#....which is why 1) when i find stuff that does fit i wear it till it falls apart and 2) one thing i shell out some cash for is that stuff

[mushroom-witch-writes]

Empty Sounds of Hate

Chaper 1

Eddie Munson x f!reader

Genre: enemies to lovers, angst

Warnings: cursing, mentions of alcohol/ smoking

Note: So this is my first story after a while, a bit shit , but that's okay cuz the next chapters will be angstier promse. Slightly proofread. Feel free to point out any warnings or typos I might have missed. love you all <3

Word count: 1.708

Just another day walking to school. You had just missed the buss of course ,but it gave you time to think so it wasn’t that bad. Music blasted in your ears and the cold morning breeze was hitting your face as a white, beat up van stopped  beside you. Not just any white beat up van, Munson’s van. “Morning poser, exercising to fit that sex bomb bad bitch persona are we?” the brown haired boy asked with a mocking tone “how bout you fuck off Munson? It’s 8 in the morning and I’m not in the mood for this” he laughed and licked his lips “oh you know how I love it when you get feisty y/n” you gave him the finger before he drove off and mouthed “prick”.

You and Munson had history , well , in your head at least. You used to go crazy over him when you first arrived to Hawkins. You tried on different styles to find what fits you best and hanging out with Harrington and his clique of assholes was the thing that made Eddie hate you. After Steve graduated you figured you should stick to your own personal style which for the most part matched Eddie’s ,but of course then he assumed that you’re just posing as something you’re not, like you had in the past.

School was hell. Not because something out of the blue happened, but because it was so boring. You were packing up your stuff next to Robin when she spoke “ So Steve said there’s a party at Claire’s tonight” she said with a smirk “ we could check it out, I mean spring break starts tomorrow “ you looked at her with a straight face “ a little fun can’t hurt I guess” you replied and she jumped up. Munson walked down the hall and Robin’s face instantly lit up , you mouthed a no to her but to no avail “ hey creep you should check Claire’s party tonight with us, good for business” she whispered the last part. “only if my favourite person tags along” he said with some theatrics here and there “now that I think about it I have a thing to do” you said smirking at him “ great so we’re all going” Robin said.

Evening came and you were all dressed up , wearing a short zip up leather skirt , leopard top , fishnet tights , hair all poofed up and messy , looking like a rock star’s wet dream. Your mom dropped you off at the family video to wait for your friends and then head to the party together. “…yeah I get it okay? I just think that the Lost Boys is the best vampire film till now” you argued with Steve “yea cause you have no taste y/n” That was when you heard a van pull up blasting Iron  Maiden “uh guys , why is HE here?” you asked half panicked. It’s not like you didn’t know that he was coming , just the fact that he would see you right now , in that lighting made you self conscious. Okay maybe you weren’t over the whole crush on Eddie Munson.

“ Does my hair look like a rat’s nest?” you asked Steve and he smiled mischievously “why do you care?” he replied as Munson walked in. When his eyes landed on you his entire brain shut off. “ Oh Munson don’t start” you said right of the bat before he could say anything. His palms were sweating and he couldn’t ,for the life of him, find the right thing to say. “No I was thinking… I’m really high right now…the lights in here probably freaked me out” he said finishing with an awkward laugh. You just stayed there just gawking at each other while Steve and Robin just stared in accomplishment. “ooookay we shall go” Robin finally said. They closed up and you all walked out the family video.

“ There’s this problem, Steve’s car is full of boxes and it only fits two, hope you have no problem riding there with Eddie?” Steve looked confused ,as always “No it’s no-“  Robin elbowed him “oh right, the boxes , yea, filled, sorry” he said. “ I hate you guys” you said and walked to Munson’s van . “ Ah princess, why is your carriage leaving without you?” he said while rolling a cig “ because this is my carriage tonight” you said showing him his van. He looked at you wide eyed and laughed while mouthing something along the lines of ‘these assholes’ “ okay , do you mind me smoking ? Actually don’t reply, I don’t really care. Hop in” this was going to be fun.

“ Seriously Munson, you enjoy smoking that?” you asked while you were rolling your own “ you’re not here to lecture me for smoking sweetheart you’re here t- oh ,ohhh look at that” he said when he heard the clicking noise of your lighter. He kept driving and you both laughed a little. The ride was quiet, you would both steal looks from each other. “hey Eddie, quick question” “I don’t think I’ll be replying ,but shoot” he said in monotone “ why do you hate me so much? I mean, have I done something to you?” ‘ yes you have been haunting my whole entire existence ever since you came and I can’t allow a person to come too close’ he thought but spat out “ I just don’t like you. No reason behind it other than the fact that you’re pretentious.”

You regretted ever asking. The car fell quiet again. He parked and you got out as quick as you could and slammed his door. He looked at you and cursed himself for being the asshole he is. You were hurt at his words ,but this wasn’t the time for this, tonight you were going to have fun. You walked in to find Robin.

Once you found her you took her hand and ran to the kitchen to get boose. “ so how was your ride” she asked smiling while you poured the drink in your cup. “ I still hate you” you replied smiling to hide the fact that his words popped in your mind again. “let’s go dance I don’t want to think about that asshole right now” you said after taking a big ship. She led you to the living room and you booth started dancing at the sound of ABBA. Yea you were into metal and rock , but no one can deny ABBA.

An hour passed and you were both drunk out of your minds. Steve was dancing with you after getting rejected by half the girls in the party. “ hey I’ll go get a refill, be right back” you probably shouldn’t drink more ,but tonight you wanted to feel numb. As you got to the counter where the drinks were , you were greeted by non other than Jack Miles. He was a douchebag sure , but he was also the school’s heartthrob right now. “ hey y/n , didn’t know these parties were your ‘scene’” he said with a soft smile. From the corner of your eye you noticed Eddie looking, you don’t know why but you were hoping he would get jealous.

“ it’s not my scene, I’m spicing it up” you replied smiling and looking for a filled bottle “looking for this?” he asked bottle in hand “ yea thanks” you said holding out your cup as he refilled it “ so y/n , we should hang out sometime” “ aren’t we hanging out now?” you asked with a smile leaning towards him “ sometime when we’re not both drunk out of our minds so I can do what I’ve been meaning to for so long” you batted your eyelashes at him “ and what would that be?” you asked trying to look as flirty as you could “well I really wanted to kiss you ,you know…” he said coming closer when all of the sudden you felt an arm around your shoulder. “ hey babe, missed you back there, oh hi Jack?” Eddie said “ yea yea Jack..ugh I gotta go I think the boys are ready to leave, see you around y/n” he said leaving.

You chugged your drink while Eddie laughed , threw his arm off your shoulder and ran out the house. He ran after you “ Did you see that guys face? Hahaaaa oh come on y/n that was funny as fuck” you turned to him “ what the fuck is wrong with you Munson?” he smiled down at you “oh did I fuck up your night love ?” you walked closer “fuck you Munson , I was having fun with that guy” you said angrier than ever.

 Steve and Robs walked out the house and saw you two arguing “hey what’s wrong” Steve asked carrying Robin “ Eddie the virgin Munson decided to spoil my fucking night because he can’t stand to see me having fun with someone” it was true , but not because he didn’t want you to have fun with someone ,but because he would kill to be that someone. “ you’re making it sound like I would ever give a damn about you. I fucked up your night and I couldn’t be happier” your eyes started welling up as you stepped even closer pulling his chin close to you “ don’t ever come near me again, I’m done with your bullshit, I’m done with you being a fucking piece of shit and I’m done with trying to put up with your shit. I fucking despise you Eddie Munson” you spat out with a trembling voice.

 He just looked at you , he didn’t move nor did he say anything. Just looked at the only girl he had eyes for walk away crying, because that’s what Eddie did. He fucked everything up and then did nothing about it. “ you are a jerk man” Steve said walking Robin to his car “ don’t go after her, not that you would. I’ll take her home. You should go home too” he told Eddie before he left.

#eddie munson #eddie munson imagine #enemies to lovers #eddie stranger things #eddie x reader #eddie angst #eddie munson angst #eddie munson x reader #eddie monson x y/n #stranger things fanfic #eddie smut #eddie munson fluff #stranger things #steve harrington #stranger things smut #stranger things 4 #robin buckley #fanfiction #eddie x y/n #stranger things season four #stranger things angst #fluff #steve harrington series #steve x eddie #steve harrington drabble #steve x reader #steve x billy #stranger things four #st s4 #st season 4

[hoseokslefteyebrow]

Bon 4oyage || K.SJ

Episode 1

Pairing: Kim Seokjin X Reader Summary: In which you're Jin's girlfriend of 9 years and tag along in Bon Voyage Season 4. Wordcount: 3.4k

" Y/N ah, tell me, do you have any plans for the (random date) till the (another random date)? " Your boyfriend of nine years asks you suddenly. 

The two of you are simply chilling in your shared apartment. 

" Not as far as I'm concerned, why? " You ask, sitting down beside him. 

You were cleaning up the apartment before he asked you. 

" Y'know the boys and I will be going on Bon Voyage again, right? " He asks you, lacing your fingers together. 

You hum with a pout. 

" Yeah, it's my annual miss Jin ti-"

" Not this year love. " He cuts you off, a smile on his lips. 

You raise a brow in confusion. 

" Not this year? " 

" Yeah, I've asked the company, once again. And this time, they actually agreed. " He tells you with shining eyes. 

A smile makes it's way onto your face. 

" Really?! "

It was, in a way, hard to believe. The company liked you, but never actually approved of Jin having a relationship. When you became a couple back in 2010, the two of you had to keep it a secret for 4 years for the company, and another 5 years to the public. Until now, you didn't think that they would be okay with you going public.

You couldn't believe it. Finally your waiting for each other got paid off. 

" Yes. However, there are a few downsides. " He tells you, making a bit of a turtle face. 

You subconsciously run your thumb over his hand. 

" Just so you know, I will not come if I have to wear a mask for the whole thing-"

" No, no. -" He laughs. 

" Even worse. We can't have sex. For like a little longer than a whole week. " He tells you. 

You snort at his expression. You can tell it's genuinely bothering him. 

" Is that an issue for me or you? " You ask him. 

He huffs, turning around so he can lay against you instead. You run your unoccupied hand through his hair. Sure it's basically dead, but you know he likes it. 

" Both. I know your sex drive, plus that also means like, no sleeping naked. And I have to share your attention with the other boys. " He pouts. 

You grin, bending over to kiss his head. 

" Don't worry, it'll be fine, fun even. We'll just have a pg family trip. " 

And so you find yourself seated at a restaurant between your boyfriend and Taehyung. They're about to kick off the season, and today you're just going to talk about activities and what not. 

" There's trekking and a lavender farm. " Hoseok comments as he looks at his phone. 

" That sounds fun. " You comment, as the other boys give their own opinions. 

After a bit more of catching up, the staff calls out to all of you. 

" You've all done your research, right? " The staff member asks. 

You all hum in response. 

" Worry about the activities later, pick the accommodations first. " The producer tells all of you. 

Soon enough everyone's talking again, figuring stuff out. 

" We have to sleep in a campervan for three days. " Yoongi suddenly casually pops when you're drinking your tea. 

You almost choke. 

" eight of us in a campervan? How is that going to fit? " 

" eight of us in one campervan won't be comfortable. " Taehyung agrees with you. 

" We'll probably have 2 vans. " Jin tells the two of you. 

" Y'know, there's this thing I've always wanted to try- When you wake up in a campervan and then wash up in the river. " Jungkook smiles. 

You blink at him. 

" You want to wash up in the cold? " You ask him. 

He grins. 

" If I can manage, yes. It'll be fun. " He nods. 

" We didn't do research that thoroughly. " Namjoon tells the crew honestly. 

" Forget on where to stay! We'll figure that out somehow. Let's focus on the activities first. " Jin calls out, basically canceling the producer's idea. 

Soon enough everyone starts coming with ideas. 

Jimin wants to go to Aurora¿ and on a boat. Yoongi just wants to go fishing and Namjoon wants to go on a kart trek. 

" I want to go on the swing too." Jin says. 

" The swing? " Namjoon asks surprised. 

Namjoon had this great idea to go do some kind of bungee jump activity, just with a swing, as if that would magically make it better. 

Jin hums. 

" Yeah, it'll be fun with Y/N. We can both scream our heads off. " He smiles at you. 

You laugh, swallowing your bite. 

" Okay. But that does me we really are going, okay? No backing out last minute. " You tell him, knowing he's a scaredy cat sometimes. 

He laughs. 

" Yah! It's not like you're any better. " He points out. 

You laugh. 

That's true. 

" Okay, okay, I promise. Do you? " You ask him, holding out your pink. 

He smiles, taking your hand instead and kissing the top of it, sending you a wink playfully. 

None of the boys mind either of you by now, knowing the way you two act longer than a while. 

" I promise, m'lady. " 

" We just sealed our death. " You laughed. 

" We did. " He laughs with you. 

" Well, at least we'll die together. " You tell him. 

He smiles at you and winks again. 

" That we do. "

By the  the two of you tune back in, they're talking about trekking. 

" It only takes 2 hours to finish. " Yoongi speaks. 

Apparently they're talking about Mount Cook. 

Soon enough they're all talking, and giving their opinions on it. 

" It's really only a few hours, we should do it. " You catch Yoongi saying. 

Jin hums in agreement, slurping in his noodles. 

You raise your brow at both of them. 

" Bet, you two will regret it. " You tell Yoongi, who smiles at you and shakes his head. 

He makes an over confident face. 

" We'll be fine, we'll have fun, don't worry. " He tells you. 

" Should we stay in the campervan the whole time? " Jungkook suddenly wonders. 

You make a face but don't say anything. 

The editors do catch it, as does Taehyung. He nudges you with a smile. 

" We'll all stink by the third day. " You tell him softly. 

He laughs. 

Sleeping in a campervan with eight people doesn't sound too appealing for the whole week. 

" We can play Halli Galli. " Your boyfriend adds helpfully. 

" And BTS Uno! " Namjoon adds too. 

" Camping for sure. " Someone pops, probably Jungkook. 

" Does anyone know anything about camping? What do we need? " Namjoon asks. 

" Well, we start with a tent. " Hoseok provides helpfully. 

" I've camped a few times with my brother and his friends. Most stuff is usually inside the campervan."  You tell them. 

Jimin adds onto that, explaining most stuff to Namjoon, like a table that's built in. 

" Let me see the campervan? " Jungkook asks. 

" It's huge. " Hoseok responses. 

" If it's that big, will it be easy to drive? " Jin asks. 

" The road will probably be mostly empty. " Namjoon points out. 

" We do need shower facilities. It's not like we can shower outside. " Yoongi points out. 

" We don't need to shower. " Jin says vaguely. 

You give him a disgusted face. 

" Oh yes we do. " You tell him. 

" I want to too. " Jimin says. 

" We have to think of the rest too. " Yoongi tells Jin. 

" I normally shower though. " Jin says. 

" Yeah I know. " Yoongi grins. 

" You better. " You say with a scrunched nose. 

Jimin laughs. 

" Happy wife happy life, hyung. " Jimin tells the eldest. 

Jin turns to you and looks blankly at you for a second. You raise your brows before flipping your hair over your shoulder sassily, returning your attention to your meal. 

" No, I do take showers everyday, and my lady knows, thank you very much. " He grins playfully, one of his hands going under the table to rest on your thigh. 

After a bit more of discussing about Jin's shower habits, the producer cuts in. 

" We do need to choose an accommodation besides the campervan. " He points out. 

You breathe happily as Tae grins at you. 

For a moment it's a bit of chaos, most of the boys pointing out a 9.7 rated accommodation. 

With a bathtub.

As soon as it comes into view, Jin turns to you, and you give him a cheeky smile back, yet shake your head. 

Rules are rules. 

However, a moment later they're looking at a different accommodation, with cramped rooms. 

" it'll be fun. Like old times. " Jungkook smiles. 

A moment later they're back at discussing the campervan. 

" Jungkook and I will drive mostly though. " Hoseok calls out. 

" I don't mind driving. " Hoseok tells the others. 

" I'll get a driver's license on our days off too. " Namjoon pouts. 

" I can drive. " You tell them. 

Almost everyone turns to beam at you. 

" No, no. Not you, you drive like we're in Fast & Furious. " He points out. 

You grin. 

" Then she can be back up driver. " Yoongi gives you fake hope. 

" Back up driver? We already have enough drivers though.-"

" Yeah, we can't have you drive on national tv. " Jin says quickly. 

You laugh but don't bother with it. 

This can only mean you'll be in charge of the audio right? 

Soon after they're making a song about Bon Voyage. 

You can't really follow, but you clap along anyway. 

The scene wraps up with everyone clapping. 

-

A Few Months Later

" Yah! I went shopping with Y/N especially for this! " Jin says as his bandmates bully him. 

You don't pay a lot of attention, instead busy with helping the boys pack the last stuff and checking up on everyone. 

Soon enough a staff asked you aside. 

" Yeah? " You asked her. 

" This is for you, as you're coming with and the boys' are sponsored by Fila. The company thought it'd be nice if you'd at least have a jacket of the same brand too. " She smiles. 

" Oh, that's really nice. Thank you. "  You smile at her. 

She hands you a soft pink wintercoat. It's admittedly not your colour, nor your style, but you take the jacket gratefully, happy that they at least thought of you. 

" I look good in whatever I wear. " You hear Jin say. 

You come up to the mirror beside him, checking out the jacket on yourself. 

" Noona, your jacket looks nice on you too. " Jungkook compliments you. 

You smile at him. 

" Thank you! A staff member gave it to me, it's from the company. " You beam. 

And then they're arguing over Namjoon's accent. 

" We may be in the same group, but during our days off, I only saw Jimin hyung and Hobi hyung. And Y/N Noona. " Jungkook tells the camera, smiling cheekily at him as you give him a look. 

You too went to visit him on his birthday. 

" Yah! I called you so often! " Jin argues. 

Jungkook doesn't bother with Jin's complaint. 

From there the talk is mostly chaotic. First Jin's asking about an extra suitcase (which is really yours), Taehyung is showing of his Ramen noodles, Jimin has finally arrived and you found out that Yoongi's washing up. 

" At least someone showers. " You tease your boyfriend as you nudge him playfully, thinking of the small meeting a few months back. 

" Yah! I shower too! You of all people know that. " He shakes his head, playing along. 

You grin.

Soon enough you engage in small talk with Namjoon, and you can hear Jin somewhere in the back. 

" Compared to when you went to Malta-" The staff member begun. 

" We took a lot more this time, didn't we? " Jin says. 

" My pillow, something to hug when I have to sleep separately from Y/N, a down coat, fleece, pajamas. I also packed some slippers. And some of Y/N's clothes didn't fit it her suitcase, so it's in mine. " Jin laughs. 

" Do we need to bring shampoo and conditioner? " Jin asks a few moments later as everyone's seated together on the couch. 

"  We should bring our own, we might not be able to bring them. " Yoongi points out. 

" I'm taking mine with me, you guys can use it too if you don't mind smelling like fruit. " You shrug. 

" We can also get them at the airport. " Jungkook suggests. 

" Right, Duty-Free. "

 And then they suddenly spring to the topic of food, and before hopping over to talking about who's going to be the accountant. 

You don't bother adding in on that, you've never traveled with a group of eight before, and you aren't really willing to try when it comes down to it. After that, you're all tacking up your suitcases. 

Soon after they're suddenly grabbing some random bags, and Hoseok finds money. 

How they forget money, you don't know. 

You all sing the new Bon Voyage theme song before you finally set off towards the airport. 

" Did you search for 'huge luggage' when you bought your bag? " Yoongi teases Jungkook, though his bag is just as big. 

You're walking in front of the two, your left arm linked with Jin's right, your suitcase in your right hand and your backpack on top of it. 

You turn to give him a look. 

" I'm pretty sure we all did. " You point out. 

After a moment of rare silence (The only thing you hear is the rolling of suitcases), Jin claps again. 

" Bon Voyage! " 

" Why is no one reacting? " He asks the camera with a grin. 

" Bon Voyage! " Jungkook pitches in late. 

A moment later, the scene cuts, and you all get on the bus. 

You sit in the back with Jungkook and Hoseok. 

" How did you spend your vacations? " The producer asks them. 

They all each start talking about their vacation. 

Yoongi mentions his finished mixtape, Namjoon visited lots of museums and went to Europe, Hoseok points out about how he hasn't seen most of them in a while, Jimin basically went everywhere, from Korea to Russia, and Jungkook worked on some songs. 

" Jin what did you do in the vacation? " A staff member asks. 

You snort. 

" I spent half the time sleeping and half the time playing games. " He admits. 

" I went on dates with Y/N too. " He says quickly after. 

" It's no surprise, at least he made time for you. " Namjoon grins, looking at you. 

" I forced him. " You joke. 

" I wasn't that bad. But I mostly did play games whenever Y/N wasn't around. Or slept. " He nods along to his own words sleepily. 

" Then I realized I couldn't keep living like that, and so I met up with some friends too. " He laughed. 

" You had an important realization. " Hoseok comments. 

" I did. " Jin grins

After that came the question of Taehyung's where abouts and he mostly traveled the outskirts with friends. Most were shook when he mentioned one of his friends already being married. Jin too gave you a quick glance at the mention of marriage. Taehyung also mentioned working on a few songs too. Hoseok came soon after, and he mostly worked on his solo song 'Chicken Noodle Soup', and chilled at his apartment. 

After that they spoke about their pets. When the question came if you had any, you shook your head, though you did mention that your parents owned two cats. 

After that you all got a 'travel guide' made by crew for New Zealand. You didn't open it yet, instead opting to read through on the plane. 

Before you know it, you've all arrived at the airport.

And before you know it, you and Jin are waving the other boys off. 

" Bye guys! " 

" Bye! "

" Have a safe flight! "

" So they can't come? " Jimin asked, as Yoongi did so at the same time. 

" They can. " The staff answered shortly. 

" Huh, so you can't? " Jungkook asks you, still confused. 

" No, we can, we'll just have to take a different flight, we'll probably arrive a few hours later. " Jin tells Jungkook. 

" We have a connecting flight, we'll probably arrive around the same time. " Yoongi points out. 

" As long as you two can come it's fine. " Jungkook comments. 

[ Due to issues with Y/N and Jin's travel documents, the two are unable to board the same flight as the members. Luckily, they're able to take a different flight, and arrive an hour later. ]

Time flies, and before you know it, the two of you are walking in the airport, just having checked in. 

" Y'know, I might as well have forgotten my password. " Jin jokes. 

You shake your head. 

The humor appeared to be low budget. 

Soon after he's catching up with Army through the camera, simply babbling about his plans as you too listen, until, 

" Oh, is that RJ? " He wonders, looking at a shop. 

You sigh. 

" Oh please not again, we have so many of them-"

" Let's be cute and get matching RJ's Y/N. I'll pay. " He says, pulling you along with him as your arms are once again looped. 

Before you know it, the two of you are at the check out, with two matching RJ plushies. He's got a pretty big one, while you've got a smaller, cuter one. 

Soon enough it is time to get on your flight, and time,, flies,, by. 

" Now, we are going to find the other members. " Jin informs the camera as the two of you finally walk out of the airport. 

A crew member tells him it's all good like this, and he turns the camera off, handing it to the staff member. 

" Don't you think it's a little awkward to talk to a camera? " You ask Jin as the two of you and two other staff members get on a cab thing to go to the other members. 

He shrugs, holding out a hand for you to help you get in the car as the car has a bit of a elevation. 

" Not really, we're pretty used to having camera's on us by now. " He tells you honestly. 

You hum, and soon enough everyone's in the car, and easy conversation flows through. 

It doesn't take all too long before you're at the destination. 

Once you are spotted by the other members in the parking lot, Hoseok is the first to hop over, basically jumping on your boyfriend. 

You chuckle, being used to their way of greeting each other. 

" Y/N! " Hobi smiles, looping an arm around your shoulder casually as he leads to the rest, just as Jimin literally hops onto Jin. 

Jimin fetches your suitcases as Jin is quickly waved inside to do training. 

As Jin goes inside, you turn to help Jimin, Hoseok's arm falling off as you do so. 

" Wait, let me help with that. " You call, jogging over to help him. 

The two of you get it done quickly, and soon enough you're being informed by staff of the facility about the campervan. 

The water seems to be a bit of a problem. 

" Look,  how about we all shower together?" Jungkook suggests.

" Except for Y/N of course. " jungkook adds quickly as both you and Jin send him a look. 

" Let's coordinate time. " Hoseok suggests. 

" Yah, how do we do that? We can't control everything! " Jin complains. 

Luckily, the staff comes with a solution. 

" There's holiday parks, campervans can go there too. They have shower and toilet accommodations. " He quips helpfully. 

" That sounds much better. " You laugh. 

" Okay, let's only use the campervan's toilet for emergency. " Yoongi adds. 

" If you're about to die. " Namjoon pops. 

" Let's shower all at once too. " Jungkook keeps trying. 

" We can't shower long. "

" Only 5 minutes, after that, cut the water. " Jin says, as does Hoseok.

A ton of questions later, everyone's once again getting their suitcases, and Yoongi loads it into the campervan. Soon after all of you are clapping along again. 

" Jungkook did you bring your dumbbells again? " Jin jokes. 

" That's not my suitcase. " Jungkook informs. 

" That's mine actually, sorry. " You grin, not actually feeling sorry. 

Once that's over with, there's a small discussion about who's driving what car. It settles with Jungkook driving the campervan and Jin driving the SUV. 

" Where are we going? " You hear most around you asking. 

" The guide book mentioned (a random restaurant). " You tell them. 

" Alright, if you say so. " Jin says, already getting the navigation started without further questions. 

The other car either can't hear you or doesn't listen, as they instead listen to the producer, who agrees with you. 

[ A/N: Oh my god this is a 3.4 k chapter folks,, never done dat before. Anyway, how did you guys like it?  Also, no, there will be no smut in this story, but keep in mind that Jin & reader are both of age and in a 9 year relationship. ]

#bts #jin x reader #bts bon voyage #bts x reader #bts fluff #bts ot7 #bts series #bts ff

[thebrochtuarachs]

Arranged: Chapter 6

Modern AU. Set in present time. Where Claire and Jamie are arranged to be married.

CH: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5

AO3

A/N: Hello, everyone! I'd like to start with an apology for not updating for so so long. This story is still very dear to me, I daydream a lot of the next chapters, it's in my head and in my drafts and I just didn't realize that has been quite a while since I posted a chapter. Time flew by so quickly in the pandemic, I hadn't seen it pass. Anyway, posting this short and sweet update. Hope you like it! As always, your comments and suggestions are very much welcome :) Hope that you are keeping safe and healthy! Till the next!

XXXXX

The Ring of the Woman of Balnain – or that’s what they call the ring for generations since the 18th century.

For Jamie, it was simply his 8-times great-grandmother’s ring – a small circlet passed down his family for generations. His siblings never cared for the old thing but Jamie loved it ever since he was a wee lad and asked his parents to give it to him when he was old enough – and that time was, apparently, now.

After his mother ambushed him in the kitchen, Jamie was now in possession of one the most precious things in his life. He promised himself that he would give it to the woman he’ll marry someday as a gift and sign of his love and he hoped that the ring would bring luck in their relationship.

When he realized that Claire Beauchamp was the one, he thought about asking for the ring but then he found out about Frank Randall and had to re-evaluate his chances and options. All of his plans for him and Claire got put on hold until their parents intervened with this crazy scheme. But this crazy scheme, allow him to at least, put some plans in place.

A week later, his mother found the ring box on his bed side table, untouched and unopened.

“Give it to her. I want you to give it to Claire. It’s perfect” she heard Ellen say to Jamie who just groaned in disapproval.

“Mam, I thought we were going to do this in our own time, our own terms. Giving her this does not make all of this any easier.” Jamie replied.

“I know, son. But this has a special meaning to our family, ye ken that. Even if this arrangement is so, I would – no, we would, yer father and I – would love it if ye kept with the tradition.”

Then came one of Jamie’s exasperated sighs. “I’m no promising anything, Mam. I’ll think about it but don’t expect anything”

He and Claire hadn’t really discussed the nature of their relationship one month in since getting reacquainted. But the truth was, with all the time they’ve been spending together ( almost everyday ), they’ve gotten really close that even the people close to them have started noticing up to a point where they asked if there was something going on between them.

Of course, they denied it – not wanting anyone to know about what really was going on – saying they were just friends and reasoned the mere fact that their families were close and that was the way it’s always been for them. A damn, unreliable lie but it’s all they got.

Their research was not progressing in any form which was starting to frustrate Claire. Everything they were getting from “company sources'' just didn’t make sense in any scenario or plan. Money was not an issue, their family relations were not an issue, their business relations were not an issue… they were running out of “reasons” and “clues” but Claire refused to give up. Of course, Jamie knew otherwise but silently played along.

Thankfully, their final exams were coming and Jamie decided to put pause on everything and have a break from their research and each other - their schedule not permitting any free time. They haven’t seen each other in a week.

Today, Jamie had been in the coffee shop for hours since almost all of his classes got cancelled when his building suddenly needed to be fumigated.

“This seat taken?” the voice was unfamiliar and Jamie looked up to find Laoghaire Mackenzie looming over his table. He knew about her and her fondness of him, she was never to shy to show it anyway, but he’d never taken a liking to the lass. She wasn’t his type and he didn’t like her personality at all. Despite numerous turndowns, she was still persistent.

Sensing his refusal, she made another attempt. “The table sits four and yer the only one.” She moved the chair in front of him causing the bag to fall over and all of its contents sprawled over the floor.

“I’m sorry. Here” she said, giving some of his things as he stood to pick it up. “Well?” she asked again, waiting for his invitation. Jamie was a gentleman and seems there was no reason to give the lass a boot or the seat. He was about to reluctantly agree when another voice chimed in.

“Actually, the seat is taken.” Claire’s voice was a happy sound in Jamie’s ear. Laoghaire turned to see whose voice was cockblocking her to Jamie and frowned. Laoghaire and Claire have never had a conversation before past pleasantries and despite that, they seem to have grown a dislike to each other, an unspoken disapproval of each person’s position in Jamie’s life. Too bad for Laoghaire, Claire knew she had the upper advantage and would gladly take that road anytime around her.

Claire wore her smug face proudly as Laoghaire huffed and shoved her way past her. Jamie, to his credit, didn’t say anything but rather he smiled at her in such a way that made Claire’s heart sing and she knew it came from a place of utmost gratitude.

Claire took her seat and Jamie started fixing his bag. Upon inspection, he realized he was missing something. Alarmed, Jamie quickly put out its contents again but still, it was not there.

He stood up and looked around the floor, pacing himself around the perimeter of his area. At one point, he even kneeled and bowed down just to look under chairs.

It was still not there.

Jamie stood up, flushed and a paleness was creeping in his face. He has lost it. How could he have lost it? Did Laoghaire take it with her? How would he tell his Mam that he lost a 300-year old family ring? Questions were pouring out his mind and he felt utter despair in the situation.

He wasn’t even supposed to bring it. It was a last minute decision to have it checked and cleaned.

“Looking for this?” Claire lifted the black leather box.

Jamie turned his head so fast, Claire thought he’d trip with his own momentum. But seeing the relief on his face warmed her heart.

“Thank ye!” he sat and moved to get the box but Claire pulled it away. “What’re..?”

“What is this?” she asked genuinely. “Is this what I think it is?”

“Tis’ nothing, Claire” he said, attempting to grab it from her again but was unsuccessful. She gave him a look and he resigned. “Yes. But there’s no need to think about it now, we have exams coming up.”

It wasn’t the same for Claire. The box did cross her mind from time to time since the dinner. But she, too, resigned and gave the box back to Jamie. “Fine, okay. Can I, at least, see it though?” she asked shyly.

“What?”

“Can I see it?”

Oh. Jamie was not expecting that. He didn’t think she’d be interested at all but here they are. He looked around, checking the place. The coffee shop was sparse and there’s no one close enough to pay them attention.

Jamie then focused on her, his eyes boring intently on hers, hoping to convey a certain reverence and seriousness on what he was about to show her. Slowly, he lifted the lid of the box revealing the simple silver ring within, his eyes observing her reaction.

Claire’s eyes focused on the ring as soon it was revealed. She honestly wasn’t expecting anything but if it was an engagement ring, at least, she thought, there’d be a diamond on it.

But this one was as simple a simple band can be and she was captivated by it. “It’s beautiful.”

“I’m glad ye think so. My brother and sister never cared for it…”

“But you do.” she finished and he nodded in agreement. “How old is it?”

“About three centuries old? It has been passed down in my family for generations” Jamie shared but not giving away any more details. That was for another story.

“Alright, I have to be honest” Claire began. “I heard your conversation with Aunt Ellen last dinner. I knew about the box. It was accidental, I promise! I didn’t mean to pry.”

“I’m sorry. This is what I was avoiding. We’re in a tough spot as it is and now this. I’m sorry, Claire. Don’t think about it. I’ll deal with my parents.” Jamie rambled on his apology and closed the box.

“No, no. It’s fine. I know what she meant and I know it’s ultimately up to us.” she moved her hand to comfort him and it landed parallel to where he clutched the box. Jamie startled with the proximity but she didn’t seem to notice and he didn’t move either. “Do you think it’ll buy us time if I wore this?”

“Ye want to wear it?!”

“Why not? If it’ll buy us time, why not? Plus, it looks nothing like an engagement ring. Nobody knows if I’m with someone. If anyone asks where I got it, I’d just say I got it from a vintage store or something old family heirloom.” she reasoned.

Jamie doesn’t look convinced still so Claire held his gaze having some unspoken conversation.

“Only if ye genuinely want to.” he countered.

“I want to”, Claire replied earnestly.

After a beat, Jamie lifted his hand and held it out to hers. “Give me yer hand.”

Claire smiled and handed her left hand to his. At that moment, they felt no awkwardness in their bubble. There was a trust, a knowing, a joy, and an excitement that neither thought of and realized until later. Jamie got the ring from the box and slid it on her ring finger.

A perfect fit.

Jamie wanted to kiss the back of her palm but resisted. Instead, he gave it a gentle squeeze and let it go.

Claire pulled back and proceeded to pull out her books and other stuff on the table and Jamie settled back to his. The rest of the afternoon went by as they normally did until it was time to head home.

#outlander #outlander fanfic #outlander fanfiction #fanfic #fanfiction #jamie fraser #claire fraser #jamie x claire #arranged #arranged au #mia writes #TB writes #Mia finally updates! #thank you readers!

[saylors-universe]

All Hands on Deck, five

Rowaelin Cruise Vacation AU

masterlist here

word count: 5234

[This is an interactive story! I will include Authorʻs Notes throughout the chapters to inform you when to start a particular song that you can find here in the All Hands on Deck playlist (Also can be found on the masterlist). For the best experience, listen with headphones, AND FOLLOW ALONG WITH THE STORY. Please try to use your imagination when listening and reading - live through the words. Have fun :) - Saylor]

-

This week has been HELL. Sorry for the late upload :( Anyways, enjoy the chapter, thanks for reading <3

-

Day 4 - AT SEA - “Todays Cruise Activity: SCAVENGER HUNT from 1-3, Find an activities staff for more info!”

-    Aelin wakes in a soft, ivory, long-sleeve undershirt, light blue dress with a matching white apron. Confused by her attire, she finds two large books in her embrace, like she had cuddled with them in her sleep.      -

[A.N.] Play “Beauty and the Beast Medley” by BYU Vocal Point feat. Lexi Walker now, follow along, and let your imagination put on a show. Find playlist here.

-    Recognizing that sheʻs alone in her dark cabin, she leaves her room and notices no one in the dim, candle-lit hallway. She searches for any sign of life throughout the corridors, navigating through the different levels until she appears in front of the bakery, responsible for divulging her deep cravings of chocolates and treats.     -

Aelin:      LITTLE TOWN, ITʻS A QUIET VILLAGE

               EVERYDAY LIKE THE ONE BEFORE

               LITTLE TOWN, FULL OF LITTLE PEOPLE

               WAKING UP TO SAY

-    Suddenly, as if on cue, a parade of crew and staff appear in a flash mob.  -

Cruise Staff:          BON JOUR,  BON JOUR

-     A baker stands behind the counter, kneading dough.   -

                         BON JOUR, BON JOUR, BON JOUR

Aelin:     THERE GOES THE BAKER WITH HIS TRAY LIKE ALWAYS

               THE SAME OLD BREAD AND ROLLS TO SELL

               EVERY MORNING JUST THE SAME

               SINCE THE MORNING THAT WE CAME 

               TO THIS POOR PROVINCIAL TOWN

Baker:      “Good Morning, Belle”

-     Aelin, puzzled by what is happening and perplexed by why she is compelled to sing, magically transports to The Antica. She is ushered by Emrys and Luca in their cooking attire, along with the rest of the ensemble, who seemed to have rehearsed a big musical number.     -

Emrys:     BE OUR GUEST, BE OUR GUEST

               PUT OUR SERVICE TO THE TEST

               TIE YOUR NAPKIN ROUND YOUR NECK, CHERIE

               AND WE PROVIDE THE REST

               SOUP DE JOUR, HOT HORS DʻOEUVERS

              WHY, WE ONLY LIVE TO SERVE

              TRY THE GREY STUFF, ITʻS DELICIOUS

               DONʻT BELIEVE IT? ASK THE DISHES

              THEY CAN SING, THEY CAN DANCE

               AFTER ALL, MISS, THIS IS FRANCE

               AND A DINNER HERE IS NEVER SECOND BEST

               GO ON UNFOLD YOUR MENU

               TAKE A GLANCE AND THEN YOUʻLL

               BE OUR GUEST, OUI, OUR GUEST, BE OUR GUEST

Ensemble:  BE OUR GUEST, BE OUR GUEST

                   OUR COMMAND IS YOUR REQUEST

                   ITʻS TEN YEARS SINCE WE HAD ANYBODY HERE

                   WEʻRE OBSESSED

                   WITH YOUR MEAL, WITH YOUR EASE

                   YES, INDEED, WE AIM TO PLEASE

                   WHILE THE CANDLESTICKʻS STILL GLOWING

                   LET US HELP YOU, WEʻLL KEEP GOING

-    They all line up and begin a grand kick line.   -

                   COURSE BY COURSE, ONE BY ONE

                  TILL YOU SHOUT, “ENOUGH, IʻM DONE”

                  THEN WEʻLL SEND YOU OFF TO SLEEP AS YOU DIGEST

                  TONIGHT YOUʻLL PROP YOUR FEET UP

                  BUT FOR NOW, LETʻS EAT UP

                  BE OUR GUEST, BE OUR GUEST, BE OUR GUEST

                  PLEASE, BE OUR GUEST

-      Aelin is completely taken aback by the magnificent performance put on by the crew. In awe, she is transported once more to the elegant ballroom, but now she is fitted with a dazzling, gold ballroom gown. A dashingly, groomed Rowan approaches Aelin, wearing a charming black tux. He offers his hand, in silent question for a dance. She places her hand in his and he guides them to the center of the floor where they begin to waltz.       -

Aelin:   TALE AS OLD AS TIME

            TRUE AS IT CAN BE

            BARELY EVEN FRIENDS

            THEN SOMEBODY BENDS, UNEXPECTEDLY

-   Lorcan/Elide, Aedion/Lysandra, Dorian/Manon join them on the dance floor, following along in the waltz as Fenrys and Connal stand by beatboxing.    -

            JUST A LITTLE CHANGE

            SMALL TO SAY THE LEAST

            BOTH A LITTLE SCARED

            NEITHER ONE PREPARED

            BEAUTY AND THE BEAST

            EVER JUST THE SAME

            EVER A SURPRISE

            EVER AS BEFORE

            EVER JUST AS SURE

            AS THE SUN WILL RISE

            CERTAIN AS THE SUN

            TALE AS OLD AS TIME

            SONG AS OLD AS RHYME

            BEAUTY AND THE BEAST

            TALE AS OLD AS TIME

            SONG AS OLD AS RHYME

            BEAUTY AND THE BEAST

            WHOA-OH

“WAKE UP YOU FREAK”

Aelin lurches awake, back in the comfort of her own bed, Manonʻs long, sharp nails digging into her skin.

“OW!,” Aelin massages the crescent indents in her arm.

“You were singing in your sleep ... really loudly. Lys came over to make sure you werenʻt dying, and took a few embarrassing videos of you,”

   Aelin murmurs a defensive sigh and seeks refuge under her comforter, reflecting on her dream, What the fuck? Why did I dream of Rowan? She convinces herself that her subconscious was just playing tricks on her and decided to leave their past in the past. Given the new circumstances, they were merely co-workers, sort of, and nothing would happen between them, well not again. Sheʻs learned what happens when you fall for a Whitethorn, you get your heart broken. 

   She will never forget that afternoon. Rowan had received a large envelope package from Orynth University, his dream school. Aelin, her parents, Maeve, Rowansʻ aunt and legal guardian since the passing of his parents when he was young, his whole family, all gathered in her small living room while he read out his acceptance letter. He was so excited. Not wanting to ruin his news with the sad announcement of her rejection letter, she plastered on a bright smile and consumed the happy energy of the night.

   Once the party turned down, he led her outside on her porch. He knew her better than anyone and could tell that something had been off. She confessed in sobs, excusing that she did not want to take the attention away from his amazing opportunity. He immediately offered to apply to the local college, or other universities in the area, or get a job, anything to stay near her. She forbade him, he had just been accepted to his dream college, where he had been talking about going all his life. She refused to hold him back from his dream so she brought up the option of splitting up, which caused his turn to cry. 

   After hours of tears, talks, and “i love you, to whatever end,” they both agreed to end things, which broke her heart even more. She knew it was mainly her decision, he would have done anything he could to be with her, done long distance, found a different school, anything, but she couldn't let him pass up this opportunity. She wouldn't have been able to live with herself if she had trapped him in their relationship, no matter how much they loved each other, sometimes the best thing you could do for the ones you love, is let them go. 

   The most painful part was watching him leave. Waving him goodbye as he went up the escalator to security of the airport, praying that he didn't look back. He was her first love, she gave her heart to him. They both had decided to end things, but a part of her hated him for leaving, even though she made him. He left. He left her. He left their dreams. He left their plans. He left their future. He left for his dream, his future. She made him leave. She hated herself most of all.

   Now here they are, eight years later, stuck on the same boat and brought together again by Lorcan Salvaterre nonetheless. In spite of the years with other lovers, the years of not keeping in touch, they were in love once, completely in love. Once youʻve had that kind of love, you never stop loving them, they will always carry a piece of your heart. And damn him if he has more than just a piece, Aelin vowed.

   Her mind wandered to the song he played in the ballroom just the other day. “Do you remember when, midnight drives when youʻd sing, Iʻd play you songs you were in...Do you remember when, with Rome below us that day, you said ʻI wish we could stayʻ?” She didn't want to read too much into it, but the song had to be about her. Right? How many people could he have serenaded on a late night drive? How many girls confessed their love for him under the stars and moonlight by the Trevi fountain? “Do you remember when?” Does she remember? How could she ever forget?

   Before she could over-analyze the situation any further, Manon pulled the comforter from her bed. Aelinʻs body went in shock from the sudden lack of warmth protection, the brisk midday cool kissing her skin, and groans a very unladylike curse. 

“Time to get up sleeping beauty, oh Iʻm sorry, Belle I mean,” Manon heaves into cackles. Aelin swears that in another life, Manon was a witch, wicked and ruthless. 

   In a very unusual, chipper mood, Manon getʻs Aelin up to speed on their plans for the day. She had gotten word of a scavenger hunt Dorian was putting on and eagerly volunteered their friend group to participate. 

   The two got ready for the rest of the day and gathered their friends to grab some brunch before their fun activity. While settling into Emrysʻ section of the bar, a few fans tracked them down, asking for pictures and autographs. Meeting their fans had always been Aelinʻs favorite part of what they do, seeing people enjoy their music and support them. Luca treats them to some bacon and eggs, and they snag some fresh chocolate croissants from the nearby bakery. They stay and share many stories and laughs between the court and the chefs, until it is time to find Dorian and begin the scavenger hunt. 

   Aelin wasn't surprised when Manon had been the one to locate him. She couldn't tell if this would be just another chase for Manon. In the past, sheʻs had a difficult time making attachments with people, everyone but Elide it seems. A part of her hopes that Manon would pursue an actually relationship with him, from what she could tell so far, he had a dark, wild spirit about him, one that would challenge her antics quite well. 

“Good afternoon everyone, weʻre just waiting on one more group,” Dorian flashed a wicked grin and a flirty wink in Manonʻs direction. Aelin watched her friendʻs complexion redden and blush as the Cadre arrived, looking as daunting and intimidating as ever.

“Okay letʻs get started shall we? You guys have signed up for the adult scavenger hunt,” he passes out a list of items, “so how this works is you guys will be split up into...,” he counts the nine of them, “two groups. Each groupʻs goal is to take a picture of someone in the group with an item on the list, different items vary on points given based on difficulty or creativity. Without a member of your team in the photo, it will not get points. You guys have two hours and then we will meet back here to go over the photos and assign a winning group. Winners get free drinks at our private island port,” they cheer at the prospect of free alcoholic beverages.

   Dorian splits them up into teams. Team one being Elide, Lorcan, Rowan, Connal, and Lysandra. Team two: Aelin, Manon, Fenrys, Aedion, and Dorian adds himself to even out their numbers. Dorian looks at his timer, “Two hours starting...Now!”

Both teams, consisting of extremely competitive adults, disperse to huddle up with their groups and assess the list of items to find and capture. 

   TAKE A PICTURE WITH....

-  The shipʻs steering wheel  (10 points)

-  A ship staff member AND team member with a chef hat on  (5 points)

-  Someone playing the piano  (3 points, 5+ bonus for video)

-  A King and a Queen  (5 points)

-  Spa brochure signed by spa employee  (5 points)

-  A staff member (the higher rank, the more points)

-  Someone on your team kissing a stranger  (10 points)

-  Yellow Duck  (5 points)

-  Poker chips  (3 points)

-  Someone on your team posing on a stripper pole  (5 points)

-  Drink umbrella  (3 points)

-  Towel animal  (3 points)

-  Someone wearing a sea sickness patch  (3 points)

-  A Conga line   (5 points)

-  A member of your team in the pool   (5 points)

-  Each member of your team with a different drink   (10 points)

-  Someone on your team playing mini golf  (5 points)

-  Someone on your team using exercise equipment   (5 points)

-  The room numbers for the following rooms: 829, 318, 560   (3 points)

-  Ice Cream cone  (3 points)

-  Someone with a bad sunburn  (5 points)

-   Someone dancing inappropriately  (3 points, +5 bonus for video)

-  3 different food menus  (3 points)

-   A performer in full costume with a mask on   (3 points)

-   Someone in a bikini with the life preserver ring   (5 points)

   Aedion takes charge as group leader. They collectively decide to find the rooms 829, 318, and 560 first since it seemed like the most straightforward, and easiest task. The five of them find the room 318 first, take a group selfie in front of the room number, then proceed to do the same with the remaining rooms, ending with 829. 

   They discuss going to their rooms quickly to change into swimsuits, thinking forward to a few of the scavenger hunt items that require either a change of attire, or the possibility of getting wet. Aelin and Manon retreat to their room and change into flattering bikinis, Fenrys and Dorian to their respective rooms to change into swim trunks, and Aedion to his, right across the hall. 

   Fenrys and Dorian, both shirtless and in all their glory, meet the girls in front of their door. “Wow, you look amazing,” Aelin overhears Dorian compliment Manon. The two go off into their own little world, leaving Aelin and Fenrys to get to know each other better. The two immediately click. Fenrys was the perfect balance of funny and flirty, and that kept a beaming smile and standby laugh on Aelinʻs demeanor. They shared a common sense of humor and both were very quick and witty, so they got along very well. 

   Aedion walks out of his cabin in the silliest blue and yellow duck swimming trousers. “Forgot I brought these,” he fibs, his face plastering a bright ruby shade. The four stay silent for a few seconds, really trying to hold in their laughter. Aelin was the first to break and the rest followed. 

“Ha-ha, laugh all you want, but I just got us 5 points,” he pulls out his phone and takes a selfie of him in his swim trucks, pointing out the yellow duck. “I also snapped a pic with the towel animal in our room, so thatʻs checked off.”

Whenever room service came by to turn in their room, theyʻd leave towels intricately folded into cute animals, todayʻs was a small elephant. 

“Okay whatʻs next boss?” Fenrys says once calmed down. 

Aedion reviews the list once again and the his head darts up, “Hey Ace, youʻre using those sea sickness patches right?”

“Everyday,” she nods and then he whips his phone around to get a selfie with her, folding her ear to show the small, circular patch behind.

“Okay weʻve got the rooms, the towel animal, the yellow duck, and the seasickness patch. Good start guys. Fen you know where the gym is?”

“Yes, sir,” he answers, flexing his biceps. Manon rolls her eyes and falls in line when Fenrys guides the team to the gym onboard. It was a large, well equipped workout room, only a few people occupying different machines. Treadmills lined the mirror wall, cycle bikes adjacent to those. There were squat racks, dumbbells, bench presses, pull up bars, lat pulldown machines, leg press machines, pretty much everything Aelin used in her normal, rigorous routine. 

   Aelin adjusts the squat rack to her height, leveling it at around her chest height, and loads 250 lbs. to the bar. The mens eyesʻ widen, in disbelief that this quaint creature could support that much weight. Aedion knew however, that she had been training all her life. Physical fitness had always been important to her so she made sure she worked out regularly and vigorously. She turns back to Fenrys, “Spot me?”

“My pleasure,” he purrs expecting to rescue this damsel in distress who is in way over her head. He takes position right behind her. With Aelin in just her bikini and Fenrys his trunks, his bare, sculpted chest was flush behind her bare back, her exposed legs guarded by his. 

   Manon opens her phone, prepared to capture the task on video, also hoping to capture Fenrys and Dorianʻs expression. Aelin balances the bar across her shoulders, lifts the bar and steps back from the rack. She manages about eight reps of correctly formed squats with ease, Fenrys following down with her in every one. 

   She hears the gym door open, Rowan and his team had the same idea and came to use some exercise equipment to check it off their list. Their glances met once in the mirror, then quickly, deliberately broke. She canʻt quite explain why she suddenly felt guilty, as if she had been caught doing something wrong, being in the position she was with Fenrys. So she returns to the rack and sets the bar down, finally starting to feel some burn in her glutes. 

“Damn Aelin, thatʻs impressive,” Dorian praises.

“Thanks, letʻs get out of here and go find more of our items.” They leave the gym, letting the other team to make use of the space. 

   They were near the casino and club so Dorian suggested they find what items they could there. Finding and snapping a photo with poker chips were a breeze. They ran across a stripper pole in the dance club and Fenrys stopped to model a sexy, scandalous pose on the pole and Aelin held the photoshoot, both of them giggling endlessly. 

   The team found the show girl performers walking around the club in their full outfit and masquerade mask. Aelin snapped a photo with two of them wrapped around Fenrys shoulders. 

   Drawing from the same chaotic, wild energy, Aelin and Fenrys started a conga line in the club to which Manon, Dorian, Aedion and many strangers added onto. Aelin at the front of the line, selfie recorded a crazy, upbeat video of the dance. 

   The team takes a breather at the bar, trusting the bar tender with the choice of drink for each person as long as she made each drink different. They also requests that one came with an umbrella. Fenrys, being friendly and personable as always, makes conversation with the bartender Ansel, sliding a few flirty remarks in here and there. She takes note of his group and promises to take good care of them, she says with a wink. 

   Ansel prepares their drinks based on what she felt from each person, giving Aedion a Sazerac, Dorian the AMF (Adios Motherfucker), Manon the Aunt Roberta, Fenrys a jungle juice with an umbrella, and Aelin a Tequila Blue Blazer that she lit on fire. They took a group selfie with their drinks, the umbrella and Ansel, then downed their drinks. 

   After another strong drink, Aelin starts to feel a little buzzed. She grabs Manon and they take stage on one of the clubʻs platforms, matching the rhythm of the loud music. They dance with each other, on each other, skin on skin, lips nearly touching, earning the attention of most of the men in the room. Itʻs Fenrys turn to be behind the camera, recording the show, and he enjoys every second of it. 

Their team leader does his duty and puts the pin in their fun, “We better go look for the last few things on the list, Dorian how much time do we have?”

“A little less than an hour”

“Come on guys,” Aedion gathers his team members like a chaperoning parent.

   Aelin has a light bulb moment and shares, “Oh I know where we can find a piano,” she leads them to the ballroom, the grand piano vacant and begging to be played. She sits at the keys, closes her eyes and plays.

[A.N.] Play “Symphony (feat. Zara Larsson) - Acoustic Version” by Clean Bandit now, follow along and let your imagination do itʻs job. Find playlist here.

-  Aedion starts recording.   -

Aelin:    IʻVE BEEN HEARING SYMPHONIES

             BEFORE ALL I HEARD WAS SILENCE

             A RHAPSODY FOR YOU AND ME

             AND EVERY MELODY IS TIMELESS

             LIFE WAS STRINGINʻ ME ALONG

             THEN YOU CAME AND YOU CUT ME LOOSE

             WAS SOLO, SINGINʻ ON MY OWN

             NOW I CANʻT FIND THE KEY WITHOUT YOU

             AND NOW YOUR SONG IS ON REPEAT

             AND IʻM DANCINʻ ONTO YOUR HEARTBEAT

             AND WHEN YOUʻRE GONE I FEEL INCOMPLETE

             SO, IF YOU WANT THE TRUTH

             I JUST WANNA BE PART OF YOUR SYMPHONY

             WILL YOU HOLD ME TIGHT AND NOT LET GO?

             SYMPHONY

             LIKE A LOVE SONG ON THE RADIO

             WILL YOU HOLD ME TIGHT AND NOT LET GO?

             IʻM SORRY IF ITʻS ALL TOO MUCH

             BUT EVERY DAY YOUʻRE HERE, IʻM HEALINʻ

             AND I WAS RUNNINʻ OUTTA LUCK

             I NEVER THOUGHT IʻD FIND THIS FEELING

             ʻCAUSE IʻVE BEEN HEARINʻ SYMPHONIES

              BEFORE ALL I HEARD WAS SILENCE

             A RHAPSODY FOR YOU AND ME

             AND EVERY MELODY IS TIMELESS

-    Manon moves to sit beside Aelin on the piano bench.    -

Aelin and Manon:     AND NOW YOUR SONG IS ON REPEAT

                                 AND IʻM DANCING ONTO YOUR HEARTBEAT

                                AND WHEN YOUʻRE GONE I FEEL INCOMPLETE

                                SO, IF YOU WANT THE TRUTH

Aelin:    I JUST WANNA BE PART OF YOUR SYMPHONY

            WILL YOU HOLD ME TIGHT AND NOT LET GO?

            SYMPHONY

            LIKE A LOVE SONG ON THE RADIO

            WILL YOU HOLD ME TIGHT AND NOT LET GO?

-     The women lean into each other.    -

Aelin and Manon:     Ah-Ah-Ah-Aah-Ah-Ah-Ah

                                 Ah-Ah-Ah-Aah-Ah-Ah-Ah

                    AND NOW YOUR SONG IS ON REPEAT

                    AND IʻM DANCING ONTO YOUR HEARTBEAT

                    AND WHEN YOUʻRE GONE I FEEL INCOMPLETE

                    SO, IF YOU WANT THE TRUTH

Aelin:      OH

           I JUST WANNA BE PART OF YOUR SYMPHONY

           WILL YOU HOLD ME TIGHT AND NOT LET GO?

           SYMPHONY

           LIKE A LOVE SONG ON THE RADIO

          OH, SYMPHONY

           WILL YOU HOLD ME TIGHT AND NOT LET GO?

           SYMPHONY

           LIKE A LOVE SONG ON THE RADIO

           WILL YOU HOLD ME TIGHT AND NOT LET GO?

   The ballroom fills with applause and the boastful cheers from the men. The girls sarcastically get up and bow, like after a recital performance. Realizing that they donʻt have much time, they rush to the Lido deck and seek out Emrys and Luca. 

   They track the two down and ask for a picture, Aelin stands in between the them and as Aedion counts down, “Say cheese, one...two..” Aelin swipes Lucaʻs chef hat and put itʻs on quickly as the picture snaps. They look over the photo and laugh at a mischievous grin on Aelinʻs face and a confused, grumpy Luca not looking at the camera but instead at Aelin.

   Having another bright idea, Aelin runs to the large chess board game on the deck and catches a selfie with the giant King and Queen chess pieces. When she returns to Emrysʻ station, a familiar back is seated in the stool she was just accompanying, and she had another brilliant idea.

“Sam? Hi,” he turns and realizes who she was.

“Oh hi!,” he responds kindly, “Iʻm sorry, I donʻt think I got your name.”

“Aelin,” she gives her hand out for a handshake, he returns with a firm, grip.

“Well itʻs nice to officially meet you, Aelin,” her cheeks warm.

“This may seem like a forward request, but is there anyway my friends and I could see the shipʻs steering wheel? Iʻm told youʻre the captain,” she smirks.

He chuckles, “One of them yes, and totally, let me take you guys.”

   She gets Manon, Aedion, Dorian, and Fenrys and introduces them to Sam and vice versa, mentioning that heʻs the captain and heʻll be showing them the ships steering wheel. He leads them to the command bridge, on the way Manon pulls her aside.

“Ace we can knock out three birds with one stone,”

“What are you talking about?” Aelin says, not quite understanding.

“Kiss him in front of the steering wheel.”

“What?”

“In the photo weʻll have the steering wheel, check, a team member kissing a stranger, check, and a staff member (the higher rank, the more points) aka, CAPTAIN! 3 items, one picture, plus we donʻt have much time left, come on.”

Pressured by the time constraint, Aelin caves. “Fine. Have your phone ready.”

   Aelin hurries back to the front near Fenrys and Sam, staying close to both. They make it to the command bridge and Sam gives them a tour of the different controls, putting on his captainʻs cap, a look that suited him, Aelin thought. 

They stood in front of the steering wheel and Aelin quietly asked Sam, “I apologize, another forward request,”

“Iʻm getting the feeling that thatʻs your thing,” he whispers back. She softly snickers.

“Could I kiss you?”

   Obviously taken off guard, Sam blushes, then cups Aelinʻs face in his hands and brushes a soft, sensual kiss to her lips. Manon takes the photo. Aelin melts in his touch, returning the kiss with more fervor. Aedionʻs forced cough ruins the moment, the two disconnecting, both with warm, rosy complexions.

“Um, thank you for the tour, we have to go now,” Aedion says plainly. Manon and Dorian quietly laugh and the group make their leave, Aelin joins once out of earshot. 

   They return to the Lido deck and split up to try and get the last few items on the list. Aedion assigns himself to find the ice cream and the 3 food menus, Manon and Dorian volunteer for the spa brochure and mini golf game, and they go their separate ways. 

   Aelin and Fenrys stand at the edge of the pool when he turns his back to the pool and faces her.

“You know, I must confess, I find you extremely attractive,” he professes.

“Is that so, pretty boy?” She moves her palms to lay flat on his chest, looking up to him. She starts to tippy-toe, and he leans forward in for a kiss. When their faces get an inch apart she pushes him forward, he flails into the pool, and she laughs her guts out.

   She whips out her phone and takes a photo of an unamused, cock-blocked Fenrys in the pool. She looks around the pool, looking for a life preserver ring nearby. She catches sight of one hooked up to the deck railing. She releases it and returns to the pool, Fenrys just getting out, dripping water everywhere. 

   She hands him the phone and he snaps a few photos of her posing in her bikini with the life preserver ring, satisfied and proud of his work, he whistles back up at his model.

   Dorian and Manon return warning them that it is time to meet back with the other team. Aedion returns shortly after with a mustache of ice cream. Aelin cleans him up and they travel back to their meeting place to determine a winning team. 

   Team one shows their photos and videos first. They had mainly the same idea as Aelinʻs group. For their King and Queen item, they took a photo of the King and Queen from a standard deck of cards. For their yellow duck, Lysandra took a picture of Aedionʻs matching boxer briefs to his trunks, the whole group found that humorous, but made sure he didn't feel embarrassed of his attire choices. One of the photos that Aelin picked out was their kissing stranger photo. In the frame was Rowan kissing a pale blonde woman with bright, cerulean eyes. 

“Ro, is that Remelle?” Fenrys asks, also pointing out the photo. 

“Yeah, Benson and Essar are here too,” Rowan responds, the first thing sheʻs heard him say all day. 

“Whoʻs Remelle?” Aelin asks, trying not to seem too eager to know.

“Remelle, Benson, and Essar are our regular groupies, they follow us literally everywhere we go, theyʻre at every show, every concert. Pretty much our biggest fans,” Fenrys informs her.

“Biggest stalkers,” Lorcan corrects.

“Still strangers though, they know everything about us, we know nothing about them really,” Connal defends, making the record clear that the photo is still valid. 

   Team two takes their turn showing their photos and videos. Fenrys emphasizing Aelinʻs squat video, her and Manonʻs dancing pictures, their song, and the photos he just took of her and the life preserver ring. The other team, especially Elide and Lysandra, hype her and Manon up, calling them “hotties” and a “baddies” every so often.

   Manon shows the photo of Aelin and Sam. Elide and Lys gasp, “Is that THE Sam?” Aelin laughs and nods. “Good work Ace.”

   Dorian calculates the final points and calls for attention.

“Great job today everyone, you all did amazing. Results are in, team one got 112 points,” everyone applauses in congratulations, “and team two got 124, congratulations team two!” 

   Everyone cheers and congratulates each other, very maturely and sportsman-like. They spend the rest of the afternoon splashing each other and playing in the pool.

Night 4 - AT SEA - “No band performance tonight, Live Crew Performances during Dinner!

   The two bands stayed in the water for hours, playing throughout the glorious sunset. They had definitely gotten closer, more comfortable with each other. Throughout the play fighting they discussed possibly teaming up on shows and performing together. Itʻs an idea. It would probably be really fun, adding a different dynamic to both groups.

   Aelin notices Rowan laying on a pool deck chair, staring into the sky. She exits the pool, dries off a little and joins him, laying down on the deck chair next to him, star gazing into the extraordinary abyss of light. Heʻs the first one to break the silence.

“Lyria was really into astronomy,” he chocked a little, not enough to pick up unless you knew him, “she knew all the constellations by name, all the galaxies,” his gaze never leaving the cosmos. “Sometimes I like to think that sheʻs one of these stars now, burning bright, watching over me every night.”

“She soundʻs incredible. I wish I could have met her”

He smiles, “I think you would have liked her.”

She turns her head, adjusting her arm to rest her head on her forearm, facing him. “Tell me more about her?”

   He obliges. He tells the story of how he and Lyria first met, running into each other on their way to class, dropping all her books and supplies and bumping heads when they both reached down to pick them up. He shares of their first date, their first kiss. 

   She couldn't remember being tired but something about Rowanʻs voice soothed her into submission, her eyelids dropping with weight. Before she knew it she passed out, falling asleep right there on a deck chair, listening to her ex talk about his dead fiance. 

   When she finally awoke in the middle of the night, she was back in her bed, her comforter tucked into her sides. How did I make it back here? She didnʻt have the energy to investigate her questions, the night claimed her once again and she drifted off one last time. 

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

All Hands on Deck taglist:   bolded tags aren't taggable, lmk what I can do

@smalltddygothgf 

@booksbqueen

@underworldboxers

@live-the-fangirl-life

@islabyrnex

@kathi2599​

@booknerdproblems​ 

@rowaelinismyotp​ 

#all hands on deck #rowaelin #aelin galythinius #rowan whitethorn #throne of glass #throne of glass fanfic #tog #manon blackbeak #manorian #dorian havilliard #fenrys moonbeam #elide x lorcan #aedion x lysandra #cruise

[lameykindaworld]

Skateboarding and Snowboarding Aren’t the Same

Summary: Langa teaches Reki how to snowboard

Rating: General Audiences

AO3 Link

“Alright, how does it feel?” Langa asked.

“Umm…” Reki shifted the weight on his feet and moved around a bit.

When Langa had offered to teach him how to snowboard, Reki had jumped at the idea. However, now that he has a board attached to his feet and is slowly growing cold, he isn't sure how to feel.

“I guess it feels okay.”

They currently are standing on the flats near the lodge. He was borrowing one of Langa’s old boards and also his helmet. When Reki asked what helmet Langa would wear, Langa had only laughed and said, If I crash on the bunny hill I deserve it. Trust me, you’ll need it more than me.

“Try moving around a bit. Waddle and stuff. Get used to it. Then I can teach you how to actually move around on the flats,” Langa instructs.

Reki wiggles his feet a bit, he doesn’t fall. He twists his body and board, he doesn’t fall. He tries to jump, and right as he started to feel like he landed it, his board slipped out from under him and he fell. Reki lands on his butt with a curse, and when he looks up, Langa is smirking at him.

“What’s with that look?” Reki demands, getting back onto his feet.

“Oh nothing, just enjoying your pain.”

Reki sputters, “What? Why?!”

“After having you witness me trying to skateboard for the first time, it’s nice to see you struggle a bit.” Reki shoves Langa hard, but it only results in him losing balance. Flapping his arms in an attempt to save himself, he feels himself losing the battle to gravity. In a frantic attempt to save himself, he grabbed Langa to steady himself. That only made Langa smirk more.

Damn him.

After Reki is steady, Langa goes and grabs his board. He comes back over a second later and starts strapping in his right foot. “Okay, enough screwing around. Unstrap your right foot and we can practice moving on the flats.”

Reki lets out a sigh, he hopes falling won’t become too much of a habit. He reaches down and starts working on freeing his right foot. “So when are we going to use that fancy chair lift thing you were telling me about?”

Langa thinks for a second, “Maybe after lunch.”

“After lunch?!” Reki exclaims, it was 9 in the morning, they had just started!

“Well, we have to get you turning and stopping on the magic carpet before you can ride a chairlift. Otherwise you will find yourself careening down a hill with no way to stop. Also I am not sure what the learning curve will look like with your skateboarding background.”

Well, then.

After he gets his foot out, Langa shows him how to use his free foot to push himself around. For Reki, it was a bit of a learning curve to have his front foot attached at a 90 degree angle to the board, but he eventually figured it out. Surprisingly it was easier to push with his foot in front of the board rather than the behind like he would do for skateboarding.

Soon enough he was comfortably moving around across the snow.

“This isn’t that bad--” Reki couldn’t even finish his sentence before he hit an icy patch, he lost his balance, and the board flew out from under him. “Ow…”

Langa only snickered, but after a couple more minutes, Langa announced Reki was ready for the magic carpet.

•••

The magic carpet turned out to be a very small section of hill that was fenced off for the beginners. A small conveyor belt that you step on and brings you up the hill, giving it the magic carpet name. That was all fine. However, every single other person there besides Langa and Reki was either a child, a parent, or a teacher. Not only that, but Reki kept having to dodge small children that came careening down the hill.

“Do we really have to start here? I feel like I am accidentally going to clothesline a child,” Reki complained.

Langa shook his head, “Yep. So come on.”

Langa glides over and onto the magic carpet with ease. When Reki tried to do the same, his board started moving before he could really process what was happening. He feels gravity take control and soon he’s falling over into the snow mound on the side of the magic carpet.

“What are you, a newbie?”

Reki looks up and makes eye contact with a small boy on a pair of tiny skis. “Uh… yeah.”

The little boy shook his head and shoved Reki’s board off the carpet. Reki stared, flabbergasted, as the kid easily stepped onto the conveyor belt and went up the hill. Halfway up the hill, the boy made eye contact with him and stuck out his tongue.

Reki groaned, that 5 year old really just showed him up.

“Come one Reki!” He heard Langa call from the top, “If it’s easier you can just take off your board and walk up the hill.”

That sounded like a much better idea.

After walking up the hill, Reki straps the board back on his feet and starts learning how to actually snowboard.

He learns to stop on both his front and back edge. Then he works on turns which take forever. More often than not, when Reki tries to turn, he ends up careening down the hill barely being able to stop himself from running into a child.

“Reki, you aren’t doing it correctly.”

Langa is a bad teacher.

“Like I don’t know that,” Reki yells back up the hill before falling on his back in the snow.

A second later, Reki hears the recognizable sound of a snowboard stopping and looks up to see Langa.

“You need to shift your weight from toes to heels, then to turn the other way, go from heels to toes. With your skateboarding background it shouldn’t be that hard.” Langa crouches down next to him and pokes him on the forehead.

Reki groans and curls in on himself. “It’s different when you have a board that will go every which way! I keep turning in circles…”

“Come on.” Langa grabs Reki’s arm and starts pulling him up. “Once you get the turns down we can go take a break and get hot cocoa.”

Now that’s more like it.

•••

An hour later Reki can finally turn somewhat consistently and stop without falling over. Which in his books, is a success. So that means he now finds himself squished next to Langa in a crowded lodge drinking hot chocolate.

“Hmmm.” Reki lets the steam from the cup warm his face. The lodge is a huge building with plenty of room, yet the entire cafeteria area, and waiting areas, are full of people. Reki and Langa had tried to find a table to sit at in the cafeteria, but every table was in use. That left them to check the lobby where they found a spot at a small bench that was more of a seat and barely fit both of them.

“Mhmm,” is all Langa said in reply. Langa’s face was frost bitten and red, his hair all messed up from his hat. He looked all raggedy, it was cute.

“So what do you think of my progress?”

“Well, it’s a little different than I expected. What normal beginners are good at you failed, but what beginners usually fail at you succeeded. I guess your muscle memory is to blame,” Langa said, shrugging and taking another sip of cocoa. “Though, if you feel up to it, we could go to the chair lift now and eat a late lunch to avoid crowds. It’s about 11 now, so we could go back out and eat lunch at 1:30 or so.”

Reki felt his heart leap. “The lift!”

“Yep.”

“But you said after lunch?”

“Well, you can stop fine and you’ve crashed plenty while you skateboard, so I figure you are more of a harm to yourself than others so we should be fine.”

•••

Thirty minutes later and Reki was not fine.

Firstly, Langa spent five minutes explaining how to get on and off the chairlift. In theory it made sense. When he got on, Langa asked the attendant to slow down the lift, so he got on fine. However, when they got to the top, the chairlift did not slow down. While getting off Reki panicked and screwed up, resulting in himself crashing into Langa. They both fell to the ground in a heap and the whole chair lift had to be stopped.

Next, he went down the hill. It was all fine and dandy till a little kid on skis came barreling down the hill and cut him off. To avoid crushing the child, who was easily a third of his size, Reki had to bail. Which meant falling on his butt to stop quick enough, and the force of the action hurt so bad it was for sure going to bruise.

Finally, right as he was gaining speed in his turns, Reki’s legs froze up. It was probably his fifth time going down this run, and he finally felt he was getting the hang of it. However, he chickened out on a turn and found himself careening nose first down the hill. He probably wasn’t going all that fast compared to his skateboarding, but without the ability to bail and a board attached to his feet, Reki was terrified.

“Langa!” Reki yelled as he tried to stop, he couldn't get the board to turn, he felt frozen. Everytime he tried to stop, the board would wobble and Reki would freak out.

“Put your weight on your heels!” He heard Langa yell from somewhere behind him.

Oh yeah!

He shifted his weight and the board went horizontal to the slope, but with that much speed, and not enough control, his back hit the ground followed by his head. He felt his head rattle in his helmet as he spun around multiple times before coming to a stop.

“Ow…” he muttered, closing his eyes. t makes more sense now that you mostly get bruises and broken bones…

A second later he heard Langa stop beside him. “Are you okay? That was a pretty hard crash.”

Reki just groaned and shook his head. “I think I’m done now.”

#sk8 the infinity #reki kyan #langa hasegawa #sk8 #fanfic #fanfiction

[demivampirew]

Keep Calm and Go to London chapter 15

Synopsis: This is the story of (y/n), a successful actress, musician, musical producer and songwriter. After battling depression and breaking up a long relationship, she seeks for a change of air, escaping LA for a while going to visit some friends in London and there she meets Henry. -Disclaimer: some chapters are mostly smut.

Previous Chapters:

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Triggers:   talking about body image issues, low self-steem; bullying; mention of sex; talking about kids.

Tag list: Here’s the incredible people who showed me support (thank  you    so much for that) and people who asked me to tag them too  ☺️   (I    think I will write a few chapters of this story, if you want me to  tag    you, tell me ☺️   ) @cavillanche @mary-ann84 @henry-owns-these-tatas @yespolkadotkitty @dancingwendigo   constip8merm8    penwieldingdreamer iloveyouyen  littlefreya  wondersofdreaming   alyxkbrl solariumss  sweetybuzz25 @thethirstyarchive @agniavateira   @honeyloverogers @hell1129-blog   @lunedelorient​  @michelle-1185​  

Disclaimer: First, there’s a song that reader writes for Henry; of course I’m not a songwriter - as much as I’d loved to- so the song is actually a song from Hannah Montana (yes, laugh but the song it’s perfect for him ♥). Second and lastly, you may not feel as reader relatable in some things, especially in this chapter, but I hope that you still can enjoy it.

Since you started to date Henry, those days of hating your body and yourself were starting to be part of the past. There was no doubt that he desired you and you were perfect on his eyes and made you feel perfect. You could be without any makeup and a simple ponytail or a bun and wearing pyjamas and he'd still made you feel like the most gorgeous woman on earth. You still enjoyed to get dress and wear makeup because it made you feel even better. Most days you felt amazing and the self-bullying started to fade out. But, you still have those days in which you didn't felt confident and beautiful. This was one of those days. You got up and try to put a pair of jeans and ended tossed them out and choosing a pair of leggings instead because the jeans didn't fit you so well anymore. Since the quarantine began, you felt a bit more anxious than usual, so you started to eat a bit more, and the fact that your amazing boyfriend loved to bake bread, cookies and other delicious pastries and meals didn't help you at all. You could go to exercise and your only cardio was the long love-making sessions with Henry every night, that made you burn calories, but no as much as you were consuming. You went to see Henry and seeing him made you feel worse. Contrary to you, he was losing weight but gaining muscle. He trained during the day with some gym stuff and sex made him burn more calories than you. You hated your slow metabolism. He was looking hot as hell and you felt the complete opposite. - Good morning, baby. I made you breakfast.- he greeted you as soon as he saw you. "Great," you thought sarcastically when you saw the waffles waiting for you. - Is there anything wrong? - he asked you detecting that you didn't really mean that. - I'm not hungry, that's all.- you replied, offering a smile. - You have to eat. Sit- he indicated you. - I don't want to - you said, pouting. - What's going on? - he questioned, worried. - I've gained weight. I cannot wear my jeans because they feel really tight and uncomfortable. - Sorry to hear that, but don't you worry. I'm pretty sure when this is all over you will lose that weight or just get new jeans. You look amazing, there's nothing to worry about. I assure you. - That's because you're a man and you're super hot. With me is different. If I get just a few pounds, I'll be all over the internet with people saying that I'm fat. That's what they do to us in Hollywood. - Don't pay attention to what people say about you. Somebody will always look for something to hurt you, just don't let them get to you. You are perfect now and will be perfect always, no matter how you look. - he said as he grabbed your face and gave you a kiss.- And by the way, men also suffer those things. - he said and he sat on a chair and made you sit on his lap.- I was bullied as a kid for being overweight. It affected me a lot and till this day does, maybe not every day, but it definitely makes me feel bad sometimes. Some days, I don't understand why you or anyone would think I'm "sexy" or why you'd like to be with me in the first place. Other days, very often, I feel this pressure of maintaining my muscles and being fit, because I feel like you'd not like to be with me if I don't look ripped and also, I'd trouble with the roles. - he explained looking at the floor as he talked. You grabbed his chin and kissed him. - Sorry baby, I didn't know that. I assure you that no matter your looks, I'll always want you. - your arms were around his neck, resting on his left shoulder. You put your head next to his. After a bit, you ate breakfast and asked him to follow you to the living room. He waited for you there as you went into another room in the house and soon appear with your acoustic guitar. You sat on the couch and he pulled a chair to sit in front of you as you prepared to play something. - When I was in LA, I wrote you a song. I tried to speak a little bit your language, cowboy. -you said winking at him and made him laugh. - Really? - he asked excitedly. - Yes. I hope you like it. - you said and started to play the song for him.

Smooth talkin', so rockin' He's got everything that a girl's wantin' He's a cutie, he plays it groovy And I can't keep myself from doin' somethin' stupid Think I'm really fallin' for his smile Yeah, butterflies when he says my name Hey! He's got somethin' special He's got somethin' special And when he's lookin' at me I wanna get all sentimental He's got somethin' special He's got somethin' special I can hardly breathe somethin's tellin' me Tellin' me maybe he could be the one He could be the one, he could be the one He could be the one, he could be the one He could be the one He's lightnin', sparks are flyin' Everywhere I go he's always on my mind and I'm goin' crazy about him lately And I can't help myself from how my heart is racin' Think I'm really diggin' on his vibe He really blows me away, hey! He's got somethin' special He's got somethin' special And when he's lookin' at me I wanna get all sentimental He's got somethin' special He's got somethin' special I can hardly breathe somethin's tellin' me Tellin' me maybe he could be the one He could be the one, he could be the one He could be the one, he could be the one He could be the one And he's got a way of makin' me feel Like everything I do is perfectly fine The stars are aligned when I'm with him And I'm so into it! He's got somethin' special He's got somethin' special And when he's lookin' at me I wanna get all sentimental He's got somethin' special He's got somethin' special I can hardly breathe somethin's tellin' me Tellin' me maybe he could be the one He could be the one, he could be the one He could be the one, he could be the one He could be the one

Henry couldn't stop smiling. He was so happy and you were over the moon knowing that it was you who made him feel that way. Seeing him so happy was the best feeling in the world. - I don't know what I like the most: the song or your voice? Mmm, let's called it a tie. - I'm glad you like it. - I loved it. - he assured you - So tell me, do you really think I could be "the one"? - he questioned, raising one eyebrow and putting and puppy face. - I think you are the one. - you replied. - I feel the same way about you.- he kissed you. Then, he sat on the couch and you used his thighs to sit on. You kissed for a little bit and then just caressed each other and talked for a bit about things like video games, the music you were working on while quarantining and his hobbies of painting little action figures of his favourite online game. After a bit of silence, you got lost on your train of thoughts. He also believed you were the one for him. Something inside of you told you it was time to confess to him that you've been postponing since you two became a thing. You sighed and decided to let it out. - Babe, there's something we need to talk about.- you said sweetly but let him know that was a serious topic. - Sure, is there something wrong? he asked worriedly. - You want to be a dad, right? - you put it as a question, but it was more a statement rather than a question. - Yes, I'd like to have kids, why do you ask? - I knew it since the beginning. With you is obvious that you want that and that someday you'll be an amazing dad. - you said and then paused for a minute while he looked at you confused - I've never wanted to be a mother. Kids were never part of my future and I don't let me get started in the idea of being pregnant, it scares the shit out of me. - you finally admitted. - I wanted to tell you about the beginning but then I really liked you and wanted to be with you. I didn't know that we actually would become a couple later on the road. And I like you so bad that I was afraid you would leave me, so I couldn't find the courage to tell you. - Henry remained silent. He didn't seem mad at you for not talk to him about it earlier; he was just trying the process the information and also he looked sad. You grabbed his chin and made him look at you.- It's crazy how in one month and a half you change my world completely. I like you so much. I know that we have a long road to ride, if we remain together, so we'll still have to get to know each other better to be 100% sure that the other is "the one" for us. I knew that, but I also knew that the kids thing was something important, so I've been thinking about it, a lot. I've questioned myself is motherhood is something I could do someday. Since I started to think about it, there's a picture -well, is more a scene than a picture- that keep popping in my head: A big garden on autumn, with the leafs falling from the trees and there's you, playing superheroes with a little kid, our kid. Kal is with you two. And me, inside the house, sipping hot tea while I watch you from the window with a smile in my face. Every time that scene appears on my head, I smile; I feel truly happy. But when I think about I'm still sitting on the fence. I think it could be something I would like to do with you, but I have to be completely sure. It isn't just about me or you, there's another life involved in this decision. So the reason I'm telling you all this is because I wanted to ask you to give me some time. I wanna go through all of this in therapy to know for sure I'll make what's best for everyone. If someday I realized I cannot do it, I'll step aside and let you go and find the person who can give you that. I'd never take that away from you. I hope that is me if we still are together, but if not, I'll let you go. But to know all of this, I need time. Do you think you could give that to me? I understand if you want to end this here because you want to be now with someone who's sure about wanting children, though. - you finished. There was a moment of silence. Henry was looking again at the floor, thinking. After a minute, he finally spoke. - That scene. I want it. With you. - he replied and looked into your eyes.- If you tell me that there's even a small possibility that someday that could be a reality, I assure you that I'll give you all the time you need. -he said and stroke your cheeks. You smiled at him and shared a sweet kiss.

#henry cavill #henry cavill fanfic #henry cavill x reader #demivampirew

[jbbarnesnnoble]

Hello lovely people! And welcome to my first writting challenge. The aim of this challenge is to shine a light on mental health, medical conditions, and the things that can have impacts on us. This started out initially being a PCOS Awareness challenge but through conversations on the TCC discord, it’s become a challenge surrounding mental health in general. 

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. The goal of this challenge is to lift each other up, and show that it’s okay not to be okay. Spread some love and light during a challenging time in the world to those who struggle with chronic illness, depression, anxiety, self-esteem issues, grief, PCOS, acceptance from their families and communities for being LGBT+, and anyone struggling with insecurity. 

This challenge will run through September 15th, 2020. It will run through part of Mental Health Awareness Month, through Pride Month, and through part of PCOS Awareness Month. I probably have too many prompts, but I wanted to ensure that there was a wide array to choose from. 

The Rules:

1. Utilize resources available online if you’re dealing with subject matter you’re not that familiar with. I’m not going to go all “cite sources” on y’all, but please do make sure to do your research. Writing about some of these issues can be hard if you don’t have first hand knowledge of how it can affect you. The goal of this challenge is to write about topics that we tend to shy away from, that many of us struggle with, from mental health struggles to chronic illnesses to low-self esteem. A gentle reminder that if you think writing about a subject will be triggering for you, please look after yourself first. 

2. Use #JBBNNMHAMChallenge to tag your fic

3. Dark!Fic- I was up in the air on allowing dark!fic in the challenge. Due to the subject matter involved in this challenge, please don’t submit dark!fic. I enjoy dark fics, but this challenge isn’t the place for them.

4. Smut- Smut is welcome! Make sure you tag it appropriately. 

5. No inc*st, dubcon/noncon, underage, etc 

6. Ships- I prefer reader inserts, but show me what ya got 

7. Selecting Prompts: Just let me know which one you want to do! 2 people per prompt! The song prompts have a line from them under it. You DO NOT need to use the line in your submission! It’s mostly to help you decide if you’re interested in a song before you take a listen to it. The song prompts are broken down into ‘support’, ‘general’, and ‘grief’ but feel free to use them as you see fit. I categorized them mostly for organization 

8. Trigger Warnings: Use warnings as needed. Fics dealing with depression, anxiety, eating disorders, or other mental health issues should be tagged appropriately to ensure that readers that may be triggered by the subject matter can avoid the fic. Trigger warnings are non-negotiable

The prompts are under the cut! 

Prompts:

Dialogue Prompts:

“You never have to ask, you know that right? Say the word, and I’ll do it.” ( @whistlingwillows​ )

“Would you believe me if I said it’s because I love you? I’d give you the world if you asked.” ( @jbbuckybarnes )

“I promise you. One day, it will get easier. Those feelings might never fully go away, but it will get easier.” ( @imnotasuperhero​ )

“You ever feel like you can’t breathe? Like the whole world is collapsing in on itself and no one notices? No one cares? Like you can’t escape it?” ( @nekoannie-chan )

“It’d probably be easier if you left”

“Please leave me alone”

“I said I don’t want to talk about it. What part of that is hard for you to understand?” ( @sweetwritesx​ )

“I wish I could believe you when you said that.” ( @evansweaters ) 

“How do you even begin to move on?” ( @blackwidowballet )

“You sure about that, moonman?” 

“I don’t know. All I do know is I don’t belong here” (@buckybarnesplumwhore​)

“That’s not true. And I will tell you that every day of your life until you believe me.” 

Sentence Prompts:

Feel free to adjust the pronouns as needed 

It was a day. It was the only way it could be described.

The feeling stuck like super glue, unable to be shaken away with a few whispered words and comforting hugs. ( @buckybarney ) 

You never knew something could hurt like this, that emotional pain could resonate so strongly through every atom of your body. (@buckybarnesplumwhore​)

That smile. He/she missed that smile. ( @bethycupcake )

It was progress. Baby steps forward. Maybe it wouldn’t all be okay today, but someday? It would be. ( @trillian-anders ) 

The list of medications that had been tried seemed like it was a mile long. ( @buckyreaderrecs)  

If you had another condescending doctor tell you your problem wasn’t a problem you were going to scream. 

The warmth of the sun fell over you like a blanket in the middle of winter. ( @avintagekiss24 ) 

Today was going to be good. 

It didn’t take a genius to figure out that this was going south. 

AU and Trope Prompts: 

Soulmate 

College

Childhood Friends

Friends to Lovers

Enemies to Lovers 

Musicians

Writer

Professional Athlete 

Teacher

Coffee Shop

Fake Dating

Accidental Marriage

Royal

Librarian 

Neighbors ( @shakespeareanqueer​ )

Song Prompts:

Support: 

1. Nobody Ever Told You - Carrie Underwood

Lyric Snippet: “Wish you could see yourself the way I do. Nobody ever told you, nobody ever told you. Shine like a diamond, glitter like gold, and you need to know what nobody ever told you” 

2. Missing You - All Time Low

Lyric Snippet: “And if you need a friend, I’ll help you stitch up your wounds. I heard that you’ve been, having some trouble finding your place in the world. I know how much that hurts. But if you need a friend, then please just say the word.” 

3. Barefoot and Bruise - Jamestown Story Lyric Snippet: “Maybe when your sky comes crashing down, I can be your angel on the ground. If you get tired and can’t go on, I will carry you along, when the rocks below your feet wear out your shoes, when you’re barefoot and bruised” 

4. Hold On Till May- Pierce the Veil Lyric Snippet: “If were you, I’d put that away. See you’re just wasted and thinking about the past again. Darling, you’ll be okay.” 

5. This Song Saved My Life - Simple Plan Lyric Snippet: “You let me know like no one else that it’s okay to be myself” ( @captain-kelli​ ) 

General: 1. It Feels Like - 1551 Lyric Snippet: “No I’m not fine, every second is a record of why, I live my life never doing things right” 

2. Sunrise - 1551 Lyric Snippet: “Nightmare that’s not gonna stop, it’s darkness you’re not gonna stop” 

3. Home - Machine Gun Kelly, X Ambassadors, Beba Rexha Lyric Snippet: “All these miles, feet, inches, they can’t add up to the distance that I have been through just to get to a place where even if there’s no closure I’m still safe. I still ache from trying to keep pace. Somebody give me a sign, I’m starting to lose faith”

4. Broken Arrows - Daughtry  Lyric Snippet: “The best of intentions I lay at your feet. And I need you to see past the worst part of me.”

5. Used - Serious Matters  Lyric Snippet: “The wounds are gone and the pain still lingers. But this time I won’t stand by, I don’t need you in my life”

6. Unsteady - X Ambassadors  Lyric Snippet: “Hold on to me, ‘cause I’m a little unsteady, a little unsteady” ( @jamesbarnesappreciationclub​ )

7. Let It Land - Tonight Alive Lyric Snippet: “And everything we hate is something we just bought along the line” 

8. Cold As You - Taylor Swift Lyric Snippet: “You put up walls and paint them all a shade of grey. And I stood there loving you and wished them all away. And you come away with a great little story, of a mess of a dreamer with the nerve to adore you” 

9. Tied Together with a Smile - Taylor Swift Lyric Snippet: “Hold on, baby you’re losing it. The water’s high, you’re jumping into it, and letting go, and no one knows. That you cry but you don’t tell anyone that you might not be the golden one. And you’re tied together with a smile, but you’re coming undone.” 

10. Human Interaction - Tonight Alive Lyric Snippet: “I don’t know love. I don’t know hate. I am numb. Wish I could find the words to say. Asking please, as colors fade. I need to breathe. Before I turn the world to grey.” 

Grief: 

1. Jersey On the Wall (I’m Just Asking) - Tenille Townes 

Lyric Snippet: “If I ever get to heaven, you know I got a long list of questions. Like how do you make a snowflake, are you angry when the earth quakes? How does the sky change in a minutes, how do you keep this big rock spinning? Why can’t you stop a car from crashing? Forgive me, I’m just asking” 

2. Five More Minutes - Scotty McCreery

Lyric Snippet: “Time rolls by, the clock don’t stop. I wish I had a few more drops of the good stuff, the good times. Oh, but they just keep on flying right on by like it ain’t nothing, wish I had me a, a pause button. Moments like those, Lord knows I’d hit it. Give myself five more minutes” 

3. Dad’s Old Number - Cole Swindell

Lyric Snippet: “Sometimes I forget, these ten digits ain’t my lifeline anymore. Every now and then I dial them up when life gets tough or when the Braves score. Sorry about the one ring hang ups, early morning and late night wake ups. It was just me. In case you wondered, you’ve got dad’s old number.” 

4. The Other Side - Lauren Alaina

Lyric Snippet: “There’s gonna be a lot of sadness on a lot of happy days, I’ll try to think of this moment, this place” 

5. I Was Here - Beyonce

Lyric Snippet: “So they won’t forget I was here. I lived. I loved. I was here. I did, I’ve done, everything that I wanted and it was more than I thought it would be. I will leave my mark so everyone will know I was here.” 

6. Gone Too Soon - Simple Plan

Lyric Snippet: “Like a shooting star, flying across the room. So fast, so far, you were gone too soon. You’re a part of me. And I’ll never be the same here without you. You were gone too soon.” 

7. Amelia - Tonight Alive

Lyric Snippet: “And you will always be perfect, you’ll always be beautiful, our hearts, will never forget you. You didn’t belong here, and it’s become so clear why heaven called your name.” 

#JBBNNMHAMChallenge #writing challenge #marvel #mcu #marvel writing challenge #steve rogers #bucky barnes #natasha romanoff #bucky barnes/reader #steve rogers/reader #wanda maximoff/reader #tony stark/reader #tony stark #sam wilson #natasha romanoff/reader #sam wilson/reader

[yehet-me-up]

*busts through the door like I'm the Kool-Aid man* BONJOUR FUCKERS I'M BACK!!! It is I, the Theatrical Gay Anon™! I hope you're ready to endure my endless babbling for a bit cuz I've got lots to say holy shit. Consider this part 1 of like, 1000 cuz I think Tumblr got rid of the submissions feature. I apologize in advance for the spam hehe.

Okay, with that out of the way. Ms. Yehet-Me-Up, may I call you Sarah? Sarah, what the fuck!? I can't even rn. I I give you a simple suggestion, no expectations behind it. I say "Hey, don't you think it'd be cool if Zitao was in the Exodus Mall universe?" to which you said "Yeah, that'd be neat, I might do that. Perhaps make him work at an Irish pub or something" and then I flip out with gratitude and excitement thinking you're gonna do like, a DRABBLE. 500 words at MOST -Theatrical Gay Anon

Imagine my SHOCK, my STUPEFACTION, upon realizing that you wrote OVER TEN THOUSAND WORDS about Huang Zitao aka the wind beneath my wings, the rain to my drought, the corny joke to my Junmyeon. And not only that! But you did this A MONTH AGO. I could've been reading this for so long and I had no idea! How foolish am I? I can't believe you wrote all of this based off of a silly little suggestion I made. I feel like bowing over how not worthy I am Wayne's World style -Theatrical Gay Anon

NOW IN REGARDS TO THE CONTENT OF THIS MASTERPIECE OH MY GOD WHERE DO I EVEN BEGIN!? I am floored by your preeminence. First things first, the title? Perfect. Full disclosure, I suck at titles. I've been writing for over a decade now and I'm still shit with titles. It's so hard to come up with just a few words to encapsulate everything you wrote but you do it SO WELL. The moodboard? Amazing. I've always loved that picture of Zitao and it fits so well with the pub setting -Theatrical Gay Anon

I'm afraid you've written "Fractions of Tomorrow" so well that I don't see there being a need for anyone to write anything else...ever. Stories? CANCELED. Poetry? CANCELED. Biographies? CANCELED. It's all over folks. Sarah has written The Best Thing Ever. We've peaked as a society. After I finish writing these asks I'm gonna become a hermit in the woods and make friends with all of the woodland creatures that inhabit it. -Theatrical Gay Anon

But seriously though, I love absolutely everything about this story. As a Zitao fan, I'm used to getting breadcrumbs. Not a lot of ppl write fics about him. I can count on one hand how many long fics of his you can find on Tumblr. But THIS?? This was no breadcrumb, this was a whole fucking bakery. And it all appeals to me so much oh my god? The sappiness of it all, the flowery prose, the rebellious rejection of cynicism, it's all so beautiful I want to marry it. -Theatrical Gay Anon

If I discussed all of the sentences in this fic that made me giggle with joy and kick my feet around I'd be here all day so keep in mind this is just a FRACTION of the ones I loved but I couldn't go without mentioning at least some of them so here we go. "It’s not his first time here, but it’s his first time paying attention" SHUT UP this line is go good it's so simple yet so nuanced I adore it. Seriously, why hasn't anyone hired you to write a screenplay? -Theatrical Gay Anon

"He wonders if you ironed the collar of your shirt to be that precise or if you simply move through the world without acquiring any wrinkles" God, this line is so CUTE it's DISGUSTING he's fond of the reader's un-wrinkled clothes that's such a specific thing to like and is totally the type of thing I've done with the ppl I've crushed on throughout my life. -Theatrical Gay Anon

"‘Zitao,’ he says finally. ‘Cute.’ You say" this is such a little thing but I love that you included his full name in this. I love his full name so much it sounds really pretty. Whenever I hear him refer to himself as "Huang Zitao" in interviews my heart soars. Hearing him speak Mandarin in general is a delight as well. It's an audibly gorgeous language and any racist who says otherwise can EAT MY ENTIRE ASS -Theatrical Gay Anon

"For someone who’s been in love for as long as you can remember she fights awfully hard against Baekhyun’s romantic nature" DEAR GOD I LOVE THESE TWO! I love these movie loving lovesick fools. I love that everyone in the world knows they love each other except them. I love seeing bits and pieces of their story throughout this written universe. I can't wait to see it all come together in Baekhyun's Exodus Mall fic. It's gonna be GLORIOUS -Theatrical Gay Anon

Also! I know you enjoyed my song recs that I thought fit perfectly with All Our Broken Places so here are some for when the Baek x Hitchcock fic drops. I know it's not done yet but I just *know* what it's gonna be like I can feel it in my bones. "Sidekick" by Walk the Moon and "Tongue Tied" by Grouplove. As for Fractions of Tomorrow I knew right away what songs I'd pick. "Dreams" by The Cranberries, "Jumpstarted" by Jukebox the Ghost and "Don't Stop Believing" by Journey -Theatrical Gay Anon

Gosh, this fic filled me with so much energy and joy I feel like a toddler on caffeine. But I really should sleep now though. It's gotten so late that I can see the sunrise peaking up sdksdksl. I'll see ya soon! I will be spamming you with more compliments about this fic once I wake up though! - Theatrical Gay Anon

Hi! I'm back. Okay, now where was I? Oh yeah, I was talking about some of my favorite lines from the story. "‘Hey man, how’s it going?’ Baekhyun reaches out and does a complex handshake with the man before you. ‘Oh, you know. Just working at the salt mines,’ Tao says with a laugh." I LOVE that you made Baek the one Zitao was close with. I miss the beef brothers so much. I'll never forgive SM for what they did to OT12. They were all such good friends 😔 -Theatrical Gay Anon

"‘I’m not sure.’ For a flash Tao’s eyes linger on you once more. ‘I think it would depend on the person.’ And then the bastard goes and winks at you." GOD, HE WOULD DO SOMETHING LIKE THIS! HE'S SUCH A SHAMELESS FLIRT I HATE HIM *narrator voice* This was of course a huge a lie, he in fact loved Zitao immensely -Theatrical Gay Anon

"‘Sweetheart, I’m everyone’s type.’" You've captured Zitao's unlimited confidence so well and that makes me really happy. It's one of my favorite things about him. The man truly loves himself and I think that's awesome -Theatrical Gay Anon

"Tao looks at you through his lashes, bending close enough that you can feel his breath on your lips when he speaks. ‘Words are just the appetizer, darling. I prefer to have an entire feast.’ 'Any other questions or can I grab your orders?’" ASDKDSDSL SO YOU'RE JUST GONNA SAY THAT PANTY DROPPER LINE AND GO BACK TO BUSINESS AS USUAL ZITAO???? HUH??? IS THAT WHAT WE'RE GONNA DO??? -Theatrical Gay Anon

"‘Oh, nothing.’ He looks like the cat that caught the canary. ‘I just love being right.’" Something I love about EXO fic writers (myself included lol) is that despite all of the different ways they'll write the other members, there is one member who is always written the same and that's Baekhyun. He will always be written as a cheeky little shit cuz he *is* a cheeky little shit. That's just who he is. Messing with ppl is a favorite past time of his. -Theatrical Gay Anon

"'So, love, huh? There’s not some girlfriend or boyfriend of yours waiting for you at home?’" Thank you for not being heteronormative with the "are you dating someone?" convo. I know it might not seem like much but I really appreciate it. -Theatrical Gay Anon

"The beginning of love is always a lightning bolt. If that’s all it ever is you never have to deal with being knocked on your ass by the resulting thunderstorm" OOF, this one got me. So very true. The beginning of love is so scary! -Theatrical Gay Anon

"I could argue that anarchy still is love. Love of your beliefs and love of a person or a place or a thing so much that you’re willing to fight for it" OKAY BUT PASSIONATE LEATHER JACKET WEARING ANARCHIST ZITAO IN A ROCK BAND IS SUCH AN ATTRACTIVE CONCEPT!!! There's nothing sexier than a bad boi that will hate capitalism with you! He'd probably be the one to give ppl rides to protests and stuff I LOVE IT -Theatrical Gay Anon

"If we say love is a feeling, who’s to say that we aren’t in love? If we decide it’s an action then which one is it? A kiss or a commitment or - maybe it’s nothing more complicated than putting words to the way I feel when you look at me?" Listen I don't mean to be dramatic or anything (wait, who am I kidding? I'm literally the Theatrical Gay Anon being dramatic is like my Thing) but if a guy ever said that to me my trans boi pussy would be open for business IMMEDIATELY

Alright, so, uh Final Thoughts. This may be my new favorite work of yours, and no it's not just cuz it's got my ultimate bias in it lmao. This year has been so shitty and it's made my depression + anxiety reach the highest possible levels but reading this, this love story filled with hope and certainty despite not knowing what the future will hold for them, made this year seem easier to cope with. Thank you so much for making this, it means the world to me. -Theatrical Gay Anon

ALRIGHT, LAST ASK AND THEN I'LL SHUT UP I PROMISE but I personally headcanon that Double Shot + Zitao stayed together till the very end. They didn't get married cuz they hate formalities but they got matching tattoos and even when they're old and grey you can still them clear as day on their wrists. When they're asked how they met no one believes their answer lol. And when Double Shot died of old age before Zitao he would sing her favorite song by her grave every Saturday -Theatrical Gay Anon

OKAY SO I know I said I was done and I know I've already sent in like, 30 bajillion asks but I'm curious does Yifan or Luhan also work at the Irish pub?? Or do they work somewhere else in the mall? Inquiring minds want to know -Theatrical Gay Anon

When I tell you this made my entire month (when you sent it weeks ago, I’ve been hanging onto these because they seriously bring me SO much joy holy crap) I am not remotely kidding j;oaisjdflkasdjfa

I am absolutely going to put on these song recs while I work on the next chapter! 

a;osdfjlaksdfjasl the fact that you stayed up late to read this warms my heart so much. It reminds me of all the times I stayed up til the ass crack of dawn reading fanfics because I simply could NOT stop reading, so the fact that you enjoyed this like that makes me helllllaaaa emo 🥰

I just??? 2020 was indeed such a long year and affected my energy and creativity and honestly don’t really remember writing this hahaha. I kind of go into a fugue state with these longer fics and they just EMERGE. So to see you reflecting back some of what I wrote allows me to enjoy the process so much more. Makes writing and tumblr fun and I seriously wish everyone writing and creating could have someone as passionate and thoughtful and hilarious as you hyping them up 🌟 it honestly feels like a GIFT and I will absolutely keep writing this series and hoping to be worthy of it 😘

We will definitely get to see more of these two in the finale fic! I got into EXO after Tao, Yifan, and Luhan left so I’m not quite as familar with their personalities, but I could definitely see Yifan working at the US Bank haha. Business suit by day and partying/flirting by night. As for Luhan I feel like he’d work somewhere like the bookstore or the music store?? somewhere quieter and more contemplative. 

Thank you again for sending this and for being you <3 I hope 2021 is a wonderful year for you and that you know how AMAZING you are 💖💖💖💖💖

#asks #theatrical gay anon

[euphoria-svt]

You’re 10/10

In honour of yesterday being 10/10, I thought of this and I hope you enjoy this little fluff! 

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Word Count: 2k

You opened your eyes tiredly as the sunlight, peeking through the curtain, hits you. You roll around sleepily, wanting to cuddle into your boyfriend because your body was against getting out of bed in that moment.

You expected to find him behind you, still fast asleep in his side of the bed, but when you were met with an empty spot instead; you frowned. You touched the sheets where he laid and it felt cold, which meant Connor has been awake and out of bed for quite some time; not wanting to disturb you after the amount of studying you were doing last night.

You reached for your phone on the side table to check for the time and any messages your friends may have sent to you. When the device was close enough to your face, it’s only then you realize that there was a sticky note stuck to the phone screen.

1/10 - hi baby! You looked so peaceful sleeping so I didn’t want to disturb you :( I’ve got practice till 1pm then I’m heading to Shawn’s for a study session (and no, we’re not gonna play FIFA…) I know you’re heading to the library with Sam so I’ll see you later okay? Have an amazing day! I love you tons, sweets xx

You snickered at how his handwriting decreased in font size with each word, trying to fit the entire paragraph on the pink sticky note. You smiled to yourself, taking the note off from your phone and pasting it on the table instead.

Connor loved doing little things like these that would make your day. You loved it when he randomly writes stuff on sticky notes and pasting them on objects/at places where you would usually see them, regardless of what he writes on them. He could probably write something boring that his professor said during a lecture and it would still make you smile.

After fifteen minutes of going through your phone in bed, you thought it was finally time to get yourself ready for the day so you could meet Sam in the library on time. Once you got out of bed and did some light stretching, you headed for the bathroom and that’s when you noticed another pink note stuck on the white door.

2/10 - don’t shower too long!! Or you’ll be late for your study session :p xx

You rolled your eyes at his comment. So, you like to take long showers sometimes and Connor loved teasing you about it. After taking a quick shower, you headed for your shared closet so you could choose a comfy attire to put on for your long day in the library.

On the inner door of the closet, you noticed there were two sticky notes with his messy handwriting that you adored.

3/10 - since you’re going to the library, I figured you wanted to wear something comfy. Picked out your favourite grey hoodie (that belongs to me but apparently isn’t mine anymore? Logical, I guess) and a pair of black leggings for you and it’s folded in the middle compartment :) xx

3/10 (continued) - I can’t see you right now but I bet you look suuuuuper cozy in that hoodie and I just want to cuddle with my very soft girlfriend. Tonight please? Circle your answer below and stick it on my table ❤️ xx

Yes            No (If you circle this, you’re on the couch tonight ma’am. I refuse to share the bed if I’m not getting cuddles. Nope)

You blushed to yourself as you read the notes. Connor knew you like the back of his head; it was like he read your mind because what he picked out for you was exactly what you were thinking of wearing ever since you were in the shower.

After changing into your clothes, you took the stickynote, walked over to your desk for a pen, circled ‘yes’ and stuck it on Connor’s side table then made the bed, just because you love coming home to a neat room.

You had no idea why Connor was suddenly bringing up the random note pasting again out of nowhere but you weren’t going to go against it.

You grabbed your belongings and headed out to the kitchen. On the door that separated the kitchen from the living room, to no one’s surprise; was another note.

4/10 - I know you’re heading to the kitchen to make coffee but please eat something!! Or I’ll kick your butt!! (Okay fine, I won’t. Your butt is too cute to be kicked)

But seriously baby, have something to eat. You’re gonna need the energy for your study session xx

And something hits you. Each note was numbered, which was unusual for him to do and it started to make you wonder; was there something about today that you completely missed?

Connor’s birthday? Nope, that was months ago.

Your birthday? Nope, that was over as well.

Anniversary? Not for another month.

As you stood over the counter, having cereal for breakfast and a glass of water, you shot him a quick text.

iMessage to Baby Con: what’s with all the sticky notes? xx

iMessage from Baby Con: no reason! Felt like showering you with a bit more love todayyyy xxx

And you let it slide. If Connor wants to be a little sweeter today, who were you to tell him to stop?

You went to drop the empty bowl in the sink and opened up one of the cabinets to retrieve your flask so you could fill it with hot coffee. On your flask was another note.

5/10 - You know how the ‘I love you 3000’ became a thing after Endgame? Can we make our own one so it’s more special?

I love you 3011 honey!!

p.s if you don’t get this… I’m seriously gonna pack up and leave you xx

3011; 30th November aka your anniversary.

Connor must be an idiot if he thought you could ever forget that date.

You were finally prepared to leave the apartment and head to the library when you caught a glance of another pink note stuck on the wall right above the shoe rack.

6/10 - Don’t forget to take this umbrella with you, honey! I checked the weather forecast and it’s gonna rain, which sucks. Love you and stay safe! xx

Yeah, he is really the most thoughtful and sweetest guy you’ve ever met.

When you finally met up with Sam in the library, you took out all your books from your bag. You smiled to yourself when you saw another note stuck on one of your binders.

7/10 - Study hard, baby!! But not too hard, please. I don’t want you to overstress yourself. That’s not good for my baby :( Love you, sweets and I’ll see you in a few hours xx

Sam notices you smiling to yourself, looking over the note on your binder. She smirked, reaching across the table and taking the binder out of your hand “Well, well, well, what do we have here?”

You looked up to face her, shaking your head with a smile “Connor’s just being Connor”

“Aww” She cooed, reading over the note “Brashier’s really whipped for you, babe”

You blushed “Yeah, I guess so”

3 hours into discussing over theories and re-reading case studies, you were starting to feel hungry, but you being you, always had the habit of skipping meals when you were in the middle of a study session.

And Connor knew that fact about you so well.

So, when you flipped to the last page of the article you were reading, there sat another note.

8/10 – Congrats on finishing this article! Now, stop studying and go get lunch, baby! You deserve to take a break ❤️

p.s don’t even think about lying to me. I’ll personally ask Sam if you actually ate something xx

“Hey Sam?” You called out to your friend “Wanna go grab lunch now? We’ve been at this for quite some time”

“Oh, thank God” She sighed in relief, shutting her books “I’ve been waiting for you to say that! I’m starving right now”

It was nearly 7pm when you realized how late it was getting. Your brain was burned out and you could see Sam was getting exhausted as well, seeing how you’ve been at the library for about 8 hours now.

You decided it was time to call it a day and went ahead packing all your stuff. After bidding goodbye to her at the library entrance, you headed towards the direction of home.

Pushing the front door to your shared apartment open, you made sure to lock it after letting yourself in. You took off your shoes and picked them up to place it on the rack when you noticed a new note stuck on the wall.

9/10 - are you today’s date? xx

You re-read the question, getting more confused by it. Was your brain too tired to even function or did that question made zero sense at all?

“Connor?” You called out to him as you walked deeper into the apartment “You home, love?”

“Yeah! ‘M in the kitchen, babe!” You heard him respond back to you.

You dropped your bag and headed for the kitchen, where you found him and a bouquet of roses and a box of pizza to share for the night on the counter “Hi bubs” You said, stunned by the flowers.

You definitely weren’t expecting flowers to be present for a regular dinner night.

“Hi baby” He greeted you with a smile, pressing a quick kiss to your lips “How was your day at the library?”

“Long” You noted then your eyes trailed over to the bouquet behind him, skeptically asking him “What’s with the flowers, Con? Is there a special occasion that I missed?”

Connor smirked in reply, shaking his head “No occasion. Just your answer to the 9th sticky note”

“You mean the ‘are you today’s date?’ question?” You asked confusingly “What does that have to do with getting me flowers, honey?”

“Take a closer look at the flowers and you’ll find out, baby”

Still stunned, you walked towards the island and admired the rosses. You see a card sticking out from the bouquet and as you unfolded it, you felt like your heart could burst at what was written inside.

Because you’re definitely 10/10, sweets! And I love you always xx

p.s I really hope you understand this or my brilliant idea has just gone to waste

It finally hits you; are you today’s date? Because you’re 10/10.

10th October; today’s date.

Connor walks over to you, places his hand on your waist as he pressed a kiss to your head “Do you get it now?” He asked, grinning widely.

You look up at him and he sees the laugh that’s trying to escape from your lips “Are you trying to tell me you did all this so you could tell me I’m 10/10, Connor D. Brashier?”

“I thought of this last year and had to wait a whole year to do it so, yes” He said proudly “Because you really are a 10/10, babe”

You cooed, wrapping your arms around him “This is the cheesiest shit you’ve ever done but it’s all so very cute. I love you so much and thank you for entertaining me with your little notes today, bubs”

“’M only cheesy when it comes to you, sweets” He told you, pressing a kiss to your clothed shoulder “Because you’re the only one I love”

“You’re the absolute ray of sunshine in my life, bubs” You sighed happily “And hey, for what it’s worth, I don’t think you’re a 10/10 to me”

He looks at you amusedly with his eyebrows furrowed “Is that supposed to make me feel good?”

“Yeah because you’re way more than a 10 to me, bubs. And I thank all the stars in the sky that I’m lucky enough to have you as my boyfriend”

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Reblog, like or leave a comment; always appreciated!  ❤️

x rina

TAG LIST:

@hurts-like-hell-xx @connordavidscamera @r3ader @tinycertain @green-lxght @queenmxndes @turtoix

#connor brashier #connor brashier x reader #connor brashier imagines

[a-trainers-tale]

Nyz paid request

:: nyz ::  Hello!! I would like to request for a paid pokemon trainer description!! I'm sorry in advance for the long messages that are about to ensue but I hope they can give you a clear depiction of who I am and will make your decisions easier and more precise!! uwu  I'm a 20yo Leo girl who's studying Biomedical Engineering and Arts (with an English major!!) in Syd. I used to be a guitarist in a high school band and am in general more of an independent individual than a leader/follower.   1/8

I'm a shy person but some of my friends say I exude a quiet confidence HAHAHHAH. Other ways my friends/family have described me include: smart, kind, awkward, cute, determined, hardworking, creative and being a happy virus. I generally do well in my studies and am particularly good in Physics and English! However my flaws include: being too playful at times till it accidentally gets someone hurt, usually running late, having terrible mood swings and being a lil too competitive at times   2/?

(esp towards my younger siblings unfortunately) and being extremely indecisive!  I love writing but I have a problem of keeping within word limits. I love spending time with my dogs, being up early and generally don't mind waking up early but I like my mornings quiet and calm as I enjoy my breakfast hahahhah. I tend to work out quite a lot and particularly love cycling! I generally spend a lot of time in my room but I love fun social events like parties and weddings (I'm not sure why??).  3/?

I love cartoons/animated films a lot idk why but they give me a sense of relief from all my stress and they just make me feel good after watching them?? I also love creating random customized stuff like designing a birthday cake for my brother or creating a specialty dish for Mother's Day. Things I don't like include: loud noises, inconsiderate people, snails, being looked down upon, judgemental and close-minded people, presentations in front of large crowds and chocolate (sorry!!).  4/?

Some aesthetics of mine include: the colors of fall, the smell of freshly brewed coffee and freshly baked bread, glass/transparency, deep ideas, hugging a dog (most furry animals), being in the middle of a bustling city, the serenity at dawn, wrapped up in your blanket watching your favorite tv show at night, getting work done at a cafe, hugs, nyc apartments and theme parks.  5/?

My favorite food include pumpkins, Marie biscuits, cereal, artisan bread, almond milk, eggs with runny yolks, tomatoes, brocolli, mushrooms, bibimbap, sashimi salads, deli sandwiches, bruschetta, prawn dumplings, tiramisu, tangerines and flat rice noodle soups. My favorite books include Looking For Alaska by John Green and the Fire and Flood series by Victoria Scott. My favorite movies are Pitch Perfect (1&2 were good but 3 was kinda disappointing),   6/?

The Devil Wears Prada, Wreck-It-Ralph, Inception, Enchanted, Kiki's Delivery Service, the new Jumanji movies and Little Women. Fandom life is a big part of who I am hahhahah. My favorite TV Show is Friends (cliche ik) but also some animated series ahahhahh.  The reason I love Pokemon is probably bc it was a significant part of my childhood and the nostalgia just brings me back to those times when life was simpler(?). Also I ADORE the creativity and thought behind each Pokemon/character and  7/8

how it has created such a vivid, imaginative and yet not so farfetched world for the audience! The fact that it still has such a large and active following also makes me feel connected to a lot of people somehow :) Being a Pokemon trainer has always been a dream of mine for sure!! :')  Thank you so much for taking your time to go through this! I apologize in advance for the length and hope u know you're making one of my childhood dreams come true in a way uwu  Have an amazing day!!  8/8

Trainer class: Fairy tale girl

You walk to the beat of your own drum, but in a somewhat subdued way most of the time. Onlookers might think you to be a bit eccentric but also a bit quiet. In battle, you can be ferocious and emotional but also playful and excitable. You love inserting creativity into your daily life and you love being able to see the best in all pokemon. You have a lot of energy and can come across as being somewhat childish when you are in a playful mood, but when you are feeling more studious you can be an intimidating level of intelligence. Your quiet and playful nature can seem contradictory to some who don’t know you, but your pokemon have come to be able to read your moods quite easily and adjust their own behavior accordingly. You have a very fun relationship with other trainers you have bonded with and you have a very fun life with your pokemon who support you in everything you do. You cook with your pokemon often and you explore new hobbies and interests with them on the regular. You also love to escape into worlds that aren’t your own, so you consume a lot of creative media and chase after intellectual pursuits that suit your interests quite often. Your pokemon love you as a trainer but their also love you as family and would do anything to protect your playful smile and inquisitive mind. 


Starter: Eevee

Your starter pokemon is Eevee. Eeevee is a very unique pokemon and a notoriously indecisive pokemon in the ways that it can evolve. Eeevee is inquisitive and a perfect fit for your excitability. You and eevee are a wonderful match for exploring and learning new things together. Eeevee will never judge you and will always stand by your side when you need it and when you want to have fun. Eevee has a lot of energy, so you might end up spending a lot of your own energy calming it down enough to go to bed at night. Eevee has many different ways of evolving, so it will be a challenge to get it to land on one, but earn its trust and it will love you forever.


Partner: Mareep

Mareep is a very soft pokemon, both in the emotional sense and in the physical sense. You will want to wear gloves of some kind before rubbing Mareep's fur too much, but regular snuggling is welcome and safe. Mareep is a very kindly and considerate pokemon and, if treated well, will grow into Ampharos who is able to act as a guiding light for travelers and lost people and pokemon. Mareep acts as a comfort for you, though it does not participate in any battling that you do since it is somewhat faint of heart. Keep it close to you and it will help you keep calm and support you in return. 

Team: Sylveon (starter), Celesteela, Zebstrika, Exploud, Phanpy

Hometown: Circhester, Galar

Your hometown is Circhester in the Galar region. Circhester is a somewhat large town that a lot of tourists move through. It is a historical town full of statues and buildings that have been around for a long time, but it has also kept up with recent trends enough to not seem old. Circhester is home to the Hero’s Bath, which is the pride of the town. From growing up here, you learned a lot of history and you have learned a lot about all of the people who have lived and moved around in Circhester. This gave you a natural curiosity and an interest in learning more about other people and about what it means for pokemon to be strong and for a trainer to be brave. Circhester gave your interest in bonding with people and also gave you your warm aesthetic sense. 


Battle style: Playful and intimidating

You are quite a rambunctious trainer and tend to go your own way. You prefer the paths that look less traveled, quite literally. You will find yourself lost sometimes, looking for places to find interesting pokemon you haven’t met before or interesting people. You are the kind of trainer that one would run into deep in the corner of a forest lifting rocks to try and find something interesting. Your inquisitive mind and high level of playfulness makes you a very fun person to battle, as long as you aren’t in a competitive mood in which case you can be a fierce and emotional opponent. You have been known to yell and get very into battles, which spurs on your own pokemon and tends to act as an intimidation factor for your opponent’s. You are a strong and independent rival to many other trainers who started at the same time as you, and you compete with them not only in battle but also intellectually and in terms of the knowledge you have accumulated in your travels. You want to find new things to learn but you also dive deeply into new things that interest you, so you have a lot of knowledge about a lot of things pertaining to pokemon and the people around you. You connect with trainers who you battle with, and so you have a large amount of numbers in your phone for people who want rematches or who want to tell you new things they learned. Your energy spurs your pokemon on during battle and brings you new connections with pokemon and with people, never lose your passion and always allow yourself to let lose during battle so that you and your pokemon can have as much fun as possible.

#pokemon #nyz #pokemon trainer #pokemon request #exploud #eevee

[illfoandillfie]

Seaside Rendezvous - Part 2

READ PART 1

Request:  Can you please write a hc for going on a island vaca at a resort with your family after college finals and you meet joe (also a college student) and you two see each other a ton but you are always with your family so not much happens but flirty small talk and you both end up having a lot of sexual tension and go into one of your rooms when you’re family is out and just some smut happens?

Pairing: Joe Mazzello x Fem!Reader

Warnings: Some outrageous flirting, mentions of oral sex, fingering and handjobs, but nothing explicit (yet).

Words: 7977

A/N: Sorry I made ya'll wait so long for this one. Ended up getting way longer than I planned so this is now a three part series.

The scene in the market is based off the International Market Place in Waikīkī (how it looked in the 2000s based off images and stuff I found through google) though I took a bit of artistic licence. It's changed a bit in the last few years but it does still have the banyan tree in the middle of it.

(oh my god he’s a baby in that gif)

Taglist: @laedymoon  @somekind-ofcheese @dtfrogertaylor   @ezmina98  @vee-ndetta @atomic-watermelon @kellypenac @labessieisallama @deakyclicks @jennyggggrrr @drowseoftaylor @bowiequeen

@ramibaby  @briarrose26 @d34d-0n-th3-1ns1d3  @painkiller80 @stephydearestxo

It was much too early to be woken up. Your parents didn’t see it that way though, not even after you, leaning sleepily in the doorway, explained that holidays usually meant sleeping in. In a perfect world that would have been enough for your mother to declare you were right and let you go back to your dreams about the previous night’s kiss but, this not being a perfect world, all she actually said was, “get your sister up, the bus leaves in an hour.”   Right, the bus. The bus for the tour of the island your parents had mentioned last night. If you’d have known it meant getting up so early you would have been tempted to cry sick, no matter what Joe said about that plan. At least you could thank him for cutting you off early so you didn’t have to fight off a hangover too. You rubbed the sleep from your eyes as you turned to get Erin up. Luckily, being twelve, she hadn’t worked out the sheer joy of a lie in yet, so she was already awake and moving. Unluckily, for you at least, she’d also been thinking about the previous night and was full of questions.  “How did you meet Joe?”  “He was on the plane with me.”  “So does that mean you know him well?”  “Kind of, I guess. Define well.”  “Can he come hang out with us again?”  “Probably not.”  “Why not?”  “Can you please be quiet? At least let me get a coffee before you start interrogating me?”  “Okay. I’ll wait till breakfast.”  Fuck. “No, wait. You can’t.”  “Why not?”  “Mom and Dad can’t know. You are not to mention last night at all around them.”  “Why not?”  “Because if you say anything within their hearing about me and you hanging out with a guy they don’t know they’ll flip out.”  “But he was nice.”  “Yes, but they don’t know that. They’ll worry something bad could have happened. Also, they’ll ask why we weren’t in our room and I’m not going to be the one to tell them what we overheard.”  “Does that mean it’s a secret.”  “Yes. Very secret. In fact, if you see Joe you have to pretend you don’t know him. Okay?”  “I guess. But secrets are hard to keep.”  “What do you want?” you sighed. Not the first time she’d tried her hand at extorsion.   “Buy me some good souvenirs.”  “Okay, but nothing too expensive and it’s gotta be able to fit in your bags.”  “I’m expecting better than a tee shirt.”  “Snow globe it is then,”  Erin rolled her eyes but she seemed content with the deal. You supposed you’d find out when you inevitably ran into Joe again, which happened sooner than you’d expected.  

The bus you’d had to get up so early to catch was smaller than you’d thought it would be, only big enough for around fifteen people. There weren’t quite so many waiting when you arrived at the pick up point. Ahead of you in the queue was five others, a very loved up couple who seemed to have glued their hands together, and a group of three who you took to be related – a woman, with her mother and teenage daughter. Slowly you all filed on board, the tour guide checking off names on a list of everyone who’d signed up for the adventure. You ended up sitting towards the back of the bus, legs stretched out over the empty seat next to you. Erin and your mother were sitting about four rows ahead of you with your father on the opposite side of the aisle from them, talking to the grandmother you’d seen before. You’d opted to sit further back so you could have your own window seat. The space from your family was just a small bonus, giving you a chance to dwell on everything that had happened last night.   “Alright folks, we’ll be heading off in a moment. Just waiting on one last person.” The tour guide announced, double checking his clipboard.   You closed your eyes, tilting your head back against the window with a yawn. A few seconds later you heard heavy footsteps hurrying up the aisle as their owner apologised to the tour guide and driver for being late. You opened your eyes as Joe slid into the seat in front of you.  

“What are you doing here?” you asked, leaning forward slightly.  Joe turned his head, looking out the window, “Wanted to surprise you,” he laughed quietly, “Didn’t tell me about the fucking seven o’clock start though,”  Your eyes darted to Erin but she was holding up her end of the deal, ignoring Joe, listening to the tour guide as the bus roared to life.   “How’d you find out then?”  “Called reception last night. Told them my friend Y/N had mentioned the tour to me but neglected to say what time, they were very helpful. Silly Y/N forgot to add my name to the list too.”   “What are you, a stalker?”  “If I’m a stalker then stalking’s too easy.”  “Y’know a proper stalker would have sat behind me. Done the whole creepy staring, hair sniffing thing.”  “Then obviously I’m not a proper stalker.” he paused to check no one was listening in, “I did almost sit beside you though. Then I remembered the whole clandestine, hide-it-from-your-parents-and-overly-nosey-sister deal. We should get trench coats.”  “As fitting as that would be, somehow I think it'd make us stand out more,”  “Oh, I didn’t mean we’d wear them round the resort or anything. I was thinking of you, showing up at my room wearing nothing else.”  You shifted in your seat, pressing your legs together slightly, “Would you settle for a bikini?”  “The one you were in yesterday? Yes.”  “I’ll keep that in mind.”  “That makes two of us.” 

Most of the tour was spent either talking to Joe quietly at the back of the bus or posing for photos with your family. Every time the bus stopped at a scenic or historic site you would shuffle off, leaving Joe behind, and let your mother position you in front of whatever landmark was there for a photo or two. A couple of times you caught Joe’s eye, almost laughing. Then you’d follow the crowd back on board, fall into your seat and wait for Joe to come back so you could continue your conversation and casual flirting. So, when the bus pulled up at a market around two hours into the expedition, you were expecting more of the same. You hopped down the steps and joined your family as they crowded around the nearest stall.  “Oh, there you are Y/N! I want to get a photo of you and Erin at the market entrance. And maybe one with your father as well.”  “Honey,” your Dad chimed in, “At this rate people won’t know you came on the trip too. You haven’t been in a single photo. We should get at least one with all of us.”  “And who’s going to take it Dear?”  “We’ll ask someone from the bus, I’m sure they won’t mind.”  Your Mom didn’t look entirely convinced. She generally preferred to be behind the camera than in front of it, but you could practically see her planning out the scrapbook pages she was going to make to document the trip and how much better it would look with a family shot. It was enough to make her agree and your father hurried to catch someone from the bus before they all disappeared amongst the stalls. 

“Alright, I found someone. This is...what did you say your name was?”  “It’s Joe.”  Fuck. You whipped around at the sound of his voice, trying to act unfazed. Erin pinched you on the arm but otherwise acted just as you’d asked her too.    “Lovely to meet you Joe,” you mother cooed, “We were just hoping you could help us out, take a photo or two for us?”  “It would be my pleasure,” He held out his hand for the camera, throwing you a wink when your parents turned around.   “Okay, ready?” he asked once you were all in position, “Big smiles, three, two, one,” There was a click and then another and another as he fired off a few shots.  “What about a goofy one?” he suggested, looking directly at you.  “Everyone pull a face,” Erin yelled.  You flipped off Joe as he looked through the camera, noting the way he smiled when he saw.   “Alright, I think we’ve held you up long enough Joe. Thank you so much,” Your mother said as she took the camera back.  “Any time,” he said with a ridiculously charming smile before heading off into the market.  “What a lovely young man,” Your mother said as she flicked through the photos he’d taken, “Cute too.” She looked directly at you when she said it.  You rolled your eyes, “Sure, I guess.” Inside you were screaming. You could see things going two ways once your mother got involved. Either she was going to make it her business to push you and Joe together or keep you apart and you didn’t know which was worse. If you had to guess you’d say she was leaning more to trying to set you up. One thing was sure though, her sudden interest in Joe was going to make it harder to sneak off with him. He wouldn’t be able to enter the same room as her without her gossip detector going off and all her attention would be focused on him and anyone who might be trying to sleep with him.   “Oh, really Y/N? That’s entirely inappropriate,” she showed you the photo where you’d stuck out your middle finger, “but I think I have enough photos for the moment,”  “Can we go look at the stalls now? Y/N said she’d buy me a present.”  “Oh that’s nice of her, what’s the occasion?” She asked, turning to you.  “Oh, you know, nothing specific. I thought it’d be nice to get her something to remember the trip.”  “Well I’ve already promised her a shirt,”  “Yeah I figured. I was thinking of something else.”  “Well why don’t I take Erin and that way you can make it a surprise.”  “Are you sure? I don’t mind walking around with her, she could give me some ideas.” you said, already thinking about finding Joe and using this freedom to your advantage.  “No, she can come with me. We’ll see you back on the bus.” 

You could have skipped as you turned with a wave and headed in the direction Joe had gone. Instead you walked like a normal human adult, unsure if your Mom was watching you. You wouldn’t put it past her. You rounded the corner and breathed a sigh of relief which turned into a gasp of shock when you felt someone tap you on the shoulder.  “Jesus Joe, fucking scared me,”  Joe had a hand over his mouth trying to stifle his laughter, “Sorry. I didn’t mean to.”  “Alright, it wasn’t that funny.”  “It was pretty funny; you didn’t see your face. You managed to ditch the fam then?”  “Yes but I’m still a little worried Mom’s watching.”  “You’re paranoid.”  “She called you cute.”  “You called me cute,”  “Yes, but I’m trying to get in your pants. She’s just trying to find out if I’ve managed it yet.”  “Aww, you wanna get in my pants?”  “Oh shut up. Just keep an eye out for my Mom.”  “Well I've got something to show you that I think’ll make you feel better. Just over this way.” Joe grabbed your hand and began pulling you along. You walked straight past every stall, ducking around corners, making your way to the middle of the marketplace.  “Where are you taking me?”  “Not far, just....” he stopped, “here,”  “It’s a tree Joe.”  “Not just a tree, a banyan tree, didn’t you listen to the tour guide at all?”  “I was thinking about...other things,” you said glancing at his lips and biting your own before turning your face upward, craning your neck to see as high as possible. The tree was huge, branches criss-crossing over your head, stretching out over the entire marketplace, roots twisting over and around each other on the ground.  “Okay, it’s pretty cool,” you conceded, “for a tree.”  “You haven’t seen the best part,” Joe glanced around before quickly ducking through a gap between the main trunk and some of the smaller trees growing beside it. He pulled you behind him and you found yourself in a secluded chamber, half hidden by trees and half hidden by market stalls, the worn material of the pop-up tents blocking everyone’s view. Before you could say anything Joe was kissing you, pulling you tightly against him as your lips met. It was ungraceful and chaotic, noses bumping together, teeth colliding, in danger of overbalancing and toppling backwards in your desperate need for more. You felt like a live wire, electricity running through you. All the pent-up energy was suddenly released making you feel dizzy and hyper aware of every brush of his fingers, the scratch of his stubble, his knee bumping yours.  ���Wow,” you said softly when you parted, lips still so close to his they were almost touching, eyes still closed.  Joe inhaled deeply like he was trying to breath in the moment, dropping his forehead to yours, “Is it wrong of me to say I wish we were back in my room right now?”  “No, I wish we were too,” you lay your hand flat on his chest, feeling his heartbeat beneath your palm.  “We could just...” he raised his eyebrows as he pointed at the ground.  “I’m not fucking you in the middle of a market where anyone could find us,” you laughed, pushing on his chest till he took a step back.  “I never said fuck,” he said, holding up his hands, “I was talking about a blow job,”  You burst out laughing as he tried and failed to keep a straight face.  “I’m kidding,” he reassured you, wrapping his arms around you again, yours automatically looping around his neck, “happy just to keep kissing you for now.”  The next kiss was less frantic. Soft to start, both of you still giggling a little, gradually building into something deeper. The same electric energy but calmer.   “Probably don’t have long before we’re called back to the bus,” he said as he pulled away.  “And I’m meant to buy something for Erin.”  “Guess we should get going then.”  Neither of you made any move to let go of the other, just squeezed tighter as your lips met again.  

Eventually you did have to go, reluctantly letting your arms drop and straightening your shirts. Joe poked his head out of the trees to make sure the coast was clear before he slipped outside and held out his hand to help you through the gap.   “Don’t worry, no sign of your family,”  “Not at the moment anyway,” you looked around at the crowed, double checking for any sign of them. Maybe I am paranoid. You set off towards the nearest stall, hoping no one could tell you’d been making out.  “You said something about a present for Erin?”  “Reward for her not letting slip to Mom about us hanging out with you last night.”  “Ah, of course.”  “Had to explain that, even though you were nice, Mom wouldn’t have been happy if she found out. Though I spose she doesn’t have to completely ignore you now that Mom and Dad know you exist. God I still can’t believe you were the one they asked.”  “Lucky break,” Joe laughed, “what about this?” he held up a necklace with a cartoony dolphin on it,”  “Oh that’s cute! She’d like that.”  “What about you?”  “What about me what?”  “Anything here you’d like?”  “You’re not buying me a necklace Joe,”  “Oh come on, let me. Look this one’s nice, got a palm tree on it. Or what about this one with the matching earrings?”  You handed over the money for Erin’s necklace to the woman running the stall, turning back to Joe as she wrapped it up in brown paper.  “If you think buying me a present is going to get you a hand job on the bus or something you can think again Mister.”  “Not what I was trying to do.” Joe followed you as you thanked the woman and moved towards a different stall, “Just thought...look I know that whatever is happening here is a short term thing. We’re gonna get to the end of our holidays and then fly back to our regular lives and probably never see each other again. And that’s fine. That’s clearly what we’re both looking for here anyway, just something fun and easy for a couple of weeks. But I thought it might be nice to buy you something you can take back home to remember the trip. Not just me but the whole thing. But also me."  “Well, that is sweet.”  “Besides,” he leaned in close to your ear, “I know that to get a hand job I have to finger you.”  “Oh that’s how it works?” you asked leaning back to look at him.  “That’s the exchange rate, yes.”  “You’re a dork,” you chuckled, shaking your head.  “Maybe. Or maybe I just like hearing you laugh.”  “No, you’re definitely a dork. Just used exchange rate in the punchline of your joke.”  “Valid point, but who said it was a joke?”  

You ended up parting soon after that, deciding there was too high a risk of running into your family. It was a good call because that’s exactly what happened as you ambled back toward the bus on your own, pausing to look at tables of trinkets and racks of touristy clothes. As soon as she saw you Erin was asking about her present but your Mom’s insistence that she could wait had her pouting all the way to the bus. Before you could make your way towards your regular seat behind the one Joe was already occupying, you were pulled into the one next to your sister. Her excitement about the present and curiosity as to what it was couldn’t wait. You caught sight of Joe snickering to himself as Erin grabbed your arm, already babbling about how she hoped whatever you’d got her was better than the shirt you mother had got her.  “It says aloha in big letters on the front and the back which Mom found so funny.”  “Because it means hello and goodbye? That’s pretty good.”  “No, it’s lame. Please tell me you got me something better.”  “Tell me yourself,” you said as you handed over the brown paper package.  Erin beamed as she tore into the paper, gasping as the necklace fell out onto her hand.  “Oh my god!” she squealed, “It’s so cute! Can you help me put it on?”  “So you like it then?” you laughed, taking it from her and undoing the clasp, “Does that mean we’re even?”  “For now.”  “Even? I thought this was just a nice gesture.” You mother piped up, breaking off her conversation with your father to narrow her eyes at both of you.  “Oh, it is but I also promised Erin I’d buy her something to make up for last night. We got a little bored and went to try and find the rec room but ended up wandering around lost and then coming back to the room.”  “Y/N, I don’t like the idea of the two of you walking around by yourselves so late. You never know who you might run into or what might happen. And don’t try to bribe your sister like that.”  “I know, it won’t happen again.” 

The rest of the day passed without incident. The tour continued on its route and you were made to pose for more photos. Thankfully no one asked Joe to take another group shot, though you did manage to sneak off for a quick pash a couple more times at various stops. Crowds were convenient excuses as to why your family couldn’t find you and whatever buildings or landmarks that were large enough to hide behind became convenient spots to sneak a kiss or a grope. You came close to being caught out more than once, having to hastily pull your lips apart, his hands falling from your ass at the sound of approaching footsteps. You’d lean against the wall or rocky ledge or whatever you were using as cover and pretend to be talking or else you’d start walking in opposite directions, pretending to have just been passing by each other. It was risky, lest one of your relatives be the one to discover you, but somehow knowing that you could be caught at any moment only made it hotter. By the time you got back to the resort you were dying for more, sick of just having his knee pressing between your legs while he kissed you.   “I think I need a nap after all that,” you said, fake yawning as convincingly as possible.  “A nap sounds quite nice actually,” your Dad said, yawning for real. You didn’t know if it was better or worse that your Mom agreed too. On the one hand it did mean Erin would have no choice but to join you in your room, on the other though, if all three of them were asleep it would be easier to sneak off for a bit.  Or it would have been, if Erin had actually gone to sleep. There was clear snoring coming from the room next door but everyone in your room was wide awake.  “Are you sure you don’t want a nap?”  “I told you, I’m not tired,”  “Really?”  “Why don’t we go see Joe again?”  “I’m sure he’s busy doing other things.” He could be busy doing me if you’d just go to sleep.   “Well I’m bored. Let’s go down to the pool.”  “I don’t know if we should. You heard Mom on the bus, she doesn’t want me taking you out alone.”  “She meant at night. It’s like, two o’clock and it’s just the pool,”  “I guess so. It would be better than doing nothing here.”  Erin clapped her hands as she jumped up to find her bathers, rushing into the bathroom to change. You briefly wondered whether you should call Joe, even going so far as to pick up the phone, but ultimately decided against it. Realistically nothing could happen for the moment, not when it was just you watching Erin. You didn’t bother changing out of your shorts and tee-shirt, just slipped a note under your parents door in case they woke up, and then let Erin lead you downstairs and out into the sunshine.  

Erin was exhausted by the time dinner was finished, practically falling asleep in her plate. You offered to take her up to bed while your parents retired to the bar, figuring you might at least be able to talk to Joe for a while. You changed into your pyjamas while you waited for Erin to drop off completely but as soon as you were sure she was asleep you called Joe’s room. It rang once before he picked up.  “Hello?”  “Gosh, you’re eager. Expecting someone?”  “I was hoping you’d show up in your bikini the way we talked about but I guess this will do.”  “Well I’m here with Erin who happens to be asleep. Deeply asleep. And I was thinking we cou-”  The line went dead. What the fuck?  You were on the point of redialling when there was a soft knock at your door. As soon as you opened it Joe was on you, making you giggle as he held your face and kissed you. A snuffle from Erin made him stop, peaking at her from over your head.  “Bathroom,” you said softly, pointing at it as you closed the front door.  Joe grabbed your hand, covering his mouth to muffle his laughter as he pulled you along.   “I’m so glad you called,” he mumbled against your lips, hands already firmly on your ass, pulling you against him as you locked yourself in the bathroom.  “Mmhmm, me too.” You pulled away for a moment, “I was gonna suggest you bring the rest of that vodka over and we just hang out on the veranda and talk but this is better, want you so bad,"  “You sure this is okay? We won’t get caught in here?”  “Not if we stay quiet,” you breathed out, pushing yourself onto your toes to kiss him again. Joe didn’t argue, kissing you back fiercely as he backed you up against the sink. You could feel the cold sink top pressing against your lower back where your shirt had ridden up, a chill running along your spine, but you were far more concerned with trying to press yourself as close to Joe as possible. One of his hands as slipped up to your back but the other remained on your ass, pulling your hips against his. You threated one hand through his hair, tugging at it as he moved to kiss your neck.  “Careful Joe, don’t leave any marks,”  “I won’t. As much as your neck is begging to be covered in hickeys.”  You whined as he ground his hips against you, able to feel his semi-hard dick through his pants.   “Gosh, you’re eager,” he echoed your words from earlier, as he slipped a hand under the waistband of your pyjamas.  There was a knock at the door that made both of you pause. You held your breath, waiting, and then it came again accompanied by your mother’s voice calling your name.  “Shit,”  “Your Mom?”  “Yeah. Jesus Christ that sixth sense for gossip she’s got still fucking works. I’ll try and get rid of her, just wait here.”  You quickly readjusted your clothes as you stepped back out into the main room, pulling the bathroom door shut behind you.  “Y/N, open up,”  “Mom?” you said quietly, opening the door just wide enough for you to be seen, “thought you were down in the bar,”  “Your father and I felt bad that you were spending the night here with your sister. Thought you might want to come down and join us. Erin’s still asleep right?”  “Yeah, completely out of it.” Thank God.  “She’ll be fine on her own for a couple of hours, you should come downstairs.”  “Oh, I don’t mind staying here.”  “Don’t be silly, you must be bored out of your mind,”  “Not really. There’s the TV and then I’ve got a couple of things to read before school goes back. You and Dad should enjoy yourselves.”  “Honey, I see your father every day but I haven’t seen you properly in months. Now, I insist you come down and have a drink with us. The books will be there when you come back.”  “Are you sure it’s okay to leave Erin?”  “It’s fine, the door will be locked and she probably won’t wake up. Just leave a note in case she does.”  “Yeah, okay, I’ll come down then, just give me a couple of minutes to change out of my PJs.”   You shut the door and hurried back into the bathroom, grabbing a pair of shorts on your way past.  “You’re leaving?”  “I’m sorry, she didn’t really give me a choice. I’ll try and keep it short, see if I can get to your room afterwards.”  “Okay, yeah, I get it.”  You dropped your pyjamas and stepped into your shorts as you talked, “If not tonight then tomorrow for sure. Don’t think there’s anything planned except relaxing on the beach, so I’ll probably be in my bikini when I come up.”  “Well I guess I can wait for that.”  “Thank you for being so understanding,” you leaned up to kiss him again, much too briefly, “Give us a few minutes before you leave just to make sure we’re in the elevator.”   

If you were hoping to get back upstairs without much fuss you were in for some disappointment. The quick drink you intended turned into a few more, your parents wanting to know every detail of the last few months of your life. They flatly refused to accept short answers and you ended up explaining every class you were taking and telling them about all your friends. In the morning you’d blame your mother. She was always good at getting people to talk even when they didn’t intend to. It was part of how she stayed on top of neighbourhood gossip. A couple of drinks and a few soft words and she could have someone spilling their guts about the affair they were having or their failing marriage or any other myriad secrets they could be keeping. You were mostly thankful she hadn’t mentioned Joe, knowing full well you would have ended up caving and telling her much more than she needed to know. Luckily, she’d been too focused on finding out every detail of your breakup with Eddie. It was over your third gin and tonic that you told her about how you’d dumped him over dinner one night. How there hadn’t really been a specific event that made you want to end it, more of a build-up of little things – he never said thank you and he was always making jokes that seemed like jokes but were actually really mean when you thought about them later and god he’d bought you a coffee mug for Christmas which is such a non-gift like it’s what you get for a co-worker you don’t know well in a secret Santa, y’know? And it wasn’t even a good mug with like a funny saying on it or whatever, just boring grey.   Your Mom just nodded along, filing away every scrap of information in case she ever needed it later.   “But that’s one reason I was glad you said you were organising this trip. Just needed to get away for a bit.”  “So you’re enjoying Hawaii then?”  “Oh, so much. It’s so beautiful here. The tour we went on today was incredible.”  “Wasn’t it just? You enjoyed it didn’t you darling?”  “It was fascinating, all that history,” your father chimed in, looking a little relieved you weren’t talking about boys any more.  An idea came to you that would help you get away to see Joe tomorrow, “Hey, do we have anything booked for tomorrow?”  “No, I thought we could all use a day to just relax on the beach or whatever. Why?”  “Oh, I was thinking about making an appointment for a massage in the spa but I didn’t want to book a time if we were going to be doing a volcano walk or something.”  “Oh a massage does sound nice,” you Mom said, “maybe I’ll join you. Your father can take Erin for a few hours and we can have some girl time.”  “Oh,” shit shit shit, “yeah, that’d be nice.”  “Okay, it’s settled, I’ll make an appointment as soon as we go upstairs.”   

By the time you were heading up to bed you decided it was too late to call on Joe, and the possibility your Mom would come knocking to ask you about massages was too high. The next morning, as soon as Erin was in the shower you called his room, intending to apologise again for the previous night and for how you’d fucked up today’s plans. It rang out. You figured he must be in the shower himself or else have already gone downstairs for breakfast, so you replaced the receiver and went about your morning routine.  Before you left to head down to the beach with the rest of your family you wrote a quick note to Joe, explaining what had happened. As the elevator doors opened you feigned forgetfulness and claimed you’d left your sunglasses back in your room, telling everyone to go on ahead and you’d meet them down there. You dashed back towards Joe’s room and slipped the note under his door hoping he’d see it, before hurrying back to the elevator.   “Got your sunnies?”  “Yeah right here,” you pulled them out of your pocket and held them up.  “Honestly Y/N, you’d forget your head if it wasn’t screwed on,”  You shrugged, “Probably,” as you followed everyone down the path and onto the sand. When you got there you looked around for any sign of Joe but, much to your disappointment, he wasn’t anywhere to be seen. You tried to push him from your mind as you relaxed on the sun warmed sand and swam in the ocean, but you couldn’t help looking for him every time you resurfaced. Erin was something of a distraction, asking you to help build a sandcastle, but it wasn’t quite enough to keep you from scanning the steadily growing crowd, looking for his familiar face in the sea of strangers. It was almost welcome when your mother told you it was time for your massage, if only because you felt tense after not being able to explain what had happened to Joe. Though, you weren’t entirely sure how relaxing it was going to be when you were constantly on the alert for any leading questions about your love life. 

You were right to be worried. Before you even left the beach she started in on you.   “So if things between you and Eddie are definitely over,”  “They are,”  “Does that mean there’s someone else you’ve got your eye on?”  “No,”  “Really? Not even a little crush or anything?”  “Nothing. Surely there’s something else we can talk about. Tell me about that thing at Erin’s school that you mentioned last night.”  “I remember when I was around your age,” she barrelled on, completely ignoring you, “I broke up with my boyfriend and within a week I’d found someone else to flirt with.”  “I mean, I’ve done that a bit,”  “Oh?”  “My friends have taken me out a few times and,” you paused realising how easily she’d got you to started, “And I’m not talking about this anymore.”  “Alright, honey, I won’t push. But you can talk to me, I’m your mother and I just wanna know you’re okay.”  “I am.”   You made small talk the rest of the way, about how pretty the scenery was and how nice it was to get away, but you felt on edge, constantly waiting for another mention of Eddie or, god forbid, Joe. It was a relief when you entered the spa area and your Mom was distracted with the process of checking in. You waited, listening to the calming music and the sound of running water that flowed through the entrance room, suddenly aware of how tense you were. As much as you would have liked to be with Joe, perhaps a massage wasn’t a terrible alternative.  

It started off well enough. The calming energy of the spa relaxed you as the masseuse worked the muscles in your back and shoulders until you felt loose and calm. It helped that there wasn’t much opportunity for you mother to badger you, neither of you wanting to break the tranquillity of the moment. It lulled you into, what you later realised was a false sense of security. Once you were settled in a tub of warm water, the aroma of rose petals and lemon slices rising into the air, she started in on you again.   “This is such a lovely place, isn’t it Y/N?”  “Huh?”  “Hawaii. Just stunning.”  “Oh, yeah, for sure.” You closed your eyes, leaning back against the edge of the tub and reaching for your complimentary glass of champagne.  “And not just the scenery either, so many attractive people,”  You took a sip of your drink and tried to ignore her.  “Easy way to have a rebound fling, help you get over the breakup,”  “I guess so. Haven’t really thought about it.” You hoped she couldn’t hear your heartbeat speed up, loud in your own ears.   “Not once?”  Don’t fuck up, “Nope, guess I’ve been more focused on relaxing, catching up with you guys,”  She paused for a moment, taking a sip of her own drink, as she recalculated her attack, “I keep seeing that fellow from the island tour around the place.”  You resolutely kept still, not wanting to incriminate yourself with a single gesture.  “What was his name? Jim?”   Joe! “Who?”  “The lovely young man we got to take our photo. Jim doesn’t sound right,”   It’s not! “Oh, him,”  “Joe, I think that was it,”  You glanced over at your mother, she was watching you intently, trying to spot any hint that you were lying. You could just imagine her if she found out that you’d spent the last two days flirting with Joe. As soon as she got home she’d be telling everyone how you hooked a man within the first days of your holiday. It would be just like when you told her you’d had your first kiss and somehow the next day the whole street knew.  “I was thinking of inviting him to join us for dinner one night.”  “What?” You hoped your slightly raised voice went unnoticed or at least was taken for surprise rather than horror.  “Well I think he’s here on his own and I thought since he’s around your age it might be nice to meet him properly.”  “Oh my god, you are unbelievable.”  “He thinks you’re pretty. Barely took his eyes off you while he was taking the photos. I probably could have stuck my finger in my nose and crossed my eyes and he wouldn’t have noticed. A miracle we got some decent photos really.”  “So?”  “So, if you wanted to, I don’t know, spend some time with him...”  For a brief moment you were tempted to spill everything, put an end to the sneaking around and just admit that’s what you’d been hoping for since you first laid eyes on him. But the thought of how obnoxious your mother would be about it stopped you in your tracks. Plus, it was weird how curious about your sex life she was.   “I’m not really interested,”  She didn’t seem wholly convinced by your lie but she dropped the subject, knowing a losing battle when she saw one.  

As soon as you were out of the spa you made your way back upstairs, claiming you wanted to have a short nap before dinner. You headed straight to Joe’s room and knocked at his door. There was no response. You knocked a bit louder. Still no response. Looking over your shoulder in case anyone was approaching you knocked again and called his name. He definitely wasn’t there. Not entirely sure what to do with yourself now that your idea had fallen through you headed back downstairs. For a while you wandered around the resort, keeping an eye out for any sign of Joe, but eventually you gave up and went to meet your family for dinner.   “So how was your morning dear?”  Your father stopped with a couple of fries half way to his mouth, “Yeah, good. We had fun didn’t we Erin?”  “Yup! We saw Joe!”  You dropped your fork with a loud clatter, drawing everyone’s eyes.  “Sorry, slipped outta my hand.”  You looked back at your plate, unable to face your Mom’s self-satisfied smile.  “We did, ran into him at the pool. Me and him are going to play a few rounds of golf tomorrow. Any of you are welcome to join us.”  “Well, me and Erin are going to skip out I think,” your Mom said, “we’ve signed up to one of those painting activities. I think we get to paint a little tiki statue we can take home with us. And then we might try and catch a hula show too. But Y/N, you should go.”  You were torn, unsure how to answer, aware of your mother watching your reaction.  “Yeah, Y/N, that’d be great.”  “Golf....isn’t really my game,”  “That doesn’t matter, it’ll still be fun. C’mon, come with us.”  You sighed, “Yeah okay,” at least this way you’d be able to see Joe, maybe manage to sneak off for a make out sesh, or, if you were lucky, be able to head back to his room together. You were lost in thought, picking at your food when you saw your mother wave at someone over your head.  “Speak of the devil,” she said as footsteps approached, “Joe, come and join us. My husband’s just been telling me you’re playing golf together tomorrow.”  “Hi,” Joe seemed a little awkward at the sudden familiarity, eyes flicking towards you very briefly, “yeah we are. I’m looking forward to it, but I don’t want to intrude on your family time.”  “Oh intrude-schmude. Please, have dinner with us. You remember Erin of course, and my other daughter Y/N,”  “Nice to meet you properly,” you smiled at Joe, sure he was about to laugh at your improvisation.   “Y/N’s agreed to come with us tomorrow, play a few rounds.”  “Really?”  “Sure. I’m afraid I’m a terrible golfer, but how could I resist? When in Hawaii after all.”  Joe chuckled as he pulled an empty chair over and placed it next to you, “Surprised I didn’t see you with your father and Erin then. They were fully embracing that attitude by the pool all afternoon.”  “I was embracing it elsewhere. Mom and I had a surprise girl’s day at the spa.”  You hadn’t been sure Joe would get your hastily written note that morning but at least you could breathe easy now, his nod showing he understood why you hadn’t been around earlier.   “It was incredibly relaxing,” your Mom chimed in, “but what about you Joe? Here on your own?”  “‘Fraid so. Thought it’d be nice to get away on my own after I was done with exams.”  “So, no girlfriend then?”  You rolled your eyes as your Mom pointedly looked at you.  Joe just chuckled, “No, not for a while.”  “Any particular reason?”  “Alright dear,” your father said, laying a hand over hers, “No need to interrogate the poor lad.”  “Sorry Joe, I can get a little carried away,” your mother said with a smile, “it’s just that me and Y/N were talking earlier about her recent breakup and it was still on my mind.”  “Sounds like Y/N could use a little rebound relationship,” Joe said, cocking his head and smiling as he turned to you.  “Thank you, Joe, that’s what I’ve been trying to tell her.”  “Yes, thank you, but I think Y/N can decide what Y/N needs on her own,” you huffed, crossing your arms and trying to kick Joe subtly under the table. As soon as you made contact with his ankle he winced. You tried not to look too pleased. 

Gradually the conversation moved away from your love life into the casual chatter reserved for new acquaintances and you could relax a little. Although not entirely. Your mother hadn’t given up whatever game she was playing, and Joe seemed to be doing everything he could to encourage her, much to your annoyance. You tried to kick his ankle again in the hopes that would be enough to stop him but he shifted in his seat, moving his foot before you could reach it. The corner of his mouth lifted which only made you want to kick him harder. Instead you froze as he dropped his hand to your knee, squeezing it in warning. His voice didn’t waver as he talked to your parents, at the same time slowly dragging his fingers up your thigh until he reached the hem of your shorts. You completely lost track of the conversation as he held his hand there, his thumb rubbing over the patch of skin it could reach. It was hard enough just remembering to breath properly. You only started paying attention again when you heard your name.  “Huh?”  “I asked you what you thought,” Joe said, entirely too pleased with himself.  “Oh, sorry, I uh, I wasn’t listening,”  “Y/N, are you okay?” your Dad asked, “you look a little off,”  “Feel a little dizzy actually. Probably just haven’t drunk enough water today.” You reached for your glass of water but only ended up knocking it over as Joe chose that moment to move his fingers to the seam along the front of your shorts, pressing down on it as he traced its path between your legs, seemingly unfazed by the potential attention he could be drawing.  “Shit, sorry,” you grabbed your napkin, trying to mop up the spill but it had already started to run over your edge of the table. Joe quickly pulled his hand away from you as ice cold water dripped onto his lap. Serves him right was all you had time to think before it reached your leg as well. You shivered at the cold but it was nothing to the shiver that went up your spine as Joe reached over to wipe the water from your leg with his own napkin.   “Sorry,” you said again, “think I might go hop into bed early. Make sure I’m okay for golf tomorrow,” you pushed back from the table to make a quick escape but Joe stood up too.  “Wait, I’ll come with, make sure you don’t knock over anything else on your way.”  “You really don’t need to do that,”  “No it’s okay, I’m gonna change my pants anyway since it looks like I’ve had a uh, rather unfortunate accident.”  You laughed when you glanced at the large wet stain on the front of his pants but nodded before turning to bid your family goodnight. Your Mom was looking exceptionally pleased with herself.  

Once you were closer to the elevators and out of sight you turned to hit Joe’s shoulder, “you jerk. I can’t believe you did that,”  “Did what?” he raised his eyebrow and grinned at you.  “All of it! Encouraging my mother’s ridiculous notions of playing cupid. Feeling me up while my Dad was right there. Agreeing to play golf with him? What the fuck?”  “Well you were a no show today and I was pissed off you’d ditched me again without warning. Besides, no need to worry about him. You said he doesn’t do the whole overprotective dad thing and even if he did, he likes me.”  “That’s beside the point. And I tried to call you this morning but you didn’t answer. Even slipped a note under the door for you.”  “Whatever. I managed to get us away for a bit didn’t I?”  “Oh, if you think I’m sleeping with you tonight you are mistaken.”  “C’mon Y/N, it was just a bit of fun,”  The elevator dinged and you stepped in, crossing your arms over your chest as you leaned against the back wall, letting Joe press the button for your floor, “Fun for you maybe. Mom’s gonna come past the room later to put Erin in bed and expect it to be empty. She thinks we’re off fucking right now and that’s what I’ve been trying to avoid. Christ she’s gonna go home and tell the whole fucking neighbourho-”  You stopped talking as Joe ran his fingers along the seam of your shorts again, “think I can save the evening, make it fun for you.”  You closed your eyes, whimpering as he traced his touch over your clit. It took all your willpower to grab his wrist and pull his hand away from you.   “Really? You’re gonna punish yourself because of what happened at dinner?”  “No, I’m gonna go get off while I have the room to myself and you’re gonna be left with that image being the only thing you can think about.” you pushed past him as the doors opened on your floor, “See you at golf tomorrow Joe.” 

#my writing #joe mazzello x reader #joe mazzello imagine #i'm so sorry about the long wait ya'll #hopefully p3 will be up a bit faster #but like don't hold me to that #(tho i am excited to get into p3 because thats where The Smut will finally happen lmao #I think I'm gonna try and write it so if you didn't want to read the smut you don't have to #because obv. the first part was fairly innocent #and i know that smut isn't everyone's jam)

[yellowreeds-writer]

Gambit Games chapter 1

(Hey guys, new project, its mostly smut and violence, you’ve been warned. this first chapter is just a bit of set up)

“It was a dark and stormy night,” Marlow spoke, his voice low trying to emulate a creepy voice. The flashlight pointed up at his face illuminating the old Elton john poster behind him. Yvette and Annie giggle at the cliché opening line and Smith gives a big huff.

Marlow grabs a pillow from my twin bed beside him and throws it at him. “Shut it, downer, I’m trying to set the mood.”

“Last time you did that it took you two hours just to tell us an “original story” that turned out just to be an alternative version of Animal Farm.” Smith catches the pillow and swiftly throws it back hitting the shorter boy right it the throat.

“Alright, fuck you!” Marlow chuckles playfully and tosses the red pillow at me.

I catch it easily, Marlow’s never been a good shot, it’s a surprise it even made it into my hands.

“Come on guys I kind of want to hear Mar’s little story.” Annie said between soft chuckles.

“Little?!” Marlow fakes a loud gasp, “I’ll have you know I’m this generation’s next great author!”

Smith moves to sit on the bed and throws my second pillow at him, “Sure, when whatever perv website you use to post your one-direction fanfiction I’ll believe you.”

Marlow shifts back, a blush coming across his face. I lean over him from my spot on Claude’s bed to ruffle his wavy hair. We haven’t stop teasing him about his written erotica since Smith saw his latest creation when he left his laptop open. We’ve known since day one that he was gay, it wasn’t really a problem for anyone but his ex-roommate Oliver, but Smith was a good man and traded rooms with him, the AC works better in his old room and anyone would want it over the other stuffy ass rooms on this floor.

“Aw leave him alone” Annie takes my third and finale pillow off my bed to support her back.

“No, keep it going, hearing about Marlow’s sexual fantasies is far more interesting than any of his books or plays that we’ve yet to read.” Yvette points out.

Giggles and laughter erupt from the group as Marlow shrivels up in his button up shirt. My freshmen year of college has gone much better than I thought it would. Its only September but I find myself in good company. In high school I’m not quite sure what I did wrong, I’m not mean to people, I’m rather smart and as far as I’m told I’m very attractive. But back in my hometown I never really had any friends. Classmates sure but outside of them asking to barrow my notes I didn’t really conversate. I spent most of my free time writing, I guess it paid off too because now I’ve got a free ride through the country’s best playwriting program.

The top four floors of the oldest building on campus is reserved for the theatre program students and the top floor is for the scholarship kids, which is us, and the other three floors hate us, which I love. I love the superiority of it all, I love being hated by the lesser it further proves my place above it all. Yvette flips her black hair over her shoulder, as she does this action, I realize what she’s wearing tonight, or lack of. Yvette has always dressed a certain way but her current assemble seemed to top a mental list I didn’t even know I was making. She’s wearing a tight-fitting black tank top that clearly is far too small and sweats that seem to hug curves I didn’t know she had. Huh.

“Psst.” Smith calls over the group to me as Marlow struggles to change the subject. He mouths something to me that I can’t really tell, the room is very dark. Then me nods to Yvette. ‘stop staring’ that was it, see, I’m smart.

As I start to tune in to whatever the new topic is my focus is ripped away by the door of my dorm slamming open and the lights flipping on.

“Why are you all sitting in the dark? Please tell me no one’s having sex on my bed.”

Claude stands at the doorway, his copper hair showing off its red shine telling me he hasn’t washed his hair in a good while. He’s tall, taller than me but not as tall as smith, but even then, Smith’s only six two. We’re not the most height-friendly bunch with most of us being below five ten.

“You wish I was.” Yvette follows her comment up with a fake moan.

Claude sighs and drops his bag by the foot of his bed and looks dead into my eyes; “What are they all doing here?”

Before I can answer Smith stands up from my bed and rolls his shoulders back, “Its scary story night, sweetheart, come on join us.”

The shorter boy puffs his chest out a bit and puts his hands in his jean pockets, jeans I now realize they are covered with an un-godly amount of dirt.

“No thanks, I’ll pass. But y’all need to relocate I’ve got a killer head ache and I’d rather be asleep right now.”

Smith looks him up and down, makes a show of rolling his shoulders back again. They’re squaring off at each other, they do it quite a lot, I don’t know if its because they’re the two alpha males of our group or what. Though, I wouldn’t say Claude is part the group, he mostly gets stuck with one of us for projects because he’s also a scholarship kid meaning the rest of the department hates his guts. At first I thought they did it because they wanted to fuck but neither of them wanted to admit to being a bottom, but now I know they’re both straight. Very much so in Claude’s case; he’s never even kissed a boy. Smith however tends to be a bit more fluid, at least from what I can tell.

Smith forfeits their fake fight first; “Tsk, fine. We can go to me and Marlow’s room.”

“Marlow and I.” the wavy-haired brunette corrects him as everyone starts to get unsettled from their spots.

Annie yawns as she gets to the door first, “actually guys I’m pretty tired, I’m going back to my room.

“Me too.” I chime in, “Y’all go on without us.”

Yvette scoffs at us, “Fine, more fun for Smith and Marlow.” She winks at me before stepping out of my dorm and down the hall.

Marlow flashes a confused face at Smith before the two of them leave. Annie picks up her phone from my bed’s edge and hugs me goodnight, she closes the door behind her and as soon as it clicks shut Claude starts stripping his clothes off.

“Why the rush?” I ask sinking back onto his bed.

“I haven’t showered in like two days and I’m covered in shit.” He says as he lifts his shirt over his head.

“Three.” I correct him. It his job that keeps him away at every free moment of the day. If he’s not in class or sleeping he’s at his mystery job that he refuses to talk about. I think he’s a janitor or something along those lines but that wouldn’t explain the weird hours or the dust and dirt, its not like bathroom grime its real under-the-grass dirt. Mud stains if it was raining that day.

As he slips off his jeans that are defiantly a size or two too big I ask him, “What’s with all the dirt?”

He grunts, “Work.”

“Very specific.”

He rolls his eyes and opens the door to our shared restroom and turns the shower on.

“I would like more details, please.”

“It was a long weekend, just worked more then usual, no laundry machines there so it’s not like I could wash my pants before you saw them.” He snaps.

“Just asking, calm down.” I decide not to push it, Claude is already a touchy person already, but I’m guessing he hasn’t slept much at all lately.

I change into a tank top and old shorts while he’s in the shower, waiting till he’s dresses and clothed till I go in there to take care of myself for the night.

“What time is your first class tomorrow?” He asks me.

“Ten.” I say through the tooth brush in my mouth, “That stupid English class they’re making us playwrights take. It’s the absolute worst thing.”

“So I’ve heard. That real flamboyant guy, William, he won’t shut up about it.”

I raise an eyebrow at him, “Non-scholarship kid? They talk to you?”

“No, but he’s loud enough during my dramaturgy class its hard to not to hear when he complains about everything.” He looks at me a moment while I spit into he sink. “Is he any good? At the writing stuff? He talks all this smack whenever Marlow or Oliver even walk by his vicinity. I just gotta know.”

“Ha, absolutely not, he thinks just because he was named after Shakespeare he’s god’s gift, but his shit is so “inspectorial” and “meta” I couldn’t tell you what a damn one was about.”

Claude nods, “A’ight, I’ll bring that up next time he calls Marlow’s play’s basic.”

“I’m surprised Mar’s doesn’t stand up for himself.”

“He’s taken after you,” He says walks to his bed, “just starting ignoring everyone that doesn’t matter. Which I suppose at this point is anyone who doesn’t live on this floor or teach one of his classes.”

“Smart kid.” I say turning off the light to the bathroom.

“Night Butch.” He says quietly.

“G’night Claude.” I respond turning off the dorm room light. As I slip into bed, I think about nothing, nothing at all.

#writing #writers #Smut #violence #tw violence #lgbt #gay

[daresplaining]

Could you maybe make a post with some of the most inspiring Daredevil pages? Stuff like him overcoming the Purple Man making him more depressed and hopeless in Waid's run, or the "I am Daredevil, and I am not Afraid." page from Soule's run. Those kind of pages always help me when I'm feeling down, it would be cool to see more in that vein.

    I love this request, and yes, I can definitely do that! I draw a lot of inspiration from Daredevil too (and superhero comics in general; that’s one of the purposes of the genre, in my experience), and refusing to give up when everything is falling apart is one of Matt’s trademark moves. Here are a few of my favorite moments– and I’m including the ones you mentioned, since I love them and want to make sure other people have seen them too. 

[ID: The Kingpin is brutally beating up Matt, who is in civvies. Matt falls on his back, his face bloody.]

Matt: “Never give up– never–”

Let’s start with a classic: 

[ID: Daredevil is fighting Namor. He tries electrocuting him, but the blast knocks him to the ground. As Namor walks away, Daredevil reaches out and grabs his ankle before passing out.]

Namor: “This is madness!! Does your own life mean nothing to you!?? Have you no sense of fear??”

Matt: “Sure! But I seem to have carelessly misplaced it somewhere! Now, just stand there for a second, fella– I want to try something!”

Caption: “Taking one last desperate gamble, Daredevil joins the two live wires, hoping to stagger his super-human foe! […] But, once again, the power of the Sub-Mariner is greater than any could suppose, and it is he who recovers first– while the Man Without Fear, despite his insulated gloves– lies weak, and dazed, and helpless…! Yet, how can one measure the limitless courage of a fellow human? Although on the brink of unconsciousness– although racked with pain and fatigue– still the sightless crusader reaches out–!”

Matt: “Come back! You– you mustn’t fight the others–! They’re innocent– mustn’t be harmed– mustn’t–!”

Namor: “[…] I have fought the Fantastic Four, the Avengers, and other super-powered humans, but none has been more courageous than he, the most vulnerable of all! And out of respect to the courage of Daredevil, I shall not injure any humans! I shall fly above the waiting armed forces– and return to the sea where I am supreme!”

Daredevil vol. 1 #7 by Stan Lee and Wally Wood

    The issue that introduced the red Daredevil costume also crafted one of the first memorable depictions of Matt’s boundless resilience. Namor the Sub-Mariner comes ashore to sue the human race, and hires Nelson and Murdock to represent him. When the situation goes awry, Namor becomes violent, and Matt tries to subdue him. While he gets thoroughly thrashed in this fight, Matt’s persistence impresses Namor enough to make him leave the human race alone (for now). That image of a nearly-unconscious Daredevil clinging to Namor’s ankle is fairly iconic, with– I feel– good reason. 

[ID: The Hulk backhands Daredevil a good distance, where he crashes into some trash cans. He is injured and bleeding, but he struggles back to his feet as the Hulk stands over him, deciding whether or not to finish him off.]

Hulk: “NO! Banner made the Hulk a monster and Hulk will find him, even if it takes forever!”

Matt: “Hulk… *koff*… you won’t find Banner… *koff*… this way. You can’t… *koff*… find Banner this way. The police… the authorities.. I-I want to help them understand… *koff*… and… *koff* … I want to help you. …But you’ll have to trust me.”

Daredevil vol. 1 #163 by Roger McKenzie, Frank Miller, and Glynis Wein

    This is, thematically, a very similar situation to the first scene. The Hulk goes on a rampage and Matt tries to stop him. Just as in the Namor situation, Matt loses this fight– he is nearly beaten to death, and is confined to a hospital bed for quite a while afterward– but his courage breaks through the Hulk’s rage enough to calm him down. This is a recurring theme in their friendship. Matt first meets Bruce Banner when he is hired to represent the Hulk in court, and from the beginning, Matt has been vocal in his support of Bruce and sympathy for the Hulk. Despite the danger, Matt never hesitates to put himself within smashing distance of the Hulk for the sake of helping him. 

[ID: A taxi is resting at the bottom of a river with its hood bashed in. Matt Murdock is unconscious in the front seat. We see a close-up of his eyes as they open in a defiant glare. The next few panels show the Kingpin standing at a window looking out, and photos of the cab after it has been pulled out of the river.]

Caption: “Unconscious but living, Murdock is placed in a stolen checker cab… The cab is driven off Pier 41 into the East River. Its safety belt and doors are corroded shut by a chemical process that is identical to rust. Murdock is drenched in whiskey. A bottle, open, is laid in his lap. The owner of the cab is beaten to death by Murdock’s stolen billy club. Days pass into weeks. Still Murdock is never far from the crimelord’s thoughts. He imagines one last, terrible moment of realization… of Murdock thrashing wildly, desperately, hatefully… screaming soundlessly into the poisoned water… The Kingpin shudders at the thought, in pleasure… The world seems flooded with sunlight. Daily business becomes a joyous, childlike game. He has disgraced, destroyed and murdered the only good man he has ever known. This is his triumph of the spirit.

“At last the cab is discovered. There is blood, and bloody evidence of a struggle. There is a shattered windshield… a safety belt, severed by the windshield’s glass and what must have been a hideous effort of will. There is no corpse.”

Daredevil vol. 1 #228 by Frank Miller, David Mazzucchelli, and R. Lewis

    This is, of course, from the famous “Born Again” arc, and I had a hard time choosing a scene, since the whole story is essentially a seven-issue-long depiction of Matt being knocked down and then standing back up. (I highly recommend reading it if anyone hasn’t, and I also summarized it here. I also cheated by including another scene at the beginning of this post…). However, the scene above is a turning point and possibly my favorite moment in the whole story. At this point Matt has lost it all: his friends, his career, his reputation, his money, and his home. In a fit of desperate, delirious anger, he attacks the Kingpin, who beats him unconscious and then– in the scene above– tries to kill him once and for all. The above issue starts with Matt curled up on a bed in a hotel room, unable to force himself to even move. He seems thoroughly beaten, and the Kingpin assumes the same, which is why he decides to stop toying with his victim and just finish the job. But in spite of all of this, Matt freaking Murdock refuses to die, and he somehow finds the strength to physically fight his way out of this seemingly unsurvivable situation. The fact that we don’t see him do it– that we only get the Kingpin’s reaction and that panel of Matt’s defiant glare after regaining consciousness– makes this act of resilience all the more powerful.       

[ID: Daredevil is fighting the Vulture (the Spider-Man villain). Daredevil pins him to the ground and starts punching him in the face.]

Matt: “A while ago, you said I secretly wanted to die. You were wrong. Cowards want to die. I’m no coward. I’m proving it– to you and to myself– by beating you… you– and everything you represent… the death and decay that eat away at a man until he surrenders… the horror that pulls you down into the pit! Well, I’m not the surrendering kind, mister! Got that? I never give up!”

Daredevil vol. 1 #225 by Denny O’Neil, David Mazzucchelli, and Ken Feduniewicz

    Matt is not at all a suicidal person (I’ve seen some fans claim otherwise, but he really isn’t), and this scene comes from a rare issue that covers that topic. It takes place shortly after Heather Glenn’s suicide, and it explores how the spectre of her death haunts Matt and Foggy’s lives afterward. In this story, the concept of death is represented by the Vulture, who Matt discovers trying to rob Heather’s grave. Later, he appears at the offices of Nelson and Murdock, which have just gone bankrupt. Upset by this loss, Foggy wanders up to the roof and contemplates his life, at which point he encounters the Vulture. Matt, fearing that Foggy might kill himself, goes up after him in costume and tries to fight the Vulture off. For a moment, during the fight, Matt contemplates whether he actually wants to lose, before returning to his senses and defeating both the Vulture and his own dark thoughts. 

[ID: Daredevil is fighting a huge crowd of grotesque-looking demons while carrying a lit torch. He holds up the torch and the demons scatter.] 

Matt: “My whole life, endless fighting. What a fate. I wonder, could I change that fate? No matter how many I kill, they keep on coming.”

Mephisto: “Ha ha ha ha ha! I love it! That’s it, you big hero. Keep fighting. Fight till you drop that torch.”

Matt: “What if… what if I just stopped? If I just stopped fighting. If you stop fighting, isn’t the fight over? Yes. Yes, yes, yes. They can’t touch me. Okay, Mephisto. I’m coming for you. You made a mistake. You believe your evil breaks a man. Sometimes it does. But when it doesn’t break a man– it makes him even stronger.”

Daredevil vol. 1 #281 by Ann Nocenti, John Romita Jr., and Christie Scheele

    This is from Matt’s literal trip to Hell in Nocenti’s run (Hell is a cosmic setting in the Marvel universe, and Mephisto is a recurring antagonist, so this isn’t quite as bizarre as it sounds…). While trapped in a seemingly endless wasteland and attacked by hoards of demons, Matt musters enough free will and spirit (as represented by the fire he’s carrying) to not only survive, but to actually challenge Mephisto. It’s great. 

[ID: Matt is crouched on the side of a building at night, in the rain. He is wearing the Daredevil suit but has taken the mask off. He puts his hand to his face in emotional anguish.] 

Matt: “I’ve got to pull myself together. My world is falling apart and I am helping it every single step of the way. I have to focus. Focus. Foggy is right. My entire life– everything is up for grabs. Everything I’ve built– everything I am– can be taken away from me. Have to center my energies. Have to think. Focus. Center and focus. Center and focus. Don’t listen to their camera motors and their cell phones. Don’t listen to them. The phone calls. All I hear is my name over and over: Murdock. Murdock, Murdock. That name is not theirs to say. It’s not theirs! It’s mine. They’re stealing it from me. No! Stop it. Center and focus. Center and focus. Center and–”

Mugging victim (off-panel): Noooo!”

Matt: “Focus.”

Daredevil vol. 2 #35 by Brian Michael Bendis, Alex Maleev, and Matt Hollingsworth

    I love this little moment from Bendis’s run. It’s small and subdued, but highly moving in the context of what Matt is dealing with in this story. His identity has been made public, there are crowds of reporters camped outside his home, his entire life is at risk of falling apart, but he takes this second to pause, think, and regain some sense of control.  

[ID: Matt stands up and prepares to fight. He is armed with two tonfa, and is wearing black clothes reminiscent of his Man Without Fear costume, but without a mask. His head is bandaged.]

Matt: “You think you can… turn me into a blubbering wreck… by preying on my fears… but I’ve already faced them– and come out the other side! You understand me, Calavera? I know what I am… who I am… and I am not afraid!”

Daredevil: Reborn #4 by Andy Diggle, Davide Gianfelice, and Matt Hollingsworth

    The Reborn mini-series follows Matt’s attempt at emotional recovery in the aftermath of “Shadowland”. Having quite literally lost his identity and had his spirit broken by getting possessed by a demon, he goes out west and, through helping right some wrongs in a small town in New Mexico, he reaffirms his sense of self.  

[ID: A stormy winter night. Ferry pilots (Sid and Ronnie, off-panel) are waiting for Daredevil to resurface from the river. As their ferry moves away, Daredevil hauls himself out of the freezing water and onto a dock.]

Sid: “It’s been a while, Ronnie– think he’s still down there?”

Ronnie: “Sid– you a moron? Where else would he be?”

Sid: “Beats me. Just askin’. It’s too bad– looks like he went back down there for nothin’. ‘Cept maybe to die.”

Ronnie: “Well, I’m not givin’ up just yet.”

Sid: “No? Why not?”

Ronnie: “’Cause I don’t think he would.”

Daredevil: Dark Nights #2 by Lee Weeks and Lee Loughridge

    The first Dark Nights story is a celebration of Matt’s willpower, as he travels through a blizzard to deliver a heart transplant to a dying little girl. I particularly love this scene, in which Matt dives into the river to rescue the heart and the pilots transporting it from their crashed helicopter, and despite the cold and his exhaustion, he powers through and survives the experience.

[ID: Daredevil is bleeding and horribly injured, and crouched in the mud under a bridge. The Purple Man is standing above him, about to hit him with a plank of wood.]

Purple Man: “Shouldn’t you be angry? Shouldn’t you put up a struggle?”

Matt (caption): “But that’s how far down the pit I’ve fallen. I can’t even respond to his orders. 

Purple Man: “Come on. This is too easy. Don’t rob me of a victory I’ve waited years for.”

Matt (caption): “All I can do is sink into the blackness. I can’t feel pain. I can’t  move because I have nothing to push against. Nothing.”

Purple Man: “Show me some fear.”

[ID: Daredevil kicks the Purple Man, then falls back to his knees. ]

Matt (caption): “That. That, I know how to fight. Get up. You have momentum now. Don’t lose it. Don’t let the shadows pull you back in. Inertia is the enemy. Do something. Move. Move, Matthew.”

Daredevil vol. 4 #10 by Mark Waid, Chris Samnee, and Matt Wilson

    I’m glad you mentioned this scene because it’s one of my favorites too, as is this story arc as a whole. Waid’s depiction of depression is visceral and heartrending because it’s something he himself suffers from, and that realism makes Matt’s struggle to move forward and fight against his despair all the more impactful.  

    As an extension of the above moment, Matt’s decision to talk with Kirsten at the end of the issue (which I discussed at length here) is also breathtaking.  

[ID: A black page with a red heart monitor readout at the bottom. It flatlines, then spikes once.]

Matt (caption): “I cannot see the light. So I will be the light. I am Daredevil. And I am not afraid.”

Daredevil vol. 5 #612 by Charles Soule and Phil Noto

    And this moment– there’s nothing more badass than Matt literally willing himself back to life! “I am Daredevil. And I am not afraid” is a refrain that is repeated throughout Soule’s run, which is a neat way of tying his run together and emphasizing Matt’s relentless determination. 

[ID: Matt is alone in a gym, struggling to walk between two parallel bars. He falls, then, with a huge effort, pulls himself back up.]

Jack (off-panel): “Fear’s of no use to us, Matt. We have to live with it, but it’s not for anything. But pain? What’s pain for, Matt? What’s pain for?”

Matt: “Pain keeps us going.”

Man Without Fear vol. 2 #5 by Jed MacKay, Danilo Beyruth, and Andres Mossa

    The new Man Without Fear was another great recovery story, and gave us this really great moment when Matt, after suffering through the physical and emotional destruction of being hit by a truck, finally regains his fighting spirit.

    I also wanted to include a few scenes of other people being inspired by Matt’s courage and resilience, because there are some great ones. Here’s one of my favorites, from Waid’s run:

[ID: Foggy is sitting in a circle with a group of fellow cancer patients. They are all wearing Daredevil shirts.]

Foggy: “Ah, excellent. You all dressed for the occasion. I’ll be straight up with you folks. I have a friend. He’s probably the bravest man I’ve ever met. And no matter how much I beg him to teach me to be like him… in the whole time I’ve known him, I’ve learned only one thing about fearlessness: it’s contagious.”

Daredevil vol. 3 #31 by Mark Waid, Chris Samnee, and Javier Rodriguez

    I love this aspect of Foggy’s cancer plotline– the fact that Foggy uses Matt as a source of inspiration for facing his own fear. These two have always been emotional anchors for each other, providing moral support and guidance in difficult times, and that’s part of what makes their friendship so powerful. Here, Foggy is largely on his own. Matt can’t punch cancer, and Foggy doesn’t even tell him about the symptoms at first. But from the very beginning, Foggy latches onto Matt’s fearlessness as a way of fending off his own terror about the diagnosis. As I said at the beginning of the post, part of the purpose of superhero stories is to serve as inspiration for their readers to be kind and courageous in their own lives, and it’s wonderful when characters within those stories are impacted in that same way by the superheroes around them. To take this concept one meta step further, Foggy’s cancer story– the whole thing, including his drawing strength from his best friend– is in itself a hero story for readers who may be going through similar experiences. 

[ID: Flashback panels colored in black and white with hints of red. Matt (in civvies) is attacked by a group of ninjas on a city street. He fights them while Foggy runs and hides around a corner.]

Foggy (caption): “When you were around, it was different. The fear wasn’t so real. I was still freaked whenever anything happened… my nerves were a car wreck… but even as I was sweating bullets, I somehow knew I was safe. Because of you.”

Daredevil vol. 2 #88 by Ed Brubaker, Michael Lark, David Aja, and Frank D’Armata

    …And another great Foggy and Matt scene, this one from “The Secret Life of Foggy Nelson”, one of my favorite issues of Brubaker’s run. Foggy has been separated from Matt against his will, and in his isolation and fear, he reflects on their friendship and draws strength from Matt’s example. 

[ID: Luke Cage is sitting comfortably in a chair, legs crossed, directly addressing the reader.]

Luke: “Daredevil. I know him pretty well, actually. Well, as well as he lets anyone know him. End of the day, without question, he’s one of the best. Ever. I’m not going to get into who he is and how he became who he became. And I know there are a lot of people who think they know all there is to know about Daredevil and all of his secrets. But I can tell you from personal experience that the information that’s out there about him is pretty much crap. Let’s just leave it at that. All you need to know about Daredevil is that this man has sacrificed everything to try to make this city safer. He has lost more and suffered more for his dedication to you than, well, anybody I know. And I know some people who’ve suffered and lost. He ain’t the strongest of us, and he ain’t the flashiest… but Daredevil cannot be brought down. It cannot happen.”

New Avengers vol. 2 #16 by Brian Michael Bendis, Mike Deodato, and Rain Beredo

    And last but not least, here an excerpt from a great speech Luke Cage gives after Matt joins the Avengers. Even other superheroes– all of whom tend toward superhuman resilience– are impressed by Matt.  

#Daredevil #Matt Murdock #Asks #Commentary #Adventures in Continuity

[misfit-among-the-angels]

Ah I love so many of those cute questions! And I know you like stuff to distract you, so how about you answer all of them? 😘 Can be in batches or all at once.

I hope you are talking about these questions c:

1: when you have cereal, do you have more milk than cereal or more cereal than milk?I don’t eat cereal tbh

2: do you like the feeling of cold air on your cheeks on a wintery day?YES! I loove cold, especially when it’s all snowy around, then I feel so alive!

3: what random objects do you use to bookmark your books?I have two bookmarks so I don’t use any other objects as bookmarks

4: how do you take your coffee/tea?I take my tea with two spoons of sugar and sometimes with milk if it’s black tea

5: are you self-conscious of your smile?Oh hell yea, I hate my smile most of the time

6: do you keep plants?Nope, I’m not much into keeping plans

7: do you name your plants?Nope

8: what artistic medium do you use to express your feelings?I used to write... Now i barely use any artistic stuff to express them :/

9: do you like singing/humming to yourself?Nope

10: do you sleep on your back, side, or stomach?I sleep on back and on my both sides

11: what’s an inner joke you have with your friends?Oh, I had so many that are now dead because I don’t talk to them anymore. One of them was naming my bag after Janick (lol). That there is one where we call Richard Kruspe Diva, this is such an old inside joke that usually I’m not even saying his name, just saying Diva. 

12: what’s your favorite planet?Saturn probably

13: what’s something that made you smile today?That Tobi post on facebook

14: if you were to live with your best friend in an old flat in a big city, what would it look like?Oh it would be messy but with so many posters all around since we both love them

15: go google a weird space fact and tell us what it is!Mercury is still shrinking

16: what’s your favorite pasta dish?Idk, I just love every kind of pasta

17: what color do you really want to dye your hair?I’d love to try black and maybe turquoise 

18: tell us about something dumb/funny you did that has since gone down in history between you and your friends and is always brought up.Me talking only about Rammstein for 5 hours straight and my best friend had to listen to that and he did. I still say sorry every time we remember that

19: do you keep a journal? what do you write/draw/ in it?I have my travel journal where I write about every trip I went to

20: what’s your favorite eye color?Green and brown

21: talk about your favorite bag, the one that’s been to hell and back with you and that you love to pieces.Oh that’s got to be my red backpack. She’s been to almost every trip I went to since probably 2016. She is old but she is the best one but soon it’s gonna be the time for her to retire 

22: are you a morning person?Hell no

23: what’s your favorite thing to do on lazy days where you have 0 obligations?Sleep

24: is there someone out there you would trust with every single one of your secrets?Maybe my best friend, I mean he already know probably every secret I had

25: what’s the weirdest place you’ve ever broken into?I haven’t broken into any place

26: what are the shoes you’ve had for forever and wear with every single outfit?Maybe my New rock boots?? I mean idk

27: what’s your favorite bubblegum flavor?Spearmint

28: sunrise or sunset?Sunset

29: what’s something really cute that one of your friends does and is totally endearing?She used to make necklaces and make it as a birthday gift. I still have two  necklaces that she made for me as a gift and I still wear them and I still love them

30: think of it: have you ever been truly scared?Oh yea

31: what is your opinion of socks? do you like wearing weird socks? do you sleep with socks? do you confine yourself to white sock hell? really, just talk about socks.Socks are cool and I love them, only that I usually forget to buy them and then I’m like “damn it, I’d love some nice socks to this outfit but I don’t have any..”

32: tell us a story of something that happened to you after 3AM when you were with friends.I think it was 2015 summer and I was totally drunk with my best friend, we were both fangirling/fanboying over Tobi and I remember he did something really hot and sexy - he poured some whiskey on my neck and licked it. Idk if he remembers that but my gods, I still can remember that and yea lol

33: what’s your fave pastry?Pies, cakes, buns of various kinds

34: tell us about the stuffed animal you kept as a kid. what is it called? what does it look like? do you still keep it?It was a big pink sheep, I loved it so much because it was so cute and big and yea. I don’t think I named it. Idk, I hope my mother didn’t throw it away

35: do you like stationary and pretty pens and so on? do you use them often?I don’t really use them, tho I have one for when I’m writing

36: which band’s sound would fit your mood right now?Danheim and Wardruna

37: do you like keeping your room messy or clean?Totally messy

38: tell us about your pet peeves!This is one of my biggest pet peeves. I really hate those fans who are like “I’m gonna die if I won’t be in a first row and I’ll do absolutely EVERYTHING to be there”. Yes, I get them and yes we all live being in a first row but man, those fans are so damn annoying. Like sure, I always try to be in a first row but I don’t bitch if I’m not

39: what color do you wear the most?Black, bit of red and blue

40: think of a piece of jewelry you own: what’s it’s story? does it have any meaning to you?My Mjolnir necklace. Well my old one was missing and till this day I haven’t found it so I bought the one I have now and well, it’s my amulet so it means a lot to me

41: what’s the last book you remember really, really loving?Good omens by  Terry Pratchett‎ and ‎Neil Gaiman

42: do you have a favorite coffee shop? describe it!I don’t really have favorite one

43: who was the last person you gazed at the stars with?This makes me sad because I never did that

44: when was the last time you remember feeling completely serene and at peace with everything?Last autumn when I was in Krakow

45: do you trust your instincts a lot?I dunno

46: tell us the worst pun you can think of.I’m so bad and thinking of puns tbh

47: what food do you think should be banned from the universe?Beetroot soup

48: what was your biggest fear as a kid? is it the same today?Darkness. Oh no, I loooove darkness now

49: do you like buying CDs and records? what was the last one you bought?YES, I love it. Last ones were the newest Rammstein album and Wardruna -  Runaljod - Ragnarok

50: what’s an odd thing you collect?I don’t think I collect any odd things

51: think of a person. what song do you associate with them?Sooner than now by Sin cos tan

52: what are your favorite memes of the year so far?I don’t think I have any???

53: have you ever watched the rocky horror picture show? heathers? beetlejuice? pulp fiction? what do you think of them?I’ve seen Beetlejuice and Pulp fiction and I love both of them

54: who’s the last person you saw with a true look of sadness on their face?Me

55: what’s the most dramatic thing you’ve ever done to prove a point?Cry

56: what are some things you find endearing in people?The way they talk about something they are passionate about, the way they blush or try to be modest

57: go listen to bohemian rhapsody. how did it make you feel? did you dramatically reenact the lyrics?I always have goosebumps when listening to it and yes I do sing along 

58: who’s the wine mom and who’s the vodka aunt in your group of friends? why?Group of friends? hahah, it’s so bold to assume that I have a group of friends.. 

59: what’s your favorite myth?I love the myth of Ragnarok

60: do you like poetry? what are some of your faves?Nope, I don’t like it

61: what’s the stupidest gift you’ve ever given? the stupidest one you’ve ever received?Can’t remember in both cases tbh

62: do you drink juice in the morning? which kind?I don’t drink juice in the morning

63: are you fussy about your books and music? do you keep them meticulously organized or kinda leave them be?I try to keep them organized 

64: what color is the sky where you are right now?Dark but almost clear with few clouds

65: is there anyone you haven’t seen in a long time who you’d love to hang out with?YES

66: what would your ideal flower crown look like?Maybe something like this

67: how do gloomy days where the sky is dark and the world is misty make you feel?I dunno, sometimes I love it sometimes I don’t

68: what’s winter like where you live?We used to have cool snowy winters

69: what are your favorite board games?Monopoly

70: have you ever used a ouija board?Nope

71: what’s your favorite kind of tea?Black

72: are you a person who needs to note everything down or else you’ll forget it?I guess, never thought about this much

73: what are some of your worst habits?Being lazy, kinda being hot head

74: describe a good friend of yours without using their name or gendered pronouns.Smart, pretty, tall, has a good heart, funny, serious, helpful, has their own strong opinion about a lot of things, stubborn 

75: tell us about your pets!I don’t have any :/

76: is there anything you should be doing right now but aren’t?I dunno, maybe

77: pink or yellow lemonade?Neither

78: are you in the minion hateclub or fanclub?Neither

79: what’s one of the cutest things someone has ever done for you?My best friend giving me a nickname which happened to be the one I use a lot now

80: what color are your bedroom walls? did you choose that color? if so, why?It’s creamy color, well I had a small voice of choosing them but I’m okay with them 

81: describe one of your friend’s eyes using the most abstract imagery you can think of.Oh no, I suck at describing stuff like this

82: are/were you good in school?Noo, I was sooo bad in school

83: what’s some of your favorite album art?

84: are you planning on getting tattoos? which ones?Yep, I have so many plans for them. I’m still planning on getting more band/lyric related tattoos, also Tolkien one and the one with wolf and triquetra

85: do you read comics? what are your faves?I tried to get into reading them but I can’t buy any of them here and I hate reading them online

86: do you like concept albums? which ones?Yep, well basically all Avantasia albums lol

87: what are some movies you think everyone should watch at least once in their lives?The Matrix, Kill Bill, Intouchables, Wild tales, The legend of 1900, Scent of a woman, Wag the dog

88: are there any artistic movements you particularly enjoy?Idk

89: are you close to your parents?Not really

90: talk about your one of you favorite cities.Krakow. The city that feels home to me, not only because it holds so much history of Lithuania but also because there is something about it that I just can’t describe... As my dad said it is a king city and it feels so, Krakow has a Wavel castle and so many other ancient buildings, maybe that’s why I love it so much. Even it seems that the life in it goes bit differently from any other cities, but from small Old town streets to Jewish district and to beautiful cemeteries everything makes me so happy there.

91: where do you plan on traveling this year?I do plan to travel to Poland, then to Czech republic and then to Germany

92: are you a person who drowns their pasta in cheese or a person who barely sprinkles a pinch?Cheese, yes I love myself a lot of cheese on my pasta

93: what’s the hairstyle you wear the most?I don’t have any other hairstyles other than the one I have in all my pictures

94: who was the last person you know to have a birthday?My best friend

95: what are your plans for this weekend?Don’t have any

96: do you install your computer updates really quickly or do you procrastinate on them a lot?It depends on my mood

97: myer briggs type, zodiac sign, and hogwarts house?ENFP, libra and i have no idea of my hogwarts house and I don’t really care

98: when’s the last time you went hiking? did you enjoy it?Last autumn, yes, I love hiking

99: list some songs that resonate to your soul whenever you hear them. Far From Heaven by Battle beast Dancing With The Beast by Battle beast So Good It Hurts by Lord of the lost Harvest by NightwishRunaway train by Avantasia Hoffnung by Doro I Wish by Battle beast Traust by Heilung Serpentine by Pretty maids Ich weiß es nicht by Lindemann

100: if you were presented with two buttons, one that allows you to go 5 years into the past, the other 5 years into the future, which one would you press? why?Definitely past, because I have so many mistakes to fix and so many moments to relive

Thank you and sorry if my answers suck

#anon #answered

[imaginesnkdorks]

Thank Goodness for Crazy

| 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 |

Part VIII: Bruised Cinderella

Pairing: Erwin/Reader

Summary: That time Erwin and the others attended a fancy party.

           “Today’s the day!” I said to myself the moment my eyes open. It’s the day that Nanaba would humiliate me in front of everyone. Or it’s the day I’ll beat her senseless. I trained so hard this past week.

           Racing to the grounds where we’ll battle it out, I saw a number of people gathering. Damn, it was those bets. Hange was noisily calling out to people to place their bets. They really made a game out of this. My coach was already here, and finding him was quite easy. He was standing beside the betting board.

           “What the hell?” I don’t know what I expected but there are obviously more people expecting Nanaba to win. Those who bet on me would expect a huge payout as I could count them off of my hands.

           “I’m betting on you.” Erwin tried to encourage me.

           “Of course you are.”

           Now that it’s here, I’m finally here, I feel chills. Nanaba is a legit soldier. She’s killed titans, and the only thing I’ve ever killed is a teeny tiny spider and I was screaming my head off the whole time.

           Soon enough, we were called to the middle. Hange is also the referee. As soon as she gave the go signal, Nanaba went in to attack! The bitch tried to punch me! But my training paid off – my reflexes improved a lot I feel like a ninja.

           I successfully dodged, but she immediately followed up with another punch. Raising both my arms, I shielded my face. “Ugh!” Her punch is really something! But it’s nothing compared to Erwin’s.

           Erwin never went easy on me during our sparring sessions, I almost hate him for it. But I can see that it might just be the thing that’ll help me live.

           Since I’ve gone defensive for a good five minutes, Nanaba’s guard isn’t that up. I grabbed the chance and kicked her on the stomach. She caught my foot and won’t let go. With a smug smile, “got you.” She taunted.

           This would’ve have been bad for me, except this is my favorite move. Using her grip on my foot for balance and foundation, I raised my self almost over her head going for another kick. And I hit her hard with my other foot, she flew backward and fell hard on the ground.

           All around me were surprised faces. Everyone was so quiet for a full second before they started cheering.

           “Wow. Looks like you’ve really been training hard.” Nanaba said before she runs off to attack me. I suddenly regret being an asshole who kicked her in the face.

           To sum it up, I took a beating. But she received her fair share of bruises. We’ve been going at this for more than half an hour, and I am really tired. I can feel my lips are swollen now. I need to finish this.

           We began running towards each other and she went in for a punch, which I dodged easily, then I used my ultimate move. I punched her on the throat. I know, dick move. That’s why I love it. She fell flat on the ground, gasping for air, and Hange went in for the countdown.

             “ …. 3 …. 2 …. 1 …. Andi wins!” Hange announced whilst raising my bruised arm. Despite most of these assholes losing their bets, they still cheered for me. Looking at the crowd, I saw Erwin practically glowing with pride. I can’t help but smile.

           Walking towards Nanaba, I fought all temptation to gloat and instead gave her my hand. Good thing she was a good sport. We spent the rest of the day in the hospital wing, wrapped in bandages and smelling like antiseptic.

           Erwin and the rest came to visit. Judging by Mike’s face, Erwin had rubbed my triumph in his creepy face. And probably also because he lost the bet.

           “Andi! Where did all that came from? That throat punch was so awesome!” Hange yelled excitedly. But she wasn’t satisfied with that, she ran towards me and tackled me.

           “Really? Hange I’m injured here!” My screams were muffled as I was unsuccessful in pushing her off of me. Good thing Erwin helped and dragged her off.

            We got out of the hospital wing that same day and went back to training right away. I still follow the strict training routine Erwin prepared, but since an expedition is coming up he’s quite busy. Meaning our private sessions are over.

           I’m scheduled to practice using the 3DM gear today, and I am seriously excited. My teachers for the day are my closest buddies, Hange and Nanaba.

           Turns out, balancing is not so easy. I flipped over a few times and gave my friends another round of a laughing fit, but by sunset, I got the hang of it. I can’t help but love the feel of the wind as I zip past trees and dummy titans.

           I can’t help but imagine being Spider-Man. So geeky, I know.

 It’s been three days since the duel, and I’m looking less bruised now. Also, it’s the day we started our journey to the inner wall. Apparently, traveling between walls could take days if we travel on land. Taking the boat will cut our travel time shorter.

The boat ride was uneventful and painfully boring – I spent the whole time sleeping, eating and reading. My ideal situation, really but since everything’s so new, I would’ve loved to see how different people from these parts are. Too bad I couldn’t.

Also, everyone who came along was shut in the conference room because most of them were Squad and Team leaders. Can you believe that Hange is a team leader? Too bad Nanaba is apparently “not important enough” to come along.

After the long boat ride, we finally arrived at our destination. It took us almost three days so the ball is tomorrow. The moment we land, a few people greeted uncle Keith. I have no idea who they are, but I would say that they’re someone rich, because I can definitely smell money off of them.

We were then escorted to a fancy looking house. Well, to be honest almost every house here is fancy. It’s the habitat of the rich people.

The house that we’re staying at is a regular house, I’d say. It’s almost similar to houses back home, really. Only zero electric appliances. I can see how different the lifestyle of people here compares to those from wall Maria – it’s like the Capitol from Panem!

After touring the plain-but-big house, I have nothing else to do but sleep. So I did just that. Good thing time went by so fast and it was finally Sunday – the day of the Ball.

           Erwin knocked on my door and patiently waited for me to answer. He obviously learned from his past blunder.

           “Here.” He said with no preamble whatsoever, as he handed me a blue gown. It’s a really frilly kind of gown.

           “This? This is what I’m going to wear?”

           “Yes. It is the craze among the ladies in the inner city. You’ll fit in nicely wearing that.”

           “Uhuh.” I said, and he promptly left me so that I could fix myself up.

           I found out that they have a decent amount of makeup, albeit seemingly ancient they do the job. I mean, the brow liners are like charcoal for goodness’ sake. I feel like I’m in that memoirs of a geisha makeover scene, except less graceful.

           The gown was a nice shade of ice blue; it was off-shoulder with frills just about everywhere. Oh, and big ass ribbons.

           Looking at the mirror, I can see that my hair is a mess, and my face is covered with rouge on my cheeks and lips. Despite my best efforts, I just can’t seem to tame my hair, so I just put it up in a messy bun. I know, it doesn’t go well with everything else but I really suck at fixing myself up.

           Leaving my room, I found that Erwin was waiting for me. He looked so good in his black coat, black pants, and blue shirt. Whoa, we’re matching? He offered me his arm, which I took, and we walked side by side to the carriage.

           Only then did I start feeling jittery. What if I slip up? Boy, uncle Keith is such a girl. We’re already in the carriage and he’s still not around. Man, what if I get asked about my life?

           “Where are the others?” I asked, trying to get my mind off of thinking that I’ll mess up.

           “Some went ahead; the others went to the market for supplies. We might as well get two things done during this trip.” Erwin answered calmly. Seriously, is he that used to these balls that he’s not nervous at all?

           “Don’t worry. You’ll do fine.” Erwin said as he covered my hand with his. That’s only when I noticed I was shaking a little. I felt like my voice might crack, so I just nodded.

           Someone is finally getting in the carriage, but the one behind the door was not uncle Keith. It was Hange!

           “Something came up; the commander will be riding with Lord Gregory so it’s just the three of us. Ahh!” Hange was wearing her uniform. Does she even have other clothes? I waited for her to get inside but she just stared at us, then at our hands.

           Crap!

           I pulled my hand back, Erwin did the same. Hange then entered with a suspiciously sly smile. Good thing though she just stayed quiet the whole way. But she kept giving us meaningful looks.

           We soon arrived at a big house – no, a mansion! – and it was brightly lit, you’d think it’s Christmas. Music was playing and you can already hear it from outside, and its only classical music which I assume is being played live. Well, duh? Like they could play Uptown Funk.

           The introductions went smoothly. Erwin introduced me to so many nobles, I didn’t even bother to remember their names. Some creepy old geezers would just be, well, creepy. Offering me all kinds of stuff and asking me to leave the military to be with them. It’s more annoying than creepy, actually.

           “Erwin, Lord Lawrence is over there. He’d love to hear about your formation proposal.” Uncle Keith popped up of nowhere, said this piece and dragged off Erwin to where ever this Lawrence is.

           “I’ll be back, Hange stay with her.” He said before disappearing with the commander. Hange is too absorbed with the buffet that she hardly pays any attention to me. “I’ll just sit over there,” I informed her before running off to sit in a corner. I think I heard her say ok, but her mouth is so full so I really can’t tell.

             Watching the party from where I am made me feel like I’m back home. No matter where you are, there really are people who can be vain. These rich assholes here are just partying and eating till they can’t breathe, while there are people who live on bread and soup in wall Maria. FYI, people like me.

           “Is the party a little too much for you, my lady?” A voice asked. Looking at the source, I found a man sitting beside me. It wasn’t just any man – he is drop dead gorgeous! I guess he could read my thoughts as I think I’m almost drooling, and he gave me a small laugh of amusement. Even though I know he’s laughing at me, I can’t help but smile. He’s that hot.

           He’s got this soft, brown, curls for hair, and he’s not too skinny nor buffed. He’s got green eyes, thick-ish brows, and perfect teeth. He’s just my type of guy, damn!

           “I’m Theodore.”

           “Andi. Uhm, I mean I’m Andi.”

           “Lovely name for a lovely lady.” He said as he scooped up my hand for a kiss. Honestly, I would’ve rolled my eyes at this but he’s just so cute. Turns out, he’s not just all looks. We spent quite some time talking about literature. Good thing that I’m well read on their books. We also talked about random things.

           We enjoyed our chat a little too much because we didn’t notice the crowd was silent until uncle Keith called me and some other man called Theo. Yes, I call him Theo now.

           Looking at uncle Keith, I now noticed that every eye in the room was on us, and most people had amused faces but Erwin’s not one of them. He’s standing right beside the commander, his face serious and his lip a tight line.

           Theo just laughed at the situation and stood up, giving me his hand so I’m standing beside him. The man who called Theo then spoke, “thank you, everyone, for coming to our humble party. My family appreciates your presence in a most wonderful celebration …” yadda yadda yadda.

           I tuned out the speech partly because I couldn’t care less, mostly because Theo wouldn’t stop talking and whispering to me. The crowd started clapping, signaling the end of the man’s speech.

           Looking around, I saw that uncle Keith was approaching with his little entourage, including the man whose speech I ignored.

           “Andi, this is Lord Thomas Van Rumpade. Lord Thomas, this is my niece Andi Frost.”

           “My my, who would’ve thought you would have a niece like her? I see you met my son Theodore.”

           In my shock, I couldn’t stop myself that I turned to Theo and asked him, “this is your party?” Good thing they just laughed. Well, I don’t really know if that’s a good thing.

           “No. It’s more like a party for me.” Theo answered me. A party for him? Shit. Is this like the party in Cinderella were the Prince can just pick whomever he wants for a wife?

           Good thing it wasn’t It was a coming of age party. Apparently, rich people are used to buying military titles, and this is the day he’ll decide to be a Military Police, or a Garrison Soldier or if he’s feeling hardcore, a Survey Corps Soldier.

           Since his family is going to buy the title, the Military branch he chooses will obviously receive the money. That’s where we come in.

           Dragging Erwin to the side, I asked him in the faintest whisper I could manage, “this is why I’m here, isn’t it? He’s almost my age.”

           “I’m afraid so.” He said. Looking at him, I really can’t tell what he’s thinking. It’s like the Erwin I know is on break, and this one is soldier Erwin. But maybe it’s just in my head.

           At the end of the party, Theo and his family ended up choosing the Survey Corps. Uncle Keith was so happy, I think he would actually jump. Theo’s father said they chose us because “this wee little lass is doing her best to protect us. What better way to thank her and her comrades than giving them funds?”

           It was a little too straight to the point, but I don’t care. It’s money and if it will help, then all is well. And since it’s just a title, Theo is free to stay behind, though he wouldn’t have it that way. He ended up tagging along on our way home. Well, not tagging. He’s one of us now.

Copyright © 2019 by imaginesnkdorks. All rights reserved

#thank goodness for crazy #Erwin #Erwin Smith #snk erwin #commander erwin #erwin x reader #erwin smith x reader #commander handsome #mod max

[foxydivaxx]

Abel and Cain Chapter 1

This is the Blue Exorcist fic I have been working on lately that will lead to the anime Titans story. It is an AU of sorts and explores the dark facets of Rin and Yukio's personalities. This chapter is told from Yukio's POV mostly. This takes place after Rin's powers are exposed. I originally named this fic Abel and Cain

YUKIO's POV

I sigh to myself as I walk out of the conference room haven been briefed about the , all these formalities and nonsensical bureaucracy is doing my head in. Thankfully I managed to slip out without Rin ever finding out. Like I would want that fool to ruin things for me and steal the spotlight like he always does. You see that is the problem with Rin; he is nothing more than an attention whore who wants the world to revolve around him and adore him. As if, when he is not just Satan's son but also the closet thing to an actual demon whilst I am nothing more than the most perfect angel the world has ever seen. The idiot exposed himself to the world so it is only natural that I make things worse for him. The boy is nowhere to be seen, not like I give a fuck. He can die for all I care. Soon, the world shall bow to me once I enact my evil diabolical plan.

Ok, now I know you all gonna be like why am I being mean to him? He deserves it tbh because I am tired of being in his shadow. Sure he downplayed his intelligence to make me shine and also has helped in the past. But little does he realize that he is helping me that way. The more the fool destroys himself, the more powerful and popular I become. Although I do not show it in public, I do enjoy and crave the attention I get from those putrid whiny bitches that throw themselves at me.

That ironically gave me an idea which I shall put into action. But before that, I need to ditch the other thorn at my side that would surely ruin my plans; Shura. Yes idiot Shura, Shura who thinks she is superior to me. Well newsflash bitch, I am hundred times way better than everyone especially her, Rin and that wretched old man that rotted in hell. Oh yeah, on that side note, that is part of why I hate Rin or rather, that is my legitimate excuse for hating Rin when in fact, I have always hated my big brother and is trying to destroy him at every cost.

Yeah I told him all was forgiven and shit but I was just toying with him. Nii-san is extremely emotional and thus that makes it easier to exploit and manipulate him like I have always done ever since we were little kids. Anyhow, I digress. Back to the main topic at hand here people. Now where was I? Oh yes...

"Excuse me guys, gonna go to the loo." I lied as convincingly as I could and slip into the bathroom. Once inside, I make sure to lock up the door. "You may come out now my underlings." I say. A massive shadow is casted across the room and out come two male demons, one is much taller than I am with red hair and the other has messy green hair. Both have horns on their heads though they do not have tails, both wearing school uniforms. These two are my brothers Iblis the King of Fire and Beelzebub the King of Insects. Yes bitches, I do have demonic powers but they were supressed till recently hence why I have managed to get away with my evil deeds and put Rin in trouble all the time. Yes all the fights the buffoon gets into are my doing plus a couple of other things.

"Must you keep on calling us that?" Beelzebub whines. Iblis smacks upside in the head. "Silence!" he barked. Beelzebub pouts. I simply rolled my eyes. "Look I did not summon you here for some prit a prat. I have a mission for you both." I say with the most deadliest smirk in place.

NORMAL POV

"Where is Okumura-san?" Konekomaru asked. Shiemi looks up. " I haven't seen him since that incident." says Shiemi. "I did see him walking along the corridors at one point but he has been skipping classes." says Shima."Let's just forget about him." says Suguro. The others just do that and pretend that he does not exist. All except Izumo who is standing outside fists clenches.Those fakeass bitches!!! How dare they treat him that way?!!! I must find him at once and bring him back. With that, she races off to find him.

Rin meanwhile was seated on the rooftop of their dorm, breaking down in tears. They have all abandoned me. he says to himself. Kuro nuzzles him. Rin don't cry. I am sure your friends would find you. he says. He nods and absentmindedly pets the cat. Without realizing it, he opens his mouth and words began to flow:

Amaimon, Mephisto and a newly revived Astaroth walk towards the Okumura brothers’ dorms. “I am sure our little brother is here.” Sure enough, they find the boy sitting on the roof in tears.

Upon seeing him in such a pitiful state, Amaimon hugs his brother without a moment of hesitation whilst Astaroth pats his head. Kuro grins. See told ya so. The poor boy was confused out of his mind. "W-what are you guys doing here?" he asked. "What else?" says Mephisto.

"What are they doing here?! And is Reiji still under the influence?!!" he yelled, pointing at both Amaimon and Astaroth. "Whoa! Calm down otouto! We mean, no harm. Honest. Plus I actually do kinda look like Reiji in human form." says Astaroth, raising his hand. Rin glares at him suspiciously. "And besides, we have been searching for you following that little incident back there." says Mephisto.

Amaimon nods."It was not my intention to fight you or anything but it seemed like some powerful force had control over me and made me not only attack you but also enabled you to expose your powers." he said.

He gaped at them. "You mean via mind control?" Rin asked. Mephisto nodded. "Even I do not know who could have done that as Amaimon was perfectly sane when we left the house." Rin thinks. Unless that perpetrator might have followed them and placed some magic charm on Amaimon to act that way. "Indeed but we need to redeem Rin's image first because I discovered that someone filmed that fight and posted it on social media." says Mephisto.

"WHAT?!" Rin shouts. "Let me ask you something Rin, have you noticed anything strange about Yukio?" asked Mephisto. Rin sighs. “Besides the fact that he distances himself from me and often acts coldly towards me, nothing else.”

Mephisto simply nods. He too has been observing Yukio’s behaviour and had grown suspicious of the boy. The increased presence of minions of their brothers Beelzebub and Iblis certainly do not help matters. Amaimon did say that he say the two around True Cross talking to Yukio once which makes Yukio look even more shadier. What could that boy be discussing with those two? And if Lucifer is involved in this, that makes it worse.

"Now otouto, we must make haste and take you out of here to somewhere where you can relax and unwind and become the man you ought to be and not what Yukio dictates you to be." he says.

Rin nods. "You do have a point there. I am tired of always playing second fiddle to that bastard." He then smirks deviously. "I want to be the man I ought to be." Amaimon pats his back. "See? This is what we wanted to tell you otouto." he said. Astaroth pats him on the back. " Now you will have to pack up though and bring both Kurikara and that familiar of yours with ya." says Mephisto. Rin nods. "Here goes nothing." he says.

Rin's POV

I sigh as soon as I reach the dorm. Yukio hasn't arrived home yet which is a blessing because I cannot stand another week of talkless days and nights with my twin. Speaking of which, said boy has been acting weird towards me, almost as if I do not exist. I do not blame him afterall, I killed Shiro Fujimoto our beloved adoptive Father plus all this stuff regarding me being Satan's Son and inheriting his flames is causing all sorts of drama for me.

Those stupid Grigori bitches put me on trial and treated me like a fucking animal. Ok, I admit to losing control of my flames but truth be told that I had no idea what happened back there and now that I think about it, Amaimon may most likely have been under some form of mind control. I mean, Mephisto did try to stop him from attacking me. Nothing adds up to be honest and for some weird reason I suspect Yukio here.

I know strange but it is true. That boy has always been suspicious. All this talk about long missions and whatnot is starting to become even more weird to me. Yes he is my brother but at the same time, let me acknowledge the abuse he has subjected me to. I was so naive to have allowed that bastard to take advantage of me for years.

Still, it is strange that these two older brothers of mine plus Mephisto are treating me nicely and seem to understand me, accepting me even better than my own twin. That alone makes me feel uneasy. My train of thoughts gets distracted by a little meow from beside me. Hurry up Rin. You need to pack up. says Kuro. I nod and begin to pack up my stuff. I bet Yukio would throw a fit when he does not see me for days though to be honest, I doubt he would even care since he hasn't been acting brotherly to me lately, probably enjoying all the popularity that he is getting now at school. It is obvious that that bitch enjoys all the attention as he treats me like I am second rate everytime especially behind the scenes but still pretends to be all nice to me in public.

 Everyone thinks that I am stupid and clueless about my surroundings.  Actually I am not very happy go lucky. If anything I am much darker than that and much smarter than people give me credit for. I just pretend to be stupid to hide my real self because if these bitches knew just how smart and powerful I truly am, that would scare the shit out of them.

I smile bitterly as I throw my clothes into my bag. That dream inspired by what the old man spoke to me as a kid, the words encouraging me to shape up and be the man that loads of people would admire, the hero that I aspire to be, seems almost impossible to reach now, not with the current scandal I have been hit with. I cannot help but chuckle at that word. Yes when the entire school knows about your true heritage, it is certainly one hell of a scandal. Once I am done packing, I take one final look at what has been my home for the past couple months and leave. Chances are this would be the last time Yukio and I would ever see each other again.

Anyhow, I leave that dorm and head off to meet Mephisto and the others at the car park. "I have already sorted out the mess involving people knowing about your identity." says Mephisto. "Uhm, how?" I asked. "Trust me, it's best you do not know." says Astaroth. "Anyhow, we must be off." says Mephisto. We all get into the limo and drive off.

NORMAL POV

Izumo arrives Rin’s dorm, only to find it vacated. “Oh my God....don’t tell me that I am already late...”

Before she could turn around, she gets knocked out by a mysterious person.

So there you have it guys. I originally posted this and deleted it by mistake. Thank goodness I still saved the draft of the original fic  and edited some stuff in here.  Might do a spinoff on Izumo.

#blue exorcist #ao no exorcist #fanfiction #rin okumura #yukio okumura #mephisto pheles #amaimon #astaroth #lucifer #shiemi moriyama #izumo kamiki #bon suguro #shima #konekomaru miwa