#alex tries to take third options

[wanderingblindly]

Thank you Ella @epylonia for tagging me to share a snippet of a current WIP!!!! I've had such a hard time making progress on anything as of late, but here's something I've been toying with lately!

Welcome to my ✧・ﾟ: *✧idiots in love✧・ﾟ: *✧ blind date AU!

“That’s actually, um. It’s part of why I invited you out. To lunch.” Charles restarts their conversation inelegantly, butchering the natural transition. Alex just quirks a brow in response, still half focused on his lunch options. “I’m going to be around a lot more, and I’m getting to an age. You know, where I might want to, ah.” He can feel a flush steadily climbing up his neck, the still-full glass of wine before him not at all to blame.  Sensing Charles’s unusual hesitation, Alex folds his menu and leans in closer.  “Um. Settle down?” It comes out as more of a question, his voice tight as he tries to simultaneously swallow and finish his sentence.  “You’re kidding,” Alex nearly squawks, eyes wide as he takes in Charles’s increasingly red face – impressively red, really. He looks like he wants to fall through his seat, like he’s hoping the upholstered leather will somehow turn into a blackhole and pull him out of existence. Permanently. “You, Charles Leclerc, want to settle down?” “Remember when you said you’d set me up with someone? A few months ago, at George’s wedding?” Charles’s voice is still pinched, as if his throat is trying to suffocate him and put him out of his misery. “Maybe you could do that? If the offer is still standing.”  Alex just stares at him with his mouth agape, eyes wide as if he’d seen the second coming of Christ himself. Or the apocalypse. Charles can’t quite tell if he’s stunned in awe or terror, or maybe some secret third emotion that’s even worse.  Because calling him a flight risk actually may have been generous.  Charles is, according to his friends, a total man eater.   — Lando sprawls across Max’s couch, back bent around a pile of unfolded laundry and feet propped up on a crumpled up duvet. The entire living room is in disarray, and not that Lando is typically one to judge someone’s housekeeping, but Max is rapidly approaching mole rat levels of recluse. Like, he can’t even remember the last time the man saw the sun. In Monaco? A sin. The floor is littered with clothes, takeaway bags, and crumpled up cans of Red Bull. And Max. It’s also littered with Max, who’s currently mimicking Lando’s pose on the floor between the coffee table and TV – staring up at the ceiling.  “So,” Lando tries to break the silence, drawing out the syllable noncommittally. “How did you know you liked guys?” Max’s tone is flat, as it usually is when he tries to come off as unusually disinterested, but Lando knows his tricks. He shoots upright, looking down at Max with wide eyes before exclaiming, arguably, one of the worst possible responses: “Oh my god, Max, are you fucking gay?”

This tag has been going around for a hot minute, so idk who hasn't done it yet! If you want to, take this as your excuse :) I'd love to see it!!!!!!!!

Edit: formally tagging @likepilotlights now that she’s back from holiday 🥰💖

#wip #f1 fanfic #lestappen #lestappen fanfic #ask me :) #I keep trying to push myself to write different styles and then it all ends up sounding THE SAME WHAT THE FUCK MAN #Second Time’s the Charm

[woso-fan13]

NO. 10 POOR UNFORTUNATE SOULS

Taser 

Your team was ahead, 3-0. You had scored 2 of those goals, off of beautiful assists from Rose and Sam. Your defense had just had a perfect save when you heard your teammates shouting at you. When you turn around to see what they had been frantically gesturing to a man on the field. He’s running towards you, yelling. 

Fight or flight takes over, but you choose the third option: freeze. It’s like your feet have rooted themselves to the ground, refusing to move no matter how much you will them to. The man gets closer and your feet finally listen to your brain and start moving, but it is far too late. He tackles you roughly from behind, bringing you to the ground. The two of you lay tangled in a mess of limbs as he tries to flip you over. Before he can get too far, a horrifying jolt of electricity goes through your body. Excruciating pain covers your whole body. But finally, the weight is pulled off of you. 

By the time your mind is clear enough to make sense of your surroundings, your teammates are surrounding you. Christen and Alex, your fellow forwards from this game are crouched beside you, getting as close to you as they can without touching you. After getting confirmation from the medics that they wouldn’t get shocked if they touched you and that you weren’t injured in a way that would be aggravated by them moving you, the two work to pull you into a sitting position. You are barely upright before you go toppling forward, luckily falling into Christen. She pulls you closer to her body, allowing you to lean against her. 

“What the hell was that?” You manage to ask. 

Alex looks at the people around you, then back at you, “he managed to get onto the pitch somehow. When security went to stop him, you ended up getting tased.”

“How- how did he get a taser in here? Is there no security at the entrances?”

Alex looks around again, begging someone else to answer. When no one volunteers, she again speaks, “he didn’t have a taser. Security did. You two were so tangled up that they got the wrong person. And managed to hit you with enough electricity to bring down a very strong, very angry, very large man.”

“Alex?” You ask. 

She hums in response. 

“It really really hurts,” you say, beginning to tear up from the pain now that the adrenaline has worn off. 

You feel Christen hug you closer from behind while you see Alex give you a sympathetic smile. 

“I’m so sorry baby, should we get you back to the treatment room and get some help?”

“I’ll go, but you have the game,” you sniffle, not wanting to admit that you really did want someone there to hold your hand.

A face appears behind Alex and you tense up only to relax when you see Tobin, “the game‘s canceled short-stack. Too much of a security risk to keep going. Now, how about we help you to the back?”

You nod, looking up at her with your best puppy dog eyes. She needed to remember that you were, quite literally, shocked, and couldn’t walk back by yourself. She huffs good naturedly as she bends down to grab you. She grunts as she picks you up, making exaggerated noises to hopefully make you smile. 

“Either I’m getting old or you are getting too big to be carried. Any ideas what it might be?”

You giggle, “you’re getting old Toby, everybody knows that.”

You know you must look really rough when she lets you get away with calling her Toby and calling her old. Her only response is a raised eyebrow as she continues walking. Luckily, Christen comes to her defense, lightly tugging your ponytail from where she was walking besides you. 

—-

Later that night, you cause a massive ruckus as you force some roommate changes. You had been roomed with Becky, who had flipped on the news while she was getting ready for bed. While she was in the bathroom, a clip from the game showed everything that happened. When she came out of the bathroom, you were panicking on the bed, back in the moment. She didn’t know what to do so she picked you up, walking quickly down the hall. She pounds on a door, which is quickly opened by a very confused and half asleep Allie. Becky drops you into her arms with a message to pass you off to Alex before going back to her own room. After Alex has managed to calm you down, you insist on having a massive sleepover with all of the players. You don’t want to sleep without knowing they are safe. 

So you manage to fall asleep, one of seven in a bed clearly meant for two people, maximum. But everyone was together, everyone was safe, and no one had a taser. 

#uswnt fanfic #womens soccer #woso x reader #woso community #uswnt imagine #uswnt players #uswnt woso #uswnt x reader #woso imagines #woso imagine #reader insert

[i-didnt-hate-it]

I didn't hate Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire, honestly it was awesome!

I just got done watching it so I'm still digesting it, but here are my initial thoughts. Any potential spoilers will go under a break.

I went into GxK that it would be similar to GvK and the other Monsterverse films: big monkey hit big lizard, big lizard breathe laser, big monkey block laser with big axe, and so on. And don't get me wrong, it definitely was all that, all pro wrestling but with big monsters, but in a cooler way than what I thought. I'm still trying to figure out what all made GxK more than what I was expecting, but I think this is the main bit.

In today's media, there seems to basically be two options. Either you make a show on streaming, which means your seasons are too short so you have to sacrifice character to plot. Or you make a two to three hour long movie, which uses a big budget to explain either characters or concept, hopefully with something of a plot to tie it together.

But GxK is a secret third thing. Worldbuilding. Adding to lore. Letting the landscapes they paint and the creatures that inhabit them speak for themselves. There were long stretches of screentime where the titans weren't necessarily fighting, they were just doing their thing, exploring their worlds.

Now obviously we need some humans to A, be able to connect to the story some, and B, know what is actually going on. Because while I would love a completely dialogue kaiju movie, the concepts and gimmicks of the Monsterverse just get too convoluted to figure out without Exposition Lady.

I can confirm that Legendary realized that the less human characters they have the better. The cast was relatively small, and while character development was minimal, they did make me feel some feelings toward some of the humans. But they made the right call not giving them too much of the story. What is this, Godzilla Minus One?

It's not, and if you can go into it knowing that it isn't even close to being the same movie as Minus One, and just watch it as a fun Monsterverse entry, I think you'll love it. The music is great too, better than GvK, imo. VFX were awesome too.

Okay, now for some spoilers, just random extra thoughts:

Godzilla really did the OMG MOTHRA!!! thing from that one meme! And I did too tbh, our Queen is back and beautiful as ever!

I love how it wasn't an instant father/son connection between Kong and Mini-Kong (I don't remember his name). Kong tried to help him out a couple times, but then gave up after MINI KONG TRIED TO KILL HIM LIKE MULTIPLE TIMES! Like come on, this little guy is just chaotic. But like they actually had growth in their trust and relationship, it wasn't just like "me big, you little, I dad now".

Scar King was actually a lot cooler than I was expecting. Shimo/Shimu whatever her name is did not have as big a role as I was expecting, but I'm glad she's okay.

Shout out to Mothra for stopping her boyfriend from killing Kong, helping them in Hollow Earth, and then just chilling when they all went to Rio. She said, "you guys got this, right?"

When I saw there was another hollow earth inside Hollow Earth, I'll admit I had a bit of an eye roll. But they explained it away pretty well.

SCOTTISH GUY THAT SAID SHIT IN STAR WARS. Alex Ferns is literally the same character he was in Andor.

I love how they imply that they basically imply that the Iwi had something to do with building the pyramids in Egypt by having the portal thing open RIGHT NEXT TO THEM. Made a cool setting for the fight, too.

At this point, I have no idea how big the Coliseum actually is.

Last thing, for now. For having top billing, Godzilla wasn't in it as much as I thought he might be. I think Legendary is realizing that if you have a character like Godzilla who can just level up his powers instantly to take on anything, and just kinda does his own thing, you've gotta limit that screen time. Since Kong is kinda humanoid, it's easier to empathize with him and thus add character development. Godzilla can only convey so much emotion that most humans can relate to (obviously Shin and Minus convey a lot of emotions, but anyway). Godzilla is in the movie, but Kong is more of the star. Honestly the world of the Hollow Earth and the Iwi people and their history are almost as much of the focus.

#i didn't hate it #film #film review #movies #godzilla x kong: the new empire #godzilla x kong spoilers #spoilers #godzilla x kong #the new empire #godzilla #king kong #kong #titanus gojira #mothra #titanus mosura #titanus kong #shimo #scar king #monsterverse #legendary godzilla #adam wingard #godzilla minus one #hollow earth #kong skull island #skull island #the coliseum

[1mnobodywhoareyou]

“I work at a department store and if you take out and unfold a shirt and then leave it one more time I’m going to stuff it down your throat” AU

found this prompt on a meet-ugly AU list that was shared by @legolasghosty and needed to make it Boggie. And not a meet-anything. Apparently.

Reggie was at the folding table. Again. Sure. they have the little flippy folder thing but that only works for some things and ugh if he has to refold and repackage one more dress shirt, he might just murder someone. And that’s saying something considering he’s… Reggie. 

Needless to say, it’s been a day.

He sighs as he checks the clock. There are still far too many hours left before he can go home.

He’s so wrapped up in what he’s doing that he doesn’t notice the arrival of his friends. A great feat, considering how Luke’s voice carries and that the biggest part of his job is paying attention to customers. 

Luke wraps his arms around Reggie’s shoulders. “How’s it going, buddy?”

Reggie tries to school his face into a smile but he isn’t fast enough and can’t stop the groan that leaves his throat. A double whammy.

“That good, eh?” Bobby asks, holding up a t-shirt that Reggie had literally just folded to check it out (it’s not even his size! What the hell, man?). Bobby apparently also makes the same realization and adds it to the pile before moving onto another one.

Reggie side eyes him but Bobby doesn’t seem to notice.

“It’s… fine. I just- ” Bobby is now unfolding a third t-shirt. “If you take out and unfold a shirt and then leave it one more time, I’m going to stuff it down your throat,” Reggie hisses at him.

Bobby stills and then slowly smirks. “You mean like this one,” he asks, reaching for a fourth t-shirt.

“These aren’t even your size!”

“They could be,” Bobby seems to have entered flirting territory and Alex and Luke have definitely backed away, not really interesting in being witness to either possible fallout option from Bobby’s teasing. “I think I’m going to try it on.”

Bobby glances around quickly and with confirmation that nobody’s around, pulls his shirt off and squeezes into the one he’d grabbed. It is way, way too tight and he knows it. He flexes slightly, and Reggie feels a blush rise up his cheeks.

“What do you think?” Bobby strikes a few poses, completely aware of the effect he is having.

Reggie swallows thickly before regaining his composure. “I think you’re going to stretch it out and need to take it off.”

“Well, if you insist.” Bobby very, very slowly starts to pull off the shirt, somehow not winding up with his shoulders stuck as he removes it. Reggie audibly gulps and Bobby’s grin grows.

He leans forward and plants a kiss on Reggie, startling him back to the present. He kisses Bobby back softly.

“You’re not going to put your shirt back on?” Reggie asks when Bobby leans back. 

“Do you want me to?”

“Well… no,” he mutters. “But you’re going to get me in trouble.”

“We don’t want that!” Bobby teases, stretching out the moment slightly before pulling his shirt back on. It’s one thing to fluster Reggie, it’s another to actually make his life more difficult and Bobby’s already been pushing it.

“You’re going to have to buy that now. You know that, right?”

“Oh, I know,” he kisses Reggie again quickly before heading to the checkout counter.

It’s only a few minutes later when Bobby comes back around and stuffs the now-purchased t-shirt into Reggie’s back pocket. “Something to look forward to,” he whispers directly into Reggie’s ear before walking away with a wink. 

If Reggie decides he needs to take a quick water break before anybody else comes in, well that’s for him to know and for him to know only.

#jatp #julie and the phantoms #reggie peters #bobby shaw #boggie #nobodys fics #I don't know why bobby is acting like a lukesque shithead but he is #i mostly just needed reggie to be the one making threats #for reasons

[purplecatghostposts]

Do you have any headcanons on what Brian, Alex and Jay’a backstory’s are like?

I personally give them dark back stories and that’s why they we’re so easily manipulated

I mean honestly I think they were easily manipulated because they were just regular guys before! I do have some details of their backstories (including pre-MH stuff) that I stick with though:

Brian

- Single mother and only kid. Dad skipped out, Brian resents him more than his mother does because she doesn’t like to waste time thinking about him

- Brian and his mother were close, he called her pretty frequently. His missing poster was the first to go up when he stopped responding

- In at least two scenes showing Pre-MH, nobody knows where Brian is despite him being needed for a scene in one and them hanging out at his house for another. Because of this, I often HC that Brian was frequently losing time and waking up in weird places due to the Operator around this time. Not wanting to worry anyone however, he kept this to himself and always tried to play it off as something else

- While Brian and Tim were never officially roommates, they talked about it a lot and planned to do it next semester, though unfortunately never got that far

- Brian has been openly bisexual since he was young, even if he didn’t have a label for it back then. He got some shit for it, most of it being pretty backhanded stuff considering he was popular

- He met Alex during Freshman Orientation at college and immediately clocked him as bisexual before Alex officially came out to him

- While Brian is a popular guy and gets along with a lot of people, he only has a few close friends because he chooses them wisely. He had a handful of not so great ‘friends’ in High School that he’s no longer in contact with and is subtly wary with most relationships going forward

Alex

- Didn’t fully realize he was bisexual until High School but stayed deep in the closet until he could move out

- His family (of which Alex is the third kid of four) is largely shitty on top of being homophobic, especially his father, and he cuts off all contact when he moves out for college. He didn’t tell them what college he was going to either, leaving in the middle of the night

- The only family he IS in contact with and has a good relationship with is his cousin and his husband, as they’re the only other gay people in the family (though technically disowned, not that Alex cares) and have always been more of a family to Alex than his actual one. They got really worried when Alex sends Rocky up to live with them but they take good care of Rocky. When he drops off the map, they are the people who eventually call in a missing person report for him

- Alex got Rocky in High School and took him with him when he left. When shit goes on with the Operator, Alex sends Rocky to live with his cousin out of fear that something will happen to him if he doesn’t. Rocky outlives Alex because of this.

- Alex met Amy in a shared class in his Freshman Year. They end up dating about three months after but eventually in her second year, Amy ends up transferring to a different college in order to pursue her degree as the other college had better options. They remain long distance and visit each other as much as they can

Jay

- Him and his Moms have always been the odd ones out in their town so Jay was pretty used to the idea that people were always gonna find something to dislike about him no matter what he did and he might as well be himself if that’s the case

- Openly gay for as long as he can remember

- Didn’t really have a whole lot of friends growing up but fortunately while enduring some bullying, also knew how to snap back in a way to make them back off. Eventually everyone knew to just leave him alone

- His family, while living comfortably, has always been careful with money, causing Jay to pick up the same habits. He saved a ton of money before college and always has at least a dozen of coupons in his wallet

- When Jay stops answering calls, his moms went looking for him themselves. They’re used to only relying on each other so they don’t bother with the police. They find answers, just not the ones they want, but Tim is always welcomed to the Merrick Household. No matter how much he blames himself, they know otherwise. Call it mother’s intuition.

- Jay had a TON of cats growing up so he’s very friendly with them and can spout Cat Facts at any given moment

#marble hornets #homophobia m #death m #I think Tim should find his family in his friends’ family #I dunno. I think he should be loved and have a support system #because while in grief of losing their loved ones they look at Tim and see someone their sons age in need of help #and I realize Tim is still sick but SHUSH I WANT HIM TO HAVE SUPPORT #fuck the Operator and it’s ability to inflict isolation I want FOUND FAMILY #tell me if I need to tag anything else

[caffeinefire]

TRIMAX SPOILERS

I just finished it and I can’t stop thinking about how ideals are passed on through the story. How Rem saved as many as she possibly could, sacrificing her own chance at survival in the process, and drew strength from Alex, someone in her own past who she was sure would do the same. Then throughout the series Vash has built much of his worldview and ideals from things Rem taught him. Wolfwood eventually tries to live up to these ideals too, wanting to save Livio. Then we get to see Livio carrying the torch.

And I remember a dialogue somewhere about how there’s no point to Vash’s efforts and the risks he takes because once he’s dead none of those ideals mean a damn. And then the story, I think any version of Vash’s story, shows that that’s just blatantly untrue.

That kindness and mercy is passed on through people. It’s passed on and on and on. And we see how these things are learned and chosen and they’re not easy, but they’re worth it. It’s worth it to give people the benefit of the doubt, a second chance and then a third, the option of choosing a different way to live in the future.

Just… Love and Peace, I’m crying.

#trigun #trimax #this felt a lot bigger in my heart before I tried to put it into words #looking at it written down it feels like the most obvious thing about Trigun #I could probably write this better but I just finished reading it and I’m feeling a lot of things at the moment #but like… Alex was just some random person who was apparently kind and self-sacrificing and had an impact on Rem #how many lives did their impact save? #what sort of impact can our own kindness have?

[illctaffairs]

LAST ONE!!!! domestic ship meme for alex ani bc i’m crazy :”)

꒰ ꔫ ꒱ — send me a ship & i'll tell you . . .

who reaches out to new neighbors: after alex encouraged the whole denji blood oath fiasco!? anita, she wants their neighbors to LIKE THEM who remembers to buy healthy food: alex, anita likes to think she's healthy enough, but her previous grocery routine was garbage compared to theirs KLDFJGS who remembers to buy junk food: anita, she has a 6 year old to bribe, tyvm!!! who fixes the oven when it breaks: alex, anita insists that her hands aren't made for that kind of laborkdjghdk who waters the plants/feeds their pet(s): ani, and lucy helps <3 who wakes up earlier: ani!! she's an early bird who makes the bed: alex, it's one of the only chores ani refuses to do, her arms get so tired every time </3 who makes the coffee: anita!! she puts one on while she's making lucy's breakfast every morning and has a cup of it ready for alex by the time they wake up who burns breakfast: it's a joint effort, they get a little bit distracted while they're cooking and almost burn down the apartment in the process, no biggie!!!! how do they let each other know they’re leaving the house: depending on how wild lucy is being, ani either gives alex a million kisses while saying goodbye, or she just calls out that they're leaving, there is NO in between KFJDGS how do they greet each other when one of them gets home: ani tracks alex down in whatever room they're in and tucks herself into their arms while lucy hugs their leg </3 who brings home little gifts like flowers/chocolates more often: ani!!! she buys every little trinket that reminds her of alex, she's never not bringing something home for them sfjkgsj who picks the movie for movie night: not ani or alex, but a secret third option — LUCY their favorite kind of movie to watch: i like to think they've grown partial to family friendly movies since acquiring lucy, but before that, romance :') they really should have known sooner KJGHDFSK who first suggests a pillow fort: alex, bc they're determined to be the cool parent </3 who builds the pillow fort: it's a family affair that takes no less than 45 minutes every time because they bump into each other and knock it down at least twice who tries to distract the other during the movie: alex tries and ani swats their hands away because she gets emotionally invested in the movies they watch even if she's seen them a million times before who falls asleep first: ani, tucked against alex's side with her head on their shoulder :') who is big spoon/little spoon: ani can and will be big spoon if alex wants her to be, but she prefers little spoon, alex's arms are just so safe and warm <3

#୨୧⠀┆⠀𝒶𝓃𝓈𝓌𝑒𝓇𝑒𝒹 › anita chapman. #୨୧⠀┆⠀𝓅𝒶𝒾𝓇𝒾𝓃𝑔 › anita & alex. #୨୧⠀┆⠀𝓋𝑒𝓇𝓈𝑒 › 16th avenue. #womansound #the way nothing has ever been more dear to me than them and their lil family :')

[theivorybilledwoodpecker]

When Roe v. Wade was overturned earlier this year, bodily autonomy and safety were put into question for millions of Americans. For Kaitlin Soule, a family therapist and mother of three, it also marked the moment she knew she had to share her story. Soule had an abortion in 2016. She had given birth to two daughters 15 months apart, and Soule's second daughter was only seven months old when she became pregnant again. Soule knew she couldn't experience another pregnancy so soon. "By having an abortion, I was meeting my needs," says Soule. "This decision on Roe v. Wade could cost women their mental health, financial security, agency, power and life. It could cost everything." Access to abortion care is now in question or outright banned in 22 states, and November's midterm election has the highest number of abortion-related ballot measures on record in a single year. But for Soule and Alex Robinson Hunnell, marketing director and mother of a 10-month-old son, access to a safe abortion was the right choice for them, their families and their future. "I would not have been able to raise a child living in New York with the job I had," Hunnell says. "The reality is that if I did not have access to a legal and safe abortion, I would have sought alternative options." Hunnell was 25 when she had an abortion. At the time, she was on birth control, specifically Ortho Tri-Cyclen. But her abortion provider noted that the medication was not very effective, sharing that at least once a week a patient came into the clinic pregnant while using it. "I took my birth control religiously — I was so sure that I wouldn't get pregnant that I went to the doctor thinking I had the flu," says Hunnell. "When I found out, I knew pretty much immediately that I would end that pregnancy." Hunnell knew she wasn't ready to have a child at the time, and when she did get pregnant nearly a decade later, her pregnancy was difficult. She found out she had hyperemesis, which is persistent severe vomiting leading to weight loss and dehydration during pregnancy. Hunnell has no doubts that she made the right choice. "I have no regrets," says Hunnell. "[Motherhood] wasn't feasible at the time, but now I'm married and have a family that is very involved in helping us raise our son. It takes a village and back then I did not have a village I would be able to rely on." For Soule, who was already a mother of two when she had her abortion, the choice didn't feel as clear-cut. "The mom guilt came in because we live in a society that expects us to give up ourselves entirely to motherhood," says Soule. "But I can't be the only mom who already had children and decided to have an abortion." In fact, Soule is far from alone — according to the CDC, 60% of women seeking an abortion already have a child, and one-third have two or more children. "I couldn't even imagine caring for myself through another pregnancy, let alone caring for another child," she says. "I just remember feeling so different than I ever felt being pregnant before. The weight of the world was on my shoulders." Looking back, Soule can see she was struggling with postpartum depression and anxiety as she juggled caring for two babies, while also pursuing her therapist license. While she believes she was making the best decision for herself and her family, she admits to feeling guilty. That guilt was compounded by the challenge of seeking appropriate care: the physician who helped Soule through her first two pregnancies told her he didn't provide abortion care anymore and referred her somewhere else. "That felt like a literal gut punch," says Soule. "I felt like I was being shamed." Hunnell also recalls her primary care physician dismissing her needs entirely. "I said I wanted to end this pregnancy, and he ignored me and prescribed prenatal vitamins," she says. "I stopped going to him after that experience."

#Kaitlin Soule #Alex Robinson Hunnell #Abortion

[invisibleraven]

How about 44 with just Julie and Reggie?

Julie would never understand why her and the guys spent so much time out in the studio just hanging out. Her house had ample couch space, free access to food, central heat and air. But nope, every day they ended up squishing onto the worn furniture in her mom's old studio. Luke taking up a chair, guitar in his lap, strumming away. Alex and Willie taking up the couch, leaving her and Reggie to fight over the last chair that wasn't hanging from the ceiling.

Today, victory was hers, as she claimed the chair first, leaving Reggie glancing around. He could try to squeeze in with Willie and Alex, but that felt a little third wheely for him. The floor was always an option, but Reggie tried to avoid it if he could, complaining it was not comfortable. This time, a smile lit up his face as he plopped himself down into Julie's lap.

"Ooof!" Julie exclaimed, shoving at Reggie. "I'm not a chair you know!"

"But you're just as comfy," Reggie replied with a wink, shifting a little to make himself at ease.

"Get your bony butt off of me!" Julie said, giggling as Reggie squirmed in her lap.

He gave a fake offended gasp. "Excuse you, I have a lovely and ample backside!"

Alex snorted at that. "I'm sorry Reg, I love you, I do, but your butt is barely there."

Reggie's eyes flew to Luke, putting on his best pout. Luke chuckled, "Sorry dude, he's right. I mean, it's a nice enough butt, for what's there."

"Slander!" Reggie cried. "Guess I will have to take my merely adequate butt and bring it to someone who will appreciate it," He started to get up, only to be hauled back down by Julie.

"Oh give it up, you know I love you, bony butt and all," she said, pressing a kiss to his cheek. "Now, are we doing this stupid History project or what?"

Groans rang out, but everyone dutifully dragged out their notes, starting to discuss the finer points on the wars of South East Asia. Only Julie was straining to see her textbook and keep Reggie in his spot, given his larger frame. "Reggie, this isn't working."

Reggie leapt up, then turned and offered a hand to Julie, pulling her up beside him. Then promptly stole the chair, and before Julie's gasp of indignation left her lips, pulled her down onto his lap, opening the book and resting his chin on her shoulder so they could both read.

"Better?" he whispered, feeling her shiver as his breath disrupted the curls lying by her neck.

"As long as you don't mind my bony butt digging into you," Julie replied.

"So not getting baited into a conversation about your butt and how much I adore it in front of our friends," Reggie replied.

Julie let out a small giggle, then turned the page, continuing to read her text, shifting ever so slightly in Reggie's hold. "Thanks for being a comfy chair."

"You know me, I live to serve," Reggie replied, then let out a yawn as he tried to skim the next paragraph. The words were starting to blur, and he could already feel himself starting to wander away in his thoughts. "But I am about to fall asleep if we don't make this more interesting."

"We could always..." Luke started.

"Mrs. Gable already said we couldn't write a song dude, no," Alex replied, making Luke grumble.

"Maybe a poem?" Willie suggested, trying to mollify his boyfriends before another snipe fest broke out.

Reggie glanced over to where they other three were discussing the finer points of what differentiated the two that would still satisfy their teacher and let himself yawn again. He was warm and cozy, with his best girl in his arms, so he let himself drift.

And if he woke up with Julie still there, also asleep, a blanket thrown over them and his friends absent? Well Reggie really wasn't going to complain. He merely pressed a kiss to Julie's temple, closed his eyes, and let himself go back to sleep.

History could wait, because Reggie's dreams were full of his very happy present, and all the dreams for his future, spent much like this, with Julie in his arms.

#filled prompts #ficlet #rulie #julie and the phantoms

[90363462]

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Dusty Baker Makes MLB History As The Oldest Manager to Win a World Series Title

So we have to just say it: “How about those Astros?!”

By

Alexandra Jane

PublishedYesterday 10:27AM

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After 25 major league seasons and two shots at the World Series, Houston Astros manager Dusty Baker is finally a world champion manager. And according to The New York Post, Baker is also the oldest to ever do it! The 73 year old lead the Astros in its 4-1 victory over the Phillies in Game 6 on Saturday night, making him the oldest manager to ever shepherd a team to the title. 

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“Dusty has been unbelievable since Day 1,” Astros third baseman Alex Bregman said. “He’s been an unbelievable manager, an unbelievable human being just on a personal level with every person in our clubhouse, he loves the game of baseball, he has dedicated his life to this game and he deserves it. He’s an unbelievable manager and unbelievable man.”

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Baker was hired in 2020 to stabilize the team after the unfortunate sign stealing scheme of 2017 that caused the Astros former manager A.J. Hinch to lose his job. Baker almost brought home the win last season before succumbing to the Braves.

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“I have thought about [winning the World Series] a lot,” Baker said. “I tried to have faith and perseverance and knowing with the right team and right personnel you knew this was going to happen.”

“Had this happened years ago, I might not even be here. So maybe it wasn’t supposed to happen so that I could hopefully influence a few young men’s lives and their families and a number of people in the country through showing what perseverance and character can do for you in the long run.”

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Baker also shared that the team was motivated by the 2017 controversy, along with the losses they suffered to the Nationals and the Braves in 2019 and 2021, respectively.

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“I think that’s what drove this team,” Baker said. “That’s what motivated them. The boos and the jeers that we got all over the country, it bothered these guys, but it also motivated them at the same time. And it wasn’t an ‘us against the world’ thing. It was more of a ‘come together even closer’ type thing. And what happened before, it doesn’t ever pass over completely. But we have turned the page and hopefully we’ll continue this run.”

[sbknews]

Rea, Bautista and Lowes distinguish themselves from the rest of the field

Rea, Bautista and Lowes distinguish themselves from the rest of the field as the fastest riders on Friday. Rea leads the way as WorldSBK's return to Phillip Island ignites, Japanese sensation Nagashima P6 on debut. Friday Highlights - WorldSBK  P1 – Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) - Rea posted a 1’31.127s on his final lap of FP2 to lead Friday’s combined standings. - He was 0.105s quicker than Bautista. “I really enjoyed the bike from Lap 1, the guys did a pretty good guesstimate of the setup. Phillip Island is quite a unique track because, with experience, the more you try at this circuit, sometimes the slower you go. I tried to start calmer, be smooth with the bike, not fighting the bike and things were working. I just tried to be very clear with my comments to my guys to make the bike setup changes between FP1 and FP2 and the bike was good. There are a few areas we really need to improve tomorrow. We’ll sit down tonight and analyse that to make things a little bit easier over a race distance. A little bit more turning is top of the agenda, and also throttle connection in some corners needs to be a little bit smoother. We have to be pretty satisfied. Like I said in the last races, we’ve been quite far from Alvaro and Toprak in terms of race time. At the end of the race, we’ve been struggling. My only target is just trying to be there at the end, keep consistent, give my 100% and if it’s possible to do well then so be it. I try not to worry about them. Alvaro’s already done his job this season and with Toprak we’re still fighting for second in the Championship. He has a big gap, but anything can happen with the forecast. With my pace being good, we can fight at the front and try to take it to the last race at least.”

P2 - Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) - Bautista was second in the combined standings with a fastest time of 1’31.232s. - The newly-crowned World Champion crashed at Turn 4 in FP1 but was unhurt and back out in FP2, when he improved his time. “I had a small crash at Turn 4 this morning. I went a bit off of the line and I lost the front. The only thing is that I couldn’t finish the practice but fortunately, it was nothing serious. I always like to work on the pace, especially on Friday. Today, we had two new tyres from Pirelli so it was important to understand the tyres. In the morning I started with the B option; we did a few laps and I understood more or less the potential and the feeling with the bike. This afternoon, we tried both tyres but in the first run, I tried the A solution and I felt quite comfortable, so we decided to keep working with this tyre because for me, it means a better feeling on the bike. In the end, it could be an option for the race if it doesn’t rain. I think it’s been a positive Friday because we worked on the pace, and I felt good on the bike.”

P3 – Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) - A best time of 1’31.416s put Lowes in third place on the combined classification. “It was good, really positive, coming off the back of a tough weekend last weekend where I couldn’t get the feeling I needed. Today’s been the opposite; I didn’t touch the bike today really. I just tried to relax. It’s all about tyre life and trying to get the tyres to last over the 22 laps here. Honestly, it was good. In the first session, I used the same tyre. In the afternoon, we made a small change and it felt a little bit better on the front. In general, we had a really positive day and I feel happy with the feeling I have with the bike. It was good for Kawasaki. We want to be fighting for the top step. Obviously, Jonny’s not won for a long time so it would be nice to have a Kawasaki up there winning and I feel this weekend, if it’s dry anyway, we have a good chance to go and fight for victory.” P4 – Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK) - Razgatlioglu was fourth at the end of Friday with a best time of 1’31.604s set in FP1, as he was not able to improve in the afternoon session, the only rider in the field who didn’t. “After Mandalika, it was not the perfect day for me. We didn’t have a strong start. Anyway, after two years, we come back to Phillip Island and we are now trying to have a good setup for my bike. I hope tomorrow we find a good setup and we start to come back strongly. Kawasaki are very strong at this track, I remember 2020. Also Bautista is very strong, I think he will ride alone in the race; it looks like his pace is very fast. I will try to join this group. I am just searching for a good setup. I hope I find this and ride with Jonny and Alvaro. Maybe, in the race, we can fight with Alvaro.” P5 – Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK) - Locatelli finished 0.051s behind teammate Razgatlioglu to take fifth place in the combined standings. "It's like a dream to ride the Superbike here and today was really amazing. I'm also really happy because it's the first day and we are already fast. We have a really good feeling so it's a good first day and we'll try to enjoy tomorrow. For sure, it won't be easy but anyway, it's the last weekend of the season. We'll try to enjoy and get the maximum we can have. I want to push and enjoy because it's a special track for me. I want to try to close the season in the best way." P6 – Tetsuta Nagashima (Team HRC) - Stepping in as a replacement for Iker Lecuona, Nagashima was sixth in the combined standings on Friday with a best time 1’31.869s, 0.742s behind Rea. - The Japanese debutant was also top Honda in both sessions “I didn’t expect this! I was expecting to struggle a bit more because it’s my first time in WorldSBK. It was one of my first times with the Pirelli tyre. It was really difficult but P6 is not bad. I have experience here from MotoGP™ and I think the MotoGP™ bike is a little bit more difficult. When I ride the Superbike, it was a bit easier because I have experience from the Suzuka 8 Hours, and I know this bike well. I just need to adapt to the Pirelli tyres, but it was OK. I had a small problem, but it was still OK. I still have to improve for the race because it’s 22 laps: it’s quite long. My average lap time is not so good. I can still improve a lot. Let’s enjoy the race. I don’t know where I will finish but I will try to do my maximum and maybe after the race I can smile!”

To note: Top BMW was Scott Redding (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team) in P9, whilst he was two places behind best Independent rider Philipp Oettl (Team Goeleven). Already crowned Best Independent Rider in 2022, Axel Bassani (Motocorsa Racing) concluded day one in 11th. WorldSBK action resumes on Saturday from 10:50 (Local Time) with the FP3 session, followed by Tissot Superpole at 13:10 and Race 1 at 16:00. WorldSBK Combined Results after FP2 1. Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 1’31.127s 2. Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) +0.105s 3. Alex Lowes (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) +0.289s 4. Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK) +0.477s 5. Andrea Locatelli (Pata Yamaha with Brixx WorldSBK) +0.594s 6. Tetsuta Nagashima (Team HRC) +0.742s For more info checkout our dedicated World Superbike News page World Superbike News Or visit the official World Superbike website WorldSBK.com Read the full article

#AUSWorldSBK #PhillipIsland #Pirelli #Tissot #WorldSBK #WorldSBK2022

[earnestly-endlessly]

Cherik angst!

Ooooh the angst!! The cherik fandom has an abundance of angst fics and I could probably make a list of hundred fics to recommend, but these are some of my favourite angsty cherik fics. I should warn you though, some of these require tissues.

Cherik Angst

Everyday Love in Stockholm – tahariel

Summary: Magneto is the ruler of the posthuman world.

His only secret? Charles Xavier, the human he's kept locked in his bedroom ever since his right-hand woman, Mystique, came to him pleading for mercy for her stepbrother, who accepted her mutant form and protected her as a child. The human he started fucking after Mystique was killed in battle, despite the guilt he feels at contaminating even this last promise to the woman who was integral to his life's work and happiness.

Boden’s Mate – kaydeefalls

Summary: "Shaw has information that we need, and we need him alive to extract it," Moira says, and there it is: the job is on the table. Extraction.

XMFC/Inception fusion AU. Erik is an extractor, Alex is his point man. They're assembling a team to go after the most dangerous mind in dreamsharing: Sebastian Shaw. But unless Alex and the team can keep him in check, Erik's desire for vengeance might just rip the whole job apart around them -- and then there's the shade that haunts his dreams...

Ritual Self-Torture – TurtleTotem

Summary: Shaw is King, Charles is his royal consort and Erik is a Knight/Lord. Shaw is sterile but his kingdom can't find out, so he asks Erik to impregnate Charles.

He doesn't know Erik and Charles are in love.

The Winter of Banked Fires – Yahtzee

Summary: Charles Xavier has returned from the dead -- but is lost within his own mind. Rogue has cast aside her own power and doesn't know where she fits in the world any longer. The production of synthetic Cure means mutantkind itself is newly at risk. And Magneto, turned human against his will, is in despair until the day he feels a familiar consciousness tugging at his own

Us – Pangea

Summary: “Charles,” Erik says, and if his voice hits a pleading note then who can really blame him, “Charles, it’s me.”

It takes several longer moments before Charles musters up the strength to answer, breath stuttering horribly as he tries to breathe. He’s shaking, entire body trembling.

“Erik,” Charles says, his voice cracking, “Erik, I want to die.”

Enigma – Yahtzee

Summary: Erik dies, or finds a reversey-time mutant, or a magical time travelling device, and wakes up in the past. This time, though, it's before he ever met Charles - in fact, it's before his mother died.

He can save his mother that one time (thanks to his mastery over powers carrying back), but what does Erik do after that? Does he stick around, or escape and run to find Charles again (and hope everything doesn't go wrong)?

By Faint Indirections – kianspo

Summary: Erik is in his ~50s, and lonely and bitter. He survived the Holocaust and was only ~14 when the war ended; and even ~40 years later, living in a country that helped to end WW2 and the Third Reich, homosexuality is still a taboo topic. Then one day, he stumbles over Charles, who is young(early 20s) and bright and smart and cheeky and full of energy and beautiful. And moving in the same street where Erik lives.

Lonesome on the Shelf – ikeracity

Summary: After three years of marriage, Charles has to admit that his relationship with Erik has significantly cooled off. These days, they're barely ever home at the same time and it seems like every conversation they have turns into an argument. Charles misses the way they used to be, misses the spontaneous dinner parties and the surprise morning sex and the wake up calls in the early mornings to catch the sunrise. But it's going to take two of them to fix this marriage, and some days, it seems as if all Erik wants is to be rid of him.

A fic about rekindling marriage.

When the Spell Breaks – kianspo

Summary: Erik, a high-profile lawyer with a successful career, meets a 21-year-old grad student in a bar, and within a few short months marries him. He and Charles are blissfully happy, until Erik's boss runs a background check on Charles and discovers he's been cheating on Erik. Charles denies everything, as there was no affair, but Erik doesn't believe him and throws him out. As Charles tries to figure out how to survive and stay at school that he can no longer afford and makes a lot of bad if not plain dangerous choices, Erik has to fight his own battle of discovering the truth and winning Charles back.

The Tower and the Hurricane – dreamlittleyo

Summary:(Post-movie AU.) Five years after Shaw's death, Erik's predictions prove painfully accurate. Violence rages on both sides of the human/mutant conflict. In a world ravaged by war, it doesn't really matter who's more at fault. Charles struggles to teach his students a better way, but what choices will he make when peace really isn't an option?

The Attempt – Yahtzee

Summary: Charles knows everything about Erik, knows how obsessive and self-destructive he is, how Erik would do anything, give anything, in his quest for vengeance against Shaw. But he also knows that Erik loves him in ways that aren't exactly platonic.

I'd like to see a completely straight!Charles, out of pure love and care of Erik, initiate a romantic relationship with him. It can be because he wishes to give Erik something positive in his life or because he thinks it might help change Erik's mind about Shaw, the reason is up to author. Also, while Charles finds intimacy with Erik strange and awkward, he does enjoy the new, non-romantic layers that have developed in their relationship.

Apple Seeds – pprfaith

Summary: Charles, Erik, apple seeds and Shakespearean love affairs.

Ashes, Ashes – winterhill

Summary: Post-apocalyptic AU — When the bombs fall, and mutually assured destruction occurs, it turns out that Shaw was right and radiation does enhance mutant powers. Snapshots of the XMFC main ensemble in the time after the bombs: Erik decides to stay, Moira thinks she might be the only human left, Raven is having trouble sleeping, and Charles is losing his mind.

Warnings: nuclear holocaust: death (death in general, not a specific character), cancer, burns, medical procedure, mutant powers gone awry

Five Bullet Points – Sperare

Summary: It was supposed to be Erik locked away in a prison one hundred stories below the ground.

Charles was never supposed to be there with him.

Tequila on a spaceship – faerie_ground

Summary: In 2014, Charles Xavier gets brutally murdered and Erik Lehnsherr spends the rest of his life mourning his death.

In 3014, Captain Lehnsherr and CMO Dr Xavier are colleagues, best friends and maybe a little more besides that aboard the Magneto I.

The Tower and the Hurricane – dreamlittleyo

Summary: Post-movie AU.) Five years after Shaw's death, Erik's predictions prove painfully accurate. Violence rages on both sides of the human/mutant conflict. In a world ravaged by war, it doesn't really matter who's more at fault. Charles struggles to teach his students a better way, but what choices will he make when peace really isn't an option?

Simple and Uncomplicated – Pookaseraph

Summary: Erik and Charles had been fuck buddies for some, but when Charles is in an accident he figured their relationship would be over. Erik's visit to his bedside in the hospital changes his assumptions even as he has trouble believing Erik is sincere.

Lazarus – Clocks 

Summary: Erik is 19 when he says ‘I love you’ for the first time.

It would take five long years before Charles says it back.

Broken Eternity – CractasticDispatches

Sumnmary: It starts with being alone. It shouldn’t, perhaps, but it does because, of course, alone is what no one ever wishes to be.

Shout it Out Loud – dreamlittleyo

Summary: (Movie-Concurrent AU.) When Charles forges a telepathic link between himself and Erik, the two men find themselves bound together by more than just destiny. With the world on the brink of war, Charles and Erik struggle to cope with a psychic connection that may well be permanent.

Call Me By His Name – sinuous_curve

Summary: Charles wakes from the absence of noise.

There is an empty space in his room, beside his bed. Not quiet as in an abandoned room, but utterly, featurelessly blank. Like a box made of unblemished, impenetrable metal and Charles knows before he opens his eyes.

The Longest Word – septicwheelbarrow

Summary: "I'm Charles Xavier," he says, smiling from ear to ear. Then he gestures to his wheelchair. "Terminal spinal osteoblastoma, reaper due to collect in a year."

After some time, the man gestures at himself with a sardonic smile. "Same, one year. Lung." And then, reluctant, as if trying to keep his name to himself, "Erik."

I reject your reality and substitute my own. Doesn't really work that way, both ways.

Copy – chantefable

Summary: Charles wakes up without his memory. His sole caretaker, Erik, claims to be his husband, and tells him he's recovering from a car accident on their honeymoon.

Slowly falling for Erik again, Charles begins to regain his memories. He starts to notice strange things about his body, Erik, and their secluded mansion.

Myosotis – SomeCoolName

Summary: When Charles got back from Cuba, he lost the two things which made him stand: his legs and the love of his life, Erik Lehnsherr. Charles can get used to the wheelchair but he won't ever be able to get pass the loss of Erik.

"I wish I never met him" is something Charles says one night, maybe a bit drunk, absolutely wrecked for sure. It's a bit silly but Charles figures out his only solution is to use his own powers to erase Erik from his mind, progressively.

Except one day Erik comes back to the Xavier mansion to win him back. And even if Charles doesn't want to stop forgetting about him, Erik will do anything he can to convince him otherwise.

Das Haus am See – sareyen

Summary: The Lake House AU:

Erik is an estate planning lawyer who takes some time off to get away from the big city after his marriage fell apart. He lives in a picturesque lake house by Chautauqua Lake for almost two years, before moving back to New York City. This is in 2019.

Charles is a famous but very private author stuck in a creative rut, and moves to his lakeside estate for a short while to try and find a reason to write again. This is in 2017.

By magic or fate, Charles and Erik discover that the letter box at the lake house has the ability to send letters through time, between Charles in 2017 and Erik in 2019. Through letters that transcend the barriers of time, Charles and Erik fall in love. Charles vows to find Erik two years in his future, and Erik promises to wait for him. Two years - just two, meagre years.

But, fate is fickle, and time waits for no one.

Appropriate Boundaries – Yahtzee 

Summary: Charles has been having serious problems with back cramps in the year and a half since he's been in a wheelchair. His doctor prescribes massage therapy. But when Charles meets his masseur, Erik, in some ways they begin to heal each other. So how do you cross the boundaries between professional touch -- and the personal?

Unbound – Cesare, helens78

Summary: Thousands of miles apart, Erik Lehnsherr and Charles Xavier form a soulbond. But when that bond is severed five years later, they have to spend the next ten years trying to rebuild their lives alone.

Do You Love Me – cgf_kat

Summary: Charles and Erik have been married for 25 years, thrown together by a mandatory post-apocalyptic pairing system attempting to increase and strengthen the population. They have seven children. They have never spoken of love, but change is on the horizon.

A Quiet Riot – cloudstroke (aQuired)

Summary: Erik can't stand the fact that his father has brought home a boy less than half his age.

But mostly because he's madly in love with Charles Xavier himself.

#cherik #cherik fic recs #fic recs #angst #asks #earnestly answers

[camels-pen]

how to kidnap yourself for fun a.k.a. ex theatre kid vlad puts more work into kidnapping himself than in his actual job

Summary: Somebody successfully captures/abducts Vlad Masters for ransom money.

(prompt by @phantomphangphucker)

Ao3 Link

~

It’d been a good night. A very good night. Such a good night, in fact, that the team decided to celebrate while Davis and Laya dragged the bag holding Masters to the basement. Despite the audible grunts of pain coming from the bag, Davis was only thinking about how best to set up and send out a ransom message to Masters’ secretary.

Davis sent out Alex and Christy to buy the food while Terry stood watch just outside the basement door. And so long as Davis and Laya didn’t somehow mess up monumentally, they should be home free in a couple days or so, when the threats will increase in intensity and the ransom will most likely be paid. Shouldn’t be too hard a task. Plus, they got the absolute pleasure of roughing up the stupid Mayor.

Davis was starting to wonder though, was he just getting tired or was the mayor actually trying to get out? He unceremoniously dropped the bag on the floor the second his foot met concrete. There was a grunt from the bag at the same time as the impact with the ground before Masters likely passed out cold. Good, can’t have him causing a fuss.

He waited a few moments, but the bag wasn’t moving and hardly showing any indications of life. Oh shoot. It would be a real party pooper if the guy was dead before they bled his bank account dry.

Davis weighed his options, poked the top of the bag with the toe of his boot and when he got no response, bent down to grab the zipper.

“So are you going to finally tell me why you’ve brought me here or is there a third secondary location you must take me to?” The sudden sound of Masters’ voice was as much of a surprise as anything—he thought for sure the man would be out cold by now—but rather, where it came from.

Davis whirled on the spot and made eye contact with the man who, hours ago, had been stuffed in the duffle bag currently unmoving at his feet. For a moment, all they did was stare at each other, Davis’ mind working a mile a minute to try and understand what kind of escape artist would allow themself to be kidnapped without showing off their skills. Simultaneously, he wanted to learn the secret of how Masters’ did it. He was truly at a loss, both were incredibly important and invaluable pieces of information and he and Laya would definitely be on the same page about this.

The shifting body under him caused him to jump and stumble away from it. He glanced at Masters and back at the bag. If… if Masters’ was out here, who was in—?

A hand burst forth, making a hole in the zipper lining and Laya emerged, haggard and covered in bruises.

“Davis, I swear to fricking—!”

“It wasn’t me! We both stuck him in the bag, remember?! You called him a stuck up capitalist and he tried kicking you through the fabric.”

Laya groaned. “Fine, whatever, just… get me out of this bag.” Davis gave a quick agreement before tearing a larger hole in the bag, allowing Laya to pull herself out.

Once freed, Laya carried their mom’s old rocking chair from the corner of the room and placed it in the centre. She gestured to the chair, her voice still steady, though now with an undercurrent of frustration. “Sit down or I make you sit down.”

Masters held up his hands and sat down with no fuss. Davis and Laya wasted no time, pulling out large rolls of duct tape and roughly restraining him to the chair. It wobbled a bit as they worked, but it was manageable. Eventually, they were good to go and Laya pulled out a template for a good ransom note from her pocket for them to fill out.

The rocking chair squeaked at the slightest movement and the startling groan that no piece of functioning furniture should ever make was immediately forgotten when they turned to glance at the noise and noticed their captive, unbothered and free of all restraints. Vlad Masters was sitting perfectly relaxed, legs crossed one over another as he lightly pushed the chair back and forth and read through a book open on his lap.

Without looking up, he said, “You’ll catch flies that way, you know.”

Davis snapped his jaw shut while Laya spluttered. “How—?! We just restrained you!”

Masters turned the page. “Hmm, no, you restrained your friend.”

Both of them glanced around the room, trying to find out what nonsense the man was spouting until Davis finally realized he was sitting down at his desk, restrained by duct tape. “What the frick is this poop! Why am I restrained?!” he yelled. “Laya!”

Laya turned to him and laughed a bit hysterically. “I may need glasses, but my eyesight is not that bad.”

“Must you both be so loud? I’m trying to read here.”

“You’re our captive!” Davis said as Laya started cutting the tape from his arms.

“That’s no excuse to be rude.” Vlad sighed and looked up. His gaze clearly showed his boredom. “Perhaps the young lady should rest for now and avoid another mixup? Though I would prefer you to be more gentle to me than she was to you.”

Davis was not gentler with the dumb rich fogey, the man’s suit was just of more value than he first thought and he didn’t want to ruin it too much if he decided to sell it later before they traded Masters for the ransom money.

The man could just barely use the tips of his fingers to flip the pages of his book—that he had somehow managed to keep open to the correct page in his lap the whole time—and though the turning pages were a repetitive and practically non-existent source of background noise, Davis struggled to focus while Masters read whatever money laundering or payroll fraud book he was reading.

---

It was hours later when he finally cracked.

The sound of page flipping being interrupted by a much louder crunching behind him made Davis jump to his feet. “Alright that’s it.” He whirled on Masters, a scowl on his face as he scanned the man’s impeccable suit and noticeably food-free hands. “Where is it?”

“Where is what?”

“It. The crackers you’re munching on.”

“My hands are tied.”

“Your—” Davis blinked. He glanced down at the expensive black sleeves stuck to the arms of the chair. “They’re still taped. How are they still taped?”

Slowly and with deliberate articulation, Masters said, “You took a roll of duct tape—”

“Don’t get smart with me.” Davis gave him a cold stare. “Just because you’ve got a few crackers in your pockets doesn’t mean anything in the long run.”

“I can guarantee you, I do not have any crackers with me.” Davis ignored him and pat him down, even checking the inside pockets of his suit jacket just in case.

“Now do you believe me?” Unfortunately, yes. If he couldn’t feel or hear the crackers during his rough search then there likely weren’t any, or, at least, there were no more crackers left.

Davis found himself a little disappointed. The team was running late and he would love some snacks right now. He sighed internally before heading back to his desk without another word.

Then the smell of something truly foul assaulted his nose and practically filled the room within seconds of him noticing it. Davis immediately pulled up his shirt collar to cover his nose and mouth. He let out a rare curse as he just barely avoided gagging.

“Is something wrong?”

Davis turned around, a frustrated order to shut up on the tip of his tongue when he finally took in what Masters’ was holding.

“Is that a charcuterie board?!” Even as he asked, he knew it was, indeed, a charcuterie board filled with mouth watering meats, crackers, and—he wrinkled his nose—cheeses.

Masters used a small elegantly carved butter knife to spread some brie on a cracker before laying a thin slice of prosciutto on it. He took his time eating the cracker, going unbearably slowly to prolong Davis’ suffering no doubt.

Cruel and unusual punishment is what it was. People like Davis were always getting unfairly punished like that and he never did understand why. They were just ordinary, everyday people trying to get by to pay the bills, just like anyone else.

Though he supposed he should be grateful that Masters was being so composed about all this; his old roommate was a lot less accepting about Davis’ occupational choices.

He scoffed. Honestly, you kidnap a guy one time and suddenly they’re ‘afraid of you’ and ‘not willing to be your roommate anymore’ and ‘put a restraining order on you’. Ridiculous. He showed his friend the utmost respect in kidnapping him in a way that was completely safe and with plenty of food and entertainment.

And Masters was definitely not a friend, so.

He reached a hand out and swiped half of the meat and crackers from the board and into his arms before turning on his heel back to his workstation. Not a single protest, which was expected; even the calm and composed ones feared for their lives. Masters wouldn’t dare refuse him if he wanted to stay unharmed.

Though, when he thought about it, Davis never really understood what was so scary about a kidnapping; he’d love to be whisked away from his day-to-day life to spend time on a trip with a clever stranger. The challenges they’d face as they evaded the law at every turn, the bonds they’d forge on their journey as they found a new way of living with an undercurrent of constantly watching each other’s backs and, at times, learning to survive off the land. It all seemed so exciting and dramatic and fun.

Ugh, now he’s fantasizing about a wedding in Vegas instead of drafting the ransom. Frick.

A thump resounded upstairs and Davis jumped. He scrambled for his walkie talkie, but when he called through the line, Terry reported an all clear.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Masters frowning. He grinned. “Is the magnitude of your situation finally sinking in?”

Masters rolled his eyes. “No, I simply forgot to leave out some food for my cats.” His eyes trailed toward a spot on the ground beside the desk Davis was using to draft the ransom note. His frown deepened into a full-on grimace. Curious, Davis followed his line of sight though nothing stood out to him. The man was probably just realizing that he wasn’t guaranteed to get out of this unharmed. After all, each one of them had a bone to pick with him. Whether for the inconvenient by-laws he’d implemented since taking up office or for his union busting policies in his company.

“Sure, whatever you say.” He thought he heard someone grumbling about dramatic fruit loops, but ultimately ignored it and turned back to his work.

The room was silent after that, Masters having decided to periodically glare at different points on the walls, ceiling, and floor. Although, he did make a few shooing noises as if a particularly stubborn pest was trying to annoy him into returning to the office of his own volition. Well, jokes on the pest, Vlad wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Especially not until after he finished—

Davis had long finished the draft for the note and was just waiting on Laya to get her lazy ass out of bed to proofread it for him before they could send it to Masters’ secretary.

He’s still a little pissed that she left to nap less than ten minutes after getting out of that bag and left watch duty for him to handle alone, but even that couldn’t dampen Davis’ mood. He had come so far in his kidnapping career. While he wasn’t able to keep Masters properly restrained, and the man had somehow snuck an entire charcuterie board with smelly cheeses past him, he was able to keep him from leaving the basement. His large physique and classic dark kidnapper clothing had likely rattled Masters enough to prevent him from even attempting an escape attempt.

The fact that Masters seemed to be able to escape just about everything, yet Davis and his team were able to catch him off guard at that expensive coffee shop earlier today was no small feat. They should earn some kind of medal or ceremony for that accomplishment. Maybe celebrate every few months with a repeat kidnapping. Masters would certainly cooperate and they would all enjoy the challenge of capturing him again, now that they knew it was a challenge.

Regardless, they were no longer novice kidnappers; they were in the big leagues now and kidnapping and ransoming an escape artist mayor, while upping their status in the wider kidnapper community, will also help with boosting their finances. They’d be able to increase their budgets for future gigs and get more streamlined equipment. Hell, they could make a spectacle of it and it might become a tradition in town. They could be trend setters!

Now the only thing left to kick start their rise to kidnapper fame and fortune was a measly bit of editing and then they would be raking in the cash in no time!

He huffed a frustrated breath. Damn Laya. Why did she have to take such long naps? And why couldn’t she just keep a normal sleep schedule like the rest of them?

“You wouldn’t happen to have a restroom would you?” Davis pointed to the empty bucket placed half a metre ahead of the rocking chair. Though he couldn’t see his face with his focus on the paper in front of him, Davis could hear the disgust in Masters’ voice as he said, “You expect me to relieve myself in… that?”

“That’s the idea.”

“But that’s so… unsanitary.”

“Well then, I guess you’re holding it until your secretary gets the ransom note and agrees to buy you back.”

“You mean the ransom note that has currently caught fire?” Davis furrowed his brows, but when he turned back he saw that the bottom edge of the draft paper was currently on fire.

“Sugar cookies!” He jumped from his seat and dropped it onto the ground before stomping on it repeatedly to snuff out the flame.

Masters chuckled. “Well, you’re quite efficient aren’t you?”

Davis ignored him, mourning his hard work before pushing the feeling away and pulling a new template paper from his pocket, resolving to laminate this copy as soon as he finished writing it.

He absent-mindedly traced a small footprint on the wall while trying to remember his exact wording in the previous note. A fluffy tail and comforting furry weight pressed against his legs, pulling him from his thoughts. Davis leaned down to pet Maddie without thinking. A few hairs caught in his ministrations and he maneuvered to swiftly pick up his precious girl to place her in his lap and better comb through her fur. He felt her press up into his hand and hummed, content to relax in his chair. Laya could come down and write the darn note herself, Davis had already done his part for the night and his attention was needed elsewhere.

He paused for a moment. It was strange that he couldn’t hear Maddie purring—usually she would be loud enough to drown out the sounds of the classical music he liked to put on while relaxing by the fireplace—but then again, Davis had been having some troubles with his hearing lately. Maybe he should see a doctor about that.

Davis also couldn’t shake the growing feeling that there was something… wrong. Vaguely, he could feel in the back of his head that he was missing something vital. Something essential to every kidnapping.

Or maybe he’s missing something essential to himself?

Okay, that was a bit too philosophical for—he checked his phone—nearly three in the morning. Maybe Davis should just call it a night.

With a loud yawn, he gathered up all his papers and turned back to the stairs leading out of the basement when he caught sight of Masters, who had returned to reading that book from earlier. He never did get a look at the title. Though he was curious, it was quite late. It would be best to leave further questions for the morning.

“Will you be staying down here if I leave?” he felt his mouth say, though he didn’t remember telling it to do that. He would feel more concerned if it wasn’t nearly three a.m.

Masters sighed. “No, I suppose not,” he said, as if he was hoping to stay in this dingy basement rather than return to his luxurious mansion. Davis would be more curious if it wasn’t nearly three a.m.

“A pity.”

“Truly a pity.”

Vlad closed his book and practically floated off of the rocking chair, setting the paperback on the desk before ascending the stairs at a leisurely pace. The cover clearly displayed a smiling and well dressed man with pictures of rope, a burlap sack, and duct tape floating around him. The title clearly stated in big bold text:

“How to Kidnap Yourself for Distinguished Gentlemen: Manipulating Public Sympathy while Relaxing in your Island Home.”

There was a single review on the bottom left corner that came from a small no-name business review site and boasted a success rate of 100% as well as baffled friends and coworkers alike coming together to join in the fun.

Davis huffed a laugh. “I knew I never should have believed that 100% success rate.”

And then, like a fog lifting, Dav- Harold blinked and looked around his sister’s basement. His eyes found the book on the desk and he groaned audibly, slapping a hand to his forehead. “Are you fucking serious, Audrey? Again?”

---

“So.”

“So.”

Danny crossed his arms and tapped his foot impatiently. “Are you going to apologize to Ms. Negash for nearly giving her a heart attack?”

Vlad scoffed. “As far as I’m concerned, that woman needs a little spice in her life. If anything, I did her a favour.”

Danny scowled.

“If it makes you feel any better, I did send a duplicate to feed her cats and mine before they could get too upset that their owners were running late.”

“No, Vlad, that doesn’t make me feel better.” Danny paused. “Okay that makes me feel a little better, but I’m still going to beat you up if you don’t apologize and tell her this was all you.”

Vlad raised an eyebrow. “And if I don’t?”

Danny smirked. “Then I get to tell her. And you know how I like to take creative liberties.”

Insufferable teenager. “Fine. I’ll tell her I was avoiding an ex-partner coming to town or something.” He gave a dismissive wave. “Now, leave before I call security.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Danny rolled his eyes and turned back to phase through the window. Just before he left, he turned and asked, “Hey, by the way, why was that guy spaced out towards the end there? I thought you said you paid a lot of money for them.”

“Actually, I said I spent a lot of time and money arranging this setup. I never said I paid anyone for it.”

“So what, these were volunteer actors?”

“Mmm, no. They were some ex-mayoral staff overshadowed by a few duplicates of mine.” Vlad turned on his computer and sighed at the backlog of emails he needed to sort through. “As for your other question, Maddie, the larger one, wanted some pets before she ate so the duplicate on cat feeding duty got a bit too content and accidentally started sharing his sense of touch with the rest of them, including myself.” He frowned. “It really ruined the immersion.”

“You were reclining in a rocking chair with a fucking charcuterie board.” Danny opened his mouth as if to say more, but held back. Shaking his head, he turned back to the window before grumbling, “Ancients, I’ll never understand you theatre kids.”

He was gone before Vlad could voice his protests.

#nemo the writing ho #phic phight 2022 #phic phight #danny phantom #vlad masters #ocs #danny fenton

[nowandajenn]

Blue Christmas- Eight

Pairing: Chris Evans/OC Kelly

Summary: After almost three years of marriage, everyone would tell you that Chris and his wife Kelly are the most stable, solid couple they know. But behind closed doors, things are tense as they keep trying for a baby, to no avail. When a secret threatens to shake their solid marriage to it’s core, will they be able to pick up the pieces?

I do not consent to have my content, whether it be this story or anything else of my creation, posted by a third party on any other platform other than right here without my permission. This blog is 18+ and is not intended for minors. Your media consumption is your own responsibility. Heed the warnings.

Warnings: mentions of cheating, smut, language, angst, mentions of miscarriage. If any of this is triggering to you, do not read. 

A/N: This is going to be very dialogue heavy, and will have flashbacks of the night that Chris cheated and everything that happened. Flashbacks will be in italics. Just a warning, this chapter is a BEAST. There’s a lot to unpack, and it’s going to be super emotional. 

December 29

Chris watches from his seat in the comfortable leather recliner in our living room as I twist my wedding and engagement rings around on my finger. It’s a nervous little habit that I do without even really realizing it or thinking about it. A million thoughts cross his mind as he sits silently, waiting for me to say something. 

After taking a few deep breaths to try and steel myself for the conversation that I KNOW that Chris and I need to have, I finally look up from the floor and at him. 

“Do you want a divorce?” Okay, the thousand different times I pictured this conversation happening in my head, that was definitely NOT one of the ways. Apparently my mouth and brain aren’t communicating very well today. 

Chris looks up at me, his expression aghast. 

“Wha-.......” he tries to speak, but is too stunned to even form the words. 

“Is that why you cheated? You don’t want to be with me anymore, so you went somewhere else for whatever is it that you weren’t getting from me?”

“No! Jesus Christ, no! I love you. I love you so much that it hurts. I can’t imagine my life without you. No, I don’t want a divorce.” he tells me. 

“Okay, if that’s not it, then you have to help me out here. Because I don’t understand what possible reason you could have for cheating. It had to be something that I did. Or something I didn’t do. I need you to tell me what happened. Because until I have all the facts and I understand what the hell happened, we can’t move forward.” 

He sits forward in the chair and sighs. 

“What do you want me to tell you?” 

“I want you to tell me what happened that night after we FaceTimed. I want to know what happened between then and the next morning.” I tell him. 

“You KNOW what happened.” he says miserably. 

I shake my head. “No, I know the end result. I want you to walk me through every single thing that happened that night. Everything you were thinking, everything you did.”

“Why? What good is that going to do? What’s the goddamn point? How is me telling you everything that happened going to help ANYTHING? All it’s going to do is hurt you more, and I can’t do that. I won’t.”

“The point is, if we have even the smallest hope of getting through this intact, with our MARRIAGE intact, I need to understand this. I need to know. I need to know, because when I go to sleep at night, all I can see in my head is all the things that I imagine happened that night. And I need to know if what actually happened is better or worse than what I can imagine happened. I have a right, as your wife, to know what you did.” 

Chris looks up, silently pleading with you to not make him do this, but he knows that you’re right. You do deserve to know, even if it’s going to devastate you. 

“After we got off the phone, I had to go right back into interviews and there was two more photo calls we had to do, so by the time we got done it was about 7:30 that night. I was distracted the whole time. I hated that we fought, and I felt like an asshole, and I just wanted to call you back and apologize, but I didn’t have time. Plus, I figured that we both probably needed a little bit of time to cool down. I told myself that I was going to call you that night before I went to bed so we could talk more and I could apologize to you. We all got out of there, and Cate and Robert and the rest of them wanted to go to dinner, so we came back to the hotel, changed, and then went out to eat.” Chris tells me. 

“What time did you get back from dinner?” 

“Around 10, I think. It couldn’t have been much later than that. Everyone else was talking about going out and finding a bar or a club to go to, but I just wanted to come back to the hotel and relax. I wasn’t in the mood to be around a lot of people.” 

I pull my feet up on the couch and tuck them under me. 

“Okay, so you got back to the hotel, and then what did you do?” 

For as tired as he was, Chris couldn’t relax. He tried taking a hot shower, laying in bed watching TV, browsing social media, and flipping through pictures on his phone. Finally, after about 45 minutes and getting more and more keyed up and anxious, he decides to go down to the hotel bar. 

When he walks in, the place is empty except for an older couple seated down at the end and the bartender. Chris slides himself onto one of the stools and the bartender makes her way over to him. 

“Thank God. A friendly face.” she says with a smile. 

Chris glances down the bar at the couple. “They seem pretty friendly.” he remarks. 

“Yeah, but they’ve been here for an hour and they’re literally babying their drinks, and aren’t much for conversation that doesn’t involve each other. I’m bored out of my mind.” 

She stick her hand out. “I’m Jo.”

Chris reaches across the bar and shakes her hand with his own. “Chris. Nice to meet you.”

“So, Chris, what’s your poison?”

“What was her name?” I ask him. He just referred to her as “the bartender” and “she”. 

He runs his hand down his face and over his beard. 

“I don’t......I honestly can’t remember. It was one of those boys names for a girl. You know.....Alex or Max or James.......I don’t......I can’t remember.” 

I cover my face with my hands and take a deep breath. I want to scream already, and he’s not even deep into the story. I shake my head slightly. 

“You slept with this girl, and you don’t even remember her NAME.” I say softly. 

Chris hangs his head. 

“Keep going.” 

She pours him another measure of whiskey, along with a shot for herself. They clink glasses and swallow the amber liquid, letting it burn it’s way down. 

“So what did you and your wife fight about?” she asks him. 

Chris sighs. 

“It’s......it’s complicated.”

“Hey, I’m a bartender, which means that I’m a really great listener. It’s practically a job requirement. You might feel better if you talk about it.” 

“We’re trying to have a baby.”

“Soo....what’s the problem. Trying is the fun part!” 

“We’ve been trying for a year and a half almost, and nothing’s happening. She’s perfect; there’s absolutely nothing wrong with her that would keep her from getting pregnant, but it’s just not happening. And we both want a baby so bad, and the look on her face when......it fucking kills me.” 

He knows that he shouldn’t be telling a complete stranger all of this, especially considering who he is, but the alcohol has loosened his tongue, and if he doesn’t spill his guts to someone, he’s going to explode. 

Jo puts a soft, warm hand over his. 

“I’m sorry, That has to be tough. For both of you.” she says softly. 

“I mean, I guess I never thought that it would take actual work, you know? I assumed that ‘hey, if we just keep having sex, eventually she’s going to get pregnant’ and it would be easy. She’s getting scared and fed up and talking about adoption and fertility doctors, and I hate seeing her so stressed out and upset, and I kind of just.....I said some things and made it worse and I feel like a complete fucking jackass.” 

“What if you guys can’t have kids?” 

“As much as I want to have kids with her, I don’t need them to be happy. As long as I have Kelly in my life, I’ll be perfectly happy. Do I want to be a dad? Yeah, absolutely. But there are so many kids out there that need good homes, so there are other options, but I don’t think that we’re there yet, you know?”

I get up and storm out of the room with Chris right on my heels. 

“Kelly, wait, please.....”

He touches my arm and I spin around to face him, and the look in my eyes makes him fall back a step. 

I’m so pissed off and hurt right now I could spit nails. 

“You......you told her.....EVERYTHING. You told her.....EVERYTHING. EVERYTHING, Chris! Do you even......do you even fucking understand what you did? Like.....” 

I squat down close to the floor and put my head between my knees. My heart is pounding and I’m so worked up that I’m afraid I’m going to pass out if I don’t calm down. And I’m not going anywhere or doing anything until I get the whole damn story. 

“Look, I know-” 

I look up at him incredulously. 

“No! No, you don’t know! You don’t know shit! You fucking betrayed me, in every single sense of the word. You didn’t just fuck her, you told her, a complete stranger, about me. About us trying to have a baby. You told her about things that you never even fucking bothered to tell me! Do you realize that she could go to the press? She could go and spill all of these juicy little secrets that you spilled to her over shots of Jack and have herself a nice little pay day.”

“Kelly, you wanted to know what happened that night, so I’m telling you what happened, despite everything inside of me screaming at me not to. I’m not going to lie to you or keep things from you. You wanted to know everything.” Chris says. 

I squeeze my eyes shut and grit my teeth so hard that my jaw hurts. 

“I can’t look at you right now. I need a break.” I tell him, grabbing my jacket. I grab Dodger’s leash off the peg in the hallway and call for him. 

Dodger trots over, tongue lolling out of his mouth, happy to be going on a walk. 

“I’ll be back in a while.” 

Forty five minutes later, I’m in the utility room stripping off my wet clothes after getting Dodger dry and wiping off his paws. 

Chris stops pacing the kitchen when he sees me walking through the house in my bra and underwear. 

“What happened to your clothes?” he asks. 

“Dodger saw a squirrel and got excited and kind of dragged me through a snow bank.” I sigh. I throw my clothes in the dryer and make my way into our room to get changed. 

“Dodge, come on.....” Chris admonishes. Dodger just jumps up on the bed and curls up. 

I throw on a pair of gray sweatpants and a blue Patriots hoodie that’s hung over the back of the chair in our room and sit down on the side of the bed. 

“I want to know the rest.” I tell Chris. 

He sits down heavily on the end of the bed. 

“No, you don’t.” 

I swallow thickly. “You’re right. I don’t. But it doesn’t matter, because you’re going to tell me anyway.” 

Hours pass with Jo and Chris laughing and talking and flirting back and forth, until it’s 1am and the bar closes for the night. 

“Thanks for sticking around and hanging out tonight. I think I would have died of sheer boredom if you hadn’t.” Jo laughs softly. She offered to walk him back to his room as he was pretty well drunk and a little unsteady on his feet. 

“It was no problem. I didn’t really want to be alone tonight to be honest. I used to do really well on my own. I was used to it, and then......I wasn’t alone.” Chris tells her. 

Once they reach his room, they linger outside for a few minutes, both of them not really wanting the night to end. Jo steps closer to him, knowing exactly what she wants and completely unashamed about it. 

“You should kiss me.” she says softly, looking up at him with big doe eyes. She places her hands on his chest and instead of immediately backing away like he should have, he leans into her touch. 

Chris closes his eyes as he feels his mouth go dry and a strange fluttery feeling in his stomach. He hasn’t really felt this way since....

He opens his eyes and breathes out deeply. “I can’t. I’m married. I’m married and I’m insanely in love with my wife.” 

“So? You should kiss me anyway. I can tell you want to. You’ve been flirting with me all night.” she says, taking a step closer. “I won’t tell anyone. I promise. You need a way to release all this tension you’ve got, and I’m more than willing to help you out anyway I can.” 

Before his brain can scream at him to stop, he’s wrapping his arms around her and covering her mouth with his, kissing her soundly. It’s a battle of teeth and tongues, both of them trying to take control from the other. Without breaking apart, Chris manages to get his key card out of his pocket and gets the door open, pushing both of them through it and slamming it behind them. 

“This never goes beyond this room. We never talk about this ever again.” Chris gasps, pulling away from her just long enough to get the words out. 

“Absolutely.” she agrees. 

Clothes are torn off and tossed to the floor in a frenzy, and as soon as Chris drops his pants and boxers, Jo sinks to her knees and takes him in her mouth, swallowing him almost all the way down. 

“Oh, fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Christ, yes, just like that.” he moans out. 

He brings his right hand to her hair, holding it in a makeshift ponytail while his left hand goes to her shoulder. 

She almost makes him lose his mind with the things she can do with her tongue, and within minutes, he’s fucking her face roughly as spit runs down her chin and tears are springing to her eyes from the assault on her throat, but she loves it. She has the man she’s fantasized about for years shoving his cock down her throat, and she’s never been more turned on in her life. She smirks to herself as she wonders if his wife ever sucks him off like THIS. 

When he can’t stand it anymore, Chris pulls her off his dick and takes a few deep breaths. 

“I need a condom.” 

“Right. I have one in my purse.” she tells him as she reaches for her bag and finds it and hands it to him. 

“Get on the bed. On your hands and knees.” he says roughly. While her mouth was wrapped around him, he was mesmerized and couldn’t look away, but now he finds that he doesn’t even want to look at her face. He rolls the condom over his cock, giving it a few strokes before sinking into her from behind.

Tears stream down my face as I process all of what Chris just told me, and I can’t even BREATHE with how devastated I feel. It’s like a hole just got punched through my chest. I try and take a breath in, but it turns into a strangled sob and I drop my head into my hands and just let it out. 

Chris swallows thickly, wiping away his own tears as he watches me fall apart  across from him, wishing that he could do something.....ANYTHING to take all the pain away. To go back and undo everything that he did so you wouldn’t hurt. All he feels is deep, unrelenting shame and he knows in his gut that if you asked for a divorce after hearing all of his sins laid bare, he wouldn’t be surprised or even have the right to be devastated. He made his bed. 

I feel bile rising in my throat, and I stumble to my feet and race to the downstairs bathroom, falling to my knees and vomiting painfully as the image of my husband kissing this woman and fucking her run through my head. I barely notice Chris come into the bathroom until I feel him pulling my hair back and securing it with a hair tie, and rubbing my back softly. I can’t even find the breath or the energy to tell him to get away from me and drop dead. 

I’m so damn tired. Like, I don’t think I’ve ever felt this level of physical and mental exhaustion before. I sink back into the pillows a little more, and look over at Chris. Neither one of us have said a word since he picked me up off the bathroom floor and stood there with his arm around my waist as I brushed my teeth. That was 45 minutes ago. 

“It was just sex?” I ask. 

He exhales. “It was just sex. It was just once.”

I look back up at the ceiling and try and make sense of everything. 

“I don’t understand. I don’t understand any of it. I don’t understand why you would sleep with another woman.”

“I-I don’t know. I was lonely because we were fighting, and I missed you so goddamn much, and I was afraid of what was happening to us with all of the stress and I just......I got drunk, and I did a horrible thing. I did a horrible thing, and I wish that I could take it back. I wish I could take it back so bad it hurts. But I can’t. And I have to live with that for the rest of my life.” Chris says. 

I lift my eyes to meet his. “You were lonely? That’s your excuse? You were lonely, and you were upset. So you stuck your dick in another woman.” 

I stand at the kitchen sink and drain a glass of water in record time, and refill it. Turns out crying all day and then puking can kind of dehydrate you. I can sense Chris behind me, even though he doesn’t say anything. 

“Two years ago, a couple of weeks after you left for Africa to start shooting the movie, I found out I was pregnant. We hadn’t even officially started trying yet, so it came as a pretty big surprise. But I was so happy, and I couldn’t wait to tell you. I didn’t want to tell you over the phone, especially when you were so far away, so I was going to surprise you when you came home. I had it all planned out. I practiced telling you standing in front of the bathroom mirror, just so I could see the stupid happy look on my face.”

I feel tears prick my eyes, and I swallow down the sob that I feel threatening to come out. I turn towards Chris, and the look on his face is heartbreaking. 

“What?” he breathes out. 

“I was at a job.....I was shooting a birthday party for a little girl who was turning one. All I could think about was that that was going to be us eventually, and it made me so happy. Everything was fine, but then I started having horrible pain in my stomach. It got so bad that I collapsed, and the parents called 911 when they realized that I was bleeding. They did an ultrasound at the hospital, but they couldn’t find the baby’s heartbeat. I had already miscarried. You don’t know anything about feeling lonely until you’re by yourself laying on a table with your feet in stirrups while a doctor cleans out your uterus.”

Chris is sunk down in one of the kitchen chairs with his hand over his mouth and tears running down his face. This is the first time he’s hearing any of this. 

“Why didn’t-” his voice cracks, and he takes a minute and clears his throat before he tries again. “Why the hell didn’t you call me? Why didn’t you tell me? I would have come home!”

“Chris, you were 8,000 miles away from home. There wasn’t anything you could do. It was too late. They had to do the procedure as soon as possible. I didn’t.....I hadn’t told anyone else that I was pregnant. And I didn’t want to call your mom or sisters because I didn’t want them to find out. I knew if they found out they would call you, and you would be devastated. And I couldn’t do that to you when you were so far away. I’m sorry that I didn’t tell you. I was trying to protect you.”

The sound of his fist slamming against the heavy oak table makes me jump. 

“And what about over the last two years? Huh? Don’t you think that I had a right to know? Don’t you think I had the right as your husband, to be there with you? To comfort you? To mourn with you? To even have a fucking clue about what happened?” 

I take a deep breath. 

“You did.  You should have been there. You should have been there with me to hold my hand and cry with me and tell me that it was going to be okay, even though it was a lie. But you weren’t. You were doing your job. I don’t know if you realize it, but when you leave for work or press or whatever it is that you have to leave me for, you’re not the only one who’s lonely. You’re not the only one who has to deal with the silence. But you don’t see me going out and fucking someone else.”

Tears start to swim in my eyes again, and I suddenly feel like if I don’t get out of the house right now, I’m going to suffocate. I’ve been in here with Chris literally all day while we picked apart his affair, and I’m exhausted. I’m hurt and emotional and talking about the baby that we lost just made everything worse.

“I’m gonna go. I just.....I can’t handle anything else today. I know you’re probably really pissed off at me right now, and honestly, the feeling is mutual. Things are already about as bad as they can be, so I’m gonna leave before we have a chance to make it worse.”

The last thing I see before I walk out the door is Chris sitting at the table with his head in his hands, sobbing while Dodger sits on the floor next to him, whining in distress.  

 The Usual Suspects: @averyrogers83 @wordywarriorwrites @imanuglywombat @joannaliceevans-fanficblog @hlkwrites @reminiscingrogers @mom—nicole @jtargaryen18 @alexakeyloveloki @kelbabyblue @sarahp879 @moonlessnight14 @mojean13 @mrskokitztelford @artisticrogers1972 @southerngracela @star-spangled-man-with-a-plan @mybesttobobcratchit @gracethegeek9902 @mdemontespan1667 @marvelfansworld @capslut2014 @dispatchvampire @jamielea81 @jamesbarnesappreciationsociety​ @nerdy-bookworm-1998​ @southerngracela​ @what-is-your-plan-today @letsdisneythings​ @theladybiers @lexeeehhh @sweater-daddiesdumbdork​ @autumnrose40 @donutloverxo​ @harrysthiccthighss​ @jessaywahh-blog​@smediumsmeatbae @before-we-get-started​ @lizette50 @littlegasps @rageshots @what-is-your-backupplan-today @clairebubbles @patzammit @sweet--catrastophe @pandaxnienke @redhairedfeistynerd @hails270105 @syms-things-5 @chezdricks @denisemarieangelina @christ0pher-evans @supersquirrel1996 @thumbeliina​

#blue christmas #chris evans #chris evans x wife #chris evans x kelly evans #rpf #cheating #angst #miscarriage #infertility #back to that night

[collecting-stories]

Book Club - 90s!Luke Patterson

Summary: Reggie books a gig at a suburban mom’s book club and Luke takes full advantage of the situation to flirt with you. 

A/N: I’m literally writing two other Luke fics right now 😭😭

Julie and the Phantoms Masterlist

✰ ✰ ✰ ✰ ✰

The third Thursday of every month belonged to your mother. It was her day, when she demanded not to be bothered, when she spent hours out of the house socializing with the women’s group that she belonged to. And, out of all those Thursdays, there were always the very special few when it wasn’t her leaving the house but everyone else. The group rotated their meeting time, everyone for a blue moon meeting at your house, meaning, of course that you were expected to stay out. Staying out was not a difficult thing to do, in fact you relished the opportunity to spend a few more hours with your friends. 

It was one of those Thursdays, when all the ladies that your mother loved to lunch with were spending the afternoon at your house and you were making yourself scarce, that arguably the weirdest but maybe best thing happened. Your mom had told you before you left for school that morning that she expected you to stay out, and you would have, if you had remembered your wallet. But you’d left it in your room, on the edge of the vanity, and you didn’t want to be the one owing money when your friends went to lunch. A quick stop home should’ve been easy, the stairs were right off the kitchen and the side door was right there, giving you the opportunity to shoot upstairs and grab your wallet without her being the wiser to it. 

The whole thing would’ve gone off without a hitch except that when you walked through the side door and into the kitchen you came face to face with four boys from your school. You recognized them more for the fact that you didn’t hang out in the same circle; most of your friends held a certain level of contempt for the four guys that made up Sunset Curve. You didn’t necessarily dislike any of them, you didn’t necessarily even know them, though you would be lying if you said that the lead singer, who occasionally sat in front of you in math, was seriously making you rethink a deep dive into all this rock music. Luke, Reggie, Alex, and Bobby were standing in your kitchen. They were the Green Day/Nirvana worshipping, head banging rockers that ditched school regularly and got into worlds of trouble and they were standing in your kitchen.  

Bobby was the only one who looked up from snacking on leftover hors d’oeurves, saying your name in surprise as the other three all stopped to look at you too. Alex gave an awkward little wave as he set down the small sandwich he was eating.  

“Uh...what are you guys doing in my house,” you asked, looking between the four of them.  

“Your mom tapped us to perform for her ladies club.” Luke explained, dropping his food on the plate and wiping his hands against his black pants.  

Your mom had invited these four to sing for her conservative ladies’ group? You tried not to but you couldn’t help the smile that crossed your face when you thought about it. Whatever your friends said about the guys, you weren’t ashamed to say you had taken one of the free demos that Reggie handed out and had been listening to it on repeat for a while now. “My mom wanted you guys to play a gig for her and her friends?” You clarified.

“Until we started playing,” Reggie replied, and you couldn’t help laughing.

“I bet...you guys aren’t exactly...suburban mom rock.” You joked, “though I totally would’ve loved to see their faces when you guys started singing.”  

The grin on Luke’s face was unmistakable though you missed it as you nabbed one of the sandwiches on the plate near Alex. It was probably some really stupid cliche, him liking one of the popular girls. Cute, cheerleader, future prom queen. You hung out with people who listened to Britney Spears and Spice Girls, any knowledge of the rock scene they might’ve actually had was only for the sake of making dumb jabs at him or his friends. Still, Luke had a massive crush on you and he wasn’t so embarrassed to admit it. Bobby joked that he wanted to “bring you over to the dark side” and maybe that sounded cynical but he thought he wouldn’t mind seeing you look a little less perfectly put together if it had something to do with him. Hearing you mention his music almost had him doing a back flip from excitement.  

“So you’ve listened to our music?” Luke asked, moving closer to you, leaning on the counter beside you. Behind him, Alex rolled his eyes.

“Reggie gave out demos like...last month.” You shrugged, trying to play it off. You’d been excited to listen to their music, see if it was any good and had discovered that you actually loved it. They were talented guys and you felt surprisingly connected to the songs. “I might’ve listened.”

“I did!” Reggie piped up, “I gave demos to all the-” he stopped, mouthing instead, as if you wouldn’t understand him when he said ‘all the cute girls’.  

“I hate to ask but...don’t you think like, actual clubs would be better places to promote your music? I don’t think the middle-aged moms are really a target audience, unless you’re into that kind of thing?” You said, peering down the hallway when you heard the familiar squeak of a floorboard. If the boys were still here than there was no doubt in your mind that your mom had told them to stay for some reason or another.  

“You gotta start somewhere.” Luke replied, unfazed by the hint of judgement in your voice.  

“My living room?” You asked, jokingly.  

He smiled, “actually, we’re playing a club on the strip tomorrow night, we could, maybe, get you on the guest list?”  

“We’re opening for someone else,” Bobby cut in, bringing Luke back down to reality, “I’m pretty sure no one’s ever even heard of the band we’re opening for.”  

Luke glared at Bobby, sticking his finger in his mouth and then jabbing it into Bobby’s ear, a smile of success immediately lighting up his features when Bobby recoiled in disgust. “So what’d ya say?” Luke asked.  

“I mean, I guess technically every band deserves girls screaming for them, so sure…I’ll go.” You agreed, eyes on Luke the entire time.  

The last concert you had been to wasn’t even for you, your mom had dragged you to a Beach Boys concert up in San Francisco for her birthday weekend when your father refused to indulge her so-called ‘terrible taste in music’. “There are just some things we will never agree on and music is one of them.” He had insisted back then. It was the same thing you felt like telling your friends when you declined a party invitation in favor of heading down to the strip to see the guys play. You could’ve maybe played it off casually, as if you were heading down there anyway and Sunset Curve just happened to be opening but Bobby was right, you’d never heard of the band that was performing after them.  

Not to mention Luke decided to show up for a least a quarter of the day just to mess with your head. You had spotted him in the hallway between classes and smiled when he looked your way, a split second before the sea of students scrambled to get to their lockers. Your own best friends appeared by yours, looking more and more like carbon copies of the Heathers every day. You kind of hated them, truth be told, but you didn’t have too many other options.  

They were badgering you about the party as you tried to wrack your brain for an excuse that sounded convincing when Luke stopped, right in front of the three of you.  

“Hey, I’ll see ya tonight?” He asked, whole body turned to face you and completely ignoring the looks of disdain and shock cloaking your friends faces.  

You felt like a deer in headlights. Say yes and your friends would probably ostracise you, say no and you could just imagine the look on Luke’s face. Anything but this absolutely sincere and hopeful smile was something you didn’t want to be responsible for. You really liked him looking at you like that.  

“Yeah, can’t wait.” You nodded.  

When he stepped back out into the traffic of the hallway he touched your waist, as if he was anchoring himself for a second and you bit your lip, letting yourself watch him disappear before turning to face the firing squad.  

“Luke Patterson?” Both of your friends spoke in unison, one breaking off to elaborate, “you’re ditching a party at Max Turner’s house for Luke Patterson?”  

“His band is playing at some club on the strip.” You replied, shutting your locker and heading toward your next class. “They invited me to come watch the show.”

“And you’re going?”  

You hadn’t been to anything smaller than a stadium concert before and the implication of a concert at a local club venue, right on the strip with all the ‘riffraff’ that were hanging around trying to make it big like their 80’s punk rock idols wasn’t exactly your scene but, Luke had looked so cute asking you to go and you had the tiniest, maybe delusional, feeling that he’d come to school just to remind you that tonight was the concert. How could could even consider some suburban house party to that?  

“Yeah, why not,” you shrugged, trying to play it off like it was nothing, you could see your social status flashing before your eyes and your mom’s voice desperately begging you to reconsider. “Besides, Luke’s hot.”

“Did you have some kind of Freaky Friday switch when you woke up this morning? Luke is not hot.”  

“Okay,” you drew the word as if disbelieving. He wasn’t some 90210 reincarnate but he was definitely one of the hottest guys in school, not to mention the sleeveless shirts were an added bonus. “Well, I said I was going, so I’m going.”

And, despite the continued protests of your friends throughout the day, you did go. You promised your parents you were spending Friday night studying at Terri’s house and took the bus down to the strip to wait in line for Sunset Curve and whoever was headlining. You stood there twirling your fake ID in your hands, listening to the two girls in front of you (who didn’t need fakes) talk about some drummer that wasn’t anyone you’d ever heard of and tried to look as mature as possible. If Luke, Alex, Reggie, and Bobby could play this venue, surely you could get into it.  

Whether the ID worked or the bouncer at the front door just didn’t care, he let you through, admitting you into a pulsing crowd of people making their way through the small vestibule and into the venue. You slipped your way through the crowd until you made it to the front, pressed against the railing and inches away from another bouncer who seemed just as disinterested in you. The drumkit that was already on the stage had the Sunset Curve logo on it. You ran a hand through your hair and fixed your shirt, maybe it was silly but you were sort of hoping that even in the silhouetted lighting of the venue you Luke might see you. Maybe a little pathetic groupie on your end but he had invited you.  

And he did see you. Halfway through Now or Never when he looked down over the crowd, he caught you, dancing along to their music, the smile on your face as you mouthed the words was infectious. It was the combination of seeing someone singing all the songs back to them and that person being you, mixed with the adrenaline of the performance, that had him pushing to give his absolute all. You’d actually come and he was determined to make this a great concert for you.  

Alex was the one to announce that they would be in the vestibule during the lull between bands, they got the occasional straggler who dared to leave their post long enough to say hello or great job but usually it garnered nothing more than the four of them splitting some pizza and relaxing by their merch table. Tonight, as they headed off stage to an enthusiastic crowd, Luke chanced a glance back but he couldn’t find you in the sea of people. Reggie grabbed his arm, pulling him the rest of the way off the stage and throwing an arm around his shoulder, going on about how awesome the show was, Luke quickly returning the jovial compliment.

“We were fire, man, that sounded so rad tonight!” He cheered, following Alex and Bobby as they made their way through the small hall that wove back into the vestibule.  

“It was insane!” Reggie agreed.  

You had made your way back through the venue after Luke mentioned being at the merch table, slipping back passed the bouncer at the inside door, flashing your stamped hand. Their table was set up in the corner, a little way away from the headlining band’s. You stepped into the vestibule at the same time as the boys, waving at Alex when he looked your way. He nodded, reaching over to tap Luke’s chest with the back of his hand.  

“That was incredible.” You admitted, walking over to their table. Luke’s smile instantly widened as he walked around to your side, not even thinking as he hugged you, your shoulders hunching at the feeling of sweat that encompassed you. “Ew.”

“Sorry, sorry.” Luke apologized, pulling away and putting his hands on your upper arms for a second before dropping them to his sides. “Still going off the adrenaline.”

“That’s okay,” you promised, “you’re cute enough to get away with it.”

“Yeah?” He leaned against the table, trying to look cool. He felt like he was grasping for words and he didn’t want to start stuttering or sounding dumb, Bobby would never let him live it down if he made a fuck up of himself. The other three tried not to laugh and ruin his moment.  

You seemed to recover from the moment first, glancing at the other three before landing on Luke again. “You guys are totally a live band though...like that was so good.”  

Reggie came in with a save, letting Luke off the hook for a moment, “Are you heading back in to see the headliner?”  

You grimaced, “don’t really know them...not really interested.” You replied, keeping your eyes on Luke, hoping that was hint enough that you’d come just to see him.  

It clearly was because, as a few girls stepped into the vestibule and looked like they were coming your way, Luke grabbed your arm, nodding toward the doorway for you to follow him. You did, walking with him into the hallway so that it was quieter, the sounds of the house music and the chatter of people outside being drowned out in the small corridor.  

“So, uh, sorry I’m still wigging out that you came.” He admitted.  

“I said I was going to, twice. Did you seriously think I was lying?” You asked.  

“I mean, I heard your friends giving you a hard time when I walked away, figured you might back out.”  

“Well, I’m glad I didn’t, seriously Luke, you guys are amazing. You’re so talented.” You replied.  

“Guess I was right when I told Reggie to take that book club gig huh?” He said, fiddling with the rabbit’s foot on his keychain.  

“Why’s that?”  

“I thought maybe if I was lucky, I’d catch a glimpse of you...having you come here and watch us though? Better than I could’ve imagined.” He replied, grinning at you.  

“You wanted to see me?”

“Yeah, don’t act so surprised.” He said, “you gotta know how insanely cool you are. And you look beautiful tonight, by the way.”  

“Thanks,” you bit your bottom lip to try and keep your composure, “I uh...damn, you’re making me super nervous.”  

“Yeah?” He stepped a little closer to you, his hands brushing against yours as if he was going to hold them. You couldn’t help wishing he would.  

“I should probably let you get back to your fans,” you pointed out, glancing back out the door to where a few more people had gathered. If you stayed in this hallway with him any longer there was no way you were letting him back out.  

“Hang out? We could grab some pizza or something after?” He asked.  

“Yeah, absolutely.”  

When he walked back through the door you followed behind him, hanging back so you weren’t hovering around them as they chatted with and signed stuff for the group of people that had ventured out between sets. It didn’t matter though, as he talked, he kept looking back at you smiling as if you were both in on some sort of secret.  

#luke patterson x reader #luke patterson x y/n #luke patterson x you #luke patterson imagine #luke patterson fanfic #luke patterson fanfiction #luke patterson fic #julie and the phantoms fic #julie and the phantoms fanfic #julie and the phantoms fanfictions #julie and the phantoms imagine #jatp fanfic #jatp fanfiction #jatp fic #jatp imagine #collecting stories imagine

[shuahoonie]

holidays with tom [tom holland]

PAIRING: tom holland x female!reader 

SUMMARY: life isn’t exactly back to normal. with another lockdown in place and the holiday season is vastly approaching, you and tom are stuck in quarantine with each other the problem? there was supposed to be at least 5 of you in that house and tom is the last person you want to be with. shouldn’t be too bad right? 

WARNINGS: in no particular order swearing—err foul language lmao, sexual innuendos, things get heated but not that much??? exuding sexual tension but also fluff??? alcohol consumption, a series of bad decisions??? idk writing this made me experience the 5 stages of grief tbh lmao it’s not that bad I promise lmao

WORD COUNT: 6.9k! 

A/N: hello and happy new year! I was supposed to post this during Christmas Day but guess who got into a writing rut—yet again. I didn’t want to abandon this because I actually had fun writing it. I hope you all had a festive and safe holiday. I know things have been hard but I still hope you guys enjoyed the holiday. 

2020 has finally came to an end and we’re all ending it the same way when the pandemic started—staying at home, hopefully following the appropriate health measures. I can only hope that 2021 is a brighter and hopeful year for all of us.

stay safe, sending u all my love. 

gif credits: @underoos-shield​ 

vanessa’s masterlist | taglist form 

Two hours. It’s been two hours since you found out that you were going to spend your holidays alone. You were aware that you weren’t going to spend your holidays with your family as you normally would, embracing the fact that working in a different country whilst in the middle of a pandemic was going to be challenging. 

Working in the film industry, constantly visiting sets while still living in a pandemic means that you threw away your chances of being home for the holidays. However, you weren’t entirely the only one who shares a similar struggle. 

“We should still do something for Christmas, you know,” Tom muttered as he watched you lay down on the sofa, your head is supported by the armrest. 

See—it should’ve been you, Ophelia, Alex, William, and Tom in that AirBnB, not just you and Tom.

The five of you reside abroad, however, you all had to fly to Los Angeles for work. You all collectively knew that it would be irresponsible to fly home for the holidays and it wouldn’t make any sense as you would all fly back for work anyway. 

The five of you had a brilliant idea of renting an AirBnB for the holidays since you were all in each other’s personal and work bubble anyway. Obviously, the three of them bailed as they’ve decided to stay with their partners instead, leaving you and Tom alone—which is the last thing you’ve wanted. 

“There’s just us two, Tom,” You replied as you sent a lengthy text to Ophelia, telling and reminding them about what happened between you and Tom.  “I’m not entirely sure if it’s worth anything if we did plan on doing something remotely festive.” 

There are four more days till Christmas and if you were being honest, the last time you felt festive was on the 18th of December...of 2019. 

“Surely there’s something we can do, right?” Tom’s optimism still shined beneath him. “This year has already been shitty enough, we don’t need to feed more into that.” 

The three dots bubble immediately popped up on your message thread with Ophelia as soon as you sent your passive-aggressive rant. Your focus was now on your phone. 

Suddenly, Tom’s face appeared on top of yours—his face was definitely close enough that it’s not CDC approved. He was standing on side of the sofa, both of his palms planted against the armrest as he loomed over you. 

“What do you and your family do during Christmas?” He dared to ask as if he wasn’t towering over you.

Your eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. “Uh—give each other personal space?” You answered out of sheer reflex. You always had a problem with keeping your mouth shut, especially when it sounds rude to other people. In your defence, being unable to do so has helped you put people back in place. 

To be fair, you were used to people standing at least 6 ft away from you ever since the pandemic started. 

Tom’s cheeks went bright red. “’m sorry,” He apologized, giving you a shy smile and scratched the back of his neck. You muttered a quick apology too, for acting so rashly. 

You rose from your position and sat upright instead. “Well, we never do anything special during Christmas,” You said as you threw your hair into a bun. “We usually just go to the movies on Christmas Day because that’s the only thing you can do back when life was normal.” 

Tom nodded understandingly as if he was taking this into account. Now you were curious. 

“Do you guys do anything special for Christmas?” You asked him. 

“Well, on Christmas Day, we would usually just lounge around the house and use it as a chance for me and my family to catch up,” Tom replied. “However, on Christmas Eve, my mum always made sure my brothers and I would have this scavenger hunt to look for our gifts—It’s really fun, actually.” Tom smiled sadly. 

You could easily see how Tom was genuinely broken about not being able to be around his family over the holidays. Heck—he really just misses his family. But who wouldn’t? Britney Spears didn’t sing the line “my loneliness is killing me” for nothing. 

“I’m sorry,” was all you could say. Aside from biting your tongue, being able to easily comfort people was one of your weaknesses too. 

“Oh, there’s nothing to be sorry about, darling.” Tom quickly dismissed the genuine heartbreak he was trying to hide. “We’re all making sacrifices and we chose to be responsible for the benefit of other people.” 

“Yeah, I know.” You said softly. “We’ll just try our best to make something out of this holiday season. I mean—we have to or else we’ll welcome 2021 with a fresh face of misery.” 

“I’m sorry!” Ophelia pouted at the screen as they mindlessly walked around their partner’s place, something that most people do when they’re on the phone with someone. “I genuinely forgot about what happened between you and Tom.” 

“Well, Ollie, it seems like you weren’t the only one.” You replied, adjusting your glasses. Tom seems to be genuinely fine around you, no awkward tensions or anything. If anything, it’s just you who feels weird around him. “But I guess that’s a good thing right?” 

Ophelia forced a smile but they couldn’t, for the life of them, say anything about it. 

“Oh my god,” You sighed “Seriously, Ollie?” 

“It’s just—how could he forget?! You were literally on top of him as I recall and that very much left a permanent image on my mind. I—You know, I really tried my best to forget that ever existing in my mind. So really, if anything, it’s your fault.” Ophelia rambled on. 

“I—I wasn’t on top of him. That’s absurd! I was merely pressed against him” You said defensively, in which Ophelia just laughed atrociously. “Why am I friends with you again?!” You asked rhetorically, bewildered by the fact that you two lasted this long. 

“First of all, that is a hate crime. Second, I’m cool—like everyone wants to be my friend and you should be glad that I gave you the privilege to be even on a nickname basis as me.” 

You rolled your eyes at them. Despite the never-ending banter, you were grateful to have Ophelia as your friend. 

“But seriously, Y/N,” Ophelia said, “You can always just stay with me and Ericka. She’ll be glad to have you over for the holidays.”

“Ollie, as much as I love spending time with you two—I can’t stand being a third-wheel, especially when it comes to the both of you. You two are inseparable when you’re together.” You replied. “I appreciate the offer though.” You smiled at her. 

“I’m just saying—” Ophelia replied, shrugging her shoulder. “Unless you and Tom really want to have the house by yourselves.” They sang teasingly.

“Ophelia!” You gasped. 

“What?” They feigned innocence. “I gave you an option to stay with us! Plus, I know Alex and Will are would’ve asked you to stay with them if they had any idea what happened between you two.” 

“I can’t leave him!” You started to whisper “Tom seems genuinely bummed being here. I can’t just do that to him.” 

It’s as if a light came on inside them. Ophelia started to smirk and you recognized that smirk from anywhere. For christ’s sake, their eyes twinkled like Christmas lights. It drove you nuts. “I fucking knew it.” 

“What?” 

“You like him don’t you?!” They teased, but all you could do was blush. 

“I do not!” You denied it as you could still feel the burning heat emitting from your cheeks. 

“His tongue is that good huh?” Ophelia decided to pry even further. They clearly find enjoyment as you squirmed your way out of this conversation. 

“Bitch, I am ending this call.” That was all you could say. Even if you did find a smart retort, it was no use, especially with Ophelia. They can see right through you and there’s no point in trying to hide it. 

“Honestly, Y/N, we’re living through a pandemic. If there’s any time to make any rash decisions, it’s now. Go get that dick, bih—” 

You drowned out whatever Ophelia was trying to say with your goodbyes and proceeded to end the call. The one time you asked your friend to be serious and they come up with this. 

So—what really happened with you and Tom? 

It was two years ago. You were at a party that you didn’t even plan on attending. However, you were dragged by Ophelia and their partner, Ericka—your new friends in the area. You couldn’t say no to them, they were your first friend in LA! 

You thought about it though, saying no. But when you got a message from your friend back in Canada sending a photo of your boyfriend ex-boyfriend (the same guy who had ghosted you ever since you moved to LA), swapping spits with another girl, you suddenly had the strong urge to drink until you die of alcohol poisoning.

You were burning with anger that you really felt tears pricking your eyes. You were so close to crying or punching someone—whichever comes first.  

One thing’s for sure, though, you weren’t going to cry over a man. So what did you do? “Ophelia, where’s the booze?!” You asked your friend whose eyes nearly popped out of their head. 

Well, you weren’t really going to punch a stranger. Though you felt this burning sense of violence, it’d be much more satisfying to punch the living daylights out on your ex. 

“Y/N, honey, are you alright?” That line always puts on the waterworks, no?  Ophelia was clearly concerned about your newfound thirst for alcohol. 

You furiously wiped the tears off your face. “Um just found out my boyfriend—er ex-boyfriend, who stopped talking to me as soon as I moved here, is seeing someone else now? I don’t know, am I allowed to feel angry when I don’t even know if we’re still together as soon I moved? Fuck—” You tried to explain as you wiped every tear that left your eyes. 

“Oh—of course, hon.” Ericka who handed you a drink. You weren’t exactly sure what it is, but you knew it has alcohol in it and that’s all that matters. You gulped the entire thing and you wanted more. “Y/N, you need to slow down.”

“Are you sure you want to stay? I mean we can crash at our place, eat take-outs, watch movies and be totally disconnected from the world.” Ophelia suggested, but you shook your head furiously. 

“No, I—I’m ok.” You answered “I can’t let the both of you be stuck in misery with me. I need this. I’ll get drunk and if I'm up for it, I’ll hook up with someone. It’s not a healthy coping method but I really want this night to be a series of bad decisions. I don’t want to be myself, even just tonight.”

 So that’s what you did. You were going from one drink to another in record time. Both Ophelia and Ericka kept an eye on you, just in case someone tried to take advantage of your drunken state. 

You were talking to some guy you met in the kitchen, one thing led to another and next thing you knew, you were making out with this dude in someone’s bathroom. Ophelia and Ericka were drunk enough to pester the guy you were making out with but not drunk 

As you were propped on top of the sink and your legs wrapped around his waist, you felt every bit of his lips explore the side of your neck as his hands explored every inch of your body. With his hand under your shirt and his fingers tracing every part of your skin, it just reminded you of how lonely you were. 

Here you were, a thousand miles away from home, all alone just so you could do the one thing you really love. Your family would sometimes call to check up on you but it just wasn’t the same. Your ex tried to guilt you into staying in Canada, but you couldn’t do that. You love what you do and you love yourself too. 

You were willing to risk everything, even if happiness came at a price. 

Now you were crying, and the guy you were making out with definitely noticed. 

“I’m sorry, am I making you uncomfortable?” He asked as he pulled down your shirt. 

“No—no, I’m just—” You tried to calm yourself down. “I’m not sure if I want to do this anymore.” 

“That’s alright,” He mumbled wiping the tears off your face. “Do you want to talk about it? You seem rattled.” 

“It’s just I’m so tired of pretending everything is alright—that I’m okay being alone, that I don’t need anyone. But it’s just so hard because I’m—” You sobbed “I’m so fucking lonely. I’m so tired of being alone.” 

The guy tucked the stray piece of hair behind your ears as he carefully wiped your tears with his thumb. He was just silent as he listened to you sob. 

“I’m sorry, I know you definitely didn’t come to this party to watch a complete stranger cry over something stupid.” You couldn’t even look him in the eye, you were embarrassed as this was the first time you felt really vulnerable—especially in front of a stranger. 

“No, you’re alright.” He tried to console you “I think that’s the beauty in strangers, no? You can act and do whatever you want in front of them because there’s a slim chance you’ll ever see them again.” 

You were definitely drunk enough that trying to make sense of who the person was a struggle enough of itself. You tried your best to look at the guy but your vision was getting hazy and you could feel your head thumping that focusing made you feel like you want to crack your head in half. 

A loud knock on the door caused you two to jump. “I’m coming in,” Ophelia yelled and opened the door. Ophelia looked at the guy for a while, trying to make sense of who he was before their eyes widened. “I remember now—You’re Tom Holland.”

Imagine your surprise when you found out that you were going to work with Tom Holland for a while. You tried your best to avoid Tom at work but of course, that didn’t work out. He never brought up what happened between you two and you assumed he probably forgot all about it.

You tried to rationalize that he meets a lot of people every day. Surely, one failed hook-up wasn’t worth remembering (especially with alcohol involved) and you held on to that. 

At least that’s what makes you sleep at night and also one of the reasons why you considered spending the holidays with him. However, you were also expecting your crew friends to stay with you and not just Tom. 

“Y/N, did you like the gift? It’s from me and Ericka!” Ophelia asked. It was the next day and you two were just chatting on FaceTime. You were sorting out your closet out of sheer boredom. You figured if you were going to stay here for three weeks, the least you could do was sort your clothes out. 

You stared at the neatly wrapped box that Ophelia and Ericka dropped off earlier this morning. “I haven’t opened it yet.” You said as you showed them the box. “I wanna open it till Christmas.” 

“Oh my god, just open it. Christmas doesn’t exist this year, babe.” Ophelia waved their hand, encouraging you to open it. 

“Fine,” You gave in. You opened the box and saw a very lush and well-made lingerie set. “Ophelia, what the fuck” You gasped. You held out the lingerie in front of the camera. 

“Y/N, I definitely outdid myself this time.” Ophelia sighed happily, staring at the screen. “Try it on!”

“Ollie, this is gorgeous but when am I ever going to use this?” You asked holding it out on your body and looking at the mirror. 

“Uh—you’re stuck at home with your failed but also potential hookup,” Ollie suggested, wiggling their eyebrows. “Who knows what might happen?”  

You rolled your eyes at them. “Bold of you assume that something might happen.”

“Something won’t happen if you don’t try that one,” Ophelia said. “C’mon, I wanna see.” 

You shook your head and went out of frame in order to strip off your clothes. You tried on the lingerie—it’s a black lace teddy with a very exposing back. IT fit you perfectly—it accentuated your figure and definitely showed off your boobs. You weren’t really fond of showing off your body but you still tried your best to show it to your friend. 

“What do you think?” You asked, stepping back to the frame. 

“You look gorgeous, babe!” Ophelia squealed. “I knew I made the right choice with black.” 

“I still don’t know where I should wear this though—” You were stopped mid-sentence when your door swung open. 

“I know what we’re doing this—Oh shit. I’m so sorry,” Tom stood there, frozen, his eyes widened and immediately shut the door. 

You couldn’t even say anything. You were frozen in shock.

“Was that Tom?” Ophelia asked from the call, briefly forgetting that you were talking to them through FaceTime. 

You nodded slowly, unable to talk.

“What did he think?” Ophelia asked excitedly. 

You snapped out of this haze. “Ollie,” you groaned. “I think he was mentally scarred. 

“What do you mean scarred? You look great!” Ophelia said, appalled. “If he doesn’t think you look banging in that lingerie then it’s his loss.” 

“I gotta go, I need to change.” You said, bidding Ophelia goodbye. “Thanks for the gift, Ollie. Tell Ericka thanks too.” 

You ended the call and changed into comfier clothes. You couldn’t help but wonder how on earth you’re going to face Tom now that he’s seen you practically naked. Well, it’s not like that’s a new sight. He did see you with your bra on when you were making out in the bathroom that one time. But still! 

Are you actually going to spend your Christmas in your room?

It was the next day and there are only two more days till Christmas. You spent the entirety of last night in your room after the incident between you and Tom. 

You were about to make yourself some coffee when you found Tom in the kitchen, making tea for himself. You stood there frozen, wondering if you were going to proceed to the kitchen or just run back to your room since Tom hasn’t noticed you—

“Oh—good morning, Y/N.” So close. 

You smiled at Tom and said, “Good morning, Tom.” 

You grabbed a coffee pod and waited for the Keurig to make your coffee. You leaned back against the counter and fiddled with your phone—all in the hopes that things move quickly and for this awkward tension to be over. 

Honestly, why were you so worked up about it? People have seen you in a bikini before and that’s no different from lingerie. If anything, lingerie is itchier and has lace. You should be able to feel confident in your own body and you shouldn’t have to mind what other people think of it. It’s yours alone and it’s your opinion that should matter—

“I’m terribly sorry about last night, Y/N.” Tom apologized, sincerity was written all over his face. “I should’ve knocked and I just got so bloody excited about what we can do over Christmas—but that’s no excuse for what I’ve done. What I did was incredibly intrusive and you deserve a proper apology.”

“Tom, I—”

“I wanted to apologize last night—over dinner—but you didn’t come down to eat, so I figured you didn’t want to talk. “ He rambled on. 

“Tom—” 

“But even then I should’ve asked you to come down and eat dinner because that’s what any decent human would do! And yet I didn’t. God—I’m just doing one wrong thing after another—” 

“Tom, listen to me.” 

“Hm?” He finally snapped out and looked at you in the eyes. 

“It’s okay. It was an honest mistake and you sincerely apologized, and for me, that’s enough.” You smiled softly at him. “So—what’s this thing you planned over Christmas?” 

“I was thinking we could do both our family traditions over the next two days. My family and I usually do a roast dinner and open our Christmas stockings on Christmas Eve. Then on the 25th, we can watch movies all day just like you do with your family.” Tom grinned, clearly satisfied with his plan. “What do you think?”

“I think it’s a great idea,” You smiled “However, I don’t think we have any ingredients for a roast dinner and we don’t really have Christmas stockings. Well—I don’t have any Christmas stockings and stocking stuffers.” 

“That’s true,” Tom mumbled “But I have to do the food shopping anyway. We’re running low on food and I couldn't really book one of those online delivery things that most groceries now offer.” 

You nodded. “Okay, so I guess I have to get the house sorted then.” 

When you two first arrived in this AirBnB a few days ago, it had already been decorated for Christmas. It had a massive tree in the living room decorated with stunning and intricately-themed ornaments. Christmas garlands were wrapped around the stair-bannisters and foliages were placed by the fireplace and the tables. 

All you really had to do was clean the place—do a bit of vacuuming and get things nice and neat for Christmas. It didn’t take you too long to do it too. It had only been a couple of minutes since Tom left to do the food shopping and you prayed to the gods that he doesn’t get too much attention whilst out. 

You figured you might as well do some last-minute shopping while Tom was out, so you can grab gifts for him as well. After all, this whole thing was orchestrated by Tom and you don’t even have anything to give him for his stockings. 

You arrived at your AirBnB a tad later than Tom. He was in the kitchen putting things away when he saw you walk through the door. 

“Ah, I was wondering whether I spooked you with my plan,” Tom commented, making you chuckle and roll your eyes. 

“Trust me, I would’ve made it very obvious if you did.” You replied, earning a laugh from Tom. “I went out to do my last-minute shopping. Granted, it’s not ideal since we’re still living through a pandemic, but there’s not actually that many people where I went to considering it’s the Christmas rush.” 

You made sure to hide the stuff you bought using the handmade tote bags that a friend gave you for your birthday. No retail bags, no clue. “How did you survive the groceries? I bet it’s busy out there.” 

“Yeah, it was.” Tom chuckled, scratching the back of his head. “Remind me to never do that again for Christmas.” 

“Sure,” You said, “That is if I spend another Christmas with you.” You said jokingly, hoping that Tom didn’t find that rude. 

“You’ll never know,” Tom shrugged. “What if you liked our Christmas this year and you’d be begging to spend Christmas with me and my family in London,” Tom smirked, playing along. 

“Yeah, right.” You scoffed playfully, crossing your arms. “If anyone’s begging, it’s going to be you.”

Tom stepped closer, “Wanna bet?” He whispered, a teasing look in his eyes. “Whoever has the most fun during our respective holiday traditions would have to spend the holidays with them next year.” 

“Oh, you’re on, Holland.” You took a step closer. “We will both film our holidays for the entire two days and then we’ll ask Ophelia, Alex, and Will to vote whoever looks like they had the most fun.”

“Okay,” Tom nodded “But no editing! We’ll give them raw footage so there are no chances of tampering.” 

You laughed but you agreed anyway. “Of course, we’ll give them hours of footage. The least we could do is make them sit through hours of content after they ditched us all alone on the holidays.” 

Tom gave a broad smile. “Let the festivities begin.” 

It was the 24th of December—Christmas Eve. You spent the entirety of last night wrapping Tom’s presents for later. Not that you despise Christmas, but it’s been a while since you were actually excited to celebrate it. It was pretty clear that the magic of Christmas dies once you grow up. 

Today was different; you were looking forward to whatever Tom has installed for tonight. 

You went downstairs to make some breakfast only to be greeted by Tom blasting Christmas music and preparing some ingredients for breakfast in the kitchen. 

“Good morning, Y/N, happy Christmas Eve,” Tom greeted with a huge grin. “Say, hi to the camera.” 

“Oh, we’re starting this early, huh?” You asked, putting your hair into a loose ponytail. 

“Why of course, we have to make the best out of this,” Tom said, holding the camera to your face. “I made you coffee.” Tom handed you a cup of coffee. 

“Are you using my love for coffee as an advantage?” You tried to hide your smile while drinking your coffee. 

“Obviously not,” Tom feigned his innocence. “I obviously did not know you were obsessed with coffee—it’s not like I don’t see you on set without one.” He mumbled in which you definitely heard, giving him a smack on the head. “Ow! I’m kidding.” He laughed.

You rolled your eyes at him. “So, what’s for breakfast?” 

“We’re going to make french crèpes,” Tom replied and propped the camera on the kitchen island, facing the two of you. 

“Do you know how to make french crèpes?” You asked, washing your hands. 

Tom blinked, almost trying to decide whether he wants to be honest or impressive. “Do you know how to make french crèpes?” He returned the question. 

“Oh honey, my mom resents me in the kitchen.” You replied, taking a sip from your coffee. “But you know, I manage.” You murmured.

“That’s giving me a lot of hope, darling, thank you.” He said half-heartedly. 

“Shut up,” You nudged him playfully, rolling your eyes. “Tom, honestly, most of the footage is just us bantering for 20 minutes.” 

“To be fair, that’s part of the fun.” Tom smiled. “Okay, I think you just mix all of these in a bowl. Start with the dry ingredients first.” He said, looking at the recipe on his phone.

“Okay, that shouldn’t be too hard,” You commented pouring the ingredients into the bowl. As you started all of the ingredients together, you noticed small lumps forming in the batter. “Tom, did you sift the dry ingredients by chance?” 

“You were supposed to sift it?” He asked, completely clueless. 

You nodded slowly. Panic was now clearly painted on his face. “I’m sure we’ll be fine.” You tried to reassure him. 

It was not fine. The first time you two tried to pour the batter in the pan, you burnt the entire thing. It’s not even the cute, lightly burnt crepe. It was activating the smoke alarm-burnt crepe. 

The next one was pancake-like. The next one after that had pocket flours on the crepes because you two didn’t sift your dry ingredients beforehand. You ran out of the batter when you two finally got the consistency right—you managed to get one proper crepe from the entire batter. 

“I feel like Sam would probably curse me out as soon as he finds out I fucked up a simple crepe,” Tom said, delicately filling the crepe with creme and berries. “My brother’s done so well in culinary school.” He cut a piece with his fork and brought it to your mouth.

“Well, you can’t have everything.” You said taking a bite out of the crepe. “This is better than the last one.” 

Tom nodded, taking a bite of it himself. “It’s not as tasty as Sam’s but I’ll take it.” 

“Now, I’m curious as to what your brother’s cooking tastes like.” You commented taking another bite from the crepe. 

“I guess I’ll just take you home to London to find out,” Tom teased with an annoying grin. 

“As long as I’m being fed, I’m fine with it.” You remarked. What in god’s name are you are you two playing?!

The day rolled by very quickly. It was already evening when you finished wrapping the presents for your friends. You plan on dropping it off tomorrow before you persuade Tom to glue yourselves on the couch for the entire day. 

You grabbed all of Tom’s gifts—Christmas stocking included— when you went downstairs, only to be greeted by someone yelling at Tom through his phone. 

“I did everything right, Sam. I don’t know why you’re yelling.” Tom yelled back at his phone. His back was turned against you as he was��putting away the pots and pans that he used. 

You quietly walked up behind him and said calmly, “Why are you yelling?” 

Tom probably jumped six feet away from you, making you laugh. You always forget that he gets scared easily. “Holy shit, don’t scare me like that, Y/N.” Tom breathed out, putting a hand over his chest. 

“I’m sorry,” You said whilst laughing. “I promise I won’t do it again.” Tom rolled his eyes, murmuring something about you being insincere about it. 

“Please do it again!” You heard, whom you assume is Sam, say from the background. You looked at Tom’s phone that’s propped on the island and saw his brothers on FaceTime. 

You beamed at them. “Any recommendations?” You asked, hearing Tom groan behind you. 

“Well, he hates—” 

“This is the last thing I want in 2020, for my brothers and Y/N to conspire against me,” Tom said loudly on purpose, drowning his brothers' voices.

“Tom, don’t be rude. Let your brothers finish—” Tom put his hand against your mouth. 

“I’ll call you guys later,” Tom said “Wave goodbye, Y/N.” He used his free hand to grab your hand and forced a wave towards his brothers. The call soon came to an end and you could only roll your eyes at Tom. You seem to do that a lot around him. You also do a lot of that when you try to hide your feelings towards a person you like but that’s beside the point. 

“So are we going to have dinner first or are we going to do presents first?” You asked fixing your Christmas sweater, a gift from your parents since you and your family usually wear matching sweaters for Christmas. “Or are you the type to wait until Christmas Day to open presents?” 

“We can do the Christmas stockings after dinner tonight, then do the presents tomorrow, if you’d like,” Tom answered with his arms crossed. 

You shrugged, telling him it doesn’t matter since you don’t really go all out on Christmas. Your family on the other hand—the house is always full of people, especially since most of your extended family are usually around during the holidays. You had this ongoing game you made for yourself whether or not you’ll be able to greet everyone with the number of people in the house. 

You could only guess how quiet your family’s Christmas is going to be. You definitely needed to call your parents later. 

“Is the sweater that itchy, Y/N?” You heard Tom ask, breaking away from your thoughts. 

“Huh?” You asked, confused. You didn’t even notice that you’ve been scratching yourself subconsciously. 

“You’ve been scratching yourself since I saw you.” Tom said, chuckling. “It’s a cute sweater on you.” 

You smirked. “That reminds me—I got something for you, Tom.” Tom raised his brow as you grabbed the bag you stashed behind the tree. “Actually my parents got this for you. A little thank you gift apparently for having the tolerance to stay with me over the holidays—as if you had a choice.” You mumbled the last part. 

Tom curiously opened the bag and there revealed a matching sweater such as yours. This year’s sweater was green and had red tinsel all over it, probably the reason why you’re itchy. The real kicker is that—

“No way,” Tom gasped “It lights up?!” He asked laughing. It lights up. 

“Yeah, I don’t recommend turning that on. I did it earlier and I’m pretty sure I was about to combust—it’s a real fire hazard.” You replied, enjoying the genuine joy that Tom is showing on his face. 

“Oh but we have to turn the lights on when we take pictures,” He commented as he put on the sweater. “Thanks, Y/N.” He said softly, surprising you with a hug. 

It’s the first real physical contact that you two had ever since that night when you made out and you were pretty adamant that people were just making up this notion of having butterflies in their stomach—they weren’t. 

Tom’s roast dinner went surprisingly well. You kept teasing him that it’s Sam that you had to thank because you knew that Tom wouldn’t last in the kitchen without his brother’s instructions. Tom pouted the whole time. You eventually had to tell him 

“It was sweet.” You told him as you helped him clear out the plates. 

Tom was confused. 

“I don’t think I’ve known someone that went through hell and back just to make a great effort Christmas dinner —even if it means getting yelled at by your brother.” You said, smiling softly at him. “I mean it’s just us two, really. We don’t even have to do this.”

“Think that’s the reason why I wanted to do it,” Tom replied. Now you’re confused. “It’s because it’s the two of us—that’s why I wanted to do it.” 

As soon as you heard those words come out of Tom’s lips, you tried your best to stay calm. To say that you weren’t overwhelmed with emotions would be a huge lie. For someone who couldn’t hold their tongue, you were speechless. Tom’s giving you a run for your money and you weren’t exactly thrilled about it. 

After dinner, you and Tom opened your stocking presents. The presents were pretty tame at the start—you both got each other socks, which was hilarious but greatly appreciated. You love socks, especially comfy and cushiony ones. You came to learn that Tom does too, which prompted you two to wear the socks immediately. 

You got him candy canes, he got you chocolates. You also snuck in those small, in-flight alcohol bottles in there too—which he ended up loving. He got you those 10-pack skincare face masks, in which you let out a huge gasp, making him laugh. 

“Oh, we have to use this at some point!” You exclaimed happily “Like, we need to have a spa night—where we just watch movies, doing face masks, eating takeouts. Oh, that’s the dream!” You sighed happily. 

“We still have two weeks left till we go back to work, I'm sure we can find the time to do that,” Tom said with a permanent smile on his face, watching you with pure joy made him feel like he accomplished something big. 

You got him one of those Instax polaroid cameras—true, it was a bit too much for a stocking stuffer especially since the box definitely stood out against the stocking, but you figured he’ll like it. 

“Darling, this is too much but I’m thankful,” Tom commented as he took out the camera from the box. “I can’t wait to use this and keep memories using it—why don’t we start right now?! Let’s take a photo of us and our matching sweaters!”  

Tom took a lot of photos of you two, in the end. A couple of overexposed photos, one with the matching sweaters, one with your faces pressed against each other, one with your faces way too close to the camera, and one where he gave you a kiss on your cheek (he asked if that’s okay, of course, you said yes. it’s not like he hasn’t kissed you before— still no conversations about that, by the way). It was a good thing you got him at least 3 boxes of those 20 pack films in his stockings as well. 

The real kicker was Tom’s “small” stocking present for you. He got you this dainty, gold necklace with a crescent moon charm. You were pretty sure it was expensive because of the teal box it came with. 

“Stop,” You gasped “Tom, now this—this is too much.” You stressed out. “I can’t have this. Nope, you have to return this.”

Tom shrugged as if it was nothing. “You deserve it. Darling, you deserve something nice after this shitty year.” 

“Tom, I’m serious. This is too much.” 

“I’m serious too, Y/N. Keep it, please. I’d be offended if you don’t.”

After the roller coaster of emotions due to the stocking presents, you gave your parents a call to wish them a merry Christmas. They insisted to do a video call because they wanted to see Tom in the family sweater—which your mom wouldn’t stop gushing about. 

“I think your mum loves me,” Tom whispered closely in your ear. He didn't have to try too hard. With the laptop propped up on top of the coffee table, you two were sitting close together on the living room floor—knees touching, maximum close skin contact. CDC would never approve. 

“Yeah, I think it’s the accent,” You mumbled jokingly. 

Tom moved his head to take a good look at you, smiling. You could feel his eyes burning your skin. Why does he have to look at you like that? Why does he have to be this close?

The initial video call with your parents turned into a whole family reunion when you found out they set up a group call with your extended family. Imagine the dread and fear in your eyes when you heard your one aunt ask, 

“Finally, Y/N, is that your boyfriend?” 

Your eyes widened as you stuttered to say your defence, making Tom chuckle. You frowned at him and nudged him saying, “Don’t laugh, tell them no or I’ll never hear the end of it.”

“No, unfortunately, I’m not,” Tom replied, laughing. “However, I do believe we make a cute couple, don’t we?” He teased, earning an earnest yes from your mom. 

You could only wish for the floor to swallow you whole. 

As the clocks rolled to twelve, it was officially Christmas. You and Tom figured you might as well start opening gifts again because Christmas Day is going to be a drag for the two of you. 

“Okay, start with this.” You said as you handed him a gift bag. You didn’t give him a lot of gifts for the actual Christmas Day because you went all out on the stuffers. 

“Pyjamas?” He asked with a grin. You made a signal for him to give you a minute. You ran to your room and changed into pyjamas. 

“Not just pyjamas, Tom, but matching pyjamas!” You exclaimed, laughing. “I saw it and figured we should do this for my day.”

“Sick!” Tom laughed. Tom got into his pair of pyjamas as well and of course, he didn’t forget to pull out his new polaroid camera to take a photo of you two. “Shit, I forgot to film our entire Christmas Eve.” He said as he saw the camera that was still sitting on the kitchen island from earlier that morning. 

You shrugged. “I’m pretty sure you’ll win either way. Just that content from the breakfast crepes was enough to secure your place.” You said jokingly.

“All I’m hearing is that you’re going to spend Christmas with me in London next year.” Tom sang teasingly. 

“Yeah, maybe bringing you to our big Christmas holidays is a bad idea.” You wondered out loud. 

“I like your family,” Tom commented with a smile “and I think they will love having me there for the holidays.” 

“That would be a nightmare.” You mumbled to yourself. 

The rest of the night dragged on. You and Tom finished the rest of your gifts—you got him a watch, he got you a vinyl player. You two managed to watch the first Harry Potter film before you called it a night. 

You were about to head into your room when you heard Tom say, “Mistletoe.”

“Hm?” You hummed, confused. He placed a finger under your chin and gently tilted your head. There you saw a mistletoe hanging by one of the light fixtures. 

“How did that even—” 

“Can I kiss you?” Tom asked, cupping the sides of your face. 

“Hm?” Tom was definitely giving you a run for your money. How can a girl with a speech turn speechless?

“Can I kiss you?” He asked more softly. All you could do was nod. For if you even dare to open your mouth, all of this would cease to exist.  

His lips gently touched yours and then soon moulded into one. It was soft, sweet—familiar. His lips were something you never thought about—at least not a lot but you craved it. You crave his lips, his touch, him. You were riding a new high and you thanked every single god that you were sober to remember this—because this, this is something you want to cherish. 

“You told me you’re tired of being alone,” Tom whispered against your lips. “You don’t have to be anymore. Not when you have me, not ever.”

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