#“or if he found someone else” meanwhile Jonathan saw a picture and was like i can drive all night it's fine really

[musicalchaos07]

No bc Nancy would be like "Everyone wants him that was my crime"

And the everyone in question is like maybe two girls who Jonathan doesn't even know exist

#GET IN MOOTS WE'RE LISTENING TO “SLUT!” ON LOOP AGAIN #also of this doent make sense its bc i took my meds early #but basically Nancy is jealous for no reason #<- that's just canon #“or if he found someone else” meanwhile Jonathan saw a picture and was like i can drive all night it's fine really #like girl calm down he's obsessed with you #anyways do i ever finish the fic that is quadi inspired by this song? #who can say #jancy #jonathan byers #nancy wheeler

[findafight]

I have been thinking of my Swimmer Steve au babyyyy...

Except. It isn't Will that gets stuck in the upsidedown. Its Dustin. His mom flips her shit and reports it that night, calling Karen and then Sue and then Joyce. No one's seen her boy.

Susan holds her hand as she looks through pictures for his missing poster. (they have been best friends since childhood and Lucas and Dustin have know each other since birth). She refuses to believe Dustin ran away or got lost in the woods because he knows better than that. Wouldn't have left Will by himself just to get lost in the woods!!

Joyce gets Jonathan to help put up posters at the highschool, and Robin and Steve see it and are like oh that's sad...but how are we, fifteen and sixteen year olds, supposed to help. And continue on with their regularly scheduled Tuesday plans.

Which is why Steve swims in his pool for probably the last time of the season, it's getting way too cold and he should have drained it before Halloween anyways, and pulls on sweats and a hoodie before tugging the pool cover, accidentally cutting his hand on the crank. (It's getting cold and his hands are drying out so his skin just caught and tore a little) and then he's gone.

Last post etc. Robin freaks and bikes to the police station to report Steve missing at lunch. His parents won't be home for another week and no one else besides his coach would even really care he's gone except maybe Nancy, who Steve is sorta dating after the teasing about Brazilian Gymnast made it clear that Buckley and Harrington weren't dating (yet, some say) but Nancy doesn't know his schedule well enough to know something's wrong soon enough.

And when asked how she knows he wouldn't skip town by a disinterested police officer OR Jonathan Byers I haven't decided which, (disregarding the fact his car was still in the driveway) a stressed and upset Robin says "because he would have taken me with him!" Because he would have. They'd talked about it, leaving Hawkins once they graduate and not looking back. Getting an apartment together and maybe working the same shitty retain job to make ends meet as she coaches him into gold medals.

If Steve were to run away, he would have taken her with him. But he didn't. Robin was still in Hawkins and Steve was gone. He didn't run away.

And then Dustin's "body" is found. Claudia knows it's not her boy. They didn't let her close to him but she saw, she saw, that the corpse on the table had front teeth, and her Dustin didn't. Susan Sinclair is beside her, nodding, and stands behind her as she tells Chief Hopper this. That it couldn't be her son because he had a condition, his teeth hadn't come in yet and he didn't have collar bones.

Meanwhile, Jonathan develops the pictures he took while going through the woods trying to help look for Dustin. He has one of Steve, standing bare footed in the pool gutter with his sweats rolled up, grimicing at his sliced hand, as something looms behind him. No Robin don't worry about the picture of shirtless and dripping Steve before that it's nothing a misshot don't mention it again

Dustin, who was pretty ambivalent about Hawkins' resident Olympic hopeful, clings to him in the upsidedown. He's glad he's bigger than Dustin and strong enough to be able to carry him if they need to run fast. Steve's gotten a bat out, already splattered with gore from whatever thing dragged them here, using shoes from the weird, nasty version of his house, and tells Dustin funny stories about his adventures with Robin as he keeps watch while Dustin tries to talk to his mom on the phone or to get the Christmas lights to blip in Morse code.

As Claudia and Sue discuss what's happening and how to get someone to believe them, the lights in the Henderson house keep flickering.

#swimmer steve au #steve Harrington #dustin henderson #robin buckley #platonic stobin #steve and dustin #dw joyce and hop obviously join as well. #finds writes stuff #stonathan #just a little biiiit hehe #finda's rambles

[jasmine-the-fox]

Lose the model but win a hero

Here’s another update... Were getting somewhere now I promise!

Chapter 3: Jonathan Kent

Previous  First

Mari had only been here for a week and she was already drowned in ideas for new outfits, she knew Chloe being her friend and Adrien also being rich would buy her every piece of fabric, every pearl and anything else to make them, it was how they were... She loved them so very much and couldn’t wait to tell them how her summer was in the end, she looked around while enjoying this time here for the summer... It was obvious she wouldn’t be able to come back for the next summer.

Right now, she was working on her list of things to do... Getting gifts for her friends, she had so much more to do but this was something she wanted to take care of right off the bat, she took pictures here and there of buildings and even at times of statues around the place “I need to get a new sketchbook” she said to herself knowing she no longer had any space to sketch anything out now... Hence why she was taking pictures, so to keep in memory her ideas until she could draw them out.

At one point, she notices a fabric store... And her loving to go buying some goes inside to take a look around, the cashier smiles towards her wondering if she was going to buy something... And she does, Mari loved some of the fabrics and ends up getting a roll of each and takes note of the name and the store so if she wants more, she can see if she can order it online, making her smile as she walks out with her purchase as she thinks up so many outfits and dresses for herself and her friends to wear when they go back to school together... She would enjoy taking pictures of them together and talking about Lila and her stupid lies going around the school.

It was all of a sudden, but she bumped into someone... Well... More like someone ran into her without even looking where he was going, she fell down and to her luck the fabric wasn’t damaged or stained, so she slowly stood up as the boy-yes a boy bumped into her, began to panic and worried she was hurt “I’m really sorry about that! I was just running from a friend I pranked!” he explained quickly as she smiled at him “It’s fine, it was just an accident. Even I bump into people because i’m not looking” she explained and the boy looked to have calmed down thanks to her words making him smile.

He presented himself as Jonathan Samuel Kent, to her surprise he was the son of Clark Kent and his wife Lois making her smile and present herself at that moment as he then invited her to walk around Metropolis to say sorry... While also hiding from his friend, of course as they walk around and talk about anything and everything... It wouldn’t be a full tour without visiting the Daily Planet? So yeah, he takes her there and she watches his parents working together for a moment before they leave... While not knowing Clark heard them and told Lois making her need to talk to there son when they get back home later on that day “This was amazing! I never thought Metropolis would be so amazing!” she claimed making Jon smile to her words as he then looks at the time on his phone.

“Shit! I gotta go join my friends!” he said making her giggle at him as she then gives him her number so he can text her or even call her “I’m here for the whole summer so it’s fine” she said making Jon smile at her and then headed off to join his friends while she headed back to her hotel to relax from her day of walking and everything else happening to her... While thinking back to everything that could happen at school when summer was over “Lila will make them think I never left Paris... Unless I post stuff” she said as she then looked at the pictures Jon took of her with her phone... And began posting them little by little.

The first to comment and like was Chloe and Adrien... Sabrina did so later since she was relaxing for a moment when she began posting, Kagami and Luka were next to comment and like making Mari smile, then Jagged, Clara, her Nona and her parents began to like at their own pace making her smile at what they wrote to her... But the class never looked making her know they didn’t follow her page anymore so they would believe Lila instead, she sighed and decided to now focus on her website MDC Designs and post about how she was taking a summer break on commissions but would be returning after so no one was able to make a request.

Of course does who have her number could text her for a commission... She really didn’t mind since only her friends had that number and no one else did so that was a good thing for her... Then there was her classmates who still expected her to make them free things without caring how long it takes her or even how she can’t do it at times... Making them whine to miss Bustier to make her do it... And she would always refuse and repeat her reasons... Making the class ignore her for a while until they ask her again... Or get mad at her for not making them what they asked for and the results of it (because they asked for it on last minute)

At that moment, Jagged texted her so she knew he understood and would have her enjoy her summer, Clara did the same of course so with that she smiled... But then she was notified of a complaint, confused she looked at it and found Alya making the complaint... Claiming she should be taking there commissions no matter what... And her doing this will make her lose profits... But Mari didn’t care and simply posted the complaint on her site and told everyone that for the WHOLE summer she wasn’t taking commissions... Those who bought from her destroyed Alya’s complaint and suggested the girl be blocked.

Mari did nothing and simply left it to them, she knew that at one point someone might report Alya and end up having her blocked from her site themselves but for now she would watch this happen as she also brings up the fact that during Jagged Stone’s concert in Paris with Clara Nightingale she would be revealing herself once and for all so everyone knows who she really is (she never even said her gender making Lila claim that MDC is actually a guy she knows) she knew the moment she would reveal herself... Lila will fall to her lies and will be hated because Adrien asked her to say nothing so to let Lila lie until she reveals herself.

She was sketching in one of the five new sketchbooks she got herself when she got a text from Jon, he wanted to know if she was doing something tonight making her think about it for a moment and then smiled as she denied having any plans making Jon explain his parents want to meet her... She really didn’t mind since Jon is a good friend now and would soon need to tell her friends about him, she ended up agreeing to the invitation with a smile making Jon ask if he can visit her later and then pick her up to bring her to his place making her accept the whole plan as he explains he should be coming over to her hotel in a little bit making her smile.

Meanwhile, with Jon...

Jonathan was excited! Marinette was going to eat diner with them and he just couldn’t wait to see her again, sure his parents worry he might reveal himself as Superboy to her but he promised to be careful and he was as he headed to the hotel she was staying at for the whole summer... Making him wonder how she was even able to afford that long of a stay, he walked inside and found no one at the desk to tell him which room she was in... Making him need to ask her for it, it wasn’t long before she came down to get him as they talked while getting to her room “How can you even afford to stay here for the summer?” he asked making her giggle “A friend of mine is paying for it, she’s the mayor’s daughter so money isn’t a problem” she explained making him nod in understanding.

They got into her room and he was surprised at how clean it looked... Like she wasn’t even staying and was just about to leave, but from seeing her laptop out with a sketchbook open... She wasn’t really leaving in the end, she smiled to him and explained she would see in the dining room if there was anything to eat left for them to snack on “If not i’ll go out for a bit to get us something” she said making him nod as she took her purse and left with a smile making Jon begin looking around the room... And then got his eyes landed on her laptop.

He got curious and took a look, it showed a website she was working on to add outfits... Making him understand this was her website she had spoken about to him he looked it over until he noticed people getting mad at a girl named Alya, for some reason the girl was angry due to Mari wanting a break for the summer from commissions he could tell Alya was insane to claim such a thing making him feel anger growing within him for a moment before he looked away and focused on her sketchbook making him smile at her designs... And then laughed at the ones for the Justice League members with little notes saying she would get them to change looks.

“I’m back! I found some good muffins for us to enjoy” she said as she came inside to find Jon turning the pages of her sketchbook, she could have tried to take it back or tell him to not look further... But he looked to enjoy checking it making her simply set the muffins down and watch him for a moment in silence “I see your looking through my stuff” she said making him then jump in surprise to her voice now being heard by him making her giggle at his reaction “Sorry! I got curious” he explained making her nod in understanding as she then took it back and put it next to her laptop “I saw what that Alya wrote” he said making her turn to him in surprise “She... She’s bullied me with my other classmates because a girl lies about me” she explained making him nod “I did nothing wrong, I was always helping them... But Lila told them things I did to her and they just forgot everything I did for them... I only have Chloe, Sabrina, Adrien, Kagami, Luka and my parents who believe me” she explained as she looked down in pain.

If he could, Jon would have gone to Paris as Superboy and given the class a piece of his mind for what they did to Marinette... She was just a ray of sunshine and for them to treat her like that made no sense “How about we forget about it and focus on what will be happening” he suggested making her smile and nod to him as they there muffin and chatted a bit together before it was time for them to head to meet the Kent’s making Mari smile as they walked inside to meet Lois and Clark who were more than happy to meet her, the meal was amazing and Mari just enjoyed every second of it as slowly it came time for her to head home it with her refusing Jon walking her back.

Once she left he told his parents everything that was happening in Paris “I’ll need to speak to the others during our next meeting... Which is tomorrow” Clark said making Jon nod as they cleaned up while Jon worried about Mari and her situation “Why would the Mayor of Paris not ask us for help?” Clark asked making Jon look at his dad with worry “Why didn’t anyone try to stop the bullying situation at Mari’s school?” he asked back making his father sigh with even more worry as Lois began to work on a few scoops that would put Paris to shame once she got more info from Marinette.

It won’t be long before people in Paris are punished for their actions.

Back in Paris with Kagami and Luka...

With Kagami practicing her fencing, Luka was playing a few notes on his guitar. Jagged had allowed him to take a break and enjoy his summer... Making the boy begin packing to head for Hawaii making Kagami help him... While ignoring Juleka asking her brother to join her classmates for something they were doing with Lila... Each time he refused and claimed something about the Italian, his sister would look sad and walked away without another word, he didn’t like that but until she realized what the girl was doing... He wouldn’t hang out with his sister or her class.

Kagami still had to wait before joining them, but from her friends texted them... It would be fun when she arrives making her smile at the pictures Adrien sent her each time “Your sister needs to open her eyes to the lies Rossi speaks” she said making Luka stop playing for a moment to sigh and then get back to playing “She thinks I have something against Lila because Mari and I talk... She tried having Mom force me to hang out with them... I actually wanted to call the police for sexual assault with the number of times Lila humped me” he explained making Kagami growl in anger.

“I will stab her one day” she said making Luka not say a word as he then looked over to find Juleka walking over to him and Kagami with Lila and Alya “Hey, the girls and I came over to get something of mine before going to a picnic and wanted to know if you would join us?” she asked making Luka sigh and point to his bags “I’m going to Hawaii later” he stated making Lila spew a lie about going there and asking if she could join him as he then noticed his ride and simply took his things to the car while ignoring Lila’s words as he was driven to the airport.

Next

#Sorry for the wait #Mlb salt #marijon #Mlb fic #Took longer than planned

[sueboohscorner]

#SupermanandLois Season 1 Episode 12 "Through the Valley of Death" Recap and Review

The episode starts with John Henry Irons at the Metropolis Institute of Technology. He’s looking for someone. A younger sister? Before we get any detail, he gets the call from Lois.

              Clark is suffering. I’ve been wondering about the red beam of light. It’s obviously being used in conjunction with the Eradicator, but it’s something else too, since Zeta-Rho used it on Edge when he was a child and Edge still appears to be himself. Red Kryptonite maybe? While thinking about this, I almost didn’t catch the important part of Edge’s monologue. They’re replacing Clark with General Zod, who in this time timeline died with Krypton and is not stuck in the Phantom Zone somewhere. Two things come to mind. One is that this plan always seemed very Zod-like, and two is that I’ve never seen Zod as a lackey to anyone before.

              Lois tries to comfort Jordan and Jonathan. She eventually gets them to go at least try to rest and then General Lane shows up. She tells him about Edge’s Fortress in the desert and then she finally cries into his shoulder.

              Kyle has to go to a special D.O.D debrief and therapy session, and then he’s going to try and go to work. Sarah thinks he should rest, but he tells her that it’ll be good to get into a routing. One of the firefighters shows up at his house to advise him to stay home, as he’s persona non grata at the moment. People need time to calm down.

              Jonathan finds Jordan brooding. Jonathan has decided that they aren’t going to sit around and do nothing. They’re going to find Clark.

              John Henry Irons shows up to talk to Lois and General Lane. She wants to organize a rescue mission. Irons just wants Superman dead. Lois storms off and General Lane assures Irons that he’s taking all necessary precautions. He just hasn’t told Lois that yet.

              Jordan hasn’t found Clark yet. He doesn’t think he can. He tried to be strong when Edge came, and it didn’t do him any good. Jonathan doesn’t allow him to wallow. They just have to keep trying.

              Irons made a rocket propelled projectile for Lex Luthor on his Earth. It drains a Kryptonian of their powers long enough for them to be killed. He is not; however, completely certain that it works. The last time he used it, he was transported to this Earth before he found out if it worked.

              Kyle, Lana, and Sarah get harassed on the way to the D.O.D. debrief. Lois is on their side, even if no one else is.

              She then talks to Lana and Kyle privately about what it felt like to be someone else. Lana doesn’t remember anything at all, but Kyle remembers bits and pieces. He couldn’t picture his family, and when he tried to fight back, he could feel this darkness pressing down on him. It hurt immensely to fight back, and he got this sense that his family would be better off if he let go.

              Clark is still fighting. At one point, he flies out of Edge’s fortress and screams for Jordan. Jordan hears him, but Edge cuts in quickly. He tells Jordan that he won’t find his father when he comes looking.

              Diggle is here!!!!! General Lane asked A.R.G.U.S. asked to deliver some tech but did not say that he was going to use it to make Irons’ Superman killing weapon. Needless to say, he’s a little ticked. Jonathan and Jordan interrupt the pow wow to talk to Lois.

              The Cushing house has been vandalized. Lana manages to talk Kyle down from doing anything more rash than cleaning up the living room.

              Jonathan and Jordan tell Lois and General Lane where Clark is and then they leave. General Lane is going to send Irons in. He doesn’t think he has any other choice.

              Lois finds Irons first and does the big no-no. She tells him everything. She needs hope and he will not give it to her.

              Meanwhile Diggle is trying to convince General Lane that killing Superman is a terrible idea.

              Lana and Sarah are trying to clean the paint off. It doesn’t budge until Kyle uses some paint thinner and “American muscle.” This causes a good old fashioned water fight, which is cute.

              Jonathan and Jordan find Lois in the newspaper office. She doesn’t know if it’s too late or not.

              Clark is getting tired and Zod comes through.

              Jonathan confronts Irons. He tells him what he saw in the videos in his van. He knows what happened on his Earth and he begs Irons not to kill his dad. There’s always another way.

              When Irons gets to the Badlands, he’s immediately confronted by Zod. They fight until Clark is knocked upside the head enough to be himself for a moment. He tells Irons to kill him, which manages to convince Irons to talk to him instead. Clark then fights so hard that he passes out. When he wakes up, he’s ok. Now they’re going after Edge with the missile they still have left.

              Zeta Rho gaslights and guilt trips Edge into doing something. He flies up into space, and possibly uses the Eradicator on himself before the missile brings him back to Earth? Clark then knocks him out because he won’t shut up.

              He comes back to the farm, kisses Lois, and hugs the boys. Irons is with him. Jonathan apologizes for hitting him with a truck. Lois invites him for dinner, but he still has business with General Lane. After all, family time is sacred.

              The Cushings have dinner all together and it’s adorable.

              Leslie Larr is still in the wind, but General Lane is confident that she’ll be captured soon. When that happens, the D.O.D. will leave

              Edge is in a Kryptonite box in a secret government facility, but he’s smirking. The big question remains. Is he still himself? If not, then who would be a bigger deal than Zod?

I’m glad they didn’t do the whole Evil Superman thing for very long, but I’m fascinated by what the contingency plan is. This isn’t over yet. 8/10.

#superman #supermanandlois

[bucky-of-the-opera]

Mother (Part 2)

Pairing: Steve Harrington x Reader

Summary: Steve tells his children a bedtime story about him and Y/N.

Warnings: language, fluff, kissing

Word Count: 2,820

A/N: I loved combining two of my favorite shows. And I love Dad!Steve

Part 1

It was just after 1am; you were lying in bed with Steve’s chest flush against your back and his arms wrapped around you. You were just about to slip into unconsciousness when you heard two consecutive thuds and the sound of tiny feet running down the hall. “They’re up again,” you said, your eyes still closed. Steve yawned. “Three, two, one—” Right on cue, the door flung open. Your son and daughter climbed onto your bed and leapt on top of you and Steve. “What are you monkeys doing up?” you said as they both crawled under your blankets. They giggled as you and Steve enveloped them in your arms. “We woke up. So we’re not tired anymore!” you daughter Charlotte said. “You’ve only been asleep for four hours. How can you not be tired?” Steve asked. “I dunno!” your son Bailey exclaimed. You sighed. “Well, you might not need sleep. But grown ups do. Let’s go,” you said, flinging the blanket off. “No!” they shouted in unison, tugging the blanket back over their heads. “I got this,” Steve told you. You chuckled and got back under the covers. “Do you guys wanna hear a story about me and Mommy?” A muffled “Yes” could be heard from under the blanket. Steve peeled the covers back so he could see your children’s faces. “One story, and then you both go back to your rooms. Okay?” They both nodded. You put your elbow on the pillow and rested your head on your hand, getting ready to listen to his story. Steve turned on the lamp on his nightstand. He smiled at his little family and cleared his throat. “This is the story of when your Aunt Nancy, Uncle Jonathan, Aunt Robin, Mom, and I spent our first Thanksgiving together. Usually during the holidays, we would all go home to visit our own families. But since your Aunt Nancy and Uncle Jonathan had just gotten married, and I had started dating Mom, we decided to have our own Thanksgiving dinner in New York.”

*** Nancy was in the kitchen stuffing the turkey when Steve walked in. “Nance, you’ve cooked a turkey before, right?” he asked. She stopped prepping to look up at him. “Not exactly. But I’ve cooked chicken before, and how different is it really?” “Oh god.” She waved him off. “It’ll be fine Steve. I have a cookbook and google.” He opened his mouth to speak right as someone had knocked on the front door. Steve walked over to see who it was and opened the door to reveal Robin. “Salutations, my hairy friend,” she said as she brushed past him. “I brought the potatoes, Nancy.” “Robin, these are prepared mashed potatoes. I asked you to bring actual potatoes,” Nancy said. “But these cook in like, five minutes. And you don’t even have to use the oven. I’m just trying to make your life easier,” she shrugged. Nancy sighed. “Fine, put them in the fridge please.” Robin turned to face Steve. “So, Harrington.” “So, Buckley.” “Are you bringing your girlfriend to our sacred family dinner?” Steve scratched his head. “Well, she’s not actually my girlfriend yet…” “How long have you been seeing this girl?” Robin folded her arms. “Three weeks.” “And did you invited her to our Thanksgiving Dinner?” “Yeah…” Nancy dropped the pan she was holding. “Excuse me? Did you seriously invite another one of your floozies to our dinner?” “Wait, Nance, this is different. She’s not some floozy.” “But you haven’t made it official yet?” Robin asked. “I’ve just been waiting for the right moment.” Robin sighed. “Are you at least getting laid?” “Robin!” “What? I’m just looking out for you.” “Please don’t ask anything like that when Y/N gets here.” “Steve!” Nancy shouted. “I can’t believe you invited a stranger over to our first family Thanksgiving!” “She’s not some stranger! She’s the girl who interviewed that dog, Pickles! And I really think I could marry this girl some day.” Nancy shook her head. “You always do this. You invite girl after girl over to our special family events, claiming you’ve found ‘the one’. And then you end up dumping them a week or two later, but by then, they’ve already become eternalized in all of our pictures.” “I know I’ve brought a few girls to a birthday every now and then—” “A few? Ha!” Nancy cut in. “Let me show you some pictures.” She got out her phone and scrolled through her albums until she found the one she was looking for. “Here we go!” She thrust the phone in front of Steve’s face. “My birthday last year, Robin’s birthday, Christmas, Fourth of July, National Ice Cream Day—” “Okay! Fine, maybe I do bring my fair share of dates to our parties and dinners and stuff. But Nancy, I really like this girl. She’s not like any of the others. There’s this feeling I get when I’m with her…I can’t describe it. I just know I’ve never felt like this about anyone else before.” Nancy groaned and shoved her phone back into her pocket. “Fine, Steve. But she’s taking the photo.” Nancy poked her head into the living room. “Jonathan! Can you start setting the table?” “The turkey takes like, three hours to cook. Can’t I do it later?” he asked. “But I want everything ready so all I have to worry about is the food.” “But—” “Dude,” Steve said, cutting Jonathan off. “Happy wife, happy life.” Jonathan nodded and started setting the table. You were supposed to arrive about two hours later, so Steve had to finish getting ready. He grabbed his clothes from his room and locked himself in the bathroom. Over an hour later, Steve still hadn’t returned, so Robin pounded on the door. “Jesus, Harrington! Did you fall in?” The door swung open, letting billows of steam escape. “Do you know how long it takes to make my hair look this good?” Steve walked straight to another mirror to apply a last minute touch up. Meanwhile, you had just got to the building. You climbed the stairs and knocked on the door. “Shit! She’s early!” Steve sprinted to the door, tripping on his untied shoelace. He brushed his clothes off and took a deep breath before pulling on the handle. His heart skipped a beat when he saw you standing there; you had put on one of your nicer outfits and wore your hair differently than you normally did. “Hi Steve,” you smiled at him. “Hi Y/N.” He pulled the door open more to let you walk into the apartment.Steve took your coat from you and hung it up. You handed him the pumpkin pie you had brought with you. “It’s my uncle’s recipe; literally the best pie I’ve ever eaten.” “Better than the pie at that bakery I took you to last week?” “Oh, so much better.” “Damn, well I can’t wait to try it. I’ll go put this in the kitchen.” When he left, Robin walked over to you. “Hey, we met briefly a few weeks ago. I’m Robin.” “Oh, right! You introduced me to Steve. I’m Y/N; it’s so nice to meet you properly.” “So,” she tilted her head, grinning.  “How are things going with you two?” “Hey, Y/N!” Steve returned before you could answer, placing his arm around you. “Let me introduce you to Nancy and Jonathan. They’re both in the kitchen.” As he pulled you away, he turned his head back around to look at Robin and give her the ‘I’m watching you’ signal. She rolled her eyes and sat back down on the couch. Steve cleared his throat. “Y/N, this is Nancy and Jonathan. Nancy and Jonathan, this is Y/N.” “Steve’s told me so much about you guys, I’m so happy I finally get to meet his best friends.” Nancy looked you up and down before giving a small smile. “Steve seems to really like you, so hopefully you last longer than his past dates ever did.” Jonathan and Steve locked eyes before Jonathan butted in. “Hey, Y/N, have you ever heard of the cockamouse? I took some really cool pictures you should see.” He practically dragged you away, leaving Steve and Nancy alone in the kitchen. “I’m sorry,” Nancy said, before Steve could say anything. “I didn’t mean to say that. I’ll behave.” Steve nodded. “Thanks, Nance.” He helped her with some of the cooking until she forced him out of the kitchen. “You’re gonna burn something. Go back to your date.” Steve froze. “How long has she been alone with Jonathan?” “He’s probably shown her his entire Bigfoot collection by now.” “I’m gonna go save her,” he said, taking off towards Johnathan and Nancy’s room. Jonathan was showing you the pictures he took of what he claimed to be an actual UFO just as Steve burst into the room. “Hey, Nancy needs your help in the kitchen.” Jonathan set the pictures down and left the bedroom, leaving you and Steve alone. “So, are you a believer yet?” You chuckled. “I think I just agreed to a road trip to Roswell.” “Bring me back a T-shirt.” He walked over to you, grabbing hold of your hand. You looked down at your interlocked fingers and then up at Steve’s face. He smiled softly at you. “I hope this isn’t weird; me inviting you to Thanksgiving when you haven’t even met my friends before.” “It’s fine, Steve. I’m just excited that I get to spend more time with you.” You wrapped your free hand around the back of his head, your fingers lost in his hair. Your eyes flickered back and forth between his eyes and his tongue that kept darting out. Finally, you leaned forward, capturing his lips with yours. Steve pressed his hands against the small of your back to pull you against him. You clenched the front of his shirt as you slipped your tongue into his mouth, making him moan into yours. Just then, a shutter noise went off and you both pulled apart. Robin was standing in the doorway, aiming her phone at you two. “Dammit, Robin. Put the phone away,” Steve groaned. “I was just coming to tell you that dinner was ready. But from the looks of it, you two were already getting started on dessert.” She threw her hand up in the air. “Up top, Stevie.” “Are you serious? I’m not high-fiving that. Come on, Y/N.” Steve took your hand and started walking towards the door. “Wait, Steve, please!” He ignored her. Robin turned to you. “Y/N! Come on, you can’t leave me hanging.” Steve pulled you out of the bedroom before you could respond. You both joined Nancy and Jonathan at the table, followed by Robin, who’s hand was still stuck in the air. “Hey Nance, have I mentioned how much I like your new hairdo?” Robin asked with a pained look on her face. Nancy stared at her for a moment before serving the mashed potatoes. “I’m not high-fiving you for whatever it is you said to Steve and Y/N.” Robin groaned. “Hey, Jonny Boy, I saw those new pics you took of that totally real flying saucer. They were epic. You have a real talent.” “You really think so?” Jonathan asked. “Oh, I know so. Come on, gimme five.” He leaned over towards her just as Nancy pulled his hand away. “She’s just playing you, Jonathan.” He blushed. “Right, of course.” Steve turned his head to whisper to you. “I know you’re thinking it, and the answer is yes; they are weird. All the time.” You chuckled. “What’s wrong with weird?” “Absolutely nothing,” he said before he kissed your cheek. Nancy kept glancing at the two of you throughout dinner. To her, this date seemed different than the others. Maybe Steve was right for once; maybe you were ‘the one’. After dinner and dessert had been finished, Nancy grabbed her phone from the kitchen. “All right everyone, it’s time for pictures!” The table collectively groaned but huddled in front of the fire place anyway. You were unsure of whether you were invited in the group photo, so you lingered behind. “Do you want me to take the photo, Nancy?” you asked. Steve opened his mouth to speak, but Nancy cut him off. “Don’t be silly. You’re part of our group, so that means you have to be in the group photo.” She glared at the others. “Whether you want to or not.” She took your hand and led you to the fireplace. Steve stood behind you with his arms wrapped around your front and his chin resting on your head. Nancy set the timer on the phone’s camera and hurried back to join you all. “Everyone say ‘Thanksgiving’!” “Thanksgiving,” the group mumbled. After the picture was taken, Steve invited you to the rooftop. He helped you onto the fire escape and held your hand as you made your way to the top. The night was clear, so you could see all the stars in the sky. “Wow, this is beautiful, Steve.” “Not as beautiful as you.” He waggled his eyebrows. You groaned. “That was so cheesy.” “Good cheesy though, right?” You cupped his cheek. “Good cheesy.” Steve leaned into your touch and wrapped his arms around you. “Y/N, I know we only met three weeks ago. But it feels like I’ve known you for so much longer.” He paused to release a breath. “I’m crazy about you, and I wanted to ask you if you would be my girlfriend.” “Oh, god,” you said, placing your hand on your chest. “I thought you were about to say something absolutely insane, like you loved me or something.” He laughed. “Could you imagine if I did? What psycho tells someone they love them so soon after meeting them?” You giggled and pressed your forehead against his. “I’m crazy about you too, Steve. And I would love to be your girlfriend.” Steve picked you up, and you wrapped your legs around him as he spun you around. He kissed you slowly as he placed you back down. “Why don’t we go back inside? It’s too cold to stay out here,” Steve said. He followed you back into the living room. Nancy and Jonathan were lounging on the couch while Robin was lying upside down on the chair, her arm still raised above her head. She quickly got up when she saw the two of you return. “Well? Did you ask her? Did she say yes?” Steve nodded. Robin thrust her hand in Steve’s face. He sighed and gave her a high five. “Oh, sweet Jesus! Thank you!” She pulled Steve and you into a hug, squeezing you both tightly. “Thank you so much,” she sniffed, collapsing back into her chair and clutching her arm. “It’s getting pretty late; I should probably head home,” you said. “Oh, right. I’ll walk you out.” You said your goodbyes to everyone else, and Steve walked with you to the door. He grabbed your coat, helping you put it on. “You know…I don’t have any roommates.” You bit your lip, glancing up at him. “Yeah, I noticed that when I came over the other day. What’s that like? It must get pretty lonely at times.” Robin groaned loud enough for you to hear. “He’s so goddamn stupid. Have I completely wasted my time by taking him under my wing?” Steve blushed. “Shut up, Robin.” He stepped out into the hallway with you. “Sorry, um, what were you saying again?” “Well, I was trying to ask you if you wanted to come back to my place, but maybe I wasn’t as clear as I thought I was.” He ran his hand over his face. “No, Robin’s right. I’m just stupid.” “Hey, don’t call my boyfriend stupid.” Steve smiled, grabbing your hand. “It won’t happen again.” You started tugging him towards the stairwell. “Let’s go; I’ve got a new mattress that needs breaking in.” He chuckled. “Now that, I understood.” *** “And, as you both know, we still spend Thanksgiving together as a family.” “Steve,” you whispered. “They fell asleep.” He looked down at your children. “At what part?” “Somewhere around ‘cockamouse’.” He sighed. “Maybe one day they’ll appreciate my stories.” You reached across both children to place your hand on Steve’s arm. “Hey. I love your stories.” He took your hand, lifting it up to kiss the back of it. “I know. It’s why you married me, isn’t it?” “One of the reasons,” you grinned. “I can’t say some of the other reasons when there’s tiny ones present.” “I guess you’ll just have to tell me after Nancy comes to pick up the kids in the morning then.” You hummed in agreement as you started to nod off. Steve turned off the lamp and laid down under the covers. “Goodnight, love.” “G’night Stevie.”

#stranger things #steve harrington #steve harrington x reader #how i met your mother #steve harrington fic

[su8arandspite]

For Old Time’s Sake

Summary: It’s 1995 in Hawkins. When Heather Johnson returns home for the Hawkins High School reunion, she comes face to face with an old lover. Or, alternatively, the one where Steve falls in love with Heather all over again.

Steve Harrington x oc

Warnings: 18+, mature content, smut

Tags: @casaharrington

The town of Hawkins kept its secrets well. From the outside, and to every kid who made a run for it after high school, not much about the town changed. Small town stillness washed over the buildings and suburban homes that Heather Johnson passed on the drive home to her parents’ place. If not for the empty lot where the Dairy Queen had been and the newly painted houses, Hawkins could have been a time machine to 1985.

She parked curbside outside of her childhood home. Through the trees, just past the Harrington home, she could vaguely make out the ruins of what was once Hawkins Lab. Even abandoned, it brought bile to her throat. When Heather left Hawkins, danger eschewed the rosy lens of childhood she knew it under. Time blurred and muddied her memories, but fleeting images of a boy with a baseball bat comforted her; whatever it was, they defeated it together.

Heather yanked the keys from the ignition. She didn’t come back to dig up old nightmares. Steadying her breath, she hauled her suitcase from the hatch of her car into her old home. Whatever she saw ten years ago in that shadowy building couldn’t hurt her now.

She retired to her bedroom that night with a head swimming in unsaid words and forgotten dreams she bottled up and left here in Hawkins. Traveling through the hallways of her parents’ house brewed an unwelcome, lonely sense of dejavú that could swallow Heather whole.

The door closed softly behind her. Heather looked to the window next door, partially out of habit, partially wrapped up in foolish hope, but instead found the curtains drawn. She longed for the secret notes passed through window panes on late nights and the stolen kisses as he stumbled into her bedroom. That was- they were- long gone now.

Now, standing alone in her girlish lilac bedroom, she felt like a stranger in her own life. The knick-knacks, trophies, polaroids, and photo booth strips belonged to someone else entirely. She thumbed over the picture frame sitting proudly on her nightstand, swiping the dust away from the picture-perfect memory of two smitten teens. Her mother must have retrieved it from the floor and replaced it sometime after she left. The crack down the center obscured her face, but she cared more about the way Steve looked at her. Just as she let herself want, her finger caught on the crack and blood sullied the cheap frame. Cursing, she cushioned the wound between her lips to dull the bleeding.

Heather Johnson blossomed into her own person through the past decade; she had a place to call her own, a job she felt passionately for, everything she once doubted she could earn without her Daddy’s help. Something about Hawkins, though, made that woman shrink slowly back into the scared girl who ran away from it.

High school for Heather looked picture perfect. In some ways, it had been, yet a part of her always felt sandwiched into the tiny pond that Hawkins was and desperate to swim upstream into the outside world. For someone with as many friends and as surrounded by people as Heather the Cheerleader had been, she never felt more lonely. Her friends’ parents worked boring desk jobs that required no traveling and most of them had one boyfriend or another to waste their time with. She kissed as many boys as she could just trying to make up for the loneliness she felt in her parents’ absence; it always found its way back. Until Steve.

Steve Harrington lived next door. He talked too much, slept around quite a bit, and had a poor taste in friends. Heather might nod along and listen as Laurie or Becky rambled off reasons why he could not be trusted, but she never cared to listen. She liked to think she knew Steve perfectly well.

The first time Heather met Steve, she might have agreed with what her friends thought of him. They knew each other only through summer block parties and whatever other events their parents dragged them to until 1982. That summer leading up to sophomore year changed a lot for Heather; her body filled out and her Dad started leaving home more. She took up a job lifeguarding at the community pool and returned to school in August sunkissed, slightly curvy, and in need of a little trouble. Steve, who received a shiny new BMW for his sixteenth birthday, looked exactly like the kind of trouble she wanted.

She had him completely, utterly wrapped around her finger by the end of September. Heather and Steve soiled every inch of that car as summer came to autumn. She only meant to distract herself, but her desire for fire and trouble died down into an ache for the boy next door. Heather let herself love him wholly. Steve became her future; he tamed her rebellious spirit into a lovestruck girl who wanted only for him to stay with her forever.

Forever, for Heather and Steve, instead became the beginning of junior year. He stomped on her heart and spit it right back at her. As Heather pulled back to lick her wounds, Steve zeroed in on his next prey. Nancy Wheeler stood for everything Heather could never be. Girls like Nancy didn’t just offer up their virginities to the first boy who called them pretty or invent their own hangover cures out of necessity. Heather hated the thought of Steve with someone like that, because she could never be half as good. Good girls like Nancy shone like blank canvases void of any tarnish and squeaky-clean enough to bring home to Mom; Heather the Whore and her Father-sized baggage could never compete with a girl like that.

Even now, the sight of that swimming pool nauseated her. Mr. Harrington had it drained years ago, but she only saw the very end of Barbara Holland’s life, the thing that took her, and the boy she still loved already falling for Nancy Wheeler, all right outside her bedroom window. Heather yanked her curtains shut. The demogorgon might be unreachable now, but nothing so far healed her battered little heart.

---

“Joey, you little shit! Let go of your sister’s hair”

Heather clung to the kitchen island, watching as the red-headed toddlers tornadoed across the living room. Carol stormed out of the bedroom sporting only one shoe and looking more grown up than Heather ever imagined she would be. Tommy and Carol’s wedding unsurprisingly predated the prompt birth of their first child by mere months. Between the two nightmares currently messing up their house and the heavily pregnant bump in her purple gown, Carol looked about one temper tantrum away from a spectacular breakdown of her own.

However exhausted parenthood and married life looked to someone like Heather, that new sheen in Carol’s eyes and the bizarrely adult change in Tommy’s demeanor suggested otherwise. The life of a Hawkins housewife, with all its cliquey glory and PTA snobs, suited Carol’s catty nature and, to everyone’s surprise, fatherhood had calmed Tommy’s recklessness. Heather took one look at their messy, chaotic, love-filled life, and her confidence crumbled. Her life in New York outpaced anything Hawkins could offer her, but she couldn’t pretend that she had once not wanted anymore more than this life with Steve.

“For fuck’s sake Tommy, would you hurry up?”

Carol herded her husband towards the door, cursing under her breath at his inability to correctly tie a necktie. If not for the wedding rings and Carol’s baby bump, Heather might have mistaken the scene for a recreation of their senior prom night.

Heather piled into the backseat of Carol’s mini-van. Tommy stuck his head out of the driver’s seat as they sped off to Hawkins High, screaming:

“Class of ‘85, motherfuckers!”

Carol yanked him back into the car by the collar. She added a swift smack to the head for good measure. Heather smiled to herself; at least some things never did change.

As the burgundy minivan pulled into the spot once reserved for Heather’s Jeep, she saw her life from the outside. Without the safety of her green and white cheerleading outfit, Hawkins High School looked a whole lot less impressive than back in the day.

Tommy and Carol dispersed into the crowd not long after their arrival, while Heather gravitated towards the open bar. She greeted passersby who recognized her and watched the crowd swell. She stirred her drink absently and watched the night unfold around her.

Old cheer squad members earned careers in fashion or television or teaching. Her third grade best friend married her ninth grade lab partner. Old Hawkins friends gathered like nothing ever changed, but Heather felt acutely aware that everything had.

Meanwhile, Steve tore himself away from a conversation with a few classmates he only vaguely remembered. He stopped a few feet away from her, as if unsure whether or not to proceed.

Time dealt Steve Harrington the short hand. He stayed in Hawkins, he told himself, not out of fear but just to keep an eye on things for a while. Jim Hopper promised to call if any more monsters popped up. No need, he said. I think I’ll stick around a while longer. First, Nancy and Jonathan Byers, even Billy Hargrove, graduated and took the fast track out of town. By the time Dustin and Lucas and Mike and the rest of the rugrats set off to college, Steve was fresh out of excuses.

Hopper took a quick visit down to the record store where Steve took up a job to pay his bills. He leaned down over the counter Steve worked behind and lowered his voice:

“What the hell are you still doing here, kid? We both know you don’t belong in this shithole.”

“Yeah,” he deadpanned. “You’re probably right”

Hopper, more a father to Steve than his own ever was, refused to let him give up like this. Where Steve saw in himself the self-righteous asshole who vandalized the town movie theater, Hopper saw the young man who readily put his own life on the line to save those kids.

“Look, I don’t really care what you do,” he lied. “Just quit feeling sorry for yourself and do something with your life.”

The next morning, Hopper arrived at the station to find Steve Harrington sitting with his tail between his legs in the chair facing his desk. By that time the next year, he was the latest member of the Hawkins PD. And a damn good one at that, he might add.

For the first time in his life, Steve had everything he could want. Everything, that is, except someone to share it with.

His heart skittered as he worked up the courage to get Heather alone. He’d heard that she came alone and wanted little more than to catch her attention. Things ended so badly between them- his fault, really- that he hardly imagined she wanted to see him again. So, with the same sense of humility as that fateful morning in Chief Hopper’s office, he tapped her shoulder:

“Save me a dance? For old time’s sake.”

Gooseflesh rippled her bare arms; she would recognize that voice anywhere. Heather set her cocktail glass on the bar, turning her head towards him. He looked the spitting image of the nervous boy who first asked to take her out to the movies. Hands scrunched in his suit pockets, and sporting the very same crooked smile she remembered, Steve Harrington stood before her.

Heather’s powder blue dress blended well with her skin tone in the dim gym lighting and her dark hair popped against the fabric. His heart swelled at the sight of her standing in the very same gym they shared their first kiss in. Steve wondered how he ever let a girl like that slip through his fingers.

“Okay,” she said. “For old time’s sake”

He led her by the hand to the makeshift dance floor, feeling for the first time in ages the sweaty anticipation of a lovestruck school boy. Her rosy cheeks swelled with a smile in tandem with her shaky hands as they locked between the ducktail of hair at the nape of his neck. His hands resting easily on her hips, they danced.

“Y’know,” he chuckled. “I really didn’t expect to see you again. I’m glad I did”

The way he looked at her, even after all these years, sent Heather to the verge of tears; no one had looked at her like since she was a teenager. Since she and Steve were in love.

“Yeah,” her voice came out soft and small. “Me, too.”

They’d come full circle. Although life led them in different directions, and took Heather and Steve to the wrong people in their journey to find the love they first had in each other, it seemed their story looped back to that dingy old gym. Steve knew the second he saw her that tonight would be a whole lot more than reminiscing with a lost lover. Even if Heather didn’t know that, yet, Steve didn’t mind waiting.

Steve would wait forever for her if it only meant that he could see that smile one last time. The way her brown eyes sparkled in the dim lighting, the way her hips filled out the fabric of her gown, the way her delicate touch ghosted over him as they danced; Heather was filled with reminders of the way he once loved her. The way Steve still loved her.

Heather cupped his cheek, stroking it with her thumb and watching after him with a melancholy smile.

“I am so proud of you,” she whispered.

Heather clung to her once-lover long past the end of slow songs, the two swaying to synthetic pop tunes. It seemed that each of them darted around fears that, should they let go of each other, they might never get the chance to do so again. Whether she admitted it to herself or not, Heather let herself believe that, maybe, she was always meant to find her way back to him. She felt not like an adult but once again like a teenage girl nervously dancing with the prom date of her dreams.

He nuzzled his nose forward against her cheek. His hot breath fanned out against her skin and pulled her in even more. The sweet, mesmerizing scent of Steve’s rosewood cologne, the ghost of spearmint chewing gum, and a hint of musk hypnotized Heather. As he finally kissed her, Heather folded into his touch. The kiss was a decade in the making, the kind featured on movie screens and cheesy discount novels. Every word they were too afraid to speak into existence and all their repressed emotions poured into the kiss.

Reluctantly, he broke off the kiss. Only as the final song of the night faded into its closing note did Heather pull herself away from his warmth. Steve stole a quick kiss to her cheek. They walked slowly towards the edge of the dance floor.

“Here,” he said. Steve draped his sports coat over Heather’s shoulders.

Hair bouncing along with his lopsided grin, Steve couldn’t take his eyes off of Heather and that captivating laugh of hers. Even as she led him away from the dance floor, Steve found himself absorbed in her. Her neatly styled hair fell rebelliously out of place, the heat on her cheeks and perspiration from nerves and the dancing all adding just the right amount of lived-in smudge to her make-up. Heather looked radiant. The words fell out of his loose lips like thoughts so strong that his mouth couldn’t contain them:

“You’re beautiful.”

She slumped into a seat, letting out a breathy laugh. He slid into the empty chair beside her. Although his mind seemed acutely aware that they were running on borrowed time, Steve swore that the night would last forever. Time was edging on despite his best efforts to run backwards against the current; he would never be fifteen again, and their relationship would never be from a clean slate again.

She thanked him quietly. Another stolen kiss followed. The night grew thin around them, their classmates retiring to whatever lives they put on pause for the night's trip down memory lane, but neither could be bothered to tear themselves away. Heather was quiet for some time afterwards, trying to make sense of her emotions. Steve turned to her, forehead pulled in thought:

“We made quite the mess, didn’t we?”

Heather paused, tearing herself away from the fears of yesterday. Her eyes flickered to him. She smiled sadly. All Steve has to do was stay. When it was Heather’s turn to choose Steve, she decided to run instead. It seemed neither of them had the courage to face the very real feelings between them that even time and betrayal couldn’t seem to erase.

“Yeah,” she said eventually. “We sure did.”

He chuckled dryly, rubbing his palms together in thought. The universe seemed to laugh at them, to revel in the tragedy of their bad timing; love itself just wasn’t enough to make them work. His eyes begged Heather to ease his nerves. Steve needed Heather to give him some sign that this was more than just in his head.

“Why is this so hard for us?”

The worry in his tired face looked all too familiar to Heather. A sinking feeling returned to her stomach.

It wasn’t until the summer after graduation that Heather let herself start to forgive Steve for breaking her heart. With the drama and confines of high school now behind them, Heather and Steve vowed to make that summer theirs. A last hurrah of bad decisions with minimal consequences. What they intended to be a string of crashed house parties and getting drunk by the quarry instead was a summer filled with late-night conversations on the hood of Steve’s car. With Heather often teetering between sunburnt and sun-kissed after a shift at the community pool and Steve sticky and burnt out from serving ice cream at Starcourt Mall, they lacked much time or energy to live out the summer they outlined.

Neither of them really minded the extra time to themselves. In fact, Steve soon found himself excited for his shift to end and comforted by the knowledge that Heather was waiting for him in the parking lot, food in hand. By late June, Heather had his order memorized and Billy Hargrove had stopped trying to get her to hang around with him past closing time. That was how they found themselves devouring take out from Dairy Queen, still in their work uniforms, and sitting closer than necessary on the BMW.

She wiped the grease from her fingers with a napkin, laughing. Heather caught a glimpse of Steve in her peripheral vision- dripping with happiness, a shine to his eyes, his Scoops Ahoy sailor hat sagging lowly on his head.

Having Heather back in his life, even if only for brief, stolen moments on the hood of his BMW and late summer nights thick with their past, the future; it patched up the broken parts of his battered heart. She felt like home. It might only be for the summer, but Steve fully intended to hold onto every second with Heather that he could.

“Hey, Steve?”

He looked so eager, so happy to see her. Steve wouldn’t even know what hit him. That summer, he slowly tore down the walls their break-up built against her and she knew from the start that she couldn’t take him with her. The thing about running away from her problems, it seemed, was that Heather had to abandon every good thing in her life right along with the bad. Unfortunately, that included Steve.

She knew she should have told him from the beginning, that she never should have let herself get that close to him again so soon before leaving town. Heather should have told him, and yet she couldn't bring herself to break it to him. Not that Heather hadn’t tried to; she had, many times. It just hurt too much.

His laughter tapered off into an inquisitive hum.

“Do you ever think about leaving Hawkins?”

Maybe it had treated him less than kindly the past year or so, but it was still the only home Steve had ever known. The thought of skipping town never crossed his mind. He decided a long time ago that he would stand his ground and fight until his dying breath if he had to- Steve was braver, more stubborn than Heather that way. Another reason she would tell herself they didn’t work out; Steve Harrington was a fighter but Heather Johnson was a survivor. And sometimes that meant putting herself first.

“No, I can’t say that I have. Why?”

She shrugged, uncharacteristically shy:

“I don’t know,” she balled the napkin up into a makeshift stress ball. “I-I just think maybe I need to get out of this town, Steve. Parts of me can’t seem to shake what I saw, what I did-“

She let Barbara Holland die. Heather watched from her bedroom and did nothing as the thing ate her whole. And when she saw the damn thing again, she hadn’t been strong enough to kill it. She couldn’t save its future victims.

“Hey,” Steve pulled her under his arm. “Don’t say that, okay? You did what you could… We all did. It’s not your fault.”

Tilting her chin upwards with his fingertips, Steve pressed a meaningful kiss to her lips. She leaned into him. His embrace quieted her thoughts enough to mute her worries away. It wasn’t the first kiss they shared that summer, but something hid behind it that made Heather unable to shake him- so much so that she lost her nerve to break the news to him. She left Hawkins the next morning, while Steve dreamt of seeing her again.

The guilt ate at her from the inside out until the town she once loved only suffocated her with living nightmares and her own inadequacies. Deep down, Heather knew that running away from her problems would not solve anything. Still, she craved a change of scenery, an escape from the reminders of what Hawkins truly was under its all-American suburban facade. Hawkins was, quite simply, home to the gates of Hell and Heather didn’t want to stick around and wait for them to crack their way open again.

They had, eventually, done just that; only, Heather wasn’t by Steve’s side that July Fourth when he needed her the most.

Steve stood abruptly, offering her his hand:

“You want to get a drink?”

Nodding, she smiled. The last thing she wanted was to leave Steve’s side. Heather took his hand and followed him through the parking lot. They walked in a comfortable silence. She squeezed his hand in hers.

“Steve?”

The pair paused beside his car. Heather glanced up at him with the guilt of a child caught breaking their parents’ valuables while playing inside the house.

“I’m sorry that I didn’t tell you I was leaving,” she paused. “I should have.”

Steve’s eyes softened. He brushed loose hair from her face, smiling sadly.

“I know you are,” he said. “It’s okay, Heather. That was a long time ago.”

Forgiven or not, Heather still juggled her feelings of guilt and lingering feelings for Steve between stolen glances on the drive home. He may have absolved her, but Heather still needed

to forgive herself first.

“Come on,” Steve opened the passenger door. “How ‘bout that drink?”

---

The pair of them stumbled into Steve’s old bedroom between stolen kisses and wandering hands. Retracing steps from a lifetime ago, they fumbled blindly in the dim lighting, too utterly consumed in each other to care much for the world outside those walls. There was only the electric rush of pure, raw sexual chemistry and unresolved feelings.

Steve pulled back momentarily, lips dripping in unspoken words. Heather shook her head, stroking his cheek sensually with her thumb:

“Not now, Steve,” she shushed him, her waiting kiss soaking up his silent fears.

He pulled her hips flush against his torso, working blindly on her dress zipper. Steve’s rough palms explored every inch of her flesh that he could reach. He pinched purple hickies into the crook of her neck, chasing after her as her head flopped in pleasure. Heather hadn’t let anyone mark her skin that way in years. Steve made her feel young again, like his touch was the Fountain of Youth and she was Ponce de Leon, drinking him in deeply.

Her dress pooled on the floor around her feet as Steve pushed the thin straps from her shoulders. She looked even more mesmerizing than he remembered. Heather grew into her curves; time transformed her from a bewitching teenage beauty to the woman of Steve’s dreams. And he wanted to feel, to taste, every inch of her.

Spreading her legs apart ever so slightly, Steve dropped to his knees before her. He thumbed at her through the meager fabric of her lace panties. Another hickey on her smooth upper thigh. He groaned at the smell of her arousal. His expert mouth latched hungrily onto her core through the fabric.

Heather wriggled in pure, hot pleasure against his magical lips. Her fingers dug into his scalp, pulling on his hair just the way she knew drove him crazy. Steve pushed aside her panties, buried his nose, his lips into her most sensitive nerves. She tasted like heaven to him, the mere sight of her writhing above him an ethereal vision. Her taste dizzied him and Steve coddled her closer to his lips.

Steve loved the chase almost as much as the kill itself. He knew what he was doing, and knew he was damn good at it, too. If Steve had been a wolf in the bedroom as a teenager, then the only thing to stop him now was a silver bullet. And Heather was his full moon.

Her first orgasm hit hard and unexpectedly early, received by Steve’s eager tongue. He pulled her in by the neck for another kiss. The salty taste of her own arousal clinging to his breath intrigued Heather; touching Steve turned all her other experiences into blurry non-memories. Touching Steve felt like coming home after a long day.

The sight of Steve in all his naked glory sent Heather into a tizzy. She licked teasingly along his length, easing her way into giving him the head of his life. As she worked, Heather focused in on the bliss reflected in his face.

“Jesus,” he whined. “I forgot how good you were at that.”

Eager to be inside her, Steve reluctantly pulled her back up to her feet. He backed her up against the bed. Heather melted back against his pillows, a siren waiting for him to fall right into her trap. He kneeled over her figure. Steve kissed her sweetly. One hand thumbed at her clit. In one fluid motion, he pushed inside her.

Steve loved the way she clung to her. Her touch only egged him on. Steve rutted into her deeply. He made love to her with a veracity and dedication that put every other man she’d been with to shame. It was only Steve.

With one final grunt sandwiched by her name, Steve came deep inside of her.

She fell back against his sheets, spent in a fucked-out bliss. Heather felt her life in the city slipping further from her mind the more Steve Harrington and his magnificent cock drew her to a future here.

“Do you remember what you said to me the night Nancy and I broke up?”

Heather hummed in her sleepy daze, nodding:

“Sure, I do.”

“Did you mean it?”

She rolled over on the pillow to face him, fully awake now. Heather blinked through the darkness. Grasping in the dark, she clamped their hands together. From behind his messy hair, Steve looked like a shivering puppy left out in the rain. A soft smile graced her lips. She thought of the last time she saw that look.

“She never loved me.”

Nancy might have been the good girl toying around with Hawkins’ playboy, but instead she tore Steve to shreds and ran for the hills. Now, he wanted someone to sympathize with him. Heather, though, had no room in her life to be anyone’s second choice.

Heather tossed the hat to her candy striper costume on the duvet, sighing. She pawed at the vomit stain on her skirt with a damp towel. Perhaps the only person in town who had missed Steve and Nancy’s fallout, Heather left Tina’s party early to lull a dangerously intoxicated Brittany Matthews home before she ruined anyone else’s costume.

“What? Why are you even here, Steve?”

“I don’t know,” he shrunk down. “This is the first place I thought of.”

Oblivious to his pity party, Heather fussed about. She tried to clean the night’s memory of her drunken, sophomore team mate nearly passed out on Tina’s front porch right off her dress right along with the stain.

“What the fuck are you talking about, Steve?”

“Nancy,” he suddenly fell sheepish. “She never loved me.”

Heather watched after him, incredulous. Her hands gripped at the soiled towel as she bit her tongue. Steve, craving some sort of reaction from her, pressed on:

“I should have known,” he sulked. “I mean…God, when did I become such a fuck-up? This is bullshit. Of course it was. I should have known no one could love me-”

“Oh, fuck you! I did! I loved you so much, Steve. You had to have known that.

“What? Heather-”

“You broke my fucking heart, Steve. I’m not about to pretend that I didn’t see this coming and I’m sure as hell not your shoulder to cry on”

She tossed the soiled washcloth right at his chest. If Steve hadn’t been crying before, he sure was now. Still no movement.

“But-“

“I think you should leave.”

When he made no moves to do so, some part of her snapped right along with the last string of her heart that still reached out for Steve. She plucked the picture frame from her nightstand, their picture, and chucked it towards him, only narrowly missing his head. It landed on the floor under her dresser, as cracked and broken as their relationship, where it stayed until well after Heather graduated and left home.

“Get the fuck out, Steve.”

He faltered a moment, her words hitting him full-force with the one thing he must have known and feared but chose to ignore for the past year. Thick layers of tears caked his cheeks. Steve moved slowly and fluidly back towards the window he snuck in through, hoping all the while that he might uncover some magic words to undo the damage he slung onto her poor heart. He found only silence, and by the time his feet hit the ground, Steve knew he’d really done it this time.

He wanted only to be the carefree fifteen-year-old who got to kiss her in secret moments shared in the backseat of his BMW and late at night in her bedroom, when her parents were asleep. Steve wanted Heather back, but this was too little, too late. She locked the window behind him.

Looking at him now, her heart ached. The stubborn parts of her hadn’t forgiven him for breaking her heart all those years ago. Yet, she mostly just wanted him.

“Yes.”

Steve pressed his lips lightly to her knuckles.

“For what it’s worth, I loved you too.”

Steve leaned over the extra pillows to face her.  

When Steve awoke the next morning, he found himself surprised to see her messy hair splayed out across the pillow beside him, and utterly bewitched by the sight of Heather curling into the sheets as she slept soundly in his bed. He thought, though not for the first time in his life, that he might like to wake each day to the sight.

Later, as he walked her to her car, the idea still bounced around his mind. He grabbed at her hips, using every last drop of cheekiness to woo her away from that car. Steve let Heather go once before and he spent the next ten years regretting it.

“Stay.”

“You know I can’t.”

“What’s keeping you?

She exhaled with a soft laugh. Her home, her friends, her career, all waited for her back in the city. The only thing Hawkins, Indiana had that New York City didn’t was Steve Harrington.

“I’m sorry,” she kissed his lips sweetly. “Goodbye, Steve.”

He stood at the curb, hands balled into his shorts pockets, and watched her drive off until the Honda turned out of sight. Steve smiled after her, sporting the same smile he’d flashed the first time he told her his name, only this time a bitterness hid behind it.

Like Lot’s wife fleeing Sodom, Heather knew better than to turn around, knew his puppy dog eyes would trap her here forever, melt her down into a pillar of salt. And, like Lot’s wife, she did anyways.

She knew she’d see him again, if only in her dreams.

-----

Heather nervously twirled the phone cord around her finger. She stared at the slip of paper and dialed his phone number, her mind stuck over the words. The last time she felt this afraid, Heather lodged an axe into the neck of an interdimensional monster. This time, though, she knew that wouldn’t solve her problems.

“Steve? I need to see you.”

The trek to Indiana did little to calm her nerves. She drove silently, the radio turned down to silence. No matter how many times Heather practiced the speech in her head, it didn’t get any easier.

She stood at his doorstep. Fiddling with her hands, she contemplating blowing him off. Heather felt out of place at his apartment. To her, Steve would always be the boy next door. No matter what happened tonight. She thought of him always as he was then- handsome, full of life, brimming with dreams. Full of love for her.

When he opened the door to let her in, Steve couldn’t dull his smile. He looked almost the same as the boy in her memories. The love hadn’t quite left his eyes yet. It was with the comfort of this thought that she stepped inside.

Steve’s apartment was neat, small, homely. She could see him settling down before the TV with a beer or fussing over his hair in the mirror by the door. The thought made her smile.

He sat down with her on the couch, hands clasping with hers. His bright eyes watched her closely, waiting and ready to accept her back into his life.

“Is everything okay? You sounded upset on the phone.”

“I just- I wanted to talk.”

“Talk?”

He blinked. Steve knew this song and dance and he was tired of trying to keep her here. Tired of letting her toy with his heart.

“I haven’t seen or heard from you in months and you came all this way just to talk?”

Steve told himself he would hear her out, but his emotions got the best of him. He raised his voice in frustration. The abrupt shift in tone caught her off guard. She hadn’t meant to upset him. Heather deflated in her seat, the speech she’d had prepared now stuck in her throat.

“Forget it,” she rose. “I don’t even know why I came here.”

He followed her out onto the sidewalk. Heather walked out of his life too many times for him to let her go again.

“Where are you going?”

“I don’t know! Home, I guess.”

“Don’t you dare walk away from me again!”

The brunette stopped in her tracks, whirled around to face him. Angry, frustrated tears welled in her eyes. He stood just close enough for her to touch. Close enough for her to feel his heart breaking.

“And why not? We both already know how this ends.”

“I love you so much that it hurts. Why can’t you just admit that you want this, too?”

“That’s not why I came back, Steve.”

“Well, then, what? Is this some kind of a game to you-“

“I’m pregnant.”

His expression blanked. Steve didn’t know the first thing about fatherhood. His own gave him next to nothing to start from; the last thing he wanted was to find himself repeating his father’s shitty parenting style. He liked to think that he had finally shed the damage his absentee parents did to him, and that he had found a way to fill the gap their cold demeanor created where affection should have been in his childhood, but that didn’t stop his fears of repeating the vicious cycle.

Heather looked just as afraid.

“Do you really think we’re ready to be parents?”

“No,” he held her hand tighter in his. “But I know that I’m not my father and we can learn from our parents’ mistakes. You’re my future, Heather”

“Do you mean that?”

“Of course, I do.”

They sat together on his front porch steps. Silence engulfed them for a moment as her earth shattering news settled in. Fear crept back up on Heather the longer he stayed quiet. Did Steve want to raise this child with her? Did he want her? Her questions and insecurities were overwhelming.

She broke into tears. “I’m scared, Steve.”

“Me, too.”

He held her close to his chest as she cried. A few tears slipped from his own eyes. Steve combed his fingers through her hair and whispered comforts into her ear. Suddenly, he saw a future for himself. A modest, comfortable cottage with a nice yard for the kids to play in, maybe a dog too, and Heather standing beside him with all the love in the world in her eyes. It was comforting, warm. He wanted that future, with her.

“Stay here, with me. I love you, Heather, and I want to raise this baby with you, if you’ll have me.”

Sniffling, she turned her chin upwards to face him.

“Okay,” she said. “Yes, I will. I love you, too, Steve.”

As he pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead, Steve knew that everything would turn out okay. He loved Heather Johnson and that was enough for him.

#steve harrington #stranger things #hawkins #school reunion #angst #smut #steve harrington smut #lost love #fanfic #steve harrington x oc #female oc #new #send feedback

[zoocross0vers]

Raspberries Challenge #5: Cinderella

This is one of my favorites, so yeah. Hope you like it!

@wildehopps-rasps

...

Raspberries Challenge #5: Cinderella

                                                  Cinderjudy

Trumpets blared at the Zootopian Kingdom's castle, announcing the ball’s commencement. On one end of the large salmon colored ballroom, stood various available maidens of varying species. Each one of them eager to meet the young fox prince that stood across from them in the ballroom. The maidens -- all of them daughters of royalty, high ranking officials and wealthy noblemammals -- lined up and awaited to be announced to greet the prince.

Nicholas Piberius Wilde, the bachelor prince of the Zootopian Kingdom stood -- rather bored -- in place to greet each of his potential brides with a formal bow. He was clad in red pants, his royal cream colored princely coat and white gloves that completely clashed with his natural black paws. Though his back was killing him, he somehow managed to keep a straight posture. Not so much for the sake of his guests, but more so for his overbearing father who wouldn't stop berating him for not yet having found a wife to “make grandchildren” with for him.

Speaking of which, the prince’s father, Jonathan Wilde, King of the Zootopian Kingdom, kept a vigilant eye on his son from atop a balcony just above the ballroom. Beside him, stood the Grand Duke and the young prince’s best friend Finnick, a short fennec fox with a monocle. Both foxes kept a keen eye on the prince as the next girl was called.

“Princess Fredericka Jean-Foxtaine,” a beautiful red vixen clad in a blue gown made her way down the red carpet leading to the prince across the way. Prince Nicholas bowed to her as expected, but paid her no extra attention or care -- another girl crossed off the long list of possible brides for the prince.

The sheep doorman went on to read the next girl, “Mademoiselle Augustine Zubois. Daughter of General Pierre Zubois!” another lovely red vixen in a pink colored dress made her way toward the prince. Once again, the fox prince gave nothing more but a simple bow.

King Jonathan groaned frustratingly as his son yet again rejected another girl. He facepalmed a paw on his snout, “The boy isn't even trying!” he huffed, while Finnick simply shrugged his shoulders with a wry smile as if to say 'I told you so.’

The king began to grow antsy. That was the 70th girl his son’s rejected! Surely he can't keep this up! The next girl must be the one! Right? Right???!

“Mademoiselle Theodora Mercedes Delaroar. Daughter of Colonel and Madame Delaroar.” Another pretty vixen in a green gown made her way toward Prince Nicholas while King Jonathan's blue eyes lit up with hope. A hope that died just as quickly as Prince Nicholas once again rejected the girl. Although this time with a bored yawn and cheeky smile towards his father at the balcony.

“Ugh! Look at that smug smile of his,” the king scoffed. “He’s doing it on purpose just to spite me!”

“I warned you beforehand, sire.” Finnick said while playing around with his monocle.

“But what is it about them that he doesn't like? They're all gorgeous, they're wealthy. I’ve taken all necessary precautions. What more does he want?!” growled the king desperately.

“Maybe Prince Nicholas just isn't ready to marry?” Finnick shrugged.

“Nonsense!” the king snapped back, “I was his age when I married his mother and she was the first and only girl I had presented to me! Fell in love with her the second I saw her. And when we touched paws, I knew she was the one for me,” King Jonathan gazed at his paw with a gentle smile at the thought of his late wife. A smile which was quickly replaced with a grumpy frown the second he thought back to his son. “I didn't give my father this headache! Why must Nicholas do this to me!” The fox sat back massaging his throbbing head between his paws.

Finnick shook his head with a light chuckle as he turned his attention back down.

“Mademoiselle Colette LePew. Daughter of Commander LePew.” Finnick's interest peaked as he saw a female skunk make her way toward the prince.

“Huh, so I see you didn't limit his choices to only vixens,” Finnick commented in surprise.

“I told you I took all necessary precautions into consideration,” King Jonathan uttered with a paw still at his forehead. “And does he thank me for broadening his choices? No!” The king looked down to realize his son had rejected to skunk just as he had the vixens. King Jonathan snarled and slammed his fist down on the armrest of his chair. “Come now! I don't care if I have hybrid grandchildren! There must be at least one of them that would make a suitable mother!!”

“Shh! Watch it sire,” Finnick gestured toward the crowd. Reminding him to mind his words and personal goal around his guests.

“I mean wife,” the king groaned, correcting himself.

.

Cinderjudy, decked out in her new sparkling light blue gown, matching elbow length gloves and headband, a black choker, and glass slippers -- given to her by her tiny shrew of a fairy Godmother -- timidly entered the enormous castle. She was so in awe, she didn't even notice the curious glances the line of guards were giving her.

Despite having been born into a wealthy family, Cinderjudy had never felt like a child of wealth. After her mother's death and after her father married her stepmother, Lady Bellwether, she always felt more like a servant. Or rather a slave. A feeling that was sealed for good once her father died not too long after his second marriage.

Poor Cinderjudy was so young when her father died. She was left to the mercy of her cruel sheep stepmother and her two daughters, Soleil and Luna. Cinderjudy never understood why they hated her so. She had never wronged them in any way, but they treated her like a slave nonetheless -- always ordering her around, belittling her every chance they got, and more recently they tore her mother's good dress right off from her just to prevent her from going to the ball.

But no more! Tonight was her night! Tonight she was not a slave, but a lady! A lady who had just as much of a right to meet the Prince as everyone else!

Now...if she only knew what he looked like... or at the very least knew what his name was…

Cinderjudy made her way up the large stairway leading to the ballroom.

.

Soleil and Luna Bellwether prepped themselves up as they prepared to be called next. Soleil adjusted her glasses and puffed up the light brown wool at the sides of her face, while Luna adjusted the lower half of the skirt of her dress not realizing that she was stepping on her sister's dress.

Soleil took a step forward, nearly landing flat on her face because of her sister's carelessness. She yanked her skirt out from under Luna’s feet, practically dropping her now. After landing on her feet Luna awkwardly raced behind Soleil, waving her skirt side to side.

“The mademoiselles Soleil and Luna Bellwether. Daughters of Lady Bellwether.”

Prince Nicholas squinted his eyes forward to get a good look at them and groaned quietly to the sky. Ugh! There's no way I'm picking either of these two. Something about them tells me they're not as fluffy on the inside as their wool makes them out to be, he thought to himself, already uninterested in the sheep. A feeling that apparently even his father shared.

King Jonathan took one look at them and immediately cringed, shaking his paws and head. In rejection. He groaned fell back on his chair. He sighed in defeat, “That's it. I give up.”

Finnick chuckled as he played with his monocle like a yo-yo, “I told ya, sire. But you didn't listen.” King Jonathan said nothing. He simply sat on his chair with a heavy frown, listening to the smaller fox mock him. “I'm sorry to say it your grace, but you're too much of a romantic for your own good.” Finnick chuckled again, “No doubt you had the whole thing played out in your head like a pretty picture. The Prince bowing down to the assembly…” Finnick bowed, detailing the story with his own motions.

Meanwhile, below the balcony, Prince Nicholas bowed to the two sheep. But as he rose, his actions mimicked those of Finnick’s words as if the small fox were controlling him like a puppet master does to his puppets. For as Finnick spoke his next words, Prince Nicholas’ eyes widened. His mouth gaped slightly as his emerald gaze caught sight of something in the distance -- or rather, caught sight of someone.

“When suddenly he stops!” Finnick continued with his narrative, “And lo! There she is! The girl of his dreams!”

As Finnick spoke to the king, Prince Nicholas’ eyes were glued on a gorgeous gray bunny moving about in the distance between Soleil and Luna -- his eyes were on Cinderjudy!

Unaware of who he was looking at, Soleil and Luna batted their eyes flirtingly at Prince Nicholas believing his sights were on them. “Um…” he stuttered, entranced by the bunny in the distance, “Excuse me,” he maneuvered between the two sheep, determined to reach the mystery bunny.

King Jonathan perked up, his gloomy demeanor immediately fading and making way for curiosity as he witnessed his son leave his post. Where's he going? The king wondered as Finnick continued to coincidentally detail the prince’s current actions and state of mind.

“Who is she? Where’d she come from? He wonders. But does he care? No. All he knows is that his heart tells him that here...Here is this girl that's meant to be his bride.”

Just as Finnick said that, Nicholas at last reached Cinderjudy, gently taking her smaller paw into his larger, startling the lost bunny. “Are you lost pretty Carrots?” he asked with a playful yet warm smile.

“Oh,” Cinderjudy's ears stood then dropped in embarrassment as she brought a paw to her mouth, “I guess I am,” she giggled bashfully. “I was looking for the ballroom.”

“Well look no further, it's right in there.” Prince Nicholas bowed to her, offering a paw, “Would you care to dance?”

Cinderjudy's eyes widened. She didn't expect to be made such an offer so soon upon her arrival. She hadn't even met the Prince yet either but... gazing into this fox’s eyes made her knees feel weak. How could she deny such an offer? Especially from such a handsome and sweet mammal. Cinderjudy curtsied and him her paw with a blushing smile.

As Prince Nicholas led her into the ballroom, King Jonathan brushed his eyes in disbelief. Was he dreaming? Or has stubborn son finally found his future bride? The elder fox blinked a few times to realize that he wasn't dreaming! The king smiled wide when he realized Finnick was still laughing at him.

“Hahaha. I tell you, your highness. That's all just fairytale garbage. It just doesn't happen in real life. So I hate to say it, but this plan o’ yours was doomed ta failure--”

“Failure?!” King Jonathan snapped, startling the fennec fox -- first with his anger and then with his sudden burst of jovial laughter, “Then take a look at that you tiny naysayer!” King Jonathan took Finnick's monocle and pressed it against the small fox’s eye so he can take a good look at the Prince and the mystery bunny. “Who is she? Do you know her?” The king asked excitedly.

“No sire. I’ve never seen her before,” Finnick replied.

“Well at least that's one thing in her favor,” said the king with a happy chuckle. He then called down to the orchestra, “The waltz! Quick the waltz!”

The court composer smiled and nodded, tapping his composition stick and lead the orchestra to play a romantic waltz.

Now to set the mood! King Jonathan whistled down to more of his servants loudly whispering, “The lights! The lights!” In his excitement he crawled on top of the balcony railing, nearly plummeting down to the ballroom floor were it not for Finnick quickly grabbing onto his tail.

Prince Nicholas and Cinderjudy walked onto the dancefloor, paw in paw. The young Royal fox brought her small paw up to his lips to give it a tender kiss. Cinderjudy blushed with a curtsy. Prince Nicholas smiled then placed a gentle paw on her small waist while he took her paw in the other. She likewise took his paw while her free paw held onto the large skirt of her dress as he led her into a waltz.

Up at the balcony, King Jonathan chuckled happily, “Failure eh?” He elbowed Finnick, who returned a disgruntled chuckle to the king. King Jonathan took one last look below to his son and the young bunny maiden. The elder fox smiled, his heart swollen with joy and pride, Looks like the boy's got good taste! Just like his father!

The king yawned, tired of a long day’s work of searching for a bride for his stubborn son. “Well, I think it's time for a good night’s sleep.”

Finnick yawned too, “Yeah. I think I'm gonna turn in too--”

“Oh, no, no, no my tiny friend,” King Jonathan said with a tut, picking up the small fennec fox from the scruff of his coat. “You are going to sit right here.” He plopped Finnick down on the chair. “Be sure they're not disturbed and notify me immediately the minute the boy proposes.”

“Notify me immediately,” Finnick mimicked mockingly under his breath, believing the king had left the balcony.

“Oh and Finnick,” King Jonathan said, startling the small fox, “Be advised, if anything goes wrong,” King Jonathan slashed a finger across his throat. Threatening death on the tiny fox. The elder red fox left the balcony and danced down the corridor leading to his bedroom singing to the waltz’ rhythm. “La-di-la-di, la-di-la-di!” He dragged one of his many guards from his post to waltz with the confused mammal only to twirl him back to his spot and bow to him. The jovial king continued onward and kicked his heels together. It won't be long now till he becomes a grandfather!

Back at the ballroom, Lady Bellwether and her two daughters tried to look past the larger ball attendants obstructing their view of the prince’s new mystery bunny.

“Who is she mother?” asked Luna.

“Do we know her?” added Soleil as she managed to catch a slight glimpse of Prince Nicholas and Cinderjudy between a large elephant's legs.

“The Prince certainly seems to,” said Luna, “Although I know I’ve never seen her.”

“Nor I,” said Lady Bellwether as she stood behind some shorter mammals, “But she certainly is--” Bellwether seized her compliment regarding the mystery bunny’s beauty as Cinderjudy and Prince Nicholas waltzed before her. Lady Bellwether's eyes widened the minute she managed to catch a closer glimpse of the bunny’s face. “Wait...there is something familiar about her,” Lady Bellwether uttered, adjusting her glasses and curiously following the two as they waltzed out to the outdoor balcony.

Lady Bellwether attempted to follow when large red curtains blocked her path, “Oh,” she gasped when she noticed Finnick holding the cord of the curtains.

“Ahem,” he cleared his throat as if asking her to respect their privacy.

.

Out at the external balcony, Cinderjudy and Prince Nicholas continued their waltz in peace. Free from the prying eyes of others, it was just them in their own little world that started and ended with them and only them. They gazed deeply into one another's eyes, amethyst pools meeting emerald ones and sparkling just as bright as the glitter of Cinderjudy's gown. They smiled at each other as if that was the only expression their facial muscles were capable of.

It was all so wonderful! They could swear they could hear a mutual song playing in their hearts -- each of their internal voices complementing one another. A sweet hum that spoke their very emotions…

Mmm-mmm

Mmm-mmm

So this is love,

Mmm-mmm

So this is love...

So this is what makes life divine,

Cinderjudy's heart sang, overwhelmed with love for the handsome mystery fox -- as she was still completely unaware of his true identity. She and Prince Nicholas finished their waltz and walked paw in paw to take a tour of the kingdom's vast garden together.

The garden itself was so beautiful. Cinderjudy could swear she was dreaming, so she prompted to give the water in the garden’s fountain a light tap, feeling the gentle ripples of the water forming around her paw. It wasn't a dream! It was real!

I'm all aglow

Mmm-mmm

And now I know

Her heart sang as she gazed at the fox, seeing the same warmth in his eyes. She could swear she could hear him confirm his mutual feelings for her.

And now I know

Cinderjudy sighed as she felt their hearts sync in tune with one another’s.

The key to all heaven is mine

My heart has wings,

Mmm-mmm

And I can fly,

I'll touch ev’ry star in the sky

After their romantic stroll through the garden and some light conversation, Prince Nicholas and Cinderjudy resumed their waltz under the stars.

So this is the miracle,

That I’ve been dreaming of

Prince Nicholas led Cinderjudy to the middle of a beautiful bridge that overlooked a sparkling river. They both gazed down to the gentle ripples of the easy flowing water below them as well as their reflections and that of the bright moon behind them. They lifted their gaze to one another. Cinderjudy's heart hummed...

Mmm-mmm

As did Prince Nicholas’...

Mmm-mmm

As they came to a conclusion, they both new to be true despite their brief introduction...

So this is love…!

Cinderjudy and Prince Nicholas sat at thick stair railing as they talked for a little while -- in the nearby distance there was a tall clock tower. It's time read 11:55pm.

“And so my friend Finnick kissed this girl he really liked and then she ended up with a mustache smeared on her face too!” Prince Nicholas chuckled as he regaled Cinderjudy with one of his many hilarious childhood stories.

Cinderjudy laughed, “So then what happened?”

“Well once he noticed the mustache on her, he realized that he had one too the whole time.”

Cinderjudy giggled, “And no one bothered to say anything when they saw a nine year old boy trodding around town with a mustache?”

“Nope,” the fox Prince answered casually. “Boy but did he and his little girlfriend wanna kill me after that.”

They laughed wholeheartedly together. Prince Nicholas wiped a tear from his eye from his laughter. After regaining his composure, he gently took one of Cinderjudy's paws in his, “You know pretty Carrots, in all this time we’ve been spending together I feel like I can really talk to you,” he said with a warm and sincere smile.

“Me too,” Cinderjudy agreed, returning her own tender smile to him. “It isn't often I get to talk to someone, much less someone as sweet and funny as you.”

Prince Nicholas’ eyes widened in shock and surprise, “Why not?”

Uh-oh. She shouldn't have said that. “It's... it's complicated,” Cinderjudy uttered quietly, gently pulling her paw from his grip and turning away from him. Hoping he wouldn't pry any longer.

“Hey,” he softly placed a paw over hers again, “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. I just thought you might wanna talk for a change. I’ve been doing all the talking all night and who knows if I’ve been boring you with my riveting tales about my bratty childhood.” Cinderjudy giggled at his attempt to cheer her up. “Besides, I’d really like to know more about you. I mean I don't even know your name. I’ve just been calling you pretty Carrots all night.”

“That's true,” Cinderjudy reasoned. “I'm sorry I've been such a mystery. It's just that…” Cinderjudy sighed, “I don't know... this whole night has been so wonderful and I’d hate to ruin it. I just can't help get over wondering if this is all one big beautiful dream that I’m going to wake up from at any moment.”

Prince Nicholas blinked in surprise at her words. All night she had been so chipper, he almost began to think she was incapable of such sadness. He may not know what demons haunt her, but he knows he certainly brought her some joy. Perhaps he shall save his questioning for another day when she's more comfortable talking about it.

He reached out a paw to her cheek with an understanding and comforting smile. He gently pulled her gaze to his. “Trust me my mystery Carrots. I promise you this isn't a dream.”

Cinderjudy gazed into his comforting eyes as he softly traced his paws down her shoulders and slowly moved his lips toward hers. She in turn moved her own lips up toward his. Their muzzles inching closer and closer when--

DONG! The clock tower rang.

“Oh! Oh my goodness!” Cinderjudy gasped in shock, lifting her ears and pulling her lips away before she could kiss Prince Nicholas.

“What’s the matter?” Prince Nicholas asked, wondering why she pulled away.

“It’s midnight!” she said as she stood.

“Yeah. So?” Prince Nicholas said, stating the obvious and still heavily confused.

“Good bye!” Cinderjudy called as she tried to run from him.

“No, no. Wait!” Prince Nicholas gently caught her arm, “You can’t go now, it’s only--”

“You don’t understand! Please, please I must!” Cinderjudy said, desperate to flee before her spell could be undone.

“But why?” the fox prince asked, not wanting to let the sweet bunny go.

“Well I-I...” Cinderjudy thought fast. She needed an excuse and she needed it now. “The Prince! I haven’t met the Prince yet!”

“The Prince?!” the fox’s eyes widened in surprise. “Uh...are you being serious? Because didn’t you know that I--”

DONG! The clock tower rang again, louder than before.

“Good-bye!” Without a moment to lose, Cinderjudy ran.

“No wait! Come back! Please come back!” Prince Nicholas called back desperately to her. “I don’t even know your name or how will I find you!” Hearing the hurt in his voice, Cinderjudy turned briefly to face him one last time at the top of the garden’s stairway, desperately wanting to stop and stay with him but knowing that she can’t. She continued to flee as Prince Nicholas continued to call to her, “Wait! Please wait!”

Cinderjudy re-entered the ballroom, emerging from the large red curtains Finnick had closed prior. “Good-bye!” She politely waved to Finnick on her way out.

Finnick politely returned her wave until he realized who it was he was waving to. “Whoa wait a minute!” he called out when the curtains were pushed to his face. Muffling his calls as Prince Nicholas emerged from behind the curtains.

“Wait! Carrots!” Prince Nicholas called with an extended paw, just as he was swarmed with a sea of of his former potential brides. All of them curiously asking him about the mystery bunny he was dancing with.  

Cinderjudy made her way down the large flight of stairs near the main entrance when--

Oops! One of Cinderjudy’s glass slippers slipped off her foot. Figures, not many mammals wear shoes so it was no surprise she was unaccustomed to wearing them. She tried running up to get it, only to spot Finnick racing down the stairs behind her. Not wanting to get caught and with her time running out, she decided to leave it and proceeded to rush down the stairs once more.

“Mademoiselle! Señorita! Miss Bunny!” Finnick called behind her as he grabbed her fallen glass slipper.

Once out the door, Cinderjudy raced to her carriage and climbed aboard. She and her equally spellbound assistants fled past the castle’s gates as fast as they could as Finnick called for the castle’s guards to stop her close the gates so she wouldn’t flee.

“Stop that coach! Close those gates!” Finnick shouted to no avail. Realizing they had managed to escape past the gates, Finnick instead called their guards to chase after them. “Follow that coach!” Various guards on horse pulled carriages raced out the castle’s gates in search of Cinderjudy.

Cinderjudy looked back, hoping they wouldn’t catch up to her and her friends. All the while the clock tower continued to remind her of the time with its terrible and constant,

DONG! DONG! DONG!

With one last heavy dong, the spell was broken and Cindejudy’s gown vanished and was replaced once more with her mother’s torn dress. Her beautiful carriage was reduced to nothing more but the pumpkin it was once originally, her family friend and fellow house servant Major -- an old gray horse --was no longer a well dressed footmammal, but was returned to his old farm clothes. The same went for her friends and other fellow house servants Jaq and Gus -- two brown mice -- who were transformed into horses to help pull the carriage.

Cinderjudy and the others sat on the road in shock to realize that they have all returned back to their old former selves. They immediately moved and sought shelter in some brush on the side of the road when they heard the castle guards catching up to them.

They managed to move just in time when the guards ran past them, crushing the pumpkin underneath their hooves and the wheels of their carriages.

“I’m sorry,” Cinderjudy apologized to her friends once the guards were gone. “I-I guess I forgot about everything. Even the time, but...but it was so wonderful.”

None of her friends said anything, they just took in her joy and smiled. Happy that they could help her and happy to know that she had a wonderful time. They had known her practically her whole life and they’ve known how horribly she’d been treated by her step family. She deserved to have a good time and be happy.

“And he was so handsome! And when he danced…” she sighed, the thought of Prince Nicholas filling her heart with love. “Oh I’m sure even the prince himself couldn’t have been more...more…” Cinderjudy sighed once more but this time with a bit of disappointment, “Oh well, it’s over and--”

“Cinderjudy! Cinderjudy! Look! Look!” called Jaq and Gus while pointing at her foot. “A slipper! A slipper! Yeah a slipper! Your slipper Cinderjudy! Your slipper!” they continued to shout together.

Cinderjudy reached down and realized she was still wearing one of her glass slippers! But how? Everything else was gone. Why did this remain?

Oh well. Perhaps it was a gift from her fairy Godmother Fru-Fru! Cinderjudy sighed in awe as she held the sparkling slipper in her paws. She looked up at the sky with a smile, “Thank you. Thank you so much! For everything.” Cinderjudy held the glass slipper tight, a memento of such a glorious night, a reminder of a wonderful fox, and of a night she’ll never forget.

#zootopia #fanfic #cinderella #disney #crossover #raspberries challenge

[reynardiine]

I don’t know if I’ve ever really talked at length about the Walker boys’ original families and the adoptive one they ended up with. So, in the interest of keeping everyone on the same page, here we go.

The first of the three to join their parents was ZEDDEX, who they renamed and had everyone exclusively call ‘Craig’ until he found out the truth. The short version ( and the one you shouldn’t quote me on ) is that Z’s biological mother belonged to an extremely religious family. When she found out she was pregnant, her parents pushed for her to get rid of the child, which she refused. Months later, after being diagnosed with brain cancer, they attempted again to make her baby someone else’s problem. The couple they chose was the wrong fit. Again, she refused, and when she least suspected and without her knowledge or consent, her family gave her baby away.  By the time Z found out about her, she had long past, but he saw the chance to right some wrongs, and he took it in stride.           The full, actually good version of this, you can read here. The second to join the family was JONATHAN. Of the three, Johnny’s introduction to the family was the sloppiest. His disappearance made the local news back in the early 80′s. A young mother and her son went out for a fun day at the park in Natchez, Mississippi. She claimed that she only looked away for a moment, and when she looked up, her son was gone. She tried to fight the cops and the media, but evidence piled against her before she could stand much of a chance. Not long after, she and her husband were put on trial and incarcerated for kidnapping their youngest son. Meanwhile, in a secluded bayou near New Orleans, Johnny Walker was meeting his new brother. When Johnny’s parents were released, they still told the story of the day their son went missing. Their faces were everywhere, pleading for some answers on what became of their son. Johnny’s eyes were plastered to the television, his childhood pictures popping up left and right on its screen, telling his brothers all the while, “Woah, this kid looks just like me.” He still doesn’t believe those were his parents. Third and final, we have THOMAS. I’ve told the story a thousand times — a family of four was slaughtered in their home, a young set of parents ( Catherine and Stephen ), their eight-year-old son  ( James ), and their four-year-old daughter  ( Michelle ). Michelle’s twin brother was never found. The news reported the deceased to be integral members of the Ashford, Alabama community. Catherine was a teacher, was heavily involved in the church, and volunteered most of her time to help those in need. Despite her busy schedule, she did everything in her power to see that the twins grew into a well-adjusted childhood. Stephen was a firefighter, a carpenter on the side, and helped coach James’ little league team. Tom came to the Walker family as the middle ‘son’ — only a year and a half older than Johnny and six younger than ‘Craig’. Though his story made national news, little is known about Thomas’ old life. When he found out at the age of 15, he didn’t get the choice to hunt down his real relatives; he never had a chance at closure.

#long post // #cancer // #kidnapping // #murder // #child abuse // #;; ask to tag #;; on all of these i'm just like 'ehhhh not really but to be safe??' #— ᴍʏ ᴅᴀʀᴋᴇsᴛ ɴɪɢʜᴛ ᴡɪʟʟ ᴛᴜʀɴ ᴛᴏ ᴅᴀʏ ᴡʜᴇʀᴇ ᴛʜᴇ sᴏᴜʟ ᴏғ ᴍᴀɴ ɴᴇᴠᴇʀ ᴅɪᴇs ❜ ( indepth. )

[disappearanceofjk]

EVENT: DOLLHOUSE

warnings for: violence, blood, body horror, dismemberment, broken bones, light descriptions of gore, decomposition, corpses. read with caution! im me if you can’t read this and need an overview

He’s been making small talk with Edd as he waits for everyone, arms crossed as he drums gloved fingers. Rhys taps his foot, looking side to side nervously as cars pull up and familiar faces walk towards him. He exhales softly, manages a smile and opens his mouth to speak. Words mid-sentence are cut off by a quick punch to his jaw, a hiss exhaling out of him as a hand reaches to gingerly touch the affected area. Blue eyes look to his attacker - Rich - staring at him warily. It doesn’t seem to hurt him as much as it would anybody else, and Rhys seems to be able to easily ignore the pain, rubbing at his jaw every now and then.

“Please make sure to tread carefully.” He manages somewhat of a comforting smile, something that would put the crowd at ease, before turning his back and using a gloved hand to twist the doorknob. Rhys pushes the door open, scanning the room and stepping in and to the side.

It’s...unnerving. The house is perfectly set up, as if one’s in a dollhouse, with furniture that wasn’t there before perfectly placed. Portraits of people that have gone missing over the last couple of years are plastered onto the walls, not a centimeter off. In fact, if it wasn’t for the ‘FOR SALE’ sign still lodged into the grass outside, it would look as if someone new had moved in. 

Though...to certain people - those connected to or holding SQUIPs - would see something entirely different. A ransacked house, cleaned out of its belongings, dirt everywhere. There’s no picture-perfect household, and to them, the people carefully avoiding furniture that wasn’t there would look odd. 

Rhys clasps his hands together, stands in front of the TV ( or was it just the wall he was standing in front of? ) and smiles softly at the group. “Since it’s a pretty big house, I’ll let everyone explore on their own. In about an hour or two, I’ll call everyone back, we can discuss clues, and then go home. I hope that sounds good to everyone.” With that, the group disperses, everyone off to do their own thing. 

The ground floor is relatively barren of clues. With its gaudy, unnatural furniture, too hollow and light to do what its originally supposed to do, it would wield nothing. The bathrooms are almost too clean, with light blue water filling the bathtub. Of course, to anyone else, it would be seen filled with dirt, water stains on the walls, a general unsanitary place. Despite its creepy atmosphere, both parties would experience an almost soothing sensation, a feeling like warm cookies, or pleasant nostalgia. Thoughts of Jared being missing are almost forgotten, bright colors easing away any anxiety that could be present. Happy memories are replayed in their heads like a tape recorder in perfect detail, describing their happiest times. 

Of course... that all would be ruined when Connor enters what used to be Jared’s bedroom. Compared to the other parts of the house, its plain and dull, but it’s exactly what his bedroom used to look like. A figure sits hunched over the desk, a figure that looks exactly like Jared from the back. 

Maybe in another universe, it is Jared. Maybe he’d look up from his homework, see Connor, joke about breaking and entering. He’d come downstairs, ask why everyone was so worried, tell them that he was just away for a bit on vacation. Laughs would be shared and hugs would be given and Jared would gladly make food for all of them and tell stories that would leave everyone in tears. Maybe in another universe, Jared would’ve never been missing.

But that isn’t this universe.

When Connor reaches for Jared, turns him around, perhaps, he would see the decaying body of Annie Astre. It’s as if the mirage around him is broken, and everyone else would feel the same. Gaudy furniture is replaced with dirt and the homey feeling is replaced with a feeling that something is very, very wrong. Annie’s corpse is made to be a pitiful imitation of Jared himself -- long hair is cut short and dyed brown and her eyes are now replaced with Jared’s, blue and staring at Connor. She’s dressed in his clothes and what used to be his girlfriend limps over, falling out of the rolling chair. Paranoid feeling is replaced with the urge to run up to Jared’s bedroom, and as the group enters the room, Annie’s body is there for them on display. Caked with dirt, glasses askew, it’s a truly horrifying sight. 

Jonathan reaches for the tablet sitting on the desk, the thing Annie was covering. When it’s booted up, it would load before shocking the holder sharply, making him drop the device before it flashes a ‘LEAVE’ on its screen. Like any foreboding, vague note, its danger happens right after. Lo and behold, crown monster pierces through the glass of Jared’s window, shards shattering and digging into the flesh of anyone nearby. It scans the room, screeches when it sees Annie’s body, and rips through more of the window to enter the room, knocking over people in its way. It has tunnel vision, and Rhys helps anyone knocked over up, placing a protective arm in front of the group as he backs everyone away, staring worriedly at those who have injuries. Gingerly, the monster picks up Annie’s body and exits through the window, running towards the direction of the woods. The tablet is crushed in the meanwhile, and only shards of technology ( they’re sparking, how is that possible? ) remain. Fear and panic flash in Rhys’s eyes, and he wordlessly guides the group out of the house, taking one last look upstairs, eyes narrowing, before turning his back, closing the door behind him. 

EVENT #2 CLEARED !!

CLUES FOUND:

- Annie Astre’s ( @runawaywish​ ) corpse, dressed and made up to be like Jared. Found by Connor ( @missingkxd​ )

PEOPLE INJURED: 

- Jonathan ( @acoustic-apathy​ ) - Shards of glass in his skin

- Edd ( @fllenstars​ ) - Shards of glass in his skin

- Julianna ( @santabarbie​ ) - Knocked over, broken ankle

- Isaac ( @warnthem​ ) - Knocked over, broken wrist

- Rhys - A bruised jaw, courtesy of Rich. Broken ankle

NOTES:

- People who have been injured have been successfully helped out of there by Rhys

- The actual reality of the house was only seen by Arden, Laura, Rich, and Sev. Anyone else saw a gaudy, tacky house. However, all felt the sensation of being at home and basically relived their happiest memories. Those previously mentioned have their memories more vivid.

- You’re welcome to continue / start new threads prior to this event! As long as it doesn’t mess with anything that happened, you’re good

- Muses who aren’t mentioned can also be injured. Either the shards of glass hit them or a part of their arm or leg were broken / fractured

#v; disappearance of jared s. kleinman #story event #event 2 #JAZZ HANDS SOFTLY.........

[dogpalace]

Mindhunter

In the Taiwanese chicken leg restaurant, I held a cup of hot tea in both hands. My boyfriend Matt took a picture of me. “This is going to be popular on instant gram,” he said. He always says it that way, adding whimsy to the ubiquitous app name where there was none. The food came—for him a chicken leg, for me a pork chop in soup.

 Since launching my Simpsons podcast over a year ago, I’ve come to realize that I’m a decent TV critic. This month, I indulged that side of myself while Matt and I watched season 1 of Mindhunter, one of the best shows I’ve seen in years. Jonathan Groff plays a hotheaded young FBI agent who, along with his more by-the-books partner, gets into the heads of serial killers in the 1970s, meeting and conversing with them. Meanwhile, he begins a love relationship that sours as he gets further into his work and more aware of these men’s sexual psychosis. The cases are pulled right from history and even the names of the killers are real; the show, a David Fincher project, is shot and edited with surgical precision; its production design nails the muted earth tones of bureaucratic 1977. And in MORE THAN ONE scene Jonathan Groff, the clean-cut star of “Glee” and Hamilton, eats his girlfriend’s pussy while naked or semi-naked. What I’m trying to say is this show really has something for everyone.

 Matt and I finished dinner and made it back to Bowery Ballroom. We were there to see Yo La Tengo at one of their legendary Hanukkah shows, which the band stopped doing in 2012 upon the demise of the beloved club Maxwell’s. This year they came roaring back, and there was much rejoicing. I was a little nervous because my name was on the bill as the post-show DJ. But not too nervous. Mostly fine. Until something remarkable happened.

 Yo La Tengo’s opening band, the Sadies, were about halfway through their set when the guy who looked like Jonathan Groff appeared in the room. He was with a couple of friends. Instantly, as usually happens when I see famous people or people who look like famous people, I got all jittery. The group pushed through the crowd—we were at the front of the room near the stage—and they ended up close to me. Each time I glanced over at the one guy I became more convinced that this actually was Jonathan Groff, an actor on a TV series I had been enjoying, and then my jitters turned to delight. I told myself, wow, that guy was in Hamilton and he was on Netflix doing mouth sex! Maybe this is the big time, I told myself also. Being at a really good concert that’s so good that real famous people also go to it, and jump around and dance at it just like I do.

 However, awkwardness kept creeping in. As I was standing there, watching the Sadies and being imbued with the holiday spirit, I was also on edge because I felt it was incredibly important that Matt not notice Jonathan Groff. This wasn’t—I promise—because I thought he’d be jealous. Maybe I did want, a little bit, to hide from him the fact that my crush on Jonathan Groff had become so pronounced, but it wasn’t really that either. It was mostly because I wanted to keep this moment for myself. I didn’t want to ruin it by frantically whispering things and then having the two of us look like idiots trying to turn around and stare at someone over and over. Part of me is sorry that I couldn’t alert Matt to the situation right then, because I know he would have been thrilled; I mean he loves Mindhunter. He was right next to me on the couch for the whole season. But I stand by my choice.

 I want to emphasize, also, that I never found out if this person was really Jonathan Groff. Does it matter whether he was? The guy I saw had a handsome, placid face and the smile of someone whose life is easy. He wore a tan sweater with the collar of a button-down shirt visible over the top. He slightly resembled blond actor Peter Krause, who also kind of looks like Jonathan Groff. Moreover, there was a famous-person diffidence about him, an aura of being somehow set apart from everyone else. On the other hand, this man had little sideburns and was balding in the back of his head. This detail, the hair, which is different from Groff’s thick brownish hair in all photos I’ve seen, would be the main signal to me that I didn’t really see him. In fact, thinking it over now as I write this, I’m almost convinced that this dude at the Yo La Tengo show was just some random dude. But still. Still.

 It was a beautiful night, full of friends. We went downstairs for a beer in between sets and then back up for Yo La Tengo’s amazing performance, which included a version of Gary U.S. Bonds’s “Seven Day Weekend” that I loved. (They played it as “Eight Day Weekend” because Hanukkah, DO YOU GET IT???!?!) Afterward, I spun my records behind a little velvet rope as partiers stayed to drink and chat in the club’s lounge area. At one point, Sadies frontman Dallas Good stopped at my booth on his way to the dressing room, trying to see the label of the record I was playing: the Four Tops doing “Walk Away Renee.” He was being very discreet and polite about looking at the record.

 “The Four Tops,” I told him.

 “Ah!” he said, happy that I’d anticipated his question. “Thank you! It���s great!” and then he floated out of the room.

 It is the end of the year and I’m philosophical. I’m thinking of what it means to be in a room, surrounded by people that feel like friends even though I’ve never met most of them. I’m thinking of how it feels to be half of a couple—for us it’s been seven years now—and be so strongly linked to each other in people’s minds. What about our own? When being asked to DJ this particular show, I was given the option of having Matt DJ alongside me, sharing the load, creating the heartwarming spectacle of two people at the turntables who knew each other very well. I decided I would rather do it solo. Matt was nearby always, sitting with our friends, joking around. Once in awhile he’d drift over with one other person and they’d talk to me about some record or other that I was playing. Marshall Crenshaw was mastered too quiet, Peggy Lee sounded smoky and terrific. The Jonathan Groff guy put on his coat and departed with his own friends, walking with his abdomen tilted slightly forward, the way Jonathan Groff does. I felt like we were all normal, all in this together.

 “Why didn’t you say anything?” said Matt in the cab as we headed home, speeding over the Williamsburg Bridge. “I could have told you if it was him or not.” Lights twinkled on the black water; the J train raced us noisily.

 “I don’t know,” I said. “I can’t explain it.” He checked his Instagram and showed me his portrait of me from the Taiwanese restaurant. We sat next to each other, contented, looking at the tall buildings near the river where the millionaires live.

#mindhunter #yo la tengo #sadies #jonathan groff #walk away renee

[judefan813-blog]

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[footballleague0]

Inside Florida Gators’ miracle TD to beat Tennessee Volunteers – SEC Blog

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Go back before the mob scene in the south end zone of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on Saturday night. Before Tyrie Cleveland came down with the Hail Mary pass. Before Feleipe Franks threw it. Before the play or the timeout that preceded it was ever called.

If you want to understand how Florida pulled off one of the most exciting plays of the 2017 season, beating Tennessee with no time left on the clock, you have to go back much further than that.

You can start two years ago, in fact. Back when Jim McElwain, then in his first season as head coach at Florida, called for the very first time the play he’d use Saturday: “Train Right Open, Big Ben In.” It was in the same stadium, on the same 37-yard line, versus the very same team. The characters were different — Will Grier connected with Antonio Callaway in 2015 — but the design and the result were exactly the same: a game-winning touchdown against rival Tennessee.

Fast-forward a year, after Grier had transferred in the wake of a positive drug test and Franks was just a true freshman trying to learn the ropes. It was then, during a scrimmage, that Franks first showed off that cannon of a right arm. It was a 70-yard bomb center T.J. McCoy can still picture clearly, and he swears it was Cleveland who caught the pass. McCoy and his teammates’ eyes went big as saucers when it happened. “He’s an athlete, for real,” McCoy thought of Franks at the time.

Fast-forward another year, a year in which Franks rode the bench in silence and a disgruntled Florida fan base steadily grew tired of McElwain’s anemic offense. This past summer, Franks and his receivers worked tirelessly behind closed doors to build chemistry. Except one day, someone let the prying eyes of the public in. In a video that popped up on Twitter and every other social-media platform imaginable, Franks dropped back inside Florida’s indoor practice facility, planted his back foot in the turf and threw a beautiful, looping 75-yard touchdown down the right side of the field. Whether Cleveland was the recipient of the pass is up for debate — the video was grainy — but the reaction from fans was unmistakable. “It went viral hyping up Feleipe,” offensive tackle Martez Ivey said.

The hype didn’t seem to match the results after a dreadful Week 1 loss against Michigan. And if you want to take it a step further, through the first 58 minutes, 51 seconds of Saturday afternoon’s game against Tennessee. Franks hadn’t completed a pass more than 10 yards in the air at the time, and he was coming off an interception that had set up a game-tying field goal by the Vols.

When Tyrie Cleveland hauled in the winning throw Saturday, it marked the second consecutive visit from Tennessee that Florida won on a 63-yard pass. Mark LoMoglio/Icon Sportswire

But with 9 seconds on the clock, McElwain called a timeout. He shouted out the play — Train Right Open, Big Ben In — and put his trust in his prized quarterback to make something happen. Cleveland told Franks, “Just give me a chance.” But neither Franks nor McElwain were thinking of a touchdown.

To set up a manageable field goal attempt, Franks knew he had to reach Tennessee’s 38-yard line. Only the Volunteers covered up the underneath routes and the pocket collapsed. With time running out, Franks bailed. Big defensive end Jonathan Kongbo got a hand on his jersey, but he escaped.

Franks said he thought about tucking and running for a first down. But then, in the corner of his eye, he saw Cleveland streaking downfield. The sophomore had a step on the cornerback — no more than a yard really, but enough — and Franks pulled up, planted his back foot in the ground and heaved.

McCoy, who found himself blocking noone on the play, thought Franks had missed another open receiver. Linebacker David Reese, meanwhile, stopped talking to his position coach mid-sentence on the sideline and stood up in disbelief. Senior running back Mark Thompson said he saw the pass and thought, “Touchdown.”

“I have faith in Franks and Tyrie,” Thompson said.

It was high, looping, beautiful throw from Franks. Cleveland downshifted ever so slightly and caught it like a loaf of bread, clutching it to his chest with both hands as he fell to the turf.

Senior wideout Brandon Powell thought the Gators were playing for overtime, yet there he was, sprinting after Cleveland, jumping on top of him in the end zone. Cleveland lay on the turf for a few seconds, stunned, as Powell slapped his helmet and grabbed his facemask. Before long, the entire team was on top of them, in a pile celebrating the improbable 26-20 victory.

It was supposed to be a simple go route, Cleveland explained later. But the corner pressed and he ducked inside. The safety rolled out and it turned into a footrace that the world-class athlete wasn’t about to lose. “I just ran fast,” he said.

“It’s that simple,” Cleveland reiterated to a stunned group of reporters. “I just ran fast.”

You see, Cleveland had no doubt.

“Oh, I knew I had it,” he said. “I knew I was going to come down with it. I made it my business to come down with it. Yeah, I wanted that ball and I got it.”

It was a moment he’d been dreaming of since he was a child. To make it come true was indescribable, he said.

McElwain, who had spent much of the past week dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Irma, was still soaking in the play when he met with reporters after the game. He said he celebrated his fair share, but mainly he stood in the locker room and watched.

“It had nothing to do about me,” he said. “I enjoyed watching the guys. I just enjoyed seeing them, their excitement, because I know how hard they’ve worked, I know what they’ve put into it. So, to me, it was seeing the people in the organization enjoying the moment.”

He added later: “I’ve got some burned images in my mind that I’ll carry with me for the rest of my life.”

So did everyone else in attendance.

Franks got his signature moment in his first game in the Swamp, and maybe McElwain got himself a new favorite play in the process.

Train Right Open, Big Ben In has a nice ring to it.

The post Inside Florida Gators’ miracle TD to beat Tennessee Volunteers – SEC Blog appeared first on Daily Star Sports.

from http://ift.tt/2xIdBoZ from http://ift.tt/2wlhQqn

[giantsfootball0]

Inside Florida Gators’ miracle TD to beat Tennessee Volunteers – SEC Blog

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Go back before the mob scene in the south end zone of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on Saturday night. Before Tyrie Cleveland came down with the Hail Mary pass. Before Feleipe Franks threw it. Before the play or the timeout that preceded it was ever called.

If you want to understand how Florida pulled off one of the most exciting plays of the 2017 season, beating Tennessee with no time left on the clock, you have to go back much further than that.

You can start two years ago, in fact. Back when Jim McElwain, then in his first season as head coach at Florida, called for the very first time the play he’d use Saturday: “Train Right Open, Big Ben In.” It was in the same stadium, on the same 37-yard line, versus the very same team. The characters were different — Will Grier connected with Antonio Callaway in 2015 — but the design and the result were exactly the same: a game-winning touchdown against rival Tennessee.

Fast-forward a year, after Grier had transferred in the wake of a positive drug test and Franks was just a true freshman trying to learn the ropes. It was then, during a scrimmage, that Franks first showed off that cannon of a right arm. It was a 70-yard bomb center T.J. McCoy can still picture clearly, and he swears it was Cleveland who caught the pass. McCoy and his teammates’ eyes went big as saucers when it happened. “He’s an athlete, for real,” McCoy thought of Franks at the time.

Fast-forward another year, a year in which Franks rode the bench in silence and a disgruntled Florida fan base steadily grew tired of McElwain’s anemic offense. This past summer, Franks and his receivers worked tirelessly behind closed doors to build chemistry. Except one day, someone let the prying eyes of the public in. In a video that popped up on Twitter and every other social-media platform imaginable, Franks dropped back inside Florida’s indoor practice facility, planted his back foot in the turf and threw a beautiful, looping 75-yard touchdown down the right side of the field. Whether Cleveland was the recipient of the pass is up for debate — the video was grainy — but the reaction from fans was unmistakable. “It went viral hyping up Feleipe,” offensive tackle Martez Ivey said.

The hype didn’t seem to match the results after a dreadful Week 1 loss against Michigan. And if you want to take it a step further, through the first 58 minutes, 51 seconds of Saturday afternoon’s game against Tennessee. Franks hadn’t completed a pass more than 10 yards in the air at the time, and he was coming off an interception that had set up a game-tying field goal by the Vols.

When Tyrie Cleveland hauled in the winning throw Saturday, it marked the second consecutive visit from Tennessee that Florida won on a 63-yard pass. Mark LoMoglio/Icon Sportswire

But with 9 seconds on the clock, McElwain called a timeout. He shouted out the play — Train Right Open, Big Ben In — and put his trust in his prized quarterback to make something happen. Cleveland told Franks, “Just give me a chance.” But neither Franks nor McElwain were thinking of a touchdown.

To set up a manageable field goal attempt, Franks knew he had to reach Tennessee’s 38-yard line. Only the Volunteers covered up the underneath routes and the pocket collapsed. With time running out, Franks bailed. Big defensive end Jonathan Kongbo got a hand on his jersey, but he escaped.

Franks said he thought about tucking and running for a first down. But then, in the corner of his eye, he saw Cleveland streaking downfield. The sophomore had a step on the cornerback — no more than a yard really, but enough — and Franks pulled up, planted his back foot in the ground and heaved.

McCoy, who found himself blocking noone on the play, thought Franks had missed another open receiver. Linebacker David Reese, meanwhile, stopped talking to his position coach mid-sentence on the sideline and stood up in disbelief. Senior running back Mark Thompson said he saw the pass and thought, “Touchdown.”

“I have faith in Franks and Tyrie,” Thompson said.

It was high, looping, beautiful throw from Franks. Cleveland downshifted ever so slightly and caught it like a loaf of bread, clutching it to his chest with both hands as he fell to the turf.

Senior wideout Brandon Powell thought the Gators were playing for overtime, yet there he was, sprinting after Cleveland, jumping on top of him in the end zone. Cleveland lay on the turf for a few seconds, stunned, as Powell slapped his helmet and grabbed his facemask. Before long, the entire team was on top of them, in a pile celebrating the improbable 26-20 victory.

It was supposed to be a simple go route, Cleveland explained later. But the corner pressed and he ducked inside. The safety rolled out and it turned into a footrace that the world-class athlete wasn’t about to lose. “I just ran fast,” he said.

“It’s that simple,” Cleveland reiterated to a stunned group of reporters. “I just ran fast.”

You see, Cleveland had no doubt.

“Oh, I knew I had it,” he said. “I knew I was going to come down with it. I made it my business to come down with it. Yeah, I wanted that ball and I got it.”

It was a moment he’d been dreaming of since he was a child. To make it come true was indescribable, he said.

McElwain, who had spent much of the past week dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Irma, was still soaking in the play when he met with reporters after the game. He said he celebrated his fair share, but mainly he stood in the locker room and watched.

“It had nothing to do about me,” he said. “I enjoyed watching the guys. I just enjoyed seeing them, their excitement, because I know how hard they’ve worked, I know what they’ve put into it. So, to me, it was seeing the people in the organization enjoying the moment.”

He added later: “I’ve got some burned images in my mind that I’ll carry with me for the rest of my life.”

So did everyone else in attendance.

Franks got his signature moment in his first game in the Swamp, and maybe McElwain got himself a new favorite play in the process.

Train Right Open, Big Ben In has a nice ring to it.

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