#while everyone is like ‘jack. bud. you dated for two weeks.’

[regina-cordium]

Rip jack kelly, you would’ve loved austen by dasha

[theashemarie]

Can you please post the scene from Aftershocks where Casey and Mikey go grocery shopping like you did the drawing scene? It's one of my favorites

Yeah, I got you bud.

[Context: Post-invasion, the fam is low on food and Mikey and Casey head up to the surface to get some. The only open place is a crowded Trader Joes; Casey, who has suffered some emotional missteps when it comes to talking to the boys, wants to have a heart-to-heart with Mikey, but Mikey is focused on getting in and out of the grocery store as quickly as possible.]

Read Aftershocks on ao3.

Also the aforementioned drawing scene.

--

Over an hour later, Mikey stood in the line for checkout with his hands wrapped around the push bar of the cart. The sleeves of his hoodie were long enough to cover his fingers, and he kept his head down to avoid any wandering eyes. Casey stood a little in front of him, fingers wrapped around the side of the cart like a child, staring ahead with steadfast determination. Around them, people peered at Casey, recognizing him from the photos that were cycling around social media, and then at Mikey, trying to discern if the small orange blob was anyone of note. Mikey stayed the course, head bowed, and ignored the whispers that flared up anytime someone got a good look at him.

Usually, large, crowded places like this were friendly territory. It was a lot easier to blend into a crowd, especially in the middle of New York City, where a group of teen boys in strange turtle outfits weren’t worth commenting on or were overlooked entirely as everyone on the street went selectively face-blind, but, today, everyone was on high alert, looking for aliens or turtle-boys. It was a testament to Casey’s hard expression and Mikey’s long stare at his feet that no one had approached yet.

The grocery run had been a large success otherwise. Despite the overcrowded state of the place, the necessities that Mikey was after were all available. Normally, he went to the farmer’s market in Union Square every Friday for perishables and ordered delivery for the rest (or bribed April into picking it up), so he found himself as lost as Casey as he stared at the stacks of bright yellow and blue Styrofoam egg cartons and the sweaty milk jugs, slid forward on their tilted tracks. Casey, for his part, was handling all the newness around him like a champ, and he listened intently as Mikey explained things to him: how to locate expiration dates, the difference between sell by and use by, how to check eggs for cracks, the different uses for canola and olive oils, how to identify if cheese was real or not, how to select the best bunch of grapes. By the end, Mikey was confident enough in his newfound knowledge to let him order cold cuts and cheese from the deli counter—turkey, ham, prosciutto, pastrami, salami, provolone, pepper jack, a half-pound of American cheese because that was what Leo preferred—and watched him accept the small, wrapped bundles with his five-fingered hands.

In the end, their cart was stacked to bursting, and Mikey was satisfied that they would survive for a week or two without issue. He’d mentally prepared himself to make small, versatile meals—omelets, paninis, quesadillas, soups, tacos, fried rice, pasta—and their haul was a perfect picture of this plan. Seven dozen eggs, four boxes of pancake mix, three gallons of milk, eight pounds of cold cuts, five boxes of Raph’s favorite cereal (or the closest Trader Joes approximation), four loaves of bread, three baguettes (to be frozen), a large jar of peanut butter, three packages of chicken breasts, two things of chicken thighs, eight pounds of hamburger meat, five pounds of pasta, six big cans of tomato sauce, three bags of spinach, seven heads of romaine, three large containers of pre-cut pineapple (for their anti-inflammatory properties), and two bags of grapes (because Donnie liked to snack on them frozen while he worked in the lab). Plus the snacks that his brothers had been requesting over text throughout the trip, causing multiple backtracks through the store—Leo really wanted sour gummy worms—and other fruits and vegetables that he had vague plans for.

Casey mouthed the names of the foods to himself as Mikey handed them to him to place in the cart, glancing over the text on the packaging with wide eyes. He stacked everything prudently, taking extra care to keep the cold stuff together after Mikey asked him to, with militant exactness. It all fit, despite the overabundance of food, and Mikey felt something small and sad twang in his chest at the sight of Casey shifting everything around. He was so careful, as if every item had infinite value, and he kept everything in order. It made Mikey wonder about the future he’d come from, where everything was so chaotic that Casey had probably had to find order wherever he could, had to value objects in ways Mikey couldn’t fathom, even living as he did below the city, where supplies could be sparse and precious.

Eventually, after walking every aisle, Mikey declared that they’d gotten everything worth getting, and paced to the front, where the check-out line snaked long. He paused, trepidatious, and steeled himself. They would have to stand there, stuck in one place, vulnerable, with their full cart and familiar faces, and there was nothing he could do about it.

And that was how the world found Casey Jones (Junior? The second? Still a little foggy on that one.) and Michelangelo Hamato waiting to check out in a Trader Joes. The line moved quickly, despite its length, which meant they went shuffling forward every couple seconds, and Casey kept glancing at Mikey, wired tight like a charged lightning rod. He had a look on his face that said that he was thinking about something dangerous, something he wanted to talk about, and Mikey felt his hands tighten around the push bar.

“Mikey,” Casey began, mouth forming strange around the word, as if it was unfamiliar to him. “I’m sor—”

“Casey, I need you to do something for me,” Mikey cut in. This wasn’t the time to be having a heart to heart. “When we get up there, you need to step forward and start loading everything onto the conveyor belt. Take this.” Mikey pulled the credit card out of the pocket of his jeans and forced it into Casey’s hand. “When everything is scanned and they tell you to the total, stick the card into the little slot on the bottom of the machine. See that little silver square on the front?” He waited for Casey to identify the chip on the card and nod. “That side goes in first. Got it?”

“I— I guess? I’ve never—”

“I know.” Mikey gave him a small, patient smile. “But you’re human, so I need you to do all the human stuff. I’ll be right behind you, okay?”

Casey swallowed once, heavy, and it was the first time Mikey had seen him this nervous. Even when facing down the end of the world, he’d been terrified, angry, determined, but never nervous—not like this. “Okay.”

“Good.” Mikey winked at him. “Today, you’re the face-man. Wait until we tell Leo.”

Casey stiffened a little at the wink, but Mikey didn’t get a chance to ask because a checker opened up and motioned them over. Casey shook himself, squared his shoulders, and marched forward.

Mikey helped Casey line everything up and watched the screen as the middle-aged man ran their purchases over the scanner. Casey fidgeted next to him, and Mikey directed him to load the bagged groceries back into the cart, which he jumped on. He followed directions promptly—another oddity that Mikey filed away to deal with later.

Eventually, the man mumbled the total toward them, barely glancing up from the screen, and Casey fumbled the card. The reader beeped angrily at him, giving a chip read error, and the checker took the card from him with a sigh, turning the reader toward himself.

He paused as he read the name on the card and glanced up at Casey, trying to draw a line between the Japanese name and the young man standing in front of him, and Mikey felt his heart sink when he asked, “Whose card is this?”

Mikey stepped in front of Casey. He wanted to avoid a scene, but Casey was already sputtering, trying to put together a sentence involving the words Splinter, Master, aliens. “My dad’s,” Mikey muttered, peering up from under his hood.

The man started, almost dropped the card, as he took in the greenness of Mikey’s face, the curve of his jaw, the shape of his eyes. Mikey saw the exact moment when he connected the green mutant in an orange hoodie standing in front of him with the green mutant in an orange mask flying through the air above Metro Tower from the photos.

He nodded once and carefully slid the card through the machine. It beeped angrily at him again and he turned to the main computer and pressed a few buttons.

“Have a nice day,” he said, with genuine care, as he handed Mikey the receipt.

“Thanks,” Mikey said, and guided Casey away. When he glanced down at the short piece of paper in his hands, he was shocked to see that the man had only charged one dollar to the card. “Whoa…”

Casey didn’t hear. Instead, he pushed the cart toward the doors, and Mikey had to rush to catch up. “How are we getting all this back?” Casey looked at him. “Can we take this cart?”

Mikey shook his head and directed Casey to the side. Together, they gathered the bags, slinging them on their arms up to their elbows, and they staggered out the doors. “Normally, we’d have to carry it,” Mikey said, listing to the right because he had two gallons of milk on that side, “but Donnie gave me something to help.”

They found a secluded alley, and Mikey let the bags hit the ground so he could fish around in the front pocket of his hoodie. The compact, cell phone-sized gadget that Donnie had slid into his hands while they waited for Casey to change into something a little less conspicuous was still there, and Mikey pressed firmly on the small, turtle shell-shaped symbol that was embossed on the front.

It had been a short, technobabble infused conversation, but Donnie had explained that he had a new prototype of the escape pods ready for testing and requested that Mikey take it with him and give it a whirl. He’d even said please. It was a new version that could be activated and then would wait for input from the user before it took off to the lair, a small modification that would ensure that Leo’s situation never happened again.

The one that he’d passed Mikey was red, and, when it formed, there in front of Mikey and Casey, it was Raph-sized. Big enough for the two of them, but Mikey wasn’t very keen on getting back into one of these just yet, so instead he began stowing the groceries inside. Donnie had promised him that the ride would be smooth and even eggs would survive the trip, but Mikey wasn’t taking any chances. He kept the bags of eggs, all seven dozen of them, and let Casey help him organize the rest in the foot of the pod. When it was loaded, he reached inside, located the red button that Donnie had promised would be there, clicked it, and jerked free as the pod snapped shut with a solid hiss. Then, it was gone.

They watched it speed away, shading their eyes against the sun, before Mikey sighed, grabbed the eggs, and pointed himself back toward the subway. Next to him, Casey watched with a faraway look on his face, and Mikey forged ahead of him, trying to avoid the conversation that was brewing between them for as long as possible.

[mediocre-writerr]

safe and sound [jennifer jareau]

jennifer jareau x reader

requested by anon: Hi! I love your Criminal Minds fics and was wondering if I could make a request? Where JJ and reader are dating and it’s set during the season 7 finale where reader is the one who shot the robber and is the one who was taken instead of Will. JJ and reader reunite with a fluffy ending. 

*not my gif*

Kings and Queens. Jacks and Jokers. 

Sound familiar, right? When you hear that you think of the playing cards, not some bank robbers who have been robbing internationally. 

It was a bank robbery. Something that you have been reported to at least five times throughout your career, but this time it was different. The robbers known as the “Face Cards” have been robbing banks all over the DC area, only this time were you called onto the scene.

You and your partner Will were driving around on patrol when your police radio went off, “All units in the vicinity of Penn and Southeast, robbery in progress at Colonial Liberty Bank. Shots fired. Repeat, shots fired at the Colonial Liberty Bank. All units.”

Will and you looked at each other as you grabbed the radio, turning the steering wheel to make a U-turn, “426 responding,” 

Will flicked on the sirens as you started to pick up speed. The two of you finally parked on the side of the bank to prevent them from escaping through the side doors, “Better pull back and see if they respond-” Will was about to go on went a shot rang out and a bullet narrowly missed his head. 

“Shit! Cover!” you yelled. 

The two of you took behind the car as you fired at the man who tried shooting Will. The bullet ripping through the man’s shirt and through his shoulder. You watched as the other man began pulling him away from the door and back inside. 

You called for backup and not too long after JJ came running towards you, embracing you in a tight hug, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah I’m fine, Will over here got pretty lucky,” you said with a smile on your face, patting his back. 

JJ scanned your face, her hands never leaving your cheeks. You grabbed a hold of her hands, pressing a kiss to the palm of them, “I’m okay, let’s just try catching these guys okay?” you whispered and she nodded letting out a sigh. 

Most of the day was spent talking to Chris as you all watched Oliver die. The only goal was to get the hostages out of there without anyone getting hurt, “No more feds. I want the cop who killed my brother,” you let out a sigh, placing your head in your hands.

You, Morgan, JJ, and Hotch all stood there in the van, “Well, I gotta go out there, don’t I?”

“No, absolutely not!” JJ exclaimed.

You looked at your girlfriend with a sad smile, “What other choice do we have?”

“Something! Anything else! They will shoot you the second you walk in, is that not running through your brain?!” she basically yelled.

Hotch and Morgan met your eyes and they took your face to give the two of you some space. Once they left, you looked at JJ and placed your hands on her waist.

She finally leaned in to your touch and placed her hands softly along your neck. You placed your forehead on hers as she sighed. You pressed your lips on hers, kissing her intensely. You wanted to show her how much you love her and care for her even if you’re about to run into a bank full of robbers who probably want you dead.

Once you pulled away, she noticed the determined look in your eyes, “No, no, no! You can’t do this! What about us? What about Henry?” 

“Four people are dead because I killed his brother,” I whispered. 

You pulled away from your short embrace, walking backwards towards the door of the van, “No please! Please don’t leave me!” she exclaimed, tears running down her face as she slid her back against the wall.

You wanted nothing more than to run up and hold her, but you knew that this needed to be done. So no one else could die for your mistakes. “I don’t have a choice baby,” you whispered again, “I love you and I love Henry. Remember that, always,” 

Hotch already knew what you were gonna choose, SWAT members hid behind the cop cars, already pointing their guns inside. You took a deep breath as you started to walk towards the bank. 

You could hear JJ’s screams as you slowly walked towards the bank, “Morgan! Let go of me! Y/N! Y/N stop!” 

You raised your hands up immediately, walking into the bank, “C’mon Chris, you got what you wanted. I’m here. Now please, let them go,” 

“You go,” Chris said, forcing a mom and her children out of there, “What’s your name?”

“Y/N Y/L/N,” you told him. 

There was no response from him as he just shot you twice. The bullets firing echoing throughout the entire building and outside. JJ scrambled in Morgan’s arms, her bright blue eyes widening, “No!” 

The team sat there in the van with JJ. All eyeing her like she was about to just explode. One wrong word would just cause her to go crazy, “Where were they shot?” she asked. Garcia just stared at her unsure of what to say, “Where were they shot?!” 

“I don’t know,” Garcia muttered. 

JJ picked up the stack of papers that were lying next to her and threw them at the wall of the van. Smacking her hands down onto the cool metal. Everyone just stared in shock, unsure of whether you’re alive or dead.

Luckily, he didn’t go for the kill shot.

You laid there as you could feel your body going cold. Your shoulder was bleeding out and the hostages who were helping you started to get a little blurry. 

All you could think about was JJ and Henry. The way Henry would run up to you when you’d go over to their house and hug you tightly. 

Or the nights where both you and JJ were off, Henry would lie in the middle of you as a movie played. Eventually, Henry would fall asleep cuddled up next you. Then JJ’s lazy arm would wrap the both of you. Once you made sure they were both sleeping soundly, you’d wrap your arms around both of them safely and securely. 

“I need to cause a distraction while you guys get out of here,” you told the man, who was applying pressure to your wound, “But I need you to tell my girlfriend Jennifer and her son Henry that I love them so much and I’m sorry,” 

The rest of the time you spent at the bank was a little fuzzy. You were more focused on trying to get Chris to turn on the woman and trying not to pass out from blood loss, than anything else.��

Before you knew it there was an explosion and you were just getting pushed into a car. The whole car ride, you focused your breathing, trying your hardest to stay awake. 

The only thing keeping you going were JJ and Henry. What you would do just to hold them one last time. 

Your thoughts came to an abrupt stop when you arrived at a fire station. The fireman helped patched you up much to Izzy’s choice. You watched as she shot him multiple times before sneaking into the firehouse to grab you a change of clothes. 

“You didn’t have to kill him,” you muttered.

“He was a witness, he needed to go,” she shot back without an ounce of remorse. 

Then the next thing you know you were transported back to the car. Everything was going fine or well okay for being a hostage to two psychopaths. Until Izzy just started opening fire on Chris.

“Well Detective Y/L/N, take Chris out of the car and get in the passenger seat. We’re going on a little drive,” she told you, the gun pointed straight at you, “Stop here,” she muttered after a little bit.

The backdoor opened to reveal the Joker himself. He was the former Marine who helped keep pressure on your wound. Your eyes widened slightly at the sight before ultimately remaining your composure.

“Hey Y/N!” he patted your wounded shoulder and you tried your absolute hardest not to wince, “Sorry, forgot about that,” 

“Drive,” she said again.

“Where?” 

“Take me to see your son,” Izzy said and you shook your head. Henry wasn’t your sign biologically, but the longer you and JJ dated the longer it felt like he was. Like your entire life he was actually yours, “I said, drive!” 

You took a deep breath in before driving towards JJ’s house. The drive was tense as your knuckled turned white from gripping the steering wheel too hard. You just hoped and prayed to whatever type of God there was that they could keep Henry safe. 

JJ would be able to get over the loss of you, but the loss of Henry. That’s a different kind of loss she’ll never be able to survive. 

You finally parked across the street. You smiled softly at the sight of Henry playing in the front with Miss Kate and her daughter. 

“He’s a cutie,” Izzy told you and your smile quickly faded, “Looks a lot like Jennifer. Where’s the hospitality Y/N? Come on introduce me!” 

You got out of the car slowly walking up to the house, “Y/N!” Henry yelled, running towards you as he wrapped his arms around your legs. 

You crouched down so his tiny arms can wrap around your neck. You held him tight and close, sucking in a deep breath. Just for a moment, you were transported back to one of your favorite parts of the week. Just for a moment, he was safe in your arms.

Until he wasn’t. 

You told Miss Kate that it was okay to go as Izzy followed you into JJ’s home. Once Henry ran off to grab some toys, you turned your head and looked straight at her, “You touch my kid and I will kill you!” you said with teeth gritted.

Izzy clicked her tongue to the roof of her mouth, making a tsk noise, “Now do you remember the deal Y/N? You touch me and both you and Jennifer die. Who’s gonna take care of Henry then?” 

“Y/N! Come play with me!” he exclaimed, running back in.

You crouched down again, ruffling his blonde hair, “I would love to, but I can’t right now buddy. You see, I have to go back to fighting bad guys, okay? Izzy over here is gonna take care of you until mommy comes home,” you could feel the tears start stinging your eyes as you tried to stop them from falling.

“So you’re gonna be a good boy for Izzy, okay? Listen to everything she says, okay?” you ask him

“Okay,” he replies innocently. 

“One more thing bud,” you pull him close to you as you hug him tightly, “I know I am not your mom or dad, but I love you so much. Did you know that?” 

He nods and you smile softly, “I will never let anything hurt you. Everything is going to be okay,” 

“Everything will be okay,” he mumbled back, “I love you Y/N,” 

You sniffled, “I love you too buddy,” 

You take a deep breath and back away from him. Before you walked out of the house, you looked Izzy dead in the eye, pushing your shoulder against hers on the way out. 

You sung open the car door before slamming it shut, “What the fuck do you want?!” you asked. 

“Woah, easy tiger,” Matthew told you, “You’re going to listen to everything I say. If you as dare mutter the two lettered word, your boy is as good as gone. Or should I say Jennifer’s boy is as good as gone because he’s not yours. He will never be your own kid,” 

Matthew made you drive to the train station where he strapped a bunch of bombs to your chest and chained you up like you’re some random zoo animal. Then he ran, like the coward he is, he ran. 

You thought you were as good as gone. But that didn’t matter to you. All that mattered to you was that Henry was safe. He was stuck with the psychopath that is the quote on quote “Queen”. 

Just when all hope was lost Prentiss came running in, “I found Y/N!” 

She ripped the duct tape off your mouth, “Izzy’s got Henry. Forget about me! Make sure Henry’s safe, please!” 

“JJ’s there right now. She’s gonna keep him safe,” Emily tried calming you down, “I’m not leaving your side, I’m gonna get you out of here so you can be with your family,” 

Emily was panicking as she tried to find a way to keep you from blowing up into bits. She punched in one passcode and it beeped, showing that she only had two tries left. 

You shook your head, knowing that in a minute you’ll be gone, and Emily could not be here to be included in the damage.

“Emily, just go. Get everyone out of here,” you pleaded.

She shook her head, “No, I told you you’ll get to be with your family and that’s what’s going to happen. I’m not going to leave you,” 

When she finally unlocked the code, another box opened. 30 seconds flashing and taunting you. This is how long you have left live. 

“Emily, tell JJ that I love her and that I’m sorry,” you whispered, “Now leave please! There’s still a chance that you could save yourself so go!” you screamed. 

She sat there looking at the wires before out of nowhere without speaking she just cut one, “What the fuck?!” you exclaimed, shutting your eyes close.

After a couple seconds, nothing happened. You opened one eye and looked down at the timer. It stopped. You let out a breath and an empty laugh, leaning your head against the pole.

“Emily, I love you and I love that you’re JJ’s best friend. But let me just say, I did not think we’d get this close to where I trust you with my life...literally!” you joked and she let out a soft chuckle.

“Let’s get you to your family,” she told you.

As soon as the bomb squad came to disarm you, you wrapped your arms around Emily, pulling her into a tight hug, “Thank you,” 

“Of course,” 

You were finally discharged from the hospital after a couple hours. Rossi reassured JJ that she could stay home with Henry and that he’ll drive you to the house. She was hesitant at first, but Rossi basically forced her to stay home.

Rossi parked in front of JJ’s patting your shoulder softly, “Enjoy your time off,” he joked.

“Oh trust me, I will,” you fired back and the two of you let out a hearty laugh.

You walked into the house slowly. Henry’s little voice echoing throughout the foyer was like music to your ears, “Y/N! You’re back!” he yelled.

You kneeled down as he made a bee line towards your arms with your arm that wasn’t in a sling, you hugged him tight. Even with one arm you could tell that he was struggling to breathe at how tight you were hugging him.

“I am! Did you pick out a movie tonight?” you asked, raising your eyebrows up at him.

“Yup!”

“Which one did you pick?” you asked and he showed you the DVD case of Shrek 2, “Nice choice bud!”

You looked up to the sound of footsteps to see JJ walking towards the two of you, “How about you brush your teeth and change into your PJ’s and me and your mom we’ll get the bed and movie all set up? How does that sound?” 

“Great!” he replied with a big smile.

“Great!” you responded, ruffling his hair, pulling him into another hug, “I love you,” you whispered to him.

“I love you too,” he told you before running off. 

You stood back up to face JJ. At first she looked angry before her anger turned to sadness. You took her into your arm as she buried her face into your neck, “It’s okay,” you whispered, “Everyone’s safe. I’m safe, Henry’s safe, you’re safe. We’re okay,” 

JJ took your face into her hands, running circles on your cheekbones, “I know Henry’s not biologically mine, but he means the world to me Jay. I wasn’t going to let anything bad happen to him,” 

“You’re just as much as a parent as I am,” she whispered.

“But he’s not mine,” you told her. 

“Then let’s change that, Y/N Y/L/N, marry me. We’ll get married in front of all of our friends and family. Henry will be your son, blood or not. And I will be your wife,” JJ whispered.

You smiled at her softly, “You know, I always wanted a wife and son,” you whispered to her.

“So is that a yes?” she asked.

“In every single language,” you murmured, pressing your lips upon hers. 

You and JJ stood there for a minute, just relishing in each other’s embrace. Your lips moving in sync. When all of a sudden you hear a little, “Ewwwww,” 

The two of you pulled apart and you saw Henry all dressed up in his Captain America pajamas, “Who are you ‘eww-ing’ Mr?” you asked him and he giggled as he ran away from you.

You immediately ran after him, JJ yelling after you, “Y/N! Be careful of your arm!” 

Henry squealed as you picked him up with your one healthy arm, spinning him around the bedroom before dropping him onto the bed. You crashed in your usual spot next to him as JJ put on the movie. 

You felt Henry’s little arm wrap around your body and once his grip loosened you knew he was asleep. Your eyes glanced over to JJ who was sleeping safe and soundly, her chin resting on top of Henry’s blonde head of hair. 

You sighed contently, as you turned on your side, wrapping your arms around the two of them. Henry’s head close to your chest as your forehead rested on top of JJ’s. 

Just for a moment, everything was right where it needed to be.

[crazyyanderefangirlfan]

Could you tell me more of your AU?

Hmmm

Well for starters, they're in college and they're about 18. They live in Los Angeles

Vera, Jane Dante live in the same apartment, and the seven live above the fighting school they're mom owns.

The college they go is surprisingly near, about a ten minute walk from where the seven live and a twenty minute one for the trio. I wan to add they're courses but I'll save that for another post.

They're pretty popular. Jane, Vera and Dante hold comedy web show and have the seven be there occasionally even play music.

Cece is well known for her streams, sometimes her family appears behind her during her streams and her viewers love those random moments. She earns big money.

The 7sins is sometimes preform live but they mostly upload they songs.

They're mom came to college once, and almost everyone fell for her. For two weeks they had to endure people asking if they can meet they're mom and have people coming to her school to talk to her.

One time someone sang they're own version of Stacy's mom about theirs, they had to hold themselves back from murdering them.

They all get discounts from Dante's mom's boutique.

They all hang out in cafe restaurant where the seven work. They're very popular with customers with they're looks.

The girls love to tease they're brothers whenever they go on a date. They'd say 'use protection!" or 'remember to wear a condom!"

The boys would tell them to shut up or throw things at them.

Speaking of which, I found name for they're gfs.

Alice - Roxy

Ariel - Misty

Snow white - Stephanie

Aurora - Elodie

The boys are a bit possessive of they're gfs cause they experienced some heartbreak before meeting them.

Everyone is praying to whichever god they believe in for Ver and Jane to reveal they're feeling for each other. Cause it's eating everyone up.

Vera and Cece both like to make weird food concoctions that makes everyone question they're taste buds.

Dante likes to rant to Jack on how oblivious Jane and Vera are too each other while Jack calls him a hypocrite in his head.

Malachite looks out for his siblings in his own way, he's the oldest and since they have no father he tries to fill that role they're mother has done for years.

Joe's beginning his own business online with Misty, who makes jewelry out of seashells and other stuff.

Vince secretly love smut novels, no matter how bad it is.

Zuri and Jane train together and often test their strength. Sometimes they spar.

Nadia took up pole dancing lessons, mostly for the leg strength and flexibility.

The boys are protective of their sisters, but the girls will physically attack anyone who insults they're brothers. They give them chocolate to calm them down.

They have movie night every Friday and have a schedule on who picks what movie.

They're all friends with Vera's brother and often like to hang out with him.

Whenever they have a bad week, they go to an open field and play watermelon golf to release their anger.

[wishuhadstayed]

It Takes a Village

Pairing: Aaron Hotchner x reader

Word Count: about 3000

Summary: when the Hotchner fam is in need, it’s a good thing to have many helping hands. Part 9 to Begin Again.

Warnings: mentions of blood and pregnancy complications

Author’s Note: I really am sorry for that cliffhanger y’all. 😬 I’m just glad you still love me after being gone for like, a literal year. Shoutout to @agent-laufeyson you’re the best 💜 (PS, please ignore Haley in the below gif, also please picture Hotch in the hospital in casual clothes.) 😌

Previous Chapter

Masterlist

For a moment, Aaron’s whole world stopped turning. A cold, familiar sense of dread settled into his chest at the words, “You all may want to sit down for this.”

“Not again,” he thought. “I can’t do this again, we can’t do this again.”

“God please,” he begged internally, slumping into a chair, “if you’re listening, please don’t take her. We need her.”

Suddenly, the voice of a surgeon cut through the silent room like a knife.

“Sir, your wife lost a significant amount of blood. We had no choice but to perform an emergency c-section. Although your daughter is slightly pre-term, she seems to be in good health. However, we would like to keep her a while for monitoring.”

“And my wife?” He inquires, voice trembling with fear.

“It was touch and go there for a while, but we were able to locate the source of bleeding and get it under control. Your wife is out of surgery. She’s stable, but she is very weak and currently asleep. She will also be hospitalized for recovery. At least a week most likely, maybe longer.”

“Mama’s gonna be okay?” Jack pipes up.

“Yes, she is buddy,” Aaron replies, ruffling his hair. “Thanks to that doctor.”

“Thanks for making my mama feel better.”

“You’re most welcome,” the surgeon replied. “You and your dad can go visit her now. The rest of you will have to wait. She needs her rest. I’m sorry.”

“Thank you doctor,” Aaron says, shaking his hand with a sigh of relief.

“You go Aaron,” Rossi encourages, clapping him on the shoulders before he even had a chance to turn around. “Go see your wife and baby. We’ll wait.”

——————————————————————————

Entering your hospital room, Aaron thought your sleeping face was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. Sitting on the side of your hospital bed, he grabbed hand as you stirred awake.

“Hello Angel,” he murmurs as you take everything in. “You gave us quite a scare,” he mentions, softly caressing your face.

“The baby,” you whisper, touching his hand.

“Ssssshhhh,” he soothes. “The baby is fine. She’s in the nursery. You just rest okay?”

Instant relief washes over your face. “Jack?”

“I’m right here mama!” he exclaims, scrambling into Aaron’s lap.

“I want to see the baby,” you tell Aaron.

“I know darling, but you really need your rest.”

“I NEED to see her, Aaron.” You plead.

Taking the hint, he begins to rise. “Jack why don’t you stay with mama, while I go talk to the nurse, okay?”

“Okay Daddy,” he agrees, climbing in the bed next to you.

“I’m glad you’re feeling better mama,” Jack says, looking up at you with the sweetest face.

“Me too, baby,” you reply. “Are you ready to meet your sister?”

“Yeah!” he exclaims with a look of excitement. “Can I hold her?”

“Of course you can buddy, as long as you’re careful,” Aaron replies as he re-enters the room. “The nurses are bringing her down.”

A few minutes later a nurse arrives holding a tiny pink blanket. “Who wants to hold her first?” She inquires.

“You should hold her first, Aaron,” you suggest.

“I wouldn’t dream of it,” he insists. “You’ve been the strongest, bravest mom I know already. You should hold her first.”

As the nurse places the tiny, squirming bundle with her father’s dark hair in your arms, all the stress and chaos of the day seems to just melt away.

As you free a tiny hand from the swaddle so she can grasp your finger, her eyes flutter open.

“She’s perfect, isn’t she?” you wonder aloud.

“Absolutely lovely,” Aaron muses, draping his arm around your shoulders. “Just like her mother.”

——————————————————————————

Meanwhile, cooped up in the waiting area, the BAU team began to grow restless.

“Maybe we should get out of the hospital and go shopping while we wait,” Garcia suggests. “I think Y/N deserves all the gifts and pretty things today.”

“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” JJ questions.

“TARGET RUN!” all three women exclaim in unison.

They all wandered the aisles like kids in a candy store.

“I’m getting her balloons,” Penelope says. “Like so many pink balloons. Nobody can feel bad with that many balloons.”

“Flowers,” Rossi chimes in. “We should get her plenty of flowers to make the room cheerful.”

“We’ll have to get those from hospital gift shop,” JJ comments.

“I’d want chocolate,” Emily suggests. “Chocolate helps everything.”

“Look,” Morgan says, showing a pink stuffed bunny to Garcia. “It’s cute right? For the baby?”

“It’s perfect, Derek,” she assures, grabbing his hand. “Very cute.”

“Oh, a memory book,” Reid mentions. “So they can write down details every day.”

“Leave it to the genius to pick out a book,” Morgan jokes with a playful shove.

“Settle down, boys.” JJ cuts in. “As much as I’m sure she’ll appreciate the pretty gifts, she did just have a baby,” she reminds the group. “She needs some practical things too, trust me.” As she picks out a blanket and a pacifier, Henry begins to grow restless. As she picked up a snack for him, another idea crossed her mind.

“We should get something for Jack, too,” she thought aloud. “LEGOs. He loves LEGOs. And some gummy bears.”

A sudden ringing startles everyone.

“Ssssshhhhhhh,” Garcia commands as she puts the phone on speaker. “It’s Y/N! Quiet!”

“Hello my angel dear,” she lilts, “How are you feeling?”

“I’m very tired, but otherwise happy and healthy,” you report. “Is everyone with you?”

“We’re all here,” JJ chimes in.

“Hi everyone!” You reply. “In that case, I have news. The nurses have said that we’re allowed to have visitors first thing in the morning, if you’d like to see our newest addition.”

“Oh, wild horses could not keep us away, ma’am.” Penelope assures. “We’ll see you all bright and early.”

“Not too early, Penny,” you remind her. “You gotta give me a chance to wake up first.”

“Right, sooooo 10am then?”

“It’s a date.”

——————————————————————————

That evening, you soaked up as much family time as possible before the wave of visitors began. Aaron was a natural, as you’d known he would be from seeing him with Jack.

Watching him with the baby was quickly becoming your favorite pastime. The look of sheer enchantment on his face as he held her close and rocked her made you fall a little more in love with him every moment.

“Daddy loves you so much,” he coos to the tiny bundle in his arms.

“What?” he questions as he catches you watching.

“Oh nothing,” you reply, ruffling Jack’s hair as he slept by your side. “Just wondering how I got so lucky.”

“I think it’s me who got lucky. I thought I’d never love again. I was so closed off. I was prepared to spend the rest of my life as a single dad, doing everything on my own. Now,” he chokes out, “now I’d fall apart without you.”

“Good thing you’ve got two of us now to keep you boys in line then,” you return with a wicked grin. “She’s got you wrapped around her finger already.”

——————————————————————————

When you awoke the next morning, you were greeted by the most beautiful sight. Aaron still asleep in the recliner next your bed, his arm cradling the sleeping baby on his chest. While you hated to disturb the peaceful scene, you knew the team would be arriving as soon as the clock struck 10.

“Aaron,” you whisper. “Aaron, wake up,” slightly louder this time. He stirs awake, moving slowly so as not to wake the sleeping child.

“What is it babe?”

“The team will be here soon,” you inform him.

“Ah. I should go get ready,” he replies.

“Mama, can I hold her while dad gets ready?” Jack asks, startling the both of you.

“Oh buddy, I didn’t realize you were awake,” you say to him. “Of course you can hold her if you want.”

Jack scrambled into your lap as Aaron rounded the bed.

“Just be really careful with her bud,” Aaron reminds him as he settles the baby on his lap.

“I will dad,” he replies.

As Aaron walked away, the baby’s eyes fluttered open and she let out a small cry.

“Here, why don’t you give her a pacifier?” you suggest.

“Sssshhhh, don’t cry,” he says, giving her the pacifier, and then softly stroking her head.

“What do you think about your baby sister, Jack?”

“She’s pretty, Mama, just like you.”

“Thank you baby,” you reply. “That’s very sweet. I love you.”

“I love you too, mama.”

“And I love you all,” Aaron adds.

——————————————————————————

A short while later, a knock at the door alerts you that your visitors have arrived.

“You ready for this?” Aaron asks as he walks to the door.

“I’ve never been more ready. I just know they’re gonna be so in love with her.”

Aaron opens the door and the team flows in with their myriad of gifts.

Penelope hands off her bouquet of balloons to Derek and rushes over to hug you.

“Oh Y/N,” she gushes, cupping your face. “You look beautiful. It’s so good to see you, we were all worried sick.”

“Thank you Penny,” you reply, eyeing the room. “I’m assuming the shopping spree was your idea.”

“Oh shush woman,” she scolds. “You deserve it. We wanted your room to cozy and pretty because we heard you’re going to be here for a while. Sue us.”

“Thank you all for the gifts, you really didn’t have to do any of that,” you reply, tearing up as you address the whole room. “Just being there for us when we needed you the most was all we could ask for and you’ve gone above and beyond.”

“This is the least we could do, really,” JJ assures, softly rubbing your hand.

“Oh fine, be modest if you insist,” you reply with an eye roll. “I’d open all the gifts now, but I imagine you’re all much more interested in our slightly earlier than anticipated arrival.”

Seemingly for the first time since they came in, everyone notices Aaron’s presence and the little pink bundle in his arms.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” you continue, “the announcement you’ve all been waiting for. Introducing Miss Savannah Rose.”

“What a lovely name,” Emily chimes in.

“Thank you,” Aaron cuts in. “We would have told you all sooner but we actually just decided on it while we were here,” he says beaming down at his perfectly content infant daughter. “You can all hold her if you like.”

“I’m sure we’d all love to,” JJ replies, “but i think we should leave that you for now. I’m sure we’ll have plenty of time to spoil her rotten just as soon as she gets home.”

“Right! We just wanted to check on everyone and make sure you have everything you need,” Garcia adds.

“Well thanks to you guys, I think our hospital room is pretty well stocked. I just wish I could say the same for the nursery,” you say with a shrug.

“What’s wrong with the nursery?” Rossi inquires.

“I’m afraid that’s my fault,” Aaron admits. “Between me traveling so much for work and Y/N being pregnant and taking care of Jack, it got pushed to the wayside. I thought we had a bit more time.”

“Aaron, how many times do I have to tell you it’s not your fault?” you soothe, reaching for his hand. “We’ll figure it out together.”

“I know, I just wanted everything to be perfect for you.”

“It already is dear,” you assure him with a smile. “Why don’t you go get some coffee, you look exhausted.”

“Good idea babe,” he says, settling the baby into your arms.

“I could use a cup myself,” Morgan adds.

——————————————————————————

“Derek, I need your help,” Aaron pleads, once out of earshot of the room.

“Of course man, anything you need.”

“We’re going to be in the hospital for about a week while Y/N recovers and I’m desperate to have a nice nursery for her when we get home, but I obviously can’t leave her alone. I know it’s a lot to ask, but is there anything you could do to help?”

“Sure thing man, don’t worry about it. That’s the best gift I could hope to give you.”

“You’re the best,” Aaron replies, slapping him on the shoulder. “Just don’t let Y/N find out, okay? I want it to be a surprise.”

“My lips are sealed,” Derek promises.

——————————————————————————

That afternoon Derek had the whole team assembled in the nursery to get started.

“Alright everyone,” he begins, “We’ve got one week to make this the best surprise gift possible. Let’s make it happen.”

“What color should we paint it?” Penelope inquires.

“Got that covered already,” Derek replies while opening a paint can. “Purple. Hotch said it’s Y/N’s favorite color.”

“Oh Derek, it’s perfect!” she squealed, squeezing him tight. “She’s gonna adore it.”

“While the two of us are painting,” Penny addresses the group, “why don’t the rest of you do some some shopping?”

“Great idea, baby girl.” Morgan chimes in. “I think they’ve got the basics from the baby shower and I saw a crib and changing table in the garage, but I’m sure you guys can find things they’re missing.”

“Oh I think we’ve got this,” JJ states confidently. “Let’s get this show on the road,” she commands, herding Emily, Rossi, and Reid out the door.

When the group arrived back at the Hotchner house several hours later, the nursery walls were covered in a soft shade of lavender; as were Morgan and Garcia.

“I don’t know how you two managed to get any paint on the walls,” JJ said with a grin.

“Smile for the camera, you two,” Emily cuts in, snapping a picture on her phone as the couple hug and smile in their paint splattered clothes.

———————————————————��——————

The next day conversation flowed as team was busily assembling furniture. Rossi, Reid, and Morgan worked on the crib while Penny, Emily, and JJ tackled the changing table.

“Let me know if you ladies need any help,” Morgan mentions casually.

“Oh right,” Emily grumbles, “because OBVIOUSLY the women need a big, strong man’s help, right?”

“I didn’t say that,” Derek counters. “I was just offering.”

“Oh not only will we get ours done without your help, we’ll get it done faster,” Emily challenges.

“Oh yeah?”

“YEAH!” all three women reply in unison.

“You’re on,” Morgan accepts.

“Oh you’re so going down,” Penny taunts, throwing pieces of plastic wrapping at Derek.

“Losers buy sushi for lunch?” Rossi suggests.

“Oh that could be pretty expensive for you Dave,” JJ comments. “You sure you’re up for that?”

“Ha ha, very funny,” Rossi says, rolling his eyes. “We’ll see about that.”

Two hours later, as JJ and Emily were finishing up the crib, the men came dragging in, arms full of takeout bags.

“Say cheese!” Penelope squeals as she takes their picture. “For the bragging rights.”

——————————————————————————

The next days were spent putting the finishing touches on the room.

A purple gradient butterfly mobile above the crib from JJ.

A bookshelf with a fully stocked library, specially selected by Reid. Emily places her floral covered photo album on top.

Lavender curtains with a shimmery overlay, Penelope’s contribution.

Derek’s stuffed bunny, carefully laid in a white gliding chair with purple cushions, which was generously paid for by Dave.

Derek lays a soft shag rug over the hardwood floor and drapes a plush floral blanket over the edge of the crib.

“I think that about does it, guys,” he says with a look of pride.

“You know, I bought them that photo album,” Emily comments, “it would be a shame if we didn’t put a few in there as a gift.”

“Yeah, but how do we get a picture of the whole group?” JJ wonders out loud.

“We could set a timer,” Penelope suggests.

“Yeah, but who sets the timer?” Reid asks, as he turns to see the whole group looking at him.

“Seriously guys?”

Between the camera falling over, closed eyes, and Spence not making it back before the timer, it took a few tries before there was a good group shot.

“And now a funny one,” Penny insists.

Once the photos, including the bloopers, have been printed and arranged in the album, JJ makes sure to write descriptions for each in the margins before setting it back on the shelf.

“Good job team,” Derek announces. “Our work here is done.”

——————————————————————————

After all the chaos surrounding the birth and a full week in the hospital, nothing felt better than standing at the door of your house with the love of your life and your two beautiful children.

“You ready to finally get some rest, baby?” Aaron asks as he ushers you inside the house, one solid arm arm around the small of your back and Savannah in her carrier on the other.

“Yeah,” you sigh, dropping your purse on the coffee table and slipping off your shoes. “I just wish we didn’t still have to worry about the nursery,” you groan, plopping down onto the sofa.

“About that,” Aaron says with a mischievous grin, offering you his free hand.

“What are you up to, Aaron Hotchner?” You muse as he leads you down the hallway.

“Just trust me,” he assures, coming to a halt in front of the nursery door. “Close your eyes,” he requests.

“What is going on here?” you inquire again.

“Just close your eyes please, darling,” he asks. “For me.”

“Alright, alright,” you comply, “this better be good.”

“Don’t open them until I say so, okay?”

“Yes sir.”

With eyes closed and Jack close by your side, you hear the door open and the rustling of paper inside the room.

“Alright,” he whispers, sliding his arm around your shoulders. “Open your eyes.”

—————————————————————————

Taglist: @ange-must-die @agent-laufeyson @poetsacademia @hotchners-slut @arganfics @ladyreapermc @rousethemouse @less-intelligent-spencerreid @tgibstan @themanip @word-scribbless @quillvine @glizzieborden @miss-united-ace @samayoshito @hotchnerundercover @pedropascalian @thenewnormalforensicator @crowdedimagines @sagittarianwolf @kleff03

[katytheinspiredworkaholic]

Congrats on 200!! 🤗

I would love 🖼 a moodboard for .... hhhhmmmm how about HotchReid?

And I can't find a pencil, but I would love any blurb about HotchReid as well ❤

Eeeehhh I'm excited!! Congrats again! 🤗

I am ALWAYS on board for HotchReid, and you were my other freestyle moodboard so you get my Light!HotchReid moodboard that’s all soft and warm and romantic <3

AND IN THAT VEIN, I had an idea and ran with it so this is half blurb/half one-shot and idk where it came from but have some domestic, established relationship HotchReid C: and thank you so much for sending me the asks and celebrating with me!

--

//In which Jack outs his dad and Spencer’s relationship before they even get a chance to call it one//

--

They don’t mean to start sneaking around. Honestly they don’t. 

It just… happens.

There was no rhyme or reason for it, hiding what was very obviously becoming a permanent fixture in their lives in and outside of work. This gradual build up of moments and conversations and late nights that turned to intimacy as easily as everything else about them. Shared looks, subtle touches, feather-light at first -- until the glances turned heavy and the touches more prominent. The stolen moments turned to stolen nights, hidden behind hotel room doors or buried in tangled sheets back home in D.C. 

They didn’t need to hide anything. Not from the team, their friends they considered closer than family. But they did -- purely because they didn’t want to share this yet. Label it. Place it in those societal boxes of expectations and questions and future aspirations when right now it was… so easy. So perfect. Almost domestic in its comfort it offered, because it was theirs and theirs alone. It can be whatever they wanted it to be --

And right now, it felt like home.

-

Hotch always rises with the sun. He goes on early morning runs at all times of the year, rain or shine, even when it snows. He’s always back in enough time to get Jack up and ready for school, shower and get himself dressed for work, he’s a creature of habit and routine is his comfort zone. But now --

Now, sometimes it’s hard to leave his bed in the mornings, and the sight that always greets him when he returns from his runs makes him smile like he hasn’t in a long time. 

Spencer sleeps much later, sometimes until Hotch is done showering and has already tried to wake him up two or three times with bribes of coffee. Kissing his cheek or wild curls while still smelling like sweat from his run, and Spencer swats at him or hides under the covers without even opening his eyes. And Hotch lets him until it gets too close to the time when they need to head into the office. 

“Why does Spencer get to sleep in?” Jack asks with a tired whine, now nine-years-old and pouting over his bowl of cereal as Spencer finally drags himself from bed and to the coffee pot at half past seven in the morning. Hotch smirks and weaves around the man, scooping him close to kiss him good morning before letting him continue his trek. 

“Because he finishes his homework before bedtime,” Hotch answers his son, looking pointedly at the half completed math homework on the kitchen table. The deluge of questions were just another diversion tactic, he could see right through it, and he doesn’t let up until Jack picks up his pencil once more. 

“You have homework?” Jack asks Spencer, who sits beside him and is still rubbing his eyes beneath his glasses. Steam off his coffee the only breath of life he needs to wake up fully.

“Oh, I always have homework. Last night it was actually Morgan’s ‘homework’, he thinks I don’t notice when he slips files onto my desk.” 

Hotch sends Spencer a reprimanding look, because they both know that Morgan and Prentiss slip Spencer files all the time and he’s supposed to be putting his foot down about it. 

“He should really do his own homework,” Jack mumbles, glaring at his own math equations. 

“Well you be sure to tell him that when you see him again, Jack.” Spencer would pay good money to see that conversation, and he smiles fondly at the young boy for having his back. 

It’s barely ten minutes later when Spencer is getting up from the table and is gravitating towards the coffee pot for cup number two when Jack pipes up again.

“Hey -- was I supposed to not tell anyone about Spencer living here?” 

Hotch and Spencer look at each other, not realizing that… really that was what had happened in plain terms. Spencer did indeed live there. He couldn’t even remember the last time that he had been back to his apartment. Weeks, maybe. 

“It’s not really a secret bud, why?” Hotch asks, hesitant because… it’s not a secret, they just haven’t said anything to anyone.

“Because Aunt Penny didn’t know and now she’s sending me lots of screaming emojis.” 

Spencer looks to his phone and he also happens to have about a dozen text messages from Penelope. Most of it unintelligible key smashes and strings of pictures. 

“No texting at breakfast, you know better,” Hotch reprimands Jack as he checks his own phone. The juxtaposition making Jack scowl and Spencer snicker. Hotch finds he doesn’t have as many messages from their tech analyst, but he does have a few. The whole team probably knows already. 

He sends out a text to everyone that says ‘team meeting 9am’ 

“Guess I don’t have to take the train today.” Spencer is giving him a look over his coffee mug, amused but still hesitant. “I feel like we should be nervous, but I’m not.” 

Hotch can’t help the smirk of a smile on his face as he presses Spencer to the counter and kisses him fully, but still at least a little chaste -- with Jack making gagging sounds in the background. ’Dad, gross--’

“Finish your homework, and go brush your teeth,” he tells him without looking over. One more kiss that tastes like coffee and too much sugar, grinning a little too wide.

“I can’t tell if you’re happy, or plotting something.”

“A bit of both,” Hotch answers cryptically.

“Now I’m nervous.”

“Don’t be, I’ve been planning for this day for a long time.” But he keeps his secrets to himself as he ushers Spencer towards the bedroom -- their bedroom, he now realizes -- to make him get ready for work.

--

An hour later, the team is gathered at the round table in the conference room, and Hotch passes out binders to everyone packed with training material.

"Wait, this is an actual team meeting?" Prentiss blanches.

"How is this not about you and Reid sleeping together!?" The shock of a five pound binder in their hands seems to have taken any accusational tones out of anyone’s voices, but Hotch still scowls at Morgan’s outburst, and Spencer immediately jumps to their defense.

"We aren't sleeping together, we're…" they look at each other. "Living together. Are together."

"Dating." Hotch simplifies.

"Okay, so this ISN'T about you two 'dating'?" JJ elaborates this time, careful gaze darting between them, as is everyone else’s. 

"No, this is about how none of you noticed we were dating,” Hotch answers evenly, calmly. “If it had been about announcing ourselves, the text would have said ‘family’ meeting." 

That makes a few people smile, Penelope making a soft squeal in delight, and it changes the air in the room dramatically. 

"So ‘family’ dinner Saturday, Dave's house thank you for volunteering." Hotch says, just to wipe the smug look off the older man's face. He hadn’t said a word, yet, but with the smirk he’d been sporting all morning he didn’t need to. 

"This," he points to binders. “is a refresher course you all get to audit. Profiling 101, I want them on my desk by the end of the week. Morgan do not pass it off to Reid, you're doing your own homework this time."

Spencer can’t help it, he laughs. Hotch manages not to -- even in the face of Morgan’s comically betrayed expression.

At least Jack would be pleased to hear it.

[merakiaes]

The One For Me - Aaron Hotchner

Pairing: Aaron Hotchner x reader

Requested: By @nuvoleincielo​

Prompts: #16, #30 and #63 from the fluff-list. 

Warnings/notes: This is my first time writing for Hotch and Criminal Minds in general so please be patient while I get used to these new characters, might be slight OOC😭 It’s also the first piece I’ve written in a few months now and I’m a bit rusty, so please let me know what you think. Not proofread so I apologize in advance for any possible mistakes. Send in more requests for Hotch, Reid and Morgan and let me know if you want to be added to the Criminal Minds taglist! I hope you like it💕

Wordcount: 4118

Summary: Hotch has doubts about letting your relationship go further and you reassure him that he’s what you want. 

After being raised in one of New York’s worst, most crime ridden and low poverty neighborhoods by a family who was constantly targeted by the law enforcement, the last thing you’d expect was that you would become an active worker of said law enforcement.

Your mother died ten minutes after giving birth to you and your father had never been a part of the equation, most likely having ran the second he found out your mother had gotten pregnant. With no other immediate family, you ended up in the system, where you were stuck for the first seven years of your life.

You jumped back and forth between families of all kinds but for reasons unknown, no one wanted to keep you. It wasn’t until a couple adopted you two days before your eight birthday that you finally felt like you belonged.

They had many children of their own as well as more foster children, all between the ages of ten and twenty-five at the time of your adoption. On top of that, the children had children of their own and aunts, uncles, cousins and friends stayed with you more often than not as they struggled to hold on to homes of their own.

It wasn’t the most ideal way to live, a dozen people staying under the same roof of a two bedroom house, but you had dinner on the table every evening and the love for family was strong, so despite the conditions you lived in and the struggles you were forced to face on a daily basis, you guessed you couldn’t complain; you’d had it better than most.

The people who lived in those parts were always getting pinned for various kinds of crimes, just so the police could get it out of their hands and go on about their lives.

The male members of your family and the company they kept were some of the biggest targets even though they rarely did anything wrong, but despite the injustices they faced every day, they remained respectful when staring in the face of a cop.

You, on the other hand, despised them. You were an outspoken little girl, too feisty for your own good and on more occasions than one, you’d ended up pissing off some rich kid in school for which your dad and uncles were forced to pay the price.

You’d always hated the injustice the less fortunate suffered every day, but it wasn’t until you witnessed your first murder at fifteen that your interest of making the world a better place really piqued.

The victim had been one of the boys living in your neighborhood. He was two years older than you and he always gave it his all to make something out of himself. He walked with you and your younger brothers and cousins to school every day to make sure you got there safely, studied hard, kept out of trouble and always remained respectful.

The only reason he died was because his skin was the wrong color in the eyes of the law and because he was born into a less fortunate neighborhood, and it was then your eyes truly opened to the police brutality and misuse of power plaguing your country.

You joined the police force when you were nineteen years old and you stayed there, on top of your game and determined to do it better than the bad ones, until you were twenty-one. 

At that point, most of your family had passed away either out of old age, or simply from being in the wrong place at the wrong time, and your determination to help people was stronger than ever.

But even you, the tough little firecracker as your uncles had always called you, could only tolerate so much.

After two years on the force, you got tired of being undermined by your male co-workers and set out to step up your game, taking up studies of criminology and psychology among several other subjects.

You studied your ass off and was just barely able to get by with the money you had saved up over the years, and at twenty-four, you finally had your degrees and clearance to begin working in higher places.

Starting off in New York, you stayed there for six months before you were transferred to Quantico, Virginia, where you were recruited by the one and only Jason Gideon who had heard word of your talent in the field.

You had worked with the team for little over a year now and Jason, who had always acted as a kind of mentor and father figure for you, was gone, having left only a letter for you and Spencer each.

Taking his place was Aaron Hotchner, a fellow agent to which you hadn’t paid much personal attention before the departure of Gideon. But things changed when he left, a lot of things.

Hotch was fresh out of his divorce, moodier than ever and in a really bad mental state. He stayed in his office until the late hours of the night, sometimes even the early hours of the next morning, barely slept and often forgot to eat if he wasn’t reminded by his team members.

Everyone urged him to take some time off, to go home and get some sleep and to take care of himself, and although he always told them that he would, he never followed through.

Up until then, you still hadn’t spoken much with him except for when you were working on a case. You were just an agent and he was just your boss, there was nothing else to it. But you couldn’t just sit by and watch as he neglected himself, so you followed your team-mates’ example and approached him.

He dismissed you at first, like he had done everyone else who had tried to offer him their support. But as time passed by, in some miraculous way, you made him laugh, and as you continued your attempts on offering him your ear to listen, he opened up to you, and you grew to become more than just colleagues.

Your first and only date had been on your initiative. You invited him to dinner at your house during your weekend off, to which he agreed.

You cooked together and although it started off as kind of awkward – more from his side than yours – you ended up kissing later that night after having had a bit too much to drink, and fell asleep together on your couch while you were flicking through your childhood photo albums.

The next morning, he was gone. You had always been an extremely light sleeper so you found it strange that he had managed to slip off without alerting you and also having managed to wrap you up in a blanket before he left.

He didn’t leave without a word though. A note was neatly placed on the coffee table in front of you, on which he explained that he needed to pick up Jack and that he didn’t want to wake you, finishing it off with a thank you for the night before.

That was the first and last time you spent time together, just the two of you, but it wasn’t like it was intentional.

You wanted to do it again, to continue exploring the budding romance between the two of you and to see where you could take it, and although you knew nothing of his feelings, he wanted the same thing.

But work got very stressful; stressful to the point where you could never find a moment to talk to each other if it wasn’t in the presence of the entire team. But the spark between you wasn’t gone.

It was still there in the way he would let his hand hover above the small of your back when you were walking side by side and step in front of you if you were ever in danger, and in the way you would always take a second to ask how he and Jack was doing, if they were eating enough and getting enough sleep, whenever you were heading somewhere; no matter if the team was with you.

It was there in the way he would always encourage you to go on the less dangerous tasks while he took the ones that were more life-threatening and in the way he would always smile, the slightest of smiles, whenever you were exchanging jokes or sarcastic remarks with Morgan, or messing around with poor, clueless Reid.

It was there, but it was unspoken. At least until now.

The case you had been working on for the past two days was that of Gilbert Stratton; a serial killer who had targeted young women, killed them, drained them of their blood, and then proceeded to hang the bodies up by their feet in trees all around the city.

You had caught him just in time to save the last kidnapped girl and you had originally been the one assigned to question him, but Hotch had stepped in last minute after the man had made a crude comment about how ‘girls like you always tasted the best’.

You had attempted to tell him that you could take it, but before you had even been given a chance to state your case, he had shut the door in your face and you had been whisked off by JJ.

You were the one out of the entire team who was the most interested in the psychology of a serial killer so you really wanted to be the one to interview Stratton, but you knew that Hotch had taken over for the sake of your safety and not because he underestimated you, so you couldn’t even bring yourself to be mad.

While he did his job, you settled at your desk with a sigh, getting to work on the heft stack of paperwork that had been building up throughout the week. 

The first ten minutes you kept close track of the clock next to you, wondering why it was taking so long, but the more time that passed, the more focused you became.

Soon enough, you only had a few reports left and you had completely lost track of time, when there was a sudden bang behind you, sounding an awful lot like a door slamming shut.

And your suspicions were proven correct, when you looked up to see Hotch march straight the bullpen.

The corners of your lips tugged up at the sight of him, but the arising smile quickly fell again when he walked right past you, without even an acknowledging glance, heading into his office and shutting himself inside without as much of a word to anyone.

Left behind with dumbstruck looks on their faces were the team, glances of bewilderment being exchanged.

“What happened?” Reid asked the question you were all thinking after a moment of silence, just as Emily walked in from the interrogation room.

Rather than answering Reid’s question, she looked right at you, offering you a small, comforting smile. “I think you better go talk to him.” She said simply, and as confusion and anxiety bubbled up inside of you, you slowly drawled.

“Okaaay…”

They all watched you as you stood up from your seat, brushing down your shirt and turning off the lamp at your desk before heading for the stairs.

You could feel their eyes following your every move and you would be lying if you said you weren’t nervous of what you were about to walk into.

Everyone had gotten negatively affected by a case or unsub at some point during their career, most more than once. They were all very good at getting into your head, no matter how little you wanted to admit it. But you had never seen Hotch react this strongly to anything before. The only time you had really seen him snap was during one single case, right after Haley had filed for a divorce.

Still, you kept walking until you reached his closed office door, stopping only then to peek inside the blinded windows to see him sitting at his desk, hands rubbing over his face.

You knocked on the glass gently and in any other case he would have looked up and meet your gaze, but when his head kept hanging this time, you let yourself in, only when closing the door behind you cutting off the curious eyes of the others.

Once you were inside, you wasted no time in approaching Hotch where he sat by his desk, analyzing his every move which led you to only one question.

What the hell had Stratton said to him to make him this distraught?

He didn’t even look up as you reached him, keeping his eyes closed as you came to a stop beside his desk.

Treading carefully, you reached out and gently put your hand on his shoulder.

“What happened?” You asked softly, the sound of your words instantly bringing a long, heavy sigh out of his nose.

“Why are you doing this?” He wasted no time in replying, causing a crease to form between your eyebrows.

“What?” You asked back, confusion lacing your voice.

Finally, he brought his hands down from his face and slowly spun around in his chair, forcing you to drop your hand from his shoulder and to take a step back.

He stared up at you, face wiped free of emotion as always. But the eyes said it all.

“Why are you so adamant on being with me? Why do you try so hard?” He questioned you, taking you by surprise.

Your eyebrows shot up and your eyes grew slightly wider, and you took a moment to regain your composure after the, to say the least, unexpected question.  

“What kind of question is that?” You asked once you finally regained your senses. “Isn’t that what you’re supposed to do when you want to be with someone? Try?”

One of your eyebrows sank again, leaving only one raised in question.

Hotch’s face softened slightly and for a moment, he averted his eyes, letting out another, smaller sigh from his nose before looking back up to meet your eyes once again.

“What I mean is, why do you want to be with me?” He asked again, clarifying and slightly shaking his head in what seemed to be disbelief. “The second you walked into this office, both Morgan and Reid had their eyes on you, and they still do. They’re closer to your age, they’re energetic, humorous, full of life, while I’m ten years your senior, and can’t offer you what they can. So why do you want to be with me, when you can have them, or anyone you want?”

“What is it that they can give me that you can’t?” You didn’t waste a second in firing back.

You had no idea what had brought this on, but it was clear that it was bothering him and quite frankly, you found it ridiculous even though you didn’t like making it a habit to judge other people for what they were feeling.

“They can make you smile-“ He started explaining, and you instantly cut him off.

“You make me smile, all the time.” You shook your head, but your affirmation only seemed to fuel his frustrations even more as he was up on his feet within the next second.

“But I’m not- I’m not fun.” He stated, staring you down. “My clock is ticking. I’m ill-tempered, irritable, too serious for my own good. I’m barely capable of taking care of myself at this point much less my son. I’m miserable and I’m a bully, who only cares about this job. Why would you want to be with someone like that?”

“Where is this coming from? I thought we had something good going.” Your face fell slightly, and you carefully reached your hands out to grab a hold of the front of his suit, taking a small step closer.

“Is this because of Stratton? Is he the one putting these doubts into your head?” You asked, keeping your eyes on your hands for a short moment before looking up to meet his heavy gaze staring down at you.

And once your eyes met his, he knew there was no point in lying; you were a profiler after all, and a good one at that.

“He did.” He confessed calmly, his lips pursing into a straight line.

“Aaron…” You began, the softness of your voice matching the one in your eyes.

“But everything he said is true.” He quietly interrupted you. “I’m not fun to be around, I push people away. That’s what I do, what I’ve always done.” His eyebrows rose and he stood still.

You knew about the doubts he had about himself. You know he felt inadequate as a friend, as a colleague, as a father, and more than anything as a partner after the way Haley had left him. You were aware of all of it, and yet the sound of those self-doubts being voiced aloud saddened you nonetheless.

Silence fell over the two of you for a moment as you took another step closer, flattening your palms out on his chest and your eyes never leaving his.

“Those people didn’t deserve you in the first place. They knew what they were getting themselves into when they started building a relationship with you, whether it be a romantical or purely platonic one. They knew how passionate you are about your job, how much you value it. Them leaving… That’s on them, not you.” You said softly, shaking your head. “I’m not about to give up on you, on us, just because you happen to be a few years older than me. Derek, he wants to have fun, to be young. He may be attracted to me but he doesn’t want anything serious. Spencer isn’t ready for a relationship either, for obvious reasons, and either way, they’re not the ones I want.”

He watched you intensely as you spoke, lips still tight and strained. “What is it that you want?” He asked you, and you wasted no time in replying.

“Something serious and stable, someone who’s ready to settle down, and for me, the best chance to get that is through you.” You smiled, breaking your eyes away from his to follow your hand as you moved it up to his face. “Regardless of what other people say, you’re an amazing person. You’re passionate, driven, kind, loyal, gentle, and so much more. Despite what you may think, you do have a sense of humor and you’re the only one who can make me smile until my cheeks hurt. If that’s not a good man, a good person, then I don’t know what is. I wouldn’t change a single thing about you.”

By the time you finished, the remaining doubt was wiped free from his face, a small, gentle smile instead having taken its place.

It was a funny thing, Hotch only ever spared the tiniest of smiles, and yet it was them that brought you the biggest and most intense amount of happiness. It was so rare to see his ever-stoic features reflect joy that you couldn’t help but light up like a kid on Christmas every time it occurred.

And true to what you’d always been told growing up, your smile was just so contagious that he couldn’t help but to smile wider at the sight.

“Thank you.” He whispered, and visibly relaxed where he stood.

Your heart swelled in your chest when you took note of the way he was slowly but surely shuffling closer to you, picking up a significant amount of speed when you then felt his hand brush against the side of your hip.

But he didn’t dare touch you, hesitation still lingering in the air. So you did what your heart told you and grabbed a hold of his hand, and pushed it down into the curve of your waist.

From then on, he moved on his own, raising his other hand to mimic the same position at your other side, and you let your hand drop from his, instead raising them to busy with his crimson red tie.

“I know you’re struggling, with yourself, with Jack, and that you’re still processing the divorce. And if it’s time you want, then I’ll wait.” You spoke quietly, feeling your skin flush hot under his touch as his thumbs began to move over the thin fabric of your shirt. “But if you want to keep going and see where this can go, then I’ll be here every step of the way to support and help you in any way I can. You just need to let me in.”

More shyly then before, you dared loo back up at him through your lashes, hands stilling on his chest.

His smile was gone and his eyes creased together in concentration, but his eyes were soft and his head slowly nodded. “You’re right.” He said, and you allowed yourself to smile again.

“Aren’t I always?” You lightheartedly teased, tilting your head to the side.

In return, a smile spread across his face, his head shaking. “Don’t make me take it back.”

“No, no take-backs. What’s said is said.” You kept joking, your smile only widening.

He kept smiling down at you for a few seconds longer, but then his face fell again, just like that, out of nowhere, completely sudden. The gaze he held on your face grew absent as he got lost in his thoughts, and before you could question him about the sudden change of mood, the words spilled from his lips as if there was no tomorrow.

“I think I love you.”

Your mind instantly broke into a flurry of thoughts, countless emotions battling in your body. Nervosity and excitement ended up coming out on top, the mixture of the two creating an uncomfortable, sickly feeling in your stomach.

Your face fell in disbelief and your eyes searched his as he came back to reality.

“You do?”

Your voice came out so quiet and small, you mentally cursed yourself for sounding so pathetic, but luckily, you didn’t get much time to beat yourself up over the anticlimactic reacting as he continued.

“You don’t have to say it back if you don’t feel the same way, but I needed to say it. Every day, this job puts all of our lives in danger. I couldn’t bear it if one of us died before I got the time to let you know how I feel.”

You sucked in a breath, feeling yourself growing weak at the knees as he absentmindedly rubbed your waist with his thumbs.

“Just a minute ago, you were trying to end… whatever this is, and now your proclaiming your love for me?” You asked. 

It was meant to be a joke, an attempt to ease the anxiety you were currently feeling, but you realized quickly that said anxiety made it sound like the exact opposite of a lighthearted, teasing joke.

Luckily, the man standing in front of you was a profiler and knew that you meant no harm, understanding how shock could render your ability to react appropriately.

“I was never trying to end what we have. I just wanted to be sure that you were sure. That I won’t be holding you back.” He explained, and you finally managed to pull yourself out of the state of shock.

“Being with you motivates me. And I love you, too.” You confessed, the smile once again returning to your face as you moved your hands from his chest to wrap around the back of his neck. 

“I’m happy to hear that.” He smiled right back. “Can I kiss you?” He quietly added, and your face instantly lit up in a mischievous expression.

“In the office?” You gasped dramatically, bringing your arms down, taking a step back and lightly slapping his chest. “Aren’t you feeling frisky today?”

A large smile stretched across his lips, his chest shaking as he chuckled. “Come here.” He said simply, and before you got the chance to argue, not that you would’ve if given the opportunity, he sat back down in his chair and pulled you down with him. 

The chair spun in the process, causing you to let out a squeal of surprise. Your arms wrapped around his neck and your small laughs of glee quickly became muted as he placed his lips on yours, replaced by low hums of contentment. 

You clung to him as if your life depended on it, basking in the feeling of his lips moving against yours and his arms tightening around your waist, and as your entire body burned with passion, you realized that he really was the one for you.

Tagged: @must-be-a-weasley-92​ @zizzlekwum​ @cozytruecrimeaddict​ @lovelynervouskingdom​

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[katsukisprincess-archive]

kinktober 2019 reupload: cunnilingus with kirishima

a/n: this is a reupload from my old blog and last year’s kinktober celebration! 

warnings: 18+ pro hero content

Kirishima Eijirou was an admirable man. He was a very strong pro-hero, he was kind to everyone he met, and he had the patience of a God.

Well… he thought he did. 

Until you made him shop for the entirety of the day. 

“Babe,” he whined, dragging all of your bags along in his hands as you took him to yet another store. How was this possible? How were you able to do this? “please, let’s go home. You can come back! There are so many days to shop in the future!” 

You only snorted, digging through a clearance rack and pulling out a sweater. “We’re almost done, Eij. Just give me another half our.” 

Eijirou thought he was quite literally going to die. 

Ten minutes had passed, then twenty, then thirty. You were still scouring the store for new decorations for your shared house, doing your best to ignore your husband as he grumbled and groaned every time you took a step deeper into the store. You felt bad, you really did, but your schedule was swamped for the next few weeks and you needed to get this all done today. 

“{y/n}.” Eijirou’s voice was more blunt than it had been before, losing it’s impatient edge that had been laced in his words for the last hour. “I’m hungry.” 

“Okay, baby, we can pick something up on the way-” 

Eijirou grabbed onto your bicep, harsher than he normally would have, and yanked you a few feet to a dressing room. He locked the door and threw your bags to the floor, causing you to look at him incredulously. He closed the distance to where he pushed you and wrapped one hand around the back of your neck while the other pulled you in by the waistband of your leggings, causing your body to fall flush onto his.

“I said,” he growled into your ear, his hips grinding against yours. “I’m hungry.” 

He pushed you two backwards until your legs were against the bench in the corner of the dressing room, causing you to plop onto it and look up at him. He looked so big hovering above you like that, one hand still grasping your waistband, a dangerous smirk gracing his face. He looked darker than he usually did, and while it should have worried you, it only turned you on. You whined and bucked your hips up, giving him a frown. 

“Oh, don’t you worry, princess.” He sneered, yanking your leggings and your panties down to your ankles in one swift motion before pulling them off and tossing them behind him. He placed his large hands around the back of your knees and spread your legs as far back as they could go, and eventually they were on either side of your head. “I’ll take care of you.” 

With that, he began pressing wet, slow kisses to your thighs, nipping in some places and sucking on others. Hickeys on random parts of your body was a part of dating Eijirou, and sometimes they were in places you didn’t even remember him touching. 

If there was anything to say about Red Riot as a lover, it was that he was very thorough. 

He finally inched over to your pussy, which was already dripping down your ass at this point. He pursed his lips and blew over it, letting cool air tease the skin you wanted him to touch so very badly. He watched as you mewled, your cunt grasping around nothing at the movement. 

Eijirou thought about ripping his pants off and giving you something to grasp around, but he decided a punishment was a better idea.

He stuck his entire tongue out of his mouth but only let the tip of it trace a circle right around your labia, so very close to where you wanted him but still so far away. You were holding back your ankles, letting your mouth hang open as your watched Eijirou take his time on you. He was always so attentive when he was eating you out; his forearms rested on your thighs, giving him space to use his fingers to pull your lips open. His face hung so close to it all so he could get the best look at your anatomy. He was so attracted to it all- the way it looked, the way it fluttered when he came close, the smells, the tastes. 

You were a drug to him; he was addicted, but he was the last person in the world that was going to care. 

You whimpered, trying to buck into his touch, and he put more weight onto his arms, holding you down onto the bench. Eijirou shot you his big toothy grin before letting the tip of his tongue just barely flick against your clit, sending your head back against the wall, a gasp falling from your lips at the tiny amount of contact. 

“Fuck, baby, that’s hot.” He finally dipped his tongue into the juices pooling outside of your pussy, letting out a groan as the taste hit him. He let it prod into you, relishing in the feeling of you tightening around him. He could feel himself rock hard in his pants, and he reached down to palm himself while he worked.

His tongue collected what juices he could before he slid up and around your clit, beginning a series of rotations around the bud, feeling it jerk under his movements. He groaned again, pulling back down just to let the pad of his tongue lick one large strip from bottom to top, stopping again to flick at your clit. You were shaking beneath him, and Eijirou’s eye contact never wavered. 

“Please, Eij, please,” you whispered, fighting to hold back your moans as he attacked your sensitive skin. “I need you.” 

Eijirou was a sucker. He tried hard to be dominant in bed, but at the end of the day, even when his goal was to punish you, he found himself softening the second he heard his name from your pretty pink lips. 

He growled, slapping your ass before curling his arms under your thighs, circling around so he could hold your lips apart before diving into you. You bit back on your hand, your eyes rolling back into your head as Eijirou buried his face in your cunt, your juices coating his cheeks and chin as he sucked your swollen clit into his mouth. He rotated between this and lapping at your hole, and while you were doing well to stay quiet, Eijirou was not. He was groaning into you, sending vibrations through your body. 

The hand that wasn’t holding your mouth closed came down to pull at his red locks, and you could have sworn you noticed his eyes roll back into your head at the motion. With a growl, he reached up to pull at your flannel, causing buttons to fly and your bra to be revealed. He pushed it up and let his fingers pull and twist both nipples as he sucked and sucked at your bud. 

One hand came down and two thick fingers were shoved inside of you, curling up to your sweet spot at the same time Eijirou began shaking his face side to side, still buried and slopping into your heat. You were shaking and riding his face, tugging at his hair and trying to hold out on your orgasm, the sight of your hero going down on you in public like this being a sight you wanted to remember. 

Noticing this, Eijirou turned to look up at you, his head tilting to the side as his tongue was flicking out against you. He muttered an “uh uh.” against you, furrowing his brows. With that, he dove back in, his tongue and fingers filling the dressing room (and the entire area, you were sure, with his grunts, your panting, and squelching. 

“Cum on my- ugh- cum on my face, princess,” at his broken words, you looked down to see his free hand had moved to his length, which was now out of his shorts and being jacked up and down. “I’m so close.” He was muttering against you, and the sight of it all caused you to reach your orgasm, squeezing his fingers and bucking against his face, all of which caused Eijirou to whine. 

“Oh, oh, yes, Eiji, ngh…” You were whispering, grinding up onto his face and pushing his face into you as you came. 

When he felt you relax, he stood up, leaning over you and bracing himself with one hand on the wall you were leaning on. He was frantically tugging at his length, but you swatted his hand away, using both of yours to resume his speed. 

“Cum on me, baby,” you whined, looking up at him from lidded eyes. His eyes locked onto you, and the sight of him had you worked up all over again. He was sweating, panting, his arms and abs tensing at your words. “cover me, Red Riot.” 

At this, he was spilling his load all over your abdomen and cunt, grunting and jerking as you worked him. When he was finished, he plopped onto the bench next to you, ignoring the squeaking sound it made. You both were absolutely spent and honestly, in shock that you two did something so dirty in public. 

“We made a mess.” He laughed, taking in your state next to him. “Sorry, baby.” 

“You can do that anytime you want, Red-”

“I will fuck you into this wall.” Eijirou warned, pointing to the wall next to him. “We’ll need a wheelchair to get you out of here.” 

All you could do was laugh and lean over to kiss him, not wanting to tempt him by telling him how good that actually sounded. 

Maybe shopping wasn’t so bad after all. 

[penaltbox]

flights, fate, and football games (4+1) - quinn hughes

*or 4 times you were in the same place and didn’t know it + 1 time you were in the same place on purpose*

if you like it let me know :) reblog it, send me a message, leave your thoughts in the tags. thanks in advance!

word count: ~3k

__

Same restaurant/Post playoffs 

You wave at your two best friends as soon as you enter the restaurant, surprisingly being the one who was late this time. You hit more traffic than you expected, but Pop’s was not to be missed. 

The little Ferndale restaurant was one of your favorites and you needed the time to wind down after the crazy week you’d had. You hear a guy’s voice behind you talking to the suddenly excited hostess as you walk past her to get to your table, but never glance back at who it might have been. 

“Wow, for once we aren’t the late ones,” Abby smiles, nudging Hannah with her elbow.

“Oh, aren’t you guys funny,” you roll your eyes playfully, but take a seat with them, “it wasn’t my fault though. Traffic was insane on the highway. It’s like everyone forgot how to drive at once.”

“I hit some traffic too, no worries,” Hannah smiles, glancing over your shoulder, “did you somehow miss those super cute boys that came in behind you though? The one was so your type.”

Your eyes widen a little as you turn around to quickly survey the area you’d just come from. There’s no one waiting at the front of the restaurant though, so you turn back with a frown. 

“I mean, I heard a guy’s voice as I walked in but I didn’t think to look back at him. Why? Was he really that cute?” You ask, looking around the restaurant to see if you could find who she was talking about. 

Abby sighs, “I can’t see where they went either but Hannah and I noticed them as soon as you got here. We should have got you to turn around somehow.”

You shrug, checking over the menu and deciding between a pizza or the bolognese instead, “I guess if I was supposed to have seen him then I would have.”

You would have looked around for him more but the waiter showed up and you were dying to get your hands on a glass of wine to start your weekend off. 

...

“Quinn, I swear if you don’t start talking to cute girls when you see them I’ll end your career,” Will points across the table. 

Josh holds his hands up and laughs, “guys, come on. We all know Quinn isn’t smooth enough to seal the deal anyways.”

This gets the other two laughing, but Quinn doesn’t find it as humorous. He rolls his eyes and tries to fight off a smile. He opts for focusing his attention extra carefully on the menu rather than fueling the fire that was already started. 

“Hey, by the end of summer you never know. Maybe you’ll be able to land a girl. It might take a small miracle, but we’ll help you out if we can,” Will grins, thinking it’s the funniest thing in the world. 

“Great,” Quinn nods, thinking matchmaker Will sounded like a living nightmare, “I’m sure that would go well.”

He tries to brush it off, but the thought lingers a little longer. He’d find someone one of these days. His mom always told him he shouldn’t rush a good thing. It would happen when it was supposed to. 

Your brother’s hockey practice/Early June

“I swear to god, Adam, you need to get moving,” you mumble, watching your brother get beat in yet another drill. 

The air inside USA arena was definitely colder than outside and you were wondering how you’d managed to get stuck picking him up that night. He seemed off though so maybe he’d asked your mom if you’d get him. Sometimes he needed to talk, and definitely not to your parents. 

The whistle blows loudly and you watch your little brother skate off with his head down. He’d been lucky to make the U17’s but you could tell he was struggling. It made your heart hurt and you knew the drive home would involve the long route that day. 

You wait in the lobby, responding to your group chat that had somehow blown up while you watched the end of the practice. You’re in the middle of a message when an oddly familiar voice catches your attention.

You pick up your head and look around just as a group of guys head down the stairs to the locker rooms. You don’t manage to see any of them but something about the voice you’d heard seemed to catch your attention for some reason. Where had you heard that voice before?

Adam comes barreling out of the doors, an annoyed look on his face, “let’s go.”

“Hi to you too, asshole,” you scoff, but the look on his face matches the tone he’d given you. Something was wrong. 

You grab your keys and walk out of the arena, glancing over at your only sibling, “Adam, what’s wrong? Wasn’t there another practice after that you wanted to watch or something?”

“No, some alumni guys rented the ice next and pushed the 18’s back an hour,” he mumbles, his hands dug down in his pockets. 

You reach over and ruffle his hair, despite the fact he’s well taller than you now, “come on, we’re getting ice cream before we get home. And you can tell me what’s got you so worked up on the way.”

A smile takes over his face finally as he reaches your car, “okay fine. So there’s this girl in my chem class but she’s dating a football player.”

“Ew,” you laugh, playing along with the story, “also if you’re playing like shit because you’re mad that a girl you like is taken then I’m kicking your ass”.

“Hey, it was one bad practice. Just don’t tell dad,” he looks over, “surprised you didn’t want to stay and watch the next practice though. You know it’s the guys who went on to play college and pros and stuff right?”

You almost smack him when you see how smug he looks, but you hold off for once, “the last thing I need is some trouble maker hockey player to deal with. I already have you.”

“Suit yourself. Every girl I know loves Hughes though,” he shrugs. 

The name sounds familiar but you don’t think twice about it for some reason. Of course you wanted a boyfriend but you weren’t sure you wanted your younger brother setting that up for you. 

…

“Try not to suck tonight, okay?” Jack laughs, shrugging his bag a little higher on his shoulder as he picks on his older brother. 

Quinn laughs and shoves him sideways, “try not to get run over. Are you gonna put any weight on this summer, bud?”

“You’re both getting lapped,” Alex interjects, walking between the two and entering the arena first. 

Quinn notices you leaning against the wall in the lobby and does a double take. Had he seen you before? Why did you seem so familiar? You had to be waiting for someone if you were there, he knew the 17’s had the ice, so maybe you were younger than he thought. 

He shakes off the odd feeling he gets from seeing you and turns to find his brother grinning. Quinn knows he’s been caught staring and he immediately bumps Jack into the wall. 

“Don’t even think about it!” He says, hurrying down the stairs as Alex holds the door. 

“I’m just saying!” Jack yells after his older brother, “I could go play wingman for you!”

Quinn thinks that sounds like the worst thing ever, if he’s being honest. The last thing he needs is to rely on his brother to set him up. He could see that going wrong in a million different ways. 

The airport/pre-4th of July

You sigh, slouching down in your seat a little further as you take a sip of your coffee. You wish your anxiety didn’t have you at the airport almost two hours before takeoff, but here you were. 

You watch a few planes take off, ignoring your surroundings for a little while as you wonder where the people might be going and why. You respond to a text from your aunt in Boston, who you were going to visit, and quickly get lost in your thoughts again. 

You let your eyes start to wander after a bit and they land on a cute boy a few rows over. He’s sitting with a few other boys around his age and you glance over at their gate. New Hampshire? What was even in New Hampshire? 

You watch him for a few more minutes, but shake your head before looking back out the window. You certainly weren’t brave enough to go talk to him and you didn’t want to get caught staring. Something about him seemed so familiar but you brush it off, figuring you were just imagining things. 

…

Quinn drops his backpack and sits heavily into the creaky airport chair, arguing with Luke about what they’d do first when they got to the cabin. There was no winning the argument but Luke liked to be a pest and Quinn had learned from being gone so much that sometimes he just needed to let his little brother bug him while he could. 

Airports were so boring and he’d luckily stalled enough that his parents didn’t have them all there three hours early for once. Quinn lets Luke “win” the argument finally, agreeing that they’ll go on the boat as soon as they get there. 

Quinn’s attention wanders and he looks around the airport, his eyes seeming to focus on the gate heading for Boston. His eyebrows pull together as he tries to squint and see the line of people boarding. He swears he sees a familiar face but he’s not so sure. 

There’s no way it was the same person he saw at the arena a few weeks ago, right? He blinks hard and suddenly he’s hit with a water bottle in the chest. 

“Dude are you good?” Jack questions him, waving a hand in front of the older boy’s face. 

Quinn looks at his brother quickly before checking where you’d been standing, only to find you’d already boarded the plane, “yeah, knock it off. Can’t you leave me alone for like five minutes ever?”

Quinn is mildly annoyed that his brother pulled the stunt when he did and he’d lost sight of you before he could be sure. Maybe you were from Boston and you were headed home. That wouldn’t explain why you were at USA arena unless your brother played there, too. 

He turns to Luke then, elbowing the youngest Hughes to get his attention, “do you play with any kids from Boston?”

Ann Arbor/football game/late August

You laugh as you try and keep up with Abby and Hannah, excited for one last year at the school that held your heart. You were convinced you could never leave Ann Arbor and luckily for one more year you didn’t have to. 

The weather was perfect that night as the first football game was set to kickoff in no time but the three of you had left a pregame a bit later than you planned for. You’re being rushed through the crowd by Hannah, who has a tight hold on your hand, when Abby suddenly veers off. 

“Hold on, I need to say hi to him!” She yells over her shoulder, causing Hannah to stop in her tracks and you to slam into her back. 

The two of you stumble a little but fix yourself, standing and watching where Abby had run off to. She moves to a group of guys and your stomach turns a little with worry, hoping she actually knew who these people were. 

You’re about to march over when you see the boy. The one from the airport. You shake your head a little, trying to make sure you weren’t imagining what you were seeing, but he really is there. Abby is talking to his friends and he’s got a soft smile that makes you want to know more about him. He’s not as outspoken as his friends and his hands are stuffed in his pockets like he’s not sure what else to do with them. 

Hannah catches you staring and laughs, “that’s Quinn by the way. I know you’re looking. Abby met those boys a couple months ago while she did her classes on campus. Can you believe they’re the ones we saw at Pop’s at the beginning of the summer?”

“They’re who?” You ask, your brain speeding through the memories, but all that keeps coming up is Quinn. 

Pop’s, the airport, and now here. Was he the guy from the rink too? Was that the voice you’d recognized. There was no way you’d been in all the same places for the last three months and never talked to each other or actually truly met. What kind of fate was playing around with you two?

You glance back over at Quinn only to find him looking at you, too. Your cheeks feel instantly hot and you bite your lip, looking away quickly. You hated that you reacted so quickly to something so simple. Maybe he was looking at Hannah, you tried to reason with yourself. Or maybe he recognized you too. 

…

Quinn is shocked when a bouncy little blonde runs up to Josh and says hello to him. She’s happy as can be and Quinn would be lying if he said she wasn’t cute. She quickly introduces herself and motions back at her friends, talking a mile a minute, when Quinn realizes he’d definitely met her earlier that summer. 

Her and her friends were going to the game but if the boys wanted to hang out after they’d be having a small party at their place and they were more than welcome to come. Quinn gives Josh a little nod when the taller boy checks with him for plans and Josh smiles at the girl he’d been talking about for weeks now. 

Quinn looks around the crowd of maize and blue, looking for the friends she’d mentioned, and his eyes freeze on one in particular. You’re so familiar in that moment and suddenly you’re the prettiest girl he sees there. It was the same feeling as the rink, the airport, and now here in Ann Arbor. What were the chances that he’d ran into you this many times but never talked to you? 

He sees you and your friend watching in their direction and he catches your eye. You blush and bite your lip, making him smile right away. That had to be the cutest thing he’d seen in a long time. He forgets that Abby has mentioned her friends and he’s about to walk over and talk to you when Josh grabs his arm. 

“Come on, we have to go this way to get to the field,” Josh says, nodding in the opposite direction of the girls. 

Quinn is about to argue, but sighs instead, “yeah, okay. Did you say we’re seeing them again later?”

+1 Your friends set you up/late August/post football game

“You wouldn’t stop staring at him. Don’t even try and lie about it now!” Hannah accuses, pointing her finger at you. 

You feel like you’re dying of embarrassment and Abby can’t stand up straight because of how hard she’s laughing over the situation. You were being bullied by your best friends and none of you could contain your laughter over it all. There were more than a few people watching the scene as you made your way around the field, trying to find which section your tickets were for. 

“Stop, I don’t even know him!” You say, though it’s only a partial lie. 

Abby snorts a little and carefully wipes a tear away from the corner of her eye, “holy shit, my stomach hurts from laughing so hard. Yeah, Quinn is awkward as hell but I think you two would be amazing so you’re definitely meeting him tonight.”

She’s quick to pull out her phone and text Josh, already making a plan with him to get you and Quinn cornered in the same area. You can’t fight her on this. Once Abby set her mind to something it was going to happen so you were just along for the ride at this point. 

The football game goes by too fast considering it was the last first game of the season you’d ever get as an undergrad, but the three of you are in such good moods that you hardly have time to be sad about it. 

You leave the game a few minutes early to try and beat some of the crowds as you head back for the house you all shared. You almost forget the boys are coming over as you head to the kitchen and grab a drink. You figured you had a little while before they’d show anyways. 

Popping the top of your can, you take a big drink and sigh. You hear Abby’s little giggle behind you and you whip around confused. You’re suddenly face to face with Quinn and you immediately blush in embarrassment. 

“Uh, hi,” you stutter, giving him a little smile even though you wish the ground would open up and swallow you whole. 

“Hi,” he says, and you know immediately that he was the one you’d almost run into so many times that summer. 

His smile is just as nervous as yours and you get why Abby had called him awkward before. He fidgets with his hands as he stands in front of you but it’s endearing somehow. He’s not overly cocky or trying to impress you somehow and yet you’re completely on board with getting to know him. 

He’s a stranger, technically, but he feels so familiar that you laugh a little. Quinn’s eyebrows furrow over the noise but he doesn’t actually ask. 

“Sorry, it’s just… did you want a drink or something?” you offer, trying to keep yourself from getting giddy over having him in front of you after all the months of fate making sure you dodged each other. 

His smile gets bigger then and he seems to relax, “yeah, that sounds good. Maybe I could steal you too and get to know you? If you want anyways.”

You nod, not hiding your smile anymore, “I think I’d really like that. It’s nice to finally meet you.”

[skyeknight-hyperfixations]

Written in the Wings

"C'mon Aster, I promise! I'll try not to freeze your tail this time by accident."

The rabbit scowled, "That ain't a promise, ya twit, especially if ya pair it off with a 'try.'"

"But I'm so bored!" Jack groaned, falling back mid air, his wings fluttering to keep him from hitting the ground. "And I've already bothered Ryder with his Animal training with the newer fairies."

Aster raised a brow, paws on his sides and foot thumping on the ground repeatedly. "Now ya decided to bother me?" He huffed, "How 'bout workin' on your Frosting instead? 'm sure there are a bunch of windows, plants and frozen lakes that are gonna need that."

"Please, I'm the best Frost fairy around. I don't need the practice." Jack snorted, "Just let me ride you to the border and see the mainland animals from the Autumn woods cross over!"

"And why the bloody hell can't ya just fly over yourself?"

"I'm running low on Pixie dust and restock isn't till next week. But I have enough to spare if I just fly going back."

"How about walking then?"

"C'mon bunny! You owe me!"

Aster scrunched up his nose, "Aye?" He snorted, "How do you figure?"

"Okay, you're going to owe me." Jack corrected himself, "Because if you don't let me come along, I'm not going to tell you about a particular someone's very particular prank."

Aster groaned. "Ugh, I hate it when I have to visit winter woods to monitor the animals crossing over." He said. "you're a pain in the arse always. All right, all right, I'll take ya."

"All right!"

"But ya ain't coming anywhere near the border line itself. They're bad for your wings." The bunny warned.

"Aw bunny, you do care."

Aster rolled his eyes, "And no need getting them Spring Fairies into any of your trouble."

Jack made a mock-offended gasp, "When have I ever been in any sorts of trouble?"

"If ya want me to answer that, it's gonna take a while."

Jack shrugged, conceding to that and flying over to rest on the rabbit's back as he hopped along.

Back at Spring valley of Pixie Hollow, the fairies were taking their time preparing for their season since Winter was just about to start in a few weeks. Over at the Tinker fairy village, the Tinker fairies were preparing baskets to be sent to the winter woods.

One of these fairies, Hiccup, was riding a lizard. A carriage made of twigs and leaves were loaded with thinner strands of leaves.

"Look sharp, everyone!" Gobber hollered, "The Snowy owls will be arriving to take the snowflake baskets to the Winter woods." he smiled before scanning the area, and his eyes fell on a fairy lounging about. "Milo, stop reading all day and start tinkering."

Jim looked up from where he was weaving a basket with Ben, an anxious squirrel who's a bit more nutty than the ones he eats. "Funny how they're called snowflake baskets," The Fast flying fairy hummed, "when they're not made of it."

"Don't you start now, Jimmy."

"It's Jim, Gobber!"

"That's head tinker fairy Gobber to you, kid!"

"And a mouthful." Jim rolled his eyes, "you should be glad I'm using my free hours helping the tinker fairies out."

"Actually, he should be glad you lost a bet against me and had to help us." Hiccup quipped, and with a mechanism resembling a fishing pole, he reeled another batch of leaf strands from a lizard. "Is that the last load, Toothless?"

The lizard grunted, giving him a gummy smile.

"Thanks, bud. Again, wouldn't hurt if you used your words once in a while."

The freckled fairy hummed, before flying over to Jim and Ben.

"Am I doing this right, Hiccup?" Ben asked, "I can only see in shades of gray, so was all the strands I got the color a leaf should be?"

Hiccup smiled at the Squirrel fondly, "It's fine, Ben." He said. "I think Merida was looking for you, something about baby squirrel training."

The special animals of Pixie Hollow help the animal fairies nurture regular animals brought from the mainland. Usually, in seasonal rounds to the mainland, Animal fairies encounter abandoned baby animals. Not all infant animals end up abandoned, but those that do, they bring to Pixie Hollow to care for. Some of them, once grown independent enough, are brought back to the mainland. Those that aren't, they keep in Pixie Hollow.

"All right, I'll see you around then." Ben nodded, "See you, Jimmy."

The Fast flying fairy waved the animal off, before sighing. "I'm never getting rid of that nickname now, am I?"

"Morning Jim," Hiccup smirked, before settling the thin leaf strands, "this should be enough to finish my batch of snowflake baskets."

Jim looked over, "If you say so; you know about this crafting stuff more than me."

"I still can't believe we make these things but don't get to take them to the winter fairies."

Jim mimicked his tone, "I still can't believe you guys are calling them snowflake baskets."

"Dang it, Jimmy, if ya got a problem with the way I name things, just say so!"

"I am saying so!"

Hiccup rolled his eyes, before nudging his friend and giving the older fairy a placating wave. "Go easy on Gobber. He's a more easy going head fairy than yours, after all."

"I guess that's true," Jim conceded, "Don't let Gogo hear you say that though, or tell her I agreed with you. She already doesn't like me very much."

Hiccup chuckled, "Not that you care about what she thinks of you much," he quipped. Jim shrugged, "Seriously though, wouldn't you want to go into the winter woods?"

"Between you and me, I rather keep my wings since I enjoy flying with them than on Dragon flies." Jim deadpanned.

Hiccup grinned cockily, "Which is why you lost that bet with me." He teased.

Jim snorted, shoving his friend. "Anyway, you know they wouldn't last a day in that cold, never mind us." he said, "So don't you start getting any ideas."

Hiccup made a look of mock indignant, "I assure you, I don't know what you're talking about." He said innocently.

"Yeah, don't even try," Jim rolled his eyes, "your ideas are trouble. Remember when you almost delayed Spring?"

Hiccup scowled, pointing at the fast flying fairy crossly. "Hey, that was as much the fault of Snotlout poking on my self-esteem as it was mine." He said.

"Funny how you didn't deny having a fault on it too."

The two fairy friends continued to tousle each other more, till Gobber yelled at them to quit fooling around.

"Anyway," Hiccup rolled his eyes, starting to weave a new basket. "Since when were you afraid of a little risk?"

"Since it's more than just a little, and I believe I mentioned flying." Jim hummed as he finished up the one he was doing, until a familiar voice was heard calling out his name. "Ack, although, if not flying meant getting him off my back..."

'Him' was referencing a certain dust keeper fairy, who was just flying towards Tinker fairy village with stock delivery of pixie dust.

Hiccup snickered, "Just go out on that date with him already." he said. "What's the harm?"

"He's annoying."

"Yes, yes, that's why you always end up sitting beside Dimitri instead of your own fairy group, or me, whenever Queen Anna has an announcement or during any of our events." Hiccup drawled, earning him another nudge from Jim.

Jim glared at his friend, "Well, that just means they're more annoying than him." He said, "You know, fast flying fairies are very competitive and can be jerks at those times."

"Don't I know it." Hiccup mumbled.

Dimitri flew over to the two, grinning widely... Mostly since Jim was there. "Hey Hiccup, here's your batch," he handed over a leaf pouch to the tinker fairy, before turning to Jim. "And here's yours..." Then, he lowered his voice and puckered his lips a bit. "But you know what to do to get an extra batch."

"You know that's against the rules." Jim deadpanned.

Hiccup grinned, "No, last I check, kissing wasn't against the rules."

Jim hits him in response to that.

"And you know I have my ways," Dimitri said, as if Hiccup hadn't spoken, "and accept them anyway... Every. Time." he smirked, sending Jim a wink.

Hiccup raised a brow, giving his friend his own smirk. "Every time, huh? But if this happens often..." He then feigns a gasp, "So you had gone out with him already!"

"Ack, I told you to keep that between us, you dimwit. I have a reputation to maintain."

"Is that reputation pretending you don't like me? Because I got news for you, it's not well maintained," Dimitri smirked, "Jimmy."

Jim scowled, "Oh for the love of... Give me that." He huffed, grabbing both pouches and hiding the extra one in his jacket made out of butterscotch daisy petals. It didn't really work with the Fast flying fairy purple color ensemble, but Dimitri had given it to him and that was the color of the Dust keeper fairies.

Honestly, Hiccup was still at a lost why Jim pretended nothing was going on with him and Dimitri when clearly, everybody and their Head fairies could tell there was.

Then, a horn sounded, announcing the incoming arrival of the Snowy owls. The three fairy friends looked up in wonder, and see the aforementioned creatures coming in. Gobber's voice is hollering something along the lines of activating the pulley.

Another tinker fairy did as told, and the baskets were brought up by a conveyer system developed by Hiccup. The mechanism brought the baskets in time for each owls to grab each one in their talons. A frozen tablet floats over as well, and Gobber flies over to check the message of remaining orders needed.

"That's it for the first shipment," The large fairy called out, "But according to this, they still need a lot for tomorrow's. So don't start dawdling now! Milo, put those books down already and help!"

Hiccup grinned, using Gobber's distraction as a chance to fly higher to see where the owls were going after taking a basket; off back to the winter fairy territory. Despite his earlier arguments, Jim flew after him to get a good look as well followed by Dimitri.

"It's like a whole 'nother mainland," Hiccup sighed, "I'd give up all the lost things I've collected to see what they've got over there."

Jim raised a brow, "Does that include all your tools made from lost things?"

"Okay, maybe the ones that are only for display so far." Hiccup conceded.

Dimitri shrugged, crossing his arms. "Not that you'd have to, either way." He said, "I'm not one you'd say is by the book..."

"Really?" Jim drawled sarcastically.

The Dust keeper fairy continued, ignoring the sass. "But the 'No crossing the border' rule is there for very good reason." He said. "Bad things happen to those who disobey it."

"But if no one's ever done it, how bad can it be?"

Jim sighed, shaking his head. "Honestly, do you have a death wish, Hic?"

"And what makes you think death's the 'bad thing that happens', hm?"

This time, both Jim and Dimitri groaned.

"No, no, come back here you naughty kit!"

Startled by the urgent cry, the three looked down to see Ben chase after a younger squirrel, that started going through the quad of Tinker fairy village, disrupting the work in progress.

"Oh Ben," Jim shook his head, noticing Hiccup's invention and thought of an idea. He hurried back down, taking the device to help Ben, literally, reel in the frenzied kit. "Gotcha!"

The squirrel lets out a sigh of relief, "Thanks, Jimmy. Always a life saver."

"It's Jim." The fast flying groaned, handing the device to Hiccup. "At this rate I'm going to forget the real name."

Dimitri laughed, "Well, I like both." He said.

"Yeah, you would."

Hiccup started to unbind the kit from the string around it, as Ben placated the kit, patting its head.

"Now c'mon, little guy, Merida will be waiting for us already with your brothers and sisters at the border." The older squirrel said. "We have to hurry if you're going to join them."

"Oh, you're taking them across the border today?" Hiccup grinned.

Ben sighed, "Trying to, and it's a long way still," he huffed, "Feels even longer since this guy's such a handful."

"Need some help?"

Jim and Dimitri grimaced, exchanging looks with one another.

"It should not feel like such a chore being someone's friend," Jim shook his head, "Fine, if Hiccup's going I'm coming along too."

Read it here

Hoping to get more readers this way. Hehe.

Edits done by Jasmin Abarca (@jasmin_abarca) Thank you again for it!!

[onestowatch]

Aidan Gallagher Has No Limits [Q&A]

Photo By Allan Zaki

There are many facets to Aidan Gallagher. On the surface, his scene stealing prowess as the co-star of The Umbrella Academy has catapulted him to an immense level of popularity on a piece of prime real estate amongst Hollywood’s brightest young A-List celebrities. But beneath the surface of this 17-year-old actor lies a multi-instrumentalist. An independent singer-songwriter who doesn’t seem to care about the mainstream attention that his music may garner in the future, only the substance for which it can bare.  Musically, his original compositions like “I LOVE YOU” and “4TH of July” draw early comparisons to acoustic-pop artists like Jack Johnson and Passenger. While lyrically some of his introspective words jump off the paper as if they were indie pop-ballads written by singers like Jason Mraz or Aqualung back in 2003.

For Aidan Gallagher the musician, the year 2020 began with a sold-out show at the Troubadour in his hometown of Los Angeles, California. This live performance on January 6th was supposed to be his introduction to the tour life. In fact, a couple weeks later, he even announced that he would be playing a live set at SXSW in March.  But…just as quickly as the Neon Lights Tour began, it came to an abrupt end due to the Covid-19 pandemic.  Although his first ever headlining tour has been temporarily delayed, it hasn’t stopped Aidan Gallagher from publishing fresh content for his listeners along with a series of new music videos.

There are many facets to the year 2020. On the surface the pandemic this year alone has derailed the plans of some of the world’s most talented independent recording artists. But when you’re an intuitive songwriter like Aidan Gallagher, times like these can provide the backdrop for some of the most emotional compositions that you may create.

We caught up with Aidan Gallagher to talk about his emotional subject matter, his dream collaborations and his future plans to balance his music endeavors with a budding acting career.

Ones to Watch: With all of the success that you've enjoyed over the course of the past two years, you've become one of the most recognized actors in young Hollywood. But now you're starting to get a lot more attention as a recording artist. In fact, you currently have four music videos that have garnered over 1 million views on YouTube. Those are very impressive feats to have accomplished without the support of a major record label. What was your personal goal when you first started releasing music? And are you happy with the reception that your music videos have received so far?

Aidan Gallagher: There was always less of a defined personal goal in terms of a release schedule other than just to make great music and put it out there and if people enjoy it, that’s really gratifying. I’ve always made music as a means of working out emotions and because it’s one of the most rewarding hobbies one can have.

Two singles that you've released this year are "I LOVE YOU" and "Blue Neon." Lyrically, they're both heartbreaking tracks that teenagers can relate to. But you also reference some introspective experiences that many adults in their 20s or 30s can relate to. What inspired the lyrics to these songs?

I've often found that the melodic structure and the micro-tonal characteristics of a riff are what inspire the emotional landscape of a song. When I hear music, I see colors and shapes and textures that I couldn't necessarily describe to another person. I let that imagery inform my emotional state and the subject matter of the song. The lyrics always coincide with this. Sometimes the lyrics relate more to the music than myself and other times they are stripped word for word from my own personal experience. Either way the lyrics always come from an honest place. I don't see how you could create anything of value without that.

“4th of July" is a Folk song that pulls on the heart strings of your listeners. The date is very specifically addressed in your lyrics, so why did you choose to release the music video on August 1st instead of the actual day of July 4th?

Thank you! I’m really proud of that song. It brought together a lot of what I’ve been learning about music production and engineering. It gave me a chance to show what I can do. A lot of people have asked about the timing of videos and our team has found through the advice of some very wise music industry people and just trial and error that it’s best to release a listening only video first. I like the idea that people will listen to the work before they start dissecting the visuals. I want them to have their own interpretation and not necessarily the visual scenery I put on it.

Of all the musicians and bands that have released music videos in 2020, which ones have inspired your imagination the most, when it comes to creating your own videos?

I often find myself influenced by a variety of artists across musical genres. To give an example or two, I really love what Jacob Collier and Finneas are doing with their videos. But at the same time, some of my favorite videos are the ones that are stripped down, and the artist is just performing their song in a studio or on a stage. I think it puts a beautiful focus on the music and the emotional texture of the song.

The 2020 Blue Neon Tour was going to be your first heading tour, but it was cancelled back in January due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Can you tell us a little bit about what you had in store for this tour?

Well, I was lucky that I got a chance to kick it off at the Troubadour here in Los Angeles.  Just that alone was pretty cool. I had a full tour planned to go around the country and then travel to international cities and do meet-and-greets with my fans and really connect. I was really looking forward to my first SXSW performance, so that was a really hard pill to swallow when they cancelled the festival. But all things considered, I’ve been incredibly lucky in my life and my little plans pale in comparison when you look at the state of the world right now.

How many songs have you recorded since the pandemic shutdowns began? And will you be releasing an EP or debut album anytime soon?

“I Love You” and “4th of July” were released this year but everything else I’m doing is currently in a state of flux. I’ve definitely got the songs but it’s a balance of finding the time to put into recording them. I have a large catalog that I’m really proud of that will be coming out one at a time as I can get to it. With (Covid-19) it’s really slowed down my ability to record because I have to engineer everything myself. With “4th of July” I had 3 different engineers on rotation come to my house to work so it kept me working on a strong schedule and we knocked it out fast. When (Covid-19) put everyone in quarantine I lost that team and schedule. We’ll get it back though.

Who would your dream collaborators be for a full-length studio album and why?

Wow, I mean, if I was ever lucky enough to work with any of my idols, I’d be over the moon. If I got to collaborate with another artist for an entire album it would probably be on a production or writing level. I’d love to work with John Mayer, Finneas, Charlie Puth or Ed Sheeran.

If you could pick any film director to direct the first music video from your debut album who would it be and why?

Honestly, I don’t think in terms of music videos. I only think about music. Once a song is produced then I have the luxury to get into the ideas for a video. I do have some raw visual impressions in my mind of what the song means to me but it’s hard to say until the song is done. Though there are many film directors that I’d love to work with as an actor such as Wes Anderson, Quentin Tarantino, Damien Chazelle and the list goes on and on and on.

We heard that you're a United Nations Goodwill Ambassador. Tell us about your work with the UN. What made you want to get involved with their efforts to stop Illegal wildlife trade? And why has it been so important for you to shed more light on the animal agricultural industry?

I can’t begin to tell you what a privilege it has been to be able to magnify my concerns about saving our planet through their channels. The environmental crisis is the largest and the most complex problem we face in the world. I have always wanted to use the platform I lucked into as an actor to showcase that. It all started with not being able to go surfing after a rain and that led to many realizations about carbon emissions and the role of the animal agriculture industry in those emissions. I don’t want to seem preachy to people or judge anyone’s choices, but I do want to spread awareness as I learn from the world’s top scientists. The truth is that if we don’t take aggressive action in the next few years, my generation isn’t going to have a viable future in a collapsed environment. The UN is calling the next ten years the "Decade of Action.” As individuals, there are a lot of small steps people can take that make a huge difference collectively such as “Meatless Mondays”, cutting down on single use plastic and cash voting for the environment with your daily spending.

You launched a five-part Q&A series on your YouTube channel back in September. Most of the questions from your fans were centered around your role as Number Five on The Umbrella Academy. Are you planning on creating any new content for your channel that primarily focuses on your musicianship and artistry as a songwriter?

I have a lot of plans for all kinds of content and ways to stay engaged with fans and it all makes me really happy. I’ve been doing music performances for my Patreon members every week, and music performing has always given me happiness. I bet a lot of performers are experiencing depression once they lost the ability to tour. Patreon brought back that happiness to me. Not every person who follows me is into my music, so it’s just for those who are and who would come to a show if I were touring in their city. I try to balance my time between the various things I’m passionate about; however, the past few months have really been about promoting the vote.

You play the guitar and piano. In addition to singing, producing and engineering. Take us back to the early stages of your timeline as a musician. Were you a self-taught musician or did you have instructors and mentors help you develop your skills?

Well, when you're first starting out you generally work on covers to develop your skills with your instrument while also making it fun. Once you can play the chords and you have an understanding of how your instrument works, you can learn things at your leisure. I started off taking lessons but eventually I stopped due to production and had to let my ear guide my learning. That's also when I started writing songs. I never took lessons for songwriting, I just watched YouTube. In particular I remember John Mayer’s seminar at Berklee College of Music to be a defining influence on my methodology for songwriting. As for producing and engineering, I'm completely self-taught and rely only on YouTube research and my own musical instinct to create.

Most of your songs could be categorized as Pop-Rock. What other genres of music would you like to incorporate into your sound?

I like all kinds of music, so I’m not necessarily trying to find a genre to incorporate but I guess you get influenced by whatever you are listening to. Genres are so blended these days, and I really think music operates on more of a spectrum than it does on individual categorizations of itself.

Who are your top five Pop-Rock artists/bands of all-time? And why?

There’s way more than five!  But since 5 is my lucky number I’ll try to narrow it down but it’s not in any order. Also know that this list is characterized by how I define Pop-rock. My Chemical Romance, The White Stripes, David Bowie, Queen and Foo Fighters.

We noticed that you filmed season two of The Umbrella Academy in Toronto. How do you think the experience of living in that city helped shape you as a songwriter and artist?

I think in order to write about life you have to live life. At this point in my life, I don't at all consider myself worldly as I simply haven't lived long enough and because of that I find that a lot of my music is introspective, and my songs often feel like the places I've written them. By putting yourself in new environments, I think it pulls new ideas out of you. Travel broadens the mind.

Hypothetically speaking, if you had to choose between winning a Grammy Award as a solo artist or a winning Academy Award with the entire cast of The Umbrella Academy, which option would you pick?

Awards aren’t why I make music or act. I don’t think about them. I just love music and acting. Any part I can play in those fields brings me happiness and I'd love to experiment with the different aspects of those art forms. Initially I got into acting because I wanted to be a director. I also loved listening to music, but I had no idea I would be a musician until I started taking piano lessons.

What’s the plan for your music career moving forward? Do you plan to continue to release material independently or would you prefer to be signed to a major record label?

It was a hard decision, but right now it’s best for me to remain an independent artist as I’m growing my music and balancing an acting career. I had really exciting offers from major labels, but they all want me to drop acting and tour full time. I also really enjoy having creative control over my songs. For the past couple of years, I’ve mostly been writing and because of that, I’ve built up a huge catalog of music to produce when I get the time. After that I’m really looking forward to being able to perform more and on tour.  For the time being, I’m really excited about catching up with what I’ve written so that I’ll finally be in a place where I can write a song and begin recording it the next day.

[publiusvirgilius]

A Hard Day’s Night

Beatles-inspired Hotchfic: Your boyfriend Aaron Hotchner is tired after a long trip, but exhaustion goes out the window when he sees you.

Author's Note: I wrote this in a day! This is my first time publishing a fanfic so please be nice, but I also welcome criticism and feedback. I have a longer, plot-driven Spencer Reid story in the works if any of y'all would be interested—I promise it's less dirty than this one :) If I do post it, it would be on Wattpad, same username. Also happy to take requests! Receiving writing prompts is always fun and keeps the creative juices flowing, so please message me for any requests or just to say hi.

Aaron Hotchner x Female!Reader

warnings: mention of statutory rape (unsub), smut (hotch), biting

word count: 2.6K

This had been one of the longest cases the BAU had seen in a long time. There had been multiple kidnappings in a small town all within a week, and just when the team thought they had apprehended the unsub, a teenager had been abducted, leading them to change the profile.

The townsfolk weren't helping, either. One would think that a small town would come together in a time of crisis, but parents were blaming each other, the teenagers were getting into trouble, trying to escape the grief of their younger siblings' disappearances through drugs and alcohol, and the local police was beginning to question the FBI's methods and abilities.

After two weeks of chasing the unsub around, the team finally caught him. The person responsible for the kidnappings had turned out to be the sheriff himself, working with a seventeen year old girl. They claimed to be in love, and their crimes had been fueled by the desire to have children of their own, which had been impossible, for statutory rape aside, the sheriff was over fifty years old and impotent.

All in all, it had been a frustrating case, and the team was more than ready to go home as soon as it was over. They arrested the couple and got them to confess just within a couple hours of figuring out that they were the ones responsible, but by the time they finished, it was past 11 p.m.

The agents all agreed that they would rather fly back home now than wait until the morning, eager to leave the small town.

This is how Aaron Hotchner found himself as the only conscious individual on the jet back home. He had always had trouble falling asleep on planes—unlike his agents, who, as soon as they boarded the craft, each found their own corner of the jet and promptly dozed off.

Aaron checked his watch. 11:45. Y/N was bound to be asleep by now. Aaron's girlfriend woke up early for work every day, and since today was Sunday, she would definitely have turned in early to prepare for work tomorrow.

Still, she had made him promise to call her when he was on his way home, especially after a case this long.

Aaron settled for a text, not wanting to wake her, even though he ached to hear her voice. He smiled as he opened up his phone to the last texts they had sent each other:

Y/N: "I miss you <3 Come home soon xx"

Aaron: "I miss you too. Say hi to Jack for me."

The last message had been a photo Y/N had sent of her and Jack snuggled up on the couch on Saturday night, his son fast asleep as a movie played in the background.

If any of his colleagues had been awake, they would have teased him about the wide grin on his face looking down at his phone. Aaron rarely let his team see his emotions, but ever since he and Y/N started dating a year ago, he found himself smiling more often. And when he had asked Y/N to move in with him a month ago and she had said yes, even the people outside of his department had noticed a difference in his mood.

The thought of Y/N erased all of the gruesome images and dark thoughts that came with the job at the BAU from Aaron's mind. And unlike a year ago, when he would spend the flight home thinking about how a case could have gone differently—which of his decisions had led to more deaths and what decisions would have prevented them, and what his job meant about the state of humanity as a whole—now, all he thought about was who he got to go home to at the end of the day.

Aaron opened up the picture of Y/N one more time, smiling at her sleepy eyes in the dim living room and the way she was holding Jack close to her chest, before typing out a text to let her know that he was coming home.

Aaron: "I'm on my way home. Should arrive by 2 a.m. but I hope you're asleep when you get this."

During the last two weeks, the time difference had made it difficult for Aaron and Y/N to find time to talk, especially since during a case, the workdays tended to end late, but Y/N had insisted on calling him each night before he went to bed.

Just tonight, Aaron hoped to relieve Y/N of a late-night call, and when she didn't text back, he breathed a content sigh. In his mind, the perfect welcome home would be cozying up next to his girlfriend in their warm bed and holding her close as she slept.

What Aaron didn't know was that Y/N was still awake. In fact, she had never gone to bed. She had put Jack to bed around 8:30 p.m., but then, she came back downstairs and set out to get ahead on this week's work with a cup of caffeinated tea as she waited up for Aaron.

As soon as the jet touched down in D.C., the team hurried to get out, eager to get home. Sometimes the BAU would go out for celebratory drinks after a case, but this time, everyone was too worn out to do anything but to go home.

"Thanks for your hard work the past two weeks," Aaron said to the team. "I know it was a long case."

"Can we please have tomorrow off?" Emily half-joked.

"You're welcome to take any of your designated sick days, Prentiss," Aaron said with a small smile.

Emily scoffed at his remark as the rest of the team snickered.

"Don't even think about calling us before 10 a.m., JJ," Derek said.

"Go home and get some rest," Aaron said. "From what I recall, a certain amount of paperwork follows a complicated case, and like it or not, tomorrow is Monday."

By the time Aaron pulled into his driveway, it was 2:30 a.m. When he got out of the car, he felt the weary effects of having been awake for eighteen hours. As he walked up to the door, Aaron started slightly when he saw that the light in the kitchen was on.

Y/N probably forgot to turn out the lights, he thought.

But he was wrong. When he stepped through the door, his weariness instantly dissipated. His briefcase dropped from his hand with a heavy thud.

Y/N was seated at the kitchen counter, clad only in one of his undershirts and a pair of thin pajama shorts, her hair in a messy bun atop her head, her large glasses balanced over her delicate nose, chewing on the tip of her pen as she pored over an array of papers. To Aaron, it was a sight for sore eyes.

"What are you doing up?" Aaron asked dumbly.

"You thought I wouldn't want to see you as soon as you got home? After I haven't seen you for two weeks?" Y/N hopped down from her seat and padded across the wooden floors to her boyfriend. "Let's get you to bed, baby. You must be exhausted," she said, loosening Aaron's tie and pushing his jacket off of his shoulders.

When she touched him, it was as if she had switched on a circuit, blowing out all the resistors and capacitors. Aaron's senses caught on fire, and he burned for her touch.

"I think you've got it wrong, Y/N," Aaron said, his eyes darkening. "I will take you to bed, and I want to see you naked and coming for me as soon as possible."

Before Y/N could retort, Aaron had her thrown over his shoulder and was heading for the bedroom.

Once Aaron had her laid out on the bed, he started to remove her flimsy clothes. "I missed you. So. Much." He bit out each clipped syllable, biting and sucking behind her ear, on her neck, and on her collarbone between each utterance.

Y/N gasped, trying to catch her breath. "Jack's asleep," she whispered.

"That's none of my concern, since my mouth is going to be occupied with something else. But I suppose you'll just have to do your best to be quiet," he said.

Aaron continued kissing and licking down her chest, pausing at her breasts to tease each little pink bud with his tongue. When he reached the junction of her hips, he bit down lightly on her hipbone, causing her to cry out until she quickly bit down on her fist to quiet herself.

"Good girl." Aaron looked up at Y/N and planted a kiss near her bellybutton, his tongue briefly flicking against the hot skin. He licked across the insides of her thighs, then softly blew cool air onto them as he ran his hands up her legs, making her shiver.

When his mouth finally landed on her clit, he lapped her up like a man starved. "You're so fucking wet," he growled. "Did you miss me while I was gone? Did you touch yourself thinking about me?"

Y/N struggled to nod as her body trembled.

Aaron sucked hard on her clit as he pushed two fingers inside her, dragging them against the pebbled surface of the top. Y/N covered her face with both of her hands, trying to hold back the sounds escaping her throat.

"I want you to look at me." Aaron pulled her hands away from her face with his free hand. He stuck his thumb inside her mouth, encouraging her to suck. Y/N looked down at her boyfriend's figure, and she nearly came at the sight of him alone.

Aaron's dark, cropped hair fell over his forehead, damp with sweat. He was still in his shirt and trousers, though he had managed to roll up his sleeves, and his tie still sat loosely around his collar, its length thrown back over his shoulder as if he couldn't get to his feast fast enough.

He continued to work at her clit, his tongue flicking back and forth faster and harder as he felt Y/N's body twitch more and more out of control. When his mouth reached a near impossible rhythm, Y/N clenched her jaw, biting down on Aaron's fingers in her mouth as her body writhed, falling over and over again into an orgasmic high.

Aaron pressed a kiss to her sensitive core, then to the inside of her thighs. Running his hands up her torso, he pulled her up into a sitting position in front of him, her legs still spread wide on either side of him, and he allowed her to lean forward against his chest, against the soft cotton material of his shirt, too spent to hold up her own weight.

Y/N kissed him slowly, his mouth hot from her own heat. She took his face in her hands, feeling the light stubble across his jaw. She pulled back, taking a moment to observe his eyes. Whatever weariness had been there before, it was gone, replaced with a ravenous hunger that drank in her flushed skin and her dark, swollen lips. Y/N's pupils were blown wide with arousal, her hair had come apart, the wayward strands framing her face, and her glasses were askew, just barely balancing on the tip of her nose.

Aaron had never seen a prettier sight. He felt like a soldier come home to see his wife after years of war, like Odysseus returned to his wife Penelope after ten long years. Wait a second... Wife? Where did that come from?

Aaron reached out to pull off Y/N's glasses from her face, then tipped up her chin to catch her lips again with his own.

"I love you," he said.

"I love you, too."

Y/N finally pulled his tie loose, tossing it off to the side of the bed, and she carefully unbuttoned his shirt, her fingers moving nimbly but gently. Aaron tended to come back from his cases with bruises and scratches that always made Y/N's heart ache to see, but at the same time, it filled her with pride, not to mention turned her on, to know that her boyfriend was out saving the world, one bad guy at a time.

This time, Aaron had been spared any major or minor injuries, but still, Y/N took her time undressing him, kissing the old scars as she went.

Once she had stripped him bare, Aaron took her hands in his and pressed a deep kiss to her lips once again. Y/N reached down to take his stiff cock in her hands, but Aaron shook his head and pushed her back down onto the bed.

"I want to feel you," he said. "Now." He lay down beside her so that they faced each other, and he fingered her clit between them, making her arch into him. Aaron hissed when she grabbed his ass, digging her nails into the firm flesh, making him jerk his hips involuntarily.

He pushed the head of his cock into her tight core, and Y/N held her breath, her eyes fluttering closed as she felt his familiar form meld into her, a feeling she hadn't felt in weeks. A feeling she couldn't imagine how she could have gone without for this long.

"Open your eyes, Y/N," Aaron said in a breathy tone.

Y/N locked eyes with Aaron for only half a second before capturing his lips in a searing kiss, all teeth and tongue and hunger and longing. Pulling his body closer to her so that no space remained between them, Y/N buried her face in his neck, biting at the sensitive skin, then biting down on his shoulder especially hard when he hit a certain spot inside her.

Aaron wrapped one of her legs around himself to access her body at a better angle, and he felt her muffled moans vibrating against his shoulder. Fisting his hand in her hair and gripping her hip with his other hand, he increased the intensity of his thrusts until he was nearly falling over the edge, a jumbled string of curses leaving his mouth.

Y/N arched into him, her hardened nipples to sliding against his chest through the thin layer of sweat that mingled across their bodies, and her own hips started, her leg locking his body against hers  in a vice-like grip, tumbling once again over the edge, moaning Aaron's name against his skin over and over.

Aaron groaned his own release, pulling Y/N’s head back by her hair so that he could look at her face as she came apart, falling into pleasure and more in love with this girl whose lips were still muttering his name as she came down from her high.

"Aaron," she said between labored breaths. "Don't you ever leave me again. I don't want to spend another night without you."

Holding her in his arms, his eyes sweeping over her angelic face, Aaron would have given her the world if he could, and still, it wouldn't be close to what she deserved. He placed a kiss on her forehead and murmured empty promises against her skin, both knowing that eventually, he would leave, but also knowing that he would always come back, and that she would always be his waiting home.

[slashingdisneypasta]

Could you write a cross over EJ x Fem Reader x Leatherface where EJ and the reader, who is his friend and he wants her to be his mate, are in Texas and end up at the house of Leatherface and his family, and they get along well, EJ helps them kill and the reader helps cook and Leatherface starts falling for the reader?

Hi! Sorry this took (Lots of) time! ): I hope you like it though ^^ Thomas kind of takes a back seat for most of it, but wait to the climactic end (; ^^

I realise now that you probably meant you wanted them in a poly relationship but aha... I did not realise that when I wrote this, so... I'm sorry!!

~~~

“Squatters.”

The word comes out gruff and frustrated, loud enough for everyone in the room to hear but not directed at anyone specific; Monty isn’t even looking at anyone, just staring moonily down at his thighs. But you know who it’s meant for.

You and E.J have been staying with the Hewitts for months now. At first E.J just said he was doing it, threatening them to let you and him stay, for a few days. Just while you rest up -you had had a spot of gastro. Nothing serious, but E.J still wanted you to rest. Ever the protective friend, - and got better, but then a couple days turned into a week and then a few more weeks and now you have your own room in the Hewitt house.

The word hurts, coming so scratchily out of the miserable man’s throat as he stares so blankly. But you know that, your staying here, is only a quarter -max, - of what he’s always so upset over. And, in truth, even though this situation did not start well, sometimes you do feel like family with these people. Well… some.

Luda Mae took it upon herself, seemingly just out of the kindness of her heart, to take care of you while you were sick those first couple days. The whole time, E.J was sniffing the food and the drink’s she’d serve you and honestly, you were worried she had poisoned them to. But nothing ever came of it, except sometimes she put so much pepper in the stew that you swear you saw the future. Then when you got better, she smiled for the first time at you and invited you to help her cook dinner this last night you were there- That’s how you learnt what was in the food. E.J certainly didn’t tell you, but it made sense. That was why the man of the house, Hoyt, was letting you both stay so easily. E.J was helping them round up people to kill and eat.

That was a shock, for sure. I have been friends with E.J for years, but I had yet to eat anything human, except occasionally my own fingernails, before then.

Then of course that night didn’t end up being the last night, because E.J was still boiling over a plan for what we would do next after we left, so we even stayed longer…

And so you got the chance to spend time with Thomas.

And that was fine with E.J, he didn’t care about you hanging out with Thomas anymore then he cared about you hanging out wit Luda Mae. He’s always worried that whoever you’re with will hurt you and is always cautious, but he trusts you to take care of yourself.

Then you and Thomas got close. One night, you stayed up so late with Thomas that E.J came and got you from Thomas’ room.

And E.J was even okay with that, too! 

Then… then, on one of the nights E.J would see it fit to come and fetch you from your ‘play date’, as E.J saw them to be, with Thomas to find that… you two had fallen asleep together. Clearly on accident, as whatever book you were reading was still in your lap and you were in separate chairs. But the picture just did not sit well with Eyeless Jack. The way your heads angled towards each other and you looked so peaceful, the way you only ever looked in your sleep when you knew E.J was there, in the room, looking out for you… But now you were looking that way, feeling that safe, in under the protection of someone else? E.J did not like that. That hit the mark.

He knew you two had to get the hell out of there.

Now, E.J zeroes in on ‘Uncle Monty’, and growls himself. Under his breath, so no one heard him, but you saw the way he shook his head and pushed off the wall where he was leaning. He puts his hand on your shoulder and leans down to you, sitting in an armchair watching TV. “Hey, I’m gonna call some help. The old fart’s right. Its time we got outta this hell place,” The Texan heat has been getting to him, you think worriedly. “And move on. You good on your own?”

He always asks that, if he’s going to leave. Like you’re always in the middle of a horror movie like Friday the 13th and could be in danger at any time. It was exasperating sometimes, yes, but you know he’s just being caring for you, so you try to keep your annoyance to yourself.

Instead of snapping, you pat his hand on your shoulder and grin. “I’ll be fine! I’m about to join Luda in the kitchen, anyway.” The moment those words come out of your mouth, you have flashbacks back to your Grandma, always slaving away in the kitchen under the weight of old timey feminine expectations. You make a face, and whisper. “God that sounds old fashioned.”

E.J chuckles softly. “If I could, I would pick you up a Slurpee.”

“Oh! The 21st century. I miss it.” You grin wider, keeping the joke running with him.

“We’ll be back soon, don’t worry.” With that. You watch E.J straighten up again, still smiling. Then you turn back to the TV, some cartoon that Hoyt was watching, and chew on your bottom lip.

So… you’re leaving?

You’re going to miss this place, for some reason… Actually, that’s not entirely true. You know exactly what you’re going to miss. Not the house, by any means. Its musty and yellow from time, and you certainly wont miss being in the middle of nowhere, Monty, and absolutely not Hoyt.

But you will miss Luda Mae and Thomas, and long nights reading with Thomas, and cooking with Luda Mae, and the sunsets here. You know you’re going to miss these things, but something about leaving just feels worse than it should. Leaving friends has always been part of travelling with E.J, and it has never been this hard.

But then again, if you entertain the idea of staying here and letting E.J go without you, that feels terrible too.

As you wonder about these things, Monty rolls out of the room and the TV gets turned off. Hoyt relaxes more into his chair like he’s ready for a late-day nap before dinner, but then he glances at you. Something clicks in his brain, and he can’t look away for a few moments. That is, until you feel a creepy tingling on the side of your face and look his way, catching his squinty look and furrowing your eyebrows at him. Still, you look away and so does he, to avoid conversation.

But then he looks at you again and you catch him again and he squints harder. Then sits up in his seat again and sets his jaw. “So, what’s your deal with my nephew? And the ah… other kid. With the mask.”

You would think after 3 months of living together you would learn E.J’s name… “Deal?” You raise an eyebrow, confused. Have you acted off in any way towards them? You can’t recall… Or, maybe you could if you tried. Really you’re just too lazy and subconsciously decide to wait for Hoyt to explain.

“Yeah, it’s been bothering me for a while, now. It’s like you give attention to Tommy, and then you abandon him for Jack again. Bit fickle, if you ask me.”

Shock delves deep into your very soul, at that. What- W h a t is Hoyt suggesting??! “Huh?!”

For a moment Hoyt just continues to stare you down, one eyebrow raised halfway up his forehead; Evidently, wondering how stupid you must be or if he has read things wrong. A moment passes of this, with you just sitting there and waiting with a wildly beating heart for the answer, before Hoyt rolls his eyes and gets up from his chair. “Alright. Ya’ll are leavin’ soon anyway, what do I care?”

He starts heading for the doorway out of the living room, so you grip the arm or your chair to stop yourself hopping up and stopping him. Did you make the boy’s think you liked them in a different way?? Is that what he’s saying?! “Wait! Hoyt! Don’t leave, explain to me what you mean! -“

“I’m going for my nap!” He snaps back petulantly, seemingly caring little to zero percent about your problem that he just called attention to.

“But! -“

“Tell me when dinner’s ready.” And then he’s gone, up the stairs to his room. You push yourself out of your chair and stand for a moment, wondering… Is there any merit in what he said? Or is he just crazy?

Both are acute possibilities.

After a minute of pondering, you shake it off and move on to the kitchen to help Luda Mae. It’s probably not worth worrying about.

~~~

After dinner you’re just sitting in the chair by yours and E.J’s shared bed-The Hewitt’s only had one spare,-, flicking through dialogue prompts on Pinterest when E.J walks in.

“Hey Y/N!” E.J’s voice wafts into your ears, causing you to put down your phone and raise your eyebrows at him. “Slender’s coming tonight, so pack! I got us a one-way ticket outta here.”

Before you’ve even fully processed what this means for you consciously, your mouth opens up and the words “So soon?!” come slipping out like butter. E.J stops what he was doing immediately, hearing the less then excited response when he was expecting, hoping, for a pleased one. This is not good. This is what he was worried about. You better not be hesitant because of Thomas.

His non-gaze digs deep into you as he waits for an explanation. Doesn’t ask what’s wrong, doesn’t ask about the tone. Just faces your way, and waits for you to explain.

That way he’ll know what you’re feeling and not just what he wants to know.

“Its strange that we’re going! Started to feel like home, a little bit.”

Of course, his ‘gaze’ only works to get secrets out of you if you are aware you have secrets… which you, his innocent, sweet Y/N, may not.

He’s thought this could be the case for a while. Its clear to him your budding feelings for Thomas… and Thomas has made it clear to E.J his feelings for you, but you yourself may not be aware.

Just like your clear feelings for E.J himself.

A frustrated sound comes from E.J, a human sound as he’s so plainly annoyed, and he rubs his face hard under his mask for a moment. Your emotional obliviousness is cute, yes, but it’s becoming too much for E.J. He needs to be straight forward, he needs you both to know where you are and what you’re feeling. This beating around the bush and pussy footing and taking things slow is not him, and he’s hated every second of it. He can take no more.

“E.J?” You ask, watching his tired and frustrated movements with worry. Its not often you see E.J grumpy like this, he’s usually very together.

“Y/N.” He replies, mimicking your tone but with just a hint of his own, irritated one. He stops rubbing his face and ‘looking’ back up at you. Somehow, even without eyes he always knows where your face is- so he can stare and make you feel things. “Y/N, we need to talk.” Clenching his fists and opening them again once to get his thoughts going, wondering quickly how he’s going to break this to you. You watch round eyes and arched eyebrows, worried about whatever’s happening. He decides to take a formal approach. “Okay, Y/N… Look, we’ve reached a point where things have to change. Now, that doesn’t need to be a bad thing, in- in fact I think its pretty good.”

E.J makes no move to round the bed and be closer to you or to touch you- he’s confessing, you aren’t a couple yet. He can’t do that, especially since he doesn’t know if you feel the same, or even if you know it if you do. This will probably shock you.

“Okay… I’m worried now.” You quip, grinning but really meaning it. E.J is scaring you a bit, with this.

“Don’t be.” E.J bluntly replies. Oh, you think in your head, sarcastically. Well in that case… “The thing I need to tell you, is… I… I have really, really strong feelings about you. Love feelings and I want you to be my mate.” Before you can even open your mouth and not have a response, so you’ll have to shut it again of course, E.J goes on quickly. “And I know you’ll need time to process that, so just pack up your things and let’s go.”

E.J conveniently keeps to himself all the business with Thomas.

But you sure don’t.

There are certain things that are now starting to come together for you… Particularly the conversation you had with Hoyt earlier.

E.J… loves me?

… Okay, that’s not surprising. You’ve been friends with E.J for a long time- in fact, you’ve lived and travelled with him for years now and… and yes, there have been times when you have felt something. A sudden, overwhelming warm feeling in your chest when he helps gets you a snack because he knows you’ll want it, or when you wake up with a blanket you hadn’t had over you when you went to sleep. Once, when all he did was say your name… or many, many, many times when he but looked at you.

But really stops voice from coming out of your throat in this moment is that Hoyt thinks that Thomas is… interested… in you.

What you feel when you’re with him is completely different then how you feel with E.J. Its still very warm and full, but new. Exciting! You haven’t known Thomas for that long, you’re still learning about him. Which is not to downplay the lovely reliable feeling you have with E.J either though…

“Why aren’t you packing? Y/N, its time to go!” E.J breaks you from your reverie, dropping your empty book bag onto the bed for you. “Slender is not a patient… or pleasant… man. So please, come on, get ready so we can meet him outside in time.”

“I need a glass of water.” And a reality check.

“Alright, do you want me to get it for you? You can get started with your clothes.”

“Aha, no that’s fine! I’ll go get it; That’s sweet though! See you in a minute!!”

Then you’re out the door, shutting behind yourself and taking a deep breath with your hands still on the handle, before you turn and start down the stairs to the kitchen.

I can’t think about this. A relationship is not in the cards for me, I’m perfectly happy travelling with E.J… Can’t things just go back to normal?

Pulling a cup from a cabinet, you sigh. “I suppose not… “Silly idea. Even if you could forget what they feel and ignore how you feel, you can’t make either of them do that. You couldn’t. That wouldn’t be fair.

Chewing on the inside of your cheek, you turn the tap on and fill the cup to the brim with water. Then tip out half of it and decide that’s too empty so you fill it up again. Then you turn around and lean back against the sink as you drink, never taking your lips off the cup, thinking…

Worrying.

What to do when you suddenly find yourself in the dreaded love triangle… with cannibals. Oh god.

E.J, now grumbling and packing your things himself, wonder’s if he did the right thing in telling you at all. Judging from your reaction, this could serve as a serious problem in his plans of keeping you as his mate. And more importantly, leaving this shit hole. He cannot take the ever-overhanging threat of Thomas taking you for himself, for much longer.

~~~

You had tried to go see Thomas before you left, but whenever you went to his room he wouldn’t come to the door and you got caught up saying goodbye to Luda Mae and then suddenly it’s 9 at night and E.J’s saying its time to go.

Now you’re outside, with your bag hugged to your chest as you and E.J -him with shoulders slightly hunched and his hands stuffed in his hoodie pocket,- walk silently out of the house and to the highway.

The whole time you feel a terrible sense of dread.

You are leaving, very likely forever, without even saying goodbye to Thomas. Much less facing your feelings or his suspected ones. Now you’ll live the rest of your life without truly knowing what could have, might have been… Its an awful feeling, when you know you could prevent something by just walking back, but you don’t because you’re afraid someone else, in this scenario E.J, and you’re also afraid of what might be.

And then you’re also kicking yourself for being a cliché’d coward and realising that the shit they spew on the Soaps on TV about how hard it is in these situations is all true.

Overall, you diagnose yourself with emotional turmoil and thought diarrhoea. Which is absolutely a thing. Like when you’re awake in the middle of the night between sleeps and you can’t do anything but think because if you get up and do something you will officially awaken? So you just sit there and think…

But now you don’t even have a choice, because there’s no way you could fall asleep right now.  Not even when you get to this ‘Slender Mansion’. No way. Absolutely not.

When finally, the two of you get to the road and stop, you close your eyes and take a deep breath of the dread. You could still go back, but something keeps your feet still where they are.

Its cold outside, and the night-time air -frosty and biting, - just makes you feel worse. Which sucks, because normally you love the cold. Especially at night-time.

You’re about to slowly move from your hugging position and wrap the strap of your book bag over your shoulder properly and open your eyes, when E.J speaks up. But he isn’t speaking to you. “For fuck’s sake.” At least you hope he isn’t talking to you.

“Hm?” You open your eyes and turn to him, to see he’s standing straight like a dog that just smelled something really delicious, except the words that came out of his mouth were anything but happy. You look around for what he might have caught in his sniffer and see a blurry figure trekking down the road towards us.

Immediately, you think its Thomas. But the very next second, you worry that you only think that because you are concerned over Thomas right now, so you just watch the figure approach and try not to guess.

The figure of course turns into Thomas anyway, and I feel the terrible urge to run away. I guess I’m getting to say goodbye after all- I’m glad, but I’m terrified.

As Thomas gets closer… I realise that this boy is not stopping.

He gets closer and closer, and E.J turns his head slowly to the approaching behemoth as if on guard for attack, he keeps coming, and I startle back, and he keeps coming.

Until he suddenly, completely does. Not inches from me.

He’s so close, if I moved my head just a little bit, my nose would touch his chest. Slowly I look up at his face as his chest heaves up and down, up and down, and see no mask on his face. He’s completely bare, and my eyes must round completely. I have never, ever, in the months and months that E.J and I have been here, see Thomas without a little covering even over just the bottom of his face. “Thomas. Is that hurting? -“

I startle out of my words when he suddenly backs up and gets down in one smooth, fluid movement a foot away from me to one knee. “What- What’s he doing?” E.J sniffs the air, gets quiet to listen to the air, opens his mouth to possibly taste the air, but he still doesn’t know as I just stare at Thomas.

Thomas twists his knee further into the gravel, and E.J hisses. “No.”

My mouth creates an ‘O’ when I realise what’s happening. In disbelief rather then horror, like E.J, I whisper a small. “No.”

Thomas reaches into his apron and takes out an empty seasoning jaw with the label ‘Allspice’-which, I know from spending night after night in the Hewitt kitchen never gets used, means he emptied for this and what I think is inside now smells oddly of Allspice,- on it, opens it and tips the contents into his palm.

The ring looks tiny in his hand.

I suddenly remember seeing it a thousand times before on Luda Mae’s ring finger, and it has never looked so small. Tiny.  

Thomas takes your hand in his and yours is just small enough, and big enough, to fit perfectly in it. “Thomas?”

E.J lets out a deep, frustrated sigh, turning away and kicking the dirt. “Fine. Fine! I’ll wait.”

Thomas drops his other hand over the top of the hand of mine that he’s already holding, ring between his thumb and his pointer finger, and tilts his head. Watching his lips, and feeling my whole world close in around me and my heart bloom inside my chest, as he mouths the words:

Marry me?

[newsies-geek]

Newsies in Quarantine (Javid): Part 2

Idea from @dragonsrrad

I couldn’t decide if I wanted to make this a 5k one off but I guess we’re marking it a short story now.

***

Jack felt like his heart was going to give out the moment that he gave Davey the paint brush. While he cared for his friend immensely, he also tenderly cared for the piece of art that had taken him three hours thus far. At the very least, he could paint over Davey's art if need be...but would that hurt the other's feelings? What about his own feelings?

He wanted Davey to feel better is what Jack was feeling. He knew how easily the boy tended to stress over things, and painting was an outlet for him, so why wouldn't it work for Davey? Nothing was more relaxing than-

"Darn it!" Davey swore as his elbow knocked over a red paint can, sending paint flooding onto the floor.

Jack panicked and pushed the canvas so it slid away from the both of them- and the paint that was currently poking into the ground.

"I'm sorry, Jack, let me help clean it-" Davey sighed as he got to his feet to look for cleaning supplies.

"Hey, don't worry about it- the painting his safe and- oh-" Jack winced slightly before letting out a quiet snicker.

"What? What happened?" Davey looked at the other with concern and confusion.

"You've got a bit of-" Jack chuckled as he pointed to a large red smear on Davey's left pant leg.

"Oh no-" Davey looked horrified down at his leg, "M-My dad is going to kill me- these are- these are good pants-"

"Why'd your wear them to sell papes then?" Jack cocked an eyebrow.

"I wore them to the show, Jack." Davey shot a quick glare.

Jack lifted his hands up in defense before paying closer attention to Davey's outfit. The boy was indeed dressed up. He had been wearing caramel-colored pants and a white dress-shirt.

"Well, you can't paint without the chance of spilling some-" Jack chuckled softly as he grabbed his bandana from off his shoulder and headed over to Davey, bending down. He paused as he clutched his bandana, looking up at a bewildered Dave, "Do you mind if I..?" Jack lifted the bandana and shook it slightly.

"Uh- go for it?" The curly haired boy responded hesitantly.

Jack reached forward and began tentiviely wiping away the paint smeared on the side of the other's leg, making Davey sway away, "Hold still-"

"I'm trying, you're just- strong-" Davey muttered out.

Jack felt his face get hot at the words but quickly shook it off, "There's just a little more and-"

"The beds are ready, Dave-!" Race burst in before pausing in bewilderment at the scene of Jack bent in front of Davey, a hand on his thigh.

The blonde blinked a few times, "Oh-"

"This isn't what it-" Davey took a few steps back from Jack, making the other stand up quickly and nod his head, "Good to know, Race." He glared at the blonde as if to threaten him with his eyes.

"Oh I'm so telling the guys about this." Race grinned.

"Why you-" Jack began forward before he was stopped as Davey grabbed his collar, "We're stuck together for two weeks don't start a fight on the first day."

Jack grunted, and if it had been anyone except Davey, he'd have listened- but given the circumstances, he hesitated.

"Well, I have to say, we wasn't aware yous was here, Jack." Race crossed his arms over his chest.

"I was back here paintin'! What? Was nobody lookin' for me?" Jack scoffed.

"Looks likes Davey was." Race winked with a grin as he leaned against the door.

Jack opened his mouth to object before realizing that Race was right, Davey had come looking for him- right? On purpose?

"I just wanted to make sure he was here." Davey defended.

On purpose. This made Jack smile slightly.

"Great, well, me, Les, and Spot-"

"Wait, what's Spot Conlon doing here?" Jack scoffed, sitting up completely and standing beside Davey with crossed arms and confusion.

"He's was my date to the show." Race grinned proudly, but this didn't hide the blush that was evident on his face, "H-He just doesn't really know it-"

"You're fucking Spot-"

"Jack." Davey warned verbally.

"Well, hope yous don't mind hard floors then, Jack." Race began to exit before Jack stalked forward.

"Meanin'?" The dirty blonde cocked and eyebrow at the lengthy teen before him.

"We's only got enough beds for me, Spot, Les, Davey- well, basically, everyone except you. Yous was hidin' so-"

"I've been in worse." Jack scoffed, "Thanks for carin'."

"No prob, bud." Race winked, "I'll let you two resume now-" He ran just before Jack could try and strangle him as Davey hid his face in his hands.

"He's just being an ass." Jack waved his hand dismissively before handing Davey the bandana, "Here, you can-"

"Thanks." Davey responded dryly and gently took the item, rubbing at the paint with determination, followed by a grimace as it seemed to only be making it worse.

"Well, that's paint for ya', I guess, Dave." Jack chuckled as he got to his feet.

"So it seems." The curly-haired boy sighed shortly before looking at the bandana, red naturally, but now also smeared with brighter red streaks of paint, "Will this wash off?"

Jack looked over at his bandana that Davey held gingerly, as if he might rip it if he so much as clutched it. He shrugged, "Probably?"

"I'll- well, I can get you a new one if this one ends up with paint all over it." Davey offered with a guilty look.

Jack made a small huff of a noise, something between amusement and interest, "It's fine, it's been through worse- sees and the paint matches it...sorta." He gave a small grin.

"I guess." Davey shrugged before looking towards the door that Race had left, "We should probably-"

"Yeah, let's go." Jack cleared his throat, striding over to the stage door and opening it for Davey with a small bow, "M'lady."

Davey snorted and rolled his eyes, ruffling the hair on top of Jack's head as he passed him.

Jack smiled and followed after the other, fixing his hair as he did so.

***

"And then I told him- I said- I said, you wanna' know why they's call me Spot?" Spot opened his mouth to continue to speak, on his knees surrounded by a circle of boys who watched with interest on the stage, all of them on blocks of foam, sleeping bags, or prop furniture that could he used as beds. The short boy from Brooklyn slid a smirk onto his face when Jack and Davey entered the scene, their faces illuminated from the stage lights present, "Well, if it i'nt Jack Kelly himself! Where'd yous run off to?"

"Oh, ya' know, here and there." Jack shrugged coolly as he approached the circle of boys, sitting on a flat couple yard length of foam.

"Hey! Wes made that one for Dave!" Romeo began to sit up from where he leaned against Spec's legs, their sleeping bags right up next to each other.

"Oh, um- it's fine- Les and I share a bed at home anyway, I can just-" He turned to find Les curled up in what looked to be a dog bed, "Oh, I guess then-"

"I'll move." Jack shrugged, starting to get up.

"No, no, you're fine-" Davey responded a little too quick before clearing his throat as a few of the boys gave him glances. He awkwardly gripped at the cuffs of his shirt, "Well, we're just telling stories anyway, we can share it for now." He moved to sit down beside Jack, both of them just barely fitting on the width of the foam.

Race glared for a moment at Jack's intrusion on his excellent work at putting all the beds together, before giving a small, approving nod and looking back at Spot with a lazy smile, "So, why's they call you Spot?" He mused.

"You know this, Race, you've heard this story." Spot waved his hand dismissively.

"Yeah, but they don't." Race motioned to the group of boys, still listening attentively.

"Oh- oh right-" Spot cleared his throat before continuing, "I told him- cos- cos I got spots 'o dirt all over me and his blood coulda been the next spot!" Spot cheered as the rest of the present newsies hollered in as well.

Davey blinked a few times before leaning over to Jack, "Was that supposed to be climactic?" He whispered.

Jack let out a loud snort of amusement, covering his mouth to hide a laugh.

"What was that, mouth?" Spot bristled as he looked at Davey, who visibly paled and shook his head.

"No, I-"

"So why is you named Dave then, huh?" The short boy balled his fists up, and all eyes were turned on Davey.

"M-Me?" Davey furrowed his brow.

"No, the Dave behind ya." Spot dead-panned.

Davey fought the urge to look behind him and shrugged shortly, "It's not really a big deal."

"Then why is you making fun of mine bein' a deal or not?" Spot snarled, shifting from where he sat.

"I wasn't, I was just asking-"

"He's named after our Grandpa who worked for the Circus!" Les chirped up excitedly, looking as though he hadn't just been asleep in a dog bed.

Davey's face turned a dark scarlet and his shoulders slumped slightly.

A few snickered began to pop up before Davey felt a hand slap onto his back.

"A fellow hustler, hows I knew that you had it in yer blood, Davey?" Jack gave Davey a knowing grin.

The surrounding boys, all except for Spot, began to murmur in agreement after their leader's words.

"Dave was just askin' me if there was more to the story, Spot, care to share?" Jack smirked.

"W-Well, of course there is! You know- I also got some circus blood in me-" This launched a complete half hour conversation that ended in sleepy faces as the natural light from outside to be dimmed.

Medda arrived once the boys had seemingly quieted down, "Lights out, darlings!” She clapped her hands gently to the boys, who grumbled in slight protest, but knew better than to argue with someone who was being generous enough to give them essentials. She left shortly after to take care of the lights as the newsboys shifted into their respective beds.

Jack got up and stretched his arms before looking around the stage and opting to where a fallen wings curtain was, clumping together the velvety fabric before seeming satisfied and easing himself onto it.

Davey opened his mouth to say something, perhaps offer that Jack could, at the very least, bring his make-shift bed over, but the lights were killed a moment before he could, leaving Davey to only imagine the other boy’s silhouette in the darkness of the theatre.

***

Part 1: https://pawsu-productions.tumblr.com/post/615195930647511040/newsies-in-quarantine-javid-part-1

Part 3: https://pawsu-productions.tumblr.com/post/615366273383219200/newsies-in-quarantine-javid-part-3

[justlookfrightened]

Omg are you still doing prompts? Please zimbits the first time bitty goes back home (jack in tow) for a bittle and/or phelps family reunion since the stanley cup win and Big Kiss. Please for drama and bitty sassypants bittle overcoming it but in a bless your heart southern gentleman sort of way.

CW: There is a lot of implied homophobia here. Bitty handles it, but it’s clearly there.

The morning of the Fourth Of July dawned hot and humid and clear, but there was something in the air — a tingle, maybe, or a frisson of extra energy — that promised a storm to come.

Bitty was sitting up in bed when Jack woke, back against the wall, legs criss-crossed in front of him. His face was neutral until he noticed Jack looking up at him and a small smile played at his lips.

“Everything okay, bud?” Jack asked.

“Fine,” Bitty said. “Just thinking about today.”

“Want to come down here and tell me about it?”

Bitty lay down, tucking his head into the junction between Jack’s neck and shoulder and skimming his hand down Jack’s back.

Jack wrapped Bitty in his arms, the better to feel the warmth of him, to inhale the scent of him, and marveled at how safe he felt when he was holding Bitty. It made him feel powerful, he supposed, and like everything important in the world was secure.

“So?” Jack said.

“We’re expecting a lot of people today — relatives and relatives of relatives and so forth,” Bitty said into Jack’s chest.

“You don’t think they’ll be happy to see us?” Jack asked.

“Sweet pea, we’re the main attraction,” Bitty said. “We’re who they’re all coming to see. But happy? Not really. Maybe curious is the most charitable way of putting it.”

“And we’re being charitable now?”

Bitty raise his head so he could give Jack an affronted look. “I, at least, am a southern gentleman. I am always charitable, and hospitable, too.”

“What about me?” Jack said.

Bitty dropped his head back to Jack’s chest.

“You’re Canadian,” he said. “You can’t help but be polite. Unless you’re checking someone into next week on the ice, but that’s different.”

“I think the only ice today will be in the drinks,” Jack said, lifting his head to look out through the guest room window.

“And in the veins, don’t forget that,” Bitty said, rolling away to get up.

This visit was so different from the one the previous year. He arrived with Bitty instead of on his own (good), and they were met by a nervous, unsmiling Suzanne who darted furtive glances around the baggage claim area in fear that they would be recognized (not so good). They spent the night together in the guest room’s queen-sized bed (good — it was much easier to fit than in Bitty’s old twin — and not good, because Bitty and his parents were clearly uncomfortable).

That was the issue that sparked the first open conflict yesterday. As soon as they had settled into Suzanne’s minivan (“You take the front seat, Jack. You’re the guest,” Suzanne said. “And you’re half a foot taller ‘n me,” Bitty added), Suzanne said, “Now Jack, we’ve put you in the guest room. You should be more comfortable there.”

“Jack can bunk in with me, Mama,” Bitty said.

“No, he can’t,” Suzanne said.

“It worked last year,” Bitty said.

“Last year Jack wasn’t your boyfriend,” Suzanne said. “Or if he was, we didn’t know about it.”

“So it’s not about Jack being comfortable,” Bitty said. “It’s about you not approving of us.”

“No,” Suzanne said. “It’s not you and Jack I don’t approve of. It’s having my unmarried child sleeping with his partner under my roof.”

Jack would have been willing to say fine, I’ll take the guest room, but this was Bitty’s family and Bitty’s argument.

“I’m not a child, Mama, and neither is Jack,” Bitty said. “Do you think I’m sleeping in the guest room at Jack’s this summer?”

“As you said, you are an adult and I can’t control what you do when you’re a thousand miles away,” Suzanne said. “But your father and I make the rules for our house, and we don’t hold with unmarried couples sleeping together.”

Bitty scoffed in the back seat, and said something under his breath that Jack didn’t catch.

“What was that, Dicky?” his mother asked.

“Never mind,” Bitty said. “It was rude and I shouldn’t have said it.”

“Well, you also shouldn’t argue with your mother,” Suzanne said. “Especially in front of company. Jack, we owe you an apology.”

“Jack’s not company, Mama,” Butty said. “He’s my boyfriend and my best friend, rolled into one.”

The rest of the ride had been quiet, but when they say at the kitchen table in Madison for lunch, Bitty brought it up again.

“Why is it so important to you that Jack and I don’t share a room while we’re here?” he asked. “When you know we do the rest of the time we’re together.”

“I could turn that around and ask you why it’s so important you share a bed while you’re here,” Suzanne said. “When you can do that any other old time you want.”

“I didn’t bring Jack here to be separated from him,” Bitty said.

“By ten feet of hallway?”

“Yes,” Bitty said. “I feel safe when I’m with Jack.”

“And not sleeping alone in the room you grew up in?” Suzanne said. “You always felt safe enough before.”

“Not really,” Bitty said. “I didn’t really know what safe felt like. You go on and on about why I didn’t tell you about me and Jack before – this is why. Because I knew you wouldn’t understand.”

“I’m trying,” Suzanne said. “But if you want to be treated like any other couple, this is how it goes. If you were dating a girl, she wouldn’t be allowed to stay in your room either.”

Jack was about to suggest they could check into the nearest hotel and come back in the morning when Coach, of all people, stepped in.

“Come on, Suze,” he said. “You know if Junior brought a girl home, we might put them in separate rooms, but we’d be turning a blind eye if there was some late-night visiting going on. And I don’t know if we’d even do that if the girl was 26 years old and Junior was all but living with her.”

“But we have everyone coming over tomorrow,” Suzanne said. “What will people say if they see all your things in the same room?”

“Mama, I think the ship has sailed on what people will say,” Bitty said, working to hold a straight face.

Suzanne looked at him, and she finally giggled.

“I guess you’re right about that,” she said. “I still don’t like it – and I’m saying that if you two tied  the knot, I wouldn’t say a word against it, but until then, I’d rather you didn’t. But I know when I’m outnumbered.”

“Would it help if we put my stuff in my old room and Jack’s in the guest room?” Bitty asked.

“Maybe,” Suzanne said.

“Then I’ll do that,” Bitty said.

“You may as well sleep in the guest room,” Coach said. “Bed’s bigger.”

Bitty had turned red, but when they went to bed, he went to his old room to find a T-shirt  to sleep in, then padded down the hall to the guest room to sleep with Jack.

Now he was leaving to back to his old room to get dressed.

“Meet you downstairs in ten minutes,” he said.

Much of the morning’s preparation was similar to the previous year’s. Bitty and Suzanne were busy for hours in the kitchen, and they were joined by MooMaw – who seemed unabashedly delighted to see both of them – well before the rest of the guests were set to arrive.

Jack helped Coach move patio furniture, haul coolers out and wash them, set up a canopy and sprinkler station for the kids … the list seemed endless.

The first company arrived early in the afternoon, and Jack started to get what Bitty meant. No one was outright rude – if anything, the questions had been more plentiful last year – but people kept looking at him, and looking away if he tried to make eye contact. He felt like an exhibit at the zoo; “Come see the world’s only gay hockey player!”

Bitty finally popped up at his side, bearing a cold lemonade in one hand and a beer in the other.

“Which one do you want?” he asked.

“Beer,” Jack said. “Definitely beer.”

Clouds were starting to gather, but the sun was still hot.

Bitty handed it over and turned to survey the crowd that was surveying them. Jack put his arm around Bitty’s shoulders and pulled him close without even thinking. Jack saw a couple of guys give a side-eye, but no one said a word.

That, apparently, wasn’t going to fly with Bitty.

“Hey there, Uncle Peter,” Bitty said, addressing the side-eyer in chief. “How are you? I was awful sorry to hear about Linda ‘n you splitting up. You find a place to rent yet? I guess it doesn’t have to be too big for you all on your own.”

Uncle Peter sputtered, then said something about finding another beer and walked away.

“What was that about?” Jack murmured.

“Help me take the trash out back and I’ll tell you,” Bitty said.

Jack followed Bitty as he emptied trash and recycling cans and carried bags to bins behind the garage.

“Linda — his wife — split with him last year,” Bitty said. “They claimed irreconcilable differences and she kept the house. But she told all the PTA moms that she booted him because his dick was too small.”

“Ouch,” Jack said.

“Just reminding him that gossip cuts every direction. You know he’s fixing to go to work at the auto parts store and tell all the guys about how we were all over each other.”

“We weren’t —”

“And his erect penis is probably more than two inches, but that’s the story that’s all over town.”

Once trash duty was done, Jack sat in the shade for a bit with Moomaw and Aunt Judy, who seemed to have planted herself firmly on the side of Team Jack.

“That was sure something when you won the Stanley Cup,” Judy said. “Just like your father. Is that trophy as heavy as it looks?”

“It didn’t feel like it that night,” Jack said.

“I can’t tell you how many people in Madison were watching after you came to visit last year,” Judy said.

“I guess they saw everything then,” Jack said.

Judy nodded. “But don’t let it worry you,” she said. “Folks’ll get over it. I know Suzy spent some time putting people in their places, and there was always gonna be some curiosity when you came back the first time, but it’ll blow over.”

“I’m more worried about Bitty,” Jack said. “Whether he’ll feel welcome in his hometown.”

“Well, I won’t say Dicky’s always fit in the best around here,” Judy said. “But he’s resourceful. Always was, even as a child. That boy can take care of himself.”

She paused.

“Clouds are coming in,” she said. “Think we’ll get rain today.”

Bitty found Jack again a while later. “Let’s take advantage of the sun going behind the clouds and get some ball hockey going,” Bitty said.

They gathered about a dozen of the kids and Bitty divided them into teams while Jack dragged nets and a box of sticks onto the driveway.

“I know a bunch of y’all ain’t played hockey before,” Bitty said. “And Jack here just won the biggest championship in hockey with his team. We’re gonna show y’all how to hold a stick and shoot, and go over some rules.”

Bitty gave each kid a stick and set them up in pairs to pass to each other.

“Once you got that down, we’ll shoot at the net and then have a game.”

Jack imitated Bitty, watching the kids and correcting grips and offering advice. Bitty told the first pair to take shots at the net; Sarah, who was around ten, put it right in. Her little brother had more trouble.

Jack bent down and said, “Let me see that again, buddy.”

He watched, then said. “Okay, now try it like this.”

Jack repositioned the boy’s hands on the stick, and adjusted the way he was standing. The boy whacked at the ball and sent it sailing into the net.

“There you go!” Jack said, holding his hand up for a high five. “Next thing you know, I’ll be taking lessons from you!”

“Mason! Come here this minute!”

A woman stood at the edge of the driveway.

“I didn’t say you could come out here and play hockey,” she continued. “I’m sure Cousin Eric and his friend have better things to do than play with you anyway.”

“We really don’t,” Jack started, but Mason was already protesting.

“Everyone else is playing,” Mason said. “And Mr. Jack just showed me how to shoot! Did you see me?”

“It’s time to stop now, Mason,” the woman said. “You, too, Sarah.”

“You need to leave already, Marjorie?” Bitty said, walking away from the kids he was helping. “Trying to beat the weather?”

“Oh, no, Dicky,” Marjorie said. “We’ll stay for a bit longer. Haven’t had a slice of your pie yet.”

“Then why can’t the kids play hockey?”

Jack heard the undertone of flint in Bitty’s voice, even if Marjorie didn’t.

“Well, it’s not safe, is it?” Marjorie said. “We don’t want anything to happen.”

“Anything like what?” Bitty pressed. “I know you’re not worried about him hitting his head in a friendly little game like this, not with him already playing tackle football.”

“Now Dicky, don’t be like that,” Marjorie said. “You’re making a scene.”

Jack looked around and realized it was true. More adults had filtered out to the driveway, including Suzanne and Coach. And there were Uncle Peter and Aunt Judy. Thunder rumbled in the distance, and Jack’s eyes caught a flash of lightning

“I’m not making a scene,” Bitty said. “I’m trying to play some hockey with my little cousins. With my professional hockey player boyfriend.”

“That’s what I mean,” Marjorie hissed. “There’s no need for that in front of the kids.”

“No need for what?”

“Telling them that he’s your … boyfriend,” Marjorie said. “We all saw what you did on TV.”

Jack stepped next to Bitty and took his hand.

“But he is my boyfriend,” Jack said, before Bitty could answer.

“Marjorie, that’s enough,” Suzanne said, coming up behind her. “You know family is always welcome here, but not if you’re disrespectful to Dicky or to his boyfriend, who is also our guest.”

“Marjorie,” Bitty said. “I’m really sorry.”

Marjorie’s shoulders seemed to relax at that.

“I’m really sorry that you can’t see how happy Jack and I are and be happy for it, and I’m sorry you won’t let Mason have some fun with us,” Bitty said. “I one hundred percent guarantee that playing a little ball hockey will not turn him gay, if that’s what you’re afraid of. But he’s going to grow up and be what he’s going to be, and I guess it would be a kindness to hope he’s straight, for his own sake, because I don’t know that he could trust you to be the kind of mama he needs if he’s not. Now I expect you’ll be wanting to be on your way, so I’ll go cut pie slices for Mason and Sarah to take with them. Unless you don’t mind them staying – Jack and I can run them home later.”

Marjory had actually taken a step back from Bitty during that speech.

“They’ll come home with me,” she said.

Bitty went in the house and came out with two slices of pie on paper plates.

“Remember, these are for the kids,” he said. “Bless your heart, you wouldn’t take sweets from your own babies, now would you?”

“I’ll eat my whole slice, Cousin Eric,” Sarah said.

“’Atta girl,” Bitty said. “What do you say the rest of us put this hockey stuff away before the rain?”

He was too late for that, as fat drops started falling before he finished the sentence. The kids scrambled to put the sports equipment back in the garage while the adults ran for the deck to get the food under cover.

The storm was short but intense. Jack would have liked to think it cleared the air, but as soon as the sun came out again, the heat turned the air steamy.

Most people took their leave not long after the storm, and Jack and Bitty did their part helping to clean up.

Once everything was stowed in the kitchen and shed, Suzanne turned Bitty.

“You boys have been nothing but helpful,” she said. “You want to take a break and take your daddy’s truck to go watch the fireworks?”

“Thanks, mama,” Bitty said. “That sounds great.”

[tuaparadis]

Day 26: Tattoos

The Umbrella Academy Inktober 2019

— Warnings: None

___

“Are your tattoos real?”

Klaus chuckled at that. Will always asked the most innocent of questions. He didn’t blame him; from what he knew, he was the youngest of the bunch. Nearly nineteen years old. It made him wonder why he chose to serve in a war at such a young age.

War. It was Klaus’s fifth month in Vietnam. Not that he was counting, he never really understood the concept of time, no, that was Five’s specialty.

“Yup.” He finally answered, picking up a stick from the ground to move the wood in the fire around.

Dave was next to him, so it was hard for him to focus on anyone else. They had started dating one or two months ago, of course, nobody knew about it. They couldn’t know. 

Klaus had a little bit of a hard time remembering everyone’s names in the campfire, but he tried his best. He knew Dave, obviously, William, Richy, Michael... James? Something that started with J, and one or two other people that weren’t there. He didn’t know the rest, but that didn’t stop him from being his talkative self.

“Must’ve hurt real bad.” Someone commented under their breath.

Klaus grinned, looking at him. Jack. That was the name. “Well no shit, all tattoos hurt.” He replied, earning a chuckle or two from the circle.

Jack rolled his eyes, smiling. “Well yeah, sure.” He had some tattoos of his own, from what Klaus had seen. “But aren’t the hands the most painful place to get a tattoo? Or somethin’?”

“Oh—Oh yeah. Got them done before I got arrested.” Klaus unconsciously admitted, then eyeing the circle. He didn’t mean to say it, especially ‘cause he didn’t want Dave to hear, but oh well.

“What for?”

___

Klaus sprinted out of the store, almost tripping on his feet, as the alarm almost burst his eardrums. He was out of breath, but he had no choice other than to run.

His feet ran faster than his heart, as he struggled to wear the newly ‘bought’ fur coat of his, laughing and galloping faster than the wind at the same time.

Ben was laughing a bit too, but Klaus could feel the lecture coming after he calmed down.

He ran and ran and ran until he hopped on a random bus, and ended up on the other side of town. He was safe for at least a couple of hours.

He walked into a tattoo shop close to the bus station, still trying to catch his breath.

“What are you doing, Klaus?” He heard Ben bicker from behind his shoulder. “You know if you return the coat right now, you might not have to face the music—”

“Hello yes, I’d like to get tattooed right now, if that’s possible.” Klaus shushed Ben by talking to the man on the counter. “You see I want a gem when there’s nothing else to look at from my prison cell.” 

“Gonna have to pay twice the price, bud,” the man replied. He had tattoos all over his body, face included. Had to be twice his age, maybe his 40s or so. Way taller than him, probably at Luther’s height.

Klaus smirked. “I know this place is shady, but no worries, I like to play dirty myself.” He licked his lips suggestively.

“You cannot be serious right now.” He heard Ben say as he groaned in disgust.

Klaus got his tattoos. But being the sneaky shit he was, he stormed out of the tattoo shop before he had to do anything.

He was arrested soon after, so he ended up having to pay one way or another.

___

“I always get into little mischiefs, I just couldn’t get out of this one. Karma’s a bitch.” Klaus replied, tossing the stick into the fire. “So yeah, they hurt pretty bad. It’s okay though, I signed up for them.”

“What about that one?” Richy pointed at the umbrella on his wrist. “D’ya sign up for that one too?”

Klaus tensed up, suddenly. He knew the question would come up at some point or another but he still wasn’t ready to answer it. Where would he start? How much could he reveal to them without sounding crazier than he already let out to be?

“Uhm—” He spoke up, getting more nervous each second passed. “I’d rather not… talk about it. If that’s okay. I mean—it just—”

Dave noticed Klaus starting to stumble on his own words. “Hey, you can stop.” He comforted him, as normally as he could without making the others raise eyebrows. 

Richy cleared his throat. “No yeah, man. Don’t worry about it.” He added. He probably felt guilty for pushing it too far, at least that’s what Klaus liked to think.

“No no, it’s just—” Klaus sighed, forcing a smile. “Just brings back not-so-fun memories. That’s all.”

No one spoke for a few seconds and it made Klaus want to screw a metal pipe in his brain. It reminded him of the times where he and his siblings weren’t allowed to speak unless spoken to. Or during meal times. Or when they were getting tattooed. He didn’t like the silence.

But he knew he had to be the one to break it.

Taking a deep breath, he opened his mouth to speak up. “See, well, you guys remember my siblings?” He saw a few heads nod, thank god. He didn’t want to go in detail about them again. “Yeah, the tattoo’s like a family thing. Our father made us get it as a way of—well, I dunno.” 

Nobody interrupted, so Klaus saw that as an invitation to continue. He didn’t know if that was a good or a bad thing. “So, all seven of us have it. Well, six. Long story.” He pursed his lips. “We were thirteen at the time.” 

“Jesus Christ,” Will whispered to himself. “I remember you telling us your dad was an asshole but…” He trailed off but quickly turned red seeing how everyone had their eyes on him now. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt.” 

“Nah, no worries. You’re right and you should say it, dimples.” Klaus came up with that nickname almost a week after he had met Will. The dimples on his cheeks made him look even more baby-like if that was possible.

“Man never managed to get that stick out of his ass with his little baby hands,” Klaus added, to which everybody laughed. Good. Reginald deserved to be ridiculed like that.

It was just Klaus and Dave now, shortly after the campfire. They had snuck out again ‘for a smoke’. A smokin’ good time maybe. But also a smoke. And some time alone too. 

Silence had filled the air. But it was a good kind of silence, not the one Klaus was scared of. Dave sitting against a tree, Klaus between his legs, both of them looking at the sky. Nothing was better than that.

“Why did only six of you have it?” 

Klaus sighed in discomfort at the question. He was never in the mood to talk about his siblings, not even with Dave. Unless it was the limited happy memories he had of them.

He replied anyway. “Because only six of us were considered important. Useful to our father.” Pausing for a moment, he brought his hands up to hold onto Dave’s arms that were wrapped around his shoulders. “Fucked up, I know.”

Dave held Klaus a little tighter. “Was Vanya the one without the tattoo?” Klaus felt Dave was hesitant about asking. Dave knew family issues made him feel weird, but it was good to talk about them once in a while. That’s what he told him, anyway.

“Yeah.”

There was silence again, the same one as the one in the campfire. Klaus wasn’t the one to speak up. “Y’know,” Dave untangled himself and held Klaus’s arm up—in an uncomfortable position— to look at his wrist better. He brushed his thumb against the tattoo gently. “I think it looks cool.”

Klaus chuckled, yanking his arm away. Dave knew the story behind it before the others. He hadn’t told him everything about the academy, he was probably never going to. He already knew way too much and it surprised him how he was still with him after all that.

“Thanks.”