a year after their split, seemingly throwing himself into his studies and passions as a way to mask his mourning. He had gotten so good at busying himself with work and studies that he had forgotten the feeling of heartbreak. Until he craved it. When news of an internship he had wanted for months finally arrived congratulating him on his addition to the team - he wanted to tell Y/N all about it. He absent mindedly found his phone in his hands trying to find Y/N’s contact, only to find it erased. He didn’t need to think, it was like a jolt in his body had awoken, tears flooded his line of view. And for the first time in a year, after months of distractions, he cried for his lost love. 

Kuroo spent the whole night stalking Y/N’s socials, careful not to like them or accidentally follow them. He would stare endlessly at their selfies, photography of the cities they had travelled to and their wide friendship group. Nobody that he recognised. Their followers consisted of strangers to him. He hadn’t felt this empty since the night of losing them. In a drunken slurry of thoughts, Kuroo only saw his fingers dance over the follow button, he didn’t feel the pads of his fingers hit the screen.

It was only until the next morning, he saw that Y/N’s profile no longer existed. 

Their profile was empty, their bio did not load and with every drag, the page refused to load. A previous screen flooded with smiling faces and exciting milestones now replaced with a text merely stating the obvious.

User not found

Kuroo Tetsurou took it as his final sign to leave it. It was too late to reach out, to plead for another chance, it was too late to fight for something that was snuffed out years ago. 

[ababanerb]

meet me in the rain -sebastian sdv

AO3 is linked here

summary: Sebastian has a list of reasons why he wants to leave Pelican Town that goes on for miles. The only thing he'd stay for is the rain, or that's what he tells himself. The rain gives him one more reason to stay.

wc: 1655

Sebastian is only four when his mom moves them out to the valley. It’s a new house, a new town, a new dad, a new yard, and it feels a little like he has a new mom, too. His bedroom is upstairs, just down the hall from his mom and Demetrius, and it still smells like the sealant and varnish his mom had used when she’d built the house.

But he’s not home.

His home is still in Zuzu. The cramped little apartment with the park just a couple blocks away and the coffee shop his mom would take him to when his dad was particularly mad. He misses his dad, even though his dad scared him. His home is the four cramped walls that had been his and Robin’s when she’d taken him and run to the closest domestic violence shelter. It’s wood shavings in a little pile on the tiny kitchen table only a few feet from their bed as she carves him a new toy because she can’t afford him any real toys.

They’d been real to him, though. 

So, he hates, with all he can, he hates this new town, and this new house, and his new dad who isn’t his dad at all. He hates his new room, hates his new toys, misses his old ones carved from pieces of scrap wood his mom had found. 

But mostly, he hates how quiet it is.

In the city, there had been no shortage of noise. The little window mounted A/C unit had always hummed noisily in his ear, and there had always been noise out on the street no matter the time of day. Cars honking, and the upstairs neighbors shuffling noisily above him as the TV played in the living room.

In Pelican Town, though, it’s near silent. The A/C sits on a concrete pad outside and the air hums near silently through the vents. There are no people or cars outside to make noise, and his mom and Demetrius don’t watch any TV after nine. 

But he does like the rain. 

He likes it when his mom takes him out in it. Her belly heavy with a little sister he’s not-so-sure about, and he’s dressed in a green raincoat with little round flaps on the hood that are meant to be frog eyes. And she stands a few feet behind him as he races around the bank of the lake near their new home and hunts for frogs in the bushes. Cheering with him when he races back, frog cupped in his hand, to display his catch with a wide grin of pride.

“It rains different here,” He tells his mom, hand held securely in hers as they walk back to the house, thoroughly soaked even despite their raincoats. There’s a frog in his pocket that he hopes she won’t find when she helps him out of his coat inside. 

“How do you mean, Sebby?” She asks, and he giggles as she walks him in a zig-zag the rest of the way to their front door. A game they can still play even with her swollen belly.

“It’s just different.”

She laughs, and he shrieks with laughter when she tickles his ribs after she finds the frog he’d hidden in his coat pocket. And he decides, right then and there, that if he can have rains like this, then it’ll be okay.

And it is. It’s okay, that when Maru gets big enough to need her own room, he gets to move down into the basement — it’s actually more than okay, but no one needs to know that. It’s okay that his parents' attention has shifted away from him, because how else would he get into all the trouble he does without getting caught. 

It’s by no means great. He still wants to go back to Zuzu, still wants out of Pelican Town. Want somebody, anybody to acknowledge his work as something more than surfing the internet. Or attract a girl that isn’t a special breed of crazy that wants to fix him – because he’s not broken, fuck you very much.

But he never ever wants to give up the rain in the Valley.

So, it’s all fine, really. 

When the weather’s good, he makes the trip out to his lookout just before sunset. Or if it’s even better and he has the time, he’ll make the trip into the city, and check out the old apartment building he and his mom had lived in. Pick up a new figure for his weekly Solarion Chronicles sessions with Sam, and get coffee in a cafe in historic downtown Zuzu and wish he could have grown up there instead of in Pelican Town.

Until he meets the farmer. Or rather, the farmer meets him.

Because, well, he already knows about the farmer. About you. He doesn’t know anybody in town who doesn’t know about you. Or about your dead grandfather, or about how you’d moved out to Hicksville-nowhere on a whim.

You can thank Lewis for that.

So, thanks to word of mouth and a town rumor mill so fast it should really be its own newspaper, he feels it’s safe to say that he knows you as much as he needs to know you. All without ever meeting you. He knows what your favorite color is, he’d heard it from his mom who’s heard it from Jodi, who’d heard it from Caroline, who’d heard it from Emily, who’d overheard you mention it to Haley one time. He knows everything he needs to know about you, all without meeting you.

Then, he meets you, by total chance. 

It’s Winter, nearly a whole year now since you’d moved into town, and it seems to him that you’ve met everyone but him. Although he's not complaining, he hadn’t made the effort to try and meet you either. 

It’s raining, the day you meet him, thunder booming in the distance, the sky lighting up with flashes of lightning. He’s standing at the end of the docks, soaked through to the bone, hair plastered to his forehead as he tries and fails to get his cigarette to stay lit. Willy had gone back into his home hours ago, gruffly warning Sebastian to go home before he got himself sick.

He stays anyway. After all, he likes the rain.

He doesn’t run around chasing frogs anymore. Can’t remember the last time he’d fell flat in the mud when he’d dove for a frog, lungs burning with exertion. Can’t remember the last time he’d shoved frogs in pocket, wanting to take them home as pets.

But that’s okay, because even though he’s changed, the rain hasn’t.

He’s so lost in thought, fingers trembling as he tries to get his lighter to hold a flame long enough to get his cigarette going, that he doesn’t notice you coming down the dock towards him. Your boots clomping wetly against the rain soaked planks as you approach.

“Need a light?” You ask, still relatively dry beneath your raincoat layered over your thick winter coat. Whatever hair you’d left peeking out from beneath the hood of your raincoat is plastered to your face, thin rivulets of water running down your temples.

You beam widely at him, opening up your coat and digging your own lighter from the inside pocket and lighting it up in the dry space near your torso, “Come on, hurry!” You tell him, and he fumbles with his pack of cigarettes, fingers numb and shaking as he pulls a fresh cigarette from the carton and presses one end into the flame of your lighter.

“Thanks,” He says after a moment, when he settles the cigarette between his lips, and you’ve tucked your lighter back into your coat and zipped yourself back into the warm layers of your winter wear.

You hum, hands shoved deep in your pockets as you stare out over the sea.

“Of all the places you could live,” He starts after a moment, smoke billowing from his mouth and nose, “You chose Pelican Town?”

You shrug, “I didn’t exactly get to choose.”

“Oh.”

It’s silent again, rain pounding against the wooden planks of the dock, and the choppy surf lapping at the shore. 

“I like the rain here, though,” You say after a moment, feet shuffling awkwardly, “It’s different than the city.”

And that’s all he needs to know.

“Me, too,” He says, lips quirking up with a near invisible smile as he offers his cigarette to you.

You take it.

Yeah, Sebastian thinks, years later, from his place on the couch in your house that has also become his home, his laptop humming loudly in his lap as the fan fights for its life to run his coding software, I like the rain.

It’s raining again, not that either of you mind, curled up on the couch together with the TV playing in the background. It’s all the noise he’d loved in the city, minus the yelling and the actual city. There’s a terrarium in his office, the space you’d carved out just for him, and he can hear his pet frogs croaking happily even in the living room. His mug sits on top of the coffee machine in the kitchen, and his keys have their own hook by the door. There’s an ashtray out on the porch railing for him, too, green frogs painted and glazed over on the sides. 

“Your laptop sounds like it’s fucking dying, Seb,” You remark to him, voice dancing over a quiet laugh, your feet tucked beneath his thighs, “Is it time for an upgrade?”

“Yeah,” He sighs, saving his work and setting his laptop down on the coffee table as he turns to you with a smile, “But that would mean a trip into Zuzu.”

“Okay, and you love Zuzu,” You agree, a confused smile meeting his, “What’s the issue?”

“I’d rather just stay home.”

[afeelgoodblog]

Best News of Last Week - July 3, 2023

🐕 - This dog is 'disc'-overing hidden treasures! Get ready for the 'paws'-itively successful fundraiser, Daisy's Discs!

1. Most unionized US rail workers now have new sick leave

More than 60% of U.S. unionized railroad workers at major railroads are now covered by new sick leave agreements, a trade group said Monday.

Last year railroads came under fire for not agreeing to paid sick leave during labor negotiations.

2. Missing teen found after being lost in the wilderness for 50 hours

Esther Wang, 16, had been hiking with three other people through the Maple Ridge park on Tuesday.

The group made it to Steve’s lookout around 2:45 p.m. that day.However, when they headed back down to the campsite, after about 15 minutes of hiking, the group leader realized Wang was missing. They returned to the lookout to look for Wang but couldn’t find her. The leader headed to the trail entrance to notify a park ranger and police.

“Esther Wang has been located. She’s healthy, she is happy and she’s with family.”

3. A dog has retrieved 155 discs from woods. They’ll be on sale soon, with proceeds going to the park in West Virginia where they were found

Meet Daisy, the yellow Labrador retriever with a unique talent for finding lost Frisbee golf discs at Grand Vue Park in West Virginia. Four years ago, while on a walk with her owner Kelly Mason, Daisy discovered a disc in the woods and proudly brought it back. Since then, Daisy's obsession with finding stray discs has grown, and she has collected an impressive cache of 155 discs.

Mason and park officials have now come up with a plan to return the discs to their owners if they are labeled, and any unclaimed discs will be sold as a fundraiser to support the park's disc golf courses. Daisy's Discs is expected to be a success, with many excited about the possibility of recovering their lost discs thanks to Daisy's remarkable skills.

4. Australian earless dragon last seen in 1969 rediscovered in secret location

A tiny earless dragon feared to be extinct in the wild has been sighted for the first time in more than 50 years – at a location that is being kept secret to help preservation efforts.

The Victorian grassland earless dragon, Tympanocryptis pinguicolla, has now been rediscovered in the state, according to a joint statement issued by the Victorian and federal Labor governments on Sunday.

5. Detroit is going to power 100% of its municipal buildings with solar

All of Detroit’s municipal buildings are going to be powered by neighborhood solar as part of the city’s efforts to combat climate change – check out the city’s cool grassroots plan. Meet Detroit Rock Solar City.

The city has determined that it’s going to need around 250 acres of solar panels in order to achieve 100% solar power for its municipal buildings.

6. Canada Officially Bans Cosmetic Testing on Animals

The fight for cruelty-free beauty in Canada has seen a significant breakthrough as the Canadian government legislates a full ban on cosmetic animal testing and trade, marking a victory for Animal rights advocates and eco-conscious consumers.

This landmark decision is part of the Budget Implementation Act (Bill C-47), not only prohibiting cosmetic animal testing but also putting an end to the sale of cosmetics that use new animal testing data for safety substantiation.

7. Belize certified malaria-free by WHO

The World Health Organization (WHO) has certified Belize as malaria-free, following the country’s over 70 years of continued efforts to stamp out the disease.

“WHO congratulates the people and government of Belize and their network of global and local partners for this achievement”, said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. “Belize is another example of how, with the right tools and the right approach, we can dream of a malaria-free future.”

----

That's it for this week :)

This newsletter will always be free. If you liked this post you can support me with a small kofi donation:

Support this newsletter ❤️

Also don’t forget to reblog.

[iridescentxstars]

Hi hi, I'm excited to see what you do this kinktober. Looking to support a fellow dark and feral writer. So, if you may, my request are:

San, Fear Play & Size Difference

You go to a party with your friends on Halloween and spot a handsome guy, walking around, shirtless, covered in fake blood with a mask on. Little did you know that it isn't quite a costume…

Hopefully this sparks you, but more importantly, you have fun!

killer!san x fem!reader || prompt: you go to a party with your friends on halloween and spot a handsome guy, walking around, shirtless, covered in fake blood with a mask on. little did you know that it isn't a costume... || kinks: fear play, size difference, primal play, dirty talk || warnings: reader is short, predator/prey dynamics, not cnc but very borderline || wc: 1.4k

please remember this is all fictional. this work is NSFW and contains SMUT, if you are under 18+ DO NOT INTERACT

You had seen him the moment that he walked into the room, tall body somehow easily making its way from one side of the room to wherever he wanted to be. You didn’t know who he was but his presence definitely got a few people chatting at the party because his outfit has definitely become a quick favourite. 

The alcohol fuels you, makes you feel more confident as you were chosen to pick your suitor for the night. A fun game that your friends made up to play every Halloween – put your name in the hat if you want to play, names are chosen at random and those who are paired up can do as they please. Of course, not everyone is happy about their pickings but that’s the whole point of the game, to win or lose, to try something new and not every prize is what you asked for. Your hand shuffles the papers in the name and you pick one, a piece slightly sticky as you pull it out.

Blood.

Not that you or anyone else is aware of the fact that it is real, everyone is wearing fake blood and under the lights, who would know?

“San.” You call the name out, looking around the room until the handsome man everyone had been checking out steps forward, a smirk hidden beneath his mask as he eyes you up. He stalks towards you, standing before you as you tilt your head back to look up at him. “Wow-.”

Chuckling, low, deep, San leans down as he captures your chin between his thumb and index finger to make sure you maintain eye contact, “wow yourself, beautiful.” He says in such a way that has butterflies fluttering in your stomach. “Shall we get out of here?” You don’t even know if you could say no to him, something about his closeness having you under a spell because all that is running through your mind is how this man could ruin your life and you’d say thank you.

Oh, who is going to tell you?

You agreed to it, whatever game San said he wanted to play, something that matched the whole Halloween vibe. Killer and victim, something like that, lost in the woods without anyone to be able to save you – it’s the headline for tomorrow’s news but as dangerous as this could be, you want to try. You want to know what it’s like to run knowing you’ll be caught, not knowing what’ll happen after, not knowing what is running through his head as he watches his little mouse run from the beast she’s invited into her life.

Fear play, he explained it as he drove you to the park, a kink that gets him going and that would be perfect. “When else would you be able to play the victim like this, on the scariest day of the year?” Maybe it’s the alcohol running through your veins but you agreed.

When else would you do such a thing?

“Shoes off, little one, don’t want to lose those heels.” He holds you steadily as you take off your shoes and put them in the back seat of his car. “Fuck, you’re tiny.” You blush when you realise that without your heels on, you’re face to face with San’s pecs and with the fake blood splattered across chest and the mask he still wears – you realise that this man could be really dangerous. That thought sends a shiver down your spine and even if it’s pitch black around you, you’re sure that you saw a glint in San’s eyes when he registered that shiver as realisation rather than the cold.

“So-”

“Run.” He instructs, indicating with his chin for you to run towards the tree line, away from him, “as quickly as you can, little one. “I’ll give you a head start.”

“And if you catch me?”

You can tell by the way the mask moves that San’s grin is wide, maybe it’s better to not see it because it would be truly terrifying if you did. “If I catch you – you are mine.”

You don’t know how long you’ve been running. You don’t know where you are. You don’t know what is even going on anymore. All you know is that you are fucking terrified as you hear the sound of twigs breaking or bushes rustling every time you take a break to catch your breath. Your lungs are tightly pushing out as much air as they can, your breathing shallow and ragged as you lean against a tree to help you catch your breath. “San?” You call out into the dark nothingness around you, shivering as the thought of being stuck out here with God knows what becomes increasingly loud in your head.

Why did you do this? Oh right, because the really hot guy from the party asked you if you wanted to play a little game with him. That’s right.

You hear movement nearby and you startle, like a baby deer, and sprint in the opposite direction as tears prickle at the corner of your eyes. You don’t even register that he’s herding you, having you go in the direction that he wants, herding you towards a lovely little clearing where nobody will be able to hear you. Disturb you… disturb him.

“Fuck, fuck,” you say over and over as you feel a branch catch on your dress before it scratches your skin and snaps.

More noises, more movements, more rustles that have you rushing in a different direction as you frantically try to escape. You’ve forgotten that this was meant to be a game, something fun and different because now all you can think about is trying to find your way to safety – only for a large body to take you to the ground without any warning. You struggle against him, desperately trying to get away but his arms wrap around you tightly, keeping you from being able to move as he chuckles deeply at your fruitless attempts at escaping him.

His nose buries into your neck, inhaling your fear and sighing like it’s the most intoxicating scent he’s ever had the pleasure of knowing. “Do you remember what I said, little one?” You freeze in his hold, a moment of recognition processing in your mind as you settle in his hold, “ah, ah, don’t give in so easily.” He warns, almost sounding disappointed you snapped out of it quickly, “we don’t want this to finish early. I simply asked if you remember what I said.”

You try to break free, to no avail, as you nod your head and utter, “yes,” loud enough for San to hear.

Suddenly, his hold loosens and you are able to get away, scrambling to your feet and not looking behind you. Maybe he was trying to adjust his hold and you managed to succeed – not knowing it was a trick until he had you tripping over and falling onto the ground while his large hand is tightly wrapped around your ankle, pulling you back.

There’s that fear again, the fear of the prey, the fear of getting eaten by the big, bad wolf. A fear that mixes with something else as San presses himself against you and grapples with your body until you’re completely enveloped by him, your small body pressed against his. Pleasure. “I’m going to fuck you, little one. I’m going to fuck you right here, on the forest floor before starting this chase all over again. Fucking you every single time I catch you until day breaks. I’m going to have you dripping cum as you desperately try to get to freedom only for you to end up under me again, and again, and again.” Your whole body tingles as his words are spoken deeply in your ear, the promise sounding like a threat and you have no idea how to process it as it fuels both your fear and arousal. “Who knows when I’ll be done with you.” He grinds his hips against you and you know he’s going to rip you apart. “If you don’t want it, say it right now and I’ll stop, take you home and we will never think of this again – but if you don’t…” His hold on you tightens, “then get ready for a long night.”

Sanity begs for you to run away, to not fall into this dangerous hole with this man but sanity doesn’t run this ship, does it?

“That’s a good little pet,” San growls before letting you go and lifting your dress over your ass and moving your drenched panties to the side, “that’s a fucking good little pet indeed.”

[aarontaylorjohnsonsdivorcelawyer]

library card ➵ valgrace university au

FINALE - part 10 [masterlist]

☆ ★ ✮ ★ ☆

Leo slid his phone down his back pocket and viewed the landscape of New Rome University. He can see that the sun, although ithadn't set yet, is a burst of brilliant light, scattering orange, purple, and pink hues in the sky. He really hates driving at night, and he really could just return to the architecture building tomorrow, but the curiousity is killing him. He had to go back. Now.

"Hey, are you in a hurry? I need to go somewhere," he called to Piper, who was walking by him on the way to the parking lot.

"Where are you going?" Piper asked, abruptly stopping to see that Leo had fallen behind.

"I think I left something. Can you wait for me? Or you can go on without me if you want," he said.

Piper shrugged. "It's fine. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Great!" he replied. "Be safe."

"You too," Piper said before turning to walk away.

Leo tried to walk the first few yards, but his feet took over and then he's sprinting. There was a loud pounding in his chest; whether it was from the sprinting or the nerves, he's not sure. At last, he arrived at the building, and the pounding just banged even more.

He paved cautiously, scared and excited about what he's gonna find. He's been searching for it everywhere he go, turning his head at every drawing tube yielding individual he sees, hoping his eyes lands on the right one. Perhaps it did, but now he will have a name. And now, Leo is certain.

His feet lead him to the bulletin board, his Docs squeaking at every step he takes against the tiled floor. The building is empty except the few students hanging out the tables just outside the archway, close to the vestibule in which Leo is at. He let out a shaky breath, steadying his chest as he approached.

He knew the piece very well. He admits that the reason it slipped his mind to look at the name was because the illustration captivated him first and his gaze simply brushed over the title block in the corner. Then he went back to admiring it.

It's some sort of summer camp. It has multiple buildings that carried different architectural styles but unified with classical elements, which he never imagined would work this well. At the frontage stood a big blue house white trim and wrap-around porch, and close to it stood a big pine tree. The pine tree seems huge and daunting, like some magical entity that protects the land.

There were cabins. It was surrounding a firepit in the middle, in a horseshoe shape. There might've been 20, but he's not sure. He took note of the little shabby chic cabin and got the sudden urge to tell Piper about it.

And then there's the red one. His eyes lingered at the little brick building. It's a mixture of industrial and steampunk, seemingly out of place to the bright gold and the wooden cabins on either side of it. He remembered pressing his palm against the sheet of glass that protects the board, brushing his index finger at the tiny drawing. He had never been in a summer camp before, but the tall columns and the bronze statues and the waves of the ocean are singing that he had been here before. He's even so sure that there's a hidden bunker in the woods somewhere.

Somehow, he is certain, that in another life, he is a camper in this camp, and he is with his best friend Piper McLean, and Jason Grace.

Jason Grace.

His gaze catapulted to the bottom right corner. And then he saw it. Right next to the student number he's been typing at the library for months, was Jason Grace's name. It was a name he memorized so well, so well that he didn't even struggle to read it even with dyslexia. It's as if his mind is trained to look for Jason Grace.

He fished his phone from his pocket, hands shaking. Then he dialed the number.

"Hello?" the speaker on the other end replied. It was Jason's voice.

"Hey. . . I'm at the archi building right now," Leo said, trying to disguise his nervous voice.

"I know, I'm looking at you right now."

He turned to the courtyard, and saw Jason amongst the students in the table. He smiled at him when he caught his eyes, phone pressed against his ear.

"See, I told you, it's easy to figure out," Jason chuckled on the phone. The Jason he's looking at rose, and approached.

Leo dropped the phone. "Hi," he said, to the Jason in front of him.

"Hi." He said it better than Leo. The word glides smoothly out of his mouth, with the smile never leaving from his face. There was a trace of a scar on the top corner of his lips, forming a crescent shape guided by his smile.

Leo bit the inside of his cheek, trying not to think about Jason's stupid lips, and the stupid scar on his lips, and the stupid smile on his lips.

"I'm sorry, this is so embarrassing," Leo said, shifting his gaze away from Jason. "This is so weird."

"What do you mean it's weird?"

"This! I've made it weird! I said some weird things now this is weird!"

"What? No, you didn't do anything weird at all!"

Leo avoided his gaze. "This is like a pattern for me, I fall in love so easily, and I do something embarassing, and then I drive them away. I — I just. . ."

"Hey." Jason put a hand on Leo's arm, sending thousans volts of electricity down his body. "None of this is embarrassing, it's just me."

Leo sighed. "Well, it will soon! I don't know how to act, I've never made it past the daydreaming phase! I've never had anyone know I like them, I just keep it to myself."

"You think this is embarassing? You should ask Malcolm how I acted when I saw you at the bleachers," Jason chuckled, his hand dropping grip Leo's wrist. "Good thing the helmet hid my face well, and you're far enough to not see it."

"W-what do you mean?" Leo stammered.

"You know what I mean! Now I'm the one who's embarassed."

"I didn't know you know me!"

"Of course I know you! You brought amazing flan to Mrs. Jackson's Christmas party!"

"I—" Leo dropped his head to hide his face, chuckling in disbelief. "So what now?"

"I say dinner?" Jason tilted his head, waiting for Leo's response.

"Your treat? Since you're the rich one?"

"Hey, you still owe me 30 dollars!"

☆ ★ ✮ ★ ☆

When he went home that night, a huge smile plastered across his face, Leo took out his phone and changed the contact on his phone. The mystery man he's been texting now has a name, and it is Jason Grace.

He was typing his thank you to Jason for the amazing night when the phone vibrated on his hand, along with it was a text from Piper. He smiled to himself. He has a lot of things to tell his best friend.

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

Hidden Treasure 2

No tag lists. Do not send asks or DMs about updates. Review my pinned post for guidelines, masterlist, etc.

Warnings: this fic will include dark content such as dubcon/noncon, obsession, and other possible triggers. My warnings are not exhaustive, enter at your own risk.

This is a dark!fic and explicit. 18+ only. Your media consumption is your own responsibility. Warnings have been given. DO NOT PROCEED if these matters upset you.

Summary: your quiet life is interrupted by a tempestuous man. (reader is Blair from Follow You Anywhere)

Characters: Thor

Note: I'm currently in the denial and procrastination stages of schoolwork. I'm doing the readings but damn this shit is kinda complex and my brain can't function.

As per usual, I humbly request your thoughts! Reblogs are always appreciated and welcomed, not only do I see them easier but it lets other people see my work. I will do my best to answer all I can. I’m trying to get better at keeping up so thanks everyone for staying with me <3

Your feedback will help in this and future works (and WiPs, I haven’t forgotten those!) Asking for more or putting ‘part 2?’ is not feedback.

Love you all. You are appreciated and your are worthy. Treat yourself with care. 💖

There's that jeep again. 

You've never been the most observant. You tend to stick in your lane, keep your head straight, and just rush by the world around you. If you don't bother anyone, you're safe. If you don't draw attention, you can't be a problem. 

But that jeep is there again. Parked by the curb across from your building. There's a million logical explanations; a new neighbour or someone visiting family, yet it sticks out sorely in the neighbourhood. Too nice, too new.  

You let the black curtain hang straight and back up to sit at the table. You bend the lamp closer to shine on your work, fussing with the gears of an old cuckoo clock. The darn thing ticks backwards. You squint and hunch over, carefully realigning the replacement gear. 

The tiny screwdriver jams down as you jump and let out a tiny yelp. Thunder rolls around the building and a torrent of rain whips against the window pane. The storm is so sudden and unexpected that you wonder if maybe you lost track of the time. 

You refocus and redo the work, checking that you didn't do too much damage. You can't focus for the way the windows rattle and the rain pelts harder and harder. Another peel of thunder shakes you and lightning flashes around the curtain. You haven't seen a storm like this in years. Or ever. 

You get up and leave the clock unfinished. You peek around the curtain. The sky is so grey, the streetlights are on. You can hardly see more than the rain speckled abstraction of the streets below. 

Another blindly strike of lightning illuminates the world and you back away, the hair on your arms standing on edge. Loud noises always make you nervous. You retreat to the couch and pull the knitted throw from over the back. 

The shelves against the walls tremble as the storm seems to center on your building. You look around, terrified, and watch the figurines and books as they shift on the wood. Oh no. 

You get up and let the blanket fall to your feet. You grab an armful of cushions and frantically set them around the shelves to catch anything that might tumble. This can't be real! The way the whole building quakes is like a movie. 

Once you have pillows scattered all around, the air grows stagnant and silence shrouds the world. You look around, feeling rather foolish as you see your manic safeguards littered on the floor. All these things you worry so much about and why? There's always more to be found. Never enough.  

You return to the window and once more look out. You cling to the curtain as you pull it back. The sun is out again and the street is slick and shining with the aftermath of the storm. Your eyes narrow along the curb; the grey jeep is gone. You don't know if it matters but you notice it. It's just a strange coincidence.  

🕰️

The next day, you descend with a new box of good for sale. You leave most of your things in the car, covering them with a blanket against greedy eyes, but there’s no use in the up and down, back and forth. You rarely have the energy after a long day amidst the market crowds. 

You nearly drop your armful as you come in sight of your car. You blink. It can’t be real. Your mouth falls open as you slow and near the ruins of the old auto. The metal of the hood is crumpled and singed, as if it was burnt by some unearthly force. You recall the storm. 

What rotten luck that it should land on your car, of all things. It had seemed quite close and yet, you didn’t even think something like this could happen. You walk around the car and take in the breadth of the damage. What do you do? 

The windshield is cracked, a spider web in the glass, ready to shadow at the merest touch, and the left tire if flat. Even if the engine isn’t cooked, you don’t think it’s safe to drive. You hug the box in your arms and stare. 

Crying can’t help you. It never does. You don’t do that. Not since you were a child. You’ve dealt with worse anyhow. You still have a roof over your head. There’s that at least. 

Still ,you can’t hold onto that one bright side without an income. You can’t afford a rental and you don’t know anyone who would lend you a car, let alone spare a ride. You look down at the box, ready to accept defeat. 

You have to try... it’s not about being easy, it’s about getting it done. You don’t have a choice. You need what little you can make from selling your antiques. Come rain or shine, rather literally, you have to find a way. 

Your body reacts without a clear plan. You put the box down next to the rear tire. You open the back door and fling back the blanket. You sift through your crates and find what you need; the sign. You take that and your hand-written stack of cards, and put them in next to the lockbox in the box on the ground. You grab a few extra trinkets and the bag of embroidered coin purses and a few other light items. As much as you can do alone. 

You should be able to make back the bus fare, even if the journey might be a bit awkward. 

🕰️

You get to the market and realise another pitfall. You have your things and your sign and just about nothing else. As you wander to the empty space meant to be yours, the one you pay a fee for, you have only a box and yourself. You don’t know that it will attract many people. It’s hardly professional. 

As you stand on the empty patch of grass, watching other sellers set up, you contemplate the transition to an online marketplace. You tried once but never really moved any pieces. The shipping costs were enough to deter you and prospective buyers. 

You sigh and think of the wasted three bucks. Why did you come all the way down here to stand around like some weirdo? You are a bit off but this is a bit much. 

“Hey,” a voice startles you and you turn to face the plant seller. You recognise him as he’s come to buy a gift or two for his mother from time to time. He’s always talkative, always smiling. He’s a bit much. “Uh, we going minimalist?” 

You peer around and shrug, “car troubles.” 

“Hm, that’s too bad. Um, I was just making my rounds and saw you looking a bit lost. You remember me, right? Cole.” 

“Yes,” you answer sheepishly. 

“Well, we stick around. Us vendors. If you need some table space for the day, I can move the cacti over--” 

You can’t help your surprise from showing in the creases of your forehead, “really?” 

“Yeah, of course. Did I ever mention my mom loved that new lampshade? They discontinued the style ages ago and she was ecstatic. I mean come on, I sell flowers, you think she’s beaming with pride.” 

“Erm, I don’t know,” you try not to show your discomfort. He does talk so much. Beggars can’t be choosers and you’ve settled for far worse than a chatty companion. “If you don’t mind, I would be so grateful.” You rub your neck, “I... I can’t offer much but if you want a few items. Maybe for you mom—oh, I could bring you this vase I found. I can show you a picture.” 

“It’s no problem,” he steps forward and you shy away at his suddenness. He slows down and shows his palms, “woah, sorry, I was just going to grab your stuff.” 

“Oh, you don’t have to--” 

“Please, I make a habit of helping out pretty women. My pleasure,” he assures and scoops up the box of goods. 

“Mm, thanks,” you roll your tongue against the roof of your mouth, chewing on that comment. Charming but a bit unnerving. He tries just a little bit too much. 

You follow him across the row of booths and stands and around the corner to his own. He has a much better location than your own but it makes sense. Flowers sell better than used doilies. 

He puts the box down behind his table and starts to rearrange his goods. You wait until there’s a clear space and start setting out your own things. You pick out only the stuff you know will sell and prop up your sign. You leave the lock box underneath with the leftovers. 

“You mind if I go use the bathroom?” You ask Cole as he folds up his jacket and lays it over his chair. 

“Sure, I’ll keep an eye on things,” he says. “Need anything?” 

“No, no, I’m good,” you assure him and flit off. 

You head down to the brick building that houses the public restrooms. You use the solitary to collect yourself after the disaster-stricken morning. As you emerge, you wander along and pause just outside the booth selling iced drinks and hand-made tumblers. They’re all very cute but you can’t afford a cup, yet you can splurge for some of the tea. 

You chew your cheek as you consider the menu. You’re not sure what to pick. Hm, he likes flowers. 

You order two lavender lemonades and wait patiently as you count out the money. A little treat is much needed after the morning you’ve had. You claim your drinks and turn, nearly colliding with someone else. You back up and look up at the towering man. You recognise him. 

“Ah, there she is,” the man booms, “I feared you were not attending today.” 

“Oh, uh,” you furrow your brow. He’s that man who left you waiting then came back with his mother. He seems to be a regular though you’d never seen him before a few weeks back. “Hi?” 

“Thor,” he supplies, “I don’t think I introduced myself yet. And you, little treasure?” 

You hesitate before you muster an answer. Little treasure? How strange.  

“So, have you relocated?” He wonders. 

“Um, for today,” you say, his curiosity tweaking your nerves. “My car... well, I’ll figure it out.” 

“Oh, how unfortunate,” he frowns, “well, where can I find you? My mother is due soon, I believe my brother will be with her. A family day, you see?” 

“Mm, oh, I’m... down there,” you motion with the drinks, “at the flower booth.” 

“Flowers? Wonderful, mother will like those,” he grins brightly, “well, don’t let me keep you. You must have many customers waiting and those do you look delicious. Enjoy.” 

You look down at the drinks and nod. As you look back up, he’s already heading off. It isn’t very often you remember a face and his is becoming familiar. He must not have very much to do if he’s here every weekend. Who are you to speak? 

You go back to the stall as Cole speaks to some customers and wraps up two tall irises for sale. You wait to the side, hoping they might have some interest but they shuffle by with polite smiles. You do your best to smile back then turn to Cole. 

“Hey, um, I know it’s not much,” you take one of the cups and offer it, “I didn’t know if you’d like it but, lavender lemonade?” 

“Oo, is this from the Tea Time place? I’ve been dying to try it,” he perks up, “thank you so much. That’s too nice.” 

“Mm, well, you’ve done so much and you don’t have to.” 

“We all have bad days, huh?” 

“I guess,” you take your own drink and taste it. Different, but not bad. You’ll stick to your regular stuff at home though. 

You put the cup under the booth as more people approach. You have a few asking about the purses and browsing the sleepers. You sell some of the baby clothes but the purses are left unpurchased. Better than nothing. You’re all breaking even. That’s a weight off. 

Further down, you hear a deep roll like thunder. It’s that big burly blond. Thor? He’s there with the same blonde woman and a slimmer man nearly the same height but much thinner. His hair is dark where the other two are fair. 

Thor meets your eye, frightening you, and you quickly look down at your wares and arranges them. You sense his shadow coming closer as his mother continues her conversation with Cole about the amaryllis. The other man looks disinterested as he glares at Cole. 

“Mother,” the slender man sighs, “you could have a better bargain with the florist in town.” 

“Oh, hush,” she jabs him and returns to her barter. 

“Ah, yes,” Thor cuts into your intrusion, “I see you’ve got yourself set up. Oh, and you’ve made friends.” 

He glances over at Cole and you follow his gaze. You back up and fold your hands over your stomach. He turns back to you and narrows his eyes. 

“Friendly fellow, isn’t he?” 

“Mm, sure, he... he’s helpful,” you move your hand to grip your other wrist. “I don’t have too much today.” 

“Yes, I see. No jewelry? I was hoping to find some pendant for mother.” 

“Uh, no, sorry, like I said--” 

“Or a ring,” he insists. “She is a fan of jewelry. Back home... well, where we resided prior, she had so many pieces...” he smiles and exhales, his chest rising and fall, “ah, it isn’t any matter. I do like this.” He picks up the figurine of squirrel with an acorn, “it’s adorable.” He meets your eye and smiles broadly, “I like cute things.” 

You nod, unsure how to respond. You give him the price and he reaches for his wallet without pause. He pays and you stop yourself from offering to wrap it up. You don’t have your newspaper or little paper bags. 

“Thanks,” you cheep, “hope you have a good day.” 

“It’s already been lovely,” he purrs and wobbles the squirrel with a grin, “I do hope yours gets better as well.” 

[pascalispretty]

the girls next door - part one

Joel Miller x F! Reader x Tess Servopoulos

Rating: Explicit

Word Count: 4.1k

Warnings: Dead Dove, Do Not Eat. No Outbreak AU. Stepcest/stepmom Tess, dad's best friend Joel, infidelity, voyeurism, mommy kink, humiliation, cunnilingus, vaginal sex, porn, masturbation, smoking, age gap, rough sex, hair pulling

Summary: Unable to sit still in his newly-empty nest, Joel Miller goes for a moonlit walk. On his way home, he stumbles across you, your stepmother, and your biggest secret. Joel finds himself powerless to look away, or get the girls next door off his mind. (Masterlist | ao3)

Beta'd by @jennispunk, enabled by @misscharlielulu. Constructive criticism welcome!

Joel knows it’s a terrible habit. He’s made so many promises that he’ll never do it again, but with Sarah officially moved out for college, the temptation was too strong. He tugs on a jacket and finds the hidden packet of cigarettes tucked into a kitchen drawer, before opening the sliding door and stepping out into the cool night.

One of his favourite things about his new neighbourhood was the park that the house backed onto. Being able to move Sarah into a bigger house, with a pretty park right on her doorstep, had been one of his proudest moments. He still remembers the look on her face the first time he brought her here, and showed her the garden that was just begging for a soccer goal to be installed. He crosses the backyard quickly, letting himself out of the gate at the back of his property and into the park.

Joel pauses on the edge of the treeline to light his cigarette, and starts to stroll, with no particular direction in mind. It’s become a way to wind down on a Friday at the end of the work-week; a stroll in the park, a cigarette, a few beers when he came home. The trees are thick at this end of the park – he rarely encounters anyone on his strolls. Sometimes he calls Tommy, or Sarah; sometimes he just wanders through the trees ‘til he feels less tense. There’s no Sarah anymore to take to the movies or help with homework, and it’s taking some adjustment.

Tonight, he walks almost all the way to the creek before turning back on himself. He’s nearly back home, walking past his next-door-neighbour’s house, when something sharp jabs into his foot. It’s hard enough that he feels it even through his boot, and the sudden burst of pain makes him stumble. Cursing under his breath, he rests a hand against the tall fence, trying to peer at the ground in the darkness for any nails or broken-off sticks.

A flash of movement beyond the fence catches his eye. He looks through a gap in the wood, and finds himself swallowing hard, not quite believing what he’s seeing. The lights are on in the sitting room, and he can see into the space thanks to the glass doors that open onto the patio. He can see Tess sitting on the couch.

Tess moved in next door with her husband a few years ago, and a step-daughter that came and went sporadically from college. Given that Joel considers his neighbour one of his best friends, he definitely shouldn’t be staring at his wife like this.

She’s naked, gloriously bared to his hungry eyes. And, kneeling between her legs, is a woman who seems to be devouring her pussy with all the enthusiasm Joel himself would devote to the task of pleasuring Tess.

Joel can’t look away. Tess always looks so put-together, something that has made him idly wonder before how delicious it would be to take her apart. He has his answer now – it would be glorious. She looks like something his teenaged brain would have conjured up. Her light brown hair shines under the soft lamplight. Her head is tossed back, one of her hands groping desperately at one of her own tits. Her other hand is buried in the other woman’s hair, holding her close as her mouth opens in a silent moan.

Something in the back of his mind tells him that he shouldn’t be watching this. That he should leave and forget what he’s seen. Joel ignores it, stuffing that tiny voice of reason down until he can’t hear it anymore. He steps closer to the fence, pressing his body against the unforgiving wood.

The woman naked on her knees in front of Tess – he assumes it’s a woman, with the hair and the curves – is a mystery to him. He’d never imagined Tess would stray, much less that she’d be into women. Something about the mystery girl tugs at his brain, but he doesn’t have the brain capacity to explore that thought. Not when he can feel himself getting harder as he watches.

Joel idly presses his palm against his crotch. There’s no harm in watching, he assures himself. They’ll never even know he was here.

He watches raptly as Tess gets closer to coming. The hand she has at her breast gets more frantic, pinching and pulling roughly at the nipple. Joel’s cock strains against the denim of his jeans, and he squeezes himself. He has enough sense left to know that he can’t jerk off out here in the trees, though he’s not sure he’d be able to look away even if they all spontaneously ignited around him.

Tess must almost be there; he can see her moving her hips harder against the other woman’s face. Joel squeezes himself just a little tighter, trying to memorise all of the details of the sight in front of him. The arch of Tess’ back, the heave of her chest, the way her heels are pressed against the other woman’s shoulder blades. He barely breathes himself as he watches Tess come – her mouth open in a cry he can’t hear, her lithe body held taut and then relaxing all at once. Joel can feel his pulse roaring in his ears as he watches, finding himself feeling desperate to be the one on his knees in front of her.

The woman on her knees starts to move just as he thinks it, and some madness tells Joel that she’s moving to make room for him. She’s not, of course. He can see Tess’ mouth moving, talking to the other woman. She reaches for something on the couch beside her: it takes Joel a moment to realise it’s a strap-on harness, a big-looking cock attached to it. He’s never seen one outside of porn, and he wonders what other toys Tess might have, stashed away next door.

His nose is starting to hurt, pressed so tightly against the wood of the fence, but he can’t look away now. He watches as Tess stands, the woman at her feet helping her step into the harness and secure it around her hips. Once it’s securely fastened, the other woman stands and turns to get comfortable on the couch.

The realisation hits Joel like a lightning strike. It’s not some mystery stranger with Tess.

It’s her stepdaughter.

****

“On your hands and knees, kitten,” Tess orders, and you hasten to obey. Your face and fingers are sticky with her slick, and you can’t resist the urge to lick your fingers clean as you kneel on the couch. You’ll never get enough of the taste of her, that tangy sweetness that drives you wild. One of Tess’ hands finds the nape of your neck, pressing you down towards the couch cushions. It won’t be pretty if she has to remind you again.

Reluctantly, you remove your fingers from your mouth with a pop, and prop yourself up on your elbows. Behind you, Tess grips one of your hips, adjusting the tilt of them until your ass sticks out to her liking. You feel lightheaded with anticipation, your cunt clenching around nothing as you wait for Tess to act.

“God, look at you. You’re such an insatiable little slut.” Tess says, her hand leaving your hip. Before you can whine at the loss of her touch, the blunt head of the cock she’s wearing presses against your soaked folds. You choke on your own breath as she rubs it teasingly against your entrance, letting you feel just how thick it is.

“It’s- ‘s so big, Mommy,” you whimper, your nails digging into the couch cushions. Tess has always enjoyed bigger toys, and you’ve always enjoyed the challenge. But it’s been a few weeks since you’ve attempted to take anything this big without any prep at all.

“You can take it,” Tess says dismissively. “You always do.” It’s faint praise – it’s barely praise at all – but it makes you preen nevertheless. “I’m not spending time lubing it up when you’re already this drenched.”

“I love eating you out; can’t help that it makes me so wet,” you manage, a little too dreamily given the circumstances. You hear a fond chuckle behind you from Tess.  

“You love eating anyone out, you little whore. A glory hole for lesbians would be your dream come true.” Before you can try to think up any kind of comeback, Tess notches the thick cockhead of the toy against your cunt and starts to push.

The stretch is intense, even just from the tip. Your hips twitch from the effort of taking it. Your inner muscles burn, struggling to yield to the relentless push of the thick silicone. Even so, you can’t help rocking back on it, some animal part of you just needing to take it deeper.

Tess’ manicured fingernails dig sharply into the flesh of your hips, and a moan spills out of your mouth. She rocks her hips in short, violent thrusts that make you quiver, bottoming out so hard that you arch your back and yowl like a cat in heat.

“Fuck, that feels so good,” you gasp out, breath shuddering. “You always pick the best toys.”

“I always know what you need,” Tess says, her fingertips trailing down your spine as she grinds her hips against the curve of your backside. It forces the toy just that much deeper inside you, and you whimper helplessly. Even the delicate touch of her fingers on your back is overwhelming you right now, making you feel like your skin can’t contain the molten heat building inside you.

Rather than setting the brutal pace you’d expected, Tess withdraws the toy so slowly it feels like it’s moving a millimetre at a time. It lets you appreciate its size, and you swear you can feel the thick ridges meant to stimulate veins. She stops when only the very tip is left inside you, the firm hand on your hip telling you not to try fucking back onto it this time.

“Look at you.” It sounds like praise, but the tone is laced with a condescension that makes you squirm. “That greedy little cunt is trying to pull it back in, isn’t it? All those muscles working to try and get you stuffed full again.” One of Tess’ fingers dips down to trace your flesh where it splits around the cock, and your knees nearly give out.

“Please, Mommy, I need it.” You sound utterly pathetic. Some perverse part of you loves that feeling, the twist of humiliation in your gut. You’ve long since learned not to question why, not when simply enjoying the ride is much more fun. Tess makes an amused noise behind you, her nails scratching the curve of your ass as she adjusts her grip.

You’re expecting her to ask you to beg more. Instead, she pulls your hips back hard, filling you completely with one smooth motion. It makes you sob, the feeling of being so exquisitely full making your head spin. Tess pulls back barely an inch before giving another brutal thrust.

“I know, kitten. No thoughts in that pretty head of yours beyond getting fucked, are there?”

“No, ‘s not true,” you choke out before another hard thrust cuts you off. Even as you try to deny it, your walls clamp down harder on the toy inside you.

“Alright, getting fucked and playing with other pretty pussies. Nothing but cunt on the brain either way.” Tess’ nails dig harder into your flesh, doubtless leaving little crescent marks that will make such a lovely constellation on your skin. She uses the grip she has to set a brutal pace, one that leaves you gasping for air. The wooden frame of the couch creaks a little alarmingly under the force of her thrusts, but it’s practically drowned out by the slap of her hips against your ass and the obscene sound of the silicone cock plunging in and out of your soaked cunt.

Your elbows no longer support your weight, and your torso collapses down onto the couch cushions. The motion of Tess’ hips makes your nipples rub against the leather, just one more thing adding to the complete sensory overload. Somehow you want more, more of whatever it is Tess is willing to give you. You rest your head against a pillow and pant out a ‘mommy’ with every hard stroke of Tess’ silicone cock, revelling in masochistic bliss.

****

Out by the fence, Joel crowds as close as he can to the wood. He shouldn’t look, he shouldn’t be staring as his friend’s wife and his friend’s daughter fuck on the couch he watches the Super Bowl on. He definitely shouldn’t be slipping his hand under the waistband of his jeans to rub his cock over his underwear.

But what else can he do? Go back to his silent, empty house for another night alone in front of the TV, just passing the hours before he falls asleep? He feels like a starving man who’s been presented with a feast; he’s not going to turn away now.

Joel squeezes the bulging stiffness of his cock, rocking his hips almost absentmindedly against his hand. He can only imagine how pretty the sounds in that room are; he can see your mouth moving, hinting at moans and whimpers that he desperately wants to hear for himself.

You were at college when Tess and her husband moved in next door, barely staying for more than a month at a time. He’d be lying if he said he hadn’t noticed you at all; you’ve always been distractingly pretty. But some inhibition kept him from looking too hard.

Any inhibitions went right out of the window the moment he saw you naked on your knees, eating your stepmother’s pussy like she paid you to do it. Right now, his only thought is the way your face is twisted in pleasure as you get fucked. He wonders if he could make you look like that himself, and surprises himself by not immediately dismissing the thought.

Instead, he has to squeeze the base of his cock, trying to avoid coming in his pants like a teenager. He shouldn’t be standing out here, pressed so closely against the fence he might get splinters in his nose, but he definitely doesn’t want to be standing out here with his own come soaking into his jeans.

He’s never really seen anything like it, not even in porn. Though he’s enjoying the show, the fact that it’s not exaggerated or acted for his benefit makes it feel more real. You’re not faking moans for the camera. Tess actually is your stepmother, not some stranger you met half an hour before filming started.

You’re not actresses; you’re the girls next door.

Joel swallows thickly, his cock begging for more attention. The aching need is almost unbearable, a level of desire and lust that he hasn’t felt in years. A small voice in his brain wants him to run home and jerk himself off the minute the door closes behind him. Another part of him argues that he can’t, he can’t look away even for a moment. He’s likely never going to see this again; he can’t miss a second of the action. The second voice is by far the loudest.

He watches raptly as Tess reaches one of her hands forward to grab a fistful of your hair, pulling your chest up off the couch and leaving you bent almost in half. A surge of electricity licks down his spine at the thought of being rough with you, of being the one to make the pretty young thing sob in pleasure the way Tess is doing now. Thoughts of you choking on his cock flit briefly through his head. They’re only half-formed ideas, but he knows he’ll revisit them in the shower later.

Palming his cock over his boxers again, Joel presses against the wood. Wild dogs couldn’t drag him away right now. Not when he hasn’t seen you come yet.

****

Your back is bowed so sharply that you know you’ll ache in the morning. Tess’ hand pulls hard at your hair, the pinpricks of pain in your scalp bringing tears to your eyes. It hovers just on the right side of pleasure-pain. Tess is working you at a demanding tempo, turning you into a shivering mess in front of her.

“That’s it, good girl,” she croons. You can hear the smug smile in her voice. “This pretty little cunt of yours was made to be stuffed full, wasn’t it?”

A light sheen of sweat covers your body, and you swear you can feel slick smeared halfway down your thighs. It’s been far too long since you were last alone with Tess.

You lose yourself in the motion of her hips, focusing in on the familiar tension coiling deep within you. Every drag of the silicone cock ratchets up the tension. Your skin feels hot, like the heat pouring through your veins can’t be contained by your body anymore.

“Tess- Mommy- I need to come, can I? Please, please, I need it,” you manage, your breath coming in hard pants. You don’t know what you’ll do if she says no, not when you’re so close.

“Feral little slut,” Tess says, almost fondly. “Because you asked so nicely, then. You can come whenever you like.” She says it so nonchalantly you’d believe she truly didn’t care, if not for the way she shifted the angle of her hips a little to fuck down into you. It made the head of the toy press against that spot inside you on every pass, fireworks exploding behind your tightly-shut eyelids.

The blinding edge of your orgasm hits you before you’re ready. You scrabble against the couch cushion, trying to ground yourself as the tension that’s been building all night finally snaps. A long keening cry rips out of your throat, and you shudder as the pleasure rolls out all the way to your fingertips.

Another sharp sound leaves you when Tess lets go of your hair, the skin prickling as bloodflow returns to your scalp. Without her hand to hold your upper body up, you flop unceremoniously back onto the couch.

“Thank you,” you say softly. Tess strokes lightly down your spine, carefully starting to ease the silicone cock out of you. A trickle of slick escapes you, finally drawing attention to how uncomfortably soaked you are. Your walls tense as they try and fail to keep the toy inside you. The loss of it makes you feel devastatingly empty, and tears prick at your eyes, threatening to spill over your lashes.

“Good girls get rewarded. Let’s get you up and into the bath.” The mere mention of the bath elicits a longing groan from you. A hot bath and lavender bath oil are just what you need after being worked over so hard.

“Will you get in with me?”

“Yes, I’ll get in with you.” Tess helps you up off the couch, holding you by the elbow to make sure you’re steady on your feet.

“Will you bring some champagne upstairs with you?”

“Don’t push your luck.”

****

Joel waits until you’ve both disappeared from sight, and then waits a little longer just in case one of you comes back. The walk back inside his own yard seems to stretch out for miles. His cock is straining uncomfortably against his jeans, begging him for some attention. He moves through his house in some feverish, lustful daze. Later, he won’t remember coming upstairs to his bedroom, or kicking his jeans and boxers down.

All he really remembers is the relief that floods through him when he finally wraps his hand around his cock.

He’s so familiar with his own body – for a while, after Sarah’s mother left, it was all he had. Even as she’d gotten older, he’d never dared to bring a woman home unless she was out of the house. For a long time, his own hand was his only company in this bed.

Joel’s hand wraps tight around his cock, and gives himself a few rough, dry tugs. It stings, but not unpleasantly. Still, he knows he can’t afford to rub himself raw, not when he has so many new memories and fantasies to toy with. He spits in his hand and closes his fist around his length again.

His cock throbs against his palm as he starts fucking his fist in earnest. Joel closes his eyes tight, visions of you and Tess playing against his eyelids. Images come to him in flashes, tiny details that he wants to engrave on his memory. The way Tess’ tits heaved as she came. The curve of your ass as you knelt between her legs. The flex of Tess’ thigh muscles as she railed you. He’s not entirely sure who he’d like to trade places with more.

Joel’s hand speeds up, his hips jerking up to meet it. Precome leaks down onto his fingers, mixing in with the spit to produce wet, slick noises with every stroke. He lets himself groan. It’s still new for him, not having to muffle any noises any more. He revels in it, the freedom of it all. He fucks up harder into his fist and lets his mind wander.

He wonders what’s happening next door.

Even after he comes with a loud moan and ropes of semen staining his t-shirt, he wonders. It haunts him over the next few days, few weeks. Your father returns, and doesn’t seem any the wiser about what happens when he’s away. He invites Joel over for a beer, and Joel insists they stay out in the yard because he doesn’t want to pop a boner on the couch where he watched you and your stepmother fuck.

The encounter seems to have snapped something within him. For so long, he refused to look at you like that. You were too young, too wrapped up in college. But if Tess, only a few years his junior, can find you attractive, why can’t he? Surely, he reasons, it’s more acceptable from him; he’s not married to your father.

So, for the first time, he looks at you. In the warm spring weather, you’re constantly exposed in some way. You like pretty summer dresses and cute shorts. You have a rotating collection of bikinis and bathing suits that you lounge in by the pool. All of them put your legs on display, and most of them give him a great view of your tits. Some small voice in his head chants wrong, wrong wrong.

It doesn’t feel wrong. Not anymore.

You’re not a little girl. You’re a grown woman, well aware of how desirable she is. He sees that now.

He sees Tess too. Perfect, immaculately composed Theresa, with her charity work and luncheons. He should have guessed that the control she exerted on so many aspects of her life would extend into the bedroom. That annoying voice in the back of his head tries to tell him no again. She’s married to his friend. He shoves it down hard. She’s already having an affair, he argues with himself. With her own stepdaughter.

The idea of it refuses to leave his mind. He tries watching lesbian stepmom porn, but it just isn’t the same. It’s too artificial. Nobody who has tasted fresh strawberries would be satisfied with the chalky imitation flavour they use in medicines.

A week or so after watching the two of you, he finds himself sitting in the dark of his room. Night had fallen around him like a cloak, hiding him even though his curtains are open. Light from across the way draws his eye. For the first time, he realises that the room facing his own bedroom must be your room.

You’ve turned a lamp on. He can see it in the corner, a silk scarf draped over the top to soften the light. There’s a narrow strip of land between the two houses, split in two by the fence. It’s thin enough that he can see relatively well into your bedroom. He doesn’t think you can see him, not when his own lights are still off.

You’ve clearly been down at the pool again. Today’s outfit is a turquoise bikini, tied at the neck and back with strings. Joel doesn’t move as he watches you reach back to undo the ties. All of a sudden it loosens and falls to the floor. He can only see your back before you step out of view.

The sight is enough to send him rushing for a shower, the warm water cascading over him as he jerks himself off. When he comes, the image of it spattering over your back pops uninvited into his head.

Joel sighs and rests his head against the tile. The girls next door are going to drive him mad.

[calicovobo]

Cat Chronicles

Summary: The snippets of life captured by a stray cat. 

Word Count: 927

A/N: Hello! This is my first piece of writing on this page, I hope you enjoy! <3

Part Two

You loved looking at buildings. As a cat who barely reaches the bottom of a park bench, buildings were always so tall and intriguing. The buildings with the pretty string lights draped across to the classic solid concrete ones that parents warn their children not to get close to unless they wanted to get taken by some villain, you loved them all. They each had their own story, inside and out. 

But, what you really loved about buildings was the amazing fight scenes you got to see with a front row view, watching as the heroes with their typical flashy quirks chase and take down villains. And while excited pedestrians had to stay back and cheer from a distance, you got to be right up close to the battle scene. You admit that you were quite a fan of these heroes, and in a classic cat feature, the bright lights never failed to catch your eye.

No one noticed you in your hiding spots next to dumpsters or in alleyways. It was perfect for your small and flexible body, and when the fight was as dramatic as they are, the attention is always pinpointed in a separate direction from you. 

“Great capture tonight Eraserhead, you just gotta finish up signing some forms and we’ll take care of the clean-up.” 

After a rather mediocre battle at 2AM, Aizawa couldn’t wait to go home and sleep. But as he was watching the clean-up crew start moving debris and damaged parts around the area, he saw in the corner of his eye a small figure trapped under a slanted plank of wood. 

‘Aw great, how am I supposed to get out of this’ you thought as you watched this giant piece of wood encapsulate your hiding spot. You just wanted to watch the infamous Eraserhead take down a villain! But instead your excitement made you too greedy for action and you found yourself trapped when they were battling. The slanted plank fell low enough to the point that you couldn’t fit to escape. 

‘Maybe I can slither into this tiny crack…yeah that may work- or or maybe when they do recycling tomorrow I can run out and leave!’ With your brain rushing to come up with ideas, you didn’t notice the slow but deliberate footsteps coming your way. 

“Come here, sorry for getting you caught up in the fight.” Startled, you watched as he, with his big strong muscles hidden by his classic dark fabric, lifted the plank and set it aside roughly. Looking up at him with your big green eyes and tri-colored fur, he was enamored by just how cute you were. Your calico coat was just so pretty and with those kind eyes, he couldn’t help but wonder if you were someone's beloved pet they lost. 

‘Big hero man is looking at me!’ You couldn’t believe that the hero of the night just became your personal hero! What a dream come true to be so close to one of your many idols! Your enthusiastic chirps and meows brought a soft smile to the tired hero’s face. 

“I’m glad one of us has enough energy to last the night.” Though he adored your obvious passionate energy, he couldn’t help but worry if you really were someone’s pet with just how trusting you are. He gladly complied as your warm body curled around and rubbed against his legs, just begging for pets. 

“Does this cat have an owner?” Aizawa asked as a member of the clean-up crew walked past with his big hands still giving you rubs. 

The worker was surprised as Eraserhead was infamous for leaving right away after his duty was done. “H-huh? Um, no I don’t think I’ve ever seen that cat before. Maybe it belongs to one of the buildings nearby and just got lost? I can contact the shelter to get it out of your way.” 

“No need. I can deal with it.” Aizawa said as he continued complying to your needy cravings of pets. The scene would make anyone freeze in their steps; a hero known for their deadpan and tired attitude petting a very happy and affectionate calico cat who was sticking to him like glue. 

‘Oh my gosh I love him!. Right there right there! It feels so good.’ It was impossible not to hide your pleasure as Aizawa rubbed behind your ears. You were putty in his hands and didn’t want the night to ever end! 

“Do you belong to anyone tiny? I have to go soon, got a class full of brats to teach tomorrow, tch.” He knew you couldn’t answer him but he didn’t want to leave you out here all alone. He was aware of the animal and cat haters who weren’t afraid to kick you aside, especially with how friendly you are towards humans. But, as the sky continued to get darker and as he remembered that he had an early class to attend to tomorrow, he knew he had to leave eventually. 

Aizawa had thoughts of just taking you into his arms and bringing you home with him but, if you really did have a family looking for you, he didn’t want to take you from that spot just yet. You looked at him curiously as he spiraled into a mental debate with himself. And, just as he was about to make his decision, you gave him one last head bump to his leg and hurried away. 

You loved humans but you were a cat meant to explore and venture, nothing could hold you back!

[candycandy00]

Could you right a zombie apocalypse au with dabi? I don’t have any idea about how it could go but always love the only one bed trope haha

The Trade Part 1 - A Dabi x Reader Zombie AU

Splitting this into parts because it was getting too long. Part one has no smut (but there will be plenty in part two, don’t worry!).

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

Smut to follow in part two, strong language, violence, implied (failed) rape attempt, etc. 18+.

The first time you saw the mysterious black haired man in the woods, you were convinced he was one of them. After all, in the shadows of the trees his extensive, deep purple scarring had looked like wounds. He’d walked slowly, almost lumbering. It wasn’t until later that you realized his unusual gait was due to him dragging a large animal behind him. 

When he emerged from the forest and into the sunlight, with you watching silently from the tree line, you finally understood that this was no zombie. It was a scarred man who had just killed a deer for his supper. 

From there, you followed him to a clearing by the road, where a rusty white van was parked. You stayed hidden just inside the woods as you watched him set up camp around the van. He drove plastic gardening stakes into the ground all around him, then wrapped some sort of wire around them, marking a perimeter. He then methodically tied empty cans in sets of threes to the wire, every few feet. It seemed like a lot of work, but it would definitely alert him if a zombie wandered into his area. 

He didn’t seem to have any system in place to detect human interlopers though, as they could easily spot the cans and step over them. Either he was foolish enough to believe he was completely alone out here, or he was confident enough in his ability to defend himself that he wasn’t worried. You hoped it was the former. 

He started a small fire, then went to work skinning and cleaning the deer. You took note of the fact that he seemed to have plenty of supplies, including bottled water. You couldn’t help licking your dry lips. You’d been drinking water from a nearby river, but it was unfiltered, and sometimes made you sick. You drank as little of it as possible, so it kept you alive but you were persistently thirsty. 

When he began cooking the deer meat, you had a battle on your hands to keep your stomach from growling loudly enough to give away your presence. You reached into your tattered backpack and pulled out the last strip of rabbit jerky you had. A family you’d met over a week ago had given you some wrapped in paper, and you’d made it last as long as you could. Aside from a fish you’d managed to catch in the river and three potatoes you’d dug out of an abandoned garden, the jerky was all you’d eaten in ten days. 

The deer meat smelled delicious, but you didn’t dare approach. You had to observe this man for a while first. He’d pulled several things out of his van, so it clearly had lots of supplies inside. If you could learn his habits, maybe you could steal from him. You’d certainly done it before, to anyone who seemed to have more than they absolutely needed. 

Eventually you retreated further into the woods and climbed into a tree to sleep. It was the only way you could rest while knowing zombies roamed about. The next morning, the man with the van was gone, and you cursed yourself for sleeping so soundly. 

Two days later, you spotted the man coming out of a convenience store that had obviously been looted already. It was in a tiny, empty town, and you’d crept in to look for food. When you heard loud crashes and bangs coming from the store, you ducked into an alley across the street and watched. 

The glass door of the shop burst open as a zombie was seemingly thrown outside. As it tried to stand back up, the black haired man stepped out of the store, holding an aluminum baseball bat. He pressed his boot into the zombie’s chest to hold it down, then swung the bat, smashing the zombie’s head with one hit. 

Two more zombies followed him out of the store, and three others lumbered over from nearby streets, attracted to the commotion. You felt a sense of panic, even though you were hidden and far enough away that you could easily flee before any of them reached you. Zombies in general did not scare you. They were slow and dumb and easy to lure into traps. You’d killed plenty with your hunting knife. But in groups, they could be terrifying. Any more than three at a time sent you into flight mode. 

The man was surrounded by five zombies, but he didn’t seem worried or scared at all. In fact, he seemed… pissed off. 

He swung the bat with a fury that made you more nervous than the zombies did, splattering blood and brains all over the concrete beneath his feet. When only one was left, he hit it over and over, long after it had stopped moving and its head had been reduced to mush. 

“Motherfuckers!” he screamed. Then he panted as he regained his composure. He shoved the bat into a sling at his back and went back into the store. Later, he emerged carrying a crate full of stuff. You couldn’t see much of what he had, but you were pretty sure he had found some useful items left behind by looters. 

He climbed into his van and left. This time, you were not alarmed by losing sight of him. Clearly the two of you were traveling in the same direction, and even though he was traveling faster in his van, he was apparently making stops along the way, probably to hunt. You’d catch up to him again, you felt certain of it. 

You decided to venture into the store. It was very likely that he had cleared any zombies from the interior, and it had been several minutes since the fight outside and no other zombies had appeared. 

Inside, the shelves were almost completely bare, save for some trash and items deemed too useless to bother carrying around - toys, a pair of foam flip flops, a cane that looked too flimsy to be a proper mobility aid. You got down on the floor and looked under the shelves. A fellow survivor you met two months ago had told you about this trick. “People tend to be in a hurry when they’re gathering supplies,” he’d explained, “so they end up dropping stuff. Some of it ends up kicked under the shelves and the people who come in later don’t think to check there.”

Beneath the shelf to your right, you found a package of expired gummy bears. You ripped them open and shoved a handful in your mouth, savoring the juicy sweetness. They were the best gummy bears you’d ever eaten. When you had half the pack left, you rolled it down and pushed it into your backpack for later. 

Under the shelf to your left, you found a bottle of shampoo that was open and spilling out. You grabbed it and closed the lid. There was still over half a bottle left! You hadn’t shampooed your hair in over a month, so this would be a luxurious treat.

You found a few more items under the other shelves: a single battery that would fit your flashlight (you hoped it wasn’t drained), a small box of bandaids, and (most precious of all), an unopened bottle of sweet tea. 

These treasures safely tucked in your backpack, you left the store and headed in the same direction you’d seen the white van leave in.  As you passed by the alley you’d hidden in earlier, a pair of pale white hands suddenly reached out from it and grabbed your arm. You jerked free, repulsed by the feeling of cold, damp flesh on your skin. 

A single zombie shambled out of the alley, arms raised in front of it as it reached for you again, mouth biting the air in anticipation of tasting human meat. You backed away from it as you slid the hunting knife out of the holster on your thigh. In most cases, you chose not to fight or kill zombies. It was messy and, even in the best circumstances, risky. Plus it was a pain to sanitize your knife in a fire before using it to skin the small animals your sometimes caught. 

You looked back at the store. Should you lure it in there and shut the door? But that would leave a rather nasty surprise for the next person who came along and decided to check the store for supplies. You sighed and pulled your backpack off as you continued backing away, keeping a modest distance from the zombie. If there was a struggle, you didn’t want to risk your backpack being ripped or damaged. It was sturdy and easy to carry, and who knew when you’d come across another one? You dropped it on the ground and backed a few more feet away. 

Once you felt you were in a good position (plenty of open space in all directions so you could flee if necessary), you stopped and waited for the zombie to get closer. Once it was near enough to almost touch you with its outstretched arms, you quickly ducked around behind it and shoved your knife into its ear. The arms dropped, then the body collapsed onto the pavement. You retrieved the knife and breathed a sigh of relief as you wiped the blade off on the zombie’s shirt. 

Poor bastard. He died in the most hideous lime green T-shirt you’d ever seen. 

You picked up your backpack and left the small town, excited to drink some of your tea later in the evening. 

It took you four days to find the man with the van again, and it was totally by accident. You’d followed the nearby river to a waterfall. You’d grown up in this area, so you remembered there being a waterfall around here somewhere. Figuring it would be a great place to wash up and use that shampoo you found, you followed the sound of rushing water until you spotted it. 

The waterfall wasn’t huge, but it was high enough that falling from it would probably be dangerous. The water at the base of it, near where you stood, was only around four feet deep, as you recalled. You and your friends would occasionally go swimming there during particularly hot summers. You remembered picnics under the shade of the trees that lined the river, laughter as you took turns running into the falling water. The memories made you feel numb more than anything else. 

As you stood there beside a tree, you heard a loud splash. You ducked behind the tree by reflex, then peeked around it to see the man emerging from the water. Had he been under for the whole three or four minutes you’d been there? All your thoughts suddenly froze in your brain when you realized the man was completely naked. Apparently he also thought this was a good place to bathe. 

His body was marred by the same deep purple scarring that covered parts of his face and arms, like a patchwork. There was something oddly mesmerizing about those scars. He was lean, with just the right amount of muscle, and his black hair glistened in the sun as water dripped from the tips and ran down his torso. 

As he stepped out of the water, you couldn’t help stealing a glance at the rather impressive appendage between his legs. Even wet and cold, it looked pleasingly large. 

The man walked over to small brown bag and pulled out a towel. How had you missed that bag? Regardless, he toweled off and then spread the towel on the ground and sat down. He pulled a can of what looked like beer from the bag and cracked it open. Then he pulled out a tattered paperback book and leaned over on his side. 

Was he seriously just going to relax by the river… naked? That’s when you noticed the handle of some sort of weapon sticking out of the bag. He certainly wasn’t defenseless. You’d seen his incredible strength a few days before. 

With a start, you realized this was a great opportunity to check out his van. It had to be parked close by, and the man clearly planned to be there for a while. You took one more long look at his well toned body before tearing your eyes away and heading back into the woods. 

The trees were tall and their dark green foliage nearly blotted out the sunlight above you. But there was enough light to spot a white van amongst the browns and greens of the forest, so it didn’t take you long to find it. 

You approached carefully, remembering the man’s tendency to use traps and systems to alert him of danger. The leaves were moist and slippery under your feet, perfect for remaining silent as you stepped lightly around the van to reach the back. Then your heart dropped to your feet. 

The back doors of the van were covered in wire lined with metal cans. It would be physically impossible to open them without causing a huge racket. You checked the side doors, and they were locked tight. You had some experience breaking into vehicles, though you were definitely no expert. You peered in through the window, only to spot more wires and cans tied to the inside of each door. 

You sighed and walked away, heading back to the waterfall. When you reached the trees you’d hidden in before, the man was pulling on a faded black T-shirt over his ripped jeans.  He looked good in them. He gathered the rest of his belongings into the brown bag, zipped it up, and walked off in the direction of his van. He passed within twenty feet of you, but you were perfectly still behind a tree. 

You waited for a while after he left, to be sure he didn’t return for something he forgot, then you moved close to the water, slipped off your backpack and pulled out a few items. A change of clothes, a towel, and the shampoo you’d been saving. You stripped off your clothes, leaving only the thigh holster with your knife snapped inside. You washed the clothes you took off in the water then draped them over low branches in the nearby trees to dry. 

Finally, you stepped into the water and dipped your whole head in to get your hair wet. The water was cool, but not enough to be uncomfortable. It looked crystal clear and clean, and it soothed the various cuts and scrapes you’d incurred over the past several days. 

You squeezed out some shampoo before tossing the bottle onto the shore and lathering up your hair. It smelled heavenly! Like fresh flowers and honey. You rubbed the lather all over your body, figuring that if men had been using one product for their hair and bodies for years, so could you. 

Once you were covered in soap, you went over to the waterfall and stood under it, letting it rinse you clean. It felt so close to an actual shower, you nearly cried. 

You played around in the water for a little while, then stepped out and dried off before dressing in clean clothes. You relaxed by the water, just as the man had done, while waiting for your wet clothes to dry. The sun, reaching you now that you were out of the woods, felt warm on your skin. 

You left back through the woods, but just before you broke free of the tree line by the highway, you heard the distinctive sound of someone walking. Someone alive. Twigs snapped and leaves crunched, the noise so close that you whirled around to look for the source. 

Two men approached from the direction of down river. You could smell them from several yards away. Apparently being so close to the river had not inspired them to wash up, at all. They appeared to be in their mid thirties, both sporting unkempt beards and long, scraggly hair. Both carried backpacks, rifles on their backs, and numerous knives attached to their belts. 

These were exactly the sort of people you tried to avoid. In your time on your own, you only approached certain types: women, families, small mixed groups that seemed to get along with each other. You never approached single men, much less multiple men together with no woman in sight. 

Usually, you were extremely vigilant. You always spotted other people in plenty of time to hide or flee if they seemed like bad news. In the early weeks of the outbreak, when you’d first ventured out on your own, you’d met a younger girl who was exceptionally good at sneaking around and avoiding being caught by the living or the dead. You’d traveled with her for a while, learning her techniques as well as how to use a knife. Since then, you’d always managed to evade danger. But today you had dropped your guard. Perhaps the shower had been a little too relaxing. 

“Hey there,” one of the men said, throwing up his hand in a wave. 

You debated whether you should make a run for it or not. They had rifles, so they could probably shoot your legs out from under you if they wanted to. You stood completely still, watching them as they got closer. 

“You out here alone, girl?” 

“No,” you said, trying to keep your voice firm, “my friends are waiting for me just up the road.”

You hoped they would believe the lie, that they’d rather avoid getting into a fight with a group they knew nothing about. 

“That’s funny,” the other man said, “we walked along the road for a long time and we didn’t see anyone waiting for you. Are you sure they didn’t leave you behind?”

His tone made it clear that he didn’t believe you. Shit. How could you get out of this situation? You kept yourself steady and replied. “Really? Maybe they parked in the woods. They do that sometimes, for the shade.”

“Good idea,” the first man said. “These trees sure do block out the sun. They block out a lot of stuff.”

“Well,” you said casually as you turned toward the road, “I better head over there before they get worried and come looking for me.”

You made it a few steps away, walking at a leisurely pace to feign nonchalance, when you heard fast, heavy footsteps running toward you. Glancing back, you saw one of the men rapidly closing the distance, holding up the butt of his rifle like a club. 

You broke into a run then, but you didn’t make it far. The rifle struck your head, your vision blurred and darkened, and you felt yourself falling over. You were unconscious before you ever hit the ground. 

*****

When you woke up, you heard the sounds of a crackling fire before your eyes adjusted to the bright orange light against the murky darkness of the forest. 

You were lying on your side on the ground, close enough to the fire to feel its heat on your skin. Your hands were tied together in front of you with thick, coarse rope that rubbed your wrists in an unpleasant way. One of the men was sitting nearby, skinning a rabbit. The other, the one who had knocked you out, was standing on the other side of the fire, stoking it with a long stick. Your backpack was lying a few feet away from you. 

Afternoon had turned to dusk, still light enough to see without a fire or flashlight, but dark enough to make you wary. From your experience, fires in the woods at night were not the best idea. The glow sometimes attracted zombies, so only groups with enough people to keep watch normally lit them. You had stuck to small fires in the daytime, just lit long enough to cook some food or boil some water from the river. Zombies didn’t know to look for smoke.  

The two men didn’t seem to be conversing at all, so pretending to be asleep to listen to them was pointless. You pulled yourself to a sitting position, your knees pulled up in front of you. They hadn’t bothered to take your knife from the holster on your thigh. Had they simply not noticed it? Or did they think you were this little of a threat? 

The man standing at the fire noticed you were awake and flashed you a smile. It was a repulsive smile, accompanied by dark eyes moving over you hungrily. You could guess why they had taken you captive. You’d heard plenty of stories. You glared at him and steeled yourself for a fight. 

“We’ll have dinner first,” he said in his rough voice, gesturing toward his friend with the stick. “Then we’ll have dessert,” he added with a grin, pointing the stick at you. His friend chuckled. 

You suddenly felt like throwing up. These men were disgusting, with their leering stares and stinking bodies. The thought of one of them touching you for even a moment sent ripples of revulsion through your entire body. 

Shame it wasn’t the handsome black haired stranger with the scars. 

Wait… did you seriously just think that? Ugh. You’d been out here in the woods for far too long. 

You tried to stay calm as you assessed the situation. The good: you still had your knife, and your hands were tied in front of you instead of behind you. Cutting yourself free would be easy once you got away. You also knew these woods fairly well, and were accustomed to moving around in the dark. The bad: there were two of them, and they were clearly much stronger than you. They both had those rifles too. 

You glanced around, taking in the now blazing fire and the positions of the two men in relation to it. You almost smiled. This was nearly identical to a scenario Toga, the girl you’d traveled with, had told you about being in before she met you. And you remembered exactly how she’d said she escaped. 

You scooted over a bit, making a show of wincing and leaning as if your backside was sore. You needed to have both men on the other side of the fire from you. The one sitting on the ground cleaning the rabbit would be easy. The other was pacing back and forth, occasionally stirring the branches and logs in the fire. If you timed it just right…

There! As soon as the pacing man got close to the other one, and they were both across the fire from you, you suddenly kicked out both your legs, shoving your boots into the base of the fire. Sparks and embers flew everywhere, flames reached out like glowing hands and crawled along the ground, alighting leaves and twigs. The sitting man yelped and fell backwards, the other one cursed and backed away from the flames, but he was too slow. Fire danced up his pant leg as he screamed and tried to put it out by slapping at it with his hand. 

In the chaos you got to your feet, grabbed your backpack off the ground, and ran into the trees. You heard one of the men yelling for the other to go after you, then a screamed reply of “Fuck you, I’m on fire!”

Once you’d ran so far that you could no longer hear their shouts or see the glow from the fire, you huddled next to a tree and used your knife to cut the rope, freeing yourself. You holstered the knife and pulled your backpack onto your shoulders, then looked around for a hiding spot. The woods were getting darker by the minute, but that was an advantage for you, not them. 

Eventually you found a tree that was perfect, and you climbed it quietly and carefully. You tucked yourself against the trunk and nestled into the branch, an action deeply familiar to you by now. Around half an hour later, you heard one of the men run by your tree. By that time it was so dark that you would’ve been shocked if he’d spotted you. After that, you only heard the usual sounds of the forest as you drifted off to sleep. 

The next morning you didn’t climb down immediately. You used your high vantage point to look out over the area, scanning the woods for any sign of the two men. Would they give up on you, deeming you too much of a hassle to deal with? Or would last night’s events only make them pursue you more doggedly? You couldn’t be sure, but you also couldn’t spend the entire day up in the tree. After watching for a few more minutes and feeling certain the men were not close by, you climbed down to the ground. 

You headed to the river first to wash your face and fill your water bottle. You doubted you’d be able to start a fire today, for fear that the smoke would give away your location, so you couldn’t boil the water. You grimaced at the thought of drinking raw river water again, but you’d sip it if you absolutely had to. Having an upset stomach was better than being dead. There was maybe a mouthful of sweet tea left in the bottle you’d found in the store, but you wanted to save it for as long as you could. 

When ready, you made your way back through the woods and to the trees that lined the highway. You didn’t dare step out into the open. Too many dangerous folks traveling the roads. But you stayed close enough to be able to see the highway at all times. You rarely saw cars going by these days. The last one you’d seen, besides the white van, had been over a week ago. 

You walked through the edge of the forest, moving in the same direction you had been for a few weeks now. You didn’t have a particular destination in mind. You simply wanted to keep moving, keep away from people, stay near the river where you could always get water and sometimes even catch fish, stick to the woods where you could occasionally catch a squirrel or a rabbit. It wasn’t a great life, but it was all you had at the moment. 

You’d walked nearly the whole day when you saw a very welcome sight: the white van parked just inside the woods, several yards ahead. You were surprised that you’d caught up with him so quickly, especially after being slowed down by those two assholes last night. 

As usual, you approached it carefully. When you got close enough, you realized the back door was standing wide open. No wires or cans had been strung up. The driver’s side door was open as well. 

What the hell was going on? 

There was no way the man would leave his van like this. Even if he suddenly had to shit, he wouldn’t leave his stash of supplies completely unguarded. Had he been attacked? The image of the two men flashed in your mind. The black haired man was strong, but they had guns. They could have forced him out of the van. But in that case, where were they? 

You circled around the van from a distance, looking for signs or clues as to what had happened. You strained your ears to listen for footsteps, but you heard nothing. Could the man have been attacked by zombies? Maybe he stepped out to pee, was suddenly surrounded, and had to run deeper into the woods to get away. 

Mind racing with possible explanations, you decided to watch the van for a little while, in case someone came for it. After nearly an hour, the woods were getting dark again. If you were going to make a move, now was the time. You took a deep breath, then walked over to the back of the van. You peered inside, and to your hungry, desperate eyes, it looked like the holy grail. The entire back of the van was filled to the brim with supplies. 

You climbed up into it and looked around in wonder. There were cases full of canned goods, bottled water, snacks, and even a few packs of beer. There were boxes with things written on them like, “bandages,” “batteries,” and “soap”. Curiously, there were several boxes of black hair dye. It almost looked like the storeroom of some convenience store. 

All of this was too suspicious. You didn’t dare grab a lot of stuff. What if the man really did have to suddenly relieve himself? Or had to run from zombies but was circling back around to his van? You decided to be cautious and grab only a small number of items, things he probably wouldn’t even notice. Then you could watch the van from an afar and grab more stuff if he never came back. 

You opened your backpack and shoved in two bottles of water, a can of peaches, a can of pork and beans, a bag of potato chips, and two chocolate candy bars. The carbs would come in very handy. You’d had so little energy lately. Pleased with your choices, you zipped up your backpack and pulled it on, then turned to exit the van. 

You stopped dead in your tracks. Standing right outside the van, staring at you with one hand on his hip, was the black haired man.  He looked at you with a deadpan expression and said, “Looks like I caught myself a thief.”

[welcometothemaraudersspam]

a walk in october ~ n.k x reader part 1

“apocalypse ~ cigarettes after sex”

volume: ■■■■■□□□

warnings: cursing? just nanami being cute :3

word count: 2.3k

part 2 here!

｡･:*˚:✧｡｡･:*˚:✧｡｡･:*˚:✧｡｡･:*˚:✧｡｡･:*˚:✧｡

Your converse cladded feet kicked the tiny pebbles adorning the sidewalk, a soft sigh leaving your lips. Lifting your gaze up from the ground taking in the breathtaking scenery. The leaves had reached their full autumn bloom. Shades of orange and brown coating every inch of the park. There were plenty of people enjoying the cool weather, their chatter heard in passing as you made your way further into the park.

The only other sound you took notice of were the rustling of the leaves, your eyes gazing up at the sky.

You could swear up and down that fall skies looked different. There was a certain hue to them that you couldn’t find in summer skies.

Summer skies were bright.

Baby blue.

Fluffy white clouds coating the sky. Everything was the perfect shade of green. The scenery just looked clean.

But fall skies-

That’s where it truly is.

Fall skies… they were brown. They were comforting. Everything about fall made you feel so warm inside. Maybe it was the ever changing shades in the leaves. The earthy tones coating the ground.

It was breathtaking..

And you look forward to it every year.

Your train of thought came to an abrupt stop as you had arrived at your usual spot. Setting your bag onto the wooden park bench, a soft thud followed shortly after. Taking a seat on the worn wood tugging your lunch out of the brown bag, humming a soft tune. Another gust of wind rustled the leaves above you, a few stray ones dancing their way down to the ground.

This place you had considered your spot wasn’t entirely hidden. Anybody could take it. But, no one ever did.

It was a lone wooden table barely holding it together with benches. The wood was beyond worn. Outlines of where people had loved it before. It was further into the park, near the outskirts of it, under a giant tree.

The tree looked over hundreds of years old. It’s roots sticking every which way. But it was thick, it could be hit with a bulldozer and knock the machine right back. The way the branches were positioned made it look like you were sitting under a mushroom. It was perfect.

It gave you just the right amount of shade.

A gorgeous view.

You could stay there for hours.

For days.

The sound of someone calling your name broke you out of your trance, lifting your head up from your sandwich, a smile tugging at your lips. The sight of Gojo waving erratically with unamused familiar faces in tow.

The white haired man practically sprinted over to you, helping himself to a bite of your sandwich making himself comfortable on the seat beside you.

A scoff left your lips, “Soturu. Wow, how lovely to see you. Yes, of course you can have a bite. Thanks for asking!” Offering him a fake smile pinching his cheeks, a little harder than usual an odd sound leaving his mouth. He just grinned at your actions, resting his arm around your shoulder tugging you closer to him.

“Soturu, behave. You’ve barely been here 2 seconds and you already managed to piss her off.” Suguru mused, sitting across from Gojo, his bangs blowing across his face. Shoko snickered at his words, opting for sitting on the edge of the table. You beamed up at the girl attempting to shrug off Gojo’s arm, but he didn’t falter. He tightened his grip on you, popping a few of your grapes into his mouth, pretending to not hear you struggle beside him.

“Shoko! My love, please save me.” Begging the brunette, reaching for her with both of your hands, Suguru sighed audibly while Nanami rolled his eyes at Soturu’s antics. The tall boy just wrapped another arm around you, squeezing you tighter.

“Soturu, do you remember that time last december when we went on a mission and the curse’s power had the power to shrink-”

Almost as if he had been struck by lightning, the blue eyed man released his hold on you instantly, red dusting his pale skin. Snickers left Geto’s lips clearly knowing the backstory, a satisfied hum left Shoko sending a wink your way. You tugged the brunette toward you peppering her face in kisses, loud smacks leaving both of your lips as you giggled to one another.

Shoko had been your best friend since diapers.

You had been through every stage of your life with that girl.

When you had turned 12, you had moved due to your father passing. You had begged and pleaded to not leave, offering any of your possessions but nothing helped.

Your mothers mind was made up.

Having to tell Ieiri that you were leaving was the worst moment of your life. You still remember everything that was said. All of the tears wept between the two of you.

Knowing her temper, the girl had no one to yell at but you. She blamed you at first, out of anger, but deep down she knew she was just trying to protect herself from getting hurt.

You never thought you would see her again but almost as if you guys were meant to be with one another. The pair of you didn’t meet again until you ran into each other at Jujutsu High.

You had never been more thankful in your entire life that you could see all of these awful curses, as long as it meant you could be with your best friend again.

.・゜-: ✧ :-.・゜-: ✧ :-.・゜-: ✧ :-.・゜-: ✧ :-

“And over here is where your dorm will be. You have one neighboring roommate. She’s nice. I’ll introduce you to her… yeah, right through here. ” The tall blonde spoke gently, unlocking your new dorm room giving you a chance to walk in first.

The room was much bigger than you had expected. It was bare. But you didn’t mind. You had plenty of belongings to make it feel like home in no time. Sighing softly as you kicked your slippers off at the entrance, your sock clad feet padding across the wooden floor. Making your way over to the window in the corner of your room. Peeking out the window, a soft gasp leaving your lips.

“Nanami! You never told me I had such a gorgeous view.”

“I wasn’t sure you even had a window.”

“C’mere. Look! You can see all the trees from here,” You mused to the tall man, motioning him over. He gingerly made his way over, bending way down to see the cherry blossom trees coating your windows view. You could see a creek from your room as well, a soft hum left his lips.

With the little space between you, your senses were overwhelmed with what you assumed was his natural scent. Smelling of fresh laundry and… was that cinnamon?

“… all I got was the view of a brick wall.” A snort left your lips snapping you out of your trance, nudging the blonde playfully. An unfamiliar look flashed across his face quickly clearing his throat, maneuvering around you to go towards your dorm door. “I-.. did you have any further questions?”

“Yes actually,” Anyone from a while away could see the nervous wreck that was Nanami Kento, a small part of you only meaning to poke fun at the 2nd year who was standing before you. “Is your dorm also in this hall?”

“Em- since girls and guys have to be in separate halls… I am- I am not.”

“Hm.. what a shame.” Uttering under your breath, knowing full well he could hear it. A rush of pink flooded his face, parting his lips at your words. The blonde fringe covering his eyes partially made you realize how cute his eyes truly were, a soft giggle leaving your lips.

“Nanami… we still have the rest of the tour to go on.”

“Right!- if you follow me…”

.・゜-: ✧ :-.・゜-: ✧ :-.・゜-: ✧ :-.・゜-: ✧ :-

A loud heaving noise to your left made you release Shoko, giving the giggling boy a glare as he looked proud at himself. Both you and the brunette gave him an amused look, gesturing towards him and the dark haired boy beside him.

“I didn’t think you of all people would be against same sex couples considering you have a whole ass boyfriend-”

“That’s not true. Whatsoever. He’s my husband-”

A wave of groans left your group's lips as his long limbs reached across the table to take ahold of Geto’s clasped hands, a look of feigned disgust coated his face. Nanami just rolled his eyes but you took notice of how he had moved his hands under the table. Holding back a chuckle catching his eyes, a faint blush creeped up his neck.

“You haven’t been here long have you?”

“No, not too long. I was bored and the weather was lovely, so I figured why not have my lunch here rather than at the school.” You shrugged your shoulders, finally taking a bite of your sandwich, looking up at the young girl whose lips had already been captured by yet another cigarette. “Shoko… tell me that’s your first one today. It’s barely 11.”

The girl stiffened her hand with the lighter stopping right before her mouth, avoiding your stare. Setting down the sandwich, leaning forward so your face was right under her gaze. She just sighed.

“I don’t want to lie to you…”

“Sho! I thought you were trying to quit.”

“I know, I know! But being around this dumbass makes it incredibly difficult. ” Tilting her head back towards the tall white haired man who was currently trying to balance a glass container on the top of his head, a goofy grin spread across his face.

Hold on.. that’s my glass container.

At the mention of Shoko’s insult he snapped his head toward the two of you. A stream of words began leaving his lips catching sight of your container tumbling off his head. A soft gasp left your lips as you scrambled to reach the glass container, a pair of hands reaching it before it touched the ground.

Nanami looked unamused by Gojo’s actions, setting the container into your awaiting hands, fingers brushing slightly, offering you a smile. A smile graced your lips before quickly turning into a frown, facing the white haired boy.

“Gojo.”

A beat passed, the boy turning his head around to face the tree trunk.

“I’m going to beat your ass.”

“You wish you could touch me.”

“You know I’m one of the only ones who can. That’s why you're not facing me right now.”

Another beat.

He started whistling to himself, his head moving side to side as he pretended to not hear you. A sigh left Geto’s lips, rising from his position on the bench. Shoko hesitated to move but she knew it best if she did, tossing her cigarette under her boot smothering it.

“Soturu. Let’s go before she ends up having to explain to Yaga where you went.”

Soft grumbles left his lips, begrudgingly standing up giving you a quick peek at you over his sunglasses. You pretended to cup your hands together, making him huff and begin to fast walk ahead of your friends. A giggle left your lips, watching him stumble over a rock.

“I’ll see you at training, sweets.” Suguru leaned down to bring you into a warm embrace, rubbing his back as he started after Gojo who was sulking from afar. Suppressing the laugh that begged to be let out at the sight of an almost grown adult, pouting with his arms crossed over his chest. Shoko pressed a chaste kiss onto your cheek, waving goodbye at you.

A sigh left your lips pressing your head onto the wooden table.

“I visibly saw the weight leave your shoulders once he left.”

“I swear. He makes my head pound. How does he even manage that?”

Nanami just let out a soft chuckle, crossing his arms in front of him as he eyed your form. His eyes drifted over your tousled hair splayed on the table, catching sight of a fairly deep cut on the back of your hand. Almost on instinct, his hand reached out, stopping right before he could touch your skin.

“What happened to your hand?”

“Hm?,” Lifting your head up to look at your hands, just now taking notice of the gash on your hand. The blood around it had already dried, looking like it had already begun scabbing over. “That is… a good question. I’m not entirely sure. Sometimes I just get a bunch of random cuts and bruises and have absolutely no recollection of where they came from.”

“It’s truly a surprise you’ve made it this far as a sorcerer if that’s the case.” Nanami hummed a smile tugging at his lips, a laugh leaving your body as your eyes locked with his. A comforting silence washed over the two of you.

The only sound you could hear was the rustling of the leaves above and below you. The breeze was nice and cool on your skin, tugging your shirt hems over your hands.

“Nanami?”

A soft hum.

“Have you ever thought about getting a lip piercing?” The strangest sound left his mouth eyeing your face to see if you were being genuine. Tilting your head at him, quirking an eyebrow at the blonde.

“I- I don’t think it would suit me.”

“Are you kidding? I genuinely thought you were secretly tatted under that uniform. A lip piercing- scratch that, any piercings would 1000% look killer on you. I think it suits your face.”

“... do you truly?”

“I have no reason to lie to you, Kento. I swear.”

His heart soared at your words, a smile gracing his face. He untucked his ears, not a single word leaving his lips. You stared innocently up at him, eyes trailing to where his hair now uncovered. A small gasp left your lips, the sight of pure joy lighting your face up made him chuckle, feeling his face heat up at the look on your face.

“NANAMI KENTO. YOU- YOU HAVE PIERCED EARS.”

｡･:*˚:✧｡｡･:*˚:✧｡｡･:*˚:✧｡｡･:*˚:✧｡｡･:*˚:✧｡

a/n: hi lovelies! this is my first time writing for jjk, i just recently finished watching the series. and i completely fell in love. i have written well over 10k worth of words on this story. plz let me know how you guys feel about it. lots of love <3

[softandsleepyboy]

Good Agere Games for Switch:

❤️ Little Kitty, Big City

Will you make your way home or will you explore what the big city has to offer first? I mean, getting home is obviously your main priority. Obviously. Well, it's one of your priorities. Maybe more of a guideline... It's definitely on your To-Do list somewhere! But first? Exploration!

🧡 Layton's Mystery Journey

Progress through the story while walking around town, chatting with local residents looking for clues, and solving puzzles and mysteries with the heroine, Katrielle Layton!

💚 Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion

Play as an adorable, yet trouble-making turnip. Avoid paying taxes, solve plantastic puzzles, and take on massive beasts in a journey to tear down a corrupt vegetable government!

🩵 Cat's Cosmic Atlas

Gaze upon the stars and other celestial bodies. Cat’s Cosmic Atlas takes you through the Southern and Northern skies. Experience the most beautiful sights and learn a thing or two about the vast universe that surrounds us.

💜 Snug Finder

Snug Finder is a beautiful hidden object game. Become a finder and try to find all the objects, but be careful, sometimes it’s not that easy.

🩷 Teacup

You play as the titular Teacup, a shy and introverted young frog who loves drinking tea and reading. The day before she is to host a tea party at her house, she realizes she is completely out of tea, and thus must venture into the woods around her to find the herbs she needs to restock her pantry.

❤️ Haven Park

Be Flint, who is doing his very best to keep his grandma's park up and running and make it a place for the campers to enjoy. Learn the camper's wishes and build whatever their hearts desire to attract even more quirky characters and look forward to whimsical conversations and quests.

🧡 Under Leaves

Relaxing music, amazing scenery, peaceful gameplay—all this will make you slow down. Let your thoughts flow freely as you collect items for your next animal.

💚 Smushi Come Home

Smushi Come Home is a cozy exploration adventure game where you play as a tiny mushroom who's trying to get back home! Play as Smushi, who was taken from its home unexpectedly and dropped into the middle of the forest. Lost and confused, you must journey through different areas of the forest and find your way back with the help of your new tools and fellow forest creatures!

🩵 My Time at Portia

Restore your Pa's neglected workshop to its former glory by fulfilling commissions, growing crops, raising animals, and befriending the quirky inhabitants of this charming post-apocalyptic land!

💜 Melatonin

Melatonin is a rhythm game about dreams and reality merging together. Harmonize through a variety of dreamy levels containing surprising challenges, hand-drawn art, and vibrant music without any intimidating overlays or interfaces.

🩷 Alba: A Wildlife Adventure

Join Alba as she visits her grandparents on a Mediterranean island. She is ready for a peaceful summer of wildlife exploration with her friend Ines, but when she sees an animal in danger, she realises she needs to do something about it!

[soleminisanction]

Did I spend my Saturday putting together character write-ups of my two main Our Life: Now & Forever MCs? Yes. Yes I did. What can I say, I'm addicted.

Alvis Norling - Step One

Pronouns: He/They

Alvis was born intersex, so their mother opted to raise them gender-neutral from birth and leave their pronouns and gender up to them as they got older. The he part of he/they is a fairly recent development. 

Despite identifying as “kind of” a boy, Alvis has a preference for feminine clothes. Not skirts or dresses, they almost never wear anything like that, but they tend to wear women’s pants and girls’ blouses, that sort of thing. 

His biological father was of Russian heritage, while Opal is Welsh. 

Favorite color is silver. The thought that it pairs so nicely with Qiu’s gold makes him happy. 

Fell for Qiu pretty much the moment they met. He’s the prettiest person they’ve ever seen, so cool and graceful, it’s like hanging out with a prince. Alvis is completely blown away that this guy would even talk to them, and is just happy to spend whatever time they can with him. 

Tamarack overwhelms them, but in a good way. They’re pretty content to be dragged along by her like a doll, deferring to her in pretty much everything. He admires her a lot, and just the fact that somebody so fun and confident seems to like him makes him happy. She’s their best friend, and he especially appreciates the way she looks out for him when his social anxiety acts up. 

He starts off afraid of the woods but he’s going to learn to love it with Tamarack’s help. Getting used to the people who hang around Qiu all the time takes considerably longer, particularly after Darren's less-than-stellar first impression. Alvis also finds Baxter intimidating.

Due to his missing leg, Alvis walks with a prosthetic and sometimes with the assistance of a cane. While he can usually manage on his scooter, there are some days when he has trouble getting to school by himself; luckily, Opal’s arrangement with the Lins and the Baumanns includes Qiu and Tamarack’s respective guardians cluing them in on the situation, so he can always count on leaning on Tamarack’s shoulder or catching a ride on Qiu’s bike if he needs to. 

Opal calls them a starling as a term of endearment because their voice is sweet and they’re tiny and light. As they get older, the use of that name extends to a small handful of their most precious people, most notably Qiu.

Alvis Norling - Step Two

Pronouns: He/Him

By fourteen Alvis is pretty settled in Golden Grove, but is far from the most popular kid in school. He's more of a quiet fixture in town, a common presence in the local library, park and craft store, but one who mostly keeps to himself or to the company of his best friend Tamarack.

He's still head-over-heels for Qiu, and the fact that they're not as close as they used to be is a source of a lot of melancholy and longing for him.

Biggest hobby is jewelry-making. He makes a lot of his own accessories (including the earrings hidden by his messy hair) and often gifts the rest to friends and family.

Overall demeanor is of a somewhat restrained, academic, effeminate gay man -- less flashy and flamboyant than most queens, but in the same rough area of the gender spectrum. Like a queen who's also a librarian.

Very much the mom friend.

Chandra Dúskar - Step One

Pronouns: She/Her

Cisgender female and an incorrigible lesbian pretty much from birth. Chandra has flirted with a lot of girls in the past (and let boys simp for her to get her way) but none of them have ever struck her with full-blown love at first sight the way Tamarack did when she burst out of her leaf pile. Chandra came home and told her mum that very afternoon that she was going to marry Tamarack one day, and she sticks to it.

She also decides, on her first day of school, that she's going to be popular someday, and goes after that goal with confidence to spare.

Style isn't full gothic lolita but she's close to it. The outfit she wears in this picture has jeans, for example, but also a sporty skirt worn over it, and she definitely favors the black with colorful accents look.

Adores spooky things and is super excited by the prospect of her house, the town, or anywhere else being haunted. Naturally, autumn is her favorite time of year because it has Halloween, the best holiday ever.

Give Qiu a run for his money in terms of friendly showing off. From the moment they meet Chandra wants to match him toe-to-toe in terms of athletics, popularity, and dance performances. So naturally, they're best friends.

Thinks Baxter is cool and mysterious and Darren is cute and fun to tease.

Wears her hair over her eye like that because she likes to surprise people with her heterochromia. And also because she's a little self-conscious about her birthmark, though she'd never admit that.

Favorite colors are black, pink and cranberry. Favorite drinks are hot chocolate and Shirley Temples.

Doesn't know how to ride a bike and has no interest in learning, especially not when she can hitch a ride on Tamarack's scooter.

Chandra Dúskar - Step Two

Pronouns: She/Her

Her personal style remains more feminine than the head shot might lead you to believe, it's just taken on a distinctly goth-punk edge as she grows into her rebellious phase.

Super stylish. Super confident. Super witchy. Always gets her way.

She and Qiu are the top dogs on campus, and also best friends. Chandra picks up the slack where they've stopped caring, though at a glance people usually find her the more intimidating of the two just based on her looks and style.

Is completely unsubtle about how much she adores "her Tammy." It might not help Tamarack's confidence to be showered with compliments all the time but dammit, Chandra's going to try.

Fully intends to get an eyebrow piercing and/or a tattoo once she's older.

[origamiplushie]

I Have a Bird in Spring. Chapter 3

Written as part of the @steddiesummerexchange for @hardboiledleggs.

Chapter 3. Rosenberg’s Gladiator Frog

Chapter 2. Read on AO3.

Rosenberg's gladiator frogs have spines with scythe-shaped features on their hands. Battles between male gladiator frogs will often result in permanent damage to the frogs and the battle may ensue until one of them has been killed.

A soft rustling sounded among the trees. A bright clear blue sky was visible through gaps in the canopy. It was surreal to think that the fire had coloured this same sky a bloody red not even a month ago.

The rustling continued as Steve walked the familiar route towards the little pond. Disuse had allowed the grass to overtake the path his childhood trips had worn into the ground.

He had gone back to avoiding the pond after discovering what kind of damage the Upside Down had done to it. He felt down enough without the pond being a visual metaphor for everything that had gone wrong with his life.

So why was he walking through the woods again?   

Last time his subconscious had brought him to the pond in search of peace and safety. He guessed this time it was his guilt leading him here. After another round of fighting the Upside Down he felt compelled to check on the pond. To see if it was getting worse with each passing year. Steve was halfway expecting the pond to have dried out or even for the whole clearing to be fully decimated.

He stopped just before stepping into the clearing and took a deep breath. This meant he was still hidden by the shadows of the trees when he felt a sudden bout of deja-vu.

There was someone at his pond.

A lanky man wearing black jeans and a ratty band shirt was sat on the grass leant against a tree. He was nodding his head along to music so loud Steve could vaguely hear it through the man’s headphones and scribbling something in the notebook on his lap.

Filled with the kind of surprise Steve had not felt in ten years, Steve stepped into the light without even thinking about it and said:

“Why are you at my pond?”

And as the man looked up at Steve, a hundred tiny things came together into one big realization. Steve could see that same realization mirrored in the man’s eyes.

“Edmund?”

“Steve?”

Of course Steve had been vaguely aware of Munson’s existence. Munson made himself impossible to ignore - mocking the jocks on the basketball team and talking back to the teachers in class. However, Steve had never even thought to look for any similarities between his childhood friend Edmund and Eddie Munson.

His Edmund didn’t even live in Hawkins, he only came by to visit his uncle. But… didn’t the rumors say Eddie had moved in with his uncle in the trailer park when his dad got arrested? And while his Edmund had been brave and brash, always full of energy and ready to confront any enemy with his wooden sword in hand, Steve could see how over time that boy could have grown into a person who isn’t afraid to say what they think but shies away from physical confrontations he cannot win. How it might have become easier to confront those enemies with his wits and words and barely hidden sarcasm.

Suddenly he was looking at an Edmund who had been altered by life’s difficulties, who had grown out his hair and exchanged worn hoodies and shorts for black jeans and leather jackets. An Edmund who had clearly decided to forgo his full name and just go by Eddie.

An eternity seemed to pass as they both did their best to wrap their heads around this revelation before finally the silence was broken once more.

“I thought you had like, moved!” Eddie stuttered.

“No, I’ve always lived here, remember? But you moved!” Steve corrected confusedly.

“I mean that when I couldn’t find you I assumed your family had left Hawkins.”

“Well, we didn’t. I never recognized you. I never even thought to look for you in Hawkins.”

“I didn’t recognize you! I could never imagine King Steve as a shy kid covered in mud from catching frogs.”

Steve rubbed at the back of his neck in embarrassment.

“Uh, yeah I turned into kind of an asshole. Sorry. But at least I’m not King Steve anymore, am I? And you live with your uncle permanently now?”

“Yeah. Ever since old Al Munson screwed the pooch and got put in the slammer.”

An awkward silence looms over the clearing.

“So how about that new Tom Cruise movie-”, “You’re probably headed to college in the fall-,” they started saying at the same time.

“No, actually I didn’t get in.”, “I haven’t seen it,” they tried again.

Steve ran a hand through his hair. Eddie was now intently focused on plucking blades of grass from the ground.

Finally Steve sighed and stepped closer to where Eddie was sitting. He gestured questioningly towards the spot next to him and Eddie immediately scooched over. Steve sat down and stared towards the foliage in thought.

When he looked back down he noticed Eddie whipping his gaze away from the side of his face.

He took a moment to inspect the other boy in turn.

Eddie really did look different. But Steve couldn’t say it didn’t suit him. He squinted at the band shirt Eddie was wearing trying to decipher the band’s name. He glanced back up and locked eyes with Eddie who had evidently caught him staring too.

They both looked away quickly.

“You look great, man.” Steve coughed.

“Oh, um thanks! So do you!”

Steve was pretty sure that was a lie. He was very aware that he still had some lingering bruising on his face from Starcourt.

“Sure. Thanks.”

“So, are you here planning out the satanic takeover of Hawkins High?” Steve tried to joke.

Eddie just stared at him blankly.

“I mean, I’m just kidding. I don’t believe those rumors! Like, I know some kids who play that Dragons and Dungeons game so I know it’s basically like, Playing Pretend! the board game . Well, Dustin and probably you as well would yell at me for calling it a board game. Just… you know what I mean.”

Eddie stared at him for a few more moments before suddenly laughing. Shoulders shaking with barely suppressed giggles he said,

“Man, I’ve missed you, Steve.”

Steve immediately felt like a rock had lifted off his chest. 

“I’ve missed you too,” he smiled warmly back at Eddie.

---

It was nearly dusk. Eddie and Steve had spent the last few hours trying to get to know each other all over again. There were a few stumbles, conversation not flowing as easily as it had when they had been young and unafraid of sincerity, but they could both see how much they had each missed their friendship. It was worth the effort to try and rekindle that.

Steve knew that Eddie had initially been very cautious of him, his impressions of Steve now coloured by the Harrington name and King Steve’s reputation. He himself hadn’t been quite sure how to handle this older, more cynical version of Edmund.

However, slowly but surely they managed to figure out where they stood with each other. 

They had found a safe topic in reminiscing over their shared childhood memories. 

“Remember, when I dared you to kiss that frog to see if it would turn into a human?” Eddie laughed.

“Of course I remember that! It was a very unpleasant experience for both me and the frog!”

Eddie wiggled his eyebrows.

“I’m sure it would be a much more pleasant experience now. What frog wouldn’t want to kiss Hawkins Heartthrob Steve Harrington? I’ve heard all about your kissing prowess.”

“That doesn’t make it any better for me , dude! Plus there’s no frogs to kiss anymore, so there.”

Eddie looked around noticing the lack of small jumping amphibians for the first time.

“Wait, where did all the frogs go? I know it’s not tadpole season but there should still be some around, right?”

Steve took a moment to think of an explanation for what had happened that wouldn’t get government goons knocking at his door.

“Remember how the police said that there were a lot of ‘wild coyotes’ roaming around the woods last fall? Yeah, I think they ate all the frogs. And with all of the frogs dead, there’s no frogs to make more tadpoles. Plus, the chemicals from the lab probably didn’t help either.” Steve answered. He made sure to avoid making eye contact with Eddie.

“So no more frog pond? Ever?”

Steve just shrugged sadly.

They eventually moved on to other topics, other memories, but the silent pond continued to hang over the conversation.

As the sun fully set and the coldness of night started to settle in they both headed back home with the agreement that they would come back to the clearing to hang out again soon.

A few days later, Eddie did come back to their clearing. He also brought along a tiny green paper frog. He handed it over to Steve with a nervous look.

On the frog's back, written in Eddie’s hurried handwriting, was a message that read ‘ Hi, Stevie! Don’t froget to smile :) ’.

“I don’t know if there’s any chance the frogs will come back to this pond. However I thought maybe this might work in the meantime?”

Steve cradled the frog in his hands as a smile slowly grew on his face. He looked up at Eddie,

“Teach me to make these?”

Cheery birdsong echoed through the trees.

---

Eddie kept meeting up with Steve at the frog pond for the rest of the summer, slowly working on becoming friends again. King Steve might have been a total asshole but it turned out that Steve Harrington after undergoing his character arc had turned into a genuinely nice, if slightly bitchy guy. 

Eddie found himself truly enjoying hanging out with him and as ever was saddened by the approaching fall that brought with it another school year and seriously encroached upon his free time. 

Yeah, it was great to get the chance to play DnD again and Eddie had even managed to recruit a couple of new members! Some freshmen who already seemed to fit into Hellfire perfectly and were just his kind of nerdy. However, it was getting harder and harder to find a moment to sneak off into the woods to hang out with his new - old?- friend. Even if he did have the time, the weather had been too cold and rainy.

Thus he was surprised but happy when after the first Hellfire meeting of the year, while waiting outside the school to make sure all of the freshmen got home alright, he saw Steve’s beemer drive up to the doors.

The man himself got out and the teens immediately flocked to his car, chatting amongst themselves about the first session. Eddie followed them at a calmer pace. The moment Steve noticed him, his whole face lit up. He opened his mouth to say something when he was interrupted by a loud honk from the car, Mike’s grumpy face visible through the windshield mouthing for Steve to hurry up already.

Steve flipped the kid off with a scowl before turning back towards Eddie with a rueful smile. He grabbed Eddie’s hand and sneakily palmed him something small before getting back into the car and driving off with a wave.

Eddie stared after him for a few moments before looking to see what Steve had handed him.

In his hand he found another clumsily folded paper frog. On the frog’s back Steve had written: ‘ Good luck this year! This time’s gonna be it, I know it! ’.

The little frogs kept exchanging hands throughout the year. Whenever Steve came to pick up the freshmen, when Eddie came by Family Video or when they ended up bumping into each other at Melvald’s. Eddie now always had a frog waiting in his pocket in case he ended up unexpectedly seeing Steve somewhere.

It was like they were passing notes in class, trying not to get caught and sharing secret smiles every time they evaded discovery. They had whole conversations through the medium of folded frogs. Passing messages about songs or movies they thought the other would like, jokes or complaints about their day-to-day life or invitations to hang out over the weekend.

In the blink of an eye, spring was here and Eddie was hopeful that this school year he would end up walking the stage. With the weather warming up again he was also hopeful that he and Steve could resume meeting up at their pond. Maybe this year there would even be tadpoles!

Eddie decided that over spring break he would go and check, already imagining how happy seeing the pond restored back to its rightful state would make Steve. He just had to finish up this campaign, help out Chrissy and then he would go.Eddie drove Chrissy to his trailer, a frog in his pocket saying ‘ Meet you at our pond, first day of spring break, Stevie? ’

Next.

As a bonus, here's the frog Eddie made for Steve 🐸: