#and connie putting makeup on him in secret

[scholarofgolb]

okay i just thought of something to draw and i have never wished my tablet worked better than now

#i want to draw a bunch of 17y/o-18y/o bobby hill slice of lifes #like him still being the landry longhorn #and connie putting makeup on him in secret #family scene of them getting their first puppy after ladybird (tears) #maybe scene of joseph breaking down and being like guys i have to tell you this super secret secret #meanwhile (bobby and connie panicked look at eachother bc theyve been in the know for SO LONG) #peggy with graying hair crying on his prom night LOL #i dont think bobby would go to college but i can see connie going to college in california or new york and him just following her there and #getting an apartment with her #i dont think they would be dating tbh i think they would jsut bc rlly good friends #which i could see them remaining or falling in love again (for real this time LOL) in their mid to late twenties #sorry autistic ^

[lavendertales]

SEÑORITA: Chapter 5

pairing: Javier Peña x Murphy!f!reader

summary: you agree to go out with Steve & Connie to get their idea of a blind date out of the way. but once Javier arrives, you're nothing if not overly excited to give your time to him instead.

word count: 5.7k

series warnings: reluctant friends to lovers, lots of playful banter, mutual pining, slow burn, secret relationship, filthy smut.

chapter warnings: mentions of alcohol & smoking; jealous!Javi, tension, mutual pining.

gif: @beldros

series masterlist | AO3

Within the following days, you allowed guilt to chew you and spit you up. You avoided Javier’s eyes at any cost, barely responding to his “good morning” as you continued your morning ritual together. It felt tainted, such a small act of curtesy; tainted by basic biological needs, filthily and sneakily performed in the darkness of your bedroom, culminating in a name you refused to moan in full, but one that still lingered on your mind.

Doesn’t matter whether you said Javier’s name in full or not. He was the one you thought of in the throes of seeking your solo ecstasy and now, whenever you were met with his polite face, bright and early, you felt your cheeks burn red as you inevitably recalled burying your fingers in your wet heat, thinking they were his instead. You were beyond embarrassed, and you swore that under no circumstances he could ever know. Not that you believed the topic could ever come up, but just for safe measure, you had no intention of confessing this to either Connie or Sylvie.

It was just a momentary lapse of judgment, the result of a long dry spell and the presence of a charming, handsome man in your house. Nothing else.

But Saturday rolls around, and you find yourself wondering whether Javier would join you for drinks or not. He hadn’t made his answer clear when you asked, not even replying something sly when you mentioned you were quite certain that you were being set up for a blind date. Maybe he really didn’t want to witness all that; after all, that would mean he’d be the fifth wheel at a table with two couples.

Not the most pleasant atmosphere, and this you know firsthand.

So maybe Javier has no intention of showing up tonight. Truth be told, it’s probably for the best; you don’t need to be sipping alcoholic drinks and avoid looking at him in fear that he’ll notice your blush, ask about it, and then find out he was the star of your random moment of weakness.

You make an effort for tonight to look as good as possible. You find yourself excited about the idea of going out, letting loose a little and simply living. You put on a black dress with spaghetti straps that goes just above your knees, a pair of sandals and do your makeup to the best of your abilities. Then you take a cab and head downtown, your heart thrumming in your chest as you remember that tonight you’re most likely going on a blind date.

It was Connie’s idea; she told you about this guy from her job—Dean, was it?—that would apparently be a great match for you. Funny, kind, smart and a cook—the description sounded too good to be true, really, but Connie managed to spark your interest so you agreed to go, more on the premise of “let’s see what happens”. You found that living life from day to day was better than planning weeks or months ahead and then ending up disappointed or even hurt when certain plans wouldn’t come to fruition.

Which means that you have no plan for tonight. You just want to enjoy some good music, have some drinks and maybe, hopefully, dance.

You notice Connie first upon entering the bar, mostly because she’s wearing a white dress that definitely stands out in the washed out crowd of grey and black. You wave at her and she excitedly waves back, then you notice Steve sitting next to her, looking a bit uncomfortable. You’ve been on speaking terms, but you haven’t hung out since that dinner at their new apartment, so you understood the level of discomfort.

Thank goodness you were in an environment which provided an endless supply of drinks.

“Wow, you look gorgeous!” Connie exclaims as she comes in to hug you.

“You look just as gorgeous, if not more. Look at you, little miss angel!”

Your eyes meet Steve’s, and you spontaneously decide to hug him as well. He’s stiff, clearly taken aback, but not a second too late he reciprocates, wrapping his large arms around you, thus nearly covering you completely.

“Long time no see, huh?” you tease.

“A few weeks, hasn’t it?”

“I’d say so. Where’s Olivia tonight?”

“Going to bed early club. My mom offered to watch her, so we have the night off,” Connie explains.

“Feels good to be out of the house.”

“Tell me about it!”

You have a seat, ordering a Long Island Tea, and strike up a conversation about work. You gladly listen to Steve’s stories from the precinct, they are far more interesting than anything that usually goes on at the library.

But now your mind is somehow set back on Javier, so you take a bigger sip of your drink.

“Oh, I didn’t tell you that Javier stopped by the library last week,” you blurt out.

“He did?” Connie’s tone is filled with surprise.

“Yep. He was on his lunch break and wanted something to read.”

“What did he get?”

“A Pablo Neruda book.”

You abstain from laughing at Connie’s frown and her parted lips revealing shock.

“I know, I had the same reaction,” you say. “Would’ve never thought a guy like that reads romance poems.”

“Yeah. Me neither,” Steve says in a low voice.

“In Javier’s defense, there wasn’t much time to pick up a hobby like that in the middle of everything that was going on in Colombia.”

“Fair point.”

“He said he started reading poems shortly after returning to Laredo.”

Steve’s eyes shift onto your face in a feeble attempt to read through it and see if anything’s amiss, but you don’t give anything away. If there’s something you’re great at in this life, it’s hiding things from your big brother.

“Sounds like you’ve got to know him quite a bit,” Steve deadpans.

“We talked for like five minutes, handed him the book and called it a day.”

Nothing else happened.

“Well, we talked some more when he stopped by to fix my pipes but—“

Steve nearly chokes on his drink. “Excuse me?”

“Didn’t I mention that? How silly of me, I’m sorry. Yeah, I asked him if he could stop by my place to help me with the pipe issue I’ve been having. He was more than capable. Handled it like a pro, actually.”

There’s a big vein on the side of Steve’s forehead that’s about to burst at any given moment simply because from the way you phrased everything, you’re about 97% sure he’s picturing something else entirely and being beyond aggravated by the fact that he spend five, six days a week with Javier and the latter definitely did not mention this to him.

“Don’t dwell on it, big bro,” you tell him amused. “That vein of yours is about to pop.”

Connie chuckles behind her hand as she tries to hide away from the discussion, but her face changes when she glances in the direction of the entrance.

“Heads up, my colleague is here,” she turns to you excitedly. “Don’t freak out, but this is supposed to be kind of… well…”

“Connie, I know it’s supposed to be a blind date.”

Color drains from her cheeks. “Oh. I’m sorry, I just—“

To which you giggle, placing a hand over her exposed arm. “It’s fine. You weren’t exactly smooth about it.”

There’s plenty more Connie wishes to share with you, based on the way her lips remain parted and she stares at you desperately, but a man approaches the three of you at the bar, shaking hands with Steve, then briefly hugging Connie and—his eyes land on you.

“Hi,” he smiles, and oh shit, is that a dimple? “I’m Dean.”

You shake his hand, introducing yourself, and only then notice that he’s much taller than you. He has charcoal hair, styled nicely and carefully, and what appear to be green eyes. He’s wearing a black t-shirt underneath a leather jacket, and you gulp. He might not be a bad boy from Connie’s descriptions, but he sure has the look.

The only thing missing would be a tattoo and you’d even consider leaving this bar with him tonight.

“You are way more beautiful than what Connie said,” Dean smiles, and you already feel flustered. “And she did offer quite an in-depth description.”

“I’m glad to hear her words don’t do me justice then.”

“They really don’t.”

The way he’s staring down at you has you a little weak in the knees, but you do your best to remain composed. You cannot be acting out tonight, certainly not in front of Steve.

“Can I buy you a drink so we can go somewhere and get to know each other maybe?” Dean proposes.

“Sure, that sounds great.”

“What’s your poison of choice?”

“They don’t have that on the menu, but I’ll stick with a Long Island Tea.”

Dean chuckles, ordering exactly that and a greyhound. You turn around to ask him what he does for work, only to witness him removing his leather jacket and accidentally revealing a forearm tattoo that extends all the way to his bicep, by the look of it.

Oh no. oh, this is not good.

Calm down, girl. Just breathe.

“Maybe we can find a booth,” he suggest.

You’re stuck in some sort of trance as you keep glancing at his tattoo, but you quickly nod, hoping to dismiss the rush of emotions the entire image forces out of you.

“Told you she’d like him,” Connie playfully smacks Steve’s arm, visibly enthusiastic over the possibility of having set up a fantastic date for her sister-in-law.

“Dean’s a really cool guy.”

“They fit together quite nicely, don’t you think?”

“I’d say so, yeah.”

You spend the next forty minutes just talking to Dean and you gotta admit, he seems like a fine man. You find out he works in statistics—which undoubtedly means he’s smart—he has a dog, loves plants of all kinds, and he managed to squeeze several chuckles out of you in the past few minutes. Worst—aka best thing of them all—he’s a huge Star Wars nerd.

You’re sold on the idea that if by the time you finish this second drink and manage to dance with him, you might just take him home because the opportunity is too good to pass on. Dean doesn’t strike you as the one night stand kind of guy, but you decide to live even more in the moment and see where and how the night progresses.

By the third Long Island Tea, you decide to firstly cut yourself off, and secondly, if Dean keeps making you laugh, even as you manage to persuade him into dancing, you’ll almost have no choice but to take him home with you.

You are having the best time you’ve had in a long time; that much can be noticed even by Connie and Steve, who watch everything unfold from the bar. Everyone seems so focused on you and Dean that nobody notices the silhouette emerging from the shadows around 11:37 p.m., an exhausted look residing on his face as he makes his way through the crowd with an unquenchable thirst for some hard liquor and a cigarette.

God, he’d give anything to smoke right now; it’s been such a long afternoon stuck in the office trying to explain to that moron of a Lieutenant why the Berger case hasn’t been closed yet. But it’s been almost months since he last smoked, and he’s quite proud of the progress he's made, and there’s no solid reason to interrupt this marvelous streak he’s got going on.

That is, until he loosens his tie, takes off his blazer and orders a whiskey neat and in the sweaty crowd on the dance floor, he sees you.

He wasn’t even looking, not at first; his eyes were merely scanning the crowd, just eager to see anything else but case files before them, and somehow they managed to land on your silhouette, covered in what appears to be a rather sultry black dress, dancing the night away next to a guy who is so tall, it makes Javier squirm in his seat, feeling unusually small.

“Javi? What are you doing here?”

Steve’s the first one to approach him and they shake hands, followed by a brief kiss on Connie’s cheek.

“Wanted to blow off some steam,” Javier shouts towards them. “Your sister mentioned you guys were going out tonight.”

“She did?”

“Yep.”

“Glad you could join us!”

“Me too. Thrilled, really.”

The way he chugs his whiskey is anything but an indicator of his presumed excitement. He instantly orders a second one, the craving for nicotine even stronger when he has to force himself to peel his eyes from the dance floor.

“Who’s that?” Javier asks passively.

“Her blind date. Connie’s idea.”

“Guy from my office, his name’s Dean. Amazing guy.”

“Right, the blind date.”

“They really hit it off, look at them laughing!”

There is no reasonable explanation for the feeling that’s bubbling inside Javier’s chest. All he knows is that it’s something ugly that he deeply resents and spends the next half hour or so denying its existence, all the while stealing glances at you and this guy Dean.

And what he’s left with is the fact that you look really pretty when you’re happy.

It’s uncanny to think this way when he doesn’t see anything happening between the two of you, but even Javier cannot deny that tonight you look really ravishing and that seeing you smile is quite the sight.

You sure look happy dancing with that Dean guy. And Javier hates what it does to him because it’s all so bizarre and new to him. Though he draws one conclusion as he sits at the bar and sips from his third whiskey of the evening: he doesn’t like seeing another guy around you and that can only mean…

No. No fucking way.

It’s just a typical case of wanting what you can’t have. You’re off-limits, and Javier’s lizard, primal brain, along with the never-ending dry streak, decided that being stuck on you is a good idea. You’re cool and funny, sure, but still far from Javier’s usual type.

Which means that even if he were attracted to you—and you sure are a pretty girl, objectively speaking—he absolutely cannot sleep with you as a form of palate cleanser. If you were any other woman, maybe; but Steve’s little sister? Never in a million years.

The amber liquid in his glass worked its magic and loosened him up, though in the past it hasn’t been proven to be the best choice when around an attractive woman.

But knowing that you are beyond off-limits does help in a way. So he grits his teeth, swallows whatever it is that’s bothering him so deeply and forces himself to look away from the dance floor.

“You’ve got some moves!” Dean leans over to chuckle in your ear.

“Thanks! It’s mostly the Long Island Tea, but I gotta give credit to my college partying days.”

“Celebrated a lot, I take it?”

You grin, your hand resting ridiculously comfortable on his bicep. “Oh, Dean. You can’t even begin to comprehend.”

You faintly notice the way his eyebrows cock upwards, revealing surprise. He smiles, spinning you around to the rhythm of a song you do not recognize, and then he pulls you back to him.

“Listen, I have to make an appearance at a friend’s birthday party in a bit. Two blocks away. Would you like to come?”

You open your mouth to offer your response when you notice a third silhouette by Steve and Connie. You gulp, suddenly your back sweating more than before.

Shit.

“I’ll take a raincheck on that if it’s okay,” you smile politely.

“No problem. I guess we’ll be in touch?”

“Sure. It was nice spending time with you, Dean.”

“With you too.”

He leans over and presses a chaste kiss to your cheek and you feel that very same spot burning with flattery instead of guilt, which is a more than welcome change. But when your glare returns to the bar and you notice the figure dressed business rather than casual, you gulp and miraculously, your guilt returns full force.

In spite of your better judgment—which really left the building after your first drink—you make your way back to the bar, now face to face with a visibly exhausted and grumpy Javier.

“Hello there,” you greet him.

His face lights up once you address him—or so you’d like to think. Why on earth do you want to think that?

“Hello yourself,” Javier replies. “You look—“

“Where did Dean go?”

Steve’s question bothers you more than what you let reveal. “None of your business,” you reply.

“But I thought—“

“Let them be.”

You don’t say anything else to Javier, and neither does he, but somehow he still finds himself standing up from the rather uncomfortable chair and walking you back to the dance floor, as if that would make both of you invisible to your family.

“I was—what—what are you doing?”

Javier stares at you dumbfounded, his hands not even touching your waist, yet frozen in that very direction.

“I thought you wanted—“he begins, now questioning his every intention.

You shake your head, guiding his hands back to your hips and gulping with difficulty. God, your throat is like sand on paper.

“It’s fine,” you reassure him.

Of course the song in the fucking background had to be by Carlos Santana. Of fucking course. The song bumps all around you, Javier’s hands guiding you steadily along the rhythm and your body naturally following. It’s quite relaxing—if you wouldn’t be busy thinking about the way that your body seems to naturally respond to his touch, as if you’ve been doing this for years.

You were already sweaty from before, but now, with all the people grinding around you and the unbearable heat gathered from the alcohol and the dancing, your temples were dripping with beads of sweat, as well as your neck. You couldn’t help but notice that Javier suffered of the same predicament: he rolled up the sleeves of his white shirt, the first two buttons undone, and again you gulped. You are painfully reminded of the night a similar image had sent you over the edge, and you blush right there with his calloused hands pressed ever so gently on your waist.

He moved both of you expertly, guiding your hips; eventually, your hands found solace around his neck, feeling the heat radiating from his body. But then he makes a move that spins you around, then pulls you back to him so that you bump into his chest, his skin on yours, and you feel afire. His eyes are locked on your face, and when they finally meet with yours, it’s electric. Goosebumps erect all over your skin, and you swear you didn’t feel this way when you were dancing with Dean. For fuck’s sake, you considered going home with Dean. You felt attracted to Dean, he was so handsome and funny and sweet—

But somehow, this moment right here feels more intimate and forbidden than anything else, and it’s evident in the way your breaths come out—ragged, almost as sweaty as you. You swallowed hard at the sensation of being so close to Javier, this mystery man with a troubled past that was the star of your illicit fantasies.

At first you thought it was the drinks that made you see things, but once, twice, thrice you’ve seen his eyes roam all over your body, every once in a while pausing to admire a certain part of you that wasn’t stereotypical to the male gaze: your collarbones, shoulders, the way your waist fit in his hands—

“Penny for your thoughts?”

His voice is like honey dripping straight on your skin when he asks that next to your earlobe.

“You really do know how to dance,” you observe.

“It’s a curse.”

“Cause the ladies can’t stop jumping on you?”

“You one of them?”

In spite of his smirk, you chuckle mockingly, as loud as you can go. “Don’t flatter yourself, Texas.”

“How did things go with the Dean guy?”

You frown at him. “Do you really want to know?”

“Just making conversation.”

“Ask me something else then.”

“Okay. What’s new at the library?”

“Literally nothing. All of our stock is fairly old. Except the two librarians working there. They’re fine.”

I know for a fact one of them is, Javier thinks fleetingly.

“Why the sudden interest in how am I doing?” you can’t help but inquire.

Javier shrugs, spinning you around once more. “You said we’re friends.”

“Yeah, so?”

“Sometimes I feel like I barely know you. Just trying to get some intel.”

“Old habits die hard, huh?”

Javier makes a funny face, and you hold back laughter. It’s the first time you see this side of him, loose and almost worry-free, and there’s something inherently captivating about it. When he spins you again, he doesn’t let you face him—instead, your back is against him, and you feel every ridge and bump possible.

Including, but not limited to, the outline of a growing erection.

You try your hardest not go gasp, though the heat that shoots through you is nothing if not making your mouth dry. You want to get lost in this moment more than you’ve wanted anything in a long time, but the rational side of your brain reminds you that your brother and sister-in-law are probably watching the spectacle, and you’re not fond of that audience one bit.

Otherwise…

“So you want intel?” you tease him once you can look at his disheveled yet impossibly handsome face again. “Okay Texas. Let’s see. I’m almost finished writing a book, actually. A real book, my own story.”

Javier’s eyes widen in the slightest. “Really? That’s incredible.”

“Thanks. You’re the first person I told this to.”

“Me? You didn’t tell Steve or Connie about it?”

You shake your head. “Connie, I might. Sylvie, I might. But Steve… you heard what he thinks about fanfiction. Why should he get to see my actual book?”

“He can be very supportive, you know.”

“I know. But I don’t feel like sharing this with him, not right now at least.”

“Did he ever read anything else of yours?”

“No. After his comments, I didn’t want to share my craft with someone who mocked where most writers begin. Especially since that someone happens to be my flesh and blood.”

“I understand. It’s a shame though. I bet you’re really good.”

“Still talking about writing?”

Javier cocks an eyebrow, the faint outline of a smirk gracing his lips. “Are you?”

“Touché.”

“If I didn’t know any better, Peña, I’d say you’re trying to butter me up to get into my pants.”

He scoffs. “Not a chance.”

“Good. We wouldn’t want chaos in our lives, now would we?”

“No, we definitely wouldn’t want anything so… troublesome.”

Back at the bar, Connie’s fed up with Steve’s relentless questions about you and Javier. She doesn’t have any answers, but she sure plans on getting some; that’s the mission in her mind as she strolls through the crowd of sweaty, grinding bodies to get to the two of you.

“What on earth is going on with you guys?” she shouts at the two of you.

To which you and Javier exchange a confused glare. “What do you mean?” you ask.

Ever so foolishly, might you add.

“It is very much obvious that you two like each other.”

“She’s not even my—“

“Oh, shut up, Javi.”

You make a shocked face. It’s not often you get to see someone as sweet and calm as Connie be so bold.

“Damn,” you mutter.

“You shut up too. You’re both adults! Grown ass adults acting like kids hiding from their parents. And for what, may I ask? I doubt either one of you is scared of Steve.”

“I just want to be respectful. I made a promise to him, and… we’re friends. That’s all.”

“Spare me. That is such bullshit. Friends don’t look at each other like that. They don’t dance with each other like that. How much longer are you gonna keep up this lame charade? All the lying…”

“We’re not lying to anyone, much less to Steve,” you remind her.

“To yourselves! Good God, you guys gotta figure this out before it’s too late.”

“But we’re not—“

“There is no ‘but’, Javi. Figure it out or cut it out before someone gets hurt.”

Whatever good mood you were in before, now it’s long gone. Guilt returns and simmers in the depths of your stomach, even as you do a twisted version of the walk of shame back to the bar. You refuse another drink, your head still buzzing from the three you’ve already had—and the moment you just shared with Javier. You can’t even bear to look at Steve brooding and judging you from afar. Not that you care; you really don’t give a shit what he has to say about your friendship with Javier, but Connie does have a point.

You have to figure out what this is between you and Javier.

Obviously you find him attractive. Very much obvious by now. But you meant what you told him: you do consider him a friend. Though you must admit, strictly to yourself, that you’ve never masturbated to the thought of a friend before, regardless of how attractive said friend was. Which mean that at least physically, you enjoy having Javier around you. Which also means… you’re physically attracted to him. Okay, that’s not bad. It happens. And based on what you’ve heard about him and women, he wouldn’t be opposed to getting this attraction out of the way so you can continue to be friends. Maybe under the right circumstances you can—

What the fuck are you doing? Thinking about propositioning Javier with a one night stand? Well that’s a new fucking low. You shake your head several times, prompting a few concerned glares from Javier in the backseat of the cab, and look straight ahead. Connie and Steve left separately on account of letting you two talk things through, but the silence residing in between is earsplitting. It’s like you’re both trying to figure out what to say to each other whilst also reminiscing of the evening you left behind.

Javier’s mind is racing as fast as his heart. He can’t get over how beautiful you look tonight, how he held you in his arms, barely touching you, and yet his body burned and ached all at once as if—

As if he belonged to you.

No. It’s just the booze and the hormones. He can’t do relationships, that much he knows with certainty, and he won’t ruin his friendship with you or with Steve by initiating something he will regret later. Eventually, something always goes wrong and somebody does get hurt. He doesn’t want that for you.

He takes a big, deep breath, a sudden scent invading his nostrils. It’s not bar-like, nothing pungent of the sort; no, this one’s pleasant and calming. He turns towards you, discreetly inhaling again, and then he holds his breath.

It’s you. Your smell. Something comforting and reassuring, yet all the while alluring, calling out to him.

When the cab driver announces your arrival, Javier practically sprints out of the car. Despite your protests, he still walks you to the door of your apartment. While you search for your keys in your purse, he lingers with his gaze one second longer than he would’ve personally liked, but he can’t fully help it. It must be around two in the morning now, and yet you still look so mesmerizing.

“That scent,” he almost groans.

You look up from your purse. “What scent?”

“It’s—you. Your scent, it’s—I swear to fucking God it’s everywhere.”

Taken aback, all you can do is stare at him and gulp. Your mouth still runs dry, as if no amount of water will ever feel the quench that resides deep in your bones.

“It’s lavender soap,” you clarify in an unusually small voice.

“Fuckin’—lavender.”

Before you can chime in with any other word or even think about what is happening, you find yourself closing your eyes and leaning dangerously closer to Javier’s face. He does the same, his heart thrumming at insane rates in his chest and in his ears by now. You exhale, and Javier abruptly pulls away, eyes wide open and his mind in control once again.

“Go inside,” he orders.

His voice is stern and yet caring, but it still surprises you. “If that’s code for something—“you try to joke, but your smile fades when you see Javier’s face.

“Don’t,” he warns. “Go inside, get some sleep.”

“Why are you so adamant about it?”

You do hear him groan this time, a sound to reenact some pain he’s in, and you shudder.

“Because if you don’t, I might just do something very regrettable within the next few seconds and I’ll break my promise to my best friend,” he nearly whispers, his warm breath tickling your face and your sense. “And just like that, I’ll be the Javier Peña everyone knew in Colombia. And I don’t want to be that Javier Peña anymore. So please, don’t—don’t do this to me. Not now, not ever.”

Stunned, you only stare at him for what feels like an eternity. You take that time to soak up every detail of his face, the way it’s scrunched in pain, the desperation in his eyes, the neediness and urgency in his voice—and it breaks you.

“What if I want to do something regrettable?” you ask instead.

“Just—just go… inside. Please. I’m askin’ as a friend.”

You don’t think you’ve heard Javier ask or beg anyone, not this way, so tenderly desperate, and it’s disarming you of any speck of self-control you thought you had left.

Mark my words, this Javier is gonna be on his knees before you, asking you to teach him how to be good.

“You can come inside too if you want,” you whisper.

You regret the words the second they leave your mouth, especially after seeing Javier’s nearly shocked expression. He cocks his head to the side, eager to dismiss your words and complain, but you’re one step ahead of him.

“We’re both a little buzzed and… a little tense too, so let’s have a cup of coffee and call it a night. We don’t even have to talk,” you tell him.

There’s no verbal confirmation; just Javier following you inside your apartment, hyper vigilant and aware of his surroundings. He’s afraid that any move he might make now or any word he might say will conspire against his sanity, and he’s already having trouble keeping focus. So he admires your book shelves while you make the coffee, slowly pacing around the living room. Something out of place catches his eyes, something that looks handmade and colored purple by hand. He takes it out, examining it.

“Believe it or not, that is my Star Wars story,” you smile fondly.

“This is it?”

Suddenly Javier feels like he’s holding a very important artifact in his hands, and he takes a mental note to treat it as carefully as possible. He flips through the pages with utmost interest, soaking up the words as the smell of coffee and lavender fill the tense air.

“Here we go,” you announce, handing him a cup. “Decaf. I thought you wouldn’t want to be up till six in the morning.”

“Thanks.”

Javier still reads through, as much as he can, picturing a younger you scribbling down this story so excitedly, coloring it to make it seem like it’s a book in and of itself, and the sight makes his heart grow even fonder.

So maybe he’s not just lonely and horny. Maybe he cares about you a little more than initially anticipated. But that’s not bad.

Is it?

“Thank you,” you say after a while. “For walking me home. I mean, you do live right above, but… still.”

“It’s what friends do, isn’t it?”

“Yeah. Yeah, I think so.”

You can tell he’s avoiding looking at you, a sentiment you are certainly familiar with. After all, the very fingers that hold your improvised book between them were in your head less than a week ago as you pictured them buried knuckle deep in your most sensitive place.

“I really respect you a lot, Javier. You’re being very honorable towards my brother with this stupid request of his. And towards me too.”

Javier swallows hard, feeling anything but honorable.

“Yeah, well. He’s my best friend. And you’re—“

“Not your type. I know.”

Feeling less and less honorable at this very moment.

“You—you can’t be,” Javier seems to warn you. “I’m not someone to love. I’m someone who can offer some temporary pleasure and call it a day. And you deserve more than that.”

“I’m no stranger to temporary pleasure.”

So much for the right timing in terms of propositioning something so outrageous.

“You should get some sleep,” Javier coos, removing a lock of stranded hair from your face.

You shudder. You don’t have it in you to protest anymore, not after that dance you shared with him and the tense moment by your door. You just can’t. Maybe you do need some sleep, after all.

“See you Monday morning?” he asks.

That gives you hope. You smile and nod as Javier leaves the coffee mug on the table and promises you that he can let himself out. He’s thankful you didn’t see him sneak your story behind his back while he left, and he’s thankful you can’t read his mind to see the plan he hatched.

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tags: @pedrostories @psychedelic-ink @milkymoon2483 @ifall4dilfs @casa-boiardi @spidermanfrog

#Javier Peña #Javier Peña x reader #Javier Peña x you #Javier Peña x y/n #Javier Peña x f!reader #Javier Peña x female reader #Javier Peña fanfiction #Javier Peña fic #Javier Peña smut #javier pena #javier pena x reader #javier pena x you #javier pena x y/n #javier pena x f!reader #javier pena x female reader #javier pena fanfiction #javier pena fic #javier pena smut #narcos fanfiction #narcos fic #narcos smut #pedro pascal fanfiction #pedro pascal #pedro pascal fic #pedro pascal smut #señorita series

[typewriting101]

have hope.

pairings: levi ackerman x reader

warnings: brief abuse scene & mentions of blood

genre: fanfic romance

word count: 1k+

⟶ summary: you’re the happiest person on base & levi has a secret liking to you. what happens when he finds out your boyfriend is abusing you?

a/n: this one was so hard for me to keep him in character so i hope it’s good anyways HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY

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It was a cold winter this year, but you didn’t mind. In fact, it was your favorite season. There was something about the crisp white of the snow, the scent of the cold air, that could refresh your mentalities and just make you feel reset.

Today was a training day. Every morning at precisely ten o clock, the Levi Squad met outside for combat training to start the day. Lining up in a row with one hand in a fist on your heart, the other behind you, while the Captain gave a rundown was the procedure and today was no different.

Your heart skipped a beat when you saw him.

Levi walked past each and every soldier, giving you a rundown of how the training will work, the goal, and if there were any questions. He looks each one of you in the eye as he speaks and everytime he reaches you, you can't help but give a small smile. He wouldn’t know it meant you thought he was handsome, strong and intelligent. You were the girl who always smiled, who always laughed. It’s one of the many reasons people loved you, you always wore your true colors.

Until recently.

A few months ago, you got in a relationship with another soldier. He was strong, confident and had his eye on you. At first, you thought it was off putting, but then you decided nobody else saw you that way, you might as well go for it and see what happens. So you did.

At first it was great, he’d bring you snacks, always had an eye on you while training, all of it. What you didn’t know until it was too late was how awful he truly was,

Because not everyone wears their heart on your sleeve like you.

You had to start making excuses to Armin. He was the smartest of your group. Every morning you used to wake up early with him and walk the grounds. Sometimes you laughed, vented about loss, and other times it was just your arms linked together taking in the breeze in a comfortable silence.

Now you told him, it was too much because you weren't sleeping well, but in reality you were applying makeup to the bruises on your face as you silently cried. You blinked away the thoughts as the troops yelled “YES SIR!” and began training. Armin, of course, being your partner.

Lunch came much earlier than anticipated and the two of you walked back to the castle, with Armin apologizing for hitting you in the cheek too hard as you laughed. The two of you waited in line and Jean yelled for you both. Armin waved, but you didn’t move.

You saw your boyfriend with an angry face, staring at you. His hand gesture told you to follow him as he left the dining hall to head towards the dorms.

“Oh, I can’t sit today.”

“What?!” exclaimed Jean, “Oh, I have had the best joke. Sweetheart, don’t do this to me. I gotta tell it before Eren comes!” causing Connie to snort out his drink, laughing hysterically.

Armin turned to you, his smile from Connie fading, “Hey,” he whispered, “Are you okay? I feel like I don't see you outside training anymore.” he put a hand on your arm as his eyes analyzed you, in the most comforting way. You felt a head look up and you panicked, not realizing how close you were to the captain's eating table.

“Yes.” You said too fast, “I have just felt tired. So, I'm going to head to my room, thank you, Armin. You're always so kind.” You left with your food as quickly as you came in, Armin watching you leave, along with the captain, a frown on his face.

Your boyfriend was standing outside your dorm room, tapping his foot. As soon as he saw you he grabbed your tray and tossed it, causing everything to spill, “Why did you just-”

“Where the hell were you?” he hissed. He grabbed you and slammed you against the door, his grip on your wrist would have caused you to groan in pain, but then he’d be angrier, so you squeezed your eyes shut. “Oh, so you're not going to even look at me now?” His breath reeked of alcohol, your least favorite thing. “Sounds like you need a lesson on respect.”

Fear dropped into your stomach so fast, you thought you might vomit.

No.

No.

No.

Please don't hit me.

But he doesn't know that word anymore.

You woke up early like normal, but today you knew it was over. You were unhappy, scared, everything you never used to be. You stood up and opened your curtains to let the light in. You looked in the mirror and gasped. In nothing but your big scout t-shirt, your body was absolutely littered with bruises in pinks, blues, and even purples. You crumbled to the floor in tears.

What happened to your strength?

You winced as you got dressed, your clothes covering most of them, and you used your makeup to cover your face, which helped a lot. You knew you looked okay, you just wished you were.

Levi was a Captain, he knew his soldiers well, but today felt odd. He didn't like it. It was breakfast time and you were nowhere to be seen. Yet here was Armin, without you.

As ten o’ clock hit, Levi marched outside and saw every spot was filled which meant you were here. You’d see him and smile, like you always did and things would be fine. except things were not fine. He got to you and stopped. Your eyes were dazed and dark underneath, your legs slightly shook from exhaustion, he didn't even think you realized he was in front of you.

“Y/n?”

Nothing.

“Y/N?” he said louder, to cover up his worry, causing everyone's heads to turn.

You snapped out of it and jumped at your name being yelled. He grabbed you by the shoulders to steady you, “Y/n, It's okay, everything is fine. Okay?” He said softly, realizing his soldier voice was the opposite of what you needed.

“Yes.” Your face turns red. “Sorry, Captain.”

He looked at you and blinked, “You're sitting out today.”

You paled, “What?”

“Rest of you, show’s over. Today is ODM gear training. Erwin’s waiting for you at the site. So don't just stand here, you're dismissed.” 

The familiar “Sir!” a salute echoed and everyone ran towards the trees.

Levi put his hands on the sides of your arms causing you to yelp in pain. “Jesus, what the hell?”

Your eyes widened as Levi froze, his hands ghosting where he touched you. “I’m fine, I just fell last night during combat training. So I'm a bit sore.”

A silence floats between you both and you shift under his icy gaze, “Tell me the truth,”

“What?”

“Y/n. I'm the Captain of this squad. I know when things are off and right now…it's you. Everyday you smile and nod at me, and not only did that not happen, you can barely stand up on your own today. You are zoned out and wincing when you're normally my best soldier.” he brings his voice down, “You can tell me, y/n.”

His eyes looked into yours, digging for an answer. Surprisingly, he looked a little worried, which is very unusual for him. 

You felt your eyes prick up with tears and Levi’s eyes widened. Then, as you were about to confess, you saw him. He was watching you, and he was angry. Levi saw your eyes flicker and went to turn his head but you panicked. “Don’t move!”

Levi froze again, his eyes still on you, “What the hell is this?” This time you hear the slight worry break through his usual monotone.

You saw your boyfriend leave and relaxed. “Nothing, I'm sorry sir. I'll do better.” You were slowly backing away from him, but he was moving forward.

“No… you were going to say something. What was it?”

“Nothing!” You snapped, Levi stopped walking and with a turn you left, mumbling about sitting out like he said.

Levi had no clue what to do and he always did. The nicest person he has had yet to know was different. Something was happening to you. He felt his heart hit his stomach, something is happening to you and he hasn’t stopped it.

He decided he couldn't take this any longer and followed you. He was high up in the military for a reason, you didn't catch on for a second. He lost you from your quick speed for a moment but heard your shrill whispers and his body filled with that dread he was new to experiencing.

“I didn’t tell the Captain anything, I didn't. I didn’t!”

 Levi realized you were now hysterically sobbing and was running at top speed to your cry that was echoing through the base. Suddenly, you screamed louder and the captain realized nothing was more frightening to him than not finding you. He reached an old door and kicked it open so hard his foot went through it and it slammed off the hinges.

The happiest person on base, the reason he, along with so many others, were able to get up in the morning, was curled up in a pile on the floor, blood trickling from your head. He took one look at the satisfied man towering above you and did what any sane captain would do,

He beat him until he was in a much worse state than you were, which didn't take long at all.

He was quick to check your pulse, which was fine, and he scooped you up and ran with you to Hange’s office.

“Captain Levi?” your voice was breathless, you could only just see him.

“It’s okay, y/n. It’s fine, I have you now.” His voice was soft, his running smooth. You curled into him and smelled something like teakwood, clean shampoo, and rainwater. “Don't sleep just yet, let Hange and I fix you first.”

“Okay.” was all you could say, and against his wishes, you fell into a sleep with his voice yelling your name.

You woke up to Levi sitting on a couch across the room, his hands stained with your blood as he sat spread out, arms crossed talking to Hange. You looked around and saw you weren't in a hospital bed, you were in Levi’s. You wore what was probably his shirt, and felt a bandage over your head, the pressure adding onto your stinging headache. She nodded and left, when he turned to look at you he jumped up and walked over to you. 

“I told you not to sleep, cadet.”

You smiled, painfully, “I'm sorry.”

He sighed, eyebrows furrowing as he rubbed them together with one hand, “So, are we going to discuss what I walked in on?”

Your eyes quickly left him and shifted to anything in the room. He sat on the edge of his very large bed, the two of you only taking up the left side. “He’s with Erwin, he’s being discharged. He can’t hurt you. Not anymore… I beat him to shit, That's what he looks like now. Shit.”

You laughed at his usual demeanor surfacing, which broke you into a cough. But you nodded, thanked him, and told him your story.

“Jesus.” Levi said darkly, as you finished.

“I’m sorry-”

“Never say that again.”

You were taken aback, used to apologizing. “Y/n,” he shifted slightly away from you. “I think… I think you've been apologizing too much behind closed doors. So, please don't feel like you have to apologize to me. If you should know anything, It's that you're safe in this room and that you're safe with me.”

Emotions filled your body in a way you didn’t understand, so you nodded, words failing you. He stood up and stared at you, then leaned down to you, his elbows on the bed. You froze thinking he was going to kiss you, but he didn’t. “Get some sleep. You’ll have a headache for a few days.” he whispered in your ear.

You nodded again and felt his face against yours, causing you to grow hot. You tried to sit up but Levi moved and pushed you down again. “Stay down. That’s an order. I want you to relax.”

He watched you contemplate him but gave in, very tired. “Are you leaving?” you asked, nervously.

He scoffed, “Tch. The last thing you need to be is alone right now. I have paperwork to do anyway. We learned a lot on the 57th Exterior Scouting Mission.” When Levi sat at his desk and turned to you, he saw you were asleep, but he saw a small smile gracing your face. His whole body relaxed. You were going to be okay, that's all he ever wanted.

He wanted to slap himself, realizing he now has emotions towards his best soldier. He didn't do romantic feelings. But, maybe just this once he could change his mind

and have hope.

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a/n: PLEASE LET ME KNOW HOW I WROTE HIM. i’m nervous hahaha

🏷️: @stellar-lunee @rwandabailey @maplemiyuki @canthebest1 @ardenous @majoshionna (i tried to tag everyone but some it wasn’t letting me?? help)

#Spotify #fanfic #fanfiction #romance #books & libraries #levi attack on titan #levi x y/n #levi ackerman x you #levi ackerman x reader #captain levi #levi ackerman x abused reader #levi ackerman x abused! reader #levi ackerman #levi fanfiction

[eunoia-writes]

Tis The Damn Season • Conrad fisher

Warnings: smut implied, Cheating.

Summery: y/n and conrad have kept up there secret love affair for a while now but when Jeremiah figures it out everything changes

“We need to stop doing this Conrad.” Y/n said as his fingers danced along the exposed skin of her thigh

“you know as well as I do that we both can’t stop this.” He said brining his hand to her cheek caressing it softly

“it’s not fair we’re gonna end up hurting other people.” She whispered looking yo are him

“do you wanna stop?”

“no.” She whispered leaning her forehead against his

“I know it’s wrong and we should stop but I don’t want to,” He said before kissing her softly “I wish this week didn’t have to end.” He was about to lean on when there was a knock at the door

“shit!” Y/n said jumping up grabbing her cloths and rushing into the bathroom while Conrad scrambled to get his on before opening the door

“Oh hey Charlie.” He said loud enough so she could hear it but not loud enough to cause suspicion

“Hey dude, have you seen y/n anywhere she disappeared like an hour ago and she’s not answering her phone.” Charlie said while Conrad leaned again the door frame shaking his head

“nope but she put something in the group chat about going on a walk, you sure she’s not with Jere or Shayla?” Conrad attempted to play it off as if she wasn’t currently hid in his bathroom

“no…I was with them a second ago I’m sure she’ll be back soon but thanks anyway.” Charlie said before leaving Conrad let out a sigh of relief before making his way into the bathroom to find y/n fixing her makeup in the mirror masking any sign of him on her

“You need a better cover story.” Conrad said y/n sighed and he wrapped his arms around her waist kissing her shoulder softly

“I’m not used to having to make a cover story he’s never normally with us.” She said grabbing the hairbrush

“would be better if he wasn’t.” Conrad mumbled

“it’s his best friends wedding, Connie.” She said as he took the brush from her hand

“you know what I mean, you’d be saying the same If Ella was here.” He said brushing her hair gently just like he used to do when they were kids and she got upset in attempts to soothe her

“do you not feel guilty?” She asked he bit his lip looking at her though the mirror

“I do I really do but I just… well you know.” He said she nodded before turning to him

“i just wish things weren’t this complicated.” She said Conrad hummed agreeing with her before leaning in kissing her softly but she pulled away “I should go.” She said he sighed before before he kissed her again

“I’ll meet you guys downstairs.” He told her y/n left his hotel room and made her way downstairs taking a deep breath before waking into cafe area where the others were.

“Hey guys!” Y/n said sitting in the seat next to Charlie as both Jeremiah and Steven watched her sudden nervous deminor

“Hey babe where’ve you been I’ve been trying to call you.” Charlie said kissing her temple not picking up on the way she cringed at the pet name. shes never been too fond of them and something about the word babe just made her feel sick.

“I went for a walk, I had my phone off.” She said as Jeremiah eyed her from the other side of the table not buying her story

“so what’s the plan for today?” Steven asked changing the subject as y/n felt her phone pinge

Jere: we need to talk

Y/n looked up at him confused but he kept a straight face listening to whatever Charlie was saying “I’m gonna go get a drink dose anyone want anything?” Y/n asked feeling a pit in her stomach

“I’ll come with you.” Jeremiah said as she stood up from her seat. Y/n just nodded before making her way over to the counter

“hi what can I get for you?” The woman asked flashing her a smile snapping y/n out of her thoughts.

“I’ll have a black coffee and umm Jere?” Y/n asked looking up at him as she felt his presence next to her.

“I’ll have the same.” He said the woman nodded before rushing over to go make the drinks

“So y/n, How long have you been sleeping with Conrad?” He asked as if it was nothing y/n felt her heart drop to her stomach

“I-I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh come on don’t play dumb,” George said clearly not in the mood for her shit “I think I have the right to know I did set you up with Charlie.”

Y/n scoffed “You don’t have the right to know shit Jere, who I sleep with and who I don’t is none of your fucking business!” She snapped slightly which only solidified it for him

“How long?” He asked but she didn’t reply

“A month?” No reply

“6 months?” No reply

“a year?” Nothing

“two years?” Still no reply

“Three years?” Y/n sighed softly as his eyes widened “What the fuck y/n 3 years, you were 18 the first time it happened.” He said he was more shocked than anything

“I don’t what you’re talking about Jeremiah” she said continuing to play dumb but he just continued

“Why? Why would you do that to Charlie, To Ella?” He asked he didn’t know how to feel on the one hand he wanted to run and tell Charlie exactly what was going on but when it sunk in just how long it was going on for, way before she’d even met Charlie he knew there was something deeper behind it

“I’m not talking to you about something that’s not even real Jeremiah .” She continued as the woman walked back over hanging them there drinks as y/n payed thanking her

“I’m not gonna tell Charlie but you need to figure what ever this shit out is before someone gets hurt.”

It was the night of the wedding and y/n was sat on a table with the boys while Charlie was at the head table getting ready to make his speech and y/n couldn’t help but have a nervous feeling

“Good evening Lady’s and Gentlemen… I know what you’re thinking... Charlie it should be you getting married not him… and believe me I thought the same.” He started as everyone chucked

“don’t worry you’ll all be back here soon ain’t that right y/n… and might I say you’re looking gorgeous tonight… but anyway back to the happy couple.” Y/n smiled nervously at all the eyes on her only to feel a familiar hand on her knee settling her nerves.

It wasn’t until a while later when the song When you’re ready by Shawn Mendes was playing which just so happened to be y/n and Conrad song that the pair finally exchanged words

“hey Charlie… mind if I steal y/n for a second.” She heard Conrad’s voice while her head was resting on Charlies shoulder doing anything not to look In his eyes

“Sure thing bro.” Charlie said before letting go of y/n only for his hands to be replaced with Conrad’s

“hey.” He whispered softly

“hi.” Y/n said her arms wrapping around his neck as his feel in place on her waist

“you know he definitely meant what he said.” Conrad said softly as they swayed slightly

“What do you mean?”

“that this is gonna be you two soon.” He told her y/n sighed

“Con- would you say yes? If he asked you I mean?” He said cutting her off She just shrugged

“I don’t know.”

“what do you mean you don’t know?” He asked confused she shook her head

“don’t do this not here.”

“How could you say yes?” She just gave him a look telling him to knock it off “Fine I’ll drop it for now.”

After they got home from the wedding y/n noticed just how much Jeremiah would watch her every move from they second they got home Everytime she walked into Conrad’s room her be catching up behind her making sure nothing went on even if she was just bringing him food or water.

The pair spent there only free time parked of the side of the road next to the beach with y/n sitting on his lap slowly moving up and down on him. One of her hands on his shoulder the other on the drivers side window. The two of them panting and groaning as his hands move from her waist and up to her face, pulling her close of a very passionate and heated kiss and after they have both finished she draws a smily face on the window in the condition. But those moments of bliss shared between them all started to fade from them.

“Jeremiah knows.” She said softly the house was empty other than the two of them with Steven and Belly back home visiting there family while Jeremiah was out food shopping it was the another time y/n and Corned had a free minute

“yeah I figured.” Conrad said as she rested her head on his chest

“I don’t know what to do anymore.” She said as tears rolled down her cheeks

“I’m sorry.” Conrad said as they heard the door open

“I’m home!” They heard but neither moved while y/n laid crying into Conrad chest while he just held her letting her cry it out

“hey.” Jeremiah said as he walked into the room which only served to piss her off as she got up storming out of the room Jeremiah following behind her “Y/n.” He said since they’re conversation a few weeks ago she’d hardly spoke to him if they were in a room alone she’d get up and leave or put her headphones on. He never meant for it to happen she’s one of his best friends but he was at a loss of what too do he couldn’t just stand by and let her hurt his friend but then again he didn’t want to lose her or Conrad for that matter

“Would you quit it!” She snapped beyond frustrated

“Quit what?”

“Watching me all the time I get it you don’t trust me but Jesus Christ Jeremiah.” She said Conrad was watching from the sidelines of the room incase anything went down and he had to step in

“Y/n.”

“No! I feel guilty enough about this already I don’t need you making me feel like shit anymore then I already do!” She had tears rolling down her cheeks again as soon as she went to walk away he pulled her into his chest letting her sob Conrad sighed walking back into his room he knew it was his fault and he hated himself for it not only was he cheating on a girl that would do anything for him, he was hurting his best friend more than he could every imagine not only was he ruining her relationship but he was putting a wedge in hers and Jeremiah’s friendship and it made him feel like shit.

Y/n and Jeremiah were sat in her room her head resting on his chest as he ran her hand through his hair

“what you thinking bout?” He asked her y/n sighed

“he doesn’t know me the way Con knows me.” She told him he looked down at her

“what do you mean?” Jefe asked confused y/n shook her head

“it’s stupid I guess but it’s like Charlie doesn’t know the simple things about me he thinks my favourite colour is Blue when we all know it’s green, he calls me Babe and god do I hate the word Babe, he thinks my favourite flowers are roses when they’re actually Calla lilies, he thinks my favourite song is adore you by harry styles but it’s Sleep tight by Holly Humberstone. it’s like the simple stuff that he should know he doesn’t…and“ she started

“And Conrad does.” Jeremiah finished as there was a knock at her door

“yeah.”

Conrad walked in mumbling a soft hey before y/n patted the spot next to her and jere for him to come and sit “con?” Jeremiah said softly Conrad hummed in response intertwining his hand with y/n’s “what’s y/n’s favourite colour?” He asked

“Green but it’s more Sacramento green than anything else, why?” He said without hesitate

“What’s her favourite flower?”

“Calla lilies.”

“Favourite song?”

“Sleep right by Holly humberstone.”

“What’s about Ella’s?”

“I think it’s where do broken hearts go by one direction or maybe night changes it one of the two.” Conrad said y/n knew what Jeremiah was doing but. Conrad hasn’t quite caught on

“why are you even with Ella?” He asked Conrad shrugged looking down at y/n

“it’s complicated.”

“has this really been happening for three years?” Jere asked watching the way Conrad’s face softened

“four in a month and three days.” Conrad told him as if it was nothing. Jeremiah couldn’t comprehend why they didn’t just end things with who there with and be together because as it seems they’d be happier.

“You two need to figure your shit out.”

“yeah don’t we know.” Y/n mumbled as he left her and Conrad alone for the first time in forever.

Charlie had invited everyone over for what he described as a small family and friends get together but little did they all know he had an alterer motive for the whole thing until it actually happened.

There she stood in front of all his friends and family while he was on one knee in front of her rambling about his love for her. She was sure whatever he was saying would be enough to convince any girl that he was the one but she was to busy searching for the only soul who would tell which smiles Shes faking but instead she found an empty spot next to Steven, Belly and Jeremy. reality had finally settled in

“so y/n will you do me the honour of being my wife?” Charlie asked y/n had tears in her eyes. To anyone else they were tears of joy and she seemed to be immensely happy but to her two best friends across from them they knew that was far from the truth She had to decide.

She had to chose.

Conrad or Charlie.

“I…I can’t… I’m sorry.” She said in almost as whisper before she rushed out leaving Charlie there he was about to go after her when Steven and Jeremiah stopped him knowing exactly what was about to go down and he didn’t need to see it.

Y/n found Conrad sat on her curb outside the house head in his hands “Conrad.” She said the sadness evident in her voice

“Jeremiah’s right. we shouldn’t do this anymore, you’re engaged now it’s not fair.” He said refusing to look at her as she stood behind her

“I’m not engaged.” She told him looking at her feet as he stood up Turing to her

“You’re not?” He said confused she nodded her heart was racing and she had a million thought rushing through her head all of them starting and ended with him.

“You said no?” He asked a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth

“I said no.”

“Why?” He asked almost as if he was shocked she said no, shocked she chose him. Of course she was going to chose him. It had always been Conrad and always will be.

“You know why.” She whispered tears welling in her eyes once again as het hands trembled. She knew that somewhere right now charlie had a horrified look on his face but all she cared about right now was the bit infront of her

“You really want this?” He asked she nodded

“Yes.” It felt ironic to her. Saying yes.

“But Conrad, I need you to say it. I need you to say it so I know it’s real and I didn’t make a mistake.” She begged her took a step closer to her

“y/n,” his hand came to rest on her cheek while the other was on her waist “I love you.” Conrad kissed her like it was the last time when in reality it was the beginning of forever

“and you’re not just saying that.” She mumbled into the kiss neither of them pulling apart

“no I’m not just saying that I love you y/n I really do.” He told her making her smile into the kiss both of them too concentrated on one and other to even notice there friends a few feet away from them

“wait so am I the only one that didn’t know about this?” Belly asked snapping them back into reality before they all piled into the car.

Jeremiah let out a soft chuckle “I mean to be fair i only found out like three months ago and it’s been going on for like what is it now?”

“Three years, eleven months and twenty-seven days.” Conrad said something y/n squeezed his hand slightly as she rested her head on his shoulder

“jeez way too keep us in the loop!” Steven said completely unphased.

Jeremiah had been quite the whole ride home not really sure what to think of everything still “jere can I talk to you?” Y/n said as they pulled up the house he just nodded as everyone got out of the car

“Are you mad at me?”

“no, I just… Charlie is one of my best friends ya know and I hate that this has happened to him but you and are also my best friends and conrad is my brother. and I know you’ll be happier with him than if you said yes so I just...” he explained y/n nodded

“I’m sorry that you’re kinda in the middle of this.” But Jeremiah shook his head

“you don’t have to apologise for your happiness making things awkward for me.” Y/n smiled slightly

“so we’re okay?”

“of course we’re okay.” He said before getting out the car and opening the back door for her “come ‘ere.” He mumbled holding his arms out

“wow Jere you must really love me giving me hugs all the time.” Y/n said letting him pull her into a hug

“Shut up” he mumbled.

They both made there way inside before y/n headed into Conrad room to find him sat on the end of his bed with his phone in hand “I’ve asked Ella to come over.” Conrad told y/n who just nodded standing a few inches away from him

“do you… umm do you want me…?” She started but he shook his head almost instantly

“no…you look tired it’s been a long day.” He said as she wrapped her arms around herself

“will you at least tell her I’m sorry, for hurting her that is?” She whispered Conrad sighed before he nodded standing up before kissing her forehead “I love you.” He said before slipping out of the room.

And in that moment she knew that although everything they’d done happened in a way it shouldn’t have or that they’d hurt others in the process.

It was all worth it to her no matter how horrible it may sound.

It was worth it

———

Tag list -

@gillybear17 @unsaidjaelinrose @mxdnight-spell @rocksytherock @nai-lily @absurdos @timotheeandshawn @drewstarkeysgirl @winterberryfox @coolcooliothings-blog @moorestephanie @pads31 @hearts4peterparker @midnightxxmoments @joelsfarabees @lupinscupid @Haeily @onlyangel-444 @lonelywitchv2 2 @bookophiliac @marvel-f1-and-more @prettysummerbaby @iloveefictionalpeople @withbeautyandrage @cryonme @littlefreaksatellite @Steph1106 @ietss @kayreblogs @iluvt4ylorswift @liltimmyst @eowyns-throne @neolimesworld @k-sidhu @notapoetjustawoman @jgarfield @eeshea @gudboytae @nani-2305 @justagirlwhoneedshelp

#the summer i turned pretty #the summer i turned pretty x reader #the summer i turned pretty x y/n #the summer i turned pretty x you #tsitp #tsitp x reader #the summer i turned pretty imagine #tsitp imagine #tsitp fanfic #conrad #conrad fisher #conrad fisher x reader #conrad fisher imagine #conrad fisher x y/n #conrad fisher x you #team conrad

[wavehq]

enjoy limitless possibilities here in celestire islands, connie taylor ( texas chainsaw, game - verse ), chrissy cunningham ( stranger things ), and matthew "matt" murdock ( marvel cinematic universe ), where you can start the new life you've always longed for. make sure you read the checklist, as we'll be sending the discord link through ims! enjoy your new dream, kiri!

( tcm: the game, dupes not allowed. devyn nekoda , she/her, cisgender female. )  ——-  hey, is that ( connie taylor tsai ) hanging around ( celestire arboretum )? i wonder what life is like for them, balancing working as a ( twenty-two ) year old ( waitress at the blue orchard & research assistant ) and ( sewing )? they’re notorious for being ( ingenuitive ) yet ( controlling ), and i always seem to hear ( somebody’s watching me ) by ( rockwell ) playing whenever they walk past. they’re known around the islands for ( always having up halloween decorations, even in summer ), and they’re associated with ( skilled hands, loyalty, even until the end of the line & missing electronics being returned completely repaired ). last we spoke, they were telling me about a vision they had… something about their biggest regret being ( agreeing to go on the road trip ), but it must have just been a bad dream. //  —  [ kiri, 20 / pst, any. ]

( stranger things, dupes not allowed. canelle ferragu, she/they, non-binary. )  ——-  hey, is that ( chrissy cunningham ) hanging around ( celestire wildlife reserve )? i wonder what life is like for them, balancing working as a ( twenty-six ) year old ( english and language arts teacher ) and ( coaching junior cheerleading )? they’re notorious for being ( altruistic ) yet ( occasionally snappy ), and i always seem to hear ( the family jewels ) by ( MARINA ) playing whenever they walk past. they’re known around the islands for ( bold makeup, and well put-together outfits ), and they’re associated with ( bitten back words, chipped nailpolish & empty lockets ). last we spoke, they were telling me about a vision they had… something about their biggest regret being ( not being honest sooner, trying to solve her problems on her own until it was too late ), but it must have just been a bad dream. //  —  [ kiri, 20 / pst, any. ]

( marvel cinematic universe, dupes not allowed. charlie cox, he/him, transgender male. )  ——-  hey, is that ( matthew ‘ matt ‘ murdock ) hanging around ( gladiolus gymnasium )? i wonder what life is like for them, balancing working as a ( thirty-nine ) year old ( lawyer ) and ( boxing )? they’re notorious for being ( passionate ) yet ( secretive ), and i always seem to hear ( PRIDE ) by ( kendrick lamar ) playing whenever they walk past. they’re known around the islands for ( being a really good lawyer ), and they’re associated with ( pocket rosaries, charming smiles & an unending feeling of guilt ). last we spoke, they were telling me about a vision they had… something about their biggest regret being ( putting his friends, and loved ones, in danger ), but it must have just been a bad dream. //  —  [ kiri, 20 / pst, any. ]

#video game rp #stranger things rp #marvel rp #mcu rp #multifandom rp #discord rp #appless rp #whq.accept

[miekasa]

hi mie! back at it again with another headcanon bc i am this 🤏🏽 close to fighting god in a denny’s parking lot at 2 am, full on takis and wearing my heart pajamas idc idc… N E WAYS

i get this feeling that levi would notice that you’re complaining about your hair being too long or getting more dead ends than you’d like but you’re not comfortable going to a hair salon because of covid and you’re too awkward to hold conversations with the stylists… asks you a week later if you’d like him to cut it for you and brings out the best-quality products. gives you an immaculate cut and the whole event is so domestic??? he’s got candles out and a playlist and you both just rant about your week as he snips around your head and gently turning your chin this way and that… him gently frowning as he steps back every so often before nodding to himself and going, “and then what happened after you told the guy to fuck off?

when you get to work that following week all your coworkers want to book an appointment immediately but you can only shrug and change the subject lmao

on the other hand i would never in a million years trust connie to give me a good haircut unless it was a drunk idea from the both of us

- 🥀 anon

Now why did you have to go and do Connie like that at the end 😭😭 but same... BUT BUT I think that Connie would let you do whatever you want to his hair with no hesitance at all. Tennis ball green? He’s already handing you the bleach. Hearts? He found a cheap stencil at the dollar store and he’s sitting criss cross apple sauce on a stool in the bathroom. He trusts you so easily and completely, it makes up for him not being allowed near your head <33

But back to Levi... there he goes again... up-keeping the world’s gentlest man agenda... he does he research too; different cutting techniques depending on your hair length, type, and texture, the proper tools, he probably buys a new swivel chair just to make sure you’re comfortable because he knows he’s going to take his time—and besides, it’ll look fine in the living room after, so it’s a win-win. The way he’d learn and/or do anything for you, it’s truly the height of his love language expression to pick up a new skill just to be able to help out his partner. And it brings him a sense of joy and fulfillment to know that you can rely on him for these things, too.

The way he needs to start an Etsy shop or something, they way your coworkers and friends keep asking about little things he does/makes for you. You can’t give them any links to half the furniture in your home office/bedroom, because Levi built it; half the button-ups and sweaters you wear around are his (and sure, you could read the label to them, but that’s no fun); even if they asked how you got the grout between your tiles that sparkling white, you couldn’t answer because Levi mixes the ingredients in his secret little ratio; and now you can’t even guide them in the direction of your hairstylist because Levi’s turned into that too. And when he does your makeup for your next girls night out and puts everyone else’s shadow blending and liquid liner skills to shame, then what. 

#🥀 anon #hes SO........... GODDDDDDD i need one of him so badly pls #no for real levi drop the life and home improvement book youd be a nyt best seller in minutes 💀💀

[sweettodo]

LMFAO- can u headcannon the aot warriors + y/n in a zoom meeting. and y’know y/n a little baddie and wears a revealing outfit 😩😏

i just saw this tiktok of some fanart of them in a zoom meet and it was the cutest thing EVERRRR.

EREN-

• doesn’t even bother to get out of bed, he just rolls over, picks his laptop from the floor and joins the zoom only to fall back asleep.

• levi constantly attempts to get his attention, and eren doesn’t even budge.

• seldom awake, but when he IS, he will usually interrupt to ask a stupid question: ‘hange where did you get that cool plant?’ or ‘jean i smell you through the zoom call, did you shower today?’

• enjoys changing his background to an odd photo of jean or one of his friends.

• hange will be the first to kick eren out of the zoom, and it’s not like mr. jaeger cares or anything.

• not to mention, he leaves his camera on too. so everyone sees shirtless eren passed out under the blankets with not a regard in the world.

• eats while on the call.

• one day, ( he still thanks god he was awake to see this ) you were working out in the morning before realizing you were already 10 minutes late to your meeting.

• jumping on to the meeting, sweaty, in a revealing sports bra and shorts, you’re apologizing profusely to levi and hange for being late.

• ‘lookin’ good y/n’ eren cackles, but what you or your friends realizing was that eren was now breathless, trying not to stare at you with every bit of will-power he could muster up.

• ‘seems that eren’s pretty awake now, heh’ jean taunts, eren quickly turns off his camera, so he could enjoy looking at you, who decided to wear... that

JEAN-

~ also likes to change his background, plays on his xbox with or without connie, headphones on his head and screaming while levi is muting jean to proceed talking.

~ jean has the pc set up and everything with the two monitors and the colorful custom pc.

~ eren makes fun of him because he uses a microphone. like the ones that have the stand and everything.

~ his room is never fully lit. he used leds, ( blue or green tbh ) shades are always closed.

~ ‘jean, turn off the game. now’ hange swears she tells him everyday.

~ ‘hey jean, didn’t you wear that sweatshirt last time? do you have any other clothes?’ eren ridicules, of course interrupting levi, who’s talking.

~ ‘i see the crumbs on your bed, jaeger!’

~ jean finds himself staring at you once you joined the call, wearing a... revealing... tank top with a very generous bra. his mouth growing increasingly dry.

~ he assumes that no one seems to notice, but when his friends see that he’s quite literally frozen in place, mouth slightly open as he’s looking at your chest.

~ ‘jean’

~ no answer.

~ ‘jean!’

~ ‘hu- yeah, yes?’

~ ‘is your internet having issues? you’re frozen’

MIKASA-

: sits at her desk, she has a picture collage of her, eren and armin on her wall.

: pristine white walls, very clean.

: always needs to call eren to wake him up before the meeting so he doesn’t miss it.

: if she forgets to call eren to wake him up, he blames her for missing the meeting.

: mikasa and armin are always firsts to the meeting.

: she always speaks, and fully participates.

: levi and hange usually are apt to call on her first for her opinions.

: she never turns her camera off, she’s wearing a comfortable but appropriate outfit, jeans and a blouse or shorts and a t shirt.

: sends group emails, for literally whatever reason.

: compliments others backgrounds ( their rooms ).

: reminds eren that his room is a pigsty and he needs to get out of bed, ‘eren, it’s 11:30am, get up.’

: ‘jean, you need to make your bed once and awhile’

: she always compliments what you’re wearing too, ‘i love that top y/n, where’d you get it?’

: and will have absolutely no problem with putting the boys in their place when she catches them gawking at you.

: ‘you guys are like dogs’

: she tells levi to kick them from the meet if they keep staring at you.

ARMIN-

∘ always early.

∘ room is neat, warm looking and he sits on the edge of his bed with his laptop in his lap.

∘ most talkative one here besides levi and hange.

∘ also calls eren every morning to ensure he’s awake.

∘ armin has a notebook and pencil next to him, constantly writing down notes.

∘ always has a presentation ready, a powerpoint or a document to show everyone.

∘ usually sticks to casual, t shirt and jeans.

∘ room is well lit, camera and mic are always on.

∘ also reminds the others to pay attention and be quiet, pleading with them, ‘guys, captain levi is trying to talk.’ also always lectures eren to get out of bed once and awhile.

∘ he doesn’t really pay much attention to what the others are wearing, but he can’t help but glance a few times at your outfit for the day.

∘ it makes his heart pound of his chest when you move to stretch or prop for hand under your chin to listen, your chest on display, arms squeezing them together only a little. he was in awe, swallowing hard and trying not to blush.

∘ avoiding you at all costs.

∘ armin won’t admit it, but he’s a hypocrite, so he’s gonna lecture the boys not to objectify you and tells you that he’s sorry for their immaturity.

∘ but yet here he is.

LEVI-

» cup of tea ready.

» sits at his dining room table.

» dreads having to do the zoom meet, so he’s pretty short tempered the whole time.

» wearing a button up per usual.

» well lit, has a plant in the corner of the room, most likely a cat in the windowsill.

» very english teacher-esque.

» swears the whole time at eren.

» kicks eren and jean out almost every zoom meeting.

» relies on armin for detailed information and analysis’

» needed to ask hange in secret how to present his screen, pin / mute people because he was pretty inept at computers for the most part.

» doesn’t use the mouse pad on his laptop, he connects a mouse because he despises that stupid mouse pad.

» the second he sees what you’re wearing, he shakes his head, ‘tch, i can hear these hounds now’

» yells at the boys to stop being perverts.

CONNIE-

‣  similar to jean, he also used led’s most of the time.

‣  has posters on his walls of music artists, shows, games and people

‣  he sits at his desk, which is cluttered, occasionally plays video games ( not as much as jean )

‣  zones out, looking at something random and blocks out a lot of what hange and levi says.

‣  yawns like 80 times in the span of an hour.

‣  drinks soda, or surfs the web.

‣  his bed is made, and he wears sweatshirts and sweats because like eren, he just got out of bed too.

‣  though connies bed is made, he still has clothes littered here and there, has a rack of shoes in the corner of his room ( he’s a sneaker head )

‣  most likely to not turn his camera on because he leaves the room to do god knows what.

‣  plays imessage games during the call.

‣  teases eren constantly.

‣  he won’t be AS dog-ish when he sees what you’re wearing, but he will say to himself, ‘she has some pretty nice tits’ and will probably text jean saying exactly that. but then he just moved on with his day.

‣  presents memes before the meeting to try and get levi to laugh. it doesn’t work.

HANGE-

≈ shes on her couch.

≈ wears casual outfits.

≈ ushers the boys to participate.

≈ very upbeat and happy.

≈ first person to make an interactive slideshow to get everyone to participate.

≈ shes into sending levi cat memes.

≈ has a cup of coffee next to her, plants and pictures of plants on her wall.

≈ likes to unmute people purposely if their mic is muted.

≈ emails back and fourth with armin and levi for plans for the upcoming meetings.

≈ she will not tolerate anyone disrespecting one another. kicking the boys out to stop them from harassing you about what you’re wearing.

HISORIA-

‹ her room is like a oasis, pastel walls, the vines on her walls and everything.

‹ diffuser in the background and incense.

‹ shes drinking coffee, always dressed, makeup on ( if she chooses to wear it ) and she attends these meetings on her laptop, sitting in front of her vanity.

‹ wears pretty blouses, or a summery dress, hair always fixed to perfection.

‹ sometimes her mom comes in, with cut up fruit and ice water, giving it to her and then leaving.

‹ she has framed pictures of her and everyone on her wall.

‹ also has honor roll certificates on her wall.

‹ she makes sure her vanity light is on so she has good lighting.

‹ also takes notes- color coordinating notes.

‹ she does participate, she laughs at the boys when they act up.

‹ also compliments everyone.

‹ when she catches the boys looking at you, she tells levi to make them knock it off, and then shakes her head in disappointment, ‘you all are so weird, leave y/n alone, you’re making her uncomfortable’

YMIR-

≍ shes usually propped up on her side, laying on her bed or the couch.

≍ she doesn’t participate unless she’s chosen to.

≍ keeps quiet, pays good attention.

≍ she sticks to wearing a sweatshirt and shorts or just a t shirt and leggings.

≍ clean room, warm blue sheets and gray walls.

≍ she gets furious when jean and eren go at it.

≍ shes gonna defend you against the boys pertaining to what you’re wearing, saying, ‘take your dirty eyes off of her’

≍ she doesn’t mind what you’re wearing, she thinks you look really good, but you wouldn’t catch her dead making a comment on your body.

≍ won’t admit it but it makes her flustered seeing how your body looks.

SASHA-

⇝ sits at her kitchen table.

⇝ eating full meals while the meeting takes place.

⇝ doesn’t hesitate to talk when her mouth is full so levi keeps her muted.

⇝ house is very home-y, warm and decorated well, her kitchen is seen in the background with her mom or dad occasionally walking past.

⇝ sometimes asking her mom to make her another sandwich, ( after her third one ).

⇝ always laughing with connie and jean.

⇝ sticks to casual outfits, sweatshirt and leggings, hair always up.

⇝ no filter, so if she catches eren or jean looking at you, she’s gonna jump into action.

⇝ ‘i know you’re not looking at her like that!’

⇝ ‘you better stop looking at her before i go over there!’

⇝ ‘captain if you don’t kick these fools out right now i’ll go over there and kick their asses instead!’

#eren jaeger #sasha aot #connie aot #attack on titan jean #send me drabble requests #hange zöe #levi ackerman #mikasa #armin arlert #ymir aot #historia #attack on titan headcanons #attack on titan #aot drabble #drabbles

[ssurveycorpss]

this post keeps getting deleted which should be a sign for me not to post it but nothing can stop me now. happy late halloween enjoy this shitpost of what aot characters would be like on halloween. this is incredibly ooc and just for shits and giggles bc i spent my halloween studying and working instead of doing fun stuff <3

eren: the guy that throws on cat ears he got like 10 minutes before the party and gets wasted

mikasa: dresses up in the cutest costume, like a character from her childhood or an animal or something. like its just really cute. her toxic trait is that she digs through the bowls of candy at parties for all the good stuff and leaves the nasty things at the top

armin: either a character from like a classic novel (mr. darcy, jay gatsby, you know the works) or wears like one of those big costumes? like the ones that are just funny and go over normal clothes like a narwhal or shark or crayon

jean: is here to look hot and boy does he do it. is always in something like sexy and has the best costume hair and make up. he tries really hard but acts like it was so effortless like "oh yeahh i just found this at the second hand shop" yeah but you went to 9 different ones everyday for 3 months. he really does look hot though. i imagine sexy cowboy is a hit. takes a lot of selfies and thirst trap tiktok videos.

connie: ever since he was 12 he had a tradition of being a different bald character every year and even when he started growing his hair out he kept to it. hes consistent. he tries to get jean to join him and sasha in a group costume and jean is like "i am not doing that its uhhh so much work" but connie knows the real reason.

sasha: either the sidekick of whatever bald character connie is (when he was aang she was appa, when he was saitama she was genos, when he was gru she was a minion) and if she doesnt like or no what he is dressing up as she dresses up as iconic food mascots like ronald mcdonald or the green m&m. decimates the halloween themed sweets and snacks.

niccolo: puts on his work uniform and a comically oversized chefs hat and no one asks what he is dressed up as. he thinks it would be really cute if he matched with sasha but he doesnt want to get in the way of their tradition. makes all the halloween themed sweets and snacks that look like they came straight out of pinterest.

levi: is usually a generic spooky thing he can pull from his closet and make look nice with just cheap accessories or makeup, like a vampire or a witch or a werewolf. he puts more effort than eren definitely (thats putting the bar on the floor though) but nothing crazy, like he wont buy a new shirt or anything just for halloween but he'll consider buying fake fangs.

erwin: also usually something generic but he buys it from a costume shop, so like hed be like a doctor or astronaut or soccer player or a sailor. for some reason he never dresses up as a known character just like a job or something. takes awkwardly posed photos and always guesses everyones costumes incredibly wrong

hanji: is dressed as something terrifying. sfx makeup blood all over their shirt knife prop scary contacts. likes scaring middle schoolers in the streets. you can never recognize them because they have so many prosthetics on. honestly terrifying.

onyankopon: probably like a popular tv show character he likes. he does half diy and half bought and he always looks really good. really good at party games and he brings a dish even if its not a potluck. also offers to help levi clean up.

zeke: doesnt even wear a costume (runs in the family) and when you ask him what he is he says "struggling adult" or "scruffy hipster." says a different thing to everyone just to mess with them.

yelena: just wears a suit and grabs a nerf gun and says shes a secret agent. looks really hot doing it so no one cares.

floch: gets a shirt that says "this is my costume"

reiner: takes gabi and her friends out trick or treating before he goes to any parties. since he never wants to embarrass her hes usually pretty tame. dresses up as a superhero a lot.

colt: tags along with reiner since theyre going to the same place after and he wants to get some nice photos. unlike reiner he doesnt care about embarrassing falco but he never feels the need to go all out so the kid is spared. usually just a mask over normal clothes.

porco: cool skull makeup (that pieck did) over a fashionable outfit. not as concerned with looking like he stepped off the red carpet as jean but still wants to look hot and be on theme. when he was a kid his mom dressed him and marcel in matching costumes and they were always really awful so he refuses to match with anyone.

pieck: another person who doesnt do characters, usually dresses up based on like time periods. honestly doesnt put the most effort into her costumes. she likes halloween she just doesnt have the facilities to blow hundreds of dollars on a costume so just diys a lot. looks really cute every time tho.

annie: if hitch can manage to drag her into a group costume she usually goes with that since hitch picks cute costumes and she doenst have to put too much effort. if not, she pulls something generic from her closet just like levi, but unlike levi a lot of her closet has really pretty clothes she just doesnt wear so its a bit more shocking to everyone.

bertholdt: wears a onesie every year lolol. kinda just sits in a corner sipping on apple cider.

hitch: goes on social media and finds trendy group costumes and gets annie to them with her. like powerpuff girls (annie as buttercup and hitch as bubbles would be soooo cute), angel and devil, harley quinn poison ivy, etc. always looks really glamourous and pretty but is always taking everything off before the end of the night because its so uncomfortable.

historia: even though the party is at her house she makes sure she can hand out candy to all the kids outside. does a matching costume with ymir, also generic stuff thats a mix of spooky and cute like vampire princess or zombie cheerleader or fairy.

ymir: counterpart to historia, usually lets her pick the costume bc shes happy with anything and looks rlly good in everything. helps historia hand out candy by glaring down at kids that take a handful when she says only to take one. makes every single one drop what they have in their hands and reach for the best one.

bonus random hcs:

gabi dresses up as inflatable among us crewmate. you cant change my mind. reiner bought it. falco is a superhero sidekick character like robin or kid flash. zofia is a witch and udo wears like occupation costumes. they never plan group costumes. after they finish trick or treating they go to gabi's house and sort and trade candy and they give all the nasty stuff to reiner who is like "awww you guys thankkkksss" not knowing they just didnt want to throw it away.

one year mikasa really wanted to do a group costume so she eren and armin went as sailor scouts (armin was sailor moon, she was sailor mercury and eren was sailor jupiter) the costume wasnt cheap and eren threw up all over it so armin cried. theyve never done a group costume since.

connie goes crazy to the spooky scary skeletons remix. absolutely bonkers. starts breakdancing in historias kitchen.

erwins house is cutely decorated. i bet he like really meticulously stores holiday decorations and has a date marked on a calendar to put them up.

levi doesnt let anyone leave the party until historias house is clean. he is watching everyone. even if ur drunk or asleep he will wake you up and pick up the feather duster.

#aot headcanons #snk headcanons

[vennilavee]

parental moments: two

to build a home masterlist

Pairing: levi x reader Summary: it’s 2:40 AM and you and levi are convinced that you’re about to be robbed. except you hear drunken laughter. Chapter Warnings: cursing, otherwise none really Word Count: 1795 A/N: based off of a series of asks that were sent in the other day about sasha, connie, and jean showing up drunk and levi and oc’s house. and levi and oc think they’re getting robbed (especially oc who has been getting startled by everything bc they’ve been binging true crime docs). also they are living in a house now because they decided to move out of their apartment and get a bigger property together hehe

***

One of the many things you and Levi had in common was your love for true crime documentaries. You had taken to ending your nights with whatever was on television, or with whatever was on the many streaming services that you had a subscription to.

Levi complained often (along with you) at how there were a million and one streaming services these days- what was the point-

“To burn a hole in our bank accounts,” You scoff.

“There’s gotta be a way to stream this shit for free,” Levi groans.

“I bet one of the new recruits knows,” You muse, “Maybe Armin or Jean...”

“We can figure it out ourselves,” Levi huffs and you roll your eyes.

It’s been days and weeks of your nightly routine and you’ve become creeped out enough late at night that you’ve taken to triple checking the locks and the windows of your house every few hours. And tonight is no different.

“Hey,” Levi says, pulling you into his side reassuringly, “We’re fine. And even if we’re not. I’m here to protect you.”

You’ve been waking up at every small noise during the night- the wind whistling, the house settling, leaves rustling outside. Usually, he’s the light sleeper but these days… These days it’s you. And he can tell it’s starting to take a toll on you. You’re tired during the days when you don’t get a good night’s sleep, the bags under your eyes deepening.

“That’s nice,” You murmur, “But I think we need a baseball bat. Or three.”

“And what do we need three baseball bats for?” Levi asks flatly, “Let’s stop with the documentaries so late at night. Would a home security system help?”

“Maybe…”

Levi puts you to bed so good that night, but you still come home with three baseball bats the next day.

***

“Levi,” You mumble, shaking him awake, “Levi, did you hear that?”

It’s 2:40 AM and he’s already awake and throws the sheets off of him to get out of bed. He heard it too, the rustling, the loud footsteps and the jarring sound of knocking. You can’t tell if it’s coming from inside or outside and your heart is racing too fast for you to discern the origin of the noises.

He internally curses himself for not installing the home security system yet.

“Stay here,” Levi murmurs, pressing a kiss to your forehead, “I’ll be back in a few minutes-”

“What! No,” You protest fiercely, leaping out of bed and pulling your new baseball bat from under the bed. While you’re at it, you slip a pair of shorts over your bare legs and Levi rolls his eyes at you.

“Take your time, it’s not like we’re about to get robbed. Do you want to put your makeup on, too?” Levi snorts.

“Oh, yeah, good call. Tell them to wait for me to contour-” You roll your eyes and pinch him, “Is this a joke to you-”

He quickly shushes you by pulling you into his side and squeezing your hand as he quietly heads downstairs to the source of the noise. You can’t help but press your face into his shoulder nervously, while peeking with one eye open. Gripping his upper arm tightly, your nails pressing into his bicep, you whisper for him to be careful when he looks through the peephole of the front door.

You hear a chorus of laughter, drunken laughter and Levi sighs irritatedly. He pinches the bridge of his nose and shakes his head.

“You gotta be shittin’ me,” Levi grumbles.

“What? What is it?” 

“Take a look for yourself,” Levi says, “It’s Connie, Jean and Sasha.”

You throw the door open and are greeted with three drunken fools with beaming smiles on their face that don’t seem to falter when they see your baseball bat.

“Oh my god,” You murmur, rubbing a hand over your face, “I thought we were getting robbed. I fuckin’ thought we were getting robbed, Levi.”

Levi subtly squeezes your hand and brushes his lips over your temple to quell your nerves. He sends a scathing look to the three troublemakers standing on the porch, without a care in the world.

“May I ask what the fuck you three are doing at our place of residence at three in the morning,” Levi says flatly.

“Yes! Yes you may,” Jean grins and winks at Levi.

It draws a surprised laugh from you.

“Wha’ had happened was…” Sasha starts with a bright smile.

“Our phones died and we kinda… forgot where we live,” Connie shrugs, not even bothering to look sheepish, “Besides, remember, you said! If we ever had to hide a dead body, you’d help us!”

“Please do not tell me that there’s a dead body to hide,” Levi sighs.

“We have your numbers an’ addresses mem’rized,” Sasha says, batting her eyelashes at you innocently.

That immediately pulls a wave of affection through you and you match their smiles in intensity. Levi doesn’t have the heart to tell you not to encourage their antics.

“I can’t believe you remember our address and not your own,” You mumble, pulling them in for tight hugs, “Come inside. You three are troublemakers.”

“Really?” Jean asks, his light brown eyes wide.

“We gave you our address and phone numbers for a reason,” Levi rolls his eyes, “It’s cold, get your asses inside.”

The three of them file inside in a straight line, looks of glee etched in their faces. 

“Take your shoes off, please,” You request as you shut and lock the door behind you. Levi doesn’t miss you glancing at the locks twice just to make sure.

“Do you have-”

“Yes, Sasha, we have food,” Levi says, already heading into the kitchen, “I’ll give you some if you don’t spill.”

“How will you know I won’t spill until you give me food?” Sasha asks and you stifle a laugh.

You follow Levi into the kitchen after making sure that they’re comfortable and hug him from behind, your face pressed in between his shoulder blades. You yawn widely and kiss the back of his neck lightly.

“Can’t believe I thought we were going to get robbed,” You mutter, “Instead we have three drunk kids in our house.”

“I believed it for a sec, too,” Levi says, “Honestly, I would’ve preferred getting robbed to having three drunk kids in our house.”

You laugh into his shirt and swat his shoulder playfully. Levi flits around the kitchen with you at his back, warming up food and filling up glasses of water for the three of them. He can tell that the adrenaline is wearing off and that you’re getting sleepier and sleepier when you cling to him, always touching him even when he’s so close to you.

Peeling off of his back, you give him a sleepy smile and take two plates out to the dining table. Sasha immediately jumps up, abandoning whatever conversation she was in with Connie and Jean and sits in front of her plate.

“My mouth is watering,” Sasha moans, her stomach grumbling.

“Oi, get it together,” Jean chastises but sits next to her, “Food’s not goin’ anywhere.”

“Thanks Captain,” Connie grins, pupils still blown from alcohol, “And Missus Captain.”

“Missus? Who you callin’ missus?” You say, struggling to keep your face straight, “Maybe Levi’s mister-”

Levi rolls his eyes and listens to you bicker with Connie, and then Jean joins in before both of them start to tease you in good fun.

“So all three of you show up here with dead phones? Do you guys all share one brain cell?” You ask, “Usually it’s Jean, but I see that you decided to leave it at home tonight…”

“Hey!”

“Don’t be so mean…”

“...”

“What if something happened and you didn’t know how to get in contact with anyone?” You chide lightly, “Be more careful. Last thing we need is my three favorites getting in trouble-”

“Your three favorites! Ha! I knew it,” Jean says, bumping fists with Connie.

“That’s not what I meant,” You protest weakly, “You’re all my favorites-”

“It’s alright,” Sasha says with wink, “Your secret’s safe with us.”

You look to Levi for help with wide, dark eyes and he shakes his head for the millionth time that night. 

“You three know better,” Levi says sternly, “Going out and getting drunk enough where none of you remember your address and none of you have a working phone amongst the three of you? What the hell were you thinking?”

“Oh, live a little, Captain,” Jean says airily, ignoring the flabbergasted look from Sasha.

“‘Sides, we remembered our address. We just wanted to see if you’d let us in,” Connie says smugly.

“The idiots who cried wolf,” You mutter with a smile and they all protest indignantly. 

“Can’t believe you were about to beat us with a baseball bat,” Jean mutters.

“I thought we were being robbed-”

“If we were robbing you, we’d be inside the house, not outside-”

“Are you kidding me, Jean?” You groan, smacking your forehead with your palm for the fifth time that night, “I’ll keep that in mind next time we get intruders at 2:40 AM.”

“Do you get intruders at 2:40 AM often?”

“Don’t fuck with my beauty sleep, Kirstein,” You say, pointing a finger at the three of them accusingly.

“You don’t need any beauty sleep, ma’am,” Sasha says without missing a beat, “Captain thinks so, too.”

“Are you hitting on my girlfriend for me,” Levi deadpans.

Sasha only shrugs, finishing off the last spoonful of food in her plate. Connie takes all three of the empty plates to the sink, or he tries to. Levi stops him and pulls the plates from him and quickly washes them.

“You can sleep on our couch tonight, it’s already late. We have some extra chargers, I plugged them in over there,” You point to the corner of your living room, “We’ll bring out extra blankets and pillows.”

You know Levi is cringing at the thought of outside clothes on the couch, so you offer them some freshly washed pajamas of yours and Levi’s. Levi leaves water for them on the coffee table in case they wake up in the middle of the night and finally, finally brings you back to bed with him. You peel your shorts off and slide into bed with him, already curling into his side.

“Can’t believe them,” You mumble sleepily, but fondly.

“Oh really? I can,” Levi snorts.

“Goodnight, sweetheart,” You reply with your eyes closed, “And don’t wake me up before nine.”

The next morning, after Sasha, Connie and Jean leave, you and Levi work on installing the new home security system in your house and at your insistence-

“Fine. You can keep those fuckin’ baseball bats.”

***

tags: @simpingmaize

#levi x reader #levi ackerman x reader #levi ackerman #aot x reader #snk x reader

[justjessame]

Starting Over Chapter 14

My rideshare came and deposited me safely home.  I was locking up and contemplating a long, hot soaking bath when my cell phone rang.  My first thought was “Connie”, but a glance at the screen had a grin growing that was fast becoming what I was thinking of as my “Bucky” smile.  

“Hello?” I answered with a little more caution, since I’d been thrown for a loop by Dr. Raynor earlier.  

I heard a little bit of a scuffling noise, then something that sounded suspiciously like a smack, then, “hey,” from the voice that I’d wanted to hear all day long.  Some more shuffling on his end and a muffled bit of noise, then he was back again. “Sorry about that, Brooke, are you there?”  

“I’m here,” confused as fuck, but here.  Putting a pin in my bath plans, I curled up in my usual spot on my sofa and got comfortable.  “What’s going on?”

Bucky sighed, and I heard another muffled scuffle and then his voice, “I was -” more shuffling and I started to wonder if he was in the middle of a fight while trying to talk to me.  “Damn it, Sam -” it was still quiet, but I heard it and bit my lip.  Oh.  Another sigh.  “I missed an appointment with my therapist so -”

“I’m guessing that wasn’t taken too well by the powers that be,” it was starting to make a little bit more sense.  “Guess that’s why she gave me a ring,”  my face burned slightly at the memory.  “Did you get your gold star?”  

His chuckle came through loud and clear, I could almost see his smile.  “Not yet,” I heard voices, but they weren’t clear enough to understand.  He groaned.  “I’m going to have to go -”

“Why do I have a feeling that doesn’t mean you’re on your way back to Brooklyn?”  I felt my own sigh building, but knew I had to push it down.  It was too soon to be this damn clingy.  “I was REALLY hoping to see your gold star, but since you didn’t earn one yet -”

For once I HEARD him, a slight inhale and I could see those stark white teeth of his against his bottom lip.  “We might have to work harder to get to that level.”  I felt that rush and pull, even with all the miles separating us.  

“Then I guess you’re gonna have to finish up what’s keeping you away from New York, Buck.” My mouth felt dry and I was thirsty again, but I knew I’d be staying that way for the foreseeable future.  “Since I have a feeling I don’t have the type of clearance necessary to know where and what you’re planning on doing - stay safe?”  

“I’ll do my best, Brooke.”  I was nodding, and realized how stupid that was, since he couldn’t possibly see it.  “Goodnight.”

“Night, Bucky.”  Before he ended the call, I swore I heard Sam offer his own parting of “Bye Brooke, girl who can call him Buck.”

I wasn’t sure why Sam was so focused on that detail, but I was left with a silent phone and I was still thirsty.  

A pitstop at the kitchen, I grabbed a bottle of water and then - once everything was locked up and all the lights were off downstairs, I drew a nice hot bubble bath and soaked while I thought about where Bucky might be off to and why.

When I first came back, once the shell shocked feeling of “oh shit, five years are gone and my parents are dead” had numbed a bit, and the nightmares had set in nice and tight - I started researching everything I could on ways to help with sleep issues.  Insomnia, nightmares, sleepwalking - anything, on the off-chance that something would work.

I tried everything from melatonin to ZZzQuil.  I tried tactics like meditation - which I am NOT built for, to the process of relaxing each limb and body part until I slipped off into a more natural sleep cycle -- SPOILER: I still had the nightmares.  I did bath bombs and bubble baths, the hotter the better, but nothing actually helped.  

I knew, when I felt like partaking in the LONG hot bath, that it wasn’t going to fix shit.  It just was something to make me feel better and a little more luxurious.  Sometimes a person needs a little me time, and before someone points out that ALL I have is me time, I normally fill my day with looking for work and trying to catch up on what happened while I was gone (not a lot, weirdly).  

As I soaked, the warmth seeping into my bones and relaxing every bit of tension from me, even the stress I hadn’t realized I was carrying with me.  The scent of my bubbles, a light honeysuckle I found online and was intrigued was surrounding me like a cloud, and I was considering the welcome I wanted to give Bucky when he EVENTUALLY made it back.

I was bathed and fresh.  I even took the time to shave every inch of unnecessary hair from my body for good measure.  Dressed in my comfy pajamas, I headed to my bedroom and grabbed my laptop.  Propped up against my headboard, I opened up the search engine and started looking for the things I’d thought about while I was getting waterlogged in the tub in preparation for Bucky’s homecoming.  

First things first, I looked up the type of casual dresses that the girls like Dot might have worn during a trip to Coney Island back in the day (and by that I clearly mean HIS day). Luckily Bucky was dating around during a pretty good time fashion wise.  I mean, comparatively - have you seen the 1980s?  Or, what the hell was going on in the 1990s? Please explain?  I clicked around a couple of “retro” dress sites, finding some very cute options and bookmarking them to run past Connie, since she wasn’t quite as out of practice at this shit as I was - married or not, she’s been laid more recently.

Next came the arguably MORE important section, lingerie.  Dressing from the skin out was something my mom preached.  She swore that if you wanted to put your best foot forward you had to FEEL your best from the skin out, and you know what? It worked for me.  It’s how I got my job at the ad agency, whether it was a good fit or not.  There’s something about it that just peaks my confidence, so lingerie sites were the next on my list.  

I could go retro with this one too, I could, but I wasn’t sure I needed to go that far.  I mean, would Bucky want to see the somewhat heavily boned undergarments of HIS time or would he rather play with the less is more approach of Victoria’s Secret (that wasn’t all that secretive, let’s be honest here)?  Bookmarking a few of the sets that I found sexiest, along with a few that I thought I could pull off without dying of embarrassment, I moved on.

Shoes, then makeup. I picked out a few hairstyles that I thought Connie would have a blast recreating for me - and maybe teaching me to do on my own (fingers crossed, pretty please).  I lost myself in planning for Bucky to come home - to me. 

#bucky barnes/oc #the boys #alternate universe #fluff #slow burn #eventual smut

[universallywriting]

Exploration and Dance

Summary: Stevonnie falls apart trying to explain pronouns Some discussion of gender dysphoria, genderfluid Steven, gender questioning Connie

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

Visiting the Diamonds was always an odd thing, but it was doubly odd when Connie was there. She preferred to only see them as Stevonnie, and he could feel the simmering anger from her half of the fusion every time they shared a room, so Steven could respect that choice. Of course, that came with its own problems. Misgendering everyone with feminine pronouns was standard practice for the titanic rulers, but it was extra problematic for the young fusion.

"We really like they as our pronouns," Stevonnie explained patiently. "I know that some of Steven's fusions like using she or he, but we really only want they. It makes us very, very uncomfortable if you use anything else."

Blue frowned. "But why? Is it really that bothersome Stev... Onnie?"

"Yes," they insisted. "It's really is. Because Steven's a boy and Connie's a girl, so we-oh." They gasped and doubled over, white light splintering across their body for a moment. It flickered and flashed, skittering over their skin like the yellow disruptor had done to Steven years ago. Garnet was there to catch them before they fell apart.

"You're alright," Garnet soothed. "Just breathe through it. Talk it out."

Yellow arched an eyebrow. "They're unstable."

"Not usually!" Stevonnie groaned, and some of Connie’s anger flicked over to Steven, vibrating back and forth between the two of them. They righted themself, breathing softly as they muttered too low for the Diamonds to hear: "Okay. So, what was that? | I don't know. | Me neither! We were just saying who we are!"

"Try it again," Garnet advised.

Steven’s a boy and Connie’s a girl, so we’re they. Say it. Just say it out loud. They hesitated for a moment, then closed their eyes as even the thought of it brought on confusion and discomfort. "I don't want to. It doesn't feel good. I... I can't stay together like this. Just... Hold on."

They managed to make it through the warp, to the greenhouse dome, before they tumbled apart. Steven put his hands in his pockets and fell back into Lion's fluffy bed with a sigh. "Okay, so I definitely feel like a boy today."

Connie chewed her lip, standing in the center of the greenhouse as she mused on that. "Does it bother you to call yourself a boy on a boy day?"

"I don't know. Not really? It usually feels good. That's how I know it's not a girl day." He swept a hand through his curls and leaned forward, arms on his knees. "But it feels kind of weird to have Stevonnie say Steven's a boy and not genderfluid, you know? Now that I know that's what I am, it feels so weird for Stevonnie to lie about it. But I don't think it's break a fusion weird."

"You still haven't told the gems?" she asked.

He shook his head. "I know they'll be nice. I just don't want to have that talk. I don't want it to turn into a bunch more talking, you know?" 

"That's why you haven't posted any pics of girl day shapeshifting," she said with a sigh. Connie crossed her arms and shook her head. "I'm sorry. I thought you would've told already." 

"Not ready yet. Girl Steven's just for you and me." He smiled, a little strained from the weight of the secret, but managing for now. "What about you?"

"What about me?" she asked, just a little too quickly. Steven raised an eyebrow and she groaned. "You felt that?"

"Kinda hard not to when half your brain starts getting jumbled up." He laughed. "We said Connie's a girl and it was like someone threw a hard math problem at us. What's going on with you?"

"I don't know." She bounced her heel, the rubber thumping softly on the floor of the dome. "You've been talking about gender a lot, what it feels like on boy days and girl days and inbetween days. I've been thinking a lot."

"And?" he pressed.

She rubbed her arm, heel coming to a sudden stop. "I don't know what I am. But girl's been feeling weird ever since you started talking to me about gender stuff."

Steven pushed up and held out his hand. "Come on. No matter what, we're still just us, right? Dance with me. We'll talk."

"And maybe we'll fuse and we can get back to Homeworld." Connie took it. After a moment, his hands went to her shoulders and hers went to his hips. She forced a smile and asked, "So, what does being a girl feel like?"

"It's different for everyone, I think. But, for me, I guess it's that I want people to know I'm a girl. I want them to treat me like a girl. And wearing dresses and heels and that stuff gets kind of close to that. And I like it when you call me a she." He blushed a little and gave her shoulders a squeeze at a particularly nice memory. "I really liked it when you said I was your girlfriend right away when I told you. But I wouldn't like that now. Just little happy moments. Do you get stuff like that?"

"I don't think so," she said, smiling for real as he shifted his hands and gave her a twirl. "But it makes me really happy that I made you happy."

He hummed and dipped her. "Ever get dysphoria?"

"What's it feel like?"  She raised an eyebrow from her place dipped back, and he tugged her back up. "The stuff I read online makes it look pretty extreme, and I never feel extreme about any of this stuff. Then I'd get it."

"It doesn't have to be big.” Their hands shifted again, and this time she twirled him a few times as he spoke. “You don't have to get it at all. For me it's just kind of annoying? I'm not really extreme in different gender feelings. It's all really smooth. But when someone treats me as a boy on a girl day, when I've tried to look like a girl, it's... Oh! Your mom sending you to space camp. You know they love you, and they're trying, but it's like-'

"They don't know you," she finished. She looked a little worried at the idea. "Then yes. Sometimes. Not for pronouns, but there's some weird stuff. Girl. Daughter. Lady."

Steven was gentle, like always. "Why don't you like it?"

"Feels like a box. None of this gender stuff ever made sense to me." She shook her head with a little moan. "You're Steven! If some days you dress like a girl and feel like a girl, that's okay. If some days you're in the middle, I get it. I'm half of Stevonnie. Seems like a hassle to not just do whatever you want."

He thought about that with a little hum, musing as they stepped to a soundless beat that they both always found so easily. "Do you know what you want?"

"I want... Nothing," she said with a grin. "I want to wear a dress or wear a tux and it doesn't mean anything. I want to be Connie. Just Connie."

"And Connie isn't a girl or a lady, right?" Steven asked. "Never?"

"I don't think so," she said uncertainly. "I mean, I wanna wear dresses sometimes. Maybe even makeup? And I want to dress like a boy sometimes too, but I don’t want that to mean something about me. It's not like you. I don't want to be a boy or a girl. I want nothing. Is that a thing? To want nothing?"

"Probably. Everything's a thing," he said with a giggle. "There was a word for 'usually a boy but really wants to be a girl every full moon', so..."

"Weregirl," she whispered, eyes wide.

Steven howled, but shifted his vocal cords thin so it came out feminine and high, their dance stopped as they giggled for a bit, enjoying being themselves with no one else around to put on the pressure.

And then, a bit later, they were enjoying being themself in front of the Diamonds, taking it again with a huge smile. Stevonnie waved. "I'm Stevonnie. I'm a fusion of Steven and Connie. I like they, and nothing else, and that's all you need to know about that." 

#jamweek #steven universe #connverse #connie maheswaran #su fanfic #cw:gender dysphoria

[winterromanov]

you made a mess of me - chapter one (bucky x reader)

pairing: bodyguard!bucky x princess!reader

updates: every week

masterlist 

message me to be added to the taglist

A/N: this is the short opener to what i hope will be an epic and fun fic!! hope you enjoy x

There are many things to like about being a princess. No way round it—you love the luxury, the worldwide fame for just existing, the way people are grateful just to be in your presence. It’s like every time you leave the palace a red carpet is pre-rolled out, ready for you to walk gracefully across in your limited edition Louboutins. Your life is gowns, champagne and ribbon-cutting, Hollywood-white smiles for paparazzi and deliciously opulent scandal. If you’re not pictured in the socialite gossip pages of glossy magazines, you’re not partying hard enough. You’re not appearing in enough of the right places with the right people.

Except, in your world, you’re the only right person. People battle for a place at your table, an invite to your party. It is impossible to not get intoxicated on that feeling, way before any hundred dollar (plus) champagne is drunk.

It is hard not to believe you’re completely inpenetrable. Sat at the annual Sokovian Aid charity dinner, you feel pretty fucking invincible. 

Yes, sure, the charity is important—daddy does love his little humanitarian projects, and it is one of your only actual jobs to interact with them—but you can feel the eyes of everyone in the room looking at you. People chatter about what dress you’re wearing, who accompanies you in your direct entourage, who you may be leaving with at the end of the night. The charity is important, but you know really, you’re the true focus. And that is not as selfish as it sounds, because your presence on its own brings in thousands of dollars of donations.

“Oh my God, (Y/N),” your best friend and confidant, Lady Connie Davenport, murmurs drily from next to you. Naturally, you’re on the honours table. The top one. As if you could be put anywhere else. “Look at the Sokovian girl. What on Earth is she wearing?”

Connie was pointing at a tall, pale girl who you recognised as the PR liaison rep for SA, but you had long since forgotten her name. Whilst it was your job to turn up to these things, other people could remember the minor details. “Who knows. Maybe it’s Matalan.”

Connie laughed loudly. “Matalan? Surely not. Bit too expensive, no?”

You smirk, bringing a glass of champagne to your lips. It had been filled up without you even realising—that is the kind of attention to detail you appreciate. “Perhaps.”

“Hmm. And what about the men? Seen anyone you like?”

Of course, you’d already scanned the room on arrival for eligible bachelors. Many were rich, but ancient oligarchs with deep pockets are not exactly your type. Several of the younger men had arrived with ladies on their arms which, whilst not an obstacle, did require some extra effort. The other men were way too presentable for your tastes. The last thing you want is someone you could take to dinner with your parents and for them to approve.

There is one man, though, who you’ve had your eye on. Or, his eyes have been very certainly on you. Deep set and intense, he looks at you differently to the way everyone else does. All night he has been sat quietly and aloof in the corner, not even pretending to look away when you catch eyes. He looks confident, arrogant even. And there is literally nothing that turns you on more than an over confident man who thinks he can do as he likes.

They think that, until they meet you.

“We’ll see,” you reply. Connie arches an eyebrow at you knowingly. “What? I like to keep you guessing.”

“You are infuriating, darling.”

Your smile is coy as a hand brushes across your shoulder. Looking up, you see Eric, your family’s head of PR. He is the one who keeps these events running smoothly, telling you where to be and when. “They’re ready for your speech, your highness.”

Of course, you hadn’t written the speech. Some neatly typed prompt cards had been handed to you a few days ago and you’d glazed over them, but it was the same old shit. At this point you might as well have the words what a great cause tattooed on your ass.

You huff a reluctant sigh. “Alright, let’s get this over with, then.”

Eric guides you through a maze of back corridors until you reach the door nearest the makeshift stage. Whilst a compere excitedly introduces you to tables upon tables of distinguished guests, a lady touches up your makeup and hair, messing with the hem of your dress. You have to look perfect for the photographers or your life won’t be worth living. You hear your name and you turn on the thousand kilowatt smile, waving elegantly as your heels click loudly against the tiled floor. The cheers are invigorating. Speeches are boring, yes, but the attention is most definitely not.

“Good evening, ladies and gentlemen.” You say, standing just the right distance away from the microphone to make an impact on the room, but not close enough for it to be overpowering. These are the kind of lessons you’re taught as a princess. “And what a pleasure it is to be here! It is always an utter joy to help Sokovian Aid and I am, as always, proud to be the patron of such a great cause.”

In the corner of your eye, you see movement from where your admirer has been perched all night. Maybe he is dying to get a better look at you.

“Sokovian Aid has been a charity very close to my family ever since we visited just after the end of the civil war.” There is more movement. People shift in seats and confusion flits over your expression, but you need to stay professional. “We saw poverty and pain, but a community so full of life and—”

BANG.

Blood rings in your ears as your body is brought heavily to the floor, thumping gracelessly against the tile. A much larger body is hunched over your own and just above the foggy, muted ringing in your head there is definite screaming. Shock and fear momentarily stuns your breathing—have you been hurt? Have you been hurt and you just can’t feel it yet?

There is one certainty. A chest is pressed tightly against your own, protecting you, a heart thudding desperately loudly against your trembling hands.

“Don’t panic, your highness,” a voice confidently says, deep and masculine. “You’re okay. You’re fine.”

Your breath hitches in your chest. There are a thousand possible questions but none of them make it out your mouth, which is extremely uncharacteristic indeed.

“Shooter neutralised.” The voice says into what you can only assume is a communicator. A fuzzy voice replies. “Emerald is unharmed. I will escort her to the safehouse point. Over.”

Shooter? Is this—a botched assassination?

“Are you okay to stand, your highness?”

The man’s body untangles from your own and you see him for the first time. Tall, muscular, dressed in a well-fitting suit filled out by a bulletproof vest underneath. A communicator, black and discreet, curls from his ear to the collar of his shirt. His hair is dark, neatly trimmed, with the ghost of stubble across his cheeks. You blink whilst his sharp eyes stare at you expectantly. Wordlessly, you nod, accepting his strong outstretched hand.

When you look around the room, it is almost completely empty, other than the usual FBI types that constantly linger wherever you go. Every event you attend is manned by some sort of protection, whether that is the police, secret services or a private, vetted company. You have never cared to figure out which, as you rarely have to deal with them for more than a few moments. You’ve always despised having people hang around you like shadows with ID badges.

Then it strikes you. It strikes you that someone in this room came here with the intention to end your life.

“Your highness. Your highness.” The officer who saved you raises his voice to get your attention. “There has just been an attempt on your life. The culprit has been reprimanded, but we cannot be certain that he was the only shooter within the vicinity. I have permission from your family to take you to a safe house. Do you understand? You have to come with me.”

You nod, but you feel lightheaded and nauseous. People are running urgently around you. Connie, you notice, is long gone, as well as your favourite bachelor. You love attention, but not this frantic, frightening kind—the man’s hand steadies you, stopping your feet from crumbling beneath you.

“We have to go now, your highness. You’re safe as long as you’re with me, alright?”

The last thing you see is his concerned expression before you pass out in his arms.

-

taglist: @nacho-bucky​ @multifanloves* @nerd-without-a-cause​ @starnight-charmer​ @tinymalscoffee​ @xogs* @thatsbucknasty​ @wheni-driftoff-illdream-aboutyou​ @learisa​ (* indicates couldn’t be tagged)

#you made a mess of me #bucky barnes #marvel #mcu #bucky fic #bucky au #bucky barnes au #fanfic #marvel fic #bucky x reader #bucky barnes x reader #bucky x you #bucky barnes x you #bucky x y/n #bucky barnes x y/n #bucky barnes imagine #bucky imagine

[disregardcanon]

end of year writing meme

time for my end of year writing meme! this has been a tradition for me since 2015 or 16, so i’m excited to keep it up :) i normally do it ON new year’s eve because i write over winter break. but.

i have the depression/anxiety cocktail and have to go back to teaching next monday so i highly doubt i’ll get anything else written or posted by then. sigh

tagging @titaniumsansa @bodhimcbodeface and anyone else who wants to do it

Total Stories Written: 18 on ao3 19 completed total

Total Words Written: i know my ao3 stats are shifted p drastically this year because i updated two extensive drabble collections, but i do have more unposted drafts this year so i’ll just go with it. 96k Average Words Per Story: about 5k as the mean, which tracks Shortest Story: 370 words Heaven on Her Mind Longest: 11,875 words Academia Nuts

Looking back, did you write more fic than you thought you would this year, less, or about what you’d predicted?

less! i knew i’d write less this year than i have in the past because student teaching and then first year of teaching are both supposed to be hell, but i kind of expected going into quarantine that would give me the time and energy to write.

but NO! in some months of quarantine i wrote less than i did during student teaching, certified most stressful time of my life

What pairing/genre/fandom did you write most?

pairing: cassunzel! coming in clutch at 6 stories

genre: no fucking clue

fandom: tangled was the most by number, but i think jedi fallen order is the most by word count because those two fics combined come in about 13k

What pairing/genre/fandom did you write that you would never have predicted in January? uh, that’s probably rwby. i always knew that when i watched rwby i’d go feral but i didn’t expect to watch it this year

Did you take any writing risks this year? i think my biggest writing risk was writing a 12k fic with romcom tropes about a platonic relationship no one cares about from a mainly dead fandom

Academia Nuts, the one where merlin and morgana are bickering in-laws and academic rivals

Do you have any fanfic or general writing goals for the new year? i would frankly just like the time and energy TO write. this year has been the most stressful and depressing time of my life and that’s reflected in my writing output. i would like to see more output because i have more energy and drive to do the things that make me happy again

From the past year of writing, what was your…

Best story of this year: the thing with feathers fluttering in her chest the jedi fallen order fic about trilla suduri capturing cal kestis but still eventually deciding to defect

Personal favorite: Smoke Rises, Cinder Falls my personal take on the cinder backstory before it dropped! while i definitely like where the show took the backstory better because the hotel imagery is TOP NOTCH i still love what i did here. i think that i made good use of style and the information that we had, and i think that the salem connection works very nicely

Most under-appreciated: i know calling a fic with 65 kudos “underrated” is a bit ridiculous, but this is for a very large fandom. it might be dead but i still think it could drum up a bit more support :(

Academia Nuts, the merlin and morgana are bickering in-laws and academic rivals fic

Most fun to write: as a reward for being so fucking happy that biden won the election for real, i rewarded myself by writing the pines family reacting to it

Remember, Remember the 7th of November

Story with the single sexiest moment: how about that inquisitor caltrilla au?

I Want You to Want Me

Most “holy crap, that’s wrong, even for you” story: captive caresses, the one where the v shaped polyamory dynamic that i normally do with cassunzel and new dream isn’t so healthy

Most challenging to write: from a technical standpoint that would be academia nuts, but from a personal standpoint...

Scar Tissue, the steven universe fic about connie still keeping secrets from her parents

Biggest disappointment: frankly, nothing i wrote this year can be a disappointment because i put words on a page. however, i will say that i could have polished this one that i wrote years ago up more before i posted it

Holy Ground, the shireen/jeyne poole fic from like 2015

Favorite character to write: i didn’t get stuck on a fandom long enough to get a favorite character to write tbh

Favorite opening lines:

Sometimes, when Rapunzel wakes up in the morning, she likes to pretend that everything is alright. She closes her eyes and imagines that Cass is right down the hall, just like she used to be. Rapunzel will burst into her room as soon as she gets up, ready to plot some new mischief to keep them busy for the day. Cass will roll her eyes, but she’ll go along with it because she secretly enjoys Rapunzel’s plans. She’ll smile when Rapunzel isn’t looking, and she’ll call her Raps with a soft fondness that makes Rapunzel's heart melt.

Jeung

Sophie knows that she shouldn’t be walking home alone at this hour. Of course she knows that. She’s a tiny white girl who lives in Gotham with little self-defense training or experience in athletics. She’s had “don’t walk home alone” beaten into her head for so many years she wonders if those were the first words the nurse said when she came into this world.

 Not “it’s a girl!” but “don’t let her walk home alone at night!” 

Walk Me Home in the Dead of Night

Favorite closing lines:

“Follow me,” the fairy godmother ordered, taking a brisk step forward. Cinder followed without question, just a step behind. Following, following, following- just as she would be following her until the end of time. Cinder was her protege, after all, and must be prepared to take over the fairy godmother’s work someday.

That day would not come for many years, but it would come. And the fairy godmother would finally have everything  she ever wanted.

Smoke Rises, Cinder Falls

Trilla can’t exactly have her second-in-command stay that low in the hierarchy forever. A consort to a queen needs to walk only a few steps behind her, after all.

I Want You to Want Me

Other favorite lines:

She can lead a horse to independent thought, but she can’t make him think.

The Name Game

When Trilla gets back to her room, she grabs the damn cube and throws it against her wall as hard as she can. It doesn’t break, because the holocron is made of stronger stuff than that.  Cal Kestis  is made of stronger stuff than that.

Maybe she’s the only one in the world who’s so capable of shattering.

the thing with feathers fluttering in her chest

“You don’t have to forgive him,” Fuyumi says, “just don’t kill him.”

“Because he can’t come back from that?” Dabi demands, “a corpse can’t  decide that it wants to love its daughter, right?” Dabi watches as the  knife twists, and Fuyumi’s facade finally crumbles. She slams her mug of  tea down on the table, and they're both lucky that it's not full  anymore or the hot liquid would have come flying out.

Justice Without Dispassion

“But you’re a good trainer,” Lillie says, “you’re what I want to evolve into.” Selene shakes her head.

“We're  from different evolutionary lines,” she says, “you evolving into me  would be like- I don’t know. A Charmander evolving into a Blastoise.”  Lillie looks like she’s holding the fur even tighter, and Selene snakes  her hand underneath to disentangle Lillie’s hand from the fur and give  her something else to clutch. Lillie squeezes her hand like a stuffed  Jigglypuff that people carry around to squeeze away their stress.

“But  what if I’m stuck at Charmander forever, and what if Blastoise is  better than Charizard, and what if I’m just- just not cut out for this?”

Even Gods Like Cuddles

“Do you remember when we were really little,” you say, “and I used to  come over for dress up parties. I’d wear your extra princess dress, let  you do my hair however you wanted.” You smile, thinking about how cute  the pictures that Bianca’s mom took of you two looked. Your mother  always said that they’d be good blackmail material, someday, but-

It wasn’t ever shameful, especially not if your mother didn’t make you feel ashamed.

“Of  course,” Bianca says, “you were always the best at sitting still. No  one else would have let me do their nails and makeup.” You’re not  looking at her, but you can hear the soft smile in her voice.

“You were always so indulgent, Hils. I really appreciated that.”

“I wasn’t being indulgent,” you say, balling your hand into a little fist and rubbing your thumb over your knuckles.

“I always- I just,” you say, “I wanted to be that “girl friend” that you always wanted.”

Girl Talk

#end of year writing meme #writing meme #sunkelles writes

[hispeculiartreasure]

All We’ve Got is Time - Chapter Two | B.B.

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Female Reader

AU: If They’d Survived/Window Washer!Bucky Barnes

Rating: General Audiences

Word count: 1,800ish

Chapter 2/24

Warnings: None.

AN: One last chapter of some set-up before we dive in deep! Thanks for all the love for this series, it really warms my heart! Special shoutout to @barnesrogersvstheworld for reading over this and helping me find something that was missing. You the best, Attie.

Chapter One

Series Masterlist

The remainder of your first day passes fairly quickly between entry paperwork and an endless list of demands from your new boss. Currently he’s provided you with a mountain of letters he had clumsily typed in the time he’d been without a typist. You have the happy task of proofreading and retyping before the correspondence is mailed. The page in front of you is covered in red pencil-marks, denoting how desperately Anderson needed a typist.

Mid-circle, a fellow typist interrupts you to introduce herself and welcome you to the office. She’s bubbly and talks a hundred miles an hour, but she’s kind. The chances are low that you’ll remember her name after the day you’ve had, but you try to be as cheerful and friendly as possible.

Alright, back to paperwork. Blah blah blah, ‘looking for a person with experience amf charisma’-wait, that should be ‘and’, lemme circle that- Your hand ghosts over your desk where you last remember dropping your pencil. Where did it- under these papers maybe? No. On the floor. . . where the hell did it go, that’s the only red pencil I’ve got. God, this day needs to be over because I’m about to lose my mind. I-

A rapid tapping about makes you jump out of your skin. You hear the tap several more times, swiveling your head around the office. It isn’t until you turn to the window that you find what - or more accurately, who - is making the noise.

A window washer right outside the window - the same man who’s near-death you’d experienced this morning. He’s smiling kindly and- What is he doing?

Even though every hair is in place, he’s acting like he’s brushing a piece behind is ear. He lets out an amused huff at what you assume is your thoroughly confused expression. A finger points at you, then repeats the action.

Is my hair doing something crazy? This is embarrassing. I don’t feel anything out of plac- Oh.

You pull the missing pencil from behind your ear, having no memory of putting it there in the first place. A deep sigh leaves you, tension from the first day trying to find some relief.

“Thank you,” you mouth. He nods in response which you take to mean You’re welcome.

He holds up his pointer finger and quirks an eyebrow. You nod. “First day, yeah.”

He takes an exaggerated breath in, holds it, and releases it.

You laugh quietly to yourself. Yeah, I do need to breathe.

“Good luck,” he says silently. You nod again and share in a smile before someone calling your name takes your attention away from the window.

As the days go by, you find yourself settling into your new role. It’s an adjustment from your previous position, that you can’t deny. But there are still methodical steps to follow and the clacking of your typewriter’s keys always soothes your frayed nerves. An unexpected addition to your job has been seeing Mr. Barely-Alive Window Washer. Every day he drops down from above to wash a window on your floor.

From what you can tell from his pattern, he starts on the highest floor and rappels down to wash each window below in that column until he reaches the ground. The next day, he starts one column of windows over and descends again. Which means he came to clean one of your giant windows once a day when he was on your side of the building. And it was typically right after lunch, usually when you move from typing originals to writing up copies. More out of curiosity than anything else you find yourself sneaking glances at him. 

Boy, was he handsome. The plop-him-on-a-movie-set-right-now kind of handsome. Now that he wasn’t falling to his doom, his dark hair was slicked back, perfectly styled, which only serves to highlight a firm, stubbled jaw line. He’s not the bulkiest guy you’ve ever seen but you sense a leaner strength that could only be the result of working hard on-the-job.

You catch yourself staring so you divert your attention back to the pile of paperwork you need to type up, distribute, and file. Next time you look out the window, you catch him staring. He smiles guiltily, tilting his head to the side in a Sorry kinda way. You smile back, wave, and shake your head. Don’t worry about it.

He continues with his duties and when you look over again, he’s gone.

“Whaddya say, Newbie?”

“Huh?” you rotate your chair to face the gaggle of girls surrounding Suzy’s desk.

“You didn’t hear a word we said, did you?” the redhead asks smugly, a hint of knowing in her eye.

“Sorry, got distracted.”

The blonde perched on Suzy’s desk - Connie, you think is her name - waggles her eyebrows at you. “We’re talking Captain America.”

“Connie is a little obsessed, if you hadn’t gathered.” Your eyes flit to the sultry young woman on the other side of Suzy. Her name is . . . Charity? “Went to three separate shows of his before he became an actual war hero.”

“Obsessed is a strong word. And if I was, could you blame me?” she fans herself dramatically, drawing a giggle from the group. “So, Newbie. There’s rumors that he’s back in New York for good. Ya think it’s gossip or fact?”

You shake your head. “I have no clue. From the sounds of it, you’d know better than anyone else.”

“I think he’s here. He’s originally from New York, ya know.”

“What does he have that’s here? Family?” Suzy asks skeptically.

“I wonder what his day-job is now. . .” sighs a smaller girl whose name you kick yourself for forgetting.

Connie leans in, “Well I heard he’s doing top-secret work for the government.”

Your bark of laughter draws everyone’s gaze back to you. “Come on, you can’t be serious.” All eyes are on you, no one else is laughing. “I mean, that’s ridiculous. I’m sure he’s gone back to a normal job just like everyone else.”

“There is nothing normal about that man, if you catch my drift.”

“Constance Adler!” Suzy fusses, “Settle down, Flannery will be back any minute.”

“I’m not wrong!” she holds her hands up defensively. “What I’d give for just an evening of that man’s time.” Everyone groans, several wads of paper being tossed at her from different desks before it dissipates into giggles.

“Did I miss a scheduled meeting?” a cool voice echoes in the now-silent room.

Connie jumps three feet into the air, landing on her feet. “No ma’am,” the group answers.

“Then I trust we will all be returning to our work?”

A unanimous “yes ma’am” sounds off before the group scatters to their work stations.

Flannery looks between you and Suzy before rotating stiffly on her heel. Suzy sticks out her tongue out to Flannery’s back, prompting you to bite hard on your lip to avoid being caught laughing.

Things aren’t so bad here after all.

------

Friday afternoon, you stare at the envelope that contains payment for your first week of work. While it definitely contains more than your last post had paid, you dread how you “have” to spend it this weekend. Sure, you could ignore your boss’s wishes and continue dressing like you had all week. But your gut told you that the man wouldn’t take kindly to thumbing your nose at him. It wasn’t like you dressed inappropriately. Your blouses were always crisp and neat and your pants pressed and clean. Though from eyeing the other ladies in the office, you’ve come to realize you were the only one who preferred pants to skirts. Your job in the factory had gotten you accustomed to dressing practically and safely - not to mention more comfortably. The idea that you had to go back to a life of pumps and snug dresses was daunting, but you knew you had to make an effort.

Your roommate had already promised to take you to a beauty parlor to get a fashionable cut after she had hinted that your natural hairstyle was slightly dated. Debbie was a lover of all things makeup and jumped at the chance to help you “glam up” your usual routine. You don’t usually give much thought to how you look. Not from lack of vanity, but becoming accustomed to your quality of work being a higher priority than how you looked. Now you had to accept the fact that you didn’t have that luxury. To do well in this office, you’ll have to look the part.

“You coming, Newbie?” Suzy chirps, handbag in tow.

“Coming where?”

“Flannery had a doctor’s appointment, so a coupla us are ditching early to grab drinks. Connie just has to hit up this club where Captain America’s been sighted.” You both roll your eyes simultaneously. “But there’s alcohol, so I’m in. You?”

“I think it’s a little early on in my career to be leaving work early. Maybe next time.” You smile, hoping it softens the refusal.

“Suit yourself,” she turns with a shrug. “You had a good first week, kid. See ya Monday!”

The office has thinned out through the day, only you and a few other employees are left plugging away at paperwork. Bristles scraping against glass diverts your attention from the monotonous work. Mr. Window Washer was back working on a new pane. This one seemed to be causing him a bit of trouble if you took his scrunched up eyebrows as any indication. With determination he scrubbed hard at a particular spot, continuing to add water and soap to the mix.

Armed with a smirk and a handkerchief from your handbag you join him on your side of the glass. Ignoring his puzzled look, you easily wipe the black smudge off of the inner window. “Thanks,” he mouths with a small smile before he rinses the soap and clears the window of excess water. As you turn back to your chair, he waves you back. He taps his temple twice and points at you. Smart girl.

You snort and gesture to the paperwork covering your desk. “Bored,” you say, doing your best to communicate how dull the work was on your face.

The corner of his mouth turns up and he nods with sympathy. He huffs a sigh, aiming his gaze to the rest of the windows he has to clean today. He seems tired, a little run down. From the week you had been here, you could tell he worked hard. You found yourself hoping he had a moment to rest the upcoming weekend.

He points down to the ground and shrugs. Gotta go. You wag your fingers with a smile which he easily returns before sliding down to the fifth floor. Facing your desk again, you check your watch, wishing the day would speed up so you could make it to Macy’s before they closed.

Chapter Three

Tags

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#Bucky Barnes x Reader #Bucky x Reader #Reader Insert #Marvel Fanfiction #Bucky Barnes fanfiction #All We've Got is Time #beka writes #Chapter Two #don't mind me i'm scheduling this while avoiding thinking about endgame #when this posts endgame will be breaking my heart #so have some fluff

[silyabeeodess]

Thoughts on “The Promised Neverland” Season One

So... Yesterday, I binge-watched The Promised Neverland.

It’s amazing.

I’ll write down individual points I liked and disliked about the series below the cut, as there will be some spoilers; however for those who haven’t seen the show yet and don’t want to have anything ruined for them, I’ll just say here that I highly recommend it.  I’m not a big fan of the horror genre due to certain issues with story that tend to be commonplace in it--specifically in film/tv--but this series is near perfection.  You’ll be left on the edge of your seat at all times, placed in the constant unease and unknown that the main characters feel as they try to survive their situation.  In the very least, give episode one a watch: Fair warning though that you might not be able to stop.  

Jumping right off of that last note, let’s get to pacing. In short, it’s great!  In many cases with an anime’s first season, especially when they’re based on an ongoing manga series as intense as this one, they can fall into a trap where it seems that the creators just want to be sure to give the show a satisfying conclusion in the limited number of episodes they’re given at the start.  As a result, you can have a great manga series that gets rushed through in its anime adaptations.  Instead of pushing through a whole manga and/or giving the show original plot points to patch over the holes the former hasn’t touched yet, Season One of The Promised Neverland focuses on a selection of chapters in which to tell its story. I don’t know enough about the show behind the scenes to know if they’d already been given a second season, but either way, this was a wise choice.  Even though the season does end on a--in one sense, literal--cliffhanger, the conclusion is satisfying enough that it could’ve ended there if the anime didn’t gain enough popularity to keep going or couldn’t be finished for some other reason.  More importantly though, there isn’t anything regarding story or characters forcibly cut to makeup for adding in points that are important to the greater story overall.  Effectively, Season One was able to take its time introducing/developing the characters and setting in a self-contained story.  There are some time-skips, as the events occur over the course of a few months, but this never affects the greater points concerning the characters actions/end goals.  It’s only an issue regarding physical growth as the children work to build up their strengths in secret--and you see plenty enough on-screen action taking place over the course of the season to make this growth overtime apparent.   

This is largely a nitpick, so I figured I’d put it here even though it’s kind of out of place.  (Honestly, I wouldn’t know where to place it on the list beyond this anyway.)  There’s a point brought up in the show that you think would be a little more important to the story, where the kids bring up that winter is also on its way so they’ve got triple the urgency to leave while they have the chance. (Not only would they have to deal with the cold, but also a lack of food to forage as they survived on their own.)  However, you don’t see the weather change in the story despite time’s passing, so you don’t see the problem either with why they need to go before winter beyond Ray’s birthday in January.  Everything pretty much always stays green, which is weird because you know the place can get snow as seen from Norman’s flashback to when he was sick as a little kid.  It just seems like a silly point to bring up since it’s only mentioned once and even the setting fails to depict it.

For the characters, I’ll split this into a few points.  One thing that I enjoy is that no one character is painted as being solely in the right.  You can argue that Emma is the main protagonist we’re meant to follow, and I’d agree there, but we’re not meant to take everything she says or does as gospel as some shows like to depict their heroes/heroines. It’s stated early on and repeated at points later in the show that her idealism and naivety, while good, can also lead to tragic results if she allows them to get in the way of rational thinking. This creates a nice balance between the other two main protagonists, Norman and Ray.  Ray is pretty much the opposite of Emma, thinking of their situation from a “survival of the fittest” mindset and willing to go to whatever extreme to save his friends and secondarily himself: He’s critical and always willing to consider the worst, capable of tackling some of their hardest challenges as a result, with the others able to reign him back and show him what things he’s allowed to have hope in despite how impossible things may seem, never allowing him to give up even when that may be the only “rational” option. Norman can admire these strong aspects of both Ray and Emma, understanding Ray’s rationale while also working to meet Emma’s ideals, with both catering to his planning.  He can, however, also take too much onto himself--to the point of leaving others in the dark to some of his plans and martyrdom.  Granted, much of his use of controlling knowledge in this way is effective, but he can also assume what’s best without really consulting anyone else.  He assumes what he thinks others can or can’t handle, not entirely accepting their input and adding more onto himself than necessary. This is what makes decisions like Emma’s choice to tell more of the other kids the truth so important whereas Norman can keep even Emma in the dark, as much as he likes her, about some of the issues that arise with Ray following his reveal as the “traitor.”  They make for a very dynamic and engaging trio to follow.  

Even the antagonists, who both the heroes and the audience is made to fear, are given this treatment.  We all know about how a lot of stories try to make their villains “sympathetic,” for better or worse, and The Promised Neverland certainly does that--just never to the point where you’re willing to dismiss their actions.  Mama Isabella and Sister Krone can be as monstrous as the demons over them, and the show depicts this from their condescending treatment toward the children, to their willingness to kill without remorse for the sake of their own lives and positions, to their chilling facial expressions.  We’re just also given a glimpse as to how such monsters can be created.  Their actions are neither justified or ignored, but rather grimly understood.  Mother’s Basement on YouTube covered this in more detail on Isabella in particular, so I’ll link his video here for those interested.

One thing I will say negatively regarding characters though is that I don’t really like how Sister Krone was utilized.  Beyond shuffling through each chapter’s synopsis after the point where the anime ends because I really wanted to know what was over the wall and couldn’t wait, I haven’t read the manga; however, from what I’ve seen, a lot of people seem to be in agreement that Krone wasn’t used properly. Just compared to the treatment the other characters received in the anime, I have to side with them.  Krone’s appearance in the opening immediately interested me, and her polar behavior in her introduction to that just as much.  From that point on though, she remains kind of static.  We see a lot of interactions with her and this old doll that could’ve added to her character, but the dialogue and body language taking place then really only focuses on how creepy she is.  And that pretty much sums up her entire character for the longest while: She’s creepy.  She incredibly open about her goal to become a Mama to the audience, so there’s not much mystery there.  The softer, friendly façade we see her wear in the opening is hidden in the bulk of the show--to the point that, when she engages with the kids in a friendly manner that would actually make them think she can be trusted, she’s only shown as a silhouette and so we can't see her face.  When we do see her try to pretend to be amicable and on the kid’s side, she’s either taking them down in a “game” of tag like a berserker or grinning like a titan from Shingeki no Kyojin.  We already know the main children aren’t going to trust her, but it just doesn’t make her believably deceptive regarding the others.  There’s even some weird moments where her actions seem contradictory, such as trying to turn Isabella in despite--at least as far as Krone believed at the time--getting moved to be a Mama at another plant.  I get that she didn’t like Isabella, but there was just no point to continue going after her or anything to indicate that Krone would after getting what she wanted by becoming a Mama herself.  Why would her hatred of Isabella outweigh her main objective?  The one time we see Krone really develop as a character, sadly, is when she dies and we’re given a true first glimpse at how young girls are selected to be Mamas and Sisters beyond a scar and retelling.  I would’ve liked to have seen more exploration into her mindset and character, even if it could only be done in subtle actions. 

It’s rare to have a horror story without death, so let’s talk about how The Promised Neverland uses it.   Well, anyone who simply wants to see a bloodbath will be incredibly disappointed, but I’m certainly not!  The setup, showing, and aftermath first death in the very first episode is all that’s needed to establish the overwhelming threat of the demons and immediate threat that is Isabella.  It was orchestrated in a way where that horror seeps in slowly, even without actually seeing a character die onscreen and instead just the body.  You immediately know something’s wrong when the camera focuses on Isabella leading Connie away in near-complete darkness, without bg music, as Connie innocently tries to talk to her and only receives a bare smile in return.  The presentation of the corpse wasn’t a gorefest, but instead Connie’s greyed face--drained of life and lying in an awkward pose--looks as if her body was left abandoned for some time. This was a great artistic direction, not only nodding to the use of the flowers protruding from the body, but also to the cold manner in which she was killed as “cattle.”  This isn’t a bloody, aggressive killing, nor is any real respect shown to her remains: She’s a number, thrown away by Isabella and left to wait until the demons ship her off in a tank.  Krone’s death was orchestrated in a similar but different way, with flashes of the kids--unware of what’s happening--eating dinner happily as she fights for her life against a demon that hardly even seems to register her lashing out and approaches her steadily.  Again, a character is killed in a methodical fashion, the same flower piercing her in the chest with a slow and almost delicate as it is precise movement.  The fear seems to stem less from threat of death itself and more in the manner in which they’re conducted, not just in the treatment of humans as food, but the detachment of their killers. 

Now to the animation.  Personally, I really like it.  I’m a big fan of all of the subtle movements and expressions that were given focus, from a shaky hand to the crinkle of an eye.  This attention to detail can make the viewer almost hyper aware of how the characters move and react to things, which is pivotal to this show in particular given how much the characters themselves need to read one another’s body language in order to figure out what they’re hiding from each other.  This is brought up too at different points, such as Norman telling Emma to keep smiling and act normal, later paying off when Isabella tries to interrogate her about not being her “happy self” in the hallway, and Sister Krone recognizing that the kids know about the tracking devices based on their lack of a response to her telling them about it despite their playing dumb.  These explanations serve just as much as a way to tell the audience to pay attention.  

People sometimes bring up the CGI as a bad thing, but I actually like it.  Yes, it’s a little weird to look at, but I think it’s so off-putting that it actually adds tension to the scenes, especially during key moments when the characters are just walking through the House and the camera focuses on them doing simple actions like opening a door: The environment is supposed to feel uncomfortable.  You don’t know who’s around the corner listening in to your conversations.  You don’t know who’s going to come into the room while you’re in the middle of planning or hiding an important tool for your escape.  The House isn’t safe: If the whole area is a farm, the House itself is a cattle pen.  Everything just looks normal.  Therefore, using CGI as a technique serves as a good way to cater to those unnerved, off feelings than changing that environment itself would have.  It feeds into the perspective of the main characters, how they know how wrong everything is despite the illusion of a comfortable home. 

Last, but not least, we get to my absolute favorite thing about the show: The camera. I absolutely love the shots taken in this series.  My favorite thing is how often the camera will show characters with some kind of frame, be it the leaves of a bush or around the edge of a doorway.  This use of framing places the audience in the perspective of a spy, someone lurking behind the next corner and listening in on the kids’ plans of escape. It makes you feel like, at any minute, they could get caught during what is otherwise a still moment of dialogue.  Then, when they do actually get caught, it’s when the camera tends to be the most normal, catching you off-guard.  It’s just beautifully done.  

#the promised neverland #anime #thoughts #review