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#and has continuously drug out this issue for days on end without having one single bit of remorse until he started getting backlash
yooniesim · 6 months
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I don't know who to believe anymore, both of you have been making wild assumptions, and you've taken it the farthest. Please sit and think about if this is worth the time and energy.
Don't worry anon- fortunately, facts speak for themselves! Won't be any wild assumptions or claims, just their own words/posts. I won't ask you to believe anything I say at face value. Cos anyone can lie on the internet, right? I'm not gonna do that. I'll just lay it out, all the screenshots- just as he did- and people can come to their own conclusions about what they think about it. I think that's about fair, right? That's exactly what he did, after all.
(Also, the fact that he said myself and the others triggered by his actions "claim" to be victims, and mocked me being in mourning for my father that died 8 days ago while comparing it to his eviction took out the last tiny bit of sympathy I had. Sorry! Here's an example of a screenshot of something actually fucking disgusting for you.)
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#asks#anonymous#ceci speaks#i mean#since they posted their own receipts#isnt it only fair that i post mine?#or am i supposed to be the bigger person after they mocked me for being in mourning and constantly posted about me for over a week?#and called me all the worst kinda shit and laughed in the face of all the people they triggered and called them crybabies?#and kept going and going all day today calling me all kinds of shit#nah i dont think so#ive taken it the farthest? oh baby#you havent seen nothin yet#for the record tho i never said lil bro was a predator and i dont consider him one#but since hes so irresponsible and seems to have no idea that the issue is not what he ships but how and where he posts it#and has continuously drug out this issue for days on end without having one single bit of remorse until he started getting backlash#theres enough red flags to be extremely concerning to not only me but several other survivors#NO i wouldnt trust my younger family members or minor friends around someone that consumes that content irresponsibly#and has no sense of self awareness or empathy at all#if hes hurt by that well that sucks for him#i dont buy the 'woe is me im just a poor widdle victim dat did nuffin wrong but get bullied' act#you had giant balls the entire last week and now suddenly i answered you youre crying and triggered#if i were meaner id call you a crybaby like you called the people you triggered#but instead i'll just call you a pathetic little worm#grow up#negative#tw csa mention
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rreskk · 8 months
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HEADCANONS: North Yankton Trevor (specific, personal headcanons)
TW: smut, drugs.
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-When the rented (or stolen) cars used to break down during a journey with the guys, Trevor would surprisingly have the most knowledge about mechanics as he had to learn a few pieces here and there from his time in the airforce. By all means, he can work his way around the engine (replacing oils, fixing up batteries, replacing misused equipemtn) and can easily replace tires if necessary. As Michael said before, “he has his uses”. Besides, how else would present Trevor keep his Bhodi working if he didn’t know how to fix a good old car? ;)
-Trevor has issues surrounding wet dreams. It became a big issue when he couldn’t hide it from the guys in motel rooms. They’d wake up to the sight of Trevor’s raging boner and wet-stained bedsheets as he continued sleeping with a clearly disturbed and flustered face. He’d have these dreams at least every fortnight and Brad likes to tease him about it (earning a good fist fight every now and then).
-He’s used to cold weather as he spent most of his childhood in the Canadians freezing conditions (well, depending on the areas he lived in), but he knew snow all too well. This would mean that he was less affected. Michael and Brad would have their coats double layered but they’d watch Trevor walk out of the motel room wearing a light sweater or jacket. Even more so, he doesn’t complain about the weather at all. It could be a blizzard and he’d still get pissy at Michael for deciding the offer to sit outside with a beer.
-I’d like to believe Trevor still had his teenage band T-shirt phase throughout the Yankton era. Michael would borrow a few shirts and, no surprise, it would all have these niche punk bands imprinted with a few permanent blood-stains, also some occasional rips and tears.
-Trevor had a small crush on Amanda when she first began dating Michael. It was… an unusual time since he was also (sneakily) seeing Michael still, at the time. Talk about a chaotic love triangle, but it’s just Trevor pining for both.
-Was definitely convinced to a psych-ward during his 6 month prison sentence as he was clearly unstable and tremendously emotionally unfit to be around other prisoners. He had to attend anger meetings, art therapy, stayed in the psych-ward under the prisons guidance still.
-Michael mentioned (at the start) that he ran whores, smuggled dope etc… An idea I have would be the image of the three of them enjoying themselves with a few prostitutes, but for some unknown reason, every single sex-worker would adore Trevor. Every single one. And the only one that didn’t, it was Amanda, and she married Michael. That’s another reason why Trevor would be bitter at their relationship.
-Michael had to secure his savings because Trevor (back in North Yankton) would go crazy with his cash. Because he grew up with low money incomes, the moment he has his hands on the green notes, he’ll just blow it. Nonetheless, he learnt to save it, as we can see from Sandy Shores Trevor. Without Mikey, he had to learn the hard way.
-Trevor had a few girlfriends in the Midwest to try and understand Michael’s preference for stability and marriage. He genuinely loved these girls, but they’d all leave him due to his drug habits and emotional baggage. However, some would leave with his stash of cash. This would be because of Trevor’s heavy dependency on female figures that he’d be too naive to see the obvious signs of the gold-digger in them. A few weeks into this “relationship” he’d believe would end with marriage, they’d just leave without another word on a random day. After that, he stuck to hookups and one night stands.
-Amanda used to get drunk and vent to Trevor about Michael’s sexual performance. I’d like to imagine his cheeky grin as he’s the cause of Michael’s lack of interest in Amanda since… well, he’d be fucking her man stupid most nights of the week anyway!
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anniewatscn · 7 months
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Welcome to Aurora Bay, [ANNABETH “ANNIE” WATSON]! I couldn’t help but notice you look an awful lot like [WILLA FITZGERALD]. You must be the [THIRTY-ONE] year old [DETECTIVE]. Word is you’re [AMBITIOUS] but can also be a bit [HARDHEADED] and your favorite song is [EDGE OF SEVENTEEN BY STEVIE NICKS]. I also heard you’ll be staying in [OCEAN CREST APARTMENTS]. I’m sure you’ll love it! @aurorabayaesthetic
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basics.
full name; annabeth evangeline watson nicknames; known as annie to pretty much everybody birthday; tba sexuality; bisexual religion; agnostic, leaning towards atheist education level; bachelor's in criminal psychology occupation; detective (newly promoted from officer) for the aurora bay p.d. hobbies; lots of netflix and podcasts when she has the time, reading non-fiction books, going on runs & to the park with her dog.
stats.
alignment; neutral good astrology; capricorn more tba
full history.
tw: death, crime, murder, drug mention, pregnancy mention
Annie was born an Aurora Bay native as a surprise to two unmarried, very young parents who had a complicated relationship to begin with with each other, let alone bringing a child into it. They tried their best to make it work, eloping with the support of their parents, but after a few years of struggling to pay bills and arguing over everything from finances and family to the temperature of the air conditioning, they finally separated — right before Annie's mother found out she was yet again pregnant. This happened not only once, but twice — the parents would decide they were ready to call it quits, and then try to make things work again with each other for the new babies only to find out the same issues that were there to begin with still plagued them. Throughout this time, her father graduated from the police academy while her mother tried to make ends meet working for the local church nursery. But while there was a lot of love in their family, it just was never quite enough. Their final separation ended in divorce when Annie was fourteen years old.
She often tried to shield her siblings from the dysfunction whenever she could, feeling naturally very protective over them while also trying to make things easier for her parents by helping out with her siblings. And while it didn't ultimately save her parents' marriage, it did result in a very close relationship with her two younger siblings. Annie would act as a second mother to them for the rest of the time she lived with them — even going as far as to delay moving out of the house as an adult so she could continue to help take care of them.
After the dust settled, her mother continued to seek new relationships, while her dad, who, at the end of the marriage still wanted to make things work, remained single. One of her mother's new boyfriends had a past he hadn't been entirely forthcoming with, however, and when her father dug into his background he discovered the man was formerly (possibly still?) involved with drug trafficking. When he went to have a conversation with Annie's mother about this, however, he instead discovered the unthinkable. Annie and the kids were at school, and their mother, his ex wife, was gone. Vanished, without a trace. They discovered her body one week later, with apparent evidence of foul play, but the boyfriend had a seemingly airtight alibi, as did Annie's father, and with no other immediate suspects, the case went cold. It has remained unsolved to this day.
Her dad spiraled, becoming almost obsessive over the case. He was always a well respected cop in his department, but has since entered into early retirement, as suggested by his boss. Annie, on the other hand, made a promise to herself not to make the same mistakes. She wanted to protect and serve not only for herself, or for her mother, or her siblings, but for everyone. She wanted to be the good that she herself so desperately needed, the justice that she never got. But now the only question that remains is if she'll end up just like her father, chasing ghosts and nursing bottles in the memory of trauma that never truly heals.
significant relationships.
parents; divorced. dad still lives in aurora bay on the outskirts of fisher's cove. mother has been deceased since 2012. siblings; two younger siblings pets; a seriously protective german shepherd she affectionately named Bucky that helps her sleep at night after the work she often takes home with her.
connection ideas.
work related — good cop bad cop; the actual dynamic of this connection could vary, but basically this would be (ideally) her assigned partner or another coworker. Annie is very much so the "rookie" trying to prove herself, she's been on the force for a while but only just recently got promoted to detective so they could either be less than excited about working with her, or maybe they're happy to have a fresh pair of eyes with them. the unofficial partner; lucifer x chloe vibes. basically someone she leans on for support in her work life, who isn't actually a cop. maybe they're a criminal posing as a friend to her to try and keep her in the dark, or maybe they're a genuine friend who just has a penchant and an interest for crime solving but who doesn't have any official clearance. fancy seeing you here; someone she has caught doing something illegal on numerous occasions, but for some reason despite this person being a habitual offender she can't bring herself to hold any real ire for them. doesn't necessarily have to be serious crimes, either, could be something as simple as multiple parking tickets she assigned to this person in her beat cop days. you again?; this, on the other hand, would be more of a clear-cut enemy connection. when she first started out she was particularly zealous about things like parking tickets and jaywalking, all the way up to things like minor drug possession that other cops might've let slide. in annie's eyes she was just doing her job, but, to this person they would see her as an annoyance at best and the bane of their existence at worst. looking the other way; someone she knows is doing wrong but, due to their circumstances (being down on their luck, or recently gone through a tragedy, maybe even someone she's close to, etc.) she hasn't taken any action about it, despite the ramifications it could have for her with her job. platonic — you're my person; platonic soulmates, basically best friends that have always been close. we can decide the specifics, but this would be someone she probably met young and they've been together all the way from sleepovers and barbie dreamhouses to their first loves and toughest losses. big sister you never had; someone she either met through her tutoring job she had in school/college, or maybe a friend's younger sibling she feels protective over. whatever the case, these two are fairly close and annie might not show it, but, she needs them as much as they need her. you're all grown up now; childhood friends that grew apart but still think of each other fondly. maybe one moved away, or their friendship circles changed, or it was just the natural progression of time, but they'll always have making sandcastles in the backyard together. misery loves company; they bond over their mutual hatred or disdain for something, or over a number of things. two people that love to gripe but usually can't share their negativity with other people. couch potato aficionado; her time isn't often very free to relax but when she is able to, she'll veg out with true crime documentaries or trashy reality tv shows, plus the occasional scripted shows and movies. this would be someone (maybe even a neighbor) who comes over or she comes over to their house and they break open a bottle of wine together and hang out. familial — cut from the same cloth; a cousin that feels more like a sibling, the two of them always ended up off to the side together at family reunions and similar functions, gossiping about their aunt carol's new boyfriend and trading secrets they wouldn't tell anyone else. willing to plot this out as them still being close or maybe they've drifted apart in adulthood for whatever reason.
romantic — better off as friends; these two probably started as friends and tried dating, but, as good as they are as friends, it just felt off and didn't work out. now they just tease each other about their love lives and fill each other in on all their good and bad dates. maybe there's still lingering feelings, maybe not, but either way, they're always there for each other. girl in red; the first girl annie dated, who helped her realize and navigate her sexuality. this could've been when they were younger, all the way up to college or even more recently, I'm open to specifics! I imagine they're probably still friends and ended things on good terms, but we could discuss that too. fire and water; an ex that was her opposite in many ways, they had a lot of passion but they argued a lot. they did genuinely care about each other and probably still do, but mostly keep their distance now. the one that got away; an ex that probably still doesn't know the real reason things ended. Annie would've made up an excuse, but, the truth was that she was developing real feelings she wasn't prepared for, got scared, and ran. antagonistic — high school never ends; (bully mention tw) annie was kind of a nerd in school, very into her grades, a bit of a goody two shoes, etc. this person may have been a bit of a bully or had a "frenemy" type relationship with her, and probably thinks they were actually friends and all the teasing was just friendly. i could see this as going either way; could just be a genuine misunderstanding or a full-on bully situation and they've changed since school - or maybe not.
other/general — friends, coworkers, neighbors, exes, enemies/rivals, one night stands/fwbs/flirtationships/will-they-won't-they, etc
all of these connection ideas are mostly jumping off points, so don't be shy to suggest something similar in plotting or to work around the ideas suggested!
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brittanyautumn333 · 7 months
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Thoughts on the “twin flame” dynamic - from an experienced spiritualist
Ok so apparently there’s a documentary out about a cult based on the “twin flame” dynamic. I wanted to talk about this as someone who has practiced esotericism/spirituality for almost 15 years. I did not hear about this relationship dynamic prior to about 2020. This is not to say it hasn’t existed, it has just not been in my realm of understanding until that point.
Firstly, I should say that I ABSOLUTELY believe that spiritual, fated connections exist. I have experienced them myself multiple times during my life. From my perspective, we have multiple soulmates in this lifetime.
The premise of a Twin Flame connection is the “runner vs chaser” dynamic. I won’t fully explain it here, as it would be a long ass post. My personal issue is that runner vs chaser dynamic is present in PLENTY of connections - that are NOT spiritual in nature, and in fact, toxic.
It’s within these “twin flame” connections that we find plenty of spiritual bypassers - those who want to reap the benefits of spirituality and live for an “aesthetic” and end result of their spiritual journey. Knowledgeable and experienced spiritualists know that our journey towards removing and working with the conditioning developed during our lifetimes never ends. And the result certainly doesn’t involve anyone else but ourselves. If you look at the Subreddit r/twinflame, you’ll see so many of them. Giving up on their entire journey, simply due to a need for instant gratification regarding an ACTUAL PERSON. Who is fated to be here and make their own choices.
These TF connections center heavily on rumination and limerence in some cases. So many of these folks don’t have the understanding that what is FOR you is inevitable. This is not to say it will be easy, love and care require understanding and a significant amount of trust.
Also, a large part of the dynamic is that your twin flame will undergo a transformation and awakening on their own. I am incredibly skeptical of this. In my experience, cis men aren’t often understanding of spiritual concepts. Not because of ignorance, but because of stubbornness. A lot of this knowledge simply can not be unlearned. Many cis men enjoy living spiritually draining lifestyles. Spirituality involves stepping into unknown and uncomfortable territory. Spirituality brings guilt and shame initially, until YOU YOURSELF can forgive yourself for your past. Men don’t always have proper emotional support, so this can be difficult. I have been practicing celibacy for a while now. I cancelled my cable and internet at my home. I removed alcohol and drugs from the equation. All in an attempt to sit in my discomfort, and learn more about myself and my path. Many people in general can not do this, as it is a brief inconvenience.
This is not to suggest the superiority of a divine feminine. Masculine and feminine energies serve equal purposes on earth. Concepts of divine masculine and feminine are gender neutral, and have stood the test of time. It’s universal knowledge predating our modern concepts of gender. We are all on different paths. One is no better than the other, because the destination is the same. Our lives are meant to be filled with learning, love, and gratitude. All I am saying is that unbalanced masculine energy is a creator without a delegator. Excessive creation of energy, particularly negative energy, leads to burnout. Which leads to Egoic decision making. Which leads to karmic cycles continuing, and lessons not being learned even when the message is clear. Comfort in discomfort is better than stepping into the unknown for some.
The twin flame dynamic has also become heavily commercialized, which should be a huge red flag for any spiritualist. Spiritual bypassers are paying thousands of dollars for “classes” from spiritualists who are new themselves to the practice. Tarot readings every single day. Buying $200+ workings from practitioners. All in an attempt to win someone back spiritually. I will say it again, WHAT IS MEANT FOR YOU IS COMING NO MATTER WHAT. If you truly believe you have a spiritual connection with someone, let it go and see if it stands the test of time and distance. You do not have to light 100 candles over a loser, babe. What is planned for you involves divine timing and intervention. Let me say this, inserting my own personal opinion; love magic is unethical. Spiritual bypassers who don’t even direct their questions or requests will attach themselves to nasty spirits. They dont even realize that love magic not only attaches that person to YOU, BUT YOU TO THEM! They try divination with spirits and deities from multiple cultures, not even knowing that some are representative of the same being, and some are incompatible to work with each other. Some spirits, deities and ancestors are NOT friendly. Not every spirit will tell you the truth. Divination requires practice, concentration. Asking questions without centering yourself will give you answers based on your own bias and conditioning. If not from a deceptive spirit. For example, sex clouds my own personal judgement. So I do not have sex often, to keep my thoughts clear and thorough.
What is for you is already here. It’s yours.
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chaosbled · 1 year
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{ VERSE DROP }
Warning: The paragraphs below contain GRAPHIC descriptions of medical abuse, physical & psychological trauma, emotional manipulation, torture, gaslighting, the intentional misuse of therapeutic practices, exploitation of phobias & mental illness, as well as mentions of mind control, self mutilation & attempted suicide, dissociation, non-consensual drugging, non-consensual surgical practices, substance abuse, unsafe sexual practices, & death including that of children! If you think these topics might be triggering to you but you’re curious about this verse & want a summarized version, please let me know & I’ll be happy to give you a quick rundown!
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❝ Approximately a year &a half after the desertion of one of its Executives, the Boss of Yokohama’s Port Mafia, Mori Ougai, vanished from the public eye, & rumours begin to run WILD as the organization seemingly changes its entire M.O. overnight. Crime rates began dropping dramatically from outside sources as the Port Mafia puts a stranglehold on the criminal element of the city, & their enemies wiped out without a trace, traitors executed on sight, & more. Talk of a new leader begins to make its way through the shady networks of the city but there is no one to confirm the validity of the belief, & three years later, everything once known about the Port Mafia has CHANGED.❞
BACKGROUND
Following his abandonment of the Port Mafia & leaving the life he’d known for the past five years behind, Dazai unwittingly left his partner, Nakahara Chuuya, behind to face the consequences on his own.
At barely 18 years old, Chuuya found himself an Executive of the Port Mafia, & one of its most feared members due to being one half of the devastating duo known as Double Black. As partners, Dazai & Chuuya had never come upon an enemy that was not defeated by them in the end. He was the powerhouse, & the younger man was the planner. His secondary Ability, CORRUPTION, had taken down entire buildings in a matter of moments, & Dazai was the only one that could stop this power for them to continue their work another day.
Until he left without a word to anyone.
Chuuya was abandoned with nothing more than a profound sense of LOSS, & a blown up car to show for their four years of partnership, & no sign of Dazai no matter how hard he searched. The worst conclusion was inevitably reached—after months of being unable to find a single trace of him, of searching every shelter, morgue, river, under-bridge & bar in the city & areas surrounding it, many came to the conclusion that Dazai had finally succeeded in the one thing he’d wanted all along. Finally, he had to accept that alive or dead, the other teen was not coming back.
The boy took it WORSE than anyone could have possibly predicted. Suddenly under scrutiny, everything from his loyalty to the organization to his competency as an Executive without the use of CORRUPTION at his fingertips comes under question. He pushes himself harder than ever to prove himself at the cost of his health & sanity, but it’s not good enough to outweigh all the eyes suddenly on him, waiting like vultures for him to fuck up. Chuuya found himself dealing with issues he had never previously experienced as the anxiety he’d had in his early teens suddenly returned with a vengeance. Long-buried fears he thought he had gotten over suddenly became near debilitating — solitude / isolation, suffocation, physical confinement, darkness, & anything to do with medicine — he began to suffer from reoccurring nightmares & panic attacks, worse, he became distracted & sloppy in his work, doubting his Boss’s orders due to his own fears & causing problems. At first, he seemed understanding about the ordeal, lessening his work load & encouraging him to work through it.
When no progress was made despite Chuuya’s best efforts, he quickly began... showing a side to the redhead he could not RECALL seeing before.
Believing environmental phobias to be the most detrimental to Chuuya’s effectiveness in the organization, Mori-san attempted to aggressively tackle that issue first, in a way he assured Chuuya would completely DESENSITIZE him to his anxiety surrounding these matters. Unfortunately for Chuuya, he went about it in the worst way possible.
The first time Chuuya was escorted to the basement floor of Mori’s infirmary, he nearly COLLAPSED with the suddenly intensity of his fear, & tried to flee the room only to find himself quickly restrained by two of his personal bodyguards. The sight of the sensory deprivation tank ripped down any sense of composure he had. He knew what they were of course, but all he could see before him was the POD that Professor N & the other scientists had forced him into day after day, the one the clone of himself had been released from only to die in his arms when he was sixteen. He struggled & fought, begged the Boss not to, anything but that, please. He wouldn’t listen, & informed Chuuya that he needed to stay awake for the duration of the session, & every time he passed out & forced them to pull him out for his own safety, the timer would RESET & he would have to start over again. They began at 8 hour intervals.
Mori assured him with the kindest smile that it would HELP him, then ordered him to take off his clothes & get in. When Chuuya refused, the armed guards stripped him down to his underwear against his will & shoved him into the tank, locking him inside.
He screamed. He cried. 
The tanks, ironically meant to be used to RELIEVE anxiety, are soundproof & dark, no one who would be willing to help him could hear his distress. The water started off pleasantly warm, but due to the amount of time he spent in it & his own fear, it quickly felt FRIGID against his clammy skin. Chuuya found himself clawing to escape it after less than an hour, hyperventilating. He was so overcome with fear it didn’t even OCCUR to him that he could use his ability to destroy the tank & escape. He just curled up in the water & sobbed.
He made it two hours before passing out, & was pulled from the tank & woken up. Then he was forced back into it. This time he made it four hours before the anxiety & isolation got the better of him. In total it took three attempts before he made the full eight hours, having spent fourteen hours in the tank total before the session was considered over. Chuuya, heavily dissociating due to the sheer STRESS of the ordeal, put his clothes back on his soaking wet, shaking body in a haze & found himself wandering. He wasn’t sure where he went, but somehow ended up in the basement of the Port Mafia. He locked himself in it before everything came crashing down & he broke down into a sobbing, hysterical panic attack. His estranged brother, Verlaine, was shocked at the condition he was in & hesitantly went to the boy’s aid. He tried to ask him what had happened, but Chuuya refused to answer. After accepting a brief moment of awkward comforting, he told Verlaine to forget he had SEEN him down there or they would both be punished, then he ran out.
Unfortunately, Mori did not consider the 'therapy’ a success, & began calling upon Chuuya frequently for more sessions. Each time Chuuya went, he found his physical response to any proximity to the tank was more SEVERE than last time. In addition, he began to despise the sound of SILENCE, & could no longer bring himself to take baths without spiralling into a nauseous, gasping wreck. He did his best to get through the ordeal, but more often than not he would be spending inhumane amounts of time in the float tank. Sometimes it took as little as eight hours for him to successfully complete the session, sometimes he was in there as long as SIXTEEN. Once, it was almost two full days because he couldn’t stay awake long enough even after being given a drug that made his limbs feel like they were made of LEAD.
Mori tried alternating methods over the course of three months. When Chuuya was badly inured on a mission & reacted poorly to the Port Mafia’s medical team attempting to patch him up, the Boss chose to take over the matter himself. Chuuya was extremely reluctant to be anywhere alone with Mori, but he couldn’t exactly refuse a direct order.
The former doctor gave Chuuya a moderate dose of ketamine, a dissociative anesthetic, & had him lay down on the operating table. The eighteen-year-old quickly realized what he was really up to, & felt a level of fear he’d never experienced before when he realized there was a mirror on the ceiling, & that he couldn’t MOVE. Nor was he becoming sedated. Instead, he laid there paralyzed as Mori cut him open to remove the bullets & suture his internal injuries. He couldn’t even move a single fingertip. He couldn’t feel the pain, of course, since he was under anesthesia, but he saw every cut, slice, & stitch without any ability to even shut his eyes or speak or twitch. Mori was conversational the entire time, kindly explaining each thing he was doing from sterilizing the wounds to the names of each area he was sewing back together. He seemed certain Chuuya would not be afraid if he knew every last DETAIL of what was being done, since the unknown is always more frightening than having knowledge.
Chuuya was absolutely petrified.
The therapies did not improve any of the gravity manipulator’s fears. Rather, recreating the situations that traumatized Chuuya in the first place only succeeded in turning his already severe anxiety into an even more severe case of PTSD. He became paranoid & jumpy, lashing out in anger often, struggling to remember his daily schedule or even to eat which caused a relapse in his previously disordered eating for a while. Faced with no other options, Mori-san orders Chuuya to take a mandatory medical leave to deal with these ‘issues’ or resign from his position as Executive. Chuuya takes the former, reluctant & relieved all at once.
While trying to find a SOLUTION to his humiliating problem, Chuuya runs into a hauntingly familiar face in the park one day. Kashimura Fukumi, his biological mother. She recognizes his face immediately & is overjoyed that he is alive despite his desperate attempt to dispel her notion that he is her son. She insists on exchanging phone numbers, telling him she has waited over a decade hoping he would just come HOME. Overwhelmed with emotion, the 18-year-old agrees. After several phone calls, they arrange a face to face meeting where she tells him the whole story, one that even the Port Mafia had not been able to UNCOVER. Where he was born, who he was, what his siblings he didn’t know existed were like. How he became ILL at a very young age & his father, a doctor, was coerced into signing documents that essential gave away their rights as his parents in exchange for an experimental medical procedure that was meant to save his life. Instead, they were forced to abandon him after being told he died as he was subjected to numerous cruel & inhumane experiments as part of Project Arahabaki.
A bit hesitant at first, Chuuya slowly gets to know each member of the family. His father, his older brother & sister, his TWIN sister & two younger siblings. After initial anger before hearing his side of things, they all welcome him with open arms. For the first time in years, he feels like he has a HOME. Of course, nothing perfect lasts forever, does it? Around his nineteenth birthday, Mori noticed a visible improvement in Chuuya’s mood & work performance. Delighted, he suggested that perhaps the time to himself was beneficial, & that they should continue his therapy even. It felt like a bucket of ice water being dumped over him. He tried to refuse, to tell Mori he couldn’t he had a previously agreed to engagement to attend. When inquired about it, Chuuya had no choice but to confess that he’d begun having a relationship to his biological family.
Mori seemed... almost unperturbed by the knowledge, but it didn’t change his choice. He forced Chuuya to come to the basement & get in the tank. Almost immediately, he suffered another breakdown, this time to the point of getting physically sick. Rather than putting him back in the tank when he had to be pulled from it after six hours, Mori simply left him locked in the room until morning. As soon as he was let out & managed to put himself together, he ran to his family’s home & found them worried sick that he’d missed his 19th birthday party. He tried to explain but simply ended up collapsing in front of them in an incomprehensible wreck. When they finally manage to calm him enough for him to choke out half of an explanation, the Kashimuras were horrified. His family immediately began trying to convince him to leave the Mafia, that it was HURTING him, destroying his body & his mental health. Chuuya found himself genuinely touched by their honest concern. But he couldn’t leave, he’d made a promise, had sworn his loyalty to the Port Mafia. They reluctantly leave the subject alone.
Roughly four months later, everything goes to HELL.
It starts with a callous remark from his eldest sister at the celebratory dinner they were having in honour of the one year anniversary of Chuuya ‘coming home’, aka rejoining their family, & an offhanded comment from his eldest sister about how he could memorize dozens of different martial arts as a teen but at 7 years old couldn’t remember his own family’s phone number to let them know he was ALIVE sent him spiralling. An uncontrollable anger washes over Chuuya along with a feeling of being smothered with darkness, & he loses himself. Upon waking up he found the house trashed, his parents DEAD as well as his siblings, crushed or torn apart by gravity. The only one left alive is his twin, Chiaki, & he cradles her & begs her to hold on, help is coming soon. She tells him it’s okay, she knows its not his FAULT, & chokes to death on her own blood as he cries over the bodies of the siblings he’d just begun to love, & the parents he hadn’t realized he’d NEEDED all along. 
Confused by her final words & dazed he looks down to see himself covered in blood, the blood of his FAMILY. 
Horrified & going into shock, Chuuya manages to make it out of the house before getting sick behind a bush & calling for help. He can’t remember the next week, or the funeral. He is told he had to be heavily sedated at one point after attempting to tear his own ability out of himself during an extreme nervous breakdown, using a scalpel, carving the word ‘Monster’ into his stomach before attempting to put a bullet in his head—Kouyou & Verlaine were able to stop him. He couldn’t plan the funeral on his own, so the Boss helped him arrange everything. Despite Chuuya’s fear, he found himself leaning on the man for reassurance, completely devastated. Mori confesses to him that he is also an orphan, & he knows it’s difficult. But he would be honoured if Chuuya would consider allowing him to adopt him, despite being an adult now. At least then he would know he had family, even if it was a rather unconventional one. 
Chuuya nearly accepted, but a text from Ane-san caused him to postpone sigining it.
The very next, crystal clear memory he has is a month later. Chuuya, still actively suicidal & drunk more often than not when he isn’t dissociating just to get through his work without falling apart over his family, finds himself being pulled aside by VERLAINE to tell him something. That Mori-san went to visit him just over a month ago, to ask him questions about the hat Chuuya wore that blocked his mind from being tampered with. Supposedly, he wanted to reconfigure its settings to see if it were possible to BLOCK the reception of negative emotions, thereby eliminating Chuuya’s troubling phobias entirely. Verlaine requests to see the hat, & when Chuuya hands it over, he confirms that there was something connected to it that wasn’t before. A device receiving signals from something coming from INSIDE of Chuuya’s body.
He thinks of the surgery Mori performed on him, & how easy it would have been to implant something in him without his knowledge due to how terrified he was at the time. Mori had tampered with the hat, the one Chuuya was wearing on the day his family died. 
Everything went RED after that. 
The next thing he knew, he was barging into Mori’s office, screaming accusations at him - of knowing he’d been considering LEAVING & using him to eliminate the only connection Chuuya had left to happiness outside of the Mafia, he shouted so loud his throat was RAW, unable to listen to reason as he picked up the antique desk & threw it at him, missing by an inch as it left a massive CRACK in the bulletproof floor-to-ceiling glass that made up one of the office walls. He vaguely recalls the feelings of anger, of BETRAYAL & the sheer grief of losing the only family he had AGAIN. Mori tried to defend his actions, tried to reach out to the boy & talk him down. 
Chuuya screamed at him, “ DON’T FUCKING TOUCH ME! ” & then the unthinkable happened.
Whether the man was pushed, fell, or jumped to escape the wrath of the unraveling, chaos-god-imbued teenager, NOBODY was there to witness. But the confrontation ended when Mori fell numerous stories to his death through the now broken window. Verlaine, Kouyou & several others on the upper floor who had heard the arguing came running & found Chuuya curled up on the floor, wide-eyed & too shocked to acknowledge any of their presence. He just kept whispering, “What did I do?” over & over again. After that, the teenager shut down completely, & his brother Verlaine & sister Kouyou jumped in to save him from his own actions. The death of Mori was swiftly covered up from anyone below a certain rank, & they forced him to meet with an ability user who claimed she could help REMOVE what the scientists had done to him once & for all, as well as ‘fry’ the software implanted in him, as she had the ability to reach into a person’s mind & create, remove & alter barriers & layers of a person’s psyche. It was risky, but he didn’t care, he told her to take everything OUT, even if it killed him.
She’d never done it on someone quite like Chuuya, a real human implanted with a kami turned into an artificial ability, but she managed it. Not only that, but ARAHABAKI itself was removed from Chuuya, without the seals keeping it tethered to Chuuya’s body, it gained its own separate form, though their souls were still intertwined. With the risk of the Mafia going under if Mori’s death was discovered, Chuuya made possibly the most difficult decision of his life & chose to step into the role when it was revealed that the Boss had named Chuuya his successor, officially, almost two years ago. Arahabaki helped, with his ability to shapeshift among other things, he took the form of Mori for the next few months whenever it was needed to keep the Mafia in line. 
That was not enough to convince everyone who was aware of his death that Chuuya could handle the responsibility in his current mental state, of course, but what he did next quickly changed their minds.
He overhauled the Port Mafia in a matter of days, revising vintage & out of date policies, dismissing previous rules many of them regarded as frivolous or unnecessary. The age to join the Port Mafia was raised to 16 unless the person was otherwise emancipated with nowhere else to go, a crackdown on non-sanctioned crime against civilians was put in place, & he urged pragmatism over flair at every turn. Traitors were given the chance to redeem themselves to the organization or be swiftly executed depending on their crimes, & every member was required to submit to a MARK to show their allegiance. A tattoo, scar, brand or permanent modification of some sort that could not be easily covered up, hidden or cut off, as an additional incentive to prevent BETRAYAL by erasing the chance at hiding from their former allegiance. 
After three years, Chuuya was neither the blood thirsty maniac the Boss from two generations prior had been, nor the sadistic theatrical chessmaster Mori had proven to be, but he was GOOD at what he did, & his genuine loyalty & concern for his subordinates quickly proved invaluable to them. He kept Verlaine & Kouyou as his main executives, promoting Hirotsu to the role as well alongside two others, & making Arahabaki - his darker half, his sometimes lover - his personal body guard & assistant to cover the fact that he still couldn’t use Corruption on his own completely - Arahabaki had to be there. Aside from the god, the only ones outside his brother & sister permitted to see him when he truly is at his most self destructive are the other Executives. To the outside world, something has changed. 
In record time the violent conflicts between the Port Mafia & rival groups virtually disappeared due to their brutal efficiency. The Port Mafia leader no longer shows his face to non-members, & people understand better than to question something that has ultimately improved the quality of life in Yokohama, no matter how brutal. The next three years pass by in a blur of alcohol, violence, & people whose names & faces he can barely remember stumbling in & out of his bed as he alternates between a desperate need to control everything so nothing can be used to control him again, & wanting to drink, smoke & fuck any emotions out of his body so he doesn’t have to think of how much he’s LOST in the last eight years.
Chuuya, resigned to his fate as the leader of an organization he never wished to be in CHARGE of in the first place, & using whatever he has at his disposal to COPE with it all, can sense the shift in the air as the third year anniversary of Mori’s death approaches. Something bad is coming, something EVIL, & everyone had better be prepared to face it, before it crushes them. He isn’t sure he is ready, but one thing is certain...
He’ll crush anyone that tries to harm his people.
~ General Information~
Name: Chuuya Nakahara { English }, Nakahara Chūya { Rōmaji }, 中原中也 { Kanji }, Kashimura Chūya { Birth Name } Gender: Cis Male { Gender-Nonconforming } Age: 22 { Current }, 18-21 { Post ‘Dark Era’ } D.o.B: April 29th, 20XX Nationality: Japanese Residence: Yokohama City Occupation: Port Mafia Boss Relationship Status: Fuck Off Single Orientation: Demiromantic Homosexual
~ Appearance / Style ~
Eyes: Gray-Blue. They tend to shift to particularly bright shades of Azure when he’s feeling especially emotional, sometimes darkening to the colour of storm clouds when angered. When he’s happy, they’re closer to a green-blue or turquoise colour, like the colour of the sea. Hair: Ginger. Short jaw-length semi curly red-orange hair that asymmetrically reaches past his shoulder on one side. Often ties it back in a ponytail or bun in his off hours. No longer wears any sort of head accessories outside pins/ribbons/ties Skin: Fair Height: 5′4″ Weight: 120lbs Clothing: Lots of dark colours, earthy shades & jewel tones. Wears expensive, custom made or designer suits & accessories, shops at mostly high end luxury stores in the city or buys European brands online that he has tailored to fit him. Occasionally wears makeup such as eyeliner, concealer etc.  Piercings: Double earlobe piercings on both sides & a stud on his tongue. Tattoos: Barcode branded on the back of his neck { burned off with a hair straightener }; Corruption markings { temporary / situational }, the Port Mafia insignia is branded onto his right collar bone; a small blackbird with a few kanji beneath it “闇の中、忠実”, the direct translation means “Faithful in the Dark” but actually is the Port Mafia’s motto “In Darkness, Fidelity.” Scars: Numerous from bullet wounds, knives, explosions, surgeries & physical fights, some to the point of layering, all over his body. Several faded scars from N’s torture when he was 16; getting shot, skewered by metal & electrocuted + deep injection wounds on his back. Also, beneath his gloves there are deep, tough scars marring his wrists from the spiked barbed wire used to restrain him. He also has the mark on his right wrist from when he was stabbed with a pencil. He has a self-inflicted scar on his lower right abdomen, just above his hip & pelvis, that says Monster. Following his failed suicide attempt he carved this into his own body in his grief after he killed his family.
~ Personality ~
Zodiac: Taurus Positive Traits: Loyal, intelligent, strong-willed, quick witted, determined, flexible, kind, selfless, brave, empathetic, straightforward. Negative Traits: Brash, quick tempered, somewhat reckless, defensive, snappy, vengeful, unforgiving, ruthless, possessive.
~ Health ~
Physical Disabilities & Conditions: Underweight { Mild }.
Mental Illnesses: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Depression, Substance Use Disorder { Alcohol }, Anxiety. Classified as anxiety disorders in their own right, he also suffers from several moderate to severe phobias: Claustraophobia { closed in / tight spaces }, Agoraphobia { being caught in a situation he can’t easily escape from as well as unfamiliar or very open environments }, Thalassophobia { being submerged in water }, Monophobia { fear of isolation & solitude }, Iatrophobia / Tomophobia { doctors, medical environments, exams, tests, etc. Could be more easily defined as ‘severe Medical PTSD’ }, Eating Disorder NOS { Reoccurring }.
~ Skills ~
Languages: Fluent in Japanese, Mandarin Chinese, Cantonese, English, Russian, Swedish, Korean, Italian, German, French, & Spanish. Semi fluent in Latin & classical Greek.
Physical Abilities: Expert in hand to hand combat & weapons proficiency, especially melee weapons. Chuuya became the Port Mafia’s top combatant by the age of 17, & mastered over a dozen different martial arts & forms of combat, including Akido, Capoeira, Judo, Jujutsu, Savate, Krav Maga, Karate, Defendu, Dim Mak & Shaolin Kung Fu. 
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jauctin · 2 years
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Improve Knowledge About BioFit Scam
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shoptrendthingss · 2 years
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Ten Signs You Need a Sex Makeover
Too many wedded ladies live video sex lose interest in sex since they continue to have single-lady sex. It seems OK then that wedded ladies should figure out how to have hitched lady sex.
Well obviously the consuming inquiry at the forefront of everyone's thoughts is, "What on earth is hitched lady sex and how would I have it?"
Tragically, a central issue generally gets missed. Ladies should initially manage any gloomy sentiments she has towards sex before she can push ahead with wedded lady sex. The usable word here is "work", not push down, overlook or deny.
At the point when the handy solution truck is put before the charisma horse, a lady will intensify her low sex drive disappointment. A typical model is when individuals request that I show them new "sex stunts", figuring it will mean really fascinating sex and a higher sex drive. Wrong response. Long periods of unsettled, unacknowledged room disappointment will smother any happiness gathered from provocative new moves.
A low sex drive isn't similar to having an influenza something you can "move past" rapidly or with a pill. Sexual craving isn't something you feel simply before sex. Every one of the things circumvent the sexual experience: your desire, your inspiration, and your actual desire to associate in sex.
Add to this the way that sexual longing and sexual excitement are not indeed the very same. Sexual excitement alludes to the physical and mental vibes that outcome from sexual feeling. Sexual craving is in the mind, while sexual excitement is the body-state-both need to work as one for a lady to need to have intercourse. If one or both are even somewhat off kilter, no sex.
Everything comes down to you loving the individual and maintaining that sex all together should have intercourse. Sound too oversimplified to possibly be valid? Not actually. For the typical couple (i.e., couples who aren't encountering uncommon difficulties), a major indicator for any relationship is the closeness and sex that couple is having. Assuming something is messed up actually, expertly or in the relationship, the sex will show it.
Having single-lady sex: grip and snatch the problem areas, center around climax and let the man's necessities start things out (in spite of the fact that men are not to blame for our sexual socialization), will do scarcely anything for a lady's slacking sexual craving or excitement. Single-lady sex depends on an affection medicated, fired up drive. Following two years, the affection drugs wear off and the lady is stuck having the normal, worn out sex, which turns out to be increasingly uninspiring.
So the following are ten signs that your sexual coexistence could require a makeover-there could be 1,000 signs on this rundown.
(1) You see a youthful couple kissing and canoodling and you recall affectionately, "I recollect when…"
(2) Your person gives you a little sleep time nooky elbow-bump and you Clint Eastwood-like frown at him and snarl back, "Go for it. Fill my heart with joy."
(3) Sex? What Sex?
(4) You count the days between sex to figure when now is the right time to have responsibility sex.
(5) You freeze up when your accomplice energetically contacts you since you don't need him getting "some unacceptable thought".
(6) You begin purchasing the ten-pack of grandmother style cotton undies from Costco.
(7) You just at any point do it preacher style since it streamlines the kinks and fat during sex.
(8) On a without-kids end of the week escape, engaging in sexual relations once a day is way too insane.
(9) Tucking into a decent romance book is far superior than the genuine article.
(10) Hot and irritated possibly happens to you now when the indoor regulator is broken.
How could you do? Sex makeover required?
At last, we can address the consuming inquiry, "What is hitched lady sex?" first of all, she feels like she is an equivalent in the room. Neither her sexual craving nor her excitement is gotten from moxie. She feels sufficient sexual self-assurance to step it up and step up in the room. Sex effectively squeezes into the setting of her bustling life, where the ideal measure of sex works for her as of now in her life.
Indeed I know. Nothing concrete, just hypothesis and what benefit is hypothesis when there is no beginning spot? Well here are a few inquiries to bite on:
How long have you been with your accomplice?
What number of additional years do you expect to remain with him?
What is what is happening?
What might you like your sex to be?
In particular, what is the hole between the two sexual circumstances?
It is this hole you really want to truly live video sex investigate and deal with together before you can have an existence of fantastic wedded lady sex.
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duskholland · 3 years
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Settle || Mob!Tom Smut
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summary ↠ distance may make the heart grow fonder, but you’d spend every day by tom’s side if you could. warnings ↠ a bit of angst, and this is just.... so fucking smutty.... pwp but make it 8k of smut... 18+ minors dni !!!!!!!!!!! extended nsfw warnings below the cut <3 word count ↠ 11.7k. a/n ↠ lads... lost my mind I’ve lost it. the mob!tom energy has been absolutely overwhelming for the last month, and this has been a long time coming. thank you esquire. thank you gq. thanks tom too, I guess, even though his handsomeness is a double-edged sword. also thanks to chloe for motivating me to write this lmao. this was a lot of fun!! softness sweetness debased animalistic crazy stuff. we love to see it. lmk what you think !! <3 ***this is a part of my mob!tom series – a collection of oneshots set within the same universe. you don’t need to read the other parts for this to make sense! 
*:・゚✧*:・゚✧ *:・゚✧*:・゚✧ *:・゚✧*:・゚✧
extended warnings ↠ praise kink, breeding kink, cockwarming, multiple orgasms, overstimulation, crying, biting, spitting, oral + fingering (fem receiving), unprotected sex (the long-awaited return of cum-dumpster!reader), minor d/s dynamics ft soft!dom!tom, possessiveness in the dirty talk, and I wouldn’t say it’s degradation but there is some patronisation lmao. this is intense loving passionate consuming smut, esp the second section. pls practice safe sex irl x
*:・゚✧*:・゚✧ *:・゚✧*:・゚✧ *:・゚✧*:・゚✧
✧ *:・゚SETTLE・゚:*✧
Tom is wrapped around you, his rich scent overpowering each one of your senses. He consumes you. He becomes you.
With your face buried in the crook of his neck and your legs swung either side of his thighs, you’re clinging tightly to him. One of his hands rests beneath the shirt on your back, the tips of his fingers slowly stroking up and down your spine, and you can feel the firm press of his nose against the side of your head. His face nestles against your hair as he holds you to the warm skin of his neck. Every few minutes, Tom pulls away from the documents and spreadsheets resting on his desk and litters the side of your temple with short kisses.
There’s a persistent throbbing between your legs, but it’s worth it. Tom’s cock is buried inside you, his length enveloped by your silky heat. You can feel him, bearing in on every intimate space of your cunt. In your aroused state, you swear you can make out the lines of his bulbous head and the curves of his veins as they press up against your sensitive walls. You’re pulsing—every slight movement made by either you or him causing you to gasp softly and cling closer to your boyfriend.
“God, darling,” Tom murmurs, accented voice hanging low and heavy. He strokes over your back again, and you hear him click his ballpoint pen. When he tosses the heavy metal object back onto the desk, he sits back in the wide office chair that the two of you are precariously balanced on. You aren’t scared of falling off—you’ve done this before, countless times. You know that he’s got you. “So fuckin’ snug, aren’t you?”
You pull away from your boyfriend’s neck, sucking in a rough breath as you sit up to face him and receive the lightest of friction against your g-spot. As your teeth dig into your lower lip, you take a few moments to admire his ensemble—light white shirt, unbuttoned and hanging open, a delicate silver chain dangling over the golden expanse of his chest. He’s got his rings stacked over his fingers, and the bright metal pieces catch in your hair as he smoothes a hand across your cheek.
Tom smirks at you, his deep brown eyes flooded with lusting appreciation. With one hand on your face, the other slowly slides down your back, drifting over the loose shirt that covers your figure until it disappears between your legs. You cry out as his index finger reaches down to play with your clit, still wet and sensitive from his exploration earlier. He’d opened you up on his tongue before sheathing himself inside you.
“You just got so tight, angel,” he murmurs, voice raspy. “Do you like when I show you a bit of attention?”
“Yeah,” you whimper. You can barely keep your eyes open as he continues to toy with your bud. It’s hard to push down the temptation to start riding him, but you know that’s not the point of this. As much as you crave release and the opportunity to fall apart whilst being encompassed by Tom, there are other objectives at play. “I’ll miss this,” you admit. “I’ll miss you.”
“I know, my darling.” Tom’s expression briefly clouds over, some of the heat leaving his eyes. He rolls the pad of his thumb across your cheekbone, a gentle pout curling across his lower lip. “I don’t want to leave you.”
You lick your lower lip, pushing back the hot lump of emotion that simmers in your chest. All week, you’ve felt apprehensive for his departure, anticipating today with unease. Tom is a good businessman, and usually he’s able to control his own empire from the comfort of his West London mansion. For so long, he’s been near you, lingering close, never trailing too far from your side. But there’s uncertainty in the air, and they need him out in Manchester for a few weeks to whip the boys back into shape. Until the supply issue is resolved, he’ll be away—away from you, and your bed, and the life that you’ve constructed so precariously together.
In this world of drugs and darkness, nothing is certain. You fall asleep beside Tom each night thankful that he’s safe, he’s here, he’s content. You know plenty of people who haven’t been afforded such a luxury. Your boyfriend has enemies who seek revenge and retribution, and their greedy eyes follow him from every direction. They’re like wolves, every single one of them—suppliers, rivals, the law—waiting in the shadows, preparing to pounce at the first sign of weakness.
You shouldn’t love him. He’s not a good man. Tom has told you as much repeatedly—in his deprecating words, in the underhanded dealings that go on around your dinner table, through his violent actions against opponents. But he loves you, and he is a good man, to you, and maybe that’s all that matters. Maybe you can take the pain and the darkness, because it affords you a glimmer of light in the form of your boyfriend. Tom holds you at the very centre of his universe, and as he cups your face in a gentle hand and coaxes you in for a sweet kiss, you know you wouldn’t have it any other way. Your life may be characterised by uncertainty, but there is no doubt in the way that he loves you, so recklessly and fiercely. He gives you everything that he has without hesitation.
The kiss grows deeper, and you moan into Tom as he presses his tongue into your mouth. He’s still rolling your clit beneath his thumb, and you reach up to grab fistfuls of his hair. When he’d pulled you into the office earlier and begged you to spend time with him, it’d come with the caveat that you need not distract him from his final pieces of work. He seems to have abandoned that decision now, as he ruts up into you when you groan into his mouth.
“Sweet love,” he purrs, voice darker. Tom squeezes your cheek, the cool metal of his ring pressing to your skin as he holds you tightly. He releases your face a moment later, fingers shifting to your waist as his lips grace over the tender part of your face. “God, I’ll miss you. Miss this fuckin’ cunt.” He kisses down from your cheek, shifting back and towards your ear. You release a wispy moan as he finds your tender spot, sucking harshly against the skin then soothing the ache with his hot tongue. “So perfect for me.”
“You’re perfect,” you murmur, mind slow. Tom holds your hip slowly and encourages you to move, and both of you release sounds of enjoyment as you begin to ride him. Your entrance aches, stretched wide around his girth, but as his finger rubs persistent circles across your bud, it soothes into pleasure. “Fuck, Tom… You fill me up completely. You’re in so deep.”
“I know, darling,” he murmurs. When you toss your head back and start to move faster, he’s quick to attach his lips to your neck. “Tightest little thing,” he adds, voice scalding against your ear. “I know I’ll be dreaming of you, angel. Every single night.”
You cry out as he helps you shift slightly to the side, optimising your pleasure. As the crown of Tom’s cock rubs up against your back wall, you shudder, breath hitching. The sounds of your heat, so wet and silky, being fucked repeatedly as you come down on him again and again spurs you on. It grows wild quickly, Tom leaving your neck and sitting back in his chair just to watch you ride him so perfectly. His eyes are dark and passionate, and his gaze so intense that it’s as if he’s trying to burn the memory to mind.
“I don’t think I can hold it,” you admit, eyes threatening to roll back. After sitting on his cock for fifteen minutes, you were already riled up. Now, you’re on cloud nine. Pleasure has your toes curling, the muscles in your thighs tensing and straining as you cling to the back of Tom’s head and tug on his curls. “T-Tom.”
“That’s it, gorgeous. Say my name.”
His ring digs into your side, spurring you on. As the cool metal nicks at your skin, the coil in your stomach tightens further.
“Oh,” you moan, eyes fluttering shut. No longer able to see Tom’s handsome face, you’re left only with the sensations, pulsing out from your centre. You’re on the verge, inching closer with every time Tom pulls you back onto his cock. He works you open, thrusts into you deep, leaves you gasping.
“C’mon, pretty baby,” he murmurs, hot lips moving forward to press at your neck. “Make me cum. I know you want it, don’t you?”
A throaty groan travels past your lips as you know exactly what he’s talking about. You’d stopped taking birth control a week ago, and though both of you know that the chances of you falling pregnant so soon after ending those hormones are slim, the possibility is there. Sex now feels dangerous, the extra weight to it filling you with arousal and excitement.
“Yes,” you whimper. “Please.”
Tom nips at your ear, the bite of pain making you moan.
“Go on,” he coos, voice sweet, sultry. “I’m going to fill you up, darling. Give you something to remember me by.” His hand slips from his waist and travels to your lower stomach, resting there. “Right here,” he adds. “Do you want it, love? You need to work for it. Cum on my cock, mm? Let me feel how desperate your tight little pussy is for my cum.”
Tom snaps his hips up to yours, and a few moments later, you peak. Your climax burns through you, your walls clamping down around his length in a way that makes him groan loudly. You open your eyes to watch his face seize up, freezing with pleasure and enjoyment as his jaw tenses and his eyes squeeze shut. You feel his cock pulsing as you continue to move over him, lost in the pleasure that spirals out from your cunt and your clit. His pants are laboured too.
When you come down from it, you settle in his lap, sweaty palms grasping at his face. Tom pulls you closer, wrapping you up in his arms as he presses his forehead to yours. His nose bumps against yours, tip warm. Every part of him is warm.
“I love you so much,” he says, voice serious. “More than you could ever imagine, Y/N.”
You smile. “I love you too,” you whisper.
Tom pulls back from you to pepper his lips across your face, dusting every inch of your skin with his mouth. You’re still connected at your centre, and you know the moment you stand, you’ll feel the evidence of his love dripping down your thighs.
“I—”
A rough knocking sound bursts into the room, hard knuckles drumming over the office door. You jump, and Tom’s brows crease. He brings both of his hands to cover your ears and kisses the tip of your nose before sitting up a little straighter.
“What the fuck do you want?” he hollers, voice terse. He’s muffling the volume with his palms, but you still wince, and he kisses your nose again in penance.
“Sir, we have to go. The men are waiting—”
Tom’s face ripples with irritation. You watch the vein stand out in his neck, fading only when his eyes sweep back to your face. He deflates as he brings his lips down across your forehead.
“I’ll be two minutes,” he barks back. “Now piss off. I’m with my girl.”
“Yes, sir.”
Tom peels his hands away from your ears, then rubs each one of your earlobes with the soft pads of his thumbs. “Sorry about that, my darling,” he mumbles, shadows covering his features. His teeth dig into his lower lip as he sighs. “I need to go.”
You feel your face fall, and break eye contact when the intensity of his gaze grows too much. “Okay,” you mumble.
“Hey.” Tom grasps your chin between his index and his middle finger. “I’ll come back to you,” he promises. You know he can feel your reluctance to let him go, can see it on your face without you having to verbalise it. You wonder if he’s been able to tell how unsettled you feel about the whole ordeal, and if maybe that’s why he’s let you be more clingy this week.
“What if you don’t?” you breathe out, unable to keep it in. You blink a few times, trying to hide the watery film of tears that shakes across your eyes. “What if something happens to you whilst you’re away, and you don’t come home?” You reach down and grab at his shirt, clenching your knuckles around the crisp material. “Tom, you are my home. I don’t know what I’ll do if—”
“I’ll come back, baby.” He kisses you softly, a few fingers brushing up beneath your chin and tilting you to him. “I always will. I promise. I’m a man of my word, so you know that’s true.”
You manage a thin smile, heart aching even as Tom cups your face in his hands. “I love you,” you say finally. “And I’ll be waiting for you to get back.”
Tom nods. His cheeks are still flushed, and his hair is a mess, but the fire in his eyes is undeniable. When he deposits a light kiss to your cheek and then lets his lips brush you against your earlobe, you know that he’ll be back. You know he’d never fail you.
“I’ll be back before you know it.”
*:・゚✧*:・゚✧ *:・゚✧*:・゚✧ *:・゚✧*:・゚✧
A month passes. You miss Tom desperately.
For the first three weeks, you manage to control the sadness in your chest. Finding distraction in your job and your friends, you’re able to forget about the giant Tom-shaped hole in your heart. He lingers on, though, his love persistent even in his absence. Despite finding certain ways to limit your anguish, like daily calls, and soaking your wrists in his cologne each morning, the time only worsens your heartache. You’re miserable without him.
In the fourth week, it reaches the point where you can no longer pretend you aren’t aching for him. You miss him in a way you’ve never felt before, his absence from your home like a sharp spire ever-present in your chest, burrowing deeper every lonely morning. Tom can’t ease you, doesn’t know himself when he’ll be able to come home. The job he’s had to do has spiralled, with mutinous men and delayed shipments, and it’s in too precarious a position for him to leave and come back to you. When you’d suggested visiting, he’d immediately wiped that option from the table, citing the acts of violence and uneven atmosphere as too great a risk to take. You understand it, but you miss him, and it permeates every part of your life.
It’s late Tuesday night, and in a fitless trance, you find yourself walking up to the third floor of the mansion. When you’d moved in, almost a year ago, Tom had tried to make you feel as comfortable as possible. In his efforts, he’d installed an art studio for you to use. The gesture went in tandem with his greatest gift to you so far—your very own art gallery, right in the centre of London. The studio is a large room, framed with huge windows which overlook the sprawling estate. Tonight, all you can make out is the dim driveway and the crescent moon, hanging thinly in the sky.
After turning on some music and slipping on your painting apron, you take your place in front of your easel. As you stare at the blank canvas, your fingers shift up to absently run the line of Tom’s ring. It hangs on a chain around your neck, silver and bold. You hadn’t realised that he’d left it with you until you’d reached into your pocket the day of his departure and found it sitting there. You know the matching ring stays wrapped around his pinky finger, and it brings you a sense of comfort to trace the smooth band and feel connected to him, even in a small way.
You decide to paint Tom, trying to coax him to life from your memories. Shades of gold and brown take form over your canvas. With every brush stroke and flick of your wrist, you feel lighter, some of the ache lessening.
Hours pass, interrupted only by the ringing of your phone. Biting back a small curse word as you feel your concentration shatter, you put your paintbrush down and tug your phone from your back pocket. Your frown fades as you see Tom’s name, flashing on the screen besides an image of his face.
“T,” you greet, the relief in your voice obvious even to you. “Hey.”
There’s silence for a few moments, then his voice crackles down the line. “Hi, darling,” Tom speaks. “It’s not too late to talk, is it?”
You glance up at the ornate clock sitting on the wall. The feature is grand and solid gold, matching the themes of the rest of his house. Tom likes decadence. His luxurious touch is evident in the patterns of red, black, and metals that cling to each article of furniture. When you see that it’s 2am, you blink a few times, shaking off your surprise as you realise how much time has passed since you’d started to paint.
“It’s okay,” you reply. “I’m painting.”
“Ahhh.” You hear the rustling of sheets, and you imagine Tom in bed. He’s probably bundled up in sweats and a hoodie, sprawled out across his mattress. The house in Manchester always runs cold, and you’ve heard his complaints consistently for the last few weeks. The image of him resting up against the headboard, pouting from beneath a pile of blankets makes you smile. “What are you working on?”
You smile into your phone, stepping back to admire your handiwork. “You,” you tell him. “Just your eyes at the moment, and the outline of your hair.”
“Me again?” Tom speaks, and his tone is like soft velvet, gentle and crushing at the edges. “I’m flattered, darling.”
“Mmm.” You fiddle with his ring. “I’ll need to dedicate a wall to you in the gallery. You’re my favourite muse.”
Tom chuckles. “That’d be an honour,” he says, voice dropping in volume. “It’s a privilege to be loved by you.” His voice twangs sadly, and you feel yourself frowning.
“Are you okay, baby?”
He’s quiet for a few moments. You find yourself biting your lip.
“Yeah,” he says, voice thicker. “Long day.”
“What did you do?”
He sucks in a harsh breath, air catching on the back of his teeth. “Can we just talk about you for a minute?”
Worry furrows your brow. “Okay,” you say, drawing out the syllable as you scramble for words to fill the gap. “Today I visited your mother.”
“Oh?”
“She wanted me to show her how I made those biscuits, from your birthday last year?” You pause until he makes a noise of recognition. “Ended up staying there for a while, had some tea. Gossiped about you.”
Tom snorts. “Learn anything good?”
“Only that you were just as much of a terror as a child,” you reply. “She sent me photos. I’ll text them to you later.”
It’d been a sobering experience to see Tom so animated and innocent as a child, but you don’t tell him that. So much as changed since he was seven and running through a field with his brothers. He has lost more than you could ever fathom.
“Did she show you the one with my head half shaved?”
You laugh. “Yeah,” you say, smiling against the phone. You’re holding the device tightly in your fingers, clinging to it almost desperately. “I can’t believe Harry did that to you.”
“Well, I did piss him off,” Tom reasons. “I got him back, anyway.”
“Yeah?”
“Fuck yeah, darling. Put a bunch of, like, millipedes and creepy crawly things in his bed.” Tom pauses to laugh, his voice lighter. “He hated me for about a year after that. Tried to kill me with his eyes every time he saw me.”
You roll your eyes. “You’re a nightmare,” you respond. “I’m seeing him at the weekend, and Sam. I can’t wait to get their perspectives on the demon you used to be.”
“I’m still a demon now, darling.”
“Yeah.” You lick across your lower lip, mind briefly darkening. He can be particularly devilish, whenever the mood strikes. “Love you, though.”
“And I love you.” Tom’s quiet again for a few moments, and when he speaks, his voice is gentle, “I love how much you like my family. It’s really special to me that you get along with them.”
You suck on your lower lip. “Of course,” you reply. “I love them. They… They feel like my brothers too, sometimes. Is that weird?”
“No.” You hear rustling again, followed by a soft grunt as he tries to find a better position to lay in. “Darling, family is everything to me, you know that. It’s a joy to see you fit in with my family, and I know they love you like a sister, too. Mum’s always saying how she sees you like a daughter.”
You glance up at your canvas, the shapes blurring with unshed tears. “She said that today, actually,” you murmur.
“Exactly.” Tom’s voice is passionate, alight and engaged. You can feel his strain. “You’re family.”
The air between you stills, and you wonder if he knows that you’re on the verge of tears, if he knows how grateful you are to him for inviting you into his life and letting you touch each piece of him without hesitation. The intricacies of his soul have gone so long unfelt, but he’s let you handle them, let you dust them off and admire them.
“Show me your art?” Tom adds, voice slightly thicker. “Please?”
“One sec.” You swallow down the hot lump of emotions that press at the back of your throat and pull your phone away from your ear. After briefly tousling your hair, you tap at the screen and enable the video setting. You flip the camera so it’s facing out in front of you, the canvas being framed by your phone screen. “This is what I’ve been doing today… Over there are the ones from the last few weeks.”
Tom spends a few minutes on a virtual tour of your studio, cooing soft words of endearment as you talk him through each piece. He’s tired, his voice often interspersed with soft yawns and grunts of fatigue, but he blows away all suggestions of disconnecting. Your tour takes you all throughout the house, showing him the slight alterations you’ve made to a few pieces of furniture in his absence. You end up in your bedroom, showing him the new blanket you bought for your bed.
“I want to see your face,” you whine, finally settling in bed. You’re laying on his side, head resting on top of the pillow that smells of him. Tom had watched you change into pyjamas, witnessed you brushing your teeth and getting ready for bed. All you’ve had is a black screen. “How am I supposed to sleep without seeing you, Tommy?” You pout at the blank phone, trying really hard to get him to yield. It’s 3am now and you’re delirious with fatigue, but you’re craving him more than ever.
“I don’t look nice, though,” he complains. “I look ugly.”
You practically recoil at the words. You hope he can feel the ferocity in your gaze as you glare at your phone’s camera.
“You don’t,” you say. “You never look anything short of handsome.”
Tom chuckles. “You’re too kind,” he says, “but really. I got beat up a bit. My face is all…” He makes a sound of nonchalance. “Well.. It doesn’t matter. You don’t need to know the gory details.”
Your eyebrows shoot up your forehead at the word gory. “Show me,” you ask, voice softer. You snuggle further into bed, pulling the sheets further around your figure and trying to pretend you’re being hugged by your boyfriend instead of the feather down duvet. “Please, baby. I’m worried.”
Tom sighs. “Okay, but before I show you, you have to promise not to freak out.” As he sees your widening eyes, he adds. “Exactly! Don’t freak out! I’m fine. Can’t even feel it, the amount of painkillers I’m on. I’m alright.”
“...Okay.”
A few moments pass, and you hear him curse as he clumsily presses at the screen. When your phone lights up, showing a depiction of your boyfriend’s face, you have to bite back a gasp. Bruises cloud his left cheek, deep shades of red clinging to his cheekbone. There are scratches, too, riddled with scabs and lined with pink skin. The most obvious and upsetting sign of his injury however is his nose.
“Did you break your nose again?” you ask, voice soft. The skin beneath his eyes is bruising, and there’s a dark mark across the bridge of his nose.
“No, thank god,” Tom murmurs. “Just got hit on it.”
He’s laying in bed too, and you turn onto your side and prop him up on one of the pillows so it’s as if he’s laying beside you. With a dark burgundy hoodie pulled over his head, obscuring his curls, he looks pale and tepid. His cheeks are sunken, and it’s not just from the injury. Tom seems exhausted.
“Are you okay, apart from that?”
“Hm?”
“Are you okay, Tom?”
He offers a weak smile. “Yeah, yeah, yeah.” His voice fades with each iteration. You watch as Tom bites his lower lip, then reaches up to press his fingers into the tense lines of his pebbled forehead. “Just tired, darling. It’s been a busy week.”
“Come home,” you say, sleepy and wistful. “I’ll take care of you.”
“I can’t, my darling,” he mumbles. Tom’s eyes look at you sadly. “Things would fall apart.”
“You’re falling apart.”
“I’ll be fine.”
“Will you?”
Tom’s quiet for a while, and you watch him swallow. He gives you a tense nod, lips pulled into a frown. “I have to be.”
His words hurt you, but you know you shouldn’t push it further. Not with his eyes glassy and his chin twitching.
“You don’t,” you say softly. “Come home.”
Tom hums. His eyes are like two diamonds, holding the weight of the world, of a life so recklessly lived. His gaze skitters across your phone, and he arches a brow when he sees you stifle a yawn. “Goodnight, darling.”
You wish you could hold him, or touch him. You wish you could get anything more than the static and the empty bed.
“Night, Tom,” you whisper. “Sweet dreams.”
“Sweet dreams to you too, baby.” Tom puckers up his lips and blows you a kiss. You return it, lips tweaking into a soft smile. “Love you more than anything.”
Your voice feels thick as you echo the sentiments. “Talk tomorrow,” you murmur, tired. “Love you.”
“Bye, bye, bye.”
You’re the one to disconnect, unable to take the imminent heartache that comes with being the last to say goodbye. Tom fades, and you let your phone fall over.
The pain returns, pressing into your heart. It’s raw and cold, and it makes you shiver. A few tears soak into the pillow that smells of him, cool against your hairline.
*:・゚✧*:・゚✧ *:・゚✧*:・゚✧ *:・゚✧*:・゚✧
You wake up the next morning, slowly at first, then all at once.
It’s light in your bedroom. Your sleepy mind wonders if you’d forgotten to draw the curtains when you’d crashed out last night. As you bemoan the bright light that hurts your closed eyes, you slowly twitch awake. Feeling an ache in your arm, you try to move, only to find something rendering you incapacitated. You frown in your tired haze, trying again to move, just to stay exactly where you are again. Your brows furrow next, and you slowly rouse to consciousness as you try to work out what’s going on.
Your heart rate spikes as you realise there are two arms wrapped around you. Warmth envelops you, pressing into your back, your legs, your waist. You jerk awake, panicking for a moment before you feel his lips on your shoulder, and smell the familiar scent of him.
“Shh, darling. It’s me.”
Immediately, you roll over, twisting in his arms until you’re looking at him. His eyes are soft, hair a mess, and he offers you the gentlest smile you’ve ever seen.
“Tom?!” you exclaim, voice catching in the back of your throat. “H-How— but—?”
Both of Tom’s hands go to your cheeks, and he pulls you in for a blinding morning kiss. You sigh as warmth fills every part of you, his lips washing away the angst and the sadness you’d felt just hours earlier. You moan into it, a soft rumble, and curl into him. As you run your hands over his bare form, you appreciate how his muscles are firm and supple beneath your fingertips. You map him out attentively, touch dipping into the shades of his muscles as you try to imprint him to your memory again.
When Tom breaks the kiss, he presses his lips to the tip of your nose. As his warm breath fans out across your face, he stares at you, eyes gentle. Keeping one hand on your cheek, Tom lets the other drift down. When he reaches your neck, he tugs at the chain you keep looped around your throat, his nimble fingers going to play with the ring on the end, still there, hanging between you.
“I couldn’t sleep,” he says slowly. He pulls on the chain and brings you in nearer, kissing you again, softly. “We said goodnight, and...”
Your hands are in his hair, gently stroking the mane from his face. It’s longer now, thicker and brighter than before. You push it away and look at his features. The bruises don’t seem as pronounced now, and you think he must’ve spent time in the sun. Light freckles dust the bridge of his nose, slanted and wonky but perfect nonetheless.
“Hmm?”
Tom licks his lips. “I couldn’t stay away any longer. I left it all to Haz.” Again, he steals your lips in a kiss. He follows up the action with several more, light dustings in quick succession. He tastes minty, and you wonder how long he’s been cuddling you. “I don’t care if we lose Manchester. I don’t care if we lose everything.” He swallows seriously. “I can’t lose you.”
“You were never going to lose me,” you whisper. You brush your thumb across his unscarred cheekbone. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“But I missed you,” Tom whines. He drops his face, lips drifting down to suckle at the base of your neck. You giggle as he leaves tickling kisses all over your skin, mouthing at all the spots that make you laugh until he’s found his way up to your lips. With a hand on your jaw, fingers on your chin, he guides your face to look at him. “Time away gave me a lot of time to think,” he adds, voice drifting lower. A shadow of a doubt passes over his face. “I spent a long time pondering.”
“Yeah?” If he wasn’t holding you so tightly, you’d be concerned. Instead, you continue to muss your thumb across his cheekbone, gazing at him adoringly. “What were you thinking about?”
“Hmm. Well…” Tom lies back, sitting up with his elbow digging into the pillow as he turns to rest on his side. You mirror his position, stretching out your legs beneath the covers as a small yawn slips past you. “I realised that you’re the only person who makes a nice cup of tea. Even I can’t make one as well as you.”
You smile softly. “Don’t let Harrison hear that.”
He chuckles. “He’d be a bitch about it.” Tom’s eyes slide over your figure, gaze soft. You hum in quiet agreement, and he sucks in another breath. “I realised that no one else loves my friends like you do, and the same with my family.” Tom reaches out, hand slithering beneath the duvet until he finds your waist. His fingers are smooth, without the jewelry that usually adorns them. His calloused fingertips roll across your hip, and everything about the moment feels bare and authentic. “I love you now, and I know that I’ll love you forever.”
Something inside your chest clicks, and you find yourself looking at him a little differently.
“Where’s this all coming from?” you ask, looking at him, eyes wide.
“My heart.” Tom pulls you a little closer, and you think you see him swallow nervously. “C’mere, angel.” He turns and lays on his back, gently coaxing you to straddle him.
You settle over him, laying on top of his bare chest. He’s in boxers, and they rub up against your shorts as you shift around on top of him. Tom’s hair presses into the white pillow, wild and messy, but not unlike a halo. With the late morning sun highlighting his worn face with golden stripes, he looks ethereal.
“Darling,” he murmurs. “Gimme a kiss.”
You bend over, and Tom greets you with a warm open-mouthed kiss. He doesn’t seem to care that you’re tired and groggy as he reaches out to cup your cheek, the other hand resting on your hip. You smile against his lips as his fingertips dip beneath the material of your shirt, rubbing light circles to your flesh as you sit up eagerly and press back in. His kisses feel like droplets of fire, setting off small chain reactions with each press of his lips to yours.
When you pull back to admire him, the chain around your neck goes swinging. Your eyes widen as you hear the thump of heavy metal colliding with Tom’s chin, followed by his soft grunt.
“Oh,” you exclaim, immediately feeling your face fall. “I’m sorry, baby. I always forget about the ring on the end.” You bend over to kiss his chin, then sit up straighter, hands absently travelling along the chain. The metal feels familiar beneath your fingertips, and you sigh softly. “I haven’t taken it off since you left,” you admit. “It was nice feeling connected to you, and the ring you left—”
The words die in the back of your throat when you reach for the ring and feel two instead of one, looped side by side on the chain. Confusion twitches across your face as you look down and inspect the piece of jewelry.
Tom’s ring is still on the chain, silver and bold, but sitting beside it is a dantier ring, the band thinner. It lacks the brash family crest that Tom’s harbours so proudly, and has a diamond as its centrepiece. Your fingers go to it immediately, and you find yourself trembling as you pull it closer to your face, inspecting the perfect cut of the sparkling diamond. It’s a large jewel, but it isn’t too flashy, and the ornate twisting of the band is beautiful.
You look back to Tom, who’s watching you with his lower lip pulled between his teeth. Nerves shadow every one of his features, and it’s such a rare look on him that it takes you off guard.
“Angel,” he says slowly, reaching out to take one of your hands. “I love you. I want us to spend the rest of our lives together… I want to grow old with you by my side, and wake up to you each morning. I want to watch our kids muck around in the back garden, and I know… I know I’m not supposed to want these things. I don’t deserve them, and I’m being incredibly selfish even having you here with me right now, but I love you, and nothing will ever change that.” Tom squeezes your hand. “You’re the only woman in the world that I’d ever be able to love like this, and it would be the greatest honour of my life if you married me.”
You’re quiet for a few moments, processing his words. Entranced, you shake off his hand and reach up, tugging off the chain that hangs so heavily from your neck. You unpick the clasp and the necklace falls open, depositing both of the rings into the palm of your hand. They sit there, side by side, and you feel a tear skate down your cheek.
“Tom,” you say, voice thick with tears. “I’d love to marry you.”
The rings press into your palm as he hurries up to kiss you, smiling against yours lips. Tom’s nose nuzzles against yours, and when he pulls back, you see his eyes are red too.
“Thank fuck,” he murmurs. “I was so worried for a second that you were going to say no.”
Your laugh is light and vibrant, and you hold out your hand for Tom to pick up the engagement ring. As he slides the engagement band up your finger, you take his ring, chunky and heavy, and tenderly press it up his finger, joining it with his fourth finger instead of his index. You bend over to kiss the rise of his knuckles, then pull back as you feel him do the same to yours. Through blurry eyes, you bring your hand towards you and admire the gem as it sparkles there.
“In what world would I ever say no to this?” you muse, after a few moments. “I want to be with you forever, Tom. You know that.” Tom’s still looking at his ring, at where it joins at his knuckle, but he glances up when you drift nearer. “I came off birth control.”
His eyes darken slightly. “I know.”
You hold his face in his hands. “You’re silly,” you say. You peck his cheek. “I need to brush my teeth,” you decide. You know exactly where this is going, and you want it to be perfect.
Tom pouts, but he helps you up from his lap. He watches you walk across the room, and his gaze stays on you as you keep the door to the en-suite open and start to brush your teeth. “Miss you, darling,” he calls out. You roll your eyes, but your heart beats a little faster. “You look ethereal.”
When you’re finished in the bathroom, you hurry back to bed. You find your way back into Tom’s lap, sinking into him to share a fresh kiss. “Tell me more about what you want with me,” you continue, voice darker.
With a determined smirk on his lips, Tom flips you. You release a huff of air as you find yourself laying on the mattress, head on the pillow, with him suspended above you. He plants a forearm on either side of your head and gazes down at you fondly.
“I want to settle down with you,” he says slowly. “Maybe start to divide my assets, give a little bit more power to Haz. I want to focus on you.” He pecks your lips before continuing. “I want to watch your gallery grow into the most successful place in London, and I want to be by your side at every opening. I want a big white wedding, with the cake, and the confetti, and the best honeymoon that’s ever been had. I am going to spoil you rotten.”
“You already do a very good job of that.”
“I’ll kick it up a level. I’ll have to. You’ll be my wife.” Tom’s face darkens. His hand shifts down to rest over your lower stomach. “We’ll need to wait for a lot of those things to happen, but there’s one thing that I want that we can start working on right now.”
Your mouth goes dry, and you feel the space between your legs throb. You tilt your head to the side as you stare up at his handsome face. “And what would that be?”
“Our heirs, darling.” He smirks when you whimper, warm fingers dipping beneath your shirt until he’s able to touch the flesh of your belly more directly. “I’m gonna fill you up with my babies, angel. Fuck you really good. ‘M gonna keep cumming until you’re full of me, then fuck you full again.”
You moan as he drops his face to your ear, suckling hard marks against your skin. “Fuck,” you murmur, burying your hands in his hair. “That sounds so obscene.”
“Yeah, but you like it, don’t you? You’re my dirty little thing, hm?” Tom bites at your neck, teeth nipping you and making you shiver. “I know you want me to cum in you so much that it drips down your thighs for hours after I’m gone. You want me to make a mess of your pretty cunt.”
“Please, Tom,” you whimper. You feel hot and bothered already.
“Eager, darling?” Tom sits back and gently reaches for the hem of your pyjama top. You bring your hands above your head as he gently tugs it up your arms, throwing it off to the side without thought. He crawls back over you and seizes your breasts in his hands, his metallic ring like a cool shock against your skin. When he nibbles at your nipple and follows up the action with a lap of his tongue, you whimper.
“Don’t be a tease,” you beg, squeezing your thighs together. “I need you, Tom. Haven’t been with you in so long.”
He looks up at you, tit held between his lips. Tom winks as he gives the bud a noisy suck, then pulls back to address the other. He keeps his thumbs busy, and as he moves away his mouth, he replaces his touch with the pad of his fingers, swirling his spit around your skin with ease.
“There’s no rush,” he announces. He keeps his hands on your breasts, kneading softly and stimulating your nipples as he knows you like, but his mouth starts to move. Tom trails light kisses down your form, keeping his eyes on yours. He observes you through darkened eyes. “Don’t whinge,” he adds, the tips of his teeth sparkling ravenously. “I’m going to fuck you so well you’ll cry, but not yet. Let me enjoy this.”
His promise makes you squirm, and Tom takes advantage of the fact your hips are off the bed and tugs your shorts and panties down your legs in one fell swoop. As you part your legs, you invite him closer, biting back a frown as Tom settles between your thighs but pays your legs attention instead of your centre. Your folds are slick already—you can feel them wet, hot, pulsing with more urgency the longer you spend watching your boyfriend’s muscles flex as he draws his lips across your figure.
Tom teases you, drawing out the moment until you’re quivering. His lips draw down to your shins, his whole body sliding down the bed until he’s just out of reach. You lean back against the pillow and try to enjoy it, revelling in the warmth that he dusts across your bare skin with each small kiss. Tom traces love hearts up your legs with his fingertips, drawing large ones over each one of your knees before tracing over the outline with his tongue. As his spittle cools over your skin, Tom finally parts your thighs.
“Such a pretty sight,” he moans, taking a moment to admire your glistening cunt. You think he’s going to dive straight in, but then he smirks, and you know that was just wishful thinking. Instead, Tom nuzzles his nose against the soft flesh of your inner thigh and goes back to kissing.
He’s needier now, moving with fervour. Sucking harshly, you know he’s marking your inner thighs, drawing an arrow towards your centre with a line of bruises. He delineates his journey, marking out the precise route he needs to take up to your sweet lips as if leaving instructions.
“Tom, please,” you moan. He’s so close to you that you can feel his hot breath coming out across you. He looks up at you and throws out a wild grin, his eyes bright and his smirk as bold as ever. “Please stop teasing me.”
He hums softly. “Okay, my darling,” Tom murmurs. You release a deep sigh of relief. “But only because I can’t go another second without tasting my pussy…” His thumbs gently move along your petals, light with his touch and teasing you until your cunt clenches around nothing. “You don’t mind if I’m a little rough, do you, angel?” He blinks up at you innocently. “I tend to get a little bit lost in you, but you know that by now, don’t you?”
“It’s okay,” you say. “Give me anything… ‘m aching for you.”
Tom’s devilish smirk makes you wonder if giving him complete control was a good idea, but the thought goes flying from your mind as he nuzzles his face closer and finally indulges himself. Moaning loudly as he tastes you, his lips gradually envelop your clit, hot tongue lightly glancing off the engorged rise of the bud as you cry out. He’s wet with you, letting his tongue make your slit all messy.
Tom brings two slender fingers to your lips and parts them in a V. His nose brushes up against your clit as he slowly moves down. As the thick muscle of his tongue presses against your dewy entrance, he emits a low-pitched moan.
“God, darling,” he purrs. “Tastes even sweeter than usual.” As the vibrations of his words thrum over your cunt, you shiver and grab at his hair. One of Tom’s hands grabs at your inner thigh, pushing it up and opening you wider until he’s able to move deeper. You gasp as both of his thumbs shift down to hold your lips apart, tender petals parting easily.
As Tom slides his tongue into you, your eyes roll back in your head. You squirm against the sheets as wetness drips between your cheeks, a mix of your heat and his spit as Tom devours you. He moans against you, dragging his tongue against your tender walls. The sensations of his smooth muscle twisting against your sensitive pussy makes you shiver, and when he adds a thumb to your clit, you cry out loudly.
“Tom, oh fuck.”
He traces around your bud with a light finger, teasing the edge of the bud with his fingernail. Impatient and needy, you rut down against him, a choked sob bubbling up in the back of your throat. Your chest is heaving, your nipples perked and erect, and your fingers shake as you hold him to your heat. Tom seems to go deeper with each thrust of his tongue, moaning as he makes you messy, leaving no part of you untouched.
You call out a quiet warning, blind with lust and on the verge of tears. “‘M gonna cum,” you mewl. “Feels too good.”
He hums aggressively against you and dives deeper with his tongue, touching your clit until you peak. The feeling of your walls clenching and contracting against his face makes you whine, rutting down against him as you ride it out. Tom takes it, stays pliant as you grind onto his tongue, continuing to stimulate your passage until your back arches from the bed and you break into a hot sweat. When Tom pulls back, he’s quick to replace his tongue with two fingers, and the moan you release is garbled and excessive.
“T-Tom,” you cry out. He curls his index and middle finger into you with ease, his fourth dropping down to rest between your cheeks. You can feel the metal of his heavy silver ring, cool against your skin. “S’too much.”
He finally looks up at you after an eternity admiring your heat. His eyes are wide and feral, his chin coated in your juices. You whimper as you see streaks of white cum clinging to the early morning shadow of his chin. Tom grins inquisitively as he thrusts his fingers faster, your heat so slick and open that the movement draws out loud noises.
“I don’t think it’s too much, darling,” he mumbles. “I think you’re being my good girl, hm? We’ve barely started.” He drops his lips and nuzzles further between your legs, looking up at you with your clit held loosely in his mouth. He gently laps across the rise before releasing it and pressing a light kiss to the engorged bud. “I’m going to make you cum so much you forget your name, lovie. Gonna show you how much I appreciate you today and for every other day of our lives.”
You like the sound of that, and your cunt throbs persistently as Tom curves his fingers up and his fingertips brush against your ridged g-spot. As your hips threaten to spasm from the bed again, Tom sits up and shifts his arm, so it weighs down your lower stomach. “More,” you decide, hearing your heat prickle as Tom speeds up his fingers.
He adds his ring finger, and you cry out as the smooth band of metal presses up against your entrance. The contrast of cold against the ravaging fire of your hole is almost orgasmic in itself.
“Pretty little pussy,” he muses. “Need to stretch you out for my cock, da’ling. Haven’t taken me in so long, I don’t want to hurt you when I stuff you full.”
You’re so wet. You can feel the flat of Tom’s hand coated in your arousal, hear your heat as he fucks you. You try to pay attention to him, but you find yourself slipping when he drops his lips back to your bud and starts to suck on it. As Tom traces incessant circles over your clit, he alternates between long laps of his tongue and more focused kitten licks. Your desperate fingers curl around the silky sheets as you recognise that he knows your cunt well, and he’s learnt the right angle and depth that he needs to travel to in order to get you to the edge. He’s persistent and ruthless in the pursuit of his objective.
You peak for the second time as he curls his fingertips up against your tender g-spot, moaning around your clit under you’re crying out. Your eyes burn with tears as you call out his name, voice clouded by curse words and desperate sounds of enjoyment. You’re loud, thrashing in the sheets until he has to reach up and press you into place, not moving as he continues to stimulate you through it. It feels unending—an eternal tunnel of throbbing pleasure, your cunt squeezing his digits until it’s almost too much.
When you grow too sensitive, you tell him as much, and Tom pulls back to reach blindly for your hand. He finds it, then separates from your mound. His fingers slowly slip from your aching cunt, causing you to gasp, but he softens it out by kissing over the knuckles of your other hand, then your lower stomach.
“Perfect, angel,” he coos. Tom pushes your legs shut again, being careful not to hurt you as he crawls on top of you. He squeezes your hand as he continues to kiss all over your stomach, hips and chest, retracing his tracks from earlier until he finds your nipples. You moan as he laps at both of them messily before moving up to your face and kissing you intensely. His tongue tastes of your juices, your arousal sticking to his tongue. The tangy hue sticks to your own mouth, and you moan as you taste it.
“God, I love kissing you,” he murmurs against you, voice rumbling into you. Tom gasps your face with his clean hand, holding you tightly. “Could do this for the rest of my life.”
You’re hungry as you chase him, body tired but craving more. As Tom starts to roll his hips against yours, the press of his length to your centre makes you excited.
“I can taste myself on your tongue,” you admit. The blend of you and him makes you feel ravenous.
“Really?” Tom sits up, his face flickering with enjoyment as you start to grind up against his hips. He circles his waist against yours, both of you enjoying the little pleasure until you find the capacity to nod. “You’re nice, aren’t you?”
You lick your lips, watching the way he stares at you. “Yeah,” you say. “Tastes of you, too.”
Tom reaches up, and with the hand still covered in your juices, he feeds three fingers into your mouth. You moan around them as he imitates thrusting motions, smearing your cum over your tongue. There’s a metallic twang as he pushes deeper, his ring brushing up against the tip of your tongue as he fucks towards your throat. The taste makes you shiver.
“There you go, clean me up,” he coaxes. He presses a soft kiss to the tip of your nose before hovering above you. Tom’s eyes, dark and hungry, shift down to your lips, and he raises a brow. “Such a pretty mouth. Wish I had time to fuck it, too, but shit… I need to be in you, darling.”
When he pulls his fingers from your mouth, you feel empty. Your tongue is light—too light. A pout settles over your lips.
“Why are you frowning?” Tom adds as he sits back on his shins. You sit up a little straighter, strength regained as you watch him move around and shed his boxers. You almost moan as you watch his cock spring free, tall and flushed red. You’ve missed it. You’ve missed him.
“Feel empty without you,” you respond.
Tom slides over you again, and you part your legs. With ease, he slots himself between your thighs, his throbbing crown resting against your clit as your wet lips envelop the rest of his member.
“Well, you’re going to be very full soon,” he murmurs, looking up to kiss your jaw. He waits above your lips, quirking a brow. “Open, then, if you’re so needy.”
Your teeth catch your gnawed lower lip before you follow instruction, opening your mouth for him. Tom presses one of his hands against your shoulder as he leans up. He rests a thumb to your chin and looks down at you, eyes glimmering with mischievousness as he puckers his lips and hums. A moment later, Tom spits into your mouth, his dirty spittle falling onto your tongue. He groans at the sight, and you reach up to grab at his broad shoulders as the heat of the possessiveness rolls over you. Tom chases his action with a deep kiss, his fingers rolling back down to pull up your thigh and open you for him.
As he enters you, it’s a smooth movement. Everything flows together—your tongues, your bodies, your hearts. Tom’s able to guide himself inside you almost seamlessly, and you’re so aroused already that the stretch is comfortable.
“Fuck,” you gasp, falling back from his lips.
“Oh, god,” Tom groans. “That’s it. Fuck yeah.” He kisses you again as he slowly pulls out, sliding back into you with ease. His lips are hot as they rest on yours, unmoving as he gets lost in the pleasure.
“You’re so big,” you whimper, eyes rolling back as he continues to thrust into you. Tom’s building it up slowly, rutting deeply against your heat as his member explores your walls. It’s a little clumsy before he establishes a rhythm, his groove coming back after a few weeks apart, but when he gets it right, it feels otherworldly.
“You’re gorgeous,” he says, dropping his face against your shoulder. You bury your hands in his hair, fingers tensing around his strands when he bites at your skin. “Love of my life,” he coos. “Love this pussy more than life itself. Love you more than anything.”
Overwhelmed, you hum, the sound twisting into a gasp as he grinds against you and the crown of his flushed length hits your sensitive spot. “God, yeah,” you agree. “Feels so good, Tom. Go deeper.”
He obliges you for a few moments before his rhythm fades, and he stills with his cock stuffed deep within you. Your fingers play with his hair as you feel him kiss your shoulder, then follow up the action with a lap of his tongue.
“I want you on top, darling,” Tom grunts, words smearing against your neck. He’s panting, hot breath making your skin wet. “Need to see my beautiful wife.” You clench around him, and you feel him chuckle into your shoulder.  “C’mere,” he coaxes. “I’ll help you up.”
It’s dizzying to readjust, but as soon as you’ve taken your place in Tom’s lap, you feel better. You’re impossibly close, able to watch his face constrict with pleasure every time you lower yourself on him. He’s got his head thrown back against the headboard, half-closed eyes watching you, ringed-fingers digging into your hips.
“Tom,” you whimper. “Feels so good.” Your eyes are rolling back, your body trembling as he helps you move. With each bounce down, Tom ruts his hips up to meet you, and when you shift slightly to the side and lean forward, his tip brushes up against your spot. Arcs of electricity zing through your centre, adding layers to your enjoyment.
“The way that you look right now should be breaking the law,” he says, voice held tight. Tom grabs one of your tits in his palm, roughened thumb toying with the nipple until you squirm. “You’re stunning, angel. All mine…” he drops down to kiss at the base of your neck. “Mine forever.”
“Y-Yeah, ‘m yours,” you stammer, voice hitching as his index finger trails back down to your bud. It knocks you off balance how quickly your third high threatens to surge across you.
Tom sees it on your face, growls as he feels you clench around him. “Come on, darling. Give me another one.” His greedy fingers continue to move your hips as the others play around with your clit. The bud tingles, stimulated beyond anything you’ve felt before, but the ache makes it better. “Always the prettiest when you cum, angel. Make the prettiest sounds too. Go on, my love. Let me hear you sing for me.”
It takes a few moments for you to peak, and when you do, you go loose in Tom’s arms. It ripples over you like a blur, your limbs feeling equal parts boneless and taut. Everything fades, pulled back to the bare primal motions of orgasm, warmth spreading through your entire body until it consumes you.
No sooner have you finished your release does Tom scoop you up in his arms and press you back against the mattress. He continues to drill into you, moving roughly against you, grinding his hips into you. Both of you are sweaty, and the space between your legs is sticky from all the aroused fluids that you’ve released, but he doesn’t care. He buries himself in your heat, losing himself in the feelings as you claw at his back, unable to comprehend the pleasures of overstimulation on a scale as intense as this.
“You’re okay, yeah?” Tom says, pulling away from your neck to stare at you. You’re slack-jawed and panting, but you nod. He likes to push you, and you like being stretched to your limits, but he never does it cruelly. He’s always attentive as he picks you apart, slowly breaking you open until you’re shattered into pieces that only he can reassemble. There’s love behind everything he does with you.
“Yeah,” you manage, voice broken. Hot tears of enjoyment pool in your eyes, a muffled groan leaving you when Tom reaches for your thigh and tugs it open roughly. You curl your leg around his back, allowing him in completely, and as you gain that familiar friction back against your g-spot, you melt against the sheets.
“You know what I’m going to do, angel?” Tom grunts. He’s heavy on top of you, body a blur as he fucks you harder, faster, deeper. “I’m going to get your initials tattooed on my ring finger, so you’re there even without the ring.” He stares down at your face, love swirling in his frenzied eyes. “I’m going to—fuck, I’m gonna fuck you so good for the rest of your life, darling. I promise you that. Yeah.” He nuzzles at your cheek, hot breath panting across your skin as he drops his voice to a gritty whisper. “I’m gonna love you, cherish you, fucking adore you… Gonna put a baby in you.”
“Holy shit,” you mutter.
Tom slows his thrusts, his hips stammering in a way suggestive of the way he’s near a peak and wants to put it off. With an intensity that you’ve never seen before, he reaches down, balancing on his strong arms until he’s able to rest his hot palm against your lower stomach. He presses against your skin as he thrusts into you a few more times, slowing but burying himself deeper.
“Can you feel me?” he says. “I’m in so deep, darling. I can feel everything. Such a wet pussy. So greedy.”
“Yeah,” you whimper. “You’re so big, T. I can’t think about anything else.”
“Mmm, good, ‘cos you’re the only thing I’m thinking about right now.” He dances his fingers across the soft skin of your stomach, contrasting the gentleness as he drops his head to the crook of your neck and nips at your skin. “Can’t wait to fill you up,” he admits roughly. “Thought about it every night I was away.”
“Yeah?” You brush your hands through his sweaty hair, tugging as he drives a little deeper.
“Fuck yeah, baby. Go on, touch your clit.” Tom waits until you’ve done as instructed to continue with his musings. “Thought about how you’ll look, belly all swollen with my cum. I love those pretty whimpers you make when I pull out, and my seed pours down your thighs. Can’t wait to fuck it back into you until you’re crying.”
“—oh god,” you whine.
“Mm, yeah. I felt you clench then, darling. I know how much you like the idea of taking fuckin’ everything I give you.” Tom presses firmer against your lower stomach, accompanying the action with a particularly hard rut. “You’re gonna feel me here, lovie, right in your womb. Gonna stuff you to the fucking brim until there’s no chance you aren’t pregnant. Gonna fill you with my babies, give us the heirs we both deserve.”
“Please,” you beg, voice broken. It’s overwhelming in the best way, your bud rebelling as you toy with it. But you’re persistent, matching the deep rolls of Tom’s hips as you feel another climax stir in the pit of your stomach. Everything feels so fluid and wet that it’s hard to tell where you stop, and Tom begins. He’s tangled up so completely in you that he has become part of your existence. “Please, Tom, I want it.”
“What do you want?” Tom teases. He’s a devil, looks up to smirk at you. You can feel how badly he wants to snap into release just from the way he’s controlling his thrusts, but he isn’t going to cave until he gets exactly what he wants. “Use your words, gorgeous girl. I know you can do it.”
He’s in so close, lips on your cheeks, chin, nose, and lips. His heat envelopes you, clouding your brain. With each nudge of his tip deeper against your walls, you get closer to losing it, clinging to the firm muscles of his back like it’s your only lifeline.
“Give me it all,” you choke out. “I want it, Tom, deep in me. Want you to fill me up with your cum.” His curls are sweaty as you reach up to fist your trembling hands in them, entirely at his mercy. “Wanna feel you lose yourself in me.”
“Mmm, okay, baby,” he groans. His voice is broken, thick and tired from exertion. He kisses you roughly, all tongue and teeth, the noisy meshing sounds of your lips mingling with the chaos of his hips slapping down against yours. “Oh fuck,” he pulls away to say. “Oh fuck. Oh—”
With a heavy grunt, Tom finally spills. He releases a loud groan, hips snapping forwards with an animalistic force as he drives his cock deeper, shaft pulsing as your walls squeeze around him. You cry out, cumming for the fourth time. Your climax feels like the main attraction, as if every other orgasm has merely been part of the buildup. You push up against him, breasts pressing into Tom’s chest as your eyes screw shut, tears cascading down your cheeks as pleasure burns through you. His name pours past your lips like a prayer until it’s all that you know, all that you care to know.
It ends, and you’re trembling. Intense aftershocks rock through you, and you feel Tom kiss all over your cheeks as he coos soft words of endearment into your ear. His lips become wet, and you realise that blissful tears have skated down your face.
“Lovely girl... Best girl…” He’s gentle, tender. You jump, opening your eyes suddenly as Tom slips from you, causing your aching walls to spasm. He looks up at you, lifting a questioning brow as he reaches down towards your clit. “Finished?” he asks. When his fingertips lightly make contact with your bud, you wince. Everywhere aches, and it’s nice, but it’s enough.
“Definitely finished,” you choke out.
“Okay, okay… sorry, love.” Tom gently pulls back, flashing you an apologetic smile as he kisses your inner thigh. He shuffles around, eyeing the sight of his cum leaking from your hole, and you watch him shudder. “Fuck….” You can feel it slowly dripping from your entrance and clench your walls just to see his reaction. Tom groans, chewing his lips and continuing to stare until you shiver. He smoothes a hand over your thigh. “Sweet thing,” he whispers. “I’ll bring you some water.”
It only feels like he’s gone for a second, and you realise you’re drifting, ecstatic and loose-limbed. Tom is suddenly behind you, delicately hauling you into his arms. He sits against the headboard and pulls you into a tight hug from behind, kissing over your shoulders as you whimper softly. You can feel the soft fabric of his sweats as he settles you in his lap.
“Such a good girl,” he murmurs. He presses a glass of water into your hand and helps you take a sip. As the cool liquid soothes your throat, you relax into his hold. “Love you, love you… Love you so much.”
He’s so warm against you, holding you tight. Your eyes still feel wet.
“Love you too,” you say. Tom takes the glass from your hand and puts it down on the bedside table, and you turn in his arms to kiss him. Your lips feel puffy and sore, but the ache is worth the relief of feeling your fiancé’s mouth gently press to yours. You sigh as the tension leaves your shoulders, draining away as he loves you, and holds you.
“Am gonna clean you up, now,” Tom mumbles, voice soft. You look at him, curious until you feel a warm cloth pressing against your thighs. You part your legs, turning back in his arms and snuggling further into his grasp as he delicately runs the material over your centre. “Sorry, darling,” he says as you wince. He’s so gentle, but it still aches in a way that hurts.
“What time is it?” you ask, mind running slow.
Tom throws the cloth aside, then reaches out and grabs one of the thick furs that sits on top of your bed. “3pm.”
Your eyes widen. “What?” you murmur, brows creasing. “What time did we wake up?”
“Around midday.”
“Wow.” You smile softly as Tom tucks you both in, covering your shivering form with the blanket. You reach up, leaving your left arm above the fur and reaching out to take Tom’s hand. “Time flies when you’re having fun.”
He laughs and tangles your hands together. Tom’s palm is warm against yours, and his other hand curves around to fiddle with your new ring.
“Indeed it does, darling,” he coos. “I had a lot of fun. Did you?”
“Always.”
You watch him play with your ring for a while, his lips moving over your sweaty neck. You’re still hot and exhausted, but he doesn’t seem to mind. He holds you tight all the same, not caring that you’re messy and still quivering from the aftershocks. Soft sentences of adoration pour from his lips as he holds you.
“After this,” Tom says, voice slow, “I thought we could have a nice bath… maybe drink some champagne, have some dinner… then I want to hear everything you’ve been up to for the last month, and maybe we can celebrate some more.”
You nod softly. Turning in his arms, you sit up to face him properly, dragging the large blanket with you and draping it over you both as you straddle his lap and rest your arms over his shoulders. The bruising is still on Tom’s face, but he looks more handsome than you’ve ever seen him before. There’s a golden glow to his face, a certain lightness that you’ve never seen before. You reach down and take his hand, bringing it to your lips and ghosting your mouth over his ring.
“I love you so much,” you say, looking up at him from behind his hand. His smile is like the sunrise. “Thank you for everything you do for me.”
“Oh, darling.” Tom pauses to kiss you, smiling against your lips. “Don’t you know the pleasure is all mine?”
*:・゚✧*:・゚✧
*:・゚✧*:・゚✧ *:・゚✧*:・゚✧
*:・゚✧*:・゚✧ *:・゚✧*:・゚✧ *:・゚✧*:・゚✧
will i burn for this ? perhaps. but it’s worth it. thank u to my lord and saviour mr mob!tsh... i love u.
lmk what you think......? +++ if you want to see any more specific scenes from my mob!tom x reader universe?? any other milestones you’d like to see? lmk! <3
mlist + taglist are through the link in my bio <3
thank you for reading!! <3<3
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purplehoodiesimon · 2 years
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'After the rain comes the sun' is a phrase meaning 'after the bad times, things will be happy again'. The way Sun After Rain is used in Young Royals is, ironically, contrary to it's title.
The very first time Sun After Rain is used is the episode 2 scenes where Simon steals the pills from his dad and gives them to August. The music starts the second Simon starts to pull the pills out of the drawer, and continues until the second they pass between his hands to August's. The second time is in episode 3, when Felice and August get together. It continues into the scene where Simon is collecting his items to spend the night with Wilhelm. Third time is in episode 4, when Simon is riding the bus on his own, texting Sara about Micke, and the headmistress is showing Wilhelm into his bigger room. Fourth time is Lucia in episode 5, when Wilhelm discovers someone has filmed him and Simon engaging in intimate acts and posted it on the Internet. And the fifth, and honestly most important use in my opinion, is in episode 6. It starts with Wilhelm and Simon texting about Wilhelm going home the next day, continues through them hanging out in Wilhelm's room talking about how they can't force him to deny the statement, and cuts off abruptly when Wilhelm stands up to get ready.
Every single one of these uses ties together to foreshadow an unhappy ending for season 1. It's interesting to note that there's no use of Sun After Rain in ep1 and it first appears fairly late in ep2. This song only starts to appear in the story after Simon and Wilhelm have started to express interest in each other, which is partly why it's so much more impactful in foreshadowing an unhappy ending. As I've talked about before, YR has a butterfly effect plot. Most of the plot couldn't happen without Simon dealing the pills to August—our first use of Sun After Rain. This moment where Simon takes the pills from Micke's drawer sets up pretty much every sad and happy moment from here on out. Without Simon dealing the pills, we wouldn't have all the conflict between him and August, where August reveals he's broke. Simon passes that information onto Wilhelm while they're arguing about Simon giving August the drugs that Alexander got caught with and Wilhelm ended up high on resulting in their reconciliation. Wilhelm then uses that against August, playing a part in his completely irrational decision to post the video.
The second use is Felice and August's relationship, who don't work out as a couple, and their dating contributes to August's irrational jealousy issues. Also note—he finds out about Wilhelm and Simon's relationship while he's dating Felice, but then she breaks up with him shortly before Wilhelm humiliates him in front of the Society to defend Simon. It's not at all an excuse but could contribute to his 'Wilhelm has everything' jealousy issues. The second use also shows Simon preparing to stay with Wilhelm, which we all know doesn't happen because Erik dies. That one's a little self-explanatory on how it's a foreboding omen. He doesn't get to stay with Wilhelm cause Erik is, well, dead.
The third time is very interesting actually, it doesn't look that foreboding at first. Until you remember that Simon and Sara's conversation goes: Sara: Did Micke get in touch with you? Simon: No?!? Sara: He says he wants to meet up. Why?! Simon: Omg what?! DON'T reply! Liar liar Lucia candles on fire, dude. This links to Micke showing up at Lucia and causing family issues. It also shows Wilhelm being given a bigger, ground-level room because he's the Crown Prince now. He was in a tiny like 2 story one before. And what does August do one episode and a stupid high later? Films them. Through the window. That is at ground-level. The ground-level window that August films them through. That window. Yea. If Sun After Rain is supposed to be read as a foreboding foreshadowing omen, it makes so much sense why they chose to play it through the beginning of that scene, instead of just ending at Sara and Simon texting.
The Lucia use is obvious—Wilhelm finds out he's been secretly filmed and exposed on the Internet. It sets up everything for the next episode, especially the next use of Sun After Rain. Wilhelm's statement. Or rather, their discussion of what Wilhelm should do for the statement. The music begins with Wilhelm asking for Simon to come before he leaves—asking for support. It plays while they talk, curled up together on the floor, about how the Crown can't force Wilhelm to deny the statement—giving Simon hope for their relationship. And it abruptly ends when Wilhelm remembers he has to get ready—when he remembers he can't stay in his bubble with Simon forever, he has a duty to the Crown. As we all know, Wilhelm does end up denying that it's him. He sees his duty and what his mother said in the car as more important than acknowledging their relationship. He even says as much later, when he tells Simon they can be together as long as they aren't seen with each other in public. This scene is such an interesting use of Sun After Rain as a device of foreshadowing. The first time you watch it, you think, 'Maybe he will. Maybe he will come out and say it was him. Maybe they can be happy together.' And every single time after that, you know what's coming. You know that Wilhelm's not going to do it, that all the hope and love they're building in this scene is not going to last. You know that there won't be any sun after the rain.
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oyasuminto · 3 years
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Oh!! What bout Lawrence or Strade (whoever u choose bb <3)
With s/o who can't die like they cut them up to pieces and stuff like that but when they wake up they see s/o just nonchalantly eat breakfast.
You’ll wanna pay good attention to the tags for this one.
Lawrence
Lawrence is already on edge after rolling out of bed, and seeing you sitting on his kitchen counter eating a bowl of—likely stale—cereal really doesn't help.
He killed you the night before. He's sure of it. He remembers the metallic scent of your blood, the way his saw glided through your soft, warm flesh, the frustration he experienced upon severing your femoral artery, staining his carpet red. The same shade of red currently pooling on his countertop and dripping down a sloppily severed chunk of muscle and fat.
You. Are. Dead.
Like him.
As your eyes meet his, Lawrence can feel an obsession forming deep within whatever remains of his heart. He cannot let you leave, not now, not when he’s finally found another person who knows what it’s like to be trapped in this dreamlike reality.
Unfortunately, your immortality will make Lawrence more of a threat towards you. He knows that no matter how far he goes, you’ll always be there when he next awakes—whether that be from sleep, a drug-induced haze, or an intense bout of rage.
With you, he feels free to indulge in all his dark desires.
Digging through your chest and abdominal cavity, watching your organs pulse and twitch and live even as he seizes your core and squeezes the muscle—all things that could, individually, end someone’s life, yet you keep staring up at him.
Slicing into your arms to watch your reaction as he tugs at an exposed vein and asking how it feels.
Strade
You had my curiosity, but now you have my attention.
Unlike Lawrence, who has every reason to question his reality, Strade knows that he killed you, and he enjoyed every second of your death. Yet here you are, chewing on what must be your third cereal bar, as if your intestines aren’t currently hanging out of your eviscerated stomach.
This opens up so many opportunities.
Not only do you become Strade’s newest pet, but you’re now officially his little guinea pig.
With your immunity to death, Strade is free to test out every single tool in his possession on a single subject, and he doesn’t have to worry about the fun ending prematurely when he gets overexcited.
He wants to see just how far he can go.
Jamming a couple fingers into your eye socket and listening to your choked whines and cries as he swirls them around and digs them deeper? Not an issue, your eyeball will just repair itself in a day or two.
Feeding your removed organs to Ren, just to see if they’ll grow back or if you’ll just continue walking around and functioning normally without your liver and one of your kidneys.
Using you for special shows; letting the highest bidder decide which part of your body needs a new hole. The incision is always a little too small to fit his cock; people pay more when your skin tears, and the tightness is just so addictive.
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dingdonghyvck · 3 years
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The Only Exception || Lee Haechan x Reader
Summary: You finally realize that Haechan’s the only exception to the one rule you gave yourself.
Genre: Angst and a little bit of Fluff  
Pairing/s: Drummer!Haechan x Lead Vocalist!Reader, Minor College Student!Mark x Reader
Warnings: Explicit content, mentions of suicide, suicidal thoughts, implications of sex, sex jokes, use of drugs, cigarettes and alcohol, verbal and physical abuse, divorce, and a few others I probably forgot to mention
Word Count: 5.4k words
So this is part two of the Drummer!Haechan AU I wrote: Still Into You
 Please do give feedback, it’s greatly appreciated! Thank you and enjoy :)
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"When I was younger I saw my daddy cry and curse at the wind.
He broke his own heart and I watched as he tried to reassemble it.
And my momma swore that she would never let herself forget”
It all started with hushed arguments, hidden whispers of disappointment behind closed doors, afraid of breaking the perfect image your family had, afraid of the neighbors to talk. From hushed arguments to daily endeavors of avoiding each other everyday, it was like a ticking bomb inside your home. A ticking bomb you had tip-toed over each morning past your parents' bedroom, hearing the muffled crying. You knew it was only a matter of time before the bomb would finally explode, imploding your house from inside-out.
You hoped and you prayed to any god willing to listen that the rumors were not true. The neighbors started talking and the news had somehow got out. And that was when everything started breaking down. The hushed arguments turned to wars of screaming and crying, sharp words that cut through you like a knife. That was when the walls of your home began to talk, they spoke to you too, they echoed the hatred your parents had for each other. They made you feel unwanted, unloved and useless, since of course the sole foundation of your life was crumbling. You were the scars, bruises, and pain they brought into the world, you were once proof of their love that turned into a ghost wandering the halls, desperately clawing against the wallpaper to make it all stop.
It didn't end with words, it seemed as if words weren't hurtful enough. You were caught in the crossfire, desperately trying to raise the white flag between the two, but you ended up becoming their stress ball. They would sometimes drown you, lock you up in the basement or straight up hit you. They kept squeezing you and throwing you around like a stress ball bound to burst, the people at school began noticing the bruises and cuts. In the end they left you alone, vacant and ignored since you began bringing your friends over your house.
And for the first time in a while you felt safe, you felt safe in Jeno's comforting smile when he tried to teach you guitar. You felt safe with Hendery's little pranks and teasing during practices. You felt safe in Donghyuck's presence whenever you two would head out after band practice, in his car with no particular destination in mind. The nights were long, but somehow it always ended too quickly for you. You wished you could stay for an eternity inside Donghyuck's car, it was a place where you didn't bother to be someone else except yourself.
It was a space where you weren't either the whore's daughter or the useless excuse of a student. You were just authentically you and Donghyuck openly accepted you, he didn't say it but you knew he did. He didn't talk whenever you didn't feel like it, he opened the car window when you wanted to watch the stoplights and streetlight wiz by. That's what made those nights perfect, it was Donghyuck's soft humming along the mediocre pop song on the radio. His weirdly specific defensive monologue whenever you brought up his tacky lavender car scent. Donghyuck's presence in general as he would sometimes just hold your hand while you thought to yourself.
One of those nights where you thought to yourself that life should always be like this, you didn't know how, but you knew that Donghyuck has to be apart of it. You decided that the world may go to shit, your parents may end up getting a divorce, you may end up living the rest of your life as a deadbeat. But you no longer cared as long as you had this place, in a worn out car seat next to him; well that was what you thought at least.
"And that was the day that I promised,
I'd never sing of love if it does not exist"
Donghyuck's sudden departure from the band shocked both Jeno and Hendery, they took it considerably well in all honesty. They still wanted to continue on with the band, partly because they needed the money from the gigs and mostly because they worried for you as a friend. You tried your best in trying to continue with your life and look for another drummer, for another Donghyuck in your life. As silly as it sounded since you were the one that pushed him away, you would think of him most days. You were only realizing how important Donghyuck was in your life.
He was always the one who took care of you, reminded you to eat and rest whenever you forgot. He would show up at your dorm to bring you breakfast or make you coffee, remind you that some of the books you borrowed from the library was due tomorrow, or even just chat you to check on how your day was going. Now that you had changed your number and avoided him like a plague you were starting to realize how much you lost.
And you had thought of calling him, or maybe reaching out to ask how his day was going, the same way he used to check on you. You were so tempted that you showed up at his place, a second away from buzzing his doorbell, but you remembered. You remembered how awful you were to him, you were reminded of the pain and misery you've caused him all through out your lives so far. You were being selfish yet again, so you stopped yourself. You immediately turned around that day and called up Hendery and Jeno to tell them that the band was over, you didn't have the guts to face them anymore.
The guilt was eating you alive, they had tried to convince you otherwise but you pushed them away too. The only person who you kept in your life was Mark. You still felt happy to be around him, although you didn't feel comfortable since you felt like you had to keep a facade around him. He seemed glad to see you more often, you'd cling onto him like a flee for days. But there came a time when he finally asked why you were so vacant these days, and where were your other friends; it was an argument caused by Mark's growing irritation for being required to see you everyday and almost having to babysit you like child, all the while trying to keep up with other activities going on his life. You had left him without a single word and returned the next day like nothing happened.
He genuinely did like you, he wished things were different but he couldn't handle the nonstop texts and calls that came from you every minute of the hour, he was beginning to get sick of it. And you immediately notice his distaste, the way he would dryly reply to your messages or not talk to you whenever he did have time to see you. You knew you were becoming a bit too much for him, desperate for company that you became too overbearing, a bit too possessive and selfish when it came to his time.
And for the first time, you felt it. You felt how your heart sunk everytime Mark chose to answer a call from a friend when you were talking to him, the way he would look anywhere else but you whenever you tried to start conversations. You were usually on the other end of the stick, careless of other people’s emotions and too busy living in your own world. You finally knew what it felt when Donghyuck dated you, and what horrible thoughts that came with it. In the end, you knew that Mark was too kind to end it with you, he obviously knew you were having issues in your personal life, but he couldn't be bothered anymore; he's tried talking to you about it, but you'd always change the topic.
So you told yourself that it was better if you would be alone for now, this is the tenfold of misery and hurt you've caused everyone around you, especially Donghyuck, your world was falling apart as more and more people left.  You eventually ended things with Mark, and he gave you a simple okay and left.  He didn't seem to notice you anymore, he continued to live his university life unscathed, it was as if you two never spoke in the first place.
He would sometimes smile at you or give you a small nod of his head whenever you saw each other around campus, but that was the most you've gotten from him. You didn't blame him, he didn't have time to waste with people like you. Being alone with your thoughts truly was eating you alive, you were beginning to go insane. Everytime you were about to reach out to anyone, either Jeno, Hendery, or Donghyuck, you'd always stop yourself to remind you that you deserved this.
You deserved to be alone, you cannot be loved. You were a heartless monster just as Donghyuck said and you lived most of your days alone while trying to survive with the little funds your new part time provided. You didn't know how, but you somehow lived as days went by. You watched the leaves and flowers bloom from the branches outside of your dorm till they wilted. It was now winter, and you freely wandered the streets. No other human could be seen outside, everyone was probably spending time with loved ones, since of course it was the holidays.
Days you should be spending with the people you cherish and loved the most, you could see the warm lights from within some of the homes, laughter resonates through the walls, probably the lovers and families enjoying their own company. Playing dumb board games and cuddled up by the fire, watching the grinch movies with eggnog and warm cups of hot choco. You never really understood the joys of the holidays, probably because the only other person you had spent it was with Donghyuck, and there you go thinking of him again.
As if thinking of him in everything you do wasn't enough, he began appearing in your dreams. You didn't know if it was pleasant to revisit old memories or did it hurt to reminisce what was lost between you two. And as much as it hurt you chose to remember him as someone you loved, perhaps not romantically, but he was someone you truly cherished. You thought that he'd comment on how cheesy you've become, so melodramatic that you'd give William Shakespear a run for his money when he's already in his grave.
You bitterly laugh at the thought, the cold makes your throat dry and eyes watery but you look up to the moon while standing next to a lamp post near the frozen river.  You could almost feel his presence, you truly were going insane that you started imagining things he'd say to you at times like this. The snarky comments and cute pet names he'd give you whenever you dragged him along for whatever adventure you had in mind. You remembered how he'd first complain about it to no end, but he always ends up coming with you. He always does, of course, he's Donghyuck, the person who stuck with you through thick and thin; the person you've hurt the most.
You begin humming a small tune, you didn't recognize it at first, but you ended up humming a paramore song. The song you both listened to during class the first day you two met, the same song that you sang here, with tears streaming down you cheeks. You didn't know you were crying until you felt the cold gust of wind brushing against your cheeks, a chill running down your spine as you sniffled.
"I hope you're happy now Hyuck, wherever you are," it felt weird to speak, you couldn't remember the last time you opened your mouth to say anything. it's been months since you've last said a word to anyone, you throat was dry and you could barely recognize your own voice, it was raspier than you last remembered.
"I'm happy enough to know we're looking at the same moon tonight at least." you laughed, your throat hurts like hell, the laugh came as a croak and you tried to gasp in air to try and stop yourself from breaking down.
It felt weird to listen to your own voice, everything felt unreal. These past few months were like a fever dream to you, you even wondered if you were dead and this was some cruel purgatory you served for the shit you pulled back then. You've thought about jumping into the frozen river, maybe the cold would at least wake you up if this was truly some cruel nightmare. If not it could also finally end all the suffering and pain you know you caused yourself, what hurt most was you cannot blame anyone else for what is happening now. You shakily let out a breath, hands gripping the metal railing. You were about to jump over it when the street's fairy lights were suddenly turned on and it reflected off the thin layer of ice of the lake.
You wake up from your daze, what the hell were you thinking? The pretty lights distracted you for a moment, you pace your breathing with the consistent flicker of the warm glow of the tiny lights, trying to calm down.
"And I've always lived like this,
keeping a comfortable distance"
senior year, prom.
You bit your lip while watching the fairy lights flicker, whose idea was it to have tiny light bulbs as decoration for the photo booth, and god you wanted to give them a kiss now. It was such a hazard that you couldn't stop thinking of the endless possible drama it could cause, the prom queen could end up stepping on it and light her dress on fire, that would at least make the night interesting. You blew the tiny patch of fake snow off the table while you grumpily waited for someone, anyone, to step on one of the fairy lights, but you were dragged out of your reverie when you hear Donghyuck's voice behind you.
"Hey ugly,"
"Hey stupid," you replied, eyes shifting away from the photo booth for a second to look at him. He stuck out like a sore thumb, he wasn't wearing a tuxedo like the rest, or even a tie to at least try and be formal. He was sporting his favorite leather jacket with a green untucked button up underneath, he looked underdressed, the only effort he made to his appearance was the way he styled his hair to showcase his forehead.
"That's not a nice way to speak to your boyfriend" Donghyuck faked a gasp, dragging a chair to sit down beside you, you raised an eyebrow at him. The stupid crease on his jacket annoyed you to no end, so you fixed it for him, it was his turn to raise an eyebrow at you.
"Boyfriend? I thought boyfriends put in extra efforts for prom? You know like in the movies, they give the girl a cute corsage and tell them how pretty they look and end up fucking in the bathroom or something?"
"You're beautiful." He says it blatantly, you stop to look him in the eyes, and it seemed genuine. You pursed your lips while trying to hide your smile, boyfriend Donghyuck was different from best friend Donghyuck, he was a lot... sweeter.
"Let's fuck in the bathroom later?" he added, to which you groaned and slapped his thigh. He only laughed at you while gently fitting his hand into yours, gently kissing your knuckles when you swore you were gonna bite his dick someday, just he wait.
Well you'll  give him credit, he at least made an effort to look nice for you. You didn't even bother to blow dry your hair today and you were wearing what you'd usually wear whenever you went out with him, just with a bit more grunge added, like black fishnet stockings. He wasn't complaining at all, he knew that whatever you were wearing tonight would end up ripped anyway, probably somewhere on his bedroom floor. And plus, you two didn't really attend prom, the only reason you bothered to this year was for the battle of the bands.
You were already done with the performance so you were all simply waiting for the announcement of the winner. You knew Jeno was probably out on the dance floor dancing with his date in a proper suit and tie like a gentleman, but you had no idea where Hendery went. One second he said he was going to get you a drink, the next he's disappeared before you into thin air. So you were left with Donghyuck, who was currently playing with your rings. As weird as it felt to have a label between you two, nothing's changed. You thought that you'd feel more awkward towards him, but the only thing that changed was the label, and you were happy in a way.
"Wanna dance?"
You perk up at his question, you finally realize that a slow song was playing. Everyone was paired off in front of you, even some of the teachers were dancing. You almost let out a laugh at the sight of some of couples who were trying their best to keep it in their pants. You thought he was joking until you looked over at him, he was shyly fiddling with his own hands now, not able to look you in the eyes. You would laugh if it weren't for the way he seemed so shy to ask, he looked like he was about to combust.
"I don't dance," you laughed, he looks up at you. You didn't know it was possible but he looked much more embarrassed now, it was cute it in a way.
"Let's get out of here?"
"Now that's more like it" you smirk, taking his hand to lead him outside of the gymnasium and to his car.  He didn't bother to fight it, he just simply let you drag him out to the parking lot.
He opens the car door for you and you played along, deciding to not tease him just this once since, of course, he was already red enough. He turns on the engine and you switch through different channels on the radio, finally settling on one when he pulls out of the driveway.
“And up until now I had sworn to myself that I'm content with loneliness.
Because none of it was ever worth the risk.”
The song on the radio hummed in the background as he drove as carefully as he could, the roads were iced and it wasn't very safe to drive right now. He was about to take the turn to his house but you stop him and told him to bring you to the center of town, he was unsure why the sudden request, but he follows your directions anyway. For the moment, you stared at his face. The way the streetlights lit up his skin, you rarely saw his forehead and it did make him look attractive. Well he was already attractive in the first place but you couldn’t help but observe the way he drummed his fingers against the steering wheel to the song’s beat, it looked instinctive and natural to him.
"So are you finally going to murder me and take my intestines to sell on the black market?" he spoke, and you laughed, throwing your head back; he was finally starting to look handsome to you, and he opens that damned mouth of his.
"Kidneys my darling! Your kidneys will be worth a fortune!" you giggled while leaning over the center console to kiss his cheek, he smiled at the sound of your laughter.
He takes you exactly where you asked him, the center of the town. The exact intersection that’s considered as the heart of your buzzing neighborhood. The exact intersection that usually had so many cars, always the cause of traffic and delay, was now completely empty. All the stores near the intersect were closed, no other person in sight but the stoplights continued to operate. The colors red, yellow, and green appearing in an ordered sequence, proportionally timed. Although there wasn't a single car in sight, Donghyuck stopped when the light turned red.
"What are you waiting for?" you asked in confusion, he shrugs.
"Can you tell me why we're here?"
You didn't bother to speak, you simply got out of the car and stood at the center of the intersection. You opened your arms up to him and he watched you curiously, you let out a boisterous laugh, spinning around your heel. You forgot that the road was slippery so you fell flat on your back, still laughing. Donghyuck runs out of his car to kneel beside you, he had a worried look to him but it immediately faded away when you looked at him with joy in your eyes.
He scoffed, not forgetting to comment on how stupid you looked before offering his hand to help you stand up. You take his hand but instead of sitting up, you pull him towards you and he slips, ending up toppled over you. His breathing was uneven as it brushed cooly against your cheek, you close your eyes at the feeling. He gently kissed your cheek after a minute, finally standing up to brush himself off. You were still lying down on the ground, flailing your arms around to try and form a snow angel.
"Are you dumb? Get up before we get run over" Donghyuck tried to sound angry, but he couldn't stop the lilt in his voice, a tiny chuckles escapes his mouth.
"Shut up already and just lie down! Why do you always ruin the moment?” you whined looking up at him, still spread eagle at the center of the intersect, he raised an eyebrow at you, it was becoming a habit to him.
“Don’t you feel it too? The world’s stopped, they’ve finally shut up! So enjoy it and come lie down with me.”
“And if we get run over?”
“Then so be it” You shrugged, Donghyuck lets out a heavy sigh before taking his seat beside you. He doesn’t lie down, so you sit up to lean against his shoulder.
And the world stops, like what you said. For a moment the only thing you two could hear was the sound of your breathing and the beating of your hearts, he held your hand in his while you both watched the stoplight change colors. It felt like you two were the only people on earth, and it was the best. There was nothing but the moon, your thoughts, the stoplight, and him. And as peaceful as it was you couldn’t stop the thought from spilling from your mouth.
“Someday I’ll burn this town to the ground” you comment, and he snorts.
“Gee, it sure sounds like a solid plan” he says it sarcastically, and you turn to look at him.
“I’m serious! You better not get in my way or anything or else I’ll have to set you on fire” you say it with the most serious tone that he’s taken aback, well that was one weird thought he thought.
His face makes you laugh and he wasn’t sure if he was supposed to laugh with you. He shook his head when he realized you were joking, probably. You felt content and happy that you decided to grant him one wish. He once again has the confused face he had earlier, just when he was finally settled you suddenly move. He tries to stand up to follow you, but you told him that you’ll be back.
He watched you open the driver’s side of the car, he thought you were about to drive away and leave him here but he was abruptly stopped mid-thought when the speakers of the radio of his car boomed throughout the empty streets. His eyes widened, he was worried that it might wake the whole street up. Then he remembered that the residential homes were located near the outskirts of town, so it was unlikely that anyone would hear. Most of this area had shops and stores, so the people are probably back at home, you both aren’t technically disturbing anyone hopefully. He relaxes back into his seat to watch you waltz back towards him.
“So?” you asked, the smile on your face was infectious.
“So?” he mimicked dumbly and you rolled your eyes in annoyance, was he always this dumb?
“May I have this dance?” you groaned, turning red yourself. You blamed it on the cold, but he couldn’t help but laugh at you. At first it sounded like he was mocking you, but when you met his eyes to smack him on the head you were only met with eyes filled with so much endearment and affection that you could only pull back your hand.
He takes your hand to stand up, you complain of course, he was heavy. But he hushed you when he placed his fingers to your chapped lips, he smiled so widely that it looked like it hurt. You pursed your lips, wrapping your arms around his neck and he securely holds your waist. Although the atmosphere was supposed to be romantic, your terrible sense of rhythm in dancing ruined it. You would think that you’d be good at following the rhythm when dancing being a couple of musicians, but you both always missed a beat by a second. And he could only laugh while you cursed, finally remembering why you never danced.
You were muttering something under you breath, but your voice hitched when he brushes his fingers against your hair. He placed a sweet kiss to your temple and you freeze, you felt your heart clench at the action. He begins whispering the lyrics to your ear, you swallow thickly. This was one of the rare times he’d sing to you, you tried to tell him countless times that his voice was beautiful, but he had always denied saying yours was better. But hearing him now, whispering softly against your ear while he nuzzled his nose to your neck affectionately made your heart throb. You take in a deep breath, this feeling in your chest, it was your heart clenching. You didn’t know if he was hurting you but you were so overwhelmed that you suddenly pushed him away.
“Did I do something wrong?” his eyes spoke, trying to reach out to you again but you take another step backward.
“This was a stupid idea” You were shocked to hear your voice crack, Donghyuck frowns at your comment.
“What do you mean?”
“Take me home.... now.”
He tried to take a step towards you but you run back towards his car, closing the door to wait for him. You lower the volume of the radio and try to gather your thoughts, what the fuck was that? You watched him walk back towards the car and swore to yourself, whatever the hell you felt earlier, whatever he did to you, he will never be able to do again. It was too much of a risk, and you swore to yourself to never let yourself be that vulnerable again.
He tries to talk to you on the way home, but your replies were dry. You were busy fiddling with your fingers while looking outside the window. He tried his best to make you tell him what he did wrong but he couldn’t get another word out from you the moment he pulled up in front of your house. You were about to leave but you decided to try and turn things around, you tried to get back to what you two were used to.
You kissed him, hauling yourself over the center console to sit on his lap. He tries to pull away but you continued to kiss, hastily lifting his shirt to try and remove it. In the end he was weak to your touch, he could never deny you of anything. He hoped that you two could talk it out in the morning but you were unavailable the next few weeks after that, busy fooling around with Johnny.
“I've got a tight grip on reality but I can't let go of what's in front of me here.
I know you're leaving in the morning when you wake up, leave me with some kind of proof it's not a dream”
Present day.
The next day you decided to visit your home town. Although you didn’t have any family left to visit, you had volunteered to play at an orphanage, it was the least you could do for the holidays. If you couldn’t be happy, you could at least make others feel it. Who knew that Jeno’s stupid guitar lessons would end up becoming an asset to you, you could at least spread a little joy to the children who didn’t have parents, you somehow understood how they felt, in a weird way.
It was a joy to finally sing with a purpose again, hearing them laugh and sing along with you made your heart sore. Well at least you didn’t feel as useless after playing with a few of the kids and chatting with the caretakers and other volunteers. It felt freeing, to finally do something right. You fucked up this year for the most of it but you felt a bit less burdened when the children asked you to braid their hair or took your hand to dance with them. After serving your purpose at the orphanage you find yourself at the intersection. You don’t know what you wanted to accomplish, but your feet ended up taking you here.
And as expected it was filled with bustling life, people going in and out of shops to buy late christmas presents, children building snowmen and riding the tiny slopes made by the snow. The traffic as usual was heavy, the cars were honking and the streets were so noisy that no one could bearly hear themselves think. You sat by a bench near the park, the intersect still in your sight. You were eating a bagel mindlessly when a little kid sat beside you, he was eyeing your guitar.
“You play?” the little kid asked and you nodded, giving him a small smile to not scare him away, you probably looked like a walking corpse; you can’t remember the last time you slept properly.
“A little bit, like five songs?” you smiled and he instantly asks you to play, there was this urgency in his voice that you couldn’t help but immediately do what he was asking.
You bite into the bagel while tuning your guitar, thinking of a song to play, well out of the five you knew how to play. You began strumming the guitar to Paramore’s The Only Exception, humming the tune as best as you could with the bagel in your mouth. You end your humming after the first chorus to be met with a grimace, the little kid laughed at you.
“You’re no good”
“Hey!” you take out the bagel from your mouth to yell jokingly at him, he scrunches his nose up when you ruffle his hair and you laugh at his annoyed face, he somehow looked familiar, was he one of the kids from the orphanage? Wait were they even allowed to leave the orphanage?
“So what’s your name?” You ask, putting the guitar back into its case. The voice that meets your ears wasn’t the little boy’s, it was a voice you haven’t heard in a long time, a voice you thought you’d never hear again.
“Dongsuk,”
This has to be a dream, it couldn’t be real. You blink a few times before pinching yourself, you were probably hallucinating. Because there is no way, not a chance the Lee Donghyuck was now standing in front of you. That shit only happens in movies, this can’t be real. But you could only rub your eyes so much, he looked real, like real enough that he was getting closer to you. And he finally speaks, and you finally realize it really is him in the flesh.
“Where have you been?” he speaks, you first thought that he was talking to you but he grabs the little boy’s arm. He glances at you and you try to speak and he simply turns his nose away from you, you feel your world crack in half.
To his defense you were the one who moved dorms, changed your number, and avoided him like a plague. So his reaction was expected, you don’t know why you were so surprised. He was about to walk away when you finally speak, he stops cold in his steps when he hears your voice.
“Donghyuck...” He turns to look at you, and his eyes were still the same. It still had the same hurt and sadness you’d usually see when he looked at you, but he looked much more angrier than you remembered.
“Let’s... talk”
“You are the only exception, oh and I'm on my way to believing.”
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kaypeace21 · 4 years
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The ‘parentification’ of Jonathan Byers (psych analysis)
“Parentification is defined as the phenomenon where children take caregiving responsibilities (acting as a parent)  for their parents, siblings or other family members, at the expense of their own developmental needs.”
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When can parentification occur?
1) After a “Divorce”   
“If there is more than one child in the family, usually the eldest, is “chosen” to be parentified .When a father-figure is missing, it may be the eldest son who is forced to take on his father's responsibilities.”
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2) When there’s a “parent with a mental illness “
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3)“Parental alcoholism or drug addiction.” (lonnie’s place covered in beer cans could allude to this).
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4) “siblings with a mental illness’
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5) “Death of a sibling or parent” (  This point is kind of cheating - but the fact Jon as a 15 y old had to plan a funeral, for his little brother instead of either one of his parents just illustrates how he always was forced to do adult duties much too young.)
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6) “mothers of low socio-economic status, are frequently associated with parentification of their children. “
“given the fact that there are many single parent families, it falls upon children from some of these homes to carry adult responsibilities while their parent is out working. Often, in these situations, the parent is asking or expecting the child to take on adult responsibilities in their absence. They become the parent of the household in the interim between coming home from school and when the parent returns to the household.”
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***TO MAKE THINGS VERY CLEAR: we are NOT hating on Joyce, here! “The harm of parentification is usually done not out of malicious intent. However, when a child who is supposed to go through their natural cycles of development and self- evolution,  is forced to grow up too quickly, there is a cost.” But, Joyce did what she had to do being a poor single mother - she had to work! Even when Lonnie was around- he had debts. And Joyce apologized to Jon for not being around when they were growing up (working since he was 5)- and she even mentioned working Hollidays . But at the end of s1, we see her celebrating Christmas eve with them (showing she’s trying to have a better work life balance for her kids and prioritize them more).  I think Will’s disappearance gave Joyce a wake-up call of sorts about what she values most-her kids.She loves her kids more than anything- and  would never intentionally do any harm. She has to work for all of them to survive and stay together. But it did force Jon to be parent to Will in her absence (especially cause Lonnie even when around wasn’t much help).
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And in s3 it’s hinted Joyce plans to be there for her kids on Thanksgiving and Christmas- so she is trying to rectify past behaviors. Ok with that out of the way,  now we can continue...
 Types of Parentification 
“Parentification can either be emotional or instrumental, or both.”
“EMOTIONAL PARENTIFICATION : is when the child becomes a source of constant emotional support to their parent or sibling.Emotional parentification often involves a child or adolescent taking on the role and responsibilities of confidant, secret keeper, or emotional healer for family members.”
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“ Parentification can also be the the process of role reversal where a child is obliged to act as parent to their own parent. Examples being: Listening to a parent talk about their problems.Serving as a confidante for their parent or providing emotional comfort and support to a parent.”
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  “In cases of INSTRUMENTAL PARENTIFICATION: children take on practical responsibilities such as:Taking care of siblings or other relatives because a parent is unable to. Assuming housekeeping duties, such as cleaning, cooking,  grocery shopping. And Paying bills and attending to other household tasks .”
“ It’s good for kids to have responsibilities such as chores around the house or babysitting for a younger sibling. Responsibilities should increase when a child becomes a teenager to prepare them for being on their own eventually. However, when a young child is responsible for , paying the electricity bill, or raising a younger sibling, that is when problems arise.”
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“Imagine a child who is bombarded every day with the responsibilities to tuck in sisters or brothers, or read them bedtime stories; organize drinks or food, wash up dishes, pay bills, or a myriad of housework. When burdened with that many responsibilities, self-care tends to go out the window. If the child continues to attend school, they may be withdrawn, unkempt, and visibly exhausted.”
“The effects are worsened and more destructive for the development of the child, the more the care-giving efforts of the child become a normalized expectation.“
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 We see this in Joyce berating Jon for not parenting Will, properly (although her being upset was somewhat reasonable). But ,we also see this in how Joyce  says Jonathan has “always been good at taking care of himself.” Assuming Jon is ok, when he’s actually not. While Lonnie simply insults Will saying “he was never good at taking care of himself.”  The difference being Joyce criticizes Jon for not relying on her more. While Lonnie critiques Will for simply acting like a child and not being self-reliant, like Jonathan. Pretty heavily hinting, Lonnie even when around did very little parenting and expected the kids to take care of themselves. And since Will didn’t ‘take care of himself’ - it probably put the load on Jonathan to parent Will (when Joyce wasn’t around, even when Lonnie was physically there).
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Consequences of Parentification
“ It is expected that complicated relationship patterns will develop between siblings.  The parentified sibling can often develop a symbiotic, codependent relationship with their siblings.”
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“These people are very likely to find themselves in similar relational patterns in adulthood. They believe they must serve, help and rescue everyone in need. As adults, they may find that they have a confused sense of self-identity beyond the helper role. The only way they learned to relate, was through being of service and providing caregiving- so it is extremely possible that they have to be the primary caregivers for their own romantic partners . Since they never learned anything different. “
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“ The ‘helper role’ might have dominated their entire being. Their sense of self did not get fully developed before they were needed to care for others, so as a result, they don’t know who they are except when they are doing things for others. “
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“Parentified children can become very angry people. Sometimes this adult child may not know why they are angry . They can have explosive anger or passive anger, especially when someone triggers their parental wounds of emotional exploitation.”
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“Parentified children inevitably develop a distorted image of what love is supposed to be like, thereby growing up to be quite distrustful of interpersonal relationships overall.Complicated attachment patterns emerge as a result. An avoidant attachment style is not unlikely. In the absence of a nurturing provider of safety and care, the parentified child may have learned to utterly depend on themselves alone- thereby avoiding close bonds and intimacy in adult life.intimacy is both craved for and avoided, both a longing and a great threat. Underneath this facade, they are quite lonely.”
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This is similar to Jonathan not having friends, ‘not liking most people’, having ‘trust issues’ caused by Lonnie (that caused distrust of Bob, a father-figure) and simply being afraid to talk to people in general. Or joyce calling out Jonathan saying “you act like you’re all alone in this world. But your not.”
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‘They also tend to blame themselves for everything that goes wrong, and constantly try to fix things that cannot be fixed.’
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“The child may appear highly capable to tend for themselves and others, very mature for their age, resilient and even wise beyond their years- but they lack the safe haven of a secure attachment figure that is vital for the development of emotional regulation.”
A parentified teenager or younger child may exhibit the following symptoms:
-”Anxiety”
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Like... this hurt my soul!  His face dropped the second Nancy left the room.He probably has anxiety but looks up to Joyce for trying to still be a good mom and keep it together. Why he said “WE’LL be okay” cause his mom is  “tough”.  He tries to lead by her example. But unlike Joyce, Jon probably always had to keep it together- even if struggling with similar anxiety issues as Joyce. Because he knew they both couldn’t act that way and “shut down” (for Will’s sake). He always had to put on a fake ‘grown-up’ front and keep the family together and help support Joyce and Will emotionally and finacially . And someone (unintentionally) saying the reason he’s like his mom is not because of her positive traits but because of her mental illness- must have HURT! Especially cause he’s probably already struggling with anxiety-  and maybe even fears acknowledging it. Because he’s supposed to have it ‘all together.’ “The identity of parentified children actually depends on their ability to suppress their needs. Since it is likely that their family already had too many problems to cope with, and so they learned to be quiet, voiceless and without demands. In order to be a ‘proper helper’ .“
And it probably doesn’t help he’s afraid it could escalate into something worse. Because in s1 they mentioned Joyce’s aunt having hallucinations. And jonathan even says to hopper “she used to have anxiety problems. I’m worried it could be ... I don’t know.” So yeah , Nancy saying him and Joyce have the same anxiety problems probably terrified him.
-”Depression”
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-”Inability to trust others (we covered that) and or social isolation.”
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-”Compulsively overworking in order to fulfill responsibilities at school and at home.”
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-”Feelings of guilt and shame.”
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“Fortunately, there are many healing processes and routes to wholeness and recovery for a young adult or adult who has been parentified as a child.Acknowledgment of your past is the first step to healing and recovery (via therapy or other means). You have to accept the truth of your story. Because, if you continue to live in denial, your mental energy will be spent in suppressing the pain that was there, rather than healing what needs to be healed. Being highly self-reliant was your only option in your household , but it may be a strategy that no longer works for you. It keeps you in isolation and unable to connect with others. Therefore, challenging yourself to connect with others authentically would also be considered one of the most potent ways to heal. The thoughts, feelings, impressions, and emotions buried within are waiting to be heard, once and for all.  “
Alright, thanks for listening I hope you enjoyed.  I really wanted to do a psych analysis strictly based on what the show presents. Rather than inclusion of the s4 movies. I did mention how those movies did allude to Jonathan’s parentification, here (if interested though). I also didn’t go into the hints in the narrative of Lonnie possibly being s****lly abusive to Jonathan cause it’s a bit more speculative ( I did talk about it in my DID psych analyses pt 1 & pt 2 though). Only mentioning it here, at the end, since one of the causes of parentification is also a parent s****lly ab*sing their kids (quite literally stripping their kids of their entire childhood in every way imaginable- and frankly the worst way possible). Regardless,I think most people neglect Jonathan as a character- and the s4 movies hint we’ll finally get more focus on him in the upcoming seasons. So I wanted to dedicate a post to some of Jonathan’s issues that may get more attention in later seasons.
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silentfcknhill · 3 years
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FAVORITE SHOWS IN POSTERS
Well, we’re back for another installment of this tagged meme, this time for TV shows! I also stole this from/was indirectly tagged by @jcmorrigan. My taste in shows also differs a bit from my taste in movies, as I tend to like a lot of comedy shows with not as many horror ones. I’m not into shows as much as movies overall, but there are some that I am very passionate about so I picked twenty again. So, here we go for part 2, in order:
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1. Avatar: The Last Airbender/The Legend Of Korra (2005-2014)
I'm including these as one show since they take place in the same universe and tell a continuation of the same overall plot. Altogether this is probably the best piece of media to ever exist, including movies. It has so many great characters and villains especially and some of the most epic sequences, charming humor and heartwarming moments ever. I've never met a person who didn't like these shows, even people who normally don't like cartoons. My dad, who is biased against animation? He loved it. My mother? She loved it, watched it with her multiple times. My grandmother? Loved it. My ex-boyfriend? Loved it. My best friend? Loved it. I dare anyone not to, and I'm so glad it's making a resurgence since it's on Netflix for a new generation to enjoy.
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2. Black Butler (2008-2014)
I never was big into anime growing up and only really started watching anime when I was like 16 and above, but this is one of the exceptions because holy shit is it ever dark and epic. I'm not sure I'd really recommend it for kids, it's more of a teens and young adults kind of anime and that's probably why it's so good, because it isn't afraid to explore dark and mature topics and do it with all of the intensity and gravitas required to do said topics justice. It has lots of great characters, and the story of demons who make deals with children who have a dark side is fun to watch play out.
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3. Seinfeld (1989-1998)
My dad was a huge fan of this show so I watched it growing up since I was a toddler and it became a classic for me. I've watched thw hole show through at least 8 times, and I'll never stop because it never gets old or boring. It's also my only comfort show when I'm having a panic attack because of one time a few years ago when I was having a drug-induced psychosis episode and watching it calmed me down, so now it's like the opposite of a trigger and whenever I'm having an episode or something I watch it to bring me back to reality. For that reason it's more than a show to me, it's a medical treatment and I'm forever grateful to it.
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4. The Good Place (2016-2020)
The big four shows made my Michael Schur all made it on this post (The Good Place, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, The Office and Parks And Recreation), either in the main list of the honorable mentions, but this is my personal favorite of the four. It's so funny, quirky, relatable and basically tailor-made to suit my interests. Not only is it an entertaining and wholesome show, but I think watching it helped me come to terms with a lot of things like mortality, ethics, philosophy, religion and my relationships with other people. It gets  alot of different viewpoints across and if you're a very analytical and philosophical person like me you'll probably enjoy seeing it all play out. Not to mention, every single character is 'favorite character' material. It's rare you find a show with no filler characters in the main cast, but I genuinely can't choose who is best.
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5. Brooklyn Nine-Nine (2013-?)
Another of Michael Schur's shows, this one is just barely under The Good Place and to be honest it was tough to pick my favorite between the two because they're both equally funny. I know it's kind of controversial right now because of the whole law enforcement thing, but I actually think they do a good job of handling social issues in the show and remaining respectful of real-life systemic problems. As for the characters, this is another one of those shows where every single character is gold and I think that tends to be a trend among Schur's shows in general. He produces damn good comedy, and damn good characters. I can't wait to see what they bring next.
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6. Rick And Morty (2013-?)
This is unfortunately one of those cases of 'great show, horrible fandom' and for that reason I don't get involved in the fandom even though I love the show. It's a shame because it really is a great show, so funny and, again, such good characters. I think it's a lot more accessible than the fandom likes to claim, so I'm hoping more people will give it a chance and not get put off by the intellectual elitism of the fandom because it does have some of the most entertaining and batshit crazy episodes ever, poking fun of some of the staples of science fiction in media while also poking fun of itself the whole time. Unlike the fandom, the show doesn't take itself seriously and that's enjoyable nowadays.
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7. Orange Is The New Black (2013-2019)
While this show is a comedy, it is also a lot of other things and it's probably made me ugly-cry just as many times as it's made me laugh. Well, maybe not as often, but those few scenes (if you've watched the show then you know the ones I'm talking about) made me hysterically sob hard enough to be worth like fifty minor sads. But I didn't even mind because the show is just that good, and it makes you /feel/ something in a real way. Probably because of just how real it gets in terms of telling stories that happen all the time in the real world, sometimes with inevitably tragic endings. But these things do happen every day, and it's important to shine a light on that. It's not just representation for LGBTQ+ but also for POC, the neurodiverse, the poor, and many more. Give it a watch to broaden your perspective!
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8. Big Mouth (2017-?)
This is probably the grossest show I've ever seen but by god is it ever funny. Maybe it's because I have an immature sense of humor or something, but I love this show. It definitely won't be everyone's cup of tea and I don't recommend you watch this show with anyone else around because it will get awkward. I think part of its appeal to me is that everyone I talk to who likes it considers it so relatable to their lives growing up but for someone like me who grew up on the autism and asexual spectrum and who was physically an early-bloomer by years, nothing about this show is relatable to me in any way so it makes it all the more crazy and bizarre watching how the people around me must have experienced things. Did y'all really have these experiences with puberty in middle school???
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9. Dexter (2006-2013)
I recently heard that this show is coming back for a reboot soon and I'm so excited because this is my absolute favorite drama/thriller show, as evidenced by the fact that it's the highest one on the list so far that isn't a comedy. I love the idea of having a protagonist who is sort of a villain (or at least morally dubious), and the idea of a serial killer who only kills bad people is particularly satisfying for some reason. Maybe because he's the vigilante we all deserve and want in this unjust and evil world of modern times? Idk but the very premise of this show set it up for big things and aside from the ending I think it delivered consistently.
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10. Once Upon A Time (2011-2018)
This show took us on some journeys, and you can't deny that. Sure, maybe it didn't always finish what it started and didn't always end in the most satisfying way, but part of its charm is that you didn't care because the experience was just so much fun. They took characters and stories that have been told to death and somehow managed to put a unique and unexpected twist on them, and that alone is admirable. Good twists, good villains, and pretty much every cliffhanger known to man will keep you hooked on binge-watching every episode.
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11. RuPaul's Drag Race (2009-?)
A bit different than the other entries on my list in that it's not fiction but a reality competition show, but I couldn't leave Drag Race out because it's just so fucking iconic and perfect. Even when you disagree with the judges or can't stand a certain contestant you'll still be having a good time. It's got the personalities you love to love, the ones you love to hate, and the comedy that's completely meme-able. I mean just how much has this show contributed to pop culture and the internet? More than most of us, henny. I've watched every single season, even the international ones and all of the spinoffs. This show will probably be on for another thirty years when Ru is throwing shade from a hospital bed and I'll still be watching.
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12. House (2004-2012)
Some people hate on this show, and I don't get it. I love House. Yes, he's an ass. That's the point. He's supposed to be unlikeable, and that's why I like him. Maybe because I always love the rude, sarcastic, misanthropic jerkass-genius characters for some reason. And I also love procedural shows, so it's a win-win. I also work in the healthcare field so it appeals to me for that reason too, because obviously the whole premise is outlandish which is what makes it funny. Of course it's not realistic for a hospital, so just enjoy the absurdity and don't get too hung up on the details of medical accuracy and professional ethics and you'll be fine.
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13. The Office (2005-2013)
The third of Michael Schur's show and the last one that made the main list (sorry Parks And Rec, I love you too but there was just so many good shows to choose from and I saw you last so the nostalgia isn't as strong!) I don't think I need to hype this show up any, it's already a classic and you can't even turn around online without getting hit in the face by a dozen Office memes. You'll have to pry this show and it's relatable characters (especially Michael Scott) from my cold, dead hands.
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14. All Hail King Julien/The Penguins Of Madagascar (2008-2017)
Like Avatar/Korra, I also consider this as one show for the sake of this list because it also takes place in the same universe (Madagascar, specifically) and I just couldn't choose one over the other because they're both so perfect. They're funny and I love all the characters (it cut out the weaker links of the Madagascar film series and just focuses on expanding the standout side-characters like King Julien and the penguins). It also delved into some lore, particularly the first show, and even though I didn't also agree with the directions it took (you may have seen me get salty about the ending because I cared too much), I can't deny how much I love it.
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15. Bones (2005-2017)
One of the other scarce non-comedy shows on this list, it still has it's funny moments. It's also, like House, another procedural show that involves some medical stuff, but this time on a more scientific and forensic level which is even more interesting. It's nice to see a lead female with Asperger's, too. There's a lot of cop/law enforcement shows where they try to solve crimes, but this one is the best, and I'm saying that as a fan of CSI as well. Don't fight me on this, I'm right. Oh yes, it's corny, it's campy, it's cheesy, but I love every minute of it. Don't watch if you have a weak stomach though.
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16. The Simpsons (1989-?)
We all grew up with this show, don't lie. It's been around longer than most people on tumblr have even been alive. Should it have ended seasons ago? Hell yes. But that doesn't take away what the first like 20 or so seasons gave us (there's a lot of argument about when the show jumped the shark, for me it wasn't until much later than the popular consensus). The characters are amazing, but the secret to the show's longevity is that they always return to status quo and there's comfort and nostalgia in that. Bart will still be in 4th grade when you're out there pushing 90. This show is persistent. This show is eternal. This show will outlive us all.
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17. Ash Vs. Evil Dead (2015-2018)
Sorely underrated. This show is hilarious, gruesome and campy as hell and I love it. I don't think you necessarily have to watch the Evil Dead movies beforehand in order to get the plot of the show, although it would probably help. In my opinion this show ended way too soon and I'm hoping someday we'll get a comeback because Ash is the reluctant, self-absorbed hero we all need and it's 2020 so at this point there really might actually be a demon-zombie apocalypse and who's gonna save us then if not for the impulsive womanizer with a chainsaw for a hand?
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18. Malcolm In The Middle (2000-2006)
Another show I grew up with, I don't think it gets as much credit as it deserves. It has some damn funny episodes and great characters, and it did a lot of the popular sitcom tropes before they were 'cool'. Some other great sitcoms, The Middle in particular, took a lot of influence from this show and it helped pave the way for the future of sitcoms at a time when they were about to make a comeback. If you want a good show about the real experiences of growing up, this is a much more accurate representation of the highs and lows of being an awkward tween from a dysfunctional home.
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19. A Series Of Unfortunate Events (2017-2019)
Unlike most people I actually liked the movie version from the early 2000's, and I read the books growing up so I was excited when I saw there was a live action television adaptation of it on Netflix because I felt like they cancelled the movie franchise too soon. I was interested to see how new actors would handle the roles, and I was not disappointed. I wouldn't say I liked either portrayal of the characters better or worse, they both added their own twist to it and this show is a great and loyal adaptation to the books, probably because the author was so heavily involved. He knew just when to stick to the books and when to improve upon what he had done with the benefit of hindsight. This show is basically the books, but remastered.
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20. Winx Club (2004-?)
Sort of an odd one out on this list, but I really love this show even as an adult and it may surprise you to learn it is still going on and the most recent season came out last year. They take big breaks sometimes in between seasons, but it's still going strong and in multiple countries. The only thing I don't like about watching this show is all the different and inconsistent dubs since the original show is Italian and each dub only goes for a couple seasons so by the time you get used to one set of voices/names for the characters oyu have to abruptly switch to another, but it's still worth it for the beautiful animation and cool characters (especially the villains!)
Honorable Mentions: 
13 Reasons Why, America's Next Top Model, American Horror Story, Arrested Development, Bates Motel, Battlestar Galactica, Black Mirror, Care Bears, Chernobyl, Courage The Cowardly Dog, Criminal, CSI, Duck Dodgers, Goosebumps, Kenny Vs. Spenny, Kim Possible, Kingdom Hospital, Lazytown, Lost, Making A Murderer, Mayday, Mindhunter, Modern Family, Monster High, Obsession: Dark Desires, Parks And Recreation, Prison Break, Project Runway, Queer As Folk, Queer Eye, Salem, Schitt's Creek, SCTV, Spongebob Squarepants, The Emperor's New School, The Good Doctor, The Haunting Of Hill House/Bly Manor, The Middle, The Pretender, The Walking Dead, The X-Files, Through The Wormhole, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Unsolved Mysteries, Yugioh
Tagging: @bullet-farmer​ and anyone else who wants to!
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accio-victuuri · 3 years
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The GG & Li-Ning & Xianjiang Cotton Situation
I was asked to give my opinion. This is also for other bxgs who may have the same sentiment. You don’t have to agree with me but i hope you respect whatever it is I choose to share here. This is my blog and my space. I maintain this out of my pure enjoyment of the fandom and all the good it has given me. So let me address some of the points.
Li-Ning boasts their use of XinJiang Cotton
My simple answer here is, of course they will. This is not something new. Li-Ning is a celebrated olympic medal winning gymnast. A billionaire. You don’t get to that place in CHN w/out supporting the government’s agenda. In this case, that there is no injustice and persecution going on in Xinjiang. This brand, boasting about China made cotton, in their terms, shows patriotism and support for their country. This brand’s literal goal at first was to provide a local brand for Chinese athletes to wear in the Olympics. This is also not the first time that Li-Ning had been called out along w/ other international brands due to questionable ethical practices.
I find it very hard to believe that the timing of GG’s massive Li-Ning ad campaign, coinciding as it has with these Western brand boycotts, was a coincidence.
Let’s get this out of the way. Whether the boycott happened or not, Li-Ning is guaranteed an insane amount of sales because they hired Xiao Zhan. This is the same man who always sells out products in seconds. Who took KXZ to 200% growth and so on. I can talk about stats all day but this massive campaign for him is a no brainer. GG is expensive and a guaranteed success. Any brand who hires him will be stupid to not launch an all out campaign across all cities. Li-Ning knows what they are doing by hiring him. For years, they have been trying to appeal to Gen Z. Especially now that youth in CHN are more and more into the “guochao” (国潮) - National trend. Integrating traditional chinese culture and fashion w/ domestic brands. This ties in with the whole movement of erasing the connotation that made in china is of inferior quality. GG was a good choice. He appeals to the younger generation (19-25) and the working class ( 26 and up ) who buys goods. I would imagine even GG’s team did their research and knows this trend is going on too. This will not be the last you will see of this type of endorsement from him or Web. The rumors on this collaboration was going around as early as, March 15 I think? I was literally asking another bxg if GG’s ad will be pushed back a day or two because of what was happening. or what will this all implies. He was always gonna come out and endorse this brand boycott or not.
I am not removing the possibility that these local brands have a hand in the boycott. It’s a very valid concern. or that, it was a convenient perfect storm for them. A perfect storm of EU, US & CAN sanctioning CHN. The sudden attack on brands’ statements against Xinjiang cotton from a year ago. The whole agenda of controlling the people’s view on what is happening. All of these are connected. sure. There are many things behind the scenes that we will not know but we can make an educated guess of. Li-Ning is not the only domestic brand that had a positive push because of this.
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On 3/25 Li-Ning’s stock closed with a high of 10.74% , plus an added 9% on the 26th when GG was announced as ambassador. The same thing happened with Anta and others.
I find it very hard to stomach seeing Li-Ning ads on my dash, regardless of GG’s presence in them. Without condemning him for taking this endorsement deal, and without judging what he is or is not personally aware
I will just be addressing GG’s alleged part in all this. I say that cause we don’t live in his brain and won’t know what he’s thinking. You can all try and project your values on him but he is a whole person of his own. I have hopefully given some view on why GG accepted to endorse this brand in the previous point. GG has spent most if not all, of his life in China. He has repeatedly said that he was brought up traditionally. Tho his father was very encouraging in him participating in the arts and widening his knowledge. He had Foreign professors at CBTU. He is part of the generation that knows what’s going on outside by using the internet. He’s smart. I would guess that he is aware of the country he is living in vs what it’s like outside of it. But at the end of the day, his loyalty will always be with his country. I hate to break it to you all but he will continue to live and thrive as an Actor even without international support. Tho it is great that he is a source of National Pride with how people outside of China love him.
Now, about his support for Xianjiang Cotton. I wanna start by showing this:
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It’s a post from People’s Daily wb which boasts all the c-ent top stars that voiced their support of XJ cotton. The sense is, hey people look at your idols supporting the cause. Look at their Patriotism. What do you think will happen if GG was not on this list? Knowing that he is a top star in CHN. Knowing he was just in hot waters post 22*? Knowing that he is actively being endorsed in CCTV which is a National Channel. Are we still surprised that he posted that support? I was just honestly waiting for him to post if anything. I talked before about how C-ent celebrities are expected ( and actually it’s in their law ) to be more morally upright than the lay people. This is prime example of that.
Another one is this from CCTV Wb. I’m including this for you all to have an understanding of how this whole thing is being played out in CHN. This is the type of online narrative that is going around and I would think GG is seeing. The sentiment is,
“No matter what hardships, ups and downs and blows go through in our country, her people will always come from all directions and stand up to speak justice and do just things.”
It’s also showing all the hot searches that is related in support of XJ cotton and defending CHN’s innocence.
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Also this video that was heavily circulated showing mechanized picking of cotton vs the allegations of manual.
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This is the kind of narrative that is going around, as expected. I don’t really fault GG or condemn him for doing what is best for him. What is the best for an individual does not always mean it’s the best for all. In talks like this, I always try and put myself in their position. I mean, who the hell are these people trying to attack my country? the country that has provided for me. I wanna say I understand where they are coming from but understanding does not mean agreeing. I see these A LOT. ALOT ON WEIBO. The China vs. Everyone story. It’s the notion of, they are attacking us and we must protect the country. Also keep in mind that news is heavily regulated.
You know what type of news the CCP would love for them to get a hold of? The rising attacks on Asians in the US. Oh boy they would fuckin love that! Making America the big/bad asian-hating boogeyman in the eyes of their people yet again.
Okay, now we’re down to the final part of this. Why do I share the promo pics for Li-Ning. Where do i draw the line.
To me it’s simple. It had GG in it. I was waiting for this to come out, and tbh, would you all even know about this brand’s practices if the boycott didn’t happen? No. This is a bjyx blog where i share things about them. That includes ad, dramas, pictures and videos. I understand if people don’t feel comfortable w/ Li-Ning ads and others, so just don’t like those posts. Did I buy anything from the collection? No. Did I buy multiple copies Web’s single Youth in Times ( like i do with his other singles )? No. That’s where I draw the line in this. I know we’re all gonna be put on a tight spot again once Faith Makes Great comes out. Once I saw that leaked pic, Ooohhh! I just know. Also if BAH adds some propaganda about CHN’s war on drugs. I am just waiting. I am ready. I know what my values are. I will not allow other people to dictate who I am. I know what type of content I’m only gonna be sharing.
I see this very forceful air of asking bxgs to take a stand on this ( always bxg, never the other side. always us of course even if we are the minority) and it really puts me off. I read someone say that they will not say anything because they don’t owe strangers on the internet an explanation. Which is true. I have separate spaces that I share my views on world/local issues. Accounts that show my actual name and around people I know in real life. That’s what I choose to do for myself. I started this blog for myself and i still find it very bizarre that people follow this account. I am not some sort of KOL, let’s get that straight. This is just a blog where I talk about things if i want to and SCREAM about GG and Web too much. I will probably not answer any follow up questions on this cause i feel like I have addressed a good chunk of it.
Just know that whatever I post on here in support of GG and his projects does not equate to my entire political/moral stand regarding this event or any. It’s really good that we have conversations like this cause it’s an important one.
Whew! That was a long post! 😅
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Poison: Part One
Pairing: Spencer Reid x Reader
Word Count: ~1.8k
Warnings: canon violence, canon language, canon talk of death, methods of kill, fluff and angst
Author’s Note: I do not own anything from Criminal Minds. All credit goes to their respective owners. If there is any warnings that exceed the normal death/kills from the show, I will list them. If you’ve seen the show, then it’s the same level of angst unless otherwise stated.
Feedback is gold, and it’s the only currency I take
"What is food to one is to others bitter poison." - Lucretius
Cases involving children are never your strong suit. The last one with Billie Copeland was just so hard, you’re not sure if you can be involved in another one--that is until you learned what this case is really all about. Yes, there is a child involved, but the bigger picture has a much larger scale than children.
You have to remind yourself that you need to focus on the case and not on Spencer. It shouldn’t even be a hard thing to do, but something happened between you two when you took him to the bookstore right next to your apartment. After checking out a couple of books, and after Spencer had read virtually all of them, you decided it was kind of late and that you needed to get home. The store was closing very soon anyway, so Spencer opted to walk you home.
When you got to your door, he decided to give you a kiss on your cheek, but you moved your head at the last minute. He accidentally got the corner of your mouth, and that messed up his whole thing. Based on his reaction to your mouths almost touching, you know he can’t be that interested in you. If he were, then he would have just kissed you right there and then. Instead, he stuttered a goodbye and left.
You haven’t been able to stop thinking about him since. Does he like you? If so, then why won’t he just kiss you? If he doesn’t, then why does he agree to go on these dates with you. Whenever you two go out, you clearly state that this is a date, and he doesn’t say anything that dismisses that idea. Sometimes, you just wish you knew what was going on inside that big brain of his so you can dejumble it and tell him what the fuck is going on. You’d do it now, but you have a case that needs your full attention.
Apparently, a man and his son were driving down the road one night when the father pulled to the side of the road and got out. He walked into the woods, the son followed after him, and the father beat him almost to death. The son is in the hospital undergoing critical care while the father is in the psych ward. You’re not sure how it happened or why, but you know that it did. Hotch and Gideon got hold of the interrogation video sent over by the New Jersey Police Department.
Detective Hanover is the person who is going to be in charge and is also the person who you will be working with the entire time you’re in Jersey.
“State trooper took this before the paramedics showed up,” the detective says and shows Jack Fisher, the father of Eric Fisher, a picture of his unconscious body. “He's unconscious and has four broken bones. He's gonna be in the hospital for a month.”
“I didn't hurt my son,” Jack sighs.
“Do you remember removing the tire iron from the trunk?”
What, he used a tire iron? You gasp softly and put your hand to your mouth as you continue to watch.
“No! No!”
“What's the last thing you remember?”
“I picked Eric up from school on Friday, for the weekend. Who would do this?” he cries softly.
Hotch ends the video there and addresses the entire briefing room.
“This happened two days ago in Beechwood, New Jersey. Mr. Fisher had ingested LSD one afternoon and didn't come down until eighteen hours later.”
“The hospital reported six other patients who ingested LSD in the last twenty-four hours. The hospital called the CDC, then the CDC called us,” JJ finishes.
“So, a bunch of people got spiked. What makes it a BAU case?” Derek wonders.
“They each received ten to twenty times the normal dose.”
“That’s enough to kill a small child,” Spencer informs.
“Or cause a grown man to try and kill him with a tire iron apparently,” you sigh.
“Of the seven victims, there was one death and one coma. This is from the hospital's security footage the same night Fisher lost it,” JJ explains and uses the remote to put a different video on the screen.
It’s of the hospital that is in complete chaos. People are shouting, pushing, yelling, and apparently, having seizures. One man is on a stretcher, and he’s clearly on something. The doctors around him try to push past the madness of people to get him to a room while the nurses have their hands full of scared and angry patients. This wasn’t a spike or an overdose…
“These people didn’t get spiked. They were poisoned,” you reveal.
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“Of the seven victims, Gail Norman was the only death. She was seventy-eight. She ran out into the middle of the road, and she was hit by a car. She was DOA,” JJ reveals on the plane ride over to New Jersey.
You’re sitting next to Spencer in one of the seats that are super cramped so that they can fit four of them in on either side of a small table. You’re sitting by the window, so essentially, Spencer is blocking you in. He’s not a big person, but because you have romantic feelings for him, it feels like a fucking trap.
“The other potentially fatal case is nine-year-old Brittany Canon. She fell out of a treehouse and fractured her skull. She's in a coma, but the doctors don't know if she's going to come out of it,” Hotch says.
“How do you wanna handle the press?” Gideon asks the liaison.
“We still don't know how these people even got dosed. I think it would be irresponsible to issue a warning without specifics. It'll just cause panic. I did notify the local PD, though, to be discreet.”
“How is it possible that none of these people knew how they got poisoned?” Derek wonders.
“None of them remembers anything about the day it happened,” you say and gesture, but your hand brushes up against Spencer’s leg.
You blush and mutter an apology, but he doesn’t say anything about it. He looks at you and blushes as well, but he is better at hiding it than you are.
“These people were so messed up; it's made it difficult for local PD to retrace the victim's steps.”
“So, we need to go on precedent. We know there are four types of poisoners who target multiple victims,” Gideon starts.
“There's the true believer--the political terrorist/religious cult. There's the extortionist--the product tamperer that holds the business hostage in exchange for money. The prankster--it’s usually a younger offender who doesn't mean any harm, and it's basically just a big practical joke to them. Then we have the avenger--someone with a personal vendetta who chooses poison as their weapon,” you explain the different types of offenders.
“We need to find out as quickly as possible which type he is. Because with the exception of the prankster, all these types commonly test their poison on a small scale before appearing at a larger attack.”
“Then, let's hope this one was just a prank,” Derek scoffs.
"I suggest we split up the victims and see if there's a pattern to the victimology,” Gideon suggests.
“Most of them are still in the hospital. I'll call local PD to meet us there,” Hotch confirms.
“I'll check the lab reports. Maybe there's a clue to the unsub's motive in the specific nature of the poison he used,” Spencer calls dibs.
“I can't imagine anybody could want this to happen.”
“If you don’t mind, I’ll head to the hospital with you. The kid may not be able to tell the doctor anything, but I certainly can. I’ll be able to see what really happened if his mother allows it.”
“Good,” Gideon nods once. “We need all the answers we can get.”
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The hospital is buzzing with panic, fear, sadness, and grief. Many people are dying in this hospital, and to someone like you, you’re not sure you can be here for much longer. Hotch, Gideon, and the rest of the team don’t really understand how this all affects you. Normal people like the ones on your team see this hospital for what it is. They see people grieving and people crying, but they allow themselves to be separated from their emotions. They can walk into a loud crowd and tune out all the conversations and emotions without even thinking about it.
Not you. You’re completely different.
You walk into a crowd, and you’re overwhelmed by not only the physical sensation of people all around you, but your mind is also crowded. Your mind goes into overdrive as it inspects each person to make sure they are not a threat. To make sure that they are who they say they are. A normal person can see a kid walking down the street and not know they are kidnapped while you are able to determine that.
You walk into this hospital, and every single emotion of every single nurse, doctor, patient, and family member immediately go to your shoulders. Someone can be dying on the very top floor, and you’d feel how sad their family members are as they watch their beloved ones slip away. There could be someone in the next room receiving bad news, and it’ll be like you’re receiving the same news. It’s not fun living with your abilities, and you’ve caught yourself wishing it would all just end. However, you think about everyone you’ve saved, and it somehow all makes it okay.
“Detective Hanover, Beechwood PD,” the detective that was on the surveillance tape introduces himself to you, Gideon, and Hotch.
“Agent Hotchner, this is Agent Gideon and Agent Y/L/N.”
“Thanks for coming down on such short notice. The doctor said he may have permanent brain damage. I've never seen anything like this,” he sighs and looks at Eric, the little boy who was beaten by his own father.
“Well, let's hope we can help him.”
“Have you had a chance to review the victim's files?”
“We're especially interested in talking to the boy's father,” Gideon says.
“We'd like to get a sense of why he turned violent while the lab analyzes the specific nature of the LSD he was dosed with. we'd like to get our own sense: was it the drug itself or was there something else going on? Hopefully, that can give us a little bit of a window into the motive of the offender,” Hotch explains.
“He's in the psych ward.”
“Well, we'll keep it short,” Gideon replies.
“If you don’t mind, I’ll meet up with you two. I’m going to talk to the mother,” you offer, and Hotch just nods.
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vanderlindemorgans · 3 years
Text
Cross My Heart (Chapter 5)
Pairing: Agent Whiskey x Reader
Rating: Explicit/18+
Summary: A traitorous Agent Whiskey returns to the United States on the run. Being cast out by Statesman, he soon finds that you’re the only person he can turn to - the embittered former flame from years long passed
Word count: 7.5k
Warnings: Eventual smut, some references to alcoholism and drug use. Reader is in her late twenties but there is an age gap between her and Whiskey. Chapter specific warnings: one scene takes place in a hospital, some medical talk, more heavy drinking, talk of death and alcoholism (specifically related to drunk driving), mentions of drug addiction, Whiskey being a dick, lotta heavy topics in general.
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“Alright, so the X-Rays have come back and as you can probably already guess your left arm has been fractured”.
The news hadn’t been a shock to you at all - it was only logical that the result of being thrown off the back of a horse was your arm breaking from the impact of the fall, nevermind the sheer amount of pain that it had already caused you was even more indication that something was definitely wrong there. All things considered, it still wasn’t a pleasant piece of news to receive, causing you to let out a low groan as you settled back into the hospital gurney they had allocated to you after the ambulance had pulled you in. Dressed in only a hospital gown, you felt the chill from the room's air conditioning prick the edges of your skin, the coolness of temperature making the whole experience even more foreign to you. Of course, it wasn’t like you’d never been to a hospital before - an unlucky bout of croup had sent you to the emergency room as a little kid when you’d almost stopped breathing. At the resurgence of that particular memory you felt yourself shudder, recalling the hours spent passed out in a brightly lit room and being forced to drink gross tasting liquid that was meant to clear up your airways. At least you weren’t choking on your own breath this time round. 
“Well that’s just fantastic. How long will it take to heal? I kinda got a ranch to run” you asked the doctor, who was standing off to the side consulting the clipboard nestled against his arm. Sighing, he looked up at you with a look of sympathy while he ran through the information he’d jotted down on his notes. “Usually it takes twelve weeks for fractures to heal - given the fact that a good part of your arm has been displaced you’ll need to be put into surgery to shift the bone back into place, which we’ll have scheduled for you in the next twenty-four hours. Afterwards, I’ll be putting you in a cast for a couple of weeks and you’ll have to come back in for checkups weekly. I’ll also give you a list of rehabilitation exercises you can do to ensure the recovery process goes as smoothly as possible” he explained. “After your surgery and subsequent discharge, I heavily recommend a few days bed rest due to the concussion you have sustained”.  
“So I’m guessing most physical labour is out then” you muttered under your breath, sighing once you realized how heavily this would impact your ability to keep things running smoothly back at the ranch. Yes, you had employees but without you to oversee everything things would slow down and descend into madness real quickly. You wished you had allocated some sort of second in command for times like this, a manager of sorts to keep things in place while you recovered but you’d just never gotten around to it, brushing the thought aside every time it sprung up with a simple “Why would I need extra help anyway? Nothing ever happens around here”. 
“You’d be correct on that. Now, I have some other patients to check on but I will be back in about 20 minutes or so to prep you for surgery, though I will send a nurse to give you some painkillers so you can stop feeling the worst of the pain for at least a little while” he replied. You went to thank him but before you could you felt a light touch graze along your right arm. Your eyes glanced over to where Jack’s hand was placed, his touch delicate and comforting, sparking that same feeling in your chest that you’d felt when he’d stroked your forehead back at the ranch. His eyes met your own for a moment, deep cedar brown looking at you with nothing more than concern and worry, somehow pulling at a single string of your heart even though you wanted to fight against it with all your might.
Snapping you focus back into place, you nodded back over to the doctor and thanked him for all he was doing, listening to his reassurances that he’d have you fixed up as soon as possible as he hurried on out of the room to his next patient in need. Once he was gone, you exhaled in annoyance and went back to staring aimlessly at the ceiling, mulling over the inconvenience of your predicament. 
“Everything ok, sugar?” you heard Jack ask you, feeling his enchanting eyes study your expression, his anxiety over your wellbeing plain as day. Letting out a small laugh, you returned his question with a small smile of your own. “Does it look like I’m ok?” you joked, gesturing vaguely to your fractured arm. 
He chuckled at your sarcasm, always enjoying that certain fire you had to your character that refused to silence itself. Unbeknownst to you, that was one of things that drew him towards you in the first place - his own air of cockiness and confidence was equally matched by your spitfire and sarcastic wit. Finding out the sweet disposition that lay behind that harshness the first time round had taken him by complete surprise, but only did more to endear himself to you. God, he was such a fool for losing that. He was certain that your sweetness was still there, closed behind even more layers of hurt and pain that he’d caused such a large hand in. 
From the moment the ambulance had arrived, Jack had stayed beside you, refusing to leave for even a single moment. It was quite endearing, truth be told, a feeling that attempted to worm its way through your steadfast reasoning against him. He’s a liar. Don’t fall for his shit again, you repeated to yourself. Though it was becoming harder and harder to continue regarding him as your greatest mistake when he was behaving so kindly and gentlemanly towards you. Just a part of his deceptive charm, I guess, you thought bitterly. 
“Y’know, you don’t have to worry about things gettin’ outta hand down at the ranch. I’m more than happy to step up and help” he spoke up, snapping your attention back to his words and out of your own contemplation. You thought about his proposal for a minute, the temptation to say yes seeming very appealing towards you, though somehow that felt like admitting to weakness. The ranch wasn’t his responsibility, it was yours, left to you by your dear parents. It was your obligation to run it in their stead - there’d been difficulties along the way, sure, including the occasional nasty cold every now and then but you had pulled through without any trouble. You didn’t need help or any sort of handout, and you were more than capable of taking care of business by yourself, even with a broken arm.
Then again, it is gonna be kinda hard to run a business while being confined to bed rest. Briefly you thought about just closing the ranch for a couple of days while you got back on track yet once you thought about the loss in profits you discarded that idea quickly. It wasn’t like you were struggling to make ends meet but a dip in profits could cause a bit of issue. 
“Yeah but...It’s my responsibility. I can’t just ignore that because I got a stupid broken arm” you rebuffed, though you didn’t sound entirely convinced of what you were saying yourself. Sadly, stubbornness was your nature and even if you knew you were fighting a losing battle, sometimes it was more about the principle of having a position rather than whatever thing you were debating over. Some would say that was quite a counterproductive way to look at things, and you’d agree with them, yet you still remained stubborn in spite of them, feeding back into the cycle.  
“Darlin’, with all due respect, I think what’s best for you is that you take a step back and let someone else take the reins. You need to allow yourself to rest a lil. Tell me, in all the years of runnin’ the ranch by yourself, have you ever once taken a day off?”. 
“No, but-”.
“Exactly as I thought. You’ve been doing an amazing job at keeping things together for all these years, sweetheart, but you gotta relax a bit. Let me help you” he interrupted, gazing at you with those heart-meltingly sweet eyes of his, a look which made you seize up ever so slightly in minor fake annoyance. Little shit, he had to be doing that on purpose.
“Fine, only if it’ll get you to shut up” you relented, rolling your eyes in a dramatic fashion and hitting your head back down into the pillow below, eliciting a playful smirk from him in return. “That’s my girl, stubborn as always” he jested. 
To that you cocked an eyebrow at him in disbelief. “Your girl? Careful there, Jack, for a minute I thought you were capable of genuine compassion and care. I may have once been your girl, cowboy, but not anymore. Or did you happen to forget?”. 
His own expression softened slightly in regards to your snide remark, his mischievous grin faltering while he turned his gaze to the floor, looking somewhat sheepish towards what you had said, a far cry from his usual air of arrogance. “Yeah, I guess I deserve that” he murmured. “Tell me, sugar, do you ever think one day you’ll believe me when I say that I’m sorry?”. 
“When pigs fly, dearest” you smiled with a shit-eating grin, though you couldn’t miss that momentary flash of hurt in his eyes that made you pull back, a sharp pang striking through your chest that hurt harder than the agonizing ache in your arm, which really, was saying something. Could that be...guilt, perhaps?, you thought, searching Jack’s face for any further sign of offense. If he was feeling hurt, he was doing a pretty stellar job at hiding it. Maybe it was nothing, and even if he was hurt, well, he said it himself, he deserved it. Without giving you another minute to ponder your own feelings, a welcome interruption in the arrival of a nurse found you, shifting your thoughts towards the relief of finally getting some painkillers into you. 
___
The surgery had gone over well, and after a grueling day spent hanging out in that hospital room hopped up on painkillers you were finally discharged late afternoon the following day. The worst of your concussion had cleared itself up too yet you were still confined to your bed for those first few days - the doctor was insistent on that fact, saying you could never be too careful. You’d begrudgingly complied, not wanting to cause any further problems to your health, and even if you had tried to go against the doctor’s orders, you knew that Jack would be there to send you off back to bed if you dared lift a finger. 
Jack had doted on you the entire time, making sure you were well hydrated and cool enough in the midst of the hot Texas summer, fetching you snacks and whatever else you needed from downstairs. In his own words, what kind of man would he be if he didn’t take care of an ailing woman. You’d rolled your eyes and insisted that he didn’t have to go all out with looking after you yet he’d insisted. It was somewhat heartwarming, and it felt nice to be taken care of again after those last few years alone. It reminded you of when you’d come down with the flu back in third grade, staying home in bed lazily watching television and barely being able to keep your eyes open while your mum made soup in the kitchen. You could feel your heart drop at the mere recollection of your parents, pain that stayed beneath the surface rising up in full force. Usually you pushed those feelings down, not wanting to become distracted from the business, but today, you allowed yourself the indulgence of missing them. What would they think if they could see you now? Would they be proud, or disappointed? 
Feeling your stomach grumble, you shifted over in bed and reached your only good arm out to grab onto the half-eaten grilled cheese Jack had brought in for you five minutes before, letting out a low wince at the pain that writhed through your other arm, which had been placed into a cast and sling for the time being. Already you couldn’t wait for the day you could get the damned thing taken off - you hadn’t been able to shower and you felt grotty and gross. It wasn’t like you had to impress anyone, it was just you and Jack lying about the place. Still, you could only take so many days of waking up with unwashed greasy hair. And it was itchy too. Oh dear god, it was fucking itchy. You’d heard about how itchy the plaster could get second-hand but you never anticipated it to be that bad. 
Directing your eyes to the clock on your bedside, you took notice of the time and let out a small relieved sigh. You could finally take another one of those painkillers, the fourth and dismally last one for you of the day. 
Your relief quickly fizzled out into disappointment when you realised the packet of painkillers that had been sitting by your bedside was empty. “Seriously? It’s only been a few days, I couldn’t have gone through them already…” you muttered to yourself in annoyance. Nevermind, there was another packet downstairs. You may have been perfectly capable of getting out of bed and retrieving it yourself, though you found yourself not wanting to be bothered with such a task. “Hey Jack, you there? I ran out of painkillers, could ya run some up to me?” you called out.
“Sure thing, sweetheart” you heard him shout back, and no more than two minutes later he was striding through your bedroom door, carrying exactly what you had requested within his palms. “How are you feelin’?” he asked. 
“No better than six minutes ago when you last asked me that. Thanks for bringing these up though, fuck that stupid horse for bucking me off” you grumbled, sniping the blessed white packet out of his hands and into your fingers. “Pain making you grumpy, sweet girl? You seem a bit more full of spitfire than usual today” he joked. 
“Nah, you’re getting the discounted version today. If I wanted to vocalise exactly what I was feeling right now you’d be obliterated in a second” you laughed, chucking a tablet into your mouth and washing it down with a large gulp of water, anxious to feel some semblance of relief. 
“You don’t say. How’s your head doing, though? No dizziness or anything like that?”. 
“I’m fine, Jack, I promise. You don’t have to fawn all over me just because I broke my dumb arm” you assured, rolling your eyes at him. 
“I wouldn’t call in fawning, I only want to make sure you're comfortable and all that. Not only because of your arm and all” he smiled gently, reaching out to brush a stray hair off your forehead. It could have been the heat of the room but you could have sworn your skin felt on fire the moment he touched you. You could feel him press the back of his fingers against your head, unconsciously allowing your breath to hitch at his touch. And just like that, the warmth of his hand was gone, leaving an invisible searing mark in its place and your own head full of frenzied and confused thoughts. 
“Like I said earlier, just call out if you need anything else, alright darlin’?” he said as he was leaving, words that you didn’t care to take notice of as he left you to yourself again. Blinking slowly, you couldn’t even fully begin to describe what had just taken place, or why one little gesture was throwing your mind into somersaults. Why did his mere touch have to affect you like that? Why couldn’t he just leave you alone? Groaning loudly, you settled yourself underneath the sheet covering you and huffed at nobody in particular, cursing both yourself and him for even existing. For fucks sake...
___
Taking a sip of bourbon from your glass, you leaned against the side of the stairs of the veranda with your gaze fixated off into the distance, though you didn’t take any notice of what lay ahead, lost deep in your own thoughts that clouded your mind. It’d been a couple more days, and you’d finally been able to get out of bed and get back to helping out around the ranch - not that you were still of any use to anyone, given the state of your arm. It felt good to be back overseeing things, albeit a bit more behind the scenes than you had been in years. It’d be a good month or so before you were able to move your arm properly and have things back to normal. At first that fact did nothing short of irritating you, since you weren’t one to lie about helpless when work needed to be done. Over the last few days though, seeing the ranch go about with business as usual with Jack’s extra help had put you at ease a little. It still bothered you somewhat that you had to be asking any sort of help from Jack Daniels of all people, though really, he was the one offering it in the first place so you hadn’t so much as asked him to do anything, moreso conceding to his instistance at the behest of your stubbornness. 
The pain was getting a little better too, though whether that had more to do with the painkillers or not remained to be seen. For example, you couldn’t feel anything now but you had just ingested two glasses of pure straight bourbon, so of course any type of pain would be numbed. Remember when it could numb more than just that? You let out a small snicker at the thought, sounding as hollow and empty as it felt. Once upon a time you might have been classed as relatively lightweight, a fact that changed after years of the trials and tribulations life had thrown your way. You still got drunk easy, but it took a good few glasses before you actually passed out.
“You know, you should let me sign that for ya”. 
Hearing that familiar voice ring out from behind you, you swivel around so see its owner standing right in the opened doorway of your home, his hands casually resting in his pockets and his frame leant against the wall. “What are we, in middle school? I don’t want it getting dirty” you scoffed, rolling your eyes at him for good measure. 
He smirked right back at you, letting out a small snicker that mirrored your own. “Why not? It’s not like you're gonna have to be wearin’ it forever. A little scribble in permanent marker wouldn’t do ya any harm” Jack grinned, taking a large step forward to descend down to your level, seating himself right next to you on the veranda. You cocked an eyebrow at him, letting your fingertips trail over the edge of the glass in your hands while you stared at him with utter audacity. “And yet I know you’re only so persistent in signing it because you’ll write something crude or vaguely flirty” you snipped. 
“How little you think of me, sugar. I’d never dream of doin’ such a thing. I am nothing if not a gentleman”. 
“Oh, do cut the charm, Jack. What is it you want?”.
“Please, can’t a man share a glass of bourbon with a lady without being subjected to the Spanish Inquisition?” he asked, wearing his devilish and frustratingly charming grin as he spoke, the appearance of which you swore made your cheeks flush a little bit hotter. Probably because of the alcohol...and it is hot out here after all...
“Not this lady, cowboy” you stated, gulping down the last dredges of bourbon in your glass and placing it back down to the floor with a thud. You went to go grab the bottle from beside you but found Jack had already snatched it up, pouring you another glass. Mumbling out a small thank you, you considered asking him if he wants a glass of his own, however once you caught sight of his silver Statesman issued flask in his hands you dismissed the idea entirely. With nothing else left to say, you glanced back up to the sky above towards where the moon was hanging over you two, the delicate light illuminating the stretches of countryside around your property in a soft glow, one that was both enchanting and eerie at the same time. Every now and then you would be reminded of how beautiful the Texan countryside could look, whether it be bathed in the rays of that damned blistering sun or the enigmatic glimmer of moonlight. It could pull you back to moments lost in time, years ago sitting right where you were in that very same spot, seven years younger and with the exact same man sitting beside you, head rested on his shoulder and looking out into the vast expanse of midnight black. Funny how things change, don’t they?
Out the corner of your eye you saw Jack shake his head, his eyes quiet, the sparkle of stark confidence bordering on plain arrogance missing. It was a similar look to the one he’d given you at the hospital that night, before he’d tried to cover it up with a certain facade of indifference. “What will it take for you to believe I’m sorry? What happened between us, it was all-” he started before being unceremoniously cut off by your interjection. 
“In the past? I’m well aware of that. Doesn’t change how I feel” you stopped him. You’d anticipated him throwing out that line from day one and you’d come prepared. Shut it down. Don’t let him try to swindle you for a fool. 
His expression changed to one more serious, a hint of him being slightly miffed that you cut him off in the first place. “Let me finish, darlin’. I’m gonna level with you for a second - what I did to you was one of the worst mistakes of my life. Letting everything fall apart like it did, I never should have let it happen” he expressed, his tone straddling between being firm and also being gentle. Cocking an eyebrow at him, you turned back to your glass of liquor, swirling the liquid around idly in a way that reminded you of that persistent thought running round your head. Did he have a point? Were you being too harsh on him? 
Don’t become soft on him. Don’t do it. You shifted back into focus, pushing those thoughts far to the back of your tipsy mind while you took a couple large sips of liquor as if it were a lifeline. “Worse than whatever mistake led you to showing up on my doorstep?” you asked, eager to direct the conversation right back out of that uncomfortable territory and into something a bit more easier to stomach. Maybe later on you could ponder the true depths of your perceptions of Jack. Right now, though, you wanted to get wasted and not have to think about anything anymore. And hey, it’s not like I wasn’t wondering about the events that led him here in the first place anyway.“You never did tell me what happened. I know you said it was none of my concern but...I want to know. Call it a spate of drunken curiosity, if ya want”. 
The question alone was enough to draw Jack’s face from being merely serious to an expression more cold and distant. He looked away from you entirely and rested his gaze to the few steps below the two of you, his hand clenching in a subconscious act that alone was enough to tell you his own reservations regarding the topic. “Truth is, I’ve been fucking things up for a good couple of years. What happened to lead me here, well, it ain’t a pretty story”. 
“I don’t care, Jack, I wanna know” you asserted, surging with a sense of fiery confidence. It might have been the alcohol giving you a bit more moxie to push the topic. One thing was for sure though: you wanted answers, and you didn’t wanna let this go. Stretching your legs out, you finished off the glass you had while you waited for him to reply, not wanting to cave to your request even if he was looking at you like you’d threatened to kill the President. 
Finally, he let out a low groan of annoyance and leant against the side of the veranda, not affording you a single look as he launched into his tale. “Basically what happened is some agents from an English based secret service came over to the states as a last resort - their base got blown up by someone and the two guys that approached us were the only ones left alive. Well, them and this other guy we had at our headquarters, but that’s a whole other story. The people behind the attack were a group called the Golden Circle, and Statesman had already been investigating them for awhile. I was called in by Champ to partner up with the Kingsman fellas, do the regular secret agent spiel of espionage and savin’ the world and all that crap. But, me and these other agents, we had an...ideological disagreement. I was covertly tryin’ to hinder them until the older guy got wise to my shit and shot me in the head. Ginger managed to bring me in and revive me, I went over to Cambodia where the two agents were confronting the leader of the Golden Circle, and to make a long story short things got nasty pretty quickly. I barely escaped with my life” he explained.
You nodded along to his explanation, the load of information being a lot to take in the first time round. You were always somewhat aware of Jack’s position as a secret agent though you were never privy to the nitty and gritty details - in fact, the way you’d found out about it in the first place was by complete accident and Jack had to beg Agent Champ to allow you to become cleared on even knowing the basics of his true work behind the front of being a Statesman investor. “And these ideological disagreements were…?” you pushed. 
“Trust me, you don’t wanna know” he deflected.
“Try me”.
He didn’t reply to you straight away, instead staring at you with a stark look of confliction across his face, an inner turmoil brewing inside of him on whether or not he should tell you even more. Being cast out as a traitor, he didn’t have to worry about breaking any sort of rule of confidentiality, so if you had to wager a guess at what his dilemma was, then it must have been that he felt mildly ashamed, or even embarrassed about the whole situation. In your mind though, you’d let him keep his secrets for weeks now, but if he was going to stay in your house you wanted to at the bare minimum know what he did that was so bad that he simply couldn’t return back home anymore.  “Well go on then, hit me with your best shot” you prodded further, hopefully enough to get his demeanour to crack and for him to spill what exactly the entire fuss had been about. And sure enough, crack he did. 
Running a hand across his forehead, he let out a low exasperated sigh, one that would have been inaudible if you hadn’t been seated beside him, indicating the exact moment he finally decided to break his own silence and reveal everything to you. “The Golden Circle were primarily a drug cartel and terrorist organization based out in the hidden depths of the Cambodian jungle. Their leader had devised a plot that involved lacing their distribution of drugs with a new type of chemical she created that caused death. Since their supply was mass distributed over the globe, they were holding the entire populace of drug users and addicts hostage to their respective governments, demanding a payout for the antidote. They didn’t, however, anticipate the President and other world leaders not really giving a red hot shit about the lives of junkies. Being the noble men they are, the Kingsman agents as well as the rest of Statesman were striving to get ahold of the antidote to save all those people. And that, is where me and them disagreed” Jack elaborated, avoiding your gaze in what appeared to be a calculated move in order to refrain from seeing your reactions to his admittance. In the span of two minutes, your expression had shifted from intense curiosity to straight up bafflement at what he was saying. It didn’t make sense - why was he against distributing the antidote? He was a secret agent, wasn’t he meant to save the world and innocent lives and all that?
“Let me get this straight - you were assigned on a mission to try to save the lives of innocent people, and you chose...not to do that” you asked, your tone laced with judgment. Not that you had intended for what you said to have come across any different. If what he was implying was right, then that would mean...
“Well, when you put it like that, sure, it sounds awful. I will concede, it wasn’t my best move. But all the people who ingested those drugs did so willingly. They knew they were taking a gamble on their lives the moment they stuck a damn needle into their arms” Jack grumbled defensively, allowing you to gawk back at him in utter disbelief. “Jack, no, you can’t seriously believe that? So what you’re saying is that the kid that decided to get high with his mates one weekend at a party deserves to die? Is that right?”. 
“No, no, I didn’t mean like that, I just…”.
“Really? ‘Cause it sounds a lot like you’re saying that innocent people should die for their poor choices” you cut in, shaking your head to further drive your point in. “Jesus, just when I thought you couldn’t be a bigger asshole you proved me wrong”. 
“Sweetheart, please, I know. It was a mistake, you don’t have to keep rubbing it in”. 
“You know it’s a mistake, but do you truly feel it? Do you really feel remorse? Because if you don’t then it’s just a bunch of empty words” you rebuffed, shooting him with a cold piercing glare that could make an entire continent freeze over. Around about this time, you really began to take notice of the dazed feeling clouding you, every glass of liquor draining straight into your brain and making you feel like your entire head was swimming. Maybe take it easy on the next glass, why don’t ya? With that thought, you shoved the glass off to the side with your free arm and bit your lip, debating whether or not you should even say what you wanted to next. That debate, however, did not last very long as you found yourself blurting out exactly what was on your mind within two seconds of your last thought. “Jack, look...maybe I’ll hate myself for saying this later, and maybe it’s just the liquor talking but I don’t think you’re an inherently bad person. I think you’re an arrogant son of a bitch who does cruel stupid things but probably has a decent enough heart. You just...you gotta stop with this shit. Stop with the betrayals, and the lies, and the false promises, all of it, and just be the real you. The Jack I knew may be a prick but he was never one to let an innocent die on his watch. What’s really behind all this?”. 
He continued to glare from his position beside you, somewhat intent on making you recant and drop the whole subject entirely. You wouldn’t go down that easy though, and he knew it, for as stubborn as Jack was you were at least ten times moreso, so when he folded first and trained his eyes low to the ground, you knew that he’d finally conceded. You could feel a whole shift in his demeanour from where you sat, the mask of defensive anger slowly falling away to reveal what was truly underneath: hurt. Pure, raw, unbridled hurt. Anguish that felt especially familiar to you and spoke to a part of yourself that you’d been turning away from for years, and even before he said those words you knew exactly what he was going to say. 
“Years ago, before I became an agent to Statesman, I was married to the young woman I’d fallen for in high school. I think I told you about her in passing maybe once, or twice, I don’t know…” Jack started, trailing off once he began to fully re-immerse himself in the past, heartache plainly sewn across his features. It was then that you felt an ache of your own in your chest, a heavy feeling of guilt descending upon you once you realised the gravity of what he was saying. “I remember. You said her name was Lily, wasn’t it?” you murmured, your voice small and unsure, with a hint of something else present too. Regret? Guilt? Whatever it was, you couldn’t quite put a name to it, but it was there, strong as anything and clearly wasn’t going away any time soon. 
Jack let out a small hum in reply, everything about his composure presumably a million miles away from everything around the both of you.“So you do remember” he muttered, brushing his fingers over the edge of his silver flask that he had cradled in his handles, tracing the Statesman logo engraved on the side with the pad of his thumb. “I remember you askin’ me about her the first time you came back to my apartment in New York - you saw the photo of her I kept on my desk and asked who she was. I only told you briefly that she was long gone, but I never told you how. The both of us were only twenty-three, and she was pregnant with our first child, a baby boy. Last time I saw her she left the house to go to the convenience store a few streets over”. He stopped himself for a split second, the darkness of his eyes being the all-too recognisable sign of falling deep into his own recollection, feeling as if he was reliving every memory that he revisited in his mind. “Twenty minutes later I get a phone call from a cop, saying there’d been an incident. Meth addicts had robbed the store at gunpoint and she’d been caught in the crossfire. She died instantly, and I wasn’t there to say goodbye. I never got to meet our baby boy, I never got to hold her in my arms again and say how much I loved her, because she was taken from me by a couple of meth-addled scumbags”. 
You were honestly at a loss for words, not knowing if saying something would be the appropriate option or not. He was right, you knew he was married before - the time with the picture that he mentioned was the most you had heard of her. He never brought Lily up again, and you never thought to ask, since in your mind it wasn’t any of your business who Jack loved before. Now, the pieces were falling into place, the interwoven connections of his past to his actions as an agent making all the more sense to you. 
What you wanted to do most was lean forward and envelop him into your embrace, tell him that you understood more than anyone what exactly that felt like, and even permit yourself to pour out your own heart to him. Drunk as you were though, you couldn’t talk yourself into doing anything more than placing a reassuring hand on his knee, letting your touch be soft and hesitant in case he shrugged you off, since you did basically just goad him into revealing his own wounds in the name of having answers. “Jack, I...I had no idea, I-”. 
“How could you have known? I never told you” he mumbled flatly. In the dim veranda light, all though it was faint, you could swear that there was a teardrop lingering in the corner of his cedar brown eyes, nudging the dagger of guilt further into your heart. Say something, you idiot.
Starting off softly, you let your hand rest firmer on his knee, trying to catch his eyes into your own. Tearing his glance away from the flask, he looked back at you with the same raw grief that you had seen on your own face so many times. “I know it must have hurt like hell losing her. And you have every right to feel angry, and hurt that she was taken, but that doesn’t give you the right to hate. Every addict in the world is not the same man who took her life. You can’t just-” you started, before the sound of Jack’s harshest tone cut through your words like a knife. 
“How would you know? Do you have any idea what it feels like to hurt, to have lost everything because of someone else’s choices?” he spat, anger seething in his scowl that was directed solely at you. It had taken you by surprise at first - as a reflex you withdrew your hand quickly from him as if he were burnt, perplexed at his sudden outburst. That didn’t last long however, as soon enough confusion was replaced by your own flair of anger. Now it was your turn to get defensive.“I think I do know what it’s like to hurt and to lose. In case you’ve forgotten, dickhead, there’s two people who should be right inside this house that aren’t anymore and haven’t been for about six fucking years now!” you yelled back. 
Shit. He’d forgotten about your parents. The anger that had been in him disappeared without a trace right then, being replaced by something close to resembling remorse over his behaviour. “I...I didn’t mean...fuck, sugar, I…I’m sorry. I don’t even know what to say” he apologised. You didn’t say anything back to him. You didn’t want to dignify him with any sort of a response. First of all, how dare he? You were only trying to empathise with him, and here he was biting your head off for daring to suggest that he doesn't hate every drug user on the planet. Why do I even fucking bother? 
The awkward silence between you hung for awhile, the two of you not wanting to break it for your own different reasons. You could feel Jack stealing glances at you, like he was trying to talk himself into saying something but never had the courage to follow through. Huffing to yourself, you took in your next glass fast enough to make your head spin. You’d have to turn in for the night eventually, and truth be told you were considering doing so right then when you heard Jack speak up. 
“I never did ask...if you don’t mind me askin’ that is...what happened to your folks anyway?” he asked hesitantly, as if he knew the question was fat-witted to begin with. Not that you minded too much by then. Drunk you was a lot more forgiving than you were sober. 
Taking in a heavy breath, you relayed your tale of woe to him, one hand placed steady to your side to keep you sitting upright. “It was late, and they were coming back from a friend’s 50th birthday party. Their friend lived in downtown Dallas, so they had a fair way to go to get from there to here. When they were almost on the highway, an out-of-control car barrelled towards them, smashing into the front of their windscreen and killing both of them instantly. The driver of the other car had been drinking - according to the local news he was a known alcoholic and had been out having a heated argument with his friend in the passenger seat. The only survivor of the entire collision had been his friend”. 
You saw Jack blink at you in silent shock, the weight of your words falling heavily on him while he continued to process it all. “Shit, darling, I feel like an even bigger piece of shit than I already did. If you slapped me clean across the face and kicked me out on my ass after this I wouldn’t blame ya one bit” he replied to you solemnly in a way that didn’t leave you questioning the authenticity of his words - he was genuinely sorry this time round. Taking his apology in stride, you shrugged back at him  and acted as nonchalant about the whole thing as possible, not wanting to ponder the topic further. As far as you were concerned, you’d felt enough things for one day and would very much like a break from it all. 
“It’s fine. You had no way of knowing. But please, if you take anything from this, at least listen to my words: externalising hate towards random people only feeds your trauma. It doesn’t resolve anything, and the only person left suffering in the end is yourself”. 
He furrowed his brow at you, most likely feeling a little defensive that the topic had circled back around to here, but considering his unruly display of anger earlier he wasn’t one to indulge in his own instinctual need to defend his position. “But...didn’t you want the man who took your parents away to suffer? Didn’t you look at every other drunk driving incident in the papers with a little more anger and rage than before?” he asked, earning a single eyebrow raise from you in return. “I mean...I guess what I’m trying to say is...it’s so easy to hate...why didn’t you fall into that trap?”. 
“Well, I did, for a little. It was almost tempting to look at every person I saw struggling with alcoholism in red. Since the man who caused the collision was already dead as a result of his own mistakes, at times I’d externalise part of that pain I was feeling onto others, and sometimes that anger became so hot and so burning that it was almost impossible to ignore. I realised pretty quickly that hating alcoholics wasn’t going to bring my parents back and that I’d have to make peace with their passing at some point. Honestly, I still haven’t processed a lot of that shit myself yet I’m still out here living my life as best I can, and really, with my own drinking habits I’d be a goddamn hypocrite to even try to find any true hatred in my heart towards heavy drinkers” you explained. Taking one last sip of bourbon, you discarded your glass off to your side and chuckled lightheartedly. “God, If I drink another glass I’m gonna collapse on the fucking floor. Think it might be time for me to turn in for the night. At least it’s Sunday tomorrow so we can sleep in a lil”.
“Y-you’re goin’ to bed? You’re not telling me to get lost or anything?” Jack sputtered in disbelief, which in turn earned him a minorly strange look from you. “Why would I do that?” you asked. 
“I quite literally just admitted to treason against my former organization to you”. 
“So? You made a mistake. A pretty fucking big mistake, and a shitty one at that, but still, a mistake. You obviously have some of your own pain you need to work through, and I can get that. Doesn’t mean I agree with what you did, but I get it. I’m not gonna kick you to the curb just because you have issues”.Upon saying that, you hoisted yourself up by latching your free arm onto the veranda’s fenceline, stumbling a little as you fought to maintain your balance while being both drunk and unable to fully utilise one of your arms. Nevertheless, you’d managed to straighten yourself up, and once you’d determined that you were alright to take yourself upstairs you faced on towards the front door and grasped at the brass knob in your hands, taking a brief pause to turn back and nod softly towards the man behind you. “Night Jack, I’ll see ya tomorrow” you called out, leaving him to sit there and watch you disappear back into the house with a certain look of dumbfounded astonishment.
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