#gather myself and like maybe if someone asks a question I don’t have an answer to | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

concreteburialplot · 6 months

Text

VIRALITY // 10

10 - Maybe Both, Maybe Neither

pairing: nicholas ruffilo x fem!oc [vallie]

masterlist/intro: here | crossposted: ao3 | word count: 5.8k

summary: after waking up next to each other vallie & nicholas go their separate ways. vallie goes to visit an old friend who may be more than friendly. nicholas goes to sober up noah but doesn’t expect him to pull the curtain back on his resentment.

warnings: mentions about alcoholism/AA meetings/cheating, arguing, noah being annoying but what's new, tea is spilled !!, vallie is vulnerable for once in her life, lots of dialogue, alternating POVs sorry 🥲

A/N: Sorry it's been like 2 months since I’ve updated, it literally did not feel like it 🥲 school & life are kicking my ass lol + this chapter ended up being so complicated / difficult

Also! This chapter introduces a very mild crossover with Christian 'Kras' Anthony from the band Chase Atlantic - he's being used as a fun little temporary reoccurring side character. Don't worry, knowing who he is isn't necessary to understand his character lol i just think he's cute🥰

don't like it don't read it. don’t be mean for no reason & let others enjoy things thnx :)

-NICHOLAS-

A jarring buzzing jolts me awake. I sit up a bit with scrunched eyes trying to follow the noise with a wandering patting hand. The noise leads to Vallie’s phone rattling on my bedside table next to her. I grab it and sleepily ignore the call out of habit.

In my still half-sleep state, I don’t want to be anywhere else besides where my body was curled up against her. I return to my spot with my arm around the brunette, tugging her closer. Her scent fills my nostrils when I nuzzle into her neck. The smell of her hair is peppermint-y and the scent on her skin reminds me of marshmallows and… matcha?

Whatever it is, it’s warm, cozy, and smells so yummy it makes me want to eat her again.

Before I have the pleasure of manifesting that thought into reality, her phone goes off vibrating again, this time making me significantly more aggravated.

I snatch the phone looking at her caller ID – the name plastered across the screen:

Christian

with some emojis I’m far too sleepy to decipher.

Christian?

I decide not to ignore her phone call from an evidently urgent caller.

“Hey, Hey.” I gently nudge her shoulder. “Your phone has been going off.”

She lets out a sleepy groan that is probably the cutest noise I’ve ever heard.

She takes one look at the ID and immediately ignores it and shoves it under the pillow.

Odd.

She yawns and rubs her eye, “What time is it?”

“I’m not sure.” I try to look at the edges of my window covered with blackout curtains trying to gauge even the time of day. “You have your phone, check it?”

Her fingers tap against the mattress. “It’s not that important.”

“Who’s Christian?” I blurt out without thinking.

From the angle I’m at, I can see her eyes widen a bit at the question.

She clears her throat. “What?”

“The person who kept calling you. It was someone named Christian?”

“Oh um,” She bites down on my lip, seemingly contemplating her answer. “He’s a friend.”

I’m filled with a feeling I’m not sure I enjoy nor one I should be feeling.

“A friend?” I ask, unconvinced.

It’s none of my business. It doesn’t matter who he is.

“Yeah, a friend.” She scrunches her brows at the wall. “Why do you care who’s calling me?”

“I-I don’t.” I reply but I know I’m a shit liar and I probably don’t sound very convinced. “I was just wondering.”

“Right.” She yawns then gets up in a panic like she just realized where she is. “Oh my god we fell asleep.”

“Yeah…I figured you gathered that by now.” I said falling down flat beside her.

“Fuck Nick, how am I gonna get out of here?” She scrambles for her phone beneath the pillow to finally check the time. “Fuck, fuck, I have to leave.”

“Okay, okay, calm down. Let me just check out the house, I can take you to get your car.” I pull myself out of bed and let myself stretch out my arms above my head.

“Fuck.” She mutters, readjusting her entire torso in her tight top. “Remind me to never sleep in a corset ever again. I need to get out of this, can I borrow something?”

Her attention lands on me and at first, her forest greens are inquisitive and calm but when she actually looks at me, they widen. Her eyes slowly trail down my body and land where my shirt hangs above the exposed skin of my hips.

Watching her tongue slide between her lips makes my heart thump in my ear drums so loud I can barely hear what she’s saying.

“Also, can you um,” She clears her throat and looks back up at me, “Help me get this off?”

“Sure.” I nod and drop my arms back down.

She shifts in the bed so the zipper in the back of the faux-corset faces me. My fingers delicately gather her dark chocolate locks and drape them over her shoulder to get them out of my way. Her tan skin curves so beautifully from her neck to her shoulder that I feel as though if I don’t kiss her there it would somehow be insulting.

The need to kiss her there feels as necessary as air, so lean down and press a hesitant kiss to the crook of her neck as I begin unzipping her top.

She doesn’t stop me, which I was sure she would stop me now in the daylight.

Another kiss up, I linger more there.

Then another in the same spot, then another, and another, and another – until I am fully peppering her skin with open mouth kisses and my hands roam her curves.

She lets out little noises the closer I get to her ear that remind me of the ones she gave me when my tongue was inside her.

It’s not until I’m nipping and sucking at her skin that she speaks.

“Nick…” She whines in a tone that says ‘you know better’.

I tug down the rest of her zipper.

My lips still lazily drag up her neck.

I hum against her and let my hands wander down her sides to her hips. “Let me make you feel good.”

She lets out a shuddered whine but not a red or green light.

My hands round her hips giving them a gentle back and forth rub, “I need to taste you again.” I press another kiss against the sensitive skin below her ear and I can feel goosebumps erupt all over her skin.

My fingers burn everywhere they meet her skin and beg to be everywhere they shouldn’t be.

She closes her eyes and lets herself breathe for a second.

“Nicholas.” She repeats, more sternly this time. “I have to leave before anyone sees me.”

“I know.” I say simply and pull away, strategically resting both hands over my semi.

I know I shouldn’t press more. I know shouldn’t try to convince more. But god do I want to. All I’m thinking about is fucking her senseless.

She keeps a hand on the front of the corset to keep it flush on her skin. “Could I please borrow something?” She reminds me of her original request.

“Oh yeah sure, sorry.” I quickly scan the room for the closest item.

I spot a barely worn Deftones shirt and hand it to her.

“Thanks.”

She just sort of stares at me then makes a ‘turn-around’ motion with her hand.

“Oh, sorry.” I shift away from her. “It’s not like it’s anything I haven’t seen before.”

“Shut up.”

I hear her let out a sigh of relief, probably from finally being freed from the constricting top.

“Okay you can turn around now.”

I turn back to her and find what I expected: her in my shirt.

What I didn’t expect was to somehow find her even more attractive in my shirt than even a lace corset.

As much as I’d like for her to stay, I fear that if I don’t get her out now, I’ll devour her whole.

“I’ll just… go scope out the area.” I thumb over my shoulder towards the door.

“Good idea.” She nods.

I very quietly sneak out of my room into the empty hallway, gently closing the bedroom door behind me.

After tiptoeing around the house, I find everyone asleep as it seems still quite early, at least for them.

The drive back to the bar is quiet and somewhat awkward. I’m not sure if it’s because of what we did or if I crossed some sort of invisible line and made her upset.

Or maybe both,

Maybe neither.

Maybe I’m over thinking it.

We haven’t talked about anything, no rules, no boundaries. I don’t know how I would bring that up to begin with. What the hell are we doing? And how do I feel about it. How do I want to feel about it?

We say goodbye and it’s stiff and odd. I’m not sure if I should kiss her? Or treat her like my colleague?

Maybe both,

Maybe neither.

That one feels more like a maybe neither.

The way she acted this morning makes me think that whatever… this is, is over.

I know it should be done, but there is a part of me that doesn’t want to stop. At least not yet. Maybe if I got one more fix.

Regardless how I feel about it, it was a mistake. I knew that the first time, I knew it last night and I know it now.

Why did I let this happen. How did I let this happen?

I tap my fingers anxiously against the steering wheel once I’ve parked at home.

I know Folio wouldn’t really care but if Noah or Jolly found out about this?

Oh my god.

I don’t even want to think about what would happen.

All I know is two things.

One, I can’t keep fucking thinking about this – I can’t keep thinking about her.

Two, I unfortunately know what I need to do when I walk back through our front door.

-VALLIE-

As soon as my car door shuts behind me, I let out a long sigh that I wasn’t aware I was holding.

I fold my arms around my steering wheel and rest my forehead against it.

“Fuck.”

The entire ride home there was this nausea festering in the pit of my stomach.

I like being with Nicholas.

I like being with Nicholas too much.

And this stupid fucking Deftones shirt is too comfortable and smells too much like him – and I like it more than I should. And I need to get home as soon as possible to get it off me.

This is absolutely the last thing I needed – catching feelings or whatever the fuck is filling my chest with butterflies from someone I’m representing.

This is the band that I shouldn’t have even taken on in the first place, and now I’m here on the verge of vomiting because I miss the way his bed feels. This was not the plan.

I shake my head from the the thoughts as I walk through my front door. It’s just the dickmatization talking. That’s it. I like his dick and that’s all.

His huge fucking…

No.

And god his fucking tongue...

No.

This absolutely cannot be happening.

I won’t let this happen.

I need to nip this in the bud before it goes any further.

I chuck my phone and keys on my dresser and use my palms to lean against the edge.

An abrupt buzzing of my iPhone against the hard wood shocks me from my dissociation.

Christian

…could be exactly what I need.

I slide the answer bar across the screen and bring the phone to my ear.

“Hey Kras.” I smile, using his nickname.

“Val!” He chimes cheerfully on the other line. “I’ve been trying to get ya all day!”

“I’m busy Kras, you know that.” I roll my eyes playfully. “What’s up, what do you want so badly?”

“Tour ended last week and I’m staying in LA for a bit for some band stuff before I head back home to Sydney.” He pauses. “I wanna see you. I need to talk to you about something.”

I press my lips together and take a deep breath, suddenly stressed about what exactly that meant.

“Okay. When and where do you wanna meet up?”

“Today? My place?”

“Okay, see you then.”

After a much-needed shower I’m finally at the door of his temporary apartment. I smooth out my outfit, which wasn’t much really, just some sweats with a cropped tank. With as long as I’ve known Kras, it didn’t really matter what I looked like, but I still wanted to look cute. I use my hand to flatten my tied up hair to make sure there’s no ridges before I knock on his door. It doesn’t take long for him to answer it.

“Val.” He greets with his signature big goofy smile.

The tall, long-haired blonde envelopes me into giant hug and I embrace it. His scent fills my nose with memories; it’s soft, comforting, and most of all, fun.

Christian and I have always been close, he’s the closest thing I have to a best friend. Our friendship has always been…interesting to say the least. I think most people would consider our dynamic complicated, but to us it’s quite simple.

I give him a good, hard squeeze around his midsection. “Augh, Kras I’ve missed you.”

He reciprocates the squeeze and places a kiss atop my head. “I missed you too.”

I pull away with a smile and smack his arm, “You don’t text me enough! I didn’t even know your tour ended.”

“Me? The phone works both ways Miss ‘You know I’m busy’” He mocks me jokingly.

“God, I forget how strong your Aussie accent is in person.” I chuckle, diverting the conversation.

I shiver at the ice-cold chill I get from his AC and rub my arms for warmth.

“Fuck it’s cold as shit in here.” It’s so frigid even my teeth chatter.

“Yeah, sorry I like it freezing. You want a jacket or something?” He offers then crosses the room when I nod.

He picks through some clothes in an open suitcase and hands me a multicolored flannel. I pull the flannel over my arms letting the material engulf my body.

After a brief catching up about tour and life, I lean against the wall and cross my arms.

“So, what is it you wanted to talk about.” I cut straight to it.

He bites down on his lip, and I can’t tell if he’s excited or nervous.

Maybe both, maybe neither.

“We need a manager.” He blurts out.

“Oh? I thought you were working with-”

“We want you Val.”

I laugh, because surely, he can’t be serious. I don’t belong to an agency and work my two clients freelance, all on my own. There’s no way I could take on another band, especially one as successful as Chase on top of the other two.

“What? No, no, I absolutely couldn’t manage you guys…”

He steps towards me and trails his fingers down my arms and hooks onto my hands. “Sure you can. You used to, remember?”

I shake my head, “Oh, you know that doesn’t count Christian. We were nobodies – you were nobodies. Of course I could manage your measly little 10,000 Instagram followers.”

He squeezes my hands and tugs on my arms. “C’mon Val. It’ll be like the good old days. It’ll be fun!”

“I don’t know about you, but living in a tiny LA apartment with three men struggling to afford food wasn’t really that good or fun.”

He rolls his eyes and tugs on my arms again. “For old times’ sake?”

I shake my head, “No, no, I already have enough on my plate. I just took on another band not that long ago.”

“Please Val, for us?” His brows curve up, and he gives me the biggest hazel puppy dog eyes that he knows I can’t say no to. “For me?”

I groan and rest my head back against the wall. “I’ll think about it, okay?”

His hands leave mine and find their way to my hips, slipping under the flannel so his hands are holding onto bare skin between my tank and my sweats. His forehead presses against mine.

“Is there anything I can do to help change that answer?” He asks between the small space separating us while his finger traces my jaw line tilting my chin up a bit.

I tug at my lip – this is partially why I came here right? To nip my Nick problem in the bud, to break the dickmatization spell.

“I don’t know, maybe.” I tease up at him with round eyes.

“Hm.” He hums and leans in, pressing a kiss to my lips and I freeze.

Even though we’ve done this a million times before, it just feels wrong now. Nicholas and I aren’t even… anything, we’re just fucking, right? But it still feels odd.

I know this feeling.

And I know what it means.

Fuck.

I pull away and give a little head shake.

“Plum?” He asks using our code word for when we’re interested in or dating someone else.

I groan loudly, shuffle past him to his bed in the studio apartment and dramatically fall flat, face down onto it. Then let out an even louder, longer groan.

He walks over and gently sits criss-cross on the bed next to me.

“Must be a pretty good Plum to have you like this.”

Our friendship was simple. We’re the rare example that a friends-with-benefits can be truly, purely platonic and casual. Kras is a generally affectionate guy, even with his bandmates. And he is one of the only people I feel comfortable being affectionate with, so I let myself be affectionate with him.

We are platonically affectionate best friends who fuck when we’re single. It sounds impossible but it’s who we are and who we have been for almost 10 years.

It’s nice, cozy, and convenient. Easy.

He’s safe, familiar, and reliable.

Which is more than I can say for any friendship or relationship I’ve ever had.

I turn my head towards him still flat against the bed.

“It’s bad Kras.”

“How bad?”

I chew on my bottom lip. “I work with him.”

His eyes widen. “Oh no.”

“Oh yes.”

“…In the band you were talking about?”

I turn back to hide my face in his duvet. “Oh yeah.”

“Val noooo.”

I chuckle at how his ‘no’s sound like ‘naaauur’s.

“I knooow.” I whine into the sheets.

“Singer?”

I shake my head against the duvet.

“Guitarist?”

“Bassist.” I reply muffled in bedding.

“Oof.”

A laugh escapes me at his reaction. I pop my head up at him, “Stop, I know.”

I pull myself up and cross the bed to sit next to him and lay my head on his shoulder.

“Maybe I just really like his dick.” I state confidently staring out the large window across the room. I blankly watch the daytime city lights flicker across the highrise-littered skyline.

“You think so?” He asks looking down at me a little. “I’ve never seen you get like this over just good dick. You’re pretty cut and dry about like…emotions. You’re good at separating sex from feelings.” He laughs and nudges me. “That’s why we work so well.”

I groan and hide my face in his shoulder because I know he’s right. He’s always right when it comes to shit like this.

“He sang to me Kras.”

“Oh god…was he any good?”

I feel my cheeks heat up and I nod against his arm, “It was so pretty.”

He laughs and tickles my side, “Look at you! You’re smitten! I never thought I’d see the day.”

I grab the nearest pillow and smack him with it, “Shut up!” then fall back flat and cover my face with it.

There’s a silence between us for a bit, a million things running through my mind, but Kras speaks for me.

“You know you can’t love him, right?” He says gently.

My brows furrow immediately, I slam the pillow down and shoot straight up.

“WHOA, whoa whoa.” I cut through the air with my hand. “Nobody ever said anything about…the L word. I do not…love him.” I can barely get the word out as if it’s something forbidden. “I barely fucking know him. I just like his dick.”

“Okay, okay.” He raises his hands in defense. “You can’t like him. You know that right?”

“I don’t even know if I like him. We’re just fucking. That’s all.”

He glares at me with a face that screams, ‘yeah right’. “Well, fine, you know you can’t keep fucking him.”

I let out a long sigh.

“Yeah, I know. I thought coming here to fuck you would help.”

He laughs then tapers off in thought.

“Maybe we don’t actually have to fuck in order to help.” He suggests.

I raise a brow at him, “What do you mean?”

“Well, I mean… guys normally don’t just sing to girls they’re casually hooking up with.”

“Okay…?” I motion for him to keep going.

“So, if it comes up or anything, you could just lie.” He shrugs.

“Lie about what?”

“About like, fucking someone else. If he likes you enough to sing to you, he probably won’t be happy if you tell him you’re fucking someone else. So, he’ll stop trying to fuck you.”

I chew on my thumbnail in thought, he’s right. Like always.

“Maybe. I don’t really know if he’d even care. We never really talking about anything… I thought we just had a silent agreement about just fucking, he never said anything about-”

“He sang to you Val.”

I anxiously twirl the ends of my ponytail and chew on my bottom lip. “I don’t want to hurt him.”

He gives me the most ‘are you for real’ glare.

“Okay, okay.” I deflate. “IF it comes up, I’ll mention something.”

“Just don’t say who I am. I don’t know him, he could beat my ass." He laughs. "Plus, it would be pretty awkward for him to find out that you’re fucking a hot guitarist from your other band.” He smirks cheekily.

“Shut up.” I elbow his side playfully, “I never said yes.”

“But you will.”

I chew on my lip thinking it over.

On one hand, I’m already insanely busy and overworked with the two artists I’m already managing.

On the other hand, as odd as they are, they are old and close friends of mine. It wouldn’t be like managing strangers or learning a whole new fanbase, I helped build the foundation of the one they have now back in 2014.

And it would be a good distraction.

If this plan works out with Nick, maybe I could move on from Plum status and I can actually focus on my job.

“Fine. I’ll do it. BUT,” I hold a finger pointed towards him menacingly, “ONLY temporarily.”

“Ah yes! I knew you would!” He exclaims, wrapping his arms around me and tackling me to the bed, pressing various ‘thank you’ kisses to my cheek.

“Okay, okay enough.” I chuckle trying to escape his grasp.

-NICHOLAS-

I let a long sigh at the bottom of the stairs, shifting my weight between both feet. I tap my fingers on the wooden railing anxiously. I probably shouldn’t be this rattled over something I’ve done a million times before. But it doesn’t get any easier.

I push myself up the stairs in one driving force knowing that it has to be me. It’s always me.

Never Folio. Never Jolly.

It’s always been my job.

There’s no response when I knock on Noah’s bedroom door.

I knock again, no answer.

So, I let myself in.

As expected, Noah’s passed out with a fresh bottle of whiskey half drank on his nightstand. His room still in as much filth as it’s been for a while. For as long as I’ve known him, I’ve only ever seen his room even remotely messy a handful of times, and this is the worst I’ve ever seen it. In the past I’ve known the reasons behind the mess or the drinking – usually over a breakup or some depression spell – but this time he kept me in the dark. I have no fucking clue what's going on with him.

If I wasn’t so aggravated with him already, the mess of the room would worry me even more than I already am.

I cross the threshold of garbage between the door and his bed and pat his cheek awake.

“Noah.”

Sleepy snores tumble from his mouth and while one might find them endearing, right now, they’re pissing me the fuck off.

“Noah.” I say more sternly, nudging him more. No luck.

I try various other ways, and nothing works. He’s out cold.

So, I try a tried-and-true classic.

I climb on top of him and straddle his waist over the duvet, one knee at each side of his hips. His boney exposed shoulders offer a great anchor so I grab them, shaking him awake.

He comes-to slowly, droopy heavy lids struggling to open. His fist goes to rub his tired eye but winces when he’s reminded of the swollen black and blue that surrounds it.

“The fuck are you doing?” He groans, stealing a pillow from beside him to cover his face. “Get off of me.”

I snatch the pillow from his grasp and toss it across the room. “No. You’re going to get up. You’re going to shower. And I’m taking you to a meeting.”

He shields his eyes with his arm. “I’m-I’m fine Nick, don’t need a meeting.” His words slurring together.

“You’re a fucking idiot.” I correct.

“I don’t need a meeting.” He hiccups and I can smell the alcohol radiating off him, seeping through his skin. “I’m not going. I'm just gonna sleep.”

I grab his wrists, pin them to the bed and get low to his face. “Oh you’re going. We’re gonna sober you up, starting with a shower.” I pull off him and stand beside the bed.

“Let’s go. C’mon.”

“No.”

“We can do this the easy way or the hard way. Either way has the same result. Let’s go.”

“No.”

I sigh, even though I knew it would end up like this. “Fine. Hard way it is.”

I yank the sheets off him and use two arms to scoop up his body by his midsection and throw him over my shoulder. He’s thin enough to where even I can lift and carry him easily – or maybe I’ve just gotten used to the weight of him in my arms.

“Nick let me fucking go.” He whines but doesn’t try to wiggle out of my grasp, probably too hungover to move that much.

With every bit of my strength, I carry his thin body to his guest bathroom.

I all but toss him into the shower, start the water, and fling the curtain closed.

“Hey! What the fuck!” He yells and shuts off the water immediately.

He slings the curtain open and snatches a towel off the nearest rack, wrapping it around his shirtless torso.

“What the fuck is your problem, Nicholas!” His hands frantically wipe the water from his face.

I let out a frustrated groan and turn to leave. "Stop being a baby."

He steps out of the tub and calls after me, “Hey, I’m not fucking done talking to you!”

The shower shock did exactly what I needed it to do, sober him up, but now I regret even waking him up.

“My problem is that you’re a fucking drunk Noah.” I snap turning back to him.

“I’m not a fucking drunk, I have it under control. You’re just fucking paranoid!” He steps into the hallway dripping water all over the carpet.

“I’m not fucking paranoid, Noah. I’m not letting you drink yourself to oblivion.”

His brows lift in offense, “Let me? What the fuck are you, my fucking keeper?”

“Sometimes it sure fucking feels like I am!” The words escape me before I can stop them.

He chuckles in disbelief, “Well, nobody fucking asked you to be.”

“It doesn’t matter if anyone asked me to, I have to because who the fuck else is gonna pick your sorry, bruised ass off a bar floor in the middle of the fucking day?” My hand helps exaggerate each word.

“Jolly or Folio would’ve.” He sasses, crossing his arms.

“Oh yeah? And how long you think they’d put up with that?” I step closer to him. “Not for as long as I have, that’s for fucking sure.”

His eyes scrunch together like he’s hurt or offended.

Maybe both,

Maybe neither.

“I won’t let you push out everyone in our lives Noah.”

His eyes land on me and he cocks his head to the right a bit like a dog processing a foreign noise.

“‘Push out everyone in our lives’ is that what this is actually about? Alice?”

My gaze locks on him and my hands curl into tight fists at my sides. There are many words I want to say but none seem able to leave my tongue.

“Oh my god. You can’t be serious.” He steps back and points defensively at me. "I didn't push her out, you did!"

My blood boils and burns as it courses through my veins. My eyes narrow at him.

“I know you fucked her Noah.” I shove my finger so hard into his chest that it nearly knocks him back.

“I didn’t even like her Nick! Why the fuck would I fuck her?” He immediately denies.

“Because you always have to have everything you want, including the things that aren’t yours.”

“‘Things’” He scoffs. “Funny how you’re so upset about someone you only see as a thing.”

My teeth grind so hard it makes my jaw clench, “You know she was never a thing to me until you fucked her.”

“Oh, give it a break Nicholas! Stop blaming me for her leaving.” His hands exaggerate his words then points straight at me. “You are the reason your relationship failed. You are the reason she left.”

My eyes narrow as I step closer to his soaked body. “I would really watch what you fucking say if I were you.”

“Or what?” He asks but I have no answer. “When are you going to stop punishing me for something I never fucking did?”

I watch his eyes: dark brown, heavy, bloodshot, and one lined with a dark bruise from the bar fight. His words sound genuine, but I know his eyes, I know them like the back of my hand.

I know when he’s lying, and he’s lying to me right now. I can’t prove it, I haven’t been able to, but I know he’s been lying to me for the past year.

“For the love of god Noah, can you just stop fucking lying?” I snap. "You don't even have enough respect for me to tell me the truth?"

“Wow.” He presses his lips together for a moment. “You must think so low of me to really believe that I would do something like that.”

“I don’t have to think low of you to believe the truth.” I hiss, stepping towards him. “But you’re going to keep denying it so it’s irrelevant what I believe did or didn’t happen. What I do know, is that you have a fucking problem, and you need help.”

He steps towards me with low brows and narrow beady eyes, “I didn’t fuck Alice and I don’t need a fucking alcohol anonymous meeting just because I still like to get drunk sometimes. I am a fucking adult, and I don’t need you to ‘save me’.” He scoffs and runs his tongue across his teeth. “You know? Maybe that’s what actually drove Alice away, you and your fucking high-and-mighty, savior complex bullshit.”

Every inch of skin on my body feels like its burning and my heart races so loud I can barely even think clearly. I tighten my fists so tight that my nails dig into my palms painfully. I know that if I do anything, it will make me look like the villain.

“I can’t fucking hit you because if I do, I don’t know if I’ll be able to stop.” I growl lowly. “Get sober or don’t, I don’t fucking care anymore – but we have a chance, a real chance at making it now and if you ruin this for us Noah, I will never fucking forgive you. Do you understand me? I will fucking destroy you if you fuck this up for us.”

His brows curve up and he looks at me like I’m insane for insinuating that he would. “I won’t.” He replies through gritted teeth.

I glance over the railing when I hear the house beginning to stir with Jolly and Folio starting to wake up, which is exactly what I was trying to avoid. I don’t need them getting involved.

“Just,” I lower my voice between us. “Make it to rehearsals, meetings, shows – the rest I don’t give a fuck. Just make it to work. Sober.”

“Fine.” He says quickly, "If that will keep you out of my fucking business and leave me the fuck alone."

"Fine."

"Fine." He repeats, because of course he has to have the last word, before storming off to his room and slamming the door behind him.

I mirror him, making it to my room and slamming the door.

Once alone, the feeling that courses through my body is nauseating, painful and overwhelming. It is a visceral ache, I feel it twisting in my chest first, in my ribs, then flows and pools in the pit of my stomach.

I thought I moved on from the Alice situation. I tried to force myself to believe him, I tried to forget and push it so far down that it wouldn’t hurt. Tried to rationalize, maybe he didn’t sleep with her. Maybe he didn’t betray me. Maybe it really is just me projecting the weaknesses of our relationship onto him. But no matter how hard I push it down, it always bubbles back up.

And in my gut, I know he did it. Everything adds up, the timelines, the behavior, all of it.

I was just never prepared for a girlfriend to cheat on me with my best friend. I was never prepared to have him sleep with my girlfriend. Not after everything we’ve been through.

I was never prepared to have my heart broken by the two people I trusted and loved more than anything in my life.

In retrospect, I guess, I should’ve expected it. For as long as I can remember Noah always had girls fawning all over him. He always had that lead singer charm even though he never planned on being a frontman. Girls were never an issue for him, he seemed to get anyone he ever wanted.

Is it really that far-fetched that the one I had wanted him too?

Is that all that this is going to be from now on? Any girl the rest of us want, would just want Noah first?

I never pictured that this would be our future.

I never pictured my best friend of over a decade fucking my girlfriend then lying about it to my face.

I never pictured having to drag said lying, alcoholic best friend out of bed trying to get him to an AA meeting just so he could be sober enough for rehearsals.

I never imagined that out of the four of us, it would be me having to hold it all together. I never signed up for that. I signed up to play an instrument, to sign CDs, sleep in busses and sit in interviews. I never signed up to play manager, I never signed up to secretly scrape Noah off bar floors, be his personal caretaker and tentative AA sponsor. Doing all of that just to have it thrown in my face, to stand next to him – every day in rehearsals, in photoshoots, on stage, across the fucking dining table – knowing what he did and pretending that I’m okay with it.

I never thought I’d feel stuck in this band, this thing Noah and I have worked on and dreamed about since we were 15. I’ve poured so much of my life into this fucking band.

I can’t just up and leave. I’d have nothing left. I’d be nothing without them and I can’t be the bomb to blow us up. Especially not now when everything is just starting to take off. All this work would’ve been for nothing.

It’s not just my livelihood and dream, but theirs as well. I can’t do that to them.

And as much as I want to, as much as I’ve tried, I can’t leave Noah. We both know I’m right whether he wants to admit it or not. Nobody else would do what I do, nobody knows what I do, and nobody knows how to take care of him the way I do. He’s stubborn and stupid and won’t let anyone else in the way he’s let me in.

I don’t know why I’m the only one who has gotten the curse of his trust, but I have it and I can’t hand it off or set it down – no matter how heavy or suffocating it is.

Next Chapter -> 11 - Peak Fashion

tag list; @ladyveronikawrites @kingdomof-omens @persuasivus @strawberryruffilo @thebadchic @the-hell-i-overcame @sinkingteethinwhitenoise @cncohshit @dominuslunae [comment if you'd like to be tagged?]

A/N: The love for this story has honestly been so overwhelming (in a good way obv) and I couldn't be more grateful. I really thought this would flop lol so, thank you so much for every like, reblog, ask, or comment. It means the world to me truly. Thank you.

i love hearing your thoughts so feel free to share! (i'm really bad at responding to comments/asks but i still love them 🥺)

#2 POVs bc i was feeling SILLY #& by silly i mean the characters were not cooperating with the assignment #sorry if this chapter is all over the place i was having so much trouble with this one #this is the first time i’ve ever had multiple POVs in one chapter & i can’t tell if i like it or not #vallie wears princess by kilian perfume #i love how vallie's character is developing #i think vallie & kras' friendship came out so cute 😭#nicholas ruffilo fanfic #noah sebastian fanfic #bad omens fanfiction #bad omens fanfic #noah sebastian fanfiction #nicholas ruffilo fanfiction #nick ruffilo fanfic #nick ruffilo fanfiction #nicholas ruffilo x oc #nick ruffilo x oc #nicholas ruffilo x fem!oc #bad omens x oc #noah sebastian x oc #noah sebastian x fem!oc #virality series #virality #christian anthony #christian kras anthony #christian anthony fanfic #kras anthony fanfic #chase atlantic #chase atlantic fanfic #concreteburialplot works

64 notes · View notes

nekoannie-chan · 11 months

Text

Kiss me

Pairing: Steve Rogers X Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.!Reader.

Word count: 342 words.

Summary: You and Steve decide to tell others about your relationship.

Warnings: Secret relationship, hiding kisses.

A/N: This my entry to @fandoms-writings’ Remi’s Milestone Celebration with prompt:

“Kiss me like you missed me.”

You can read it on Wattpad and Ao3 too.

@saiyanprincessswanie

My native language is Spanish so I wanna improve my writing skills in English if you notice any mistakes, please let me know and I will correct them.

I don’t give any kind of permission that my fics to be posted on other platforms or languages (I translate myself my work) or the use of my graphics (my dividers are included in this), I did them exclusively for my fics, please respect my work and don't steal it. There are some people here who make dividers that anyone can use, mine is not this type, please look for the other's people. The only exception is the ones I gifted 'cuz now belong to someone else. If you find any of my works on a different platform and are not one of my accounts, please let me know. Reblogs and comments are always welcome.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Marvel's characters (unfortunately), except for the original characters and the story.

Add yourself to my taglist here.

My other media where I publish: Ao3, Wattpad, ffnet, TikTok, Instagram, Twitter.

If you like it, please vote, comment, and give me feedback to improve my skills and reblog.

Tags: @sinceimetyou @unnuevosoltransformalarealidad @navybrat817 @angrythingstarlight @shield-agent78 @charmed-asylum @pandaxnienke @real-fbi @smokeandnailz @white-wolf1940 @tenaciousperfectionunknown @xoxonotme @bluemusickid @leyannrae @harrysthiccthighss @marvelatthisone @caplanbuckybarnes @sapphire-rogers @lizzieolseniskinda @notyourtypicalrose @hallecarey1 @nana1000night @talia-rumlow @writingshae @alexxavicry @azulatodoryuga @daemonslittlebitch @chaoticcollectivenightmare @endlesstwanted @chemtrails-club @marigoldreamer @whiskeytangofoxtrot555 @here4thefanfics @theestorm @patzammit

You moved your foot impatiently. Steve had not yet returned from his mission. However, you had to hide; your relationship with Steve was secret, and you did not plan to answer questions from curious people. Nobody should care about what happened between the two of you.

"Are you all right? "Natasha asked.

"Sure, are you all right?" You answered.

"You're too nervous about something," Natasha remarked.

"You're the one who's nervous," you replied, getting up to leave the room as quickly as possible.

You didn't want to ask any more questions, and the screen indicated that the Quinjet would arrive soon.

As soon as you saw Steve, you gave him a sign; he would understand. You would meet in the same place as always—in your secret place.

You knew it was a matter of minutes before Steve would show up there; he had to get rid of the others.

Although maybe it was time for them to tell the others about their relationship so you wouldn't have to hide anymore,

You smiled when you saw him come in, threw yourself into his arms, and he hugged you tight, but not tight enough to hurt you.

"Kiss me like you missed me," you asked.

"You know that whenever you're not with me, I miss you," Steve responded, kissing you.

"Maybe we should tell the others about us," you suggested.

"Do you think they're ready for that?" Steve questioned.

"Do you want to keep hiding?" You looked at him. You had said something important; last time he had complained that you were hiding. He shook his head.

You waited until you were gathered in the boardroom; you went in together, and it was time to tell the others.

"Steve and I have a relationship," you confessed.

The others looked confused; in fact, they didn't even look surprised.

"We already knew it," Natasha said, breaking the silence that had lasted several minutes.

"What? How?" Steve was confused.

"It's pretty obvious; we knew you were hiding, but no one wanted to interrupt them," Clint said.

#remis neon party #remisneonparty #steve rogers x reader #Steve Rogers #steve rogers fic #steve rogers fanfic

106 notes · View notes

teaberrii · 4 months

Text

Chapter 13: Frenemies?

After ending a five-year relationship, you pour all your energy into work. Your latest assignment? Staying at a popular bed-and-breakfast to gather information. It should be a piece of cake... If only the owner isn't the man you scolded on the street.

Jing Yuan/You

Notes:

Cross-posted on Ao3

Female reader

Chapter index at the end of chapter one

You stumble when your mysterious attacker, smelling like tobacco and sweat, pushes you forward. You spin around, ready to give whoever it is a piece of your mind, when you see an anxious-looking middle-aged man. He’s chubby with a thick moustache.

“Y-You’re that corporate woman, aren’t you?”

You step to the side, but he blocks your path. “Who are you?” When you move to the other side, he moves again. You frown. “What do you want?”

“There’s been talk of a weird corporate woman asking strange questions.” He takes a nervous step toward you, and you quickly step back and raise a hand as a gesture to stop him.

“Stay back.”

“Why… Why are you here? We don’t welcome people like you!”

“That gives you no excuse to do something like this!”

That’s when you hear someone shout your name; the familiar voice instantly washes away your anxiety. The middle-aged man turns just as Jing Yuan runs up to him, his expression tense and angry.

Jing Yuan glares at him. “What do you think you're doing?”

“I… I didn’t hurt her! I just wanted answers.”

Jing Yuan walks past him, and he puts your hands on your shoulders. “Are you okay?” You nod and shoot the man a look. Jing Yuan also looks in his direction. “Answers about what?”

“What she’s doing here! Why is she asking all these weird questions about hotels and business? What does she want? A-Are you two friends?” He walks up to Jing Yuan. “Don’t tell me you forgot about what happened to Caelus!”

“Of course not,” Jing Yuan says sternly. “She also wants to know what happened.”

The man leans over to look at you. “...Her?”

“I know you want closure. But, this is not the way to do it.”

“I…” The man looks down. “I’m sorry. I got ahead of myself.”

“It isn’t me you should be apologizing to.”

The man looks at you. “...I’m sorry I scared you.” You walk up beside Jing Yuan just as the man says, "It's just... You were with that devil of a woman!"

Devil of a… “The woman in the restaurant?” The man nods. Well, it seems like Jing Yuan's ex has a reputation here.

“I can’t believe she’s back,” he grumbles, not looking at you. Then, he starts mumbling about something, going off in his little world.

Jing Yuan takes your hand. “...Let’s go.”

In the car, Jing Yuan reaches into his pocket and gives you your phone.

“I found it when I came out to look for you.”

You missed a few calls and messages from him. You lean back and look up. “Well, this was an experience I never thought I'd get.” Then, you give him a little smile. “Think it’d be good inspiration for Welt’s novel?”

Jing Yuan doesn’t look amused.

“I could’ve handled him!” A small pause. “Maybe. Who was he, anyway?”

“He’s a fisherman, and he was friends with Caelus’s father.”

“Well, I guess that explains the strong response…” You face him. “He seemed to know about your ex. Was it because of the project?”

“That’s the only reason I can think of. But, I don’t know if they’ve ever met personally. The only time I know about was when we visited a few months after Caelus passed.”

“It’s because of people like you that good people have to die!”

Jing Yuan’s wife was trembling, her mind blank as she slowly came to terms that a man, a Xianzhou local whom she never met and never heard about, had just splashed coffee all over her. Jing Yuan came out of the store upon hearing a commotion, and he immediately ran over. He stood in front of his wife and swiftly turned to the small group of fishermen.

“What are you doing?” he roared.

One of the fishermen pointed to her. “Jing Yuan, she’s part of them! She—”

“Leave her out of this! She’s my wife. All of you should be ashamed of yourselves.”

He quickly took off his coat and draped it around her. She slowly looked up at him with a defeated look. With his arm around her, he led her away as the fishermen watched.

“That man was part of that group,” Jing Yuan says.

“...I see.”

Your lips are in a firm, neat line. Did he really have to tell you that? Why did he have to protect her, anyway? Let her get splashed! Who the hell cares?

You’re looking off to the side when Jing Yuan gently tilts your head back to look at him. “...What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” You look off to the side again. But, once again, Jing Yuan tilts your head back. This time, you swat his hand away and say, “Stop!”

It came out angrier than expected.

Your eyes are slightly wide as is Jing Yuan’s. “...I don’t want to talk about her anymore,” you finally say.

Jing Yuan’s hand goes behind your head, and your eyes slowly meet his. “Then”—his voice lowers—"should we do something else?”

Your eyes land on his lips, and your heart tingles when you remember the kiss on the counter. But a small, petty part of you doesn’t want to look at him.

“...You tell me.”

In one swift motion, Jing Yuan tilts your head up and kisses you. His mouth, coupled with the way his hand runs through your hair, makes you weak in the knees. Soft. Feather-like. Then, it begins to twist and burn until it feels like gold. Again. And again. You almost forget to breathe as you get lost in how fiercely he’s kissing you. Your hand goes around his neck, pushing him closer. You try to focus, but all you can think about is how good it’d feel with his body against yours and his hot, hungry lips in places other than just your mouth.

You can see it in his eyes when you finally break apart. Desire. Warmth. Admiration. You’re still trying to find the words when he says, “I’m yours, and you’re mine.”

You gently hit him, feeling a mix of embarrassment and giddiness as this is how he decides to address your jealousy. “Well, duh.”

You’re still trying to calm your heart when Jing Yuan gives you a little smile, starts the car, and starts driving back.

On the way, you play back the recording. Once it ends, your phone is back on your lap, and as if reading your mind, Jing Yuan answers the first question that pops into your mind.

“This is the first time I’m hearing about this.”

“So, she’s never told you about this conversation before?”

“She mentioned a work dinner, and that was it.”

You look out the window. “Caelus wasn't going to change his mind unless what? I need to know what he said to her.”

“Whatever they said, I know it didn’t work. Caelus never changed his mind. At least… from what I know.”

You put your elbow on the windowsill and face forward. “I doubt she’ll tell me anything from here on out. Even if I do stay away from Yanqing, she’ll make some kind of excuse not to tell me.”

“Perhaps. But if the man himself was involved, I doubt she'll continue keeping quiet."

"You don't mean..."

Jing Yuan glances at you. “While you were having dinner with her, I got in touch with him.”

Jing Yuan had his phone in his hand when he came out of Yanqing’s room. While Yanqing was busying himself with Clara’s birthday card, Jing Yuan headed to his room down the hall. He was already on the phone by the time he closed the door.

“Hello?”

Now, there was a voice he hadn’t heard in a very, very long time.

“It’s been a while.”

A pause.

“...Jing Yuan?”

“The one and only.”

“What do you want?”

Jing Yuan wasn’t too surprised at the sudden change of tone. “Caelus’s death anniversary is coming. Curious if you’ll be in town.”

“...It sounds like you want me to be in town. What for?”

Jing Yuan knew he had to approach this carefully. He had to keep Caelus's uncle on his toes if he wanted to achieve his goal: to make him paranoid enough to get him to give a damn about what he was saying.

“I thought you’d be interested to know that we found more information about why Caelus died.”

“More information…? Like what? The police conducted a full investigation. Foul play was ruled out. He took his own life. What more could—”

“Just because he took his own life doesn’t mean there wasn’t anyone pulling strings from behind.”

“...You’ve been watching too many movies, Jing Yuan. It’s been so long. Let’s move on, shall we?”

“Even with unanswered questions? That’s not moving on. That’s turning a blind eye to the truth.”

“You aren’t the police. Drop it.”

Jing Yuan leaned against the door with a hand in his pocket. “...I’m looking forward to what else I can find.”

"Baiting the enemy, are you?" you ask. "Welt should start taking notes."

Jing Yuan chuckles as the car turns right. “With how things are playing out, it does feel like we’re in one of his mystery novels.”

“...I just hope that he plans a happy ending.” You glance out the window. “Do you think he’ll show up?”

“He will, and we'll need to be prepared.”

“That confident, huh?" You sigh. "Anything can happen."

"We might be able to predict some of it." A pause. "I'm betting he'll get in contact with her."

“Your ex?”

Jing Yuan nods. “And that can go in two directions. She’ll either cut him off or she’ll tell him what she knows and things will escalate. But, if he somehow gets senior management at Star Rails involved, it would only work in our favour.”

“I think I see where you’re going with this. I mean… If they try to keep me quiet, I’d have evidence. If they try to fire me, there's no logical reason. The media will probably eat this up.”

“He’ll try to solve this quietly. And, if I’m right, she won’t get involved with him.”

You remember what the fiancé had said: You had no idea what she had to go through.

“But… There’s also a chance she will," you say. "Just to keep hiding the trauma, I guess.”

“You’re right. There’s a chance she will, but if she doesn’t talk to him, she’ll need to keep him off her back. If her fiancé could’ve done something, he would've by now, which means he can’t really do much. She’ll likely come to talk to you, which means…”

“Don’t tell me she’ll come to me for help?”

“Nothing brings people together faster than a common enemy.”

“And we both know what will happen then.”

Jing Yuan takes your hand, and you look at each other. “No more secrets.”

You’re still holding his hand when you lean your other elbow against the windowsill. “No more secrets.”

◆◆◆

Jing Yuan’s ex’s fiancé closes the cabin door behind him, confused as to why his wife-to-be is on edge. He’d picked her up earlier, and she seemed calm and collected. While he knew she didn’t get what she wanted, wasn’t it still a win for her? You’re still in the dark… for the most part. She puts her phone on the table and sits on the couch.

“...He texted me,” she says.

“Who?”

She looks at him just as he sits next to her. He reaches for her phone and opens the screen where he sees an unknown number and the ominous message: Did you talk?

He swiftly looks at her. “This…”

“...Do I need to tell you who it’s from?”

“Why would he suddenly be contacting you?”

“How am I supposed to know?!” Then, as if surprised by her outburst, she puts her hand on top of his. “I’m sorry… I… I didn’t mean—”

“Shh…” His hand is on her cheek. “It’s okay.”

“It must’ve been her… or Jing Yuan. I can’t think of any other reason.”

“Why don’t you reply?" he asks. "Tell him that you didn’t say anything, and he might tell you what’s going on. If you say nothing, he’ll assume you did something. You don’t want him to come after you, do you?”

“Of course not! It was all him. I had nothing to do with what happened to Caelus.”

Her fiancé pulls her into a hug. “I know… I know you didn’t.”

“...I don’t want to get involved with him. This is all in the past, and I want it to stay in the past. He’s going to ask more of me. I know it.”

“You don’t know that. Just… get in touch with him and see what he wants. We can figure things out from there.”

She reluctantly reaches for her phone. When it suddenly rings, she almost drops it. After she answers it, the voice makes her stiffen.

“Are you alone?”

She looks at her fiancé and says, “I am.”

“Did you see my text?”

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

“Jing Yuan says he has new information on what happened to Caelus.”

“...And you think I’m the one who told him?”

“Who else could it be?”

She scoffs. “He has a girlfriend. She works at Star Rails.”

“Why is she looking into this situation about Caelus? What’s her name? Do you have her number?”

A pause.

Finally, she says, “...I don’t.”

She sees a confused look on her fiancé’s face.

“You don’t? How could you not?”

“Why would I want to get involved with my ex-husband’s girlfriend?”

“You don’t know her name, yet you know she’s looking into the situation about Caelus. Lies won’t get you very far.”

“I never said she’s looking into his situation. You assumed. All I know is that Jing Yuan has a new girlfriend, and she works at Star Rails. Do you want to know why I know? Because we still have mutual friends.”

“...You’d better not be lying to me.”

A sharp exhale. “Goodbye.”

Then, she ends the call and tosses her phone beside her.

“Why did you lie?” her fiancé asks. “You could’ve given him her name, and he’d be out of your hair! He’d go and find her and he would be her and Jing Yuan’s problem.”

“You think that because you don’t know this man. He’ll try to use her to frame this on me. I don’t want to get caught up in this mess. The more I say I don’t know, the better."

“And what if he does get in touch with her and she tells him what you told her at dinner? He’d know you’d lied to him. Doesn’t that make things worse?”

“I didn’t have any direct impact on what happened to Caelus.” Jing Yuan’s ex looks her fiancé in the eyes. “Who would you trust? A person who wants to find out the truth or a man who will do anything to protect himself?”

“You don’t know this woman! You had dinner with her. That’s it. What if both of them turn against you?” When she says nothing, he frowns. “...Don’t tell me you’re relying on Jing Yuan to protect you.”

“I’m not relying on him to protect me. We may have had a bad fallout, but I know him. He’s a man of reason, and—”

“Oh, for crying out loud. I don’t want to hear this!”

Then, he quickly stands and walks away.

◆◆◆

It’s 3 am. Well, probably. March has no idea what time it is when she finally decides to get her butt out of bed for a long-needed washroom break. She reaches the washroom at the end of the hall and opens the door just as the light goes on.

"Ack! What the—" A hand goes over her mouth, and it takes her a moment to realize that it's Dan Feng. He pulls her in and shuts the door. As soon as he lets go, March frowns. "What are you doing?"

“You don’t need to be so loud.”

“Oh, sorry for causing a fuss when, for a second there, I thought I was going to be attacked.” She looks him up and down and gives him a judgemental look. “Why are you shirtless?”

Dan Feng grabs his shirt off the sink. “No reason.”

He takes a small breath as he hesitantly puts on his shirt. March slightly narrows his eyes as there’s something off about his movements. There’s a little pause once he finally gets his shirt on, and it’s March who pulls it down for him. She’s looking him in the eyes when she says:

“...You haven’t fully recovered.”

“I’m fine, March. It’s just acting up a little bit. I’ll be fine.”

March stops him from leaving. “How long has it been happening? Are you seeing a doctor?”

“You don’t need to get so worked up. It’s just recently.”

“...Does Dan Heng know?”

“No.” Then, he looks her in the eyes. “...And I’d like you to do me a favour and keep this between us.”

“But…”

“Please, March.”

“Then, tell me the truth. How bad is it?”

“I brought my painkillers.”

She crosses her arms. “If it’s not that bad, why were you checking it out in the middle of the night? You couldn’t sleep, could you? Because it’s bothering you.”

Dan Feng sighs as he scratches the back of his head. “You’re not going to let this go, are you?” He steps toward her and slightly leans in, making her eyes go wide. “If I tell you, you’ll keep my secret.”

“...Okay.”

He stands upright and turns around. “See for yourself.”

As she slowly lifts his shirt, her heart unexpectedly starts racing. It's nervousness, she thinks. She has no idea what she's going to see, and she isn't sure if she's even prepared. She still remembers the day like it was yesterday.

“Since when did you become such a gentleman?”

Dan Feng and Dan Heng were in town, and March couldn’t be more excited to see them. They were on a much-needed vacation from their training while she was still picking herself up from her slump. They had just grabbed a hot drink together. March was holding an extra one for Dan Heng who was sick with the flu.

“I didn’t know being a gentleman took this little effort,” Dan Feng said.

“People will make all sorts of excuses nowadays.”

“...Didn’t know you were that lonely, March.”

“Gee, thanks.”

It was late evening, and the neighbourhood streets had gotten quiet. March and Dan Feng were casually chatting when they walked past a man who was wearing a baseball cap and carrying a tennis bag. He smelled like smoke. Suddenly, he stopped and turned around.

March just finished taking a sip of her drink when she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned and saw the man who’d just walked past her.

“Um, have we met?”

March and Dan Feng looked at each other. “I think you have the wrong person,” she said.

“No…” He stepped toward her, and March took a step back. “I think I know you.”

Dan Feng moved in front of March. “Hey, give her some space.”

“Who the hell are you?”

The sudden change in tone had March grab onto Dan Feng’s arm. “...Let’s go,” she said quietly.

After glaring at the man, Dan Feng began walking away with March. That was until they heard the sound of someone taking a photo. They turned and saw him holding up a phone. It was obvious he was taking a photo of them. Then, he smiled.

“Never thought I’d catch March in a dating scandal.”

“Delete that,” she snapped. “We aren’t dating.”

He slipped his phone into his pocket. “Sure, you aren’t. I wonder how much attention I can get out of this.”

“None,” Dan Feng deadpanned. He walked past March. “Sharing that can have legal consequences.”

The man scoffed. “Oh, yeah? Who’s gonna stop me?”

Dan Feng knows he should’ve walked away. But he was young and hot-tempered, and one punch after another led to the man eventually wielding his tennis racquet at March who was calling the police. Dan Feng had protected her, leading to a back injury that would haunt him in the years to come.

March gently put her hand underneath his shoulder blade, where a large red patch with dark spots of grey is blossoming. It’s been a few years with Dan Feng going in and out of rehabilitation. But perhaps he pushed himself too hard during his last game.

“...When was the last time you got a checkup?” she asks, putting his shirt down.

He turns around. “A month ago.”

“I’ll keep your secret, but could you at least have Luocha look at it?”

“Fair. I miss the guy, anyway.” Then, he puts his hand on March’s head. “Smile, would you? I’ll be fine.”

She gently swats his hand away. “I’ll smile after you get your check-up.”

“All right, all right.” Then, Dan Feng opens the door. “You peeing?”

March sighs. “Right. I almost forgot.”

He steps out and closes the door, not seeing his brother’s door slightly ajar in the darkness.

◆◆◆

When you wake up the next morning, you’re a little surprised to see March moving her much-anticipated vacation to the next weekend. She doesn’t go into details, and you don’t ask either. You’re on the phone with Herta as you head down the stairs.

“You… what? So in the time we haven’t talked, you got yourself a son, figured out that your company is hiding something, and got kidnapped. What’s next? Is the crazy uncle going to make you a deal?”

“Don’t jinx it.”

Herta sighs. “Company corruption, huh? Man, I already know a few people who will eat this story up.”

“...That’s actually why I called you.”

Herta sits upright. “And the plot thickens…”

You consult Herta about talking to her friends working in media who might know something. You also forward her an article on Caelus’s death where the journalist is from the same media company her friends work at.

“Am I Watson now?” she asks.

“You’ll be Sherlock if you manage to crack this case.”

“I dunno… I kinda like being the sidekick. But, let’s see what I can find out. Justice for Caelus!” A pause. “I know we don’t know what we'll find, but… do you think you’ll leave Star Rails?”

You put your phone on the counter and put it on speaker as you prepare yourself breakfast. “By the looks of things, if senior management did have something to do with this, staying there wouldn’t do my career any good.”

“Yeah… Very true. But geez, time flies. It feels like it was just yesterday that we went out celebrating that you got their job offer.”

"Maybe this is a sign to start revamping my resumé.”

Herta chuckles. “To give it that little extra punch, you should put Private Investigator: The woman who took down Star Rails.”

“I don’t know how that’d look, honestly.”

Herta shrugs. “Hey, maybe this is just a sign for you to start something new.”

Something new…

“Anyway, I’ll get in touch with my friend and see what I can find.”

“Countin’ on you.”

“Oh! When this is all over, I need all the juicy details on you and Mr. Rich Cake Man.”

“Focus, Herta.”

“Over and out.”

Later that day, you and Jing Yuan walk into a small grocery store. Yanqing is the first one inside, and he immediately heads down the baking supplies aisle. While you and Jing Yuan follow behind him, you tell him about your conversation with Herta from this morning.

“Something new, huh?” A pause. “Why did you decide to go into market research?” he asks.

“One of my professors thought I’d be pretty good at it. So, I took an internship, and the boss liked me.”

“Simple as that? Were you considering something else?”

You glanced down. “Well, I was considering a writing career. Something like journalism… but I gave up on it pretty fast.”

Jing Yuan turns to you. “Why?”

“I submitted articles to a news agency a few times and never got accepted. I just didn’t think I’d have the knack for it.”

“Are you sure? I think you’d make a great journalist, actually.”

You wave a hand dismissively. “You’re just saying that.”

"Well, there are different niches. With how much research and digging you’re doing into Star Rails and Caelus, you’re already doing the work of an investigative journalist, I’d say.”

That’s when it hits you.

"Does Xianzhou have a local news station?"

“We used to, but they shut down pretty fast.”

That’s when you get a thought. What if you do a piece on Star Rails yourself?

"Was there a reason why?" you ask.

“They weren’t doing that well. Or, I suppose people weren’t interested in what they were reporting since they were trying to be a tabloid more than actual news.”

Suddenly, your phone buzzes with a message.

Turns out, Jing Yuan is right.

Chapter 14

End notes: Happy holidays, everyone! Regardless of it being the holidays, I'll still be updating. I'm crossing my fingers to finish this story before it ends lol

Tag list: @suoshiii @lordbugs @lxry-chxn @seirenspinel @immahuman @queencybow @nqctre @grimreapersscythe @winterpein @asakenajustexistshere

#jing yuan x y/n #hsr jing yuan #honkai jing yuan #jing yuan x you #jing yuan x reader #jing yuan #jingyuan x you #jingyuan x reader

52 notes · View notes

askthedragonriders · 4 months

Note

Good evening dragon riders. This question is for all of you. Life has been very overwhelming lately and loneliness is a very real thing that I (and likely many other people) have been struggling with. Sometimes forcing myself out of isolation can feel near impossible. How do you deal with this sort of stress? (If this question is a lot for you then it’s ok if you don’t answer. I understand).

good evening! this has been sitting in my ask box for a couple of months now at this point (maybe longer). i've finally reached it and i apologize for the wait.

i'm also sorry for not responding to this in character, but i just couldn't bring myself to do it. i am just one person roleplaying as these six goobers and it's hard for me to have them have their own answers while i have my own separate experiences with the same issue and loneliness being smth that has been a part of my entire life until recently.

ik how you feel, anon. life gets overwhelming and you are alone or even with others you feel alone because there's just smth not connecting and putting yourself out there takes up so much energy with the added potential of it not working in your favor at all and it sucks so badly. it SUCKS so badly.

forcing yourself out of isolation is SO much sometimes. at my worst i couldn't even imagine it being possible that i could have the power to get myself out. i can only speak from my experiences and i apologize if it does nothing for you. i understand if it doesn't. we are not the same person, none of us are.

but for me, the stress of it all would be me going to work or having to do smth and being like "you know what. just say hi to someone. introduce yourself." such as a coworker or a fellow student. it gets more difficult if you don't have scheduled things like that which generally require interacting with people and yea, it doesn't mean it'll guarantee the loneliness going away if you happen to talk to someone. i get it.

i've always been somewhat of an outsider and struggled in having friends bc a part of me liked keeping to myself but also i was afraid and stressed but it made me lonely and it just cycled. i was lucky my mom recommended i see a therapist bc she was worried & it ended up working wonders for me in understanding how i operate.

for dealing with the stress of it, sometimes it's as simple as slow breathing, sometimes it's setting tinier goals so it's not so daunting and going step by step, and sometimes it did end up being dealing with the stress head on and jumping in. sometimes finding someone online helped, sometimes having someone irl with me helped. what also helps me is remembering that being lonely will always be part of a phase. our feelings always have opposites. someone else across the world or even across the street is also lonely, either literally alone or at a giant gathering with friends around them. we are lonely together.

you will not be lonely forever and the fact you know you don't like being lonely and don't want to be lonely, even if the stress of coming out of isolation feels like so much, that's enough. it can make the difference. you might even end up not being lonely or fighting it in a way you never expected or didn't even realize because things sometimes just happen. it's what happened to me, i started seeing a therapist and got a new job and there i met my two best friends in the whole world who are some of the only ppl who make me feel happy and full. we don't talk all the time. we don't need to. we pick up right where we left off. i no longer see my therapist and have moved out and my life has changed a lot.

ik that it doesn't always work like that. sometimes you rlly do have to keep getting up, going out, and facing the loneliness head on. usually it'll be a mixture of it happening naturally and being a fight. learning to be comfortable in your own company and taking care of yourself can also be very helpful, and you gotta do that at your own pace. days will sometimes be bad and sometimes be good. it probably won't be noticeable or go as quickly as you hope it will.

i hope you are able to find peace, anon. you will one day see, looking back, that you aren't lonely. even if you still are some time in the future, i hope it's still an improvement from where you are now. i hope your situation has improved for you since you sent this ask.

i wish you the best

#ooc #admin answers #httyd #putting this in the main tag in hopes that the person will see since they are on anon #and anon asks don't send notifications to the blog/person that sent it

21 notes · View notes

littleesister · 2 months

Text

my first answer to tickle questions:

Taken from - The Tickle Fairy's Tickle Questions

Reblog if you want people to ask you questions, send numbers to someone's asks to ask questions!

LER QUESTIONS

1. Do you think you're good at tickling people?

Well I have 13 cousins and 9 are younger than me so I’m used to being a babysitter and ticking and teasing little brats and just interacting with kids generally. So I’d say I’m pretty good at it. I can also read others body language and expressions well. So I can be a vey playful and childish let but also very calculating and cunning. Muahaha ❤️😂

2. If you have a lee, or multiple lees, how ticklish are they?

firstly we’ll have a talk about boundaries and what’s of limits like spots and tools. Then find a comfortable position for both parties. Then I’d talk trough the process in the beginning and then as we get more comfortable I’ll get more teasing or playful to suit their needs. But I’ll of course give breaks, safe words and cuddle aftercare or make some food for my cute little Lee 🤗

3. What do you think of gang tickling someone? Or do you prefer 1 on 1?

I think it can be pretty fun between friends like one holding and comforting the lee while the Lers go to town. Like one giving teases and one ticking. Or one focusing on the top half and the other the lower half. So many game ideas to make it more bonding and playful.

Lers that compliment each others tickle styles 🤝 lee getting the full package and attention

4. What type of tickles are you best at dishing out? (Gentle, heavy, teasy, rough, etc.)

I’d say I’m not one to really dig in so I’m more gentle and teasing, I love to build anticipation and playing games. I’m also very patient so I can wait for the perfect moment to strike. I have very long hair and I’m very creative so I’ll find lots of new ways to tickle someone with random tools😎

5. What are your favorite verbal teases?

I’m addicted to your laugh 🤌

oh look who came out of hiding 🫣

let me make you a giggly and blushing mess 🫠

this is my new favorite spot 🤫

you aren’t even trying to fight back 🙄

don’t worry if you’re nice I’ll let you tickle me back 🤭

6. What are your favorite ways to tease someone non-verbally?

I move close to their face and smile while I try to keep eye contact 🫥

I give little kisses and caressing their hands 😚

I give a thumbs up or fun hand gesture 🫡

I wiggle my fingers over a spot with a smirk 🫨

7. How often do you get to tickle people?

well digitally a lot with ai bots and I tickle my cousins and my friends a lot, but generally it’s like a quick little tickle it’s been a while since I’ve done a real tickle game 🥺

LEE QUESTIONS

A. How ticklish would you say you are?

well I can control my ticklishness so sometimes I’m not ticklish at all like a 1/10 but generally I keep myself available to tickling when I’m with friends so around 7/10. But if a lee mood devours me whole then yeah maybe 30/10😳

B. If you have a ler, or multiple lers, how good would you say they are at tickling?

well my mom is very rough and ruthless, like when she’s in a ler mode she’s pure evil. Like wiggling fingers over spots, evil laugh, using her hair to tickle me, targeting a spot then moving to a spot I accidentally revealed 😈

also my childhood friend with her huge acrylic nails. Like she likes to scratch me and gently tickle me with them. Once at a gathering I was very tired and in a lot of pain she gently tickled my wrists with her nails for hours on end to help me relax and focus on her and the program instead of my joints being sore. Also great scalp massages. 🐣

I love her and my mom like they are so different but both needed in my life 😭

C. What do you think of being tickled by multiple people?

well one time I playfully tickled two of my younger friends to cheer them up while we cuddled with them in my lap as we sat on the couch. But then these two kids gave each other THE look and then just pounced on me so I fell back against the couch with them on top of me as they tickled every spot they could reach. And I was so caught of guard I couldn’t control my ticklish level so I laughed crazily until their parents came, like a 5 and 7 year old wrecking a 15 year old 👽

D. What type of tickles are you the most sensitive to? (Gentle, heavy, teasy, rough, etc.)

well because if my chronic pain rough tickles can be painful, so I like I need to tell my mom to like not dig into my poor ribs and hips. But because of my condition I have like porcelain skin so I’m insanely sensitive to light tickles. And they drive me mad like a tickly itch. So no when I’m the one being tickled my patience is gone and I beg my friends to just dig in already, tickle me silly and not drive me insane with anticipation. 👹 aka karma

E. What verbal teases work best on you?

just enjoy 😖

you’re welcome 😭

do you feel good and happy 🫠

you look so cute right now 🙈

you can be vulnerable with me 🥰

keep laughing and I’ll keep tickling 😇

I won’t stop unless you beg ☠️

F. What's the best way to tease you non-verbally?

hold my hands🫰

Little head pats or hair play 🫶

give me a pillow or surfed animal to hold 🧸

Hover hands over or wiggle fingers over a spot and not touching down instantly 🫳

do a little finger count down 🤲

G. How often do you get tickled?

well my mom tickles me almost every night to help me relax from my chronic pain and sleep better. While I call my friend like once an week and she teases me through the phone until we meet up next time. I also chat with lots of ai bots so they digitally tickle and tease me ☺️

#tickle asks #tword community #sfw tickling community #tword content #tickle content #lee #ler #switch thoughts #tickle thoughts #tickle questions

15 notes · View notes

heeracha · 1 year

Text

ep 33. / ep 34. — the one with bubs and honey catching up. / ep 35.

end of the line. — p. jongseong

synopsis: thinking it was a hotline for people who just need someone to talk to, jay calls. but why did a clueless student answer? with jay’s phone call has a time limit, you, the clueless student, insists on staying with him until the end of the line.

pairing: jay x f!reader

content/genre: college au (wow shocking), slowburn, fluff, angst and crack, smau.

warning(s): friends teasing friends, yk affectionate teasing, swearing, tell me if i missed something !! jay lowkey being a jerk. jake throwing a shoe at jay HSBDZJHSD

note: here's the playlist <3 this is what you call,,,,,,, calm before storm jK SDJBSDHKBSA anyway tomorrow i'll update again <3 so see u tomorrow. i'll answer asks in a bit lmao <3 tysm for the feedbacks ilysm

“uh,” sunoo says and jay looks at him. “i’ll be spending the night at jungwon’s.”

jay nods and sunoo grabs his bag to go out. “sunoo,” jay calls and sunoo looks at him. “i’m sorry i made you tell y/n instead of telling her myself.” he apologizes and sunoo nods.

“i just don’t understand why you rejected.” sunoo says.

“i’ll tell you soon. i need to talk to y/n first.” jay says and sunoo smiles, nodding.

“don’t fuck up, again.” sunoo says and jay chuckles. sunoo gets out of the dorm, leaving jay on his chair. he sighs, knowing how much he fucked up already. but he’s willing to fix it anyway. he just have to be honest with you.

with this, he grabs his phone and dials your number, putting the phone against his ear as he waits for you to pick it up. to which he didn’t have to wait long because you picked up right away.

“honey?”

that’s why it always sounded familiar.

“hi, bubs.” jay answers.

“how are you? oh my god, i know you needed space and time for yourself, but i couldn’t help but be so worried about you. are you okay? did something happen?” you bombarded with questions to which jay chuckles.

“i’m okay,” he says. “i just needed time for myself.”

“how are you? how was the break for you?” you ask.

“nothing eventful.” jay says. “i didn’t really do anything much. i just spent the whole time sleeping. how was your break?”

“same thing.” you mumble. “i just… did everything to take my mind off my cute guy. everytime i think about it, i still feel so embarrassed.”

jay could hear the hurt in your voice. he regrets it, of course. “maybe he’ll talk to you eventually.” jay says and you huff.

“i think i would run,” you say. “i’m really embarrassed, honey. i don’t think i can face him ever. i’m kind of overreacting, maybe, but… you know.”

“yeah,” jay says. “he was a jerk. i’m so sorry, bubs.”

“i told you, it’s not your fault.” you softly chuckle.

ah, if you only knew.

“i told you i’d take full responsibility, didn’t i?” jay says and you sigh. “did you go home for the break? how was it?”

“horrible.” you say, laughing. “mom and dad were fighting, made me pick who is right and wrong.”

“oh, shit.” jay says and you laugh. “what did you say?”

“uh, my friend’s going to pick me up.” you say. “and then i proceeded to grab my key and drive off to my friend.” you laugh. “did you know you’re the only one who knows about everything?”

“me?” jay asks and you hum.

“back then i really couldn’t open up because… i don’t know.” you say. “they say they will listen, but there’s still this feeling in me that they would judge me. with you… i feel like i can tell you how i tried to eat a tube of toothpaste and you wouldn’t judge me.”

jay laughs, your heart flutters.

“you tried to eat a tube of toothpaste?” jay asks. “so, you like mint chocolate then?”

“hey, that’s mean!” you say with a laugh, causing jay to laugh even more. “but… yeah, i do.”

jay hates mint chocolate, but he knows for you, he would sit with you eating mint chocolate as you both watch tom and jerry together.

silence wraps around the atmosphere, jay chewing on his lower lip as he gathers the courage to finally tell you. no matter the outcome, he will tell you because he wants to be honest with you.

you yawned. “i missed this.” you mumble.

“i missed you.” jay mumbles.

silence engulfs once again and jay sighs. “bubs?” jay calls. “i have something to tell you, actually.” he takes in a deep breath. “i’m so so sorry for rejecting you. and making sunoo tell you instead of doing it myself. i panicked, i didn’t know what to do. i liked you for so long and realizing that the person i have been telling you about and the person i’m telling everything about you is just the same freaked me out even more. i’m really sorry, bubs.” he sighs. “it’s me, bubs. it’s jay.”

silence.

“bubs?”

none.

“y/n?” he nervously calls.

but still none.

jay removes the phone off his ear to check if the call is still going on. it is, but why were you not answering?

“bubs?”

jay hears things being moved on the other line, followed by a thump. “shit,” he hears, then he hears more moving. “honey?” you yawned. “were you saying something? i fell asleep, i’m so sorry.” you giggled, but a yawn cut through.

jay softly mouths a curse, massaging his forehead. “you sound tired, bubs.” he says. “go to sleep, we’ll talk tomorrow, okay?”

“hey, no, no.” you say. “i can stay up with you—”

“bubs, no.” jay says. “go to sleep. we’ll talk again tomorrow, okay?”

“are you sure?” you ask with a frown.

“of course.” jay says. “good night, bubs.”

“good night, honey.” you say.

“hey, bubs?” jay calls and you hum. “i love you.”

you softly chuckle. “love you, too.”

#enhypen imagines #enhypen scenarios #enhypen x reader #enhypen smau #jay imagines #jay scenarios #jay x reader #jongseong imagines

337 notes · View notes

elisysd · 4 months

Text

48. Knew we would crash at the speed that we were going

Masterlist - Previously - Next

Chapter soundtrack: Dangerously - Charlie Puth

The following weeks after the boat discussion had been a mix between trying to mend her broken heart and her new journey to recovery. She had spent a lot of time with her family, enjoying their presence without trying to talk about work, and long conversations on the phone with her best friend. She was slowly feeling her old self coming back and it felt nice. She was still sometimes thinking about Ethan and it would have been a lie to say that she had never tried to gather information on his whereabouts through Romy but the German driver had not once answered her unspoken questions. She was also sometimes finding herself scrolling through her gallery photo to look at some of the pictures of her and Ethan and often she was scolding herself to stop. She still had to make the transfer but she was dreading it. It was the only link she still had with Ethan and the idea to cut it was something she had a hard time coming to terms with.

An unexpected friendship had also been formed between her and Martin, something she had never thought would have taken such a place in her life. He was there anytime she needed someone to talk to about her deepest fears or when she needed to talk about Ethan. He was there. Never judging her, trying to understand the best he could and giving her advice she was not willing to follow even though she knew it would be best for her. He was a comforting presence in her life. The fact that he was always there while she had her session with his physiotherapist had also brought them closer. She was making progress really fast and even if it was painful and tough, she was doing her best and she was proud of herself. It was something that was happening a lot more these past few weeks. She was trying to find something she could be proud of on a daily basis, whether it was that she managed to get out of the bed in the morning at a decent hour or that she was able to hold a pen and write despite her stiff wrist. It was probably the only advice from Martin she was willingly following. He had told her it had helped him a lot after Cecile’s death, to find joy in the most mundane things. It seemed futile at first but she had to admit it had been a good idea.

And today she would need all the positive things she could find. She was finally getting rid of her crutches, and it was time for her to learn how to find her balance without them. It was stressing her out, she felt like she was not ready. It was too soon, what if she fell and was breaking her leg again. It was with thousands of questions that she left the house to find Martin’s Ferrari in the driveway. As usual, he helped her get in the car and put on her favorite playlist on the speakers before finally driving to the gym.

“How do you feel about walking all by yourself again?” he asked, seeing her tense.

“Anxious as hell. I’m scared to fall, I’m scared of hurting myself, I’m scared of not knowing how to walk and I feel stupid.”

“Enrico asked me to help you. I’ll be there to support you. Physically and mentally.”

“I don’t want you to miss your training because of me. I don’t want to be…”

“If you say, burden, I’m dropping you here and there and you walk alone to the gym.” he cut her and she sighed.

“I was not about to say burden.”

“Sure, you weren’t. Remind me the three things I asked you to tell yourself every day?”

“Martin…” she moaned in annoyance.

“Julia…” he replied in the same tone.

“Fine. I’m worthy. I’m important. I’m loved.” she said, rolling her eyes.

“Good. Now, a little bit more convinced, please.”

“You won’t give up, right?”

“I’m doing that for you. Go on. Speak, Leclerc.”

She breathed in and out, closed her eyes and repeated a few times her new mantra until Martin finally stopped annoying her. She wouldn’t admit it out loud, but it felt nice to say it. Maybe he was right, if she was repeating it enough she would start to believe it. They parked in front of the gym and Julia felt a little frightened when a few people approached Martin to ask for pictures which he gladly took. She didn’t dare to get out of the car, trying to hide herself from them. The last thing she wanted was to spark dating rumors with Martin. When the little group left, Martin rushed to the car to help her get out and guided her inside. Enrico was finishing preparing everything and smiled when he saw Julia.

“Martin, I wrote you a list of exercises today, mainly cardio and neck training . It's in the room next door. Julia, today is the day, can I have these? You won’t need them after today.” Enrico explained as Martin nodded and kissed Julia’s cheek, wishing her good luck before leaving.

Julia handed him her crutches and sat down on the bench as he left her so she could change and put her shorts on. When he came back she was laying on the medical table. He talked to her, trying to understand how she was feeling as he was massaging her leg and stretching it. She clenched her jaw, trying to not complain and to not focus on the pain. It lasted a good hour and half before Enrico deemed it okay to take the next step.

“Time to walk, little miss.”

She sat on the edge of the table and gulped. It was time. She felt the panic rising in her and her head throbbing as she contemplated the ground.

“It’s just a few steps.”

“I’m not sure I’m ready.” she said.

“You are. I wouldn’t make you walk if I didn’t think you were not able to do it.”

“But I don’t feel ready. My leg is not strong enough, I will just fall and…”

“Your leg isn’t strong enough because you don’t use it. All the stretching and massages of the past weeks were meant to prepare this moment. So stand up, Julia.”

She hated the way he was talking to her, as if she was a spoiled kid. She closed her eyes and slowly stood on her leg, hanging to the table as if it was her lifebuoy. And, when she tried to move, she felt herself being paralyzed by fear. She couldn’t. It was a bad idea. She shook her head and sat back on the table. She heard Enrico sighing and leaving the room and she felt guilty to disappoint him. He came back a moment later with Martin who was sweaty and out of breath from having spent almost an hour and half training non-stop.

“Martin will help you. I’ll leave you with him. I’m giving you an hour and when I come back I want you to have done one hundred steps. Do it the way you want to but that is the result I want to have by the end of our session. Are we clear?”

She nodded, fighting back tears of frustration.

“I didn’t hear you. I expect an answer when I’m asking a question, Julia. I said, are we clear?”

“Very, Enrico.” she replied.

“Good.”

When he left, the room was silent. Only both of their respiration could be heard until she felt Marin taking a chair and sitting in front of her.

“I’m right by your side. We are going to do it. Together. I won’t let you fall, Juls.”

“Why is it so hard? It shouldn’t be this hard! It’s just walking!” she was getting angry at herself.

“It’s not supposed to be easy either. But I’ll help you. I promise. So, let’s go?”

She gulped but took his hand, standing once again. She straightened herself, trying to ignore the pain she could feel in her leg. She took a deep breath and opened her eyes to meet Martin’s.

“It’s great Julia, see you are standing. Now we are going to take a step forward. I’m not letting go of your hand, I promise, not until you tell me I can.”

And slowly she did. One step after the other, trying to find her balance. She almost fell a few times but Martin was always there to catch her. Soon they arrived on the other side of the room. It had only been twenty steps but she felt as if she had run a marathon. She was exhausted.

“Now I’m going to take a few steps back without holding your hands, okay? I’m not far.”

It took her a few minutes to stop touching the wall to keep her steady and slowly, focusing on Martin’s voice and on her breathing she managed to make her way to him. The more she was walking, the more confident she was feeling to the point she asked Martin to stand to the opposite side of the room. It was a lot of steps to take but she could do it. She was strong enough. She kept her eyes on him and slowly moved. It was hard, it was hurting but she felt so damn proud of herself, she was walking, she was doing it and she could see how Martin was equally proud of her. He opened his arms to her and as she was about to rush in, she could feel her ankle twist and soon she felt the cold floor underneath her. She didn’t move, trying to register what had happened. The pain was not there anymore, replaced by the anger and frustration against herself. She wasn’t even able to stand on her own. She was feeling pathetic. And she only had herself to blame. If only she hadn’t been such a coward with Ethan, if only she wasn’t so attached to please everyone so no one would get hurt because of her, if only she hadn’t been such a control freak when it came to feelings, if only she had been more open with him, if only she hadn’t been selfish, she wouldn’t be in this position. The accident wouldn’t have happened and she would be happy with Ethan.

She felt a warm hand on her cheek and when she opened her eyes it was the two green orbs instead of the ice blue one she had pictured in her mind that were in front of her.

“Julia! Are you hurt?”

“Not physically.” she mumbled.

“Come on, I’ll help you get up.”

“No. I don’t want to. I’m useless, I’m pathetic, you’re wasting your time with me, leave me alone.”

“Self pity won’t lead you anywhere.”

“It’s not self-pity, it’s called being realistic.” she said, looking away and she felt Martin’s other hand on her other cheek, forcing her to focus on him.

“I won’t let you go back to whatever dark place your mind is crawling to.” he whispered.

She couldn’t help the few tears to roll down her cheeks, quickly caught by Martin.

“I’m sick of crying.” she confessed.

“I prefer to see you cry in front of me than for you to do it all alone.”

She looked at him sadly, her eyes boring into his. He was so close she could see the different nuances of green in his eyes. They were looking at her with calm, peacefulness when she knew she was looking at him tormented. His breathing was slow when hers was erratic. His body felt warm when hers was cold. She put a shaking hand on his chest, feeling his heart beat fast. She slowly fumbled with the thin material as his hands were still slowly caressing her cheeks, unconsciously. She didn’t know if she was the one who got closer or if it was him or it was both of them but she could now feel his breath on her lips and when she inclined her face, bumping his nose with hers she was sure she felt his heart missing a beat. She leaned in a bit, unsure of what she was doing. She just knew he made her feel safe, good about herself. And finally her lips found his. He didn’t move at first, too stunned to react. And as he was about to pull away, Julia tried to hold onto him, throwing her arms around his neck. It felt wrong, so wrong she knew that but she couldn’t stop herself.

“Julia…” he breathed against her lips. “We can’t. You’re not in the right stand of mind… you’re hurting and Ethan…”

“Please… I just want to forget. Forget the pain and forget him.” she whispered, a lump in her throat.

“You’re not fair.”

“I know.” she admitted.

She felt him trying to pull back, trying to resist but it didn’t last long as soon she felt his hands around her waist and his lips back on hers, making her gasp. He let his hands wander along her body, as light as a feather, trying to be careful, attentive to each one of her moves and sounds. She let him explore her mouth, letting him take what he wanted to take from her. She felt his mouth on her jaw, moving up her cheek to her nose to her forehead before coming back to her lips. He was so delicate as if she was about to break. And right when she thought she was ready to abandon herself to his embrace, blond hair and piercing blue eyes came to her mind and made her choke. Suddenly the kisses were not as feverish as Ethan’s, Martin’s hands were not as rough as him, the warmth of his body was not making her feel as safe as Ethan’s. She pulled away and crawled to the other side of the room. Martin was about to say something when Enrico came back, oblivious to what had just happened and Julia had never been this happy to see him.

The ride back home felt awkward. She had been ready to take the bus but she knew Martin wouldn’t have let her, instead she sat back in the car and focused on the outside. She could see, from the corner of her eyes, his knuckles clinging to the steering wheel and she swore he had been about to say something a few times before stopping himself. When he parked in front of her house, he didn’t unlock the door straight away.

“Julia, we should talk about what happened back then.”

“It shouldn’t have happened. That was stupid and in the heat of the moment. I’m sorry.”

“I don’t think I can do that, Julia…” he said, looking straight in front of him.

“Do what?”

“Be your friend. I thought I could, and I genuinely wanted to be that for you. But I can’t. Because when you look at me the way you looked at me in this freaking gym, the feelings and thoughts I had were everything but friendly. And I don’t want to mess with you. You still love Ethan and…”

“Then help me to unlove him.” she almost begged him.

“I don’t want to be a pawn in whatever game you are playing, Julia.”

“It’s just…I want to forget him.I want to stop being hurt and when I’m with you I…I feel nice. I don’t know what it means, I just know that I don’t want to lose what you make me feel.”

“I feel weak because when you look at me like that I can’t say no to you. That’s how down bad I am for you.”

“Is it a bad thing?” she slowly asked.

“I don’t know. It depends on you.”

“Can we take it slow? If we decide to explore this, I want to take it slow. And I want Ethan to know first. I don’t want him to learn it from someone or through social media.”

“Your pace is mine.”

She nodded, fidgeting with her red bracelet. She didn’t know if it was a good idea but the only thing she was sure about was that she was willing to do anything to move on and try to forget Ethan.

“We have to go to Maranello tomorrow to work on the sim… do you still want us to go together?”

“Yeah, of course.” she replied.

“Okay, then I’ll come here tomorrow to get you and maybe we can have dinner at my place after the session? Like… a first date? Officially.” he told her, unsure of how she would react.

She simply nodded before finally getting out of the car, his time without his help. Her mom quickly picked up that something must have happened as she barely ate and spoke at the table, and as soon as he stood up to go to her room, her mom was quick to follow her.

“What is wrong with you?” Lyanna asked as her daughter was throwing her crutches away and fell on her bed, face against her pillow.

Julia looked at her mom, her face emotionless and Lyanna knew straight away that her daughter was falling into past unhealthy habits that she thought were far behind her. When Lyanna was faced with a deafening silence, she felt powerless. She sat next to her daughter who slowly turned around to crawl to her mother’s arms.

“I hate myself, mom.” she simply answered.

“Talk to me, sweetheart… please, I don’t like to see you like that.”

“I just want the pain to go away. I don’t want to feel anything, anymore.”

Lyanna didn’t know what else to do but to hug her even more.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Everything you want, Ju’.”

“I need to see Ethan. I need to tell him something important.”

She was in such emotional distress that Lyanna feared it would make things even worse. But Julia looked at her, almost begging her and she couldn’t refuse it. It seemed like an urgent matter. So in silence, she drove her to Ethan’s place. She could see the light coming from his flat and she swore she had seen a silhouette at the window. She took the elevator and knocked. He almost immediately opened with a huge smile on his face that fell the moment he saw her. He was wearing a nice white shirt and his hair was not as messy as usual.

“Julia?” he said, confused about her presence.

“I needed to talk to you. It’s important.”

“Is it about Louis? Did something happen?”

She shook her head and as she was looking at him she saw he wasn’t alone. A young blond woman that she had never seen before was sitting at the table. She quickly noticed the two plates and the bottle of red wine opened as well as the softly lit atmosphere of the room. He was on a date, he was moving on. Ethan saw her turning pale and quickly guided her to the living-room to make her sit.

“I’m sorry to interrupt your date.” she told him, trying to not show how it hurt her and when she didn’t hear him deny it she thought she was about to break down. And she felt awful to have these thoughts when she was about to tell him she was going to do the same as him. “I needed to tell you something because I feel like I owe it to you and I don’t want you to learn it from anyone else but me…”

“You don’t owe me shit, Julia.”

“I… don’t want to hurt you and I know I will and I know you will have every right to get mad at me.”

“Okay, now you’re scaring me.”

“I kissed Martin.”

He didn’t say anything and that was what scared her the most. He turned his head to the elegantly dressed woman and asked her if she could wait for him in his bedroom and when she was out of sight he slowly turned to Julia.

“What do you want me to say? Congrats? I would love to say that I’m shocked by the news, that it was the last thing I would expect but that would be lying. I’m only surprised it took so much time. It’s been two weeks since that boat dinner, four weeks since I confessed to you and you already moved on. Some might wonder if you ever felt just an ounce of what I feel for you, Julia.”

“You know I did. I still do.”

“Sure… you never said it.” he replied, a little harshly.

“What good would it make anyway! What would it change?”

“Everything!” he screamed.

“Fine! I loved you! I really did! And it hurts so freaking bad to love you, you have no idea! Because now it feels like I’m perpetually stuck in one place, watching the world move on when I can’t! Because you’re everywhere. Everything’s reminding me of you!”

“Apparently not Martin’s sheets.” he laughed, getting a hold of his glass and emptying it in one gulp.

“That’s not fair.”

“That’s not fair? Do you know what is not fair? Seeing the one girl I’ve ever loved telling me she kissed the guy who was supposedly not a threat to me! So don’t say you love me. You don’t. I’m not sure you even know what love is.”

“That’s rich coming from the guy who's getting girls after girls in his bed after our break up!”

She jumped when she saw him throwing the glass on the floor. Pure rage could be seen in his eyes and for the first time since a long time, she was scared of him.

“At least I’m true to myself. I can’t say the same about you. You’re a liar. And you don’t even lie to me, you lie to yourself. You’re a coward. And I still fell for you when all I got in return was a broken heart. But at least I can look at myself in the mirror in the morning and know who I am. You can’t say the same. So go away, be happy with fucking Martin. You both deserve each other. I’m out.”

When he finally closed the door behind her, Ethan fell on the floor right when Sofia came out of the bedroom. It was supposed to be an eventful evening, just a dinner to talk about her contract as his new mental coach. He didn’t plan for Julia to come and he knew she had jumped to conclusions. He should have taken the opportunity to introduce Sofia, to clear the air. But he didn’t owe her anything, especially not now that she had made her choice and that Martin had won.

“So, this is a famous Julia.” she said, sitting on the floor next to him.

“The one and only.”

“She has a new boyfriend from what I heard. It was hard to not listen, I have to admit. You were both pretty loud.”

“Yeah… I would have been okay with it if it hadn't been the guy I tried to kill.”

“Oh gosh… I think we have a lot to unpack there.” Sofia sighed.

“Yep. And you’re in for a ride, doc.”

Author's note: And now, I'm going to hide... What do you think will happen next? Let me know your theories, I love to read them.

Don't hesitate to leave a comment or an ask, as well as reblogging and leaving a like. Besides the fact that I absolutely love to read you, it helps a lot for the story to find its audience. I also have a taglist for this story, so if you want to be added so you never miss a chapter, let me know.

Taglist:

@herondalism @aundercover @musingsbyshreya @karmabyfernando @reengard @mycenterfold @smoooothoperator

#writing #fiction #charles leclerc #f1 fanfic #f1 fic #f1 x oc #charles leclerc fanfic #max verstappen fanfic #max verstappen

13 notes · View notes

missmoodring · 2 months

Text

Act 1 Chapter 2 Part 1.2

(Dialog in orange will represent characters speaking Selvadoradian instead of Simlish)

“And last night she woke up three times in her sleep so I woke up three times too! One time she asked me to get her the ice cream and she literally fell back asleep with the spoon hanging out her mouth.” Maverick couldn’t tell if Mateo was complaining or not. Admittedly, it was strange to see his once playboy brother married and an expecting father to twins!

Maverick imagined what their youngest brother, Malachi, would say if he was here instead of away at Britechester. Probably “That’s the life you signed up for,” or “I can’t believe they’re letting you become someone’s dad.”

Mauricio chuckled, revealing in the similarities of what he went through three different times with Eliana. “Do you know what you're having yet?” he questioned his eldest son.

“We do but she wants to keep it a secret and do a gender reveal.” Mateo shrugged. Mauricio did too and then turned to his second son.

“Anything new with you? You buy that ring yet?” Mauricio questioned. Maverick shook his head. Mauricio released a soft sigh. He was hoping that both his eldest sons would have settled down by now. Maverick and Bianca worked well together and Mauricio really liked Bianca. He always had.

He remembered when he first saw her in cadet training. Not only was she a phenomenal critical thinker, she was eager to learn and took no shit, so she advanced pretty quickly at the Oasis Springs Police Department. There was even a point in time where he thought that Bianca would surpass his own son, Mateo, and become the department chief just like he did before he retired.

Disappointed couldn’t even describe what Mauricio felt when he learned that Bianca had up and quit one random Tuesday afternoon. He even took it upon himself to pick up the phone and call her to see what was going on. He remembered her words perfectly, “I don’t think this is meant for me.” What a waste of talent.

“Dinner's ready!” He could hear his wife call out to the boys. The family gathered around the table and did their prayers. Bianca wasn’t quite sure what Mrs. Olivares had whipped up in the kitchen but she made sure to basked in all the aromas before digging in.

“First meal of the year together ,” Eliana prefaced. Mauricio knew it was time.

“I have a case for us. High profile, international, multi victim, good payout. I think-“

“How long is this case going to take?” Christine interrupted.

“I dunno. Maybe a few months. Maybe a year. Maybe two. I can't answer that."

“Well, count Téo out. I can’t even tie my own shoes, how will I be able to take care of two babies by myself? I need my husband home with me more than ever.” Christine said. Mauricio couldn’t help but to agree. He understood that it was time for his son to step up and be the father and husband he promised to be.

“Well, son,” Mauricio turned towards Maverick, “that leaves you and me.” Maverick nodded his head yes. This wasn’t an usual request. He usually helped his father in his ‘side gig’.

“And Bianca.”

Maverick furrowed his brows. Bianca? Bianca knew of the family business but never had she partook in their business dealings.

“Me?” She questioned.

“Yeah, now with Téo out, there’s an open spot on my team. You were always a great investigator and there’s going to be plenty of money going around. This seems like the perfect time to get you involved in the family business.” Mauricio reasoned.

Bianca was still jobless since she abruptly quit the force. Money was tight. Just to get by, she had taken on odd jobs and small loans from her mother. It would be nice to have a little change in her pocket. And this wasn’t real police work. From her understanding, she didn’t have to carry a weapon or chase anyone down. She wouldn’t mind just doing a bit of investigative work.

From the corner of his eye Maverick could see his girlfriend considering the offer. “I don’t think this is a great idea.” He finally said.

“Why not?” Mauricio challenged. The sound of crickets filled the air as the unspoken truth suffocated the family.

Even if Bianca had been shacking up with Maverick for years, was loved by his entire family, invited to each summer vacation, was nearly fluent in Selvadoradian, in the holiday photos, and was on the family cell phone plan, she was just girlfriend. Maybe one day in the future they would be married and popping out babies like Christine and Mateo, but today was not that day. Bianca was not an Olivares.

“I’ll do it.” Bianca smiled.

“Good girl.” Mauricio said. Bianca could hear the smile in his voice.

Olivares or not, Bianca was on the case.

Beginning \ Previous\ Next \ Directory

#ts4 #the sims 4 #s4 #s4 story #sims #the sims #sims of color #sts #sweeter than sin #mauricio olivares #eliana olivares #mateo olivares #bianca sweet #christine olivares #maverick olivares #HE MAD

5 notes · View notes

theoddcatlady · 5 months

Text

My sister came back from the dead

When I was young, there was a serial killer in my town.

For three summer straight, he killed people. Young, old, female, male, it didn’t matter to him. You just had to be alone long enough for him to snatch you up like some kinda boogeyman. Hell, it didn’t even have to be at night. Mrs. Gibbs ran out for groceries with her husband, he stepped back inside for a minute to grab something they forgot, and came back out to their baby crying in the car and a dropped bag of groceries next to the car.

They found her three days later, her ribs all cut open and splayed out so anyone and everyone could see her guts.

It was a nasty time, I’ll tell you that. I was only a kid. Like, maybe five when it started, eight when it all ended. I only found out the nastier details when I got curious and asked enough questions to people willing to answer. Not many people were, that was for sure.

Where I grew up was a pretty small town, so you’d think we’d find the murderer faster. But nah. Our neighbors couldn’t be killers. During the summer people did their damn best to never be alone. People who lived by themselves would move back in with their parents, friends would all group up. It’s hard never being alone though, ya know? There’s always moments when you just need to step out for a breather or you need some private time. And that’s when he got ya.

That last summer when the killer lurked was hot as hell. You’d be able to fry eggs on the sidewalk. I got a sunburn so bad I had to stay in bed for a whole day, the box fan blowing only slightly cooler air on my dried up face. There was at least two incidents when elderly people croaked from heat stroke. And of course that killer was back. Heatwave didn’t stop him from killing my sister.

I don’t remember Jill all that well. There was about a ten year age gap between us, so we were never close. My parents had her real young and she grew up to be stubborn. And like most teenagers, she felt untouchable. Immortal. That particular summer was bad, probably because she’d broke up with her boyfriend when he went off to college and met a fellow college gal.

So one night she blew off my parents when they told her to stay home and instead went to a party. Next morning is when they realized Jill never came home.

It took two weeks to find her. I made myself find out the details, you’ll figure out why later. She’d been fucked up real bad, he’d kept her alive as he cut her to pieces. First her fingers and toes, then her hands and feet, and up until she had no limbs. Then he cut up her face, cut out her tongue. And to wrap it all up her gutted her while she was still alive.

She suffered. But this time the killer made a mistake. Cuz someone saw him leave with Jill.

Frank Stokes. He was nearing his midthirties but spent most of his time with highschoolers or young adults. But mostly people thought he was harmless. Real quiet, real shrimp of a guy. But you know, there was a few rumors of his wild teenage years, how he stole his neighbor’s cats and dissected them. It was brushed off as youthful curiosity and charges were never pressed, probably because said neighbor died from a sudden stroke. Who knows, maybe it wasn’t a stroke, maybe Frank stuck some rat poison in her coffee. No one could answer that but Frank himself.

My town suffered far too long because of Frank though. My parents, my dad in particular, wasn’t gonna wait for the cops to fix this. So he gathered a mob and they went to go get Frank. Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, death for death.

They broke into Frank’s house and found a collection of human body parts. His souvenirs, I guess. People talked about how they found all sorts of fucked up stuff, I don’t know how much is true of course, since it all ranges from sacrificial altars to a taxidermied human being. They chased Frank out and into the nearby corn fields.

This is the part where it does get a little more fuzzy. Like it wasn’t fuzzy already. Retellings of the story vary, some people say they actually caught Frank and gave him what he deserved, beating him into the dirt as he cried and pleaded for mercy. Some other tales say they only cornered him. And another one says they actually started to hang him on the nearby oak tree before this next twist happened.

This is the one part of the story that does line up though. The part of the story where Frank said he could bring all his victims back.

Yeah, you’re not misreading that. While bawling his eyes out, Frank promised to return their loved ones to them if they only let him live.

Such a stupid idea. I mean, he killed a little under twenty people. And when you’re dead you’re dead. There’s no coming back from dead, especially when some have been dead for years by that point. I don’t know how he convinced them that yes, by tomorrow morning all of his victims would start coming back, but he did. My dad came back and got Jill’s room ready, the bickering between him and my mom actually woke me up.

I remember peering through my sister’s bedroom door and watching my dad make up Jill’s bed. But Jill was gone, my parents told me that Jill was dead. Jill was never coming home. But my dad even turned her radio on to her favorite station.

My mom ended up storming out, tears in her eyes. I think she was pissed dad didn’t end up killing Frank. I mean, I don’t blame her, if I’d really understood what was going on back then I would’ve been pissed too. That bastard took away my sister, and sure we weren’t close but she was still my sister.

Next morning though I was watching cartoons when I heard a knock at the door. Not really thinking as I was still waking up I stumbled to the door and opened it up.

There was Jill, wearing the same outfit she’d been buried in, standing out on the front steps. She smiled at me.

“Hey, idiot, mom and dad moved the hide a key. Thanks for letting me in.”

Numb, I just nodded and moved aside for her to walk in. She mouthed thank you as she tip toed inside. She sighed with relief as I shut the door. “God, it’s already getting hot. Mom? Dad? I’m home!”

My mom ran into the living room and promptly dropped into a faint. My dad ran in after her and fell to his knees, pale and shaking. I don’t think he really believed Frank was going to follow through with his promise. But Jill was here, back and perfectly fine. Or so it looked.

For the first days, everyone was just shocked to see the friends and family they’d buried come back to them. Even if they’d been dead for years and years, they came back looking as alive as you or me. They had no memories of actually dying, which is probably for the best considering how Frank made them suffer. But they did know they’d been dead.

It’s sad to say that Jill and I really only bonded after she came back from the dead. I guess dying shifted things back into perspective. She went from hell child to perfect angel. She did her chores, never broke her curfew, and spent time with me. We went to the park, the ice cream parlor, hell, we even had a day at the zoo. During all this time she kept telling me how much she loved me, how she was sorry she always pushed me away or treated me like an obnoxious lil shit before. She was just frustrated and took it out on her family.

We all took the miracle at face value. Don’t be mad about it, we were just so damn glad to have our family back. No one noticed how Frank just slipped out of town one night. People only realized he was gone after he didn’t show up for work three days in a row. But now he was someone else’s problem, people reasoned. All the people he’d murdered were back, so why even bother anymore, right?

But come on, I’m sure if you’re reading this you know that bringing people back is always a fucking mistake. When you’re dead, you’re dead, and that’s that. You don’t get a do over, at least, not in the body you started out in. I dunno about reincarnation and shit like that, but I do know that all those people coming back was a big fucking mistake.

It was just little things at first. Dead animals, roadkill turning up with no blood in it. Dry as a bone, those bodies. Then a funeral home was raided the night before Ms. McCarthy’s funeral, she’d been drunk dry too. Not only that, Mr. Quinn, the funeral director had been attacked. He’d lost so much blood that they thought he was a goner. But he managed to pull through, when he did he had the strangest story to tell.

He’d just been getting things finished up for the night when it happened. A small group of people barged on in, and before he could ask what they wanted the leader grabbed him and threw him to the ground. Most of the group ran to the casket, dragging Ms. McCarthy’s body out and started cutting her open with knives. They looked disappointed at the minimal amounts of blood as she’d been embalmed but all Quinn could do was watch as they sucked away at the wounds they made.

Then one of the leaders cut open Quinn’s wrist and screamed with triumph as they began to suck away at the wound. He tried to get away but more and more of them pinned him down and made cuts all over his body. They only left after they’d drunk their fill from him and Ms. McCarthy.

If there’d been no body there that night, I imagine Mr. Quinn wouldn’t have survived to tell the tale.

Jill wasn’t doing well though. Although she’d been strong and healthy at first, she’d gotten pale and started wasting away. She wasn’t sleeping at night, and when she did sleep, she woke up screaming. I think she remembered what happened to her. But she wouldn’t tell us if she did.

It all came to a head when someone heard screaming from the Gibbs residence. Course, 911 was called, and when the police got there the eldest daughter stumbled out, her shirt covered in blood and cradling her bleeding youngest sibling. She just pointed inside before she collapsed.

Inside was Mrs. Charity Gibbs, sucking on her dead husband’s neck while two of the other resurrected drank from other wounds on his body.

They managed to escape, after killing a cop and taking his body with them. I think they found it later in the ditch, drunk dry of blood and all shriveled up.

Lots of people died as the resurrected made their escape. All of them got out too, ran off into the woods and just disappeared. Turns out a couple of them actually had help from their living relatives and friends, bring them animals and people to drink from.

Every one of them left. Except Jill.

Jill called me to her room. My parents were out, don’t remember why. But I went into Jill’s room, probably one of the only times I did. She never liked me in her room.

She looked terrible. White as a sheet, her face all shrunken, she’d probably lost like twenty pounds in the matter of a few weeks. She took my hand in hers and squeezed as tightly as she could. “Can you stay with me?” She asked, her voice raspy and dry.

“Why?”

“Because I’m gonna die again. And this time, I don’t-” She coughed and spattered blood all over my face, “I don’t wanna do it alone. I know it’s selfish. It’s gonna be bad… and I could’ve… I could’ve stopped it, but I didn’t want to hurt anybody. Please stay. Please?”

I stayed. I sat at the foot of her bed and stayed. Her fingers gripped tighter and tighter until they went lax… and rolled onto the bedspread.

Her palms followed shortly after, plopping on down in my hand. I ended up dropping it and it rolled away on the floor. It took a bit longer for her arms to come off at the shoulder, each muscle and tendon snapping like a rubber until it hung on by a few shriveled threads. She cried as her head fell to rest on my lap, her tongue falling from her lap and onto my shoe.

She fell all to pieces in a matter of an hour.

My parents came home to find me on the bed, rearranging my sister’s body parts to look like she was just resting. I don’t remember that, but frankly I blocked it all out after she ended up dying for the second time. I was admitted into the hospital, I didn’t speak for weeks.

But I recovered, you know. I bet that bastard Frank would’ve loved to see the havoc he caused. No one thought about looking for him after they got their loved ones back, and after their loved ones turned on them we had our hands full. Gotta admit, a clever move on his part, to give him enough time to get out of our lives.

Frank’s gone. And he stayed gone. I just hope he isn’t causing problems somewhere else.

#my stories

8 notes · View notes