#foundoutthehardway
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FAO Defenders Crossover P.2: Chinese for Christmas Dinner
(Logistical note, this is the second half of a crossover thread between @foundoutthehardway, @atrxvido, @ironrand, and myself, of course (as Jessica). It, like Part 1, is somewhat unfinished, but the plot has moved well past. Please enjoy these losers having dumplings on Christmas eve.)
The police arrived shortly after the mess had ended- while Jess was certainly not the biggest fan of the cops, especially not of Mercedes Knight, there wasn’t much more the heroes could do. Not on Christmas Eve. They all ducked out the back, hoping the papers would pin this ‘Christmas miracle’ on the Devil or something.
“Goodwill to all, and all that shit,” Jess spat, wiping her mouth with the back of her glove. “I never went to Sunday school, but I definitely don’t remember ninjas in the nativity. God, I can’t believe it’s Christmas in a few hours.” Not that she particularly cared. She never celebrated, but with Luke around… maybe they could have tried. Jess had actually bought him what she imagined was a good gift, but she’d never given a good gift in her life. Why start now? She could give it to him later, when they got home.
To the apartment that had been set on fire. Jess was going to have to do something about that, especially in light of this ninja business.
“Anyways, kicking ass worked up my appetite and honestly after not eating all day I’d like to take advantage of that,” she muttered, looking down the street to see if any neon signs were still on anywhere.
Matt sighed, wiping the blood from his mouth on the back of his gloved hand. Ninjas weren’t going to be the death of him, but Jessica quite possibly was. “I was raised by nuns, and for once, you’re right about that. Merry Christmas, for what it’s worth.” Ah, shit, Christmas. Foggy. He wasn’t going to be able to hang around. Just as well. He didn’t want anyone else knowing his identity. “Look, there’s about a billion real noisy signs buzzing around here, but would you serve Daredevil?”
He had to admit, he was hungry as well. He didn’t exactly eat well before he went out either. At least he wasn’t as bad as Jessica. “C’mon, you have to eat, when you’re - never mind.”
Matt knew about the Hand, and he knew that it wasn’t going to go well if they got involved without him, but at the same time - he barely knew Luke and this new guy. Up until recently, his interactions with Jessica had been almost solely (somewhat) professional. Leaving the camera incident aside. “Look. I gotta go. But you have fun.”
“Oh, No, you don’t,” Luke said, grinning. “No way, man, you do all that parkour business, beatin’ bad folks up without even being able to see -- you eat with us. I know a Chinese restaurant owes me about a dozen favors, and we should be looking to hole up for a while. Don’t worry about the warehouse, Misty’s got our backs.”
And their numbers. And probably a whole lot of community service hours for Luke. But that was tomorrow’s problem. Luke slung an arm around Jessica’s shoulder, and another around Matt’s.
“Mushu pork! Szechuan beef. Enough dumplings to sink the Titanic. Come on, it’s Christmas Eve, I’m gonna be a daddy, and we opened a dozen cans of whup on those fake ninjas. We should be celebrating. … and probably hiding.”
After the fight came to its seemingly inevitable conclusion, Danny wasn’t sure what to…. do. Of course, he already had notions of a lean, mean, fighting team spinning around in his head, but he did his best to tamp down such expectations. Jessica and the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen weren’t exactly the joining type.
Luke seemed nice, though.
“You’re going to be a dad?” Danny couldn’t help but splutter. His eyes moved back and forth between Luke and Jessica several times. He pulled off his crappy ski mask to squint more meaningfully at them.
Was Jessica….?
In any case, Chinese - especially off-brand American Chinese - sounded much better than Lean Cuisine. “Luke can pick the place, but dinner’s on me.”
Jessica saw the way the masked stranger was eyeing her after Luke’s excited blabbering. She kept her hands stuffed in her jacket pockets and shrugged. “Yeah, yeah. But don’t go making a big deal about it, okay?” Despite herself, she managed a smile and gave Luke a quick peck as he threw his arm around her.
When Danny removed his mask, she just about spluttered in surprise. “Wait, Danny fucking Rand? Are you serious with the- the… the dragon punching stuff back there? I thought I told you not to worry about it on the phone.” Jess paused. “But at least you held your own in there. Jesus, what an ass-backwards group we’ve got here.”
She shook her head, not wanting to fret about it. And if Danny was paying for dinner, she wasn’t going to complain. “Alright, alright. Fine, let’s hash this out on the way to food. Luke, Danny, Devil, you’re coming with. I’m starved.” Jess broke from her boyfriend’s grasp and made a move to find a restaurant.
“Look, yes, Chinese food is great and we need to lay low for a while but whatever this is, I -” His train of thought was interrupted by Luke’s casual arm-slinging.
He sighed. “I’ve been down this route before, and these guys do not mess around. This isn’t the kind of decision you take lightly.” He also shrugged off Luke’s grasp, and moved in the same direction as Jessica. “You bring Misty into this, you’re putting her in danger.”
Matt crossed his arms. “You’re really, really risking getting dead here. Just so you can make an informed decision. I’ll come with, because it’s Christmas, but this isn’t a movie and we’re not all one big merry band of vigilantes.”
Actually, Luke was pretty sure they were, at this point, most definitely a merry band of vigilantes. All the evidence pointed that was, what with the not having police jobs or uniforms and still kicking a pile of ninja booty. But Matt looked like… actually, just then, he looked like Jessica before her tenth cup of coffee in the morning. A little sour. Luke decided nodding sagely was a good way to go.
Also.
“Misty is a cop in New York City. She’s in danger every day. We got a chance here to make things a little bit safer for her and all the rest of them. In a not-band of vigilantes way, obviously.” He winked at Danny. Danny looked on board with the whole merry band of vigilantes thing. They were going to need a name.
“Here we are,” he said, pushing the door open. “We’ll close the blinds, order food, and Danny can tell us about the dragons.”
Was Danny the only one still caught on the whole ‘Dad’ thing? And the fact Jessica was pregnant? He decided to file that away for later.
“Surprise?” Danny said tentatively, fixing Jessica with an awkwardly apologetic smile. “Sorry, I would’ve told you earlier, but I’m-- trying to keep a low profile. Hence the whole mask situation.” He raised the cloth in his hand as if in explanation, though his gaze strayed momentarily to Daredevil. “...Think I might be due for an upgrade, though, especially looking at this guy.”
Luke was nodding sagely at the whole ‘we’re not a team’ speech, so Danny decided copying him would be the best course of action. He caught the wink at the tail end, and figured he didn’t do too bad.
Although he was really starting to see the benefits, though. Of a team.
“I’m actually thinking Daredevil should tell us what he meant when he said he’s ‘been down this road before’. And I can order.” He greeted the older woman behind the counter in Chinese, extending a hand and offering a charming smile.
“Yeah, the glowing fist just screams ‘low profile’,” Jess muttered as she slipped inside the restaurant, pretending she didn’t see that wink that Luke gave to Danny. It smelled a bit like frying oil and chili spices in here, but it would do. Empty on a Christmas Eve, surprisingly, but Jess checked a clock on the wall and realized how late it actually was. And a grumble in her gut reminded her that she hadn’t really eaten anything that day to begin with.
She stood back as Danny began speaking Chinese, earning a grin from the older woman. Jess rolled her eyes somewhat, grabbing a menu and finding a table in the center of the room for them. She sat down and put one foot up on the chair next to her, flipping open the laminate pages to take a look at the food available.
“God,” she groaned. “I think I took a few good hits to the face- that’s gonna bruise tomorrow. At least those ninjas had the decency not to make any low blows.”
“I can sense you winking, Luke.” Matt sighed, following Jessica’s lead to move towards the table. He chose the chair opposite her, as not to engage in a ridiculous power play over the seat she had her foot resting on. Luke and Danny could contend with that issue.
He was actually hungry, and for once he wouldn’t have to defrost something or attempt to contend with inaccessible websites when he’d been hit in the head multiple times. That was a good enough reason to stay. It smelt like...pork dumplings, if he guessed right.
“Look, the Hand? They’re immortal fanatics, but they’re secretive and everywhere - imagine if conspiracy theories were real, essentially. Low blows? Kidnapped about 20 innocent people purely to lure me into a fight. Doesn’t matter if you’re a cop, you got super strength, bulletproof skin, you’re a...dragon guy. The Hand will still Ruin. Your. Day.”
“You know what, I don’t even think you’re blind. Ain’t no one can sense a man winking. And even if they could, you’re being creepy about it. Lighten up, Matt. We can deal with The Hand, but not on an empty stomach.”
He listed Jess’s feet and put them in his lap, patting her ankles. And looked at her stomach as if any second the first of the bump might appear. Nothing yet, but he gave her a grin. Adrenalin still coursing through his veins, and pissed off or not he was feeling pretty good.
Matt looked deeply, deeply unimpressed by that statement.
“They’re bad guys. Very bad guys. Bad guys trip ‘emselves up eventually, one way or another. And when they do, we’ll be there. We beat them, remember? We can do it again. Is that the sesame prawn toast?”
Danny gave the owner’s small, wrinkled hand one last squeeze before returning to the table, just in time to catch Matt’s comment about The Hand. Luke was pretty blasé about the whole thing, but Danny knew a thing or two about secret ninja cults. They were way old and way dangerous, stuff nobody in their right mind ought to fuck with casually.
(Though he supposed ‘right mind’ would not be... precisely applicable to the people sitting around this table.)
“Immortal fanatics?” Danny probed, turning one of the chairs around and taking a seat between Matt and Luke. He’d seen magic happen firsthand - literally - but nothing like immortality. “What exactly is their objective? World domination, or something?”
Connie - the old woman who owned the restaurant - set several plates of still steaming food onto the table in front of them. Danny offered her a smile and a brief thanks.
“Luke’s right, obviously, I just think-- it’s important to know what we’re up against,” he loaded a couple onto his plate and handed Luke the sesame prawns. “Especially if we’re talking conspiracy theory levels of crazy.”
“Tch,” Jess hissed, frowning at Matt. “I meant ‘low blows’ in the sense that no one tried to punch me in the stomach. Because that could have ended badly. But yeah, sure, they’re bastards.” She was so not here for the talks of crazy ninja cults and apocalyptic doom to Hell’s Kitchen.
Jess put one arm over the back of her chair as Luke pulled her legs into his lap. She gave him a little wink of her own- sense that, Matt. She then heaved a tortured sigh as if this was a massive inconvenience for her as the boys talked circles around this immortal fanatic situation. It made the days she complained about dealing with cheating spouses seem like a treat.
“Up against? We? I’m not exactly making these guys a passion project of mine.” Nor was she planning to make this ‘team up’ any more than a convenient and coincidental gathering of adjacently-familiar powered people.
The investigator straightened in her seat as several steaming plates of food were set down at the table. Jess reached for her pair of chopsticks, separating the flimsy wood sticks and quickly stabbing a few fried gyoza, shaking them off onto her plate. “Luke, pass the soy sauce?”
“At the risk of having this held against me for the rest of my life, I agree with Jessica.” For a quiet life, he chose not to comment on her wink. Matt’s reticence to commit to this was warring with his desire for sesame prawn toast. He settled for grabbing some - and maybe some of those pork dumplings - and sighing deeply at the same time. “You don’t want stopping the Hand to be your New Year’s Resolution.”
He also got the sense that he was going to end up on this ride anyway. He’d not known the man long, but Danny gave off a sense of being far too interested in the concept of fighting immortal ninjas.
“That’s just about it. They’ve built crime empires over centuries, and are willing to do just about anything to keep themselves going. I’m not being creepy about it. You’re being overly lax about it. When the suit’s on, you call me Daredevil. That’s it. Not all of us can afford to be so casual with our identities.”
He wanted to cross his arms, to make the point, but that would have made it somewhat difficult to eat, so he settled for sullenly squeezing a gyoza between chopsticks harder than was strictly necessary.
---
[AND THEY ALL HAD DINNER AND BECAME BEST FRIENDS AND JESS AND LUKE HAD NOTHING BUT CUTE TIMES BEFORE THEIR BABY CAME AND ALSO SOMEHOW DANNY GOT THE BABY NAMED AFTER HIM, AND MATT WAS THERE TOO BECAUSE THEY’RE ALL BEST BUDDIES FOR LIFE. XOXO THE END]
(Okay, I took some liberties with that last part.)
#fao: defenders crossover#fightasone#atrxvido#foundoutthehardway#ironrand#aka team building exercise#aka blind justice#aka enter the dragon#aka cage match
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solo || he rebuked the fever
Matt bashed the last standing muggers’ heads together, and stepped over some of the groaning, semi-conscious figures that lay around him, dusting his hands off. “Now, gentlemen, we’re going to leave innocent young Christmas revellers alone in future, do we understand each other?”
He grabbed the ringleader by the scruff of his shirt, dangling the man’s feet a few inches off the ground. “I said, do we understand each other?” A groaned, barely audible ‘Yeah’ reached his ears, and he unceremoniously dropped the criminal back to the ground. He’d heard something in the distance - something far more important. Jessica. Okay, not Jessica in general, but Jessica getting into a fight, with that woman who he’d fought before. The one who killed like it was nothing, and not out of a Frank-style misguided sense of justice.
Matt hadn’t had a chance to compare notes with Jessica about this woman and what she wanted with Mary Walker, but he got the feeling he was about to. As well as being about to meet Luke. He had the feeling that the whole ‘human ultrasound’ thing would have been awkward, if the circumstances didn’t involve mortal danger. And the feeling that he didn’t really want to know about what Mary had to do with ‘the company money’.
Pushing that into the ‘deal with later’ mental pile, he leapt over the remaining muggers, grasping the fire escape and scaling up to the rooftop, where he took a running leap between the buildings to converge on Jessica and Luke’s location.
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Kilgrave → Luke
[unanswered texts interspersed throughout the evening of the prison break]
» How is Jessica?
» You’re running late.
» We had an agreement - if you’re having difficulties, contact A.
» I’m sending the limo for Jessica. There’s food and a change of clothing, I have plans for us this evening.
» The rendezvous point has been moved, I suggest you get your shit together.
» Is Jessica alright?
» You’re fucking everything up.
» Answer me, for fuck’s sake!
» Jessica has a mean right hook. I hope she knocked you out.
» You think you’re so clever playing this little game with me. I never lose.
» I know what you’ve done, you piece of shit.
» Mark my words, I will find you.
» I was being kind up until this point, but now you’ve gone ahead and pissed me off.
» You may be bulletproof, but that doesn’t mean I can’t make you suffer.
» Say goodbye to your old life. It’s no longer yours.
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Matt: “so having consulted both of my brain cells, I decided to continue with the endeavor”
#Source: someone please tell me if you know I forget#Daredevil#the defenders#Matt Murdock#The defenders incorrect quotes#thanks foundoutthehardway for telling me the source#source: daniel sloss
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@facethepast - [ invitation ]
@couldbetricky - [ invitation ]
@janefoster - [ invitation ]
@mightiestfightiest - [ invitation ]
@notwhateveryonesees - [ invitation ]
@thequickargint - [ invitation ]
@hridhammar - [ invitation ]
@savageshehulk - [ invitation ]
@strongestavengerbruce - [ invitation ]
@imperfectsoldier - [ invitation ]
@superslothbaby424 - [ invitation ]
@lastzenwhoberian - [ invitation ]
@cosmicjive - [ invitation ]
@princessxwakanda - [ invitation ]
@onescientificmishap - [ invitation ]
@theundeadspectro - [ invitation ]
@doctorstrangewizard - [ invitation ]
@realmorsecode - [ invitation ]
@mysteriomanifesto - [ invitation ]
@shieldtriskelion - [ invitation ]
@birthrightandblood, @centurioned @magnetischmutant, @dyamaunt, @madameofmasquerade @baron-helmutzemo @istinnayavdova, @residentshapeshifter, @mutantmysticwiccan, @dontcallmebuggirl, @akaherosandwich, @foundoutthehardway, @atrxvido, @thesouthernrogue, @notphoenix, @roi-des-voleurs, @morlockcal, @fightlikehellcat, @divinely-paired, @captcincmerica - [ invitation ]
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Love this little gorgeous terror 😍❤️ so gutted I haven't had much time with her recently because of work 😔 #daisiesaremorefunthantoys #notverytastythough #foundoutthehardway #sunshine #smiler #toothygrin https://www.instagram.com/p/BnRje0kFbh9/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=16jnqizwtsz8q
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I could write a book off THIS!!! #message #foundoutthehardway #truestshiteverwrote #wow #goodmorning #hellosomebody👂🏼 #yalldonthearme #itshard💊toswallow #nevertruelyknowanyone
#foundoutthehardway#wow#itshard💊toswallow#nevertruelyknowanyone#yalldonthearme#hellosomebody👂#truestshiteverwrote#message#goodmorning
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@foundoutthehardway
The vigilante thing was... new for Danny. While being the sworn protector of K’un-Lun didn’t exactly entail kicking the asses of different arms runners in the city, Danny was, well. Sorely in need of a hobby, and plagued with guilt over the fact that he’d done absolutely nothing to earn his current wealth. He thought of it as his way of giving back to the city. It was just an added bonus that punching people in the face doubled as excellent stress relief.
“Hey, are you Daredevil?”
Danny stepped away from the man he’d just disarmed, chest heaving and post-fight haze deflating. “What? No! Daredevil has, like, the horns.” He gestured meaningfully around his crown. “I’m not Daredevil.”
“Damn, Daredevil’s mad cool. Who even are you? Your mask is lame.”
Danny made an offended noise in the back of his throat and started to explain that not every vigilante needed a name, vigilantes without a name were just as valid as those with a name, but his very important sentiment was cut off by a well-placed kick to his solar plexus. And that was -- that was the kick of someone who had been professionally trained, not the messy work of the goon Danny assumed he’d taken out. Thrown at the sudden revelation, the not-messy-goon got in a few more punches as Danny scrambled to regain the upper hand. He distantly registered the sound of footsteps at the end of the alleyway, and could only hope it wasn’t someone in league with the guy currently kicking his ass.
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@foundoutthehardway
Despite his current predicament, Sam Wilson would like the record to state that he is not a vigilante. He heard a tussle in an alleyway, saw people beating up on a kid, and decided to intervene. He may share a certain ‘punch-first-ask-questions-later’ mentality, but he draws the line at lame nicknames and homemade costumes.
He’s probably not cut out for it in any case, given that he hesitated a split second in pulling his own weapon and now, even though he’s knocked the other two goons out, there’s one pressing a gun to the base of his spine. As he does mental gymnastics trying to figure out a way to disarm the guy without killing him, Goon #3 continues blithering like an idiot.
“Not so tough now, huh? Clear your pockets, punk.”
Punk? Ugh, who was this clown? He smelled like someone who stuck car fresheners under his armpits in an effort to mask his own bad B.O. Sam’s neighborhood used to be so nice. This was what happened when white people moved to Harlem.
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aka; for your eyes only
To say that Jess had just woken up would be a lie.
Yes, she was just now getting up in the middle of the night, but like most other nights, she’d spent half of the twilight hours closing her eyes and trying to get whatever sleep she could. The other half she spent staring alternately at Luke and at the wall as she contemplated whether to turn over again, to get up to go to the bathroom, or go sit on the couch and watch television, use her laptop, or do anything really to distract her from the fact that she couldn’t fall asleep. Sometimes the baby was awake with her, sometimes not.
To say that she’d just woken up would be a lie, but it’s a lie she told Luke often in the middle of the night as he was awoken by the sudden absence of her weight in bed. (And Jessica was still learning to share, as she was so accustomed to spreading her limbs in every direction.)
“It’s fine, I just have to pee. Go back to sleep,” she muttered as she sat up slowly. Jessica waited until Luke put his head back down on the pillow and mumbled something incoherent at her.
“Yeah, I know,” she whispered back as she lumbered out into the hall of their little townhouse apartment. Apart from the creak of wood beneath her feet, it was eerily quiet here.
Her eyes were well-adjusted to the darkness already, navigating her way to the kitchen, led by the glow of the digital clock face. Jessica somewhat clumsily opened the fridge and pulled out a carton of pulp-free lemonade (she’d been very specific about no pulp), taking a drink straight from the container. She left the container on the counter and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.
“It’s always something with you, huh?” she muttered, head hung downward at her taut, rounded stomach. The baby was lazily active tonight, meaning Jessica was wide awake whether she wanted to be or not. “Is this practice? For when you’re here?” She drummed a few fingers on the side of her belly and then sighed. “Punishment for not having a third taco tonight? Punishment for having tacos in the first place? C’mon, work with me here.”
It was still difficult for Jessica to really personify the baby growing inside of her. Luke had no problem with it, on the other hand, making Jess secretly worry she was already failing as a mother. Was she not loving the kid enough? Luke had all of the sweetest words and the most gentle touches for the child, and by proxy, Jessica, when all she had was profanity and the occasional prodding at her swollen midsection. Mother of the year award, right there.
Jessica blinked at the glowing numbers on the clock. It was ass o’clock as far as she was concerned- she’d rather be asleep with Luke, making it awkward to try to spoon comfortably. But here she was. Should she be making an attempt to bond with the kid?
She left the lemonade open in the kitchen as she shuffled out to the couch. Her laptop was on the coffee table, so she lowered herself carefully and grabbed the device. Jess swung the screen open and winced at the brightness of it. After a moment to readjust, she moused around on her desktop for a bit, opening and closing her internet browser several times with disinterest. “Bonding time, right. Can’t wake Luke,” she mumbled, reluctantly opening her webcam app.
Jess dug her fingernails into the tape covering the laptop’s camera- a precaution she’d taken the day she brought the device home- and pulled off the paper covering protecting her from unwarranted hackers peeping through. She frowned almost immediately at her digitized reflection. “Ugh, Christ.” She ran her fingers through her hair but quickly gave up the effort. She turned on the dim lamp nearby and that was about as good as it was going to get.
Putting the laptop back on the table, she leaned forward and pressed the red recording circle, waiting for the timer to tick upwards while she stared blankly at the camera. Jessica opened her mouth, paused, and then closed her mouth again. “Ah, fuck,” she finally muttered. “Great start, huh? You’re not getting this video until you’re much older.”
She cleared her throat and tried to make eye contact with the small lens of the web camera. It was difficult- she looked like shit and honestly, Jessica didn’t know why she was doing this.
“Okay, clearly it’s late, and I’m not doing my best thinking,” she explained. Jessica defensively put her hands on her stomach. “But yeah, that’s you. In there- in here. Being an absolute little shit-kicker and keeping me up til three in the morning. But you’re up too, so I figure... this is our time together. Luke- your dad- is still asleep. So we’ll give him that.”
Jess didn’t know why she felt so stupid- maybe it was because she was talking to her laptop in hopes that she’d say something profound for her baby when they eventually saw this video in 10+ years? Oh yeah, that’s why she felt stupid. But once she started talking, she couldn’t stop.
“I am... not ready to be your mom. Not in the slightest. But your dad? He’s been ready since the day we met. You know, he swears you’re a girl. Won’t let the doctors tell us, because he knows he’s right. Would put money down in Vegas on it,” she said, cracking a meek smile. “I know it sounds stupid, but... I had a dream the other night and I saw you. You’re definitely our little girl. Don’t know if that was you reaching out to me, or just another ridiculous pregnancy dream. My hormones are outta control, so it could honestly be either. I mean, in fairness, I had a really crazy dream about Daniel Dae Kim the other night...”
She shook her head.
“Never mind. Anyways. A daughter. That’s... well, it’s terrifying. The world isn’t a nice place to little girls, but if Luke and I do our jobs right, you’ll never know it. You’ve got the two toughest parents on this planet. Your daddy’s a superhero, and I’m... Well, your momma’s doing what she can. To put things back in their place, make sure it’s safe.”
Jess shifted somewhat, compensating for a twinge in her back. “Look. I’ve been a lot of things, done a lot of things with my life. Lots of that was mistakes. Hell, I’m still going to make mistakes, I think that’s a given. But if you never have to know the things I’ve been through, then maybe I’m doing something right,” she explained.
“But you.. we don’t have a name for you yet, so I’m doing my best here. You, above anything else in my life... You were my choice. And trust me, I had a choice. Quite a few. Being a coward sounded like the easiest one. But you are the first thing in my life I got to choose for myself. I mean, I chose your dad too, but that whole situation was a bit of a mess there... We’re good now, though. Don’t worry. Obviously we are, or else I wouldn’t be here doing this.”
Jessica cleared her throat. This would have been much easier with a drink to loosen her tongue. But that was another choice she was making, to make this thing work. “Anyways. You. My daughter. My special choice. It still doesn’t feel real yet- I mean, you feel real. Right on top of my bladder, that’s definitely real, and if you kick me and we have an accident then I’m just deleting this whole tape right now, so just give me this,” she warned. “I’ve always said that knowing something is real means you gotta make a decision. One, keep denying it. Or two... do something about it. That’s you. You’re that something.”
She leaned back a bit and lifted her shirt to expose her stomach. Jessica hoped that the low, rolling kicks across her abdomen could be picked up in the dim light. “Look, baby girl. It’s pretty obvious I’m not good at this whole talking thing, and I’m tired as hell and kinda losing this wave of focus. Just another joy of this choice I made. But I don’t regret it, not for a moment. You’re the choice I made and I’m sticking with it. I promise, I’m going to do everything I can to protect you. To give you the good things you deserve. Not everyone gets that, but I’m going to try. And so’s your dad. And your aunts, Carol and Trish. My best friends. And then there’s uncle Danny and uncle Matt- I didn’t run that one by them, but I can’t imagine they’d say no,” she shrugged.
“All I can say is that you’re loved, baby girl. And you’re not alone, ‘kay? I will drop everything for you, always. Because above anything and anyone else, you’re my choice.”
Jessica paused, trying to process those last words. They felt like the right thing to say- because they were true. But at 3am, it felt a little weird to say those things out loud in the dark. Jess wished someone had said those things to her, y’know, before she got left alone and orphaned. But now... she wasn’t alone either.
“Ah, fuck,” she said, wiping her nose with the back of her hand as she turned off the recording. Jess could feel salty tears pricking up in the corners of her eyes. “This is your fault,” she hissed down at her stomach. The woman dimmed the lamp again and the waddled back into the kitchen for more lemonade for her dry, warm throat. In one of the kitchen drawers, she found a roll of tape and a thumb drive.
Before returning to bed, Jessica downloaded the video, put it in an envelope that she marked “Baby Girl” and stuffed in the back of the utility drawer. She then taped back over the webcam and hastily deleted the file from her laptop. Luke’s voice came from the bedroom softly at first, then again louder.
“Babe? Did you fall in?”
“Shut up,” she mumbled back. “I’ll be back in a minute. It’s not like I’m the one who chose to be awake at this ungodly hour.” Jess rubbed a gentle circle around her stomach.
“Isn’t that right, baby girl?”
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@foundoutthehardway [ x ]
The barstool creaks beneath his lithe albeit tall figure, the humdrum of the establishment irritatingly preoccupying the area with an incessant buzz that increasingly claws away at him - he should have thought twice before stepping into a dive like this, line of vision squarely resting upon the nearby bowl of peanuts and assorted snacks embodying a hypochondriac's nightmare. God knows how many piss-stained hands had touched its contents, the low light bouncing off of the rounded formation whose gleaming edges reflect the purple hues of his suit. Crisp fabric whose colour exudes an effortless warmth regardless of the person enveloped within.
Kilgrave’s extends a dark leather gloved hand to sweep the small container aside, letting it settle on a differing area of the polished wooden surface, far away from him and yet nearing the towering figure. Lips part to request a drink but the bartender’s attention seems to be elsewhere - the TV initially occupying his focus before it shifts to another patron standing besides him a little too close for comfort, sweat and toil from a hard day’s work emanating in a manner that is less than savoury. Irritation rapidly flares but his words are eerily calm, almost complacent as he muses.
“I think you’ll find that I was here first.”
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Ya don't say... #chrisrock #facts #learnthehardway #truthbetold #realtalk #comedy #standupcomedy #legend #toofunny #tootrue #foundoutthehardway (at Apollo Theater)
#standupcomedy#realtalk#chrisrock#tootrue#foundoutthehardway#toofunny#truthbetold#facts#comedy#legend#learnthehardway
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Need to wash out your eye? Fold the top of a Dixie cup in on itself for an eyewash cup. #lifehack #foundoutthehardway #theydontselleyewascupsanymore
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AKA :// @foundoutthehardway [ called alias investigations ] :
THUNDER HAS A particular rumble when it comes from behind a fifteen pound bowling ball. stale, stiff-sprayed shoes, sour beer... somehow the lingering snip of tobacco & wafting smoke still fills the air despite years of being outlawed. the storm rolls & rolls until it all bursts wide open at the end of the alley.
clattering ten pins come with shattering cheers, victorious whoops.
jessica tests her fingertips into a bright blue sixteen pounder with a purple streak swished through it & already knows she can throw it like a baseball. it’s not mini golf... but it’s a START, right? ends & beginnings twist together in her warped nightmare world. after the docks, things seem right-side up again. it’s a foreign concept ; she fumbles around it. she tries. she’s trying.
she keeps her smile seized at the edges of her lips. laughter & unshaded mirth hide under a heavy, whiskey veil somewhere behind the clawed cage of her ribs & it never looks as good out in the open as her tightly coiled smirk.
❛ bowling? i hope you’re ready to get your ass kicked, cage. ❜
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aka; all i got is you
@foundoutthehardway
“God, if I almost trip over another stroller I’m throwing someone in the lake.”
It was a beautiful day outside, as the spring trailed long towards the summer months. Jessica, in some respects, felt more comfortable going back out into the world- parks were just parks. People were just people. No one was spying for Kilgrave, and no one was going to mess with her while she had Luke by her side.
She was only mostly comfortable, though, because as time passed, her pregnancy continued to progress into territory unknown to her. Heartburn was fun, if her idea of fun was intense chest pains at surprise hours of the day. The baby had its own sleep cycle now, and didn’t always respect Jessica’s own schedule, kicking her constantly. Luke was doing his best to take care of her, but the man couldn’t hide his excitement at just about every little thing. Actually, it was his idea to take a walk outside and go on a sort of picnic.
It wasn’t Jess’s usual scene, but if there was anyone who could make her step outside of her comfort zone, it was Luke Cage.
“So, what’d you pack us, big guy?” Jess kept her hands stuffed in her jacket pockets as they strolled, looking for a sunny patch of green or maybe an open bench to crash on. She kept looking at all the families out today and just couldn’t... couldn’t picture that for herself. Strollers, diaper bag, screaming kid...
Was that really going to be her life in a few short months?
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[butters your butt and calls you a biscuit]
Shhhh, not in front of the children, boo.
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