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goldhoekin · 6 months

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Angel || Sam Riordan Smut

Angel || Yandere!Sam Riordan x Fem Reader

summary: After Marie becomes #2 and Brink is killed by Luke Jordan slips in the rankings. They begin to obsess over the rankings neglecting their girlfriend who lets their frustration slips and Jordan takes their frustrations out on their girlfriend.

cw: fem!reader, porn with some plot, creampie, unprotected sex, dubious consent, oral sex ( f! receiving), overstimulation, biting/marking, dacryphilia, obsessive behaviors, and nonconsensual use of aphrodisiacs .

Words:2.03k

He sees you every single time Luke is brought down for his infusions, each time you look at him with such kindness and sadness as you plead for his freedom. It makes him happy to see someone actually fight for him. One time you’d even held his hand in exchange for him to stop struggling.

“Hi Sam. My name’s Y/N, I’m so sorry you have to go through this. Would you like it if I held your hand to help? I know its not much but maybe that’ll make this a tiny bit more bearable?” You say, a genuine look in your eye, that’s how he knows you’re real and not a puppet, you’re a real angel.

You’re his personal angel…and he has to have you. You were so nice to him, you must like him right? For weeks he spends his time sketching you on pieces of paper, hiding them each time you visit him, and spend time with him.

One day after lunch he asks to speak to Shetty, telling her he has a deal for her. He’d dreamt of you sitting down in his room, reading comics with him, holding his hand as he saw the puppets all with those sparkly eyes of yours.

“You let me have Y/N for a few hours a day and I won’t fight you anymore..” Sam says, eyes sparkling with hope, voice steady…well as steady as he can make it.

The woman’s brows raised in surprise, you were a simple supe who made pretty little light shows. Harmless enough, you were one of the few supes she actually had no issue with, you were an angel truly. Though as much as she didn't like bargaining you off to a highly dangerous supe…she wasn’t left with much choice Sam was integral to Luke’s success and if giving you up to him for an hour, after doping him to high hell so he didn’t kill you, then so be it. Vought didn’t need to know what they did for the Woods project to go smoothly and if she had to get her hands dirtier than so be it, keep them distracted on what she was really doing.

“You can have her for one hour a day and that’s only if you take your medications without fuss, Y/N’s a sweet girl. We don’t want her hurt, do we Sam?” Indira says, a false smile on her face.

“O-one hour? No cameras right? I won’t her I promise!” Sam hastily replies.

Shetty simply nods her head in confirmation and turns towards the exit, “She’ll be here for you tomorrow, don’t screw this up Sam.”

You were called to Dean Shetty’s office, she texted you and said it was urgent. She told you to dress up, wear white and tell no one. So when Andre asked you where you were going looking like a sexy Virgin Mary with your pure white sundress, matching shoes, garters and underwear included. You hated not looking put together, a habit you’ve had due to your belief that keeping up a certain image will help your brand, which for all intent and purposes it did.

You simply said, “Some of us don’t get dressed in the dark while spending my daddy’s money on tacky clothes Andre.”

A cackle leaves Luke’s lips as Andre’s face turns into one of shock, Jordan silently crying into a throw pillow, Cate struggling to breathe through her laughs. Without another word you make your way to Dean Shetty’s office, the woman already waiting outside her door, two cups of a hot beverage in hand.

She walks towards you and guides you in the familiar direction to the Woods, handing you a warm cup that you take without hesitation. You unfortunately knew about it, finding out by accident. Dean Shetty knew of your record of caring for those who need it, this should be right up your alley. Though she knew you wouldn’t be the most susceptive to Sam’s advances without help so she slipped a high dose aphrodisiac into your cinnamon creme drink that you love so much.

“Y/N love, I have a special mission for you.” Shetty says as they move downwards towards the prison facility, “Sam needs someone to spend time with, he said he’d love to talk and spend time with you! Would you be willing to spend an hour a day with him, just help him adjust and stay settled? I know you’ll be great at it love!”

You think its actually sweet that Sam felt safe enough with you to ask to spend time with you. The poor boy needed help that Vought could give him, maybe you can as well. Maybe you can even work with him to get him a little tv or something or more books for him to read.You fall into your thoughts as you absentmindedly sip your drink, noting how good it tasted.

“Sure we can read some comics, maybe even have some snacks,I think it’ll be really fun!” You say with that lovely smile on your face, the same one Sam loves and Dean Shetty fears will never grace your face again after today as she takes the now empty cup from your hand.

Making your way down to Sam’s room you wait for him to enter, promptly security and Shetty leave and the door is securely closed behind you.

Sam stares at you in awe, mouth agape at your appearance.

She dressed up for me, my angel put on this pretty outfit for me. Y/N really does love me!

“Y-you look really pretty. I can’t believe you did all this for me!” Sam beams, moving forward to grip your hand. You notice he has a band-aid on his wrist, noting that he’s been injected with something.

At that moment you feel your body growing hot, prompting you to immediately take off your tell tailored white coat. Your breasts now on display as you chest heaves as you try and fail to gather air in your lungs, you hardly noticed Sam’s face so close to yours, his eyes staring at your lips. Without hesitation he slams onto yours, his hands gripping your waist in a bruising grip.

They must’ve given a strength dampener, because he could’ve fucking crushed me…

You think to yourself as you feel his lips clumsily move onto yours, you move yours against his, feeling the weight on your chest lessen slightly. You feel your pussy grow wetter and wetter as his hands roam your body, making his way under your dress to grip your ass.

You move him in the general direction of his bed, the young man breathless.

“I–i can’t believe you like me back!” Sam whispers, his knee grazing against your dripping wet cunt.

“What-I like you, just as a friend Sam.” You say as you feel his neck brush against your neck, which promptly stops at your words.

“If you don’t like me then why are we in my bed? Why are you kissing me and letting me touch you?” Sam asks, his voice hurt, you couldn’t help but sigh.

“I…I can’t stop for some reason. I’m so horny it hurts, if I could do this with someone else trust me I would Sam. I’m so sorry!” You whimper, unconsciously grinding your weeping pussy against his knee, desperate for friction of any kind. At this he tosses you back, so roughly you land on his bean bag, legs spread wide. A large gray spot showing how wet you are, your face hot and your breasts threatening to spill out from your dress.

“You’re mine!” Sam growls, eyes darkened as he crawls in between your legs, he takes his time pulling down your panties and exposing your pussy to the open air. He keeps your legs open with his strength as he dives into your wetness, your hand immediately goes into his hair gripping it harshly. A moan leaves his lips as you pull him as close to you as possible, your moans pouring from your lips as he licks at you with inexperienced vigor.

“Use your finger Sam! Take two, move them in and out of me, keep your mouth on my clit. Y-you’re so good baby, fuck you’re doing so fucking good!” You moan, thankfully Sam listens to you his deliciously thick fingers plunge into your cunt and sucks at your cunt harshly, the knot that was forming in your stomach tightening more and more. You wrap your now free legs around Sam’s head grinding your cunt against his face as you feel yourself about to cum.

“Oh fuck! Sam, I’m gonna cum!” You scream as you feel yourself gush, your legs shaking violently as you come down from your high. Sam’s tongue lapping up your juices eagerly, licking and sucking you damn near clean. After you stopped shaking he pulls back, swiftly pulling his cock out, the tip violently red. His tip is leaking large amounts of precum, he runs his hand up and down his shaft.

“Don’t worry I’ll be good, so good that you won’t want anyone else! It’ll be perfect and maybe you can stay down here with me longer!” Sam says settling between your legs, he begins to rub himself up and down your still twitching cunt, your pussy gripping on nothing. Without warning he plunged himself into you, his body leaning over you as he pushed himself into you to the hilt, his face buried in your neck. He begins to push himself in and out of your pussy, the feeling becoming overwhelming fast as you feel him pick up the pace, albeit not the smoothest rhythm was set.

“Y-you feel so good! You really were made for me my angel, I can’t believe I get to go do this with you! Tell me what you want me to do, I’ll do it! I’ll do anything for you, just ask!” Sam says breathlessly, his hands find their way to the top of your dress, roughly pulling down the bodice to watch your breasts spill out. Sam latches his lips around your pebbled nipple, nipping and biting down harshly on your chest, a gasp leaving your lips. You begin to feel another orgasm building, causing you to wrap your arms around Sam’s neck and your legs capture his midsection.

“I’m gonna cum again! Fuck!” You moan as you feel Sam’s thrusts grow sloppy, hopefully he’s smart enough to pull out.

You feel yourself cumming again, thick cream coating Sam’s dick as he continues to fuck you through your orgasm, the overstimulation causing you to cry from the overwhelming sensation.

Sam looks up at your face as he feels your tears, he couldn’t help but think about how good you looked like this. All fucked out, those beautiful eyes shinging with tears from how good he’s making you feel. Sam decides that he wants to see you like this more often, him fucking you till you cry and him filling you up, his various bite marks and hickies littering your decolletage and those wide angel eyes filled with tears. This pushes him to prop himself up on his hands and piston in and out of you, your breasts bouncing wildly and your hands trying to push him away as the sensation is too much for you and the fear of him cumming inside of you. He buries his face into your neck, biting down harshly as he cums deep within you, filling you to the brim.

‘Don’t worry Angel, we’ll be so happy. It’ll be great just watch, I made you mine and I’m never letting you go.” Sam whispered into your neck, by now the drug that was slipped into your drink was wearing off and your face began to contort into one of horror, thoughts of you being stuck down here with him. You possibly ruining your a career by having a child too early while you yourself were a child became too much and those lovely eyes of yours went dark, the spark dying instantly.

Fuck.

#gen v #gen v smut #gen v amazon #gen v imagine #gen v x reader #sam riordan #yandere gen v #yandere sam riordan #sam riordan x reader #sam riordan smut

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biancadjarin · 2 months

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making out with Eddie on Halloween

em x fem reader

18+!

You walk towards Steve’s car as the cool fall air whooshes past your ears. The chocolate brown BMW 733i looks black in the setting sunlight. Goosebumps erupt on your exposed legs as you reach for the handle of the car. The muffled beat of Thriller thumping against the door. The darkly tinted windows reflect yourself back to you and the iridescent strands on your fuzzy white halo shimmer softly. Halloween in Hawkins is an especially spooky time so when Robin and Steve invited you to a costume party, you jumped at the chance to join them. Little did you know they invited Eddie too.

“Look how cute you are!” Robin exclaims from up in the passenger seat as you open the door and see two long skinny dark blue denim covered legs. You giggle nervously as you duck in and Eddie shoots you a wordless look, his eyes scanning your body more than your face. “Thanks Robin. You look cute too! Hi Steve! Hi… Eddie”. Eddie nods back an unenthusiastic “hey” and Steve turns around and wiggles his brows at you before putting the car into drive.

Nancy’s house is a 20 minute drive from yours and the thought of sitting this close to Eddie, his obsession by Calvin Klein cologne (no doubt borrowed from Steve) hitting your nostrils every few seconds and his lingering glances at you while he pretends not to, was going to drive you crazy. You played with the short hem of your white dress to appear busy, tiny sparkles shimmering on your thighs as they press into the leather backseat.

“You got that shit rolled up already right?” Steve asks Eddie, his eyes shooting up from the road to look at him in the rear view. Eddie reaches a hand into his leather jacket pocket and, like a magic trick, a long white joint emerges. He holds it in the air for Steve to see to which Steve lets out a “Niiiiice.”

Eddie places the joint between his full lips as he raises his hips and digs around in his pocket for a lighter. He flicks the black zippo and lights the end, inhaling until the tip glows an angry red and a plume of smoke flows out of his nostrils. You watch as uninterested as you can, but it’s hard to look away. The dim light of the last few minutes of sun dances across his features and you suddenly become very aware of how close he’s sitting to you.

“All you, man.” Eddie says as he passes the joint to Steve over his shoulder. Steve takes it and take a couple skillful puffs before handing it over to Robin. She takes a too big hit, coughing and choking for a few seconds as you all laugh at her. “Ok babe, your turn.” She says as she turns around to hand it to you.

You freeze. You’ve never smoked before. And you don’t think right now is the best time to make that big step. Robin’s eyes look at you expectantly, as you hear a scoff next to you. You take the joint in an awkward pinch and Robin drops back into the seat, her and Steve deep in some conversation about who’s hotter, Phoebe Cates or Farrah Fawcett.

“Do you not smoke?” Eddie asks as he scooches closer to you, his thigh touching yours. You look at him with panicked eyes. “Sweet innocent thing.” Eddie says in a teasing voice, his chin dipping low and puppy dog eyes looking up at you. “You really are an angel.” He says through a laugh. “Here,” he motions for you to hand him the joint and scooch even closer, “I’ll show you. You’ll love it.”

You feel Eddie’s hand snake behind your lower back, “watch real close now, angel.” he says softly as he pulls your body into his side. His hand rests there on your side, his thumb finding the skin between your skirt and top, rubbing it gently. “All you gotta do is breathe in like you’re taking a normal breath, see?” He demonstrates. “Then,” he says with his lungs full, “you just exhale.” A cloud of smoke rolls out like he’s the prettiest dragon you’ve ever seen. “Think you can handle that?” He asks as he hands the joint back to you. You take it from him and examine it closely, turning it in your fingers.

“Hurry,” Eddie says as his other hand lands softly on your thigh, rubbing it with urgency. “You don’t want it to go out.” He nods his chin at you, his eyes watching your lips. He licks his lips absentmindedly. Butterflies fill your stomach. “Ok,” you say with a heavy sigh “I’ll try.”

As you inhale, Eddie does a pretend inhale with you, widening his eyes so you know to hold it in. You try not to laugh when his already big chocolate brown eyes are staring at you like that. Then he pretends to exhale so you do the same.

“See?” His face unnecessarily close to yours, “wasn’t so bad was it?”

You shake your head no, going back in for another hit.

Eddie leans back in his seat with a smirk and watches you. You miss how his hands feel on your body. The weed starts to make you fixate on random things. The passing streetlamps lighting him up every few seconds as they pass. His eyes are low and glassy, pink to match his lips and cheeks.

You hand him the joint after a couple more hits and he takes it from you, hitting it once more before sending it back up to Steve. One of his hits equals at least three of yours if the smoke that he exhales is any indication.

A moment passes, he smirks and looks down at the space between you two, then at your lap, your hand resting there. He reaches for it slowly, first letting his fingertips graze the top of your hand then grasping it in his and pulling it towards him. He traces your fingers with his, not saying anything for a moment. His eyes stare at the sparkly white polish on your almond shaped nails, running his thumb over the shiny finish.

His hand comes up to tilt your chin so your eyes are locked on his. “You feeling ok?” He asks. You nod slowly, not sure what’s making you feel more dizzy. The weed, the way Eddie’s voice is filling your ears or Steve’s crazy driving. Eddie’s smile widens, his dimples showing. “I’m impressed, y/n.” You think this is the first time you’ve ever heard him say your name and it’s never sounded more beautiful. “Maybe you’re not quite the innocent angel that you appear to be.” He says as he nuzzles his face into your neck, testing the waters. Your body shudders against his, and he smiles. The soft warmth of his lips grazes your skin as they kiss your neck gently.

Your palms brace against his chest, the worn leather of his jacket feeling cool and soft under your touch. He watches you, his eyes studying your face like the textbooks in school he doesn’t look twice at. He’s waiting. Waiting for you to make the next move. Waiting to feel your glossy lips against his.

You look shyly towards the front seat to make sure Steve and Robin are still distracted. Eddie huffs out a small laugh at your innocence. He doesn’t care if Steve and Robin see. You look back at him and see the fire in his eyes. The heat radiating off his skin. The red brake lights ahead of you bathing him in a devilish light. And you let yourself do what you know you probably shouldn’t.

Your mouth collides with his in a burning kiss, your tongues dancing and darting and daring each other to go further. “You’re cute.” Eddie whispers against your cheek when he pulls away. “Your costume is so..” he sucks in a breath through his teeth as his hands squeeze your waist. “I like it.”

“Yeah?” you urge him on. “Mhm.” He nods. “I’m almost worried about walking into Nance’s party with you looking this good. Gonna have to…” his voice trails off as your hand starts to caress up his thigh, curious to feel what’s making his denim strain. Your fingers meet the rounded end of him and he groans. The opening notes of Black Sabbath’s Paranoid start up and Eddie’s eyes are watching your fingers curl around his erection through his jeans. You smile softly, feeling it throb against his thigh.

“You were saying?” You ask him teasingly. Eddie shakes his head and pulls you in for another kiss as you feel Steve turn onto Nancy’s street.

🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃🎃

#eddie munson #eddie munson x reader #eddie munson fanfic #eddie munson x y/n #eddie x reader #eddie stranger things

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ramblingthoughtsofayoungadult · 3 months

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Unpredictable, Part 8-Limoreau x black!fem!reader fic

A/N: This took me way too long to write but as per usual, please let me know what you think and if you want more.

Warnings: angst, negative family dynamics, eating issues, body issues, and swearing.

Word Count: 7.8k

Series Masterlist

Taglist: @badbishsblog, @gardenof-venus, @morelovemorepeacemoretattoo-blog, @kasslucilfer, @darksoul100

Luke’s smile would have been more contagious if my thoughts were not so jumbled. Even though he was standing right across from me, my brain refused to believe he was real. Sure, he was wearing his favorite brown jacket over a t-shirt with jeans, and the sun (or whatever light) highlighted the natural glow around him. But, it was impossible.

“Impossible?” Luke asked. “That’s a little harsh.”

I hesitated and pressed the back of my hand to my forehead. “Sorry, this is a lot to take in.”

But I could see the scene in my mind’s eye: the Vought clean-up crew hosing the blood off the cobblestone in front of Lamplighter, the chunks of Luke they put in biohazard bags, and the smell---

I wretched at the thought of it and tried not to double over. Luke rushed over to me and softly grasped my shoulders.

“Hey, are you okay, Y/N?” he asked.

“No,” I muttered, shaking my head. “I…I saw you die, and this is a messed up joke if this is a joke. Or…”

Luke sighed. “You’re not dead if that’s what you’re thinking.”

He slowly backed away and I straightened up. Then, I launched myself at him and he caught me in a bear hug, laughing as he did. The scent of pine and clean aftershave almost made me cry.

“I miss you,” I mumbled into his chest.

“I miss you too,” he replied.

“I wish none of this happened. Why didn’t you tell any of us what was going on?” I demanded.

Luke paused. “I didn’t know how but, it sounds like you guys are figuring things out.”

I slowly pulled away from Luke and eyed him. “How can you tell?”

Luke pursed his lips. “I’m a manifestation of Cate’s subconsciousness. So, I see everything she sees.”

At his words, my eyes wandered around the forest. At first glance, it looked like any other forest with large trees and whistling wind. But on closer inspection, there were no woodland creatures, no sounds of birds, and the sky was more like a large gray cloud with red cracks that flashed every few seconds.

“I’m in Cate’s head?”

“You catch on quick but then again, you always do.”

I looked up at Luke. “So, if I’m in here, what’s happening to my body? And where’s everyone else?”

“You touched Cate when she was in extreme duress and she retreated to her mind but she brought you with her,” Luke explained. “Your body could be experiencing several things: seizure, vomiting, a comatose state, or hysteria.”

I groaned. “So, her going into shock put me in shock?”

“Pretty much.”

Another shock of lightning flashed across the “sky” but this time, it struck and destroyed a boulder that was about thirty feet away from Luke and me. The crash made me jump and Luke grabbed my arm.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

“She’s kind of self-destructing. This hasn’t happened before and the only way to get out is if she wakes up,” Luke warned.

“So, I just need to find Cate and wake us both up,” I confirmed with a nod.

Lightning cracked through the sky and I jumped further into Luke’s grip.

“Basically but you don’t have a lot of time. If she doesn’t wake up, you’ll be stuck here forever.”

His words hung heavy over me and I could feel pressure weighing down on my shoulders. Somehow, I had to find Cate and snap her out of this state. Even though she’d been through a lot in the last few hours, she didn’t have to go this far.

I managed a smile. “Well, at least I have you here as a guide.”

Luke straightened up and puffed out his chest. “Of course. So, all you have to do---”

An instant later, a flash of lightning took him with it. It was difficult to tell whether knowing he was already dead made this second loss easier or harder. At the same time, it was nice to see Luke again, to talk to him, and touch him.

I swallowed the lump in my throat and tried to think. The best course of action would be to try to use my powers again and figure out the best route out. It definitely could not hurt after the last couple of tries.

I closed my eyes and focused on the best way to find Cate. However, it was like my powers didn’t exist at all. Before, it felt like they were just out of reach and this was definitely worse.

I opened my eyes as I felt my heartbeat pick up.

“Breathe, Y/N, breathe,” I hissed.

There was no time for my anxiety to spike. No one else was here except me and Cate and I was the only one who could find her.

After a few deep breaths, I opened my eyes and saw a large glossy oak door standing in front of me. The door looked familiar, and I couldn’t stop myself from grabbing its knob and pushing it open.

Seconds later, the bright light stunned me as I wandered into the space. When my eyes adjusted, I realized that I was in Dean Shetty’s office, complete with the expensive furniture and tapestry. Dean Shetty sat at her desk and stirred some sugar into her cup of tea. Cate was sitting across from her but she looked much more innocent, like she had when we first met.

She sipped from a pristine teacup and tapped her gloved fingers against the porcelain. She wore a white varsity sweater and ripped jeans.

“How is your first week as a sophomore?” Dean Shetty asked.

Cate nodded. “It’s going well so far. It feels different.”

“That’s only a natural feeling. You are much more in control of your powers and you are more experienced.”

“Thank you, Indira, it’s all because of your help.”

Dean Shetty shook her head and set her teacup down. “No, I only supported you; you did a lot of work. You are in the Top 20 for a reason.” She clasped her hands together. “Considering your progress, I think it’s time that I give you a new challenge.”

Cate raised her eyebrows. “Challenge?”

“Yes. I believe it is time for you to pass on what you learned and that you are ready now. There is a freshman that I would like you to meet. She is an incredibly bright, talented supe but, she needs some guidance to realize her full potential.” Dean Shetty grinned. “Considering how similar your abilities are, I believe you would be a fantastic match as her peer mentor.”

Cate paused. “Peer mentor?”

“Yes, a guide of sorts about how to succeed at Godolkin; who to befriend, what events to engage with, and how to gain more control over your abilities. These sorts of things tend to come better from someone who is of a similar age. What do you think?”

Even though it sounded like a question, it wasn’t. Dean Shetty’s tone was light but her eyes seemed to darken slightly and she straightened up a little as she eyed Cate. Cate stared at the teacup in her hand for a while, mulling things over.

“Okay, if you think it’s a good idea, then I’m open to it,” Cate declared.

Dean Shetty smiled. “Wonderful.”

“When do I meet her?”

A second later, someone knocked on the door behind me and Dean Shetty rose from her seat.

“Right now,” she commented.

As she walked towards me, Dean Shetty’s gaze never left the door. Even as she walked past me, she didn’t acknowledge me.

“They probably can’t see me,” I concluded.

Dean Shetty opened the door in one flawless motion but she stood in a way where I couldn’t see who was on the other side.

“Am I early?” a soft voice asked.

“No, you have impeccable timing. Come on in.”

Dean Shetty stepped aside and in walked a very anxious freshman version of myself. I watched as my freshman self fought to not grab at the black tennis skirt that swayed when she walked. The silk pressed curls bounced against the middle of her back as she approached Dean Shetty’s desk.

Cate stood when freshman me got close enough and Dean Shetty stood next to me.

“Cate, I’d like you to meet Y/N Y/L/N. She’s at the top of Brink’s first-year class and I am confident her star will continue to rise with proper guidance,” Dean Shetty announced.

Freshman me extended a hand towards Cate and Cate accepted it. “It’s nice to meet you. I saw your TikTok on supe psychology and it was really cool.”

Did I always ramble that much?

“I’m glad you liked it and it’s nice to meet you too,” Cate responded.

Dean Shetty gestured for Cate and freshman me to sit and she poured freshman me a cup of tea. “I was just telling Cate that I think she would be a wonderful peer mentor.”

“Peer mentor?” I echoed.

“Yes, someone your age who can help guide you through GOD U. I’m sure you’ve noticed how hectic it can be and not everyone survives here. Any freshman would kill to have personal time with a Top 20 supe but they do not all meet the standard to do so.”

Freshman me’s eyes widened with each word Dean Shetty spoke. “That’s amazing but, why me?”

“Like I said you are exceptional in your classes already and your skill set and Ms. Dunlap’s are similar and cause similar side effects. I believe she can help you navigate that as well as all things GOD U.”

Freshman me turned to Cate and smiled softly. “If you’re okay with it…”

“Of course. What is your ability, by the way?”

Freshman me rattled off my ability and Cate nodded, impressed. Then, Dean Shetty’s cell phone rang and she excused herself to take it. Cate leaned closer to Freshman Me.

“Don’t be so nervous. I already know that we’ll be friends,” she smiled.

Freshman me grinned in reply and I could feel the residual giddiness or that could have been me remembering this day. Cate was so impressive at that point that I was afraid that she wouldn’t want to be stuck with me or ignore me. But the anger that rose at the sight of Cate’s grin leapt out of me.

“If we were such good friends, why did you trap me in your head?” I hissed.

Cate turned to me. “I wasn’t lying, Y/N. I thought your powers were impressive and I could tell how powerful you were when we first met. I still want us to be friends.”

I stomped over to her. “Then, let’s get out of here. We can go together; we don’t have to stay here.”

But as quickly as she was there, she was gone. Suddenly, I was in the corner of the training gym and Luke, Andre, and Jordan were hanging out on the other end. Jordan was in their female form, wearing a baggy tank top and loose sweatpants, something they’d rarely wear outside of a memory.

I remembered this, this was the first time I ever trained with the Top Five. Cate had dragged me to the gym, insisting that I meet her friends and almost-boyfriend while also improving my combat skills. At the time, I thought she was crazy and that maybe it was a cruel prank but her genuine smile and encouragement were comforting.

Slowly, I approached the group, moving to stand near Jordan and listening to the conversation.

“So, who’s this girl Cate’s bringing?” Andre asked.

“Her mentee. Shetty set them up, but she sounds excited,” Luke answered.

“You don’t have a name?” Jordan asked.

Luke laughed and rubbed the back of his neck. “Cate mentioned it, but I can’t remember.”

Jordan rolled her eyes. “Well, this freshman better not waste my time.”

Luke playfully elbowed her. “Stop being so grumpy. If Shetty paired Cate with her, it probably means she’s impressive. At least give her a chance.”

Jordan scowled. “Why do you always have to be nice?”

Andre clapped his hands on Luke’s shoulders. “Because he’s Golden Boy.”

Watching past Jordan in all their surliness was jarring and I felt like a freshman again.

A second later, the training door opened, and I watched as Cate strutted in confidently with an arm wrapped around freshman me’s shoulders. I could feel the terror and anxiety wafting off freshman me as I watched her nervously eye the trio.

“Sorry, we’re late!” Cate called.

“It’s okay,” Luke insisted with a dazzling grin.

I giggled as Freshman me’s knees wobbled; it was funny how such a short time ago I couldn’t even make eye contact with Luke.

“Everyone, this is Y/N Y/L/N, my peer mentee. She’s doing amazing in her crim classes but needs a little help with combat,” Cate explained.

Freshman me did a small wave to everyone and Andre smirked as he swaggered up to her.

“Cate was keeping you all to herself, huh?” Andre commented.

Freshman me hesitated. “Uh…”

“Relax, Andre,” Luke said.

“Yeah, I don’t want you freaking her out with all that rizz,” Cate mocked.

Andre rolled his eyes and muttered something about the couple being “cockblockers”.

“Oh, you must know Jordan since they TA the first-year class,” Luke acknowledged.

“Um, sort of, we never…really…talk,” Freshman me admitted.

“Aw, don’t be scared of Jordan, their bark is worse than their bite,” Cate encouraged.

Andre raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure about that?”

Jordan scoffed. “I’ll give you this, you’re the least annoying freshman.”

“Thanks?”

“Okay, let’s split up into pairs.” Cate turned to Freshman me. “Don’t worry about getting hurt----we never go all out in training and we only spar until someone’s knocked out of bounds.”

Freshman me nodded and I watched as she side-eyed Jordan. Even though I’d known that I’d have to spar with them, it didn’t make my nervousness any better. However, the four of them split up amongst themselves, with Andre and Luke going first, followed by Cate and Jordan, and decided that the winners of those rounds would play rock-paper-scissors to determine who sparred with me.

Andre and Luke’s fight was interesting, and I forgot how close of a match they were. Of course, Luke used his fire and flying abilities to his advantage, but Andre was still a force to be reckoned with. Luke still won and Andre grinned as Luke helped him to his feet afterwards. Cate and Jordan’s fight was as surprisingly decent as I remembered. Even though Jordan switched between their forms depending on the circumstance, Cate managed to keep up for a while. It wasn’t until Jordan leg swept her, knocking her out of bounds, that the fight ended.

“Not…fair,” Cate panted as she sat up.

“Don’t be a sore loser,” Jordan teased as she helped her up.

Cate smirked and they stepped out of the ring. Andre playfully rubbed his hands together.

“So, who gets to fight the freshman?” he sang.

“It’s Y/N,” Cate corrected.

“Right, sorry.”

Freshman me smiled softly as she stood from her seat and walked closer to the group. Luke and Jordan faced each other and played rock-paper-scissors. Playing best out of three was a little cruel since Freshman me hoped to spar with Luke. At the very least, he would be nice when I inevitably lost. Jordan was difficult to read but I’d had a feeling that they would taunt me about losing.

When Jordan won, I couldn’t read their expression but Freshman me was terrified.

“Stop looking like I’m going to kill you,” Jordan snapped.

Freshman me jumped and Cate placed a hand on her shoulder.

“Like I said, don’t worry, you’ll be fine,” she whispered.

At the time, I was so frazzled that I couldn’t focus on the outcome of the fight. Instead, I had focused on keeping my lunch down. Instead of joining Andre, Cate, and me on the sidelines, Luke stood on the mat, a couple of feet outside the circle. He waited a couple of seconds before signaling for Freshman me and Jordan to spar.

My shoulders hiked up towards my ears as I watched Freshman me clumsily evade Jordan’s attacks. At that time, I’d learned how to predict my opponent’s movements but I rarely landed strong attacks. Brink thought that because my mental strength was so high my physical strength had no choice but to lag.

“It would be unfair at that point. But, as a future supe, you do need to learn the basics,” he’d instructed.

Freshman me’s form was all over the place; her guard slipped every few seconds, her feet never had solid contact with the ground, and any kick or punch was weak at worst and sloppy at best. I cringed when she took a small energy blast from Jordan that knocked her out of bounds. It didn’t hurt but it was definitely a shock at the time.

“Jordan!” Cate admonished as she jumped to her feet.

She started to rush forward but Andre held her back and Luke shook his head.

“She’s fine,” Luke mouthed.

Freshman me panted on the ground, sweat staining the lime green Alo set she wore a couple of shades darker. Jordan shifted into their male form as they sauntered over to me and extended a hand. Freshman me stared at his hand like it would turn into a snake at any second.

“Come on, you just saw I won’t bite,” he quipped.

At his words, Freshman me accepted his hand and Jordan pulled her to her feet in one move. I smiled as she almost bumped into him, but Jordan steadied her by gripping my forearms.

“I never thought you’d be this clumsy,” he commented.

Freshman me huffed. “I’m, uh, usually not this bad.”

“Well, your form needs some work, and you need to build up more confidence when you’re on the offense. But, you were great at evading me.” “Until that last move.”

“Not a lot of people could avoid that, especially not a freshman. Don’t worry, we’ll work on it.”

Freshman me frowned as Jordan turned and started sauntering back to Cate and Andre. “Wh-what does that mean?”

Jordan glanced at her over his shoulder. “It means I’ll spar with you more often. You can’t be one of Brink’s new favorites and be this bad at fighting, freshie.”

Freshman me continued to gawk at him as he walked away. Andre finally let Cate run over to Freshman me and she insisted on looking her over. When Jordan finally got close enough to me, he had the smallest smile on his face. I stood just as he bent down to grab his water bottle.

“I still don’t get how you flipped like that. You mostly ignored me until then and I was a horrible sparring partner,” I commented.

Jordan chuckled. “I thought you’d get it by now.”

When he turned to face me, my stomach dropped. I didn’t understand why I still had this reaction to him after everything that happened. No matter what, every time he looked at me, I felt warm all over.

“You agreed to train with some of the highest ranking supes on campus and even though you were intimidated, you did your best and you didn’t give up,” Jordan stated. “Before we sparred, I thought Brink liked you so much because of your ability but it was more than that: you face challenges, even when you don’t want to, like a real supe.”

“So do you,” I pointed out.

Jordan shook his head. “Yeah, but it’s different when you do it. I didn’t want to dig into any of this GOD U shit but you didn’t hesitate. It’s scary but also inspiring.”

It took all my strength to keep my mouth from falling open. I inspired Jordan? The same Jordan who did everything in their power to stay in the Top Three. The same Jordan who impressed one of the most influential crime experts so much that they became his TA.

None of this made any sense and I wondered how long Jordan thought of me like that.

Do they actually think about you like that?

I blinked and my heart sunk at the realization that Cate could have been messing with me; this was her domain after all.

But what if Cate knew what Jordan was thinking or feeling at the time? It was possible, especially if she had her gloves off.

“Jordan---"

“And that’s when I said, ‘I hate to tell you buddy but, you’re looking at the wrong end’!” a loud voice cut me off.

When I turned to face the direction of the voice, I was suddenly standing in the corner of the dining room at Mom’s. The candlelight from the tables reflected off the wall, giving the space a false sense of warmth. The scent of roasted turkey, mashed potatoes, yams, and collard greens tickled my nose as I wandered further into the room.

At the long table, Mom and Dad sat on opposite ends, the large spread Ms. Murphy, the family cook, prepared obstructing their views of each other. My brother, Isaac, sat on one side, grinning from ear to ear as both our parents laughed. My fourteen-year-old self sat across from him, smiling as she pushed some greens around on her plate.

I remembered this, this was our first Thanksgiving after Isaac took the Buenos Aires job. The tension was so thick in the air that I could have choked on it and it nearly stopped my appetite.

Younger me slouched in her chair, clad in a red plaid cap-sleeve dress with her hair swept up in a loose curly bun. My face was so much rounder then. As I slowly traversed the table, Isaac pushed up the sleeves of his charcoal gray Brooks Brothers sweater.

Everyone liked Isaac, boys, girls, adults, everyone. If no one fell for his charm, his good sense of humor, or his fantastic social skills, they tended to be drawn to his tall, broad frame and smooth copper skin. When I was a kid, Isaac was everything.

“And that happened your first day?” Dad asked as he adjusted his glasses.

Isaac shook his head. “First week.”

“As expected from our brilliant son,” Mom bragged, sipping some Dom Perignon.

Isaac’s laugh sounded like a deeper-pitched version of Denzel Washington’s. Younger me smiled widely at the sound while I stared on, knowing full well that he probably got it from years of practice.

“I mean, I’m still learning a lot. Everyone I work with has been very welcoming,” Isaac insisted.

“Are you learning a lot about the culture? In school, we learned that it’s so vibrant there,” Younger me piped in.

Mom’s gaze cut towards me. “Y/N, don’t interrupt Isaac.”

Younger me shrank back and I flinched. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to.”

Dad rolled his eyes. “Y/N was only asking a question, Y/M/N. She hasn’t seen him in months, it’s only natural.”

Isaac raised his hands. “It’s okay, everyone.” He looked at Younger me. “It’s a really good question, Y/N. These past two years, I’ve really immersed myself in the culture and I’ve even started picking up more Spanish. Also, the Argentinians are a very welcoming people and I’m so fortunate to work and live with them.”

For the first time, I realized how practiced Isaac sounded. It was the same way Coco sounded whenever she practiced speeches but, she was also going into political science.

Who was Isaac trying to impress or sway?

I made my way to Younger Me and stood against the wall behind her. Her eyes were so wide and sparkling, hanging on to Isaac’s every word. I wondered if that was the same way I looked when I was rushing Si Chi.

Younger Me ate a mouthful of yams and nodded happily. “I’m glad you’re having such a good time. We miss you here, though.”

“But this is a great opportunity for your brother, Y/N. We couldn’t hold him back here,” Dad interjected.

“Right, yeah---” “Yes,” Mom corrected.

“Yes,” Younger Me repeated, turning to Isaac. “Can you pass me the turkey?”

My stomach dropped as the memory echoed in my ears. I wrapped my arms around my waist and leaned further into the wall, rubbing my sides.

“Sure, Sis.” Isaac grabbed the dish and started to hand it over when Dad placed a hand on Isaac’s wrist.

“Y/N, you’ve already had a…generous helping. Don’t you think you’ve had enough?” he asked gently.

I thought I was sinking into the ground as I watched Younger Me grasp for words and could feel how flustered she was in my chest.

“You can’t blame Y/N, Dad. Ms. Murphy’s an amazing cook,” Isaac tried.

Mom scoffed. “It’s all that cooking that made her fat.”

The room was silent for a moment. Suddenly, Dad looked both shocked and understanding as he stared at Mom, Mom was staring at a painting on another wall as she sipped her drink, and Isaac couldn’t take his eyes off the turkey dish in his hands.

I could feel the ball begin in Younger Me’s throat and the tears burned in her eyes as she tried to keep herself together.

“Y/M/N,” Dad admonished.

Mom cut her gaze towards him. “Don’t use that tone with me. Unlike you, I care for our daughter’s health. It’s especially important considering her abilities and we have no idea how obesity could impact them!”

Dad set the turkey dish down and Isaac started nibbling on some mac and cheese. “Don’t do that, I care about Y/N’s health. She has made a lot of progress thanks to my encouragement.”

Mom rolled her eyes. “Oh, you’re saying that like the dance lessons that I paid for had nothing to do with it?”

“Oh yes, Y/M/N, only your contributions supported our daughter. When will you stop acting like you’ve financially supported our children this entire time? Don’t forget who gave you the money to start your agency.”

If looks could kill, Dad would have been dead a long time ago. Mom threw her head back and drained the last of her glass. When she set the glass down, she maintained a neutral expression.

“You can stop throwing that in my face now, Y/D/N; I’m the one who grew it without your or anyone else’s help!”

They went back and forth for a few more minutes and I watched Younger Me’s mind race.

Finally, she interrupted, “Did I tell you that I got all As for the semester?”

The statement made Mom and Dad pause and they relaxed a little.

“That’s wonderful, Y/N,” Dad praised.

“That’s my little sister,” Isaac added with a grin. “Have you solved any cases recently?”

Younger Me grinned. “Well, there’s this one murder that happened out in Cincinnati; a woman was found in a dumpster horribly attacked. The police think it’s a one-off but, that makes no sense since it matches the MO of several other murdered women who were found in the state.”

“What’s the MO?” Isaac asked, sipping some pinot noir.

That was when I noticed that there was something different about Isaac’s eyes. The light brown orbs looked slightly more playful than usual, almost mischievous.

“Oh, she was bludgeoned to death with a blunt object and raped post-mortem,” Younger Me rattled off.

“Y/N, we are eating,” Mom said slowly.

Younger Me hesitated. “Sorry, Mom, I was just answering Isaac’s question.”

“You’ll get better at reading situations, hon,” Dad assured.

Mom shook her head and started stabbing at some greens on her plate. “I don’t recall having this issue with Isaac.” She glanced warmly at him. “You were always so polite and well-mannered.”

“I was well-mannered,” I huffed.

Isaac smiled sheepishly. “It’s different for different people. Y/N will be fine.”

Younger Me nodded slightly but I knew she was trying to keep the tears from spilling down her cheeks.

“I hope so. You know, Vought is merciless about who they select to represent them. With every B-list hero in my agency, they are trained to hell in PR. There can be no mistakes, Y/N, not if you want a future as a supe.”

Younger Me nodded. “Yes, Mom.”

After a few moments where the only sounds were cutlery hitting the plates, Ms. Murphy stepped into the dining room. The portly older black woman rubbed her hands on the towel attached to her apron.

“Pardon me but, dessert is about ready. Should I have the table cleared?” Ms. Murphy asked.

Isaac stood. “It’s alright, Ms. Murphy, I’ll clear the table.”

“Isaac, there’s no need, we have people for that,” Mom insisted.

“It’s okay, I’m happy to help.”

Ms. Murphy nodded and shot a glance in Younger Me’s direction before slipping back into the kitchen. Isaac gracefully collected his plate and started going around the table, collecting ours.

“What a polite boy I have,” Dad complimented, playfully punching Isaac’s arm as he past.

“Despite all that success you’re so humble,” Mom added. “Remember this when you start to get big, Y/N.”

Younger Me nodded and once Isaac was at the kitchen door, she stood. “I’ll go help with dessert.”

Neither of them responded as she trailed behind Isaac, and I trailed behind her. The kitchen smelled like pecan pie and my mouth watered. Ms. Murphy was fantastic at her job, but no one could do desserts like her. She claimed that the secret was that she used full-fat everything.

“A growing girl like you needs that,” she quipped once.

In one corner of the room, Ms. Murphy was adding the finishing touches to the immaculate pecan pie perched on a silver server. Isaac set the dirty dishes on the counter and opened the dishwasher. I decided the island was the best position since it gave me a good view of the two of us and kept me at a decent distance.

“Let me help you,” Younger Me insisted.

Isaac paused and nodded. “Sure, sis.”

“I’m gonna go take this out to your folks,” Ms. Murphy said, pecan pie in hand. She leaned down to Younger Me. “You eat as much of this as you want.”

Younger Me smiled softly as the older woman disappeared into the kitchen.

“It’s really good to have you home, Isaac,” Younger Me commented as she handed Isaac plates.

“You keep saying that,” Isaac joked.

“It’s true. It’s like before when you’re around,” Younger Me said.

Isaac tensed a little but continued loading the dishes. “So, how have things been since I was gone?”

“Horrible,” I stated.

At that time, Mom and Dad cooled off from World War III which was their divorce but they still fought every time they saw each other. Even though Dad moved out a while ago, they would still see each other for my dance recitals, cheer events, or awards ceremonies. And whenever one of them dropped me off with the other, the tension made me sick but the worst part was how they bad-mouthed each other.

They both said things that no daughter should hear about her parents.

“Fine, things have been fine,” Younger Me lied.

I could have cried for her as she fidgeted with a plate. At the time, I didn’t want to burden Isaac since all the phone calls and text conversations we had were so positive. He was doing important work and I didn’t want to complain. But at the same time, he had to know things were bad.

“That’s good to hear,” Isaac replied. “I want to make sure my little sister’s okay.”

Then, Younger Me hesitated and handed him a plate. She bit her bottom lip and several moments past before she said, “Actually, sometimes, things get really, really bad. They both say some things that I hope they don’t mean and sometimes, I know what’s coming but it still freaks me out.” Younger Me shrugged. “Sometimes, I wish I could escape far away from here, like you did.” As innocent as the words were, little did I know at the time that it would be enough to set Isaac off. He straightened from loading the dishes and closed the dishwasher door stronger than he had to. When he turned to Younger Me, the pleasant expression he wore all night disappeared; his jaw tensed and his eyes narrowed.

“You think I escaped?” he asked slowly.

Younger Me blinked and the realization of her words poured over her. “Isaac, I didn’t mean----”

“You think I took that job so that I could run away? It was a fantastic opportunity, and I would have been an idiot not to take it!” he hissed.

Younger Me flinched and I gritted my teeth. “No, it’s great, Isaac, really. We’re all so proud of you and you’ve been doing so much great work. I just meant that it must be nice to get away.”

“I would never want to get away from my family. Adults fight sometimes, Y/N, grow up.”

Isaac’s words stung against my face and I clenched my fists as Younger Me fumbled for words. As Younger Me pled more and more with Isaac, my anger grew.

“I’m sorry, Isaac, really. It’s okay, everything’s okay, don’t worry about us,” Younger Me insisted.

I scoffed. “Nothing was okay, and you had to know that.”

Then, Isaac’s gaze left Younger Me’s and burned into mine. “Stop overexaggerating, Y/N. You never went crazy and you got into the special supe school; you’re doing just fine, it couldn’t have been that bad.”

It was hard to tell whether Isaac’s tone or his insistence on being right was the nail in the coffin but I didn’t care as I charged around the island and stood in front of Younger Me.

“Are you kidding me? I had a million anxiety attacks, and I could barely sleep. No one noticed, though, because I almost killed myself keeping up good grades and trying not to eat too much because Mom and Dad would comment,” I snapped.

Isaac hesitated. “Like I said, though, you’re doing fine now.”

“I’m not fine!” I exclaimed. “I never was but I couldn’t show that because someone had to be the adult in this house. I still don’t understand how you all thought that was okay when it wasn’t.” I scoffed. “Wait, I have an idea, maybe it’s because perfect little Doctor Isaac couldn’t be burdened with the fact that he abandoned his little sister in hell!”

“I didn’t abandon you, it was a good job!” Isaac argued.

The laugh that erupted from my chest was spiteful and it had no joy or air in it. Then, I couldn’t stop laughing, to the point that I doubled over. Isaac must have thought I had lost it but I didn’t care as I straightened up.

“What are you laughing about?” he asked, frowning.

“You could have gotten a surgeon job anywhere in the country and you’re telling me the best offer was ten thousand miles away? You graduated at the top of the class, you had to have other offers.” I huffed. “I had to be so deep in denial but I knew, I had to know. But what does it matter as long as you’re still the favorite.”

“I’m not the favorite; you’re the one they made a superhero,” he defended.

“Please, Isaac, they think I’m a freak at worst and a profitable freak show at best. They never criticized you, they only ever did that with me.” I sniffed and looked up at him. “By the way, why didn’t you ever tell them that I wasn’t fat?”

Isaac hesitated. “What?”

“You were in school for, what, ten years and you became an expert on the human body and health. You could have stopped them from tormenting me about food and my body, but you didn’t. Why did you never defend me?”

His silence almost sent me into another fit of mad laughter, that and the stunned expression on his face. The giddiness and rage that flowed through my veins was almost dizzying as I stared at Isaac. I didn’t blink for so long that his face began to blur. Then, my legs started moving and I wandered around the state-of-the-art kitchen.

“You were always better at this than me-----the performing. It must have been easy coasting as an only child and every gold star, and every A was praised.” I paused and poked at the pot of greens. “They were happy back then.”

“Y/N, you’re talking crazy,” Isaac insisted.

I shook my head. “No, I’m not. All the overthinking and overanalyzing finally helped me realize the truth: you all hate me. No matter what cases I solved, how well I did in school, or how much weight I lost; it was never good enough.” Isaac was silent and I think it was the first time he didn’t know what to say. It was okay because I knew exactly what to say.

“This whole time, I thought that I had to earn people’s love and that if I just worked hard enough, I could get Mom to call me pretty or Dad to post a picture of us without trying to spite Mom.” I finally made eye contact with Isaac. “You made me think that I was broken.”

Then, the kitchen door swung open behind me and Mom and Dad entered the kitchen.

“What’s going on?” Mom asked.

“We heard yelling,” Dad added.

I smiled as I turned to them. “You all made me think I was worthless unless I was perfect. I thought I was going to die so many nights because I made one mistake in an essay or lost a friend because my powers creeped them out. But none of you cared.”

None of them spoke and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to hear any of them. All they could do was lie since I finally realized their true feelings.

My family hated me.

None of them ever really loved me.

My vison blurred as I tried to make eye contact with them again. “How could you think I could end up perfect when you all screwed me up so bad? You make me question myself so much that I’m not even sure what I want anymore.”

I could feel the sobs coming on but I willed them to stay at bay for a moment.

“I’ve met a lot of amazing people at Godolkin, crazy, talented people. But two of them stand out. One of them is this standoffish bigender person who always has a comeback but is actually the kindest person I’ve ever met. The other one is this amazing girl who can see the brighter side of things no matter what, even when people betray her.” I sighed. “And I like both of them, I want to be with both of them, and I don’t know what any of it means and as much as that terrifies me, I’m so happy that I met them.”

They must have all been stunned but I couldn’t focus on them as my chest felt lighter but my throat constricted and I could feel my heart rate pick up. I slowly walked away from the oven and back to my original spot at the island. My hands crept onto the marble counter and I realized that my knees were wobbling.

“You know what’s funny, Isaac?”

Isaac jumped but eyed me.

“If you wanted to abandon me, you didn’t have to go to another continent. Mom and Dad managed to do it and I saw them every day.”

Then, the sobs broke from me and I pressed my hands to my mouth, trying to shove them back in but there was no point. My shoulders shook as I slipped to the ground, the pain barely registering to my brain as I hiccupped into my hands. The tears were hot as they ran down my face and everything hurt so bad and felt so good at the same time; it was like an emotional massage.

Everything that I thought and felt was finally out in the open and none of it was even real.

For a second, I thought a toddler was wailing at the top of their lungs but I almost started laughing again when I realized it was me.

This was it; I was going to be stuck in Cate’s head forever; alone and with nothing to show for it.

The first thing I noticed was something warm against my back. The second was a pair of strong arms wrapped around me. The grip was firm but non-threatening like the owner wanted me to know they were there. The third thing I noticed was Marie’s brown eyes staring back at me as she knelt in front of me.

I paused in my sobbing and sniffled. “Ar-are y-y-you r-r-real?”

“Yeah, I’m real,” she assured.

Her words made me freeze and I started trying to wipe my face, but Marie carefully grabbed my hands. Her thumbs rubbed the top of my hands, and I could feel my sobs slowing down.

“H-h-how’d y-y-you g-get h-here?”

“We found you and Cate and somehow got transported into her head,” Marie explained.

I sniffed, wincing at my congested nose.

“We got to go through a lot of memories, freshie,” Jordan mumbled behind me.

I tensed in their grip and out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Andre standing off to the side. He glared at my family with so much malice that my parents cowered next to Isaac.

I gasped. “Th-this i-is s-so embarrassing. H-how m-much of t-that d-did y-you hear?”

“We heard everything you told your brother,” Andre stated.

Marie placed one of her hands on my face. “Breathe, Y/N, you’re hyperventilating.”

It took a couple of minutes, but I managed to even my breathing and once I did, I felt like shrinking away from her and Jordan.

“I can’t believe you were going through all this and never said anything,” Jordan muttered.

I shrugged. “How could I? You, Andre, Cate, Luke, Marie, and everyone in Si Chi are perfect. If I was going to be accepted, I had to be perfect but now you all know that I’m a mess.”

Marie grabbed my other hand again. “Everyone’s a mess; it doesn’t mean something is wrong with you.”

“If we’ve learned anything by wandering around in Cate’s head, it’s that everyone’s a mess,” Jordan mentioned.

I shook my head. “Don’t say that to try to make me feel better.”

“I’m not.”

Jordan quickly rattled off everything they saw: from Cate and Indira meeting to Andre and Cate cheating to Jordan knowing about Brink drugging Luke to Marie killing her parents. Even though he was brief, everything hit an emotional nerve and it almost shook me back into being myself.

“So don’t act like you’re special or anything, we’re all screw-ups,” Jordan concluded.

“And just so you know, I don’t think that you liking me and Jordan makes you weird or bad,” Marie confessed.

At her words, I jerked my head back to Jordan. “You told her?”

“No, you said it while you were yelling at your brother!” Jordan exclaimed.

My face warmed at the realization, and I groaned as I buried my head into Jordan’s shoulder. This day could not have gotten any worse.

“Wait, you told Jordan before you told me?” Marie asked.

“I was going to tell you but then I got sucked in here,” I murmured.

Marie huffed. “Well, you’ll both have to make it up to me once we get out of here.”

Wait, both?

Marie couldn’t be serious; it would be impossible for her to agree to any of this. It didn’t make any sense, none of it did. That didn’t stop my heart from pounding faster though as I leaned away from Jordan’s shoulder to look at her.

Before I could say anything, Jordan and Marie both helped me to my feet.

“We’ll talk about this later, okay?” Jordan offered.

“Uh-huh.”

At that moment, Andre approached my family and they tried to scramble away from him.

“You should all know that Y/N is the best thing to come from you shitty people. If I see you outside of here, we might have some problems,” Andre threatened.

“Please, don’t hurt us,” Mom begged.

It was hard for me not to laugh as Andre slowly backed away, flipping them off as he went. I laughed a little as he came closer to us.

“Thanks, Andre,” I said.

“No problem. Does anyone know how we get out of here?” he asked.

“We have to find Cate; I saw her briefly earlier but I haven’t been able to find her since,” I admitted.

“If you found her once, you can find her again,” Jordan said.

“Not unless I find you.”

In an instant, my mom’s dining room turned into Cate’s dorm, complete with green accents and comfortable furniture. She sat on her bed, eyes bloodshot and downturned. Marie was the first to approach her and Jordan and I trailed behind her.

“Cate, I’m so glad we found you,” Marie said.

“You have to wake up,” Jordan added.

Cate shook her head. “I don’t want to. You all can wake up but I’m going to stay here.”

Marie frowned. “You’re going to die? But, there’s so much we can do once we’re out of here.”

“Yeah, we can expose what’s going on at the school but we need your help,” Jordan insisted.

No matter what anyone said, Cate remained unresponsive. Both Jordan and Marie tried to reason with her while Andre snapped at her for everything that happened. All I could do was watch and wonder if her behavior made sense. In a way, her entire world fell apart and she’d exposed everything in all of us. She must feel alone but what did she think would happen?

How could she incense me and make me feel sorry for her at the same time?

Finally, I stepped over to her and bent down so that we were eye to eye. “Despite all the psychological torment I experienced in here, all I can think about is what else you haven’t told us.” I swallowed. “Because I have a really bad feeling that if Shetty used you like this, she would use me too.”

“No, Y/N, Indira wouldn’t do that.”

“She’s been in your head since you were a kid, Cate, it would make sense that she would go after Y/N too and you wouldn’t notice it,” Jordan pointed out.

Cate hesitated and then looked at her gloved hands. “This is all my fault.”

“You can make it right but not if you stay in here,” Marie said.

I didn’t know how much time had passed as Cate mulled over her options. All I knew was as she was deciding, my heart continued pounding in my ears as the lightning cracked above our heads. My hands shook as the cracking got louder and louder.

Then, it stopped.

#black!reader #jordan li x reader #gen v x reader #limoreau x reader #marie moreau x reader

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a-simple-imagine · 6 months

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Help! My Girlfriend Just Fell Down The Alt-Right Supe Supremacist Pipeline

Synopsis: you, an empath, just watched cate, your girlfriend, murder dean shetty

Pairing: Cate Dunlap x fem!reader

Words: 1.2k+

A/N - obsessed with cate and will not apologise for it so I wrote a little something for her. a sweet little baby angel

WARNINGS - swearing, blood, mentions of violence and murder

the human body has so much blood. approximately 1.2-1.5 gallons. you've never really thought about it before but it kinda just pours out, the first chance it gets. and it's such a deep, unsettling, thick shade of crimson. really gross. human beings are such fragile things. it takes one little injury and you're down for the count. Dean Shetty had such a powerful presence. an influential woman. the head of a school for superheroes, no less when she had no special abilities. at least not in the Vought sense. but all it took to take her down was one touch from an adorable blonde girl. her lifeless body spread over the floor of her beautiful home; a pool of red forming below her neck. you can still hear the sound of the blade cutting through the flesh; it glides through her skin so easily. It was a memory you were sure would never leave you. all because of Cate. the person you least expected to become a cold-blooded murderer. Then again, maybe you didn't know her as well as you thought. you never would have guessed she was capable of being so manipulative but that turned out to be true. you still didn't quite understand it. how could she do that to your friends? to you? someone she apparently cared so much about.

the air was rich with the emotional weight of every single person in the room. it was so thick you could almost taste it. it was sour and harsh; so unbelievably suffocating. it spilt through your veins. you couldn't tell what belonged to whom. there was just so much of it. you hear your name slip from such gentle lips. it's hard to pull your eyes away from the horror scene before you even for cate. none of this seemed real. it couldn't be real. your girlfriend wasn't capable of murdering someone. she may not have held the knife but she did give the order.

cate takes a tentative step closer to you and with it, her individual emotions grow sharper. "you understand don't you," she expresses softly. your hands are shaking. it's just reflective of what happened with Shetty. the pain she felt. you felt. "I know you do." despite everything, you're not fearful of Cate. you know she wouldn't hurt you. all the mind fuckery was some misguided attempt to do the right thing. so you guess Cate was right, in some ways you did understand but not in the way she wanted. "it's us or them."

"oh Cate…" you sigh softly. there was so much panic in the room and yet so much expectation placed upon you. you were the closest to Cate. you knew they expected you to denounce her. they expected you to do… something. but you can't. she has been through so much. She was handling so much. Even if you tried, there was no changing her mind right now. the blonde moves even closer.

"she was trying to kill us all with her virus," she was desperate for understanding that you couldn't quite give her. Dean Shetty was an awful person. nobody would deny that and maybe she deserved to die but could you really forgive Cate for this? you wanted to. you wanted to help her. but this was all too much. your entire body alive with the weight of everyone else's emotions.

"I…" you trail off. you're not sure how to make this better. there was no bringing dean Shetty back to life. no way for Cate to come back from this. you like cate. you… love cate. you have never told her that. you didn't really realise until this very moment as you face your own reality. you wonder if she is in your head right now; reading your thoughts. there is a lot going on. her head is probably racing. wait. cate was no longer taking her meds. maybe this wasn't real. maybe this was like the time you got trapped in her head. god, you hoped it was like the time you found out Soldier Boy was her imaginary boyfriend. gross. "Cate, please. let's just wake up. this isn't real, right? tell me this isn't real."

"she's gone fucking crazy," someone yells but you can't tell who. it seems almost muffled. there is so much noise in her. your head feels like it's gonna explode. l

"Cate." you articulate more firmly this time. block it out. block them all out. "you didn't- this isn't happening."

"you heard her. you heard what she said. she wanted us all dead- they all do. I couldn't-" so much urgency in her voice. so much fear. "I'm protecting us-"

"Cate just stop please," you bark loudly. you didn't want to hear this. you couldn't handle this right now. you just wanted to wake up from this horrible dream

"you- you have to understand." the blonde grabs your hand and everything she is feeling crashes over you like a tsunami. heavy and dangerous. you buckle under the water. drowning beneath the waves. you can't do anything but let it crush you; a single tear spills down your cheek before the rest comes pouring out.

"don't fucking touch her." Jordan shoves her; hard. You tumble to the floor. a strong sense of loyalty radiates from them. a fierce sense of anger. so much red-hot fury. he wanted to protect you. they had always been that way. you never quite understood why. perhaps the nature of your powers made you seem weak or maybe it was how easily you became overwhelmed. One touch and you can sense every emotion and the meaning behind them. Cate can read minds but you could feel them. you experienced other people. to some extent, you could even manipulate them. Cate would tell you how powerful she knew you would be. it all came with practice. you believed her to be true but you never tried. you hated your abilities. people are just too much. they feel too much. you don't like it. you actually hate it. you spent all your time trying to block it out rather than learning to control it. because when emotions are high, you almost become incapacitated. you can't move. you can't speak. you can only feel. you can feel Cate's desperation. her drive. her desire for self-preservation. you can feel Jordan's hatred. how much he wants to hurt Cate. how much they're holding back to protect you. you can also feel Emma, Marie and even Sam. You bury your head in your hands. you want it to stop. you need it to stop. the tears were your own now.

"I couldn't let her hurt you." Cate urges once more. you know it's true. she has such strong convictions. she works so hard. and fights even harder. she has been mistreated all her life so it's no wonder that she works to protect whatever affection she can find. "I did this for all of you. I'm gonna protect us all"

"I- I need to leave," you mumble into your hands. a pressure against your back fills you with such intense energy that you bat it away. it was just Jordan trying to help. a reassuring hand. sometimes people forget you feel everything they're feeling. "I- sorry," you scramble to your feet. you hadn't meant to be so aggressive. it was their own anger anyway. "I just- I need to leave."

"I love you," Cate cries as you stumble for the exit. you couldn't be here anymore. you needed to get away from Cate. you need to get away from them all.

// NEXT

#gen v #cate dunlap #cate dunlap x reader #jordan li #the boys #maddie phillips

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kwonzoshi · 6 months

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“We stop them.” Marie said, nerves evident in the quiver of her voice. Jordan glanced at Emma, who was strangely composed about this entire situation. Then again, not everyone reacts the same to homicide.

“Okay, fine. We stop them.” Jordan said, eyes glancing from Emma to Marie. “What’s the plan?”

After taking a few moments to gather themselves, all three of them made their way to the main campus. The air cackled with different degrees of emotion. Anger, fear, frustration, more fear. Jordan, still in their fem form, stole glances at Marie. There were so many unspoken things between them. So many moments they may not get to have.

The walk was quick, and quiet. Before they knew it they made it to The Woods. Only to find that Cate and Sam had already wreaked havoc and left a pile of bodies behind.

“Jesus fucking christ.” Jordan said quietly, huffing a breath. The guard that lay in front of them had his entire face ripped off. It was so grotesque it seemed almost fake, and they knew this was only the beginning. “We have to split up,” Marie started, glancing at Jordan and Emma. “Emma, you clear the performing arts center. Okay, teachers, administration, everyone.” She turned to face Jordan, “Jordan, you sweep the student union.” “There’s a panic button in Shetty’s office.” they looked up at Marie, “Under her desk. It’ll lock down pretty much everything.” Marie released a shaky breath, “Okay, that’s where I’m going.”

They started to make their way toward the entrance, Emma basically sprinting while Jordan and Marie trailed behind. As Emma disappeared from sight, Jordan made the decision to be brave, they might not get another chance. They grabbed Marie’s hand, stopping her. Marie looked down at them, concern and confusion all over her face.

“Hey…” they started, eyes locking onto hers. “Before we go out there, to face whatever the fuck Cate started, I just have something I need to say.” They pulled their hand back, and rubbed it on their pant leg. “Ummm,” they let out a breath, “I know that this whole thing between us hasn’t necessarily been conventional. With everything going on, we really haven’t had the chance to do things the right way but we’re about to face some really big shit. Like, life threatening we could die, shit.” They chuckled dryly, “So I just wanted to say that I’m sorry. I’m sorry for buying into Brink’s bullshit. I’m sorry for rejecting you from the school. I’m just sorry for everything. I needed to make sure I said that to you.” Marie smiled softly down at them, “You have nothing to apologize for, Jordan. You had no reason to believe that man was a piece of shit.” She shrugged, “It happens. People hide things. People suck. But as far as rejecting me from the school, yeah I’m never letting that shit go.” She laughed softly and took a step forward, tucking a loose strand of hair behind Jordan’s ear. “I forgave you the second you batted those beautiful brown eyes at me so… basically the next day. Besides, you’ve made up for it in more ways than one. You fought Golden Boy AND his brother to protect me.” Jordan chuckled, placing their hand on Marie’s waist, “Do not flatter yourself Moreau, I would’ve done that for anyone.” Their expression changed, “If we make it through this, I hope we get a chance to see where this thing goes. A real chance.” They raised a hand and gently stroked Marie’s cheek. “I don’t need to see anything else to know that we’re good together.” She mirrored Jordan’s caress, “I don’t doubt for a second that we’re making it through this. We have to.” “We have to…” they echoed before pulling Marie into a gentle kiss. Their hands moved in sync, cupping the back of each other’s heads gently. As tongue met tongue the kiss deepened, and became more demanding. They both knew that this could be the last time they’d have a chance to share a moment like this, so they dove in headfirst. Marie’s hand gripped Jordan’s shirt as they allowed themselves to be swept away, if only for a moment, by their feelings. They pulled apart, breath catching in their chests and their eyes screaming the things they were too scared to say out loud.

Neither spoke as they went their separate ways, wanting the last thing that they shared to be that sweet intimate moment.

******

Jordan stood, a bright smile on their face as they turned to face Marie. They were in their masculine form now, slowly walking toward her. “See?” Marie said, smiling. “We’re good together.” Jordan chuckled as they continued to make their way towards her.

Out of the corner of their eye they saw Cate approaching, arm stretched out.

“NO!” Marie shouted, extending her own hand. Her fingers twitched and Cate’s forearm exploded, sending splatters of blood everywhere. Jordan saw the look of shock on Marie’s face. As if she wasn’t aware that she could do that. Cate’s screams filled the air and that was the last thing they remember before they woke up in an unfamiliar place.

#kwonzoshi #Kwonzoshi writes #gen v #gen v amazon #gen v prime #limoreau #jordan li #marie moreau #jordan x marie #marie x jordan #derek luh #london thor #jaz sinclair #limoreau oneshot #gen v fic #mariejordan #gen v oneshot

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onyour-right · 7 months

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First things first, I'm gonna need Gen V to never fucking do that again. How dare they release such a good episode and only have it be 34 minutes??? Is it a fucking sitcom??? They do that again and we WILL have problems.

Now, Cate. I done told y'all she was the mole and now look. I mean do I still love her? Absolutely. Do I think she is a victim of Dean Shetty's manipulations? 100%. Do I believe she thought she was protecting her friends? Yup. But do I also think Andre was right somewhat in what he said? Yeah, kinda do. Listen, with all the good intentions in the world the fact that she repeatedly made Luke forget about his baby brother when she knew the type of turmoil it was causing in him is twisted. The same way she was going to confess to Andre before the text came is the same way she should have confessed to Luke. Granted I think the reason she was even going to confess to Andre was because of how wrong things were going. But still, she ain't right for that..

So, I see three possible avenues they might take with her: first, kill her off at the end of the season in order to redeem herself to her friends; second, she could become an antagonist to the group (tho this is less likely); or third, she may act as a double agent and spy back on shetty so they can find out what's really going on..

Jordan Li. My beloved. My baby boy/baby girl. I can understand why they thought Marie couldn't accept both sides of them and I'm so glad they explored a bit more into their character's history. But baby, Marie wants to love on you no matter what your gender so just let her!!! At least they got to a point where they realised they were being unfair to Marie over the whole situation though, so hopefully episode 6 will have them talking about it properly. Alsooooo, Jordan getting pissed when Marie's brain was tampered with again? Good fucking food. Jordan moving closer to Marie at Cate's reveal? I was eating that shit upppp. Jordan this whole episode was kinda unhinged and you know what? I wanna see more, please and thank you!!!

Alsoooo, can we talk real quick about Jordan's conversation with Andre and Cate because I cannot have been the only one who was straight dyingggg through it. "is it a black thing?" "...oh my God!!!". The way Jordan didnt even dismiss the fact that him and Marie made a good couple too. Likeeeee. C'monnnnn.

Marie, my sweet girl. Once she finds out the true extent of her powers its over for everyoneeeee; she's gonna fuck everyone up and I personally will be cheering her on at the sidelines!! Slightly worried though because 1) who is her benefactor?? and 2) what if they are able to capture her somehow??? She is yet to go unhinged and I would like to see it, especially if it's in relation to something happening to Jordan.

Emma and Sam. I mean you know its real when one half of the pairing's mind has been wiped and still there is an undeniable connection between them.The fact that Sam went out of his way to find Emma after all the shit that went down??? Ooof, I'm living for itttt. The fact that even though Emma hadn't gotten back her memories she still believed him? Don't make me cryyyyy. I loved how Emma realised how wrong her mother was about her "getting big" & how she's beginning to carve out who she wants to be for herself. Also, her and Marie's friendship is honestly just goals.

Also, lowkey everyone should have just let Sam kill that Dr Cardosa because he's gonna bring big problemssss I fear, and on that note they should have him kill Dean Shetty too because ole girl needs to skedaddle her way out (although the person who takes her place could be even worse, so idk about that yet)

Also, someone please give Andre a hug that boy needs it. Seeing him unhinged tho?? Ooofffffff 10/10.

#anyways these are my thoughts #long i know but #gen v #jordan li #marie moreau #cate dunlap #emma meyer #andre anderson #marie x jordan #limoreau #emma x sam #i cannot believe i have to wait yet another week ffs #feel free to message me and just scream thoughts over this show

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reinieseason · 6 months

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here are my live reactions from episode 6

gen v notes frm e6

- it seems like cate's powers are not just getting people to do things, from the way that she, when pushed too hard, could hear jordan and marie's thoughts in their head without touching them. it seems like it extends to a general like mind control? cause she wasnt touching them either

- "didn't you learn cpr?!" "WHERE?!" "AT SUPERHERO SCHOOL????"

- cate learning that she can control blood inside of people's bodies. this will change everything i swear

- so they are preparing a virus to like control supes, can they control is she doesn't get sick or like a cure

- oh my god cate is more powerful then we thought, it can zap people into her memories. the blood dropping down her eyes but it looking like a tear gen v...

- ..... SOLDIER BOY BEING CATE'S IMAGINARY BOYFRIEND HELP???? WHAT THE FUCK

- I CAN'T TAKE THIS SERIOUSLY. HAHAHAHAHHAHAHHAHAHAHAAHH

- why is soldier boy in cate imagination so weird HHAHAHA

- sam and emma are so cute stop this "i missed you" "for real?" "for real-real" THEYRE SO SILLYYYYYY

- OH MYGOD THEYRE KISSING????? LETS GO BABIES MY BEBES BEBES SAM...

- "Show me how" CRAZY CRAZY I TELL YOU THIS SHOW IS SO CRAZY

- THEYRE SO CRAZY FOR THIS

- THE SONG IS CRAZY

- i love you cate i love you

- dean shetty getting closer to cate is crazy, manipulative bitch

- i love you cate, i get you, i understand you.

- oh okay the voices and the like hearing people are part of cate's powers the reason they exploded now is because she hasn't been able to take her meds

- the way andre looks at luke... bruh this show and grief, i can't do this.

- i'm so sorry like the way . the way . the scene with cate and luke this is so so so so sweet i cannot . i'm gonna cry in the middle of class

- "i miss you man" WHAT THE FUCK "i miss you too man, so fucking much" i can't fucking do this . whats with this "but you know what i don't believe you" WHAT THE FUCK

- WAIT DO THE PEOPLE IN CATE'S HEAD HAVE CONCIOUSNESS???? IS THAT WHY LUKE IS PISSED THAT HE AND CATE HAD SEX

- THEY CHEATED ON LUKE TOGETHER WHAT THE FUCK ..................

- MAN..... THIS SHOW IS SO COMPLICATED

- STOP THIS

- WAIT HOW COME THEIR POWERS DON'T WORK IN CATE'S MIND

- "This isn't Cate's memory... It's mine" JORDAN KNEW???? JORDAN KNEW???

- the relationship between brink and jordan i can't do this, i can't do this this show and grief

- "We could've stopped everything right here. Saved someone. Like we always wanted, but instead we're a fucking TA, saving our own ass." "I loved Brink. He was good. Or not. But he was good to us" "He was nice it us! He was nice to us! Is nice all it takes for us to let someone get royally fucked? You're a coward. And you always will be." I CAN'T DO THIS THIS SCENE IS SO CRAZY

- the way sam and emma are having sex while jordan, andre, marie, and cate are going through like the worstish experience of their life

- if like last episode was the time of marie and jordan then this episode is sam and emma's

- annabeth and marie stop "no matter how hard you try to be a hero, you'll always be a murderer to me"

- this is trauma dumping premium, today they're experiencing others traumas

- the way they're college kids at heart "you have sex hair" "... no we don't"

- "Now can you make it contagious" I KNOW THE END EPISODE IS GONNA BE ABOUT THEM FIGHTING OVER THE VIAL I JUST KNOW IT

#gen v #jordan li #gen v amazon #gen v prime #gen v spoilers #marie moreau #marie x jordan #mariejordan #cate dunlap #sam riordan #emma myers #samemma

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h0nkch0c0late · 7 months

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i will literally do anything for jordan li x fem reader

enemies to lovers

Oh my God anon you are setting me up for such a good plot....you have too much faith in me.

Top Five

Jordan Li x Reader

SUMMARY: You and Jordan had always fought about everything. Whether it was because of something you two disagreed on, or a simple topic, but it was always mainly due to your Top Five rankings. While Marie was put in #1, you stayed in place at #3. As they say: the enemy to your enemy is your friend :)

WARNINGS: swearing, slight Gen V spoilers, implications of sex (not specifically written)

You and Jordan had been enemies since you could remember. Both of your parents had been close friends, and thought that their children would be the same.

That had never been the case, though, as you two had been each other's sworn enemies since the day you had met.

Why? Neither of you really had a reason. It had nothing to do with your powers, and most times your arguments had no real...argument. just pointless yelling.

But then, as you grew up, and you both entered Godolkin, it became more than just pointless arguments.

You spent every day trying to prove who the better person was. Which one was liked best, which one performed the best, etc...

It didn't help your case that Jordan was all buddy-buddy with the headmaster, Professor Brink, which let them be in with the popular crowd.

That didn't prevent you from being #3 for the top five, of course, but you were still upset.

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

Its not like you weren't friends with the "popular" crowd either, being friends with Cate Dunlap and Andre Anderson had its perks.

The only downside was that you were constantly in the same room with Jordan when you all hung out together, and she INSISTED on glaring at you every time.

Your response to it was always sticking your tongue out at them like a child, to which they always rolled their eyes.

To you two, it was like a game of cat and mouse, and neither of you could figure out which was which.

To your friend group's eyes on the other hand, it was a game of "who will kiss who" first. They saw your constant fighting as blatant flirting that neither of you were willing to admit.

So, when Marie Moreau came to the school, and Luke had killed himself along with killing Brink, you two finally had someone to be genuinely enemies with.

After all, the enemy to your enemy is your friend, right?

So, while Jordan was thrown to #5, and Marie moved up to #1, you couldn't stop glaring at Marie every time you walked past her.

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

As you walked down the path towards the dorm rooms, you had noticed Jordan standing there, clearly upset.

Ever since their rating had gone down, it was like they were a ghost to the rest of the school. You could relate, however, as being #3 wasn't as nice when the top 2 were being practically worshipped for something they hadn't even done.

So, gathering up your courage, you walked over to him, lips casted into a frown, "you okay?"

Her upset expression turned into one of annoyance (defense mechanism due to the fact her enemy was talking to her), and she groaned, "why do you care?"

You rolled your eyes, expecting nothing less from the supe in front of you, "because ever since Marie got to #1 and you got pushed, you've become a ghost. And you seemed pretty upset so...I don't know."

"You're still #3. You shouldn't be caring about anybody who's below you." They scoffed, their eyes refusing to meet yours.

You sighed, "the enemy to my enemy is my friend, I guess? Look, Jordan," You paused for a moment, "I know we aren't the best of friends, but I just wanted to make sure you were okay. I know how close you and Brink were and what happened fucking sucks."

Jordan's eyes moved to look at you, her frown slightly disappearing as she noticed that you actually genuinely cared. "Yeah, I'm fine."

You tilted your head, furrowing your eyebrows as you knew that they were lying, "there's no need to lie to me. We may hate each other but I do know you."

Jordan sighed, "can we not do this here?"

You gave them a look of confusion, "Okay...where do you wanna-"

You were cut off by Jordan taking your hand and dragging you off to their dorm room, and suddenly you found yourself sitting on their bed as they began to pace around. "Of course I'm not okay! Marie took all of the credit for something she didn't even do! She fucking took off! She ran! And it seems like I'm the only one pissed the fuck off about it because come ON! you did more than her! You actually tried to talk to him! You tried to talk him down and yeah it didn't work but you tried! And I fought him! Where the fuck is our credit, huh?!" Jordan ranted, getting angrier by the second.

Your frown deepened as you watched Jordan get heated, "Look, yeah, I'm angry I didn't get any credit, but at the end of the day, the rankings aren't that important to me. And yeah, I'm stuck at #3, but it's been like that for a while. I'm fine with not getting any credit because at the end of the day, it wouldn't have changed anything. You would have been #1, and Andre would have been #2. I care more about the fact that I lost a friend." You explained, standing up and walking over to Jordan, grabbing their hands in your own to stop their pacing.

She stopped in her tracks, her eyes downcast at your interlocked hands, head low to hide the rising blush that began to cover her cheeks.

"But I thought you did care. Yknow, our constant fighting and all?" Jordan questioned.

You chuckled, "Jordan, I constantly fought with you because thats what we do. We're supposed to be enemies, remember? Enemies fight."

Jordan stared at your hands for a bit longer before gathering the courage and looking up, "what if...what if I don't wanna be enemies anymore?"

Your brows furrowed in confusion, "what do you-"

You were cut off by Jordan planting their lips on your own, and you didn't hesitate to kiss back as your hands let go of their's and cupped their face.

And soon enough, you were back on her bed.

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It's a little rushed but fuck it we ball 😎

Also, how do we feel about me calling yall gentlebitches bc I find it kinda funny

#x reader #imagine #jordan li x reader #jordan li #gen v fanfiction #gen v #gen v spoilers #enemies to lovers

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cuoredimuschio · 11 months

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a little start of something that may end up being Something, expanding on this post about eddie teaching steve to play guitar

(3.1k - no upside down, but still set in the spring of '86)

now on ao3 | part two

---

Jenna Burke is the girl of Steve’s dreams.

Yeah, yeah, he’s made that claim before. A few times.

About Nancy. About Robin (he was half-right that time). About a dozen girls in between.

But Jenna’s different. Jenna’s the real deal.

They haven’t even been out on a date yet, but he knows. He can tell. He can feel it in the air every time she comes in to bring back her rentals. Which she always does when he’s working. Never on Tuesday when he’s off.

And let him just say, real quick: he knows how crazy that sounds. How crazy he sounds. But there’s something there, some kind of connection that sparks every time their eyes meet, something just waiting for the right moment to happen. And honestly, he’d have to be even crazier than crazy not to be completely mad about her.

Because she’s everything anyone could ever want. She’s everything that Steve has ever wanted, and more. Intelligent, funny, sincere, kind, movie-star cool but still firmly planted down on Earth, confident, artistic, athletic, a heavenly laugh, a knockout smile, sun-kissed freckles, hair like caramel honey, gorgeous enough to blow Phoebe Cates clear out of the water: he could go on.

And he has.

He’s talked Robin’s ear off about her, shift after shift after shift, until she threatened to cut his tongue out, julienne it, and feed it to her cat if she had to hear one more time about Jenna’s dimples and how the left one is just the slightest bit bigger than the right one—as if she wasn’t ten times worse when she was crushing on Vickie. Steve was once treated to an entire sermon about the way the fluorescent lights of the band hall reflected off her pearl barrette. But anyway, that’s beside the point. The point being that, threats of violence aside, even Robin’s had to admit that Jenna is—by all accounts and in every way—perfect.

There’s just one problem.

Steve is not the guy of her dreams.

She’s always flirted back with him—or at least, she’d always seemed amused by his attempts to flirt. Always met him halfway, played along and giggled at all his jokes and lame lines, definitely checked out his arms when he leaned on the counter, even twirled her hair a few times. He could’ve sworn it was all there, every sign lit up green and pointing to ‘go’. But when he’d finally laid it all on the line and asked her if he could take her out for dinner and a movie on Friday, she’d hit him with the worst eight words in the English language: you’re really sweet, but you’re not my type.

And what is her type? Springsteen, Bon Jovi, rockstars and their wannabes, apparently.

“There’s just something about a man with a guitar,” she’d said, her sea-shine eyes dancing with starry mischief. “Drives a girl wild.”

Then, she’d taken her movie, dropped a smile and a twiddly wave over her shoulder, and swept out the door with Steve’s heart stuck to the bottom of her Keds, leaving squelchy, sappy stains on the sidewalk with every step. And that was that. A beautiful flower, nipped before it could even bud. He couldn’t even really be surprised, shouldn’t have expected anything different given his recent track record.

It wasn’t until he was locking up that night, ready to go home and wallow, chalk up another failure in the books and look for comfort at the bottom of a beer or two, that it had hit him: the obvious solution, the one she’d handed right to him, with a wink and a nudge.

He’s not the guy of her dreams, but he could be.

All it’d take is just one little change. And he’s more than willing to make it.

Which is why he’s now slinking back to his old stomping grounds, picking his way through the grey, gnarled trees huddled behind the track, and hoping with all he’s got that Eddie Munson didn’t get busted at some point in the last year and move to another neck of the woods. And that he’s in a generous mood.

Steve should probably explain. Because ‘obvious solution’ and ‘Eddie Munson’ don’t often belong in the same metaphorical sentence. But desperate times call for desperate measures.

There’s just no way Steve can teach himself to play guitar. He wouldn’t even know where to start, and he’s always learned better when he has someone to watch anyway, when he can see, step by step, what he needs to do before he does it. And Munson…Still doesn’t seem like the obvious choice, granted. But he was always hanging up those messy, handmade posters for his weird band, plastering them all over the school, talking big about their gig at The Hideout every Tuesday; even though Steve had never caught one of their shows, never heard Munson play a single note, he figures if an actual bar hired them and let them keep coming back, week after week, he must be pretty good.

Plus, with that whole rock-n-roll, long-hair-denim-and-leather thing he’s got going, he’s honestly not too far off from Bon Jovi. Steve’s not sure either party would appreciate that comparison, but the fact is, Eddie Munson is the closest thing to a rockstar that Hawkins has to offer. If he’s going to learn from anyone, Munson’s his best bet.

It’s quiet as Steve approaches the clearing—nothing but the birds squawking up in the branches and the weak crunch of the leaves under his feet. It’s so quiet, too quiet, and all wrong. Because ‘quiet’ and ‘Eddie Munson’ have never belonged in the same sentence either; they don’t even belong on the same planet. If he was here, Steve probably would have heard him before he even got out of his car. So he must’ve switched spots or maybe he’s busy with his nerdy club. This was always a pretty damn long shot, but preemptive disappointment closes around Steve’s stomach anyway.

He almost turns around. It’s a good thing he didn’t.

Because he steps out into the clearing and there Munson is: holed up at that same rotting picnic table, squatting on the bench, hunched like a gargoyle as he scribbles into an old, tattered notebook, stopping every few seconds to gnaw on the end of his pen, twisting his hair around and around his finger. It’s warm enough that he’s ditched his signature vest and jacket, thrown them down on the table and pushed his sleeves up, showing off a select few of his ghoulish collection of tattoos. Steve can hear now that his watch—the same dorky kind Dustin wears—is beeping, softly, incessantly, but Munson doesn’t seem to hear it. And he doesn’t seem to realize Steve is there either, too absorbed in whatever he’s cooking up in his notebook, mouthing something to himself over and over again.

Steve clears his throat. “Hey, Munson—”

“Fucking sh—” is all the further Munson gets before he topples; he flails, arms striking out, trying to keep his balance and save himself, but gravity wins this round, and he lands, hard, on his on his back in the dirt.

Not off to a great start.

Steve steps forward, a hand ready to help him up, an apology brewing on his tongue, but Munson pops right back up, breezily brushing dead forest junk from his shirt. His eyes widen slightly when they land on Steve, a brow starts to twitch up, but he tosses on that smarmy, showman smile and slips into his usual act seamlessly.

“Ah, salutations, your majesty.” He doffs an imaginary cap and tucks his arm in against his stomach, bowing so deep the tips of his frizzy hair brush the leaf litter. It’s a damn shame, to have a killer mane like that and not even know how to take care of it; he clearly overwashes it and uses the exact wrong shampoo for whatever his hair type is; his curls are so limp he looks like a cocker spaniel after a night left out in the rain. “Long time, no see. To what do I owe such an auspicious honor? What brings you back to my humble shop on this fine afternoon?”

Alright, here goes nothing.

“I need a favor,” Steve says. Short, simple, and to the point.

That brow inches up a bit higher. “Well, unless ‘a favor’ is what the cool kids are calling an eighth these days, I regret to inform you that you’re a bit S-O-L, sire. My supply—” He raps his knuckles on top of his battered lunchbox “—ain’t what she usually is at the moment. Had a bit of a Spring Break blowout sale on Friday, everything must go, you know how it is. But…” He wedges his hands in his back pockets and sighs, as if Steve’s really busting his balls and twisting his arm here. “If you know what you want, I can try and get it for you, but I make no guarantees, and it probably won’t be ‘til next week.” His eyes pick their way up and over Steve, all the way up from his shoes, and a smirk spreads, like a fungal infection, across his lips. “Usually don’t take special orders, but I can make an exception for the king.”

He says ‘king’, but it’s pretty obvious he means something more in the realm of ‘jackass’ or ‘douchebag’. And that the offer’s not exactly coming out of the kindness of his heart. So, things aren’t boding well for Steve.

But whatever, he doesn’t need Munson to like him; he just needs Munson to teach him. And besides, he can’t really blame him for being less than enthusiastic about helping Steve out; it’s not like he would be Steve’s first choice either, if he had a better option. Or any other option, really. The guy’s weird. And loud. And abrasive. And a lot. Not to mention, they have next to nothing in common, and he means ‘next to’ as in ‘on the negative side of’.

“I’m not here for drugs,” he says.

Munson’s face darkens, something hardened in his eyes that almost makes him look as dangerous as concerned parents say he is.

“Then you’re in the wrong place.” He drops back down on the bench and picks up his pen again, pulling his notebook close. “Despite what your lovely friends like to say about me, I don’t offer those kinds of services. I’m not that desperate.”

It takes a second for Steve to realize exactly which friends and which services Munson’s referring to, but when it clicks, a bucket of gooey heat dumps over his head, searing his ears and turning his stomach. “Jesus Christ, you really think I’d—No. God no. Believe me, if that’s what I wanted, I wouldn’t be coming to you of all people. I wouldn’t need to.”

Munson props his chin in his palm, and now his eyes literally twinkle, catching a shard of the patchwork light that falls through the scraggly canopy, as he leers up at Steve. “Tell me, Harrington, have you ever asked somebody for a favor before? ‘Cause I gotta say, this is a unique approach.”

Right. Probably shouldn’t be insulting the guy who he’s throwing himself at the mercy of.

If only Munson weren’t so damn good at being so damn annoying.

“Look,” Steve says, gingerly sliding onto the bench across from Munson, praying his jeans will protect him from getting a splinter up the ass, “I think we got off on the wrong foot here. Let me try again: you play guitar, right?”

“Yeah?” Munson narrows his eyes and slams his notebook shut before Steve can spot much more than a few choppy doodles. “What, does his majesty require entertainment for one of his soirees?”

“No, I want you to teach me.”

That brow disappears up behind his bangs. “How to tie your shoelaces or…?”

Steve pauses, takes a deep breath, pictures Jenna’s beautiful, smiling face. She’s worth it, he reminds himself, do it for her. “No,” he says again, nice and calm and level. “How to play guitar, asshole.”

“Why?”

“Uh, because you know how to play and I don’t?” He’s totally doing this on purpose, being deliberately contuse or whatever the word is. And Steve can’t help himself. “I would’ve thought someone who’s been in school as long as you would understand the concept of teaching by now, but I guess maybe that explains why you still haven’t graduated.”

“Get fucked,” Munson snaps, but it’s dull, all bark and no bite, more of a reflex than anything. “I meant why do you wanna play guitar, dickhead.”

“Oh.” Yeah, okay, Steve deserved that one. He’s burning bridges, and fast, but Munson hasn’t walked away yet, which means he’s still got a shot. And he’s gonna take it. “Jenna Burke.”

He can’t even say her name without cracking a smile. That’s how he knows it’s real.

Munson is decidedly less enchanted. He twirls his pen once, twice between his fingers and starts sketching a spider web around his knuckle. “Care to elaborate?”

“I’m into her. She’s into guys who play guitar.” Steve pauses, letting that information sink in. “Can you put those pieces together on your own or do I need to spell it out for you?”

Something surprisingly bitter curls up in the corner of Munson’s mouth. He laughs, but it’s not really a laugh at all. “Nah, I hear ya, loud and clear, your majesty. And the answer to your humble request,” he says, “is no.”

Steve blinks. “What? What do you mean no?”

He hates—a little bit, a lot—how much he sounds like a spoiled child, but this isn’t just not getting some stupid toy he wanted on Christmas; it’s potentially missing out on the love of his life. He needs this.

“I mean no,” Munson repeats, nice and slow, dragging out the ‘o’ and puckering it off. “N-O? Commonly known as the opposite of yes? As in ‘not fucking happening’?” He tilts his head to the side. “Huh, I would’ve thought somebody with a brain in their thick skull would be able to understand such a simple concept.”

Steve crosses his arms; definitely not helping himself on the ‘spoiled child’ front, but it’s the best way to stop himself from punching—or strangling—that smug smirk off Munson’s smug face. “Why not?”

“How many reasons you want? ‘Cause I can give you a few.” He sticks up his middle finger, adorned with a flying pig’s head. “One: learning guitar takes a shitton of practice, patience, and passion. It’s not something you just pick up one day to impress a chick. It’s serious shit. If you’re not doing it for the pure, honest love of the music, then you have no business even breathing in the same room as a guitar. And it’s my sworn duty as a defender of the faith to hold the line and keep the rabble—” He jabs his middle finger in Steve’s direction, in case it was unclear who the ‘rabble’ was in this scenario “—back from the gates.”

“Jesus, who do you think you are? Some kind of musical messiah?” Steve scoffs. He shouldn’t, he needs Munson on his side, but something about the guy just gets under his skin and itches. “How about you get off your fucking high horse for two seconds?”

“Hey, man, you came to me. If you wanted sympathy, you should’ve knocked on a different door. And I wasn’t finished, alright? Two,” he says, lifting his other middle finger, “I have no interest in helping you get your rocks off. I, frankly, don’t give a fuck about the state of your rocks. And call me uncharitable or inhumane or whatever you like, but I think your little fella will survive if he has to stay in your pants this one time. Three—” He raises his left pinky “—I don’t fucking want to. It may not have occurred to you, my liege, but I have better things to do than listen to you butcher Hot Cross Buns over and over again until you inevitably give up because you’ve never actually had to work for anything in your life.”

Again, Steve probably deserves that, but still. “Jesus, man, you don’t have to—”

“And four,” Munson says, even louder. He lifts his right pinky, opens his mouth, closes it, opens it again. “No, actually, that pretty much covers it. So if you’re done wasting my precious time—” He pushes up from the table and sweeps his arm toward the tree line, his smile more plastic than Barbie’s “—you can kindly return to the Hell from whence you came, your majesty.”

“Munson, come on. I’m sor—”

“Buh-bye! Thanks for coming!” He turns his back, as if not being able to see Steve will make him disappear faster. “Don’t let the door kick you in the ass on the way out!”

Fuck.

Steve blew this.

He blew this so hard. In every way he possibly could’ve.

But there has to be something he can say, something he can do—

“I’ll pay you,” he blurts, before his brain can catch up and think better of it.

Munson stills. Just for a second before his I-don’t-give-a-shit act kicks back in, but it’s enough. Steve knows he’s got him on the hook. Now he just has to reel him in.

“Twenty bucks a week,” he offers, wincing even as he says it. “I just need you to teach me the basics and help me learn one song. That’s all you gotta do. And after that, we go our separate ways, and we never have to talk to each other again.”

Munson mulls that over for a second, a long second, fingers fiddling at his split ends, before he spins around. There’s something almost hungry in his eyes: the kind of hunger you see on a stray dog waiting by the dumpster behind a butcher shop. “Make it thirty.”

Two years ago, Steve wouldn’t have blinked at that number, would have forked it over happily. Now, it hurts, physically. Now, he can barely get the word past his gritted teeth, but he finds a gap and shoves it out. For Jenna.

“Done.”

He can’t, technically, afford it. Not on his skimpy paycheck. But he’s been saving up, squirreling away whatever cash he could spare so he can put this town in his rearview someday; it’ll set him back a few months, maybe a year, but he can dip into his savings a bit, maybe pick up a few shifts to cover the extra. It’ll be fine. Jenna’s worth it. More than.

“Well, shit, Harrington.” Munson shakes his head, and he doesn’t look or sound any more enthusiastic about the whole situation—he actually looks kind of seasick—but he sticks his hand out. “I guess you’ve got yourself a deal.”

#steddie #steve x eddie #steddie fic #steve harrington #eddie munson #this is in really rough shape but thought i'd post it anyway #my writing #(also just to clarify: eddie's 'i'm not that desperate' is meant to be disdain towards the men of hawkins not the concept of sex work)#(don't ask me about my other au idea where eddie does offer those services and steve does partake)

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