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#it’s gotten so much worse lately and it just makes me wanna throw up
sweetyyhippyy · 2 years
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Breaking Up. Eddie Munson x Fem! Reader. *ANGST*
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(Not my gif)
Summary: After a pretty nasty argument with her boyfriend, Eddie’s girlfriend decides to call it quits.
Word count: 1.3k
TW: Arguing with significant other. Cursing. Reader throwing something at Eddie. Breaking up. Eddie kinda being mean 🥺.
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She knew it had to happen.
She was over the arguing, crying about their stupid fucking arguements, hearing him raise his voice at her once he had enough of their back and forth bikering.
As much as she loved Eddie, their relationship was not healthy anymore.
She waited on her porch for Eddie’s van to pull up to her place, she had left a note on the front door of the trailer for him to come by and talk. Her leg bounced quickly, her stomach turning in knots at the thought of having the conversation with Eddie that was ultimately going to end their relationship.
The night before they had gotten into one of their worst fights they’ve gotten into in their 2 year relationship, and to make matters worse, they were truly arguing over nothing.
“Dude, where are my fucking keys?” Eddie grumbles at her, stomping into the living room, pushing some of the papers on the counter out of the way.
She sighs, rolling her eyes at him. “Do you think I know?” She drops her head dramatically to hit the headrest on the couch.
Eddie huffs loudly, shaking his head. “You’re the one who wanted to go out to dinner.”
“So since I wanted to go to dinner, that means I should know where your fucking keys are?”
“What’s what the fucking attitude?” Eddie spits, slamming his hand on the counter. “You always have something smart to say and I’m so sick of it.”
“I have an attitude because you started it! Come in here grumbling because you’re irresponsible and can’t find your stupid keys.”
Eddie shuts his eyes, taking a deep breath in. “Who hurt you so much in life that you’re such an asshole all the time?”
She laughs in anger, getting off the couch. “You wanna know? You did!”
“Me?! How have I hurt you? Please explain! I would really love to know!” Eddie's voice starts to get louder.
“You have been such an insufferable prick lately and honestly, my patience with you has been wearing real thin.”
“You don’t have to stick around here if I’ve been so insufferable! You are more than welcome to walk right out that door! Maybe we could both use some space.”
She stares at him, chewing on the inside of her cheek. “Yeah? You want me to leave? I walk out the door, Eddie, I’m not coming back!”
“Bye! Don’t let the door hit you on your way out.” He yells, waving his hands around in the air above his head.
She turns to grab her purse from the couch. Quickly, she grabs the tv remote and chucks the plastic at him, missing him due to her terrible aim. “So fucking sick of you.” She says through her teeth before trudging to the door and walking out, being sure to slam the front door closed, just to piss him off one more time.
She knew she was wrong to throw the remote at him, for yelling at him. But her feelings were still valid.
She hears the van before she can see it, her heart thumping out of her chest hearing the loud music play through the neighborhood.
The van comes to a screeching halt right on the curb in front of her house, the music stopping and Eddie hopping out.
She watches him walk up the walkway, his hands in his pockets.
“Hey.” Eddie says as he gets closer to her, sitting on the chair right next to her.
“Hi.” She responds, looking down at her hands. “I’m not going to lie, I didn’t think you were going to come.”
“Well I’m here, so… what did you want to talk about?” His tone was so dry and monotone.
“I think we kinda have to address what happened last night. It wasn’t okay.”
“The part where you said I was an insufferable prick? Or when you tried to throw the remote at my head?” He narrows his eyes at her as he speaks.
“All of it. None of this is okay, Eddie. I am so tired of fighting with you over stupid shit all the time.” Finally looking over at him.
He shrugs his shoulders. “Well what are we supposed to do?”
She could feel the knot in her stomach go up to her throat as tears filled her eyes. “I love you, Eddie. But I can’t keep doing this. I can’t… can’t keep arguing with you every single time we’re together. We never used to be like this, and now, the last few months we’ve been at each other’s throats. Aren’t you sick of it?”
Eddie could hear the hurt in her voice as she spoke, but he didn’t want to hear it. “So what? You wanna give up on us? Wanna be done?”
“What other option do we have, Eddie? Aren’t you sick of this too?”
“I am, but I’m not going to just run away because things are hard!” His voice echos.
“This is what I’m talking about! We’re arguing about breaking up! You want me to stay and fight for something I’m not happy with?”
“Oh, so I don’t make you happy?”
“Lately, no!” A few tears roll down her cheeks. “You came from a house where your parents constantly fought with each other. So did I. I never wanted that for myself, but here we both are following their footsteps. I can’t do this.”
Eddie gets up, pacing back and forth. “So, that’s it? We’re done?”
“Yes. Yes we’re done, Eddie… I’m sorry.” She chokes back a sob. “I do love you.”
“Don’t feed me that bull shit. If you loved me, you would sit here and want to work it out. But instead you want to run.”
She runs her hands through her hair, exasperated at the conversation. “I’m not running. I’m making the right choice for myself.”
“Whatever. You made your choice. I’m out of here.” He mutters, walking back down her driveway to the van.
“Eddie, come talk about this!” She calls out for him. “I don’t want things between us to end like this.”
“This was your decision! You have to live with it!” Eddie shouts as loud as he can back at her, turning on his heels to walk back toward her. “You say you love me and all that bull shit, but you’re not willing to work on it! Instead of telling me you’re not happy and fixing the problem, you’re being a pussy and running. Fucking pathetic.” He spits, annunciating the last 2 words.
It killed Eddie to be spewing harsh words at her, but part of him knew she was right in ending things. Maybe that’s why it was such a hard pill to swallow.  
They were standing right in front of each other, both of them knowing this would be it.
She reaches into her pocket and hands Eddie the necklace he had given to her in the shape of a heart with an “E” engraved in it.
Eddie looks at the silver charm, swiping his thumb across it. He could feel his own throat starting to get tighter as the knot grew in it. “Maybe the girl I use to replace you with can wear it. Thanks.” He spits, finally walking away.
That was fucked up.
She was frozen where she stood, not being able to wrap her brain around the words that just came out of his mouth. Hot tears started flowing down her cheeks as she watched Eddie climb back into his van, her chest rising and falling the more she started to sob.
Eddie looked back at her through the windshield, tears stinging his eyes. He couldn’t believe what he had said to her. That was by far the most hurtful thing he had ever spoken to her, and it made his stomach turn.
He finally turns the key to the van, quickly peeling down the street, letting his own tears fall from his eyes. Even if there was a chance of them getting back together before he said what he did, there was no chance of that happening now.
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kidrauhlschik · 4 months
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4. Tangled Memories - Lee Know AU
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Post Traumatic Amnesia (PTA) is a transient state of confusion, disorientation and memory loss that occurs immediately following a traumatic brain injury. PTA is sometimes also referred to as post traumatic confusional state and can occur from the moment of injury until the return of continuous memory.
The accident was a tragedy.
But it was the best tragedy to ever happen to you.
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Final Part - See pt 1, 2, & 3 on the Masterlist linked above
Warnings: angst, f!reader, enemies to lovers, drunk driving, gaslighting, Fighting, yelling, cursing, angst, heartbreak, lies, angst, accidents, not proofread, minho is mean, lmk if I missed anything!!
Words: 2.2k
-
You find the note the next morning and immediately crumple it up and throw it in the trash. Since when has Minho been so sentimental and needy?
You can understand that he's over whatever rivalry he two of you used to have, but you're not. Up until the day before, you thought Minho was good, perfect even, but opening your eyes and remembering all of the awful things he's made you deal with made things so much different.
For starters, you can't believe that you trusted him. He's just as manipulative and sneaky as he's always been. He took advantage of your vulnerable state and made you depend on him. He would have been okay with you dying that day and all of the sudden he's not.
Yet, he also coaxed you down from your panic attacks, he made sure to always available for when you needed him, he stayed with you around the clock when you were injured. Thing is, you wouldn't have gotten injured if it wasn't for him.
The back and forth is overwhelming so instead of pondering on the fact you go to check your phone, which probably made things even worse.
Chris: He told me. Im so sorry. Its all my fault.
Innie: Wanna talk? I heard what happened.
Seungmin: I can't believe you didn't tell us you were remembering stuff.
Hyunjin: I'm sorry for keeping you in the dark. We need to talk.
Lix: Hey wanna come over? I can make us brownies and we can talk things out.
Changbin: Are you okay?
Jisung: Minho is really sorry. I am too. We all are. Can we talk it out?
Chris: Please?
Not wanting to deal with everything right now, you shut your phone off and begin your day. It's time to clean up and enroll in classes again. You should probably catch up with your other friends as well, you'd been very distant because you were always hanging out with Minho. It's best to keep busy and avoid thinking about that snake.
Tragically, as snakes would have it, Minho manages to slither his way inside your thoughts on a regular basis for the next month. As much as you hate it, you couldn't help seeing him in everything. He was in your sheets, in your kitchen, next to you on the couch, in the park, in the flowers, and in the sunset. Everything reminded you of him, every version of him, the bad and the good, and you're not sure which one you prefer.
Classes were to start in a week, through your circumstances, the school was able to let you enroll late to your classes, but you were now a year behind. There's so much to catch up on, yet your brain allows something to distract you from your studies, and that something is always Minho. He hasn't made an effort to make contact with you, which reassures you that whatever he had going on was all made up in his head. Maybe it was all a moment of hysteria.
The hysteria felt awfully real to you though. You can't help but doubt yourself and ask if the sleezy, ignorant, cold Lee Minho actually felt something for you, or if you felt something for him. That's why it's better to keep busy rather than to sit and ponder.
Chris: Wanna come over? It'll just be me and Jisung :)
You had forgiven the guys awfully quickly for your predicament. You could see why they'd put Minho in that situation in a moment of anger, they didn't even know that you were remembering your past, and although you wished they would have stepped up more to impede the shit show that happened with Minho, you can tell that they're sorry. They're your best friends after all, but you were still keeping them at an arms distance for the time being. Except for Hyunjin. He always encouraged you to chase after Minho and you couldn't help but too feel betrayed at that. No one else pushed you into his arms but Hyunjin did, and who knows? Maybe if he hadn't, you could've remained civil with Minho instead of playing house.
When you walk inside of Chan's dorm, the smell of warm pizza welcomes you like a warm hug.
"Hey! How are you?" Jisung asks from the couch beside Chan.
"I'm good, thank you." You offer a small smile in return as you take off your coat to lay it on the nearest clean, flat surface.
The place is a mess, there a cups everywhere, the trash is overflowing, and the entire floor had become a laundry basket. "I don't keep you guys in check for a year and all of the sudden your place becomes a pigs den?" You laugh while sprawling yourself on Chris' couch, throwing your legs over Jisung.
"Hey! It wasn't us, it was -" Jisung gets cut off by Chan discretely pinching his leg under the blanket. The younger winces but remains silent.
"Yeah, Jisung's been a mess lately." Chris smiles apologetically.
"Haha. Yeah, sorry." Jisung adds.
You couldn't help but feel as if they were hiding something, but before you could question them, the front door swings open.
"Jisung. What the hell do you want? I was in the middle of practice." The second Minho spots you, he freezes like he did before. Loss for words, he just stares at you as if he'd seen a ghost. He wants to walk out and get as far away from you as he can, but he also wants to run up to you and hold you in his arms. He wants to apologize over and over again, he wants to beg for your love, but he knows better than to think that you'd accept him.
You immediately hop off the couch, quickly on guard, wishing that he wasn't standing in front of you. Seeing him in your memories was very different than seeing him in real life. He looked thinner, tired, and restless. The Minho you had been seeing for the past year looked happy and healthy. Now he was drowning in his hoodie, his hair was messy, and his expression read exhaustion. You couldn't help the worry that seeped its way into your brain.
"What are you doing here?" You ask.
"I live here." Still staring at you in shock, unfortunately, it seemed that he'd gotten even better at hiding his emotions.
"What about your place?"
"I got kicked out for not maintaining the place while I lived with you."
Was he implying that this was your fault?
"You never had to live with me in the first place." An argument. Something you were both so used to, now caused an ache in both of your chests. Your words catch at the base of your throat, and Minho doesn't even have the energy to argue.
Minho finally takes his eyes off of you, scanning the area, looking at the mess he'd made at his friends dorm. The past month had been hell for him. He kept on beating himself up anytime he had a second alone with his thoughts. The only good thing he had done since he left your place was joining the school's dance team, hoping that doing something he enjoyed could take his mind off of you. He was wrong. Every time he showed up to practice, he remembered that you were the only reason he was doing this, not giving up on his dream. He was undereating and overworking himself to the bone, which was not the healthiest coping mechanism but the other option was to rot away in the couch.
He nods and makes a move to turn away, leaving the dorm again.
"Don't walk away Lee Minho!" He pauses his steps but doesn't turn around.
"You wanted me to leave."
"It's not that easy! I don't know what I want okay? I'm in shambles. I want you to leave, but I want you to come back right after. I want you to cry but it hurts to see you in pain. I trust you but I hate you. Worst of all I love you, but I don't even know what's real anymore." You throw your arms up in desperation, not even realizing that Jisung and Chris had left the area long ago. "I just want to know what's real."
Minho finally turns to look at you with an expression that can best be read as indignation. Or was it desperation?
"You want to know what's real? The real thing is that I want to know every part of you, every scar, every bruise, I want to trace the map of you! All of you and every thing about you. My fingers a compass, and your freckles the constellations that I will chart in my heart. That way, when I close my eyes I'll have you in my stars forever, because guess what? You're already in everything else! You're in the sun, in the air, and in my reflection. I'm drowning in the memory of you and the worst part is that I can't even see you!" Minho walks towards you but you stay frozen in place.
"It's never been the way you looked, it was always the way you were. You were like me, both broken and angry. It wasn't until I saw you behind the walls and I was able to see you bare. I would have fallen in love with you with my eyes closed, but I never could because we never allowed each other the chance. You told me that you didn't want to be the shell of who you are, so why can't you let yourself be happy?" He's face to face with you know, a mere couple of feet apart. He was no longer loud, but more so calm. His plea turning into a confession.
"From the moment I saw you making a fool of yourself in that park, I knew that you were worth the broken heart. Finish breaking my heart, and you'll find yourself inside. I'm sorry, but I'll never find the right words for you. You are my everything, always, and even that is not enough."
"Minho stop." Somewhere in the middle of his speech, your eyes decided to betray you and tears were now freely streaming down your face.
"I'm glad I found you, the real you, because before you, I never knew what to wish for. Want me to be honest?" He laughs and runs his fingers through his hair. "I'm terrified of letting you in. I'm scared to see myself more clearly through your eyes, wondering if I'm good enough. I already lost you, but the truth is that not having you scares me more than all the other truths of love. So please, look at me in the eyes and tell me that I'm not being real right now."
He's mere inches away from you, searching for an answer on your face.
So many thoughts but no clear answer runs through your mind, you're just overwhelmed by his confession, the situation, his mere presence, is not letting you think clearly whatsoever. So you break eye contact and make a bee line for the door. While holding the door knob, you stop and say your last words.
"Sorry Minnie."
Minnie.
The one term of endearment that Minho allows to give him hope.
-
Of course on the first day of class you'd be running late. You hated being late and the stress of studying is weighing heavy on your shoulders. How could the morning be any worse?
Luck is a funny thing though. Just when you think things couldn't get worse, they always do.
You bump into someone that simply continues walking, making you drop all of your notecards and papers on the floor. You immediately bend down to begin collecting everything, but there is so much going on around you. People playing around, others trying to find a seat, and more reuniting with their friends after the summer. So much people, so many noises, this is why you're never late to anything. The stress begins to build even more, to the point where your hands begin to shake, needing to move faster in order for you to find your own seat.
His hand comes out of nowhere. Body shoving away the people that were stepping on your stuff, rushing to pick everything up to help you. He hands everything he collected in a neat pile and you cautiously take it. He then turns to the nearest desk on his left, grabbing two coffees and handing you one.
"Hey, I'm Lee Minho. Looks like we're in the same class. Wanna sit together?"
Starting from where you left off was messy, but maybe starting from the beginning wouldn't be so bad. It will take time, but it might be worth it. If everything was real, it will definitely be worth it and more.
"I'm Y/N. I'm down, but I have to warn you, I can be a bit mean at times."
He laughs and hovers a hand on your lower back to guide you to the two empty seats next to each other.
"I wouldn't change that for the world." He gives you a small smile that could also be a smirk. He had the audacity to be cocky?
Despite that, you can't help the little ray of sunshine that warms you from the inside.
“I hope you mean that Lee Minho.”
“I always mean what I say.”
-
A/N: okay, i am not in love with the ending but honestly if it was up to me, i would've ended it on the last chapter. I'm trying something new w happy endings. Thank you so much for reading!!
TAGLIST: @stanstraykidsskz @weareapackofstrays @linos-kitten @cassidymb121
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sirowsky · 2 years
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The Lost Island
Chapter 15 - Next Time
Summary: Domestic bliss is blown out the window when you and Marcus become aware that you've made a very big mistake, one that may come to have catastrophic consequences. And to further complicate things, the portal throws you a curve-ball.
Author's Note: It's ALIVE! I haven't forgotten my poor darlings, I've just been completely uninspired to write at all lately. But thankfully, that seems to have passed, as evident by the word count on this. If you're still with me, my loves, you have my humble thanks, sincerest apologies, and undying love <3
Rating: Mature 18+ONLY Warnings: Cursing, deadly spores, long conversations, mild angst. Word Count: 7718 Masterlist (this story) Author’s Masterlist
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   The coffee smelled different somehow.    Maybe it was just that you’d been away from it while being exposed to a lot of new flavours and tastes, but it annoyed you.    Marcus used a different brand than you, the same type that was in the coffee-machines at work, and it was a better brand, much tastier than the cheap stuff you kept at home for your pre-work morning hit. So, it shouldn’t be unfamiliar to you.    And yet, it seemed off.
   “Do you smell that?”
   “What?”
   “The coffee, it smells wrong.”
   You were standing in front of the machine, impatiently waiting for your first cup in way too long, with your arms crossed and fingers tapping your own elbow, as Marcus walked into the kitchen behind you.
   “Hm… maybe there’s something wrong with the beans.”
   “Damnit… I need my morning coffee! Do you know how badly I’m craving right now? It’s been ages, and I was so looking forward to getting a normal start to the day, this is torture…”
   He smiled at you while he poured some cereal into a bowl and leaned against the counter opposite you, before adding some milk.
   “I had no idea you’re a coffee-monster.”
   “That’s because I always have a big mug before arriving at work.”
   “I’m learning so much. I’m sure the brew is fine, it’s probably just our senses that are a bit screwy. We have been time-travelling, after all.”
   “That doesn’t make it any less disappointing. It’s the smell and the rich flavour that I love, the caffeine hit is just a bonus.”
   The machine beeped to signal that it was ready, and you poured a small amount into your mug, but it smelled even worse up close.
   “Fuck. I can’t drink this. Smell it…”
   You held the mug out and he leaned forwards to sniff it, and then immediately pulled away.
   “Eew… Yeah, there’s definitely something wrong with that.”
   Your disgruntled growl was interrupted when the front door opened, and Anita and Missy walked in, Missy with a bounce to her step and a glint in her eye, as she made her way to the kitchen table and leaned against the back of a chair.
   “Morning, you two. Sleep well?”
   Marcus rolled his eyes at her, while he stepped around the island to pull her into a hug.
   “Yes, we did. Believe it or not, battling aliens and sleeping on beds made of wood and leaves doesn’t really spell relaxation. This was the best sleep I’ve had in a long time. And good morning to you too. I still really miss you.”
   It was a Saturday, so she didn’t have school, but she’d still gotten up before 7am to be able to see him before the two of you would get engulfed by the bureaucracy, and possibly not be allowed to leave HQ for a few days.    So, she’d clearly missed him too, and it made you feel slightly guilty. Because even if she’d chosen to sleep at Anita’s last night, if you hadn’t been there, she would’ve stayed.    You were about to apologise to her for stealing her father’s attention and time, when you heard Anita pour a cup of coffee from the machine, which made your focus shift to her.
   “You might not wanna drink that.”
   She cocked an eyebrow at you, as though you’d said something highly inappropriate, and you crinkled your nose as the smell once again wafted at you.
   “If you can’t smell that then your nose has to be broken.”
   “What? It smells like coffee.”
   She sipped the drink and looked only appreciative of the flavour, and you stared at her with utter confusion.    And then your eyes drifted to meet Marcus’ and he mirrored your own expressions as they changed from perplexed to worried, and then said exactly what you’d been about to say.
   “So, it is our senses that are off track then. That’s not unsettling at all.”
   “You know, as much as I don’t wanna go to HQ right now, I think we might really need to get ourselves properly looked over.”
   That made Missy concerned.
   “What do you mean, is something wrong with you two?”
   “We don’t know, sweetheart. But we’ve been through a lot lately, and we don’t know what it might’ve done to us. Even my powers have changed, so everything is possible at this point.”
   “I heard about that. I didn’t think that could happen.”
   Anita chipped in at that point.
   “It’s never happened before, but that doesn’t mean it can’t happen. Now, get going you two, the sooner they get their hands on you, the sooner you get to come home again.”
   Missy really was a trooper, giving no indication at all that she was sad to see her father leave again so soon. But you lingered in the doorway after Marcus had stepped outside, and saw her perfect mask fall, ever so slightly.
   “Hey, I promise that I’ll always protect him. You can believe that, right?”
   That earned you a small but genuine smile, and she nodded at you before you left.    When you got to the car, you climbed in and put your seatbelt on, but Marcus didn’t drive off.    He sat there, staring at the house, and suddenly there were tears in his eyes.
   “What is it?”
   He drew a jagged breath and lifted one hand to rub his forehead, before it drifted down to his eyes, clearly wiping tears away before they could fall.
   “I don’t wanna leave her again. She’s so strong, but she shouldn’t have to be. I don’t wanna put her through any more crap, I just wanna go in there and hug her and never let her go.”
   He hunched over, crying in earnest now, and you leaned over to pull him into your arms, a little glad to know that he felt safe enough with you to let you see him fall apart.  
   “I don’t know the pain and fear that you’ve been living with since this shit started, since I’m not a parent, but I’ve seen what it’s done to you. I know you well enough to know that you’ve suffered more than I can imagine.    I just made a promise to Missy to always protect you, and I will. I won’t let anything tear you two apart, ever again. I’ll break time itself to keep you together if I have to.”
   You meant every word. Because as much as it would hurt him to lose you, he would not survive losing his daughter, so you’d do anything you had to, to keep that from happening, even if it killed you.    He righted himself again, putting his face just inches from yours in the small space, and his eyes were dark and fearful.
   “Don’t say that. Don’t-…”
   He closed his eyes and let his head fall a little bit forward, shaking it for a moment, before pulling back up to look at you, now with pure determination in his gaze.
   “You’re not allowed to put yourself in the line of fire for me. You don’t get to die on me. Do you understand that?”
   You did, but you also knew that you were prepared to, and that if it came down to it, you would choose to save him or Missy before yourself.    Beyond the fact that it was still your job, that was just the person you were. You’d spent a long time convincing yourself that everyone else were more important than you, and you still believed that to be true, most especially where it concerned the two of them.    But you also knew that he could never accept that.
   “Yeah, okay.”
   He could see that you were appeasing him with that answer, but he chose not to press the issue right then. It was more of a ‘let’s cross that bridge when we come to it’ sort of problem anyway, since there was no way to know or prepare for any future dangers.    He pulled away and cleaned his face off on his hands before starting the car and driving off.
   No one at HQ knew that you were back yet, so when you walked in through the main entrance, all activity sort of ground to a halt.    You’d expected security to at least approach, but the guards actually backed away from you both as you continued into the building, no doubt a result of whatever showdown had taken place between Marcus and the Heroics.    He led you straight to Research & Development, where they could scan you for any abnormalities, and his powers could be properly assessed, knowing that the department head, Ricky, would contact Ms. Granada the moment you both walked in.
   “Well. I’d say welcome back, but to be perfectly honest, I’m not so sure I’m all that happy to see you two again. You left a truly epic mess behind; do you realize that?”
   By then you’d both been strapped up to chairs that doubled as scanning devices, examining you down to a molecular level, which thankfully wasn’t painful, but meant you couldn’t move anything but your eyes.    It was your first time in the chair, and you were highly uncomfortable with it, but Marcus had been scanned dozens of times before, ever since he was a young boy, which was probably why he sounded so calm when he responded.
   “Yeah, I figured. What’s going on with the Intergalactic Council?”
   “As you might’ve guessed, they’re not pleased. They’re holding me responsible for being unable to find you, Marcus. Where the hell have you been?”
   “Believe it or not… as best we can tell, we haven’t been anywhere.”
   She looked from him to you, clearly not happy with his answer.
   “One of you had better give me a straight answer, or I’m gonna get cephalopodic on you.”
   You were getting more unsettled every passing second, by the inability to move, so you took the opportunity to speak, hoping it would distract you.
   “For us, freeing the Ozsha happened yesterday. We have no idea where we’ve been for the past three months, but we think it has to do with a portal.”
   Together, you and Marcus did your best to explain everything you thought you’d figured out, about the island and the portal, and Ms. Granada listened carefully.    But just as she was about to launch into her questioning, Ricky interrupted her.
   “Excuse me, Miss, but I’m afraid you have to leave the room immediately.”
   “What the hell for?”
   “The system has detected a spatial anomaly around them both. It could be temporal or dimensional or both, but until we understand more about it, they’ll have to be completely isolated.”
   She had no choice but to step out and let the staff seal the room, after which the chairs mercifully released you, allowing you to get up and move around, which felt unreasonably freeing considering the fact that you were still trapped.    Also, when the room was sealed, you couldn’t hear anything that was being said on the other side of the observation glass, which covered the entire north wall of the space, but you knew that they could hear everything you said.
   “What do you think, cariño?”
   “I think that I’d like to see the data from those scans. A spatial anomaly could mean that we might be carrying the portal with us somehow, or that it’s done something to us that’s placed us outside of normal space.”
   “I can’t even tell you how much I dislike every single word of those sentences.”
   “Me too. I really don’t like being on this side of the glass. How do you ever get used to being examined like some science project?”
   “You don’t really. You just stop being afraid of it once you learn that it doesn’t hurt you. And for me, it was useful when I was younger and didn’t understand my powers. It helped me learn to control them.    If the science had been able to tell me that they weren’t my real powers, I might not have struggled so badly with them. It still baffles me that they never picked up on the fact that there was all this power supressed inside me, all this time.”
   “It does seem unlikely, given that these machines can discern individual molecules inside of us. Do you think someone got it wrong?”
   “I don’t know. There’s still so much we don’t understand about the super-gene. Maybe it wasn’t detectible because the energy hadn’t been activated yet, or maybe the island really did change me.    We don’t know enough yet to say anything for certain.”
   “Yeah, I guess so.”
   There was a crackle as the speaker in the room was turned on, and then Ricky’s voice sounded around you, making you turn to look at him through the glass.
   “Sorry guys, but I’m afraid I don’t have much to give you yet. Thus far we’ve only been able to determine that the anomaly is somehow holding you inside this space, even though you’re technically not here.”
   Marcus knew Ricky well, so you left it to him to carry the conversation.
   “What the hell does that mean?”
   “Um… think of it like you’re wrapped in an invisible bubble. Inside the bubble, where you are, is one dimension, and outside is another, parallel one. Connected but slightly out of sync with one another.    We don’t know exactly how that’s possible because we can’t find any manipulating factors in, on, or around you, that might be capable of something like that. But we’re working on it.    I can tell you that none of the Hawaiians exhibited the same displacement, though, which does actually help us when it comes to excluding possible causes.”
   With everything that had happened, you’d completely forgotten about Nani and the others, and you exchanged a look with Marcus, seeing the same guilt in his eyes as you felt in your own, at the realization that they’d slipped your minds.    You knew that the two of them had been arguing the last time they were together, but they’d been trying to negotiate with their opponents in a war that they each had their own perspectives of. A war that was now over.    Marcus had been severely upset with Nani because of her decisions after the massacre of the tribe, and you weren’t sure if he still considered her a friend, but you knew that he was much too good a person not to care what happened to her.    Each of your relationships with her were complicated, for various reasons, but to you she was still a good friend. You harboured no ill will towards her for sending you away, because you’d felt the conflict inside of her soul as she’d shut you out, so you knew that her anger hadn’t been true.
   “Are they okay? We haven’t heard anything about them.”
   Ricky met your eyes at your question, with a small wrinkle of confusion between his brows, until he seemed to remember something.
   “Oh, right! Sorry, I keep getting the temporal displacements mixed up. I mean, as if everything about you two isn’t confusing enough…    Yes, the Hawaiians are all in excellent health, they don’t seem adversely affected by their time on the island, and as far as I know, they all went back to their homeland. Looking for relatives, I think.”
   “Good. I’m glad to hear that.”
   “Uh, the woman… Nani, she asked about you guys every day while she was here. She seemed sad, or maybe… regretful.”
   “A lot happened on that island. Not all of it was… amicable.”
   “Yes. Not to change the subject, but it occurs to me that you experienced six weeks there, in the space of just 24 hours to the rest of the world, which would seem to have significance to your current circumstances as well.”
   Marcus picked up the conversation again at that.
   “You think that has to do with other dimensions too? Our guess was that the portal was responsible for separating the island to a different time. Do you think that’s possible?”
   “With what little I have to go on, I wouldn’t feel comfortable drawing any conclusions without examining the portal itself. But from a purely speculative standpoint, I do believe it’s possible, yes.”
   “But it must be what’s causing all this, don’t you think?    I mean… It’s not me, right?”
   Ricky quickly picked up on Marcus’ obvious fear of being wrong in that particular question, and offered a reassuring smile.
   “I don’t think you’re capable of bending spacetime, Moreno. You’re clearly a lot more powerful than we ever imagined, but your abilities are still grounded in this reality. That much I’m confident to say.”
   “Thanks doc.”
   “Hang in there, both of you. We’ll figure this out.”
   You were just about to thank him, when your view was suddenly obscured by a wall of black liquid, and before you could do or say anything, it had engulfed you.
   The next thing you knew, you were looking out on a barren and colourless landscape, stretching as far as you could see in every direction, although you were relieved to see Marcus right there next to you.    You were standing in the bottom of a shallow valley, surrounded by rising and falling terrain, but all of it brown or grey, either rock or dirt, not so much as a single blade of grass or drop of water was anywhere to be seen.
   “Fuck! Would you give us a goddamn break already!”
   The portal was nowhere to be seen, so you were basically screaming at nothing, but with the morning you’d had, it felt a tiny bit better to voice your frustration, even if it was entirely pointless.
   “Pita.”
   “What?!”
   You sounded harsher than you’d meant to, but the irritation was far away from burning itself out any time soon.    At least he knew you well enough now to know that he wasn’t the reason for your agitation and didn’t take it personally.
   “Take a closer look at the landscape.”
   You did, but you still couldn’t see anything of interest, so you just raised your eyebrows at him in a silent request for him to explain.
   “I’ve done a lot of travelling all over the world in my time with the Heroics, and I don’t recognize any part of this skyline.    Add that to the strange taste of the air, and I don’t think we’re on Earth anymore.”
   “Well, of course not. Why would we be? The damned thing can take us anywhere in the universe, presumably at any point in time, so why should we assume that it just jumped us to the other side of the planet?”
   “Okay, will you please calm down…”
   “No.”
   Your tone made it clear that he should stop talking now, which he did, and then you immediately felt bad for snapping at him.
   “You know, after everything it did for us, I had come to fully trust that goo, but now I’m really starting to dislike it. I thought it was fascinating at first, and I’m obviously grateful that it helped us, but not if we have to pay for it by giving up our lives.    Why aren’t you upset about this? You’d just gotten back to Missy, and now we have no idea when we might get to go home again. Doesn’t that piss you off, even a little bit?”
   “I’m not as calm as it might seem, I’m just clinging to the idea that anger rarely helps anything. But I am surprised that you’re losing your temper, you’re usually much more rational under pressure.”
   “Yeah, well, I’ve run out of rational.    I was just beginning to think that maybe things would be good. That we’d sort out the whole mess with the Ozsha and then we’d start our new lives together. I wanted that. I want all of that, more than anything.    Fuck rational, I’m fucking furious!”
   He just smiled at your little rant, and you knew why, but you were much too upset to be infected by his mirth.
   “Just tell me that we’ll be okay, Mo. I need to hear those words.”
   He took you in his arms and held you close for a minute, gently swaying from side to side while he calmly reassured you that you’d get your happily ever after, no matter who or what tried to stop you.    You wanted to believe him, but the hardened Chief of Security inside of you, who knew that the best outcome one could usually hope for, was just that no one died, was telling you not to get your hopes up.    He stopped coddling you when you sighed and pulled back.
   “Well, I suddenly know where we need to go, so how about we get this shit moving, or preferably over with.”
   He nodded and took your hand, letting you lead the way.    You followed the valley until it led up a narrow slope between two bigger hills, not realizing until you reached the top, that you’d been dropped on a plateau, quite a lot higher up than the surrounding landscape.    This meant that you got a terrific view of the planet, and it didn’t take you long to work out why it felt familiar to you.
   “Marcus… is this Eqlo’e?”
   The portal couldn’t have placed you anywhere that you’d been on your previous visit, but so much of the landscape looked like how you remembered it. Maybe just from a different angle, and devoid of all the green vegetation.    You looked up at the sky, searching for the four moons that would confirm it, but all you found was a bright sun, on its way down, but still pretty high up.
   “Oh, god, you’re right… look over there.”
   He pointed to a spot on your left, far away but still easily discernible just because of the sheer size of it.    The matriarch tree. It was as dead as the rest of the planet, but the shell of it was still standing, its trunk and bark probably as tough as stone after so many millennia of life. Its giant branches still reaching towards the sky, stubbornly refusing to be broken, even in death.    From your perspective, it was only a few days since you’d stood there, marvelling at its pedigree and superiority, alive and flourishing among the rest of the flora.
   “I know there was a significant time-difference here but… this place was ancient. Hardened. It wouldn’t just have died out like this; planets don’t do that.”
   “Something terrible must’ve happened.”
   “That must be why it brought us back. But why not bring us here sooner? I mean, drop us in a time that would’ve actually allowed us to know what happened.”
   “Think about it, Pita. Whatever happened here, it was deadly enough to kill all life on a very big planet. If we’d been here then, we would’ve died too.”
   “Like the Ozsha.”
   His eyes met yours and you saw something like defeat in him.    He’d fought for them to get to go home, helped them even after he had nothing to gain from it anymore, only to learn that they’d still been wiped out.
   “Poor bastards. They never really had a chance, did they…”
   He didn’t say it as a question, more like an accusation, perhaps aimed at the universe itself, and you could only agree with him.    As much as they’d hurt you both, and the tribe, and so many other people, you just didn’t feel justified to condemn them for it after learning what they’d been through.    No one could say how they’d react or what they might be willing and capable of doing, to survive when all odds turned against them. They’d done what they had to in their efforts to survive, both here on their home-world, and on Earth, and you couldn’t help but feel bad that they hadn’t been allowed to live on after everything they’d suffered.
   “Come on. I’m feeling drawn towards those cliffs over there. Maybe we’ll find something.”
   You had never really questioned your oddly accurate intuitions, but now that you knew how they came from your soul connecting with other energies, you had a new-found faith in them.    A trust in yourself and your capabilities that you hadn’t known before.    You remembered the day of the massacre, when you’d told Nani about your work and how you’d kept feeling the need to prove yourself, how you’d felt like you were never good enough and that something was missing.    That unease was all gone now. Be it because of your better understanding of yourself, or your partnership with Marcus giving you some affirmation you’d been lacking, you couldn’t say.    All you knew was that for the first time since your sixteenth birthday, you felt intact. Like all the different parts of you had been sitting out of alignment with each other, but were now back in their respective slots.    Which was ironic, now that your physical being was apparently literally out of alignment with the damned fabric of space.    Thinking about it also made you remember that that had been your last real conversation with Nani. It seemed so long ago, and yet so close, somehow.
   You reached the cliffs you’d seen from the ridge, and something pulled you closer to the largest of them, but there were no obvious signs that there might be something significant to it, so you circled it, trying to get a sense of what the next step might be.
   “Are you seeing something I’m not, cariño? Because all I see is a rock…”
   “It’s weird, I’m definitely being drawn to this specific cliff, but I’m not sensing any indication as to wh-…”
   There was no warning before the entire cliff suddenly dropped through the ground, taking a large chunk of all the surrounding earth with it, including the section that you were standing on.    The sensation of freefalling was sadly not unfamiliar to you, but this time it was at least brief, as Marcus reacted with lightning-fast reflexes, sending his shield after you the moment you dropped.    He lifted you to safety and set you down right next to himself, before both of you stepped away from the freshly created chasm in the mountainside.
   “Are you alright, Pita?”
   “Yeah. Thanks to your quick reflexes.”
   “I told you: you don’t get to die on me.”
   You didn’t answer that, because you still fully intended to keep your promise to Missy, no matter what, and you clearly saw his displeasure at your silent contradiction, before you changed the subject.
   “I guess we know why I couldn’t tell what we needed to do next. The cliff was in the way.”
   “So, we have to get down there?”
   “Looks like it. Can you lower me down?”
   “I can lower both of us down, but I’d prefer it if we had some clue of what we’re dropping into.”
   “Sorry, I’ve got nothing. All I know is that that cavern has our answers.”
   “You’re sure?”
   “Completely.”
   “Fuck. Okay, but I’m going first.”
   “My hero.”
   He shot you a tetchy expression but apparently decided not to push it further. Instead, he used his shield to examine the seemingly solid ground around the opening, to make sure it would hold up as a brace for his threads when he lowered himself.    Once he was satisfied that it was safe, he snaked one thread around his own waist, and one around yours, letting a dozen others settle with even intervals around the opening.    Then he lifted himself up and carefully lowered into the hole.    You got slightly worried when you lost sight of him, but just a few seconds later, he lifted you as well. It was somewhat unsettling, being moved through the air by nearly invisible threads that didn’t look strong enough to hold more than a spider up, but you trusted Marcus not to drop you this time.    It took a while for your eyes to adjust to the sudden darkness, so at first all you saw was just a part of the wall that the sunlight managed to reach.    But by the time you were safely on the ground, some fifty feet deep into the mountain, you could see the reason you’d been drawn here, and you couldn’t hold back the gasp that escaped you.    Because all around the sides of the open space, leaned against the walls, huddled in groups or almost piled on top of each other, up here, miles from where any body of water had ever been, were hundreds of Ozsha skeletons.    Marcus’ superior senses had allowed him to see them even before he landed, and he was already crouched next to what had to be an Ixo, as you joined him.
   “Honey… This makes no sense.”
   “Agreed. What in god’s name could’ve driven them all so far from the oceans?”
   “You said that you knew the answers would be here. Are you getting anything new?”
   “No but, look at the walls. I think they tried to tell us.”
   All over the cave walls, they’d drawn things with their fingers, but they didn’t seem to have had access to any sort of colourants, like certain spices or berries or seeds could be used to give mud or sand a different colour.    There had to have been water present, though, or they never would’ve survived even the journey to get here, so the drawings were probably just made with wet soil, which was also probably why many of them were barely even visible anymore.    You circled the cave, careful not to step on any of the bones, while Marcus gingerly moved some of them out of your way, trying to follow the story as best you could make it out.
   “If I’m interpreting this correctly, I think something made them turn on each other.”
   “What, like a civil war?”
   “No, like some-thing.”
   “Why do I absolutely hate the sound of that?”
   “This section seems to have something to do with where it came from, but so much of it is gone, I can’t make it out.    Something got inside of them and apparently made them evil. The only way to stop it was to kill the infected, but then it looks like their bodies somehow corrupted the soil as they decayed, infecting even plant-life.    Eventually, these guys were all that was left, so I assume they came here to hide, maybe try and ride it out.”
   “They don’t look like they died fighting each other. Some of them are embracing.”
   “No, I think they might’ve been immune to whatever this thing was. More likely, they died when the water ran dry, or when so much vegetation had died that they couldn’t feed anymore.”
   “What a terrible way to go… Just sitting here, locked away and helpless, waiting to die.”
   You chewed your bottom lip while you tried to follow a specific thought, and as always, Marcus knew that something was bothering you.
   “Wanna tell me where your head’s at?”
   “I just… don’t get it. What does this have to do with us? Why bring us here, why show us this? What are we supposed to do here?”
   “Hmm. All good questions. You’re not getting any more spidey-senses?”
   “Nothing. And I don’t see any reason to stay here either, without more advanced equipment, there’s not much more we can learn from this place.”
   You’d hoped that the portal would reappear once you’d seen whatever it was it wanted you to see, but it still didn’t show, so either it was busy messing with other people’s lives, or you hadn’t figured out what it actually wanted yet.
   “I think we should go. If we’re stuck here anyway, I’d like to take a closer look at that tree.”
   “Yeah, okay.”
   Once again, he summoned his shield, and lifted you both out of the cave the same way you’d entered.    The tree was quite a walk away, but you didn’t really mind that. Well, not as much as you minded being stranded on a dead alien planet, at least.
   “Hey, remember the last time we were here, and I was freaking out about the portal, afraid that if it moved or left without us, we’d have no hope of getting home.    And now here we are, in that very scenario, yet somehow I’m less frightened now than I was back then.”
   You had to chuckle at that, and he followed suit.    Hearing his laugh brought back the night before, and the giggle-fit you’d shared over the papercuts and microwaves, and the memory made you smile in earnest.    You slipped your left arm around his right one and leaned slightly into his side as you walked, and you felt him adjust to you as naturally as if you’d been doing that kind of stuff for years.    It was incredibly comforting, even though you weren’t really in need of comfort, you just wanted to touch him.
   “We don’t really have a choice but to trust the portal, do we? It’s never harmed us before, and I really don’t think it means to this time either, I just wish it could talk to us. Spare us all these travel miles.”
   “Yeah, I know the feeling.”
   “To be honest, and feel free to tell me if I’m overstepping here, but I already miss your house.”
   He didn’t stop walking or let go of you, but he slowed and turned his upper body towards you so you could see the happy disbelief in his eyes.
   “On the contrary, sweetheart, please do tell me more.”
   You gave him a little nudge to his side, making him smile wider, and while the gesture was playful in nature, you were genuinely relieved that he’d reacted with joy, which confused you.    It wasn’t like he’d given you any reason to doubt that he was anything but happy that you wanted to be with him, but even so, it seemed that a tiny sliver of doubt was still there.
   “It just feels like… a real home, you know. The kind I’d forgotten all about. I might just have gotten a tiny taste of it, and yes, I did almost have a full meltdown because of how overwhelming it was, but I also really loved it.”
   “Oh, Pita… If only there was some way that I could make you understand just how much I want to hear exactly these things from you. I want you to feel at home, with me and Missy and mom, and the house and the neighbourhood and all of it.    You kinda can’t overstep with me.”
   “I know that; I really do. But I guess I also can’t quite believe it yet.”
   “Do you believe that I love you?”
   That one you didn’t even have to think about.
   “Yes. It’s not that I doubt you, I think it’s more about myself and what I bring to the table, which is mostly just crap. I guess I just wish that I had more to offer.”
   “Like what? You’ve already given us your heart, what else do you imagine we might want from you?”
   He made it sound so simple, successfully making you feel silly about having doubts at all, which you suspected was exactly what he was trying to do.    But your near meltdown was hard to forget, and that was undeniable proof that your fears still had some power over you.
   “You know what I mean, Mo. I’m still terrified that I have the capacity to ruin anything good that happens to me.”
   “I do know that, but that’s also precisely why I’m highlighting the basics here. Because at the end of the day, family is about love, not blood or even legacy.    Yours betrayed you, but that doesn’t mean that betrayal runs in your blood, it just means you had shitty parents.    All this crap that you carry, is nothing but dead weight, so let it go. Allow yourself to start fresh, trust that you’ll learn as you go, and I promise you that this family will be only richer for it.”
   Damn. Where did he find all those perfect words?    You couldn’t find a single one to answer him with in that moment, so you just tightened your grip on his arm and tried to keep your heart from crawling up through your mouth and spilling out at your feet.    But then you suddenly had an all together different struggle on your hands, when your soul encountered something alive, and very strong, in the ground underneath you.
   “Whoa…”
   You ground to a halt, letting go of Marcus just in case whatever it was had something to do with the infection that had killed the planet.
   “What is it, cariño?”
   “I don’t know… but something’s got a hold of me, and it’s really strong…”
   You were already panting with the effort of just keeping yourself upright, as the thing seemed to want to drag you down into the earth.    The longer you were connected to it, the more of it became known to you, and you were shocked to realize that the thing was huge. It had to cover practically all the landmass you could see ahead of you.    And as you lifted your gaze, trying to follow what you were feeling, your eyes registered that the sky looked wrong. There was no horizon, and the air looked as though vertical clouds were obscuring your view.    But then you looked to your right, searching for the sun, and the full scope of what you were actually seeing hit you.    The matriarch tree, so vast that being this close to it made it appear like a wall ahead of you, filling your entire field of vision, even though you were still at least three miles away from it.    The veins in its giant, pale body were responsible for creating the illusion of the vertical clouds that tricked your eyes, and even though that illusion was now gone, you still struggled to take in what you were seeing.
   “Oh, god… Marcus, look… the tree…”
   You heard his sharp intake of breath as the realization hit him too.
   “Is that what you’re feeling? It’s still alive?”
   You nodded, just as the tree pulled you down to your knees, and then your hands too.
   “Help… me… hear… it…”
   You were spitting the words through gritted teeth now, so focused on not letting your soul get dragged down into those roots, that you hadn’t even noticed Marcus kneeling next to you and wrapping his arms around you to try and hold you up.    But you felt his shield when it encircled you, and you felt him flinch when he could suddenly feel the enormity of the energy that you’d unwittingly connected to.
   “Fucking hell…”
   Just like when he’d helped you to connect to the energy in the mountains, enabling you to see their memories, he now facilitated the communication between you and the tree, acting as a steady conduit that allowed the energies to flow both ways.    In short, he gave your soul the boost it needed in order to be heard next to something with a voice that was many thousands of times louder than yours.    And it worked. The moment that the tree became aware that you were a benign lifeform and not a threat, it stopped trying to swallow you.    Marcus felt your body relax as the relentless pull released you, and you both took a few calming breaths.
   “Are you okay?”
   “Yeah… jesus… that is one big-ass tree.”
   “Can you hear it?”
   “It’s unbelievably loud, but I think I can make some of it out.”
   “I’ll do what I can to dampen it for you.”
   “Thanks.”
   With his help, you were able to ask the matriarch to tell you about the infection, and you did your best to follow the imagery that it showed you, but it wasn’t like watching a tv-show.    The tree’s memories seemed to exist in order of which root or branch had experienced that particular event the clearest, and there didn’t seem to be any linear collaboration in between each vein and artery of the system.    Meaning that you were basically being shown what appeared to be hundreds of years of the planet’s life, all at once, from thousands of different perspectives, even though they were all from the same tree.    It took maybe half an hour of hopelessly attempting to navigate this incomprehensible chaos, until you’d pieced together enough to get an idea of what had happened.    And then you froze.
   “Pita? What is it? What are you seeing?”
   You didn’t wanna believe that it could be true, but it also made enough sense that you could find no reason to deny it.
   “We did this, Marcus.”
   “What are you talking about?”
   “The island, the Ozsha, we sent them back without realizing that their time on Earth had changed their physiology.    The moment that the Ixo slipped into the ocean, the spores from the island, corrupted by human blood, began to spread and infect the flora here.    Over decades, and later centuries, those spores continued to evolve until they became the dominant lifeform on the planet, capable of infecting anything living, either through the soil, or by direct contact.”
   “But I thought that the island existed in symbiosis with both the Ozsha and the planet. Why would its spores suddenly kill off everything that they needed to stay alive?”
   “Because they aren’t sentient. They only know their function, which is to reproduce, and they’ve always done that by being ingested and then secreted by other living things. The Ozsha absorbed them through their skin, drew the nutrients from them, and expelled the residual waste, I assume by some method similar to our perspiration.    That waste would then attract some form of bacteria and become something like a fertilizer for new plants to grow and produce new spores.”
   “You’re doing that thing again, when you just know stuff, aren’t you? Because to my knowledge, you’re no microbiologist, and I doubt you sussed all this out from a tree’s memory.”
   “Yeah, well here’s the scary part: Those mutated spores that we sent back here, didn’t need that process anymore. They simply used the existing energy inside other living things, to sustain themselves, until their host died, and then they used the corpse as a petri dish to grow more spores.”
   “So, that’s why there are no bodies anywhere but in that sealed cave. No remnants of organic life at all.”
   “That’s right, and the reason why the Ozsha seemingly turned evil, was because when their brains were infected with the spores, all their higher brain-functions shut down, basically turning them into panicked animals.    It wouldn’t have lasted long, though. Hours maybe, before the infection literally ate through their brains.    That might be why those last few thought that they could wait it out.”
   “Sure, that makes sense. But unless the tree is still infected somehow, wouldn’t all the spores be dead now? If this place hasn’t been able to sustain them for centuries?”
   “Yes, but Marcus… they still exist on Earth. You scorched the island, sure, but do you really think you managed to kill every last spore? Because if even one of those fuckers survived and managed to infect another living thing, then they’ve already begun to multiply again.”
   “Holy shit.”
   “That’s why the portal brought us here. Why it made sure we’d know. Because we’re about to face the same fate.”
   You wondered if you looked as terrified as he did in that moment, but then the portal suddenly appeared next to you, ready to bring you back home.    Marcus stared at you for all of one second, before stepping towards it, and you knew that he was thinking about Missy, already worried sick that she could’ve somehow been exposed to these mutated spores by her proximity to the two of you.    In your mind that seemed unlikely since the scans at HQ hadn’t revealed any foreign particles in or on you, but you weren’t about to suggest that to him.    You watched him step through and disappear, but you hesitated to follow. You weren’t sure why at first, but you just got a strong sense that there was something you hadn’t done yet.    The matriarch all but screamed at you, but briefly, as if it was just trying to get your attention, so you turned towards it, walking closer while you tried to figure out what it was trying to call your attention to.    You stopped when a movement on the ground right in front of you caught your eye.    A tiny green stalk sprung from a small crack in the roots, growing up to about a hand in length, before two small leaves formed at the top.    It was a gift, but also the tree’s last chance to survive, and you abruptly felt extremely humbled to be entrusted with such a precious little life.    Carefully, you dug it up with your hands, using the bottom of your t-shirt as a basket to carry it in, and then you just stood there, taking one last look at this dinosaur of the plant kingdom. One who’s equal might not even exist, but even if it did, you were unlikely to come across.  
   “Thank you.”
   You weren’t entirely sure what you were thanking it for, but you just needed to.    Then you turned back to the portal, walking up to it and preparing to step through, setting your mind on the lab at HQ, the same moment you’d disappeared from. Because even if Marcus had picked a different moment, leaving him closer to home and to Missy, you needed to make sure that the sapling got to the right people as soon as possible.    Something about it had you convinced that it could help protect people from the spores, and if anyone could figure out how, it would be the Heroics Science Department.    You let the liquid engulf you once more, fully trusting it to take you where and when you were asking to go, which was why you were baffled to suddenly find yourself in broad daylight, with a strong wind howling in your ears and the ocean flying past underneath you.
   The fucking thing had sent you back to when Marcus hurled you out to sea!?!
—————
Link to Chapter 16
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shishikusas · 2 years
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ok so idk if you already know this but puppy lover on yt recently left their masa channel. truly the end of an era. but in their last video they asked for honest opinions on masa so I’m throwing my two cents to like the only other active masa blog on here hope you don’t mind👉👈 (if you don’t wanna read it just skip) what’s your opinion on mass’s songs lately??
So I really really love the onibi, sister and secret series. And ya I agree with a lot of the comments there— masa’s songs are lacking nowadays. He’s still a great guy, but all his songs sound the exact same (I believe it’s edm??) His old content was more original and actually had better pv’s.
But more than that for me they had better storyline. The onibi series had really deep lore, the sister series had a lot, the secret series had a bit too, and maha was full of it. That being said nowadays all of his songs share the same three themes of dr1nks, dr*gs and s3x. There’s no originality which made onibi such a hit. They’re all parodying off each other.
Also is it just me or is the anatomy on the newer videos a bit…off?? It seems like he’s emphasizing certain parts more than others and it makes the whole thing look a bit disproportionate. Idk if it’s just me, I’m not an expert by any means.
That being said, it’s not like his new content is bad by any means, it’s cool to listen to. And it’s nice. For a couple of times. It’s kinda insipid after that.
tldr masa’s old stuff was better than his new for me, and I miss it a lot. He’s still a good guy and the new music is cool but the onibi, sister and secret series will always have a place in my heart.
i just posted a comment on the video on puppy's channel, so i will copy it here:
i'll be completely honest in my opinion here. masa's stuff has not gotten worse, it has just changed and i still love it and listen to it, and it really disheartens me when people leave bc i feel like im just wandering around in a desert. like where did all the people go :( the community was so bustling in 2016-2019 and it just feels abandoned now.
there are some things i can agree on though. there was a time in 2019-2020 ish where i thought he wasn't living up to his full potential, or he was trying to create new stuff and hadn't gotten it completely down yet. and yes, it's easy to look through the lenses of nostalgia and miss all the lore stuff he used to do - i mean i fucking love the onibi series and all its lore but we probably aren't going to get another blog update for a loooong time.
but the reality is that masa is a different person now than he was in the early 2010s. he started creating music when he was 20 years old, and he's 32 now - that's a huge difference, he's a fully fledged adult now and probably has a lot more things to do and work on than what he used to. that's not even talking about the money aspect! obviously we know next to nothing about his personal life but he either has another job outside of making music or he relies on making these songs to support himself, and neither are conducive to making elaborate PVs or complicated lore (both which i know people revere him for and miss the most). instead he focuses on making the music he wants and PVs that fit his time, which by the way include MUCH higher quality art than in the past. idc what anyone says his anatomy was WAY wonkier back then than it is now.
im rambling, but ig my point is masa's changed, and it's an okay thing. his new EP, INSOMNIA, is really an amazing piece of work and feels kind of like the 'old' masa and i've listened to it many times on repeat, but it's not the same as the masa people became fans of him for. it's okay if you don't like it but i do, and i probably always will. unless he starts making country music or smth ;)
TLDR: i love masa's music even now and understand that his style has become much different than before, and there's many reasons for that.. he holds such a big place in my heart and i will support him thru his endeavors!
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liberty-barnes · 1 year
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nobody asked but here's my opinion on the fitf songs
the greatest: the song that made me and @hellolovers13 become friends obviously I fucking love it. it's just so fucking beautiful and power coupley and ugh I'm love it so much
written all over your face: yk when I first say the title I thought it was gonna be a sad moody song but turns out it's literally just "when you're finished pouting, can I put it in you?" and yk what I'm here for it. the hey babe makes me fucking melt. if sex was a song this would be it. no control's freaky little sister
bigger than me: I would first of all like to acknowledge that my mum loves this song and sings along to it all the title so this is a win. this shows off just how powerful louis' voice really is, something that walls didn't really do, and it's just so great because we've gotten to the point where louis feels confident enough in his voice and in our support to know that he can hit those notes and we will back him up? king shit
lucky again: this makes me want to get into a car and go on a road trip with the windows down just breathing in the late night summer air. I don't have a license. it's also no longer summer.
face the music: again I would just like to acknowledge that my dad vibed along to this song happily (until he recognised louis' voice at which point he pretended he hated it but I fell flat cause now I know he loves louis). I don't wanna face the music but I still wanna dance with you? can you be any more closeted gay coding? gorgeous literally love it so much
chicago: will always remind me of zouis and myri's fic, both of which get me to immediately break down sobbing. so needless to say, I absolutely fucking love it, it's gorgeous. and the I didn't have to search cause I still know. your. num. ber. kills me every time
all this time: i feel like this and lucky again are connected, but that also may be just because they make me feel the exact same things aka get into a car and drive with the windows down while enjoying the fresh summer night air despite the fact that it's autumn and if I got into a car I would most likely crash it
out of my system: scream jump dance pop punk louis stans rise my god it's just so amazing, the perfect jump along song. i wish I had more words other than go absolutely feral but I don't so yeah I leave you with this
headline: this is my wine aunt swaying along to every song dance song. also yes baby you go throw the money grabbers out your life you deserve so much better. just listen and vibe and throw your middle finger up for all the shallow people in your life
saturdays: this song makes me ascend. but also I just wanna stare at a wall while listening to it and hope that somehow the answers to all my life's problems will magically appear because this seems like the song that would do it you know
silver tongues: this makes me wanna have friends and do stupid shit like get drunk and get high. but then it ends and I remember that I can't drink bc I'm on the mental stability tic tacs. and also I hate people and socialising.
she is beauty we are world class: when we first got the track list and said this one would be banger and I was fucking right. gives me very 2010s vibes too no idk why it just does. amazing. tattoo it on my brain pls and thank you
common people: louis just woke up one day and said hmm what if I wrote a love song for Donny and then that's exactly what he did. I wanna live there. this makes it sound so wholesome and peaceful and kind and just ugh I want that
angels fly: myri told me that the first time they listened to it they thought louis said we can talk to mama instead of we can talk tomorrow and I think of it every time I hear the song now. it already got me in my feels before but this just made it worse. literally amazing I have no words. makes me wanna have him as my emotional support friend.
holding on to heartache: the BRIDGE I actually go feral when I listen to it just scream it at the top of my lungs, I fucking hope this is played on tour cause otherwise I might actually cry I fucking need this okay I need my scream at the world like a fucking psycho moment it will be so cathartic
that's the way love goes: beautiful soft princess song gives me be alright by dean lewis vibes it's just so sweet and loving and like it's okay you're gonna be fine, we're all here for you I've never had my heart broken romantically but I can still feel the support healing parts of me I never knew were broken
changes: i need the studio version on spotify Mr Tomlinson but cool I'll just hear it downloaded like that for now it's cool. the bridge is a fucking masterpiece. if you need you can call on me I feel so supported and not at all alone this whole album just feels like a big warm hug from louis
high in california: I have never smoked a day in my life but this goes right next to my chase atlantic songs in my shotgun with a hot girl in my lap playlist. I want a hot girl in my lap. but ig this will do for now. amazing
paradise: this should be on fucking spotify it's literally so good louis what the fuck. it gets me pumped for the day. just so good. literally I have no words it's like musical paradise (HA!) for me. just yes.
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thebleedingeffect · 2 years
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Couple hours late but here’s aro questions for you
2. 4. 5. 9. 15. 16. 25. 27. 32. 35. 38. 44. 45. 50. aaaand 53. :] enjoy
Oh my gosh so many!many!! YES yes I love oversharing and talking about aro stuff ty so much for giving me the opportunity and don't worry about it ^-^!
2. How would you describe your identity?
I'm pretty happy and content with the label of aroace agender to describe myself! Really I'm just vibing and gender is a mystery to me so that's just part of my identity now lmao
4. Are you romance favorable, neutral, or repulsed?
Oof, this one is slightly complicated but I would say I lean slightly more on the repulsed side as I just can't see myself ever being in a straight up romantic relationship and tbh, I don't want to SJSJSJ
5. What kind of attraction do you feel?
PLATONIC!! PLATONIC, with a little dash of queer platonic to spice things up but im a big old sucker for platonic affection and love over literally any over kind of love lmao. Call me your friend or just friend terms and I'll be falling over myself
9. What made you realize you were aspec/arospec?
Okay so, funny story about that, I unironically figured out that I was aro thanks to techno. I found it out cause I kept reading queer platonic em duo stuff and every time techno talked about his love for philza but zero romance attached to it I was just like....... Oh....... another thing is that weirdly the dsmp fandom is just the only one that I've ever seen actual aspec rep IN the fandom content itself
15. What made you realize you wanted a queer platonic relationship?
I think the one thing I do like in the idea of romance is the loyalty and commitment attached to it which is how I began wanting a queer platonic relationship. That type of love that feels like home but without the romantic expectation and just creating your own definition of love with your partner is the dream for me :]
16. What confuses you about typical romantic relationships?
So many things you have absolutely no idea. I've never really understood the whole physical longing thing and having someone take up all of your thoughts and decisions to a worrying degree. I've never got wanting to act in an idealized way so that your crush might like you cause what's the point? I've never got how love confessions are this big relationship changing thing cause I just don't care and never thought of romantic love as a concern. Grade school was hell man SJSJSJ
25. Are you good at flirting? Do you flirt often?
I don't really think I flirt?? Idk if compliments can be seen as flirting as I love being nice and complimenting people but I, don't think that's flirting?? Im hopeless at this whole flirting thing just throw me to the curb
27. Do you enjoy seeing romance irl/online/in media/etc.?
Irl it's kinda impossible to avoid romance so I've just gotten really good at ignoring it in that context! But in media and online? I'll fully admit that my romance repulsion comes out really hard and I don't like seeing or reading romantic content if I can help it. God the amount of blocked shipping tags that I have in my filters SJSJJS
32. Come up with the stupidest way to ask someone out, right now!
Hey baby wanna find out how I can make this heat wave even worse?
(was that good? I have absolutely no fucking idea SJSJSJS)
35. Do you enjoy valentine's day?
For the sweets and chocolates? Yes, for the romance? Oh god no, I always end up staying completely offline for that entire day cause I get so annoyed that it's just better for me to play video games or something sjsjsj I do enjoy the red, white, and pink aesthetic though, it's cute! ^-^
38. How many arospecs do you know irl/online?
Fun fact! My wife is actually on the aro spectrum herself! :DD I love her so much she found out she was aro a bit after me and its been great lmao. All in all I believe I only know two aro people overall? Which is a crime I need to make more aro friends but making friends is so hard sjsjsj
44. Do you have an aro ring? Do you want one?
I don't have one yet but I've been thinking about getting one! :D it's just a really pretty and lovely idea so I genuinely might do it, that is if my brain allows me to wear a ring lol
45. Do you have an ace ring? Do you want one?
Gonna get both so I can give the simultaneous finger to both sex and romance SHSHSJ
50. Any arospec headcanons
YES, LIKE YOU HAVE NO IDEA. Loz wise I strongly believe oot link and hyrule warriors link to be on the aro spectrum!! ^-^ I mean, oot link literally ignored a whole ass marriage proposal so hard that I half believe the fact Ruto was interested didn't even REGISTER. hw link is so extremely funny to me cause the IDEA of him being aro and being chased by an evil sorceress is the embodiment of my poor aro meow meow. He didn't ask for this, he didn't want it, he doesn't even understand what's the big deal about romance WHY is she destroying REALITY FOR IT!!!
53. What is the best part about being aro?
The relief of knowing that I don't have to force myself to find or force myself to pretend that I feel romantic love. The relief that I can be my genuine self and be happy in the different forms of love that bring me happiness instead of what society expects of me. The fact that I have a name to explain what I've been experiencing my entire life and the fact that people reflect my thoughts have brought me more comfort than you can imagine. It's the relief of knowing I don't have to act or sell myself for a nonexistent partner and instead pursue the queer love that I've always dreamed of. It's the fascination of exploring the very foundation of love and how I interpret it by having a complete absence of romantic love but so much love for other things. For me being aro is comfort, acceptance, and living with the fact that you are not lesser for not experiencing something that a large amount of people, it's finding happiness in that absence as it allows you to instead fill that space with what you choose to love. It's carving out a little space for that queer love whenever it arrives and it fits perfectly within all the other things you've given love to, so much so that you never even think of how you may be different or may never experience something that everyone else cause you're so incredibly happy with what you have! That you could never think or want anything else, that's what being aro is for me and I've been much happier with my identity ever since I realized that ^-^
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fan-burns · 4 months
Text
Robots 2
Chapter 11: Harvey’s POV (Later that same night)
One month 
One month of this torture and Ratchet has already lost his mind. More so than usual.
When he called me that night, that night when the EMP went off, he told me to get to the Chop Shop asap. What he did not tell me, was that he was going to set off the fucking mind control ray. The second I got there, he takes my phone and throws me in a box, A BOX, for two hours! I kept banging on the door, screaming and begging to know what he was doing, and he didn’t fucking say anything! By the time he let me out, it was already too late. He took over the fucking city. And now everyone is some brainwashed slave to him! 
I only joined this freak show to be with him so his army wouldn’t kill me, and to watch him fail! How was I supposed to know it would backfire on me?! 
When you hear someone say “Oh I wanna take over the city!” You laugh, realize he’s serious, get stuck with him, laugh the pain away and wait around to see what happens! When the inevitable happens, you both laugh it off, make amends, and at the end of the day the two of you scored yourself a new boyfriend! Done, paid, and laid in one night! 
This, none of this, WAS PART OF THE FUCKING PLAN!!!
He’s got some new police called The Guard, and he’s got this Door to door evangelism thing going on with The Congregation! They were supposed to be a task force to keep the peace, but they’ve become less professional and more religious! After that, he made sure there was an oil crisis so he could hoard all of it and give it to the elite. And now he’s got some “Loyalty Test”?! What the hell is going on with him?! What the hell did I get myself into now?! 
I took a deep breath and stopped reminding myself of how much of a fucking idiot I was and got up from my desk...or I should say Rodney’s desk. I felt terrible sitting here, where he used to work at for hours before finally calling it quits. I never wanted it to get this bad…I didn’t even think it would work! 
This was a mistake...I should’ve just swallowed my damn pride and said something to the cops, Hell I could’ve even gone to the girls! I bet they would’ve loved to beat Ratchet into a car battery! Especially Dial and Piper! I should’ve just left Ratchet and that so-called doctor when I had the chance. I should’ve just stayed in Detroit…at least then I’d be allowed to leave my own damned office! 
Ratchet figured out how I felt about this whole scheme when I was sleep talking again. He repurposed an old storage room, called it my room, and locked me in the building and posted guards outside every door so I wouldn’t escape. The guards deliver me about one to three cans a day, but it’s never enough to keep me going throughout the day. I usually end up falling asleep in the afternoon. I bet he’s keeping me weak on purpose…just what have I gotten myself into?! I’m so much smarter than this, how did I let myself be tricked?!
This is the last time I let a pretty face get the better of me! I don’t care if he has an entire army ready to kill me, I’ll kick his sorry aft! If I can get out of this alive, I’ll kill him for this! 
I looked out the windows behind the desks. Even in the dark, I could see that the city was a mess, in more ways than one. There’s scaffolding everywhere you look, billboards have Ratchet’s face plastered onto them, and worse yet the Transport Pods were flying everywhere you looked. More so than usual. I always hated those damned things. I would not want to be flying a train right now, if trains were even allowed to fly in the first place. I haven’t seen one in the sky for a while, so I’m guessing the stations were closed down when the walls came up. 
From what I can gather the city’s been cut off from everyone for weeks now. Unless you're a Diamond Drill Oil rig, no one on the outside can get in and no one here can get out. At least I’m not the only prisoner here…at least he's locked away from the rest of the world too. I can’t even imagine what would happen if this EMP thing were to get out there…I don’t think I want to know.
The door behind me suddenly creaked open, and one of the guards entered with my nightly provisions. I knew who it was before the light hit his face. 
He was a younger bot named Gyro. He was a slim bot that was similar to Ratchet’s model, probably made from the same manufacturer from the looks of things. He had these beautifully sharp shoulders that came at a point, and his face was sharp too. Literally. He looked like a knight in shining armor with a sphere instead of legs. It didn’t help that his “signature weapon” was a Lance like all the other guards…I don’t have the heart to tell him that though. The Lance in question was slung over his back, leaving his hands free to hold the silver tray with the fuel cans on top.
“Master Davidson?” He spoke softly, “Your provisions from Lord Ratchet for the night.”
I looked at him in confusion, “Lord Ratchet? What, does he think he’s an emperor now?”
He shrugged his shoulders as he entered the room, the giant red ribbon on his head dancing in the wind as he moved. It came to a halt as he placed the tray on my desk. “He has a lot of names now,” he explained. “Lord Ratchet, King Ratchet, Our Savior. The list is endless.”
I noticed that he failed to close the door. I briefly thought about making a run for it, but then I remembered the thousands of other guards hell bent on keeping me locked up in here. Instead, I wanted to test something. 
“That’s ridiculous.” I boldly proclaimed. “Ratchet is a robot, not Cog. He’s not seriously masquerading as a king, is he?”
He was going to answer, but hesitated. He wanted to answer, he truly did, but something had taken hold of him. An outer force took a hold of his throat and prevented him from answering truthfully. Eventually, it let him go, but only after he found the words he didn’t want to say. 
“I-I guess he is? I’m not sure what to think of it myself…but Ratchet is the one who saved us all, so it’s only fitting that we praise him for what he’s done for us. I’d actually never thought about it much, I’m not really supposed to.”
“You’re not supposed to think?! You’re not a machine, Gyro, you’re allowed to have opinions! Who said you couldn’t think?!”
“With all due respect,” he objected. “I’m just a Guard Bot. I’m meant to guard, not to strategize, it’s my designation and purpose in life. That’s how things were before Bigweld showed up, remember?”
“But who told you that?!” I demanded. 
“Lord Ratchet did!” He responded matter of factly, “He’s told us everything that we forgot about! Hasn’t he told you your purpose yet? Is that why you’re in here?”
I didn’t know what to say…I just stared at him. I could feel a wave of heat and anger rising within my chest. Purpose? Designations? What the hell was Ratchet thinking?! What else did he say to them?! 
I wanted to tell him everything right then and there. The EMP, The Doctor, Ratchet, and whatever else I was hiding…but I couldn’t. If he was crazy enough to do this and everything prior, then who knows what he’d do to me if I said anything. That, and his whole army would be after me. But if I don’t say anything, then everyone will be stuck thinking like this, thinking that they’re good for only one thing. They’d be stuck doing the same thing forever, over and over again even if they don’t want to. I’d be betraying myself for betraying Rodney by not betraying Ratchet. Then again, I already did betray him and myself and… Oh y’know what? Screw it. I’m not going to let two pathetic little shits scare me into obeying. If I die it’s going to be on my terms. 
“Gyro...there’s something you need to-”
Suddenly, a third voice broke the conversation. “Evening, Harvey.”
“OH SHI-I mean...Hello there, Ratchet! How’s it going?” I addressed him sheepishly. Standing in the doorframe was Ratchet himself, right when I was going to do something smart for once. Damn it.
Gyro gave a salute to him. “Lord Ratchet! Sir! I was just providing Master Davidson his nightly provisions…and we were just chatting about how much of an honor it is to serve under your command.”
Oh thank Cog Gyro is a quick thinker. Bless you, Gyro. Bless you. Marry me.
Ratchet looked suspicious at first, but upon seeing the tray on the desk, he was satisfied with the answer. “Well, I’m glad to see you interacting with Harvey while not disobeying orders! He needs the extra company, but next time, do take care to shut the door.”
Gyro smiled, but I could tell he had something else on his mind. “As you wish, sir.” 
“That’s a good guard.” Ratchet spoke to him. “Oh, and Gyro? Could you leave the two of us for the night? I need to discuss something important to talk to him. I’ll throw in a bonus for your service to Harvey.”
Oh no.
Gyro placed his hand over his chest, and took a bow. As he did so, the feather in his helmet fell onto his shoulders.“As you command, sir.” He then turned to me, “I’ll be seeing you again, Master Harvey.”
I faked a smile at him, “You too...have a good night, Gyro.”
The feather danced freely as he left the room, and gently closed the door behind him, leaving the two of us alone.
“Harvey,” Ratchet began bluntly. “I wanted to talk to you about the city.”
Did he know I was having doubts about the plan?...I mean, he already did, but now is he going to finally do something about it? 
I knew I had to play it cool, so I played along, “W-What was on your mind?”
“I’ve been thinking about doing something special for the city again, like those free upgrades I did a month ago. Something like the Bigweld ball, but about me! I know how creative you can be, so I was wondering if you could come up with something.”
Oh thank Cog I thought I was dead for sure! I can actually do something here. Maybe I can use this to my advantage…maybe this could be my ticket to fixing everything! Storm the castle, kill the king!
“Oh, well we can do a disco! Or a gala! Wait, no no! Even better…We can do a masquerade!”
He looked puzzled by what I said, so I guess he’s never heard of a masquerade before. If she weren’t already dead, I would’ve had a lovely chat with his mother about this severe lack of taste.
“A masquerade ball!” I exclaimed. “You know? It’s where you wear your richest and finest upgrades alongside an elegant mask! We did them all the time at the Diamond Drill Hall!”
“Why wear a mask?” He questioned.
I was close to blowing a circuit, but was able to keep myself in check. “That’s part of the fun! The whole event is a sort of game, where you have to find out who’s who. We can throw some other activities too, but that’s the main purpose of the event. It’s for fun! It’s for letting loose any stress or worries, and it’ll be nice to get out of the “king persona” for a bit!”
I’m glad I said that last bit, because now his face seemed to soften. “King persona? Whatever do you mean?”
I threw my hands up in defense. “I didn’t mean anything bad! I just thought that, maybe…you’d like to tone things down a bit?”
I stepped towards him and fixed his tie as I said this. It’s basic 101 in seduction, play with your lover’s frames and they’ll get the hint. Any small accessories they have are a goldmine of things to mess with, and you should always fiddle with them if you can. 
At least…that’s what’s supposed to happen. Instead he brushed me aside and stared out the window in his signature overdramatic brooding pose. Either I’m a little rusty, or he’s dumber than he looks…It’s definitely the latter, I’m never rusty.
“Don’t be ridiculous, Harvey,” he said, “My image has to represent what I expect from them. I expect obedience and professionalism from them, so I must do the same.”
“You’re failing at that obedience thing.” I remarked quickly. “And that professionalism.”
He quickly turned to face me, “What makes you say that? Because I have no one to take orders from?! I am in charge, so I obey myself! I obey my own laws and decrees! I-”
“You need to listen to yourself!” I interrupted. “Decrees? Commands? This isn’t the medieval times, this is a city in the 20th century! A city that’s being ruled by an iron fist no less!”
He looked down at his hands awkwardly.
“Metaphorically! My point is that you’re crossing a line! Many lines in fact!”
I took a breath and continued, “Let’s just…tone it down a bit. You’re starting to freak everyone out.”
He tightened his grip on the Conduit, and the staff began to shake. I backed away from him and braced myself just in case he decided to take a swing at me.
“I suppose you do have a point,” he admitted as he glared at me, “…but what about you? How can I trust that you won’t run away when I let you plan this thing?”
And just like that, we’re back to that night when he heard me in my sleep. We’re back to me arguing my case, only for him to find me guilty and sentencing me to life in prison.
“Why would I run?” I argued once again. “Where would I run to? The whole city is locked up, it doesn’t make sense for me to leave if I can’t go anywhere! That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you the whole time, you don’t have to keep me in here!”
I considered getting on my knees, but that would look too desperate and he might suspect something. I have to play it cool. Instead, I just clasped my hands together. I approached him again as I spoke. “Please, sir. I know what I said, but I never wanted to say it like that. I wanted to have a proper conversation about it, like we are now! I’m trying to keep you from going over your head! Remember that promise? That you’d let me stop you if it goes too far? That’s what I’m doing now, I’m keeping that promise!”
I placed my hand on his shoulder, with the other one gently caressing the side fin on his head. “Please…let’s try to tone it down a bit.”
He placed his hand over his shoulder, covering mine.  “Harvey…I think you’re right.”
“…What?”
He brushed my hands off, “You’re right…maybe this is getting to be a bit much. Maybe I do need a break for a bit.”
Ok, great! He’s not completely out of his mind yet! I can use this!..I don’t know how yet, but I can use this against him!
He kept his gaze fixed on me, “How about a deal then? I’ll let you go so you can help with this masquerade of yours. If it’s a hit, We’ll make it an annual thing. If not, I’ll still let you go and we’ll just have to think of something else. Deal?”
I didn’t even hesitate. I reached my hand out to shake his, “Deal. Where should we start?”
He grinned at that as he twirled his staff around like a batton. Pretty impressive considering how thick it was. “Let’s start with our outfits…I’m thinking of keeping it simple. I want everyone to at least know who I am!”
I rolled my eyes with a pretend smile. Now that I know he’s somewhat sane, I can use him against him. That, and to knock him down a few thousand pegs. Maybe knock his head off while I’m at it.
“Fair enough…what were you thinking of?”
“Just a crown and cape. Nothing too flashy. I still need to look the part of a king!”
Or maybe I spoke too soon. At least I’m making some progress. I can still use whatever I learn against him when he’s weak and not in the king persona. I can try to find Rodney if he hasn’t already been brainwashed and pass what I find to him or even Bigweld. Maybe I can snap some sense into Damion and Axyl when I run into them. I’ve got to do something to fix this!
At least I hope I can fix this…otherwise I don’t know how anyone could beat him at this rate.
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flesheaten · 1 year
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@eddie sent: please don’t kill me
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For what felt like hours now, Lee had been kept awake by his own mind that seemed impossible to turn off, emerald eyes staring at the ceiling while he listened to the chirping of the crickets outside. How much longer before they would grow silent and he’d hear the sound of birds singing to announce that morning had arrived? For the few minutes he had managed to fall asleep, he’d then be awakened in a panic, his heart pounding rapidly in his chest and his breathing laboured while he fought to calm himself back down.
Nightmares were frequent with him, but they’d gotten even worse since Eddie caught him hunched over a dead body, teeth biting into soft, still warm flesh to tear away chunks of it. Lately, and he didn’t know why, but he’d been dreaming about killing Eddie. His screams of terror and pain, his pleading words mixed in with his sobs to beg him to stop, were so vivid that it would leave him feeling guilty when he woke up, as if he’d actually attacked him and should feel bad for it.
After a while longer, Lee made the decision to leave his own space, throwing his blankets off of himself and making his way over to where he knew Eddie would be sound asleep in his own bedroom. A twist of the door knob proved it wasn’t locked, the door swinging gently open with a quiet creak. Tiredly, he rubbed his eyes and padded over to the free side of the bed, where he’d only just started pulling the covers down when Eddie spoke to him. Oh, so he was awake. Maybe he was having trouble sleeping too, or maybe the sound of the door opening had been enough to wake him up?
When Lee looked over at him, he could see the look of fear on Eddie's face as he gazed wide-eyed at him. Hell, he could practically smell it on him. The words had stunned him into a momentary silence because they were so similar to the things he'd hear him in the nightmares he’d been having, only this time they were slightly less desperate. These were quieter pleads, just barely above a whisper, but still very much so fearful.
It made perfect sense why Eddie would be afraid, but it was still hurtful to know that his best friend, who now knew his deepest and darkest secret, was afraid of him. That was one the things he’d always been afraid of: seeing the look of fear or disappointment or mistrust on the faces of the people he cared about most. What if they never saw him the same way again? What if, forever, he was just seen as a monster to them? ❝I don’t wanna kill you,❞ he finally spoke, his voice a low murmur. ❝I couldn’t sleep, so I came in here to lay with you. Same thing we’ve been doin’ since I came back. That not allowed anymore?❞
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bulletsfrank · 2 years
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i don’t know if it’s like normal or not but i have a close friend who only ever talks about herself and when the topic is on me i feel like she just completely disregards it/moves on to talk about what’s going on in her life... i care about her a lot so it sucks to have this be happening but it feels like it’s just gotten worse recently. like when she asks about me the conversation gets dry and it hurts because i have been an emotional sponge for her for a long time... always listening to her talk about her interests which fluctuate a lot but i try my best to keep up and stuff but like. i know friendships aren’t transactional and that she doesn’t HAVE to listen to my boring ass it just... i wanna have the same support i give her. she’s one of my closest friends, and it feels like i just can’t even talk to her anymore.
i want to bring it up to her, but she isn’t the kind of person to take that kind of thing lightly... there’s no way to approach it delicately. and i also don’t know if i have the strength to explain it in full, how it makes me feel, and tell her that i have been feeling this way for a long time. i think that would really make her upset. i also think to myself, man, i am really bitter... maybe that’s what’s causing the rift? i don’t like that she’s happy? but i am, and i want her to have these nice things, like the guy she’s talking to now. but every single conversation is about him now. and it’s the same as it was when she first got into vtubers, into other anime, other idols — if she likes something, that’s going to be the topic of the conversation 99% of the time. and i listen, i don’t mind listening, but it’s been over a year of the same cycle. i feel this way really deeply, like really dejected, but the 1% of our other conversations, we get along really well. we can talk for hours about things. but i want it to be equal. i really do. i feel kind of suffocated by her as of late, and i feel so bad, but i just can’t throw all my energy into listening to her and i don’t really get anything in return except a sinking feeling in my stomach akin to a really harsh loneliness.
i feel like it sucks even more now because i’ve told her i don’t feel good mentally lately, like directly, and she didn’t really say anything about it and continued on talking ALL DAY about her new crush... like... i don’t expect everyone to run to my side when i feel low but it’s just... maybe we could talk about something else? but when i try to turn the convo, it just dies. so i just stopped replying for now.
i don’t know. i’m not really a good friend anymore, i’m really easily worn out, but i feel like this is a bit much. but it could just be me, too. sigh
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theteasetwrites · 2 years
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What Gets Us Through
❧ Pairing: Daryl Dixon x Reader ❧ Era: between Seasons 2 and 3 (after farm, before prison) ❧ Pronouns: not specified ❧ Warnings: mild swearing ❧ Word Count: 3.6k
❧ Prompts from this list
❧ Summary: It's Christmas, not that anyone cares anymore. Still, hard times have befallen your group, and you and Glenn figure it's a good time to try to lighten the mood a bit. You enlist the help of Daryl to gather some presents, but he's not too excited.
❧ A/N: Christmas apparently brings out the cheesiness in me (which isn't hard because I am made of cheese). I just love giving Daryl the Christmas he deserves, even in the middle of an apocalypse. Also, I looked up mistletoe to get a good idea of what it looks like, turns out the white berries symbolize male fertility... I'm just putting that out there.
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Another near-freezing night out on the road. Every house for miles had been scavenged and now swarmed with walkers, so your group was forced to rough it out in the open again.
It wouldn’t have been so bad if it wasn’t so cold. The only thing keeping you all alive was the surplus of blankets and winter clothing you’d scavenged. Even then, everyone was getting sick. It was a staggering sickness, with each person getting ill at different times, but it was almost worse than if you had gotten it all at the same time.
Now the communal cold was making its rounds with Rick, your leader, which didn’t bode well.
To make matters worse, Lori was pregnant, and it was only a matter of time before she got sick too.
For the first time in months, you were actually worried about dying from natural causes rather than a walker bite.
Still, every possible threat to your group’s survival was weighing on everyone’s minds, so much so that spirits had diminished far beyond what you even thought possible.
No one spoke to each other anymore, unless it was to discuss the next move, and you hadn’t seen anyone smile in weeks.
Even you were struggling to keep hope alive, which was saying something, since you usually had such a bouncy, upbeat demeanor about you. It was what kept everyone’s spirits up before the cold came.
Now, even your spirit had frozen over, and you were honestly terrified of whatever calamity the universe would throw at you and your companions next.
One small sparkle of joy you still had came in the form of Glenn, whose spirits never dampened throughout the frigid Georgia winter.
That night, he sat beside you, your elbows propped up on your knees and your hands cradling your face as you watched the embers of the dying fire float like fireflies into the crisp night air.
Everyone else was asleep, except Daryl and T-Dog, who were on night watch, so Glenn was exceptionally quiet when he asked you what had been on his mind for a while.
“So,” he said, twiddling his thumbs nervously, “did you celebrate Christmas? When everything was normal?”
You raised your head to look at him, using all the energy still in your tired body. “What?”
“You know, did you do presents and stuff?”
“Um, yeah… yeah, I did. Why?”
“Well, I was thinking… everyone’s been pretty down lately, and you always liked to cheer everyone up… what if… what if we do a little run tomorrow? We can look for supplies, but maybe get one thing for everyone, as a Christmas present?”
You let out a small chuckle, the first one in months. You could hardly even believe the sound coming from your body. “You wanna go Christmas shopping? I don’t know…”
Glenn leaned towards you, as if his proximity would prove to you just how serious he was about this. “(Y/N), this could be what gets us through the winter. With Rick sick, Lori pregnant, and everyone just… surviving… we could give each other something good, something human. It doesn’t have to be big, just… something.”
Damn his infectious optimism. You were just about ready to give up, to let the icy fingers of death coil around you and use you as fertilizer in these deep, dark woods, but Glenn always had a habit of bringing you back to the person you used to be.
“Do you have a plan?” you asked.
Glenn sighed. “Not really. I mean, there’s that shopping center that we passed earlier. It didn’t seem to be overrun just from the outside. We could try that, they had a grocery store too, and a pharmacy.”
“Okay… and, just you and me are doing this?”
Glenn’s eyes widened. He hadn’t thought that far ahead. He knew he wanted you to go with him, since you would be the most likely candidate to want to do it, but neither of you were the best fighters in the group. Glenn was the fastest, and therefore the best at doing supply runs, but he hadn’t quite honed his fighting skills yet.
If you had to suss out the best walker killers in the group, they were probably Rick, T-Dog, and Daryl.
Rick was out of commission, given the fact that he couldn’t speak without coughing something up, and T-Dog was beginning to come down with something too.
That left Daryl, and you both knew he wasn’t the kind of person to go on such a seemingly frivolous mission.
“Maybe we could ask him to go with us.” Glenn nudged his head in Daryl’s direction. You followed his gaze to find the archer pacing back and forth on the outskirts of your small camp, keeping his eyes peeled towards the trees and wielding his crossbow like it weighed nothing at all.
“Pfft,” you scoffed. “I don’t think he’s ever given anyone a Christmas present in his life. Forget about it.”
“(Y/N),” he said, placing his hand over your forearm, “we need this. Please, can you ask him? He might be more… open to it if you do it.”
You rolled your eyes. Ever since you helped doctor Daryl after his accident at the farm, the whole group seemed to have this idea that there was something going on between the two of you, and you received your fair share of wise-ass comments about it.
Of course, there wasn’t anything going on in terms of romance. There wasn’t any time for that, and you didn’t think he would give you the time of day. Even when you sat by him for hours, tending to his wounds and making sure he was comfortable, the man had an attitude with you, as if he thought you pitied him or something.
“I’ll ask,” you said, “but no promises.” You rose to your feet, then turned back to face Glenn. “And I don’t want to hear any jokes about it.”
“No promises,” Glenn replied, repeating your own words.
You almost managed a smile before buttoning your coat against the cold and trudging slowly over to Daryl, whose back was turned to you. You knew you had to be extra careful since the last time you snuck up on him you ended up with an arrow pointed straight at your forehead.
“Hi, Daryl,” you said quietly as you approached, now just a handful of feet away. He turned to look at you, confused by your sudden appearance at such a late hour, when everyone was supposed to be sleeping (not that anyone really slept that much anyway). “Can I talk to you?”
The tone of your voice sounded much more ominous and solemn than you meant it to, but your voice always sounded like that these days.
He nodded, still a bit wary of your intentions. “Everythin’ okay?” he asked. There was a hint of concern in his voice that almost warmed your heart. Though he was often cold, you knew he cared about everyone in your group, which was one thing you could respect.
“Fine,” you replied. “Well, as fine as it can be…” You both stood there for a few moments, Daryl looking down at his feet as he kicked some dirt and rocks absentmindedly, or perhaps he had much more on his mind, it was hard to tell.
“Um, Glenn and I were just talking,” you began to say, “and we thought it might be nice if we, um, went out on a run tomorrow. The three of us.”
Daryl was visibly taken aback. He never heard the word “nice” used to describe a supply run. “You wanna go on a run?”
“Mhm,” you said with a nod. “Well, if you want to.”
“What we gettin’?”
You gulped. “Um… Christmas presents.”
The corner of his lip quirked up as he chuckled softly. “You shittin’ me?”
You shook your head. “No. Glenn thought it would be nice to do something to keep everyone’s spirits up, and I’m inclined to agree with him. It’s probably about December… so why not?”
“Why not?” Daryl asked derisively. “‘Cause it’s stupid, that’s why not.” You didn’t think he’d be so harsh, but then again, Daryl could be that way. It didn’t change the fact that it formed a pit in the bottom of your stomach, and a rather stubborn lump in your throat. “I ain’t participatin’ in your little Christmas party so ask someone else.” He waved his hand at you, as if commanding you to leave him alone.
You crossed your arms and swallowed hard in an attempt to appear stoic, though you just wanted to cry. “I’m not taking no for an answer. I know you care about this group and this could be the difference between life or death, just having something to remind us of who we are, what we have to live for. Can’t you suck it up and help us?”
Daryl stepped closer to you, breathing heavily to the point that you could feel the heat of his breath on your face. “Why you askin’ me anyway? Think I owe you or somethin’?”
You were taken aback. “Owe me? Owe me for what?”
He shook his head. “You know. Ain’t gotta explain it.”
You looked past his shoulder as you tried to figure out what he meant. You sighed when you did.
“For fixing you up back at the farm? Daryl, I did that because you’re my friend, and because you were hurt. I didn’t do it to hold it over your head. Believe it or not, I did it because I like you, so stop being such an asshole to me. You never even said thank you, and that’s all I really want, if anything at all.”
True, he hadn’t thanked you. He didn’t even realize it until after he was healed, and after that he just didn’t know how to bring it up to you without making it seem like he thought about it as much as he did. In reality, the fact that you cared about him that much was something he dwelled on almost everyday since. He couldn’t quite understand why you would do that, but now that he was hearing the reason directly from your mouth, he couldn’t understand it even more.
You? Liking him? All his life, people either tolerated, ignored, or actively disliked Daryl. He was sure even his own brother kept him around just so he could use him in his schemes.
“Now will you help us with this or what?” you asked pointedly.
You weren’t lying when you said you wouldn’t take no for an answer. The more you spoke about this, the more impassioned you became. This was something you needed to do now.
Daryl was silent for a few moments, studying your face as you awaited his answer. He hated to admit it, but there was something endearing about your desire to do something like this for the group. Though he couldn’t even begin to understand the appeal of Christmas, he understood that sometimes all a person needed to keep them going was a little sign of caring.
He shook his head. “Wakin’ you idiots up early tomorrow,” he said. “Be ready to go.”
The morning came and Glenn took the liberty of informing Rick of the run. He suggested taking another person, but Glenn wanted to keep the whole thing on the downlow, to preserve the element of surprise and all that.
As Glenn said, the shopping center was pretty clear. The handful of walkers that were ambling around were easy to dispose of, and having Daryl around certainly helped, since he had the advantage of a quiet long-range weapon, and you weren’t about to risk gunshots attracting more walkers to the place.
With the place all clear, Daryl smashed the glass of the door to the first stop—a toy shop.
Though Carl was a little too old for most of the toys they sold, you found a very cool yo-yo that seemed like the perfect gift for him to take on the road and keep his mind occupied.
For Lori, you ventured into the baby store to pick up a set of clothes for the baby to wear.
Glenn picked out Maggie’s gift—an artisan beaded necklace that he thought would look nice on her, and not be too impractical for the lifestyle you were all living.
You also found a journal for Beth, a new pair of shoes for T-Dog, a pocket guide to medicinal herbs for Hershel, a cashmere sweater for Carol, and a very fancy utility belt for Rick.
In secret, you picked out a Polaroid camera for Glenn, who had informed you that he once dabbled in photography before the end of the world.
Now, there was still one person you hadn’t picked anything out for, and that was Daryl.
“What do you want for Christmas, Daryl?” you asked him in the pharmacy, where he was dumping the contents of the shelves in the medicine aisle into his bag.
“Nothin’.”
That answer didn’t satisfy you. If everyone else was getting a gift, you were going to be sure he got one too, whether he liked it or not.
“Well, I’m going to bring something back for you.”
What that something was you were completely unsure of. Daryl was the hardest person to read, and even harder to tell when he liked something. You tried to watch his reactions throughout the run, to see if he set his sights on anything he liked, but he was stone-faced the whole time.
So, you asked Glenn on the other side of the pharmacy. “Hey,” you said to him quietly so as not to alert Daryl, “what should I get for Daryl?”
Glenn looked at you like you were insane. “Dude, nothing. The guy’s already pissed at us for bringing him along in the first place. You don’t wanna make it worse.”
You sighed. “I don’t care, he’ll get over it. As much as he gets under my skin, he deserves something just like everyone else.”
So you thought for a while about what to get him, taking into consideration his interests and personality. Daryl was an outdoorsy type, so you started there.
Barging into a nearby antique store, and taking out a few dusty looking walkers, you stumbled upon something you thought would be both practical and would bring Daryl joy: a compass.
This compass was old (it was, after all, in an antique store), but it had character. The brass casing was scratched up and had been well-loved, but the tag said, “It works!” so you didn’t hesitate to pocket it.
You knew Daryl probably didn’t need a compass, that he must’ve somehow been able to tell east from west just by sticking his finger up in the air, but you kept repeating that old adage, “It’s the thought that counts.”
That evening was to be the gift exchange, or rather, the gift giving, since you didn’t expect anyone else to have gifts for you.
To yours and Glenn’s deepest joy, everyone seemed pleased with their gifts, and there were smiles on their faces that you hadn’t seen since before you lost the farm.
It was still so very cold that night, but the warmth of the friendship and family between everyone was enough to keep the fire going until daybreak.
The run wasn’t a total waste, either. The three of you brought back plenty of food, water, and medicine to last for a week or two with rationing, and that was a Christmas miracle in and of itself.
Glenn even gave you your own gift, a specialized stone for sharpening your knife (since you always complained about how long it took to do it with river rocks).
Daryl seemed a bit more peppy, too. You hadn’t given him his gift yet, mostly because you were a little afraid that he’d be offended, but by the end of the night, when everyone settled into bed, you decided to join him on his watch to give it to him.
“I think that went well,” you said as you approached him from behind, sitting beside him on the small dirt hill he was perched on.
He turned to face you and nodded. “Guess so. Everyone seemed… happier.”
You smiled at his admission. You couldn’t help but feel like you had won for the first time in a very long time. “I agree. It’s amazing how much a little gift can do.”
There was silence again, except for the crackling of the fire in the distance and the chirping of crickets nearby. You swore you heard Daryl take a deep, quivering breath before speaking.
“I got ya a gift.”
Your eyes widened and your back straightened in surprise, then you realized he must’ve been messing with you. “Ha ha, very funny.”
“Ain’t jokin’,” he said softly.
Reaching into his back pocket, you watched as he pulled out a small golden broach in the shape of a rose, with studs of pink jewels embedded in the petals.
“Ain’t much,” he said with a shrug as he handed it to you, “but I thought ya might like it.”
You took the dainty ornament in your hand and twirled it around between your fingers. It coincidentally reminded you of something your grandmother used to wear, and that was enough to bring tears to your eyes, combined with the simple fact that Daryl gave you something.
“Oh, it’s so pretty,” you said. “Thank you, Daryl. I love it.”
You pinned the broach to your lapel with a smile. “How’s it look?” you asked, tossing your hair back to give him a view of the shiny pin.
He smiled ever so slightly. “Looks good on ya… and uh… I just wanted to say thank you, too. For helpin’ me at the farm… and sorry for bein’ a shithead.”
Your lips curved into the grandest smile you’d given anyone in a long time. “You’re welcome,” you said shakily, rubbing your eyes to wipe away the happy tears. “I’d do it again, you know. If you were hurt. Even if you’re a shithead.”
He scoffed. “Gonna have to fall again,” he said. “Put ya to the test.”
That reminded you, you still had Daryl’s gift in your jacket pocket.
“Well, maybe with this you won’t fall so much.”
You fished through your pocket to pull out the brass compass and display it on your palm before Daryl, whose lips separated ever so slightly in awe.
“That’s for me?” he asked.
You laughed. “No, it’s for that guy over there.” You pointed off into the dark, empty distance, and Daryl didn’t take his eyes off that glistening circle in your hand.
He carefully took it from you, pressing the push-button to spring the lid off of the glass body.
“I mean, I know you probably don’t need it, but it reminded me of you, and I thought it was kind of cool looking,” you said, hoping he didn’t hate it.
He lifted his eyes to meet yours. They were wide, like a child receiving his very first Christmas present.
Little did you know, it was.
“Thanks,” he said. “Uh, no one’s ever… no one’s ever given me anythin’.”
He didn’t quite mean to say that, but it felt right, it felt like he could admit that to you.
You slumped your shoulders in an expression of sympathy for him. “Don’t mention it.” You tentatively rested a hand upon his shoulder, to which he looked back up at you from his compass, a little tense but curious at your action nonetheless. “I just wanted to give you something… to help get you through.”
He nodded. It couldn’t have been more clear to him now, the hope this little contraption gave to him, despite it being such an inconsequential thing. If he had found it on his own, it wouldn’t have had the same effect, but the fact that it came from you, that it made you think of him, that you wanted to give him that tiny last bit of hope that there was something out there for him, for you, for everyone… it meant the whole world.
“It will,” he said.
Suddenly, an owl passed over your heads, a barn owl by the looks of its flat, white face and its gilded wings.
It perched itself in the tree hovering above you, rustling the leaves and knocking a few from their branches.
Just then, a bushy clump of green tendrils and elongated leaves landed atop Daryl’s head, getting tangled in his hair.
You covered your mouth, trying, and failing, not to laugh at the large foliage now resting on his head like a crown.
He couldn’t help but smirk a little at his predicament, but you quickly reached over to help him untangle his hair from the unruly plant.
“Here,” you said, picking out some leaves that refused to be evicted from the residence of Daryl’s hair.
Shaking your head as you rested the bush in your lap, you looked down to inspect Daryl’s attacker. The moment you laid eyes on those creamy white berries, and those familiar oblong leaves, you knew what it was.
“Oh,” you said in a sing-song voice, “mistletoe.”
Hedging your bets, you looked up to meet Daryl’s eyes, which seemed much more inviting than usual.
That small kiss you bestowed upon his warm cheek was by far your favorite gift of the night, and his too.
“Merry Christmas, Daryl.”
~
Thanks for reading! Likes, reblogs, and comments of any kind are always appreciated!
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folkloreguk · 3 years
Text
French Class [6]
A/N: You guys might want to whack out your love song playlist for this one…I cried writing this BYE I'm posting this from my grave!!
genre: optional bias (m) x reader (f), fwb, f2l?, college!au, fuckboy!bias, nerd!reader, ANGST, smut
words: ~ 3.8 k
✽series masterlist✽
taglist (lmk if u wanna be added!): @lovely-ateez, @runaway-fics, @mainexiii, @awfullytiredbuthealing, @erikyoong, @etherealuv, @staysuki, @justcuz-ican, @yeostars, @hyuckthangs, @teenloves, @mexious18-blog, @sunghoonied, @mailobjaeyoon
couldn’t tag: @chorizoek
You: can I come over? I kind of need u
H/N: you need me huh…you’re lucky I’m home alone
It always starts differently. Some other question, or a subtle message of telling him you’re bored, or a flat-out confession of being horny. The ending is always the same. You, naked in his bed. You just had to get there, and things were easy when you were already on his dorm’s doorstep.
The moment he had opened the door, you had fistfuls of his hair between your fingers and attacked his mouth in a feverish kiss. He made a noise between a laugh and surprise but reacted quickly. His lips parted right away, letting you in, and you tasted mint from the chewing gum he liked so much.
“Let me- at least- close the door,” he mumbled. “Jeez, what’s gotten into you today?”
You stepped aside and mirrored his grin. He was acting surprised, but the way he instantly locked your lips after he had shut the door told you he was enjoying this as much as you were. You ran your hands down his torso and along the side of his thighs. His happy hum only poured oil into the fire, and you saw no reason as to why you should have kept your clothes on any longer. In minutes, in the middle of heated kisses and clumsy chuckles, your clothes were discarded, and you were left in your underwear. You stumbled into his bedroom in a tangle of arms and legs and heads barely pulling apart.
“Will you tell me about the date you had today or are we skipping over that part?” he asked, as he pushed you down by the shoulders onto his bed. You groaned a little, not even knowing where to start.
“Didn’t go well, huh?” he asked. Only a few nights ago you had consoled him after his failed date, now the roles were reversed.
“That’s one way to put it,” you said. He was climbing on top of you now, and the weight of him between your thighs still did the same things to you it had done the first time. There was one of his random playlists playing quietly from the speakers, but you were both too occupied to even consider switching the music off. You weren’t in the mood for a chat, not when he was biting and sucking bruises into your chest, pushing aside your bra just enough. But you knew he wasn’t going to let it go this easily.
“Tell me about it or I won’t take one more piece of clothing off your body,” he threatened. You shot him an are-you-serious-look while he only blinked at you innocently, like he was awaiting your response.
“Fine,” you groaned. “But hurry, now.”
“That’s my girl,” he said, before unclasping your bra and throwing it to the other side of the room. “Go ahead, I expect a story.”
You had rolled your eyes at him, but when he sucked on your nipple all of a sudden, and his tongue flicked over the sensitive bud ever so perfectly, your eyes moved to the back of your head involuntarily. And, before he could complain, you started to retell today’s events.
“Alright. First of all, he acted all gentleman-y. Pulling back my chair at the restaurant, letting me have a look at the menu first, letting me order first, asking me if I was okay with our seats because they were in the sunshine, or whether he should have requested we get a different in the shade table, blah, blah, blah.”
With the lewd noises he was making, kissing your chest and fumbling with your breasts, you almost wondered whether he was paying attention to you at all.
“I’m waiting for the plot twist,” he chuckled. “If he had been this great, you wouldn’t be in my bed right now, would you?” He was now on his way to your lower regions. Your breaths came out shaky when he gripped your hips with familiar fingertips and placed a few kisses there, right above the material of your underwear. Nonetheless, you had to continue your story.
“Oh, it’s coming,” you said. “Because I suspect, the only reason he was acting that way was to compensate. For the fact that he was an hour late.”
He stifled a laugh, and you slapped his head playfully. “It’s not funny! I stood outside that restaurant on a busy street like an idiot for an hour. During exam season!”
“I wonder, if studying is so special to you- ,” he said. He tugged on your underwear, and you barely cared about his words when you were already imagining his mouth on your pussy. “Why aren’t you at home right now, doing just that?”
“Too frustrated,” you groaned, spreading your legs, practically inviting him in. “You don’t get it. That was only the beginning of the date. It gets worse.”
“Oh, damn,” he laughed, and you were going to slap him again. Harder, this time. But his tongue kitten-licked over your clit and you didn’t dare interrupt him further.
“First of all, he turned out to be boring. An economics major. And look, I’m not generalizing, I’ve met some cool economics majors. But when I said I never really understood the whole thing with inflation and deflation, I wasn’t asking for him to explain it to me. I know what it means, I just meant to say money is the root of all evil,” you said, little moans slipping inbetween your sentences. He laughed whilst sipping on your clit. You couldn’t be mad at his laughing anymore. In fact, at the sound of his chuckles, your own lips curled into a smile, too. God, he was so good with his tongue.
“But turns out he loved money. Like it was the sole reason he was doing anything. When he showed me his gold watch I almost yawned,” you continued.
“Dating a rich guy can have its upsides too, though,” he said, but you knew he was joking. He was running the tips of his fingers over your core, and you whimpered at how badly you wanted him to put them inside of you. You loved watching him, loved feeling his hair tickle the side of your thighs and having his free hand laying on top of your hipbone. The familiarity of it all, his little habits, made your heart heavy, so full of emotion, all of a sudden. But you had to snap out of it.
“Not this guy. He kept saying these lowkey sexist things I won’t repeat now. It’ll only make me mad again. He was one of those who thought money would buy him a girlfriend. And I was really trying to see the good in him…only there was none,” you said.
“Alright, I’m starting to understand why you needed some cheering up,” he said. “Good thing you’re at the right place. I know just the thing.”
At this, he slid his digits into you. You hummed and dropped your head into the plush pillow. Slowly, you exhaled, happy you finally got to relax after being so upset. But of course, he had to interrupt. Again.
“Did I say you could stop? Was that the end of the story?” he said. How did he expect you to form a coherent sentence? He fingered you gently, but the slowness of it all only drove you crazier. You felt every tiny sensation, every new bit of you he touched.
“No,” you sulked. “Fuck, it feels so good.”
“Go on, then,” he encouraged you, grinning because he was proud of your reaction he had caused.
“Fuck- okay. He was super shitty to the waiter. I’m talking about criticizing everything. This man had the audacity to complain about the food. I’m not a food critic, but I swear the food was amazing, there was nothing to fault at all,” you said, and then whined when he switched from licking your clit to sucking it between his teeth. You knew he was doing this on purpose. To make speaking harder for you.
“Oh my god, H/N. Wait, let me finish this. Not only was he horrible to the waiter in person, but he also made fun of the waiter’s appearance behind his back. And all along he expected me to find him funny. I used to think he had a sense of humor but not after today. Blech.”
“At least you got a free dinner?” he said, and without awaiting your answer, went back to work. Your head was spinning in pleasure, and you could only laugh sarcastically at his suggestion.
“Yeah. And after that train wreck of a date, he really thought he’d get to stick his tongue down my throat,” you said.
“Did he at least ask permission?” asked the boy between your legs.
“Mhm…but I told him I don’t do that on the first date,” you said. “Safe to say there won’t be another date, though.”
He looked up now, laughing more than before. You grinned, mainly because the sight of him was so cute. He folded his hands on your belly and put his face down onto your skin to giggle. In no way could you be upset or urge him to keep giving you head. In fact, you had forgotten about all of that for a while, as he seemed to enjoy your misfortune a little too wildly. You should have been hungry, eager to have the half-naked boy inside of you. Yet, you laughed at the way his breaths tickled your stomach and when he finally made eye contact, it was a wholly different sort of hunger which overcame you. Instead of the heat he usually made you feel, it was a comfortable warmth that was in your chest. It reminded you of a bonfire or of drinking your favorite hot drink on a cool autumn day.
“I want to watch you come,” he said, casually. “Were you close?”
You were so lost in his trustworthy, dreamy eyes, you almost forgot to reply. Quickly, you nodded and hummed.
“I would have already come, had you not pestered me to tell you all the details of my date,” you said. The way his cheeks beamed when he smiled made you feel as if your insides were turning into mush.
“I’m sorry. I’m your friend, aren’t I allowed to ask how your day went?” he asked.
“Of course you are,” you said. The word ‘friend’ echoed off every wall in your head until you wished you could have deleted it from the dictionary.
“I’ll make sure it feels extra good now,” he said, kissing your stomach. You shivered as you watched his gentle lips move lower, to your hips and the insides of your thighs. The touch felt like butterfly wings on your skin, and the tardiness of it made you impatient. When his tongue came in contact with your clit again, you sucked in a breath of surprise.
He tried to start slowly, but then you gripped his hair tightly, and carefully pushed him further. It was something you did often, a way to tell him you wanted more without having to use words. After all this time, he understood perfectly. Your clit was between his lips and his tongue flicked over the sensitive bundle of nerves with just the right amount of pleasure. It felt incredible, creating a funny sensation in the pit of your stomach. His fingers grazed over your slit until you were whimpering and shifting your hips, trying to make him hurry.
One of his digits slid into you easily, curling against your sweet spot, and it hit you only now how much you had missed him between your legs since he had stopped a few minutes ago. It made you feel as though you were suddenly overwhelmed with all of him, but you were willing to let the heat crash over you if it meant you could be close to him.
“Am I making it up to you now?” he asked as he pulled away merely for a breath. “I’ll turn your day into a good one after all.”
In a different tone his words would have sounded like the exact thing one would have expected to hear from a fuckboy in the bedroom. He could have boasted and bragged endlessly about how great he was with his tongue and fingers – he would have been right – but he didn’t mean it like that. You could tell from the uprightness and the authenticity in his voice that he really was doing his best because he wanted to make you feel better and turn your day around. Because you were special to him. Or so you desperately hoped.
Your legs wrapped around his shoulders as if you were trapping him between your thighs. But he was right there, and he would gladly stay for so much longer, and to say it puzzled you was an understatement. The boy who belonged to everybody, who was known by all of the campus, was treating you like you were royalty, and not the other way around. You moaned, his name inevitably falling from your lips. He added another finger and the slightest stretch made you lose your mind for a split second.
“That guy could have never made you feel this good, could he?” he suddenly asked. Your initial response was a helpless whine. You had been so close, and his talking had interrupted the otherworldly bliss for a moment.
“No, never,” you then whimpered shortly. ‘No’ was such a tiny word. It could barely encapsule what you truly meant to say. Which was that it would have never even gotten that far. That other guys couldn’t even have you at all. They didn’t get their turn to try and beat him. Not as of lately, at least. That you didn’t so much as dare to think about sleeping with other guys. That even before you had gone on the date, you had known it wouldn’t lead to anything. No guy could let you develop an interest on him in the same way the boy between your legs had done it. No other would be able to kidnap your brain like that. H/N was always there. Even when it was only you and your sex toys, you would automatically pretend it was him getting you off. You were so far gone that it was embarrassing how long it had taken you to admit it to yourself. But it was a colossal thing to confess to him, and you would never do that. Rejection would hurt a billion times more than whatever it was you two had now.
Your heart was racing as you closed your eyes. You had been so lost in thought, it was wondrous you hadn’t fallen yet. But you were right on the edge, making your breaths come out like puffs and a string of moans and swears sound from your lips. He too had stopped talking, concentrating on the task at hand, and judging by the way your back arched he was doing one hell of a good job.
“Oh my god- “ you whimpered. “I’m so close, H/N.”
This time he didn’t reply, which was for the best. Only a few seconds passed until you started to quiver and whine beneath him. You were going to outer space behind your eyelids as your high rushed through you. Your fingers curled and tightened in his locks while your legs clenched around his head. He was quick to pull your thighs apart again, still not being finished. For long seconds you swam in pleasure, with nothing on your mind but bursting stars. He was heaven, knowing precisely how far he could take it until you were too sensitive to take any more.
When you were at that point, he finally pulled away and looked up at your crumpled form. There was a lazy smile playing in the corner of your lips and your vision was hazy after having had your eyes closed for a while. He climbed up your body until his chest was against yours so he could really look at you.
“I get all of this without ever having been on a single date with you? I’m so lucky,” he said. You only smiled at him, at a loss for words. What were you to say? The two of you were clearly past the awkward dating stage already.
“I’m lucky you let me come over all the time,” you said. “I would have expected the campus fuckboy to be busier. To not have an empty spot in his bed every night.”
“Ah, shut up,” he said. “I’d rather have you here than a girl I don’t know at all. Look, I’m really tired so I don’t know how this will go…but can I?” He was on his knees, a tent visible in his boxers. With a questioning look, he was tugging them down his legs now.
“Of course,” you said. As you watched him roll on a condom, your ears perked up. Did that song have to come on shuffle just now? The coziest, most romantic love song you adored so much? You knew if you looked him in the eyes you’d be done for. But there wasn’t anywhere else to look when he settled between your legs and held up his weight with his forearms. His eyes were deep enough for you to get lost within a second. Distracting yourself was impossible. The one last thing you could do was to reach between the two of you and guide his length into you.
The song’s chorus came on, you looked at him once again, and suddenly you were all his. You didn’t need to tell him so. He thrust gently, almost carefully, like he had never done it with you. Your heart hammered against your ribcage so vivaciously, you wondered whether it had turned autonomous and was now trying to jump out of your body, onto his skin and through it, so it could nestle next to his own heart.
Neither of you spoke. Yet, there had never been so much chemistry, such a heavy amount of uncommunicated emotions between the two of you. You were ready to hang on his every word, should he decide to speak up. In your head rampaged a billion sentiments you needed him to know, but there was no option to express them adequately. Perhaps there were simply no words in the English language to declare your feelings for him.
Small whimpers and moans left your lips only for him to hear. Sometimes he moved a little quicker, gifting you with the most perfect sounds he could make. And to know you were the cause for it sent you into overdrive. His mouth was right above yours. If you lifted your head slightly, you could have kissed his sweet, sweet lips. But you were so afraid. What would he think? You had never kissed him during sex. Not softly, like you wanted it so terribly.
Even worse, you craved so much more than that. You wanted to pull him in, envelope his mouth in your own, crawl over the edge of his lips and reside in his chest for safety. Because that’s what he was. Comfort. Reassurance. Home. How foolish you had been, pretending this little fling would lead to nothing more. You really had told yourself this would work. No feelings. Just fun. You couldn’t deny having fun with him. He was the best company you had ever known, and he had become your most precious friend quickly. It was as if you had only been waiting for the silly, flirty boy to sit across from you in the library and make weak advances towards you.
The love song tuned out slowly, replaced by something more sensual and sinful. In accordance with the new background noise, he gripped your hips a little meaner and went faster. You barely noticed how his breathing had sped up as he was getting closer to his orgasm. A trance had overcome you, transfixing you on his godlike features and how much it hurt to know you couldn’t call him yours. In your head you were made for each other. They always said to date your best friend, didn’t they? You could try to turn back time, go back to your first meeting place, at the party. See if things would turn out different. But you knew they wouldn’t. As much as your fear tried to suppress it – you would take the same path again, stumbling head-first into his arms and letting him into your life like a crashing wave of laughter and heart-crushing conversations.
Now you reflected in despair, how he had taken your heart in a storm, without having to try too hard. And worst of all, you were okay with it. Your heart was secure with him, you thought. The feelings yearned to be spoken out loud, but you couldn’t bring yourself to do it.
“You feel so good,” he said. “Always, so fucking good.”
He snapped his hips against yours, burying his cock deep inside of you and all you could muster was a hum of agreement. This is what you got for keeping him at arms-length from the beginning. Wasn’t it you who had challenged him to be friends and only that? Perhaps you would be okay, so long as no one else called him theirs either. You could go on like this, letting him use you for sexual relief and making him laugh when he needed it. Gladly, you would take the pain of not being allowed to love him with your whole being if it meant you could see him whenever you wanted. Exposing those silly emotions would wreck your friendship and you wouldn’t let it happen.
He grunted and only then, when he lowered his head into the crook of your neck and moaned your name, you realized he was reaching his high. Softly, you cradled his head in your hands, as if it was the last time you could hold him like this. When he put his forehead against yours, he had his eyes closed and his chest was moving steadier than before.
“You’re the best,” he whispered. “Stay the night?”
Should you have gone home, and missed him all night? Would you have regretted saying no while you curled up in bed with no Cheshire-cat-grin-boy to hold? Or were you to remain in his bed, and pray you would survive the torture of not speaking your mind? His skin radiated the most wonderful warmth and you wanted to trace his lips with your eyes until you fell asleep. That’s how quickly it was decided.
“Okay,” you answered.
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dekalko-mania · 2 years
Text
Hello! A bit late, but here's my @phandomholidaytruce gift for @charmingcritter ! I followed their prompt based on outsider POV of Amity/Danny, and a bit on Danno's obsession. Hope you enjoy and happy holidays!
....
Tourist Attraction (Ao3)
“I don’t like this.” 
“Danny, c’mon. It’s not a big deal.” 
He shook his head, arms remaining crossed. 
“I’m on your side for this one.” Sam flipped a page in her book, voice monotone as she addressed Tucker. Her legs were thrown over the armrest of her La-Z-Boy, looking completely relaxed now that she’d finished her allotted Team Phantom work. “Why don’t we just figure out a way to go around the obsession?” 
“See! Even Sam agrees!” Tucker pushed his laptop to the side, ghost files still taking up the screen. “You can’t go around mad dogging every new person that comes into Amity.” 
“Wanna bet?” Danny raised a challenging brow, shutting his own laptop closed. 
“Don’t.” Sam raised a finger before Tucker could so much as utter another word. “Or he’ll actually go out and do it.”
Tucker sputtered. “He’s gonna do it anyway! The guy’s got no sense, and that’s coming from me!” 
“I take offense to that.” Danny flopped back onto the dark hardwood floor. “What else do you want me to do? Sit back and let all these people we don’t know cause trouble in Amity?”
“We live in a semi-big city,” Sam stated. “People come by all the time.”
“Yeah, but not this many at once. Usually they’re here for like two hours and then leave. And it’s always the same people checking out a restaurant they like or something. These are…” Danny’s expression soured. “Tourists.”
Tucker shoved Danny’s shoulder. “You’re saying that like you’re talking about the plague.” 
“Might as well be.” Danny smacked his hand away. “These are strangers. Worse, they’re all curious about our lore. They’re all gonna be poking around where they shouldn’t and bothering the locals. Remember last year when some guy broke into Boxy’s warehouse and the entire city had a box shortage for a week?”
“That was some meltdown.” Tucker whistled. “Poor guy.”
“He set his most prized boxes on fire.” Danny glared. 
“Relax.” Tucker raised his hands in reassurance. “I’m talking about the Box Ghost. The other guy can suck it.”
Danny relaxed and sighed. “Yeah well, I don’t think he’ll be the last person to mess around where they shouldn’t.” 
“Okay, we understand. You wanna protect Amity, but you can’t stalk the tourists,” Sam reasoned. “We’ve barely gotten your approval ratings up to seventy.”
“I’m not going to stalk anyone.”
“Sure, you’re just going to go up to them and very kindly ask them to fuck off, right?” Sam tossed her book to the side, throwing him an unamused look. “Maybe scare them off with those spooky eyes of yours.” 
“Exactly,” Danny grinned, crossing his arms behind his head. “Glad we’re on the same page.” 
“Danny, I swear-”
“Wait.” Tucker shot up, conspiratory gleam crossing his eye. “We can’t stop all these tourists from coming in, but what if we use this to our advantage?” 
“How are we supposed to do that?” Danny frowned. “Don’t know if you missed it, but my obsession wants absolutely nothing to do with them.” 
“Because you don’t know who they are, and they’re not educated on Amity etiquette,” Tucker pointed out. “But, what if we could solve the issue and make a big buck out of it?” 
Danny focused somewhere on the ceiling and scoffed. “You want to try your hand at giving tours again?”
“Exactly! With some improvements, of course.” 
“Tucker, the last time we did that it was you and me lugging a group of ghost hunters on a bike.” Sam seemed very much not interested. “What could we even use that’s big enough to hold all these people?”
“Danny’s been legally driving the GAV for two years now. Illegally, since he was like twelve.” Tucker glanced at him for support. “How many can we fit in there?” 
“If I clean it up and adjust the seats, like ten probably. Not including me and whoever wants to be in the passenger seat.” Begrudgingly, Danny was starting to see the pros to Tucker’s plan. “We can also detract the back walls so the entire thing is one big window on either side.”
“See? Sam, you’re really good at keeping crowd control. You can man the line and all the finances. Meanwhile, Danny drives and we both give the tour.” Tucker waved a hand in one long flourish. “Easy peasy.” 
Sam eyed them both and then groaned. “Okay, whatever. As long as I do less of the talking.” 
“Yes!” Tucker fist bumped the air. “What about you Danny? Just think about it. We’ll be able to keep track of who comes in, and make sure we lay out some ground rules. Covering all the bases without you spazzing out on ‘em.”
Danny shrugged. “It’s worth a try.”
“Great!” Tucker clapped his hands together. “Now, about the ticket prices….”
…. 
They had settled on calling their side job the most basic name possible. “Amity Park Tours” was as uncreative as it got, but at least their point went across fairly well. Most of their brainstorming had been Tucker trying to convince Sam and Danny that “A Nice Place to Die” would not make for a good slogan. In the end, he’d just barely gotten them to settle for “A Nice Place to Haunt” instead. 
Danny still thought their original idea was better, but whatever. At least their calculated funds would come back pretty good, with ticket prices starting at twenty-five for adults, and fifteen for kids. 
He was beginning to mentally applaud Tucker for his genius, until the final blow came just minutes before the tourists were set to arrive. 
“You did what!?” Danny didn’t have to guess what color his eyes were flashing. 
“Okay, it’s not as bad as it sounds,” Tucker attempted to reassure. “Think about how high the tips are gonna be!” 
“I don’t care about that! What’ll I do if my parents find out?” 
“They haven’t shot at you in months!” 
“Yeah, cause the city’s on their case about it, not because they don’t want to!” It took everything in Danny’s being not to go ghost on Tucker then and there. “How am I ever going to explain this?” 
“Okay, wait.” Sam stepped in between them, clearly displeased at the turn of events herself, but calmer than either of them. “You promised them a tour led by Phantom, right?”
Tucker nodded. 
She sighed. “Then we’ll give them one.” 
“Sam-”
“No, wait.” She placed a placating hand on Danny’s shoulder, meeting him eye to eye. “If we change it now, we’re going to get into trouble and you won’t be able to put a lid on your obsession. If we go through with it, well…how often have we done something like this without your parents noticing?” 
“Many times,” Danny acquiesced. “But Sam, if they find out I supposedly let Phantom lead a tour in their assault vehicle….” 
“They won’t find out. We’ll make sure of it.” Sam said it with conviction. “Worst comes to worst, we’ll say that they can’t mention it to the Fentons or they’ll get…I don’t know. Cursed or something.”
“Cursed?” Danny frowned. “Really?”
“People will believe anything in Amity,” Tucker agreed. He began to fidget as voices started nearing the vehicle from outside. “C’mon Danny. Have a sense of adventure.”
Danny tsked, picking up the voices more clearly. He was able to distinguish distinct words in conversation, hearing a few people say they were excited to meet Phantom. He knew with a sinking feeling that he couldn’t say no. 
“Fine,” he decided. “But I’m getting a higher cut of the tips.”
“Deal!” Tucker grinned, preparing to open the GAV doors. “Now, do your thing, ghost boy.”
…. 
Danny was grateful that Sam had convinced the owner of the Skulk and Lurk to let them use their parking space. They had a pretty huge lot that was left mostly empty during the day, when their usual customers weren’t about. 
It had taken them about twenty minutes to get through all the autographs and pictures, all taken against the backdrop of the building so they could avoid evidence of him using the GAV. It was a familiar routine for Danny, and he very easily settled into his Phantom persona for all the enthusiastic customers. 
There was only really one incident that struck him as odd, where a ginger-haired girl similar to Jazz in height and build had used a flash for her first photo. Danny had thought to ask her why, but shrugged it off when another girl took her place. 
Once they had gotten through it, the first ten tourists settled into place, while Sam wished them luck on their drive from outside. The air inside the GAV was filled with excited chattering, crowd of people oddly full of energy for 9 AM on a chilly Wednesday. 
Danny’s core hummed as he looked over them, pleased that none of them radiated any sort of dangerous energy. More than half of them were teens or young adults in their early twenties, while the two outliers were part of a family. The red-headed girl from earlier, now identified as Jackie, was part of it, sitting next to an identical-looking mom. 
He nodded to himself, before pulling out a handheld mic for himself and handing the other to Tucker. 
“Alright,” Danny tried out. “Does this sound clear to everyone?”
“Whoa.” A bright eyed, sandy-haired guy in the back peeked his head behind a seat. If Danny remembered correctly, his name was Adrien. “An announcement I can actually understand?”
Danny snorted. “That’s Fenton tech for you. Now, before we start the tour, Tucker here and I wanted to make some, uh, announcements. Tucker?”
“Right!” Tucker’s mic blared for a little, and he winced. “Sorry. So, basically you all probably know about the Fentons, and you might be wondering, ‘why would they ever let a ghost borrow a car made to destroy ghosts?’ Short answer is, they didn’t. Their son Danny did, and he’s currently distracting them while we use the killer SUV.” 
“Then why isn’t he here if it’s his family car?” Jackie spoke up. “Why couldn't someone else distract them?”
“He, well…” Danny blanched.
“I have to be here cause I’m ghostly moral support. Danny can’t do math so Sam’s handling the tickets. And, um…” Tucker tried for a shaky grin. “Danny can’t drive?”
Said ghost boy glared. 
“Huh.” Jackie settled down, satisfied for now. “Valid.”
“Right, so. Don’t snitch or you’ll be cursed with….really warm pillows.” Tucker coughed. “And short battery lives on your phone. Yeah.”
“Anyway,” Danny interrupted. “We’re starting out at the Skulk and Lurk. Which ironically, is one of the few places in Amity not haunted by ghosts. They were nice enough to give all of you a Phantom discount for today, so stop by for some coffee after or some goth merch. Maybe stay for the poetry slam.”
Adrien’s hand shot up. “Do they serve coffee with ectoplasm?”
“That would be a hazard,” Danny answered. “So no.”
“Then what do the ghosts drink?”
“They don’t.”
Jackie frowned. “But I saw a video of you holding a venti frap from Starbucks the other day. If ghosts can’t drink anything, then why were you?”
“I didn’t say they couldn’t,” Danny backtracked. “Just that they don’t. Usually. You get the taste but it doesn’t do much in terms of sustenance.” He pointed at Adrien. “Though that ectoplasm coffee idea would probably do the trick.”
“So you eat ectoplasm?” The girl looked majorly grossed out. 
“Ghosts thrive off a lot of crazy things.” Tucker smirked. “Ambient ectoplasm, pure ectoplasm, emotions, their obsession, the souls of the innocent.” 
“You’re going to eat our souls?!” Adrien’s face went white as he pressed against the boy next to him. 
Danny smacked Tucker hard enough to dislodge his glasses. “No, I’m not the type of ghost to eat souls.” 
“But they exist?” Jackie pressed. 
“Sorry, can’t answer that. Gotta focus on the road now.” He did not want to get on the topic of the ghosts of the barren lands. “Speaking of, care to introduce our local botany?”
Tucker got the hint. “Absolutely! So right there is a really haunted bush. See the black one with the smoke coming off it? Looks like it's barely surviving a fire? Yeah if you ever see something like that during your time in Amity, stay away.” 
“What happens if I eat it?” The boy Adrien had been clutching asked, still patting the back of his friend’s back. 
“What was your name again?”
“Nick.”
“Okay, well Nick.” Tucker clapped his hands. “Someone did actually try that out last fall and they landed a permanent stay in the Ghost Zone.” 
“Word?” He was oddly unphased for someone not from Amity.
“No, he’s alive.” Danny cut in. “He just had a really unhealthy obsession with Ember and ended up nearly setting the nearby high school on fire ‘cause of the shrine in his locker. It took a whole day of Khan Academy lessons to snap him out of it.” He gestured out the window. “She’s the one that planted these with another ghost’s help. If you try to blast them, two more grow in their place. For now everyone’s just trying to avoid them until we can figure out what to do. As long as you don’t touch them, you’ll be fine.” 
“Ember?” Nick frowned.
Before Danny could explain, Jackie cut in excitedly. “She’s a ghost in her late teens whose obsession is having others chant her name. Or that’s the simplified version at least. It's said that what she really wants is to be remembered. Since ghost deaths are tied to their obsession, you only have to do a little digging into her background to realize why. The other day I checked out the Amity archives at the library and found out there was a girl named Amber McClean who died mysteriously in a house fire. She was alive during the mid eighties, and no one knows much about her except that she wanted to be a musician. I was hoping to maybe see her and ask-”
Jackie stopped suddenly, eyes meeting Danny’s in the rearview mirror.
“First lesson here.” Danny tried hard to keep his voice from shaking, but he couldn’t resist his harsh grip on the wheel. “Never, ever seek out a ghost to ask them about their death. Don’t think about it, don’t approach them, and don’t even ask about their obsession. Those two things are off limits, understand?” 
“But, I’m just curious….” 
Danny could see that he’d shaken her up somehow. Her eyes were downcast, and a part of him felt bad, but he knew this was important. It was the whole reason they’d planned this out in the first place. 
More gently, he tried to explain. “Aside from it being a touchy, painful subject to the ghost, their reaction is unpredictable. They could haunt you, or lash out if they’re less sympathetic to humans. Ember would definitely not take it well.” 
“But you’re supposed to be a good ghost, right?” Jackie’s mom ventured to ask. “Would you react the same way?”
Danny knew that tourists were bound to be curious, but he honestly hadn’t been expecting it to get so personal. With a sigh, he nodded. “I’d like to think so. I mean, I don’t want to hurt anyone, and I try my best to stop the ghosts that like to cause trouble. But I might act a bit more hostile, and I’ll ask you to stop.” 
“Phantom here doesn’t pick fights with regular people,” Tucker added. “But he will scare the absolute shit out of you if you get him mad. What he means by ‘hostile’ is ‘you’re gonna wanna cry for your mom.’” 
“Language,” Jackie’s mom warned. 
“Sorry ma’am.” 
“Oh c’mon, don’t exaggerate.” Danny rolled his eyes, turning a corner over to a seemingly innocuous brick building. “On a level of scariness, I’m probably a six on a good day.”
“Oh my god.” Adrien gasped, crawling over Nick to get a view outside the window. “Is that Casper High? I saw all the fight compilations on YouTube! It’s like, super super haunted!”
The rest of those in the GAV broke into heavy chatter, pulling out their phones to snap pictures of the school from multiple angles. Some were gushing over the scorch marks on the side of the building, while others craned their heads to try and catch a glimpse of a ghost. 
Meanwhile Danny and Tucker shared an equally amused look, the former shaking his head in wonder. It was times like this that reminded Danny that while a place like Casper High could be lame to him, it was practically a national monument to others.
“Like Adrien said, this is Casper High.” Tucker motioned for Danny to drive closer. “Land of expired lunch meat and weekly ghost attacks. We’re on winter break so don’t expect much action. The ghosts here only like to attack when the building’s actually full.” 
“And before you ask, no we’re not exactly sure why. Closest theory is that a lot of obsessions rely on the presence of humans. It’s empty right now for the most part, except for, well…” Danny paused for dramatic effect. To his delight, everyone leaned closer. “Sidney Poindexter.” 
“Sidney’s here?!” Adrien and Nick both shouted in unison, eyes gleaming.
“I follow one of his fan accounts, he’s so cool!” Nick pulled up a Twitter page and showed it to those around him. “We’re his biggest fans, but we didn’t expect to see him. Ever since Phantom declared him an ally, he’s been going around interacting with everyone.” 
“I thought he would only be there when school was in session,” Adrien agreed. “The last video I saw of him was posted before winter break. Some guy was stuffing a kid in a locker and Sidney shoved him into it instead.” 
“You know, he’s got some of the most interesting powers among Amity’s ghosts,” Jackie chipped in. “While a lot of them get most of their strength from their defensive powers, Poindexter’s telekinesis and overshadowing abilities are tougher than most. I’d say he practices possession if anything. His control and the length of time he can hold it out for is pretty impressive.”
Danny raised a brow in her direction. “You know a lot for someone not from Amity. How’d you even figure all that out? It’s not exactly common information.”
Jackie grinned. “Conspiracies and the supernatural are really popular in my family. Me and my mom are both super into Amity lore.”
“I think she beats me in that one, I’d say I have more of a passing interest,” her mom chuckled.
“Okay, maybe I’m more into it. One of my favorite cousins lives here and he tells me all the details, he’s super smart.” Jackie shrugged. “As for how I know, I don’t. It was all just my guess based on videos I’ve compiled. But your reaction confirmed it!”
It was quickly becoming apparent to Danny that the girl had much more than a slight similarity to his sister. The way she rambled about ghost lore reminded him of Jazz when she spoke about psychology. Though, she also reminded him of someone else. He just couldn’t figure out who. 
“Well, I wish I could call out Sidney for you guys to meet him, but he can’t stray much from school grounds. Even the sidewalk is pretty far for him, unless he’s got a host.” Danny frowned at Nick, prompting him to put his hand back down. “And no, we’re not taking any volunteers for that. But I’ll see if maybe I can get another video of him for you online.”
“Worth a try,” Nick shrugged. 
“Don’t worry, the next stop is way more interesting,” Tucker promised. “Skulker blew a hole into the ground there the size of a small car. Maybe we could even get down for a group picture!”
…. 
They did eventually end up taking multiple group pictures. The route they had mapped out for the tourists ended up including the Skulk and Lurk, Casper High, Amity Central Park, the Nasty Burger, the abandoned houses on the edge of the city, Axion Labs, the observatory, and North Mercy Hospital. There were a few other stops along the way that were lesser known, but not any less haunted in Danny’s experience, that they had given the tourists backstory on. 
Some of them had asked why they hadn’t stopped by the GIW Headquarters or Fentonworks, until Danny very dryly reminded them that he was what they got their funding to get rid of. Some seemed genuinely shocked, making Danny wonder if they really did forget he was supposed to be dead, despite his glow and neon eyes. 
By the time they had finished the tours, it was nearing five o’clock, taking about an hour for all five groups of ten. They didn’t cover nearly all the visitors, but Danny at least felt better now knowing that the majority of people that came were either fans or simply curious to get to know Amity. None so far had been actual ghost hunters intending to do harm. 
Even with all of them, he had a soft spot for their first group, which left with a promise to greet him when they saw Danny on patrol. 
He was so lost in thought about his day, that it took him longer than usual to realize the dinner table had gone quiet. 
“Sorry, did you say something?” He looked at both his parents, practically vibrating in their seats with anticipation. 
“We were saying that we forgot to tell you some very important news,” his mom exchanged a smile with his dad. “Your father and I got a very generous grant in exchange for a small tour of the lab.”
“A what!” Danny dropped his spoon, hoping he hadn’t heard correctly.
“I know, isn’t that great? We get to blab about our tech, and get paid for it!” His tone was completely lost on his dad. “The only downside is that they were only able to come in tomorrow. And you see, we already had a conference planned a few cities over with some fellow ghost hunters.” 
“Which means?” Danny wasn’t liking where this was going. 
“You get to do it!” His dad pointed a potato-filled spoon at him. “My own son, taking up the helm of Fentonworks!” He wiped away a stray tear. “Feels like just yesterday when we grounded you for missing curfew.”
“That was yesterday,” Danny groaned. “And I can’t. I’ve, uh, got a fear of public speaking?”
“Even better, you get to face your fears! Too bad we never found that hazmat of yours, it would’ve been perfect.” His dad frowned. “Or not, you’ve had a pretty big growth spurt.”
“Mom, you can’t be serious too, right?” Danny tried for the more reasonable parent. “I’ve never given a tour.”
That they know of.
“Oh sweetie, I’m sure you’ll do great. You’ve grown up on our tech since you were born!” His mom seemed to have already made up her mind about it. “Who better to do it?” 
“Will you unground me?”
“Is that a yes?” 
Danny sighed. “I guess.”
His mom grinned from ear to ear. “Good! Now, we’ve decided to stow away the more dangerous-”
Danny listened halfheartedly, keeping mental note of his own plans. If he was going to do this again, then he had to make sure it was completely safe. He’d have to put the portal to sleep temporarily so it wouldn’t open, but it would be best if he wanted to avoid any accidents. 
He momentarily considered calling Sam and Tucker for help, but pushed it away when he realized it would look suspicious if anyone from the day before saw him with them again in human form. 
It was just him, a group of strangers, and Fenton tech. What could go wrong?
….
Jackie had gathered a series of notes since her stay at Amity. For one, the population was quite nonchalant for being under constant attack. For another, their resident ghost hero was not like the rest. 
Putting it simply, Phantom was fucking weird.
She wasn’t one to wholeheartedly believe everything the Fentons said, one of those claims being that ghosts were unfeeling and mindless. She knew that was false based on the multiple eyewitness accounts and video evidence she had gathered of the Amity Park ghosts. They definitely had their own thoughts, feelings, values, and passions. 
They weren’t inhuman monsters, but they also weren’t entirely human either. They didn’t need human functions, they had supernatural abilities, and they had their own society. They were also fixed on the time period at which they died. 
Sydney Poindexter still talked like someone from the sixties, and the more ancient ghosts stayed rooted to their own cultures. It made sense, that’s how it should be. They were trapped in time while the world kept going. 
Except for one. That’s where Phantom came in. 
Though there was some flimsy evidence of him having existed for centuries, Jackie suspected he died around the time Amity became ghost central. That was two years ago. He should’ve stuck to the slang and the trends of the time, but he didn’t. 
Everything he did contradicted his kind. He evolved, he knew current trends and jokes. Phantom didn’t struggle to keep up with modern society like the others did. He didn’t awkwardly stick new words into phrases like Technus, or struggle to remember words like Yungblud. 
She’d gathered it all and compared it while he had given them the tour. It was the entire reason she had gone in the first place, when she could honestly have just asked her cousins to show her around. Jackie wanted to observe and make discoveries.
And she did, many of them. 
Phantom acted as naturally as a human did when he was around them. He sat firmly in the driver's seat, he blinked, and most importantly, he breathed. He hadn’t at first, she was sure of it. But after a while, she noticed his chest rising and falling, as if he’d forgotten he wasn’t supposed to do it. 
His explanation about the coffee made no sense either. He said it had no function, that he only drank it for the taste. But unlike the other ghosts, Phantom could look tired. He hid it under a veneer of cockiness during the fights, but closer up, she could see the eye bags. 
He drank coffee like someone who was running on little sleep, when again, ghosts weren’t supposed to sleep. In the videos she’d gathered, he would have multiple different caffeinated drinks throughout the day. It wasn’t just coffee. He drank Red Bull and Monster, both of which were absolutely not satisfying in taste at all. At least not to her.
Most damning of all was his picture. She’d read somewhere that flash photography often revealed strange things in supernatural environments. Jackie hadn’t thought much of it, but tried the trick anyway out of habit. 
What she ended up with was a photo where Phantom’s eyes looked closer to icy blue than his typical neon green. She could attribute it to his ice powers, but these looked duller and more humane. 
Phantom was an enigma. He was friendly, and somewhat snarky. He had the charm his hero persona warranted, but he was also entirely too human. It was unnerving.
It was wrong. 
Something was off with Phantom, and the part of her that loved a mystery wanted this one solved. There had to be a reason why her cousin scowled whenever the ghost was brought up, why he talked to her about so many other aspects of Amity Park, but not about Phantom. 
It was what led her to convincing her dad, an avid supporter of the Fentons’ inventions, to call in a favor. She rarely liked to use her family’s wealth to her advantage, but she needed more information, and there was only one group of researchers in this town who were willing to give it. The GIW was out of the question. 
It was meant to be simple and relaxing. She’d even invited the two guys from the Amity Park Tours, Nick and Adrien, after they hit it off. Jackie would go in, ask her questions, and leave. That was it. 
Except, she had made a new discovery, and it was that Danny Fenton was fucking weird too. 
Somehow, he managed to be more unnerving than Phantom. He really shouldn’t have been, not when he was so lanky and seemed pretty harmless overall. Although he was giving them the tour in place of his parents, he had opted to stay in casual wear, donning an oversized black hoodie, some loose jeans, and some red converse. 
He looked more like he belonged in a skate park if she was being honest. She tried telling herself that to push away the discomfort, but it hardly made a difference. 
The same went for his personality. He was pretty funny, and somewhat dorky, but he also always seemed on edge. She’d always thought that your own home is where you should feel the safest, but he very much contradicted that. He was the type to check his corners when he entered a room, and held a tightness to his posture even when he seemed slack. 
Danny was currently leading them down to his basement, where most of the magic apparently took place. He did the same thing as before when they crossed the threshold, looking side to side, then up and down. 
When the coast was clear, he nodded to himself and turned to them with a grin. “Right, so we’ve introduced ourselves upstairs. Anything else you want me to know? Specifically, are any of you scared of needles, sharp tools, otherworldly fluids, or anything along those lines?”
“Um, all of the above?” Adrien answered. “But I’ll put it aside for science and cry later.”
“Disassociation, love that.” Danny nodded. “Well, my parents didn’t exactly tell me what you were most interested in seeing, so I decided we would just do a general sweep. Maybe check out the Ops Center if that’s what you’re into.”
He pointed his finger upwards and Jackie balked. “That’s what that giant UFO thing attached to the roof is? How’d you even convince the city to let you install it?”
“Convince is a strong word,” he grimaced. “More like, we just kept ignoring their warnings and eventually they gave up once it actually ended up being useful.” Danny shrugged. “I honestly don’t know how my parents manage to get away with half of the things they do, but I do know how their tech works, so-”
He led them over to the first item lined up for them, a giant dream catcher with a green and black color scheme. 
“This,” Danny started. “Is the Fenton Ghost Catcher.” 
He proceeded to explain its function, answering their questions with ease. All the while, Jackie noticed how he seemed to keep his distance from the contraption. Sure, she understood why caution was necessary in a lab, but from the sound of it, the Ghost Catcher was relatively harmless. 
All it was meant to do was pull out a ghost from an overshadowed human, or target any ecto-contamination that one might have. It wouldn’t hurt a person who accidentally stuck their hand inside. The worst it would do was nothing at all. 
Yet, it might as well be a loaded gun with the way Danny was treating it. The behavior continued when they moved onto the next item, which sounded just as harmless as the last. It looked intimidating, easily being the biggest machine in the room, but it ended up being more of a disruptor than an actual weapon. 
“The name’s honestly not all that great. Dad said he would get around to changing it, but, well, it hasn't happened yet.” Danny grimaced. “It’s called the Ecto-Stoppo-Power-Erfier. And can you guess what it does?”
“Blasts ghosts into a million pieces?” Nick suggested.
Danny blanched. “Um, no but….good guess? It temporarily stops a ghost from accessing their powers. My parents meant for it to work on all of them, but after trial and error, they found out that it’s more unpredictable. It might cut off their ectoblasts, but they can still fly. Or vice versa.” He shrugged. “Honestly, a lot of their inventions are a surprise. They don’t always do exactly what was intended, but they’re still more advanced than nearly every other ghost hunting organization you’ll come across.” 
“Why do you think your parents are so much more ahead of everyone else?” Jackie hadn’t meant to let the question slip out, but she was genuinely curious. In her own research she’d realized that despite how silly the Fentons seemed, they were legitimate geniuses. No one did it quite like them.
Danny seemed to agree, a fond smile crossing his features. It was the first time since being around him that the slight chill in his eyes seemed to clear away completely. 
“I think they’re not afraid to go places others don’t even try going into,” Danny confessed. “They don’t care about looking silly or being wrong. They know they can just try again, that it’s better to be wrong than to not have tried at all. They’re pretty creative with their stuff honestly.”
Jackie nodded. “Makes sense.”
“I’ve got one!” Adrien smiled when he got called on. “You said this one doesn’t completely remove the ghost powers like it was intended to. How come it doesn’t? And why do some of the others not work either?”
“Oof, getting deeper here.” Danny paused. “Okay, keeping in mind I’m definitely not smart like my parents, and this is all just me guessing. One thing my parents have is that they know a lot about ghosts physically, but not mentally. What goes on up here-” He tapped the side of his head. “Is super important. Their obsession, how death has affected their psychology, or just how their mental state affects their powers in general. You have to take it all into account.” He waved at the power blocking machine. “Like this here. I don’t think it actually physically gets rid of a ghost’s powers.”
Jackie’s eyes widened. “It’s a mental block.”
He nodded. “Exactly. They’re still there, they just can’t access them. It’s why I think it doesn’t cancel them out completely. Some powers are just like muscle memory and you don’t really have to think about them once you know. Others require a lot more mindfulness.” 
“So if the Fentons knew this, they could improve their inventions so they would be more accurate,” Nick observed.
“Exactly.”
“Then how come you know and they don’t?” Jackie couldn’t help but think Danny sounded like he was speaking from personal experience.
That odd glint was back in his eye again. Wariness. 
“My parents don’t exactly believe in theories like this. They’re things you’d have to figure out by talking to a ghost,” Danny said. “And they wouldn’t be exactly thrilled if they realized I talked to the one they hate the most.”
“Phantom,” Adrien whispered. “I totally forgot you’re the one that lent him your parents’ SUV.”
“Yup.” Danny didn’t seem too thrilled to elaborate. “Anyway, this next thing is called the anti-creep stick. Any guesses what it does?”
It looked like a regular bat to Jackie.
“Does it electrocute ghosts? Rip their souls out of their body?” Nick gasped. “Turn them into Jell-o?”
“Okay, maybe you’re creative too.” Danny snorted. “It’s just a bat with the word Fenton on it, I was just messing with you.”
While the other boys laughed, Jackie wondered how they didn’t notice the obvious avoidance tactic Danny was using. There was something there, something they were getting close to that made Danny uncomfortable. She figured she’d poked around enough for now, but she kept her guard up as they walked.
Danny led them over to the rest of the inventions he had laid out for them, all pretty interesting if Jackie was being honest. But more interesting to her were his mannerisms. He was extremely expressive, his whole face an open book and his arms moving in wide arches. 
There was also a tendency there to downgrade himself slightly. Every intelligent remark would be quickly followed by a ridiculous joke or pun, and his otherwise tall height was hidden away by the heavy slouch of his shoulders. They were things that could be easily attributed to shyness, but Jackie didn’t think that was the case.
It was like he was doing it on purpose, like he had all these brittle attempts laid out to try and hide anything out of place. It made it tough for her to pinpoint it, but she knew some things were off. She didn’t know what, couldn’t place her finger on it…
“Look Jackie, I think this is the ghost portal.” Adrien’s whisper caught her off guard. She was so lost in her thoughts, she hadn’t even realized her feet were following behind the group. 
When she looked up, she saw what he was talking about. It was a large metallic doorway with black and yellow stripes going across it diagonally. It loomed above them, and even closed, she could feel heavy energy emanating from behind it. The boy’s beside her stared at it in awe, and she couldn’t help doing the same.
“Can we see what’s on the other side?” She blurted out. 
When she looked, she saw Danny shake his head. “No can do, sorry. I put it on sleep mode specifically for the tour of the lab. The moment I open it, some ghost is bound to come in.”
“What if we turned it off?” Nick suggested. “Just to take a look inside.”
Danny stiffened, expression taking on a darker quality. Jackie swore she felt the temperature drop a few degrees. 
Adrien’s shivering form beside her confirmed it. 
“Doing that would be a huge hazard,” Danny responded, sounding like he was forcing the words out through clenched teeth. “I can’t do that. I can’t…” He sighed and tried again. “It’s dangerous. But I can show you a 3D model of what it looks like when it’s on? It’s over on this computer.”
None of them denied the offer, Adrien specifically seeming all too eager to get rid of the tense air. From her position, Jackie was able to inspect Danny’s side profile, body going numb when she finally found what exactly had made her tick.
Danny was a very expressive person, from head to toe. But looking back on it, and seeing him now, she noticed there was an odd pattern. In between all those gestures and nervous habits, he had moments where he was completely still. Unnaturally still. 
Subtly eyeing his chest from her peripheral vision, Jackie realized he wasn’t breathing. He couldn’t be, not when he was making such a great effort to resemble a marble statue. The only thing moving was his hand on the computer mouse, and his eyes as they flitted across the screen.
Even that didn’t match though. Everything joint down was turning, but the rest of his arm was completely still. And his eyes, they were moving, but something was missing.
They weren’t blinking. 
Feeling a sense of deja vu, Jackie itched to ask the one question she hadn’t been able to the previous day. “Yesterday, Phantom told us that it’s rude to ask a ghost about how they died.”
Danny hummed, clicking open a folder and pulling up a multi dimensional model of the portal, but with a churning mass of green where it was now metal. 
“And see, I’m really curious about something.” Jackie could feel both Adrien and Nick’s eyes pinning her from either side. “There’s no ghosts around, and with the portal disabled, there won’t be any time soon. So, I’ve been meaning to ask you…”
Nick made a neck slicing gesture beside her but she ignored it. 
“How did Phantom die?” She blurted out. 
This time, she was certain she wasn’t imagining the rapid chill. Her breath fogged in front of her, goosebumps crawling all along her arms. Danny stopped moving altogether, and had she blinked, she would’ve missed the moment when his eyes flashed a colder blue. 
It wasn’t in her head. The eyes in the picture, they were the exact ones that were facing her now. 
Wait, when had he turned to face her? 
Jackie’s lungs suddenly felt like they had filled with water, and she stepped back. Still, Danny’s eyes bore into hers, pupils shrunken so intensely that his iris almost seemed made up entirely of blue. She didn’t know how to react, what to say to make him seem less like he was going to rip into her any minute. 
Nick’s hand abruptly shot over to grasp onto her arm, as if he were ready to jump in front of her any second. The movement seemed enough to snap Danny out of whatever trance he was in, body slowly relaxing from its stock straight position. 
“I don’t know. He’s a ghost, he doesn’t exactly advertise that information.” Danny’s form seemed to blur for a moment, forcing Jackie to squint just to look at him. “But I’d prefer it if you didn’t ask me a question like that again.” 
“Why?” Adrien chuckled nervously beside her. “It’s not like there’s a ghost here, right?” 
“We’re in Amity.” Danny reverted back to looking more normal, shoulders slouched as they were before. At least, it was what Jackie thought, up until his lips curled back in a grin. “Always assume there’s a ghost around.” 
There was no denying that his canines could tear through skin. 
….
“Thank you, I’ll leave a five star on Yelp!” Adrien laughed hysterically at his own joke, waving frantically back at Danny as all three of them rushed down the front steps of Fentonworks. 
Jackie threw her own polite thank you and goodbye as a precaution, snapping her head forward as they quickly walked away. She could sense that Nick was bursting with the urge to say something, but she sent him a warning glare, daring him to open his mouth before they were completely out of earshot. 
It wasn’t until they had rounded the block corner that she led them both onto the steps of a stranger’s house and groaned. “I wasn’t the only one that thought that was freaky, right?” 
“It wasn’t just you.” Nick was leaning forward, hands on his knees. “That was so confusing. Like one second he was really nice and chill, and the next I felt like I was being targeted. What the fuck?” He frowned, shooting her a glare of his own. “And what was that? Were you trying to get us killed?”
“It was only a question!” She crossed her arms defensively. “We didn’t go there to not ask questions.” 
“Holy shit.” Adrien seemed to be in his own world. “Does this mean we got two tours with a ghost?”
“Is that why he was so defensive about Phantom?” Nick’s eyes widened. “They’re afterlife friends or something? But that doesn’t make sense. He can’t be.”
“No, you’re right.” Adrien shook his head, chuckling in little puffs of air. “‘Cause that would be insane. A ghost can’t live with ghost hunters.”
“Yeah, what were we even thinking?” Nick huffed, standing up straight. “And walking into a lab like that so casually? Doesn’t make sense.”
Jackie bit her lip, not quite sure about that. 
Something was beginning to take shape in her head. It was a thought so ridiculous, so out there, that she didn’t feel bold enough to say aloud. It wouldn’t make sense, would make her seem like the crazy one. It just wasn’t possible.
Even as she tried convincing herself, another part whispered, “But what if it is?”
“Shit, my mom’s here to pick us up.” Nick stopped wherever he was in the conversation to look behind him, where a honking sound had rung. “You want a ride with us, Jackie?”
“No, no I’m good. My mom’s picking me up too.” She smiled, trying her best to appear more put together. “Thank you though.”
“Hey, no problem. Thanks for inviting us over with you today.” Nick looked over again at another honk. “Just text us whenever okay? It was cool meeting you.” 
“Same here.” Jackie waved to both of them, noting that Adrien still seemed the most out of it. 
Whatever conclusion he decided on, she hoped he would be okay. Perhaps she could check in on him later, make sure that he wasn’t losing his mind nearly as much as she felt she was losing hers. 
Jackie waited for the pair of friends to get into the car before pulling out her own phone. She was only there for another few days, destined to leave the crazy city of Amity behind eventually. She could forget her past few days there had ever even happened, that it was just a regular tourist visit to any regular city. 
Jackie could, but it wasn’t in her nature. She was a Weston after all.
Determined despite her shaking fingers, she dialed a familiar number and waited for the voice on the other line to answer. 
After a few rings, she heard a monotone “hi” and the shuffling of papers. 
“Hey Wes.” Jackie checked around her, making sure she was completely alone. “Can we sneak out of your place today? I need you to help me investigate something.” 
“Depends.” He sighed. “Is it worth me getting grounded over?”
“Maybe. Yes.” She took a deep breath. “I need you to help me figure out the connection between Danny Fenton and Danny Phantom. I have an idea but…I want to make sure before saying it.”
The shuffling on the other end went completely still. “You figured it out?”
“That they’re….” She didn’t need to finish the statement. 
“Yeah. You did!” There was the screeching of a chair and choked out laughter. “Forget that. I have all the proof compiled here. I never thought I would see the day when someone-shit.” More laughter. “Come straight to my room once you and Aunt Maddie get back.”
“What’re you gonna show me?” She fidgeted, catching her mom’s car approaching.
“Everything.” Wes’ voice grew conspiratory. “All the proof you’ll ever need to prove Phantom and Fenton are one and the same.”
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michwritesstuff · 3 years
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Late Nights (The Outer Banks: Rafe Cameron)
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This song just gives giant Rafe Cameron enemies to lovers vibes! Also, Holy shit, this is my longest work ever! I hope you guys enjoy reading it as much I enjoyed writing it!
This takes place season 1, before Rafe kills Peterkin. Let’s just pretend he’s not a psychopath. He’s still the resident bad boy of Figure 8, but not a killer…
summary: female reader (she/her) x Rafe Cameron When Y/N finds herself abandoned by her friends at a house party thrown by no other than Kook King, Topper Thornton, she finds odd company in the form of her classmates and neighbors that she has taken very little liking to. She is surprised to learn that her disinterest in all things “kook-related” has sparked the interest of a particular kook. tw: mention of alcohol/drug consumption, slight smut (18+) word count: 4.1k
Y/N might’ve been a kook, but if it wasn’t for her consistent attendance to Figure Eight events you wouldn’t have known. She hated all the superficial bullshit and quickly found herself befriending a certain group of pogues who she would often run into while working on the Cut. Everything in her life had been so easy for her, and although she was grateful, she couldn’t help but feel guilty about the privilege she received while her friends had spent their life fighting for a chance. Being able to find an ally in Kie was all that Y/N had to look forward to as she continued to find a place for herself among the fight between class divisions in her small hometown.
Summer was coming to an end, and with a few weeks left you couldn’t help but just enjoy the moments with your friends. Sitting on the small boat as the sun slowly set, passing the blunt around while you all tried to keep a serious conversation going before blurting out laughing at some stupid shit JJ had said. You had even found an unlikely friend in the form of kook princess, Sarah Cameron. You had known Sarah Cameron for as long as you could remember, always greeting each other’s families at events and having at least one class together every year. But this was different, you had known Sarah but never gave her a chance to hang out. When John B mentioned her a few weeks ago and started to bring her around you and the other pogues were stunned to say the least. You knew that she was dating Topper Thornton, I mean everyone knew that, but what she had with John B was different, at least from what you had seen. “This was great guys, but I promised Topper I would meet him at his party. Keep up appearances, you know?” Sarah said unsurely. Everyone looked around, nodding in understandment, except John B. “I don’t like him,” JJ spoke up, standing up for John B who continued sulking in silence. “Yeah, him and Rafe are always doing some shit,” Pope also spoke up. “You guys have no idea,” Kiara replied while rolling her eyes at the thought of the kook boys she had known so well. You also nodded in response. “Yeah, well I would invite you guys, but I can’t imagine that going over well.” Once again everyone nodded in agreement, except John B. “What if Y/N goes with you,” he suggested. “Thanks for throwing me under the bus!” you exclaimed back at him. Sarah turned to you with a shy smile, “It’s not such a bad idea. I mean you would know almost everyone.” “Yeah, so does Kie, you don’t see her being volunteered to go,” you exclaimed again. “That’s because they actually like you,” Kie replied, smirking when you rolled your eyes at her statement, she was right. “C’mon Y/N it’ll be fun. You’ll have me to hang out with and if you absolutely hate it, we’ll make up an excuse and leave. Besides, it’d be nice to have someone there that I don’t need to be fake with.” You thought for a moment before slowly nodding your head, cursing under your breath as your friends cheered around you. “There’s our little kookie,” JJ stated, jumping away in defense as you attempted to punch his arm.
The bass of the music pounded in your ears as you walked up the driveway. If even possible it got louder once you finally entered the front door, you swore your eardrums were about to rupture. Finding the kitchen, you reached out for two truly’s, your disappointment in the night continuing as feeling they were just room temperature. They weren’t your first choice of alcohol to get through a night like this and seeing as though they weren’t even cold made it worse. You instantly cracked it open, downing as much as you could on the first sip. You handed the other one to Sarah, bumping your open can to her’s in an attempt to say cheers. She laughed at you, “I’m gonna go find Topper. You’ll be okay if I leave you alone for a few minutes?” You took another sip before responding, “Figured this would happen at some point, yeah I’ll be good.” Watching her leave your eyes scanned the kitchen, deciding you needed to loosen up some more you pushed off the counter, “I need something stronger,” you whispered under your breath.
Making your way through the house you scanned the room for unattended bottles you could mooch off. To your surprise you were pulled by the arm, “Omg Y/N, what are you doing here?” a girly high-pitched voice screeched. You turned around, already ready to use your preppy voice, “Hey Claire,” you responded in a mock happy voice matching hers. Claire was sweet, n just not your cup of tea. The two of you had always been civil, sharing a few classes here and there. “Mind if I?” you asked, gesturing to the bottle of Tito’s vodka in her hand. “Oh sure, just be careful. I’ve gotten fucked up with this shit more times than I could remember,” she laughed while handing you the bottle. You lift the bottle up to your lips, the taste on the rim barely making an impact on your tastebuds. But as you thew your head back and lifted the bottle you took one big swig. The alcohol ran down your throat, a warmth following the path it took as it settled in your stomach. “Ugh, Claire, that shit is just straight rubbing alcohol. How the fuck do you drink that?” you exclaimed, handing her the bottle as you wiped the back of your mouth with your hand. She laughed at your reaction, “Believe me, in a little while you won’t even care how it tastes. Just know that you’ll feel it.” You nodded your head while once again scanning your eyes across the room. A few feet away was a coffee table surrounded by teens. Claire noticed your interest and dragged you over. Looking up from the table was Rafe Cameron, Sarah’s brother, who on more than one account you had gotten into a heated argument about your choice of friends. The two of you made eye contact as he wiped the leftover residue from the line of cocaine he had just done. Classy as ever Cameron, you thought as you broke eye contact and examined all the other teens waiting their turn. Rafe greeted Claire with a smirk and half-nod before returning his attention to you. “Awww Y/L/N, get tired of hanging around those boring old pogues, and decided to have some real fun?” he mocked while gesturing to the lines set up in front of him. You scoffed at his suggestion, “Keep dreaming,” you responded. Living in your teenage years and drinking was one thing, but if your parents caught you doing drugs there was a good chance you wouldn’t have much of a life to live. Making eye contact with you he slowly lowered himself closer to the table, quickly doing another line before looking up at you again. Is this kid trying to kill himself? you thought to yourself. You reached out for Claire’s bottle, taking another swig before motioning it up to Rafe. “Always a pleasure Cameron,” you stated before handing Claire her bottle.
Leaving the room, you realized that you hadn’t seen Sarah for a while. Wandering around the house in attempt to find her you bumped into Topper. “Hey Top, seen Sarah anywhere?” you asked. “Uhm a little while ago, she said she went to go find you,” he said quizzingly. “Yeah, right. Just kidding, she went to the bathroom. I’ll go find her,” you quickly spitted out. Nearly running you got away from Topper as fast as you could before finding an empty spot on the wall. Leaning back against the wall, you pulled your phone from your pocket and found a few texts from Sarah and one from John B. “Hey Y/N, John B showed up.” “We just left, please distract Topper.” “I owe you one.” You responded back, “ughh ok, I’m on it.” Clicking on John B’s name you read his message, “sorry kookie, had to steal her. thanks!” You rolled your eyes at the dumb nickname him and the others decided for you, their attempt to always tease you about your kook lifestyle. You sent him the middle finger emoji and a yellow heart before turning your phone off and looking around for Topper. Spotting him talking to Kelce you kept your place on the wall. As long as you could see him and he couldn’t see you, there was no reason to suspect anything about Sarah. Besides, after about half an hour you could probably make a break for the exit, and no one would notice.
As you continued to scroll on your phone you were slightly startled by the presence of another human standing near you. Your eyes looked up to a boy standing in front of you. He was tall, but you couldn’t ignore how young and immature he looked. “Don’t even think about it freshman,” you said before he had the chance. He laughed while nodding his head. “Hey, I had to try. Should’ve known a girl as smart as you wouldn’t give me a chance,” he responded. You gave him a quizzical look as you quickly glanced him up and down. He wasn’t too dumb if he knew to compliment your intelligence over any physical feature. He reached his hand out to shake yours, “I’m Nathan.” You glanced at his hand for a second before reluctantly shaking it “I’m Y/N,” you replied. “I know,” he said a little too quickly making the both of you chuckle. “Mrs. Nichol said you were the captain of the mock trial team. She talked to you the other day about me joining,” he rambled on. You laughed at his apparent nervousness. “Oh yeah, well I guess it’s nice to meet you, Nathan. Not exactly the type of place to bring up extracurriculars,” you laughed while motioning to the number of teens, drugs, and alcohol around you. As you did you could feel the stare from a certain kook, no doubt watching your exchange with the boy in front of you. “Probably not, but it did get you talking to me,” he quirked back. Nodding your head in amusement at his reply you responded, “Touché.” As the volume of the music had apparently increased within the last few seconds of your exchange, Nathan leaned forward slightly so he could hear you better. “Can I get you something to drink?” He asked while leaning down. “I can take it from here,” you heard Rafe speak from behind you as he slid his hand around to the small of your back. Confused by the situation unraveling in front of you, you were quick to speak. “Uhm, actually Cameron, Nathan and I were having a lovely conversation about something you couldn’t possibly be interested in,” you stated attempting to distance yourself away from Rafe and closer to Nathan. “Yeah, I—” Nathan attempted to speak before being interrupted, “Seriously, Miller, beat it or practice on Monday will be hell.” You confusingly looked at Nathan and Rafe before finally understanding. Just like you would be Nathan’s captain, so was Rafe. “Water polo?” you questioned. “Yeah, you’ll catch a game?” he asked in return. “Yeah!” you said sweetly before a mocking scoff turned your attention to Rafe, to which your surprise still had his hand on the small of your back, it almost felt natural that you hadn’t noticed it was still there. Looking at him expectantly he pulled his hands away holding them up in an ‘ok I get it’ way. “Can I help you?” you asked expectantly. “Care to go for a swim?” he asked. You looked at him confused, you weren’t sure if it was your light buzz from your shots of vodka talking but he seemed just as surprised as you were as you answered, “yes!”
As he grabbed your hand, you quietly followed as he led you through the house. “I’m gonna need more alcohol before we do this,” you exclaimed as loud as you could, hoping he would hear you over the volume of the music. He turned to look at you for a moment before turning back and nodding, showing that he had in fact heard your request. Walking through the kitchen he left you at the counter while reaching into one of the cabinets, pulling down a full bottle of Tito’s. He motioned you from your spot and you continued to follow. “My parents got this as a gift for the Thornton’s but it’s not really their style.” You nodded understandingly, Topper’s parents didn’t really seem like the type to be chugging back vodka shots, they were more sophisticated. Following him through the house you were confused as you walked past the sliding glass door that led to the pool and the dozens of other teens who had the same idea you two had, or so you thought. “Where are we going?” you asked. Rafe stayed silent as you continued following him. Opening another set of glass doors, he let you exit first before quickly following. On the side of the house was a hot tub that apparently no one knew about, seeing as though you and Rafe were the only ones out here. “What the hell is this, Cameron?” you asked. He looked at you, confusion evident on his face. “You said we were going swimming. We can’t do that in a hot tub.” He laughed before handing you the now open bottle of Tito’s, watching you take a sip he replied, “What, did you plan on working on your breaststroke or something?” He said jokingly. “No, I actually planned on playing mermaids. Maybe it’s you who needs to work on breaststroke,” you responded wittily. He feigned shock and hurt, taking the bottle from your hand. “My breaststroke is amazing, just ask your friend Claire,” he winked as you scoffed in amusement and disgust. After taking another sip he handed the bottle back to you, removing his clothes he stripped down until he was in his boxers. That left little to the imagination as you could see the outline of his dick printed. Feeling your eyes, he gave you a smirk to which you sheepishly took another sip of vodka, shaking as you felt the liquid burn down your throat. Entering the hot tub, he sat with arms spread out to both his sides, resting on the edge. “Aren’t you going to join me?” he asked. You nodded, feeling your breath catch in your throat. You handed him the bottle, starting to undress as you felt his eyes drawn to your exposed skin where you had begun to lift your shirt. “Hey! Turn around Cameron,” you exclaimed. He put his hands up in defense, turning his head so his attention was drawn to the bubbles and pressure coming from the jets. Folding your shirt and jeans on to the table nearby you turned back around to Rafe examining your exposed body adorning a basic black sports bra and lace thong. You immediately turned red, not knowing how to react under his intense stare. As you entered the hot tub you slipped when placing your foot on the bench to step in, landing you a little closer to Rafe then you planned. He held your arm as you attempted to steady yourself. “You alright?” he asked. You were able to manage out a “mhmm” as you reached for another sip from the bottle. He gladly handed you the bottle, a lazy smile on his face.
You weren’t sure how you always ended up like this but something about being drunk and outside led to you staring at the moon and stars. “What’s going on in that pretty little head of yours?” Rafe asked, breaking the silence. You tried to remain calm with his choice of words, not wanting him to know the effect he was having on you. “Just thinking,” you responded quietly. “About what,” you scanned his face for a second, genuine interest radiating off him. “As niche as it sounds, life…I mean doesn’t this all seem so pathetic,” you stated as you continued to stare off into the sky. “Life?” he asked, laughing to mask his confusion. You chuckled along with him, “No, this…pogues vs. kooks. It’s all so fucking dumb. There are so many more problems out there, so many people who need help and we can’t even come together to help people in our own community.” He just hummed as you continued to ramble on, listening to what you had to say. “I can’t help but just feel guilty. I mean what did I do to deserve this type of life. I mean my parents work hard but they’ve had so many opportunities because of their parents and their parents, and it just keeps going. This sort of generational wealth and success…” you quietly trailed off as you realized who you were talking to. “But I mean you probably don’t care,” you said while looking at him. He shook his head with a smirk. “Now I know why Sarah never shuts up about how smart you are.” You looked at him more intently, “what?” you exclaimed. He nodded his head, before turning his attention to the sky like you had before. “I mean, I guess I just never thought of it that way. Kind of blind to the privilege that I have.” “Must be all the coke,” you mumbled to yourself under your breath. He shot you a warning look before chuckling, “might be the coke,” he responded. You laughed along with him before a serious tone washed over him. “I mean it Y/N, you’re just so attuned to the needs of others,” He exclaimed. “Well, you can be like that too,” you reassured him. “Yeah right, there’s not a lot of hope left for me,” he replied sarcastically. “That’s not true. I mean sure you have your flaws, but from what I’ve seen you’re a good friend, loyal and family is important to you. Those are good qualities, and I mean of course you’re not half bad looking.” He laughed at the last part. “Well, Y/L/N, you’re extremely caring, intelligent, and hot as fuck! So, you have that going for you.” It was your turn to laugh and turn red at his comment.  You weren’t sure if it was the alcohol dulling your senses, but as you looked into Rafe’s eyes you felt yourself being drawn closer. You both leaned in, lips barely brushing each other as your breaths slowed. “Can I kiss you,” he asked. You could barely hear him over the sound of your own heart beating in your chest. “Please,” you nearly whined. Your tone making Rafe swoon as he gently pushed his lips onto yours.
As happy as you were with his gentleness, the alcohol you had consumed throughout the night had made you far hornier than you liked to admit. Leaning deeper into the kiss you gently placed your hands onto his chest before lightly pushing him back to so you could straddle his lap. As you did so, Rafe took a large sip from the bottle, as you looked at him expectantly. He gave you a smirk before bringing the bottle close to your lips, tilting your head back, you let him pour some of the alcohol down your throat. Before you could process the liquid once again burning the back your throat you pressed a heated kiss on to his lips. As your hands moved up from their place on his chest to the back of his neck, playing with the ends of his hair, his hands move from where he was setting the bottle down to trailing around your waist and landing on your ass, holding you in place. As your tongues continued to fight for dominance, he pulled away slightly. Kissing down your jaw and starting to suck on your neck you slightly grinded down on to him while continuing to play with the hairs at the nape of his neck. His hands left your waist, guiding your hips back and forth as you continued to grind on him. As he continued to work on your neck you moaned as he found your sweet spot, “Fuck Rafe,” you exclaimed. You could feel him smirk as he continued. Giving him a break, you leaned forward slightly, changing the angle to which you were grinding down on him and leaving marks over his neck and chest. “Fuck babe,” he stated. “Being so good to me,” he continued as he leaned in for another kiss. “Yes, sir,” you said, testing the waters. You could clearly tell that you were starting to drive Rafe crazy as he moaned into your mouth at your response. Roughly grabbing your hip, he speeded the pace of your grinding. As you continued to litter marks along his chest, he reached a hand up to pull your sports bra down far enough so that your boobs were spilling over the top. The pressure of the band along with the added sensation of Rafe’s mouth on your nipple was almost too much. Along with this you could feel how hard he had gotten under you. I mean, you knew he was big, but this was godly. Your makeout session was quickly abrupted as you both snapped your heads to the sound of the glass doors sliding open. Quickly removing yourself from Rafe’s lap and adjusting your bra, you sat silently, reaching for the bottle again. “What’s up Top?” Rafe asked nonchalantly. Topper looked at you both slyly, clearly knowing what he half-witnessed between the two of you. “Not much, I can’t find Sarah anywhere Y/N. And she’s not answering her fucking calls.” “Yeah, she wasn’t feeling well. Said she headed home; her phone probably died. Don’t worry Top,” you said as convincingly as the alcohol would let you. Topper seemed to accept your answer and reentered the house. Rafe looked at you unconvincingly. “She just left you?” he asks. Avoiding his gaze, you let your hands play with the water. Slowly nodding your head, you responded, “guess so…” “That doesn’t sound like Sarah,” he continued. “Well that’s what happened,” you snapped. Thinking about the conversation you would have to have with Sarah about how you failed to keep Topper distracted and the alcohol finally making its presence in your system known was too much to handle. “Ughh back to reality, I guess,” you groaned out. Rafe pulled you into his side so that his arm was around your shoulder and your head resting on his. “What are you up to now?” he asked. “Figuring how to make it home alive,” you chuckled dryly. He hummed in thought next to you. After a second, he spoke, surprising you in the process, “Stay with me.” “Rafe…” you dragged out unsurely. “Seriously Y/N, that way you don’t have to worry about going home right now.” You looked at him for a second before slowly nodding. Getting out of the hot tub he disappeared for a second before returning with a set of towels. As you both dried yourselves off and gathered your clothes you headed to Topper’s guestroom.
Stumbling around in your drunken state, Rafe grabbed the clothes from your hand. Setting them on a nearby table he turned so that you were facing each other. Reaching down slightly he grabbed your legs from under your thighs so that he was now carrying you. Feeling the warmth of his chest you pressed closer, wrapping your legs around his hips in the process. With each step you slightly bounced against him. The sexual tension from earlier quickly returning. Finally reaching the room Rafe laid down so that you were now on your back while he hovered over you. With your legs around his waist and arms around his neck you gently pulled him in, pecking a sweet kiss on your lips. “I need to shower,” you said shyly. He nodded his head, pulling away slightly so he was standing, and you stayed sprawled out on the bed. “I’ll go get us some water,” he stated as he slowly walked out the room. Leaving the door cracked enough so he wouldn’t bother anyone with the sound of it opening and closing you sat up, finally taking in your surroundings. Getting up and heading to the bathroom you folded your towel, pulling off your bra and underwear as you let the water run until it was hot enough. As you let the water run over your body you stood for a minute, just thinking about everything that had happened that night, you rub your hands down your face, muttering “fuck.” You weren’t sure what was happening, but it was a problem future you would just have to deal with later.
a/n: If you like my work please support by liking/reblogging. Also, feel free to message me about ideas. I haven’t written in a while because I don’t have a lot of time, but when inspiration hits i’ll sit down for hours :)
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rendevousz · 3 years
Text
sick
avengers x gn!teen!reader
platonic!peter parker x reader
requested by @sunflowerbecca : "hey! a request with the whole teen avengers thing you got gotten on haha, anyways something where the reader gets hurt or faints etc etc and then the rest of the avengers are all worried and frantic as they care for them"
summary: there was a consequence of going on a mission while you were sick
warnings: mentions of throwing up and a tiny fight with bestfriend!peter, avengers babying you as usual
word count: roughly 5k words of utter bullshit me thinks but pls do give this a read LMAO
notes: i'm sorry this took longer to write i was unexpectedly busy on the weekends but here i am i hope you enjoy this <3
"stark, you sure about this?"
"of course i'm sure, capsicle. the kids have been bugging us to let them go on a mission together. i know it's because they just want to mess around without being scolded but this is the easiest mission we've ever gotten since the avengers. besides, they've been pretty good lately so i think they deserve it. don't you guys think so?"
his question was met with approving looks all over the room, except from steve. the whole team except the teens —you and peter— were having a meeting about a simple mission that was supposed to happen that night. you and peter weren't in the meeting because you two were still at school.
it had been months since you and peter started asking the team to let you guys go on missions alone without "adult supervision". it was true that you guys wanted that just so you could do missions without feeling like you were being babysat but it was also because you guys thought that you weren't kids anymore; you could handle simple missions.
"c'mon cap, don't you want to see their face light up when we tell them they can go on this mission together, without us?" clint urged. he knew steve loved the kids, especially you, and he especially loved seeing the way your eyes would light up first before you whole face did.
"okay, fine. but if anything happens to them, you guys are to blame for."
school had just finished and you were walking back to the tower with peter. you've been having a killer headache all day and you felt nauseous. you even went to the washroom to throw up twice today. of course you didn't tell peter because he was that type of overprotective best friend who would make you get home if you sneezed more than three times that day. all you wanted to do today was get home quick so you could sleep the sickness away.
yes, you knew you were sick. but you didn't want to tell anyone because like peter, the whole team was overprotective over you and they usually did too much when you were sick. so you avoided that by just acting like you were okay. that was going well so far since all you had to do when you get home was go to your room and tell them you stayed up late last night and needed to catch up on sleep.
of course that didn't go well.
"y/n!" you groaned when peter entered your room uninvited, immediately jumping onto your bed. "yes, pete?" you croaked. his joyful expression turned into a frown when he heard you. "what's wrong? are you okay?"
"yes, pete, i'm okay. just super sleep deprived." you lied, cringing when you felt your head throb once again. "oh.. did you..did you want to sleep? am i interrupting?" he asked, feeling bad. "no, no. it's fine, what did you want?"
"i just came to tell you that mr stark and the team are finally gonna let us go on a mission without them! there's one tonight and they're letting us go alone!" he announced excitedly. you couldn't help the small smile that appeared on your lips when he said that. his happiness was just so contagious.
"but if you wanna sleep then i'll just go with any one of them, i guess," he shrugged his shoulders with a nonchalant face but you knew he was internally begging you to come with. after all, you guys have been asking for this for the longest time.
you look at his hopeful face —one that he thought he was concealing very well— and sighed, flashing him a small smile. "fine, it's friday anyways so there's no school tomorrow. but you're buying me food tomorrow for postponing my catchup on beauty sleep," that is, if you can stomach the food, considering how you've thrown up almost anything you had for the past two days.
the thought of this mission going awry because of you being sick was almost immediately forgotten when you saw the huge smile on peter's face. he pulled you into a tight hug before letting go to jump on your bed. "we're finally gonna go on a mission alone!"
you laugh at his excitement though you wished he could lower down his volume because it was making your head hurt.
later that evening, you were in your room, sitting on the bed after having just finished putting on your suit when a knock was heard. after telling the person to come in, you met eyes with a certain blond haired super-soldier.
"hey, y/n." he greets, sitting down beside you. "hey, steve," you responded with a weak voice. he turned to you with a frown and you knew what was coming. "i'm fine, steve. i already had this conversation with pete. i just need sleep but i can get that after this mission. i'm not gonna be fine though if you wake me up at the crack of dawn to train when you know i just had a late night mission." you sassed, causing him to chuckle.
"okay, fine. i'm just worried about you two. you sure you're gonna be fine? don't need me to come along?" he asked, concern written all over his face.
"yes, steve. pete's been wanting a mission without you old folks for the longest time and i'm not gonna disappoint him by making you come along. we'll be fine, stevie. we're not little kids, we're avengers. we can handle finding a random chip in an abandoned building," you reasoned with him.
"it's not a rando— you know what? just be back home safe, okay kiddo?" he ruffled your hair, earning him a playful glare from you.
-
the swing trip to the mission location had you even more nauseous than you were earlier today and earlier today was worse than yesterday when the symptoms of your fever all started. you almost let go of peter because your body felt weak and now you were getting an earful from the boy.
"y/n, what were you thinking?! you could've gotten hurt!" he scolded you. you only looked down in guilt, biting the inside of your cheeks. "can we not do this now? let's talk about this back at the tower tomorrow," you waved him off, already beginning to feel the pounding headache getting worse. you started to walk ahead but then he gripped your upper arm, effectively halting you in your steps.
"y/n, if i hadn't grabbed onto you tighter the last minute, you could've plummeted 100 feet down to your death! did you know how scared i was?" his voice cracked and you immediately felt bad.
"you know you need to hold on too when i'm swinging us both! why'd you do that?" he yelled at you and you had to press onto your temple because of the headache that was steadily getting worse.
"look, pete, i'm really sorry about that, okay? that was unintentional but if you're gonna berate me over that, can you do that back at the tower?" you sighed, trying to shrug his grip off your arm but he kept it.
"you don't know the true weight of your actions, do you? you could've died, y/n! how do you think i would feel? being the reason my best friend died? having to go on with life without you? i can't lose you, y/n!" at this point, you could tell he was crying under his mask.
you felt bad. you knew you shouldn't have agreed to go on this mission knowing that you had been sick for the past two days. but you couldn't have let the opportunity pass. you couldn't bear to see peter disappointed after waiting for this moment for the longest time ever. but standing here, looking down as peter yelled at you while crying, you were starting to think that it was better to just see his disappointment. anything was better than seeing your best friend cry.
"pete, i truly am sorry. i love you and i would never leave you. but can we please get this mission over and done with so we can get back to the tower as soon as possible? we'll talk about this later," you told him and you immediately felt him let go of your arm.
"okay, fine! since you wanna get the mission done so bad, let's do it! i'll take the east side of the building and you'll take west. we'll split up so can find the goddamn chip quicker. that's what you want right?" and before you could say anything, the boy was already out of your sight.
you tried to keep your tears at bay but when that was the first huge argument you had with your best friend, it was kind of an impossible task.
so with your weak muscles and a breakdown that caused your headache to get even worse, you slowly trudged the west side of the building, looking for that stupid chip that the team wanted you to find.
you were beginning to think that the only reason the team sent you both here was because to find a tiny little chip in a huge abandoned building was like finding a needle in a haystack; definitely not something adults like them could bear to do.
but it obviously wouldn't have mattered to you and peter since you guys could do it peacefully without being pestered every two minutes about your whereabouts during missions. it obviously wouldn't have mattered to you and peter because if that argument hadn't broken out, you two would be enjoying each others company as you looked for the chip together. you could've been singing and joking around like you two wanted to. but of course that couldn't happen because of you.
you stopped in your tracks when a particularly harsh wave of migraine hit you, causing you to lean against the wall. your vision blurred as you tried hard to clear it but it wouldn't. your throat was dry and it made you think; when was the last time you drank water? you barely had energy in you from skipping meals due to your inability to stomach them.
now you were actually regretting coming on this mission. the last thing you saw was the dirty walls decorated with spray painted graffiti.
-
"oh my god, is this it? KAREN, is this it?" peter asked his built in AI. "yes, peter, this chip matches the picture that mr stark sent you."
"yes!" he cheered, grabbing the chip and storing it safely. "this mission probably would've been a lot more fun if y/n and i weren't fighting. we would've had so much fun. these walls had countless of stuff we could've laughed and joked about." the boy sighed before pressing a finger to his comms.
"hey i uh, i found the chip. where are you? we can go now." he said, waiting for you to respond. but you didn't. "c'mon, y/n, it's been two hours. you can't still be giving me the silent treatment, are you?"
silence.
"look, i'm sorry for lashing out on you but like you said, let's settle this at the tower. tell me where you are. i'll come get you and we can swing back as soon as possible."
silence.
"goddamnit, y/n! answer me!" he huffed out in annoyance. and when he was met with silence once again, he decided to have KAREN do a scan.
"y/n is at the exact same spot you landed on two hours ago." KAREN showed him the scan of the building and highlighted where you guys landed on two hours ago. he felt his heart race when you seemed to be lying on the ground, motionless.
"what's wrong with them, KAREN? why is y/n lying on the floor?" he asked in concern as he sped up to where you were. "y/n seems to have lost consciousness. according to FRIDAY, they have been showing symptoms of a high fever since yesterday."
peter cursed as he ran towards you when he saw you from afar. how could he have not noticed that you were sick? and it wasn't a simple cold but a high fever. now he was the one who felt bad. he should've suspected it from how different you had been acting since yesterday. that must've also been the reason you couldn't hold on to him properly.
he immediately crouched down to you when he reached you, examining your body for any external injuries. he cringed when he saw dried blood on the side of your forehead. you must've scraped it upon impact on the rough concrete.
"how long have they been out?" he asked KAREN as he picked you up. he proceeded to web you onto his body as extra precaution in case he accidentally let go while he swung. "approximately 2 hours, peter. right after you stormed away angrily."
"okay, KAREN, there's no need to make me feel bad. can you call mr stark?" peter asks the AI as he frantically swings you both back to the tower.
"kid? what's up? did you find the chip?" peter could hear the background rock music being lowered down and from the metal on metal clanking, he could tell tony was in his lab.
"i did but can you, uh, please get medic ready?" he was breathless as he kept swinging from building to building all while holding onto your unconscious body. immediately the metal tinkering sounds as well as the music completely stopped.
"what happened, kid? are you alright?"
"i'm okay, mr stark. it's y/n. they fainted." he told the man. "fainted?" the man exclaimed. "what happened? how long were they out?" he urged the boy and peter could hear that he was walking quickly and he assumed it was to get the medic team ready and to inform them of the situation.
"2 hours," he admitted quietly as he landed on the tower's hangar. "i'm here. i'm bringing them down now." he ran down towards the hospital wing with you in his arms.
once he reached down, he was met with the team waiting, worry etched onto their faces. wanda was the first to notice him and peter saw that her eyes were teary. before he could say anything though, the medic team appeared and proceeded to cut off his webs wrapping you to him. they immediately put you onto the stretcher and they wheeled you into the room, peter's gaze lingering on your unconscious self once he took off his mask.
"what happened out there, kid?" sam asked softly when peter slid down against the wall, staring expressionlessly at the wall across of him. "peter."
"we had a fight, okay!" he let out, taking the team by surprise because he was always such a calm and patient boy. they had never seen him this angry or upset since they first met him.
"we were swinging and their grip on me loosened so i got mad at them. but they kept pushing the matter aside like it wasn't a big deal, like it wasn't a life or death situation so i lashed out and decided that we should split up to look for the stupid chip since they wanted to get back to the tower so bad." he explained, eyes red as he had been crying a lot that night.
"i tried apologising like ten minutes after but y/n didn't respond so i assumed they were giving me the silent treatment but i found them unconscious two hours later. i'm so sorry," he apologised, breaking down as he put his face in between his knees to avoid looking at the team. they were probably mad at him for letting this happen to you.
"kid, why are you apologising? it's not your fault,"
he slowly lifted his head up, to meet the kind smiles of the team. "because the only reason y/n probably went on this mission was because they knew how much i wanted this. they put their own well-being aside just to make me happy and all i did was lash out at them."
"how were you supposed to know y/n had a high fever? we all didn't know either. it's not like we spend every waking hour with th—" clint was immediately cut off when nat nudged him with her elbow. peter had an unamused expression on his face. everyone knew you and peter were practically attached at the hip, always having training, and not to mention, school together. you two even spent your free time together.
"what clint means," nat glared at the archer. "is that it doesn't matter how much time or how little time we spend with y/n. that kid is stubborn as a bull. they could literally have been shot and we wouldn't know until we actually see the wound. my point is, y/n's the type that doesn't want to worry us. and you're their best friend, they knew how much you wanted this mission so that's probably why they didn't tell you. you can't blame yourself for this, peter."
"i know but they did this for me and i got mad at them. they're a much better friend to me than i am to them." peter dropped his head back down between his knees.
before any of them could respond, doctor cho approached them. "as you all know, they have a high fever. i suggest you all come visit tomorrow because they most probably won't wake until then."
"okay, will do. thank you, doc." the doctor smiled before excusing herself. peter then got up to go back to his room to wash up after handing tony the chip.
tony could only sigh when he looked at the boy's back that was growing smaller as he walked farther away.
-
the next day, you woke up with a terrible headache but you had gotten used to it from the past two mornings.
"good, you're awake. how do you feel?"
you squinted to get used to the bright lighting and your gaze settled on the female doctor by your bed with a clipboard. "like shit." you croaked out. she chuckled. "that's expected. your fever has calmed down now, do you feel anything else?"
"this headache makes me want to rip my head out and i feel weak." she nodded, jotting down on her clipboard. "okay. that's all i needed to know. you should come to us if you're ever unwell, y/n." you gave her a guilty smile before nodding.
"there's a glass of water on the table if you want. the team wants to see you so i'll send them in?" you nodded and she left to bring them in. you looked at the bedside table, seeing the glass of water she mentioned and only now you realised how dry your throat had been. how you managed to verbally respond to doctor cho, you didn't know.
you slowly reached out for it, struggling because your whole body felt weak. "y/n! stay in bed, i'll get it for you." you heard a stern voice scold and you immediately fell limp on the bed.
before you knew it, steve was already by your side with the glass of water. he held your face in one hand while the other held the glass near your mouth. you smiled gratefully and took your time drinking the water, having been dehydrated before you passed out.
"you're still burning up," he noted, settling down on the chair beside you. the rest sat down too and you couldn't be bothered to ask how the heck were there so many chairs in the room. "how are you feeling, y/n/n?" bruce asked, sitting down across steve.
"like shit." you repeated your answer to doctor cho. before steve could open his mouth to tell you to watch your language, you turned to him with a bored look and a raised eyebrow, causing him to close his mouth immediately. boy, were you scary when you weren't about to take anyone's shit.
"why didn't you tell us you were sick, bubs?" wanda pouted, fixing your hair that you were sure looked like a bird's nest at the moment.
"i didn't want to worry you guys. you're adults who have much more important things to worry about. a kid throwing up and experiencing headaches shouldn't be your priority." you admitted, subconsciously playing with nat's fingers. she had gotten used to you doing that when you were nervous or overwhelmed so she let you.
"what are you talking about, y/n?" she held onto your hand, stoping your movements. "anything related to your safety and well-being is a priority to us. you had us worried sick last night, bub." she looked down at you with soft eyes, releasing her grip on your hands so you could continue playing with her fingers.
"yes, you worried us lots, y/n. wanda would not stop crying last night when she heard what happened." vision said, prompting a smack from said woman and a hushed 'vis!'.
"i'm sorry, guys. i initially was just going to stay in my room until i got better but when peter told me about the mission, i couldn't bear to say no to him. he was so happy about it and i didn't want to disappoint him. and i thought i could take it because it literally was the simplest mission ever. but the breakdown i had after our argument was physically draining and i guess i couldn't take it. i'm sorry. god, i only didn't want to disappoint peter but now i've disappointed you guys too." you bit the inside of your cheek to control your emotions, not wanting to seem even weaker in front of these adult superheroes.
"you didn't disappoint us, y/n/n," bucky started. "you've done so well, you've made us proud and you keep making us proud. we just wish you would tell us when you're sick or you just need someone. you don't have to keep everything to yourself. what are we here for? we love you and we're willing to do anything for you. you're our baby." he ruffled your hair and you give him a tired smile. "i'll keep that in mind."
"do you want anything to eat?" sam asked and you paused, trying to figure out whether you would be able to stomach some food or not. "you know what? i'm gonna go and make you some porridge right now. don't move." he told you, as if you could move with these overprotective heroes surrounding your bed.
almost immediately after, wanda got up too. "i'm going to make sure he doesn't burn the kitchen down." she said, leaving the room after a small peck to the side of your head. vision then left too after wishing you a speedy recovery. only bucky, steve, natasha and bruce were left.
"y/n, you know you can come to us if you're sick, right? i know you and you probably think you're troubling doctor cho if you go to her despite it being her job. but we're family, you can come to us anytime. you always help me when with 'the other guy' and you help everyone with basically anything they could possibly need so why wouldn't we do the same for you? you out of everyone in this tower deserves the most." your eyes watered at his speech. you pouted and looked at him with your doe eyes, making the rest of the team internally coo at how adorable you looked.
"bruce," you lower lip jutted out even more as you opened your arms for a hug which he happily accepted. "hey where's clint, tony and pete?" you asked them once you let go of bruce.
"clint went out to get your favourite smoothie from that place you always talk about even though i told him already that you probably don't want it since you're sick." natasha explained. "aw, i think i'm gonna drink it solely because clint made an effort to get it for me."
"you're too nice, bub. but expect it in an hour or so because i know for sure that idiot somehow got himself lost trying to find that shop." you chuckled at this, leaning back against your propped up pillow. "what about tony and pete?"
"peter feels really bad about this whole situation so tony is trying to cheer him up. wait," steve stopped mid-explanation, turning to the rest. "stark told us to get him when y/n's up..." he trailed off and bucky's eyes widened. "he's gonna kill us for him not being the first person y/n sees when they wake up."
"FRIDAY, inform stark that y/n is awake."
"oh yeah he has an AI why couldn't he just tell the AI to inform him instead of us forgetful humans?" bucky questioned rhetorically and before they knew it, they heard frantic screaming and thudding of footsteps before the door was open.
"my baby! you're awake!" was the first thing you heard when the door slammed open. tony rushed in, pushing bruce away as he immediately pulled you into a hug. "you're still burning up, cupcake. have you had anything to eat yet? drank any water yet? here have some water," he grabbed the glass of water steve helped you drink earlier and did exactly what steve did. you had no choice but to drink.
"sam's making them porridge," nat told tony and he turned to her with an incredulous look. "wanda's helping." she added and he sighed out in relief before turning back to you.
"cupcake, you had us all worried last night. please don't ever do that again, okay?" he said, gently caressing your cheek. you gave him an awkward smile. "where's peter?"
"he's taking a swing. he says it helps clear his mind," tony said. "how are you doing here? nice room? comfy bed?" he pointed to the bed you were on.
"i'd much rather be in my own room, on my own bed." and without a warning, steve already had you in his arms while tony went to go tell doctor cho that you were being moved. the blond super-soldier started walking while natasha walked closely behind, dragging your IV drip along so it doesn't get ripped out of your arm.
when you reached your room, you were gently put down on your bed and steve fixed your blanket so it was covering you. "comfy?" he asked and you nodded with a big smile.
"i have to finish some stuff up down the lab," bruce said and you nodded at him with a pout. "i'll come back sometime later, though. you better be resting up all day." he warned jokingly. he ruffled your hair, planting a kiss on your forehead before leaving your room.
"can you tell pete that i want to see him when he comes back?" you told tony and he immediately sent out a text to your best friend.
after about an hour of just steve, nat and tony entertaining you, sam came back with wanda with the porridge and tony insisted that he feed you or you he wasn't going to let you see peter.
"alright, bub, i think you should really get some rest now. you can barely keep your eyes open," nat says, already getting up with your empty bowl of porridge. "we'll tell spiderboy you're asleep."
"okay," you mumbled, eyes already fluttering shut. you felt every single one of them give you a forehead kiss and then you were out like light.
when you woke up later that day, you felt much better than you did the last time you woke up. you decided that you now had enough energy to take a quick shower so you did. once you were done, you dried your hair while humming to a random song before the door opening interrupted you.
your eyes met with peter's guilty ones. "h–hey, you're awake," he stated and you nodded with a small smile, sitting on your bed and peter doing the same.
"look, y/n/n, i'm really sorry about what happened. i shouldn't have lashed out on you witho—"
"pete," you cut him off. "don't apologise. i'd be mad too if you did something as stupid as that." you reasoned. "yeah but it's not like you did it on purpose! you had a valid reason and i got mad at you for it." he spoke in frustration.
"dude, stop. i'm the one who's supposed to be sorry. i should've just told you i was sick. but i didn't want to upset you because you've been waiting for this for the longest time. but i ruined it for you. i'm sorry, pete." you rested your head on his shoulder and he rested his on top of yours.
"i wanna say that i'm the one at fault but then this conversation won't end until like next week so let's just say we're both at fault, yeah? you need to start telling people what's happening with you and i need to be better at reading you." he said, wrapping an arm around you and pulling you into a hug. you hugged him back. "okay."
the door then opened, revealing bucky with his stupid shit-eating grin and you knew what was coming. you let go of peter and immediately you were lifted off the bed and over bucky's shoulders as he excitedly chanted about team movie night.
the night was spent watching a movie with the team you considered your family and them pampering you even more than they usually did (which, frankly, was still too much) since you were sick.
and right when the movie ended and everyone was preparing to head in, the door to the common room slammed open and a disheveled clint entered, holding a single cup of smoothie.
"got your smoothie, y/n/n!"
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yourmoonanon · 3 years
Text
yours
pairing: c!technoblade x gn!reader rating: 18+, minors DNI topic: enemies to lovers?, seggsting via written letters, anti-slow burn we speedrunning this shit, mentor!Philza, for ease of reading readers nickname is ‘Bird’. credit to the anons who birthed the idea.
“Please, just do this for me. I have a thousand other things on my plate.”
You chewed the inside of your cheek, weighing his request in your mind. In the sparing daylight of his office, you could see just how defeated your mentor was. His hair was unkept, face pasty white, making the dark bags under his eyes that more prominent. The state of his office matched his appearance to a t, chests astray, papers stacked and overflowing, making the short man seem like he was drowning in them. The brick walls didn’t aid the mood either, the sticky and damp material suffocating the both of you more than you already were. Anger bubbled at the back of your throat – or was that bile? – as you nodded your head curtly. He already had so much on his shoulders thanks to that pig, you supposed taking on one extra task wouldn’t be that bad.
“Fine, Phil. But make it clear, I’m doing this for you. Not him.”
Phil’s shoulders visibly relaxed at your agreement, a soft yet false smile forming. After a moment of rummaging, he handed you a chest full of everything you’d need – a stack of paper, envelopes, ink, and several feathers.
“Thank you, bird.”
You hauled the chest back to your room, sulking the whole way. It was official - you hated Technoblade. Not only was he cocky, arrogant, annoying, and not to mention cocky, but he was the root cause of Phil’s current disheveled state. Phil had done nothing but give you both the world. He took you both in, raised you both into being the severs’ greatest fighters. He taught you how to be diplomatic – not only how to respect others, but to always have a healthy amount of skepticism, even in your closest allies. Well, he taught you how to be diplomatic. Techno, on the other hand, made it clear two days ago that he slept through those lessons.
In classic Technoblade fashion, he provoked the butcher army - stepping into their lands in front of their faces, weaponless with a shit-eating grin on his face, practically playing cat and mouse. He was careless, underestimating the butcher armys’ numbers, never looking over his shoulder as he trailed home, leading them straight to your hidden headquarters. Now, he was holed up in a secluded bastion in the nether, being forced to hide by an angry and disappointed Phil.
And now you were being forced to be the point of communication, tasked with updating and receiving updates from Techno. Settling in your desk chair with a huff, you dipped the fresh feather in the dark ink.
“Techno,
Phil is sending food tonight.
Hope hell is hotter than you thought.
Bird.”
That’ll do.
--
The sun hadn’t even crested over the treetops when you were awoken by a constant tapping at your window.
“Oh fuck off,” you groaned, tossing your pillow against your window. The messager crow got the memo, stopping his attack on the window glass to drop the letter before flying away. With a tired groan, you shoved the blankets off your legs, shuffling across the cold floor to retrieve the red envelope. You had thoughts about tossing it aside, returning back to the warmth of your bed and floating back into sweet, sweet sleep. The only thing that kept you from not was the thought that Techno could be in danger. Not that you cared, but you knew Phil would kill you if your laziness was anyone’s downfall.
Perching on the windowsill, you slipped your finger under the letter’s fold, tearing it open.
“Bird,
Thank Phil for the supplies.
I’d appreciate a lack of snark in future writing. While I may be the one banished, it is you who would feel most at home here, living among the other sweltering monsters.
Hope my courier wakes you. Time is nonexistent here.
TB.”
You scoffed, hands tingling with the beginning of rage. It is you who would feel most at home here? Did he forget to look in the mirror, recently? And how dare he cast insults when he caused this shitshow in the first place. He should be thanking you for not cutting off all ties, leaving him to rot away in hiding. You had the power, after all.
“Techno,
How sweet that you think of me no matter where you go. Perhaps one day you can show me around your new home. After all, you are at least half a product of those sweltering monsters.
Let me know if you find your father.
Bird.”
Perhaps it was harsh, but you were angry. And rightfully so. What he did put all three of you in danger. He deserved it. Without another thought, you called another crow forth, placing the envelope between its’ claws.
He deserved it.
--
The next crow came hours later, flying in with a sharp hurriedness. The letter was messy, handwriting almost illegible with how quickly Techno must have written.
“Bird,
Your words hold so much venom. Would your sword wield the same?
Please keep me updated on the armys’ plans. I do not have time for your school yard taunts.
Yours,
TB.”
Your heart skipped a beat as you read the last line over and over, thumb skimming over the writing. You weren’t sure if you were attempting to erase it – to change it to something less formal, something less intimate – or if you were convincing your self it was real.
The rest of the day was spent thinking of the weight of his words. Surely it had to be sarcastic – right? He must have been mocking you, eluding to the irony that you wrote him instead of a far away lover, poking fun at your bare ring finger. Or perhaps it was a mistake. The writing was sloppy after all, he probably didn’t realize what he wrote.
In an attempt to pause your thoughts, you headed down to the makeshift training studio Phil set up for you in hiding. No matter how hard you tried, with each jab and kick to the straw filled dummy, you couldn’t help but think of Techno. You couldn’t help but imagine that, if he were there, he’d pin your arm behind your back, sword resting against your throat as he playfully smirked. “I win again,” he’d say before releasing you with a spin. “You need to keep your guard up, especially on your throat.” You couldn’t help but imagine sweeping at his legs as he tried to lecture you on your skill, pinning him against the dirt floor. “Who needs to keep their guard up now?” You would say with a smirk. He would probably grab your wrist, breath hitting your face and he contemplated his next move, throat swallowing heavy as he growled…
Fuck.
‘Yours, TB.’
There was a part of you that secretly hoped he meant it.
--
You paced around the dimly lit square of your bedroom, contemplating your next letter. You had gotten some news about the army from Phil earlier that afternoon. That would be the main part of your letter, sure. But you had to address his sign off from last time.
“Techno,
The butcher army plan on attacking soon. They have every thought we remain in the cabin. -”
Your hand hesitated as you imagined Techno reading your letters in the hidden bastion, shirt tugged off from the heat, sweat slicking up his skin with his hand wrapped around his--
“ - Stay safe.
Yours,
Bird.”
--
You didn’t receive a response for days.
When you finally saw the courier crow fly in between the trees, you cut Phil off mid-sentence, throwing him a quick apology before bounding up the stairs. You locked the door behind you, frantically ripping open the red envelope.
“Bird,
My apologies for the late response. I heard rumors of the butcher army entering the nether in search of supplies. I had to shut down our portal for the time being.
I could not help but fear you ultimately did not respond. I could not help but lie restless at the thought.
Your words seem the only company I have.
Yours,
TB.”
Jesus. He must truly be suffering for him to openly admit he misses you. And if that didn’t make your heart pump faster, then..
“Techno,
The army plans to move in tonight. Phil will be sending more supplies once it is safe to do so.
If I didn’t know any better, I would say hell is softening you.
Perhaps you need a good straightening out by my blade upon return.
Stay safe.
Yours,
Bird.”
--
The next letter he sent confirmed all suspicions.  
“Bird,
Perhaps it is hell, the place, or the indignity of it all. It is quiet here – too quiet. My mind has become my own worse enemy. It can’t help but yearn for anything other than lonesome.
When I return, I will gladly die by your blade. If you let me die by your lips first.
Yours truly,
Techno.”
Heat pooled in your stomach as you clutched the letter to your chest. Your hands sweat as you peered over your shoulder, fearing Phil would interrupt the storm that was your mind. Everything had shifted. With those two sentences, anger was replaced with sorrow and annoyance replaced with worry. Techno, the man you couldn’t stand for years, was suddenly replaced in your mind. You found yourself responding before you could even think to.
“Techno,
I find myself the same, recently. If your offer is serious, please keep safe.
See you soon,
Your Bird.”
--
The next few weeks were torturous yet exhilarating. Long nights were spent exchanging letters back and forth, and days were spent sheepishly hovering over Phil’s shoulder as he planned Techno’s return.
“What’s gotten into you?” Phil asked curiously, watching you hunch over the flat map, tracing the same line for hours.
“Jus’ wanna go home. That’s all,” you mumbled. In reality, your stomach churned at the latest letter you received early that morning.
“My Bird,
I find myself lost in thought about how pretty your lips would look wrapped around me. I bet they’d look just as good wide open and pouting, crying out my name, begging for me to touch you how you truly deserve to be touched.
You would be so good for me, wouldn’t you?
Yours,
Techno.”
Your response lingered, too.
“Techno,
That same scenario ran through my head for hours on end last night. Perhaps I’d be good, but perhaps you’d have to make me.
Your Bird.
PS. Your name tastes really good on my lips.
--
Two months. Two months since the letters began, and Techno was finally allowed back home. It was a risky plan, but keeping him there, alone, any longer was just as risky. Phil would trek into the nether invisible, find Techno, and walk one thousand blocks before building a portal. It would be another eight thousand blocks before they made it back, sneaking through uncharted lands to avoid contact at all costs.
You barely slept that night. It had been a week since your last letter from Techno. You hated to think that something would end up wrong, that by the time Phil had gotten there, Techno would be gone – or worse. Phil refused to bring you along, stating time and time again that it was too dangerous, and that neither he nor Techno would ever forgive themselves for causing you harm.
If anything, that made you more annoyed.
By the time you woke, Phil was gone. The plan was in progress, and you could do nothing but sit and wait.
The further you spent alone, the deeper the furrow of your eyebrows grew. If Phil did get them both back alive, things would be… different. Of course, that’s what you were hoping for. You expect there be tension upon arrival, shifting glances until Phil retired for the night. That’s not what scared you. What scared you was the possibility of things being the same. The idea that Techno would return to his drawn in, arrogant self. It balanced on the tip of your tongue. While you’d never say it, over the course of this disaster -- you found yourself falling for him.
--
It was the warm glow of fire that awoke you abruptly, blanket falling off your shoulders as you sat up in the old armchair with a wince.
“Sorry, didn’t mean to wake ‘ya.”
Your breath stopped short in your throat, eyes readjusting in the dimly light living room to see another pair. Techno sat on the opposite side of the room, leaning close to the firepit to stoke it, his brooding figure taking up half the couch he sat on. A million different things flew through your head, scrambling to find purchase on anything instead of sitting there, mouth agape and wide eyed like a freak.
“A-and Phil?”
Techno nodded.
“He’s here. The walk took quite a toll on him. Put himself to bed about an hour ago.”
“I was out that long?”
He nodded again, slight smile tugging at the corner of his lips.
“Yeah. Rough night?”
“Yeah.”
Techno propped the metal rod against the fireplace, happy with his work. He leaned back against the couch with a sigh, fingers tapping awkwardly against his kneecaps. His eyes never left the fire.
For a minute, all that could be heard was the crackle of flames and a mixture of your breathing.
“Ya know, I thought I’d never want to see fire again when I got home. Guess a days walk through the tundra will change your mind real quick.”
While his eyes remained fixated on the flames, yours remained on him. He looked… different. Well, technically, he appeared the same – same old pink hair braided back, same crown sat upon his head, same red cape rested against his shoulders. But there was something alluring about him, now. His shoulders looked a little broader, and you couldn’t help but trail your eyes down the span of them, thoughts of how soft the skin and how taut the muscle were coming to surface. He left as Technoblade, yet returned your Techno.
“Look, about the letters…”
Breaking out of your trance, your eyes finally met his for the first time that night. His fingers dug in the fabric of his pants as he failed to find the right words.
“Do you regret them?” You whispered.
“No.” He mumbled. “Do you?”
You shook your head, not trusting your voice not to crack.
He nodded, face remaining stone. For a second, you feared your worries would come true- that he would withdraw, and you’d never see that side of him again for love nor money.
Instead, he stood. The floorboards creaked under his heavy steps as he made his way towards you. Your body remained frozen in the same position you woke up in, taking in every single movement. When he reached you, a shaky hand raised to cup your cheek. Your eyes caught his again as he lifted your head, cracked thumb brushing over your bottom lip.
“My bird,” he whispered.
A content sigh left you as you nuzzled into his hand, wanting so desperately for him to pick you up, pull you close, and to never let go.
“My pretty bird,” he repeated, forefinger joining his thumb to gently tug on your bottom lip. A soft gasp left your throat, and before you could stop them, your hands reached to toy with the buckle of his belt. Techno swallowed, hot hands hesitantly covering yours, reality burning even brighter as his fingers danced across yours.
“We don’t have to,” he whispered.
“Please,” you begged softly, eyelashes fluttering against the soft skin of your eyelids as you batted them, tongue gracing his phantom touch on your lips. “I want to.”
Techno’s nostrils flared as he nodded, hands letting go of yours. In their newfound freedom, they worked quickly, tugging the leather out from the metal and through the hooks of fabric. You could practically hear his teeth grind as he tensed his jaw, watching you in awe. Belt undone, you leaned forward to press your lips against the rough fabric, leaving openmouthed kisses against his bulge.
“Fuck—” he grunted, a heavy hand landing on the back of your head. Your hand reached back to help thread his fingers through your hair, flicking your eyes up to his.
“Gods, you look so good like this… so much better than I thought.”
You hummed, happy with the adoration. Your chest burned with an urgent need to please him, a need to feel his skin on yours, a need for you to give and for him to take. Your hands left his thighs, grabbing fistfuls of his shirt instead. He watched you intensely, gaze heavy and predatorial. Using your grip on his shirt for balance, you sat yourself up on your knees before pulling him in close.
Techno’s hand that remained in your hair pulled ever so gently, tilting your head up as he leaned down, faces inches apart.
“Tell me what you need, little bird.”
“Techno…” You whimpered, his tone deep and heavy falling over you.
“I know you can use your words,” he chuckled, tightening his grip on your hair. “What do you need?”
“Need you to kiss me – please,” you begged.
His lips found yours quickly in a searing kiss, stealing the air from your lungs. His free hand trailed up your side, freckling your skin with goosebumps and causing you to shiver under his touch. He landed at your lower back, flat palm pushing you tight against him as his teeth bit down against your lip. You rolled your hips against his, growing more frantic by the minute, nails digging into soft skin of his stomach.
“Careful,” he growled. “Wanna take my time with you.”
A broken sob left you, the heat of his words breaking your patience. You shook your head, pulling back from him to take a shaky breath. He could take his time later. All you knew was your desire to have his skin on yours.
“Need you now – I cant – just please,” you begged, well aware of how desperate you sounded, but too gone to care. “Make me yours.”
In under a second, he had you in his arms, carrying you to his room, boots heavy and commanding on the wood floor. He fumbled with the door, being careful not to make too much noise as he set you down, shrugging off his cape and pulling off his shirt in one go. He leaned over you, settling in between your legs as he tugged at your sweater, warm hands gracing your skin as he pushed it up past your chest and over your head, abandoning it on the floor over his shoulder. His hips dipped down as he ground himself against you, catching you off guard. His hand flew over your mouth as he smirked, lips brushing against the base of your throat.
“Need you to be quiet for me,” he mumbled, placing a kiss in the dip between your collarbones. “Can you do that?”
You nodded, teeth sinking into your bottom lip as he removed his hand. He lifted his hips to kick off his pants, then yours, before pressing his body against yours once more. Techno rolled his hips against yours teasingly, testing to see how well you listened. Your eyes rolled back at the contact, hands gripping the bedpost behind you, turning your head as you whimpered into the skin of your bicep. Another roll of his hips had you panting, threatening to sink your teeth into your own arm if you had to. He hummed with a smirk, deciding that you’d be good and be quiet for him.
You choked back a moan as he pushed into you, shaking legs fighting to wrap around his waist before they gave out. His face fell in the gap between your neck and shoulder, heavy exhale making you shiver as he bottomed out. You both lay there in silence, breathless and pliant at just how good he felt inside you. A slight shift of his hips had you clenching around him, a silent request to move, a soft growl leaving his lips as he picked his head up again, regaining control, a hand wrapping itself around your throat.
“Don’t tease,” he grunted, raising himself up to lean on his forearm. The hand around your throat tightened as he finally began to move, cutting off the sounds that definitely should have escaped you. His other hand pushed your hips further into the mattress, chin tucked into his chest as he watched the way he rocked into you.
“Gods, look at you… my little bird, taking me so well,” he praised, hand releasing its grip on your throat, allowing you to gasp and whine for air. You grabbed at the back of his neck, fingers threading through the hair, begging for his mouth somewhere – anywhere, to mark you and claim you as his. And he did, leaning down to press his teeth against your jaw, wrapping his lips around the bite, leaving a bright purple mark. The pace of his hips picked up as all your soft pleas and gasps spilled right into his ear, sharp nails digging into the flesh of your thigh before sliding up between your legs, fingers working in tandem with his thrusts.
“So fucking needy,” he gasped, pressing his forehead against yours. “You gonna be good and come for me?”
You nodded, neck craning to catch his lips with yours. He moaned against your lips, hand around your neck tightening once more.
“Come for me,” he panted in between kisses. “Please, need to see you come.”
The pressure around your throat and the weight of his begs pushed you over the edge, toes curling and vision cracking. He watched as you came undone around him, hands clawing down the span of his back, fucking you through your high. When you managed to open your eyes again, he was quick to move, sitting you up and turning you away from him. Your hands flew out on the mattress to balance you, body still pulsing from your first orgasm. You felt the bed dip behind you as Techno kneeled, pulling your back against his chest with a soft, “C’mhere”.
He tapped your inner thigh, a silent command to spread your legs before he slid back into you, breathing out a heavy sigh. He rest one hand on your thigh to balance you both, the other collecting your hair, using it to pull your head back to meet his eyes.
“Look at me,” he panted. “Tell me who’s making you feel this good.”
“You,” you whimpered, gripping at the hand that rest on your thigh. “You, fuck, ‘s all you—”
He tutted, slowing down his hips in punishment. You blinked, mind reeling, brain too soft and fucked out to process his request.
“My name, baby.”
“Techno—“ you cried out, cut off by the sudden harshness of his hips, fucking into you relentlessly. You tugged his hand off your leg, bringing it up and holding it around your throat. He groaned, getting the message, and tightening his grip. It was so so much so quickly, pushing you over the edge for a second time that night without warning.
His lips claimed yours as his thrusts grew sloppy, sweat beading at his temple before spilling into you with a sigh. Compared to before, this kiss was slow, Techno taking his time to engrave his taste against you.
“So good for me,” he mumbled, letting the grip around your throat up. You collapsed against him, allowing him to guide you both down. He pulled out slowly, smirking at the way you whined. Ears buzzing, you watched him press his fingers against you, fucking his own seed back into you.
Pleased with himself, he lay down next to you, covering both of you in a fur blanket. He held you close, blazing skin keeping you warm. You hummed in content, shoving your face in his chest. He smiled, draping an arm around you.
“So…” he whispered after a moments silence. “We wanna talk about that?”
You pressed a lazy finger upright against his lips, causing him to laugh.
“Tomorrow,” you promised, kissing a stray scar on his collar bone. “For now, you’re mine, and I’m yours.”
Techno smiled.
“Yours.”
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ptergwen · 3 years
Text
through the lens
Tumblr media
w/c: 2.3k
warnings: swearing and mentions of blood (all fluff tho!)
summary: yours and peter’s date night doesn’t go as planned, thanks to his “little” accident and mj’s photography project
a/n: it’s been a minute but i’m back! for now lol i promise i’ll be way more active when exam season is over <3 this was based off the lovely pic above taken by the even lovelier zendaya and i hope you enjoy these… let’s call it random workings of my mind
-
“hang on, can you come closer?” mj instructs you, you promptly stepping towards her. “is this good?” “great,” she affirms and squints behind the camera. “smile really big on the count of three, okay? one, two, three!” doing as she says, you give mj your cheesiest grin with your eyes squeezed shut and all. she snickers while snapping the moment on her polaroid.
mj asked you to be her subject for a photography project. you’re happy to do it, although it’s super last minute. like, barging-into-your-room-and-begging-you-for-help last minute. she was supposed to turn this in days ago. lucky for mj, her teacher was feeling generous and gave her an extension.
you have to work fast because of mj’s deadline and your plans with peter. he’s coming over for a movie marathon and cuddles right about now. well, he’s actually running a tad bit late. that’s typical peter for you.
“just a couple more, and then you’re free,” mj informs you while shaking out the polaroid. “this is honestly pretty fun, you know.” you glance at the photo she’s holding with an eyebrow quirked in surprise. she captures you well. “what made you choose me?” “no one else was free on a saturday,” she snorts and tosses the picture in a pile with the rest.
your mouth falls agape. “i’m not free! peter’s gonna be here in…” you check the time on your phone, much to your dismay. “he’s a few minutes late, but still. i have things to do, too.” a smirk sets on mj’s face as she gets ready for the next photograph. “relax, y/n/n. i was kidding. i’m sure spider-dweeb will be here sooner than you know it.” sighing lightheartedly, you take a seat on your bed.
“don’t call him that,” you shake your head. mj throws her own head back to the ceiling. “ugh, but that was a good one,” she insists, you only humming. “it’s better than penis parker, at least.” “nah, i like the alliteration,” you laugh out and earn a giggle from mj. “you’re lucky parker doesn’t have super hearing, or does he?” winking, you hit a pose for mj. you’re looking at her over your shoulder with smolder eyes.
“ask him yourself, after you get this shot.”
the two of you continue messing around with her polaroid until the film is almost gone, and peter has yet to arrive. you’re starting to worry. you aren’t sure where he could be.
he doesn’t patrol on weekends unless it’s an emergency, and he would’ve told you if there was one already. he’s never this late without sending a text, either. it’s almost an hour past when date night should’ve started. on the other occasions peter has gone off the grid, they didn’t end well.
“i’m freaking out, em. do you think he’s in some kind of trouble?” you ask mj, pacing around your bedroom. she offers a sympathetic shrug. “maybe he just ate some bad yogurt. remember last time?” being the dummy he is, peter once scarfed down an entire tub of vanilla yogurt before he realized it was expired. no one heard from him for days. he didn’t show up to school or answer any calls.
may ended up inviting you over and explaining he’d gotten a stomach bug, which you then tended to him for the rest of. the story was so amusing, and so peter.
“may doesn’t buy him dairy anymore. why do you think he always raids your freezer?” you bring your fingers up to rub your temples. “the kid can empty ice cream cartons in one bite,” she agrees, silently cringing. her curiosity piques at the fact. “is that also a power?” “who cares?” you nearly shout, your fingers curling into fists. “what i wanna know is if peter is fucking okay.”
on cue, there’s a knock at your apartment door. you and mj exchange looks of urgency, both rushing out of your room to answer.
mj follows you through the hall and stands by your side while you fumble with the lock. when your door pulls open, ned has his hand raised to knock again. “ned? what are you doing here?” you don’t give him the chance to speak. “have you heard from peter? he was supposed to be here a while ago, but he never showed.” rather than answering in words, ned takes a step aside.
the sight you’re met with makes you gasp. peter peeks out from behind him, cuts and bruises littering his flushed face. he gives you a lopsided smile.
“you have your answer,” mj murmurs to you and eyes ned curiously. he lets out a nervous chuckle. “here he is.” you push past ned and practically jump into peter’s arms, your hug bone-crushing. “peter, oh my god! are you okay?” wincing, peter hugs you back by your waist. his chin rests carefully on your head.
“hey… i’m alright, baby. still pretty sore, though,” he sucks his lower lip between his teeth. you take the hint to loosen your grip on him. “i was worried something bad might’ve happened to you. i… i guess i was right.” your tone softens, you threading a hand in his curls. they’re completely disheveled from whatever went down with him.
ned heads inside to catch up with mj, the two of them letting you have a moment alone.
“someone’s got a spidey sense of their own, huh?” peter tries to lighten the mood by joking. it doesn’t work, a frown still evident on your face as you try to untangle his once soft locks. “baby, everything’s fine. i just… had a little accident is all. no big deal,” he reassures you and moves in to peck your lips. you’re so shocked that you dodge the kiss.
“little? your whole face is black and blue, pete!” you tug on the white collar of his button up, peter letting out a shaky breath. your other hand comes to rest on his cheek, touch gentle. “how’d you get like this?” he licks across his lips shyly and sets his hands on your hips. “see, on the way over there were these bad guys who-“
“no there weren’t,” ned cuts in, scoffing at the beginning of his friend’s story. peter shoots him a warning look over your head. “yes there were, ned. you weren’t even there!” he catches mj glaring at him before he continues. “don’t listen to him. anyway, i had to fight them because…” when he trails off, you stroke your thumb across his cheek, avoiding any wounds in the way. raising both eyebrows, mj speaks up.
“because why? go on, parker. i’m intrigued,” she encourages him. everyone can tell peter is lying except you. the question really is, what’s he lying about? he gulps down his spit, pulling your body against his for comfort. “take your time, peter. we can wait,” you say only for him to hear. his love filled eyes meet yours, and he nods. ned huffs at the dramatics unfolding before him.
“dude, you’re making this way worse than it actually is. just tell her!” he demands, mj cocking her head to the side. peter’s gaze flits between the two of them. “tell me what?” you wonder softly and tilt his chin, willing him to look at you again. “i… i…” peter’s shoulders slump, his voice lowering in defeat. “there weren’t any bad guys.”
“of course there weren’t,” ned confirms. “no shit,” mj adds. exhaling, you wait for your boyfriend to further elaborate. “what really happened, then? be honest, pete.” peter lets go of you so he can come into your apartment properly, you shutting the door behind him. he scratches the back of his neck as he fills you in. “ok. um, me and ned were hanging out.”
ned is attempting to stifle a laugh for some reason, which mj elbows him for. you take one of peter’s hands. “yeah?” “we were at my place, and… you know those really slippery steps on the sixth floor?” peter pauses for someone to answer, playing with your fingers. “the ones flash almost wiped out on once?” mj questions in amusement. he lets a quiet chuckle out. “good times. yeah, those.”
his gaze averts to the ground, you listening on. “so, i was walking ned out on my way over. we were talking about spidey stuff-“ “as per usual,” mj mumbles to herself. ned raises his hands in defense. “—and i told ned i could always stick my landings. he didn’t believe me.” you playfully roll your eyes, seeing where this is going. “so… i, uh, decided to show him,” peter finishes off.
“i did a, um, backflip. tripped and fell down the flight of stairs,” he finally admits to you, putting his other hand on top of your intertwined ones. “clearly, i was wrong.” his bloody face is now red from humiliation. “you didn’t trip, dude. you freaking summersaulted!” ned corrects him and bursts into laughter he’s been holding back. “idiots, both of you,” mj simply remarks.
“that’s it? why didn’t you just say that?” you almost laugh yourself. groaning, peter rests his forehead against yours. “because it’s embarrassing! i wanted you to think i’m a tough guy or whatever.” placing both hands on his cheeks this time, you nuzzle your nose against his. “you don’t have to be a tough guy to impress me, babes. you’re kind, smart, funny. makes up for you being such a klutz.”
peter cracks a grin, easily capturing your lips in the kiss he didn’t get to before. it doesn’t last long because mj gags and ned whistles at you. you’re both giggling when you pull apart, peter kissing the tip of your nose for good measure.
“you really mean that?” he checks, tucking back a strand of hair from your face. “of course. i have a thing for himbos,” you tease and poke at his bare chest. his eyes widen. “how about i get you some ice and you find our first movie?” you’re already off to the kitchen, beaming at peter. “date night’s still on?” he happily plops down on your couch, mj showing ned her pictures from earlier.
“as soon as those two get out of here,” you call loudly enough so ned and mj hear you. “yeah, yeah. we’re leaving,” mj deadpans, shoving the photos back into her portfolio. peter glances over at it curiously. “what’s that for?” “photography project,” she says and gets an idea. “i have some film left. y/n took up most of it… you losers want the rest?”
while mj coerces her way to a higher grade, you put some popcorn in the microwave for your movie marathon.
“well, i could use a new lockscreen. i’m in!” ned quickly concedes. him and mj both give peter hopeful looks. “i’m not!” he protests, squishing one of your pillows against his chest. “with my face looking like… this? forget about it.” mj walks over to him and places her portfolio on the coffee table. “what? those gashes are gnarly… in a good way, i mean,” she promises.
“painful, too,” peter murmurs. “y/n, hurry up with that ice!” mj demands, grabbing the polaroid camera from its string around her neck. you wave her off. “what i’m saying is, they’ll look sick in my portfolio.” mj forces a smile, ned looking at her weirdly. “uh, what’s the theme of your project again?” “freestyle, baby,” mj casually replies.
peter comes up with a condition that could persuade him. “if you say please, i might consider it,” he concludes, mj perking up. “please be in my project. pretty please?” she instantly requests, ned pursing his lips from behind her. peter rubs his chin. “y/n, what do you think? should i?” you pipe in from the kitchen. “yeah, so she’ll leave my house.”
“you heard the lady. i’ll do it,” peter gives in. all but squealing, mj gestures for ned to sit. “this’ll only take a few minutes. you guys are really saving my ass.” ned gets comfortable next to peter on the couch, who wants to see how far mj will really go. “aw, we are? i believe that calls for a…” ned catches on. “it comes after please…” mj picks up her camera with gritted teeth. “thank you, morons. say cheese!”
that’s the only warning peter and ned get before they’re blinded with the flash. ned does a toothy grin as he leans into peter’s side. peter musters up the best smile he can, hair a mess and cuts burning pink on his face. satisfied, mj snatches the photograph as it pops out.
“pleasure doing business with you two,” she states, you joining the three of them in the living room. you set the popcorn on the table and give peter his ice pack. he presses it to his cheek, kissing the back of your hand. “send me that!” ned reminds mj, helping himself to your bowl of popcorn. she salutes him.
“there’s my star. what do you say, y/n? wanna take one more really quick?” mj suggests, already holding up her polaroid. you take the other cushion next to peter, your head on his shoulder. “can peter be in it with me? since he’s in the modeling mood tonight.” he wraps an arm tightly around you. “let’s do it, sweetness.”
eagerly jumping in front of you two, mj crouches down to get a better angle. “on the count of three. one, two, three!” the camera clicks, and you surprise peter by laying a smooch on one of his cheeks. he’s holding the ice against his other, genuinely smiling for this picture. ned coos at you, mj showing off her work when it dries.
“how adorable,” she says sarcastically but means it. peter nods at her in appreciation, his lips brushing the side of your head. “what can i say, you’re a pro,” you compliment mj. “come on, em!” ned cheers through a mouthful of popcorn.
tonight was an unexpected and exciting mess, even if your date night did get crashed.
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