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ukrfeminism · 3 months

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Tens of thousands of sexual assaults and incidents have been reported in NHS-run mental health hospitals as a “national scandal” of sexual abuse of patients on psychiatric wards can be revealed.

Almost 20,000 reports of sexual incidents in the last five years have been made in more than half of NHS mental health trusts, according to exclusive data uncovered in a joint investigation and podcast by The Independent and Sky News.

The shocking findings, triggered by one woman’s dramatic story of escape following a sexual assault in hospital revealed in a podcast, Patient 11, show NHS trusts are failing to report the majority of incidents to the police and are not meeting vital standards designed to protect the UK’s most vulnerable patients from sexual harm.

Throughout the 18-month investigation, multiple patients and their families spoke to The Independent about their stories of sexual assault and abuse while locked in mental health units.

Rivkah Grant, 34, was targeted by an NHS staff member and sexually abused, while Stephanie Tutty, 28, made similar allegations. Alexis Quinn, a former GB swimming star, alleged she was sexually assaulted twice – once when she was forced to sleep on a male ward and a second time on a mixed gender ward.

Dr Lade Smith, president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, called the findings “horrendous”, while shadow health secretary Wes Streeting said it was a “wake-up call” for the government.

Among the key revelations were:

At least 19,899 sexual incidents were reported across more than 30 NHS trusts between 2019 and November 2023 – including staff assaults on patients and patients assaulting other patients

The figures suggest that just 982 – less than 5 per cent – of sexual incidents reported to hospitals were referred to the police over the same period

800 allegations of rape and serious assaults on women

Mixed sex wards, despite being banned a decade ago, are still in use across NHS mental health care with more than 500 reports of sexual assault since 2019

Just six out of 50 hospitals were able to prove they were meeting NHS standards aimed at protecting patients from sexual harm

Dr Smith told The Independent: “There is no place for sexual violence in society, which has a profound and long-lasting negative impact on people’s lives. Today’s horrendous findings show that there is still much to do to make sure that patients and staff in mental health trusts are protected from sexual harms at all times.

“It is deeply troubling to see that so many incidents in mental health settings go unreported.”

Mr Streeting said: “It will appal every decent person that these horrific crimes were committed against patients at their most vulnerable. The fact these have taken place in the NHS is chilling.

“Very serious questions must urgently be asked of hospital leaders, who have to explain why the vast majority of these incidents were kept from the police.

“The Conservatives promised to end mixed-sex wards in 2010, yet soaring numbers of patients are treated alongside patients of the opposite sex. Patients often find this humiliating and, as this investigation shows, it leaves women in particular vulnerable in hospital.

“The government must treat this investigation as a wake-up call and act against the soaring number of mixed-sex wards in the NHS today.”

Dame Vera Baird, the former victims’ commissioner, said attacks by people who were supposed to care for the vulnerable were particularly troubling.

“The results of this investigation are a national scandal,” she said. “The [figures on assaults] from staff on patients are the height of concern because it may mean that there is insufficient scrutiny and insufficient vetting of people coming into hospitals.

“These people are going to be let loose on the most vulnerable of people, whose testimony may not be believed when they say something.”

Sharon Brennan, from the patient charity National Voices, said the examples uncovered by The Independent were among the ”worst breaches of trust we have heard of”.

Our latest exposé comes as the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch prepares to launch a national inquiry into mental health care in England following a series of reports by The Independent over the past year.

Freedom of information figures show that patients are at risk from staff in numerous hospitals, with more than 300 incidents reported on patients over the five-year period.

Recalling her experience, Ms Grant told how she was sexually assaulted by an NHS staff member at Chase Farm Hospital in north London in 2016. Staff initially ignored her, she claimed.

She was then made to sleep in the same room the following night, she said, even though a complaint had been made to the trust and the staff member suspended.

Ms Grant says her trauma was made worse when she was then moved to a mixed-sex ward, making her too scared to leave her room due to the male patients outside.

“I have struggled with trauma since then and I’m scared of asking for help [from mental health services],” she said. “When I’m feeling bad, I don’t know where to turn to. You believe when you’re in a hospital, you should be safe. I’ve learned that there is no safety in mental health hospitals.”

Her attacker was convicted in June 2017 following a police investigation. North London Mental Health Partnership, which now runs Chase Farm Hospital, said it was “deeply sorry” for what had happened to Ms Grant and insisted the safety of its users was their top priority.

In another alleged case, Ms Tutty, a mother of two, told The Independent her harrowing story after seeking help from Essex mental health services having been raped in her youth.

Instead of getting treatment, she claims she was subjected to five months of horrific sexual abuse by a staff member.

A year later she says she was traumatised again after being admitted to another Essex-run unit, where a security guard sent her sexually explicit text messages, seen by The Independent. The police later said there was insufficient evidence to prosecute in relation to the alleged sexual abuse.

Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust, which is currently facing a public inquiry into 2,000 patient deaths, refused to respond to questions from The Independent when asked about the serious allegations.

Our investigation shows at least 500 sexual assaults and incidents have been recorded on mixed-sex wards or mixed-sex communal areas within trusts since 2019.

Ms Quinn, a former swimming star and teacher, was admitted to Littlebrook Hospital in Kent in 2013 after seeking support from mental health services following her brother’s death.

Within hours of her admission, she claims she was sexually assaulted by a male patient after being placed on an all-male ward.

Ms Quinn immediately ran to tell staff who tried to send her back to the ward where her attacker remained, she claimed. Distressed and panicked, she was restrained and then placed in solitary confinement.

Ms Quinn said: “You know, I blame the system for putting me in that situation, for not safeguarding me – this is a systemic problem. I thought it was just me, but it’s not just me, it’s thousands.”

The trust eventually apologised. However, within months she was placed in peril again in a mixed-sex ward, where she alleges she was the victim of a second assault.

Kent and Medway Partnership Trust, which runs the hospital, said it continues to offer its “sincerest apologies” for the “unacceptable behaviour” she experienced in its care, and that it was fully investigated and acted upon at the time.

As part of our investigation, The Independent and Sky News uncovered thousands of allegations of sexual incidents, ranging from abuse and rape to sexually inappropriate behaviour or language across more than 30 out of 52 NHS mental health trusts since 2019. The scale of the scandal is likely to be even worse as figures do not include private hospitals where hundreds of NHS patients are sent to each year.

Among them was Nima Cass Hunt, who was groomed and abused in a Huntercombe Group hospital when she was 16. Her abuser, care worker Marcus Daniell, was jailed for 11 years in 2020 for his crimes. Ms Hunt warned that under-staffed mental health services are failing to protect patients.

“Nobody at the hospital looked or listened to obvious signs,” she said. “There is something terribly wrong with the protocols that intend to keep patients in mental health hospitals safe when patients are still exposed to sexual abuse despite obvious signs, indicators and even disclosures.” Former owners of the hospital, Eli Investments, were approached for comment.

Melanie Leahy told The Independent that staff in Essex failed to investigate her son Matthew’s claims of rape while he was an inpatient in 2012 – he died just two days later.

“It makes me sick,” she said. “I believe this incident led to the loss of his life. I believe this was the straw that broke the camel’s back.”

A report in 2019 by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman found staff failed to take appropriate action in response to his allegations. The trust said in response it offers its condolences for Matthew’s death.

Meanwhile, in 2014, Gaia Pope, who was a victim of rape in her youth, reported sexual harassment while in a mixed-sex ward at Dorset NHS Hospital but staff failed to issue any safeguarding alerts.

Her cousin, Marienna Pope-Weidemann, said: “I believe the failures [to address her concerns] directly contributed to her death later that year. They took absolutely no action and they discharged her 48 hours later without any [support].”

Dorset Health Care chief executive Matthew Bryant said the trust acknowledges it should have done more to make sure Gaia felt safe in its care and ensure she felt her concerns were taken seriously.

In 2020, after the Care Quality Commission raised national concerns over sexual abuse in mental health services, the NHS set up guidelines under its “sexual safety collaboratives”.

Despite the known risks, NHS trusts are not meeting their requirements of the standards to this day, with just six hospitals providing evidence they have met the collaboratives’ guidelines.

Gemma Byrne, Policy & Campaigns Manager at the charity Mind, said the investigation’s findings were “horrifying” and called for greater accountability for trusts who are failing to address such serious sexual safety incidents.

Professor Charlie Brooker, one of the few academics in the UK who has examined the relationship between sexual assault and mental illness, told The Independent and Sky News there should be an inquiry into sexual safety in mental health wards.

He said: “It would be fascinating to see how many people came forward and wanted to give evidence. I won’t be at all surprised if it wasn’t several thousand.”

Professor Brooker said a big factor in the development of mental illness is sexual trauma, adding: “What is happening to these vulnerable people, these vulnerable women, is retraumatisation which seems to be occurring in an environment where they're [meant] to safe. They end up worse than when they came in.”

Eli Investments which owned Huntercombe Group said it was “saddened” by the allegations and regrets that the hospitals owned by the group failed to meet standards expected for high quality care.

NHS England said sexual assault would not be tolerated and said it was rolling out better reporting mechanisms and training for staff as part of its new NHS Sexual Safety Charter.

It said all trusts will have to appoint a domestic violence and sexual assault lead. However, it did not specify how it would monitor and hold trusts to account who were failing to meet its new guidelines.

The Department of Health and Social Care said NHS organisations have a responsibility to protect both staff and patients.

If you need to seek support for anything sexual that happened to you without your consent you can call Rape Crisis on 0808 500 2222, 24 hours a day, every day of the week.

#Articles #health #MVAWG

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twig-tea · 2 months

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With 23.5 finally coming out, the people are rejoicing at finally getting a high profile gl from GMMTV. But there have already been several gls airing this year, including my fav TsukuTabe, that have been flying under the radar with fandom, and in general there are more gls already out there than folks seem to think. I just know you have a list of all the gls we should be watching, please share with the class!

Thank you for the ask! How did you know I had a draft of GL recs to make at some point? [Trick question, I mentioned it to you.]

It may seem like I'm out here hating on GL because i've made a couple of negative reviews of recently airing series recently (Love Senior and Chaser Game W in case you're curious) but I actually have lots of GL that I love and that I wish were better known! Thanks for sending this ask so I am inspired to actually finish it! I've limited myself to series so that I could keep the list and this post to a reasonable length. Where possible I've listed where you can find each of these and included a link. And I've included an 'elevator pitch' summary but I am NOT in marketing for a reason, so please don't roast me too hard for my terrible comparisons. Alright, enough waffling!

Twig's GL Rec List

She Loves to Cook and She Loves to Eat S1 & 2 (Japan, 2022 & 2024, both seasons fansubbed by @furritsubs; if you need help accessing this show feel free to DM me!)

Elevator pitch: Our Dining Table with lesbians and an even slower burn. Watch for beautiful food, acespec rep, mental health and therapy rep

What might turn some off: Extremely low heat, and quite slow-moving; warning for a disordered eating and family trauma plot (v gently handled)

Let's start with the one you've already mentioned. This is a heartwarming slice-of-life slow burn in which an autismspec-coded woman who likes to eat is invited by her neighbour, a femme acespec woman who loves to cook, to come and eat her food. It starts from a very practical place (when you love making food you need someone to help eat it), but their relationship grows as they spend more time together. The story follows them as they both move towards self-actualization in several ways: as a lesbian, as asexual, at work, with their families, with their friends, with each other. This show is so careful to say the important words aloud. And there is so much delicious cooking! Each episode highlights a particular recipe, and the food porn is real. Do not watch while hungry, but definitely watch. The found famiy vibes in this one one are also immaculate.

She Makes My Heart Flutter (Korea, 2022, YouTube)

Elevator pitch: Younger lesbian friend group tries to help out (slightly) older lesbian bar owner with mixed success. I can't think of a good BL equivalent, The Moment Since feels the closest with its similar bartender/patron romance

What might turn some off: Comedic tone; short runtime; struggles with being closeted

This is a gem of a miniseries about a bar owner and an interior designer who smoulder at one another while an intrepid group of younger bar regulars (including the bar owner's neice) meddle. This series is really cute, solid, and full of sapphics! Once again found family vibes are immaculate (you may sense a theme in my faves). Run don't walk.

Fragrance of the First Flower (Taiwan, 2021, GagaOOLala)

Elevator pitch: Right-person-wrong-time/second chance romance; tonally is a little like We Best Love 2: Fighting Mr. 2nd but with an ambiguous ending.

What might turn you off: Medium heat, second chance romance means they break up once, internalized homophobia, adultery/cheating, at one point there's a creepy dude, child with autism (depicted well), ambiguous ending

At its core this is a story of a woman who can't stop getting in the way of her own happiness. This series is a little more sad than the rest of this rec list but I couldn't not include it because this relationship is so poignant. Plus there's a s2 that supposedly is to come out in 2024 so maybe we'll get our happy ending after all?

Love Greater Than or Equal to 70 Degrees C (Korea, 2019, YouTube)

Elevator pitch: Ingredients but with lesbians staring at one another over beautiful tea pairings! What more could you ask for?

What might turn you off: Low heat; short runtime; ambiguous ending; like Ingredients this is essentially a long ad for the café it's filmed at.

This is a Korean miniseries about passionate tea sommeliers making really fancy tea while staring at one another a LOT. Perfect sapphic representation, 10/10 no notes. This one packs a lot of the drama tropes into its short runtime, so even though it's short it's full of butterfly-inspiring moments.

Sleep With Me (Philippines, 2022, GagaOOLala/iWantTFC/Netflix w/VPN set to Philippines)

Elevator pitch: The Truth About Cats and Dogs but the self esteem issues are handled without catfishing. BL equivalent: Hmmm. Closest I can think of is Gaya Sa Pelikula.

What might turn you off: There's some ableism (treated as such) in this show; Open ending.

Stellar GL between a late night radio DJ and an insomniac who listens to her show. One of the main couple is a wheelchair user and the show tackles ablelism and navigating disability in relationship as well as feelings of inadequacy in a relationship and how that manifests as interpersonal conflict.

Our Relationship Ended Before it Began (Korea, 2022, YouTube)

Elevator Pitch: Along the lines of I Cannot Reach You; the show gives both perspectives and they are held back by queer angst.

What might turn you off: No kiss (but they make it very clear both want to kiss), internalized homophobia

Really sweet miniseries about having a crush and being afraid of being hurt so you don't actually make a move. I really like the way the girl who has not dated a girl before defaults to gender roles and it throws the more experienced lesbian lol I also really like the way this show makes clear that both of them are waiting for a kiss, and that if you get in your head about things, it can get in the way of your own happiness!

Pearl Next Door (Philippines, 2020, Youtube)

Elevator Pitch: Gameboys but with lesbian vloggers.

What might turn you off: Love triangle, lots of teasing but low heat in the end, a lot of (good) conversations about mental health issues, ambiguous ending

This is the GL spinoff to Gameboys, starring Pearl from Gameboys. Pearl ends up being fought over by the two gorgeous women in the gif, an old love and a new. I love the queer friendships in this story as much as the relationships. I will say it's an open ending (that felt a bit like the showrunners didn't want to decide between ships) and definitely the love triangle features prominently but even in the face of these aspects that would normally turn me off a series I had a good time. The characters and interpersonal conflicts feel very real, and are allowed to be complex even when the show tone is comedic.

Dear Uranus (Taiwan, 2021, YouTube)

Elevator Pitch: Schoolgirl ensemble GL; a little like My School President but without the singing.

What might turn you off: Short runtime; ambiguous ending; a little bit of bullying; very standard romance trope execution

The first Taiwanese GL miniseries, this series was produced by a Taiwanese lesbian couple (Rabbit & Wolf)! Lots of excellent drama tropes, and incredibly gorgeous women (I think the entire watching audience fell in love with Erol.

Lily Fever (Korea, 2015, YouTube)

Elevator pitch: Complete crack; YYY but with more kissing and frankly an even less coherent story.

What might turn you off: The lack of coherent plot; less a romance and more a very thirsty lesbian kissing everyone she can

This miniseries is utter chaos. Nothing really makes sense, it's all just random excuses to cause very suggestive moments (and kissing) to happen. I love so much how this series depicts women being so absolutely thirsty for one another (and yes that date isn't a typo, this series is ~9 years old). Not an "happy ever after" ending but it really isn't that kind of story.

Chasing Sunsets (Philippines, 2020, YouTube)

Elevator pitch: Ocean Likes Me with lesbians. Resort romance with a mental health twist.

What might turn you off: Some of the mental health stuff gets intense, this was filmed in 2020 so the pandemic features heavily; hopeful but slightly ambiguous ending.

A complex story from the Philippines covering mental health and finding yourself. A woman shows up to a resort and befriends one of the women running the resort. They get closer as they spend time together, and the resort owner realizes something is off. There's also a BL side couple in this series.

Show Me Love (Thai, 2023, YouTube)

Elevator pitch: A little like My Day the series with lesbians, in that they work together and fall in love and it's full of tropes

What might turn you off: The advertising for the Miss Grand competition, there is some bullying and cheating (though way less than I was expecting tbh), not a lot actually happens, the editing gets a bit wonky at the end

This is essentially a massive ad for the Miss Grand Thailand competition; this GL was produced by the same company that produces that competition, and the stars are mostly Miss Grand competitors. The main pairing were shipped in the actual competition, and the company decided to make a GL about them. It's very slow paced and low-stakes, and there are better kisses than I expected considering everything I just said about where this show came from. There are a lot of cute moments!

Girlfriend Project (Korea, 2022, YouTube)

Elevator Pitch: Love Class with lesbians

What might turn you off: One of the leads is kind of mean in that pgitail-pulling way? It ends abruptly (but happily)

This is a short miniseries about two girls paired in a class that are assigned to "date". The chemistry is chemistrying. And there is a kiss (a good kiss, and a tiptoes kiss at that!). This show also has one of my favourite tropes, in which someone who seems like a pushover stands up for themselves and their partner finds it very attractive. For the record, in this show they are watching another GL by the same company, Love Tech.

Lulu (Philippines, 2022, Vivamax/grey)

Elevator Pitch: Present Perfect with lesbians (but with a better ending).

What might turn you off: Depictions of panic attacks, brief depiction of drowning, pandemic lockdowns, illness, exes, waffling, happy but open ending (which I actually liked for this story)

Two women trying to move on from the garbage in their lives meet at the beach of a B&B (where one saves the other from drowning) and become one another's company during their escape and then something more. They both have baggage that seems determined to keep them apart even as they continue to be drawn together. In the end, they decide to stick it out and see where they end up, with no guarantee of happily ever after, which I found very sweet. Requires either a VivaMax account or searching the grey for it, but it's worth the effort (check MyDramaList comments for suggestions on where to find it). Plus one of the leads has a cactus as a pet.

Welcome to the Lesbian Bar (Korea, 2023, YouTube)

Elevator Pitch: A little like Fudanshi Bartender but without the fudanshi bartender and all of the bar patrons are lesbians lol

What might turn you off: Short, can get a little bit preachy, abrupt ending

Cute short series with different very stories every episode as different patrons visit the bar. The stories range from women who have been together for awhile, to people meeting from an online app for the first time, to someone visiting a lesbian bar for the first time; and yet the story all weaves together in a way that's satisfying though ends abruptly. Includes some solid marriage equality propaganda.

GAP the Series (Thai, 2022, YouTube)

Elevator Pitch: Kind of the vibes of Together with Me but lesbians and in an office instead of school. Angry boss falls for charming new intern and

What might turn you off: This one is the highest heat of all these recs; homophobia especially amongst family, brief depictions of death by car, brief mentions of suicide, cheating, bullying, abuse of power in the office.

A list would not be complete without this one! Honestly the plot is a bit wobbly but the show is a lot of fun. The girls are very cute, the feelings and tension builds really well between them, the friend group is excellent, and in the special we get a wedding.

---

The rest of these have caveats of one kind or another, but i couldn't leave them off a rec list, so here are the side couples and censored stories that are still worth your time anyway (I might do a separate more detailed post for these, as well as for films, one day if there's interest):

Nevertheless (GL side; Korean, 2021, Netflix) Not sure it's worth watching a whole kdrama for side lesbians? Search soljiwan on youtube. They are great. Even the Netflix account stans them. I watched this (ngl, I watched the SolJiwan cut) as it aired and was constantly braced for it to let us down but it did not! A really good friends-to-lovers story.

Friend Zone 2: Dangerous Area (GL side; Thailand, 2019, YouTube): These sapphics are messy and I love them. Decent conversation about dating someone with mental health issues in this series, and they're one of the only couples in this ensemble to get a happy ending. If you're just watching the lesbian couple (which you can, their story is pretty self-contained) you don't need to have seen s1.

Six Survivors (GL side; Japan, 2022, Viki) This show is a horror comedy and it is SO MUCH FUN. Warning for zombies and blood, but way less than you might think. One of the eponymous 6 survivors is a lesbian who keeps trying to convert them to veganism lol. If you watched Chaser Game W you'll recognize one of the actresses in this, the lead actress is from Kamisama no Ekohiiki, and one of the guys is from the prequel series His as well as I Want to See Only You! And yes there is a kiss. Also a surprising number of Mallrats references. Not for people who can't handle gore or relationships being complicated/not a "true love" story/ambiguous ending.

Kamisama no Ekohiiki (complicated question of is it GL in parts, Japan, 2021, furritsubs once again coming through to save the day) This one is a bit complex because there's bodyswap, but the girl who falls for the bodyswapped boy-in-a-girl's-body is clear that she is only interested in the girl. One of the better bodyswap stories because the bodyswap is not a secret for very long, so instead there's a lot of introspection about what gender means and who/what they are attracted to. Feels wrong to call this GL, necessarily, but it's very queer.

Couple of Mirrors (Censored GL, China, 2021, Viki) Story of a rich girl and her assassin girlfriend. This production did an amazing job getting away with what they could, just don't watch the last five minutes and we've got essentially a happy lesbian family.

Legend of Yunze (Censored GL, China, 2021, @douqi7s) Very cute very low budget xianxia miniseries with two seasons and a special. The special is set in modern times in a future lifetime so if you want a cute censored-but-clearly-a-soulmate-love-story this is the one for you. Don't be thrown off by the weird cuts/abrupt episode endings, that's in line with cdramas in general.

Led Astray by Love (Censored GL, China, 2021, @douqi7s) A very fun and adorable isekai story in which a modern day girl is transported to a wuxia novel setting and has to figure out how to get home, and gets romanced by the princess along the way.

And a few additional links for people who even more content:

My Indian sapphic webseries rec list

My suggestions for content with toms (Thai category that's similar to but not exactly the same as butch lesbians) in response to this post.

This really good GL MyDramaList list (not made by me!) lists what seems to be everything I've mentioned and about 200 more. Even I haven't seen a few of these!

My YouTube playlist of sapphic content: This includes anything I stumble across or find in my searches, a lot of music videos and random shorts as well as some microseries and miniseries that I don't consider GL but are WLW/sapphic in addition to true "GL" content. For serialized content, I add just the first ep. A complete mess, but you can trawl through to find stuff to watch, like Hetero!

SOONOTSUE: The same producers of She Makes My Heart Flutter have other short series on their channel worth checking out; if you liked that one, try Out of Breath!

Shakeshoulder: Thai YouTube producers of very pulpy (read: low budget and dramatic plots) shorts

FuFuKnows: This YouTube channel is owned by a gay Taiwanese couple that produces shorts every week, including some with GL mains and sides. These are very low budget but cover a whole swath of queer themes.

@douqi7s is a godsend providing subtitles for all kinds of content, including sapphic shorts and more series than I've listed here. Check their tumblr for links to all of their content; A Practical Guide to Being a Superstar's Assistant has one of the best setups to giving us great moments in the guise of something else so that they get past censorship I've ever seen; I also recommend The Vampires if you're into genre fiction, as well as Legend of Yunqian if you enjoyed the xianxia parts of Legend of Yunze. @wlwcatalogue did an excellent summary of many of the non-wuxia options here.

Quick pitch for the streaming platform GagaOOLala; it's affordable, has a ton of content, including a whack of GLs (originals, license series, and a ton of shorts), and is run by queer people out of Taiwan who care about good quality queer content being made and having an audience, and using the soft power from those successful series to support social change. And if you can't afford a subscription it's worth checking out what they have for free, they open up temporary free access to some things for various events throughout the year.

In searching for gifs for this post I found fellow tumblr user @drowningparty 's WLW compendium list; they've listed more series and films so check it out if you still need more content!

*wipes sweat off brow* that should be enough to be getting on with, but it's really just the tip of the iceberg! If there's something specific you want to see with sapphics let me know and I can tell you if I know it exists. Anyway, I hope this gives you and everyone else a taste of what all is out there! I of course always want more, I am serious about being a sapphic dragon hoarding every crumb i can get my lizardy hands on, but I do think what we have should also be appreciated more. If I missed one of your faves, please tell me!

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donutz · 2 months

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Smiling Critters x sick! employee reader

You twisted and turned in your sleep. Sweat collecting on your cold body. Even with a blanket on. All windows and doors were shut, no cool air could flow into even the smallest corners of your room.

So why were you so damn cold?

Oh. A fever.

You woke up with a stuffy nose, an aching head, and a sore throat mixed with a high temperature(ME!!!).

Maybe you shouldn’t go to work today.

But money…

But getting better…

But money… :(

Eh whatever. Just take some tylenol and you’ll be fine.

You woke up at your designated time—

SHUT UP!! I woke uh(up) ah(at) my.. Uhhhh. Deserted time! And.. Ate.. Uhm..

… Will you let me speak?

Uhm.. NO!! I ate.. Uhhhh, someeee Eggo waffles!!! Yurmy.. With syrup bcus.. I like syrup! And.. A cup of orang juice..

Lovely explanation of your morning.

May I speak now?

You.. MaY!!

Thanks. You sloppily trotted around your kitchen, trying to find something to eat. You couldn’t even see things right, ughhh. And you were just soooo HOT!! But you got chills at the same time!!

Maybe you should stay home.

NO!! I need… THe mONey!!

Alright. You looked in your freezer, finding some eggo waffles you could munch on. Now for a drink, since you had a fever, maybe some orange juice would help calm it down.

It isn’t THAT bad. The orange juice I mean, your health state is terrible.

Mmm… What should I consume next?

Maybe a spoon of honey and lemon? It helps with your throat. Like a lot.

Hmm… OkAYY!!

You took the spoon of honey and lemon, now for some vitamins(zinc and vitamin c, that’s what I took) and now you’re off!

You were still not right in the head, so you may have tripped on your own feet while walking to your car. You entered it, and sat down with a sigh. So you’re not coughing up the workplace, you decided to suck on a cough drop.

They taste gross, but it’s worth it. You sat there in your car seat for a few minutes, just thinking about what’ll possibly happen at your job. Maybe the other employees will notice and ask if you’re okay. Or maybe the Smiling Critters will notice how sick you are and try to take care of you.

Heh.. Little animals taking care of a whole human. How is that even possible?

Pretty possible if I do say so myself. You stepped into work after scanning with your id— This place is always so high with security, it could even have those red beaming laser beams from movies.

Anyways, you said your hi’s and hello’s to your employees, including toys of course. How could you miss out on saying hello to such cuties?

And those cuties could see how sick you were, but were too busy with the workers or the children that just LOVE receiving some toy attention.

You went over to Playcare, preparing to deal with possibly another headache, even if yours is gone now. Another headache from the kids’ yelling and screaming, from their shrieks of joy, much more reasons to make your head throb with annoyance.

Being sick makes you grumpy.

“Hey coworker!” A voice from behind erupted, from how bright and loud it was, you could tell it was a certain dog.

You turned around, slightly closing your eyes from his bright aura, “Hey Dog—” You interrupted your greeting with a cough, “Day.. How are you today?” You had a wobbling smile on your face, trying to make it seem like you were the most healthy person alive.

“Um, I’m good! Are you alright? You seem kind of out of it..?” Dogday asked, he was worried about you and your well being. Kind of similar to that scenario you came up with in your head…

“Yeah I’m—” You coughed, a bit more aggressively compared to other recent one. “... Are you sure..?”

“Yeah—” You fainted, falling towards the ground.

Waiting for a thud to be echoed around the big place, but only a soft one. Including some fur and a vanilla scent. Had he.. Caught you? How? He’s like 5 ft?(In his more kiddish form, not his bigger form)

“Oh geez..” He said, calling to the other critters to help him with getting you somewhere where you could rest. As you were slowly falling asleep, you could hear many worried voices. But by the time words could clearly be said, you were gone.

You were slightly waking up, slowly blinking your eyelids. You wanted to go back to sleep, but you have a job to do.

OH SHOOT YOU HAVE A JOB TO DO!!!!

You abruptly woke up, fully awake or not. But the sudden motion really messed with your head. The whole world was blurry, even the colorful blobs that were small in your vision.

“Oh my!” You could hear a soft pitter patter of paws hurrying over to you. Why's the red blob getting bigger?

“Mmm… Muh?” You couldn't properly possess words at the moment, so whatever came out your mouth was unauthorized sounds.

“You should rest! Sitting up that quickly can mess with you!” A paw gently grabbed your hand.

“Buh.. Bear?” You sounded like a 3 year old trying to pronounce words..

“Oh! Yes, I'm a bear..” You couldn't process the face right, but it looked like the bear was smiling. Why was the bear red? Aren't they supposed to brown? Or white, or black and white..? Or something.. This sickness is really messing with your head..

“Now rest, please…” The worried voice calmly said to you. Not pushing you, just holding your hand.

“Work.. I—” You leaned forward and fell cheek flat on the bear’s face.

“Ee—!” They made a slight squeak at the contact. “Alright. That works.” They chuckled.

Hours later, you finally woke up. You could hear conversations while you blinked your eyes open.

“And then— they fell on me!” Laughter was spread around the room from different voices and tones.

You figured that whoever was speaking, was talking about you…

One of them looked over and saw you—

“Guys, they’re up!” They said.

They all looked over at you, as you slowly but surely sat up. Your head wasn’t as woozy, still had your stuffy nose and hurting throat though..

Now that you didn’t quickly get up, and were more rested, you could finally clearly see the animals that were once blobs.

“Oh.. Hoppy? And Bobby—” They all rushed over to you, wanting to see if you were okay to even get out of bed. You weren’t sweaty, your voice was kinda ehh.., your nose seems stuffy, you didn’t have a headache because they would’ve noticed the second you sat up.. But you’re still not in the right condition to work!

“Are you okay?” What was this one’s name again..? Dogday?

“Uhhh, yea Dogday, I’m okay.”

“No headache or anything?” A soft voice said, that was Craftycorn, right?

“Luckily, no. I took a tylenol so I was fine when I woke up.” You let out a cough, covering your mouth while doing so(no spreading germs!!).

Throughout the day, you had little animals taking care of you and your sickness. You had a couple of spoons of honey and lemon, took some vitamins, ate, and had a humidifier on all day. Also you were secluded in their little room they all had. So the ‘sunlight’ was on you all day, as if you were some sunflower..

You were wondering if the employees were even thinking about your disappearance.

At the end of the day, you ended up sleeping in Dogday’s bed, cuddled up to him. He said, “It’ll help with your sickness! And make you feel better!”

You woke up the next day, and yeah— it did make you feel better.

A/N|| I apologize for not including all of the Smiling Critters, I did try to include at least some of the ones that weren't always in the spotlight(I mean the ones that aren't talked about too much).

Another A/N|| Hip hip hooray!! I'm back ^_^

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blackopals-world · 8 months

Note

What's the NRC staff's experience at ♨️!Yuu's bath house? I don't believe you've ever written about it in detail; only mentioning it on ♨️!Yuu's initial post. Then again I may have missed it since Tumblr is being rude right now. Feel free to gloss over this one if it doesn't seem like something you want to answer.

I haven't written about this yet.

The staff are in the unique position of having free access to the Onsen and its service. In exchange, it gets to operate without an alcohol license.

Yuu has promised that all the drinks are watered-down to the legal requirements and no one is getting drunk (which is only half true.) Keeping the faculty in the loop keeps Yuu out of trouble.

The Onsen has a private spring designated for VIPs and faculty. It has unlimited food and bottle service.

The main reason the adults use it is because it's the only place to relax away from students. Say what you want but standing all day, and being surrounded by unruly brats is exhausting. The onsen is perfect for getting away.

Everyone has a reason to go and it differs for everyone.

Trein

He's old he needs a good soak in the mineral baths. He usually drinks a strong soju and talks to Yuu about his younger days. Grandpa has a lot of wild stories before he became a teacher. He also goes on and on about his wife and how they fell in love.

He treats Yuu like a grandkid and goes to the onsen mostly for the atmosphere.

Crewel

He completely changes when he's relaxed. Yeah, he is worried about Yuu but when he is tired he needs to cut loose. He will literally let his hair down for one thing. He smokes even if Yuu gives him the stink eyes and tells him to take it outside.

He usually let's Yuu mix him a cocktail or a house wine of their choosing.

He uses the spa services the most. Facials, manicures, pedicures, and hair treatments.

Behind all that, if you get him in at the same time as Sam he's a college student again. Roughhousing, drinking, and telling vulgar jokes. If Yuu isn't there to see it.

Sam

The only reason he's still allowed is because he supplies the Spa and bar. He doesn't ask questions either.

He orders hard liquor, dark. Whiskey, vermouth, and Adictivo Doble Reposado (a favorite in my family) He once tried to get away with ordering absinthe and was poured a glass of water.

He enjoys the steam room says it feels like a hot summer Louisiana day by the bayou. (Trust me you with that was true. Louisiana summers can be amazing but the swamp is no joke)

Sam likes to goad the others into drinking more before challenging them to a few rounds of cards. He doesn't play any of the workers because Yuu trains them on how to win or lose games on purpose. Those girls could whoop your butt.

Vargas

He needs a good ice bath and massage after training. He views the onsen as an important part of taking care of your health. Taking time to relax the muscles and taking care of your body is key to a long life and healthy mind.

That being said he orders tons of beer and food. We can't all be perfect. He falls asleep sometimes and snores like a bear.

He likes to play ping-pong in the game room but he's really bad at it. No one tells him because he's so determined to win. It's doesn't matter because if everyone is drunk they all suck but think they are playing the best game of pong ever.

Crowley

Banned.

Fine. He's allowed. Begrudgingly.

He isn't treated badly but Yuu would rather he leave. But the onsen would be shut down he didn't agree to let it stay open.

He takes off the mask for once and scared Yuu.

"Who are you?!"

"What are you asking? It is me your dear headmage."

"You're lying! Where is the bird man?!"

Yeah, no object permanence here.

Crowley will get wasted off his ass and join in any chaos the others create. Children, the lot of them. He drinks just about anything. It's whatever suits his fancy that day.

He gets his hair done while he's there along with his nails. Yuu finds it weird that his hair creates a natural black oil like some species of bird and his nails are as hard as talons and just as sharp.

#onsen!yuu #twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland x reader #twisted wonderland yuu #divus crewel #twst divus #mozus trein #twst trein #twst sam #vargas #twst vargas #coach vargas #twst dire crowley #twisted wonderland crowley #twst crowley

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schemmentis · 10 days

Text

La Cosa Nostra - Pt. 6

Cowritten w/ @janeyseymour

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 / Part 5

Summary: The Feds search Melissa's restaurant and question her. Meanwhile, you consider your options...

WC: 4k

When the girls are waking you a few hours later for breakfast; you're not much better. The extra hours of sleep have made you not a zombie but you can feel that your tank is near empty- that one more thing might just be the straw that breaks the camel’s back. You only hope it isn’t something the girls do that makes you boil over. It takes almost everything you have to get them fed, dressed, and actually to school. What keeps you going is the thought of your wife with agents tearing apart her beloved business and the tiny little hugs your twins give you when you say goodbye that are as tight as their little arms can make.

A few minutes drive takes you from the school to your wife’s restaurant. You still see Agent Shaw’s car in the parking lot as you pull in next to Sammy’s.

You see Melissa sat on the curb outside the entrance with a cigarette held between her forefingers as her elbow props on her knee. You should feel surprise. She stopped smoking when you started trying to get pregnant, both in solidarity with you and in an effort to improve her health for the kids you were hoping for. Now though, after the last few days, you're not surprised in the slightest. A stress cigarette has always been her one vice.

You exit the car, walking to the curb and sitting next to your wife. Wordlessly, she offers you the cigarette. You take it, taking a drag yourself before handing it back as you exhale the smoke.

“It's a goddamn mess,” Melissa finally says. “And they're still lookin’. For what, I don't know.”

You lean into your wife’s side, an arm wrapping around her shoulders and your hand gently shifting through the red locks you can reach. “We’ll fix it,” You murmur. You hope you’re telling her the truth.

Melissa hums around the next drag from the cigarette. You will. She knows you both will set it right when they finally decide they're done. It doesn't make it better though. This shouldn't even be happening, but it is.

You kiss her temple, inhaling the familiar scent of your wife’s perfume mixed with the cigarette smoke. It reminds you of when you first met. She had met you in a dark alley, and the first thing that you noticed about her was her striking green eyes- ones that knew exactly what they wanted. The second thing you noticed was the near intoxicating scent that you’ve only fallen further in love with as the years have gone by.

“I love you,” You whisper. You hate it, but it's the most you can offer her right now- the one thing you have that is unwavering and unchanging.

“Ti amo, mi amore,” Melissa whispers back as she takes another drag of the cigarette.

Her eyes flit up to yours, searching for any sort of comfort you can provide. Then they gaze over at the restaurant. She can see that everything is out of order. The chairs are strewn about at random, the booths have been moved and the agents have ripped up the painted walls in their haste to try to find something- anything. The front desk is a mess, menus everywhere and not in the designated holder. Decorations have been ripped off the wall and thrown carelessly, some ruined. And that’s only what she can see. Your wife doesn’t even want to know what they’ve done to the back- her beloved kitchen where everything has its right place.

“My god,” Melissa puts her head in her hands, and you have to quickly remove the still burning cigarette from her clutch to prevent her from catching herself on fire. “My restaurant...” and then she’s mumbling expletives in Italian. When she’s run out of curse words to be said in Italian, she switches to Irish. Then she switches to English.

“My love,” you sigh as you pull her impossibly closer- she’s nearly on your lap. “They aren’t going to find anything, because there is nothing to find.”

“I don’t even care about that,” Melissa whines into her hands. When she lifts her head, you see the tears in her eyes. “They trashed my restaurant, they’re going to take half of my shit, it’s not going to look the same, and I’m losing at least half a day’s worth of customers because of this! And then when people realize that we had to close for lunch because we were being searched, we’re only going to lose more business! I- I don’t even know what to do right now, Y/N.”

“We’ll put it all back together,” you promise her. “I’ll make some calls and have the family come down to help us put it back together, and we’ll get good business. We’ll make it all work, mo ghrá. I promise you, it will all be alright.”

“I just can’t believe this,” the redhead wipes at her tears harshly. She stuffs her hand into her jacket pocket, only to pull out another cigarette. She lights it and inhales deeply.

You pluck it from her hands. “Mel, smoking is not the solution right now. We can’t have you getting addicted again.”

“This is the one thing I can do,” your wife takes it back from you and takes another drag. “If you’re worried about the girls finding out, I’ll make sure I shower before I see them next.”

“What does that mean, love?”

“It means,” Melissa groans as she gestures in the general direction of where Danik and Shaw are now emerging from. “That if the way they’re walking over here is any indication, I’m about to be taken down to the station for a shit ton of questioning, and you’re going to be on mam duty today. Who knows what time I’ll be home.”

“They have no reason to take you in for questioning,” you try to tell her. “They found nothing.”

“They have every reason to take me in for questioning when we’re married,” she sighs as she stands.

“Melissa Schemmenti, we need you to come down to the station to help clear up a few things we found in your restaurant,” Danik states.

“Youse didn’t find nothin’,” Sammy rolls his eyes. “There is no need to question this poor, innocent family any further!”

Your wife sighs though as she stands from her place on the curb. “If youse want to interrogate me over nothin’, be my guest.”

“Honey,” you breathe out as you stand as well.

“Just get my restaurant back together before we have to open up for dinner, and please... tell the girls I’m sorry I couldn’t come pick them up today and that I love them,” Melissa tells you as she walks off with the officers.

You watch Mel slip into the back of the car. You don’t move as you watch the car pull off down the street once it turns out of the parking lot. You come back to yourself as Sammy’s hand lands on your shoulder.

“They got nothin’, kid.” He says, for what feels like the thousandth time.

You shake his hand from your shoulder, shooting him a glare. “Shouldn’t you be in your fancy ass car speeding to the station to protect my wife’s legal rights?” You say through your teeth, stepping past Sammy.

You don’t bother looking to see that he does get in his car and leave. You know he will. If not he’ll be having to answer to a lot worse than just you and your anger.

You step into the restaurant, sighing as you glance around. Melissa’s dream, torn to pieces without hesitation. Your hands curl into fists. You force them to uncurl and recurl, taking deep breaths in attempts to soothe yourself. You aren’t sure that it works- the only thing that would soothe you is if your wife was by your side and here to tell you that it’s all going to be okay despite her not knowing if that sentiment is true. This is what you didn’t want- Melissa and the things she loves upheaved, the things she dreamed and worked hard for. Sure, the salon and the front made it possible, but the success? That’s real. Melissa worked her ass off for this restaurant because she loved it and had a passion for it all. Now what was there to show for it? The place looked like it had been robbed blind and flipped.

You fish your phone from your pocket, dialing a number before placing it to your ear. You wish Mickey was out. You’d rather have called him. Instead, you’re cringing just a little when Mel’s cousin Vinny answers his phone. “Hey, you busy?” You ask instead of answering his question of how you’re doing.

You nod, silently willing him to hurry along as he chats around the simple yes or no question. “Can you grab Rocco and some of the other guys, bring ‘em down to Mel’s restaurant?”

This makes Vinny’s chatty nature stop suddenly. “Why? What’s goin’ on, Y/N?”

You sigh. Apparently news hadn’t reached this end of the family yet. The last thing you wanted to do was spread it further, make even more people jumpy over all this. You don’t have much choice though. “The Feds did a search warrant on the restaurant today. Mel’s at the station right now… I need some help putting it back together. They really did a number on it.”

You check your watch as Vinny agrees to gather who he can and be down as soon as possible to help. You still have a couple hours before the girls are out of school. Hopefully you can get things put together by then. You don’t want to have to ask your mother-in-law to pick them up again Though you know she’d hardly say no. Still, you’d like to minimize just how much she knows things are turning wrong if possible.

It breaks your heart more with each piece of the restaurant you pick up. Another little bit of your wife’s effort and care torn apart by the search. Still, you pick your way through what you can. By the time Vinny and some of the other men arrive you’re grateful there’s extra hands. It’s too much on your own, especially paired with your emotions. You’re half a second away from breaking something worse with the frustration you have building.

You help Vinny and the others until you have to pick up the girls. On the drive to the school, you make up your mind. You take them to your own mother’s house, the both of them excited to see their Nan. They don’t see your side quite as often as Melissa’s, with them living on the edge of the city. Still, today, the extra drive is worth it. It helps that you get to see your own mother too, reveling in her warm hug and kiss that’s planted to your own cheek as you drop the girls with her. You promise you’ll be back to pick them up by seven before you kiss each pair of chubby cheeks and hug them tight before you set back on the road again.

You briefly stop back at the restaurant. Your worry is a slight assuaged when you return to find Valentina helping direct putting things back together. It looks like they should be finished in time to open back up for dinner. You thank her yourself and make a mental note to tell Melissa she doesn’t pay her enough.

When you’re back in the car once more, you dial Sammy. Repeatedly. You know he’s still in the interrogation room with Mel. You dial until he finally calls you back before you can call him again. By then, you’re almost to the station yourself.

“Christ, Y/N, what is it? I’m tryna help your wife here and you’re blowin’ up my phone so much she’s lookin’ at me like she’s gonna kill me herself, nevermind the damn Feds.”

“I’m pulling into the station now, I need you to meet me outside.” You say and hang up before Sammy can say anything else.

In a matter of moments, he’s stepping out of the door and throwing his hands up at you in exasperation. “What the hell is goin’ on, huh?” He spits as you step to meet him on the sidewalk.

“You’re the lawyer, I need legal advice.” You say with a shrug.

“Now? Right now? When I’m tryna help your wife get home tonight, huh?” Sammy crosses his arms firmly across his chest.

“I’m tryna speed that process up myself, Sammy.” You retort. “What are the chances they keep Mel outta this? From here on, her and the restaurant?”

Sammy looks at you like you’ve grown a second head. “Basically nothin’, Y/N. They might not have found shit but they’re convinced, and they’re gunning. She’s as tied in as you are. You know that, though. So what’s the real question?”

“How long would I get if I copped to the money launderin’?” you ask seriously.

“What?” Sammy’s arms fall slack to his sides. Now, he looks at you like you’re absolutely insane. Maybe you are.

“I don’t got time for the ‘what are ya crazy, why would ya wanna do that’ talk, Sammy,” you roll your eyes. “Turn on the lawyer's brain, yeah? How long would I be lookin’ at?”

“The least you’d be looking at is ten years. The most…’round twenty. Plus whatever they wanted to fine for it…could be as much as doublin’ what they can prove you laundered. With you comin’ forward, we could probably get a plea, bring it down, but not by much.”

You close your eyes, taking a deep breath. “If I did, though, it’d be over wouldn’t it? They’d be off everybody’s backs?”

“They’d still be lookin’ for who killed Bobby…but things- they’d be mostly back to normal. Mostly. You know your girl in there would tear me to shreds if I even considered lettin’ you do this, yeah?”

“They tore her restaurant apart, Sammy. They’re tearin’ our whole damn life apart, ‘cause of me,” you sigh.

“It ain’t just because of you,” he tells you. “Sure, you took the business from Bobby, but you an’ I both know you would never kill him. You’d never order a hit; you don’t got it in you. Hell, you couldn’t hurt a fly- I’ve seen the way you rescue those damned stink bugs when they get into your house.”

“I took the business from Bobby. I get why they think I had something to do with it and are confused with how the business is doin’ so well,” you sigh as you scratch the back of your head. “But I- At the end of the day, this falls back on me, and Melissa shouldn’t have to pay for it.”

“Yeah, so your big brained solution is to lock yourself up, huh? Away from ya wife, ya kids. You really think that’s gonna make her feel better? That she ain’t gonna pay for it if you’re put away for years.”

“I think she’d understand…eventually,” you shrug.

Sammy laughs, outright. “You sure you’re the one married to Melissa Schemmenti? ‘Cause the whole damn neighborhood knows what you just said ain’t true. You’d be sooner lookin’ at your own divorce papers.”

You shrug. “At least they’d be left alone.”

“You’re really willin’ to throw yourself into prison for all this? Think about everything you’re gonna be missin’ if you go to prison. Melissa will divorce you, you’ll miss your girls growing up- miss milestones that you won’t be able to get back.”

Your eyes go hazy for a few seconds as you see your life flash before your eyes- past, present, and future. You see your girls celebrating birthdays by themselves, or at the prison to visit you. You see them potentially graduating high school and Melissa potentially sending them off to college on her own if you get locked up for long enough. You see the way that the girls change once your presence is no longer there. You see things you don’t want to happen. You see them throwing their lives down the drain because you aren’t there to show them the love that they crave and need. They end up in the same shoes you’re in now. And you- you hesitate in your decision to throw yourself under the bus enough that you really are unsure of what is the right thing to do in this impossible scenario.

“I don’t know what else to do, Sammy,” you whisper, and you hate the way your voice cracks and your eyes well with tears. You hate that all of this is wearing you down to the point that you don’t see a way out and you’re about ready to break. You hate that you can’t run in there and cling to your wife like your life depends on it, the way you want to. You hate every single thing about this situation.

“The only thing that you can and should do right now is let me go in there and do my thing for Mel, because they really don’t have shit on her this time,” Sammy tells you sternly. “Go home, spend time with your girls, and I’ll handle everything with Melissa.”

“You fuckin’ better,” you warn. “My wife has nothing to do with this side of the business, and I ain’t lettin’ no one take away her dream. She’s worked too damn hard for this. And when you have her side of all of this squared away, you better get your ass ready to sue the fuckers for all of the damage they caused at the restaurant- place is fuckin’ torn to hell.”

You turn back to your car, climb in, and speed off. Sammy shakes his head- he hopes you don’t go over him and get yourself into more trouble before he walks back into the precinct to finish off this interrogation that Melissa is dealing with.

“My restaurant is not a front!” Melissa shouts for the seventh time. “I mean, really! There are so many other places that don’t bring in half of what I do, a quarter even! If Twelve Tables really was a front, do you think I would’ve put my whole fuckin’ life into it?!”

The agents just look at each other. They’ve found what really gets your wife to tick. Insult her restaurant, and she gets feisty. “That’s what you want us to think, isn’t it?”

“You just tore apart my wife’s salon, our home, searched our cars, and practically destroyed my God damned restaurant! You didn’t find fucking shit! Get off of our fuckin’ backs!” Melissa slams her fist- the one that still has bandages on it from the knife incident- on the table. It’s a decision that she immediately regrets as her hand starts to throb.

“If you don’t have any evidence on my client,” Sammy says quietly. “I think it’s time we head out. There’s nothing you have to legally hold her here.”

“Damn right,” Melissa huffs as she stands and straightens her shirt out. “Don’t fucking come back to my restaurant.” She grabs her purse and storms out of the station. The lawyer is hot on her heels.

“Melissa,” he shouts as he tries to catch up with her.

“What?! I need to get back to my wife and kids!” She dares him to stop her.

“I’m just trying to tell you that I’ll drive you home,” Sammy rolls his eyes as he falls into step with her. That gets a bit of your wife’s fire to die down, and she allows him to lead her to the shiny Mercedes in the parking lot

You call your mother, asking if she minds keeping the twins for the night. Of course, she doesn’t. It really is impossible to say no to those tiny faces. Especially if they’re clinging to her and singing a made up song about staying at Nan’s when she asks if they want to have a sleepover.

You miss them. Despite seeing them every day, it’s been awhile since you got quality time with your little family. Even before all this mess started, you were working extra and lucky if you got to read the twins a bedtime story or even just say goodnight. More often than not, you would have to settle for kissing their sleeping heads and whispering how you loved them, hoping their subconsciouses at least picked it up.

Your wife, you’ve seen a bit more of. Usually, she’s awake when you do get home. She isn’t able to sleep well when you’re not. Not with the life you’re both in. You might be on the safer side of it but it doesn’t mean danger isn’t always around the corner. All it takes is one mistake and you could be targeted how Bobby was. You both know that.

Even so, you still haven’t spent much time together. It all boiled down to recapping your days while both fighting sleep. If that. Maybe a night just the two of you is what you need in the midst of all this.

It won’t go away, you know that, but maybe a night with your wife will make it feel more like it’s possible to get through it all. Like fighting is worth it. As you walk back into your home; you don’t quite feel like it is. Not with the amount of pressure it’s putting on Melissa. You’ve seen it grow with each day, just as you’ve felt it grow on you. Except, the pressure you feel on you isn’t what bothers you. You’d gladly put up with it if it meant your wife and the rest of your family felt nothing at all.

You mindlessly set about making dinner. It isn’t often you can convince your wife to let you make it instead of her. At best, you usually can convince her to let you help. You hope they won’t keep her at the station, going around in circles, for much longer. You hope it will be warm when she gets home and does not need to be reheated. The less for your wife to worry about, the better.

You’re just finishing cooking when the front door slams. If it were a normal day, you’d be concerned about who is coming in and slamming the door. Except it hasn’t been a normal day for a few days. You know it’s your wife- the knowledge confirmed by the Italian you can hear muttered as she pulls her shoes off at the door.

By the time Melissa makes it to the kitchen doorway, you meet her there with a glass of wine held out in offering. She softens when she sees you and the wine. She takes the glass from you with a quiet thank you. The rest of what anger your wife is holding out dissipates as she realizes you made dinner when you set her plate in front of her just as she all but falls into a chair at the table.

“Where are the girls?” Melissa asks you softly as she takes a bite of the Irish dish you made tonight.

“With my mom,” you tell her quietly. “I figured the two of us could use the night, just me and you, and then tomorrow is a full day dedicated to them.”

“I can manage that,” your wife tells you with a soft smile- really the first smile you’ve seen out of her all day. “I have to stop by the restaurant to make sure that everything is in order for the Saturday rushes, but-”

“Everything should be in order,” you promise her. “I had Vin and some of the guys come down and help me put Twelve Tables back together as much as we could. Val was instructing them... we really don’t pay her enough.”

“I know,” the redhead sighs out. “But with the financial trouble we’re potentially in, I don’t have the room to give her a raise right now.”

“When we’re out of this mess then,” you tell her as you set a hand over her own, your thumb brushing across her knuckles.

The two of you spend Friday night cleaning the house over glasses of wine, content to put everything from the past couple days out of your head even if just for a few hours. It’s warm, it’s soft... it’s the easy domestic life that you wish the two of you had all the time.

#melissa schemmenti fanfiction #melissa schemmenti x reader #melissa schemmenti x you #abbott elementary fanfiction #la cosa nostra #collab fic

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etheries1015 · 6 months

Text

Adult (20+) MC finally figures out how to properly make money, BESIDES working for Azul. Become not only the prefect and be a student, but an on the call designated therapist!

"Crowley, really. I'm far older than the other students, it is not my fault the mirror has brought you a full grown adult rather than another proper student! I finished all of my schooling where I am from, I do not wish to repeat it along side these....kids!" You had complained to him. Well, what was he to do? The mirror had obviously chosen you to be at that school, you had no other merits at the time to offer him, and to simply put it...without a way to go home, what else could possibly occupy your time in a world in which you know nothing about, than gather intel by throwing yourself into the most prestigious of schools? The answer seemed obvious at the time, until you realized just how bad it was.

Teenagers are still teenagers, after all. Especially a bunch of teenage boys surrounded by...well... Other teenage boys. Magic or not, they were still going through any other mental struggles as any normal human. However, putting magic into the mix had surely caused you some...extra unprecedented grief you had never needed to worry about in your world. After what, three? Four? Overblots and life endagerment exibitions, you had an epiphany. With extensive knowledge of the human brain system, life experience, and a plothera of coping mechanisms under your belt, what better way to open the door than to become none other than the designated student body therapist?

With some rather convincing techniques, you had managed to convince Crowley to, as you put it...

"Let me take this off of your plate! You are so busy being such an amazing head master running this school as perfectly as you are, I understand the durasic increase of overblots have your hands tied behind your back! As you know, I am an adult with ample experience in the field of mental health. Although I don't have the documents to prove it as much at this time seeing as they are back in my world....I just know you will not regret hiring me as a therapist."

A few more convincing lines (and perhaps a week of pestering, begging, manipulating-- I mean convincing , he had eventually hired you as the school therapist! With, of course, the expectation that you had to take an additional class to further certify you were able to properly do such a job. (You were kind of mad a bout that, seeing as you knew you were qualified, but hey. Pick and choose your battles I guess. At least you managed to get by with a couple additional classes, instead of a million years of schooling.)

You had a personal office in ramshackle, an empty dorm becoming suitable with your own personal desk, computer, book shelf, and another necessities. You had a location in the main building, the room connected to the nurses office had been refurnished as your main office. Book shelves of self care, items for fiddling with, bean bags, posters with encouraging words, and a desk full of papers, along with other needed items graciously funded by the school (you threatened Crowley at one point, accusing him of not caring of his students.) Of course, being on call meant students may drop by the dorm at any given time for your aid and expertise, so the ramshackle dorm lounge was also redecorated suited for sessions that were a bit more casual.

But of course, you also managed to juggle your studies as a student, wanting to continue to learn about magic. Working on the call was nice, keeping your phone on and excusing yourself whenever official work called for you. Unless you rather not be a student, that is fine, too. Full time therapist work may be the job for you!

Helping students heal one tragic back story at a time seemed perfectly fitting. (You just wanted to finally get paid and recognized for what you were already doing.)

#twisted wonderland #twst #twisted wonderland fanfic #twst fanfic #twst fanfiction #twst MC #twisted wonderland mc #yuu #twst yuu

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allthecanadianpolitics · 7 months

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A new development shaping up in Toronto's Canary District area will soon serve Toronto's Indigenous community with a purpose-built hub offering residential, commercial, health and child care uses.

The new Indigenous Hub is well under construction at the southeast corner of Cherry Street and Front Street East, completing a western gateway to the recently built neighbourhood.

Occupying Block 10 of the West Don Lands — land that sat idle for decades before being developed as an athlete's village for the 2015 Pan Am Games — the new Indigenous Hub is one of the final plots of lands being developed in this newly-invigorated area.

The team of developers Dream Unlimited, Kilmer Group, Tricon Residential, and Anishnawbe Health Toronto is bringing a complex of 13-, 11- and 5-storey mixed-use complex containing condos, rentals, and a community health centre to the neighbourhood.

Construction of the Indigenous Hub began in mid-2021, and after over two years of work, the project's design — from a team of architects that includes firms Stantec, BDP Quadrangle, and the Indigenous-led Two Row Architect — is finally emerging. [...]

Tagging: @politicsofcanada

#cdnpoli #Toronto #Ontario #Indigenous politics #healthcare access #urban planning

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softlyspector · 1 year

Text

Midnight Blue

Summary: A year after his mother’s death, Marc travels back to Chicago to face his father. He doesn’t expect it to be easy but he also doesn’t expect it to be so hard. He especially doesn’t expect to find refuge from the hard moments in a little known witch’s shop a few blocks over. And definitely not in one keeping watch over the family’s piano.

This chapter: You and Marc say goodbye.

Tales Untold; Part VIII (end) - Series Masterlist

Pairing: Marc Spector x Reader (minor Steven Grant x Reader and Jake Lockley x Reader)

Word Count: 4.8k

Warnings (this chapter): angst and fluff, mental health issues, mentions of past death, mentions of past child abuse

A/N: We are finally at the end! Everyone say goodbye to these two! Thank you for reading and thank you for giving this series as much love as you have. Comments and reblogs are so appreciated! If there are any additional warnings that need added, please let me know.

VIII.

Tales Untold, Chicago 6:56 PM

The radio is on in the back of Tales Untold.

The volume is low, but the sound still travels throughout the shop.

Late summer sun paints the hardwood floor with tiny spots of color. Deep mauves and cobalts mix with cherry red from the stained glass you and Steven had steadily replaced the clear glass with in the shop’s front door. It reminds Marc of the first day he came into Tales Untold, the air teeming with the flight of dust motes and golden light.

He can hear you singing along to the old country song on the radio as you putter around at the back desk, organizing the things the last customer had come in with.

The song is a crooning love song, sweet as candy. It’s the kind of song that wraps around his heart and squeezes, that pulls up nostalgic feelings like teeth from the lining of his stomach.

It sounds beautiful, especially when it mixes with your voice. The sound rolls around in your mouth, the adjustment of your normal cadence to fit the tune of the song.

Marc smiles as he listens, drags the paintbrush in his hand around the border of your mural, careful not to disturb the little design. You’ll do most of the detail work later, taking the paint in around the edges of the design.

You will, or Steven.

He and Jake had proved too heavy handed to be trusted with anything other than the broadest strokes.

Your voice drifts closer, your footsteps creaking along the old wooden floors. You aren’t a particularly good singer, but Marc would gladly listen to you butcher lyrics and notes for the rest of his life.

“Steven’s better at painting than you,” you tease when you reach him.

Marc doesn’t turn, rolling his eyes. “I can stop, y’know, and let you do it yourself, sweetheart.”

You lean against the bookshelf next to him, a smile on your face. The sun slants over your eyes, and you have to squint to look at him. Your whole face crinkles up with the effort. You’re wearing that stupid vintage Cubs shirt he gave you, the one with his good memories. You wear it all the time now, like you’re trying to prove a point to him.

“No, I like watching you, Spector.”

He doesn’t so much as breathe when you wrap your arm around his middle and slide smoothly between him and the wall. “You do?” He asks, just to hear you say you like watching him again.

“Mhm,” you tip your chin up. You’re so pressed so close to him, your nose brushes his, and you go a little cross eyed trying to glance down at his lips. “You look so stern when you’re concentrating on something.”

Marc frowns at you and you laugh. “Scratch that, you always look stern, honey.”

He follows the tilt of your head when you move, careful to watch every slow movement you make. “When you’re finished with the border, we’ll be done,” you whisper, bumping your nose against his. “Can you believe it took us a whole summer? To finish all our little projects?”

A spear of anxiety that doesn’t fit with the moment, that is not necessary, beats through him. “Yep,” he agrees lightly. “Now you can tell me to get lost.”

“You are just not funny,” you accuse as you tug free from his arms and pull him back from the wall so you can both look at it.

The wall is a deep blue. Midnight blue, Marc thinks your friend at the hardware store called it, patterned over it are tight constellations of stars. The stars are clustered towards one side of the wall, nearest the hanging crescent moon in the corner, while an orange and red sun sits directly opposite, long threads of burnt orange and yellow reaching out to them.

The border is nearly finished, decorated with phases of the moon in a pretty gold and white.

“It’s lovely, isn’t it? I think it fits the shop better.”

Marc nods. It does fit you better, that was for certain. The blue is calming, softens the interior shop, and is leagues better than the blank wall that had been beneath the wallpaper. The orange of the sun is an ode to your mother, for the orange wallpaper you ripped down.

He squeezes you tighter to his side, paintbrush still loosely held in his other hand. Steven is better at painting, he agrees with you on that, but Marc enjoys it. He especially likes it if you sit with him while he works.

And most times, you did. You sat side by side and worked on the mural slowly, the warmth of you pressing into his side when you leaned into each other.

Your flower boxes had long ago been painted, the flowers Marc salvaged when he broke down the old ones repotted in their new homes. He repointed the brickwork, finally fixed your rusted bell, and made you a new sign.

The neon was a good choice. It's definitely been helping draw new customers into the shop.

“Marc?”

He glances over at you and finds you frowning at him. Before you can say anything he turns to lie the paintbrush down so he can pull you fully into his arms.

“What?” He asks, fidgeting with the hem of your shirt.

The motion of it is soothing, and you never tell him to stop. It seems to calm you as much as him.

“Summer’s almost over,” you say carefully. “I’ve - I’ve tried to ask Steven about it but…don’t you have to be getting back to London? He doesn’t really seem like he wants to talk about it either” You slide one hand across his shoulder blades, the press of you soft against him. He closes his eyes when you drag your hand up the back of his neck and through his hair.

You muss his curls gently until they loosen around your fingers. A hum vibrates in your mouth and you don’t have to say it for him to know exactly what you’re thinking.

Pretty.

He can almost hear your thoughts.

Let your curls out more, Marc.

Marc nods. “Yeah,” he opens his eyes, “I’ve been thinking about that.”

You swallow and nod back, patiently waiting for him to explain. “I…we gotta go back. To London. At least for a little while. Loose ends to tie up, that kinda thing.”

“Alright,” you murmur. “Well, I guess I already knew that. I guess I’m just wondering what’ll happen with us.” You fidget, a strange nervousness pooling between you.

Marc stiffens, “What do you mean?”

“I mean,” you shift in his arms again like you’re worried about what his answer might be “Do you want to do long distance or are we going to call this a fun summer fling?”

“A fling?” He blinks at you, tightens his fingers into the fabric of your shirt, like you might disappear right before his eyes. “Do you want this to be a fling?”

He can’t really imagine it’s that, not after everything.

“No,” you smile, “I don’t want that. But the end is upon us, honey. Time marches on either way.”

Something about the way you say it makes him anxious, like you expect it to fall apart.

Marc swallows, “No. I don’t want it to be over. It doesn’t gotta be.”

For just a second, you look surprised. “Okay. We’ll figure it out,” you smile. “Like always.”

You start to pull away but Marc keeps you anchored against him, fingers locked tight into the fabric of your shirt now. His thumbs divot into your hips as he searches your eyes. “There’s nothin’ to figure out. I’m telling you, I want this. I want you. And you’re here.”

“Marc,” you say softly. “I always knew you’d have to leave again. I can’t expect you to pull up your whole life-,”

“Trust me, baby, we aren’t pulling anything up.” Marc cradles you close. “There’s…nothing there anymore.”

You press a worried hand to his face. “You really wanna be in Chicago again? Here of all places?”

For a moment, Marc considers lying to you. He considers telling you it’s all fine, that nothing hurts like that anymore.

He’s been honest with you so far, and things are fine, so he says, “I wanna be where you are. That’s it.” His voice is vulnerable to his own ears. “I don’t care where it is.”

You bite your lip, a troubled look still lodged in your eyes. “What about work-,”

He scoffs, “Baby, we’ve been here for months. There isn’t some job I gotta go back to.”

“You’ll have to explain that to me someday,” you say, cupping his jaw. “What it is you actually do.” Marc leans into your touch. He likes the way your fingers feel on his skin, how soft the pads of your fingers are.

He nods, though he’s not sure how he’ll explain any of that to you. “One day. Just…all you gotta know now is that it’s okay. There’s nothing in London anymore.”

“Does Steven really wanna live in Chicago?” You ask, incredulous. “What about Jake?”

Marc rolls his eyes. “Me and Steven already agree. And Jake thinks he’s a New Yorker, so-”

You snort and then laugh, burying your face against his neck. “Jake is a New Yorker. You should hear him talk about the-,”

“No, I don’t need to hear him talk about the fuckin’ Mets again,” Marc interrupts against your cheek when he turns his face against yours. Your breath fans warm over his skin, and the familiar scent of lavender envelopes him. “And we-,” he emphasizes, squeezing your waist. “-are Cubs fans.”

“Yes, we are,” you agree, pulling back to kiss his cheek and then the corner of his mouth. “I mean, I’ve got all this merch now, and I’ve been to two Cubs games. I can’t say that about the Mets-,”

“It’s only a matter of time before Jake gets you a Mets jersey,” Marc gripes. “And I need ya to promise me you’ll burn it when he does.”

“Asshole,” Jake mutters suddenly from the front window, not looking at you. “Always trying to make me the bad guy.”

You laugh and roll your eyes, “No. I won’t be doing that. Jake’s very sensitive. He would never forgive me for something like that.”

Jake grumbles something low under his breath, clearly embarrassed. “You’re right,” Marc says, just to irritate Jake. “He is sensitive. Very sensitive.”

You cock a brow at him, “He’s listening isn’t he?”

“Yeah.”

“You shouldn’t tease him,” you reprimand.

Jake’s spine straightens with your words, a smug smile pulling over his face. “Protective of me, huh? See, pendejo, I’m more important.”

Marc rolls his eyes again, “He teases me all the time.”

“You need to be teased,” you say softly. “You don’t smile nearly enough.”

Marc thinks you smile enough for the both of them, so he just kisses you.

Somehow you’ve stopped talking about it, about how he’s going to leave, if only for a little while.

He reaches up to cup your face between his palms, strokes his thumbs along the curve of your cheeks, and only pulls back long enough to say, “There’s nothin’ left in London and I wanna be here.”

It goes unspoken between you that he wants to be with you, that they all do.

The radio plays another love song.

Tales Untold, Chicago 4:35 PM

It’s mid September and you have a slight cold.

Your nose is stuffed, and Marc thinks you look cute, rolled up in the duvet and with only your eyes and nose poking out from between the mountains of fabric.

You had wanted him to go stay with his dad, so he didn’t get sick. Instead he’d gone to get you medicine, some little treats. Sprite and crackers to settle your stomach, and ingredients for soup.

He’s going to make you matzo ball soup, because you’d told him how much you loved it the first time he brought his dad’s leftovers to you. You’d said it was the perfect soup, perfect for winter and when you were sick.

You groan at him to go home as he sets out the ingredients.

Instead of doing what you ask or starting on the soup, he toes his shoes off by the door and crosses the room to tug the duvet back.

“Marc,” you croak weakly when he nudges you over and crawls into bed with you. “You’re gonna get sick too. I don’t want you to get sick.”

“Nah,” he whispers against the back of your neck, arms circling your waist, “I won’t. I promise.” Your body is hot with fever against his, even though you shiver like you’re cold.

The bed smells like lavender and clean cotton and sweat.

“I told you to go home so you don’t get sick too,” you grumble again into the duvet he tucks carefully back around your shoulders.

“Well, then I did exactly what you asked me to,” he mumbles, rubbing his hands slowly over your shivering body. You’re burning up, but until the fever breaks there’s nothing much he can do to help you. “I’m at home. This is home.” You don’t comment on that, and Marc grins when you huff in annoyance. “Wanted to tell you we got our plane ticket back to London.”

You’re quiet for a long time, and Marc wonders what exactly goes through your head. He can feel you tensing, swallowing back the tears that rise up the back of your throat in an effort to keep quiet and hide it from him.

Marc wishes you would let it out, that you would talk to him about it instead of being supportive without considering your own feelings. He wishes you could talk about it.

But you don’t.

He knows you’re trying to save him from any more guilt, but he also knows your fear, even if you don’t say it. You’re worried he’ll get back to London and remember all the reasons he has to stay away from Chicago, like he might realize you weren’t worth it.

It’s ridiculous, but he doesn’t know how to talk you away from that ledge. He’s not sure how to reassure you that he’ll come back. Even though Chicago is a place of heartache, it’s his hometown, it’s where you are and where so much love and happiness is.

Marc doesn’t say anything, just squeezes you tightly, palms fitted across your belly. “Oh,” you murmur eventually. “That’s good. You have a lot of things you need to sort out.”

“I will come back.” He nuzzles between your shoulder blades. “You know I will. Maybe you can come visit London while we’re there.”

“Really?” You perk up at that. “I’ve never been.”

“If you want,” he presses his cheek to the top of your spine. “You can help with the flat.”

You fold your hand over his, working your fingers between his. “Steven would be angry with me for dismantling his home,” you chuckle lightly.

“You know Steven thinks of here as home now too, right?”

You don’t answer again, your breathing slow and even, carefully controlled. “It is,” Marc says, when you don’t answer. “You can ask him yourself. He’ll tell you. Here is home for us.”

“It’s…but it’s going to be different,” you say lowly. “Of course, you have a place here with me,” you squeeze his hand tightly, reassuringly. “But you’ve been here for a reason. What if everything changes when it becomes permanent? I don’t want you to uproot yourself and then - this is just different, Marc. This is permanent. Maybe it won’t be fun anymore or maybe it…I mean there’s nowhere to go if-,”

Marc drops a kiss to your temple when he leans up above you on one elbow to glance at your face. “I don’t wanna go anywhere. Tell me you know that,” he pleads as you turn onto your back. “Tell me you know what you mean to us.”

Your lips quirk in a small smile, but it doesn’t quite meet your eyes. Your fingers are gentle when you push them into his side. “Of course.”

“You know here is home now.”

“I know here is home now,” you repeat. “For you.”

He leans down to kiss you, even though you laugh and try to push him away. “Where’s home for you?” He asks, mouth brushing yours.

Your hand fits against his chest. “Here.”

A cemetery, Chicago 3:16 PM

The light wavers yellow and warm through branches laden with burnt orange and scarlet leaves, the colors rapidly browning. Marc walks alone between graves, careful not to step anywhere he shouldn’t.

His mind is quiet and though you had offered to come with him, he’d adamantly refused.

You’ve done enough for him over the last few months, and this was something he wants to do by himself. This is something he has to do alone.

He can’t remember the last time he visited his brother’s grave. It’s been years, maybe decades.

He’s never seen his mother’s, not once, though he knows they’re buried quite close together. There’s a plot for his father, and one for Marc too.

Marc, in all his brushes with death, never thought of what would become of his body. Probably because he was so far away from home he’d never considered being buried in the family plot.

The air smells like fall, like fallen leaves and decay. But the day is nice, the sky a clean robin’s egg blue, and the scent of sunshine and the dregs of summer lingers in the air too.

It’s still warm, but the air has lost its heat. Summer has faded so quickly, Marc feels like he’s lost time. He blinked and the days were gone.

But he remembers all of it. Every second with you, in your shop, with his father, in that house that still haunted his dreams. He remembers every second with you, every moment in your apartment and in the shop. He remembers every brushstroke made, every valiantly repointed line in the brick wall, every single drive to the hardware store, every laugh, every dinner cooked together, and every piano note played.

For once, time escaping him doesn’t feel like a bad thing.

He stops in the shade of a tree, leaves spinning down gently in the sun.

It’s an incredibly beautiful day.

Marc is still glad you didn’t come with him, but he does wish he’d gotten to spend today outside with you. You love the sun, and Marc likes to look at you in the sun.

He doesn’t look at his mother’s grave, not yet. He looks only at his little brother, who he’ll never feel like he didn’t fail in some way.

Marc apologizes for not visiting, for taking so long to visit since the last time. Feeling just a little bit stupid, he tells Randall about you. But the cemetery is empty and so he tries not to feel too bad about it. He likes talking about you, in any case. You’re easy to talk about, easy to like.

He says the Kaddish and then crouches to lie two stones at the base of the headstone, one for himself and one from you.

He stays there for a long time, hand braced on the edge of the smooth rock, head bowed. “Sorry,” he says gently, because there’s no one there to hear him, and no one there to tell him not to. “I’m sorry, and I always will be.”

Saying it wasn’t his fault would never make the guilt quite go away.

When he stands, he has to take a moment to swipe the tears away from his face, before he can face his mother.

Even in death she intimidates him.

Like he could still be punished for doing nothing wrong, even now.

A cold chill sweeps down his spine when he finally turns to her grave.

He swallows hard, and thinks of you, how last Saturday you’d gone to the synagogue with his father when Marc hadn’t felt able to. You had come home smiling, with treats picked up from a Jewish bakery you’d gotten and hidden away from him the day before.

Marc thinks of all your small kindnesses, all of the thoughtfulness you applied to everything you did. The way you embraced him and Steven and Jake, and made an effort with his father even though you had no real reason to. You’d had no reason to go with his father, especially without Marc, but still you did.

You listened to all Steven’s long winded stories about Egyptology, and you indulged Jake in his flirting and silent need for acceptance.

There weren’t a lot of people, at least not that Marc could think of, that would do that.

You love him, he thinks he knows that, even if you don’t say it.

He doesn’t say anything for a long time, just stares down at her headstone and wonders where to start, if he has enough courage to.

A breeze sinks through the cemetery, ruffles the curls at the base of his neck. It reminds him of the way your fingers always tangle there.

“I forgive you,” he says, voice nearly inaudible, almost giving out. He should be stronger than this, louder than this, but it would have to do. “Maybe you don’t deserve it, but I do. I deserve to forgive you and move on. I hope…that you found peace.”

Marc’s hands are in fists, blunt nails cutting into the flesh of his palms.

He closes his eyes and says the Kaddish again before bending to leave a single stone.

Marc turns and walks back through the cemetery.

He doesn’t look back once.

His heart stutters in his chest all the way back to Tales Untold, panic building in the back of his throat. Like his mother would, even now, be able to know he spoke out of turn, would be able to hurt him again.

But you’re waiting for him, lodged firmly on the front step even with the chill seeping into the afternoon air. You tug him into you when you yank the door of your borrowed truck, not even waiting for him to climb out, and the feeling dissipates.

The knot along Marc’s spine loosens, the panic that homes inside his chest eases.

He clutches you tight to his chest and lets out a long breath.

“You did it, hermano.”

“Well done, Marc.”

You pull back and tilt your head. “I’m okay,” he says. “It was fine.”

“I’m proud of you.”

Chicago O’Hare International Airport 2:35 PM

It’s early October, and the first really chilly day has settled over the city.

The skies are slate gray and the clouds hang low in the sky. It’s only slightly oppressive, like the whole cloudbank might come crashing down at any moment.

The terminal is busy, and Marc takes a moment to find a little pocket of peace away from the rush people, the loud noise that is any airport.

“Are you sure you have everything?”

You’re looking at him with big, anxious eyes. “If I don’t,” he says gently. “I’ll be back in a couple months anyways.”

Marc knows you’re trying not to let him see just how upset you are. You haven’t cried in front of him, but he’s heard you try to hide the sniffles from behind the bathroom door more than once. “Yeah,” you rasp. “Of course. I know that. If you left anything I’ll keep it for you until you can come back and-”

“Baby,” he interrupts softly, tucking his passport and boarding pass into his back pocket before tugging you into him. “I’m coming back.”

“Y’don’t know that for sure,” you say suddenly, your breath hitching. “Everything you are now is in London-,”

He shakes his head, pulls back and cradles your jaw between his palms. You’ve given him so much comfort over the past few months, now is the time for him to offer it back to you. “It’s here now, everything I am. It’s with you. I’m coming back. I’m coming home.”

“I just,” you swallow and blink slowly at him. “I just don’t wanna be without you. I don’t want to be alone.”

Marc is sure that the feeling that cracks through his chest is his heart breaking.

“Hey, no-,”

“I just don’t wanna lose you,” you say softly. “I’ve come to rely on you a lot now too. I mean, who else is going to help me unclog the kitchen sink and unpot those stupid flowers for the millionth time? Who’s gonna build me stuff? And what about Steven and Jake? Who am I gonna make stained glass with and who’s going to teach me how to finally drive a manual car-,”

He feels a slight smile tug at the corner of his mouth. “And I wanna…I like having you around. I like all three of you and I like hanging out with your dad. And I like that you live with me and you show me parts of Chicago I never thought to go to and-,”

“Hey,” he interrupts more firmly this time. “We will do all those things. Us.”

“You-,”

“Me,” he emphasizes. “I’ll do all that stuff. Because I’ll be back. We will. Steven and Jake will drag our asses back, if not.” He means to make you grin back at him, but your eyes just go glassy again. “Hey,” he pulls you in. “C’mon, baby. We’ll call you every day. You aren’t losing anything. I promise.”

“Really?” You tug on his shirt. “For real, you promise?”

“I swear.”

“Promise, Marc,” you say into his shoulder when he tucks you into him. The heat of you seeps into him, along with all the things he’ll miss about you. He’s the one leaving, but that doesn’t make it easy on him. Maybe you’d realize everything he wasn’t the second he stepped away. But he has to try, he wants to make things work with you and that starts with going back to London to sort his shit out. “Promises are important.”

“I promise,” he says. “I promise, sweetheart.”

You give him a watery smile at the intense strain in his voice. “I believe you. I just don’t want to have to let you go.”

“Not letting anything go. You’re not letting anything go and neither am I. I’m not going anywhere.” You try to glance away, but he doesn’t let you, just like you never let him give up or look away. “I’ll be back by the new year. No longer than that. Hopefully sooner.”

You swallow thickly and nod. “Honey, you’re gonna miss your flight if you don’t go. Security might be-,”

“Fuck security. There are always other flights. I need to know that you know this is happening. I am coming back.”

“I know, Marc-,”

“You don’t though,” he says, adamant about it and not sure how to explain. “You don’t know what I’ve been through with you. You don’t know how much you’ve…how much you mean to me. I never woulda made it through this summer without you.”

There’s a long pause between you. Your eyes are wide as they search his. Marc doesn’t glance away, determined for you to see before he leaves.

You cover his hands with your own where it lays against your cheek. “Marc,” you lean in to kiss him. “I got you. I love you too.”

He doesn’t manage a response, just tightens his arms around you. “Yeah.”

“You need to go,” you whisper. “C’mon, let’s go.”

Marc tugs you with him, and you follow with a smile until the security area comes into view. “Bye, baby,” he murmurs in your ear, kissing you one last time.

You nod, and smile. “Bye, honey. I’ll see you soon.”

“Right,” he confirms. “Soon. And we’ll call everyday.”

“Of course you will, you promised,” you remind him. “Promised me, Spector.”

You release him gently, and back away a few steps. “I did. We will,” he says, just to keep standing there for a couple more seconds.

You wave and then make a gentle shooing motion. “Get going.”

Marc turns and goes before he can change his mind, before he can anchor himself to you and ignore every responsibility he’s ever had.

He gets in line and valiantly tries not to look back at you, but he can’t quite manage it. When he finally chances a glance back, he expects you to have disappeared like a mirage, like everything that happened and everything he gained had been one long dream. But when he turns you’re still there, watching him.

Marc can tell you’re crying a little, but you smile and wave each time he glances back.

Finally, you disappear from view and the story of you rounds itself out in Marc’s heart.

He will come back, and you will still be there waiting.

He will come home, because that’s who you are.

Once again, thank you so much for reading and for coming on this journey with me. You don't know how much it means that this particular story has gotten so much love from all of you. I wish I were better at explaining, just know that I love and adore all of you. Thank you, from the very bottom of my heart.

I'm going to miss this little world a lot.

#marc spector x reader #marc spector x you #steven grant x reader #steven grant x you #jake lockley x reader #jake lockley x you #moon knight fanfic #moon knight fanfiction

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