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caroline18mars · 4 years

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A Man On Fire - Chapter 72

There was no protest, no accusations, not yet anyway, she just nodded and meekly followed him like a little puppy to his waiting car, he held open the door and she just got in without a word, “can we go dancing now?” a woman's voice eagerly asked while he got in. Harper leaned back a bit in shock, she hadn't even realized there was someone else waiting in the car, “sorry, no can do, we're flying back to LA tonight” Jared buckled up and started the engine. “Oh, I don't want to ruin any plans..” he could hear Harper whisper from the backseat, “you're not!” he said decisively as he let the car merge with the late night traffic. The atmosphere in the car was tense, the girl in the passenger's seat certainly didn't seem too happy with his decision so she leaned back a bit when there was a whispered argument going on in the front, she didn't need to hear, none of my business anyway. The worry inside of Jared was real, Harper was still in shock, she didn't say a word, she practically only answered with 'yes' or 'no' when she was spoken to, but 95% of the time she seemed to disappear in her own world, when he said he would stop at her house to get some clothes, she did exactly that, she walked inside only to get back out with a small bag of clothes 10 minutes later and the same empty look in her eyes.

Heading towards the airport, Jared got a call and he looked in the rearview mirror when Charles' voice bounced around the car “Hey Jay, did you find Harper?” he watched how all colour drained from her face and she shivered. “Yes..yes I found her..she's right here with me..us”. Charles seemed to hesitate for a second “Oh good..I'm glad..I talked to her mother, there's no change..are you coming back here?” Jared kept staring in the rearview mirror but she just looked down at her hands, “No, we're not..I'm taking her to LA to catch her breath” he sighed, expecting a lecture from him but none came “Ok..call me when you land? We need to talk” Charles sighed. ”You can sit here if you want, get settled in, not long before we take off” he pointed at a seat on the other side of the aisle, his heart melted when she followed his finger and sat down, holding her bag in her lap, she was under such a heavy shock still. If only she would say something..and could his friend with benefits shut up in the meantime, all that one did was chatter, nag, chatter and nag again “and all this on one of my weekends where I finally have some time off” she huffed as she sat down next to him and angrily clicked her seatbelt shut “doesn't she have any other friends?”. Jared just shook his head “will you just shut up? You can still get off the plane and stay in New York if you want” he clicked his seatbelt as the plane slowly started moving, “Miss? Do you want me to put your bag above your head?” the flight attendant smiled at her, “sorry?” Harper looked up at her with a million question marks in her eyes. “Your bag? I need to put it in the locker or you can put it under your seat, whatever is easier for you” the flight attendant patiently asked again, “oh” was all she managed to say as she finally handed over the bag, “let's click you in and I'll come over with some refreshments as soon as we're airborne”.

No matter how hard she fought it, that dark mist in her head just wouldn't lift, she was cold through and through but somehow she couldn't seem to get warm, every single one of her limbs refused to function properly, she was so locked up in herself that she couldn't concentrate longer than a second. Do I still have a father? Am I a cold blooded murderer? Like mama said? A suppressed sob nearly strangled her, but the tears just wouldn't come, she just kept staring blankly ahead, deaf and blind to her surroundings. “Harper?” a hand touching her shoulder startled her, “are you coming?” what? Where? She blinked a couple of times and looked around, “yes” she whispered as she got out of her seat and followed him off the plane. “God, I'm so gonna be glad to be rid of her, what hotel are you taking her to?” his date nuzzled against his ear as they got in the waiting van, “I'm not taking her to a hotel, she's staying at my house” he pulled out of her reach. “What?..but..” her mood suddenly dived below zero, “I'm not gonna discuss it, Steph, she's my..” he hesitated, did he tell her that they were ex-lovers and that he'd do whatever it took to stay in her life? “..she's like family to me and she needs help, I'm not gonna look away and leave her alone in all this”. She rolled her eyes “Djeez..you guys fucking or something?”, Jared shivered, she wasn't exactly the sharpest tool in the shed was she? “No..we're definitely not fucking” he wanted to add 'unfortunately' but didn't. Harper looked out of the carwindow at the citylights that were whizzing by, she had never been to LA but everything seemed so much more laidback than NY, people standing in line in front of a club, people walking in and out of restaurants, a heavy sigh escaped her lips, a couple of hours ago the night had been young and full of promise fcr her too..until she, almost or already she wasn't sure, killed her father, she banged her head against the window and closed her eyes, IhatemyselfIhatemyselfIhatemyself the mantra on endless repeat in her head.

Jared waited for her to get out of the van while he took her bag from her and she followed him up the driveway towards the huge mansion, stepping inside the enormous hallway she realized how little she actually knew of him, he had never talked about his house or about LA for that matter. Nothing in this house reminded her of the nomade she had been with, “you won't need this in LA, you're probably boiling” she heard him say as he reached to help her out of her big wintercoat, she hadn't even noticed the huge difference in temperature. His fingers lingered on her skin as he helped her out of her coat, he had missed her and this closeness so very much “why don't you go sit down, do you want something to drink?” the sound of his own voice bugged him, this entire distant situation between them bugged him. He wanted to talk to her, hold her, comfort her, but she was still so stuck in her own bubble of shock and fear, she functioned but that was about it basically. “Jared, babe, sexy tiger of mine, I'm so tired, all I want is to be horizontal with you” and then there was Steph too who came waltzing into the living room, fuck this! Harper's head shot up like she realized for the first time that there was someone else involved but their eyes only met briefly before she took a deep breath “I'm tired” and got up out of her seat, it was clear these two wanted to be alone. “Oh..of course, I'll take you to your room” Jared said a little bit more relieved than he wanted to admit, he could be alone with her for a while, up an endless flight of stairs, left and then right from one corridor to the other, how big was this house? “this is your room” how weird was this taking her to a guest bedroom when all he wanted was to show her his bedroom?. She followed him inside the huge room with ceiling to floor windows all around, the city underneath them lit up like a christmas tree, “thank you” she whispered looking at the kingsize bed. “My pleasure”, god, she looked so forlorn and so fragile “are you ok?” it was a dumb question, of course she wasn't ok, but he would have asked anything just to hear the sound of her voice again.

Without even looking at him, she slowly walked up to the window overlooking the city and shook her head “No..I'm scared..my father..I didn't mean to..my family..I don't have a family anymore..I killed him..I'm alone..I don't know what I'm gonna do..am I a murderer?” she clasped her hand over her mouth, the pain in her chest was so heavy like she was struggling to breathe. “Oh babe, don't say that..” he closed the distance between them but when he wanted to put his arms around her, she backed away like a scared cat “your father had a heart attack, you didn't kill him..this is not your fault, Harper!” his arms dropped to his side “you don't just get a heart attack like that”. Her eyes locked with his “why did I make that painting?” she whispered, in the darkness her whispering had something erotic, but before he could say something, Steph decided to end their little gathering “it's late, take me to bed” she walked over to him and pushed herself seductively against him. “Thank you for your hospitality” Harper softly said, breaking their eyecontact “this room is lovely”, goddammit Harper why are you always so politically correct? Even in your darkest hour you still manage to throw up that wall around you and shut everyone out? “try and get some sleep, we'll talk in the morning, if you need anything, my room is” he hesitated hearing himself say 'my room' when all he wanted to say was 'our room' and Steph certainly wasn't included in that 'our', “my room is the first on your right”. All she could do was nod and he slowly turned to leave the room with Steph in his wake, then the door closed and she was alone again, clutching her heart she let herself drop to the floor and pulled up her legs crossing her arms over them, curling herself up like it was all she could do to protect her against the long, black night.

Jared lay wide awake for most of the night, the film of this dramatic evening rolling on endless repeat in his head, Steph stirring in her sleep pulled him out of his waking dream and the gutwrenching dissapointment instantly followed, this bed had the wrong woman in it. What kind of a man, let alone friend, am I when all I can think of is her..us being a couple again in this time of her need?. Every single one of her limbs ached from being in the same position too long as she got up, her phone had been silent all night, the only notification she got was that her battery was running low, she had hoped that one of her brothers would at least have the decency to give her a little update but no..the clan had closed the ranks once again. She put down her phone and looked around the room bathing in the light of an amazing LA early sunrise, Jared's house..he took her to LA..she tried to sort through the rubble of last night in her head,why was he even there? Maybe a shower would help to clear the cobwebs. “Yes Charles we did land..I'm sorry alright? We were all exhausted..No, of course she's not ok..poor thing's gone into some kind of shock, she's completely disconnected from the world around her after the hospital, what else can you expect when your own mother accuses you of being a murderer? God, what a mess..what? Oh god no..yeah, ok I'll tell her”. This house was so huge and a complete maze and she constantly felt like she was trespassing, she was just looking for a charger for her phone, so she ventured downstairs where the smell of fresh coffee beckoned her to the kitchen, gently she pushed the door and found him sitting at a counter in the middle of an enormous kitchen, scrolling through his phone. “Goodmorning Jay..I don't want to interrupt..I forgot the charger of my phone and I was wondering..” her voice that danced up behind him made his head shoot up, he had so missed the sound of that beautiful, but now so formal, voice. He held up the end of a charger and his cup of coffee to her “I got both, come here” with a big warm smile on his face inviting her over “how are you feeling? Did you sleep at all?” on instinct he pushed a kiss on her forehead. “No..” she shook her head as she sat down next to him “but I'm so very grateful for everything you've done for me last night..I want you to know that! Last night I lost my entire family..you know what I mean..but you stood up for me and took care of me even if you clearly have other priorities in your life right now, I'll never forget that!so thank you, Jay..” her voice trembled and she quickly wiped a tear from her eye.

#jared leto #jared leto fanfic #jared leto fanfiction #fanfic #fanfiction #fic #30 Seconds To Mars #30stm fanfiction #30 secondstomars fanfic #a man on fire #chapter 72 #Harper Coco #Harper and Jared #caroline18mars

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golbrocklovely · 5 years

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only the lonely survive // colby brock - chapter ten: you suck so passionately

A/N: hey everyone. i’m slowly trying to churn these out since i’m only two or so chapters ahead. so, i might not update for another couple days. that being said, i will be posting the first chapter of ‘twisted’ soon, so get ready for that. i’m also gonna be posting a playlist of all the chapter titles from this story. feel free to request anything in the meantime. hope you enjoy! :)

description of the story

taglist: @ajosieface , @localsleeper , @julyrubyrose

trigger warning: fluff, cursing

word count: 1758

~~~~~~~~~~~~

I could feel the bed shift around me. I still had my eyes closed, not wanting to get up yet. I peaked open one eye. I could see the silhouette of a man, pulling jeans on. His back was to me.

Colby...

He grabbed the shirt off the chair in the corner and threw it on. I stretched slowly, pulling the covers off me. Colby turned to me.

"Did I wake you up?" He quietly asked.

I shook my head. "Not really. What time is it?"

"It's a little after eleven." He replied, grabbing his phone.

"And you're awake? Congratulations." I mumbled, smirking.

He chuckled. "Funny."

I pulled myself out of my bed. "Are you leaving right now?"

"Yeah. My uber's gonna be here in a minute or so." He nodded, slowly walking out of my room. I followed behind him.

We walked into the living room. Brennen, lounged on the couch, looked up and saw us.

"Hey cutie." Brennen commented.

"Are you saying that to me or Colby?" I sassed, resting my hands on my hips.

"...Both." He replied.

I shook my head, rolling my eyes. I heard Colby's phone vibrate. He glanced down at it. "My ride's here."

"Okay. It was nice seeing you again." I mentioned, opening my arms and giving him a hug.

He squeezed me tight, swaying us. "I'll text you later." He whispered.

"Alright." I pulled away, smiling.

He waved at Brennen and opened the front door, leaving quickly.

"Is Casey here?" I asked, turning to Brennen.

He shook his head. "No, she left early this morning."

"She's probably at the gym. She likes to go super early if she has a lot on her mind." I stated, shrugging slightly.

"Can I be straight with you?" Brennen inquired.

"Sure?"

"Do you realize how much Colby likes you or are you playing hard to get?"

I cocked my head to the side. "What?"

"I'm serious." He deadpanned.

"Colby doesn't like me." I doubted, crossing my arms.

"Yeah, he does. I know him very well and even though he falls in love with every girl he meets, you seem a bit different." He pointed out, mimicking my stance.

"I highly doubt he likes me. We're just friends." I scoffed.

"For right now. Do you like him?" He teased, smirking.

I exhaled. "C'mon Brennen..."

"I just want to know. I won't tell him." He chuckled.

"I mean... I guess so." I answered.

Brennen queried. "Are you attracted to him?"

"Are you attracted to Casey?" I taunted.

His face twisted. "This isn't about me."

"Answer my question and I'll answer yours." I dared, uncrossing my arms.

After a moment, he responded. "Yes."

"Okay." I slowly started walking to the kitchen.

"Well is that an 'okay' to my answer or to my question?" He questioned, following me into the kitchen.

"Both?" I grinned.

I grabbed a water bottle out of the fridge as he entered.

"Do you know if she likes me?" He mumbled, looking down towards the floor.

"Casey? I mean... I know she finds you hot." I admitted.

He rolled his eyes. "Well, everyone does. But how do I get her to like me more?"

"First and foremost, maybe stop flirting with me." I explained, shrugging.

"But I find it so fun." He teased, sitting on the counter.

"She doesn't. And Colby probably doesn't either if he apparently likes me." I insisted, taking a sip from my bottle.

He nodded his head. "Valid point. But if all else fails, you're still my future baby mama."

"No, I'm not." I groaned.

He moved on. "Oh by the way, the Trap House is throwing a party tomorrow."

I scrunched up my face. "You guys literally went to a party last night."

"That is true, however, it did end with us almost fighting a clout chaser." He recalled.

"I guess so." I agreed.

"Plus, a lot of the parties we've been to recently have kinda sucked. But the Trap House... they know how to throw a party." He smiled brightly.

The front door busted open, banging against the wall. "Brennen I'm gonna fucking kill you!" Casey's voice yelled out. She came rushing into the kitchen.

"Woah, woah, woah! What did I do?!" He sputtered, jumping off the counter.

"You know exactly what you did! Delete the tweets right now!" She shoved her finger at him, getting in his face.

"What tweets?" I asked.

She grunted. "You haven't seen them, have you?"

"No? What's going on?" I puzzled.

"Last night at the party, Brennen asked for my number and in my slightly tipsy state, I mistakenly gave it to him. He also asked for our instagrams so I gave them to him. And since your and mine's ats are the same on insta and twitter, he followed us on both." She explained, glaring at Brennen.

"Okay? And what's the problem?" I replied.

Brennen sighed, and slowly pulled his phone out. "Well I might have tweeted about Travis and what he said to you..."

He slowly showed me his phone. It was on his twitter, showing three tweets in a row from him at around one AM last night.

BrennenTaylor: TRAVIS MARCUS IS A BITCH

BrennenTaylor: what fuckin loserr has to make fun of girls and film it to feel good about themselves??? @travismarcus

BrennenTaylor: @skyebennett is fucking GORGEOUS and @travismarcus is an asshole for calling her fat. what are u 12?

It took a moment for the words to click in my head. "Brennen..." I sighed, covering my eyes.

"Look I'm sorry! I was drunk and pissed off. I wrote them when I was in the uber on the way over here. I forgot I even wrote them to be honest." He apologized, pulling his phone away from me.

"What are people saying... about me?" I questioned.

"Everyone's being really nice honestly. But Brennen shouldn't of at-ed you in the first place." Casey sneered, slapping Brennen's arm lightly.

"Has Travis said anything?" I mumbled.

"No. But he did DM me asking me to take the tweets down 'cause he heard this is gonna go on Messy Monday soon." Brennen pointed out.

"That's gonna make the situation so much worse." I grumbled, resting my back against the counter.

"I know you probably don't want attention, but people need to know he's a dick." Brennen sighed again, continuing. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you before. I'll take them down if you want me to."

I shook my head. "No it's fine."

We all stood around awkwardly for a moment. I could tell Brennen was uncomfortable and Casey was still pretty pissed. "I'll be right back." I uttered, leaving the kitchen quickly.

I could hear Casey and Brennen bicker as I went to my room to get my phone. I hadn't even thought to look at it this morning. I grabbed it and turned it on. Multiple notifications popped up. I went to Youtube first.

I had gained about 500 new subscribers.

Oh... I guess that's nice.

I then went to Instagram. I had many request messages. And from scrolling through some, I could tell most people felt bad for me. Some, who were fans of Travis, were not so empathetic. Finally going to twitter, I saw extreme amounts of positive messages. There was a hashtag started - #travismarcusisoverparty. I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose.

This doesn't even feel real at this point.

I scrolled through my dms to see I had a message from Travis himself.

Travis: please tell Brennen to take down the tweets. Things are getting out of hand. I apologize for what I said.

I rolled my eyes but replied to the message anyway.

Skye: I can't force him to take it down. That's up to him. Thank you for apologizing, but you shouldn't have said what you said in the first place. You're too old to be making fun of people like that.

"Hey Skye?" I heard Brennen voice call to me.

I looked up to see him standing in my doorway. "Yeah?"

"I'm gonna be heading out. I gotta go feed Kobe and go workout. Also if I don't leave soon, Casey's gonna murder me." He stated.

I chuckled. "Okay. Give me a hug goodbye."

He smiled sadly, walking over to me and embracing me. He pulled away, keeping me in his arms. "I'm really sorry I brought you into this dumb drama."

"It's okay. I don't mind what you said. And I mean besides, Travis was gonna get his comeuppance at some point. It just happened to deal with me too." I shrugged.

He cocked his head to the side, smirking. "Comeuppance?"

"What?" I asked.

"Do they use words like that in college? I wouldn't know obviously..." He trailed off, slowly backing away from me.

I groaned. "Oh my God, get out of my house."

"Alright, I'm going, I'm going." He mimicked back, waving. "I'll text you later!"

"See ya!" I yelled back, grabbing my phone.

Just as I heard the front door close, I felt my phone vibrate. I looked down, seeing a new message from Colby.

Colby: forgot to tell u but i'm throwing a party tomorrow. do u wanna come???

I smiled, opening the message and responding.

Skye: Brennen already told me about it. And yeah I'm down 😊

I walked over to my dresser and grabbed some clothes for the day. I heard my phone vibrate again.

Colby: i know this is sudden, but would u want to film a video w me?

Wait what?

Skye: uh yeah. what did you have in mind?

I sat on my bed, waiting for him to reply. I could see he was typing out his message.

Colby: i was thinking like a q&a with a fan or something else if u have a better idea

I couldn't believe this was happening. He actually wanted to film a video with me...

Maybe Brennen wasn't lying about him like me after all.

Skye: no I like that idea! when did you want to film it?

I started to get dress, needing to do something to pass the time in between Colby texting me.

*buzz buzz*

Colby: before the party tomorrow, if that's good for you.

I bit my lip staring down at my phone. I almost couldn't contain my excitement.

Skye: sounds great! lmk when you want me to come over tomorrow then

I placed my phone down, and then slowly laid down on my bed. I glanced up at the ceiling.

Why do I think this party tomorrow is gonna change my life?

<< CHAPTER 9 || CHAPTER 11 >>

#colby brock #brennen taylor #colby brock fanfic #colby brock fanfiction #colby brock fluff #colby brock story #colby brock x oc #colby brock fic #only the lonely survive

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aboysbestfriendishismum · 6 years

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Chapter 51 - Elvis, the beard and Schroedinger’s kisses (Part One)

In the previoius chapter: Dina, Angie's best friend, goes to San Diego to meet her and it takes her a few hours with her and Eddie to figure out there's something between them. She tries to make her admit it when they're alone and she almost succeeds. She meets Jerry too and is surprised about how nonchalant Angie is with him despite all the bad things he did to her. At the beach party, Dina has further proof about the attraction between the two when she hears them talking on the shore, while the others left skinny dipping in the ocean. The next morning Angie has to leave to Seattle, Eddie can't believe he wasted that opportunity and didn't do anything although he had two whole days to act out his feelings. He almost kisses Angie as she sleeps but he realizes it's weird and stops. As he takes her to the bus station they have a little verbal fight when Angie jokingly tells him he needs a girlfriend and that his friend Michelle would be perfect. Exasperated by Angie's blindness towards his feelings, Eddie shuts her up with a kiss. In the meantime Angie dreams about Eddie the night before leaving and in her dream Eddie kisses her. When the kiss happens for real at the bus station, Angie loses her mind and hears the infamous "music": Just can't get enough by Depeche Mode.

***

“I’m in love again, been like this before…” maybe I shouldn’t have put that one on the tape, too blunt. Well… I just shoved my tongue in her mouth, so I’m pretty sure that it’s impossible to be any blunter than that. Just… It’s been hours and I can only assume that the stupid grin that’s plastered on my face ever since I said goodbye to Angie is still there. I look up and see myself in the mirror, humming like a poor fool. I assumed correctly, fuck. I keep on repeating in my mind all the steps of our conversation from the moment she woke up that lead to us kissing and… and stop, that’s all I can do while I throw my things in the suitcase, ready to hit the road and leave this house again, this time with a heavy heart. Yes, because whereas before my house was just some sort of depiction of my frustrations, of my loneliness and everything I hadn’t been able to be and obtain, even though I had always wanted it, now it has an added value: the memories, pleasant moments that I’ve built with the girl I love, the turn of events that has led me to declare my feelings, albeit not with words. There had been many opportunities to do that before: in each other’s arms on the sofa, in front of a bonfire at the beach, on the terrace of Pike Place Market, on top of the Space Needle, on that bench of Balboa Park, even the other night on the dancefloor, and all of those situations were certainly more romantic and appropriate; but, even so, I wouldn’t change anything about those stolen kisses at the bus station. But it must also be said that, had I made a move before, I wouldn’t have to wait a week for the second round. This morning, for a second, I thought about not letting her get on that fuckin’ bus and taking her back here at home, but Angie's got university, work and I’m not going to get between her and all the responsibilities she cares so much about. Besides I didn’t want to look like a sentimental ass. Not yet.

Somebody knocks at the door. I zip my bag, pull it over my shoulder, take one last look around – trying to memorize as much detail as possible – and then go out.

“You’re all set?” Mike flinches a little, maybe taken aback by my quick exit.

“He’s all set” Jeff, by his side, answers for me.

“I can confirm it, I’m ready to go!”

“And he’s happy too” adds the guitarist.

“Yeah” Ament nods.

“Why are you happy?” Stone appears on the stairs.

“Lemme guess: Angie didn’t leave!” McCready ventures a comment.

“She's comeing to Oakland with us!” adds my roommate.

“She follows us for the rest of the tour!”

"God, I hope she doesn't!" Stone gives Mike a nasty look then wickedly smiles at me "Somebody else thinks differently though, right?"

"The fuck are you talking about? What's with Angie?" I try and play dumb but I bet that if I still had my bedroom's mirror in front of me right now I'd see the same fuckin' smile. So I think I'm failing miserably.

"Where is she?"

"I don't really know exactly, at 7 o'clock in the morning I put her on a bus to Seattle, so I guess she's still there. Well technically it was a but to Los Angeles, then from there she had to take another to Seattle. She must already be there by now. On the second bus. I think" honestly I thought she'd call from there already, I mean, I'd have called her as soon as I could, at the first stop. What did I say about the sentimental ass? Angie's more pragmatic, more practiacl, she must have thought it was more logic to call further on during the journey, maybe halfway through. Maybe she thought I was resting before leaving and didn't want to bother me. As if it can be possible to sleep after what happened.

"Uh. She left then?" Jeff asks as if he wasn't that convinced.

"Yeah, sure"

"So why are you happy?" Gossard insists, followed by his friend.

"You should be sad"

"Haha and why? What's with those long faces? She wasn't sent to the scaffold, she's going home and we're seeing her again in one week, even less" I sound pretty convincing as I include the whole band in being sad for Angie's leaving.

"Oh well, yeah, of course..." Mike mumbles.

"And what about you leaving? Leaving San Diego? Your house? Aren't you sad about that?" Jeff goes on with the questioning.

"Sure but-" I barely try to answer but I already know it's gonna be pointless way before Stone interrupts me.

"... but, as they say, home is where the heart is, isn't it?"

"I'm not happy anyway!"

"Ha! I knew that!" Jeff exclaims, all pleased with himself with no apparent reason.

"I'm just pumped up, for the show..."

"Huh. Yes. The show, sure" Mikey's been nodding his head yes for fifteen minutes basically, I think he's been in this comatose state since last night. The only thing that prevents me from being 100% sure it's his giant mirror shades, which creat a barrier between him and the outside world.

"Well, you gotta find motivations, you know. To go on..." Jeff puts his arm around my neck and we walk down the stairs and then through the garden up to the small gate, the other two guys tagging along. "And by the way, three days pass very fast" he adds in a low voice, winking at me.

"Oh we need to go to Craig's first, I need to give him the keys for my landlady. And to tell him bye. I'll be quick" I immediately change the topic of the conversation. I wouldn't really give away this house but I can't really afford two rents.

"Be really quick, Kelly's already waiting for us." Stone calls us to order as we all get into the van "We've just got five hundred miles to go"

First ring. Ok. Second ring. Hope's still there. I realize I'm basically holding my breath. Third ring. Well, this isn't over yet, maybe there's some lag time... Fourth ring. Fuck you. I shake my head. Fifth ring. I drop the receiver maybe too hard and let my hand down, which has been covering my other ear as I was trying to isolate myself from the chaos of the Real Rock Club's backstage. Fuck the phone and Jeff's smart answering machine, which picks up after just two rings whenever there are messages to listen to. Why doesn't she call? I openly asked her to do it. Did something happen? Does she regret our kisses? Or maybe she just can't remember the number... I'm such an ass, I should have written it down for her! Is she supposed to know it by heart only because she might like me? I retrieve the change and put it back into the payphone, only this time I dial another number, not mine, trying to beat anxiety to the punch.

"Hello?"

"Hey Meg, hi" thank god she's at home, I've been spending the whole day talking to myself or to our stupid intro message on the answering machine.

"Hi Eddie! What's up? You found me by the bell, I was about to leave to work to Roxy's" that's some good luck.

"All is good, thanks. We're... we're about to get on stage for the soundcheck, in half an hour more or less"

"Cool! Are the other dorks there with you now?"

"Uhm no, it's just me on the phone actually..."

"Oh yeah, I should have known, I can't hear Stone complaining in the background" Meg tries to hide her disappointment with a joke, she'd rather talk to someone else.

"And what about you? How's it going?" I ask her 'cause I don't wanna sound like the shitty guy who just calls her to ask her about her friend.

"Fine, usual stuff. Alright, what can I do for you?" she asks without wasting any time.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I doubt you called just to ask me how I am. What did you want to tell me?"

"I called you also to know how you are"

"Eddie"

"Nothing really, I was just wondering if you had news about Angie..."

"She'll be here in Seattle tomorrow in the afternoon, right?"

"Exactly. It's just... I put her on the bus this morning and I thought that maybe, you know, she called in the meantime"

"She did, actually she called me about half an hour ago"

"Uh"

"She's already in San Francisco, they stopped there for a while. She told me that they're perfectly following the schedule so she would be here by two o'clock tomorrow"

"I see. Well, good for her, right?" come on Eddie, don't take it bad, the most important thing is she's ok, isn't it? Maybe it was a very quick stop and a lot of people had to use the phone. Or maybe she doesn't wanna talk to you, asshole.

"Yep... But are you ok?"

"Sure, why shouldn't I?"

"I don't know, you seem... strange. Did something happen?" strange? More than usual?

"No, nothing! What was supposed to happen?"

"I don't know, you tell me"

"It's just that... We agreed she'd call to update me about her journey home but she didn't, so I was just a little worried, that's all"

"How can she call you if you're out playing?"

"I told her she could leave a message... the machine is in Seattle but I can listen to it from any place, you know?" maybe I should try to be less bitter.

"Well, you know how Angie is, maybe she didn't want to disturb"

"BUT I TOLD HER SHE WASN'T DISTURBING ME AT ALL!" I raise my voice a little too much, Meg stays silent for a long while "Ehm, sorry. Hehe"

"Relax Eddie... Maybe it's that or maybe she didn't have enough change to call both and since I have to go pick her up tomorrow, she had to call me "

"Uhm yeah, it can be..." actually I didn't think about that. I didn't even ask her if she had money enough to call. Non just for me, she might need it in general, in case of emergency! I'm a fucking irresponsible guy who leaves girs at the bus station.

"Or maybe you had a fight?"

"What?!No!"

"Or the opposite?" what's the opposite of fighting?

"Ok ok, if nothing happened you've got nothing to fear. She called me for convenience. She'll call you tomorrow, don't worry"

Nothing happened. Everything happened. A lot of stuff happened. Meg's right though, I must relax. I mean I kissed Angie twelve hours ago and I'm already freaking out. I'm not at the center of the world, it's not like everything necessarily revolves around me: she's travelling, she's tired, she called her roommate for a ride, she'll call me as well as soon as possible.

"I know. It's just... Well the journey is long. I was worried. And I feel kinda respinsible, if I hadn't told her the wrong dates of our tour she'd have taken a comfortable plane and would be at home right now" I try and put it on the road safety and other shit level. I hope she buys it.

"Come on Eddie, don't blame yourself. And by the way, I believe she didn't mind extending her holiday a little longer, you know"

"Oh... ok hehe, I hope so" I loved her extended holiday, it could as well last another week. That wouldn't be enough anyway, to take her to all the places I wanted to show her, the restaurant on the beach in Las Olas, the pool room at the Casbah, all the small pieces of my world I wanted to share with her. I just wished I had more time with her to share, even just hanging out in my car, talking and doing stupid stuff; just like when we were going back home from the night out at the Yates, I pulled out the tape to turn it to side B and Love reign o'er me by the Who started playing on the radio and she started singing at the top of her lungs. And even though she was simply destroying one of my favorite songs ever, I couldn't think about anything but how perfect the word love sounded when she said it. And if I still had doubts, it only took those five minutes of song to clear up any confusion: I love her and keep on falling in love again every time i see her, I talk to her on the phone or every time I'm just waiting to do one of these two things. And each time I look at her or talk to her for a minute I find a hundred new things to love.

"Yes, Eddie, trust me! Sorry, I gotta go now, Roxy'll kill me if I'm late"

"Oh sure, I mean, sorry for bothering you anyway..."

"You didn't bother me, don't worry. I'll tell Angie to call you as soon as she arrives, ok? Or even before if I manage to talk to her in the meantime" by now she must have understood I'm desperate.

"Thank you"

"You're welcome! And good luck for tonight"

"Thanks"

*************************************************************************************************************

"Fuckin' bastards" I curse loudly against the unknown assholes who decided to create a work of abstract art with ketchup, mayo and chewing gum on the seat I've been scrubbing for hours. My colleagues started churning out various techniques to solve the matter and the kitchen split in two groups, those who claimed I needed to use ice to dry out the gum and tear it off and the ones who thought I needed to warm it up to melt it. I'm the one who has to clean it anyway!

I hear the door ring and I'm about to take all my anger out on the next pain in the ass that has just entered, who might not be responsible for this disaster, but is still a dick who can't read the sign hanging on the glass door with CLOSED written on it.

"We're clo-" I look up and see a face that disappeared for a while and looks different now.

"Hey Meg"

"Since when do you have a beard?" it doesn't look bad on him.

"Oh hehe well, I've had it for a while" he smiles and scratches his chin, unusually covered with hair, like half of his face.

"Testing a new look?" I realize just now I'm still on all fours on the seat and immediately stand up.

"The test started casually, I'd say I turned sleaziness into a look"

"You're basically getting old inside that recording studio" I joke as he comes closer and suddenly my knees are shaking.

And now it seems clear to me that I must have a screw loose, there must be something wrong in me. 'Cause I've been crying for days over Mike not getting back with me, for his decision to stay single, the first decision he's ever taken since I first met him, who never knew what he wanted and now that he finally knows, he knows it's not me. And, I mean, I'm here mourning my dead relationship with my ex, then Matt comes in and it only takes him a couple of moves to turn me into jelly and... what's Mike's surname?

"Actually we're getting old in the rehearsing studio, technically we haven't started recording for the album yet"

"And what are you waiting for?"

"Hehe to polish the demo and clear our minds better"

"Considering what I heard, your minds seem already clear enough to me"

"I can't wait to record with Ben, I think he'll bring a breath of fresh air in the album"

"I agree. So? When will you start recording it? So I can estimate how much time will pass until I see you around again..."

"Soon, in Spring... Anyway, talking about this, I really need to talk to you, Meg"

"About the album?"

"Hehe no, about me disappearing. And other stuff"

"I see. Ok, shoot"

"Uhm no, not here. Maybe when you finish working. Can I drive you home?"

No. NO. No, Meg, you can't. You can't sleep with Matt tonight. If the first time meant fucking up, a second one would be fucking up cubed. You can't fuck him whenever you've got problems with Mike. Mike McCready! That's how he's called.

"Actually I came here by car"

"You got a car? Since when?" he asks sincerely surprised.

"Probably since you got your beard, more or less"

It's past midnight, Matt and I are sitting on the hood of my Impala talking about Ballard, Mookie's... ehm, Pearl Jam's tour and about how unbearable the nurse living at the second floor is, continuously passing each other a bottle of crappy red whine.

"Why don't we cut to the chase, Matt?" I tell him at some point, making myself clearer right away "What did you want to tell me?"

"Uh yes. Well... first of all I wanted to, you know, I feel I have to apologize"

"Apologize? For what?" whatever it is, I forgive you anyway.

"For my behaviour, how I treated you after what happened, the way I handled the whole... situation in general"

Code name: Situation.

"I thought we had already sorted it out. The situation" if you talked about something you'd totally want to do again in the next fifteen minutes, would you call it Situation?"

"Not really. I mean, we just pretended it hadn't happened" he shrugs.

"And wasn't it maybe the best thing to do?" I ask my rhetorical question and he'll surely answer No, then jump over me.

"Yes, but..."

What do you mean Yes?!

"... but no" ok, that's better.

"What do you mean?" I pretend not to understand and prepare myself to the next moves of the bearded angel. Of course I can't put out right away, that's obvious, I have to put some moral resistance at the beginning.

"That I was an asshole. I realized I was really cold to you, almost cynical, I don't want you to think that... well, that what we did..."

"That the situation"

"Hehe yeah, that the situation didn't matter to me or something"

"Oh no, Matt, don't worry"

"Ok, it was something reckless and unwise"

"Not wise at all"

"Terribly wrong"

"Sure" well, terribly is a little too much maybe?

"The most stupid mistake we could have done"

"Ok" something tells me we won't have sex tonight.

"But if I did it, it's because I wanted to in that moment and not just for fun, you know. I care about you"

"I know, it's the same for me"

"We made a mistake but I don't regret it, it was a nice thing between us, don't you think?"

"Yeah... really nice" maybe we'll have sex after all.

"I'm sorry I gave you a bad impression, if I treated you bad and avoided you, it's just I didn't know what to do, how to act.

Detatching seemed the best solution and being cold with you was the easiest way"

"It's alright, Matt, really, I understood that"

"And I'm also ready to tell Mike if you want to, I want to take resp-"

"NO! Ehm, I mean, that's not necessary. You know, it's not like he can't wait to talk to me and see me already, if he knew he'd be done with me. There's no need to make a mess for nothing, it won't happen again anyway, right?" ok, will it happen or not? I want answers.

"Oh my god, no, of course!" this answer sucks. Next one, please?

"Exactly, so I think it's better to leave things as they are" can somebody explain the sense of this conversation if it's not to take me to bed?

"I told April though" I feel an explanation coming.

"April?"

"Yeah, you know her, it's a friend of Stone's..."

"Who? The girl who plays the violin?"

"Viola!"

"Well, whatever it is, they look similar anyway. But why did you tell her about us? I had no idea you knew each other, I mean, I didn't know you were familiar with her"

"We weren't that close, then we got to know each other better"

"Are you dating April?"

"No!" ah ok, thank god "We went out together sometimes, you know, we're just at the beginning" thank god my ass.

"I see" beginning of what?

"The beginning of what I don't even know, hehe, anyway, we'll wait and see"

"And why in this beginning did you end up talking about me?"

"Oh well, we were talking about exes and past experiences and I talked about you. Without telling your name, obviously! And as I was telling her about the situation, April helped me understand, she opened my eyes. Thanks to her I realized I was an asshole"

"That's good"

"She told me I should have talked it out with you. And apologize" the girl is clever, for sure, she didn't want her man to have unfinished business with other girls and suggested him a nice peacemaking speech. And a closure speech.

"Wow, well, I only know her by sight but from what you say she seems a cool girl"

"She is" Matt's look is lost far away and I've never felt so out of place in my whole life.

*************************************************************************************************************

SIDE A

Can’t help falling in love (Elvis Presley)

I want to tell you (The Beatles)

You’re all I need to get by (Marvin Gaye and Tammy Terrell)

When you dance I can really love (Neil Young)

Can’t keep it in (Cat Stevens)

Two hearts (Bruce Springsteen)

SIDE B

I wanna be your boyfriend (Ramones)

You really got me (The Kinks)

Love you more (Buzzcocks)

Here comes my girl (Tom Petty)

Thank you (Led Zeppelin)

Don’t talk (put your head on my shoulder) (The Beach Boys)

I grab the piece of paper where I scribbled down the titles of the songs in Eddie's tape and I'm about to put it away when we're almost arrived. I didn't see the sign saying WELCOME TO SEATTLE, actually I've never seen it, neither the first time I set foot here or the number of times I traveled back and forth from my new town. So I could have missed it but maybe such sign doesn't even exist. I place the paper on the backpack I'm holding on my legs and I observe the creases created by folding and unfolding it everytime I took it and put it back in its case. I read my shaky handwriting due to street holes, too heavy breaking and unexpected words. The first song startled me because Elvis was honestly the last person I was expecting to hear among Eddie's favorites, for no reason in particular, I simply never associated him to Eddie, although since then I've been mentally going through various songs by The King, thinking about how they'd sound if he sang them. I was expecting the Beatles a little more and I guessed he'd have chosen a less known song. On the Motown sound of Marvin and Tammy my jaw literally dropped, and maybe my pen too as I was writing down, because that's one of my favorite songs ever and I wasn't expecting it at all. Neil Young and Springsteen were easier to predict, just like Ramones at the opening of side B, whereas Cat Stevens was another pleasant surprise. On the word got of the song by The Kinks my pen slipped a little because as I was smiling to myself, noticing that in that case Eddie had somehow replied to my tape by selecting a different tune of a band I had chosed too, I absentmindedly started to go through all the previous titles, reading them one by one, as if they formed a single sentence, a message and... Of course not, that's bullshit, it's just casual words. When I head Buzzcocks I thought maybe side B would be the punkest and heaviest part and I wrote the title in tiny letters; then Tom Petty came and I was just wondering when he'd have placed him, followed by Led Zeppeling, who were instead making me wonder why Eddie should thank me. I didn't do anything and maybe that's where all the mess started, 'cause I did nothing but being his friend and being close to him in certain situations and maybe he feels he owes me and maybe that's the reason he did the same. And he mistake this closeness for something else. So there are two possible alternatives: either he planned everything, tape and kisses, or the tape doesn't mean shit, songs are just random songs and he only kissed me because... I don't know, because he felt like doing it. Maybe he was stoned. It's not just acids that make him affectionate. While I was pondering on this, the last song by the Beach Boys, at the right moment, almost as if they could hear me, as if they listened to my inner ranting monologue and were asking me to shut up, just like somebody else shut me up a few hours earlier, without talking. In the corner of my eye I see the outline of the Kingdome dramatically entering my field of vision on the left, briefly taking my mind off useless thoughts. I fold the paper, take the cassette from the front pocket of the backpack and put it back in, then stuff everything in the back once again.

When I get off the bus I can't feel my butt anymore, I stretch out awkwardly and I can't believe I can finally unbend my legs and walk and I don't have to get on that bus anymore. When I cross the road and see Mag waving at me through her car window I'm almost sad: I'd gladly walk all the way back home.

"Then you'll have to tell me how the fuck you survived thirty hours on a fuckin' bus" that's my roommate's salutation as soon as I throw my backpack in the trunk, then close it and crawl on the backseat.

"I don't even know, hi to you too anyway"

"Hi Angie, welcome to my taxi cab, where do you wanna go?" she jokes about me sitting in the back.

"I wanna go home to die, because it was exactly thirty-two hours and I'm even working in the evening"

"Jesus, you hate yourself so much, why didn't you ask Roxy for another day off?" she says as if it was the easiest thing, as if she didn't work there as well and didn't know how things work there.

"Having this couple of days was already some kind of gift, I didn't want to push my luck" I yawn and keel over the backseat ready to sleep.

"YOU'RE NOT THINKING OF SLEEPING NOW?" Meg's imperative voice point blank makes me open my eyes wide right when I was starting to drool on the shirt of Morpheus.

"Why not?"

"Because you gotta tell me!"

"Tell you what?" I produce a scrunchie from out of nowhere and tie my hair.

"What d'you mean what? Everything! How was it in San Diego?"

"Good"

"Good?" she insists completely turning back to look at me.

"Yeah, it was alright. Shouldn't you look at the street?"

"Alright... and then?" she goes on and follows my advice turning back towards the traffic.

"And then nothing, it all went well"

"Hahaha yeah, you really think you can get away with this"

"I think you're so kind and gentle as to postpone this conversation to tomorrow"

"Sure babe, but give me some anticipation, tell me something!"

"Stone and Jeff made a bet with the other guys about wether one of us girls would have gone see them on tour and the losers performed as a Village People tribute band in a terrible 70s disco club" I tell her all in one breath and hope I shocked her enought to prevent her from asking any more questions.

"Did you dream all of this on the bus or here in the car, in the ten seconds you had your eyes closed?"

"Haha none of those, it really happened"

"Tell me you're kidding or tell me you have photographic evidence of this thing" she turns around again intermittently, trying to figure out from the look on my face if I'm joking or not.

"I'll tell you the second one"

"OH MY GOD, I GOTTA SEE THEM"

"Look forward, Meg!"

"You'll show them to me when we get home"

"If we get home"

"Ok, I'll behave... And what about the rest?" the Village People shock wasn't hard enough.

"It was great, the show was cool, half of the crowd were Ed's friends" I remain vague, as if I didn't know where she's going with this.

"Did you meet his friends? What are they like?" she doesn't insist, she probably decided to change her strategy and indulge me at the beginning to catch me out in another way.

"They were fun. And almost all surfers"

"Uhm interesting! And what was Eddie like?" I knew that.

"Oh he was good, he's becoming a real frontman, he's not as shy as he used to be"

"Good, great. And what about him, off the stage?" I really knew that.

"What do you mean?" I yawn again and rest my head against the window.

"Yeah, you know, how did it go with him?"

"Good"

"What the fuck does good mean?! Would you please be more specific?"

"Hey, calm down! Good, in the sense he saved my life by hosting me and so on. And he took me around to see places like a tourist, me and Dina who came from L.A.!"

"She made it in the end! Was she staying at Eddie's place too?"

"No, she only came over the day of the show, in the afternoon, then left the same evening. Well, more like in the night. Almost in the morning, really, after the beach party"

"And how did the beach party go?"

"Good"

"Angie, I swear to god..."

"Good, it was a nice party! There was music, drinks, company... at some point everybody went skinny dipping in the fuckin' freezing ocean" I try and come up with anecdotes about other people, maybe it'll work in the long run.

"And did they survive?"

"Barely, but yes. Needless to say I didn't participate"

"You don't say! What about Eddie?"

"He neither, he missed the fun because he felt he had to babysit me" I ruined the fun and let his friends know I'm some kind of amoeba.

"Yeah, I can imagine. Anyway you haven't answered yet..."

"No?"

"No"

"And what was the question?"

"Are you trying to exasperate me?" no, I'm just trying not to tell you shit.

"No! I'm only sleepy, I slept too little and bad"

"How did things go with Eddie? Did something... happen? Finally?" Meg tries to meet my eye in the rearview mirrow and I awkwardly avoid her look.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I don't know... you spent two days with him... the house was small..."

"So what?"

"Maybe you... slept together?"

"MEG!"

"What?! You already did, didn't you?"

"How many times do I have to tell you we only slept?"

"Oh but I know, I believe you, that's why I talked about just sleeping too"

"And it was an incident anyway"

"No incidents in San Diego"

"No" nothing, apart from the lips-on collision.

"Not even a nap on the couch?"

"No, Meg"

"A little kiss on the beach under the moonlight?"

"No" do I sound convincing enough?

"Cuddling at the park?"

"Nooo"

"A small pat on your ass at the disco?"

"Haha no! At least not from Eddie. Anyway we danced toge-"

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN NOT FROM EDDIE?"

"That's a weird story. Anyway it's official: Eddie can't dance for shit even when he's sober"

"Ok, but I wanna know whose hand was it!"

"Mike Starr. Now that guy can dance"

"WHAAAAAAT?!"

"We danced just to have a laugh! Anyway he can dance for real, he told me he had taken lessons"

"Oh shit... he took ass-slapping lessons too?"

"It was an incident"

"Your life is punctuated by nice incidents, did you notice that?"

"Definitely less than the unpleasant ones, trust me"

"Anyway, you mean Eddie didn't make any move this time either? I can't believe it, he's a jerk"

"Or maybe he's just not into me, you know? You're obsessed with this"

"I see why you didn't call him"

"What do you mean?" I quickly sit up in an almost normal position. Maybe too quickly.

"Eddie called yesterday to know if I had heard anything from you, he was worried 'cause you had told him you'd call but you didn't. And now I can see why"

"But... shut up! I didn't call him because they had a show, I didn't want to bother him"

Fuck.

"Yet the guy was anxiously waiting for you to leave a message on his answering machine"

Fuck fuck fuck.

"I'll call him back later, before going to work"

"Why not now? After all you only have to tell him you're alive and good"

"Yeah, I'll see..."

"Now, let's go back to Mike Starr's hands, please"

"Meg, just shut up and drive, PLEASE"

I know why he called, it's evident: he wants to know if I'm arrived because he wants to call me. He wants to call me to talk about what happened last morning. He wants to talk about last morning to tell me it was a huge mistake and it won't happen again and he hopes this won't ruin our friendship. All things I already know myself so I'll spare him the struggle. The nap was a bad idea because I'm more tired than before, but the shower wakes me up enough for me to quickly get away from our apartment avoiding further questioning by Meg. I get on the car and I'm about to put Eddie's tape I brought with me in the car stereo. But in the end I change my mind, I put it away in the glove box with the other cassettes and turn on the radio.And I try to focus on the road and on Fleetwood Mac starting right then on the radio, but how is it I keep on hearing Depeche Mode and the touch of Eddie's fingertips on my wrists and the taste of his mouth? I'm so concentrated on driving that I'm basically on autopilot and when I find myself in the diner's parking lot I don't even know how I got there. I hold the wheel tight and butt my head lightly against it a couple of times, I don't know why, maybe trying to get Eddie out of my head literally. I guess an axe would work much better, after all it worked with Zeus and Athena. Once I'm at work there's no time to waste, a couple of minutes for my colleagues to welcome me back, a joke by Brian about my Californian mega-tan (cheeks and nosetip vaguely reddish) and I'm already serving people food. I don't mind working, at least I can distract myself and not think about anything else. The problem is I keep thinking all the same. At least until one of my tables is occupied by an old friend and that pain in the ass who sings in his band, maybe the only one who can make me forget about Eddie for five minutes. I mean the pain in the ass, not the old friend of course.

"HEY PURPLE RAIN!" the before mentioned asshole says hi with his usual smirk.

"Did Idaho go out of fashion?"

"Hi Angie"

"Hi Dave, how are you doing?"

"I'm trying to freshen up my repertoire" Kurt answers politely waiting for his turn.

"Alright, thanks. Even though I haven't bought a motorcycle yet. What about you? You look great, I like your hair!"

"Thank you. Anyway, before buying a motorbike you should release an album. And sell some copies"

"To release it we have to record it first, something we haven't started doing yet" strangely enough Kurt says something serious, normal and absolutely non sarcastic to me.

"And what are you waiting for?"

"We'll go to California in a month or so to record it. You already been there, right? Just come back from the land of the sun. By the way, how did it go?" Dave asks calmly, as much as Dave can be.

"What... how do you know I was in California?"

"Right, how do you know?" Cobain asks too, squinting at him.

"Well I came here yesterday and your colleague told me." he explains pointing at Brian, who never minds his own business, then he brings his hands forward as to defend himself "But I swear I'm not stalking you!"

"Also because in that case, I'd never lend myself to such bullshit" the blond guy adds.

"And there won't be any serenades or shit like that, I promise!"

"I told him if it happens again, he's out of the band"

"Uhm... but... to kick him out of the band he must be in the band... Have you heard Dave? It's official: YOU'RE IN THE BAND!"

"OH MY GOD! YEEEEAAAAH!" Dave high fives me and Kurt looks at us disgusted.

"I think you're in the wrong place, the open mic is at the comedy club on the other side of the road"

"Anyway... I came here 'cause I was looking for you"

"No way, really?" the singer jokes, then goes back reading the menu.

"I have to ask you something and I can assure you it's not what it seems" Dave claims defensively and how is it I've got the feeling it's exactly what it'll seem?

"Ok, shoot"

"Would you go out with me tomorrow night?"

I knew that.

#finally #thank god #pearl jam fanfiction #grunge fanfiction #eddie vedder fanfiction #eddie vedder #matt cameron #dave grohl #kurt cobain #pearl jam #nirvana #soundgarden #chapters

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rose-of-pollux · 4 years

Text

The Three Spheres of Stonehenge Affair (MFU fic) 1/26

Written for part 1 of the A-Z Stonehenge challenge at Section VII.

Act A: Harmony Disturbed

Summary: Napoleon and Illya’s new mission at Stonehenge brings the possibility of portals, wormholes, and inter-dimensional travel, but soon, Waverly and Victor Marton also end up having a personal stake in things, as well.

Notes: if anything looks like a reference to Pokémon, it is; this will eventually be a light crossover.

Crossposted to AO3.

Napoleon and Illya had both known that, in their line of work, just about anything could happen; part of their training had been to expect the unexpected. Needless to say, they were only mildly surprised when Waverly had asked them to meet with him in Amesbury, England, for a new and vital mission.

“Amesbury…” Napoleon had mused on the way there. “Isn’t that right where Stonehenge is?”

“Yes, it’s a few hours from Cambridge – I saw it myself once when I was studying there,” Illya had replied. “Have you been?”

“No, but I’ve always thought about going,” Napoleon had admitted. “But it always turned out that my forays in Jolly Old England were mainly in the cities to rub elbows with the upper class. But I’ve always had a fascination for ancient times—and the fact that there are so many stories about how Stonehenge was constructed.”

Illya hadn’t been surprised, and had been proceeding to tease Napoleon about it as they arrived for their meeting with Waverly at the U.N.C.L.E. outpost. His good mood vanished, however, upon seeing Victor Marton in the chair beside Waverly.

“What is that one doing here!?” he demanded.

Ordinarily, Marton would usually retort with a snarky reply, but the Frenchman was clearly too preoccupied with his own thoughts to even acknowledge the Russian’s presence. That clued Napoleon in to the fact that something serious was going on.

“Victor is here because he has brought to light a troubling situation that seems to involve the ancient site of Stonehenge near here,” Waverly said. He turned on a slide projector, displaying the image of a man in a lab coat; Marton was staring determinedly elsewhere. “This was Professor Lawrence Gelardan – quantum physicist.”

“Oh?” Illya asked, no longer caring about Marton as the conversation had turned to one of his fields of study. He paused. “The name sounds familiar to me; I understand he was doing some work focusing on the Wormhole Theory.”

“Correct, Mr. Kuryakin.”

“…I’m guessing we’re not talking about actual worms?” Napoleon asked.

“It’s part of Einstein’s Theory of Relativity,” Illya explained. “Imagine if this table surface was part of space-time. Now, if I were to hurl a baseball at the surface of the table…”

“You’d dent it,” Napoleon said.

“Correct. And if I were to hurl a bowling ball at it?”

“…You’d make one heck of a hole.”

“Also correct; objects make dents in space-time relative to their mass. But it is believed that space-time exists as multiple layers, perhaps in multiple folds. A wormhole could be created if something were able to distort space-time to such an extent that the hole would extend from one surface of space-time to the direct opposite – one you could theoretically travel through to the hole, finding yourself in a place in space-time parallel to our own.”

Napoleon let out a low whistle.

“Parallel worlds?”

“Again, it is all just a theory,” Illya said.

“It may be more than a theory,” Waverly interjected. “Victor and I were personal friends of Professor Gelardan, Victor even moreso, on account of him being a fellow Frenchman – after Gelardan’s divorce a few years ago, he found himself in a bit of a financial crisis that the both of us bailed him out of so that he could keep custody of his infant daughter. But he still needed more funding to continue with his research, and though I disapproved strongly, Victor offered him funding through THRUSH – I assume, in exchange for first access to anything valuable the professor might have discovered. Naturally, funding from THRUSH comes with risks of its own…”

“You were right, of course, Alexander; I should never have brought it up,” Marton sighed, massaging the bridge of his nose. “But he was eager to continue with his research, and I suppose he assumed that if THRUSH gave him any trouble, I would handle the matter personally. And I tried; it worked until recently, when the professor made such a sudden advancement in his discovery that it attracted the attention of others beyond THRUSH, and THRUSH considered him a flight risk.”

“Victor believes that Gelardan succeeded in opening a wormhole, right within the area of Stonehenge, resulting in three objects from a parallel world, as Mr. Solo put it, falling to Stonehenge,” Waverly continued. “However, the ancient history of Stonehenge has gotten it a reputation as place of… for lack of a better term, magical happenings, and there are groups who firmly believe in the magical powers of Stonehenge.”

“There are powers beyond the realm of mortal understanding at work, Alexander,” Marton countered. “A distant cousin of mine… Well, this is not the time to discuss it; the point is, whether science or magick, Gelardan found himself pursued by some sort of cult who believes that Stonehenge itself is a gateway to another world. The cult stole the three objects that fell through the wormhole or gateway or whatever it was, and then, they mailed one of them to Gelardan’s daughter.”

Waverly moved the next slide, showing the image of a seven-year-old girl with dark skin and dark hair.

“This is the girl – Della is her name, was the second to receive one of these objects…” The next slide revealed a sphere that looked as though it was carved from red crystal that almost seemed to burn with fire from within. “The first was a boy the same age who lives in Newark; he received a similar sphere, one carved from yellow crystal, and was recently found missing along with the crystal.”

“Gelarden surmised that the cult took the boy and assumed they would be after his daughter next,” Marton said. “He called me up, pleading with me to help him hide the two of them, and to look after the girl if anything happened to him. My rivals at THRUSH must have been listening in on the call and did not like the idea of him disappearing…” A pained look crossed his face. “They killed him before I could arrive and took his wormhole device and research; I have my own ways of recovering that, but… I had found the girl, Della, and the crystal sphere, and as we were leaving, we were waylaid by the cult. …Les cochons…! They took her when I was outnumbered!”

“And they took the crystal sphere, as well,” Waverly added.

“I could care less about the sphere!” Marton snarled. “Gelardan had been depending on me to protect him, and I could not; his last wish was for me to protect his daughter, and I could not even do that for my old protégé… And I cannot turn to THRUSH for help; they would care not for the girl.” He looked to Waverly. “Alex, you are the only one I can turn to… je t'en prie, je t'en supplie…”

Napoleon and Illya exchanged glances, their eyebrows arched.

“‘Alex’…!?” Napoleon silently mouthed.

Illya shrugged in response; this was a side of Marton he didn’t even know existed.

“At U.N.C.L.E., we care about the well-being of innocents, Victor; we will do what we can. In the meantime, Mr. Solo and Mr. Kuryakin, you will investigate Stonehenge and try to find the cult and the two missing children. Victor, you will retrieve the device and research that was stolen from Gelardan and see that it makes its way to Mr. Kuryakin for his examination.”

Marton finally acknowledged Illya’s presence with a frown, and Illya couldn’t help but shoot a smug look at him; Marton would have to refrain from antagonizing him, for now, anyway…

“Do keep us updated, Mr. Solo,” Waverly finished. “Once Victor retrieves…” He trailed off as the phone rang. “Yes, hello? Ah, Mr. Slate; have you found the recipient of the third crystal sphere?”

To the surprise of the three others in the room, Waverly suddenly paled.

“…Very well, Mr. Slate; the best protection detail you can find for her. Keep me informed of all the developments.”

He placed the phone back, now silent as he clearly sat contemplated something.

“Sir…?” Napoleon asked.

“Alexander?” Marton queried.

“The recipient of the third sphere…?” Illya said.

Waverly sighed deeply for a moment before speaking again—

“…My granddaughter, Blanche.”

#Napoleon Solo #Illya Kuryakin #the man from uncle #mfu fic #The Three Spheres of Stonehenge Affair #napollya

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chatuoir · 7 years

Text

catastrophic affairs, truly (chap 5)

chaps 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / on ao3

hello it has been 500 years since i last updated but the lovely AmelineAmira on ao3 wrote a fic inspired by this one? omg? and that reminded me that i needed to update (i had the chapter ready i was just being lazy)(thank u <3) so yall should definitely check that fic out but in the meantime here is another chapter lets get LIT (its like midnight goodnight)

Marinette is smothered in hugs as soon as she steps into the bakery. Her parents apologize to the customers before pulling her into the living room, clearly scared about her well-being. They'd heard about the attack on the news and keep inspecting her to check for injuries; she assures them that she's fine.

“Really, Maman, I'm okay. The broken glass didn't even cut me. I promise.” She says. Her parents exchange a glance before turning back to her.

“We’re glad you're okay,” Her father starts, “But what about the stuff we’ve heard about this Chat Noir business?” Marinette silently curses. Shit. The attack had distracted her from thinking of a good way to bring it up.

She takes a deep breath. Well. “I know this is going to sound really weird, but I can explain. The truth is... Chat Noir is my fake boyfriend.”

Her parents stare at her for a few moments, eerily quiet. Marinette stands there waiting for a reaction, but there isn't one. Finally, she starts again.

“So... Chat asked me to fake date him so Ladybug wouldn't think he was lying to her about him having a girlfriend; I felt bad for him, but I also thought it was really funny, so I agreed. We set up some conditions so this doesn't go too far, and I can opt out whenever I want.” Marinette sees her parents visibly relax a little, but they're still confused. At last, Tom speaks up.

“I think the only question I can really ask is... can I meet this Chat?” Marinette hesitates in answering. Fortunately, she's saved by a bell ringing from inside the store. Sabine goes to check and brings back a plate of cookies and friend- in fact, she brings back a plate of chocolate chip cookies and a superhero friend.

“Hi Mr and Mrs Dupain-Cheng,” Chat greets after inhaling a couple cookies, “I'm Chat Noir, but I think you knew that. I just wanted to say that everything that's happened to your daughter today with the akuma was my fault and I apologize. Did she tell you exactly what's going on?” He says in one spurt. Marinette gestures for him to calm down and breathe.

“It's fine, I told them.” She says. He looks noticeably relieved.

“I didn't want you two to stress out or anything, I mean, Marinette was safe during the attack, if you count being trapped inside a glass cat head safe. Which, by the way, I'm really sorry for-- I didn't think people would overreact to something like who I'm dating. Or, you know, in this case, fake dating.” Honestly, this boy doesn't know when to stop talking; Marinette’s almost embarrassed for him. Luckily, her parents smile at him warmly.

“Thanks for letting us know, Chat.” Tom says. “We trust that you and Marinette can handle this, but if anything starts to trouble you, don't be afraid to come to us. Both of you.” Okay, dad. We can't just adopt every guy I (fake) date. Marinette thinks.

Chat grins, nods, and takes a few more cookies. “Thank you for everything. Can I speak to Marinette for a couple minutes?”

“I'm really sorry about everything that happened today. If you want to call it quits right now, that's fine with me. I can ask Alya to take all the pictures off her blog.” Chat says.

“No, no, really, it's fine! You wouldn't believe how many times I've been in serious situations like today’s, especially with the amount of attacks that happen in my school. Seriously. I forgive you. And if it had really bothered me that much I’m sure I would’ve asked Alya myself. Really, I’m okay.”

“So... we’re still fake dating?”

“Duh. You literally just met my parents. I'm not gonna break up with you right now.” Chat breathes out a sigh of relief. Then he rubs his temples before speaking up.

“You know what I just realized? I don't have any way to contact you besides like this, face to face. Can I have your phone number or something? Wait, no, you might know the civilian me. What about IM? I'll make a new one just for you. Maybe something like, small x - big x - Mari’s - underscore - true - underscore - love - big x - small x’, just to keep everything fresh.”

Marinette jokes. “Who are you, a scene kid from 2009?” They both snort at that.

“Like you have any better ideas.”

“Yeah, I don’t. Mine’s just my name.” Chat makes a big show of committing that to memory, as if he’s going to mix it up and find a different Marinette Dupain-Cheng somewhere on the internet. Marinette has to admit that he’s a pretty funny guy, even if he tries too hard to be cool sometimes.

A few minutes later she's shooing him out the bakery door while he salutes and blows a kiss. A couple customers smile; Marinette catches a few of them sneaking glances and laughs to herself. The fun has only just begun, she thinks.

It's past midnight, and Marinette knows she’s supposed to be on her rounds right now, except she isn’t really sure what to say to Chat as Ladybug after the day’s events. Technically, there was no way she could’ve helped him during the attack since she was quite literally trapped, but she still feels kind of bad. They’re supposed to be a team.

Marinette lays in bed for a while and listens as the city settles. There’s usually a couple cars left at this hour, and of course Paris is still ablaze- they don’t call it the City of Lights for no reason- but it feels eerily quiet and dark. I’m probably sleep-deprived, she thinks. Suddenly, her phone lights up and nearly blinds her. She fumbles for it and reads the notification.

New IM chat request from xXmaris_true_loveXx

Marinette has to smother herself with her blanket before she laughs too hard and wakes the entire city. She accepts the request and sees that Chat’s already sent a couple messages.

xXmaris_true_loveXx: hello my false lover (i hope)

i have a question

do you happen to be friends with lb or can you contact her

if so where tf is she?

oh shoot it's like 12:17 im sorry if i woke you up

She frantically types a message back, whispering for Tikki to get ready to transform her.

Marinettedcheng: hi chat no u didnt wake me i do in fact have a way to contact her i will tell her ur waiting & congrats on finding the right mari

xXmaris_true_loveXx: ok good i was just worried cus she wasn’t answering. get some rest you need your beauty sleep

Marinettedcheng: cant tell if thats an insult or compliment but thx i will see u 2mo

xXmaris_true_loveXx: wow i would never slander my fake gf </3... goodnight

“He certainly is a character, isn’t he?” Tikki says. Marinette rolls her eyes, her face shining from the glow of the city.

“Sure. Let’s get going. Tikki, spots on!” Marinette transforms at 12:20 and heads out to the Eiffel Tower.

It’s quite relaxing to be above the city in the dead hours of the night, with everything sparkling and the cool breeze rustling through the air. Ladybug finds her partner sitting on a ledge, lost in thought. She settles down next to him and they silently greet each other. It's awkward for a while before she speaks up.

“Hey.. so. I just wanted to say I'm sorry. Again. For not showing up earlier today? But I was in a sticky situation.” He smiles softly and Ladybug catches it, his face lit up by the moonlight.

“I forgive you. Again. It's okay, my Lady. I promise.” It's still a little awkward.

“Okay. I just feel guilty. Like, all these people were looking up to me to help them and be their hero, but I wasn't even there.”

“But your trusty sidekick was there,” Chat says with a grin.

She gently shoves him. “Chat, we talked about this. You're my partner, not my sidekick. We're equal. We balance each other out, that’s kinda the point. Duh.” He lets out a short laugh.

“Yeah, yeah, you're right. Team Miraculous, am I right?” She nods, glad that the slight tension in the air is gone. The two fist bump before settling back into the silence of the night.

A few more moments pass.

“We should... uh... patrol now?” Ladybug whispers. Chat’s eyes widen.

“Yeah, yep, you're right, I’ll do the north side of the city,” He raises his baton and helps Ladybug to her feet, “See you in 30.” Then he does an Olympics-worthy dive off the side of the tower, extending the pole to vault to the next building. Ladybug snorts as he leaves. Show-off. Again, she thinks.

Ladybug catches a couple thieves before finishing her patrol; they’re some sneaky tourists who wanted free souvenirs, but they at least have the dignity to look guilty when she turns them in.

Chat is sitting on the building across from the Dupain-Cheng bakery. Ladybug wants to laugh; he probably thinks his fake girlfriend is in there, asleep, not at all thinking about the crazy day they just had like he definitely is. She suddenly realizes he’s speaking to her and snaps out of her trance.

“So... did you hear about what happened to me and Marinette?” Ladybug snorts. She’d read his mind.

“Yeah, someone told me to check the Ladyblog, like, a half hour after you confessed to me.”

“Hmm. Seems awfully suspicious. You sure you didn’t expose me?” Chat interrogates, but he’s smirking. Ladybug rolls her eyes.

“Pssh. You probably submitted that post yourself, because you thought I didn’t believe you or something,” She jokes. He freezes for a moment, but she doesn’t notice. Biting her tongue to keep from laughing, she grins and adds, “But you do like Marinette, I can tell. I mean, why else would you be dating her?”

He nervously laughs but tries to play it off. “Yeah, she’s great. It’s going well. But hey, that’s enough about my love life. What are your plans for tomorrow? I never got to ask.” Shit. Uh, I’m going on a fake date with you in civilian form, while trying to keep it realistic enough so other people think we’re actually dating- but only until your plan of making me, as Ladybug, jealous finally works- which probably won’t ever happen, so, honestly, you tell me.

Later, she would wonder if it was the sheer amount of exhaustion from the day, the huge billboard right in front of her, or the curiosity of the cat (especially a certain Chat) which made her difficult situation a whole lot worse. But at the time, all she could think was to say something as ridiculous as possible so he wouldn’t ask any questions.

“I’m, uh, also going on a date. With.. um, the one and only, uh...” Ladybug drops her gaze from Chat’s eyes (which turns out to be an accident) and says with confidence, “Adrien Agreste.”

#marinette cheng #chat noir #marichat #ml fanfiction #love square #the CAT fic #lucia.txt #sweet dreams yall

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faces-in-unexpected-places · 4 years

Text

Do You Have the Time? Episode 023: The Deal

Synopsis: Leopold takes a totally non self-destructive break from his stress. Jeremy and Madison demonstrate a vastly different relationship in their recent past.

[April 24th, 2018, 18:13]

Leopold heaved himself up onto the lab bench and sat right next to the melted surface that Sophia pointed out. The lab was in total and complete disarray. He’d collected many of the large pieces of glass, but the floor was still sparkling with fine shards and glass dust. There were also many jagged pieces still sticking out of the window frame as well. Combined with Sophia’s news, his motivation to keep up a good appearance for Jeremy and Leslie was quickly plummeting. He considered waking IO out of its slumber for help with the cleaning but putting on a face even for a robot felt like a massive undertaking. If he told the others that the glass was taking longer than expected, Leslie would just volunteer herself and Jeremy to help it go faster. And then he would have to tell them what happened while they were gone. If he didn’t, they would notice that something was wrong.

At least Leslie would.

He wiggled his phone out of his pocket and reached out to them for an update.

[LEOPOLD_LESLIE_JEREMY_CONVERSATION_START_18:18]

LL: hey there you 2, how’s the search going :)

JB: Good. Leslie’s driving and we’re on our way back. JB: We took the long way.

LL: ok no problem

JB: Leslie is yelling at me to tell you that it was an accident. JB: She didn’t know where the Home Depot was.

LL: but we were just there…?

LG: I was listening to ur sotyr abt Woodstock that isn’t fair!!

LL: i thought she was the one driving?

LG: red light

LL: where r u guys? LL: hello

JB: Aaand now, it’s a green light. JB: The GPS says we’re about 20 minutes away. JB: We actually just passed Leslie’s house a few minutes ago.

LL: i finished the cleaning a little bit ago LL: y don’t u 2 just head home tonite and bring the supplies tomorrow?

JB: Are you sure? It’s only 20 mins.

LL: u guys r already in ur neighborhoods LL: and u 2 have been staying late and coming in early to work alot lately LL: u deserve a break :)

JB: She wants to know what time we’re coming in tomorrow.

LL: just be here at 9am lie everyone else LL: like* everyone else LL: hello?

JB: Sorry, just rerouting. Rush hour.

LL: no worries!

JB: Okay, Leslie’s going to take me back to my house and head home, then. JB: She’s keeping the supplies in her car overnight and will bring them tomorrow morning.

LL: ok sounds good LL: see u guys then! LL: great job today !

JB: Thanks. You too. JB: Leslie says thank you, too. JB: Sorry, she says, “Thank you!! <3”

LL: lol LL: that sounds like her

JB: Have a good night, Leopold. See you soon.

LL: see u !

[LEOPOLD_LESLIE_JEREMY_CONVERSATION_END_18:30]

Leopold grinned faintly but it was quickly washed away with exhaustion. His face was heavy and expressionless. Tired. He let himself fall off the workbench and landed on his feet. The promise of solitude filled him with a vague relief. He trudged over to the entrance to the lab and locked the doors. Many of the labs nearby had turned their lights off and were left empty for the night. He lugged himself back across the lab and carefully stepped through the sheet of glass dust on the floor of his office until he reached his desk. The lowest side-drawer contained a mess of papers and wires and junk that he should probably have gotten rid of long ago.

All the way in the back was a plastic bag and some flimsy, palm-sized pieces of paper. A small bag next to it contained a pile of grassy-looking balls. He retrieved the two bags, sat down, and dumped a dirty-green colored bud onto the paper. In his top side-drawer, he pulled out a mortar and pestle. When he ordered materials for his lab decades ago, he “accidentally” ordered an extra mortar and pestle. He ground the bud in the bowl with the pestle, sprinkled the green dust into the paper, rolled it tight, licked it together and lit it up with his handy zippo. With his feet up on the desk he took a long puff of his favorite medication and stretched his limbs out.

If he was going to be there for a while, he might as well get comfortable, too.

After today, he needed a break.

[May 13th, 2016, 1:57]

Madison sat anxiously on the couch of a dark living room, scanning the quiet, suburban neighborhood through the window for cars. She checked her phone again. A message from Jeremy ten minutes ago. It said he’d be here in five minutes. She glanced to the clock for the 3rd time. She wasn’t sure what she expected to be different, as if he would somehow arrive faster. A car slowly emerged from behind the next-door neighbor’s hedges and parked on the street in front of the house. She waited for a few seconds, then the car flashed its headlights three times. It was him! She leapt off the couch, stuffed her bare feet into her shoes and silently slipped through the front door, closing it gently behind her. She jogged down the driveway to meet him on the sidewalk.

“You made it,” she said.

“I did. How’s the situation in there?”

“They’re asleep. Went to bed around eleven or midnight.”

“Okay. We should be fine, then. Thanks for doing this,” he said.

“Sure. I wouldn’t deal with them if I didn’t have to, either.”

He shut his car door as quietly as he could and followed Madison up the driveway. He carried a small, flattened cardboard box under his arm. They entered and both took their shoes off out of habit. He followed behind her through the living room and down the hallway. They tiptoed past their parents’ bedroom and stopped at Jeremy’s old room, across the hall from Madison’s. She led him inside, shut the door and used the light from her phone to see. Jeremy observed and did the same.

“So, what are you looking for?” she asked.

“I want my keyboard and all the accessories that go with it, wax warmer and the wax cubes, and some old notes I took for some of my classes. Those can go in the box. I also want to take my bedspread and my old bookshelf. Those, I can fit in the backseat.”

“Really, the keyboard? Even after mom cracked down on your knuckles every practice session? I haven’t heard you play in forever.”

“I haven’t, really. But I can still play, and it is still mine, so I’d like to take it back.”

“Fair enough. Okay, we can do that.”

Aside from periodically bumping into each other in the dark, the plan worked out without a hitch. First, the box was taken to the car. Then the bedspread, and lastly the bookshelf. They had to be extremely careful to not bump the bookshelf into any walls or fixtures. Luckily, they had the carpeted floors on their side, so setting it down was no problem. Walking without shoes on carpet was essentially silent, as well. After waddling out to his car with the shelf, they set it down on the tree lawn to take a breather.

“You sure this is okay?” Jeremy asked.

“A little late to be asking that question, dontcha think, Jay?” she laughed through her breath.

“Will you be okay tomorrow?” he rephrased.

“I think so. Probably. Mom still goes in your room all the time, but I’ll just put one of your old bedspreads on the mattress. If she notices, I’ll just tell her that I’m washing the bedspread you took, or something.”

“What if she asks about it later?”

“I dunno. Guess I’ll figure that out later. At least I’ll buy some time to keep her off my back in the meantime. Besides, that’s only if she notices. No offense Jay, but all the comforters you’ve ever had have had stripes. They all kinda look the same.”

He chuckled, sheepishly.

“Well, just be careful.”

“I always am,” she shrugged, “So, what’s your plan now? Graduating college and everything?” she asked and took a seat on top of his trunk, “You moving far away from here? I can’t imagine the two-hour drive right now is enough distance.”

Jeremy hopped up to sit next to her. They both laid back and looked at the few stars still visible in the suburban light pollution.

“I actually came to talk to you about that,” he said.

“Hmm. So, out with it, then. Where you headed?”

“Nowhere,” he replied.

“Oh, come on, you’ve gotta have somewhere to go.”

“No, Maddie. I’m staying in Curiesville.”

“What? Why?” she sat up and cross-examined, “Don’t you want to get the hell out of Crazy Town?”

“Of course, I do. But I got accepted into a PhD program at CVU in the fall. So, I’m staying there for a while longer.”

“Wait, you’re going back to school? What the hell, man, why?”

“Most jobs I can get are entry level right now, and advancement will take a while. And I’ve always wanted to do research,” he shrugged, “A PhD is a surefire way to really contribute to the body of science. To make some real advancements. To make something new and to make the world better, you know?”

“I guess, man. If it makes you happy, at least.”

“You’re almost done with high-school, right? Two years left?”

“If half-way is almost done in your mind, then yeah, sure,” she scoffed.

“How’s it going so far?” he asked, “I know we haven’t had much time to talk about it since you started.”

“Honestly, I bitch and complain about a lot of stuff, including school, but it’s actually not so bad. I’m not in any of those fancy-pantsy AP science classes like you were, but they’re still interesting. I’ve written a few articles for the school newspaper, actually,” she smiled, “My journalism teacher runs the newspaper and seems to like having me on the team. It’s a nice way to forget about mom and dad at least.”

“That’s great. Have you thought about what you want to do afterwards?” he asked.

Madison laughed and rolled her eyes.

“You sound like everyone else, now. ‘What are you doing with your life, Maddie?’ ‘Apply to colleges early, Maddie!’ ‘Don’t vape in the girl’s bathroom, Maddie!’” she mocked.

“Wait, what?”

“To be honest, I just planned on making a break for it when I turn eighteen.”

“Where to?”

“Dunno, don’t care. Across the country maybe. They have Targets and Walmarts in every state, figured I’d just work at one of those,” she said flippantly.

“You think you’d be happy with that?” Jeremy interviewed.

“Beats wasting away at forty, living in mom’s spare room, listening her talk about what a disappointment I am.”

“You don’t want to go to college?”

“Pfff, fat chance. Nowhere to live, no colleges in mind, and no money to pay for it.”

“There’s always financial aid. Loans to take out. Scholarships, all kinds of stuff. You just have to know where to look,” Jeremy persisted.

“Yeah, maybe you could get scholarships, genius. Do I look like someone who could do that?”

“Maddie, if you have a pulse, you can get scholarships. I applied for one that awarded me $500 for having a GPA above 3.0 and explaining why I thought I deserved the scholarship. It really can be that easy.”

“I guess so. That’s still just one piece of a way bigger puzzle, though.”

“Alright, I’ll just get to the point,” Jeremy sighed and sat up, “I get a yearly stipend of $30,000 to live off while I get my PhD. With some careful searching, that can cover basically all our living expenses. Both of us. And it could leave us with a little extra left over if we need it. We can get you financial aid and loans to pay for your classes,” he argued.

Madison turned to look at him directly. She pursed her lips and furrowed her brow, ruminating with her internal conflicts.

“Whoa, whoa, man. You’re… not serious, are you?” she asked.

“If I was joking, you would be laughing, Maddie,”

She furrowed her brow and scoffed.

“Shut up,” Jeremy scoffed back, “Yes, I’m serious. So, what’s your answer?”

“…It sounds nice, honestly, Jeremy, but… I couldn’t put you out like that. You’re… I mean, God, I hate that I’m going to say this, but you’re brilliant! Crazy smart and hard-working, and shit just comes to you, but it doesn’t work like that for me. I’m not anything special. I don’t even know what I would study…”

“You’ve got time to figure it out. Just think about it. Or you could work at Target in Curiesville with a familiar face around and build up some savings. Either way… you don’t have to fend for yourself if you don’t want to.”

“…You’re really okay with that. Sharing a place and supporting the family fuck-up?”

“You’re not the family fuck-up, mom and dad are.”

She nodded and grimaced in agreement.

“Where would we live?” she probed.

“Probably an apartment. They’re usually cheaper. There’s all kinds of options that we can look at, especially when you get closer to eighteen and have been accepted to the university and/or gotten a job at the Target of your choosing.”

“…And you really think that I can do college?” she persisted in her skepticism.

“You don’t have to be perfect. All you have to do is try your best, study, and talk to your professors. Most of them really want you to succeed, too. And I’ll be there to help you along the way if you need it. Seeing as how I just went through four years of college; I could probably answer a lot of questions for you. You would just have to keep me updated on how things are going and ask for help when you need it. If you want to quit and get a job instead, that would be okay, too. Just don’t give up on your classes without withdrawing and dropping out of the next semester. Otherwise, you’ll just build debt from classes you didn’t plan on passing, and that will be harder for us to deal with.”

“Well… I guess it would be nice to know that I’ve got a place to go once I can leave…” she said to herself, “I’ll think about the college thing. But if you’re totally sure that you’re okay with finding a place together…”

“I am,” he said firmly.

Madison slowly let go of her prudent attitude and let her beaming smile shine through. She squealed under her breath and glommed onto Jeremy in excitement. He grinned and returned her hug.

“Oh, our place would look so great, too! Can you imagine? I can already see it, now! Nice couch, sweet-ass TV for movie and videogame nights with ice-cream, ugh! Why can’t I just fast-forward two years already.”

He pulled himself away to look at her.

“It’ll go by faster than you think. Especially since you have school to do until then. Make sure to keep your grades up and build some good relationships with your teachers now, so that you can have a good application to CVU, if you want it, alright? You’ll need them to write good letters of recommendation. Next time we talk, we can talk about the SAT, too.”

“Oh yeah, I actually convinced mom to get me one of those study books for it? You know the ones.”

Jeremy smirked.

“So, you were already thinking about college, then?” he analyzed.

“Wh—I—I mean—yeah, a little. Just out of curiosity. With everyone talking about it, and everything…”

“Okay. Sure. Good for you,” Jeremy teased.

“What!”

“Nothing!” he laughed, “Just impressed. Study hard. I’m sure you’ll do very well.”

“I’m not a nerd like you though, let’s make that clear,” she guarded, pushing her hands out, defensively.

“I didn’t say anything,” he grinned.

“Yeah, but you’re looking at me with that shit-eating grin!” she slapped him on the arm.

“Oh!” he exclaimed, “Alright, there’s no need for violence, here. Especially since nerds can’t fight, anyway.”

“Hey!” she protested.

“What? I just meant me,” he taunted, “…and those closely related,” he mumbled.

“Jay!”

“What?! Come on, let’s get this bookshelf in the car before the sun comes up, and mom puts us in a cage or something.”

Jeremy hopped off the trunk of his car and helped Madison down, as well. They muscled the bookshelf on its side into the back of his car and shut the doors. That was everything Jeremy had returned home for. They stood on the sidewalk, avoiding the goodbye that neither wanted to say.

“So… what are you doing, now?” she asked.

“Well, I’m taking this stuff back to my place and setting it up, I suppose. I’ve had a bit more free time to make the trip out here since I graduated yesterday. Everything been okay here with mom and dad?”

“Eh, well, not much has changed, if that’s what you mean. Mom is still the same dictator she-demon she’s always been, rambling about you and how you’re basically science’s second coming of Christ, but also she hates you for moving away?”

“Makes sense.”

“And dad is… well, he’s nice sometimes, I guess. But he’ll never stand up for either of us when mom is going on an abusive tirade. Honest to god, I think he should just divorce her for his sake, even if I have to stay. He’s not here against his will, I don’t know why he doesn’t just leave.”

“Who knows. Fear, maybe? One thing I learned about dad early on is that when fear kicks in, he’s basically useless. And so long as he’s married to mom, he’s scared all the time.”

“Ain’t that the truth,” Madison agreed, “Well, I’m not too scared to leave, and when I do, you and I are living it up!”

“It’ll be great,” Jeremy smiled faintly.

They both trailed off, and their talk met its natural end. He knew it was time to go. Madison watched his smile fade away, and hers followed quickly behind.

“I guess this is it, huh?” she said, “You gonna be okay making the drive back?”

“I think so. I slept in today on purpose today.”

“Heh. You even plan on sleeping in…” she chuckled, “…When are we gonna see each other again, Jay?”

“…I’m not sure. The summer will be busy for me while I work to save up some extra money for us. Maybe sometime in the fall when I get the hang of my new program.”

“Okay,” she frowned, “It’s just that… I miss ya sometimes, ya know?”

Her eyes swelled up and a tear rolled down her cheek. She kept herself composed and quiet to avoid waking anyone up.

“I miss you a lot, too, Maddie. Why do you think I planned out the next two years of your life?” he joked.

She let out a half-laugh-half-gasp.

“I guess that’s true.”

“You have my number still, right?”

“I do.”

“Good. Maybe we can talk more that way, send each other pictures and whatnot,” he sniffed.

“Yeah, good idea. We should do that.”

They both suddenly clung to each other and held on as tight as they could, quietly sniveling into each other’s shoulders. They clinched each other until their arms were tired, since they knew they wouldn’t be seeing each other for six months. Jeremy quietly spoke into her shoulder.

“Thank you for helping me,” he said.

“Heh, aww, come on, it was nothin’,” she said, “Anything to see my state-issued nerd, again,” she smiled and wiped her eyes with her forearm, “Thanks for planning me a better life.”

“It wasn’t that hard,” he chuckled, “I’ll see you soon, okay?”

“Okay. Love you, Jay,” she whispered.

“Love you too, Maddie.”

They squeezed each other tight once more, and disbanded. Madison then gave Jeremy space to get into his car. She stood on the sidewalk with her arms folded in front of her, watching him get ready to leave. He pulled into the next driveway across the street, turned his car around, and flashed his headlights on his way out. Madison waved goodbye from the tree lawn until she watched him turn down the next road.

Then, her neighborhood was as quiet and still as it was before he came.

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mrsteveecook · 5 years

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updates: coworkers think I’m an intern, the hugging vendor, and more

It’s “where are you now?” month at Ask a Manager, and all December I’m running updates from people who had their letters here answered in the past. Here are five updates from past letter-writers.

1. My coworkers think I’m an intern … but I’m not

The people on my team who were repeatedly referring to me as an intern, particularly the woman who asked me to get her mail, continued to do so even after corrections from me and my supervisor, and after using some of the script examples you provided. So, clearly, they just wanted to call me by the wrong title, and I let it go.

I was able to assuage a lot of the tension by aligning myself more closely with some of the senior members of my team (especially a couple of execs who went to bat for me whenever I was called by the wrong title at events or in meetings). This lead to my involvement on high-level, high-stakes projects with a much larger reach and deliverables that really shine on my resume. Better yet, I could easily turn down tasks that really were the intern’s job, because I really was busy with other things! “I’m sorry, Jane, I don’t have time to go to the mailroom today! I’ll be in the Teapot Warehouse with Gerta, finalizing details for the Earl Grey Project. Our intern, Fergus, usually handles things like that, so you may want to forward your request to him. Thanks for understanding!”

And best of all…I have a new job! I’ll be working in a similar field but with a narrow focus on my favorite part of the industry, and it’s a pretty big promotion, too. It is a weight off my shoulders–I’d been considering making the move into my special-interest niche for a while, but after being at this company for 18 months, I came to realize it wouldn’t be able to happen here. I just broke the news to my team before I saw your call for updates! The senior-level team members who I’ve been working closely with are beside themselves with joy for me–they’re such wonderful people and I hope we will stay in touch. As for the people who were rude/snarky about “forgetting” I am not an intern? They pretended they couldn’t hear me when I was telling the team about my new position, but I am sure they are livid that their “intern” will have a title that carries more weight than theirs. Oh well!

2. Our vendor has started hugging everyone

I’m not sure if a bunch of the people at our vendor read AAM but at our next meeting, before I could try anything, one of the reps actually asked if I was a handshake or a hug person and it’s been handshakes all the way since then.

What a relief! I’m someone who doesn’t even particularly like hugging family so this has been a huge improvement.

Update to the update:

Actually, sorry, I had a meeting there again today! Most of the year my meetings have been with person A who switched to handshakes easily. Today’s meeting was with person B, who again shook hands with everyone except me and, seeing me all the way across the room, immediately opened their arms for a hug.

I said something about wanting handshakes instead and one of my colleagues quietly asked if I knew that person outside of work. It was a little embarrassing! But I’ll just keep pushing for handshakes in the meantime.

3. My boss asked me to change my ringtone (#2 at the link)

I’m the OP who was asked by my manager to change the ringtone on my phone, despite the fact that I have mine on 20-25%, while others in the office with ringtones that are a lot more jarring have theirs on full blast.

While some did sympathize with the unequal treatment, the general consensus was I needed to suck up and deal. The reality here is that the client (I was client-facing) just did not like *me* personally, and fought against everything I was trying to do in order to fulfill *his* intent, so I was under a microscope from the day I started on that contract. I could do no right, hence the unequal treatment.

I went to my corporate leadership, and they got me off that contract, and onto another one where they appreciate my skills, everyone’s chill, and nobody worries about what someone’s ringtone is. I’ve been a lot happier at work since September…especially since I can also see the details of the work I’m doing, and the good effects it has on the new client. Also, my corporate leadership, when they rolled me off the previous contract, explicitly told me that this was NOT considered performance issues on my part, and I was still considered as doing a fantastic job.

This current gig is good through mid-March, and then I need to have something else to go to or be on the bench until I find something, so I’ve got great work, appreciation, and plenty of time to find the next gig. It doesn’t get much better than this.

4. My boss pushes me to buy things from her spouse

I no longer work there. I gave notice shortly after you published my letter. I couldn’t take my boss being so aggressive about her wife’s products. It was constant and the stress was making me sick. She also upped the commenting on my clothing and every aspect of my appearance/every part of my body. This included telling me I am “delicious” and saying I have a “juicy apple butt” she just wanted to bite.

Her friend in the HR department and her boss (the president) did not take my concerns seriously. They completely ignored the MLM stuff, saying she was just being a supportive. Both of them also told me that I could sexually harass her but not the other way around (women can’t harass men). I was told this in my exit interview.

My cousin’s wife is divorcing him and she moved out. I moved in with him because he needed a roommate. My lease was up anyways. We lived together after college and I was employed before him and covered all the rent until he got a job, so he said he would return the favor for me because he knew how bad my situation was here. My boss doesn’t know my new address so her wife can’t send me anymore MLM stuff in the mail. Even though I’m unemployed I am no longer stressed out. I am job hunting and hope to find something soon.

5. My boss keeps invading my personal space (#2 at the link, and first update is here)

As I mentioned in my update, I had been actively searching for jobs after realizing my boss sucked and wasn’t going to change. One day after work I stopped at the grocery store and picked up my region’s local magazine, which was boasting the best places to work in 2017. I flipped through and was enamored with #1- a nationally-known culture, a cause I believe in, and a young, tech-savvy workforce. I went home and checked their website…they had a junior position open. It would still be a reach for me (not an assistant position), but I had nothing to lose by applying. So I applied.

A week later, I had an interview. Then another interview. Then a team lunch. Then I was offered the job.

I quit my job and my horrendous boss was speechless. He was rude and more dismissive and belligerent than usual during my notice period, but I didn’t let that get me down- he got himself into this mess, and I had an escape route.

My new company is wonderful! My team is kind and welcoming, and genuinely excited to have me. I’m doing work that stretches me! And best of all: today a coworker was answering a question I had about the company interface, so he came over to my desk (I have my own area, away from the front door!), pointed to one of my monitors (I have two now!!), then said, “Oh, sorry! I didn’t mean to get all up in your personal space! Do you mind if I step in and show you how to do X?” (!!!)

I’m being respected, treated like a competent human, and I have new tech coming out of my ears. I never would have applied to this position if I hadn’t believed I was capable of more through the constant encouragement of my husband and the push from the AAM community. Thank you, truly.