#yeah it hasn't rained in at least a week I think??

[miasmaghoul]

May we get some Dew fluff or comfort, he may just want snuggles, maybe he had a nightmare and wants comfort? -🌱

A little softness for Mountain Monday, perhaps?

(Dew is still here, don't worry!)

Another night. Another city. Another unfamiliar ceiling.

Mountain stares at it without really seeing it, flexing sore fingers and shifting on too-starched sheets. Listening to the hum of the air conditioner and the dull, creaking drone of pipes. Swiss has been in the shower for ages now, always one to abuse the bottomless hot water that hotel stays provide.

The tour has been brutal so far - the festival circuit always is - and the exhaustion runs bone deep. There are only three shows left before they pack up for home, and Mountain would be lying if he said he wasn't looking forward to the break. Life on the road isn't bad by any means, but it does wear on a ghoul after a while.

He misses the things they all miss - his own bed, coffee that isn't from a gas station, the relative peace of the abbey. Misses the scent of the rose gardens and the feel of grass beneath his feet. Misses the comfort of his element the way the ghouls always do when they're stuck in glamour for weeks or months at a time. That's half the reason Swiss is busy boiling himself alive, trying to satisfy the fire inside him that demands the heat. Rain is probably doing something similar, submerged to his nose in a tepid bath until he's wrinkly as a prune.

Mountain wishes his element was so easy to access. He hasn't so much as seen a tree in three days.

A soft sound drags Mountain from his wandering thoughts. At first he thinks it's Swiss, thinks it's the movement of shampoo bottles. It takes a minute to identify the sound as the gentle rap knuckles on something solid, a light knock, and he blinks at the ceiling. It repeats after a moment and Mountain pushes himself up with a groan, his aching back protesting the movement as he pads to the door on sluggish feet.

He sees steam pouring out from under the bathroom door as he passes it, catches a whiff of herbal soap. He can hear Swiss singing under the sound of the spray as he crosses the room. It makes him smile.

Mountain yawns as he unlocks the door, scratching at his chest. He doesn't know what time it is, but they were late getting to the hotel and it's been hours since then. It's late, is the point, and there's no one he's expecting.

Least of all Dewdrop, baggy eyed and swaying in place in a shirt that's far too large for him and a pair of ancient flannel pants.

"Droplet?" Dew gives him a tired blink, hugging his own chest.

"Hey Mount," he murmurs, voice thick. Strained. "Did I wake you?"

"Hmm? No, no," Mountain assures him, taking in the deep creases lining Dew's face. His own brow furrows. "You okay, Dew?" The little ghoul sighs, rubbing at his eyes.

"Tired," he huffs, as though that much isn't painfully obvious. "Really fuckin' tired."

"Yeah, I can tell," Mountain chuckles, and Dew chuffs out his own laugh. He's not upset, then. Just wiped out. "Same here." He yawns again and Dew gives him a sympathetic hum.

"Think we all are." Dew mirrors his yawn, contagious as the things are. Then, "Can I come in?" Mountain blinks down at him. He sounds...shy.

"Sure, of course," he mutters, stepping inside and gesturing for Dew to follow. "Swiss is in the shower, I have plenty of room."

Dew groans low in his chest, shuffling inside and perching himself at the edge of the bed Mountain had been occupying. He sits like a gargoyle, knees pulled to his chest so he can tuck them under that ridiculously oversized shirt. Mountain is certain that if he pressed his nose to the fabric, it would smell like Aether.

"What's going on?" Mountain locks up again and strides back to the bed, plopping himself right next to the little ghoul. Watching him pick at a cuticle. He rests a hand on Dew's little foot, brushing over soft skin with a callused thumb. "I can tell something's on your mind."

"'s it that obvious?" Dew rests his chin on his knees and exhales through his nose. He gives Mountain a half shrug. "It's nothin' big."

"Something small is still something," he replies, moving that soothing hand to Dew's back instead. Rubbing slow circles into soft cotton. He's close enough that it's easy for Dew to lean into him, pressing his small frame to Mountain's side.

They sit in silence after that, the quiet only broken by Swiss's raspy voice and the soft splash of water. Dew's so warm against him, even in his glamour. It seeps into Mountain's bones, forcing relaxation into tense muscle. If he could, he'd purr with it.

At length, Dew speaks.

"Think I'm just...lonely, I guess." The tone makes it sound like he's not convinced. Like it's not quite the right word for how he's feeling. Mountain understands it - loneliness is a weird thing to feel when you're constantly surrounded. "I know it sounds stupid, but -"

"No it doesn't," Mountain tells him, voice low. He wraps an arm around Dew's shoulders, tucking the little ghoul's head under his chin. "I get it. How can I help?"

Dew answers by burying his face in Mountain's neck and wrapping those skinny arms around his chest. It's an awkward angle at best, but neither of them seems to care. The closeness is what matters.

"You wanna stay here tonight, fireball?"

Dew nods against his shoulder, nuzzling closer.

"'s that okay? I got roomed with Cir and you know how she is."

Mountain certainly does. Cirrus is a creature of habit on the road, refusing to share her bed or break her evening routine of peppermint tea and a strict 9pm bedtime. If Dew needs contact, he wouldn't get it from her. Not tonight.

"Course," Mountain buries his nose in Dew's hair, inhaling the scent of cheap shampoo and a hint of woodsmoke. "Whatever you need."

Dew sighs, his shoulders relax, and Mountain scoops him up like he weighs nothing. Carries him the few feet around the bed to settle the little ghoul against the pile of pillows at its head. Dew scooches under the covers without prompting, curling up on his side and shooting a questioning glance over his shoulder. Mountain answers it with a smile, crawling in after him and molding himself to Dew's back as he tugs the covers over the pair of them. Dew gives him a pleased hum, pawing at his arm until Mountain wraps it around his waist, pressing his palm to the center of the little ghoul's chest. Dew laces their fingers together, and Mountain can't help his fond smile.

"'m glad you're here," Dew mumbles, already sounding half asleep. He snuggles further under the covers, pressing his face deeper into his pillow. Mountain gives his a squeeze and drops a quick kiss into his hair.

"Me too, droplet."

Dew's snoring in no time, and Mountain knows he won't be far behind. That little body is so very warm against him, so familiar. He can feel the strain threaded through his body melting away with each passing moment.

Distantly, he's aware of a door opening. Of a change in lighting and a soft laugh. Of a large hand ruffling his hair.

"Mind if I join?"

Mountain hums, nods, and soon after the mattress dips. In the low light of the room he watches Swiss climb into the other side of the bed. Watches him settle between the sheets and pick up Dew's limp arm, tugging it over his own waist. Watches him press a soft kiss to the little ghoul's forehead with a gentle smile. He reaches over to stroke Mountain's cheek with his knuckles, and Mountain presses a kiss to his palm.

It's the last thing he does before sleep takes hold, and as it does, Mountain almost feels like he's home again.

For now, it's close enough.

[canirove]

In The Name of Love | Chapter 6

Author's note: Since next Monday is Christmas day, I will be posting the chapter that should be up that day on Wednesday, which means that next week you will have new chapters on Wednesday and Thursday 😊 Also sorry about this chapter being a bit meh and on the short side, but I think I am making up for it on the next one 😁 Also, to those of you who are just reading this and don't follow me, happy holidays and merry christmas to those of you who celebrate! 💜

Previous chapter | Next chapter

Masterlist

Good luck tonight! Hopefully it won't rain, because those clouds look so bad… (📸) Also look at the sea. Back home it doesn't get like this  (📸) The food here is just 🤤 (📸) You have fans who aren't teenagers 😱 (📸) I wonder if they'll think I'm one too (📸)

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

"And?"

"Nothing yet" I sigh. "This was a good idea, right?"

"It was" Emma says, giving my hand an encouraging squeeze. "Traveling to the other side of the country to watch him play is so romantic!"

"I don't care if it is romantic or not. I just want to explain everything to him and for things to go back to the way they were."

"Who would have thought you would end up missing a teenager's dick, uh?" she laughs.

"I should have brought Silvia with me" I reply, rolling my eyes.

"But sadly, she's too busy with Pau finally being back, so you'll have to deal with me" she smiles.

It's been a month since that stupid engagement party, since Pedri and I had that argument, since I last saw him in person. And I've felt like shit every single day.

I should have been honest with him. I should have opened myself to him, share all my fears. But I couldn't. I was too much of a coward, and because of it, I may have lost the person who managed to finally make me close a chapter of my life. The person that gave me what I needed to finally let go. 

But I'm ready now. I'm ready to tell him everything. And that's why Emma and I are here, though her first plan was a bit stalkery.

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"I just sent him a good luck message before the game and he has left me as read. Again" I sigh. 

"At least you know he hasn't blocked you."

"Yeah, I guess. But I can't keep living this, I have to do something."

"Why don't you just show up at his house and don't leave until he listens to you?"

"I can't do that, Emma. He'll end up calling the police."

"Then why don't you go watch him play at the Camp Nou? Maybe his friends can help you corner him somewhere so you can talk."

"That isn't such a bad idea, you know… Though they are going on international break after tonight's game." 

"Then let's go watch him play with Spain! You could even wear his shirt, I'm sure he would like that. You aren't allergic to that one, are you?"

"I'm not, no" I laugh. "But I don't know where they are playing and when. And there may not be tickets left."

"Then let's find out" she says, taking out her phone and starting to type.

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A couple of hours after that conversation, and mostly thanks to Ferran, we had it all ready. We would be spending the weekend in La Coruña, a city in the West of Spain where the national team is playing, and where, hopefully, I will find a way to convince Pedri to let me explain myself. 

"Is it him?" Emma asks when my phone buzzes.

"Oh my God" I gasp. "It's him, he has replied!" I say, my hand shaking.

"What does he say?"

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

Val, what is all that? 

Are those photos real?

Yep

Are you here? 

In La Coruña? 

And wearing my shirt? 😳

I am

Wait a second

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"Emma, he's facetiming me."

"Then pick up!"

"How do I look?"

"For the love of God, Valeria. Who cares? Pick up!"

"Ok" I say, taking a deep breath. "Hello" I smile.

"Show me around."

"What?"

"Show me around, Valeria."

"Don't need to be so rude, Pedro" I say, moving so he can see where I am. Emma and I had sat down on a bench not too far away from the stadium to kill time until we can go inside.

"You are here. You… Why?"

"Well, Emma and I had a free weekend and wanted to disconnect from the kids, we saw an ad about the game, we had never been to La Coruña, and we said, why not?" I shrug.

"Let's go disconnect from the kids by watching other kids play" Pedri chuckles.

"Asensio isn't a kid."

"Then why are you wearing my shirt?" he asks, arching an eyebrow.

"It was the only one left in the shop" I shrug again.

"Sure" he laughs.

"It was yours or Morata's, and you know how I feel about him."

"I do, yes" he laughs again. God, I had missed hearing him laugh. "Anyway, I gotta go, we are leaving the hotel now."

"Ok."

"Thank you for coming to the game."

"Of course" I smile. But he doesn't. He's gone serious again.

"Bye, Valeria."

"Bye" I say before he hangs up.

"That went well, didn't it?" Emma says.

"Did it?" I sigh.

"It did! You had a little moment there, so there still is hope."

"I guess, but he kept calling me Valeria and… Wait" I say when my phone buzzes again.

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Don't forget to send me your good luck text. 

It is the last thing I always read before warm up

I won't. I promise 😊

❤️

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

"See? There still is hope!" Emma says, grabbing my arm and squeezing it. She's actually hurting me, but I don't care.

Because there still is hope.

[xmorguekittyx]

Ever Unlocked

Part 5: Broken Mug

Part 4: A Uneventful Shift

pairing: Officer!Leon Kennedy x Coroner’s Assistant!Reader

warnings: Thoughts of sex, creepy actions such as sniffing underwear, violence, breaking and entering (let me know if i missed any!)

It was still fucking raining. Raccoon City was like Seattle. It rained more often than not near the end of the year, half the year they were dry, people taking walks through the beautiful plant nurseries. The wild life here was beautiful once you got out of the major city area. Then, the other half, you'd be lucky if you got any sunshine. Clouds and rain drowning out the sun and hustle and bustle. Leon preferred the sun, he loved the rain too, but feeling those rays of the big flaming ball of gas in the sky made him feel alive, it hit a reset button on his mentality. Without it, sometimes he felt a bit fuzzed. At least today, Leon was one of the officers that was sent home early. It was still so slow, Chief Irons didn't see any reason to have so many officers stay. It was dark out as the persistent droplets beat against his windshield, blurring his vision. They all mixed into a waterfall of obscurity.

He shouldn't be here. He knew that. The two-toned apartment building barely visible through the rain that pelted his Jeep. She had to stay back, since only her and Rebecca worked in the Coroner's Office. She was no doubt still slightly leaning over that desk, typing away with her foot tucked tightly under her. No doubt her eyes blinking back exhaustion as she stared at the bright screen and blinking text bar, as she has been when he finally pushed himself out of that ugly ass red chair. He'd gone back to the large area; he and his fellow officers used as a shared office space, opening up the McGrath file, before a hand broke his consciousness, Chief Irons informing him he was sending a few officers home for the night as it seemed it would be dead all night, but that if anything changed, he'd be the first to know.

A strike of lightening lit up Leon's face, causing him to cover his eyes. As his eyes opened back up slowly, he looked to his dash, 6:45pm. Had he really sat here 15 minutes? He took a deep breath, his nostrils flaring slightly. He rocked his jaw as he contemplated, he could just go up to her door and try the handle. Just to see if she truly did leave it unlocked every day. This girl had to be wanting this, who was she to tell a man, a stranger, something so sensitive? He couldn't wrap his head around the heedless decision. He wanted to just see if she was honest, surely, she was, he just needed a reason that seemed less creepy to him, a worried coworker, and a soon to be friend- then lover. He had to make sure his girl- his naive, stupid little bunny- was safe. He couldn't let any other wolves get to his pretty little bunny.

His thumb wrapped around the top of her doorknob, his other fingers under it as he stood in the 1st floor hallway. "Oh, hello.", he heard a fragile voice call out to him, a woman, clearly in her fifties to sixties stood across from him. "I don't think I've seen you around before.", she squinted up at Leon, the glasses on her nose very thick and even had the chains handing down and around her neck. He realized she was waiting on him to speak, his fingers leaving the cold knob, then disappearing into the hair at the nape of his neck, rubbing anxiously at the short blond locks. "I'm her boyfriend, she told me about her heater not kicking on. I came to take a look at it before she got here.", his anxiety causing a pink flush to cover his cheeks. "Oh, what a sweet thing to do! She hasn't mentioned you before. Did you two recently start dating?", her words were innocent and a bit shocked. Her little dachshund sitting at her feet. His mouth felt dry as he licked at his chapped lips, hand falling limp by his side. "Yeah, actually. Last week I asked her.", he knew his looks gave him an upper hand. "You seem like a very sweet boy. I'm glad she met someone as thoughtful as you. She's a sweet girl.", her lips curling back to smile, showing off crow's feet.

"Well, I'll get out of your hair. It was nice to meet you, Mr.?", she trailed off, looking up at the blonde man. "Leon, Leon Kenndy and likewise Mrs. Jones.", perfect. Show her you are familiar with those in her life, that way there's even less suspicion. Leon felt proud of how he handled that. He had created a good basis that if she saw him around again, he was just her neighbor's boyfriend. He smirked as he reached for the doorknob once more, his wrist turning as the latch retracted. Silly, silly, stupid bunny. His eyes squinted as he smiled, he was going to get a taste of her, an intimately close taste of her haven. He nearly shook from joy, pushing the door open as he stepped in, that smell. Oh, that sickly sweet smell that engulfed his senses as he looked over the dark apartment. It was just as he remembered it. So welcoming, despite his motives. His hands slowly pressed the door closed, making the latch silently and slowly slide back into place, he didn't want it to make a sound. He feared that a small noise would break this air he filled the apartment with.

His feet slowly crept further into the darkness that permeated the rooms. It was so... her. The kitchen was small, even smaller than he remembered. He felt his jacket snag on one of her island chairs. The chair squeaking against the floor. He lifted his pocket from the snagged piece of wood, pushing it back as he looked down at the island. She had a few bills, some with a "LATE" stamp across them. Did she not get paid well at RPD? He almost let himself forget his intrusion as he lifted one up. Checking over her name and address, yep, it was hers. He felt a pain in his chest, was she struggling? A soft breath left his lips as he places the envelope back down. He would do something about that soon. He lifted his phone from his jacket pocket, snapping a photo of the name of her bills, making sure he could read the name of the companies. He didn't like the idea of his bunny struggling to pay for anything. He made decent money, decent enough anyway. He'd call them Friday after he got off work. He placed his phone next to the bills; he'd grab it on his way out. He was too enamored by the feeling that being in her home was giving him.

Before he could think much more that memory of her purple bedspread came to the forefront of his mind. He wanted to see it again, see her room for himself. He turned down the black hallway, the soft rain and thunder serenading him and his eerie actions. The door was shut. It never stopped him before as he prepared himself to invade her privacy even more. Pushing the door with his left hand, breath hitching as the first thing he saw being her underwear on the floor next to a pair of sleep pants. He stared, mesmerized by the cloth as he bent down to pick it up. His fingers tightening around the lace. It felt so delicate in his hands, bringing them up to his nose. Sickly sweet, just like her.

He early dropped them as the lights from a car shone into the room, he quickly peeked from the window, seeing her 2002 Nissan Maxima pull up. "I told her to text me and I'd take her home again.", he growled as he slipped the panties into his pocket. He'd save them for later. He couldn't wait to see that black lace wrapped around his cock, pumping back and forth into them as he imagined her. Her back arched as he rocked his hips into her, breasts bouncing with every thrust. His cock wept at the mental image. He let out a harsh breath as he felt his cock twitch. The sound of steps jolting him from his daydreams as he turned his head to face the hallway. He looked back at the window, reaching into his pocket to grab his phone for a light before his breath hitched, his phone, he snarled. His fucking phone. He pushed into her kitchen as he heard the latch of the door click. He snatched his phone as he rushed to the sink, her refrigerator stuck out just far enough for him to remain hidden in the dark.

Her lips parted into a yawn, her hands stretching over her head. She was so tired, her eyes nearly closing. Exhaustion was clear on her barely lit face as she pulled out her phone. Leon prayed, silently, that she wasn't texting him. Her face, now more visible from the small light from the device's screen. She looked so beautiful. So peaceful. He wanted to share this moment with her, watching her arrive home and because he got off earlier, he'd have dinner ready for her. He would make them a plate while she changed, wait for her on the couch while he picked out a movie, or if she preferred to eat at the table, he'd gladly sit there and listen to her rant about how Rebecca prattled on all day. He'd listen to her talk about anything, including the bodies that came into her morgue. He just wanted her, he thought about her belly large with his child. He thought about how after a long day of work, he'd come home to see her, waddling to him with a baby on her hip. Leon always wanted a family, something he, himself, lacked after his parents' untimely demise.

He hadn't realized in his daydreaming state, he'd taken a step closer to her. His boot stepping onto her grey wooden floors, as his heel met the flooring, a soft squeak sounded out, breaking the near perfect silence. He watched her, his heart rapidly beating against his chest. Her irises moved, her head still as she looked from the corner of her eyes towards the sound, she was frozen, head still tilted towards her phone as she bent her wrist, moving the phone to light up some of her kitchen. She looked like a cartoon, her lips parting as her eyes grew in size. Her brows raising as she looked up at Leon. He could almost predict her next movement as his hand clasped over her lips, pulling her into his chest. "Shh...", he muffled her scream, the sound not nearly as shrill as it could've been. Her phone falling to the floor, lighting up down her hallway. Fingers digging into his arm as she tried to pry him off of her. "I- I'm not trying to hurt you-", he tried to coo her, brushing her hair back with his one hand, his chin near her temple. "It's okay. I was just-", he felt her foot come down on toes. He yelped, his hold on her loosening as her hands forcefully pushed against his ribs. "What-", she turned, swiping her phone from the floor as she ran down her hallway. Leon still could feel the wetness on the palm of his hand from her tears.

 

  He searched the small island, feeling around until he felt a coffee mug she must've left out, probably one from last night, the night they had spent together. She couldn't call 911, he'd lose his job. He would be ruined if they knew he had entered into her home uninvited. He lifted the mug by the handle, taking the lunges across her kitchen to slam the mug down on the back of her head. She let out a whimper of pain as the mug shattered against her skull. Her body dropping as he heard the thud of her body hit the wooden floor, her phone sliding away until it hit the white wall. He almost felt bad, he did, he did feel bad as he heard the soft groan from her lips. She made him do this, if she had just listened to him. He said he didn't want to hurt her and yet, she still tried to hurt him. He felt pained, she'd tried to hurt him.

  His eyes softened as he looked down at her crumpled form, her skirt rose slightly as her one knee was lifted. "I didn't want to hurt you, bunny.", he whispered, crouching down to he could lift her into his arms. Her blouse thin against his hand as his other arm wrapped around her bare thighs, carrying her bridal style into her bedroom. He laid her down, pulling the messy blanket and sheet over her. He brushed her hair back from her eyes, her eyelids flickering as she slept. He didn't mean to cause her any harm. He just- he understood his acts could've been taken a wrong way. She wanted this, though, right?

Leon swept up the broken mug, tossing it into her trash can, the cup of Honey Hollow coffee still sitting atop the rest of her garbage. He dumped the dust pan, closing the trash and placed the broom carefully back where he had found it. His breath heavy as he walked back to the hallway, picking up her phone and spinning the metallic and glass device in his hand, no cracks. Nothing for her to notice. He made the short pathway to her bedside table, plugging her phone in. He hoped she'd think it was a nightmare, that she passed out as soon as she got home and dreamed the entire thing.

  He sat on the edge of her bed once more, his hand finding hers as he rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand, the thin skin soft under his rough finger pad. "I'm sorry, bunny. You'll understand one day that this is all for you.", he whispered, leaning over her. His lips brushing past the hair on the crown of her head, pressing a lingering kiss into her hair. "My beautiful, naive little bunny. I'll always protect and watch you.", and with a final brush of his finger pad onto her hand. Leon made his way back to his 1997 Jeep. He could still feel the way her hair felt against his lips, his azure eyes going back to her bedroom window, he watched her curtain blow in the breeze, knowing she was unconscious behind it as his hands slid into his pocket. He toyed the lacy fabric between his fingers. "I'll see you tomorrow, bunny.", his words lost in that same breeze.

[givemea-dam-break]

hi my love, can you do anthony lockwood x reader

possibly with prompt 17 or 24 from the angst list?!? ive been craving some lockwood angst recently and i love your fics so who else could i ask to fulfill my needs

a/n: yes yes yes i have been dying for angst it’s my favourite thing to write. i'm so glad you like my fics! feeling honoured rn. this is shorter than some of my other fics, but i hope you like it!

warnings: angst, language prompts: "You're not my friend anymore, remember?" and "You left, you left, and now you have the gall to come back like nothing happened." gn reader

Your day couldn't have gone worse.

Originally, your plans for your first day off in weeks had been to spend your time in the library nearby, listening to the rain on the tall windows as you read in your favourite seat before stopping off to grab a takeaway on your way home.

Of course, things can never go to plan in a world haunted by ghosts.

To preface, the Visitors aren't the problem, not today at least.

You've reached a particularly good chapter of your book when things start to go wrong. You're completely content just reading away, sipping on some tea in your travel mug, when a shadow looms over the pages, making it hard to read.

Looking up, slightly irritated, you say, "Hey, do you mind moving, please?"

Then you see the face, and the irritation melts into something more: fury.

Anthony Lockwood stands before you, soaked with rain and dripping all over the floor. His hair, usually neatly brushed, looks like a wet rat, and his cheeks are flushed from the November chill. From the way he smiles, they remind you a little bit of apples. You like apples considerably more than you like him.

"What do you want?" you ask.

Lockwood points at the free chair next to you. "Can I sit?"

"Absolutely not."

"Right." He stuffs his hands into the pockets of his greatcoat. "Can we talk?"

"Also, no," you say, returning your attention to the book. "Goodbye."

A sigh. "(name), please, it's important."

"Important enough to bug me on my only day off? No, I don't think so."

You hope for a moment that he'll turn and walk away, but this is Anthony bloody Lockwood, and when does he ever listen to you? He moves, sinking into the seat beside you, and crossing his legs. You make a point of ignoring him, continuing to read the last paragraph you were on.

"We need your help."

No response. You keep on reading.

"(name), please. It's a big case, and we could really use your Talent."

Again, you ignore him, silently mouthing the words as you read them. Your focus on him strays, and for a minute it's as if he's no longer there, but the scent of bitter tea and citrusy shampoo lingers, taunting you.

Swiftly, you shut your book and stand, grabbing your bag. The action seems to shock Lockwood, and his daze gives you enough time to slip the book back into its slot on the shelves and storm out of the library.

Alas, Lockwood has long legs and catches up momentarily.

"I don't want to talk to you," you grumble, pulling your hood over your hair as you step out into the rain.

"I know, and that's my fault, but, please, listen this once. We -"

"Need my help. Yeah, I got that." Squeezing through a crowd of kids heading into the library, you continue, "But, thing is, I'm not an agent anymore. And, even if I was, you're not my friend anymore, remember? You gave up that right months ago. I wouldn't help you even if my life depended on it."

That stops him short. You keep on walking, arms crossed tightly over your chest.

"You're not an agent anymore?" he asks, catching up once more.

You scoff. "Haven't been since that last case we went on, and I don't plan on becoming one again."

Judging from his expression, he hasn't taken the news lightly. He almost looks betrayed, and that makes you want to strangle him. He's got no right.

"Why not?"

"Because," you say, stopping at the side of the pavement, out of the way of other people, "you left. You left me there, Lockwood. And now you have the gall to come back like nothing happened! You don't just do that."

His frowns. "I didn't leave you."

You want to scream at him, to pull your hair out. It feels like you're about to explode from the rage you're feeling.

"Yes, you left. I was left in that goddamn maze of a mansion by myself while you and George, what? Went to go have some celebratory doughnuts? Not all of the sources were secured, Lockwood. I almost died trying to get out of there."

"I didn't -" His face blanches, and he looks like he's going to be sick. "We thought we'd secured them all."

"Well, you didn't. Want to know why I didn't go back to Portland Row for a week before getting my stuff? I was in the hospital recovering from ghost touch. Took my a month to regain full use of my right arm, you know. I almost lost my arm, in fact. But you didn't ask, you just stood and watched as I packed my stuff."

That makes him angry. "What was I meant to do? There was no stopping you."

"I wanted you to try," you say, and your voice wavers. His expression softens. "If you'd tried, I might've stayed. I might've forgiven you. But you just watched. You never asked me where I was for that week. No, you were busy revelling in your success and hiring other agents."

"We needed another agent, anyways."

"You should've checked on the one you had!" Your breathing is heavy, and your head hurts from the myriad of emotions swirling around. "I'm not - I'm not doing this right now. Today was meant to be a good day. Goodbye, Lockwood. Don't come see me again."

You start to walk away, but his hand clasps around your wrist. Scowling, you tug it from his grip, looking at him incredulously.

"I'm sorry, (name)," he says. In his defence, he's being genuine, but that doesn't mean that you're having any of it. "I am. About all of it. Please, can we talk it out?"

Thank god for the rain, because it hides the tears in your eyes. "No. I - I'm going home, and you're going to leave me alone. I don't want to see you again."

Lockwood's jaw goes slack. "Please, I'm sorry. I can't lose you."

"The minute you left me alone on that case, you lost me," you say. "I don't care how sorry you are. It does nothing. It doesn't stop me from seeing the moment I almost died every night when I sleep. It doesn't change the fact that I don't trust you anymore."

"(name) -"

"I pray that your new agent, Lucy, 'the Superstar' - that's what you called her on live TV, right? - I pray she doesn't have the same fate. I hope things work out well for you, Lockwood, truly, but that doesn't mean we'll ever be friends again. Now, I'm going home."

"Please don't go." His voice is a little shaky. It's the most emotion you've seen from him other than that fake smile he gives to the press. "Please, I'll do better."

You shake your head. Then, wordlessly, you turn and make your silent, miserable trek home.

[silentwillowwhisperer]

*sparkle*

Hi, yep, I'm alive (maybe.)

Here we have cute flower shop Lance and Keith who is very bad at peopleing.

----------------------------------------

Keith slams the door of the nearest shop open and dashes inside. He bends over and grips his knees, panting. His drenched clothes are making a large puddle at his feet.

"Um... Can I help you?"

Keith looks up and surveys his surroundings. There are various plants of all shapes and sizes on every available surface, and brightly colored flowers pierce Keith's vision. His eyes trail all the way to the far end of the room until they meet iridescent blue.

"Are you ok? You look like you've been running from a herd of angry purple alien cats armed with guns."

Keith has to snort at that. It sounds like the plot of a cartoon made for 7-year-olds. (Which is exactly the sort of thing he likes to watch, but can we just let him pretend to be cool?)

The guy has golden brown skin and a splash of freckles across his cheeks. He has a couple inches on Keith and broad shoulders. The corner of his mouth is quirked up into a little smile, and oh my goodness, Keith really hopes that this guy is at least a little bit gay. (That would definitely make his day go from 'horrible freaking disaster' to 'wonderful freaking disaster.)

This is Shiro's fault. It's that dumb, skunk-haired jerk's fault that Keith is standing sopping wet and making eye contact with an unbelievably cute guy in the middle of a flower shop.

Keith had been sleeping peacefully when Shiro called him at 3am (you read that right, Shiro is a monster) to remind him to take medication. Keith could appreciate this gesture when it wasn't the witching hour, but it was and then Keith was awake, and yeah he hid take the medicine, and because insomnia exists, Keith gave up on sleep and decided to go for a very early run.

Keith can't be blamed for forgetting to check the weather forecast, it was early and he couldn't think about anything but coffee.

And that's why Keith decided to walk the 5 miles from his shack in the middle of nowhere to the nearest town to find a Starbucks.

And that's also why he had to run the last 3 miles because the sky opened up and god decided to have a good cry all over Keith and his favorite sweatshirt.

Yep, completely, 100% Shiro's fault.

Wait. Keith has been staring at the flower boy for too long hasn't he? He can tell from the furrow in his perfectly shaped eyebrows that Keith is not following social conduct right now.

"Right. Sorry. Raining. Water. It's wet." Keith is forcing out words and desperately hoping something he says actually makes sense.

The cute guy laughs. (hallelujah!) "Yes, I can see that. Would you like a towel?" All Keith can do is nod stupidly, terrified of saying something else and having Shimmery-Eye-Dude realize that Keith is about to pass out from social anxiety.

He walks up to the cash register to accept the towel being held out to him. As soon as he does, Dreamy Man smirks and leans up against the counter so that his wonderful face is only inches away from Keith's.

Is it safe to assume that Mr. Ocean Eyes is into guys?

Is this a thing that platonic male companions do when greeting each other??

Is Keith being initiated as a 'bro???'

Why is Keith allowed to leave home on his own???? He should never be allowed into a public area without someone to supervise him!

"I-I- um... h-hi?" Oh look, Keith's stutter is here to say hello.

Tall-Mocha-and-Handsome barks out a laugh. (Wow, Keith would really love a cup of coffee right now.) "Hi there. You come here often?"

Wait. Wait! Keith knows this! Shiro explained this to him last week! Flirting! Keith might have a chance after all!

"I- I've never been here inside of this place and if you mean have I been in front of your face before, no I don't think so because your eyes are kind of sparkling very loudly right now and I don't think I would have forgotten that even though I'm face bland and who are you because you might be flirting with me right now and I really hope so because your face is pretty and hi I'm Keith I'm gay."

Keith has to gasp in a breath of air after the word mush that just erupted from his traitorous face hole. Flirty-Person stares at his face in shock as he tries to process the words that have been shoved at him.

After what feels like an eternity, Please-Marry-Keith's mouth returns to its position in a crooked half-smile and his brow furrows slightly. Keith can't tell if this face means confused pity/teasing or endearment.

"O...k then. You're blunt, aren't you?"

Keith has used up his capacity for language-speaking, so all he can do is flush bright red and try to hide his face in the hood of his sweatshirt.

"Welp, I can work with that. Keith, is it? I'm glad you're not homophobic, you we're staring at me so long that I was worried that you were about to start spouting some nonsense about crimes to humanity. I'm Lance, and are you from outer space? Because your body is out of this world!"

Stop. No. There is no way that Lance (yay, finally, a name! Keith was about to start calling him Sokka.) is a dork. Because Keith's weak heart will actually die. Oop, too late, he's already dead. Deceased. He has officially kicked. the. bucket.

He can't help but dissolve in to giggles. He so caught of guard by the pick-up line that he has to brace himself against the counter to keep from collapsing onto the ground. He rests his forehead on the smooth marble surface and desperately tries to stop choking on his laughter.

"Awww, what? That was my best line!" Keith looks up at Lance's face to see him smiling fondly at him. At least he hopes that's what it is. It there still a chance that Lance is fake smiling to hide the fact that he's calling the police?

Keith finds himself smiling back.

(Two days later they have their first date at the park, Lance prepares a giant picnic and Keith has never been more excited.)

(Shiro never lets Keith hear the end of this.)

-------------------------------------------------------

I think that was an acceptable ending. Alright, now no one wake me up until I've had at least 10 hours of sleep or I might cry. (That means you @gavemebluethenpurplepinkskies, are you happy now?)

[effervescentdragon]

could you do some more arthur/oscar, please? perhaps a continuation of the bit you already posted for them, or something entirely different? maybe AU where arthur does act on the oscar thing in 2021... whatever you want! just know that you have made me low-key obsessed with them now 🙈😍

(huge brownie points if you can guess who this is btw!)

@singsweetmelodies is this you? or more accurately was this you this is at the bottom of my inbox and it got me inspired sooook if it isnt you, i love you anyways darling ❤️

"Spa is always fucked," is all Lando says on Wednesday. Oscar knows it's fucked, of course he knows, but he doesn't say anything. He just grunts and nods, and then they're filming another TikTok, both their smiles as bright as they are fake.

-

Oscar really just wants to sleep properly.

Mark frowns at him worriedly, and he never reminds Oscar of his dad more. "You can't take anything," he says apologetically. "It'll fuck with your training."

"I know. It's okay," he replies, even though it really isn't, and Mark pats him on the shoulder. It's enough to give him a boost of, if not really energy, than at least the will to push through another day of sim and obligations.

It's not a big deal, that's the thing. Sometimes he sleeps a lot, and sometimes he doesn't sleep at all, and it's been that way his whole life. He doesn't like ot but he has to live with it, which has been his philosophy ever since he was old enough to figure out what a life philosophy means. Oscar is used to it, and he's used to working around it so nobody notices. Mark has to know because he's his manager, and his trainers have to know because they're responsible for his fitness, and the bosses have to know because he is their investment, but as for the rest, nobody knows. He makes an image out of his sleepy, stoic countenance, and it's fast becoming a meme since his transfer to F1. The Prema video of him sleeping helped, especially with Robert playing it up, so it's okay. Nobody else needs to know.

Arthur takes one look at him in the paddock in Hungary and figures it out. He doesn't say anything, not with Fred and Ollie and Jack close, all chatting together, but his small frown is clue enough for Oscar.

The biggeat giveaway is the text message he gets not ten minutes after he says goodbye to the F2 guys.

room 516. i can sneak out after yr quali, maybe.

Oscar stares at the message for too long. Lando intercepts him on the way to the hospitality and he uses that as an excuse not to even open Arthur's message.

He qualifies fourth. He finishes the race fifth. The celebrations in the McLaren garage are so wonderful, he thinks he will be able to sleep.

He doesn't sleep. He doesn't open the message either.

Arthur doesn't text again.

-

"Do you think it will rain?" he asks nobody in particular on Thursday. He doesn't even know why he does it; it's stuoid of him. He doesn't remember what he was thinking about, waiting for his group to get to the press, and he hopes nobody heard him.

"Probably. But you'll be fine, Oscar."

He turns his head to the left and it's Charles. Of course it's Charles, with his tiny smile that is painfully familiar, and his cheekbones that look like Oscar almost remembers underneath his fingers, and the voice that sounds out his name in a way that makes Oscar feel three times more tired than he already is.

He hasn't slept properly since Austria. He doesn't think he'll sleep this week, either.

"I... yeah," is all he says. "Thanks."

Charles tilts his head and it's clear to Oscar that he knows - something. It makes Oscar want to throw up, because nobody can know. Nobody needs to know, and if Arthur told...

Charles' smile softens and he heasitates only briefly before he says "You should come visit us in Monaco again. Arthur would like that," and before Oscar can figure out if he's more relieved or mortified by the implications, Lewis joins them, distracting Charles quite thoroughly.

Oscar tries to listen, but his head is too full and he is too tired and he needs to be aware for the interview, so when Max offers him the Red Bull as a joke, he drinks as much of it as he can stomach.

He isn't going to sleep anyway.

-

He's laying in his bed and it's almost Friday and he has to drive tomorrow and there's a knock on his door.

It's a perfunctionary one because his door opens in the next moment, and he knows those shoulders and that hair and that sillouethe. He knows how it is to be pressed into the bed by that body, and that's exactly what happens not a minute later.

Oscar is tired and there is no light in the room and his eyes are too heavy and Arthur still smells the same and Oscar would know the feel of him anywhere.

"I don't -"

"Shut up," Arthur says, and Oscar is glad he can't see his face in the dark because he sounds angry and wrecked, "shut up, Oscar." Oscar feels him swallow. "It's Spa. I'm not letting you - not in Spa."

Oscar is so tired, tired of not sleeping and tired of resisting and just tired. He drags his palm over Arthur's back slowly until his fingers tangle in Arthur's hair. It feels different when he washes out the gel. Oscar's heartbeat is too slow. Arthur's is too fast.

He falls asleep before he can finish saying "I'm sorry" properly.

[chuthulhu-reads]

[ID: Three panels from Trigun Maximum. The first shows rolling hills dotted with bushes and thin conifers, the clouds in the sky not obscuring the bright light of the sun and a gradient in the sky suggestive of brilliant colours. From off-panel, Rem says, "When I get out of this heavy rain... I think I'll go see the sunrise on the ocean." In the second panel, Rem is wearing a turtleneck and a bucket hat, all colours pale as if she's lit up, and she's smiling softly as she says, "And then, I can decide what to do from there." The third panel is a wide, silent image of Rem waking up in the middle of a messy flat. Her hair is erratic, there's dirty clothes strewn on the bed, junk all over the floor, and at least two alcohol bottles visible next to knocked-over glasses. Her blinds are drawn, but there's light along the seams, suggesting that the sun is up outside. End ID.]

Hands up who else has been so depressed that they can smell that third panel? Guarantee there's sticky puddles around both of those fallen glasses where they've spilled and she's simply not had the spoons to pick them up. She hasn't showered in over a week at least and has been in that tank top the whole time. And yet, her subconscious has come together enough to tell her: there is a next. There is an after--not an afterlife, an after within her life, and it can be whatever she wants. She can drop anything and everything and start new. Now, most of us reaching that revelation start with something like a haircut or quitting a shitty job, not leaving behind literally your entire world to join a space wagon train, but hell yeah, girl! Get out of that heavy rain. There is a next. Your ticket to the future is always blank <3

[toxiclxki]

Build-a-Bucky Bingo Masterpost

This is my masterpost for @buckybarnesevents' Build-a-Bucky bingo, and it'll be updated continuously.

~

November prompt: Incapable of love

in the end, it survives us all

Summary: A throwaway joke, that's all it was. Still, it doesn't take more than that to start Bucky wondering, worrying.

December prompt: Flashbacks

the longest night

Summary: Steve Rogers is an old man, living comfortably thanks to his art, but he's lonely, missing the biggest piece of his heart after losing Bucky during World War II. All he has are letters sent long ago, drawings made even earlier than that, and his memories.

January prompt: I would die/kill for you

A Year of Happiness

Summary: Joy knew she was taking a huge risk, letting a stranger into her car in the middle of a rain storm. She did, though, and it turned out to be the best decision she'd made in years. (This is a paraquel to Bucky Barnes' Year of Peace)

February prompt: Frozen/Cryo

Frostbites

Summary: When Sam doesn't hear from Bucky for a few weeks, he isn't at all worried. At least not until he shows up at a briefing and doesn't find his partner there.

Bucky, meanwhile, is not having a great morning.

March prompt: Bad coping mechanisms

Someplace through the dark

Summary:

Steve hadn’t needed to ask to know that dying would be classed as ‘something stupid’, no more than he’d needed to ask if allowing a random man claiming to be a doctor to experiment on him would be ‘something stupid’. He hadn’t done it on purpose though. Died, that is.

Or: Steve died, yet he's still here, lingering. He's waiting for someone, and he'll wait for as long as he has to.

April prompt: Domestic

Bottomless Sky Chapter 1: June

Summary:

They hadn’t run away, not really. Sure, they had slipped away in the middle of the night, and sure, they hadn’t told a soul where they were going, even though Steve had known they should have told someone. They had left notes though, for whoever might be the first person to visit either of their apartments, probably Sam; notes explaining that they’d be gone for the better part of three months, that they were fine and just needed some time away.

Okay, maybe they had run away.

May prompt: Space

Bottomless Sky Chapter 2: July

Summary:

“Do you know what this reminds me of?” Bucky’s voice is low, almost a whisper, and he doesn’t take his eyes from the sky as he speaks. The question takes Steve aback for a moment, but then he smiles because he thinks he does know.

“Summer of ’37?”

“Yeah.” There’s a small smile on Bucky’s face when he answers, and it’s an easier smile than any Steve has seen so far.

June prompt: Touch-Starved

Bottomless Sky Chapter 3: August

Summary:

Bucky doesn’t care either. How could he, when Steve’s sitting there, solid and real and pressed against him? How could he, when warmth is spreading from the places where they’re touching, even though Steve’s skin is cold to the touch? How can he, when Steve’s touch seems to be the only thing that makes him sure he’s real, that he’s truly here?

July prompt: Hostage

Bucky Barnes Season of Whump chapter 6: vet visit

Summary:

A veterinarian in a small French town receives a visit he would have preferred not to

August prompt: Bathtub

Bucky Barnes Season of Whump chapter 7: lost and found and lost

Summary:

Ever since he got out of the hospital, Steve has been looking for Bucky. He hasn't had any luck, only ever coming across old Hydra safehouses after the public has made it there.

Now though, something tells him that's about to change.

~~~

[fluffy-ami]

Profile Tag Game🌱

Hello - “Ah, hi there! You can call me Ami, but I actually use a lot of different names when talking to people on the internet. Thanks to @lovelynim for tagging me, this tag game is actually really fun~✨”

Chat: Tickling - “Um, uh... Well, it's a very... strange interest of mine? It has been with me since I was a little kid, and I still have no idea how exactly all of this had started. This little thing is really fun and cute, but the fact that I like it so much is embarrassing as hell for me”.

When It Rains - “I like staying at home when it rains, makes me want to get all cozy in my bed and just do nothing. I also usually get very sleepy, and it may prevent me from studying properly”.

When the Sun Is Out - “Huh. A rare sight at this time of year. I missed it”.

When It Snows - “Snow? I mean, it's cool, yeah. For the first few weeks, at least. After a while your eyes will probably start hurting a little though, because, well, too much white everywhere”.

Good Morning - “Five more minutes...”

Good Night - “Oh hell nah, I'm not going to bed. What do you mean it's 3am? I don't care, I'm still not done with my silly doodles, now go back to sleep, buddy”.

Chat: Sensitivity - “Hm? Am I ti-? Ahem. Well, not really. In reality, I'm not sure. But what I do know for sure is that I'm not that sensitive in some of those 'most popular' spots, perhaps certain techniques are required to get me to crack. No-one had ever gotten to try though, my irl buddies value their lives over trying to get a reaction out of me~”

My Hobbies - “Writing, reading, crocheting and sewing toys, cross stitching, making pins and silly jewelry, gaming, journaling, making ocs and, most importantly, drawing - these are the things I enjoy doing in my free time (when I'm not procrastinating, of course)”.

About Me: Cooking - “Heh, no. Just... no.”

My Troubles - “Ehhh... Touch starvation? Or just overall loneliness? Maybe I should call it that. I feel constantly burnt out from talking to people, but at the same time I want to connect, and don't know how to do it. And sometimes it feels like people remember about my existence only when they need something from me. It's complicated, really. I feel emotionally isolated, but I also know that it's basically my fault, so I just kinda got used to this feeling. I'm sure I can do better though”.

Favourite Food - “Hmm, let me think... I like seafood. And salty things. Not too salty, though”.

Least Favourite Food - “I'm not a picky eater. Me liking or not really liking food depends on me liking or not liking its texture mostly. But I think I don't like things that are overly sweet”.

About @anzynai - “Ahhh, thinking about her brings me back. Jai was the person who gave me motivation (and courage) to post my very first drabble, and to just start writing in general ever since. And I'm still very grateful for that ★”

About @nataliewritez - “My little sis! I adore her writing and her art. She's a very friendly and funny person, also really pretty! Even annoying her can be kind of fun <3. Nat is just nice to be around, you know?”

About @stopiteatpopcorn - “Rando? He's a good kid! He's very adorable and energetic, it's a big part of his charm. And I'm proud to have such a talented lil' bro like him (he's also very easy to tease, you should try it sometime)”.

Tagging: Anyone who hasn't been tagged and wants to join in!~🌱✨

[sodascribbles]

WANING MOON – 1. STREET RAT

So, that stray dog that's been terrorizing dumpsters across the neighborhood? Yeah, it's not a dog.

content: young (teenageish) whumpee. abandoned pet whumpee. reluctant caretaker. past starvation. no beta we die like salem's sanity. swearing.

notes: FINALLY STARTING ON THIS BINGO CARD LOL. i mean actually i have several drafts. but actually POSTING something !! also gestures wildly to Moony!! yayy whump series time!!

"Of course," Salem grumbles, her umbrella springing to life above her. Thunder rumbles off in the distance, lightning skittering across the streets. "Of fucking course."

On the one day Asher couldn't give her a ride, she has to walk in the rain. Story of her life.

She spends most of the walk grumbling to herself, stomping through puddles. The chill in the air seeps straight into her bones, even though her hoodie; she scowls, jaw tight to keep her teeth from chattering.

A block from her apartment, she passes by the infamous Creepy Guy Alley— at least, infamous to her and her friends. Salem herself had nearly gotten stabbed here. When a dumpster topples over as she passes, she assumes it's just another titular Creepy Guy, and lays a hand on the pepper spray in her pocket.

There's no creepy guy. Just frantic scuffling. Maybe that dumb stray dog that Asher had been complaining about.

Salem stands there for a few seconds longer than she should, letting the cold sink into her bones. A stray out here in the rain... poor thing was probably starving...

She sighs through her nose and ruffles through her bag. "Hey, little guy," she coos, fishing out her half-finished lunch. The sounds stop short. "Hungry, little buddy?"

Salem scoots forward, carefully waving the sandwich. "Please don't be a raccoon," she says, in that same bright puppy-dog tone.

She reaches the edge of the dumpster, and holds the sandwich out a little further. She clicks her tongue a few times, shuffling forward just a little further—

Oh.

Oh fuck.

A pair of mismatched eyes stare up at her from a dirty, shivering lump of torn fabric. That's a person. He looks younger than her. Oh fuck, she echoes internally.

"You're not a dog," she whispers. Her arm is still outstretched, steadily soaking. "Oh, God." The 'stray dog' has been terrorizing their trash for weeks. This kid's been out here for weeks? She stammers for a few dumb moments, but eventually manages; "Where the hell are your parents?"

The kid blinks at her, wide-eyed, terrified. He's shivering head to toe. Slowly, his eyes unfocusing as he thinks, he shakes his head. Salem's brows furrow.

"O-kay," she mumbles, finally lowering her arm. "No shit. You've been out here for ages." She chews on her bottom lip. "Let's get you out of the trash. Come here, buddy, let's—"

Salem hardly sees him move, but suddenly he's standing in front of her. He's five foot even, maybe, hunched over like some kind of animal. He kinda smells like an animal. Everybody thought he was an animal.

Oh God, the animal in their trash was actually a kid. Fuck.

She shifts the umbrella to cover them both. "Here," she says, handing him the sandwich. "Let's, uh, let's start with that."

He stares at her expectantly. There are bags under his mismatched eyes so dark they look like bruises. His cheeks are sunken. He looks like somebody hollowed him out and filled the empty space with nothing but terror. His teeth are chattering so hard she's certain Asher can hear it from here.

He doesn't eat.

Stammering uselessly for a few moments, Salem nudges his hand again. "That's— that's food, buddy. I'm sorry I tried to give it to you like a dog, but— it's, uh, fair game." He scarves it down like he hasn't eaten in weeks. She tries not to be too freaked out. "Okay," she whispers again.

"My— my apartment is, like, a block that way," she explains, shrugging her jacket from her shoulders. When she reaches to wrap it around him, he flinches so hard he nearly topples over. "Shit— fuck. Sorry. You're shaking like a leaf. This is— well, okay, it's kinda damp. But it'll probably be warmer than—" she gestures to his scrappy sweater, hanging off of him— "that."

He carefully pulls it on. She takes his hand— carefully, trying not to startle him again— and the two of them start off.

. . .

She half-carries him up the stairs, both of them dripping wet. He shakes against her; she rattles from the force of it.

"Stay here for a second," Salem mumbles, sliding her shoes off at the door. "I'm gonna get you something nice and warm to change into. You got a color preference?"

He stares at her like she's grown an extra head.

"I'll take that as a no."

She gets halfway down the hall and stops, turning right back around. The poor kid looks at her like a deer in headlights. He hadn't moved a muscle.

"You..." Salem pauses. He smells like a wet garbage rat, because that's effectively what he was. "You should probably take a shower."

He inches forward. There's something wrong about the way he moves, but Salem can't figure out what exactly it is. She holds out her hand, and he shakily takes it. (It's like holding an ice cube.)

"I'll get the water started and then pop out to get you some clothes. Okay?"

He nods slowly, spacily. "Yes ma'am," he whispers. So he could talk. That would make things easier.

She doesn't make the shower as hot as she normally would. Salem's no medical expert, but she's pretty sure she's read somewhere that putting a cold person into hot water did more harm than good— why was eluding her, but...

"My name is Salem," she says, waiting for the water to warm. "You got a name, kid?"

His arms waver awkwardly and finally settle wrapped around himself. For a long moment, he doesn't respond.

"Moony, ma'am," he manages, finally. Salem decides not to judge.

"Okay, Moony." She very firmly decides not to judge, even though it sounds like something a ten year old would name a dog. Living on the streets had made him physically animalistic, sure, but the name?

She keeps her face carefully neutral. "That warm enough, bud?"

Moony sticks his arm out and tests the water, nodding slowly. "Yes'm."

Salem stands, sighing through her nose. "Alright. I'm gonna go get you some clothes. You can use whatever you want in there, towels are—" She opens a cupboard, only to find it empty. "I'll bring you a towel."

She leaves him to it, clicking the door shut behind her, and sighs. "Fuck," she whispers.

The front door unlocks and swings open. Asher drops his backpack off without even glancing up.

Salem groans. "Double fuck."

[hypnotisedfireflies]

So if Joel doesn't find out that Ellie's gay until she's like 18 years old, I assume that means he wouldn't find out until she starts dating Cat or Dina…and that got me thinking.

We know Joel is a certified girldad and he would absolutely make himself president of the Jackson chapter of PFLAG within a week of finding out Ellie was a lesbian. But for all his dad energy, Joel doesn't actually have any experience parenting an older teen/young adult. Not only that, but it probably hasn't occurred to Joel yet just how different dealing with 17 and 18-year-olds are compared to 13 and 14-year-olds. We already saw that in Shots Fired when he thought a 17-year-old Ellie would react to drinking alcohol (and the rules he gave her about it) the same way a 14-year-old Ellie would. So how do you think Joel would handle the other challenges of parenting an older teen like Ellie dating, getting her tattoo, etc.?

Tess Miller has entered the chat.

“If you force rules down her throat she’s just going to break them.”

Joel pointed the hammer at Tess.  “You’re actually not qualified.”

He started climbing the ladder.  Tess held it steady, one foot on the lowest rung.  The board right up the top right side of Ellie’s studio had rotted and needed replacing:  water was getting in with every rain.  At least he thought that was where the water was getting through.  It would be a process of elimination but these seemed a sensible place to start.

“What, because I don’t have kids?”

“No, because you grew up without any damn rules, so you don’t know why they’re important.”

Tess straight up laughed at him.  “I had rules!  I just flouted them.”

“And there were zero consequences for that.”

“I turned out okay.”

“You were lucky.”  Joel started pulling out the old nails with the hammer claw. “Some of the shit you’ve told me, Tess.  That you got away with half of that or even fucking survived…”

“Okay,” she conceded, “I was reckless but I was smart, and so’s Ellie.  She’s not stupid, Joel.  She’s not gonna do stupid things.”

“Nothing seems stupid when you’re that age.  It’s only when you get older you realise how stupid it all is.”

“Okay, so let her do the stupid things!”

“Let her do stupid things?”

“Yes!”

“Just stand by and let her fuck shit up?”

“Yes!”  Tess laughed again. 

She thought she was so damn clever.  Joel coaxed out a stubborn nail and started on the next, wiggling the claw back and forth.

“Joel, she lives in a gated community in the middle of fucking Wyoming at the end of the world.  How much trouble do you think she can really get herself in?”

“Don’t know.  Don’t want to find out.”

“Well, it’s not much,” Tess said, flexing her fingers on the ladder. “I suppose you can’t help yourself.”

“Hey, be nice.”

“You were just born in dad mode.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?  Hey, take these.”  Joel bent down and passed her two rusted, bent nails.  “Careful.”

“Six years on Tommy, right?  It’s six?”

“Yeah.  You got them?”

“Yes, got them.  You basically raised Tommy.  Then you had all that shit with Emma.  Had Sarah so young.  Raised Sarah.  Outbreak happens.  You look after Tommy, you look after me, you look after Ellie.  Your whole life has been looking after someone else.  I can’t blame you for not…”

“Not what?”  Joel looked down.

“Knowing when to stop.”  Tess squinted up at him, moving one hand to shade her eyes.  “… but we love you for it?”

Joel scoffed and gave up trying to work out the last two nails, which were deeply embedded in the soft wood.  He started breaking it up with the hammer instead. 

“Watch your head.”

“I’m not saying no rules,” Tess continued.  “I’m saying be smart about it.  You make the rules in a framework that seems fair to her but at the end of the day, operates the way you want.  She’s a teenage girl, Joel.  Throw everything you think you know out the window.”

[austinsgirl]

Rather Die | Chapter 11

rating: pg-13, talks of pregnancy, language

word count: 1986

cross posted on wattpad

master list

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“And cut! That's a wrap! Thank you everyone!" Anna calls out as the movie just shot their last scene. A very wet, steamy, rain kiss.

Austin high fives Vic, playing it cool. Although, he'd love to hug her instead, or do more. He hasn't been able to get her out of his mind the past couple weeks since their hook up.

Regret has been killing him. He hates what he did to her, falling for Eliana's alluring ways. He wishes he hadn't fucked up. Victoria would be his if he didn't.

He can't help but to bask her sexual beauty at the moment. Her wet tee, clinging in all the right places.

Austin starts to head to his trailer to get those thoughts out of his head.

"Hey, Butler!" Vic calls out to him. "See you at you at the wrap party?"

He's surprised she'd ask him such a thing, as he knows she's been dying to get filming over with so they'd never have to see each other again. Well, at least for a while until promos start.

"Uh, yeah! I'll be there."

"Cool. See you then!"

"Why'd you ask if he was going?" Mila questions Victoria.

"I wanted to know if my night would be more entertaining. If he's there, I get to watch him suffer in jealousy one last time because he'll see me & Ashton together."

"You're crazy, Vic."

"I know. But he's made my life a living hell, so."

Little does she know, Austin's been keeping up on the asshole act to hide his true feelings towards her, and he now finds it as a turn on to see her get all worked up & frustrated. So, lately, making her life a living hell has really been a benefit for him.

At the wrap party, drinks are being had, music is blaring through the speakers. It's almost as if it was the cast party all over again, but this time it was a different club.

Austin sits in the corner, sipping on an old fashioned as he watches Victoria & Ashton dance the same way he & Victoria danced the night things fell apart.

"Hey handsome." Eliana comes up & sits next to him.

"What are you doing here, Eli?" he asks, annoyed.

"You know I'd never miss a good party. And I knew you'd be here."

"Yep. I'm here. Probably going to leave soon though."

"Awe why? The party just started."

"Yeah, well, I don't really enjoy watching the girl I like dance with her boyfriend, so."

"Victoria?"

"Yeah."

"You like her again? You're over me?"

"Honestly...I don't think I ever stopped liking her deep down. I really regret kissing you that night, you know."

"How could you regret kissing me? I'm the best you've ever had, Austin."

"Don't be so sure of yourself, Eliana."

"So, Im not the best you've ever had?"

"Bingo. Sorry."

"Let me prove it to you. I still want you, Austin."

"No thanks, I'm good."

Eliana leans in closer to him, staring to nibble on his ear how he likes. "Cmon, Aus. I know you want-

"No, Eliana. Stop." he cuts her off. "I told you we were over, like a million times. It's not happening. You showed me your true colors that day I saw you making out with that rando. Vic was right about you & I really wish I would have listened to her." Austin gets up & starts heading out.

"Wait! Austin! Please! One more chance!" Eliana calls out.

Austin just ignores her & continues on.

Victoria notices that he's leaving. She starts to feel accomplished, thinking she was making him jealous enough to leave, but then she spots Eliana. She knew instantly she was the reason why Austin left.

"Thanks for making Austin leave! I was trying to win him back!" Eliana yells at Vic over the loud music.

"Yeah, okay. I'm sure he left because of you, because he was tired of listening to your bullshit. He told you plenty of times you guys were done for." Victoria says.

"No, he didn't, but okay."

"He did, I was there, everytime you came to set begging him to take you back."

"You're so annoying." Eliana says, storming off.

"Guess you haven't met yourself then!" Vic shouts to her.

Ashton whispers into her ear, "Wanna get out of here?"

"I thought you'd never ask."

A few weeks have passed & Victoria feels like a huge weight has been lifted off her shoulders not having to deal with Austin or Eliana. She hasn't seen or spoken to them since the wrap party.

Victoria's been happy to put the past behind her & get a new start. She's been looking for more opportunities now that she's been done with filming, and has had some time off to herself & to enjoy her new official boyfriend.

Ashton took her on a date to Dave & Busters, a place where a part of their first date took place. While Victoria was in the bathroom, Ashton had one a little teddy bear holding a heart out of a crane machine. When she came back, he asked her to be his. It was a cheesy moment, but Vic absolutely loved it.

"Hey, are you gonna ever stop looking for jobs today?" Mila asks Victoria, as she's been sitting at the counter literally all day on her laptop.

"Um, yeah. I'm about to right now actually. I'm starting to feel nauseous from looking at the screen too much." Vic responds.

"Oof, yeah. You're looking kind of green. Let me know if you need anything."

"I will."

Before she knew it, Vic was running to the bathroom to throw up.

"Do you feel better now?" Mila asks as Vic comes out of the bathroom.

"Yeah, a little bit. I think I'll be fine."

A couple days later

"Fuck." Vic mutters to herself as she sits on the floor in front of the toilet.

She gets herself up from the floor and finds Mila in the kitchen making herself a bagel.

"Mila?.."

"Hey, what's up?"

"I, um...fuck." Vic starts to form tears in her eyes. "I think I might be pregnant."

"You what?" Mila responds with a full bite of her bagel in her mouth.

"I think I might be pregnant, which would be insane because I've always been told at my gyno check ups that I may not be able to conceive because of how fucked up my cycles are & practically being infertile." she rambles, being nervous.

"Okay, slow down. Why do you think you are?"

"I just threw up again, and it like came out of nowhere. I don't know what else it could be. I've been feeling fine, it's not a constant thing like if I had food poisoning."

"I have a couple tests in the bathroom if you want to use them. I had a pregnancy scare a few months ago and impulsively bought like three boxes."

"Okay, yeah, I'll do that. But if I am...I don't know who the father is. Like it could be Austin from our one time or Ashton's."

"Have you told Ashton about that time with Austin like I've been saying you should?"

"No, I havent. I just haven't been able to find the right way to tell him."

"Well, you need to. Especially if you're pregnant & he could possibly be the father, or if you're pregnant with another man's baby."

"I know, I know. And if I am...I think I want to keep it. Like it would be a miracle if I am with the amount of times I've been told it would be hard for me to get pregnant."

"I get that. And no matter what, I'm here for you every step of the way."

"Thanks, Mila. I appreciate it. I'm gonna go take those tests since I have to pee anyways."

"Okay. Do you want to look at them together?"

"Yeah. I cant do this alone."

"Okay. Go pee, and I'll be right there."

Victoria does her business & takes the tests.

"This is the longest three minutes of my life." Vic complains.

"Thirty more seconds." Mila says looking at her timer.

When the seconds were up, Victoria took a deep breath & closed her eyes before looking at the tests.

Both tests read positive.

"Shit." Vic says to herself.

Mila reads the tests herself, "Oh my god."

"Now I really have to tell Ashton, huh?"

"Mhm. You need to tell Austin too."

"Fuck. I do, because I'm gonna have to get a paternity test."

"Are you for sure it could be Austin's?"

"Well, when I looked up how long it takes for early symptoms to start, it lines up with that time. I have this gut feeling too that it's his."

"Why?"

"Because in the heat of the moment, and not being prepared, Austin & I didn't use protection, but me and Ashton have been. Just incase, even though it would be unlikely I could get pregnant. But here we are."

"Oh damn. Who are you telling first?"

"I don't know. Austin I guess. He'd be easier to tell. I don't know."

Suddenly, there's a knock on the door.

"I'll go see who it is." Mila says.

She goes out into the main part of the apartment and answers the door.

"Oh, hi Ash! I didn't know you were coming over."

"Hey, Mila. Yeah, I wanted to surprise Vic with some Starbucks. I got you one too. Where is she?" Ashton asks.

"Aw, that's so sweet! Thanks! She's in the bathroom. I'll let her know you're here."

Mila let's Ashton in and goes back to the bathroom.

"Hey, Ashton's here. I think that's who you're telling first."

"Oh god. No time to prepare, but okay."

"I'm here if you need me. You know that."

"I know."

They both walk out into the kitchen.

"Hey! There's my girl! How are you?" Ashton asks.

Tears start streaming down Victoria's face. "Um, can we talk?"

"Yeah, of course. What's wrong?"

They go into the living area & have a seat on the couch.

"I've been meaning to tell you this for awhile now, because you deserve to know, but I haven't been able to bring myself to tell you, but I really need to tell you now."

"What is it, Vic?"

"A few weeks ago, before we made it official, and while I was still filming....Austin & I, we....we hooked up. It was a total mistake, and it shouldn't have happened, but it did, and I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry it happened & I'm so sorry I didn't tell you sooner." Vic just sobs as she gets her words out.

"Hey, hey. It's okay. I'm glad you told me sooner than later. Things happen, and we weren't together yet. It's okay, really."

"But it's not..." she cries more, struggling to get the rest out. "I'm pregnant. And it could be his, or it could be yours."

Ashton covers his mouth in shock.

"I'm so sorry." Victoria says. "If you don't want anything to do with me, or the baby, I get it."

"Does Austin know?" he asks.

"No. I just found out right before you came."

"And you want to keep the baby? I mean, I'm sure you do, right? With your issues, I'm sure you're surprised this even happened."

"Yeah, I do. Whethers it's yours, or his. I just don't want this to change anything between us. I do really like you, Ash. Shit, I love you & I don't want to lose you over this."

"You're not going to lose me, Vic. I love you too. We'll get through this no matter what happens, alright?"

"Okay. Thank you for being so amazing, and understanding."

"Of course. Like I said, things happen. It's okay."

He reaches over & kisses the top of her head.

Now that the hard part is over, the next step is to tell Austin. We can only hope he'll take the news just as well as Ashton did.

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[amononymous]

Mist of Affection

Sanmos fic

Summary: The night before the next mission.  It started raining.  Bummed out, Deimos can only watch the raindrops.  Sanford also watches the rain pass by.  However, Deimos has an idea.

The night before another mission gets carried out.  Sanford’s seen polishing his hook.  Giving it an inspection for any grimy dirt before gently setting it down on the wooden crates.

Giving a glance at his partner, who in contrast with Sanford is slack.  Standing near the front door, lighting his cigarette before putting it up to his lip to inhale the ghastly fumes and puffing it out, letting all the smoke escape from his mouth.

“Bud, I thought you said that you’re going to lay low on the cigarettes,”  Sanford sighs.  “This is the 3rd time this week.”

“Yeah yeah…” Deimos chuckled.  “You know how it’s been these days.” 

“You referring to the mission Doc assigned us yesterday?” 

“What’d you think?  This is how I’m preparing myself after all~”

“I guess it can’t be helped then…”

Throughout many times, Deimos has always found ways to relieve all the stress from mass murdering that he and his partner would regularly have to do.  Smoking's usually it.  Whenever he finds a little bit of time where he can start lighting up his trusty cigarette, he would take that time to.  Despite his partner’s disapproval.  

Though, he can be serious during the mission if he needed to.  Having to put up that professionalism isn’t an uncommon thing that Deimos can do.  Even on an outside mission he loves to kid around and often, at the times, would take a sip of Irish Cream at a nearby bar.

Of course, Sanford doesn’t really go with that.  At times, he’d still try to hone in his strength and skills in combat.  Once in a while, he’ll let loose and accompany Deimos to the bar.  Only for him to order an abundance of buffalo wings.

They both have their own ways at things but still make a good dynamic.

Before the two of them knew it, they heard the pitter-patter as the raindrops trickling down sounds in their ears.  The cloud’s been visible, enough for the desolate sky to be covered by it.

“What?!” Deimos blurted, “Ugh, it had to rain right now?”

“It’s just a drizzle, you chucklehead.” Sanford replied.  

“Even then, it’s a damn shame I can’t go anywhere without getting drenched.”

“Come on, Deimos.  You can go to the bar another day.”

Deimos let out one last exhale before letting the cigarette drop and stomping it, allowing all the toxic bits spread out on the ground to the sole of his sneaker.

“At least don’t do that here…” Sanford muttered.

Few minutes have gone by and the droplet’s not letting up.  Deimos took a big sigh sitting on the front porch, and could only watch as the drizzle went by.

The door behind him opens.

“You still sitting there?”  Sanford appears before closing the door behind him.

“Yeah, have nothing else to do anyway.” Deimos shrugged.

“Nothing you thought of doing?” 

“I mean what else can I do in this weather?”

“You usually like to de-stress like stated earlier, is that really your way of ‘preparing yourself’?”

“Sanford, bud, cut me some slack would ya?  It hasn't been raining in Nevada for a week now, I wouldn’t want it to start pouring down now.  Unless I can control the weather that is.”

“…Alright, I mean if you want to keep watching it then be my guest then.” 

“…Wait, hey Sanford.  Hear me out on this.”

“Huh?”

“I just had an idea~”

“I feel like it won’t be an idea I would like.”

“Well… hear me out, would ya?”

Sanford paused a little before taking a step to sit besides Deimos.

“Alright alright, what could be this wonderful idea you’ve conjured up?” Sanford giggled.

“How about…” Deimos pondered.  “We dance in the rain?”

It only took the guy a bit to process what Deimos just said.  Dancing in the rain?  “What do you mean by that?”  He would scratch his noggin in confusion if it wasn't for the bandage.

“I mean exactly what I mean.” Deimos sounded eager.

“Have you hit your head or something, you bozo?  Why would we both start dancing outside like that?”

“Oh come on! I don’t think there’s a harm in doing so, is there?”

“Yes.  We might feel unwell and that’ll hinder the mission.”

“Bud, the rain's just a drizzle.  Please?”

“Look, it’s just that if any of us get sick...”

“Ahh haha! It’ll be fineeee.  And I can guarantee that none of us will feel under the weather by the end of this!”

“Fine, I’ll go along with your charade… If any of us feels ill after this then that’s your fault.”

“I got it, man…”

Excitedly, Deimos ran out to the rain, before looking back and waving at Sanford to join him.  He was fully clothed with his visor and jacket still on.  His headset isn’t being worn but is resting on his shoulder.

Sanford did a bit of a giggle before slowly walking out to join Deimos.  Of course, he didn’t have to take anything off due to his usual outfit consisting of him being bare chested and really just having camo pants and a bandana.  Even with the rain, he still doesn’t remove his shades.

Appearing delighted.  Deimos offers Sanford his hand for him as an invitation for a duet.

Sanford’s smile turned a bit brighter.  Allowing him to gently ease himself as he takes his partner’s hand.  Not caring about the fact they’re about to dance in the rain like earlier.  

Screw his pride, the person he loves the most is presenting to dance with him.

“Knew I could trust on ya~” Deimos’ on cloud nine right now.  A dance to mentally prepare himself for the upcoming mission was all he could ask for.

After all, this is their first time even doing this.  Due to Deimos’ last minute idea.  

“Maybe this isn’t so bad after all…” Sanford thought.

This is one of those times where the duo’s spending their time together before a mission.  Usually going to a bar or relaxing in the same room as each other would be good enough for them.  This time though, it’s different.

They’re both letting loose, they’re both dancing.  Embracing one another as their fingers intertwined with each other, breaths mingling as they both dance to their heart's content.

Sanford and Deimos are enjoying themselves.  Even with their sloppy attempts to waltz, they laughed it off and continued performing.

Who’s that performance for?  Only for each other to see, only for them to bask in, only for them to shine.

Each step they took is like a tap of harmony.  To the rhythm of the rain, their symphony.

Even if they’re getting drenched.  It doesn’t matter.  Their love is expressed through their eye contacts, through their loving embrace, through their presence.

The person who they both loved the most has always been what they’re seeing right now.  Both of their cheeks turned rosy.

Both parties keep on entertaining each other as the performance goes by.  Eventually stopping once they’re out of breath.

The rain soon let up right after their dance came to an end.

Inside, Sanford dries himself with a towel.  Letting his bandana dry for a bit before bringing extra pairs for his partner to dry himself.

“Deimos.  Here, dry yourself up before-”.  He stopped himself for a bit.

Deimos’ knocked out.  Sleeping on the couch still drenched.

“You chucklehead… if you’re asleep just like that, you might catch a cold.”  Sanford gently sat besides his partner.

“Can’t be helped, I guess.  I gotta figure out how to gently pat him dry without waking him somehow.” Sanford said.

As Deimos snores, Sanford was giving him a glance. It’s cute he’ll admit, just not out loud though.

Looking away with a bit of blush on cheeks.  He sits there for a bit.

They’re an inseparable duo.  Even then, all that matters is they have each other.  Their dance with the rain shows that.

Both are relaxed and is mentally prepared for whatever is thrown at them.

At this moment, both parties are smiling.

[blessyouhawkeye]

I love SHINee but I'm a fairly recent Shawol and I know fuck all about the rest of SuperM, EXO, NCT...... Would you be up for a general explanation/rant/history about SuperM, who is in it, and the upcoming member change? If not, feel free to ignore this!

omg welcome to shawolism! i'd be so happy to do a rundown on superm for you i have unfortunately been around for the entirety of this nonsense.

in mid 2019, sm announced that they'd debuting superm, what they marketed as "the avengers of kpop". the lineup was taemin, exo's kai and baekhyun, and nct's mark, taeyong, ten, and lucas. the main intent of the group was to break into the american market, because for all of sm's genius in the east asian market sm has mostly failed at marketing to a broad western audience. when the group was first announced, literally no one was happy about it. taemin had already released two mini albums with full promotions that year, and mark and taeyong are famously overworked. on the other end of the spectrum, exo had been ignored by the company so their fans were upset kai and baekhyun were being put in a new group instead of having a comeback with exo. nevertheless, superm debuted with their song jopping that october, which has become infamous because of how ridiculous the lyrics are. (when it was released everyone hated it because like. seriously? this is what the exo comeback has been pushed back for? but with the benefit of hindsight we all now know it was camp. stream jopping.)

superm only really promoted heavily from 2019-2020, mostly due to the pandemic and then baekhyun and taemin enlisting at the beginning of 2021. but in early 2022, information about nct's lucas's dating history came to light. the controversy is long and extensive, but in essence many women came forward (with truly just So Much proof) that he was manipulative and sexually inappropriate with past girlfriends, many of which he was dating at the same time and some of whom were nct fans. although sm hasn't made a statement about lucas since then, he hasn't promoted with nct at all in the past year and was left out of the the subunit wayv's (which he had been a fixed member of) recent comeback and promotions.

because of all that, plus the fact that taemin and baekhyun aren't even back from the military yet, everyone just assumed superm wouldn't have a comeback for a good long while, if at all. however sm loves to indulge in fuckery, and at the end of the company's end of year concert last week they teased that superm would be coming back in 2023. literally no one is happy about this. it seems like taemin and baekhyun will be releasing music with superm after they return from the military before they do with shinee or exo, which is deeply annoying, and the nct guys are still being seriously overworked (mark especially, that kid needs a vacation so bad).

the lineup change is all speculation for now, though i am sooo sure that lucas is Not going to be a part of the comeback, if there's one thing sm is going to do it's kick people out. in the teaser for superm, the video had the official colours of shinee/exo/nct come together to create the superm logo, with the addition of the colour red, which is the group tvxq's official colour. it's very likely a tvxq member will be joining superm, probably u-know because there were already rumours before the teaser that he'd be joining the group. all in all i think him joining will be nothing but a win because lucas was objectively not a good performer (he's called "dozen" on twitter because he dozen rap he dozen sing he dozen dance he dozen do anything lmao).

so yeah. that's superm. their music is pretty hit or miss, but i'd recommend their songs i can't stand the rain and tiger inside, those ones are bops. as a shawol and exo-l it's mostly just a general annoyance, but taemin does slay in every superm performance so at least there's a silver lining. hope this helped!

[thessalian]

Thess vs The Recurring Nightmare

Yeah, the situation at the office hasn't exactly improved. I mean, on paper it has, but there's some ridiculousness attached to it.

So Violet's back, but on reduced hours for a little while. Temp's away for three fucking weeks. Though we do seem to have someone else stepping in a bit. So that's a whole thing where we're pretty much on even keel (and I'm still being left with the long obnoxious bullshit).

And then there's Goblin.

Goblin's apparently following in my footsteps and working from home for the duration. Except there's a problem. See, you'd think all the issues I had with getting set up for WFH would mean that IT had policies and documentation in place for how it's done. Buuuuuuut apparently not, because I got a fucking phone call from IT asking how my system was set up because they couldn't remember how to do it. Why the fuck am I doing IT's job?

Anyway, we got that sorted and I thought, "Great, Goblin will start any time now!" ...Except that now apparently there's another problem. Apparently she needs a company mobile phone to load the authenticator onto.

...I mean, I was pretty sure I saw her with a mobile phone, and the authenticator works fine on my four-year-old brick of a cellphone, so I'm really confused. And a little pissed off because the only reason I can think of that she'd need a work phone for the authenticator is that she refuses to give her mobile number to the office in any way. It' the kind of thing I can see her doing; "I don't want them checking up on me at all hours!" Not that they actually do that, but Goblin thinks the worst of just about everyone.

Anyway, when I was having my issues with IT, I was coming into the office regardless. But apparently she can't do that, so she's stuck "for the duration". Which is, until they can get her a company phone. Which is probably going to take awhile, since requisitions like that start with Head Honcho and he's away until Thursday.

SO GUESS WHO'S STUCK DOING MORE FUCKING OVERTIME?!?

Also my colleagues left urgent cases sitting there for several days instead of cleaning them up first. Why do I work with lazy idiots?

I should take a very quick trip to the shops before it rains again. I can make up the time when I work overtime yet again today. Ugh. At least the money's useful. And at least I've had a break...

[robinismywifee]

Back to the Old House - Chapter 5:

August 30th, 2034

[7 days after previous chapter]

Raines age: 16 years, 6 months

Ellies age: 15 years, 3 months

CW: none

Words: 1381

Masterlist

Raines POV:

I've been going on patrol with Jesse for a week now. He still started awkward conversations and tried to get to know me, but since I would either just not reply or give an answer without actually answering, he would resort to just telling me his answer in detail. Although I didn't care, I did listen because it felt rude not to. He hasn't done anything wrong and is a nice guy, however, I wish he didn't try so much.

Me and Jesse were on our way back to Jackson, on our horses, we finally ran into infected today so it wasn't entirely boring, even if it was only 2 runners.

"So, school starts up again next monday, you're gonna go, right?" Jesse randomly asked.

I looked at him confused, "School?"

He looked back at me, confused of why I was confused. "Yeah?"

"Oh. Didn't know there was a school system for older kids here."

"Well, I went last year and it was fun. We learn a

bunch of different things! Like, grammer, poetry, history, all different kinds of science, some math.." Jesse listed on his fingers, "Oh! And you can take an extra class for art, or at least last year they had it. And then they have all the other boring stuff, like health.. survival.. combat.."

I liked the idea of learning more poetry and history. My ears perked up when he mentioned an art class, awhile back when I was super young, before i lived at the QZ, I would paint all the time. Anything I saw in nature I painted. I sketch from time to time, but I miss painting alot. Maybe they have the supplies for that?

"Art class?" I simply asked.

"Yeah! My friend E- uhh.. my friend took the class, she really enjoyed it actually. Do you draw?"

I shrug, "Well, i'm sure you're great! And you can improve by going to school! You should sign up for it, or I guess since you live with Maria you could just ask her."

"What do the teach in the art class?"

"Well, I didn't take it, thats not really my thing, but, from what i've heard, they teach the history of art, different techniques for drawing and painting, i'm pretty sure theres even a lesson on clay sculptures and you get to make stuff out of it. Pretty cool, I wish I was artsy."

I sat on my horse in silence as Jesse continued talking about his favorite classes, thinking about the idea of school. Real school. Not stupid QZ school.

The idea of learning more about most of those stuff sounded fascinating to me but the idea of having to be social and just around people was the mood killer.

Shortly after, we arrived at the gates of Jackson. We got to the stables as always, and as I began to walk away to go back to Marias, Jesse stopped me.

"Hey, I know social settings or gatherings arent really your thing, but I really think you should give it a shot. If you don't like it, then you can quit. But I think if you don't try then you'll regret it. So, if you do decide to show, find my face and there will be an open seat next to it!"

I nodded, "Thanks, Jesse. I'll think about it"

୨♡୧

The next day

"So, didya sign up yet?"

I glanced at him from behind me, hes still going on about the school thing?

"For school classes"

"Yeah, I got that" I mumbled, turning back and continuing walking.

We had just gotten off of morning patrol and I was walking back to the house when he followed behind me.

"I'm guessing you haven't"

I shook my head no, he walked infront of me as we both stopped walking, "how bout' I take you to the sign up sheets and we do it right now?"

"Uhh, Jesse, I don't really think I wanna do-"

"How about I stop annoying you on patrol and shut up whenever you want, if you sign up for them and go? Just the first day"

I stood and thought about it. I would much rather hear the chirping birds then Jesse chirping about how his girlfriend broke up with him.

"okay."

"okay? i- is that all?"

"What else is there to say? now, take me there"

Jesse cheered silently and started leading me the opposite way. He took me to a familiar building. This was the building I woke up in from my coma.

"Jesse?"

"Hm?"

"I thought this was the towns hospital?"

"Oh, yeah, top floor is. This is a pretty big building and its like the main one, so theres alot of different stuff in it." he explained

as we entered, I saw a sign in the lobby that labeled what each floor was.

Jesse took me to the front desk, the guy in the chair seemed to be focused on something else as Jesse grabbed a paper that was layed out, and a pen from a cup.

We sat down on nearby chairs, Jesse placed the paper and pen down on the table infront of us, "Pretty simple, just fill it out and mark it off, kinda self explanatory"

I nodded, and filled out my name, age, guardians, marked off all the boxes of what classes I wanted to be in, and stated the job I had and what time I worked.

"now what?" I asked, looking at him, Jesse answered by getting up, a dick eating grin plastered on his face, and handed the focused guy at the front desk the paper.

"Lets go! Oh, you're gonna love it, I can't wait for you to show me your artwork-"

"Okay, you're annoying me, shut it," I couldn't help but smile at him as we walked out the building, "and who said that i'm gonna show you my artwork?" I snarked

"Uh, me? I did? And the shutting-up-whenever-you-want-deal isn't on until you go to school on Monday, plus I said only when we're on patrol"

"So I just did that for basically nothing since Monday isn't for 4 days and it only applies to patrol?"

Jesse laughed, "You would have missed out on a big opportunity i'm doing you a huge favor-"

"Hey Jesse" a snarkling voice interrupted, my soft smile immediately dropped once I saw the short black haired girl. The same girl who was holding hands with Ellie that night, the same girl who rode the bicycle with Ellie, I suddenly felt like throwing up.

"Oh, hey Cat" Jesse said with a soft smile, I looked to the ground, shifting on my feet, my cheeks were growing red from embarrassment She heard me call Ellie a dyke..

"Ah- this is Raine! Shes my patrol partner" Jesse said after an awkward moment of silence, a hint of excitement behind his voice. Probably excited to finally introduce me with his friend. God why is he friends with this girl? and what kind of name is cat.

"We've met." Cat says coldly, my eyes stay to the ground, I bite my tongue so hard I start to taste blood.

"Oh? I didn't know Raine met anyone other then me and Dina.."

"Well, I guess we hadn't officially met, but it was enough. Anyways, we were all gonna watch a movie tonight at my place, wanna come?"

I could feel Jesse glance to look at me, and back at Cat. "Uh, yeah Cat, thats.. good, what time?"

"Be there at 7, it's gonna be so fun, I bet you could get Dina back by tomorrow"

I couldn't take it anymore, her voice was stinging.

I sped walked away with my head down, I could hear muffled behind my ringing ears Jesse calling my name, but I ignored it.