Tumgik
#christ almighty give him a break
jade-len · 2 months
Text
bad svsss fanfic/au idea: random marriage/guidance counselor transmigrates into PIDW, sees the absolute mess of lord luo bingge and his harem, goes "jesus fucking christ", and makes bank.
and like. they're probably not even that good of a counselor. it's just that people lack any sense when it comes to bingge, and since he's the emperor, that means pretty much everyone. also because therapy doesn't exist. i'll give them some credit though, whatever they hell they're doing works.
now, while sqq and sqh are having a grand ol' time in SVSSS with their husbands, this random, average counselor has to deal with being in the care of lord luo bingge. no wife beam. no anything. all they have is some basic empathy and common sense people just tend to lack in here for some reason.
it's even worse considering the fact that they've arrived after luo bingge completed his plan and became the hailed demon emperor. now, while they've never full on read the entire thing, they've heard enough from a close friend who has kept up with it to know the main character is the literal embodiment of the cycle of abuse and heavy unresolved issues. like, it got to the point where they started to unironically use luo bingge as an example of how to not deal with conflicts and trauma.
really, how could people like bingge? seriously, it's just another edge lord main character with way too many glamorized issues and abuse. red flag! (hey, who the hell is peerless cucumber and why does he keep defending binghe? lord, have mercy on these impressionable young men...)
so, after being kidnapped taken in by bingge and his wives after the bunch claimed that they were a "wise man" or whatever (all they did was offer some basic relationship advice to some poor woman, who turned out to be ning yingying, who told the other wives, and it just spiraled from there), they were deemed "special" and given their personal office and a room! hey, better than being on the streets in this god forsaken hentai-ish world, i guess.
quickly, a routine was established. one that, especially, consisted of luo bingge outright ignoring them. which, they weren't complaining about!
wake up, eat, meet with multiple of the wives, spend their hard earned money on delicious delicacies, meet with more wives, sleep, repeat. the most interaction they had with the demon emperor was him ordering them around, but even then, that was uncommon. it was, surprisingly, easy to fall into the rhythm of this undoubtedly odd life. you're upset that lord luo hasn't spent much time with you? maybe you can ask! the other wives are being annoying? remove yourself from the situation. you're upset that lord luo has so many other wives? oohhh... yeah. uhm.
luo binghe only tolerated them, they knew that. and they're sure that, if not for multiple of his wives insisting on keeping them, they'd be dead for even daring to be so "intimate" with them. a little bit of a shock, if they do say so themself. like, insecure much (something that they'll probably never get used to is the fact that bingge built an entire little village for his wives, though)?
but that's not the most shocking thing, oh, no.
it's this.
"i- i tried.. i tried to take the.. hiic-- other.. other shizun w-with me.." lord luo binghe, the powerful, almighty demon emperor, trembles and sobs. "b-but he! he wanted to-- s-stay with that.. stupid, inferior version of my- hic- self.."
despite the mountain of gold they're getting paid in, is it really enough to deal with this? probably not. will they get killed for witnessing luo binghe's vulnerability? perhaps. is he a dictator, the embodiment of the cycle of abuse, and a crazily vengeful bastard? definitely.
"it's-- s' not.." his voice breaks. something else inside of them probably does, too. "..n-not, hiic- fair."
should they feel bad? they shouldn't. he's hurt much too many people. isn't it a little late? can he even be redeemed? because, they are absolutely not here to try and "fix" him.
and yet.
"can you breathe, lord luo? deep breaths, don't focus on anything else but me, okay? i'll do it with you too. can you do that for me? there, there. you're doing a very good job, do you know that? here, when i'm upset, sometimes i like to do something called, '5-4-3-2-1'. i promise it'll help, binghe. would you like for me to do this one with you too?"
they can't help but think about a small, lonely boy on qing jing peak.
. . .
after that, bingbing slowly starts to come around and develop an actual bond! cool!! he just,,, can't believe only his wives were granted the "wisdom". how foolish was he?
"i know i'm only a mere human, but i can tell that lord luo is... masking things. you can put that away for now, okay? i promise, everything you say here will be confidential information, and it'll never leak... no no there's no enemy spies here-"
"i'm not even going to question this. you go back there right now and deal with it yourself if you cannot respect me or the other clients. aka, your wives."
"no, it's not stupid. this is how people help themself, and it's okay if you want to do it. as long as it doesn't hurt you or anybody. it helps, and that's all that matters."
"oh? one of your wife confronted to you about it? i'm glad to hear that, she's doing well, i see. i'm also happy that you're listening too, really."
"yes, and when something like that happens, you--- no- don't pull out xin mo now. what did we say about that? good job."
"here, can i touch your hands, binghe? there we go. when you're unsteady, you feel the need to pick at your skin, correct? well, let's try a few different things to keep those hands busy! it must be quite stressful being an emperor. how about we start with crocheting! it's quite popular back at my hometown."
"your mother sounds like a wonderful woman, lord luo. hey, how about you take a small break and visit her, okay? you want me to come with you? of course, it'd be an honor."
and thus, the story of the poor transmigrator counselor continues on with luo bingge added to their schedule!! this could be read as romantic or platonic lol. but i was thinking of this as luo bingge obtaining his first actual friend. it takes a long while due to bingge's... bingge-ness, but eventually it all works out lmao
179 notes · View notes
icallhimjoey · 9 months
Note
“Nah,” Joe said, and when you looked at him, you grew immediately shy. The little smirk and the mischievous eyes threatened trouble. “I can break her...”
CHRIST ALMIGHTY. How dare you write this AND add that cheeky picture of Joe at the header I’m 🫠🫠🫠
I’m obsessed already. I cannot wait to see how this goes… or for the week of good head 😏
took me a second, but we're HERE, at part 2. pls enjoy! Wordcount: 3.7K
---
Double Or Nothing
Tumblr media
part one - part two - part three - part four - part five
The first half of those seven days passed excruciatingly slowly. But they passed, and when you remembered how you thought on that first day that you could pretend you hadn’t pinky-promised each other to get into this stupid bet together... fuck, how big of an idiot were you?
Everything was sort of different now, but also... was it? Was it really?
Had there not always been tension? Flirting that easily got passed off as platonic banter between friends?
Like that one time, months ago, when Joe had walked in on you in an oversized T-shirt, bare thighs on show, as you’d been singing along to Taylor Swift in your living room.
The “What’s going on here? The music? The mood lighting? Got the wine out, Jesus Christ, that’s it, we’re having sex on the sofa tonight!” comment Joe made upon the sight of you had made Izzy laugh until she cried. The fact that Joe only realised that Izzy was even in the room with you after she burst out laughing made the whole ordeal even funnier.
Or, you know, there were those countless other times where Joe would touch you with extremely stupid excuses. Saying shit like, “Wow, no, look at these pockets,” whilst unashamedly grabbing at your ass, or, “Oh this looks nice,” and just letting the back of his hand graze a tit in front of all of your friends.
It had always just been jokes, though. Shit he did with other people around, and you’d all laugh, and then nobody would really think anything of it.
Shit, did they think anything of it?
Surely not. Right?
On the Saturday morning, the night after the bet had been made, you kind of thought that the bet was just another one of those silly things. Something you’d laugh at next week, when people would ask, and Joe would say some goofy shit whilst wiggling his eyebrows.
Because that’s how these things went.
But then the doorbell had gone, and Izzy had let Joe in whilst you’d been scrambling eggs for breakfast. And you’d gone, “hey,” all casual, because you thought maybe he was there for Izzy. But then Izzy said she was going to go for a shower and Joe had joined you in the kitchen in complete silence. Made himself a coffee that he then dumped four sugars into.
He paused and slightly looked up at you to gain your reaction. He’d seen you look, but you attention was back with the eggs that were nearly finished.
“That piss you off?”
“What?”
Joe held up four fingers, and said, “That’s too much sugar, surely,” before using a spoon to annoyingly clink against the cup loudly as he stirred. You just stared at him a second, because what the fuck was Joe even doing there with you in the kitchen? But then the clinking of the spoon went on for far too long, sugar long dissolved, and he just stared right back at you. Challengingly so. Slight smirk playing his lips, and that’s when the penny dropped. Suddenly it clicked. Joe was just there to get under your skin. He’d come over to just to be around you, to prove to you that he was very able to be a massive turn off and that he knew exactly how to give you the ick.
Joe hammered it home when he slurped his first sip, all exaggerated, dragging it for as long as he could. He barely got any coffee into his mouth in the process. And sure, it was annoying, but when you looked and saw those huge eyes stare at you over the cup, it just made you grin.
You turned off the hob and shrugged before commenting, “Four’s fine, I kind of love it sweet.”
1-0 you thought. Especially when you saw him grimace at the cup he was holding. Four was definitely too many.
When Joe sat down with you when you were about to have your breakfast, he used his fingers to steal small bits of egg from your plate.
You looked at him as you chewed.
“No? This not getting you?” Joe tried, and you simply shook your head.
“Sorry, I’m harder to crack I think,”
2-0.
You took another bite, and didn’t push Joe’s hand away as he reached for a little more of your meal. “So, are you just going to be around then... follow me around like a puppy dog, breathing down my neck as I run errands today?” you challenged, and Joe scoffed before he answered, “Try all week.”
“I’ve got work all week.”
“Yea, so have I, but I’ve got to be around if I want to win this bet, don’t I?” Joe smirked, leaning back in his chair, clearly relishing the challenge. “And lucky for you, I don’t have work today, I don’t have work tomorrow, and I’ve had most of my evenings cleared so I can really test these limits,”
Of which there were none, you finished mentally. But sure, Joe was allowed to try and find them. You wouldn’t mind him succeeding actually, because if he didn’t, wasn’t Joe essentially proving to you that you found him irresistibly attractive?
Maybe that’s why Joe was even here in the first place? What an ego boost to learn that nothing about you turned someone off. That you possessed nothing to make someone go, okay ew get out of my house now.
Surely, there had to be something... Joe was just going to have to find it for you, and whilst you silently did your very best to not panic over the fact that Joe seemed to really take this whole bet seriously, you outwardly acted like you weren’t.
You huffed out some laughter and shook your head at Joe’s playful grin as you chewed. The mischievous glint in his eyes didn’t bode well.
“All right, I’ve left everything that needed doing for the weekend, so, get ready,”
“Oh,” Joe frowned and tucked his chin in, “I was born ready.”
Flirty bastard.
And it was unfair, because Joe was cheating. He was cheating left, right and centre. You see, the goal shouldn’t have been to just piss you off. To seek it out. To do shit out of the ordinary, things Joe would never do, things he knew would gross anyone out. Not just you.
You tried telling Izzy that night as you prepared dinner that Joe had stuck around for.
“We’re going to need some more rules, because Joe–” you started, keeping an eye on the potatoes, but Joe interrupted.
“You’re such a sore loser,” Joe accused whilst he washed fresh produce in the sink.
“Have you ever seen Joe wiggle earwax from his ears with his little finger before?”
“Just admit that I gave you the ick and we can start the week of favours on Monday,”
“He never does that, but did it for like five minutes straight in Waitrose,”
“Should’ve seen her squirm,”
“He’s being disgusting just to be disgusting, it’s not fair,”
Izzy tried to follow what the both of you were saying, but you didn’t make it easy, speaking over each other and trying to not let the other get a word in edgeways.
“You really want to actually win this bet?” Joe challenged, referencing the week of oral sex, and just before you were about to openly admit it and yell, “Yes!” you were interrupted by Izzy who shouted, “All right!” over the both of you. You both shut up instantly.
“She’s right,” Izzy said after a short silence. “If you want this to be fair, you’ve got to do things you’d normally do,”
“But–”
“Only then!” Izzy held up a finger, shutting Joe right back up. “Only then will you get your week of favours,” she revealed her prediction of the outcome, to which you obviously took offence.
“Hey!”
“I’m sorry, but, you’ve got a track record that’s not really helping you a tonne, is it?”
And Izzy was right.
Joe let the rest of the night pass without cheating. He did try to suggestively play footsie, and you almost called him out for trying shit he’d normally not do. But, he hid what his foot was doing under the table from Izzy, kept a straight face even when he used his leg to hike your foot onto his lap, making you smirk at him. And, so, yea, maybe he’d have done that anyway, with or without this bet in place.
You didn’t know if you’d have let him continue rubbing a hand up your calf if you weren’t actively trying to prove something to him. But, here you were, accepting the one-handed foot rub whilst Joe ate his meal with the other.
Conversation flowed, mostly between Izzy and Joe, and when you checked your phone for the eighty-fourth time, Izzy tried to reach for it. Tried to snatch it from your hands to see what kept you busy looking at a screen every couple of minutes.
“You back on the apps?”
You evaded her hands and were quick to place your phone face down onto the table, out of her or Joe’s reach.
“I’m always on the apps.” You shrugged, both feet back on the floor and safely tucked under your chair.  
“Always on the apps...” Joe repeated you, shaking his head slowly. Then he asked, “Which ones?”
“Hinge, sometimes Happn,” you picked your phone up again, “Rarely Happn, actually. Mostly just Hinge, it feels like people are sort of normal there,”
“Not normal enough to have them stick around,” Izzy quipped, reaching for your plate as she started clearing the table.
“Well,” you let a laugh escape, light and airy, “It’s not like people are going to reveal the worst thing about them on their profile, are they?”
Izzy let out a heartly laugh on her way to the kitchen. “Worst thing about them? Like the way they look when their tongue searches for the straw in their drink?”
Ouch. Yea, Jasper did that. But he did that for every sip of every drink for every date you had been on. You had tried to ignore it, had secretly wished for him to stop getting drinks that came with fucking straws in, but alas. He didn’t. And then you couldn’t stop staring at it until you were physically repulsed by the man.
“Should get you on Raya,” Joe said, collecting all the empty glasses and grouping them together by the side of the table.
“Please don’t.”
“Why not?”
“Are you being serious? Dating apps are already pretentious enough as they are without having to fucking be invited for them,”
You could only imagine how flashy and haughty everyone was on there. You knew that included Joe, but he didn’t seem to take offence. He very rarely did when you said shit like that, actually.
“Well, let me know when you change your mind.”
When Joe left after dinner, Izzy found the toilet roll had changed position from over to under and grumpily scolded you. Said to not get her involved in this stupid bet. You said she was the one that came up with it, so, “Tough.”
On Sunday you visited your dad and completely avoided Joe. On Monday, you tried to do the same, even when you got a few texts. That’s why, on Tuesday, you saw Joe walk into the office when you were in the middle of a meeting. You were quick to excuse yourself.
You rushed over as discretely as you could and hissed, “What the fuck are you doing here?”
“Hey,” was all Joe said, “Let’s go for lunch somewhere,”
“Lunch?” you exclaimed like it was the wildest shit you’d ever heard. “It’s... it’s,” you checked the time only to realise it actually was very close to lunch time. You were so prepared to tell him it was far too early for lunch, but alas. It wasn’t.
You took a deep breath, nostrils flared. “You couldn’t have texted?”
Joe just stood there, feet planted into the carpet like a tree, smiling. He wasn’t going anywhere, and you fucking knew it.
“All right, I’ve got about 15, maybe 20 minutes before I can leave,” you said, and when Joe moved towards a sitting area off to the side, you grabbed him by the arm and pointed towards the lifts.
“You’re waiting outside,”
“Would I normally wait outside?” Joe played, because sure, he’d never come over to your actual office to take you out for lunch, but plenty of friends had and you never made them wait outside, did you?
“Absolutely,” you lied, and Joe saw right through it. Grinned, raised both eyebrows and asked, “You sure?”
“Yes,” you hissed, glancing behind you to see some of your colleagues ogling. Ugh. You knew a celebrity in the office was going to be the topic of conversation for weeks. Maybe that was it. Maybe that was the ick.
“All right, all right,” Joe held up both hands and laughed, “I’ll wait downstairs,”
And just before you were to open the door to get back into your meeting, Joe called, “Hey,” halting you.
“This get you?”
You couldn’t help the small smile that revealed itself on your face as you thought a second. “Depends on where we’re going,” you answered.
“Scarlett Green.”
“Stop it.” You pointed a threatening finger. You fucking loved Scarlett Green. Your grin grew wider before you tried your best to hide it. “Go,” you waved a hand to shoo Joe, making him laugh before turning on his heel.
At lunch, Joe reminded you of the last time the two of you were at Scarlett Green. It was a group outing on a random Sunday and you’d gone for brunch. Bottomless brunch. You and Izzy had both gotten so drunk on mimosas, you had to be escorted home to make sure you’d get there in one piece.
It would’ve been embarrassing, but you didn’t remember half of that day.
“Trying to make me feel bad for having a good time?”
“Is it working?”
You started noticing how often Joe would give you this... this face. Eyes narrowed and challenging, but lips pursed into a little smile, head tilted down a little – like a sexier adult version of a naughty little schoolboy. It was flirtatious, but, you’d seen Joe flirt before. This was different. This wasn’t giggly touches and sultry soft-spoken compliments. This was teasing and mocking and poking fun until it made you want to dig your nails into your forearms.
You were kind of into it.
“Okay,” Joe clapped his hands together after you got your orders taken. “Worst red flag ever, go,”
“I can’t,” you let out a huff of air. Not quite a laugh, but slightly amused still, and continued, “This is a lot of focus on my romantic life, I can’t really... I don’t want to,”
“Well,” Joe cocked his head and straightened a fork. “Kind of have to,” he said, voice all jokingly constricted, and before he had even finished the sentence, you’d already decided to play along.
“Gold front tooth.”
“Gold front tooth?!”
“None of his pictures showed him smiling with his teeth showing, and then we had a lovely conversation, decided to go for a date,” you shuffled in your seat as Joe leant forward, resting his head on his palm, listening, really tuning in. “And then when we met, we hugged and he’d just given me that, you do this too, that polite white man smile–”
“I’m sorry, I what?”
“This British awkward tight lipped stupid smile,” you continued, completely ignoring the wild confusion displayed on Joe’s face. “And he looked nice! Really quite handsome actually, and then...”
You pressed your lips together in an expression not far off this stupid smile you’d just mentioned Joe does all the time.
“And then he said hi and one of his two front teeth was gold. Gold, Joe.” you sounded pained, like it was the most heartbreaking thing you'd ever experienced.
It got a good laugh out of Joe.
“Kept looking down my top too, so, you know...” even if he'd had normal coloured human teeth, you still probably wouldn't have gone on a second date with him.
The mention of your tits made Joe's eyes flick down for just a second. You saw, but pretended you didn't.
“Your turn. Biggest red flag you've ever experienced in someone.”
“Hmm...” you saw Joe's tongue work inside his cheek as he peered up towards he ceiling. Shuffling a little in his seat, you liked how the attention had now fully shifted onto him.
But then he said, “Wanting to meet my parents,” and he looked at you, chin tilted forward like he was trying to sell you that his answer wasn't a joke. Joe was an actor, but Jesus he was bad at trying to hide a giggle when you knew there was one waiting to escape his throat.
“Joe...” you challenged, but his facial expression didn't falter. Yet. “After dating her for how long?”
“I don't know, like maybe, four... five months?”
When you started laughing, so did he, and my God, he was being so stupid. Joe was your stupid friend! Just a stupid guy. One with commitment issues, so it seemed. One who used said issues to make you laugh.
Stupid.
You really had to convince yourself that whatever that feeling was that you felt deep within your lower stomach was just... cramps, or whatever.
Joe was stupid. So stupid.
He proved that to you once more when, after not hearing from him all throughout the next Wednesday, he showed up at your flat just before you were about to go to bed.
“Bit late to come annoy me,” you said through a yawn when Joe stepped into your hallway. He was carrying a backpack.
“Yea, it's 'cause I'm staying over for the night,”
You heard Izzy laugh from the bathroom where she was brushing her teeth. She appeared in the doorway in her pajamas and looked insanely amused by this prospect.
“You sharing her bed?” she said, barely audible because of the toothbrush and paste.
Joe, already toeing his shoes off, just said, “Yep.”
And you looked from Izzy to Joe, back to Izzy who smiled and nearly dribbled toothpaste all down her front and fuck off, you were too tired to deal with Joe's shit.
Half the time you didn't even fully believe either of you were taking this bet seriously.
Were you? Maybe kind of. But also, not really.
Was Joe? Well he was clearly pretending he was. Why else was he here, at your flat, at half past eleven on a week night?
“Please be a naked sleeper,” Izzy made herself laugh and this time, fully did dribble toothpaste all down her front. It made Joe laugh and made Izzy disappear back into the bathroom.
“Unfortunately,” Joe started, speaking loud enough for Izzy to hear, but then lowering his voice and saying, “Fortunately for you,” before continuing in his louder voice again, “I do not.”
Thank fuck.
Learning that Brian slept naked and refused to even wear underwear to bed had been the thing that made you break it off with him.
Joe did wear underwear to bed, however. So, that was good.
“Left side's my side of the bed,” Joe said as he walked past you, his face way too close to yours and fucking hell, he was going to mess with your sleep, wasn't he? Was going to make sure that you couldn't get enough hours in which would leave you grumpy and tired and then that was going to be it, wasn't it?
“This bet is so stupid,” you said to Izzy, all sorts of defeated, as she walked past right after, on her way to her bedroom.
“Good luck,” she just said, seemingly delighted by your pain, and patted you on the shoulder before she disappeared into her room.
When you got into bed, Joe was already in there. On your side of it. And fine. He could sleep on your side of the bed if that meant you weren't going to bicker and you could actually fall asleep within ten minutes.
But Joe saw you face, laughed to himself with his head pushed all the way back into your pillow and then moved. Held up the duvet to move himself across the bed. Gave you your spot back and then patted the spot where he'd laid before, welcoming you into your own bed.
“That nearly got you?”
You rolled your eyes in answer, because Joe was being stupid. You slapped the light switch and quickly got comfortable in your bed. Pretended this was super normal. Just another night in your bed. Alarm set. Work in the morning. Head pressed into your pillow and back turned to Joe, because that was just safest, wasn't it?
Behind you, there was a lot of movement until finally, Joe stilled. He asked for another pillow to hug.
“There's like six pillows in this bed, you're lying on three of them,” you turned and pulled at one under his head.
Joe chuckled softly, removed a pillow and tucked it into his arms. All comfortable in your bed. Not weird at all. Good thing you were exhausted and quite literally about to fall asleep any second.
“So,” Joe softly spoke into the darkness. “I move around a lot, I might end up kicking you in the shins, I snore, and sometimes I talk in my sleep. You've got to tell me in the morning which one of those did it.”
You let out a tired chuckle, confident you'd sleep through any and all of those things.
“Good night, Joe.”
Joe heard the smile. Knew exactly what your face looked like as you said that and couldn't help the smile that spread onto his own face.
“Night.”
---
The Taglisted: 
@ghostinthebackofyourhead @dirtyeddietini @jasminearondottir @cancankiki @sidthedollface2 @dylanmunson @thefemininemystiquee @alana4610 @emmamooney @thatonefan-girl @paola-carter @figmentofquinn @haylaansmi @thewondernanazombie @munsonmunster @kellyxo1 @chaoticgood-munson @sherrylyn628 @ohmeg @05secondsofsexgods @lovelyblueness @adoreyouusugar @nadixq @roosterisdaddy36 @alwayslindie @eddie-joe-munson @ali-in-w0nderland @pepperstories @phyllosilicate-s @thebellenouvelle @luvrsbian @joesquinns @choke-me-eddie @alizztor @frootvelvet @did-it-work @capricornrisingsstuff @quinnsmunson @frogers @kennedy-brooke @daleyeahson @harringtonfan4 @emma77645 @tlclick73 @eddies-puppet @electricmunson @everythinghasafacee @a-time-for-wolvess @lucifers-side @barfightzanddiscolightz
(taglist currently full, sorry!)
345 notes · View notes
agaypanic · 8 months
Text
The Fella Part 9 (James Maguire X Quinn!Reader)
Main Masterlist
The Fella Masterlist
Request Something!
Summary: The girls have been waiting for months to see Take That in Belfast. When a polar bear is on the loose and Mary forbids them from going, they have to take matters into their own hands.
A/N: only took a million years but i finally wrote a new part lol BIG thanks to @crumpets-are-better-with-jam for writing out the episode’s script for me, without them I probably would’ve never found the time to be able to write this. Also the word g*psy is censored and used as little as possible because it’s considered a slur but some say that if you say it with the right context it’s ok, but i don’t wanna take any chances, you know?
***
The weekends were always the best part of the week for Y/n. No school or work, no obligations except for church on Sunday, and being able to sleep in late. Y/n wished to be an adult, so her life could be like this every day.
But this was going to be the weekend of all weekends. Months ago, the girls and James scrimped and saved every coin and bill and were able to buy concert tickets to see Take That in Belfast. And today was the day of the concert. The girls sat all squished together on the couch, watching said band on the TV, with James perched on the arm of the sofa, subtly clinging to Y/n. Their relationship was still a secret somehow, today marking their third month together. They were honestly surprised nobody noticed how their affection was more than friendly.
“God Almighty.” Grandpa Joe spoke in horror, glaring at the screen. “I don’t know what the world is coming to. Bloody perverts.”
“You’re overreacting, Da,” Mary said from the kitchen. Joe scoffed in disbelief.
“Overreacting? That lad’s got no trousers on, for Christ’s sake.” Michelle grinned at the detail that had been pointed out.
“He’s wearing too much still, if I’ve anything to say about it.” She muttered to the girls, who giggled apart from James and Clare.
“Why do they keep touching themselves?” Grandpa Joe asked the telly, as if it would provide any answers.
“‘Cause they’re artists, Granda,” Erin said, but he just grumbled.
“Dirty English bastards is what they are.” He turned to look at James. “No offense, son.” Although he didn’t really sound like he cared whether or not he had offended the boy. Y/n patted James’ thigh in comfort as the scene on the TV changed from the girls’ beloved boy band to a news anchor. 
“Come on, girls. Time to hit the road here.” Gerry announced as he came in. He gestured at James. “Have they roped you into going as well, son?” Y/n laughed, leaning against James to look at her father.
“Hardly. He’s practically riding Gary Barlow. Aren’t ya, Jamie?” He rolled his eyes at the statement, as if they had had this kind of conversation a hundred times.
“I’m not! I just respect him as a songwriter, that’s all.” Michelle rolled her eyes at him, as if she had also had this kind of conversation a hundred times.
“Aye, dead on, James, so you do.”
“Will we need our passports, Gerry?” Orla asked, giving her lungs a break from blowing on her mother’s spray tan.
“For Belfast? I don’t think so, Love.”
“Belfast?” Joe asked, but was ignored.
“Are we not a bit early, Daddy?” Erin asked, checking the time on the wall.
“It’s a two-hour drive with traffic, love.”
“This thing’s in Belfast?” Sick of not being acknowledged, Grandpa Joe stood from his favorite chair to stand with the girls and Gerry.
“Da, it’s eight hours till the doors open,” Y/n said, almost laughing at her father’s sense of urgency.
“I know. We’re cutting it fine.” He seemed completely serious about the matter, which just made Y/n want to laugh more.
“Belfast?” Joe said again, now effectively catching the room’s attention. “Sure, why didn’t you just sell the wains into white slavery and be done with it?”
“Gerry will be with them, Da.” Mary tried to reason, but that just seemed to set him off even more.
“Well, that’s worse. Sure, they hate his kind there.”
“My kind?” Gerry asked, not knowing what Joe could possibly be talking about.
“Pricks.” Y/n laughed, shrinking in her seat when Gerry whipped around to look at his daughter in offense. “Sorry, Daddy.”
“That is enough!” Mary finalized, still working in the kitchen. “They’re going to the concert, Da, and that’s the end of the matter.”
The news switched to another topic again. Something about how a polar bear escaped from Belfast Zoo. Hearing the name, Y/n started to worry.
“Now, will you see sense?” Grandpa Joe asked his daughter, pointing at the TV. Erin snorted.
“Aye, Granda, ‘cause an escaped polar bear’s gonna track us down and kill us. As if Mammy’s bothered by that.” There was a beat of silence, and suddenly, all the girls were panicked.
“Wise up, Mammy!” Y/n squealed frantically, shooting up from her seat on the couch to get a good look at her mother. “As if a polar bear’s gonna rock up a Take That concert!”
“He wouldn’t get a ticket for a start,” Orla added. “They sold out months ago.”
“You’d be surprised, girls,” Mary said.
“The concert’s nowhere near the zoo.” Gerry tried to reason. As usual, Joe countered him.
“But he’s not in the zoo anymore, is he, Simple Simon? He’s sauntering about Belfast without a care in the world!”
“Aye, keep up, Gerry,” Sarah said, blowing on the wet tan that coated her fingers. 
“What I’m saying is that it would be quite a lot of ground for him to cover.”
“They’re quick on their feet when they wanna be, love,” Mary said. Y/n sped to her father, grabbing him by the shoulders to make him face her.
“Daddy, please, don’t listen to her.” She pleaded. “We should go now so we’re not late. Please, Da!” Gerry put his hands on his daughter’s wrists, rubbing his thumbs over the joints while giving her a sympathetic look.
“Oh, love, I’m sorry, but I’d rather keep my head.”
“Come on, Mary.” Michelle pleaded with the girl’s mother. “If you don’t let Y/n and Erin go, then our ma’s won’t let us go.”
“Well, neither they should, and I’ll be ringing them to say as much.” The teens looked at Mary in despair as she went to the phone, likely to ring everyone’s mothers. While dialing, Mary looked back to the living room. “Look, girls, I know how much you were looking forward to seeing This and That.”
“Take That.” Erin corrected.
“But there’ll be other concerts.” Y/n laughed humorlessly, resting her head on her father’s shoulder momentarily before letting go of him completely. 
“No, there won’t.” She felt hysterical. She couldn’t believe this was happening to her. Months of looking forward to this concert just to be banned by her mother because of a polar bear. Only something like this would happen to her. “The fact that this one’s happening is a miracle ‘cause no one good comes here ‘cause we all keep killing each other!” James shifted on the arm of the couch to make room for Y/n to sit next to him. He rubbed her back as she leaned against him for support, devastated.
“And now we’re overrun with polar bears.” Sarah sighed, pulling out a cig.
Frustrated, Y/n stormed up to her room, the girls and James close behind. They had found her face down on her bed, screaming into a pillow. James sat beside her, pulling the pillow out of her grasp before she could suffocate herself. While everyone settled in Y/n’s room, she rested her head on James’ thigh. Her anger and sadness were slowly washing away from James rubbing her back.
“This is so fucking unfair.” She muttered.
“I know,” James responded, brushing hair out of her face.
“Well, I dunno about you lot, but I’m not letting that fat furry fuck ruin the biggest day of my life,” Michelle announced harshly, pacing the floor.
“What can we do?” Erin asked, lying across her sister’s legs.
“Right, listen, girls.” Michelle drew their attention. They hoped that she had come up with a plan to save the day, but were quickly let down. “I’ve never told anyone this before, but… sometimes, when Robbie’s being interviewed, it’s like he’s sending me messages through the TV. You know, like telepathically or whatever, It’s like he’s saying…” She sighed, clearly in a dreamy daze. “We’re meant to be together.”
Everyone stared at her.
“Aye, maybe don’t tell that to anyone again, Michelle,” Erin said. “Ever.”
“I think she might be more cracked than Orla,” Y/n muttered to James, who snorted.
“What?” Orla looked at Y/n after hearing her name.
“Nothing, love.”
“Look, this is too important,” Michelle said. “I’m going to that concert. I’m not afraid of a fucking polar bear!” Everyone enthusiastically agreed. They shouldn’t pay mind to a random bear or what their parents have to say about anything. Nothing would stop the girls and James from seeing Take That.
“I’ll kill it with me own two hands, if I have to.” Orla declared. 
“Bring it on!” Erin egged on.
“Okay. We seem to have gone down a weird road here, people. I think we just got a bit confused.” Ever the realist and anxiety-riddled girl, Clare tried stopping her friends from the odd discussion. “We don’t actually have to fight a polar bear, and if we did, I wouldn’t fancy our chances because, well, they’re massive.” Orla looked around, confused.
“But there’s six of us.”
“Aye, I think we’d have a real chance,” Y/n said, albeit slightly sarcastically.
“The point is, the polar bear’s not the one stopping us from going to the concert. It’s our mothers, and we’ll never get them to change their minds.” Y/n gasped, sitting up suddenly, seeming to have an idea.
“So we fight Mammy.”
“No, definitely not.” James shot down the idea immediately and welcomed his once again pouty girlfriend to rest in his lap. Michelle leaned toward the group like she was gonna tell them a secret.
“We’re not gonna try and change their minds.” She smirked, and everyone became slightly fearful because Michelle always had less than bright ideas that she’d have them execute. “We’re gonna do something else.” 
“What?” James asked.
***
“I’m still trying to figure out whether or not this is a good idea,” Y/n muttered to James, who she clung to while sitting on his lap. Michelle had somehow convinced everyone to sneak away and get on a bus to Belfast. The group sat in the back of the bus to avoid anyone who may be suspicious of six teenagers traveling by themselves. There wasn’t enough seating for all six of them to sit together, so everyone squished together, and Y/n sat on James’ lap. No one said anything about it besides the comment from Michelle about how James must be giddy to be so close to a girl. He told her to fuck off.
“Same here.” He sighed, hands gripping her closer as the bus crossed a few bumps on the road.
“We’re gonna get caught; I just know it,” Clare said anxiously to the group.
“We’re not gonna get caught, Clare, because as far as our ma’s are concerned, me, you, and James are ’round Erin’s, and Erin, Y/n, and Orla are ’round mine,” Michelle explained, trying to calm Clare down.
“But we’re not ’round yours, Michelle,” Orla responded, confused. “We’re on the bus to Belfast.” 
“Christ.” Y/n rolled her eyes, having heard her cousin say this multiple times since they left the house.
“I cannot explain it to her again. I’m gonna scream.” Michelle looked away from Orla, probably because she would strangle her if she had to deal with the confusion for another second.
“What’s in the suitcase, Michelle?” James asked, staring at the case his cousin had set on the remaining seat near the group. Y/n could’ve sat there, but Michelle wanted a close eye on whatever was in the suitcase without holding it in case they got caught. Everyone stared, curiously waiting for an answer. There was a beat of silence.
“Vodka.” You brought an entire suitcase full of vodka?” Erin asked incredulously.
“Jesus, Michelle, you’ve got a problem,” Y/n added.
“No. There’s mixers as well. I’m not a savage.” Michelle took a second to think, looking down at the case. “You can mix vodka with cider, right?”
“God, I am boiling.” Clare sighed, fanning her face.
“Gee, I wonder why, Clare.” Y/n laughed, looking at her friend who was completely bundled in jackets and scarves.
“What are you wearing?” Erin asked.
“Yeah, you look like a fucking Provo.”
“I don’t want anyone recognizing me, okay?” The bus paused its venture, opening the doors for people to come in and out.
“No one’s gonna recognize you, Clare.” Michelle chastised.
“Clare Devlin, is that you?” Panic ran through everyone. The voice sounded very familiar and fear-inducing. The girls looked towards the front. Sister Michael was moving past the seats and right for them.
“Jesus Christ.” Clare squeaked, trying to hide in her mountain of clothes. Erin leaned into her.
“Relax, Clare.” She said. “She has no authority over us at the weekend. She has no right to question us, and if she tries to, I’ll tell her as much.”
“Aye, I’d like to see you try, Erin.” Y/n hissed to her sister before Sister Michael reached the group.
“Morning, girls.” She said.
“Morning, Sister Michael.” Everyone said in unison.
“What takes you to Belfast?” There was a heavy pause. The girls were silently trying to decide who would speak and what they would say. Erin volunteered herself, speaking quietly from nervousness.
“I’m not really sure that’s-”
“Speak up.” Sister Michael interrupted her. Erin gulped.
“I’m not really sure that that’s any of your business…” Sister Michael stared blankly at her. Everyone waited for her to jump and murder Erin for saying such a thing. Soon, she found words.
“I’m going to assume that was an ill-judged attempt at humor, Miss Quinn.”
“Yes,” Erin whispered, sinking into her seat. Y/n silently prayed that the bus would start moving so Sister Michael would be forced to leave and find a seat somewhere. But God never seemed too kind to the girls.
“Now, answer the question.”
“... We’re going to the museum.” Erin devised a good lie; the girls just hoped they could keep up with the inevitable follow-up questions.
“Which museum?”
“Ulster Museum,” Clare answered.
“What for?”
“A project,” James responded.
“A history project.” Y/n amended. Sister Michael looked at the two. It seemed like she was about to ask why Y/n was in James’ lap, but she decided against it, not wanting to go through the trouble.
“What about?”
“Ulster,” Erin answered once again. Sister Michael gave an unconvinced hum and turned around to find a place to sit. Everyone sighed in relief as the bus started to move again.
“A history project,” Clare said in disbelief. “This web of lies we’re spinning is getting out of control now, girls.” Y/n put a hand on her friend’s shoulder to take her attention.
“If it makes you feel any better, Clare, I actually have a history project due soon.”
“I thought we finished that,” James said quietly to her. She turned to him.
“Yeah, but now I’ve gotta put it all together.”
“It’s grand, Clare,” Michelle said, rolling her eyes at Clare’s constant anxiousness. “I think she bought it.”
“Of course, she didn’t buy it. She’s onto us, I’m telling you. Oh God, I’m sweltering here.”
“Then take it off,” Erin said.
“I can’t take it off; I’ve nothing underneath it.” Everyone paused, looking at her confused.
“What, not even a bra?” Erin asked.
“Jesus, Clare, you’ve no bra on?” Michelle asked incredulously.
“I haven’t got a bra on,” Orla commented.
“Aye, me neither,” Y/n said.
“What?” James practically choked. Suddenly aware of his girlfriend’s body and this new information, he moved his hands down to sit at her hips. Y/n shrugged.
“They dig.”
“What’s she doing now?” Clare asked, and everyone looked at Sister Michael, who sat a few rows ahead of them. She was reading a book, laughing every now and then.
“Reading her book,” James answered, as if they all couldn’t see it. She suddenly turned to the woman in the seat next to her. She had a look of disgust while the woman ate a sandwich. “Now she’s looking at the woman beside her.” Sister Michael stood from her seat. “Now she’s getting up.” She moved towards the back of the bus, closing in on the girls. “Now she’s coming this way.” Soon enough, Sister Michael stood before the group, staring at them. “Now she’s standing right in front of us.”
“What’s he doing?” Sister Michael asked, looking weirdly at James.
“Now she’s-” James’ words were halted by Y/n putting a finger to his lips.
“Stop narrating, Jamie.”
“I want to sit here.” Sister Michael said with finality, pointing to where Michelle’s suitcase sat. Michelle started to panic.
“What? Why?”
“Well, you’re just such wonderful company, girls, what with your stimulating conversation and razor-sharp wit.” Everyone knew she was being sarcastic. Except for Erin.
“Really?” She asked, seemingly flattered. Sister Michael rolled her eyes.
“No, not really. The woman next to me is eating an egg and onion sandwich, and the smell is enough to turn an Orange March.” The girls cringed at the description. Sister Michael grabbed the suitcase, trying to move it. But she was evidently struggling. “Christ, but this is heavy.”
“Sister, no, let me,” Michelle said, leaning over to grab the case.
“What do you have in here, girls?”
“It’s not ours!” Clare quickly responded with a shriek. Everyone glared at her lie.
“Not yours?”
“We have never seen it before in our lives, have we, girls?” It was better to just agree, so that’s what the girls did. They nodded, giving different mutters of confirmation. 
Sister Michael turned to look at everyone else on the bus.
“Excuse me, everyone. Can I have your attention, please?” She raised her voice to get everyone to listen. Confused, the passengers looked at her while she pointed to Michelle’s suitcase. “Does anyone own this red suitcase?” No one claimed it. “Now, let me be clear. No one can claim this bag, is that correct?” Everyone confirmed her question. She looked down at the suitcase. “I think we have a Code Red on our hands. Driver, pull over!”
***
The girls were definitely fucked. Everyone had to evacuate the bus while they waited for the military to come and extract the suitcase. Now, a crowd watched as a military robot examined the case.
“Jesus Christ!” Clare squeaked in a panic.
“Aye, this isn’t great,” Erin said, watching the commotion. Michelle shrugged.
“It’s not that big a deal.”
“They’re about to blow up an entire suitcase of vodka, Michelle.” 
As Michelle and Erin quietly argued, Y/n leaned into James’ ear.
“And here I thought Clare’s paranoia would be our biggest problem.” James rested his head on Y/n’s, eyeing the situation in front of him in disbelief.
“Why is this place so mental?” He asked. Michelle scoffed.
“That’s enough, James. You have serious fucking anger management issues. Do you know that?” Before anyone could give a rebuttal, there was an explosion. The robot had successfully eliminated the threat in the red suitcase, which was the girls’ ticket to a good time.
There were lots of talks among the soldiers over the radio. The girls silently celebrated when one said they could pack everything up. Soon enough, they’d be back on the way to Belfast.
“Powerful smell of vodka down here, over.” The girls froze in their places as they heard the soldier over the radio. God really did seem to have it out for the teens.
“Vodka, did he say?” Sister Michael asked, slowly turning to her students. “Interesting.” The girls gave her nervous smiles. Suddenly, Y/n pointed over Sister Michael’s shoulder.
“Oh my God, Sister! What’s over there?!” Sister Michael whipped around, and Y/n made a break for it. All of her friends followed after her. 
They ran like hell, not knowing where they were going. After a while of wandering around, they slowed to a walk down a dirt road, all trying to catch their breath. The girls debated whether or not they could reach Belfast on foot, especially with that polar bear on the loose. But the conversation dwindled as some men came into view on the side of the road.
“Is it just me, or is that g*psy an absolute ride?”
“As usual, I think it’s just you, Michelle,” Y/n said, groaning at her sore legs.
“Michelle, you cannot say that.” Erin scolded.
“What?”
“They’re called ‘travelers now. Y’can’t say ‘g*psy’ anymore. It’s insulting.”
“Okay, but you just said it, Erin.” Y/n pointed out. Michelle and Erin continued arguing over the correct word to use for the men. It continued for a while, and only stopped when they had gotten closer to the men.
“Howya, girls.” One of them said, with a bit of a slurred speech. The girls politely greeted him and continued walking. They got a few feet past them when the one who greeted them started calling after them. “Hey, hold on.”
“What does he want?” Clare asked in a panic.
“I don’t know,” Erin replied, just as nervous.
“I’m talking to you!” The man shouted. The girls ignored him, but he kept walking after them. “Hey, are you deaf or what?”
“Just keep going.” Y/n urged her friends, grabbing James’ hand to yank him along while she pushed her tired body to go faster. The teens started walking more quickly, and soon enough, the shouting man and his friends were all tailing after them. 
“Get back here!”
“Faster. Walk faster.”
“Am I gonna have to come after you, am I?”
“Jesus Christ, he’s following us,” James muttered, now being the one to pull Y/n further.
“Run!” Y/n yelped, breaking into a sprint and out of James’ grip because the sudden change in pace had caught him off guard. Everyone ran after her, the teens to catch up with Y/n and the travelers to catch up with the teens. The girls were terrified, except for Orla, of course, who could always find the fun in a fucked up situation.
“Piss off!” Erin went to the edge of the dirt road and came back to the strange men waving a giant stick around. They backed up in alarm, and the girls stopped to stand behind Erin.
Except for Y/n, who was still running like hell. James yelled for her, but she couldn’t hear him over the thumping of her feet and heart. She didn’t even notice that her friends had all been left in the dust behind her.
“Jesus fuck!” Y/n screeched when she was grabbed suddenly by the shoulders and yanked back into someone’s chest. The person who caught her breathed heavily, slightly using her as a crutch. Y/n immediately recognized the whines and groans of exhaustion and smacked the man in the arm. “Scared the fuck out of me, James.”
“I know, ‘m sorry.” James brought her closer to him, back pressed against his chest as he rubbed her arms up and down to comfort her. “Can’t run off like that, love. Could’ve lost you.”
“Sorry.” She apologized sheepishly, and James kissed her head to show she shouldn’t be. When the couple regained strength, they turned around and started walking back to the group that was currently arguing with the strange couple of men when they abruptly ran to the side of the dirt road. A van sped past them as if they weren’t even there, honking the horn and stopping in front of the stand-off of travelers and teenage girls. Y/n and James hesitantly watched, not knowing what was happening.
Soon, Erin stuck her head out from behind the van so her sister was in her view. She waved her over frantically.
“Y/n, come on!” Erin then disappeared, likely into the strange van. Knowing everyone else was probably in there, and not wanting to be left stranded, Y/n broke out into another sprint, leaving James in the dust once again.
“Not again.” He mumbled.
***
When Y/n had snuck away from her family and hopped on a bus to Belfast with her friends, she obviously didn’t expect the bus plan to go to shit, and she and her buddies would be riding around in someone’s van. Yet here she was, jostling around in the back, surrounded by half-assed Take That shirts. Erin was trying to converse with the driver; Rita was apparently her name. Meanwhile, Michelle hogged a cardboard cut-out of Robbie Williams, and Clare and Orla were sifting through all the different merchandise.
“Robie?” Clare said to herself as she held up one of the shirts to look at before frantically digging through the rest of the boxes. In the driver’s seat, Rita seemed to have some type of drunken meltdown. Clare turned to Y/n, panicked like always. “Y/n, what are we gonna do?”
“Pray.”
“She’s spelt ‘Robbie’ wrong on every single t-shirt.”
“Huh?” 
“How are we gonna break it to her?” Y/n snorted. That was not what she expected her dear friend to be worried about.
“Clare, we’re being driven around by some crazy tipsy woman, and I bet she doesn’t even know which direction Belfast is in. And yet you’re worried about a spelling mistake?”
“I find it disturbing.”
“I find your priorities disturbing.” Rita continued talking in her drunken, weepy state, leading to another discussion between Erin and Michelle about the correct label to use for the intimidating men they had run into.
But everything was cut short by the van ramming into something, causing everyone to jerk forward. There was a moment of silence as everyone tried to figure out what had just happened.
“Jesus Christ.” Michelle groaned, rubbing her head as she sat up.
“What was that?” Erin asked no one in particular.
“Did we hit something?” 
Orla opened the sliding door of the van and stuck her head out. Everyone heard a gasp of both surprise and delight.
“Oh my God, it’s the polar bear!” The sentence made everyone, excluding Rita, who smoked her cigarette in the driver’s seat, jump out of the van and surround the body. 
“Orla, this is not a bloody polar bear.” Y/n sneered, looking down at the dead sheep that lay before her feet. Everyone slowly looked over at her.
“You’re soundin’ like James,” Michelle said in slight disgust.
“Shut up.”
“Get it shifted, girls!” Rita commanded from the van, taking another drag. Reluctantly, the girls grabbed the sheep carcass and tried carrying it to the side of the road to clear their path. There was a lot more struggling than they intended.
“Why’s it so heavy?” Erin said with a strained voice. “Aren’t they meant to be ninety percent wool?”
“Just put your back into it. The sooner this is done, the sooner we’re back in the van and on our way to see Robbie.”
“Shut it about Robbie, Michelle!” Y/n groaned, trying to pull the sheep. There was much more arguing, and after a very short while, the girls decided they were officially over this task.
“Fuck this!” Michelle shouted. “Let’s just make James do it, the lazy bastard!” Everyone dropped the sheep on the ground and waited for James to do all the work.
But he never did. It was just the girls on an empty road with a dead sheep and a crazy woman. 
“Wh… Where is James?” Clare asked, looking around, hoping he’d suddenly pop out of a bush or something. 
Y/n thought long and hard. She might have been the last one to be with James. Backtracking to her last known moments with James, Y/n gasped and raised a hand to her mouth. The girls looked at her expectantly, waiting to find out where he was. Her response was an embarrassed and horrified whisper.
“I left him with the travelers.”
***
It took much persuasion, mainly for Michelle, but the girls had gotten Rita to go back for James. It was primarily the revelation that James was the one who had the concert tickets. After a long drive, the van skidded to a stop in front of the traveler’s stands of vegetables and fruits. James was among the men, helping them. Y/n yanked the van door open, relieved that her boyfriend hadn’t been mugged or stranded or something else of the sort.
“James!” She yelled in delight, immediately catching his attention. He grinned but stayed stuck in his place.
“What are you playing at? Get in the van, fucko.” Michelle commanded, less thrilled to see James than Y/n was. The man who first chased the girls put a hand on James’ shoulder.
“You don’t have to if you don’t want to, James.”
“With all due respect, this has nothing to do with you.”
“Yeah!” Y/n added, desperately waiting for her boyfriend to get into the van.
“The way you treat this fella, it’s disgraceful.” The traveler reprimanded.
“Fucking excuse me?” Y/n felt beyond insulted.
“What’s going on, James?” Michelle asked.
“Jonjo and the lads…” James looked at said lads with a smile. “They just get me. And it turns out, I’m a really good salesman.”
“He’s a natural,” Jonjo said.
“So, what, you’re a g*psy now?” Michelle asked, clearly thinking this was an unfunny prank.
“Traveler.” Erin and Y/n corrected in unison, Erin louder than her sister.
“Actually, g*psy’s fine,” Jonjo said. Michelle smirked, finally being able to prove to Erin that she was right. Rita yelled at everyone to hurry up, and Michelle nodded.
“Right, get in the van, come on. And do not test me ’cause we’ve already missed PJ and Duncan.”
“Is that who was supporting them?” Clare asked. When confirmed, she pouted. “Oh, I really like them!”
“I’m not leaving, Michelle,” James said with finality.
Y/n sighed, stepping out of the van. The tense gaze James had for his cousin softened when his girlfriend walked up to him.
“Not even for Gary Barlow, Jamie?” Y/n knew she made the right move because now James looked unsure of himself.
“I don’t really rate him as a, as a songwriter, y’know?” Jonjo said. The horrified look James suddenly had painted on his face made Y/n smile, both because she knew that the girls would now be leaving with him and because he looked so adorable. 
James took off his fanny pack and handed it to Jonjo in disappointment, refusing to make eye contact.
“I’m sorry, Jonjo, but you’ve just crossed the line there.” 
Y/n wrapped an arm around James’ back and guided his sad self to the van, where the door was just behind them. She brought him to the back of the van so he could mope a bit in peace. The girls all talked excitedly amongst themselves about the concert.
“I’m sorry I stranded you,” Y/n said quietly, moving her hand down James’ back to squeeze his hand. He squeezed it back and smiled softly down at her.
“I’m just glad you came back.”
“Of course, I came back. You have the concert tickets.” James shoved Y/n away and couldn’t hide the growing grin from hearing her laugh. “Kidding, kidding.”
After a long drive, long lines, and a big fight to get to the barricade, the Derry girls were finally able to enjoy Take That in all its glory. They screamed the lyrics, jumped to the beat, and danced all together in excitement. They didn’t care about the consequences when they would get home to their parents, who were probably worried sick. They didn’t worry about how they’d get home that night. All that mattered was that they were currently in the presence of one of their favorite bands of all time.
Somewhere in the middle of the set, the excitement winded down a bit as a piano intro played. Y/n squealed, tugging on James’ sleeve, as she recognized what was dubbed as her and James’ song, A Million Love Songs. James grinned at her excitement.
“Oh my God! I have something for you!” Y/n exclaimed over the music, digging around in her pockets. James looked down curiously as she brought out a folded piece of paper. “If it’s bad, you’re not allowed to make fun of me.”
“What is it?” James leaned down so he was closer to eye level with Y/n, making her blush. She pinched the edge of the paper, creasing it a bit.
“Do you remember when Erin became magazine editor, and we were going through those essays and… and Michelle found mine?” James nodded, remembering the day clearly because he was devastated when he heard the title of her little essay. “Well, I figured, since it’s our third month together and all… I wanted to give it to you.” He was gentle when taking the paper from her, so incredibly curious about what she had written. “Especially since my fancy isn’t so one-sided as I thought.”
All Y/n could focus on was the beautiful song in the background and the beautiful boy in front of her, reading words that had come straight from her heart when she thought her love for James was just a hopeless crush. She didn’t know if it was a good sign, seeing him become more flustered and blushy as he read on. When he was finished, he slowly and carefully folded the paper back up while Take That started to play a more energetic song.
“Again, you can’t make fun of me if it’s bad!” Y/n shouted over the noise. “I know Erin’s the writer or whatever, but- oof!” She was interrupted by James pulling her to his chest, arms wrapped tight around her and face buried in the crook of her neck. She immediately returned the affections. 
“It’s amazing.” He said in her ear. “Amazing, and lovely, and perfect. Just like the girl who wrote it.” Unable to help herself, Y/n brought James’ face to hers and kissed him with such passion, a passion he reciprocated instantly. It was as if it was only them existing at that moment.
Of course, it wasn’t. Clare would later tease and squeal at the two and interrogate them about when they had finally gotten together and why they didn’t tell her. Too enamored with the men just feet away from them, the rest of the girls didn’t even notice the couple.
And somewhere in Derry, while the rest of her family was fighting, Y/n’s father Gerry smiled fondly at his television where he saw his daughter having the time of her life at a Take That concert with her best friends and boyfriend. A boyfriend he’d absolutely be asking her about in private when he had the chance.
~~~
TAG LIST: @mistahjsfunnygirl @etherealdisneyvillainness @crystalsoobin-m @raggedyoldwitch @rosetintworld @regretthatsme @neenieweenie @allexiiisss @drmeghanjones @eli-com @anything-for-our-moony-toast @ilovespideyyy @eddisaurus @imagines--galore @imastabu @emma-is-a-nerd @sir1usblacksgf @kaz-2y567 @ventingtostrangersontheinterwebs @spidercrush3 @humanoid-freak14 @the-lonely-raisin @miilkshakess @underthebatcape @dear-jamespotter @brithedemonspawn @crumpets-are-better-with-jam
DM ME OR SEND IN AN ASK IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE ADDED OR REMOVED FROM THE FELLA TAG LIST!
145 notes · View notes
childofchrist1983 · 5 months
Text
Tumblr media
God loves and cares for us more than we will ever know. He rejoices with us in moments of happiness; His heart breaks with us in times of sorrow. He is present during good times and bad. Our lives are His treasure. He loves us when we are unlovable and forgives us when unforgivable. God is the same from beginning to end. He is consistent, reliable, and loves us unconditionally. He remains devoted to us all the days of our life. And as true and born -again Christians we thank Him for this and for His eternal presence and everlasting love. God is holy and almighty and deserving of all praise honor and glory. We rejoice in Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ, knowing He is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). He is the Alpha and the Omega (Revelation 1:8). May our hearts always be filled with thanksgiving and rejoicing. May He help us to praise Him freely and honestly like all believers who came before us. May we live a life that showcases our love and trust in Him and His Holy Word and Spirit as He uses us draw others to Him and His soul-saving Gospel Truth daily. May He continue guide, correct and protect us, so that we continue to grow in Him and not weaken and stray. May we all remain faithful to Him and to this duty and purpose He has called us to. Seek and put your faith and trust in Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ and let Him do the rest. May He humble our hearts and help us focus on following and serving Him daily and helping others with joy and happiness. We lift our voices in praise to Him for His love, mercy, peace, faithfulness and grace. - For EVERYTHING!
It is vital that we remain rooted in Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ through prayer and His Holy Word and Spirit and that we live and walk as a beacon of His light and love and share and spread the Gospel Truth daily, so that the lost souls in this world can come to know Him and be saved. The more we focus on Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ, growing spiritually by building our relationship with Him, leaning on Him and His Holy Word and Spirit, the better off we will be. Thanks to this and our faith in Him, we know that everything will be alright. And we will forever be grateful to Him. As true and born-again Christians, we believe in Him and His Holy Word and we strive daily to walk in His Holy Spirit. We know though our mortal bodies should die, He will raise us up and into new and glorious bodies (The Rapture). We who are truly His and alive at His second coming will never die, and our bodies will be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, and so shall we ever be with Him in His Kingdom of Heaven forevermore (1 Corinthians 15:51-52, 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). This is one of many promises given to us by God Himself. Thank God for His strength and guidance when we are faced with sin and temptation. Thank Him for His mercy and grace. Through Bible study and prayer, God reveals His wisdom and guides us to see opportunities to grow closer to Him and grow spiritually. He gives us direction to live our lives daily according to His will.
Jesus Christ is the ONLY way to Heaven (John 3:5, 14:6), the ONLY way to salvation (Acts 4:12, Ephesians 2:8-9) and He is the resurrection and the life (John 11:25-26). Jesus Christ the LORD of lords, KING of kings, the GOD of gods (Deuteronomy 10:17, 1 Timothy 6:15, Revelation 17:14, Revelation 19:16) - He is the Living, Almighty and Everlasting God (Isaiah 9:6, Revelation 1:8, John 3:16, John 3:36, Jeremiah 10:10). There is no other God besides Him (Isaiah 45:5). We MUST humble ourselves before Him, turning our backs on false teachers, false gods and idols and our sinful ways. We MUST repent and turn back to God and recognize who He is and love Him in return for His great love for us. We MUST make God top priority everyday! May we be motivated to spread God's Holy Word and Gospel Truth to all the Earth, knowing that it is the only hope of all those lost in their sins. Let us not hold out a false hope for men to be saved without the Gospel, but instead, strive to do our part to get the Gospel out to a lost and dying world.
Leaning on Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ through prayer and His Holy Word and Spirit strengthens us and our knowledge and wisdom about God and His Gospel Truth, exposing these imposters. May God help us to seek and lean on Him daily to gain the strength, wisdom and spiritual discernment needed to expose Satan and his imposters who seek to destroy us and God's ultimate Truth. Everyday, we must remember to share Jesus Christ's Gospel Truth with the world and to thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for the grace that He poured out for us on the cross at Calvary. He has freed us from the burdens of sin and from the eternal damnation of Hell. In all we say and do, may all praise, honor and glory always be given to Him and His Kingdom of Heaven.
With renewed minds, hearts and wills, let us serve Him humbly and faithfully out of pure love and grateful rejoicing. May He remind us of His presence and to remain at peace, fully knowing that all will be well because He is always with us. Let us seek Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ today and everyday with all our heart and being, looking for His love, light and will for our lives with each step we take. Let us seek to please Him with our thoughts, words, and deeds and seek to advance His Kingdom of Heaven and His glory with our lives. Let us seek Him from a pure and humble heart, and when we so seek, we believe Him and His promise that we will find. May He help us all to be more sensitive to the teaching ministry of His Holy Word and Spirit, relying on Him and allowing Him to speak to us and guide us every step of our Christian journey.
God gave us the Holy Bible - His living and Holy Word - to let us know of Him and His abiding love and care as well as guide and prepare us for all our lives. May He help us encourage one another as we continue our walk with Him and our duty to Him daily. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for being present for all our new beginnings and all our lives. May He redirect any anxiety we feel as He provides countless opportunities for growth and change. May we humble ourselves before God always, asking Him to forgive our sins and make our hearts and lives anew through His Holy Word and Spirit. May He help us make Him and His Holy Word top priority, so we can grow spiritually and grow in our relationship with Him as we apply it to our daily lives. Thank God that we can focus on Him and everything about Him, for that is what keeps us sane and at peace. May our words and actions always be a reflection of Him and His Holy Word and Spirit and will.
May He help us to always walk in His grace and Holy Spirit, not by our own measure. May He give us the humble humility to know that our freedom and eternal salvation is found only in Him, so that His grace may sustain us, and we may never lose sight of His love and light and mercy. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for calling us to Him and to serve Him. May He equip us to do all that He has called us to do so that as He works through us, He may use us to produce fruit, to reach others, and to encourage all brothers and sisters in Christ. May He work all of these things in us and through us for His Kingdom and His glory. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for all His creation, for His miraculous ways and for everything He does and has done for us! Keep the faith and keep moving forward in your walk with Jesus! He loves us and He knows what is best for us. Seek, follow and trust in Him - Always!
Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for His Holy Word and for sending His Holy Spirit so that we might have His grace, not only to awaken us and transform our hearts in our spiritual rebirth and guarantee our eternity with Him, but to also call upon Him whenever we are in need. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for all the reminders of His love and mercy and faithfulness within His Holy Word. He is bigger than any challenge or circumstance in our lives. Knowing this within our minds and our hearts, nothing can deter our faith in Him and His Truth. May we all accept Him and His eternal gift of salvation and ask that He would transform our hearts and lives according to His will and ways. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for His Holy Spirit who saves, seals and leads us. May we always thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for His almighty power and saving grace. For He is our strength, and He alone is able to save us, forgive our sins and gift us eternal salvation and entry into His Kingdom of Heaven.
May we make sure that we give our hearts and lives to God and take time to seek and praise Him and share His Truth with the world daily. May the LORD our God and Father in Heaven help us to stay diligent and obedient and help us to guard our hearts in Him and His Holy Word daily. May He help us to remain faithful and full of excitement to do our duty to Him and for His glorious return and our reunion in Heaven as well as all that awaits us there. May we never forget to thank the LORD our God and our Creator and Father in Heaven for all this and everything He does and has done for us! May we never forget who He is, nor forget who we are in Christ and that God is always with us! What a mighty God we serve! What a Savior this is! What a wonderful LORD, God, Savior and King we have in Jesus Christ! What a loving Father we have found in Almighty God! What a wonderful God we serve! His will be done!
Thanks and glory be to God! Blessed be the name of the LORD! Hallelujah and Amen!
28 notes · View notes
aziraphales-library · 11 months
Note
Hello, I’m in love with everything that you do. Can you share some of your favorite examples of works that utilize footnotes well?
Hi. We have a couple of posts on our #footnotes tag that you should check out. Here are a few more fics with footnotes...
Seeing In A New Light by Aethelflaed (T)
Several months after the Apocalypse, Aziraphale and Crowley are much as they ever were. Too insecure, too defensive, too much on guard to let their relationship move forward. Until Crowley takes Aziraphale on a surprise stargazing trip, and they both have a chance to see the other in a new light…
By Any Other Name by WyvernQuill (T)
"Bit strange, the Almighty giving us soulmates, too - us demons, not us-us. Wasn't that the point of the Fall, making 'em miserable down there?" Crawly mused. "Seems counterproductive, assigning perfect lovers."
"She'll have Her reasons." Aziraphale muttered, a little curtly, and, there in the rain, wrapped in the Serpent's wing, he ran his fingers over his mark again.
From the very corner of his eye, he saw Crawly doing the same.
---
Crowley's soul-name reads "Aziraphale".
Aziraphale's does NOT read "Crowley".
This is... suboptimal, to say the least.
A Summoning by AnonymousDandelion (T)
Linette definitely didn't want to summon a demon, and Crowley definitely didn't want to be summoned. Nevertheless, that's what happened. Blame Linette's uncle, who is Not A Good Person.
Other significant players include a potted fern, a bucket of holy water, and a concerned Aziraphale.
Crossing a Line by Bookwormgal (T)
The world should have ended four years ago.
That was how it was written. The Great Plan was very clear on that much. Six thousand years after the creation of the world, the Anti-Christ would arrive on Earth. And after his eleventh birthday, when he came into power, he would lead the demons into the Final War. All of humanity would perish while angels and demons clashed in one final glorious confrontation.
But no one had accounted for a few little snags. Like a couple of traitors. Or a disobedient Anti-Christ.
And then, as if the Apocalypse not happening wasn’t already bad enough, Heaven and Hell couldn’t even punish those to blame for that entire mess. That was unacceptable.
If Michael couldn't have the promised War and if she could not kill at least the demon involved, then she would at a minimum make him suffer. She could at least make him suffer until he wished that holy water could end his miserable existence.
In Mixed Company, or the Corporate Retreat of Heaven and Hell by TheOldAquarian (M)
Every 300 years, Heaven and Hell share a company retreat on Earth during which angels and demons temporarily surrender their celestial powers.
Officially, it’s a time for fostering team unity and better understanding the needs of the client base. It’s definitely not a time for terrorizing the hotel staff with divine/diabolical showdowns, abusing the ethereal expense account, or furiously snogging your hereditary enemy. But when Aziraphale and Crowley are up for promotion, Hell breaks loose and Heaven might just break free.
One Miraculous December by journeytogallifrey (T)
Candles. Mistletoe. An entire frozen lake. Festive memories from their past together keep appearing out of nowhere.
Crowley's sure he's manifesting them accidentally out of sheer romantic desperation. It's bad enough trying to hide his unrequited love as they grow closer post-Apocaloops - what if Aziraphale sees the objects for what they are, a window into his yearning soul? Unfortunately, the only way to banish the objects seems to be talking about each memory...
Meanwhile, Aziraphale is just trying to woo his demon boyfriend with big gestures, ready to prove his devotion. And if Crowley acts awkward about the miracles? Surely that's just his difficulty accepting affection. The solution: shower him with as much of it as possible...
Eventually these two will communicate, even if it takes 'til the end of the year. For now there will be cuddling, excuses for closeness, sappy words, flashbacks, nostalgia, bickering, and an obscene variety of holiday foods. Oh, and footnotes. That's right. We're doing those too.
- Mod D
53 notes · View notes
indigofoxsbg · 5 months
Text
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐢𝐬𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐧
Hello again! Have you heard the parable of the wise man who builds his house upon the rock, while the fool builds his house upon the sand? What does this mean? Its all about your foundations. Like in construction, you must have a firm foundation, otherwise the structure will collapse. Just like with us! We need a firm foundation (God) or we will collapse (eternal separation). As christians, we should build on Christ and not on the world. The world is temporary, but Christ is eternal.
“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”
Revelation 1:8
Building on Christ and having fear of the Lord determines how we view everything else. When you fear God, you respect God. Sure, everyone goes through hard times and makes poor decisions. But sometimes God has to break you down to put you on the right path. He will never cause you harm. God disciplines those whom He loves.
"Because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.”
Hebrews 12:6
We often view it as a bad thing, but if God didn't convict you it would mean He didn't care about you. When you face temptation and hear that voice in the back of your head telling you to stop, it is most likely God. He is giving you a warning to stop what you are doing because He loves you and doesn't want you to fall. He sent Jesus to die for our sins because He loves us!
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
John 3:16
We all struggle with temptation, and sometimes we give in, but God is merciful and understanding (thats why we all need Jesus...). He will always show you the way to get your feet on the right path, and encourages you to follow Him. Have a great evening! < 3
27 notes · View notes
lizisshortforlizard · 6 months
Text
Living Dangerously - Chapter 29
Jurassic Park’s animal handlers: none of them ever mentioned by name in Michael Crichton’s original novel. Who were they? What were their lives like on Isla Nublar? Did any of them survive the disaster?
A year in the life of those responsible for the care of the dinosaurs. Many people would kill to have their jobs.
But would they die for it?
Jurassic Park novel/Jurassic Park film (1993)
Viewpoint: 3rd person female oc
Warnings: ready to have your heart ripped out?
Tagging: @heresthefanfiction @ocappreciation @wordspin-shares @howlingmadlady @arrthurpendragon @themaradwrites @starryeyes2000 @kmc1989 (please lmk if you would like informed of my sporadic updates)
Read on Ao3
Tumblr media
Chapter 28 | Chapter 30
Living After Midnight - Judas Priest
Over the constant hum and buzz of the jungle darkness, never completely silent, Lizzy’s laughter was ringing through the trees, ricocheting around the clearing next to the Rex paddock. 
She had a filthy laugh that Muldoon hadn’t heard before. At hundred per cent volume, totally out of control, with her head thrown all the way back.  It was bloody glorious. 
And he would be attempting to make her do it again, as soon as possible. 
I’ll have more of that please. 
“Christ Almighty-“ Lizzy wiped her streaming eyes. “-that’s one of the funniest things I’ve ever heard. Well done.” She started cackling breathlessly again, clutching her stomach.
“If I wasn’t awake before that, I certainly was afterwards.”
“I’ll bet.” She wriggled uncomfortably, her ribs were seriously aching. “That was a good one. Got any more?”
“More than we’ve likely got time for.”
The campfire was finally dying. They’d been out in the park for hours, it had to be almost midnight. 
He built me a campfire. Lizzy was practically vibrating with contentment. Not that she couldn’t build her own fire, of course she could, but that wasn’t the point. The gesture was the point, and the fact he had agreed to an open flame amongst trees in the first place. 
Just this once. While there’s nobody here. Those were his exact words. 
Breaking the rules. 
Just this once. 
“We’ve got all the time in the world.” She insisted. “You really should write these down, you know.”
“Maybe someday. If I ever manage to retire. In fact-“ he was struck by an idea. “-you’re a decent writer.”
“Planning on keeping me around that long?”
“I’d like to think so. You have your uses.”
“I’ll take that.” Lizzy worked hard to keep her voice even after the compliment. “But you’d need plenty of photos, or drawings. I don’t know about you, but I’ve always preferred books with pictures.”
Her tone had just enough suggestion for Muldoon to wonder if Baker, despite her promises, had let slip about his own artistic capabilities.
He quickly moved the conversation along before she had too long to dwell on the thought. “You must have a few stories of your own by now?”
Lizzy did indeed have a good one she hadn’t yet shared. Through instinct, she looked around the clearing for eavesdroppers, although they had to be the only two humans for miles and miles, a vast stretch of ocean separating them from the nearest civilisation.  
“On the topic of photographs…I never told anyone outside of the research station because I didn’t want to embarrass Simon.” She rolled her eyes. “Doesn’t matter now, and it’s not like you two will ever meet anyway.”
“Go on.” He caught his grimace just in time at the mention of the ex-fiancé’s name. 
“The first time he came to visit me in Namibia, he was a little, uh-…condescending to the locals in our team-“
Muldoon was familiar with what the swift response from said locals would be, rich white clients tended to all behave in a similar way. It was expected. But that was a whole other collection of tales for the fireside. “I’ll bet that was swiftly resolved.”
“They had some fun with him first. Simon was parading his new Polaroid camera around giving it “magic picture” this and that. I was mortified.”
“Christ-“
“He hasn’t travelled much outside the States.” Lizzy explained. “Or, in fact, outside the state of New York. Anyway, one of my team, proceeds to tell Simon, translated by yours truly, that she prefers the resolution on the Nikon 35mm and also that she had the equipment handy to help Simon clean his dirty lens.”
Muldoon smiled grimly. “You laughed too, I imagine?”
He wondered if it had been as good as the ridiculous laugh he had recently become acquainted with. 
Lizzy had indeed tried and miserably failed to keep a straight face at her partners come-uppance. “I couldn’t help it!”
She recalled the memory. Simon’s face had been hot and red, mortally embarrassed, and he’d stormed off by himself into the long grass. 
A terrible, possibly fatal response. 
Once she’d caught up to him with a shotgun slung over her shoulder, she’d had to sweet-talk him into returning to camp before he stumbled across a big cat, buffalo or even a snake who would really give him something to be upset about.
That hadn’t improved his temper at all, but he had been downright foolish of him to just wander off like he was taking a stroll in Central bloody Park!
Why’d you laugh at me? Are all your friends like this? Do we really have to stay out here with them? What’s wrong with Windhoek?
Windhoek, really? They’re just messing with you!  It’s fine! 
Not fine, Liz! They should apologise!
You’re the one who should apologise! Pembe is the best guide we have and you were damn rude-
And so on. One of many disagreements, and they seemed to be increasing in frequency. 
“Yeah, he didn’t see the funny side at all.” She sniffed. “Was never that great at laughing at himself. Bless him.”  “You need to have a fantastic sense of humour-“ Muldoon’s voice was as dry as if he were telling Lizzy her shoelace was untied. “-to work with things that regularly try to make your life insurance policy pay out before time.”
“Good thing you’re so in tune with your emotions then, eh?” The comment earned her nothing more than a derisive glance as he lowered his slouch hat over his face, and she chuckled again. 
Maybe it was the Towel Incident, or the disastrous cooking attempt that had followed, but the ice was well and truly broken. No going back now. Lizzy felt the most like herself since the breakup. It was so easy, talking to him like this. She was happy. 
They were on opposite sides of the campfire, Lizzy scooched a fraction closer on her blanket so she could see him better through the heat haze. 
Muldoon was on the ground too, stretched out on a blanket of his own. Lizzy wasn’t sure how he seemed to look even taller lying down. She shook her head, trying to chase away the thought of how she’d measure up. 
Lizzy watched him for a long time, thinking to herself in comfortable silence, before speaking again. 
“Tell me about her.”
“Who?”
He’d answered instantly. Of course he was awake under the hat, alert. As always.
“Your wife.” She answered quietly. 
Muldoon hmm-ed for a long moment, Lizzy waiting as patiently as she was able, trying her hardest not to fidget. 
Just when she thought there was no way he was ever going to answer her in this lifetime, he did. 
“You’re not unlike her. Your attitude is-“ Damn. Did it again. He corrected. “-was very similar.”
“You can say ‘is’.” Lizzy told him gently. “Nobody here but me.”
“She cooked much better than you can.”
“Yeah, that sounds about right.” Lizzy muttered. “But, in my defence, I didn’t know food could be any other colour than beige until I left school.” Shuffling where she sat, her legs starting to get pins and needles. “She pretty?”
“Knockout.”
“Wow.” She grinned. “Lucky you.”
“A lot taller than you.” Muldoon added. “Honour is likely going to hit six foot once she’s in high school.”
“Honour?”
“Our daughter.”
“Ah.” It occurred to Lizzy he’d never told her the name of his child before. Or ever used the prefix ‘our’. Always mine. Always my responsibility from now on. No more our. 
It felt like he was divulging a massive secret. Honour. Lizzy rolled it around in her brain. Not a name she would ever have imagined him going for, but she liked it. Rather a lot.
He took the hat from his eyes and looked her up and down. “She’s almost your height already, in fact. Although that wouldn’t be difficult.”
“The diet of beige is to blame. Unfortunately, I’m stunted.”  Not where it counts Muldoon thought. There was a reason he liked walking behind along Dr Armstrong where he could get away with it. The view was spectacular.
He tried very hard to get her quite frankly unfair side profile out of his head before he answered. “We’ll pretend the smoking habit had nothing to do with it, then. Honestly, the pair of you would have gotten along.” It was the truth. His wife, too, loved elephants and had a downright filthy laugh.
“Did Jeff know her?” Lizzy asked, hoping the answer was yes. 
“They were lethal together.”
“Dr Blacklaw has quite excellent taste in women, what can I say?” She made a show of tossing her hair back.  Muldoon found himself wondering if their paths had crossed sooner and he had met Armstrong in Africa, how would he have felt about her? How would she have felt about him? 
Life might have been very different. Maybe he would have turned down the offer from InGen, gone to India instead. He wouldn’t have to be so careful about what he said or did all the time. 
At least the other chap was out of the picture now. Matters were a damn sight better than when she first arrived with that rock on her finger, like a shameless beacon, flashing I’m taken every time the sun caught it at the right angle: You haven’t got a hope in Hell. 
Maybe the universe was capable of working things out for itself, even if it had put him through the metaphorical wringer to get to this point. 
“Has there-…” Lizzy was so relaxed she had forgotten herself, who she worked for, and all her manners. As the question was tumbling from her mouth she realised how inappropriate it was. They were good friends, sure, but working friendships always had their limits.
She was about to cross a very dangerous line. 
“What?”
“Doesn’t matter.”
“Less of that. It clearly does, or you wouldn’t have said it.”
In a rare occasion, she seemed lost for words.
”Nobody here but me.” He quoted her own words back to her.
“I…don’t know if you’ll like it.” She fumbled. “I was just curious. Nosy. I was being nosy, alright? Sorry.”
“Try me.”
Lizzy knew that tone. I dare you. If you’re brave enough. Deep breath.
“Has there been…anyone since?”
I double dare you.
There followed a very long pause during which Lizzy thought don’t ask why, do not ask why. 
“Why?”
Dammit. 
She couldn’t be the only person on the planet who could see the appeal. More-so now that he’d stopped drinking, Lizzy had an even harder time keeping her thoughts in check. He was looking damn fine recently. 
“Eight years is a long time!” Lizzy sighed and wrung her hands. “And I told you that you wouldn’t like it! Don’t answer. No need.”
“It’s alright.”
Muldoon was in fact very interested to see where this particular conversation was headed.
They could have been back in Kenya, with the campfire and animal calls, though of a different era, still familiar in their nature, all around them. 
If there’s a right time, it’s probably now.
“Nobody significant.” He answered. One or two that didn’t work out. Three or four that had just been stress relief. Nobody that he felt deserved any more of his time or his life, or his daughter’s. Until Armstrong had landed on the island with a bang and instantly began rearranging the natural order, and damn her, questioning the where-why-how of everybloodything. 
Lizzy meanwhile, was wishing she had never brought the subject up. 
And she knew the reason. Not because it was awkward to talk about, strangely enough it wasn’t awkward in the slightest. His answer had been as casual as if she had asked him what the time was, or what the weather was likely to do tomorrow. But the answer she had most wanted to hear, been hoping to hear, no, nobody at all, was way too much to wish for. 
She’d been correct. Eight years was a long time.
Or maybe Lizzy was just a little peeved he’d probably done better in the last eight years being out of a relationship than she had done  being in one until very recently. 
She had to admit the first two years with Simon had been a lot of fun. After that it became less about fun, and more about we’re in the same country, so we’d better do something about it. God, I’m so tired. Are you tired? C’mon, we gotta. At least once. I love you. So tired.
“Anything else in this particular line of questioning, while we’re at it?” He actually sounded amused.
“When…-“ Lizzy started then ground to a halt again. Way too inappropriate.
“When…?”
She just wanted to die there and then.
“Doesn’t matter.” She frowned and deliberately looked away. “Forget it.”
“Were you about to ask ‘when was the last time’?” Muldoon smirked. He knew he was on the money. And seeing the normally confident and bolshy ethologist becoming a little flustered was delightful. “Getting rather personal there, Armstrong.”
“You’re right, I’m sorry.” She stammered. “None of my business.”
“I honestly don’t mind.” This could work both ways. “We’re adults. I will if you will.”
Curiosity was burning Lizzy’s insides so much that it was manifesting as stomach ache. She had gotten herself into this mess, may as well keep going. She nodded, ignoring  Kathy’s voice in her head warning you’re gonna get in troooouble…
“Remember when the dilophosaur did a number on you? I was away at the time?”
“Huh. So when you said you had a good trip, you meant you had a good trip. I see.” She played with the belt loops on her jeans, reluctant to deliver her side of the deal. 
Muldoon cleared his throat. “Forgetting something, missus?”
“I’ve changed my mind. I don’t like this game.” Lizzy grumbled, only because she was losing. 
“Then don’t give what you can’t take. I’ll have to make a wild guess if you don’t want to say out loud.”
Lizzy mumbled something that he took as affirmative.
“Let’s see, then.” She was shifty-eyed and squirming. Brilliant. “ Didn’t you stop off in the States with your man before you came over here?”
“Well, yeah-“ Lizzy forced herself to get over her self-consciouness. She still had the Spanish dictionary somewhere in her room in the lodge. Regrettably, the only thing Simon had given her before she boarded her flight to Costa Rica. “But if that’s your guess, you’re dead wrong.”
Muldoon looked at her in disbelief. He had so many questions.  What the Hell had the man been playing at?! It was like he wanted to lose her.
“This year at least?” 
“Yes, if you absolutely must know!” Lizzy knew the exact Pantone shade of scarlet she was turning, far beyond pretending it was from the heat of the campfire. “April was a very good month, okay?”
April?! It’s nearly bloody next year now…
Her short temper now seemed incredibly explainable.
”I can hear you thinking.” Lizzy said grumpily, still not looking directly at him. “Not quite the answer you were expecting from someone like me, eh?”
“If that’s true, I can’t help but feel most of your bad moods have a fairly easy fix.”
“Not so easy on a tiny island, where people talk. Our favourite engineer being the main culprit.” She grinned at him. “Or I could follow your example and finally have a good reason to go back to the mainland.”
He didn’t want her to do that at all, actually, but he grudgingly agreed.
She was lying on her side, propped up on an elbow. The size of her waist in comparison to her hips was unreal. Nothing wrong with her khaki shorts, but those damn jeans were doing her some incredible favours.
Lizzy couldn’t stop, though she was wary of feeling upset from finding out more things she didn’t really want to hear. “So, do you really like this person on the mainland?” 
Muldoon chose his words carefully. ”There is someone I’m keen on, yes.”
What the-
“Oh. Yeah, great. Good for you.” It came out more sarcastic than she intended. 
Muldoon nearly laughed. Armstrong wasn’t following him. 
”You know, it’s alright to be jealous.” He couldn’t resist toying with her.
Lizzy’s reaction was explosive. 
”I’m not-“ She practically back snarled at him. “Hm. I’m not jealous!”
Very convincing thought Muldoon. 
No, not jealous. She was fuming. Someone else?! Why was he telling her that? Lizzy really thought he liked her, and now he was interested in someone else? 
”Armstrong…” Please get there faster. I’m not ready to say it yet. 
Boy, did she feel silly when she realised Muldoon was talking about her.
She was the one he was interested in. 
”This person-“ Lizzy was finally on the same wavelength, much to the relief of both of them . “-I’m not sure she’s good enough for you.” 
“Oh, really?”  “I have some questions. Just to be certain.” The delighted grin was threatening to burst forth. She forced a neutral expression.
Keep it together.
“First question: is she pretty?”
“Very.”
“Intelligent?”
“She’s a clever girl, yes.”
“Meek and feeble?”
“Not even a bit. And you know fine that’s not what I would want.” Muldoon gave her that look she knew oh-so-well. “You’re pushing your luck, by the way.”
Lizzy laughed again, the real, uncontrollable laugh, and he finally smiled.
New Year’s Eve, or Hogmanay as she better knew it, had always been more magical than Christmas. No matter how bad things got, the moment the clock struck midnight had the promise of a new beginning, a fresh start. A chance to do better this time around. 
But she knew exactly what would happen this year on Nublar. The spell would break. They would go back to the visitor centre, back to work, and in a few days it would be as if this night had never even happened.
She needed to do something. Before it all ended.
“You alright in there?” He had noticed her smile fading. 
”Fine. Just thinking.”
Muldoon scoffed. 
“I know well enough that fine, very rarely means fine. Especially when it’s coming from you, my girl.” He stared her down. “What’s the matter?”
“It’s just…not fair.” Lizzy became aware she was whining, and hated herself for it.
She didn’t need to elaborate. He knew exactly what she meant. “I agree.”
Why couldn’t we have just met in Africa? 
”I don’t want to go back. Not yet.”
“Neither do I, but we have to, at some point.”
“Why, though?”  Muldoon hesitated, trying to word it as diplomatically as he could, to avoid upsetting her.
“Because there are rules that can’t be broken, and ultimately I’m responsible for your safety.” Damn this whole situation. “That is what it all comes down to.”
“Okay.” She reluctantly agreed. “Let’s go, I suppose.”
It’s not okay, it’s not okay at all.  A part of her had desperately hoped something would happen that night. Conditions were otherwise perfect. They’d likely never have a chance like this again for a long time. 
But it wasn’t meant to be.
Unless…
She had an idea. 
“Fire’s still going.” Lizzy stated flatly. “I’ll sort it out.”   The ground was too hard to kick dirt over it. But she knew Muldoon kept a couple of metal jerry cans in the back of his Jeep. Not InGen protocol, just old habits. 
One was water, one was gas. Labelled of course, but it was pitch black apart from the glowing embers nearby.
Don’t want to get these two mixed up. 
She unscrewed the lid of the first container and got a noseful of fumes. Then checked the second, and bingo, slightly stale water that smelled like the colour green. But it was much heavier than she anticipated, almost full. 
“Ooyah! Son of a bitch!” She’d tried to lift, lost grip, and somehow managed to trap her finger between the two cans with a bang. 
“Everything alright back there?”
“It’s fine, under control!” Lizzy struggled to free herself, cursing under her breath at her own clumsiness. Idiot. “Shitshitshit, come on!”
She eventually succeeded, dousing the remains of the fire with a quiet sizzle and a faint wisp of smoke.
Darkness.
Muldoon hadn’t started the Jeep yet, waiting for her, there wasn’t any light at all in the clearing.  She put the can in its place, then hung back by the tailgate, quiet and still. 
And in three…two…one…
Muldoon didn’t take long to twig that something suspicious was afoot.
”Christ’s sake, Armstrong, don’t do it!” He sounded exasperated. “If you’re planning on playing hide and seek in the dark again, I’m not having it this time.”
She didn’t answer.
If he wasn’t into this, he’d just wait me out.
Lizzy was very quickly proven right.
“I know exactly where you are.” He kept up a stream of expletives in her general direction as he slammed the driver’s door. “I’ve being doing this for years. I’m very good at it.” 
Come get me, then.
Lizzy didn’t even hardly dare breathe, placing her palm over her mouth to stay quiet.  Silence. 
For just a beat too long. 
Hang on, where the Hell is he? 
Lizzy realised she possibly no longer had the upper hand.  A tiny, deliberate, shuffle of gravel under heavy boots right next to her, that made her jump and flatten her body against the taillights with a small thump.
He was close. Much closer than she thought. And she’d just given herself away. 
“Got you.” Muldoon was attempting to sound put out, but he’d enjoyed that, as much was evident in his voice, she could tell. “Too easy.”
”Fair and square, mister. So, what are we going to do next?”
”You’re going to get in the Jeep, and we’re going back to the lodge.”
Lizzy leaned against the rear bumper, making the metal creak underneath her. Just so he knew exactly where she was.
”See, I don’t really feel like getting back in the Jeep right now, isn’t that a kicker?” She hoped the lip-bite was evident in how she coyly spoke. “What are you going to do about that?”
“I will pick you up.” Muldoon threatened. “Employee handbook be damned.” 
“If that’s the case, handbook out the window, then I think you should do more than just ‘pick me up.’” She mimicked. “I’d let you.”
“Lizzy.” Deep, exasperated sigh. “I am using your first name so you know how serious I am. Get in the Jeep.” 
She uttered the two words that she knew ahead of time would be the equivalent of a red rag to the park warden. 
“Make me.”
God, she could feel the annoyance radiating from him. He was bristling. 
But nothing could have prepared her for what happened next. 
Lizzy heard him tapping impatiently on the side panel of the Jeep, it felt like a countdown.
Should I be runni-?
“Right-“ He was fast.
She wasn’t fast enough. 
And really should have ran while she had the chance.
He was making good on his word that he would pick her up, willing or not, employee handbook, workplace code, the unspoken rules all thrown out of the window, never to be seen again. 
Muldoon went straight for her legs, grabbing handfuls of her through her jeans. Damn woman, she would get in the bloody car. 
Lizzy shrieked and flung out her arms, scrabbling for something, anything to grab onto, both hands found and gripped the sides of the Jeep tailgate. 
Muldoon was trying his best to pry her free while she barely clung on for dear life with her fingernails, not unlike a cat that was avoiding being stuffed into a cage and carted off to the veterinary surgery.
She felt the pressure on her legs ease, and thought he’d given up. She started to loosen her fingers on the cool metal. 
Then he found the backs of her knees with both hands, and pulled hard. But Lizzy wasn’t for letting go just yet. She still clung on for dear life like a very determined barnacle. 
“By Christ, you’re strong-“ There was a hint of desperation in Muldoon’s normally measured voice.
That did it.  Lizzy was gone then, she started laughing helplessly at the absurdity of what was happening, what events had led to this moment, and how ridiculous they must look.   She finally lost her grip all at once and slid ungracefully downwards with a thump, accepting defeat, still cackling.
Lizzy just knew Muldoon was shaking his head in exasperation at her in the dark, his accident-prone, walking disaster of an ethologist. 
“Sit up, you bloody lunatic.” But then her entire hand was grasped in his, pulling her upright into a sitting position. “For God’s sake, don’t bang your head. It might knock some sense into you, but I don’t fancy the paperwork.”
”It’s far too late for me.” Lizzy tried to catch her breath. “Would need to be one Hell of a bang.”
Realising the connotations too late, she snorted and muttered sorry as she tried to reason with her hair, patting it back into a more respectable shape.  
She felt two fingers under her chin, tilting her face upwards and she tensed, her breath caught in her throat.  “What am I going to do with you, Lizzy?”
The question was absolutely loaded.
”Anything you like.” She impulsively answered in a low voice.
She was euphoric, riding the high that had been building since the moment she stepped down out of the Jeep into the clearing, and honestly she just didn’t care any longer. 
They would never be alone again after New Year’s Eve. 
This was it. Her only chance for God knew how long. 
She had it bad, so bad for him. And she couldn’t really remember just then why this was such a terrible idea in the first place. Something about those damn rules…
Eh, never been one for the rules anyway.  Lizzy craned her neck upwards, stretching as far as she possibly could, relying on her intuition alone in the dark. 
She found what she was searching for and after a last moment of hesitation, she finally did it. She kissed him.  
He pulled away slightly, unsure. Lizzy felt sick that she’d misjudged horribly, and was starting to seriously panic with how she could possibly play this one off.
I…fell?
But she could have cried with relief when he apparently got over the surprise and began kissing her in return, leaning into her. Responding to her. 
It felt so right, so bizarrely normal, that Lizzy found herself briefly wondering why they hadn’t been doing this the whole damn time they’d known each other. 
Slow and hesitant at first. Then something simultaneously clicked for the both of them, and it turned into an altogether different experience. Urgent, messy, not at all careful, not what Lizzy was used to at all.
Lizzy feared the lamps would click on and flood the clearing with light at any second. Like they had to hurry before they were caught, as if John Hammond himself might pop out of the bushes, brandishing his cane, gotcha!
But it didn’t matter. This was what she’d needed. She hadn’t realised how much she needed it, that she wanted this so badly. For far longer than the past few months of living in Costa Rica.
She realised she didn’t mind so much anymore if she banged her head on the floor of Jeep. Repeatedly. In fact, at this moment in time she’d be glad of it. They might not make it back to the lodge. 
But as quickly as had happened, it was over. Fate had very different ideas for how the night would progress. 
He pushed a little too hard into her hips, and oh God it’s happening, forcing her backwards against the bed of the Jeep as Lizzy let her legs relax and fall further apart. It was evidently far too much for the built-in motion sensor, and the alarm in the vehicle began blaring like a police siren at ear-splitting volume, all lights flashing in unison. The Rex snorted and roared unhappily at the disturbance from the other side of the fence, only adding to the din.  The noise had the same effect as if someone had poured a bucket of ice cold water over them. 
“Shit-“ Lizzy shot upright, pulling away and covered her ears while Muldoon fumbled for the Jeep keys to stop the racket. 
Then silence. Deafening, smothering silence. Even the Rex was quiet. A single hadrosaur trumpeted in the distance.
She waited, unsure what to do next, she couldn’t read his expression in the dark, but he felt off. Something was badly wrong. 
“I’m taking you back now.” Muldoon said tersely. “I would really appreciate it if you just do what I ask this time.”
”Okay.” She knew better than to argue.
“That was out of order.” He continued icily. “That cannot happen again.” 
“Got it. Sorry.” Lizzy felt the heat rising in her cheeks. Goddamn embarrassment, flooding every cell. I can’t believe this. I’ve blown it. “I’m really sorry.” 
He didn’t respond as she shuffled into the passenger side and quietly buckled her seatbelt. He wouldn’t even look at her. She tried again, one last attempt. 
I’m using your first name so you know how serious I am. 
”Robert, I’m really sorry.”
Please believe me.
Please answer me.
She‘d never used his name before, ever. This wasn’t the pleading circumstances she wanted to use it for the first time. Not at all. 
Her efforts didn’t work. 
”Don’t do that.” Muldoon replied flatly, starting the engine while staring straight ahead. “We’ll deal with this in the morning.” 
Lizzy’s heart plummeted, her chest constricting, aching with that too familiar pain all over again.
Her stomach was flipping back and forth in sheer panic for the entire silent-and-not-in-a-good-way journey back to the lodge. 
She didn’t even bother trying for a goodnight as they parted ways to their own rooms. Neither of them did.  I’ve really done it this time.
Months of building a rapport, gone in an instant because of one false judgement. And what if he told Jeff what she’d done? What if anyone on the island, at InGen, found out what she’d done?
The rumours that had been swirling around would finally be true. There were names Lizzy would be called that she couldn’t just brush off anymore. Nobody would take her, or her work, seriously ever again. She’d be an outcast.
All terrible things. But worst of all was Muldoon refusing to acknowledge her. That was the reason she was trying her damnedest not to cry.  Stupid. Stupid, stupid idiot! 
It had turned out to be too much too soon. Maybe too much ever.
Why do I always do this? Why do I always ruin everything? 
***
Thanks for reading!
If a particular anecdote sounds familiar, I mayyyyy have drawn some inspiration from George of the Jungle (this is very important for later 🎶)
The story I envisioned Muldoon telling Lizzy is along the lines of Peter Capstick’s black mamba in the latrine story from Death in the Long Grass. If you want some idea of just how funny it is, I’ve read it multiple times and know what’s coming almost verbatim. I still laugh every time I read it.
And hearing Muldoon calmly recount one of the many times he’s almost checked out early would be, I imagine, quite hilarious.
I can’t believe I finally got to post this chapter. It’s been here since the very first draft, it’s quite special to me as New Year, or Hogmanay as we call it, is a much bigger deal in Scotland. A very important tradition is the first foot, which is supposed to bring you good fortune for the year ahead.
…I guess they did it wrong.
12 notes · View notes
doeofdevotion · 5 months
Text
just before i left work for the day i was told that a beloved friend and colleague passed away during the night. i was and still am so shocked. he is such a warm and kind and friendly person. he just wanted to make everyone laugh. he’s only 55. he left behind a wife and a young son whom he adored so very much, he talked about them with such intense love, they were his world. and as much as my heart breaks knowing i’ll never see him again, as much as i will grieve and miss him, it is nothing compared to the devastating loss his wife and son will live with for the rest of their lives.
i don’t know them, i’ve never met them, but i have cried so hard for them tonight. i am trying to think of anything i could do that would be helpful even if i’m a stranger to them. i’m trying to brainstorm things the company could do to help them financially. but i have experienced a sudden and awful death of a loved one too and those first weeks and months are so horrible that nothing really helps.
Almighty God, thank you for giving dear Mike to his family and friends to know and love him. may his soul have eternal rest through the mercy of God.
Father of all, surround Mike’s family with your boundless love, dry their tears, and comfort them in their sorrow. by your call, we all shall be reunited once again with those who have gone before, through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
14 notes · View notes
always-andromeda · 1 year
Note
“Fast food nation” is not really worth it, trust me. It’s… weird (not in an interesting way). There are Brian scene-packs on youtube that cover all the interesting parts. I mean, it still got me hooked on the character, but only because nasty-oily-Dano is my favourite Dano. My ex boyfriend used to work at McDonald’s, so maybe it’s a real-life-event-turned-into-fiction-kink?
Thanks for the quick answer! If you can’t bite the bullet, I’ll feed it to you: “La Belle Fluer Sauvage” (your choice, free your filthy mind, you always hit the checkpoint), Brian Wilcox.
Again, congrats congrats congrats!
Author's Note | Anon. I am gonna need to thank you but also strangle you for this request /j. I have tried so hard to keep requests simple and sweet for my sanity but I literally could not with this one. This shit is just over 2,300 words and I am not about it. Jesus Christ almighty, I went fucking buck wild here. 🤭 also. i got three requests for Brian. so I made them into like a mini trilogy. this is part two of that trilogy. next part will be out in an hour!!
Warnings | smut (MDNI), unprotected sex, sexual tension, Brian is a gross little greasy freak!!
Tumblr media
You waste away your summer job at Mickey's like each day is just another everlasting big burger, all held together with plastic cheese and crammed in a box that's way too small. Meaning, it's all artificial. It's all disgusting and temporary and all a product of capitalism or some shit. That's how you describe yours and Brian's relationship.
His kisses are laced with salt and whatever flavor of energy drink he's fixated on at the moment. You would ask him to remember to brush his teeth in the mornings, but you doubt he'd actually do it. He doesn't like you nearly enough to actually take that into consideration for his morning routine. That's to say he even likes you at all.
Because you rarely get the idea that he does. You get the sense that he likes you as long as you kiss him back when he joins you in the walk-in freezer. As long as you laugh when he makes some corny joke about warming you up. Though nothing has ever gone further than quick makeouts and over the clothes action, you suspect that he wouldn't have any qualms with pulling his dick out right in front of the frozen burger patties.
But as soon as he crosses the imaginary line you've set for yourself, you're humming into his mouth, telling him you're getting cold, and that you don't want Tony to catch you. Then Brian makes some quip about how he thinks it would be fantastic, actually, if Mickey's employee of the month was caught in the walk-in with Mickey's worst employee of every month. You giggle sparingly, hoping that doesn't give him the wrong idea.
Because you want what he wants: fun. At least you hope that's what he wants too. Just a reprieve from the hell that is service work that isn't talking shit about Tony in the break room. And you have to admit, getting Brian flustered with a heated kiss is a bit more of a productive usage of your time.
Which is exactly why you avoid him on this day. Because the last time you made out with him in the walk in, you swear you felt him pop a boner. And you'd drawn your line at much less before. So the second you felt him bulging through his baggy pants and pressing against your abdomen, you were out of there.
Three days later, he's staring at you from inside the kitchen as if you're still blue balling him from where you work the cash register. He averts his eyes when you turn to read him the next order. But you know that when you greet another customer with a chipper, 'Hi, welcome to Mickey's! What can I get for you today?' he's right back to burning holes into the back of your head with his dark eyes.
You try your best to ignore him. Like he's some nightmare you had. Yet, just like a fever dream, he doesn't quite go away. He's right at the edge of your vision, flipping burgers with a bored expression. At least he always smiled when he kissed you. Well...he smirked. And it was annoyingly smug. Whatever. It was still better than the indifference he pretends to embody.
I know your secret, Brian Wilcox. With the pungent fumes of stale oil and a touch of mildew, you popped a boner in the walk-in freezer. Because you kissed me.
The thought liberates you until you clock out for the night. You walk to your car, keys laced between your fingers like your mother had taught you years ago. So when Brian grabs your wrist as you reach for your car door, you whip around, ready to hit him directly in the gut.
"Hey, hey, hey, Jesus--" Brian yells, dropping your wrist quickly and lunging away from your swinging fist, "It's just me...Jesus fucking Christ...were you trying to kill me?"
You hiss, "Were you trying to act like a fucking creep? Fuck, Brian-- It's late. What are you still doing here?" Hand over your chest, your shoulders slump and you eye him wearily, waiting for his excuse.
He doesn't bother apologizing. Just looks at you with his brow furrowed and says like it's the most obvious thing in the world, "I wanted to talk to you."
"About?"
"The other day..."
You sigh and wave him off, "I don't give a shit if Jason steals my chips from the break room, he can go ahead and have them--"
Of course Brian doesn't let you get away that easily, "Oh, fuck off with that. You know what I'm talking about."
"Do we really have to talk about it?"
"I think it's a good idea," he argues.
"Yeah, what a great idea. I kissed you and you're such a pussy that you got hard over it. So glad that I got to relive that. Thanks, Bri." you prepare to turn away from him when he catches your wrist once more.
"That's it?" he searches for an answer you don't want to give. "So...I'm guessing you...didn't like it?"
You snort and your reply comes out less sarcastic than you would've liked, "Oh, I absolutely loved it. When I applied here, I was just praying to get groped by some greasy asshole who can't keep it in his pants."
Brian snickers at your weak tone, "I bet you were."
"Excuse me?"
"Tell me you weren't and I'll leave you alone." he challenged you in a low, even voice that scares the shit out of you. Only it's not because he looms over you, daring you to prove him wrong. It's more the thought of working another day at this fucking restaurant without having his body and quick tongue to get you through it that startles you.
You go deadly silent, opting to stare down at where yours and his rubber soled shoes touch the asphalt.
"That's what I thought." Finally, he seems to understand how hard this is for you to admit to him.
Brian takes a deep breath and tries again, "I didn't think you'd want me either. If that makes you feel any better."
You answer quickly, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to sound so…mean.”
"Yes, you did." he insists, "But so did I."
You make tight fists with your hands, pressing your nails into your palms. Sniffing, you ask, "What are we gonna do now?"
Brian kicks one of his feet, tapping the tip of his shoe against yours. "Well...either we can drive home...separately. Or...maybe I could show you the backseat of my car."
A genuine laugh rips from your chest, "Jesus, Brian. Can you not act like you're gonna fucking murder me? If you want to mess around in your car, could you just ask like a normal person?"
His attitude floods his tone ferociously, "Fine, do you wanna fuck me in my backseat?"
The way your clit throbs at that makes you bite the inside of your cheek so hard you taste a tinge of copper. You try not to breathe when you say nonchalantly, "Yeah, sure."
Brian turns, walking a few steps to his car, parked two spaces down from yours. He opens the back passenger side for you in some fucked up, gentlemanly gesture.
"After you," he tilts his head towards the interior and you crawl in, immediately turning to lie on your back on the leather upholstery. When Brian joins you, he barely has enough space in the cramped backseat to perch between your legs. He keeps one hand on the back headrest and the other on the edge of the seat bracing himself there.
Brian hovers over you. That crooked smirk you liked so much is plastered across his pink face as he works at the buttons of your uniform, exposing your bare chest so fast that your skin forgets the feeling of the cool summer air from outside. Your chest rises and falls shallowly with your nervous breath.
Brian says slowly, "I hope you know...I really like it when you forget to put on a bra before coming to work. It's really fucking hot."
"It's not like I do it for your sake," you squeak out a pathetic attempt at a comeback.
"Never said you did, princess."
Oh. Fuck. Right. Off.
He leans in, eyes flickering from yours down to your swollen lips, "Are you gonna keep being snippy? Or are we gonna fuck?"
Please.
You nod fervently and reach for the collar of his uniform.
Brian simply moves back, dodging your grasp, "Come on, princess. I want you to say it. Or else I won't hesitate to leave your stubborn ass back here."
A mixture of anger and embarrassment mixing to form a flush on your cheeks and the tips of your ears, you crane your neck and finally grab his collar, bringing his lips back to yours, "Just fuck me, you asshole."
With a satisfied grin, Brian's lips mold against yours. His mouth open and tongue swiping across yours, you're just as breathless as you are in the walk in. But with his busted air conditioner and the atmosphere of the backseat dampening, not even your unbuttoned shirt could offer any relief from the heat.
Brian pulls away and studies you as you try to catch your breath. Moments pass and he shifts slightly, hovering over your chest. You watch him press his lips together and push out a fat glob of saliva from between them. The spit lands with a wet plop between your tits and you scoff at the humored expression on his face.
That's all before he ducks in again, this time to lick a long stripe up your chest, gathering the saliva on his tongue before wrapping his lips around one of your nipples and sucking. The high pitched moan you let out takes you by surprise as he switches to giving the other attention with a jarringly gentle kiss. He looks up at you through his dark hair with devious eyes. Then the hand bracing itself on the edge of the seat flies to the belt that holds up his pants under the loose fitting uniform.
Brian pulls down his pants and boxers just enough to poke out his solid cock, the tip practically pulsing and purple. He helps you take off your own bottoms, banging his head on the ceiling of his car in the process.
He winces and rubs at the back of his head, "Shit—"
The laugh you let out is cut off sharply when he presses his lips to yours again just to shut you up. But he doesn't just want to stifle your teasing. He also stifles your yelp as he slides himself into your wet cunt, leaving no room for adjustment or romance. He simply fills you out and groans as you tremble and tighten around him.
His lips falter in covering yours and you taste the sweat forming on his upper lip as he struggles to breathe out another moan.
No matter how many pretty sounds he makes for you as you struggle to take all of him without nearly choking on your own dwindling air supply, you tell yourself one thing. Remember, he doesn't actually like you. He likes your mouth and he likes your tits and he likes your pussy. Not. You.
Once he starts moving, you repeat it in your head over and over again every time his skin slaps against yours lewdly.
He doesn't like you. He doesn't like you. He doesn't like you.
You try to picture yourself twenty years from now. A born again Christian soccer mom with four kids, a minivan, and a husband who thinks women can't possibly have orgasms. You imagine a future where Brian is just a bad memory that you tell your friends over wine. That he's the reason why you'd tell your shitty husband to nip at your neck in bed or maybe try a new position. Because when Brian did it, it felt divine. And before you know it, you're circling back around to him.
Fuck. No matter how much rewiring you attempt, it goes back to Brian fucking Wilcox and you wish you could hate it.
You're entangling your fingers in his dark hair and pulling hard. His teeth bite a little deeper into your skin and you gasp at the sting.
"Jesus fucking Christ..." he curses loudly and you feel the full weight of every vulgar syllable reverberating in his throat.
He's good at this and he fucking knows it. You can tell by the way he chuckles slightly when you try to arch your back off of the leather backseat. All you want is to press more of your body against his. For some fucking reason, you need this summer fling to poison you worse than the preservatives Mickey's puts in their food does.
Already, you feel the good kind of chemicals coursing through your veins. Your uniform shirt rises up and the sweat clinging to your skin makes your lower back stick to the leather. And as soon as you peel yourself off of the seat and your chest meets his, you kiss him.
You make him swallow the sounds of arousal that come from deep inside you as his poison takes over all of your senses. Riding out the climax exerts all of your energy and leaves you gritting your teeth through overstimulation. You weakly attempt to clench around him for only a moment before Brian pulls out and jerks himself off a few more times with a tight fist.
Both sets of eyes blown out with lust, you and him watch as his cock twitches and then shoots thick ropes of cum that spill out over your chest, still practically glistening with the streaks his tongue left.
Thoroughly defiled and spent, you don't dare think of anything but his softening cock laying across your abdomen as he dips his head and catches his breath.
Voice now hoarse and thin, Brian says quietly, "Fuck man…I think— I think I really fucking like you..."
121 notes · View notes
skyloftian-nutcase · 9 months
Note
Hey lofty
So your Catholic right? Im curious and kinda considering becoming a Catholic but don’t really know anything about it, if it’s not to much could you give like a basic explanation of what you believe, what you have to do, what you can’t do, etc?
Thank you
Well hi! :D
I am Catholic, yes, and very happy to hear from you. :) There's a lot to Catholicism, but the basic premise of our beliefs can be found in a prayer we call the Nicene Creed. I'll post it below, along with more specific answers to your questions. I feel like it's hard to go into a blanket statement about all of this, but I will try. Please feel free to reach out to me via dm (or if that's too intimidating you can do asks without anon and I can answer privately if you like) for details because it's a lot of info and details and I tend to be hesitant about posting complicated things for the whole world to see an misinterpret. I think I'm still just a little bleh from earlier, though, so if you truly aren't comfortable you can simply ask on anon too.
So! "basic explanation of what we believe" = our Nicene Creed, also called our profession of faith that we pray weekly:
"I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth,  of all things visible and invisible.
I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,  the Only Begotten Son of God,  born of the Father before all ages.  God from God, Light from Light,  true God from true God,  begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;  through him all things were made.  For us men and for our salvation  he came down from heaven,  and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary,  and became man.  For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate,  he suffered death and was buried,  and rose again on the third day  in accordance with the Scriptures.  He ascended into heaven  and is seated at the right hand of the Father.  He will come again in glory  to judge the living and the dead  and his kingdom will have no end.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,  who proceeds from the Father and the Son,  who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified,  who has spoken through the prophets.
I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.  I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins  and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead  and the life of the world to come."
There's a lot to unpack in that, so if you want to talk more, please feel free to each out. :)
Next questions! "What you have to do/what you can't do" We have something called the Ten Commandments that serves as a basic rulebook we go off:
I am the LORD your God: you shall not have strange Gods before me. (i.e. prioritize God first)
You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain. (self explanatory)
Remember to keep holy the LORD'S Day. (go to Mass on Sunday)
Honor your father and your mother. (give respect to elders)
You shall not kill. (do not harm others, do not wish them harm in any way, do not hold grudges or anger towards others)
You shall not commit adultery. (do not lust, do not use others or look at others as objects for your own pleasure, respect your body and other's bodies)
You shall not steal. (self explanatory)
 You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. (don't lie)
You shall not covet your neighbor's wife.
You shall not covet your neighbor's goods. (these last two essentially are about not being jealous and not being selfish, respecting others' boundaries and their worth)
Jesus himself summarizes it all pretty well into what we call the Golden Rule: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." Essentially, the commandments break down to "respect God and put him first in your life, respect others and treat them with love."
Hope this helps! :)
14 notes · View notes
terrence-silver · 1 year
Note
This is not an apocalyptic scenario but ❛ you are making it very difficult to keep you alive. ❜ sounds like Terry Mccain when beloved goes grocery shopping alone 😃
Tumblr media
---
It was a tale as old as time; Terry McCain deliberately tampered with your front entrance's doorknob, covertly, during the night, with no hallway cameras in sight and he wrote it off as the sort of antisocial, delinquent activity that simply happens in Chicago, even in downtown residential buildings.
Naturally, he took over the issue immediately.
Ever the gentleman, gently cooing and quelling your concern at your door being so savagely damaged by some lowlife, some criminal, some creep, someone trying to break in and failing (for now), some individual with the last intentions in mind, calling a repairman, someone entirely reliable --- someone who regularly fixed things around the station too and then he prolonged the problem to ridiculous degrees, ever so politely, to ensure adorning your front door with a new knob takes as long as possible. Weeks, if need be. Ideally, if some fantastic fairytale scenario, forever. Might've reminded the guy on the task that he had a badge and that he's willing to maintain order and peace with it if he screws anything up and moves any faster than he should. Was it abuse of position? No, it was for you. Because of you. But why, one would ask? What was the motive behind it? Apocalypse was the motive. The end of times and the end of days. The second coming of Christ almighty. Whenever you went out alone, on the streets, in stores and groceries, out and about, on endless sidewalks, surrounded by other pedestrians and a million strangers with a million rotten objectives in mind, here and there and everywhere, Terry McCain was only ever plagued by one consistently intrusive and haunting thought; What if.
What if you died?
What if you were taken?
Kidnapped?
Hurt?
Mugged?
Shot dead somewhere?
Or worse yet, assaulted?
You were making it very difficult to keep you alive if you moved.
You never understood the danger.
Because you were never exposed to it daily like he was.
No. If you had no doorknob to speak of for the time being, winning him some time, and no functional door to lock once you left somewhere, no matter where it was, it was simply logical you'd go nowhere, keeping movements to a standstill with such extensive renovations occurring in your flat and that you'd let him handle things and run your errands for you while you were safely at home, repairman tinkering away and disassembling (and re-assambling) the brutalized mechanism at a snail's pace and the looming threat of a fictional somebody picking at your keyhole at night --- some mystery individual. It wasn't malice he did this out of. Terry cared, is all. Terry loved you. You were Terry's whole world. And the idea of losing you to some easily preventable, stupid freak accident that could happen due to a mere moment of negligence on his behalf? It was too much. And so Friday night, long since after the repair guy has left, not coming back until Monday, having concluded nothing where fixing anything was concerned, a piece of furniture utilized to maintain the door shut for the time being --- after climbing up to your floor with groceries after his shift, Terry plants a kiss on your cheek, offering to keep your company at night from now on. To take care of you in this unprecedented situation.
You eagerly waited for him all day. Like you should.
-"Finding good help ain't easy nowadays. You know how it is. Whole city's gone crazy. He's a nice, trustworthy guy, though. Just a bit clumsy, is all."- He remarks from the kitchen on the subject of the repairman, setting the plastic bags down on the counter. Everything you and he needed for the weekend together.
This was good.
He liked things like this.
He wanted to live like this with you.
-"If it never gets fixed,"- He quips from the doorway, in all seriousness, a joke interlaced with conviction, almost giving is plan away, wrapped in several layers of meaning, looking at you intently, ready to ask you what you wanted for dinner tonight so he could make it. -"You can always ditch this place and move in with me where it's safe."-
16 notes · View notes
Text
Tumblr media
16th November >> Mass Readings (USA)
Thursday, Thirty Second Week in Ordinary Time 
or
Saint Margaret of Scotland 
or
Saint Gertrude, Virgin. 
Thursday, Thirty Second Week in Ordinary Time 
(Liturgical Colour: Green: A (1))
First reading Wisdom 7:22b–8:1 For wisdom is the refulgence of eternal light, the spotless mirror of the power of God.
In Wisdom is a spirit intelligent, holy, unique, Manifold, subtle, agile, clear, unstained, certain, Not baneful, loving the good, keen, unhampered, beneficent, kindly, Firm, secure, tranquil, all-powerful, all-seeing, And pervading all spirits, though they be intelligent, pure and very subtle. For Wisdom is mobile beyond all motion, and she penetrates and pervades all things by reason of her purity. For she is an aura of the might of God and a pure effusion of the glory of the Almighty; therefore nought that is sullied enters into her. For she is the refulgence of eternal light, the spotless mirror of the power of God, the image of his goodness. And she, who is one, can do all things, and renews everything while herself perduring; And passing into holy souls from age to age, she produces friends of God and prophets. For there is nought God loves, be it not one who dwells with Wisdom. For she is fairer than the sun and surpasses every constellation of the stars. Compared to light, she takes precedence; for that, indeed, night supplants, but wickedness prevails not over Wisdom.
Indeed, she reaches from end to end mightily and governs all things well.
The Word of the Lord
R/ Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 119:89, 90, 91, 130, 135, 175
R/ Your word is for ever, O Lord.
Your word, O LORD, endures forever; it is firm as the heavens.
R/ Your word is for ever, O Lord.
Through all generations your truth endures; you have established the earth, and it stands firm.
R/ Your word is for ever, O Lord.
According to your ordinances they still stand firm: all things serve you.
R/ Your word is for ever, O Lord.
The revelation of your words sheds light, giving understanding to the simple.
R/ Your word is for ever, O Lord.
Let your countenance shine upon your servant, and teach me your statutes.
R/ Your word is for ever, O Lord.
Let my soul live to praise you, and may your ordinances help me.
R/ Your word is for ever, O Lord.
Gospel Acclamation John 15:5
Alleluia, alleluia. I am the vine, you are the branches, says the Lord: whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel Luke 17:20-25 The Kingdom of God is among you.
Asked by the Pharisees when the Kingdom of God would come, Jesus said in reply, “The coming of the Kingdom of God cannot be observed, and no one will announce, ‘Look, here it is,’ or, ‘There it is.’ For behold, the Kingdom of God is among you.”
Then he said to his disciples, “The days will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it. There will be those who will say to you, ‘Look, there he is,’ or ‘Look, here he is.’ Do not go off, do not run in pursuit. For just as lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day. But first he must suffer greatly and be rejected by this generation.”
The Gospel of the Lord
R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
------------------------------
Saint Margaret of Scotland 
(Liturgical Colour: White: A (1))
(Readings for the memorial)
(There is a choice today between the readings for the ferial day (Thursday) and those for the memorial. The ferial readings are recommended unless pastoral reasons suggest otherwise)
First Reading Isaiah 58:6-11 Sharing your bread with the hungry.
Thus says the LORD:
This is the fasting that I wish: releasing those bound unjustly, untying the thongs of the yoke; Setting free the oppressed, breaking every yoke; Sharing your bread with the hungry, sheltering the oppressed and the homeless; Clothing the naked when you see them, and not turning your back on your own. Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your wound shall quickly be healed; Your vindication shall go before you, and the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer, you shall cry for help, and he will say: Here I am! If you remove from your midst oppression, false accusation and malicious speech; If you bestow your bread on the hungry and satisfy the afflicted; Then light shall rise for you in darkness, and the gloom shall become for you like midday; Then the LORD will guide you always and give you plenty even on the parched land. He will renew your strength, and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring whose water never fails.
The Word of the Lord
R/ Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 112:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8, 9
R/ Blessed the man who fears the Lord. or R/ Alleluia.
Blessed the man who fears the LORD, who greatly delights in his commands. His posterity shall be mighty upon the earth; the upright generation shall be blessed.
R/ Blessed the man who fears the Lord. or R/ Alleluia.
Wealth and riches shall be in his house; his generosity shall endure forever. Light shines through the darkness for the upright; he is gracious and merciful and just.
R/ Blessed the man who fears the Lord. or R/ Alleluia.
Well for the man who is gracious and lends, who conducts his affairs with justice; He shall never be moved; the just one shall be in everlasting remembrance.
R/ Blessed the man who fears the Lord. or R/ Alleluia.
An evil report he shall not fear. His heart is firm, trusting in the LORD. His heart is steadfast; he shall not fear till he looks down upon his foes.
R/ Blessed the man who fears the Lord. or R/ Alleluia.
Lavishly he gives to the poor, his generosity shall endure forever; his horn shall be exalted in glory.
R/ Blessed the man who fears the Lord. or R/ Alleluia.
Gospel Acclamation John 13:34
Alleluia, alleluia. I give you a new commandment: love one another as I have loved you. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel John 15:9-17 You are my friends if you do what I command you.
Jesus said to his disciples: “As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.
“I have told you this so that my joy might be in you and your joy might be complete. This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father. It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he may give you. This I command you: love one another.”
The Gospel of the Lord
R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
----------------------------
Saint Gertrude, Virgin 
(Liturgical Colour: White: A (1))
(Readings for the memorial)
(There is a choice today between the readings for the ferial day (Thursday) and those for the memorial. The ferial readings are recommended unless pastoral reasons suggest otherwise)
First reading Ephesians 3:14-19 To know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge.
Brothers and sisters: I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that he may grant you in accord with the riches of his glory to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner self, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the holy ones what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
The Word of the Lord
R/ Thanks be to God.
Responsorial Psalm Psalm 23:1b-3a, 4, 5, 6
R/ The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. In verdant pastures he gives me repose; Beside restful waters he leads me; he refreshes my soul.
R/ The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
Even though I walk in the dark valley I fear no evil; for you are at my side With your rod and your staff that give me courage.
R/ The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
You spread the table before me in the sight of my foes; You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
R/ The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
Only goodness and kindness follow me all the days of my life; And I shall dwell in the house of the LORD for years to come.
R/ The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
Gospel Acclamation John 15:9b, 5b
Alleluia, alleluia. Remain in my love, says the Lord; whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel John 15:1-8 He who remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit.
Jesus said to his disciples: “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower. He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and every one that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit. You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you. Remain in me, as I remain in you. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing. Anyone who does not remain in me will be thrown out like a branch and wither; people will gather them and throw them into a fire and they will be burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask for whatever you want and it will be done for you. By this is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.”
The Gospel of the Lord
R/ Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
2 notes · View notes
everysongineverykey · 2 years
Note
Hello you-can-always-come-home,
For the past day or so you have been making your followers cringe with a hypothetical Deltarune MCU adaptation. In front of you is a computer currently displaying your tumblr account. You have 24 hours to write a cringeworthy mcu fandom-esc selfship fanfic with Berdly. Should you fail, your followers will instead fill this fandom ship niche with their own fanfic, almost certainly resulting in something far worse than whatever you could come up with. Will you succumb to the awful awful idea that you have unleashed, or will you finally get a taste of your own medicine? Live or die, the choice is yours.
christ alive. it's done. i really tried to write from the voice of a 13 year old mcu fan back in like 2014 and i really hope it doesn't come off as mocking anyone in particular. anyone who reads this i Promise you this writing style is put on and that i am a better writer than this actually
After the roaring knight turned out to be a personification of the fun gang's insecurities and was defeated by the power of friendship and also Triple Spamvil Neo 5000, the almighty fusion between Spamton and Jevil that had two laser cannon arms instead of one and flossed a lot, the heroes and all their friends decided to live together in Ralsei's castle in Castle town 2.0, a haven for all darkners and Lightners where everyone could live together and be happy since it was made of a different kind of darkness then all the others. Susie and Ralsei were now King and queen (Author's note: can be romantic or platonic depending on what you like best but all im gonna say is i LOVED the scene where he saved her from falling off a cliff and then said "I think you just fell for me" >_<) and Kris was Crown Prince(ss) (Author's note: haven't decided on a gender for Kris yet LOL). They were all roommates and everyone was happy.
Well, except for one person. Berdly, even though he was the reason the gang got out with their lives when he said "It's spammin' time" to summon Triple Spamvil 5000 (a.n: who else LOVED that morbius reference🤣), was still alone, his room in the castle was just a broom closet under the stairs and all he was ever fed was bread crumbs twice a day. Both Susie and Noelle had rejected him even though he was such a nice guy because they said he wasn't their type. Berdly's life in Castle Town 2.0 was TERRIBLE and he wished he had never helped them out at all.
Then one day he met someone who changed his life forever. She was half Darkner, half Lightner due to being born from one of the last Dark fountains to be sealed and her name was (Y/N). She first met Berdly when she was seeing King Ralsei and Queen Susie in the throne room to discuss her new job, the Lightner-Darkner ambassador.
Susie, Ralsei and (Y/N) were walking through the castle halls. "Well (Y/N)" said Ralsei, "I am very glad we got to meet you. It seems like you will be a perfect fit for the job of ambassador."
(Y/N) beamed. "Thank you your majesty. I will do my duty with pride. Being the only Lightner-Darkner hybrid in the world isn't easy, but I know it'll give me a special insight for this job."
Susie yawned loudly. "UGH," she complained, "Ralsei, didja HAVE to drag me along with you to talk to this priss? You know I hate di- di- diplodicus."
"Y-You mean diplomacy." Said Ralsei.
"Ugh, what-EVER," Susie groaned. "If I don't get to break something right now Im gonna explode" She turned suddenly and smashed an expensive vase sitting on a column. (Y/N) and Ralsei jumped back, (Y/N)'s kalidoscope orbs shining with fear.
"S-Susie!" sputtered Ralsei, terrified. "Y-You have to stop breaking vases! They're expensive!"
Susie roared with laughter. "Whatever toothpaste boy. Hey!" She looked around, snapping her fingers. "Where's Nerdly? He'll clean it up for me. Nerdy!"
Berdly came skittering quickly over from around the corner. "Y-Yes your ma-"
He stopped in his tracks, eyes landing on (Y/N). She was beautiful, there was no doubt about it. Her striped whitr-and-black hair humg around her shining skin like a halo, and she wore a gorgeous floor-length gown that glittered with every color of the rainbow.
Forget Noelle, this was the first real angel Berdly had ever seen. He suddenly realized hed been staring too long and cleared his throat blushing
"Uh... yes, your majesty?"
Susie motioned to the mess on the floor. "Clean that up. And don't take so long this time, I don't wanna see your ugly face stilll here in half an hour again."
Berdly looked miserably at the broken mess om the floor. "B-But your majesty, you said I could have a day off today-"
"Berdly" Ralsei said sternly. "Listen to your queen."
Berdly sighed sadly and dropped to the floor, and (Y/N) suddenly felt terrible for this boy who seemed like he just wanted to live a nice life in Castle Town.
"Excuse me," she touched his wing and he froze, blushing, "Don't worry about that. I'll clean it up."
She snapped her delicate fingers and in a second, the shards had disappeared. Leaving the floor clean again.
Berdly blinked in surprise. Susie's eyes narrowed. "Aw, c'mon, wheres the fun in that?! He always does the cleaning here! It's fun to watch him suffer!"
Ralsei tried to intervene, "Susie, please-"
"I don't care if you don't like him," (Y/N) challenged the dragon, stepping closer adversarially. "It's wrong to treat anyone this way. He obviously only wants to be friends with you and you're being very unfair."
Susie, not used to being told she's wrong, glared at (Y/N), smoke flowing out of her nostrils. "I'm Queen here!" she yelled. "I should be able to do what I want! Ugh, i'm gonna need some chalk for this" She stormed off, stomping down the hall. Good riddance, (Y/N) thought, though she was too polite to say it out loud.
Ralsei hurried after Susie meekly. "S-Susie, calm down-" Leaving (Y/N) and Berdly alone in the hall.
Berdly couldn't believe what had just happened. Someone had stood up for him! Someone cares how he feels! No one not even Noelle had ever tried to challenge the way he was treated ever since he moved to Castle Town 2.0 and now this gorgeous girl was leaning down and smiling at him.
"Are you alright?" She asked kindly, holding out her hand for him to take. "I'm sorry that happened. What's your name?"
"B-Berdly," he stammered taking her hand and quickly getting to his feet. "W-Who are you? I've never seen anyone like you before."
She blushed at that, and Berdly's heart skipped a beat. Her orbs turned bright pink, the color of happiness... and love?
"(Y/N)," she said quickly. "I'm the new darkner Lightner ambassador. Please to meet you Berdly!" Her face turned sad all of a sudden. "Do they... all treat you like that?"
Berdly's blue orbs turned dark with sadness as he looked down, muttering "Ever since I moved here. I helped them defeat the Roaring Knight too. And yet even my old friends seem to hate me now..."
"That's so sad!" (Y/N)'s eyes turned a deep blue to show her sorrow. "I'm sorry Berdly. You don't deserve this."
Berdly blushed again, shrugging. "Not much i can do"
Suddenly, (Y/N) reached out and took his hand, something that no one had done in a long time "Well I'm going to do something about it. Mark my words Berdly, no one'll treat you like a slave again as long as I'm here. Now, tell me about yourself."
She took his wing and they set off down the hall, walking and talking and laughing and Berdly could feel that this girl was going to change his life.
fucking. there. chapter one of The Reason I Should Not Have Internet. chapter 2 coming never because i've done enough
39 notes · View notes
skippyv20 · 1 year
Note
Harry I believe hasn’t just been a victim of gaslighting but of some next level witchcraft mind control manipulation. These things are real because I had a friend who had her regular go to ‘uncle’ whenever she wanted her ex back. She would be tasked with inviting her ex round to her place and offering to ‘cook’ for him. Once he ate the concoction they’d be back together in a heartbeat and no matter the guy’s attempts to leave when fed up, he’d be stuck in that rollercoaster of a dysfunctional relationship. I know this is true because this ex friend offered to give me this ‘uncle’s’ number once when I was interested in a particular guy, apparently he’d be mine for the taking for a fee once this ‘uncle’ did his job. I thank God Almighty that his power and love for me was greater than this evil! I just couldn’t bring myself to ring this man, God’s spirit in me said No, don’t go down that path and this really irritated this ex friend, she was so cross with me. Next thing I knew the guy I was dating at the time out of nowhere ended our relationship and started dating her best friend right under my nose. Markle reminds me of this, using those same tactics cos this is a dirty, evil game and only by the power and grace of God through the saving blood of Jesus Christ can harry break free. It’s always important to pray for others because spiritual warfare is real out there!
Witchcraft is the devil’s game…..❤️
12 notes · View notes
childofchrist1983 · 5 months
Text
Tumblr media
Our hearts are shattered beyond repair when we lose our loved ones. When we experience grief, it feels as though our hearts will never heal. It's comforting to know God's heart also breaks when we feel sorrow and pain. We are His beloved creation. And for all true and born-again Christians, we are also His beloved children. His steadfast love is beyond our understanding. When a child falls, his or her mother steps in quickly to bandage the wound. We are thankful to be children of the loving, Almighty God who bandages our broken hearts when they've become shattered by grief and sorrow. We know that God's love is beyond our understanding and we have faith that He is always with us and that He will bandage every wound. May He continue guide, correct and protect us, so that we continue to grow in Him and not weaken and stray. May we all remain faithful to Him and to this duty and purpose He has called us to. Seek and put your faith and trust in Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ and let Him do the rest. May He humble our hearts and help us focus on following and serving Him daily and helping others with joy and happiness. We lift our voices in praise to Him for His love, mercy, peace, faithfulness and grace. - For EVERYTHING!
It is vital that we remain rooted in Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ through prayer and His Holy Word and Spirit and that we live and walk as a beacon of His light and love and share and spread the Gospel Truth daily, so that the lost souls in this world can come to know Him and be saved. The more we focus on Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ, growing spiritually by building our relationship with Him, leaning on Him and His Holy Word and Spirit, the better off we will be. Thanks to this and our faith in Him, we know that everything will be alright. And we will forever be grateful to Him. As true and born-again Christians, we believe in Him and His Holy Word and we strive daily to walk in His Holy Spirit. We know though our mortal bodies should die, He will raise us up and into new and glorious bodies (The Rapture). We who are truly His and alive at His second coming will never die, and our bodies will be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, and so shall we ever be with Him in His Kingdom of Heaven forevermore (1 Corinthians 15:51-52, 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). This is one of many promises given to us by God Himself. Thank God for His strength and guidance when we are faced with sin and temptation. Thank Him for His mercy and grace. Through Bible study and prayer, God reveals His wisdom and guides us to see opportunities to grow closer to Him and grow spiritually. He gives us direction to live our lives daily according to His will.
Jesus Christ is the ONLY way to Heaven (John 3:5, 14:6), the ONLY way to salvation (Acts 4:12, Ephesians 2:8-9) and He is the resurrection and the life (John 11:25-26). Jesus Christ the LORD of lords, KING of kings, the GOD of gods (Deuteronomy 10:17, 1 Timothy 6:15, Revelation 17:14, Revelation 19:16) - He is the Living, Almighty and Everlasting God (Isaiah 9:6, Revelation 1:8, John 3:16, John 3:36, Jeremiah 10:10). There is no other God besides Him (Isaiah 45:5). We MUST humble ourselves before Him, turning our backs on false teachers, false gods and idols and our sinful ways. We MUST repent and turn back to God and recognize who He is and love Him in return for His great love for us. We MUST make God top priority everyday! May we be motivated to spread God's Holy Word and Gospel Truth to all the Earth, knowing that it is the only hope of all those lost in their sins. Let us not hold out a false hope for men to be saved without the Gospel, but instead, strive to do our part to get the Gospel out to a lost and dying world.
Leaning on Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ through prayer and His Holy Word and Spirit strengthens us and our knowledge and wisdom about God and His Gospel Truth, exposing these imposters. May God help us to seek and lean on Him daily to gain the strength, wisdom and spiritual discernment needed to expose Satan and his imposters who seek to destroy us and God's ultimate Truth. Everyday, we must remember to share Jesus Christ's Gospel Truth with the world and to thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for the grace that He poured out for us on the cross at Calvary. He has freed us from the burdens of sin and from the eternal damnation of Hell. In all we say and do, may all praise, honor and glory always be given to Him and His Kingdom of Heaven.
With renewed minds, hearts and wills, let us serve Him humbly and faithfully out of pure love and grateful rejoicing. May He remind us of His presence and to remain at peace, fully knowing that all will be well because He is always with us. Let us seek Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ today and everyday with all our heart and being, looking for His love, light and will for our lives with each step we take. Let us seek to please Him with our thoughts, words, and deeds and seek to advance His Kingdom of Heaven and His glory with our lives. Let us seek Him from a pure and humble heart, and when we so seek, we believe Him and His promise that we will find. May He help us all to be more sensitive to the teaching ministry of His Holy Word and Spirit, relying on Him and allowing Him to speak to us and guide us every step of our Christian journey.
God gave us the Holy Bible - His living and Holy Word - to let us know of Him and His abiding love and care as well as guide and prepare us for all our lives. May He help us encourage one another as we continue our walk with Him and our duty to Him daily. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for being present for all our new beginnings and all our lives. May He redirect any anxiety we feel as He provides countless opportunities for growth and change. May we humble ourselves before God always, asking Him to forgive our sins and make our hearts and lives anew through His Holy Word and Spirit. May He help us make Him and His Holy Word top priority, so we can grow spiritually and grow in our relationship with Him as we apply it to our daily lives. Thank God that we can focus on Him and everything about Him, for that is what keeps us sane and at peace. May our words and actions always be a reflection of Him and His Holy Word and Spirit and will.
May He help us to always walk in His grace and Holy Spirit, not by our own measure. May He give us the humble humility to know that our freedom and eternal salvation is found only in Him, so that His grace may sustain us, and we may never lose sight of His love and light and mercy. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for calling us to Him and to serve Him. May He equip us to do all that He has called us to do so that as He works through us, He may use us to produce fruit, to reach others, and to encourage all brothers and sisters in Christ. May He work all of these things in us and through us for His Kingdom and His glory. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for all His creation, for His miraculous ways and for everything He does and has done for us! Keep the faith and keep moving forward in your walk with Jesus! He loves us and He knows what is best for us. Seek, follow and trust in Him - Always!
Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for His Holy Word and for sending His Holy Spirit so that we might have His grace, not only to awaken us and transform our hearts in our spiritual rebirth and guarantee our eternity with Him, but to also call upon Him whenever we are in need. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for all the reminders of His love and mercy and faithfulness within His Holy Word. He is bigger than any challenge or circumstance in our lives. Knowing this within our minds and our hearts, nothing can deter our faith in Him and His Truth. May we all accept Him and His eternal gift of salvation and ask that He would transform our hearts and lives according to His will and ways. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for His Holy Spirit who saves, seals and leads us. May we always thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for His almighty power and saving grace. For He is our strength, and He alone is able to save us, forgive our sins and gift us eternal salvation and entry into His Kingdom of Heaven.
May we make sure that we give our hearts and lives to God and take time to seek and praise Him and share His Truth with the world daily. May the LORD our God and Father in Heaven help us to stay diligent and obedient and help us to guard our hearts in Him and His Holy Word daily. May He help us to remain faithful and full of excitement to do our duty to Him and for His glorious return and our reunion in Heaven as well as all that awaits us there. May we never forget to thank the LORD our God and our Creator and Father in Heaven for all this and everything He does and has done for us! May we never forget who He is, nor forget who we are in Christ and that God is always with us! What a mighty God we serve! What a Savior this is! What a wonderful LORD, God, Savior and King we have in Jesus Christ! What a loving Father we have found in Almighty God! What a wonderful God we serve! His will be done!
Thanks and glory be to God! Blessed be the name of the LORD! Hallelujah and Amen!
8 notes · View notes
yb-cringe · 1 year
Note
for the ask game, 👽,💝, 🫂, and 😭 for witchcraft scott! He is The Blorbo <3
WOO you got it boss! o7
(💝) a hc about their love language:
i think ive done this one before? gift giving- definitely gift giving and words of affirmation. milo knew that man like the back of his hand and that letter was nothing but gifts and lovey dovey words.
(👽) a hc about a weird quirk of theirs
idk if this counts as a Quirk exactly but i think he’s just frigid cold all the time. hes cold as a corpse, yknow? alternatively; I think he maybe talks to zombies like they’re people. he knows theyre not cognizant rly and cant respond but to him its like talking to pets or plants- just a bit more grim. its more weird to see then to experience
(🫂) a friendship hc
OUGH. ELOISE AND SCOTT MAN. i hate slinging the words sibling coded around but christ almighty. these two are sibling coded because scott will like curse her and she’ll be like ok fine but also fuckyou and hit him for it
and they’ll laugh but the second she’s like ok olease stop like legitimately he does it right away. theyre assholes to each other but in that ‘only im allowed to be like this to you’ way.
does that make sense? this isnt even a hc im just rambling they both thjnk theyre protecting the other from something is what i mean
(😭) a hc about the worst thing that happened to them.
you knew what you were doing here huh. okay. well i think milo and scott had a dream house, but since its always ‘what we wouldve had’ instead of ‘what we had’ i think the two of them were living Rough somewhere, working hard for a better future. and in trying to get them both enough money to make it, milo ends up in some deep shit and gets killed.
because he dies to some Not Legal shit, he doesn’t get an official grave. they dont wven tell him what they did with the body or the ashes. just that he’s gone. and its so terribly, awfully, unfair that they never got any happiness after so long trying that scott literally starts doing the same shit milo was (breaking into places, stealing, lying, etc) to force the world to give them a happy ending instead
5 notes · View notes