#we love flynn and willie being besties

[onlygenxhere]

I'm attracted to men, but at what cost. - Julie, Flynn, and Carrie - Peterpatterlina

Julie slumped down beside her at the lunch table with a groan and buried her head in her arms.

Flynn tried to keep her voice even as she tried not to laugh. “Everything ok Jules?”

Julie didn’t even lift her head as she shot her the middle finger.

“Come on sis, it’s not that bad.” Flynn rubbed circles on her back. “Maybe being forced to work together will get them to finally see you as a woman and not just a musical wrecking ball.”

Julie peaked up at her just as Carrie sat down behind Flynn and wrapped her arms around her waist giving her a kiss on the cheek. Flynn bit back a grin. This probably wasn’t the best time to play happy couple in front of her bestie.

“What’s wrong with you?” Carrie frowned over her shoulder at Julie. “I heard you got paired with Luke and Reggie for that English assignment. I thought you’d be thrilled.”

Julie groaned and buried her head in her arms again.

Flynn giggled. Julie had had a crush on those himbos since last year, done everything but flash them to get them to notice her as more than a musical genius. But all they ever wanted to do was write music and sing with her. Which Flynn knew Julie loved, but she wanted more from them too.

“You should just be a lesbian.” Carrie reached around and patted her arm sympathetically. “Pretty sure Kayla thinks you’re hot.”

Julie raised her head and sighed. “Thanks Care. Unfortunately, I’m attracted to men.” They all glanced across the cafeteria to see the objects of her affection both bent over a notebook so engrossed in whatever they were working on that neither noticed that Willie had stuck about six stir sticks in Luke’s beanie and had covered Reggie’s jacket in little gold stars. Alex was out today.

She turned back to her and Carrie, dropping her head back on her arms. “But at what cost?” She waved toward them without even looking again. “They’re so oblivious and I think it’s adorable.”    

Flynn shook her head again before leaning in and giving her a kiss on the temple. “I wish you’d just let me tell them. Or, hell, you tell them.” She nodded over to Reggie and Luke who had finally noticed what Willie had done and were laughing as they let him take pictures of his ‘creations’. “I don’t think they’ll ever make the first move Julie.”

She leaned back into Carrie as they both watched Julie watch the boys for a long minute.

“You know what...” She turned to them. That determined glint in her eyes that always meant something interesting was about to happen. “Fuck it.”

Julie stood and marched across the room, stopping in front of Reggie and Luke and crossed her arms.

“God I wish we could hear what she’s saying.” Carrie whispered in her ear as they watched Julie point at them and point at herself and wave her arms around. Both Reggie and Luke sat there looking stunned while Willie seemed to be surreptitiously recording the whole thing. She would have to ask him about that later.

Julie seemed to shrink in on herself when she was done, arms crossed again and looking almost shocked at whatever she’d said.

She turned and fled back across the cafeteria to them like she was on fire, almost sliding into her lap as she sat down and covered her head with her hands.

“Oh my God, Oh my God, Oh my God…”

“Jules…” Flynn patted her back. “What’d they say?”

“We didn’t get to say anything.”

Flynn looked up to see Reggie standing at the end of the table nervously playing with his fingers.

“She ran away before we had a chance to.” Luke came around Reggie to sit on the other side of Julie.

“Julie?” Luke bumped her shoulder. “Reg and I would really like to take you out for ice cream after school and talk some more if you want.”

Flynn grabbed Carrie’s hand and squeezed excitedly as Julie raised her head enough to see over her arms. “Yeah?” She sat up more. “You’re not just saying that because I was all crazy and you’re scared of me, are you?”

Luke bit back a grin and shook his head. “I’m not scared of you.”

They all turned to Reggie.

“I’m a little scared of you.” He shrugged.

Julie smiled at Luke before standing up and going to wrap her arms around Reggie in a loose hug. “I’m sorry I yelled. I was just frustrated because I like you both so much.”

“We’re sorry too.” Reggie hugged her tighter. “We like you too Julie.”

Luke got up and squeezed them both, making them all laugh.

“You know.” Luke whispered loud enough for Flynn to hear. “We could go get that ice cream now.”

Julie looked over at her and sighed, the longing to just skip out the rest of the school day written all over her face.

“At what cost Julie.” Flynn snickered as the bell rang. “Make good choices!” She called as she grabbed Carrie’s hand, and they headed toward their next class.

“The cost is going to be the wrath of Tia Victoria if Julie gets caught skipping school.” Carrie laughed as they hurried to class.

[causewealwayshaveeachother]

📓📓📓

damn THREE books...

1 tattoo artist/reference desk librarian

what if a tattoo artist and a reference desk librarian fell in love...

reggie: a tattoo artist with a passion for reading dense academic textbooks and their bibliographies and a crush on the reference desk librarian who always seems to be on shift when he goes in

alex: a reference desk librarian with a hobby for gossipping about frequent patrons and a massive crush on his favorite grad student - though for what field he's not yet certain

the plot: reggie is a frequent visitor of alex's library in search of literally just random shit he's interested in learning about. alex is utterly convinced he's a student at the university (don't worry about what the relationship is between the library, the university, and the public) and is determined to figure out what his field of study is without asking, through the power of gossipping about it with his friends

reggie and willie have a tattoo shop together. the tattoo shop is called Sparkwheel's Tattoos and Piercings. it is named after ur nicknames for reggie and willie for each other being sparky and wheels <3 it's also named after the fact that in this fic their last names are both sparkwheel. also they have matching sparkwheels tattooed on their heels <33

"Oh, we're not married," Reggie said. "We just have the same last name for way weirder reasons."

2 the soulmate goose of enforcement

my discord avatar is dex from check please. read this

the world: what if instead of any one soulmate au, it was all of them? luke lives in a world where your 16th birthday coincides with the reveal of how, exactly, you're going to find your soulmate, as anticlimactic or exciting as it may turn out to be. he was like 100% certain he was gonna get something music-related. instead he got a goose.

luckily, he meets his soulmate pretty soon after that! unluckily, the goose does not go away as planned. weird.

and thus begins the ever-expanding quasi-platonic polycule of luke's soulmates, their soulmates, their friends, and etcetera. he does eventually find a romantic soulmate too. unfortunately by that point he's too used to everyone ending up being platonic soulmates to realize

oh yeah also it's a royalty au bc it was inspired by a round of troped. remember troped? man.

3 the pirate willexie one where i steal a country name from fete for a king even though i'm only on chapter 6

reggie, fleeing a shitty homelife and following in the footsteps of his best friend, fakes his death for the life insurance payout and becomes a thief. an indeterminate amount of time later, he finally returns to his hometown to retrieve what was left to him in the finally-unsealed will of his missing-presumed-dead best friend. unfortunately, he's super recognizable to like, everyone in the house at the time. and robbing it. time to flee! oh no he's been cornered at the docks! time to jump on a boat as it leaves!

willie is the captain of a transgender pirate ship weilding a leverage-ass understanding of what an EMP cannon is or how it functions. his crew includes: - julie, the first mate/medic/musician -flynn, the tech guy/navigator -luke, the munitions guy/musician -bobby, the head cook -nick, who's just kind of there it's a very exciting time when reggie jumps aboard fleeing the cops. willie loves fleeing the cops and he loves cute boys and he loves having an extra hand on the boat so this whole situation is a win-win-win

alex ran away to sea, is now missing presumed dead. sad!

this fic features: transgenderism! flynn and luke being aro besties! my anger at the concept of a child star! small european countries! a lot of research into what the letters before boat names mean!

[solibrie]

unfortunately for me. my brain won’t stop rotating a juke/chrobin au… what if juke was in a high fantasy political drama.

it’s soooo not a 1:1 fe13 au bc a lot of that necessitates the 2nd gen and i am not doing all that. there are not enough jatp characters 😭 but it’s also not a 1:1 with the first half anyway

i like the idea of julie being robin & luke being chrom, but with their roles inverted??? julie is the 2nd born daughter of a goddess (the goddess of death), not the heir to the plegian throne, and she’s straight chilling. living her best life. while luke is heir to ylisse but was raised in a cult that enforced hating the goddess of death & those touched by her. caleb is the archbishop (see: cult leader) and tries to instigate a war by sending luke near the border, wiping his memory, and letting julie find him so he can spin it as a kidnapping. except the spell wears off, luke remembers, and suddenly has to reckon the girl he KNOWS with the girl he’s been told about his entire life.

or something

whenever i try to explain the plot of fe13 i feel like i’m talking nonsense 😭 but trust me it makes perfect sense in my brain

reggie is julie’s older brother. alex is frederick. bobby is frederick… 2! bobby and carrie were twins separated at birth when carrie’s mother ran away to plegia. trevor is a general in ylisse. carrie and dirty candy are julie’s bodyguards. flynn is julie’s bestie and reggie’s betrothed. willie is caleb’s pet project, is in on the plan, and hates it SO MUCH but can’t do anything about it because Blackmail. carlos is like 13 and loving life. this au exists so strongly in my mind and it’s one of the most self indulgent, dramatic things imaginable

BUT CAN YOU BLAME ME!!! luke would love to tell julie, “you are the wind at my back and the sword at my side. together, my love, we shall build a peaceful world... just you and me.”

[kairos-in-wonderland]

Love, You Are Anything but a Stereotype

Hi y’all, this is written for the Julie and the Phantoms fic raffle organised by the amazing @queenmolina​ thank you so much bestie for doing this!! 💜

My prompt was: “Character A is fed up of their less-than-suitable flat and the smashed window and lack of heating has turned out to be the last straw. In an attempt to be comfortable during yet another chilly night, A knocks on their apartment neighbour's door and silently wishes that character B will be generous and hospitable.”

You can read it here on Ao3 but just be aware that this post has a lil smau content and the Ao3 version doesn’t

It was the middle of November in New York, snow and ice has coated every surface, even Flynn felt like they had turned to ice when she arrived back at her apartment. They’d just gotten back from the campus library after the librarian had practically forced them to leave – damn music theory, Flynn didn’t get why she had to do that to be a DJ or a band manager for Julie but oh well.

Flynn had just put on their fluffiest pyjamas and was heading to be when they knocked their arm against the radiator – she recoiled, expecting it to have burned her, but it didn’t. they touched it again. Ice cold. She groaned in annoyance before checking the thermostat, which read at 73°F.

“Shit,” they muttered, the heating was broken. Flynn immediately pulled out her phone, texting Willie in hoped they’d be home, and have working heating.

They groaned when they realised that their only option was the girl next door: Carrie Wilson. She was Julie’s ex-best friend, well, they made up at the start of the school year because they were both fed up with the drama, but there was still some tension between her and Flynn. They had to admit, they did think Carrie was cute, they had a crush on her in middle school, but nothing could ever come of it. After about 20 minutes of pacing, she finally admitted defeat and packed some of their things into a bag before heading across the hall to knock on Carrie’s door.

“Taylor,” Carrie greeted, clearly not pleased to have someone, especially Flynn, knocking on her door at almost midnight.

“Wilson,” Flynn muttered in response, noticing the old Bobcats hoodie she was wearing.

“What do you want? I’m trying to sleep, if you didn’t notice the time.”

“I noticed. But I don’t have a choice, my heating decided to die on me and my apartment is like a walk-in freezer – Willie is out of town right now and unfortunately I don’t know anyone else in this building,” Flynn explained and Carrie was a little taken aback as she let them into the apartment.

Flynn was about to dump their blanket on the sofa but Carrie stopped them, “No, there’s no point in you sleeping there, you might as well have stayed at your own apartment,” Carrie commented, “you can take my bed.”

“Well, I can’t force you onto the sofa, then you’ll be cold and that doesn’t really solve anything.” “Then what do you suggest?” Carrie sighed.

“I’m sure your daddy bought you the biggest bed he could, there’s probably enough room that we can share without being anywhere near each other,” Flynn suggested, sure they were imagining the wat Carrie’s cheeked flushed just a little bit pinker. Flynn followed Carrie to her bedroom, setting their bag down on the floor; Carrie decided to come up with some ground rules, stuff that Flynn was or wasn’t allowed to do, but Flynn drowned most of it out because they were so tired. She practically collapsed into the warmth of the bed, the side Carrie had said they had to stay on, and fell asleep instantly.

-

When Flynn woke up the next morning, they could feel an arm wrapped around their waist – for a moment they had forgotten about what had happened the night before but then the weight of a head moving on her shoulder brought her out of the daze, “Carrie!” they exclaimed, rolling away as Carrie woke abruptly, “What the hell? After your lecture about boundaries last night!”

Same goes for you! What’s your excuse?”

“I have a close enough relationship with Julie that we’re comfortable sharing a bed during sleepovers and sometimes we cuddle when watching movies. So, again, what they hell?”

Carrie flushed pink, seemingly unable to find an excuse for the way she had nestled so easily into a cuddle with Flynn, both girls were silent, not knowing what to say to each other.

Then Carrie let out a groan and rubbed her hands over her face, “Okay, there’s something I’ve gotta say, just please don’ t get mad,” she broke the silence, something Flynn wasn’t expecting, “I really like you Flynn, I’ve had a crush on you for years. But with all the drama with Julie you’ve been kinda hostile, I-I was afraid to make a move.”

Flynn let out a small laugh, “You’re such an idiot, Wilson,” they said – Carrie looked like she was about to make a snarky retort when Flynn leaned across the bed and pressed their lips to hers. The kiss only lasted a couple moments, but when Flynn pulled back Carrie was left in shock.

“Oh…” she mumbled, and Flynn laughed, “You-”

“I’ve liked you since middle school Carrie, Bobby’s been making jokes about it all year, I just thought you were ignoring it because you didn’t like me.”

Carrie laughed, “So we’re both oblivious lesbians then?”

“You know I have stereotypes.”

“Flynn, you are anything but a stereotype,” Carrie grinned, leaning in to kiss Flynn once more.

[mouse-fantoms]

Can I just give a fricken massive thank you to Jatp (oh look another post talking about how phenomenal Jatp is, lmao get used to it with this fandom) for being a show that breaks expectations, that doesn’t lean into the tropes that are shown constantly in media.

For example, I remember going into Jatp and because there are 3 guy leads I was like “Oh well 2 of them are gonna be after the main girl obviously.” (I learned that Alex is gay before watching so I also now had that knowledge and that made me be like “Oh yeah well then yeah, 2 of them are obviously gonna be after the main.”)

When you hear that there are 3 guys, they all were in a band together you kinda automatically go “Oh well then they’re probably friends and in that case they’re probably be going after the same girl meaning there’ll be a love triangle.” That’s such a trope to have when you have this group of friends. At least one of them is gonna go after the same love interest as another. You see that so much in shows countless times.

Jatp surprised me. It didn’t do that. Instead ya got Julie’s separate relationships with her ghosties (Alex being her bestie, Reggie being her big bro, and Luke being... Julie Molina stan #1 (to put it brief)).

Then you have Carrie. At first when you’re introduced to her you’re like “Oh she’s the mean girl. Mean girl is mean to main character because she’s main character.” But no. There’s that layer of how Carrie, Flynn and Julie used to be friends. Now there’s that implication that something happened between the three and it just adds character since there’s that passed history between them that we don’t know. Instead of thinking, “She’s just mean because she’s the mean girl.” when that’s not the case because Carrie is how she is to Flynn and Julie because of (most likely) whatever happened between the three.

You have Nick. When Julie is shown to have a crush on him you again, kinda automatically go “Oh, main character likes mean girl’s boyfriend because of course she does.” But you notice that, it’s at least implied, Julie and Nick actually have a history with each other. The crush isn’t just out of no where. There is once again that passed history between them.

Added to the history the two have, I was surprised once again when in episode 6 Nick says that him and Carrie broke up. At that point I was like “WHAT??? Mean girl’s boyfriend broke up with mean girl because she’s mean girl?”

And! When Nick gets rejected by Julie he takes it really well and is still so supportive!!! Things aren’t left awkward between them (Nick does acknowledge the at first awkwardness but then goes “Still dance partners right?” to break the tension). 

And you of course have Willex. Usually (majority of the time sadly) when media does have LGBTQ+ representation, they just have it in there to just say they have it in there and when they do, it usually falls under stereotypes.

When you watch Jatp and they say (early on might I add) that Alex is gay you’re like, “...WHAT??? A show where a character is queer and that’s not their personality trait???”

Kenny Ortega said “We makin him gay and giving him a boyfriend IMMEDIATELY in the next episode as soon as possible.”

Not to mention too that Willex is like key to the plot because without Alex meeting Willie, you wouldn’t have Caleb as an antagonist (probably through other ways we still would have him as one but speaking timeline wise of the show that wouldn’t have happened otherwise). We wouldn’t have gotten the same feelings during the Finally Free performance, the Edge of Great performance, Luke’s backstory, they wouldn’t have performed at the Orpheum if they didn’t meet Caleb (meaning we never would have gotten that hug at the end, we never would have gotten them all hugging and being solid). We never would have gotten the Willex hug, the “Because I care, about you Alex.” (So in that case I guess thank you Caleb but you’re still a fricken piece of ghost trash)

Long story short, a massive thank you to Jatp for not leaning into tropes and for adverting all expectations of tropes when they are brought up

[fiddlepickdouglas]

Viva Las Vegas, Pt. 14 - Unexpected Meeting

Summary: Sunset Curve Alive AU, Willex, who will they run into?, 3.2k

@trevor-wilson-covington is the bestie who makes these lovely edits, we stan supportive friends

WARNINGS: death mention, emotional trauma

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13

“Man, I need a break,” Reggie was saying as he strolled with Alex down an unfamiliar street in the early evening, stretching his arms. “I mean, being in the studio all the time has been good, but on top of everything else it’s just so much!”

Unsure where they were headed, Alex walked a few paces ahead on the sidewalk, casually navigating for both of them. He squinted as he looked at Reggie.

“Reggie, you dropped, like, all of your classes once we signed on.”

“Nope!” his friend exclaimed, tilting his head in a proud manner. “I just needed two electives to graduate. It’s okay, though, man. Not everyone finishes their math requirements as a freshman.” Reggie patted Alex’s shoulder, as if it were any sort of consolation.

“No, good for you Reg,” Alex said. His parents had paid for all this private tutoring and even gotten him to take some college credits early. Of course, his only serious plan after high school had been the band so it was all wasted effort, but then all of their attempts with him amounted to that. He was learning to feel less guilty over it. It wasn’t his fault they never cared about what he wanted.

“How long do you think Luke and Bobby are gonna be workshopping their parts together?” Reggie asked.

“Long enough. Where are we going, exactly?”

“Oh, I was just kind of keeping an eye out for anywhere interesting.”

Alex blinked. “I thought we were headed somewhere specific.”

“I’ve only been to this side of L.A. like, once, so I don’t think I’d make a good tour guide,” Reggie stated.

And just like that, Alex’s mind thrust itself back into remembering Willie. He was getting better at not crumbling completely in the moment, but it still felt like his heart was temporarily dunked into a dark ocean of misery. It would remain waterlogged and heavy inside his chest for a while.

“Alex?” Reggie was saying, looking at him with concern. “You okay?”

Snapping his thoughts back to the present, Alex sighed as he looked back at Reggie.

“I’ll be fine.”

He shoved his hands into the pockets of his jean jacket and pressed his arms against his sides. Shoulders hunched, he continued through the crowd. Focusing on walking would hopefully help it wear off. He made every step purposeful, trying to get the weight in his heart to fall through his feet. Reggie’s hand on his shoulder made him turn.

“It’s still rough, isn’t it?” he asked gently. “If I said something - ”

“It’s not your fault,” Alex tried to assure him. “Sometimes it just comes out of nowhere. Besides, I can’t make you and everyone else walk on eggshells.”

“Maybe not, but we’re in this with you. It may have been different for us, but we all met Willie. I’d never seen you warm up to anyone that fast. Even after a few months, it’s still fresh; don’t force yourself to be better for us.”

Pausing on the sidewalk, Alex looked up at Reggie. He tried to smile as gratitude edged its way in, relieving most of the heaviness in his chest.

“I appreciate that, Reg.”

“Of course, man.”

“So,” Alex took a deep breath to let everything else wash away as they kept wandering. “You made it sound like you had a lot going on. Is everything at home okay?”

Reggie shrugged. “Eh...no change there. My mom went to stay with her sister after the last fight, so my dad’s been trying his best to take care of everything, but he’s too upset to handle it well. My little sister has just been sleeping over with friends anyway, and I can handle myself, so - ” he shrugged again, “ - you know, I do what I can.”

Alex nodded. He had nothing really to comment, and Reggie knew he was always there to support him. This wasn’t anything unusual for him, but it still wasn’t right. Neither of them spent much time at their own homes, so wandering through the city like this kept them occupied when they weren’t with the rest of the band. Looking up at the store signs around them, he saw a record store about a block ahead.

“Hey, why don’t we check that out?” he suggested.

“Yeah!” Reggie said, dropping any ounce of gloom from the previous subject and skipping along to catch up with Alex.

A small bell rang as they came through the door, and they immediately began filtering through shelves of records and CDs. Peeking toward the back of the store, Alex could see a counter that offered a menu of food and drinks, some tables, as well as the smallest stage in the world. This seemed like a neat little place.

“Oh,” Reggie started after a while. “I got us a gig playing at my cousin’s wedding.”

“A wedding?” Alex said skeptically, turning from the Pansy Division vinyl he was checking out. “When we’re trying to finish a record and go on tour?”

“It’s Conrad, okay, he’s family! And he said we could make the setlist.”

Alex shrugged, considering that was fair.

“...with his approval.”

At that addition, Alex could only sigh and shake his head.

“And then maybe, you could, I don’t know, finally ask Bobby to be your date?”

Reggie put down the Mötley Crüe album he’d been examining and looked up at him in shock. Alex realized he’d possibly been too blunt. But immediately Reggie began to cover it up, laughing and shaking his head.

“What?” he said, his denial completely transparent. “Was that a...was that supposed to be a joke or something?”

Giving him a look of pity, Alex put his hands on his hips.

“You’re really gonna try to pull the wool over the eyes of your gay friend?”

Caught, Reggie looked back at him in defeat and bowed his head.

“I’m gonna guess you noticed a while ago?”

Nodding, Alex tried to soften his demeanor. 

“There’s been something up with you two for months. How come you haven’t tried to talk to him about it?”

Reggie knit his brow and began fiddling with his fingers.

“Well, I’m a little confused by it, to be honest. Cuz, I mean...I like girls, right?”

“Yeah, so?”

“But I like Bobby, too.”

“Okay.”

His friend looked up at him, expecting more of a reaction. Alex leaned against the shelf and folded his arms.

“Do you think there’s something wrong with you? Because you’re talking to the king of wrong feelings.”

“Well, sometimes I feel like that, but not really. It’s something else,” Reggie said.

“Like what?”

“Well...we’ve been friends for years. It just sort of crept up on me and I don’t know what to do. What if he rejects it? He’s one of my best friends.”

Thinking for a moment, Alex looked down at his feet. He didn’t blame Reggie for being worried. He’d had a mini crush on Bobby for a couple weeks back in ninth grade and had the same dilemma. It was easier for him to get over, though, simply because it had faded quickly.

“Well, I wish I could say if it’s meant to be it’ll happen, but sometimes…”

Sometimes it dies in a fire before there’s any chance of knowing.

He shook his head to get rid of the awful thought and ignored Reggie’s look of concern.

“But if I know Bobby, I don’t think it’s going to harm anything. I think you should go for it, Reg. I truly, honestly, will back you up on that.”

A smile spread wide across Reggie’s face.

“Thanks, man!”

Without fretting over it for another second, he turned back to the shelf of CDs he’d been perusing, and Alex did the same. There was a crazy good selection, and Alex wished he could get his hands on a record player. Playing CDs on a boombox worked for some things, but there was a level of charm in playing something on a vinyl record that appealed to him even more. He made a note to get a small notebook to carry in his fanny pack, hoping to return to this store and make a wishlist of sorts to work toward.

“Do I see Alex and Reggie of Sunset Curve?” A familiar voice said from behind.

Both of them turned to find Flynn standing in the aisle, braids tied up into a high ponytail and eyebrow arched in her usual smart fashion.

“Hey Flynn!” Reggie exclaimed, pulling her into a hug. Alex went in for one afterward, happily surprised.

“Hey guys!” she said, grinning.

“What are you up to?” Alex asked.

“Gonna be performing in a bit,” she said excitedly. “Just a warm up before the main group comes on. I’ve been working on some of my own stuff; I think you guys would love it! Got time to stick around?”

“Sweet!” Reggie raised a fist for her to bump. “I’m down. Alex, wanna stay?”

“Yeah, sounds great!”

He had yet to see what Flynn was capable of. If he were to judge only on knowing she’d been in a duo with Julie, he expected it to be good.

“Also, you should try the burritos here,” Flynn told them. “They are to die for!”

The endless click-rollll-click-click-click of his board filled his ears as Willie moved through the street, feeling the wind pass over him in the way that made freedom feel like he could clutch it in his hands. He’d actually spent today not worrying about Alex. It felt good not to dwell on what little past he had access to. Of course, he still had repetitive dreams about the few memories that had come back, but the backwards one with Caleb in it hadn’t come back ever since he’d gotten to LA. Moving forward felt...nice.

He had spent the morning sketching at the beach, getting all sorts of practice in. The beautiful waves, seagulls, the different activities all around him. Somehow a group of young college kids had gotten him to join their volleyball tournament. Willie wasn’t sure if he’d ever played it before, but once he caught onto the game, he’d gotten surprisingly good. It felt nice to roll up the hem of his jeans and dig his toes into the warm sand while playing with a group of strangers. They’d nicknamed him Mowgli, whatever that meant. He liked the sound of it though.

Heading off to work after cleaning himself up, he realized he could spend all his free time that way. Peacefully sketching, meeting fun people, and enjoying his surroundings. Was that all it took to be happy? Willie chuckled at the thought of how much Caleb had stressed over rising to the top of his business game, never appearing to be satisfied with any of it. Leaving Vegas remained the best decision he’d ever made. Of course, he wasn’t always proud about his method of burning down the shed, but it had been one of those...heat of the moment things.

Willie skated up to the back entrance and shook his hair out after lifting off his helmet. Just a few short hours of making food, some chill entertainment, and he could peace out for the night. He headed inside the store and right into the small kitchen. Thankfully, the store didn’t fit too many patrons and it was never hard to keep up with orders, and Kyle had a system so he never had to leave the kitchen. This basically meant he could jam to the live music during the lulls between orders with no interruption.

Kyle entered the kitchen just as Willie was tying on his apron.

“Hey, dude, thanks for coming. We actually got two acts coming in, so it should be a full crowd. Katelyn can be the MC for the first bit, but do you mind taking over for the second half?”

A twinge of excitement came over Willie and he lit up. He’d never gotten to try being an MC before.

“Don’t mind at all!” he said.

“Alright, man!” Kyle exclaimed. “First two orders up: swamp style nachos and a bog burrito.”

“Got it.”

“We’re up for a big night with these performances,” the girl hosting hyped up the crowd. “Let’s give it up for our artist of the night: Flynn Taylor!”

Reggie cupped his hands over his mouth as he hollered along with everyone else’s applause. Alex clapped with a mouthful of nachos. Flynn stepped onto the stage behind a set of deejay turntables, smirking as she began flipping switches and turning knobs.

“Thanks for coming out here everyone,” she said into the mic. More applause and whistles echoed through the room. “We’re gonna make a lot of noise tonight, so let me hear you get pumped!”

As she began playing a beat, Alex bobbed along, immediately interested. He didn’t know a thing about mixing, so he was highly impressed with the different sounds she was using. Then Flynn picked up the mic and began rapping and the whole room cheered.

“...I’m a princess, I don’t need a prince, boy I’m priceless...I’m here to shut it down like a night shift…”

“Man,” Reggie leaned over to Alex. “She’s so good! I say we book her to open for us ASAP as possible.”

Alex merely snorted and chuckled at Reggie’s misuse of the acronym. He actually enjoyed the idea of having Flynn rapping to open for their rock shows. Gigs where all the bands sounded the same got a little flavorless sometimes.

“Also,” Reggie said as he took a huge bite into his burrito. “This is the best burrito I’ve ever had.”

“Lemme try some, you can try my nachos,” Alex said.

All Reggie could say was Mm! as he passed the burrito over.

The final beats of the first performer echoed in the kitchen where Willie had been dancing, waving various kitchen tools around. He’d thoroughly enjoyed the whole set, and wondered what sounded so familiar about the girl who was rapping. Before he could spend more time thinking about it, Kyle came in.

“Okay, you ready?” he asked.

“I just keep people busy and then announce the next group, right?” Willie guessed.

“Yeah, man, you’ve got this!”

“What’s the next group called?”

“Downslide. And they brought some merch, so it’s a good idea to mention that to the crowd as well.”

“Okay,” Willie nodded, slipping out of his apron. “Maybe I could put their t-shirt on or something, you know, sell the look?”

Kyle looked impressed. “Yeah! I’ll go see what they’ve got.”

He left the kitchen and hardly a minute later returned with a jacket.

“They said you could wear it for the night. Not gonna lie, I wish I could wear this, it’s a sweet jacket.”

Willie slipped it on, and turned around. He didn’t often wear jackets, but whatever it was made of was pretty soft.

“Guess I’m ready,” he said, giving Kyle a hand slide and fist bump before leaving the kitchen. He stepped up behind the microphone and looked out at the crowd, and further back, the empty store.

At that moment, he heard the bell of the store door ring and two guys walked outside. Through the window, a familiar leather jacket passed. Then, he saw a head of blonde hair follow, turning to look both ways to cross the street, and his heart grew to fill all the empty space in his chest. It was unmistakable. It had to be.

“Alex...” he breathed quietly into the microphone. Adrenaline immediately went out to his extremities. The crowd before him looked bewildered as they waited for him to announce the next group.

Glancing offstage, he saw Kyle give him a strange look. Willie shook his head, unclear what message he was sending but ultimately knowing he couldn’t stay at his current spot. Before he could think anything else, his legs were bounding out the door. It felt like every ounce of blood in his veins knew. The search was over.

Reggie and Alex had just reached the opposite corner. He wasn’t going to miss his chance.

“Alex!” he cried, running to meet them.

He immediately thrust his arms around a surprised Alex, gripping him tightly, burying his face into his shoulder.

“Oh my god, Alex!” he said, panting. “It’s so good to see you.”

He didn’t feel the hug didn’t reciprocate, and instead Alex grabbed his shoulders and pushed him away. The darkness of the street seemed to envelop him.

“What are you - ?” Alex started, staring back at Willie like he’d just been assaulted. Then shock wiped over his whole face. Then confusion. And then a pain came over all of it that made Willie’s concern grow.

“What - what is it?” he asked, all the excitement gone.

Alex wouldn’t look him in the eye, and he raised a hand to hold the side of his head.

“No, this isn’t real,” he whispered to himself, shrinking backward and shutting his eyes. “This can’t be real.”

Willie glanced over at Reggie, who also stared like he was seeing the impossible. He could see Alex shaking and heard a rattled breath, and felt tension grow thick in the air. Quickly, he went to take Alex’s face in his hands.

“Alex, hey, look, it’s me,” he soothed. He fought to get a look directly into his eyes. “It’s me, Willie.”

Finally, the green ocean gazed back at him, turbulent and restless. What once had been a grounding rhythm of waves had turned into a maelstrom of despair. Even worse were the tears welling up right before him. Willie watched the storm rage for a few seconds, seeking for a moment of calm.

“What’s wrong?” he murmured, lowering his hands. Alex looked so wounded it frightened him.

“How are you alive?” Alex begged to know.

Blinking, Willie sat back, astounded at those words. While he agreed it was a miracle he was still alive, he couldn’t fathom why Alex would ask such a question. He chuckled merely out of discomfort.

“I’m here.” Willie glanced at Reggie, looking for an explanation. “Flesh and bone. Why? What happened?”

Alex looked at him incredulously, jaw hanging open. He looked so tightly wound and so scattered all at once. 

“Caleb told me you were dead.”

Willie blanched inwardly at the mention of Caleb, but even more so at the rest of that sentence he’d been utterly unprepared to hear.

“He...he - ” he stammered for a moment. “When would you have even talked to him?”

Sharing a look with Reggie, Alex took a deep breath. Then he looked back at Willie hesitantly.

“We see him all the time. We work for him now.”

It was Willie’s turn to drop his jaw.

“We’ve been signed to his record label for a few months now,” Reggie pitched in.

Directing his gaze to the ground, Willie puzzled for a minute.

“Why would I be dead?” he asked, looking back up at Alex.

For a minute Alex simply gazed at him wordlessly.

“I don’t know,” he said. There was a pause as both of them finally looked at each other, fully aware that this was real. And then Alex threw his arms around Willie to return the hug. Willie had to raise himself up on his toes to avoid falling over, and he tightened his grip to remain steady. He felt joy spread through his whole torso and breathed a sigh of relief as hands tangled into his hair. “But that doesn’t matter. I’m so happy to see you.”

[starsbythepocketful12]

my hopes for season 2

1. willex kiss duh

2. we learn more about reggie & alex’s families and what’s up with them now also elaborate on what luke said about them, especially with reggie because they may have fought a lot and not have been a good couple but that doesn’t necessarily mean they were bad parents

3. more alex & reggie singing, especially alex (a willex duet would be SICK but generally just more alex vocals would be appreciated)

4. carlos being besties with the guys

5. more of the alex/julie & reggie/julie friendships

6. another female character because more girls is always good

7. flynn to have her own storyline because i love her

8. more music written by the cast, cause perfect harmony was incredible and they’ve all expressed how they would love to get to write more music for the show

9. more of julie & her fam speaking spanish (idk if madison can speak it but it could just be a few extra words here and there from ray and tía or a brief convo in spanish between ray and tía)

10. willie breaking free from caleb

11. an official willex date and/or them officially becoming bfs would be awesome

12. why julie & carrie stopped being friends

13. this isn’t really a specific desire or anything but now that a video of the band is on youtube and bobby/trevor saw it, i feel like it would be a plot hole if luke’s parents or alex and/or reggie’s families didn’t see the video and be like what the hell our son is alive? so i would like if that was addressed

14. another fabulously evil number from caleb cause he’s evil but he makes bops

15. more of flynn in the soundtrack

[ruzek-halstead]

the one that (almost) got away

"my friend dragged me to this party and i just saw my ex - quick, make out with me"

university au

masterlist || ao3

x

It was a month before finals and Julie's to-do list was piling up. Her music courses were slowly starting to drive her insane (best program in the country my ass) and she had absolutely zero time to even breathe, much less be dragged to a party by her roommate.

The past few months had been filled with lectures, compositions, performances and impromptu Netflix binging sessions. She was already stressed enough with everything happening academically, it didn't help that she found her boyfriend of two years on a romantic dinner with another woman (I mean, his tongue was down her throat, what would you make of that?). It hurt like hell, don't get her wrong, but having him out of her life didn't bother her as much as it probably should have. Luckily, she kept herself distracted with classes, extra-curricular activities and her best friend and roommate, Flynn.

"You're going," Flynn stated with the utmost serious expression. She busied herself with rummaging through her closet to find the perfect outfit for tonight's frat party, while Julie focused on the lyrics splayed out in front of her for composition class. "You've been so focused on school that you haven't had any time to enjoy the night life."

Julie rolled her eyes without sparing a glance at her best friend. "Yes, because I'm in university because of the night life," she sassed, "it has absolutely nothing to do with excelling in the most prestigious music program in the country so I can become famous and fly you places in my private jet."

"Details," Flynn muttered, waving her hand in her direction. "Alex's frat is throwing the party, so it won't be overly crazy."

Flynn and Julie made eye contact and Flynn cringed at the unimpressed look on Julie's face.

"Okay, so maybe I can't control that," she admitted. "But still, Alex says you have to come! You can finally meet some of his friends!"

Julie snorted. "I know his friends. I don't like his friends."

"You know Luke," Flynn countered, "you haven't met Reggie or Alex's boyfriend, Willie! And Luke isn't that bad, I promise; he's super sweet."

"Sweet?" Julie spit, eyes widening in annoyance. "He pushed me into the pool at that last party!"

Flynn cringed, yet again. "Okay, yes," she relented. "But it was more like 'he knocked you' into the pool because he was trying to catch the football. And he did!"

"Excuse me for not caring!"

"Just trust me, okay?" Flynn busted out her puppy dog eyes as she jumped on Julie's bed. "They're great, and we can't discuss this anymore. You need a break and you're going. I don't care if you leave twenty-minutes after you get there; you are making an appearance."

Julie and Flynn engaged in a brief stare down, to which Flynn ended by pushing against Julie's shoulder.

"Fine," Julie reluctantly agreed, "I'll make a brief appearance, and I'll meet Alex's friends. But as soon as Luke says something stupid, I'm leaving. Is that clear?"

Flynn's face broke into an excited grin. "Crystal clear, girl!" She squealed. "Oh my god, put your lyrics away. We have to start getting ready right now!"

x

Julie entered the frat party with a newfound attitude and a clear mind. Flynn forced her to take two tequila shots before leaving their apartment, so she could forget about her studies, and so far, it was working. She also didn't want to be the only buzzkill at this party, so she promised herself and Flynn that she would actually try to have some fun.

"There you go, there's that smile!" Flynn cheered, nudging Julie in the direction of the drinks. Together they mixed a creative concoction and set out to find Flynn's good friend, Alex.

They found him relatively quickly; he was dominating at the beer pong table. When he saw  Flynn and Julie, his face lit up and he tapped a random guy next to him, shouting, "sub in for me, my bestie's here!"

With that, he ran over to Flynn to give her a bone-crushing hug and a sloppy kiss on the cheek (he was definitely more than two shots and a cocktail in). "Hey Jules!" He greeted the brunette, wrapping her under his other arm. "Ah, my girls are here. I have to find the guys!"

"Julie's going to love them!" Flynn added, following as Alex pulled them along. He pulled them until they stepped into the backyard where the party was just as lively as inside. "Look, there's Reggie!"

Alex dragged them over to two guys who seemed to be in a heated conversation.

"I can't believe you don't like The Office!" The one with a red flannel shirt tied around his waist exclaimed, throwing his arms up for emphasis. "Michael Scott is the single greatest character ever created."

The other one with his hair tied up in a bun rolled his eyes. "If that's what you think, then you need more help than I can offer."

"Whatever," Red Flannel replied, turning his attention to the newcomers. "Flynn, you're here!" He exclaimed, reaching over to give her a hug. "I'm Reggie!" He told Julie excitedly.

Julie sent him a polite smile. "Hey, nice to meet you. I'm Julie."

"And this," Alex yelled drunkenly, wrapping his arms around the other brunette, "is Willie! He's my boyfriend!"

Willie let out a laugh. "He is so wasted. Nice to meet you, Julie."

Julie sent him a warm smile in response.

Alex turned his attention to Julie. "Julie," he slurred, wrapping an arm around her shoulders again, "is Flynn's best friend and roommate. I've been trying to get her to meet you guys for ages. Wait, where's Luke?"

Julie's shoulders stiffened.

Reggie shrugged. "Who knows."

"I'll go find him," Alex muttered. "Go get another drink, mingle, but you're not allowed to leave until you meet Luke!" He yelled to her as he walked backwards across the room (he was definitely going to trip). "No leaving!"

"Is he forgetting I've already met Luke?" Julie whispered to Flynn, who just shrugged.

Willie hesitantly started after him, turning to say, "I should probably make sure he doesn't do something really stupid."

"And I'm going to go mingle," Julie replied, turning to Flynn who look thoroughly unconvinced.

Flynn pursed her lips. "You better not leave."

"I won't," Julie laughed, "I promise."

With that, they all went their separate ways. Julie stayed outside and watched the beer pong championship for a while, but eventually decided to go back inside because the chill was getting to her. She was also hoping to find Flynn because her 'mingling' was getting boring and she was inching to leave.

She walked back into the building, intent on getting herself a new drink to pass the time. She was about to turn into the kitchen, when she spotted a very familiar face that she hadn't seen in a number of months.

Her ex-boyfriend, Ryan.

And the girl he cheated on her with.

"Oh my god," she muttered, ducking out of the way. She made eye contact solely for a solid millisecond but she knew he saw her. "Fuck."

In her attempt to escape and leave the house party (and the university, if she's being honest), she ran smack into a hard body. "Shit," she heard a deep voice. "Are you okay?"

His hands were wrapped around her upper forearms and she looked up to realize they belonged to her one and only nemesis, Luke Patterson.

"Oh, it's you! Pool girl!"

In any other circumstance, she would probably wrap her hands around his throat and squeeze but she was genuinely too panicked.

"Julie?"

Oh god, Ryan was calling out for her.

"You pushed me into a pool months ago, right?"

Luke's eyebrows narrowed. "Okay, well, it was a little more complicated than that..."

"But you owe me!"

"Uh — sure?"

He looked genuinely confused and regardless of how smart Julie considered herself to be, she was incredibly dumb when it came to men and social situations.

Which is why she uttered, "I'm so sorry, but my ex —" before crashing her lips against his. He seemed to freeze, his hands loosening their grip on her forearms.

Julie quickly doubled back, realizing how stupid of an idea it was. It was Luke, and even though she wasn't particularly a fan of him, she had basically just mauled him without even asking for consent.

"Oh my god, I am so sorry," Julie apologized quickly. He was staring at her as if she had three heads. "I'm so sorry. I just saw my ex-boyfriend with the girl he cheated on me with and he was calling my name and I figured, 'oh, why not just make out with someone so he doesn't think I'm a complete —'"

This time, Luke interrupted her with a wicked smirk. He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her flush against him. She squeaked in response, but was distracted when he tipped her head back and kissed her. It was soft at first, but he pressed harder against her mouth with an intensity that momentarily took Julie's breath away. His body pressed further against hers, until they rested on the wall behind her.

A moment later, he pulled back and admired her shocked expression.

"How was that?"

His voice was soft and warm and Julie was so stunned, it took her a moment to reply.

But when she did, her recollection and sass came full force.

"Good enough, I guess," she lied through her teeth (it was fucking fantastic). "Your debt is paid, thank you. And stay away from the pool."

With that, she whirled around, dead set on walking away. She was so mind-blown from the kiss, she completely forgot Ryan was still behind her.

"Julie!"

"Shit."

She didn't realize she said it out loud until Ryan's eyebrows furrowed.

"Babe! Wait for me!" The obnoxious voice of Luke Patterson rang through her ears before she felt his arm wrap around her shoulders and hang off her neck. "I'm Luke, Julie's boyfriend. Who are you?"

Julie cringed. She wanted to crawl in a hole and die. Right now.

"I'm Ryan," he answered apprehensively; his new girlfriend was nowhere to be found. "Nice to meet you."

"Is it, though?" Luke replied and Julie's eyes widened. She whipped her head to glare at him, but he was too focused on Ryan. He was wearing a playful smirk but the look in his eyes was everything but playful. "You're the one who cheated on my girl, isn't that right?"

Ryan's face went pale. "I should probably go... Nice to see you, Julie."

"Yeah, you probably should go! Wouldn't want my fist accidentally connecting with your nose!"

Julie's eyes widened and she angrily pushed Luke away from her. "Oh my god, what is wrong with you?"

"I was defending you," he explained like it was obvious, "you're welcome, by the way. Or maybe I should be thanking you," he winked.

Julie never wanted to die as much as she did in that moment.

"Oh my god," she muttered, utterly mortified. "Do you even hear yourself?"

Luke smiled cheekily. "Yeah, I do. And that was," he made the chef's kiss motion. He actually made the chef's kiss motion; Julie wanted to throw up. "Do you think we could continue that? Maybe go out to dinner or something?"

Julie blinked.

"This may shock you, but not everyone here likes you," she replied after a moment. God, this whole situation was getting so far away from her.

Luke smirked. "Sounds ridiculous, but go on."

"You pushed me into a pool, I don't need to like you! And I appreciate you helping me out with my ex, but that was all! This ends here!"

Luke's eyes softened, but there was still a wild gleam in them.

"No."

"No?" Julie spluttered. "What do you mean no?"

Luke shrugged. "You can deny it all you want, but our kiss was definitely something. And I may have my moments, but I'm not dumb enough to let something like that go."

Julie found herself stunned once again.

"What the hell is going on right now?"

"And yeah, I probably could be more charming," he admitted. "And I really am sorry about the pool thing. That wasn't supposed to happen like that!"

Julie looked around for Flynn or Alex or literally everyone who could save her.

"So, what do you say? Dinner on Friday?"

Julie barked out a laugh, but she had to admit, he looked adorably optimistic. She took a moment to admire his appearance and obviously he was ridiculously attractive but — she really had no reason to object.

"Are you out of your mind? I hardly know you!"

"That's the point of a date, Julie. Keep up," he teased, his hazel eyes sparkling.

Julie was genuinely starting to feel faint. This was too much action for one day.

"Slow your roll, Casanova."

Luke's eyebrows rose in amusement. "Want me to slow it down? Even though you just had your tongue down my throat?" Julie squeaked in indignation and Luke chuckled. "Shit, I'm really bad at this whole charming thing apparently. Can I start by getting your number?"

"I honestly don't understand what's happening right now. So, I'll give you my number, but you have to work your ass off for that date."

Luke nodded, biting his lip to hold back a smile. "Yeah, that sounds fair.”

“Oh, look!” Both of their head swivelled around to see Alex, stumbling drunkenly in their direction with Flynn by his side. “Julie met Luke!”

“Dude, they’ve already met. How drunk are you?”

“Wait, why does Luke have lipstick all over his face?”

[dream-a-little-bigger-x]

Parallels | Epilogue

Add yourself to my taglist! | Here’s my masterlist! | Parallels Masterlist

Characters: OC! Violet Grace Dawson, Luke Patterson, Julie Molina, Carrie Wilson, Bobby Wilson, Reggie Peters, Alex Mercer, Flynn nolastname, Willie nolastname, Nick Danforth-Evans, Dirty Candy 

Guideline: Sunset Universe is the universe in which Sunset Curve is famous and Violet is friends with Carrie, Julie and Flynn. Candy Universe is the universe in which Dirty Candy is more famous and Sunset Curve has broken up. 

A/N: AAAAAAHHHH this is the very last chapter!!! I had so much fun writing this story! I hope you guys love(d) reading it as much! Quick shout out to my bestie @unnowhatthisistbh​ for proofreading and supporting me and just being the GOAT! I really needed you during this and you came through for me, so thank you! Also big shout out to @amazondancewarrior​ for the gifs they made for this story! They were splendid and I am obsessed with them (and you!)! Thank you x10000000! 

Song(s) used: Stand Tall - Julie and The Phantoms | Starting Line - Luke Hemmings

Warnings: None; fluff? Luke and Violet being so cute it’s gross? 

Words:  3,811

Violet was back. Their sweet, caring, innocent girl they had come to love over the summer. There was one week left of summer when the girls had switched again, which Violet wanted to use to spend as much time with her friends as possible. 

One entire week to practice for the upcoming Violet Sunset and Dirty Candy gigs. 

One entire week to spend with Luke. 

One entire week to start the rest of her life. 

“Whatcha thinking about?” Luke’s voice snapped her out of her thoughts and his arms snaked around her waist whilst his lips pressed in her neck. 

A giggle left Violet’s body, Luke’s favorite sound. “This song I found in Violet’s notebook,” she replied, showing him what she had found when she got back to her bedroom after returning. 

“Wrong answer,” Luke responded, retreating his arms and placing his hands on her hips to turn her around. 

“Wrong answer?” 

A cheesy smile found its way to his lips. “Yeah, the correct answer was ‘You, Luke, I was thinking of you’.” Violet’s eyes rolled back but she couldn’t help the smile that broke through. 

If he wanted to go the cheesy route, so could she. “Well, you never really leave my mind, so…”  

“You guys are disgusting,” Carrie interrupted when she entered the Wilson kitchen where the two had found themselves. Bobby and Carrie had invited everyone over for one of their classic pool parties. But instead of making it one big party, they kept it intimate with just their closest friends. Until tonight, when everyone at Los Feliz High would be invited and they’d be able to watch a free Violet Sunset gig. 

Violet snickered. “Shut up, you love us.” 

“You’re very lucky that I do,” she retorted before shoving a bowl of chips into Luke’s hands and a platter of drinks into Violet’s. “Now, chop chop, there are people outside in need of snacks.” 

“Snaaaacks!” Reggie exclaimed, flailing his arms excitedly before hoisting himself out of the pool and towards his friends bearing the snacks and drinks. 

“Do we know what the setlist is gonna look like?” Bobby questioned when everyone had gathered around the snacks and drinks. 

Normally, that question alone would make Violet want to throw up, but this time around it didn’t. She felt confident, sure of herself and her talent. If she could stand up against a shitty manager, she could sing in front of her whole entire school too. Besides, she’d have her band with her. 

“I’d say we start with Turn Up The Music?” Luke suggested. “That’s the song that started Violet Sunset in the first place.” A smile found its way to Violet’s face. She remembered that first day with the boys when they parent-trapped them. Kinda. 

She was really nervous that day. 

“How about we bring Starting Line?” Violet then suggested, glancing at Alex for his reaction. The confusion on his face made her realize that she had the wrong Alex in front of her. “Right, no. Never mind. Wrong universe.” 

“I really wanna do Determinate,” Reggie brought in, his mouth full of nachos and salsa. 

“Okay,” Violet said, “How about we go Turn Up The Music, Finally Free, Determinate–” 

“Bright,” Luke added, knowing he could sing the song if Violet sang along with them. 

“We could end with Stand Tall?” The boys shot Violet a confused look. “It’s the song the other Violet left for me. Wait –” she got up from her spot and dashed inside. Luke couldn’t help but follow the girl with his eyes. Her curves came out perfectly in the bathing suit she was wearing and her skin looked so soft, he was going to have a hard time keeping his hands to himself. 

“Look,” Violet’s voice caused him to snap out of his thoughts. She showed her friends the notebook she had found on her bed when she had returned a few days prior. Along with the scribbled down lyrics was a little message; 

Wish I could watch you shine, Violet! You got this… Love, V. 

She had cursed at herself not leaving such a nice note for Violet. She’d left something but it wasn’t quite as nice as this. It wasn’t a whole-ass song she had left her. 

“You’re gonna be okay for the gig tonight?” Julie then asked Violet worriedly. 

Smiling, Violet nodded her head in response. “I’ve traveled across universes three times, I think I can handle a little show with my best friends.” 

-

She could more than handle a little show with her best friends. From Turn Up The Music to Finally Free to Determinate and Bright, she handled every single song with fierceness, power and most of all; fun. 

She rocked out on that self-made stage at the edge of the pool, alongside her four best friends with her three best gals in the very first row. She felt like she was on top of the world. Like she could handle everything and anything. 

“People of Los Feliz High,” Violet started when they’d just finished slowing it down with Perfect Harmony– upon Luke’s request. “We have one last song for you tonight before our dear Flynn takes over with her magnificent beats.” The crowd whooped and cheered at her feet. “This one goes out to a dear friend of ours. Someone without whom I wouldn’t be here right now. Someone who gifted me this… adventure. It’s also for anyone who’s lost their way or who’s trying to find their place in the world. You’re gonna find it. You’re gonna be okay. With the right people by your side, you’re gonna be okay. You’re gonna stand tall.” 

She stole a quick glance at Luke, who gave her a proud smile before she turned to Bobby and gave him a nod as the starting shot. He started playing the keyboard, letting the soft melody Violet had explained to them during soundcheck, float out into the night air. 

The girl herself placed the microphone onto its stand that stood in the middle of the stage. In her spotlight. Her very own spotlight. 

“Don't blink No, I don't want to miss it One thing, and it's back to the beginning 'Cause everything is rushing in fast Keep going on never look back”

“And it's one, two, three, four times That I'll try for one more night Light a fire in my eyes I'm going out of my mind”

Normally, the boys would join in at this moment but they didn’t. They’d decided to give her a little more. A little more spotlight. A little more time to shine. Because they loved to watch her shine and that was what she did best. 

“Whatever happens Even if I'm the last standing I'ma stand tall I'ma stand tall Whatever happens Even when everything's down I'ma stand tall I'ma stand tall”

She threw a glance at Luke, to try and figure out why no one was doing anything. She wanted to make sure they were still there, that they hadn’t bailed on her again. The smile Luke gave her when they locked eyes told her enough. 

“I gotta keep on dreaming 'Cause I gotta catch that feeling Whatever happens Even if I'm the last standing I'ma stand tall I'ma stand tall”

With a wide grin on his face, Alex brought the beat in and the crowd went wild. Especially the long-haired skater boy in the front row. Soon thereafter, Reggie joined in on his bass, earning a thankful smile from the lead singer on his left. 

“Right now I'm loving every minute Hands down Can't let myself forget it, no 'Cause everything is rushing in fast Keep holding on, nevеr look back”

Then, a guitar riff echoed through the speakers, capturing Violet’s attention as she continued to sing the pre-chorus. 

“And it's one, two, three, four times That I'll try for one morе night Light a fire in my eyes”

She took the mic off its stand, giving Luke the opportunity to finish her sentence. 

“I'm going out of my mind”

All five of them lapsed into the chorus together with the crowd at their feet, dancing and jumping around. They didn’t know any of the words, but it didn’t matter. The vibe was there. The energy was charged. 

“Whatever happens Even if I'm the last standing I'ma stand tall I'ma stand tall Whatever happens Even when everything's down I'ma stand tall I'ma stand tall”

Violet turned to Reggie and Bobby, singing to them and with them. She loved how she could tell they were all feeling the exact same thing without even having to say what they were feeling. She knew they were on the same page. 

“I gotta keep on dreaming 'Cause I gotta catch that feeling Whatever happens Even if I'm the last standing I'ma stand tall I'ma stand tall”

She then moved over to Luke on the other side of the stage. Their eyes were locked and, much like every other time they sang together, the chemistry oozed off that stage. Everyone could see that those two belonged together. Soulmates, of sorts. It would declare how Violet had gotten back here a second time. 

“Like I'm glowing in the dark I keep on going when it's all falling apart Yeah I know it with all my heart Ooh, ooh”

While Luke hit the high note, Violet turned to Alex, letting the spotlight shine on him for a change. 

“Never look back”

“Whatever happens Even if I'm the last standing I'ma stand tall I'ma stand tall”

Then, they all turned to Reggie, who took the next moment in the spotlight. 

“Whatever happens Even if I'm the last standing I'ma stand tall I'ma stand tall”

Grinning widely, Violet then sang; 

“Stand tall”

And then it was up to Luke and Bobby; 

“Stand tall”

With the crowd going insane at their feet, the band lapsed back into the chorus for the very last time that night. This was just the beginning for Violet Sunset. The beginning of a lifetime filled with music and gigs and making people happy. 

“Whatever happens Even if I'm the last standing I'ma stand tall I'ma stand tall Whatever happens Even when everything's down I'ma stand tall I'ma stand tall”

“I gotta keep on dreaming 'Cause I gotta catch that feeling Whatever happens Even if I'm the last standing I'ma stand tall I'ma stand tall”

 All five of them stood, panting, as they looked out into the crowd of Los Feliz High students. This was their life. This was where they belonged; on a stage, together. Neither of them needed to say it, they could all feel it. This was it. 

Violet had been born in the wrong universe, but now, she was home. 

Sunset Curve’s second album was a hit. With songs like Breakthrough and Somebody as singles, rising through to the top, their fanbase had only grown. Even more so when Alex had come out on Instagram by posting a picture of him and Willie with a pride flag behind them – all credits for the photo went to Violet, of course. 

Along with Flynn, Julie and Carrie, Violet was appointed to Sunset Curve’s marketing team. They had way better ideas for promotion than their new management team, according to the manager himself. 

“Whatcha doin’?” Violet questioned when she found Luke hunched over his notebook in his room, moments before their first radio interview to promote the new album. 

His heart jumped a little at the sudden distraction, though once he heard that gorgeous, angelic voice of his girlfriend, he realized the distraction was a welcome one. “Trying to finish a song.” 

Violet came up to him and rested her chin on his shoulder, looking at the songbook in front of him. She knew the words on the paper. Those were Alex’s. It was the song Alex started writing before she went back to her original universe. 

“That’s Alex’s,” she pointed out, confusion written all over her face. 

Luke hummed. “He asked me to help him finish it. But I’m kinda stuck.” 

Violet scanned the page. Verse – chorus – verse – chorus – bridge – chorus… “End with the bridge again,” she told him, pointing at the block of lyrics. “I think with an instrumental between the last chorus and last bridge, it could get that heavy, melancholy feel Alex had wanted, and then the instruments stop abruptly with just a bit of piano filling out the room for a few last notes.” 

“You are a genius,” Luke whispered excitedly before turning around swiftly to face the girl that had been standing behind him. “Have I told you I’m happy you’re back here?” 

Giggling, Violet raked her fingers through Luke’s brown locks at the nape of his neck. “You have, about a million times.” Luke smiled too now and reached his hand to her cheek, wiping the loose lash off her cheek. The dark, long lash stuck to his thumb as he showed it to her. 

“Make a wish,” he whispered. 

Scrunching up her nose and shutting her eyes real tight, Violet thought up a wish before blowing the lash away. 

“What’d you wish for?” Luke asked curiously. 

“I can’t tell you that.” 

“Oh, come on! You can share your wish with me!” 

Violet chuckled. “No, I can’t! It won’t come true if I do!” 

A pout formed on Luke’s face as he put on his best puppy dog eyes. “Please?” he pleaded, dragging out the ‘ea’ for extra effect. 

“Okay, fine,” she laughed. “Come closer,” she whispered and Luke inched closer. “Closer.” Another inch. “Closer.” Luke’s breath tickled Violet’s lips as they were barely an inch away from hers. “You’ll never know,” she whispered cheekily before crashing her lips to his to shut him up. 

He objected at first, but once Violet’s warm tongue swiped across his bottom lip, there was no resisting. Pulling his girl closer, flush to his chest, Luke deepened the kiss. And everything seemed to fall right into place. 

A radio interview and tv appearance later, the boys were getting ready for their small gig on Santa Monica Pier. A gig required by Violet herself. The boys did consider themselves fortunate with such a great marketing team. 

“We ready?” Manager Dawson asked as the band had gathered in the hallway. 

There was a nervous, excited vibe hanging around the group. Though the boys had done many a performance like this one, they still somehow seemed nervous. The girls couldn’t help but feel nervous with them. This was an important gig; the first one with their new management, the first one with a new marketing team, the first one since Alex came out. 

As the boys walked out onto the stage at the start of their gig, they were taken aback by the view in front of them. Hundreds of people stood at their feet, cheering and screaming loudly with every possible pride flag in their hand. 

Noticing the boys had frozen in their spot, Violet peeked around the corner towards the crowd. Her heart leapt in her chest upon seeing the colorfulness of the crowd. Never had she seen this many pride flags in one place that wasn’t the pride parade. 

“Oh my gosh,” she breathed, capturing her friends’ attention. The three girls peeked out with her and smiles spread across their faces. Not only did they have pride flags, but Violet now also noticed banners and boards with “We love you, Alex” written on them. All of this was in support of Alex’s coming out. 

“Thanks for coming out tonight, L.A.!” Luke shouted into the mic. “Hope you’re ready for a party!” As soon as the words left his mouth, the starting notes of Breakthrough Violet had come up with months ago chimed throughout the night. 

The entire set was electric with every person in the crowd singing along and dancing until their muscles ached. Even their marketing team couldn’t stand still in the wings. The boys were giving every ounce of energy they had in them, and in return, the crowd and their friends gave it back. There was a connection. An undeniable, electric connection. 

“We have one more song for you guys,” Luke then said into the mic after they had the entire crowd sobbing when he sang Unsaid Emily, especially for his mom, who sat in the VIP section of the crowd with the rest of their families. 

“One our dear Alex wrote himself.” Alex’s eyes widened in panic over the sudden change of plans. Starting Line wasn’t in their set. They hadn’t rehearsed it. It wasn’t even completely finished – or so Alex thought. “But before we play, I wanna bring out someone special. She helped us find our sound again, she helped us fight against a terrible manager who didn’t have the best intentions. She helped us become our most authentic self… L.A., please, give it up for my girlfriend, Violet Dawson.” 

This wasn’t planned either and Violet could feel her heart beating in her throat as Luke ran up to her and grabbed her hand. 

“What are you doing?” she whisper-shouted over the crowd of cheering fans. 

“Trust me,” he replied and kissed her knuckles before gently pushing her down to the piano stool. “Let your heart play, yeah?” She slowly nodded her head, understanding the assignment.  

She shook her hands before placing her fingers on the keys and starting to play whatever melody came to her. She closed her eyes for a moment too, letting the music come to her. 

Then, Luke’s voice rang through her ears. It was the trigger for her to open her eyes again and watch him as he sang. So passionately, so sincerely. 

“In and out of focus Moments that I keep Something for the pain And something so I sleep Won’t you comfort me? Warm the air that I breathe Visceral in doses Hiding in the seams”

His eyes met hers, and she swore she was floating for a moment. 

“Standing on the sun and I don’t feel a thing Won’t you comfort me? Take the fear I don’t need”

Luke stepped back from his microphone and turned to Alex, letting him take the chorus he so carefully wrote. He looked so confident up there with his eyes shut and his hands gripping the microphone. 

“I wake up every morning with the years ticking by I’m missing all these memories, maybe they were never mine I feel the walls are closing I’m running out of the time I think I missed the gun at the starting line”

The boys then joined Violet with their instruments, heavying the song with its melancholy. Violet even kicked the stool back, standing over the keys as she played them as though on automatic. 

To her surprise, Bobby took the next verse. The verse Alex had shown her before she left. Though she had hoped Alex would take this one, she couldn’t help but find comfort in Bobby’s voice as well. 

“Tell mе, am I broken? I can never lеave Biting on my tongue and Checking if it bleeds Oh, is it lost on me? All the things I believe”

Then Reggie took the next verse. His voice sounded perfect for this song. 

“Something like an omen I can never keep Moving on and on, so very bittersweet Is it lost on me? All the things I don't need”

All four of the boys then joined Alex in the chorus. Their harmonies were still Violet’s very favorite sound in the world. It sounded ethereal. Like she was floating on clouds.  

“I wake up every morning with the years ticking by I'm missing all these memories Maybe they were never mine I feel the walls are closing I'm running out of time I think I missed the gun at the starting line”

Glancing over at Alex, Violet noticed the beads of sweat mingling with the tears that ran down his face. They were happy tears, she could tell. Proud tears. Thankful tears. This was his song and they were performing it on an actual stage in front of actual people. This was something they would’ve never done under their previous management. 

The boys let Alex take the bridge while they preoccupied themselves with the backing vocals. Violet loved making music with these guys, even if she loved the band on its own, she loved it when she could join in on the fun. She loved being a part of something so special. 

“Take me alive, make me a liar Take me alive Don't look away until it's gone Until it's gone Take me alive, make me a liar Take me alive Don't look away until it's gone Until it's gone”

All four of the boys then joined back in on the last chorus. They were giving their all. Not once did their energy waiver. 

“I wake up every morning with the years ticking by I'm missing all these memories Maybe they were never mine I feel the walls are closing I'm running out of time I think I missed the gun at the starting line”

Alex let himself go for one last time with Luke as his backing vocals and the other two boys giving their all on their instruments. Even Violet had let herself go on the piano a little. She was living. She felt alive. For the first time in a long time, she felt truly, authentically herself. She wasn’t the Blue Candy anymore. She was Violet Dawson. 

“Take me alive, make me a liar Take me alive Don't look away until it's gone Until it's gone Take me alive, make me a liar Take me alive Don't look away until it's gone Until it's gone”

For the first time since walking onto that stage and playing Alex’s song in front of hundreds of people, Violet looked up at them. A roar of applause washed over them. The flutter in her stomach was one of excitement, one of pride. 

This was it, the very first moments of the rest of her life. 

Once back at the house, Violet had found herself drawn to the balcony at Luke’s bedroom window. The one where she had found him, smoking a cigarette after walking out on rehearsal. The one where he had told her he was in love with her. Where he told her about his mother. 

“You okay?” Luke asked, wrapping his arms around her waist from behind. The two of them looked out onto the city lights in front of them. This was one gorgeous view. One she wouldn’t want to trade for the world. 

Violet nodded her head. “Just wondering how Violet’s doing in that other cosmic patch.” 

This had been one hell of an adventure, but there was no way Violet would ever want to switch back. 

This was her universe. 

Her world. 

Her cosmic patch. 

She was home. 

Everything Taglist: 

@bonobos-candy-bar-2 @calamitykaty​ @littlemissaddict​ @n0wornever​ @phantompogues​ @praetorofthelegion @sweetpeasturtleneck @wanniiieeee​  @lesko_ @sunsetwilson 

JATP Taglist: 

@90ssunsetcurve @angryknightstatesmantrash @authentic-gillespie @bexxy @bookdealer5 @bright-molina @brooke0297 @bucksmaddie @buckybarnesishot310 @caitsymichelle13 @candycornmgg @catgirlpwr @charliesmountains @cordeliascrown @crybabyddl @echocharm17618 @fangirlangioma @flower-name @frickin-bats @gray_jato @hannahhistorian92 @happinessinthedarkesttimes @headheartbellarke @hemmingsness @iainttakingshitfromnobody @ifilwtmfc @jandthephantoms @jaskiers-sweetkiss @jatp-is-god @joynerxmercer @kaitieskidmore1 @kcd15 @kelpwithawhy @kinda-really-lost @kiss-themoongoodbye @knitsessed @lilostif16 @lookingthroughmirrors @magicalxdaydream @marinettepotterandplagg @musicianspiritsblog @mystic-writings @notasofti @pxperphxntom @rangerelik @rh-girlonfire @ruvaitkevicius @spencerreidwhore @stars-soph @stressyanddepressysimp @sunsetcurvej @talk-on-the-street @tefilovesreading @tenaciousperfectionunknown @teti-menchon0604 @the-hufflepuff-hunter  @thedarkqueenofavalon @cucumbers-and-olives @thequirkybookaholic @threeghostboys  @vicesvsvirtuesfanfic @whitetigerlover17 @boggie-brainrot @wiselight @gigglysokkamcu @nightfurya @jatplover​

Luke/Charlie Taglist: 

@camiladelrio98 @cloudy-skyler @gingerxarmy​ @killerqueenfan @lolychu @lovesanimals @luckylouiebug  @lukeys-giggle​ @myfriendscallmebeans​ @needyreggie​ @perfectlywrongformend3s​ @rachmmb​ @tenaciousperfectionunknown​ @thecharlietomygillespie @whitemanshoe19​ @rottenroyalebooks @sofiamich2022​

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TAGLIST |  MASTERLIST | PARALLELS MASTERLIST

[missmitchieg]

Julie and The Phantoms Season 2 (maybe 3 and 4? Dunno how long they’ll keep it going.) Wishes

Luke calling Julie Butterfly/Mariposa (but maybe once or twice, he slips up and calls her Mi amor).

Luke calling Julie Star/Starburst/Supernova (hi @metaorigin 👋 That concept is beautiful and wonderful)/Superstar/ESTRELLA.

Luke calling Julie Sun/Sunshine/Sunbeam/SOL.

What I’m saying is GIVE ME LUKE LEARNING SPANISH AND JULIE SWOONING OVER IT BECAUSE IT’S REALLY CUTE WHILE ALEX AND REGGIE ARE OFF TO THE SIDE LAUGHING THEIR ASSES OFF AT THEM.

Julie calling Luke Lucas teasingly. She will be the only one allowed to call him that because “it’s cute when she says it.”

Reggie and Alex casually calling her Jules.

Reggie catching up on Star Wars and complaining about Jar Jar.

More group hugs.

Carrie redemption.

Luke being jealous AF of Nick but in his cute Luke way.

Reggie/Julie bonding.

Disaster Bisexual Reggie being a Disaster Bisexual because yes, he is.

Distinguished Bisexual Julie being a Distinguished Bisexual because yes, she is.

When Reggie realizes he’s not entirely straight but also not gay, he nervously goes straight (lol) to Julie and says “I don’t know if there’s a word, in 2020, for what I am, but I know I like both boys and girls.“ and Julie just hugs him and says “Me, too.“ Luke is Super Very OK with this (because he’s a little not straight, too.) and loves his best friend and his Julie just the same. Alex is kind of happy to not be the only not straight one in the band.

Julie and Reggie having cute little matching Pride bracelets.

A scene where Julie comes home absolutely fuming and says “Guys, I need you to haunt someone.” A wide eyed Alex, slightly terrified of an angry Julie, says “Ok.” and Luke instantly, fists clenched, jaw clenched, eyes squinting, like he is pissed just because his Julie is pissed, is like “Who made my girl angry?” and Reggie is like “I will steal all of their left socks!“ Absolute chaos ensues. Alex is awkwardly knocking stuff over while Reggie steals left socks and a shoe lace. Luke is just going full Paranormal Activity in this house, messing with the curtains and blinds, knocking more stuff around, turning the TV on and off, just bonkers over whatever this person did to Julie or Flynn that Julie said she needed them to haunt this house. Post haunting Juke hugs ensue.

More of Julie’s cute doodles.

Carrie, Julie and Flynn being friends again.

Carrie and Alex becoming besties.

More Sunset Curve flashbacks and songs because Now Or Never and Bright both SLAP and I need more.

Julie schooling the boys on all the music they missed out on.

Willie watching Julie and The Phantoms performances.

Alex/Julie bonding.

Julie teaching the boys about technology.

LUKE FINDING OUT ABOUT PERFECT HARMONY.

Perfect Harmony but not a daydream this time.

More group hugs.

More of Carlos being The Best little brother.

A Willex reunion and hug.

Flynn deciding the boys need some clothes that isn’t 25 years old and going shopping with them. “You can’t just wear the same five shirts all the time.” (Can they wear clothes that’s new/not theirs? Eh, whatever. They should.)

ALEX BEING SUPER CUTE AND EXCITED IN THE PRIDE SECTION AT TARGET. “GUYS. GUYS. THEY HAVE GAY PRIDE STUFF HERE.“ JULIE, FLYNN, LUKE, REGGIE AND WILLIE BEING SUPER HAPPY FOR ALEX.

I love Julie’s season 1 fashion, but I kind of want the boys’ fashion senses to bleed into hers a little bit. Like, give me Julie in her usual cute, girly outfits but with a familiar looking orange beanie. Luke and Julie wearing orange beanies at the same time. Give me Julie in an Alex-esque distressed jean jacket but there’s stars or butterflies embroidered on the sleeves. Give me Julie in her cute little butterfly hair clips and a leather jacket. Give me Julie in a snapback and skull print skater dress. Give me Julie in 90′s band tees and a flannel. OH. Give me Julie wearing Rose’s bedazzled Sunset Curve shirt. GIVE ME JULIE IN LUKE’S FLANNEL.

JULIE’S FASHION SENSE BLEEDING INTO THE BOYS’ FASHION SENSES. LUKE WITH A STARRY GUITAR STRAP. LUKE WEARING A CRESCENT MOON MUSCLE TEE THAT MATCHES JULIE’S NECKLACE. LUKE WEARING A SUNFLOWER SHIRT THAT MATCHES JULIE’S. REGGIE IN MORE BUTTERFLIES. ALEX WEARING GLITTER. ALEX WITH CUTE, COLORFUL STREAKS IN HIS HAIR. LUKE AND REGGIE WITH COLORFUL STREAKS. LUKE WEARING BUTTERFLIES. LUKE AND REGGIE WEARING GLITTER. THE BOYS WEARING SHIRTS JULIE DOODLED ALL OVER AND LOVING THEM. LUKE AND REGGIE WEARING JULIE DOODLE GUITAR AND BASS STRAPS. LUKE, REGGIE AND ALEX WEARING BLACK NAIL POLISH. LUKE, REGGIE AND ALEX WEARING PRETTY COLORED NAIL POLISH.

Phantom/Flynn bonding.

Movie nights.

Carlos meeting the phantoms for real.

Carlos and Luke mischief.

Willex dates.

Julie/Willie bonding.

Flynn/Willie bonding. I JUST WANT EVERYBODY TO BE FRIENDS AND BE HAPPY.

FRIENDSHIP BRACELETS WITH LITTLE GHOST CHARMS.

Did I mention more group hugs.

I wanna see what’s gonna happen with Caleb!Nick.

More of that cute thing where Reggie sings into Luke’s mic.

More of that other cute thing where Reggie and Julie sing back to back together.

Learning Alex and Reggie’s last names and more about their parents.

More Dirty Candy performances with Alex poofing in.

WILLIE WATCHING ALEX DANCE WITH DIRTY CANDY.

BOBBYTREVOR KNOWS ABOUT THE PHANTOMS AND I NEED MORE TIME WITH HIM PROCESSING THAT THEY ARE A GHOST BAND NOW.

Willie, Alex and Reggie being the biggest Juke (Jukebox?) shippers.

Julie, Luke and Reggie being the biggest Willex shippers.

Luke teaching Julie guitar.

Julie teaching Luke piano.

Reggie solos.

Alex solos.

Willie solos.

Willex duets.

Willie teaching Alex how to skate.

Alex teaching Willie how to drum.

Alex wearing Willie’s bracelets.

More Jukebox duets.

CHARLIE AND MADI WRITTEN JUKEBOX DUETS BECAUSE THOSE TWO REALLY WENT OFF WITH PERFECT HARMONY AND I NEED MORE.

MORE GROUP HUGS.

Reggie just absolutely killing it on a piano and Julie being obsessed with it.

A scene where Julie trips over something and Luke catches her and they Have A Moment. Bonus points if the boys witness The Moment.

ROSE AND THE PETAL PUSHERS FLASHBACKS.

ROSE IN GENERAL FLASHBACKS.

Alex becoming a Louis Tomlinson stan. Willie’s only a little jealous and Alex thinks it’s cute.

Reggie becoming a Keith Urban stan.

Luke being #1 Julie stan.

Julie being #1 Luke stan.

CUTE LITTLE PRIDE STICKERS ON THEIR INSTRUMENTS.

JULIE DOODLES ON THEIR INSTRUMENTS. OH MY GOD, JULIE DOODLES ON THEIR MICROPHONES LIKE HERS.

Nick showing off more guitar skills because we saw that like, once in season one.

More of Nick being a Julie and The Phantoms stan having a blast and a half at their performances.

MORE. GROUP. HUGS.

[airplanelanding]

Ok. Bestie.

ARE YOU DONE YET?????

Because in your multitude of asks (that I’m so fucking glad for like pls you have no idea how happy that made me, I was legit grinning like an idiot and squealing), it stopped at Unsaid Emily so I’m DYING to know what you thought of the last episode with Stand Tall!!!!!

And now I can talk to you about JATP!!!!

Like what’s your favourite song (songs cuz I know that it’s impossible to choose)?

Who do you ship?

Which scenes are your favourites?

Which OUTFITS do you like best?

What are your favourite dynamics in the show?

What are the moments you thought were funniest?

And stuff like that ☺️ (😂😂😂)

Ahsgsgshshkahs you have no idea how happy I am rn 😂😂

(Btw I see and appreciate your spam of my JATP shit 😂)

(And the Leon/Gwaine fic is coming, I promise! I have the thing planned out and I started writing the beginning! It’s not going to be rlly long because I don’t have much time so I guess we’ll see when I’m done 😂)

Ok. Lyl.

YES I'M DONE!!!!

Oh my GODS WHY DIDNT I WATCH THIS SOONER?!? I finished it at like 2 am last night and was SO UPSET bc I want more😭😭The last performance??? Fucking GREAT! DGHAJDJAKKF B O B B Y—

OH AND THE LUKE PART??!?!? SGAHDJAJJFG OKAY LOOK THE WHOLE FINAL EPISODE STRESDED ME OUT UNTIL THAT PERFORMANCE I COULD N O T STOP GRINNING

(Also can we just take a moment to talk about the chemistry scene ????)

AND THE E N D OHMY G O D S DGAHDJAJF I DONT WANNA SPOIL IT FOR ANYONE IN CASE SOMEONE SEES THIS WHO HASNT WATCHED IT BUT YOU KNOW WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT HOLY SH I T

Okokokok

Like what’s your favourite song (songs cuz I know that it’s impossible to choose)?

• Okay like, obviously I love them all, but fuck Unsaid Emily hit me so hard, I don't think I've cried like that since I heard Just Like You by Annika Rose for the first time. I also really liked All Eyes On Me and Finally Free. (I can't lie, The Other Side of Hollywood was good too and I liked it but I just...Caleb.)😂😂😂

Which scenes are your favourites?

• Oh gods okay— first of all just

"This is my first haunting, I wanna make it special."

Um, oh and Reggie about the cheerleaders at the beginning. I really loved the scene in the Stand Tall at the end.

THE "you have some magic of your own" SCENE DGAJDJAJF

Oh, the Chemistry scene with "Girls am I right?" "Yeah.." "No😃"

Reggie thinking Ray was talking to him in the studio.

"Dude, you're a ghost, just poof out." "don't tell me how to ghost!!!"

"Woke, that's a cool word... what does is it mean?" "No clue."

Just...Carlos. Anything with Carlos & the boys.

Oh, and the scene at Bobby's house, just that whole part.

REGGIE LEARNING ABOUT THE STAR WARS UPDATES

Dgajdhjadjjahf i have so many 😭😂😭

Which OUTFITS do you like best?

• Okay I LOVED Julie's outfit for All Eyes On Me, but the boys?? Loved their outfits for Stand Tall at the end. And Julie's for that matter. Oh and I loved her outfit for Edge of Great so much, like one is by far one of my favourites, it's so PRETTY

Who do you ship?

• agdhajdjsjt I don't feel qualified to answer this 😂😂😭😭 idek yet I mean like obviously Alex and Willie bc they had their whole thing, and y'know Luke and Julie too bc seriously the way they interact I just—

• But like I'm unsure who to ship Reggie with😭😭 (though that boy got real flustered at the chemistry scene 😂😂 I'm sorry I'm not going to get over that, they're reactions after the fact were fucking perfect)

What are your favourite dynamics in the show?

• I loved Julie and Flynn's friendship (literally their introductions were great), but I also loved the dynamic between Julie and Ray, I mean like... Ray was so supportive and happy for Julie, even though she snuck out, and he cared so much about her being able to pursue music like she wanted to that he was looking for new schools with music programs the moment he found out she wouldn't be let back in, and this man was literally ready to up and move his whole life to a new house just because Julie had wanted to move. Not to mention just the rest of their interactions. Idk, he's just... a really good dad, and I loved the portrayal of a good father-daughter relationship.

What are the moments you thought were funniest?

• A lot of my favourite moments tbh.

• Though, Reggie scaring the shit out of Carlos & Julie's aunt, killed me. Especially his little pause and "words hurt" when she called him a demon 😭😂

I'm just like dying for more now and so upset there isn't any more bc sgajdjambfbg

You get what I mean.

😂😭😂

(Also I'm glad you liked the spam bc I was literally screaming and just needed to freak out to someone 😂😂😂)

(Oh, and don't rush yourself! It doesn't have to be long!! I'm just excited to see whatever you come up with!!! 💕💕💕)

[theconservativebrief]

Before it debuted, Sharp Objects was frequently compared to last summer’s Big Little Lies, due to both shows being splashy HBO miniseries with big-name casts. But Big Little Lies, among other things, told a story about its female characters’ struggle to prove their innocence in a town that knew better. And Sharp Objects’ third episode, “Fix,” is the inverse of that. It’s all about women who are fully capable of murder, and a town that doesn’t want to believe it.

“Women around here, they don’t kill with their hands,” Bob Nash (Will Chase) — the father of one of two girls that’ve been murdered in the small Southern town of Wind Gap, Missouri — tells Camille (Amy Adams), when she visits him. “They talk.”

In the aftermath of two ritualistic and grisly murders that happened less than a year apart, Wind Gap’s citizens don’t seem to be terribly concerned about their lives being in danger. The parental warnings being issued to the town’s children are weak (and several of the kids are sneaking out on a nightly basis), and life, for the most part, seems abnormally normal.

What Wind Gap’s residents are more concerned about is playing a game of whodunit and speculating why each of the victims was targeted. They seem more entranced by the spectacle of it all, and in some ways, Camille — who’s now finished with her initial story — does too. People’s interest in the murders is rooted more in morbid curiosity than in personal safety. Finding the killer is more about closing the loop on the story than it is justice.

Sharp Objects has focused heavily on this sentiment in its past two episodes by unpacking Wind Gap residents’ opinions on who the murderer might be — and heavily hinting that it won’t be anyone they expect, specifically because few folks in town seem to believe the killer could be a woman.

In “Fix,” getting away from how the town of Wind Gap thinks about and treats women is as impossible as Camille getting away from a bottle of vodka. It seems like every interaction between two characters contains at least a slip of a remark about the women of Wind Gap, or rather, how the women of Wind Gap are viewed and treated in the town.

Many residents of Wind Gap clearly believe that women are only good for one thing: gossiping.

“That boy from Kansas City talks like a woman from Wind Gap,” Sheriff Vickery (Matt Craven) tells Camille in reference to Detective Willis (Chris Messina), reinforcing what Nash told her.

This sentiment builds on what we’ve seen in previous episodes: Adora worrying about Camille sullying her reputation around town; Camille having to deal with her own Wind Gap legacy; and Wind Gap’s mean girls whispering away at Natalie’s funeral.

The implication seems to be that a woman from Wind Gap could never be capable of anything more than mindless talk, let alone murder. But we’re not really meant to trust this characterization.

The people spreading the “all women are gossips” generalization are all men who have been doing their fair share of talking too. The sheriff, for example, hasn’t been particularly successful at his job — keeping the town of Wind Gap safe — so his remark about how women in the town keep talking and how men like Willis should know better than to act like them feels more like frustration coming from an incompetent character than an objective observation.

It’s also obvious that the women of Wind Gap know how to take advantage of what others think and expect of them.

Take Camille’s sister, Amma (Eliza Scanlen), who shares a drunken chat with Camille in the first scene of “Fix.” She’s figured out how to alter her behavior in front of the girls’ mother, to her benefit. Amma knows how she’s expected to behave, and that she can wriggle out all kinds of freedoms as long as she maintains a certain image — that’s why we see her wearing different outfits and putting on a different demeanor when she’s at home. No one, including Adora, suspects her of being capable of more.

But as Amma reveals to Camille during their chat, she’s nowhere near as innocent as she seems.

“They do anything for me,” she says of her friends, flashing a sly hint that she might be capable of more nefarious things than she appears to be. “I just ask, and they’re my besties.”

Full disclosure: Although I’ve seen (and loved) the movie adaptation of Gone Girl, I’ve never read Gillian Flynn’s books. I don’t know how Sharp Objects ends. With that said, I fully believe the Wind Gap killer is a woman, by virtue of the fact that the show’s male characters are outright saying women aren’t capable of murder.

I keep coming back to what Nash said: “Women around here, they don’t kill with their hands.” Granted, a sullied reputation in such a small town can probably feel like a punishment worse than death. And we don’t know how much Nash is exaggerating or how much he fully believes his statement.

But in Sharp Objects’ first three episodes, we’ve seen various male characters get asked about their alibis, have their possible motives explained and explored, and have their pasts delved into. Meanwhile, no one has been asking where Amma or Adora was on the nights of the murders, even though Amma tells the Sheriff in “Fix” that she personally knew both of the dead girls. We also don’t know exactly why John Keene’s suspicious, clingy “Jackie O” girlfriend Ashley is suddenly in the picture, but no one except Camille seems to care.

These women all seem like potential suspects, but they’re being dismissed because the general thought in Wind Gap is that women are harmless. Yes, they talk, but they aren’t seen as “strong” enough (to pull the victims’ teeth with pliers) or heinous enough to commit violence of the type that killed the girls.

And “harmless” doesn’t just refer to the harm they might pose other people but also the harm they’re capable of inflicting on themselves, as we see in a flashback to Camille checking into a psych ward and befriending her cellmate Alice. Camille and Alice both engage in self-harm, but Camille seems to be the only person who can sense how troubled Alice is or notices the extent of her cutting. The scenes feel safe. Alice shares a playful relationship with the nurse. And that all comes crashing down in the final sequence when we find out how Alice died.

There’s something deeper beneath the surface of each one of Wind Gap’s women, something that possibly belies the person they’re presenting as in public. Writing off the town’s women as harmless gossips fails to recognize what kind of people, perhaps monsters, some of them might be. Which makes it no surprise that the sheriff hasn’t found the murderer yet — he’s underestimating half the population.

Original Source -> Sharp Objects shows that men can’t comprehend a dangerous woman in “Fix”

via The Conservative Brief

[fiddlepickdouglas]

Viva Las Vegas, Pt. 5 - The Stratosphere

Summary: Sunset Curve Alive AU, Willex, where will they go?, 2.7k

@trevor-wilson-covington​ is the bestie who makes these lovely edits, we stan supportive friends

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4

“So, I was thinking,” Luke was saying to Julie once everyone was back in the green room, chatting lightly as they packed up their gear. “Maybe I could visit your mom in the hospital and play some songs for her. Cheer her up, you know?”

Julie looked so touched. Willie still didn’t know their whole story, but they seemed like a good fit. He had offered to help Alex load up his drums, but apparently there were people paid to do that here. Alex was just supervising it because he wanted to make sure they were handled right. It was a pity this place was full of techs and ushers and security because it was so tempting for Willie to try a few tricks on his board in there.

He’d finally gotten a proper introduction to everyone, and it turned out that all of Alex’s friends were great. The guys were all super chill, and he couldn’t thank Julie and Flynn enough for letting him be there to begin with. They seemed almost like a family. If he didn’t think about it too long, then he could ignore how badly he wanted to stay around all of them for as long as he could. Willie couldn’t remember anywhere that had felt so warm and open. He ran his fingers over the new bandage that he’d gotten on his hand.

Alex sat beside him, gear all stashed away.

“So, what’s your plan?” he asked.

“It’s a surprise,” Willie teased. “But it’s close.”

Alex looked around the room and then back at him with wonder in his eyes, raising the corners of his lips.

“Just the two of us though,” Willie added.

“Of course,” Alex nodded, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

“Hey, guys,” Luke spoke to the entire room. Flynn, Reggie, and Bobby stopped the silly hand clapping game they were in the middle of and all turned their heads to face him.

“Julie and I just came up with a super cool plan,” Luke continued. Julie stood with him, and Luke immediately stood back to let her speak.

“I told you guys that my mom’s cancer is back. She’s given a lot to me, and I don’t think I could ever give back everything. But it would be really neat if we all gave her a private mini concert.”

Cheers went around the room, making Julie beam with happiness.

“I know it’s short notice,” she went on. “But I want to try to do it once we’re all back in California.”

“But what about your shows in the next couple of days?” Flynn questioned.

“I’m gonna see if I can reschedule them. I know it isn’t an ideal thing to do but with my mom’s condition, I’ve gotta do what I can.”

Willie sat quietly. He would’ve been happy to be involved, but was too aware that he was staying here in Vegas. That same feeling of wrongness crept along his skin, making him fold his arms and rub his thumb where it rested. He wasn’t sure when he’d picked up the habit, but he was doing it a lot more often recently.

“Uh…” he started. “I’m gonna catch up with you guys later, if that's okay.” He glanced over at Willie in a subtle but giddy manner.

The group finished discussing plans about getting together for a quick practice and what kind of songs they would do for Julie’s mom. When Willie suggested Yellow Submarine, Alex advocated for it as well, and he was happy to have made at least some contribution to their ideas. Once all that was put together, everyone got ready to go their separate ways. All the guys shuffled toward their van and Alex hung behind for a moment.

The guys all looked mildly surprised, but ultimately shrugged.

“Catch you later, Alex,” Luke said, giving him a wink. Reggie was singing Yellow Submarine under his breath as they drove away, to which Willie giggled quietly.

“You ready?” he turned to Alex, noticing his hands were free from clutching the strap of his fanny pack this time.

“I guess I am,” Alex said, smiling through his nerves.

Willie took his hand tightly and carried his board with the other. Alex's smile only grew wider as they hurried out to the street. The goofy jerking between their hands only made them squeeze harder to keep contact. He could hear the delighted chuckle being released behind him as he guided Alex across the city. He felt his lungs let forth a youthful yell from his throat, and he felt like Peter Pan crowing as he flew through the stars.

People darted out of their way as they rushed onward. Willie eventually saw his target, the Stratosphere, and didn't even bother pausing before he pulled Alex through the entrance. The elevator was just being emptied and before anyone could stop them, he tugged Alex inside and pressed the buttons to get them to the highest floor. The doors shut and they felt the jolt of being lifted from the ground pull them downward.

"Aren't we supposed to pay for tickets?" Alex panted, laughing between breaths.

Willie, also doubled over in laughter, just shook his head.

"Capitalism sucks, man! Don't buy into it!"

Alex only wheezed, leaning into the wall for support. Eventually, they both sat on the floor and after a few more bouts of laughter were able to calm down and breathe normally.

"When you said you had your ways I didn't know you literally meant you could just walk in anywhere," Alex thought aloud.

"The concert was luck," Willie smiled. "Here, it's just practice."

Alex shook his head incredulously. They both sighed, feeling that strange tension that had been there back in the diner, except Willie felt it in his fingertips. He eyed Alex’s hand lying inches away, and imagined himself reaching through and lacing their fingers together.

"How's that relaxing going, by the way?" he wondered.

"Hard to tell with you around," Alex stated, sarcasm not to be missed.

"I'll take the compliment."

Their long ride inside the elevator was near the end, and they stood up as the numbers got closer. Willie felt Alex's pinkie reach for his and he was happily surprised at the feeling of skin twining with skin. It was like they didn’t have to say anything - they just felt the same things. The door opened to the fresh evening breeze and revealed the wonderful sight before them.

"Whoa," Alex breathed, immediately drawn to the view on the observation deck. The lights from below sparkled in his eyes and Willie followed as they came right up to the railing. Both of them sat in awed silence, watching everything blink and glitter beneath them. The mountains in the distance bordered everything in a gentle, majestic manner. Willie had been up here so many times and somehow never noticed the odd sense of being folded in angels' wings before.

“I’ve been an idiot,” Alex started saying. Willie turned his head in confusion. Their hands slipped apart as Alex began gesturing to emphasize his words. “I’ve been thinking all day about how everything goes wrong and expecting everything to go wrong. I haven’t been enjoying anything nearly as much as I should be right now.”

Willie didn’t reply just yet. He just looked at Alex, watching how tense he was still, almost as if he could see the lion in the cage inside his head. All he wanted was to set it free. He looked around, and while there were a couple people on the other side of the observation deck, they seemed likely to just take pictures and then head back down.

“You know what I love about being up here besides the view?” he asked Alex.

“What?”

Willie gripped the railing as hard as he could, took in a deep breath, and screamed out into the darkness. Alex looked around nervously, but only watched the other people on the deck make their way back to the elevator.

“You gotta try it,” Willie urged.

Alex braced himself against the barrier and gave a nice little yelp.

“Oh, are you a puppy up for adoption?” Willie joked, tugging on Alex’s jacket. “Your whole body needs to let go.”

Alex looked back at him with an intense focus, and then turned back to the railing. Filling his lungs to the brim, he yelled viciously over the top of it. Willie joined him and they both staggered between screaming and taking moments to breathe. Something about it said words beyond what they had spoken. Willie heard a unique sort of agony as Alex belted everything to the night. He wondered if his pain came through as well.

Alex finally sighed as he finished his last shout and then looked up at the sky and closed his eyes.

“I did enjoy that,” he said. “Thank you.” He dropped his posture and Willie smiled at seeing him finally loosen up.

“Didn’t know you had so much pent up rage,” he commented.

“I guess I didn’t either,” Alex said, chuckling darkly. He sat on the ground and looked up at Willie to follow suit. Taking a seat across from him, Willie eyed him curiously.

“Now what?” he asked.

“Staring contest,” Alex said plainly.

Unfortunately, Willie blinked immediately. Probably ten times in succession, actually. This time, Alex got to laugh.

“Okay, not an actual staring contest,” he said. “ But I’ve tried this with all the guys in the band. We look into each other’s eyes for a few minutes, no speaking, and we just....know each other better. Bobby’s the one who started it.”

Willie only nodded as they got into comfortable positions before locking eyes. He tried to silence any impulses for his mind to focus on anything else and channeled everything into looking at Alex. Even in the dim light, he picked up the green color staring back at him. The stillness outside rivaled the storm within them.

Slowly, the storm softened into waves of caring kindness. They were powerful, but low, as if Willie were wading in shallow water and letting them crash over him. Each wake broke upon him in just the way he wanted to collide with them. This wasn’t a tide where he would get lost in the danger of the deep. The current was pushing him back to the shore, toward safe ground. 

The image in his mind suddenly morphed, and he was transported from calming waves to a rickety road. Fields passed by as he found himself looking out a window. His vision steered to his left, and an older man with a jovial smile sat at the wheel, turning to him as if they’d been passing jokes between them. The man’s familiar laugh echoed in his head.

 Absent-mindedly, Willie grabbed Alex’s hand. Pulled out of his trance, Alex looked at him with concern.

“I just remembered something,” Willie said, sounding like he’d received divine communication. It almost felt like he had. That image was supposed to be locked away, he’d been told. Never to be known again.

“What, like you left the stove on or something?” Alex asked in confusion.

Willie shook his head seriously. His hand was still squeezing Alex’s but he couldn’t get it to loosen its grip. It wasn’t because the memory had scared him, but fear was present anyway.

“No.” His eyes had trouble focusing on Alex’s face, now. “I think I remembered my dad. Like we were driving together. I remembered him.”

Alex dipped his head lower as he tried to figure out what Willie meant.

Willie bit his lip and looked at him apprehensively. This wasn’t the intended topic of discussion tonight. It wasn’t a subject he was usually allowed to speak of to begin with. He opened his mouth and clamped it shut, and then opened it again.

“I have retrograde amnesia,” he confessed.

Alex’s jaw slacked and hung open for a minute. Willie wasn’t sure how long he could handle this gorgeous boy blinking at him in disbelief before Alex closed it again.

“Oh my god, Willie,” he started, still sounding unsure but remaining gentle.

“I’m sorry, that’s sort of a really big thing to just drop on somebody,” Willie started.

“No, no, you don’t need to be sorry,” Alex soothed. “But, oh my god, you just remembered something.”

Willie ran his hands through his hair and took a deep breath.

“Yeah… I did,” he said, just realizing the significance of that himself. His past wasn’t entirely under lock and key. That...brought a lot of emotions with it.

“Wait, so how long have you been like this?” Alex asked.

“About a year and a half,” Willie told him solemnly. “Caleb told me I was hit by a car when I was out skating. I even have a scar.” He lifted his hair and turned his head so Alex could get a look. Alex grimaced and shook his head, clearly not liking the visual he’d received in his mind.

“You’re lucky you’re not dead,” he said.

“Yeah, Caleb said that too.”

“Wait, who’s Caleb?” Alex blurted.

“Oh,” Willie looked downcast. “He’s my legal guardian. And my boss. You saw him this morning, remember?”

“That’s your legal guardian?” Alex said, sounding slightly upset. “Guy gave me the creeps.”

“That’s fair,” Alex said, sounding a little unconvinced of his own statement. He sat quietly for a minute. Willie studied him, worried about how he would respond next. Any fun had been sucked out of the air due to his own personal business.

“Yeah, well,” Willie shrugged. “He does that. But, what can I do, you know?”

“So, for the past year and a half,” Alex started. “You’ve had nobody except your boss?”

Wow, that hit him right in between the eyes. Willie hadn’t actually considered that before. He blinked momentarily and then looked directly into Alex’s eyes as pain slowly took over. Then hot tears welled up, causing him to look away.

“I guess not,” he said quietly, his voice already trembling. Before he could huddle into a little ball, Alex’s arms were around him, pressing his head to his chest. Heaving a sigh, he let the tears fall as quietly as he dared to be. His hand crept up to hold onto Alex’s shoulder and gripped tightly. A funny weight was felt on the top of his head, and he realized Alex was running his fingers through his hair. It was so soothing, so...sweet. Willie didn’t realize that was something he missed from his many forgotten memories.

Soon, he straightened up and wiped his eyes.

“Thank you,” he said to Alex, knowing he couldn’t possibly convey how grateful he truly was.

“Of course,” Alex assured him, still gazing upon him tenderly.

“I guess I killed the mood, huh?” Willie attempted to joke. Alex simply smirked and shook his head.

“For what it’s worth, I was totally lost in your eyes, so I needed to come back to reality.”

Willie couldn’t help but smile, raising his eyebrows suggestively.

“That was for free,” he said, already getting back into step with his sense of humor. “I charge everyone else.”

Alex quietly entered the hotel and slipped into the door of their room. The guys had thankfully left it ajar so he wouldn’t be locked out. Luke was already lightly snoring on the couch, and he saw that Reggie and Bobby had both taken the larger bed. Carefully pulling his fanny pack over his head and setting it on the side table, he kicked off his shoes.

“Hey, Alex,” he heard Reggie whispering. Dammit. “How’d it go?”

The entire night replayed on fast forward in his mind, and he couldn’t get over the beauty of it all. The weight of it all.

“It was good, Reg,” he whispered back. He quickly changed and climbed into the bed that came down from the wall. Too many thoughts and feelings swirled in his mind like a cajun soup. Willie was amazing. There was nothing else to it except smaller details that attested to the same fact. Today had been all he would have of him, though. His mind paused on that thought as silence filled his ears.

“Did you kiss him?” Reggie whispered out of the blue in curiosity.

“Hey, bigger spoon,” Bobby mumbled groggily. “Be quiet.”

Alex didn’t answer, but smiled quietly to himself. He should have kissed him.

[fiddlepickdouglas]

Viva Las Vegas, Pt. 4 - Favors

Summary: Sunset Curve Alive AU, Willex, will he make it?, 2.5k

@trevor-wilson-covington is the bestie who makes me these lovely edits, we stan supportive friends

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

Willie’s hands were red and wrinkly from all the dishwashing. The industrial washer was hot and the smell was gag-inducing but somehow after some time he could manage not to notice it. Glancing at the clock, he sighed heavily. It was 7:40. Alex was going to be on stage soon and he wasn’t even off his shift. He’d had a feeling that was going to happen though. Even if it was foolish to hope, he’d been the fool anyway.

Business had sure picked up from the lull that morning, but thankfully he wasn’t bussing tables. He rarely had to be a waiter, and the main reason he’d gone out there earlier was because there were four attractive boys and no one else and he wasn’t missing a chance to pick up on one of them. Willie hadn’t imagined Alex to be so disarming, not to mention that the chances of seeing him again had seemed impossible.

Finally, the next shift came into the kitchen and he could set his last load on a drying rack. His apron was off and hung and he was headed out the door so quickly that he didn’t see Caleb coming into the kitchen.

“In a rush, William?” the man said in his usual austere manner.

Willie paused in his tracks and looked back at him like a deer in the headlights.

“Ah...yeah, I just....have some errands to run,” he tried to smile casually, but he was no good at lying. It seemed silly that he felt he had to make an excuse, but he was never sure if Caleb was going to demand something more out of him.

“Well, they seem pretty important,” Caleb said, patting his shoulder and peering down at him. Willie could sense the height difference between them. “Better get them done.”

Before he could seize up completely from the intimidation, Willie grabbed his board and helmet and stuffed the cash from his tips into his back pocket. He never adhered to the curfew Caleb gave him, no matter how he got punished for it later. Stepping into the night air and kicking off on his board, a monolithic weight floated away from his shoulders. The breeze was life flowing across his face and through his clothing, hair whipping around behind him.

“Whooooo!” he cried, echoing through the street.

This was what he lived for - the simplicity of him against everything else. His hands were getting the brunt of the wind chill, since he hadn’t let them dry completely before heading out, but it was refreshing.

Willie had learned a lot of shortcuts in the city and if he moved fast enough he would just barely get himself to the show on time. Skating through alleyways and low-traffic streets, he weaved through the Las Vegas nightlife with almost no effort. The lights at this angle were nothing but blurs. His ears still burned to know what Alex had been about to say when he’d mentioned showing him a better view. The thought of them perched above the rest of the city, watching the lights flash and twinkle below - 

A car honked loudly at him as it screeched to a stop, narrowly missing him as he crossed the street. Willie tripped over his board and only just managed to stay on his feet as he held his hands up defensively.

“Sorry!” He called to the driver.

“Use the crosswalk!” they yelled without even rolling down their window.

 He collected his board and ran to the opposite side before he could see their angry mug flipping him off. Once he was safe, he checked over his shoulder and his hands went to feel his helmet. It was on, thank goodness. 

“Use the crosswalk…” he muttered in a mocking manner, laughing it off. Huffing as he mounted his board again, he continued on his way to Alex’s concert.

Just a few blocks later he was at the entrance to the Pearl and looked on at the closed doors. His heart sank slowly as he approached them, pulling on the handles and finding them locked. It couldn’t be too long after eight, right? He peeked inside the windows, hoping to find anyone near the entrance. Nobody was visible. Banging the door a couple times, he waited to see if anyone came.

“Hello?” he shouted, getting no better view through the windows than before. “Heeyyy!”

He saw a security guard round a corner and ditched immediately into the side alley. Willie didn’t own a watch so he had no idea how late he was. He leaned against the wall and sighed deeply, wishing his heartbeat would settle. The taunting thought came that oh well, it wasn’t meant to work out, he’s just some guy in a band. Feeling his fist clench the moment those words crossed his mind, he hit it against the wall and grunted in frustration.

That feeling was wrong, and he knew it was because he had felt something bigger than that. He’d seen Alex’s face and the calm adoration that reflected in his eyes. Willie couldn’t recall feeling more alive and more at home than in those moments. He sat against the wall, leaning his elbows on his knees and placing his head in his hands. There had to be a way to get into the show. Alex had to know that he’d tried, at the very least.

He didn’t know how long he sat there, but the more time passed the more he knew he was just missing the best night of his life. Nothing helpful was coming to him either and he had half a mind to just go back to the bodega and cuddle Sheldon. His finger ran over the sore on his hand that Alex had so tenderly bandaged. He’d had to remove the band-aids while he was washing dishes - the sting was another thing he’d tuned out while working. A door at the side of the building opened and the alley was momentarily flooded with yellow light.

“Jules!” he heard a girl with long braids saying to another girl in an edgy, glamorous dress who was extremely upset.

“Flynn, I’m trying so hard, but I don’t know if I can be my best on stage tonight. I should be there with her!” The other girl said. Willie shrank into the shadows, not wanting to invade on privacy but also not wanting to be caught.

“She knows you would be there if you could! There’s still time and I know that she would be proud of you for killing it up there. Just hear me out, Julie.”

Julie. Willie was trying to remember why that name was significant.

She sighed and crossed her arms. “Say it, because I know I can’t stop you.”

“Okay,” Flynn started. “Your mom got you into music. She gave you a gift! She shared what she loved with you and she didn’t do it so you could drop it when things got tough.”

“Let me guess,” Julie said with a hint of skepticism. “She would want me to keep sharing it?”

“Look at my smart girl,” Flynn said with warm pride. She held out her arms to give her friend a hug.

Julie. Julie. It finally clicked in Willie’s mind. He stood up and stepped into their view, causing them to break apart from their touching moment. Flynn moved protectively in front of her friend.

“Who are you?” she asked, a fierce expression aimed in his direction. Willie raised his hands and slowly approached.

“I don’t mean to butt in,” he said carefully.

“Oh, really? Cuz you just did and we’re kind of in the middle of something personal.” Flynn clearly was down to fight. He moved closer and she blocked him. “You’re gonna have to get through me, skater boy.”

He looked over her shoulder to see the other girl.

“Are you Julie Molina?”

Flynn continued to step between him and Julie, and folded her arms.

“Who’s asking?” she said defiantly.

“I’m Willie,” he said, stopping so Flynn would quit blocking him. He looked at Julie. “First, I’m sorry you can’t be with your mom. It sounds like she isn’t okay and that really sucks.” The girls shared a glance full of pity. “Also, sorry for asking, but do you know Alex?”

Julie came forward and put a hand on Flynn’s shoulder, giving her a look that made her friend drop the mama bear attitude.

“Yeah, I do,” she said hesitantly.

“Uh…” Willie started awkwardly. “Well, he told me to come tonight and it looks like I missed my chance. I just wanted him to know I didn’t forget.”

Flynn raised an eyebrow but Julie shrugged at it.

“You know he’s playing right now,” she told him.

Willie nodded, looking down at the ground. That wasn’t a reminder he really needed. Flynn studied him for a few seconds and then raised a finger, furrowing her brow.

“Are you the guy Alex was talking about earlier?”

He looked slightly flabbergasted.

“Who was he talking about earlier?”

“Oh, just some skater with a cat in a sandwich shop,” she said, heavy on the sarcasm. “We got him to confess.” She gave Julie a smug look.

Willie couldn’t help smiling.

“Yep, it’s him.” Flynn smirked.

Julie looked at him thoughtfully for a minute.

“You know what?” she began. “I don’t usually do this, but I’m gonna do this.” She went to the door again.

“Does this mean you’re good about going on tonight?” Flynn asked.

“Yeah,” Julie said. “You were right. My mom would want me there. And she would also want me to do favors once in a while.” She gave a pointed look at Willie as she pulled the door open. Flynn got an excited look on her face, grabbed Willie’s wrist, and started pulling him inside.

“Sorry about coming off the wrong way,” she said back to him. “Are we good?”

“You bet we’re good,” he replied, not sure how he’d gotten this far, but happy nonetheless. They moved through storage rooms full of props and costumes from other theatrical shows being held at the venue. Faint rock music echoed from above.

“Okay people, Julie and Flynn plus one coming through!” Flynn called as they passed various members of the tech crew. She let go of Willie’s wrist so he could properly hold his board as he followed them. First, they met a man with short gray hair who approached Julie with concern.

“Estás bien mija?” he asked, holding his arms out slightly to invite a hug if she needed one. Julie accepted it, but it was only a quick one.

“I’ll be okay, dad,” she said reassuringly. “At least for tonight, I will.”

Her dad patted her on the back as he nodded toward Willie.

“Who’s this?”

Julie raised her eyebrows awkwardly.

“Uhhhhhh this is my new friend! My new friend....” she eyed him to provide his name, having clearly forgotten.

“Willie,” he followed, holding out a hand to shake.

“Nice to meet you, Willie, I’m Ray,” her dad said, taking his hand. He didn’t seem to question that Julie had picked up a new friend for a moment. “Well, I’m going to head to my seat with Carlos. You’re gonna do great out there, mija.” He blew her a kiss as he walked off.

They could all hear the crowd screaming. Sunset Curve had finished their set and by the sound of footsteps, were all headed backstage. Willie had a mix of disappointment that he didn’t actually get to see them play, but it paled next to his excitement to see Alex.

Flynn grabbed Willie’s wrist again, leading him to one of the dressing rooms. She knocked lightly, and a voice was heard saying “come in”. She simply opened the door and pushed Willie inside.

“This belongs to you!” she said, giving Willie a double thumbs up before dashing off with a devilish smile on her face. As Willie stumbled forward, Alex turned around from wiping his face in the mirror. His eyes went wide in surprise as he dropped the towel he was holding.

“How did you - how…?” Alex was lost for words, but his smile grew.

Willie shrugged charismatically and jutted his thumb back toward where Flynn had been, clicking his teeth.

“I have my ways,” he said smoothly, dropping his board on the floor and making his way over to Alex.

“Sorry I’m all sweaty,” Alex said sheepishly, pulling his chair up, sitting on it backwards and facing Willie.

“Don’t worry about it,” Willie said, sitting cross-legged on the end of an ottoman, aware that if he moved too close their knees would touch. “I’m sorry I just missed seeing you guys play.”

“Oh, well,” Alex flailed his hands awkwardly. “I mean, that is a bummer, but I’m not mad about it.”

Willie just looked on fondly. Alex was so uncomplicated compared to everything else, and it made him all but go dizzy.

“Julie’s going to be on pretty soon,” Alex was saying. “You could join me and the guys to watch her. We won’t be doing anything fun after, though, because her mom isn’t doing well and we have a long drive home tomorrow.” He stopped there, and they both sat not thinking about how tomorrow would come and put a distance between them. Willie hadn’t even known him for twenty-four hours and that inevitable separation felt...wrong.

“Before we go up, then, I have a question,” Wille said.

Alex looked at him with expecting eyes. Willie looked back into them, smiling.

“What were you going to say this morning, about the lights in the city?”

Blinking, Alex took a minute to recollect what Willie was referring to. He gave a big nod when it finally came to him.

“Right. You were saying that I needed to see them at the right angle and that you would show me if I weren’t already busy.” He paused and stared at the floor for a few seconds. When he looked up he asked, “Was that an invitation?”

“It is now,” Willie responded.

Reggie poked his head in the door.

“Alex, we’re heading up to watch Julie, you coming?” he said. Then he pointed at Willie with a goofy smile. “Hey, buddy! Good to see you!” Bobby was peeking in over his shoulder, and the smug look on his face made Alex turn red.

“Yep,” Alex said matter-of-factly, a goofy expression on his face. “We - ” He glanced over at Willie, surprised to refer to the two of them as ‘we’. “We’re coming.”

Reggie and Bobby disappeared as Alex glanced at the clock on the wall. Willie put a hand on his back and rubbed slightly, feeling his nerves extending into the entire room. Taking in a deep breath, Alex simply gave him an appreciative look and stood up.

“Come on, let’s get up there,” he said in a breathy tone.

Willie smiled wide. Leaving his board and his helmet behind, he followed Alex out to their seats, ready to watch the girl who’d helped him get to this point put on a stunning performance.

[fiddlepickdouglas]

Viva Las Vegas, Pt. 16 - Be Careful

Summary: Sunset Curve Alive AU, Willex, can they bear the news?, 2.2k

@trevor-wilson-covington is the bestie who makes these lovely edits, we stan supportive friends

WARNINGS: cancer mention

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15

Julie sat beside Luke at the small table they had set up beside Rose’s bed. A stack of photos, glue sticks, stickers, scissors, and tons of colored paper covered the table, as well as another stack of photos sitting within Rose’s reach.

“Oh, look at this picture of Carlos,” Rose said in her raspy voice. She lifted one of him as a chubby two year old wearing a baseball cap that was too big, clapping his hands together.

“Aww,” Julie looked affectionately at the photo, tilting her head.

“He’s a cute kid, Mrs. Molina,” Luke said. He continued cutting music notes out of a sheet of purple paper.

“Thanks for visiting me today,” Rose said. “I heard you and the boys have been busy in the studio?”

Grinning like the goof he was, Luke nodded. Julie couldn’t help suppressing a giggle. Even though she knew he was tired from long hours and he only had a little time to get away, he’d still been all about coming with her to visit her mom this morning. She wasn’t sure he was that interested in scrapbooking, but it was sweet of him to come along.

“Yeah, it’s been so fun,” he was saying. “I don’t know how the guys in production make us sound so good. I mean, we already sound awesome, but they make it just perfect. I feel like I would go out and buy ten copies of the album when it gets out.”

Rose chuckled. “Really? That’s great to hear. I remember with the Petal Pushers, I could’ve spent hours in production, tweaking everything until it was just right. That’s why it almost took us two years to release our debut.”

“Two years?” Luke sat back, letting it sink in.

“I was a bit of a perfectionist; the rest of my band wasn’t so patient. I don’t mind though, I had other things to put my time into.” She gazed fondly at Julie, who looked back with a similar fondness, if not slightly clouded.

She wasn’t responding to treatment anymore. It had just become official last week and Julie wasn’t ready to break the news to Luke or anyone else. There wasn’t anything she could think of that would make it easier, no matter how much she knew she needed to let them know. It just seemed like everyone else was doing so well: the guys were finally moving on up, Flynn was coming out with her own music, and even she had barely finished a successful tour. But this was more than just a wrench in the gears.

In the middle of cutting out a heart, she was too lost in thought and snipped on the end of her thumb.

“Ow!” she cried, immediately sucking on it. “Do we have band aids in here?”

“Oh, sweetie,” her mom said fretfully. “I can’t remember where they are, but let me call the nurse.” She pressed a button on the remote beside her bed. Luke tried to get a look at the cut, but Julie insisted on sucking on it.

Moments later, the same woman Julie had seen before entered the room. Her hair was in a braid today, and Julie tried to smile at the sight while her thumb remained in her mouth.

“Hey, Rose, what’s up?” she asked, appearing surprised to have gotten a call.

“Sorry this isn’t a big emergency,” Rose apologized. “My daughter just cut her thumb and I can’t remember where you put the bandages.”

“Oh, don’t worry, I’ve got you,” the nurse said, going to a cabinet and pulling out supplies to bandage Julie’s thumb. “Here, let me see it.”

Finally releasing it, Julie held her hand out and let the nurse sit down and get to work cleaning and wrapping it.

“What are we working on here?” the nurse wondered aloud, looking at the table of craft supplies.

“We’re putting together a scrapbook,” Julie told her, knowing she was using the conversation to distract her from the pain. “You know, so we don’t forget the good things.” She got a knowing look from the nurse. Her eyes were soft and full of understanding, and Julie offered her a little smile. “I know I’ve seen you before, but what was your name?”

“It’s Renee,” the nurse said. “I was just realizing that I never properly introduced myself, either.” Closing the band aid around Julie’s finger, she patted her hand and stood up.

“Well, it’s good to see you again. This is Luke, by the way.” Julie pointed toward where he was simply watching them, slightly spaced out. He blinked for a minute before smiling at Renee and nodding.

“Nice to meet you,” he said. “You’re a lifesaver.”

Renee smiled demurely. “Oh, well, I certainly aim for that at the end of the day.”

Luke could only respond with his dorky grin.

“Luke, here, is a musician like Julie,” Rose piped in.

“Is that right?” Renee replied, raising her eyebrows in interest. “Your family seems to attract the most talented company.”

“Oh, well, I’m definitely talented,” Luke said. “But Julie’s the real wrecking ball. It doesn’t surprise me she got to touring before me and my band.”

She rolled her eyes, but Julie enjoyed the compliment. That was pretty modest for him when it came to music.

“Yes, I remember mentioning my niece is a big fan. I have to refrain from telling her you’re related to Rose, otherwise she would ask for a lot of favors.”

“Oh, how old is your niece?” Julie asked.

“She’s thirteen,” Renee said, leaning on her hand. “Just started middle school.”

“Oh, middle school is rough,” Luke murmured.

“She’s definitely having a rough time,” Renee said to all three of them. “But I think your music has made a difference. Her mom might buy her keyboard for Christmas.”

Julie looked back at Luke, who was already beaming at her, and knew what he would say. He didn’t have to, but she could hear his mantra about the importance of music echo in her brain: it’s about connecting with people, making a difference in their day. She turned back to Renee, whose pager was beeping and made her turn to leave.

“Thanks for the bandage, and of course being there for us,” she said.

“You’re welcome. Glad I could see you, too, Julie.”

“I’ll see you later, Renee,” Rose rasped as she disappeared.

“She seems pretty cool,” Luke said, picking up the music note he was still trying to cut out.

“Yeah, I like her,” Julie told him. “She gave me some good advice.”

“I know she kept talking about her niece, but I think you have another big fan,” Rose said.

“Maybe,” Julie shrugged, trying to focus again on the scrapbook.

As she and Luke left the hospital, Julie had to steal a long glance at her mom, now fast asleep. She had to remember the good things, but there were so many questions she felt like she had to answer. Now that she was off tour and back in school, it was only a matter of time before she had to return to the studio. Once that happened, visits like this would be nearly impossible. She felt a hand slip into hers and fingers interlocking, and she looked up at Luke gently nodding at her to move onward. His puppy-like eyes gave her enough courage to go.

“So how long do you have to be in the studio today?” she asked him, forcing her mind to switch gears.

“Uh...till about seven,” Luke said. “We’re mostly working on Lakeside Reflection today.”

“Aww, I love that one,” she melted into his side as they stepped into the elevator.

“I know you do,” he chuckled softly. She continued leaning on him, feeling his thumb rub over the top of her hand like a lullaby. They remained silent the rest of the way down, just enjoying each other’s company. Julie loved Luke’s calm, quiet moments where he didn’t need to use words. Like the way he used music to speak his mind, he could also communicate with the way he held her. He offered the best comfort. Stepping out of the elevator and to the front of the hospital, Julie saw Bobby’s van already waiting.

“Do you need a ride?” Luke asked.

She shook her head. “No, my tía is taking me and Carlos to see a movie. She’ll be here any minute.”

Forever a pleading look in his eyes when they said goodbye, she shook her head and rolled her eyes at him before he could suggest she change her plans. It happened so often now that she’d had to learn how to say no, no matter how hard it was sometimes.

“Okay, fine,” Luke said, the silent argument over. One hand grabbed onto her head as he planted a kiss on her forehead, letting the other slowly slip out of her fingers as he went to climb into the van. Julie waved at all the guys inside as Bobby took off before looking back down at her bandaged thumb. She still couldn’t tell them about her mom.

Tapping his fingers on the seat, Alex nervously fought to decide if he could break the news to Luke and Bobby. Reggie peeked back, giving him an uncertain glance. They hadn’t exactly discussed it or practiced what they’d say to them, but the clock was ticking. Luke and Bobby needed to know what Caleb was really like now. For some odd reason, Alex’s tongue remained on lock for the whole ride, and it seemed to plague Reggie, too. He felt his muscles twitch as they pulled into the parking lot at the studio. Listening to the squeak of Bobby’s brakes, inertia let them all lightly lurch forward before coming to a full stop.

“Guess who me and Reggie ran into last night?” Alex cried out, almost reflexively. All the guys turned back at him.

“Who?” Bobby prompted.

“Willie.”

The two of them stared at him, stunned, as Reggie took in a deep breath. It was hard to tell whether it was relief or something else.

“Reggie, is he okay?” Bobby asked him.

“Actually, yes he is,” Reggie stated solemnly. “I saw Willie too. He’s here in LA.”

Bobby looked at Luke.

“Caleb said he died. There’s no way he could be here.”

“Well, he is,” Alex said firmly. “Flynn can prove it too, we ran into her as well.”

“Alright, that’s good news, but why are you guys telling us now?” Luke queried.

“Because he knows things about Caleb,” Alex said. “Really bad things.”

Luke and Bobby both blinked and then looked at each other. Alex shot a glance over at the door to the studio. He was already afraid to enter. Caleb wasn’t always there, but he always arrived unpredictably.

“Like what things?” Luke asked.

Later that evening, all the guys sat in the garage where they usually practiced. Luke was lying on the couch, despondent as he gazed at the ceiling. Bobby was sprawled on the floor while Reggie had lain sideways across the armchair. Alex paced, occasionally running his hand through his hair.

“Anyone else never want to set foot inside that studio again?” Reggie offered cheerlessly.

“We can’t just quit making a record,” Luke contested.

“Maybe we wouldn’t feel like we want to if we hadn’t jumped the gun and just signed onto the first place that wanted us,” Bobby said. Luke sat up, clearly bothered by those words.

“Dude, what are you saying?”

“Caleb’s a creep,” Reggie supplied. “I don’t know what his game is, but if what Willie says is true, then working with him is a major no go.”

“If?” Alex retorted, stopping to target Reggie. “If we’re gonna trust anyone between the two of them, I would trust Willie. He’s not the one killing people for convenience.”

“Hey,” Bobby interrupted. “You can defend him all you want. We’re not saying we don’t trust him.”

Alex took back to pacing again. Sighing heavily, Luke sat upright on the couch.

“So what, do we just give up?” he demanded. “We didn’t work so hard to get this far just to drop our dream over one shady guy. I mean, what else could he possibly want with us?”

“Look, I don’t know,” Alex said. “But what if it’s not just about us. I mean, thanks to Caleb, Willie can barely remember who he is.” The guys fell silent and serious as that reality sank in. “I mean, he’s not the only one that Caleb has messed with for years, manipulating them into working under him and giving up almost all of their control. Maybe he doesn’t need to get foster kids for it anymore. What if we’re next?”

“So what should we do?” Bobby wondered. “Break the contract and risk losing the rights to all the work we’ve been doing?”

He had a point. Joining Luke on the couch, Alex rested his face in his hands, feeling the frustration seethe out of him.

“No, guys, we need to think about this,” Luke began saying. “I know this is messed up, but I also know that backing out isn’t the right answer. And I know I’m usually not the one to say this stuff but...we need to be careful.”

[fiddlepickdouglas]

Viva Las Vegas, Pt. 15 - Net Zero Change

Summary: Sunset Curve Alive AU, Willex, what’s the truth?, 2.9k

@trevor-wilson-covington​ is the bestie who makes these lovely edits, we stan supportive friends

WARNINGS: death mention, swearing

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14

Alex, Reggie, Flynn and Kyle all sat at a table inside the record store while Willie took care of closing procedures, currently sweeping up around them. Flynn sipped on her soda, eyeing everyone else with a mix of piqued interest and uncertainty.

“I can let you guys stay and talk for about another half hour, but then I’ve gotta kick you out,” Kyle told the three at the table.

“Thanks,” Alex said. “We really appreciate you being so understanding.”

“Not at all,” Kyle said casually. “And Willie’s in the clear, so long as he never pulls a stunt like that again.”

“Thanks for covering for me, man,” Willie said repentantly at Kyle’s rightfully miffed tone.

“I also covered the cost for that jacket, so you owe me for that.”

Alex looked at him, still unable to wrap what had just happened around his head. Climbing somewhere high and screaming felt like an ideal thing to do right then. He wasn’t angry - at least, he didn’t think so - but he still felt like a bottle of Coke that someone had just shaken and dropped a Mento into. His punching bag was already being worn down enough, but since he didn’t have his drums at home it had been a lifesaver recently.

There was Willie, right in front of him, like a miracle. He was so wonderfully unaware of everything, and there was no doubt he hadn’t forgotten Alex. It brought a strange sense of euphoria that battled everything else that had kept his mind dark for so long. He’d used to imagine running into Willie, even for a while after Caleb said he was gone, and thought he’d be the one to catch Willie off guard and rush toward him with joy. Mostly, he’d wanted to knock Willie off his board as slight payback for that one time, but also because it would’ve been satisfying to surprise him for once.

Kyle had gotten up from the table and joined Willie in closing up the store.

“So, you guys all know each other, huh?” he asked.

“Yeah!” Flynn exclaimed. “And I’d like to think that it’s all thanks to me,” she added smugly.

“How so?” Reggie asked in curiosity.

“I helped Willie get into Julie’s concert in Vegas,” she said. “And I’m the reason you two stuck around here.”

Alex looked at her in surprise. Without Flynn, he imagined going with Willie to the Stratosphere or anything else that night wouldn’t have happened. He owed her a serious favor; he wasn’t going to forget that.

“Are you sure you don’t have, like, magic powers or something?” Reggie asked.

Flynn only smiled and quietly sipped her soda again, keeping the mystique for herself.

As Willie disappeared into the kitchen to clean there, Alex looked at Reggie.

“So, do you have as many questions as I do?” he asked.

“Yeah, man,” Reggie said, peeking back toward the kitchen door. “I mean, does Caleb not know?”

“For someone out of the loop,” Flynn butted in. “What’s going on?”

Alex shifted uncomfortably in his seat and took in a deep breath. “So you know how we got signed?”

Flynn nodded. “Uh huh. And congratulations, by the way.”

Alex merely shrugged in acknowledgement.

“Well, the guy who owns the label used to be Willie’s caretaker.”

“Oh, I didn’t know that,” Reggie muttered. Alex suddenly felt a little guilty for missing that detail when talking with the guys.

“Yeah, sorry I forgot to mention it,” he apologized. “Anyway, the day that we signed on, Caleb personally told me that Willie had died in a fire.”

Flynn stared in disbelief.

“Wow,” she said. “That’s fishy.”

“No kidding,” Reggie commented. “But why would he do that? Caleb’s been nothing but good to us.”

“You guys should be careful. He was Willie’s guardian? If his story is that far off, I’d watch out.”

Peering over toward the kitchen, Alex couldn’t get a view of Willie at all. He was dying to hear his side of things.

“I guess we’ll have to see. Flynn, how are you getting home?”

“Oh, I was just gonna take the bus.”

“With your equipment?” he said, already worried. It was a lot for her to be lugging around, whether she could carry it alone or not. “Flynn, let us get you a taxi.”

She looked at him, and he expected her to protest and say she could handle herself. To his surprise, she simply huffed.

“You’re right. It’s getting late.”

“Yeah, and one of us could go with you to make sure you get home safe.”

“I’ll go,” Reggie volunteered. He glanced at Alex and it was clear he was giving him an opportunity.

“Thanks Reggie,” Flynn said. “You guys have gotta keep me updated with everything going on, though. I smell drama. A lot of it.” She finished the last few gulps of her soda and stood up to grab her gear.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, man,” Reggie murmured to Alex, patting him as he rose to help her out.

“See you.”

As he watched them make their way outside, Alex sighed.

“So, Vegas, huh?” Kyle said as he reentered the room, making him jump.

“Uh, yeah,” Alex replied warily. This guy seemed fairly nice, but he could never be too careful about how much he told strangers. He watched him dust the shelves, trying to relax in his seat.

“Willie doesn’t talk about it much, so I’m kinda surprised he had such a reaction tonight. I got the idea he hated the place.”

Puzzled, Alex didn’t respond immediately. He wondered what could’ve happened.

“Well, I’m sure he has his reasons. But when I met him we had a pretty good time.”

“Hmm,” was all that Kyle said as he looked into space thoughtfully before moving on to locking things up.

Alex realized then that he was the only customer left in the store and he’d simply let his friends leave him. His head was certainly not on straight. The time was nearly midnight, and the options of transportation and his experiences with them only dialed up his anxiety. Busses were just weird because everyone could watch him, taxis were expensive and he’d given most of his cash to Reggie, and the chances of having Bobby pick him up were very low.

“Hey,” Willie was standing over him, skateboard in hand. Alex looked up, startled once again, but the feeling of Willie’s hand on his shoulder softened it.

“Hey.”

“Where did Reggie go?”

“Oh,” Alex started. “He’s making sure Flynn gets home safe.”

Nodding, Willie glanced outside.

“What about you?”

Alex rose with a sigh.

“I’ll figure something out.”

They left the store and slowly walked to the corner. Willie still gripped his board as he gazed up at the red hand on the opposite side of the street.

“Do you...wanna walk with me to my place?” he asked Alex. “‘Cuz you look like you want to talk. Then we can find you a way home.”

Sticking his tongue in his cheek, Alex eyed him thoughtfully. It was almost like they hadn’t just spent four months apart - Willie could read him like a book.

“Yeah, that sounds good.”

Unfortunately, that made him stuff his hands deeper into the pockets of his jacket. He’d let himself take Willie’s hand before and have high hopes because he’d let himself ignore reality back then. Even when the guy who he admittedly still had a crush on was back from the dead, Alex didn’t want to tempt fate again. As they both crossed the street, he felt himself hunch inward just as he had earlier with Reggie.

“So, I’m guessing it’s a little weird to see me, since you thought I was a goner and everything,” Willie started nervously.

“Dead,” Alex said, looking at him seriously. “You were dead.”

Willie slowed his pace and sucked in a breath.

“Yeah.”

For a few yards they didn’t speak. Something ate at Alex’s insides, and he couldn’t put a finger on it. Change had always been his worst enemy, but this was a good change. Willie was alive, then he was dead, and now he was back. It should’ve been like net zero change, cancelled out like math. He should be fine about this, right? Why was he not fine?

“Alex, are you...are you mad?” Willie dared to ask.

He paused in his tracks, arms slacking against his sides. Looking over at Willie, then down at the sidewalk again, he nodded.

“Yeah, actually.” Immediately the eating feeling worsened. “I don’t know why that is, but you’re right. I am kinda mad.”

Willie furrowed his brow, but remained quiet for a minute as they continued walking.

“Are you mad at me?” he wondered aloud, finally.

“Maybe?” Alex said, feeling the temperature in his veins rise the more he went on. “That sounds silly, I know, because it wasn’t you who lied to me and put me through absolute agony for weeks on end. You were just the person I thought was dead and so every time I thought about you, it hurt. I don’t even know why it hurt so much. It’s not supposed to hurt when you’re still practically a stranger to me. All I know is that we kind of liked each other and then I thought I’d never find out anything else. I mean, we only knew each other for one day. One fucking day. That was it!”

Alex saw Wilie flinch at the unexpected use of language. A little too late, he realized he should’ve been more gentle. While it was true that he needed to finally release more than just self-pity, it wasn’t worth making Willie miserable for it.

“Wow,” Willie murmured. It already sounded more wounded than Alex could bear.

“That was harsh; I shouldn’t have blown up like that.”

He looked over at Willie to be sure he hadn’t done too much damage already.

“I can’t imagine how awful that was,” Willie said simply.

The pressure that had heated up his veins rapidly began to cool down as Alex realized he was handling this all wrong. He’d momentarily lost control and already saw its potential for harm.

“It’s not you I’m mad at. It’s Caleb.”

“That makes two of us,” Willie told him. “You want to know what really happened?”

“I want to know everything.”

They continued walking along as Willie seemed to try summing up the past few months properly in his mind.

“I don’t know exactly where to start,” he said.

“Well, why don’t you start where we left off?” Alex suggested. It was only fitting that one of them was walking the other home, just like they’d been doing the last time they’d seen each other. There was a funny sense of poetry to it.

“Okay,” Willie began. “I guess what really started it was when we were up on the Stratosphere, remember?”

“Uh huh.”

“I told you that I have amnesia because I had a memory come back.”

“Right, about your dad.”

“You remember this really well,” Willie commented. Alex bowed his head, feeling his lip curl the tiniest bit. “Anyway, I started drawing the things I remembered. And I mean, I drew every detail I could. Even though back then it was just the one about my dad and then the first time that I ran away from Caleb - ”

“Wait, what?” Alex blurted.

Willie cocked his head to the side as he tried to keep the narrative easy to follow.

“Oh yeah that was weird, I had this dream where everything was backwards and it happened like every night and it took me forever to figure out that it was a memory. Anyway, the reason I have amnesia right now? I was trying to run from Caleb because he was a total a-hole and then I got hit in the head!”

Alex looked at his casual expression with mild horror.

“That’s a lot to process,” he said slowly.

“Yeah, I guess he was putting on a face after that, because he didn’t really get nasty until right before I left him for good.”

By the time Willie finished dishing everything to Alex, they had been standing by his front door for a solid ten minutes. Alex could only stand there and let everything turn over in his mind like a taffy pull. Moreover, a pit of dread was forming in his stomach at the same time as a spark of joy grew in his chest.

“So...Harrison Ford?” he said.

Willie smiled. “Much cooler than Han Solo.”

“I still can’t believe you were literally planning to skate your way here. Even I would’ve ruled that out after a minute.”

Lifting a hand defensively, Willie opened his mouth but couldn’t find words.

“I - I will never live that down,” he chuckled.

Alex chuckled in turn. “No.”

For a moment he just looked at Willie. It was the first time that night where his vision wasn’t clouded with questions or overwrought with mixed emotions. This time, it was just as he’d seen him that first moment when they’d sat across from each other at the diner. That was ages ago, but it didn’t seem to have dimmed or faded one bit in Alex’s memory. Here, he was just Willie. It was so nice to see that again.

“What made you come to LA?” he asked. He shuffled his feet awkwardly. 

“You did.” Willie looked right into his eyes as he said it.

The words were plain and honest. Something swelled in Alex’s chest as he heard them. If anyone else had said that - the guys, Julie, even his sister Abby - he would’ve doubted it a little. That was the awful thing with his anxiety is that it immediately twisted everyone’s words into betrayal. Not Willie’s, though.

“Why me?”

Willie got thoughtful, eyes unfocused for a moment.

“I don’t know. I’d do anything for you,” he said, gazing back up at Alex again.

Alex shifted his weight.

“Because I helped you start regaining memories, right?”

It made sense that if he’d been in that position, the person who’d been with him in those moments would mean a great deal to him, too.

“No,” Willie said. “Just ‘cuz. I still like you.”

Alex blinked and his mind emptied of all thought - a feat he’d never imagined occurring. Soon he found himself caught looking into those brown eyes, and instead of wanting to throw in a line, he wished he could plant himself there and spread roots. If it were up to him, he had no desire to go back home and he would just stay happy where he was.

It took a while to realize that he’d slowly begun to lean forward, lips parted as he gazed down at Willie’s mouth. Their noses were just barely not touching, and they hung in the balance waiting for the other to cross that threshold. Willie looked vaguely hypnotized, if not a little indecisive. His thoughts finally caught up to his actions, and once Alex saw what he was doing he turned away.

Dammit, how could you mess that up, Alex? he berated himself. He was already so out of focus and not thinking about the consequences of his actions; he couldn’t go around treating Willie like something else to dump his turmoil upon. Clearing his throat, he straightened his posture. Willie nervously ran a hand through his hair, visibly confused.

“So....” Alex began awkwardly. “You have your own place?”

Willie nodded, not looking him in the eyes anymore.

“Yeah, it’s kinda nice,” he said plainly. “You’ll have to check it out one of these days. You could see Sheldon, too.”

“Yes,” Alex said quickly. “Yes, I would totally be down to come see you and Sheldon. That would be great.”

He hated that the natural cadence in his voice was so sarcastic sometimes. Right now, it didn’t sound genuine at all and he desperately wanted to convey how much he meant every word.

“Bet you’re sort of busy with the band and school and all, though,” Willie said, clearly a little despondent. Alex really wanted to go back and fix the moment they’d had before. He wasn’t making it any better.

“Well, I’m free all next Saturday. You’re not working, are you?”

“I can arrange things with Kyle to get covered. I’m usually on his good side and he doesn’t stay mad for long, so I’m not worried.”

“That’s good.” A pause. “So it’s okay if I come on Saturday?”

“Sure, sure,” Willie rushed to say. “I’m totally down for that. Uh...I just remembered that we’ve gotta get you back home. Did you know how you were gonna do that?”

“Uh yeah, I was gonna just catch the bus,” Alex said, entirely impromptu. After embarrassing himself so badly with Willie, he could override any fears about using public transportation. All he wanted to do was lift his hood over his head and pull the strings so it closed over his face.

“Got it,” Willie replied.

“But I’ll be excited to see you next Saturday,” Alex added. He saw Willie’s eyes light up a little and it made him smile in relief as he began stepping away from Willie’s door. Biting his lip in his usual cute manner, Willie nodded at him.

“See you then.”

Alex exhaled in excitement as he made his way up the steps to the street, barely able to take his eyes off Willie. Only when he couldn’t see him anymore did he force himself to turn away.